The Seventh Doctor Volume 2: Identity Theft

Appleby Manor, 1865

The wind howled outside the estate. Night Time had arrived. Everything seemed peaceful. The clocks were ticking. The Appleby’s were sitting down for dinner with some esteemed guests. Every year on this exact night, Alexander Appleby, the keeper of the house, would invite over four respected guests to join his family over supper. It was nigh on 10 O'clock, and the butler was about to serve them food. They were expecting haddock and chips. Only two of these four guests had found their way to the table, with the whereabouts of the other two left to be unknown.

There were many respected faces over the Dinner table, who were well known within the local community. Alexander Applegate, of course, sat himself at the head of the table, as he was the key figure within the family. His wife, Joanna, found herself at the other side, awaiting her food. Both of them watched over, eagle eyed, at the other members of the party, who all found themselves at the edges of the table. Alexander and Joanna’s two children, Lizzie and Maxwell, were both sat on the two seats next to their father. The two guests that had joined the family found themselves on the two seats next to Joanna.

These two guests had found themselves randomly selected, as the annual guests often did. Harold Summerfield was a local business owner who had played a key role in the industrial revolution. He was ageing now, nearing his seventies, but he was still able enough to pay a visit to the Appleby family. Although he was not a close family friend, his paths had crossed with Alexander rather frequently, and he had visited the house once before hand. Mary Thisledale was a young widow in her late twenties, who was the daughter of a profitable business man who resided in London. Both of them had found themselves in the Manor, and both of them were rather delighted to be there.

Alexander and Joanna had a rather tempestuous marriage which was currently on the rocks. The two of them did not always see eye to eye, and there had been many times, such as the last Dinner, where they had publicly verbally abused one another, which was a shock to the guests of the previous dinner. They had to address the matter in a formal statement, and their reputation was nearly destroyed, which meant they had to be more careful than ever this year round in order to protect their position in society. Lizzie and Maxwell were both always there to cause trouble. They had a very strong bond, unlike their parents, and were rather inseparable. Both of them were still rather young, as Alexander and Joanna had them in their late thirties. They were narcissistic, and self centered, just as upper class civilians often were. They wanted everything for themselves, and nothing was good enough for them.

Alexander rose from his chair and departed the room without warning, swiftly opening the door and strolling out into the vast corridors that surrounded the Dining room. He grabbed a light from above him, and moved through the dark and empty surroundings. He was walking through, and came across a figure, who was shrouded by the darkness. Alexander did not recognise him, which was odd. His figures were unrecognisable at this time. He shone the light in the mans face, revealing a blank template: An empty figure shrouded in white, lacking any features whatsoever. Alexander jumped out of his skin. He was never usually scared, but this was such an unusual sight that it shook him.

“What are you?” Alexander asked, terrified. 

“There is no need to be fearful,” The figure said, reaching out his vacant hand towards the man, “I will not harm you. I may look different to anything you may have come across, but I am only here as a figure of kindness and goodwill.”

“I don’t care, you are in my house! Get out!” Alexander aimed the light towards the being, causing the unoccupied form to step aback hastily.

“Light is like a poison to us. I am not harmful to you. I am here to help you.”

“I don’t understand what you are,” The man replied, “Get out of my house.”

“What is your name?” The template questioned. “If I know your name I can make you better. I can help you.”

“My name is Alexander Appleby. I thought everybody would know that.”

Suddenly, the empty husk transformed itself. Its lack of features turned into eyes, and a mouth, and a nose, and ears. All the elements of the body changed and rotated. What was a lack of form transformed itself into an identical copy of Alexander. Now, there were two Alexander’s standing opposite each other.

“How-How is that possible?” Alexander asked, confused about how the creature had taken his form.

“All I needed was a body,” The being said, now embodying the form of Alexander, “Thankyou for your aid. There is no need for you anymore.”

The being grabbed Alexander’s neck and snapped it, causing the real Alexander to drop to the floor. The creature, which now resembled Alexander, walked himself back towards the direction he came from, and back into the dining room.

“I am so sorry,” the new Alexander claimed, “I just needed a little walk.”

“There’s no time for that!” Joanna snapped. “You must get to know our new guests.”

“Oh, I know that, my dear. I’m sorry, my memory deceives me, but I have to ask the names of my esteemed guests that are joining me at the table tonight.”

Suddenly, the doors swung open from behind them, and three figures materialised. There was a man with dirty hair and a lower class aesthetic. He was joined by two figures who were dressed in outfits that went beyond the time period of Victorian England.“May I welcome our two last guests, sir?” The man addressed, making it clear that he was some form of butler, “This is John Smith, and his associate, Gina.”

“Welcome!” Joanna exclaimed, “Please take a seat, both of you!”

“It is very nice to meet you,” The Doctor responded, placing himself down on a seat in the centre of the table, as Gina did the same. “I cannot put into words how much of an honour it is to be here. Really, it is quite the joy.”

“What is the relation between the two of you?” Asked Lizzie.

“The Doc-John is my uncle. He’s a very rich man. I’m assuming that’s why he’s here,” Gina hastily responded. “My last name is Smith, too. That’s easier than remembering a made up name of my own. I joke! I do that a lot.”

The Doctor chuckled. “Excuse my niece. It is an honour to have the opportunity to meet the lot of you. May I ask what your names are?”

“I’m Mary!” One of the guests began. “I’m the daughter of Joseph Thisledale, the famous entrepreneur. I was invited here today because of it. I’ve never met the Applegate family before, and if I’m honest, I am quite nervous.”

“Mary Thisledale!” Alexander exclaimed in response. “It’s very nice to meet you. There’s no need to be nervous. We’ll try to be as hospitable as possible.”

“I am Harold Summerfield,” The other man revealed, “I am a wealthy businessman who played a key part in the Industrial Revolution. The world would not be the way it is today without me. You should all be lucky. Your lives have been so much better as a result of the actions I have done.”

There was an awkward silence, as this self expressive moment became clear. The Doctor was the first one to break this silence. “You know what, sir, I am not a fan of people like you. Those who think the world revolves around them.”

“I beg your pardon,” Harold responded, rudely, “It’s Mr John Smith, is it not?”

“You will be begging nobodies pardon but yourself. I can tell the two of us will not be getting on. I’ve had quite the day of it and I’d rather if this was a relaxing and peaceful evening with no feuds or no problems or no troubles.”

Joanna stared at Alexander sarcastically. “You heard the man, no trouble.”

“You have no right to come in here and judge me,” Harold addressed the Doctor bluntly. “You just storm in here and criticize me for no good reason. I think that gives us all the impression of the sort of person you are.”

“Ace isn’t here, Doctor,” Gina whispered into the Doctor’s ear, “Shall we leave?”

“No! No! We shall find Ace, but not now!”, The Doctor commented on his missing friend to his temporary companion. “I’d rather like to deal with this narrow minded, upper class fool.”

“I think it’d be good if you left now,” Alexander demanded, “We can deal without you.”

“I think he’s right, Doctor, I mean John, we don’t need to cause trouble,” Gina responded.

“I always cause trouble, but you’re right, Gina. Maybe I shouldn’t waste my time here. Maybe I should set my priorities straight and go and find my friend. If you could show me the way out, Butler, that would be fantastic.”

The Doctor rose from his seat, and Gina did the same. They left the Dinner Party, and were escorted out of the room by the Butler, who led them out of the doorway and back into the endless corridors in the interior of the house. The Doctor could see the TARDIS, and ushered the Butler to head back. He opened the doors of the ship, and Gina went through. The Doctor was about to do the same, but he spotted Alexander in the distance.

“Excuse me, Sir, we need a word,” Alexander demanded, “Where is your friend?”

“She is inside our transport,” The Doctor responded, “What is it that you need to talk about?”

“You were rather rude in there to our guests, but I smelt something from you.”

“That’s a bit odd. Do you go around smelling your guests often?”

Alexander snorted. “You are not like the others inside of the room. You are not human. You are much more. I could sense more than one heart. Am I right?”

“How could you tell?” The Doctor questioned. “You’re not who you make out to be, are you?”

“I think you knew that. I sensed that your box is a time machine.” Alexander crept up to the TARDIS and banged on it. “Tell your friend to come out of there. It is Gina, is it not? Gina Smith? And your friend is John.”

“That’s what you know me as, yes. What do you want here?”

The doors of the TARDIS opened, and Gina’s head popped through. She departed from the ship. Alexander sniffed his surroundings, taking in both Gina and the Doctors scents in the process. Alexander raised his hands, and two white, hollow, silky silhouettes dawned on the room, similar to Alexander’s true form. Gina gasped.

“I thought there’d be aliens along the way somewhere,” The Doctor remarked. “There’s never a time when it isn’t aliens. I can’t say I recognise your forms. Maybe it’s because you lack them. What is your race?”“Our race has no name. We are nothing.” Revealed Alexander. “And soon, John and Gina, you will both be nothing as well.”

Gina sighed, and glared at the Doctor. “Do you ever catch a break?”

The Doctor shook his head. “I can’t say that I do. In the TARDIS, now.” The doors of the TARDIS swung open, as Gina and the Doctor hurried inside. The Doctor rushed to the console and began to press some buttons. “I think it’s time we found Ace. We may have taken so long that she’s in danger.”

“What were those things?” Gina asked. “Shouldn’t we save the family? I mean, they’re obviously in danger. Those creatures will kill them if you don’t stop them.”

“What gives you to the right to tell me what to do?” The Doctor snapped. “We only met today, and you’re only here because I need help. If you feel that’s best, then go out there and do it yourself, but do not dare question me.”

Gina was taken aback. “Don’t you dare use that tone with me.”

The Doctor moved closer to her. “And what are you going to do if I do?”

Gina did not respond. She hovered away into the distance. The Doctor looked angry, and had taken out his upset towards events with Destari and Ace on Gina, despite her not deserving it. He did not make any sign of apology. He looked over towards her, and began to pilot the TARDIS away. Gina placed herself down and began to cry. The Doctor did not make an attempt to console her. He just carried on.

Suddenly, the TARDIS was thrust off its course, as the creatures from the manor began to sift their way through the walls of the ship. Gina rose from the floor instantly and became terrified. The shapeless, lifeless organisms found their way into the machine, and moved their way towards the Doctor and Gina.

“I thought this place was safe?” Gina said, while slowly moving backwards. “Just now we had Destari manage to get in, and now this.”

“It’s fine, Gina. I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about!” The Doctor remarked.

The creature bellowed: “We will take your form. We need your form. You shall comply.”

“Oh no we won’t. You are going to get off my ship now, or else I’ll force you, and trust me, you don’t want to do that. Leave this TARDIS at once.”

“We shall not leave until we have your forms.”

“Ah, so you want our forms! There are lots of perfectly adequate beings back at the house. Why don’t you just go and harvest them?”“You both have such complex energy within you. You have been through so much and are about to go through so much more. We shall take your forms. You shall not resist. You will feel pain if you do not resist.”

Gina noticed something. “Wait a minute, Doctor, they’re not moving.”

She was right: They were not moving. The creatures were just hovering in the same place, and not moving any distance forward. They were not even making an attempt to harvest the forms of the Doctor and Gina. The Doctor’s attentions were piqued as he noticed this. He stepped forward a second, and let out a gasp of intrigue.

“You need to know our names to kill us and take our forms,” The Doctor exclaimed, “I think that must be it. I don’t know why, but I think that’s why you can’t kill us. You need to know our names before you can.”

“We know your names,” The creatures claimed, “You are John and Gina Smith.”

“Except we aren’t. Not really. It’s lucky that I still use the John Smith guise. The thing is, we are not going to tell you our names, because then we will be safe.”

“We will find your names. We always do.”

The creatures dissipated into thin air, leaving the Doctor and Gina alone in the TARDIS. The Doctor was wearing the usual cocky expression that he often wore, while Gina’s tears continued to collapse from her face. He was unaware that she was still feeling hurt by the comments he had made a few moments ago.

“There we are,” The Doctor said, clutching his hands over the console, “I think we should head back to the Manor. Make sure that none of the guests hand over their names. I’m guessing the leader of the family still will need their names to harvest.”

Gina pulled his hand away from the console. “Before you do, we need to talk. You upset me earlier. You have no right to talk to me like that. I don’t want to be here, you know?”

“And I don’t want you to be here much either, but I have no say in that matter because I have a duty to protect you and get you back to your home safe and sound. Once I’ve found Ace. and once we’ve saved everybody in that manor, I will drop you home, I assure you.”

“It’s not just that-It’s the way you talked to me earlier. The way you snapped at me.”

“I’ve not had a good day today. I’ve been through so much in so little time. Somebody managed to change everything I knew about me. I have so many pieces of the puzzle. Destari, the six, Ace’s whereabouts. I need to find out the truth behind them all. Everything is swirling around my head a million miles per hour, and I’m sorry if I snapped at you, but I have been through so much today that I don’t have the energy to care.”

Gina retorted, “And what about me? I lost Nathan. I lost my job. I lost my home. My life was changed forever. Things for me today have been a whirlwind. I’ve been thrust into this unimaginably unbelievable world, and I’ve got no choice but to just go along and accept it. Don’t you dare think that you are the only one who Destari affected, because you aren’t. She affected me and hurt me in so many ways. More than you are even aware of.” Gina reflected for a second. “It came back to me when you remembered Ace. She was there, at the Snowzone base, before you both arrived.”

The Doctor tutted. “We really don’t have time for this. You moan that you wanted to get home and yet you witter away like this.”

“This is important, Doctor. I thought you wanted to know more about her.”

“I do, Gina, but this isn’t the time. There are people at the Manor who have their lives on the line, and we need to do all we can to stop them from handing over the information these beings need to manifest them. Then, we need to save Ace. Then, I need to get you home. And then, and only then, you tell me all of this.”

The Doctor moved his hand back onto the lever, but Gina grabbed it and pushed it away again, before continuing from where she left off. “Is that what this is? You’re scared of her, and you’re trying to run away, and use this as a distraction? Destari is coming back for you. There is no way you can possibly escape that.”

“I always escape. Taking my mind off of these things with adventures always works. I say always, it never works, but I try my best. I know Destari is coming for me, but there are much more pressing matters to deal with. Come along, Gina!”

The Doctor pushed the lever back as the TARDIS descended back into the time vortex, heading back into the direction of Appleby manor. Gina’s expression was one of dread and fear, as she began to realise the sort of man that the Doctor was. -In a deserted landscape a long, long way from Applebey house, Ace woke up on the dusty and empty surface. Everything in sight was dead and in ruins. Her head rose up from the floor, followed by the rest of her body. She looked around, as her attention turned to the granite sky above her, as the wind blew through her face, catching her by surprise. Ace began to trudge through the endless, almost apocalyptic wilderness that awaited her. There was nothing around them bar the barren wasteland. She was fed up of barren wastelands by now, as she had been to quite a few of late. She saw in the distance a woman, with short black hair, who had her head turned away from her. Ace hurried towards her, and tapped her on the shoulder. The woman turned ahead, looking startled.

“I didn’t expect to see anybody else here ever again,” The woman claimed, “Wait a minute, I’ve seen you somewhere before. I don’t know where. Maybe you just have one of those highly recognisable faces that people tend to have.”

Ace looked confused. “I’ve never seen you before in my life. Where am I?”“This is Beta Caprisis. This is my home. It used to be such a nice place, but now it’s been turned to nothing.” She reflected for a moment. “I know where I saw you now-You were the woman in Antarctica, when it had been destroyed.”

“It’s you? You’re the hooded woman?”

“Yes. I found myself there accidentally, you see, but I managed to find a way back here. I’ve got a way out of this planet.” She revealed from the pocket of her leather jacket a teleportation device. “It only has one charge left. When I transport myself away, I will never be able to come back here again, and I’m not ready for that.”

“I need to find my friends. We got seperated. He’ll probably come and find me, but I don’t know whether they will. I would ask to use it, but I don’t know where they would be.”

The woman nodded. “So you remember what Destari did to Earth?”

“Yeah, I do. The Professor made things go back to the way they should be. The problem is that he still doesn’t know who I am.”

“The Professor? You don’t mean the Doctor, by any chance?”

Ace bobbed her head. “Yeah. How did you know? Do you know him?”

“I told you the last time we met, I have an encyclopedic knowledge on the course of the Earth's timeline, and the Six, and everything that relates to them. The Doctor plays a key part in the whole thing. He’s quite the legend. If you’re his friend, you probably know that.”

“Of course I do! He’s the most wicked person in the cosmos! The Doc’s awesome!”

“But you also know he isn’t just the amazing person everybody says about? He may have saved Antarctica inadvertently, and nobody knows how, but he is a darker being than you could ever have imagined. I’ve read up on what happens next, or indeed what happened before. I told you that the last time. The other, the Timeless child, the hybrid. All of it shows just how complicated, and corrupt, the Doctor really is.”

Ace looked confused. “Alright then. All I want is to get back and find the Doctor. I think Destari has put him in danger again, but she sent me flying before I could rescue him. I’m usually the one that ends up rescuing him. I’m Ace, by the way. What’s your name?”

“I’m Bernice,” The woman announced, “Bernice Summerfield.”

The TARDIS found itself at Appleby manor, where it had departed just a mere few moments beforehand. The Doctor and Gina stepped out, and rushed back towards the main lobby. There was no sign of the creatures, or Alexander, and it did not seem like they were lurking outside. The Doctor burst through the doors into the Dining room, followed by Gina. The room was erupted with anger and rage.“Back for more, are you, sir?” Harold questioned.

“I thought I made it quite clear that you needed to leave,” Alexander claimed, “I thought you had left. I thought we had some time alone.”

“Should I tell them what you all are, Alexander?” The Doctor asked, “This man you all admire and respect, is an alien. Alexander Appleby is an alien.”

Maxwell spat out his drink. “Who is this madman?”

Joanna coughed. “It wouldn’t surprise me if he was.”

Lizzie chuckled away to herself. “I think you need professional help, John, if you ask me. Aliens don’t exist, and if they didn’t, they would not come to Appleby manor.”

“He’s right,” Gina announced, “He is an alien, and he wants you all dead.”

“That’s preposterous!” Mary exclaimed, “I think you need to force them out, Alexander.”

“Am I wrong, Alexander?” The Doctor questioned. “I don’t know whether you have some sort of protocol but you haven’t spoken for a while. Can you honestly tell me, truthfully, that everything that I said was 100% incorrect.”

“It is true,” Alexander admitted, “There’s no point me being here anymore.”

Alexander vanished suddenly, disappearing into nothingness. Everybody was in shock. Lizzie and Maxwell’s breaths were taken away as their father departed from before their eyes. They were too taken aback to cry. Joanna appeared to be slightly relieved. Harold and Mary were struck with disbelief.

“Right, that wasn’t what I expected him to do,” The Doctor confessed, “I will warn you though, I doubt this is over. Those things are coming for you. All of you. Oh, and I’m sorry for your loss, all of you.”

Mary turned towards the Doctor. “What is going on?”

“I don’t know, but you’re going to trust me with your lives.”

Harold sniffled. “Why should we trust a fool like you with our lives?”

“Because they’re all in danger, and I’m assuming all of you are too stubborn and flawed to save them yourselves. I thought, if I’m honest, there’d be more tears.”

“Good riddance to him,” shouted Joanna, “He was a stain on this family.”

Lizzie agreed. “It’s better that he’s gone. Hopefully he’s down in hell to get punished for all the stuff he’s done.”

Maxwell chuckled. “Alien hell.”

“Yeah, he doesn’t want to be there,” The Doctor added, “Trust me, I’ve been.”

Harold turned towards the Doctor. “Are you a madman?”

“Yes, yes, of course I am, but I’m quite a brilliant one. I think it’s best you stick with me at all costs. Now, may I ask, did you tell Alexander at any point any of your names, during the dinner party at any point? There’s no confirmation of how long Alexander was taken by those creatures for, but I’m assuming it was tonight.”

Mary nodded. “I told him, of course. He asked me. I don’t know why I shouldn’t have.”

“I’m so sorry, Mary, but when they come for you, you will die. There are more creatures like the true form that possessed Alexander tonight, and they are coming for you. If you haven’t already, do not hand your names over to them. They will kill you and take your forms at whatever chance they can. They are shapeless, formless beings who desire a shape and form more than anything else. They tried to take mine and Gina’s forms too.”

“How come you survived?” Lizzie questioned. “Wouldn’t they kill you instantly?”

“It’s interesting how quickly you have come to believe all of this,” Gina remarked, “I mean, I still don’t believe any of the alien stuff and I’ve been with the Doctor for a whole day.”

The Doctor followed, stating that “The creatures arrived when me and Gina attempted to go home. They managed to shift their way through solid matter. I’m assuming they can find themselves into any building. Nowhere is safe. I never handed over my real name to them, so they couldn’t kill me.”

“They couldn’t kill you because you didn’t give over your name? How does that work?” Joanna continued, listing off a series of questions. “This is just all too much to take, and now we find out John is not even your real name.”

“I need to take precautions! It’s lucky that I didn’t tell you my real name, and nor will I. For all I know, the creatures could be lurking around here, or the creatures could be within this room. Any one of you here could be one of them.”

“And who’s to say the two of you are not one of those things?” Harold interrogated, “Not that I believe in any of this trickery that you are throwing at me.”

“There’s no way for you to tell, just as I have no way to tell that you aren’t one of them. Now, those creatures are probably lurking through the house, so I suggest we leave this room and head to my ship. It may not be safe from them but we can still escape.” The Doctor and Gina headed back towards the direction of the TARDIS. Suddenly, Harold pulled a gun swiftly from his pocket, and shot out a bullet towards the Doctors direction. He turned around, and found himself hit by the shrapnel. He collapsed to the ground.

“What have you done?” Asked Gina as she knelt down on to the floor. “He’s the only one who will be able to save us.”

“He was one of them, I know he was” Harold concluded, “And so were you.”

Gina raised her hands in surrender, as Harold’s gun moved towards her direction.

“Let me tell you a little story about when my distant relative met the Doctor,” Bernice said to Ace, “It’s a long story, but I think we may have some time.”

“You’re relative met the Doctor. Ace!” Ace declared.

“It’s not an Ace story, Ace. He was from the 1800s, but its a story that has passed on through the generations, and one I always tended to admire. Things happened during the incident at Appleby house that changed the lives of everybody there. They encountered aliens.”

“There’s always aliens when the Doctor is involved.”

“Oh, I know that. That’s what the legends often tend to describe. I am an archeologist, you see, so I have done my digging.”

“An alien archaeologist? So alien everything exist? Are there alien shops?”

Bernice gave a slight chuckle. “Yes, there are alien shops, but there are none on this world anymore, nor will there be ever again. Anyways, let me tell you the story. My distant relative had found himself at Appleby house, at a time when he was growing old, well into his sixties. He had been joined there by many esteemed guests who had joined the Appleby family to dine. The mansion was a rather luxurious place, one that I could not imagine after wandering apocalyptic sands for the recent proportion of my life. There were things there. Things that could kill you, but only if they knew your name. The Doctor and his friend arrived, I think she was called Gina, and claimed they could save the day.”

“Wait a second-Gina? That must mean that is where the Doctor is now. Either that or he never comes back to me.” Ace stared down at the teleportation device in Bernice’s hands. “Is there any chance that I could use that?”

“I was telling you a story. I actually thought you were interested for a moment. It’s been about three years since somebody was actually interested in what I had to say. Well, it’s been about three years since I came into contact with any significant forms of life.”

“I need to use it. I need to find the Doctor again. Don’t worry, Bernice, I’ll tell the Professor about you and we’ll come and find you, pick you off, and drop you somewhere better, but as you’re staying for a while, I’d quite like it if I could use it.”

“If you go to Appleby house, beware of the creatures that stalked the Manor,” Bernice warned, “Not everybody managed to survive.”

Ace nodded. “Beam me down, Scotty.”

Bernice clutched onto her teleportation device causing Ace to be beamed away into the distance. Bernice looked down for a second, before speaking to herself, “Come to think of it, there was an Ace in the story. I remember now.”

In Appleby house, the Doctor lay on the floor, reeling from a recent fatal gunshot that had been delivered to him. Gina knelt down on the floor in order to aid him, as the man who fired the gun, Harold Summerfield, hovered his weapon around her direction. Harold believed that both the Doctor and Gina were treacherous, and that they were evil aliens, in the same way that the head of the family turned out to be. The survivors of the Appleby family, Joanna and her two children Lizzie and Maxwell stood in shock, alongside their fellow guest, Mary. They all appeared innocent and confused by all these events.

“Tell me your real names,” Harry demanded to Gina, still hovering his gun precariously towards her direction, “I will not shoot you if you tell me your real names.”

“But those creatures will kill me then, so no, I won’t tell you,” Responded Gina.

Harold prepared to shoot Gina, but Joanna hastily moved towards him and pushed the gun away from her direction, causing the gun to be fired towards the ground. She tried to prevent him from lifting up the weapon once again.

“These people are a danger to your house and its residents, Mrs Appleby,” Harold suggested. “I think it’s in your best interest for them to be killed.”

“We’ve already lost a life, and we don’t want to lose any more,” Answered Joanna, “Now then, we need to get this man some help. He is one of our guests, and he seems to know what he’s talking about. Unless this is some form of common trickery, it is expected that this man could be the key for us to get out of this alive.”

“You don’t seriously believe there are aliens involved here, Mum?” Questioned Maxwell.

“There is no way to tell, Maxwell, but it is ignorant to just assume from what we know, when there is potentially a wider universe out of there. Aliens must exist, and I for one do not find it too unbelievable that it is the case.”

The Doctor managed to speak with the last ounce of energy in his body, “You seem to be the most sensible one here, madam, and less narrow minded than the rest.”

“We need to get you some help. And Harold, I suggest you remove the weapon from your hands immediately or I will force the Butler of the house to do so. I thought we made it clear that no weapons are allowed in this Dinner Party tonight.”

“I needed to protect myself,” Harold explained, “Maybe I can’t trust any of you.”

“Calm down, Harold, please,” Mary demanded, getting frustrated by his tone.“Who are you to dictate my actions, young lady? You have no right. You should respect your elders. It’s either John and Gina go, or we all go.”

“Please, Harold, you need to calm down,” Gina insisted, “The only way we’re all going to get out of this alive is if we work together.”

“Of course you’ll say that. You’d say everything you could to survive.”

The Doctor reached out his hands. “It’d be nice if somebody could help me up. I don’t think the gunshot was too fatal. I think I can walk now. I’ve recovered.” Gina followed by lifting the Doctor up from the floor. The Doctor strolled towards Harold and went close up to his face in order to address him. “My friend here is right: Teamwork means survival, and if we don’t work together, then not everybody can survive. Most likely, you cannot survive. Today will be difficult, and trust me, it’s been one of the hardest days of mine and Gina’s lives, but if we work together, and trust each other, and you trust me, then it’ll all be fine.”

Lizzie interrupted. “What if we can’t trust anybody? Even if we can trust you, something brought whatever is here tonight here. According to you John, Dad only got killed earlier on in the night. I haven’t seen those creatures yet, but I think they aren’t here of their own doings. I think there’s someone else responsible.”

“Who else would it be but the Doctor?” Harold asked.

“You, potentially,” Mary claimed, turning towards Harold. “We know you want us all dead, and it seems to me like you are so stuck up about yourself that you’d have an ulterior motive to be here.”

“You’re a guest here too, Mary,” Maxwell recalled. “There’s an equal chance it could be one of the four of you, or you’re all working together.”

“How dare you, Maxwell. What’s to say it’s your family who are behind this. You didn’t seem exactly shocked or saddened by Alexander’s death. It’s like you saw it coming.”

The Doctor shouted. “Calm down, everybody, right this instant!”

“I’m not dealing with my name being dragged through the mud,” Harold replied, waving his gun around in the air, “I will kill every single one of you in this room if I have to, to guarantee my own safety. I do not care about the rest of you. You can die for all I care. If anybody stands in the way of my survival, then I will kill them.”

“I think it’s best you put the gun down now,” suggested Joanna.

“No. If you dare come anywhere near me I will kill you all!” Harold exclaimed, swinging his gun about in all directions imaginable. “I will do anything for my own survival. You have no idea just how far I will go to secure my safety.”

Suddenly, the hollow templates of creatures sifted through the walls of the building, disrupting the initially seemingly safe confines of the Dining room. Harold used his weapon to shoot at the creatures, but it was no use. The silhouettes continued to move towards them. The Appleby family, alongside Mary, stepped back, as the Doctor and Gina followed. The creatures continued to move closer and closer towards them, making every corner unsafe. Harold stepped out in front, making himself clear.

“I would like to offer you a deal.” Harold declared. “In exchange for my life, I will provide you with the names of everybody standing in this room, and you can kill them.”

“We want your body,” The creature revealed, “We want all your bodies.”

“If you let me live, I will tell you all their names. I promise you. Please let me live.”

“Your name is Harold Summerfield. We shall find out all of their names. We have our methods. We shall have all of their bodies. There will be no harm done to you or to any of them once we do: Only death.”

“No, you can’t kill me! I’ve got so much left to give! I’m not done yet.”

The formerly blank forms of the creatures transferred into the very familiar features of Harold, creating two identical figures face to face. The guests stared on in shock and astonishment, as did Gina, who had still not gotten used to the extent of the adventures she had been thrust upon. The new Harold shifted over to the real man, twisting his neck, causing him to fall to the floor and immediately die. Everybody else took another large step backwards, conscious that the danger they were in had been intensified.

The new Harold began to trounce around for a little while. The room was in deathly silence: Nobody even had the guts to talk or move or speak or question. Everybody was just in fear and worry about their situation. One of the Creatures pointed out what would have been their hand towards Mary’s direction, causing it to suddenly take her form. 

“I thought it couldn’t take the forms unless it knew their names,” Gina observed.

“I told Alexander my name earlier,” Mary explained, “Does this mean I’m going to die?”

The Doctor turned towards her, and nodded regretfully. “I’m afraid so, Mary. I’m so sorry, there was nothing I could do.”

As Mary, Harold and the two other creatures shifted towards her direction, Mary darted out of the door behind her in order to escape. The uninhabited forms moved past the other members of the Dining room while the embodiments of Harold and Mary slowly followed, while keeping a cautious eye on the Applebey family, the Doctor and Gina. Mary continued to race through the vast corridors of the building until she reached a dead end. The room was filled with darkness, and she let out a brief cry. The Creatures forcefully managed to elevate her back towards the main room, where the new forms of Mary and Harold confronted her. Harold grabbed the gun that was in his pocket and shot the real Mary, causing her to bleed out rapidly on the floor. Harold shot at her again, but she still managed to hold on for a little while longer. She reached out her hand. Gina and Maxwell leaned down on to the floor in an attempt to support her.

“Oh, this hurts even more than I expected it to.” Mary stated. “You promise me that you will not hand over your names to these creatures and you all get out alive.”

Gina grinned, and bobbed her head. “John will save the day, I promise you.”

Mary’s head dropped down as her life ended. There was a moment of grief and silence, which was quickly intervened by the realisation of their deathly situation. Lizzie began to run, however the Doctor pulled her back towards the rest of the croud.

“That’s your last victim tonight.” The Doctor claimed bluntly. “We shall not hand over our names and therefore you will not be able to take our lives.”

The Creature which had taken Harold’s form stepped forward. “We have our ways. You will hand over your names eventually, we know you will. Tonight will be the last night of every one of your lives. I can promise you that.”

“Not going to happen I’m afraid, not while I am here.”

“One of you brought us here.” The creature which had taken Mary’s form revealed. “One of you were responsible, and you do not even know it.”

“I know full well that I was not responsible for bringing you to this house.” Joanna responded. “I still don’t believe you are here. Aliens, in my house. It’s quite frankly absurd! I still believe this is some form of common trickery.”

“This is not trickery,” The Doctor announced, with the ‘t’ rolling off his tongue, “This is my life. What else is true is that one of you is responsible.”

“It may have been you, John, and you did not even realise.” Harold suggested. “We know who was responsible, but we shall let you figure that out by yourselves. With any luck, you will hand over your names. Over the course of the night, we will be forceful if you refuse to hand over your identities to us.”

“And what exactly are you going to do?” Questioned Maxwell.

“We will show you what we are going to do,” Mary announced, as she revealed a small object. She pressed a button, causing a countdown to be revealed. “Luckily, we had a chance to operate this bomb. You have two ways to die: Hand over your identities to us, or be blown up slowly and painfully. It is your choice. It’d be an awful shame to waste such healthy and marvellous bodies, do you not think.”“Five minutes, everybody,” Harold continued, “Five minutes!”Lizzie’s jaw dropped. “We’ve got to get out of the building, as quickly as we can.”

“There is no way out,” Harold claimed, “Trust me, we’ve made sure of it.”

“Follow me!” The Doctor shouted, as he darted through one of the doors. Gina, Joanna, Lizzie and Maxwell followed him hastily, as Harold and Mary slowly followed after them. The Doctor saw the TARDIS directly in front of him, and opened the door swiftly. He directed the others inside first before following. He noticed the shapeless forms coming from both directions. He closed the door, and rushed towards the control panel. He typed in some coordinates, and the ship began to dematerialise.

“I thought I’d seen it all today, but I always seem to be proven wrong.” Maxwell stated as he glared at the vast and spacious console room that surrounded him. He could not believe his eyes, nor could the other members of the Applebey family.

“It’s beautiful.” Commented Lizzie on the chalky area around her.

“I still don’t believe any of this.” Protested Joanna. “It can’t be possible.”

Gina chuckled. “I’ve been saying the same thing all day, but it sure is.”

The Doctor began to explain: “This is the TARDIS, Time and Relative Dimension in Space. This is the portal to anywhere and anywhen in the universe. Those creatures managed to get inside of here earlier, and they may manage to again. That’s why I’m trying to transport us away from the Manor as quickly as we can.”

“You can’t be serious? That’s my house back there. I cannot just let it be destroyed. It’s rather valuable, you know. It’s worth millions of pounds.” Joanna responded.

“You should just be grateful that I’m saving your life. Sorry about the house. There’s not much I could do about that, I’m afraid.”

Harold, Mary and two other creatures popped out of nowhere, descending into the room suddenly without warning. Joanna, Lizzie and Maxwell jumped back, frightened by this unexpected move. Harold and Mary both simultaneously chortled, but the reason for this was not imminently clear. The Doctor and Gina looked at each other with a face of grimace. Harold and Mary strolled around the console room.

Mary spoke first. “Sorry about our intrusion, John, but we just had to see this extraordinary ship in person. You are not a human being. You are much more than that. You are a time lord. You would be the best possible form for us.”

Harold picked up. “Tell us your name, John. Tell us your real name. All we need is your form. If we take your form, we shall let the others go free.”

The Doctor laughed. “Do you really think I’m going to believe that?”“It’s up to you whether you do, but I suggest you do. If you want your friends to survive, then all you have to do is hand yourself over. We shall let your friends go, we will deactivate the bomb, we shall release ourself from Applebey house.”

“I do not believe you. You want all of us. Even if you leave, you’ll go elsewhere and take innocent forms. I’m sure not everybody here is innocent. I’m sure everybody here has their sins and wrongdoings. But I am not for a second believing that.”

Mary sighed. “It’s rather a shame that you’re all going to die now when you don’t have to. You should just hand yourself over and then we’ll be done with it.”

Joanna interrupted. “Do it. Hand yourself over, John.”

The Doctor’s head turned towards Joanna. “What? Excuse me?”

“If it means we all get to survive, then that could only be a good thing. Our lives are much more valuable than yours could ever be.”

“Excuse me, have you actually seen him?” Gina asked. “He’s saved your life.”

“I don’t see how he’s saved our lives. He’s put them in more and more danger. I think you should just hand yourself over, John, and then we can all survive and be in peace for the rest of our lives. Three people have died today anyway.”

The Doctor’s expression turned. “If you are not happy about me trying to save your life, then go out there and die. You getting blown up won’t even be a minor inconvenience to me. I don’t have to save your life. I’d just rather I did.”

Joanna sighed. “Fine then. I’d rather die out there with the bomb and my house than give up myself like my husband and my guests foolishly did.” She turned towards her children. “I understand that this is goodbye.”

Lizzie looked devastated. “You’re going out there? You’re really going out there?”

“I’m not going to let those things take my form.”

“And I’m not going to either.” The Doctor promised. “You are not going out there, Joanna.”

“I am, John I understand that’s the only way for me to escape this, aside from you giving up your life, but I doubt that’s going to happen any time soon.”

“It’s not the only way to escape this. I always find a way. I promise you that.” The Doctor moved towards Harold and Mary. “Do your worst.”

Mary chuckled away to herself. “Oh we will, John, we will.”Suddenly, everybody inside was flung from one side of the TARDIS to the other, as a loud ‘Bang!’ signalled the detonation of the bomb. The Doctor and Gina clutched onto the console while Joanna, Lizzie and Maxwell attempted to hold on tightly to the surrounding walls. Harold, Mary and the other creatures dispersed themselves into the atmosphere and vanished without any prior warning of them doing so. The Doctor hurried out of the door, opened it and spotted the ruins of Applebey Manor, which had now been completely decimated. Gina hurried out, followed by the Applebey family.

Joanna looked visibly shaken and distraught at the sight that awaited her: The empty and desolate ruins of the building that stood in front of her. This was the place she had lived in since she was a child. All of her possessions were inside, and everything she had ever owned had been destroyed. She looked at her children, as tears began to trickle down her face. Everything she had been through dawned on her. Not even the death of her husband managed to be effective in doing so. Lizzie and Maxwell did not look too saddened by the destruction of the house, or at least not as much as she did.

Joanna strutted up to the Doctor. “This is all your fault, John. All your fault. My whole life has been destroyed as a result of you. You didn’t even let me die alongside it.”

The Doctor looked at her. “Maybe it’s a lesson to you: Not to take advantage of what you have got. You seem like a rather spoilt family if you ask me.”

“And you seem like a random stranger who destroyed my life. It’s not just that you destroyed my life but you destroyed my childrens lives, and you destroyed my husbands life. Yes, maybe I took them for granted, but here we are at the end of the Applebey family.”

“Look at it like this, you had a butler, did you not?”

Joanna nodded briefly. “Yes, yes, I did.”

The Doctor searched in the ruins and pointed out the dead body of the Butler. “There he is, the man that welcomed me into Appleby house and served you food and drinks all night long. He lived his life for you.”

“It’s what he was paid to do. He died with a deservant salary.”

“He died with you not even being bothered to know his name. Tell me, ma’am, what is the name of your Butler that served you for a fortunate salary?”

“I-” Joanna paused for a moment, stuttering. “I don’t know. He never said.”

“Or you could never be bothered to ask him. All you ever cared about is yourself. You didn’t even care when your husband died, but you cared about when your house was destroyed. It just exemplifies everything. It just proves what a selfish, narcissistic, horrid group of people you all really are.”Gina looked shocked. “Doctor, please stop it!”“And to top it all of, one of you was responsible for bringing those creatures here.”

Lizzie butted in. “And who’s to say that it wasn’t you who did that? You’re a random stranger who wormed your way into our lives and tried to dictate us about how we need to be better people. Who do you actually think you are?”

“I’m John Smith, that’s who I am.”

Maxwell continued. “Except you’re not even that, are you? You’re just living a lie.”

“Only because for today, I have to in order to survive.”

Joanna turned towards Gina. “And your little friend here, who is she? Is she telling us the truth? Is she really who she seems to be?”

Gina laughed sarcastically. “You’re bringing me into this now, are you?”

“You’re as much a part of this as John is. You came here and were one of the reasons that our lives were ruined, and you think you have the right to lecture us. You destroyed us. You destroyed everything. You destroyed our family.”

“You brought this upon yourselves. My life meant an awful lot to me as well, and I lost it all today. I lost my home, I lost my friend, and I found out that everything I had ever been told about the universe was a lie. I found out that aliens existed today just the same as you did. I met John here today just the same as you did. I found myself thrust upon an adventure I didn’t want to be on just the same as you did.”

“Don’t you dare act like you’re like us.” Joanna said, still adopting a rude tone. “We’re better people than you could ever be.”

The Doctor laughed slightly. “Nobody is better than anybody else, my dear.”

“Well we’re better than you, John, and that’s fact. Now that our lives are over, I see no reason why we should continue living them. I think it’s only right if we just handed them over to those creatures. How do we signal them here?” Harold and Mary materialised immediately as if a signal had somehow been broadcast to them to bring them here.

“You’re ready to give yourselves up, are you?” Harold asked Joanna.

“Yes I am.” Joanna confirmed. “I am going to give up the lives of myself and my family.”

“No, Mum, you can’t?” Maxwell retorted. “I don’t want to die, and I certainly don’t want these creatures to get my body. What are you achieving in letting us die?”

“I’m just admitting defeat. This is the end of our family heritage. We may as well just end our family full stop. My name is Joanna Appleby, and this is Maxwell and Lizzie Appleby. Take our forms. Go ahead. Kill us. Do your worst.”

“No, mum! No! How could you!” Maxwell exclaimed in response.

“Please, don’t kill us! Take our forms, but don’t kill us! We’re only young!” Lizzie demanded, but it was too late. Three of the Creatures transformed themselves into Joanna, Maxwell and Lizzie, as they stood alongside the embodiments of Harold and Mary. The real Joanna, Maxwell and Lizzie were also standing for the time being.

“Do you see what you’ve done?” The Doctor asked Joanna. “You’ve given them what they want. You’ve given them even more power than they had in the first place.”

Joanna turned around, still tearful. “I know, John, but me and my family will go together, and if you have any sense, you will hand over your names too, rather than attempt to escape.”

The creature, now in Joanna’s form, smiled cockily. “Thankyou for this, Joanna. You have been wise in cooperating with us, and now we have your forms, there is no need for you to survive. We have no need for you anymore.”

The Creatures moved towards Joanna, and broke her neck, and then proceeded to do the same thing for both Lizzie and Maxwell. The five embodiments stood in front of the Doctor and Gina, grandly, and were appearing victorious, as they were. The Doctor and Gina looked at each other deeply in the eye, and then looked towards the TARDIS. All five of the creatures pointed towards the TARDIS, causing it to dematerialise. 

“Hand over your real identities to us now, before we torture you in order to make you do so.” The form of Maxwell revealed. “There is no way to escape from us.”

The Doctor raised his hands. “Alright, we surrender.”

“Doctor? No you can’t!” Gina exclaimed.

The Doctor turned towards Gina in realisation. “You’ve just given me up.”

“So your name is Doctor. The Doctor?” Mary responded. “Now we know your names, I assume that we can take your form, unless this is a lie. Thankyou Gina for your help. Now, Doctor, you are ours.”

The hollow forms embodying the forms of the Applebey family and their guests descended towards the Doctor’s direction, causing him to back up, followed by his companion. They continued to move towards him. He raised out his hands in surrender. Gina had let slip that the Doctor was the Doctor to these creatures, and now they knew his name, they had the ability to take his form, and kill him. That was the only way they could. The Doctor stood bravely and boldly as the beings continued to stalk him. They did not do anything. They did not even take his form.

“You can’t take my form can you?” The Doctor examined. “You still don’t know my name. You need my own DNA. My own biology-Not just the title that I go by. You need my actual identity. Well, very few people in the universe know that information, and I will die before I hand it over to you.”

The new Joanna appeared baffled. “I am confused. That is your name. The Doctor.”

“As if anybody would name their child the Doctor. That’s bordering on child abuse. You’re dooming them from the start. It’s the title I go by, because it’s much more fitting for my morals than my real title, and I am a very fitting man, or so I would like to think.”

“I thought I’d condemned you to death!” Gina claimed, feeling guilty.

“These creatures may have wished that, but there’s no chance you’re going to be getting rid of me that easily. You’ve got to try harder, creatures. Unless you know my name, there is nothing you can do. Do your worst. Go on, do it.”

The form of Maxwell chortled. “You shall regret demanding the worst from us.”

“Go on, I’d like to see it. You say you have unlimited capabilities, but you are nothing. Literally, nothing. You are just somebody else now. You are just the dead reborn. There’s nothing you could ever do unless you knew my name.”

The form of Harold swung past Gina and grabbed her, holding her neck at the tip of his gun. He grinned, as if to signal he had the upper hand. The Doctor shifted towards him carefully and cautiously as the tip of the gun moved closer to Gina’s head. Gina looked visibly terrified at her current dance with death.

“Put the gun down right this instant, please.” The Doctor demanded.

“Give us your names, and we shall let you run free.”

“We both know that isn’t true, Harold. Or whatever you are called. Or whatever you aren’t called, which is anything. You are going to put her down, because you are not achieving anything here. Go elsewhere. Leave her be.”

“Hand over your name, Girl, and the Doctor’s, or I will kill you both.”

Gina shook her head. “That’s never going to happen. My body will always be mine, and you, or anyone else, will never get their hands on it. Kill me. Kill us. I don’t care. Just do it. There’s nothing left for me anymore anyway.” Gina awaited her death, cautiously, or the potential that the Doctor may be able to save her. She prepared for the approaching gunshot.

The Doctor grinned. “You won’t kill her, because you can’t.”

“He’s right. I bet you were wondering why I was acting like I was so prepared for death.”

The Doctor walked around for a while. “There’s no way you can possibly kill us. You even detonated your only weapon, the bomb, and it only killed a one man.”

“And it killed three more.” Lizzie declared, “The Applebey family sacrificed their own lives because of it. Or at least, Joanna did. Now we have their forms, and we have the whole of the universe at our disposal. We shall take your ship.”

All five of them pointed towards an empty space, where the TARDIS materialised itself once again. All of them strolled towards the ship, opened the doors and walked inside. The Doctor and Gina looked on anxiously. The Doctor raced towards the direction of his ship and followed them inside.

“You cannot pilot this ship, can you?” The Doctor said.

“No, no we can't.” Joanna admitted. “You shall teach us how to fly this machine.”

“Not a chance. There’s nothing you can use to threaten me. You’re useless without our names. You’re useless without our identities.”

“We shall destroy your ship.”

“You’re bluffing.” Gina replied. “You don’t even know how to do that.”

“We can find a way. We always do.”

“No you can’t. You know how to get inside but you do not know how to control it.”

The Doctor turned towards the Creatures. “I’d appreciate it if you got off my ship now. It’s no bother if you don’t, because I have a plan. I always do. Get out, before I act on it.”

Suddenly, the desolate exterior transformed into an orange blast which took everybody inside the TARDIS by surprise. An explosion was formed all of a sudden. It was blinding: Orange and yellow, but somehow metallic too. It was startling. Ace materialised in the fog formed by the explosion, with her features slowly becoming clear to the Doctor and Gina. They both looked at each other, ecstatic. Ace spotted the Doctor, and excitedly ran up to him, hugging him tightly and intently, delighted to be reunited with him.

“Professor! It’s so good to see you!” Ace exclaimed.

“Ace! I remember you, Ace! I remember!” The Doctor revealed, making her grin.

“Oh my god! Yes! Is Destari go-” Ace turned around, and glared at the unfamiliar faces in the other corner of the ship. “Who are these guys?”

“These are the Applebey family. Or more so, evil itself.”

“Who are you?” Harold asked, staring at this stranger intently.

“My name is Dorothy Mcshane, but you can call me Ace. Get out of my ship, oldie.”

A figure identical to Ace walked through the door. One of the Creatures had mimicked her features, just as they did with the Applebey family and their guests, and just as they tried to do with the Doctor and Gina. Gina gave out a deep sigh of dread as it kicked in with what had happened. The Doctor pushed Ace away from the creatures and defended them.

“What’s going on, Professor? Why is there someone exactly the same as me at the door?”

“When they know your name, they can take your form.” The Doctor explained. “Sadly, you just gave away a few too many details to them about your persona.”

“Well you could have warned me! Thanks, Prof! They ain’t getting their hands on me.”

Ace opened up one of the roundels on the console walls, revealing a stash of Nitro 9 which she must have had stored in there for a long time. She grabbed it, and threw it towards the direction of her doppelganger, and its associates. A flame ripped through the TARDIS, causing the Doctor, Gina and Ace to cover their eyes. The flame vanished, and so did the beings. The Doctor and Gina breathed a deep and celebratory sigh of relief as the creatures vanished into nothingness.

“Is that them gone, Doctor?” Gina questioned. “Or will they be back?”

“I believe they’re gone. They descended into nothingness because they are exactly that. There may be more of them out there, and we may face them again, but we have that concern about any enemy we may come across, and me and Ace have come through a whole host of them.” The Doctor turned towards Ace. “I can’t put into words how great it is to see you again, or at least to remember you again.”

“It’s great to see you again too, Professor,” Ace returned, “What about Destari?”

“I’ll fill you in on that later, Ace, but I’d suggest we get our young friend here, Gina, back to her home in Antarctica. She’s had to put up with the two of us for long enough.”

Gina laughed briefly. “Yeah, I have. I honestly couldn’t cope with this for any longer. I don’t know how you two do it. It must be constant. From one place to the next, battling intergalactic crime and preventing all sorts of cosmic threats. Is that all your lives are?”

Ace nodded. “Yep, that’s all our lives are, and it’s fantastic, isn’t it, Professor? You couldn’t dream of having a better life than that.”

“Yes you could, and that’s called normality, which I need to get back to.”

“Alright, dull brain, we’ll get you back. Or at least, the Doc will get you back in no time. It’s been nice to meet you, Gina.”

“It’s been an honour, Gina.” The Doctor remarked, as he released the clutch on the TARDIS controls and the doors swung open from behind them. “Anyways, you are home. Antarctica. I know Antarctica is a very vast place, and I didn’t ask you where you lived, but I dropped you a couple of miles west from where the Snowzone base used to be.”

Gina smiled. “Thank you, Doctor. At least we’ll be on the right planet.”

“You never know with the Professor.” Ace responded. “We may still be on another planet. After all, the Doctor and the TARDIS are both as unpredictable as one another. That door may swing shut at any moment and we’d be propelled onto another adventure straight away without any prior warning, and it’d be brilliant.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay, Gina, for a little trip across the universe?” Asked the Doctor, appearing to offer her the opportunity for another adventure. “Because when you let this opportunity go, it’s very unlikely you’ll be able to go through it again.”

“I’ve had quite the day, Doctor. I found out aliens existed. I went to the past. I nearly died quite a few times in quite a few different ways. It was scary, it was brilliant, it was jaw dropping, but it’s an opportunity that I wouldn’t want to lead as a life.”

The Doctor grinned. “I couldn’t have put it better myself. Of you go then, Gina! I hope one day that we do have the chance to cross paths once more.”

“I hope not!” Gina cheekily responded. “For your own sake, at least.”

The Doctor peered over the TARDIS console, before looking over at Gina. He smiled, and waved at her, as Ace did the same. Ace seemed to look back towards the Doctor in an admiring sense, delighted that her paths had crossed once again with the Doctor and she had a chance to resume her adventures with him, despite some rocky experiences through the day. Gina prepared to step out of the door that stood in front of her, but she paused for a moment, and turned around, addressing Ace.

“Ace, is there any chance I can talk to you outside, alone?” Gina asked.

“Anything you can say, you can say it to me and the Professor. There’s no such thing as secrecy here! What sort of thing did you want to talk about?”

“It’s private, and I’d rather if we spoke about it alone, if that’s okay with you.”

The Doctor put his thumbs up, causing Ace and Gina to venture back out into the familiarly mountainous landscapes that steeped from around them. Ace recognised this spot, as it was around the location where the Snowzone base was. Or at least she thought. All of it looked the same, just endless mounds of snow and dirt and emptiness, with nobody around as far as the eye could see. Maybe that was for the best. Gina smiled, and pointed towards a house from afar, which Ace soon twigged must have been Gina’s own. Ace raised her thumbs. The tempestuous weather seemed to guard their ears from any form of speech. Gina’s mouth moved, but Ace could not pick up what she was trying to say. The weather was not calming down-It was just getting more and more ferocious. However intently Ace listened, she could not pick up what Gina was attempting to say to her.

“What are you saying?” Ace screamed at the top of her voice. “It’s hard to hear you.”

Gina raised her volume. “Today’s experiences have changed me in many ways. I think I may have become a better person as a result of it. Before today, all there was to my life was my desperate nature to learn more about my father's disappearance, and my hatred towards Nathan which I could not ever provide a reasonable explanation for. I realised today that I need to change who I am, for the better. Nathan’s gone now, and so is the Snowzone base, so it’s just me out here alone. I need to be better. I need to go elsewhere. I need to set up a life in a less desolate area, and help people in need, just like you do, but without the aliens.”

“That’s great, but why did I need to know that? I guessed that already. Usually when people meet me and the Professor, they tend to become better people. We have that effect.”

Gina’s tone changed. “I needed to warn you about the Doctor. There’s evil inside of him. You may think that he is this brilliant ray of light; This unstoppable hero that always knows how to get out of situations, even if he just relies on luck to do so, but I saw it today-He’s evil. There’s more darkness in him than I have seen in any human being before. You just need to be warned about this, because I know you haven’t-”

Ace interrupted. “Don’t you dare start pretending like you know the Professor. He’s a brilliant person. He’s the best thing that has ever happened to me, and that has ever happened to all of those who have come before me, and maybe even you. You have no right to just say that he’s evil and pretend like you know him when you only met us today.”

“You just needed to know. Have you ever seen the darkness that lies within him?”

Ace nodded regretfully. “Of course I have. Something happened between the two of us during our trip to World War Two, and if I tell you the truth, I still haven’t recovered from it. But he changed my life, and he does everything he can to change others for the better. You have no right to judge him, Gina. You just have no right.”

Gina appeared guilty. “I’m sorry, Ace. I didn’t mean to upset you or anything.”

“Well it’s tough, innit? It’s just tough. Goodbye, Gina. I hope you enjoy the rest of your miserable life.” Gina attempted to run after her, but Ace propelled herself towards the TARDIS at full speed and slammed the door from behind her. Gina looked towards her house, and slowly began to stroll towards it.

Inside of the TARDIS, Ace stormed in, looking visibly upset. The Doctor did not take much notice of this, and began to plot the coordinates of the TARDIS, potentially for whatever adventure they would be embarking on next. Ace sat herself down on the perfect white floor. The Doctor turned towards her, and looked deeply into her eyes, seemingly noticing at last that she was upset over something. He placed his hand on her shoulder as a sign of comfort, as she held back some tears.

“I thought I’d lost you, Doctor.” Ace said, beginning to break up. “I really thought that today was going to be the end of all of this. Of all that we have been through.”

The Doctor shook his head. “The end will not come anytime soon, I promise you that, Ace. I’m sorry for everything that happened today. I’m sorry for not remembering you. I’ll never stop feeling guilty for that.”

“It wasn’t your fault. It was that space witch. She took me away from you. Is she dead, Professor, because if she ain’t, we need to go out there and blow her bleeding head of.”

“She’s still out there, Ace. After you were flung out of the TARDIS, she gave me a warning. She told me something like she wanted to warn me, and then she said she wanted to warn all of us, for some reason. As in, me, you and Gina, I assume. She said wherever we go, wherever we are, we will never be safe from her. She said that when she strikes next, she will be willing to do anything to get her revenge, and blood will be spilt. She also said the Sontarans and the Rutans will not forget us either. The weirdest bit of all was she told me that what she did today was just a warning. It means something worse is coming for us.”

“We’ll be ready for her.” Ace declared. “We’ll always be ready for her.”

“We have to be. There’s no telling when she’ll pop up. She could materialise wherever we land ourselves next, or it could be three incarnations down the line before I cross paths with her again. Who can tell, Ace? But we’ve always got to be prepared.”

“We defeated the Daleks, we defeated the Cybermen, we defeated the Master, and we’ll be able to defeat her too. Apparently she’s nothing compared to them.”

“Except she’s much worse. She took my identity away from me, in a much worse way than even the creatures I just came across could have done. She is intent on destroying me, and tearing me and you apart. I don’t know what she is yet, and I need to find out. But not yet! Let her come to us first. I think we should take our minds off of all this with another adventure. Where do you fancy? Do you want to solve the Ripper murders? Do you want to go to the eighteenth bountiful Anthrax empire? Do you want to go to the Web Planet?”

Ace shrugged. “Is there a button that can put us somewhere random?”

“Yes, there is! Look at this, what we thought was the impossible: The Doctor and Ace together in the TARDIS, travelling through space and time, as they should be.”

“I’m glad of it. What are you waiting for, Professor? Let’s go!”

The Doctor pulled the controls forward, propelling the TARDIS into the time vortex. The Doctor and Ace looked at each other, admiringly and comfortingly, as they set sail upon their next adventure.