Wanderer of Time: Silence Begins (doctor who)

Chapter 53: The Doctor's Darkest Hour

Warning: Mentioning of dark themes (tortue) and blood.

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She did not know where she was. All she could feel was emptiness. It was like she was floating in a gentle breeze. Carried on whispers through the stars. She wanted to open her eyes, to see what the whispers where or what was gently rocking her through the emptiness. But they refused to open, remaining firmly shut. All she could do . . . was listen.

It was like a million, million people all whispering at once. Echoing distantly, but yet speaking right next to her ear at the same time. Some of the sounds were of laughter. Children playing. Friends sharing a joke. A family enjoying each other's company. Some were of tears. A man crying over the loss of his wife. A mother mourning the loss of her child. A child crying in fear, missing their parents. Some were of anger . . . of hate. Violent. Spiteful. Aggressive. Wrathful. Resentment. Jealously. Rage. Madness. All evil and horrid things mixed together. These seemed to be the loudest whispers of them all.

She cringed away from this. Wanting nothing to do with such evil. Such hatred. She wanted the laughter. The happiness. But the more she tried to listen to the good, the more the bad seemed to overtake everything else. Becoming overpowering and killing off all the good. Destroying everything in its wake. Leaving only the wicked. Only the corrupt. Only the cruel. It was an endless cycle. An endless torment. There was nothing that could be done to stop it. Unless . . . someone put an end to it. Someone to step in the way and cut the line. Ending the cycle once and for all. But who?

Suddenly, she felt everything rushing back into her. Her mind jumped to life as memories came flowing back into proper place. It forward through everything all at once. Letting it see what she had been doing all these years. Letting her see all the people she loved. Letting her see the one man she loved more than anything. The Doctor. Her Doctor. Her Theta. She remembered!

Wanda gasped as she felt herself coming back into reality. Her eyes finally snapped open and saw Eleven hovering over her worriedly. Him on one side of her and Clara on the other, both smiling widely with joy as Wanda lay on the dirt floor of the dying TARDIS of Trenzalore. She blinked at them, feeling dazed.

"How are you feeling?" the Doctor asked her quietly.

"Um . . . like crap, actually," Wanda answered lightly. It was true. She felt like she had been run over by a steam engine. Twice.

"That's just side effects of being taken out of time. It'll pass," the Doctor assured her, helping her sit up. Wanda wobbled slightly, feeling woozy. She turned to look at Clara, seeing the girl perfectly fine and happy.

"So, I take it everything went okay? You saved the day and became the Impossible Girl?" Wanda asked her.

"Yep!" Clara bounced happily in place. "Kinda scary at first, but I'm glad I did it."

"Good," Wanda smiled at her, giving her the biggest hug, holding the girl close, happy to have the wonderful companion with them. "You are brilliant. I'm going to make sure I keep telling you that."

"Oh, you do," Clara laughed, pulling away from the Time Lady. The Doctor grabbed onto Wanda next and hugged her tightly.

"I thought I'd lost you forever for a while there," he breathed into her ear.

"Never," Wanda replied gently, rubbing his back fondly. She smiled, elated that everything had turned out all right in the end. She had been worried greatly for Clara for some time, but the possibilities had shown her everything would turn out fine for the girl. So, Wanda knew there had been nothing to truly worry about. Except . . .

"So . . . what happened to me, exactly?" Wanda asked the Doctor, letting go of him to stare curiously at him. "You said 'taken out of time.' Why was I removed from time?" The Doctor tensed, seeming unsure how to answer that.