Auld Mortality

In a timeline where Gallifreyans reproduced biologically rather than using looms, Auld Mortality was a shadowy figure present since the beginning of Time Lord society who embodied the promise of death to even powerful people. While in some sense a single being, he was also a long line of Time Lords. (AUDIO: Auld Mortality) He had many equivalencies with the shadowy Other seen in the timeline where Time Lords used looms, albeit with the difference that the Other died to reincarnate as "a piece on the board" rather than "a player" (PROSE: Lungbarrow) and Auld Mortality remained a metaphorical chessmaster who acted as éminence grise to the Presidency to enact a curse which ensured all Presidents died within their first term.

Auld Mortality claimed to be "as old as time itself". He had a connection to the Doctor's House and bloodline, giving them a dark reputation. His history was evidenced by his appearance in every investiture painting in the Presidential office, standing just behind each new President as if he was whispering in their ear, sometimes visible only by his shadow. He wore traditional "robes of night that drink the light" which had a pocket of worms destined to feed on Presidents' corpses. He would haunt every President, always reminding them of their imminent death. Such Presidents included Sholem (who suffered a head injury after falling on the Panopticon stairs), Rosiere (poisoned by his own food taster), and Precept II (who died of a papercut at an archivist's supper).

In the Doctor's lifetime, Auld Mortality was Quences, the Doctor's great-granduncle. Quences viewed himself as "the latest in the long line", but also possessed ancient memories and considered Auld Mortality to be his true identity. Having not yet had a family member as President, Auld Mortality prepared for the Doctor to become President, but the Doctor rebelled. When Quences died, he used his abilities as Auld Mortality to survive as a Time Lord ghost anchored to Badger, stopping the Doctor's attempted escape from Gallifrey and imprisoning the Doctor in an instant. After centuries of failing to hypnotically convince the Doctor to become President, Auld Mortality discovered that another family member, Susan, was to become President. Attempting to savour the investiture, Quences was tricked and killed, thus ending Auld Mortality. (AUDIO: Auld Mortality)