I get back on the ship, and walk around for a bit. It seems eerily quiet.
Way too quiet.
I walk around for a little bit more, thinking about what Reinette said. About being alone.
She has no idea. She has never been alone. She's always had someone near her at all times. I've had my entire species ripped away from this universe. Until now, I was completely alone. The only one in the universe.
"Doctor?" I heard a faint voice scream.
Oh boy.
I jog over to the origin of the voice, and I hear a commotion going on in the area in front of me. I get behind a vent tube and listen in to the conversation that was happening.
"Rose? They're going to chop us up, just like the crew. They're going to chop us up and stick us all over their stupid spaceship. And where's the Doctor? Where's the precious Doctor now? He's been gone for flipping hours, that's where he is!" I heard Mickey scold.
Oh great, now he is somewhere else wandering. Typical.
The droid chimes in, "You are compatible."
Rose gets defensive, "Well, you might want to think about that. You really, really, might, because me and Mickey, we didn't come here alone. Oh no. And trust me, you wouldn't want to mess with our designated driver."
Oh great, now she's feisty. Just what we need.
The droid takes none of her sass and extends the blade on the end of his arm as the cogged wheel spins at the end.
Rose goes wide-eyed, then gains what little confidence she has left and says, "Ever heard of the Daleks? Remember them? They had a name for our friend. They had myths about them, and a name.."
She goes on and on about the Doctor and how he was the "Oncoming Storm".
As if I didn't exist.
That alright, I can be humble. But I also really want to see this go down, because not even a second later the Doctor stumbles in as if he had been partying all night. Tie around his head and ridiculous sunglasses on.
I am losing brain cells as this conversation continues. Now he is calling the droid thick. With extra thicks. From thicktown, thickcania. And so is it's dad apparently.
Then all of a sudden, out of the blue, he pours the liquid that was in his glass on the head of the droid, and the droid seizes up as the gears stop spinning.
Multigrain anti-oil. Classic. Terrible for TARDISes, but really good for stopping futuristic droids dressed as frenchman.
I hear a bell coming from somewhere in the walls, and then the droid reactivates and expels the anti-oil at the floor.
The switch turns from off to on, activating the link to eighteenth century France.
They must have found the correct link to when Reinette would be compatible. I need to go warn her.
They're still debating on why the bell is ringing, and I sprint back to the portal and quickly pull the switch and the fireplace rotates. I end up in the bedroom of Reinette. I ran to the music room in the palace, running past a few of the staff, who looked at me with a very frightful look.
I get to the music room to see Reinette looking out of the window. I clear my throat so I could get her attention. She looks at me, and gets a puzzled look.
She goes to say something but I interrupt her, "Reinette. Please, don't say anything. I don't have a lot of time. I am only here to warn you that they are coming. And it won't be long until they're here."
"The clock people? When are they coming?" she says, calmly but with a hint of fear in her voice.
"Yes, the clock people. They'll be here in five years." I say, plainly and clearly. "Just after your 37th birthday. I'm not able to give you an exact date, but I have to go."
"Why so soon? You said five years." Reinette says, still in a calm yet panicked voice.
"For you, it is five years. For me, I don't have more than five minutes." I say, desperately trying to leave the conversation so I could save her life and all the other lives that are at risk.
"Then be concise. What is going on?"
I sigh, stepping back towards the fireplace, "The thing is, this was never supposed to happen. Time is a tricky thing, and things slip through the cracks. It's complicated. But there is a ship. A ship suspended in the stars above, is the best way to put it. Way far in the future, where there are talking clocks, and the human race spreads out amongst the stars. Beyond what you see in the night sky. This ship has many rooms, many opportunities to view your timeline. Yours specifically. We still don't know why, but we do know that they will be coming on your 37th birthday, and we can only prepare you. I can only prepare you.
"Much like a chapter in your book, we are able to view parts of your life. Those clock people were trying to find the point in your timeline when you would be ready to assist them. They use you. But it is torture when you don't know whats going on."
Reinette takes this all in with a somber expression. She finally looks into my eyes and says, "So to understand what you are saying, there is a vessel in your world where the days of my life are pressed together like the chapters of a book, so that you may step from one to the other without increase of age, while I, weary traveler, much always take the slower path."
I nod slowly in agreement and continue talking, "These clock people seem to only listen to your commands. When the time comes when you must face them, keep them talking. Figure out what their intentions are. Don't be afraid to continue talking. I will come and find you. I will figure out how to help."
"You are coming then?" she says disdainfully, "You promise?"
"Reinette," I say and take her hands in mine, "I never break promises."
She looks at me with hope in her eyes, and I let go of her hands, and head back towards the fireplace. I didn't realize, but she followed me.
I got back on the ship and felt a rush of air behind me. I look behind me, and my eyes widen as I see Reinette looking around at the futuristic ship with wide eyes that sparkled with curiosity.
"So, this is your world." she says. I nod, not knowing what to say next.
Suddenly we hear a scream in the distance, and I take her hand and run towards the sound, where we meet the Doctor and his companions.
"Audio link was fixed, I assume?" I said, and the Doctor nodded, a little surprised to see Reinette behind me. She was still stunned, but was able to maintain her composure and processed what was happening.
"Those screams. Is that my future?" she asked. I gave her hand a squeeze and nodded.
"I'm sorry Reinette." I said, and she nodded.
"Then I must take the slower path." she says and lets go of my hand and steps closer to the time window.
We hear future Reinette scream into the fireplace, "Are you there? Can you hear me? I need you now. You promised. The clock on the mantle is broken. It is time."
I sat in silence as I processed what was happening, and I heard Reinette chime in behind me, "That's my voice."
"Are you ok?" I asked, and she looked at me with pain in her eyes.
"No, I am very afraid. But you and I both know that the Doctor is worth the monsters." and I knew exactly what she meant. I could tell that she fancied the Doctor. Who wouldn't. But with every good moment comes a scary moment. Some people can handle that, and some cannot. That is the beauty of human nature, is that everyone is different.
Reinette walks back through the fireplace that we came out of, back to the slower path. I turn around to find the Doctor, still hearing Reinette's screams through the audio link.
I find the Doctor, and he is looking through a large screen in the bulkhead, showing the events unfolding. It was terrifying to grasp that Reinette will have to do this on her own.
"They teleported." the Doctor said, gesturing to the clock people in the ballroom. "As long as the ship and the ballroom are linked, their short range teleports will do the trick."
"Well, we'll go in the TARDIS!" Rose exclaimed.
"We can't use the TARDIS, we are part of events now." the Doctor said back.
"Well, can't we just smash through?" Mickey suggested.
"Hyperplex on this side. Plate glass on the other." I said, gaining some confused looks from the two humans.
"What does that mean?" Rose said, looking at the Doctor.
"We need a truck." the Doctor said.
"We don't have a truck." Mickey said
I hear a very strange and out of place noise coming from behind me, and the Doctor's face lights up with joy.
A horse?
"What about the horse?" Mickey asked. Yeah, what about it?
Oh! Oh.
"Once you smash through, you can't get back." I said, taking into account that we are talking about a very sensitive time window, and when the droids have what they need, they have no need to keep the power going on those time windows for much longer.
I knew what I had to do.
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A/N: I am so sorry for the slow updates y'all. I am a full-time college student and I purely do this for fun. Thank you for voting and commenting so far! I love hearing that people still enjoy Doctor Who (when it was at its prime lol).
Hopefully I can whip up some more chapters for y'all, but thank you for being so patient. Y'all are absolutely amazing!!