'Surrender Doctor!' ordered the Dalek.
'And if I do,' shouted the Doctor, 'what then?'
'The key you possess will be ours,' grated the Dalek, 'And you will die!'
The Doctor switched off the monitor and turned to face Clara.
'Do you see what I've got to put up with?' he moaned. 'The Daleks will never give up and they expect me to hand over a Key I know nothing about…'
'A key?' replied Clara. 'You're the key!' she stated.
The Doctor wasn't sure what she meant. 'That's the second time I've heard someone say that!' whispered the Doctor, 'Tell me what you mean!'
'I'll tell you what I know. Long ago,' began Clara, 'the Daleks were defeated and a man called the Doctor had stopped them.'
'Wait…' said the Doctor. He turned away from Clara, and reminded himself that he was the Doctor. He spun around and Clara continued.
'He was a sworn enemy of the Daleks,' she went on, '…until they suddenly forgot who he was and why he stood among them.'
'But what has this to do with the key?' huffed the Doctor. 'I'm sorry to rush you but the Daleks will stop at nothing to defeat me!'
'The Daleks had forgotten what their interest in the Doctor was. He was a Time Lord, from the planet Gallifrey, and a man of great importance…'
The Doctor was stunned. 'So what do you think I, John Smith, a man from Earth has to do with any of this?'
'It was said the Doctor travelled in a small blue box. Something as unbelievable as this, and that if he needed to, he would call on the rest of the universe to save himself.
'But that's something the Doctor would never do!' he replied. He spun about the console, pressing buttons and switches continuing his evasion from the Daleks.
'How do you know that?' asked Clara, sure she was getting somewhere, finally. 'Are you this man, the Doctor?'
'Oh come on, Clara, do I really resemble this man, the Doctor?' He grinned back at her and received a call from beyond the TARDIS. 'That'll be them now!' he declared, pulling the old telephone from off the console. He held it to his ear as Clara whispered back at him.
'Who do you mean?' she asked.
'Why the universe, of course!' answered the Doctor.
The universe responded as one. The key was not of their concern. Not one man, woman, or child. It was up to the Doctor to maintain it, to look after himself.
'But I have one question left,' said Clara, focused entirely on the Doctor. 'How did the Daleks remember who you were?'
'Oh come on,' he said, hanging up on the universe. 'Do you really think the Daleks could forget me for so long?'
'I've no idea,' replied Clara. 'What exactly did you do to make them remember you?'
'I did something untoward,' explained the Doctor. 'It was on Earth, long ago.' He paused and glared at Clara. 'You were there!' he added.
'Really?' she asked. 'What happened to us?'
'Well,' said the Doctor, now seated beside her. 'We're both still here…'
'You know what I mean,' she added. 'Tell me, please…'
'It was on Earth in 2013, when I met you for the third and final time… There had been a war, between humanity and the remnants of your people...'
~~~
'Ghosts!' stated the Doctor, 'It's who we're dealing with.' He was addressing both the Keeper and Clara.
As he lit the match, something unexpected happened. He ran up the stairs to find Clara. She was begging him to stop. 'I get it!' said the Doctor. 'You're a ghost too and you're one of them!'
The stairs belonged to the Torchwood Tower that had become a beacon for the ghosts. The Doctor hoped that by burning it to the ground, the ghosts that fed off it for energy would be destroyed.
'I'm sorry, Clara,' he said, with the match lit in his hand. 'But it can't end like this, with the ghosts outliving the, uh… living.'
Clara reached for the match. 'Then let me,' she said, 'if I'm one of them…'
'I can't let you do this!' declared the Doctor.
'You must!' insisted Clara. 'You must run, Doctor! As fast you possibly can!'
~~~
'It went something like that,' concluded the Doctor. 'And I'm not proud of what I did…'
'But I cannot die,' she replied, 'Not properly.'
There was a sudden jolt aboard the TARDIS and they realised they had arrived.
'It still doesn't answer my question,' she said. 'Why do the Daleks want you dead?'
'Isn't it obvious?' replied the Doctor. 'I'm too good an enemy to be considered harmless…'
'Where are we?' she asked.
The Doctor checked the monitor. 'Earth,' he said. 'Or somewhere similar…'
'In other words,' sighed Clara, 'You haven't a clue!'
'Something like that,' he answered.
'So despite not knowing where we are,' she said, with a smile and a wink, 'What are we doing here?'
'Just you wait and see!' remarked the Doctor.
'But you never said who the Keeper was?'
'A friend,' the Doctor replied, 'Or so I thought…'
'What do you mean?' she asked.
'It turns out that he's much more,' said the Doctor. 'I thought it was all a myth, and something we as Time Lords had dreamt up… but oh no,' he exclaimed. 'Because they were clever, the Time Lords, and they devised ways for the blue box and the Doctor to go on living. The "Keeper" was a back-up plan, for if things went wrong, and they have done.'
'What are you talking about?' she demanded.
The Doctor pressed his hands on the console and leant forward a while. Gazing up, he replied, 'It’s all part of who I am, Clara. The Daleks want a piece of me, and whether I'm prepared to give it or not, is another matter.'
'And what about me?' she asked.
'Come with me?' he replied. 'I'm not sure I can do this alone…'
'Do what?' she gulped. She wasn't expecting him to die because he knew too much. He led her out of the TARDIS and into civilisation.
There were people waiting for them, or so it seemed. A man stepped forward, with a key in his hand. 'Have you brought it?' he asked.
'Yes,' answered the Doctor. He pulled his hand from his pocket and opened it before them in which it contained a key.
'Who are you?' asked Clara getting straight to the point.
'A friend,' he answered. 'You may call me Light.'
Light was an old man, with grey hair and a beard, and walked with the aid of a cane. He had polished shoes and wore the strangest of clothes. The Keeper was equally as strange with silver hair, silver boots, and carried around with him an umbrella. It was shaped as a question mark.
Clara spun around and looked up at the blue box she was quizzical and asked, 'The light of the TARDIS?' she mused.
'Could be,' answered the Doctor, '…and we seek solace, - that's me and Clara, here,' he added pointing at himself and Clara in turn, 'The Daleks are looking for the key. They say it will bring them a power source like no other…'
'That it will,' replied Light. 'But as one…' he went on. 'We can defeat them.'
'But how?' responded the Doctor, not quite sure he understood, 'What do you know that I don't?'
'That all of time and space is yours, Doctor. The Keeper and I were designed to keep you alive. But we make up who you are and all you have ever stood for.'
'Sounds like you're a “somebody”!' nudged Clara. 'Not sure I follow though…'
A Dalek saucer passed overhead. They watched as another followed close behind, followed by an entire fleet.
'We must get moving!' declared the Keeper. 'With the Daleks close behind, we haven't long!'
'What about the TARDIS?' shouted the Doctor, over the engines of the Dalek fleet.
'Oh don't worry,' replied Light. 'Your TARDIS is coming with us…'
As the Daleks arrived on the planet Solace the Doctor was led to a cave. Low light was just what they sought to hide from the Daleks. They watched from inside as Daleks trundled past: An invasion was under way. The Doctor couldn't hide his anger and his annoyance for bringing the Daleks to Solace.
Clara wore a beautiful red dress and colourful boots to match. Her hair was long and flowing, and her eyes were the brightest specs in the darkness.
'They've passed,' whispered the Doctor. 'I think we're safe…'
'For now, yes,' replied Light, 'But for how long?
There was a sudden jolt aboard the TARDIS and they realised they had arrived.
'It still doesn't answer my question,' she said. 'Why do the Daleks want you dead?'
'Isn't it obvious?' replied the Doctor. 'I'm too good an enemy to be considered harmless…'
'Where are we?' she asked.
The Doctor checked the monitor. 'Earth,' he said. 'Or somewhere similar…'
'In other words,' sighed Clara, 'You haven't a clue!'
'Something like that,' he answered.
'So despite not knowing where we are,' she said, with a smile and a wink, 'What are we doing here?'
'Just you wait and see!' remarked the Doctor.
'But you never said who the Keeper was?'
'A friend,' the Doctor replied, 'Or so I thought…'
'What do you mean?' she asked.
'It turns out that he's much more,' said the Doctor. 'I thought it was all a myth, and something we as Time Lords had dreamt up… but oh no,' he exclaimed. 'Because they were clever, the Time Lords, and they devised ways for the blue box and the Doctor to go on living. The "Keeper" was a back-up plan, for if things went wrong, and they have done.'
'What are you talking about?' she demanded.
The Doctor pressed his hands on the console and leant forward a while. Gazing up, he replied, 'It’s all part of who I am, Clara. The Daleks want a piece of me, and whether I'm prepared to give it or not, is another matter.'
'And what about me?' she asked.
'Come with me?' he replied. 'I'm not sure I can do this alone…'
'Do what?' she gulped. She wasn't expecting him to die because he knew too much. He led her out of the TARDIS and into civilisation.
There were people waiting for them, or so it seemed. A man stepped forward, with a key in his hand. 'Have you brought it?' he asked.
'Yes,' answered the Doctor. He pulled his hand from his pocket and opened it before them in which it contained a key.
'Who are you?' asked Clara getting straight to the point.
'A friend,' he answered. 'You may call me Light.'
Light was an old man, with grey hair and a beard, and walked with the aid of a cane. He had polished shoes and wore the strangest of clothes. The Keeper was equally as strange with silver hair, silver boots, and carried around with him an umbrella. It was shaped as a question mark.
Clara spun around and looked up at the blue box she was quizzical and asked, 'The light of the TARDIS?' she mused.
'Could be,' answered the Doctor, '…and we seek solace, - that's me and Clara, here,' he added pointing at himself and Clara in turn, 'The Daleks are looking for the key. They say it will bring them a power source like no other…'
'That it will,' replied Light. 'But as one…' he went on. 'We can defeat them.'
'But how?' responded the Doctor, not quite sure he understood, 'What do you know that I don't?'
'That all of time and space is yours, Doctor. The Keeper and I were designed to keep you alive. But we make up who you are and all you have ever stood for.'
'Sounds like you're a “somebody”!' nudged Clara. 'Not sure I follow though…'
A Dalek saucer passed overhead. They watched as another followed close behind, followed by an entire fleet.
'We must get moving!' declared the Keeper. 'With the Daleks close behind, we haven't long!'
'What about the TARDIS?' shouted the Doctor, over the engines of the Dalek fleet.
'Oh don't worry,' replied Light. 'Your TARDIS is coming with us…'
~~~
As the Daleks arrived on the planet Solace the Doctor was led to a cave. Low light was just what they sought to hide from the Daleks. They watched from inside as Daleks trundled past: An invasion was under way. The Doctor couldn't hide his anger and his annoyance for bringing the Daleks to Solace.
Clara wore a beautiful red dress and colourful boots to match. Her hair was long and flowing, and her eyes were the brightest specs in the darkness.
'They've passed,' whispered the Doctor. 'I think we're safe…'
'For now, yes,' replied Light, 'But for how long?