"Cardiff." The Doctor announced, bouncing around the console as the ship settled into place.

"Cardiff?" Martha rebuffed, evidently not that impressed.

The Doctor grinned, having expected this reaction. "Ah, but the thing about Cardiff, it's built on a rift in time and space, just like California and the San Andreas Fault, but the rift bleeds energy. Every now and then I need to open up the engines, soak up the energy and use it as fuel." He explained, grinning at himself.

Martha sent him a sly smile. "So it's a pit stop."

Hally grinned. "Yep. Plus it's his favourite spot to grab chips."

The Doctor laugh quietly and sent his daughter a meaningful look.

"Always! Should only take twenty seconds. The rift's been active…" He added thoughtfully. Hally sat herself down and Martha leant against the console as the group quietly waited.

"Finito! All powered up." The Doctor announced. He moved over to the console monitor and then quickly set the time rotor moving. The TARDIS whirred and began to dematerialise. Hally only had a moment to register the loud bang, before she was pitched forwards as the ship jolted. She caught herself on the edge of the console, which moments later sparked angrily.

"Whoa! What's that?!" Martha cried out, she was gripping onto the console tightly to avoid also being thrown onto the floor.

The Doctor was madly pressing buttons. "We're accelerating into the future. The year one billion. Five billion. Five trillion. Fifty trillion? What? The year one hundred trillion? That's impossible…"

"What's going on?!" Hally demanded. The TARDIS was lurching from side to side violently.

The Doctor stared at the monitor, resigned to the fact that there was nothing he could do. "We're going to the end of the universe."

The TARDIS landed herself with a stubborn thud and everything went still and quiet, apart from the angry hissing still coming from the console.

"Well, we've landed." The Doctor straightened up.

Martha looked towards the door. "So what's out there?"

"I don't know." The Doctor followed her gaze.

Martha breathed out a chuckle. "Say that again. That's rare."

"Not even the Time Lords came this far. We should leave. We should go. We should really, really go..." The Doctor trailed off, eyes flicking back to Martha and Hally. His face then split into a wide grin, and with an excitable bounce, he sprinted for the door.

Hally barked an incredulous laugh and ran after him, Martha close behind. She stepped out into the darkness. Nighttime perhaps, or considering it was the end of the universe it was more likely that there were no suns to give light for daytime. She looked up at the sky, it was so vastly empty. Just endless nothing.

"Oh my God!" Martha rushed past Hally, pulling her focus back to the planet they were standing on. There was a body on the floor, lying motionless on the dark grey dirt. Hally took a step towards them as Martha knelt down, feeling for a pulse.

She recognised him instantly, a breath leaving her in shock. She looked up at The Doctor in question but he wouldn't look at her, instead, his eyes focused calmly on Jack.

"Can't get a pulse. Hold on. You've got that medical kit thing!" Martha stood up again and rushed back inside the TARDIS. The Time Lords let her go but Hally took the opportunity to move closer. There was something swirling around Jack's body, it was barely visible. It could have even been dust but everything else around them was so perfectly still. Waves of a colourless force danced across him. She cocked her head to one side. It was strange to watch, almost hypnotic.

The Doctor sighed deeply to her left.

The blur that was Martha bundled past Hally again, falling to her knees next to Jack and getting to work instantly.

Hally looked back up at The Doctor. His face was unreadable.

"How is he here Doctor?"

Martha was wittering away to herself as she tried to bring the man back to life. "It's a bit odd, though. Not very hundred trillion. That coat's more like World War Two."

"He came with us." The Doctor answered. His face never changing.

Martha looked back at him, her scepticism obvious. "How do you mean, from Earth?"

The Doctor looked back to the TARDIS, talking more to himself than his companion. "Must have been clinging to the outside of the Tardis all the way through the vortex. Well, that's very him…" He shrugged.

"What are you talking about? How was he in Cardiff? I thought he was dead?" Hally motioned to Jack's body, her patience wearing thin.

"You know him?" Martha questioned.

The Doctor sighed. "Friend of ours. Used to travel with me, back in the old days."

Martha paused for a moment, looking back down at Jack who was still motionless. "But he's..." She struggled to find the words. "I'm sorry, there's no heartbeat. There's nothing. He's dead."

But even as she spoke, the energy that had been swirling around Jack stopped still and in a blink had disappeared. Jack's body jerked into life. Martha let out a shrill scream as he grabbed a hold of her, the young woman still kneeling next to him.

"It's all right. Just breathe deep. I've got you." Martha gasped out, trying her best to comfort the impossible man in her arms.

Jack recovered quickly. "Captain Jack Harkness. And who are you?" He breathlessly introduced himself, somehow managing to come across as charming.

Martha stared at him, her eyes wide. "Martha Jones."

Jack grinned at her. "Nice to meet you, Martha Jones."

"Oh, don't start." The Doctor's voice cut across them.

Jack's eyes slid from Martha to The Doctor, who had barely moved. His hands shoved in his pockets.

"I was only saying hello." Jack challenged, but Hally saw the twinkle of mischief behind his eyes.

Martha laughed. "I don't mind."

Hally stepped round to Jack's right-hand side, offering her hand out to him. Her face was a picture of bewilderment. The ex-Time Agent raked his eyes from the floor up to her face, his gaze softening. "Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes." He reached forward and grabbed her outstretched arm.

Hally smirked at his terrible line and pulled him up to standing. "Not looking too shabby for a dead guy." She raised an eyebrow at him, silently questioning.

He purposefully ignored her question, looking over her head at The Doctor. "Doctor."

"Captain." The Doctor replied. Hally looked between the two men, the tension was practically palpable. This only confused her further, why wouldn't The Doctor be as happy and surprised as she was to see their lost friend?

"Good to see you." Jack tilted his chin up at the Time Lord.

The Doctor gave him a minute nod. "And you. Same as ever. Although, have you had work done?"

Jack scoffed. "You can talk."

The Doctor frowned, before following his train of thought. He grinned. "Oh yes, the face. Regeneration. How did you know this was me?"

Jack motioned to the TARDIS. "The police box kind of gives it away. I've been following you for a long time." Jack's face darkened. "You abandoned me."

The Doctor didn't react. "Did I? Busy life. Moving on." His voice was flat.

Hally frowned, shooting her father a questioning look. She opened her mouth to voice her concern, but Jack beat her to it.

"Just got to ask. The Battle of Canary Wharf. I saw the list of the dead. It said Rose Tyler."

The Doctor shook his head. "Oh, no! Sorry, she's alive."

Jack grinned, letting out a genuine sigh of relief. "You're kidding."

"Parallel world, safe and sound. And Mickey, and her mother." The Doctor confirmed, warming ever so slightly to his old friend.

"Oh, yes!" Jack pulled The Doctor into a tight hug, which he returned, somewhat stiffly. Once Jack had pulled away, The Doctor had turned and started to lead them all away from the TARDIS. Hally watched him, there was something bothering him. He wasn't being honest about something. About Jack. She'd never seen this side of her father directed at their friends. Or, perhaps…

Hally's blood ran cold with dread as she recognised that she had seen this side of The Doctor before. For the first 300 years of her life on Gallifrey. Had he not changed as much as she'd let herself believe?

Jack must have seen parts of her thoughts on her face, because he reached out and touched her shoulder gently, motioning for them to follow The Doctor.

"What happened to you?" Hally fell in step with Jack as they began to walk, Martha hovering just in front of them, not even trying to hide the fact that she was listening in.

Jack smirked slightly. "So there I was, stranded in the year 200100, ankle-deep in Dalek dust, and he goes off without me." He was at a volume that Hally was sure was deliberate. Ensuring their conversation was heard by Time Lord striding ahead of them. "But I had this." Jack pulled his coat back from his wrist, showing them his Vortex Manipulator. "He's not the only one who can time travel."

Hally couldn't help the small snigger that escaped her, Jack noticed and nudged her playfully. However, The Doctor also took the bait. "Oh, excuse me. That is not time travel!" He called back to them. "It's like, I've got a sports car and you've got a space hopper."

"Oh ho. Boys and their toys." Martha exclaimed playfully, looking between the two.

Jack rolled his eyes. "All right, so I bounced. I thought 21st century, the best place to find the Doctor, except that I got it a little wrong. Arrived in 1869, this thing burnt out, so it was useless."

"Told you." The Doctor quipped childishly.

Jack continued on as if The Doctor hadn't spoken. "I had to live through the entire twentieth century waiting for a version of you that would coincide with me."

Martha frowned. "But that makes you more than one hundred years old."

Jack winked at her. "And looking good, don't you think?" He laughed at himself before continuing. "So I went to the time rift, based myself there because I knew you'd come back to refuel. Until finally I get a signal on this detecting you and here we are."

"But the thing is, how come you left him behind, Doctor?" Martha had voiced the question before Hally had managed to find the words.

The Doctor rebuffed her. "I was busy."

"You knew he was alive?" Hally asked, her tone demanding his attention. However, he ignored her again, walking on as if he hadn't heard her at all.

Hally looked up to Jack, he gave her a meaningful look.

Martha evidently wasn't happy with The Doctor's answer either. "Is that what happens, though, seriously? Do you just get bored with us one day and disappear?"

"No…-" Hally wasn't sure why she was defending her father.

"Not if you're blonde." Jack cut in.

Martha's eyes widened. "Oh, she was blonde? Oh, what a surprise!" She mocked.

The Doctor rounded on them. "We're at the end of the universe, all right? Right at the edge of knowledge itself and you're all busy blogging! Come on."

Jack and Martha promptly shut up, looking at one another like scolded children.

"I think he has a point if you knowingly abandoned him…" Hally muttered under her breath, knowing The Doctor would still hear her.

He sent her a stern glare, turning and walking away from the group again. This time Martha followed him, jogging to catch up. Hally didn't move, instead she glared after her father's retreating form. What had happened between the two men that would result in The Doctor leaving Jack stranded and alone after what had happened on Satellite Five? Again, she was brought from her thoughts by Jack's gentle touch, his hand squeezed her waist. She turned, looking up at him. His expression was gentle but perceptive.

"I had no idea…" She spoke softly.

"Figures." He gave her a small smile, moving his hand around to her lower back he gave her a light push, leading them both again towards The Doctor. She let him manoeuvre her.

"I just don't understand why he'd leave you behind." She admitted to him, he responded with a shrug. Martha and The Doctor had stopped up ahead and were looking down into a magnificent cavern, the remains of a city built into the rock.

"…All the great civilizations have gone. This isn't just night. All the stars have burned up and faded away into nothing." The Doctor was explaining to Martha.

Jack looked up at the sky. "They must have an atmospheric shell. We should be frozen to death."

The Doctor gave him a dark look. "Well, Martha and I, maybe. Not so sure about you two."

Hally bristled. She wasn't sure what she'd done to earn the coldness she was now receiving from The Doctor.

"What about the people? Does no one survive?" Martha asked, looking at the city.

"I suppose we have to hope life will find a way."

Jack turned away from the sight before them. "Well, he's not doing too bad."

The rest of them turned to see who Jack was referring to. A man was sprinting across the dirt. They watched him for a moment, when more beings came into view. However, these ones were carrying weapons and were running directly for the man.

"Is it me, or does that look like a hunt?" The Doctor voiced what they were all thinking. "Come on!"

Their differences were instantly put on the back burner as The Doctor, Jack, Hally and Martha dashed towards the running man. The Doctor and Jack took the lead, their long coats flapping dramatically behind them. If she hadn't been so focused on keeping up with them, Hally would have rolled her eyes. However, she also wrote herself a mental note to buy a long coat.

Jack reached the man first, grabbing his shoulders and trying to calm him.

"They're coming! They're coming!" The man was beside himself with fear, struggling against Jack as the group caught up with them. Hally's eyes widened. They were brandishing sharp objects that had obviously been fashioned into weapons. One of them, their leader, stepped forwards snarling at them. Their teeth were pointed into fangs and Hally gulped, realising why they'd been chasing the man.

"Jack, don't you dare!" The Doctor ordered, Hally looked back and saw that Jack had drawn his gun on the cannibals.

Jack shot The Doctor an irritated look, instead holding his gun to the sky. Shooting warning shots. It worked, those hunting them took fearful steps back.

They had almost been surrounded, the man pulled them towards the only exit they could take. Confidently informing the group that he could take them to the 'Silo'. The Silo would be safe. They didn't have much of a choice and they broke into a run, following the man. The armed tribe behind charging after them.

They rounded a corner and the Silo came into sight. It was some kind of settlement, surrounded by tall metal fences, lights flooded their vision. The man ran straight to the gate which was being guarded by armed men.

"It's the Futurekind! Open the gate!" He screamed at them desperately. The guards had their guns pointed at them, watching as the Futurekind came into view.

"Show me your teeth! Show me your teeth! Show me your teeth!" The guard demanded. They did, the guards swiftly opened the gates upon seeing their flat incisors. Turning their guns on the Futurekind as they approached the gate. One of the guards fired shots at the floor, keeping them at bay.

Reluctantly, the Futurekind retreated back into the darkness and the guards turned to the new group. "Right. Let's get you inside."

The man was catching his breath. "My name is Padra Toc Shafe Cane. Tell me. Just tell me, can you take me to Utopia?"

The guard smiled at him and led them all inside. "Oh yes, sir. Yes, I can."

They were all led inside the compound, The Doctor introduced himself to Lieutenant Atillo while Padra asked about his family. Hally looked around them, it was busy inside the Silo. All the walls were made from different materials as if they'd built everything very quickly out of whatever they could find. Hally's gaze drifted back to Jack, who was stood close to the right of her. There was something warming about his presence. Perhaps it was finding out that he was alive, or perhaps she held some guilt over the fact that The Doctor had abandoned him. She rested her hand on the Captain's arm. "It's good to see you, Jack." He looked down at her, giving her a charming smile. "I'm glad you found your way back to us." Hally wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a hug. He hugged her back, his arms squeezing her.

"Of course I did. You still owe me a kiss remember?" Jack pulled back, giving her a cheeky smirk.

Hally's mouth pulled into a wry smile, but she couldn't stop the blush that peppered her cheeks.

"It looks like a box, a big blue box. I'm sorry, but I really need it back. It's stuck out there." The Doctor was explaining to Atillo, who agreed to keep an eye out for their ship on their last water collection run. The Lieutenant called over a young boy, Creet, to assist Padra with finding his family. The boy looked at up them all, checking his clipboard and leading them further into the Silo. There were people everywhere, littered across all the improvised corridors. Some had fashioned their own semi-private dwellings out of fabrics and metals, others where simply sat along the walls, waiting or sleeping.

Creet led them confidently through. "Anyone? Kistane and Beltone Shafe Cane? Anyone know the Shafe Cane family? Anyone called Shafe Cane?"

The Doctor was in awe. "Don't you see that? The ripe old smell of humans. You survived. Oh, you might have spent a million years evolving into clouds of gas, and another million as downloads, but you always revert to the same basic shape. The fundamental humans. End of the universe and here you are. Indomitable! That's the word. Indomitable! Ha!"

They watched as a woman stood up, rushing towards the group. Padra pulled her into a tight hug and the pair wept happy tears at their reunion.

The Doctor pulled back, getting out the sonic screwdriver and began investigating. He stopped at a heavy-set door. "Give us a hand with this. It's half-deadlocked. I need you to overwrite the code. Let's find out where we are." Jack was pulled away from more shameless flirting by The Doctor. Together, they got the door open and The Doctor went to take a confident step forward.

Luckily, Jack, reacting quickly, grabbed The Doctor and pulled him back into the corridor saving him from the long fall down.

"How did you cope without me?" Jack quipped. The four of them peered through the doorway at the giant rocket parked in its silo.

"They're not refugees, they're passengers." The Doctor narrated.

"He said they were going to Utopia." Martha looked up at The Doctor, leaning back from the doorway.

The Doctor nodded slowly. "The perfect place. Hundred trillion years, it's the same old dream." He looked down to the base of the silo. "You recognise those engines?"

Hally shook her head as Jack echoed her thoughts. "Nope. Whatever it is, it's not rocket science. But it's hot, though."

Jack and The Doctor pulled the door closed. "Boiling. But if the universe is falling apart, what does Utopia mean?"

An older man with white hair pushed into their midst, his eyes were on Jack. "The Doctor?"

Jack pointed a finger over towards the Time Lord as The Doctor gave a small wave. "That's me."

The man grasped at The Doctor's arm, pulling him away as he muttered away to himself. "Good! Good! Good. Good. Good. Good. Good. Good. Good. Good."

The Doctor shot the remaining three an amused look. "It's good apparently." They had to break into a short jog to catch up to the strange man who was leading The Doctor away at speed. He led them deeper into the silo, opening up a door to a room filled with wires and workstations. The man was explaining enthusiastically to The Doctor what each area of the system did and how it worked. The Doctor followed him, smiling politely.

"Chan welcome Tho." Hally, Martha and Jack were greeted by a beautiful blue creature. She was some kind of humanoid insect species that Hally had never encountered before. Her eyes sparkled kindly at them.

Martha smiled back. "Hello. Who are you?"

"Chan Chantho Tho." She replied, giving them a shy smile.

Jack stepped forward, offering her his hand. "Captain Jack Harkness." His voice was laced with charm. Chantho giggled at his forwardness.

"Stop it." The Doctor called across the room.

Jack pretended to be offended. "Can't I say hello to anyone?"

Chantho covered her mouth, blushing. "Chan I do not protest Tho."

"Mmmm, they rarely do…" Hally quipped, sending Jack a playful look. She moved away from Chantho, trying to see what the old man had been showing The Doctor.

"And all this feeds into the rocket?" Her father was asking, motioning around the room.

The man nodded, he was looking at The Doctor which such hope, his voice betraying his exhaustion. "Yeah, except without a stable footprint, you see, we're unable to achieve escape velocity. If only we could harmonise the five impact patterns and unify them, well, we might yet make it. What do you think, Doctor? Any ideas?"

The Doctor looked around, rubbing his neck. "Well, er, basically, sort of, not a clue." He settled on sheepishly.

"Nothing?" The hope seemed to disintegrate from the older man's face.

"I'm not from around these parts. I've never seen a system like it. Sorry." The Doctor rubbed a hand over his face. The man tried to brush off his disappointment.

"Oh, my God. You've got a hand? A hand in a jar. A hand in a jar in your bag." Martha was standing on the other side of the laboratory in a mess area, Jack's bag open on the table as she pulled a case out. The Doctor's hand suspended in the liquid inside. They all gathered around, The Doctor explained quickly how he'd lost his hand in a swordfight on Christmas Day. Martha stood staring at the hand, disbelief written all over her features.

"Might I ask, what species are you?" The older man asked, looking between the four newcomers.

The Doctor took a seat. "Time Lord, last of. Heard of them?" The man shook his head, looking to Chantho for help. She looked to The Doctor in silent apology. "Legend or anything? Not even a myth? Blimey, end of the universe is a bit humbling." The Doctor grumbled.

Chantho gave The Doctor a sympathetic nod. "Chan it is said that I am the last of my species too Tho."

The man with the white hair introduced Chantho to The Doctor, informing them that the planet they'd found themselves on was called Malcassairo and had originally been the home of the Malmooth, like Chantho.

"You grew another hand?" Martha muttered, the poor human hadn't moved during their entire conversation. The Doctor chuckled, stood up and wriggled his hand at her.

"Hello, again. It's fine. Look, really, it's me."

Martha's face split into a ridiculous smile. "All this time and you're still full of surprises."

Hally cocked her head to one side, considering the two of them. She let herself be led over to the navigation system, the older man showing them the signal from Utopia. Explaining their plan to travel there in the hope of a safe haven. Hally was distracted, Martha's comment had sparked a new wave of distrust in The Doctor and her unease grew as she considered how little she truly knew him. After all, she would never have imagined he could leave someone behind the way he had done so with Jack.

The man was talking again. "The Science Foundation created the Utopia Project thousands of years ago to preserve mankind, to find a way of surviving beyond the collapse of reality itself. Now perhaps they found it. Perhaps not. But it's worth a look, don't you think?" He looked between the newcomers, hopefully.

Hally felt her hearts hum with an appreciation for the human. Trying his best to take all the humans above to Utopia. Carrying all that responsibility on his shoulders.

"Definitely." Hally gave him an encouraging smile.

He looked up at her and smiled back.

The Doctor started to talk again, capturing Hally's attention. "Oh, yes. And the signal keeps modulating, so it's not automatic. That's a good sign someone's out there. And that's, oh, that's a navigation matrix. So you can fly without stars to guide you." The Doctor grinned, looking to the man. "Professor?" He questioned.

Hally looked back at the Professor, wondering for a short moment what he could possibly be a Professor of at the end of the universe. However, the man wasn't listening. He was just staring back at her, motionless.

"Professor? Professor." The Doctor's voice finally cut through whatever trance had distracted the Professor. A dark look fell over his face.

"I, er, ahem, right, that's enough talk. There's work to do. Now if you could leave, thank you." He moved swiftly away from them, busying himself within his jungle of wires.

"Except that rocket's not going to fly, is it? This footprint mechanism thing, it's not working." The Doctor followed him, pressing.

"We'll find a way." The Professor waved The Doctor away, his demeanour suddenly short-tempered and irritable.

"You're stuck on this planet. And you haven't told them, have you? That lot out there, they still think they're going to fly."

"Well, it's better to let them live in hope."

The Doctor nodded in understanding. "Quite right, too. And I must say, Professor… what was it?"

"Yana." The man replied simply, watching The Doctor.

The Doctor grinned, moving swiftly to one of the piles of wires on the floor. He grabbed one of them, following it along to a connector. "Professor Yana. This new science is well beyond me, but all the same, a boost reversal circuit, in any time frame, must be a circuit which reverses the boost." He pulled the sonic screwdriver from his pocket, turning it on the connector. "So, I wonder, what would happen if I did this?" The screwdriver buzzed and abruptly the whole system lit up, screens flickering into life, showing stable energy levels throughout.

"Chan it's working Tho!"

Professor Yana looked around the room in amazement. "But how did you do that?"

The Doctor plastered on a goofy smile. "Oh, we've been chatting away, I forgot to tell you. I'm brilliant."

With the system working, it meant that the rocket could fly. Yana informed Lieutenant Atillo and within minutes the silo was bustling with activity. Martha and Chantho went up to an upper level to gather supplies while Yana and The Doctor worked on fine-tuning the circuits. Hally had to admit, the circuit the Professor had created was incredibly impressive. He had fashioned the wiring from consumable materials. She gently ran her fingers through a section, before her hand was slapped away. She looked up in shock, to find the Professor sending her a stern glare.

"Don't touch. You'll break it." He'd muttered, before scurrying back to his work.

Jack watched the interaction, an amused smile on his face. "He already knows you so well."

Hally rolled her eyes. "So mean."

"No regeneration for you then?" He asked, moving closer to her.

Hally shook her head. "Oh, I don't think I can." She shrugged. "Or maybe I can. I honestly have no clue. I just heal. Like 'Wolverine', Rose used to say." Hally smiled.

Jack shot her a scandalous wink. "I can picture you in a skin-tight suit."

Hally raised her eyebrows. "Careful, Harkness." She batted back, looking through her lashes up at him.

He grinned and stepped forward into her space, his pleasant scent washing over her. He placed his hands on her waist, pulling her closer until their bodies met. "End of the universe. If I can't try my luck now, when can I?"

She tried to resist but a smile pulled at her mouth. Warmth spread from his hands into her abdomen, causing a hot blush to creep up her chest and onto her face. "Well… I guess everyone else has had a go…" Hally leant forward and to both her and Jack's surprise she pressed her lips firmly against his.

He grinned into the kiss, moving one of the hands at her waist to rest behind her head. Although she'd originally meant to do it just to shock her old friend, she found her body betraying her as she melted into his arms. It had been so long since anyone had touched her like this, and of course, Jack was annoyingly and predictably good at it. When he finally pulled back, Hally tried her best to steady her breathing but the self-satisfied smirk Harkness was giving her told her that he was well aware of the effect he was having on her.

"It was worth living through two world wars just for that." He cooed softly, giving her a playful wink. Hally gave herself a mental high five hearing the unmistakable tremble in his voice. She grinned at him victoriously. She felt his chest vibrate as he chuckled, arms still holding her against him.

It was then that the silence in the room became unavoidably obvious to Hally. She had most definitely forgotten where they were and who they were in the room with. She winced as she turned to look at The Doctor, inwardly praying to all the Gods that he was too engrossed in doing something clever that he hadn't noticed his daughter very publically making out with their friend. Of course, no such luck.

Both Professor Yana and The Doctor were staring at them. It would have been comical if Hally hadn't been so terribly embarrassed. She'd never seen The Doctor look so ruffled. His mouth was pressed into a thin line, left eye twitching. Professor Yana was scowling at the two of them.

Jack smoothly removed himself from her, running a hand through his hair. He gave The Doctor a charming smile. "What?" He asked innocently.

The Doctor opened his mouth, about to launch into what Hally was sure was going to be a long tirade, when Atillo's voice crackled over the communication system, the video link blinking into life.

"Professor, tell the Doctor we've found his blue box."

The Doctor's eyes flicked over to the screen, the TARDIS now visible. "Ah!" The Doctor jumped into action, running over to the monitor. What he'd just witnessed momentarily forgotten. "Professor, it's a wild stab in the dark, but I may just have found you a way out." He shot a grin over his shoulder to Yana.

After the TARDIS was brought down into the lab, The Doctor rushed inside pulling a power cable out with him. "Extra power. Little bit of a cheat, but who's counting?" He grinned at himself, before turning to Hally and Jack.

His face fell and he skulked over to where the two were stood, still much too close for his liking and handed Jack a pile of tangled wires. "Jack, you're in charge of the retro feeds. Over there…" He motioned to the other side of the room. Jack sent Hally a smirk, before doing as he was told.

"And you, young lady are coming with me." The Doctor narrowed his eyes at her. She couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her and had to cover her mouth to ensure no more followed when The Doctor's eyebrow twitched up dangerously. She followed him around the lab, following the instructions that he muttered her way. Once Martha and Chantho returned, The Doctor pounced on them too until everyone was working together to ensure the whole system was fully functional.

Once they were ready, Yana informed them that in order for the rocket to launch they would have to release five couplings directly underneath it. The room was usually flooded with radiation, so they would have to keep the radiation levels down from the lab while someone went in to release them. They watched on the video feed as Atillo sent a young engineer into the chamber. Jack and Martha were overseeing the radiation levels. The others were huddled around the video feed, watching in tense silence.

Almost halfway through, an alarm sounded and the system sparked as the radiation began to rise swiftly. "We've lost control!" Jack barked.

"Jack, override the vents!" The Doctor ordered. But Jack ignored him, instead he grabbed two open cables, their ends sparking dangerously.

"We can jump-start the override." He pressed the ends together as The Doctor shouted a warning.

However, it was too late, the power flared and the live cables flailed wildly as they pushed electricity across Jack. He fell to the floor, dead.

Martha rushed to his side once more. "I've got him…"

Hally stepped forward to check in on him. "Can you see that..?" She looked up at The Doctor before turning back to look at Jack. She could see it again, the strange pulsating energy she'd seen flowing around Jack when they'd stepped from the TARDIS.

The Doctor watched his daughter silently for a moment before turning back to Jack's dead body.

"The chamber's flooded with radiation, yes?" The Doctor spoke as Martha started to try and resuscitate Jack. The energy around him pulsed once more, it was like it was fizzing across the surface of his skin.

"Without the couplings, the engines will never start. It was all for nothing." Yana lamented.

"Oh, I don't know." The Doctor bent down and pulled Martha away. "Martha, leave him."

"You've got to let me try." She struggled against him but The Doctor kept her back.

"Come on, come on, just listen to me. Now leave him alone." He turned to the Professor. "It strikes me, Professor, you've got a room which no man can enter without dying. Is that correct?"

Yana raised his arms in a hopeless gesture. "Yes."

"Well…"

Hally watched as yet again the energy stopped moving abruptly and as it did Jack lurched upwards, pulling a desperate breath into his lungs.

"…I think I've got just the man." The Doctor finished.

Jack was gasping for breath, he looked around the room. "Was someone kissing me?"

Martha laughed incredulously, turning to look at Hally and The Doctor in amazement.

It was agreed after Jack had recovered, that he and The Doctor would head down into the couplings chamber. Hally followed after them, much to The Doctor's disapproval.

"You stay here."

"No. You might abandon him again." Hally gave The Doctor an unimpressed eyebrow as she cut in front of him, following Jack down to the chamber.

They reached the chamber control room and The Doctor made quick work of reconnecting with the lab so they could communicate with Martha and the Professor. Hally leaned against the wall, watching appreciatively as Jack shrugged off his coat and pulled his shirt over his head.

"I don't think the radiation affects clothing Jack…" Hally teased. The Doctor hearing them, turned to look at Jack, raising his eyebrows.

"Well, I've got to look my best." Knowing The Doctor was watching them, he sent Hally a shameless wink before moving to the door. He gave The Doctor a meaningful look. "How long have you known?"

"Ever since I ran away from you. Good luck."

The door slid open and Jack slipped inside, closing the door quickly behind him. The Doctor moved to peer through the glass hatch so he could watch the Captain. Hally stayed where she was, listening to the both of them intently.

"When did you first realise?" The Doctor asked him, it seemed that her father had finally decided to speak plainly with Jack.

"Earth, 1892. Got in a fight in Ellis Island. A man shot me through the heart. Then I woke up. Thought it was kind of strange. But then it never stopped. Fell off a cliff, trampled by horses, World War One, World War Two, poison, starvation, a stray javelin. In the end, I got the message. I'm the man who can never die." Jack's voice travelled through the door. "And all that time you knew." His tone was accusatory.

The Doctor looked down, rubbing his face. "That's why I left you behind." He answered truthfully. "It's not easy even just looking at you, Jack, because you're wrong."

Jack let out a laugh. "Thanks."

Hally's face darkened. "So someone's a little bit different and you just leave them behind? Is that it?"

The Doctor looked back at his daughter, his face marred with guilt. "No… but look at him…" He tried to reason with his daughter.

She scowled, irritated and disappointed by his ignorance. "I am looking at him. And yes… there's something different about him. But it doesn't feel bad. Plus, it's not his fault." She motioned to the door currently separating Jack from them.

The Doctor sighed, turning back to Jack. "You're a fixed point in time and space. You're a fact. That's never meant to happen. Even the TARDIS reacted against you, tried to shake you off. Flew all the way to the end of the universe just to get rid of you."

Jack's voice lilted playfully. "So what you're saying is that you're… prejudiced?"

The Doctor's voice cracked. "I never thought of it like that."

"Shame on you." Jack quipped.

The Doctor looked at the floor, his discomfort obvious. "Yeah."

Hally rolled her eyes. "I mean, it's not like he hasn't done it before."

The Doctor turned to look at her quickly. "That was different."

"Was it?" She challenged him.

He shook his head. "I would never abandon you."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Please excuse me if Jack and I don't believe you."

"No…" The Doctor was struggling to find the words to explain himself, aware that he was treading on thin ice. "Yes… you are different Hally. But he's… he was never meant to exist like this."

"So how did it happen?" Jack's voice interrupted them.

"Rose." The Doctor said simply.

Jack frowned. "I thought you'd sent her back home."

"She came back. Opened the heart of the Tardis and absorbed the time vortex itself." The Doctor pressed his head against the glass of the door. Shoulders slumped.

"What does that mean, exactly?" Jack asked.

"No one's ever meant to have that power. If a Time Lord did that, he'd become a god. A vengeful god. But she was human." The Doctor lowered his voice. As if he didn't want to be heard. "Everything she did was so human. She brought you back to life but she couldn't control it. She brought you back forever. That's something, I suppose. The final act of the Time War was life." The Doctor let out a sad laugh.

"Do you think she could change me back?" Jack's question landed on The Doctor and her father turned to look at Hally for a moment. She could see thoughts swirling behind his eyes.

"I took the power out of her." He answered Jack, not looking at him. "She's gone, Jack. She's not just living on a parallel world, she's trapped there. The walls have closed."

"I'm sorry." Jack's voice had lost its playful edge.

"Would you want to die?" Hally asked, loud enough for Jack to hear her.

She heard him grunt through the door, voice strained. "Oh, this one's a little stuck."

"Jack?" The Doctor pressed him.

Jack groaned. "I thought I did. I don't know. But this lot. You see them out here surviving, and that's fantastic."

"You might be out there, somewhere." The Doctor mused.

Jack grinned. "I could go meet myself."

"Well, the only man you're ever going to be happy with." The Doctor smirked slightly.

"This new regeneration, it's kind of cheeky." Jack remarked, the smile evident in his voice. "Well, maybe I'll find myself another immortal to fall in love with." Jack added, causing The Doctor to groan, shooting an exasperated look at his daughter. She let out a short laugh.

"Yes!" Jack cried out, as the final coupling released with a clink. The Doctor opened the door and Jack ducked out quickly. Grabbing the wired telephone device, The Doctor communicated with the rocket letting the Lieutenant know that he could prepare for launch. Jack and Hally moved along the walls, flicking all the switches up to full power as the countdown began.

"…Ah, nearly there." The Doctor grinned at Martha as she joined them. "The footprint, it's a gravity pulse. It stamps down, the rocket shoots up. Bit primitive. It'll take at least three of us to keep it stable."

Martha didn't move as The Doctor clicked the required settings into the panel.

"Doctor, it's the Professor." The shake in Martha's voice got Hally's attention. "He's got this watch. He's got a fob watch. It's the same as yours. Same writing on it, same everything."

Hally stopped what she was doing, looking over at the human.

"Don't be ridiculous…" The Doctor tried to keep his focus on the rocket launch, but Martha pressed on.

Hally knew that this wasn't something Martha would bring to them lightly. She knew, without a doubt that Martha of all people would know the difference between any pocket watch and that specific type of pocket watch. Which meant…

"I asked him. He said he's had it his whole life." Martha wasn't letting The Doctor brush this away.

Jack chimed in, a little lost. "So he's got the same watch?"

"Yeah, but it's not a watch. It's this Chameleon thing…" Martha waved her hand at Jack, trying to express the importance of the watch without going into all the details.

Jack frowned and turned to look at Hally for clarity. She stared back at him, a million possibilities were running through her mind. But the main one, the one she couldn't shake made her hearts ache. Hally took a step back. The rocket countdown hit 10 seconds.

She knew, she knew deep down that the odds were impossible. There was no way that if they had indeed stumbled on a Time Lord at the end of the universe that it would be him. It couldn't be.

But there was no way she wasn't going to check.

She took another step back and turned on her heel. She heard Jack call after her but she'd already turned the corner and had broken into a run. The silo shook as the countdown hit zero and the rocket began its launch. It was deafening, but slowly, as she raced up to the lab the noise started to move away as the rocket successfully left the planet.

She ran along the main corridor, sparing a quick thought for The Doctor as she heard a door slide shut and deadlock behind her. She punched the door code in for the lab and the door slid open, again shutting behind her with the unmistakable crunch of the deadlock.

Her throat burned from the lack of oxygen, but judging by the scene in front of her, she had no time to catch her breath. Chantho was backed into a corner, a gun pointed shakily at Professor Yana.

"Wait!" Hally made to step forward, Chantho's eyes flicking over to her. Yana used the distraction and launched himself at the Malmooth, grappling with her for the weapon. He overpowered her easily, shoving her away from him and turning his attention to Hally, raising the gun and aiming it at her head.

A shadow passed over his face as the two stared at one another. A moment of complete stillness as they both considered the other. Waiting for the first move.

His mouth slowly but surely upturned into a smile of triumph. Hally let her mind push outwards, reaching towards the unknown Time Lord.

She barely brushed against his mind when there was a loud bang.

Then, black.