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Previously
"You. Complete. ARSE!" she grunted, "Do you have any idea how it felt watching you die? Literally feeling you die; hearing your heartbeats fade away?"
"I'm sorry," The Doctor whispered solemnly, "But I couldn't let it kill everyone else,"
"I know that! I just- "Charlie breathed deeply, bringing a hand up to rub her head. It then that she noticed her constant headache was gone and her senses were back to normal.
"Pete…is he?" she asked hesitantly, knowing that if her was feeling better, than the Reapers must have disappeared. It never occurred to her why the Doctor was standing in front of her instead of dead as he should have been.
"Yeah, Pete sacrificed himself to save the world" the Doctor explained.
"Good man," Charlie muttered. Her heart went to Rose, even though Charlie was still very irritated with the blonde about everything that happened.
"And are you ok?" the Doctor asked her.
"What do you think?" Charlie smirked and gave him the long hug he was waiting for, "Never do that to me again," Charlie half warned half pleaded.
"You know I can't promise that" the Doctor pulled away to look down her down seriously.
"I know," Charlie reached up and stroked his cheek before kissing it quickly and pulling back blushing, "But you can at least try not to get caught up in these types of situations," she hugged him again missing the emotion in the Doctor's eyes as he gazed at her; his cheek tingling slightly from where she kissed it.
The duo was interrupted when Rose crept back into the church hugging herself,
"He's gone" she whispered.
"I'm sorry" the Doctor replied.
"Me too" Charlie said, letting go of the Doctor to pull her friend into a much-needed hug. Rose grabbed Charlie's and the Doctor's hands and together they walked back to the TARDIS to pick up where they left off – adventuring amongst the stars.
Wolf Whispers
Rose held onto the railing and smirked as she watched the Doctor dance around the TARDIS console, teaching Charlie to fly her.
"Right push that," "Pull that," "Twist this,"
Charlie followed the Time Lords instructions to the letter; although she was albeit hesitant given how many times The Doctor flew them to the wrong location, but sadly there was no one else to teach her so he would have to do.
The two of them had been almost joined at the hip since the whole "Reaper Disaster". Losing the doctor (even just for a few moments) had opened Charlie's eyes about how she felt for him. She knew now without doubt that she loved the big-eared Alien. She had spent the last few weeks trying to find the right time and place to tell him how she feels, but of course something always popped up. Like now for example, Charlie was going to tell him today; she was. Of course, then there just had to be an emergency and now they were racing after some spaceship through the time vortex.
" What's the emergency? " Rose asked.
" It's mauve" the Doctor replied.
"You sure?" Charlie asked grinning.
"Yes," The Doctor stated firmly.
"Positive?" Charlie teased, "'cause last time-"
"That was an accident," The Doctor glared as he pushed a leaver with more force than necessary.
It had been an accident; a complete accident. Charlie would never let him forget the time that he had gotten the colours mixed up. He blamed it on how much time he spent with humans whilst averting his eyes from the very nude indigo blue male that was giving a ruddy good…show, to several equally nude blue males; actually there were people of all colours under the rainbow in little groups playing. It took ages for Charlie to stop giggling every time they had an emergency after that.
"What's mauve?" Rose asked.
"The universally recognised colour for danger" the Doctor replied.
" What happened to red? " Rose asked as the Tardis almost knocked her off her feet but she managed to keep holding onto the console.
"That's just us apparently," Charlie smirked, "Everywhere else red means camp," At the Doctor unimpressed look, she bit her to smother the laugh that was bubbling up.
"Oh, the misunderstandings," The Doctor shrugged, playing ignorant to the redhead, "All those red alerts, all that dancing," he threw a glare at his friend who had now turned herself away to hide her laughter, "It's got a very basic flight computer. I've hacked in, slaved the Tardis. Where it goes, we go" the Doctor yelled as he set the coordinates on the Tardis.
"And that's safe, is it?" Rose asked with a confused expression on her face.
" Totally" the Doctor replied just as a loud bang came from the Tardis "Okay, reasonably. Should have said reasonably there" he looked at the screen and his eyes widened in shock "No, no, no, no! It's jumping time tracks, getting away from us."
" What exactly is this thing?" Rose asked.
"No idea" the Doctor replied.
"Then why are we chasing it?" Charlie asked, turning back around having gained control of her giggling.
" It's mauve and dangerous, and about thirty seconds from the centre of London" he replied before the Tardis came to a halt.
"I think we've landed" Charlie stated, helping Rose off the floor.
"Right, let's see where abouts we've landed" the Doctor said, walking over to the doors and opening them "do you know how long you can knock around space without happening to bump into Earth?" The three of them stepped out of the Tardis into a dingy looking alleyway.
" Five days? Or is that just when we're out of milk?" Rose asked as the three of them began walking down the alleyway, unaware that someone or something was stood on the roofs, watching them.
"Of all the species in all the Universe and it has to come out of a cow" the Doctor stated " Must have come down somewhere quite close. Within a mile, anyway. And it can't have been more than a few weeks ago. Maybe a month."
" A month? We were right behind it" Rose pointed out with a puzzled expression on her face.
"It was jumping time tracks all over the place. We're bound to be a little bit out. Do you want to drive?" he asked.
"Yes please," Charlie grinned as she grabbed his hand while they walked, "Also how much is a little?" she raised a brow at the Time Lord.
" A bit" the Doctor replied, shrugging his shoulders as he glanced around.
" Is that exactly a bit? " Rose asked.
"Ish" the Doctor replied as they turned a corner and continued walking further down the alleyway.
"What's the plan, then? Are you going to do a scan for alien tech or something? " Rose asked.
"Rose, it hit the middle of London with a very loud bang. I'm going to ask" he replied, taking out his psychic paper and showing it to the two girls.
"Doctor John Smith, Ministry of Asteroids" the blonde said as she looked at it.
"It's psychic paper. It tells you-" the Doctor stated.
"Whatever you want it to tell me" Rose finished.
They arrived at a back door which had a sign reading DELIVERIES ONLY on the front.
" Sorry" the Doctor replied as he took out his sonic screwdriver and began using it on the locked door.
"Not very Spock, is it, just asking" Rose pointed out as the Doctor put his ear to the door, listening in.
"Door, music, people" he stated " What do you think? "
" I think you should do a scan for alien tech" Charlie pointed out.
"yeah, give us some spock, for once would it kill you?" Rose asked. The Doctor managed to open the door and looked at the union Jack t-shirt that Rose was wearing.
"Are you sure about that t-shirt?" he asked her.
" Too early to say. I'm taking it out for a spin" Rose stated as the Doctor headed into the building, followed by Charlie. Rose went to follow but heard something which sounded like a child's voice.
"Mummy? Mummy?" the voice echoed.
"Come on if you're coming" the Doctor said to Rose " It won't take a minute." The Doctor and Charlie headed inside the building.
"God it sinks in here," Charlie complained and covered her nose, "And it's quite loud. Is this a club?" she could also smell human sweat and pheromones.
"I'm not sure, but let's find out" the Doctor said before he saw a waiter coming out of a room and walking into the room where the music was coming from. The Doctor and Charlie followed him into what looked like a bar where a woman was on the stage singing in front of an audience and Charlie was the first one to notice that the clothes they were wearing seemed old fashioned compared to hers. After the woman had finished singing her song, the Doctor jumped up onto the stage and took the microphone.
" Excuse me. Excuse me. Could I have everybody's attention just for a mo? Be very quick. Hello! Might seem like a stupid question, but has anything fallen from the sky recently? " the Doctor asked the audience. There was an awkward silence before the audience began laughing at him.
Charlie, ever the observant, noticed a WW2 poster on the dark walls. She sighed, of course. They would end up in the middle of the Blitz wouldn't they.
"Sorry, have I said something funny?" the Doctor asked as the Audience continued to laugh at him "It's just, there's this thing that I need to find. Would've fallen from the sky a couple of days ago."
"Doctor!" Charlie groaned and jogged up to the stand ignoring the cat calls from the men surrounding her, "Get down from there!" she said sternly just as an air raid siren blared through the club causing people to rush from their seats and out of the doors.
"Would've landed quite near here. With a very loud" the Doctor continued seemingly blind to the now basically empty room, before he noticed a poster on the wall which read out Hitler will send no warning "bang." The Doctor sighed in embarrassment.
"I tried to tell you," Charlie crossed her arms as he stared at her.
"Should've tried harder," the Doctor groaned. He must have looked very stupid up there.
"Yes, you did," Charlie grinned cheekily at the Doctor's glare.
"You- "he huffed, "Just shush," he ignored her giggles and they left the club.
"Rose?" Charlie called confused, they left her right here. Even her scent was still lingering. A cat meowed from behind them and the Doctor picked it up off a bin and started talking to it as Charlie stroked it.
" You know, one day, just one day, maybe, I'm going to meet someone who gets the whole don't wander off thing" he pointed out.
"You already have, me" Charlie pointed out "when have I ever wondered off during the time, I've been with you?"
"Yeah, you're right" the Doctor replied before they heard a telephone ringing from behind them. They both turned around to discover that the ringing was coming from the Tardis and they both walked up to it where the Doctor opened a small latch on one of the doors, revealing a telephone that was ringing.
" How can you be ringing? What's that about, ringing? What am I supposed to do with a ringing phone?" he asked before taking out his sonic screwdriver just as they heard a voice behind them.
"Don't answer it. It's not for you." The Doctor and Charlie turned around to see a girl who looked a few years younger than Charlie in a dark grey coat and dirt streaked face with dark brown hair in braids.
"And how do you know that? " the Doctor asked the girl with a raised eyebrow.
"'Cos, I do. And I'm telling you, don't answer it" she warned him.
"Well, if you know so much, tell me this. How can it be ringing? It's not even a real phone. It's not connected, it's not " the Doctor said before he noticed that the girl had now vanished.
"Who was that girl?" Charlie asked.
"I have no idea" the Doctor replied before he picked up the receiver and put it to his ear "Hello? Hello? This is the Doctor speaking. How may I help you?"
" Mummy? Mummy?" a child's voice said from the other end.
"Who is this? Who's speaking?" the Doctor asked as Charlie watched curiously, hearing the small voice of a child speak through the phone.
"Are you my mummy?" the question was innocent, yet she felt unsettled by it.
"Doctor-" Charlie started as the Doctor whirled around, his eyes narrowed on each end of the dank alleyway they were stood in.
"Who is this?" he said quickly, "How'd you ring here? This ain't a real phone,"
"Are you my mummy?" the child repeated through the phone.
"Have you lost your mummy? Where are you?" the Doctor's voice had softened slightly, his mind registering the voice as a lost child.
Charlie strained her senses to check for the owner of the voice – to see if they were nearby, but nothing. The only heart other than the dual ones of her Time Lord was the cat that was sitting by her feet.
"Mummy?" the next thing they heard was the dial tone as the child hung up. The duo stared at the phone and then each other in confusion.
The Doctor kicked back into gear and knocked loudly on the TARDIS door for Rose, shouting for her but got nothing back.
Charlie's head whipped to the side as there was a loud crash coming from outside the alley. She walked over and peered over a garden fence gesturing for the Doctor to do the same. They watched as a family rush from their home and into an air raid shelter.
"They've got their heads screwed on right," Charlie commented, jerking her head towards the family. The Doctor nodded absentmindedly, only half listening to his friend as his attention had been caught by the girl who had warned them of the phone call. He watched as she crept though the garden of the family that had just vacated it and entered the house,
"It's that girl," Charlie said in wonder as she also watched 2 little boys follow the older girl into the house, "Doctor," she turned to her friend only to find herself alone, "Every time, "she rolled her eyes and sighed as she found him creeping along the garden towards the house. She uses the term "Creeping "loosely of course. The big idiot was just running through the garden, not caring if anyone saw him. The redhead huffed and vaulted over the fence to follow behind, albeit at a slower pace.
Wolf Whispers
After watching more children arrive at the house, Charlie and the Doctor snuck in the door that one of the children forgot to close behind them and followed them to a dining room that had food piled on the table. The duo watched, shrouded in darkness, as more children appeared and took seats at the table. They decided to join them and sat at the end, still in the dark, to avoid being noticed right away.
"It's got to be black market. You couldn't get all this on coupons" a young boy pointed out as he looked at all the food on the table.
" Ernie, how many times? We are guests in this house. We will not make comments of that kind. Washing up" the girl told him sternly as the other children laughed.
" Oh, Nancy" Ernie moaned.
Nancy turned to another young boy and spoke to him,
"Haven't seen you at one of these before" she told him.
"He told me about it" the new boy said, nodding in Ernie's direction.
"Sleeping rough?" Nancy asked and the young boy nodded before she started handing out a plate with meat on it to the children "All right, then. One slice each, and I want to see everyone chewing properly. " The Children then started passing the plate of meat slices around the table and when it reached the Doctor and Charlie, the children froze in fear. Barely a second had pasted before the kids were rushing to get out of their seats before Nancy stopped them.
"It's all right. Everybody stay where you are! " Nancy told them, not taking her eyes of the Doctor and Charlie.
"Hello." Charlie smiled and waved.
"Good here, innit? Who's got the salt?" the Doctor asked in a cheerful manner as the children just stared at them.
"Back in your seats" Nancy told them, still not taking her eyes of the Doctor and Charlie " they shouldn't be here either."
"So, you lot, what's the story?" he asked the group of children around the table.
" What do you mean?" Ernie asked.
"You're homeless, right? Living rough? " the Doctor asked.
"Why do you want to know that? Are you a copper? " another boy asked before noticing Charlie's clothing "and what about her, what is she wearing?" Charlie brushed a piece of hair behind her ear and avoided the mixed stares of wonder and curiosity. She supposed that black leggings with a black and white striped top with long sleeves and no shoulders wasn't very 1940s.
"Of course, I'm not a copper. What's a copper going to do with you lot anyway? Arrest you for starving?" the children laughed "I make it 1941. You lot shouldn't even be in London. You should have been evacuated to the country by now" the Doctor pointed out.
"I was evacuated. Sent me to a farm" a young boy pointed out.
"So, why'd you come back?" Charlie asked him.
"There was a man there" he replied, looking a little weary.
"Yeah, same with Ernie. Two homes ago" a young girl pointed out.
" Shut up. It's better on the streets anyway. It's better food" Ernie pointed out.
" Yeah. Nancy always gets the best food for us" another boy said.
"So, that's what you do, is it, Nancy?" the Doctor asked.
"What is?" Nancy asked, still not taking her eye off the pair.
" As soon as the sirens go, you find a big fat family meal still warm on the table with everyone down in the air raid shelter and bingo! Feeding frenzy for the homeless kids of London Town. Puddings for all, as long as the bombs don't get you" the Doctor explained as Charlie grinned away in amusement.
"Something wrong with that? " Nancy asked.
"Nothing's wrong with it," Charlie spoke up.
"It's brilliant. I'm not sure if it's Marxism in action or a West End musical" the Doctor agreed.
"Why'd you follow me? What do you want?" Nancy asked.
"I want to know how a phone that isn't a phone gets a phone call. You seem to be the one to ask" the Doctor pointed out.
"I did you a favour. I told you not to answer it, that's all I'm telling you" Nancy told him.
"Great, thanks. And I want to find a blonde in a Union Jack. I mean a specific one. I didn't just wake up this morning with a craving. Anybody seen a girl like that? " he asked as Nancy took his plate away "What have I done wrong?"
"You took two slices. No blondes, no flags. Anything else before you leave? " Nancy asked.
"Yeah, there is actually. Thanks for asking. Something I've been looking for. Would've fallen from the sky about a month ago,
"But not a bomb," Charlie imputed "Not the usual kind, anyway."
"Wouldn't have exploded. Probably would have just buried itself in the ground somewhere" the Doctor explained.
Charlie jerked her head towards the front door just as there was a knock at the door, and everyone jumped in their seats.
" Mummy? Are you in there, mummy?" a child's voice said. The Doctor followed Charlie gaze to see a small boy in a gas mask at the window with a tiny hand pressed against it.
"Who was the last one in?" Nancy asked, her voice shaking.
" Him" Ernie said, nodding at another boy.
" No, he came round the back. Who came in the front? " Nancy asked.
" Me" a boy said.
"Did you close the door? " Nancy asked.
" Mummy? Mummy? Mummy?" the little boy called out, causing Nancy to run out into the hallway and bolt the door shut as the Doctor and Charlie followed behind.
"What are you doing? It's just a kid," Charlie said.
"Yeah, it's never easy being the only child left out in the cold, you know" the Doctor said in agreement.
"I suppose you'd both know" Nancy told them.
"What's wrong with him?" Charlie asked out. Feeling sorry for the young boy outside despite feeling the urge to flee.
"It's not exactly a child" Nancy told her just as the little boy called out again and Nancy ran back into the dining room.
" Right, everybody out. Across the back garden and under the fence. Now! Go! Move!" Nancy yelled and the kids grabbed their coats and began running out of the room except for one little girl who was still sat in her seat, frozen in fear.
"Come on, baby, we've got to go, all right? It's just like a game. Just like chasing. Take your coat, go on. Go!" Nancy urged the little girl who grabbed her coat and followed the other children out the back of the house.
"Mummy? Mummy? Please let me in, mummy. Please let me in, mummy" the little gas masked boy said, sticking his tiny hand through the letter box.
"Are you all right?" the Doctor asked.
"Please let me in" the boy said just as a vase came flying at the door and the little hand shot back out.
"Oi," Charlie glared at the younger woman.
"You mustn't let him touch you! " Nancy warned them both.
"What do you mean, what happens if he touches us?" Charlie asked.
"He'll make you like him" Nancy replied.
" And what's he like?" the Doctor asked.
"I've got to go" Nancy said turning to leave but the Doctor stopped her before she could leave the house.
"Nancy, what's he like?" he asked her again.
"He's empty" Nancy replied just as the telephone in the hallway began ringing " It's him. He can make phones ring. He can. Just like with that police box you saw. " The Doctor ran over the phone and picked up the receiver.
"Are you my mummy? " the little boy's voice asked from the other end of the receiver and Nancy grabbed the receiver from the Doctor, putting it back on the hook. Suddenly, the radio started playing in the dining room and the three of them ran in where they heard the boy's voice over the radio.
" Mummy? Please let me in, mummy" the voice on the radio said before a clockwork monkey started up, speaking in the little boy's voice " Mummy, mummy, mummy."
"That is next level creepy," Charlie stared disturbed at the monkey.
"You both stay if you want to" Nancy said before running out of the house. The Doctor and Charlie went back into the hallway where the boy was still stood outside the door. He had his hand through the letter box again and there was a scar on the back of it.
" Mummy? Let me in please, mummy. Please let me in" the creepy little gas masked boy said.
" Your mummy isn't here" Charlie told the boy softly.
"Are you my mummy? " the boy asked.
"No mummies here. Nobody here but us chickens. Well, this chicken" the Doctor pointed out trying to humor the situation.
" I'm scared" the boy said.
"Why are those other children frightened of you? " the Doctor asked.
"Please let me in, mummy. I'm scared of the bombs" the boy said.
"Okay. I'm opening the door now" the Doctor replied, and he opened the front door to find that the little boy had now vanished.
"Where did he go?" Charlie asked, looking around the empty streets for any signs of the gas masked boy.
"I don't know, but I need to find out a bit more about that craft" the Doctor explained as they left the house and began walking down the street.
"How much you wanna bet that Nancy knows more than she's letting on?" Charlie asked.
"A fool's bet," the Doctor laughed, "We need to find her,"
"She went this way," Charlie jerked her head to the left and started to walk that way.
"How'd you know that?" the Doctor called out to her retreating figure, confused.
Charlie spun around and continued to walk backwards, raising a brow as if to say "really?" before turning back around and walking on.
The Doctor rubbed the back of his head, "Oh yeah," he coughed and jogged to catch up with her.
"You think that the craft and the little boy could be connected somehow?" Charlie pointed out causing the Doctor to stop dead in his tracks and look at Charlie with a big grin across his face.
Charlie followed Nancy's scent until they found her at a shack, hiding some of the food she had taken from the house and it didn't take her long to realize that the Doctor and Charlie where stood in the entrance.
" How'd you follow me here?" she asked.
"I'm good at following, me. Got the nose for it" the Doctor pointed out.
"You mean I do," Charlie smirked, avoiding The Doctor's swipe.
"People can't usually follow me if I don't want them to" Nancy told him.
"My nose has special powers" the Doctor pointed out.
"Yeah? That's why it's…" Nancy said with an amused expression.
"What?" the Doctor asked.
Charlie met Nancy's eyes for a brief moment and had to turn her head and cough to hide her laugh, though her amusement showed in her eyes.
"Nothing" Nancy smirked whilst Charlie continued to grin away.
"What?" the doctor asked again.
" Nothing" Nancy replied "do your ears have special powers too?"
Charlie barked out a loud laugh at that before managing to control herself once again.
"What are you trying to say?" the Doctor asked.
"God! It's a good thing your cute," Charlie laughed and shook her head.
"Goodnight, Mister, goodnight Miss" Nancy said to the pair of them before she turned around to leave.
" Nancy, there's something chasing you and the other kids" the Doctor said, causing her to stop in her tracks and turn around "Looks like a boy and it isn't a boy, and it started about a month ago, right? The thing I'm looking for, the thing that fell from the sky, that's when it landed. And you know what I'm talking about, don't you? "
" There was a bomb. A bomb that wasn't a bomb. Fell the other end of Limehouse Green Station" Nancy replied.
" Take us there" the Doctor told her, his voice full of determination.
"Yeah, we want to see it so the Doctor can investigate it" Charlie pointed out.
"There's soldiers guarding it. Barbed wire. You'll never get through" Nancy warned them both.
"I don't think that'll be a problem," The Doctor and Charlie shared a look that confused the young woman in front of them, but she ignored it.
"You sure you want to know what's going on in there? " Nancy asked.
"We really do," Charlie pleaded.
"Then there's someone you need to talk to first" Nancy pointed out.
"And who might that be?" the Doctor asked.
"The Doctor" Nancy replied, and Charlie's eyes widened, and she glanced at her friend seeing the confusion on his face. "I'll take you both to the bomb site but that's all I'm going to do for you." The Doctor and Charlie then followed Nancy to the area where the bomb had landed. It was well guarded with a barbed wired fence and soldiers walking around the area and the Doctor was observing the area through a pair of binoculars.
" The bomb's under that tarpaulin. They put the fence up overnight. See that building? The hospital" Nancy said, pointing out a Hospital that was nearby.
"What about it? " the Doctor replied, still looking through the binoculars.
"That's where the doctor is. You should talk to him" Nancy explained whilst the Doctor gave the Binoculars to Charlie so that she could have a look.
" For now, I'm more interested in getting in there" the Doctor said, nodding at the bomb site.
"Talk to the doctor first" Nancy told him.
"Why?" the Doctor asked.
"Because then maybe you won't want to get inside" Nancy replied before she got up to leave.
"Where're you going? " the Doctor asked her as she went to leave.
" There was a lot of food in that house. I've got mouths to feed. Should be safe enough now" she replied.
" Can I ask you a question? Who did you lose? " Charlie asked.
" What?" Nancy asked, shaking her head.
"The way you look after all those kids. It's because you lost somebody, isn't it? You're doing all this to make up for it" the Doctor implied.
" My little brother. Jamie" Nancy replied, her voice shaking a little "One night I went out looking for food. Same night that thing fell. I told him not to follow me, I told him it was dangerous, but he just. He just didn't like being on his own. "
" What happened?" the Doctor asked.
" In the middle of an air raid? What do you think happened? " Nancy snapped and it didn't take long for the Doctor and Charlie to guess what she was implying.
"I'm sorry" Charlie muttered.
"Amazing" the Doctor grinned.
"Doctor," Charlie said sternly, sometimes the Time Lord really needed to think before he spoke.
"What is?" a now confused Nancy asked.
"1941. Right now, not very far from here, the German war machine is rolling up the map of Europe. Country after country, falling like dominoes. Nothing can stop it. Nothing. Until one, tiny, damp little island says no. No. Not here. A mouse in front of a lion. You're amazing, the lot of you. Don't know what you do to Hitler, but you frighten the hell out of me. Off you go then do what you've got to do. Save the world" the Doctor explained. He and Charlie then headed off in the direction towards the hospital whilst Nancy headed in the opposite direction.
Wolf Whispers
"So, Nancy's little brother dies one-night, next thing there's a little boy wondering around London terrorizing her and some kids looking for his "mummy" and you shouldn't touch him cause he's apparently "Empty." Charlie summed up, "Little suspicious don't ya think?" she asked the Doctor who was unlocking the hospital gates with his sonic screwdriver
"More than a little I'd say," the Doctor hummed and opened the gates.
The Doctor and Charlie crept inside the dark hospital where they noticed that all the beds in all the wards had unmoving patients in them, all of them wearing gas masks.
"You'll find them everywhere. In every bed, in every ward. Hundreds of them" a voice said behind them and the pair of them turned around to see an old grumpy looking man walking in with a walking stick.
"Yes, we saw. Why are they still wearing gas masks? " the Doctor asked.
"They're not. Who are you?" the grumpy man asked.
" I'm, er. Are you the doctor? " he asked the old man.
"Doctor Constantine. And you two are?" he asked, gesturing to him and Charlie who was stood in the middle of the room, frowning at the bodies on the beds.
"Nancy sent us" she replied, avoiding his question of who she was.
" Nancy? That means you must have been asking about the bomb" Constantine asked.
"Yes" the Doctor replied.
"What do you know about it? " Constantine asked.
"Nothing. Why I was asking. What do you know?" the Doctor asked.
"Only what it's done" Constantine replied.
"So, these people, they died when the bomb fell?" Charlie asked, taking another look at the people in the beds.
" None of them were" Constantine replied with a chuckle before coughing and unable to stand, he sat down on a chair in the middle of the room.
"You're very sick" the Doctor pointed out.
"Dying, I should think. I just haven't been able to find the time. Are you a doctor?" Constantine asked the Doctor.
" I have my moments" the Doctor replied with a grin.
" Have you examined any of them yet?" Constantine asked.
"No" the Doctor replied.
" Don't touch the flesh" Constantine warned the pair of them.
"Which one?" Charlie asked.
"Anyone" Constantine said as the Doctor examined one of the patients with his sonic screwdriver "Conclusions?"
" Massive head trauma, mostly to the left side. Partial collapse of the chest cavity, mostly to the right. There's some scarring on the back of the hand and the gas mask seems to be fused to the flesh, but I can't see any burns" the Doctor explained.
" Examine another one" Constantine told him and the Doctor examined some more patients and was shocked by what he had found.
"This isn't possible" he pointed out " They've all got the same injuries."
"Yes" Constantine pointed out.
" Exactly the same" the Doctor pointed out " Identical, all of them, right down to the scar on the back of the hand." Both the Doctor and Charlie where unaware that Constantine also had the exact same scar on the back of his hand.
"But that's impossible," Charlie frowning, she was beginning to get a headache from all this confusion. "How did this happen? How did it start?" Charlie asked.
"When that bomb dropped, there was just one victim" Constantine replied.
"Dead?" the Doctor asked.
" At first. His injuries were truly dreadful. By the following morning, every doctor and nurse who had treated him, who had touched him, had those exact same injuries. By the morning after that, every patient in the same ward, the exact same injuries. Within a week, the entire hospital. Physical injuries as plague. Can you explain that? What would you say was the cause of death? " Constantine explained.
"The head trauma" the Doctor pointed out.
"No" Constantine replied.
"Asphyxiation" the Doctor said.
"No" Constantine replied again.
" The collapse of the chest cavity" the Doctor said, and Constantine still came up with the same reply.
"So, what was the cause of death?" Charlie asked, leaning over one of the bodies for a closer look.
" There wasn't one. They're not dead" Constantine replied before banging his stick against the floor, causing the patients to sit up in their beds causing Charlie to rear back as the person she was hunched over, shot up. "It's all right. They're harmless. They just sort of sit there. No heartbeat, no life signs of any kind. They just don't die."
" And they've just been left here? Nobody's doing anything? " the Doctor asked as the patients lied back down and Charlie watched them nervously.
"I try and make them comfortable. What else is there?" Constantine asked.
"Just you? You're the only one here?" the Doctor asked.
"Before this war began, I was a father and a grandfather. Now I am neither. But I'm still a doctor" Constantine pointed out.
"Yeah. I know the feeling" the Doctor replied solemnly.
" I suspect the plan is to blow up the hospital and blame it on a German bomb" Constantine pointed out.
" Probably too late" the Doctor pointed out.
"No. There are isolated cases. Isolated cases breaking out all over London" Constantine said before he started choking and the Doctor moved towards him, but Constantine held his hand out "Stay back, stay back. Listen to me. Top floor. Room eight oh two. That's where they took the first victim, the one from the crash site. And you must find Nancy again. "
"Nancy?" Charlie asked, raising her eyebrows. Looks like she was right about Nancy and her brother.
"It was her brother. She knows more than she's saying. She won't tell me, but she might" Constantine said before he began to stammer "M-mummy, Are you my mummy? ". The Doctor and Charlie then watched in horror as Constantine's face began transforming into a gas mask, just like the little boy and the patients in the bed.
"Oh my god, he's turning into one of them" Charlie scrunched up disgust as the mouthpiece of a gas mask forced its way-out Constantine's mouth.
Suddenly they heard two voices coming from the corridor and pretty soon, Rose entered the room, accompanied by a handsome looking man in a long coat and Charlie recognized him as the man from Wales 1869. She recalled his words to her about not letting on she knew him, as she understands it, it would screw with the timeline - and she didn't want that.
"Rose," Charlie smiled at the blonde
"Charlie," Rose winked, "Didn't get into too much trouble without me, did you?"
"No more than you I'm sure," The redhead smirked back
"Good evening. Hope we're not interrupting. Jack Harkness. I've been hearing all about you on the way over" he said in his American accent.
"He knows. I had to tell him about us being Time Agents" Rose explained to the bemused looking Doctor.
"And it's a real pleasure to meet you, Mister Spock" Jack said, shaking the Doctor's hand before turning his attention to Charlie " and you must be Charlie, pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise," Charlie smiled, keeping a close eye on the bodies behind them.
"Mister Spock? " the Doctor asked, looking at Rose with an annoyed look.
" What was I supposed to say? You don't have a name. Don't you ever get tired of Doctor? Doctor who?" Rose asked.
"Nine centuries in, I'm coping. Where have you been? We're in the middle of a London Blitz. It's not a good time for a stroll" the Doctor pointed out.
"Who's strolling? I went by barrage balloon." She ignored Charlie's startled look, "Only way to see an air raid" Rose pointed out "anyway, what's a Chula war ship?"
"Chula?" the Doctor asked before they heard Jack from the other end of the room as he examined one of the patients.
"This just isn't possible. How did this happen? " he asked himself.
"What kind of Chula ship landed here?" the Doctor asked as he and the girls came walking over.
"What?" Jack asked.
"He said it was a warship. He stole it, parked it somewhere out there, somewhere a bomb's going to fall on it unless we make him an offer" Rose pointed out.
"What kind of warship? " the Doctor asked again impatiently.
"Does it matter? It's got nothing to do with this" Jack pointed out.
"This started at the bomb site. It's got everything to do with it. What kind of warship?" the Doctor demanded.
"An ambulance! Look" Jack replied, getting out his wrist device and showing them a holographic image of the craft that they had been chasing after in the Tardis "that's what you chased through the Time Vortex. It's space junk. I wanted to kid you it was valuable. It's empty. I made sure of it. Nothing but a shell. I threw it at you. Saw your time travel vehicle, love the retro look, by the way, nice panels. Threw you the bait."
"Bait?" Charlie asked.
" I wanted to sell it to you and then destroy it before you found out it was junk" Jack explained.
"You said it was a war ship" Rose pointed out.
"They have ambulances in wars. It was a con. I was conning you. That's what I am, I'm a con man. I thought you were Time Agents. You're not, are you?" Jack said.
"What gave it away?" Charlie laughed.
" Just a couple more freelancers" Rose nodded.
"Oh. Should have known. The way you guys are blending in with the local colour. I mean, Flag Girl was bad enough, but U-Boat Captain and French girl?"
"French?" Charlie mouthed wordlessly to herself and looked down at her striped top. Bit of a stereotype.
"Anyway, whatever's happening here has got nothing to do with that ship." Jack said with certain
"What is happening here, Doctor? " Rose asked.
"Human DNA is being rewritten by an idiot" the Doctor explained.
"What do you mean? " Rose asked.
" I don't know. Some kind of virus converting human beings into these things. But why? What's the point?" the Doctor asked as he paced around the room when suddenly the patients suddenly sat up in their beds.
" Mummy" the patients said as they all got up and started walking towards the four unaffected people in the room.
"Don't let them touch you" the Doctor advised.
"What happens if they touch us? " Rose asked.
"You're looking at it," Charlie told her, squinting as her head began to throb, the feeling as though she had a bad migraine coming on.
"Help me, mummy" they all said in unison. The continued to back the four travellers back until they were pressed up against the wall. "Mummy. Mummy. Mummy. Mummy. Mummy. Mummy" the patients all chanted as they slowly made their way towards the four.
Charlie hissed in pain the throbbing got worse, she raised a hand to her head and felt her breath hitch. There on the back of her hand was the matching scar of the gas masked people.