The Weary Travellers
The Impossible Planet
Gazelle was in the TARDIS wardrobe looking for a new leather jacket to replace the one ruined by the Wire. After mooching through several hangers, she found one she liked. She tried it on and checked her reflection in the wardrobe's mirrors. The jacket was fine, it was comfortable and flattered her figure. Suddenly, she heard the Doctor's voice calling her telepathically "Remii, I need ya help. The TARDIS is trying to land somewhere, but she's having trouble. Could ya come an' give me a hand?"
"On my way, Theta." she answered telepathically and rushed up to the console room to help the Doctor.
With both Time Lords on the case, they got the TARDIS to land, but it was quite a job. Once they were down, the Doctor stepped outside to find that they were in a cramped industrial area. "I wonder what's wrong wiv her." he muttered "She's sorta queasy."
Rose and Gazelle stepped out behind him. "Yeah, it was like she didn't wanna land here." Gazelle agreed
"Well, if you two fink there's gonna be trouble, we could always get back inside an' go somewhere else." Rose suggested. Then she and the Doctor burst out laughing at that.
Gazelle didn't share their amusement. "I don't think it's funny." she told them "If the TARDIS didn't wanna land here, then there's obviously a good reason for it."
"Fair enough." the Doctor shrugged, then looked at their surroundings "I fink we've landed in a cupboard." he observed "Here we go." he led the way to a door at the end of the room. As he opened it, they heard an automated voice state "Open door 15."
They found themselves in a corridor. "Some sort of base." the Doctor remarked "Moon base, sea base, space base. They build these things out of kits."
"Glad we're indoors." Rose said, listening to the wind howling outside "Sounds like a storm out there."
The Doctor opened another door and they heard the automated voice again "Open door 16." They stepped through into another corridor "Human design, you've got a thing about kits."
"So do you." Gazelle reminded him "You've got those model kits."
"True." the Doctor replied "Anyway, this thing is put together like a flatpack wardrobe, only bigger an' easier." They went through another door, door 17 according to the automated voice and found themselves in what looked like a habitation area. "Oh it's a sanctuary base!" the Doctor grinned
"Deep space exploration." Gazelle nodded "And listen, can ya hear that?" she asked the Doctor.
The Doctor listened and heard a faint hum coming from beneath their feet "Yeah, sounds like someone's drilling." he observed
"'Welcome to Hell.'" Rose said, looking at something nearby.
"It's not that bad."
"No, over there." Rose laughed, pointing at the wall. The Time Lords looked round and saw 'Welcome to Hell' graffitied on the wall, along with some ancient-looking symbols.
The Doctor's eyes narrowed "Hold on, what does that say?" he and Gazelle went over to the wall to get a closer look at the symbols.
"That's weird, it's not translating." Gazelle frowned
"But I fought the TARDIS translated everyfink, writing as well." Rose said "We should be seein' English."
"Exactly." the Doctor nodded "An' if if that's not workin' then it means this writin' is old. Very old. Impossibly old. We should find out who's in charge." he stood up and moved to a door "We've gone beyond the reach of the TARDIS' knowledge, not a good move. If someone's lookin, we should.." He opened the door, only to find a bunch of bald-headed aliens with tentacles on their faces and holding balls in their right hands. "Right, hello, sorry." the Doctor chuckled nervously "I was just sayin' nice base."
"We must feed." the aliens said in unison
"You gotta what?"
"We must feed." the aliens repeated and began to move towards the trio.
"Yeah, I fink they mean us!" Rose hollered as they backed away. They all turned around, only to see more of those aliens coming out of other doors, completely surrounding them.
"We must feed. We must feed." the aliens chanted as they advanced on the trio. The Doctor promptly pulled out his sonic screwdriver and pointed it as a weapon, while Gazelle grabbed a chair, pushing Rose behind them. Just as the aliens reached them, they stopped. "We must feed." one said, then shook it's ball and tapped it a few times. "You, if you are hungry." it said
The Time Lords dropped their defensive stance "Sorry?" the Doctor questioned
"We apologise." the lead alien said "Electromagnetics have interfered with speech systems. Would you like some refreshment?"
The trio were about to reply when another door opened and three Humans came in, carrying guns. "What the hell?" one of them, an older man asked, staring in bafflement at the trio "How did.." he went over to them and looked at them for a moment, then activated a comm device on his wrist "Captain, you're not gonna believe this. We've got people. Out of nowhere. I mean real people. I mean three living people, just standing here right in front of me."
"Don't be stupid. That's impossible." another man's voice came over the comm
"I suggest telling them that." the man retorted
"But you're a sorta space base." Rose pointed out "You must 'ave visitors now an' then. It can't be that impossible."
"You're telling me you don't know where you are?" the man stared
"Haven't a clue." Gazelle replied. She'd tried to check the TARDIS monitor before she'd left, but there was some sort of interference and it wouldn't work.
"More fun that way." the Doctor grinned
Just then, a woman's voice came over the loudspeakers "Stand by, everyone. Buckle down. We've got incoming. And it's a big one. Quake point 5 on it's way."
The whole place began to quiver and sirens blared. The man raced over to a door and pulled it open "Through here. Now." he urged "Quickly! Come on, move!" the trio and the other guards followed him through the door. As they went down the corridor, the place shook so violently, a pipe burst and steam began spewing out of it. "Keep moving!" the man urged "Come on, move it!" he ushered the time travellers down the corridor and into another room.
This room appeared to be a control room, where a bunch of men and two women were busy working. The shaking subsided and the Humans all looked up at the time travellers in surprise. "Oh my God, you meant it." a black man said
"People. Look at that! Real people!" a young woman grinned
"That's us, hooray!" the Doctor smirked
"Yeah, definitely real." Rose said
"We were last time we checked." Gazelle finished "I'm Gazelle, this is the Doctor." she gestured to him "And this is Rose Tyler." she gestured to her.
"Come on, the oxygen must be offline." a young Indian man said, walking over to them "We're hallucinating, they can't be..." he poked the Doctor in the shoulder "No, they're real!"
"Come on, we're in the middle of an alert." the black man said seriously "Danny, strap up, the quake's coming in. Sorry you three, whoever you are. Just hold on, tight!" he advised
"Hold on to what?" Rose asked
"Anything, I don't care. Just hold on." the man replied, so the trio all held on to some railings. "Ood, are we fixed?" the man asked one of the aliens.
"Your kindness is much appreciated" the alien replied
"What's this planet called, anyway?" the Doctor asked
"Now don't be stupid." the other woman replied "It hasn't got a name. How can it have a name?" the Time Lords just looked at her, confused "You really don't know, do you?" the woman frowned
"And impact!" the black man called. The whole place shook violently. It lasted for a second, then calmed down.
The Doctor stood up "Oh well, that wasn't so.." he was cut off as Gazelle pulled him back as the room shook again, even more fiercely this time. Everyone held on for dear life, until at last the quake subsided.
"Ok, that's it." the black man breathed in relief "Everyone all right?" he asked, as the older man got to work extinguishing a small fire that had broken out. "Speak to me, Ida?"
"Yeah, yeah." the other woman replied
"Danny?"
"Fine." the Indian man said
"Toby?"
"Yeah, fine." a young man confirmed
"Scooti?"
"No damage." the younger woman told him
"John?"
"Check!" the older man said as he finished dealing with the fire.
"We're fine thanks. Fine! Don't worry about us." the Doctor grumbled
"Surface caved in." the black man said, checking his computer "I deflected it onto storage five through eight, we've lost 'em completely. Toby, go and check the rocket link."
"That's not my department." Toby protested
"Just do as I say, yeah?" the man retorted, and Toby slouched off to comply.
"Oxygen holding." Ida reported "Internal gravity at 56.6. We should be ok."
Rose frowned as she heard creaking from above. "Never mind the earthquake, that's one hell of a storm." she remarked "What is that, a hurricane?"
"You need an atmosphere for a hurricane." Scooti replied "There's no air out there, it's a complete vacuum."
"Well then, what's causing all that racket?" Gazelle asked
"You're not joking." Ida frowned "You really don't know. Well, introductions! FYI, as they said in the olden days, I'm Ida Scott, science officer." she pointed to the black man " Zachary Cross Flane, acting captain, sir!" she pointed to John "You've met John Jefferson, he's head of security." she pointed to Danny "Danny Bartock, ethics committee."
"Not as boring as it sounds." Danny said
"And that man who just left." Ida continued "That was Toby Zed, archaeology, and this.." she went over to Scooti and patted her shoulders "Scooti Manista, trainee maintenance, and this..." she moved over to a control panel on the wall "This is home." she pulled a lever
"Brace yourselves." Zach warned the time travellers "The sight of it sends some people mad."
A window above them opened to reveal a black hole. The trio's eyes widened at the sight. "That's a black hole!" Rose stared
"This is impossible." Gazelle breathed
"I did warn you." Zach remarked
"We're standing' under a black hole!" the Doctor stated in disbelief
"In orbit." Ida told him
"But we can't be." the Doctor shook his head
"You can see for yourself." Ida confirmed "We're in orbit."
"But we can't be." the Doctor insisted
"This lump of rock is suspended in perpetual geostationary orbit around that black hole without falling in. Discuss"
"An' that's bad, yeah?" Rose questioned
"That's an understatement." Gazelle shook her head
"A black hole's a dead star." the Doctor explained "It collapses in on itself, in an' in an' in, until the matter's so dense an' tight it begins to pull everyfink else in too. Nothing in the universe can escape it. Light, gravity, time, everyfink gets pulled inside. An' crushed."
"So there can't be an orbit?" Rose reasoned "We should be pulled right in?"
"We should be dead." Gazelle confirmed
"And yet, here we are." Ida remarked "Beyond the laws of physics. Welcome on board."
"But if there's no atmosphere out there, what's that?" Rose asked, pointing to a cloud moving towards the black hole.
"Stars breaking up, gas clouds." Ida replied "We have whole solar systems being ripped apart above our heads, before falling into that thing."
"So a bit worse than a storm, yeah?" Rose asked flatly
"Just a bit."
"Just a bit, yeah." Rose muttered, before the base suddenly shook again.
The shake lasted for a moment, then calmed down. Presently, Toby came in with two scrolls tucked under his arm. "The rocket link's fine." he told Zach, who pressed a few buttons on his computer and a hologram of the black hole was displayed for everyone to see.
"That's the black hole." Zach explained "Officially designated K-3-7 Gem 5."
"In the scriptures of the Veltino, this planet's called Krop Tor: the bitter pill." Ida added "And the black hole is supposed to be a mighty demon who was tricked into devouring the whole planet, only to spit it out cos' it was poison."
"'The bitter pill' I like that." Rose smirked
"We're so far out." the Doctor frowned, looking at the hologram thoughtfully "Lost in the drifts of the universe."
"How did ya even get here in the first place?" Gazelle asked Zach
"We flew in." he replied "D'you see?" he brought up a hologram of the planet with a funnel coming out of it "This planet's generating a gravity field. We dunno how, we've no idea. But it's kept in constant balance against the black hole. And the field extends out there.." he gestured to the diagram "As a funnel, a distinct gravity funnel, reaching out into clear space. That was our way in."
"Ya flew down that thing?" Rose smirked "Like a roller coaster."
"By rights, the ship should've been torn apart." Zach said seriously "We lost the captain, which is what put me in charge."
"And you're doing a good job." Ida reassured him
"Yeah, well, needs must." Zach muttered
"But if that gravity funnel closes, there's no way out." Danny piped in
"Oh, we had fun speculating about that." Scooti said cheerfully
"Oh, yeah. That's the word, fun." Danny replied flatly, tapping her on the head with one of Toby's scrolls.
"But that field would take phenomenal amounts or power." the Doctor frowned "I mean, not just big, off the scale! Can I?" he gestured to the computer control pad
"Sure, help yourself." Ida replied, passing it to him.
At that moment, one of the aliens passed Rose a drink. "Your refreshment." it said
"Oh, yeah. Thanks, thank you." Rose took it "Sorry, what was your name?"
"We have no titles, we are as one." the alien replied and turned away.
"Um, what're they called?" Rose asked Danny and Scooti
"Oh, come on!" Danny scoffed "Where you been living? Everyone's got one."
"Well, not me so what are they?" Rose asked again
"They're the Ood." Danny told her
"The Ood?"
"The Ood." he nodded
"Well, that's... Ood." Rose sniggered
"Very Ood." Danny smirked "But handy. They work the mineshaft, all the drilling and stuff, supervision and maintenance. They're born for it. Basic slave race."
"You've got slaves?!" Rose stared
"Don't start. She's one of that lot." Scooti smirked "Friends of the Ood."
"Well maybe I am, yeah!" Rose retorted, disgusted "Since when did Humans need slaves?"
"But the Ood offer themselves." Danny defended "If you don't give them orders, they just pine away and die."
Rose turned to one of the Ood "Seriously? You like being ordered about?" she questioned
"It is all we crave." the Ood replied
"Why's that, then?"
"We have nothing else in life."
"Yeah, well, I used to fink like that. A long time ago."
Meanwhile, the Doctor finished meddling with the controls "There you go, d'ya see?" he asked, gesturing to the computer "To generate that gravity field and the funnel, you'd need a power souce wiv an inverted self-extrapolating reflex of six to the power six every six seconds."
"That's a lot of sixes." Rose remarked, joining them again.
"The number of the beast." Gazelle muttered
"And it's impossible." the Doctor said
"It took us two years to work that out." Zach stared
"I'm very good." the Doctor grinned
"And not very modest." Gazelle nudged him in the shoulder, while he just winked at her.
"But that's why we're here." Ida said "This power source is ten miles below, through solid rock. Point Zero. We're drilling down to try and find it."
"It's giving off readings of over 90 statts on the blazen scale." Zach added
"It could revolutionise modern science." Ida said
"We could use it to fuel the Empire." John pondered
"Or start a war." the Doctor said darkly
"I'd go for the first one." Gazelle muttered. Something about this planet rubbed both Time Lords the wrong way. They both felt that the Humans should have left it well alone.
"It's buried beneath us." Toby said cryptically "In the darkness, waiting."
"What's your job? Chief dramatist?" Rose chuckled
"Well, whatever it is down there, it's not a natural phenomena." Toby mused "This planet once supported life, aeons ago, before the Human race had even learned to walk."
"We saw that writing on the wall." Gazelle said "Was that you?"
Toby nodded "I copied it from fragments we've found unearthed by the drilling." he explained "But I can't translate it."
"No, neither can we." the Doctor said "An' that's saying somefink."
"There was some sort of civilisation." Toby continued "They buried something. And now it's reaching out, calling us in."
"And you came." the Doctor grinned
"How could we not?" Ida defended
"So, when it comes down to it, why did you come here?" the Doctor remarked as the hologram was switched off "Why d'you do that? Why? I'll tell ya why, because it was there. Brilliant!" he grinned goofily "Excuse me, er, Zach, was it?"
"That's me."
"Just stand there, cos' I'm gonna hug you. Is that alright?"
"S'pose so." Zach grunted
"Here we go, comin' in." the Doctor hugged Zach "Oh, Human beings, you are amazing!" he beamed "Ha!" he pulled away from Zach "Thank you."
"Not at all."
"But all the same." Gazelle said seriously "You should get back in ya ship and leave this planet right now. "
"You can talk!" Ida scoffed "And how the hell did you get here?"
"Oh, we've got this... um, this ship. It's hard to explain." the Doctor waved her off "It just sorta appears."
"We can show ya." Rose suggested "We parked down the corridor from uh, what's it called? habitation area.."
"Three." Gazelle confirmed
Zach's eyes widened "D'you mean storage six?"
"Uh, it was a bit of a cupboard, yeah." the Doctor nodded, then he suddenly remembered something "Storage six, but you said..."
"Storage five to eight." Gazelle breathed in horror. She and the Doctor shared a wide-eyed look, then they both bolted from the room and raced off down the corridor.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Rose called to the Time Lords as she ran after them
Neither of them answered, the Doctor just opened a door and they sped through the canteen area they'd been in earlier then began to open the door to the corridor they'd landed in. "Grr, come on!" the Doctor growled, as the door didn't unlock fast enough for him. Once they'd gone through the corridor, the Doctor hurriedly tried to open the door to the storage room, but it wouldn't budge "It can't be." he muttered desperately
Gazelle, meanwhile, looked through the door's porthole and her face paled. "Doctor, look." she said urgently. The Doctor did so, and his face fell too.
"What's wrong? What it is?" Rose asked, catching up with them "The TARDIS is in there, what's happened?"
"The TARDIS is gone." the Doctor breathed in shock "The earthquake. This section collapsed."
"But it's gotta be out there somewhere." Rose protested, going to look out the porthole.
"Look down." Gazelle instructed. Rose did so and saw a massive hole in the ground.
The trio returned to the control room. "The ground gave way." the Doctor said to Zach "Our TARDIS must've fallen right into the heart of the planet, but you've got robot drills heading that way."
"We can't divert the drilling." Zach told him
"The TARDIS is our home." Gazelle said "We need her. She's all the Doctor and I have got, apart from each other. Please, help us."
"We've only got the resources to dig one central shaft down to the power source, and that's it." Zach said firmly "No diversions, no distractions, no exceptions. Your machine is lost. All I can do is offer you all a lift if we ever get to leave this place. And that is the end of it." he walked away.
"I'll, uh, put you all on the duty roster." Ida said "We could use someone on laundry." she joked, trying to lift their spirits, but it didn't work. She went off after Zach, the Ood following, leaving the time travellers alone.
Gazelle suddenly remembered something. "Oh, God. I've got nothing!" she breathed
"What? the Doctor asked her
"My screwdriver, psychic paper, money, they're all in my old jacket, in the TARDIS. I've got nothing on me!" Gazelle told him, putting her hands into her empty pockets to prove her point.
The Doctor hugged her. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." he whispered, gently stroking her hair. "It's all my fault." And it was. They were now all stuck on this planet, Gazelle literally had nothing except the clothes she was wearing and it was all because he had let his curiosity get the better of him. "I've trapped you both here." he sighed, looking over at Rose.
"No, don't worry about me." Rose encouraged. The base shook again. "Ok, we're on a planet that shouldn't exist, underneath a black 'ole wiv no way out." she sighed "Yeah, changed my mind. Start worryin' about me."
The Doctor motioned for her to come over, and they shared a group hug.
Later, the trio were in the canteen. The Doctor and Gazelle were both looking at the writing on the wall, while Rose was getting ready to get some food. "Danny, check the temperature in Ood habitation." Zach ordered over the speakers "It seems to be rising." Danny got up to do so, while Rose went over to where the Ood were serving.
"Help yourself." Scooti told her "Just don't have the green. Or the blue." she went off back to her table.
Rose grabbed a tray and went to a serving hatch "Um, bit of that, thanks." she pointed to something.
The Ood spooned some food onto her tray "Would you like sauce with that?" he asked
"I'll 'ave a go, yeah." Rose shrugged. The Ood poured something out of a bottle onto the tray. "I did that job once. I was a dinner lady." she smirked, remembering her time undercover at Deffry Vale school "Not than I'm callin' you a lady. Although I don't know, ya might be. D'ya actually get paid, though? Do they give you money?"
"The Beast and his armies shall rise from the pit to make war against God." the Ood said
Rose stared "I'm sorry?"
The Ood shook his orb "Apologies. I said, I hope you enjoy your meal."
"Yeah." Rose muttered and went off to join the Time Lords, who had both sat down at a table by the window. Suddenly, the lights flickered.
"Zach, we got a problem?" Ida asked into her wrist comm
"No more than usual." Zach answered "Got the Scarlet system burning up. Might be worth a look."
"You might wanna see this." Ida said to the time travellers "Moment in history." she pulled a lever and the window above them opened to show the view above. "There, on the edge." Ida pointed to a stream of red light, going into the black hole "That red cloud. That used to be the scarlet system. Home to the Palluchi, a mighty civilisation, spanning a billion years. Disappearing forever, their planets and suns consumed." the last of the red cloud was enveloped by the black hole. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have witnessed it's passing." Ida finished, and went to close the window again
"Uh, no, could ya leave it open? Just for a bit? the Doctor asked "I won't go mad, I promise."
"How would you know?" Ida asked him
"Because I'll stop him." Gazelle told her
Ida accepted that and turned to her colleaques "Scooti, check the lockdown. Jefferson, sign off the airlock seals for me." Scooti and John went off to do their tasks, while Ida went off down another corridor. The time travellers were left alone.
"I've seen films an' things, yeah." Rose said "They say black 'oles are like gateways to another universe."
"Not that one." the Doctor replied "It just eats."
"Long way from home." Rose sighed
"Go that way." the Doctor said, pointing to the stars "Turn right, keep goin' for, er, about 500 light years, then you'll reach the Earth."
Rose pulled out her phone. "No signal." she remarked "That's the first time we've gone outta range. Mind you, even I could.. what would I tell 'er?"
"How about 'I love you'?" Gazelle suggested
Rose saw how defeated both Time Lords looked "Can ya build another TARDIS?" she asked them
"They were grown, not built." the Doctor murmured "An' wiv our home planet gone, we're kinda stuck."
"Well, could be worse." Rose offered "This lot said they'd give us a lift."
"And what do we do then?" Gazelle asked her "The TARDIS was our home, we've got nothing left now, except each other."
"Well, we could find a planet, get jobs, live our lives." Rose suggested "Same as the rest of the universe."
"I've 'ave to settle down." the Doctor stared "Get a house or somefink. A proper house wiv doors an' things. Carpets. Me, livin' in a house!" he exclaimed "Now that is terrifying."
"You'd 'ave get a mortgage." Rose teased
"No!" the Doctor protested
"Oh, yes!" Rose smirked
"I'm dying." the Doctor groaned "That's is, I'm dying, it's all over."
"Well, at least you've still got ya screwdriver and paper." Gazelle reminded him
"I know, I'm sorry." the Doctor sighed "At least we've still got each other." he kissed her cheek.
"Maybe we could share a house." Rose said "We could be flatmates."
They were silent for a moment. "We promised Jackie we'd always take you home." the Doctor said to Rose
"Everyone leaves 'ome in the end." Rose reassured him
"Yeah, but getting stuck on the other side of the universe isn't the same thing." Gazelle told her "She's always gonna be waiting for you, and now it looks like she might never see you again."
"I know." Rose sighed. Truth be told, she sometimes forgot about her mother, such was the thrill of the travelling. "Maybe when we get back to Earth, my phone'll work. I can talk to 'er then." she thought positively "An' we'll be alright, the Three Amigos." she tried to lift their spirits. Just them, Rose's mobile rang. She pulled it out, thinking that maybe she'd got a signal again. She answered it, only to hear a deep voice say "He is awake." Rose promptly slammed the phone down in confusion.
"Problem?" Gazelle asked
"Dunno." Rose mumbled "Somefink about 'im being awake."
"Who?" the Doctor asked
"The Ood said somefink about a beast rising." Rose pondered
"Hmm, I fink we'd better take a closer look at the Ood." the Doctor said, and the trio made their way to Ood habitation.
"Evening!" the Doctor said to Danny when they arrived
"Only us." Rose said brightly
"The mysterious trio." Danny remarked "How are ya, then? Settling in?"
"Yeah, sorry, straight to business." the Doctor replied "The Ood, how do they communicate? I mean wiv each other?"
"Oh, just empaths." Danny shrugged "There's a low-level telepathic field connecting them. Not that that does them much good. They're basically a herd race, like cattle."
"This telepathic field, could it pick up messages?" Gazelle asked him
"Cos' I was 'aving dinner." Rose explained "An' one of the Ood said somefink, well, odd."
"Hmm, an odd Ood." Danny said nonchalantly
"An' then I got somefink else on my, er, communicator thing."
"Oh be fair." Danny retorted, not really bothered by what she was saying "We've got whole star systems burning up above us. There's all sorts of stray transmissions. Probably nothing." the trio looked at him, not convinced "Look, if there was something wrong, it would show." Danny insisted "We monitor the telepathic field. It's the only way to look after them. They're so stupid, they don't even tell us when they're ill."
"Montor the field, that's this thing?" the Doctor asked, gesturing to a computer screen.
"Yeah." Danny replied "But like I said, it's low-level telepathy. They only register basic 5."
"Well, they're not now." Gazelle said, looking at the screen "It's at basic 10, now."
"20." the Doctor added, watching the number on the screen increasing. Rose, meanwhile, watched the Ood as they all lifted their heads together. "They've gone up to basic 30." the Doctor told Danny
"But they can't!" Danny stared in disbelief
"Doctor, Gazelle, the Ood." Rose said, catching their attention, as the Ood all turned to look at them. "What does basic 30 mean?" she asked Danny
"Well, it means that they're shouting." Danny replied "Screaming inside their heads."
"Or somefink's shouting at them." the Doctor pondered
"But where's it coming from?" Danny wandered "What's it saying? What did it say to you?" he asked Rose
"Somefink about the 'Beast' an' the 'pit'." she replied
"What about your communicator, what did that say?"
"He is awake." Rose told him
"And you will worship him." the Ood said in unison
"What the hell?" Danny stared
"He is awake." the Doctor said to the Ood
"And you will worship him." the Ood repeated
"Worship who?" the Doctor asked "Who's talking to you? Who is it?"
The Ood didn't reply, they all just looked at the quartet. So the Doctor and Rose went into the pen for a closer look, while Gazelle stayed with Danny to keep an eye on the basic levels on the computer.
Suddenly, the room shook, knocking everyone to the floor. "Emergency hull breach. Emergency hull breach." the computer reported.
"Which section?" Danny asked into his wrist comm
"Everyone, evacuate 11 to 13." Zach ordered "We've got a breech! The base is open, repeat, the base is open!" The Doctor, Gazelle and the Humans quickly raced through the corridors to safety. "I can't cantain the oxygen field!" We're gonna loose it!" Zach said urgently.
They raced into a sealed corridor where Ida, Toby, John and his two guards were, while the computer reported that the breach was sealed. "Everyone all right?" the Doctor asked them all "What happened, what was it?"
"Hull breach." Jefferson replied "We were open to the elements. Another couple of minutes, we'd be inspecting that black hole at close quarters."
"That wasn't a quake, what caused it?" the Doctor asked, while Gazelle and Rose helped Toby off the floor.
"We've lost sections 11 to 13." Zach said over the comms "Everyone all right?"
"We've got everyone here except Scooti." John replied into his comm "Scooti, report." he recived no answer "Scooti Manista, this an order. Report." Once again, no answer.
"She's alright." Zach called "I've picked up her bio-chip, she's in habitation three. Better go and check. If she's not responding, she might be unconscious. But how about that, eh? We survived."
"Habitation three, come on." John panted "I don't often say this, but I think we could all do with a drink." he, Ida, Danny and the guards all walked away.
"Are you alright? What happened?" Gazelle asked Toby, who was looking at his hands shakily.
"I dunno." he replied "I was working, and then I can't remember. All that noise, the room was falling apart, there was no air.."
"Come on, up ya get." Rose encouraged, helping Toby to his feet "Come an' have some protein 1." she led him down the corridor after the others.
"Oh, look, you've gone native!" the Doctor smirked
"Oi, don't knock it, it's nice." Rose retorted "Protein one wiv just a dash of 3."
"Definitely gone native." Gazelle smiled, as she and the Doctor followed them.
When they reached the canteen, there was no sign of Scooti "Check habitation four." Ida called into her comm
"There's no sign, but the bio chip says she's in this area." John said
"Scooti, please respond." Ida called urgently into her comm "If you can hear this, please respond! Habitation six?"
"Nowhere here." John sighed, then spoke into his comm "Zach, we've got a problem, Scooti's still missing."
"But it says habitation three." Zach replied
"Yeah, well, that's where I am." Jefferson retorted "And I'm telling you, she's not here."
The Doctor noticed Gazelle looking at the open ceiling with a look of horror on her face. He looked up too, and his face paled "We've found her." he said sadly
Everyone else looked up. "Oh my God!" Rose gasped. There was Scooti, floating outside, dead.
"Sorry. I'm so sorry." the Doctor breathed
"The poor girl." Gazelle sighed
The Humans all stared in shock at Scooti's floating body "Captain." Mr Jefferson said grimly into his comm "Report officer Scootori Manista, PKD... deceased. 43-k, 2.1."
"She was 20. 20 years old." Ida breathed. She went over to the lever and closed the window.
"'For how should man die better than facing fearful odds.'" John quoted solemnly "'For the ashes of his father. And the temples of his gods.'"
Suddenly, the familiar hum of the drill stopped. "It's stopped." Ida murmured. Then there was a faint, clashing echo.
"What was that?" Rose asked "What was it?"
"The drill." the Doctor replied
"We've stopped drilling. We've made it." Ida realised "Point Zero."
The base was soon bustling with activity. Zach ordered all non-essential Ood to be confined, while Ida prepared to go down into the shaft. "Capsule established." she announced, now dressed in a spacesuit "All systems functioning. The mine shaft is go. Bring systems online now."
The Doctor approached, dressed in a spacesuit too. "Reporting as a volunteer for the expeditionary force, sir!" he said to Zach
"Doctor, this is breaking every single protocol." Zach sighed "We don't even know who you are."
"Yeah, but you trust me, don't ya?" the Doctor replied "An' ya can't let Ida go down there on her own. Go on. Look me in the eye. Yes, you do, I can see it, trust."
"I should be going down." Zach countered
"The captain doesn't lead the mission." the Doctor told him "He stays here, in charge."
"Not much good at, am I?" Zach sighed, then he conceded "Positions! We're going down in two! Everyone, positions!"
The Doctor went over to Gazelle and Rose "Oxygen, nitro-balance, gravity. It's been ages since I wore one of these." he said
"I want you back in one piece." Gazelle told him "You got that?"
"Yes, ma'am." the Doctor grinned, and Gazelle kissed him, then she helped him put his helmet on.
"It's funny, cos' people back 'ome fink that space travel's gonna be all.. whizzin' about, teleports, anti-gravity." Rose mused "But it's not, is it? It's tough."
"I'll see ya both later." the Doctor said
"Not if we see you first." Rose smirked and gave him a good luck hug. The Doctor winked at both women, then joined Ida in the capsule. John shut the door and gave them both a salute.
"Capsule active." Zach announced over the comms "Counting down in 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Release."
The capsule began to descend. The Doctor waved at Gazelle and Rose. Rose waved back, while Gazelle blew a kiss at him. They watched until the capsule was out of sight, then went over to a computer screen monitoring it's descent. Inside, the Doctor and Ida held on. "You've gone beyond the oxygen field. You're on ya own." Zach told them over the comms, and they switched their oxygen tanks on.
On the base, Rose took a hand comm "Don't forget to breathe." she told them "Breathing's good."
"Rose, stay off the comm." Zach scolded
"She's with me. And if I say she can use the comm, then she can use the comm. End of discussion." Gazelle told him firmly
"Thanks." Rose smirked
"Any time." Gazelle smiled at her, then they returned to watching the computer screen,
In the capsule, the Doctor and Ida were forced to hold on, as the capsule shook violently.
Gazelle and Rose watched the screen show the capsule arriving at Point Zero, when suddenly, the whole base shook. Gazelle took the comm "Doctor? Ida? Can ya hear me? Are you alright?"
"It's alright. We made it." the Doctor replied "We're getting out of the capsule now." he opened the door and he and Ida stepped out into a dark cave.
"What does it look like down there?" Gazelle asked over the comm
"It's hard to tell." the Doctor replied, squinting through the darkness "Some sort of cave, cavern. It's massive."
"Well, this should help. Gravity globe." Ida said, producing a white globe. She threw it into the air and it hovered in mid-air, illuminating the cavern, which was filled with ancients sculptures "Oh my God, that's beautiful." Ida stared
"You can tell Toby, we've found his civilisation." the Doctor said into his comm. Then he noticed what looked like a temple entrance.
"Oi, Toby. Sounds like you've got plenty of work." Rose called cheerfully to Toby
"Good, good, good." Toby muttered, not really paying attention. Gazelle frowned as she watched him. He seemed rather twitchy and nervous.
"Concentrate now, people." Zach ordered over the comms "Keep on the mission. Ida, what about the power source."
"We're close." Ida replied as she and the Doctor ventured through the cavern "Energy signature indicates north-north-west. Are you getting pictures up there?"
"There's too much interference. We're in your hands." Zach replied
"Well, we've come this far. There's no turning back." Ida said, as she and the Doctor walked through the temple entrance
"Oh, did you 'ave to?" the Doctor grumbled "'No turning back'? That's almost as bad as 'Nothing can go wrong', or 'This is gonna be the best Christmas Walford's ever 'ad'."
"Have you finished?" Ida asked him flatly
"Yeah, I've finished." the Doctor shrugged, and they walked on.
On the base, the woman heard Danny's voice over the comms "Captain, sir, there's something happening with the Ood.
"What're they doing?" Zach asked
"They're staring at me." Danny replied "I've told them to stop, but they won't."
"Danny, you're a big boy." Zach replied exasperated "I think you can take being stared at."
"But the telepathic field, sir. It's at basic 100. I've checked, there isn't any fault. It's definitely 100."
"But that's impossible." Zach said in disbelief
"What's basic 100 mean?" Rose asked John
"They should be dead." Danny said
"Basic 100's brain death." John told the women
"But they're safe? They're not actually moving?" Zach asked
"No sir." Danny replied
"Keep watching them." Zach ordered "And you, Jefferson, keep a guard on the Ood."
"Officer at arms." Jefferson ordered, grabbing a rifle, while his female subordinate did the same.
"Ya can't fire a gun in 'ere." Rose pointed out "What if ya hit a wall?"
"Firing stock 15." Jefferson replied "Only impacts on organics. Keep watch." he ordered the guard "Guard them."
"Yes sir." she replied, keepin an eye on the Ood.
"Is everyfink alright up there?" the Doctor asked
"Yep, all F.A.B." Gazelle told him, not wanting him to start worrying and lose focus
"It's fine." Zach added
"Great!" Danny piped in
Ida and the Doctor ventured onwards until they reach a huge circular hatch in the ground. "We've found somefink." the Doctor reported "It looks like metal, like some sort of seal." he put a foot on it "I've got a nasty feeling the word might be 'trapdoor'." he frowned "Not a good word, trapdoor. Never met a trapdoor I liked."
"The edge is covered with those symbols." Ida observed, running her torch over the edge
"D'you think it opens?" Zach asked
"That's what trapdoors tend to do." the Doctor replied
"Trapdoor doesn't do it justice. It's massive, Zach." Ida added, walking around the hatch "About 30 feet in diameter."
"Any way of opening it?"
"Don't know." Ida replied "I can't see any sort of mechanism."
"I s'pose that's the writing." the Doctor mused "It tells us what to do. The letters that defy translation."
"Toby, did you get anywhere decoding it?" Zach asked over the comms
Rose turned to Toby, who was curled up the floor with his head buried in his hands. "Toby, they need to know that lettering, does it make any sorts sense?" she asked him
"I know what it says." Toby replied, not lifting his head.
"Ok, could you tell them, then, please?" Gazelle asked cautiously, concerned by Toby's behaviour.
"When did you work that out?" John asked Toby
"It doesn't matter." Rose waved him off "Just tell them!" she said to Toby.
Toby lifted his head. The others stared. His face was covered in the same symbols that were on the trapdoor, and his eyes were blood red "These are the words of the Beast." he said in a deep, menacing voice "And he has woken. He is the heart that beats in the darkness, he is the blood that will never cease. And now he will rise."
Gazelle pulled Rose back, while Jefferson aimed his rifle at Toby. "Officer, you will stand down." he ordered "Stand down!"
"What is it?" the Doctor asked over the comm "What's he done? What's happening? Gazelle? Rose? What's going on?"
"John? Report, report!" Zach called urgently
"Those symbols, they're all over his face." Gazelle reported "I think something's possessing him."
"Officer, you've compromised security." John said, keeping his gun aimed at Toby "You will stand down and be confined immediately!"
Toby walked closer to him "Mr Jefferson, tell me, sir." he smirked "Did your wife ever forgive you?"
John looked freaked by the question "I don't know what you mean." he lied
"Let me tell you a secret." Toby gloated "She never did."
"Officer, you stand down and be confined." John recovered
"Or what?" Toby baited
"Under condition red, I'm authorised to shoot you." John retorted, cocking his gun.
"But how many can you kill?" Toby smirked. His eyes glowed, then he roared and the symbols began to float off him and into the three Ood that were nearby. Toby dropped to the floor.
John and the women turned to the Ood. Their eyes were now glowing red. "We are the Legion of the Beast." they said in unison, and Gazelle had a bad feeling that the Ood that Danny was supervising were affected too.
"Gazelle, what is it?" the Doctor asked into his comm, but he received no answer "I'm going back up." he told Ida and began to walk away.
The three Ood raised their orbs "The Legion shall be be many, and the Legion shall be few." they said
"Doctor, it's the Ood." Gazelle said into the comm "Whatever possessed Toby's passed onto them."
"Sir, we have contamination of the livestock." John said into his comm "They won't listen to us."
"He has woven himself through the fabric of your life." the Ood continued "Since the dawn of time. Some may call him Abbadon. Some may call him Krop Tor. Some may call him Satan or Lucifer. The Bringer of Despair. The Deathless Prince. The Bringer of Night. These are the words that shall set him free." they began to advance on Gazelle and the Humans, who all backed away, Jefferson and the guard keeping their guns trained on the Ood.
"Back up to the door!" John urged
"I shall become manifest." the Ood continued "I shall walk in the light."
"To the door!" John hollered
"And my Legions shall swarm across worlds." the Ood continued, as Gazelle and the guard tried to open the door.
In the cavern, the ground suddenly started shaking "Doctor! It's opening!" Ida called, and sure enough, the trapdoor was opening.
"I am the sin and the temptation and the desire." the Ood recited as they continued to advance on the trapped group "I am the pain, and the loss, and the death of hope."
"Get that door open!" John hollered. Gazelle and the guard tried, but it was wedged solid.
In the cavern, Ida and the Doctor could only watch as the trapdoor opened.
"I have been imprisoned for eternity." the Ood continued "But no more. The pit is open and I am free!"
To be continued...
Author's notes: Right, so that's The Impossible Planet done. Although this two-parter is highly praised by fans, it's given me a few headaches on how to adapt. I'm kinda making this up as I'm going along. I realised when planning this story that Gazelle having a sonic screwdriver would make this two-parter a bit difficult, so I wrote it in that she left it in the TARDIS. I was able to set it up last chapter, with her jacket getting damaged by the Wire, forcing her to get a new one, thus making it possible for her to be without her sonic. One thing I noticed about this two-parter, the crew refer to each to each other by their first names except for Mr Jefferson, so I've amended that by using his first name. Anyway, see ya in part two!