Forgot I hadn't posted this. Whoops. I have the next chapter done as well but early warning! Ch 23-24 will have trigger warnings on them.
I groaned as I pushed myself up off the smooth metal floor, bringing a hand to my head as it throbbed.
"Up. Look up," the Doctor chimed before a hand was lightly placed on my back, and his breath brushed over my ear. "Are you alright?"
"I'd be better if I hadn't knocked myself out," I grumbled, glaring at the Doctor as he moved over to where a hatch of some kind was. "Where are we?"
"Up, up. Look up," he replied, and I turned my gaze upward as understanding dawned on me. "Oh…"
Above us was the ground we had once been standing on, whereas what we were now standing on was the hull of the ship.
"So, since when is up… down?" I asked as Amy questioned the Doctor as well.
"What am I looking at? Explain."
"Oh, come on, Amy, think," the Doctor urged her as my brows furrowed, trying to figure it out myself. "The ship crashed with the power still on, yeah? So what else is still on…?"
"Yeah, I don't have a clue but I also don't know anything about spaceships," I replied as he bounded over toward me and lightly bopped my nose with a finger.
"The artificial gravity," he answered. "One good jump, and up we fell. Shot out the grav globe to give us an updraft, and here we are."
"Great," I muttered, wincing when I found a tender bump on my head. "So I not only have to learn about aliens but also study spaceships, engineering, and relearn physics."
"Doctor, the statues. They look more like Angels now," Octavian pointed out, drawing my gaze to the statues that were reaching up toward us from below.
"They're feeding on the radiation from the wreckage, draining all the power from the ship, restoring themselves. Within an hour, they'll be an army," the Doctor explained, opening a hatch as a light went out. "They're taking out the lights. Look at them. Look at the Angels. Into the ship, now. Quickly, all of you."
"How?" Amy asked, whereas my eyes were fixed on the statues below.
I hadn't exactly been worried about them before. I didn't know much about them until River explained the basics and I had a look at the book, but a neck snap was hardly the worst death I've had. With how slow they were moving too, they weren't exactly threatening. But if they're fully-formed Angels… River and the Doctor were scared of them. They don't know how to fight them, so they're obviously a threat once they're full of power… and we're smack center in an army of them.
"Things just got a lot more dangerous," I murmured under my breath, clenching and unclenching my hands only to jump when River touched my arm.
"Come on. You next."
I didn't hesitate to drop into the ship, with the Clerics and River behind me. The Doctor was already working on a panel when we landed only for an alarm to go off and the hall we were in to get sealed off.
"This whole place is a deathtrap!" Octavian snapped at the Doctor and I scoffed.
"Got any better ideas?"
"Nobody panic," the Doctor said, getting looks from the others as the hatch started getting pounded on by the Angels. "Oh, just me then. What's through here?"
"Secondary flight deck," River replied, moving to a panel as Amy frowned.
"Okay. So we've basically run up the inside of a chimney, yeah? So what if the gravity fails?"
"We're probably dead," I answered idly. "Gravity fails and, I'm assuming, the ship falls and we fall with it."
"The security protocols are still live. There's no way to override them. It's impossible," the Doctor announced then, River and I speaking at the same time.
"How impossible?"
I raised a brow as she winked back at me, only for the Doctor to grumble.
"Two minutes and never do that again."
I snorted, only for the lights to go out and all eyes turn to the opened hatch as Octavian spoke up.
"The hull is breached and the power's failing."
"Sir, incoming," a cleric announced as the lights outside flickered and a stone arm appeared in the hatch opening.
"Doctor? Lights?" Amy breathed as four Angels landed inside the ship.
"Clerics, keep watching them," Octavian warned as the Doctor got the lights on.
"And don't look at their eyes. Anywhere else. Not the eyes. I've isolated the lighting grid. They can't drain the power now."
"Good work, Doctor," Octavian praised but he didn't look pleased.
"What's the catch?"
The Doctor looked at me, eyes serious but also worried. "There's only one way to open this door. I'll need to route all the power in this section through the door control."
"Good. Fine. Do it," Octavian said as I turned to him.
"That includes the lights."
Octavian paused, uneasy. "How long for?"
"Fraction of a second. Maybe longer. Maybe quite a bit longer."
"Do it," I said, shutting Octavian up before he could argue. "We don't have time to debate about it. Either we all die here by the Angels or we risk the lights for a moment to get out." I pointed at the guns. "Muzzle flare will light up the hall and slow them down a bit. Just don't stop shooting when the lights go out, slowly back up as they approach."
Octavian looked at River. "Doctor Song, I've lost good Clerics today. You trust these two?"
"I absolutely trust them," River said without hesitation.
"They're not some kind of madmen, then?"
"Rude," I muttered as River paused just a tad too long.
"I absolutely trust them."
"Oh, thanks for the vote of confidence, River," I drawled, earning an apologetic smile as the Doctor went to get to work.
"Sorry, sweetie."
I moved over to the Doctor, kneeling down. "Anything I can do?"
He cracked a smile as his sonic buzzed. "Keep an eye on Amy and we'll definitely get you studied up on some things later. Engineering, aliens, the lot of it."
"Okay, Doctor," Octavian cut in. "We've got your back."
"Bless you, Bishop. Fallon, when the lights go down, the wheel should release. Spin it clockwise four turns," the Doctor instructed and I nodded, shifting Amy toward the entrance of the door.
"Ten."
I blinked, confused. "Sorry?"
"What?" She questioned and I shook it off, figuring I'd imagined her saying something as I got into position.
"Ready!" The Doctor called out, putting his sonic in the controls nearby as Octavian counted us down.
"On my count, then. God be with us all. Three, two, one, fire!"
"Turn!" The Doctor called out a moment later, having to yell over the echoing sounds of gunshots.
I jerked the wheel into motion, grimacing as memories of wars and trenches ran through my mind at the familiar sound of gunfire. The bulkhead door opened just enough for people to get through and I shouted to the others as River pushed Amy through.
"Fall back!"
We all got through and the door closed behind us as the Doctor got the next one open and slipped in with us. The Clerics positioned themselves at the other doors to the secondary flight deck as the Doctor headed right to the controls.
"What are you doing?" Amy asked as a wheel on one of the doors started to turn and Octavian put a device on it.
"Magnetized the door. Nothing could turn that wheel now."
"Yeah?" the Doctor questioned, not even looking back as the wheel jerked bit by bit.
"Dear God!"
"Ah, now you're getting it. You've bought us time though. That's good. I am good with time."
"Seal all of them, if you can," I called out as another wheel started to turn. "We can't stay here long though, Doctor."
"Five minutes max," the Doctor agreed as Amy spoke.
"Nine."
"Five," the Doctor corrected, giving her a glance.
"Five. Right. Yeah."
"Why'd you say nine?"
"I didn't."
I swore she said ten earlier too… I noted, wondering if I should mention it.
"We need another way out of here," River said then.
"There isn't one."
"Yeah, there is. Course there is," the Doctor countered Octavian. "This is a galaxy-class ship. Goes for years between planet falls. So, what do they need?"
"Of course," River breathed as I turned to the Doctor.
"I'm going to go out on a limb and say I will constantly be confused when you two understand something alien that I don't. So, it'd be nice if you explained things instead of just assuming I know."
"Basic human needs, Fallon. You can figure it out," he hummed as Octavian—who also knew what they were talking about—questioned him.
"Can we get in there?"
"Well, it's a sealed unit, but they must have installed it somehow. This whole wall should slide up," the Doctor said, heading over to a wall and moving some boxes. "There's clamps. Release the clamps."
"Basic human needs are food, water, shelter, and air," I said, brows furrowed getting a finger snap and point from the Doctor at the last one. "Air? Yeah, still confused. This is the future, right? I just assumed they 'make' air somehow. Otherwise, you'd need a hell of a lot of—"
The clamps were released and the wall slid up to reveal an entire forest of trees.
"—plants… Well, fuck," I muttered.
"Ah, language," the Doctor chided me lightly and Amy stared in shock as well.
"But that's… that's a…"
"It's an oxygen factory," River replied.
"It's a forest."
"Yeah, it's a forest. It's an oxygen factory."
"And if we're lucky; an escape route," the Doctor added as Amy let out a short laugh of disbelief.
"Eight."
Amy was counting down. Much like Fallon, the Doctor thought he'd misheard the first time but now, it was very apparent that something was wrong. This has to do with the Angel, I'm sure, the Doctor mused as he attempted to ease the tension by rattling on about the forest in just the next room.
"Oh, more than trees. Way better than trees. You're going to love this, Fallon, Amy. Treeborgs. Trees plus technology. Branches become cables become sensors on the hull. A forest sucking in starlight, breathing out air. It even rains. There's a whole mini-climate. This vault is an ecopod running right through the heart of the ship. A forest in a bottle on a spaceship in a maze. Have I impressed you yet, Amy Pond?"
Amy laughed. "Seven."
"Seven?" He questioned, moving up in front of her as she took a light step back.
"Sorry, what?"
"You said seven," Fallon answered, arms folded over her chest and a small frown on her face. "You've been counting down from ten since a little while ago, but you don't seem to realize you're doing it."
"What?"
"Doctor, there's an exit, far end of the ship, into the Primary Flight Deck," Octavian announced but the Doctor didn't look away from Amy.
"Oh, good. That's where we need to go."
"Plotting a safe path now."
"Quick as you like."
"Doctor? Excuse me? Hello, Doctor? Angel Bob here, sir," the comm chimed and Fallon groaned as the Doctor pulled out the comm and bounded over to a chair to speak with him.
"Ah. There you are, Angel Bob. How's life? Sorry, bad subject."
"The Angels are wondering what you hope to achieve."
"Achieve? We're not achieving anything. We're just hanging. It's nice in here. Consoles, comfy chairs, a forest. How's things with you?"
"The Angels are feasting, sir. Soon we will be able to absorb enough power to consume this vessel, this world, and all the stars and worlds beyond."
"Sounds like a party," Fallon drawled, fingers drumming on her elbow in unease.
"Well, we've got comfy chairs. Did I mention?"
"We have no need of comfy chairs."
The Doctor turned to Amy and Fallon with a cheeky grin. "I made him say comfy chairs."
Fallon smiled a little with a roll of her eyes, but Amy laughed.
"Six."
The Doctor's smile fell as he jumped back up to his feet. "Okay, Bob, enough chat. Here's what I want to know. What have you done to Amy?"
"There is something in her eye."
"What's in her eye?"
"We are."
"What's he talking about?" Amy asked, the two approaching each other. "Doctor, I'm five. I mean, five. Fine! I'm fine."
"Like I said, you're counting down," Fallon repeated.
"But why?"
Fallon shrugged and she turned to the Doctor who also wasn't sure.
"I don't know."
"Counting down to what?"
"I don't know," he repeated as the Angel spoke up again.
"We shall take her. We shall take all of you. We shall have dominion over all time and space."
"Get a life, Bob. Oops, sorry again. There's power on this ship, but nowhere near that much," the Doctor said, settling in the chair again.
"With respect, sir, there's more power on this ship than you yet understand."
A sort of screeching noise ran out then, echoing through the ship.
"What's that? Dear God, what is it?" River said with a cringe.
"It's hard to put in your terms, Doctor Song, but as best I understand it, the Angels are laughing."
"Laughing?" The Doctor asked.
"Because you haven't noticed yet, sir. The Doctor in the Tardis hasn't noticed."
"Doctor," Octavian said, looking for orders as the Doctor got up.
"No. Wait. There's something I've… missed."
He turned around and spotted a large crack in the wall, pushing a crate toward it so he could reach it if he needed. Amy, Fallon, and River rushed after him, though Amy was the only one who recognized it.
"That's… That's like the crack from my bedroom wall from when I was a little girl."
"Yes," the Doctor murmured, but Octavian was tired of hanging around.
"Okay, enough. We're moving out."
"Agreed," River said, looking at him. "Doctor? What are you doing?"
"Yeah, fine," he lied, climbing up and scanning it with his sonic. "Right with you."
"We're not leaving without you!"
"River, go," Fallon said, as Octavian called out to them as well to get them moving. "I'll stay with him."
River hesitated but nodded, taking Amy and rushing her out as Fallon stabilized the crate the Doctor was on as he checked over the sonic readings.
"Oh, that's bad. Ah, that's extremely very not good."
"And it's about to be worse, Doctor," Fallon called out, a hint of unease in her voice which got him to turn and see the group of Angels now surrounding them.
He hopped down from the crate, shifting so his back was up against Fallon's as they tried to keep all the Angels in view. "Do not blink."
"Yeah, doing my best but I'm not exactly happy that we chose to just hang out with a crack in the wall instead of running with the others."
"You were so confident before," he lightly teased. "Challenged Angel Bob for trying to make me angry. What happened to that Fallon?"
"She went on vacation the second the weak, dying Angels turned into the 'I'll snap your neck the moment you blink' Angels. I've had that death one too many times to enjoy it, thanks."
"Right, well, we need to get to the exit."
"Obviously," Fallon muttered. "Do we risk running?"
"Might be our only shot."
"On three?"
"One. Two… Three!"
The two bolted for the door only for the Doctor to be pulled short, crying out as the back of his coat was grabbed. Fallon whipped around, making the Angels stop and the Doctor held out a hand.
"Wait! Hold on. They could have killed me, but they didn't," he said, eyeing Fallon who watched the situation uneasily. "Why did they stop?"
Fallon's gaze shifted slightly, looking at a group of Angels near the crack who were reaching toward it. "They're by the crack in the wall. Reaching up toward it like it's special."
"Oh, this isn't even a little bit good. I mean, is that it?" The Doctor asked, talking to the Angels. "Is that the power that brought you here? That's pure Time Energy. You can't feed on that. That's not power, that's the fire at the end of the universe. I'll tell you something else…" he slipped free of his coat and grabbed Fallon by the hand, pulling her with him. "Never let me talk!"
"Doctor, what was that crack?" I asked as we trekked through the forest to try and get back together with the others. "You said it was a way to travel between time and space. Like the Tardis?"
"Not quit. Not exactly. It's two parts of time and space that should never touch. The one in Amy's wall was different than these ones. It was more like a wormhole connecting two locations and allowing travel between them. This one is full of Time Energy."
"Which is obviously powerful but you said the Angels can't eat it?" I questioned, confused. "Not that I understand how statues eat something like power and radiation but that's beside the point. You're acting like it's dangerous."
He stopped, turning to me seriously. "It is. Very dangerous. Exceedingly so. If anyone were to touch the energy coming out of that crack it could very well mean their existence being erased from this universe." He turned away, pushing some branches out of the way. "Though, that's just a guess. I don't have enough information to make a conclusive—"
"Yeah, none of that," I countered him, giving his hand a squeeze. "If you think it's that bad, then I'd rather trust you than go around testing it out. Not like I know much better."
He offered me a small smile. "We'll work on it."
I nodded ahead though, hearing voices. "Best focus on what's going on now though. They shouldn't have stopped if we're all running for our lives."
As we got closer, it was easy to tell who was bickering with who.
"We wait for the Doctor and Fallon," River said shortly as Octavian argued.
"Our mission is to make this wreckage safe and neutralize the Angels. Until that is achieved—"
"Father Octavian, when the Doctor's in the room, your one and only mission is to keep him and Fallon alive long enough to get everyone else home. And trust me, it's not easy. Now, if they're dead back there, I'll never forgive myself. And if they're alive, I'll never forgive them," River snapped before pausing, seeing Octavian turn away after having spotted us. "And, Doctor, Fallon, you're standing right behind me, aren't you?"
"Oh, yeah," the Doctor hummed with a cheeky smile as I shot her a look.
"Didn't know you cared so much, River."
"I hate you," River complained.
"You don't," the Doctor chimed in as he hopped down from the small ledge we were on, offering me a hand down as well. "Bishop, the Angels are in the forest."
Octavian nodded and barked out orders as River hissed at him while he checked on Amy, who was curled up on a rock.
"How did you get past them?"
"I found a crack in the wall and told them it was the end of the universe."
"What was it?" Amy asked weakly, making me frown as I took her wrist and started checking her pulse with my pocket watch.
"The end of the universe." The Doctor shrugged off, reaching over to take the monitor Amy was hooked up to. "Let's have a look then."
"Tachycardia. About 120bpm?" I muttered, lowering her wrist. "Is this the Angels?"
"Probably," the Doctor replied, brows furrowed as he tried to think.
"So, what's wrong with me?" Amy asked.
"Nothing. You're fine," River comforted, whereas I snorted.
"No point trying to coddle her, River. She's dying."
"Fallon!"
I rolled my eyes. "Lying is a temporary comfort. The more desperate people are to live, the harder they try to stay alive. So, think. How do we fix this?"
"Right. Amy, Amy, Amy. What's the matter with Amelia? Something's in her eye. What does that mean? Does it mean anything?" The Doctor rambled, trying to think.
"Doctor," Amy breathed.
"Busy."
"Scared."
"Course you're scared. You're dying. Shut up," he said, getting up as River comforted Amy and I stood as well. "What happened? She stared at the Angel. She looked into the eyes of an Angel for too long."
My eyes widened. "Doctor! The image of an Angel is an Angel!" I grabbed him to stop his pacing as Angels closed in. "Eyes take in light and turn them into images. And if images are Angels then—"
"There's an Angel in her mind," we both said at once as the Doctor covered his mouth and sat over by Amy again.
"But how do we stop it?" I asked as Amy breathed out another number.
"Three. Doctor, it's coming. I can feel it. I'm going to die."
"Please just shut up. I'm thinking. Now, counting. What's that about?" The Doctor pulled out his comm. "Bob, why are they making her count?"
"To make her afraid, sir."
I took the comm from him and shut it off upon seeing him bristle. "Don't let it get to you. They're toying with us and right now, we need to focus."
He nodded, taking the comm back and putting it away for now.
"Doctor, what's happening to me?" Amy asked weakly as he explained.
"Inside your head, in the vision centers of your brain, there's an Angel. It's like there's a screen, a virtual screen inside your mind and the Angel is climbing out of it, and it's coming to shut you off."
"We have to shut it off then," I realized, trying to help the Doctor think things through. "Like the screen in the dropship, but… but how do you do that with a person? Knock them out?"
"The Angel would just take over."
"Then what?" River asked, eyeing the monitor as it beeped out alerts to Amy's vitals. "Quickly."
"We've got to shut down the vision centers of her brain. We've got to pull the plug. Starve the Angel," the Doctor rambled.
"Wait. Wait! Not the brain, just the vision!" I said, turning to Amy. "Close your eyes!"
"No. No, I don't want to," she muttered, as the Doctor rushed over to her as well.
"Good, because that's not you, that's the Angel inside you. It's afraid. Do it. Close your eyes."
Amy did so and the monitor River had slowed and grew quiet.
"She's normalizing. Oh, you did it. You both did it!"
I let out a sigh of relief. "Educated guess but I'm glad it worked."
"Worked? That was excellent quick thinking, Fallon," the Doctor praised me, looping an arm around my back and kissing my temple.
I shot him a small look and pinched his hand into releasing me. "Yeah, we're still in trouble here, remember? Less flirting and more finding a way out of this mess."
"She's still weak," River said with one more check over Amy as she gave us a look. "Dangerous to move her."
"Can I open my eyes now?" Amy asked as well, sounding displeased about something as I frowned at the Clerics nearby announcing more Angels coming in.
"Amy, listen to me. If you open your eyes now for more than a second, you will die. The Angel is still inside you. We haven't stopped it, we've just sort of… paused it. You've used up your countdown. You cannot open your eyes," the Doctor told her as Octavian came over.
"Doctor, we're too exposed here. We have to move on."
"We're too exposed everywhere. And Amy can't move. And anyway, that's not the plan."
"There's a plan?" River questioned the same time I did.
"You have a plan?"
"I don't know yet. I haven't finished talking," the Doctor replied, clapping his hands. "Right! Father, you and your Clerics, you're going to stay here, look after Amy. If anything happens to her, I'll hold every single one of you personally responsible, twice. River. You, Fallon, and me, we're going to find the Primary Flight Deck which is…" He wet his finger and held it up. "A quarter of a mile straight ahead, and from there we're going to stabilize the wreckage, stop the Angels, and cure Amy."
"Tall order," I muttered as River eyed him.
"How?"
"I'll do a thing."
"What thing?"
"I don't know. It's a thing in progress. Respect the thing. Moving out!"
I snorted, moving after him as Octavian came over. "Yeah, next time I'm planning things."
"Oi! It's a good plan!" He complained with a pout.
"Yeah but you do a lot of winging it and as much as I enjoy watching you try to impress, I'd rather you did it when we're not at risk of dying."
The Doctor smirked, wiggling his brows. "Oh, you find me impressive?"
I raised a brow at him as Octavian cleared his throat, making the Doctor pout once more.
"Doctor, I'm coming with you. My Clerics'll look after Miss Pond. These are my best men. They'd lay down their lives in her protection."
"I don't need you," the Doctor said bluntly.
"I don't care. Where Doctor Song goes, I go."
"What? You two engaged or something?" The Doctor asked, eyeing River who'd joined us.
"Yes, in a manner of speaking."
Octavian put one of his men in charge and started off with River as I clicked my tongue in annoyance.
"Twat."
The Doctor gave my arm a squeeze before stepping away to have a word with Amy as I slowly trailed after Octavian and River. I knew they were having a discussion as well and wanted nothing to really do with it. I wasn't stupid, after all, and I knew that Octavian and River's little "relationship" was nothing more than a warden and his prisoner. They hadn't told me as much but it was obvious to me. River was doing a job she didn't want to do in exchange for freedom. Not only that, but it's a job to help people. As though she's here to prove she can be good. I sighed lightly, placing a hand on a tree nearby as I clambered over a root in the ground.
"Not that it's any of my business," I muttered under my breath as the Doctor bounded past me, nearly falling on his face tripping over a root if I hadn't grabbed the back of his shirt. "Slow down, ya nitwit!"
"Fallon!" He beamed, steadying himself and grabbing my hand. "Come on then. No point in lollygagging back here."
"I wasn't lollygagging," I complained as he hauled me through the forest to catch up to River.
He snatched her computer without much complaint and used it with his sonic as we continued to trek our way toward wherever the hell we were going.
"What's that?" River asked, hearing her computer chirp in the Doctor's hands.
"Uh, readings from a crack in the wall."
"Yeah, still don't quite get how those work," I chimed in. "Didn't expect the universe to be one big glass bottle with cracks in it."
"Ooh, interesting take on it, Fallon," the Doctor praised, seeing River's confusion and trying to explain. "Here's what I think. One day there's going to be a very big bang. So big every moment in history, past and future, will crack."
"Is that possible?" River asked. "How?"
"How can you be engaged, in a manner of speaking?" He countered, making her force on a smile.
"Well, I'm a sucker for a man in uniform."
"Yeah, I can see that," I added, eyeing Octavian with a wrinkle of my nose. "But he's not exactly—"
"Doctor Song's in my personal custody," Octavian cut me off, giving me a nasty look. "I released her from the Stormcage Containment Facility four days ago and I am legally responsible for her until she's accomplished her mission and earned her pardon. Just so we understand each other."
"Peachy fellow, isn't he?" I scoffed as the Doctor glanced at an unsettled River.
"You were in Stormcage?"
"What's that?" I asked. "Like international space prison?"
The Doctor nodded as the computer chirped again and River turned our attention to it.
"What? What is that?"
"The date. The date of the explosion, where the crack begins," he said as we gathered together to see what the computer came up with.
"Yeah, I don't do space numbers," I said and the Doctor got it to translate.
"Amy's time," he breathed looking at the date it revealed.
26 06 2010
"Great," I muttered. "So 2010 is the apocalypse?"
"Unless we can stop it," he replied.
"How exactly do you stop cracks in the universe then?" I huffed as Octavian called out that we'd reached the next flight deck. "Can't just slap on interdimensional tape over it, can we?"
"Yes, well, I've still got some time to work on it," the Doctor muttered, wishing it would be that easy, I'm sure.
The lights flickered then and we caught up with Octavian as River drew her pistol and stood guard and he looked over the door.
"It doesn't open it from here, but it's the Primary Flight Deck. This has got to be a service hatch or something," Octavian explained as I eyed the flickering lights.
"We better be quick. The Angels are taking out the lights again."
River nodded in agreement. "Hurry up and open it. Time's running out."
"What? What did you say? Time's running out, is that what you said?" The Doctor asked, confusing River and I.
"Yeah, I just meant—"
"I know what you meant. Hush. But what if it could?"
"What if… time could run out?" I asked, lost as he snapped his fingers at me and Octavian announced that he'd gotten the hatch open.
"Cracks. Cracks in time. Time running out. No, couldn't be. Couldn't be," the Doctor rambled. "But how is a duck pond a duck pond if there aren't any ducks? And she didn't recognize the Daleks. Okay, time can shift. Time can change. Time can be rewritten. Ah. Oh!"
I lifted my hand. "I don't like where that thought process is going."
The Doctor turned to me curiously. "Why not?"
"The whole 'time being rewritten' thing. There's a lot that shouldn't be rewritten. People shouldn't have control of that. Just dealing with you bouncing around and mucking about with aliens in history is hard enough."
"Rude," he grumbled.
"Just saying. There's only so much you can mess with before it comes back to bite you. Kill Hitler and there's a whole mess waiting for you when you pop back to the future."
"Doctor Song, get through, now," Octavian ordered before calling us. "Fallon? Doctor?"
"But don't you see, Fallon?" The Doctor urged. "If time can be rewritten, then time can be unwritten too."
Understanding dawned on me. "The cracks."
He nodded, beaming away as he worked it out. "It's been happening all around me and I haven't even noticed."
"Doctor, we have to move," Octavian said, annoyed with our continued discussion.
"The CyberKing. A giant Cyberman walks over all of Victorian London and no one remembers."
"When did that happen?" I asked, making him wave his hand at me.
"It was just after Donna. I'll tell you about it later."
"We have to move it. The Angels could be here any second," Octavian snapped at us, grabbing his shoulder.
"Never mind the Angels. There's worse here than Angels," the Doctor said, shaking him off before the lights flickered and we heard the shifting of stone.
I whirled around, bringing an arm up defensively and cringing as cold stone grabbed my wrist. I wasn't in nearly as much danger as Octavian though, who had himself trapped in a headlock by the Angel who held me.
"I beg to differ, sir," Octavian bit out to the Doctor's earlier remark as I twisted and tried to see how loose the grip on my arm was.
"Let them go," the Doctor demanded, eyes flickering over us as Octavian scoffed.
"Well, it can't let me go, sir, can it? Not while you're looking at it."
"We can't stop looking at it. It'll kill you," the Doctor pressed, sonicking the Angel.
"It's going to kill me anyway. Think it through. There's no way out of this. You have to leave me."
"Can't you wriggle out?"
"No, it's too tight. You have to leave me, sir. There's nothing you can do."
The Doctor turned to me, worry evident in his eyes. "Fallon?"
"Maybe. I-I don't know," I offered, twisting my arm and searching for any sign of weakness.
"Sir, there's nothing you can do."
"You're dead if I leave you," the Doctor said.
"Yes. Yes, I'm dead. Before you go—"
"I'm not going."
"Listen to me, it's important. You can't trust her."
That made me frown. "Can't trust River? Mate, I trust her more than you, if I'm being honest."
"You don't understand who or what she is," Octavian bit out, glaring at me.
"Then tell me," the Doctor pressed but he refused.
"I've told you more than I should. Now please, you have to go. It's your duty to your friends."
"Just tell me why she was in Stormcage?"
"She killed a man. A good man. A hero to many."
I scoffed. "People kill people. Like it or not, it happens and sometimes there's a good reason for it."
"Not for her."
I didn't believe him. It was obvious he didn't like River from the start and wouldn't hesitate to put her in a bad light.
"Who did she kill?" The Doctor asked, desperate to know.
"Sir, the Angels are coming. You have to leave me."
"You'll die."
"I will die in the knowledge that my courage did not desert me at the end. For that, I thank God, and bless the path that takes you to safety."
The Doctor glanced at me briefly before looking back to him, decision made. "I wish I'd known you better."
"I think, sir, you know me at my best."
"Ready?"
"Content."
The Doctor nodded and turned to me as I huffed.
"Shut up and get moving."
He sighed and kissed my temple, hovering for a moment before running off and I turned my gaze to Octavian and the Angel holding him.
"You're certain you can't get out?" I asked and he grit his teeth.
"If I could, don't you think I would?"
I eyed the Angel, searching for a way to help him. "What if it takes me?"
"What?"
"It can kill me instead. Let him go and take me."
"Are you mad?" Octavian snapped but I ignored him.
"I'm worth more to the Doctor. If that's what you're doing, if you're trying to get him angry, then wouldn't it be better to go for—"
The lights flickered and there was a sickening crack as I took a step back and grimaced. The lights flickered back on and Octavian fell to the ground, dead. I grit my teeth, gaze focused on the Angel who now had one hand around my wrist and the other grabbing my throat. I let out a bitter laugh, grimacing at the rough feeling of stone on my neck as I twisted my wrist to where I needed it and slid my free hand down to my waist.
"Big mistake. You're biting off more than you can chew, Angel. You don't even know who you're dealing with. The Doctor is one thing but I'm a totally different story. You kill me and you can bet every Angel statue on Earth will be destroyed. I'll ensure it."
The lights flickered again but this time I was prepared. My torch came on, lighting up the Angel as I jerked backward out of its hold. White hot pain ran up my arm when I wrenched my wrist free, snapping bones in the process. I kept my gaze on the Angel as it fought to turn out my torch and I crawled backward through the maintenance hatch. I fell through it and River rushed over, closing the hatch as my torch finally died and I collapsed back on the ground with a breath of relief.
"You made it," River sighed, equally relieved.
"Barely," I croaked, peering open an eye. "Though, it made me angry."
"Not as angry as I would have been if it killed you," she lightly scolded as the Doctor chimed in.
"Get in line," he bit out, voice tight.
"Someone's grumpy," I muttered as I sat up, holding my broken wrist close. "Things not going well with the others?"
River shook her head, helping me up onto my feet and over to where she needed to work on the console nearby. "The Clerics are gone. Amy said they walked into the crack and forgot each other."
"Because the crack erases time," I said, remembering what the Doctor had mentioned earlier.
"He's trying to lead Amy here because the Angels don't know she can't see."
I grimaced, knowing that was dangerous even in a wall-paved city street, much less an uneven forest terrain. "That's not… God, that's not the greatest thing in the world, is it?"
"What else have you got?" The Doctor bit out, having overheard us and stressed out with the situation. "River? Fallon? Tell me!"
"I've got a calm head on my shoulders for one thing," I snapped back, frowning at him. "Getting angry with others over something you can't control isn't going to help anyone. Won't help us, won't help Amy. I nearly died once and I don't plan on dying again because you can't control your temper long enough to think."
He grit his teeth and turned away but did appear to calm down before something banged on the outside of the room we were in.
"What's that?" River asked in concern.
"The Angels running from the fire. They came here to feed on the Time Energy, now it's going to feed on them," the Doctor explained before bringing up the comm to talk to Amy. "Amy, listen to me. I'm sending a bit of software to your communicator. It's a proximity detector. it'll beep if there's something in your way. You just maneuver till the beeping stops. Because, Amy, this is important. The forest is full of Angels. You're going to have to walk like you can see."
"Well, what do you mean?"
"Look, just keep moving."
"That Time Energy," River spoke up as he ran a hand over his face. "What's it going to do?"
"Uh, keep eating."
"How do we stop it?"
"Feed it."
"Feed it what?" I asked.
"A big, complicated space-time event should shut it up for a while."
"Like what, for instance?"
"Like me, for instance," he bit out, not quite shouting after my scolding.
Then, the comm beeped.
"What's that?" Amy asked, distracting the Doctor.
"It's a warning. There are Angels around you now. Amy, listen to me. This is going to be hard but I know you can do it. The Angels are scared and running, and right now they're not that interested in you. They'll assume you can see them and their instincts will kick in. All you've got to do is walk like you can see. Just don't open your eyes. Walk like you can see. You're not moving. You have to do this. Now. You have to do this!" He said, slapping the console as she finally started moving again.
There was a clattering then and the comm stopped moving. He waited, looking worried before I saw River grin.
"Got it!" She slapped a hand on the console and grabbed Amy as she appeared out of nowhere. "Don't open your eyes. You're on the Flight Deck. The Doctor's here. I teleported you. See? Told you I could get it working."
"Hot damn, River," I said with a smile as she gave me a wink.
"Mm, you can thank me later."
An alarm blared then, as the lights flickered and we looked around uneasily.
"What's that?"
"The Angels are draining the last of the ship's power, which means the shield's going to release," the Doctor said, drawing our attention to the bulkhead as it lifted, revealing the group of Angels in the forest. "Angel Bob, I presume."
"The Time Field is coming. It will destroy our reality."
"Yeah, and look at you all, running away. What can I do for you?" He asked as I tried to think of a way out of this.
"There is a rupture in time. The Angels calculate that if you throw yourself into it, it will close, and they will be saved."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Could do, could do that. But why?"
"Your friends will also be saved."
"Not really," I said with a scoff. "You'd just kill us once he's gone."
"I've traveled in time. I'm a complicated space-time event too. Throw me in," River offered, making the Doctor snort.
"Oh, be serious."
"Could do me," I suggested. "Immortal from another universe. Complicated enough as it is. Dunno what it would do with me."
"No. Absolutely not," the Doctor said sharply. "Compared to me and you, Fallon, these Angels are more complicated than River. It would take every one of them to amount to us so, get a grip."
"Doctor, I can't let you do this!" River argued but I was confused by his wording.
"No, seriously, get a grip," he urged as she clung to him.
"You're not gonna die here!"
"River!" I called out, startling her as I took Amy's hand and placed it on the railing. "Get a grip."
Her mouth dropped open as understanding dawned on her. "Oh, you genius!"
She hurried over and grabbed the railing as well as Angel Bob chimed in.
"Sir, the Angels need you to sacrifice yourself now."
"Thing is, Bob, the Angels are draining all the power from this ship. Every last bit of it. And you know what? I think they've forgotten where they're standing. I think they've forgotten the gravity of the situation. Or to put it another way, Angels. Night, night."
I carefully hooked my good arm around the railing and braced myself as an alarm went off and gravity failed. We hung on as the ship seemed to turn and the Angels were sucked back into the crack before it closed and power was restored. We dropped back down to solid ground and I let out a sigh of relief, tipping my head back and closing my eyes as I raised my hand.
"I vote someplace more relaxing than a killer catacomb for the next trip."
"Seconded," Amy added.
"Ah, bruised everywhere," Amy complained, wrapped up in a blanket back on the beach as Fallon scoffed.
"Speak for yourself. Ow! Watch it!" She snapped, lightly tugging her hand from the Doctor's as he looked over her wrist.
"Sorry. I am trying to be gentle."
"Well, your definition of gentle and mine must be different," Fallon huffed, giving him back her hand. "I already told you, it's broken. I've been a doctor and know what a broken bone feels like. Don't need you and your fancy sonic to tell me what I already know."
"Yes, but you need me and my fancy sonic to tell you what treatment you'll receive in the Tardis," he chided her, releasing her hand and bopping her wrinkled nose lightly. "Alien and future technology advance past what you were being taught in… the 1920s?"
Fallon scowled. "1980s, thank you very much. Ya git… Adding to the list of things I need to study," she grumbled as he cracked a smile and Amy frowned.
"Yeah, am I missing something here?" She asked as Fallon rolled her eyes.
"I'll explain later. God, you're going to need handout cards for every one you pick up. 'Hello, I'm the Doctor. Yes, it's bigger on the inside. Yes, I'm an alien. Oh, and did I mention? My companion is immortal.'"
"Immortal?" Amy squeaked as the Doctor pouted.
"But I like it when they ask questions."
"And I hate repeating myself," Fallon replied, gesturing over at Amy's stunned expression. "And that. Hate that. Close your mouth and stop staring."
Amy's mouth snapped shut but she wasn't about to stop staring. It was one thing for someone like the Doctor to be alien but an immortal too? She had a billion questions but begrudgingly bit her tongue as Fallon eyed the Doctor.
"You said that crack would make people forget whatever falls into it, so why do we remember the Angels and Clerics?"
"Ah, always looking for answers," the Doctor hummed, pulling out a small container of paste and dabbing his fingers in it before wiping it on the bruising around her neck. "We're time travelers. It changes the way we see the universe. The Angels fell into the Time Field and their existence was erased, causing a gap in information. Our minds fill in that gap and somewhere out there the explosion that caused the cracks is still happening. Somewhere out there, somewhere in time."
"Where you'll eventually poke it with a stick," Fallon said teasingly as he cracked a smile and put the paste away.
"Yeah, well, can't really leave it alone, can I?"
He offered her a hand up off the rock she was sitting on and she took it, making a face when he kissed the back of her knuckles with a cheeky smile. They headed over to River though, as she waited in handcuffs with a group of Clerics who'd stayed behind, waiting for their ride back. River smiled when she saw them, lifting her handcuffs.
"You, me, handcuffs. Must it always end this way?"
"Well—"
"I was talking to Fallon," she hummed, making Fallon snort.
"Hey, you kidnapped me remember?"
"You're welcome to do the same."
"Yes, alright. Enough with the flirting," the Doctor complained, not really bothered when both women chuckled. "What now?"
"The prison ship's in orbit. They'll beam me up any second. I might have done enough to earn a pardon this time. We'll see," River explained as his expression fell into one more serious.
"Octavian said you killed a man."
"Yes, I did," she admitted.
"A good man."
"A very good man. The best man I've ever known."
"Who was it?" Fallon questioned. "Or, well, what did they do to upset you?"
River smiled. "You would assume I had a reason."
"I might not have known you long, but most killers have a reason. Myself included."
"Don't be so hard on yourself, Fallon. Believe it or not, you're not a terrible person. And… well, it's a long story. It can't be told, it has to be lived. No sneak previews. Well, except for this one." She looked at the Doctor with a smile. "You'll see me again quite soon, when the Pandorica opens."
"The Pandorica. Ha! That's a fairy tale," the Doctor scoffed, though a part of him was worried about what that meant.
"Doctor, aren't we all? I'll see you there."
"I look forward to it."
"I remember it well," River chimed back. "I'll see you, Fallon."
Fallon nodded. "Have fun."
"Bye River," Amy chirped as well.
"See you, Amy." Her cuffs beeped. "Oh, I think that's my ride."
"Can I trust you, River Song?" The Doctor asked, making her chuckle.
"If you like but where's the fun in that?"
She was teleported away with the Clerics and the Doctor turned his gaze out across the beach.
"What are you thinking?" Amy asked him and he hummed.
"Time can be rewritten."
Fallon sighed and he rolled his eyes, turning to point at her.
"Don't give me that. I was just pondering the thought."
"Which leads to questions which leads to you finding answers and potentially doing something stupid in the process," she said, giving him a knowing look. "So, instead of pondering something we shouldn't ponder, why don't we pop back into the Tardis where you can give me some painkillers and splint my wrist? Some tea would be nice too."
He cracked a smile before nodding toward the Tardis. "After you."
It didn't take long to get Fallon treated and sporting a cast on her wrist for the moment. The Doctor handed her a cup of tea with a smile as she sat on the jumpseat, a bit tired from the painkillers.
"Few days of the cast and it will still be tender for the rest of the week. Think you can handle that?"
Fallon shot him a look as she took the tea. "Don't be smart with me."
He smiled, not minding her attitude as he moved to set the Tardis off only for Amy to speak up.
"I want to go home."
He stopped, feeling his hearts sink. He felt like he'd only just started to know Amy but also knew better than to try and force someone to stay with him. "Okay."
Amy, sensing that he was upset, bounded over to him with a smile. "No, not like that. I just, I just want to show you something. You're running from River… I'm running too." She turned to Fallon awkwardly. "Is that alright?"
Fallon peeked an eye open, having started to almost doze off. "Hm? Why are you asking me?" She closed her eyes and waved a hand lazily at them. "It's not my business, whatever it is. Go sort yourselves out."
Amy felt a bit of hope at that as the Doctor landed the Tardis and she stepped out with him. She had suspicions about the relationship between the Doctor and Fallon but surely Fallon would have stopped them from being alone together if the two were dating. That, and despite the flirty actions the Doctor did toward her, Fallon didn't seem to reciprocate them. Amy felt she still had a chance if she could just get the Doctor to change his mind.
She led him to her bed and had him sit, plopping beside him to stare over at the white wedding dress hanging on the door of her closet in front of them. A hint of guilt welled up in her but she turned away from the dress to look at the Doctor's reaction.
"...well…" he muttered.
"Yeah."
"Blimey."
"I know. This is the same night we left, yeah?"
"We've been gone five minutes," he confirmed as she reached over to her nightstand and showed him the ring box.
"I'm getting married in the morning."
"Why did you leave it here?" He asked, taking it and wondering how someone about to get married to the love of their life would just leave the ring.
A brief image of Fallon appeared in his mind and he swallowed thickly as Amy shot him a look.
"Why did I leave my engagement ring when I ran away with a strange man the night before my wedding?"
"Yeah."
"Hm, you really are an alien, aren't you?" She teased, taking the ring and putting it back.
"Who's the lucky fellow?"
"You met him."
"Ah, the good-looking one," he concluded, before remembering the other man who'd been with them and making a gesture to his nose. "Or the other one?"
"The other one."
"Well, he was good too," the Doctor offered poorly, making her chuckle.
"Thanks," she said before tiptoeing the topic she wanted to bring up. "So, do you comfort a lot of people on the night before their wedding?"
The Doctor gave her a confused look. "Why would you need comforting?"
"I nearly died. I was alone in the dark, and I nearly died. And it made me think."
The Doctor had honestly forgotten that a bit. He was never good at realizing when something was overly traumatic to someone unless there were the more obvious signs; panic attacks, freezing, running off. Amy hadn't done any of that and hardly looked traumatized. He wasn't quite sure what she was really getting at with this conversation so he let himself ramble a bit.
"Well, yes, natural. I think sometimes. Well, lots of times."
"About what I want," Amy continued, eyeing him. "About who I want. You know what I mean?"
"Yeah," the Doctor replied and Amy almost smiled before he stopped, confused again. "No."
"About who I want," she repeated.
"Oh, right. Yeah," he said again, thinking about it more but failing. "No. Still not getting it."
God, is he daft sometimes, Amy mused. "Doctor. In a word. In one very simple word even you can understand—"
She reached for him, leaning in and he jerked away in a panic.
"No! You're getting married in the morning!" He reminded her, mind racing in a panic as he fixed his suspender and clambered over the bed with her following.
"Well, the morning's a long time away. What are we going to do about that?" Amy pressured him, pinning him against the Tardis doors and pulling off his suspenders as he pulled them back up.
"Amy, listen to me. I am nine hundred and seven years old. Do you understand what that means?" He tried to get her to understand, ducking around her again.
"It's been a while?"
"Ye—No, no, no. I'm nine hundred and seven and look at me. I don't get older, I just change. You get older, I don't, and this can't ever work," he said, struggling against her before getting space between them again.
"Oh, you are sweet. Doctor. But I really wasn't suggesting anything quite so long-term," Amy said rushing at him again, very nearly kissing him if he hadn't brought a hand up between them and pushed her away.
"No!" He said, raising his voice and surprising himself with the bit of bite in his tone. "No, you're human. You're Amy. You're getting married in the morning and Fallon—"
"Oh, forget about Fallon!" Amy complained, moving in again. "She doesn't even try to do anything and—"
"In the morning," the Doctor breathed, stopping her.
"Doctor?"
"It's you," he said, confusing her as his brows furrowed. "It's all about you. Everything. It's about you."
"Hold that thought," she said with a smirk, bopping his nose and moving to lounge on the bed, tossing her hair over her shoulder enticingly.
He took a step forward, leaning on the bedframe as those thoughts in his head clicked together. "Amy Pond. Mad, impossible, Amy Pond. I don't know why, I have no idea, but quite possibly the single most important thing in the history of the universe is that I get you sorted out right now."
"That's what I've been trying to tell you," she said with a roll of her eyes as he grabbed her and pulled her to the Tardis.
"Come on!" He pushed her toward the door and she spun around with a purr as he opened it.
"Mm, Doctor."
He hastily turned her around and pushed her in, giving one look at her digital clock as it hit midnight on the same date as the date given by the crack in the universe. He swallowed thickly, nervous about what that could mean as he ducked into the Tardis only to yelp. Fallon was leaning against the railing, arms folded over her chest and her brow raised. The Doctor leaned back against the closed Tardis doors awkwardly, silently panicking and wondering if Fallon had heard or even seen any of what had just happened with him and Amy a moment ago. One glance at Amy idly kicking her feet as she sat on the jumpseat told him she hadn't said a word which left him struggling to control the guilt welling up in him.
I stopped her. Nothing happened a-and I prevented anything from happening, right? I shouldn't feel guilty. I shouldn't have to feel guilty but… Fallon tipped her head, curious but not asking him to explain just yet. Then, the guilt became too much and he quickly walked toward her, grabbing her hand and pointedly keeping his gaze away from Amy.
"Can I borrow you for a moment?"
"Well, given you're tugging me into the hall, I suppose I have no choice," Fallon commented, her confusion audible in her tone as he moved her into the hall and through the nearest door to ensure Amy wasn't about to listen in.
Once there, he turned to Fallon and worked up every ounce of courage he had to explain.
"I'm sorry," he blurted out first, only adding to Fallon's confusion.
"Okay… Do I get to know what you're apologizing for? That's usually how these things go. You tell me what you did, apologize, and then I get to decide whether to accept it or—"
"Amy tried to kiss me."
Fallon went quiet, taking that in and eyeing the Doctor silently as he lightly released her still-captive hand and turned his gaze to the floor.
"She went to show me that she was getting married. That I had inadvertently taken her with me the night before her wedding day and I thought, 'oh, well, that's not the strangest thing I've bumbled into.' Was a bit confused why she left the ring behind and figured we were going to talk about that but instead she started flirting—Rather poorly, given I had no idea what she was doing initially—and then she tried to clarify by… Well, by trying to take off my clothes and come at me and—"
"Doctor—"
"—I did try to push her off. I was rather confused and frazzled. I never even realized—"
"Doctor."
"—she had those sort of feelings toward me or I might have done something earlier. Oh, but then there was the whole trying not to die by Weeping Angels and—"
"Doctor!" Fallon called out, shutting up his rant when she grabbed his face to look at her.
He blinked, silent and waiting for her to inevitably get angry but surprisingly, she waited a moment before letting him go.
"First off, that was a lot. Second," she said, holding up a finger when he'd opened his mouth. "I'm not sure why you're apologizing."
"But Amy—"
She pressed the finger to his lips, silencing him instantly. "That. Right there."
He didn't understand what she meant and she pulled her hand away with a sigh.
"Doctor, did you do anything to her?"
"No, but—"
"Did you kiss her?"
"No."
"And did you not do everything you could to politely refuse her… advances?"
"Y-Yes?"
"Then, it's not you who should be apologizing," Fallon said simply, startling him with how… easy this was.
"You're not… angry?"
"With you? No. Not in the slightest. One thing that hasn't changed with you is the fact that you're a bit… oblivious to things like your companions liking you."
The Doctor sputtered, ready to argue when Fallon raised a brow and silenced him with one word.
"Martha."
He winced and looked away sheepishly as she cracked a small smile.
"Case and point. Now, I suppose the next thing is, what are we going to do about this?" Her smile fell and she shot him a sharp look. "I'm not really the jealous type, honestly. I've had relationships that were open and flexible, so I don't really do the whole clingy thing. However, cheating is a totally different story."
The Doctor stiffened, wondering if she meant him in some way but the heat in her eyes wasn't aimed at him.
"Forcing yourself onto someone without their consent is even worse," she said, voice dark and tinted with a bit of fury that the Doctor hadn't expected. "So, while I wouldn't usually step in if you chose to have a bit of fun—though I would prefer a little heads up—someone attempting to force their feelings onto someone else is something I don't stand for."
