I first heard the noise when I was playing a game with a few friends. But it was too real, too distinct, I asked my friend if it came from the TV but he said the only noises that were coming from the game audio were the zombies that were tearing down a barrier that he had just rebuilt. I asked him to cover me as I went to investigate. First I walked around the house and the driveway, checking for intruders or family. No one was home; no one was supposed to be home. My step sister Sarah was in Pennsylvania for the weekend. And my Stepdad and Mom were at a hotel celebrating their 5 year anniversary. This was normal though.
I gave up and went to let in the dog from being outside when I saw it. In the middle of my backyard was a large blue box. Jack's beefy torso run past me and into the house, whimpering. Was he scared? I thought, Jack is a mammoth of a dog. How was he scared by a blue box?
I walked to the box, trying to understand what it was exactly. "Police Public Call Box" Was on the on the front. I was so perplexed about this peculiar thing that I almost didn't hear its door creak open. I walked over to the door to see it open just a peak. I'm not sure why I did but I braced myself, almost like I could sense the oddness of it. All I did was look in and I was already confounded, it was huge. Way bigger than it was on the outer shell. I paced around the exterior one last time before I stepped in. Just like that I was a different world.
The room looked alien and futuristic; it was a circular room with oval doors leading out in every direction. A huge machine stood in the middle of the room that was connected from the ceiling, which had these large circular things rotating around that had these odd little symbols on them, to the floor. In the middle of the huge machine was so sort of contraption constantly moving up and down. I wasn't sure what exactly was going on until I heard the loud patting of footsteps coming from one of the many doors. I looked to see a tall man in very formal attire running to the machine hitting all sorts of buttons and contraptions on it, he was speaking to himself.
"I need to stabilize the neuron flow from the core to the outside before I set off again." He said. I wasn't exactly sure what he meant but it made sense to me in a way, it attracted me to him, he puzzled me even more than the impossible box that in I'm inside of right now. He kept pushing buttons and pulling levers until he pulled out a monitor and read out loud what it said. "Milky way, Earth, North America, United States, Ohio, Cuyahoga, North Royalton. Well haven't been here befo-"
He stopped mid-sentence when he turned around and saw me just standing here, staring. He walked up to me looking me up and down, circling me, "Who are you?"
I didn't know what to say, he kind of frightened me. "Shouldn't I ask you that?"
"Why?" He simply asked, as though he didn't know where he was.
"Your… Box is parked in my backyard." I said, he was now behind me but I turned around to face him.
"Hmm, I thought I parked in the city… Well sometimes the Tardis makes mistakes, but now the real question is; how did you get in?"
"What do mean? The door was unlocked, in fact it was open."
"Impossible, I have to lock the door every time I decide to travel. Now answer me truthfully, how did you get in?" He repeated, he seemed quite serious, which also frightened me, but it didn't frighten me enough to be paralyzed with it.
"I am, it just opened, I walked though, is it so hard to believe you forgot?" I stepped back from him, he was quite tall, almost a foot taller than I am, I'm short though, only about 5'2.
"Yes it is, because if I don't lock it the time energy will flow out-" He stopped mid-sentence again and looked around the room then to the machine. He ran over to it and whispered something; I could hear it but just barely. "Did you open the door to her?"
He then ran over to me and stared me straight into the eyes, "The Tardis seems to like you, so I'm going take you with me on a trip, anywhere you like, name it and we'll go, any questions? I've heard them all."
"Where are we?"
"The Tardis, Time And Relative Dimension In Space. It's a whole different dimension inside the box you stepped in, next?"
"It… It's just… so much bigger on the inside." I said flabbergasted now that it finally hit me that I'm inside something so impossible, so magical. I heard the man laugh to himself, as though he's heard that before. I finally got a good look at him though, his hair was swept over and behind his forehead and he had a smile like no other. He had a rectangular chin and large ears. His outfit was extremely formal, and not even a new formal, but a 1800s type of formal. He had on a long purple tweed coat, with a purplish gray vest underneath. And underneath that was a dress shirt that was also slightly purple. He had a blue bowtie round his neck, but there was something off about him.
It was his eyes, his eyes were green. But not the type of bright green and full of life eyes you would see from a young man like him. They were dull, sad, as though they went against everything that he was trying to do to make him look happy and carefree. He was extraordinary, I know I'm standing in something impossible but this man just captivated me. But he was off somehow. His mystery didn't scare me, though, yet his eyes did. "Who are you?"
"The Doctor."
"Oh really? MD or PHD?" I retorted.
He just kind of looked at me with surprise. "Okay, now that's a first."
We both laughed and it almost seemed normal, just two people meeting for the first time. Well except for fact that we are in a box that can take us anywhere in the universe. He finally broke the silence that had begun to ensue after we stopped laughing that I didn't notice. "So where do you want to go?"
I didn't know how to answer. I thought about it for a little bit. Hawaii? Africa? But then I realized we were in a box that can take us anywhere. "Take me somewhere exciting. Somewhere random. But not on earth."
"Aha! Someone with a brain! Not many people understand that the Tardis can literally take you anywhere!" He said, his British accent was quite heavy in that sentence, and I didn't notice it before. He ran over to the console and started frantically pressing buttons. The whole room started to shake and I wasn't sure what to do. Behind me I heard the door slam and a click of the lock. There was a railing around the console so I ran to it and gripped tight. The room continued to shake and the Doctor just kept laughing as though he didn't know what he was doing. Which I started to believe until he yelled some sort of destination I had never heard of, "Red moons of Coriconia here we come!"
The Tardis kept shaking and I heard this weird screeching coming from somewhere in the room. "Doctor what is that?!"
"Oh no!" He yelled. He then frantically started pressing buttons and pulling on levers, "The wibbly stabilizers are stalling!"
"What in the world does that mean?!" I yelled at him.
He looked at me with a smile and then said as calmly as I've ever seen, "If they don't stabilize themselves then the Tardis will implode on itself, we being stuck in a never ending explosion and reliving this moment forever."
"What!? What do we have to do to stop it?"
"Aha! Someone who takes action, I like that too! Well I have find correct button or lever that will stabilize it." He started looking around the console for any hint that the stabilizing button could be one. I looked around the console even though none of these looked like any to me. But then my eyes landed on one. A small glowing blue button, it had like six like it all around it but that particular one just captivated me I went over to it and slowly pushed it. The shaking immediately stopped and the Doctor came around and grabbed me and looked me dead in the eye. "How did you know?! How did you know it was that one?!"
"I didn't! It just kinda looked like it was saying 'pick me' I'm sorry!" I yelled. He just looked at me and I wasn't sure what to do. He let go of me and pulled out a monitor and read out loud.
"Milky Way, Mars, Section Margaritifer. Ohhhh, I always like Mars! Fourth planet from the Sun, I always liked fours, they're really… foursey. And the year?..." He went silent. But then a smile crosses his face.
"Doctor? What is it?" I asked impatiently he only looked at me excitedly.
"It's not showing me the year!" He smiles like a five year old child getting free candy. I gave him a 'what does that mean?' look and he only smile larger. "It means anything could be out there."
He took my hand and we started running towards the door. "What do you mean!? It's all red rock and sand out there!"
"Correction; tholeiitic basalt and silica. But oh no, my young friend, you only see what's on the surface. It's what inside that counts." He kept pulling me out the door and worried for my life that I won't be able to breathe I fought him. "Oh come now! None of the Carbon dioxide and Nitrogen in the atmosphere will get to you. I've extended the oxygen barriers on the Tardis outward a few miles you can breathe, now COME ON!"
He pulled me out the door and onto the surface of the planet and the cold hit me like a brick wall. "Doctor! It's freezing out here!"
"Oh I forgot, you humans don't like extreme cold or heat. Give me one second." He ran into the Tardis leaving me hugging myself for warmth. He ran back out and threw a trench coat around my shoulders. I didn't understand how a this trench coat was going the keep me warm but before I could even ask him about it he already was answering the question. "It's enlaced with threads from a Morchian fire silk worm it'll keep you warm. Trust me I used to wear a hundred years or so ago."
I had no clue what he was talking about but I kind of just ran with it. "Why is it so cold here?"
"Well what do you expect? Mars is 227,900,000 kilometers from the sun." He paused and then spoke again. "I'm sorry I forgot you're American 141,600,000 miles."
I looked up to see what looked like an asteroid slowly moving around the planet. Then be behind it were thousands of little twinkling lights. It was beautiful. I was so mesmerized I almost didn't hear the Doctor speak. "That asteroid is called Phobos, in a few million years it won't exist because it will have crashed into Mars. Mars has another moon you know, Deimos, but he will still be here for a while."
"It's so beautiful; I've never seen so many stars in my life." I whispered to myself, but I was sure he heard.
"Mars doesn't have pollution like earth; you can see everything from here." He said I felt him move away though, I looked over to see pull some sort of wallet out of his pocket and open it. I heard him whisper to himself, "How could you possibly be Here River?"
"Who's River?" I asked, he only looked over to me and gave me a pained look.
"Okay there's good news and bad news. Which do you want first?" He tried to wait for my response but I was too slow for him. "Bad news first! So I found out what year this is, and it's not a very good time for Mars. So I will be gone for a little bit while I go retrieve a friend of mine who has gotten herself in a bit of a mess. Good news is that when this is all done we all get to go to the Red Moons of Coriconia! Now stay here while I go get River."
He ran and I ran after him and took a hold of his jacket to stop him, "Oh no you're not getting rid of me that easily! I'm not letting you go on some adventure without me! You said excitement when we did this and I want excitement!"
He just looked at me as though it physically hurt him. "Oh fine, come on then we don't have much time!"
We ran, and ran, and ran; it was forever until I saw a cave opening ahead and as came closer I looked at the Doctor, he looked worried. Who was this River we need to find?
We ran through the cave which I could barely see in but the Doctor pulled out some sort of device that shown a green light which helped me see. But as we ran I saw something really dark on the ground appear. And right as we got to the edge of it I pulled on the Doctor to make him stop. What was in front of us was a giant pit that, when I looked down, seemed bottomless. "We're not going to jump in there, are we?!"
"Yes we are! We don't have time to dilly dally! Now come on! Ger-" He stopped when he saw the pure terror on my face. "What's wro- Oh; you're afraid of heights aren't you?"
I nodded then asked, "Why can't w-we go and get help?"
"Because, darling the nearest help is 54,400,000 kilometers away, sorry I mean 33,900,000 miles, I swear in all of time and space you Americans are the only ones who you that system of measurement. But we need to go. Now, River is in danger. I promise you won't get hurt; you need to start trusting me. Okay. Now come here and give me your hand." I held it out and he took it. "I'm going to implant a distress sensor in your hand. If something happens press on the middle of your palm and it will send a signal to my Sonic Screwdriver, okay? This won't hurt a bit."
He pressed the tip of the screwdriver to my palm and a sharp pain shot through my hand searing my skin, "Ow!"
"I lied, let's go." He grabbed my hand and pulled me to the edge of the pit. And as he pulled me into the endless blackness heard yelled something that only made me laugh, "Geronimo!"
I closed my eyes and hoped we wouldn't break every bone in my body. I could feel my body being pulled towards the Doctor but I never opened my eyes, in fear that just looking at what was happening. He picked me up and held me then whispered something into my ear. "Hold on."
I nodded and wrapped my arms around his neck. I then felt him fumble with trying to get something out of his jacket. He clicked the button and I knew it was the sonic screwdriver by the noise that it made. As we fell I felt strange, lighter, as though we were falling slower. I still didn't open my eyes though. We kept falling for what felt like an eternity, until I felt a tap on my shoulder and a whisper in my ear, "You can open your eyes."
I did and all I saw was a dimly lit cave ahead of us. I jumped out of his arms and tried to get a better look at where we were. There wasn't just one cave, there was four, Spanning in different directions. I looked up at the Doctor for guidance on where to go and he started run to the one behind us. So I ran with him. We had been running for not even five minutes when we hit a split in the road. We stopped and the Doctor gave a puzzled look at both directions.
"Oh lord, Doctor, tell me you know what you're doing!" I said as I caught my breath.
But he gave me a big childish smile that went from ear to ear and grabbed my hand and yelled, "Nope!" And started running toward the right entrance.
He let go of my hand and both kept running, that's all we seem to do, run. We started running past what seemed like cages and the Doctor smiled, "I knew we were going in the right direction!"
"No you didn't!" I yelled at him.
"Okay no I didn't but I had a good feeling!" He yelled.
Beyond from somewhere we heard a voice yell, "Doctor!"
"River!" he yelled and we turned another right to find a cell with woman standing in it. She had a wild mess of curly hair dirty blonde hair, and bright green eyes. "Now please tell me how you got yourself in this mess."
"Why hello to you too, Sweetie. I was trying to get some relics from a Ice Warrior burial ground but I had teleported myself to the wrong time and well as I was digging up some of their bones I got caught." She said with a smile.
"You understand that's punishable by death, River?"
"Look I didn't know it was the wrong time. And you know we both hate the vortex manipulator, but if you just came when I called..." She said, then she laid her eyes on me, "And who is this?"
"Oh this is-" He stopped mid-sentence and looked at me, "By the gods, I never asked your name!"
Before I could say anything River cut in. "Look, Love, I love formalities but right we need to get out of here. They could be back and second."
The Doctor put the screwdriver up to the lock and pressed a button which completely unlocked it. We pulled River out and turned around to see large green monstrous things in front of us. We started to run towards the exit. Them coming after us as a surprising sped because they had on bulky green armor. I heard the Doctor speak up as we ran, "You always have to bring trouble, River?!"
"Oh you know you love it, chin boy." She yelled back. Were they really doing this now of all places? Striking up a conversation, now?!
"Don't call me that! Clara does it enough!" He yelled. And I felt gravity take a full hit into my back. I had tripped and I could feel air rushing past me as I tried to brace myself for the impact but it never came. I looked up to see River had grabbed me. The Doctor had turned around and was running towards us.
"No don't! Go to the Tardis and get us out of this mess!" River yelled. And as she did she and I were picked up by the brutes that were chasing us. We tried fighting but their grip was too strong for either of us to move. I watched as the Doctor ran, and that was the last thing I saw before I was knocked over the head and blacked out.
I awoke to stiff ropes laced around my body and the warmth of someone on my back. I had a pain pulsing in my head at my frontal lobe, and it didn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon. I opened my eyes to a dimly lit room with the monsters all around me. "Where am I?"
"The sacrifice room, it's where we are most likely going to be killed." I heard River say behind me. I tried to get free of the ropes but only to feel them constrict even more. "I wouldn't do that, the more you struggle the tighter they get."
"What are they?" I asked.
"Ice Warriors. They used to be a peaceful bunch of lizards, but once they found out what technology was they invented those suits you see them wearing they went bad. They are extremely prideful and honorable creatures, their motto is 'Attack one of us, attack all of us.'" River explained, she they took a breath then continued. "They wear those suits not only as protection but as a symbol of pride, if they take those off, something has gone terribly wrong."
"River I'm scared." I whispered.
I could feel her wiggle her arm under the ropes and grab my hand. "Don't be, love, the Doctor will be back. He always comes back."
It felt like an eternity until finally something happened. A warrior came forward, he was bigger than the others, and his eyes glowed red. He was carrying some sort of axe that was slung over his shoulder. He untied us and one of the lackies that were standing in the circle grabbed River and another grabbed me. The one who had River threw her towards a block that was in the middle of the room and forced her head on to it. The warrior with the red eyes spoke, "You have disgraced the sacred burial ground of the Ice Warriors. What do you say in your defense?"
River was about to open her mouth when we heard a high pitched buzz from the door adjacent to us. Then an unmistakable voice that gave me hope that we were saved. "Hi Honey, I'm home."
"What sort of time do you call this?" I heard River yell. Things went by so fast I almost wasn't sure what was happening. The Doctor lifted his sonic screwdriver into the air and pressed a button which let out a low pitched buzz. He held it there for fifteen seconds then let go and ran over to River. He pushed what looked like a frozen soldier off of her and helped her up. They then ran over to me and started prying off the large scaly arms off of me I asked him, "What did you do?"
"I installed a setting on the screw driver at the Tardis, one time only use, it freezes the armor they wear for a short period of time." They finally loosened the grip enough to let me wiggle out of his arms. We all looked at each other and felt accomplished.
"So how much longer are they going to be frozen for?" I asked.
He looked down at wrist, which showed no watch, and then looked around trying to think. "Oh I'd say about fifteen seconds give or take." We all looked at each other in panic and looked around the room. I could see the Ice Warriors starting to move and something grabbed my hand. I looked up to see the Doctor had grabbed it and he was smiling. Then in the happiest voice I'd ever heard from him he whispered "Run."
He was pulling me with him as we ran. He seemed to remember every turn it took to get back to the pits opening. But close behind us there was the sound of heavy feet pounding in the distance. We turned one more corner and then we appeared in the room with the pit above us. I yelled, "How are we getting out of here?"
He only let out a huff of air as though to laugh. He let go of me and then dug out the sonic screwdriver from his jacket and pointed it at the ground and push the button. I looked at the ground started glowing a bright purple color and I started to feel light again, like when we came down. Then he grabbed my hand again and grabbed River's then pushed up off the ground which sent us flying upwards. We were going faster than when we came down switch gave me hope that we were going to make to the top before they got to the lift. I heard the Doctor's voice, "It's an anti-gravity lift. It's how they get from the top to the bottom without injuring themselves or others. One problem though if we can use it, so can they."
He pointed down and I looked to see four of them right behind us. I panicked, "Why can't you turn it off? They'll catch us if you don't!"
"Because, if I do that kill them. No killing, never. And if you looked we're still on the lift if we turn it off or if they do it'll not just kill their men but it'll kill us too." He said. We were very close to the top when I felt something grab my ankle which made me yelp. I looked down to see one was ahead of the rest, the one with red eyes. I tried to kick him off but it was no use he had an iron grip and didn't want to let go. He kept pulling me down with him and I tried to keep holding onto the Doctor but it was no use. Suddenly River swung over and grabbed the warrior with two fingers she pushed them through the ice warriors eye openings and into its sockets which it then gave a horrified and painful shriek and let go of me. River held out her hand because she had let go of the Doctor to save me. I held mine out and we grabbed each other's tightly.
We made it to the top and we hit the ground running. River had let go of me but the Doctor didn't, probably to make sure I didn't get left behind like last time. Once we we're out of the cave though I heard the warriors pounding feet behind me. We weren't out of the flames yet. Once we saw the Tardis in view though I had hope. I ran faster. So fast that I pasted the Doctor and was pulling him with me. When we were about ten feet away the Doctor snapped which opened the doors and fell through and landed in a pile on the Tardis floor. He then quickly scrambled to get up and shut and lock the doors. We heard banging at the doors and I panicked. But the Doctor reassured me.
"Nothing can get through those doors. Nothing, not even Weeping Angels!" I looked at him puzzled beyond belief and he only said, "Another story, another time." The Tardis then started shaking and I only looked to him. "They can shake it but they can't get in."
He and River then ran to the console and both started to simultaneously drive the Tardis. Which they did perfectly in sync. I heard the noise and I then knew we were safe. I let out a sigh of relief and walked over to the console. They were smiling at each other and started naming locations and different stories. "Have we done Jim the fish?"
The Doctor laughed. "Yes, How about the picnic at Asgard?"
"No, but it does sound good." River said.
I listened to them talk for a while then I chimed in, "So what are you guys? Married?"
I heard them both laugh and River then said, "It's a little more complicated than that, sweetie."
I only rolled my eyes and walked away. I them felt the Tardis stop moving and I looked to the Doctor who only gave me a gesture to go out and look which I ran to the door yelling the location that he had said before, "Red Moons of Coriconia here we come!"
I ran out and only saw a yellow painted shed and a fenced in yard, my backyard. I only gave him a pained look and he walked over to me and gave me a hug. He then walked me out of the Tardis and talked as we walked. "I think you have had enough adventure for today. You need to relax. Absorb what just happened."
I was about to turn around and get back in Tardis but he then grabbed my wrist and I, out of instinct, pulled back. And he only frowned. And whispered into my ear. "I'll be back."
He then ran to the Tardis and locked the doors. I ran to it trying to get in but it was no use. I heard the sound again and watched as the Tardis and my hope for an escape flew away. I put my hands in my jacket pocket and felt a flat piece of paper and pulled it out. It was a note, from the Doctor!
You know I never got your name. I'll ask you next time we meet. I had a grand time with you but our story must end for now. I will be back but I don't know when so don't wait. I promise I will be back,. I never forget a promise. Keep the coat, it'll keep you warm in the dark times I know you've been having. It gets better. It sometimes has to get worse to get better. Trust me, I know.
Yours Truly
The Doctor
I almost cried myself to sleep that night. But I didn't. I never saw the Doctor again after that. Well actually it's been 70 years. I was still living in that little house with the small yellow shed in the back. It was coming apart but still standing. I sat in my bed looking out my window, that's all I did. My legs had stopped working a long time ago. My husband had passed five years before me. Tonight was the night. The night I fell asleep and didn't wake up. My children and grandchildren were in the living room talking about what was to come of me. I closed my eyes and listened. Not to them though, but to the outside noises.
I heard it, I noise that made me smile. A noise that gave me peace. I looked to the door and saw that big blue box in front of it. The doors flew open and a man in a purple tweed jacket and a bowtie walked out. He had a goofy smile on but sad eyes that drifted to me. He came over to me and took my hand and my jacket's sleeves rolled down to my elbows and showed faint scars lining my wrist from when I was a child. He then pressed my palm. It started to glow. "Do you need a Doctor?"
I gave a slight laugh, it hurt my lungs, "Yes."
"I suppose I'm a little late, eh?" He said walking over to me.
I only smiled at him, "No, you're right on time."
He then picked me up and looked at what I was wearing, "You still have it."
I pulled the old worn trench coat around me, "Yes."
He only smiled again and walked into the Tardis, "How about we go on one last trip, my no-named friend?"
I laughed but then started crying, "Yes, how about the Red Moons of Coriconia?"
He only nodded and set me down on a wheelchair he had right next to the Tardis. He then looked me over and then pushed a button. And decided to tell him, "Morgan."
"What?" He said looking into my dull blue eyes.
"My name is Morgan."
