Story 4: Aliens Among Us

“How about…we’re all just mates? Mates who are renting a house,” suggested Holly.
“Yes,” said the Doctor. “We’re just mates renting a house…who happen to be hunting an alien.”

The Runswick Estate in the little, unimportant town of Hanwick during the 1990's.

The Doctor has detected an alien signal coming from somewhere at the heart of the the estate and he, Lilly and Holly have decided to rent a house out so they can spend time trying to track down the alien.

The only problem is that the alien could be disguised as any one of the residents of the estate and nobody is giving away any clues as to who it could be.

Whilst the Doctor thinks of new ways to expose the alien, Holly and Lilly's friendship grows stronger...until it is dealt a devastating blow...

This is the fourth in a series of adventures featuring James McAvoy as the New Doctor, Felicity Jones as Holly Dangerfield and Evanna Lynch as Lilly Galloway.

Prisons in the Sky (Chapter 9)

Chapter 9 (The Power of 4)

Holly was relieved when she reached the command deck to find that the door from the lift shaft into the interior was open. She peered out. All was quiet and then she hauled herself up and out of the shaft. She turned and helped Zia and then Lilly when she emerged.

“Nobody about,” said Zia. “We’ve lucked out.”

“Oh, really,” came the silky voice of Wainwright. The girls spun around. Wainwright was standing in the darkened room, his head illuminated by the tiny, red emergency spot-lights that had flicked on during the power cut.

“Stay away from us,” said Holly.

“You’re heading for emergency exit 5, yes?” said Wainwright, his arms folded as he walked a little slowly towards them. “You know I’ve already contacted the guards. They’re on their way up the stairwell right now.”

“Just let us go,” said Lilly. “We didn’t do a thing wrong.”

“I beg to differ,” said Wainwright. “In fact, you,” he said pointing at Lilly, “are of some interest to one of Earth’s special agents.”

“What?” frowned Lilly.

“Agent Matthews is on his way as we speak.”

“Never heard of him, pal,” said Lilly.

“And your friend…he’s a Time Lord, isn’t he?”

Holly frowned. She hadn’t heard the name Time Lord before. What the hell’s a Time Lord, she thought to herself.

“What’s it go to do with you?” said Lilly.

Before Wainwright could answer the door burst open and four guards piled in. Holly felt her heart sink, but then her heart almost leapt out of her chest when she realised that Charlie was with them. He smiled at her.

“Ah, fantastic,” said Wainwright. “Shoot them.”

“What!?” spluttered Lilly.

“You’re too much trouble for me,” said Wainwright. “I only need to keep your Time Lord friend alive.” He looked at the guards. “Shoot them.”

The guards hesitated for a moment.

“Go on then!” barked Wainwright.

The guards raised their guns and took aim. Then, in a split second, Charlie stepped out in front of the guards, span around and fired at the other three guards. They collapsed to the ground in a heap.

“Lt. Banks! What are you doing?” said the horrified Wainwright.

“They’re just stunned, Wainwright,” said Banks, aiming his gun at the governor. “You’re going to give us access to the shuttles.”

“I’m not,” said Wainwright.

“You better do as he says,” said Zia.

“I actually can’t,” said Wainwright. “Both of the shuttles are currently trying to apprehend an android on the beach.”

“Then let us get to the exit,” said Banks. Wainwright continued to stand in the way. “NOW!” said Banks, aiming his rifle at the old man.

Wainwright growled and stepped aside. “I won’t let you get away with this, Banks.”

“Already got away with it,” said Banks.

“You may have won the battle, but you haven’t-”

Before he could finish talking, Lilly had swung a punch at him, hitting his square in the jaw and felling him like an old, oak tree.

“Cheers,” said Charlie.

“Good punch!” said Holly, a smile on her face. She remembered how Lilly had broken Roxanne’s nose back on Earth and suddenly felt a twinge of guilt.

Lilly winked as they followed Charlie to the exit. He opened the door and the four of them looked down. The narrow ladder ran nearly the entire height of the spike.

“You ready for this?” said Charlie.

“We have no option,” said Lilly. “Let’s do this.”




The Doctor, Nao and Ziggy had swam back to the cliff overhang where their ropes where still dangling down.

Ziggy looked at the Doctor and then towards Theta-Spike. The flames were continuing to flicker out of the hole almost as if it was teasing them. Almost as if it was saying, “Keep watching. Any moment now…”

“What do we do?” said Ziggy, gripping his wife’s hand tightly.

“We need to get back to the cavern.”

“What about your box?” said Nao. “Can’t we do an emergency rescue or something.”

The Doctor shook his head. “Normally I would have said no,” said the Doctor, “but it seems we have no choice. We don’t know what we’re going to find in there, but we need to save those three.”

Nao winced, her hand moving to the bite marks on her leg. By now the ripped shirt arm that had acted as a bandage for the wound was dark red.

“We need to get her out of the water,” said the Doctor.

“How? There’s no chance she’s going to be able to climb the rope.”

“We need to swim to the beach,” said the Doctor.

“But what about T23 and the patrol shuttles.”

They hadn’t been paying much attention, but the beach was now in total darkness. They simply had to hope that the shuttles had headed back to the spike to deal with the commotion.

“I think it’s safe enough,” said the Doctor.

They were about to set off for the swim to the beach when suddenly there was a great rush of water. The Doctor, Ziggy and Nao were thrown back as a wave of water crashed down over them. When their vision cleared the great looming shape of the sea creature that attacked them before was diving down towards them. It had jumped out of the water, it’s jaws open wide.

The Doctor got in front of Ziggy and Nao and the couple closed their eyes.

The Doctor watched as the jaws bore down on him. There was no escaping this one.

Then, from up above, he heard a cry. But it wasn’t a cry of pain. It was a battle cry. The three of them looked up just in time to see T23 diving headfirst from the cliff towards them, his blaster outstretched before him. He fired some blaster bolts at the creature which recoiled in agony.

The group quickly backed themselves up against the cliff as T23 plunged into the creatures jaw as it bit down on him in agony.

T23 turned to look at them, half of him in and half of him out the creatures mouth. He smiled as he aimed his gun inwards at the creature.

“T23...” said Ziggy, his voice a whisper.

“SWIM, SIR!” shouted T23 as he fired off another bolt. “SWIM!”

The Doctor didn’t remember much more. As they turned to swim away he was aware of a huge explosion behind him and they were thrown forward. Bits of metal and sea creature rained down on them landing in the water with grim “plopping” sounds.

When everything had subsided the Doctor dared to open his eyes. They had been blown further away from the cliff. Now there was nothing but gentle ripples were the creature had been. Scattered all around were bits of T23 and the creature.

“I’m so sorry,” said the Doctor.

“We were meant to get him out,” said Ziggy, his voice barely audible.

But any more thoughts were cut off by an even bigger explosion further out into the water. The sound was like thunder and the sky lit up in a blaze of fire.

The Doctor, Ziggy and Nao looked to the spike in horror as the lower section of it exploded outwards.




Holly, Lilly, Zia and Charlie were already making their journey down the outside of the spike when the explosion happened.

Holly was clinging for dear life onto the metal ladder and looked up at Lilly who was just above her.

“Problem, Dangerfield?” said Lilly, looking back down.

“You don’t find this view absolutely terrifying?” she said.

“How dare you,” said Lilly. “Surely my backside’s not that big.”

“Not that,” said Holly, trying to stifle a chuckle. “This bloody view.” She looked out at the stormy sea around her and wished she hadn’t.

“Get a grip, Dangerfield,” said Lilly, and keep moving. Lilly looked up at Zia and Charlie. “You two okay?”

“Oh yeah,” said Zia, “just another average day on the Rock.”

“I’m fine,” said Charlie. “Just move a bit faster.”

There came a loud explosion from over towards the cliffs and a bright light.

“What on Earth was that?” said Lilly.

“It came from the cliffs,” said Charlie, trying to angle himself around to find the source of the explosion.

“We can’t worry about that now,” said Zia. “We’ve gotta keep moving.”

“Stay where you are!” came a familiar voice from up ahead.

Hanging out of the emergency hatch was Wainwright, a gun trained on the four of them.

“Just let us go!” said Zia.

“Nobody gets out of here without my say so,” he said, aiming, taking a shot and just missing Charlie’s shoulder.

“Move faster!” said Lilly.

“I’m going as fast as I possibly can,” shouted Holly.

And then the explosion came. It was so big that Holly almost let go of the ladder. She clung on for dear life as the entire spire shook and then she looked down. Plumes of smoke and flames ran around the circumference of the spike.

“Oh my god…” she said.

The spike shook again. She heard a cry from up above and moved out of the way just in time to see Wainwright tumble from the emergency exit and fall past them, disappearing into the smoke below.

“What do we do?!” said Zia from up above.

Holly kept a hold of the ladder, but they could feel the spire tipping ever so slightly forward.

“It’s gonna collapse,” said Lilly. “We need to jump.”

“You’re crazy!” said Holly.

“Never been anything other than crazy,” said Lilly as she moved down the ladder to be next to Holly. She looked up at Charlie who had done the same and had his arm around Zia.

“Don’t get me killed, Lilly,” said Holly.

Lilly smiled and took Holly’s end. “Never. You may be a pain in my arse, Dangerfield, but you’ve got a good life ahead of you.” She gripped Holly’s hand tighter. “On three.”

Holly closed her eyes and squeezed Lilly’s hand as tight as she could.

“One.”

Holly thought about her life back home. Her grandfather and her parents and Agatha.

“Two.”

She could hardly believe she was doing this.

“Three!”

She felt Lilly pull away from her, their hands still clasped together and Holly let go of the ladder. She felt herself falling, but it didn’t seem to be a fast drop. It felt like what it looks like in films. Like you’re floating. She could hear the cracking and the breaking of stone and steel at the side of her and she could smell smoke. She felt the heat of the flames and they floated on past them, but she dare not open her eyes.

And then she was getting faster and faster. She began to drop like a stone. No, not a stone. Like a boulder. She could feel the rush of wind and rain around her body and she dared to open her eyes.

And she caught a glimpse of Lilly. She was looking directly at her, but her eyes were filled with tears.

And then they hit the water. The sea swallowed them up and Holly watched as the water closed up over them.

She opened her mouth and gasped as she watched the dark shapes of Lilly, Charlie and Zia float away.

And then all was still and silent and Holly drifted out of consciousness.




The Doctor, Zia and Nao had reached the beach and looked at the space where Theta-Spike used to be. Already patrol cars were circling the area and they had managed to find shelter behind a boulder.

“Those poor souls,” said the Doctor, his hands deep in his sodden pockets, his hair a tangled mess.

Ziggy looked at Nao and they collapsed into each others arms.

“I’m so sorry Holly. I’m so sorry Lilly.” He stepped away from the boulder and walked towards waves that were gently lapping at the beach. “I hope you’ve found the peace you’ve always wanted, Lilly.”




A little way down the beach, Holly opened her eyes. Lilly was crouched over her, her hands in her lap, her hair dripping wet, but her face sad. Charlie and Zia were a little over to her right.

“We’re alive?” said Holly.

“Yep,” said Lilly. She let a huge sigh. “I thought I’d lost you for a moment there, Dangerfield. You passed out when you hit the water.” Lilly shook her head. “Amateur.”

“Hey,” said Holly.

A smile played across Lilly’s lips.

“Are you two okay?” said Charlie.

“Yeah,” said Lilly and Holly in unison.

“I thought we were gonners then,” said Zia, breathing heavily.

“It’s gone,” said Charlie, hands on his hips and staring out to sea. “It’s just gone.”

“And all those people as well,” said Holly, sadly. “I know they were prisoners, but…”

“Don’t let it worry you,” said Charlie.

“I didn’t think it’d collapse,” said Lilly.

“It must have ignited something down in the depths. It’s the only explanation,” said Charlie. He turned to the three girls. “We’re not out of the woods yet though. We need to get off the beach. The other spires are gonna have patrols out searching for survivors.”

“Yeah,” said Holly, getting to her feet and heading towards the track up the cliffs that her and Lilly had originally come down. “I haven’t escaped from one prison to end up back in another.”

“So where to then?” said Charlie. “I’m afraid I didn’t have an exit strategy for getting off the planet. Bad planning, I know.”

“We go up the scrubland,” said Lilly. “With a little luck my friend, the Doctor, may be up there.”




The Doctor, meanwhile, had helped Nao and Ziggy up to the top of the cliff further away and they were now carrying the injured woman between them. She was slipping in and out of consciousness, and the Doctor knew that if they didn’t get her to safety soon it’d be too late.

“What am I gonna do, Doctor?” said Ziggy. “What are we gonna do?”

“I’ll get you away from the Rock. I’ll take you to another planet. You can start your life afresh.”

Ziggy shook his head. “I just can’t believe that’s she’s gone.”

“ZIGGY!” came a female voice.

Ziggy’s eyes widened and he squinted in the darkness. Standing next to the large, dark wooden box was a young girl with long, red her and a bright smile beaming on her face.

“Zia…” said Ziggy, stumbling on his words. “It can’t be…how…?”

“We escaped. We escaped the spire. We were on our way down as it was collapsing.” Zia looked at the injured Nao and then at the Doctor. “What are you even doing here.”

“Came to rescue you, kid,” said Nao groggily.

The Doctor lay Nao on the ground and looked frantically around, and then he felt both of his hearts begin to pound faster and faster and faster. Standing there outside the TARDIS was Holly and Lilly, both of them sat on the small step.

The two of them got up and Lilly raced towards the Doctor, throwing her arms around him.

“I thought I’d lost you,” said the Doctor, hugging her tightly.

“I’m fine. I’m fine,” said Lilly, hugging him back tighter.

Holly watched on at the two friends as they refused to let go of each other. She couldn’t work them out. They were more than friends, but obviously not a couple.

And then the Doctor broke free and marched over to Holly, grabbing her in a bear hug and spinning her around. She was quite taken aback.

“Thank goodness you’re safe, Miss Dangerfield.”

“Easy, Doctor,” said Holly. “It was Lilly and Charlie that helped us get out of there. I don’t think I would have made it without them.”

The Doctor turned to Charlie and extended his hand. “Thank you, my friend.”




The TARDIS was in flight, spiralling through the vortex, dodging clouds of colour and lightning bolts. Inside the box the Doctor had baked up a huge chocolate cake and Holly, Lilly, Charlie, Zia, Ziggy and Nao were all tucking into it.

“So what do we do?” said Holly. “With these four I mean?”

The Doctor licked his spork and smiled. “Well we can’t have any more people on board the ship.”

“Absolutely not,” said Lilly.

Holly’s eyes flicked to her and then back to the Doctor. “Well?”

“It’s entirely up to you lot,” said the Doctor. “Do you have places to go?”

“Not me,” said Charlie. “I was always a bit of a loner. My parents died when I was a baby. I just had my job and then Shrall.”

“And there’s no way we’ll be safe in our sector of the galaxy now,” said Ziggy.

Nao was sat on the sofa, her leg properly bandaged up and colour returning to her face. “Can’t you just take us somewhere…quiet.”

“Quiet?” said the Doctor. “Quiet as in-?”

“Just somewhere…quiet. Somewhere we can just live out our days and enjoy life.”

The Doctor smiled and flicked a few switches. “I’m sure I can find a nice peaceful place for you somewhere.” He tapped his chin and then nodded.

“Thank you, Doctor,” said Ziggy, extending his hand. “I know it was all a bit of a cock-up with the rescue plan, but without you we’d still be hiding on the Rock now.”

“It’s no problem at all Ziggy,” said the Doctor, taking his hand and shaking it. “I’m afraid there’s always going to be injustice in this universe, but at least one innocent is safe.” He turned and smiled at Zia. “Let’s find you a home, eh?”




Back on the Rock, a large shuttle craft had touched down on the beach. Governor Wainwright was standing in front of it, his clothes soaking wet and his suit badly scorched. He smelt of smoke, but still looked defiant.

Agent Matthews stepped down the ramp from underneath the shuttle craft, his hands behind his back. He surveyed the scene before him and then looked at Wainwright.

“Agent Matthews,” nodded Wainwright.

“The Time Lord?” said Matthews.

“He escaped I’m afraid,” said Wainwright, his head lowering slightly.

Matthews shook his head, pulled out a small laser pistol and, to Wainwright’s shocked face, shot the old man directly in the chest.

He turned on his heel and marched back to his shuttle. He put a communicator to his mouth and spoke into it. “The old fool let him escape. I suppose we’ll just have to keep on looking.”

Epilogue

Holly was sat on the bed. She had needed a good shower after the past few days. She had found a nice, towelled dressing gown and was sat staring at the bedside cabinet which contained the diary.

She was about to open it when Lilly burst into the room, looked at her, frowned and then sat down on the bed next to her.

“How you feeling, Dangerfield?”

“Like I could sleep for a week.”

“Ah, you’ll get used to it,” said Lilly, smiling. And then she wiped the smile from her face quickly. “That’s if you were staying, of course.”

Holly smiled. She wasn’t sure what she wanted right now. She felt like staying, but she also felt like going home. But for now…for now…she just wanted to sleep.

“I’ll leave you to it then,” said Lilly getting up off the bed.

“Lilly,” said Holly.

“Yep?” she said, turning around.

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For everything. You know, back at the spire.”

Lilly nodded. “It was nothing.”

“Can I ask you another question?”

“Go on,” said Lilly, edging nearer towards the door.

“Whose room was this?”

Lilly froze, her eyes wide, her face like stone. “Nobody’s.”

“But it must have belonged to someone.”

“Why?”

“Because…” She wanted to mention the diary, but daren’t. Not yet. “Because…it must have.”

“It belonged to nobody,” said Lilly. “Now get yourself sorted out. We need to get you home.” And with that she turned and slammed the door behind her.

Holly shook her head. She had come so close to getting to know Lilly. Now all the hard work had been undone again. She reached for the bedside cabinet, opened the drawer, and pulled out the diary.




The End

Doctor Who: Resurrection returns next Saturday with "Aliens Among Us".

Prisons in the Sky (Chapter 8)

Chapter 8 (Down)

Shrall stood beside the railing, his eyes closed, his entire body burning up inside. This was it. This was the moment. The time to get his revenge and the time to avenge his brother.

Charlie had quietly unlocked his cell and allowed him to stroll right out. It had already attracted the attention of a few of the prisoners who stood there, mild curiosity on their faces.

Charlie walked up next to Shrall and put an arm on his bulky shoulder.

“Make sure you get those three woman out, won’t you?” said Shrall.

“I will,” said Charlie. “Are you sure there’s no other way.”

“No other way,” said Shrall. “We’ve been over this. This is the only way to knock this place out.”

Charlie lowered his head.

“You’ve been a good friend, Banks,” said Shrall.

Charlie Banks had been a journalist and had read up about the plight of the brothers and had uncovered the truth, but his editor had blocked his request to print it. Instead Charlie had taken the opportunity to sign up and help Shrall from the inside.

“I won’t forget you.”

“Get away from me now,” said Shrall as he stepped onto the first railing and the second and then the third.

Charlie stepped away and then slowly backed into the darkness.

“See you soon, Corbax.”

And then he let himself fall. At first he seemed to move so slowly, almost as though he was floating through the air. He made sure he didn’t crash into anything on the way down. He didn’t want to blow up halfway down.

He felt the rush of air over his body as he let his arms stretch out to either side. For a moment, he didn’t want to die.

And then Shrall no longer wanted anything.

The impact was massive. He hit the grated, metal floor and exploded into a huge, green ball of flames, engulfing the storage area down below. The entire spike shook, lights flickering and sparks blowing from electric boxes.

The entire spire was plunged into darkness.

“GO!” said Lilly as the gates clicked open.

“Here goes nothing,” said Holly, as there were cries of surprise from the cells around them as other prisoners began to escape, none of them really knowing where to go, but just ambling about in the darkness.

“We need to find Zia!” shouted Holly.




The Doctor and Ziggy had just reached the top of the tube when the spike shook and they lost their grip. The two of them plummeted from the opening and landed with a splash in the waste-ridden water in the tank.

“What the hell was that?!” cried Nao.

The Doctor and Ziggy surfaced as the lights flickered out.

“Oh, crap,” said Ziggy. “What the hell just happened?”

“It sounded like a bomb,” said the Doctor, his voice almost a whisper.

There was another rumble and cracks began to form in the ceiling above them.

“Is this place gonna come down?” said Nao.

“It can’t do,” said the Doctor. “We need to get them out of there.”

“We need to get out of here,” said Nao. “Now.”

“We can’t leave them!” said Ziggy, looking across at his wife. “We’ve come so far. She’s my sister.”

“And you can’t go back up there,” said Nao, pointing towards the ceiling. “This spike may still be safe, but that ceiling’s definitely gonna come down.

“She’s right,” said the Doctor, realising the extent of what he was saying as he stared straight ahead.

“Doctor, your friends...my sister…”

“There’s no way up there, Ziggy,” said the Doctor, turning to him.

“There has to be.”

The Doctor shook his head.

“All this can’t be for nothing,” said Ziggy, his eyes wet.

“We need to get out. Regroup. Then we can work it all out. We’ll find another way.”

“But we don’t know what’s going on up there,” said Ziggy.

“Ziggy, I need you to help me get Nao back into the water.”

“But what about Zia-”

“ZIGGY!” said the Doctor, grabbing him by his arms. “You need to help your wife.”

Ziggy looked shocked and then nodded.

They helped Nao back into the fowl smelling water, none of them saying a word as they swam, with difficulty, through the waste and then dived under the water.




Holly and Lilly found Zia stood by one of the cell doors. She was being pushed and jostled around. A man with long, greasy hair and deep, sunken-in eyes grabbed her by the shoulders and leered at her. She pushed him away but he approached her again.

“Not so tough now you’ve not got guards to watch you, eh?” he growled at her.

She could smell his foul smelling breath and almost retched.

And then there was a thud and the man went stiff, toppling to the ground. Standing there with a metal chair in her hands was Lilly.

“Thanks,” was all Zia could manage.

“Don’t mention it, sweetheart,” said Lilly, shocked at her own strength. “Now we need to get moving. Shrall’s given us this opportunity. We’ve gotta take it now.”

“Yep,” said Zia. “I don’t need to be told twice.”

Holly emerged from the shadows, a look of fear on her face. “You two ready?”

“Uh-huh,” said Lilly. “Let’s go.”

By now the guards had begun piling down onto the various different decks. Lilly, Holly and Zia linked each others hands as they made their way through the rioting prisoners.

“Here it is!” said Lilly, as they approached the steel frame of the lift. The lift was stuck a few decks down. “Give me a hand,” said Lilly, as she managed to get her fingers in-between the two doors.

Slowly the three girls managed to prise open the doors until there was a gap big enough for them to squeeze through.

“You first, Dangerfield,” said Lilly, ushering her friend into the shaft.

Holly looked down at the drop and then back up. It was going to be a tough climb, but they had no choice. She closed her eyes, said a prayer and then reached across, grabbing onto the caged sides, her fingers slotting easily through the square frame.

Then she held on tight and let the rest of her body swing over. She let out a yelp and for a split second she thought she was going to fall…but she didn’t. She hung there, breathing heavily.

“You should be able to get a grip with your feet,” said Lilly.

“Yes,” said Holly, desperately trying to get a foot hold. The squares were just big enough for her to get the tips of her trainers in.

“You in?” said Lilly.

“I’m in,” said Holly.

“Now go!”

Holly began the climb. It was difficult at first, but the further she got, the more she became accustomed to the climb. She looked down and regretted it instantly. Zia was just beginning the climb and was quicker than her. She was gaining on her first.

She saw Lilly scrambling with another prisoner who had tried to grab her, but Lilly leapt across the shaft and the man toppled over the edge, almost taking her down with him.

“You alright?” shouted Holly.

“Get moving!” yelled Lilly.

Holly nodded and continued the climb. She’d never been scared of heights before, but she was starting to reconsider that now.




The journey from the waste area back into the sea was fairly uneventful. This time, instead of swimming under the water, the Doctor, Ziggy and Nao instead decided to stay above water, taking their chances that the shark-like creature would likely be deeper down and that the guards would be too distracted with events back at the spire.

They were approaching the bottom of the cliff face when the Doctor turned around. He frowned at first and then a look of horror appeared on his face.

“What is it?” said Ziggy, as he helped Nao along.

“Look at the spire,” said the Doctor.

Ziggy squinted in the dark. Part of the spire was on fire just above where they had been, the flames flickering out of a large hole in the side. “It’s on fire.”

“Yes,” said the Doctor, “and I’m very much afraid that the explosion did more damage than I first thought. The explosion shouldn’t have done much damage, but if there was something else down there…”




In the bowls of the spire, around Shrall’s flaming body, there was an oil drum that had spilled over. Flames had engulfed the trail of oil from the drum to the edge of the wall and a fire had broken out, spreading up part of the wall and spilling out of the hole.

But just nearby to the spilt drum was another eight drums.

And the flames were licking ever closer…

To be concluded...

Prisons in the Sky (Chapter 7)

Chapter 7 (Waste Not, Want Not)

Holly and Lilly were both awoken by the lights shining out across the sea. Lilly raced out of her bed and clambered onto Holly’s so they could both look out of the window. The dark shapes of the patrol cars were zooming out from the top of the spike and towards the shadowy cliffs in the distance. The lights from the spike were shining down on the beach area and they could just make out a figure.

“Do you think it’s the Doctor?” said Holly, hopefully.

“I hope not,” said Lilly.

“What? Why not?” Holly couldn’t understand why Lilly wouldn’t want to be rescued.

Lilly stared at Holly and then thwacked her on her arm. “Because what are we gonna do if Shrall blows this place and the Doctor’s inside.”

“Oh my god,” said Holly, putting a hand to her mouth.

By now there was an excited commotion outside. Prisoners were cheering and the guards were barking orders for them to keep order and go back to sleep.

“What do we do?” said Holly, desperately looking around her as if expecting an answer to appear through the wall.

“There’s nothing we can do. We need to get to Shrall though.”

There was a tap on the cells bars. Standing there was Charlie Banks, his face turned away from them.

“Charlie!” said Holly, running up to the cell door. “You need to stop Shrall. My friends out there. He’s gonna come and rescue us.”

“I don’t know about your friend,” said Charlie, “but the reports are coming in about a metal man on the beach.”

“Oh,” said Holly. “Okay.”

“And I can’t stop Shrall now,” said Charlie. “He’s set to go off in an hour.”

“Oh god,” said Holly. “This is not happening to us.”

“Cool it, Dangerfield,” said Lilly. “What’s this metal man doing then?”

Charlie turned to face them. “He’s just walking up and down the beach firing off obscenities and a big gun. They’re likely going to destroy him.”

Lilly went back to the window to look out. “Then I just hope the Doctor’s not out there.”




The Doctor, Ziggy and Nao had reached an overhang in the cliff where it was impossible to abseil any further down.

“We’re gonna have to lower ourselves down from here,” said Ziggy.

The Doctor craned his neck to look down. It looked to be a 50 foot drop, but slowly and surely they lowered themselves down.

“The sea is likely to be cold,” said the Doctor as they hit the surface and then jumped the rest of the way in.

Nao gasped, her eyes wide. “No kidding!”

“We’ll be fine,” said Ziggy. “These suits have special layered material in them.”

“Nice of you to offer me one,” said the Doctor, his teeth chattering.

“We need to swim,” said Ziggy. “Come on.”

“Lead the way,” said the Doctor.

The swim wasn’t as bad as the Doctor had first feared. Although they were cold, the swim helped to warm them up. Slowly they approached the looming, towering spire. It’s beam of light still illuminating the beach.

The Doctor looked back. The patrol cars were on the beach and T23 was still trying to evade them. He had taken up a stance by some rocks and was firing at the beach. None of the shots hit the guards - that was done on purpose - but it was still proving to be an excellent distraction.

“We need to go under now,” said Nao as she gazed up at the spire.

“This better work,” said the Doctor as the three of them took a huge breath and then dived under the water.

It was murky and dark and the Doctor could barely see where he was going. Ziggy produced a flashlight and it illuminated the surrounding water just enough.

And then the light struck something. It was moving quickly, but it was a large, dark shape. Whatever it was had just swum past them.

The Doctor span around in the water, trying to get a glimpse of it and Ziggy shone the flashlight around frantically. There it was again.

The Doctor grabbed Ziggy’s arm and then prodded his finger towards the surface.

Ziggy nodded and the indicated for Nao to swim up as well.

They headed for the surface broke through, all three of them letting out huge gasps, coughing and spluttering in the cold water.

“What the hell was it?” said Ziggy.

“No idea,” said the Doctor, “but we can assume that it’s there to protect the spire from people like us.”

Nao closed her eyes and let out a frustrated growl. “We can’t turn back now.”

“No. Definitely not,” said Ziggy. “Zia’s up there and we need to get her out of there.”

“This creature - if it is a creature - could kill us,” said the Doctor.

“It hasn’t attacked us yet,” said Nao.

The Doctor had to agree. So far they’d be in the water for five minutes and all the creature had done was swim past them a couple of times. Maybe it was just a random, harmless sea-creature.

“We need to go on, Doctor. Unless you have any other suggestions?”

The Doctor shook his head. He was out of ideas. They needed to get into the spire and this was the only way.

Agreeing to continue on the three of them dived under again and continued to swim for the base of the spire.

So far everything had remained fairly quiet and there had been no sign of the dark shape. Eventually the large, looming bowls of the spire came into view through the murky water.

The Doctor looked at his two companions. Nao was struggling to hold onto her breath and Ziggy was concentrating. He had always been better at this so he swam ahead as quickly as he could. His pulled his sonic screwdriver out of his trouser pocket and aimed it at a panel which was about 2 meters wide and 1 metre high. There was a clicking sound and the panel slid open.

The Doctor turned around to signal his success to Ziggy and Nao - and they were no where in sight.

He span around frantically, trying to see any sign of them. Even he was starting to find it difficult to hold onto his breath now.

And then, like a freight train emerging from a darkened tunnel, he saw the sea creature emerge. He was momentarily taken aback. There was a flashlight attached to it’s head. No - it wasn’t attached. It was Ziggy who was holding on to the large unicorn-horn-like spike that stuck up from the top of it’s head. Ziggy had a hold of it with his right hand and the flashlight in his left.

The creature was about 5 metres long, quite sleek-looking with four large, barbed fins either side of it’s body. It’s tail had two flippers and flicked about wildly as it tried to shake Ziggy off itself. Its head was terrifying. As well as the horn it had three, beady-dark eyes and a huge mouth that was almost the length of its entire head with rows and rows of jagged teeth.

What was in its mouth horrified the Doctor. It’s jagged teeth were clamped around Nao’s right leg. The rest of her body was flailing about wildly as she tried to break free. She was clearly in agony and a steady stream of blood flowed from the wound on her leg, turning the sea around her a cloudy-red colour.

The Doctor pulled his jacket off as the creature zoomed towards him. Then, like a matador at a bull fight, he flung the coat over head of the creature. It was momentarily confused and released Nao.

Ziggy pushed himself off the creature and floated towards the Doctor, who had grabbed Nao and was hurriedly swimming with her towards the open waste hatch.

Ziggy followed suit, constantly looking to his side.

And then it came again.

Out of the darkness the creature aimed its head at Ziggy. The coat was ripped and part of it was in its mouth. Ziggy drew his arm back and, as easily as he could in the deep water, swung the flashlight at the creatures head.

There was a dull, watery crack and everything went dark.

Ziggy swam as fast as he could. He couldn’t see anything, but he hoped he was heading in the right direction.

He banged his head on something and then felt himself being hauled out of the water and then deposited on a hard, metal surface.

Ziggy let out his breath and breathed long and hard, his eyes remaining closed. He could smell the most undesirable smell he had ever had the misfortune to smell and tried not to think about it as he sat up, coughed out some water and then almost retched.

“Not nice, is it?” came the Doctor voice.

Ziggy opened his eyes. They were sat on a metal ledge that ran the circumference of the base of the spire. It disappeared into the darkness. The water they had come out of was full to brim of all manner of things he didn’t want to think about. Up above was a large tube, which presumably dumped the waste.

Nao was sat with her back up against the wall breathing deeply. The Doctor had ripped his shirt arm and had bandaged up her wound.

“Is she gonna-”

“She’s gonna be fine,” said the Doctor, “but she can’t come up there with us.”

“What?”

“She needs to stay here,” said the Doctor. “She’ll be quite safe.”

“That thing-”

“That thing isn’t going to come in here. And even if it did, she’s out of the water.”

“I’ll be fine,” said Nao, out of breath. “I’ll be just fine. You need to go and find Zia and come back down.”

“And then we all get out of here,” said the Doctor. “And I can find myself some new clothes!”

“I don’t like this.”

“I haven’t liked any of this, Ziggy my old friend, but we have no choice. Zia, Holly and Lilly are counting on us.”




“I hope Shrall knows what he’s doing,” said Holly. “We’re counting on him.”

“BANKS!” came the deep, booming voice of Shrall from around the other side of the cell block.

Charlie blew air out of his cheeks and closed his eyes.

“He’s ready, isn’t he?” said Lilly.

“Yep,” said Charlie. He turned to Lilly and Holly. “When Shrall blows it’ll knock out the electrical systems. The gates will automatically open.”

“And then what?” said Holly, we just curl into a ball while this place falls down around us.

“No,” said Charlie. “You head to the lift shaft. The lift won’t be working, but you can climb through the released service hatch at the top.”

“Climb the lift shaft?!” exclaimed Holly.

“Climb the lift shaft,” said Charlie.

“And then?”

“The lift will take you right to the command deck.”

“Where the guards will be to kill us escaping,” said Holly.

“No,” continued Charlie. “The guards won’t be able to use the lifts, so they’ll be coming down the stair wells. Although I can’t promise that they won’t have put a guard or two up there.”

“BANKS!” shouted Shrall again.

“Once you’re on the command deck head for emergency exit 5. There’s a ladder that leads all the way down the spire to about 20 feet from the surface of the water. Then you’ll have to jump.”

“Jesus,” said Holly.

“Woman-up, Dangerfield,” said Lilly.

“But this place is going to blow! It’s going to collapse.” said Holly.

“It’s not going to collapse,” said Charlie. There will be structural damage, but that’s it.”

“It sounds too risky,” said Holly, biting her fingernail.

“Better to take a risk than spend the rest of our sentence in here.”

Charlie nodded.

“What about you?” said Holly.

“I’ll be fine. I’ll mingle with the guards. They’ll never suspect me.”

“You’re a good man, you know?” said Holly.

“Thanks,” smiled Charlie.

Lilly reached her hands through the bars and grabbed at Charlie’s uniform, pulling him close to her. She planted a huge kiss on his lips.

Holly stood and watched, her mouth open in surprise.

And then Lilly released him. Charlie just looked straight at Lilly, confused.

“Good luck, soldier,” said Lilly.

“Thanks,” said Charlie, still in shock, as he made his way back towards Shrall’s cell.

“Well that was a bolt from the blue,” said Holly, her arms crossed.

“It was more for him than me,” said Lilly with a smile. “He’s a brave guy. Now he’ll be even braver.”




The Doctor and Ziggy had managed to climb the 10 foot wall of the waste tank area and had reached the ceiling. It was trick as it sloped upwards to the tube that was about 4 metres in diameter. Using one of the suction cups that Ziggy had packed they managed to fire the climbing wire across to the edge of the funnel and pull themselves across, their legs dangling over the edge.

Ziggy looked down at Nao who gave them a little wave. She looked ill, but still with it. He smiled back at her.

The Doctor grabbed a hold of the inside of the tube and aimed his sonic screwdriver up at a hatch a metre in. It opened with a satisfying click and then Doctor turned to look at Ziggy.

“You ready for this?”

“Ready than I’ll ever be,” said Ziggy, nodding.

“Good.”

“What do we do when we get up there?” said Ziggy.

The Doctor shook his head. “I really don’t know, but let’s hope the girls don’t have any other plans to escape.”

To be continued...

Prisons in the Sky (Chapter 6)

Chapter 6 (Fight Them on the Beaches)

News Report

Location: Tenta-Tenta-Flix

Date: 23.7.5151




Reports are coming in of a major terrorist attack on Tenta-Tenta-Flix’s capital city. Witnesses reported hearing a loud explosion in the vicinity of the government building causing collateral damage to nearby office blocks. Reports are also coming in that the building has now collapsed.

It is believed that the terrorist responsible has been apprehended. He appears to be local man Shrall Norathin. He has no known criminal record, but it is believed that he was visiting the building with his brother, and he and his brother planet a bomb. The location of his brother, Corbax Norathin, is unknown, but it is believed that he may have died in the explosion.

More news as we get it.




Night had fallen again and Lilly, Holly and Zia were sat in the girls cell. Zia was platting Lilly’s hair and Holly was picking at the bed sheets. She groaned and sat up on the bed, gazing at the setting sun through the window.

“I’ll do yours in a minute,” said Zia.

“Nah, it’s alright,” said Holly.

“Seriously? Wearing it like this is all the rage at the minute.”

“If you’re 12 where I come from then maybe it is.”

“Now who’s being grumpy?” said Lilly.

“I don’t like this plan,” said Holly, shaking her head. “It’s too dangerous. We don’t know what might go wrong.”

“Have a little faith,” said Lilly.

“Yeah,” said Zia.

“But it just seems so…wrong. Poor Shrall.”

“Poor Shrall? You were berating him for being a terrorist earlier on today,” said Lilly with a laugh.

“I know that,” said Holly, “but that was before I knew the truth.”

Zia hopped off the bed and ran to the cell doors. “Just off to get some more hair bands. Don’t move a muscle.”

Lilly turned and smiled at Holly. “Do you always judge people on first appearances?”

Holly looked surprised. “What? No, of course not.”

“You judged me,” said Lilly.

“I’ve tried to get to know you. So far all I’ve seen is a frosty, bitter young woman with a chip on her shoulder.”

“Yeah,” said Lilly. “I can be that way, but that doesn’t mean that that’s all I’m about.”

“I know that,” said Holly.

“We all put up shells - barriers - to protect ourselves.”

Holly crossed over to Lilly’s bed and sat next to her. “Then why don’t you let me in?”

“Why are you even bothered, Dangerfield?” said Lilly.

“Because…because…I don’t know.”

“Because I’m an enigma. Something for you to examine and pull apart, yeah?”

“No,” said Holly, shaking her head. “Not at all. I just…I have to wonder why you are so closed off to everyone.”

“Not to everyone,” said Lilly. “Not to the Doctor.”

“Tell me.”

“I’m not a very good person,” said Lilly, looking away. “I’ve done some terrible, terrible things. The Doctor has tried to help me, but he can’t. No matter how much he wants me to change - how much I want to change - I won’t change. It’s not in my nature.”

“Everyone can change,” said Holly.

“Not me, sweetheart,” said Lilly. “I’ve got bad blood running through me.”

“Lilly-”

“When we’ve got you home, you’ll be better off. Better off without me. And soon the Doctor will find out he’s better off without me.”

Holly was about to reply when Zia came bounding back in.

“Your turn Holly!”

And Holly thought back to the conversation with Shrall earlier on.




“Morning, Zia,” said Holly.

She winked at Holly. “So,” she said in a hushed voice, “how are we breaking out of this joint?”

“Shrall,” said Lilly, looking at her toad-like friend, “the stage is all yours.”

Shrall leaned forward and looked at each of the three girls. “Do you know what a terrorist is?”

Holly looked at Zia and then back to Shrall. “It’s someone who…terrorises.”

Shrall nodded. “Yes.” He leaned back in his chair and looked straight at Holly. “Do you know what classes me as a terrorist?”

Holly looked at Lilly and then back to Shrall. “Something to do with you blowing up a building.”

Shrall threw his head back, laughing at Holly’s bemused face. “Already she accuses.”

“But the proof is there,” said Zia

“Is it?” said Shrall, suddenly leaning forward again. “Is it really?”

“Shrall has explained it all to me. The injustice of it all,” said Lilly, placing an affectionate hand on Shrall’s large right shoulder.

“Then explain it to us,” said Zia.

“I come from a city called Vita-Zeshta Prime. It has a bad crime record. My brother and I came from a…difficult family. We were criminals, yes, but not terrorists.”

“But you blew up a building,” said Holly again. “You killed thousands.”

“No we didn’t. It was an accident.” Shrall took another swig of water and then cracked his knuckles. “My brother, Corbax, had told me that we were wanted for a robbery in the South West Quadrant. We hadn’t done it, and so we went to the police building to clear our name. Instead they arrested us and tortured us.”

“I’m…sorry,” said Holly.

“Don’t be sorry, young lady. They tortured us for information about all of the members of our family, but we were loyal. We didn’t break down. And then they gave my brother water.”

“What?” said Zia, confused.

“My family have an…intolerance to normal, Earth water. It makes our inside boil. It’s excruciating. They started on Corbax first. They made me watch as they pumped him full of it. Gallons and gallons of water, normal to most species, but deadly to us.”

Holly’s eyes flicked down to the jug of water that Shrall had been drinking from.

“They gave him too much. He began to burnt and blister, the chemicals in his stomach reacting against the water. I knew what was going to happen. Corbax nodded for me to go and I reluctantly broke free as the guards tried to restrain him. I ran and ran and ran.”

Zia and Holly sat there with their mouths wide open. Lilly simply sat, looking sad with her arms folded.

“And then there was an almighty explosion. It ripped through the corridors and tore the place apart, incinerating the poor souls that tried to get away.”

“Corbax exploded…” said Zia, running it over in her mind.

Shrall took another gulp of water, his top lip twitching.

“So there wasn’t a bomb?” said Holly.

“There was never a bomb,” said Lilly. “Corbax blew up and Shrall was arrested.”

“I tried to tell them. I tried to explain, but they had me. They had to blame someone and so I took the fall for it. I became their terrorist.”

Holly looked worried. “But you’re drinking water now. Why are they letting you? They must know what it’s doing.”

Shrall laughed. “They think it’s Water X - a distilled version without the chemical.”

“Oh, thank god for that,” said Holly breathing a sigh of relief.

“It’s not though,” said Shrall. “It really is water.”

“WHAT!” said Holly and Zia in unison.

“You see that guard over there?” said Shrall, pointing towards Charlie Banks. Charlie nodded back at them from his position by the elevator. “He’s my friend. He knows the truth. He’s been helping me. He’s been giving me this water because he knows what it will do to me.”

“An inside man,” said Lilly. “You see, Shrall’s been drinking the water very, very slowly.”

“You must be in agony,” said Holly.

“I am. I hide it well.” Shrall managed a smile.

“But why? Why are you doing it?”

“Because when I hit the right amount of chemical inside me, I’m going to throw myself to the bottom of the spire and blow myself up. It’ll cause such an explosion that it will cause a massive power cut.”

“And that’s when we break out” said Holly

“Yes.” He looked back at Banks and then back at the girls. “The cells are locked at night, but the massive power loss will cause them to open up. Built by idiots and run by idiots, you see. I’m never getting out of here alive, but I know you three our innocent. I originally did this for Zia. To find another way to bring justice to this part of the galaxy.”

Zia smiled sadly at him.

“Just be ready. Charlie will help you.”




The Doctor, Ziggy and Nao were back on their fronts on the cliff edge. The Doctor had a pair of binoculars to his eyes and Ziggy was busy checking his watch.

“Any sign of him yet?” said Nao, trying to peer into the darkness.

“No, not yet,” said the Doctor. “Wait a minute…yes!”

Down on the beach, glinting in the moonlight, the silver-coloured T23 appeared. He was walking slowly so as not to trigger the alarms too soon. T23 turned to look up at the trio’s position and gave them a wave.

The Doctor felt sad. Although he was just an android, T23 had wishes and desires too, and the Doctor felt sorry that he was just going to sacrifice those wishes and desires. He had agreed to do it gladly, but it still didn’t feel right. Ziggy had said they would be able to save him, but he doubted it himself.

“We’ve gotta move now,” said Ziggy, as the three of them backed off from the cliff edge.

When they were sure they were away from the sensors they began a sprint around the cliff, careful to stay away from the edge, until they reached a point were the sea met the cliff wall.

“How can we be sure that we won’t just smash our heads onto rocks down there?” said the Doctor, peering over the long drop.

“We don’t,” said Nao, dropping her backpack and pulling out clips and a rope. “That’s why we’re not jumping. We’re gonna abseil down.”

“Well thank goodness for that!” said the Doctor with a sigh of relief.

Back along the beach, T23 stood gazing out at the dark spire in the distance. Then, after checking his internal chronometer, he threw his head back and let out a high, metallic howl. Then he pulled out what appeared to be some sort of sonic canon and began firing down at the beach. Invisible pulses of energy hit the sand, causing it to fly up and create craters in the beach. T23 continued to do this for a few minutes, constantly screaming and shouting.

Back at the cliff edge Nao and Ziggy had just finished fixing the line-clip. They knew they only had a small window.

And then a bright beam of light shone out from the top of the spike, illuminating T23 down on the beach, lighting him up like a beacon.

“We need to move now!” said the Doctor as the sound of engines came from the vicinity of the spike.

To be continued...

Prisons in the Sky (Chapter 5)

Chapter 5 (All That Glitters...)

Charlie Banks was cold and fed up. Him and the rest of his team had spent the last few hours combing the area around the beach, cliffs and scrubland up above, but apart from a few random rocks and slabs they hadn’t found any sign of the Time Lord.

He glanced back towards the spikes. He couldn’t see them. It was too dark. All over the planet were identical spikes. It depressed him doing this job and he longed for the moment he could get out of it. He’d seen plenty of innocents locked away in his relatively short time here and he’d seen plenty of innocents get killed.

He saw himself as a decent enough man, but was scared about what was to come. He sighed and turned back to the commander of the group.

“Anything, Banks?” asked the gruff commander, wiping rain out of his face.

“I can’t see a single thing, sir,” said Banks.

“Well keep looking.”

“Yes, sir,” said Charlie.

He turned and almost tripped over a slab on the ground. He frowned, checked no one else was looking and then knelt down over it. He placed his hands either side and gently slipped it to the side. Underneath was a dark hole which led into the ground. He stroked his chin.

“Banks!” came the commander.

Charlie quickly slipped the slab back over the hole and then got up and ran over to his commander.

“Well?” said the commander. “Anything?”

Charlie looked back at the slab and then back to his commander. “No, sir. Nothing at all.”




Holly was surprised that she managed to actually get a good nights sleep in. It wasn’t comfortable by any means, but it was mostly undisturbed. She woke up just before the sun rose. She wasn’t sure what time it was, but she felt reenergised. She got up and stood beside the window, gazing out at the sun as it began to rise over the cliffs.

The weather actually looked pretty nice, and if she hadn’t been locked up in a scary-arse prison, then she may have actually thought the sunrise looked beautiful.

She looked to Lilly who was still fast asleep with her face turned away. Well, she assumed she was still fast asleep.

There came a gentle rapping of knuckles on the bars of the cell door. Holly looked up. Standing there was the guard who had brought them in.

“Yes?” said Holly.

He was holding two bundles in his arms. He grabbed the door and quietly slid it open. “Your clean clothes.”

It hadn’t occurred to Holly that they’d need to get out of their regular clothes and into something else. It had, after all, only been a day. She smiled weakly at the guard and took them from him.

“These will last you a week, miss,” he said.

He seemed friendly. He looked like he didn’t belong here.

“Thanks.”

“There’s a weeks worth of clean underwear in there as well,” he said slightly embarrassed. “At the end of the week put your dirty clothes in the bag and it’ll get washed up. You’ll be provided with clean ones at the start of next week.”

“Thank you,” said Holly again. “What’s your name?”

“That’s not relevant, miss,” said the guard, turning to go.

“Please,” said Holly, grabbing the bars of the cell door gently. “If I’m gonna be here for a while I might as well get to know you by your name.”

The guard stopped, smiled and turned to face her. “It’s Charlie. Charlie Banks.”

“Nice to meet you, Charlie,” said Holly, “considering the circumstances,” she added quickly.

Charlie nodded and then turned to leave.

“Stop flirting with the guards,” said Lilly, her voice muffled by the covers.

“I’m not flirting,” said Holly. “You stop pretending to be asleep.”

“I’ve been awake for a good few hours, Dangerfield,” she said, turning over and arching her eyebrows. “You talk in your sleep, you know.”

“I do not,” said Holly, flinging Lilly’s bundle of clothes over onto her bed.

“Oh, joy,” said Lilly as she pulled out the prison garb - blue with black crosses scattered all over it.

“Matching underwear too,” groaned Holly, looking at her own collection.

Charlie Banks rapped his knuckles on the bars again. “Get yourselves dressed, ladies, and then I’ll take you down for breakfast.”

“Thanks, Charlie,” said Lilly sweetly.




The breakfast area was halfway down the spike and was a communal area that ran around the perimeter of the inside of the spike. The same deep shaft ran through the centre and the lift took groups of prisoners down a section at a time.

Lilly spotted Shrall sat at a table delicately putting some form of porridge into his mouth and she nodded at him.

Shrall nodded back and then took a huge gulp of water from his glass at the table.

Charlie guided Holly and Lilly over to the serving hatch were a wicked looking woman with grey hair and a pointed nose slopped the porridge into their bowls.

“More joy,” said Lilly as they headed towards Shrall’s table.

“Why with him?” hissed Holly, quiet enough for Shrall not to hear.

“He’s alright,” said Lilly. “Plus he’s on his own.”

“Poor guy,” said Holly sarcastically.

“You’re okay with us sitting here, aren’t you, Shrall?”

Shrall nodded but remained silent, indicating for the ladies to sit down.

The three of them sat there in silence for what seemed like an eternity until Holly broke the silence. “So…you’re a terrorist, yeah?”

Shrall simply stared at her whilst Lilly closed her eyes in disbelief.

“I’m sorry,” said Holly quickly.

“No need to apologise,” said Shrall. He looked at Charlie and clicked his fingers. “You, guard. More water.”

“I beg your pardon?” said Charlie, his arms folded.

“More water.”

“I’m not your slave,” said Charlie, turning his face away.

“MORE. WATER. NOW!”

Holly watched in wide-eyed terror as Charlie growled to himself and then returned to the table with another jug of water.

“Thanks, friend,” said Shrall.

Silence again.

The silence was broken when Zia came clattering over with her bowl and glass of water. She took a big gulp, wolfed the porridge down and then leaned in close to the other three.

“Morning Zia,” said Holly.

She winked at Holly. “So,” she said in a hushed voice, “how are we breaking out of this joint?”




The Doctor was dreaming.

He didn’t often dream, but when he did the dreams usually meant something.

In this particular dream he was floating over a mountain range. There was a castle far down below and the sun was high in the sky.

He passed through a cloud and when he emerged through the other side he was in the space/time vortex. He could see the TARDIS spinning away from him and he desperately tried his best to reach it.

And then he saw a figure floating through the vortex. He couldn’t quite make out who it was or whether it was even male or female.

“Hello?” he called out.

“Hello,” came a disembodied voice. “And good morning.”

“What?” said the Doctor.

His eyes flicked open. He was staring up at the rocky ceiling of the cavern they had based themselves in. Ziggy was knelt over a bowl of warm water, his shirt off and washing himself.

“I said good morning,” said Ziggy.

Nao walked in, stopped and frowned at the Doctor and then sat down on a rock. “There’s hot tea in the pot.”

“Thanks,” said the Doctor, sitting himself up and pulling his shoes on.

“Home made bread as well,” said Ziggy, nodding his approval at Nao.

“Yeah,” said Nao, taking a bite into the soft white bread. “Ziggy only married me for my bread.”

“Ha-ha,” said Ziggy, throwing the wet cloth at his wife.

“Steady,” said Nao, laughing back at him.

The Doctor smiled at their antics. Even on a barren, horrible world like this, and in such a dire situation, he was pleased to see the Human spirit filter through still.

“So,” said the Doctor, putting on his grey jacket and clapping his hands together, “we better get started on this plan.”

“Way ahead of you, chief,” said Ziggy, putting his shirt back on and getting into his combats. “We’ve already got our plan worked out.”

“I beg your pardon?” frowned the Doctor.

“We’ve been up hours,” said Nao. “Sleep is for the dead.”

“Nice,” said the Doctor as he grabbed himself a hot tea and warm bread. “So what’s this great plan then?”

“Well,” said Nao, pulling out a piece of A4 paper with some hastily scribbled line drawings on. There was a picture of the spire, the sea and mountains in the distance. “Our main objective is to get into the spike.”

“Obviously,” said the Doctor, arms folded and doubt in his voice.

“The only entrance is at the top of the spire where the prisoners are transported in.”

“So we can’t go that way,” said the Doctor.

“No,” said Ziggy, sitting down next to his wife, “but the spire goes all the way down to the sea bed and around ten foot underneath the surface of the water is the waste disposal shoots.”

“I see,” said the Doctor. “And you think we can swim down and through the hatch?”

“Exactly,” said Nao.

The Doctor held up a finger. “A number of problems.”

“Go on,” said Ziggy, his arms now folded, ready for the Doctor to shoot their plan down in flames.

“Firstly we need to get across the beach and under the water, into the sea and over to the hatch in the spike without getting caught.”

“Already thought of that one,” said Ziggy. “Next problem?”

“We then need to get the hatch open and swim up through gallons of waste.”

Nao wrinkled her nose. “Yeah, gotta admit I’m not looking forward to that.”

“So tell me your solutions.”

“Unfortunately it requires us causing a distraction.” Ziggy turned towards the cavern exit. “Could you come in here please, T23?”

The Doctor had almost forgotten about the android as he ambled in politely and then stood before Ziggy. “Yes, sir?”

Ziggy nodded towards the robot. “T23 here is going to cause that distraction. We send him up to the beach and he causes one hell of a commotion. In the meantime we leg it over to the west of the cliffs, and then drop into the sea and swim for the spikes.”

“Poor T23,” said the Doctor, looking a little sorry for the robot.

“Don’t worry,” said Nao, “we’ll get him out as well.”

“And what makes you think we’ll be able to avoid detection?”

“We don’t,” said Ziggy, “but we have no other choice. We’ve been wandering up here for a while now and so far we’ve not been detected. That leads me to believe that the spike has a low-range detection field. They probably don’t expect anyone to come on vacation here. We should be able to do this.”

“And once we’re there? At the hatch?”

“You use your screwdriver thing,” said Ziggy.

The Doctor put his hand to his pocket and pulled out the screwdriver. “It’s a risky one.”

“But the only thing we can come up with,” said Nao. “Will you help us?”

The Doctor sighed and looked from Ziggy to Nao to T23 and then up at the cavern ceiling. “It seems I have no choice. We have to get Holly, Lilly and Zia out of there.”

To be continued...