Disclaimer: Doctor Who is about thirty years old. I'm half of that age, so, logically, I can't own Doctor Who. All material published on this sight is for pure practice in writing, along with individual amusement. No profit is being made.
Quick Note: This is my second attempt at this chapter...the other attempt I made was rushing things too much. I still don't really know who the bad guy is, but that will come to me. It had better come to me. Anyway, I would like to thank everyone who favorited, suscribed, and reviewed Chapter 1...I was amazed at my reception. Thank you all so much, and I hope I can continue to create a story I, as well as you readers, enjoy.
Note: Each chapter will follow a specific character as the main focus, while the voice may remain third-person omniscient. This voicing may become important later on. Chapter Two follows Amy Pond.
"You know what, I hate saying this, but, right now, I'd rather not know. There's nothing wrong here—in fact, this is the most peaceful place I've seen in a long time," came the Time Lord in a low tone.
"Too peaceful," Mrs. Pond added, her tone matching his.
"We should leave…?" Rory said, hesitant. Suddenly, leaving wasn't nearly as great sounding.
While the three stood, entranced, a sound came from behind. All three jumped in shock at the sound approaching.
The sound of footsteps.
Amy turned around suddenly, the Doctor and Rory following her lead. Something was coming, drawing nearer. All three stood transfixed, listening to the sound of the crunch of leaves and the rustle of ferns.
Amy's breath caught in her throat. How many times had this situation occurred, that wait for the inevitable confrontation? Or greeting, since, sometimes, the passerby was friendly. But, still, that wait before the appearance. She wasn't afraid, not remotely. She would stand and face whatever it was, like she had every time before.
Beside her, Rory's grip on her hand had gone from a gentle reminder to a strong acclamation. He, if the only one, didn't enjoy the thrill before the meeting. The Doctor, on the other hand, seemed to live for them. Right now, he was standing still, head tilted, looking in the direction of the upcoming footsteps, a slight smile evident on his face. Whatever doubt he had held about staying here before was long gone, in favor of the realization of a mystery.
The three jumped again as a new sound filled the vicinity—another sound of movement, this time coming from the direction of the smoke.
"Great," came Rory under his breath, "attacked on both sides."
"Oh, don't be such a pessimist! It could be friendly…" came the Doctor's reprimand. Both men had turned to look in the direction of the new sound.
"Or," said Amy, still looking in the direction of the original footsteps, "it might not be." Together, they waited.
Both sounds grew closer, closing in. Whatever the second sound was, it sounded to be bigger than the first sound, and moving faster.
Suddenly, a sight crossed Amy's line of vision, through a gap in the thicket. A gap that she hadn't seen there before. Before she had time to wonder what it was, the shape was gone—a mix of yellow, black, and skin-tone. It was gone before Amy could see any details, but, still, it had been there.
"Amy?" It was the Doctor. He was looking at her in a mix of concern and anticipation.
"Nothing. I—I don't know…it was nothing," she said. She turned away from the thicket and toward the valley in the direction of the new sound.
Rory looked at her, then behind them. "Wait," he said, squinting his eyes, "the other sound, those footsteps we first heard…they're gone."
"It would appear so," came the Doctor, who had turned back toward the new sound.
"But…it was here, it was coming closer. Now where'd it go?"
The Doctor remained silent, his face a grim mask of contemplation. He was obviously thinking of something—now, if only Amy could read his mind and find a way to help.
A sudden high-pitched squeal covered up the footsteps. The trio covered their ears, squinting in the pain of sudden sound. Where there had once been silence now lay a cover of noise—shrieks and shots, cries and joyful shouts. Any and every sound, that's what Amy thought while she tried to block it out. Any and every joyful laugh and tearful goodbye, quiet sob and appreciative hug—every scream of fear and cry of anguish filled the air around them. Around the world.
It was gone as soon as it started, and only silence remained behind like before. Gone with the squeal were the footsteps.
The Doctor looked up, at the sky, as if it could hold the answer.
"Doctor, what was that?" Amy said, glaring at him with her big eyes. Rory joined her lead.
"Doctor?"
"I don't know," he murmured.
Amy threw her hands in the air. "Doctor, whatever that was, you must have an idea. Anything."
When he didn't say anything, Rory decided to intervene. "Well, whatever it was, it was not friendly. I think we should leave."
"Rory, shut up!"
"No, Amy. This isn't right. I don't know why, but I can feel it—so can you. No sound except for us, then an eruption of it. Whatever it is, it doesn't want us here," Rory said, taking hold of his wife's hands. She pulled herself free and crossed them around her chest in an act of defiance.
"Doctor, what should we do?"
"We should…leave. Rory's right, this place isn't for us," he said, still looking at the sky. "But that's the answer from two minutes ago. Two minutes ago, this place was still silent except for our gibbering. Maybe that's what upset it, why it came to warn us away. Whatever it is. Seeing as the 'silence' was broken."
"So, that's it? We're just going to leave?" Amy felt defeated. It was either they had too much adventure or too little—they never just ran away. She had tried that before, with the star whale. The Doctor never abandoned a mystery or somebody in need.
"No. That isn't what I said." The Doctor spared himself a brief look at Amy, a flicker of recognition before returning his gaze at the sky.
"But you just said we should leave…"
"No, Pond, I just said that we should have left two minutes ago. Now, however, there's something here that I've never seen before. Whether I want to or not, I'm staying to see it through."
"Why do we always have to stay?" Rory was looking at Amy, but she ignored him, focusing on the Doctor.
"Why do we have to stay?"
"Because," the Time Lord said, taking his attention off of the sky and onto the couple beside him, "like Rory said, that thing, whatever it was—it wasn't right. I want to see what it is, and why I've never heard of it."
"Oh, so logical. Wanting to see something that sounded just pure evil."
"Rory, please be quiet for once in your life," the Doctor said, a brief grin alighting his face.
"So, we're staying?"
"Yep. Though we aren't taking the Tardis. She might attract attention, and since we don't know who the inhabitants are, we don't want to get the wrong first impression. So," he jumped over to the blue box, fiddling with the keyhole, "I'm going to park her inside that thicket, we're going to collect a few belongings, and, then, well…" He opened the door, leaning inside. "I hadn't really thought that far ahead…"
"Then we search. Investigate," Amy suggested.
"Yes! Then we investigate!" The Doctor ran into the Tardis, Amy following closely.
"Look, we aren't Sherlock Holmes or Mystery Inc. We don't even have a cool van..." Rory said, slowly making his way to the Tardis. The Doctor leaned his head out.
"Well, if you want a cool flowered van, go and rent one. While you do that, we'll make ourselves comfortable."
Rory huffed and moved forward, pushing the grinning Doctor aside as he entered and leaned next to Amy on the rail. The Doctor began pushing buttons carefully, and the Tardis materialized inside a ring of trees. Grabbing a few necessities—psychic paper, Amy's handbag, Rory's ID—they left the Tardis, fought their way out of the tightly wound trees, and back into the clearing.
Amy looked around. "So, Doctor, where are we heading?"
The Doctor looked out, turning in a few circles before pointing. "That a-way."
"Toward the smoke?" Rory asked, noticing the newly induced smoke issuing again.
"Yes, Mr. Pond. Toward the smoke. Toward the biggest hint of a civilization we've got." With that, the Doctor started walking. Mr. and Mrs. Pond exchanged a long glance, Amy's full of excitement, Rory's full of anxiety, before heading after the raggedy doctor.
Inside the Tardis, on the screen next to the console, Gallifreyen words still ran.
Eternal Silence.