Smoke swirled in front of Evangeline. It smelled like ancient books and overripe bananas, and felt like cold, damp stone against her skin. She shivered. Shapes rushed by, just out of her line of vision. She tried to take a step back, but her feet were rooted to the ground. She looked down at her feet to see stone creeping up her legs. She looked back up into blank eyes and screamed.
When she opened her eyes again, she was met by the warm glow of the TARDIS interior. The Doctor was peering at her worriedly.
"Are you all right? How's your head?" he asked as he took the few steps to her side.
"I'm fine, thanks. I do have a bit of a headache though. What happened?"
"You were hit by a falling rock as we were running back to the TARDIS. We're back on the surface though, and there doesn't seem to be any repercussions up here. I wanted to wait to check on the Silurians in your time until you were awake. But if you're feeling alright then we could go?"
"Of course," she replied, pushing herself up into a sitting position and bracing herself against the sway of the world. She decided it would be safer to sit while they flew this go around.
Once they landed, they stepped out into musty air and eerie silence. The Doctor pointed his sonic screwdriver at the ceiling to boost the power in the lights overhead just enough to see. They crept down the halls, trying to find any sign of the Silurians. A ways down, they encountered some pods. The Doctor brushed the dust away and let out a thoughtful hum.
"I think they're in hibernation," he mumbled.
"Why? Because we blew up their drill?" Evangeline asked, peering over his shoulder to see inside the pod. The green face in the pod was resting quietly, not masked or contorted in anger like the others she had seen.
"I don't know," the Doctor replied. "Let's go figure out!" He sprang off down the hall. Evangeline sighed and followed after him. "In here!" he called.
"What'd you find?" Evangeline called as she rounded the corner.
The Doctor was standing in front of a large screen, watching as foreign characters scrolled by. The room was illuminated by a dull green glow. Evangeline watched as the characters morphed into something more readable.
"The TARDIS is translating for you," the Doctor said before she could even ask.
"Oh," she replied softly. "So what's it say?"
"Well, it seems that we interfered with their plans to get to the surface. They've got a small group rebuilding, and everyone else is in hibernation until the time comes. Hopefully it'll take them a while," he added wistfully.
"Wait, what's that noise?" Evangeline asked, pointing a finger in the direction of the door.
The Doctor listened for a minute, then pressed his lips together. "Silurians," he replied.