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The Doctor, Rose and Bishop stood outside the Connolly's household on Florizel Street, where the Doctor and Rose had first encountered the people with no faces. Rose looked up at the house, a steely look of determination on her face. She was going to help Danni, because she was Rose Tyler. That's what Danni always said, 'Rose Tyler, Defender of the Universe'. She may not be as powerful as the ginger girl said, but she could do this. The Doctor pressed the doorbell, he had barely said a word since they'd left the police station. He's just directed them where to go but had been silent through everything else. Every so often Rose had seen a flicker of something in his eyes, if she had to put a name to it, it would have been guilt. Maybe the Time Lord was finally feeling remorse over how he'd treated Danni in the past.
The door opened and Tommy, the teenager who'd first alerted them to his grandma, appeared looking surprised and slightly wary at the presence of the three people.
"Tommy, talk to me." The Doctor stated, getting right down to business, "I need to know exactly what happened inside your house." Tommy stepped outside, pulling the door closed behind him, but his dad caught it and threw it back open violently, turning on his son.
"What the blazes do you think you're doing?" He yelled at Tommy, who flinched away from the man.
"I wanna help, dad." Tommy explained.
"Mr Connolly..." The Doctor said warningly, Mr Connolly turning to him. He walked up to him, his face right up against the Doctor's as he tried to intimidate him, but the Doctor just blinked down at him, unfazed.
"Shut your face, you." Mr Connolly snarled, "Whoever you are. We can handle this ourselves." He turned back to his son, "Listen you, little twerp. You're hardly out of the bloomin' cradle, so I don't expect you to understand. But I've got a position to maintain. People round here respect me. It matters what people think."He insisted, emphasising his words with a movement of his hand.
"Is that why you did it, dad?" Tommy asked boldly and Mr Connolly blinked, surprised at his son talking back.
"What d'you mean? Did what?" He asked back.
"You ratted on gran. How else would the police know where to look? Unless some coward told them..."
"How DARE you?" Mr Connolly raged, "You think I fought a war just so a mouthy little scum like you could call me a coward?"
"You don't get it, do you? You fought against fascism, remember? People telling you how to live - who you could be friends with - who you could fall in love with - who could live and who had to die. Don't you get it? You were fighting so that little twerps like me could do what we want. Say what we want. Now you've become just like them. You've been informing on everyone, haven't you? Even gran. All to protect your precious reputation." Tommy ranted back, all of his repressed resentment finally getting released at his father. His mum appeared in the doorway, shocked at what her husband could have done.
"Eddie... is that true?"
"I did it for us, Rita! She was filthy! A filthy, disgusting thing!" He shouted, almost foaming at the mouth in his disgust.
"She's my mother." Rita replied quietly, "All the others - you informed on all the people in our street - our friends."
"I had to." He insisted, "I did the right thing!"
"The right thing for us or for you, Eddie?" He didn't reply, he couldn't reply and she turned to her son, "You go, Tommy. You go with the Doctor and do some good. Get away from this house. It's poison." She turned to her husband, near tears, "We had a ruddy monster under this roof, all right, but it weren't my mother!" She slammed the door shut and headed back to the party inside.
"Tommy?" Rose called gently, holding her hand out towards the boy in encouragement. He took a last look at his father, banging on the door to get his wife to let him back inside, then took the offered hand.
~0~0~0~
The foursome headed down the street, Rose still holding Tommy's hand, who was staring at her as the people around them set up for the impending street party.
"Tommy," The boy looked over at the man, blushing slightly as if he'd been caught, "tell me about that night. The night she changed." He nodded, realising he wanted to know about his gran.
"She was just watching the telly." The Doctor slowed down as he span in a circle, looking up at all the aerials.
"That's what that energy came out of." Rose explained, "There was this woman who talked to us, then she tried to get me, but Danni pushed me out of the way."
"You said it." The Doctor breathed in realisation, "You guessed it straight away," He grinned at her, Rose smiling widely back, "Of course you did. All these aerials in one little street - how come?"
"There's a shop up the road, Magpie. He's selling them off really cheap." She replied and Tommy nodded in agreement.
"That's where we got ours from. Gran was always watching it." The Doctor began running off down the street, not waiting for any of the others. The quicker he got to Magpie, the quicker he could find out what had happened and could fix Danni. And the others too, obviously. He ran faster, trying to brush the image of her faceless body out of his head. He didn't know why it bothered him so much, he hadn't cared when she had been taken over by Cassandra. Or when she'd been separated in Scotland with the werewolf. But now... He shook his head and looked back over his shoulder.
"Come on!"
~0~0~0~
Danni tried to look around, but all she could see was blackness. It reached out in front of her for what seemed like forever, but when she tried to turn her head she couldn't. She began to panic and raise her hands up to feel in front of her, but she couldn't move them either. She was stuck in the same position, looking out into the black forever.
"Hello?" She called out, her voice high-pitched, "Is anyone there?"
"Just me, dearie." A female voice replied. Danni looked around as much as she could, what with her head stuck in the one position, but she couldn't see anything.
"Who are you? Can you tell me where I am?"
"Don't you know?" The female voice taunted, "You and your little friend seemed to know too much."
"Please... I don't know where I am." She stuttered, terrified, "Please tell me."
"You're in The Wire. And I'm hungry!" The female voice called again. Danni whimpered as she remembered what had happened. Somewhere, out beyond the blackness, was her body without a face. She hoped Rose was all right. She took a deep breath and looked out into the darkness.
"Rose!" She called, "Save Rose!"
~0~0~0~
The Doctor smashed the glass on Magpie's door, not even bothering with his sonic screwdriver as he broke into the shop.
"Here, you can't do that-" Bishop protested but the Doctor ignored him, shoving his hand through the hole he'd made and unlocking the door from the outside. Rose stared at him in shock as he chucked the door open, storming inside.
"Is he always like this?" Tommy asked and she shook her head. He always seemed more discreet that that.
"No," She told him, "he must be really worried about..." She trailed off, thinking about Danni. She knew what she'd become in the future, what she was to the Doctor. Was this the beginning of this, or was he just feeling guilty about how he'd treated her?
"Shop?" The Doctor yelled as he strode over to the counter, pressing the bell on it over and over again, "If you're here, come out and talk to me! MAGPIE?" Rose rushed over, placing a hand over his to stop his hammering. He looked down at her, deflating at the sight of his Rose, fine and smiling encouragingly up at him. He grasped her hand.
"Maybe he's out." Tommy pointed out timidly and the Doctor nodded, not looking anywhere but at Rose.
"Looks like it..." He agreed, pulling Rose behind the counter. He began searching through the drawers built into the counter, discarding most of the content until he found a device with a small screen built into it. He pulled it out, looking at it quizzically, "Oh, hello... this isn't right. This is very much not right." He licked the top of it, surprising Tommy and Bishop but causing Rose to roll her eyes. This version of him loved to taste things, she meant to ask Danni if it continued on, "Tastes like iron. Bakelite." He exclaimed as he placed it back down on the counter.
"Isn't that plastic?" Rose asked and the Doctor nodded, "But televisions barely been invented, what's a portable one doing here? Is it alien?"
"Not quite." The Doctor replied, "Put together with human hands, yes, but the design itself..." He pulled out his screwdriver and scanned it, illuminating the device in a blue glow, "Oh, beautiful work. That is so simple." He praised.
"That's incredible. It's like a television, but portable. A portable television!" Bishop breathed, unable to believe that the device in front of him existed. What would technology come up with next?
"It's not the only power source in this room..." The Doctor continued, lifting his screwdriver up and pointing it at the televisions. The screens all turned on, showing snowy static.
"What is it?" Rose asked. The static gradually faded away, leaving behind the images of the faces of the people who were taken by the Wire, each in a different monitor. They all looked terrified, calling silently for help.
"Gran?" Tommy exclaimed in horror, Rose placing a hand on the boys shoulder in comfort before following the Doctor onto the shops main floor.
"Doctor!" She cried, also horrified as she spotted Danni in one screen on the bottom corner, staring out into the room. The Doctor knelt down, watching intensely as Danni continued to mouth 'Rose, Save Rose'. She wasn't asking for help, she didn't look as scared as everyone else, she was worried about Rose. Her last thought had been for Rose.
"I will. I'm on my way." He promised her.
"What do you think you're doing?" Magpie entered from the back of the shop, pushing past the bead curtain hanging in the doorway. The Doctor shot up and stormed over, leaning over the man.
"I want my friend restored and I think that's beyond a little backstreet electrician so tell me, who's really in charge here?" He snarled, Magpie flinching away at his anger.
"Yoohoo!" A female voice called and they all turned to look at the woman who had just appeared in a screen, "I think that must be me. Ooh, this one's smart as paint." She declared. The Doctor slowly walked over to the television, staring at it in surprise, "Oh, and it's the pretty girl from last night as well. Isn't this my lucky day?"
"Is she talking to us?" Bishop asked and Rose nodded.
"She is. It's the same woman from before, Doctor." Rose told him and he nodded, Rose just confirming his thoughts.
"Sorry gentlemen, miss, I'm... I'm afraid you've brought this on yourselves. May I introduce you to my new... friend."
"Jolly nice to meet you." The woman on the television said with a smile.
"Oh my God, it's her, that woman off the telly." Bishop exclaimed.
"No, it's just using her image." The Doctor explained, eyeing the box suspiciously. This must be how it camouflaged itself; tricked people into thinking it was just 'Watch with Mother'.
"What are you?" Rose asked, her voice shaking slightly but confidently. They needed to know to save Danni, but the woman had tried to steal her face.
"I'm the Wire," She declared with a big smile, "and I will gobble you up, pretty boy. Every last morsel. And when I have feasted, I shall regain the corporeal body, which my fellow-kind denied me." The screen began to gradually turn from black-and-white to a colour picture, Tommy and Bishop staring at it in amazement.
"Good Lord - colour television!" Bishop exclaimed, eyes wide.
"So your own people tried to stop you?" The Doctor asked, his face set in a firm frown.
"They executed me. But I escaped - in this form - and fled across the stars." The Wire replied proudly.
"But your trapped inside the television." Rose pointed out and the Wire frowned, the colour draining from the screen as she did.
"Not for much longer." The Wire promised. Tommy turned to Rose, looking up at the blonde who was glaring at the woman on the screen.
"Is this what got my gran?" He asked her and she nodded.
"And Danni too." She looked down at the screen where the girl was still mouthing her name, repeating the same phrase over and over like she was on a loop.
"It feeds off the electrical activity of the brain, but it gorges itself like a great overfed pig. Taking people's faces, their essences, it stuffs itself." The Doctor spat, staring the woman down as she smirked, pleased with herself.
"And you let her do it, Magpie." Bishop snapped at the man behind the counter.
"I had to! She allowed me my face! She's promised to release me at the time of manifestation." Magpie replied, stating the phrase as if he was repeating what she had told him. By the terrified look on his face, the Doctor guessed he'd be reassuring himself with that promise for a while.
"What does that mean?" Tommy asked.
"The appointed time - my crowning glory." The Wire hinted and Rose gasped in shock, looking up at the Doctor.
"The coronation!" She exclaimed and he nodded.
"For the first time in history, millions gathered around a television set." He slowly approached the screen, a smirk appearing on his face, "But you're not strong enough yet, are you? You can't do it all from here. That's why you need this!" He held up the portable television, "You need something more powerful! This will turn a big transmitter into a big receiver."
"What a clever thing you are! But why fret about it? why not just relax? Kick off your shoes and enjoy the coronation. Believe me - you'll be glued to the screen." The Wire gloated as four pink shots of energy shot out, attaching themselves to the faces of the four people. It began to pull their faces into the television.
"Doctor!" Tommy, Rose and the Detective Inspector all cried in terror.
"Hungry! Hungry! The Wire is hungry! Ah! This one is tasty. Oh! I'll have lashings of him! Delicious! Ah!" The Wire crowed.
Danni winced as lightening began to flash in the darkness she was trapped in. Big flashes of pink left spots in her otherwise hindered vision, after all it wasn't like she could see much of anything now she was a face on a television screen.
"What's happening?" She called, hoping the Wire would reply.
"Your friends came back for you," The female voice replied, "And now they're going to join you. So hungry!" The female voice replied.
"You leave them alone you..." She frowned, what do you call a rogue transmission? "You old rerun!" The female voice chuckled.
"They are so tasty. The male, he is such a clever thing." An image of the Doctor's face flashed into her vision, only there for a moment. He looked surprised, he must have seen her too.
"Doctor!" She cried, the image of Rose then two other people flashing, before going back to the Doctor, "Screwdriver!" She managed to call before he changed into the blonde again.
~0~0~0~
The Doctor struggled against the pull of the energy, gorging itself on the mass of electrical energy pulsing through his brain. He must been a banquet compared to the humans she had tried up until that moment. His hand made it's way into his jacket pocket, pulling out his screwdriver with a lot of difficulty.
"Armed!" The Wire exclaimed with a gasp, "He's armed and clever! Withdraw! Withdraw!" In panic, she severed the connection between them and herself, and they all fell to the floor, unconscious.
~0~0~0~
The lightening stopped flashing around her as moments after Danni called to the Doctor as she grinned happily. Look at the, the first time Ten ever listened to her.
"Withdraw! Withdraw!" The Wire called, her panicked cry echoing through the consciousness of everyone she had taken. Danni barked out a laugh.
"Don't mess with my Doctor, you old witch. You won't win." She warned the voice, but got no reply. She smirked to herself, staring out into the blackness once more.
~0~0~0~
The Doctor shot up from the floor of Magpie's shop, immediately checking on Rose who was out cold next to him. Sighing in relief that she had a face, he gently shook her awake. She groaned then sat up next to him.
"That was horrible." She moaned and the Doctor nodded, looking over at the Inspector, who was lying on the ground, flexing his hands but without a face. He reached over, shaking Tommy's leg who, fortunately, was still in tact.
"Tommy, wake up!" The boy didn't stir, so he tried harder, "Tommy! Come on!"
"What happened?" The boy asked groggily as he propped himself up on his elbows.
"Where's Magpie?" The Doctor asked in reply, scrambling off the floor. Rose helped Tommy up and they all ran outside to find Magpie's van had gone.
"We don't even know where to start looking - it's too late." Tommy despaired.
"It's never too late," The Doctor replied instantly, "as a wise person once said - Kylie I think... But the Wire's got a big plan... so it'll need... yes, yes, yes, it's got to harness half the population... millions and millions of people... and where are we?"
"Muswell Hill." Tommy replied, confused as to why the Doctor didn't know this.
"Muswell Hill?" His eyes widened in realisation, "Muswell Hill! Which means..." He ran around Tommy, standing at the end of the street and looking out towards a large building on the horizon.
"Oh, I know this!" Rose exclaimed happily, "Alexandra Palace!" The Doctor beamed at her, gestering to the building with both hands.
"Alexandra Palace" He confirmed, "biggest TV transmitter in North London! Ohh! That's why they chose this place!" He grabbed Rose by the hand and pulled her back inside the shop, "Tommy?"
"What are you going to do?" Tommy asked, following them in.
"We're going shopping."
~0~0~0~
The Doctor was crouched on the floor of the shop, rummaging through some drawers as Rose and Tommy helped him find the pieces he was looking for. Neither of them really knew what he was building, he just shouted random words at them and they were trying to match it to the description he gave them after they shot him blank looks. There was already a small pile on the counter and Tommy popped up from behind it holding what looked like a black light bulb.
"Is this what you want?" He asked the Doctor, who jumped up and took it out of his hands, examining it.
"Perfect!" He placed it on top of the pile of pieces before picking the pile up, "Right, I need one more thing." He handed the pile to Tommy, who struggled to wrap his arms around it. He then dashed out of the door.
"Does he always do that?" Tommy asked Rose, who nodded.
"Every time." She replied and they headed for the door, pausing when she saw Danni's face, no longer mouthing her name. She was smirking, like she knew something no one else did. Rose shook her head and followed Tommy out and down the street after the Doctor. He led them to the TARDIS, diving inside and slamming the door shut before they could enter after him. He appeared moments later with a large yellow wire wrapped around his neck, placing something in his pocket.
"Got it, let's go." He told the pair.
"What's going to happen?" Rose asked as they ran down the street.
"Magpie's going to transmit the Wire across every broadcast of the Coronation. Millions upon millions of people for the Wire to feast on. She'll gain enough energy to create a physical form."
"Is that bad?" The Doctor shot her a look, "Well, apart from the millions of people she's going to suck the faces off. Once she's out of the television, then what?"
"Her kind executed her for a reason, I don't think we want to find that out." The Doctor stuck his sonic screwdriver in his mouth as he pulled out the part of the device he'd shoved in his pocket. He tinkered with it for a moment before plugging it into the mass of equipment Tommy was carrying.
~0~0~0~
With the mass of equipment finally made into whatever the Doctor had intended it to be, he yanked it off Tommy as they ran around into the courtyard of Alexandra Palace.
"Look!" Rose pointed at Magpie's van, "He must be here somewhere."
"There!" Tommy cried and they all looked up at the huge transmission pylon, Magpie halfway up it with the Wire around his neck.
"Come on!" The Doctor urged as they ran past two officials.
"Woah, Woah, woah! Where do you think-" The Doctor flashed him his phycic paper, not even pausing as continued around the building, "Oh! I'm sorry sir! Shouldn't you be at the coronation?"
"They're saving us a seat!" Rose called back as they turned a corner.
"Who did he think you were?" Tommy asked, confused. The Doctor glanced at the paper, smiling slightly at it.
"King and Queen of Belgium, apparently." Tommy grinned, amazed at the man he was following. He was a genius, and so brave. He hoped he'd turn out like the Doctor, and not like his father. He'd fight for justice, not for his reputation.
"Queen?" Rose teased and he shot her a beaming smile. He led them straight to the control room, throwing the door open with a bang as he rushed over the main unit. He used the wire and device he connected his hand-made machine up to the console. He patted it twice for good measure then ran cross the room, grabbing a large reel of copper wire.
"Keep it switched on." He told them both, "Don't let anyone stop you. Everything depends on it. You understand?" Tommy and Rose both nodded as he began unravelling the wire, attaching the reel to his waist.
"What are you going to do?" Rose asked him.
"Stop Magpie." He replied shortly, "Stay here, don't let it stop." He ran out and around the building, the reel uncoiling quickly as he trailed the wire behind him. He ran up the metal stairs Magpie had used to get to the transmitter, then began climbing it himself. He quickly ascended it, getting to the man and the Wire as he was attaching the portable television to the transmitter. Large spikes of red lightning shot out of the top of the tower, stretching out across the world as it attacked every person in front of the television watching the coronation. The Doctor could hear the Wire laughing maniacally and his brows furrowed in determination. He wasn't going to let her win, he was going to save everyone. He was going to save Danni.
"It's too late! It's too late for all of us!" Magpie cried forlornly as he clung to the transmitter, eyes slammed shut.
~0~0~0~
Danni hoped that she was never left in the dark ever again. She could see this becoming a problem in the future, the vast eeriness of the darkness around her spread through her consciousness, chilling her in a way she wasn't sure was possible. Had she been with someone, she probably would have been all right, but the with the darkness spreading in front of her for eternity, and unable to move, it felt like she'd never be safe or secure again.
She gasped as the blackness around her was suddenly illuminated with lightning, no longer weak and pink but a deep red as the Wire quickly absorbed the power she was being given. The surprise of it's appearance actually scared her and instead of feeling relieved at some light, she slammed her eyes shut. Light danced behind her eyelids.
"Oh, feast." The female voice called, "Feasting. The Wire is feasting." Screams and groans of the people who's face she was stealing began filtering through wherever Danni was. She guessed it was the same for everyone who'd been taken by the Wire.
"Let them go!" She cried angrily, "Because the Doctor will stop you, and he'll be kinder if you let them go."
"I shall consume you Doctor." The female voice bit out, and she realised the Wire wasn't talking to her, that this was filtering from the outside. That it was almost over, the Doctor would save them soon.
~0~0~0~
"I shall consume you Doctor." A bolt of lightning shot out at him and he cried out in pain as he lost his balance.
"I won't let you do this, Magpie!" The Doctor shouted in promise, but Magpie was too distressed to hear the warning.
"Help me Doctor! It burns! It took my face - my soul!"
"You cannot stop the Wire." The woman declared, "Soon I shall become manifest." Another bolt shot out and his footing slipped again. He dangled in mid-air again but managed to pull himself back up.
"No more of this! You promised me peace!" Magpie sobbed in pain.
"And peace you shall have." The Wire shot a bolt at the man, causing him to let go of the transmitter. He cried out as, instead of falling, he exploded into thousands of particles in the air. The Wire laughed triumphantly. The Doctor reached out to touch the portable television but was zapped back by another red spark.
"Been burning the candle at both ends? You've overextended yourself missus. You shouldn't have had a crack at poor old Magpie there." He reached over and grabbed the television, a zap of lightning catching him in the foot. He laughed, "Rubber souls! Swear by them!" He grabbed a small switch out of his pocket and stuck it into the back of the television, but nothing happened.
"Oh dear! Has our little plan gone horribly wrong, Doctor?" The Wire laughed as the Doctor stared at the screen, horrified.
~0~0~0~
Rose paced in the control room as the coronation played on the many screens, showing each individual camera angle. Tommy stood in front of the machine protectively, there was no way anyone was getting past that teenage boy. Rose didn't like leaving the Doctor alone, he needed someone to help him but he'd ran out so quickly and with a plan obviously in his mind, she had just stayed behind. An image of Danni calling her name over and over again flashed in her mind and she shuddered; it was probably best she left him to it, if it saved her and everyone else.
She yelled in surprise as a bolt of red electricity shot through the wire the Doctor had taken, striking the box and exploding one of the protruding parts on it.
"What was that?" Tommy exclaimed.
"I think it was the Wire." Rose replied, looking around, "I think it's broken." She explained. What did they do now? The Doctor was no where to be seen, and he had made it very clear this... whatever it was, was very important. Tommy looked around the room, looking as confused as she was until his eyes fell on something on one of the many shelves. He rushed over and grabbed a piece of equipment, unplugging the machine from the mains before replacing the blown one with what he had found. The machine came back to life and she pulled him into a hug.
"Oh, you are so clever!" She cried, bouncing up and down in excitement. A red tinge appeared on the boys face as he grinned, for the first time proud of himself. The red light began surging across the box, whatever the Doctor had intended it to do was obviously working and Rose cheered.
~0~0~0~
The red lightning beams began retreating from the pylons and aerials, all surging back to the transmitter and down to the portable television. The Doctor laughed happily as the Wire writhed in pain, groaning and screaming out her pain at being thwarted.
"It's closed down, I'm afraid - and no epilogue." He taunted as with one last scream, the Wire disappeared. The television switched off, leaving just a small white dot in the middle of the screen for a moment. The Doctor stared at it, relief rushing through him as he frowned in confusion. Why was he so happy?
~0~0~0~
Danni gasped as her eyes shot open. She span on the spot, frowning at the sight of the office she was in. She felt so relieved as she reached up, running a hand through her hair. Oh thank god, she was back in her body. She stopped, biting her lip. Why wouldn't she be back in her body? Where had she been?
She stuck her head out into the hallway, seeing a man stride down it. He blinked when he saw her, he obviously recognised her but was surprised to her see her as she had been to find herself in an office.
"Hello, sorry." She apologised, "I was just wondering, can you help me? I don't seem to know where I am."
~0~0~0~
Tommy and Rose watched the end of the coronation, Rose's arm still around the shoulders of the boy as he leant on the console top next to the Doctor's mysterious device.
"What have I missed?" The Doctor asked and Tommy jumped away from Rose in fright, as if he'd been caught hugging the man's girlfriend or something.
"Doctor!" He squeaked before clearing his throat, "What happened?"
"Sorted." The Doctor replied, striding over to the pair, smirking smugly at Rose, "Electrical creature, TV technology, clever alien life form," He turned to Tommy, "that's me by the way." Tommy blinked in reply, "I turned the receiver back into a transmitter and I trapped the Wire in here." He grabbed Rose's hand in his own, while using the other to press a button on the machine. The lid popped up, revealing a video cassette, "I just invented the home video 30 years earlier." He told her proudly. She laughed and took it out, examining it.
"Wait, this doesn't look like a video. Is this some alien thing?" She asked, showing him it. He took it off her and pouted.
"Betamax." He muttered and she rolled her eyes at him. Should have known, he built his own video recorder but it's not the one that stuck, "Oh look! God save the Queen, eh?" He motioned to the screen, drawing their attention away from his device and to the coronation. He tucked it discreetly into his pocket.