Through Thick and Thin

The Fires of Pompeii

Thanks to everyone who's favourited and followed this story.

Donna watched as the Doctor ran around the TARDIS console operating the controls. He looked to be full of beans, a far cry from the somewhat sullen way he'd been during the Racnoss fiasco. Donna then studied Shareen who in contrast to the Doctor, looked rather tired. "Hey, you alright?" Donna asked her

"Yeah, yeah, course I'm alright." Shareen answered quickly. "Why wouldn't I be alright?"

"You look tired." Donna pressed

"Stayed up too late." Shareen shrugged, though Donna could tell that the young woman wasn't being entirely truthful but she decided not to push the issue.

The Doctor meanwhile continued his merry dance around the console, wildly throwing levers and hitting buttons, seemingly at random. The TARDIS juddered and lurched to one side. "I don't mean to be rude," Donna began, "but can you actually fly this thing, or are ya just some kinda space lunatic?"

"Oh, he's definitely a lunatic!" Shareen ribbed

"Oi!" the Doctor said indignantly. "I'll have you know there is literally nobody in this universe more qualified to fly the TARDIS than me. Now, watch and learn." He pulled a lever which promptly snapped off in his hand. "Ah, keep meanin' to get that fixed." he said sheepishly

"Butterfingers." Shareen muttered

"Everything's under control." the Doctor reassured the women. "We're landing! Get ready! Abeamus!"

"What's a-bay-a-moose when it's at home?" Donna asked

"It's latin for allons-y." the Doctor replied, grabbing his coat and dashing for the doors.

"Why're ya sayin' it in latin?" Donna asked as she and Shareen followed him

"Probably cause he wants to sound more important than he actually is." Shareen snorted

The trio stepped outside to find themselves in a bustling Roman market. "Ancient Rome." the Doctor grinned. "Well, not to them, obviously. To all intents and purposes, right now, this is brand new Rome."

"Peacock, we don't care about rubbish trivia like that." Shareen told him. "We just wanna enjoy ourselves."

Donna slowed to a stop as she looked all around. It was a lot to take in; the stallholders selling their wares, people bargaining, the clothing and the buildings. "Oh, my God, it's so... Roman!" she gasped. "This is just weird! I mean, everyone here's dead."

"Hmm, don't tell them that!" Shareen laughed

Donna suddenly sobered up. "Hold on a minute, that sign over there's in English." She pointed to a board advertising amphoras. "Are you having us on? Are we in Epcot?" she asked the Doctor

"No, no, no, no. That's the Tardis translation circuits." the Doctor told her. "Just makes it look like English. Speech as well. You're talking Latin right now."

"Seriously?" Donna stared. "I just said seriously in Latin?"

"Oh yeah." the Doctor confirmed

"Hey, just occurred to me, can the TARDIS translate Klingon?" Shareen asked jokingly

"Now, don't be silly." the Doctor chided lightly

"What if I said something in actual Latin, like veni, vidi, vici?" Donna asked. "My dad said that when he came back from football. If I said 'veni, vidi, vici' to that lot, what would it sound like?"

"I'm not sure." the Doctor replied. "You have to think of difficult questions, don't you?"

"Oi, someone has to ask them." Shareen retorted. "Anyway, proves you're not as clever as ya think you are."

"I'm going to try it." Donna said and dashed over to a stall.

"Afternoon, Sweetheart." the stallholder greeted. "What can I get ya, my love?"

"Um, vini, vidi, vici." Donna answered

"Huh? Sorry? Me no speak Celtic. No can do, missy." the stallholder said loudly and slowly, in the time-honoured fashion of people who didn't speak a foreign language and thought that increasing the volume and decreasing the speed would suffice.

"Yeah." Donna grunted and retured to the others. "How's he mean, 'Celtic'"

"He thinks ya Scottish, Donna." Shareen laughed. "Anyway, we're in Rome, so what're we doin' standin' round here when we've got a whole city to explore?"

The trio were soon exploring the city streets. "Won't our clothes look a bit odd?" Donna asked. None of the trio were in Roman attire; the Doctor was in his trademark brown suit and coat, Shareen was wearing a pale blue flannel shirt over a white tank top, TARDIS blue skinny jeans and black converse high-tops, while Donna was wearing a navy blue blouse, trousers and sandals.

"Nah. Ancient Rome, anything goes. It's like Soho, but bigger." the Doctor replied airily

"You've been here before then?"

"Mmm, ages ago." the Doctor answered. "And before you ask, that fire had nothing to do with me."

"Huh, pull the other one, Peacock." Shareen snorted

"Well... a little bit." the Doctor admitted. "But I haven't got the chance to look around properly. Coliseum, Pantheon, Circus Maximus... You'd expect them to be looming by now. Where is everything?" He looked up, then headed down a different alley, followed by Donna and Shareen. "Try this way."

As they reached the bottom of the street, Shareen noticed something. "I know I'm not a genius, but there's seven hills of Rome, aren't there? Why're there only one?" she asked rhetorically, and the Doctor and Donna followed her gaze to see one large mountain looming over the town.

Suddenly, there was a loud roar and an earth tremor began. "Here we go again." a vendor said nonchalantly as he and others worked to save their merchandise.

"Wait a minute." Donna began. "One mountain, with smoke. Which makes this..."

"Pompeii." Shareen breathed, going as white as a sheet.

"We're in Pompeii." the Doctor realised. "And it's volcano day."

The tremor stopped and the residents went back to their normal life as if nothing had happened. "You three must be new here." the vendor said to the shocked time travellers. "Don't worry, it's always doing that. They say Vulcan's in there, he must be angry today. Should be fine now. His bark's worse than his bite. He has a bit of a rumble, breathes out some smoke, shakes everything around for a bit, then he calms down again. Nothing to be scared of."

The Doctor nodded. "Right. Vulcan, the god of fire. Which would make that Vesuvius, I s'pse."

"Right you are, Chief." the vendor confirmed

Donna leaned over to the Doctor and tried to mutter as quietly as possible. " Vesuvius, as in, the great big volcano? The one that buried Pompeii? This Pompeii, the Pompeii we're standin' in right now?"

"Yep." the Doctor replied

"And it's gonna..."

"Sure is."

"Which means..."

"It does."

"So we should probably..."

"Exactly."

"Ok then."

"Ok then."

All three time travellers stood there, staring at Vesuvius, trying to remain calm.

Three seconds later, they were running at full speed through the streets, back the way they came. "Can't you do anything right, Peacock?" Shareen yelled. "Of all the times and places to land, you would have to take us to Pompeii!"

"Don't shout at me, shout at the TARDIS!" the Doctor yelled back. "Something must've pulled us off course."

"Yeah, like that bloody lever you broke!" Shareen snarked

"I s'pose we should consider ourselves lucky you didn't land us inside the volcano!" Donna yelled.

They reached the spot where they'd landed to find the TARDIS gone. "Ah. Right, er..." the Doctor began

"You're kidding me." Donna panted. "You're not telling me the TARDIS is gone."

"Ok." the Doctor said simply

"Where is it then?"

"You... told me not to tell you." the Doctor shrugged

"Oh, shut up, Peacock." Shareen grunted, in no mood for the Doctor's nonsense right now.

"Hold on." the Doctor said and ran to the stallholder Donna had talked to earlier. "'Scuse me, 'scuse me, there was a box. Big blue box, big blue wooden box, just over there. Where's it gone?" he asked

"Sold it, didn't I?" the stallholder replied smugly

"You what?!" Shareen glared

"But it wasn't yours to sell." the Doctor scowled

"It was on my patch, wasn't it?" the stallholder shrugged. "I got 15 seserce for it, lovely jubbly!"

Shareen promptly grabbed the stallholder by his lapels. "Listen, Del Boy, you'd better tell me who you sold it to or I'm gonna get creative with your amphoras!" she threatened

"Old Caecilius." the stallholder replied. "Look, if ya wanna argue, why don't ya take it out with him? He's on Foss Street. Big fella, can't miss him."

"Thanks." the Doctor said and turned to Donna while Shareen let the stallholder go. "Panic over." the Doctor told Donna. "Bloke called Caecilius has got the TARDIS. We need to find Foss Street, he's got a villa there. Let's split up, cover more ground. Meet back at the market in half-an-hour."

"Ok." Donna nodded. "Next time, just a suggestion, take it or leave it, but maybe check the space GPS or something before we step outside the doors, yeah? If that's not too much to ask. Would it kill ya to put a clock up on the wall?"

"Or wear a watch." Shareen muttered. "The Richard Ashcroft Doctor did."

They ran off, going their separate ways, each hoping they would find the TARDIS before it was too late.

~8~

Half-an-hour later, the trio reunited. "Ha! Got it." the Doctor said. "Foss Street, this way." And he made to turn around and drag Donna and Shareen with him.

"No, wait." Donna said, pulling away from him. "We've found this big sorta amphitheatre thing, we could start there, we could gather everyone together. Then maybe they've got a great big bell or something like that we could ring. Have they invented bells yet?"

"What d'ya want a bell for?" the Doctor frowned

"To warn everyone." Donna replied. "Start the evacuation. What time does Vesuvius erupt? When's it due?"

"It's 79AD, 23rd of August, which makes volcano day tomorrow." the Doctor replied

"Good. We've got plenty of time." Shareen smiled. "We can get everyone out easily."

"Yeah, except we're not going to." the Doctor told her

"What?!" Shareen stared, not believing what she'd just heard.

"But that's what you do. You're the Doctor. You save people." Donna reminded

"Not this time." the Doctor answered regretfully. "Pompeii is a fixed point in history. What happens, happens. There is no stopping it."

He moved to go again but Donna pulled him back. "Says who?" she scowled

"Says me." the Doctor retorted

"What, and you're in charge?" Donna huffed

"TARDIS, Time Lord, yeah!" the Doctor said

"Donna and Shareen, Humans no!" Donna retorted. "We don't need your permission, we'll tell 'em ourselves!"

"You stand in the marketplace announcing the end of the world, they'll just think you're a couple of mad old soothsayers." the Doctor retorted, waving some jazz hands for emphasis. "Now, come on! TARDIS. We are getting out of here!" And he strode purposefully away.

"Like hell we are." Shareen scowled as she and Donna stalked off after him.

~8~

Presently, the trio reached Foss Street and entered the large villa that belonged to Caecilius just as another earth tremor occurred. The Doctor managed to grab a toppling statue just in time to stop it smashing. "Woah." he remarked as he pushed it upright. "There ya go." He turned to see a middle-aged man with grey hair and attack eyebrows coming up to him.

"Thank you, kind sir." the man said. "I'm afraid business is closed for today. I'm expecting a visitor."

"Well, that's me. I'm a visitor." the Doctor said. "Hello!" And he shook the man's hand.

"Who are you?" the man questioned

"I am..." the Doctor thought for a moment, "Spartacus."

"And so am I." Donna added

"Mr and Mrs Spartacus?"

"No, no, we're not married, no." the Doctor said hastily

"We're not together." Donna added quickly

"Oh, then brother and sister?" the man probed. "Yes, of course. You look very much alike."

"Really?" the Doctor and Donna said together

"And who might you be, young lady?" the man asked Shareen, who was snickering at the little misunderstanding.

"I am... uh, Sela." Shareen said

"Sela?" Donna whispered

"It's from Star Trek." Shareen whispered back. "It kinda sounds Roman."

"I'm sorry, but I'm not open for trading." the man said

"And that trade would be...?" the Doctor asked

"Marble." the man replied. "Lobus Caecilius, mining, polishing and design thereof. If you want marble, I'm your man."

"That's good." the Doctor nodded. "That's good, cos' I'm the marble inspector." He showed Caecilius his psychic paper.

"By the gods of commerce, an inspection!" gasped a woman behind Caecilius, evidently his wife. "I'm sorry, sir. I do apologise for my son." she said to the Doctor and snatched a goblet of wine out of the hand of a boy, evidently her son, and chucked it in a pool.

"Oi!" the son grumbled

"This is my good wife, Metella." Caecilius introduced. "I-I-I must confess, we're not prepared for..."

"Nothing to worry about, I'm sure you've got nothing to hide." the Doctor waved him off. "Although frankly, that object..." He pointed to the TARDIS, which was sitting in the corner of the room. "Looks rather like wood to me."

"I told you to get rid of it." Metella hissed to her husband

"I only bought it today!" Caecilius moaned

"Ah, well. Caveat emptor." the Doctor shrugged

"Oh, you're Celtic." Caecilius remarked. "There's lovely."

"I'm sure it's fine, but we might have to take it off ya hands for a proper inspection." the Doctor said to him.

"Although while we're here, wouldn't you recommend a holiday, Spartacus?" Donna said to the Doctor

"Don't know what ya mean, Sparticus." the Doctor answered back

Donna turned to Shareen. "What about you, Sela? This lovely family; father, mother and son. Don't you think they should get out of town?"

"Oh, absolutely, Spartacus." Shareen concurred.

"Why should we do that?" Caecilius asked

"Well, the volcano, for starters." Donna replied as if it was obvious

"What?" Caecilius blinked

"The volcano." Shareen replied

"What-ano?" a puzzled Caecilius asked

"That great big volcano right on your doorstep..." Donna began

"Oh, Spartacus, Sela, for shame!" the Doctor interrupted. "We haven't even greeted the household gods yet." And he ushered Donna and Shareen over to a shrine in the corner of the room, out of earshot of the family. "They don't know what it is." he told the women as he sprinkled some water on the shrine. "Vesuvius is just a mountain to them, the top hasn't blown off yet. The Romans haven't even got a word for volcano. Not till tomorrow."

"Oh, great." Donna huffed, "They can learn a new word as they die."

"Donna, stop it." the Doctor hissed

"Listen, I don't know what sorta kids you've been flying round with in space, but ya not telling me to shut up." Donna said fiercely. "That boy, how old is he? 16? And tomorrow, he burns to death."

"And that's my fault?" the Doctor countered

"Of course not!" Shareen said. "But we can't just bugger off and leave 'em all to die! We've got the TARDIS; we could get everyone inside and whisk 'em away before that thing blows. No one need die!"

"It doesn't work like that." the Doctor told her. "It's forbidden by the Laws of Time. This is a historical event; it happened, it cannot un-happen. If I pull out this one thread, the entire tapestry of history unravels."

"Huh, didn't stop ya ruining Britain's golden age, didn't it?" Shareen said bitterly

"Yes, and look what happened because of that." the Doctor said seriously. "Shareen, Donna, there are forces at work greater than you can both possibly imagine."

"Oh, don't give all that Star Trek crap." Donna rolled her eyes. "So the tapestry unravels. They can make a new one. Send me the bill."

Before the Doctor could respond, the Major Domo came into the room. "Announcing Lucius Petrus Dextus, chief augur of the city government." he introduced as a well-dressed man with a cloak draped over his shoulder entered the room, flanked by two armed guards.

"Lucius!" Caecilius greeted the visitor. "My pleasure, as always."

"Quintus, stand up." Metella ordered her son, who begrudgingly complied.

"A rear and great honour, sir, for you to come to my house." Caecilius said to Lucius, offering his hand, but Lucius ignored it.

"The birds are flying north and the wind is in the west." Lucius said

"Quite, absolutely." Caecilius nodded, somewhat puzzled. "That's good, is it?"

"Only the grain of wheat knows where it will grow." Lucius continued

"There now, Metella. Have you ever heard such wisdom?" Caecilius asked his wife

"Never." Metalla replied. "It's an honour."

"Pardon me, sir, I have guests." Caecilius said, gesturing to the three time travellers. "This is Sela, Spartacus and... uh, Spartacus."

"A name is but a cloud on a summer wind." Lucius said to the trio

"But the wind is felt most keenly in the dark." the Doctor answered

"Ah! But what is the dark other than an omen of the sun?" Lucius countered

"I condede that every sun must set." the Doctor replied

"Ha!"

"And yet the son of the father must also rise." the Doctor finished

"Damn! Very clever, sir." Lucius conceded, annoyed but also impressed. "Evidently a man of learning."

"Oh, yes. But don't mind me." the Doctor shrugged. "Don't wanna disturb the status quo."

"He's Celtic." Caecilius whispered to Lucius

"We'll be off in a minute." the Doctor said

"I'm not going." Donna told the Doctor defiantly

"Me neither." Shareen agreed

"It's ready sir." Caecilius told Lucius

"We've got to." the Doctor told his companions

"Tough." Shareen retorted

"The moment of revelation." Caecilius continued, gesturing to something covered by a cloth, "And here it is!" He removed the cloth to reveal a marble slab with what appeared to be a circuit board carved into it. "Exactly as you've specified." Caecilius told Lucius. "It pleases you, sir?"

"As the rain pleases the soil." the augur replied with a smirk

"Oh, now. That's... different." the Doctor said as he, Shareen and Donna came back over. "Who designed that, then?"

"My Lord Lucius was very specific." Caecilius replied

"Where'd you get the pattern?" the Doctor asked Lucius, eying the marble circuit board closely.

"On the rain and mist and wind." Lucius waved him off

"Is it me or does that look like a circuit?" Shareen frowned

"Made of stone." the Doctor confirmed

"So you just dreamt this thing up?" Donna asked Lucius

"That is my job as City Augur." Lucius replied as if it was obvious.

"What's that, then, like the mayor?" Donna asked

"Oh, you must excuse my friend, she's from... Barcelona." the Doctor said hastily. "This is an age of superstition, of official superstition." he told his companions quietly. "The augur is paid by the city to tell the future. 'The wind will blow from the west', that's the equivalent of the 10 o'clock news."

"They're laughing at us." a voice said, and they turned to see a young woman standing there, looking rather pale and ill. "Those three, they use words like tricksters. They're mocking us."

"No, no, no, I meant no offense." the Doctor said hastily

"I'm sorry, my daughter's been consuming the vapours." Metella said, putting an arm around the woman.

"By the gods, mother, what have you been doing to her?!" Quintus glared

"Not now, Quintus." Caecilius urged his son

"But she's sick!" Quintus insisted. "Just look at her!"

"I gather I have a rival in this household." Lucius remarked, eying the daughter with disdain. "Another with the gift."

"Oh, she's been promised to the Sibylline Sisterhood." Metella said proudly, "They say she has remarkable visions."

"The prophecies of women are limited and dull." Lucius sneered. "Only the men have the capacity for true perception."

Donna and Shareen raised their brows at Lucius, both highly unimpressed with his attitude. "I'll tell you where the wind's blowing right now, mate." Donna glared.

Just as she said it, there was another earth tremor. It rattled the vases and sounded almost threatening.

Lucius smiled at Donna smugly. "The Mountain God marks your words. I'd be careful, if I were you."

"Consuming the vapours, you say?" the Doctor asked, eyeing the daughter carefully.

"They give me strength." the daughter answered

"It doesn't look like it to me."

"Is that your opinion... as a doctor?" the daughter asked pointedly

The words hit the Doctor like a lightning bolt. "I beg your pardon?" he asked, feeling a slight chill despite the heat from the vents.

"Doctor, that's your name." the daughter told him

"How'd you know that?" the Doctor frowned

But the daughter had turned towards Donna now. "And you, you call yourself 'Noble'."

"Now then, Evelina, don't be rude." Metella cut in

"No, no, no, not at all." the Doctor reassured, curious to see how much the girl actually knew.

Evelina then turned her attention to Shareen. "And you... you call yourself 'Costello', but your true moniker is... 'Whitland'."

Shareen's mouth dropped open. "But... how did you know that?" she breathed

"You all come from so far away." Evelina continued

"A female soothsayer is inclined to invent all sorts of vagaries." Lucius scoffed

"Oh, not this time, Lucius." the Doctor said. "I reckon you've been out-soothsayed."

"Is that so... man from from Galifrey?" Lucius retorted, causing the Doctor to stare at him

"What?"

"The strangest of images." Lucius continued. "Your home is lost, is it not?"

"Doctor, what're they doing?" Donna asked

Lucius turned to her and Shareen. "And you two, daughters of... London."

"How the hell do you know that?!" Shareen demanded, getting unnerved at how much these Romans knew about them.

"This is the gift of Pompeii." Lucius answered, "Every single oracle tells the truth."

"That's impossible." Donna frowned

Lucius turned his attention to the Doctor and Shareen. "Doctor, daughter of London... she is returning."

"Who is? Who's she?" the Doctor asked

Lucius ignored him and turned back to Donna. "And you, daughter of London, there is something on your back."

"Wos' that mean?" Donna questioned, getting scared.

Lucius turned back to Shareen. "And you, you are haunted by dreams, are you not? Images of flying spheres, cities burning, and above it all... a man, the Master of all."

"Stop it!" Shareen snapped. "Just stop it!"

"Even the word 'doctor' is false." Evelina said to the Doctor, "Your real name is hidden. It burns in the stars, in the Cascade of Medusa herself. You are a Lord, sir. A Lord... of Time." Her eyes then rolled into her head and she collapsed, Metella rushing forward to catch her before she hit the floor.

"Evalina!" Metella cried, cradling her unconscious daughter.

~8~

Evalina had soon been placed on a settee with the women tending to her. "She didn't mean to be rude, she's ever such a good girl." Metella told Donna and Shareen. "She's ever such a good girl. But when the gods speak through her..."

"What's wrong with her arm?" Donna asked, noticing that Evalina's right arm was bandaged.

"An irritation of the skin." Metella replied. "She never complains, bless her. We bathe it in olive oil every night."

"What is it?" Shareen asked

"Evalina said you'd both come from far away." Metella said, unwrapping the bandage, "Please, have you ever seen anything like it?"

With the bandage removed, Donna and Shareen could see a nasty grey area on Evalina's skin. "It's stone." Donna breathed

~8~

Meanwhile, Caecilius was showing the Doctor the hypocaust where Evelina consumed the vapours. "Different sort of hypocaust." the Time Lord remarked as he removed the grating.

"Oh yes, we're very advanced in Pompeii." Caecilius replied, with not inconsiderable pride in his city. "In Rome, they're still using the old wood-burning furnaces, but we've got hot springs, heated from Vesuvius itself."

"Who thought of that?" the Doctor asked

"The soothsayers. After the great earthquake 17 years ago. An awful lot of damage, but we rebuilt."

"Didn't you think of moving away?" the Doctor wandered, before catching himself. "Oh, no, then again, San Francisco."

"That's the new restaurant in Naples, isn't it?" Caecilius asked him

The Doctor poked his head down the hypocaust shaft and heard a rumbling sound. "What's that noise?" he asked

"Don't know, happens all the time." Caecilius replied. "They say the gods of the underworld are stirring."

"But after the earthquake, let me guess... is that when the soothsayers started making sense?"

"Oh yes, very much so. I mean, they always had been, shall we say, imprecise. But then, the soothsayers, the augurs, the haruspex, all of them, they saw the truth again and again. It's quite amazing. They can predict crops and rainfall with absolute precision."

"Have they said anything about tomorrow?" the Doctor asked out of curiosity

"No. Why should why? Why do you ask?"

"No, no, no reason, just asking." the Doctor waved him off, "But the soothsayers, they all consume the vapours?"

"That's how they see." Caecilius confirmed

"Ipso facto." the Doctor muttered, slipping on his glasses and examining the shaft again.

"Look, you..." Caecilius began, but was cut off by the Doctor straightening again.

"They're all consuming this." the Time Lord said, showing the Roman some particles of grit on his fingers.

"Dust?"

"Tiny particles of rock." the Doctor replied, and licked some of the grit. "They're breathing in Vesuvius." he realised.

Caecilius was horrified. "My daughter is breathing in bits of mountain?! Well, that's the end of that. I don't care who she's promised to, or what it does to our status. This isn't right. She's not well, you can see she's not."

~8~

The Doctor was examining a chunk of rock he'd obtained from the hypocaust when Donna and Shareen joined him. "There's a 17-year-old girl in there, who's arm is turning into stone." Donna reported

"All the soothsayers of old Pompeii can predict the future and yet none of them can see tomorrow." the Doctor replied

"We stayin', then?" Shareen asked

"Yeah." the Doctor confirmed.

~8~

Quintus was lounging in his room drinking wine when the Doctor and Shareen came in. "Quintus me old son. This Lucius Petrus Dextrus, where does he live?" the Doctor asked

"It's nothing to do with me." Quintus waved him off

"Alright, let's try again." Shareen said. "Quintus, something weird's happening to your sister and we think this Lucius geezer has something to do with it, so I'll ask again; where does he live?"

~8~

Quintus was soon leading the Doctor and Shareen through the dim streets to Lucius' home. Donna had stayed behind to look after Evalina.

"Don't tell my Dad." Quintus pleaded when they arrived at their destination

The Doctor jumped up to a window and opened the shutters. "Only if you don't tell mine." he said as he jumped back down.

"Right, I'll go first." Shareen said. "And eyes off my arse." she told Quintus, who blushed.

"Shareen..." the Doctor rolled his eyes

"Alright, I'm going." Shareen waved him off and climbed in through the window.

The Doctor then climbed in after her and poked his head out the window. "Pass me that torch."

Quintus handed him the torch and after a moment of hesitation, followed the time travellers into the house. They looked around and saw a hypocaust exactly like the one in Quintus' home and some curtains hiding something. The Doctor pulled the curtains away to reveal six marble circuit boards. "The liar!" Quintus stared. "He told my father it was the only one."

"Of course he would say that." Shareen remarked. "It's actually pretty clever; tell 'em all the same thing, get all the bits you need from different places an' no one'll ever know what ya buildin'."

"Which is what?" Quintus asked

At that moment, Lucius entered the room with his guards. "The future." he announced. "We are building the future, as dictated by the gods."

~8~

Evalina had regained consciousness and was now sat on her bed, laughing as she watched Donna pose in a purple toga Metella had loaned her. "You're not supposed to laugh." Donna remarked. "What d'ya think? The goddess Venus."

"That's sacrilege." Evalina chuckled

"Nice to see ya laugh, though." Donna said, glad to see that Evalina was looking much better now. "What d'ya do in old Pompeii then, girls your age? You got... mates? D'you go hanging round the shops? TK Maximus?"

"I'm promised to the Sisterhood for the rest of my life." Evalina sighed

"D'ya get any choice in that?"

"It's not my decision. The Sisters chose for me. I have the gift of sight."

"Then... what can you see happening tomorrow?" Donna asked tactfully

"Is tomorrow special?"

"You tell me. What d'ya see?"

Evalina closed her eyes, concentrating. "The sun will rise, the sun will set. Nothing special at all." she said as she opened her eyes

Donna swallowed hard, deciding it was now or never. "Look, don't tell the Doctor I said anything cos' he'll kill me, but I've got a prophecy too." she said

Evalina put her hands over her eyes, revealing eyes painting on her hands.

"Evalina, I'm sorry, but you've got to hear me out." Donna persisted. "Evalina, can ya hear me? Listen..."

"There is only one prophecy." Evalina insisted,

"But everything I'm about to say to you is true, I swear." Donna insisted. "Just listen to me. Tomorrow that mountain is gonna explode. Evelina, please listen. The air is gonna fill with ash and rocks, tons and tons of it, and this whole town is gonna get buried!"

"That's not true!" Evelina protested

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry. But everyone's gonna die." Donna persisted. "Even if you don't believe me, just tell your family to get outta town. Just for one day, just for tomorrow, you've got to get out! You've got to leave Pompeii!"

"This is false prophecy!" Evelina cried, lowering her hands. "How can you see things that the Sisters can not?"

"I don't see them, I just know." Donna said. "And I'm trying to save your life."

~8~

In Lucius' villa, despite the piping hot steam from the hypocaust, the atmosphere was decidedly frosty. Lucius was keeping secrets and he was not sort of man who would let the Doctor, Shareen and Quintus leave to tell anyone about them. The Doctor was busy arranging the marble circuits on the shelf. "Put this one... there. This one... there. Er, keep that one upside down, and what you got?" he asked rhetorically as he finished

"Enlighten me" Lucius grunted

"Oh, the soothsayer doesn't know something?" Shareen snorted

"The seed may float on the breeze in any direction."

"Yeah, I knew you were going to say that." the Doctor smirked. "But it's an energy converter."

"An energy converter of what?"

" I don't know. Isn't that brilliant?" the Doctor grinned. "I love not knowing. Keeps me on my toes. It must be awful being a prophet, waking up every morning, 'is it raining? Yes, it is, I said so.' Takes all the fun out of life. But who designed this, Lucius, hmm? Who gave you these instructions?"

"I think you've babbled enough!" Lucius retorted

"Lucius, really, tell me, honestly I'm on your side. I can help."

"You insult the gods!" Lucius spat. "There can be only one sentence. At arms!" he ordered and his guards drew their swords.

"Nice goin', Peacock." Shareen said lamely

"Oh, morituri te salutant." the Doctor said nonchalantly

"Celtic prayers won't help you now." Lucius sneered

"But it was them, sir, they made me do it!" Quintus pleaded. "Mr Dextrus, don't!"

"Come on now, Quintus, dignity in death." the Doctor said nonchalantly. "I respect your victory, Lucius. Shake on it?" He extended his hand. "Come on. Dying man's wish?" He grabbed Lucius' right arm beneath the cloak and pulled it clean off, revealing it to be stone.

"What the hell?!" Shareen stared

"But he's..." Quintus spluttered in disbelief.

"Show me." the Doctor said to Lucius, who threw back his cloak to reveal the stone stump of his right arm.

"The work of the gods." he said proudly

"He's stone!" Quintus said, horrified. Shareen had told him about his sister's arm and he realised that it was the exact same thing that had happened to Lucius.

"'Armless enough, though." the Doctor joked

"Not funny, Peacock." Shareen rolled her eyes at him, used to his tasteless jokes.

"Whoops!" The Doctor threw the arm at Lucius. "Quintus!"

Quintus threw the torch at the guards, causing them to duck. The Doctor then used his sonic screwdriver to make the circuit boards fall over, then he, Shareen and Quintus all jumped out through the window. "C'mon, run!" Shareen hollered, and they legged it down the street.

Once they were a safe distance from the house, they stopped. "No sign of 'em." the Doctor said. "Nice bit of allons-y. I think we're..."

"Don't say it, Peacock." Shareen interrupted. "You'll only jinx up."

"But his arm, Doctor. Is that what's happening to Evelina?" Quintus asked anxiously

"It's only just started for her, but don't worry. I have a feeling your mum an' dad will put a stop to all that." the Doctor reassured

"Good." Shareen panted

"Well, if they don't, I will." Quintus said. "I don't want her turning into... into that, whatever it is. I don't want her being like him."

"No chance of that, trust me." the Doctor replied. "We just need to work out what's going on. Come on, I think we..."

He was cut off by a deep, loud bang. "What was that?" Shareen frowned

"The mountain?" Quintus suggested

"No, it's closer." the Doctor frowned, listening carefully as the banging grew louder. "They're footsteps." he realised

"Can't be." Quintus gasped

"Footsteps underground." the Doctor realised

"What is it?" Quintus asked nervously. "What is it?"

"Dunno, but I don't wanna stop to find out." Shareen said. "C'mon!" And they hurried off, the grills of hypocausts blowing off as they passed.

~8~

The noises were audible in Caecilius' villa too. "What is it? What's that noise?" Metella wandered

"Doesn't sound like Vesuvius." Caecilius observed

Just then, the Doctor, Shareen and Quintus hurried in. "Caecilius, all of you! Get out!" the Doctor urged

"Doctor, Shareen, what is it?" Donna asked

"Something's followin' us." Shareen replied. "We've gotta get outta here!"

But before anyone could move, the hypocaust shattered and an enormous monster made of rock and magma burst out of it. "The gods are with us!" Evalina cried

"Water, we need water." the Doctor realised. "Quintus, all of you, get water! Shareen, Donna!"

"You heard the man!" Shareen said to the servants. "C'mon!" And she, Donna, Quintus and most of the servants hurried off to fetch water.

The Major Domo unwisely walked towards the monster. "Blessed are we to see the gods." he said.

The monster promptly opened it's mouth and spat out a jet of fire, completely incinerating the poor man. "Talk to me, that's all I want!" the Doctor said, stepping forward. "Talk to me, just tell me who you are. Don't hurt these people!"

Donna was just returning with a bucket of water when she was suddenly grabbed by a bunch of women in red robes and their faces painted white with black markings. One of them clamped their hand over Donna's mouth before she could call for help, and they carried her away.

"I'm the Doctor." the Time Lord continued, blissfully unaware of this. "Just tell me who you are!"

Quintus and Shareen suddenly ran forward with a couple of buckets and dunked them in the pool, then they hurled them at the monster, causing it to hiss in pain, then it crumbled into rubble. "What was it?" Caecilius panted

"A carapace of stone." the Doctor replied, looking at the remains, "Held together by internal magma. Not too difficult to stop, but I reckon that's just the foot soldier."

"Doctor, or whatever your name is, you bring bad luck in this house." Metella breathed

"I thought ya son was brilliant, aren't ya gonna thank him?" the Doctor retorted, and Metella rushed forward to hug her brave and resourceful son. "I dunno..." the Doctor said to Shareen. "if there are aliens in Pompeii, it's a good thing we stayed."

Shareen suddenly realised that someone was being unusually quiet. "Donna?" she called out, but there was no sign of the ginger.

"Donna?" the Doctor tried, but again to no avail

"Donna? Donna, where ya are?!" Shareen called out, then noticed Evelina looking somewhat guilty. "Where is she? What's happened to Donna?" Shareen asked her urgently.

"They took her." Evalina answered guiltily.

"Who's taken her?" the Doctor asked

"The Sisters. I saw them in the other room. They were all here. They took her while we were occupied with the beast of fire."

"Why didn't ya say anything?!" Shareen barked

"There was no time, it all happened so fast." Evalina trembled. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I told them about her false prophecy, they never would have known otherwise. I didn't think any of this would happen. She was my friend, and I betrayed her, but they still did this to us. Why would they send a monster to our home? I am promised to them!"

"I think that Lucius geezer sent that thing." Shareen told her. "But why did ya sell Donna out? What did she say?"

"She told me that everyone would die here tomorrow. That the mountain would kill us all. She was wrong, but I had to tell the others."

The Doctor rolled his eyes at this news. He would have to have words with Donna about her loose tongue when all this was over. "Don't worry about that now." he told Evalina. "Just tell me where they've taken her and I can fix this. We're here to help."

"The temple." Evalina answered.

"Then what're we waitin' for?" Shareen said. "C'mon, Peacock!" And the two time travellers hurried away to the rescue.

~8~

Donna meanwhile found herself tied to a sacrificial altar in the Sibylline temple. "You have got to be kidding me." she grumbled as the sisters stood above her, one with a dagger.

"The false prophet will surrender both her blood and her breath." the sister with the dagger announced

"I'll surrender you in a minute!" Donna growled, "Don't you dare!"

"You will be silent."

"Listen, sister, you might have eyes on the back of your hands, but you'll have eyes in the back of ya head by the time I finish with you! Let me go!"

"This prattling voice will cease forever!" the sister said, holding the dagger up ready to deliver the blow.

"Oh, that'll be the day." a male voice said, and the sisters spun round to see the Doctor standing nonchalantly in the temple entrance with Shareen by his side.

"No man is allowed to enter the temple of Sybil." the sister with the dagger growled

"Well, that's alright, just us girls." the Doctor said casually. "D'ya know, I met the Sybil once, yeah, hell of a woman. Blimey, she could dance the Tarantella! Nice teeth. Truth be told, I think she had a bit of a thing for me. I said it would never last, she said, 'I know.' Well, she would."

Shareen meanwhile approached the bound Donna. "You ok?" she asked her. "They didn't torture ya, did they?"

"No, you were just in time." Donna replied

"Nice toga, by the way."

"Thank you." Donna said dryly. "And the ropes?"

"No, not so much. They don't suit ya." Shareen replied and used her sonic pen to release the ropes.

"What magic is this?" the sister with the dagger glared

"It's a pen," Shareen retorted as she pocketed her sonic pen and helped Donna off the altar, "and the pen is mightier than the sword."

"Nice one, Shareen." Donna laughed

"See, Peacock, that's how ya make a joke." Shareen told the Doctor triumphantly

The Doctor gave her a sulky look and spoke severely to the sisters. "Let me tell you about the Sybil, the founder of this religion. She would be ashamed of you. All her wisdom an' insight turned sour. Is that 'ow you spread the word, eh? On the blade of a knife?"

"Yes, a knife that now welcomes you!" the sister with the dagger retorted, raising it ready to stab him.

"Show me this man!" a raspy female voice called from behind a curtain

The sisters all turned towards the curtains and dropped to their knees. "High Priestess, the stranger would defile us." the sister with the dagger protested

"Let me see." the High Priestess insisted. "This one is different. He carries starlight in his wake."

"Oh, very perceptive." the Doctor said, moving towards the curtain. "Where do these words of wisdom come from?"

"The gods whisper to me." the High Priestess answered

"Oh, they've done far more than that." the Doctor remarked, "Might I beg an audience? Look upon the High Priestess?"

The curtains of the bed were drawn aside to reveal the High Priestess, a former Human who was by now almost entirely turned to stone. "Oh, my God!" Donna stared

"What the hell's happened to you?!" Shareen exclaimed

"The heavens have blessed me." the High Priestess said

"If I might...?" the Doctor asked, stepping closer. The High Priestess lifted her arm and the Doctor examined it carefully. It was exactly the same as Evalina's arm. "Does it hurt?"

"It is necessary." the High Priestess answered

"Who told you that?" the Doctor questioned

"The voices."

"Is that what's gonna happen to Evalina?" Donna asked, then turned to the sisters. "Is this what's gonna happen to all of ya?"

"The blessings are manifold." the sister with the dagger said, showing her arm, which was turning to solid rock too.

"So you're all turnin' into stone." Shareen surmised, going green at this thought.

"Exactly." the Doctor said. "The people of Pompeii are turning to stone before the volcano erupts. Why?"

"This word, this image in your mind. This volcano... what is it?" the High Priestess questioned

"More to the point, why don't you know about it?" the Doctor questioned back. "Who are you?"

"High Priestess of the Sibylline."

"No, no, no, I'm talkin' to the creature inside you." the Doctor said, "The thing that's seeded itself into a Human body, in the dust in the lungs. Taking over the flesh and turning it into what?"

"Your knowledge... is impossible." the High Priestess cried

"Oh, but you can read my mind, you know it's not." the Doctor countered. "I demand you tell me who are!"

"We are awakening!" the High Priestess said in a deeper, more masculine voice.

"The voice of the gods!" the sister with the dagger said, and the sisters all began chanting "Words of wisdom. Words of power" repeatedly

"Name yourself!" the Doctor demanded, having had enough of the prevaricating. "Planet of origin, galactic co-ordinates, species designation, accordin' to the universal ratification of the Shadow Proclamation."

"We... are... rising!" the High Priestess repeated

"TELL... ME... YOUR NAME!" the Doctor yelled

"PYROVILLE!" the High Priestess shrieked

The Sisters all started chanting "Pyroville."

"What's a Pyroville?" Donna asked

"Well, that thing, I'm guessing." Shareen replied.

"The Pyroville's growin' inside her." the Doctor explained. "She's at the halfway stage."

"And that thing at the house was the full thing?" Shareen queried

"Yeah." the Doctor confirmed

"And the breath of a Pyrovile will incinerate you, Doctor!" the High Priestess roared

"I warn you, I'm armed!" the Doctor said, producing a yellow water pistol from his jacket pocket. "Shareen, Donna, get that grille open!"

"What for?" Donna questioned

"To get out of here, I hope." Shareen said, and she and Donna hurried to a nearby hypocaust and Shareen began using her sonic pen to remove the bolts securing the grille down.

"What are the Pyrovilles doing here?" the Doctor demanded to the Priestess, keeping his water pistol aimed at her.

"We fell from the heavens." the High Priestess answered, "We fell so far and so fast, we were rendered into dust."

"Right, creatures of stone shatter on impact." the Doctor nodded, "When was that, 17 years ago?" He remembered what Caecilius had said about an earthquake 17 years previously.

"We have slept beneath for thousands of years." the High Priestess answered

"Ok, so 17 years ago woke you up." the Doctor noted. "And now you're using Human bodies to reconstitute yourself. But why the psychic powers?"

"We opened their minds and found such gifts." the High Priestess replied

"Yeah, ok, fine." the Doctor shrugged, loosing patience with the Pyroville's constant prevaricating. "So you force yourself inside a Human brain, use their latent psychic talent, I get that, yeah. But seeing the future, that is way beyond psychic. You can see through time. Where does the gift of prophecy come from?"

"Got it!" Donna called as she and Shareen removed the grille from the hypocaust.

"Right, now get down!" the Doctor ordered, coming over to join them.

"What, down there?" Donna questioned

"Better than in here." Shareen shrugged, and climbed down into the opening.

"Why can't this lot predict the volcano?" the Doctor questioned the High Priestess. "Why's it being hidden?"

"Sisters, I see into his mind." the sister with the dagger said. " The weapon is harmless!"

"Yeah, but it's gotta sting." the Doctor shrugged, and promptly squirted the High Priestess with water, causing her to scream in pain. The Doctor then ran over to the hypocaust. "Get down there!" he urged Donna.

Donna jumped down into the opening and the Doctor followed. "You fought her off with a water pistol." Donna laughed. "I bloody love you!"

"What do we do now, Peacock?" Shareen asked

"This way!" the Doctor replied, starting to walk down a tunnel.

"Where're we going now?" Donna asked

"Into the volcano." the Doctor replied

"You're joking!" Shareen stared

"No way." Donna cried

"Yes way." the Doctor retorted, spinning the water pistol on his finger ala John Wayne, "Appian way!" And so the trio walked off down the tunnel.

~8~

The Doctor, Shareen and Donna ran deeper into the caverns inside Vesuvius. "But if it's aliens setting off the volcano, doesn't that make it for you to stop it?" Donna tried

"It's still part of history." the Doctor replied

"But we're history." Shareen countered, pointing between herself and Donna. "You've saved us, you've saved Earth hundreds of times, what's so different about this?"

"Some things are fixed, some things are in flux." the Doctor replied, "Pompeii is fixed."

"And how do you know which is which?"

The Doctor turned to face both women. "Because that's how I see the universe." he told them gravely. "Every waking second, I can see what is, what was, what could be, what must not. That's the burden of the Time Lord. And I'm the only one left."

"How many people died?" Donna persisted

"Stop it!" the Doctor snapped

"Just answer her." Shareen said firmly

"20,000." the Doctor sighed

"Is that what you can see, Doctor?" Donna asked him. "All 20,000? And you think that's alright, do you?"

"Don't you care about those people?" Shareen added

"Of course I care!" the Doctor said angrily. "You think I enjoy letting people die?!"

"Your evil boyfriend did." Shareen answered darkly. "And you took his side."

"I did not take his side!" the Doctor said exasperated. "Alright, suppose I break all the rules and stop this. What then? Where does it end? Do I stop every disaster that's ever happened? On every planet? Stop every murder in history? Accidents? How about people having bad thoughts who are about to do something, do I stop them before they do it? You remember what Mr Copper said, Shareen. If I had that power, I wouldn't be a man; I'd be a monster! I just do what I can, where I can, but when it's a fixed point in history, there's nothing I can do. And sometimes, yes, that means watching people die. Sometimes people I love."

There was a tense silence, which was broken by a loud howling coming from down the tunnel.

"They know we're here." the Doctor realised. "Come on!" And they quickened up their pace.

~8~

Presently, the trio arrived in a gigantic cave. "It's the heart of Vesuvius." the Doctor observed, taking in their surroundings. "We're right inside the mountain."

"There's tons of 'em." Donna said, seeing several Pyrovilles stomping around.

"Shouldn't we have melted by now?" Shareen asked. "I mean, I'm not complainin' but..."

"No, you're right." the Doctor agreed. "The heat in here is much lower than it should be. I'm guessing it's something to do with whatever that is." He indicated a large rock sphere the size of a mini-van and pulled out a telescope to get a better look at it.

Behind them, heavy footsteps were approaching. "You'd better hurry up and thing of something." Donna urged the Doctor. "Rocky IV's on his way."

"That's how they arrived." the Doctor said. "Or what's left of it. Escape pod? Prison ship? Gene bank?"

"But what do they need the volcano for?" Shareen wandered

"Maybe... it erupts, and they launch 'emselves back into space or something?" Donna suggested

"No, I think it's worse than that." the Doctor said gravely

"How can it be worse?" Donna questioned, but before the Doctor could answer, they heard the roaring of a Pyroville behind them coming closer. "Doctor, it's getting closer." Donna urged

"Heathens!" Lucius' voice called out, and the trio looked up to see the augur standing on a ledge on the other side of the cave. "Defile us! They would desecrate your temple, my Lord Gods!" he said to the Pyrovilles.

"Come on!" the Doctor urged, and he led the women towards the middle of the cave.

"We can't go in!" Donna protested

"Well, we can't go back!" the Doctor countered

"Crush them! Burn them!" Lucius ordered the Pyrovilles, and one blocked the time travellers' path. The Doctor squirted it with his water pistol which stunned it and allowed them to pass and they ran towards the rock sphere. "There is nowhere to run, Doctor and daughters of London!" Lucius yelled.

"Now them, Lucius, my Lord Pyrovillian, don't get yourself into a lava." the Doctor joked, then turned to his companions. "In a lava? No?"

"No." Donna said flatly, while Shareen rolled her eyes at the Doctor's inappropriate joke.

"But if I might beg the wisdom of the gods before we perish." the Doctor called to Lucius. "Once this new race of creatures is complete, then what?"

"My masters will follow the example of Rome itself." Lucius answered as a Pyroville made it's way towards the trio. "An almighty empire, bestriding the whole of civilisation."

"But if you've crashed, and you've got all this technology, why don't you just go home?" Donna pointed out the obvious

"The heaven of Pyrovillia is gone." Lucius answered

"What d'ya mean, gone?" the Doctor frowned, "Where's it gone?"

"It was taken!" Lucius replied, "Pyrovillia is lost. But there is heat enough in this world for a new species to rise!"

"Hate to burst ya bubble, mate, but this planet's 70% water. Ya won't get far!" Shareen countered

"Water can boil. And everything will burn, daughter of London!" Lucius retorted

"Then the whole planet is at stake." the Doctor said grimly, putting the water pistol away. "Thank you, that's all I needed to know." He then ushered Donna and Shareen inside the pod then he followed them in and sealed the door shut with his sonic screwdriver.

"Could we be any more trapped?" Donna huffed as a Pyrovile breathed fire onto the sphere, heating it up. "Little bit hot."

"Phew, more like an oven." Shareen puffed, removing her flannel shirt and tying it round her waist.

The Doctor meanwhile noticed the marble circuit boards from Lucius' villa all lined up on the wall. "See? The energy converter takes the lava, uses the power to create a fusion matrix, which welds Pyrovile to Human. Now it's complete, they can convert millions."

"Well, can't you change it with these controls?" Donna asked

"Course I can, but don't ya see? That's why the soothsayers can't see the volcano. There is no volcano." the Doctor said. "Vesuvius is never gonna erupt. The Pyroviles are stealing all it's power, and they're gonna use it to take over the world."

Shareen suddenly realised what the Doctor was implying. "Oh, f**cking hell!" she groaned, going as white as a sheet.

"But... I don't understand." Donna frowned. "Surely you can change it back?" she asked the Doctor.

"I can invert the system, set off the volcano, and blow 'em up, yes." the Doctor replied, "But... that's the choice. It's Pompeii or the world."

Now it was Donna's turn to go white. "Oh, my god." she breathed in shock

"If Pompeii is destroyed then it's not just history, it's me." the Doctor swallowed, "I make it happen."

"But the Pyroville are made of rocks. Maybe they can't be blown up." Donna suggested

"Vesuvius exploded with the force of 24 nuclear bombs." the Doctor replied. "Nothing can survive it. Certanly not us."

"Never mind us." Shareen trembled as she thought of the 20,000 people who would perish in the erruption.

"Push this lever and it's over." the Doctor sighed, running his hand over a lever. "20,000 people." He felt truly terrible for what was about to happen. He just starting to get over his guilt over the destruction of Galifrey but now he was going to be responsible for more mass death. And this time, he'd dragged his companions into it too.

Donna saw the anguish on the Time Lord's face. There was no way to avoid it, nobody had a better option here, but what a terrible burden, and a burden that no one deserved to face alone so she placed her hands over the Doctor's on the lever, ready to share the burden with him.

Shareen then placed her hands over Donna's. "God forgive us." she murmured, then the trio slammed the lever down together.

The effect was immediate. Vesuvius erupted in an enormous cloud of smoke and ash, ejecting the rock sphere and throwing the three time travellers inside around like ragdolls. Finally, the violent ride stopped and the trio climbed out to find themselves just outside the town. "It was an escape pod." the Doctor noted, then he grabbed Donna and Shareen's hands and the trio ran for it.

~8~

Mass panic gripped the streets of Pompeii as the smoke from the erruption blocked out the sun and volcanic ash rained down on the town. People screamed and ran about the streets as the Doctor, Donna and Shareen weaved and dodged through the crowds, trying to get back to the TARDIS. "Don't go to the beach!" Donna called out, still trying to save people. "Don't go to the beach, go to the hills! Listen to me! Don't go to the beach, it's not safe!" But no one listened to her.

Shareen saw a scared little boy standing alone and crying. "Come here, you'll be alright." she called to him, before the boy could reach her, his mother came along and snatched him away.

Both Donna and Shareen could only watch sadly as the devestation unfolded around them. Both of them wanted to do something but they felt completly powerless. The Doctor hurried back to them and took their hands. "Come on!" he said and dragged them away.

They reached Caecilius' villa where they saw the family huddled together on the floor as the house came down around them. "God save us, Doctor!" Caecilius wailed

The Doctor looked at the family, then he turned on his heel and entered the TARDIS. "No!" Shareen cried and ran in after him. "Peacock, you can't just leave them like that!" she hollered

"I've got to." the Doctor muttered, not looking at her as he set the controls for departure.

Donna then joined them. "Doctor! You bloody well do something!" she demanded as the Doctor started the engines.

"Don't you think I've done enough?!" the Doctor snapped, feeling more terrible and guilty than ever. "History's back in place and everyone dies."

"You've got to go back!" Donna screamed. "Doctor, I'm telling you, take this thing back!"

"Doctor, please." Shareen pleaded, but the Doctor remained intransigent.

"It's not fair." Donna sniffled

"No, it's not." the Doctor murmured, cursing the TARDIS for putting them all in this awful situation in the first place.

"But your own planet... it burned." Shareen protested

"That's just it." the Doctor said regretfully, "Don't you see? Can't either of you understand? If I could go back and save 'em then I would, but I can't. I can never go back. I just can't, I can't."

"Just someone." a tearful Donna begged. "Please. Not the whole town. Just save someone."

"Please." Shareen pleaded, tears streaming down her face.

The Doctor gave both women a long look, then he finally made up his mind.

~8~

Caecilus and his family all huddled together, waiting for the end. Suddenly, the TARDIS rematerialised before them and the door opened to reveal the Doctor. "Come with me." he urged, reaching a hand to the family.

Caecilius took the hand and the Doctor helped him to stand then they ushered the family inside the box and the Doctor piloted them away to safety.

The Doctor, Donna and Caecilius' family were soon all stood on a hilside, watching the destruction of Pompeii with heavy hearts. Shareen had shut herself in her bedroom, unable to face the devestation she'd been an accomplice to unleashing.

"It's never forgotten, Caecilius." the Doctor said. "Oh, time will pass, men will move on and stories will fade. But one day, Pompeii will be found again. In thousands of years. And everyone will remember you."

"What about you, Evalina?" Donna asked the girl. "Can you see anything?"

"The visions have gone." Evalina replied

"The explosian was so powerful, it cracked open a rift in time." the Doctor explained. "Just for a second. That's what gave you the gift of prophecy. It echoed back into the Pyrovillian alternative. But not anymore. You're free."

"But tell me, who are you, Doctor?" Metella asked. "With your words and your temple containing such size within?"

"Oh, I was never here." the Doctor replied. "Don't tell anyone."

"The great god Vulcan must be enraged." Caecilius murmered as he watched the ash cloud engulf the town below in a pyroclastic surge. "It's so volcanic. It's like some sort of... volcano. All those people." he choked as he thought of all his friends and neighbours. A sobbing Metella hugged him, while Evalina and Quintus held each other's hands, all of them mourning the deaths of Pompeii's residents.

Meanwhile, the Doctor and Donna quietly slipped into the TARDIS. "Thank you." Donna said sincerly

"Yeah." the Doctor murmued. "Yeah, you were right. Sometimes I need someone. Welcome aboard. Welcome aboard."

"Yeah." Donna said, and they both shared a smile.

"I'll keep an eye on the family for a bit, make sure they're ok." the Doctor said. "Remind myself why I'm here, what I'm suppose to do. I'm not gonna forget their faces in a hurry. Especially Caecilius, that's a good face. I love a good face."

~8~

Shareen stood in her bedroom cupola, staring lost in thought at the wispy purple space phenomenon the TARDIS had created outside the window. Presently, Donna came upstairs to join her. "Hmm, nice view." she commented. "What's that? A nebula or something?"

"Dunno. They're all just space things to me." Shareen answered blankly then looked down at her ash-smeared hands. "Look at these. These hands helped kill 19,996 people." she said sadly

"So did these." Donna sighed, looking down at her own hands. "But we saved four people. That's what matters." she encouraged. "We made a difference. Caecilius, Metella, Evalina, Quintus; they're all alive."

"Yeah." Shareen said quietly. "But that boy... His face is gonna haunt me for the rest of my life. Ya know, Donna, I sometimes wish I'd never met the Doctor. I mean, I like seeing all the new places and seeing history, don't get me wrong, but all the death and destruction; it gets too much sometimes."

"Have ya spoken to the Doctor about it?" Donna pressed

"Nah, he doesn't understand." Shareen sighed. "Besides, he's got enough sulking of his own to do, never mind my problems." She subconsciously touched the place where she'd been shot on the Valiant.

Donna decided to be an agony aunt to the young woman. "Then talk to me." she offered. "I'm Human, I can understand. Lucius said something about you gettin' bad dreams. Is that why you looked tired earlier?"

"Yeah, some bad memories returning." Shareen replied, and she told Donna about the Master, the Year That Never Was and getting shot.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Shareen." Donna said empathetically. "I'm gonna have it out with Spaceman for putting ya through all that, just watch me. Fancy him takin' that madman's side after everything he did. If I'd been there, I'd have killed that Master bloke with my bare hands!"

"Yeah, well, he's gone now." Shareen said. "And I'm still here, but I'm never gonna forget all of it, and now I've got Pom-bloody-peii to haunt me an' all."

"You need chips." Donna said suddenly. "A nice bag of chips always eases the pain, that's what I say. C'mon, let's ask Spaceman to get us some."

"Alright." Shareen agreed. "Actually, I could do with some grub, come to think of it." And she and Donna went off to find the Doctor.

Author's notes: And here's chapter 2 completed. Not a bad job if I say so myself. I used the Target novelisation of the episode for reference when writing this chapter, so there's several moments that weren't in the original episode. I think they fit in well. I also had a crack at exploring Shareen's PTSD from the whole ordeal with the Master. I feel that going through all that would leave a huge impact on Shareen, so I've had a go at exploring it and it helps to develop her friendship with Donna. A criticism of Shareen vs the Universe was that Shareen had no impact on events in that story. I've attempted to put that right here by giving her a bit more to cut her teeth with. Hope that come across well. So, hope you like this chapter and hope to see ya next time.