The alarms continued to go off as the TARDIS crew ran into a small stone room at the top of one of the monastery's towers. It appeared to be like any other medieval-era room . . . except for the human-shaped metal harnesses tucked into each of the window alcoves. Nearly all of them were occupied by a man or woman in an orange jumpsuit.
The group came to a stop, staring in wonder and befuddlement. "What are all of these harnesses for?" Amy frowned.
"Uh, the almost people?" Rory suggested.
"What are they, prisoners, or are they meditating, or what?"
"Well, at the moment they fall into the 'or what' category," the Doctor remarked, which didn't really serve to answer their questions. He wrapped an arm around Alex's waist, drawing her into his side.
"Halt and remain calm!" the tannoy ordered.
"Well, we've halted," the Doctor grinned, though he pressed Alex into his side even tighter than he had a second ago. "How are we all doing on the 'calm' front?"
Just then, the sound of storming footsteps rang out behind them. The Doctor spun around, shoving Alex behind him, as two men and a young woman came into the room. The men had lances; both were pointed directly at the Doctor.
"Don't move!" one of the men ordered. He was the older of the two, with graying blonde hair and pale skin.
"Stay back, Jen!" the other man, a much younger one with unkempt black hair, ordered the young woman. He eyed the TARDIS crew suspiciously. "We don't know who they are."
"So, let's ask them," the young woman reasoned. She looked to be around Amy and Alex's age with long black hair pulled back into a ponytail, dark eyes, and pale skin. "Who the hell are you?"
"Well, I'm the Doctor, and this is Alex, Amy, and Rory, and it's all very nice, isn't it?"
"Hold up," Amy interrupted. She looked back and forth between the trio in front of her and the people in the harnesses. They looked exactly alike, right down to their orange jumpsuits. "You're all. . . What are you all? Like identical twins?"
Flesh duplicates, Alex thought.
At that moment, two more figures entered the room. One was an older woman with dark hair and sharp, stern facial features. Though there was no obvious indication that she was, Alex suspected her to be the boss. The other figure was a young man, also around Amy and Alex's age, with closely cropped brown hair. Both figures wore dark brown suits fashioned out of metal and leather.
"This is an Alpha-grade industrial facility," the woman said. Her tone was no-nonsense, reinforcing Alex's belief that she was the boss. "Unless you work for the military or for Morpeth Jetsan, you are in big trouble."
"Actually, you're in big trouble," the Doctor challenged. He pulled out the psychic paper.
The older woman peered at the wallet. "Meteorological department? Since when?"
"Since you were hit by a solar wave."
"Which we survived."
Alex poked her head out from behind the Doctor. "Just, by the looks of it," she retorted.
"And there's a bigger one on the way," the Doctor added.
"Which we'll also survive," the woman dismissed. She turned to the man beside her. "Dicken, scan for bugs."
Dicken held up a scanner. "Backs against the wall," he ordered. "Now."
The group slowly backed up against the wall. The Doctor clutched Alex's hand and made sure to keep her right beside him as they moved. "You're not a monastery," he observed. "You're a factory. 22nd century army-owned factory."
"You're army?" Amy gasped as Dicken commenced with his scan.
"No, love," the older woman corrected. "We're contractors, and you're trespassers."
"It's clear, boss," Dicken reported once he finished scanning Alex.
"Alright, weatherman, your I.D. checks out. If there's another solar storm, what are you going to do about it? Hand out sunblock?"
The Doctor gave her a sarcastic laugh. "I need to see your critical systems."
"Which one?"
The Doctor eyed her significantly. "You know which one," he said, deliberately deepening his voice so that he could intimidate her . . . and to see Alex's eyes slightly darken. He knew how much she loved it when his voice dropped.
And who was he to deny the woman he loved something she liked?
~The Pros and Cons of Silence~
The head of the group, Cleaves, as she'd introduced herself, led them into another stone-walled room. In the back was a large vat on a raised platform. On the floor before it was a small open tub. As they got closer to the vat, they could hear a bubbling noise emanating from it.
The Doctor kept a tight grip on Alex's hand as they walked around the vat. He knew this was going to be hard for her.
They came to a stop on the other side of the vat. The two stared inside. "And there you are," the Doctor whispered.
And there it was. The Flesh. Alex forced herself to keep her face impassive as she looked down at the true form of what she was made of. In its natural state, the Flesh was a thick white goop, reminiscent of the slime Alex used to make in elementary science class out of Elmer's glue, baking soda, and contact lens solution. The goop bubbled slightly but otherwise didn't move.
So this is what I'll look like when the Doctor ends the signal to me. Just a big pile of white goop. She swallowed heavily and her hand darted up to fiddle with the ends of her scarf. Maybe the Doctor had a point when he argued against bringing her here.
The Doctor kept his eyes on her, even though he knew doing so risked alerting Amy and Rory to something being wrong. Fortunately, the Ponds were transfixed by the Flesh, not paying him or Alex a second glance.
Assuring himself that the couple was occupied, the Doctor reached down and tilted Alex's chin up. She stared at him, her currently light green eyes showing everything she felt about the liquid before her. He gave her a reassuring smile and leaned down to press a light kiss to her temple. Alex closed her eyes and silently relished in the comfort his presence provided her.
They were pulled out of their moment by Cleaves stating, "Meet the government's worst kept secret. The Flesh. It's fully programmable matter. In fact, it's even learning to replicate itself at the cellular level."
"Right. Brilliant," Amy nodded along, only to shake her head a second later. "Lost."
"Okay. Once a reading's been taken, we can manipulate its molecular structure into anything. Replicate a living organism down to the hairs on its chinny-chin-chin. Even clothes. And everything's identical. Eyes, voice. . ."
"Mind, soul," the Doctor and Alex added together, one voice in a slight growl, the other sounding a touch nauseated.
Cleaves merely scoffed. "Don't be fooled. It acts like life, but it still needs to be controlled by us, from those harnesses you saw."
"Wait, whoa, hold it," Rory exclaimed. He stared at Cleaves incredulously. "So . . . you're Flesh now?"
She nodded. "I'm lying in a harness back in that chamber. We all are, except Jennifer here." She gestured to the young woman nervously standing at the back of the group. "Don't be scared. This thing, just like operating a forklift truck."
"You said it could grow," the Doctor recalled. "Only living things grow."
"Moss grows. It's no more than that. This acid is so dangerous we were losing a worker every week. So now we mine the acid using these doppelgangers. Or Gangers."
"Cute," Alex sneered.
Ganger Cleaves ignored her. "If these bodies get burnt or fall in the acid. . ."
"Then who the hell cares?" the dark-haired man, Ganger Buzzer, picked up. He turned to Jennifer. "Right, Jen?"
"Nerve endings automatically cut off like airbags being discharged," Jennifer explained. "We wake up and get a new Ganger."
"It's weird," the older man, Ganger Jimmy, admitted. "But you get used to it."
"Jennifer, I want you in your Ganger," Ganger Cleaves commanded. "Get back to the harness."
As Jennifer headed back to the first room, the Doctor pulled out the sonic screwdriver and buzzed it across the Flesh. "Hang on!" Ganger Buzzer cried as the liquid started to bubble. "What's he up to? What you up to, pal?"
The Doctor struggled to move his outstretched arm. "Stop it! Ah!" he cried. After another few seconds, he managed to yank his arm back.
He breathed heavily, stunned by the bizarre experience. "Strange. It was like, for a moment there, it was scanning me." He frowned and pocketed the sonic. Then, before anyone could stop him, he reached out and placed his palm on top of the Flesh.
"Doctor. . ." Ganger Cleaves warned.
"Ah!" The Doctor's hand shook and he struggled to break free, but the Flesh was like a suction cup. Its grip was unyielding and struggling only seemed to make the Flesh hold on tighter.
"Get back, Doctor! Leave it alone!"
"Doctor!" Alex cried. She wrapped her arms around his middle and tried pulling him away from the vat. He didn't even move an inch.
"Ah! Ah! Ah! Gah!" Finally, the Doctor was able to pull his hand away. The force of the movement sent him toppling back into Alex, nearly knocking them both down. Regaining his balance, the Doctor struggled to catch his breath. He stared at the Flesh in amazement. "I understand," he murmured.
Alex frowned. What did he mean by that? "Doc?" she prodded.
"Are you alright?" Amy asked.
"Incredible," the Doctor breathed, not responding to either of them. "You have no idea. No idea. I mean, I felt it in my mind. I reached out to it, and it to me."
Ganger Cleaves rolled her eyes. "Don't fiddle with the money, Doctor."
Alex gaped at her. What was wrong with this woman? Couldn't she see that the Doctor was legitimately trying to help her? "How stupid are you?" she snapped.
"It's alive," the Doctor jumped in before Cleaves could form a retort. "So alive. You're piling your lives, your personalities directly into it."
At that moment, a streak of lightning flashed outside, followed by an ominous boom of thunder. The Doctor pulled his snowglobe out again and critically examined it as the ground started shaking. "It's the solar storm," he announced. "The first waves come in pairs, pre-shock and full shock. It's close."
"Buzzer, we got anything from the mainland yet?" Ganger Cleaves asked.
"No, the comms are still too jammed with radiation."
"Okay, then we'll keep pumping acid until the mainland says stop. Now, why don't you stand back and let us impress you." She flicked a switch and the Flesh started to pour from the vat into the tub.
Alex watched in a mixture of wonder and disgust as the Flesh began to take shape. The face formed first, the mouth opening to take its first breath. The eyes came next. The pupils were completely black and reminded Alex of something out of a horror movie. The rest of Jennifer's body followed, even her orange jumpsuit like Cleaves promised. It looked exactly like Jennifer, except the face was still white and undefined.
A moment later, the figure sat up and gasped for breath. It was Jennifer. The Ganger looked exactly like the original one now in the harness in the other room.
Despite her resolve to try and remain calm, Alex jumped. She gaped at Ganger Jennifer, hoping that the disgust she was feeling couldn't be seen on her face. Was this what had happened to her? To Amy? Were they forced into harnesses – as Alex couldn't see either herself or Amy going in willingly – and then woke up in some strange tub, utterly confused and terrified? And then . . . what happened?
Alex's stomach twisted uncomfortably. Just when were she and Amy kidnapped? She and the Doctor had already ruled out it occurring during the time the Silence took them in 1969 since Amy had been complaining of morning sickness before then. So, it stood to reason that it had been before they met him in Utah.
Bile rose in her throat, but Alex swallowed it back down, grimacing as she did so. She and Amy had been taken some time after the Doctor dropped them off in Leadworth in early February this year. Nine months had passed – not for the Earth but for them aboard the TARDIS – where they weren't actually with their loved ones, but on some distant star in an unknown location and time period, getting experimented upon and growing a baby all without being aware of it.
Alex's knees started to buckle. No! she snapped to herself. Her eyes darted around the room. No one was paying her the slightest bit of attention. Gangers Buzzer and Jimmy were helping Ganger Jennifer out of the tub, Amy and Rory were gawking at Ganger Jennifer, Ganger Cleaves was smirking victoriously, and Ganger Dicken, the most silent of the bunch, was quietly taking these things in.
But at some point, someone's eyes would be drawn to her. Alex knew it. Her heart thudding in her chest, she strove to straighten her shaky legs and took a few deep breaths.
Unbeknownst to and discounted by Alex among the people not paying attention to her, the Doctor's gaze was firmly fixed on her. He sighed inaudibly at how pale Alex's face had gotten. I knew I should have fought harder with her! He should have insisted on her going somewhere with the Ponds. He knew that the reality of her seeing the Flesh would be difficult to handle, but if he'd known it would be this bad. . .
He shook his head. There was no point in berating himself. He had to concentrate on and comfort Alex. Since she was still struggling to keep her balance, he wrapped an arm around her abdomen and pulled her back against his chest. His lips quirked at Alex's relieved sigh and the feeling of her nestling further against him.
After a few more moments, Alex managed to regain her voice. "Well, I can see why you keep it in a church," she remarked a bit flippantly. "The miracle of life."
"No need to get poncey," Ganger Buzzer snipped. "It's just grunge."
"Guys, we need to get to work," Ganger Cleaves reminded them.
Ganger Jimmy nodded. "Okay, everyone, let's crack on."
"Did I mention the solar storm?" the Doctor exclaimed. "You need to get out of here."
"Where do you want us to go?" Ganger Jimmy scoffed. "We're on a tiny island."
"You're in luck," Alex told him. She inwardly relished in the distraction the solar storm provided from examining the Flesh in further detail. "We've got a way to get you off."
"Don't be ridiculous," Ganger Cleaves scorned, shaking her head. "We've got a job to do."
"It's coming," the Doctor murmured.
Right on cue, an alarm blared.
"That's the alarm!" Ganger Jennifer cried, pointing out the obvious.
"How do you get power?" the Doctor demanded.
"We're solar and we use a solar router," Ganger Cleaves answered. "The weather-vane."
The Doctor frowned. "Big problem."
"Boss, maybe if the storm comes back, we should get underground," Ganger Jimmy proposed. "The factory's seen better days. The acid pipes might not withstand another hit."
"We have 200 tons of acid to pump out," Ganger Cleaves argued. "We fall behind, we stay another rotation." She eyed her crew. "Anyone want that?"
The Doctor grasped her arm and led her to the side of the room. Alex followed them. "Please," he begged. "You are making a massive mistake here. You're right at the crossroads of it. Don't turn the wrong way. If you don't, if you don't prepare for this storm, you are all in terrible danger. Understood?"
Ganger Cleaves wrenched her arm away. "My factory, my rules." With that, she walked off.
Alex sighed and shook her head. "Why don't people ever listen?"
The Doctor nodded in agreement. An arm wrapped around her shoulders, he led her back to the group. "I need to check the progress of the storm." He snapped his fingers and pointed at Ganger Jennifer. "Monitoring station?" When Ganger Jennifer failed to respond, he snapped his fingers again. "Monitoring station!"
"Three lefts, a right, and a left," she quickly replied. "Third door on your left."
"Thank you." He ran out of the room. Amy, Alex, and Rory rushed after him.
It didn't take them long to find the monitoring station. The room was small with a circular set of controls in the middle. It vaguely reminded Alex of the TARDIS console, only more organized and efficient. Screens had also been set up around the controls, each one showing different areas of the factory.
The Doctor immediately began examining the instruments. "Waves disturbing the Earth's magnetic field. There is going to be the mother and father of all power surges. See this weather-vane, this cock-a-doodle-doo? It's a solar router feeding the whole factory with solar power. When that wave hits, ka-boom! I've got to get to that cockerel before all hell breaks loose." He paused on his way out the door and chuckled. "I never thought I'd have to say that again."
Alex shot him a look. "Focus!" she snapped.
The Doctor cringed. "Right, sorry! Amy, breathe!" He turned and ran off.
"Yeah!" Amy nodded as she stared after him. What did he mean by breathe? She did breathe! She didn't have to think about doing it! "I mean, thanks! I'll try!" She shot Alex a what-the-hell look.
"I have no idea," Alex lied. She hated to do it, but right now it was necessary. The Doctor hadn't mentioned anything to her about Amy currently being in labor, but he must have noticed something in her breathing patterns – something so subtle not even Amy noticed it – if his telling her to breathe was any indication.
She grimaced at the knot forming in her stomach and stared out the door. Around her, the room shook, and equipment rattled nervously as thunder and lightning reigned supreme outside.
Alex swallowed heavily. Please get this fixed, Doc.
~The Pros and Cons of Silence~
The Doctor ran across the courtyard to the tower. He stared up at the weather-vane before quickly moving up the ladder attached to the tower. As he climbed, he tried not to remember toppling off the radio dish in Logopolis. If he fell off this thing and his wounds were severe, he'd be dead. Total graveyard dead. No regeneration.
Stop thinking that! he snapped to himself. He continued up the ladder, trying to ignore the flashes of lightning and the booming of thunder that were becoming all too frequent now.
He stopped near the top of the ladder. Situated beside him was the power box. He pulled the heavy lid open with a grunt.
He had just moved a hand inside when a huge bolt of lightning struck the tower.
The current raced through him, forcing his hand out of the power box . . . and his whole body off the ladder. He tumbled to the ground, landing with a hard thump as his vision went black.
~The Pros and Cons of Silence~
Alex slowly drifted into consciousness. She grimaced as the dim light seeped into her eyes. Her head ached, probably from where she had fallen onto the stone floor in the Flesh room she and the Ponds relocated to after the Doctor ran off.
Speaking of. . . Where was the Doctor?
"Oh," Rory groaned. "For want of a better word, ow." He rolled over and forced himself to his feet. Looking around, he saw Amy lying next to him, also in the process of waking up. A little further down, Alex was shifting up onto her knees. "You okay, Alex?" he asked as he helped Amy up.
Alex rubbed her head and squinted in the newfound dimness. "Son of a bitch," she scowled, rubbing the back of her head with one hand and her forehead with the other.
Rory chuckled. "I'll take that as a yes."
~The Pros and Cons of Silence~
Meanwhile outside, the Doctor was also waking up. Thanks to his superior Time Lord senses, he knew he, and likely the others, had been unconscious for about an hour. Up on the tower, the weather-vane had been completely destroyed and the monastery was dark.
He clambered to his feet. Must find Ally and the Ponds.
He went across the courtyard before reaching a set of steps. He examined them carefully, making sure there wasn't any leaking acid around them. Seeing none, he set off and around a small corner . . . only to run into Cleaves. The woman was standing in a doorway, looking rather confused as to what had just happened.
"Cleaves!" he shouted, attracting her attention. "You're not in your harness!"
"I'm sorry, Doctor," Cleaves apologized. "You were right."
"You've lost all power to the factory."
But Cleaves didn't care about that. "Doctor, I abandoned my team."
"Then let's go get them." He led the way down the corridor, Cleaves right beside him. The Doctor eyed her critically. He could sense that something was off about Cleaves, though what that was he didn't know. "How long would you say we were unconscious for, Cleaves?" he asked.
She shrugged. "Not long. A minute, two minutes?"
"I'd hazard we've been out for a teensy bit longer."
She stared at him curiously. "Well, how long?"
"An hour," he said grimly. "I've seen whole worlds turned inside out in an hour. A lot can go wrong in an hour."
~The Pros and Cons of Silence~
After hauling themselves off the floor, Amy, Rory, and Alex hurried off to find the others. They reached the harness room just in time to see Jimmy and Dicken helping Buzzer down from his harness. "I feel like I've been toasted," Buzzer complained.
"Better that than dead," Alex said dryly.
Jimmy turned to her. He sensed that like that Doctor bloke, Alex would have all the answers. "What the hell happened?"
"The tsunami happened. Can't say we didn't try to warn you. Anybody hurt?"
Jimmy winced a little. "It feels like the National Grid's run through my bones, but apart from that. . ."
"I hope the meter's not bust," Buzzer said. "I still want to get paid."
"Why?" a small voice quivered. It could barely be heard over the men's loud chatter, but Rory caught it. He turned to see Jennifer standing by herself in a corner of the room, shaking like a frightened rabbit. He hurried over, his nurse instincts coming out along with the protective side he usually felt with Amy and Alex.
"Jennifer! Jennifer? Hey, all right?" He gave her a soft, reassuring smile.
Jennifer stared at him through tearful eyes. "It hurt so much," she shuddered. The tears began falling, running down her cheeks like tiny rivers.
Rory pulled her into a hug. "Hey, hey, it's okay, it's over."
"I couldn't get out of my harness!"
"Shh, shh, shh. . ."
"I thought I was going to die!"
"Welcome to my world," Rory muttered. Feeling eyes drilling into the back of his head, he looked over Jennifer's head at Amy. The slight scowl on her face, as well as her narrowed eyes, indicated that she wasn't very happy about him being in such close proximity to the girl.
Alex saw it too. She leaned over to murmur in her friend's ear, "He's just doing what he was trained to do. He's trying to comfort her."
Amy nodded, realizing that, but it still didn't make her feel any better about her husband hugging another woman. In fact, she quite wanted to rip Jennifer's eyes out. I wonder if this is how Alex feels around River when she's flirting with the Doctor?
Fortunately, before things could escalate into a cat-fight, the Doctor and Cleaves strode in. "Doctor!" Alex cried. She rushed over and threw her arms around him. Thank God he was safe! She had been a few minutes away from going to check on him, but it seemed there had been no need.
The Doctor grinned and gave her a quick hug. "You okay?" he checked.
"Head hurts, but it'll go away."
"Doctor!" Amy called. "These are all real people, so where are their Gangers?"
"Don't worry," Cleaves assured her. "When the link shuts down, the Gangers return to pure Flesh. Now, the storm's left us with acid leaks all over, so we need to contact the mainland. They can have a rescue shuttle out here in no time."
An excellent plan . . . which was immediately forgotten when the familiar strains of 'You Don't Have To Say You Love Me' began echoing throughout the room.
"That's my record," Jimmy breathed in shock. "Who's playing my record?"
"Your Gangers," the Doctor answered. "They've gone for a walkabout."
Cleaves shook her head. "No, it's impossible. They're not active. Cars don't fly themselves, cranes don't lift themselves, and Ganger's don't. . ." But she trailed off as the group went through a doorway into the dining hall.
The dining hall was quite large. A long table almost the same length as the room ran down the middle of the space. The Dusty Springfield record was playing on a turntable atop it. Scattered around it were various items that had been clearly searched through, such as I.D. cards, wallets, even a house of cards.
"No way," Buzzer gasped.
"I don't. . . I don't believe this," Cleaves insisted, though her gaping seemed to contradict that.
"They could've escaped through the service door in the back," Jimmy pointed out.
"This is just like the Isle of Sheppey," Buzzer proclaimed.
The Doctor and Alex sat down in front of the house of cards. Slinging an arm around her shoulders, the Doctor remarked, "It would seem the storm has animated your Gangers."
"They've ransacked everything!" Cleaves cried.
"Not ransacked, searched."
"Through our stuff!"
"Their stuff," the Doctor and Alex argued.
Jimmy frowned at them. Unlike most people though, it was more for the words they'd said than the simultaneous speaking. "Searching for what?"
Alex picked up a nearby book and started flipping through it. "Confirmation?" she guessed.
The Doctor nodded. "Exactly, Ally. They need to know their memories are real."
Buzzer snorted. "Oh, so they've got flaming memories now."
"They feel compelled to connect to their lives."
"Their stolen lives," Cleaves huffed.
Alex put the book down and gave her a harsh look. "No, given," she snapped. She could feel her fury at everyone dismissing the Gangers as nothing when she herself was made of Flesh starting to rush through her. It was almost like when she got jealous. It was a wildfire of rage begging to be unleashed on an unsuspecting victim. "You lot gave them your personalities, emotions, memories, quirks, traits, secrets, hopes, dreams, everything when you hooked yourselves up to those harnesses. You gave them your lives, their lives as far as they're now concerned." She narrowed her eyes at Cleaves. "Aren't you proud of yourself?"
The Doctor squeezed her shoulder in warning. "Human lives are amazing," he commented, trying to keep attention off Alex. They didn't need Amy and Rory questioning them right now. "Are you surprised they walked off with them?"
"I'll say it again," Buzzer jumped in. "Isle of Sheppey. Ganger got an electric shock, toddled off, killed his operator right there in his harness. I've seen the photos. This bloke's ear was almost hanging—"
"Even if this has actually happened," Jimmy cut in, his tone making it clear he believed it hadn't, "they can't remain stable without us plumbed into them, can they, boss?" He looked at Cleaves for confirmation.
Cleaves was silent for a long moment. Finally, she said, "I guess we'll find out."
Suddenly, Jennifer gasped. Everyone whirled around to look at her.
"Are you okay?" Rory asked, moving to her side. "Do you need some water?"
Jennifer's face turned even paler than it already was. "I feel funny. I need the washroom." Without another word, she ran out of the room.
"I'll come with you!" Rory shouted after her. He glanced at Amy, silently asking her if she was okay with this. Amy forced herself to smile and nod. Once she did, Rory left.
"Achoo!" Dicken exclaimed through a sneeze. The unexpected action caused Amy to jump a good foot in the air. "Sorry," Dicken winced.
The Doctor didn't even notice this small commotion; he was too busy studying the house of cards before him. "That's me," Buzzer said when he saw the Doctor looking at it. "It's good to have a hobby. So, what, my Ganger did that, all on its own?"
"All on his own," Alex muttered.
"Who taught you to do this?" the Doctor asked. He squeezed Alex's shoulder again, both to warn her to keep quiet and to try and comfort her.
"My granddad."
"Well, your Ganger's granddad taught him to do it, too. You both have the same childhood memories, just as clear, just as real."
Buzzer frowned at the comment. He eyed the cards distastefully. "No," he said adamantly before knocking the house over.
The Doctor and Alex eyed him. Alex couldn't help but get a bad feeling about how all of this was going to turn out. She turned to whisper in the Doctor's ear, "Fear generates savagery."
He nodded in agreement. He saw this kind of thing with humans all the time. "Too right, you are," he concurred. "They're scared, disorientated, struggling to come to terms with an entire life in their heads."
Alex sighed wearily. So much for a simple examination of the Flesh, she thought. She leaned her head against the Doctor's shoulder. "Why can't anything be easy?" she mumbled, closing her eyes.
The Doctor chuckled, his breath warm against her skin. "Easy is very, very boring." He tucked a strand of hair behind her left ear, leaned down, and kissed her temple. "Sorry, I don't have a rose to tuck behind your ear."
Alex giggled, making him smile. Just what he was aiming for. "I'll forgive you this time."
"Good to know."
~The Pros and Cons of Silence~
A few minutes later, the Doctor stood in front of the dining hall microwave. He slid a plate of food in and set the timer. While he watched it cook, he paid close attention to the conversation the humans were having behind him.
"We need to protect ourselves," Jimmy insisted.
The Doctor didn't bother to turn around when he asked, "Are you a violent man, Jimmy?"
"No."
"Then why would the other Jimmy be?"
Cleaves stared at the Doctor, then at the food in the microwave. "Don't tell me you can eat at a time like this, Doctor," she said, walking over to him.
"You told me we were out cold for a few minutes, Cleaves," the Doctor remarked, not addressing her previous comment. "When in fact, it was an hour."
"Sorry, I just assumed. . ."
"Well, it's not your fault. Like I said, they're disoriented. Amy, when you got to the alcoves, who was in harness?" The microwave timer went off. Alex watched, curious, as the Doctor carefully removed the plate with a towel. He hadn't told her why he had the sudden urge to make food, but she was sure it was for some purpose other than because he had suddenly gotten the munchies.
"Um, Jimmy and Dicken were helping Buzzer out."
"And Jennifer?"
Alex took this one. "She was standing on her own when we got there."
"Thank you, Ally." The Doctor turned and handed the plate to Cleaves. She took it willingly.
Alex's eyes widened. That plate was piping hot right now and Cleaves was holding it in her bare hands. A quick look around confirmed that she wasn't the only one who had noticed.
The Doctor eyed Cleaves. "It's hot," he reminded her, gesturing down at the plate.
Cleaves hissed and immediately dropped the plate. It crashed to the floor, pieces of plate and food landing in a total mess, not that anyone could be bothered to care about that now. They all watched as Cleaves shook her hand, trying to shake the pain away, if she was even experiencing pain.
The Doctor gently took her hand and examined it. There was no redness or even a hint of warmness. "Trans-matter's still a little rubbery," he explained. "Nerve endings not quite fused properly."
"What are you talking about?" Cleaves . . . er, Ganger Cleaves demanded.
"It's okay."
"Why didn't I feel that?"
"You will. You'll stabilize."
Ganger Cleaves shook her head hysterically. "No, stop it. You're playing stupid games. Stop it!" She pulled herself away from the Doctor and turned her back to him.
The Doctor slowly approached her. "You don't have to hide." Alex started to get up to try and help him, but the Doctor, not even turning around, held out a hand to her, silently telling her to stay back. "Please, trust me," he continued once Alex had stilled. "I'm the Doctor."
Ganger Cleaves whirled back around and hissed at him. Everyone except for the Doctor jumped upon seeing her now half-formed Flesh face. Buzzer snatched a knife off the table and advanced towards her, but Jimmy hastened to hold him back. A second later, a familiar buzzing rang out and Buzzer's knife flew out of his hand and onto the ground a few feet away from him. Buzzer stilled and stared bewilderedly at it.
Amy whirled around to look at the Doctor and Alex. The Doctor was still in front of Ganger Cleaves, sonic screwdriver nowhere in sight, but she did see Alex calmly tucking her sonic necklace charm back under the collar of her sweater.
"Where's the real Cleaves, you thing?!" Buzzer shouted once he recovered from the sudden disarming of his weapon. He fought against Jimmy's tight grip but to no avail. "What have you done to her?!"
"Will you be quiet?" Alex snapped. She narrowed her eyes at Buzzer and couldn't help but delight in the way he stiffened at her dark copper orbs.
"That's it, good," the Doctor encouraged, sending Alex a quick grateful look before refocusing on Ganger Cleaves. "You remember. This is early Flesh, the early stages of technology. So much. . ." He reached out and gently placed a hand on Ganger Cleaves' shoulder, though the innocent action still made her shudder. ". . .to learn."
Amy, careful not to make any sudden movements, got to her feet. She eyed Ganger Cleaves warily. "Doctor, what's happened to her?"
"She can't stabilize. She's shifting between half-formed and full-formed. For now, at least."
"We are living!" Ganger Cleaves yelled. With a growl, she lunged at the Doctor, but her target jumped out of the way. Not even bothering to try and go after him again, she ran from the room, screaming madly as she went.
Alex sprang out of her seat to go after her, but the Doctor grasped her hand before she could take off. "Let her go," he sighed.
Suddenly, Amy gasped. "Doctor, Rory!" she cried, eyes wide in alarm.
Alex's eyes widened too. In all the excitement of the last few minutes, she had completely forgotten about Rory. Unless Jennifer was a special case and took a while to calm down, she and Rory should have been back ages ago.
The Doctor, however, just stared at Amy blankly. His mind was still on the Gangers and how to avert a total war from breaking out. "Rory?" he repeated.
Alex frowned and whacked him across the back of the head. "Rory, our friend, your companion!" she shouted, ignoring the Doctor's yelp and the dirty look he gave her. "He went after Jennifer forever ago!"
"So where is he?" Amy picked up.
"Oh, Rory!" the Doctor exclaimed. "Always with the Rory!"
Alex turned to Jimmy. "You," she pointed, "show us the way to the bathroom."
"Why not me?" Buzzer asked once Jimmy released him.
Alex gave him a hard stare. "Don't really like you at the moment." His easy dismissing and dislike of the Gangers – of her – was still creating a slow burn in her stomach, a burn that would turn into a raging blaze in the blink of an eye if she didn't watch herself. Normally, she didn't care what people thought of her, but this was different. This was about what she currently was, but didn't have any control over, something no one other than the Doctor knew.
Ignoring Buzzer's incredulous look, she grabbed the Doctor's hand and ran out of the room. A second later, Amy and Jimmy started sprinting after them.
The four ran down the stone-lined walls as fast as they could towards the restroom . . . only to run into a bunch of acid right in their path. They scrambled to a stop.
Jimmy examined the leak. "The explosion must've ruptured the acid feeds. We're going to need the acid suits."
"No, no, no," the Doctor objected. "We haven't got time." He ushered them backwards, forcing Alex ahead of him. "Back, back, back!"
"Is there another way there?" Amy asked.
Jimmy nodded. "Yeah, down this way." He led them down another tunnel. "Be careful. There's acid everywhere."
The group slowly and carefully made their way down a longer series of tunnels, watching for acid spills all the while. Thankfully, there were very few down this way. As they walked, the Doctor turned to Alex. "You okay?" he whispered.
Alex let out a long breath. "For now," she admitted quietly. "It's just . . . it's hard, hearing them talk about the Flesh like that."
"I know," the Doctor murmured, even though he really didn't. He wished he did though. He wished he could take some of the burden away from Alex. "It'll be over soon, I swear."
Alex nodded, but she knew that this day was far from being over. In fact, she was pretty sure that things were just getting started.
Finally, they reached the closest restroom. "Rory!" Amy shouted as they darted in.
Alex bent down and checked the stalls for anyone possibly hiding in them. But there was no sign of anyone. It was almost as though no one had been in here . . . almost, if you didn't count the nicely sized hole in the center stall door.
Alex gaped at it while the Doctor ran over to examine it. "It looks like someone punched right through it," she breathed. "Not Rory. He's strong, but nowhere near this strong."
"Of course," the Doctor realized. "Jennifer's a Ganger too."
While Alex moved over to a shattered mirror, probably caused by Jennifer when she punched through the stall door, Amy frowned. "Doctor, you said they wouldn't be violent."
"But I did say they were scared and angry."
"Fear generates savagery, Amy," Alex reminded her. She peered into the sink below the ruined mirror. At the bottom was what looked like a lump of Flesh that Jennifer had presumably spit up. Alex grimaced. Thank God I'm not spitting that out.
"And early technology, that's what you said," Jimmy recalled. He eyed the Doctor suspiciously. "You seem to know something about the Flesh."
Amy matched his wary expression. If the Doctor knew something about the Flesh, why the hell wasn't he saying anything? "Do you?" she asked. "Doctor?"
"You're no weatherman. Why are you really here?"
The Doctor didn't answer. "I have to talk to them," he said instead. "I can fix this." He grabbed Alex's hand and pulled her out of the room, Amy hastily following them.
"Wait!" Jimmy shouted as he took off after them. "What's going on? Where's the real Jennifer?!"
The Doctor didn't pause to try and answer. Instead, he led them up some stairs and down a tunnel. They were forced to come to a stop though due to a plethora of acid blocking their path. Steam burst out of several nearby pipes, and the ground was almost completely covered in puddles of acid.
The Doctor shoved Alex behind him. "It is too dangerous out here with acid leaks!"
"We have to find Rory!" Amy insisted.
"Yes. I'm going back to the TARDIS. Wait for me in the dining hall. I want us to keep together, okay? No more wandering off."
"And what about Rory?" Alex demanded.
"Well, it would be safer to look for Rory and Jennifer with the TARDIS." The last thing he needed was Alex or Amy getting hit with acid and revealing to all that they were Gangers. He turned and headed off, calling over his shoulder, "No arguing, Alexandria!" Alex rolled her eyes but obliged.
Jimmy looked over and spotted a box attached to the wall in front of him. "Here we go," he cheered as he opened the box and pulled out a large container. "Distress flares." He closed the box, only to nearly jump out of his skin when he saw the Doctor standing right behind him.
"Exit?" the Doctor asked.
"Keep going straight. Can't miss it. But you're never going to get your vehicle in here."
The Doctor just smiled. "I'm a great parker." He went off down the tunnel and was soon out of sight.
Jimmy looked at the increasing acid. "We really need those acid suits. I've sent Buzzer and Dicken to get them."
"Fine and dandy," Amy nodded. "I'm just going to find my husband, so . . . cheers."
"Amy, I wouldn't. . ."
"Nor would I," Amy shrugged as she moved backwards. "What can you do, eh?" She turned to Alex. "You coming?"
Alex linked their arms together. "Don't I always?"
"You aren't worried about the Doctor snapping at you? He did call you Alexandria."
Alex made a dismissive gesture. "Nah, he just said that to keep me from following him."
Amy raised an eyebrow. "Really?" she said doubtfully.
"Well. . ." Alex shrugged. "That's what I'm going to argue if he comes back and yells at me."
"Good enough for me. Let's go!"
"At least wait for acid suits!" Jimmy called after them. But they were already carefully stepping around the acid puddles and heading off down the tunnel.
~The Pros and Cons of Silence~
A/N: Poor Alex. All these people dismissing the Flesh when she's one of them herself. I really tried to capture how difficult it was for her in this chapter. Unfortunately, things will get a lot more difficult for her before they get better. :(
Notes on reviews. . .
TheBlueRiver - Yes, Dalex fluff! I tried to include some in this chapter but with it in mind that since they now know Alex's physical body isn't really there, they aren't doing any gestures like forehead kisses or the like anymore. They're saving that for when they're reunited. :} Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)
NicoleR85 - Thank you! I'm so glad you liked the first chapter! I hope Alex's reactions to the team here didn't disappoint. So far, she's not a fan of most of them, something that will only continue throughout the rest of this two-partner. :/ Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)
bored411 - I can't wait for that moment either. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)
silver flare - I think it's safe to say that Alex will be saved. There wouldn't be a story without her, lol. I can't answer why Kovarian and the Silence are experimenting on her, just that we will get answers soon. :) Oh, yeah, Kovarian, Colonel Manton, and everyone else involved in that plan are either very dumb or have a death-wish. They'll definitely have to face the Doctor's wrath and, to go ahead and tease, possibly someone else's as well... :} Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)
Sam Fraser - Thank you for the suggestion. I will keep it in mind. :)
Thank you to everyone that reviewed, followed and/or favorited this story! Please review and see you tomorrow! :)