The Time of Angels
Field...
A man in a uniform is standing in the middle of a field, with a smudge of lipstick on his face. He appears to be rather dizzy. A man in evening dress walks up to him.
"It's a beautiful day." The guard said.
The man in evening dress wipes the lipstick with the corner of his handkerchief.
Corridor...
"Hallucinogenic lipstick. She's here." Alistair said.
A woman strides along in a evening dress and ridiculously high heels. She is with a girl in a red and white Japanese school girl uniform.
"River, you sure this will work?" The girl asked.
"Rena, darling, when am I ever wrong?" River asked, shooting out a door lock with a small pistol and she entered a small strong room with Rena. "You enjoyed the after party for Sayuki's concert, right?"
"I did." Rena said, annoyed. "But that doesn't give you the right to break in here. Just to get the Doctor's attention."
"Don't you know this is my way of calling him?" River asked, converting the pistol into an acetylene torch and cuts into the surface of a box. "And calling Jared, I don't know when my special darling is at anyway."
Museum...
12,000 years later.
The Doctor is commenting on the labelling of the various exhibits, "Wrong. Wrong. Bit right, mostly wrong. I love museums."
"Yeah, great. Can we go to a planet now? Big space ship? Churchill's bunker? You and Jared promised me a planet next." Amy said, angrily.
"Amy, this isn't any old asteroid. It's the Delerium Archive, the final resting place of the headless monks. The biggest museum ever." The Doctor said.
"Um, does this museum have a flower shop?" Kaede asked.
"A flower shop?" Jared asked, looking at the red haired Magical Girl. "Seriously?"
"She likes flowers." Momoko said, happily. "I thought you knew that by now."
"But still. Where the hell is Rena?"
"She hadn't been picking up her phone." Kaede said, looking around. "But museums, they're cool, um, I guess."
"You've got a time machine. What do you need museums for?" Amy asked, looking at the Doctor.
"Wrong. Very wrong. Ooo, one of mine. Also one of mine." The Doctor said.
Jared then spots a Soul Gem display of Magical Girls he recognized, which creeped him out immensely, "Madoka, Sayaka, Kyoko, Homura, Mami…"
"How did they end up here?" Momoko asked.
"How is that possible?" Kaede asked.
"I knew they would be dead someday." Jared said, spotting more Soul Gems. "Iroha, Yachiyo, Tsuruno, Felicia, Sana…"
The fanboy then spotted the Soul Gems of Momoko, Rena, and Kaede in the same display case, he then ran in front of it to cover it up, "Spoilers."
"Oh, I see. It's how you keep score." Amy said, and the Doctor is very taken by a square box in a case. "And Jared is covering a case for some reason."
"Let's leave Jared be." Momoko said, walking up to the Doctor and Amy.
"Oh, okay." Kaede said, sadly.
"Oh great, an old box." Amy said, annoyed.
"It's from one of the old starliners. A Home Box." The Doctor said.
"What's a Home Box?" Kaede asked.
"Like a black box on a plane, except it homes. Anything happens to the ship, the Home Box flies home with all the flight data."
"So?" Amy asked.
"The writing, the graffiti. Old High Gallifreyan. The lost language of the Time Lords." The Doctor said, and it is what River was burning into the surface of the box 12,000 years ago. "There were days, there were many days, these words could burn stars and raise up empires, and topple gods."
"Well, what does it say?" Momoko asked.
"Hello, sweetie, darling." The Doctor said.
"Goddamn it." Jared said, looking at Momoko and Kaede. "I just figured out where Rena is. And where she's been. She's with her. Probably been seeing idol concerts."
Back in the past, River Song winks at a security camera with Rena standing next to her. In the present, an alarm is sounding and guards are chasing the Doctor, Amy, Jared, Momoko, and Kaede back to the Tardis.
Corridor…
"Party's over, Doctor Song, Miss Minami." Alistair said.
Tardis…
"Um, why are we doing this?" Kaede asked.
"Because someone on a spaceship twelve thousand years ago is trying to attract our attention. Let's see if we can get the security playback working." The Doctor said, and he has stolen the Home Box.
"Of course the tsundere would be with the flirty badass." Jared said, leaning against the TARDIS console. "Rena, you had to see concerts with River, without us, didn't you?"
The playback shows River winking at the camera with Rena standing next to her.
"The party's over, Doctor Song, Miss Minami…" Alistair said, on screen.
Corridor…
"Yet still the both of you are on board." Alistair said.
Tardis…
"Sorry, Alistair." River said, on screen.
Corridor…
"Rena and I needed to see what was in your vault. Do you all know what's down there? Any of you?" River asked.
"They're being massive idiots since they don't know. And they're gonna regret it." Rena said, crossing her arms. "Let me tell you something. This ship won't reach its destination."
"Wait till they run. Don't make it look like an execution." Alistair said.
"Triple seven five…" River said.
Tardis...
"Slash three four nine by ten." River said, on screen.
Corridor…
"Zero twelve slash acorn." River said.
Tardis…
"Oh, and Rena and I could do with an air corridor." River said, on screen.
"This is a really stupid idea." Rena said, on screen. "Kaede won't approve of it."
"Oh, she does."
"No, no, I don't." Kaede said, sadly.
"Come on, let's plug them in, Spaceman, Momoko." Jared said, happily inputting the coordinates with the Doctor and Momoko. "Time to save the tsundere and the badass flirt."
"What was that? What did she say?" Amy asked.
"Coordinates." The Doctor said.
Corridor…
"Like I said on the dance floor, you might want to find something to hang on to." River said.
River and Rena are standing in front of an airlock. She blows a kiss and it opens. Alistair and his guards hang onto rails as River and Rena are sucked out, backwards.
"Woah!" Rena said, admiring the view of space.
The Tardis materialises in their flight path.
Tardis…
"Whoo!" The Doctor said.
"Rena really is like Poseidon." Jared said, as he and the Doctor opened both TARDIS doors. "She really goes with the flow."
"Now's not the time for jokes and pop culture references!" Rena said, angrily.
The Doctor and Jared hold out their hands and River Song and Rena Minami come sailing in. River lands on top of the Doctor and Rena lands on top of Jared.
"Doctor?" Amy asked.
"Jared?" Kaede asked. "Rena? Are you okay?"
"River?" The Doctor asked.
"Rena, the hell were you doing with River!" Jared said, annoyed. "Don't tell me it was…"
"No time to explain…" Rena said, looking at Jared. "This is important, and you already know it, you and the Doctor have to…"
"….follow that ship." River said.
"Well, come on then, we don't have all day." Rena said, getting off of Jared. "There's six of us. Let's fly this goddamn ship."
"No, no, no." The Doctor said, running to the TARDIS console with River. "You're as much of a tsundere like Jared. He's changed to become more like you, Rena."
So we started following the ship.
"They've gone into warp drive. We're losing them. Stay close." River said, flicking switches with the Doctor.
"I'm trying." The Doctor said.
"For god's sake, use the training wheels!" Jared said, looking at the Doctor.
"There aren't any training wheels."
"They're the blue switches, Raggedy Man!"
"Oh, the blue ones don't do anything, they're just blue." The Doctor said.
"Yes, they're blue. Look, they're the blue stabilisers or as Jared calls them, the training wheels." River said, pressing them and the Tardis stops shaking. "See?"
"Yeah. Well, it's just boring now, isn't it? They're boring-ers. They're blue boring-ers."
"Doctor, Jared, how come she can fly the Tardis?" Amy asked.
"You call that flying the Tardis? Ha!"
"Okay. I've mapped the probability vectors, done a fold-back on the temporal isometry, charted the ship to its destination, and parked us right along side." River said.
"Parked us? We haven't landed."
"Of course we've landed. I just landed her."
"But, it didn't make the noise." The Doctor said.
"What noise?" River asked.
"You know, the…" The Doctor said, imitating the wheezing noise.
"Don't do that." Rena said, crossing her arms. "That's just stupid."
"Why not?" Momoko asked. "I like that noise."
"Same." Kaede said, happily. "Um, that noise brings hope."
"Girls, I hope you know this. It's not supposed to make that noise. Doctor, you leave the brakes on." River said, looking at the Doctor.
"Yeah, well, it's a brilliant noise. I love that noise. Come along, Pond, Jared, KMR triangle. Let's have a look." The Doctor said.
"No, wait. Environment checks." River said.
"Oh yes, sorry. Quite right. Environment checks." The Doctor said.
"Um, is it dangerous?" Kaede asked. "Can we breathe out there?"
The Doctor opens the Tardis door and looks out, "Nice out."
"We're somewhere in the Garn Belt. There's an atmosphere. Early indications suggest that…" River said.
"We're on Alfava Metraxis, the seventh planet of the Dundra System. Oxygen rich atmosphere, all toxins in the soft band, eleven hour day and chances of rain later." The Doctor said.
"He thinks he's so hot when he does that." River said.
"How come you can fly the Tardis?" Amy asked.
"Oh, Jared and I had lessons from the very best." River said, happily.
"Well, yeah."
"It's a shame you and Jared were busy that day when I learned how to fly her. Jared learned how to fly her before me. Right then, why did they land here?"
"They didn't land." Momoko said.
"Wait, what?" Rena asked.
"You should've checked the Home Box. It crashed." The Doctor said.
River leaves.
"Explain. Who is that and how did she do that museum thing?" Amy asked.
"It's a long story and I don't know most of it." The Doctor said. "Only Jared does."
"Yup. Let's get going, Doctor. I really don't want to deal with what's out there. After I had a day of exposition with Team RNJR. Talk about boring." Jared said, leaning against the TARDIS. "I know what's out there. And I don't like this adventure. Let's get going."
"You're right. You do know the future more than me. And I trust you more than River. Off we go." The Doctor said.
"Um, what are you doing?" Kaede asked.
"Leaving. She's got where she wants to go, let's go where we want to go." The Doctor said.
"Are the both of you basically running away?" Amy asked.
"Yep."
"I ran away from going up against Salem for a year. I want to do it for River too. And the threat out there." Jared said, taking out bubble tea to drink it.
"Why? Don't you want to see River?" Momoko asked.
"Because she's the future. My future and the Doctor's. I know the future as much as River. I don't know if I'm still there in the future. That's all."
"Can you run away from that?" Amy asked.
"We can run away from anything we like. Time is not the boss of us." The Doctor said.
"Hang on, is that a planet out there?"
"Yes, of course it's a planet."
"You and Jared promised me a planet. Five minutes?"
"Okay, five minutes."
"Yes!"
"But that's all, because we're telling you now, that woman is not dragging us into anything."
(Jared's POV)
Planet surface…
"The Crash of the Byzantium." I said, looking at the once sleek spaceship that is now a burning wreck sticking out of a rock-carved building. "That took forever to get to. Why did I take the long way around? Ugh!"
"What caused it to crash?" Amy asked.
"Not me and Rena." River said.
"Nah, the airlock would've sealed seconds after you blew it. According to the Home Box, the warp engines had a phase shift. No survivors." The Doctor said.
"A phase shift would have to be sabotage. I did warn them."
"About what?"
"Well, at least the building was empty. Aplan temple. Unoccupied for centuries."
"Aren't you going to introduce us?" Amy asked.
"Amy Pond, Professor River Song." The Doctor said.
"Ah, I'm going to be a Professor some day, am I? How exciting. Spoilers." River said, happily.
"So, River, why did she want to hang out with me?" Rena asked, telepathically. "I never knew she liked idols."
"Neither did I." I said, telepathically. "Did she look after you?"
"Yes. Momoko, Kaede. How many concerts of μ's and Aqours did I miss?"
"Oh, new songs came out for them." Kaede said, smiling.
"We're nobody's taxi service. I'm not going to be there to catch you or Jared every time the both of you feel like jumping out of a space ship." The Doctor said, angrily. "Rena was the exception."
"And you are so wrong." River said.
"You really are, Spaceman. I need to perfect my landing strategy. Each and every time I jump off of helicopters or ships." I said, laughing a lot.
"There's one survivor. There's a thing in the belly of that ship that can't ever die. Now he's listening." River said, using her communicator. "You lot in orbit yet? Yeah, I saw it land. I'm at the crash site. Try and home in on my signal. Doctor, can you sonic me? I need to boost the signal so we can use it as a beacon."
He does, grudgingly.
"Ooo, Doctor, you sonicked her." Amy said, happily.
"We have a minute. Shall we?" River asked, while she got out her Tardis-style diary. "Where are we all up to? Have we done the Bone Meadows?"
"Bone Meadows?" I asked, walking towards River. "What's that?"
"Oh, right, a bit early. Whoops. You brought Team RWBY. The Doctor and I were there too."
"I wonder if it was fun then, the Bone Meadows."
"Um, the Bone Meadows." Kaede said, sadly. "That sounds dangerous."
"Our diary." River said.
"Her past, my future and Jared's future. Time travel. We keep meeting in the wrong order." The Doctor said.
Four small tornadoes kick up the dust and turn into four soldiers.
"You promised me an army, Doctor Song." Octavian said.
"No, I promised you the equivalent of an army. This is the Doctor and Jared." River said.
"Father Octavian, Gentlemen. Bishop, second class. Twenty clerics at my command. The troops are already in the drop ship and landing shortly. Doctor Song was helping us with a covert investigation. Has Doctor Song explained what we're dealing with?" Octavian asked.
"Doctor, Jared, what do you know of the Weeping Angels?"
Camp…
"How is he?" Kaede asked, looking at me.
"I think Jared needs someone to talk to him." Momoko said.
Night had fallen and the rest of the troops have arrived with their supplies in a small drop ship, like a container unit.
"Who would want to talk to him? He tried to get too close to Miku." Rena said, crossing her arms.
"I think, I think that was an accident." Kaede said.
They have set up camp around it.
"Let's all be there for him." Momoko said, happily.
"The Angel, as far as we know, is still trapped in the ship. Our mission is to get inside and neutralise it. We can't get through up top, we'd be too close to the drives. According to this, behind the cliff face there's a network of catacombs leading right up to the temple. We can blow through the base of the cliffs, get into the entrance chamber, then make our way up." Octavian said.
"Oh, well, that's good." I said, sipping on some bubble tea. "Climbing something like that. I know how much of a climb it is to get to the very top. And dealing with Weeping Angels. It's like navigating through a Witch's labyrinth."
"Good, sir?" Octavian asked.
"Catacombs. Probably dark ones. Dark catacombs. Great." The Doctor said.
"Technically, I think it's called a maze of the dead." Octavian said.
"Can you stop, please?" I asked, still sipping on the bubble tea. "Coconut taro, my favorite."
"Father Octavian?" A soldier asked, nearby.
"Excuse me, gentlemen." Octavian said, leaving.
"The both of you are letting people call yourselves sir. You never do that. So, whatever a Weeping Angel is, it's really bad, yeah?" Amy asked.
"Now that's interesting. You're still here. Which part of wait in the Tardis till we tell you it's safe was so confusing?" The Doctor asked.
"Like Amy, you have no way of defending yourself against some Weeping Angels. At least Magical Girls can somewhat defend themselves against it. Even if their magic isn't made to go up against Weeping Angels. But Witches, Familiars, and Uwasa, they could slow the Weeping Angels down." I said, looking at Amy. "Come on, get inside the TARDIS."
"Ooo, Doctor, you are all Mister Grumpy Face, and Jared, you are all tsundere today." Amy said, happily.
"A Weeping Angel, Amy, is the deadliest, most powerful, most malevolent life form evolution has ever produced, and right now one of them is trapped inside that wreckage and I'm supposed to climb in after it with a screwdriver and a torch, and Jared is supposed to climb in with some Magical Girls and his pendant and a torch, and assuming we survive the radiation long enough and assuming the whole ship doesn't explode in our faces, do something incredibly clever which we haven't actually thought of yet. That's our day. That's what we're up to. Any questions?" The Doctor asked.
"Doctor, is River Song your wife? Because she's someone from your future, and she's someone from Jared's future, the way she talks to you, I've never seen anyone do that. She's kind of like, you know, heel, boy. She's Mrs Doctor from the future, isn't she? Doctor, is she going to be your wife one day?" Amy asked.
"Amelia, shut up, please." I said, looking at the Doctor's future mother in law. "You're asking too many questions I have the answers for. And you have no idea how much I want to spoil it right now. If events are the same!"
"Yes, you're right. I am definitely Mister Grumpy Face and Jared is a tsundere today." The Doctor said.
Momoko, Rena, and Kaede walk towards where River is when they see an opening.
River calls from the drop module. She has changed into combat fatigues, "Doctor! Jared! Doctor? Jared?"
"Oops. Her indoors." Amy said, smiling.
"Father Octavian." River said.
"Why do they call him Father?"
"He's their Bishop, they're his Clerics. It's the fifty first Century. The Church has moved on." The Doctor said.
Drop ship…
"So, um, that's a Weeping Angel." Kaede said, grabbing my hand.
A grainy image of a Weeping Angel with its back towards them is on a monitor on the far wall.
"Yup." I said, letting out a sigh. "Never thought I would face one again after over three years. Or what feels like it."
"What do you think? It's from the security cameras in the Byzantium vault. I ripped it when I was on board with Rena. Sorry about the quality. It's four seconds. I've put it on loop." River said.
"Yeah, it's an Angel. Hands covering its face." The Doctor said.
"The both of you have encountered the Angels before." Octavian said.
"Once, on Earth, a long time ago. But those were scavengers, barely surviving."
"The Doctor and I tricked four of them. Had them facing each other." I said, smiling. "Got temporarily separated from Ren and Nora. And met Sally Sparrow and Larry Nightingale in the process. Smart girl and clever man."
"But it's just a statue." Momoko said.
"It's a statue when you see it." River said.
"Where did it come from? That Weeping Angel." Momoko said.
"Oh, pulled from the ruins of Razbahan, end of last century. It's been in private hands ever since. Dormant all that time." River said.
"Um, there's a difference between dormant and patient." Kaede said.
"What's that mean, it's a statue when you see it?" Amy asked.
"The Weeping Angels can only move if they're unseen. So legend has it." River said.
"No, it's not legend, it's a quantum lock. In the sight of any living creature the Angels literally cease to exist. They're just stone. The ultimate defence mechanism." The Doctor said.
"What, being a stone?" Amy asked.
"Well, Weeping Angels are stone statues, until you turn your back." I said, grabbing Momoko's hand. "And then after that, it's trouble. That's why I'm scared of them. Always been scared. As much as the Master to be honest."
I left the drop ship with the Doctor, River, Octavian, Momoko, and Rena.
Camp…
"The hyperdrive would've split on impact. That whole ship's going to be flooded with drive burn radiation, cracked electrons, gravity storms. Deadly to almost any living thing." The Doctor said.
"Deadly to an Angel?" Octavian asked.
"It's dinner to an Angel." I said, eating some custard donuts.
"I assume the longer we leave it there, the stronger it will grow." Momoko said.
"Who built that temple? Are they still around?" The Doctor asked.
"The Aplans. Indigenous life form. They died out four hundred years ago." River said.
"Two hundred years later, the planet was terraformed. Currently there are six billion human colonists." Octavian said.
"Whoo! You lot, you're everywhere. You're like rabbits. I'll never get done saving you." The Doctor said.
"Sir, if there is a clear and present danger to the local population…" Octavian said.
"Since it's the Doctor and Jared." Rena said, looking between the Doctor and I. "It's obviously gonna be bad. The Doctor's a trouble magnet, and Jared is jeopardy friendly."
"Bishop, girls, lock and load." I said, smiling. "We're hunting down some Angels."
"Verger, how are we doing with those explosives? Doctor Song, with me." Octavian said.
"Two minutes. Sweetie, darling, I need you, tsundere, and bad timing." River said.
"Sweetie?" The Doctor asked.
"Darling?" I asked. "River, how close are we in the future…"
"Anybody need me and Kaede? Nobody?" Amy asked.
Amy and Kaede goes back into the Module and look at the image of the Angel on the monitor. It's face is raised from his hands and starting to look over its shoulder.
"I found this. Definitive work on the Angels. Well, the only one. Written by a madman. It's barely readable, but I've marked a few passages." River said.
The Doctor riffles through the pages of the book, "Not bad. Bit slow in the middle. Didn't you hate his girlfriend? No. No, hang on. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait."
"Don't do that." Rena said, when the Doctor sniffs the book. "That's just gross. And weird."
"Doctor Song? Um, did you have more than one clip of the Angel?" Kaede asked. "Because it moved."
"No, just the four seconds." River said.
"This book is wrong. What's wrong with this book? It's wrong." The Doctor said.
The Angel is now looking straight at the viewer, hands completely lowered. The time stamp has moved as far as 00:11:28:04 before jumping back to 00:11:24:23. When Amy and Kaede looks at the monitor again, it is closer to the camera. The module door closes and locks behind them.
"It's so strange when you go all baby face, Doctor, and when you go all tsundere, Jared. How early is this for the both of you?" River asked.
"Very early." The Doctor said.
"Really early. Team RWBY hasn't reunited yet." I said, sadly.
"You need them." Rena said, annoyed. "You can't keep dragging us around like you own us."
"Rena, we're looking out for him." Momoko said, frowning. "Since he's as reckless as the Doctor."
"So Doctor, you don't know who I am yet? While Jared knows who I am." River said.
"How do you know who I am? I don't always look the same." The Doctor said.
"Doctor, I've got pictures of all your faces. You and Jared never show up in the right order, though. I need the spotter's guide."
"Pictures. Why aren't there pictures?"
(Open POV)
Drop ship…
"Um, maybe we should turn it off." Kaede said.
"Right." Amy said, as she tried turning off the monitor, but it comes back on again, and again, and again. "It didn't work!"
"Oh, how about we pull the cord?" Kaede asked, moving closer to the monitor.
"But you're just a recording. You can't move." Amy said, as she tried to pull out the lead to the monitor.
"Amy!" Kaede said, shocked.
When Amy and Kaede looks back up, the Angel is up close to the camera, but the time stamp is still running through the same four seconds.
"Doctor?" Amy asked.
"We, we need to get out of here." Kaede said, knowing that this is bad.
Amy and Kaede cannot open the door.
"Yeah." Amy said, and the Angel's mouth is open. "Doctor!"
Camp...
"This whole book, it's a warning about the Weeping Angels, so why no pictures? Why not show us what to look out for?" The Doctor asked.
"There was a bit about images. What was that?" River asked.
"Yes. Hang on." The Doctor said, reading the page. "That which holds the image of an angel becomes itself an angel."
Drop ship...
"Doctor! Jared!" Kaede said, worried.
Camp...
"What does that mean? An image of a Angel becomes itself an Angel." Rena said.
Drop ship…
"The Angel…" Kaede said, looking at the Angel. "How did it get in here?"
A image of the angel is inside.
"Doctor! Jared! It's in the room!" Amy said, terrified.
Camp…
"Amy! Kaede!" Jared said, running towards the door.
"Doctor! Jared!" Amy said, her voice coming out of the drop ship.
"You okay with Kaede? The hell is going on in there?"
Drop ship…
"Doctor? Jared? It's, it's coming out of the television." Kaede said, looking at the Angel.
Outside the drop ship…
"The, the Angel is here." Kaede said, her voice coming from inside the drop ship. "It's with us!"
The Doctor sonicks the keypad lock, "Both of you. Don't take your eyes off it. Keep looking. It can't move if you're looking."
"What's wrong?" Momoko asked, looking at the Doctor.
"Deadlocked." The Doctor said.
"There is no deadlock." River said.
"Don't blink, Amy, Kaede. Don't even blink."
Drop ship…
"Doctor. Jared." Amy said.
Outside the drop ship…
"What are you doing?" Rena asked, looking at the Doctor.
"Cutting the power. It's using the screen, I'm turning the screen off. No good, it's deadlocked the whole system." The Doctor said.
"There's no deadlock." River said.
"There is now."
"Help us! Momoko! Rena!" Kaede said, her voice coming from the drop ship.
"Can one of you turn it off?" The Doctor asked.
Drop ship…
"Doctor. Jared." Amy said.
"Ugh, turn off the screen." Rena said, her voice coming from outside. "One of you. Okay? Can you do that?"
"Rena, we tried." Kaede said.
"Girls, try again." Jared said, his voice coming from outside.
Outside the drop ship…
"But don't look away from the Angel." Jared said, grabbing Momoko's hand.
Drop ship…
"We're not." Amy said.
Outside the drop ship…
"Each time it moves, it'll move faster. Don't even blink." The Doctor said.
River is trying to cut through the door with her pistol torch.
Drop ship…
Amy tries closing one eye at a time, "I'm not blinking. Have you ever tried not blinking?"
"I'll get the remote!" Kaede said, as she walks forward and tries to feel for the remote control. "Um, it keeps turning back on."
Outside the drop ship…
"I know, it's the Angel." Jared said, sadly,
Drop ship...
"But it's just a recording." Amy said.
Outside the drop ship…
"No, anything that takes the image of an Angel is an Angel. What are you doing?" the Doctor asked, looking at River.
"I'm trying to cut through. It's not even warm." River said.
"There's no way in. It's not physically possible. Without Shizuku's help." Rena said, her hand on her hip.
Drop ship…
"Doctor, Jared, what's it going to do to me and Kaede?" Amy asked.
Outside the drop ship...
"Kaede, stay calm with Amy. Just keep looking at it. Don't stop looking." Momoko said. "You'll get out of this."
Drop ship...
"Just tell us." Amy said.
Outside the drop ship…
The Doctor runs and gets the book.
"Tell us. Tell us!" Amy said, her voice coming from the inside the drop ship.
"Amy, Kaede, not the eyes." The Doctor said.
Drop ship...
"Look at the Angel but don't look at the eyes." The Doctor said, his voice from outside.
Drop ship...
"Why?" Kaede asked.
Outside the drop ship…
"What is it? What's in there?" Rena asked.
"The eyes are not the windows of the soul. They are the doors. Beware what may enter there." The Doctor said, reading the page aloud.
Drop ship…
"Doctor, what did you say?" Amy asked.
"Don't look at the eyes!" The Doctor said, his voice outside.
"No, about images. What did you say about images?"
Outside the drop ship...
"Whatever holds the image of an Angel, is an Angel." Momoko said.
Drop ship…
"Okay, hold this. One, two, three, four." Amy said, pressing pause on the remote just as the tape loop returns to the start.
"I hope this works." Kaede said, when the image turns to static.
"Kaede." Momoko said, looking at the plant loving ginger. "I hope you're okay from that. Being stuck in there with Amy."
The Doctor, River, Jared, Momoko, and Rena burst in as the monitor turns off.
"I'm fine." Kaede said, smiling. "Amy did something cool."
"I did. I froze it. There was a sort of blip on the tape and I froze it on the blip. It wasn't the image of an Angel any more. That was good, yeah? It was, wasn't it? That was pretty good." Amy said, happily.
"That was amazing." River said.
"River, hug Amy. Rena, hug Kaede." The Doctor said.
River and Rena did as they were told.
"Momoko, Rena, Kaede, I messed up, hard." Jared said, telepathically. "I remembered details about this adventure."
"Such as?" Rena asked, telepathically.
"I shouldn't have brought Magical Girls here in the first place."
"You can tell us more later." Momoko said, telepathically. "We stopped the Angel. Kaede's fine."
"I'm fine. I think." Kaede said, telepathically.
"So it was here? That was the Angel?" River asked.
"That was a projection of the Angel. It's reaching out, getting a good look at us. It's no longer dormant." The Doctor said.
"And it got a really good look at Kaede." Jared said, and there is an explosion outside. "I don't like this."
Camp…
"Last one positive." A cleric said.
"Doctor? Jared? We're through." Octavian said.
Drop ship…
"Okay, now it starts." The Doctor said.
Jared left the room with the Doctor and the KMR triangle.
"Coming?" River asked.
"Yeah, coming. There's just something in my eye." Amy said.
(Jared's POV)
Entrance chamber…
"This looks a bit unsafe." Kaede said.
We all climb down a rope ladder into a very large underground space.
"Do we have a gravity globe?" The Doctor asked.
"Grav globe." Octavian said.
A Cleric hands a globe to the Doctor.
"Where are we? What is this?" Amy asked.
"It's an Aplan Mortarium, sometimes called a Maze of the Dead." River said.
"What's that?" Rena asked.
"Well, if you happen to be a creature of living stone…" The Doctor said, kicking the globe into the air, where it illuminates a vast array of mausoleums and statuary. "The perfect hiding place."
"This made things a bit trickier." Rena said. "Just what we needed."
"Yup." I said, looking down at Aqours. "Aqours, set up."
The armor went on me quickly, knowing that I don't have time to rush today. Ebb and Flow appeared in my hands, in dual pistol form.
"A stone Angel on the loose amongst stone statues. A lot harder than I'd prayed for." Octavian said.
"It's like finding a needle in a haystack." Momoko said.
"A needle that looks like hay. A hay-like needle of death. A hay-alike needle of death in a haystack of, er, statues. No, yours was fine." The Doctor said.
"Right. Check every single statue in this chamber. You know what you're looking for. Complete visual inspection. One question. How do we fight it?" Octavian asked.
"We find it and hope it doesn't kill us." I said, running off with the KMR triangle.
Octavian stops River, "They don't know yet, do they? Who and what you are."
"It's too early in their time streams. Jared knows, but he doesn't know who killed him yet. And he knows not to tell people he doesn't trust, but the Doctor doesn't know yet. About what I did." River said.
"Well, make sure neither of them works it out, or they're not going to help us." Octavian said.
"I won't let you down. Believe you me, I have no intention of going back to prison." River said.
"Sir? Side chamber. One visible exit." Christian said.
"Check it out. Angelo, go with him." Octavian said.
Maze…
"I hope to god there aren't more stairs in the future." I said, groaning. "I hate them so much! God!"
The Doctor, Amy, the KMR triangle, and I start up the terraces.
Kaede pauses to rub her eye, and stone dust falls out between her fingers, "Um…"
"Kaede? You okay?" Momoko asked.
"I, I'm fine." Kaede said, looking down at her hand. "I think. Don't worry about me."
"Oh, it's not as bad as it sounds. It's just a labyrinth with dead people buried in the walls. Okay, that was fairly bad. Right give me your arm. This won't hurt a bit." River said, injecting Amy.
"Ow!" Amy said, angrily.
"There, you see. I lied. It's a viro-stabiliser. Stabilises your metabolism against radiation, drive burn, anything. You're going to need it when we get up to that ship."
"So, can your Aura and our magic handle whatever is on the ship?" Rena asked, telepathically.
"Maybe." I said, pacing back and forth.
"Maybe?" Rena asked, telepathically. "So, you don't know."
"Nope. I don't." I said, telepathically.
"Sorry, what?" The Doctor asked.
"Talking about you." River said.
"I wasn't listening. I'm busy."
"Ah. The other way up."
The Doctor turns River's portable computer around, "Yeah."
"You're so the Doctor's wife." Amy said, happily. "And you're so Jared's best mate."
"Oh, Amy, Amy, Amy. This is the Doctor and Jared we're talking about. Do you really think it could be anything that simple?" River asked.
"Yep."
"You're good. I'm not saying you're right, but you are very good."
(Open POV)
Entrance chamber…
"So, Kaede, are you okay?" Jared asked, walking towards the red haired Magical Girl.
"I'm fine." Kaede said, grabbing Jared's hand. "Um, how about you?"
"Besides me being scared of losing you, I'm fine too. Momoko, Rena?"
"Why did you bring us to this mess?" Rena asked. "What's wrong with you?"
"What's wrong with me?" Jared asked. "Why did you go to idol concerts with River Song?"
"Because she's cool. And she kicks ass with a gun."
"That is true…"
"And she knows how to fly the TARDIS. I can go to a concert with her and pop back a couple seconds later."
"Guys, there's no need for a fight." Momoko said, looking between Jared and Rena.
"Yeah, you're right." Jared said, sadly.
Gunfire. The Doctor, River, Amy, Jared, and the KMR triangle run back to the main group. A young Cleric has shot up a statue.
"Sorry, sorry. I thought. I thought it looked at me." Bob said.
"We know what the Angel looks like. Is that the Angel?" Octavian asked.
"No, sir."
"No, sir, it is not. According to the Doctor and Jared, 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."
"Hi, um, what's your name?" Jared asked, holding Kaede's hand.
"Bob, sir." Bob said.
"Ah, that's a great name. I love Bob." The Doctor said.
"It's a Sacred Name. We all have Sacred Names. They're given to us in the service of the Church." Octavian said.
"Sacred Bob. More like Scared Bob now, eh?"
"Yes, sir." Bob said.
"Ah, good. Scared keeps you fast. Anyone in this room who isn't scared is a moron. Carry on."
"We'll be moving into the maze in two minutes. You stay with Christian and Angelo. Guard the approach." Octavian said.
Maze...
"Isn't there a chance this lot's just going to collapse? There's a whole ship up there." Amy said.
"Incredible builders, the Aplans." River said.
"Had dinner with their Chief Architect once. Two heads are better than one." The Doctor said.
"What, you mean you helped him?" Amy asked.
"No, I mean he had two heads." The Doctor said.
"Wait, River, I must have forgotten little details again. At the very end of the book, what did it say?" Jared asked.
"Hang on." River said, flipping through the pages.
"Read it to me. Please."
"What if we had ideas that could think for themselves? What if one day our dreams no longer needed us? When these things occur and are held to be true, the time will be upon us. The time of Angels."
"This is a lot of stairs." Kaede said, holding Jared's hand.
"Are we there yet? It's one hell of a climb." Rena said, losing her patience.
"The Maze is on six levels, representing the ascent of the soul. Only two levels to go." River said.
"Lovely species, the Aplans. We should visit them some time." The Doctor said.
"I thought they were all dead?" Amy asked.
"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." The Doctor said.
"Doctor, there's something. I don't know what it is." River said.
"Wait, there's something I don't get." Momoko said, studying the statues closely. "If the Aplans have two heads, why do all the statues here only have one?"
"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 said.
"Quite a lot taken, if that's all right, Doctor. Lowest point in the wreckage is only about fifty feet up from here. That way." Octavian said.
"The Church had a point, if you think about it. The divorces must have been messy." Amy said.
"Oh. You do have a point there, Momoko." The Doctor said, looking at the blonde Magical Girl.
"Um, what's wrong?" Kaede asked.
"Oh." River said.
"Yeah, we really are idiots today, aren't we?" Jared asked, laughing a lot. "Weiss would have called me out on that immediately."
"Exactly. Weiss really would have." The Doctor said.
"How could we have not noticed that?" River asked.
"Low level perception filter, or maybe we really are thick." The Doctor said.
"What's wrong, sir?" Octavian asked.
"Nobody move. Nobody move. Everyone stay exactly where they are. Bishop, I am truly sorry. Jared and I have made a mistake and we are all in terrible danger." The Doctor said.
"What danger?"
"The Aplans." River said.
"The Aplans?"
"They've got two heads."
"Yes, I get that. So?"
"So why don't the statues? Everyone, over there. Just move. Don't ask questions, don't speak." The Doctor said, and they move into an alcove away from the statues.
"Guys. I want you to turn off your flashlights." Jared said, holding his iPhone X with its flashlight on. "This could work well in our favor."
"Why?" Rena asked.
"Just do it. I'm gonna turn mine off for a second. Guys, we got this, okay? I promise."
"Are you sure?" Kaede asked.
"Nope." Jared said, sadly.
The light goes out then back in an instant.
"Oh, my God. They've moved." Amy said.
"No, no, no, no, no." Jared said, squeezing his phone.
The Doctor and Jared run down the passage, and it is filled with statues coming towards them.
"Son of a…��� Jared said, placing his phone inside his pocket. "They're Angels. All of them."
"But they can't be." River said.
"Clerics, keep watching them. Momoko, Rena, Kaede, transform. Your magic could come in handy for this. I don't know how, but use it." The Doctor said, running back to a vantage point of the main cavern. All the statues are climbing up towards them. "Every statue in this Maze, every single one, is a Weeping Angel. They're coming after us."
Entrance chamber…
"Bob, come and see this." Angelo said, over the communicator.
"Angelo?" Bob asked.
"Come and see what we've found."
"Are you with Christian? The Bishop said you'd be five minutes."
"I'm here, Bob. Come and see this."
"Where are you?"
"Through the arch, Bob. Honestly, you've got to come and see this."
"What have you found?"
"Come and see." Angelo said, over the communicator.
"No. What is it?" Bob asked.
"Come and see."
Bob walks cautiously into the side chamber, and the Angel pounces.
(Jared's POV)
Maze…
"But there was only one Angel on the ship. Just the one, I swear." River said.
"Could they have been here already? Before we arrived." Momoko said, holding her machete.
"The Aplans. What happened? How did they die out?" The Doctor asked.
"Nobody knows." River said.
"We know now." Rena said, holding her trident.
"They don't look like Angels." Octavian said.
"And they're not fast. You said they were fast. They should have had us by now." Amy said.
"Look at them. They're dying, losing their form. They must have been down here for centuries, starving." The Doctor said.
"Losing their image?" Amy asked.
"And their image is their power." I said, holding my phone. "Basically like electricity using fossil fuels to run cities and towns."
"You're right. It's power like that. Power!" The Doctor said, angrily.
"Doctor?" Amy asked.
"Don't you see? All that radiation spilling out the drive burn. The crash of the Byzantium wasn't an accident, it was a rescue mission for the Angels. We're in the middle of an army, and it's waking up." The Doctor said.
"We need to get out of here fast." River said.
"Bob, Angelo, Christian, come in, please. Any of you, come in." Octavian said.
"It's Bob, sir. Sorry, sir." Bob said, his voice over the communicator.
"Bob, are Angelo and Christian with you? All the statues are active. I repeat, all the statues are active."
"I know, sir. Angelo and Christian are dead, sir. The statues killed them, sir."
The Doctor grabs Octavian's walkie-talkie, "Bob, Sacred Bob, it's me, the Doctor."
"I'm talking to…" Octavian said, angrily.
"Where are you now?" The Doctor asked.
"I'm talking to my…"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, shut up."
"I'm on my way up to you, sir. I'm homing in on your signal." Bob said, over the communicator.
"Ah, well done, Bob. Scared keeps you fast. Told you, didn't I. Your friends, Bob. What did the Angel do to them?"
"Snapped their necks, sir."
"Um, Jared, you told us that wasn't the way Weeping Angels kill you." Kaede said. "Didn't you tell us they displace you in time?"
"They usually do." I said, grabbing Kaede's hand. "But it is still odd. Maybe I'm missing something."
"Maybe they need the bodies for something else." Rena said.
"Bob, did you check their data packs for vital signs? We may be able to initiate a rescue plan." Octavian said.
"Oh, don't be an idiot. The Angels don't leave you alive. Bob, keep running. But tell me, how did you escape?" The Doctor asked.
"I didn't escape, sir. The Angel killed me, too." Bob said, over the communicator.
"Wait, how did the Angel kill you?" Momoko asked.
"Snapped my neck, ma'am. Wasn't as painless as I expected, but it was pretty quick, so that was something."
"If you're dead, how can we be talking to you?"
"You're not talking to me, ma'am. The Angel has no voice. It stripped my cerebral cortex from my body and re-animated a version of my consciousness to communicate with you. Sorry about the confusion."
"Basically, you're saying, you're on your way to us as…" I said, squeezing Kaede's hand.
"It's the Angel that's coming, sir, yes. No way out." Bob said, over the communicator.
"Then we get out through the wreckage. Go! Go, go, go. All of you run." Octavian said.
"Jared." Kaede said, as I felt something off with the ginger Magical Girl.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm coming. Just go. Go, go, go. Yeah. Called you an idiot. Sorry, but there's no way we could have rescued your men." The Doctor said.
"I know that, sir. And when you and Jared have flown away in your little blue box, I'll explain that to their families." Octavian said.
"Angel Bob. Which Angel am I talking to? The one from the ship?" The Doctor asked.
"Yes, sir. And the other Angels are still restoring." Bob said, over the communicator.
"Ah, so the Angel is not in the wreckage. Thank you." The Doctor said, running past Amy.
"Momoko, lets go." I said, letting go of Kaede's hand to run off with Momoko. "Rena, you stay here with Kaede. Something's wrong with her. Contact me if you need me."
"So, you know." Kaede said, telepathically.
"Yes." I said, holding Momoko's hand. "I knew for a while now. You looked into the eyes of the Angel with Amy."
"Um, how do I break free from it?"
"The Doctor and Rena will save you and Amy, I promise." I said, telepathically.
Tunnel…
"That's not good." Momoko said.
Sounds of metal creaking.
"Well, that's the Crash of the Byzantium for sure." I said, squeezing Momoko's hand.
"It's got to be thirty feet. How do we get up there?" River asked.
"Check all these exits. I want them all secure." Octavian said.
Maze…
"So, the both of you looked into the eyes of an Angel." Rena said, angrily. "What were you thinking?"
"Kaede and couldn't stop ourselves. We tried." Amy said.
"Listen to us. It's messing with your head. Your hand is not made of stone." The Doctor said.
"Um, it is stone. Look at it." Kaede said, looking down at her hand. "Amy's hand is stone too. Maybe."
"It's in both of your minds, I promise you. You lot can move those hands. You can let go." The Doctor said.
"We can't, okay? We're tried and we can't. They're stone." Amy said.
"The Angel is going to come and it's going to turn these lights off, and then there's nothing we can do to stop it, so do it." The Doctor said.
"Come on, move your hands, Amy, Kaede!" I said, telepathically. "I'm safe with Momoko, River, and Octavian. Come on!"
"We can't." Kaede said, telepathically.
"Then it looks like we'll die here." Rena said.
"Rena, you're not gonna die." Kaede said.
"They'll turn off the lights. If you don't let go."
"The both of you have got to go. You know you have. Doctor, you've got all that stuff with River and that's all got to happen. You know you can't die here." Amy said.
"And Rena, I'm your servant, right? We're friends, friends have each other's backs. We protect each other, support each other. Um, go on without me. You can watch those idol concerts with Momoko." Kaede said, looking at Rena. "Look after my family."
"Time can be re-written. It doesn't work like that." Rena said. "That's what Jared told me. I won't see them all without you."
The statues arrive.
"Keep your eyes on it. Don't blink." The Doctor said.
"Run!" Amy and Kaede said, at the same time.
"You see, we're not going. I'm not leaving you here, Amy, and Rena won't leave Kaede."
"We don't need you to die for me and Kaede, Doctor, Rena. Do I look that clingy? Kaede's clingy to Momoko and Rena."
"Kaede, Amy, you guys can move your hands." I said, telepathically.
"We can't. They're stone." Kaede said, looking down at her hand.
"Neither of your hands are made out of stone."
"You've got to go. Those people up there will die without you and Rena. If you stay here with us, you'll have as good as killed them." Amy said.
"Amy Pond, you are magnificent, and I'm sorry." The Doctor said.
"It's okay. I understand. You've got to leave me." Amy said. "And Rena has to leave Kaede."
"Oh, no, I'm not leaving you, never. I'm sorry about this." The Doctor said, biting Amy's hand.
"And I'm sorry, about this!" Rena said, slapping Kaede across the face hard. "But Kaede, you deserved it."
"Ow!" Amy and Kaede said, at the same time.
"You, er, knew this was going to happen." Kaede said, telepathically.
"Yup." I said, telepathically. "Now you and Amy have to run!"
"Kaede, I had to slap you." Rena said, telepathically.
"It hurt!"
"Yes, and you and Kaede are alive. Did I mention?" The Doctor asked.
"Blimey, Doctor, your teeth. Have you got space teeth?" Amy asked.
"Yeah. Alive. All I'm saying." The Doctor said.
Tunnel…
"The statues are advancing along all corridors. And, sir, my torch keeps flickering." Marco said.
"Of course they all would." I said, holding Ebb and Flow in bow form.
"So does the gravity globe." River said.
"Clerics, we're down to four men. Expect incoming." Octavian said.
"Yeah, it's the Angels. They're coming. And they're draining the power for themselves." The Doctor said.
"That means we won't be able to see them." Momoko said.
"Which means we can't stay here." Rena said, crossing her arms.
"Two more incoming." Octavian said.
"Any suggestions?" River asked.
"The statues are advancing on all sides. We don't have the climbing equipment to reach the Byzantium."
"There's no way up, no way back, no way out. No pressure, but this is usually when one of you has a really good idea." River said.
"There's always a way out." I said, squeezing Ebb and Flow.
"There's always a way out. There's always a way out." The echo said, my voice coming throughout the cave.
"There's always a way out."
"Doctor? Jared? Can I speak to the Doctor and Jared, please?" Bob asked, his voice coming out of the communicator.
"Hi, Angels. What's up? Is it going fine on your end?"
"Your power will not last much longer, and the Angels will be with you shortly. Sorry, sir."
"Why are you telling us this?" The Doctor asked.
"There's something the Angels are very keen both of you should know before the end."
"Which is?"
"I died in fear." Bob said, his voice over the communicator.
"I'm sorry?"
"Doctor, 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. And Jared, you knew this would happen, you have the foreknowledge to stop it. But you let it happen, causing my death and some of my friends' deaths."
"Um, what are they doing?" Kaede asked.
"They're trying to make the Doctor angry and Jared guilty." River said.
"I'm sorry, gentleman. The Angels were very keen for you to know that." Bob said, his voice over the communicator.
"Well, the Angels made their second mistake. Thinking that would make me feel guilty. If there is one thing I'm scared of, it's you Weeping Angels. I'm sorry that you're dead, Bob. I wish I could have prevented it. But since you're now a Weeping Angel, that form of you will be even more sorry and guilty." I said, smirking. "And the Doctor is angry. But the both of us are equal in terms of anger. You Angels are absolute idiots, right about now."
"But you two are trapped, gentlemen, and about to die."
"Yeah. We're trapped. And you know what? Speaking of traps, this trap has got a great big mistake in it. A great big, whopping mistake." The Doctor said.
"What mistake, sir?"
"Momoko, do you trust me?" I asked, walking towards the blonde.
"Yeah." Momoko said, smiling.
"Rena?"
"Despite you being an idiot at times. I do trust you." Rena said, crossing her arms.
"Kaede?" I asked, looking towards the ginger Magical Girl.
"Sir, two more incoming." Marco said.
"Yes, yes, I do." Kaede said, sadly.
"Okay, now I'll use my bow and be an absolute badass. I'm about to do something really stupid and dangerous." I said, holding Ebb and Flow towards the ceiling, an arrow coming out. "But when I do fire, jump."
"Jump where?" Octavian asked.
"Come on, just jump. Jump as high as you can. It's a leap of faith. Do it on the Doctor's signal."
"What signal?"
"You won't miss it. Jared and I are on the same wavelength for this. Since he knew my plan from the beginning." The Doctor said.
"Sorry, can I ask again? You mentioned a mistake we made." Bob said, his voice over the communicator.
I point my bow and arrow at the hull of the Byzantium, "Okay, my arrow is all charged up. I didn't go into combat at all today. I'm locked and loaded, Raggedy Man."
"Oh, big mistake. Huge. Didn't anyone every tell you 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." The Doctor said, annoyed.
"And what would that be, sir?" Bob asked, his voice over the communicator.
"Us. Me and Jared. Fire and water."
I shoot at the Byzantium, launching an arrow at it in the process. "And that's what you get for hurting Amelia Pond and Kaede Akino!"