Doctor Who: 221b Chapter 10
The Black Woods, Germany
April 9, 1970
The Doctor came running out of the TARDIS in a panic. Holding his screwdriver, he waved it around in the air, scanning for what seemed like forever.
"No. No. No. No!" The Doctor yelled.
"What's happening!?" John yelled from the campfire, unwilling to move from his only protection from the German nighttime cold.
"I've been tracking Moriarty's signature and vitals to see where he went, with little luck." He paused.
"Who?" John yelled back.
"Jim Moriarty- Oh, damn. You've already forgotten."
"What are you talking about?"
"The Figure just erased Sherlock's greatest foe from history."
"Is that bad?" John asked.
"Yes! In the TARDIS."
John bounded up and joined the Doctor in the TARDIS, Sherlock and Holmes were already inside.
"Where to now?" Sherlock asked.
"We are going forward, we're going to 2022." The Doctor yelled as he ran to the console.
Pressing buttons and pulling levers, the clear blocker atop the engine began to bob up and down, the whooshing began again as the TARDIS began to fade from the Black Woods.
"What is that incessant noise!?" Holmes shouted over the piercing whooshing.
"My wife told me it was the parking brake!" The Doctor shouted back.
"Wife?" John said.
"We all gotta get hitched some time!" The Doctor answered with a grin. "She killed me once, you know."
John's face became the very definition of confusion. "Never mind." The Doctor muttered.
The shaky, turbulent journey through time was made even worse by the Doctor's terrible driving, although he had been piloting the TARDIS for 53 years, he was no better at it than the day he stole it.
/
"My master," the creature said. "The Doctor is nearing the final breadcrumb."
"This 'Doctor' is more perceptive than I thought. Naturally, the Time Lords were incompetent fools who allowed themselves to be annihilated by their own kind."
"Our sources tell us, this Doctor is the committer to the genocide of trillions of people."
The Figure thought a moment. "Prepare the Pyramid's defenses. When the Doctor comes, I want everything perfect."
"Yes, my Lord." it said as it turned to leave.
"And, Thran?" The Figure said.
"Yes, my Lord?" Thran asked.
"Bring me everything we have on the Exiled."
Thran nodded as he left the dark chamber.
/
London, England
August 16, 2022
The three men and one immortal alien stepped out of the TARDIS and into the London street. Sherlock looked around in confusion.
"This isn't Baker Street." He said.
"No, this is Baker Street ten years after your faked death and Moriarty's suicide." The Doctor said.
"Who committed suicide?" Sherlock asked.
"Some guy the Figure killed who was your biggest opposition and now he's been erased and we don't remember him." John explained.
"So what are we looking for in 2022?" Sherlock asked.
"Your triumph over Moriarty boosted your career quite a bit. If Moriarty never lived to be your nemesis, your popularity would've fizzled out years ago. Exactly ten years after Moriarty's destined suicide."
Across the street, bulldozers were moving the rubble from the demolition of 221 Baker Street. Nearby, a foreman sipped coffee while overseeing the transport. The Doctor crossed the street and approached the foreman.
"What's happening here?" The Doctor asked.
"What? This? The building was in disrepair, the tenants were evicted and relocated. I heard it was because they weren't payin' their bills." The foreman said.
"What about Mrs. Hudson? One of the tenants." Sherlock said as he also approached the foreman.
The foreman scoffed. "That ol' coot died years ago. Heart attack or something of the like."
Sherlock sighed.
"Do I know you?" The foreman asked.
"No, no you don't." Sherlock replied.
/
As the Doctor and Sherlock crossed the street to where John was waiting, John noticed Sherlock's glum expression.
"Everything alright, Sherlock?" John asked.
"Mrs. Hudson is dead in this time and whatever the Figure changed, it made sure our careers never made it off the ground."
"Well, shit." John said.
"Sherlock?" A familiar voice said. "That's my name."
The trio turned to see a homeless man sitting up against a brick alley wall. He was shirtless and wore only a pair of dirty black slacks, he appeared unshowered and his long black hair was slicked back with grease. He also had a large beard which was matted with mud.
"You're Sherlock Holmes?" The Doctor asked.
2022 Sherlock nodded. "I was a famous detective, but everything fell through. Mrs. Hudson died, John left, and the flat was bulldozed. Now I'm here."
2022 Sherlock stumbled to his feet, swaying around he revealed an empty bottle in his hand, obviously the cause of the swaying.
"Who are you?" 2022 Sherlock asked.
"I am the Doctor, this is Emmett," he said gesturing to John. "And this is Sherlock. Yes, you two share a name."
"Hello, Emmett, Sherlock." 2022 Sherlock said.
The drunk homeless man stumbled very close to Sherlock, leaning on a wall for support, he looked Sherlock up and down.
"You look familiar, Sherlock." He said.
"I've that face." Sherlock replied.
"And you," 2022 Sherlock said, pointing to John. "You look like John."
"Mr. Holmes, I think you're drunk." The Doctor said.
"Not that drunk!" He shouted. "You're pretending to be people." He said, getting more and more slurred as he went on.
Holmes stepped out of the TARDIS and looked around. He took one look at Sherlock and 2022 Sherlock and sighed.
"There's two of them." He said exasperatingly.
One of the Figure's portals opened up and the Figure himself stepped out. Dressed in black robes with his face shrouded, the Figure looked at each of the people present before chuckling.
"Welcome to your future, Mr. Holmes." The Figure said.
"You bastard!" John shouted.
The Figure waved his hand and John went flying through the air. He smashed against the wall and landed on the pavement with a hard thud.
"Would anyone else like to challenge me?" The Figure asked.
"What are you?" The Doctor said.
"I am your worst fear, Doctor. The culmination of everything you fear and I will be your death."
Another portal opened and swallowed the Figure in it. The portal closed and left a shaken Doctor and Sherlock helping his friend to his feet.
"Where did he go?" Sherlock asked.
The Doctor looked at his screwdriver. "He's gone to the one place I've never been. He's gone to the center of the universe."