Sky had barely gotten her bearings in the TARDIS before the Doctor had whisked them away, the ship landing with a shudder somewhere in London. He'd said something about plastic—living plastic, which Sky couldn't quite wrap her head around—but the excitement of this new world and traveling through time and space had distracted her from asking too many questions.

Now they were walking through a quiet department store, of all places. Sky had expected alien planets, strange creatures, or something more dramatic, but the Doctor had insisted that this was where the action was. His steps were brisk, purposeful, and she struggled to keep up with his long strides as they moved through the empty corridors of the store.

"So... plastic?" Sky asked, glancing around at the mannequins that lined the display windows. "What are we doing here again?"

The Doctor didn't slow down. "Living plastic. Autons, to be exact. Not your ordinary shopping dummies. Something's controlling them. Got a signal running through the city, and I'm here to stop it."

"Right..." Sky muttered, still unsure how to feel about fighting mannequins. This wasn't exactly the adventure she'd had in mind when he'd invited her into the TARDIS, but she'd go with it. After all, the Doctor had a way of making even the bizarre feel normal.

As they rounded the corner, the Doctor froze mid-step, his eyes narrowing. Sky nearly ran into him.

"Doctor, what—"

Before she could finish, a girl with blonde hair burst out of a nearby hallway, her eyes wide with terror. She sprinted past them, breathing heavily, her footsteps echoing through the empty space.

Behind her, mannequins—*the mannequins*—were moving, their plastic limbs jerking unnaturally as they pursued her.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me," Sky muttered.

"Run!" the Doctor shouted, pulling her by the arm.

The girl, still running, glanced back, her face a mix of panic and confusion as she saw the Doctor and Sky keeping pace with her.

"What's going on?!" she yelled, her voice strained from fear.

"Out of my way!" the Doctor barked, grabbing the girl's hand without introduction, pulling her and Sky toward the emergency exit. "Stay with me, both of you! No stopping, no questions!"

Sky could feel her heart pounding in her chest as the three of them hurtled down the corridor, the sound of the Autons' stiff, mechanical movements growing closer behind them. She glanced back to see one of the mannequins reaching out with its hand—fingers molded together like a blunt club—swiping at the air where the girl had just been.

"Keep running!" the Doctor shouted, leading them through a set of double doors.

They spilled out into a stairwell, the Doctor slamming the door shut behind them. He turned to the girl, his expression stern but not unkind. "You alright?"

She nodded, breathless, her eyes darting between him and Sky. "What... what were those things?"

"Living plastic. Controlled by something else. Long story," the Doctor said quickly. "What's your name?"

The girl opened her mouth to answer, but the Doctor wasn't waiting for a reply. He was already bounding up the stairs, the sound of plastic fists pounding against the door behind them. Sky grabbed the girl's hand, pulling her along as they followed.

"He does that," Sky muttered to her. "Don't worry, I'm still confused half the time too."

"Who is he?" the girl asked, still in shock.

"No idea," Sky replied, breathless. "But he's going to save us, I think."

The Doctor led them up flight after flight, moving fast. "Top floor. Roof access," he called out. "We'll lose them up there."

When they burst through the door onto the rooftop, Sky felt the cool night air hit her face. The city stretched out before them, lights twinkling in the distance. The Doctor immediately ran to the edge, scanning the horizon.

"Right, signal's got to be coming from somewhere around here," he muttered to himself, pulling a strange metallic device from his jacket pocket and fiddling with it.

Sky and the girl exchanged glances, still catching their breath. The mannequins hadn't followed them yet, but Sky wasn't about to feel safe.

"So... um..." the girl began, her voice trembling. "What exactly is going on? Who are you people?"

The Doctor didn't look up from his device. "I'm the Doctor. That's Sky. We're here to stop some nasty plastic things from making your life very unpleasant. And we're almost out of time, so if you've got any questions, make them quick."

The girl blinked. "Doctor? Doctor who?"

The Doctor shot her a quick, mischievous glance before going back to his work. "Just the Doctor."

The girl was about to press further when a loud crash echoed from below. The Autons had found the stairwell and were making their way up.

"Fantastic," the Doctor muttered, his voice laced with sarcasm. He looked at the two women, eyes blazing with determination. "Time to go."

"Where?" Sky asked, looking nervously at the door.

The Doctor grinned, as if the question had amused him. "Where else? Back to the TARDIS."

Sky had almost forgotten about the police box in the chaos, but it all came rushing back. The Doctor's ship—the thing that could take them anywhere, at any time. And if he was right, it could also get them out of this mess.

But the girl—she had no idea.

"What's a TARDIS?" she asked, still bewildered by everything happening around her.

"You'll see," Sky replied with a wry smile. "And believe me, you're not going to believe it."

The Doctor was already moving, his coat billowing in the wind as he led the way down the opposite side of the building. The girl hesitated for a moment before following, casting one last glance at the mannequins now spilling out onto the rooftop behind them.

Together, they ran.