Chapter Six

Frozen Heart

The cloaked figure sat in a dark corner of the abandoned warehouse. From across the room his labored breathing could be heard.

Amid the figure's breathing, there was a small ticking noise that inspired fear in this supposedly fearless being. He didn't have much time left.

Why?

Because when time is numbered, there is always only a little left.

This planet was his last chance. There wasn't time or supplies to travel to another.

"Master!" A voice called. It was deep and gravelly, like stones rubbing against each other. To the everyday human, the voice spoke in a language unknown to planet Earth.

The hooded figure slowly straightened, preparing for the worst. "Yes? Get on with it." The figure's voice was clearer than servant before him and clearly held authority.

The creature currently hopping from one foot to the other was unseen except for his shadow on the concrete, but that shadow was frightening enough to freeze the heart of a child. "Master, rejoice! The inhabitants of this planet are compatible!"

The hooded figure oozed relief. Maybe they still had a chance."Thank Zooroug. I was beginning to think-" he stopped. "Good work, Aranicuz. You and your many brothers have served me well. The operation will begin immediately."

The shadow nodded several times. "Yes, of course, Master. We dare not waste your time." Then with that the shadow slipped away, off to do mischief. Numerous shadows from the dark corners of the warehouse followed after Aranicuz, rejoicing all the while.

And the hooded figure was left alone in his chair once more, cloaked in his heavy breathing, the strains of a nearby machine, and the quiet ticking from nowhere and everywhere at once. "Indeed." He murmured quietly, "Time is truly of the essence."


My feet thudded across the asphalt and I could feel every drop of moisture in the fog that enveloped the street. The man called the Doctor rushed a few feet ahead of me, his breathing calm and even. I'd like to say my breathing was the same, I do tend to run a lot, but after a few minutes of galloping straight into the whiteness, I was forced to stop.

The air stung as it filled my lungs, but I couldn't get enough of it. There was no way I was going to tell the Doctor to slow down, my pride prevented me, so instead I stopped in my tracks and let myself recover. I noted that it was an oddly cold day for June.

Despite my exhaustion, the exercise felt good. It kept me from thinking about all the impossible things that had become a part of my life. Even the fact that I was here, not in my flat at Bakers street, was impossible, not to mention everything else...

Not much blows my mind these days, but this would do me...

Finished catching my breath, I looked up, hoping to see the Doctor, but he had disappeared, swallowed whole by the fog.

That man must have a massive amount of endurance to run so fast for so long…

I considered calling out for him, but the moment I opened my mouth, my voice stuck in my throat.

No sound. Don't move, an instinct told me. After years of chasing crime, I was familiar with the feeling of anticipation. Something was going to happen.

Any second now.

My entire body froze and I waited, still as a statue. Quickly, my eyes scanned the area around me. I was on an average street with shops lining a two lane road. The fog was so thick I couldn't see the top of some of the buildings. Once again I was struck by how unusual the weather was. Fog wasn't unusual, in the contrary, it was London's constant companion, but this biting cold in June? That was unusual.

The entire street was devoid of another soul. There was just me and the fog. Continuing to scan the area, I discovered a bus stop across the street- vacant, and shop across the road- empty. There was a newspaper stand to my left. No one watched to sell the newspapers. Where was everybody?

Idly, I noted the date on the newspaper.

June 10th.

Two days ago.

What?

My mind reeled, and I stopped watching my surroundings. Snatching up the newspaper, I quickly made sure all of the dates were the same. A typo?

That was ridiculous. Large newspaper companies like this had numerous people inspecting the newspaper for typos. Maybe one worker might mess up the date, but ten? Ten or more people wouldn't miss such an obvious mistake.

Eliminate all other factors, and the one which remains must be the truth.

But it was bloody impossible.

Sometimes I really hated my own logic.

"Then there must be another factor I'm missing," I stated out loud. "Something- something!"

But there was nothing.

Suddenly there was a wisp of movement behind me. I went back into a defensive state immediately, spinning around quickly. I expected to see someone behind me, but instead I was faced with an alleyway and a particularly dark portion of fog.

That's odd, I thought, stepping forward. The fog pulled at me, wisps wrapping around my wrists and tugging me toward the alleyway, but I didn't notice because of the ominous buzzing in my head that blocked out everything else. I took another step, and another. There was something in the alley I had to see. I needed to go inside.

Another step and I'd be enveloped in the dark shadows ,but at the last second I came to my senses. Fear encased me and suddenly I realized I couldn't stop myself from moving forward. Whatever was in the fog was going to kill me; I knew it instinctively. No one was going to make me do what I didn't want to.

In that instant a wave of heat rushed up behind my eyes and with great effort, my foot stopped mid-air.

Nothing controls me. Nothing.

Shouting, I jumped backwards. Something hissed from within the fog and I could clearly feel surprise and pain coming from the… thing.

I'd hurt it somehow…

Then in an instant the fog melted away. Within seconds the entire street was back to normal. Laying on the ground panting, I watched as people exited stores, walked across the road, and cars passed by. It was like they had always been there.

But they hadn't. I knew it.

There were footsteps behind me and I felt a hand on my shoulder. The Doctor. "Sherlock? What are you doing on the floor?" he asked, "And why are you all wet?"

I ignored his question and stood up quickly. Brushing myself off, I noted that my coat was covered in frost. Blinking, the Doctor and I watched it melt away. "Something strange is going on," I murmured.

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Of course, there always is."

I frowned at him. Someone else might have let a comment like that pass, but not me. I'm to curious for my own good, I'm afraid. "What do you mean by that?"

Shrugging, the Doctor answered flippantly, "Oh, I have a small habit of running into trouble. It's actually not entirely my fault- well, maybe a bit, but honestly, what can I do? The TARDIS literally throws me into a situation, and it's not like I can just ignore it." The Doctor stopped, realizing he was rambling on.

Looking into his eyes, I read him like the newspapers behind me. When the Doctor said 'small habit', what he really meant was a massive uncontrollable thing he wished he could curb, but wouldn't because he secretly enjoyed the adventure of it all.

I've never met someone with such expressive eyes. One could see straight into his soul if you knew how to look. I broke our gaze because I suspected this Doctor knew how to look into mine.

Recovered from my disturbing experience, I turned to the Doctor.

He placed his hands on my shoulders. "Tell me what happened." He reminded me of a child begging his parent to tell him what he was getting for his birthday.

Shrugging him off, I looked at the ground. I didn't particularly want to share my experience, not wanting to seem insane. If the man had been John, I would have pretended nothing happened at all. But the Doctor wasn't John. He looked at me with this intense, old, and yet playful eyes. I knew he'd recognize a lie the moment I spoke it.

So I changed the subject.

"Where the heck did you go anyway?"

The Doctor looked offended. "It's not my fault you're so slow!"

"I'm not slow!" I scoffed.

The Doctor seemed to think about this for a moment, "I suppose…" he murmured, "For a human you're reasonably fast…" he paused. "Incredibly, actually."

The way he said that sentence; it implies he doesn't consider himself human.

If he doesn't think he's human, then that explains why earlier he'd think to ask me if I was human.

"You're saying you're not human?" I questioned slowly.

Nodding rapidly, the Doctor rocked on his heels, "Yup, from the future- I think, or maybe the past… Time is a bit confusing with me."

I blinked. There was no way I was going to believe him- not until he showed me proof.

But now was not the time.

"So!" the Doctor cried a bit loudly, "Whatever you're not telling me happened in this alley, right?" Stepping around me, he walked into the alleyway that had almost devoured me. Immediately, the Doctor reached into his pocket. He came up empty and muttered something about a replacement screwdriver. "Still don't know why I listened to you…" he stated, throwing the words over his shoulder, where I stood.

I didn't want to go into the alley where the creature had resided.

"Well?" the Doctor asked, "Are you coming or not?"

I hesitated for half a second and then stepped forward with a small sigh . There was no way I would appear to be a coward in front of this man. Besides, the creature was gone now. The alley was shadowed, and thin enough that if I stretched my hands out, I could touch both walls. Liter covered the floor and rainwater puddled around it.

We'd walked for several seconds in silence until the Doctor suddenly jerked back. Stopping just in time to keep from bumping into him, I peered over the Doctor's shoulder.

His shoulders are tense.

Something's startled him.

"What is it?" I asked.

The Doctor shook his head slowly. "How strange," he murmured.

"What?" I pushed forward, curiosity getting the better of me.

The moment I saw it, my breath caught in my throat and I could do nothing but stare.

In front of the Doctor, a young woman cowered against the brick wall that lined the alley, her fingers clawing at it desperately. Her mouth was open in a terrified scream and tears dripped down her face.

The most amazing part? The woman was made entirely of sparkling ice.

AN: And the plot thickens! Please review and check out my profile for some of my other stories.