A Field Below [Open]

[Ace McShane]

Ace held out her hand for Susan when she saw her friend…enemy? She didn’t really know anymore, crawl a little closer to her “Please make him leave! I’m scared, please, please. He’s only going to kill me,” Ace held her hand steady, not to make any sudden movements and making sure not to lose eye contact with Susan “He will not harm you I can promise you that.” she looked over at The Doctor as he came into the room and turned back to Susan scuttle back into the corner.

“Susan. Susan, come on. Don’t do this. Follow my voice, love.” Ace got up and moved out of the way so The Doctor could be in full view of Susan, walking over to Raya. "Is she going to be alright?" Ace started to chew on her thumb and shook her head a little not knowing how to answer Raya’s question.

What happened next, Ace felt Arkytior take control before the bed was slung against the opposite wall. Whatever had been happening with her hearts when Susan lost it hit her with enough force to almost knock her to her knees but she managed to grab ahold of something to keep from falling only problem was the feeling stayed there this time, she couldn’t breathe and when she did manage to it was a strangled wheeze that she was trying desperately to hide.

Finally she dropped down to her knees, it was easier then standing and watched as Susan spread her blood on The Doctors face.

[Deleted]

The Doctor watched Susan's sudden snap in personality and it made his heart twist. He still only had a single heart and he found feel anxiety swell in his chest. The pressed in the room was intense and The Doctor could swear his ears were about to pop. His hand clutched his chest firmly through his waist coat. “Get out.” But he softly shook his head, firmly standing his ground. “I can't do that, Susan” He was well aware it was not Susan he was talking to, but he was gently trying to coax her back out and into control. The window burst, the glass hovering in the air above the Doctor. He looked to Susan and stilled his breath “Susan, This isn't you. You dont want to do this, love” “Just leave us alone! We don’t need you! We don’t need any of you! I’m not crazy!” she said, the glass shards burying themselves in the wall behind the Doctor.

He wanted to flinch, wanted to cover his head with his hands and cower for the briefest moment. But he remained still and kept her gaze.

“I can make tea. I can be a good hostess. Tea,” she said calmly, crossing over to the Doctor. She patted his cheek, spreading her blood on him. “I hate you. Do you take sugar in your tea?” The blood while disturbed as he was that she was bleeding, it didn’t phase him when he smeared his cheek “Susan.. I know you can hear me” But Arkytior  was diligently ignorning him.. “I don’t have sugar or tea,” Susan said, dropping her hands to her side. “Susan. Come back to me, Love.. This isnt you” “I don’t… don’t remember who I am. I don’t remember why I cry when I hear the name David.” The doctor flinched at her husband's name. Had she really forgotten him? Oh god.. What about Alex.. 'Please let there be some glimmer of hope. Please say she remembered her own son' “I don’t know why I hate you, but I do. You disgust me, whoever you are. Sugar with your tea, then?”

The Doctor Let go of a long and steady sigh and he placed a hand to her cheek “Your hatred for me is understandable.. I abandoned you when you needed me. I never should have left. Oh my Susan, have you plunged so far into darkness?” He tightly clutched her face and pulled her head to his to rest his forehead to hers. He knew that in her volatile state, she could quite easily injure him. But he remained resolute, he was going to help her in anyway he could. “Susan.. You are Susan Foreman. David was your husband, he was brilliant man.. And.. You had a son... He was brave and selfless.. Come on Susan.. Remember.. Tell me his name” Trying to force Susan to emerge. “Please dont forget him.. Tell me his name, child”

As he posed his grand daughter with what were no doubt painful questions and reminders, he looked to Ace. “I need you to run back to the TARDIS. Take the girl with you.. This.. might get ugly.. Susan's injuries need tending to... Oh and Ace.. It's good to see you again”

[Deleted]

"Is she going to be alright?" Raya asked, concern growing more and more as she watched Ace chew at her thumb.

Suddenly, Raya jumped as the bed was thrown against the wall. She was really starting to get worried now, as Susan stood up from the floor. The woman looked battered, bloody, and bruised, despite having just having a shower not more than a couple minutes ago.

"Get out."

"I can't do that, Susan."

Not a moment later, Raya had dropped to the floor, pulling her hands over her head, and curling up into a fetal position. She considered it a lucky thing she did, cause the window burst into several shards of glass. Raya considered transforming back into her cat form, simply for the reason that smaller targets are harder to hit.

"Susan, This isn't you. You don't want to do this love." Raya looked up at the pair as she heard the Doctor speak. Finally noticing that Ace wasn't standing anymore. She had done what Raya did when the window broke.

"Just leave us alone! We don't need you! We don't need any of you! I'm not crazy!" Susan yelled at him. The floating shards of glass embedding themselves into the wall behind him. That settled it for the half morph, she was going to change back into a cat.

She was trying hard to drown out all the noise that was going on, just so she could concentrate enough to make a complete transformation. It wasn't as if she could instantly poof into a bit a smoke and suddenly be a cat. This process took a little bit of time and concentration.

It was dark... No, wait.. She was in the dress she borrowed from Susan. Where was everyone else?

"Susan.."

Raya heard the Doctor's voice, as she crawled out of the dress. Her spotted tail, with several stripes at near the tip; twitched from everything that was going on.

"You are Susan Foreman. David was your husband, he was a brilliant man.."

She turned her head to see what exactly, she had changed into. Seeing the bit of white fluff on her back, followed by the slender legs, and random spot patterned. Well that's nice... Raya had managed to turn herself into a cub, pacifically, a cheetah cub. Right... She probably should be paying attention to what was going on right now.

Raya returned her full attention towards the Doctor and his granddaughter. Listening as he tried to get some of her memory back. This really wasn't looking good.

"And.. You had a son... He was brave and selfless.." The Doctor tried to describe Susan's son to her, hoping to get her back in control of her body. "Come on Susan.. Remember.. Tell me his name." The Doctor was looking desperate, which made Raya's heart feel like it was being pulled and twisted all about. "Please don't forget him.. Tell me his name, child."

Raya slowly made her way over to Ace, not wanting to cause a distraction, or call for alarm. Though, wouldn't have been the first time someone freaked out cause she changed into one of the larger species of the feline Genus.

She pawed at Ace's forearm, trying to make sure she was alright. Then looked towards the Doctor, feeling just as bad for him as she did for Susan. She had really gotten in way over her head on this one. To be honest, Raya didn't have the first clue on what she was suppose to be doing. She didn't even know how to help Susan, and she really wanted to, too. Suddenly the Doctor spoke to Ace, and once again managed to get Raya out of her thoughts.

"I need you to run back to the TARDIS. Take the girl with you.." He told her, and which Raya could only assume by girl, he meant her. "This.. might get ugly.."

This wasn't already ugly?! This whole situation was bad, but to say it might get Worse?! He had to be joking... Right?..

"Susan's injuries need tending to..." He continued.

... Nope. He was definitely serious about the whole thing. So, apparently, the bad situation she thought they were in, might get worse. This was the very point, no... the Very moment, in Raya's life, where she wished she hadn't gotten involved. Mainly, for the reason that, whenever she goes home.. Assuming things go very, very badly.. She would go cling to her Detective; Cry heavily softly into his shoulder; Apologize for the mess that she managed to create earlier, down near Chiswick; And probably tell him that if she ever starts going mental, to just... Raya didn't quite know how to finish that sentence actually... She'd figure it out later, if she came out alive from this.

"Oh and Ace.." The Doctor added, before Ace could take her anywhere. "It's good to see you again."

Okay, so everyone knew everyone! Well... Actually the Doctor didn't know her. He should've, after all.. Raya had went on one trip with him.. Oh, right.. He probably forgot about her, or he hadn't met her yet. Raya shook her head and made a high pitch squeaking bark sound, looking up at Ace. Hoping that she might just carry her onto the Doctor's TARDIS, instead of her having to try to keep up. It so was wasn't an excuse. Raya was lazy tired, just a bit, and she wouldn't weigh much in this form, so.. Why not, right?

[Deleted]

Arkytior glanced backwards at Ace, watching as the Time Lady began to have trouble breathing. The white-blue eyes narrowed at her. It was odd, wasn’t it? It hadn’t been so obvious when it first happened. As time went by, however, it seemed that Ace was always winded by her presence. Wasn’t it true that Arkytior always seemed to damage Ace’s health? She felt Susan fighting within her mind, and she wasn’t quite sure she would ever get used to that. Two dual regenerations stuck inside her mind, each fighting to be dominant. She closed her eyes and snarled, kicking Susan down.

“Susan, this isn’t you. You don’t want to do this, love,” the Doctor tried to tell her. Her fists clenched and the glass shards twitched, edging closing to the Doctor. What did he know about her? Why was he calling her ‘love’? And just what was he the doctor of? Could he fix her? Was he the doctor of vortex radiation poisoning? The doctor of recreating timelines? The doctor that could fix her and wipe away her nightmares?

Except, she thought, the glass moving closer to the Doctor as her fist twitched, they aren’t nightmares if they’re real, are they?

“Just leave us alone!” she shouted, rubbing the back of her eyes irritably. She wasn’t going to cry with anyone there. Especially not Ace of Spades, the Cat-lady, and the Doctor who wasn’t a doctor. “We don’t need you! We don’t need any of you! I’m not crazy!” she insisted. Her head twitched towards the wall and the glass shards buried themselves in the wall behind the Doctor. The Doctor remained motionless, his blue eyes staring down Arkytior’s white.

His gaze made her feel cagey and she ground her teeth. Maybe if she pretended to be normal for a while he would leave? Arkytior stared down at her blood-soaked hands, then back up to the Doctor, crossing her living room to him. She patted his cheek, spreading her blood on him. It looked odd – the bright red seemed to contrast violently with the blue of his eyes. “Susan… I know you can hear me,” he said. Arkytior felt overwhelmed by the amount of radiation pouring from him. Susan was screaming in her mind, terrified of everything. She dropped her hands to her side, staring up at him. There were tears in her eyes, but Arkytior couldn’t remember why she was crying.

“Susan. Come back to me, Love… This isn’t you,” the Doctor tried again. Arkytior shook her head, a soft whimper escaping with more tears. It wasn’t her…? How was she supposed to know that? She couldn’t remember anything. She admitted this to him, her voice choking as she said ‘David’. The name meant so much to her, but she couldn’t remember why. The Doctor flinched at the name as well and she held her breath. The name must mean something to him, too.

Arkytior took a step back, prepared to go to the kitchen. She didn’t know what she was going to do – just lay on the ground and hope everyone was gone when she died. The Doctor sighed and she glared at him as he placed his hand on her cheek. She glared at him. “Your hatred for me is understandable… I abandoned you when you needed me. I never should have left,” the Doctor said. She grabbed his wrist, her fingernails digging into his skin.

“No. You should leave. I don’t need your pity,” Susan growled.

“Oh my Susan, have you plunged so far into darkness?” he asked, pulling her head closer to his. She shut her eyes, clutching his waistcoat with bloody hands tightly. He couldn’t begin to imagine the darkness, the feeling of her life slipping away, could he? No one could, and no one could help her. She tried to push him away, struggling in his grasp. Susan clung desperately to the Doctor, and Arkytior tried to pry her fingers away from the waistcoat. “Susan…” he said, the voice breaking through her chaotic thoughts. “You are Susan Foreman.”

Susan whimpered, Arkytior retreating into her mind. The blue eyes stared dully at the Doctor. “Please, just go away,” Susan asked meekly. “I’m scared. I’ll try to kill you,” she admitted, breaking eye contact. She wanted to hide how unwell she was from this doctor, but her thoughts were too muddled to say anything but the truth. The radiation was pouring off him and into her, and it was getting a little hard to breathe. “Please stop. I-I… it hurts…”

He kept his grip on her and Susan’s grasp on his wrist loosened. “David was your husband, he was a brilliant man… And… You had a son… He was brave and selfless…” Susan shut her eyes tightly, embarrassed she couldn’t stop the tears anymore. She pushed his hands off her, coughing up more of the blood. She rested her head against his chest meekly, her fingers curling into his coat. “Come on Susan… Remember…” he urged her. She shook her head violently. She would remember having a son. She would remember that.

Wouldn’t she? Her grip on the Doctor tightened. How did he know her? How did she know him? Her thoughts began to muddle again, and Susan couldn’t remember why she was crying and she couldn’t remember why she was hugging this strange man. “Tell me his name. Please don’t forget him,” the man pleaded and Susan sobbed, frustrated that she couldn’t remember what he was talking about. A son? But she never had a son or a husband. She thought of the empty cavity in her life – how sometimes she’d set the table for three, or she’d glance to her right as if she were expecting someone to be beside her, or she’d wake up and stare at the empty side of her bed.

She missed someone desperately.

“Tell me his name, child,” the man – the Doctor – urged. She pushed herself away, stumbling backwards.

“There’s no one to remember! I don’t have anyone!” Susan snapped, wiping the tears from her eyes. “Why can’t I remember? I’m Susan Foreman, my name is Susan Foreman, my name is Arkytior, but I’m not Arkytior,” Susan rambled, looking between the three strangers desperately. “I’m not crazy, why can’t I remember? Why am I going mad?” she whispered, blood leaking from her mouth.

She took another step away from the Doctor. Pain was wracking through her body and, as stubborn as she was, it was becoming increasingly hard to hide it. She curled up on the ground, watching as the Doctor ordered ‘Ace’ to leave with the girl. Might get ugly? He was going to kill her… she whimpered, covering her head with her hands. She didn’t want to die. And she… she could remember, when the man named David died… she remembered a pure fit of rage…

“Kill me,” Susan requested quietly, staring imploringly at the Doctor. “Help me. Please, please, h-help me,” she pleaded, curling up tighter. “Grandfather, help me…”

She heard a sharp barking noise and stared at the cheetah cub in her apartment. She began to laugh – a high-pitched, hysterical giggling. She covered her mouth with her hands frantically, trying to stop the crazed laughter. She coughed, choking on more blood. The blood was laced with bright yellow dust. Regenerative energy. She continued her cackling. “Just kill me.” 

[Ace McShane]

Ace felt Raya paw at her forearm and she nodded, she’d be fine or at least she would be, she hoped “I need you to run back to the TARDIS. Take the girl with you.. This.. might get ugly.. Susan's injuries need tending to... Oh and Ace.. It's good to see you again” she shook her head no and managed to get a breath in “Can help.” she didn’t really know how she could but she’d be damned if The Doctor was gonna get to, to shoo her off The Tardis like a child.

She did however manage to pull herself to her feet, head starting to throb to replace the sledgehammer feeling in her chest, after Arkytior retreated. Reaching down she picked up Raya and held her in her arms she’d of put the girl on her shoulder but she didn’t know how Raya would manage being a shoulder cat at the moment.

Stepping back some as Susan started her high-pitched, hysterical giggle Ace watched as Susan coughed up blood laced with regenerative energy, she had to turn away a little she couldn’t watch this.

[Deleted]

He had to keep his calm. He couldn’t break down with his grand daughter in such turmoil. He had to remind himself to inhale as he held her face to his. He hated comparing to to such vicious things, but The Doctor felt as though he was trying to convince an agitated viper not to bite him. His thumbs caressed her cheekbones as he tried to coax Susan back, so that she could dominate her own body. His heart pounded with anxiety and his insides twisted in guilt for ever having left her. No amount of time he could spend with her could undo the immense feeling of neglect he'd inflicted on her.

The change in her eyes nearly made his heart come to a halt. No, he was not going to let Arkytior rip Susan apart. But she simply would not heed him. He quietly reassured her that he was here for her and that he was trying to help her when she viciously replied with enough malice with make a grown human man whither under her gaze. “No. You should leave. I don’t need your pity,” Susan growled.  The doctor tightly closed his eyes with a slow and softly shuddered sigh.

“I dont Pity you, Susan.. If anything, I am only trying to help you.” His fingers went to trail into her unkempt and damp hair. Trying to be the comforting man she needed. If his memory served him correctly, and it so often did not, His prior incarnations had no always been so paternal to her. As he considered this, he realized he couldnt even remember HOW she was his grand daughter. Did he have a son or daughter? Did he have other children he'd forgotten?

He shook the thoughts from his mind and silently scolded himself 'That doesnt matter, right now, does it? Dont be a selfish old fool. Look at her! Here she is, flesh and blood, right here before you. You can sort out your family tree later' That's when it struck him. Family! Maybe if he could remind her of her son, he could ease Susan back out. “David was your husband, he was a brilliant man… And… You had a son… He was brave and selfless… Come on Susan… Remember… Tell me his name. Please don’t forget him, Tell me his name, child”

“There’s no one to remember! I don’t have anyone!” Susan snapped, wiping the tears from her eyes.“Why can’t I remember? I’m Susan Foreman, my name is Susan Foreman, my name is Arkytior, but I’m not Arkytior,” The inner conflict in her eyes was breaking him. But he was not going to cry. Not when Susan needed him. As much as she was refusing to admit she needed help, he was not going to leave her side until he knew she was well and safe. “I’m not crazy, why can’t I remember? Why am I going mad?” she whispered, blood leaking from her mouth. 

“Alex...” He nearly choked as that precious name slipped from parted lips. It was almost as painful to say as it was to hold Susan to him. Watching her die. Yes, the doctor was not a fool. He knew she was slipping away. But, damn the whole of creation to hell if he was going to allow her to die thinking that she was abandoned by the only family she had left.. And it was a painful reminder, just then. She was the only family he had left. “His name was Alex” he gently reminded her.

When she stepped back away from him, his hands hovered where he once held her head. He was losing her. Bright as those cold eyes were, the light in them was slipping away, becoming dull. He was glad that Ace stubbornly refused to leave. He'd forgotten how stubborn she could be. But, he was thankful. He didn’t know if he could bear to be alone when Susan faded. Would she even be able to regenerate? He didn’t even think she had enough time to be carried to the Zero Room of his TARDIS. “Kill me,” Susan requested quietly, and he looked down at her, bright blue eyes unable to hold her gaze. “Help me. Please, please, h-help me,” she pleaded, curling up tighter. “Grandfather, help me…”

“Susan..” But his thoughts were interrupted but the frantic chirped bark of a.. cheetah cub? Well that explained the young woman. She was a morph of sorts. But then Susans shrieking cackle snapped his attention back to her. The blood that sputtered from her lips glowed softly and he threw his arms around her.. “Just kill me.” The Doctor couldnt even brink himself to answer her. Kill her? He wouldn't need to. She was about to die anyway. But Damnit, he was going to use every last breath reminding this woman that she was loved, that she was a brilliant mother, and that she was right. She was not insane. Just.. fractured. The result of her time line being shattered and ripped away from him. She was such a strong woman.

He removed the velvet frock coat and placed it over her shoulders as he held her tightly against him and looked pleadingly to Ace. “There.. is something you can do to help.. I just hope she still has it..” He held up his fob watch and gave her a brokenhearted look. “See if you can find hers.. If not, I'll use my own..” If Susan survived this regeneration, and he sadly doubted she would.. but in that faint glimmer of hope that she would, He was going to lock Arkytior back into the deepest recesses of her mind. Wipe her mind as best he could and use the arc. He never wanted to see her in this kind of pain again. “I am so.. so sorry, My Susan.”

[Deleted]

Raya felt a little better that she was actually being picked up, but not so much seeing as she was placed on Ace's shoulders. She hadn't been prepared for that, so she placed her paws on the woman's head. Though as soon as she heard Susan's cackle of what could only be described as death, Raya nearly fell off. She gave an apologetic sort of mew, for the possible scratches Ace might have gotten.

Looking over at Susan, and the Doctor, the morph noticed the blood and what looked like gold dust? Was she dying? Raya hoped not, she had just met the woman. She would feel awful if she died the day she met her. 

"There.. is something you can do to help.. I just hope she still has it.." The Doctor mentioned after Ace explained that she wanted to help, then he held up one of those old style watches. "See if you can find hers.. If not, I'll use my own.." So the two of them were going to go on a strange scavenger hunt for a pocket watch. If it was going to help Susan, Raya was more than happy to look for one.

[Deleted]

“I don’t pity you, Susan… If anything, I am only trying to help you.”

Susan stared up at him blankly as he ran his fingers through her hair. Help her? Why on Earth would he want to help her? Wasn’t this the same man who had held a gun to her head? Threatened her life? Wasn’t he the same man who didn’t want anything to do with her after her son’s death? She looked away from him, guiltily. Couldn’t there be some way for him to go back in time and prevent the death? Death? But she didn’t have a son, and why did she have memories of him holding a gun to her head? Except that it wasn’t him, but it was him. It was a him from long ago, but very close.

“Help me,” she repeated. Could he really help her? She stared up at him hopefully. She didn’t want to die. She wasn’t crazy, was she? She looked back down, shaking her head. Except there wasn’t enough help for her, was there? No matter how badly she wanted to be saved, there was no one who could do it. She was going mad, and there was no way that she could stop this. And why should she? It was her fault. She had done something bad. Hadn’t she? Susan coughed, more of the blood and glowing gold leaking around her mouth. She wiped it off and stumbled away from him as he uttered a name.

“Alex. His name was Alex.”

An overwhelmingly power feeling of guilt and inadequacy slammed into her, and she whimpered. Bits of her life came back to her in fragments. Alexander Campbell – defiant child who sometimes thought that she was too outspoken, and who was sometimes embarrassed by her. Dark hair and blue eyes. “Alex…” she repeated, sliding to the ground and curling around herself. “Alex…” she repeated, shutting her eyes.

She could hear herself numbly asking for death, and the look on the Doctor’s face made her hearts feel frozen. She was dying. Her already cool Time Lord skin was cooling ever faster, and she was finding it hard to string together coherent thoughts, much less sentences. She startled when a coat was wrapped around her. She stared up at her grandfather with dim blue eyes. He was warm against her, and Susan wondered why she was angry with him. She stared up at Spades and the cheetah cub.

“There… is something you can do to help…”

She could be helped? Susan moved her glassy gaze to the Doctor. Could he really save her? Save her like he saved countless others? People believed her grandfather to be a god. Could even this god bring her back from a fractured and shattered existence? She shook her head. “Help?” she asked hoarsely.

“… I just hope she still has it.” And with that, the Doctor shifted, holding up his fob watch. Terror washed through Arkytior, and her eyes paled as she struggled within his grasp. The lights flickered and the door slammed open and shut. She shut her eyes and the apartment quieted down. The fob watch… “See if you can find hers. If not, I’ll use my own.”

Use his own? Susan stared at him, her eyes a dark shade of blue. She shook her head and looked to Ace. “Hey, Spades,” she said, trying to force the aggression in her voice. “It’s…” her voice faltered and she coughed up gold regenerative energy again. Still, no matter how hard she tried to focus, Arkytior was pulling her back from regenerating. “It’s… the dresser. T-taped to the back of the dresser. Even you could find it.”

“I am so… so sorry, My Susan.”

She tried to pull away from him. She felt vulnerable without her cold outer layer. “I’m not your Susan,” she said stubbornly, looking away from him. It’d be easier for both of them if she wasn’t the kind Susan he had known. If he felt like she didn’t like him, then wouldn’t it make her death easier? If the fob watch didn’t work – if Arkytior refused to let her regenerate – then that’s what would happen. She’d die. And she didn’t want to.

[Ace McShane]

Regeneration, now that was something Ace knew well and feared just as much. Her first one didn’t go to well, or well…it went well enough you could say but as she had been born a human and not a Timelord Ace approached the subject of death, any type of death a bit differently then another Timelord would have. She had died alone and confused so it was all quiet terrifying to her at the time and honestly still gave her nightmares (what little sleep she required) she did remember one thing from that awful first regeneration, Susans voice, in her head. She’d reached out for The Doctors mind with her own and instead had found Susans as cold and fractured as it was, it had still been someone so she hadn’t died alone.

Ace came snapping back out of her mind when she felt Rayas claws on her head, she winced slightly but nodded in a forgiving manner when Raya meowed. She continued to watch The Doctor and Susan “There… is something you can do to help… I just hope she still has it.” then she saw the fob watch and felt Arkytior refusing to allow Susan to regenerate “ Hey, Spades, It’s… the dresser. T-taped to the back of the dresser. Even you could find it.” Ace narrowed her eyes at Susan at the use of the nickname before reaching up and gently removing Raya from her shoulder “Sorry fluffy.”she wasn’t sure how The Doctor was planning on saving Susan, so Ace had already formatted a plan in her head to help the woman along with her regeneration and not die, she just hoped it work the way she wanted it to.

Moving over to the dresser Ace leaned down and started patting along the back of it till she found the fob watch, it seemed so normal how was this supposed to help?

Moving back over to the others, Ace placed the fob watch in Susans hand and wrapped her hands gently around Susans “You helped me with my first regeneration, allow me to help you with this one?” she looked from Susan to The Doctor for a moment before returning her attention to Susan. Her hands started to glow flowing to Susan.

[Deleted]

He cradled Susan’s face into his palms fighting back the urge of tears that was tugging at him as she coldly replied that she was not his Susan. Her words burned into the core of him and it almost sent him reeling back to curl into a ball like a small child afraid of being struck by an abusive guardian who had raised their voice. But The Doctor stilled his nerves and looked determinedly into her eyes. “You'll always be my Susan. And I am going to fix this. I never should have left you. What was I thinking??”

Ace knelt beside them, giving Susan her arc and The Doctor bit his lower lip tentatively as he let his eyes slide closed. This was going to be one of the hardest things he'd done. He realized it now, He had been such a coward. He'd abandoned Susan when she regenerated the first time. He couldn't bear to watch. 'Coward' the word coldly echoed in his mind and he stilled his breath and opened his eyes. Not this time. Normally pale blue eyes turned a steely and determined shade of gray. He was angry with himself. “We are going to stay by your side.. Until the end, Susan.”

He gripped her head firmly into his hands. He would have to erase everything. Nothing of Arkytior could be allowed to remain. He had her push her down so far into the furthest recesses of her mind that it would take a whole army of Time Lords to return her memories. And to make sure no one would be tempted to tamper with her, He was going to place her under that chameleon arc. Make her as close to human as possible. It was dangerous and he knew it. But it was the only way to save the only family in all the cosmos he had left in this miserable bleak ripple of existence he was arrogant enough to call his life.

“Ace.. Thank you. I know this must be hard on you as well.. Thank you for staying” He didn't mean to sound presumptuous. He knew she wasn't staying for him. After all, he'd left her behind as well. She was here for Susan. It was another painful blow. The people he had left behind when they had needed him the most. And there was no possible way to make it up to any of them. He drew in a slow and frustrated breath before taking Susan's head into his hands, placing his middle fingers to her temples, placing the index fingers along her cheekbones, just beneath her eyes and his thumbs gently cradling her chin to hold her steady. Once he began this process, it could not be stopped. It could harm them both if the link was broken in the middle of a meld.

“Ace.. Try and keep her calm. Arkytior with fight this violently. But it's the only way to assure that Susan regenerates... Once the regeneration is complete, I'll need you to activate the arc. We can not allow Arkytior a chance to regain a foothold on Susan again.”

[Deleted]

Okay, so old watch. That's what they were looking for, and Raya was determined to help Ace find it. Only... Where would Susan put her watch? "Hey, Spades, It's... the dresser. T-taped to the back of the dresser. Even you could find it." Well that made it simple didn't it?

Suddenly Raya felt herself being picked up off of Ace's head. She almost struggled until she realized Ace was just trying to set her down. "Sorry fluffy." She apologized, to which Raya let out a soft mew. She watched as she walked over to the dresser, feeling around the back of it for the watch.

Raya almost started to walk over to help Ace with getting the old time keeper, however, Ace seemed to have gotten it just fine. So Raya hopped up onto the bed, and sat down, wrapping her tail around her paws. Her green eyes watching the three of them with slight worry. She knew what happened when Timelords regenerated, or rather how some regenerate. Sometimes, things could get a little messy. And on top of that, the Doctor was going to try and seal her memories, or something similar to that. From what she understood of the conversation.

Still, she wasn't going to leave the trio, at least not yet. Raya felt like she had to be here for them. At least hope that things would go well...

[Deleted]

Until the end? Susan scoffed, trying to push him away from her. Still, as spindly as this incarnation of her grandfather was, he was still stronger than she was. He gripped her head tightly and Susan hissed. The end? Was he going to kill her? She stared at him distrustfully. She heard him thank Ace, and she scowled. “It was supposed to be only Ace,” Susan said icily. “You aren’t welcome here.”

“You helped me with my first regeneration,” Ace said, and Susan stared at her, her head still in the Doctor’s firm grasp. Her hearts were beating erratically with a new-found determination to live. Had she helped Spades? The dark blue eyes blinked slowly. That was right – with the grandfather that had wanted to shoot her, and the man she’d taken the TARDIS from. Spades had regenerated. Susan looked away from her, glaring just past her grandfather, refusing to make eye contact. “Allow me to help you with this one?”

Susan’s eyes widened and the color changed rapidly as her face twisted into a snarl. “I’m not dying!” Arkytior shouted. Ace was touching her and glowing and Arkytior could smell the regenerative energy running off her. She struggled in the Doctor’s grasp, pushing at his shoulders desperately. “Get off me! I hate you!” Arkytior snapped, the pale white glowering fiercely. The dresser behind her collapsed and the bed slammed down. “Stop! Stop!”

The Doctor put his fingers to her temples and under her eyes. She tried to jerk her chin away from him, but the Doctor was stronger than her. Arkytior sobbed in frustration, slamming a fist against his chest. “Murderer! Coward!” she whimpered, clawing at his neck. They were trying to kill her. Ace continued sending the energy to her, and Arkytior fought desperately for death. She didn’t have anything else.

If her face could have paled, it would have when the Doctor confirmed her fears about making Susan regenerate. Arkytior shook her head weakly. “No, please, it will kill me,” she whimpered. She wanted to die, sure, but on her own terms. “Don’t! Just leave me alone! Everything was fine before you showed up!” Arkytior slammed her fist into his chest again. “You don’t deserve this! I won’t live just so you aren’t lonely!” Her hands found his neck and she stubbornly squeezed, digging her nails into his neck.

“We can not allow Arkytior a chance to regain a foothold on Susan again.”

Arkytior stared at him, her grip on him faltering. “You’re trapping me,” she said quietly, her skin glowing fiercely. Her grandfather was picking someone else over her again. She felt hot bitterness swell inside her. “Is it so easy to abandon me? Who gives you the right to choose which of us lives and which dies?” she asked. “Just let us die. You’re the Doctor,” Arkytior insisted. So fix this. “What do we have to live for?” Fixmefixmefixme.

She struggled in his grasp, fighting weakly against the meld. Between Ace trying to “help” and the Doctor’s determination to kill her, Arkytior scowled, pushing all of her negativity into the Doctor as her skin crackled with radiation. Hopelessabandonedalonecowarddyinghurtscared she pushed at him. “I don’t want to die.”

[Ace McShane]

In her minds eye Ace could see the entire room in clarity, while she focused on controlling the regenerative energy so it was shared between Susan and herself. Ace figured this would probably cause problems for one if not both of them someday but she’d handle that road when she got there “Ace.. Thank you. I know this must be hard on you as well.. Thank you for staying” Opening her eyes Ace looked at The Doctor and, not in an attempt to hurt his feeling just stating a fact “I didn’t do this for you Professor, I did it for her.”

Closing her eyes Ace went back to focusing “Ace.. Try and keep her calm.” Ace frowned a little and softly said “shhh.” she knew The Doctor kept talking but she wasn’t listening at the moment.

Taking a deep breath Ace touched the center of her chest focusing the energy to her hand before placing her hand flat on Susans chest transferring the last of the regenerative energy to Susan.

She could still feel Arkytior fighting so she stopped focusing on the regeneration and listened “What do we have to live for?” without thinking about it Ace reached forward and grabbed Susan in a hug, making sure not to knock The Doctor out of the way from doing, whatever he was doing, she didn’t say anything just hugged her, then opened the watch.

[Deleted]

“Get off me! I hate you! Stop! Stop!”

“Shhh.. Everything's going to be alright, Susan. I'm here now.” he murmured softly as the tears rolled down his face and he firmly pressed his forehead to hers, tightly holding her head, pushing Arkytior down into the furthest recesses of Susan's subconsciousness. “It's the only way to save you.” Everything was drowned out once he began to seep into her mind. What he found within what nothing but agony and chaos.

“We can not allow Arkytior a chance to regain a foothold on Susan again” he shuddered as he delved deeper within through the madness and barriers she had created. It was like... Something from his nightmares. A labyrinth enveloped in darkness. “Susan?” His voice echoed in the stillness. “Susan, where are you?” He was answered by a howling torrential scream commanding him to leave. The voice was accompanied by violent gale force winds. Arkytior was trying to force him out.

“You’re trapping me, Is it so easy to abandon me? Who gives you the right to choose which of us lives and which dies? Just let us die. You’re the Doctor,What do we have to live for?”

“Susan! Answer me!” he bellowed trying to shout over the chaos of her mind. There in the distance, though the howling winds and violent screams of anger he saw a small faintly flickering golden glow that was slowly growing dimmer. “Susan!” he took off at a run for the fading light. “Susan, Hold on! I'm coming!”

“I don’t want to die.”

“It's alright. You're not going to die.. I'm helping you start over.” his voice called out as he found the dim beacon and wrapped his arms around the small Susan from within the prison of Arkytior's mind. “Everything is going to be alright. You just have.... to let go.” And he softly kissed Susan's forehead. Kissing away the pain, the agony, her memories. There was nothing he could do for her time line. But at the very least, he could help her live a... somewhat normal life. As a human. “Let go, Susan. I'll take care of you... Let go”

The Doctor, the one outside of Susan's mind, was trembling. It was almost destroying him to do this. He was only vaguely aware what was happening outside of the meld other than the radiating heat scalding his hands. But he refused to relinquish his hold on her until the end. And there it was.. A burst of heat and The Doctor was covered in the wash of her regenerative glow. He could feel the bones shifting, changing, skin reorganizing beneath his fingers.

He could only vaguely hear the distinct click of Susan's arc being opened. This was it. “Let go” he finally whispered aloud.

[Deleted]

Well, Raya could certainly say that if she wanted her day to turn rather depressing rather quickly. With a side of utter insanity to top it all off, she certainly got it. And now, she got to be a witness to yet another regeneration, but this time with the added mindwipe. Or at least that's what she got out of the whole explanation. As much as she wanted to do something, she really had no experience in this field, and she'd rather not do something that could screw up the whole process that the Doctor and Ace had going. So she laid there on Susan's apartment floor. Her ears folded back as she let out an rather uneasy mew, as she watched the scene unfold in front of her.