Chapter Text
The Sun was bright. Brighter than it had been in about 5 million years. The light from it seemed to touch every corner of the galaxy, even the corner he was drifting through. The screen in the console room read the year as 6,000,004,621. Planet Earth had been long gone for at least a billion years, but there were still Humans out there somewhere, he knew it.
The man flying the TARDIS was an old man, his hair beyond gray, his body well wrinkled. He wasn't a weak and feeble man, that assumption lead to the defeat of anyone that threatened him, just an old man. He wore torn and tattered clothing, with a tan trench coat draping comfortably from his body. His right leg was artificial, he lost his real one just 24 hours into carrying this face. Standing in its place was a leg from the Cyberman that took it from him. This was a man who had been through everything, and the wear of it all showed on his face. This was a man who showed mercy, but not one that gave second chances.
"Where are the Humans?" He spoke aloud to himself. "New Earth should be here somewhere. Perhaps I should do another life scan."
The TARDIS began scanning for life as he turned a dial and flipped a switch. With as much life as New Earth held, it should appear on the scanner within seconds. He watched as the monitor flashed a line that ran across the screen in a wave, and listened to the blipping sound it made as it scanned. Several minutes past before blips of life forms appeared on the screen.
"That took far longer than it should have." He said in his gritty voice.
There were fewer blips of life than the last time New Earth showed on his screen. They appeared far more scattered than life on any planet should be. He observed the screen, his thoughts churning. The last time he saw life this scattered, a Dalek invasion force had been sent to Earth.
"I better investigate this." He said, as he turned knobs and pushed buttons. As he pulled a lever, the TARDIS disappeared into the darkness of space.
The TARDIS materialized where the blips of life had been. The old man looked at the surveillance screen which displayed the area of space he freshly appeared in. He saw nothing. Nothing besides stars and distant galaxies.
New Earth was gone. The remains of it floated around him in molecular pieces. He was still taking in this information when a blast connected with the TARDIS. The old man flew forward and slammed his head into the console. As he lay unconscious on the floor, light enclosed him.
As the Doctor started his regeneration, his old blue box fell through space.