Hello! Sorry I didn't update yesterday...or the day before. I got a weird virusyflu thing so I pretty much had no energy in my limbs (I woke up on Wednesday morning and just fell over and couldn't really get back up :/) I'm betterish now, so here's the chapter!
DISCLAIMER: I have put Doctor Who on my Christmas list! But, for now, Mr Moffat owns it.
CHAPTER 8: THE KHUFU FALL
The Doctor and Clara followed Cleopatra as she was walking towards a set of tents. Clara had stopped fuming but instead was looking around in curiosity, excitement and horror. On the up side, she was actually at the pyramids! The multiple hours her mother and she had spent imagining this. On the down side, a group of what looked like eleven year olds where pulling a slab of rock twice the size of them over the hot sand. They were right next to a completed pyramid and all the slaves appeared to be building a pyramid to the left. Clara watched in horror as all the slaves were whipped should they fall down out of exhaustion or catch their foot on the rock. There were children, teenagers, adults and even some elderly pulling on the rocks. She always expected the pyramids to be beautiful and majestic, but this had kind of ruined it for her. Something was off, however. Something just didn't seem right…
"Clara? I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought you here," The Doctor said, taking Clara's hand as she stood watching the scenes in front of her, frozen.
"No, it was my idea too," Clara responded, turning to face The Doctor.
"Are you two coming or not?" Cleopatra asked them, getting the guard to open the flap behind her so The Doctor and Clara could enter. The Doctor and Clara walked into the tent and a cool wave washed over them. It was a roomy tent, a plush chair at the end where Cleopatra was making herself comfortable. A small girl of about nine walked up to Cleopatra, bowed, and then poured some wine into her goblet. She scurried back over to where Clara and The Doctor were standing and placed the slightly emptier jug on the tray next to them. The girl looked over to them and Clara caught her eye. She seemed so familiar…The girl looked scared and then turned around and busied herself. Two men were either side of Cleopatra, waving some leaves to keep her cool.
"So, what brings you here this time, Doctor?" Cleopatra asked, after she had taken a sip of her drink and put it on the side of her chair.
"Clara wanted to go see the pyramids and we landed here, so we decided to go see them being built rather than in 2012," The Doctor explained and Cleopatra nodded.
"I would show you them myself, but the temperature is just too high for me to bear today. Clarina, however, would love to give you a tour," Cleopatra said, and the little girl stood to attention, her eyes widened and alert.
"Of course, your majesty," Clarina bowed and then walked Clara and The Doctor out of the tent. As they were walking out, Clara got a hit of déjà vu. She closed her eyes and remembered walking out of this tent before, out into the sweltering midday heat of Giza.
"Oh, you're joking," Clara gasped and then stood right in front of Clarina. The Doctor had caught on and was smiling goofily. Clara gently took Clarina's arm and examined the bruises up and down them. On Clarina's right hand was a ring, the exact same one as Clara was wearing. Clarina didn't understand what was going on and she was confused. Clara leaned down and hugged her, just adding to Clarina's confusion.
"Miss, are you alright?" Clarina asked, standing back from Clara
"I'm…I'm fine," Clara said, straightening up.
"This way," Clarina beckoned and started to walk off in the other direction. The Doctor laughed and Clara smiled at him.
"I remember her. I just can't remember anything past here," Clara mused
"Don't bother," the Doctor said as they followed Clarina across the sand.
Clara looked at her surroundings and felt that same gut instinct that something was wrong. Something was out of place, and she couldn't place it. Suddenly, it hit her like a wave of soapy water. There were four pyramids. There were four, big pyramids.
"Doctor, there are four pyramids!" Clara pointed out and The Doctor's eyes widened
"Oh, Clara, you're a genius! You're right. Clarina, who's this pyramid for?" The Doctor asked
"King Khufu. Why?" Clarina asked
"How can this be for King Khufu? King Khufu's pyramid is over there," The Doctor said, pointing to the Great Pyramid.
"You must be mistaken, sir," Clarina dismissed and continued walking.
"An extra pyramid containing the wrong King. Has someone been peeking at my Christmas list?" The Doctor enthused, rubbing his hands together.
"Would you like to go inside?" Clarina asked, once they reached the base of the mysterious pyramid.
"Would I!" The Doctor grinned excitedly, rubbing his hands together. Clarina laughed at him, a laugh he recognised. The little girl walked over to the side of the pyramid which had a panel on it.
"I think I can remember the...Yes!" Clarina laughed as she managed to push the statue the right way so that the panel shifted, revealing darkness.
"This is just like in the movies," Clara smiled, peering into the darkness
"Oooh isn't it just!" The Doctor laughed
"You two aren't from around here, are you?" Clarina asked, folding her arms. The resemblance was too much for The Doctor who started grinning broadly.
"No, we're not. I'm from…Doctor?" Clara asked, folding her arms as well.
"I'll tell you something, Clarina, but you have to keep it a secret," The Doctor said, crouching down so he was level with her.
"OK," Clarina grinned mischievously
"Clara is from the future and I'm from space," The Doctor said and Clarina's eyes widened
"Really? What's the future like? Is it like what's in my dreams?" Clarina asked and Clara came over and crouched like The Doctor.
"Yes, it is," Clara said, smiling. "There are planes, spaceships, cars, TV's, just like what you dream about,"
"Can I go there? Please? I have no parents. No one would miss me here. Can I please go in your time machine?" Clarina asked and both Clara and The Doctor's faces fell. That confirmed it for both of them that this little girl was extremely misplaced in time.
"Of course you can. We'll find you some parents and then drop you off," The Doctor said and Clarina smiled. Suddenly her eyes started to well up and a few tears were starting to cascade down her face.
"I don't know why I'm crying," Clarina laughed, wiping her tears away. The Doctor stood up and memories flashed in front of Clara's eyes.
"Because this is the day! This is the day, everything begins! So, where's this tomb?" The Doctor asked, spinning around. Clara jumped up onto her feet and seemed surprised that she did so without falling over. Clarina grinned at them, life seeming to have restored into her.
"This way!" Clarina said and walked into the darkness. The Doctor took Clara's hand and kissed her on the forehead. He followed Clarina into the tomb, his hand still connected to Clara's. He whipped out his sonic screwdriver and pressed the button, illuminating the passage with an unearthly green glow. A shiver ran down Clara's spine, all of her stories about mummies and ancient pyramid curses flooding through her head. Clarina reached up and pulled a cone off the wall. Once she did so, the wide end caught on fire and created a more homely yellow glow.
"How did that…what?" The Doctor asked, scanning the torch.
"It was my idea. Pretty simple design," Clarina shrugged and The Doctor laughed
"Oh, Clara, you really are a genius!" The Doctor laughed, kissing both of them on the head. Clara took the torch off Clarina and brought it closer to the walls. Illuminating the walls revealed hieroglyphics to be printed all over them, from the ceiling to the floor, left to right. They started to re-arrange themselves and Clara watched on in amusement. After a few seconds the wall was covered in English.
"Beware trespassers, the mummy will rise should his resting place be disturbed. Come further than this wall and you will be inflicted with a deadly curse. Trespass further and the pyramid itself will stop you. Should you reach King Khufu, death will occur. You have been warned," Clara read out and then reread it to be sure.
"Bit sinister," The Doctor mumbled and Clara turned to face him.
"Do you think this is a good idea?" Clara asked, unsure.
"No, of course not! How do you get the past this wall?" The Doctor asked Clarina who shrugged.
"Dunno. I wasn't involved in the secret bit of the pyramid. Which would have been useful, now that I think about it," Clarina said
"We'll have to find our own way then. Clara, try all the lamps. Clarina, feel around the floor. I'll have a look at the walls," The Doctor instructed. Clarina ran her hands over the sandy floor. Alas, nothing happened. Clara, by this point, had taken every single torch off the wall and was carrying ten torches, all of which were on fire. The Doctor had scanned the hieroglyphics for any clue or hidden meaning, but also found nothing.
One of the flames licked onto the edge of Clara's hair who then dropped them all in surprise, trying to stop her hair burning. She fell back and trod on Clarina's hand who then yelped in pain and quickly retracted her hand. The Doctor rushed over to Clara, picked up a handful of sand and threw it into her hair. The sand landed on the flames, quickly putting them out. Clara breathed a sigh of relief, her head no longer about to combust.
"How did you manage that?" The Doctor laughed, picking up the front of Clara's hair which was now singed and considerably shorter.
"Oh, how funny," Clara said sarcastically and then yelped as she pulled forward the front bit of her hair. She shook her hair and a beach full of sand fell out.
"You alright, Clarina?" The Doctor asked, looking at Clarina who was nursing her hand.
"Fine," Clarina grunted, glaring at Clara. Clara held her hands up in surrender, winking at Clarina.
"Uh…Clara's?" The Doctor mumbled, and both of the girls looked to him. Only then did they realise that where they were sitting was slowly sinking.
"What the…?" Clara asked, standing up. The descending had stopped and the platform had taken refuge in another corridor underneath, mirroring the one that was above them.
"C'mon," The Doctor muttered, taking Clara's hand. They stepped off the platform, Clarina in front of them. Clara tentatively took a torch off the wall, held it an arm's length ahead of her and then gave it to The Doctor who was laughing.
"DOCTOR! CLARA!" Clarina yelled, spreading her arms out to stop The Doctor and Clara walking any further. "The floor,"
Ahead of them, the corridor ended and instead was a large room. The ceiling was high above them and the floor had a large painting of King Khufu.
"What about it?" Clara whispered and Clarina turned to face her.
"It's a trap. I should know. I devised it. It looks like a normal floor, but in reality is only a thumb thick. It won't support the weight of three of us," Clarina explained
"I suppose it couldn't have been that it would have been disrespectful to walk on it," Clara sighed and Clarina shook her head.
"OK. Clarina, you go first," The Doctor decided, putting his hand on Clarina's shoulder.
"What? Are you crazy?" Clarina hissed
"Yes," Clara nodded and Clarina smiled.
"C'mon, you're little. It will bear your weight. If we're careful, it will bear all of us across. Anyway, there's no way back," The Doctor reminded and Clarina sighed, looking at the ceiling.
"I guess you're right. OK, then," she sighed and then gently pressed her foot against the floor. She could hear the rock cracking slightly on the other side when she finally placed her whole body weight on it. Deciding her best move, she ran quickly to the other side of the corridor, her feet gently skirting over the top and leaving few cracks.
"Over!" Clarina yelled from the other side, her hands on her knees as she was catching her breath.
"Brilliant! Clara, you next," The Doctor said, gently pushing Clara onto it. The cracking sound was a lot more prominent this time, but only a few cracks became visible. Clara decided to use the same tactic as Clarina and ran across it as well. However, she wasn't as used to wearing sandals. The front of the sandal snagged on a rock and she flung forward, landing on her knees. She stayed deadly still, praying that the whole thing wouldn't give way.
"Clara. Clara. It's fine. Just move your leg slowly," The Doctor encouraged. She was exactly in the middle; the floors weakest point. She gently moved her legs, aiming to stand up. A huge cracking sound emitted, ricocheting off the stone. A crack formed from The Doctor's side of the floor and wormed its way over to her.
"Clara. Stay still. Don't move," The Doctor warned.
"That will not be a problem!" Clara yelled back, wincing as more cracks appeared around her.
"OK, Clara. I'm coming to get you!" The Doctor yelled, placing his foot on the floor.
"No! NO! You'll fall in!" Clara yelled, trying not to move.
"You too! At least we'll be together!" The Doctor joked
"What about Clarina?" Clara yelled back
"CLARINA! Step onto the floor. We'll all fall in together," The Doctor decided
"DOCTOR! You don't know what's under here! It could be crocodiles or –"Clara was cut short by the floor around her crumbling. She plummeted into the darkness as The Doctor watched in horror. The floor was cracking everywhere by this point, and The Doctor ran to Clarina's end. Behind him, the floor was falling into the darkness, falling to where his Clara had gone. He finally made it to the other corridor and was standing next to Clarina.
"Where has she gone, Clarina? Tell me. TELL ME!" The Doctor yelled and Clarina backed away, frightened. The Doctor felt guilty straight away and rubbed his head with his hand. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled. Do you know what's underneath there?"
"It's a 50 metre drop," Clarina explained and The Doctor groaned as he put his arms on the wall and rested his head in them.
"Into what?" The Doctor asked.
"The tombs,"
To be continued...
I thought it was better to leave it on a cliffhanger than to do the 'Next Chapter' preview :P And also, I apologise to any Sherlockians about the fall... :)
Thanks for reading and please review and tell me what you think!
