Clarence (Chapter 4)

Chapter 4 (Voices)

Gordon walked into the repairs trailer and looked at the long line of clowns that flanked one side of the workshop. They all looked different. Some had white faces, some had black faces, some had blue faces. Some had green hair or red hair or yellow hair. Some had big noses and some no nose at all. But one thing was the same amongst them all - the smile. The smile was the same on each of the clowns.

Gordon ran his hand through his thinning blonde hair and then zipped up the front of his brown overalls. He walked up to the nearest clown - a white-faced, red-haired one and opened it’s green and black stripy waistcoat. Underneath was a metal panel. Gordon took a screwdriver out of his breast pocket and unscrewed the panel. Inside was a mesh of wires and circuits and Gordon began prodding his screwdriver inside.

“What are you doing?” came a jovial voice.

Gordon jumped and turned around. Standing there was a tall, thin clown with a bald, domed head and wearing a black and white zig-zigged suit.

“Henry,” said Gordon, “you made me jump, mate.” Gordon frowned. “I didn’t even realise you were missing.”

“I was helping Uncle Joe coordinate the search grid for Clarence,” said the clown in the happiest voice you could imagine.

“Any luck yet?” said Gordon.

“Unfortunately not,” said Henry as he walked into the trailer. He walked right up to Gordon and Gordon looked back at his glassy, dark eyes. “But we will find our brother eventually and put a stop to his dangerous games.”

“They’re hardly games,” said Gordon as he put the panel back onto the clowns chest.

“No they most certainly are not,” said Henry.

Gordon fastened up the clowns waistcoat and then put the screwdriver into his pocket.

“Do you know there are visitors to the circus?” said Henry, standing next to the clown and getting in line.

“Couple of girls,” said Gordon, picking up a toolbox.

“They are off-worlders,” said Henry.

“So are we,” said Gordon.

“They are here to investigate us,” said Henry.

“Oh, I’m sure they’re just-”

“They are here to close us down,” said Henry. “Uncle Joe is not happy.”

Gordon didn’t reply, he just looked at the clown. Although Henry sounded jovial, he also seemed terrifying at the same time.

“What is Uncle Joe going to do?” asked Gordon, a trace of worry in his voice.

“He hasn’t decided yet,” said Henry, “but when he does make his decision I hope you will all cooperate.”

“Oh, of course,” said Gordon quickly.

“Good,” said Henry, dragging out the word as if he was telling a dog that he had been a good boy.

Gordon smiled nervously and then stepped backwards and out of the trailer, shutting the door behind him.

He glanced across at Carlotta’s caravan. He could hear the woman talking to the two strangers.

They hadn’t had a show for a while now. They wouldn’t have another show until they travelled to the next planet, but they couldn’t do that without Clarence. They needed to find him before he ruined everything.

But secretly Gordon hoped that he did ruin everything.




Owen was momentarily blinded as the lights flickered on. When his eyes adjusted he realised they were standing in an octagonal control room. A seat was stationed in the centre with other seats situated at each side of the octagon. Each edge had a computer console and the room was covered in a thick layer of dust.

The Doctor ran over to the central seat and blew as hard as he could. The dust billowed up and he coughed, wafting it away with his hand. “Centuries of dead skin,” said the Doctor. “Lovely.”

“This is the command deck?” said Owen, his eyes wide.

“Indeed it is,” said the Doctor, sitting down in the chair and looking around him. “Built to be functional, but with a hint of comfort.” He span the chair around and looked at each console. “The captain would have sat in this chair and his officers at each bank. Each one with their own duty.”

“It sounds like you’re quite an expert on colony ships,” said Owen, blowing dust off from one of the consoles.

“There have been many designs,” said the Doctor, spinning faster and faster on the chair.

“You’ll make yourself sick,” said Owen.

The Doctor stopped the chair with his feet, made a groaning sound, and said, “Oh, I feel a bit giddy.”

“So what are we looking for?” said Owen, gazing up at the domed ceiling.

“We need to get the computers running. I need to use them to do a bit of research.”

“Into the circus?”

“Into the circus,” said the Doctor, getting up off the chair and making an unsteady, wobbling walk to a console. He crouched down, whipped out his screwdriver and undid a panel at the base of the console. He then partially crawled inside and began examining the wiring.

Owen sat down on the floor next to him, his legs crossed. “Do you think we’ll get to the bottom of this?” said Owen.

“Of course we will,” said the Doctor. He peered out from under the console. “You know, I don’t like to give false hope, but there’s every chance that your son is still alive.”

“I doubt it, Doctor,” said Owen. Owen lowered his head. “I just feel so…empty.”

The Doctor got up from under the console and sat opposite Owen. He took his hands and Owen looked up at him. “I know what you’re going through.”

“You lost someone close to you?”

“I’m always losing people close to me,” said the Doctor, “but, yes, just recently I lost someone close to me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It was an accident. A silly, silly accident, but he died as a result. He’s gone forever, but we don’t have any evidence to suggest that your son is gone forever,” said the Doctor, squeezing Owens’s hands tightly. “So hold on to that hope.”

Owen nodded and mouthed, “Thank you,” to the Doctor.

“Now,” said the Doctor, slipping back under the console, activating the sonic screwdriver and then sliding back out from under it as the panel above flickered into life.

The Doctor leapt to his feat and started punching in some of the keys on the panel. A screen just above the panel switched on and showed green text on a black background.

“What was the name of the circus again?” asked the Doctor.

“Uncle Joe’s Circus,” said Owen, joining the Doctor at his side.

“Let’s see what we can see.”

In the shadows in the corridor beyond, dark, glassy eyes watched on with interest. He wondered if he should let them continue to dig for the truth. He wondered if he should let them carry on. He had to make a decision and make it soon.




“So,” said Holly, “you travel from place to place, put on a show, and then leave again.”

“That’s correct,” said Ringo.

“But one of the clowns, Clarence, malfunctioned, yeah?”

“He went crazy,” said Carlotta. “He’s a lost cause.”

“But what caused him to go crazy and start killing people? What broke his programming?” said Lilly. “Something doesn’t quite add up here.”

“That is none of your business,” said Ringo curtly.

“Alright, pal,” said Lilly. “We’re just trying to help some poor family come to terms with losing their son.”

Carlotta closed her eyes and then looked at Ringo. “We have to tell them, Ringo.”

“Absolutely not,” said Ringo.

“Tell us what?” said Lilly.

“Yeah,” added Holly. “Come on. Time to ‘fess up.”

“Not everything about this circus is normal,” said Carlotta, lowering her voice.

“CARLOTTA!” boomed a voice from somewhere outside.

“What the bloody hell was that?” said Lilly as her and Holly leapt up and crossed to the window to look outside.

“I told you,” said Ringo.

“We can’t keep living like this,” hissed Carlotta.

“Living like what?” said Holly.

Carlotta opened her mouth to speak.

“CARLOTTA!!” came the voice again.

“It came from the tent,” said Lilly, looking towards the red and white main circus tent.

“You better leave now,” said Ringo, crossing to the door and opening it.

“No,” said Lilly. “Not until we know the truth.”

“CARLOTTA YOU WILL NOT TELL!” came the booming voice. “YOU WILL OBEY.”

Carlotta looked terrified as she stared ahead of her.

“DO YOU UNDERSTAND?”

“I…understand,” said Carlotta.

“RINGMASTER, REMOVE THEM.”

“I obey,” said Ringo. He crossed to the girls and grabbed both by their arms.

“Leave off,” said Lilly, trying to wriggle free.

“You will leave now,” said Ringo, dragging them towards the door.

“But what about Carlotta,” said Holly, looking back at the frozen form of Carlotta.

“She will be fine. You will leave and not return,” said Ringo. “Leave the hunting of Clarence to us. You need not concern yourself with what is going on here.”

“Get off me!” said Lilly again, trying to break free.

Ringo threw them out of the door and Gordon was stood there, flanked by Henry and six other clowns.

“YOU WILL LEAVE NOW!” said the booming voice again. “IF YOU TRY TO RETURN YOU WILL BE DESTROYED!”

Holly turned to Lilly and grabbed her hand. “Come on, Lils, we need to get out of here.”

“But-”

“We’ll find another way,” said Holly. “We’ll speak to the Doctor. We’ll find a way.”

“DO NOT RETURN!” boomed the voice as Holly and Lilly made for the pathway out of the valley.




“Fascinating,” said the Doctor, looking at the information that had scrolled up onto the screen. “It seems Uncle Joe’s used to travel with the Psychic Circus, but they went their separate ways a long, long time ago.”

The Doctor waited for Owens reply, but it didn’t come.

He turned around and standing there near the door to the corridor was Owen, a white hand clasped around his neck and a strange, cylindrical device pointed at his temple. A flood of colours stepped out of the darkness, and smiled at the Doctor.

“The killer, I presume?”

To be continued...

Clarence (Chapter 3)

Chapter 3 (When Clowns Go Wrong)

Owen was helping Heather do the dishes and tidy up whilst Kat was sat on the floor in front of the fire colouring in a colouring book that the Doctor had taken out of his coat pocket. The Doctor had filled in Holly on what had been happening and the three of them were now huddled together around the dining table talking in hushed voices.

“So what’s the plan of action?” said Holly.

“There’s not much we can do if a psycho clown is going around bumping off people,” said Lilly. “Best just to go back to the TARDIS. At least then there’d be three less people for the clown to get.”

“Lilly,” said Holly, looking disappointed at her. She had mellowed a lot, but there was still that selfish, rude side to her.

“Unless you think we should stay, Dangerfield.”

“Does my opinion matter?” asked Holly.

“Of course it does,” she said quickly, and then smiled.

“Then what do you suggest?”

“That we stay and help these people. We help this town.”

“Good plan,” said Lilly. It was almost as if Lilly didn’t want to risk offending Holly.

“I’m in agreement,” said the Doctor. “We can’t leave these people, but we need to find out more about this clown first.”

“Owen said the circus is still here,” said Lilly. “We should start there.”

“Absolutely,” said the Doctor, “but I have other tasks to perform.”

“What?” frowned Holly. “You’re not coming with us?”

“Absolutely not,” said the Doctor. “I’ve never liked circuses, but that’s not my only reason. There’s something else I want to check out.”

“Which is?” asked Lilly, looking frustrated with the Doctor.

“I want to go and check out the colony ship that brought these people here.”

“But that was centuries ago,” said Lilly.

“Yes, but you can’t just hide a giant spaceship. I just want to make sure all the I’s are dotted and the T’s crossed.”

Lilly sighed. “Okay, Doc, but we need to make sure we meet up here before nightfall.”

“Naturally,” said the Doctor. “I’m not in the mood for facing up to a killer clown!”

Owen bustled over and sat down at the table. “What have you three been talking about so quietly?”

“We’ve decided to help you,” said the Doctor.

“No offence, Doctor, but you are just three people. What difference can you make?”

The Doctor smiled. “We have some experience in these types of things.”

“Where’s the circus camped out at?” said Holly.

“On the outskirts of town, near the hills,” replied Owen.

“Good,” said the Doctor. He turned back to Owen. “Now, Mr Benson, I’m going to need your help in locating a bit of an old relic of yours.”




Holly and Lilly had been guided to the edge of the town by Heather with Kat in tow. The town was virtually identical throughout. They passed the market place but there didn’t seem to be much bustle of activity, just a few people here and there quickly making their purchases and then rushing back to their houses.

Although it was the day time, these people seemed to be constantly gripped by fear of the clown.

“Are you going to be okay getting back by yourselves?” said Holly, concerned for the mother and child.

“He never comes out during the day,” said Heather. “People are still scared, but he keeps to the night and the shadows.”

They reached an expanse of fields behind the last set of houses. “If you cross the field for about ten minutes and then follow the curve of the dirt track around that large hill,” she said, pointing into the distance, “you’ll find the circus camp.”

“Thank you,” said Holly, taking the woman’s hand affectionately. “Take care of yourselves.”

“And you two be careful,” said Heather, turning to leave.

“Say thanks, Lilly.”

“Thanks,” said Lilly obediently.

Kat turned to look back at Holly and gave her a wave. Holly replied with her own wave. “Get that next tea party ready, Kat.”

“You’re good with kids,” said Lilly as they began their journey across the field.

“Growing up with Agatha I suppose,” said Holly, smiling at the memory. “I like to think I was a good big sister to her.”

“I didn’t really get to see much of her,” said Lilly, thinking back to when she and Holly first met. “I’m sorry I punched Roxy,” she said quickly.

“Don’t worry,” said Holly, laughing, “I’m not going to bring it up every time we talk about how we first met.”

“Sometimes I think before I act.”

“Shouldn’t that be the other way round?”

“If I hadn’t thought about how to get into A&E, Roxanne wouldn’t have ended up with a bloodied nose.”

Holly laughed. “Makes some kind of sense I suppose.”

“I hate fields.”

“You hate fields?” said Holly, a puzzled look on her face.

“Yeah. The Doctor took me and Caleb to this planet once which was just made of black and white fields. There were loads of other people there as well just standing in each field, not moving or doing anything.”

“Sounds a bit weird.”

“Yeah,” said Lilly, nodding. “Turns out they were life-sized chess pieces and the fields were giant chessboards being controlled by a demigod.”

Holly looked at Lilly. “Okay…”

“We managed to get out of there in one piece though. Put Caleb off chess for life…” she trailed off.

Holly looked at her sadly.

“Don’t look at me like that, Dangerfield,” said Lilly, marching on ahead of her.

“I’m sorry,” said Holly, quietly.

They rounded the large hill which led through a short valley before finally coming to a clearing surrounded by trees. A huge white and red tent was set up in the centre with caravans dotted around it. There wasn’t much movement, but the girls could hear shouting coming from somewhere near the big tent.

They looked at each other nervously and then made their way down to the encampment.




Owen had taken the Doctor to the west of the town where they too had been greeted by fields and hills, but soon the hills turned into rocks and the rocks soon became small mountains.

“A Gallifreyan went up a hill and came down a mountain,” he chuckled to himself. “You alright, Owen?”

The tired-looking Owen nodded wearily. “Yeah, just not used to being in the mountains these days. I used to play up here as a boy until my friend fell and broke his neck. We never came back.”

“I’m sorry,” said the Doctor. “You can go back if you like.”

“No,” said Owen, wearily, “if this helps us find this psychopath then I’m happy to come with you.”

“Good man,” said the Doctor, clambering up onto a rocky ledge.

“I still don’t know what going to the old colony ship will do to help us though.”

“Well, I’m not sure myself,” said the Doctor, “but I like to make sure I’ve covered all possibilities.”

“Nobody has come out here for years though. The records say that the ships were stripped of everything when the foundations for the town were lain.”

“You never know though,” said the Doctor, as they made their way down a very narrow passage between the base of the mountains. “Old clowny-boy may be using it as his secret lair.”

Eventually the passage widened out until it reached a large, canyon with a ledge running all around the edge. A small, steep track led down the side of the canyon and sat in the middle of the canyon was an old ship. It was of an ugly design. Long and box like. The underbelly had a ramp that led down to the ground, but the doors to the interior at the top of the ramp were sealed up.

“Wow,” said Owen, gazing at the ships.

“Don’t tell me it’s the first time you’ve seen them,” said the Doctor, one hand on his hip and the other shielding his eyes from the mid-day sun.

“Never had any reason to come up this way,” said Owen. “We were always told not to come too far towards the canyon as it was dangerous.”

“Never listen to what people tell you to do, Owen,” said the Doctor. “If I had I’d have never have left my home and come all the way out here.”

They made their way down the steep pathway until they reached the bottom, the sun now being obscured by the large ship.

“I wonder how the girls are getting on,” said Owen, as he gazed up at the underside of the ship.

“I’m sure they’ll be fine,” said the Doctor. “Lilly knows how to handle herself.”

The Doctor climbed the gentle incline of the ramp and took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket. He aimed it at a control panel, pressed down and the door clunked. The Doctor grinned at Owen and then pocketed the device again.

“How did you do that?” said Owen as the double doors slide open.

“Magic,” said the Doctor as he made his way into the darkened interior.

The inside was in absolute darkness and the Doctor found himself walking more slowly than usual so as not to accidentally trip up over anything. Their footsteps echoed in the darkness. The air smelt stale, which was understandable as the place had been empty and sealed up for centuries.

“Can you get the power on?” said Owen, keeping close by to the Doctor.

“Hopefully,” he replied, taking a torch from his pocket and shining the beam around.

It lit up their surroundings quite well. A rail led up either side of the ramp until it levelled off into the interior. They were standing in a large cargo hold with a set of steps leading off to the left. There were empty packing cases dotted here and there, but apart form that - nothing else.

“Do we go up?” said Owen, stepping into the beam of light and looking up the steps.

“We can’t go back down…yet,” said the Doctor as they both climbed the steps to the next level.




The woman with the olive skin and curly dark hair burst out of the caravan door, turned around and shouted something back into the interior, and then slammed the door, walking across the grass towards a smaller caravan.

“Wait,” said a man as the door burst open again. The man was dressed in a blue jacket, white trousers and a white shirt. He had a full beard and dark, green eyes with his dark hair swept back and neatly fixed down.

“Why should I wait, Ringo?” said the woman.

“Because we need to talk,” said the man.

“I’m fed up of talking. We need to leave now.”

“We can’t leave without Clarence,” said the man, following hot on her heals.

The woman stopped in front of her own caravan and turned to face the man called Ringo, her red dress spinning around her as she turned to face him. “Clarence is a lost cause,” said the woman.

“Please, Carlotta,” pleaded Ringo. “We need to be careful what we say.”

“The sooner we get away from this planet the better.”

Holly and Lilly rounded the corner causing both Ringo and Carlotta to turn and stare at them in amazement.

And then Ringo broke into a smile, putting on a fake, Italian-sounding accent. “Ah, welcome to Uncle Joe’s Circus. My name is Ringo, and this is the lovely Carlotta.”

Carlotta rolled her eyes and went into her caravan, slamming the door behind her.

“Lovely,” said Holly.

“She’s not always like that,” said Ringo, still with his fake smiled affixed to his face. “She’s had a rough day.”

“We heard,” said Lilly, her arms folded. Lilly walked around Ringo and then leaned up against the caravan, her arms still folded. “You’ve got a killer clown on the loose.”

Ringo’s smile faded and he closed his eyes, nodding. “Yes, I know.”

“Where’s that lovely accent gone?” said Holly.

“It’s all just a show,” said Ringo, looking dejected.

“We’d have never guessed,” said Lilly. “Now, tell us about this clown.”

“I can’t,” said Ringo.

“You’re in charge, aren’t you? You’re the Ringmaster?”

“I’m the Ringmaster, yes,” said Ringo, “but Uncle Joe is our benefactor, and if he says we have to stay then we have to stay. He’s in charge.”

The window to the caravan creaked open and Carlotta stuck her head outside. “Uncle Joe is getting too big for his boots.”

“Be quiet, Carlotta,” said Ringo. “He’ll hear you.”

“Can we see him?” said Lilly.

“And who are you?” said Ringo, realising these two had just appeared from nowhere.

“Concerned residents of the town back that way,” she replied.

“You’re not from this planet,” said Ringo. “You’re definitely not from the colony. You don’t dress the same as them.”

“Oh, leave them alone, Ringo,” said Carlotta. “Why don’t you both come in for a drink of Yin Tea?”

“Yin Tea?” said Holly as Carlotta opened the door and stood to the side for them to walk in.

“A speciality where we come from,” said Carlotta.

Ringo looked visibly worried as Holly and Lilly entered the caravan, but Lilly flashed him a smile as she walked passed him and he reluctantly followed them inside.

The inside was warm, inviting and red-flamed candles cast a glow about the place. Various decorative ornaments hung from the ceiling and along the entire right side of the living area was rows and rows of books.

“Sit down, please,” said Carlotta as she made her way to the kitchenette. She poured four cups of steaming hot tea and then return to the banquette to sit opposite Lilly and Holly. She turned to Ringo. “Come on then.”

Ringo sighed and sat down next to her.

Holly sipped the tea and her eyes widened. She turned and smiled at Lilly. “Tastes good.”

Lilly sipped. “Not bad I suppose.”

“You’re Gallifreyan,” said Carlotta. “But you’ve never seen your home world.”

“How’d you know that?” said Lilly, her cup stopping just short of her lips.

Carlotta pointed to her temple and smiled at her. “It’s my gift. I’m psychic.”

“And you?” said Lilly, turning to Ringo.

“As I said,” said Ringo, “I’m the Ringmaster.”

“Ringo the Ringmaster,” said Lilly. “You don’t seem very cheery. Job getting you down?”

Carlotta stopped Ringo from talking and leaned forward. “There has been an incident here.”

“Yeah,” said Holly, “one of your clowns has turned into a killer.”

Carlotta nodded. “That part is true,” she said, sadly, “but that’s not the full story.” Her dark eyes burrowed deep into Holly’s.

“Then tell us the full story,” said Lilly. “And stop probing her mind.”

Holly frowned and then shook her head. She wondered what that tickling sensation in her head was.

“I’m sorry,” said Carlotta. “I’m just so used to using my powers to get to know people. Sometimes I find it hard to switch it off.”

“Carlotta,” said Ringo, “maybe these people can help us to track down Clarence.”

“I’ve already told you - Clarence is a lost cause,” said Carlotta.

“But why?” asked Holly, trying her best to concentrate on the here and now and not thinking about Carlotta’s possible probing of her mind.

“Clarence’s programming has failed.”

“Programming?” said Lilly with a frown.

“Yep,” said Ringo. “Clarence and all of the other clowns are robots.”

To be continued...

Clarence (Chapter 2)

Chapter 2 (The Void That's Left Behind)

The end of the forest backed onto the edge of the town. A dirt track led from the trees to between a number of rows of small, wooden houses, each of them with smoke coming from their chimneys. They were of a crude but functional design. Made from wood, all on one level with a straw roof and a basic back garden.

“Pretty,” said Holly as they wandered down the track that led towards the town centre.

It was a good ten minute walk from the edge of the forest. They past a number of houses and open spaces with children’s playground equipment before they finally reached a hill that led down and towards the centre of the town.

A number of market stalls were setting up for the day and the market area was surrounded by larger, wooden buildings, which acted as town halls, schools and other amenities. In the centre was a stone plinth, around four foot high with a pole through the centre and a flag hanging limply from the top of it. Holly couldn’t quite see the flag, but it looked to be an image of the Earth with a green arrow pointing from the top of it.

“I think I’d get bored here,” said Holly.

“These people chose this way of life,” said the Doctor, one hand in his pocket and the ball under his other arm.

“I’m afraid I couldn’t do without my every day essentials.”

“I’m with you, Dangerfield,” said Lilly. “Peaceful is nice, but not forever.”

The double doors in one of the larger buildings opened and a distraught looking man walked out, shaking his head.

He was followed by a man in some form of black tunic with a silver badge pinned to the right breast. “I promise you, Owen, we will do everything we can.”

“But you won’t,” said the man - Owen. “What else can you do that you haven’t already done for the others?”

“We may be able to overturn some more clues,” said the man. He put a hand on Owens’s shoulder. “Try and keep calm.”

“It’s just a waste of time,” said Owen, shaking his head and trying to fight back to tears. “The sooner they leave the better.”

“They want to find him as much as we do,” said the man. “To bring him to justice.”

“Screw your justice,” said Owen, pointing a finger at the man. “Justice isn’t going to bring my Elliot back.”

He marched off, much to the bemused face of the man in black.

Owen headed towards the Doctor, Holly and Lilly and glanced at them, and then he did a double take, his eyes flicking down to the ball under the Doctor’s arm.

“Where did you find that?” said Owen, his tears stopping momentarily. He looked tired and miserable, his lines on his face seemed to go deeper than they should do. He looked middle aged, but Holly suspected he was closer to his late thirties.

“In the forest back there,” said the Doctor.

Owen snatched it from the Doctor and turned it over before crying again.

“Do you know who it belongs to?” said Holly.

“Yes,” sobbed Owen. “It belongs…belonged to my son.”

“And he’s gone missing?” asked the Doctor.

Owen nodded, clutching the ball tightly. He couldn’t get any words out.

“Look,” said the Doctor, putting an affectionate arm around Owen, “do you have somewhere we can go and talk about this.”

“My…house,” managed Owen. “That way.” He pointed back the way they’d come. “But I’ve been over it time and time again. I don’t know what more we can do.”

“Let’s get you back there, eh?” said the Doctor, guiding him back up the hill and towards the houses.




The interior of Owens house was as basic as the outside. The front door led into a main room with a kitchen and living space inside. Another door led off to what must have been the bedrooms. Sat inside on a small sofa was a little girl with dark hair. She was dressed in a grey dress and looked like she had been crying.

Stood beside a lit stove, making scrambled eggs, was a woman in a white dress and bonnet. She looked roughly the same age as Owen, had bright blue eyes, but had a pained look on her face.

The girl and the woman looked up when Owen entered with the Doctor, Holly and Lilly.

“Did they say anything?” said the woman, hopefully, and then noticing the ball. “Where did you find that?”

“These kind people found it in the forest,” said Owen, gesturing towards the trio.

“And you saw nothing else? Nobody else?” asked the woman.

“Nobody I’m afraid,” said the Doctor.

Holly sat down next to the little girl. “Hey, you alright?”

“My brother’s gone missing,” said the little girl sadly. She must have only been around five or six. “He went to look for his ball last night.”

“Maybe introductions are in order,” said the Doctor.

Owen placed the ball gently down on the wooden table in the centre of the room and then nodded. “My name’s Owen Benson, this is my daughter, Kathryn and my wife Heather.” He stuttered. “My son’s name is Elliot.”

“Call me Kat,” said Kathryn to Holly.

“Will do, squirt,” said Holly, wrinkling her nose at the little girl.

“My name’s the Doctor, this is Holly Dangerfield and this young lady here looking a little down in the dumps is Lilly Galloway. We’re travellers.”

“We never get travellers,” said Heather, getting some plates from a cupboard under the sink.

“We’re from another colony world.”

“Ival?” asked Owen.

“No,” said the Doctor, searching his list of colony names that he’d encountered over the years, “Apax.”

“That’s a bit of a journey.”

“Yeah,” said Lilly, “we’ve been travelling for some time. But that’s not important.”

“No,” said Owen. “No it’s not.”

“You say you’re son went missing?” continued Lilly.

Owen took a deep breath. “That’s right. Last night. Him and his friends were out playing when I went to collect them. Elliot must have snuck out to find his ball because he didn’t come back. I went searching at first light but couldn’t find him.”

“I’m afraid, Mr Benson,” said the Doctor, “that we found the ball a little way from the path in a ditch next to some scorched ground.”

Owen closed his eyes and Heather put her hand to her mouth as she dished up the scrambled egg. “It’s just the same as the others. I knew it, Owen.”

“I know,” said the man, nodding sadly.

“What’s the same as the others?” said Lilly. “Have there been other disappearances?”

Owen nodded. He then turned to Kat. “Why don’t you take Holly and show her some of your dollies?”

“But I don’t want to play,” said Kat, grumpily.

“Aww,” said Holly, in a mock-disappointed voice, “I wouldn’t mind seeing your dollies.”

Kat smiled. “Okay,” she said, getting up and guiding Holly towards the interior door.

Holly turned back to Lilly.

Lilly mouthed. “I’ll fill you in later,” to her.

“It upsets Kat too much,” said Heather as she handed plates of food to the Doctor, Lilly and Owen.

“What upsets her?” said the Doctor.

“Talking about the disappearances,” said Owen.

“So there have been others then?” asked the Doctor, leaning forward with his interest piqued.

“Too many to count,” said Heather. “It started about five months ago. A circus came to town.”

“Oh, god,” said Lilly, shovelling some egg into her mouth. “Creepy circus alert.”

“They weren’t called the Psychic Circus by any chance were they?”

“No,” said Owen. “Uncle Joes Circus.”

“Well that’s one thing I suppose,” said the Doctor, relaxing a little.

“So the circus turned up and people started disappearing?” asked Lilly.

“Not exactly,” said Owen. He sniffed away the tears. “One of their clowns went crazy. He disappeared from the circus in the night and they’ve been searching from him ever since.”

“What did the police say? I’m assuming that was the police you were talking to.”

“Sergeant Poulton? Yes, but he’s no good. He hasn’t turned over a clue in five months. Why would he have any luck now?”

“You have to have faith.”

“How can you have faith when you have to lock yourself away in your own home and live in fear?” said Owen.

Heather sat down at the table opposite the Doctor and Lilly and looked at both of them, fear in her eyes. “He comes at night and he takes people who aren’t safely locked away.”

“Takes them where?” asked the Doctor.

“Nobody knows, but all that’s left is…” she put a hand to her mouth, the tears flowing again.

“All that’s left,” continued Owen, “is scorched ground. It’s how he…kills them.”




In Kat’s basic room Holly was sat on the bed whilst Kat got her dollies to have a pretend tea party with each other.

Holly got up and walked over to the window, her arms folded. She looked out of the glass towards the forest. She was right. Lilly had felt something earlier on, but she felt it now. Something wasn’t right out there.

And for a fleeting second she thought she saw a flash of colour behind the trees, but when she tried to find it again…it was gone.

To be continued...

Clarence (Chapter 1)

Chapter 1 (Snatched)

The little boy knew he shouldn’t be out here at this time, but he also knew that this wouldn’t take long. He gazed up at the sun filtering through the leaves on the trees. He had a good twenty minutes before it got dark. He could make it there and back in enough time.

Earlier in the day he and his friends had been playing in the woods when he had lost his ball somewhere on the fringes of the forest clearing. Their parents had come to get them as darkness was due to fall soon, but Elliot wanted his ball back. He knew it had to be somewhere and it wouldn’t take him long to find it. It was bright yellow after all.

As soon as he was home he told his parents he was going out to play in the back garden. When he was sure the coast was clear he climbed over the small, back fence that backed onto the forest and followed his route back towards the clearing.

He would only be gone ten minutes. There’s no way anyone would know he had gone missing. He’d be inside well before darkness fell.

He approached the clearing. All looked still and silent. He had had a happy afternoon here with Leo and Claire, even if they hadn’t seemed so happy. He hadn’t gotten to the bottom of why they were so down, but it hadn’t bothered him. He wasn’t going to let their unhappiness rub off on him.

He squinted as he looked towards the copse of trees near the centre of the clearing. It had to have landed over there somewhere.

He quickly jogged across the clearing and into the copse. Here it was a little darker. The trees blotted out the ever-sinking sunlight. He moved through twigs and branches, pushing aside bushes and peering for the ball.

There it was! The gleaming yellow sphere staring up at him from underneath a collection of twigs. He was so glad to have found it. His dad had given it to him as a present two years ago and he didn’t want to disappoint him by losing it.

Elliot uncovered the ball and then turned to go. When he reached the clearing the sun had gone down. There was a chill in the air and everything looked gloomy.

He swallowed. He had misjudged how long he would be gone for. He needed to get back before darkness fell completely.

He took a quick glance around him and then tucked the ball under his arm and ran as fast as he could. He exited the clearing and entered the forest on the other side. He felt twigs thwack against his bare legs, but it didn’t bother him. As brave as he thought he was he didn’t want to come face to face with what was out here in the darkness.

He had lost his concentration. He foot got snarled in a collection of twigs and he fell forward, the ball rolling away from him. He panicked and tried to scramble to his feet. His foot was still caught and he twisted it away, pulling his shoe off as he did so.

He looked for his ball but it had disappeared again. He needed to get back. He didn’t have time for this. He looked to the sky - it was now a dark blue and he could see the stars and the half moon shining down.

It was then that he realised he’d lost all sense of direction.

A twig snapped nearby and Elliot breathed in sharply, holding his breath.

He could feel his body shaking, his teeth chattering. It was cold now and he couldn’t remember the path in the dark.

He was about to put one step forward when he felt a hand touch his shoulder.

And then Elliot was gone, the only sign he was ever there was the yellow ball that sat nestled in a nearby ditch.




On board the TARDIS Holly was laid on her bed, the diary that belonged to Caleb sat on top of the bedside cabinet. She turned to her side and looked at it, but for the first time since she’d clapped eyes on it she didn’t feel the need to read it.

There was a knock on the door. “You decent?” came Lilly’s voice.

Holly sat up and smiled. “Always ready for action,” said Holly.

“How you feeling now? The Doctor told me you had a bad dream.”

“I can’t remember any of it,” said Holly, shaking her head. “It was probably nothing anyway.”

Lilly noticed the diary on the side. “You can read it you want. You might as well.”

“I don’t need to,” said Holly, opening the drawer and putting the diary inside. “Like I said - tell me when you’re good and ready.”

Lilly smiled. “The Doctor says we’re landing soon.”

“Oh, where?” said Lilly, getting up and putting her trainers on.

“A planet called Heliatos. It’s some Human colony world - your people in the future. They settled there a few centuries ago.”

“Sounds exciting,” said Holly, doing up her laces.

“Yeah, maybe,” said Lilly. She sat down on the bed and looked glum.

“The Doctor’s technically your uncle, you know?”

Lilly nodded. “In a weird, adopted sister-in-law type way I guess,” said Lilly. “But I don’t call him uncle. I’ve never called him that.”

“What’s wrong?” said Holly, turning to look at her.

“I just…I don’t know. The Master’s out there somewhere. He’s obviously following us so I don’t know why we don’t just turn around and confront him. Why keep landing in different places?”

“You know the Doctor better than I do,” said Holly. She shrugged. “Maybe the Doctor hasn’t worked out how to deal with the situation yet. Then there‘s the business with the Kro’Tenk which we still have to deal with. Maybe he just wants to deal with one issue at a time.”

Lilly nodded. “Maybe.”

“Ah, cheer up. After what we went through with Arnold’s aliens and you having to tell me all about your past woes, we could do with a nice, relaxing time in a normal place full of normal people.”

The door burst open and the Doctor bounded in. “Strange readings detected at the colony, I’m afraid. Get your gear on, we’re landing.” And then as quickly as he’d arrived he vanished.

“So much for a quiet time, eh?” said Lilly. “Thanks, Dangerfield. I don’t know where I’d be without you.”

Holly laughed as they got up to follow the Doctor.




The TARDIS had landed in a clearing within a larger forest. A copse of trees sat behind the police box and it was a chilly day, despite the sun shining down. The dew on the grass was just beginning to dry up.

The box opened and Holly emerged first, her eyes squinting in the early morning sun. She was followed by Lilly who still looked like she wasn’t in the best of the moods, and finally the Doctor, who locked up the TARDIS and then gazed out across the clearing, his hands on his hips.

“So you detected a signal, yeah?” said Holly.

“A faint one,” said the Doctor. He spun around to take in his surroundings. “No idea where it’s coming from though, but there’s a small town through the forest, about a quarter mile from here.”

“Think they serve decent breakfasts?” asked Holly.

“Who knows?” said the Doctor as he set off for the line of trees. “It’s 4454, but Heliatos has always been one of the more rural colonies.”

“Rural?” said Holly. “You mean with farms and cows?”

“That’s right,” he said, as they reached the forest. “Some colonies went for big, towering cities. Some went for the simple way of life. It’s safe to say that Heliatos fits into the latter category.” He looked up into the sky. “In fact the only technology functioning on this planet will be the air defence systems. All colony worlds set them up. Like a mini station orbiting the planet and protecting it from hostiles.”

“It’s so peaceful,” said Lilly, stopping and smiling to herself.

Holly held back whilst the Doctor carried on walking. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, she said, smiling. My head feels so clear.”

Holly breathed in and closed her eyes. The air was fresh and cool and there was nothing but birdsong in the air. “I know what you mean. Sometimes that box can get a bit too much.”

“Ladies?” called the Doctor from up ahead. He had already entered the forest.

Holly felt Lilly grab her hand and then run towards the Doctor’s voice. Lilly hesitated for a moment as Holly ran along side her and then let go of her hand quickly.

Holly frowned, but she didn’t have long to think about it when they found the Doctor crouched down over a ditch just inside the forest.

“Oh, you’ve found a ball,” said Lilly, nonchalantly.

“Yes,” said the Doctor, plucking the yellow ball from it’s ditch and turning it over. “Try not to sound too enthusiastic, Lilly.”

“Maybe the owner’s around here somewhere,” said Holly, turning around to look for any sign of a person.

“Unlikely,” said the Doctor. He got up. “This ball has been here overnight. It’s cold and wet.”

“What’s this?” said Lilly, a few metres away.

The Doctor and Holly joined her. Lilly was staring down at a patch of ground that looked like it had been scorched. The twigs had turned to ash.

“Someone lit a fire maybe?” suggested Holly.

“Maybe,” said the Doctor. He crouched down, stuck his finger in the ash and then put his finger in his mouth.

“Seriously, Doctor?” said Lilly.

He grimaced. “Not normal ash. More than likely created by some intense energy beam.”

“Like a weapon?” asked Holly.

“Possibly,” said the Doctor. He got back up. “Let’s head towards the town. Then maybe we can reunite this ball with its owner.”

Lilly remained standing, a frown on her face.

“You alright, Lilly?” asked Holly. She found herself saying that a lot recently.

“Yeah,” she said. “I’m alright, but something doesn’t feel right about this place. Something feels…odd.”

What the Doctor and his friends didn’t notice as they headed towards the town was a child’s shoe snarled under a collection of twigs.

To be continued...

Story 6: Clarence

“He comes at night and he takes people who aren’t safely locked away.”
“Takes them where?” asked the Doctor.
“Nobody knows, but all that’s left is…” she put a hand to her mouth, the tears flowing again.
“All that’s left,” continued Owen, “is scorched ground. It’s how he…kills them.”

The TARDIS lands on the planet Heliatos where a Human colony have settled far in the future. The colony is a simple one with people happy to live off the land and get back to the simple way of life.

That is until Uncle Joe's Circus arrives.

It's not long after the arrival of the circus that people begin to disappear. A killer clown - Clarence - is on the loose, and the colonists have no choice but to lock themselves away for fear that they may be next on his list of victims.

Whilst the Doctor and a colonist, Owen, look for clues in the search for his lost son, Holly and Lilly investigate the circus and find something sinister at its heart.

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