"This day couldn't get any weirder," Arthur huffed as he ran from being shot by… honestly, he had no idea what these aliens were. Other than that they're short and look like potatoes. And very bloodthirsty for the battlefield.
He just wants a simple and safe landing. Is that too much?
His blue eyes enter the empty street. Ever since these aliens invaded the UK, there's barely been any activities at night. Arthur notices this after being chased and hiding for three days straight. Which is why, having a middle-age man standing on the street alone is strange.
"Run!" He shouted.
"What?" The man responded before his eyes bewildered by the aliens behind him, shouting at them from breaking a curfew or something.
They both quickly run down an alleyway as the shooting keeps happening behind… and it abruptly stops, which makes them turn behind and notice an elderly couple standing there with a frypan.
"Mam? Dad?" The man beside Arhur reacted.
"Where the hell have you been?" The older woman demanded.
"And who is he?" The older man gestures to Arthur.
"I'm Arthur," he greeted. "I… I just got here. What's going on?"
▪︎▪︎▪︎
Arthur quietly holds his breath as his eyes notice the Sontarans walk nearby as Dan, the man before, holds him, while his parents sit in the front seat. After they were gone, Arthur slowly rose up and spoke up, "So, uhm, when did these… Sontarans, invading?"
"Same day our son vanished," Eileen revealed. "What's that? Two days ago now?"
"Already feels like a month," Neville admitted.
"We had the Three Minute Eclipse, and then, bang, they were here."
"Three Minute Eclipse?" Dan repeated.
"Whole world went to blackout, all at the same time. It lasted 3 minutes."
"Must've been the Karvanista's ships."
"So come on, where have you been? And where's your parents, young lad?"
"It's a bit hard to explain," both Dan and Arthur commented.
"Ey, lad," Neville called Dan, "did someone nick your house?"
"Sort of," Dan shrugged. "Listen, how many of these are there?"
"Oh, millions. All over the world, in their ships," Eileen informed. "Soldiers pouring out and taking over."
"But you beat them with a frying pan," Arthur pointed out, checking the window to make sure they're safe.
"They've got this thing at the back of their neck," Neville answered while gesturing to his back neck, "like a hole."
"Probic something," Eileen added.
"All right, Eileen. No need to get all medical. And if you smack bang on it, then they go down like ninepins."
"Who found that out?" Dan frowns.
"Oh, fella in Birkenhead," Eileen shared.
"He was drunk, with a mallet,"
"Birkenhead," both father and son said at the same time.
"We've got to get rid of them," Dan suggested.
"That's what I said," Neville pointed out.
"That's what I said," Eileen corrected. "You said they'd be off after the weekend."
"I never did," he huffed.
"He does this to annoy me. They were in Liverpool first. Six hours before anywhere else. Nobody believed us. They went all round the world, but they started here."
Arthur frowns, "which is?"
▪︎▪︎▪︎
He gots his answer 15 minutes later, as he, Dan, and his parents arrive in ABP Garston with their car, which according to Dan, is 7 miles from Liverpool. The place's already turned into the Sontaran's basecamp.
"This is where they first appeared," Elieen informed as she led them. "Took over the whole waterfront."
"Ay, ay, where you two going?" Neville asked as Dan and Arthur moved forward a bit faster. "There's thousands of them. They've got lasers."
"Dad. This is our planet. These are our docks. What else do you want to do? Sit at home and complain?" Dan shook his head. "Besides, Arthur's alone. His parents must be worried about him."
Arthur lips quaver a bit. He hasn't told any of them about his circumstances or about the Doctor. Ever since his encounter with Daleks and their creator, he began to be cautious a bit. He didn't like anyone to know about him more than he himself can know.
"That's what he normally does," Eileen huffed.
"Hey, you. I'm not afraid of a scrap," Neville complained, "I was Wallasey's…"
"Junior Boxing Champion in 1966," Eileen and Dan repeated, as if he had told those facts numerous times.
"We've already heard of people trying and then just… disappearing."
Yeah well, I've had some experience with dealing with aliens these last few days," Dan admitted as he looked at his parents. "You two get back to the house with Arthur. I'm going in."
"No, wait!" Arthur whispered, getting their attention. "I need to come with you. Please let me accompany you. I won't cause ruckus. I promise. Someone I know might be there."
Dan sighs. "Okay. But you need to be close with me."
"Take this, son. In case you need it," Neville gives him his frying pan.
Dan glances at Arthur. "Well then, lad," he grips his hand. "We better hurry."
With that, they quietly run into the base.
▪︎▪︎▪︎
Several minutes later, both Dan and Arthur enter a warehouse, where they hear a conversation nearby and spots three men.
"Human filth has been discovered within the compound. Commander Ritskaw requires an execution troop, immediate deployment," a sontaran exclaimed.
"Here," Dan gestures to the other side as they quietly run and hide in between a pile of big barrels.
"Bring them here. Place them in line," another sontaran ordered. "I am Commander Ritskaw of Sontaran Temporal Command. Spying is treason against Sontar. If you have any words, now is the moment to keep them to yourselves! Soldiers, raise arms. Execute." Dan quickly shields Arthur's ears as the boy shuts his eyes as the execution happens. "Execution complete. Our Temporal Offensive is near, soldiers. Sontar-ha!"
"Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha! Sontar-ha!" All Sontarans shouted.
"Enough. Stay alert for intruders. We will execute all who defy us."
Arthur gulps as he follows Dan, trying not to see behind, to look at the outcome of the poor humans.
"Hold my phone," Dan told him, "I need to record this!"
"To who?"
"The Doctor."
Arthur blinks. "You know the Doctor?"
This time, Dan blinks. "Wait. You know her too?"
Her. That means the Doctor with a rainbow shirt! "Yes. She's my guardian while my parents are away."
"Mate, why don't you say so?" Dan shook his head in amusement. "Okay, start recording."
Arthur presses the recording button and lets Dan speak as they make their way to a ladder. The blonde-haired boy gives the phone back to Dan and he puts the frying pan he carries inside his jacket. That way, Dan and Arthur can climb up the cargo container crane for a high vantage view. After that, they manage to sneak more into the spaceship and enter several corridors.
"There!" Arthur gestures on a door that has a hand-pattern beside it. The boy tries to use three of his fingers and the door instantly opens. "There should be a self-destruct button."
"Is it bad just to press things?" Dan asked as they looked at the room carefully. "At least we can find a button so everybody knows that we're here."
"Dan! Sunny!"
Arthur looks at the screen, finding himself looking at the Doctor and another woman. "Doctor!"
"Where are you?" She and Dan asked at the same time.
"Still in the Crimea," the Doctor says while Dan says, "We're in Liverpool."
Then, both speak at the same time again. "Where's Yaz? I don't know. You speak first."
"How are you on a Sontaran ship?" The Doctor began.
"I just arrived here when these Sontarans hunted me for 3 days," Arthur shared. "Got myself with Dan and his parents. They've taken over Liverpool Docks."
"They're building spaceships, hundreds of them, all along the Mersey," Dan added.
"They're not just in the Crimea," the Doctor realized.
"And they've got this obsession with Japanese food. I heard one of the big chief potatoheads talking about Tempura Command…"
"Temporal," Arthur clarified.
"Oh yeah," Dan agreed. "That makes more sense. Hey, I've been filming everything, if that helps."
"Oh, good lad," the Doctor beamed. "Very nice. Hold your phone close to the screens. I can access the Sontaran data banks plus everything that's on your phone."
"What, including me photos?"
"I don't think she's interested in that," Arthur assured him, sensing how embarass Dan becomes.
"Oh, of course. Temporal Offensive. They're just about to launch a huge wave of attacks throughout Time. They've been building Timeships so they can invade Earth's history. And the Crimea is the pilot scheme. Earth will become a Sontaran outpost from the dawn of time. The whole history, erased."
"Well, you better make sure you stop it," another woman responded.
"Is that Mary Seacole?" Dan noticed. "Hey, Mary."
"Oh. Hello, dear. Who's that young boy beside you?"
"Arthur Jonas," Arthur introduced. "Hello."
"We have to get the Sontarans out of the Crimea," the Doctor remarked. "But the rest is on you two."
"Are you sure bringing your kid in this situation is safe?" Dan pondered.
"I don't want to, but Sunny is much safer with you, Dan. The first wave of ships in the Sontaran Temporal Offensive are about to launch. You two have to stop those ships leaving."
"How are we supposed to do that?"
"What resources do you have?"
"A wok."
"His parents gave it to him," Arthur added. "To hit them on their back."
Suddenly, the screen shows Commander Ritskaw. "Tracing rogue transmissions. Who is using this frequency? Security detail…"
"Dan, Sunny, get out of there now," the Doctor warned.
"What about the plan?" Dan asked.
"No time!" Arthur drags Dan away from the screen as Rickshaw just orders an execution for them.
"Halt. Intruder," a Sontaran enters the room with their gun.
"All right, mate? Me and ma boy here are a little bit lost. I was just looking for the Pier Head," Dan pretended.
"This is an Imperial Sontaran Time Carrier. Unauthorised human presence shall result in immediate and enjoyably violent execution."
"Hey, what the heck is that!" Arthur suddenly shouted, getting the Sontaran to turn around. Dan uses this chance to hit his probic vent with a frying pan.
"How do you like that, eh? Pan-fried Sontaran. Now, I'm going to wok right out of here?" He joked.
"Um, Dan?" Arthur points his finger at his right, revealing to have 4 more Sontarans appear.
"All right, lads. We were just looking for the Pier Head?" He remarked with a nervous smile while Arthur's head started throbbing and his stomach felt twisted.
"You underestimated us, you pathetic temporal hags," a creature with purple skin and an almost skeleton-face sneered as he walked closer to four priests. "Your deluded, pointless lives have led you here. Painful, powerless deaths. Two already broken. Shall I repair?" He touches one of them, disintegrates one while the rest scream in agony.
Arthur screams. His body slowly feels like burning from inside.
"Shut up, boy!" A Sontaran nearby demanded, forcing him to stand up.
"He's hurting!" Dan snapped behind Arthur. "Just leave him!"
Arthur barely can hear his surroundings. His mind keeps spinning crazy and more voices ringing inside his ears, showing him visions he barely understands.
A 3-year-old girl singing, "Doctor, brave and good, he turned away from violence, when he understood the falling of the Silence."
Clara turns to the Doctor, giving him a brave smile. "Run. Run, you clever boy. Cherish your family. And remember me."
Bad Wolf looks at an older man beside her. "Then that's your punishment. If you do this, if you kill them all, then that's the consequence. You...live. Gallifrey... you're going to burn it... and all those Daleks with it but all those children too. How many children on Gallifrey right now?"
"I don't know," the old man replied.
"Falling in love? That didn't even occur to him?" The Doctor, the one with brown hair and eyes, wearing a 1910s suit, cried.
"No," another man replied coldly. He has gray eyes and dark hair. "Not after the Time War."
"Then what sort of man is that?! And now you expect me to die?!"
A black woman beside Delaney explained in a kinder tone. "The Doctor said the Family's got a limited lifespan, and that's why they need to consume a Time Lord. Otherwise, three months and they die. Like mayflies, he said."
"So your job was to execute me," he glared at Arthur.
"Don't bring him into this matter, Doctor!" Delaney snapped, pointing her finger at him. "He never did anything wrong, yet you are constantly blaming him for EVERY SINGLE BLOODY THING! Just because he never told you about his past or his relationship with you. Even Rose had begged you to stop acting like this! But you don't want to, do you? You see him, and you always release your anger on him!"
"Rory? Rory?" He shouted at the dark room, very afraid. "Someone, please help me! Help me!"
"I don't think so," a stranger's voice said, taking Arthur back to reality. Arthur finds himself facing a…humanoid-alien dog, carrying something like a sniper. "I've still got a human in this fight."
"What?" The leader reacted before the dog zapped the Sontarans in a mere minute. He looks at them annoyingly. "You're welcome, idiots."
▪︎▪︎▪︎
"Is he your friend?" Arthur asked as they sneak into the corridor.
"Are you insane?! No!" The alien dog, Karvanista, shouted as Dan hit another Sontaran, and they entered another room.
"So what are you doing here?" Dan asked.
"We're still species-bonded. Clearly, you're so inept, you can't be on your own. And also, this is partially our fault. The Sontaran attack force snuck through in the second before we sealed the shield. It's our responsibility. Well, my responsibility, because I got the blame. As usual."
"Listen, they're about to launch time ships into Earth's history."
"I know," Karvanista remarked as he types the computer.
Arthur frowns as he walks beside him. "How?"
"I intercepted the transmissions."
"Right," the boy nods as their surroundings start to shake. "What are you doing now?"
"What do you think I'm doing? I'm taking off."
"What?" Dan reacts and the ship moves relentlessly and an alarm blares furiously. "What's your plan? Some clever sciencey-spacey thing I won't understand?"
"We're gonna to ram them."
"You mean, you're gonna use this ship as…as a battering ram to hit all of the others and create a massive temporal reaction?" Arthur asked.
"Takes the ships, and all the Sontarans on Earth out of existence. Huge temporal bang," Karvanista noted. "At least this one is smart enough."
"Yeah, but we're on this ship," Dan reminded him.
"There's an escape pod down the corridor, you fool. Come on. We're out of here."
The moment he pressed the exit door, the Sontarans were in their way. Arthur quickly press it again as the Sontarans fire.
"Well, that was a great plan," Dan huffed.
"Why did I have to get you to protect?" Karvanista complained as he uses his weapon directly at Arthur's. Dan immediately drags the boy away as he creates a hole in the wall.
"You could've killed us! What are you doing?"
"Get down there. Hurry up," Karvanista insisted as he pulled both of them.
Before Dan or Arthur can say any word, the alien dog pushes them down without warning, and the boy can't help himself to scream in fear before hitting himself into a big water.
"What was in that tube?" Dan asked as they all haul themselves out of the water.
"It was the waste tube," he replied.
"Gross!" Arthur snapped, grimances when Karvanista shakes himself dry and leaves some tray of water at him and Dan.
"They're gone," Dan looks at the Liverpool Docks. "It's all gone."
"Temporal implosion. You're welcome," Karvanista remarked as The Tardis materialized. "Oh, here she comes, now the hard work's been done."
"Doctor!" Arthur runs to her and gives her a big hug.
The Doctor kneels to get a better look. "What happened to you? Why are you soaking in water?" She glances around. "And you got rid of the Sontarans."
"It was pretty easy, really. We worked it all out, until Scooby-Doo here tried to take all the credit," Dan gestures at Karvanista.
"I need your people to stay protecting this planet while I'm away. I have to find my friend," she instructed him and looked at Dan. "Want to come?"
Dan pauses a moment before smiling. "Okay."
"I'm not done with you yet," the Doctor warned Karvanista.
"If you're going out into the universe, you'd better understand it's in a bad way. The Lupari will stay, shielding the planet, until this is over. If it is ever over."
"I hope I never see you again," Dan admitted.
"Feeling's mutual."
The moment he enters the Tardis, the boy know something's up. "What in the…?" Arthur mumbled, touching the black goo that came out of the crystalline structures of the console room.
"That should not be growing out of the floor," the Doctor pointed out.
"These things new?" Dan asked.
"Yeah. They weren't here a second ago. Something's corrupted the Tardis."
Arthur hissed, sensing his left hand being twisted as The Tardis suddenly dematerialises by herself, making him fall to the floor by the sudden shift.
"Sunny!" The Doctor reaches to him, scanning his left hand. "It's affecting him."
"The goo?" Dan inquired.
"Not just the goo. The Flux. The Tardis. Time itself," the Doctor holds Arthur, looking at his blue eyes. "Sunny, did something like this happened before?"
Arthur glances at Dan, looking terrified. The man speaks up, "Well, thing is Doctor, he had a headache. I thought he was scared when the Sontarans were going to kill us…"
"When were you before?"
"What?"
"Before met Dan. When were you?" She asked, as if trying to determine how much she can tell him.
"S-Skaro," he whimpered as the pain in his left hand was getting worse and the Tardis landed them somewhere. "I was with Scottish You, Clara, and Claudia. Missy was there too."
She panicked, ran her hand through her blonde hair. Of all the things he can land, why did he land here? Right after Skaro and the whole mess with Davros?
"Doctor?" Arthur called her. "What happened to me?"
She tosses his lock beside his right ear. "Your body," she explained. "The power inside your body is open up. When you are in the Tardis for the first time, the Tardis helps you to unleash your time traveler's ability. That's why you start jumping after we left Desolation." She helps him stand up. "But the rest…you open it by yourself in Skaro. Like a sudden outburst. It was unpredictable, much more than your time jump. That was why you had a blackout before. Your body's way too young to handle the sudden release."
Arthur looks down, thinking for a moment. Bad Wolf had said something like that. How she helped him from getting 'haywire' after getting stupor in Skaro. "Is it dangerous?"
"It is, IF you can't control it," she sighs. She hates that Arthur was born with this huge responsibility. It's not fair. "You can ask Scottish and Chinny about it. But now," she glances at the door, "we find Yaz."
The Doctor opens the door, looking outside before gesturing Dan and Arthur to follow her.
"Where are we?" Dan wondered as she scanned the area.
"I don't know. But the spatial-temporal readings are at zero, which is impossible," she informed.
"Temple of Atropos," Arthur suddenly answered, as if he knew it.
"It is," a woman with a skeleton face-looking confirmed in front of them. "This way."
Arthur glances at the Doctor, gripping her coat. "This is a trap."
"And we're walking into it, are we?" Dan pointed out.
"We have to find Yaz, Sunny," she reminded the boy and looked at Dan. "Stay close to me, do exactly as I say."
Arthur looks around as they keep walking. He swears he heard voices. Voices that told him to go away, to leave this place no matter what. But why?
The boy hides behind the Doctor as he spots the man in his vision. The one who hurt the priest. "Ah, Doctor. At last. Come. It's been a long time. I have something of yours. Come, further."
The Doctor, Arthur, and Dan step into the middle, and the remaining Mouri appear. The voices keep getting bigger.
"Who are they?" Dan asked.
"The Mouri," Arthur responded, glancing nervously. He never steps into this place, yet he feels he knows this place. "The Secret Keepers of Time. They swear on their life, to live in the Temple of Atropos on the planet Time, and maintain Time before it turns itself into chaos."
"There is no planet called Time, Sunny," the Doctor argued.
"Yet here we are," the skeleton-looking man denoted. "The Temple of Atropos is broken, and the Mouri are failing. Creatures who hold Time in this universe together, broken. Time is beginning to run wild. And Time will catch you, Fox," he snarled and Arthur's blood started to run cold as he realized that this man was the one who called him from his dream. "Not even your precious Tardis and your snoopy aunt can help you. I made a liberty for a short-term repair."
He snaps his fingers and Yasmin and Vinder appear, with Mouri face markings. "Yaz!" Both the Doctor and Arthur called, running to her.
"Doctor, Arthur, don't come near. I've seen what he can do," Yasmin warned.
"She's right," the skeleton-looking woman agreed. "Try to rescue them, and we'll reduce them to ash. Her and her new friend."
"Will you count?" The skeleton-looking man asked.
"Yes. 5."
"What have you done to them?" The Doctor demanded.
"It's what I'm about to do, Doctor," the man replied.
"4."
"Poor placeholders. Hardly equipped to be Mouri, are they? Unless, of course…"
"Touch him, and I kill you myself," the Doctor snapped, shielding Arthur as her face suddenly filled with anger.
"3."
The man simply smiles. "When I click my fingers, the full force of Time will blast through them. The Fox can handle it with no trouble, but how many seconds will your friends' bodies be able to take before they die, Doctor?"
"2."
"Unleash," Bad Wolf suddenly stood behind him, holding his shoulders motherly. "When the Doctor grabs Dan, unleash everything you had to distract them."
"1."
Arthur flinches as he unleashes his power, spreading his hands as more power getting out of his body, blinding his sight. He can hear the panic at those terrible creatures and the warning voices of the Mauri inside his brain, telling him to stop. But Arthur can't stop. Not when these people are harming the Doctor's friends. Not when they are all in danger. Not when he can use his power to help them escape.
He must stop them. Stop them. Stop them stop them stop them stop them stop them…!