𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧
𝐫𝐢𝐨 𝐝𝐞 𝐣𝐚𝐧𝐞𝐢𝐫𝐨
𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔

from the eyes of
— 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐒 𝐉𝐀𝐃𝐄 —

A few hours later, we were trekking through the thick jungle somewhere just outside of Rio de Janeiro.

Humidity clung to my skin. The cicadas were screaming, the sun was high, and I was dressed like a bootleg Lara Croft—if Lara Croft had a short pink wolf cut and an affinity for smuggling cosmic artifacts through space-time.

Gone were the bikini clothes from earlier. Amy and I had since changed—because there was no way we were about to trek through miles of tangled rainforest and hidden catacombs looking like drunk college girls on spring break.

The Doctor, however, still somehow adorned his typical outfit and was not so much as breaking a sweat. Some-fucking-how.

My pack sat securely against my back, the entrance to THE POLARIS JADE tucked inside and, for once, she was blessedly quiet. Thank fuck, I was terrified to put it back on. She must've been hibernating—cosmic entity-style. Which is to say: dormant, sleeping, vaguely sulking, and hopefully not plotting anything.

She doesn't surface often. Most of the time, the force inside the pack is asleep. What else is a cosmic being with no body supposed to do? Especially when I don't always carry the entrance to her dimension on me.

The Vortex Manipulator was snug around my wrist, hidden beneath my flight jacket. Two blasters were strapped to my thighs, and a few blades were tucked neatly under the sleeves of my shirt. And on my feet, my rocket boots, of course. Always.

The Doctor had given me one of his signature long-suffering pacifist sighs when he clocked the arsenal on me. But I hadn't exactly been chatty with him since the bar—not that he'd done anything wrong. My version of being unfriendly is just... being quiet. So, if anything, I probably seemed nicer than usual.

(Sad, really. I should work on my attitude problems.)

I hadn't just iced him out though—I'd kept my distance from everyone. Not out of malice. Just... nerves. If the Eye of Enid was actually in this tomb, it was one huge step closer. But, I didn't want to hope, did not want to face the heartbreak if it isn't there. But I already was. My heart was sprinting laps in my chest, and I was doing my best job trying to pretend it wasn't.

Amy had noticed, of course. She's smarter than often given credit for—cutting and curious. We chatted mostly with Thiago on the trail, and at some point, she even asked me if I was upset with the Doctor and River.

I laughed and shut it down fast.

I told her I was just tired. That wasn't a lie. We'd just come from stopping a war between humans and the Silurians, Rory had—well... died. (Amy didn't remember that part, bless her heart.) And now we were here, starving and sleep-deprived, chasing tombs.

We hadn't even eaten since before the Silurians and the drill.

Amy got it. Even with all her wide-eyed excitement about tomb raiding, about actually making it to Rio this time, I could see the weariness in her shoulders. We both needed about fourteen hours of uninterrupted unconsciousness and possibly a cheeseburger the size of a small moon.

Still, it wasn't just exhaustion keeping me quiet.

The real reason I was keeping the Doctor and River at arm's length? They were too good at reading me. If anyone was going to notice that I was spiraling with nerves and hope beneath the surface, it'd be one of them. And if they did? They were bound to ask why.

I could not let anything slow me down from going after the Eye of Enid. The less they know, the easier it'll be to pocket it when no one is looking.

So I kept my head down and let them think whatever they wanted. Even if it was them being nervous that I was jealous over their witty banter.

They kept glancing back at me, though. Not teasing glances. Sad ones. And I hated that. Because their flirting was funny and exciting—not something that I disliked. Not at all.

Up ahead, the Doctor and River flanked Vanessa. The Doctor was peppering her with questions about her research and life, and she was answering with delight. River was speaking with Leandro, her voice all flirt and fire, making observations I couldn't quite hear but knew were probably brilliant.

Amy and I stuck near Thiago. She was chatting with him about old legends and his personal life. He seemed rather starry-eyed over her, and whether Amy noticed or not was up for debate. Then again, a lot of people tended to get stupid over the pretty-faced redhead.

I was the silent third next to them, my mouth remaining closed and fingers twitching.

It took everything in me not to bolt off on my rocket boots with one of the maps. Ripping through the tomb and tearing my way through the treasures until I found Arbiter Eight.

No, don't do that, that would be like a really bad move.

I stared off into the trees, trying to get my heartbeat to settle.

Because this could be it.

If I found the Eye of Enid here, then I'd only have one Arbiter left.

Just one more.

And then, once I found number nine, it would be time—finally time—to end it all. To take down the entire fucking system. To crack the multiversal system. To step fully into who I am. To stop pretending I'm something small and survivable.

It would be time to become THE POLARIS JADE again. And then that bitch would finally stop screaming about being let out.

"Jealous?" There was a purr at my ear that caused me to jump and blink in surprise.

River Song was at my side, I realized that I had fallen slightly behind. Amy was laughing at something Thiago told her—and the Doctor was even further ahead, flanked by Vanessa and Leandro, speaking to them happily, eyes alight.

I turned to River, my mouth quirked at the edges. "Of what?" I playfully nudged her. "Thiago and Amy? Thiago's a little young for my taste..."

River scoffed at my words, unable to stop her own mouth from quirking. "Young? Why, he's about the same age as you, darling..."

I was unable to tell if her playful words were a telltale sign of her knowing how truly old I was or not. River Song was clearly part of a future I had intertwined with the Doctor, and I had no clue what she knew—either way, she was doing a damned good job at keeping a poker face.

"Is he?" I asked, smiling. "Ah, well, see, I'm into older people... much older people..." I clicked.

"Trust me, I know," River winked with a small laugh.

I chuckled, the tension in my chest loosening just a little. The nerves muting slightly as I was able to think of something besides the Eye of Enid. River Song had that effect.

She stayed close as we walked, our boots crunching softly over moss and leaf litter. The jungle air was thick and humming with life, but her voice was quiet and low.

"You've been quiet," River said, her tone still light, still teasing—but gentler now. "Not your usual brand of chaos."

I gave her a half-smile. "Didn't think anyone noticed."

"Darling," she said, leaning in slightly, "you practically radiate noise even when you're quiet."

I laughed again, trying to brush it off, but she didn't drop it.

"But truly," she said, her voice softer now, earnest beneath the flirt. "You know you can tell me, right? Did me and the Doctor being close... bother you?"

There was no judgment in her voice. No jealousy or anger. Just curiosity. Maybe a little concern. Maybe more.

I smiled and reached out, laying a hand on her shoulder. "No, Riv. I promise. I'm just tired is all—been almost thirteen hours of go-go-go for the Doctor, Amy, and me. We've barely had a moment to breathe, let alone eat."

River nodded slowly, her expression open. Understanding.

"Besides," I smirked, letting the mischief crawl back into my voice, "what would I be jealous of? Watching you and the Doctor dance around each other is... honestly? Kind of amusing. And—if I may be bold—quite hot."

That got a grin out of her. A real one.

"Hot, you say?" River purred, her voice low as she gave my rear a playful slap. "Mmm. Say more..."

"Hot indeed," I replied, letting the words roll off my tongue like honey.

River opened her mouth, eyes glittering, but then something else caught her attention. Her gaze shifted, and a slow smile curved her lips.

"Old man alert, gorgeous," she said, tilting her head forward. "I don't think he much likes when I slap that perk rear of yours..."

Up ahead, the Doctor had paused. Hands in his coat pockets, that unmistakable silhouette framed against the wild green. He was looking back at us—at me—his expression unreadable but unmistakably focused.

I felt warmth creep up my neck. River bumped her shoulder against mine.

"Come on, play nice," she murmured, and we picked up the pace. "He's worried, too."

We caught up easily. I fell into step beside him, lowering my voice as I greeted him, "Space Lord."

His grin bloomed instantly, relieved that I did not seem to be angry. "Dearest," he said warmly, like the word alone could light a room.

Before I could drift away again, he threw an arm around my shoulders and tugged me into his side, holding me close.

I didn't fight it. I didn't mind a quick snuggle. Even though it was rather hot and muggy, the Doctor ran colder than humans. He had not even broken a sweat throughout our hike.

River threw us both a knowing look, eyes gleaming with something between fondness and exasperation. She gave her curls a toss and trotted ahead to rejoin Amy and Thiago, slipping into their conversation like she'd been a part of it all along.

"What're you thinking about?" The Doctor murmured suddenly in my ear, his breath warm against the shell of it. "Are you okay? The noise is still gone, right?"

I startled slightly, only for the shiver that followed to ripple down my spine as he leaned in further and pressed a gentle, maddeningly sweet kiss to that exact spot.

It was almost criminal, how that felt. I bit back a sound and only cuddled into him further. He easily returned the favor resting his head on mine.

"No noise other than my thoughts about how good seafood sounds right about now," I groaned, head lolling to the side as if to emphasize my full-body craving for food and salt and grilled anything. "I'd eat a shrimp the size of a car if you put it in front of me."

The Doctor's arm, already wrapped comfortably around my shoulders, tightened.

"Ah. Right," he murmured, his brows drawing together in that particular way that meant he was doing guilt math. "We haven't eaten..."

"Nope," I popped the 'p' in exaggerated fashion.

"I promise," he said, voice low and sincere beside my ear, "we'll get you and Amy something the moment we're finished with this tomb." He said the last part excitedly with a big grin.

"And when will that be, Space Lord?" I teased. "We haven't even found the entrance yet."

He responded with another kiss to the top of my head, warm and featherlight. I really should've clocked how clingy he was being—but I didn't mind it. In fact, I craved it.

Is it pathetic of me to kind of just want to go back to the TARDIS, pull the Doctor in bed with me and share a long affectionate snuggle session while we watch Lord of the Rings?

Pathetic and selfish, indeed seeing as everyone knows the Doctor prefers thrilling adventures over fucking snuggle sessions.

Usually, I did as well, but sometimes—especially with the Doctor—being wrapped all warm and cuddled with him was the preference.

"I believe Vanessa has granola bars in her backpack," the Doctor mused. "I'm sure she wouldn't mind sparing a few. Lovely woman, Vanessa. Did you know that she went to São Paulo? On a grant. Very impressive, that one."

I raised a brow. "Ah. Yes. Impressive."

The Doctor smirked.

"Jealous, pretty girl?" He asked, oh-so-casually, but his voice carried the slightest wobble near the end, betraying the actual question beneath the play.

I clicked my tongue. "Of her going to São Paulo? No. I already told you, I have credentials in—"

"In everything under the sun," he interrupted with a fond roll of his eyes. "Yes, yes, I know, my dearest." He paused a beat, then added more quietly, "No, I meant... of River Song?"

I snorted immediately. "First of all, no. Second, even if I was—isn't it a little beneath you to care about something so trivial?" He made a wounded sound at my words and clutched me tighter, burying his face briefly into my hair. "Mmm, affectionate today, Doctor?" I muttered.

"I'm always affectionate for you," he said, with that quicksilver intensity he sometimes got—words falling out like they were too big to hold. "And you're always my number one. For everything and in every way. We've—" he paused clearing his throat. "—I've been through far too much with you for you to not be. You know that, yeah?"

I blinked, my chest tightening in guilt—but I played it off with a scoff and a crooked grin. "Doctor, sorry to break it to you, but I am not the jealous type. You and River flirting is actually pretty funny. Kinda hot too. I wish you two would do it more." He opened his mouth, but I kept going. "I am, however, the tired and hungry type, which translates to less PJ talk. Sorry for the loss—"

"We were not flirting!" He whisper-shouted, scandalized. "I don't flirt! I'm a TimeLord—I don't do that!"

"I suppose that is true," I smirked. "You can't flirt to save your life."

The look he gave me was pure offense.

"Was Ten like this, too?" I added innocently. "Is that what I've got to look forward to?"

"Oh, oi!" He scowled. "Hold on. I can flirt! I just... don't. Often. Well, actually, I thought I flirted with you rather a lot—"

"Coulda fooled me, partner," I drawled, letting my American accent slide full Southern just to drive it home.

And that?

That did it. Because the Doctor was rarely able to back down from a challenge.

The Doctor's eyes lit up like a switch had flipped—dangerous, gleaming, manic.

"Oh-ho-ho," he said, tone dropping. "You want flirting? You'll get flirting."

Before I could say anything, he spun dramatically to face me, placing one hand behind his back and taking my other in a mock-bow like we were on the dance floor of some Regency drama. I barely had time to squeak before he grabbed me and dipped me, full lean, boots skidding in the dirt—and looked down with the most ridiculous smolder I'd ever seen on his h̶a̶n̶d̶s̶o̶m̶e̶ dorky face.

"Mon coeur," he said, voice as smooth and absurdly posh as possible, "I must say your trousers are alarmingly tight. A miracle of physics. The stars themselves must tremble at the sight of such a shapely behind wrapped in those hot pants of yours."

What the fuck?

I barked a laugh, eyes wide in disbelief. "You absolute loser—"

"Oh, but wait," he continued, lifting me effortlessly back upright, then adjusting my jacket. "There's more."

"Of course there is," I breathed quietly.

He leaned in close again, nose brushing mine. "I've traveled the length and breadth of time and space," he whispered, "but I've never found a single thing—not one—more gravitationally compelling than your ridiculous smile. Other than perhaps the TARDIS..." He trailed awkwardly at the end before shaking himself out of it.

I was speechless. Like, truly. Not a word. I may have made a noise that sounded like "huh."

"And don't even get me started on your eyebrows, sharp enough to kill!" He added with a dramatic sigh. Only the Doctor would compliment my eyebrows and consider it flirting. Maybe it's because his are so delicate. "And your bewitching, absolutely glimmering, most gorgeous, siren-like face card! Do you know that your beauty almost stunned me the first time I ever met you?" He was spouting theatrically, motioning and flapping largely with his arms as though a poet.

"Oi!" Amy's voice rang out through the trees, interrupting the moment. "TimeLord and Space Girl, stop your weird flirting! Vanessa and Leandro found something!"

The Doctor didn't even flinch.

He just grinned wider, reached out—and bopped me lightly on the nose. I swatted at him but missed as usual.

"C'mon," he said, catching my hand in his and tugging me forward through the greenery. His fingers laced with mine. "Time to find a tomb, I'll finish wooing you later."

"That was horrible, like properly terrible pick up lines!" I groaned, shaking my head.

Nevertheless, I let myself be pulled along, heart pounding, smile creeping back in.

This idiot. This bowtie-wearing alien idiot man.

We jogged forward, hand-in-hand—easily able to keep up with the others.

We were quick to arrive in line with the others, the Doctor releasing my hand to take the lead with Vanessa and Leandro, who were inspecting a stone in ground. It was a large slab that appeared as nothing more than immensely old lava rock to the blind eye, but as we knew what we were looking for—the entrance—this appeared highly suspicious.

The Doctor brought out his sonic, scanning along the rock, only to groan and put it back.

Amy and I shared a confused glance at his actions.

"It doesn't do rock." He vaguely explained with a flutter of his wrist, keeping his gaze on the stone slab.

"Doesn't do rock?" I bawked.

"Doesn't do rock," The Doctor confirmed, not really paying attention as River Song came up to his side with a scanner.

She held it out for him with furrowed brows, the Doctor immediately sliding next to her and gazing at it with her from over her shoulder.

Amy nudged me gently, moving to whisper in my ear. "Those two are rather close, eh?" She motioned to the softly chattering Doctor and River Song. "You sure it doesn't bother you?" She asked.

I quirked an amused brow while looking at her with my arms crossed. "Can't say it does," I lulled honestly. "Why? Do you want it to?" I shot back, amusement leaking into my tone.

Amy shrugged, a mischievous smirk pulling at her lips. "It would be entertaining," She told me, and I bit back a mean snicker.

Vanessa and Leandro joined River Song and the Doctor in whatever their discussion was while Amy wandered over to Thiago to see what he was doing. I was left by myself momentarily, and I teetered with the idea of joining River and the Doctor's discussion.

But taking one glance at them all made me wary—there was too much going on between the four of them. I had to think intelligently about this without their bickering.

This had to be the entrance—it had to be. Rock like this isn't natural.

But how the fuck can it be opened?

Was it even made to be opened?

Or was it made to remain permanently sealed off?

The latter was the most likely answer. Unlike popular belief, tombs were often closed off permanently upon burial, made to never be opened again. Made to protect the soul resting inside.

But this one... something in my gut told me that there was a way to open it without breaking through with an immense amount of excavation equipment.

That was the argument that River, the Doctor, Leandro, and Vanessa were currently debating with each other.

If they were able to prove that this is the entrance then perhaps it was smarter not to try and open in but rather to wait, present the proof for more funding to receive excavation equipment. A bigger team to safely bust through this.

But that would take weeks at best.

And while Vanessa, Leandro, and Thiago could certainly wait that long—as they were headed the mission—the Doctor, Amy, and I couldn't. I didn't know about River Song, I was not sure how long she usually remained in one location.

However, a few weeks was far too long for the Doctor's frantic and boundless energy. Truth be told, I don't even trust that he would go the short way and bring the TARDIS back in a few weeks once the equipment is ready to excavate. The Doctor tends to get caught up in other things—going back isn't really his specialty.

People and events need to be very special to warrant a double let alone  consistent visitation from the TimeLord. People like Amy Pond got such treatment...

Events like... well, I don't even know what events would warrant such treatment because thus far we had never visited a place twice.

Hell, rather than immediately take the TARDIS to 1000 years in Earth's future from 2020 to see if the Silurian, Nasreen, and Tony made it out okay, we came here.

The Doctor is not a consistent man. He does not like getting too attached, which I can't blame him—getting too attached when you are an immortal being existing throughout all of time and space would make his life rather heartbreaking. Even more than it already is.

Not to mention, it would be rather out of character for me to beg him to come back here—to break into this tomb with them. He would probably do it if I pleaded, but he would be suspicious; he would keep an even closer eye on me during it than he already does.

His words from earlier, many hours ago, echoed in my mind. When I was in the middle of a psychotic break and admitted to him that I killed Restac.

I always have an eye on you.

Knowing that the Doctor, to some extent, is always watching me, I had to be even more careful now. Move in the blind spots, the breaks, and rare moments his eye does come off me. And that was not even taking into account River Song, who was arguably even more observant than the Doctor—nor Amy, who would also be present.

However, a quick glance at Thiago and Amy joining the Doctor, River, Vanessa, and Leandro in discussion gave me peace of mind to know that they probably weren't watching my movement at the moment.

What reason did he have? We weren't in explicit danger, and they were all wrapped in deep conversation.

But this needed to happen today—I can't afford any setbacks. I need to get into that tomb.

Something about the energy of this didn't sit right. I don't think the tomb is closed off, not completely, at least. There is a way to enter; I might just need to go all Indiana Jones and break the code to figure it out.

I scraped my foot against the stone, mind working in overtime to figure out how to get in this place. 1000 years ago, Rio de Janeiro, what do I know about their history. Of the people, of the cultures? What had Vanessa told us of life here—how would they have locked this?

I noticed a groove at that moment—a line in the rock.

The groove was old—just barely a notch against the surface of the stone slab. A thin depression, nearly smoothed over by centuries of wear and weather, camouflaged so perfectly that it would have taken a maddened desperation or the right kind of mind to even notice it.

Luckily for me, I was both.

The heat of Rio's jungle pressed in, thick and sticky, wrapping around my neck like fingers. I could still hear the group's voices—River's low cadence, the Doctor's ramble, Amy's snappy quips—but they were all so far away now. In my head, I was falling backward in time, 1000 years or more, into a world where superstition met unfiltered power.

Arcêane. The chieftain-king. The one Vanessa said spoke to the stars. At least, as the legends claimed.

Vanessa had said his name like a spell when she first told us the stories. Said his legend stretched across the land like the rivers that fed it. He was known for his strength, yes—but more for his connection to something greater. They called him chosen. They said he knew when storms would hit, when to flee, when to fight. He called fire from the sky, some claimed. Others said he came from the sea. Or the stars. Or both.

Back then, stories blurred the lines between the divine and the real. They didn't understand the science, but they knew power when they saw it. And the Eye of Enid... God, it would've looked like divine power to them.

Because it was power.

One of the great Arbiter artifacts. Number Eight. Lost to time... to the multiverse... until now.

And if the legends were true—if Arcêane really was who they said he was—then the Eye of Enid never left this jungle. Never left his side. Because that's where he drew his power from, that's how he became who he was.

He died with it.

And if he knew what it was—if he even understood some of what it could do—he wouldn't have let anyone else touch it. He would've buried it with himself, ensured that no one could find it again. People are selfish, especially with power. No one else would ever have the kind of power that he did.

What if... what if he built this place? Before his death? Not just to be buried in but as a safeguard. A container. A prison for the Eye.

And what if... what if he built it with the Eye's power itself?

My heart thundered.

Arbiter number eight. The Eye of Enid—powered by Aureum—was not just any multiversal anomaly. It was pure creation. The stuff of the cosmos. It responded to thought, will, blood. It didn't need keys or code phrases or sonic screwdrivers. It would respond to what it was forged from.

It needed lineage.

It needed connection.

I swallowed hard, the pieces falling together at breakneck speed.

If Arcêane had wielded the Eye and built this tomb, he would've used the Eye's magic—its force—to seal it. Which meant only something equally powerful... or connected to the Eye itself... could unseal it.

My mind raced; even if they brought excavation equipment, it would do nothing—not so much as penetrate this stone because something greater was protecting it.

The tomb was never meant to be opened—except by someone like him.

Someone who carried the same power.

Aureum. Arcêane never wielded Aureum himself, but he had wielded the Eye of Enid. And the Eye of Enid was made of Aureum.

So was I.

My fingers twitched toward the hilt of the knife at my belt, the one hidden under my jacket. Blood. Blood might just do it.

Because my blood carried the Aureum.

I drew the blade in one smooth motion. It glinted faintly in the jungle light. I was quick to slice through the flesh of my left palm.

The pain was sharp and immediate. Not enough to knock me off focus, but enough to make me cringe.

My fingers curled into a fist, and I raised it over the groove in the stone.

"Please," I whispered.

The blood fell in thick drops, pooling into the groove. One, two, three—and then a hiss. Like steam escaping a kettle. Then nothing. For a long second, it was nothing.

I stepped back with a frown.

Nearby, they were still arguing. Amy's voice cut through. "It's not our fault your sonic can't do stone!"

The Doctor's groan followed. "Stop insulting the sonic! It's very sensitive!"

"It can't do stone and wood, Doctor, it's just pathetic..." River clicked, and the Doctor scoffed.

"Dearest," the Doctor called suddenly, all worked up over his sonic. "Come over here and defend my sonic's honor, will you?"

But I didn't move.

Because the stone slab beneath my feet was vibrating. Just slightly at first—but enough to make the hairs on my arms stand up.

And then it shook.

"Guys!" I shouted, spinning around to the group. "Off the slab! Now! It's opening!"

The ground rumbled like thunder. Dust exploded from the stone, and the groove I'd bled into began glowing faint gold. A crack ripped through the center of the slab with a deep crack, and the rock began to shift—grinding, splitting, and trembling beneath our feet.

Everyone let out a series of varying yelps, screams, and swear words.

The Doctor's eyes shot to me instantly, wide with worry and confusion. "What did you do?!" He eyed my injured palm with disdain.

The stone split entirely, revealing a steep, dark passage descending beneath the earth—air from below spilling out in thick gusts that smelled of stone, incense, and the faintest trace of ozone.

"PJ!" It was River Song this time, a worried look in her eye and a frown twisting her lips downward. "Answer us, what—?" She started, voice unrecognizable.

I smirked at them, eyes glinting.

"Just cracked the code," I explained, voice smug even as my palm bled freely. "You're welcome, friends." I paused before adding. "And ma copine d'amour..." My voice was no softer, only more amused with the last testament of affection toward the TimeLord.

The Doctor only continued to gap at me, his eyes frantically moving from me to the still opening rock. His arms were outstretched, blocking everyone from moving too close and potentially falling in. Unfortunately, I was on the other side of the opening stretch—the only one standing against the group of six.

I tilted my head while looking below.

"Impossible!" Vanessa gasped in amazement. "How could you know?" She looked to me, speaking loudly over the rumbling.

"It only makes sense, doesn't it?" I swallowed, trying to ease my racing mind and heart, holding my throbbing palm to slow the bleeding.

"Don't touch it, sweetheart!" River called, worry and annoyance in her voice. "You don't want your wound to get infected—"

"—What're the chances of that, hotness?" I called back playfully, a knowing gleam in my eye.

She shook her head, unable to bite back a smile as her own eyes sparkled. And I was once again left wondering how much she knew about me, did she know that I was a half-breed?

"Chances that I am not willing to risk!" She quipped, narrowing her eyes.

The Doctor looked done, scowling as he cut into the conversation. He barked with a rare sternness to his tone. "PJ, don't move, and don't touch that wound—River's right, the last thing you need is to infect it!"

"But I am still confused!" Amy yelled, her eyes equally as dazzled as Vanessa, Thiago, and Leandro's. "How did you know that would open it?"

"How can it even open like this?!" Thiago shouted in wonder.

"Tombs are rarely made to be opened—let alone like this!" Leandro added. "I have never seen anything like it in all my years! This shouldn't even be possible!"

I shook my head, licking my lips as my eyes glowed with excitement and my fingers twitched. My heart raced, and I was bouncing on my toes as a slightly manic nature took over.

"Don't you see? It's just like you said, Vanessa!" I cried in happy hysterics. "Only a blood lock would make sense! Arcêane was more than just a chieftain during his time; his people—the world—saw him as a God! And a God doesn't get the typical royal resting spot like the Tomb of Tutankhamun or Cleopatra..." My mind was sprialing, the words falling fast but still not fast enough for how quickly my mind was moving. "...He gets something marvelous, something impossible! He gets a blood seal!" I laughed like it was obvious, purposefully leaving out the part about it not so much as being blood as it was Aureum that unlocked it.

To put it simply: Arcêane obviously thought that he would rise again one day, that the Eye of Enid might bring him back. Which, to be fair, is possible. He made it so it can only be opened with the force of the Eye of Enid, which was made up of the universal life force Aureum. My blood has such in it, which therefore acted as a compatible substitute for the Eye of Enid—it still opened the tomb.

However, given that Arcêane had not come back to life—as this tomb had never been opened before—the Eye of Enid, for whatever reason, did not bring him back. Something which I was not complaining about, as Arcêane coming back, whether he was good or not, would probably cause multiple major issues.

Not to mention, I did not feel like fighting against some pumped-up human male for the eighth Arbiter.

The rumbling slowly came to a standstill, and the rock paused—it was fully opened now, revealing dark looming stone steps into horribly creepy catacombs. Fun.

I stood at the edge of the newly revealed descent, adrenaline still flooding my veins and my blood still dripping warm from my palm, held gently against my jacket. From the exposed stairwell below, a damp cold rose to greet the living—ancient air that hadn't touched skin or lungs in a thousand years.

This place was literally as old as the Doctor has been alive. Ironic. I snorted at the thought—such a fucking old man.

The group then moved their gazes from the entrance and stared at me in stunned disbelief.

Unsurprisingly, the Doctor moved first. He was fast too as he spun around the gaping stone maw and darted toward me, River following a beat behind him with her boots crunching on disturbed gravel.

He skidded to a halt in front of me, arms out and voice sharp with alarm.

"Are you mad?!"

"Yes," I answered with a crooked smile, but he wasn't laughing. "Aren't you?"

"Right, bad question," He muttered with a shake of his head.

He then grabbed my injured hand with careful but urgent fingers, turning it toward the light as he examined the bleeding cut. "You've cut yourself!" He almost pouted, looking at the wound sadly. "You could've severed something! You could've—God, PJ, always giving my heart attacks" His voice shot up an octave as his brows knit together, pure exasperation and something that might've been fear boiling behind his eyes.

Overprotective fucking Space Lord. It was just a fucking cut.

"Oi, move, old man," River snapped, nudging him aside with a shoulder, already pulling a medical kit from her pack like she'd been expecting this exact situation. "Let someone competent handle this before you make it worse with all your yapping."

"I wasn't—"

River silenced him with a withering look, her newly gloved hands already dabbing antiseptic across the wound before the Doctor could come up with a snide retort.

I hissed between my teeth at the sting. River didn't flinch.

"You know," she murmured as she began to wrap my palm with smooth, practiced motions, "as insane as that little stunt was... I have to admit—I'm wildly impressed."

I beamed at her, pride swelling in my chest.

"See? Someone gets it." I said, delighted.

"Don't encourage her," the Doctor muttered to River, crossing his arms but not turning away. His gaze was still locked on me—through me, really. It was intense, burning, that kind of stormy calculation that was becoming more and more common these days.

The Doctor spoke slowly, never looking away from me. "River, she didn't just get lucky. She figured it out. She knew how to open it. It was not just guesswork. The blood seal... how could you have possibly figured that out, dearest? I didn't even figure it out..." He asked me toward the end, eyes narrowing.

Because you're stupid, Space Lord!

For obvious reasons, I didn't say that.

"Of course it wasn't guesswork," River said without looking up. "You think she'd risk herself if she didn't know? You're brilliant, sweetheart." She looked up at me with a grin and gave my cheek a quick pat. "Couldn't have figured it out any better myself! Don't let the old man bring you down..." She teased as the end and the Doctor rolled his eyes.

"Right on," I replied, giving her a mock salute with my good hand and a cheesy grin.

Keep it light—keep it fun. Stay clueless—no suspicion.

The Doctor stepped forward, his voice low and edged with something different now. Curiosity, yes. But sharper. He was hunting for something. Looking for something. A crack. A break. A reveal. An answer.

"Your eyes..." he murmured, tilting his head slightly. His voice had dipped into that eerie, charming softness that usually came right before the thunder rolled in. "Utterly beguiling. They're the most vibrant blue I've ever seen on a woman, indeed, my dearest..."

He reached out slowly, brushing a strand of my bubblegum pink hair behind my ear. His hand lingered, not just in affection but in study.

"And you're just so beautiful but violent... a hurricane woman..." He continued thoughtfully.

My breath caught. He loomed over me now, tall and almost dark against the golden hue of the sun and green of the forest. The way he looked down at me was unsettling. Not cruel—he wasn't angry. He was just too observant.

He was cataloguing me.

His eyes narrowed, the challenge in them unmistakable. I had always piqued his interest, ruffled his thirst to know.

He loved me surely but it'd always been more than even that. The mystery—the adventure, the chaos and thrill of a hurricane woman was irresistible to him. The Oncoming Storm.

Let's be real; the Doctor was a slut for the unknown—he fed off pure chaos despite what many think.

"And without a doubt, the most ingenious human woman I have ever met." He clicked his tongue. The word human lingered in the air deliberately and purposeful, he knew something was up.

I felt a chill crawl up my spine.

He is catching on, he is wondering just how human I really am.

The Doctor was testing me. Looking for a tell. A flinch. A twitch. Something to prove that his suspicion, this new suspicion of his, was right—that I wasn't what I claimed to be. That I wasn't just human.

I swallowed, hard. The tension between us pulsed, thick and heavy, my blood roaring in my ears.

But I had played this game for a very long time. He was going to need to try a lot harder than that.

With that, I grinned very broad and unhinged. Almost psychotic. But my eyes—I rounded them, made the blues just a little too shiny. Too innocent... too young... too human.

I bounced on my toes and pressed a kiss to his cheek. His cheeks momentarily flushed.

His eyes widened in confusion as I pulled back, smile still in place like a wicked little dare. "Thanks, Space Lord!"

Behind him, River cleared her throat—loudly.

She wasn't facing us, but her voice cut through the tension like a scalpel. Casual, amused, but way too well-timed to be coincidence.

"While you are, indeed, brilliant, sweetheart..." she drawled. "Perhaps next time you will clue us in on your wild train of thought before you act on it, yeah?"

She turned and gave me a dazzling grin, patting my freshly wrapped hand with just a touch of warmth. But her timing wasn't lost on me.

She was covering for me.

The realization hit me like ice water. River Song knew.

She knew that I wasn't fully human.

Or at least... she suspected enough.

Fucking hell, time travel really is a bitch sometimes. I wondered when the fuck—how far down the line until she finds out for what is her first time.

But I didn't let my nerves show. I just smiled wider, teeth flashing. "Yeah, yeah," I said, giving her a thumbs-up with my good hand. "Note taken, hotness."

Amy, Vanessa, Thiago, and Leandro finally joined us, cautiously approaching the gaping stairwell.

"So," Amy began, tilting her head and raising a brow, "we are going down there to explore, yeah?"

Vanessa immediately shook her head, though her eyes were still wide with wonder. "No, we can't," she said quickly. "It might not be safe. We don't know the structural integrity of the tomb—this is unlike anything we've ever seen before. But..." she turned to the Doctor, River, and me, still stunned, "we now have proof. Definitive proof that the tomb exists. That this entire structure is real. You are amazing, PJ! I can't believe you opened it!"

Thiago and Leandro nodded in agreement, the latter already pulling out a drone camera to start taking shots.

"With the photographic evidence," Vanessa continued excitedly, "and the geological markers, we'll be able to apply for emergency funding and a larger team. We can contact the governmental board we've been in communication with and file our expedition results. This discovery will rewrite parts of pre-colonial history!"

The Doctor gave me one last long look before gazing at Vanessa. I did the same, my lips turned into a frown as my mind worked.

Everything in my gut twisted—this place cannot be left; this entrance will not remain open. It hit me then. The Aureum snapped inside me like a blade cracking through ice. My mind split—screamed, the POLARIS JADE wailed.

My breath hitched, and the world tilted—no, shattered.

Light poured behind my eyes.
Blinding gold. THE POLARIS JADE was awake, shifting restlessly but not acting wild and dangerous and leading me into insanity as she had been before. Rather, the other half of my soul showed me what I needed to see.

The jungle vanished.

I was standing in the heart of the tomb, long before it had ever been buried. When it was first built by the man who would rest in it.

A room of stone and sand and fire. Torches lit with something unnatural, flames whispering like serpents.

Arcêane was tall, broad, and impossibly regal. His skin etched with power sigils that glowed with the golden pulse of the Eye of Enid, embedded in the center of his chest—artifact number eight. The one he had miraculously managed to not only get his hands on but also wield. Power that few mortal men could wield without dying.

He stared into a mirror of polished obsidian, arms outstretched. His voice rang, low and prophetic, echoing across space and time:

"When my tomb is breached... when feet desecrate my resting place... I shall rise. The Eye will wake me, as it has always done. I shall walk the Earth again... and I will finish what the gods started. All began with me and ends with me."

A curse. And not a fun one, given the situation.

The Eye pulsed—once, twice, three times—and I felt the fabric of reality bend around it.

I staggered, the vision ripping away from me like it had never been real—but I still tasted ash. Still felt the heat of a sun that hadn't risen in thousands of years.

And I knew that if we left now, left the tomb open like this.. Arcêane would return. Not as a man. Not even a ghost. But something else. Something warped by millennia of contact with multiversal energy. He wouldn't come back human. He wouldn't come back right.

He would return angry and volatile and cocky. Out of his time. He'd come back as a threat to life itself.

I couldn't tell them straight up. Not everything. Not about the Eye. Not about why I knew. Because at the end of the day, I needed the Eye of Enid. And I could not afford questions, could not afford setbacks.

I couldn't let the Doctor dig deeper into me. Not now. Not yet. He was already suspicious, and River? River seemed to know enough, which put me at ease—it seemed I did not need to worry with her as much. What was the point?

She was from my future and clearly knew more than she was letting on. It wasn't worth falling into a sinkhole and debating just how much she knew—how much of the truth my future self had divulged to her.

I breathed in. Okay. Be clever. Be careful. Lead them. Don't show your hand.

I couldn't tell them about the Eye. Couldn't even hint. The Doctor didn't know much about the multiverse. And he sure as hell didn't know who I really was. To him, I was just PJ. Just some human girl raised among the stars. He'd bought it so far.

He had to keep buying it.

I turned, very slowly, and let my face go serious.

"Okay," I said, voice firm but calm, as River and the Doctor both looked at me. "I've been thinking. We can't leave. Not if you want any of the artifacts you were talking about..."

"PJ," River warned, eyes narrowing. "Not again—"

"We can't," I repeated, lifting a hand. "This place? It's definitely on a clock. And that clock is ticking."

The Doctor tilted his head, arms crossing. "You sound awfully certain..."

He raised an eyebrow. I pushed forward.

"There's something about the way the entrance responded. That blood seal—systems like that are old-world tech mixed with words spiritual lock things. If we leave now, the tomb's going to reseal. Permanently. And from what I can guess..." I paused, casting a glance to the shadows curling around the entrance, "it'll collapse on itself. Take everything with it. Not just sealed—destroyed."

That got their attention.

Whether Arcêane wakes up or not, it wasn't exactly a lie; this place was rigged to destroy itself the moment it opened again.

Vanessa immediately stepped forward, clutching her tablet, brow furrowed. "Wait—destroyed? You think it's rigged to collapse?"

"I think it's possible," I said, careful with the wording. "We've all seen ancient sites designed to erase themselves if disturbed. And this place? It's old, but deliberate. If we leave and come back with a team and permits and whatever board you mentioned—there might not be anything left to come back to."

River tutted.

Leandro looked down at the drone footage he was reviewing, suddenly pale. Thiago remained quiet but stared at the tomb like it might bite.

The Doctor's eyes were still locked on me.

"Six hours," I said suddenly, turning toward the sunlight. "Based on the light angle and the heat patterns hitting the stone directly, I'd say we've got six hours before it goes. Maybe less."

Vanessa looked startled. "How can you possibly know that?"

I shrugged. "It's intuitive. Pattern recognition. Look—see how the glyphs around the edge are already starting to shift? That's heat-reactive stone. Once the sun shifts, the trigger will go off and close the whole thing."

The Doctor turned slowly toward the glyphs. He stepped forward, brushing his fingers over one with surprising gentleness.

"...She's not wrong," he murmured. "Stone like this was used in the Klathuian tombs—reactive to heat and blood resonance. But a blood seal?" He frowned deeper. "That's not right. That's too sophisticated. How would a culture a thousand years ago even create something like that?" He muttered the last part to himself.

He turned his eyes back on me. Here it came.

"How did you know it was a blood seal?"

I blinked at him. Then pointed, sharply, to a series of carvings near the base of the threshold.

"If you weren't so busy whining about your shitty sonic," I said sweetly, "you might've seen the grooves. Obvious. Practically screaming blood key goes here."

He straightened. "Oi! It's a finely engineered—"

"Paperweight," I cut in, smiling like sunshine. "Space Lord paperweight."

I hoped that by rialing him up about his Sonic again, he would drop his suspicions for the moment.

He looked utterly scandalized, visibly flustered as he turned back to the glyphs, muttering very bitterly and very angrily. Internally, I grinned. Win.

This TimeLord was the smartest idiot in the universe.

"PJ," Vanessa said, drawing my attention again, "if you're right... if this thing is on a timer... how long do we really have? I mean, six hours? Is that how long it takes to close?"

I gave her a glance, then looked back at the way the sun filtered into the tomb mouth—how the shadows were already creeping slowly across the opening.

"...Yes," I said slowly, measuring the words. "We're looking at maybe an hour's depth."

The Doctor was crouching now, examining the outer edge, tracing runes with his fingers.

He stood abruptly. "She's right."
The Doctor turned toward the group fully. "It's not deep. At least not by architectural standards. Whoever built this didn't want a maze. They wanted a vault. One long corridor—one destination."

"Meaning," River said, brushing off her hands, "we go in, grab what we can, and get out before the tomb throws a tantrum."

I nodded. "Exactly."

River gave me a smirk. "Look at you. Almost responsible."

"Alright," the Doctor announced, tugging at his coat. "Everyone get your gear. No touching anything unless I say so. That goes double for any strange glowing objects or ominous inscriptions. If it tries to speak to you—run."

Vanessa, Leandro, and Thiago exchanged uneasy glances but started readying their gear.

But as the group moved toward the entrance, I felt it again—that tingle. That buzz of the Aureum beneath my skin, vibrating like a tuning fork.

My gaze drifted toward the Doctor.

"Smart thinking," he said casually. "All that insight. You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

I gave him a grin. "You're just mad I figured it out first."

"Oh, I'm mad, alright," he said lightly. Then he leaned in, just enough to brush my ear with his words, voice dropping into that silken mockery that only he could make sound like affection and interrogation at once.

"This was the theory you were pushing, wasn't it, love?" He whispered. "The one you were so desperately trying to plant in my head?"

My breath caught—but I didn't show it. I stared at him.

He smiled wider, continuing. "Isn't it... pretty girl?"

"But it's true!" I blurted, lifting my hands in mock surrender—but the flicker of panic laced my voice whether I wanted it to or not.

The Doctor's face didn't change.

But something in his eyes flared—that endless intelligence stirring beneath the surface, surfacing just enough to let me know he wasn't buying the whole package. He had not been buying it for a while, but now he was getting to the end of his rope and his patience with the lies.

Mostly because he was suspecting the lies to be more dangerous than he first suspected.

"I know it's true, obviously," he snapped, "but what else is there? What aren't you telling me?"

My breath stilled. Then I scoffed, eyes widening in mock offense.

"Nothing! I've told you everything about this," I said, indignant, throwing the accusation right back at him. "What aren't you telling me, huh? Maybe you're the one keeping secrets!"

He chuckled. He knew it was my shield, my defense against his accusations hitting too close to home.

He took a step toward me, slow and deliberate.

I instinctively stepped back just as quickly.

On the outside. Casual. Controlled. Measured.

But inside?

Screams. Panic. A choir of internal "fuck, fuck, fuckedy-fucks!"

"PJ..." he started, voice dipped in that low, warning tone that only the Doctor could use on me.

"Doctor..." I mocked, smiling sweetly. My tone was syrup. My nerves were hellfire.

He growled. Actually growled.

Damn Eleven, what happened to Mister Goofy-Nice-TimeLord?

His foot moved again—another step forward, like he was going to back me into one of the nearby trees and demand the truth with nothing but pressure and presence.

"Can you help me with this scanner, sweetie?" River's voice cut through the air like a blade of silk. She was already dancing into his path, holding up her device with an arched brow and a coy smile.

She tossed me a wink over her shoulder with a toss of her blonde fluffy curls.

She was giving me an out. And I had no idea why. But I wasn't going to waste it.

I gave her the tiniest nod, a grateful grin flickering at the corners of my mouth before I spun on my heel and bolted toward the others.

Amy was crouched by the gear, zipping her bag, and Thiago was adjusting his flashlight. They were speaking to each other with small, friendly smiles.

"Need help?" I asked, all lightness and charm, slotting myself right between them.

Behind me, I could still hear the Doctor muttering as he reluctantly helped River with the scanner, clearly suspecting the whole thing was a distraction—but unable to prove it.

River just purred something incomprehensible back.

"Sure!" Amy chirped, and I quickly got to work checking to make sure we had all the gear we would need down there.

I am not leaving without the Arbiter Eight. No matter what.

[author's note:]

guys HELP! i don't know what the FUCK to do!

okay so here are my two problems.

problem one:

do I ditch the stanzas and just make three books out of this? like end this book once PJ leaves Eleven and then make the second book about her times with Ten? And then the third book about her being back with Eleven? I don't know—help, let me know what you guys think makes the most sense.

second, i am getting mixed reviews
about river song. does it become a throuple or not?? i don't know... some want it to be only pj and the doctor but others want all three. i am split. i have set it up so it can fall either way.

just to clarify, even if it was a throuple, the main coupling is still pj and the doctor. so it'd be more like them occasionally having moments and adventures with the third of their relationship. it wouldn't be a full-blown three way relationship as opposed to them just having lots of love for river and messing around with her when the time calls for it.

so yeah, i don't know with both of those problems. help! comment your thoughts!