The Weary Travellers
The Satan Pit
The three Ood continued to advance, their eyes glowing a satanic red. "Open fire!" John ordered, and he and his colleague fired their rifles at the Ood, while Gazelle and Rose crouched to avoid the shrapnel. Once the Ood had been dealt with, Rose rushed over to the console and grabbed the comm.
"Doctor?" she called urgently "Doctor, can ya hear me? Doctor, Ida, are ya there?" There was no answer, just the hiss of static.
Suddenly, the door behind them began to open, and John and the guard both spun round, weapons at the ready. Danny charged through "It's me!" he panted "But they're coming." he sealed the door behind him.
"The Ood?" Gazelle questioned, noticing that Danny was alone. She knew that the male guard had been with him in Ood habitation, so it was pretty obvious what had happened.
"They've gone mad." Danny confirmed
"How many of them?" John asked
"All of them!." Danny gasped "All fifty."
"Just I feared." Gazelle said grimly
John began to move towards the door. "Danny, out the way." he ordered, but Danny didn't budge. "Out the way!" John insisted, shoving him aside.
"But they're armed! It's the interface device." Danny protested "I don't know how, but they're using it as a weapon."
John wasn't listening and began to open the door. "No, wait!" Gazelle warned, but it was too late. John opened the door to reveal more possessed Ood behind it. One of them slammed it's translator orb against the guard's forehead, fatally electrocuting her. John promptely fired at the Ood, forcing them back and allowing Gazelle to slam the door shut and lock it.
Just then, Zach's voice came over the comms "John, what's happening there?"
"I've got very little ammunition, sir." John replied "What about you?"
"All I've got is a bolt gun, with, uh, all of one bolt." Zach answered "I could take out a grand total of one Ood. Fat lot of good that is."
"Given the emergency, I'd recommend strategy nine." John advised
"Strategy nine agreed." Zach said "Right, we need to get everyone together. Gazelle, what about Ida and the Doctor, any word?"
"Not a peep." Gazelle replied "I'm gonna keep trying, though."
Just then, the Doctor's voice came over the comm "No need, we're fine, still here."
Rose took the comm. "Ya could've said, you stupid..." she was cut off by feedback squeal
"Woah! Careful." the Doctor scolded "Anyway, it's both of us, me an' Ida. Hello! But the seal's opened up. It's gone. All we've got left is this chasm."
"How deep is it?" Zach asked
"Can't tell." the Doctor replied "Looks like it goes on forever."
"The pit is open." Gazelle said thoughtfully "That voice said the pit is open."
"But there's nothing." Zach pointed out "I mean, there's nothing coming out?"
"No, no sign of 'The Beast'." the Doctor replied
"It said Satan." Rose breathed
"Come on, Rose. Keep it together." the Doctor encouraged
"Is there no such thing?" Rose asked, but neither Time Lord answered her "Doctor, Gazelle, tell me there's not such thing."
"We can't tell you what we don't know." Gazelle spoke up at last
"Ida, I recommend that you withdraw immediately." Zach said
"But we've come all this way!" Ida protested
"Ok, that was an order. Withdraw!" Zach ordered "When that thing opened, the whole planet shifted. One more inch and we fall into the black hole. So this thing stops right now."
"But it's not much better up there with the Ood." Ida pointed out
"I'm initiating strategy nine." Zach told her "So I need the two of you up here immediately. No arg..."
Ida switched her comm off and turned to the Doctor "What do you think?" she asked him
"He gave an order." the Doctor replied, moving over to the edge of the pit.
"Yeah, but what do you think?"
The Doctor stared down into the dark pit "It said 'I am the temptation'." he said thoughtfully.
"If there's something in there, why's it still hiding?" Ida wandered
"Maybe we've opened the prison, but not the cell." the Doctor replied
"We should go down." Ida said "I'd go. What about you?"
"Oh, in a second, but then again... That is so Human." the Doctor remarked "Where angels fear to tread. Even now, standing on the edge... It's that feeling ya get, yeah? Right at the back of ya head, that impulse, that strange little itch, telling you to jump.. For once in my life, Officer Scott, I'm going to say... retreat." he had decided that his curiosity had done enough damage for one day. It was because of his curiosity that he had gotten himself, Gazelle and Rose trapped on this planet in the first place, and now both women were trapped in a base full of possessed Ood, so his curiosity about the pit could get stuffed. He was going back to help the woman he loved and their best friend. He turned his comm back on "Gazelle, Rose, we're coming back."
"Glad to hear it." Gazelle sighed in relief
"Best news I've 'eard all day." Rose grinned, then she saw John removing the safety off his gun and aiming it at Toby "What you doin'?" she glared
"He's infected." John replied "He brought that thing on board, you saw it."
"Are you gonna start shootin' ya own people now?" Rose remarked "Is that what ya gonna do, is it?"
"If necessary." John replied
"Well then, you'll 'ave to shoot me." Rose told him, blocking his line of fire "If necessary. So what's it gonna be?"
"No one is shooting anyone." Gazelle cut in "Rose, stop being childish. Jefferson, look at Toby's face. Whatever it was, it's gone for now. It passed into the Ood, like you saw. He's clean for the moment, and if it is still there, then it's better if we take him with us and keep an eye on him."
John saw her point "Any sign of trouble, I'll shoot him." he told her
"Right, agreed." Gazelle said, and John walked away.
Rose helped Toby up "You alright?" he asked
"Yeah." he replied, his voice back to normal "Um, dunno."
"Can you remember anything?" Gazelle asked him
"Just... it was so angry." Toby replied breathlessly "It was fury, and rage, and death." he looked at Rose "It was him. It was the Devil."
Rose gave him a comforting hug, while Gazelle watched Toby closely. She wanted to believe that he was no longer a threat, but her rational side told her to watch him like a hawk.
In the cavern, Ida and the Doctor walked back towards the capsule. "What's strategy nine?" the Doctor asked
"Open the airlocks." Ida replied "We'll be safe inside the lockdown. The Ood will get thrown out, into the vacuum."
"So we're goin' back to a slaughter?"
"The Devil's work." Ida reasoned
In the base, Gazelle and the Humans were waiting by the capsule winch controls. "Ok, we're in. Bring us up." Ida said over the comms.
"Ascension in 3, 2, 1." John announced, and pressed a control to activate the winch, when suddenly all the lights went out in both the base and the capsule.
Then came a deep, ominous voice "This is the darkness. This is my domain." the screen on the winch controls changed to show a group of possessed Ood "You little things that live in the light, clinging to your feeble suns, which die, in the end.."
"That's not the Ood." Zach said over the comms "Something's talking through them."
"Only the darkness remains." the voice continued
"This is Captain Zachary Cross Flane of Sanctuary Base Six, representing the Torchwood Archive. You will identify yourself." Zach demanded
"You know my name." the voice responded
"What d'you want?" Zach asked
"You will die here." the voice stated "All of you. This planet is your grave."
"It's him. It's him. It's him." Toby whimpered
"If you are the Beast, than answer me this." the Doctor spoke up "Which one, hmm? cos' the universe 'as been busy since you've bin gone. There's more religions than there are planets in the sky. The Archivits, Quolodonity, Christianity, Pash-pash, New Judaism, San Clarr, the Church of the Tin Vagabond... which devil are you?"
"All of them." the Beast retorted
"What, then you're the truth behind the myth?"
"This one knows me, as I know him, the killer of his own kind."
If the Beast was trying to bait the Doctor, then it didn't work. "How did you end up on this rock?" he asked
"The Disciples of the Light rose up against me, and chained me in the pit for all eternity."
"When was this?"
"Before time."
"What does that mean?" the Doctor scoffed
"Before time."
"What does 'Before time' mean?"
"Before time and light, and space and matter. Before the cataclysm. Before this universe was created."
"But that's impossible." Gazelle spoke up "Nothing could've lived before the universe was created."
"Is that your religion, Time Lords?" the Beast snarled
"It's a belief." the Doctor answered back
"You know nothing. All of you, so small. The captain, so scared of command. The soldier, haunted by the eyes of his wife." Gazelle saw John stiffen "The scientist, still running from daddy." the Doctor saw Ida pale "The little boy who lied." Danny swallowed hard "The virgin." Toby looked freaked "The lost girl, so far away from home, the valiant child who will die in battle so very soon. And the Time Lady who can no longer have children."
"Doctor, what does that mean?" Rose said nervously into the comm
"Don't listen to it , Rose." Gazelle reassured, though the Beast's reminder of her state had rattled her too.
"What does it mean?" Rose repeated
"You will die, and I will live." the Beast gloated, and the screen changed from the possessed Ood to a terrifying, horned beast that looked very much like how people imagined the Devil to look, before switching off.
"What the hell was that?" Danny stared
"I had that thing inside my head!" Toby blustered
"What did it mean?" a frightened Rose asked Gazelle
Gazelle tried to answer, but she was cut off by Danny and Toby's frightened rambles, and John and Zach babbling about strategy nine. Realising that the Human's hysteria was getting them nowhere, the Doctor took the comm and produced a feedback sound that shut everyone up. "If ya want voices in the dark, then listen to mine!" he said "That thing is playing on very basic fears. Darkness, childhood, nightmares, all that stuff."
"But that's how the Devil works." Danny said
"Or a good psychologist." the Doctor countered
"But how did it know about my father?" Ida questioned
"An' what makes his version of the truth any better than mine?" the Doctor answered "Cos' I'll tell ya what Gazelle an' I see; Humans, brilliant Humans. Humans who travelled all the way across space, flyin' in a tiny little rocket, right into the orbit of a black hole, just for the sake of discovery! That's amazing, d'ya hear me, amazing!"
"The Doctor's right." Gazelle agreed "We've got a captain who's doing an outstanding job in difficult circumstances, a good and reliable security officer, a brilliant scientist, a talented archaeologist and a great ethics officer. You've all got one advantage over that thing. The Beast's alone, you're not. You've got each other"
"If we can use that to fight against him.." the Doctor added, when he was suddenly cut off by a sudden a jolt. All those on the drill deck turned to see that the winch cables were snapping
"Doctor, Ida, get outta there!" Gazelle hollered into the comm "The cable's snapped!"
"Come on!" the Doctor urged Ida, and they both bolted out of the capsule, then hit the deck as the cables came walloping down.
On the drill deck, they all heard the crash. "Doctor? Ida? Are you both alright?" Gazelle asked into the comm, but received no answer
"Comms are down." Zach sighed "I've still got life signs, but we've lost the capsule. There's no way out. They're stuck down there."
"There's always a way out." Gazelle told him, though she had no idea what they could do now.
In the cavern, Ida and the Doctor picked themselves up to find that the capsule had been smashed to bits by the falling cables. "How much air have we got?" the Doctor asked
"60 minutes." Ida replied, then checked her air supply monitor "55." she sighed
On the drill deck, the others were discussing what they could do. "But we've gotta bring 'em back!" Rose insisted
"They're 10 miles down." John told her "We haven't got another 10 miles of cable." Suddenly, there was an explosion on the other side of the door "Captain?" John called into his comm "Situation report."
"It's the Ood." Zach replied "They're cutting through the door bolts, they're breaking in."
"Yeah, it's the same on door 25." John said
"That's a basic seal on that door, isn't it?" Gazelle asked him
"Yeah." he replied "Should take 'em 10 minutes to get through."
"Right, so we've got 10 minutes to think of something." Gazelle stated
"Make that 8." John said grimly as another bang sounded.
"I've got a security frame, it might last a bit longer." Zach said "But it doesn't help you."
"Ok, let's think." Gazelle said, taking charge "We've got to either stop the Ood, get out of here or both."
"I'll take both." said Danny "But how?"
"We think." Gazelle told him "The Beast cut the Doctor off because he was making sense. We have to think our way out of this."
"Gazelle's right." Rose said "For starters, we need some light. Zach, there's gotta be some sorta power, somewhere."
"There's nothing I can do." Zach said in defeat "Some captain! Stuck in here, pressing buttons."
"Well then, press buttons." Gazelle told him "The right buttons. Would I be correct, captain, in assuming that the rocket you all arrived on has it's own independent power supply?"
"Well, yeah." Zach replied, then suddenly realised what the Time Lady was implying "But If I could reroute that... John, open the bypass conduits, override the safety."
John went to do so "Opening bypass conduits, sir."
"Channelling rocket feed." Zach called "In 3, 2, 1. Power!"
All the lights came back on "And there we go." Gazelle smiled "Let there be light. And now for the Ood."
"What about that strategy nine thing?" Rose asked
"Not enough power." John replied "We need 100%"
"Ok, then we need another way out." Gazelle stated "Toby, any ideas?"
"I'm not a soldier." Toby whimpered "I can't do anything."
"You're an archaeologist." Gazelle told him "D'ya know anything about that pit?"
"Nothing. We can't even translate that language." he said dejectedly, then suddenly brightened up "Hold on, since that thing was inside my head, it's like the letters make more sense."
"Well, get to work." Rose said "Anyfink ya can translate, just anyfink."
Toby nodded and went off to do so, while the women approached Danny. "Danny, you're in charge of the Ood, any way of stopping them?"
"Well, I don't know." he sighed
"Well then, could ya find out, please?" Gazelle asked him, and he went over to a computer to get to it, while the women both turned back to look down the mine shaft.
"The Doctor would be proud of ya." Rose said to Gazelle "How ya takin' charge an' getting everyone workin' together."
"Yeah, well, I'm just doing what he'd do." Gazelle shrugged
Meanwhile, Ida and the Doctor were surveying the remains of the capsule "Well, we've got all this cable. We might as well use it." Ida said "The drum's disconnected, we could adapt it. Feed it though."
"An' then what?" the Doctor asked
"We abseil." Ida replied "Into the pit."
"Abseil, right." the Doctor nodded
"We're running out of air, with no way back. It's the only thing we can do. Even if it's the last thing we ever achieve."
"I'll get back." the Doctor said determinedly "Gazelle is up there. I'll get back to her, no matter what it takes."
"Well, maybe the key to that is finding out what's in the pit." Ida reasoned
"Well, it's half of a good plan." the Doctor remarked
"What's the other half?"
"I go down." the Doctor told her "Not you."
Back on the base, Gazelle was helping John re-route power when they heard another bang on the door outside. Danny, meanwhile, was looking up information on the computer. "There's all sorts of viruses that could stop the Ood." Danny spoke up "Trouble is, we haven't got them on board."
"Well, that's 'andy, listin' things we 'aven't got." Rose grumbled "We 'aven't got a swimming pool either, or a Tesco's."
"Rose, that's not helping." Gazelle scolded, then she turned to Danny "The Ood are telepathic. Is there any way we could use that to our advantage? Knock them out or incapacitate them, maybe?"
Danny stared as he had an idea "Oh, of course!" he exclaimed "I can flip the monitor, broadcast a flare. It could disrupt the telepathy. Brainstorm!"
"What 'appens to the Ood?" Rose asked
"Well, it'll tank them. Spark out!" Danny replied
"Right, then that's what we do." Gazelle said
Danny's face fell "But, I'd have to transmit from the central monitor. We need to go to Ood Habitation."
"Then that's what we'll do." Gazelle said then turned to John "Mr Jefferson, is there any other way out, apart from the door?"
"Just about." John replied, gesturing to his computer screen "There's a network of maintenance tunnels running underneath the base. We should be able to gain access from here."
"Ventilation shafts!" Rose grinned
"I appreciate the reference, but there's no ventilation." John said flatly "No air, in fact at all. They were designed for machines, not life-forms." Another bang sounded from the door.
"But I can manipulate the oxygen field from here." Zach called over the comms "Create discrete pockets of atmosphere. If I control it manually, I can follow you through the network."
"In other words, make the air follow us." Gazelle nodded "Good."
"You wanted me pressing buttons." Zach remarked
"So I did." Gazelle replied "Ok, we need to get to Ood Habitation. Could ya plot us a route there, please, captain?"
Meanwhile, Ida and the Doctor were getting ready to abseil down the pit. "That should hold it." Ida said as she finished securing the cable drum "How's it going?"
"Fine. Should work." the Doctor replied as he backed towards the pit "Doesn't feel like such a good idea now." he muttered as he reached the edge "There is is again. That itch."
"The urge to jump." Ida replied "D'you where it comes from, that sensation? Genetic heritage, ever since we were primates in the trees. It's our body's way of testing us, calculating whether or not we can reach the next branch."
"No, that's not it." the Doctor shook his head "That's too kind. It's not the urge to jump, it's deeper then that. It's the urge to fall!" and with that he lept backwards into the pit.
"Doctor!" Ida yelled and quickly stopped the winch "Are you ok?"
"Not bad, thanks." the Doctor answered "Wall of the pit seems to be the same as the cavern, just not much of it. There's a crust about 20ft down, an' then..." he shone his torch down "Nothing. Just the pit. Ok, then. Lower me down."
"Well, here we go then." Ida said and activated the winch. lowering the Doctor down into the pitch-black depths of the pit.
In the base, Gazelle and John were removing the grating leading into the maintenance tunnels, when there was another bang on the door. "Danny!" Rose called
"Hold on, just conforming." he replied, working on his computer.
"Danny, we've gotta go now! Come one!" John urged, as another bang sounded from the door.
Danny's computer bleeped "There." he breathed, pulling out a chip "Put that in the monitor, and it's a bad time to be an Ood." he rushed over to join the others.
"Ok, Danny, you go first." John ordered "Then you, Miss Tyler, then Miss Gazelle, then Toby. I'll go last in defensive position. Now come on, quick as you can!" And so, Danny dropped into the tunnel.
"God, it stinks!" Rose grimaced as she joined Danny "You alright?"
"Yeah, laughing." he replied as Gazelle joined them, followed by Toby. "Which way do we go?" Danny asked into his comm
"Just go straight." Zach replied "Keep going till I say so."
John dropped into the tunnel just as the Ood finally broke through the door. The group were soon crawling through the tunnel. "Not ya best angle, Danny." Rose remarked, eying Danny's arse.
"Oi, stop it!" he grumbled
"I dunno, could be worse." Toby remarked. He was right behind Gazelle, and the Time Lady was wearing rather tight jeans.
"Oi!" Gazelle snapped "Keep looking at me like that, and I'll let Jefferson shoot you!"
"Straight on till you reach junction 7.1." Zach instructed "Keep breathing. I'm feeding you air. I've got you."
They reached a junction and stopped. "We're at 7.1, sir." Danny said
"Ok, I've got you." Zach replied "I'm just aerating the next section."
"Getting kinda cramped, sir, can't ya hurry it up?" Danny whined
"I'm working on half power here." Zach retorted
"Stop complaining." John panted
"Mr Jefferson sez stop complaining." Rose told Danny
"I heard." Danny wheezed
"He 'eard." Rose called to John
"The air's getting a bit thin." Toby called into his comm
"And now he's complaining now." Gazelle remarked to John
"I heard." he replied
Rose sniffed "Danny, is that you?" she accused
"I'm not exactly happy!" he retorted
"I'm moving the air, I've got to oxygenate the next section." Zach called over the comm "Now, keep calm, or it's gonna feel worse."
Suddenly, a clattering sounded from down the tunnel. "What was that?" Danny asked nervously
"I dread to think." Gazelle replied grimly, as John took up a defensive position.
"Captain. What was that?" he asked into his comm
"The junction in habitation five's been opened." Zach replied "It's the Ood."
"Just I feared." Gazelle groaned
"There're in the tunnels!" Zach called urgently
"Well, open the gate!" Danny hollered
"I've gotta get the air in."
"Just open it, sir!"
"How far behind us are they?" Gazelle asked
"I don't know. I can't tell." Zach replied "I can't see them. The computer doesn't register Ood as proper life-forms."
"Who's idea was that?" Rose stared
"Open the gate!" Danny screamed. At that moment, the gate opened and Danny crawled through it as fast as he could, the others hot on his heels.
"Danny, turn left. Immediate left." Zach called, and Danny did so.
"The Ood, sir, can't you trap them, cut off the air?" John suggested as he shuffled backwards, rifle aimed down the tunnel.
"Not without cutting of yours." Zach told him "Danny, turn right. Go right. Go faster, they're gonna catch up!"
Everyone promptly crawled faster. "I'll maintain defensive position!" John called
"No, you can't stop!" Gazelle told him
"It's my job, ma'am." he replied "You've got your task, now see to it."
"You heard what he said, now shift!" Toby urged, and Gazelle reluctantly carried on. The sounds of gunfire echoed through the tunnel as the remaining quarter crawled through it.
They reached another gate, blocking their way. "8.2. Open 8.2." Danny urged "Zach, open 8.2!"
"I've gotta aerate it!" Zach answered
"OPEN IT NOW!" Danny screamed frantically
"I'm trying!"
Danny began banging on the gate "Danny, stop! That's not helping!" Rose told him
"Zach, get it open!" Toby hollered as the sounds of gunfire came closer.
"John, I've gotta open 8.2 by closing 8.1." Zach called "You've got to get past the junction! Now move! That's an order, now move! I'm gonna lose oxygen, John. I can't stop for your dramatics!"
At that moment, gate 8.2 opened "That's it, come on, come on!" Danny hissed. As soon as the gate was open high enough he crawled through, the others right behind him.
"Danny, turn left." Zach instructed "Head for 9.2. That's the last one. Jefferson, you've got to move faster! John, move, move!"
The gate behind the quartet began to close, just as John came into view. "Mr Jefferson, come on!" Gazelle urged, but it was too late. The gate slammed shut right in front of John.
"I regret to inform you, sir. I was a bit slow." he said over the comm a moment later "Not so fast these days."
"I can't open 8.1, John." Zach informed him "Not without loosing air for the others."
"And quite right too, sir." John replied "I think I bought them a little time."
"There's nothing I can do, John. I'm sorry.
"You've done enough, sir. Made a very good captain under the circumstances." On the other side of the gate from John, the remaining quartet were close to tears. "Might I ask, if you can't add oxygen to this section, can you sped up the process of it's removal?" John asked
"I don't understand, what d'you mean?" Zach questioned
"Well, if I might choose the manner of my departure, sir." John replied "Lack of air seems more natural than.. Well, let's say death by Ood. I'd appreciate it, sir."
"Godspeed Mr Jefferson."
"Thank you, sir."
A moment later, Zach's voice came through the comms "Report Officer John Maynard Jefferson, PKD. Deceased, with honours, 43K 2.1. There was a respectful silence among the quartet. Gazelle was blaming herself. If only she hadn't have left her sonic screwdriver in the TARDIS. With it, she could've opened those gates faster and bought John more time to get through. Yet another good person that she and the Doctor had failed to save.
Danny spoke up "Zach, we're at the final junction. 9.2. And, uh, if my respects could be on record, he saved our lives.
"Noted. Opening 9.2." Zach replied
A moment later, the gate opened, only to reveal a bunch of possessed Ood behind it. "Lower 9.2!" Rose hollered "Zach, lower it!"
"Everyone, back, now!" Gazelle urged, pulling Rose away from the gate, then Danny.
"We can't got back!" Toby pointed out "8.2's sealed off, we're stuck!"
Gazelle at that point noticed a grating above them "Then we go up. Come on!" she urged and began to push the grate up, Rose helping her. Once the grate was open, the two women climbed up into a corridor. Danny followed them up.
"Come on! Toby, come on!" Rose hollered to Toby, who was still in the tunnel, frozen in fear.
"Toby, get out of there!" Gazelle called
Toby at that point looked up at them "Help me! Oh God, help me!" he cried and the other three quickly pulled him up, then Gazelle slammed the grate down.
Just then, the door behind them opened to reveal yet more possessed Ood. "This way!" Danny urged, leading the way down the corridor. The quartet ran for it, the Ood in close pursuit.
Finally, they reached Ood habitation. "Get it in!" Rose urged Danny, as he pulled out his computer chip.
"Make it quick.!" Gazelle warned, noticing some more possessed Ood in the pen below, which began to advance towards them.
"TRANSMIT!" Rose screeched
"I'm trying, I'm trying, I'm trying." Danny fumbled "I'm getting it in!"
"Stop them!" Toby hissed, as the Ood began to climb the stairs.
"Danny, it's now or never." Gazelle told him
Danny at that moment finally got the chip in and transmitted the signal. There was an electronic screech and all the Ood clutched their heads, before crashing to the floor unconscious.
"You did it!" Rose breathed "We did it!" she gave Danny a celebratory hug
"Yes! Oh, yes!" Danny grinned in relief, as Rose gave Toby a hug too.
Gazelle, meanwhile, took the comm "Zach, Danny's taken care of the Ood. Are you alright?"
"Yeah, fine." Zach replied
"Good." Gazelle smiled "Now we've gotta find some way of getting the Doctor and Ida back.
"On my way." Zach said, and everyone left to meet up on the drill deck.
Meanwhile, the Doctor was continued his descent into the pit "You get representations of the horned beast across the universe, in the myths an' legends of a million worlds." the Doctor rambled "Earth, Draconia, Vel Consadine, Daemos, the Kaled God of War... The same image, over an' over again. Maybe that idea came from somewhere. Bleeding through... A thought at the back of every sentient mind."
"Emanating from here?" Ida asked over the comm
"Could be."
"But if this is the original, does that make real? Does that make it the actual Devil, though?"
"Well, if that's what you wanna believe." the Doctor shrugged "Maybe that's what the Devil is, in the end, an idea." Suddenly, his descent stopped
"That's it. That's all we've got." Ida told him "You getting any sort of read-out?"
The Doctor checked his suit's scanner "Nothing." he said "Could be miles to go yet." he looked down in the dark depths "Or, could be 30 feet, no way of tellin'. I could survive 30 feet." he said thoughtfully
"Oh no you don't." Ida said quickly "I'm pulling you back up." but before she could winch up, the Doctor stopped it "What you going?" she asked him
"You bring me back, an' we're just gonna sit there, an' run outta air." the Doctor told her "I've gotta go down."
"But you can't." Ida protested "Doctor, you can't!"
"Call it an act of faith." the Doctor said, unhooking part of his harness
"But.. I don't wanna die on my own."
"I know." the Doctor murmured, unhooking another part of his harness.
On the drill deck, Rose raced over to the comm "Doctor? Are ya there? Doctor, Ida, can ya hear me?"
"The comms are still down." Zach said as he joined them "I can patch them through the central desk."..
"And boost the signal." Gazelle nodded "Good idea, I'll give ya a hand." and she and Zach got to work on that.
In the pit, the Doctor continued to unfasten his harness "I didn't ask." he said to Ida "Have ya got any sort of faith or.."
"Not really." Ida replied "I was brought up neo-classical, congregational. Cos' of my mom, she was.." she tailed off "My old mom. But no, I never believed."
"Neo-classis, 'ave they got a devil?" the Doctor asked
"No, not as such, just, um, the things that men do."
"Same thing in the end."
"And what about you?" Ida asked
The Doctor was silent as he thought about his beliefs. "I believe... Believe I 'aven't seen everyfink, I dunno." he said at last "It's funny, isn't it? The things ya make up, the rules. If that thing had said it came from beyond the universe, I'd believe it, but before the universe? Impossible. Doesn't fit my rules. Still, maybe that's why I keep travellin'.. To be proved wrong." he finished unhooking his harness "Thank you, Ida."
"Don't go!" Ida hollered
"If they get back in touch, if ya talk to Gazelle, just tell 'er that I love her. More than anyfink in this universe, an' I'm sorry for getting her in this mess." the Doctor told Ida "Tell her that she's the best thing that's ever 'appened to me, an' to have a great life, an' look after Rose." and with that, he let go of the cable and plummeted into the darkness below.
On the drill deck, Gazelle and Zach finished re-routing the comms and Rose tried to raise the Doctor again "Doctor? Ida? Can ya 'ear me? Are ya there, Doctor?"
"He's gone." Ida's voice came over the over end
"What d'ya mean, 'e's gone?" Rose frowned
Gazelle took the comm from her "He jumped into the pit, didn't he?" she asked Ida
"I couldn't stop him." Ida replied sadly "He said your name." and she told Gazelle what the Doctor had said.
The Time Lady lowered her head, a few tears in her eyes. Rose put a comforting arm around her shoulder, while Zach took the comm "I'm sorry." he said gently
"It's alright." Gazelle replied "He's still alive. I can sense him."
"Ida." Zach said into the comm "There's no way of reaching you. No cable, no back up, you're 10 miles down. We can't get there."
"You should see this place, Zach." Ida replied "It's beautiful. I wanted to discover things, and here I am." she said tearfully
"We've gotta abandon the base." Zach said "I'm declaring this mission unsafe. All we can do is make sure no one ever comes here again."
"But we'll never find out what it was."
"Maybe that's best."
"Yeah."
Zach swallowed hard then began "Officer Scott.."
"It's alright." Ida cut him off "Just go. Good luck."
"And you." Zach said solemnly. He hung up the comm and turned to his two remaining crewmembers "Danny, Toby, close down the feed links, get the retrotopes online. Then get to the rocket and strap yourselves in. We're leaving."
"We're not going." Rose said, gesturing to herself and Gazelle.
"Rose, there's space for both you." Zach told her
"No, we're gonna wait for the Doctor, just like e'd wait for us."
"I'm sorry, but he's dead."
"Gazelle says he's not." Rose insisted "So we're gonna stay an'.."
Gazelle put her hand on Rose's shoulder "Look at me, Rose." she said and Rose turned to her "I'm sorry." she said
"For what?" Rose asked
"This." Gazelle replied and placing her hands on Rose's temples, she telepathically knocked the blonde out.
"Thank you." Zach said, coming forward to help Gazelle move the unconscious blonde "I've lost too many people. I'm not leaving you two behind."
"Right, we've better be quick." Gazelle said "We don't know how much longer we've got till the Ood wake up." and they both carried Rose off down the corridors, past the unconscious Ood.
"Did that one just move?" Toby asked uneasily, pointing to an Ood, which was twitching.
"The telepathic field must be reasserting itself." Gazelle realised "Let's move!" and they all hurried off at a much faster pace.
The Doctor awoke to find himself lying at the bottom of the pit. He gasped when he realised that the visor of his helmet was shattered, then he realised something else. "I'm breathing." he took his helmet off "Air cushion to support the fall." he switched his comm on "You can breath down 'ere, Ida." no answer "Can ya hear me, Ida?" again no answer.
Meanwhile, the others had all taken their places in the rocket. Zach was in the pilot's seat, Gazelle in the seat next to him, while Danny, Toby and the unconscious Rose were in the seats behind them. "Dislocating B-clamp." Zach announced "C-clamp. Raisin blue-nitro to maximum. Toby, how's the negapact feed line?"
"Clear, ready to go, sir." Toby replied "For God's sake, get us outta here!"
Danny noticed Rose beginning to stir "Captain, think we're gonna have a problem passenger." he warned
"Keep an eye on her." Zach warned, as he and Gazelle prepared for lift-off.
"Wait." Rose gasped as she awoke "We're not..."
"It's alright, Rose, we're safe." Danny reassured
"I'm not goin' anywhere!" Rose protested, but it was too late
"And lift-off!" Zach whooped as the rocket's engines roared into life, and they blasted off from Krop Tor.
In the pit, the Doctor heard the tell-tale rumble of a rocket blast off. "The rocket." he realised. He felt relieved that Gazelle and Rose were safe, now he just needed to find a way to get himself and Ida off this planet too.
On the rocket, Rose noticed Zach's bolt gun lying on the console. She lunged for it, but Gazelle snatched it away before she could reach it. "Oh, grow up, Rose." Gazelle scolded
"Take us back!" Rose screeched
"It's too late." Zach told her "Take a look outside. We can't turn back."
Rose looked out of the viewport at the rapidly disappearing planet. "This is what the Doctor wanted, Rose." Gazelle told her gently
Rose slumped back into her seat "How can ya just abandon 'im?" she said to the Time Lady "You love 'im!"
"Yes, I love him." Gazelle answered back firmly "That's why I'm respecting his wishes and looking after you. Beside, if anyone can find a way off that planet, it's the Doctor. I have faith in him."
"Sorry." Rose sighed "S'pose ya right."
Gazelle just smiled slightly. She just hoped that she was right, otherwise she'd have just left the man she loved to his death.
Meanwhile, the Doctor was examining some crude drawings he'd found on the wall "History of some big battle." he said into his comm "Man against Beast. Dunno if ya getting this, Ida. Hope so. Anyway, they defeated the Beast an' imprisoned it." he turned round and his torch light fell on a large urn on a stand. He turned back to the wall and saw drawings of people carrying two urns just like the one he'd just seen on their heads. He turned round again to see another urn on another stand nearby. "An' maybe that's the key." he mused, going over to examine them. He touched one and they both glowed "Or the gate, or bars, or.." Suddenly, he heard a growling, and then he saw it; an enormous red-skinned horned beast, exactly like the one he'd seen on the capsule screen, chained up in a massive pit right in front of him.
On the rocket, Toby suddenly started chuckling to himself. "What's the joke?" Danny asked
"Just.. we made it." Toby smirked "We escaped! We actually did it!"
"Not all of us." Rose muttered
"We're not out of it yet." Zach reminded "We're still the first people in history to fly away from a black hole. What's the stats?" he asked Gazelle
"The gravity funnel's still holding." she replied, though she was still wary of Toby.
"I accept that you exist." the Doctor said to the Beast "I don't 'ave to accept what you are, but your physical existence, I'll give ya that." the Beast growled at him "I don't understand. I was expected down here." the Doctor continued, stepping closer to the Beast "I was given a safe landing an' air. You need me for somefink, what for?"
The Beast tried to go for the Doctor, but the chains stopped it.
"Have I got to.. I dunno, beg an audience, or is there a ritual?" the Doctor asked "Some sort of incantation, or summons, or spell? All these I don't believe in, are they real?" the Beast just growled at him "Speak to me! Tell me!" still nothing but growling.
"You won't talk, or you can't talk." the Doctor realised "Hold on, hold on, wait a minute, just let me.. Oh! no. Yes! No. Think it through! You spoke before, I heard your voice. An intelligent voice. No, more than that, brilliant. But lookin' at you now, all I can see..."
He stepped closer as the Beast roared again "Is the Beast. The animal. Just the body. You're just the body, the physical form. What's happened to your mind? Hmm? Where's it gone? Where's that intelligence?" he looked upwards as realisation dawned on him "Oh, no."
On the rocket, Toby was flipping switches on an overhead screen "Stats at 53, funnel stable at 66.5, hull pressure constant." he said "Smooth as we can, sir, all the way back home. Co-ordinates set for Planet Earth."
The Doctor ran his torch over the drawings, piecing together the facts. "You're imprisoned, long time ago. Before the universe, after, sideways, in-between, doesn't matter. An' the prison is perfect, it's absolute, eternal.. Oh, yes. Open the prison, an' the gravity field collapses. This planet falls into the black hole. You escape, you die. Brilliant! But that's just the body. The body's trapped, that's all. The Devil is an idea, in all those civilisations, just an idea. But an idea is hard to kill. An idea can escape. The mind, the mind of the great beast, the mind can escape. Oh, but that's it! You didn't give me air, your jailors did! They set this up, all those years ago. They need me alive. Because if you're escapin', then I've gotta stop you!"
He grabbed a rock "If I destroy your prison, your body is destroyed, your mind wiv it!" he raised the rock, ready to smash the urns, when something else dawned on him "But then you're clever enough to use this whole system against me. If I destroy this planet, then I destroy the gravity field. The rocket. The rocket loses it's protection, falls into the black hole. I have to sacrifice Gazelle." The Beast cackled mockingly.
"Something's not right." Gazelle murmured thoughtfully "We've escaped, but there's a thousands ways that thing could've killed us. It could've blown us out of the sky, suffocated us, anything. But it's let us go. Why?" an awful thought struck her "Unless it wanted us to escape."
"Hey, Gazelle, do us a favour. Shut up." Toby said rudely
"Don't talk to 'er like that!" Rose snapped "We'd be dead if it wasn't for her."
Toby just grunted and turned back to his screen "Almost there." he said to Zach "We're beyond the reach of the black hole in 40, 39..."
"So that's the trap." the Doctor said to the Beast "Or the test, or the final judgement, I dunno. But if I kill you, I kill her. Her an' Rose, an' everyone else on that rocket."
The Beast cackled
"Except that implies, in this big grand scheme of gods an' devils, that they're just victims." he walked back over to the urns "I've seen a lot in this universe. I've seen fake gods an' bad gods, an' demi-gods an' would-be gods. An' out of all that, out of all that pantheon, if I believe in one thing, just one thing... I believe in Gazelle." and with that, he grabbed the rock and smashed one of the urns.
The rocket suddenly began to shake violently. "What happened? What was that?" Danny asked, scared
"What's he doing? What is he doing?" Toby growled angrily, something which only Gazelle noticed.
"We've lost the funnel!" Zach cried "Gravity collapse!"
"What does that mean?" Rose asked
"We can't escape." Gazelle told her, keeping her eyes on Toby "We're being pulled into the black hole."
The Doctor smashed the other urn "This is your freedom!" he crowed "Free to die! You're goin' into that black hole, an' I'm ridin' wiv you!"
The Beast roared in rage, spewing fire out of it's mouth.
Rose looked out of the viewport "It's the planet." she said "The planet's movin'. It's fallin'!"
"I might have know it'd be you." Gazelle said to Toby. Rose turned round to see that Toby's face was once again covered in symbols and his eyes red.
"I am the rage and the bile and the ferocity." he snarled in the Beast's voice
"Just do somefink!" Rose screamed at the others
"I am the prince and the fool, and it's agony!" Toby continued "I am the sin and and the fear and the darkness!" he spat a plume of fire out of his mouth, causing Rose and Danny to flinch back
"What is he?" Zach stared "What the hell is he?"
"The Devil." Gazelle replied. Unlike the Humans, she was keeping a calm head and was thinking of what to do.
"I shall never die!" Toby gloated, not noticing the Time Lady picking up the bolt gun "The though of me is for ever! In the bleeding hearts of men, in their vanity, and obsession and lust! Nothing shall ever destroy me! Nothing!"
Gazelle aimed her bolt gun at the front viewport. "Oh, go to hell!" she snorted and fired. The bolt shattered the viewport, creating a decompression. "ROSE, GET HIM OUTTA HERE!" Gazelle yelled, and Rose promptly unbuckled Toby's restraints, causing him to be sucked out into space. They all watched as he was sucked into the black hole.
"EMERGENCY SHIELD!" Zach yelled, hitting a switch, and a shield came down, sealing the blown viewport "We've still lost the gravity funnel!" he hollered "We can't escape the black hole."
"But we stopped him." Rose said "That's what the Doctor would've done."
"Some victory." Zach retorted "We're going in!"
"Well, at least we go out in style." Gazelle tried to lighten the mood.
On the planet, the Beast howled and roared as it's plan failed. The whole cavern started to crumble. The Doctor decided to make a break for it and ran off down the tunnel.
"The planet's lost orbit!" Danny cried, looking at the screen "It's falling!"
Gazelle felt her hears go out for Ida, the Ood and most of all, the Doctor.
The Doctor, meanwhile, sprinted along the tunnel, when he saw a sight for sore eyes; the TARDIS. He laughed in delight at finding his ship intact down here.
On the rocket, Danny watched as Krop Tor was consumed by the black hole "The planet's gone!" he cried
"Accelerating." Zach said as he tried to fight the black hole's pull, but to no avail "I did my best." he sighed "But hey, first Human beings to fall inside a black hole. How about that? History." he, Rose and Danny all closed their eyes, waiting for the end. Gazelle kept hers open, ready to face her death head on.
Suddenly, she saw something outside that made her smile. A moment later, the shaking stopped. The Humans opened their eyes "What happened?" Rose asked
Then, the rocket began to turn around "We're turning." Zach said in disbelief "We're turning around. We're turning away!"
Gazelle just grinned even more "That's the Doctor." she stated
"Yep, that's me!" the Doctor's voice came over the radio "Sorry about the hi-jack, captain. This is the good ship TARDIS. Now, first things first, I headr my Gazelle's angelic voice, is there a Rose Tyler on board too?"
"I'm here!" Rose called "It's me! Where are ya?"
"I'm just towin' you home." the Doctor replied "Gravity, shmaivty My people practically invented black holes."
"Actually, we did." Gazelle chuckled
"Well, yeah." the Doctor answered "A couple of minutes, we'll be nice an' safe. Oh, an' captain, can we do a swap? Say, if you give me Gazelle and Rose Tyler, I give you Ida Scott, how about that?"
"She's alive?!" Zach cried in relief
"Thank God." Danny whispered to himself
"Yeah, bit of oxygen starvation, but she'll be alright." the Doctor answered "I couldn't save the Ood. I only 'ad time for one trip. They went down wiv the planet." he said solemnly, and Gazelle bowed her head in respect for the dead Ood "Ah." the Doctor said more cheerfully "Entering clear space. End of the line, mission closed."
The Doctor landed the TARDIS inside the rocket's cargo hold and Gazelle and Rose eagerly entered the box, where the Doctor was standing by the console. Gazelle ran up to him and practically jumped into his arms, then they both kissed. Rose watched them happily, letting them have their moment. The Time Lords broke off their kiss and the Doctor turned to Rose "Oi, you're part of the family too, come 'ere!" Rose ran over and they had a group hug.
A few minutes later, everyone was getting ready to go their separate ways. Ida had been returned to the rocket, the Doctor had changed back into his suit and Gazelle had retrieved her sonic and psychic paper from her old jacket. "Zach?" the Doctor said into the monitor "We'll be off now, have a good trip home. An' the next time ya get curious about somefink... Oh, what's the point? You'll just go blunderin' in." he sighed
"That's the Human race for ya." Gazelle smiled, patting his shoulder.
"But Doctor, what did you find down there?" Ida asked "That creature, what was it?"
"I dunno." the Doctor shrugged "Never did decipher that writing. But that's good! The day I know everyfink, I might as well stop."
"What d'you two think it was, really?" Rose asked
"Doesn't matter." Gazelle replied, as she and the Doctor got ready to fly off "The important thing is we defeated it."
"That's good enough for me." the Doctor agreed
"It said I was gonna die in battle." Rose reminded
"Then it was lying." Gazelle reassured her, making Rose smile.
"Right!" the Doctor said, turning back to the console "Onwards, upwards. Ida, see ya again, maybe."
"I hope so." Ida said
"An' thanks, boys!" Rose called
"Best of luck, all of you." Gazelle added
"Hang on though, Doctor." Ida said "You never really said... You three.. Who are you?"
"Oh, the stuff of legend." the Doctor grinned, pulling a lever, sending them off into the Time Vortex.
"Modest as ever!" Gazelle laughed, slapping the Doctor on the shoulder. He just winked at her.
"Right." Rose said "I'm gonna go to bed. I dunno about you two, but I'm cream crackered."
"Yeah, night Rose." Gazelle called, as the blonde went off towards the stairs to her room.
"I fink she's got the right idea." the Doctor said "Fancy an early night, Remii?" he asked Gazelle, holding his hand out to her
"Why not?" Gazelle answered, taking his hand, and the Time Lords walked off hand-in-hand to the Doctor's bedroom.
Author's nots: Right, well, I'm glad to get this two-parter over and done with. Great as it is, it gave me quite a few headaches on how to insert Gazelle into it. I hope everyone likes how I worked her into the plot. It's really episodes 8-11 of series 2 that I find hard to work OCs into. I'm kinda making it up as I go along. Next time, we've got the infamous Love & Monsters. That's gonna pose some interesting challenges. See ya then!