Head First Into the Unknown
A baffling amount of odd noises were coming from somewhere in the corridors of the TARDIS. When the racket first started, Martha just shrugged it off, as the source of the noise was probably just the Doctor tinkering way with some malfunctioning part of the TARDIS's interior. This time though the din was going on longer than usual.
Shutting the Medical book she had been studying, Martha rose up from her bed and switched off the bedside lamp, deciding that she wasn't going to get much studying done with all the commotion that was coming from the console room. She left her room and ambled quietly into the kitchen; maybe making the Doctor a cup of tea would prevent him making any more noise.
With two cups in hand, Martha made her way to the console room. At first glance, she could not tell where the Doctor was, but she could hear him. There was a panel of grating missing from the base of the control panel and a multi-coloured mass of wires was seeping out from the gap. It did not take Martha long to figure out where the Doctor was. After gently setting the cups on a clear space on the control panel, she bent down to peer into the opening.
"Doctor."
He hadn't heard her over his din. "Doctor!" Martha tried again. She sighed gently, wondering how she could get his attention. Gazing around the room she spotted the Doctor's mallet, smiling slightly she picked it up wondering if she dared to do it. Why not? Martha brought the mallet down sharply onto the grating. A loud metallic clunk was heard. Discarding the mallet quickly Martha stood up straight and grasped the two cups.
The Doctor bemused face appeared from the hole in the TARDIS's floor. His hair was chaotic sticking up in outlandish and puzzling angles. Martha often wondered how he managed to get it in such a mess. There were smudges of either oil or dust across his face. With little effort, he had climbed up from under the console and was standing before her within a few seconds.
"What did you do that for?" Before Martha had the chance to answer his question, he had spotted the cups in her hands. "Oh brilliant, tea," she passed him his cup, "wonderful idea, Martha."
"Is something wrong with the TARDIS?"
"Mmm," The Doctor exclaimed softly, "perfect," as he sipped his tea. Martha rolled her eyes at him. "Oh yes, that's right the TARDIS," his spare hand rubbed the back of his neck a moment, "no she's fine, just thought I should replace some of her old wiring. It's needed to be done for a while now."
"So in other words," she paused to take a sip of her own drink, "you got bored."
"Martha, do you really think I'm that fidgety?" Martha raised an eyebrow in response, giving the Doctor a look that said 'do-you-really-want-me-to-answer-that'. The Doctor pouted, "No really, I've been meaning to do it for a while now. How's the studying going?" he asked, trying to change the subject.
"It wasn't going too bad," Martha leaned her hip against the console, "that's until I my concentration was interrupted with all the commotion that you were creating." She smiled softly showing him she didn't mind too much.
"Sorry, I didn't realise that I was making that much noise." The Doctor said running his fingers through his messy brown hair. "I won't be making any more racket," he downed the rest of his tea, "I've just about replaced all the old disintegrated wires."
Picking up their now empty teacups, Martha stopped half way through the console room and turned to face the Doctor. "Where are we off to next?" she asked curiously, smiling at him hopefully. Travelling with the Doctor in the TARDIS was never dull. There were always new, unusual and impressive planets to explore and different times they could jump to. They could travel millions of years into the past or future on a whim.
The Doctors eyebrows rose and he looked down at her curiously, "I thought you wanted to have a day for studying?" he questioned her casually, his eyes dancing as he spoke.
"I managed to get a few hours in," Martha shrugged nonchalantly. She was glad that she accomplished even that with both the noise that the Doctor had been making and the lure of adventure and exhilarating opportunities that was on their doorstep. "Just thought that a short trip somewhere might be nice. You know have a break, clear the cobwebs." Glancing over her shoulder Martha gave the Doctor a bright smile, hoping he'd take the bait. She enjoyed trying to goad the Doctor - trying to see how easy it was to get a reaction from him. Sometimes it didn't take much.
His eyebrows rose again but this time a cheeky smile also adorned his face. "Oh alright," the Doctor puffed out his cheeks a moment, "a quick outing for recreation sounds like fun." His face lit up with enthusiasm as he rubbed his hands together.
Laughing quietly as she left the console room, just before she was too far away, Martha called back through the corridor, "Oh by the way, I think you should wash your face before we go." She didn't elaborate as she made her way to the kitchen through the long winding lobbies of the TARDIS. Once Martha had cleaned their now empty cups and replaced them back into their rightful place, she made a quick detour to her room where she grasped her red leather jacket. Arriving back into the console room she couldn't see the Doctor, maybe he had gone to clean up. She placed her jacket on the pilot seat and leaned against the control panel, waited patiently for the Doctor to turn up.
A brief moment of buzzing was heard then a light metallic scraping noise. She glanced over her shoulder. From behind the control panel, the Doctor appeared with his sonic screwdriver in his hand. The loose wires had been returned and the grating replaced. Martha noticed that the smudges remained on his face, and his hair was still all over the place. Giggling slightly she realised that he had probably only thought she was joking about washing his face. He could be very child like Martha often thought. He had a cheeky boyish charm, was very excitable and was always full of life. There would be times when she found herself jealous of his endless energy.
Martha stepped toward the Doctor, still smiling broadly at him, fighting the urge to laugh. When he had finished organising the control panel Martha lifted up her hand and hinted at the dirt on his cheek by rubbing her own. The Doctor looked puzzled at her, his eyebrows lifting up for the third time in the space of a few minuets.
"There's some grease on your face." Martha raised a finger and lightly rubbed the said substance off his cheek.
"Ah," the Doctor lifted his hands and scrubbed his face roughly wiping all the oil off, "how about now, is it all gone?"
"Yes, nice and clean," replied Martha as she briefly glanced back at the Time Rotor; she could not wait for their next adventure. No two quests were ever the same. Sometimes they would be running for their lives. Others they would be helping folk who were in a sticky situation. Most of the time their adventures included a bit of both. There was never a dull moment. Where were they going next? What century? Would it be Earth? Alternatively, were they going to some far-flung planet she had never heard of?
"Right," the Doctor rubbed his hands together with enthusiasm, "now that we're all spick and span, let's get on our way." With that, he started his usual energetic bounding and dancing around the console hitting, pulling, pushing and sometimes kicking levers and buttons harshly. It was an interesting sight. Martha had wondered if it was all for show - or if the TARDIS actually needed more then one person steering her.
The TARDIS trembled for a moment as the Time Rotor started up. Moving up and down at the heart of the control panel. A pale green light emanated from it. It was a rather hypnotic and inviting mechanism. Hands grabbed the railing that enclosed the Time Rotor and control panel; Martha prepared herself for the jerky and rough landing that they usually experienced at the end of each trip. The Doctor stood unfazed where he had finished plotting their destination.
A grating motorized noise started, signifying that they were beginning to dematerialise. It was a powerful and haunting sound, echoing everywhere, coming from some mysterious unspecified location.
Without any warning, the TARDIS jolted ferociously, causing the Doctor to teeter on the spot before gripping the edge of the console for support. Martha's hold on the rail tightened as the TARDIS seemingly started to spin out of control. The ride was a lot rockier then usual, they were being jerked this way and that. Glancing back at the Doctor, Martha could see the he was a little troubled at what was happening.
"Doctor," yelled Martha over the commotion that was going on, "what's happening?"
"Not sure," came his response, he abruptly reached for the screen to his right. The Doctor scanned the monitor for a brief moment, his eyebrows furrowed slightly as he examined the statistics before him. "That can't be right…." stated the Doctor, "this isn't right." He shook his head as he spoke.
"What's wrong?" Martha asked cautiously.
"The TARDIS is being lured in by something." He reached up and scratched his head, making his hair stand up on end. "Something sentient…. something telepathic."
Martha's eyebrows rose, that did not bode well apparently; the Doctor looked almost disgruntled. The shuddering that the TARDIS had been doing had decreased; it was feeling more like their typical journeys. "Wait, aren't you telepathic?" She asked curiously, "you told me that you and the TARDIS are connected."
"Yes," he said, his gaze briefly settled on Martha before he faced the monitor again, "yes I'm telepathic. But this," he pointed at the screen, "this doesn't seem to be aware of what it's done. It has only sent a brief faint message. What ever it was, it was enough to get the TARDIS's attention."
Just as he finished saying this there was a light shuddering and the Time Rotor stopped moving, signifying that they had landed. Martha gave the Doctor an apprehensive glance, wondering if or when he would hazard a look out the doors. There was something in the way he was conducting himself that said; he was not comfortable with this revelation. This veneer did not last long, a brief second. Then he bounced on the balls of his feet, threw a dazzling smile at Martha as he offered her his hand.
"Let's see what awaits us behind door number one," he grinned almost manically, and Martha grabbed his hand.
"Head first into the unknown." She joined in with his mirth.
They were off, dashing toward the door of the TARDIS, the thrill of their next adventure compelling them forward. Within a minute, they had the doors open. Now could they see what waited from them.
Outside was almost black, wind was howling and rain was pelting down from the night sky. For what they could see they gathered that they were in the middle of what appeared to be a field, and that there were few buildings to be seen; just one white stonewashed house sitting on its own at the edge of the field. Martha shivered at the thought of walking through the sodden muddy grass in the pouring rain.
Without any warning, a whimpering noise bawled out through the gloomy night and a dark wolf-like shape dated across the field towards the house with its tail in between its legs. It had obviously been shaken by the appearance of the TARDIS. The Doctor watched the creature patiently, it wasn't long until the beast was ushered into the house. The door closed shortly after.
"Shall we pay the neighbours a visit?" The Doctor asked grinning mischievously. Not waiting for Martha's answer, he trudged off through the wet pasture towards the cottage before them. Shaking her head, she quickly shut and locked the TARDIS's door before chasing after him. When she reached him, he was already knocking boisterously on the wooden door.
"Greetings, to you." A man of medium height with blonde hair and deep dark blue eyes opened the door. "What has brought you here so late?" He asked politely.