Ties Between Freedom and Love

✦09✦

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"Agh! Talk about bleak house," The Doctor commented as the trio entered the morgue, Gwenyth, Sneed, and Dickens right behind them.

"The thing is, Doctor, the Gelth don't succeed," Rose tried. "I know they don't. I know for a fact, there weren't corpses walking around in 1869."

"Times in flux, changing every second. Your cozy little world can be rewritten like that," the Doctor snapped his fingers. "Nothing is safe, remember that, nothing."

"Yeah, just ask me," Emma retorted, "my uncle unsank the Titanic just because he hated and I quote 'That God awful Celine Dion song made me want to smite myself' it changed everything."

"But the Titanic did sink," the Doctor looked at her confused.

"Yeah, because that tiny, little change of moving an iceberg out of the way caused a ripple effect that almost wiped out my entire family from ever existing. So my dad forced him to go back and fix what he'd done," Emma explained and something that looked like doubt and realization flickered in the Doctor's eyes. "He carries the burden of regret, because if it wasn't for his decision all those people would have lived, their children, and their children's children. But that's not how history was written and unfortunately, everything happens for a reason."

"Doctor..." Dickens muttered and the Doctor reluctantly tore his gaze from Emma, "I think the room is getting colder."

"Here they come," Rose shivered.

One of the Gelth flowed out of the closest gas lamp and toward the small archway. "You've come to help!" it cried out happily. "Praise the Doctor! Praise him!"

"Promise you won't hurt her," Rose called out to it but it ignored her.

"Hurry! So little time. Pity the Gelth!"

The Doctor stepped forward, "I'll take you somewhere else after the transfer. Somewhere you can build proper bodies. This isn't a permanent solution, alright?" he warned and Emma came up behind him.

"My angels," Gwenyth smiled in wonder, "I can help them live."

Subtly Emma noticed all the signs. It clawed at the back of her mind. The lack of answers, the pitying cries for sympathy, the loss of reassurance, and explanation.

The Doctor looked at Gwenyth before focusing back on the archway, "Okay, where's the weak point?"

"Here, beneath the arch," the voices instructed and without hesitation, Gwenyth walked under it.

Emma quickly took Gwenyth's hand, "You don't have to do this," she reminded her.

Gwenyth placed her hand on Emma's cheek, "my angels."

"Establish the bridge out of the void," the voices cried and Emma jumped back almost like a force had pushed her, she stumbled into the Doctor and he protectively moved her behind him. "Let us through."

"Yes," Gwenyth murmured. "I can see you. I can see you... come."

"Bridgehead establishing."

"Come to me. Come to this world... poor lost souls."

"It has begun. The bridge is made."

Gwenyth's mouth opened and a red light shone out of it as the blue gaseous Gelths started flooding through and out of her.

"She has given herself to the Gelth."

"There's rather a lot of them," Dickens remarked as the Gelth started flying around the room encircling them before spreading out to pick a body for themselves.