NicoleR85: thanks!
Jenna wandered back to her room wanting to swap her 50's regalia for her normal clothing. She opened the door, walked in and closed it behind her. She then crossed the room to her small wardrobe and pulled out a forest green dress and a pair of black leggings. Jenna turned around and was startled by the ginger haired young woman with violet eyes sitting on her bed.
"Sorry to startle you", she said.
"That's ok" Jenna set the clothes down on her chair "You're the next Naiyah".
2nd Naiyah nodded "that's me", she confirmed.
"The previous you said you'd be turning up soon", the 19 year old told her.
"That I did. Now come on. I have something to show you", the Time Lady hopped off the bed and hurried out of the room. Jenna ran after her.
"Sorry!" she said to the Doctor when she almost bowled him over in the attempt to keep up with Naiyah.
"That's ok. Where are you off to in such a hurry?" he asked.
"Trying to catch up to Niayah", Jenna replied "she's fast".
"Naiyah?" the Doctor repeated, recalling how she seemed to be talking to someone at Christmas on the balcony, someone only she could see. He had meant to ask her about it but it had slipped his mind until now.
"Yeah…I've been meaning to tell you this but I have seen her. On multiple occasions. She talks to me, tells me things", Jenna explained "Look, I promise I'll tell you everything but first I gotta go catch up with her".
"Uh, sure. That's fine", the Time Lord said.
"Thanks! See you later!" he watched her run off down the corridor.
Jenna found Naiyah outside the door with the Time Lady's name engraved on it. "About time", she remarked before moving through the door like she did last time. The brunette pushed the door open and stepped into the room.
On the second podium was a TARDIS blue book, thicker than the red one and titled Secundus. "Your book", Jenna stated.
"Yup", the Time Lady confirmed.
"It's thicker", the 19 year old remarked.
"That's because I lasted longer than my previous body", Naiyah informed her "centuries in fact". She went to open up the book when Jenna's phone started to ring.
"Sorry, Naiyah", she said, taking it out "its Rose. This won't take long" Jenna answered it "Hey Rose. You ok?"
"I'm fine, much better thank you. I was wondering if I could possibly come back? I just want to get back out there, see the universe", Rose said.
"I don't see why not, there's more than enough room for all three of us", Jenna said.
"That's true", Rose agreed.
"So pack a bag and we'll be with you as soon as we can", Jenna said.
"As long as I'm not waiting a whole year for you guys", Rose said jokingly. With those words Jenna got a flash of a ginger haired woman wearing some sort of police uniform. "Jenna? You still there?"
Jenna shook her head to get rid of the image "yeah I'm still here", she said "and don't worry, I'll make sure we land in the right time".
"Ok. See you soon" Rose said and hung up. Jenna put her phone away and turned to Naiyah and was surprised to see her gone.
"I guess we'll read your book later then", she murmured and left the room. Jenna headed back to her own and changed out of her 50's outfit. She was pulling on her ankle boots when there was a knock on the door.
"Come in!" she called. The door opened and the Doctor stepped in.
"Is this a good time to have that talk?" he asked.
"Its as good a time as any. Didn't get much of a chance to speak with 2nd Naiyah before Rose called. She would like to come back", Jenna replied.
"We can go get her after we talk", the Doctor said.
"Ok, I suppose I better start at the beginning. I first saw Naiyah…"
The Doctor, Jenna and Rose stepped out of the TARDIS and looked at the box worriedly. The landing had been anything but smooth. "What's wrong with her?" Jenna asked.
"I don't know she's sort of…queasy. Indigestion, like she didn't want to land", the Doctor replied.
"Oh, if you think there's going to be trouble, we could always get back inside and go somewhere else…" Rose said seriously. She and the Doctor burst out laughing at the absurd notion. Jenna just shook her head at them.
The Doctor stopped laughing and looked at their surroundings "I think…we've landed inside a cupboard! Here we go!" he pushed open and they enter another part of the base.
Open door 15
"Some sort of base…moon base, sea base, space base…they build these things out of kits", the Time Lord continued.
Close door 15
"Glad we're indoors. Sounds like a storm out there", Rose said listening.
Open door 16
"Human design. You've got a thing about kits. This place was put together like a flat pack wardrobe, only bigger. And easier", the Doctor said as they walked. They went through another door into a large room. It appeared to be some sort of canteen area.
Open door 17
"Oh, it's a sanctuary base!" the Doctor said striding into the middle of the room.
Close door 17
"Deep Space exploration. We've gone way out"
"Sounds like someone's drilling", Jenna said hearing the hum of drills.
"Welcome to hell", Rose said reading the words that was written on a wall.
"Oh, it's not that bad!" the Doctor said turning to her.
Rose laughs and points to the wall with writing on it "No, over there"
Jenna and the Doctor turned to see the words WELCOME TO HELL written on the wall. Underneath those three words was a small block of symbols. The Doctor went over to the wall and peered closely at it "That's weird, it won't translate", he said.
"But I thought the Tardis translated everything, writing as well", Rose pointed out.
"It should do" Jenna said moving over to have a closer look at the symbols as well "but as its not, then it must be old, very old"
"Impossibly old", the Doctor agreed standing up, Jenna and Rose following him over to another door "We've gone beyond the reach of the TARDIS' knowledge" he turned the wheel to open the door "Not a good move. And if someone's lucky enough…"
Open door 19
The trio were startled when the door opened to reveal several aliens with tentacles hanging down from their faces, each holding a white globe in their hands. "Right! Hello! Sorry. Uh…I was just saying, uh…nice base", the Doctor stuttered trying to regain his composure at seeing those aliens.
"We must feed" the aliens said together
"You've got to what?" the Doctor asked.
"We must feed"
"Yeah. I think they mean us", Rose said. They back away as the aliens advanced.
"We must feed"
The trio made a break for another door when more tentacled aliens stepped through the door.
"We must feed. We must feed. We must feed. We must feed"
Yet another door opened and more aliens came in. The Doctor, Rose and Jenna were forced to back up against a wall. The Doctor gets out his sonic screwdriver while the girls grabbed chairs and held them in front of themselves.
"We must feed. We must feed. We must feed. We must feed. We must feed"
Another fine mess we've got ourselves in Jenna thought tightening her grip on the chair.
"We must feed" the Ood closest to them said. It shakes and taps the orb in its hand "You, if you are hungry"
The Doctor lowered his sonic, confused "Sorry?"
"We apologise. Electromagnetics have interfered with speech systems" Rose and Jenna lowered their chairs "Would you like some refreshment?"
"Uhm… "
Open door 18 a door opens and an older man, Jefferson, steps through, flanked by two others holding guns.
"What the hell…? How did…?" he approaches the trio staring as if he couldn't believe they were actually there. Jefferson lifted his arm and spoke into his communications device "Captain…you're not going to 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" came a reply through the device.
"I suggest telling them that", Jefferson said, his eyes still fixed on the trio in front of him.
"But you're a sort of space base. You must have visitors now and then. It can't be that impossible", Rose spoke up.
"You're telling me you don't know where you are?" Jefferson asked.
"No idea", Jenna replied.
"More fun that way", the Doctor added with a grin.
"Stand by, everyone. Buckle down. We have incoming. And it's a big one. Quake point five on its way" a woman's voice said over the tannoy. Suddenly the base started to shake and tremble. Jefferson ran over to a door and opened it.
"Through here, now. Quickly, come on! Move!" the Doctor, Jenna and Rose waste no time following him and the other two guards. They all run along another corridor which is also shaking. Rose nearly fell over if it wasn't for Jenna quickly grabbing her.
They all enter through another door, nearly falling over each other to get into the room. The rest of the crew who'd been busying working before they came in, stopped and looked at the newcomers in surprise.
"Oh, my God. You meant it", Zach said.
"People! Look at that, real people!" Scooti, the woman who'd spoken over the tannoy, exclaimed.
"That's us. Hooray!" the Doctor said cheerfully.
Rose and Jenna smiles at all of them "Yeah, definitely real. My name's Rose….Rose Tyler, this is Jenna Smith" the brunette waved "And, and this is the Doctor"
Danny strode over to the trio "Come on…the oxygen must be offline. We're hallucinating. They can't be…." he reached out and poked the Doctor's arm "No, they're real".
"Come on, we're in the middle of an alert!" Zach said impatiently "Danny, strap up. The quake's coming in! Impact in thirty seconds!" the seconds count down on a computer screen "Sorry you three, whoever you are. Just…hold on, tight"
"Hold on to what?" Rose asked.
"Anything. I don't care. Just hold on" he turned to one of the tentacled aliens that was in the room with them "Ood, are we fixed?"
"Your kindness in this emergency is much appreciated", the Ood replied.
"What's this planet called, anyway?" the Doctor asked as he grabbed hold of a set of railings along with Rose and Jenna.
"Now, don't be stupid. It hasn't got a name. How could it have a name?" the Doctor raised his eyebrows "You really don't know, do you?" Ida asked.
"And…impact!" Zach shouted. The second he said that, the entire base shook violently. Once it was all over the Doctor started to stand when Jenna grabbed his wrist.
"It's not over", she said. And sure enough the entire base shook again, this time much more violently. Eventually it stopped leaving everyone to recover from the quake.
"Okay, that's it. Everyone all right?" Zach asked. The rest of the crew answered him assuring him that they were fine.
"You two ok?" the Doctor asked both girls.
"Fine", Rose replied.
"Me too", Jenna answered.
"The surface caved in", Zach stated bringing up graphics on the screen for them to all see "I deflected it onto storage five through eight. We've lost them completely. Toby, go and check the rocket link"
"That's not my department"
"Just do as I say, yeah?" Toby grudgingly leaves the room.
"Oxygen holding. Internal gravity 56.6. We should be okay", Ida said checking these readings on a monitor.
"Never mind the earthquake, that's, that's one hell of a storm. What is that, a hurricane?" Rose asked.
"You'd need an atmosphere for a hurricane. There's no air out there. It's a complete vacuum"
"So then what's shaking the roof?" Jenna questioned.
"You're not joking. You really don't know. Well introductions. FYI, as they said in the olden days. I'm Ida Scott, science officer" she indicates to Zach "Zachary Cross Flane, acting Captain, sir…you've met Mister Jefferson, he's Head of Security. Danny Bartock, Ethics committee"
"Not as boring as it sounds", Danny told them making all three travellers grin at him.
"And that man who just left, that was Toby Zed, Archaeology, and this…" Ida places a hand on Scooti's shoulder "is Scooti Manista, Trainee maintenance" she goes over to a set of controls "And this? This is home" she pulls a lever and a whirring starts.
"Brace yourselves. The sight of it sends some people mad", Zach warned.
The Doctor, Rose and Jenna watch as the overhead window opens to reveal a black hole above them.
"That's a black hole", Rose said gaping at it.
"But that's impossible", the Doctor breathed.
"I did warn you", Zach said.
"We're standing under a black hole", the Doctor stated.
"Actually we're in orbit", Ida said correcting him.
Jenna looked at her "but we can't be. I mean that's not physically possible. Black holes suck everything in. Not even light can escape it. By all rights this place should have been sucked in", she said.
"And yet…here we are, beyond the laws of physics. Welcome on board"
"But if there's no atmosphere out there, what's that?" Rose asked pointing to clouds that were speeding towards the black hole.
"Stars breaking up…gas clouds…we have whole solar systems being ripped apart above our heads, before falling into that thing", Ida explained.
"So, a bit worse than a storm, then", Rose commented.
"Just a bit", Ida agreed.
A short while later, the Doctor, Jenna and Rose were looking at a hologram of the black hole as Zach and Ida explained. "That's the black hole, officially designated K 37 Gen 5", Zach said.
"In the scriptures of the Falltino, this planet is called Kroptor, the bitter pill. And the black hole is supposed to be a mighty demon. It was tricked into devouring the planet, only to spit it out, because it was poison"
"The bitter pill. I like that", Rose said and Jenna nodded in agreement.
"We are so far out. Lost in the drifts of the universe" the Doctor said staring at the hologram "How did you even get here?!"
"We flew in. You see…" Zach presses another button and the hologram changes to one of the planet with a gravity field emanating out from it like a tunnel "this planet's generating a gravity field. We don't know how. We've no idea. But it's kept in constant balance against the black hole. And the field extends out there" he gestures "as a funnel. A distinct…gravity funnel, reaching out into clear space. That was our way in"
"You flew down that thing?" Rose grinned "Like a rollercoaster".
"By rights, the ship should have been torn apart. We lost the Captain…which is what put me in charge", Zach told them sadly.
"You're doing a good job", Ida assures him.
"Yeah, well, needs must", Zach muttered.
"But if that gravity funnel closes, there's no way out", Danny said.
"We had fun speculating about that", Scooti added.
"Oh, yeah. That's the word" Danny whacks Scooti on the head with a scroll "'Fun'"
"But that field would take phenomenal amounts of power. I…mean not just big, but off the scale! Can I…?" the Doctor gestures to the controls.
"Sure. Help yourself" she hands over a calculator to the Doctor and leaves him to it. Jenna watches as he inputted strings of complicated calculations into the calculator.
"They're called Ood", Jenna said when she heard Rose asked Danny what the aliens were. "666, that's not ominous at all is it?" she said looking at the Doctor's final answer.
"Are you having any feelings about this?" he asked her. Jenna shook her head.
"No, not yet", she answered "but if I do, I'll let you know".
The Doctor nodded and turned back to the others, calculator in his hand "To generate that gravity field, and the funnel, you'd need a power source with an inverted self-extrapolating reflex of 6 to the power of 6 every 6 seconds".
"That's a lot of sixes", Rose remarked.
"And it's impossible", the Doctor added.
"It took us 2 years to work that out!" Zach said both surprised and very impressed that he managed to work it out so quickly.
"I'm very good", the Doctor said modestly causing Jenna to roll her eyes.
"But that's why we're here. This power source is ten miles below through solid rock. Point Zero. We're drilling down to try and find it", Ida explained.
"It's giving off readings of over 90 stats on the Blazon scale", Zach added.
"It could revolutionise modern science", Ida said enthusiastically.
"We could use it to fuel the Empire"
"Or start a war", the Doctor said seriously.
"It's buried beneath us, in the darkness, waiting", Toby said ominously.
"What's your job? Chief…dramatist?" Jenna sassed making both the Doctor and Rose grin at that.
"Well, whatever it is down there is not a natural phenomenon. And this, er, planet once supported life eons ago, before the human race had even learned to walk", Toby continued.
"I saw that lettering written on the wall. Did you do that?" the Doctor asked.
"I copied it from fragments we found unearthed by the drilling, but I can't translate it", Toby said.
"No, neither can I. And that's saying something", the Doctor commented.
"There was some form of civilisation. They buried something. Now it's reaching out, calling us in", Toby told them.
"And you came", Jenna said.
"Well, how could we not?" Ida asked.
"So, when it comes right down to it, why did you come here? Why did you do that? Why? I'll tell you why. Because it was there. Brilliant" the Doctor said grinning at them all "Excuse me, ah, Zach, wasn't it?"
"That's me", Zach said.
"Just stand there, because I'm going to hug you. Is that all right?" the Doctor asked.
"I suppose so", Zach agreed.
The Doctor edges towards him "Here we go. Coming in". He throws his arms around Zach hugging him beaming "Ahh, human beings. You are amazing!" Ida looks bemused "Ha!" Rose and Jenna chuckled at how happy he was. The Doctor released Zach, still smiling "Thank you".
"Not at all", Zach said waving him off.
"But apart from that, you're completely mad. You should pack your bags, get back in that ship and fly for your lives", the Doctor said.
"You can talk! And how the hell did you get here?" Ida demanded.
"Oh, I've got this um…this… ship. It's hard to explain. It just sort of…appears", the Doctor said vaguely.
"We can show you, we parked down the corridor from um…oh, what's it called? Habitation area…" Rose trailed off when she couldn't remember the number of the area where the TARDIS was.
"Three", the Doctor reminded her.
"Three. Three"
"Do you mean storage 6?" Zach asked and Jenna stiffened at that.
"Oh god", she breathed. The quake took out storage 5 to 8….and the TARDIS was in storage 6…
Jenna took off running. The Doctor and Rose exchanged looks before running after her.
She tore through habitation area 3 and along the corridor. Jenna pushed the button by door 16 and her heart sank when she got Door 16 out of commission
"No!"
She smacked the button again.
Door 16 out of commission
Jenna heard two sets of running footsteps "she's gone" she turned around "the TARDIS is gone".
The Doctor looked up from the ancient script his was examining and frowned at the way Jenna was just staring at a smudge on the table as if it was fascinating. He had tried to make a conversation with her about the text but she just kept her answers short. Now he knew she wasn't even paying attention. He reached across and took her hand, making her look up at him "it's not your fault", he said guessing that she was blaming herself for the TARDIS being currently out of reach.
"How is it not my fault? If I'd had a feeling sooner maybe…"
"It's not your fault", the Doctor repeated "you couldn't have known".
"But…" the Doctor cut her off with a look.
"Jen it's not your fault", he said again a little more firmly this time. Jenna nodded although she still didn't quite believe him.
"What do we do now?" she asked.
"Well for starters I'm going to try figure out this text" the Doctor replied "Want to help?"
"Uh sure", Jenna got up and moved around to his side of the table "don't know how much help I can be though" .
You'd be surprised he thought. "You know I think that one looks a bit like Pac-Man", the Doctor said after a moment of looking at the symbols trying to lighten the mood a little.
"Which one?" Jenna asked and he pointed at it. "No it doesn't", she said after looking at it.
"Yes is does. Look" he traced the symbol with his finger.
"Ok I can see it now", Jenna admitted.
"And there's a ghost", the Doctor said.
Jenna looked at it, it didn't look anything like a ghost from Pac Man but she knew what the Doctor was trying to do. He was trying to cheer her up. "Huh. What do you know?" she said looking at it "you recon this is the how-to guide for Kroptor's version of Pac Man?" Jenna asked.
"Could be. Who knows?" the Doctor said.
From the hatch, Rose looked at the pair and felt twinge of jealousy as they were laughing over something. She pushed it aside, picked up her tray and went over to the table.
Minutes later the lights started to flicker. "Zach? Have we got a problem?" Ida asked over her wrist comm.
"No more than usual. Got the Scarlet System burning up", Zach replied "Might be worth a look".
Ida looked over at the table where the three time travellers were sat "You might want to see this" she told them "Moment in history". She pulls a lever which opens shutters, revealing the black hole overhead. Ida pointed to a red cloud on the edge of the black hole "That red cloud used to be the Scarlet System. Home to the Peluchi…a mighty civilisation spanning a billion years…disappearing forever. Their planets and suns consumed" she gazed up at it as did the Doctor, Rose and Jenna "Ladies and gentlemen, we have witnessed its passing"
Ida goes to pull the lever to close the shutters when the Doctor spoke up "Er, no, could you leave it open? Just for a bit. I won't go mad, I promise"
"How would you know?" Ida asked.
"He's already as mad as a box of frogs", Jenna replied and Ida nodded.
"I've seen films and things, yeah. They say black holes are like gateways to another universe", Rose said gazing at the black hole.
"Not that one…" Jenna took his hand "It just eats".
"Long way from home…" Rose commented.
The Doctor raised his free hand and pointed up "Go that way, turn right, keep going for um…about 500 years…and you'll reach the Earth", he said.
Rose takes out her phone and pressed a few buttons "No signal. That's the first time we've gone out of range. Mind you, even if I could….what would I tell her…? Can you build another TARDIS?"
"They were grown, not built", Jenna said not taking her gaze off of the black hole.
"And with my own planet gone, we're kind of stuck", the Doctor added.
"Well, it could be worse. This lot said they'd give us a lift", Rose informed him.
"And then what?" the Doctor asked.
"I dunno…find a planet…get a job…live a life, same as the rest of the universe"
"Pfft I'd have to settle down. Get a house or something. A proper house with…with…doors and things" Jenna looked at the Doctor as he seemingly started to panic "Carpets! Me! Living in a house!" Rose and Jenna started to laugh "Now that…that is terrifying"
It was highly amusing to both girls how the Doctor was acting. This was the guy who pretty much laughs in the face of danger, but the thought of settling down like a normal person? He panics. It was very funny. "You'd have to get a mortgage", Rose said in a sing-song voice.
"…No", the Doctor said horrified.
Jenna grinned as said "Oh, yes"
"I'm dying. That's it. I'm dying. It is all over", the Time Lord said rather dramatically.
Both girls burst out laughing at his theatrics "Drama queen", Jenna giggled.
"What about me? I'd have to get one, too", Rose said when she finally stopped laughing "I dunno, could…be the same one. We could both…I dunno share. Or not, you know. Whatever". The Doctor nodded a bit, clearly feeling awkward. He'd only done the dramatics just to get Jenna laughing, he hadn't intended for Rose to suggest something like that. "I don't know. We'll…"
"Anyway", the Doctor cut in wanting to get off topic "I promised Jackie and Sarah Jane I'd always take you both back home".
"Everyone leaves home in the end", Rose informed him.
"Not to end up stuck here", the Doctor said.
"At least we're together" Jenna pointed out "That makes things not so bad".
"Yeah?"
"Yes", she said sincerely. The Doctor smiles causing Rose to have another twinge of jealousy.
Her phone rings and she wasted no time to pick it up, grateful for its timing. "He is awake" a voice said shocking Rose and she throws her phone on the floor.
~Ood Habitation~
"Evening!" the Doctor said bounding down the stairs.
"Only us!" Rose piped up.
"The mysterious trio. How are you, then? Settling in?" Danny asked.
"Yeah. Sorry, straight to business, the Ood how do they communicate?" the Doctor asked "I mean, with each other".
Danny shrugged "Oh, just empaths. There's a low level telepathic field connecting them. Not that that does them much good. They're basically a herd race. Like cattle". Jenna looked down at the Ood.
"This telepathic field. Can it pick up messages?" the Doctor asked.
"Because I was having dinner, and one of the Ood said something, well, odd", Rose told Danny.
"Hmm. An odd Ood", Danny said not seeming too bothered by that.
"And then I got something else on my…er, communicator thing", Rose added.
"Oh, be fair. We've got whole star systems burning up around us. There's all sorts of stray transmissions. Probably nothing" the Doctor and Rose stare at him far from convinced "Look…if there was something wrong, it would show. 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".
The Doctor nodded to the computer "Monitor the field. That's this thing?"
The reading on the screen says 'basic 5'
"Yeah. But like I said, it's low level telepathy. They only register basic 5" while Danny spoke, the reading rose to 'Basic 6'.
"Well, that's not basic 5", the Doctor said watching it slowly rise "Ten…"
Jenna watches the Ood raise their heads in unison as the reading continues to ascend. "20…" the Doctor turned to Danny "They've gone up to basic 30", he said.
"But they can't…" Danny started.
"Doctor, the Ood…" Rose said noticing the Ood turn. Jenna watched them quietly as they looked up at the four of them. "What does basic thirty mean?" Rose asked.
"Well, it means that they're shouting, screaming inside their heads", Danny said baffled as to what was going on.
"Or something's shouting at them", Jenna said quietly.
Danny turned to the computer, tapping on the keyboard "But…where is it coming from? What is it saying?" he looked at Rose "What did it say to you?"
"Something about the beast in the pit", Rose answered.
In bed above, we're deep asleep
While greater love lies further deep
This dream must end
This world must know
We all depend on the beast below
Jenna blinked wondering why the poem popped in her head the moment Rose said 'the beast in the pit'.
"What about your communicator? What did that say?" Danny questioned.
"He is awake", Rose replied.
"And you will worship him" all the Ood said together.
"What the hell?" Danny said gaping at the Ood. That had never happened before.
"He is awake", Jenna said, addressing the Ood.
"And you will worship him" the Ood said again.
"Worship who?" the Doctor asked. He got no reply "who's talking to you? Who is it?"
He went down into the 'pen' to examine the Ood, Rose and Jenna following him. Danny on the other hand stayed put on the level above. Before the Doctor could do anything the base suddenly shook violently.
Emergency hull breach. Emergency hull breach
"Which section?" Danny asked into his wrist comm struggling to maintain his balance.
~control room~
Zach picks himself up from the floor "Everyone…evacuate 11 to 13. We've got a breach. The base is open. Repeat, the base is open!"
The Doctor, Rose, Jenna and Danny quickly vacated Ood Habitation, running along the shaking corridors until they met up with Jefferson who was trying to keep a door open. A moment later, he was pulling Toby through the door, slamming it shut as Ida and the rest of the crew join them.
"Everyone all right?!" the Doctor asked dashing over to them "What happened? What was it?"
Oxygen levels normal
"Hull breach", Jefferson panted "We were open to the elements. Another couple of minutes and we'd have been inspecting that black hole at close quarters"
Rose crouched down next to Toby who was sweating and panting.
"That wasn't a quake. What caused it?" the Doctor asked.
"We've lost sections 11 to 13. Everyone all right?" Zach said over the comm.
"We've got everyone here except Scooti. Scooti, report" he only got static "Scooti Manista? That's an order. Report".
Again the only response he got was static. "She's all right", Zach called earning a sigh of relief from Jefferson and Ida "I've picked up her biochip. She's in Habitation 3. Better go and check if she's not responding. She might be unconscious. How about that, eh? We survived".
"Habitation 3…come on. I don't often say this, but I think we could all do with a drink. Come on" Jefferson said and he and the rest of the crew left.
"What happened?" the Doctor asked crouches down by Toby.
"I don't…I dunno…, I…I was working and then I can't remember. All…all that noise, the room was falling apart. There was no air…" Toby stammered.
"Come on" Rose said helping Toby to his feet "Up you get. Come and have some Protein One". She links his arm through Toby's and led him down the corridor, Jenna watching them go. She didn't know why but she got this bad feeling when she looked at the young man.
"Oh, you've gone native", the Doctor called after her.
"Oi, don't knock it. It's nice. Protein one with just a" clicks her tongue "dash of three". The Doctor laughed and he and Jenna followed after them.
When they reached Habitation 3, they found the crew gathered around a table where Scooti lay unconscious. Papers were scattered all over the floor. As the Doctor and Jenna approached, the young woman began to stir. "Ida?"
"I'm here", Ida said helping her slowly sit up "do you remember what happened?"
Scooti frowned trying to recall what she was doing before she was unconscious "I was trying to find my expenditure report so I could give it to Toby. Took me a while but I eventually found it tucked away in a corner. I went to leave when all of a sudden the place started to shake. I fell and must've hit my head because the next thing I know I'm waking up on the table"
"Jefferson can you take her to the med-bay to get fixed up?" Ida asked the man.
"Of course" Jefferson helped Scooti off the table and led her away.
"She's only 20", Ida said quietly "if anything had happened to her…"
"But nothing did", Jenna said "She's alive and that's all that matters". Ida nodded, silently agreeing with her.
Then everyone realised how quiet it actually was "It's stopped", Ida said. It seemed rather strange to her that it was so quiet, having grown accustomed to the noise of the drill.
Suddenly there was a crash that sounded like it was far away "What was that? What was it?" Rose asked wondering if they should panic.
"The drill", the Doctor said.
"We've stopped drilling. We've made it. Point Zero", Ida said.
~drilling area~
Ida is now in a spacesuit preparing to go down the mineshaft "Capsule established. All systems functioning…the mineshaft is go….bring systems online now", she said.
The Doctor, who was also in a spacesuit, approached Zach "Reporting as a volunteer for the expeditionary force", he said.
"Doctor, this is breaking every single protocol. We don't even know who you are", Zach said not that willing to let someone he didn't know go with Ida.
"Yeah, but you trust me, don't you? And you 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", the Doctor said.
"I should be going down", Zach insisted.
"The Captain doesn't lead the mission. He stays here, in charge", the Doctor pointed out.
"Not much good at it, am I?" Zach said bitterly. The Doctor just simply looked at him and Zach sighed. He turned, addressing the rest of the crew "Positions! We're going down in two. Everyone, positions!"
Rose walked over to him as he checked the device on his wrist "Oxygen…nitro-balance…gravity. Its ages since I wore one of these!" the Doctor said.
"I want that spacesuit back in one piece, you got that?" she demanded.
"Yes, sir", the Time Lord promised as he put on his helmet.
"It's funny, because people back home think that space travel's going to be all whizzing about and teleports and anti-gravity…but it's not, is it?" Rose's voice breaks slightly "It's tough"
"I'll see you later", the Doctor said confidently.
"Not if I see you first" Rose tried to place a kiss on his helmet when the Doctor turned away to speak to Jenna.
"You'll be careful, right?" Jenna asked.
"I'll have to be. I don't have you to keep me out of trouble", the Doctor replied.
"Oh, so that's the only reason you keep me around", Jenna said pretending to be offended.
"Well… it's not the only reason. I also enjoy your company", the Doctor told her.
"Who doesn't?" Jenna asked.
Right now, I don't Rose thought a little bitterly. She shouldn't be feeling the way she did towards Jenna at that moment, she was her best friend for Christ sake! But she couldn't help it if she had feelings towards the Doctor, not like he'd realise it with Jenna here. While the brunette was around, Time Lord's attention was mostly on her. If Jenna wasn't…then maybe he'd turn his attention towards her instead.
Rose looked away when Jenna gently pulled the Doctor's head down to kiss his helmet, the same thing she tried to do when the Doctor turned away. She looked back when the Doctor stepped into the capsule with Ida.
In the control room, Zach counted down from 10 over the comms so that everyone could hear. When he got to zero, the capsule slowly lowered itself down into mineshaft. "You've gone beyond the oxygen field" Zach said as he watched a hologram of the capsule's descent "You're on your own"
~Drilling area~
"Don't forget to breath. Breathing's good", Rose reminded the Doctor and Ida over the comm.
"Rose, stay off the comm", Zach called.
Jenna took the comm from her "leave her be Zach", she said before giving it back to Rose. The pair watch the diagram on the computer screen, showing the capsule's descent. When it reached Point Zero, the whole place began to shake.
The moment, Rose was able to steady herself she was back on the comm. "Doctor? Doctor, are you all right?"
Silence.
~Control room~
"Ida, report to me", Zach ordered. He too got silence "Doctor?"
~Point Zero~
"It's all right…we've made it", the Doctor said much to the relief of Rose and Jenna "Getting out of the capsule now". He and Ida slowly step out into darkness causing them to turn on their torches.
"What's it like down there?" Rose asked.
"It's hard to tell…some sort of cave…cavern…its massive", the Doctor replied flashing his torch around.
"Well, this should help. Gravity globe" Ida tosses a white orb up into the air. It floods the cavern with light, revealing the ancient architecture. "That's…that's…my God, that's beautiful", Ida said in awe.
"Wish you could see this Jen", the Doctor said taking it all in "I recon it's something you'd like to draw".
"You can describe it to me when yo get back", Jenna said.
"Oh and tell Toby we've found his civilisation", the Doctor added.
~Drilling area~
Rose turned to Toby "Oi, Toby. Sounds like you've got plenty of work", she said cheerfully.
"Good, good. Good", Toby said distractedly. Jenna eyed him warily, getting that bad feeling again.
~Control room~
"Concentrate now, people. Keep on the mission. Ida, what about the power source?" Zach asked.
~Point Zero~
The Doctor and Ida traipse alongside a rocky wall, Ida holding a torch in front of them. "We're close. Energy signature indicates north, north west. Are you getting pictures up there?" the woman asked.
"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.
"Oh, did you have to? No turning back?" the Doctor grumbled.
"That's almost as bad as 'nothing can possibly go wrong'…" Jenna said through the comm.
"Or this is going to be the best Christmas Walford's ever had", the Doctor added.
"Are you finished?" Ida asked turning to him.
"Yeah, finished", the Doctor said. Ida watched him walk off, amused.
~Ood Habitation~
One of the Ood blinks at Danny "Captain, sir. There's something happening with the Ood", Danny said through his comm.
"What are they doing?" Zach asked.
"They're staring at me", Danny replied keeping his voice low "I've told them to stop, but they won't".
"Danny, you're a big boy. I think you can take being stared at", Zach said.
"But the telepathic field, sir. It's at basic 100! I've checked. There isn't any fault. It's definitely 100!" Danny exclaimed.
"But that's impossible", Zach said frowning. The Ood couldn't get up to basic 100, they'd be dead if they got to that level.
~drilling area~
"What's basic 100 mean?" Rose asked having heard the conversation over the comm.
~Ood Habitation~
"They should be dead", Danny replied.
~Drilling area~
"Basic 100 is brain death", Jefferson added.
~Control room~
"But they're safe. They're not actually moving?" Zach asked.
~Ood Habitation~
"No, sir", Danny answered.
~Control room~
"Keep watching them. And you, Jefferson? Keep a guard on the Ood", Zach ordered.
~drilling area~
"Officer at arms!" Jefferson ordered, readying his gun.
"Yes, sir", the female guard said doing the same.
"You can't fire a gun in here. What if you hit a wall?" Rose asked concerned.
"I'm firing stock 15. It only impacts upon organics", Jefferson assured her. He turned to the guard he spoke to before "Keep watch. Guard them", he said nodding to the 3 Ood that was in the room with them.
"Yes, sir"
"Is everything all right up there?" the Doctor asked through the comm. He hadn't heard the conversation they just had but he was a little concerned with the silence through the comm on his end.
"Yeah, yeah", Rose replied quickly while Jenna watched the Ood. She was really hoping that she'd get a feeling that would tell her something…anything.
"Its fine", Zach answered.
"Great!" Danny said sarcastically.
"Jen?" the Doctor asked. Rose held out the comm to the brunette, who took it.
"Everything is fine", she told him.
~Point Zero~
The Doctor and Ida approach an enormous circular trapdoor with engravings on it "We've found something. It looks like metal. Like some sort of seal. I've got a nasty feeling the word might be 'trapdoor'. Not a good word, 'trapdoor'. Never met a trapdoor I liked"
"The edge is covered with those symbols", Ida added shining her torch around the edge.
"Do you think it opens?" Zach asked. Before the Doctor could answer, Jenna spoke
"It's a trapdoor. Of course it opens, hence the door part"
The Doctor had to smile at her sarcasm/sass. "Trapdoor doesn't do it justice. It's massive, Zach" Ida said walking around it "About 30 feet in diameter".
"Any way of opening it?" Zach asked.
"I don't know. I can't see any sort of mechanism", Ida replied.
"I suppose that's the writing. It'll tell us what to do. The letters that defy translation", the Doctor guessed.
~Control room~
"Toby, did you get anywhere with decoding it?" Zach asked.
~Drilling area~
"Toby, they need to know that lettering", Rose said looking over at him "Does it make any sort of sense?"
"I know what it says", Toby said quietly where he was crouched, head in his arms.
"Then tell them", Rose said.
"When did you work that out?" Jefferson asked turning to the young man.
"It doesn't matter, just tell them", Rose said.
Toby stands and turns towards them. Rose and Jenna's eyes widened when they saw his red eyes and tattooed skin. "These are the words of the Beast", Jenna tugged Rose to stand behind her "And he has woken" Jefferson points his gun at Toby "He is the heart that beats in the darkness. He is the blood that will never cease. And now he will rise"
"Officer, stand down" Jefferson said threateningly "Stand down".
~Point Zero~
"What is it? What's he done?" the Doctor asked having heard the young man growl "What's happening? Rose? Jen? What's going on?"
There was no reply.
~Control room~
"Jefferson? Report. Report!" Zach shouted but he got no reply either.
~Drilling area~
"Officer, as Commander of Security, I order you to stand down and be confined. Immediately!" Jefferson ordered Toby.
"He's come out in those symbols all over his face. They're all over him", Rose said into the comm staring at Toby over Jenna's shoulder.
"Mr Jefferson. Tell me, sir….Did your wife ever forgive you?" Toby asked.
"I don't know what you mean", Jefferson lied.
"Let me tell you a secret. She never did"
Jefferson swallowed and Jenna could tell that whatever Toby meant obviously struck a nerve with the older man "Officer…you stand down and be confined"
"Or what?" Toby challenged.
"Or under the strictures of Condition Red, I am authorised to shoot you"
"But how many can you kill?" Toby asked.
They all watched as Toby's eyes lit up and his mouth opens in a low roar as the symbols evaporate off his skin as black smoke. Rose reached forward and grabbed Jenna's hand, frightened. The smoke enters the Ood, who jerk as they're being possessed.
Toby, who is now himself, coughs and collapses. Jefferson points his gun at the 3 Ood that were in the room with them.
"We are the Legion of the Beast" all the Ood say together.
~Point Zero~
"Jen?" the Doctor called frantically over the comm "Rose? What is it? Jen!" he still didn't get a reply. That was it, he was going back up and he told Ida so.
"You can't", Ida said taking hold of his arm. The Doctor yanked his arm away, glaring at the woman for daring to try and stop him. Jenna was in danger and nothing, no one was going to stop him getting to her. Not even Ida.
"I am and I will", he said firmly before stalking off.
~drilling area~
"The Legion shall be many, and the Legion shall be few"
"It's the Ood", Rose said into the comm
"Sir, we have contamination in the livestock", Jefferson said into his wrist device.
"Doctor, I don't know what it is it's….it's like they're possessed", Rose said.
"They won't listen to us", Jenna added quietly.
~Ood Habitation~
"He has woven himself in the fabric of your life since the dawn of time" a single Ood separated himself from the rest and walks up the stairs towards Danny and the other guard "Some may call him Abaddon. Some may call him Kroptor. Some may call him Satan…" Danny turns to the computer, frantic while the guard has his gun at the ready "or Lucifer…
"Captain, it's the Ood. They're out of control!" Danny cried.
He and the guard back away as the single Ood approaches "Or the Bringer of Despair, the Deathless Prince, the Bringer of Night"
The Ood stands a few feet away from the two of them and its communication orb suddenly shoots out. It attaches itself to the guard's forehead, electrocuting him. Danny makes a break for it as the guard falls to the floor, dead.
"These are the words that shall set him free"
~Drilling area~
"Back up to the door!" Jefferson shouts at the others as they back away from the advancing Ood.
"I shall become manifest"
"Move quickly!" Jefferson urged.
"I shall walk in might"
"To the door!" all of them backed up against the door, Jenna ensuring that Rose was behind her "Get it open!"
"My Legions shall swarm across the worlds…"
~Point Zero~
Ida points her torch in the direction of the trapdoor as the starts to shake. Before her eyes, it begins to open. "Doctor, it's opening!" she called.
As the place shakes, rocks shower down upon the Doctor and Ida. The Doctor glanced back at the woman, torn between leaving her and saving her. Jenna would never forgive him if he left Ida behind and because of that, he changed direction.
~Drilling area~
"I am the sin and the temptation and the desire. I am the pain and the loss and the dead will come"
"Get that door open!" Jefferson shouted as the Ood continued to advance.
~Point Zero~
The trapdoor is now completely open.
~Drilling area~
Rose and the other guard desperately try to open the door while Jenna stood in front, using herself as a shield. Jefferson stood by her, his gun aimed at the Ood. But they ignore it completely.
"I have been imprisoned for eternity. But no more"
Door sealed
"Come on!" Rose shouted, struggling with the wheel.
Door sealed
~Point Zero~
Billows of smoke rise from the pit, the ground still shaking.
"The Pit is open. And I am free"
The Doctor and Ida stare down into the pit, horror struck as the voice of the Beast laughs terribly.
To be continued…