Heaven's Light ✿ The Doctor [2]

18- The Shakespeare Code (pt. 2)

Avery watched Shakespeare with concern, seeing how shaken he was by the Carrionite. He was rinsing his face with water as if hoping it would wake him up from a bad dream. Her eyes shifted the Doctor as he begins informing them, "The Carrionites disappeared way back at the dawn of the universe. Nobody was sure if they were real or legend."

"Well, I'm going for real." Shakespeare said, turning to face the rest of them.

"But what do they want?" Martha wondered.

"A new empire on Earth." He answers, leaning back against a desk, "A world of bones and blood and witchcraft."

"So, basically, a very bad world if we don't stop them." Avery simplified, earning a nod of confirmation from the Doctor.

"But how?" Martha questioned.

He shifts his gaze to Shakespeare, "I'm looking at the man with the words."

Shakespeare looks at him in confusion, stating in surprise, "Me? But I've done nothing."

"What were you doing last night, when that Carrionite was in the room?" Avery inquired, leaning against the wall as her mind raced with ideas.

"Finishing the play."

Catching onto Avery's train of thought, the Doctor asks, "What happens on the last page?"

"The boys get the girls. They have a bit of a dance. It's all as funny and thought provoking as usual." Shakespeare paused for a moment, "Except those last few lines. Funny thing is, I don't actually remember writing them."

"That's it." The Doctor states, moving away from the desk to stand in front of Shakespeare and voicing his thoughts out loud, "They used you. They gave you the final words like a spell, like a code. Love's Labour's Won. It's a weapon. The right combination of words, spoken at the right place, with the shape of the Globe as an energy converter! The play's the thing!" He exclaims and then he turns back and tells him, "And yes, you can have that."

They retrieved a rough map of the city, the group attempting to track down All Hallows Street. It had to be somewhere nearby, a place no one would think to look. The Doctor finds it and points on the map, instructing, "All Hallows Street. There it is. Avery, Martha, we'll track them down. Will, you get to the Globe. Whatever you do, stop that play."

"I'll do it." Shakespeare agrees before shaking the Doctor's hand, "All these years I've been the cleverest man around. Next to you, I know nothing."

"Oh, don't complain." Martha retorted.

"I'm not. It's marvelous." He admits, "Good luck, Doctor."

"Good luck, Shakespeare. Once more unto the breach." The trio exited the room.

"I like that." Shakespeare compliments before realizing, "Wait a minute, that's one of mine."

The Doctor poked his head around the doorframe, "Oh, just shift!"

***

"All Hallows Street," The Doctor started, holding Avery's hand tightly as they looked around the block, "Which house?"

The familiar feeling of adrenaline rushed through her veins, drowning out the exhaustion, as she helped him and Martha search. "The thing is, though, am I missing something here?" Martha wonders, "The world didn't end in 1599. It just didn't. Look at me and Avery, we're living proof."

"Oh, how to explain the mechanics of the infinite temporal flux?" The Doctor breathes as he looks around.

"Back to the Future." Avery explains, "It's like Back to the Future."