A/N: Welcome to part two! Enjoy :)
…DIVIDED WE FALL
"…But I feel like a storm is coming.
If I'm gonna make it through the day.
Then there's no more use in running.
This is something I gotta face."
– Sam Smith: 'Writing's on the Wall' (Spectre Soundtrack [2015])
Torchwood Loading Bay
The Doctor raises his arms in surrender as he eyes the guns locked, loaded, and pointed right at him, with a grimace. Suddenly, a woman with well-quaffed shoulder-length red hair and dressed in smart business attire, runs in on her high heels. She radiates an air of self-confidence, arrogance, and smugness, and she practically beams in both delight and triumph when she sees the Doctor.
"Oh! Oh, how marvellous. Oh, very good. Superb. Happy day! " She starts clapping, and the other soldiers join in, baffling the Doctor as he lowers his arms.
"Er, thanks?" He mumbles in confusion. "Nice to meet you. I'm the Doctor." He introduces himself.
"Oh, I should say. Hurray!" the woman grinned at him and continues applauding.
"You, you've heard of me, then?"
"Well of course we have," the woman scoffs. "And I have to say, if it wasn't for you, none of us would be here. The Doctor and the Tardis." They all start applauding him again and the Doctor grimaces and gestures for them to stop as he cocks an eyebrow at her.
"And you are?"
"Oh, plenty of time for that," she reassures him. "But according to the records, you're not one for travelling alone. The Doctor and his companion. Or should I say companions?" He stiffens, as the woman smirks smugly. "That's a pattern, isn't it, right? There's no point hiding anything. Not from us," She points out. "So where are they?"
The Doctor frowns, looking at her suspiciously, before eventually pasting on a fake smile.
"Yes. Sorry. Good point. They're just a bit shy, that's all," He pushes open the door and turns his head slightly to 'shout' in. "Katy! Come on out!" The brunette reluctantly steps out. "Where's your sister?"
"She's coming," Katy responded and the Doctor feigns mild annoyance.
"Come on now, Rose! Don't dawdle!" He scolds and reaches in to grab the first blonde he can. Out steps Jackie, looking surprised then irritated. "But here she is, Rose Tyler, and of course, you've already met Katy."
"Hi," Katy waves half-heartedly.
"Brilliant, she is. Glad to have her on board." The Doctor winks at Katy, who smiles a little but says nothing before the Doctor eyes Jackie and frowns a little before deciding to get a little revenge for her sticking her nose into his and Katy's business, however well-meaning it had intended to be. "Hmm, she on the other hand," He indicates to Jackie. "She's not the best I've ever had. Bit too blonde. Not too steady on her pins. A lot of that…" He makes a talking gesture with his hand, which both mother and daughter scowl warningly at him for. "And just last week, she stared into the heart of the Time Vortex and aged fifty-seven years. But she'll do."
"I'm forty!" Jackie protests, angrily.
"Deluded. Bless. I'll have to trade her in. Do you need anyone? She's very good at tea. Well, I say very good, I mean not bad. Well, I say not bad. Anyway, lead on. Allons-y," Katy rolls her eyes but falls into step beside the Doctor who immediately reaches out and grabs her hand, with the intention of keeping her beside him at all times for protection. "But not too fast. Her ankle's going…" the Doctor warns and Katy has to stop herself from laughing as Jackie glares at the back of his head.
"I'll show you where my ankle's going!" She mutters defensively.
Warehouse
It was obvious that this woman believed that she and her team of soldiers had the upper hand against them, as she practically strutted; giving a grand tour of sorts of the area the Tardis had materialised in.
"It was only a matter of time until you found us, and at last you've made it. I'd like to welcome you, Doctor." She pushes open a set of double doors with a flourish. "Welcome to Torchwood."
Katy's eyes widened in awe when a massive warehouse area, with lots of crates, jeeps, and trucks was revealed … and a flying saucer of all things was right in front of them, gaining the Doctor's interest.
"That's a Jathaa Sun Glider," the Doctor stated, a bit surprised.
"Came down to Earth off the Shetland Islands ten years ago," the woman explained briskly.
"What, did it crash?" The Doctor raised an eyebrow.
"No, we shot it down. It violated our airspace," Both Katy and Jackie scoffed with disgust, while the Doctor just looked grim. "Then we stripped it bare. The weapon that destroyed the Sycorax on Christmas Day? That was us."
"Wow, I'm shocked…" Katy mumbled bitterly underneath her breath, and glanced over at the Doctor in surprise when he squeezed her hand tightly in his. He shook his head in warning. She nodded, and smiled when he rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb as a gesture of comfort and affection; knowing how horrified she was by this organisation's callous actions.
"Now, if you'd like to come with me," the woman requested. "The Torchwood Institute has a motto. If it's alien, it's ours. Anything that comes from the sky, we strip it down and use it for the good of the British Empire."
"For the good of what?" Katy questioned.
"The British Empire," the Woman repeated.
"There isn't a British Empire," Jackie pointed out, and the woman smirked once again and shrugged.
"Not yet" then spots something of interest. "Ah, excuse me. Now, if you wouldn't mind…" A soldier hands her a very big gun. "Do you recognise this, Doctor?"
"That's a particle gun."
"Good, isn't it?" She grinned. "Took us eight years to get it to work."
"It's the 21st century," the Doctor frowned. "You can't have particle guns."
"We must defend our border against the alien," She hands the particle gun back to the soldier. "Thank you, Sebastian, isn't it?"
"Yes, Ma'am."
"Thank you, Sebastian," the woman smiles warmly at the soldier who merely nods back. "I think it's very important to know everyone by name. Torchwood is a very modern organisation. People skills. That's what it's all about these days. I'm a people person."
"Have you got anyone called Alonso?" the Doctor suddenly asked, and the woman frowns thoughtfully.
"No, I don't think so. Is that important?"
"No, I suppose not," the Doctor looks mildly disappointed, much to Katy's amusement. "What was your name?" He requests once more. This time he gets a response.
"Yvonne. Yvonne Hartman," The Doctor momentarily releases Katy's hand to step over to a large crate and picks up what looks like a black plastic step stool with a handle on top. "Ah, yes. Now, we're rather fond of these. The Magnaclamp. Found in a spaceship buried at the base of Mount Snowdon. Attach this to an object and it cancels the mass." Yvonne explains. "I could use it to lift two tonnes of weight with a single hand. That's an imperial ton, by the way. Torchwood refuses to go metric."
"I could do with that to carry the shopping," Jackie commented, looking impressed.
"All these devices are for Torchwood's benefit, not the general public's," Yvonne corrects Jackie, who scowls at her. The Doctor dumps the Magnaclamp back into its crate and changes the subject; returning to the reason why they had come to this warehouse in the first place.
"So, what about these ghosts?" He inquires casually, retaking Katy's hand.
"Ah, yes, the ghosts," Yvonne nods. "They're er what you might call a side effect."
"Of what?" Katy asks.
"All in good time, dear. There is an itinerary, trust me." Yvonne chides her, and Katy glowers at her.
"About as far as I could throw you…"
The Tardis is driven past on the back of a truck, alarming the three of them when they spot this.
"Oi! Where are you taking that?" Jackie protests.
"If it's alien, it's ours." Yvonne reminds them of Torchwood's motto. The Doctor smirks.
"You'll never get inside it."
"Hmm! Et cetera." Yvonne returns the smirk before she turns away, missing when Rose opens the doors and peeks out from the Tardis towards the Doctor and Katy. The Doctor gives her a little nod, and Rose retreats back inside the Tardis.
Corridor
Yvonne leads the Doctor, Katy, and Jackie down a set of corridors towards an unknown destination. It was a very tense situation, as none of them were comfortable, and had their guards up just in case Yvonne decided to pull a fast one while their backs were turned.
"All those times I've been on Earth; I've never heard of you." The Doctor stated and Yvonne snorted, her smug smirk still on her face and Katy longed to smack it off.
"But of course not. You're the enemy … except for Katy, of course," Yvonne explained earning a surprised look from her. "You, Doctor, are actually named in the Torchwood Foundation Charter of 1879 as an enemy of the Crown."
"1879?" the Doctor frowned.
"Yeah, I remember. Torchwood; the Torchwood Estate. That was the name of that house we visited in Scotland." Katy recalled.
"That's right," Yvonne confirmed. "Where you three encountered Queen Victoria and the werewolf." Both the Doctor and Katy shuddered at the memory, while Jackie scoffs in disbelief.
"I think he makes half of it up."
"No, mum. It actually happened," Katy confirmed, uneasily. She didn't want to relive the fact that she and Rose might've lost their lives had it not been for the Doctor being around to help keep not only them alive, but also one of history's most famous British monarchs.
"Her Majesty created the Torchwood Institute with the express intention of keeping Britain great and fighting the alien horde," Yvonne stated, proudly.
"But if I'm the enemy, does that mean that I'm a prisoner?" The Doctor realised, alarmed.
"Oh, yes!" Yvonne confirmed. "But we'll make you perfectly comfortable. Except you, dear," she acknowledged Katy who bristled at the warm smile Yvonne gives her. "You are free to leave whenever you wish."
Katy steps closer to the Doctor, who wraps a protective arm around her waist automatically.
"Like hell. I'm not going anywhere without the Doctor," She stated, and Yvonne shrugged.
"We'll make you perfectly comfortable," she tells the Doctor. "And there is so much you can teach us." Yvonne approaches a nearby room which immediately opened up for them when she approached, leading them into what looked like a laboratory.
Sphere Laboratory
Inside, the three of them freeze in their tracks when they see a very mysterious large golden sphere that appeared to be floating unaided in the air in front of them. Yvonne gestures towards the sphere.
"Now, what do you make of that?" She asks the Doctor who stares grimly at it. A middle-aged man of Indian descent wearing a white lab coat approaches the Doctor.
"You must be the Doctor," He offers the Doctor his hand to shake. "Rajesh Singh. It's an honour, sir."
The Doctor ignores the hand completely.
"Yeah…" He mutters, eyeing the sphere curiously while both Katy and Jackie eye the sphere uncomfortably.
"What is that thing?" Jackie asks.
"We've got no idea," Yvonne responded truthfully.
"What's wrong with it?" Katy added, as Rajesh turns towards her looking curious about her observation.
"What makes you think there's something wrong with it?"
"Because it's right there, and it feels like it should be somewhere else," Katy responded, looking at him strangely.
"Yeah, it feels weird." Jackie agreed with her daughter. The Doctor drops Katy's hand and goes part of the way up some steps to take a closer look at the sphere, and Katy falls back towards Jackie who wraps an arm around Katy's shoulders protectively.
"The sphere has that effect on everyone," Yvonne agreed, also looking uneasy. "Makes you want to run and hide, like it's forbidden."
"We tried analysing it using every device imaginable," Rajesh explained as the Doctor pulls out some 3D glasses from inside his pocket and puts them on as he continues examining the sphere. "But according to our instruments, the sphere doesn't exist. It weighs nothing, it doesn't age. No heat, no radiation, and has no atomic mass."
"And yet it's right here in front of us…" Katy mumbles.
"Fascinating, isn't it?" Rajesh smiled. "It upsets people because it gives off nothing. It is absent."
"Well, Doctor?" Yvonne prodded for an answer from the Doctor who had yet to say anything during the entire conversation going on behind him between Katy, Jackie, Rajesh, and Yvonne.
"This is a Void Ship."
"And what is that?" Yvonne asked.
"Well, it's impossible for starters," the Doctor acknowledged. "I always thought it was just a theory, but it's a vessel designed to exist outside time and space, travelling through the Void."
"And what's the Void?" Rajesh questioned.
"The space between dimensions," The Doctor responded. "There's all sorts of realities around us, different dimensions, billions of parallel universes all stacked up against each other." He explained. "The Void is the space in between, containing absolutely nothing. Imagine that. Nothing. No light, no dark, no up, no down, no life, no time. Without end."
"Sounds like fun…" Katy drawled sarcastically.
"Doesn't it?" the Doctor agreed, looking back at his girlfriend, and sounding just as unenthusiastic as she did. "My people called it the Void. The Eternals called it the Howling. But some people call it Hell."
"But someone built the sphere. What for? Why go there?" Rajesh asked.
"To explore? To escape?" The Doctor shrugged. "You could sit inside that thing and eternity would pass you by. The Big Bang, end of the Universe, start of the next, wouldn't even touch the sides. You'd exist outside the whole of creation." He actually sounded extremely concerned and very disturbed by the concept.
Yvonne looked triumphant.
"You see, we were right. There is something inside it!"
"Oh, yes." The Doctor agreed.
"So how do we get in there?" Rajesh asked, eagerly. That was the signal for the Doctor to quickly remove his 3D glasses and replace them back into his suit jacket as he turned and jumped back down off the small metal staircase. He frowned disapprovingly at the scientist.
"We don't!" He stated firmly. "We send that thing back into Hell!" The Doctor came back over to stand with Katy and Jackie who stepped aside to allow the Doctor to reclaim his position beside Katy and retake her hand again. "How did it get here in the first place?"
"Well, that's how it all started," Yvonne explained. "The sphere came through into this world, and the ghosts followed in its wake."
"Show us," the Doctor requested, turning, and heading for the door, tugging Katy and Jackie along with him.
He turns left.
"No, Doctor." Yvonne calls out, and the Doctor promptly turns around and heads right with Katy and Jackie following behind him.
Yvonne's office
"The sphere came through here," Yvonne explained, pointing the Doctor towards the large white blank wall at the end of the Lever room. He studies it, the frown on his face getting deeper with every word Yvonne tells him. "A hole in the world. Not active at the moment, but when we fire particle engines at that exact spot, the breech opens up."
"How did you even find it?" He questioned.
"We were getting warning signs for years," Yvonne clarified. "A radar black spot. So we built this place, Torchwood Tower. The breech was six-hundred-foot above sea level. It was the only way to reach it." Katy exchanges bewildered looks with the Doctor, finding this whole situation to be incredibly fishy.
"You built a skyscraper just to reach a spatial disturbance?" The Doctor blinked.
"How much money have you got?" Katy added.
"Enough," Yvonne was vague, which only raised more red flags. Jackie wonders over to a nearby window, looking down at the scenery they were standing above and gasped in realisation.
"Hold on a minute," She called out, grabbing the Doctor and Katy's attention, while Yvonne hovered in the background. "We're in Canary Wharf. Must be. This building, it's Canary Wharf."
"Well, that is the public name for it," Yvonne conceded. "But to those in the know, it's Torchwood."
"So, you find the breach, probe it, the sphere comes through the six-hundred-feet above London, bam! It leaves a hole in the fabric of reality," the Doctor steers the focus back onto the topic at hand. "And that hole, you think, oh shall we leave it alone? Shall we back off? Shall we play it safe? Nah, you think let's make it bigger!" He was practically dripping sarcasm from his voice.
"It's a massive source of energy," Yvonne narrows her eyes; not loving the attitude the Doctor had. "If we can harness that power, we need never depend on the Middle East again. Britain will become truly independent." She explained, defensively.
"Naturally! In the end it all comes down to money," Katy realises, with disgust. "Damn the consequences!"
"Look, you can see for yourself. Next Ghost Shift's in two minutes," Yvonne stated, pointedly ignoring Katy's outburst and the cold expression on the Doctor's face.
"Cancel it," the Doctor orders.
"I don't think so," Yvonne sneers at him, but the Doctor was persistent.
"I'm warning you, cancel it."
"Oh, exactly as the legends would have it. The Doctor, lording it over us. Assuming alien authority over the Rights of Man," Yvonne argues back.
"And rightfully so," Katy defends his actions. "You're messing with something you have no idea about, and it has consequences."
"Let me show you. Sphere comes through," the Doctor walks behind a glass wall and aims his sonic screwdriver at it. It cracks. "But when it made the hole, it cracked the world around it. The entire surface of this dimension splintered. And that's how the ghosts get through. That's how they get everywhere. They're bleeding through the fault lines. Walking from their world, across the Void, and into yours, with the human race hoping and wishing and helping them along. But too many ghosts, and…" He gently taps the glass, and it instantly shatters.
However, Yvonne merely observes this with a bored expression on her face.
"Well, in that case, we'll have to be more careful." She turns to the rest of her staff and raises her voice to be heard. "Positions! Ghost shift in one minute."
The Doctor steps around the debris of glass shards on the floor and storms over to Yvonne, angrily.
"Miss Hartman, I am asking you, please don't do it."
"We done this a thousand times," Yvonne states.
"Then stop at a thousand!" The Doctor growls, exasperatedly.
"We're in control of the ghosts. The levers can open the breach, but equally they can close it," Yvonne attempts to justify her negligence, and the Doctor looks like he wants to continue arguing, but suddenly drops the topic like a hot potato.
"Okay." He shrugs and wonders back into her office and fetches a chair to sit on. Yvonne blinks at him in surprise. So does Katy and Jackie.
"Sorry?" Yvonne comments.
"Doctor, what are you—" Katy questions him, frowning in confusion, but he lowers his mouth to her ear and mutters quietly into it.
"Just follow my lead. Trust me," He asks, and Katy and Jackie nod, realising he had a plan. "Never mind. As you were." He responds to Yvonne as he takes a seat on the chair.
"What, is that it?"
"No, fair enough. Said my bit. Don't mind me. Any chance of a cup of tea?" The Doctor was flippant; perhaps maybe a little bit childish, but obviously trying to prove a point to this defiant woman that he meant business and wasn't going to back down.
"Ghost shift in twenty seconds," one of the workers announces. The Doctor offers a cold grin.
"Mmm, can't wait to see it!"
"You can't stop us, Doctor." Yvonne reminds him, but the Doctor continues his charade.
"No, absolutely not," the Doctor takes Katy's hand and pulls her onto his lap. He looks over at Jackie with that same cold smile on his face. "Pull up a chair, Rose. Come and watch the fireworks!" Jackie nods and takes her position beside the chair the Doctor was sitting in with her daughter on his lap, placing a supporting hand on his shoulder as all three of them look pointedly at Yvonne who was looking back at him calculatingly.
"Ghost shift in ten seconds…" The countdown begins as Yvonne hesitated, while the Doctor stares her down challengingly with that same cold smile on his face before she eventually makes a decision.
"Stop the shift!" Yvonne gives the order. "I said stop!"
"Thank you," the Doctor acknowledges sincerely.
"I suppose it makes sense to get as much intelligence as possible," Yvonne concedes, reluctantly. "But the programme will recommence, as soon as you've explained everything." She warned him, and the Doctor nodded.
"I'm glad to be of help."
"And someone clear up this glass!" Yvonne barks, somewhat irritated as she eyes the Doctor. "They did warn me, Doctor. They said you like to make a mess." She walks off and Katy scoffs underneath her breath, earning a curious look from her mother and the Doctor.
"You don't know the half of it, hun…" She mutters, earning a playfully indignant look from her boyfriend and a round of giggles from Jackie.
A few minutes later, Yvonne had corralled the Doctor, Katy, and Jackie into her office to get a rundown on what these so-called ghosts were actually doing to the dimension from the Doctor's expert point of view.
"So, these ghosts, whatever they are, did they build the sphere?" Yvonne asks, curiously.
"Must have," the Doctor shrugged. "Aimed it at this dimension like a cannon ball."
A laptop on Yvonne's desk suddenly beeps.
"Yvonne? I think you should see this," Rajesh calls out. She taps on it to open up a live video feed from the Sphere room showing Rajesh and a sheepish Rose on screen. "We've got a visitor. We don't know who she is, but funnily enough, she arrived at the same time as the Doctor."
Yvonne raises an eyebrow at the blonde before swivelling her laptop around so that the Doctor, Katy, and Jackie could see for themselves.
"She one of yours?" Yvonne questioned, and the Doctor was careful to not let any recognition show on his face as he responded.
"Never seen her before in my life," He lied.
"Good," Yvonne nodded. "Then we can have her shot." Jackie and Katy immediately panicked, and the Doctor let out a resigned sigh, realizing that the jig was up, and it was time to come clean.
"Oh, all right then. It was worth a try," He muttered. "That's, that's Rose Tyler."
"Sorry. Hello!" Rose waves awkwardly on screen. Yvonne immediately pounces on the discovery and looks between Rose and Jackie with confusion.
"Well, if that's Rose Tyler, who's she?" She asks the Doctor accusingly, and Jackie pipes up.
"I'm her mother."
"Oh? You travel with their mother?" Yvonne smirks and the Doctor groans with embarrassment, as Katy shoots daggers at Yvonne and her mocking attitude.
"He kidnapped me," Jackie retorted.
"Please, when Torchwood comes to write my complete history, don't tell people I travelled through time and space with their mother." The Doctor begs and all three Tyler women make unamused faces at him.
"Charming," Jackie responds, dryly.
"I've got a reputation to uphold," the Doctor insisted, churlishly. Suddenly, the Ghost Shift is activated, and Yvonne's head snaps up and she storms into the room to investigate.
"Excuse me? Everyone? I thought I said stop the Ghost Shift. Who started the programme?" Nobody responds to her. Yvonne frowns. "But I ordered you to stop! Who's doing that?"
The levers start moving, causing nearby scientists to run over to them to grab and prevent them from moving up as the Doctor, Katy, and Jackie observe with confusion.
"Right, step away from the monitors, everyone!" She is ignored. "Gareth, Addy, stop what you're doing, right now. Matt, step away from your desk. That's an order! Stop the levers! Andrew!" The scientists continue wrestling with the levers for control, while Yvonne attempts to maintain her authority and failing. "Stop the levers!" Yvonne orders, angrily.
The Doctor comes over to investigate, followed by Katy, while Jackie hovers in the background, staying out of the way.
"What's she doing?" the Doctor questioned, squinting at the screen one of the workers, Adeola, was typing away at. Yvonne comes over to address her.
"Addy, step away from the desk. Listen to me. Step away from the desk!"
"She can't hear you," the Doctor realises grimly. "They're overriding the system. We're going into Ghost Shift."
It was then that Katy took notice of the Bluetooth devices in both of Adeola's ears, and in the ears of both Gareth and Matt's as well. It seemed disturbingly familiar to her, and she reaches over and tugs on the Doctor's arm to grab his attention.
"Doctor, those earpieces. Doesn't this situation seem familiar to you?" Katy questioned and the Doctor's eyes widened in realization, then sadness.
"It's the earpiece," He informs Yvonne who zeros in on the seemingly harmless piece of computer technology. "It's controlling them; we've seen this before." The Doctor indicates a suddenly very pale Katy. He leans closer to Adeola, looking remorseful. "Sorry. I'm so sorry…"
He raises the sonic and zaps Adeola's earpiece, causing not only her, but also Gareth and Matt to scream out in pain before they collapse. Katy cups her mouth with both her hands as frightened tears start welling up in her eyes.
"It's happening again. Oh, my God…" She mutters in horror.
"What happened? What did you just do?" Yvonne demanded accusingly to the Doctor, who barely bats an eyelid at the accusation.
"They're dead," He explained and Jackie frowns at him.
"You killed them."
"No, Mum. Someone else did long before we came here," Katy corrected her.
Yvonne goes for the earpieces.
"What are those earpieces?" She wondered and Katy immediately goes to stop her from touching them.
"No, stop!" She yells out in alarm.
"But they're standard comms. devices. How does it control them?" Yvonne protests, and the Doctor scowls at her.
"Trust us, leave them alone," The Doctor insists, however, that doesn't stop Yvonne from investigating despite his and Katy's warnings.
"But what are they—" She pulls off one of Adeola's earpieces and she and Jackie gag when she pulls a rope of grey matter out of her ear. "Urgh! Oh, God! It goes inside their brain!"
She drops the tainted earpiece with disgust as the Doctor shows no sympathy for their revulsion and Katy backs away out of fear and to avoid getting in the Doctor's way as he tries to get to the bottom of this.
"What about the Ghost Shift?" He asks, and Yvonne uses the question as a distraction from her churning stomach.
"Ninety percent there and still running," she reports. "Can't you stop it?"
"They're still controlling it," the Doctor confirms. "They've hijacked the system!"
"Who's they?" Yvonne demands, however, he ignores the question and starts heading for the entrance.
"It might be a remote transmitter, but it's got to be close by. I can trace it!" He pauses by Katy, noting the horror in her eyes and wincing. He grabs her gently by the shoulders. "Katy, stay here and take care of your mother. I'll be back in a moment!" Katy nods shakily as the Doctor races off after kissing her firmly on the forehead.
Yvonne follows him, but not before yelling orders.
"Keep those levers down. Keep them offline!"
Corridor & Unoccupied Floor
The Doctor rushes through the corridor, tracking the signal he was receiving with his sonic screwdriver. He passes by two soldiers whom Yvonne flags down as she hurries to keep up with him.
"You two. Come with us!" She orders.
"Yes, Ma'am!" They fall into step behind Yvonne as they practically jog to catch up with the Doctor.
The signal leads the Doctor towards an unoccupied part of the building, cordoned off by hanging plastic curtains, builder's equipment, paint buckets etc. strewn about, and his frown deepened when he immediately felt extremely tense and uncomfortable the further he stepped into the room.
"What's down here?" He asked.
"I don't, I don't know. I think it's just building work. It's just renovations," Yvonne confirmed, looking slightly harried. The Doctor briefly consults his sonic and stiffens instinctively.
"You should go back," He suggested, but Yvonne immediately shuts him down.
"Think again." They step through some nearby hanging plastic curtains, and the Doctor silently thanked everything that was holy he wasn't a claustrophobic. "What is it? What's down here?" Yvonne questioned quietly.
"Earpieces, ear pods…" He didn't like this at all. "This world's colliding with another…" It was definitely, uncomfortably familiar, and part of him was glad neither Katy or Rose were here to see this. "…and I think I know which one." Shadowy figures appear behind the plastic curtains and the Doctor's hearts rose into his throat as he stared in abject horror.
"What are they?" Yvonne whispered, also in horror. The Doctor recovered quickly from his alarm and composed himself long enough to answer Yvonne's question.
"They came through first. The advance guard," The figures use their hands to rip through the plastic sheets, like they did in their tomb, and step through. "Cybermen!"
The soldiers that Yvonne had follow her and the Doctor, immediately open fire.
Sphere Laboratory
While history was literally repeating itself with the Doctor and Katy, Rose was preoccupied with the Void Ship, which was activating and attempting to open up and reveal what was idling inside; and it was guaranteed not to be good. Upon being caught out by Rajesh who immediately reported to Yvonne, Rose discovered to both her delight and disbelief that Mickey Smith of all people was masquerading as an employee of Torchwood. When they all realised that the Void Ship was opening, Mickey dropped his guise like a hot potato, eyes narrowed in the direction of the Void Ship.
"We had them beaten," Mickey explained to Rose. "But then they escaped. The Cybermen just vanished. They found a way through to this world, but so did we."
"The Doctor said that it was impossible," Rose pointed out, looking confused.
"Yeah, it's not the first time he's been wrong," Mickey replied smirking smugly.
Rose looked warily at the Void Ship.
"What's inside that sphere?" She questioned Mickey, who shrugged also looking slightly apprehensive as he attempts to protectively shield Rose against whatever was about to come out of the Void Ship.
"No one knows. Cyber Leader, Cyber King, Emperor of the Cybermen? Whatever it is, he's dead meat." Mickey was confident, a vast difference from the man she, Katy and the Doctor had left behind in the alternate universe. Rose smiles at him, both impressed and relieved to see him again.
"It's really good to see you," she tells him sincerely.
Mickey grins back at her, pleased.
"Yeah. It's good to see you too," He agrees, just as sincere too.
Lever room
Katy goes white when she hears the familiar, heavy rise and fall of the Cybermen's armoured feet and turns towards the entry, and immediately shields Jackie protectively.
"Oh, God no!" Katy exclaims just as the Cybermen escort the Doctor and Yvonne in.
"Get away from the machines," the Doctor hurriedly instructs the scientists, still trying to hold down the levers. "Do what they say. Don't fight them!"
Katy immediately runs towards the Doctor who instantly wraps his arms around her tightly and holds her protectively against him as they rush back towards a horrified, confused Jackie. The Doctor pushes both Tyler women behind him for protection, just as the Cybermen activate their arm guns and shoot the scientists, who hadn't listened to the Doctor's instructions to get away from the machines and shoots them dead.
"You didn't have to kill them!" Katy shouts angrily to the Cybermen who ignore her protests.
"What are they?" Jackie yells, frightened. One of the Cybermen hears her question and turns towards the three huddled at a nearby desk, eying them nervously.
"We are the Cybermen!" It introduces itself before turning back to the other Cybermen in the room. "The Ghost Shift will be increased to one hundred percent." The levers are immediately pushed up.
"Online." The computer confirms.
"Here come the ghosts," the Doctor states both grimly and solemnly.
And like before, the shadowy figures appear like clockwork.
Sphere Laboratory
Things in the Sphere laboratory wasn't much better. The Void Ship was almost open, and Rajesh was practically about to have kittens.
"Can anyone hear me?" He yells down the laptop, unaware that back in the Lever Room, Yvonne's computer was muted and his cries were not heard. "Come on, I need help down here! I need—"
His pleas for assistance were easily ignored by both Rose and Mickey as the latter removes his white lab coat, dumping it and his earpiece on the ground.
"Here we go!" He mutters to Rose as it starts to crack open, and a black hole appears.
Lever Room
The Doctor and Katy could only watch as the Cybermen begin rounding everyone up, helpless to do anything at this point.
"But these Cybermen," Jackie pipes up. "What've they got to do with the ghosts?" She questioned, and both the Doctor and Katy felt like face-palming.
"Seriously, mum?" Katy groaned.
"Do you never listen?" The Doctor was equally as exasperated with the older woman as Katy was. "A footprint doesn't look like a boot." He reminds her, gesturing impatiently at the Cybermen.
"Achieving full transfer!" the Cyberleader states.
"They're Cybermen," the Doctor attempts to explain to Jackie once again. "All the ghosts are Cybermen. Millions of them, right across the world."
The former ghosts all solidify and form up in squads everywhere, causing everyone to scream and run for their lives when they realised the danger they were suddenly in. Yvonne looks out the window and down at the commotion on the streets.
"They're invading the whole planet!" she realised. But the Doctor shakes his head, looking almost defeated.
"It's not an invasion. It's too late for that," He stated grimly, and squeezes Katy's hand tightly in his for comfort. "It's a victory."
"Sphere activated." Heads swivel towards Yvonne's laptop when the computer announces this. "Sphere activated. Sphere activated. Sphere activated." Katy's eyes widen in realisation.
"Oh, shit! Rose, she's in there with that Void Ship!"
Sphere Laboratory
Rose and Rajesh stare at the Void Ship with horror, worried about what might be emerging from it.
However, Mickey doesn't look fazed.
"I know what's in there, and I'm ready for them!" Mickey retrieves a massive, intimidating black gun from underneath a platform below the sphere and holds it up. "I've got just the thing. This is going to blast them to Hell!" He grinned, and Rajesh frowns at him with confusion.
"Samuel, what are you doing?" He demands.
"The name's Mickey," Mickey retorts evenly. "Mickey Smith; Defending the Earth." He cocks the gun, now locked, loaded, and ready to take down whatever emerged from that ship.
Lever Room
"But I don't understand," the Doctor's anxiety was increasing for every minute Rose was still stuck inside the room with the Void Ship. Because who knew what had been imprisoned inside that thing? "The Cybermen don't have the technology to build a Void Ship," He turned to confront one of the Cybermen. "That's way beyond you. How did you create that sphere?"
"The sphere is not ours," the Cybermen explained.
"What?" the Doctor blinked, in disbelief.
"The sphere broke down the barriers between worlds. We only followed. Its origin is unknown," It clarified, which only spiked both Katy and the Doctor's fears.
"Then what's inside it?" Katy demanded.
"Rose is down there!" Jackie exclaimed.
Sphere Laboratory
The sphere is slowly disappearing in a blaze of light, and Mickey once again cocks his weapon in preparation while he and Rose wait impatiently for whatever it was to emerge from the Void Ship. Rose's eyes widen in horror when four very familiar, oversized pepper pots hover out of the Void.
Mickey frowned in confusion.
"That's not Cybermen…"
"Oh, my God!" Rose mumbled.
"LOCATION, EARTH. LIFE FORMS DETECTED. EXTERMINATE!" A Dalek armoured in black dalekanium reveals.
"EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!" the other three Daleks chant in unison, causing Rose, Mickey, and Rajesh to back off in horror and confusion.
A/N: Please review! TTFN x