Midnight ⋆ Doctor Who²

24. The Almost Hybrid

AURORA, SITTING ON TOP OF THE CONSOLE, OBSERVES SILENTLY. Cleaves is trying to communicate with the mainland, which is hard, in the middle of a solar storm. The Doctors are pacing. Amy is next to her, holding her hand in support. Aurora herself has a ball of anxiety in her stomach, sinking lower and lower as it goes.

"Saint John's calling," Cleaves tries for at least the tenth time. "Emergency Alpha." She sighs. "We'll never get a signal through this storm." The screen goes red. "Saint John's calling the mainland. Come in, this is urgent."

And then, despite everything, a voice speaks. "We're just about reading you, Saint John's." They all let out sighs of relief. "How are you doing? We've had all kinds of trouble here."

Cleaves heaves out a sigh of relief, and they all jump to their feet. "Request immediate evacuation. We're under attack. The storm's affected our Gangers. They're running amok."

"Your Gangers?" he asks, confused.

"Yes, our Gangers are attacking us," she confirms, though it was the other way around earlier. "We need you to take us off the island immediately and wipe them out."

Aurora stiffens, glaring daggers at Cleaves. The two Doctors look at each other, tense. "Copy that, Saint John's. Shuttle's despatched. Hang on."

"You'll need to airlift us off the roof of the evac tower," she tells him. "And Captain, any further transmission sent by me must come with the following codeword. I'm typing it, in case they're listening in."

"Got it. We'll swing in, get you out and decommission the Flesh." Aurora has to bite her tongue to remain silent.

Some of the staff start to collect their things. "We've got to get out of here," Buzzer says. "We are, we're going to get out."

Amy immediately turns around, followed by Aurora. "We're not leaving without them."

Buzzer sighs. "I want them found too, but it's about casualties, innit? Can't be helped."

Aurora puts a hand in front of Amy to stop her, and steps forward. She puts a hand on Buzzer's shoulder.

"You're going to find my friend, or you'll have to deal with me," she tells him, voice firm. She squeezes his shoulder enough to hurt him. "Understood?" Leaving without Rory is out of the question, and if this guy doesn't help, they'll be leaving without him.

He carefully nods, and she lets him go. Amy sighs and turns to the Doctor. "What are you doing?"

He's typing things on the computer. "Making a phone call."

"Who to?" she asks.

"No one yet," he tells her. "It's on delay."

"Right. Not getting it." Well, to be fair, what he said makes no sense without context. "Why exactly are you making a phone call?"

He stops to look at her. "Because, Amy, I am and always will be the optimist." He turns in his chair. The hoper of far-flung hopes and the dreamer of improbable dreams." He makes Amy turn too and she giggles. Aurora looks away. "The wheels are in motion. Done."

She turns her chair to look at the Doctor's Ganger. She nudges Aurora. "You know really there can be only one."

Aurora shakes her head. "A person isn't determined by how they were born," she says, matter-of-factly. "It's... what they do. Why they do it, or who they do it for." Her eyes drift over to the Doctor. "It's the memories that make them."

He pretends he doesn't hear her. "Hmm?" But in reality, he does hear her, he's just not sure he'll be able to handle knowing what makes her the Hybrid just yet.