Over 13K words, everyone. Wow, that took so much longer than I thought . . . then again, a bit of original content in here, too, so that would do it.

More familiar faces join forces with the TARDIS gang, some tense conversations are had, Missy has a terrible endgame (no pun intended), and there's lots of closure at the end.

Enjoy "Death in Heaven!"

***

Pietro was ready to rush the Cyberman when Clara ran around him. "Stop!" she barked. "You can't kill us!"

The Cyberman stopped, considering them. "Incorrect."

"We are targets of strategic value," Clara shook her head. "Alive, we're tactical advantages. Dead, we're your biggest mistakes. You don't know who we are."

"He doesn't?" Pietro frowned.

The Cyberman scanned them both. "You are Pietro Maximoff. You are human. You are unimportant."

"Thanks, mate," Pietro rolled his eyes.

"You are Clara Oswald. You are Inhuman. You are unimportant."

"Incorrect," Clara shook her head, making Pietro do a double take. "You see, that is what you're supposed to think. That is what everybody thinks."

"You are Clara Oswald."

"Clara Oswald is a cover story, a disguise. There is no Clara Oswald."

The Cyberman paused. "Identify."

"Oh, don't be so slow," Clara rolled her eyes. "It's embarrassing! Who could fool you like this? Who could hide right under your nose? Who could change their face any time they want? Hmm? You see, I'm not Clara Oswald. Clara Oswald has never existed!"

"Identify!"

Clara grinned widely, and with confidence that would have fooled Pietro had he not known she really was his girlfriend, declared, "I'm the Doctor!"

***

"Look at them!" Missy spun around gleefully, Jessie still shaking her head and trying to comprehend that the Master, of all the possible Time Lords, was back. "My boys!"

"Cybermen in broad daylight," the Doctor scowled. "You think people won't notice?"

Tony lowered his repulsors, looking around as people swarmed the Cybermen. "Uh, robots in broad daylight? Yeah, they're gonna notice . . . and want pictures."

"Exactly!" Missy beamed, and with a flourish, unpinned her hat and put it on the ground. "Photos with the big metal men, one pound!"

Jessie looked at Tony as money instantly got thrown in. "I don't suppose you can pin everyone's phones and tell them the Cybermen are dangerous?" she hissed.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y.?" Tony asked.

Missy tsked, seeing the Doctor close to panicking. "Oh, honey!"

"Boss, I'm picking up interference on the phones," F.R.I.D.A.Y. reported. "They do not appear to be civilian authorized."

"Civilian authorized?" Tony repeated. "Is that even a thing?"

"New York!" Missy exclaimed, and they turned around to see her showing the Doctor and Wanda images on her device. "Paris, Rome, Marrakesh, Brisbane, Glasgow. Everywhere, me and my boys! We're going viral!"

A throat cleared in front of them, and the six of them looked up to see a dark-haired woman with glasses and wearing a bow tie walk up. "Would you like me to take a picture?" she asked with a smile, gesturing to the device Missy was holding up. "Sorry, selfies are never as good, are they? And you're having such a lovely moment. Hang on!"

She reached out and snatched the device, and before Missy could protest, Jessie grabbed Missy's arm and plastered a smile on her face. "You know what? We'd love one."

"We would?" Tony asked in confusion.

"I think we would," Wanda agreed, attempting to elbow him before wincing, remembering Tony was in the armor. "Ow!"

The Doctor squeezed Missy in on the other side, nodding at the woman. "Nice bow tie."

"Bow ties are cool," she smiled innocently, and Tony jerked at the statement, but the woman was already raising the device. "Big smiles, and . . . now!"

The "civilians" who had been taking pictures with the Cybermen all drew guns from somewhere, and soldiers in black task force gear swarmed out of the buildings. Tony took his cue to fly off the ground and aim his repulsors again at Missy, who glared nastily up at him. "Guess that's because they weren't civilians," he quipped. "F.R.I.D.A.Y., make a note of that."

"Yes, Boss."

"Afternoon!" a cheery voice called, and the Doctor and Jessie turned to see Kate Stewart approach Osgood with a wide smile . . . and a very familiar redhead was right behind her, a smirk on her face. "You've picked a lovely day for it. My, don't you look shiny!" She paused and considered the Doctor. "Agent Romanoff said you'd gotten a haircut."

The Doctor eyed Natasha before nodding curtly. "Bit of a trim."

"Might want to do your roots," Kate advised, then pointed past him. "The woman."

"Yes, ma'am!" one of the soldiers answered sharply.

Tony only lowered his hands when Missy was secure, then he turned to consider Natasha; there was no way to tell what his facial expression was with the faceplate still in place. "Romanoff," he said stiffly.

Natasha nodded in response. "Tony."

"Now, then," Kate stepped forward to address the Cybermen. "Kate Stewart, divorcee, mother of two, keen gardener, outstanding bridge player. Also, Chief Scientific Officer, Unified Intelligence Taskforce, who currently have you surrounded."

"Human weaponry is not effective against Cyber technology," the Cyberman at the front of the line said.

"Sorry," Kate gave them a shark-like smile. "You left this behind on one of your previous attempts." She tossed the head of a Mondas Cyberman at the Cyberman's feet, which caused the Cybermen to pause. "So, now that I have your attention," Kate beckoned the Doctor to step forward. "Welcome to the only planet in the universe where we get to say this . . . he's on the payroll."

The Doctor blinked rapidly. "You are?" Tony looked at him in surprise.

"Am I?" the Doctor sounded just as surprised.

"Well, technically," Kate shrugged.

" . . . how much?"

"Shush," Kate shook her head, focusing back on the Cybermen. "Any questions?"

Simultaneously, the Cybermen placed their fists on the blue discs on their chests and stomped their feet on the ground. Thrusters just like the ones Tony's suits used activated, causing dust to blow everywhere. "Back, back!" the Doctor shouted, grabbing Kate and pulling her back. "Everyone, back!"

Wanda threw up a quick shield to block everyone on her side, whimpering in pain as it caused the burns on her fingers to stretch. The Cybermen flew up into the air, and as Natasha turned to watch where they went, she focused on the cathedral behind them. "Doctor! Jessie!"

"Oh, my God!" Osgood gawked as the dome of St. Paul's peeled away. "Is it supposed to do that? Is that new?"

"A sun roof on St. Paul's?" Jessie asked sarcastically, shielding her eyes. "Yeah, that's new."

"There's going to be mass panic," Kate gulped. "Everyone in London can see that!"

"Everyone in London just clapped and went 'whee,'" the Doctor corrected, narrowing his eyes are more Cybermen flew out of the dome. "Hush! I'm trying to count!"

"Eight-seven, I think," Osgood squinted. When Natasha and Wanda both looked at her, she shrugged nervously. "OCD."

"I count ninety-one, Boss," F.R.I.D.A.Y. reported.

"FRI's got ninety-one," Tony relayed.

"He's right," Missy smirked.

"How could St. Paul's be full of ninety-one Cybermen and nobody noticed?" Kate demanded.

"Dimensional engineering," the Doctor answered. "One space folded inside another."

"Basically, bigger on the inside," Jessie summed up, turning to glare nastily at Missy. "Easy if you're a Time Lord."

"Got a large number heading south, smaller number going east," Tony said.

"But there's still one straight up," Wanda pointed.

"So ninety-one isn't a coincidence?" Osgood asked.

"Of course it isn't," the Doctor groaned, taking Missy's device from Osgood.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y.?" Tony looked up. "Ninety-one Cybermen? Help us out."

"According to my records, there are ninety-one areas of significant population density in the British Isles," the AI reported.

"That's one Cyberman for every city and major town," the Doctor nodded, looking at the blips popping up on Missy's device. "It's happening everywhere, all over the world, right now."

"Sweet planet, this," Missy smiled. "I think I might keep it."

"You really haven't changed since the Valiant, have you?" Natasha scowled.

Missy's smile turned into a smirk. "One Cyberman per city," Kate frowned. "What could they hope to accomplish?"

"Boss!" F.R.I.D.A.Y. called.

"Doctor! Bad Wolf!" Osgood shouted a second later.

Jessie shielded her eyes when she heard a bang, and the Cyberman hovering above London burst into a cloud of black smoke. "Has it exploded?" Kate blinked in surprise.

"More than that," Missy shook her head. "Cybermen don't just blow themselves up for no good reason, dear. They're not human."

"So if it's not exploding, what's it doing?" Jessie looked at her.

"Pollinating," Missy answered. "Falling like rain into the cracks of the Earth."

"And what does that mean?" Natasha frowned.

"The dead are coming home, Agent Romanoff," Missy grinned. "All shiny and new. In twenty-four hours, the human race as you know it will cease to exist."

"Yeah, not having that," Tony shook his head.

"What are you doing?" the Doctor demanded, storming up to Missy. "Explain! Tell me now!"

Before Missy could answer, one of the soldiers held up a dart gun, and Missy yelped quietly when he shot her in the neck. "Oh!" she blinked. "That was nice . . . must do it again."

"No!" the Doctor protested as Missy collapsed. "No, no, no, no, I need to talk to her! I need her awake!"

One of the soldiers darted him, too, then turned to Jessie. "No!" she immediately staggered backwards, arms going around her stomach protectively. "Not me!"

"Not her," Tony agreed, various compartments in his suit opening to reveal the massive amount of weaponry inside, Wanda's eyes glowing scarlet. "Or you boys get it."

The soldiers hesitated, but Kate finally waved them down. "Very well," she said, pulling out her phone and dialing a number.

Natasha nodded and turned to check in with the three of them when a hand snaked around her ankle. She almost toppled, then looked down at the Doctor, whose eyes were bugging wide as he fought the tranquilizer. She quickly dropped down, and he yanked her down so he could whisper in her ear. "Romanoff?" Tony asked. "What's he saying?"

Natasha nodded, looking up as the Doctor finally passed out. "He said 'guard the graveyards,'" she answered.

Jessie looked up as the black cloud expanded, thunder rumbling. "The dead are coming home," she recalled.

***

Jessie fiddled with the controls of the TARDIS, looking at the coordinates Kate had given her, then looked up at the quiet redhead in the corner. "I expected you to still be on the run, not around UNIT."

"I was for a while," Natasha pushed off the railing to come closer. "Then I showed up on UNIT's radar, probably because they've been searching for you since the Sokovia Accords."

"Have they?" Jessie looked up.

"Mostly to say they wanted your opinions on them," Natasha told her. "As far as I know, I'm not going to be handed over to Ross. I think the Cybermen take precedence."

Jessie barked out a laugh, pulling down a lever and letting the TARDIS travel. "I hope so."

When the TARDIS settled, they headed outside to find themselves in a massive airplane hangar, men already swarming to handle it. "I swear if she's hurt, you're gonna regret it," Jessie warned, eyes flashing with the Aether.

"Yes, ma'am," one of the men nodded. "Be careful!" he relayed the order.

Natasha smirked, walking with Jessie as they headed to where Tony was landing with Wanda, though the enhanced didn't appear happy with the arrangement. "So you like giving orders, then?"

Jessie squawked, blushing almost as red as the Russian's hair. "Nat!"

When Tony was on the ground, Wanda stepped away from him quickly, and the suit opened up, revealing Tony still impeccably dressed in a three-piece suit as he stepped out. "What did she say?" he grinned.

"Nothing you need to know," Jessie quickly shook her head, watching two box trolleys with the Doctor and Missy on them be rolled up. "Is that really necessary?" she asked Kate angrily, gesturing to the Doctor.

"We're waking him up now," Kate assured her, gesturing to one of her men.

Sure enough, he injected the Doctor with a syringe, and a second later, the Doctor started awake, immediately looking around. "Kate?" he scowled. "What's with the handcuffs?"

"I'm sorry," Kate shook her head. "In the event of an alien incursion on this scale, protocols are in place. Your cooperation is to be ensured and your unreliability assumed. You have a history."

"He is an Avenger," Tony narrowed his eyes. "You seriously think he's unreliable?"

"All due respect, Mr. Stark, Secretary Ross mentioned specifically to UNIT that the Doctor had destroyed his signed copy of the Accords," Kate looked at him, even as UNIT soldiers moved forward to uncuff the Doctor. "And any who refuse or back out of the Accords are, according to him, no longer Avengers."

"Oh, brilliant," Jessie facepalmed.

Kate's lips quirked up in a smirk. "I also believe I misplaced Ross's orders regarding what to do if the Doctor, the Bad Wolf, Clara Oswald, and Pietro and Wanda Maximoff ever appeared in front of UNIT, and my men here have amnesia regarding those orders as well."

The Doctor, Jessie, and Wanda all gawked at her while Natasha snorted. "That explains not arresting me on sight."

"You three are lucky," Tony clapped the Doctor on the back, then frowned. "There's three of you."

"Oh, you can count," Wanda snorted.

Tony just looked around. "Where's your brother and Clara?"

"Oh, God," Jessie blanched. "They were still in St. Paul's!"

Kate shook her head as the Doctor finally stood from his box trolley, freed from the cuffs. "The team's still on site, but they've been unable to gain access to the building."

"That can't be good," Natasha mumbled.

"I want them found and brought here," the Doctor ordered, taking Jessie's hand and following Kate to the steps of the airplane in the hangar. "They need to be with us."

"Then give the order," Kate nodded. "As soon as you're on board Boat One, your word is law. Quite literally."

"Uh, what?" Tony frowned in confusion.

The Doctor looked at Jessie as they climbed the steps, the other three rushing after them. "You got the TARDIS?" he asked.

"Yes," she nodded. "And Nat said St. Paul's is locked down."

The Doctor nodded, kissing her temple as they followed Kate the rest of the way.

***

"Where are we going?" the Doctor asked as they entered the main cabin. "Cloudbase?"

"Where?" Tony frowned.

"You mean the Valiant?" Kate asked.

"Cloudbase was Thunderbirds," Osgood piped up.

Kate nodded in understanding, then shook her head in response to the Doctor's question. "Too conspicuous. We need your locations concealed, not advertised. From now on, you're a moving target."

"Does that include us?" Natasha gestured between herself and Wanda.

Kate smirked. "It'd be too conspicuous if there were cameras around."

Jessie snickered. "This is why we like you, Kate."

"Who's this?" Tony pointed to a portrait on the wall.

"Ah," the Doctor nodded. "I see you're bringing Daddy along, too. That's very sweet."

"Oh," Tony tilted his head, examining the painting more. "The Brigadier."

A dark-skinned Army officer stepped closer to the Doctor, throwing up a salute. "Sir."

"Oh, don't do that," the Doctor sighed. "You look like you're self-concussing . . . which would explain all of military history, now I think about it."

Tony snorted loudly. "Save that one, FRI. I wanna use that on Ross some time."

"Yes, Boss."

"Copyright, the Doctor, please," the Doctor tossed over his shoulder.

"Note that, too."

"Yes, Boss."

"Oh, I miss Donna," Jessie smiled fondly.

The Army officer cleared his throat. "Colonel Ahmed, sirs, ma'ams. Privileged to meet all of you."

"Love your outfit, Colonel Ahmed," the Doctor nodded. "Are you in the Scouts? Are you a Man Scout? I didn't know they had those." He moved towards a tea tray nearby, then turned to Jessie. "Your usual, love?"

"Yes, please," Jessie nodded as she sat down at the table, Wanda immediately sitting next to her.

"Anyone else?"

"No, thank you," Natasha shook her head.

A cleared throat nearby caught their attention. "It was Captain Scarlet," Ahmed said as quietly as he could.

"Sorry?" Osgood asked.

"Not Thunderbirds."

Osgood froze, eyes widening. "Oh, God, so it was."

Tony and Natasha exchanged glances. "My confidence level increases," Natasha said sarcastically.

"I was about to say a very similar thing," the Doctor nodded as he returned with two cups .

"The President is onboard," Kate reported into a phone on the wall.

"Mind you, me and Sylvia Anderson, you've never seen a foxtrot like it," the Doctor began.

"Wait," Jessie held up her hand, leaning forward and looking at Kate as the Doctor sat at the head of the table. "Did you say the President?"

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't you Brits do a better job against aliens like these?" Tony frowned.

"The Chitauri," Natasha reminded Tony.

"There were six of us originally, and Manhattan was a mess afterwards."

"They're right," the Doctor pointed at them. "These two are the only Americans I want bobbing around the place. The rest will start praying."

"Russian," Natasha held up her hand.

The Doctor paused. "Does the AI count?"

"I believe my accent is Irish, Doctor," F.R.I.D.AY. popped up.

The Doctor finally pointed at Jessie. "You were American before you were full Time Lord. Does that count?"

Jessie giggled. "Yes, that'll count."

"See?" the Doctor declared triumphantly. "The only two Americans I want."

"That's a first on my part," Tony muttered, making Wanda look at him with a startled glance.

"Not the President of America, sir," Ahmed said. "The President of Earth."

Tony blinked, looking at Natasha. "When did we get a president of the planet?"

"I don't know," Natasha shook her head.

"Me, neither," Jessie frowned.

"There isn't one," the Doctor scoffed, dropping sugar cube after sugar cube into his coffee.

"There is now," Ahmed said.

"The incursion protocols have been agreed internationally," Kate told the five heroes. "In the events of a full-scale invasion, an Earth President is inducted immediately with complete authority over every nation state. There was only one practical candidate."

"That's your answer for everything, isn't it?" the Doctor rolled. "Vote for an idiot."

Kate smirked. "If you say so, Mr. President."

Jessie spat out her mouthful of tea, starting to choke as she scooted backwards as Natasha grabbed a few napkins for her. "What?" Wanda's eyes bugged wide, her expression very similar to the Doctor's, who had frozen in the process of lifting his own cup to his lips.

"So long as you're on this plane, you're the Commander in Chief of every army on Earth," Kate nodded. "Every world leader is currently awaiting your instructions. You are the Chief Executive Officer of the human race. Any questions?"

Jessie was still coughing as the Doctor stared around in disbelief. "Yeah, please tell me how the good Secretary of State reacted when he heard that," Tony held up a hand, grinning widely. "I wanna frame a picture if possible."

***

"You better sell this," Pietro hissed as they stepped back out into the gallery of the building.

"Then shut up and let me talk," Clara hissed back, then plastered a smirk on her face, walking forward to confront the Cybermen in front of them. "Well, gentlemen, where to start? I was born on the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I'm a Time Lord, but my Prydonian privileges were revoked when I stole a time capsule and ran away. Currently pilot a Type 40 TARDIS. I've been married five times, one a blood bond. Four wives deceased, one blood bonded known as the Bad Wolf still alive. My children and grandchildren are missing, and I assume dead. I have a non-Gallifreyan daughter with the Bad Wolf created via genetic transfer. How much more do you need? I'm the Doctor."

"This information is not proof," Cyber-Skarosa said. "We require proof."

"How about my name?" Clara raised an eyebrow.

Pietro gawked at her in disbelief as Cyber-Skarosa tilted his head. "Explain."

"Well, my name isn't Doctor, is it? I don't even really have a doctorate." She paused, thinking. "Well, Glasgow University, but then I accidentally graduated in the wrong century, so technically – "

"This information cannot be confirmed!"

Cyber footsteps came from behind, and Pietro turned to see another Cyberman stomp up. "You are Pietro Maximoff," it said.

"Pretty sure that's already been established," Pietro eyed the Cyberman.

He tensed when it then turned to Clara. "You are Clara Oswald."

She groaned in annoyance, turning around. "No, I'm not!"

"Your deception is intended to prolong your life."

"Your presence has not been ordered," Cyber-Skarosa said.

"Correct," the Cyberman confirmed, making Pietro blink. A Cyberman, not following orders? "You are Clara Oswald and Pietro Maximoff."

"Yeah, they got that," Pietro rolled his eyes.

"Oh, seriously?" Clara sighed. "This is getting old. Look, there is no Clara Oswald. I invented her. I made her up."

"Born 23rd November, 1994."

"Yeah, I chose that date. Always liked it."

"Father, David James Oswald. Mother, Elena Alison Oswald."

"Stories!" Clara held out her hands helplessly. "Stories, stories. I made them up. Look, ask anybody who knows me. I am an incredible liar."

Pietro was surprised when the Cyberman lowered its head. "Correct."

"Do you sound sad?" Pietro asked incredulously.

He regretted asking that question when the Cyberman raised its hand and delivered an electric shock to his head. Clara shrieked and lunged forward, but the Cyberman did the same to her, making her drop to the floor. The last thing she saw before she blacked out was the remains of a piece of paper in his free hand.

***

"Now here comes the real question."

"We haven't asked any yet?"

"No, but this is an important one."

"What's more important?"

"Who gets to wake her up?"

The Doctor sighed as Jessie and Tony's words, then raised an eyebrow at Wanda. "You've never had the pleasure of meeting her," he gestured to Missy.

"Uh, I haven't, either," Tony held up a hand.

"The Year That Never Was," Natasha told him.

"And I wasn't on the Valiant, so I technically still never met her," Tony gave her a look. "I thought you were smart, Romanoff."

Natasha bristled, but Wanda flicked red magic towards Missy's head. The woman woke up with a gasp, eyes flaring red, then she gave the Doctor a sly smile. "Why are you still alive?" he asked.

"You saved me," Missy's slyness turned sweet.

"We saved Gallifrey," the Doctor corrected, putting his arm around Jessie's shoulders, his blood bonded smirking smugly.

Missy huffed. "Yes, Gallifrey too, I suppose. There's always collateral damage with you and me. It's our Paris."

Tony fake gagged. "Sorry, I think I just threw up in my mouth a little."

"So it wasn't just me," Wanda grimaced.

Missy glared at both of them, but Jessie snapped her fingers in front of her face, making Missy look back. "Gallifrey's lost in another dimension."

"Yes and no," Missy shrugged.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. "Meaning?"

"Yes, it's in another dimension," Missy answered. "No, it's not lost."

His narrowed eyes widened. "You know where it is?"

"Yep!" she popped the "p." "You know the best part about knowing?"

"The not telling?" Natasha tilted her head.

Missy gave her a nasty look, but before she could reply, Ahmed's voice came over the intercom. "Mr. President, sir, we're ready for you up here."

The Doctor grinned. "Remember all those years when all you wanted to do was to rule the world?" He turned his head towards the intercom. "On my way!"

"Thank you, Mr. President."

The Doctor mocked a bow to Missy. "Piece of cake."

She sneered angrily, and the Doctor headed towards the exit to the cargo bay, but veered by Osgood's table to see what she was working on. "Oh," she blinked, surprised by his appearance. "Er, it's her little device thingy. I thought there might be useful information on it." The Doctor nodded thoughtfully, and Osgood cleared her throat. "Who is she?"

"You'd never believe me if I told you," the Doctor shook his head.

"'Cos I thought she might be the Master, regenerated into female form," Osgood told him, making the Doctor consider her thoughtfully. "Your childhood friend, responsible for a number of previous incursions."

Wanda grinned. "What was that about believing, Doctor?"

He cleared his throat. "That was fairly quick."

"We do have files on all our ex-Prime Ministers," Osgood grinned. "She wasn't even the worst." Her smile faded slightly. "Doctor, there's something nobody's talking about."

"Which is?" he asked.

"The clouds, caused by the exploding Cybermen, they haven't dispersed. They're still there. In fact, they've expanded and are covering almost all the land masses. We're all looking at the graveyards . . . maybe we should be looking up?" She paused, seeing the Doctor staring at her. "What do you think?"

The Doctor tilted his head back and forth, then headed for the ladder nearby. "All of time and space?"

"Sorry?" Osgood blinked.

"Just something for your bucket list!"

Osgood's jaw dropped, and Jessie smiled, patting her on the shoulder. "Even up the teams a bit that way, I suppose."

"Nice meeting you again, Osgood!" Tony called, helping Jessie up.

Osgood quickly took a breath from her inhaler as Natasha and Wanda brought up the rear.

***

"Localized rain in the cemeteries has resulted in what can only be described as disturbances to the soil. Extraordinary eyewitness accounts are claiming that silver creatures are climbing from the graves."

"These scenes are being repeated everywhere," Kate gestured to the TV, explaining to everyone sitting in the main cabin, the Doctor at the head of the table, Jessie and Tony on his right, Wanda and Natasha his left. "Every cemetery, every mortuary, every funeral home, every hospital. The dead are returning to life as Cybermen."

***

Pietro woke up to a throbbing headache and a pained back. With a grunt of annoyance, he rolled over on the ground, wincing when he got a stick in his back.

He immediately sat up, staring at the old, worn headstones around him. "A cemetery?" he asked in disbelief, looking around. Why had a Cyberman dropped them in a cemetery?

He scrambled on his knees, crawling over to where Clara was lying on the ground, her head pillowed on her jacket. "Clara!" he hissed, gently shaking her. "Clara, wake up!"

"Mmm?" she mumbled, still mostly asleep as she stirred.

"We're in a cemetery, Clara!"

"We're what?" she shot straight up, looking around with wide eyes.

"Come on," Pietro took her arm, helping her stand up. "Come on!"

Clara got to her feet, freezing when she heard rustling nearby. "Hello?" she called, looking around. "Hello?"

Pietro shook his head, taking her hand to leave, when an urn by a grave toppled over somewhere, and his eyes widened when he saw metal-covered fingers push up out of the ground. "Cybers!"

***

"We've done heat scans of some of the cemeteries and, in each case, only a handful of Cybermen have so far emerged," Kate said. "But every individual burial site is active."

"Active?" Ahmed repeated.

"Hatching," the Doctor translated.

"More are coming," Kate nodded. "Potentially millions."

"So that wasn't rain," Tony looked at the Doctor.

"No," the Doctor confirmed. "It was pollen. Cyber-pollen. Every tiny particle of a Cyberman contains the plans to make another Cyberman. All it has to do is to make a contact with compatible living organic matter and bang! Full conversion. But if they have learned how to convert the dead . . . "

"That's what she was doing," Jessie scowled at the monitor showing Missy in the cargo hold. "That's what 3W was for. She creates an all-new paranoia among the super-rich about dying, then exploits the wealth and mortal remains of them to create a whole new race of Cybermen, and these Cybermen recruit corpses."

"So how do we win a war against an enemy that weaponizes the dead?" Natasha asked.

***

"How?" Clara spun around, watching Cybermen crawl out of graves and push monuments out of their way. "How is this possible?"

"I don't know," Pietro shook his head, watching Cybermen march out of one of the mausoleums. "Quite frankly, I don't think I want to!"

***

"They're not attacking, apart from isolated incidents," Ahmed said. "They're just wandering about."

"Small mercy," Wanda mumbled.

"Tinier than you think, Wanda," the Doctor said. "They're newborns. Give them time." He turned around. "Kate, Natasha, why were you there this morning? Why were you already attacking?"

"I just went where they did," Natasha shrugged, turning to look at Kate.

"We've been investigating 3W for a while," Kate answered. "Then we got a tip-off."

"From a woman with a Scottish accent," Ahmed nodded.

Tony frowned. "She has a Scottish accent, doesn't she?"

Jessie nodded grimly. "Can't play to the gallery unless there's a gallery," the Doctor glared at the monitor. "And here I am." As if she could hear them, Missy stuck her tongue out at the camera. The Doctor rolled his eyes in response, standing up to pace. "Dead bodies don't have minds, of course, but she's been upgrading dying minds to a hard drive for a long time. So, she upgrades the hardware, and then she updates the software."

"A long time?" Wanda frowned, looking up at him. "How long?"

"Well, she must have a TARDIS somewhere, so as long as she likes," the Doctor shrugged. "The past, the future – "

"Doctor," Tony straightened, narrowing his eyes. "How long?"

The Doctor sighed. "How long has the human race had a concept of an afterlife? Turns out the afterlife is real, and it's emptying. Every graveyard on planet Earth is about to burst its banks."

The plane shook suddenly, and Tony frowned, tapping the side of his glasses. "F.R.I.D.AY., don't suppose you can track turbulence, can you?"

"I'll see if I can, Boss," she answered.

"Mr. President, you need to get back in your seat," Kate began.

"I don't like being the president," the Doctor huffed, taking a flower from a vase nearby and sniffing it. "People keep saluting. I'm never going to salute back."

Kate smiled fondly. "Do you know, that was always my dad's big ambition, to get you to salute him just once."

The Doctor looked at the painting on the wall. "He should've asked," he responded, then did an exaggerated twirl and bowed low, extending the flower. "For you, my lady."

Jessie blushed in response, but she giggled, reaching out and taking the flower. "Thank you, my lord."

He winked at her in response, then Natasha stood from her seat, eyes narrowed. "Natasha?" he asked.

"Wait," Natasha headed for one of the portholes, peering outside. "I thought I saw – "

She jumped back when a silver face appeared in the porthole. "Oh, dear Lord!" Kate yelped.

"Doctor, there's a Cyberman out there!" Natasha spun around.

"Well, at least it's not turbulence," Jessie grimaced.

"FRI, cancel that first order and scan for more of the Cybermen!" Tony spun around, getting out of his seat.

The Doctor let out an angry noise, making Wanda look up at the monitor. "She's out!" the Doctor shouted, not seeing Missy in her trolley. "Who let her out?!"

"Doctor, it's gone," Natasha said, pulling out the gun holstered on her side.

"So where did it go?" Wanda went to the opposite side of the plane.

"What can one Cyberman do to a plane?" Ahmed frowned.

"Boss, it's not just one Cyberman," F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s voice said in concern. "I count at least five."

Tony set his jaw. "Fire up Mark XLVII again. Let's kick their asses."

"Yes, Boss."

"You're going out there?" Wanda's jaw dropped, even as the Doctor and Jessie ran for the cargo bay.

"Someone's got to face the Cybermen while the Doctor and J handle that psychopath," Tony answered, taking off his glasses and heading for the door.

"But alone?"

"I'd take your help, Maximoff, but let those hands rest. Best not go out there and risk making this worse."

Wanda's mouth tightened, but she nodded curtly. "Tony," Natasha began.

"I don't want to hear it, Romanoff," Tony turned to her, narrowing his eyes. "I wouldn't accept your help anyway."

Natasha stopped short, narrowing her eyes. "Now isn't the time – "

"For what?" Tony interrupted. "My ego? This isn't about my ego, Natasha. This is me having the only equipment that can survive out there in the storm, and I might be a match for the Cybermen. I don't know, because I made my armor originally to face terrorists. Can my armor go up against the Chitauri? Yeah, it can. Thing is, I don't know what other aliens it can stand up against, and that includes the Cybermen. But I'm about to find out because I'm still an Avenger, and this is my job."

"It used to be mine," Natasha frowned.

"Yeah, before you broke the Accords," Tony snorted. "Did you even try to stop Cap and Barnes?"

"They weren't going to stop."

"That wasn't an answer. Did you even try? Because according to T'Challa, you didn't." Natasha was silent, and Tony clenched his jaw. "We'll continue if I survive this."

"Mark XLVII is ready for you, Boss."

"Thank you, FRI," Tony nodded, turning and heading through the plane.

"Tony?" He stopped and braced himself for a lecture, turning back around. Wanda just swallowed, then nodded. "Good luck."

Tony's lips quirked up in what was almost a smile. "Thanks, Maximoff."

***

The Doctor heard the roar of the Iron Man rockets as he slid down the ladder into the cargo bay, Jessie climbing down after him. "Osgood?" Jessie called, looking around the empty cargo bay. "Are you here?"

Glass crunched under the Doctor's boot, and he looked down to see a shattered pair of spectacles. A tongue clicking made him scowl and look up, and Missy rounded the TARDIS, leaning against its doors. "Oh, she was really scared," she sighed. "It's classic. Have you got any more friends I can play with?"

Pietro slowly looked around, frowning when the Cybermen appeared to completely ignore him and Clara. "What are they doing?"

Clara, too, looked confused as she backed away from one of the Cybermen. "I think they're confused," she said.

"That is a first."

Clara froze suddenly, then ran across the graveyard. "Clara!" Pietro hurried after her.

"Are you the one that brought us here?" she called.

The one Cyberman standing still, its back to them, answered, "Affirmative."

"So you know who we are, right?"

The Cyberman turned back around. "You are Pietro Maximoff."

"Yeah, you're sounding like a broken record," Pietro rolled his eyes.

"You are not the Doctor."

"Of course I'm not the Doctor!" Clara scoffed. "I was lying to stay alive. But how do I know so much about him?"

"You are his associate," the Cyberman answered.

"No, I'm not," Clara shook his head. "I'm not his associate, and neither is Pietro. We are two of his, and the Bad Wolf's, best friends. Right now, we're two of their best friends anywhere in the universe. Have you got any sort of Cyber-Internet in there? Because really, you should look it up. Look up what happens to you if you harm us."

"Where are the Doctor and the Bad Wolf?" the Cyberman demanded.

"What, you think we'll tell you?" Pietro snorted, narrowing his eyes. "No. We'll never, ever give them up. They're our best friends, too. I owe the Bad Wolf my life, and aside from my sister and my girlfriend, she is the closest person to me in this whole world. I'm not risking her life like that."

"The same with the Doctor," Clara lifted her chin. "The Bad Wolf may have trained me, but the Doctor is my Pilot. Next to the Maximoffs, he and the Bad Wolf are the closest people to me in this whole world. They are the people I will always forgive, always trust. I would never, ever lie to any of them."

The Cyberman raised its arm, gun popping up from its forearm, and Pietro grabbed Clara, ready to pull her into his arms and run away. However, he did a double take when he saw the Cyberman's arm waver. "What?" he frowned. "You can't take the shot?"

The Cyberman lowered its arm. "No," it answered, raising its hand to its faceplate and removing it.

The face that was revealed made Pietro almost drop Clara in shock. "Danny?" both asked in shock.

"Danny Pink is dead," Danny answered, staring at them sadly. "Help me."

"Oh, my God," Clara covered her mouth, tears in her eyes; Pietro sped around Danny to pick up the piece of paper he dropped, closing his eyes when he saw it was a wrinkled paper from a funeral home. "Danny!"

"Help me," he begged.

"Danny," Clara sobbed, reaching up and wiping her eyes. "I am so sorry . . . "

"Help me," Danny insisted as she stepped closer. "I need you to do something for me. I can't do it myself."

Pietro looked up from the paper and watched Danny remove its circular chest disc. "What's that?" he asked.

"It's an inhibitor," Danny answered. "It's not activated. I need you to switch it on."

Pietro shuffled uneasily. "What does it inhibit?"

"Emotion," Danny answered, making Pietro balk. "It deletes emotions. Please, I don't want to feel like this!"

***

Wanda almost crashed into the table as the plane shuddered. "Stark!" she shouted.

"I'm working on it!" he called over the intercom. "It's hard to fight all of them when they're all over the plane trying to tear it apart!"

"What?!" Kate's eyes widened.

Wanda almost heard Tony roll his eyes. "I said the Cybermen are tearing the plane apart!" Repulsors flashed outside a window, and silver pieces banged against it. "Oh, well, there's one down."

"How many more left?" Natasha asked.

"Er . . . FRI?"

"I count six more, Boss."

"Well, there you go, Romanoff."

"Can you handle them?" Wanda asked, looking around to see if she could find any more of the Cybermen.

"I'll get back to you on that." The plane shuddered further, then another bang rang out, and more fire and silver pieces went flying. "OK, now there's five left. Good start. Let's keep this up, F.R.I.D.A.Y."

"I agree, Boss."

***

"Ooo, Stark," Missy pouted as she danced with the turbulence. "Always a troublemaker." She used the turbulence to get closer to the Time Lords. "Ask me."

"Shut up!" the Doctor snarled, arm tight around Jessie, hugging her behind him.

"Ask me!" Missy insisted, hands on her hips. "Come on, you know you want to. You want to know what my plan is! You'll be surprised. I've got a gift for you. You know, I've been up and down your timeline, meeting all those silly people who died to keep you alive. And you know what I worked out? What you really need."

"What I really need is you to back away from my blood bonded before you try and kill her again," the Doctor snapped, eyes flaring Aether red.

Missy huffed, stomping her foot in frustration. "Always with the Bad Wolf!"

"Jealous?" Jessie couldn't help but grin. "Ha!"

Missy glared at her, but perked up when a telephone rang. "Oh! And now it begins. Doctor, I do believe you're on call. Miss Oswald expects. Who else but the girl who's got your number?" She mock gasped as the Doctor did a double take by the TARDIS phone, Jessie staring at her in shock. "Whoops!"

"It was you?" the Doctor's jaw dropped. "You put us together?"

"I kept you together!" Missy grinned.

"The advert," Jessie blanched. "Back after we regenerated!"

Missy winked, making the Doctor scowl. "Why?"

"'Cos she's perfect, innit?" Missy said it like it was obvious. "The control freak and the man who should never be controlled. You'd go to hell if she asked."

"She didn't," Jessie pointed out.

Missy snorted. "It's the thought that counts. The phone's ringing, Doctor!" He scowled and opened up the phone panel. "Can you hear that? Now that is the sound of your chain being yanked. Heel, Doctor!"

She yelped when Jessie pushed past the Doctor and backhanded Missy, fire sparks dancing away from where she hit the other Time Lady. "Shut up!" Jessie snarled, Missy holding a hand to her burned cheek.

The Doctor grinned widely as he answered the phone. "I don't suppose you got that, did you, F.R.I.D.A.Y.?" he asked.

"I did indeed, Doctor."

"Send me a copy, please."

"On it."

"Thank you." He lifted the phone and put it to his ear. "Clara?"

***

Clara took a deep breath, bracing herself on a headstone nearby. "Doctor . . . with Danny."

"Danny's dead, Clara."

"Not yet," Clara swallowed. "Not quite, but he wants to be."

"Clara?" She paused when she heard a sniff behind her, and she turned to see Pietro looking over from where Danny was sniffling, a look of pity on the enhanced's face. "Clara?"

"He's a Cyberman," Clara whispered. "Doctor, Danny's a Cyberman . . . and he's crying. Doctor, he feels it. He's crying."

***

Tony drew another Cyberman away from the plane, firing a missile from his suit and hitting the Cyberman right in the chest. He skillfully dodged the silver metal that sprayed out after the explosion, then turned to look at the plane. "All right, that leaves four."

He heard the sound of breaking glass, then F.R.I.D.A.Y. sounded panicked. "Boss, one of the Cybermen has broken into the plane."

"Shit!" Tony cursed, flying around the plane to see one of the Cybermen pull Ahmed out of the plane, the man getting tossed into the air. He fired at the Cyberman, successfully blowing it to pieces, then looked around. "Where did the Colonel go?"

"Unable to track, Boss."

"OK, who's left inside?" Tony asked, blasting another Cyberman away. That just left two.

"Only Miss Maximoff, Boss. Miss Stewart and Agent Romanoff are heading for the Time Lords' position."

Tony took a deep breath. "OK, kid, can you still hear me?"

***

Wanda scrambled to hang onto the edge of the table, trying to hold on for dear life. "Yes!" she called to be heard over the wind. "I can hear you!"

"Awesome." There was a thud behind her, and Wanda turned to see the red and gold faceplate of Iron Man in one of the broken windows. "I need you to let go."

"What?" Wanda stared at him.

"I can't fit through the window, but I can get you out of it."

Wanda swallowed. "But my hands – "

"Wanda, for once in your life, I'm gonna need you to trust me," Tony told her. "Maybe you didn't after Lagos, but I need you to do it now. I promise, you're not gonna die here, but that promise won't hold if you don't let go!"

Wanda looked back at her hands, then closed her eyes. Ever since Stark weaponry had attacked Sokovia, she had dedicated her life to eventually avenge not only her parents, but also her country. And after all she had done to him, here he was urging her to trust him so he could save her.

She let go, and the wind yanked her back towards the window, and with a scream, she flailed about. A second after she was in the window, metal-plated arms of red and gold secured around her waist. "I've got you," Tony's metal-sounding voice spoke in her ear. "You're OK."

Wanda gasped in relief, twisting in Tony's arms to wrap her arms around his neck. Tony secured her better in his arms, then took off towards the ground.

***

"Clara, don't do it," the Doctor shook his head. "Just don't do it!"

"It's in his chest," Clara said. "He says it's an inhibitor. It can delete emotion or something."

"I know what it does! If you turn it on, he'll become a Cyberman."

"He's already a Cyberman."

"Not yet, he isn't," the Doctor shook his head.

"He's hurting because I hurt him, and he wants it to stop."

"Stop the pain and he'll kill you!"

"Look, are you going to help me? Because I can't do this alone!"

The plane swerved, and the Doctor just managed to get his arm around Jessie before she slammed hard into the TARDIS. "I'm not going to help you commit suicide!"

"Look, the TARDIS can home in on this call, right? Either you help me, or you leave me alone."

"Clara?" the Doctor blinked. "Clara, no!"

***

Clara hung up and tossed her phone to Pietro, who fumbled with it before it fell to the ground. She turned back to Danny, taking a deep breath and taking off the disc. She looked at the wires inside, swallowing. "There's a lot of switches round the edge," she told him. "I'm just going to try pressing them all."

"OK," Danny nodded.

She gulped. "I am so sorry."

"Yeah."

***

Jessie squawked when she saw Natasha slide down the ladder, followed by Kate. "What are you two doing?"

"The Cybermen got inside!" Natasha shouted in reply.

"The plane's going down!" Kate added.

"Oh, great!" Missy grinned. "It's the daughter one and the backstabbing spider one. Do you like them? I like them."

She tapped her bracelet, and the plane veered sharply again. Natasha was flung towards the TARDIS, Kate in the opposite direction. Jessie reached out and managed to grab Natasha's wrist, Kate hanging onto a cargo strap for dear life. Missy scowled, then tapped her bracelet again. The cargo hatch opened, and Kate was sucked out immediately, screaming. Natasha yelped and grabbed onto Jessie's arm with both hands, Jessie straining to hold on with just one. "I can't hold on!" she shouted back to the Doctor.

He gritted his teeth and looked between her and Missy, who was smiling smugly. "Can you get to ground with her?" he asked.

Jessie swallowed. "I think so, yeah!"

"Then go!"

Jessie nodded, and the Doctor let his grasp on her go. Jessie and Natasha were sucked out at once, and the Doctor saw Jessie's suit of black and silver wrap around her as she used both hands to grab Natasha, the two free falling towards Earth. "Oh, why did you do that?" Missy complained. "You took all the fun out of it!"

"Why did you do that?" the Doctor countered, grabbing onto a cargo strap to get his bearings.

"Oh, don't be so selfish! I'm going to miss the daughter one. In fact, you know what? Just for that, I'm leaving! Boys!" she yelled into her bracelet. "Blow up this plane and . . . I don't know. Belgium, yeah?" she asked the Doctor. "Kill some Belgians! Might as well, they're not even French. Bye!" she grinned at the Doctor, teleporting herself away in a flash of blue.

The Doctor watched her go, then took a deep breath. "Right. Down to Earth it is!"

In a flare of Aether red and black, his own suit morphed onto him, and the Doctor let go of his cargo strap, free falling out of the plane. He quickly adjusted his trajectory so he was pointed straight down, the wind bending around him so he could head straight to Earth. He could already see the black blur that was Jessie as the plane exploded above them.

***

"Two more to go," Clara mumbled.

"Does it feel any different?" Pietro asked.

"No," Danny shook his head.

"Are you sure?"

Danny glared at him. "Yeah."

Rockets flared above them, and Pietro looked up to see the Iron Man armor land on the ground, Wanda clutched firmly in its arms. "Wanda!" he ran over.

Tony put Wanda down, and she ran to Pietro immediately. "There you are!"

"Where have you two been?" Tony asked, retracting his helmet to look around. "And how did you get here?"

"Danny," Pietro nodded at Clara and Danny.

"What?" Wanda's eyes widened.

"As in Clara's fellow schoolteacher?" Tony did a double take.

There were more thuds nearby, then as the TARDIS materialized nearby, the Doctor ran forward towards the group, Jessie helping Natasha straighten just a few feet away. "Clara, don't!" he shouted.

Clara set her jaw, then turned to look at him. "Help me."

"If you do what you're trying to do, if you succeed, he will snap you," the Doctor warned.

"No," she shook her head.

"Then he will step over your broken body and break another and another and another. He will never stop!"

"I will not harm her!" Danny denied.

The Doctor rushed past Clara to examine him, and with wide eyes, he circled him. "Maths," he mumbled. "Maths, Maths . . . "

"Sir," Danny responded.

He swallowed. "I had a friend once. We ran together when I was little. And I thought we were the same. But when we grew up, we weren't. Now she's trying to tear the world apart, and I can't run fast enough to hold it together. The difference is this." He put his hand over Danny's chest piece. "Pain is a gift. Without the capacity for pain, we can't feel the hurt we inflict."

"Are you telling me seriously, for real, that you can?" Danny asked.

"Of course I can," the Doctor nodded.

"I think I can safely say for everyone here that yes, we can," Jessie nodded.

"That pain made me back the Accords," Tony nodded. "What kind of person would I be if I couldn't feel any of the pain that I, and the Avengers, caused?" He looked over at the Maximoffs. "What my weapons caused even if I had no idea they were being used the way they were?"

Pietro clenched his jaw, but Wanda just looked at the ground, chewing her lip. "Shame on all of you," Danny finally said.

Tony flinched, but the Doctor solemnly nodded. "Yes. Oh, yes."

Thunder rumbled overhead, and Natasha looked up, seeing the few light clouds turn completely dark. "I guess it's too much to hope this is one of you two?"

"It's not me," Jessie held up her hands.

"Definitely not me," the Doctor shook his head, looking at Danny. "Danny? Danny, I need you to tell me. What are the clouds going to do? What is the plan?"

"How would I know?" he asked.

"You're part of a hive mind now. Presumably, that's how you found Clara and Pietro. Just look."

Danny took a second. "I can't see much."

"Look harder."

Danny actually smirked. "Clara, watch this. This is who the Doctor is. Watch the blood-soaked old general in action."

"Excuse me, what?" Natasha's eyebrows shot up.

"Yeah, we're used to it," Jessie muttered.

Clara just looked back at Danny with an iron stare, and Danny finally turned his attention back to the Doctor. "I can't see properly, sir, because this needs activating." He tapped his chest piece. "If you want to know what's coming, you have to switch it on." The Doctor stared with an open mouth, and Danny nodded. "And didn't all of those beautiful speeches just disappear in the face of a tactical advantage?" The Doctor swallowed hard, and Danny nodded crisply. "Sir."

"Does he even know a single detail about you and what happened?" Natasha looked between the Doctor and Jessie wildly.

"If he does, he doesn't seem to care," Jessie's fingers curled into fists.

Natasha stared wildly at the Doctor as he paced, seemingly at a loss about how to respond. "And doesn't that bother you?"

"Of course it bothers us!" Jessie snapped, glaring at her. "But how weak do you think it would make us look if it showed? That's part of why sometimes, it helps to have an ego, Nat. It takes a beating for you or you use it to put on a show so no one sees how it really affects you." Tony's head shot up at that, and Jessie huffed. "Because God forbid people see strong people who seem invincible are actually human and have emotions."

Natasha swallowed hard as Tony averted his eyes, but the moment was broken by the Doctor's confused groan. "I need to know! I need to know!"

"Yes," Danny nodded in agreement. "Yes, you do."

Clara finally stepped forward, extending her hand. "Give me a screwdriver."

"No!" the Doctor protested at once.

"Just do it, Doctor," Clara insisted, beckoning. "Let it be me."

The Doctor took a deep breath, then handed his over. "Typical officer," Danny huffed. "Got to keep those hands clean."

"Are you going to let her do what needs to be done and shut up, or do you have anything else to say?" Pietro glared nastily at him, Wanda's eyes flaring scarlet.

Clara stepped in front of the Doctor, blocking him from Danny's view. "Just point and think, yeah?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded, turning and walking away.

The second he was out of Danny's eyesight, he stumbled against one of the headstones, the weight of Danny's words finally catching up with him. Jessie was there immediately, her hands on his shoulders, whispering words to him in a language Natasha and Tony, the two closest to them, couldn't understand. Natasha swallowed hard, watching one of the strongest men she knew falter under words that very clearly cut deeply, and she averted her eyes, not wanting to interrupt them. She looked towards Tony, who was doing a very good job of focusing on Danny and Clara, not meeting her eyes at all . . . and she couldn't blame him, not after one of the last things she said to him.

Are you incapable of letting go of your ego for one goddamn second?

"I wish we could have been better friends," Clara told Danny, swallowing tears back as she held up the Doctor's screwdriver.

"Me, too," Danny nodded.

Clara sniffed. "Then why did you judge the ones I already had?" Danny didn't answer, so she took a deep breath. "Goodbye, Danny."

He inclined his head. "Goodbye, Clara."

Clara turned on the screwdriver, and his face went blank and he stood ramrod straight. She gulped and ran to gave him a hug, and the Doctor tore himself away from Jessie to run for her. "Clara, no, step away, he's activating! Clara, step away, now!"

Tony, who had flipped his helmet back on when Danny activated, held his repulsors up. "He's not doing anything, Doc."

The Doctor put a hand on Clara's shoulder, but when Danny didn't make a move to hurt her, he looked at the Cyberman. "Danny? Danny, if you can hear me, if you're still there, what are the clouds going to do?"

"The rain will fall again," he answered emotionlessly. "All humanity will die."

"And rise again as Cybermen," Jessie whispered.

"Correct."

"How do we stop it?" the Doctor asked.

"We cannot be stopped."

A flash of light nearby made Tony spin around, and he stared in disbelief as Missy descended towards the ground, just like Mary Poppins with her umbrella. "Oh, you've gotta be kidding me."

"Oh, that was brilliant!" Missy squealed in delight. "Oh, I love the telly here, but did you see that? Oh, Clara, you poor thing. You must feel like death. Let me pop away the pain."

She tapped on her device, but Jessie made a swatting motion, and Missy yelped as a fireball hit her in the hands, causing her to drop her device. "Don't you dare!" the Doctor stormed over, kicking the device to Natasha. "Don't you think about it!"

"Oh, sorry, hon, I'm just getting a bit carried away," Missy sniffed. "It's your friends, they're so more-ish." She scoffed, missing Natasha silently pick up the device. "Oh, stop looking all cross-pants. I'm here to give you a gift. Could you at least try and be excited?"

"And what gift would he want from you?" Jessie narrowed her eyes.

Missy smirked, speaking into her bracelet. "Cyberdears!" All Cybermen in the graveyard snapped to attention. "Look at Mummy!" They turned around at once. "Raise your arms, lower your arms. Raise your right, lower your right. Turn on the spot."

Wanda's jaw dropped as they watched the Cybermen follow every order to a T. "She's controlling them directly."

"There are exits at the front and rear of the aircraft," Missy continued. "Please follow the lights up the aisle. You see, Doctor?" she smiled at him. "The power to slaughter whole worlds at a time, then make them do a safety briefing. Everyone who ever lived, man, woman, and child, is now at my command. An indestructible army to rage across the universe. The more they kill, the more they recruit. Happy birthday!"

"Wait, what?" even Natasha did a double take at that.

"It's not his birthday," Jessie rolled his eyes.

"What a wife you are if you can't remember," Missy snorted.

"No, seriously, it isn't."

Missy growled, but swiftly turned her expression into a happy one as she turned to the Doctor. "Well, no matter what . . . happy birthday, Mr. President!" she sang, clipping the control bracelet on his wrist, backing away and curtseying.

Tony whipped around as the Cybermen snapped to attention, but stared in horror as they all chorused "Doctor" and bowed their heads. "What the hell?" he breathed.

"Tiny bit pleased?" Missy smiled. "Oh, go on, crack a smile. I want to see if your eyebrows drop off."

"All of this," the Doctor whispered, staring at her. "All of it, just to give me an army?"
'Well, I don't need one, do I?" Missy snorted. "Armies are for people who think they're right, and nobody thinks they're righter than you." He reached at once for the bracelet, but Missy ran forward, clamping her hands over it. "Give a good man firepower, and he'll never run out of people to kill."

"I don't want an army!" the Doctor yelled.

"Well, that's the trouble!" Missy snapped. "Yes, you do! You've always wanted one! All those people suffering in the Dalek camps? Now you can save them! All those bad guys winning all the wars? Go and get the good guys back!"

"Nobody can have that power!"

"You will because you don't have a choice," Missy spat. "There's only one way you can stop these clouds from opening up and killing all your little pets down here. Conquer the universe, Mr. President! Show a bad girl how it's done!"

The Doctor's mouth opened and closed like a fish as Missy dipped into a deep curtsey, then he ripped the bracelet off his wrist. "Why are you doing this?" he demanded.

"I need you to know we're not so different!" Missy stared long and hard at him, making the Doctor's mouth shut with a click. "I need my friend back. Every battle, every war, every invasion. From now on, you decide the outcome." The Doctor slowly looked down at the bracelet, examining it. "What's the matter, Mr. President?" Missy tilted her head. "Don't you trust yourself?"

"Too much power, even in the hands of the right people, could lead to destruction," Wanda whispered.

The Doctor looked up, hearing his words from the Accords debate repeated at him, then around. From Pietro and Wanda, Pietro's arms still around his sister, both of them waiting with baited breath for his decision. To Tony, his helmet still retracted, a pale look on his face as he, too, waited. To Natasha, who looked on with grim acceptance, no other expression on her face. To Jessie, who seemed the only one not looking at him in anything close to fear, one hand over her stomach where their child grew. And finally to Clara, who was still hugging Danny . . . Danny, who despite every lie Clara had told him, had saved her and Pietro from the rest of the Cybermen.

And he grinned. "Thank you," he turned to Missy, rushing forward to her. "Thank you so much!" He gave her a bear hug, then backed up. "I really didn't know! I wasn't sure! You lose sight sometimes, even when the woman you love most insists otherwise. Thank you!" He spun around, holding out his arms. "I am not a good man!" he announced. "I am not a bad man. I am not a hero."

"Debatable," Tony threw out.

"And I'm definitely not a president," the Doctor wrinkled his nose. "And no, I'm not an officer. Do you know what I am?" Missy raised an eyebrow expectantly. "I . . . am . . . an idiot!"

Tony blinked rapidly at that. "Repeat that?"

"He admits it!" Pietro couldn't help but grin.

"Yes!" the Doctor pointed at him. "I admit it! I am an idiot, with a box and a screwdriver. Just passing through, helping out, learning. I don't need an army. I never have, because I've got them." He gestured to the four Avengers around him, sweeping Jessie into his arms. "Always them. Because love? It's not an emotion. Love is a promise." He watched with a smile as Danny put his arm around Clara. "And he will never hurt her. Maths! Catch!"

He threw the control bracelet through the air, and Missy watched in horror as it landed in Danny's hand. "You never noticed, did you?" Jessie smiled victoriously. "All your silly orders, all your showing off, and you never saw the one soldier not obeying."

"No, that's wrong," Missy shook her head desperately. "That's impossible."

Danny released Clara, stomping towards the three Time Lords, fastening the bracelet on his wrist. "The rain will not fall," he announced.

"Oh?" Missy raised an eyebrow. "Why won't it?"

"The clouds will burn."

"And who'll burn them?"

"I will burn them."

"How?"

Danny looked long and hard at her. "I will burn."

Missy scoffed. "One burning Cyberman is hardly going to save the planet."

Danny nodded solemnly. "Correct." He turned around, speaking into the bracelet. "Attention!" he barked, the Cybermen all around them standing at attention. "This is not a good day. This is Earth's darkest hour. And look at you miserable lot! We are the Fallen, but today, we shall rise. The army of the dead will save the land of the living. This is not the order of a general, nor the whim of a lunatic."

"Excuse me?" Missy protested.

"He's not wrong," Natasha smirked.

"This is a promise," Danny declared. "The promise of a soldier!" He turned around, looking at the living. "You will sleep safe tonight," he told them.

Tony and Natasha nodded in response, and Danny clamped his hand over his chest piece. The rockets in his boots ignited, and he rose from the ground, heading into the clouds. All of the Cybermen flew after him, right into the clouds. They all blew up at once, and Jessie covered her eyes as flames roared across the sky, burning through the clouds and clearing them. Soon all that was left was clear blue skies and sunshine.

Clara cleared her throat, brushing her hair behind her ear. "Well . . . the clouds have all gone."

"Yes," the Doctor nodded, rubbing Jessie's hip with his thumb. "Burned up. Totally burnt. Burnt to nothing."

"We get it, Doctor," Pietro snickered.

"Sorry."

"Ten zero eleven, zero zero by zero two."

The Doctor froze, and Tony frowned at Missy, who was staring at the Time Lord's back. "What was that?"

"What did you say?!" the Doctor demanded, spinning around.

"The current coordinates of Gallifrey," Missy revealed, making Natasha's eyes widen. "It's returned to its original location. Didn't you ever think to look?"

"You are lying!" the Doctor accused.

"We can – we can go together," Missy stammered. "You and me, just like the old days."

"It would be me and my wife," the Doctor hissed. "You would be clapped in irons."

"If you like," Missy acquiesced.

"Doctor, would you remember those coordinates?" Natasha asked.

The Doctor frowned. "Gallifrey's original coordinates, of course I would."

"Good." Natasha stepped forward, and Tony started when she held up Missy's incineration device. "Step out of the way."

"No!" the Doctor shook his head, running up to her. "No, don't you dare! I won't let you!"

"I know she was your friend, Doctor," Natasha stared long and hard at Missy. "But I remember all she did when she was the Master. And after all that happened today? If you let her live, everything that happened today is on you. All of it, on you."

"Nat," Jessie began.

"You can't change my mind," Natasha's voice was like iron. "She dies, Jessie."

"I know," Jessie stepped forward. "So let the woman she killed kill her." Natasha's head whipped to Jessie, and she extended her hand. "She called me a monster before I died. I've been meaning to get back at her for that. Let it be me, Nat."

Natasha swallowed hard, then handed the device over. "Seriously?" Missy asked in disbelief as Jessie flipped it over in her hand, turning to look at her. "You, Bad Wolf? Truly willing to show the Doctor what a monster you are?"

"Pot, meet kettle," Jessie looked up at her. "Guess we'll just keep killing each other, huh?"

Missy stared at her, then huffed. "No one to save your soul, sweetheart."

"She has me," the Doctor growled.

"And our baby when they're born," Jessie added, smirking when Missy stared at her in shock. She raised the device. "I win."

Missy sighed, then stepped between two headstones, striking a pose. "Say something nice?" she asked. "Please?"

Jessie stubbornly stared at her. "You win," the Doctor finally answered.

Missy nodded. "I know."

Jessie pressed the trigger, but an energy bolt from past them hit Missy just before Jessie's did, vaporizing the woman. Jessie jumped back in surprise, and Tony spun around, helmet sliding back into place. He aimed at the lone Cyberman left in the graveyard, but froze when the Cyberman didn't make another move. "Where's he been?" he asked in surprise.

The Cyberman simply raised its arm and gestured through the graveyard. Natasha put a hand on her gun, searching the headstones, then gasped. "Kate!" she shouted, rushing through the graveyard.

"Kate?" Jessie's jaw dropped, letting the Doctor help her through the graveyard.

Pietro zoomed there first, bending down to check her over. "How did she get here?"

"Never mind that," the Doctor gawked. "Is she breathing?"

"Yeah," Natasha nodded. "How? She fell out of the plane!"

"I thought you would have gone after her," Tony looked at the Doctor.

"I tried, but I never found her," the Doctor shook his head. "The Cyberman must have caught her."

Wanda bent down, listening to what Kate was mumbling. "Doctor, she's talking about her dad."

Jessie blinked, but the Doctor's eyes lit up in understanding. He slowly stood and turned to the Cyberman, which was still standing and staring at him. "Of course," he slowly smiled widely. "The Earth's darkest hour and mine. Where else would you be?"

"The Brigadier," Jessie breathed in awe.

The Avengers watched in respect as the Doctor straightened and gave the Brigadier Cyberman a firm salute, which the Cyberman acknowledged with a bow of its head. When the Doctor lowered his head, the Cyberman followed its fellow fallen into the sky. "Thank you," the Doctor whispered, watching the Cyberman that had once been his dear friend fly away.

***

Clara rapidly knocked on the door in front of her, eyes filling with tears even though she felt Pietro's and Natasha's hands on her shoulders comfortingly. "I'm coming!" a familiar annoyed voice huffed from the other side. "I'm coming, just give me a mo – " The door opened to reveal Rose, who froze like a deer in the headlights when she saw the group in front of her. Her jaw hung open in shock before she looked at Clara. "What happened?" she asked.

Clara just burst into tears, and Rose hastily held out her arms, letting Clara hug her desperately. Rose looked over her shoulder, still seemingly in a trance at the sight of not just the Maximoffs, but Tony Stark and Natasha Romanoff, standing in front of her, and she silently backed away, letting them in.

***

"Oh, God, I remember Canary Wharf," Rose rubbed a hand over her face as she listened to what the others told her. "I remember the Cybermen in the street. And Danny was one of them?"

"Not completely," Clara shook her head. "He still had his emotions. He never once obeyed an order."

"Oh, Danny," Rose closed her eyes sadly. "He didn't deserve that."

"No, he didn't," Natasha agreed.

"Wow," Rose let out her breath in a rush. "Well, I guess the world owes the Avengers again."

"Well, one Avenger," Wanda nodded at Tony. "The rest of us are sort of rogues."

"The Accords?" Rose raised an eyebrow.

"The Accords," Pietro nodded.

"Well, it doesn't matter to me," Rose folded her arms. "Accords or not, you're Avengers to me."

Wanda ducked her head bashfully, and Natasha smiled. "Thank you, Ms. Tyler."

Rose nodded, and the sound of wheezing outside made Tony clear his throat. "Guess that's our ride."

"Yeah, kind of need to explain to a few others what's been going on," Clara smiled apologetically at Rose.

"Hey, I just appreciate that you told me," Rose reached out and squeezed her hand. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Clara smiled. "He was your friend as much as he was mine."

Rose nodded, standing and walking over to the door. "Well, my door is always open if you need it."

Clara gave her another quick hug. "Thanks, Rose."

Rose hugged her back, and Pietro gave her a quick clap on the shoulder before following Clara to the TARDIS. Wanda gave her a smile and followed, too. "Nice meeting you, Rose," Tony smiled at her.

"Yeah," Rose nodded, shaking his hand. "You, too, Mr. Stark."

"Ah, call me Tony," he waved it off. "Mr. Stark was my dad."

Rose laughed, startled. "All right."

Tony winked and headed for the TARDIS as well, and Natasha smiled at Rose. "It's nice to know Clara has a friend outside of this business."

"She became my friend before I even knew she was in this business," Rose chuckled nervously.

Natasha tilted her head. "You OK?"

"Yeah," Rose shook herself, smiling at her. "It's just . . . I never expected to meet you in my lifetime."

"Well, happy to surprise you," Natasha smiled, extending her hand. "And nice to meet you, Rose."

"You, too, Agent Romanoff," Rose nodded, shaking her hand.

"Natasha, please."

Rose's smile seemed to split her face. "Nice to meet you, Natasha."

Natasha nodded, then headed back to the TARDIS herself, leaving Rose to watch her go, her smile still on her face long after the TARDIS dematerialized.

***

"But I was thinking that you would want blue."

"But if it's orange and gold with the black, it would be more complimentary to Steve's blue and white."

Steve raised an eyebrow as he listened to his wife debate with T'Challa's sister, Shuri, about a custom suit of her own. "Enjoying the show?" Bucky snickered as he stood next to his best friend.

"Well, it's better than constantly watching the news for anything about Cybermen," Steve shrugged, watching Shuri adjust the colors to Martha's liking.

Bucky tilted his head thoughtfully. "Is that what they were called?"

Wheezing echoed through the hallway, and both men spun around, watching in shock as the TARDIS materialized in the corner. "Martha!" Steve finally shouted, footsteps from behind telling him others were coming.

T'Challa, Sam, and the Dora Milaje arrived, Martha and Shuri coming from the lab, just as the TARDIS solidified and Natasha stepped out, a small smile on her face. "Miss us, boys?" she asked, stepping out further to allow everyone else out of the TARDIS.

"Missing answers, maybe," Steve relaxed. "Everything all right?"

The Doctor sighed. "Define 'all right.'"

***

"That bastard," Martha paced furiously up and down the sitting room after the tale was finished. "Or bitch. Whatever."

"Either works," Natasha shrugged. "Both described Missy at some point in time."

"So this is the person that was responsible with all that trouble years ago?" Sam looked around. "That Saxon person?"

"Used to be her," the Doctor nodded.

"Killed me," Jessie added thoughtfully.

"You should've been the one to kill her," Natasha looked at her.

"Hey, one of the Doctor's oldest friends got the chance to," Jessie shook her head. "An overprotective father trumps me, I think."

"But she's gone?" Steve asked.

"Gods willing," the Doctor grumbled.

"And what about your friend?" Bucky looked at Clara. "Danny, you said?"

Clara sighed. "Dead."

"What?" the Doctor blinked, looking at her. "But you have the bracelet."

"Yeah," Clara nodded, looking down at the dead control bracelet around her wrist. "But it wasn't Danny who came back."

"Who was it?" Jessie asked in shock.

"He did kill once when he was a soldier," Clara smiled sadly. "He sent back a young boy."

"I'm helping search for his parents or his family," Tony told them. "Clara said Danny mentioned he died a long time ago."

The Doctor sighed. "Oh, Maths . . . ever the hero, even after you're gone."

"Yeah," Clara smiled. "A hero."

There was a moment of silence for Danny, then Pietro looked at the Time Lords. "You never answered."

"What?" the Doctor blinked.

"Gallifrey," Wanda said softly. "Did you find it?"

"Wait, what?" Martha gawked, dropping down into a chair next to Steve.

"Missy listed off some coordinates, said it was Gallifrey's original position and it's where it is now," Natasha answered, but trailed off when she saw the stony look on the Doctor's face. "Isn't it?"

The Doctor simply looked down at his hands, which were clutching Jessie's tightly enough to turn the woman's skin white. When Jessie silently shook her head, Tony growled and shook his head. "Unbelievable," he ground out. "She lied about that?!"

"It's like I said," the Doctor ran a hand over his face. "She won in the end."

"I'm very sorry, Doctor," T'Challa bowed his head.

"Thank you," the Doctor nodded curtly. "I should have known better than to trust her on that anyway."

"Simple disintegration wasn't good enough for her," Pietro scowled.

"There's nothing we can do about it, though," Wanda sighed.

"Nothing now," Jessie squeezed the Doctor's hands. "But we'll keep looking."

"Take some time to do it," Clara smiled softly. "Holidays are coming up, anyway."

"We won't stop," the Doctor told her. "Not for a long time."

"Good," Steve nodded. "I hope you find it."

The Doctor nodded as well, and his final comment was almost inaudible. "Me, too."

Tony sighed, rubbing his forehead. "Well, guess I need to go face the lovely Secretary of State. If I were you, Romanoff, I'd avoid the public eye again."

Natasha looked at him, surprised. "You won't turn me in?"

"We just saved the living from the dead," Tony stood with an eyeroll. "Hell, no, I won't turn you in for that. But I can't turn a blind eye every time one of you pops up. Doc's President of Earth now, though, and I think that means he and J get passes for now. But there is only so much I can do." He looked at Natasha, eyes hard. "Don't give me a reason to turn you in, and I won't."

Natasha swallowed, nodding as she stood up as well. "If it's not too late to apologize for Leipzig, I'm sorry."

"I trusted you to help me, and you ultimately let them go," Tony snapped, and Natasha swallowed. "I'll never forget that, Romanoff." He took a deep breath. "Maybe one day, I'll forgive. But you have to understand it'll take time."

Natasha nodded, swallowing her pride for once. "Thank you."

Tony nodded, looking around the room. "That goes for the four of you, too," he looked at Steve, Bucky, Martha, and Sam. "Please don't put me in a position like that."

"We won't," Steve promised.

"Good," Tony nodded. "We're straight, then."

"Good fortune, all of you," T'Challa wished.

"Thank you, Your Highness," the Doctor smiled tensely. "I think we'll need it."

***

"You'll be good?" Jessie asked as she and Wanda walked Tony out of the TARDIS into Central Park.

"Yeah, I'll be good," Tony nodded after a moment, turning to face them. "I think I needed that, you know? Missy actually rescued me from supervising a meeting Ross was in."

"Did she?" Jessie raised an eyebrow, grinning. "Maybe she did a good thing after all."

"Turning the dead into Cybermen?" Tony thought, then shuddered. "Ugh. Not so much."

"There is that," Jessie nodded.

"But the adventure?" Tony tilted his head. "Facing something unknown? Getting away from this world for a time into the one you've lived in for God only knows how long?" He shook his head. "You're lucky," he told Wanda. "You get that every day now."

Wanda smiled faintly. "Not very lucky if I'm a fugitive while I travel."

Tony scoffed. "See the one downside of it, why don't you?"

"Well, if you ever want more," Jessie gestured towards the TARDIS dramatically. "The Doctor's one down from me."

Tony snorted. "Don't tempt me, J."

Jessie just smiled, hugging him. "Goodbye, Tony."

He kissed her cheek. "Bye, J." Jessie slipped back into the TARDIS, but Wanda held back, worrying her lip between her teeth. Tony raised an eyebrow. "Something to say, Maximoff?"

Wanda took a deep breath, then looked up at him. "Thank you," she told him. "For getting me off my ass on the plane."

Tony blinked, then cleared his throat. "I . . . wasn't expecting that."

"But I mean it," Wanda cleared her throat. "You could have left me in the plane. I could have saved myself."

"Maybe you could've," Tony conceded. "But your hands still needed time to heal. And I know how much you move your fingers and hands with your . . . " He mocked her magic. "Scarlet Witching."

Wanda smiled. "True. But still . . . you know I still haven't liked you."

"Really?" Tony gasped in mock surprise. "I hadn't noticed!"

"I can't not like you anymore," Wanda told him. "Not after that."

Tony nodded slowly. "You've messed with my mind, and there's still all you did in the little civil war we had," he reminded her, making Wanda nod sheepishly. "I can't forgive you for all that right now. Some day, I think I can."

Wanda smiled. "Thank you."

Tony nodded, holding out his hand. "Safe travels, Wanda."

Wanda nodded back, shaking his hand. "Thank you, Tony."

Tony watched her head back into the TARDIS, and he stepped back, watching it dematerialize. He sighed, rolling out the kinks in his neck. "FRI, tell Pep and Rhodey I'm back, will you?"

"Done, Boss," F.R.I.D.A.Y. answered. "I also regret to inform you that Secretary Ross is calling."

Tony sighed. "The usual, please."

"Of course."

"Stark!" Ross's voice immediately barked. "What the hell happened while you were – "

"Sorry, Mr. Secretary," Tony said cheerfully. "I need to put you on hold."

"No, don't you do that – !"

"On hold, Boss," F.R.I.D.AY. reported brightly.

"Thank you, dear," Tony smiled in satisfaction, brushing off his hands as he walked towards the elevators, the sound of the TARDIS engines fading in the background. "Let's get to work."

***

"Doctor?"

The Time Lord looked up from the controls at Clara's quiet voice. "Yes?" he asked.

"It doesn't matter what Missy said," she put her hand over his. "You're not like her. And traveling with you makes me feel really special. Thank you for that. Thank you for making me feel special."

The Doctor gave her a long look before he smiled, a true smile, and patted her hand. "Thank you for exactly the same." He looked up to face the Maximoffs. "Both of you, too," he added, and he reached for Jessie. "All of you," he whispered. "I wouldn't change any of this."

Jessie beamed fondly at him. "Neither would I."

The Doctor pressed a kiss to the top of her head, his hold on her shifting so his hand covered the one she held over her stomach, and the Maximoffs crowded around them as Clara hugged the Doctor, too, the five of them just standing there as the TARDIS took back off into the Vortex.

No, none of them would ever change a thing.

***

Wow, OK. That took a really long time to write. And it was extremely heavy. And adding you know who to this after you know what . . . oof, my feels took a major hit.

Anyway, it's extremely hard to believe that I am now one Christmas special away from starting Series 9! Boy, will that be a story to tell. It's one everyone's either going to enjoy or be really mad at me for . . . or both. That's definitely an option.

But anyway, I believe our beloved Caly is next, yes? :) It's Christmas time for the Tylers!