Rose skipped into the control room of the Tardis in high waisted dark red jeans, black sneakers and a black short sleeved shirt. It had been a few days since the Slitheen in Downing Street and the Doctor and Rose, and the Tardis technically, had been floating around in the vortex.
According to the Doctor it was good for the Tardis but the Tardis herself had told Rose that the real reason was that the Doctor felt guilty at Rose getting hurt and decided that she needed rest. Well, Rose would have none of that, she wanted adventure. And she thought a new adventure could help the Doctor to let go of his guilt.
Rose had lost more of her memories of her life as Alex and that freaked her out a bit (a lot), but she had started to accept it. She still knew most things that were going to happen on their adventures and that was a relief to her and even if she lost all her memories of being Alex she would still have her gift (which seemed to be growing every day). She wanted to help the Doctor as much as possible and Rose knew that he needed someone to be there, someone who wouldn't leave, and she was determined to be that person.
"Where to next?" Rose skipped up to the console beside the Doctor.
"Maybe you should rest a little more." The Doctor said as he looked at her.
"Doctor, if I don't get an adventure I'm going to start climbing the walls and I don't think the Tardis is going to like that." Rose deadpanned.
"But…" The Doctor stopped at the look Rose sent him. "If you're sure, there is this signal drawing the Tardis off course."
"Let's do it." Rose beamed and the Doctor smiled just as brightly back.
The ride was a bit bumpy but the Doctor did a great job with what he got. The Tardis was supposed to have 6 or 7 pilots after all while the Doctor only had himself and Rose.
Rose bounced out the door after the Doctor. "Where are we?"
"Earth, Utah, North America." The Doctor explain as he looked for the light switch. "About half a mile underground."
"And when are we?" Rose giggled.
"2012." The Doctor smiled as he looked at a display case.
"That's so close. I should be 26." Rose laughed before she gasped as the Doctor turned on the lights. "Bloody hell. We're in a big museum."
"An alien museum. Someone's got a hobby, they've must have spent a fortune on this." The doctor walked around pointing at different things. "Chunks of a meteorite, moon dust. That's the milometer from the Roswell spaceship."
"Doctor, they have a stuffed arm of a Slitheen." Rose felt slightly disgusted.
"Oh, look at you." The Doctor breathed out looking at the metal head of a Cyberman.
Rose came up beside him. "So cold, so dark, so much pain, unfeeling but screaming."
"Rose, Rose!" The Doctor had grabbed her face and was looking at her with worried eyes. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." Rose tried to smile reassuringly. "That was a bit… uncomfortable. Do you know them?"
"Yes, it's the head of an old enemy of mine." The Doctor murmured as he turned back towards the display case after letting his hands linger on Rose's cheeks. "The stuff of nightmares reduced to an exhibit. I'm getting old."
"So, you want a walker or a cane for Christmas?" Rose asked cheekily.
"Funny." The Doctor laughed before touching the case, starting the alarm.
Armed guards burst into the room, surrounding them from all sides and cutting them off from the Tardis. Rose stepped closer to the Doctor and whispered softly, "If someone's collecting aliens, that makes you Exhibit A."
They were led into a room just as a young man handed a small handheld device over to a man sitting behind a desk.
"What does it do?" The man behind the desk asked.
"Well, you see the tubes on the side?" The young man asked. "It must be to channel something. I think maybe fuel."
"I really wouldn't hold it like that." The Doctor spoke up and Rose wanted to smack him.
"Shut it." The woman who led them in, Goddard, ordered.
"Really though, that's wrong." The Doctor told him.
"Is it dangerous?" The young man asked.
"No, it just looks silly." The Doctor smiled and reached for the item. Around them firing bolts clicked as the guards readied themselves to shoot. The man behind the desk handed the Doctor the small device. "You just need to be…" The Doctor stroked the artefact and it produced a musical sound. "Delicate."
"It's a musical instrument." The man behind the desk smiled as the Doctor played a few tunes.
"And it's a long way from home." The Doctor informed him.
"Here, let me." The man held out his hand for the device and tried to play but no sound came out.
"I did say delicate. It reacts to the smallest fingerprint. It needs precision." The Doctor explained and the man finally managed to play some notes. "Very good. Quite the expert."
"As are you." The man tossed the instrument to the floor in an uncaring manner. "Who exactly are you?"
"I'm the Doctor." The Doctor introduced himself. "And who are you?"
"Like you don't know." The man behind the desk said arrogantly. "We're hidden away with the most valuable collection of extraterrestrial artefacts in the world and you just happened to stumble in by mistake."
"Pretty much sums us up, yeah." The Doctor beamed.
"The question is, how did you get in? 53 floor down, with your little cat burglar accomplish." The man leered at Rose as he let his eyes roam over her body and Rose could see the Doctor stiffen. "You're quite a collector yourself, she's ratter beautiful."
"She's going to rip your balls off and make them into earrings if you don't stop calling her she." Rose sassed as she cocked her hip to the left with a glare.
"She's English too!" The man explained. "Hey, little Lord Fauntleroy, got you a girlfriend."
"This is Mister Henry Van Statten." The young man told Rose and the Doctor.
"Who?" Rose asked.
"Henry Van Statten." The young man repeated.
"Oohhh… nope, still don't know." Rose pretended to know before shaking her head.
"Mister Van Statten owns the internet." The young man told her.
"Does he?" Rose hummed, completely uninterested.
The Doctor wanted to growl at Van Statten as he saw him keep leering at Rose the more she talked. He could almost hear how Van Statten's thought process worked, he wanted her because she wasn't interested in him and she didn't care who he was.
"So you're just about an expert in everything except the things in your museum." The Doctor spoke up to take van Statten's focus off Rose. "Anything you don't understand, you lock up."
"And you claim greater knowledge?" Van Statten asked.
"I don't need to make claims, I know how good I am." The Doctor stated.
"And yet, I captured you." Van Statten pointed out. "Right next to the cage. What were you doing down there?"
"Doing the mamba." Rose muttered sarcastically making the Doctor have to suppress a smirk.
"You tell me." The Doctor stared impassively at Van Statten.
"The cage contains my one living specimen." Van Statten said like it was some big secret.
"And what's that?" The Doctor asked.
"Like you don't know." Van Statten hummed.
"Show me." The Doctor demanded.
"You want to see it?" Van Statten asked.
"This is ridiculous." Rose huffed as she glared at the two people in front of her.
"Goddard, inform the Cage we're heading down. You, English, look after the girl." Van Statten ordered. "Go and canoodle or spoon or whatever it is you British do. And you, Doctor with no name, come and see my pet."
The young man, Adam if Rose remembered correctly form the show, led her to a back room filled with junk.
"Sorry about the mess." Adam apologized. "Mister Van Statten sort of lets me do my own thing, so long as I deliver the goods. What do you think this is?"
"An exhaust pipe." Rose responded as she saw the piece of metal Adam was holding up.
"Yeah, most probably it's from a spacecraft." Adam told her and Rose had to bite her tongue not to let the sarcastic 'No, really?' slip out. "The thing is, it's all true. Everything the United Nations tries to keep quiet, spacecrafts, aliens, visitors to Earth? They really exist."
"That's amazing." Rose deadpanned but Adam doesn't seem to have noticed.
"I know it sounds incredible, but I honestly believe the while universe is just teeming with life." Adam continued.
"You don't say." Rose couldn't help the sarcastic quip so she continued hastily. "And you do what? Sit here and catalogue it?"
"Best job in the world." Adam nodded.
"So, how did you end up here?" Rose asked as she looked around.
"Van Statten has agents all over the world looking for geniuses to recruit." Adam told her.
"Oh, right. You're a genius." Rose nodded.
"Sorry, but yeah. I can't help it. I was born clever." Adam bragged and Rose only thought was 'Oh, you arrogant little shit'. "When I was eight, I logged onto the US Defense System. Nearly caused World War III."
Rose frowned at him as he laughed. "You think that's funny?"
"Well, you should've been there just to see them running about." Adam chuckled again. "Fantastic!"
"The Doctor really likes that word too." Rose hummed.
"Are you and him?" Adam tried to be subtle.
"No, we're just friends." Rose turned away from Adam, not liking the look in his eyes.
"Good." Adam sounded pleased.
"Why is that good?" Rose wanted to know, except she pretty much knew why.
"It just is." Adam said petulantly.
Rose just shook her head because that? Was never ever going to happen. Not even if Adam was the last being in the universe besides her and to save the whole universe they had to have sex. She would let the universe burn…
"So, have you ever seen the one living specimen that Van Statten has?" Rose asked.
"I asked Van Statten once if I could go down there but he keeps it to himself." Adam shrugged before smirking and going to the computer. "Although, if you're a genius, it doesn't take long to patch through on the comm. system."
"Let's have a look then." Rose smiled.
"It doesn't do much, the alien. It's weird." Adam clicked a couple of buttons and the creature, a Dalek, screamed on the screen.
"It's being tortured!" Rose exclaimed and she knew that a Dalek's only purpose was to exterminate all things that weren't Dalek, but she didn't think they deserved to be tortured for it. "Take me down there!"
When they arrived down at the torture chamber they were stopped by someone with the name Bywater on their chest.
"Hold it right there." Bywater ordered.
"Level three access." Adam declared. "Special clearance form Mister Van Statten."
After that they were let into the torture chamber and Rose had to admit that even though the Dalek had stopped screaming, it was still radiating pain somehow. How an overgrown saltshaker could radiate pain she didn't know but the dalek was succeeding.
"Don't get to close." Adam told her as the door closed behind them.
"Hello, are you in pain?" Rose asked softly. "My name's Rose, I'm here with a friend, we picked up your distress signal."
The dalek didn't say anything and Rose wondered if she had to name drop the Doctor to get a response.
"Don't be scared." Rose murmured, knowing full well that Dalek's didn't feel anything but hate. "My friend, he's called the Doctor, he can help."
"Yes." The Dalek answered slowly.
"What?" Rose took a small step forward.
"I am in pain." The Dalek admitted. "They torture me, but still they fear me. Do you fear me?"
"No" Rose answered honestly and she really didn't. What she was scared of was what the Dalek was capable off at full power, but that was another thing completely.
"I am dying." The Dalek said.
"Oh." Rose whispered and decided that she would just let it die and not touch it to give it her DNA like in the show.
"I welcome death." The Dalek told her and now Rose knew he, was the Dalek a he?, was lying. "But I'm glad that before I die I have met a human who was not afraid."
"I'm glad I could help you find peace in the end." Rose had to stop a giggle from escaping, helping a Dalek find peace? That was ironic and hilarious.
Adam moved behind Rose and he must have tripped on something because he fell into Rose making her stumble forward and her hand land on the Dalek's dome.
"Genetic material extrapolated." The Dalek declared, becoming more animated. "Initiate cellular reconstruction!"
As the Dalek broke the chains Simmons the scientist entered the room. "What have you done?"
Rose grabbed Adam and pulled him out of the room as Simmons approached the Dalek with a drill. They watched with wide eyes as the Dalek placed its, and yes it was now appropriate to call the Dalek an it, sucker over Simmons mouth and nose and then killing him.
"Oh my God." Rose gasped. It was one thing to see it on tv where she knew it was all fake, but seeing it like this made her want to gag or cry… maybe both.
"Condition red!" Bywater called into the radio. "Condition red!"
A few moment later the Doctor contacted them over face time… well it wasn't really face time but Rose was freaking out a little and that made her sarcastic.
"You've got to keep it in that cell." The Doctor ordered over the screen.
"Doctor…" Rose trailed off. "Something's different with the Dalek."
"Rose, how do you know what's its called?" The Doctor asked softly.
"I… I… I don't know." Rose murmured.
"I've sealed the compartment." A guard walked over to stand beside Rose. "It can't get out, that locks got a billion combinations."
"Not enough." Rose hummed.
"A Dalek's a genius." The Doctor informed the guard and everyone who was listening, sending worried looks at Rose who seemed to be a bit lost in her head. "It can calculate a thousand billion combinations in one second flat."
The Dalek did as the Doctor predicted and Bywater gave the order to open fire.
"Rose, get out of there!" the Doctor ordered.
"DeMaggio, take the civilians and get them out alive." Bywater turned to a handsome dark-skinned woman. That is your job, got that?"
DeMaggio nodded before turning to Rose and Adam. "You, with me."
As they ran with DeMaggio Rose absentmindedly noted that it was lucky that she chose the sneakers this morning and not the pumps. Rose could run in high heels, and had done so before, but it was always easier to run in sneakers.
Rose let Adam run up the stairs before her while she muttered. "Stairs won't stop it."
"It's coming!" DeMaggio called out. "Get up!"
Adam stopped on the second staircase and looked down at the Dalek. "Great big alien death machine defeated by a flight of stairs."
"You are a fucking idiot." Rose glared at him. "It's an alien that has been designed to be a killing machine and what? You don't think it has something that can help it when it comes to stairs? Didn't you say you were a genius?"
"Now listen to me, I demand that you return to your cage. If you want to negotiate then I can guarantee that Mister Van Statten will be willing to talk." DeMaggio stated strongly with her gun aimed at the Dalek. "I accept that we imprisoned you and maybe that was wrong, but people have died and that stops right now. The killing stops. Have you got that? I demand that you surrender. Is that clear?"
"Elevate." Was the only response the Dalek gave as it started to make its way up the stairs.
"Oh my God." Adam gasped in fright.
"Adam, get her out of here." DeMaggio ordered while standing her ground.
"Come with us." Rose pleaded, not wanting her to die. "You can't stop it."
"Someone's got to try." DeMaggio looked at Rose sadly. "Now get out! Don't look back, just run!"
As they run, Rose felt sadness for all the lives that had been lost and the lives that still would be lost. She wanted to cry and scream and rage. She wanted to curl up in the library in the Tardis with a good book and a cup of Chi.
Suddenly Rose's phone began to ring and she pulled it out with a groan. "This really isn't a good time."
"Where are you?" The Doctor asked quickly.
"Level forty nine." Rose said as she kept running. "Why?"
"You've got to keep moving." The Doctor told her. "The vault's being sealed off up at level forty six."
"Can't you stop them closing?" Rose asked, trying to run faster but she was getting tired.
"I'm the one who's closing them." The Doctor almost sounded ashamed and a little scared. "I can't wait and I can't help you."
"You're doing the right thing, Doctor." Rose declared, silently wondering why she couldn't remember this from the show.
"I hope so." The Doctor whispered. "Now for God's sake, run!"
"We're nearly there." Rose said into the phone a few minutes later as they approached level forty six. "Give us two seconds."
"I'm sorry." The Doctor murmured softly and Rose could see the bulkhead start to lower as a klaxon sounded through the air.
"Come on!" Adam called out as he rolled under the bulkhead but Rose knew she wouldn't make it.
"Rose, where are you?" The Doctor called out through the phone as Rose leaned her forehead against the closed bulkhead. "Rose, did you make it?"
"Sorry, I was a bit slow." Rose hummed, watching as the Dalek came around the corner. "See you, then, Doctor. I wouldn't have missed traveling with you for anything. And remember, you did the right thing and it wasn't your fault."
"Exterminate!" The Dalek declared and fired its weapon.
The Doctor felt like someone had reached into his chest and squeezed both his hearts as he heard the Dalek say 'Exterminate' and then discharge its weapon. Rose was dead. Sweet, sweet Rose, the woman who saw everyone as people and didn't want to kill aliens even when the aliens wanted to kill her.
The woman who made the Doctor see the universe in color again after the war. The woman who had the ability of just knowing things and made life interesting. The woman whose smile could light up a room. And he had failed her.
"I killed her." The Doctor whispered in a strangled voice.
"I'm sorry." Van Statten said form behind him.
"I said I'd protect her. She was only here because of me and you're sorry?" the Doctor turned to Van Statten with a furious glare. "I could've killed that Dalek in its cell, but you stopped me."
"It was the prize of my collection!" Van Statten protested.
"Your collection? But was it worth it? Worth all those men's deaths? Worth Rose?!" The Doctor go up in van Statten's face. "Let me tell you something, Van Statten, mankind goes into space to explore, to be part of something greater."
"Exactly!" Van Statten exclaimed. "I wanted to touch the stars!"
"You just want to drag the stars down and stick them underground, underneath tons of sand and dirt, and label them." The Doctor sneered. "You're about as far from the stars as you can get. And you took the most amazing young woman I've ever met down with you."
Ten minute later Adam entered the Office where the Doctor, Van Statten and Goddard was.
"You were quick on your feet, leaving Rose behind." The Doctor huffed.
"I'm not the one who sealed the vault!" Adam almost screamed back.
Suddenly the screen came to life, showing the Dalek and Rose. "Open the bulkhead or Rose dies."
"You're alive!" The Doctor exclaimed, happiness bursting through his chest.
"Haven't you learned by now, Doctor?" Rose asked with a cheeky smile. "I'm too stubborn to be taken out by some overgrown saltshaker."
"I thought you were dead." The Doctor muttered as he took in Rose, alive and unharmed.
"Open the bulkhead!" The Dalek ordered.
"Don't do it!" Rose ordered in the next second.
"What use are emotions if you will not save the woman you love?" The Dalek questioned.
"I killed her once, I can't do it again." The Doctor muttered and opened the bulkhead, even as thoughts about what the Dalek said whirled through his mind.
He wasn't in love with Rose. Was he? True he found her amazing and intriguing and, if he was being honest, which he tried to be with himself at least, she was quiet beautiful. But that didn't mean he was in love with her… right?
"What do we do now, you bleeding heart?" Van Statten growled, knocking the Doctor back out of his thoughts. "What the hell to we do?"
"Kill it when it gets here." Adam declared.
"All the guns are useless, and the alien weapons are in the vault." Goddard pointed out.
"Only the catalogued ones." Adam shrugged and led the way to his workshop.
"Broken. Broken. Hairdryer." The Doctor picked through the bin of alien things.
"Mister Van Statten tends to dispose of his staff and when he does he wipes their memory." Adam explained. "I kept this stuff in case I needed to fight my way out one day."
"What, you in a fight?" the Doctor shook his head. "I'd like to see that."
"I could do it." Adam huffed.
"What're you going to do? Throw you're a-levels at 'em?" The Doctor smirked before finally finding something that could work against the Dalek. "Oh, yes. Lock and load."
The Dalek blasted a whole in the roof and a stream of sunlight illuminated the Dalek.
"You're out, you made it." Rose said before muttering to herself. "I never thought I'd feel the sun again."
"How does it feel?" The Dalek asked.
"Warm." Rose smiled softly as she basked in the warm light, she had always loved sunlight and warmth.
The Dalek opened its middle and dome sections to reveal the one-eyed, squid like being inside. It slowly held out a tenacle towards the sun just as the Doctor burst into the room.
"Get out of the way." The Doctor ordered as he held up his weapon. "Rose, get out of the way now!"
"No." Rose turned and smiled at the Doctor but kept herself between the Dalek and him. "Don't turn into this person, Doctor, it is not who you are."
"That thing killed hundreds of people." The Doctor told her.
"Yes it did." Rose agreed with a kind voice. "But just because the Dalek has killed people doesn't mean you have to kill it."
"I've got to do this, I've got to end it." the Doctor protested. "The Daleks destroyed my home, my people. I've got nothing left."
"You've got the Tardis and, well, you've got me." Rose offered before moving slightly so the Doctor could see the Dalek. "Look at it."
"What's it doing?" The Doctor asked with confusion.
"It's enjoying the sunlight." Rose smiled again. "That was all it wanted."
"But it can't." The Doctor looked so confused.
"It couldn't kill me, Doctor, and it couldn't kill Van Statten." Rose explained as best she could. "It's changing."
"Oh, Rose, they're all dead." The Doctor gave a strangled sob as he the lowered the weapon quickly.
"Why do we survive?" The Dalek asked sadly.
"I don't know." The Doctor admitted.
"I am the last of the Daleks." The Dalek mourned.
"You're not even that." The Doctor pointed out. "Rose did more than regenerate you. You've absorbed her DNA. You're mutating."
"Into what?" The Dalek wanted to know.
"Something new." The Doctor sounded sad. "I'm sorry."
"That's not a good thing, is it?" Rose whispered.
"Not for a Dalek." The Doctor said to her.
"I can feel so many ideas. So much darkness." The Dalek muttered. "Rose, give me orders. Order me to die."
"Are you sure you want me to do that?" Rose felt tears in her eyes. She didn't want to order the Dalek to die but she would if it was the Dalek's wish.
"This is not life! This is sickness! I shall not be like you!" The Dalek ranted. "Order my destruction! Obey! Obey! Obey!"
"Dalek, I order you to self-destruct." Rose ordered calmly as tears ran down her cheeks.
"Are you frightened, Rose?" The Dalek asked.
"I am." Rose admitted.
"So am I." The talked told her. "Exterminate."
The Dalek shut its eye and Rose retreated a few steps as the Dalek closed its armor again and rose into the air. The balls on the Dalek's lower body spread out around it, creating a forcefield where it then imploded.
Rose ran over to the Doctor who pulled her into a tight hug. "I'm so glad that you're alright."
"Physically I'm perfectly fine." Rose agreed as she hugged back. "But emotionally I'm exhausted."
"Let's get back to the Tardis." The Doctor pulled back. "We can float in the vortex for a while until we find the next adventure."
"Oh, I'm going to take the longest bath and just pamper myself." Rose groaned with a smile.
Together they made their way back to the Tardis that was still standing blue and beautiful in the museum. The Doctor walked up to the Tardis and placed a hand on the side.
"A little piece of home." The Doctor muttered. "Better than nothing."
"The Dalek survived." Rose pointed out. "Isn't there a possibility that some of your people did too?"
"I'd know, in here." The Doctor gestured to his head. "Feels like there's no one."
"I'm sorry for your loss." Rose smiled sadly. "I don't know if it helps, but I'm not going anywhere."
"That does help," The Doctor smiled before whispering lower than a human could hear. "More than you'll ever know."
"We'd better get out." Adam ran up to them. "Van Statten's disappeared and they're closing down the base. Goddard says they're going to fill it full of cement, like it never existed."
"About time." Rose muttered with a slight sneer.
"I'll have to go back home." Adam's voice sounded a tad whiney.
"At least you get to go back home." Rose huffed. "Many of the people that worked here won't."
"Better hurry up then." The Doctor said to Adam. "Next flight to Heathrow leaves at fifteen hundred hours."
Rose turned to the Doctor with wide eyes. "How do you know that?"
"Time Lord." The Doctor answered smugly with a teasing glint in his eyes.
"I would be mad, but it's a great answer." Rose giggled.
"What are you guys talking about?" Adam groaned. "Never mind, we have to go."
"Nah, I'm staying with the pretty blue box." Rose shrugged with a smirk.
"Me too." The Doctor nodded. "I like the pretty blue box quite a lot."
"You're both insane." Adam muttered and ran off.
"I almost thought you were going to invite him along." The Doctor murmured as he unlocked the Tardis.
"Why would I do that?" Rose asked with a frown. "He was an idiot."
"True, but he was a bit pretty." The Doctor needled and held the Tardis door open for Rose.
"Eh… okay?" Rose looked at the Doctor with a raised eyebrow. "If you say so."
"You didn't notice?" The Doctor asked, closing the door and sending the Tardis into the vortex.
"No… should I have?" Rose asked slowly.
"I guess not." The Doctor muttered.
"Okay, then." Rose shrugged with a smile. "Now I'm going to go to my room and take a long, long, bath, with lots and lots of bubbles."
"Already started your bath for you, my wolf." The Tardis whispered in her mind.
"Thank you, darling." Rose smiled brightly as she turned and began to make her way to her room before calling over her shoulder. "I'll see you in a couple of hours. Toodles."
The Doctor watched her go, mind full of questions and ideas which wasn't unusual but one thing stood out in his mind no matter what he did. The Dalek's voice echoed back at him from his memory '… the woman you love.'.