Fight For Freedom |4| The Ascension

Chapter Twenty One: The Big Bang

Stonehenge, 102AD.

"So, the universe ended," Rory sniffed, trying to control his tears as he cradled Amy's body in his lap. Pietro and Zoë were huddled on the next stone, shivering in the cool night. Apparently, being plastic made you resistant to the cold. "You missed that, in 102AD. I suppose this means you and I never get born at all. Twice, in my case. You would have laughed at that." He looked down at her, but she didn't move. "Please laugh." He sighed. "The Doctor said the universe was huge and ridiculous, and sometimes there were miracles. I could do with a miracle about now."

As if on cue, the Doctor appeared out of thin air, wearing a red fez and carrying a mop. "Rory!"

"What the fuck?" Zoë asked, her eyes wide at the fez.

The Doctor pouted at her. "Oi, language!" He turned back to Rory, who was staring at him in shock. "Listen, she's not dead. Well, she is dead, but it's not the end of the world. Well, it is the end of the world. Actually, it's the end of the universe." He blinked, apparently realising he was still holding the mop. "Oh, no. Hang on." He vanished.

Rory blinked. "Doctor? Doctor!"

"He'll be back," an accentless voice assured them, the glowing woman stepping out from behind a stone.

Zoë blinked, recognising her mother's first face. "Mum?"

The blonde raised an eyebrow at her. "Close. I'm the Bad Wolf."

"There's a Bad Wolf now?" Pietro frowned, confused.

The Doctor reappeared, without the mop this time. He blinked when he saw the Bad Wolf. "Oi, what are you doing here?"

"Saving your bitch ass, apparently," she shot back. "Like you didn't already know."

The Time Lord grinned. "Good to see that face again."

The Wolf rolled her eyes. "Save it for the alter-ego, alright?"

"Yes, ma'am." The Doctor saw Rory and blinked, remembering why he was there. "Oh, yes! You need to get me out of the Pandorica."

Rory stared. "But you're not in the Pandorica."

"Yes, I am. Well, I'm not now, but I was back then," the Doctor reasoned. "Well, back now from your point of view, which is back then from my point of view."

The Wolf sighed. "Why does she ever let you open your mouth?"

"Time travel, you can't keep it straight in your head," the Doctor pointed out.

"Especially not yours," the Wolf conceded. "Anyway, the box is easy to open from the outside. Just point and press."

The Doctor handed over his screwdriver to Zoë, whose eyes were wide. "Now go." He vanished, then returned. "Oh, and -"

"I'll keep your damn glowstick safe, don't worry," the Wolf told him. "Get back to not getting the other one killed, yeah?" The Doctor grinned then vanished again, and she sighed. "How she puts up with him, I don't know."

"Ah, that's easy," Pietro pointed out, all of them getting to their feet. "She's worse than him."

***

They hurried down into the main chamber of the Underhenge, Zoë tentatively using the sonic to unlock the Pandorica. As it opened, the bonds holding the Doctor releasing him, he stared at them. "How did you do that?"

"You gave me this," Zoë told him, holding up the sonic.

"No, I didn't," he contradicted, pulling an identical sonic from his pocket.