The Mirror Cracks (A Doctor Who Fan Fiction)

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

The AI ran in front of Clara, putting his arm out to protect her. He brought out a sonic screwdriver from his pocket and pointed it towards the Dalek coming towards them.

“EX-TER-MIN-ATE!”

“You should have kept your thoughts to yourself there, Miss Oswald.”

Clara looked at the AI. Could the TARDIS read her mind? Is that why it asked her if she wanted to stop? Did it know she was over-thinking and knew she was going to trip up? She decided to stop before she said something she might regret.

“Don’t worry, Miss Oswald. Your secrets are safe with me. The Doctor is a lucky man to have you on board and that is why I will protect you.”

Clara smiled at the AI before readying herself behind him as the Dalek came closer towards them.

“Geronimo!” shouted the AI as it activated the sonic screwdriver at the Dalek.

The Dalek almost disappeared, disintegrating right in front of their eyes.

“That was close. What did you do?” asked Clara.

“The Dalek wasn’t real. It was imaginary; a creation of the Rani’s to scare us.”

Clara stepped back from the Doctor, breathing a sigh of relief before she backed into something. There wasn’t a wall behind her but before she could turn around, an arm grappled round her, squeezing her tight. The arm was metallic, cold and would not let her go. It pointed its other arm at the AI who pointed its screwdriver at the creature.

“Cyberman,” the AI said, his facial expression of anger was something Clara had seen many times before on the previous Doctor’s face.

The Cyberman began to squeeze tighter at Clara. She was beginning to find it harder to breathe. Suddenly, the Cyberman talked.

“Do not struggle, dear. You’ll just make it worse.”

*

The Rani was talking into a microphone on the control panel. The screen she was watching showed the AI and Cyberman standing off. The Doctor had removed his sonic screwdriver and pointed it at the Rani while she was doing the same.

“You’re in quite a predicament. Now that my powers are growing stronger, my illusions are now a little more... realistic. Wouldn't you agree, Clara dear?”

“Let her go, Rani.”

The Doctor spoke through gritted teeth, his anger being used to threaten her but he was all too aware of what she could do. The Rani turned to face the Doctor.

“You dare to challenge someone who could disintegrate you in an instance. Doctor, I could go ahead with my plan without you but I want you to see the rise of our once great race. Don’t make me do something I will regret.”

The Doctor smiled before using his sonic screwdriver to short-circuit the control panel. The Rani was thrown back while he could see the Cyberman had let go of its grip of Clara. He got hold of the microphone.

“Run, Clara!”

The Doctor turned round to see the Rani pointing her sonic screwdriver at him. Suddenly, he could feel himself grow lighter. He looked down at his hands to see they were disappearing like sand in the wind. He looked up at the Rani again who had tears in her eyes but was trying to smile.

“I am sorry Doctor. You left me with no choice.”

The Doctor disappeared from the control room.

*

Clara and the AI ran down the corridor, followed closely by the Cyberman which was also running.

“Can Cybermen run?” Clara asked the AI, her shortness of breath becoming more apparent with every syllable she spoke.

“No, but this isn’t exactly your average Cyberman.”

The AI was running just ahead of Clara and couldn’t reach his hand to hold on to it. He kept turning to check on her and the Cyberman who followed closely behind.

Suddenly, a door appeared in front of them, very similar in appearance to the previous door that allowed them to enter the metallic corridor. The AI stopped and used his sonic screwdriver to open the door. He then turned to Clara and kissed her on the forehead.

“I’m sorry Miss Oswald but you must go on alone from here, the Rani won’t be able to touch you once you enter this room. I will hold back the Cyberman.”

Clara looked at him, sad that she would see her protector go.

“No, I need you. How will I know what to do?”

The AI smiled and hugged her.

“You will know what to do. Now hurry!”

He pushed her away from him and towards the door. He put out his arm to protect her as the Cyberman began to stop in front of him. He held out his sonic screwdriver to fight the creature. He turned back to see Clara peeking out from the door. He smiled before being attacked by the Cyberman. He fell to the ground in pain as Clara closed the door.

Clara leaned back against the door, scared and frightened by what she had witnessed. She knew she had to do this for both the TARDIS and the Doctor. She had to be strong. She managed to straighten herself up and walked towards what was a big red button on a stand in the middle of the room. The room was white, much the same as the first room she woke up in. The room made her feel small and alone but she knew that this would be a massive task for her to do. She was erasing time. This must have been what it felt like for the Doctor.

She stepped forward to the button and placed her hands on top of it.

“Allon-sy!” shouted Clara as she pressed down on the button.