The Hungry Earth: Taken
Rory smiled as he held Amy's engagement ring, gently tracing the diamond with a finger. He had to admit, he'd been thrilled to see her wearing it just then. Beyond thrilled. Because he'd noticed she HADN'T worn it during the adventure in Venice or any of the ones that had come between that and the Dream Lord. It had...hurt. A lot. Because it had made him think that she didn't want anyone to know she was taken, or that she was taken by him, like she had wanted to live out the fantasy that she was single. In a way, it also made him feel like, despite the fact that they would be married in the morning (whenever that was) that it was her way of proving she wasn't married yet and that anything could happen.
But not anymore, now she was wearing the ring and that was wonderful. He sighed happily and put the ring back in its box before leaving it on the console and turning to head to the doors. He'd just stepped outside and nearly run into a woman with brown hair in a pink jacket standing right there, "Well, that was quick!"
"Was it?" Rory frowned, eyeing her.
"It's great that you came."
"Bit retro," the little boy by her side eyed the box, "What is it, portable crime lab?"
"Oh…" Rory began, "Er, sort of."
"Ambrose Northover," she introduced, shaking his hand, "I was the one who called. I run the Meals on Wheels for the whole valley. This is my son, Elliot."
"Where's your uniform?" Elliot turned his attention to Rory now.
"Don't be cheeky, Elliot, he's plain clothes. CID, is it? Anyway, it's over here," she turned and walked off.
Rory stood there a moment, unsure what to do. He glanced in the direction Angel and Amy had gone after the Doctor and shifted on his feet. He didn't feel right not going after them, after Angel, especially not now that he knew about her condition. It was...it just went against everything he was, a nurse, a man, a companion, to leave her alone, pregnant. He knew Angel was strong, but she was scared too. She always tried to keep people happy and not have them worry about her but she'd let him in, she'd told him her fears, her concerns, she'd let him in on an enormous secret, one he could tell she really needed help in dealing with.
He sighed, running a hand through his hair, before following after Ambrose, knowing that Angel would want him to help someone else before her (even if he really just wanted to help her and make sure she was ok). He supposed, the sooner he got this over with the sooner he could get back to Angel and check on her. He'd just have to hope that the Doctor would be able to take care of her and keep her and Amy safe till then.
He should really trust the man more, he believed, as his wife-to-be's Pilot anyway.
~8~
The Doctor, Amy, and Angel arrived at the drill site to find the gates locked, "'Restricted Access,'" Angel read the sign that was hanging in front of it, "'No unauthorized personnel,'" she sighed, glancing at the Doctor to see him grinning widely, "Not going to stop you is it?" she asked him with a small smile.
He nodded and flashed his sonic against the lock, opening it.
"That is breaking and entering," Amy told him.
"What did I break?!" he countered, "Sonicing and entering, totally different," he opened the gate.
"Come on, then," Amy shrugged, heading through.
The Doctor looked back the way they came, "You're sure Rory'll catch us up?"
"Yeah," Angel reassured him as she too glanced back, "He'll be fine."
She swallowed hard though, a pit forming in her gut once more, she seemed to be getting a lot of those recently. She knew, Rory would be just fine. But the way she'd spoken, the emphasis on Rory being fine, it made her worried about who wouldn't be?
"Amy!" the Doctor shouted suddenly, rushing off after Amy, "Don't wander off!"
Angel sighed and shook her head before following after him.
~8~
Ambrose and Elliot stood, looking down into an open grave, with Rory, "It's a family plot, see," Ambrose told him, "My aunt Gladys died six years ago. Her husband, Alun, died a few weeks back. He lived in the house two doors down. There's not many of us left up here now..."
"Mum, he doesn't care about that!" Elliot cut in, "He wants to know about the dead bodies."
"Yes. Sorry. Well, they always wanted to be buried in the same plot, together. But when we went to bury Uncle Alun, Gladys wasn't there. Gone. Body, coffin, everything."
"What?" Rory started at that.
"The mad thing is, on the surface, the grave was untouched. No signs of it having been messed with."
"I'm sorry, I don't understand."
"Nobody has touched the grave since my aunt was buried. But when they dug it open, the body was gone. How is that possible?"
Rory opened his mouth to answer, only to close it. He had no idea.
~8~
The Doctor, Amy, and Angel walked through a dark hall, "What about now, can you feel it now?" the Doctor looked at Amy.
"Honestly, I've got no idea what you're on about," she shook her head.
"The ground it..." Angel paused, trying to think of how to phrase it, "It's...different."
"It's ten years in the future, maybe how this ground feels is how it always feels."
"Good thought!" the Doctor said, "But no. It doesn't," they paused, hearing a whirring sound start up, one that made Angel tense, she'd heard that noise in her vision, when she'd heard the Doctor shouting, she'd heard it in the background, "Hear that, drill in start-up mode. After waves of a recent seismological shift and blue grass," he pulled out a bit of blue grass from his pocket and put it in his mouth chewing it before making a face and pulling it off his tongue.
"Oh, please!" Amy laughed, "Have you always been this disgusting?"
"No, that's recent."
"Recent?" Angel shook her head, "Let's see…" she frowned in thought, "There was the blood control with the Sycorax that you tasted, the mistletoe varnish on the wall with the werewolf that you licked, the portable TV during the coronation that you licked as well, the Pyrovile dust in the hypocaust at Pompeii you sprinkled in your mouth, the dead sand on San Helios that you dabbed on your tongue…and you tried to taste the wood shed when Prisoner Zero attacked."
Amy raised an eyebrow at the Doctor, feeling...oddly interested. It was weird, just a few adventures ago she was sure, hearing Angel speak of those adventures, that she would have felt irritated that Angel knew so much about the Doctor that she didn't. But now, now she was more interested to just know more.
"Ok…not so recent then," the Doctor conceded, before continuing on, "What's in..." he pushed open a door, "Here? Hello!"
"Who are you?" Nasreen demanded, spinning around from where she'd been leaning over the hole in the floor, "What're you doing here? And what're you wearing?"
"I dressed for Rio!" Amy shouted.
The Doctor held out the psychic paper, "Ministry of Drills, Earth and Science! New Ministry, quite big, just merged, lot of responsibility on our shoulders, don't like to talk about it. What're you doing?"
"None of your business," Nasreen countered.
The Doctor walked over to the monitors while Amy went to go lean against some equipment in the back. Angel however, frowned and knelt down by a hole in the ground that had captured her attention the moment she'd spotted it, looking at it curiously, "Where are you getting these readings from?" the Doctor asked.
Nasreen pulled the equipment out of the hole before Angel could touch it as she had been moving to do, "Under the soil."
Mack entered the room, calling to Nasreen, "The drill's up and running again..." he trailed off, frowning as he saw the three extra people there, "What's going on? Who are these people?"
"Doctor?" Angel called, concern in her voice that made him stop his own investigations.
He turned, seeing her gaze was still on the hole and knew, from her expression, that something was wrong with it. He quickly made his way over and knelt down across from her, testing the soil, letting it fall through his fingers.
"Amy, Angel, the Doctor," Amy sighed, gesturing at each of them as she spoke, "We're not staying, are we, Doctor?!"
"Where did this come from?" Angel looked up at Nasreen, pulling her attention away from the dirt for the first time since entering the room.
"We don't know, it just appeared overnight," Nasreen shrugged.
Amy eyed the Doctor and Angel, well, the Doctor really. Angel had returned her eyes to the hole, but the Doctor...he was watching Angel. Actually, no, he wasn't watching her, he was just...staring at her. She knew the Doctor was easily distracted, really very quite easily distracted, but usually by something large and shiny and sudden...
And she found herself smiling a little at that, it was...cute...the Doctor was distracted by the Angel. She shook her head and walked over to them, leaning over by Angel to peer at the dirt. She really wanted to know what was so interesting about the earth that Angel didn't even seem to feel the Doctor's eyes on her. But it was just...brown. Dirt. Just...dirt.
The Doctor stared at Angel one moment longer, before standing quickly when she still didn't look at him. He couldn't help but feel like...if Rory were there and had even glanced at her she would have looked up at him and given him a smile. And that...bothered him, he'd found, very recently, Rory bothered him.
"Good, right," he shook his head, trying to shake the thoughts away, "You all need to get out of here very fast," he moved over to the monitors again.
"Why?" Nasreen eyed him.
"What's your name?"
"Nasreen Chaudhry."
"Look at the screens, Nasreen, your readings. It's moving."
Amy knelt by the hole, next to Angel, really trying to see what the Time Lady seemed to see. Angel was just...staring at it, frowning, her hand resting right in the middle of the soft patch.
Mack walked over to the Doctor, trying to warn him away from the monitors, "Hey, that's specialized equipment! Get away from it."
"What is?" Nasreen squinted at the readings.
"Doctor," Angel swallowed, seeing steam rising from the dirt, "The hole's releasing steam."
"That's not a good thing, is it?" Amy frowned.
The Doctor glanced back at the hole, frowning, "Shouldn't think so," he made his way over to it, "It's shifting when it shouldn't be shifting."
"What shouldn't?" Nasreen asked, but the ground began to shake before anyone could answer, Angel quickly pulling Amy up as they stood, backing away from the hole.
"The ground, the soil, the earth, moving, but how?" the Doctor rushed to the monitor, typing furiously to try and see what was happening, "Why?"
"Earthquake?" Amy guessed.
"What's going on?" Mack frowned.
"Doubt it," the Doctor waved Amy off as Angel slowly nudged Amy towards the humans and away from the hole, "'Cos it's only happening under this room," he leapt back as more holes began to form on the ground, "It knows we're here. The ground's attacking us!"
"No, that's not possible!" Nasreen shouted.
"Under the circumstances, I suggest...RUN!" the Doctor cried, grabbing Nasreen by the hand and they ran for the door, Amy jumping over a hole, about to follow, when Mack got trapped.
"Tony!"
"Amy go!" Angel shooed her away, "I've got him," Amy turned and ran back to the Doctor's side as Angel side-stepped a hole and helped Tony to his feet, "It'll be alright," she breathed, urging him on,...
When the ground underneath her broke apart and trapped both her feet.
She struggled, gasping, "Something's pulling me!"
"Angel!" the Doctor half-threw himself towards her, Amy rushing after him.
"Something's got me," Angel struggled more but was pulled right down into the ground as the Doctor stretched out on his stomach to reach for her, "It's grabbing my legs," she sank down to her waist, scrambling, clawing at the concrete floor to try and get out of the dirt.
The Doctor grabbed both her arms, Amy grabbing an arm as well, "We've got you."
"We won't let go," Amy promised, grabbing her. Nasreen helped Tony out of the hole he was in and over to her.
"Don't let me go," Angel breathed, pleading with them, tears in her eyes, panting and gasping as she was tugged down even more.
"Never," the Doctor promised, gripping her tightly, trying to keep her from being pulled away from him, his hearts were racing, his blood pounding in his ears, he felt cold, he felt...desperate, his grip tightening even more, "Just…stay calm, keep hold of my hand, don't let go."
Angel looked at the ground and back up, "It's the drill…"
He looked back over his shoulder, "Your drill, shut it down! Go! Now!"
Nasreen and Tony ran out of the control room.
"Can we get her out?" Amy looked at the Doctor, starting to panic as Angel sunk even lower into the ground, the girl had gone three shades paler and seemed near a panic attack the lower she went.
The Doctor didn't answer, didn't even really hear her as he focused on Angel, "Try and stay calm," he told her, though Amy could hear a shaking in his voice, see a...fear in his eyes, "If you struggle, it'll make things worse. Keep hold of my hand," he squeezed hers.
~8~
Nasreen and Tony tried to stop the drill, "Shut down all drilling activity as quick as you can!" Nasreen shouted.
"Reducing main unit power," Tony reported.
~8~
"I'm not going to let you go," the Doctor promised even as Angel slipped from his grip into the ground, now mid-chest, buried.
"Doctor," Angel swallowed, trying to remain calm despite her frantic worry, not for her...but for the baby, "It's pulling me down."
The Doctor grabbed her wrist with both hands, his knuckles turning white at how tightly he was holding onto her, as Amy struggled to tug her out from the elbows, "Stay calm. Hold on, if they can just shut down the drill in time..."
Angel shook her head, the tears in her eyes spilling as she looked into his eyes, "They won't."
The Doctor swallowed at the certainty in her voice, and he knew...he knew the humans wouldn't be in time to stop the drill. But he could hope that he could hold on long enough to get her out even without it being stopped. He had to hold on, he had to, he couldn't lose her.
~8~
"Tony, we have got to be faster!" Nasreen called.
"I'm doing my best!" he retorted, working frantically, "Come on, shut down!"
~8~
Angel was now down so that only her head and arms were visible, the Doctor and Amy straining to hold onto her, the Doctor far more frantic than Amy.
"It's got to be something under the earth," Angel tried to think, tried to put her sensations into words to help the Doctor with what little time she had left above ground. She had to give him all she could, give him whatever she felt, he'd work it out, he'd figure it out and then...she had to hope he'd come for her.
"Don't you give up!" the Doctor tugged her, "Not you, not the Angel, don't lose faith now..."
"Doctor…" she began but he cut her off.
"No!" he nearly shouted, tears in his own eyes, "No, don't you dare Angel. Don't lose faith in me, please," he begged, "I'll stop this, you'll be fine and..."
Angel let out a small scream as she was pulled right down into the earth.
"No!" he yelled, "Angel!"
"Angel!" Amy struggled to hold on, but the girl was ripped from their grasp, "No!"
The Doctor started digging through the dirt after her, his hearts pounding too fiercely for him to think of anything but getting her back, "No! No! No! No! No! No. No! No. No!" he slapped the ground and stood up, "No. No!" he soniced the ground, needing to reverse the process, needing her back. No, he couldn't be the last, not again. Not now. He...he didn't want to be alone.
Amy, though, watched him, completely stunned at how he was reacting, not having seen him lose that much control ever. She swallowed, backing up, not wanting to get in his way. She frowned, watching him, watching his eyes as he tried to get Angel back...that look...that...pain...she'd felt just that, she'd felt it, when Rory had died in the dream world, it was the look of someone who had just lost the most important thing in the world to them. But Angel wasn't dead (oh she prayed the girl wasn't), and...the Doctor wasn't in love with her. She closed her eyes, realizing one other thing, importance didn't always mean love...Angel was the last Time Lady, she was the last of his people. There was no one else...of course the Doctor would be frantic to get her back, she couldn't imagine him being alone like the Star Whale had been.
"Doctor..." she stepped over to him when he suddenly stilled, staring at the results of the sonic's scan.
"Where is she?" Nasreen gasped as she and Tony ran back in, cutting off Amy but seeing the girl in the blue dress missing.
"She's gone," he swallowed hard, "The ground took her."
~8~
Rory was stuck at the bottom of a dug up grave, mimicking the Doctor by jumping up and down, trying to feel what the man had felt, and feeling rather silly for it. He sighed, stopping, and deciding to try another tactic, putting his hand on the side of the hole, trying to just...feel...if something was wrong, like Angel did. But that was another problem, he wasn't psychic like Angel was, still...made him feel less silly.
"Do you want sugar?" Elliot asked.
"Sorry?" Rory looked up as the boy appeared at the side of the grave.
"In your tea. Mum's asking."
"No. Just white, thanks."
"There's only one explanation, as far as I can see."
"What's that, then?"
"The graves eat people. Devour them whole, leaving no trace."
"Not sure about that," he smiled at the boy, he'd always had a soft spot for children...which only made him think about Angel. He...he was starting to get nervous. Knowing the Doctor and his luck, trouble followed him around everywhere he went, it would only be a matter of time before something went wrong, and he'd rather be there to help when it happened.
"They didn't steal the body from above. They couldn't have got in from the sides. Only other thing is, they get in from underneath."
"Not very likely, though."
"'When you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.'"
"Sorry?"
"Sherlock Holmes," he gestured to his headphones, "Got the audio book. The graves round here eat people," he turned and left, leaving Rory shuddering in the grave.
~8~
"Is that what happened to Mo?" Tony frowned as the Doctor paced and Amy knelt beside the hole Angel had been taken through, as though the Time Lady would reach out at any moment and she could pull her back out again, "Are they dead?"
"It's not quicksand," the Doctor thought quickly.
"She didn't sink," Amy murmured, before her eyes widened and she turned to the Doctor, "She said something was pulling her."
"It wanted her."
"The ground wanted her?" Nasreen gave him an incredulous look.
He rounded on her, "You said the ground was dormant, just a patch of Earth, when you first saw it this morning and the drill had been stopped."
"That's right," Tony agreed.
"Didn't you think it might be possible that when you restarted the drill, the ground would fight back!" he snapped, his face set in a hard expression, a fire in his eyes.
"Doctor!" Amy shouted, seeing him snapping at the humans, honestly, who would think the ground would fight back?
"So what, the ground wants to stop us drilling?!" Nasreen chuckled, "Doctor, that is ridiculous."
His jaw tensed, "Is it?" he looked at her a moment longer, a flash of accusation in his eyes, Angel had been taken by the ground, the ground had been activated because of the drill, the drill belonged to the humans, it was THEIR fault. He spun around suddenly and used the sonic on the hole, Amy jumped back as the ground began to vibrate, "I'm not saying that, and it's not ridiculous, it happened," he sighed, rubbing his head, feeling it pounding, "I just don't think it's right. Oh!" he looked up, "Of course! It's bio-programming!"
"What?!"
"Bio-programming!" he pointed at Amy with a smile, making her frown at how...quickly his mood had changed, "Oh, clever. You use bio-signals to resonate the internal molecular structure of natural objects! It's mainly used in engineering and construction, mostly jungle planets, but that's way in the future, and not here. What's it doing here?"
"Sorry, did you just say jungle planets?"
"You're not making any sense, man!" Tony yelled.
"'Scuse me, I'm making perfect sense, you're just not keeping up," the Doctor replied, "The earth, the ground beneath our feet, was bio-programmed to attack."
"Yeah, even if that were possible, which, by the way, it's not, why?" Nasreen lifted an eyebrow.
"Stop you drilling! We find what's doing the bio-programming, find Angel, get her back. Shh, shh, shh! Have I gone mad?! I've gone mad!"
"Doctor…" Amy looked up at him, concerned.
He really was starting to make her fear he'd truly gone mad. It was like he was spinning out of control, going from angry to intrigued, to confused, to determined...he was all over the place. Well, he was normally like that, but not quite so...extreme. It was like he was...unbalanced. He'd been like that in the dream worlds too, when...when Angel hadn't been there.
"Shh, shh! Silence! Absolute silence! You stopped the drill, right?" he pointed at Nasreen and Tony.
"Yes!" Nasreen replied.
"And you've only got the one drill?"
"Yes!"
"You're sure about that?"
"Yes!" Tony stated.
The Doctor dropped to the ground and lied next to the hole, listening as a whirring sound began beneath the hole, "So, if you shut the drill down...why can I still hear drilling? It's under the ground."
"That's not possible."
Amy just knelt down and listed too as the Doctor jumped up and ran to the machinery, using the sonic on them, "Oh, no, what, what are you doing?" Nasreen demanded.
"Hacking into your records," he replied, "Reports, samples, sensors, good, just unite the data, make it all one big conversation, let's have a look. So. We are here and this is your drill hole. 21.009 kilometers. Well done!"
"Thank you. It's taken us a long time."
"What made you drill here?" Amy stood up and walked over, Rio completely forgotten as her mind filled with worry over her friend, "Of all places on Earth, why specifically here?"
"We found patches of grass in this area, containing trace minerals unseen in this country for 20 million years!"
"The blue grass?" the Doctor frowned, "Oh, Nasreen, those trace minerals weren't X marking the spot, saying dig here. They were a warning. Stay away. 'Cos while you've been drilling down...somebody else has been drilling up," he flashed the sonic at the monitors once more and a new image appeared, lines all around the drill, "Oh, beautiful. Network of tunnels all the way down," he started to smile at that, tunnels...it meant it was a clear path, it meant Angel was ok, she hadn't been suffocated by the earth but had a clear path...
Which meant, there really was something beneath the earth. Now he just had to find out what.
"No, no, we've surveyed that area," Tony argued.
"You only saw what you went looking for, which is understandable," he sighed, "Not like you had a psychic with you to see what you couldn't."
"What are they?" Nasreen frowned, pointing to the monitor where a few blinking lights were.
"Heat signals. Wait, dual readings, hot and cold, doesn't make sense. And now they're moving. Fast. How many people live nearby?"
"Just my daughter and her family," Tony answered, "The rest of the staff travel in."
"Grab this equipment and follow me," the Doctor headed for the door as Amy started trying to grab what she could carry, doing as he asked, no questions asked, knowing that they would just frustrate him and that, the sooner she did as she was told the sooner they could get Angel back.
She dreaded to think how Rory would react to this.
"Why?" Nasreen shook her head, "What're we doing?!"
The Doctor turned to them, "That noise isn't a drill. It's transport. Three of them, 30 kilometers down, rate of speed looks about 150 kilometers an hour. Should be here in...oh, quite soon, 12 minutes? But don't take my word for it, rubbish at timing, and that," he pointed at them, "Is why we need to get Angel back quite quickly, well, one of many, many, many reasons I don't have time to list at the moment," he picked up a computer, "Whatever bio-programmed the earth is on its way up, now," he turned and left, Amy hurrying after him, her arms full of computers while Nasreen and Tony packed up the others.
~8~
The Doctor and Tony were carrying computers while Amy and Nasreen followed, pushing a wheelbarrow full of equipment, "How can something be coming up when there's only the Earth's crust down there?" Tony asked.
"You saw the readings!" the Doctor said.
"Who are you, anyway?!" Nasreen eyed him, "How can you know all this?"
Before he could answer there was a whirring sound and a red light shot across the sky.
"Did you see that?" Amy gaped, "Doctor, did you see that? What was that?"
"No, no, no!" the Doctor's eyes widened. He pulled out a slingshot from his pocket, picked up a rock, and fired it at the sky. It hit a force field that flickered red for a moment before fading. He pulled out his sonic and aimed it at the sky, revealing the field and village around the drill site encased in a red dome, "Energy signal originating from under the earth. We're trapped."
"Amy!" Rory gasped, running over to her with Ambrose and Elliot behind him, hugging her tightly before turning to the Doctor, "Doctor! Something weird's going on here, the graves are eating people."
"Not now, Rory!" he waved him off, "Energy barricade. Invisible to the naked eye. We can't get out and no one from the outside world can get in."
"What?!"
"Can't we use the TARDIS?" Amy suggested.
"The what?!" Nasreen frowned.
"No, those energy patterns would play havoc with the circuits," the Doctor mumbled, "And I'm not about to have Angel kill me when we get her back for blowing them up…again."
"Get her back?" Rory frowned, tensing, catching that word, "From where?" he turned, looking around for Angel, he'd thought she'd just fallen a bit behind...but she wasn't there. Where was she? Why wasn't she there? Back from where?!
"With a bit of time, maybe, but we've only got nine and a half minutes," the Doctor continued, ignoring Rory.
"Doctor!" Rory huffed.
"Nine and a half minutes to what?" Ambrose asked, eyeing them.
"Where's Angel?" Rory tried again.
"We're trapped," Nasreen told Ambrose, "And something's burrowing towards the surface."
"Doctor!" Rory moved right in front of the man, grabbing a small bit of equipment from his hand and yanking it away, "Tell me, now, where's Angel?" he demanded again, his worry growing along with his annoyance at how the Doctor was ignoring him, he was Angel's companion for god's sake! He, of all people, deserved to know when something happened to his Pilot, "What's happened to her?"
"Get everyone inside the church!" the Doctor shouted to the humans, picking up a computer, "Don't worry Rory, we'll get her back."
"What d'you mean, get her back?!" he repeated, his hands clenching into fists, "Where has she gone?"
"She was taken," Amy told him quietly, "Into the earth."
"How?!" he frowned, growing frustrated and very angry, "Why didn't you stop it?!" he rounded on the Doctor for that one. The girl was pregnant for the love of God and the Doctor just…he just let her get taken!? His Pilot!?
"We tried," the Doctor looked at him, "I promise, I tried."
"Well, you should've tried harder!" Rory nearly shouted, glaring at the man. He knew it wasn't fair to be this angry. The Doctor didn't know about the baby. But still, to let Angel get taken? Just like that? He couldn't help it. Even not being pregnant, the Time Lord should have taken better care of her.
Amy frowned, watching Rory with concern, his reaction was...slightly unexpected. She'd seen Rory and Angel's friendship blossom as Pilot and Companion, but this…she wasn't expecting him to blow up like this over it, "We'll find her," Amy said, determined, "We will. We'll find her and we'll get her back safe and sound. We have to."
The Doctor nodded, "I'll keep you all safe. I promise."
"What, like you kept Angel safe?" Rory frowned, just a bit pleased (as terrible as it was to admit) when the Doctor winced at that.
"Come on," the Doctor murmured, "Please. I need you two to help me," he looked between the two companions before he picked up a case and headed towards the church behind them.
Rory just shook his head and grabbed another computer, if it would help get Angel back, he'd do anything.
~8~
Something crept up to Angel's prone body as she laid in a small cavern under the earth, completely knocked out, though one hand rested on her stomach protectively despite it all. The creature held a scanner up to her, watching the small screen intently, before grinning, pleased to see she was alive.
She would make a perfect specimen.
~8~
Tony tried to open the door of the church while the rest carried the equipment, but the door wasn't budging, "Where's Mo?" Ambrose asked, "Is he with you?"
"This flaming' door!" Tony grumbled, "Always sticking! I thought you were having it fixed!"
"Dad!"
"Something's happened to him, hasn't it?" Elliot asked quietly, his grandfather sighing and growing solemn, all the answer they needed.
~8~
The church was in a severe state of disrepair and disuse with boxes, crates, and just a mess of junk everywhere. The Doctor, Nasreen, and Tony were setting up the equipment as fast as they could while the others looked on.
"So we can't get out, we can't contact anyone," Ambrose eyed them, "And something, the something that took my husband, is coming up through the earth."
"Yes," the Doctor agreed, "If we move quickly enough, we can be ready."
"No, stop. This has gone far enough. What is this?"
"He's telling the truth, love," Tony looked at her.
"Come on! It's not the first time we've had no mobile or phone signals. Reception's always rubbish."
"Look, Ambrose, we saw the Doctor's friend get taken, ok?" Nasreen straightened as the Doctor winced at that, Rory throwing him a glare, "You saw the lightning in the sky. I have seen the impossible today, and the only person who's made any sense of it, for me, is the Doctor."
"Him?!"
"Me," he grinned.
"Can you get my dad back?" Elliot asked as everyone turned to look at the Doctor.
"Yes," he said, moving over to the boy and leaning down to talk to him, "And you know what, the something that took your father, took my friend, Angel her name is," he smiled at the boy, whispering, "And a lot of people think she really is one," he winked before speaking normally again, "She's down there, and I don't doubt she'll find him and keep him safe till we can go find them both. That's what she does, she helps people and keeps them safe, that's why I'm here too," he looked up at the boy's mother and stood, "But I need you to trust me and do exactly as I say from this second onwards because we're running out of time."
"So tell us what to do," Ambrose whispered.
"Thank you. We have eight minutes to set up a line of defense. Bring me every phone, camera, every piece of recording or transmitting equipment you can find. Every burglar alarm, every movement sensor, every security light. I want the whole area covered with sensors."
~8~
Amy and Rory were hooking up cameras around the church at ideal positions while the Doctor ran around sonicing them.
~8~
The monitor on the computer now showed that whatever was coming was getting closer, "Right," the Doctor nodded, "We need to be ready for whatever's coming up," he looked at Elliot, "I need a map of the village, marking where the cameras are going."
"I can't do the words," he said, "I'm dyslexic."
"Oh, that's alright, you know what Angel would say?" he asked the boy, who shook his head, "That it makes you all the most special, and that it'll make you a stronger person to overcome it," he reached out and ruffled the boy's hair, "Not every victory has to be a massive one. You draw like your life depends on it, Elliot," Elliot rushed off as the Doctor checked his watch, "6 minutes 40."
~8~
Elliot drew his map while Rory and Amy continued to put up the cameras.
~8~
Nasreen watched the time count down on the monitor while Tony pulled up an overlay of the village, "Works in quadrants, every movement sensor and triplight we've got," Tony reported to the Doctor, "If anything moves, we'll know."
The Doctor patted him on the back, "Good lad!"
~8~
The Doctor looked through Ambrose's van as she walked by with her arms full of gardening implements and anything that could be used as a weapon, "Oi!" she called, seeing him eyeing the truck, "What're you doing?!"
"Resources! Every little helps! Meals on wheels. What've you got here then, warmer in the front, refrigerated in the back."
"Bit chilly for a hideout, mind," she set the items in the front.
"What are those?"
"Like you say, every little helps."
"No! No weapons. It's not the way I do things, that's not the way Angel would want this done either."
"You said we're supposed to defend ourselves."
"Oh, Ambrose, you're better than this. I'm asking nicely. Put them away," he turned and walked away, Ambrose giving one last look at the cab before shutting the door.
~8~
The countdown red 3:23 when Elliot ran over to the Doctor with his map, "Look at that!" the Doctor cheered, "Perfect! Dyslexia never stopped Da Vinci or Einstein after Angel had a talking with them, it's not stopping you either."
"I don't understand what you're going to do," Elliot admitted.
"Two phase plan. First, since our resident psychic isn't here, the sensors and cameras will tell us when something arrives. Second, if something does arrive, I use this to send a sonic pulse through that network of devices, a pulse which would temporarily incapacitate most things in the Universe."
"Knock 'em out. Cool."
"Lovely place to grow up, round here."
"Suppose. I want to live in a city one day. Soon as I'm old enough, I'll be off."
"I was the same, where I grew up."
"Did you get away?"
"Yeah."
"Do you ever miss it?"
"So much," he admitted, "But…I've got Angel with me," he smiled a bit, though his hearts pinged painfully, he knew though that it had to be because she was missing at the moment, "Doesn't get so lonely when you've got someone with you."
"Is it monsters coming? Have you met monsters before?"
"Yeah."
"You scared of them?"
"No! They're scared of me."
"Will you really get my dad back?"
"No question," he turned back to the computer, "Don't have to be Angel to know it either."
"I left my headphones at home!" Elliot realized and rushed off, the countdown clicking down to just over a minute.
~8~
Rory was setting up a camera on one of the gravestones, Amy having gone back into the church to add it to the monitoring system when the Doctor walked over, "How're we doing?"
"Better if Angel were here," Rory muttered, Amy had explained to him exactly what happened to Angel before and he was even less pleased that the Doctor had just...let Angel slip through his fingers, though he was sure that wasn't how it had happened exactly.
"It wasn't my fault," the Doctor defended, "And she's the last of MY kind, I don't see why you're getting so cross about it."
"You don't see..." Rory shook his head, turning to the Doctor, "She's MY Pilot. She's my friend. She's my pat..." he cut off, not about to reveal that he'd unofficially taken Angel as a patient for her pregnancy, "She's practically my family now after Venice," he amended, the Doctor not seeming to have noticed the change, "Of course I'll worry, it's not like YOU are."
THAT was what bothered him. Angel had been taken, and the Doctor wasn't doing a thing to go find her! He was hiding them all in a church when Angel was trapped alone and probably scared with who knew what.
"Don't presume to know how I feel Rory," the Doctor stated.
"I know you're not nearly worried enough."
"And you're too worried!" he snapped.
Rory shook his head, "What is your problem with me Doctor?" he asked, "You're actually MAD that I'm worried about her?"
The Doctor fell silent, "I'm going to check on Amy."
"No," Rory reached out and grabbed his arm, "You've been short with me and ignoring me ever since the Dream Lord. Why? I have a right to know what I've done to deserve it."
The Doctor's jaw tensed, "I saw you."
"Saw me what?" he frowned, utterly confused.
"I saw you, with Angel," he explained, poking Rory in the chest, "I saw you both, in the console room, your arms around each other, looking far too comfy cozy. After everything you gave me about kissing Amy you go and have your hands all over another woman? I thought you loved Amy? I thought Amy was the 'only one for you?' And now you've set your sights on Angel? Well that's NOT gonna happen, Rory, not ever, not at all, not..."
"I didn't have my hands all over her!" Rory cut in, slapping the Doctor's hand away as he continued to poke him.
"I saw it Rory!"
"You saw me hugging her!" Rory huffed, "I was giving her a hug."
"Why?" he scoffed, not believing him.
"Because she had a nightmare," he explained, serious, "Not that I have to explain it to you," he added, "But she had a nightmare and it nearly had her in tears. I was just trying to help her feel better."
The Doctor blinked, stepping back. He looked at the ground and then glanced cautiously at Rory, "A nightmare?"
"Yeah."
He shook his head, seeming confused, "But...why would she go to YOU about it?"
Rory tried not to feel offended by that remark, "I dunno, I just sort of...stumbled on her and we talked."
"She could have come to me," he murmured, feeling rather...hurt...that Angel had spoken with Rory of her nightmare and not him. She should have come to him. And, it hurt even more to know that...he hadn't even been aware she'd been having nightmares, "Why didn't she come to me?"
Rory could only shrug.
"It's getting darker!" Amy called as she ran over to them, "Doctor look!" she pointed at the sky where the light was fading.
Rory tensed, looking up. His nerves were already on edge without Angel there. He should have known something like this would happen. They'd stuck pretty close to each other during the last few adventures, the only time she seemed to stray from his side was when she knew, for a fact, that he would be alright without her or that he could handle whatever he was about to encounter by himself. Unfortunately, that often meant that the Doctor or Amy was on the brink of being in trouble and she was off to help keep them alive, usually putting herself in danger to do it. He should have know that something was going to happen to her when she went with them and didn't stay with him. He supposed, it was partially his fault too for not insisting she go with him back to the TARDIS instead, pulled the 'you're MY Pilot' card.
"How can it be getting dark so quickly?" Amy looked at the Doctor.
"Shutting out light from within the barricade," the Doctor replied, "Trying to isolate us in the dark. Which means..." a rumbling started, "It's here."
A/N: Oh boy, Angel was the one to get taken this time! O.O Not Amy and Angel, just poor old Angel :( I hope you liked the little Rory moments when he found out she'd been taken :) I could see him reacting much more given that he's the only one who knows she's pregnant and he can't say anything. I can also say that the Doctor choosing to stay with the humans and defend them (instead of going after Angel like he has so often in the past) will not only be a very important moment, but also come back to bite him later in the saga ;)
And...we've got another submission for the HOTS challenge! Woo! :) (links also on my tumblr :))
Suffering Ends, by VVAgirl, (the fanfiction site)s/9539306/1/Suffering-Ends
And(!) another author had contacted me about a gift-fic they'd written based on the Academic Series flashback of the Doctor, the Professor, and the kitten from the Academy, with full credit given for the basis of the story :)
Kata and the Kitten, by Goddess of Theatre, (the fanfiction site)s/9536509/1/Kata-and-the-Kitten
I think both one-shots are amazing :)
Some notes on reviews...
I can say a few people will learn about the pregnancy before the Doctor does :) We can see here, Rory's a bit protective of Angel and, even not knowing the whole story behind the pregnancy, treats the Doctor just a little differently for how he couldn't help Angel :) Awww, love protective Rory :) I think that's just what he needs to start standing up to the Doctor is someone he cares about being in danger because of the Time Lord :) Amy (and Rory) and Angel will bond a bit over Rory being erased from time due to the similar circumstances yup :) I can say that Angel will definitely talk to Rory and tell him everything about the Doctor's amnesia before the Doctor remembers ;) I think the submission is going very well, I've loved everything that's been submitted so far, it's really amazing to see how different everyone's image of the remembrance moment is ^-^ Rory will definitely be concerned about the pregnancy and how it happened, we saw a little of it here but there'll be more coming up, I think, at the moment, he just doesn't want to upset Angel and that, maybe once he's certain the baby will be fine (if the baby will be fine) he'll talk to her then, when she has one less thing to worry about :) I can't say what the baby would look like, it'll depend on if the baby survives, but I can say that I do have quite a few twists in mind about what its appearance might possibly be }:) I think, if Angel regenerated, she would lose the baby. She's already in a delicate spot with carrying it to term and I can see the regeneration energy being too violent for the baby to survive :( I'm not sure if it would look like 11, just because it was conceived with 10 :) I can say, right now, that there'll be a line in TIA that is given by a future Angel (I can't see her letting the Doctor go through Utah alone) about the sex and fate of the baby }:D I did read the latest chapter and I think you captured her leaving and his reaction very well if she were to leave that way ;) I think he'd want to comfort Angel more, just because Angel would be able to remember Rory and feel that loss that Amy couldn't except a few times :) I can say there'll be a twist that will make the Doctor notice Angel a bit more after Cold Blood and the TW crossover :) As for Big Bang...we'll have to see about a dance ;) No worries about the length, I always read every single review :) As for the length of the chapters, I try to hit 5,000 (before the A/N) even though I only promise 4,000, but they've been getting steadily longer :)
Lol, yeah, it did seem to go by really quick didn't it? :) Probably because of the Rory/Angel bonding moment, I felt it was needed though, Angel needed someone to talk to by now ;) We'll have to see about Jack and the others and the possible violence against the Doctor though :) I don't really have a favorite Doctor/Companion as a couple, I can't see him with a human. But I LOVE the Doctor/Donna friendship, Donna was just what he needed, a friend who was there for the adventure and not in love with him :)
If Angel ever left to stay with Jack permanently(ish), I think the Doctor would remember a little more, he always seems more aware of how Angel's not there and thinking of her more when she isn't around :) He's a little distracted in this chapter though :)
I can say there's a twist as to whether the baby will start to show before or after the Doctor might possibly remember. I won't say what it is though :)
I cried writing Cold Blood :( Especially after seeing Rory being so defensive of Angel here, to know what's coming for him and that Angel will lose that support :( I can't wait for Mickey/Rory to meet too :) I can say there will be plenty of protective Jack moments to come ;)
I'm not going to say for sure if the dream of forgetting will happen or not, in a way, everyone forgot the Doctor for a short while ;) And that's all I'll say about that, could be simple, could be more complex }:) IF she gets eaten and remembered, there might be a chance yeah, but it'll depend if she gets eaten and when ;) In a way, if she got eaten and remembered by Amy...if Amy doesn't know about the Mating, she might still not be remembered. Oh amnesia, you are confusing :) I update every day because I have the story prewritten yup :) I just...I'm too excited to post once every few days or once a week or anything (I only do that for the spin-offs because I have too many of them coming). And it's like the one bright spot in my day after work, to write new chapters and edit the next to be posted :) I've got it all written out and I just give it one more edit every day before I post it :)
Oh the Doctor will be becoming more and more aware of Angel slowly but surely, we saw a little here of the jealousy :) Love jealous Doctor ^-^ And all that because he saw them hugging! :) This chapter sort of puts a twist in her telling Rory before he's erased though :( But I can say Rory will learn everything that's happened at some point :)
I'm not sure what I could suggest for the Faith episode, I think I only saw it once when it first aired, so I'm not sure I remember everything that happened in it :( (Sorry!) But I think that twist with Piper noticing angels and them giving her some angelic blood would be great :) It could always start if there's any episode where she gets seriously injured or dies and comes back (like her brothers always do). They could always brush it off as a near death experience that altered her perception of the world until they realize there's more to it? Just a thought. But I think the angel blood would be a great way to balance everything with the brothers and it would explain the subtle differences like her healing faster than her brothers. I had a hard time believing that the angels knew what Azazel was doing and didn't have some idea of how to counter it or keep the demons from influencing important figures like Sam. That way they take a more proactive approach :) I think, from what I've read, that some of her key traits are determination and strong-will, she's also very loyal and very balanced, she tries to keep her brothers and family together and is very dedicated to her family and helping others :) You're very welcome! I hope I was able to help a little :)