Chapter LXIX
Mira's POV
It was only a short way to the sewers, and there was no chance to have a few, unobserved words with the Doctor. Why was it now him allowing Martha to stay for a bit longer? Had her reaction upset him more than he would let on? Had she finally driven him away from her? And, even more important because of the sense of imminent danger hanging in the air – why hadn't they gone back into the TARDIS and tried it again? Why was he always looking for trouble? Well, she had her theories about it; trouble was an excellent way to distract oneself from one's problems; but he definitely put it to a whole new level.
She also wondered why he had trusted her like this. He had, hadn't he? Letting her operate the TARDIS with him, asking if this time was feeling right, and then staying here? What was he up to now? She watched his slender frame as she walked behind him, the movement of his brown coat as he was walking with his hands shoved in his pockets. But, no matter how hard she was trying, she couldn't find any answers to her questions.
And yet it would have been so easy. She could just ask him. Stop behaving as if she was still a teenager and start acting as the adult she was. She had tried to convince herself for long enough that talking to him would be of no use because he wouldn't give her a proper answer anyway. Probably he would by now. It was nothing but a convenient excuse so that she wouldn't even have to try and risk to fail.
As they finally reached the sewer entrance, she took a look around. It was only the Doctor, Martha and herself plus Solomon and Frank. Diagoras was here as well, guiding the way. The Doctor had been walking next to Solomon, Martha next to Frank. He probably was the same age as Martha, though it was hard to say – leading a live like his could make people age faster.
They all went down the sewer, and – to her surprise – Diagoras was following. The sewer was a dark and damp place, most as it was to be expected. The smell was overwhelming and she thought she could hear the faint noises of rats, alongside the dripping sound of water. At least she hoped it was only water dripping down from the arched ceiling.
"Turn left. Go about a half a mile. Follow tunnel two seven three. Fall's right ahead of you, you can't miss it," Diagoras said.
Yeah, sure. The non-existent collapse.
Something was wrong. Not only was he lying, but he was also surrounded by the aura of someone who had suddenly came to great power, but was at the same time deeply frightened and shocked to his very core. He was caught right in the middle, treating everyone below him with disdain, knowing he could afford it, and at the same time crawling to his bigwigs, whoever they might be. He was beyond stressed and it seemed to be only a matter of time for him to reach his breaking point.
"And when do we get our dollar?" Frank wanted to know.
"When you come back up."
"And if we don't come back up?" the Doctor asked, even though he must know the answer by now.
"Then I got no one to pay," Diagoras replied coldly.
"Don't worry, we'll be back," Solomon said.
"Let's hope so," Martha whispered under her breath.
Martha shouldn't be here, she thought as she watched how the Doctor stared into Diagoras' eyes for a long moment. Surprisingly Diagoras didn't flinch. Pretty much everyone would have by now, staring into his dark, endless alien eyes in a face appearing so human.
That only added up to the picture she already had from Diagoras. He had seen other things quite recently, things that could easily match up to the Doctor staring at him like that. Things that would push him over the edge rather sooner than later. But what?
Finally, the Doctor broke the stare and she followed him and the others down the tunnels. She considered to just grab his hand and exchange a few thoughts about everything that was going on, but for some reason she hesitated. It had become different than it had been on Skaro, not too long ago. Now she was afraid of finally crossing a line, the last bit of distance she was able to maintain between them. She shot a quick look around, finding Martha still occupied with Frank.
"So this Diagoras bloke, who is he then?" the Doctor asked Solomon, pulling her out of her thoughts.
There she was again, distracted by her own feelings, in a situation when she just couldn't afford it. On the other hand, that was not the Fleet and she was not on duty, but this fact didn't make it any less dangerous.
"A couple of months ago, he was just another foreman," Solomon replied. "Now, it seems like he's running most of Manhattan."
He just had confirmed her own suspicions.
"How'd he manage that then?" the Doctor asked.
"These are strange times," Solomon said. "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."
"Just wonder who his backers are, I think he'd just sold his soul," she murmured, earning a surprised look from Solomon.
The Doctor's attention, on the other hand, was caught by something else. A slimy, green, jelly-fish-like thing lying on the ground directly in front of them.
They kneeled down in front of it, and instantly Martha was at their side again.
"Is it radioactive or something?" Martha asked and watched as the green glow vanished as the Doctor picked it up. "It's gone off, whatever it is. And you've got to pick it up!"
She focused with her mind on the green thing, but she couldn't make anything out of it. It was organic, sure, but alive? At least not any more. "Whatever it is, it's either dead now or simply doesn't have enough consciousness to feel anything and pass for something living. Like an overgrown amoeba," she said, curiously watching it as the Doctor turned it in his hands.
He nodded at her words and then said to Martha, "Shine your torch through it." She did so and after a moment he continued, "Composite organic matter. Martha? Medical opinion?"
"It's not human. I know that," she said with slight distaste in her voice.
"No, it's not," he confirmed. "And I'll tell you something else. 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?" he said to no one in particular and then turned his head to Mira, "To whom do you think he sold his soul to?"
She only shrugged and shook her head. How could she know?
"Where are we now?" Martha asked. "What's above us?"
"Well, we're right underneath Manhattan," the Doctor replied.
Martha's POV
"We're way beyond half a mile. There's no collapse, nothing," Solomon said as he approached them, drawing the same conclusion as the Doctor.
"That Diagoras bloke, was he lying?" she asked and caught Mira's eyes for a moment.
What had she said about being psychic? Had she known it all the time? Why hadn't she said it?
"Looks like it," the Doctor replied and got up.
"So why'd he want people to come down here?" Frank asked.
"Solomon-" the Doctor started, but Mira suddenly interrupted him.
"You two, go back. NOW! Take Martha with you. Get out of the sewers and don't come back," Mira said to Frank and Solomon, and something in her voice, her very posture, made Martha freeze to her core. It wasn't fear she had heard in Mira's voice, it was utter determination and a sharpness as if she was absolutely used to give orders and people around her obey. And, above all, she had sounded dead serious. Even more worrying was that the Doctor didn't disagree with her, he just remained silent and stared into the darkness of the tunnels as if looking out for something.
She was about to do as Mira had said, but before she could even make one single step she heard pig squeals echoing all around her.
"What the hell was that?" Solomon asked, making no attempt to leave.
"Hello?" Frank asked, and she could clearly hear the strain of fear in his voice.
"Shush," she tried to silence Frank.
"Frank," Solomon said warningly to him.
"What if it's one of the folk gone missing?" Frank replied. "You'd be scared and half mad down here on your own."
"Whatever there is, they're not particularly friendly," Mira said, but neither Frank nor Solomon seemed to care.
"Do you think they're still alive?" the Doctor asked.
"Heck, we ain't seen no bodies down here. Maybe they just got lost," Frank said.
The next second, the all turned their heads as more squeals could be heard.
"Does this sound like people?" Mira asked, and Solomon slowly shook his head.
"Where's it coming from?" Frank asked. He sounded even more afraid now, but he didn't back off. "Sounds like there's more than one of them."
"This way," the Doctor finally said.
"No, that way," Mira said, looking at the Doctor and pointing to where they had come from. "Out here it is for them."
"No, that way," Solomon said, not too impressed by Mira's warnings, and with his torch he lid up a figure, crouching in the corner, hiding its head. "Who are you?"
"Are you lost?" Frank asked and approached the figure. "Can you understand me? I've been thinking about folk lost down."
She couldn't help herself but she had to admire his courage. She still could hear the fear in his voice, and yet he tried to not run away head over heel.
"That one's no danger to us," Mira said. "But there are others...," she added and slowly approached the figure, finally crouching in front of it.
"It's all right, Frank. Just stay back," the Doctor said and slowly followed Mira. "Let us have a look." He crouched next to her. "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"
She tried to see what was going on, but the sight was blocked by the Doctor and Mira. She could only see that the figure slowly lifted its head.
"Oh my god, what happened to you?" she heard Mira say.
Finally she caught a glimpse on the figure and its face. She had to blink and look again, thinking the dim light and the shadows playing tricks on her eyes, but the picture remained the same. It was a human figure with the head of a pig.
"Is that, er, some kind of carnival mask?" Solomon asked.
"No, it's real," the Doctor said gravely. "I'm sorry. Now listen to me. I promise I can help. Who did this to you?"
Suddenly, she caught movements out of the corner of her eye. More of those figures were approaching.
"Doctor, Mira, I think you'd better get back here," she said, slowly moving backwards. "Doctor!" she yelled now, as the figures grow more and more.
"Actually, good point," he jumped up together with Mira and was about to go back to them.
"They're following you," she said, feeling herself just one step away from panicking.
"Yeah, I noticed that, thanks. Well then, Martha, Mira, Frank, Solomon...," he said.
"What?"
"Eh? Er, basically, run!"
And they ran. Chased by the pigmen, and she had no idea if they were still on the right path.
"Where are we going?!" she yelled as they reached a junction.
"This way!" the Doctor yelled back and she followed him. "There's a ladder! Come on!"
He sprinted towards it, jumped up and opened the cover with his sonic screwdriver. They were all at his heels, and for a moment she dared to hope they would make it. But then Frank, who was last, got grabbed by the pigmen and pulled back.
"Frank! Frank!" Solomon yelled, and he and the Doctor tried to grab his hand.
"I've got you. C'mon! Come on!" the Doctor yelled, but it was too late. In total horror she watched as Frank got pulled down.
Doctor's POV
He was about to go after Frank and the pigmen, as Solomon pushed him aside and slammed the lid shut.
"We can't go after him," Solomon yelled.
"We've got to go back down. We can't just leave him," he yelled back, hardly noticing Mira's hand on his sleeve.
"No, I'm not losing anybody else," Solomon insisted. "Those creatures were from Hell. From Hell itself!"
"Oh please, Solomon," Mira interrupted him. "There I thought you're reasonable. They're not from hell, I don't even thing they're from outer space."
"Anyway, if we go after them, they'll take us all! There's nothing we can do. I'm sorry," Solomon replied defeated.
He turned his head to Mira, wanting to ask her more about those creatures, but just then she leaped forward, onto a blonde woman in a silver dress. Not a moment later Mira had managed to disarm her, holding up the gun that woman had pointed at them.
"Ow! You hurt me!" she now yelled in a shrill voice.
"No I didn't," Mira replied calmly.
"Sure you did. Jumping at me like some mad-"
"You're not hurting, so stop pretending."
The woman looked at her for a moment in utter astonishment, then said, "Well, fine. It's just a prop anyway. Was either that or a spear." Suddenly she leaped forward, right in Mira's face, and yelled, "What have you done to my Laszlo?"
She certainly had some courage, that was for sure. But-
"Who's Laszlo?" Martha asked, absolutely puzzled, beating him to it.
…
Little later they were all gathered in some sort of dressing room. The whole area looked like some backstage area of a theatre to him.
"Laszlo's my boyfriend," the blonde woman started to explain. "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 looked around, waiting for an answer.
"What do you think happened to Lazlo?" Martha finally asked into the silence.
"I wish I knew. One minute he's there, the next, zip. Vanished."
"Listen, ah? What's your name?" he asked.
"Tallulah."
"Tallulah-" he repeated, but got interrupted before he could go on further.
"Three Ls and an H."
"Right," he started again, "We can try to find Laszlo, but he's not the only one. There are people disappearing every night."
"And there are creatures. Such creatures," Solomon said. He seemed to be a bit superstitious indeed.
"What do you mean, creatures?" Tallulah asked.
"Look, listen, just trust me. Everyone is in danger. I need to find out exactly what this is," he said and pulled the jelly-fish thing out of the pocket of his coat. "Because then I'll know exactly what we're fighting."
"Just reminded me to never search for anything in your pockets," Mira said quietly next to him.
He looked turned his head and for a short moment their eyes locked, before she looked away, almost shyly.
"Come on, we have to make up a little DNA scanner. Nothing fancy," he said to her and put the green thing back in his pocket.
...
It was easier said then done - a good while later they were still searching for some vital parts. He had told Solomon to bring anything electronic to him, whilst Martha was with Tallulah, trying to get more out of her.
"How about this?" Solomon was back with a small radio. "I found it backstage."
"Perfect," he exclaimed. "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," he continued and handed the radio over to Mira who immediately began to dissemble it.
"How about you, Doctor? And you, Mira? Where are you two from? I've been all over. I never heard anybody talk like you. Just exactly who are you?" Solomon wanted to know, and then turned to Mira. "I would almost say you're a veteran, giving orders like you did. But that can't be. You're a woman and way too young. Can't be older than twenty."
"Oh, We're just sort of passing by," he said, hoping to spare Mira an answer.
"I'm not a fool, Doctor," Solomon replied.
"No," he said softly after looking at Solomon for a moment. "Sorry."
"I was so scared," Solomon said and went over to the sewer entrance. "I let them take Frank because I was just so scared." He turned to Mira, "I'm religious, but I'm not superstitious. Those creatures are not sent by the Devil. I just don't know what they are. I've never seen anything like that, that's all. You have to believe me."
"I'm sorry Solomon. I didn't mean it like that," Mira said and looked up at him. "It's just that humans sometimes are a bit quick to blame things on superstitious nonsense."
"Humans? You mean us humans? Fine, I see your point," Solomon said. "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."
"Good luck," he simply said. Solomon could use it.
"I hope you find what you're looking for, for all our sakes," Solomon said and left.
Martha's POV
She was with Tallulah in her dressing room, watching her getting ready for the show.
"Laszlo," Tallulah said. "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 asked.
"Sure. He's just a stagehand. Who cares? The management certainly don't."
"Can't you kick up a fuss or something?" she asked. She still couldn't believe that no one would care when someone went missing.
"Okay, so then they fire me," Tallulah replied.
"But they'd listen to you. You're one of the stars."
"Oh, honey, I got one song in a back street revue and that's only because Heidi Chicane broke her ankle," the other woman said and looked at her pitifully for her lack of understanding. "Which had nothing to do with me whatever anybody says. 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."
"I'm sorry," she replied and suddenly felt utterly privileged. Not only was she able to study, she had a nice room, family who would be there for her, and incredibly lucky to be born in a different time.
"Hey, you're lucky, though," Tallulah said, and for a short moment she thought she might have read her mind somehow. "You got yourself a forward thinking guy with that hot potato in the sharp suit."
Oh well, not so much mind reading then.
"Er, he's not. We're not together."
"Oh, sure you are. I've seen the way you look at him. It's obvious."
"Not to him," she replied sadly. Sure, sometimes he actually paid attention to her, looking at her as if she was the only thing that mattered in the whole universe, but those moments passed just as sudden as they came, and his full attention was drawn to other things.
Or other people.
"Oh, I should have realised," Tallulah said. "It's her then? That other woman? The look in her eyes gives me the creeps. What a waste. 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." She picked up a rosebud.
"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?"
Mira's POV
The Doctor had said they needed heat, so they had went up to the lighting gallery. Now he was pointing one of the large spotlights at the jelly-thingy. She still couldn't see how he had built a DNA scanner out of 1920's technology, but well, it seemed to work, according to him.
"That's it. We need to heat you up," he mumbled and put on his glasses.
"What is it?" she asked.
"This is artificial," he replied without looking at her.
"Oh, really?"
"Sure," he said and turned is head, obviously not getting the sarcasm. "Genetically engineered," he said over some announcement over the speakers. Obviously the show was about to start. "Whoever this is, oh, you're clever."
"And who was it? Why would they leave it in the sewers? Looks like early, discarded stages of an experiment."
"That's probably just what it is. You're good, has anyone ever told you that?" he said and for a moment she doubted he was aware of who was sitting next to him, because he was so caught by his work. But just with the next sentence he proved her wrong."Why you're in the Fleet again and not a scientist?"
"Uhm. Sitting in a lab the whole day got boring. Did I never tell you?"
"Don't know, did you? So you stopped being a scientist because you got bored?" he asked casually.
She was outright left for words. If she knew one thing by now, then the more casual his tone became, the more she had to be on her guard. Never would she tell him why she had turned away from science.
As she didn't answer, he turned his attention to his work again. He produced a stethoscope out of his pockets and listened with it to the jelly-fish.
"Fundamental DNA type four six seven dash nine eight nine," he mumbled. "Nine eight nine. Hold on" he exclaimed and stared at her. She could see his eyes, his whole face suddenly darken, making her shiver. "That means planet of origin. Skaro."
IAmADreamer-LetMeBe, oneWhoReadsTooMuch, bored411, Type40TARDIS, Julia N SnowMiko, 10th Squad 3rd Seat, NeoMulder, MiaEther, yellowroseofthenw: Thanks for reviewing :-)
