Flatline

(Open POV)

"This is the very first entry in what I guess is about to become my journal. Just feels like something you do when you want to keep your daily life in perspective." Jaune said, narrating.

Shade Academy…

Jaune is leaning against the railings of Shade Academy, staring out into the distance.

"And now that I've been young, and old, and young again, it's not always easy to keep things in perspective these days. I know I, uh, lost it for a little bit there." Jaune said, narrating.

Vacuo…

Nora Valkyrie chases Lie Ren through the streets, with Jaune running behind them.

"Being back with my team helps, even though things aren't the same. Ren and Nora have their own thing they're working through, and I'm not the same boy they knew. I'm the Rusted Knight." Jaune said, narrating.

Jaune's position freezes, as his Rusted Knight appearance is mirrored behind him.

"Nora loves reminding people of that, by the way." Jaune said, narrating.

On the streets, Nora points at Jaune while Ren laughs. Jaune sheepishly holds his hand behind his neck.

"They usually just look at her like it's some kind of inside joke they're not a part of. These days, I'd rather forget." Jaune said, narrating.

Jaune looks down somberly.

"I guess I was the Rusted Knight, but the Rusted Knight wasn't really me. Who is Jaune now?" Jaune asked, narrating.

Jaune looks up.

Shade Academy library…

Jaune is sitting in Shade's library.

"Lately, I've been spending more time with the people I thought might relate most." Jaune said, narrating.

Across from Jaune, Oscar Pine and Jared Shay are sitting at the same table.

"So, how are you doing with the journal?" Jared asked, tossing a chocolate chip cookie into his mouth. "The one that I got you with the red cover and gold spine."

"I haven't quite started yet. Soon though." Jaune said, sadly.

"It'll help. Journaling. It's nice. Venting out your thoughts." Jared said, taking out his iPhone 15 Pro Max and opened the Journal app. "The one on my phone lets me place photos, take pictures for it, have location tracking, and voice memos. I love it."

"Jared's right. It'll help." Oscar said, smiling.

"Yeah, sometimes it doesn't really feel like anything will. Don't get me wrong, I'm not unhappy to be back, I just feel... out of place. Like I've left the world by and it's done the same." Jaune said, looking between Oscar and Jared.

"Believe me, I know what that's like. I've been the subject of a couple of fairy tales myself." Oscar said, frowning.

"Same here. I've been a part of half a dozen fairy tales myself." Jared said, letting out a sigh. "I think. Could be wrong though. I kinda lost track at some point."

"Oscar, you mean Ozpin and Jared have, right?" Jaune asked.

"Of course." Oscar said, coughing into his hand. "Um, if you're not sure where to start, I do have a suggestion. If you'd like?"

"Sure."

"Think about the good times. What little they might have been that you spent in the Ever After."

"The good times before me and Team RWBY came barging in all those years later." Jared said, picking up another cookie and tossing it into his mouth. "Those good times."

"'Just focus on the positive?'" Jaune asked, unamused.

"No, not like that. It might be able to help you remember what it was all for, and rewrite the story in your own way." Oscar said.

"The good times. I remember Alyx and Lewis, those early days of getting to know each other were magical." Jaune said, sighing.

Jungle Acre…

Alyx is being introduced to Juniper by an older Jaune.

"It's like I was living someone else's life. For me, the secret that I knew a little of what was happening to all of us was exciting." Jaune said, narrating.

Lewis, behind Alyx, looks curiously at Juniper.

"Lewis was a puzzle, since he wasn't part of the story I knew, but he figured out really quickly that I knew more than I was letting on. It's like how you are with your foreknowledge, Jared. You knew more than you were letting on, and you're not part of the story you knew." Jaune said, narrating.

Ever After…

Jaune sits by a campfire by Lewis and Alyx. Lewis is writing in a journal while Alyx looks amazed at Jaune.

"We compared notes on Remnant. They couldn't believe I was from the far away future. I couldn't believe they were from Vacuo. Back before the war, before Huntsmen." Jaune said, narrating.

Alyx leads Lewis through the Garden, with Jaune and Juniper following from a distance.

"I remember the first time we tried to shop at the Garden Acre. They didn't have days of the week, so they invented one. 'Splaturday' just for us humans. You know, for a while, they ended up having Splaturday every day, b-because they didn't understand. But every Splaturday, there was a farmer's market. Only, instead of produce, you bought farmers, who would grow it for you for a little bit." Jaune said, narrating.

Jaune, Juniper, Alyx, and Lewis look down at small farmer Afterans at the farmers market.

"We would roast things by the fire every night, but it was those campfires I remember most. Lewis writing everything down in his journal. The story he'd one day tell to help lead you, Jared, and our friends to me. Oh, and in those early days, every night around the campfire, when I tell them my story, my adventures, oh, they always seemed so amazed." Jaune said, narrating.

Around the campfire, Lewis writes in his journal and Alyx looks amazed at Jaune while eating a kebab.

"Which was weird because it was just, just my life. The mistakes I'd made and the times I'd gotten lucky. It was like having my team back." Jaune said, narrating.

As Alyx hands Lewis a kebab, Jaune sees Nora, Ren, and Pyrrha in their original outfits eating kebabs behind them as well.

"People around you who make you feel more than you are. Or maybe they see you in a way you can't see yourself. It's the same warmth that a good fire brings, laughter, and a good meal." Jaune said, narrating.

Vacuo…

At night, many campfires are lit up across the city of Vacuo.

"I see those campfires all across Vacuo at night and I wonder what people are sharing, what they're building, the hope they're stoking, and what they'll be saying when this is all over." Jaune said, narrating.

Shade Academy library…

Jaune continues to talk to Oscar and Jared.

"I guess maybe there's something to this after all." Jaune said, sniffling.

"It's a matter of perspective, Jaune." Jared said, taking out a tissue out of his sling bag and handing it to Jaune. "You had the Ever After and I had Trenzalore. I had 900 years to think after all."

"Yeah. Yeah. Oscar, Jared, do you... do you think we're going to make it?" Jaune asked, grabbing the tissue from Jared.

"Around that campfire, did it matter?" Oscar asked.

Ever After…

An older Jaune is looking at the campfire, smiling.

Shade Academy library…

Jared and Oscar are looking at the younger Jaune.

"No. No, I guess it didn't." Jaune said, laughing.

Oscar, Jaune, and Jared smile at each other.

(Jared's POV)

Tardis…

Clara comes up the stairs to the console room.

"You could leave all that stuff here, you know. We do have literally acres of room." The Doctor said, happily.

"He's not wrong. It's why I leave my stuff here, Clara. It is in sync with my timeline. When it comes to my bedroom on the TARDIS." I said, smiling.

"Oh, no. It's all right. Danny's got a little bit territorial. The idea of me leaving so much as a toothbrush here. But, still, he's all right with us doing this which I admit's a little bit weird, cos you'd think if he had a problem with me leaving stuff in the Tardis, he'd object to me travelling in the Tardis. But he's not, so." Clara said, looking between the Doctor and I.

"Sorry. Stopped listening a while ago." The Doctor said, as the TARDIS landed. "Okay. Er, same time you and Jared left, same place-ish."

"Ish? Don't give me an ish." Clara said, annoyed.

"These readings are very er, ishy." The Doctor said, looking at the TARDIS scanner.

"Hey! Doctor Disco! My Impossible Girl!" I yelled, walking over to the TARDIS door. "You guys have to see this!"

"Uh huh?" The Doctor asked.

The Doctor and Clara went to join me looking at the Tardis door, which is now about a metre high. The Doctor stoops to open it and looks outside.

Waste ground…

The sound of a train travelling along a track nearby. The Doctor struggles to squeeze out through the gap. Clara and I follow the Doctor and I close the door. There are tracks and a train shed behind us. A sign on the railings says Bristol Sidings 344.

"Well. Well, I wonder what caused this? I don't think we're bigger, are we?" The Doctor asked, scanning me.

"Bristol? Doctor, Jared, we're in Bristol!" Clara said, angrily.

"We're a hundred and eighteen miles away from London." I said, sadly. "That's a bit far from where we should be. If we're talking European standards. It's nothing by American standards."

"Semantics, Jared. This is impressive." The Doctor said, looking at the TARDIS.

"No. Not impressive. Annoying." Clara said, scoffing.

"No. This is impressive." The Doctor said, pointing at Clara. "This is annoying. The Tardis never does this. This is huge! Well, not literally huge. Slightly smaller than usual. Which is huge."

"Yes. I get it. You're excited. When can Jared and I go home?" Clara asked.

"Clara, your house and Jared's house aren't going anywhere. And neither is mine until I get this figured out. Could you not just let me enjoy this moment of not knowing something? I mean, it happens so rarely. Look, I don't think this is dangerous, but I wouldn't like either of you to get squished accidentally. Anyway, I need you and Jared to help me find out what's caused this." The Doctor said, frowning.

"Fine. We'll go take a look around." Clara said, grabbing my hand. "Jared, why did you come here again?"

"I've been enjoying Vacuo." I said, walking away past the train with Clara. "I had a nice talk with Jaune and Oscar."

"Of course you did." Clara said, while the Doctor squeezes back in through the Tardis door. "How was it with the Guardians of the Galaxy?"

(Open POV)

Shopping precinct….

An older man wearing an ID badge goes up to a younger black man in a yellow luminous waistcoat, standing in front of a wall full of graffiti tags. There are other men there. All have numbers on their shirt collars.

"It's your filth, Rigsy, start with your signature." Fenton said, putting a brush into a tin on white paint.

A bald man with number 36 on his collar speaks up for the young man.

"Oh, come on, there's no need for this." Al said, annoyed.

Rigsy, number 52, takes the brush.

"There you go." Fenton said, as Rigsy starts to paint over his tag. "Get on with it. This is community service, not a holiday camp."

Tardis…

The Doctor is closely examining a Tardis circuit when there is a jolt and an alarm sounds.

"Now, that wasn't me, was it?" The Doctor asked, going to the door and looking at it. "Oh, that can't be good."

(Jared's POV)

Subway…

"No way. There was a dance off to save the universe." Clara said, laughing a lot.

Clara and I go down towards an underpass.

"I know. It was exactly like 'Footloose'." I said, laughing with Clara.

There is a shrine of pictures and flowers by the steps. The community payback group is near the top of the steps. Convict 55 calls out to us.

"Cheer up with your boyfriend, love. Might never happen." Stan said, nearby.

"Have some respect. She's grieving with her boyfriend." George said, his coat numbered 22, he is an Indian Man.

"Oh, sorry, love. I didn't mean nothing by it. You and your boyfriend."

"Still. You made friends with a talking racoon and a talking tree." Clara said, smiling.

Clara and I walk on, and Rigsy runs after us.

"Rocket and Groot." I said, happily. "I love them."

The underpass proper is decorated with Banksy-style images of people with their backs to us, men and women including one with a child.

"Sorry about them. They're idiots." Rigsy said, looking between Clara and I.

"That's all right, don't worry. We've heard worse." Clara said, grabbing my hand.

"I've lost someone, too. My Aunt Karina. Deaf as a post. Didn't really know her that well but she's still gone. Is either of your ones in the mural?" Rigsy asked, stroking the back of a small woman in a yellow jacket.

"Oh, no. We haven't actually…" Clara said, squeezing my hand.

"I'm sure they'll get round to it at some point. I'm not really with that lot out there. I just have to do this community service thing. I just do graffiti. Not anything, you know, murdery or…"

"So, er, what's all this about? What's happened to all these people?" Clara asked.

"You mean you and your friend don't know?" Rigsy asked.

Tardis…

"Hey, Spaceman. We found something. People have been going missing all over the apartment complex." I said, my voice coming out of the speakers.

Waste ground…

I am reporting in with Clara via my iPhone 15 Pro Max with FaceTime loaded up.

"If things haven't changed with how I remember them. There should still be a connection." I said, holding my iPhone in front of me.

"Should be." The Doctor said, his voice coming out of my phone's speakers.

"And where are you?" Clara asked.

"Exactly where I was."

"No, you're not. We're here and we can't see. Oh." Clara said, at a loss for words.

"I forgot how adorable this is!" I cheered, aiming my phone down at the TARDIS and took out the camera app to take a photo of the tiny TARDIS. "This reminds me of my Funko Pop TARDIS back home."

"Yes. Oh." The Doctor said, his voice coming out of my phone's speakers.

The Tardis is maybe six inches high. Clara and I laughed.

"Oh, my God, Jared, you're right, that is so adorable. Doctor? Are you in there?" Clara asked.

"Yes, I am." The Doctor said, his voice coming out of my phone's speakers.

Tardis…

"And, no, it's not adorable. It's very, very serious." The Doctor said, taking a small item from a wooden box.

"So is this more shrink ray stuff? Are you tiny in there?" Clara asked, her voice over the speakers.

"No. I'm exactly the same size. It's merely the exterior dimensions that have changed."

The door is a tiny thing in the middle of a wall. The Doctor opens it.

Waste ground…

We can see most of the Doctor's face through the open double doors. I took a photo of what is going on with my phone.

"Stop laughing. And Jared, stop taking pictures. This is serious." The Doctor said, looking between Clara and I.

"Yeah, well, we can't help it, can we, with you and your big old face." Clara said, laughing a lot.

"Doctor, things are going so far with how I remember them. How are you going to get out? Of the TARDIS, I mean." I said, still snapping pictures of the Doctor's face through the open double doors.

"Well, plainly I can't. Something nearby is leeching all the external dimensions." The Doctor said, sadly.

"Aliens?" Clara asked.

"Possibly. Oh, who am I kidding? Probably. Sensors are down and I can't risk taking off with it in this state. Clara, Jared, I need one of you to pick up the Tardis. Carefully. It should be possible. I've adjusted the relative gravity." The Doctor said, as Clara picked up the TARDIS.

Tardis…

"You mean you've made it lighter." Clara said, her voice coming out of the speakers.

"Clara, it's always lighter. If the Tardis were to land with its true weight, it would fracture the surface of the Earth." The Doctor said, scoffing.

"Yeah, maybe a story for another time. What now?"

"I've managed to get a rough fix on the source of the dimensional leeching."

Waste ground / Tardis…

The Doctor's fingers poke out of the door, "It's roughly north west. That way."

"Please don't do that. That's just wrong." Clara said, scoffing.

The Doctor runs back to the console to get some objects.

"Now, listen! You and Jared are going to need these." The Doctor said, handing out the psychic paper.

"Oh, wow. This is an honour. Doctor? Does this mean I'm you now?" Clara asked.

"No, it does not, so don't get any ideas." The Doctor said, handing Clara the sonic screwdriver.

Clara puts the Tardis in her shoulder bag.

The Doctor then hands up the tiny objects from the box, "And listen, Clara, Jared, stick this in your ear. Can you both hear me?"

"Yes. Ow! What just happened?" Clara asked.

"Nanotech. I just hacked your and Jared's optic nerves." The Doctor said.

"What does that mean?"

"The Doctor sees what we see." I said, sadly. "Tony Stark has better nano tech than this."

Shopping precinct / Tardis…

"Jared, Tony Stark is only a genius on Earth." The Doctor said, frowning. "It's not like he'll invent time travel."

"He totally will. And it will be way cooler than using the TARDIS." I said, laughing a lot.

"Will you two please stop fighting over who's smarter?" Clara asked, turning around with me standing behind her, pointing the screwdriver at a block of flats then a wall with a mural of footprints, hand prints and tyre marks. "Anything?"

The views are on the scanner.

"Yes, I'm dizzy. But nothing useful." The Doctor said, letting out a sigh.

"You never did tell me your name." Rigsy said, on the scanner.

"No time to fraternize. Come on, get rid of him."

"I'm, er…" Clara said, and the community payback workers are on a meal break. "I'm the Doctor."

"Don't you dare." The Doctor said, annoyed.

"Doctor Oswald. But you can call me Clara." Clara said, happily.

"I'm Jared Shay. I'm her companion." I said, smiling.

"No way. You're the Black Pearl!" Rigsy said, excitedly. "I heard of you when I was a kid. I'm Rigsy. So, er, Clara, what are you a doctor of?"

"Of lies." The Doctor said.

"Well, I'm usually quite vague about that. I think I just picked the title because it makes me sound important." Clara said, smirking.

"Why, Doctor Oswald, you are hilarious. Could we get back to working with Jared, do you think?" The Doctor asked.

"What are you exactly? You don't smell like police, Clara, but that's some pretty cool gear you got there. You like a spy, or something? While Jared is a superhero I watched growing up" Rigsy said, looking between Clara and I.

"Oh, he's a bright one, hang on to him." The Doctor said, sadly.

Flat…

"He was the last one to go missing." Rigsy said, breaking the Police tape across the front door. "And when he disappeared all the doors and windows were locked from the inside."

"Ooh, now you're talking. I love a good locked room mystery." The Doctor said, through the bluetooth earpiece.

On the wall behind a bookcase of CDs is an interesting mural of what looks like a cracked sandy surface.

"Yeah, doesn't everyone?" Clara asked.

"I know I do. That's why I loved going on cases with Sherlock and John. Maybe I should do some with Phoenix Wright someday." I said, clutching the strap of my sling bag. "Locked room mysteries are fun."

"What?" Rigsy asked.

"Huh? Oh, sorry. We're talking to somebody else. He's listening in. Doctor, Rigsy, Rigsy, the Doctor." Clara said, happily.

Tardis…

"Hello, barely sentient local." The Doctor said.

"Another Doctor?" Rigsy asked, on the scanner.

"How do you sleep at night?"

Flat / Tardis…

"Missing people, tiny Tardis, what's the link?" The Doctor asked. "Any hints?"

"Spoilers." I said, while Clara scans with the screwdriver. "It would ruin the fun for you, Doctor. But the only hint I can give you is the 3DS."

"The gaming console? How is that a hint?"

"I think this is great that someone's finally looking into this. The police weren't doing anything. They never do on this estate. People were thinking that no one was listening. That no one cared. So, yeah. I think it's great what you and Jared are doing." Rigsy said.

"Clara, Jared, look, I think that we can manage on our own from now on." The Doctor said.

"No. Rigsy is useful. We still need him, Doctor." I said, looking down at the floor.

"He's a pudding brain. Worse than that, he's a fluorescent pudding brain."

"Okay. Fine. You're only saying that because Rigsy reminds you of Mickey or Rory."

"And all those other missing people, I suppose you know where they lived." Clara said, looking at Rigsy.

"He could still be in the room." Rigsy said, sadly.

"Sorry, what?" Clara asked.

"Sorry, nothing. I was just thinking out loud. It's like one of those locked room things you get in books." Rigsy said, as Clara looks at herself in the oval mirror over the mantelpiece. "It's always something weird, like, he's still in the room or something. Do you and Jared want to go and check out another flat?"

"Do you know, Jared, I think that you were wrong about this lad. I think that he could be very useful. Vital local knowledge." The Doctor said.

"Oh, really?" I asked, on the scanner.

"Yes. So try not to scare him off with Clara's help."

"How would we scare him off?" Clara asked, on the scanner.

Clara carries on scanning.

Rigsy looks at that mural, "Maybe he's lost in the desert, or something."

"Okay, right. Are we missing something here? Missing man, locked room." Clara said, and the scanner image zooms in on the mural. "Shrink ray?"

"Sorry, did you say just say shrink ray?" Rigsy asked.

"What if he is still in this room like you said, only tiny? You know, like underneath the sofa or something."

"Yeah. Like Ant-Man. Able to shrink down to an ant or grow to a normal sized man and a skyscraper. He's funny!" I said, excitedly.

"Ant-Man?" Rigsy asked. "Who's Ant-Man?"

"Clara, Jared, this is the scaring off that we were talking about." The Doctor said, rolling his eyes.

"Okay. So er, my lunch break's nearly up. This, this has been er, interesting." Rigsy said, looking between Clara and I.

"Clara, Jared, local knowledge is leaving. Do something!" The Doctor said, worried.

"Rigsy! One sec. Doctor, open the doors." Clara said, frowning.

"I didn't mean that!"

"Look, you want him to stay or not?" Clara asked.

"Clara, you really do throw your companions in at the deep end, don't you? You must have learned it from Jared with his companions."

Clara puts the Tardis on a shelf, "Rigsy, come here. Meet the Doctor."

The Doctor is visible through the Tardis doorway, but standing back from it, so not as way out of proportion as earlier.

"So, what do you think? Tiny man idea." Clara said, happily.

"If only we had Pym Particles." I said, sadly. "Then this tiny man idea might really become true."

"Yes, it's a lovely thought. Which is why I set the sonic to scan for that as soon as we entered. Pleased to meet you." The Doctor said, looking at Rigsy.

"And the two of you didn't think to tell me?" Clara asked.

"Well, of course he might have been squashed under a policeman's shoe by now."

"It's bigger. On the inside." Rigsy said, looking inside the TARDIS.

"Do you know, I don't think that statement's ever been truer." The Doctor said, letting out a sigh.

"What are you? Like, aliens, or something?"

"No. Well, the Doctor is." Clara said, pointing a finger at the Doctor.

"I'm half human and half ghost. Long story" I said, hearing a sizzle and an alarm sound in the Tardis. "Shit. The TARDIS cloister bell."

"Doctor? Doctor, did you hear that?" Clara asked.

"Yes. Whatever it was, it just drained a massive amount of energy from inside the Tardis." The Doctor said.

"What was it?"

"I don't know, but that's the least of my problems. Just get us out of here." The Doctor said, slamming the door shut.

"Okay. Go. Rigsy, this is where we run. Stick with us." Clara said, grabbing my hand.

Tardis…

"I mean this is just embarrassing. I'm from the race that built the Tardis. Dimensions are kind of our thing. So why can't I understand this?" The Doctor asked.

Street…

"Clara, Jared, I need more info. Where else have people disappeared?" The Doctor asked, through the Bluetooth device.

Mr Heath's home / Tardis…

A policewoman is looking at the two psychic papers.

"MI5?" Forrest asked.

"Yup. This case got our attention." I said, placing my psychic paper inside my sling backpack.

"Well, you've come to the right place, sir, ma'am. First reported disappearance, a Mister Heath. It's not on the estate, but it's exactly the same MO as the rest…"

"Clara, Jared, I think that your shrink ray theory was wrong." The Doctor said.

"Our shrink ray theory? I thought you were already scanning for that." Clara said, annoyed.

"It's like they vanished." Forrest said.

"Doctor? What are you doing?"

"It just struck me. Locked room mysteries. Classic solution number one, they're still in the room. Classic solution number two, they're in the walls." The Doctor said, his eyes widening.

"Yeah. They're in the walls." I said, raising my hand and Mjolnir flew down out of the sky, through the window, and into my hand. "Wow. I'm still worthy."

"What do you both mean, they're in the…" Clara said, pulling a lump hammer from her bag, supplied by the Doctor from his workbench. "Jared summoned Mjolnir, Doctor. We don't need another hammer."

"Have we done as much as we could? No. Do we have any suspects? No. Off the record, I think the top brass are hoping if they ignore this it'll all just go away." Forrest said.

"Apparently they're in the walls." Clara said, sadly.

"Sorry, Thor." I said, slamming Mjolnir into the plaster work and I began tossing the enchanted object up into the air and back into my hand on and off. "I love this hammer so much."

PC Forrest's phone rings.

"PC Forrest. Yes, sir. MI5, sir." Forrest said, going out to continue the conversation.

"So, the two of you and that bloke in a box. You do this sort of stuff a lot?" Rigsy asked.

"Oh, well, he's usually out of the box. But, yep." Clara said, happily.

(Open POV)

Mr Heath's front room…

"I don't know. Maybe they thought we weren't doing enough, sir." Forrest said.

The wall wibbles behind her. Forrest turns.

"Can I call you back?" Forrest asked, using her flashlight on the 60s decor.

(Jared's POV)

Mr Heath's home…

"So how did you two get this gig? You study science, or aliens, or something?" Rigsy asked.

"No." Clara said, laughing a lot. "Well, it's kind of a more of a right place, right time or wrong place, wrong time depending on how the Doctor's behaving."

"How he's behaving by stroking bits of the TARDIS." I said, laughing with Clara. "I still ask him if he wants to be alone with his blue box."

"I can hear you both, you know." The Doctor said, his voice coming out of my Bluetooth earpiece.

Mr Heath's front room / Tardis…

The carpet wibbles towards Forrest's feet.

"Sir, ma'am, there's something in here, I think." Forrest said, screaming as her leg is pulled into the carpet.

Rigsy, Clara, and I get there just after Forrest disappears.

"PC Forrest? Hello? Hello?" Clara asked.

The torch is lying on the carpet and there is a new mural on the wall behind the sofa. A design of almost completely bilaterally symmetrical red lines.

"Doctor, she's gone." I said, looking down at the floor. "Now I want some skinny jeans."

"What am I missing? Skinny jeans. That has to be a hint. The Tardis should be able to detect anything in the known universe. The known universe. This universe." The Doctor said, while the scanner shows what Clara and I can see looking around the room. "Clara, wait, go back. Back, back, back. That mural. That is a nervous system scaled up and flattened. I think we've found PC Forrest. What's left of her, at least."

"It's her nervous system." I said, looking up at the mural. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I wish I could have saved you."

The Doctor calls up previous images on the scanner, "The mural in the flat. That wasn't a desert at all. It's a microscopic blow up of human skin. That explains the skinny jeans hint."

"What? Why?" Clara asked.

"Whatever they are, they are experimenting. They're testing. They are, they are dissecting. Trying to understand us. Trying to understand three dimensions." The Doctor said.

There is the sizzling or hissing sound, then the door slams shut.

Rigsy reaches for the handle, but cannot take hold of it, "Ow. The handle."

"Doctor. The handle, they've flattened the handle." Clara said, grabbing my hand.

"Fascinating. Clara, Jared, they're in the walls! Keep away from them. If they touch you, you're finished." The Doctor said, as the sofa and cushions lose their third dimension.

"What happens if they touch us?" Rigsy asked.

Then a comfy chair goes flat.

"I really don't want to find out." Clara said, letting out a sigh.

We climb onto a handy hanging seat.

"Same." I said, frowning. "This is more terrifying."

"They can't jump, can they?" Rigsy asked.

Clara's mobile phone rings.

"Hey, you." Clara said, happily.

(Open POV)

Park…

"I've got our bench. Did you get held up?" Danny asked.

Mr Heath's front room…

"Just a little. Sorry, Danny. I think lunch is er, a bust." Clara said.

The enemy is making the carpet wibble as it moves towards them.

"Oh, hon, you're missing…" Danny said, his voice coming out of Clara's phone.

Park…

"Some classic park action." Danny said.

Mr Heath's front room…

"Clara, we have to get out through the window!" Jared yelled.

The fireplace then the mantelpiece wibble. In fact, the wibble is coming at them from all directions, except down.

"Look! Look! They're climbing the walls." Rigsy said.

"Who was that?" Danny asked, his voice coming out of Clara's phone.

"Er, that's just a guy on community support and I'm helping him find his auntie." Clara said, happily.

"Okay. You're not technically lying, Clara." Jared said, trying not to change into his ghost form. "It's a half truth."

Park…

"Sounds kind of active." Danny said.

Mr Heath's front room…

Clara is swinging the seat on its chain towards the bay window, as the wibble heads across the ceiling, "Er, yeah, there was a thing, er a thing."

Park…

"Where are you and are you in trouble?" Danny asked.

Mr Heath's front room…

"No, no, no, I'm fine!" Clara said, worried.

Clara sonicks the window and the chain comes away from the ceiling and there is a crash.

Park…

"Clara?" Danny asked, hearing the sounds of screams. "Clara?"

Mr Heath's front garden…

A car alarm is sounding.

"That was close." Jared said, looking between Clara and Rigsy. "Too close."

Rigsy, Clara, and Jared are safe amongst the shattered windows.

"Danny?" Clara asked.

"What's happening?" Danny asked, his voice coming out of Clara's phone.

"Oh, not much, just some nonsense. Long story."

"What story?"

"Tell you later. Love you!" Clara said, ending the call with Danny.

(Jared's POV)

Tardis…

"This explains everything. They're from a universe with only two dimensions. And, yes, that is a thing. It's not the Fairly Odd Parents universe which Jared visits sometimes. It's long been theorised, of course, but no one could go there and prove its existence without a heck of a diet." The Doctor said, walking around the console room. "And Clara, what long story are you going to tell Danny, huh? Or haven't you made it up yet?"

"Sorry, what? What was that?" Clara asked, her voice coming out of the speaker.

Subway / Tardis…

"Clara, that was amazing lying skills." I said, running down the subway next to Clara. "Someone's not happy about it though."

"Yeah? Well, thought it was pretty weak myself." Clara said, and I grabbed her hand.

"Jared meant to me, Clara. You told me that Danny was okay with you being back on board the Tardis." The Doctor said.

"Well, he is." Clara said, squeezing my hand.

"Clara, we've talked about this while I was in Townsville with the Powerpuff Girls." I said, rolling my eyes. "Danny doesn't know anything about it. About you still traveling in the TARDIS with the Doctor and me."

"Jared…" Clara said, annoyed.

"Congratulations. Lying is a vital survival skill." The Doctor said, smirking.

"Well, there you go."

"And a terrible habit."

Clara and I get static in our earbuds.

"Um, Doctor, you're breaking up." I said, letting go of Clara's hand.

"Yeah, of course I am." The Doctor said, happily.

"No, really, you are. We can't hear you." Clara said.

"What? Oh, right, blowing out that window's possibly affected the earpiece. Clara, take yours out and sonic it. And Jared, take yours out and use your ghost powers to fix it."

"Doing it." Clara said, taking her earpiece out and sonicing it.

"Same." I said, taking my earpiece out and electrical shocks came out of my hand to fix the electronic device. "This shouldn't take too long."

Rigsy goes around the corner to see his work group painting over the mural, "Hey! They can't do that. Hey! What you doing?"

"Our job. You're on report, by the way. Late back from lunch." Fenton said, looking at Rigsy.

"Does it even still count as lying if you're doing for someone's own good? Well, like, technically their own good." Clara said, looking over at me.

"Not really." I said, placing my earpiece back in my ear. "I do it during my adventures."

"I know you do."

"It's a memorial!" Rigsy said, worried.

"Council didn't approve it, it's graffiti. Stan." Fenton said, on the scanner.

Rigsy grabs the paint brush.

"Look, Clara, Jared. Talk to me, talk to me!" The Doctor yelled.

"What are you doing?" Rigsy asked.

The Doctor's fingers stick out of Clara's bag and jog her elbow.

"Clara, Jared, the mural. Clara, Jared, it's the mural! Over there, look, the mural! We've found the missing people, they're in the walls!" The Doctor said, angrily.

Clara puts her ear bud back in, "What do I do?"

"We do what we normally do, Clara. Act normal and get everyone the hell out of here!" I cheered, clapping my hands.

"They're very realistic. Who painted them?" Clara asked, grabbing my hand and pulling me over to Rigsy.

"I don't know. A local artist. Probably a grieving relative." Rigsy said, sadly.

"Did you ever meet them? Or did they just appear after people disappeared?"

"And who are you when you're at home, love?" Fenton asked.

Clara brandishes the psychic paper, "Health and safety. This subway is unsafe. Everyone needs to leave right now."

"This is blank. Try again, sweetheart." Fenton said, scoffing.

"What?" Clara asked.

"What? It takes quite a lack of imagination to beat psychic paper." The Doctor said. "Jared, when was the last time someone beat psychic paper?"

"Shakespeare!" I said, excitedly. "That's who. Argh. That feels like lifetimes ago."

"Stan. Do your job." Fenton said, looking over at Stan.

"Clara, Jared, stop him." The Doctor said.

Stan's brush touches the wall and Stan is sucked in with a cry.

"Stan!" Rigsy said, terrified.

The images on the wall turn around to face us.

"What is this? What are they?" Al asked.

"They're wearing the dead like camouflage." The Doctor said.

"Forget Stan. Your friend's gone." Clara said, frowning.

"Clara, Jared, Clara, Jared get them out of there!" The Doctor yelled.

"We need to run. Now!" I said, angrily.

We ran as the paintings slid off the wall and moved across the tarmac.

Train shed / Tardis…

We ran into the nearby train shed across the tracks from the waste ground, and I closed the corrugated iron door. Clara uses the sonic screwdriver to scan the inside of the building.

"Did they follow us? Cos I didn't see them follow us. Are we safe?" George asked.

"Are we really hiding from killer graffiti? This is insane." Al said, scoffing.

"I agree. We'll have to think of a better name for them than that." The Doctor said.

"They have no bone structure. They're rather boneless." I said, happily.

"Boneless. That could work."

"And Stan was one of them. Flattened, dead, but coming after us." George said.

"Clara, Jared, this is a vital stage. This little group is currently confused and disorientated, but pretty soon a leader is going to emerge. You need to make sure that leader is one of you." The Doctor said, looking at the two scanner.

"Clara, after everything I've been through. I can't do it. It's too much." I said, looking down at the floor.

"I know, Jared. It is too much of an ask after the Ever After and Atlas. I'm on it." Clara said, walking away from me towards George. "George. George, isn't it? Can you watch that area? If you hear anything, anything moves, you shout, okay?"

"He will do no such thing until I get some answers. Who are you and your friend? That's what I want to know. Impersonating government officials. Trespassing on council property." Fenton said, looking at Clara.

"Seriously?" Clara asked.

"Seriously."

"Fine, I'll tell you who we are. Jared and I are the one chance you've got of staying alive. That's who we are."

"Well done." The Doctor said, happily.

"Good job, Clara." I said, smiling.

The work group goes to Clara and I.

"Rigsy, how well do you know this area? Do you know where that door leads?" Clara asked.

"It's the old Brunswick line. But it's not safe." Rigsy said.

"Well, there's safe and there's safe." Al said, pointing in two different directions.

"Yeah, I know it. I used to go down there all the time." Rigsy said.

"Yeah, I'll bet you did. Painting your filth." Fenton said, scoffing.

"I think you'll be happy that Rigsy is a graffiti artist." I said, clutching the strap of my sling bag. "If those things come in here, that's our only way out."

"Doctor, Jared, I just hope I can keep them all alive." Clara said, walking over to me to grab my hand and pull me away from the group.

"Welcome to our world. So, what's next, Clara?"

"Lie to them."

"What?"

"Lie to them. Give them hope. Tell them they're all going to be fine. Isn't that what you and the Doctor would do?"

"Well, yeah. I usually do that." I said, looking down at the floor.

"In a manner of speaking. It's true that people with hope tend to run faster, whereas people who think they're doomed…" The Doctor said, trailing off.

"Dawdle. End up dead." Clara said, sadly.

"So that's what Jared and I sound like."

"Who're they talking to?" Fenton asked.

"He says it's MI5." Al said, looking at Fenton.

"Right, here's something that might help you. Do you remember the graffiti from the estate? Footprints, tyre treads?" The Doctor asked.

"Vaguely." Clara said, squeezing my hand.

"Well, I don't think it was graffiti. I think that that is how those creatures saw us. The impressions we make in two dimensional space. That was them reaching out, attempting to talk. At which point they moved into flattening and dissection. Trying to understand. Trying to emulate. But here's the big question. Do they know they're hurting us?" The Doctor asked.

"So what? You think this is all one big misunderstanding?"

"That's a very good question. Why don't we ask them?" The Doctor asked.

So while George keeps watch, Rigsy gets a step ladder for me to go up to use my electric powers on the tannoy speakers.

"Can't believe I'm alternating with the sonic." I said, stepping down from the step ladder. "This isn't how I imagined my day."

"We need to find a way to communicate." The Doctor said.

"Why can't the Tardis just translate?" Clara asked.

"Because their idea of language is just as bizarre as their idea of space. Even the Tardis is confused." The Doctor said. "Jared, you said the TARDIS had trouble translating Groot."

"Yeah. All I kept on getting was 'I' and 'am' and 'Groot'." I said, walking back over to Clara.

"This is a bad idea. What makes this colleague of yours think those monsters even want to talk?" Fenton asked, looking between Clara and I.

"I know a race…" The Doctor said, while he is searching the Tardis for something. "Made of sentient gas who throw fireballs as a friendly wave. I know another race with sixty four stomachs who talk to each other by disembowelling."

"He's got a hunch." Clara said, shrugging her shoulders.

"My point being that in a universe as immense and bizarre as this one, you cannot be too quick to judge. Perhaps these creatures don't even understand that we need three dimensions to live in." The Doctor said, reaching underneath the console. "They may not even know that they're hurting us."

"Do you really believe that?" Clara asked.

"No. I really hope that. It would make a nice change, wouldn't it? Okay. Let's start with pi. Even in a flat world they would have circles. I don't mean edible pie, I mean circular pi. Which I realise would also mean edible pie but anyway." The Doctor said, typing on the console, then the screwdriver flickers and sounds come out of the speakers. "They're responding. The Tardis is translating now. It's a number. Fifty five."

"Fifty five? What does that mean?"

"Tenth Fibonacci number. Atomic number of caesium."

"It could also mean 1955." I said, grabbing Clara's hand.

"Jared. It can't be the year Doc Brown invented his version of time travel."

"I know what it means. We all have numbers on our jackets. Have to sign them out. That was the number on Stan's jacket, the man they flattened in the subway." Rigsy said, his eyes widening.

"They're gloating." Fenton said, annoyed.

"We don't know if they're gloating." I said, squeezing Clara's hand.

"It could be an apology, for all we know?" Clara asked.

"Really? That's nice of them." Al said, happily.

"An apology? Are you seriously…" Fenton said, as we hear more sounds.

"Everyone. Shut up for a minute. Just listen." I said, looking down at the floor. "Wait."

"Two two. Twenty two." The Doctor said.

"Twenty two." I said, still looking down.

"That's George." Rigsy said, sadly.

"Looks like your number's up, George. Now they're threatening." Fenton said.

"Maybe. Or maybe they're showing us they can read." Clara said.

"Oh, grow up. They're picking targets."

"Of course you'd see it that way." Rigsy said, annoyed.

"What do you mean by that?" Fenton asked.

"George? Are you okay?" I asked, and George is standing very still.

"Everyone's out to get you, aren't they?" Rigsy asked, looking at Fenton.

"In this case, they kind of are." Fenton said.

"Clara, Jared, be careful." The Doctor said, frowning.

Clara lets go of my hand and steps to one side whilst looking at George, and sees that he is just a two dimensional image. Then that dissolves into the wall and floor.

"The tunnel! Doctor, Jared, they've got George." Clara said, sadly.

"I know. I did see." The Doctor said.

"Same." I said, walking over to Clara to grab her hand again.

"What now?" Clara asked.

"Give me a minute. I'm working on it. Jared, don't use your electromagnetism, the last thing we need is them learning that too." The Doctor said, at his workbench, building a gizmo.

Disused tunnel / Tardis…

We are at a steel door with a wheel in the middle. This tunnel is disused because the railway tracks have been removed.

"Another flat handle. They were here. Not now. They've stopped chasing us, I think. It feels like they're cornering us." Clara said, dragging me down the tunnel.

"You can't apply human logic. You're dealing with creatures from another dimension." The Doctor said.

"That's three exits all blocked by those creatures." Al said.

"Rigsy, where's the next exit?" I asked, squeezing Clara's hand. "This isn't like the New York subway system, you know."

"The only other one I can think of is where the old line joins the new, but it's a fair walk. Getting through that door would be quicker." Rigsy said.

"But we can't, can we?" Fenton asked.

"I'm just saying."

"Clara, Jared, I might be able to help with that door. And remember, Jared, no electromagnetism. Give me five minutes." The Doctor said.

The hand sized gizmo is taking shape.

Further on, we come across a painting of something exploding out in a circle.

"It's one of mine. Do you lot like it?" Rigsy asked, looking between Clara and I.

"Yeah, not bad." Clara said, happily.

"It's pretty good." I said, smiling. "So, Doctor. That thing you're working on. How's the progress with it?"

"I think I've figured out a way to restore three dimensions. At least on a small scale, say door handles." The Doctor said.

"So, what's that, then? A de-flattener?" Clara asked.

"We're not calling it a de-flattener." The Doctor said, while he hands it out of Clara's bag. It is basically a very old calculator with a ball on top and an extra aerial. "This should be able to restore dimensions. You see what I've called it?"

"Two D is. Two Dee Iz?"

"Oh. Twodis." I said, laughing a lot. "It's a pun on TARDIS. Still love it, Spaceman."

"Well, at least you appreciate it, Jared. Clara, give it a go." The Doctor said, letting out a sigh.

Clara aims the device at the flat wheel on the steel door. Green rays pulse out of the ball like smoke rings, then there is real smoke and a small bang.

"Long way round it is." Clara said, as the cloister bell rings in the Tardis.

"Clara, Jared, I don't know how, but they're doing it again. They're leeching the Tardis!" The Doctor said, terrified.

"How? Your doors are closed."

"They've changed frequency. This time it's different." The Doctor said.

"Listen! The Doctor thinks we might be in trouble. He thinks they might be close." Clara said, walking over to the group.

"Where, exactly?" Fenton asked.

"I don't know. He's not sure. He's getting readings all around." Clara said, sadly.

"Shit." I said, and something forms a shadow in the light coming down the tunnel.

"Oh, that's just great. Sounds important but means absolutely nothing. Can you tell your friend…" Fenton said, looking between Clara and I.

A giant hand rushes down the tunnel and grabs Al, lifting him up into the air and taking him back from whence it came. Naturally, he screams.

"Aaaargh! Aaaaaaaaargh!" Al yelled.

"Of course. The next stage. 3D." The Doctor said, his eyes widening.

Lumps appear in the tunnel floor, which then try to resolve themselves into PC Forrest and others as they rise up.

"Run!" I said, worried.

"Doctor? The door. The handle's flattened." Clara said, dragging me down the hall.

The Twodis is handed out of Clara's bag again.

"I've boosted the output." The Doctor said, happily.

"Will it work this time? Will it be how I remembered this?" I asked, squeezing Clara's hand.

"Absolutely. And by the tone of your voice, Jared. Nothing has changed. Everything is playing out exactly as you remembered it."

This time there is a steady stream of green smoke rings, and the wheel becomes three dimensional again. Rigsy opens it, we go through and lock it.

"Clara, stop. Use it again. It can reverse the process." The Doctor said.

"There's a ladder at the end of this. If we get down into the tunnel, we can make it into daylight." Rigsy said, happily.

"Hang on! Hang on." Clara said, while she Twodises the wheel into two dimensions again.

"If it's flat, we're safe now, aren't we?" Fenton asked.

"They can't get through, can they?" Rigsy asked.

"Wait a minute." I said, as on the other side, the indistinct, wobbly people aim red energy at the flat wheel, and it becomes 3D again. "This is why we don't jinx ourselves, Rigsy."

We run.

"They have a new ability. Of course they have. Now they're 3D, they can restore dimensions." The Doctor said, in awe.

Tunnel / Tardis…

As wobbly Stan and PC Forrest lead the rest of the figures through the door, Clara and I lead the men in a run for their lives. These creatures are difficult to describe. Sort of made up of squares of the surface of people, which aren't stuck together and shift around a little as they move.

"Clara, Jared, do you want the good news or the bad news?" The Doctor asked.

"We're in the bad news! I'm living the bad news!" Clara said, terrified.

"We're being chased down by the Boneless!" I said, worried.

"The Boneless." The Doctor said, smirking. "That's a good name. The good news is I've come up with a theoretical way to send them back to their own dimension."

"Do it! Now!" Clara said, angrily.

"And that's the bad news. The Tardis doesn't have enough dimensional energy to pull it off."

"Great. What do you want us to do about it?" Clara asked.

"Apparently these things can pump it out as fast as they can steal it." The Doctor said, sadly.

"Maybe if I ask them really nicely, they'll fill you up again. Hey!" Clara yelled.

Fenton reaches into Clara's bag, pulling the Tardis out, "Give me that machine! Hand it over!"

As Rigsy and Fenton struggle for the Twodis, the Tardis goes flying over a railing and down a ventilation shaft.

"Doctor?" Clara asked.

The TARDIS lands with a thump, and alarms sound.

"Hello? Doctor? Look, can we please deal with this later? Because we need to move." Clara said, as the Tardis has completely lost power. "Doctor? Doctor, I dropped you down a hole. Where are you?"

"I don't know. My shields have gone. Structural integrity is failing. Another blow like that and I've had it." The Doctor said, looking out of the tiny doors. "Er, I'm on the train lines. And there's a train coming. Of course there is. Short-term re-materialisation? Not enough power. Teleport? Not enough power. Re-route the heart of the Tardis through - not enough power! Not enough power!"

Train A113 is hurtling along the tracks, sounding its horn. The Tardis has, of course, landed on a crossing point, where the track which is sunk into concrete slabs, so there isn't the usual clearance for the train to just run over something so small.

"Can you move the Tardis?" I asked, grabbing Clara's hand.

"Jared, there is no power. The Tardis couldn't boil an egg at the moment. Listen, do what you can with Clara to get those people out of there. You and Clara are stronger than you know." The Doctor said.

"I wonder what they're like with ladders?" Rigsy asked.

"Move the TARDIS like the Thing in Addams Family." I said, squeezing Clara's hand. "You know, it always has the situation well in hand."

"Oh. I get it." The Doctor said, while the train bears down on him, he sticks his hand through the doors and turns the Tardis upright, then uses his fingers to walk along the concrete, over the recessed track and then slightly up a slope. He pulls his hand in and closes the door in order to celebrate with the Addams family theme tune. "Ha! Di di di."

The vibration caused by the train coming down the tunnel knocks the Tardis over so that it is leaning towards the rail as the train bears down. The Doctor looks out, then dives underneath the console, reaches up and pulls something.

Clara gets static in her earbud, "Doctor? Doctor?"

I also got static in my earbud.

Track…

Rigsy and Fenton have climbed down the ladder to the track.

"They'd be here if they were coming. Where are they?" Rigsy asked.

"There's no other way down, right? Hey! I'm talking to you." Fenton said, looking at Rigsy.

"There is. An old service elevator near the mouth of the tunnel."

Clara comes down the ladder with me, "We should go."

"Oh, no." Fenton said, as jerky shadows play against the light at the end of the tunnel. "And there's another train coming."

The horn sounds behind us. This time it is 2M65, Not In Service, barrelling along towards them.

"I got this." I said, and electrical shocks came out of my body for the signals to go from green to red, and the driver put on the brakes. "Picked things up from the Railgun along the way."

(Open POV)

Tardis…

The Doctor has his coat collar turned up, and is rubbing his hands to try and stay warm, "I don't know if the two of you can still hear me out there, but the Tardis is now in siege mode. No way in, no way out. I managed to turn it on just before the train hit. But there's not enough power left now to turn it off."

(Jared's POV)

Track…

The driver climbs down from his cab.

"What's going on? Why the red light?" Bill asked.

"MI5. We've got a, er…" Clara said, frowning.

"We've got a blockage. In the tunnel." I said, while Rigsy runs back along the train. "Can we ram through it? I know the train is empty."

"Yeah, it's out of service, but you two need someone to hold the dead man's handle. Won't run without it. Is this official? Because I've always wanted to ram something." Bill said, happily.

"Can we rig it to drive without that? Send it in with no driver?" Clara asked, grabbing my hand.

The train starts to move forward. Clara runs to board it with me.

"Rigsy!" Clara said, worried.

Driver's cab…

"Hey. What the hell are you doing?" I asked, squeezing Clara's hand.

"I'm going to ram them, buy you and Clara some time." Rigsy said, smiling.

"You'll die." Clara said, sadly.

"Yeah, course I'll die. Now go with Jared!" Rigsy said, angrily.

"Well, why'd you want to do that?"

"Just go, okay? Let me do this."

"Okay, fine, yeah. And we'll always remember you."

"Fine. Great…"

"Well, I was just gonna do this." I said, while electrical shocks came out of my body towards the handle, lowering it down. "You see? No driver required. And I know how much Clara loves her hair tie. Come on Rigsy. You're not dying on my watch. You still have to do something for us!"

Anquished Rigsy makes up his mind and we run back down the train, jumping off just before it becomes a mural on the side of the tunnel.

Track…

"Thanks. Jared, I like that hair band." Clara said, running up to me for a hug. "You're using your ghost powers to save us today."

"Better than us losing the sonic and psychic paper today." I said, as figures start rising out of the tunnel floor again. "The Doctor would kill us after all this."

As we start to run back, Clara spots a small box with circular Gallifreyan symbols on each side lying by the rails. She picks it up.

"What is it?" Rigsy asked, looking down at the small box.

"I think it's the Tardis." Clara said, frowning.

We run.

Office…

Clara is staring at the cube and tapping her earbud, whilst the train driver is brought up to speed with the plot. I am busy snacking on some macarons, not knowing what to do now with this tedious waiting. This office hasn't been used in a long time. There is a typewriter on a desk, old filing cabinets and a long table.

"They wear your skin?" Bill asked.

"I never thought I'd say this…" Fenton said, letting out a sigh.

"This is insane."

"But I think preferred them when they were flat."

"What do you mean flat?"

"Doctor?" Clara asked, getting nothing from the Doctor. "Doctor? What would you do now? No. Jared, what will we do now?"

"Okay." I said, tossing a green tea macaron into my mouth. "The last thing the Doctor said was that the TARDIS needed energy. He said if the TARDIS gets energy, he can beat them, Clara."

(Open POV)

Tardis…

The scanner is still sort of working.

"No, no, no. What are you doing?" The Doctor asked.

(Jared's POV)

Office…

"Clara, you know how I met Miles Morales." I said, happily.

"Miles and his Uncle Aaron." Clara said, and she is having an idea. "Jared, please tell me you have something in your bag."

"I have this." I said, taking out a poster and unrolling it to reveal one of the Starry Night out on the table and turning it over, blank side up. "Sorry, Vincent."

"A Van Gogh." Clara said, while she uses the Tardis as a paperweight. "That'll work. Mass produced?"

"Yup." I said, shaking a handy paint spray can I had in my sling bag. "It is. I'm not letting Rigsy spray paint over an original Van Gogh. They're too precious to be ruined by it.""

"Leave them. They've lost it." Fenton said, annoyed.

"Are you and Jared okay?" Rigsy asked.

"Yeah, are you?" Clara asked, looking at Rigsy.

"I think I will be. What's this?"

"Come on, Rigsy. We've got a commission for you." I said, throwing Rigsy the spray can.

"I'm flattered but I don't think this is exactly the time…" Rigsy said, sadly.

"It's okay. I can call up one of my friends. If you don't think you're up for it."

"What do you and Clara need, exactly?"

Service tunnel…

The Tardis is placed on a metal ledge, and the four of us wait on the other side of a two dimensional locked door.

"You two are going to get us killed. This plan's insane." Fenton said, annoyed.

"You want to walk? Walk. You want to stay? Then shush!" Clara said, angrily.

"They're coming!" Bill said, terrified.

"Just what we were waiting on." I said, and the strange facsimiles of people stagger along the track to the door.

(Open POV)

Tardis…

Time is running out for the Doctor.

"Life support failing. I don't know if you'll ever hear this, Clara, Jared. I don't even know if you two are still alive out there." The Doctor said, while the wobbly people aim their red energy at the flat wheel on the steel door. "But you were good! Both of you! And Clara, you made a mighty fine Doctor. Jared, you made a mighty fine Avenger."

(Jared's POV)

Service tunnel…

More and more energy is poured in, and still the wheel stays flat. On the other side of the wall is the TARDIS.

"It's not working. You've killed us all." Fenton said, looking between Clara and I.

"This is going to save us? Pumping energy into the wall?" Bill asked.

"No. Not into the wall. Through the wall. Rule number one of being the Doctor. Use your enemy's power against them." Clara said, as the door is directly on the other side of the wall from where the Tardis was placed, and the red energy is streaming into it. "They can't restore three dimensions to a door that never existed."

"And that's checkmate." I said, and the poster started to peel off the wall. "We won."

The Tardis shakes and power is restored inside. The Doctor runs to the console and starts using controls. Finally, the cube flies off the ledge, changes shape and flies through the air with its familiar sound, growing bigger and bigger until it lands full sized with a thump by the 3D facsimile people. It puts out a forcefield that pushes them away down the track.

"It worked. They charged the Tardis." Clara said, happily.

Tardis…

"I tried to talk. I want you to remember that. I tried to reach out, I tried to understand you, but I think that you understand us perfectly." The Doctor said.

Train shed…

The Doctor's words come over the tannoy system.

"And I think you just don't care. And I don't know whether you are here to invade, infiltrate or just replace us." The Doctor said, over the speaker system.

Tardis…

"I don't suppose it really matters now. You are monsters. That is the role you seem determined to play. So it seems Jared and I must play ours." The Doctor said.

Track…

The Doctor steps out of the Tardis. Clara, Rigsy, Fenton, and I come down the ladder. I went into Clara's bag and took the Doctor's sonic screwdriver out of it.

"The men that stops the monsters. We're sending you back to your own dimension. Who knows? Some of you may even survive the trip. And, if you do, remember this. You are not welcome here. This plane is protected. I am the Doctor, Jared here is the Storyteller." The Doctor said, turning towards me, and I tossed him the sonic screwdriver. "And he named you The Boneless."

The Doctor zaps the forcefield with his sonic screwdriver and I send out electrical shocks from my body, and pulses of energy make the Boneless disintegrate with a squeal.

Waste ground…

The Tardis materialises. The Doctor, Clara, train driver Bill, Fenton, and I get out, followed by Rigsy who closes the door. Bill gets down on his knees and kisses the ground. Clara chuckles and I clutched the strap of my sling bag.

Rigsy makes a phone call on Clara's phone, "Hi, Mum. It's me."

"Are you okay?" I asked, walking over to Bill.

"I'm alive, and I've been inside that. I think I'm up on the deal. Come here." Bill said, happily.

Bill and I hug. Rigsy is walking away whilst speaking to his mum and Fenton is retying his boot laces.

"Thank you." Bill said, looking at Fenton. "You look chipper."

Bill walks away.

"Do people still say chipper?" Clara asked.

"Apparently. Are you okay?" The Doctor asked, looking between Clara and I.

"I guess." I said, sadly.

"I'm alive." Clara said, smiling.

"A lot of people still died though. Wish I could have saved them."

"It's like a forest fire, though, isn't it? The objective is to save the great trees, not the brushwood. Am I right?" Fenton asked.

"It wasn't a fire, those weren't trees, those were people." The Doctor said.

"They were Community Payback scumbags, I wouldn't lose any sleep."

"I bet you wouldn't."

"It's good to be alive though. Thank you. Seriously, thank you." Fenton said, and he walks off, too.

"Yes, a lot of people died and maybe the wrong people survived." The Doctor said, letting out a sigh.

"I'd rather save that train conductor, Rigsy, the people that became the Boneless, and the rest of the community service people over Fenton." I said, looking down at the floor. "He was an ass."

"Yeah, but we saved the world, right?" Clara asked.

"We did. You and Jared did." The Doctor said, looking between Clara and I.

"Okay, so, on balance…"

"Balance?"

"Yeah, that's how you think, isn't it?"

"Largely so other people don't have to. Jared has to when he's not around me."

"Yeah, well, I was you today. I was the Doctor. And, apparently, I was quite good at it." Clara said, smirking.

"I am an Avenger. I was quite good at it like Clara was being you, Spaceman." I said, smugly.

"You two heard that, did you?" The Doctor asked, at a loss for words.

"Yeah, but the power was going off so I suppose you were delirious. You didn't know what you were saying." Clara said, sadly.

"Yes." The Doctor said, while Rigsy has finished his call with a 'love you' and returns to us. "Ah! The return of the fluorescent pudding brain."

"You do realise he can hear you now?" Clara asked.

"I know. Your last painting was so good it saved the world. I can't wait to see what you do next." The Doctor said, smiling.

"It's not going to be easy." Rigsy said, chuckling. "I've the Black Pearl to live up to. Thanks."

Rigsy holds out his hand to Clara.

Clara pulls Rigsy in for a hug, "Come here."

Rigsy leaves.

"Admit it, Doctor. I did well." Clara said, and her phone rings.

It is Danny. Clara picks the 'I'm in a meeting' text option to end it.

"Was that Danny?" I asked, clutching the strap of my sling bag.

"Just say it, Doctor. Why can't you just say it? Why can't you just say I did good?" Clara asked.

"Talk to soldier boy." The Doctor said, scoffing.

"It's not him. Come on, why can't you say it? I was the Doctor and I was good." Clara said, grabbing my hand.

"You were an exceptional Doctor, Clara."

"Thank you." Clara said, squeezing my hand.

"Goodness had nothing to do with it."

"No. It totally does, Doctor!" I said, excitedly.

(Open POV)

Room…

The mysterious Edwardian lady is apparently monitoring all this on her tablet computer. She is looking at a live feed of Clara's face and Jared's face on it.

"Clara. My Clara. I have chosen well. And Jared, it's sad the Ravagers didn't complete their payment of giving you to me." Missy said, laughing.