Thank you to everyone who has read, reviewed, followed and favorited so far.
TW: Glad you enjoyed it. Agreed.
After finishing lunch, during which Jack had fulfilled his promised and explained to Wilf the event that led to his immortality, the group returned to the viewing room. They all took their seats before the TV turned on again.
In a city floating in space, at a school, kids are getting ready to leave for the day. As they walk towards the front, an automated voice tells them 'well done'.
"One of those old Starships then," Jack muttered and Jane nodded.
"Old Starships?" Wilf repeated in confusion.
"In the twenty-ninth century, a solar flare causes the earth's temperature to rise. For our survival, humanity fled earth in Starships like these. Judging from the United Kingdom flag on the side, I'd say this is Starship UK," Jack mused.
"So this is the future of the human race then," Donna mused.
"Oh don't worry, we stick around until the end of the universe," Martha quickly assured her, remembering the trip to Utopia.
"Dad used to joke you were all like cockroaches. The harder something tried to snuff you out, the more you stuck it out," Jane laughed as she remembered.
"I will try not to take that personally," Mickey said in dry amusement.
A boy is sitting at his desk, scared. One of his classmates, a girl, gestures him forward. He grabs his bag and heads towards the line. As he reaches the front of the line, it's revealed the automated voice is from an android that resembles a man smiling.
"Smilers," Jack said in surprise. "So this is before the turn to the forth millennia then."
"You can tell that based on that thing?" Donna asked in surprise.
"One of the first things I learned after joining the Time Agency. Those androids, or Smilers, were used as security on Starships until the year 3995. Starship UK was the first to get rid of them," Jack explained.
"Who wants to bet Boss had something to do with that?" Mickey asked with a smirk.
"Only a dumbo would take that bet," Donna said and no one argued.
The Smiler calls the boy, Timmy, a bad boy and gives him a zero. It turns its head around to reveal a displeased face.
"They call these things Smilers?" Martha asked sarcastically.
"I didn't pay too much attention to this part of the manual," Jack admitted a little sheepishly.
"Seems like they were used for more than just security," Donna noted.
In the hall, Timmy's friend tells him he has to walk home because he got a zero. When he protests, she points out he'll 'get sent below' if he rides the Vator with a zero. His friend boards the Vator with the other kids and Timmy eyes a dark robed man uneasily. His friend promises to wait for him before the doors close. Eying the Smiler for a moment, Timmy walks up to the next Vator, waiting until it opens and walks inside.
"Something tells me the kid should have listened to his friend," Mickey said uneasily.
"I think we're about to find out either way," Jack said, sharing the same uncomfortable feeling as Mickey.
The Vator has another Smiler inside and Timmy tells it to take him to London. The doors close and Timmy waits as, behind him, an image of a girl appears on the monitor, saying a rhyme that seems to unnerve Timmy. The Smiler turns itself towards Timmy, its face now angry. Suddenly, the Vator begins shooting down the shoot at rapid speed. Timmy runs towards the buttons, crying for help as he frantically tries to stop it. When it reaches zero, the floor opens up and Timmy screams in horror as he falls into the red pit below.
"Bloody Hell!" Mickey exclaimed in horror as they all stared at the screen in horror.
"What kind of police state is this?!" Donna exclaimed angrily.
"Keep the children in line and the adults will fall in line. It's a strategy I've sadly seen used more than once in my life," Jack said grimly.
"The future of humanity everyone," Mickey said darkly.
"Oh like the present day is any better. North Korea, Russia, China. Jack, feel like sharing the British Government's response to the 456 incident?" Jane asked flippantly and Jack winced.
"I'd rather not," Jack muttered as the humans all looked uncomfortable at the turn of conversation.
"Corruption in the government is sadly nothing new, it's been around since governments were formed," Jane pointed out.
"I wish I could say you were wrong. But I've seen too much to think you were," Wilf sighed heavily.
The scene changes to space. At the TARDIS, Amy is floating outside, The Doctor holding her by her leg. "My name is Amy Pond. When I was seven, I had an imaginary friend. Last night was the night before my wedding," Amy narrates as The Doctor tells her it's time to come back inside. "And my imaginary friend came back." The Doctor pulls Amy back inside and Amy admits the TARDIS is a spaceship in excitement. She asks what they're breathing and The Doctor explains he's extended the air shell. Looking down, The Doctor sees Starship UK.
"And who could have guessed that The Doctor would get involved with something wrong on Starship UK?" Martha asked sarcastically.
"Since this does seem to play like a TV show, I guess that makes sense," Jack mused.
"The TARDIS and Dad wanted to make sure they weren't boring," Jane shrugged.
As he races to the controls, The Doctor explains humanity leaves Earth in the 29th century after a solar flare roasts the planet. So caught up in his excitement, The Doctor doesn't realize he left Amy outside until she calls his name. Opening the door to find Amy clinging to the top of the TARDIS, The Doctor ushers her inside.
"Oh Spaceman," Donna said as they all laughed.
"This Regeneration seems a lot more excitable," Jack noted.
"He's like a big kid at times, you almost forget how old he is," Jane said wistfully.
Once Amy is inside, The Doctor explains that Starship UK is the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland build together. It's a whole country, living and laughing as it searches for a new home, The Doctor notes wistfully.
"Does sound nice when he puts it like that," Donna said wistfully.
"That's only the surface. I'm more interested in what lies below," Jack said, remembering what happened to Timmy.
Amy asks if they can go see it and The Doctor says they can but there are some 'things first'. They are observers only, never getting involved in the affairs of the planet or its people.
"Oh please, like you've ever done that," Jack said as they all laughed.
"I've lost count of how many times he's interfered in the affairs of planets," Martha noted.
"The Ood, the Library, even when we first met you Jenny. Sorry, Jane," Donna corrected herself.
"It's fine. Dad does interfere with history of planets, but he tries never to mess with fixed points. You mess with those and it is not pretty," Jane said with a wince.
Amy notes it's like a wildlife documentary. As she sees a girl crying on the scanner, she asks him if it's hard to be so cold and detached. Suddenly, to Amy's surprise, The Doctor appears on the scanner, bumping into the girl. He gestures for Amy to come out and she runs out excitedly.
"She does realize she's still in her nightie?" Wilf asked in surprise.
"All of time and space Granddad, you tend to forget the little things like that," Donna said with a slight smile.
As Amy steps outside, she looks around in awe, realizing she's hundreds of years In the future and has been dead for centuries.
"Well isn't she a cheery one," Jack said sarcastically.
"It is kind of morbid to think we've all been dead for centuries by then. Well, all of us except you Jack," Martha said as she glanced over at Jack.
"Hey, maybe I'm still around somewhere in these recordings," Jack said with a shrug.
The Doctor ushers her along, asking her what's wrong with this picture. Amy's first thought is a child on a bicycle but The Doctor points out she's still in her nightie. The Doctor encourages her to actually look, revealing that Starship UK is actually a police state on the verge of collapse. As they pass a couple sitting at a table, he takes a glass of water and sets it on the ground.
"That's…weird, even for him," Martha said as the former companions looked at the screen oddly.
"Knowing The Doctor, he's testing a theory of some kind," Jack noted.
"Does he normally do things like this?" Wilf wondered.
"Gramps, I don't even know where to start," Donna said honestly.
The couple and Amy look at him in confusion as nothing happens and he puts the water back. The Doctor then points Amy to the girl, Timmy's friend, who is crying. As The Doctor and Amy approach the girl, behind them, a man in black robes walks up where they had just been standing, watching with a dark look.
"A police state alright," Jack said darkly.
"I guess those men in robes are like the secret police or something," Mickey mused.
"Or something," Jane said darkly.
On another level, a man watches The Doctor and Amy on security footage as he picks up a phone. He asks if the man in black robes is sure and the man confirms he is before asking if he's 'going to tell her'. The man confirms he is before ordering the dark robed man to keep tabs on The Doctor. The man then calls a woman in expensive, beautiful robes to tell her there's been a sighting in the London block of a man who 'did the thing'. The woman declares she'll have a look on the monitors before putting on a mask. It's revealed the woman has various glasses placed around the room on the floor as she walks out of the room.
"So those men in black robes, they all answer to this woman," Wilf mused.
"I'm more interested in those glasses on the floor," Jack admitted as they all looked at him oddly. "The Doctor is clearly onto something. There's something about those glasses on the floor."
"Only Boss would pick on something being wrong with glass on the floor," Mickey said in amusement.
"That woman, there's something…I don't know," Donna mused, not sure how to describe it.
"I know, I feel it to. There's something off about her," Jack agreed as they all pondered the mysterious woman.
As they sat on a bench, Amy is confused why The Doctor cares so much about a girl crying. He points out she's crying silently, which means she can't stop crying, which any parent would know.
"How does he know that?" Martha asked before realization hit her. "Has he…had children before? Besides you Jane?"
"Yes," the answer came, from the surprise of all, Donna. "He told me after we'd met her that he'd been a father before."
"According to Torchwood records, The Doctor's first recorded companion was his granddaughter, although there's been no confirmation of that," Jack revealed.
"Dad really did lose everything in the Time War," Jane noted as they all stared at the screen in sadness.
"Oh Doctor," Martha whispered, tears welling in her eyes as she and Mickey held hands.
Amy asks if he's a parent and he dodges the question, noting that there are hundreds of parents passing by and none of them find this odd. Meaning they know and it's something they don't talk about. And since they're not helping the girl, it's a secret The Doctor explains, something they're afraid off.
"So they know what's going on then," Mickey realized.
"Fear is used to keep them in line. They know enough to be afraid," Jack said grimly.
Another android is watching this and the girl gets up to leave. Amy realizes the girl is gone and is stunned when The Doctor identifies her as Mandy Tanner, somehow knowing where she lives. He pulls out Mandy's identification, having taken it earlier when he bumped into her.
"Oh that is so him," Martha said as they all laughed.
"I guess I rubbed off on him a little," Jack joked.
The Doctor hands her the identification telling Amy to go find her and ask Mandy about the Smilers. The Doctor points out while everything else is filthy, the Smilers are clean and no one is going near them. The Doctor tells Amy to ask Mandy why people are scared of the Smilers. Amy protests and he tells her he can take her back to Leadworth, it's her choice. The Doctor tells Amy to meet him back there in half an hour as she unhappily asks what he'll do. "What I always do," The Doctor said as he got to his feet, jumping over the bench. "Keep out of trouble, badly."
"In other words, ignore all keep out signs and poke his nose where it doesn't belong," Martha said amused.
"The usual," Donna said in amusement.
Amy asks if this is how it works, he never interferes unless there are children crying. He says yes before walking off, to Amy's amusement. Amy looks over at the Smiler before looking down at Mandy's identification. Amy begins following Mandy. As she rounds a corner, Mandy is seen waiting for her, noting Amy is following her.
"Well, that didn't go as planned," Mickey noted.
"In her defense, it is her first trip with Dad," Jane said with a shrug.
"Were we any different our first time,? Martha pointed out and Mickey shrugged, conceding her point.
Amy gives Mandy back her identification, saying she dropped it. When The Doctor bumped into her, Mandy points out. As Amy follows Mandy, they discover part of the road that is sealed off, a 'keep out' sign in front of it.
"Well if that's not suspicious, I don't know what is," Jack noted.
"They might as well have put a sign that says 'nothing suspicious here' in front of it," Donna agreed with a laugh.
As Amy inquires about it, Mandy says there's a hole in the road and they need to go to a travel pipe. Noting how unnerved by it Mandy is, Amy heads towards it, noting she never 'could resist a keep out sign'. As Amy finds a lock in the door, she asks why Mandy is so scared of the hole. Mandy says she's not supposed to talk about it as she glances nervously at a Smiler. Below, Mandy says when Amy asks.
"Where they sent that boy," Wilf realized.
"They keep the children in line by telling them if they misbehave, they'll be sent below. It's not that different from most dictatorships I've seen," Jack mused.
Amy pulls out a hairclip, using it to try and pick the lock. Mandy notes Amy sounds Scottish, which Amy confirms. Scotland wanted their own ship Mandy says when Amy mentions Scotland being on board. "Good for them. Nothing changes," Amy noted happily. Behind them, a Smilers face shifts to displeased as Mandy asks how Amy got here. When Amy says she came with a guy, Mandy ask if he was her boyfriend. This causes Amy to remember she was getting married, which had slipped her mind.
"Getting married slipped her mind?" Donna asked in disbelief.
"In her defense, when a man offers to take you traveling through time and space, it does cause you to forget things that are otherwise important," Martha mused.
Mandy asks Amy when. "It's kind of weird. A long time ago, tomorrow morning. I wonder what I did," Amy mused before she manages to unlock the lock.
"She didn't know what she was going to do on her wedding day?" Wilf asked in disbelief.
"Like I said, she's clearly panicking. She has abandonment issues from Dad. And from losing her parents. And from being raised by an aunt who really didn't care that much about her. Honestly, I'm surprised Amy isn't more screwed up," Jane mused.
Amy asks Mandy if she was coming and she said no as the android's face switched to angry. Amy heads inside, finding herself in a tent. Finding a wind up light on the ground, Amy picks it up and turns it on, finding what seems to be a giant root sticking out of the ground.
"What the bloody Hell!?" Donna exclaimed as the past viewers all stared in disbelief.
"Jack? What is this?" Martha asked.
"Don't look at me. Just because I come from the future doesn't mean I know everything going on here," Jack said, as lost as them.
It attacks Amy, knocking the light out of her hand and she crawl backwards out of the tent. As she exits it, she finds herself surrounded by several men in black cloaks. One of them holds out a hand, which has a ring on it. The ring shoots out some kind of gas in Amy's face and she passes out.
"And now Amy's been abducted. Great," Mickey said sarcastically.
"Might as well be a rite of passage. You're not really The Doctor's companion until you've been kidnapped," Martha mused.
"Do you get kidnapped often?" Wilf asked in concern.
"More often than we'd like," Donna said with a grimace.
On another level, The Doctor climbs down a ladder into the engine room. Placing his ear against the wall, he seems to come to some kind of conclusion. Pulling out his screwdriver, he uses it on the wall. Looking down, he sees a glass of water on the floor. Getting on his hands, The Door looks at it as someone walks up to him. Looking up, The Doctor sees it is the woman from earlier wearing the mask. "An impossible truth in a glass of water. Not many see it," she whispers as he stands. "But you do, don't you Doctor?"
"So this is about the water then," Mickey mused.
"What's so special about that water?" Martha wondered.
"I'd like to know who this woman is myself," Wilf said.
"Something tells me we'll find out," Jack mused and Jane smiled.
"Good things come to those who wait," she said cryptically.
He asks if she knows him and she tells him to keep his voice down as 'they' are everywhere. She asks him what he saw in the water and, although evasive, The Doctor admits that there's no engine vibration after some prodding. On a ship that size, the water would move. Opening a fuse box, The Doctor reveals its empty, save unconnected wires. Tapping the wall, The Doctor notes there's nothing behind there." If I didn't know any better, I'd say-"The Doctor started. "There's no engine at all," the woman finishes with him, taking him aback.
"A ship without an engine is impossible," Jack said in disbelief.
"Just like a time traveling police box, right?" Jane asked with a slight grin and Jack had no response. "It'll all make sense soon Jack, trust me."
"Besides, haven't you learned by now? The more you travel with The Doctor, the less sense things make," Martha said amused.
The Doctor notes the ship is flying and the woman reveals the 'impossible ship is flying among the stars in a spaceship that can never fly'. The Doctor demands how and she admits she doesn't know. "There's a darkness at the heart of this nation, it threatens every one of us," the woman told him before asking for his help. She calls him their 'only hope' before holding him a small device, claiming it will take him to Amy but he must hurry. As she walks off, The Doctor asks who she is and how he'll find her. She introduces herself as Liz 10 and says she will find him. The lights flash and when they fade, Liz 10 is gone.
"And that's not suspicious at all," Martha muttered.
"She did help him find Amy," Donna pointed out.
"But why? What's her angle? Is she a well-meaning citizen trying to free her people from an oppressive government or is she trying to use The Doctor?" Jack wondered.
"Either way, looks like we're going to find out," Mickey noted.
Amy wakes in a chair, in front of a machine with four monitors with three buttons that read 'protest, record and forget'. A Smiler is a few feet away, watching her. An automated voice tells Amy that her identity is being verified by an 'electoral roll'.
"Electoral roll, like voting?" Martha asked in disbelief.
"Was not expecting that," Jack admitted.
As Amy sits back down wearily, it identifies her name and gives her age as 1306, causing her to laugh. However, the smile is wiped off Amy's face when it lists her marital status as 'information unavailable'.
"Well I guess that makes sense, right? She ran out on her wedding after all, she has to go back," Martha mused.
"I don't think it works like that," Donna said as she remembered the Library. "Before Davros, The Doctor and I met a woman, River Song. She knew The Doctor, in the future. She knew what would happen to me, that I'd forget."
"So if Amy's information isn't available…what does that mean?" Mickey asked uneasily.
"It's complicated. You'll understand soon," Jane promised.
A video presentation then begins the four monitors all showing a man with grey hair in a suit. "You are here because you want to know the truth about the Starship and you are entitled to know. When this Presentation is finished, you will have a choice. You may either protest or forget. If you choose 'protest', understand this: if 1% chooses as you do, the program will discontinue with consequences for you all," the man warned. "If you choose the forget button, and we hope that you will, all the information that I am about to give you will be erased. You will continue to enjoy the safety and amenities of Starship UK, unburdened by the knowledge of what has been done to save you." The man then gives Amy the truth, declaring 'May God have mercy on our souls'.
"So basically he's all but forcing the people who vote to choose forget," Martha noted. "By telling the people who vote there will be consequences for them, it all but guilts the voters into choosing forget."
"I'm more concerned with what they did that is so bad," Mickey noted.
"You'll find out," Jane said with a grimace.
"Is it as bad as this guy is saying?" Donna inquired and Jane looked at her with a look that made Donna's blood run cold.
"Worse."
A variety of images are seen in Amy's mind before she suddenly finds herself with her hand over the 'forget' button. As Amy tried to process what has happened, she finds a massage on the monitor. This time, it is of herself, crying as she warns herself to get The Doctor back to the TARDIS, whatever she has to do. The door to the booth then opens as The Doctor enters the doorway, Mandy sitting on a bench behind him as the message begins to play again. Amy turns it off as he demands what she's done.
"Have to admit, wasn't expecting that," Jack said as the past viewers stared at the screen in shock.
"It really must be bad then, whatever it is," Martha said uneasily.
The Doctor examines the machine, determining it's a basic memory wipe machine. Amy wonders why she chose to forget and Mandy says everyone does. The Doctor asks if she did and Mandy says she's not eligible to vote yet. She's twelve and the voting age is sixteen. The votes are every five years. The Doctor notes every five years the population chooses to forget what they've learned, which he calls 'democracy in action'.
"Is it really democracy if every voter feels like they have a gun pointed at their head if they don't choose to forget?" Mickey wondered.
"No. Its fear mongering, maybe a dictatorship, but it's not democracy," Jack said grimly.
"Like Dad said at the beginning, it's a police state. Any democracy is merely an illusion," Jane said sadly.
As The Doctor sits back down, Mandy wonders how he doesn't know about this, asking if he's Scottish. The Doctor says he's 'way worse than Scottish', as the machine won't play for him. Amy points out it played for her and he explains the machine doesn't recognize him as human. Amy notes he looks human and The Doctor counters she looks Time Lord and they came first. Amy asks if there are other Time Lords and after a moment he says no.
"Shouldn't have broached that subject," Jack said with a grimace.
"In her defense, it's not like she knew," Martha pointed out.
"It's something we all have to learn at some point. Just wish he didn't have to keep telling the same story," Donna said sadly.
There were, but there aren't, it's just him now, the rest died on 'a bad day' The Doctor explains. He'd love to forget why, but he doesn't, because this is what he does, he explains firmly.
"You can't forget, but you do have to go on," Jack said, a faraway look in his eyes as he thought of Owen, Tosh, Grey, Ianto and Steven.
"Jack? You okay?" Martha asked concerned and Jack seemed to come out of the trance he was in.
"Yeah. Fine," Jack said and although Martha didn't believe him, she let it go for now, seeing he wouldn't budge on the matter.
"Hold tight," he says as he places Amy's hands on the machine. "We're bringing down the government." The Doctor then hits the Protest button and the doors close, locking Mandy out as the android's face turns angry. The Doctor and Amy step back as the floor opens up, revealing the red pit from earlier. The Doctor laughs as Amy screams before they are sucked into the pit.
"Just like old times," Martha said wistfully. "Is it bad that I've missed it?"
"If you're bad, I'm worse. I didn't even remember any of it and I missed it," Donna said with a smile.
"I think there's part of us that will always miss it. But we've got to move on some time," Jack mused.
Outside the booth, Mandy watches as the booth flashes empty. She turns around, startled as she finds Liz 10 standing behind her. But Liz takes off her mask and Mandy seems to recognize her.
"So Liz is someone close to Mandy?' Wilf wondered.
"Not exactly. Just keep watching," Jane said with a smile.
Down below, The Doctor and Amy land in a dark, misty room filled with filth. As Amy is disgusted by the filth she is now covered in, The Doctor uses his screwdriver, noting they were shot down a high speed air cannon.
"I'm not sure what's more disgusting, the filth or the air cannon," Martha said as she and Donna looked disgusted.
"Where are they though?" Jack wondered and no one had an answer.
Amy asks where they are and The Doctor makes a joke about it being Lancashire. Amy gets up; declaring it a 'rubbish dump' as The Doctor notes there's only food refuse. Amy notes the food is squishy when they hear what sounds like a whine, to their shock.
"Please tell me they are not where I think are," Donna said as realization hit them all.
"Would you like the truth or a lie?" Jane asked.
"What is this, Pinocchio?" Martha asked in disbelief.
"Apparently. So a creature is being kept on the shop as a way to dispose of anyone who votes to protest," Jack said mused. "But how did it get on the ship?"
"Just wait for it," Jane said vaguely.
The Doctor realizes it's not a floor but hesitates on saying what it is. He tries to urge Amy to calm down without much success before revealing it's a tongue, to Amy's shock. Amy realizes they are in a mouth, to The Doctor's excitement.
"Only you would get excited by being trapped in a mouth Spaceman," Donna said, torn between amusement and exasperation.
"It's The Doctor. Did you expect any differently?" Jack asked and Donna shrugged, conceding his point.
The Doctor begins to fanboy over seeing the stomach before the creature whines and he remembers the situation. Amy demands to know how they get out and The Doctor notes since the creature is being fed through a feeding tube, they should try to find the normal exit. However, they find the lips and it is closed around dozens of sharp teeth. Amy says they could try moving towards the lips when the mouth begins to shake. The Doctor says the swallow reflex has been triggered.
"Great. What else-" Mickey started.
"Do not finish that sentence," Donna snapped. "Every time someone says it, things get worse. Just don't say it Mickey."
Mickey thought she was being a bit irrational but shrugged, keeping his mouth shut.
As they fall down, struggling to not get swallowed, The Doctor uses his screwdriver to trigger the 'eject button'. Amy is confused until they see a flood of liquid rushing towards them. He warns her that this 'won't be big on dignity'. "Geronimo!" he cries as Amy screams.
"Ew," Martha said in disgusted as she and Donna looked sick to their stomachs.
"Well, it was either that or get swallowed. Doesn't seem like The Doctor had much choice," Jack said with a shrug.
Later, the pair are in a pipe as Amy comes to. The Doctor is using his screwdriver as he assures her she is fine and covered in sick. Amy gets to her feet, noting the pipe stinks but The Doctor points out that's her. Amy takes a sniff of herself and is disgusted, asking if they can get out. The Doctor points out only if they forget everything they saw as they see a forget button light up.
"They are really determined to protect their secrets," Mickey noted.
"In my experience, when a government goes to these kinds of lengths to hide the truth, the truth is almost worse than the lie," Jack noted as Jane grimaced.
"Wish I could say you were wrong Jack," she muttered.
Amy remembers the button from the voting booth as lights come up behind them, revealing two Smilers. The Doctor walks up to them, demanding to know why there is a creature living in the heart of the ship. The Smilers faces change to displeased as The Doctor realizes everyone who chooses protest gets shot down the throat. The Smilers faces then change to angry as The Doctor declares he's not leaving or forgetting, asking them what they're going to do about it. To their shock, the booths open and the androids step out.
"Well they clearly left this out of the history books," Jack muttered as the past viewers stared in disbelief.
"This gets worse and worse with each passing minute," Wilf said horrified.
"The sent the people who choose protest to the stomach and if they somehow survive, they have to deal with the Smilers. They really don't leave anything to chance," Mickey said in disgust.
"What are they so afraid of someone finding out?" Donna wondered.
"I almost don't want to know," Martha admitted.
The Doctor and Amy step back as a door opens behind them. They look back to see Liz walk into the room, holding some kind of blaster gun. They jump apart and as she fires, getting the Smilers. They are incapacitated as she puts her blaster in a thigh holster. The Doctor notes she looks better without the mask as Liz walks over to Amy, introducing herself. They shake hands and Liz wipes off the sick on her shirt, complimenting Amy's hair. Liz notes Amy knows Mandy, who walks into view. The Doctor asks how she found them and Liz reveals the device she gave him acts as a tracker and bug, she's been listening the whole time.
"So she does have an agenda of some kind," Jack noted.
"But whether that agenda is good or bad remains to be seen," Martha pointed out and Jack shrugged.
Liz asks about the creature and The Doctor points out she already knows, she's just chosen to forget. But Liz never voted, as she's not a British citizen.
"I am so confused," Mickey said as they all stared in confusion.
"It'll make sense in a minute or two," Jane said with a shrug.
The Doctor asks how she knows him. "You're a bit hard to miss. Mysterious stranger, MO consistent with higher alien intelligence, hair of an idiot," Liz noted and The Doctor runs his hand through his hair insulted.
"I like her," Donna decided with a grin.
"Me to. Just wish I knew whose side she's was," Martha muttered.
Liz reveals she's been brought up by the stories of The Doctor, as was her family. The Doctor asks about her family as the Smilers start to repair themselves. As the group begins moving through the hallway, Liz points out The Doctor was drinking buddies with Henry Twelve, met Liz Two once. She remembers 'Vicky' knighting and exiling The Doctor on the same day before laughing about the 'Virgin Queen'.
"Wait, hold on a bloody minute. Are you telling me I had to run for my life because The Doctor got involved with Elizabeth the First?" Martha asked in complete disbelief.
"It's a bit more complicated than that…but basically, yeah," Jane said and Martha was silent for a long moment.
"Martha? You okay?" Mickey asked in concern.
"When we see The Doctor again…I'm going to kill him," Martha said in an eerily calm voice.
The Doctor realizes Liz is Elizabeth the tenth. She then pulls out her blaster and orders them to get down. The Doctor, Amy and Mandy all duck as Liz fires two blasters and opens fire, getting the Smilers who had repaired themselves and were following the group before revealing she's the queen. "Basically, I rule," Liz declares.
"I really like her," Donna said with a smile.
"Me to," Martha said, putting aside her anger at The Doctor for a minute.
Jack was silent. There was just something that felt…off about this whole thing. He just couldn't put his finger on it yet.
Entering another corridor, the group sees a root through a cell, banging itself on the roof. Amy remembers the root from earlier and The Doctor explains the roots are all part of the creature they'd been trapped inside, which were branched out throughout the entire ship. "Like an infestation?" Liz asked and The Doctor is silent.
"Not too sure about that. The creature is obviously trapped there. But why?" Jack wondered.
"Wait for it," Jane said with a dark look.
Realizing someone is feeding her subjects to the creature, Liz angrily walks down the corridor. Noticing The Doctor lingering by the root, Amy pauses as he tells her they should never have come here. As he walks after Liz and Mandy, Amy remembers the message she had left herself.
"Whatever it is, it must be pretty bad," Donna said uneasily.
"You have no idea," Jane said darkly and the past viewers felt a pit of dread form in each of their stomachs.
In a room, the man from earlier is watching the group on a security cam before contacting someone, alerting them that Liz is on the lower levels. He initiates the protocol 'God save the Queen'.
"Save the Queen from what though?" Wilf asked in confusion.
"Herself," Jane said vaguely but didn't elaborate.
In Liz's room, Amy, now clean, is fixing her hair as The Doctor looks at all the glasses on the floor and asks Liz about them. To remind herself that her government is up to something and it's her duty to find out what, she says.
"So she's fighting against her own government then. I can respect that," Jack said, feeling a bit of admiration for Liz.
"But if she's being undermined, then who's the one who's really pulling the strings?" Donna wondered.
"Long story. You'll see soon enough," Jane said
The Doctor picks up Liz's mask, noting she'd gone undercover to find out what was happening in her own kingdom. Secrets were being kept from her, Liz snapped. She'd been investigating for ten years, and The Doctor had found out more in one afternoon. The Doctor asks how old she was when she'd been made queen and she says 40. Amy is surprised by how young Liz looks and she explains they slowed her aging.
"Slowed her aging, that's possible?" Martha asked in disbelief.
"It's an expensive procedure but it can be done. By the time I was born, it had been outlawed. But making something illegal doesn't always stop it from happening," Jack pointed out.
"Tell us something we don't know," Mickey scoffed.
The Doctor asks if she always wears the mask in public and she say it wasn't easy going out in public when you were queen. The Doctor examines the mask, determining that it's perfectly sculpted to Liz's face. Liz doesn't see the relevance when the door to her room open and the men in black robes enter. Liz demands to know what they're doing her and one of them demands Liz will come with them. Liz challenges them and, to the shock of everyone, one of their heads turns around, revealing themselves as an Smiler to reveal an angry face.
"What the Bloody Hell?!" Donna exclaimed in shock as the past viewers stared in shock at the screen.
"What are they?" Martha asked in horror.
"I thought it was only a rumor, a story meant to frighten children," Jack muttered and they looked at him. "Human experimentation, turning ordinary humans half Smiler. They were called Winders."
"People actually volunteered for this?" Wilf asked in horror.
"Who said anything about volunteering?" Jane said as they realized the truth. "People go missing, people no one would miss. They're turned into soldiers for this secret army."
"The government really did this to its own citizens?" Martha asked horrified.
"You'd be surprised what someone can justify to themselves in the name of keeping people alive," Jack said grimly, remembering the 456 incident.
Amy asks how they can be Smilers and The Doctor realizes they're half human, half smiler. Liz asks whose authority this is being done on. The Winder says the highest authority and Liz snaps she is the highest authority. The Winder says she must come with them to 'the tower'.
"Don't like the sound of that," Martha said uneasily.
"I'm more interested in who they're taking orders from," Jack mused. "Liz clearly isn't the highest authority in her own government."
Jane winced, wondering how they would react to finding out the truth.
The Winders lead the group to a dark room with a vent showing large scorpion tails below. The Doctor explains this is the dungeon, the lowest part of Starship UK. The man from earlier, who Liz identifies as Hawthorne, enters the room. As Liz demands he explain himself, The Doctor sees children are down in the dungeon, forced to do labor.
"My God, child slavery," Wilf said horrified as all the past viewers stared in horror.
"What kind of monsters are they?" Donna asked angrily.
"When you believe you're saving your people, there is very little you can't justify to yourself. Everyone is the hero of their own story," Jane noted sadly.
" How is this saving anyone?" Jack asked angrily.
"Wait for it," Jane said with a sad look at him.
Hawthorne explains that protestors and 'citizens of limited value' are fed to the beast. It refuses to eat children though. The Doctor and Amy are the first adults to survive. He calls them lucky and The Doctor sarcastically notes they're lucky to be in a 'torture chamber at the tower of London'.
"Yeah, that sounds familiar," Jack said with a scoff. "Another man in history called people 'undesirables'. You can dress it up however you want, you're no better than him."
"Everyone is the hero of their own story," Jane repeated sadly.
"Doesn't mean this isn't wrong," Martha protested.
"I don't disagree. But things like this are rarely that simple," Jane said with a heavy sigh.
The Doctor then reveals it's not a torture chamber, walking over to what looked like a well. Liz, Amy and Mandy gathered around and looked inside, seeing a brain that seemed to be zapped with energy every few seconds. The Doctor explains, depending on your perspective, it was either the creature's brain getting tortured or the accelerator of Starship UK. "This poor, trapped, terrified creature. It's not infesting you, it's not invading you, it's what you have instead of an engine. And this is where you keep it, where you torture it, day after day, just to keep it moving," The Doctor explains as he glared at Hawthorne. The Doctor then walks over, lifting open the vent and the scorpion tail comes up out of the ground. Using the screwdriver, The Doctor unmutes the sound no one wanted to hear: the creature's wails of pain.
"My God," Wilf said, tears springing to his eyes at the sound.
He was not the only one affected. Donna put a hand to her face, tears beginning to fall down her face. Mickey wrapped an arm around Martha, both looking on the verge of tears. Even Jack seemed gutted.
"Oh, you poor thing," Jack said pained.
Jane wiped her eyes, not faring much better. It was not her first time seeing this, but it didn't make it any easier.
Amy and Liz are deeply affected, Liz turning away, telling The Doctor to stop, unable to bear it. The Doctor complies and the sound stops. Liz demands to know who did this and Hawthorne says they acted on 'orders from the highest authority'. Liz demands they release the creature but Hawthorne makes no move to do so. The Doctor then tosses Liz her mask revealing its over 200 years old. Liz doesn't see the importance but The Doctor points out its perfectly sculpted to her face.
"What?" Martha asked as all of them were shocked out of their pain.
"You all heard that right?" Mickey asked, wanting to make sure he wasn't hearing things.
"I knew they could slow someone's aging for decades, but centuries…is that even possible?" Jack wondered.
"Apparently it is. They've had over millennia to perfect this kind of technology. With how far we've come already…is it really that hard to believe?" Donna asked.
She's not fifty; she's close to 300 The Doctor reveals. Liz is in disbelief until The Doctor leads her to a voting booth, this one with a forgetting button and an abdicate button. Horrified, she asks Hawthorne what he's done. "Only what you have ordered," he says coolly. The Winders, the Smilers, they all work for her he reveals before a video message is activated, this one of Liz. "If you are watching this, if I am watching this, then I've found my way to the Tower of London," video Liz said as Liz, in shock, sat down. "The creature you are looking at is called a Star Whale. Once, there were millions of them and, according to legend, they guided the early space travelers through the asteroid belts. This one, as far as we are aware, is the last of its kind." The Doctor has a sad look on his face at this.
"The last of its kind, just like him," Jack noted wistfully.
"And what we have done to it breaks my heart. The earth was burning. The sun had turned on us and every nation had fled to the skies. Our children screamed as our skies grew hotter. And then it come to us, the last of the Star Whales. We trapped it, built out ship around it, and traveled on its back to safety," Video Liz said as Liz and Amy watched tearfully. "If you wish for our voyage to continue, then you must press the forget button," Liz looked down at the button. "Be again the heart of this nation, untainted. If not, press the other button. Our reign will end, the Star Whale will be released, and our ship will disintegrate."
"Bloody Hell," Mickey muttered as they all stared at the screen in a mix of horror and sadness.
"They did what they had to do to survive, but it became too much for Liz to bear, so she erased her own memories so she could live with herself," Jack said, torn between sympathy and disgust. "I'm not sure whether that makes her a coward or human."
"To be fair to Liz, I doubt she knew the lengths Hawthorne would go to in order to keep her secret. Not that this makes it any better," Jane said with a sigh.
"In some ways, that makes it worse, she didn't care what they did so long as she could remain 'pure'," Donna said sadly.
"She believed the ends justified the means. That poor creature," Martha said, tears springing to her eyes once more.
"Sometimes The Doctor must see us and look away in shame," Wilf said sadly, unknowing echoing words said by Gwen Cooper some years earlier.
"I hope I keep the strength to make the right decision," the message ends. Horrified, Amy wonders why she would vote for this. The Doctor says she knew he would be forced to choose between the alien and humanity and took it upon herself to save him for that. "That was wrong, you don't ever decide what I need to know," The Doctor told her. Amy protests she doesn't even remember doing it and he points out the only thing that matters is she did it.
"Can't say he's wrong for being angry, but I also can't say what Amy did was wrong," Donna noted, torn. "I'm not sure what I would have done in Amy's shoes."
"There really isn't a right or wrong. Doesn't mean Dad's not justified in being angry," Jane noted.
Amy apologizes but he doesn't care, declaring she's going home once they're finished. Amy protesting she made one mistake, one she doesn't even remember making. She's only human, The Doctor notes.
"He always did know how to make a particularly brutal come back," Jack noted as the humans all winced.
"I'd take offense, but he has reason to be angry," Donna said sadly.
As The Doctor begins interfering with the wiring, Liz asks what he's doing. "The worst thing I'll ever have to do," The Doctor said grimly. He'll set off a massive electrical charge, leaving the whale brain-dead. It will still fly but it won't feel anything.
"It'll essentially be brain dead," Martha said in horror.
"What are his other options? To free the Star Whale, killing all those people? We both know The Doctor would never do that, no matter how angry he might be. At least this way…the Star Whale won't be in pain anymore," Jack said although he looked like he'd just swallowed acid.
"Oh Spaceman," Donna said, tears welling in her eyes for The Doctor and the Star Whale.
Jane was silent, knowing that they would have to watch to see what happened next.
Amy protests that will be like killing it and The Doctor points out his only other options are to kill the British people or allow the whale to be tortured for centuries. So he'll do this and then he needs to find a new name, as he won't be The Doctor after this. Liz protests that there must be another way. "Nobody talk to me. Nobody human has anything to say to me today!" The Doctor snaps angrily.
"I wouldn't want to hear anything from them either," Mickey said blankly.
"I think he can be too harsh on humanity sometimes. Not in this case," Donna said with a heavy sigh.
"He's so old, he's seen so much. It's impressive he continues to have such faith in people," Jack said, impressed with The Doctor. "Wish I had his optimism."
As The Doctor begins setting up the charge, Amy and Mandy sit as they watch The Doctor work. The door opens and some kids walk in, bringing some tools. Mandy recognizes Timmy and runs over to him. Behind her, one of the whale's tendrils has risen up from the ground. Timmy looks up in fear as the tendril pokes Mandy in the back. She turns around and is frightened until, to her surprise, it begins playing with her.
"I…was not expecting that," Mickey said as they looked at the screen in surprise.
"It's been tortured for centuries…and it still wants to play?" Donna asked, wondering if getting her memories back was making her hallucinate.
"Is this right?" Jack asked Jane, who smiled.
"Yes."
As she watches this, Amy remembers The Doctor saying he never interfered unless children were crying, along with Hawthorne saying it won't eat the children and the whale being the last of its kind. Amy tells The Doctor to stop before grabbing Liz and dragging her over to the booth. Realizing what Amy plans to do, The Doctor tells her to stop but is too late as Amy forces Liz to hit 'abdicate'.
"What the Bloody Hell?!" Donna exclaimed as they all stared at the screen in disbelief.
"Is she insane?!" Martha exclaimed.
"No, she's a genius," Jack said, coming to the same conclusion as Amy.
"You figured it out then," Jane noted happily and Jack nodded.
"Figured what out?" Wilf inquired as they others looked at the pair in confusion.
"Let's just see if I'm right," Jack said, watching the recording with new eyes.
The entire ship rocks with a powerful tremor, but, to everyone's shock, it doesn't disintegrate. The Doctor asks Amy what's she's done as Hawthorne says in disbelief that the ship has increased speed. Amy explains the Whale came because it couldn't stand to watch the children cry, they didn't have to torture it, because the whale volunteered. "If you were really old and really kind and alone? Your whole race dead, no future? What couldn't you do then? If you were very old and very kind, and the very last of your kind, you couldn't just stand there and watch children cry," Amy said with a pointed look at The Doctor. Liz and Hawthorne stood there, ashamed of their actions.
"So, the whale came…to save them?" Mickey asked in disbelief.
"They never needed to torture it; it was just human fear that drove them to it," Jack explained.
"All the agony that poor creature went through…it was all pointless," Wilf said horrified.
"We like to think we're more evolved than most other species on our planet, but when faced with fear, we return to our base instincts," Martha said with a heavy sigh. "We're smarter, but that doesn't always mean we know better."
"Amy, she took a big risk in doing this," Donna noted.
"She took a leap of faith. Remind you lot of anyone?" Jane asked with a slight grin.
Later, The Doctor is staring out at space on an observation deck when Amy walks up to him, handing him Liz's mask. It's a gift from Liz, who has decreed there will be no more secrets on Starship UK. The Doctor points out she could have killed everyone and Amy counters that he could have killed a Star Whale. The Doctor agrees, noting she saved it. They take a moment to look out at space together, Amy noting, despite everything the Star Whale had been through, it had just made it kind, pointedly looking at The Doctor. The Doctor points out she couldn't have known how it would react but Amy points out she'd seen it before, the last of its kind being very old and very kind. "Sound familiar?" Amy asks. With a smile, the pair share a hug.
"Yeah, sounds like someone else we know," Jack said with a grin.
"Looks like you were right, he does need someone like Amy to call him on his bullocks," Martha told Donna. "Sounds like someone else I know."
"Don't know what you're talking about," Donna said with a grin and Martha rolled her eyes.
The pair walk through the market, Amy wondering if they'll wonder where he went. For the rest of their lives, he agrees, briefly musing on the songs they'll write before saying big day tomorrow. Amy freezes, wondering if he knows about her wedding and he says it's always a big day tomorrow. Amy brings up her promise to make him go back tomorrow morning. "Have you ever run away from something because you were scared or not ready or…or just because you could?" Amy asked uncertainly.
"Yeah, you're right. She is clearly panicking," Donna noted.
"Doesn't mean she doesn't love him. I don't think she'd be panicking nearly as much if she didn't. But remember what she said when Dad promised he'd come back?" Jane asked.
"People always say that," Mickey noted.
"And now she has to trust someone enough to marry him. Amy doesn't like bring vulnerable," Jane explained.
"You sound like you know her," Martha pointed out and Jane smiled sadly.
"I never got the pleasure. But watching these gave me a lot of insight into her," Jane explained.
Once, a long time ago The Doctor admitted. Amy asks what happened. "Hello," he said pointedly, gesturing around them.
"He never did stop running, did he?" Jack noted as he and Martha exchanged a glance, remembering The Doctor's story while they were on the run from The Master.
"Nope," Martha said with a grin.
Hearing a phone ringing, The Doctor heads towards the TARDIS as Amy tries to tell him about her wedding before realizing a phone is ringing. The Doctor merely smiles before heading inside the TARDIS.
"You mean the TARDIS had a phone, the whole time? Then why did he take mine?" Martha asked in confusion
"Did he really have to say it?" Jane asked, looking at Martha mused. "Because he was going to miss you."
Martha sat there a moment, processing this. She'd always known The Doctor had cared about her in his own way, but she'd never thought it was more than a friendly acquaintance. But The Doctor seemed to care about her more than she'd realized.
Amy follows him inside, The Doctor heading to the console and telling Amy to answer. She does, telling him It's the Prime Minster in a bit of disbelief. He asks which one and Amy repeats the question on the other line. The British one. He asks which British oneand Amy once again repeats the question. Upon getting her answer, Amy, in a bit of shock, hands The Doctor the phone, saying Winston Churchill is calling.
"He know – you know what, of course he does," Donna said, not even surprised.
"At this point, it wouldn't surprise me if every important figure in history knew The Doctor somehow," Martha mused.
"That's actually not that farfetched," Jane mused.
The Doctor takes the phone, greeting Winston happily. On the other line, Winston Churchill says he needs The Doctor's help, the shadow of a Dalek seen in the background.
"Is that…" Jack trailed off as everyone stared at the screen in a bit of disbelief and apprehension.
"Next one, this one is almost over, then you'll get the answer to your questions," Jane promised.
The Doctor promises him they're on their way, hanging up the phone. Amy laughs as The Doctor flips the switch and the TARDIS vanishes from Starship UK. "In bed above, we're deep asleep. While greater love lies further deep. This world must end, the world must know we all depend on the beast below," Amy's voice narrates as the recording shows Starship UK, now with the Star Whale free. The recording zooms in, revealing a crack like the one in Amy's bedroom on the tail of the whale. The screen goes black.
"Was I seeing things or was the crack in Amy's wall on the Star Whale's tail?" Mickey inquired as they stared at the screen.
"You're not, I saw it to," Martha assured her husband.
"Get used to it, it's not going away anytime soon," Jane told them. "It's the main problem Dad had to deal with for the first set of recordings."
"How many sets are there?" Wilf inquired.
"Several, but you'll only be seeing three sets. And this is actually the shortest set," Jane explained, to their shock. "Just bear with me guys. You need to know."
The past viewers looked at each other uneasily, uncertain as the next recording began.
And that's the end of 'The Beast Below'. While I don't like it as much as some other episodes in the season, it is a decent episode that gives food for thought on the nature of human fear and when a democracy becomes a dictatorship.
Until next time.