AN: Hello again! Here's another chapter, especially for you. Yes, you, the person reading this right now. I'm so glad you're here, reading this, and I hope that this silly little story of mine can bring a little enjoyment to your life.
This chapter is a bit shorter than the last few - not sure why, but that's just how the cookie crumbles I guess. I hope you like it anyway!
Chapter 5: Daleks in Manhattan
Martha was currently standing in the biggest wardrobe she'd ever seen in her entire life - and didn'y really understand how she'd got there. Eris had led her to the place, but she couldn't tell how long it had taken them. Or, what route they'd taken. And to top it all off, her friend had vanished into the maze of rails.
"Eris?"
"Yeah?" Martha jumped as the voice came from right behind her, and she turned. Eris was grinning. "You alright?"
"But- but how did you?"
The brunette grinned. "The Tardis makes life easy for the people she likes. I asked to come back to the entrance, so here I am. Better than walking up twenty odd flights of stairs."
"Why did you bring me here?"
"Well, I did want to find something nice to wear for today's trip." She gestured down at her outfit, high waisted grey trousers with a belt and a slightly oversized pale blue shirt. "But I thought you might like to have a look around, that's all. In case you need to use it in the future."
The implication was clear. "You think he'll let me stay."
Eris shrugged. "I can't be sure. But I know him pretty well, and I've got a gut feeling. Come on, let's head back before he gets himself into some sort of mischief."
As they walked back, and Martha realised she still didn't have a clue what turnings they had made, she decided to focus on something else instead.
"Can I ask you something?"
"You just did, but go ahead."
"You said, when we were with Cheen and Milo, that you'd been with the Doctor for longer than we'd been alive. But you look like you're my age."
Eris raised an eyebrow. "So what's your question?"
"How is that possible?"
"I'm older than I look, Martha. And I don't die."
She gaped. "Seriously?"
"Yep. For the last four hundred and thirty seven years - ish, I might have lost count somewhere - nothing on Earth or anywhere else has been able to kill me. Of course, there's probably something out there somewhere that could take me out, but we haven't found it yet. Not that I want to."
"Hang on, you can't die? Like, actually can't die?"
"Pretty much."
"And you're four hundred and thirty seven years old?"
Eris laughed. "Yep. And looking good, don't you think?"
"But how?!"
"Now, that I don't know. Still working on it."
They walked into the console room, and the Doctor beamed up at them.
"There you are! Are you ready?"
Martha raised an eyebrow. "We landed? But isn't it usually bumpy?"
The Doctor paused before answering, like he was trying to think of what to say. Recognising the look, Eris burst out laughing.
"He had it on autopilot!"
When they left the Tardis, the first thing any of them noticed was the icy breeze that was sweeping the area. Eris - the only one of them not wearing a jacket - shuddered, and ducked back into the ship, reappearing moments later wearing a dark blue jacket.
Adjusting to the cold, Martha asked. "Where are we?"
The Doctor grinned, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"Ah, smell that Atlantic breeze. Nice and cold. Lovely. Martha, have you met my friend?"
He nodded upwards and she turned, setting eyes on a colossal statue that could only have been one thing.
"Is that? Oh, my God. That's the Statue of Liberty."
"Gateway to the New World. Give me you tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free."
She grinned, linking arms with Eris. "That's so brilliant. I've always wanted to go to New York. I mean the real New York, not the new, new, new, new, new one."
"Well, there's the genuine article. So good, they named it twice. Mind you, it was New Amsterdam originally. Harder to say twice. Now wonder it didn't catch on. New Amsterdam, New Amsterdam."
"I wonder what year it is, because look, the Empire State Building's not even finished yet."
Eris squinted at it. "I'd say 1930-ish, looking at what they've already got up. It didn't take them long to build, so my estimate would be six months in. Which would mean…"
The Doctor agreed. "I know my history, that makes the date somewhere around-"
But Martha cut both of them off.
"November first 1930."
"You're getting good at this."
They both looked over at her, a little surprised at her precision, then realised she was holding a copy of the New York Record newspaper.
"Eighty years ago. It's funny, because you see all those old newsreels all in black and white like it's so far away, but here we are. It's real. It's now. Come on then, you two. Where do you want to go first?"
The Doctor had taken the newspaper, and a slightly concerned look appeared on his face.
"I think our detour just got longer."
He showed them the headline, and Martha read it aloud.
"Hooverville Mystery Deepens. What's Hooverville?"
They took a route that would lead them through Central Park, and the Doctor started to explain.
"Herbert Hoover, thirty first President of the USA, came to power a year ago. Up till then New York was a boom town, the Roaring Twenties, and then."
Martha nodded. "The Wall Street Crash, yeah? When was that, 1929?"
"Yeah. Whole economy wiped out overnight. Thousands of people unemployed. All of a sudden, the huddled masses doubled in number with nowhere to go. So, they ended up here in Central Park."
"What, they actually live in the park? In the middle of the city?"
That was, in fact, exactly what they did. As the three of them rounded a corner, a sprawling shanty town came into view. Tucked in the stunning green space between the Manhattan skyscrapers, it was a bizarre sight. All of the structures were tents or roughly made huts that looked at risk of collapsing any moment. People were milling about, huddled around fires or sitting in the openings of the structures they had set up. Most of them were dressed pretty shabbily, and in several layers. There was a general air of depression about the place. The Doctor sighed.
"Ordinary people lost their jobs. Couldn't pay the rent and they lost everything. There are places like this all over America. No one's helping them."
Next to him, Eris nodded. She'd seen places like this before - not exactly the same, of course, but very similar. In some of the places she had lived, there had been uprisings and political conflicts all over the place, and people had set up camps when their homes had been trashed.
"You only come to Hooverville when there's nowhere else to go."
Almost from nowhere, a fight broke out in front of them. One man was shoving another roughly.
"You thieving lowlife!"
"I didn't touch it!"
"Somebody stole it.!"
As some of the other residents gathered around to watch things unfold, an middle aged black man came out of a nearby tent and walked into the centre of the commotion, separating the two men. When he spoke, even though his voice was relatively calm, there was something about it that screamed authority.
"Cut that out! Cut that out right now!"
The man who had started the fistfight pointed angrily at the man he'd targeted.
"He stole my bread!"
"That's enough! Did you take it?"
The other man scoffed. "I don't know what happened. He just went crazy."
"That's enough!" His expression was stern. "Now, think real careful before you lie to me."
The second man relented. "I'm starving, Solomon."
Solomon held out a hand, and there were gasps and mutters of shame as the man took a whole loaf of bread from inside his coat and passed it over.
"We all starving. We all got families somewhere."
He broke the loaf in half and passed one to both men. By this point, it was clear that SOlomon was seen as some kind of leader within the group - his diplomacy was unmistakeable.
"No stealing and no fighting. You know the rules. Thirteen years ago I fought in the Great War. A lot of us did. And the only reason we got through was because we stuck together. No matter how bad things get, we still act like human beings. It's all we got."
Not exactly satisfied, but unable to question Solomon's judgement, the fighters walked away, and the crowd dispersed now that there was nothing interesting to see.
"I suppose that makes you the boss around here."
The sound of Eris' voice startled the others, and they realised that she had approached Solomon. He looked a little surprised, but pleased to have someone to talk to.
"I guess so. And, er, who might you be?"
"I'm Eris."
Martha and the Doctor joined them, and she continued the introductions.
"He's the Doctor, and this is Martha."
Solomon looked impressed. "A doctor. Huh. Well, we got stockbrokers, we got a lawyer, but you're the first doctor. Neighbourhood gets classier by the day."
Looking around at the sheer number of tents, Martha had to ask.
"How many people live here?"
"At any one time, hundreds. No place else to go. But I will say this about Hooverville. We are a truly equal society. Black, white, all the same. All starving. So you're welcome, all three of you. But tell me. Doctor, you're a man of learning, right? Explain this to me." And he led them for a few paces until they had a perfect view of the Empire State building between the trees.
"That there's going to be the tallest building in the world. How come they can do that, when we got people starving in the heart of Manhattan?"
None of them had an answer for him, and the Doctor changed the subject.
"So, men are going missing. Is this true?"
Solomon seemed to slump a little, as though the topic was a particularly uncomfortable one for him. "It's true all right."
He led them to his tent, and the four of them sat down in various places.
The Doctor pulled a face. "But what does missing mean? Men must come and go here all the time. It's not like anyone's keeping a register."
"This is different."
Eris frowned as he passed her a newspaper from a week or so earlier - like the one they had found outside the Tardis, this one had a headline related to the missing people.
"Different how?"
"Someone takes them, at night. We hear something, someone calls out for help. By the time we get there, they're gone like they vanished into thin air."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "And you're sure someone's taking them?"
"Doctor, when you got next to nothing, you hold on to the little you got. Your knife, blanket, you take it with you. You don't leave bread uneaten, fire still burning."
Martha gave him a sympathetic look - this was clearly affecting him a lot.
"Have you been to the police?"
"Yeah, we tried that. Another deadbeat goes missing, big deal."
Handing the newspaper back, Eris folded her arms.
"So the question is, who's taking them and what for?"
There was a voice from outside the tent. "Solomon!"
The man looked up. "Frank?"
A young man came in; he looked to be a little younger than Martha, and was incredibly slim.
"Solomon, Mr Diagoras is here."
This news clearly worried Solomon, and he stood.
"Come on. Let's find out what he wants from us this time."
A crowd had gathered at the front of the Hooverville encampment, and the Doctor and the others weaved their way through them to get to the front. Three men in suits were standing there, the one in the middle clearly being the one in charge. This must be Mr Diagoras. He wasn't a particularly tall man, but he gave off an air of self entitlement that often comes with the very wealthy. He wore a pinstripe suit, shiny shoes, and a wide brimmed hat. From under the hat, his hair glistened with either hair cream or grease, and there was a sneer painted across his face.
"I need men. Volunteers. I've got a little work for you and you sure look like you can use the money."
Frank called out. "Yeah. What is the money?"
"A dollar a day."
There were sounds of dissent from within the crowd, and Solomon spoke up.
"What's the work?"
Mr Diagoras' sneer deepened. "A little trip down the sewers. Got a tunnel collapsed and needs clearing and fixing. Any takers?"
Most of the Hooverville residents were laughing now, and shaking their heads. There was no way they would do that sort of work for such little money.
"A dollar a day? That's slave wage. And men don't always come back up, do they."
"Accidents happen."
The Doctor was a little unnerved by his casual tone. "What do you mean? What sort of accidents?"
Mr Diagoras looked unhappy about this interrogation.
"You don't need the work? That's fine. Anybody else?"
Exchanging a brief look and realising that they were thinking the same thing, Eris and the Doctor both raised a hand.
Mr Diagoras rolled his eyes. "Enough with the questions."
Eris pulled out her most charming smile.
"Oh, no, no, no. We're volunteering. We'll go down there for you."
Glaring at her friends, Martha did the same.
"I'll kill you for this."
"Anybody else?" The businessman was clearly getting tired of the judgement.
Wondering if they were about to regret this decision, Frank and Solomon put their hands up too.
Mr Diagoras escorted the quintet to one of the sewer entrances, and once they were all down in the tunnel, crouched to give his instructions.
"Turn left. Go about a half a mile. Follow tunnel two seven three. Fall's right ahead of you, you can't miss it."
Frank eyed him warily. "And when do we get our dollar?"
"When you come back up."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "And if we don't come back up?"
Mr Diagoras' response was cold. "Then I got no one to pay."
Solomon shot him a glare. "Don't worry, we'll be back."
Beside him, Martha muttered. "Let's hope so."
As the others started to walk away, the Doctor held eye contact with Mr Diagoras for just a few more moments, before following them.
Frank was doing his best to reassure the girls.
"We just got to stick together. It's easy to get lost. It's like a huge rabbit warren. You could hide an army down here."
Eris spoke so quietly that only the Doctor and Solomon heard.
"I have a nasty feeling that someone's doing just that."
Up at the front, Martha grinned at the lanky American.
"So what about you, Frank? You're not from around these parts, are you?"
"Oh, you could talk! No, I'm Tennessee born and bred."
"So how come you're here?"
Frank shrugged. "Oh, my daddy died. Mama couldn't afford to feed us all. So, I'm the oldest, up to me to feed myself. So I put on my coat, hitched up here on the railroads. There's a whole lot of runaways in the camp, younger than me, from all over. Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas. Solomon keeps a lookout for us. So, what about you? You're a long way from home."
"Yeah, I'm just a hitcher too." It was the easiest explanation - and hopefully, a believable one.
He smiled down at her. "You stick with me, you'll be alright."
The Doctor, walking in like with Eris and Solomon, asked.
"So this Diagoras bloke, who is he then?"
Solomon sounded pretty bitter. "A couple of months ago, he was just another foreman. Now, it seems like he's running most of Manhattan."
Eris raised an eyebrow. "How'd he manage that then?"
"These are strange times. A man can go from being King of the Hill to the lowest of the low overnight. It's just for some folks it works the other way round."
The conversation ended abruptly as the Doctor grabbed Eris around the waist and pulled her back - just in time to stop her stepping on something rather unpleasant on the ground below.
She pulled a face. "Oh, that's disgusting."
They gathered around what looked like a cross between a luminous green jellyfish and a brain. Martha wrinkled her nose.
"Is it radioactive or something? It's gone off, whatever it is." And then she withheld a gag as the Doctor lifted it, passing it from hand to hand. "And you've got to pick it up."
Eris shot him a warning look. "Dad, if you even think about licking that thing, I'm disowning you."
He raised an eyebrow. "Received and understood, ma'am! Anyway, shine your torch through it. Composite organic matter, there's no doubt about that. Martha? Medical opinion?"
She shied away slightly, worried that the Doctor was planning to give it to her to hold.
"It's not human. I know that."
"No, it's not. And I'll tell you something else." He stood, putting the blob into one of his pockets and wiping his hand. "We must be at least half a mile in. I don't see any sign of a collapse, do you? So why did Mister Diagoras send us down here?"
Realising that he was right, the others looked around for any sort of clues.
Martha frowned. "Where are we now? What's above us?"
"Well, we're right underneath Manhattan."
They kept walking, passing under streamers of light from manhole covers every now and then. Still, no sign of what Mr Diagoras had mentioned. Solomon sighed.
"We're way beyond half a mile. There's no collapse, nothing."
Martha chewed at her lip. "That Diagoras bloke, was he lying?"
Eris scoffed. "I would be far more surprised if he'd told us the truth."
Frank frowned. "So why'd he want people to come down here?"
Not liking the way this was going, the Doctor gestured back the way they'd come.
"Solomon, I think it's time you took Martha and Frank back. Eris and I can handle this, we'll be quicker if it's just us."
A harsh squealing sound, almost reminiscent of that of a pig, echoed around them, and all five of them tensed.
"What the hell was that?" Solomon muttered.
Frank raised his voice. "Hello?"
Both of the girls shushed him, and Solomon grabbed his arm. "Frank, no."
"What if it's one of the folk gone missing? You'd be scared and half mad down here on your own."
The Doctor looked at the lad. "Do you think they're still alive?"
"Heck, we ain't seen no bodies down here. Maybe they just got lost."
There were more squeals, closer this time, and Solomon shook his head.
"I know I never heard nobody make a sound like that."
"Where's it coming from? Sounds like there's more than one of them."
Solomon and the Doctor turned in opposite directions.
"This way."
"No, that way."
Martha shone her torch across one of the other tunnels, and the beam of light hit a figure, hunched over with it's back to them. It took her a moment to find her voice again.
"Doctor?"
The others turned to see what she'd found, and Solomon and Frank started to talk to it.
"Who are you?"
"Are you lost? Can you understand me? I've been thinking about folk lost down here."
Eris rested a hand on Frank's elbow - she wasn't quite tall enough to reach his shoulder - and smiled softly.
"Thank you for trying, Frank, but let us handle this."
The Doctor agreed. "It's all right, Frank. Just stay back. Let me have a look." And then, with Eris at his side, he approached cautiously. "He's got a point, though, my mate Frank. I'd hate to be stuck down here on my own. We know the way out. Daylight. If you come with us-"
As he crouched by the figure, he stopped. It may have had the body of a man, but it's face was entirely pig.
"Oh, but what are you?"
Eris shone her torch gently against the pigman's shoulder, illuminating it's face but not blinding it. "You poor thing, what happened to you?"
Further back in the corridor, Solomon's eyes were wide.
"Is that, er, some kind of carnival mask?"
The Doctor shook his head.
"No, it's real. I'm sorry. Now listen to me. I promise I can help. Who did this to you?"
Movement from slightly further down the tunnel caught Martha's attention, and her heart dropped as she saw more of the pig-like figures walking towards her friends. A lot more of them.
"Doctor? I think you'd better get back here."
Eris glanced up at her. "It's alright, Martha. We can go soon."
"No, look! Behind you!"
She and her dad looked up to see the pigmen approaching them. The Doctor tensed.
"Actually, good point."
They moved slowly backwards, never taking their eyes off the grunting horde. As they got back to the others, Martha muttered.
"They're following you."
He raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I noticed that, thanks. Well then, Eris, Martha, Frank, Solomon."
"What?"
Seeing the pigmen get more agitated as they got closer, Eris nodded.
"Basically, run!"
So they legged it.
The pigmen upped the speed and started to chase them, gaining on them with every second. The group stopped at a junction, unsure of where to turn.
"Where are we going?!" Martha panted.
Spotting something down a side passage, the Doctor pointed.
"This way! There's a ladder! Come on!"
He led the way, using the sonic screwdriver to open the cover. Trailing at the back of the group, Frank grabbed an iron bar from the floor and took up a defensive stance. Noticing this, Eris stayed by his side, getting hold of a slightly shorter bar. Most of the pigmen had gone past the opening to their tunnel, but one spotted them standing there and squealed, bringing the others back that way. The other three had successfully made it up the ladder, and were now calling down to them. Realising that they had very little chance of fighting the pigs off, Frank and Eris dropped the bars and ran for it.
Solomon shouted down after them.
"Frank! Frank! C'mon, Frank! C'mon!"
Frank urged Eris to go up the ladder first - and as he got his foot onto the first rung once there was enough space, the pigs grabbed him around the waist and shoulders and pulled him back. Looking back over her shoulder and seeing what was happening, Eris made a choice. As the Doctor and Solomon reached down into the sewer to try and help her out, she jumped down from the ladder and dived straight into the throng of the pigs, making an attempt to pull Frank free. The men above watched in horror as the pigs grabbed her too, and she made no attempt to fight.
"Frank!"
"Eris, no!"
As they were dragged backwards into the huddle, and more of the pigs surged towards the ladder, one of them getting close to the top, Solomon shoved the Doctor away from the hole and slammed the heavy lid shut, panting.
"We can't go after them."
The Doctor tried to pull the lid up again.
"We've got to go back down. We can't just leave them."
"No, I'm not losing anybody else. Those creatures were from Hell. From Hell itself! If we go after them, they'll take us all! There's nothing we can do. I'm sorry."
Footsteps behind them made the little group turn, and they came face to face with a petite blonde in a long blue coat. She was holding a pistol, and had a threatening expression on her face.
"All right, then. Put them up. Hands in the air and no funny business. Now tell me, you schmucks, what have you done with Laszlo?"
As the three of them raised their hands in surrender, Martha frowned.
"Who's Laszlo?"
The girl led them through to a dressing room that was presumably hers, keeping the gun aimed at them.
"Laszlo's my boyfriend. Or was my boyfriend until he disappeared two weeks ago. No letter, no goodbye, no nothing. And I'm not stupid. I know some guys are just pigs but not my Laszlo. I mean, what kind of guy asks you to meet his mother before he vamooses?"
She talked with her hands, and the Doctor couldn't help but wince at the casual way she was handling the weapon.
"Yeah. It might, might just help if you put that down."
"Huh? Oh, sure." She tossed it onto a nearby chair, and they winced, which made her chuckle.
"Oh, come on. It's not real. It's just a prop. It was either that or a spear."
Martha folded her arms. "What do you think happened to Lazlo?"
"I wish I knew. One minute he's there, the next, zip. Vanished."
The Doctor nodded.
"Listen, ah... what's your name?"
"Tallulah."
"Tallulah."
"Three Ls and an H." She added.
"Right. We can try to find Laszlo, but he's not the only one. There are people disappearing every night."
Solomon had a slightly distant look in his eyes.
"And there are creatures. Such creatures."
Tallulah raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, creatures?"
The Doctor sighed.
"Look, listen, just trust me. Everyone is in danger. I need to find out exactly what this is." And he dipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out the slimy mass they had found in the tunnel.
"Because then I'll know exactly what we're fighting."
Tallulah cringed away from it, pulling a face.
"Yuck."
As soon as he'd been able to, the Doctor ventured back into the props room and started hunting through it's contents, looking for a selection of items that to anyone else would have seemed entirely random. Solomon walked in holding a small old fashioned radio.
"How about this? I found it backstage."
The Doctor took it from him, turning it over in his hands.
"Perfect. It's the capacitors I need. I'm just rigging up a crude little DNA scan for this beastie. If I can get a chromosomal reading, I can find out where it's from."
Solomon raised an eyebrow at his words. "How about you, Doctor? Where are you from? I've been all over. I never heard anybody talk like you. Just exactly who are you?"
"Oh, I'm just sort of passing by."
"I'm not a fool, Doctor." There was an edge to his tone, and the Time Lord sensed that his flippancy wasn't appreciated.
"No. Sorry."
Accepting the apology, Solomon glanced back in the direction of the sewer entrance.
"I was so scared, Doctor. I let them take Frank because I was just so scared."
"I know. If it's any consolation, he's not down there alone. And he's with Eris - that gives him a good chance of getting out. If anyone's good at finding ways out of a sticky situation, it's her."
Solomon nodded.
"Let's hope so. I got to get back to Hooverville. With these creatures on the loose, we got to protect ourselves. Ain't no one else going to help us."
Engrossed in the deconstruction of the radio, he only glanced up for a moment.
"Good luck."
"I hope you find what you're looking for, for all our sakes."
Martha joined Tallulah in her dressing room, leaning against the wall beside her dressing table as she watched the blonde perfect her mascara. There was a slightly sad smile on her face.
"Laszlo. He'd wait for me after the show. Walk me home like I was a lady. He'd leave a flower for me on my dressing table. Every day, just a single rose bud."
"Haven't you reported him missing?"
She laughed bitterly. "Sure. He's just a stagehand. Who cares? The management certainly don't."
Martha frowned. "Can't you kick up a fuss or something?"
"Okay, so then they fire me."
"But they'd listen to you. You're one of the stars."
This got another laugh from the performer.
"Oh, honey, I got one song in a back street revue and that's only because Heidi Chicane broke her ankle." She pointed a warning finger up at Martha. "Which had nothing to do with me whatever anybody says." Then, she sighed. "I can't afford to make a fuss. If I don't make this month's rent, then before you know it, I'm in Hooverville."
"Okay, I get it."
"It's the Depression, sweetie. Your heart might break, but the show goes on. Because if it stops, you starve. Every night I have to go out there, sing, dance, keep going, hoping he's going to come back." Her voice started to crack a little, and Martha put an arm around her.
"I'm sorry."
Tallulah shook herself out of it.
"Hey, you're lucky, though. You got yourself a forward thinking guy with that hot potato in the sharp suit."
"Er, he's not. We're not together."
"Oh, sure you are. I've seen the way you look at him. It's obvious."
Martha raised an eyebrow. "Not to him."
"Oh, I should have realised. He's into musical theatre, huh? What a waste." Ignoring the baffled look on Martha's face, she continued. "Still, you got to live in hope. It's the only thing that's kept me going because, well, look. On my dressing table every day still." And she picked up a white rose bud from between her perfume bottle and face powder.
"You think it's Laszlo?"
"I don't know. If he's still around, why is he being all secret like he doesn't want me to see him?"
Up in the lighting gallery, the Doctor had borrowed one of the smaller stage lights and directed it down at the blob from the tunnels, which was attached to his gadget by a few clips. He set the sonic screwdriver into a small port on the side to activate it.
"That's it. We just need to heat you up."
As the light started to warm the specimen, he put his glasses on and got ready to find out exactly what they were working with.
The corridor backstage was a hive of activity, and Tallulah grinned.
"Girls, it's showtime!"
The other dancers were making jokey snipes at each other as they fixed their hairpieces and smoother out sequins.
"Lois, you spoil my chasse tonight, I'm going to punch you."
"Aw, quick complaining, Myrna. Go buy yourself some glasses."
Tallulah, glimmering in her red dress, turned to Martha.
"Come on, honey. Take a look. Ever been on stage before?"
She shrugged, a little smile on her face.
"Oh, a little bit. You know, Shakespeare."
This got an eye roll from the blonde.
"How dull is that? Come and see a real show!"
Minutes later, the stage curtains opened to reveal the chorus line shining in their red devil outfits, fluttering large red feathered fans, which they pulled back to reveal Tallulah as the angel. The song started up, a jazzy sounding number that had Martha tapping her feet. She watched in awe from the wings at the smooth synchronicity of the girls, working their props with ease. And they were doing it all in heels!
Movement in the opposite wing caught her eye, and Martha found herself making eye contact with someone that looked relatively normal - until the snout. They were dressed in a mud coloured boiler suit and black shoes, and very much looked like a deer in the headlights. Whoever they were, they knew Martha had spotted them. She tried to sneak across the back of the stage unnoticed, hoping beyond hope that the thing would stay where it was. Her plan backfired significantly, however, when the second row of dancers moved backwards, and one ended up colliding with her.
"What are you doing?"
She stumbled, accidentally stepped on the tail of another dancer, and they both fell.
"You're on my tail. Get off my tail!"
Aware of the commotion behind, Tallulah was doing her best to keep the show going, and hissed over her shoulder at the others.
"What are you schmucks doing?"
Vaguely aware that the show had started down below, the Doctor kept one of the lights focused on the grisly blob. There was a soft chiming sound from his device, and he checked the result.
"This is artificial. Genetically engineered. Whoever this is, oh, you're clever."
Pulling his stethoscope from his pocket and adjusting the settings on the gadget, he listened for a more specific reading. A series of clicks and taps pronounced the findings, and he translated them into English aloud.
"Fundamental DNA type four six seven dash nine eight nine. Nine eight nine." His eyes widened. "Hold on, that means planet of origin… Skaro."
Eris had been taken by something linked to a native of Skaro. And there was only one of Skaro's native species that had, to his knowledge, ever developed the technology to get off the planet.
Daleks.
The audience were howling with laughter at the chaos on the stage. In comparison, the performers were far less impressed with Martha's antics, and many of the girls were shooting her nasty looks as she tried to get to the opposite side. Tallulah hissed at her.
"Get off the stage. You're spoiling it!"
Martha pointed towards the thing she had been watching.
"But look. Over there!"
Tallulah looked, and screamed. It ran, and Martha started to chase it.
"Hey! Wait!"
She was just behind the creature as it sprinted into the props room, and shouted after it.
"But you're different to the others! Just wait!"
There was a clang, and the sewer lid dropped into place as she got into the room. She'd lost it.
Making his way backstage, the Doctor found the girls huddled in a little group, looking disturbed.
"It was like something out of a movie show."
"Oh, that face. I ain't never going to sleep."
The Doctor interrupted. "Where is she? Where's Martha?"
Tallulah shook her head. "I don't know. She ran off the stage."
There was a distant scream, and the Doctor recognised it instantly.
"Martha!"
He ran towards it, followed closely by Tallulah. As they reached the prop room, they spotted the misplaced lid to the sewer's entrance - and he figured out exactly what had happened. He pulled his coat on, and Tallulah raised an eyebrow at him.
"Where are you going?"
"They've taken her."
"Who's taken her? What're you doing?"
But she didn't get an answer - he'd already started climbing down the ladder.
"I said, what the hell are you doing?"
Rolling her eyes, Tallulah grabbed a thick blue coat from the coat stand and followed him down.
"Crazy guy."
Hearing her footsteps on the metal rungs, the Doctor looked up.
"No, no, no, no, no way. You're not coming."
"Tell me what's going on."
"There's nothing you can do. Go back."
She wasn't budging. "Look, whoever's taken Martha, they could've taken Laszlo, couldn't they?"
"Tallulah, you're not safe down here."
"Then that's my problem. Come on. Which way?"
She stormed off down a tunnel, and he waited a moment before saying.
"This way."
The pigmen that had grabbed Martha led her down a series of corridors before shoving her against a wall. As she struggled, a familiar voice called out to her.
"No! Let me go!"
"Martha!"
She looked up to see Frank, a wide grin on his face, and Eris standing just in front of him.
"You're alive! Oh! I thought we'd lost you."
Bursting into the line, she gave each of them a quick hug - which was swiftly interrupted by a harsh push from one of the pigmen.
"All right, all right, we're moving."
Frank frowned. "Where are they taking us?"
Looking around them - and failing to see anything that would give them any clues, Eris shrugged.
"I don't know, but we can find out what's going on down here. Whatever happens, try not to draw attention to yourselves. The less you're noticed, the more you can learn."
Trailed by Tallulah, the Doctor made his way throught he sewer tunnels, trying to orient himself. Unfortunately, the young singer was a bit of a chatterbox.
"When you say, they've taken her, who's they exactly? And who are you anyway? I never asked."
"Shush." A noise from ahead made his hearts stop.
"Okay, okay."
He shook his head, sensing movement. "Shush, shush, shush, shush, shush, shush, shush." A dreadfully familiar shadow was cast on the wall, and slowly getting closer.
"I mean you're handsome and all-"
Cutting Tallulah off by clamping a hand over her mouth, the Doctor dragged her backwards into a service alcove and watched, horrified, as a Dalek slid past and disappeared into the darkness once again. His hands dropped away from her and he moved back into the corridor, an age-old look of devastation across his face.
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no. They survived. They always survive while I lose everything."
Tallulah frowned down the corridor, not really understanding.
"That metal thing? What was it?"
"It's called a Dalek. And it's not just metal, it's alive."
She laughed. "You're kidding me."
He snapped. "Does it look like I'm kidding? Inside that shell is a creature born to hate, whose only thought is to destroy everything and everyone that isn't a Dalek too. It won't stop until it's killed every human being alive."
Now a little uneasy, Tallulah glanced up at him.
"But if it's not a human being, that kind of implies it's from outer space." Just an eye raise from the Doctor this time. "Yet again, that's a no with the kidding. Boy. Well, what's it doing here, in New York?"
He didn't answer, and grabbed her arm instead.
"Every second you're down here, you're in danger. I'm taking you back right now."
But his plan was stopped as they rounded the corner and came face to face with one of the pigmen. Tallulah screamed, and it turned away and started to run.
The Doctor shouted after it.
"Where are Martha and Eris? What have you done with them? What have you done with them?"
To his surprise, a deep voice replied.
"I didn't take her."
Realising that this was probably a failed version of the savage pigs, the Doctor approached calmly. It made no move to run.
"Can you remember your name?"
"Don't look at me."
Gaining a little confidence, Tallulah asked. "Do you know where she is?"
This made it panic. "Stay back! Don't look at me."
"What happened to you?" The Doctor managed to get a good look at it's face - very clearly pig-like, but still almost recognisable as a person. A full head of dark hair, dark eyes, and less pronounced teeth than the others.
"They made me a monster."
"Who did?"
"The masters."
"The Daleks. Why?"
"They needed slaves. They needed slaves to steal more people so they created us. Part animal, part human. I escaped before they got my mind, but it was still too late."
The Doctor nodded. "Do you know what happened to Martha?"
"They took her. It's my fault. She was following me."
Behind him, Tallulah's eyes widened. "Were you in the theatre?"
He faltered a little. "I never… Yes."
"Why? Why were you there?"
"I never wanted you to see me like this."
"Why me? What have I got to do with this? Were you following me? Is that why you were there?"
He turned around, hanging his head at first and then looking up so she could see him properly.
"Yes."
"Who are you?"
"I was lonely."
There was a slight sob creeping into her voice. "Who are you?"
"I needed to see you."
"Who are you?"
He shook his head. "I'm sorry."
"No, wait. Let me look at you." She stepped closer, and rested a hand on his cheek. She gazed into his eyes, and felt something inside her sing out. "Laszlo? My Laszlo? Oh, what have they done to you?"
"I'm sorry. So sorry." Clearly, he was holding back tears too.
Loath to interrupt the moment but knowing they didn't have much time, the Doctor asked gently.
"Laszlo, can you show me where they are?"
"They'll kill you."
"If I don't stop them, they'll kill everyone."
Knowing the truth in the statement, Laszlo nodded.
"Then follow me."
Gathered in one of the sewer tunnels, Frank, Eris and Martha waited anxiously. Frank sighed quietly.
"What are they keeping us here for?"
Martha shuddered. "I don't know. I've got a nasty feeling we're being kept in the larder."
The pigmen guarding them started to shuffle nervously, and Frank frowned.
"What're they doing? What's wrong? What's wrong?"
Eris craned her neck to try and see around the bend of the tunnel - and froze, wishing she hadn't.
"Silence. Silence."
A chillingly familiar robotic voice echoed slightly as first a shadow, then a bronze domed robot appeared.
Martha turned to Eris. "What the hell is that?"
But her friend was staring blankly ahead, not taking her eyes off the thing that had just arrived. She was tracking every movement. As Martha tried to take her hand, she realised that Eris was trembling violently.
"You will form a line. Move. Move."
The other prisoners panicked a little, and Martha found herself speaking instinctively.
"Just do what it says, everyone, okay? Just obey."
"The female is wise. Obey."
Another one of the things moved into the space. "Report."
"These are strong specimens. They will help the Dalek cause."
Frowning, Martha murmured. "Dalek?"
The Daleks continued their discussion.
"What is the status of the Final Experiment?"
"The Dalekanium is in place. The energy conductor is now complete."
"Then I will extract prisoners for selection."
One of the pigmen pulled an older looking black man forwards, and the Dalek raised it's sucker.
"Intelligence scan, initiate." There was a quiet whirring sound. "Reading brain waves. Low intelligence."
Naturally, the man wasn't impressed with that. "You calling me stupid?"
"Silence! This one will become a pig slave. Next."
He protested as another pigman joined to help drag him away.
"No, let go of me. I'm not becoming one of them. No! No."
And the Dalek moved on. "Intelligence scan. Initiate."
Just around the corner, Laszlo muttered to the Doctor.
"They're divided into two groups. High intelligence and low intelligence. The low intelligence are taken to become pig slaves like me."
Tallulah's jaw dropped. "Well, that's not fair." The Doctor shushed her, but she continued. "You're the smartest guy I ever dated."
"And the others?"
"They're taken to the laboratory."
The Doctor didn't like the sound of that. "Why? What for?"
"I don't know. The masters only call it the Final Experiment."
Out in the corridor, the Dalek had made it's way down to Frank.
"Superior intelligence."
Then, it was Eris' turn.
"Intelligence scan, initiate. Optimised intelligence. This one will become part of the Final Experiment." Eris flinched, and Martha lost her temper.
"You can't just experiment on people. It's insane! It's inhuman!"
The Dalek's response was entirely flat.
"We are not human. Prisoners of high intelligence will be taken to the transgenic laboratory."
As the pigmen started to march the prisoners along the corridor, the group hiding in the side corridor ducked back into the shadows.
"Look out, they're moving!"
Laszlo led Tallulah backwards, but noticed that the Doctor had stayed.
"Doctor. Doctor, quickly!"
He shook his head. "I'm not coming. I've got an idea. You go."
Tallulah tugged at her boyfriend's sleeve. "Laszlo, come on."
"Can you remember the way?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"Then go, please."
"But Laszlo, you got to come with me."
He sighed, gesturing to his face.
"Where would I go? Tallulah, I'm begging you. Save yourself. Just run. Just go. Go."
Nodding, she legged it back the way they had come, and the Doctor and Laszlo slipped into the line just behind Frank.
Well aware that Eris was absolutely terrified, the Doctor whispered forwards.
"Just keep walking. Frank, can I?"
Frank nodded and they very subtly swapped places so that the Doctor could squeeze his daughter's hand. Her voice shook a little as they made contact.
"Dad."
"I know, it's okay now. I'm here."
Martha couldn't keep the smile off her face. "Oh, I'm so glad to see you."
The Doctor snorted.
"Yeah, well, you can kiss me later. You too, Frank, if you want."
Led by the pigmen and the Daleks, the group walked into a large laboratory, covered in battered bits of equipment and miles of thick tubing. The presence of the extra prisoners went unnoticed by the Daleks as they checked on Sec.
"Report."
"Dalek Sec is in the final stage of evolution."
"Scan him. Prepare for birth."
In the gaggle, the Doctor frowned. "Evolution?"
The expression on Eris' face was almost identical. "Birth?"
Martha whispered. "What's wrong with old Charlie boy over there?"
"Ask them." The Doctor replied.
"What, me? Don't be daft."
Eris watched the Daleks carefully.
"Look, we don't exactly want to get noticed. They know us, and if they recognise us the situation is only going to go downhill. Ask them what's going on."
Not happy with the plan, but unable to get out of doing it, Martha stepped out of line.
"Daleks, I demand to be told. What is this Final Experiment? Report!"
"You will bear witness."
"To what?"
"This is the dawn of a new age."
"What does that mean?"
The Dalek's head unit swivelled between the crowd, and the smoking shell of Dalek Sec.
"We are the only four Daleks in existence, so the species must evolve a life outside the shell. The Children of Skaro must walk again."
The blue light in Sec's eye stalk faded, and the smoking stopped. As the group of hostages watched, some awestruck and some very concerned, the casing opened and a bipedal creature with wrinkled brown skin struggled out. The casing closed and the thing straightened up.
"What is it?" Martha felt nauseous at the sight of it.
It wore a pinstripe suit that she was pretty sure they had seen on Mr Diagoras only a few hours earlier. But the leathery brown hands and face, topped off with a singular eyeball. The first breath it took was deep and rasping, as though it's lungs had never taken in air before. And then, it spoke. Hearing Mr Diagoras' accent come from it's mouth was incredibly unnerving.
"I am a human Dalek. I am your future."
See you soon, and happy reading!
Much love,
Azzie xx