Chapter 3
As the creature came rushing at them and earth scattered from above and water splattered out hitting the muddy floor of the tunnel, the Doctor grabbed his hand.
"Run!" he yelled, and Tommy froze, his eyes wide as he stared at the beast that screeched again as it rushed closer.
"I said, run!"
He tugged on the boy's hand and turned and ran, and Tommy stumbled after him.
"We can't run...not this way...it goes back to my house!" he said breathlessly as he ran faster to keep up, clinging to the Doctor's hand as he didn't dare to look back.
The tunnel filled with the sound of the creature's screeching, and then the Doctor felt a sharp tug as his arm was jerked back violently and the pop he felt in his shoulder registered as burning pain as a weight crashed on top of him and knocked him hard to the ground.
He wanted to pass out but Tommy yelled out Doctor and his voice sounded distant, too far away...
The Doctor turned his head and saw the boy being dragged off into the distance, he saw fear in his eyes and his fingers trailed in the mud as he called to him again in terror.
"Don't fight them!" he shouted, wincing as the pain burned in his shoulder, "I'm coming to save you, I promise!"
"Doctor!" Tommy called again, and then the darkness and gloom and distance closed off all sight of him, and the Doctor dragged himself to his feet, clutching at his painful arm. It was then he silently cursed at himself for not taking more care:
He had known that kid had wanted to see the creatures – at first he had been afraid, but that fear had been dampened down because he knew the Doctor would be with him, he had felt safe...
Now he blamed himself.
He should have been more vigilant, he should have known he would be followed...
The Doctor turned to the earthen wall and wanted to punch it, but he didn't, because his shoulder was definitely dislocated and right now he needed to fix that, because he couldn't do a thing for the boy until it was back in place and he had the use of his arm again.
"I'm not as young as I used to be," he muttered as he looked to a thick underground pipe that snaked down off the wall of the tunnel and ran deep below ground. He gave it a cautious tap with his good hand – it was definitely solid.
Solid enough to do the job...
He turned his back to the wall and drew in a deep breath, closing his eyes as he braced himself for the pain that would follow. Then he smashed his shoulder against the pipe, gave a yell as bone clicked back into place and then he slumped against the wall breathing hard as he waited for the pain to stop throbbing.
The Doctor was still clutching at his arm as he opened his eyes again and looked down the dim tunnel. He focussed on the thought of the child lost in the darkness and surrounded by monsters. Tommy had wanted to see them, and now they were all around him.
And that wasn't good enough.
That really wouldn't do at all.
He had to go and get him out, and he had to do it now...
Tommy was cold and his clothing was spattered with mud. He was up tight against the wall of the tunnel, right on the bend where the rest of the creatures were gathered... They looked like an ugly, slimy mess of a slippery tangle and their mouths (or was it faces?) were horrible, like something off the cover of a horror movie, the 18 rated kind that his mum wouldn't allow in the house in case they gave him nightmares...
Tommy felt sure when he grew up he would never have to worry about pretend monsters scaring him, not the fake ones, because here and now, he was seeing real ones, and he could never forget what they looked like...
Then one of the creatures slithered forward, its wide mouth showing a round of sharp teeth, and it loomed closer as he shrank back.
"Don't touch me!" he said tearfully as he wished for home and his room and his bed and even his mum telling him off, because he didn't want this. Most of all, he wished he had never crept down that slope and into the tunnel...
The wall of the tunnel felt cold and damp and the earth that was all around him smelled damp and horrible. The creatures didn't smell. He had expected them to stink like dead fish, but they didn't do that at all and that was a huge relief. But still he wondered if he would ever see home again...
The creature was almost on him now, and he closed his eyes tightly and wondered if it would hurt to be eaten alive. He wished he had brought his hammer with him, too - maybe then he would have stood a chance...
Then he opened his eyes, and as the creature stopped sniffing him and shifted back, looking at him with thoughtful interest reflecting in its many eyes, Tommy looked back at the creature.
And that was the moment that most of his fear melted away.
It didn't want to hurt him, but he wasn't sure why...
It was a long way up the tunnel.
In their rush to get away, they had headed back towards the end of the drainage system, which dipped low down a tiny hole and ran beneath the house. Around it the earth had been disturbed, but those creatures could squeeze through tiny gaps, and the space was far too small to even think about trying to follow to see if more of them were down there. Around the edges of the hole the phosphorous was stuck fast to the entrance – a few of the creatures must have shed their skin slipping through – but when the Doctor peered inside, he saw no creatures within.
Of course not. They were up the other end of the tunnel with Tommy - and that thought filled him with dread.
He turned back, his shoulder still vaguely aching as he made his way back through the mud ,walking in the gloomy, eerie glow of the shed skins as he headed back towards the far end of the drainage ditch. It frustrated him to think he was trying to get to that child as fast as he could but had to go slowly, because his shoulder was back in place and TimeLords healed fast but one slip now would put it back out again, and he wouldn't be so lucky a second time...
The Doctor kept his gaze fixed on the end of the tunnel. It was closer now.
He would get there, even though the way that creature had smashed him to the ground had left him stiff and bruised and covered in mud.
At least he was wearing protective clothing. His suit was safe. That thought made him briefly smile, but then the pale blue of his eyes turned to darkened steel and hardened as he thought about the situation:
He didn't know what those creatures would do with Tommy. He knew if he fought them they would kill him, and then they would taste human flesh for the first time. But there was a chance, and he was holding on to that chance, that perhaps, as they were intelligent creatures they would recognise him as young, like them, but different. They were all children together. If they knew that, perhaps he would still be alive by the time he found him - as long as he didn't fight them. These creatures stuck together like a small gang, and any perceived threat would be dealt with one way:
Destroying the source of attack...
He put his hand up to his aching shoulder as he carefully made his way along the tunnel, looking to the end of it that was now in sight as he once again recalled the advice he had yelled to the boy as he was dragged away.
"Please don't fight, them, Tommy," he said quietly, "Just don't fight them..."
Tommy had started to shiver as he sat there in the damp tunnel. As the creatures shifted closer and began to curl up around him, he was surprised to find they felt warm, and now he understood why had had seen them in such a slimy tangle before - they huddled for warmth...
"Are you keeping me warm?" he asked quietly as another slimy body curled about, taking care to avoid grazing his skin with its spiky fin.
It raised its head and a rounded row of sharp teeth made a clicking noise, it looked at him, and then hugged a little tighter.
Tommy was being hugged much tighter than before.
He hoped they didn't hug too tightly, because then it would hurt...
A thought ran through Tommy's mind about something he had read about boa constrictors, and he cancelled that thought fast, because he couldn't move, let alone make a run for it, and so far, he was following the Doctor's advice, too – he wasn't fighting them and for now they seemed happy to wrap themselves about him, almost like they knew he was cold and scared, and wanted to offer him comfort in the only way they could.
That was a nice thought, it was one he would hang on to until the Doctor came back for him.
Except for one thing:
He wished they didn't squeeze him as tightly as they did, because now it really was starting to hurt...
The Doctor was nearing the bend in the tunnel. Here the dim light from the shed skins of the creatures glowed a little brighter, making just enough light to enable him to see where he was going. He guessed this was just about all the light these creatures could take, given that they lived in the dark on the bottom of deep water lakes and rivers, in their world, the shed skins had always been their method of lighting their habitat... He caught sight of a glistening tangle of bodies, the glow made them shine in the dim light and they moved slowly, snake-like as they huddled in a slime tangle.
As he got closer, he slowed his pace, treading softly as he neared the bend in in the tunnel. He didn't want to frighten them, because his sudden appearance would put them on alert, they would instantly sense a threat to their new underground world...
As the Doctor moved closer he caught sight of Tommy just around the corner, and he quickly stepped back and stood tight against the earthen wall, doing it fast even though the sudden movement had made his shoulder ache again. He couldn't allow them to see him yet, a sudden movement and... He couldn't even bear to think about how those things would crush that boy to death in their rush to band together even tighter to face a perceived enemy...
The Doctor briefly thought of how this had meant to be a plan that was so simple, and if not for the boy, those creatures would be shrunk to the size of tadpoles and contained in water, and he would be back on the Tardis now, taking them far away to begin a life on an alien planet where they could live peacefully...
Humans.
They always interfered!
But he couldn't be angry for long, because he had seen the look on Tommy's face - that poor boy was terrified, and he had every right to be, too...
He had seen the way they had wrapped themselves about him, too. They were trying to huddle him up like they huddled together as a colony – but they had a squeeze capable of killing him. If he moved, if he shivered...he was keeping still for now. He had to stay still if he wanted to get out of this alive...
The Doctor took a deep breath, closed his eyes briefly as he ran over his plan...
"Slowly and carefully," he said under his breath, reminding himself this had to be done softly, carefully and quietly, "Talk to them gently, they can understand you..."
Then he hoped for the best and spoke aloud, addressing the creatures:
"I mean you no harm, I'm the Doctor and here to help. May I show myself?
And he heard a slick and rapid unwinding of glistening creature bodies and then Tommy breathed out in relief. The Doctor waited, knowing they had let him go for a brief moment as they listened to the sound of his voice.
"May I show myself? I mean you no harm and I want to help you find your way to a better home. I really can do that. Will you let me help you?"
He heard a clicking sound as the largest of the creatures raised its head, snake-like as round rolls of razor teeth snapped thoughtfully.
"I'm going to step out now so you can see me. I am not here to pose a threat, I come as a friend..."
The Doctor stepped out.
He saw Tommy huddled up against a damp wall of earth, he was surrounded by the creatures and looked terrified.
"Don't move until I say," he whispered, and the boy looked back at him with frightened eyes that brought to mind how Tommy had frozen at first sight of the creatures, and all the Doctor could do was silently hope that when he opened up the trap, he would be brave enough to jump clear, otherwise he would get sucked into the container along with the creatures...
The largest of the colony was still there, barring the way forward, its head swaying slightly as the round of sharp teeth clicked and chattered as it set its nine eyed gaze on him.
The Doctor looked past the creature to Tommy, who was surrounded by the smaller ones.
"I don't think they can understand me...I was hoping they would, but they can't. But that could be a good thing...listen...I have this device..."
He drew a clear, water-filled cylinder from his pocket and held it out.
"See this, Tommy? It's a clever device that can temporarily shrink the creatures to the size of tadpoles and pull them into this container. I can then seal it and take it to another planet, where they can be released back harmlessly into the wild. But as soon as I activate it, you have to jump clear or you will get shrunk and dragged in too. Can you move quickly for me on the count of three?"
The boy gave a slight nod of his head, looking wide eyed at the Doctor as he remembered his warning about keeping still.
"Are you sure you can do it? You can't freeze, you can't let fear hold you to the spot because you will get trapped too. I'm asking you again, can you do this?"
"Yes," Tommy whispered.
The Doctor held out the device.
"Good boy, that's what I want to hear. Be fast and get out. Don't be a tadpole..."
And the creatures slithered about whilst the leader still stood before him, teeth clicking as it watched him press a series of buttons on the side of the container.
"Ready?" he said in low voice as he cast a glance to Tommy, "Three, two...ONE!"
There was a flash of light that shot from the container, as strings of electrical lights glowed blue and hit the creatures as they shimmered and shivered. Tommy dived over the back of the largest one and hit the wall on the other side of the tunnel, sending a scattering of earth crumbling downwards.
Then the boy stared at the sight of the Doctor holding a container that glowed with a strange light, and strings of that light were wrapping around the creatures now, and they were struggling like worms on hooks and the power pulsed and they got smaller and smaller and smaller until they were all drawn into the stream of light, and it shot back into the container.
The light faded and the Doctor put the lid on tightly.
"One colony of Syrret Corrinth bottled!" he said.
The boy got up and walked over to him, looking cautiously at the creatures, now in miniature and swimming about in the container, all now the size of tadpoles.
"You got them!"
He started to smile and so did the Doctor.
"Yes I did!" he exclaimed, "And now I can take them to a new home where no one will ever disturb them again."
Then there was a flap and another flap, something was slapping at the muddy floor softly. They looked down to see one small creature, not quite as small as the others, flailing about helplessly in the mud.
And Tommy raised his foot, and the Doctor said nothing as the shadow of the boy's trainer lingered over the helpless creature. Then Tommy carefully stepped over it, then leant down and scooped it up in his hands.
"It must have got left behind," Tommy said as he watched it flapping about like a fish out of water, "We should put it in with the others."
"I knew you wouldn't kill it," the Doctor said as he smiled at Tommy, "Because you're kind. Because you're a human and they have such capacity for compassion."
"Plus it didn't kill me when it was bigger," Tommy replied as they turned back and began to walk down the tunnel towards the slope that led back to the garden, "Why didn't it kill me, Doctor? I thought it would when it dragged me away like that."
They were nearing the slope and the sight of the starlit sky above ground was a welcoming sight.
"I had a theory about that and I'm glad I was right – when we disturbed the colony, their instinct was to attack to protect themselves - but when they dragged you off they realised you had something in common with them – they are young, still children - and you are a child too. Just a different kind of child to them. And they wanted to keep you warm, like they keep each other warm. Good thing I stopped them because they have a crush like a boa constrictor."
And then they reach the exit, and TimeLord and boy both breathed a relieved sigh to be close to the surface once more.
The Doctor went up the slope first, then he held out his hand to Tommy, who soon let go of it as he saw pain register on the Doctor's face as he tried to pull him back to the ground.
"I can manage," he told him, and he scrambled out of the hole.
"Good," the Doctor replied, "Because I'm still aching from what that creature did to my shoulder!"
Then Tommy watched as the Doctor used the sonic screwdriver to close up the earth once more. There was a muddy patch, some missing grass, but nothing else to show of what had happened that night.
"No one will ever know," he said, putting the screwdriver away and stepping back from the sealed earth.
"I think we should put this one in with the others now," Tommy said, looking rather worried as the shrunken creature struggled and slipped about in his cupped hands.
The Doctor smiled, looking at the boy who would never judge a monster by appearance again.
"I think that one is a bit big for the container," he told him, "But I have a jam jar back at the Tardis. You can put him in that."
And the Doctor left by the back gate and stepped out into the alley and Tommy followed.
"What's a Tardis?" he asked.
The Doctor indicated to the blue box that stood at the end of the alley.
"That," he told him, "Is a Tardis. It's my ship and it looks small on the outside but its much bigger on the inside. And as you've been so very helpful tonight, I thought perhaps you might want to come with me on a quick trip to set these creatures free?"
As Tommy's eyes lit up with excitement, the Doctor smiled back at him.
"You're going to like this," he promised him, and then he led the way to the blue box as Tommy followed, taking care not to drop the shrunken creature that wriggled and flapped about in his hands as he wondered what an alien space ship would look like, and how it would feel to travel through space. He was only sure of one thing now and it cancelled out all the fears he once had about monsters – he knew he was safe because the Doctor was with him, and this was going to be the best trip of his life...