The Dyrin hunters lead the Doctor, Alison, Amy, Rory, River and the Master to the Palace. After that they lost them because the Dyrin took continuous twists and turns within the Palace. Amy and Rory asked the Doctor, River and the Master if they knew what species it was or the planet but neither of the three could answer. Two of them didn't know and one of them refused to answer. The Doctor tried to reach out to Astrea mentally but got nothing in return. While the Doctor was attempting to reach to Astrea the others were conversing amongst themselves, excluding the Master and River. "Alison, would you have any idea what these creatures are? Did Ast mention or described a creature like them?" Rory asked.
"Not that I know of, no." Alison replied. Alison sighed and mumbled, "I hope she's alright."
"Of course she'll be alright." Amy said. "We'll find her soon. Right, Doctor?" Amy asked, looking at the Time Lord, only for him not to reply.
"We're wasting our time." The Master spoke up. "She's probably lying dead in a ditch somewhere."
"I agree with him. We should head back and forget about her." River agreed, backing up the Master.
"WE'RE NOT TURNING BACK!!" Amy and Alison exclaimed together. "We're going to find her and if you don't like that then TOUGH!" Amy continued, giving them a death glare, raising her voice towards the end.
"I'm just saying." The Master shrugged, not giving a damn. "Death and destruction follow her so it must have caught up and finally got rid of her." A smile growing on the Master's face as he spoke.
The Doctor suddenly turned around and pinned the Master to the nearest wall out of anger. "You're already in enough trouble as it is so if I were you I'd keep your mouth shut unless you wanna be a dead man." The Doctor seethed through gritted teeth. The Master was wide eyed and everyone else was shocked by the Doctor's sudden outburst, even River. The Doctor let go of the Master and walked on. After a slight hesitation everyone else followed.
They walked for some time before they heard voices in the distance. They followed it and as they got closer a distinctive feminine voice stood out. "...All the guards you have in this room." It spoke. The group stopped outside the room and peered in seeing the person they were looking for.
Astrea's P.O.V
Astrea was lead back to the Palace by the hunters. On the way there she attempted escaping but failed every time. "I must say boys, Your physical skills have improved. But it won't hold me back for long." She said.
"Joke all you want but you won't be coming out of the Palace doors alive." One of the hunters spoke up.
Astrea fake gasped. "I'm so scared. What are you going to do to me?"
"That's for the king to decide." Another said.
"Oh, the King. Haven't seen him in ages. Can't wait to have one last chat with him before I rip his heart out and watch him suffer." She said, an odd gleam in her eye. "Though I could do with a bath and a change of clothes. May as well look good when I take out your leader. Tattered clothes and a birds nest for hair isn't a great approach of a great way to be remembered by." She rambled as they walked. Before she knew it she was shoved into a room and, since she wasn't aware of what's happening, she lost her footing and fell. "A simple 'We're here' would have been easier you ignorant bruts!" She shouted at them. "When I get my hands on you I will make sure you're in tremendous pain before I put you out of your misery."
"But you won't be able to do that once I'm through with you." A voice says.
"Oh look, it's the big bad wolf." Astrea remarked getting up. "What have you got planned for me now? Poison? Forced regeneration? Target practice?" She then walked towards him wearing a sly smirk. "Guilty pleasures?" She whispered in his ear, backing off. "Whatever it is, I'll have your heart in my hand while you lie dead on the floor before it's carried out. And, by the looks of it, it will be easy since you look like you haven't slept in days. Something must be keeping you a wake." She smiled. "Filling you with fear."
"Of course I'm filled with fear. Everybody's frightened because you're running about, looking for our lab and killing off our species. YOU'RE the reason we have this fear!" Syerk shouted.
Astrea's smile grew as her spoke. "Oh, boo hoo. I can't help who I am. It's your fault for having the emotion fear. Like, I know you're scared now because as we speak you have weapons hidden around this room for self defence in case I came by. And, let's not forget, all the guards you have in this room."
"They're here for my protection as they're leader. Of course I'll have plenty of guards about when you're here." Syerk replied.
"Which is why I'm gonna take them out first before you." She said.
"And how are you gonna do that. Your hands are tied behind your back." Syerk smirked.
"Are they?" Astrea grinned as Syerk's smirk fell. Astrea held the rope in front of her." It's simple really. All I had to do was dislocate my wrists so it would slide off." She explained as she popped her wrist back into place. She then grabbed the rope at each end, wrapping it around her hands once, before rushing to Syerk and holding it against his neck but not tight enough to suffocate him. "Any last words your 'Highness'?"
"Get her!!" He yelled to his guards.
The guards all advanced on her and she pulled a pocket knife out of her pocket. She grabbed the guard closest to her and as she raised it to the guards throat a familiar voice rang out in panic stopping her in her tracks. She turned around to where the voice came from and froze, dropping her weapon.
She saw the Doctor, Amy, Rory, Alison, River and the Master at the entrance of the throne room. The Doctor, Amy, Rory and Alison had wide eyes, looking at her in shock. She locked eyes with the Doctor and her walls crumbled letting her good side surface for a mere moment. "Doctor..." She whispered, not being able to think correctly. During this moment of shock the King motioned for the guards to grab a hold of her, knocking her back into fighting mode. She struggled against all the Dyrin holding her back. "I'd have you all taken out by now if he didn't show up bringing goody-two-shoes to the surface." Astrea growled, motioning towards the Doctor when she said 'he'. Syerk took note of what she just said while the Doctor wore a look of hurt at her words of hatred.
"You seem to have control over this weapon." Syerk said to the Doctor as Astrea struggled in the background.
"She's not a weapon!" Alison shouted. "You must have done something to make her like this."
"I only helped to release the being she locked away. Her true self. We needed a weapon to help defend our planet but she's only destroying it." Syerk defended, explaining what his intentions were.
"She's not a weapon!" Alison exclaimed again. "Ast isn't like this. She wouldn't do anything like this." She said looking at Ast.
"Believe it, girly." The Master said. "This is who she is. I know that for a fact." He smirked looking at the Time Lady as anger and hatred flared in her eyes as she broke free with a new found strength. Her target being her dad.
In a flash the both of them were on the floor, Ast beating the Master. "It's all your fault!!" She shouted with each strike, letting out her anger on him. Rory and the Doctor ran and pulled her back by her arms, away from the Master. "Let me GO!!!" She yelled.
"You need to calm down." The Doctor said softly in her ear. "Please."
"I don't need to calm down." She shot back, yanking her arms from their grip. As she turned around to face them she knew what she was gonna say next will hit them hard. "I'm not the girl you flew about in your TARDIS with. She is long gone. This is who I am so learn to accept that. If not then you know where the frigging door is." She glared at them all as she spoke, her gaze fixating on the Master as she continued, "Because you won't be leaving this planet alive if you stay any longer."
Alison covered her mouth in shock "You don't mean that." She whispered.
"What changed you?" Amy asked. "What made you like this?"
"What made me like this?!" Ast scoffed. She pointed to the Master and said. "That dingbat you call a 'friend' made me like this. There is a lot of things I can tell you related to him that you wouldn't have known about but, then again, as people would say 'you don't know what happens behind closed doors.' And there is a lot that has happened behind closed doors that makes me want to put him six feet under. So don't even SAY what has changed me because this is who I am and who I always was. The person you know was all an act. I'm back and nothing's going to change."
Rory then spoke up saying, "Ast, I think everyone will agree with me, bar the Master and River, when I say that we won't stop until we changed you into the Time Lady we travelled with."
"And how are you going to do that?" She questioned. "You're just stupid humans, Dyrin and Time Lords. You can't do anything."
"But together we can rid you of this universe." Syerk said.
"I agree with high and mighty here." The Master said.
"So do I. He has a good point." River agreed.
"No." The Doctor said stepping forward.
"No?" River and the Master asked.
"What do you mean 'no.' She's killed thousands of my people! She needs to be destroyed before she does more damage!" Syerk exclaimed.
"She's my responsibility. If anyone can change her it would be me." The Doctor explained.
"I'm no ones pet, Doctor." Ast spat. "I'm like this because this is what the Universe is like. I was fortunate enough to learn that at a young age. It's a cold, dark Universe, Doc and the only way to survive is to be cold and dark back." She said.
"Ast, would you stop talking like that!" Alison shouted. "You need to open your eyes and look around! Not everything is like that!" Alison stopped and took a deep breath to calm herself down. "You have friends who love you but by the way you've been acting you're gonna end up pushing us away."
Astrea didn't say anything because she didn't know how to respond to that. Instead she gripped her head and let out a scream of frustration. A war was starting to break out in her mind. Her good self, tucked away in the back of her mind, agreed with Alison and wanted to stop what she was saying and doing but her current self was fighting back; wanting her to continue the way she was going.
The Doctor stepped forward and grabbed Astrea by the shoulders and said so softly to her that only the two of them can hear, "Ast, you didn't judge me when I told you I destroyed Gallifrey. You didn't shout or scream or run off. You stayed with me. So, I'm asking you, would you stop what you're doing? I'm not gonna judge you or abandon you afterwards. Just please, stop it."
Ast looked up at the Doctor before pushing him away. "The only reason I didn't blame you for the destruction of Gallifrey is because I have nothing good to say about that planet." She turned around and looked towards the other Time Lord. "As well as a certain Time Lord." She said walking towards the Master, grabbing a sword from a near by guard. The Master backed up as she approached. "And I think it's about time I ended it."
Before Astrea was able to lift up her arms to strike she heard a faint 'I'm Sorry' and a buzzing sound before blacking out.
~ It's late, I know, I'm sorry. Please don't kill me. (Hides from readers) I got stuck half way through the chapter and couldn't think of a way to continue it so I asked a friend of mine to help me finish this chapter and she did. (YAY!!!) Also I have planned out the rest of the story until the end and I'm sad to say there is, roughly, seven chapters left. (I think. Its a rough estimate.) Love you guys.
~Coco10~