As Elise followed Cyril, the tracks kept getting bigger.

They soon came upon a stone tower with a glass door.

Just as Cyril was about to open the door, Elise stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

Cyril gasped and spun around. "Elise!"

Elise pulled out her sonic screwdriver and opened the door. "Stay behind me."

They went inside and closed the door behind them. There were no floors. Just a long staircase winding up the walls. In the center of the room was a wooden carving of a king.

Elise took Cyril's hand and they started up the stairs.

They passed by a window and saw a searchlight sweeping the forest. They eventually made it to the top of the tower and walked through an open door that closed behind them.

Cyril gasped.

"It's okay. It's okay," Elise reassured him, "Nothing bad will happen while I'm here."

A wooden Queen stood in the center of the room holding a circlet in her hands above an empty chair.

Cyril walked over to a window to look out, while Elise observed the Queen. The Queen blinked and stared at Cyril.

"No!" Elise yelled, throwing herself in front of Cyril.

"Cyril? Elise? Can you hear me?" the Doctor's voice came through the door.

The circlet was glowing.

Cyril and Elise ran out of the way.

The Queen backed them up towards the throne.

Elise lost her footing and fell to the ground before she could stop the Queen from putting the crown on Cyril's head.

"Cyril? Elise! Can you hear me?" the Doctor's voice yelled.

The door finally opened and the Doctor and Lily came running in.

The Doctor rushed to Elise and helped her up.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I tried! But they...he..." Elise stuttered.

The Doctor gathered her in his arms. "Shhh. It's okay. I know. You were brave. You did the right thing trying to protect him."

Lily ran over to her brother. "What's wrong with him, Caretaker? Is he dead?"

The Doctor walked over to him and examined him. "It's okay. He's just unconscious." He looked at the wooden Queen. "So what are you? Not a King, a Queen! The Queen Bee of the forest."

Lily looked out one of the windows. "Caretaker, look."

Stars were coming out of the trees towards the tower.

"It's like..." the Doctor said.

"Like what?" Lily asked.

"Like the life force is leaving the forest."

The wooden King from downstairs entered the room.

"What are they doing? Stop them!" Lily said as the wooden King and Queen came toward them.

The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and waved it around. "Oh aliens made of wood! It was always going to happen, you know. Er, it's okay. I think they just want to talk to us."

Cyril opened his eyes as the circlet on his head started glowing.

Lily knelt in front of her brother.

"They're scared. Can't you hear them? The trees are screaming. Can't you hear?" he asked.

The Doctor scanned him with his screwdriver. "No, but you can. You're connected to them."

"Why have the stars left the trees?" Lily asked him.

"I think they're..." Cyril said.

Elise took one of his hands. "It's okay. Take your time," she told him.

The Doctor knelt in front of him like Lily. "Just concentrate. What are they doing?" the Doctor asked.

"Evacuating. They're evacuating," Cyril said.

"Why?"

"They're frightened of the rain. The rain that burns."

"Caretaker, please explain. I'm frightened," Lily told him.

"Those stars. They're pure life force. Souls, if you like. And they're trying to escape because they think their home is going to burn."

Elise felt her heartrate speed up as memories of Gallifrey crossed her mind. She blinked them away, but the Doctor saw the flash of fear in her eyes.

"Why can't they just float up into the sky?" Lily asked.

"They need to travel inside a living thing. Inside Cyril. You see, this..." The Doctor scanned the circlet with his screwdriver. "...it's not a crown, it's a relay. They're turning your brother into a lifeboat. That's what this place is for, then. It's an escape plan, is that it?"

The Queen moved her hand towards Cyril.

"No!" Elise yelled.

"Don't you harm him. Do not touch that child!" the Doctor yelled.

The Queen placed her hand on Cyril's shoulder. He sat up straight and spoke with a deep voice. "Your coming was foretold."

"Oh my God, what is that? Why did he sound like that?" Lily asked.

"Oh, hello," the Doctor said, "Are we lip synching now?"

"We had faith. Your coming was foretold."

"There's no such thing as foretelling. Trust a time traveler."

"We waited, and you came."

"So, you've got an escape plan. Why aren't you escaping?"

"The child is weak."

"You mean he's a child."

"No, he is weak. The forest cannot live in him. But there are others."

"There certainly are. And, the good thing is I look great in a hat. So, let's get this thing off, eh?" The Doctor knelt in front of Cyril and reached for the circlet.

"You are also weak."

"I'm really not. Let's save a forest, eh, Cyril?"

"You are not the one. You are weak."

"I'm really not." The Doctor pulled the circlet off Cyril's head and he cried out in pain.

"Let go! Just let go! Drop it! Let it go! Please, just drop it," Lily begged.

"I can't!" he yelled.

Elise grabbed it from him. Elise turned it over in her hands.

The Queen put her hand on Elise's shoulder. "She is strong. But she is not ready yet."

Elise dropped the circlet.

"She's strong. I'm weak. Interesting," the Doctor said.

"What did she mean I'm not ready yet?" Elise asked.

"I don't know."

"Mummy?" Cyril asked.

Lily knelt in front of her brother. "Cyril, it's all right. It's me. Mummy isn't here but, we're going home to her right now. Aren't we, Caretaker?"

There was a rumble of thunder in the distance.

"No. I don't think we are. The rain that burns. Acid rain. We have to get out of this forest. We're in terrible danger. This tower won't protect us for long," the Doctor said.

"Where's Mummy?" Cyril asked.

"She's coming," Lily told him, "You know she's coming, because she always comes, doesn't she?"

"Cyril," the Doctor said, "The way we came here. That door won't stay open forever. Now, I'm not even sure if I can get us through the forest safely, but if we're going to have any chance at all, we have to go now."

Cyril crossed his arms over his chest. "No. We wait for Mummy. Mummy always comes."

Elise admired his dedication. If it were the Doctor, she'd do the same. "Not this time, Cyril. I'm sorry, but not this time."

Outside the window, a large robot was clomping through the forest.

"What's that?" Lily asked.

"It's an Androzani Harvester," the Doctor told her, "But..."

"You recognize that thing?"

"More to the point, I think I recognize the driving!"

Elise and Cyril joined them at the window. Madge was driving the harvester.

"Ha ha! Madge has entered the forest! Come on, Madge. You can do it. You go, girl!"

"Oh, shut up, you ridiculous oaf!" Madge's voice yelled.

"Come on. This way, girl. You can do it, you can do it! Excellent driving! Hello!"

"Caretaker?"

"Yes?"

"You're fired!"

Just before the harvester reached the window, it fell over sideways.

"It's okay, she's fine. Don't worry. Stay here. Just stay here," the Doctor told them. He ran out of the room.

A few minutes later, Madge entered the room. "Cyril!" Madge said, relieved.

"Mum!" Cyril yelled.

Madge ran over to her children. "Lily!"

The small family hugged.

"Oh, what are you doing? How dare you leave the house. Cyril, what have I told you about opening your presents early?" Madge scolded.

"Sorry, mummy."

"Something like this was bound to happen."

Lily gasped and pulled her brother back as the wooden queen approached Madge.

"What are those?" she asked.

"Stay away from it. You have to stay back," Lily told her.

Madge looked at the circlet. "That's beautiful, isn't it?"

"Mummy?" Cyril asked.

"See how it shines."

The Queen placed the circlet on Madge's head. The stars outside started to enter the room, going inside Madge.

The Doctor ran back into the room.

"The stars are going inside her. She's taking the whole forest," Lily said.

"Oh, this is marvelous. Oh, this is really quite wonderful," Madge commented.

All of the stars were now inside Madge.

"Madge? Are you all right? Talk to me. Madge, can you hear me?" the Doctor asked.

"Yes, I can hear you. I'm perfectly fine, thank you."

"Fine? You've got a whole world inside your head."

"I know! It's funny, isn't it? One can't imagine being a forest, then suddenly one can. How remarkable."

"You're okay. She's okay!"

The Queen placed her hand on Madge's shoulder. "She is strong."

"Ooo. That wasn't me," Madge said as the Queen stepped back, "This is all really rather clever, isn't it?"

"She's strong? She's strong?" It suddenly hit the Doctor. "Oh! Oh! Stupid me. Stupid old Doctor. Do you get it, Cyril?"

"No."

"Lily, you do, don't you?"

"No."

The Doctor turned to Elise. "Ellie?"

"Okay, so Cyril is weak and Lily is strong but young. I'm strong, but not ready yet...oh my god!"

"It's a translation. Translated from the base code of nature itself. You and I, Cyril, we're weak. But she's female. More than female, she's mum. How else does life ever travel? The Mother ship."

There was a rumbling noise and the dome detached itself from the tower.

"What's happening?" Lily asked.

"No idea. Do what I do. Hold tight and pretend it's a plan," the Doctor told them.