AN: Well, I got this done faster than I thought I would! Call it an Easter present :)
Chapter 4: Gridlock
As the Doctor paced around the console, Eris knew exactly what he was thinking.
"Just one trip. That's what I said. One trip in the Tardis, and then home. Although I suppose we could stretch the definition. Take one trip into the past, one trip into the future. How do you fancy that?"
Perched on one of the ropey chairs by the railings, Martha grinned.
"No complaints from me."
"How about a different planet?"
"Can we go to yours?"
He froze for a moment, then tried to recover it before Martha realised how uncomfortable he was. "Ah, there's plenty of other places."
"Come on, though. I mean, planet of the Time Lords. That's got to be worth a look. What's it like?"
Eris smiled softly. "Well, it's beautiful, yeah."
"Is it like, you know, outer space cities, all spires and stuff?"
Moving to stand with Eris - on the pretense of adjusting the flight path - the Doctor took great comfort from her presence. "I suppose it is."
"Great big temples and cathedrals!"
"Yeah."
"Lots of planets in the sky?"
He gulped, trying to stay level headed. Talking about home wasn't something he did often, and every time he did, it stung.
"The sky's a burnt orange, with the Citadel enclosed in a mighty glass dome, shining under the twin suns. Beyond that, the mountains go on forever. Slopes of deep red grass, capped with snow."
Martha had been following his every word, picturing it in her mind's eye.
"Can we go there?"
He jumped like he'd been electrocuted.
"Nah. Where's the fun for me? I don't want to go home. Instead, this is much better. Year five billion and fifty-three, planet New Earth. Second hope of mankind. Fifty thousand light years from your old world, and we're slap bang in the middle of New New York. Although, technically it's the fifteenth New York from the original, so it's New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York. One of the most dazzling cities ever built."
While he'd been rambling he'd managed to land them, and he gestured towards the doors. Martha went first, entirely missing the quick hug her friends shared.
She walked out into torrential rain and grimaced, hunching her shoulders to stop the cold water getting down the back of her jacket.
"Oh, that's nice. Time Lord version of dazzling."
The Doctor and Eris followed her out, seemingly unbothered by the weather.
"Nah, a bit of rain never hurt anyone. Come on, let's get under cover!"
He dragged them towards a small alcove with a screen set into the wall.
Martha grumbled. "Well, it looks like the same old Earth to me, on a Wednesday afternoon."
"Hold on, hold on. Let's have a look." Using the sonic, he managed to get the monitor working.
A grainy image of a middle aged woman appeared. She seemed to be in the middle of a traffic report.
"And the driving should be clear and easy, with fifteen extra lanes open for the New New Jersey expressway."
Then, a picture of a polished, glossy New Manhattan area appeared, peppered with flying cars. The Doctor grinned.
"Oh, that's more like it. That's the view we had last time. This must be the lower levels, down in the base of the tower. Some sort of under-city."
Martha raised an eyebrow. "You've brought me to the slums?"
Eris' grin mirrored the Doctor's, and the resemblance between them was more striking than ever.
"Much more interesting. It's all cocktails and glitter up there. This is the real city. Where the real people are."
"You'd enjoy anything."
"When travelling with him, you get used to finding silver linings everywhere."
Ignoring the slight jab she made, he held a hand out.
"Ah, the rain's stopping. Better and better."
Something was bothering Martha. "When you say last time, was that you and Rose?"
"Er, yeah. Yeah, it was, yeah."
"You're taking me to the same planets that you took her?"
"What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing. Ever heard the word rebound?"
As she stormed away, a little hurt, a man opened a hatch in a large green metal container.
"Oh! You should have said. How long have you been there? Happy. You want Happy."
More hatches opened, and the hubbub increased to an almost deafening level.
"Customers. Customers! We've got customers!"
"We're in business. Mother, open up the Mellow, and the Read."
"Happy, Happy, lovely happy Happy!"
"Anger. Buy some Anger!"
"Get some Mellow. Makes you feel all bendy and soft all day long."
"Don't go to them. They'll rip you off. Do you want some happy?"
Eris looked rather unsettled.
"No, thanks."
"Are they selling drugs?" Martha frowned.
"I think they're selling moods."
"Same thing, isn't it?"
A young woman entered the area from an alleyway, and the pharmacists - for want of a better word - started haranguing her.
"Over here, sweetheart! That's it, come on, I'll get you first!"
"Oi! Oi, you! Over here! Over here! Buy some Happy!"
"Come over here, yeah. And what can I get you, my love?"
She approached one of the female pharmacists, dressed entirely in grey with a holey shawl wrapped around her head.
"I want to buy Forget."
"I've got Forget, my darling. What strength? How much do you want forgetting?"
"It's my mother and father. They went on the motorway."
"Oh, that's a swine. Try this. Forget Forty three. That's two credits."
As the woman went to collect the Forget, the Doctor approached the young woman.
"Sorry, but hold on a minute. What happened to your parents?"
"They drove off."
"Yeah, but they might drive back."
She sighed, like he wasn't understanding.
"Everyone goes to the motorway in the end. I've lost them."
"But they can't have gone far. You could find them." The pharmacist came back and handed her a small plastic circular patch, which she immediately stuck to her neck. She blinked a few times, before looking up at the Doctor - a lot less sad looking than she had been just seconds earlier.
"I'm sorry, what were you saying?"
Worried, the Doctor repeated back what she'd just said to them.
"Your parents. Your mother and father. They're on the motorway."
"Are they? That's nice. I'm sorry, I won't keep you."
As she walked away, Martha gawped.
"So that's the human race five billion years in the future. Off their heads on chemicals."
She screamed as someone grabbed her from behind, and out of the corner of her eye she could see a woman pointing a gun at the Doctor. She could hear Eris struggling with the person holding her.
"I'm sorry, I'm really, really sorry. We just need three, that's all."
The Doctor pointed a warning finger. "No, let her go! I'm warning you, let her go! Whatever you want, I can help. Both of us, we can help. But first you've got to let her go."
The woman was apologising, over and over. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. Sorry."
They made a run for it, Eris hot on their heels. She called back to her dad as the door locked itself behind them, just audible through the thick metal.
"I won't leave her! The door's locked, use the sonic!"
They made it out onto a back street, Eris still doing her best to pull Martha away from the kidnappers. Martha was doing a damn good job herself of fighting back.
"The Doctor is so going to kill you, and never mind him, I'm going to kill you myself! Let go of me!"
The man nodded at his partner.
"Give her some Sleep."
"Don't you dare! Don't put that stuff in me, don't! Get off me!"
The woman brought the little plastic sleep circle up to Martha's neck, speaking soothingly.
"It's just Sleep Fourteen. No, baby, don't fight it."
"I'm telling you, don't!"
But the patch had made contact, and she was soon asleep in the man's arms. They both looked warily at Eris.
"We don't need you, we only need three. You can go if you want, tell your other friend that she'll be okay."
Eris shook her head.
"I'm not letting her out of my sight. I won't cause trouble for you, but there's no way she's going anywhere without me. Understood?"
Weighing up their options, the duo agreed.
"That's it. Let's get on board."
As the man went for the driver's seat, the woman set Martha down on the bed.
"Engaging anti-gravs. Hold on."
"She's all right. She's breathing, pulse is fine, and no harm done. She looks rich. She must have got lost. Did the two of you get lost?"
Feeling the car rise, Eris didn't answer her question, and merely tucked herself up in the corner of the bed.
The man shrugged. "At least she isn't starting problems. And either way, they're worth their weight in gold to us. This is car four six five diamond six. We have four passengers, repeat four. Request access to the fast lane."
The computer's response made the pair grin.
"Access granted."
"Oh, yes."
Back in the midst of the Pharmacy Town square, the Doctor hammered on one of the hatches. He had made it through the corridors just in time to see a boxy grey car lift off, presumably with both girls inside, and he wanted answers. The woman behind the hatch grinned.
"Thought you'd come back. Do you want some happy Happy?"
"Those people, who were they? Where did they take them?"
Having heard the disturbance, other pharmacists opened their windows.
"They've taken them to the motorway."
"Looked like carjackers to me."
"I'd give up now, darling. You won't see them again."
"Used to be thriving, this place. You couldn't move. But they all go to the motorway in the end."
He tried to mentally sift through all the information being thrown at him.
"He kept on saying three, we need three. What did he mean, three?"
"It's the car-sharing policy, to save fuel. You get special access if you're carrying three adults."
"This motorway. How do I get there?"
"Straight down the alley, keep going to the end. You canna miss it. Tell you what. How about some happy Happy? Then you'll be smiling, my love."
His face was stony, and the bite in his tone was unmistakeable.
"Word of advice, all of you. Cash up, close down and pack your bags."
"Why's that, then?"
"Because as soon as I've found them, alive and well - and I will find them alive and well - then I'm coming back, and this street is closing tonight!"
"Now you just settle back. It's all going to be worth it."
"Yeah. The view from the windows. You can see all the way out to the flatlands. Clear blue sky. They say the air smells like apple grass. Can you imagine?"
"The houses are made of wood. There are jobs going in the foundries. Everyone says so."
The faitnstrains of their kidnappers' conversation roused Martha from her drowsy state, and she spotted a gun on the nearby shelf. She turned to look for Eris, and saw the girl curled up at the head of the bed, apparently still sleeping. Deciding to take matters into her own hands, she pointed the gun at the drivers.
"Take me back. Whoever you are, just take us back to our friend. That's all I want. We won't cause any trouble. Just take us back."
The woman raised an eyebrow, but looked sympathetic.
"I'm sorry. That's not a real gun."
"Yeah, well, you would say that."
"Where do you get a gun from, these days? I wouldn't even know how to fire!"
"No, nor me. Okay."
She moved to put the gun down, and jumped at the feeling of a hand on her shoulder.
"Everything okay?" Eris asked, looking a little bleary eyed.
"Yeah, fine. Just got a bit heated for a moment there. I thought you were asleep."
"Not really. I told them I'd cooperate so I didn't get a patch, and just decided to stay out of the way for a while. Got lost meditating, I think."
The woman looked a little confused by their conversation, but tried to be polite anyway.
"What's your names?"
"Martha. Martha Jones."
"I'm Eris - just Eris."
She smiled. "Well, I'm Cheen, and this is Milo. And I swear we're sorry. We're really, really sorry. We just needed access to the fast lane, but I promise, as soon as we arrive, we'll drop you off and you can go back and find your friend."
Martha raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?"
"I swear! Look." Cheen moved her hair back to reveal a small plastic circle of her own. "Honesty patch."
"All the same, it's still kidnapping! Where are we, anyway?"
Milo spoke to them for the first time. "We're on the motorway."
"What's that, then? Fog?"
"That's the exhaust fumes. We're going out to Brooklyn. Everyone says the air's so much cleaner, and we couldn't stay in Pharmacy Town, because…"
He trailed off, and Cheen picked up.
"Well, because of me. I'm pregnant. We only discovered it last week. Scan says it's going to be a boy."
This was all getting a bit much for Martha.
"Right. What do I do now, congratulate my kidnappers?"
"Oh, we're not kidnappers. Not really."
"Nope? You're idiots. You're having a baby, and you're wearing that?" She reached forwards and ripped the patch from Cheen's neck. "Not anymore."
This time, Eris' hand on her shoulder was far firmer.
"Relax, Martha. It'll be easier if we aren't starting fights left, right and centre in a tiny car. Okay?"
Milo seemed very relaxed.
"This'll be as fast as we can. We'll take the motorway to the Brooklyn flyover, and then after that it's going to take awhile, because then there's no fast lane, just ordinary roads, but at least it's direct."
"It's only ten miles." Cheen smiled.
Thinking for a moment, Martha decided to just go along with it.
"How long is it going to take?"
"About six years."
The response from their hostages was simultaneous.
"What?"
"Be just in time for him to start school."
Eris leant forwards.
"No, sorry, hold on. Six years? Ten miles in six years? How come?"
Reaching the metal door to the lay by, the Doctor sonicked it and stepped out onto the small balcony beyond - and immediately started coughing. The air was thick with fumes, and his eyes were watering so much that it was hard to see his hand in front of his face. He could just about see the shapes of thousands of cars, stacked in all directions. The nearest car opened it's door and a figure in a 1940's flying jacket and helmet, paired with goggles and a white scarf, leant out and extended a hand. He spoke with an Irish twang.
"Hey! You daft little street strut. What are you doing standing there? Either get out or get in. Come on!"
Deciding that it couldn't be any worse inside the little vehicle, he got in, gasping for breath and nodding appreciatively as a dark haired woman handed him an oxygen mask. Through the fume-induced tears, she almost looked like Eris.
"Did you ever see the like? Just standing there, breathing it in." The man removed his goggles and scarf to reveal a feline face beneath. "There's this story, says back in the old days, on Junction forty seven, this woman stood in the exhaust fumes for a solid twenty minutes. By the time they found her, her head had swollen to fifty feet."
The woman tutted. "Oh, you're making it up."
"A fifty foot head! Just think of it. Imagine picking that nose."
"Oh, stop it. That's disgusting."
"What, did you never pick your nose?"
Her tone changed. "Bran, we're moving."
"Right. I'm there. I'm on it."
He slid into the driver's seat and pulled the car forwards. They were only moving for a few seconds before stopping again, and the cat-man smiled.
"Twenty yards. We're having a good day. And who might you be, sir? Very well-dressed for a hitchhiker."
Finally able to breathe normally, the Doctor removed the oxygen mask.
"Thanks. Sorry, I'm the Doctor."
"Medical man! My name's Thomas Kincade Brannigan, and this is the bane of my life, the lovely Valerie."
"Nice to meet you." Valerie shook his hand while simultaneously giving Brannigan a playful glare. "And that's the rest of the family behind you."
Looking back to where she had gestured, the Doctor pulled back a curtain to reveal a litter of kittens, each with a different coloured bow, mewling in a wicker basket.
"Ah, that's nice. Hello. How old are they?" He picked one up to cuddle.
"Just two months."
Brannigan sighed. "Poor little souls. They've never known the ground beneath their paws. Children of the motorway."
The Doctor couldn't stop the frown that appeared.
"What, they were born in here?"
Valerie shrugged. "We couldn't stop. We heard there were jobs going, out in the laundries on Fire Island. Thought we'd take a chance."
"What, you've been driving for two months?"
Brannigan looked at him like he was a complete idiot.
"Do I look like a teenager? We've been driving for twelve years now."
"I'm sorry?"
"Yeah! Started out as newlyweds. Feels like yesterday."
"Feels like twelve years to me." Valerie muttered.
"Ah, sweetheart, but you still love me."
The Doctor interrupted. "Twelve years? How far did you come? Where did you start?"
"Battery Park. It's five miles back."
"You travelled five miles in twelve years?"
"I think he's a bit slow."
Valerie swatted at her husband's arm. "Where are you from?"
"Never mind that. I've got to get out. My friends are in one of these cars. They were taken hostage. I should get back to the Tardis."
A head shake from Brannigan. "You're too late for that. We've passed the lay-by. You're a passenger now, Sonny Jim."
"When's the next lay-by?"
"Oh... six months?"
Having calmed down significantly, Martha peered out of one of the grubby side windows in amazement. The sheer volume of cars out there was almost unimaginable.
"How many cars are out there?"
Cheen shrugged. "I don't think anyone knows. Here we go. Hungry?" And she passed back two large biscuits wrapped in plastic, one for each of them.
Eris looked a little surprised. "Oh, thanks. But how far down is it to this fast lane?"
Milo kept his eyes on the road as he answered.
"Oh, it's right at the bottom, underneath the traffic jam. But not many people can afford three passengers, so it's empty down there. Rumour has it you can reach up to thirty miles per hour."
The time travellers exchanged bemused looks, and Martha's voice dripped with sarcasm.
"Wow. That's, like, crazy. But how are you supposed to live inside this thing? It's tiny."
Cheen twisted around in her chair.
"Oh, we stocked up. Got self-replicating fuel, muscle stimulants for exercise, and there's a chemical toilet at the back. And all waste products are recycled as food."
"Okay."
Martha discreetly dumped the remainder of the biscuit, and watched Eris worriedly as she kept eating.
"How are you still eating that? You did hear what she said it was made out of, right?"
Eris just shrugged. "I've eaten far worse, and it's really not that bad. At least it tastes better than some of dad's cooking."
Milo sounded pleased as they moved again.
"Oh, another gap. This is brilliant."
"Car sign in." The computer chimed.
"Car Four Six Five Diamond Six, on descent to the fast lane, thank you very much."
"Please drive safely."
Valerie and Brannigan watched, a little wary, as the Doctor hacked into their communications system.
"I need to talk to the police."
He got the standard response. "Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold."
"But you're the police."
"Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold."
He turned back to ask, "Is there anyone else? I once met the Duke of Manhattan. Is there any way of getting through to him?"
Brannigan's eyebrows raised so far that they were at risk of disappearing under his leather cap.
"Oh now, ain't you lordly?"
"I've got to find my friends."
Valerie looked sympathetic, understanding that he clearly wasn't from around these parts.
"You can't make outside calls. The motorway's completely enclosed."
"What about the other cars?"
Brannigan smiled, and reached for the screen. "Oh, we've got contact with them, yeah. Well, some of them, anyway. They've got to be on your friends list. Now, let's see. Who's nearby? Ah, the Cassini sisters!" He picked up the microphone, and pulled out his most charming voice.
"Still your hearts, my handsome girls. It's Brannigan here."
An older woman's voice replied, snappy with a hint of delight.
"Get off the line, Brannigan. You're a pest and a menace."
"Oh, come on, now, sisters. Is that any way to talk to an old friend?"
"You know full well we're not sisters. We're married."
"Ooo, stop that modern talk. I'm an old-fashioned cat. Now, I've got a hitchhiker here, calls himself the Doctor."
Taking this as his cue, the Doctor started talking.
"Hello. Sorry. I'm looking for two girls, one called Eris and the other called Martha Jones. They've been carjacked. They're inside one of these vehicles, but I don't know which one."
Another voice came through, clearly the driver's wife.
"Wait a minute. Could I ask, what entrance did they use?"
The Doctor covered the mic for a moment. "Where were we?"
"Pharmacy Town." Valerie answered.
"Pharmacy Town. About twenty minutes ago."
"Let's have a look."
They could practically hear the driver's eye roll. "Just my luck to marry a car-spotter."
"In the last half hour, fifty three new cars joined from the Pharmacy Town junction."
The Doctor winced. That really didn't narrow it down much.
"Anything more specific?"
"All in good time." Came the slightly reproachful response. There was a fair considerable pause before the next question.
"Were they car-jacked by two people?"
"Yes, they were, yeah."
"There we are. Just one of those cars was destined for the fast lane. That means they had at least three on board. And the car number is four six five diamond six."
The Doctor cheered. "That's it! So how do we find them?"
"Ah. Now there I'm afraid I can't help."
He looked over at Brannigan.
"Call them on this thing. We've got their number. Diamond six."
"But not if they're designated fast lane. It's a different class."
The second Mrs Cassini tried to be helpful again.
"You could try the police."
"They put me on hold."
The first Mrs Cassini was a little less sympathetic.
"You'll have to keep trying. There's no one else."
The carjackers and their (still rather unwilling) passengers were making significant progress. Milo pointed to the scan.
"See? Another ten layers to go. We're scorching."
A distant snarling growl echoed upwards, and Martha and Cheen exchanged nervous looks.
"What's that? It's coming from underneath."
"It's that noise, isn't it? It's like Kate said. The stories, they're true."
"What stories?"
Milo shot them an eye roll. "It's the sound of the air vents. That's all. The exhaust fumes travel down, so at the base of the tunnel they've got air vents."
Cheen's eyes had lit up with a childish glimmer of glee, mixed with a little fear.
"No, but the stories are much better. They say people go missing on the motorway. Some cars just vanish, never to be seen again, because there's something living down there in the smoke. Something huge and hungry. And if you get lost on the road, it's waiting for you."
Another distant roar punctuated her story, and Milo shrugged.
"But like I said. Air vents. Going down to the next layer."
Raising her eyebrows, Eris gestured at the window.
"Except look out there. Does it look like the air vents are working?"
Fear seemed to take over in Cheen's mind. "No."
"So what's that, then?"
Huffing, Milo did his best to put an end to the conversation.
"Nah. Kid stuff. Now, here we go. Car four six five diamond six, on descent."
The Doctor had a feeling that his request wasn't about to go down well, but he gave it a shot anyway.
"We've got to go to the fast lane. Take me down."
"Not a million years." As expected, Brannigan shook his head.
"You've got three passengers."
"I'm still not going."
"They're lost. Martha doesn't belong on this planet, and it's all my fault. And as good as Eris is in a crisis, they're down there with no way of escape. I'm asking you, Brannigan, take me down."
Valerie snapped. "That's a no. And that's final. I'm not risking the children down there."
"Why not? What's the risk? What happens down there?"
"We're not discussing it. The conversation is closed."
"So we keep on driving."
Brannigan fixed his eyes on the screen. "Yes, we do."
"For how long?"
"Till the journey's end."
Feeling his frustration surge, the Doctor grabbed the radio handset.
"Mrs Cassini, this is the Doctor. Tell me, how long have you been driving on the motorway?"
The Cassini that was driving answered.
"Oh, we were amongst the first. It's been twenty three years now."
"And in all that time, have you ever seen a police car?"
The pause before her wife answered was uncomfortable.
"I'm not sure."
"Look at your notes. Any police?"
"Not as such."
"Or an ambulance? Rescue service? Anything official. Ever."
She was clearly feeling a little attacked. "I can't keep a note of everything."
"What if there's no one out there?"
Brannigan snatched the microphone back, glaring.
"Stop it. The Cassinis were doing you a favour."
"Someone's got to ask, because you might not talk about it, but it's there in your eyes. What if the traffic jam never stops?"
"There's a whole city above us. The mighty city state of New New York. They wouldn't just leave us."
"In that case, where are they, hmm? What if there's no help coming, not ever? What if there's nothing? Just the motorway, with the cars going round and round and round and round, never stopping. Forever."
Now, Valerie was trying to hold back a sob. "Shut up! Just shut up!"
The pretty face of the newsreader appeared on their screen.
"This is Sally Calypso, and it's that time again. The sun is blazing high in the sky over the New Atlantic, the perfect setting for the daily contemplation."
Brannigan looked balefully at the Doctor.
"You think you know us so well, Doctor. But we're not abandoned. Not while we have each other."
"This is for all of you out there on the roads. We're so sorry. Drive safe."
And then the singing started. It must have been heard through the whole of the motorway, with every single passenger adding their voice to the powerful throng.
"On a hill, far away, stood an old, rugged cross, the emblem of suffering and shame. And I love that old cross, where the dearest and best for a world of lost sinners was slain. So I'll cherish the old rugged cross, till my trophies at last I lay down. I will cling to the old rugged cross, and exchange it some day for a crown."
He stood silently as they sang.
Down on the last layer, Milo, Cheen and Martha had joined in. There were tears running down Martha's face, and she appreciated Eris' arm around her shoulder. But she noticed that her new friend hadn't opened her mouth, and looked out of the corner of her eye. The girl's free hand was fiddling with a pocket watch on a silver chain, flicking at the catch in a regular rhythm. She turned to ask the importance of the object, but was interrupted by the car's computer.
"Fast lane access. Please drive safely."
Milo grinned.
"We made it. The fast lane."
They started to descend.
Realising that he was running out of time - and options - the Doctor made up his mind.
"If you won't take me, I'll go down on my own."
Brannigan stared as the man started interfering with the floor hatch.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"Finding my own way. I usually do."
It opened, and luckily a car stopped right below them.
"Here we go."
Shrugging out of his trench coat, he tossed it to Valerie.
"Look after this. I love that coat. Janis Joplin gave me that coat."
She looked at him aghast. "But you can't jump."
"If it's any consolation, Valerie, right now, I'm having kittens."
He was halfway over the hole when Brannigan raised an eyebrow.
"These girls. They must mean an awful lot to you."
"Eris is my daughter, near enough, and she's the closest thing I've had to a best friend in a long time. I know she can handle herself, but I hate knowing that she's facing trouble on her own. But Martha? Hardly know her. I was too busy showing off. And I lied to her. Couldn't help it, just lied. And if anything, that makes me feel even worse. Bye then."
And he dropped.
Valerie gasped. "He's completely insane!"
Brannigan concurred. "That, and a bit magnificent!"
The Doctor worked fast to open the roof hatch and get out of the smoke, dropping into a car inhabited by a man with skin almost as white as the suit he was wearing.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Sorry, Motorway Foot Patrol. I'm doing a survey. How are you enjoying your motorway?"
The white man scoffed. "Well, not very much. Junction Five's been closed for three years."
"Thank you. Your comments have been noted. Have a nice day!"
He dropped through the floor again, planning the exact same for the next however many cars were below. The sooner he got down to the girls, the better.
Things were only getting trickier for the people in car four six five diamond six.
"Try again."
Cheen's voice was cracking as Milo tapped at the GPS function on the computer screen.
"Brooklyn turnoff one, closed."
"Try the next one."
"Brooklyn turnoff two, closed."
"What do we do?"
Behind the couple, Martha and Eris watched apprehensively as Milo tried to calm his partner down.
"We'll keep going round. We'll do the whole loop, and by the time we come back round, they'll be open."
There was a low growl from outside, and the car shuddered a little. Martha raised an eyebrow.
"You're still calling that air vents?"
"What else could it be?"
This time, it was louder, and Cheen looked like she was about to cry.
"What the hell is that?"
"It's just the hydraulics."
Eris groaned. How could he be so oblivious?
"It sounds like it's alive."
He spoke to her like he was trying to talk to an annoying child.
"It's all exhaust fumes out there. Nothing could breathe in that."
A frantic voice burst through their communication unit.
"Calling Car four six five diamond six. Repeat, calling Car four six five diamond six."
Milo picked it up. "This is Car four six five diamond six. Who's that? Where are you?"
"I'm in the fast lane, about fifty yards behind." The voice was female, and clearly unhappy. "Can you get back up? Can you get off the fast lane?"
"We only have permission to go down. We need the Brooklyn Flyover."
The vague sound of crashing from the other car's intercom worried them, as did the message that accompanied it.
"It's closed. Go back up."
"We can't. We'll just go round."
"Don't you understand? They're closed. They're always closed. We're stuck down here, and there's something else out there in the fog. Can't you hear it?"
There was a roar, and the inhabitants of both cars shivered. Milo tried to calm himself.
"That's the air vents."
"Jehovah, what are you? Some stupid kid? Get out of here!"
Another colossal crash from the other car, and Milo frowned.
"What was that?"
"I can't move! They've got us!"
Eris leaned forwards and grabbed the intercom.
"But what's happening? What's got you? What is it?"
They didn't get a proper answer.
"Hang on. It's here. Just drive, you idiots! Get out of here!"
A crackle, a scream, and a loud crunch. Then, nothing. Milo took control again.
"Can you hear me? Hello?"
Martha grabbed his arm. "Just drive! Do what she said. Get us out of here!"
"But where?"
"Just straight ahead. And fast!"
Cheen looked terrified. "What is it? What's out there? What is it?"
There was a shake, and then something hit their car, hard. Clearly whatever was down there had chosen a new target. Them.
The Doctor dropped into yet another car, and found himself in the company of a smart young man in a bowler hat and pinstripe suit.
"Excuse me, is that legal?"
"Sorry, Motorway Foot Patrol." He found that his throat was too clogged with the fumes to finish a proper excuse. "Whatever. Have you got any water?"
"Certainly. Never let it be said I've lost my manners."
He passed a small cone of water to the Doctor, who accepted it gratefully and knocked it back in one gulp.
"Is this the last layer?"
"We're right at the bottom. Nothing below us but the fast lane."
"Can we drive down?"
Immediately, the driver looked nervous.
"There's only two of us. You need three to go down."
"Couldn't we just cheat?"
"Well, I'd love to, but it's an automated system. The wheel would lock."
"Then excuse me."
Kneeling on the floor, the Doctor used the sonic to pull up the floor hatch, just as he had done on the many layers above.
"You can't jump. It's a thousand feet down!" The driver joined him, alarmed.
"No, I just want to look."
A harsh growl from below echoed upwards as the Doctor moved the panel out of the way.
"What's that noise?"
"I try not to think about it." Was the dry response.
"What are those lights? What's down there? I just need to see." Standing, he sonicked the car computer. "There must be some sort of ventilation. If I could just transmit a pulse through this thing, maybe I could trip the system, give us a bit of a breeze."
Then he started to interfere with the wires, watched anxiously by the driver. A clicking sound, and the fan systems below started to work.
"That's it! Might shift the fumes a bit, give us a good look."
He crouched by the opening again, waiting.
As things clarified, the driver shuddered. "What are those shapes?"
"They're alive."
Huge claws came into view, snapping threateningly.
"What the hell are they?"
The Doctor felt his hearts sink a little.
"Macra."
The frequency of the hits against Milo and Cheen's car was increasing by the second, and the passengers could barely stay upright.
"Go faster!"
"I'm at top speed!"
Milo punched at the computer screen, but it didn't give him the response he was looking for.
"No access above."
"But this is an emergency!"
"Thank you for your call. You have been placed on hold."
Squinting out of the grimy windows, Eris could just about make out the glint of a red eye, the snap of a large pincer. And, putting two and two together, she realised what they were up against.
"Turn everything off."
Milo twisted to stare at her. "You've got to be joking."
Eris had practically stolen the words from Martha's mouth, so she jumped in to support her idea.
"But listen, it's all fog out there, so how can they see us? Maybe it's the engines, the sound, or the heat, or the light. I don't know. Turn everything off. They might not be able to find us."
"What if you're wrong?"
"It can't be worse than this! Just do it!"
Nodding, Milo switched everything off at the main switch. The whole car went dark, and slowly the environment outside settled down. The creatures had left them alone.
Cheen took a shaky breath.
"They've stopped."
"Yeah, but they're still out there."
"How did you two think of that?"
Martha exchanged a look with Eris, and shrugged. "I saw it on a film. They used to do it in submarines. The trouble is, I can't remember what they did next."
Eris' response wasn't much more reassuring. "I'm pretty sure I know what those things are, out there. Judging by the conditions, there aren't many things that could live somewhere like that. I think they're Macra."
"What's a Macra when it's at home?"
"Basically a giant crab. They feed off gases, so somewhere like this would be perfect for them to live. And because they live most of their lives in hazy places, they've got very sensitive vision and hearing. So naturally, turning everything off was the logical solution. But past that, I haven't got many ideas either."
Milo poked at the emergency readings. "Well, you'd better think of something, because we've lost the aircon. If we don't switch the engines back on, we won't be able to breathe."
"How long have we got?" Martha didn't think she really wanted to hear the answer.
"Eight minutes, maximum."
Seeing the blank look on the suited man's face, the Doctor launched into an explanation.
"The Macra used to be the scourge of this galaxy. Gas. They fed off gas, the filthier the better. They built up a small empire using humans as slaves and mining gas for food."
The man shrugged. "They don't exactly look like empire builders to me."
"Well, that was billions of years ago. Billions. They must have devolved down the years. Now they're just beasts. But they're still hungry and my friends are down there."
There was a lound bang on the roof of the car, and the driver threw his hands in the air.
"Oh, it's like New Times Square in here, for goodness's sake!"
A figure in a long grey dress dropped through and landed on it's feet, straightening up quickly. The Doctor raised an eyebrow.
"I've invented a sport."
She looked relieved. "Doctor, you're a hard man to find."
Noticing the weapon in her hand, the driver frowned.
"No guns. I'm not having guns."
"I only brought this in case of pirates. Doctor, you've got to come with me."
He raised an eyebrow. "Do I know you?"
"You haven't aged at all. Time has been less kind to me."
Looking properly at the furry, whiskered face, he realised where he had seen it before. She was greyer than she had been before, but was still unmistakeable.
"Novice Hame!" He went in for a hug, before pushing her away again. "No, hold on, get off. Last time we met, you were breeding humans for experimentation."
"I've sought forgiveness, Doctor, for so many years, under his guidance. And if you come with me, I might finally be able to redeem myself."
"I'm not going anywhere. You've got Macra living underneath this city. Macra! And if my friends are still alive, they're stuck down there."
"You've got to come with me right now."
"No, no, no, you're coming with me. We've got three passengers now."
As he tried to drag her towards the steering wheel, she grabbed his wrist firmly.
"I'm sorry, Doctor. But the situation is even worse than you can imagine. Transport."
"Don't you dare! Don't you dare!"
The duo beamed away in a flash of blue light, and the driver sat there, bemused, alone once more.
The landing was a rough one, and the Doctor groaned as he got his bearings.
"Oh! Rough teleport. Ow. You can go straight back down and teleport people out, starting with Eris and Martha."
Hame shook her head, barely visible in the darkness.
"I only had the power for one trip."
"Then get some more! Where are we?"
"High above, in the over-city."
"Good. Because you can tell the Senate of New New York I'd like a word. They have got thousands of people trapped on the motorway. Millions!"
She sighed, and pressed a button on her teleport bracelet.
"But you're inside the Senate, right now. May the goddess Santori bless them."
And the lights came up.
In every seat, high up in the galleries and down on the floor they were standing on, was a skeleton. There must have been thousands of them.
"They died, Doctor. The city died."
His hearts twanged painfully.
"How long's it been like this?"
"Twenty four years."
"All of them? Everyone? What happened?"
She knelt by the nearest skeleton and gently pulled a small plastic circle from underneath it.
"A new chemical. A new mood. They called it Bliss. Everyone tried it. They couldn't stop. A virus mutated inside the compound and became airborne. Everything perished. Even the virus, in the end. It killed the world in seven minutes flat. There was just enough time to close down the walkways and the flyovers, sealing off the under-city. Those people on the motorway aren't lost, Doctor. They were saved."
And now, he understood.
"So the whole thing down there is running on automatic."
"There's not enough power to get them out. We did all we could to stop the system from choking."
Noticing her use of 'we', he frowned.
"Who's we? How did you survive?"
"He protected me. And he has waited for you, these long years."
There was a voice from the next room - but instead of echoing off the walls of the chamber, it echoied around his skull again.
"Doctor."
"The Face of Boe!"
Hame led him through a doorway to the room in which the Face of Boe's tank was being kept.
"I knew you would come."
As the Doctor rested a hand against the glass, Hame explained.
"Back in the old days, I was made his nurse as penance for my sin."
"Old friend, what happened to you?"
"Failing. I am failing."
"He protected me from the virus by shrouding me in his smoke. But with no one to maintain it, the City's power died. The under-city would have fallen into the sea."
"So he saved them."
"The Face of Boe wired himself into the mainframe. He's giving his life force just to keep things running."
He turned to look up at her. "But there are planets out there. You could have called for help."
She shook her head. "The last act of the Senate was to declare New Earth unsafe. The automatic quarantine lasts for one hundred years."
"So the two of you stayed here, on your own for all these years."
"We had no choice."
"Yes, you did."
There was a wheezing breath from Boe.
"Save them, Doctor. Save them."
Inside car four-six-five-diamond-six, it was getting uncomfortably warm. Cheen tugged at the neck of her top.
"How much air's left?"
Milo checked the readout. "Two minutes."
Martha wiped her forehead.
"There's always the Doctor. That friend of ours. He might think of something."
"Martha, no one's coming."
There was an awkward silence for a moment, and Cheen broke it.
"I never even asked. Where's home?"
She sighed. "It's a long way away. I didn't really think. I just followed the Doctor, and they don't even know where I am." A thought hit her, hard. "My mum and dad. If I died here, they'd never know."
A little unnerved by that revelation, Milo asked.
"So, er, who is he, then, this Doctor?"
"I don't know. Well, not really. There's so much he never says."
Cheen whimpered a little.
"But that means that the only hope right now is a complete stranger. Well, that's no use."
A hand landed on the back of each of the seats, and the couple turned to look at Eris. The sweat on her face made her glow a little, and there was a smile twitching at the corners of her mouth.
"Home for Martha might be far away, but home for me is the Doctor. I've been with him… well, longer than you've been alive and then some. You might not know him, and Martha's only just begun to, but I know him better than anyone in this universe. If you don't think you can put your trust in him, then trust me. I know we'll get out of here alive, one way or another."
This time the silence was a little more comfortable, and Milo nodded.
"Right."
He flicked the switch.
"Systems back online."
"Good luck."
She nodded. "We've got this."
And they started to fly again, still battered by the giant claws outside.
Finally, the Doctor managed to get one of the computers to work. Running a quick scan, he grinned at the results.
"Car four six five diamond six. It still registers! That's my girls. I knew Martha was good. Novice Hame, hold that in place. Think, think, think, think. Take the residual energy, invert it, feed it through the electricity grid."
Hame watched him, concerned. "There isn't enough power."
"Oh, you've got power. You've got me. I'm brilliant with computers, just you watch. Hame, every switch on that bank up to maximum. I can't power up the city, but all the city needs is people."
She did as he asked, and turned back to look at him.
"So what are you going to do?"
"This!"
He threw a big switch - and the lights went out. Not exactly the effect he'd been hoping for.
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no. The transformers are blocked. The signal can't get through."
The Face of Boe's voice crept into his head.
"Doctor."
"Yeah, hold on, not now."
"I give you my last…" Then the sound of a deep, rasping breath, and the electrics around them sparked into life once more. The Doctor grinned.
"Hame, look after him. Don't you go dying on me, you big old face. You've got to see this. The open road. Ha!"
Suddenly, the screen in every car on the motorway flared into life. But the face on it wasn't one they recognised.
"Sorry, no Sally Calypso. She was just a hologram. My name's the Doctor. And this is an order. Everyone drive up. Right now. I've opened the roof of the motorway. Come on. Throttle those engines. Drive up. All of you. The whole under-city. Drive up, drive up, drive up! Fast! We've got to clear that fast lane. Drive up and get out of the way."
As the first few cars trickled out of the openings, the Doctor directed his message to one car in particular.
"Oi! Car four six five diamond six. Martha! Drive up!"
In the car, Martha cheered. "That's the Doctor!"
Milo shook his head. "We can't go up! We'll hit the layer above!"
Rolling her eyes, Eris reached forwards and angled the steering wheel.
"Just do as he says! Go up!"
The Doctor's voice came through again. "You've got access above. Now go!"
Steering the car upwards, Milo braced himself for a collision with the bottom layer of cars - a collision that never came. They kept going, and going, until they were practically blinded by the brightness of the light above. Cheen gasped.
"It's daylight. Oh my God, that's the sky. The real sky."
Martha grinned. "He did it! I told you, he did it!"
Eris sighed, relieved, and leant back against the side of the car.
Brannigan had switched his radio back on, and got through to the Doctor.
"Did I tell you, Doctor? You're not bad, sir. You're not bad at all! Oh, yee-hah!"
The Doctor grinned, looking out of the window at the tens of thousands of cars streaming upwards.
"You keep driving, Brannigan. All the way up. Because it's here, just waiting for you. The city of New New York, and it's yours. And don't forget I want that coat back."
"I reckon that's a fair bargain, sir."
Then, the Doctor switched the channel.
"And Car four six five diamond six, I've sent you a flight path. Come to the Senate."
Martha's voice was crackly, but there.
"On my way."
"It's been quite a while since I saw you, Martha Jones."
A shout of alarm from behind him made him turn.
"Doctor!"
After thanking Milo and Cheen profusely, and stopping to collect the jacket from Brannigan, Martha and Eris ran into the Senate building - and stopped dead in their tracks. Skeletons, everywhere. One was sprawled across the floor in front of her, and Martha felt her voice die in her throat. Eris seemed a little more level headed, and called out.
"Doctor?"
"Over here." His voice came from the next room.
Martha was the first in the room. "Doctor! What happened out there?"
Again, she stopped. Her friend was knelt by a colossal, wrinkled brown face. It had huge features, and lay in a pool of shattered glass. The tank behind it was steaming a little, and it was fairly obvious that the thing had been inside it.
"What's that?"
Eris managed a small smile, and dropped to her knees.
"He's the Face of Boe. Don't worry, it's okay."
The Doctor nodded.
"Come and say hello. And this is Hame. She's a cat. Don't worry. He's the one that saved you, not me."
A cat in a grey nun's wimple was stroking the top of the Face of Boe's head.
"My lord gave his life to save the city, and now he's dying."
"No, don't say that. Not old Boe. Plenty of life left."
A voice echoed through all of their heads, and Martha winced a little. It was a weird sensation.
"It's good to breathe the air once more."
"Who is he?" She whispered.
The Doctor shrugged. "I don't even know. Legend says the Face of Boe has lived for billions of years. Isn't that right? And you're not about to give up now."
Boe managed the tiniest of eye rolls.
"Everything has its time. You know that, old friend, better than most."
Looking between the Doctor and Eris, Hame spoke up.
"The legend says more."
There was a note of ice in Eris' voice.
"Don't. There's no need for that."
"It says that the Face of Boe will speak his final secret to travellers."
Clearly unhappy, the Doctor tried to stay civil.
"Yeah, but not yet. Who needs secrets, eh?"
Boe sighed. "I have seen so much. Perhaps too much. I am the last of my kind, as you are the last of yours, Doctor. And of course, Miss Eris; the first, or last, or anywhere in between. But always constant. Always breathtaking."
Eris chuckled. "Are you flirting with me?"
"Are you complaining?"
Before she could respond, the Face of Boe coughed a little - odd, for a being that didn't seem to have any lungs. The Doctor frowned.
"That's why we have to survive. The three of us, together. Don't go."
"I must. But know this. Dear angel, you are stronger than you know. And Time Lord - you are not alone."
He managed one last breath, before his eyes closed for the last time.
Hame burst into tears, and Eris buried her face into her dad's shoulder. Feeling like she was intruding on a very personal moment, Martha stood there, arms crossed.
They strolled back through Pharmacy Town, and the Doctor grinned at the sight before them. Every single one of the sales windows were closed, taped over, and pasted with signs: 'Closed until further notice'.
"All closed down."
Martha smiled, an eyebrow raised. "Happy?"
"Happy happy. New New York can start again. And they've got Novice Hame. Just what every city needs. Cats in charge. Come on, time we were off."
He and Eris started to walk towards the Tardis, but Martha hung back.
"But what did he mean, the Face of Boe? You're not alone."
"I don't know."
"You've got me. Is that what he meant?"
He shook his head. "I don't think so. Sorry. I don't even think it's referring to Eris, somehow."
Martha frowned. "Then what?"
"Doesn't matter. Back to the Tardis, off we go."
Tired of his constant dodging, Martha grabbed a dirty plastic chair from a nearby rubbish heap and set it upright, sat down on it, and crossed her arms. Noticing that her footsteps had stopped, Eris turned.
"Are you staying then?"
"Till he talks to me properly, yes." The Doctor rolled his eyes, but she continued. "He said last of your kind. What does that mean?"
"It really doesn't matter."
"You don't talk. You never say. Why not?"
An echoing sound from above interrupted them, and they listened closely. There were thousands of voices, blending together in harmony.
Eris smiled softly. "It's the city. They're singing." Just out of Martha's line of sight, she reached down and squeezed her dad's hand gently. And he made up his mind. There were two barrels nearby, so he pulled them over and placed them opposite Martha. He and Eris sat down. It took a few moments for him to be ready.
"I lied to you, because I liked it. I could pretend. Just for a bit, I could imagine they were still alive, underneath a burnt orange sky. I'm not just a Time Lord. I'm the last of the Time Lords. The Face of Boe was wrong. There's no one else."
Her heart sank. "What happened?"
This time, his voice was a little shaky.
"There was a war. A Time War. The last Great Time War. My people fought a race called the Daleks, for the sake of all creation. And they lost. They lost. Everyone lost. They're all gone now. My family, my friends, even that sky. Oh, you should have seen it, that old planet." Tears started to prickle in his eyes, and Eris rested her chin on his shoulder, tucking an arm around his back.
"The second sun would rise in the south, and the mountains would shine. The leaves on the trees were silver, and when they caught the light every morning, it looked like a forest on fire. When the autumn came, the breeze would blow through the branches like a song…"
Once the flight was underway, the Doctor disappeared into the depths of the Tardis. Martha felt incredibly guilty for pushing him to talk, and desperately wanted to apologise - but she knew there was no way that she'd find him in the maze of corridors.
"Eris?"
The brunette looked up from her book. "Are you alright?"
"I just feel so bad for pushing him to speak about it."
"You weren't to know, and he understands that. Trust me. He's okay."
"Are you sure?"
She stood, smiling. "Yep. If he was upset with you, you would definitely know about it. Knowing him - and I've had a long time to get to do that - he'll either be tucked up in a dark corner of the library somewhere, or messing around with some random junk in one of the storerooms."
Seeing that Martha was still a bit unsure, Eris held out a hand.
"Come on, let's go to the kitchen. Tea fixes everything, right? And I can tell you some stories too, I've got plenty."
Finally getting a laugh out of her, the two of them headed for the kitchen - hoping that this time, the Tardis would have left it in it's usual place.
See you soon, and happy reading!
Much love,
Azzie xx