41
Phil wasn't completely sure when she went to sleep. But waking up in a candle lit room was a shock. She was sure that when the torch got turned off, all that was around her was darkness. The usual fear of the dark kicked in but disappeared with an overwhelming sense of comfort. It was strange that's one thing to admit.
Propping herself up on her elbows she frowned, she was in a small room. With several lit candles dotted around. Her bag was beside her on this makeshift bed, looking down at herself she noticed the bandages around her arms, and one around her ankle. So whoever bought her into this room had candles, a bed and first aid know how.
Sitting up Phil rummaged in her bag and pulled out her sketchbook, quickly sketching the main things in the room she shut it and put it back in the bag. All of this just didn't make sense, Phil vaguely remembered James saying that people had been disappearing. Were they perhaps in similar rooms to the one she was, she did not know. But also Clarabelle, Phil couldn't help but shudder, just thinking about her annoyed her.
It wasn't her though, TARDIS just took an instant dislike to her. And decided evidently to share her dislike with her. Reaching up and tying her hair up Phil couldn't help but pull a face at the sand which got shaken loose. Touching her forehead Phil raised an eyebrow at the band aid, shaking her head slowly she watched more sand fall from her head.
Slowly standing she wobbled slightly and walked towards the door. Thinking back to her earlier thoughts, anyone else – if they'd seen someone fall down a spontaneous hole in the ground – wouldn't usually jump onto the "it's to dangerous" thing, unlike Clarabelle.
"Oh dear," Phil said while putting her hand on the wall to steady herself. She knew what was happening, Phil frowned. "That sneaky woman," she started walking again. Of course Clarabelle knew what was going on, it made sense. Well Phil didn't know how she could describe it, she would improvise when needing to explain when she next saw Doctor.
"That's why she tried so much to distract him," Phil muttered and looked around. The corridor she was suddenly walking in was well lit with candles. "Get the main person on side and distract their attention away from the problem at hand. She knows what's down here, why else would she jump on the 'it's dangerous' thing so early?" Phil said and then stopped walking. Looking around she suddenly felt extremely uneasy.
"Maybe, just maybe I should go back." Phil said quietly while taking slow steps she stopped though however when she bumped into something, or someone. Slowly turning she looked up at the elongated thing. Putting a hand over her mouth to resist screaming, Phil took a few steps back from it. It was sort of like how Marcus was in his real form, elongated in the body and in the limbs. There wasn't anything Phil could describe it as.
It didn't look like any animal, nor did it look like a person. Sure it had a human-esque form, but its features were not human. "Are you the one who bandaged me up? Thank you." She said quietly with a light smile. Standing staring at it was certainly not going to get her anywhere. Phil was also certain that running – or even attempting with her hurt ankle – would result in it chasing her.
"Is there perhaps a way out of here? My friend, he's up there," Phil said weirdly while pointing up to the cave roof. Above she presumed was the deserts of Egypt. "And I am sure he's freaking out, or well...actually no he doesn't freak out. He has a very good way of dealing with things. But even so, he's incredibly scary with words and I'm definitely sure that he's using as many big and scary words as possible to try and persuade someone to let him down here." Phil said as simply as she could, she didn't even know if this thing understood English. If it did she was trying to explain things in the most simplest way.
The creature walked past her, it moved in a way similar to a monkey. It seemed to drag its body along behind it, while using its front arms as a way of leverage. Phil looked around and then followed after it while putting her rucksack onto her back.
Clarabelle helped some of the workers get as many ropes together as possible. She screamed however when a hand popped up from the sand beside her.
Doctor was walking by trying to think of a plan, he rushed in when he heard the scream. "What's wrong?"
"There," she pointed to the hand wriggling its way up from the sand. Doctor frowned and crouched down near it. Poking it he looked up at her, "There seems to be a hand here."
"Yes I can see that!"
"Why is there a hand here?"
"I don't know do I?"
"Don't you?"
"No!"
Doctor poked the hand again as it shot back into the sand. "We need to move the tables," he stood up and pushed the nearest tables away. Clarabelle exclaimed for him to stop but he continued, turning around to where the hand went he pulled out the screwdriver. Scanning the sand and then looking at the screwdriver he raised an eyebrow.
Crouching back down he took to attempting to dig, the hand popped back up and with the hand came an arm. An arm covered in bandages, with the help of him digging the body that belonged to the arm popped up.
"Oh Phil I do not even know where to begin. Maybe how did you get out?"
Phil coughed and wriggled the rest of the way out of the hole, shaking she closed her eyes as sand fell off of her. "I don't know, I went to sleep-"
"I told you not to!"
"I know! I'm sorry but...I really did hit my head rather hard." Phil said while getting helped to stand, noticing Clarabelle she took a step forward only to have Doctor pull her out of the tent. There wasn't any need for Phil to start being rude again.
Laying on a bed Phil crossed her arms, "Come on the Philippa share all your knowledge." Doctor stood nearby.
"Can't you have better bed side manners?" She questioned, he just gave her a look. "Ok fine! Where is she I'll say I'm sorry for being rude happy now?"
"Yes, yes I am! So come on then Phil, how'd you suddenly go from being trapped under pieces of rock to popping up from the sand like a creepy Jack in the Box?"
"I don't like Jack in the Boxes."
"No nor me," Doctor sat down on the edge of the bed. Phil uncrossed her arms and looked at him.
"I'm not creepy."
"You looked creepy with all that sand on you."
"Oh," Phil sat up and looked at the bandages on her arms, "I dozed off accidentally you see. Then I wake up in a room right? And like, I'm confused of course. Why is there a room in a cave, especially if this cave is underneath a desert." She paused, Doctor gave her a thoughtful look but didn't comment. "So...actually wait a minute," Phil said and reach for her bag rummaging in it she pulled out a book.
"Never without a sketchbook, you two are inseparable."
"Jealous?"
"Of an inanimate object? Of course not!" Doctor said while taking the book from her when she turned it to a specific page.
"Do you recognise anything from any of that?"
"No, it all looks so roughly made. Given a chance people could make surroundings similar." Doctor gave her the book back. "Please continue Phil."
"Alright so I draw this and then dare to venture out, it's then that I figure out many things."
"Such as? Come on this isn't fair you being the only one knowing what's going on!"
Phil laughed and pushed some of her still sandy fringe out of her eyes. "Clarabelle-"
"Don't you start on the poor girl again Phil!"
"It wasn't me!"
"Well alright then, all is forgiven." Doctor shrugged leaving the topic of Phils slight bullying at an end. "What about her then? She's a very giggly person you know."
"I don't care, she knows what's down there. A natural thing I figured out, that when someone falls over you ask if they're alright don't you? Even if you can see they're not. So her being so serious and weird when I laid there in pain just screamed suspicious. Does it not?"
"I get what you're saying, but are you just saying that to justify why you picked on her?"
"No!"
"Alright alright Phil," Doctor held his hands up in defence. The two sat in silence before they looked at each other and then in opposite directions.
"I feel tingly."
"Yeah my company has that effect on people." Doctor sighed and looked down at the white bed sheet. Phil let out a laugh and shook her head, he looked up at her and grinned. The two had had their moments.
Phil had ranted and rambled and explained some things. And Doctor had lectured her slightly in a very obscure way. "What is down there Phil?"
"Erm...it's tall, lanky, lankier than you which is saying something."
"I'm not lanky, you're just tiny."
"Well either way it showed me to this trap door which led back to here. It seemed harmless, it looked scary but didn't do anything. There were things wrapped up though on the floor. They looked like mummies but were to chunky."
"Chunky? What sort of description is that Phil?"
"They were big! Bigger than what a person should be, mummies – whether you've noticed it or not – are on the slight skinny side."
"True, were these things wrapped up in bandages like mummies?"
"Yeah I think so. Me and it just sort of walked quickly to the door." Phil said while leaning forward slightly. "Did you lecture anyone up here?"
"I may have ranted to James, but he had it coming."
"Find anything out?"
"Well it is evident that he isn't here to excavate tombs of Pharaohs."
"So why is he here then?" Phil asked and got a shrug as an answer. Doctor couldn't answer because Clarabelle came in. "When did you discover the things down there?" Phil asked getting straight to the point Doctor sat up straight and ran a hand down his face.
"I-"
"Maybe I should ask the questions, you've just had a traumatic moment and you are extremely confused." Doctor said while standing up and pointing from Phil to Clarabelle. "Do you believe in things which shouldn't exist?" Clarabelle gave a nod. "So how did you react to seeing whatever is down there?"
"I ran."
"Great, well I have to say we may have done the same. But anyway! Moving swiftly onwards, obviously those things mean no harm or else you'd know about it by now. Whatever your dad is doing here, he has to give up on. There is apparently to Phil, something else down there which by sounds of it are laying dormant."
"The chunky mummies?"
"Yes Phil the chunky mummies," Doctor turned and looked back at her. She looked slightly pleased with being right. "Either way, you and your family could be in danger."
"You don't look like the type to be a fan of danger." Phil muttered and crossed her arms, Doctor looked over his shoulder at her. He'd have to get to the point of her annoyance later on.