The breeze continued to waft through the lonely city. It carried with it a foreign whisper of eerie calm, echoing through the cracks in the rocky walls and down the unending hallways of unknown territory. Naked feet crunch through these hallways, slowly but cautiously pacing in a linear direction. Naked hands grasp at rough gravel upon which an unearthly slime dribbles down from onto the rough pavement.
"Hello?" – the first cry that a stranger from afar would say traversing this extra-terrestrial landscape, yet this cry is hoarsely uttered for the mind tends to wander more about the monoliths that tower into the grey sky. It also echoes down dark and sinister passageways into nothing. Icy puffs of breath come afterwards as the wind grows stronger – and the whisper ascends into a more painful groaning tone. It will bury and embed itself in the subconscious mind as visions of towering and surreal monoliths of pure rock start to become crisper to the eye. Already the unearthliness of the place, as a stranger perceives it, has stretched the imagination to its limit and yet no description could be wrought.
"Anyone there?" – another instinctual yelp resounds throughout the area as it is traversed. Yet, no living soul answers the summons. The chill of the afternoon winds becomes stronger and the body (no matter how well clothed it is) shivers – not out of instinct but terror; terror that something will pounce at them from the darkness at the very last second at the unarmored and unarmed self. Escaping this horrible maze, then, becomes a very viable option for survival but it is easier said than done. Every twist and turn in this dreaded city leads to nothing but wreck and ruin – a simple slip or tumble can lead to even more terrible encounters with the unnatural Cyclopean monoliths.
Eventually, several hours of terrified motion screeches to a halt in front of a mausoleum - its hard stone exterior wrapped around in chains, the strange symbols marking it barely visible. For anyone who comes here, the whole place suddenly becomes a spectacle – the sky grows darker, the wind howls stronger and the chanting becomes more ominous than before. One quick glance at the lock reveals that something inside is waiting to erupt, the knocking boom pulsating like a cocoon ready to hatch. It becomes impossible to silence, and the sight becomes too awful to shy away from.
The lock soon breaks and the ground begins to shake with a mighty force. "Cthulhu Ftaghn! Cthulhu Ftaghn!" the voice in the air suddenly cries out deeply. As the chant continues, the mausoleum's disintegration becomes a paralyzing vision and all the boulders and stones holding its occupant in place vanish piece by piece. What comes next out of that godforsaken tomb… one can only dream. The horror of the shadow, the beauty of the outline, and the energy of the flight the creature takes... those that see it will never forget.
The Shepherd, the Chief, the Ranger, the King, the Warrior, the Warden and the Heroes of time and space… for them, the nightmare has only just begun.
…
Staring at the console of the TARDIS, the Doctor started to fiddle with the controls with an agitated demeanor. Ever since he left those heroes of the multiverse behind so long ago to go off on new adventures in his home universe, there has always been a nagging intuition in the back of his mind that his work was far from over.
"You OK, Doctor?" Clara asked as she stood beside him. She looked very worryingly at the Doctor's shambled expression, as if something bad was about to happen. The Doctor looked back at Clara and straightened his bow tie, maintaining his composure that all was well.
"Just trying to clear my head that's all" he said in his usual jovial tone.
"Trying to clear your head because..." Clara tried to grasp at what thing was bothering the Doctor.
"I don't think it's anything you should be worried about right now. Go back to sleep or do something productive while I get the TARDIS prepared for our next destination" the Doctor spontaneously moved around the metallic console, moving levers and pressing buttons in order to give the impression of a new adventure starting. Clara, the clever girl the Doctor thought she would be, was skeptical.
"Do you even know where we are going?" she inquisitively asked.
"Heading towards Earth. 21st Century. Your house" the Doctor wittily replied with a smile.
"We just came from there, didn't we?" Clara retorted, letting the Doctor slide to a stop with this realization.
"Ah. I knew you would see through that. Didn't think it would happen like that" his face dropped as he stood himself face to face with his curious companion.
"Doctor, has this to do with this nightmare I've been having lately?" Clara asked, trying to hide the scared little girl inside of her. On the word 'nightmare', the Doctor's attention was grabbed tightly.
"What nightmare?" the Doctor quickly asked like a concerned parent. Before Clara could utter a word, there was a knock on the TARDIS door. Both Clara and the Doctor turned to it with great concern – how can someone knock on the door like that while the TARDIS is in flight?
With sudden realization, the Doctor quickly shot a look at Clara telling her to quickly leave. With the knock growing louder, Clara stared and whispered "Doctor? Are we expecting company?"
"Listen to me Clara. Just go back to your room and wait there, OK. Trust me on this" he tried to usher Clara up the stairs. Not wanting to cause a major argument, Clara pretended to struggle but followed the Doctor's instructions.
Coming back up to the console, he said to the door "Ah Minerva, the Greek goddess of wisdom and of course a member of the First Civilization, I knew you'd be back. But may I ask what all that creepy knocking on the TARDIS door was about?"
With a slight gust of wind Minerva's spirit appeared inside the room, her figure as eternally youthful as it had been since their last meeting. She simply stared at the smiling Time Lord before her with indifference.
"I have come here to ask for your assistance once again, Time Lord. I fear there is a new and more dangerous threat to the multiverse."
"Is that it then? No comment on my new appearance since our last meeting? Apparently I've been told I look like a baby. That's not really a true statement but still…"
"You do not look like one and yet you sometimes act like one. I have already stated to you why I am here" the goddess calmly fumed as she bathed the Doctor and the console room with light, turning the metallic walls into silver mirrors.
"I am so sorry about that, milady. I shall now be all ears to whatever warning it is that you want to tell me" he gave out a slight chuckle before relaxing his face.
Clara, from behind the panel, watched the meeting between the Doctor and the ghostly lady with sheer intent. The Doctor has mentioned to her on a couple of occasions about meeting with a powerful being and going off to save "heroes" and fight a "legendary battle" – all fairy tales, the Doctor 'admitted' to fabricating a short time ago. Now, however, the fairy tale seems to have come to life on its own.
"So the stories are true, Doctor" she whispered to herself. Minerva glanced at the door for a brief second, causing Clara to cower back. Minerva herself found it interesting the Doctor had a companion but decided to keep the information to herself, for the time being. Coming back to the crack, Clara continued watching until Minerva faded away, the light from her presence faded and the hum of the TARDIS emerged.
The Doctor, now knowing with what he must do, quickly prances around the console.
"Clara? I've got good news. We…"
"Are off to see your heroic friends again, I know; and save the multiverse one more time while we're at it" she flirtatiously finished the Doctor's proclamation. Her eyes beamed wide at the fact that she was about to meet some of the people she initially thought of (and knew) as works of fiction.
"How did you know that?" the Doctor was now becoming the inquisitive one.
"Stood by the door. Listened to everything going on between you and that Minerva goddess. She seems like a nice lady" Clara said.
"Right," the Doctor muttered as he continued to turn some handles and pull some levers to engage the TARDIS into full interdimensional flight "Listen Clara, I've got an ingenious plan I need to try out but I need your full cooperation and trust, you understand?"
"Of course, Doctor. I've always given you my trust" Clara reassured her companion, a confused look running about her face.
"Great. Then let's begin" the Doctor triumphantly pressed the button in front of him and straight away, the TARDIS kicked itself into high gear.