Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who that goes to the BBC
About 500,000 years from 21st century Earth, the TARDIS materialised on a rocky moonscape. An American flag was planted in the ground as the Earth centred on North America hung in the sky above. The ship's door suddenly opened as the Doctor stuck his head out, followed by Rose, Sydney, Clara, Angie and Artie.
"Well, here we are, Hedgewick's World," the Doctor said as he stepped out of the TARDIS with his arms out wide, while the others followed him a bit more slowly, "The biggest and best amusement park there will ever be. And we've got a golden ticket!" He then stepped onto a rock, "Eh, eh? Fun!"
"Fun?" Clara repeated with disbelief in her voice.
"Yeah, this doesn't seem fun, love," Rose said, agreeing with the nanny, "This is just a moon that appears to resemble Earth's."
"Dad, I'm not sure if you know this, but amusement parks usually have, you know, rides and games," Sydney stated, agreeing with them, "Not just rocks and flags."
"Your stupid box can't even get us to the right place," Angie added, agreeing with them as Clara sat on a rock across from the Doctor's as the Time Lord stepped down from his rock, "This is like a moon base or something."
"Well, it's not the moon," the Doctor told her.
"Actually, I think it does look like the moon, only dirtier," Artie said, agreeing with his sister.
"Hey, guys, it's not the moon, Okay?" The Doctor told them, "It's a Spacey Zoomer ride, or it was."
"Yeah, and it doesn't feel like the moon at all," Rose added as she closed her eyes and focused on her Time Lady senses, "The gravity here is different and we're not in the same orbit as Earth's moon." She then reopened her eyes, "This place has its own unique vibe. It seems to just be a planet that's been modeled after the moon."
"Psst," they suddenly heard a man call out to them from behind as he opened a door from one of the larger rocks and peered out to them before they all turned towards him and saw that he was a man with light skin, blue eyes and white hair, wearing Victorian-styled clothes, which included a purple top hat, white dress shirt, black jacket and cravat, "'Scuse I, I don't suppose you happen to be my lift off planet? Dave's Discount Interstellar Removals?"
"'Fraid not," Clara answered.
"Oh, they're meant to be here six months ago," the man stated, "Well, that's Dave for you, see, unreliable!"
"Stay where you are!" They suddenly heard a feminine voice call out to them.
"Oops!" The man muttered as he ducked back inside the door that he came from.
Suddenly a group of soldiers entered the ride area led by a female Officer with light skin, blonde hair and brown eyes.
"Throw down your weapons and identify yourselves," the female officer ordered them as they approached the three Gallifreyans, Clara, Angie and Artie as the nanny stood in front of the children as the Doctor , Rose and Sydney all put their hands up.
"No! No weapons," the Doctor ordered the soldiers as he took out a golden ticket, "Golden ticket! Spacey Zoomer!' He then bounced up and down, "Free ice cream."
"Did you really just say that about ice cream, love?" Rose asked her husband as she looked at him.
"Yes, he did, Mum," Sydney confirmed with a hint of amusement on his face.
"Who are you?" The female officer asked them, "This planet is closed by Imperial order."
"How's this?" The Doctor asked her as he spun around and pulled out his psychic paper with his right hand before he held it out towards her.
"Oh. Welcome Proconsul," the female officer greeted him as she looked at the psychic paper before the Doctor put it back inside his jacket's inside pocket as he approached her and straightened his bow tie, "I wish they'd told us you, your wife and son were coming. Any news of the Emperor?"
"Oh, the Emperor," the Doctor muttered, "No, no, none that you'd…" He then mumbled to himself, "Er…"
"We pray for his return," the female officer replied, "If there is anything you, your wife or son need, my platoon is at your service."
"Right, righty-oh!" The Doctor said happily as he saluted her with his right hand before she saluted him back with her own right hand, "Well, carry on, Captain."
"Platoon, let's move out," the Captain ordered her soldiers as they lowered their right arms before she began to walk away from them with her soldiers following her, "On the double! Two, three, four. Two, three, four. Two, three, four."
"Have they gone?" The man asked them as he reopened the door and stuck his head out again.
"Yes," the Doctor answered.
"He's right, the soldiers have left," Rose said, agreeing with her husband.
"Uniforms give me the heebie-jeebies," the man told them, "Come on." He then ran towards a nearby doorway to the ride, "They can't stop me being here, but they don't like it." They then paused when they saw what was before them as the Doctor grinned to himself before he exchanged a glance with Rose and Sydney as they smiled at him as well.
"You see?" The Doctor laughed, "I told you it was amazing." As they looked in front of them, they saw that in front of them was what was once a large amusement park that was now derelict, "Well, it used to be."
"Nothing remains operational forever," Rose stated as she looked around at the remnants of the amusement park, "Even the best things eventually come to an end."
"Yeah, Mum's right," Sydney said, agreeing with his mother, "Everything has its time."
"Indeed, it did close down," the man confirmed, "Wish I'd known that before I landed here. But let me show you my collection." ANgie then rolled her eyes, "Come along, follow me, this way." He then began to walk away with the three Gallifreyans following him before the four humans began to follow him as well, "This way in, come on."
As the seven of them entered a room within the man's collection, the man had his hat removed and held it in his left hand as they saw that it was dark and slightly eerie. In front of them were steps that led down from the entrance into the room that was lined with wax replicas of different alien races with a few of them being a Shansheeth, the upper body of a Blowfish and a creature that resembled a Gastropod. In the centre were two worn couches that were once highly fashionable.
"Welcome to my show, Webley's World of Wonders," the man said as Angie walked down the stairs with Artie following her, "Miracles, marvels and more await you. I am impresario Webley." The Doctor, Rose and Sydney then followed the children down the steps before Webly coughed for a second before he went down the steps, followed by Clara, "You see before you waxwork representations…" He then laughed, "Of the famous…" He then pulled a cloth off of one of the waxwork representations to reveal that one of them was an Uvodni, "And the infamous. Anybody here play chess?" The Doctor then rose his right hand's index finger as Webly approached Artie, "Perhaps you, my young man?"
"Actually, I'm in my school chess club," Artie told him as the Doctor sighed and lowered his hand before Rose and Sydney smiled at him.
"Ah, follow me," Webley ordered them before he led them to another room within his collection and saw that in the centre of the room was a chess table with an empty chair on one side and a draped-covered figure on the other and placed his hat on a stand and took a walking stick from it with his left hand, "Now, let me demonstrate to you all the wonder of the age, the miracle of modernity. We defeated them all, a thousand years ago. But now he's back, to destroy you. Behold… the enemy." He then pulled the drape off with a flourish with his right hand to reveal an aged Cyberman that had the left side of its head's handlebars missing and panels from its arms missing and showing its wires around its upper arms as it sat on the other side of the chess table.
"Cyberman!" The Doctor exclaimed, "Get down!"
"Like he said, everyone, get down!" Rose ordered everyone.
"They're just as terrifying as you've both said, Mum and Dad," Sydney told his parents as the Doctor pulled Clara and Angie down, while Rose did the same with Sydney and Artie as the Cyberman raised its head.
"No need to panic, my young friends," Webley assured them as he popped his head from behind the Cyberman as the Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver with his right hand, "We all know there are no more living Cybermen." The Time Lord then activated his screwdriver as he began scanning the Cyberman with it and walked around it, "What you are seeing is a miracle. The 699th wonder of the universe!" The Doctor then began examining the Cyberman, "And past displayed before the Imperial court. And only here to destroy you at chess. Careful now." The Doctor then opened a panel around the Cyberman and the chair it was sitting on as he placed his screwdriver in it as he continued to use it, "An empty shell and yet it moves. How?"
"Magic," Angie answered sarcastically.
"That might well be, young lady," Webley told her, "A single penny wins you five Imperial shillings if you can beat this empty shell at chess."
Unbeknownst to them, two little bugs that appeared to be almost microscopic were on one of the dummies as they watched everything, while the Doctor leaned on the table.
"I haven't got a penny but I've got a sandwich," Artie stated as he pulled out a sandwich from his pocket with his right hand and held it up.
"All right," Webley relented as he cleared his throat, "Take a seat." Clara then pulled out the chair with both of her hands before Artie sat down on the chair as Rose and Sydney exchanged a glance before Webley pulled open a panel underneath, "It is free of all devices. And yet it has never been beaten. Would you like to make the first move, young man?"
With that said, Artie moved a pawn with his right hand before the Cyberman jerkily made a move with its own right hand before Artie went to make his second move.
"Oh, no, Artie," the Doctor warned Artie as the Cyberman began to move its left hand, "No, don't do that, it…" The Cyberman then checkmated Artie as it moved one of its pieces next to Artie's, "Yeah, that's a fool's mate."
"Definitely a fool's mate," Rose said, agreeing with her husband.
"Wow, Mum, even you know how Chess works," Sydney muttered with surprise in his voice.
"Of course I do, Sid," Rose confirmed with a hint of enthusiasm in her voice, "Chess was originally created by our people, the Time Lords, before being incorporated into other cultures, including humans. The Time Lords influenced its spread and development across civilisations. It's something many Time Lords and Ladies at the academy were taught. The game teaches strategy and patience, skills that are invaluable. I, too, learned to play it while I was at the Academy. And like your dad often says, strategy is everything!"
"If you can tell me how it works, I'll give you a silver penny," Webley said as he ate a part of Artie's sandwich.
"I think... you do it with mirrors," Angie surmised.
"Hmm. Mirrors?" The Doctor muttered as he turned back towards the Cyberman and looked at her, "Clever girl." He then knelt onto the floor to examine the Cyberman's workings, "Well, let's see, eh? Low tech. It's a puppet, monofilament strings, which means the brains are in…" The Doctor then popped open a panel with his left hand to reveal a man with light skin, blue eyes and brown hair, who was a person of short stature, wearing a pilot's cap over his head, a brown jacket and a pilot's uniform underneath, inside the Cyberman with a remote control, "Hello."
"Hello," the man greeted back, "I'm the brains."
"Hello," the Doctor replied.
"Give us a hand," the man requested before the Doctor helped him get out from the box underneath the Cyberman's body, "They call me Porridge. Ah, it's good to be out of that box."
"For you, Miss…" Webley said as he reached behind Angie's left ear with his right hand and revealed a coin to her, "An Imperial penny." He then handed her the coin as she chuckled and looked at the coin.
As he leaned against the wall, the Doctor straightened when he saw the bugs crawling on the wall opposite of him before Rose looked in the same direction and watched the bugs as well.
"I have not one but three Cybermen in my collection," Webley said as he guided everyone into the main room of his collection and was no longer using his walking stick as he removed a drape from another Cyberman with his right hand.
The Doctor and Rose both exchanged a glance before the Time Lady pulled out her sonic screwdriver from her jacket's inside pocket with her right hand and activated it as she scanned the Cyberman with her sonic screwdriver.
"Is that the king?" Angie asked Webley as she saw a wax replica of a tall man with light skin, blue eyes and brown eyes, dressed in robes and ermine.
"Emperor," Porridge corrected her, "Ludens Nimrod Kendrick, etc, etc, the 41st. Defender of humanity, imperator of known space."
"He looks a bit full of himself," Clara remarked as she, Sydney and Artie looked at the wax replica of the Emperor.
"Clara, you really shouldn't say that about any emperor," Sydney stated as he glanced at her with a soft smile on his face, "Historically, speaking ill of emperors has led to some pretty severe consequences. Besides, some emperors might have more to them than meets the eye. It's always good to stay on their good side to avoid any unnecessary trouble."
"He's right, you don't say things like that about the Imperial family," Porridge said, agreeing with the young Gallifreyan boy as he looked at her, "You can end up on the run for the rest of your life."
"They don't sound very nice," Artie stated.
"Go on," Porridge urged them as Clara hugged Artie and walked out of the room with him and Sydney, followed by Porridge, the Doctor and Rose as the Time Lady had her screwdriver back inside her jacket's inside pocket, "If the kids want to ride the Spacey Zoomer, then I can operate the gravity console…"
As they left the room, Angie looked from the coin in her hand to the statue with a bit of confusion on her face.
"Angie?" Artie called out to his sister as he came back for her and ushered her to follow them before they left the room.
A while later on the Space Zoomer ride, Angie and Artie were floating in the air as Porridge, Clara and Sydney looked on.
"Whoo!" Angie laughed as she and her brother continued to float in the air.
"Whoa!" Artie muttered happily.
"Smile!" Clara urged the children as she had her phone out and its camera app open, "Say, 'Spacey Zoomer!'" She then took a photo of them with her phone's camera app as Sydney and Porridge looked at them.
"We're flying!" Artie laughed as the Doctor and Rose stood next to each other and the TARDIS.
"Having a good time?" The Doctor asked the children.
"Yeah, are you?" Rose said, agreeing with her husband as she smiled warmly at the children, sharing her husband's enthusiasm.
As the Doctor and Rose finished speaking, the children laughed as they had fun in the air. Porridge then turned off the anti-gravity, causing the children to fall gently back to the ground. Clara, Sydney, Rose and the Doctor then walked over to them.
"I think that was the most fun I've had in my whole life," Artie stated as he looked at his sister.
"It was…" Angie began to say, "Okay."
As she said that, the Doctor made a face at Angie's reaction with Rose chuckling softly for a second before they walked away and pulled their screwdrivers out from their jacket's inside pockets and scanned the area with them.
"Clara, Sydney, I think outer space is actually very interesting," Artie told his nanny and the young Gallifreyan boy.
"Right," Clara said as the Doctor and Rose flicked their screwdrivers open and looked at their readings before she and Sydney headed back towards the TARDIS, "Wonderful day out, Doctor and Rose, but time to get the kids home."
"Yeah, Clara's right," Sydney said, agreeing with the nanny, "As much fun as this is, it's probably time to get the children back home."
"Yeah, uh, no!" The Doctor told them as he and Rose collapsed their screwdrivers and held them in their hands, "I'm not actually ready to leave."
"Neither am I," Rose said, agreeing with her husband.
"Why not?" Clara asked them.
"I don't know," the Doctor answered as he stepped forward a bit, "Reasons."
"Good reasons," Rose added.
"What reasons?" Clara asked them.
"Yeah, Mum and Dad, what reasons?" Sydney said, agreeing with her, "I'm curious too."
"Insects, funny insects," the Doctor explained as he reactivated his screwdriver and scanned the area with it, "I should add them to my funny insect collection."
"You collect funny insects?" Clara asked him.
"Since when do you collect insects, Dad?" Sydney added with confusion on his face.
"Yeah, I'm starting to, Champ," the Doctor answered, "Right now."
"These insects… they seem oddly familiar," Rose muttered, "Especially considering the dead Cybermen we found. There's something about them that feels… connected."
"How long do we have to stay here?" Angie sighed as she and her brother were sitting on two couches across from each other a while later in the main room with the Doctor, Rose, Sydney and Clara standing in the room with Clara standing around them as Porridge approached Artie with a glass of water in his right hand and handed it to him.
"Not long," the Doctor answered as he and Rose walked past them, "Have a nap. We'll wake you when we're ready to leave."
"Yeah, just rest for a bit," Rose said, agreeing with him as she smiled at her, "We'll handle everything. You'll be up and about before you know it."
"Comfy?" Porridge asked Artie.
"Sleep well," Clara urged the children as the Doctor and Rose left the room with the Time Lady turning off the lights as they walked past the room's light switch.
"Yeah, sleep well," Sydney said, agreeing with her as he gave them a reassuring smile, "We'll make sure everything's all right."
"Good night," Porridge added as he, Clara and Sydney walked away from the children and left the room.
Artie then took a sip of his water and set it on the table by the couch when the Doctor and Rose both reentered the room. They were holding their sonic screwdrivers under their face and had them activated, the green light casting an eerie glow on the Doctor's face, while the pink light casted an eerie glow on Rose's face.
"Don't wander off!" The Doctor ordered the children, causing them to gasp, "And I'm not just saying, 'Don't wander off,' I mean it. Otherwise you'll wander off. And the next thing you know, somebody's going to have to start rescuing somebody."
"That's our second rule," Rose added, agreeing with her husband, "Something could happen to you if you wander off, and we want you both to stay safe."
"From what?" Angie asked them.
"Nothing, nobody needs rescuing from anything," the Doctor answered before he and Rose deactivated their screwdrivers, "Don't wander off." Both Gallifreyans then placed their screwdrivers back inside their jackets' inside pockets, "Sweet dreams."
"Yes, sweet dreams," Rose muttered as she smiled at them, warmly, "We'll see you in the morning."
The Doctor and Rose then turned around and left the room again as the children settled back down onto their couches.
Webley reentered his collection's chess room with a flask of liquid in his right hand as he took a sip of it before he placed it next to the chess board.
"Ah. Hm!" Webley sighed as he took a bit from the sandwich, "Total takings for the day, one sandwich." He then moved the chess pieces back in place, "Better than no sandwich of course. Not as good as two sandwiches. Or even a chicken…" The Cyberman's hands suddenly gripped Webley's wrists, "That's a bit odd." He then tried to pull hands free from the Cyberman's grasp, "That's not funny, give me my hands back."
Dozens of the small insects that had so intrigued the Doctor and Rose suddenly crawled out from the Cyberman's head and down his body and over to Webley. Webley jerked as he tried to escape and cried out in pain.
"Upgrade in progress!" The Cyberman announced.
Back in the main room, Angie was standing up as she tried to get reception with her phone.
"I hate the future, it's stupid," Angie said with anger in her voice, "There's not even phone service." She then set the phone on the table next to her, "I'm out of here."
"The Doctor and Rose both said to not wander off," Artie reminded his sister as he looked at her as she walked away from the couches and began to leave the room.
"They said that, and then they wandered off," Angie reasoned as she stopped as they didn't see the bugs that seemed to be related to the Cybermen were crawling all over her phone.
"I don't think Clara would like that," Artie told her, "Nor would Sydney for that matter."
"They're not our mum and dad," Angie reminded him as she continued to leave the room
"Don't leave me here," Artie pleaded with her as Angie left the room, not realizing that she and her brother had been under surveillance.
"Was this really the biggest amusement park in the universe?" Clara asked Porridge as they and Sydney were walking along disused tracks for what was either a ride or a form of transport around the park as the Doctor and Rose were ahead of them as they inspected the area and scanned it with their screwdrivers.
"Yeah," Porridge answered, "Hedgewick bought the planet cheap. It had been trashed in the Cyber-Wars."
"It's hard to believe this place was once full of life and laughter," Sydney stated as he looked around at the remnants of the park with a mixture of awe and sadness on his face, "The Cyber-Wars really left a mark on everything."
"They did indeed," Porridge confirmed with a sigh, "The park was meant to bring joy and happiness, but it became a graveyard. War takes away more than lives, it steals dreams and hopes too."
"Who were we fighting?" Clara asked him.
"Cybermen," Porridge answered, "Technologically upgraded warriors. We couldn't win. Sometimes we fought to a draw, but then they'd upgrade themselves, fix their weaknesses and destroy us. It's hard to fight an enemy that uses your armies as spare parts."
"That's terrifying," Sydney muttered to himself, "From what I've heard from my parents, though, only humans were converted by Cybermen. Gallifreyans like us were incompatible with their technology."
"And you beat them though," Clara added, "You beat them or you wouldn't be here, how?"
"Look up there," Porridge said as they stopped at the edge of the hangar as he pointed to the sky with his right hand's index finger, "That corner of the sky. What do you both see?"
"Nothing," Clara answered as she and Sydney looked up at where Porridge pointed at and saw that there was a bright ring of light surrounding nothingness, "It's just black. No stars, no nothing."
"What was there?" Sydney asked him.
"That used to be the Tiberian Spiral Galaxy," Porridge answered, "A million star systems, 100 million worlds, a billion, trillion people. It's not there anymore. No more Tiberian galaxy. No more Cybermen. It was effective."
"It's horrible," Clara stated.
"It really is," Sydney said, agreeing with Clara, "So much loss and destruction…"
"Yeah," Porridge muttered, agreeing with them, "I feel like a monster sometimes."
"Why?" Clara asked him.
"Because instead of mourning a billion trillion dead people, I just feel sorry for the poor blighter who had to press the button and blow it all up," Porridge answered.
"My father feels like that almost all the time," Sydney stated, "He had to make the decision to end the Time War by using the moment, destroying both the Daleks and Gallifrey along with countless Time Lords and Time Ladies. There are very few Gallifreyans left with all of them being part of my family. It still haunts him.
"Clara?" The Doctor called out to Clara as he looked out onto the park through the empty shell of a piece he was examining with Rose standing next to him as they looked at her, "Did you tell Angie she could go to the barracks?"
"Yeah, did you, Clara?" Rose said, agreeing with her husband.
"You both know I didn't," Clara told them with confusion in her voice, "She hasn't…"
"She's just gone in there," the Doctor explained.
"Come on!" Clara ordered the three of them as she began heading towards the barracks.
Inside the barracks, the Captain was walking with another woman named Beauty, who had dark skin, brown eyes and black hair, who was holding a dismantled piece of equipment in her hands.
"I can't fix this," Beauty stated as she set the dismantled piece of equipment down on a bench between her and the Captain.
"It can't be broken," the Captain said with disbelief in her voice as she placed her hands over her hips, "It's a solid state sub-ether ansible class communicator. Just run the diagnostics."
"There's nothing left to diagnose," Beauty protested, "It's not broken, it's empty. All the components have gone."
"Well, you must have replacement parts," the Captain stated as she turned around and walked away from her.
"Not enough to build a new one," Beauty told her.
"Captain, the weather controller is malfunctioning again," a soldier with light skin, ginger hair and green eyes, wearing round glasses named Brains reported to the Captain, causing her to stop and place her left hand over her forehead, "There's storms, heat waves, snow…"
Beauty then came up behind the Captain and put her right hand over her shoulder as she pointed to the doorway with her left hand's index finger as she saw Angie standing in the room's doorway as they heard a piece of something metal falling to the floor.
"Hello," Angie greeted them, "I'm bored."
"Where's your big sister?" The Captain asked her.
"Clara?" Angie repeated with disbelief in her voice as she walked into the room, "She's not my sister. She's stupid. She's talking to Porridge with Sydney."
"She talks to her porridge with Sydney?" The Captain muttered with confusion in her voice.
"Porridge, that little bloke," Angie explained, causing the Captain's smile to falter before she walked up to her and put her left arm around Angie's back.
"We need to have a chat," the Captain stated as she walked with Angie as she took her away from the others.
Back in the main room of Webley's collection, Artie was alone in the dark surrounded by creepy statues before he sat up on the couch.
"I'm not scared, if you're wondering," Artie muttered to himself, "I just think I ought to turn the lights back on."
Artie then got up and walked cautiously over to the light switch, looking nervously around him as he breathed heavily and gasped. As he made a substantial way towards the light switch, he ran the last bit towards the switch and turned on the light with his right hand and sighed as he looked around the room and smiled at the accomplishment. Unbeknownst to him, he didn't see a Cyberman come up behind him and put their left hand over his mouth.
"So, tell me about the little bloke," the Captain requested Angie as she walked with her in the barracks with Angie having a mug in her hands.
"Well, you must have seen him," Angie told her.
"Angie!" They suddenly heard Clara call out to her as she, Rose, Sydney and the Doctor suddenly entered the barracks, causing them to turn around towards them, "Angie…"
"She has to turn up and spoil everything," Angie muttered to herself with anger as the four time travellers strode over to her, "I wasn't doing anything. Why can't you just leave me alone?"
Suddenly, there was a crash as the doors burst open. Everyone turned around to see a Cyberman standing in the doorway. They saw that the Cyberman was an upgraded variant than any they had seen before. Its armour was bulkier and more heavily fortified, with additional plating and reinforced joints. Its chest emitted an eerie blue glow, and its frame bristled with advanced weaponry integrated into its limbs.
"Cyberman!" The Captain announced, causing Beauty to gasp as she saw the Cyberman as the Doctor pulled his screwdriver out from his jacket's inside pocket with his right hand.
"That doesn't look like the ones we've encountered before," Rose remarked, her eyes widening in realisation, "It looks like it's been upgraded. This isn't a Cybus model from Pete's World. It appears to be a Weapons-grade model instead."
"Yeah, it sure looks like it has since you and Dad went there, Mum," Sydney said, agreeing with her.
"Angie!" The Doctor called out to Angie as he scanned the Cyberman with his screwdriver as the soldiers scrambled for weapons and cover.
"Attack formation!" The Captain ordered her soldiers as the Cyberman moved forward at a very fast speed that was blurred to everyone before one of the soldiers screamed as he went to attack it bare-handed as she pushed the table in front of her on its side to act as a shield, "Go!"
The Doctor grabbed Clara's left hand with his right hand, while Rose grabbed Sydney's right hand with her left and brought them over to cover as the Cyberman knocked the soldier to the floor with its right fist. One of the soldiers then handed the Captain a high-tech pistol, which she caught as they took cover.
"Attack formations, quickly!" The Captain ordered her soldiers as they fired their pistols at the Cyberman as it hit him, but the force barely knocked it.
"Upgrade in progress," the Cyberman announced.
"Angie!" Clara called out to Angie as the Doctor used his screwdriver on the Cyberman.
"Stay close to us, Angie!" Sydney ordered the young girl, agreeing with the nanny.
As they finished speaking, the Cyberman suddenly moved so quickly, the others seemed to stand still in slow motion. One of the soldiers threw a chair at it, only for the Cyberman to evade the chair and the laser fire as it headed straight for Angie and picked her up and put her over its right shoulder. The girl screamed as it took her away before it quickly ran out through a door behind them at a fast speed before anyone had turned around.
"Angie!" Clara called out to the young girl as she ran after her.
"Oh, no, it's taken her!" Sydney exclaimed, his voice filled with shock and urgency.
"Clara! Clara!" The Doctor muttered as he grabbed Clara by her right hand with his left hand and pulled her back, while Rose and Sydney stood back up and got out from cover.
"That was a Cyberman," the Captain stated with disbelief in her voice, "But they're extinct!"
"They're never truly defeated," Rose said, shaking her head as the Captain walked away from her, the Doctor, Sydney and Clara, "Just like the Daleks, no matter how many times we think we've beaten them, they always come back. They upgrade, they adapt. They're relentless."
"Clara, listen to me, me and Rose will get her back," the Doctor assured Clara before he walked over to the Captain, "Captain, a word please!" He then stopped in front of her as he placed his screwdriver back inside his jacket's inside pocket as Rose, Clara and Sydney approached the Captain as well, "Now… Correct me if I'm wrong, but I take it your platoon doesn't do much fighting?"
"What do you expect?" The Captain answered.
"What?" Clara said with shock in her voice as she crossed her arms.
"We're a punishment platoon," the Captain explained, "It's why they sent us out here, so we can't get into trouble."
"Right, right, well, okay," the Doctor muttered as he walked around in a circle before he walked back over to them and took the badge of rank off the Captain's uniform and pinned it on Clara's jacket, "As Imperial Consul, I am putting Clara in charge and Sydney as her second-in-command. Clara, Sydney, stay alive until we get back, and don't let anyone blow up this planet."
"We'll be back with Angie," Rose added, giving Clara a reassuring look as the Doctor snapped his fingers and walked away, "Just stay safe and trust us."
"Is that something they're likely to do?" Clara asked them.
"Unfortunately, many military personnel have done that when required," Sydney stated, his voice serious, "But let's hope it doesn't come to that."
"Get to somewhere defensible," the Doctor ordered them as he and Rose continued to walk back towards the room's entrance.
"And remember, keep a lookout for each other," Rose added, her voice firm but kind.
"Where are the two of you going?" Clara asked them.
"Yeah, I'd like to know that too," Sydney said, agreeing with the nanny, "What's the plan?"
"Like Rose said, we're getting Angie," the Doctor answered as he and Rose stopped walking and turned back around towards them, "But we're also finding Artie and looking for funny insects."
"And hopefully putting a stop to whatever the Cybermen are planning," Rose added.
"Stay alive," the Doctor ordered them before he pointed at the Captain and her soldiers with his left hand's index finger, "And you lot… No blowing up this planet!"
"Agreed," Rose said, agreeing with her husband, "Under no circumstances, will you blow up this blow."
With that said, both older Gallifreyans turned back around as they left the room as they went to find Angie, Artie and stop the Cybermen, while Clara and Sydney walked away from the Captain.
"Put me down!" Angie ordered the Cyberman as it brought her into Webley's chess room as she kicked her feet, struggling to get free from its grasp, "I hate you!"
The Cyberman then put her down before she turned around to see Webley and Artie standing motionless. Webley looked to have partially converted into a Cyberman with a metal encasing the right side of his face and a small piece of metal webbed onto his left cheek, while Artie had a blinking implant attached to his head by his left ear.
"Artie?" Angie called out to her brother, "Artie, what's happening?"
"Please stand by," Artie stated in a robotic voice as he looked up and stared at her, "You will be upgraded."
Angie then screamed as Webley raised his right hand's index finger to his lips as she saw that his right arm had been converted as well.
Back in the barracks, the Captain walked with Clara and Sydney as the soldiers unloaded cases of weapons as the nanny now had her arms lowered again.
"Cyberiad class weaponry," the Captain explained to them, "I've taken it out of storage."
"Good," Clara muttered to herself.
"Agreed," Sydney said, agreeing with her, "We're going to need all the firepower we can get."
"We need to find somewhere defensible," Clara added, "Where?"
"Yeah, any ideas where we can set up a stronghold?" Sydney asked the Captain, agreeing with the nanny.
The three of them then approached a large painted mural of the park as the Captain showed them the mural as she held a pointer in her right hand and pointed the pointer at it.
"The beach, the Giant's Cauldron, Natty Longshoe's Comical Castle," the Captain answered as she pointed at the three locations on the mural with her pointer.
"Real castle?" Clara asked her, "Drawbridge, moat?"
"Yes, but comical," the Captain answered.
"Perfect," Sydney stated, "A castle with a drawbridge and moat is exactly what we need. It'll give us a strong defensive position."
"And we're going there," Clara added, agreeing with him.
"Ma'am, sir, my platoon can deal with one Cyberman," the Captain stated as she closed her pointer and walked over to them as Porridge stood nearby with a few of the soldiers and was watching the three of them, "And there are protocols if we cannot immediately find and destroy it."
"Blowing up the planet protocols?" Clara asked her.
"Yeah, is that really part of the plan?" Sydney said, agreeing with the nanny.
"Respectfully, ma'am, sir…" The Captain began to protest.
"Somewhere defensible," Clara reminded her, "No blowing up the planet."
"And like my parents ordered, we are not blowing up this planet under any circumstances," Sydney added, agreeing with her.
"They're your commanding officers now, aren't they, Captain?" Porridge asked the Captain as he and the rest of the soldiers approached them.
"Yes," the Captain answered, causing both Clara and Sydney to look at her, "Sir."
Clara then lowered her arms as she and Sydney left the Captain, Porridge and the soldiers.
"You really saw a Cyberman?" Porridge asked the Captain with shock in his voice.
"We really did," the Captain answered.
"Have you reported it to the Imperium?" Porridge asked her.
"No communicators," the Captain answered.
"So you're going to do what they say?" Porridge asked her before he smiled, "Right, let's all spend the night at Natty Longshoe's Comical Castle."
"Artie?" The Doctor called out to the young boy as he and Rose ran into the main room of Webley's collection and found that both Artie and the lights were on.
"The Cybermen must have taken him too," Rose realised, her voice tinged with worry, "Just like they took Angie."
"You're right, Rose," the Doctor said, agreeing with her, "They must have taken him too."
The two of them then hurried down the stairs and saw that one of the insects were standing on a table by the couches. He leans over and talks into it.
"Firstly, if anybody's watching this, those children are under our protection," the Doctor said as he leaned over the insect and talked into it, "Me and my wife, Rose are coming to get them."
"And we will find them, no matter what," Rose added, agreeing with her husband as she leaned in towards the insect and spoke into it as well, "So, whoever is on the other side of this feed and if you're listening, you'd better be ready."
"And secondly, little metal machine... You are beautiful," the Doctor said as Rose stood back up straight as the Doctor pulled his sonic screwdriver back out from his jacket's inside pocket with his right hand and scanned it with the screwdriver before he picked the insect up by the tail with his left hand and examined it, "Not even a Cybermat any more, eh? Cybermites."
"The name fits," Rose stated as the Doctor set the Cybermite in the palm of his right hand, "And given that it's been about half a million years from the 21st century, it figures they'd get this small. They Cybermen always did love their upgrades. Having them this small would indeed make it easier for them to infiltrate and sabotage, just like the Cybermats did."
"You're absolutely right, Rose," the Doctor said, agreeing with her, "The Cybermen's penchant for efficiency and infiltration is evident in these little things."
The Doctor and Rose soon entered Webley's chess room with the Doctor still holding the Cybermite in his left hand and his screwdriver in his right hand before they saw that the Cyberman was now missing.
"Great," Rose muttered to herself as she took a look around, "The Cyberman's gone. They must be using a transmat link. We need to find where they've taken the kids."
"Already on it, love," the Doctor assured his wife as he aimed his screwdriver at the Cybermite before he used the screwdriver on the Cybermite, "Now... There's a local transmat link open to your home. If I can just find the frequency…"
The Doctor held up his screwdriver as he grabbed Rose's right hand with his left hand before they suddenly disappeared in a flash of light.
"Hey, that really shouldn't have worked," the Doctor said as he and Rose appeared in the Cybermen base with both Gallifreyans letting go of each other's hands.
"Yeah, that shouldn't have worked," Rose muttered, agreeing with her husband, "But I'm glad it did."
"As am I," the Doctor said, agreeing with her.
"Doctor, Rose, help us," they suddenly heard Artie call out to them in a monotone voice.
"Angie!" The Doctor and Rose exclaimed as they ran towards the sound of the young boy's voice, "Artie!"
As the Doctor and Rose ran towards a corner in the room they were in and saw the children before they ran over to them and saw the implant that Artie had and saw that Angie now had one next to her left ear. The Time Lord scanned Angie with his screwdriver as Rose pulled hers out from her jacket's inside pocket and scanned Artie with it. They then turned around and saw Webley standing in the shadows of the base and was partially converted into a Cyberman.
"Webley?" The Doctor said with shock as he looked at him.
"Oh, this is not good," Rose muttered to herself in shock as she stared at Webley, "What have they done to you?"
"We needed children, but the children had stopped coming," Webley explained as he walked out of the shadows, "You both brought us children. Hail to you, the Doctor and Rose!" He then saluted both Gallifreyans as he placed his right hand over his chest, "Saviours of the Cybermen!"
"What would the Empire do if they were alerted?" Clara asked the Captain as they, Sydney, Porridge and the soldiers began to approach the castle.
"Yeah, what's the protocol in this situation?" Sydney said, agreeing with the nanny.
"I told you both," the Captain answered, "Tell me to blow up the planet."
"After they got us off?" Clara asked her.
"Yeah, would they do it after they get us off-planet?" Sydney said, agreeing with her.
"Captain, you want to take those ones?" Porridge asked her.
"No, ma'am, sir," the Captain answered, "Just blow the sucker up."
"Drawbridge, moat, brilliant," Clara said as they came to a stop at the foot of the castle's drawbridge.
"Yeah, it's perfect," Sydney stated, agreeing with her, "This will give us a solid defensive position."
"With respect, ma'am, sir, we ought to be hunting the creature," Brain protested.
"The only reason either of us are still alive is because we do what the Doctor says," Clara stated as she and Sydney turned around towards him before she walked up to Brains, "Can you guarantee me you'd bring back my children alive and unharmed?" Brains then shook his head, "I trust the Doctor."
"And I trust my parents," Sydney added, agreeing with Clara, "They always have a plan, and they've never let us down."
"Do either of you think they know what they're doing?" The Captain asked them.
"I'm not sure I'd go that far," Clara answered.
"I trust my mum," Sydney added, "Dad, on the other hand… let's just say he has his moments."
Clara and Sydney then exchanged a glance as they smiled at each other with warm smiles on their faces before they headed for the drawbridge.
"As the battle raged between humanity and the Cyberiad, the Cyber-Planners built a Valkyrie, to save critically damaged units and bring them here and, one by one, repair them," Webley stated as he stood on the opposite side of the Doctor and Rose as they were standing around a small table in the centre of the room within the Cybermen base.
"The people who vanished from the amusement park, they were spare parts for repairs," the Doctor surmised.
"That's horrific," Rose said with disgust in her voice, her expression full of revulsion, "Using people as spare parts… it's monstrous."
"We've upgraded ourselves," Webley added, "The next model will be undefeatable."
"Nothing's undefeatable," the Doctor stated.
"Exactly," Rose said, agreeing with her husband, "Everything has a weakness."
"We needed children to build a new Cyber-Planner," Webley stated as he walked over to the children as the Doctor and Rose both moved parallel to him as the Time Lord put his hands protectively on Angie, while the Time Lady did the same on Artie, "A child's brain with its infinite potential is perfect for our needs. But we no longer need the children. The Cybermites have been scanning your brains, Doctor and Rose. They're quite remarkable."
"Also completely useless to you," the Doctor added as Webley walked towards him and Rose, "Cybermen use human parts. We're not human. You can't convert non-humans."
"He's right," Rose said, agreeing with him, "We're Time Lords and Time Ladies. Our physiology is completely different from humans. You can't convert us because your systems are designed to integrate human parts, not ours. We're off-limits."
"Oh, that was true a long time ago, but we've upgraded ourselves," Webley stated, "Current Cyber units use almost any living components."
Webley suddenly opened his hands to reveal a pair of Cybermites in each hand. He then threw the ones in his right hand at the Doctor before he threw the ones in his left hand at Rose. They crawled up them and into both Gallifreyans. They both cried out in pain and bent over backwards against the table on opposite sides as Webley smiled at them as both Gallifreyans were being 'upgraded'. After a few seconds, they both stood up with a gasp when the process was done. The Doctor and Rose both now had a few parts of metal of a Cyberman's Cybermask webbed across the left side of their faces.
"Incorporated, yes," the Cyber-Doctor said in a deeper voice as he spoke in a more posh accent before he patted himself down as he touched his chest with both of his hands and the right side of his face with his right hand, "Ah, unfamiliar pulmonary set-up, nervous system hyper-conductive, remarkable brain processing speed."
"Indeed," Cyber-Rose added, her voice also deeper and with a Scottish accent as she mimicked Cyber-Doctor's actions, patting herself down and touching the right side of her face with her right hand, "Cardiovascular enhancements, synaptic conductivity optimal, exceptional cognitive integration."
"Amazing!" The Cyber-Doctor laughed sadistically as he walked behind Webley and placed his hands over his shoulders from behind.
"And it's remarkable!" Cyber-Rose laughed, her voice dripping with a similar sadistic glee.
The Doctor and Rose's bodies suddenly jerked with an electronic sound as they regained control of their bodies.
"Get out of my head!" The Doctor ordered the Cyber-Planner that was inside his head.
"And you get out of my head as well!" Rose said, agreeing with her husband as she fought against the Cyber-Planner inside her head.
Inside the Doctor and Rose's bond, it was a neutral space with the Doctor's half having numerous equations and formulae floating around, while Rose's half had historical artefacts and old manuscripts. The side of both Gallifreyans were a warm brown with some pink along it, while their Cyber-Planners' side was a cold blue. The Doctor and Rose both strode across the space to confront their 'unwanted guests'.
"Stop rummaging in our minds!" The Doctor ordered the Cyber-Doctor and Cyber-Rose as pictures of Clara flashed behind them.
"Yeah, get out of our heads!" Rose said, agreeing with her husband.
"Just you both try and stop us," the Cyber-Doctor replied.
"Yeah, just try to stop us," Cyber Rose said, agreeing with him, her voice cold and determined.
"Ooh, who's Clara?" The Cyber-Doctor asked both Gallifreyans, "Why are you both thinking about her so much?"
"Yeah, why indeed?" Cyber-Rose said, agreeing with him, her tone equally curious and mocking.
"Enough!" Both Gallifreyans ordered them.
"Fascinating," the Cyber-Doctor muttered, "A complete mental block. Highly effective."
"Indeed,"Cyber-Rose said, agreeing with him, her tone analytical, "You're both blocking certain information from us. Intriguing."
"Relax, relax," the Cyber-Doctor urged the Doctor as he and Cyber-Rose regained control over the Doctor and Rose's bodies as they whirled around in the Cybermen's base, "If you just relax, Doctor, you will find this a perfectly pleasant experience. You and Rose are both being upgraded and incorporated into the Cyberiad as Cyber-Planners."
"Yes, Rose, embrace it," Cyber-Rose said, agreeing with him, "This upgrade will make you stronger, smarter, and part of something greater. You will see the benefits of being part of the Cyberiad."
"Get out of my head!" The Doctor ordered the Cyber-Doctor as he grunted as his body suddenly jerked with an electronic sound as he regained control of his body again.
"And you get out of my head as well!" Rose said, agreeing with her husband as she grunted as her body also jerked with an electronic sound as she regained control of her body again.
"What is this place, a network, a hive?" The Doctor asked the Cyber-Doctor and Cyber-Rose within his and Rose's bond as he looked around their bond, "The two of you are getting signals from every Cyberman everywhere. How many of you are there?"
"Yeah, how many?" Rose said, agreeing with her husband, "We need to know what we're up against."
"Oh... This is brilliant!" The Cyber-Doctor said as he regained control over the Doctor's body, while Cyber-Rose regained control over Rose's body with electronic sounds and jerks, "I'm so clever already, and now I'm a million times more clever."
"Yes, it's magnificent," Cyber-Rose said, agreeing with him, "We are now superior in every way than any other Cyber-Planner there has ever been."
"And what a brain!" The Cyber-Doctor added as he spun around the room before he pointed at Webley with his right hand's index finger, "Not a human brain, not even slightly human."
"Indeed," Cyber-Rose said, agreeing with him, her tone triumphant, "Our brains are now beyond human limitations, a testament to our superior design."
"And I think, we'll have to completely rewrite the neural interfaces," the Cyber-Doctor added as he walked towards the table and leaned against it, "But these are going to be the most efficient…" He then leaped onto the table with his arms outstretched, "Cyber-Planners! Not great names those, are they? I could call myself Mr. Clever."
"Yes, Cyber-Planner isn't a great name for me either," Cyber-Rose stated, agreeing with him, "And I could call myself Ms. Calculus. Fitting names for our superior intellects."
"So much raw data. Time Lords," Mr. Clever went on, "There's information on the Time Lords in here! Oh, this is just dreamy!"
"Indeed, we have access to information from the Time Lords and the Time Ladies," Ms. Calculus stated, agreeing with him, "We can access the knowledge that they've had that has been hidden from the Cybermen for eons. This is truly magnificent."
"Right, we're allowing you both access to memories on Time Lord regeneration," the Doctor told Mr. Clever and Ms. Calculus from within his and Rose's bond.
"Yes," Rose said, agreeing with him, "But as much as we allow. Neither of you will get everything about regeneration from us."
With that said, images of the Doctor's past incarnations flashed behind them, starting from the First Doctor as Mr. Clever laughed sadistically. The flashing then ended at the Tenth Doctor before it showed him regenerating in the TARDIS with the Third Rose after they stopped Rassilon when he attempted to enact the Ultimate Sanctum and saved Wilf from the Vinvocci glass and all 500,000 rads of radiation it had. The flashing then stopped as it showed the Doctor's current incarnation.
"Fantastic!" Mr. Clever said as he clapped his hands and looked at the Doctor's last regeneration.
Then images of Rose's past incarnations flashed behind then, starting from the First Rose as Ms. Calculus chuckled with sadistic glee. The flashing soon ended at the Fourth Rose before it showed her regenerating in the Cyber-ship with the Doctor and Craig when the Cybermen that crashed under what would later become Colchester attempted to convert Craig into a new Cyber-Leader. The flashing then stopped as it showed Rose's current incarnation.
"Amazing!" Ms. Calculus said with excitement in her voice as she laughed and looked at Rose's last regeneration.
"The two of us could regenerate now, big blasts of regeneration energy, burn out any little Cyber widgets in our brains along with everything you both are connected to," the Doctor stated, "Don't want to. Use this me up, who knows what we'll get next, but we both can." He then pointed at Mr. Clever with his left hand's index finger.
"Indeed, we do have the capability to regenerate whenever we want," Rose added, agreeing with him, "We can end this if necessary."
"Stalemate then?" Mr. Clever suggested as he regained control over the Doctor's body, while Ms. Calculus regained control over Rose's body as he strode across the room, "One of us needs to control this head, Doctor. We're too well-balanced."
"Stalemate indeed," Ms. Calculus said, agreeing with him as she followed Mr. Clever, "One of us must take control, Rose. This balance cannot persist."
"What did you say?" The Doctor asked Mr. Clever as he and Rose grunted as their bodies jerked as they regained control over their bodies, "No, no, no, I heard you. Rhetorical device to keep me thinking about it a bit more."
"Yes, exactly," Rose said, agreeing with her husband, "The two of you are just trying to throw us off."
"Stalemate?" The Doctor repeated with confusion in his voice.
"Yeah, what do you both mean by stalemate?" Rose asked both Cyber-planners, "How do either of you plan to resolve this balance?"
"The four of us each control 49.881% of these brains," Mr. Clever stated as an image of the Doctor and Rose's brains appeared within the Doctor and Rose's bond with the left side of each showing both Gallifreyans' control of it, the right side showing the Cyber-Planners' control of it and the centre showing no one has full control of it, ".238 of the brains are still in the balance. Whoever gets these gets the whole thing of both."
"Indeed," Ms. Calculus said, agreeing with him, her voice calculating, "This minuscule percentage will determine who gains complete control. It's a delicate balance that must be tipped."
"Do you play chess?" The Doctor asked Mr. Clever.
"And what about you?" Rose inquired as she looked at Ms. Calculus, tilting her head slightly, "Are you familiar with the game?"
"The rules of chess are in my memory banks, Doctor," Mr. Clever answered.
"And it's in mine as well, Rose," Ms. Calculus added, agreeing with Mr. Clever.
"You're both proposing that the two of us play chess with each other to end the stalemate?" Mr. Clever asked them.
"And you both expect us to agree?" Ms. Calculus said, agreeing with him.
"Winners take all," the Doctor confirmed, "Nobody can access those portions of the brains without winning the games."
"Absolutely," Rose said, agreeing with her husband, "Only the victors will gain control."
With that said, the Doctor and Mr. Clever shook each other's hands as Rose and Ms. Calculus shook each other's hands as well, cementing the deal of a game of chess with each other's Gallifreyan and Cyber-Planner counterparts.
"You can't win, Doctor!" Mr. Clever stated as he and Ms. Calculus jerked as he regained control over the Doctor's body, while she regained control over Rose's body.
"And neither can you, Rose!" Ms. Calculus said, agreeing with her fellow Cyber-Planner.
"Try us," the Doctor warned Mr. Clever as his and Rose's bodies jerked as he and Rose regained control over their bodies again.
"Like he said, give us your best shots," Rose said, agreeing with her husband.
"You both understand, when we do win, the Cyberiad gets your brains and memories, all of them!" Mr. Clever told the Doctor as he and Ms. Calculus jerked as he regained control over the Doctor's body again, while she regained control over Rose's body again.
"Yes, every bit of your knowledge and memories will belong to the Cyberiad," Ms. Calculus added, agreeing with Mr. Clever.
"Yeah," the Doctor muttered with a grunt as his and Rose's bodies jerked yet again as they regained control over their bodies yet again, "When we win, you get out of our heads, you let the children go, and nobody dies! You both got that? Nobody dies!"
"Absolutely," Rose said, agreeing with her husband, "We will play our games of chess, win and then you will both leave our minds and free the children. Nobody will die today!"
Please review.
And I'm just as surprised as you are that I finished this chapter before Christmas. I didn't plan on finishing it so soon, but I'm glad I did. As I said in the previous chapter, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you all.