AN: Hello, my loves!

I adore this chapter, I really do - Romana is one of my all time favourite characters, and seeing her reunited with the Doctor is such a joy.

I hope you have just as much fun with it as I did!

Chapter 3: Evolution of the Daleks

Dalek Sec observed the group of prisoners in front of him and was impressed by what he saw.

"These humans will become like me. Prepare them for hybridisation."

Having stood near the front of the group, Martha was the first one grabbed by the pigmen, and she struggled against them.

"Leave me alone! Don't you dare!"
The sound of a light swing track blasting through the room made them stop in their tracks. Sec tilted his head to one side.

"What is that sound?"

"Ah, well, now, that would be me." And the Doctor sauntered out from behind a pillar, radio in hand. "Hello. Surprise. Boo. Et cetera."

"Doctor."

Crouched in her hiding place, Romana felt her jaw drop - he was here! She could hear his voice, but couldn't see him; the prisoners and Daleks separated them from view. But for the first time in almost two hundred and fifty years, she could hear her best friend's voice. It sounded very different to the last time they'd spoken, but familiar nonetheless.

"The enemy of the Daleks."

"Exterminate."

"Wait!" Dalek Sec held his hands out, and the others stopped. The Doctor raised an eyebrow.

"Well, then. A new form of Dalek. Fascinating and very clever."

"The Cult of Skaro escaped your slaughter."

"How did you end up in 1930?"

"Emergency temporal shift."

"Oh, that must have roasted up your power cells, huh? Time was, four Daleks could have conquered the world, but instead you're skulking away, hidden in the dark, experimenting. All of which results in you."

"I am Dalek in human form."

"What does it feel like? You can talk to me, Dalek Sec. It is Dalek Sec, isn't it? That's your name? You've got a name and a mind of your own. Tell me what you're thinking right now."

"I feel humanity."

"Good. That's good."
Somehow, as Sec continued to talk, Romana knew he wouldn't be thinking anything good for much longer.

"I feel everything we wanted from mankind, which is ambition, hatred, aggression and war. Such a genius for war."

"No, that's not what humanity means."

"I think it does. At heart, this species is so very Dalek."

"All right, so what have you achieved then, with this Final Experiment, eh? Nothing! Because I can show you what you're missing with this thing. A simple little radio."

The Dalek closest to the computer bank swivelled to look, and Romana could see the slightest flash of brown fabric.

"What is the purpose of that device?"

"Well, exactly. It plays music. What's the point of that? Oh, with music, you can dance to it, sing with it, fall in love to it. Unless you're a Dalek of course. Then it's all just noise."

He aimed the sonic screwdriver at the radio, and it emitted a shrill shriek. The prisoners scattered as the Daleks and pigmen flailed, incapacitated and injured by the harsh sound.

"Run!"

"Protect the hybrid!"

"Protect. Protect. Protect."

It took a moment to untangle herself from the clusters of wires that she had been sitting in, and she made a run for it too, hoping to catch up with the Doctor's group. But the echoes of their footsteps made it impossible to tell which tunnel they'd taken, and the sounds faded as they got further from her. She swore, and decided to take the nearest tunnel that she recognised. If he had developed any sense since they'd been separated, the Doctor would be heading up through the Empire State building to work out the Daleks' involvement in it's construction. So she would stay where she was - surely sooner or later, they would cross paths again.

Flooding through the sewers, the Doctor led the prisoners to safety, bumping into a rather lost looking Tallulah on the way.

"Come on! Move, move, move, move, move! And you, Tallulah! Run!"

Tallulah scanned her eyes over the group, looking for someone in particular.

"What's happened to Laszlo?"

Martha grabbed her by the arm, dragging her along with the rest of them. They could all hear the mixed grunts and squalls of the pigmen as they started their search. The sooner they got out, the better.

"Come on! Everyone up! Come on!"

Shepherding everyone up the ladder before climbing up himself, the Doctor led the majority of the people home - back to Hooverville.

Solomon was waiting for them when they returned. He beckoned them into his tent, hugging Frank tightly the second he could, and let them recount their story.

"These Daleks, they sound like the stuff of nightmares. And they want to breed?"

The Doctor nodded. "They're splicing themselves onto human bodies, and if I'm right, they've got a farm of breeding stock right here in Hooverville. You've got to get everyone out."

"Hooverville's the lowest place a man can fall. There's nowhere else to go."

"I'm sorry, Solomon. You've got to scatter. Go anywhere. Down to the railroads, travel across state. Just get out of New York."

"There's got to be a way to reason with these things."

Martha shook her head. "There's not a chance."

Frank, sat next to her, nodded. "You ain't seen them, boss."

"Daleks are bad enough at anytime, but right now they're vulnerable. That makes them more dangerous than ever."

Distant screams caught their attention, and a repeated shout started up, followed by several whistles blowing.

"They're coming! They're coming!"

Solomon stood. "A sentry. He must have seen something."

"They're here! I've seen them! Monsters! They're monsters!"

The Doctor looked grim. "It's started."

"We're under attack! Everyone to arms!"

As they stepped out into the icy night air, the camp was a throng of activity. Rifles were being distributed between those old enough to use them, and those who were too young were being surrounded by a human chain. Some people attempted to run, but they were seized by the encroaching network of pigmen.

Everywhere she looked, Martha could see people struggling.

"We need to get out of the park."

"We can't. They're on all sides. They're driving everyone back towards us."

Tallulah sobbed. "We're trapped."

Solomon gestured to some of the nearer men. "Then we stand together. Gather round. Everybody come to me. You there, Jethro, Harry, Seamus, stay together. They can't take all of us."
Shots started to fly as the men grew braver, many of them flying wide but a good number finding their target. Martha could feel a flicker of hope in her chest.

"If we can just hold them off till daylight."

But the Doctor was staring up into the sky, cold horror in his eyes.

"Oh, Martha, they're just the foot soldiers."

"Oh, my God."

A Dalek was flying towards them. It drifted through the night with ease, gun arm cocked and ready to fire. Solomon paled at the sight of it.

"What in this world is?"

There was a cry from within the group. "It's the devil. A devil in the sky. God save us all. It's damnation."

Frank glared up at it. "Oh yeah? We'll see about that!" And he raised his shotgun and fired. The bullet bounced off with a clang, and the Doctor pushed the gun to the ground.

"That's not going to work."

"There's more than one of them."

A second Dalek appeared, this one choosing to fire on the outermost tents, turning them into heaps of fire.

"The humans will surrender."

He stepped forwards. "Leave them alone. They've done nothing to you!"

"We have located the Doctor."

And Solomon took a step forward too."

"No, Solomon. Stay back."

"I'm told that I'm addressing the Daleks. Is that right?"

In the lab, Sec (and Romana, from atop one of the taller computer banks) watched the visual relays from the Daleks in the field.

"Observe humanity. For all their faults they have such courage."

Solomon continued. "From what I hear, you're outcasts too."

"Solomon, don't!"

This was the Doctor. She squinted, groaning internally at the fact she couldn't get any closer to the screen. But she could just about pick out his features. Tall, slim, angular. Dark, messy hair. A questionable sense of style - so things hadn't really changed that much. As she wondered how many times he'd regenerated between then and now, Solomon shut him down.

"Doctor, this is my township. You will respect my authority. Just let me try."

He took another step forwards, clearly marking himself as the leader. "Daleks, ain't we all the same? Underneath, ain't we all kin?" He put his rifle down. "Right. See, I've just discovered this past day, God's universe is a thousand times the size I thought it was. And that scares me. Oh yeah, terrifies me right down to the bone. But surely it's got to give me hope. Hope that maybe together we can make a better tomorrow. So, I beg you now, if you have any compassion in your hearts, then you'll meet with us and stop this fight. Well? What do you say?"

Everyone who observed the conversation waited with bated breath for a response. Unfortunately, it was the one that most of them had been expecting.

"Exterminate."

In a burst of sickeningly green energy, Solomon dropped to the floor. Dead.

The residents of Hooverville cried out in fear and anger.

"No!"

"Solomon!"

"No, please!"

Martha felt sick. "They killed him. They just shot him on the spot."

The Doctor bristled, marching forwards so he was clear of the crowd. "Daleks. All right, so it's my turn! Then kill me! Kill me if it'll stop you attacking these people!"

"I will be the destroyer of our greatest enemy."

"Then do it! Do it! Just do it! Do it!"

"Exterminate."

"Stop! I command you. Stop."

Romana stared down at Dalek Sec, bewildered. What had he just said?"

The Dalek was similarly confused. "I do not understand. It is the Doctor."

"But I want him alive."

"The urge to kill is too strong."

"I have decided. The Doctor must live and you will obey me."

"I… obey."

Even on the low quality screen, she could read the confusion on his face.

"What's going on?"

Sec nodded. "Bring him to me."

The Dalek at Hooverville followed it's orders. "You will follow."

Martha grabbed his arm. "No! You can't go."

"I've got to go. The Daleks just changed their minds. Daleks never change their minds."

"But what about us?"

He turned back to face them, raising his voice. "One condition! If I come with you, you spare the lives of everyone here! Do you hear me?"

Sec took a moment to think. "Obey the Doctor."

"Humans will be spared. Doctor, follow."

She moved to follow him again. "Then I'm coming with you."

He shook his head. "Martha, stay here. Do what you do best. People are hurt. You can help them. Let me go. Oh, and can I just say, thank you very much."

He pressed their hands together, discreetly handing over the psychic paper as he did so, and turned to follow the Daleks. He could only hope that she worked out what he wanted her to do.

The remaining Dalek in the lab swivelled its headpiece to look at its leader.

"You saved the Doctor. Why?"

Sec stated the answer like it was obvious.

"He's a genius and we can use him. The future of the Daleks might well depend on the Doctor."

Up above, Romana weighed up her plans. She desperately wanted to stay there and reunite with the Doctor, but given that the Daleks still didn't know of her existence it was too much of a risk. They were unlikely to let her live once they discovered her. The second option was to go to the top of the building - the last work shift of the night would have finished by now, and she could try to remove the Dalekanium panels before the strike. Yes, that was the best way to go. One way or another, she'd bump into him eventually.

Martha had quickly taken over Solomon's tent to use as a first aid post, treating everyone's injuries while those who were able put out the fires. Tallulah, unable to do much else confidently, had been going back and forth to gather supplies.

"Here you go. I got some more on the boil."

"Thanks." She finished dressing her patient's arm. "You'll be all right. It's just a cut. Try and keep it clean."

He left, and Tallulah sat down.

"So what about us? What do we do now?"

"The Doctor gave me this." She tapped the psychic paper against her palm. "He must have had a reason."

"What's that for?"

"It gets you into places. Buildings and things. But where? He must want me to go somewhere but, what am I supposed to do?"

The Doctor let his rage boil over the moment he set foot in the lab.

"Those people were defenceless! You only wanted me, but no, that wasn't enough for you. You had to start killing, because that's the only thing a Dalek's good for."

Dalek Sec was facing one of the screens and his voice was low, but he could hear every word.

"The deaths were wrong."

"I'm sorry?"

He turned. "That man, their leader, Solomon. He showed courage."

"And that's good?"

"That's excellent."

"Is it me or are you just becoming a little bit more human?"

"You are the last of your kind, and now I am the first of mine."

"What do you want me for?"

He could feel an odd prickling across the back of his head and shoulders, but couldn't quite pinpoint what was causing it. It was a feeling he often associated with attempted telepathic contact, but there was nobody here capable of that. Not even Daleks could project their minds into others. He brushed it off - it was probably just a tickle of uncertainty. He was surrounded by the creatures that hated him most in the universe, after all.

"We tried everything to survive when we found ourselves stranded in this ignorant age. First we tried growing new Dalek embryos, but their flesh was too weak."

"Yeah, I found one of your experiments. Just left to die out there in the dark."

"It forced us to conclude what is the greatest resource of this planet. Its people." Sec reached over and threw a breaker switch, lighting up the rest of the space. Suspended above them were hundreds of metal beds, each one holding what was obviously a covered body. "We stole them. We stole human beings for our purpose. Look inside." With the flick of another switch, he called one down, pulling back the white shroud to reveal a man's face. "This is the true extent of the Final Experiment."

"Is he dead?"

"Near death, with his mind wiped, ready to be filled with new ideas."

"Dalek ideas."

"The Human Dalek race."

"All of these people. How many?"

"We have caverns beyond this storing more than a thousand."

"Is there any way to restore them? Make them human again?"

"Everything they were has been lost."

"So they're like shells. You've got empty human beings ready to be converted. That's going to take a hell of a lot of power. This planet hasn't even split the atom yet. How're you going to do it?"

Sec gestured to the Dalek next to him. "Open the conductor plan."

Up at the very top of the building, Romana dropped her fingers from her temple and groaned.

"Oh, for fuck's sake."

She hadn't realised just how out of practice she was. Although, logically, her mind would be a bit rusty after having had no contact with anyone for a few hundred years. They could work on that later. First of all, she needed to climb down from the spire. She'd had no success in removing the panels - the only thing she'd actually achieved was making every joint in her fingers ache. The weather was getting worse, and staying there was useless.

Once she was back inside, she could come up with something else.

Martha frowned suddenly. "Wait a minute. Down in the sewers, the Daleks mentioned this energy conductor."

Tallulah looked up at her. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know. Maybe like a lightning conductor or… Dalekanium!"

"Oh."

"They said the Dalekanium was in place."

"In place where?"

"Frank might know."

They found him on a bench, not far off from the main encampment, head in his hands.

"Frank?"

"Hmm?"

She sat down next to him. "That Mr Diagoras, he was like some sort of fixer, yeah? Get you jobs all over town?"

"Yeah. He could find a profit anywhere."

"But where, though? What sort of things?"

"You name it. We're all so desperate for work, you just hoped Diagoras would pick you for something good. Building work, that pays the best."

"But what sort of building work?"

He pointed over his shoulder. "Mainly building that."

And everything suddenly made sense.

The Doctor ran a hand over his face. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. The Empire State Building. We're right underneath that. I worked that out already, thanks. But what, you've hijacked the whole building?"

"We needed an energy conductor."

"What for?"

Sec gestured to himself. "I am the genetic template. My altered DNA was to be administered to each human body. A strong enough blast of gamma radiation can splice the Dalek and human genetic codes, and waken each body from its sleep."

"Gamma radiation? What are you…? Oh, the sun. You're using the sun."

"Soon the greatest solar flare for a thousand years will hit the Earth. Gamma radiation will be drawn to the energy conductor and when it strikes-"

"The army wakes. I still don't know what you need me for."

"Your genius. Consider a pure Dalek, intelligent but emotionless."

"Removing the emotions makes you stronger. That's what your creator thought, all those years ago."

"He was wrong."

He felt his jaw drop. "He was what?"

"It makes us lesser than our enemies. We must return to the flesh, and also the heart."

"But you wouldn't be the supreme beings anymore."

"And that is good."

Having listened to the entire conversation, one of the other Daleks finally protested.

"That is incorrect. Daleks are supreme."

"No, not anymore."

"But that is our purpose."

"Then our purpose is wrong. Where has our quest for supremacy led us? To this. Hiding in the sewers on a primitive world, just four of us left. If we do not change now then we deserve extinction."

"So you want to change everything that makes a Dalek a Dalek."

"If you can help me. Your knowledge of genetic engineering is even greater than ours. The new race must be ready by the time the solar flare erupts."

"But you're the template. I thought they were getting a dose of you."

"I want to change the gene sequence."

The Doctor really couldn't believe what he was hearing. "To make them even more human?"

"Humans are the great survivors. We need that ability."

"Hold on a minute. There's no way this lot are going to let you do it."

"I am their leader."

"Oh, and that's enough for you, is it?"

The responses from the other Daleks were a little hesitant, but sounded genuine.

"Daleks must follow orders."

"Dalek Sec commands, we obey."

Sec turned to him, an almost pleading look in his eye. "If you don't help me, nothing will change."

"There's no room on Earth for another race of people."

"You have your Tardis. Take us across the stars. Find us a new home and allow the new Daleks to start again."

He took a few moments to think. This could be a terrible idea. But at the same time, it could be the start of something incredible - the start of change in a species that despised it. That, in and of itself, was almost unbelievable. "When's that solar flare?"

"Eleven minutes."

"Right then. Better get to work."

Crammed into the tiny service elevator with Frank and Tallulah, Martha managed a slight laugh despite the touch of claustrophobia nagging at the corners of her brain.

"I always wanted to go to the Empire State. Never imagined it quite like this, though."

"Where are we headed anyway?" Frank was still a bit sniffly - understandably - but he was visibly trying to keep himself together.

"The top, where they're still building."

Tallulah frowned down at the black wallet in Martha's hands.

"How come those guys just let us through? How's that thing work?"

"Psychic paper. Shows them whatever I want them to think. According to this, we're two engineers and an architect."

The lift stopped, and they stepped out into the works office on the top floor. One side of the room - clearly where a large window would eventually be fitted - was open to the outside world, and they could just about see the tips of the other buildings, lights glimmering as if to match the stars above. There were clouds building above, and a distant rumble that promised thunder soon. The blonde showgirl moved to take a closer look at the view.

"Look at this pace. Top of the world."

Martha and Frank moved to look at the drawing boards instead, flicking through the stacked blueprints.

"Okay, now this looks good."

"Hey, look at the date. These designs were issued today. They must've changed something last minute."

"You mean the Daleks changed something?"

"Yeah, could be."

She peeled back the top layer of paper. "The ones underneath, they're from before. That means that whatever they changed must be on this top sheet but not on this one. We need to check one against the other."

Leaning against the scaffolding, Tallulah let the wind ruffle her hair.

"The height of this place! This is amazing."

"Careful, we're a hundred floors up. Don't go wandering off."

"I just want to see." She sighed, a smile creasing her cheeks. She imagined all the people below, walking home, going about their normal lives and looking up at the wonders being constructed above.

"New York City. If aliens had to come to Earth, oh, no wonder they came here."

The Doctor shook his head as he read over the schematics, not feeling very confident with what he could see.

"There's no point in chromosomal grafting, it's too erratic. You need to split the genome and force the Dalek human sequence right into the cortex."

Sec agreed. "We need more chromatin solution."

The nearest Dalek turned. "The pig slaves have it."

A small group carried a large crate into the lab. Laszlo was with them, carefully avoiding looking at the Doctor for too long.

"These pig slaves, what happens to them in the grand plan?"

Sec almost shrugged - but he wasn't quite human enough for that simple movement. "Nothing. They're just simple beasts. Their lifespan is limited. None survive beyond a few weeks. Power up the line feeds."

As he moved to supervise the new mixture, the Doctor whispered to Laszlo.

"Laszlo, I can't undo what they've done to you, but they won't do it to anyone else."

"Do you trust him?"

"I know that one man can change the course of history. Right idea in the right place at the right time, it's all it takes. I've got to believe it's possible."

Frank tugged at his collar, feeling an odd tickle at the back of his neck. He was getting more anxious by the moment.

"I'll go and keep an eye out. Make sure we're safe up here. Don't want nobody butting in."

"Excellent idea."

The sound of an English voice made them all turn, hearts in their throats at the thought of being discovered. It was the ginger stranger from the sewers, and she held her hands out in a gesture of peace.

"I'm not a Dalek, don't panic. I was up on the roof."

"The roof?" Martha stared at the woman, bemused. Her clothes did look a bit damp, and she had a number of flyaway hairs crowning her head.

"Yes, I was trying to shift the Dalekanium they've attached up at the spire." She ran her fingers through the loose red strands that hung around her face. "Unfortunately, the metal around it has seized. Without a sonic device it'll be near impossible to move."

"So that's what they've been doing to the building! The Doctor - our friend, he's back down in the sewers - he's got one. A sonic screwdriver."

A grin split her face, breaking the calm facade and bringing a youthful joy to her eyes.

"Oh, of course he's still using it. He'd be lost without that thing."

"You know the Doctor?"

"I did." The smile fell a little. "A few hundred years ago. A lot has changed, though. I assume he's changed quite a lot too."

"Sorry, a few hundred-"

"Wait!" The stranger's eyes widened, and everyone else fell silent. They could hear thunder, and an odd sort of creaking sound that seemed to echo upwards. "Oh no."

Frank didn't quite understand what she was so worried about.

"It's just the storm, ma'am. They happen a lot, round this time of year. Ain't nothin' to worry about."

She rested a hand on his elbow - she was a couple of inches shorter than Martha and had no chance of reaching any higher - and shot him a fond glance.

"Oh, sweet Frank, you have no idea how wrong you are. That's no ordinary storm. Gamma radiation from a huge solar flare is going to flood the atmosphere within the next half an hour. This building has been wired up to receive it, and channel it down to the labs below. And by the sound of that rumbling, the Daleks are starting their machinery up. We haven't got long."

Tallulah pulled a face. "Gammon radiation? What the heck is that?"

But she didn't stop to explain - yet another thing that reminded Martha of the Doctor.

"No time. I'm going back downstairs to try and interfere with things, it's what I do best. I've got to see if I can disconnect anything and lessen the amount of energy they can collect. Do any of you know where in the building the Doctor is now?"

All three of them shook their heads. Martha shrugged.

"He's probably in the lab with the Daleks. I assumed that's where they were taking him."

"Okay. I need you to stay up here, then. If he'd been anywhere else I would have suggested that one of you find him, but I won't have you walking directly into Dalek territory, you'll be shot on sight."

"So what do we do up here?"

The stranger paused for a moment, thinking. "Find a way to keep yourselves safe. If the Doctor comes up here - and knowing him, he probably will - tell him where the Dalekanium is. But he'll definitely be followed. You need to make sure that whatever comes up after him can't hurt you."

"And how exactly do we do that?"

"No idea. I'm sure you'll come up with something."

And with that, she turned to the main lift. But instead of pressing the button, she pried off one of the nearest wall panels and shimmied into the space behind it, turning to shoot one last look at the baffled group.

"I'm sure I'll see you later."

And then she was gone.

Tallulah stared at the others. "And you two know that loon?"

Frank and Martha raised their eyebrows, thinking for a second, before saying the exact same thing.

"Not exactly."

"The line feeds are ready."

The Doctor nodded. "Then it's all systems go."

Sec gestured to one of the screens. "The solar flare is imminent. The radiation will reach Earth in a matter of minutes."

"We'll be ready for it." Taking a syringe, he injected the translucent blue liquid into one of the stills. "That compound will allow the gene bonds to reconfigure in a brand new pattern. Power up!"

A pair of pigmen threw the breakers on each side, and Sec looked up to the suspended bodies.

"Start the line feeds."

They watched as the liquid bubbled upwards through the clear tubing, flowing smoothly towards the human shells up above.

"There goes the gene solution."

"The life blood."

Their relief was short lived as a klaxon started to blare, and a heavy weight settled in the Doctor's chest.

"What's that?"

Sec turned to his Daleks. "What's happening? Is there a malfunction? Answer me!"

"No, no, no. The gene feed! They're overriding the gene feed!"

"Impossible. They cannot disobey orders."

But his subordinates were clearly doing just that.

"The Doctor will step away from the controls."

"Stop! You will not fire."

"He is an enemy of the Daleks. And so are you."

They shifted to turn their guns on the creature that had once been completely in charge of them.

"I am your commander. I am Dalek Sec."

"You have lost your authority."

"You are no longer a Dalek."

The Doctor was more concerned with the flowing fluid. "What have you done with the gene feed?"

"The new bodies will be one hundred percent Dalek."

Sec snarled. "No. You can't do this!"

"Pig slaves, restrain Dalek Sec and the Doctor."

They were seized, and the Doctor felt a hand square in the middle of his back. It tapped twice, and he nodded ever so slightly. At least he had one person on side. Sec, however, was entirely surrounded by his own creations.

"Release me. I created you. I am your master."

The Daleks ignored him.

"Solar flare approaching."

"Prepare to intercept."

There was a soft ding from behind them, and Laszlo got as close to the Doctor's ear as he could.

"There's the lift."

"After you."

And they made a break for it, managing to get in the lift before the Daleks turned around.

"The Doctor is escaping. Stop him! Stop him!"

But the doors slammed shut in the pigmen's faces, and the duo started to move towards the top floor.

"We've only got minutes before the gamma radiation reaches the Earth. We need to get to the top of the building." He slumped against the side of the lift, trying to think through the next steps of his plan when he noticed that Laszlo was hunched on the floor, a hand rubbing at his chest. "Laszlo, what's wrong?"

The young man shook his head. "Out of breath. It's nothing. We've escaped them, Doctor. That's all that matters."

He knelt to help the man stand, and something rustled underneath him. He shifted, and saw a piece of paper covered in neat, spidery handwriting.

You won't have long once you're on the top floor.

Stop the lift if you can - they'll follow you.

The others are waiting for you. They'll explain what they've learned.

Move fast, Doctor.

R.

He turned the paper over, but the only thing on the back was a building plan dated a few months ago. He passed it to Laszlo.

"Do you recognise that writing?"

He shook his head. They stood there in silence for a moment. As they passed the seventieth floor, Laszlo had a thought.

"Wait. I heard rumours, down in the tunnels. Rumours of a woman who was helping people get out."

"One of the prisoners?"

"No. I never saw her myself, but every time I saw the Daleks take in a collection, there was always a difference in the group size between the tunnels and the lab. It was never much, just two or three people." He was breathing heavily, like the simple act of talking was exhausting.

"The Daleks kept the prisoner groups moving so there'd be less chance of escape, but there was always people who didn't make it to the final room."

There was a ding as they reached the top, and the doors slid open.

The first thing he saw was the wide grin on Martha's face.

"Doctor!"

"First floor, perfumery."

Tallulah rushed forwards, fussing over Laszlo the second he was out of the lift.

"I never thought I'd see you again."

"No stopping me."

As they hugged, Martha moved closer to the Doctor, the words leaving her mouth in a rush.

"We've worked it out - well, sort of. We know what they've done. There's Dalekanium on the mast. And it's good to see you too, by the way."

He grinned. "Oh, come here." And he swept her off her feet. But the moment was short lived as the lift doors closed again.

"No, no, no. See, never waste time with a hug. Should've listened to that note. Deadlock seal. I can't stop it."

"Where's it going? Wait - what note?"

He passed the paper over to her. "Right down to the Daleks. And they're not going to leave us alone up here. What's the time?"

She skimmed it, then passed it to Frank. He nodded.

"Must be from the Stranger. Time's eleven fifteen."

The Doctor frowned at him. "The Stranger?"

"Redheaded woman, she came to warn us about the Daleks. She was here a few minutes ago."

"Never mind that now, there's only six minutes to go. I've got to remove the Dalekanium before the gamma radiation hits."

He ran to the open side and the others followed. They all saw him gulp as he looked out at the view.

"Oh, that's high. That's very. Blimey, that's high."

Martha put a hand on the wooden ladder in front of them. "And we've got to go even higher. That's the mast up there, look. There's three pieces of Dalekanium on the base. We've got to get them off."

"That's not we, that's just me."

"I won't just stand here and watch you."

"No, you're going to have your hands full anyway. That lift is already coming back up here, and it won't be empty. I'm sorry, Martha, but you've got to fight."

As the Doctor clambered upwards, the others realised he was right. The lift was already at the thirtieth floor, and getting higher by the second. Frank groaned.

"I should have brought that gun."

Laszlo pushed forwards.

"Tallulah, stay back. You too, Martha. If they send pig slaves, they're trained to kill."

"The Doctor needs me to fight. I'm not going anywhere!"

"They're savages. I should know. They're trained to slit your throat with their bare teeth."

He moved to lift a large hammer, but stumbled in the process, dropping to his knees. Tallulah moved to help as he shuffled across to lean on one of the support posts.

"Laszlo? What is it?"

"No, it's nothing. I'm fine. Just leave me."

"Oh, honey, you're burning up. What's wrong with you? Tell me."

Frank's face dropped. "Great. One man down, we ain't even started yet."

The lift was now at the sixtieth floor. "It's not looking good, Frank."

"Nope."

"We're going to get slaughtered." The sky lit up behind them, and an idea struck her. "Wait a minute. Lightning."

They exchanged looks, and realised they were thinking the same thing. The two of them darted across the room to where the spare scaffolding poles were laid and picked them up, moving to lay them across a couple of supports. Tallulah looked up from where she was stroking Laszlo's forehead.

"Aw, you'll be all right, sweetheart. Don't you worry. What the hell are you two clowns doing?"

"Even if the Doctor stops the Dalekanium, this place is still going to get hit. Great big bolt of lightening, electricity all down this building. Connect this to the lift and they get zapped."

"Oh my God, that could work."

Frank grunted as he dropped another pole into place. "Then give us a hand!"

With the three of them working together, they managed to get a solid line of piping from the outer scaffold to the lift doors just as it passed the ninetieth floor.

"Is that going to work?" Tallulah was chewing her nails.

"It's got to."

Frank ran back to them, helping Laszlo towards the girls as he did so.

"I've got it all piped up to the scaffolding outside."

"Come here, Frank. Just sit in the middle and don't touch anything metal."

"Yeah."

"Twelve, eleven, ten-"

Down in the lab, the Daleks were so engrossed in ensuring their set up had worked - and in ignoring the protests of their old leader - they didn't notice the woman working behind their computers, darting back and forth as she crossed various wires and detached whole circuitry panels altogether.

"Zero. Gamma strike!"

She tore her hands away from the electrics as the strike hit, watching the power arc back and forth and desperately hoping that she'd done enough to cut back what they received.

The stretchers were lowered from the ceiling, and the people upon them started to shift beneath their shrouds, pushing them away from their faces.

"The army awakes."

The pigmen in the lift were all dead. The plan had worked exactly as intended - the moment the lightning struck, the electricity was transferred to the lift by the pipe setup and frazzled the creatures within. They had slumped to the floor, motionless, and that was where they stayed. Tallulah was the first to move from their little huddle, peering anxiously into the lift.

"You did it, Martha."

She shook her head. "They used to be like Laszlo. They were people, and I killed them."

Laszlo put a hand on her shoulder. "No, the Daleks killed them. Long ago."

There was a heavy pause, before a thought hit her.

"What about the Doctor?"

The soldiers, now clothed and upright, lined up in front of the Daleks. They approached the first one.

"You will identify."

The response was hesitant, but definite. "I… am… a Dalek."

"Excellent."

"Begin the invasion of Manhattan. The population will be converted to Daleks."

"And from this island we will conquer the world."

"Assume battle positions. Take arms."

As the ranks turned to the left and marched through the tunnels, collecting a modified Dalek weapon as they left, Romana pulled up some of the readings from the transference. She'd managed to reduce the power they received, but only slightly. The really interesting thing, however, was the average genetic profile received. There was a distinct flavour of Gallifrey in there. She grinned. So he'd managed to interfere too. Well, it was his strongest talent.

She turned, heading towards her nearest tunnel, and stopped. A terrible thought had hit her. The Time Lord presence in the human-Dalek soldiers would be enough to make them defy orders. That would make them useless to the Daleks - and she knew all too well what Daleks did with things that didn't benefit them.

She had to try and prevent that from happening.

Having retrieved the sonic screwdriver at one of the lower platforms, Martha dragged herself up to the spire platform, far too worried about her friend to even think about how high up she was.

"Doctor! Doctor? Look what we found halfway down. You're getting careless."

He lay flat on his back, looking rather groggy, and groaned as her face came blurrily into view.

"Oh, my head."

"Hiya."

"Hi. You survived, then."

"So did you, just about. I can't help noticing there's Dalekanium still attached."

He sat up with some difficulty, eyes set on the two bronze panels still firmly screwed to the base.

"Yeah. There is that."

In the five minutes that it took them to get back down the ladder, Frank and Laszlo had managed to jam the lift doors closed. None of them wanted to look at the cooling bodies of the pigmen any longer. With his feet back on solid ground, the Doctor took up his position in charge again.

"The Daleks will have gone straight to a war footing. They'll be using the sewers, spreading the soldiers out underneath Manhattan."

Laszlo frowned. "How do we stop them?"

"There's only one chance. I got in the way. That gamma strike went zapping through me first."

Martha shook her head. "Yeah, I gathered that. But what does that mean?"

"We need to draw fire. Before they can attack New York, I need to face them. Where can I draw them out? Think, think, think, think, think. We need some sort of space. Somewhere safe. Somewhere out of the way. Tallulah!"

"That's me. Three Ls and an H."

"The theatre! It's right above them, and, what, it's gone midnight? Can you get us inside?"

"Don't see why not."

"Is there another lift?"

Martha pointed to the opposite end of the floor. "Yes, we came up in the service elevator."

"That'll do. Allons-y!"

And he set off at a run, leaving the others to follow.

Dalek Caan had been wired to the main computers by his fellows, forcing Romana to move from her hiding spot to another section. She listened in as they prepared for the next phase.

"Report status."

"Maximum efficiency. I am now ready for full scale war."

"Control over Dalek humans?"

"Connection confirmed. All soldiers will take heed. All weapons will be primed."

She skimmed through the programming of the human-Dalek hybrids, hearts stopping as she saw one particular setting among the myriad lines of code.

The genocide circuit.

Tallulah had led them to the theatre and the group set up in the stalls, the Doctor standing on one of the chairs.

"This should do it. Here we go."

She shuddered. "There ain't nothing more creepy than a theatre in the dark. Listen, Doctor, I know you got a thing for show tunes, but there's a time and place, huh?"

Laszlo sat down with a thud, breathing heavily.

"Laszlo, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just so hot."

"But it's freezing in here. Doctor, what's happening to him?"

He shook his head, knowing that the young man was probably dying.

"Not now, Tallulah. Sorry."

Martha frowned up at him. "What are you doing?"

"If the Daleks are going to war, they'll want to find their number one enemy. I'm just telling them where I am."

He held the sonic aloft as it emitted a rhythmic beeping.

The Daleks' sensors suddenly went haywire.

"Sonic device detected!"

"The Doctor survived?"

"Find him and exterminate!"

Naturally, the fact that he was calling the Daleks down to them had started an argument.

"I'm telling you to go. Frank can take you back to Hooverville."

"And I'm telling you I'm not going."

"Martha, that's an order."

"Who are you, then? Some sort of Dalek?"

Before he could respond, the doors were smashed inwards - and a steady stream of human Daleks marched in from both sides of the seats. Tallulah gasped.

"Doctor! Oh, my God! Well, I guess that's them then, huh?"

Martha's eyes widened. "Humans, with Dalek DNA?"

He held a hand out, gesturing for them to stay low.

"It's all right, it's all right. Just stay calm. Don't antagonize them."

Laszlo looked about, face flushed. "But what of the Dalek masters? Where are they?"

Almost in answer to his question, there was a flash of light on stage, and two of the Daleks appeared. Dalek Sec was chained at the neck and wrists, crawling on his hands and knees.

"The Doctor will stand before the Daleks."

Motioning once again for the others to stay down, he walked forwards over the top of the seats.

"You will die, Doctor. It is the beginning of a new age. Planet Earth will become New Skaro."

He scoffed. "Oh, and what a world. With anything just the slightest bit different ground into the dirt. That's Dalek Sec. Don't you remember? The cleverest Dalek ever and look what you've done to him. Is that your new Empire, hmm? Is that the foundation for a whole new civilization?"

Sec struggled to look upwards. "My Daleks, just understand this. If you choose death and destruction, then death and destruction will choose you."

They ignored him. "Incorrect. We will always survive."

"Now we will destroy our greatest enemy, the Doctor."

"But he can help you."

"The Doctor must die."

"No, I beg you, don't."

"Exterminate!"

Sec lunged to his feet just as the Dalek fired, staggering into the line of the beam and dying instantly. His body dropped to the floor, and the Doctor felt his rage flare.

"Your own leader. The only creature who might have led you out of the darkness and you destroyed him." He turned to look at the soldiers. "Do you see what they did? Huh? You see what a Dalek really is? If I'm going to die, let's give the new boys a shot. What do you think, eh? The Dalek humans. Their first blood. Go on, baptise them."

"Dalek humans, take aim."

They cocked their weapons.

"What are you waiting for? Give the command!"

"Exterminate!"

Nothing.

"Exterminate!"

Still nothing.

"Obey. Dalek humans will obey. Exterminate."

Not a single movement from any of them.

Martha looked up at the Doctor. "They're not firing. What have you done?"

"You will obey. Exterminate."

On the right hand side, the soldier closest to the stage asked, "Why?"

"Daleks do not question orders."

"But why?"

"You will stop this."

"But why?"

"You must not question."

"But you are not our master. And we, we are not Daleks."

The Doctor smiled, mostly out of sheer relief. "No, you're not. And you never will be. Sorry, I got in the way of the lightning strike. Time Lord DNA got all mixed up. Just that little bit of freedom."

"If they will not obey, then they must die."

The Dalek shot the man who had dared to speak out of turn, and the Doctor flung himself down to the floor.

"Get down!"

The others huddled below the line of the seats as the soldiers turned on their makers, not wanting to get caught in the crossfire.

"Exterminate! Exterminate!"

"Exterminate!"

Bang!

"Extermin-!"

Bang!

And silence.

Moving slowly, not wanting to provoke any of the soldiers, the Doctor stood up. The Daleks on the stage had been destroyed, little more left than the bottom half of their bronze casings. He indicated that the others were safe to stand.

"It's all right, it's all right, it's all right. You did it. You're free."

A strange, warbling sound echoed through the theatre, and the soldiers looked around, confused. The Doctor felt a wave of panic hit him.

"No! It can't be…"

But then it stopped.

"But…"

Martha put a hand on his arm, concerned by the look on his face. "What is it, what?"

"There's one Dalek left. But Daleks don't let things live if they don't benefit them any more. So why aren't their soldiers dead?"

Then there was a crackle of static, and a voice came through over the thetre's tannoy system.

"Doctor! Doctor, can you hear me?"

"Who is this?"

"Listen to me! There's one Dalek left down here. I interrupted the genocide signal, but that doesn't mean it won't try and do something again. Get down here, now."

And the audio cut out.

Frank grabbed the Doctor's wrists.

"That was the Stranger! You've gotta get down there."

"I'm going. Stay here, all of you. It won't be safe yet. Martha, check on the soldiers. Some of them might be hurt. I need to sort this out. Once and for all."

One Dalek. One Dalek in the whole universe, and it was sitting right in front of him. The Doctor stood with his hands in his pockets, shoulders squared.

"Now what?"

"You will be exterminated."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Just think about it, Dalek what was your name?"

"Dalek Caan."

"Dalek Caan. Your entire species has been wiped out. And now the Cult of Skaro has been eradicated, leaving only you. Right now you're facing the only man in the universe who might show you some compassion. Because you've just attempted one genocide, and it failed. Despite that, I won't be the cause of one today. Caan, let me help you. What do you say?"

The next three words uttered were not what he wanted to hear.

"Emergency temporal shift!"

It vanished in a flash, connecting cables dropping to the floor, and he groaned.

And then, he heard something else.

"Ouch! Shit, that hurt."

A figure stumbled out from behind one of the computer banks, slightly singed around the edges and coughing a little.

"Bloody temporal shift. Sorry, I did try to reroute things. I just wasn't fast enough."

He looked her up and down, taking in the long ginger hair (that made a bubble of jealousy rise in his chest) and the grease-smudged hands, the freckled cheeks and hazel eyes.

"You left me the note in the lift."

"Yeah."

"And you stopped the genocide signal."

"Yeah."

"Who are you? To survive alongside the Daleks without ever being noticed for - how long have you been here?"

Her face fell a little. "I've been here three months, now. But I was hoping you'd work it out. I tried to make contact earlier, but I guess I'm out of practice."

He frowned. "That was you?"

"It's been a while, Doctor. I've been trying to get back here for so long."

He looked at her blankly. "I'm sorry. I really am, but-"

Rolling her eyes, she stepped forwards, extending a hand.

"Well, I guess I'll have to do this all over again then. Pleased to meet you, Doctor. It's been three regenerations for me - I assume it's been about the same for you. My name is-"
He cut her off, hope rising in his hearts as one glorious idea flew into his head.

"Wait. R. You signed off with the letter R."

He took her hand. Two fingers slipped to the side, settling over a vein. A vein that hummed with the music of a double heartbeat.

"There's only one person who ever took that tone with me on a first acquaintance."

The hope was glimmering in her eyes, and he made the leap.

"Romana?"

"Well, you worked it out eventually."

Grinning so widely that he thought his face might split in two, he pulled her in for the tightest hug he could possibly manage, eyes watering just a little as he felt her arms close around his back.

"How-"

The reunion was cut short by the appearance of Martha, who was accompanied by a distressed-looking Tallulah, and Frank - who was supporting an unhealthy looking Laszlo.

"Doctor! Doctor! He's sick. It's his heart. It's racing like mad. I've never seen anything like it."

Tallulah was frantic. "What is it, Doctor? What's the matter with him? He says he can't breathe? What is it?"

Laying against one of the posts, Laszlo wheezed. "It's time, sweetheart."

"What do you mean, time? What are you talking about?"

"None of the slaves survive for long. Most of them only live for a few weeks. I was lucky. I held on because I had you. But now, I'm dying, Tallulah."

"No, you're not. Not now, after all this. Doctor, can't you do something?"

The group on the ground looked up at the sound of a switch being flipped, and saw Frank's stranger standing there with a smile.

"I've been hiding around these labs for three months, so I know exactly what resources there are. And now, we've got them all at our fingertips. Hello, everyone. I'm Romana, a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey. And I am not about to let the Daleks take anyone else away from you."

The Doctor grinned.

"Laszlo, just you hold on. There's been too many deaths today. Way too many people have died. Brand new creatures and wise old men and age old enemies. But if my best friend and I have ever agreed on anything, it's this - we will not allow one more death! You got that? Not one. Tallulah, out of the way. The Doctor is in."

It had taken them nearly seven hours to save Laszlo's life. And with the help of another genius, the Doctor had managed to do one better than that. His face was almost perfect. When she'd seen it for the first time, Tallulah had burst into tears and thrown her arms around the two of them, stuttering out her thanks. Romana had apologised for his nose still being slightly snout-like, and she had found herself with an armful of grateful blonde repeating that she wouldn't have cared even if he'd looked worse after the procedures. She was just glad that she hadn't lost him forever.

Now, the couple waited on the outskirts of Hooverville as Frank approached, a new confidence oozing from him. He had been nominated as their new leader.

"Well, I talked to them, and I told them what Solomon would've said. Some people had comments about your looks, and I shut em down quick."

Laszlo clung to Tallulah's waist.

"What did they say?"

"They said yes. They'll give you a home, Laszlo. I mean, er, I can't promise people ain't going to say anything. I can't promise you'll be at peace but, in the end, that is what Hooverville is for. People who ain't got nowhere else. And if anything does get said, you come to me. I'll sort them out."

"Thank you. I can't thank you enough."

"We all need a fresh start after all of this. I'm glad you can be here with us to enjoy it."

This time, instead of two people waiting outside the Tardis, there were three. They had shepherded the human-Dalek hybrids inside and got them safely tucked away, ready for transport to a new world where they could start their own lives again. Romana stood with a hand on the ship's side, unable to keep a smile off her face.

Martha shoved her hands in her pockets.

"Do you reckon it's going to work, those two?"

"I don't know. Anywhere else in the universe, I might worry about them, but New York? That's what this city's good at. Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses, and maybe the odd pig slave Dalek mutant hybrid too."

"The pig and the showgirl."

"The pig and the showgirl."

"So then." She turned to the new alien. "Are you coming with us?"

Her expression faltered a little. "Do you want me to?"

The Doctor's jaw dropped. "What? Of course I do! You know perfectly well there's more than enough room for three people in there."

"I know, it's just…" For the first time, she looked a little anxious. "So much has changed in the time I've been in E-space. For both of us. I thought… maybe too much. Too much for you to want me to come along."

He pushed the door open.

"No. It just means there's a hell of a lot for us to catch up on. Now get in. I'm not leaving you behind again."

With a bright smile - and watery eyes - she darted inside, and they could hear the ship's jubilant hum as they were reunited.

Martha put a hand on his arm.

"Meant to say, I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"Just because that Dalek got away. I know what that means to you. Think you'll ever see it again?"

"Oh, yes. One day. But I'm okay with that."

"How come?"

"Today, the universe gave me someone back. That couldn't have happened without the Daleks. I know we'll cross paths with them again. But I can be worried about that later. Now, I get to find out what my best friend has been up to all these years. Come on."

And he followed her inside, closing the doors behind him.

Romana was already at the controls, flicking at various things with an odd look on her face.

"Have you seen the state of some of this equipment? You really should take better care of her."

He simply grinned.

"I'll let you fix it later, how about that? Now, let's go."

And they worked together, waiting for the last moment to finish the program together.

Their hands slammed down on the same button.

And the Tardis slipped into the Time Vortex once again - now with two pilots at her helm.

See you soon, and happy reading!

Much love, Azzie xx