I stand next to River as the Doctor and Amy stand ahead looking at the stones. "So, River, between you and me, do you and the Doctor, you know... get married?" I ask her hesitantly. She sighs and turns to me smiling.
"Look, I know you want to know because you like him, but Sweetie, I can't tell you anything about his future, all of it has to be lived through; just let it go, let whatever happens, happen." She tells me, and I nod curtly, deciding not to disagree with her saying that I like the Doctor, I'm not surprised she know so I just let that go but I can't help but wonder. As we stand looking at the stones gunfire starts going off back with the main group. The Doctor instantly runs towards the group and we follow after. I arrive second and stand beside the stone statue that had just been shot at by one of the clerics.
"Sorry, sorry. I thought. I thought it looked at me." The cleric apologises hastily. Octavian walks around to face him as the Doctor and I stand by the steps.
"We know what the Angel looks like. Is that the Angel?" He asks the cleric calmly.
"No, sir."
"No, sir, it is not. According to the Doctor, we are facing an enemy of unknowable power and infinite evil, so it would be good, it would be very good, if we could all remain calm in the presence of decor." Octavian raises his voice a little but doesn't shout.
"What's your name?" I ask softly as I approach him, feeling sorry for the man, he's just scared.
"Bob, ma'am." He addresses me and I grin at the name.
"Oh, I love that name!" I announce trying to lighten the mood. "That's a great name."
"It's a Sacred Name. We all have Sacred Names. They're given to us in the service of the Church." Octavian informs me and I nod smiling as the Doctor comes up behind me.
"Sacred Bob. More like Scared Bob now, eh?" The Doctor asks.
"Yes, sir." I smile at his response, knowing that in the Doctor's eyes that's a good thing.
"Ah, good. Scared keeps you fast. Anyone in this room who isn't scared is a moron. Carry on." He says to Bob and I smile as I take his hand and walk back to the other two once again resuming my place next to River.
"We'll be moving into the maze in two minutes." Octavian says and we move on forward but not before I send a reassuring smile back to the fearful young cleric.
As we walk up the levels I talk with River quietly laughing every once in a while as we linked arms chatting; I could tell it was really frustrating the Doctor as he wanted to know what we were laughing about. "Are we there yet? It's a hell of a climb." Amy complains, causing me to roll my eyes, she's always complaining about walking.
"The Maze is on six levels, representing the ascent of the soul. Only two levels to go." River tells her and I look back and smile at my sister.
"So stop whining." I say to her in my politest voice, she just sticks her tongue out at me and I return it to her and we both begin to laugh a little.
"Lovely species, the Aplans. We should visit them some time." The Doctor comments as we enter another room filled it statues.
"I thought they were all dead." Amy says remembering what we were told earlier.
"So is Virginia Woolf. I'm on her bowling team. Very relaxed, sort of cheerful. Well, that's having two heads, of course. You're never short of a snog with an extra head." His comment leads me to rolling my eyes once again, typical Doctor.
"Doctor, there's something. I don't know what it is." River says leaving my side and I walk up to one of the statues, getting very close to it and almost wanting to touch it, but I don't, I have a bad feeling about them, something's wrong with them.
"Yeah, there's something wrong. Don't know what it is yet, either. Working on it. Of course, then they started having laws against self-marrying. I mean, what was that about? But that's the Church for you. Er, no offence, Bishop." The Doctor says as he shines his torch to Octavian.
"Quite a lot taken, if that's all right, Doctor." His comment makes me purse my lips as the Doctor's face looks a tad guilty and I walk up to him and stand by his side so that the Doctor is to my right and Amy is to my left as we continue walking. ". Lowest point in the wreckage is only about fifty feet up from here. That way."
"The Church had a point, if you think about it. The divorces must have been messy." As she walks ahead leaving the Doctor to stop and shine a torch on one of the statues as his face changes to one of fear.
"Oh."
"What's wrong?" Amy asks and I stand next to the Doctor, studying the statue he's looking at.
"Oh." River says as she realises something she grabs my arm and pulls me away from the statue. I look to its head and finally it clicks.
"Oh my God." I find I say it a lot nowadays as I travel with the Doctor. The Aplans have two heads, so why do all the statues have one?
"Exactly." The Doctor says.
"How could we have not noticed that?" River asks in a whisper as she pulls me right up next to her.
"Low level perception filter, or maybe we're thick." The Doctor replies and I find myself muttering my own answer.
"Two heads." I say looking to River, she nods silently.
"What's wrong, sir?" Octavian asks starting to approach us.
"Nobody move. Nobody move. Everyone stay exactly where they are. Bishop, I am truly sorry. I've made a mistake and we are all in terrible danger." The Doctor tells us.
"What danger?" Octavian asks.
"The Aplans." River states.
"The Aplans?" Octavian asks, confused as to why River would say that.
"They've got two heads." I grab onto River's hand as she says this, a little scared as I now understand what these statues really are.
"Yes, I get that. So?" Octavian starts to sound frustrated as he doesn't understand.
"So why don't the statues?" I ask, but it's a rhetorical question for them, so everyone else can figure it out themselves.
"Everyone, over there. Just move. Don't ask questions, don't speak." The Doctor says as we all go to the corner of the little cavern where there are no angels. "Okay, I want you all to switch off your torches."
"Sir?" Octavian asks nervously, I look to River scared and she gives me a small encouraging smile.
"Just do it. Okay. I'm going to turn off this one too, just for a moment." He says after everyone else turns out their torches I find myself walking up behind the Doctor and staying there as I reach to grab his hand, and I feel a little more relaxed as he wraps his hand around mine giving it a slight squeeze.
"Are you sure about this?" River asks.
"No." The hint of a smile on his face as he says it. I put my head down on his shoulder not wanting to look at what happens as he turns out the light and then quickly turns it on again. They'd moved, every single one of them had moved. As we all see that the Doctor gives my hand a last squeeze before letting it go and running back the way we came looking at the different statues which we now knew to be Angels.
"Oh, my God. They've moved." Amy says, a horror-struck look on her face. I look back to her and we look to each other as I walk back to join her and River, wanting the comfort and warmth of people, considering I had been standing there alone as the Doctor had run ahead.
"They're Angels. All of them." The Doctor says up ahead as he looks at all the angels who were now facing our group. I rushed forward after the Doctor and look at the Angel on the floor reaching for something.
"But they can't be." River says behind us.
"Clerics, keep watching them." The Doctor orders as he runs back out of the cavern and I follow quickly. As I approach him I see him shining his torch at another two Angels. "Every statue in this Maze, every single one, is a Weeping Angel. They're coming after us." And he glances to me as I look into his eyes and I grab his hand again as we interlock fingers, I look back to the Angels in front of us and feel dread fill me as I stare at the two statues.
"But there was onlyone Angel on the ship. Just the one, I swear." River says as we look at all theAngels.
"Could they have been here already?" Amy suggests.
"How did they die out? The Aplans?" I ask River.
"Yes, what happened?" The Doctor continues my question.
"Nobody knows." River says and I let out a deep breath, they were killed by theAngels.
"We know."
"They don't look like Angels." Octavian insists .
"And they're not fast. You said they were fast. They should have had us bynow." I nod at Amy's comment, they should.
"Look at them. They're dying, losing their form. They must have been down herefor centuries, starving." The Doctor remarks and he approaches one, andcrouches down in front of it.
"Losing their image." I mutter behind him.
"And their image is their power. Power. Power!" The Doctor shouts jumpingup. "All that radiation spilling out the drive burn. The crash of the Byzantiumwasn't an accident, it was a rescue mission for the Angels. We're in the middleof an army, and it's waking up."
"We need to get out of here fast." River says and Octavian pulls out hiscommunicator.
"Bob, Angelo, Christian, come in, please. Any of you, come in." He says a morestern tone to his voice.
"It's Bob, sir. Sorry, sir." A voice calls over the radio and I feel a wave ofrelief, glad that he was ok, I rather liked him, he seems like a nice man andI'm happy he's ok.
"Bob, are Angelo and Christian with you? All the statues are active. I repeat,all the statues are active." Octavian says over the radio.
"I know, sir. Angelo and Christian are dead, sir. The statues killed them,sir." Bob replies and the Doctor takes the walkie-talkie off of Octavian whichOctavian protests but let's it go when the Doctor tells him to shut up.
"Bob, Sacred Bob, it's me, the Doctor. Where are you now?"
"I'm on my way up to you, sir. I'm homing in on your signal." Bob replies, andI smile a little.
"Ah, well done, Bob. Scared keeps you fast. Told you, didn't I. Your friends,Bob. What did the Angel do to them?" The Doctor ask and we all wait silentlyfor his reply.
"Snapped their necks, sir." Bob replies emotionlessly.
"That's odd. That's not how the Angels kill you. They displace you in time.Unless they needed the bodies for something." The Doctor says to us as Octaviangrabs the walkie-talkie back.
"Bob, did you check their data packs for vital signs? We may be able toinitiate a rescue plan." Octavian asks and the Doctor rolls his eyes as he onceagain takes the walkie-talkie from him.
"Oh, don't be an idiot. The Angels don't leave you alive. Bob, keep running.But tell me, how did you escape?"
"I didn't escape, sir. The Angel killed me, too." Everyone goes silent, notunderstanding I glance to the Doctor who was still holding my hand from earlierand I squeeze it gently, like he did to me earlier, comforting him a little.
"What do you mean, the Angel killed you?" He asks Bob confused.
"Snapped my neck, sir. Wasn't as painless as I expected, but it was prettyquick, so that was something."
"If you're dead, how can I be talking to you?"
"You're not talking to me, sir. The Angel has no voice. It stripped my cerebralcortex from my body and re-animated a version of my consciousness tocommunicate with you. Sorry about the confusion." I feel my heart sink as Bob –no, the Angel - says this. The Doctor hesitates before carrying on as he takesin what Bob just told him.
"So when you say you're on your way up to us..."
"It's the Angel that's coming, sir, yes. No way out." Everyone of us start toshift uncomfortably.
"Then we get out through the wreckage. Go! Go, go, go. All of you run."Octavian say but I don't move as I remain stood next to the Doctor.
"Doctor? Kenz?" Amy asks as she hesitates to leave, wanting to wait for us.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're coming. Just go. Go, go, go." Amy runs out sending meone last glimpse before running off after the others. We approach Octavian,still hand in hand. "Yeah. Called you an idiot. Sorry, but there's no way wecould have rescued your men." The Doctor apologises to the Bishop.
"I know that, sir. And when you've flown away in your little blue box, I'llexplain that to their families." Octavian replies bitterly as he walks off, I watchhim walk away sadly, we all know that the Doctor is doing his best, butsometimes people wish for more than is possible.
"Go ahead Mackenzie, I'll be with you lot in a second." He tells me nudging metowards where everyone else left, I nod and go ahead too leaving the Doctor byhimself. As I run over a bridge I stumble a little as I lose balance and grabonto the handrail to keep myself up. When I try to carry on moving I findmyself pulled back as my hand won't leave the wood because my hand has turnedto stone. I stare at it open eyed and terrified. My hand is made of bloodystone! The Doctor's runs up behind me and starts to run past and stops as helooks to me and says: "I told you not to wait for me. Go, run." He tells me.
"I can't." I mumble and the Doctor turns and walks back to me looking at mewith a creased brow. "No, really, I can't." I say.
"Why not?"
"Look at it. Look at my hand. It's stone." I tell him and he looks to my handas I do.
"You looked into the eyes of an Angel, didn't you?" He asks shining the light into each of my eyes.
"It's not like knew not to. It was when it first came out of the television before you told me, I looked away as soon as you told me not to look in its eyes." I tell him. He sighs deeply and looks into my eyes taking away the torch.
"Listen to me. It's messing with your head. Your hand is not made of stone." He tells me and I feel myself growing frustrated, can he not see my hand? It is stuck it won't move!
"It is. Look at it." But he doesn't as he continues to look into my eyes, as if trying to find something.
"It's in your mind, I promise you. You can move that hand. You can let go." He says and the light starts to flicker but we both ignore it.
"I can't, okay? I've tried and I can't. It's stone." The tone in my voice growing more urgent, I'm terrified, he can see that so he lets out another sigh before saying:
"The Angel is going to come and it's going to turn this light off, and then there's nothing I can do to stop it, so do it. Concentrate. Move your hand."
"I can't." I growl out, he needs to go to the others.
"Then we're both going to die." I look up at him as he says this confused.
"You're not going to die." I say a little darkly, only one of us is going to die and it's not the Doctor.
"They'll kill the lights." He says plainly.
"Then run. You've got to go. You've got all that stuff with River and that's all got to happen. There's Amy I can't have her die because you wouldn't bloody leave me to die. You know you can't die here." I plead with him, my voice dark and desperate.
"Time can be re-written. It doesn't work like that." He tells me as the light flickers again and he peers around me to see the Angels and I turn too. "Keep your eyes on it. Don't blink."
"Run!" I shout at him as I stare at the angels.
"You see, I'm not going. I'm not leaving you here." He says as he takes my hand that isn't made of stone and grips it tightly in his.
"I don't need you to die for me, Doctor. Do I look that clingy?"
"You can move your hand." He replies simply.
"It's stone." I tell him resentfully as the lights flicker again and the Angel gets closer.
"It's not stone." He sounds a little panicked now.
"You've got to go. Those people up there will die without you. If you stay here with me, you'll have as good as killed them." I say gripping his hand tightly as I whisper to him too afraid that if I speak any louder my voice will crack. He leans his head on the side of mine quickly kissing the top of my head.
"Mackenzie Pond, you are magnificent, and I'm so sorry."
"It's ok. I understand. You've got to leave me." I say understandingly.
"Oh, no, I'm not leaving you, never. I'm sorry about this." He says and before I know what's happening he bites my hand. He bites my hand.
"Ow!" I yell as I free my hand from the railing.
"See? Not stone. Now run." He says starting to pull me by my other hand but I let go and stay put as I stare at the sore bite mark on my hand.
"You bit me." I say in disbelief staring at the mark as he grabs me by the arm and pulls me beside him as he wraps an arm around my waist, but I pay literally no attention to it as I stare at my hand.
"Yeah, and you're alive."
"Look, I've got a mark. Look at my hand." I complain as we back away from the oncoming Angels.
"Yes, and you're alive. Did I mention?" He says, pulling us away further.
"Blimey, your teeth. Have you got space teeth?" I ask.
"Yeah. Alive. All I'm saying." He says as we run towards the group again.
"The statues are advancing along all corridors. And, sir, my torch keeps flickering." We hear a voice say as we approach a clearing.
"They all do." Octavian says as we enter the cavern. I look up to see the bottom of a ship, which I'm assuming is the Byzantium.
"So does the gravity globe." River says as I stand next to her Amy stands with us also.
"Clerics, we're down to four men. Expect incoming." Octavian tells his troops.
"Yeah, it's the Angels. They're coming. And they're draining the power for themselves." The Doctor says as he looks up to see the Byzantium.
"Which means we won't be able to see them." Octavian tells us.
"Which means we can't stay here." The Doctor says and I look down a passage to see two more angels, I don't take my eyes off of them as Octavian speaks.
"Two more incoming." He informs obviously looking down the same passage as I am.
"Any suggestions?" River asks beside me as she looks to the Doctor, but I don't take my eyes off of the two angels that were slowly getting closer as the lights all flickered.
"The statues are advancing on all sides. We don't have the climbing equipment to reach the Byzantium." Octavian tells the Doctor.
"There's no way up, no way back, no way out." River says and I butt in looking to him momentarily knowing that the Bishop was looking at the two Angels.
"No pressure, but this is usually when you have a really good idea." I tell him before I look back to the Angels again, seeing they were already closer.
"There's always a way out." He mutters to himself.
"Doctor? Can I speak to the Doctor, please?" Bob's voice calls over the radio.
"Hello, Angels. What's your problem?" The Doctor asks turning around searching around looking for something.
"Your power will not last much longer, and the Angels will be with you shortly. Sorry, sir." I stop looking at the Angels to see what the Doctor's reaction is.
"Why are you telling me this?" He asks quietly.
"There's something the Angels are very keen you should know before the end." Angel Bob says and I start to approach the Doctor as he listened to Angel Bob.
"Which is?"
"I died in fear." Angel Bob tells us and I feel my heart sink once again as I realise that the Doctor said to him that fear keeps you alive.
"I'm sorry?" He asks, confused and as I reach him I grab his arm and hug it tightly, he looks to me for a moment not expecting me and then looks back to the radio.
"You told me my fear would keep me alive, but I died afraid, in pain and alone. You made me trust you, and when it mattered, you let me down." The Doctor's fists clench as Angel Bob says this and I hear River and Amy talking quietly. "I'm sorry, sir. The Angels were very keen for you to know that." I reach one of my hands down to the hand on his arm that I was holding onto, wanting him to know I was there as he stood silently taking in the assault that Angel Bob gave him. He unclenches his hands and grabs mine interlocking our fingers again as he replies.
"Well then, the Angels have made their second mistake because I'm not going to let that pass. I'm sorry you're dead, Bob, but I swear to whatever is left of you, they will be sorrier." He says darkly and I unwrap my arm from his arm and reach for the radio and take it from the Doctor as he seems to have an idea. I smile at this and let him walk around thinking whilst I wait for Angel Bob's reply.
"But you're trapped, sir, and about to die." Angel Bob says.
"Oh, Bob, Bob, Bob." I tut. "We may be trapped, but we're certainly not about to die. And you know what, speaking of traps, this trap has got a great big mistake in it. A great big, whopping mistake." I smile, feeling very exhilarated as the Doctor turns to me and sends me a grin.
"What mistake, ma'am?" I don't reply as the Doctor goes around the group.
"Trust me." The Doctor says to Amy.
"Yeah."
"Trust me?" He ask River.
"Always."
"You lot, trust me?" He asks Octavian and the clerics.
"We have faith, sir." And as Octavian replies the Doctor comes right up to me and offers his hand.
"Trust me?"
"Hell yeah." I say taking his hand as he turns back to Octavian.
"Right then, give me your gun. I'm about to do something incredibly stupid and dangerous. When I do, jump!" He says pointing the gun that Octavian just gave him to the gravity globe.
"Jump where?" Octavian asks.
"Just jump, high as you can. Come on, leap of faith, Bishop. On my signal." He says to him still holding my hand as he aims.
"What signal?" Octavian once again questions.
"You won't miss it."
"Sorry, can I ask again? You mentioned a mistake we made." Angel Bob asks over the radio, making me grin again.
"Oh big mistake, absolutely huge. Didn't anyone ever tell you that there's one thing you never put in a trap? If you're smart, if you value your continued existence, if you have any plans about seeing tomorrow, there is one thing you never, ever put in a trap?" I smile like a crazy woman as I say this, feeling very powerful as I speak to the Angels, scaring them, making them wonder what they did wrong.
"And what you that be, ma'am?" He asks and I put the radio to the Doctor's face to let him say what he wants to say.
"Me." He smiles and grips my hand tighter as he shoots the gravity globe and we all jump.
K