A/N: Okay it's starting now :o It's safe to say that the Ashley Chambers you've all come to know will not be the same anymore. Which is sad :( But has to happen :p Reviews are mucho appreciado cos I'd like to see how this is being received. I'm putting more of an effort into my writing than I've done before. Not that I haven't put any effort in before... okay I'm rambling. I'll stop lol.

Chapter Six

The Worst Damn Thing

Randall typed in his computer with his shoulders hunched. The Doctor watched but decided that all he was typing was co-ordinates and other not so interesting things. Jackman was also working vigorously and silently. The Doctor was aching for some form of conversation but it seemed unlikely that he was going to get it from either of these. Kimi had been reasonably chatty, if not a little rude, but she seemed to have wandered off somewhere. So had Ashley apparently. The Doctor guessed she had finally just gone back to the Tardis, which was probably for the best.

'So… what exactly are you doing?' the Doctor asked, leaning forward to see Randall's screen.

Randall instinctively leaned closer to his screen. 'Uh… well, at the minute I'm just plotting where abouts we are. Depth, that kind of thing. Then I suppose we have to do a scan to see how many bodies are actually stuck down here…' He paled a little more, if that was even possible. 'But there should be 100,000. If there's less than that… well… it's going to get complicated.'

'Complicated how?' the Doctor asked.

'Let's just say there'll probably be a big hunt for the missing people.' Jackman sighed heavily. 'They'll be dangerous. Very dangerous.'

The Doctor rotated his chair, which creaked painfully, so he was facing Jackman. 'How dangerous?'

Jackman stopped typing and turned his own chair around so he was facing the Doctor. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigarette. He waved it once. 'Do you mind?'

The Doctor shook his head. If this man wanted to wreck his insides, it wasn't his problem.

Jackman lit the cigarette and took a long draw. 'One of the fellas who was working on construction of Project Home is my brother-in-law Micah. Nice guy. Healthy, good nature, wouldn't hurt a fly all that crap. He comes back after construction finishes and he starts acting really tetchy. Jumpy. Doesn't like people getting too close to him. He suddenly has this look in his eye, you know? Like… like he's looking at you like you're a stranger. He started getting really quiet. Then one night I went around to see him and he wouldn't let me in. Said he wouldn't let me in until I got all those people behind me to go away. No one was behind me though. Then I heard Pearl – that's my sister – I heard her shouting from upstairs. I tried to get past him, but Micah's bigger than me. Knocked me down with a shove. Slammed the door. So I called the police.'

By now Jackman's hand was trembling, the smoke making quivering waves in the air. The control room was silent, apart from Jackman's low voice. Randall's hands had frozen on the keyboard and he was listening with horrified awe. The Doctor sat silently; hands clasped over one knee, a small crease between his eyebrows. Jackman took a few moments to regroup. They allowed him to.

'By the time they got there Pearl was dead. Micah was in the bathroom. He'd smashed up everything in there; the sink, the bath, the shower, the toilet – he was soaked. Took seven officers to restrain him. They dragged him out and he was just screaming. Screaming this horrible scream.' Jackman paused again to run a hand over his forehead. 'When they got him in the station and asked him why he killed Pearl, he just said that he only saw her on the evenings when he finished work. That he hardly knew her. He said she had hired some guy to kill him so she could take his life insurance, which was complete crap because Micah didn't even have any life insurance. Then they asked him about the bathroom. 'Why did you trash the bathroom?' they asked. 'Because of the dripping,' he said.'

The Doctor narrowed his eyes slightly. 'Where's Micah now?'

'Psychiatric hospital.' Jackman replied, taking a big drag on his cigarette. 'Although I think they're going to move him pretty soon after all this carry on here. They didn't think it was linked at first. Thought Micah had just snapped.' He dropped his cigarette in his coffee and it hissed as it was extinguished. 'Funny thing is though, he's fine now. Back to normal. Of course he's absolutely distraught about Pearl. He says he has no idea why he did it and he wants to stay in the hospital to find out why.' Jackman paused and flicked some ash from his knee. 'I don't blame him. I blame this place. It's why I'm here. I want to find out why my sister was killed.'

The Doctor nodded in understanding. 'And I'm sure you will.' He said gently.

Jackman made a low grunting sound, and then turned back to his computer. 'We're all keeping a close eye on each other. Watching for the symptoms. I suggest you keep an eye on your girl. Starts off with shakes. Then they get jumpy. Then they hallucinate. Happens quickly.'

The Doctor frowned deeply, suddenly remembering something that Ashley had said the last time they had spoke. I'm going to ask if they can do anything about that bloody dripping. It's driving me up the wall.

Driving me up the wall.

He stood up quickly, drawing alarmed looks from the other two men. 'Where did Kimi go?' he demanded.

Jackman shrugged. 'For a pee probably. I don't know.'

The Doctor moved towards the door quickly. Encouraged by the urgency of his movements, Jackman and Randall stood up also.

'What is it?' Jackman asked, frowning.

The Doctor turned around. 'I really hope it's just coincidence, but if it's not we have a serious problem.'

'What kind of problem?' Randall asked worriedly.

'I think Ashley might have come into contact with whatever is causing this.' The Doctor explained. 'She mentioned something about dripping.'

'Might have just been condensation.' Randall murmured.

'Do you really want to risk that?' the Doctor asked.

Randall and Jackman looked at each other. 'She's probably with Kimi.' Jackman said. 'Kimi has a nose for this kind of thing. She's been watching real closely for any symptoms in any of us. If your friend is showing them then she probably took her to sickbay.'

'Where's sickbay?' the Doctor asked.

'I'll show you.' Jackman nodded.

The Doctor stepped aside for him to lead the way, but before they got out the door a buzzing sounded. The Doctor glanced around. Jackman moved back to his desk and picked up a phone receiver that had been hidden amongst the junk.

'Kimi?' he said automatically.

The Doctor moved over and took the phone from him. 'Mrs Ellis? Where are you? Are you with Ashley?'

'Yes,' Kimi replied, her voice slightly hushed. 'I have her in sickbay. She's in a bit of a state to be honest. She's jumpy and her hands are shaking like mad. I think she's been hallucinating too, but she won't admit it. I'm going to do a blood test, try and keep her calm. She seems to have relaxed a little.'

'Mrs Ellis, listen to me,' the Doctor said, his hearts starting to beat a little faster. 'If she has got this then you need to quarantine her. You can't be with her if she snaps, okay? If Ashley has a violent outburst… She needs to be in an empty room. Do you understand me? A room with nothing in it. Not even a chair. If there's anything even remotely flammable-'

'Flammable?' Kimi half laughed. 'Now come on Doctor, these people just exhibit primal violence, not superpowers. If she shows any signs of violence I'll put her in a holding room, sure, but I don't think it's that big a deal-'

'You listen to me right now, Mrs Ellis,' the Doctor said with more urgency. 'She will use primal violence, just not the primal violence you're thinking of. Trust me, she needs to be on her own until whatever this is passes through her system. I'm serious, Kimi. This will get bad, and fast.'

There was silence on the other end of the phone. The Doctor swallowed. Jackman and Randal were watching him with wide eyes.

'Mrs Ellis?' the Doctor asked.

Silence. The Doctor took in a shaky breath and went to repeat the name, but there was a sudden ear-piercing scream from the other end. The Doctor dropped the phone and turned to the other men.

'Sickbay!' he yelled. 'Right now!'

Jackman stumbled back in surprise, but quickly whirled around and ran down the corridor. The Doctor sprinted after him, hoping that this was all just a coincidence, and that when they got to the sickbay everything would be just fine.