Jasmine opened her eyes as she and Rusty were teleported away from the prison. She looked around. They seemed to be in an olden time Earth street. She turned to Rusty.
"What the hell just happened?! Where are we?!" She yelled.
"I used my Emergency Temporal Shift" Rusty explained.
"Emergency Temporal Shift? I've never heard of such a thing, what's that?" Jasmine queried.
"Daleks have an emergency function," Rusty said, tilting his eyestalk up and down, "It allows us to travel to random places in time and is only to be used in dire circumstances"
"RANDOM places?" Jasmine asked, "So, you have no idea where we are? What about the ship?"
"I do not know where we are, and the ship is still on Scarceris" Rusty stated.
"Great, so we're somewhere, obviously back in time with no way to get back to our own time," Jasmine stated, then with a sigh, "May as well explore if we're going to be here for awhile"
The two made their way down onto an empty street. Misty clouds covered the night sky. But the peculiar thing was was that the whole street was empty. Jasmine took a look at the street sign. "Main Street". From her studies on other planets, Main Streets were always the busiest part of any town. But this one was empty. The street lights were on, lights in every house were on.
"That's strange" She said.
"What is strange?" Rusty asked as he looked around.
"Well, from my studies, streets like this are usually packed with people" Jasmine explained.
"But it is empty" Rusty stated.
"You two, what are you doing out on a night like this?!" came an old lady's voice from the right of them.
The two aliens turned to towards it to see a tiny old woman rushing up to them.
"What are you even doing out at night in the first place?" she asked, then looking at Rusty, "You can't expect to trick or treat at a time like this?"
"Excuse me, what's going on?" Jasmine asked.
The old lady looked up at the lights, and then down at the ground, then back at the two friends.
"Come with me, quickly" she said as she led them into a little cottage not far away.
Both Jasmine and the lady took a seat.
"Sorry if I startled you, but we can't risk anyone else being taken" the old lady said.
"Who are you?" Rusty asked.
"Oh, sorry, my name's Mabelline" she introduced herself.
"Jasmine, and the trick or treater is Rusty" Jasmine introduced themselves.
She thought having this poor little old lady think Rusty was a kid in a costume was the best bet, they didn't want to terrify her anymore than she already was, "So, what's going on? What do you mean by people being taken?"
"It's the lights" Mabelline said.
"The lights?" Rusty asked.
"It's really more like what's in the dark spots underneath the lights" Mabelline continued.
"You mean the shadows?" Jasmine asked.
Mabelline gasped at the word, "We don't say that word in this town anymore! Not since the fiftieth person was taken"
"Sorry, 'the dark spots'" Jasmine corrected herself.
"It all started six years ago," Mabelline began explaining, "The whole town went dark and street lights stayed on, brighter than they usually are. But then, our Mayor's Secretary, who was just casually having a smoke disppeared right from under the street lights"
"What happens when it gets light outside?" Jasmine asked.
"That's the thing," Mabelline responded, "It hasn't been light for six months"
"Eternal darkness" Rusty commented.
"Yes, with people going missing when under lights" Mabelline said.
"Well, what if we turned the lights off?" Jasmine suggested.
"And risk all of us being taken? No one in their right mind would do that" Mabelline responded.
"What do you think, Rusty?" Jasmine asked the Dalek.
"Mabelline is right," Rusty stated, "The humans may be taken. But we need to witness the event"
"What are you saying, child?" Mabelline asked him.
"We must make a sacrifice" the Dalek stated.
"Rusty, no! There must be some other way" Jasmine said.
"No, no" Came a male's voice from the kitchen.
The three friends turned their heads to see an elderly man, even older than what Mabelline was, walk into the room.
"Marcus, you mustn't" Mabelline said.
"No, Mabelline, if it is the only way to bring light to the town, I must," Marcus began saying, "I have nothing left to live for, anyway"
Jasmine gasped at this statement.
"But, sir, everyone has something left to live for!" She said, thinking of her brother.
"You haven't been here long, have you?" Marcus asked her, giving her a smile.
"It must be done, Jasmine," Rusty said, looking at her with his eyestalk, "It is the only way to find out what is going on"
After some silence, Jasmine eventually agreed and the four found themselves outside, Marcus standing under a streetlight as the others stood standing next to each other.
"Who is he?" Jasmine asked Mabelline.
"One of the eldest residents of this here town," Mabelline replied, "He took in everybody who wasn't wanted. Beame a sort of father figure to them. But as he got older, his age started showing and he forgot what it was he did. So the pages had turned. The orphans looking after him"
"Where are the other orphans?" Jasmine asked.
"They were all taken," Mabelline said, "I'm the last one left"
"Then he does have something to live for! You! You can stop this, you know!" Jasmine said.
"No!" Rusty said, without even looking at the two women.
"The child's right,dear," Mabelline said, "I can't just be thinking of myself. I need to think of everybody else. If Marcus being taken can help us sleep at night again, then it's a risk I'm willing to take"
Just then, they heard a scream from Marcus. They instantly looked to the streetlight and saw Marcus screaming. But theodd thing was was that he was walking backwards into the shadows. More like he was pulling himself into the shadows. They instantly ran to him.
"Marcus!" Jasmine yelled into the shadows, "Marcus! Can you hear me?"
Nothing.
"Marcus?" Mabelline asked wearily.
"Hey!" Came Marcus' voice.
"Ohmygosh, he's alive!" Mabelline shouted.
"Hey! Guys! Help!" Marcus' voice came, getting louder.
"Oh, Marcus!" Mabelline said, running closer to the darkness.
"STOP!" Rusty shouted as Jasmine grabbed Mabelline's arm.
"What is it, Rusty?" Jasmine asked.
"Look down" Rusty said as the two women did so.
"Yeah, there's shadows under the..." Jasmine said, then trailing off, looked up.
The streetlight light was getting darker.
"Mabelline, I suggest we run!" She said, pulling the old woman along.
"But Marcus!" Mabelline said, looking back.
"Forget about him! C'mon!" Jasmine yelled.
They ran back to Mabelline's house, Jasmine pushing the woman in, then turning around to see Rusty was still standing there.
"Rusty, what are you doing?! C'mon!" She shouted.
The shadows began getting closer and closer to Rusty. Jasmine was afraid she was going to lose her new friend. She'd have got out her gun, but how do you shoot a shadow?
"Rusty!" She shouted again, and with that, Rusty spun around and whizzed straight for her. They ran into the house and Jasmine slammed the door shut.
'What were you thinking?! Just idling there at such a dangerous time?! You could have been killed!" She scolded the Dalek.
"I know what they are" Rusty said as he spun to look at Jasmine.
"They?" Mabelline asked.
"How?" Jasmine asked.
"By scanning them, how do you think?" Rusty said sarcastically, "My doctor may have fixed me but my systems are still rebooting slowly"
"So, what are they? What's been taking everyone?" Jasmine asked.
"Vashta Nerada" Rusty stated.
"Vashta Nawhatnow?" Mabelline asked.
"I've never heard of such a species" Jasmine said.
"They are a race of carnivorous beings that live in the shadows" Rusty explained.
Mabelline gave a little gasp.
"Sorry, 'dark spots'" the Dalek corrected himself, "My fragmented memories show my doctor has faced these before"
"That's great! We'll know how to defeat them!" Jasmine said with excitement.
Rusty turned to Mabelline as his doctor's memories of these began coming clearer and clearer, "Did Marcus have a recording device?"
"What do you mean, child?" Mabelline asked.
"I think he's trying to ask if Marcus had any sort of tape recorder" Jasmine explained.
"Yes, yes, frequently, in fact all the time, he never went anywhere without it, why?" Mabelline answered.
"The voice was from the recorder," Rusty started explaining, "The Vashta Nerada had gotten to him as he was recording the message"
"Wow, that quickly?" Jasmine asked, a tiny bit terrified.
"You saw it" Rusty said, looking at his companion.
"So, your doctor dealt with them before, what did he do?" Jasmine asked the Dalek.
"Evacuate" Rusty said.
"He up and left?" Jasmine asked, crossing her arms, "Some doctor"
"No," Rusty said, "Evacuate the humans"
"So what? We have to tell everyone to leave the town? We can't expect them all to leave, especially people like Mabelline, who have lived here their whole lives!" Jasmine said, "Can't we tell the Vashta Nerada to leave?"
"Yes, I will go back and have a delightful conversation with them and politely ask them to go away" Rusty said.
"Was that sarcasm?" Jasmine asked, once again crossing her arms.
"You decide," Rusty said, "You saw how hostile they were. They have been for six months"
"I'm willing to leave, if it's to save my hide," Mabelline said, "But I know many of the townspeople my age who would not"
"See? There has to be some other way!" Jasmine said, then she had an idea, "We could threaten them!"
"Threaten them?" Rusty asked sternly, swinging his eyestalk to look at Jasmine.
"Yeah, you know, they must know about you" Jasmine said, "You know, scare them off"
"What do you mean 'about me'?" Rusty asked, "I have not been here before"
Jasmine rolled her eyes, then giving a quick glance to Mabelline and leaning down to Rusty's head, whispered, "About Daleks"
"Oh" Rusty said.
"Where did they come from?" Mabelline asked.
"Where did what come from?" Jasmine asked, scared the old lady might have heard her.
"These vashta thingys," Mabelline responded, "Where do they come from? Where do they originate?"
"Well.." Jasmine began, but she got interrupted by Rusty.
"Trees" Rusty said, then looking back at Jasmine, "As for your plan, if they knew, they would have backed away from me while I was scanning them"
"Which means?" Jasmine asked.
"They do not know," Rusty said, "The only logical conclusion is that they were born here"
"On the trees?" Mabelline asked.
"Precisely" Rusty said.
"So, we chop down the trees!" Jasmine said.
"Or we chop down the houses" Rusty said.
"What?!" Jasmine and Mabelline asked in astonishment.
"The trees are their home," Rusty said, "That will cause more hostility"
"So, what do we do?" Jasmine asked, "We can't evacuate the citizens, we can't scare them off and we can't chop down the trees. Is there anything else left?"
Jasmine and Mabelline put their hands to their chins as the three began thinking. After about three minutes, Rusty spoke up.
"Negotiate" He said.
"What?" Jasmine asked.
"What?" Rusty countered.
"You just said negotiate" Jasmine said.
"Did I?" Rusty asked.
"Yes!" Jasmine told him.
"Must be my doctor-brain kicking in" Rusty mumbled. He hated when that happened. He never remembered what he said, just what he was going to say next
"How do we negotiate with these creatures?" Mabelline asked, "You said yourself they were hostile"
"Maybe they are hostile for a reason," Rusty stated, "If we can find out why, we may be able to form a truce"
"A truce?" Jasmine asked.
"I wouldn't expect you to know what that is" Rusty said as Jasmine gave a shocked face, "There is one problem"
"And what's that?" Jasmine asked, grumpily.
"Nor me or you can speak to them, it must be a resident of the town" Rusty stated.
With that, Jasmine and Rusty both looked at Mabelline.
"Me?" Mabelline asked, "You want me to negotiate with...dark spots?"
"You're the only one who possibly can," Jasmine said, "You've experienced them first-hand and know exactly what they are. You're this town's only hope"
Mabelline thought for a moment, then agreed. The three ventured back out to that same streetlight where Marcus was taken. The light was brighter now. They must have retreated.
"I can't believe I'm about to negotiate with s-s-s-shadows.." Mabelline said wearily as she walked towards the streetlight.
"Don't think of them as that," Jasmine said, "They're living things. Like the tiniest fly in your bedroom. Except, well, there's alot of them. You can do it, Mabelline"
Rusty and Jasmine stood just within ear length but outside of the light. Watching. Waiting. Just then, the shadows began coming closer to Mabelline. Jasmine put a hand around her mouth as Rusty stared eagerly. The shadows came quicker and quicker towards Mabelline.
"Wait!" Mabelline screamed.
At that, the shadows stopped. The old woman looked down at where they were. Just inches away from her feet.
"I'm not here to harm you," Mabelline said, her voice shaky, then clearing her voice, "I just want to talk"
'Talk?" Came Marcus' voice from the darkness.
Mabelline's eyes lit up as she looked into the darkness.
"It's not him," Jasmine told the woman, "They're using his recorder to communicate"
"Yes, that's right," Mabelline said, "Talk. I want to know why you're killing all these people. Why you're so..so..hostile"
"Land. Home" Marcus' voice said.
"What do you mean?" Mabelline asked.
"Houses...are...invading...homes" Marcus' voice came.
It was clear they were trying to form sentences.
"I think they're trying to say that they think the citizens are invading their home" Jasmine said.
"I assure, we are not," Mabelline said, "We just want to live in peace. Not in fear of you."
"Where is your home?" Rusty asked as he rolled up next to Mabelline.
"Rusty!" Jasmine said, trying to stop him, but she was too late, soshejust stood there, watching.
"Forests. Close." Marcus' voice said.
"Do you mean the Didgeri Forests?" Mabelline asked.
"Yes. Born in trees. Lived there many decades" Marcus' voice was saying.
"I understand how you feel" Mabelline said.
"Why you must leave" Marcus' voice said, with anger.
The shadows began getting closer to Mabelline and Rusty, the streetlight getting dimmer and dimmer. Jasmine was fearing for her friend's life.
"Wait! Please!" Mabelline said.
The shadows stopped. Both her and Rusty looked down to notice the shadows were touching just the tiniest bit of them. Even Jasmine knew if they moved any closer, they were both goners.
"I'm sure we can arrange something," Mabelline said, "We're not so different"
"How?" Marcus' voice asked.
"We both have lived in our homes for many years, and we both don't want to be evicted from either of our homes," Mabelline explained, "I propose an ultimatum. We both remain in our homes and promise not to impose on each other's turf. We will block the forests off from public access altogether so you can have peace and harmony, as will we. What do you say?"
There was silence from the Vashta Nerada as the darkness and shadows remained. This lasted for a few minutes when all of a sudden, the shadows faded away from Mabelline and Rusty, and the darkness disappeared from the sky, revealing a bright sunny day. All the residents came out of their houses, cheering.
"The sun!" Mabelline said, looking up at the sky, " How is that possible after so many years?"
"They were in the air," Rusty said, also looking up, "Swarms of them"
Jasmine ran up to the two and gave Rusty a big old hug.
"Thank goodness! I thought you had had it!" She said, so happy.
"You do not have much faith in me" Rusty stated.
"Yeah, yeah, I've heard that before," she said, turing to Mabelline, "I think you've got a forest to block off, Mabelline"
"Yes, yes, we do" Mabelline told her.
"Good luck!" Jasmine waved as the old woman walked towards the rest of the citizens.
"So, what do we do now? Stick around since there's nowhere else to go?" Jasmine asked her Dalek friend.
"We need to get back to the ship on Scarceris" Rusty stated.
"And how are we supposed to do that? Emergency Temporal Shift until we're there?" Jasmine asked sarcastically.
"Yes!" Rusty said, brightly, looking into Jasmine's eyes.
"I wasn't serious!" Jasmine said.
"I am" Rusty told her.
"Why did I even come with you?" Jasmine said as she held onto the Dalek.
"You tell me," Rusty said, then, "Emergency Temporal Shift!"
And with that, Jasmine Shores and Rusty the Dalek were gone from this quiet little town of celebrations.