A returning face.

Pain is a funny thing; While it's with you it's you can't miss it. Nothing can distract you from insurmountable pain. However when it's gone you forget instantly what it was like. It's a moment that you have to seize and use to your advantage. I believe that regeneration is much like the concept of pain. A life can be unforgettable, but still forgotten. In my final hours I recognize that the next life I lead will be the best one yet, and the one after that even more so, but a larger part of me still doesn't want to go. I've been a grumpy old git in this life, I realize that it can't have been easy travelling with me. I only hope to improve upon this in the years to come.

However at this time I have one thing to worry about: Senis Stimula. I may not live to see my next life if I don't get this beauty back on her feet. She's served me well through these years and I hope I can travel more with her in the future, but now it's my turn to help her. I struggle to my feet and stumble from the ship's wheel to the engine room ventilation shaft. The door's are blocked and some corridors have been jettisoned into space. Honestly, a ventilation shaft would not be my ideal way to get around but it's all I have at the moment. The vents are cold and I can no longer hear the rumble of the ship's belly, the engines are down. At times like this I wish I'd kept a closer hold of my friends. Not only would they be a physical help in getting to the engine room and starting up the stellar-engines, but they'd save me emotionally. I am not a Timelord anymore, I am not part of the great race that kept watch over all of creation, I am not one of them. I am a lone wanderer and all I have left is my ship, so I am not letting her go down. Not a chance. With a sharp elbow to the grill, I drop from the vent and, with a dull thud, hit the floor. The engine room looks nothing like your typical broken, bruised and battered engine room with fire pouring from the mechanics and steam hissing from the pipes. It's silent, which is not a good sign. The task of re-starting the stellar-engines is not, on reflection, that hard. However, the sheer panic one goes through when not only his own life, but the life of his companion, is seen to be falling through your fingertips, hurtling towards a planet at hundreds if not thousands of miles per hour, the sheer panic one goes through when that is the case, can sometimes lead them to seize up like I did. With only grains left in the hourglass before we were too close to steer away, the engines were rebooted and we changed course. The nearest planet we could dock on? Earth.

With the Senis Stimula now fixed up and on a non-hostile planet, I felt ready to go. I felt ready to die without causing harm to anything else around me. I remember little about the regeneration, only that it felt like torture at the time, and that the torture was a good kind, as I felt all the years of this life get wiped away and replaced with a brand new face. With a sigh of relief and a taste of what this new body was like, I - The 2nd Archer - clamber out of my starship, expecting to be confronted by only the stars and the green grass. I did not expect a visitor.

"Hi... And you are?"

**Edit: I've taken the decision to start writing in 3rd person. Tried 1st, didn't like it. Moving on to 3rd.**

Quincy was awoken by the sound of a ships engine. Startled he looked frantically about to see if he had accidentally started her whilst he was sleeping. No. He hadn't. She didnt have the somewhat distant rumble he liked so much when she was running. He really had to stop falling asleep at the dash.

Realizing that the sound could only be that of another ship he became confused. He had chosen this spot for its secrecy. It was in the middle of nowhere. He ran a quick scan on his ship for heat signals. The ship was only about a mile out. Too small to belong to anyone Quincy may want to avoid.

Deciding to check it out he armed himself with his handy revolver and made out for the ship. Arriving at it he cautiously approached it, still not knowing the intent of those aboard. Eventually making his way to what seemed to be the entrance with still no signs of others, he assumed they were gone. All of a sudden the door opens.

Before he can make out the figure he draws his weapon with his left hand and points it towards them. He sees a man, appearing to be unarmed with a confused look on his face. Lowering his weapon he responds to the man. "Oh hello! Sorry about that. I'm The Liberator. Who might you be?"

"The Liberator? Funny name for someone pointing a gun at a strange man in a spaceship before they even get a chance to know me." The Archer exclaimed, shoving past the strange figure examining his ship. "Where am I? Better yet, when am I? Or hasn't that happened yet? What year is it would be a better question? Have you got a mirror? I might have taken a bit of a bruising during the... Well I won't reveal too much." With a sudden gasp of air the newly regenerated Archer collapsed at the feet of this stranger.

"Sorry about that, a bit of a rusty regeneration." He picked himself up and dusted himself off, "So... The Liberator, eh? By the looks of things, this planet's got a good atmosphere. Plenty of water, tonnes of water. Not too much hostile activity, so by the looks of things this is... No, that's too cliche. This isn't Earth, is it?" If it was Earth, it was obviously a peculiar time to land, for at that time the human race would apparently being having contact with aliens. The sky burned a glowing orange, and when the explosive aura dimmed, a fiery object was visible soaring through the clear sky. Size not unlike the Senis Stimula, it fell through the sky at incredible speeds and the impact was audible from lands far from this one.

"I don't suppose you fancy having a look?" The Archer asked his new found acquaintance.

Quincy holstered his weapon and placed his hands upon his hips. The strange man from the strange craft had fired a long list of questions at him, and to be honest he had forgotten one or two of them. He was thinking about the offense he had taken at the comment about his name. Sure he was sketchy ball of crook wrapped in a layer of shadiness but that didn't give people the right to call him a crook.

"You're in an empty field in the middle of nowhere, I don't have a mirror on me as my line of work does not call for it, and as for the name, well..." Quincy was normally quick wiited and had expected to come up with a snappy comeback by the time he had gotten to address it. "Nevermind." He spoke disapointed in himself.

The man fell in front of him, just out of the blue. "Are you okay?" He said offering his hand. The man stood himself up and continued to go on another tangent. Quincy was only half paying attention. He was admiring the mans ship, and possibly thinking about stealing it. But he dismissed the thought when he realized itd have to involve an accomplice or leaving his ship behind. And no ship was good enough to make him leave his behind.

All of a sudden he saw a light soar through the sky. And the man addressed him. Answering his question Quincy replied, "There's nothing I'd love more!"

"Good, that's exactly what I want to hear." The Archer and his new-found accomplice dashed toward the nearest road; "I know what you're thinking, I've just parked a whopping great spaceship on the planet, clearly by it's look and sound you can already tell it's far more than equipped enough to have cloaking capabilities so why don't we take that? Because I've only just fixed it that's why. We are not taking my precious thing into battle, if it becomes a battle. Besides this is Earth, you have cars right?"

The Archer signaled a car to stop and the two jumped in. "Oi mate, I don't suppose you saw that great big flashy light in the sky?" And yes, he had obviously seen it, so the man started to take them there. "It's gonna be a bit busy and a lot of commotion. I'll take you down a back road, yeah?" Although he was a little bit hesitant, The Archer was more worried about getting to the source of that light and therefore agreed. However, the man driving them took such a drastic turn that it became almost concerning. He whispered to The Liberator, "Is this going anywhere near the crash site, because if not I am going to become very very much worried."