A Beautiful Life (Chapter 3)

Chapter 3 (Surfacers)

The Doctor, Holly, Richard and Lilly had been led to a small hut. Inside were cushions laid all over the floor with a table in the middle containing all sorts of weird and wonderful fruit that none of them had seen before, as well as cold and hot drinks.

The walls were draped in red, satin curtains - or this planets equivalent of - and the air smelt of sweet honey.

The Doctor was sat crossed legged on a cushion looking deep in thought. Holly was sat next to Lilly and Richard was busy tucking into each of the different fruits.

“Something about this doesn’t sit right with me,” said Holly.

“I know what you mean,” said Lilly. “Having a festival for people before they die. How can they know when they’re going to die?”

The Doctor nodded. “It’s a quandary.”

“I’d hate to know when I was going to die,” said Holly.

“Me too,” said Richard, sipping a blue-ish-green liquid. “But then I suppose they have a different culture.”

“Well I don’t like it,” said Holly.

“Maybe we should just go back to the TARDIS. Get out of here,” said Lilly.

“We can’t run away at the first sight of not liking something from another culture,” said the Doctor. “We have to respect them.”

“But it’s wrong,” said Holly.

“What’s wrong about it?” asked the Doctor. “This race obviously know when they pass away. Who are we to dictate how they should act around that?”

“I know where Holly’s coming from though,” said Richard. “It’s all a little bit creepy.”

“Why don’t we just ask?” said Lilly. “Then we can all stop bloody worrying and looking concerned.”

“Lilly…” began the Doctor.

“Don’t worry about it,” said Lilly, as she got up from her cushion.

“Where are you going?” asked Holly.

“For a walk. To get some fresh air.”

Lilly exited the hut and Holly looked at the Doctor.

“Go on then,” he said, urging her to follow her friend.

Holly got to her feet and followed Lilly outside. It was getting dark now and lots of little lights were shining amongst the trees from the various platforms. Lilly was stood beside a barrier looking out into the jungle, smiling at the lights.

Holly joined her by her side and took her hand. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine,” said Lilly. “Just…”

“Just what?”

“Frustrated.”

“What with?”

Lilly itched her side again.

“Look, what’s wrong with your side? You’ve been scratching at it for ages now.”

“I don’t know,” she said.

“Then show me.”

Lilly sighed and pulled up her top, exposing her side. Her flesh was tinged blue and looked like it was flaking off.

“Jesus, Lilly,” said Holly, kneeling down to look at her. “Why didn’t you tell us about this?”

“I thought it’d go away,” she said, sadly. “It’s from that Kro’Tenk captain I killed. Leet. I didn’t notice it until I was in the shower. He must have sliced through me with his sword. Given me a superficial injury, but some of his blood got into the cut.”

“So you’re infected?”

Lilly nodded.

“We need to tell the Doctor.”

“No.”

“What? Why not?”

“Because it’s my problem. I’m sick of being his problem.”

“But this could be serious,” said Holly.

Lilly sighed. “I’m not totally stupid, Dangerfield. I have been running tests in the TARDIS. I was waiting for the results when we landed here.”

“Then lets get back down there and check them out. We need to know if you’re going to be alright.”

“I can wait,” said Lilly.

“Well I can’t,” said Holly, grabbing Lilly’s hand. She dragged her across the platform, made sure nobody was looking, and then they made their way down the steps.

In the corner, behind their own hut, a set of curious eyes watched them leave. And then the owner of the eyes started to follow the girls downwards.




Richard was just tucking into another of the fruits when the Doctor let out a long, drawn-out yawn.

“Why don’t you get some sleep?” asked Richard. “Before the Age Festival, that is.”

“I don’t sleep very often,” said the Doctor, smiling.

“Cos you’re an alien?” asked Richard.

“Well, all species sleep,” said the Doctor with a smile, “but I just don’t need as much as you Human beings.”

“I like my sleep,” said Richard. “You can’t have a good day at work without having at least eight hours sleep.”

“Work,” laughed the Doctor. “I used to do that once.”

“I can’t imagine you working. Was this back on your home planet?”

“On Gallifrey? Yes.” He smiled at the memory.

“It sounds like you miss the place. Have you been travelling long?”

The Doctor looked at Richard and then relaxed a little. Whilst Holly and Lilly were busy having their own, relationship problems, Richard here was unassuming. He had his own issues to deal with, but right now he was an open book. None of his pages had been blotted by the chaos of time travel with him.

“I left Gallifrey a long, long, long time ago, but I’ve been back on several occasions. I even lost the planet once. I thought it’d been destroyed.”

“I take it you haven’t been back in some time?”

“A while ago something happened. It means I can never go back.”

“Never?”

“Well, without dealing with the consequences, no.” He leaned in. “There was a town on Gallifrey called Jacarthia. The people there were being treat unfairly by the High Council. I came along and thought I could help.”

“So what happened?” asked Richard, leaning in closer to the Doctor.

The curtain to the hut was flung open and an angry looking Tees was stood flanked by two guards.

“A problem, Mr Tees?”

“Your two friends.”

“What about them?”

“They’ve descended down to the lower platforms without permission!”

“I’m sure they just went for a walk.”

“Nobody goes for a walk at night.”

The Doctor and Richard got to their feet. “Then we’ll go and look for them. What are you so scared of?”

Tees looked like he was about to say and then swallowed his words. “I’m not scared, but they shouldn’t be that far down at this time of night.” He pointed to the Doctor. “You will go with Captain Jag and his troops and bring them back.”

“What about me?” asked Richard.

“You will stay here. I cannot afford to have any more visitors out after dark.”

The Doctor looked worried for Richard and he spotted his concern. “I’ll be fine,” said Richard, sitting back down on his cushion. “Just go and find them.”

Tees led the Doctor out of the hut where Jag was waiting with four other guards. “We will have to postpone the Age Festival. There will be consequences.”

“I think you better start telling me a few truths,” said the Doctor.

Tees glowered at him. “I have been nothing but truthful.”

“If you were telling me the truth you wouldn’t be so concerned right now.”

“Take him, Jag,” said Tees angrily. “Bring those Humans back to us immediately.”




Lilly and Holly had reached the bottom platform. It seemed darker now than it had been earlier on. Down here even the star and moon light couldn’t be seen. Holly could barely see Lilly and if it wasn’t for the fact that she was holding her hand she wouldn’t have even believed she was still with her.

“Watch your footing,” said Holly, as she felt some uneven slats of wood beneath her feet.

“Maybe we should have told the Doctor.”

“And caused a fuss?” said Holly.

“Says the girl who’s causing the fuss in the first place,” said Lilly.

Holly turned to face Lilly, who she could barely make out in the gloom. “You know why I’m causing a fuss, don’t you?”

“Cos you like me,” said Lilly, grinning a little.

“I thought that much was obvious,” said Holly.

“I’ve never had anyone like me before.”

“What about your friend, Craig?”

“Craig the robot?” said Lilly. “Just mates. And he was a robot.”

Holly smiled. “True. But then even Data from Star Trek TNG fell in love once.”

There was a scuffling sound from somewhere over to their right. Holly frowned and peered into the darkness. It was impossible to spot anything in this low-light.

“What was it?” asked Lilly, gripping her hand tighter.

“I don’t know,” said Holly, “but we’ve only got another set of steps to go down and we’ll be at the TARDIS.”

“We need to go back up.”

“We need to get you checked out,” said Holly. She began to guide Lilly towards the next set of steps. They made their way down until they reached the final, lowest platform. The TARDIS was standing there next to the tree trunk and Holly suddenly felt a little safer.

“There it is again,” said Lilly, trying to look for any kind of clue in the darkness, trying to locate the source of the sound.

There came a scraping sound from somewhere towards the edge of the platform. Holly tensed up and the two girls hurried over to the TARDIS doors.

“Quickly,” said Lilly as Holly fumbled to find her key.

The scuffling came again, followed by the sound of claws scraping on the wood.

“It’s some kind of animal,” said Lilly, pressing herself against the TARDIS doors.

“One of those Surfacers,” said Holly, remembering what Tees had said.

“Where’s that bloody key, Dangerfield?” barked Lilly.

Holly pulled out the key, attached to a chain that had been in her jean pocket and smiled as she held it out in front of Lilly.

But before she could put it in the lock the pair of them were aware of a dark shape flying at them from towards the edge of the platform. They shielded themselves and waited for the attack.

Which never came.

They heard a high-pitched cry from somewhere to their left and saw a flash of something hit the shapeless creature and cause it to recoil in pain.

“Back, creature!” said a high-pitched voice, which Holly instantly recognised.

“Kitz?” she said into the darkness.

There was more struggling and animal howls before Kitz appeared at the side of them. He looked out of a breath and was holding a bloodied spear high in the air.

“What was that thing?” asked Holly.

“A Surfacer,” said Kitz. “They live below.”

Suddenly there came a cracking sound of wood. Holly felt the relatively solid wooden boards beneath them start to shift and move. Holly grabbed Lilly, and Kitz dived for a vine. He swung out into the darkness and then swung back, grabbing hold of Holly.

Holly gripped Lilly tightly, but it was too late. As Holly found herself being swung away from the platform and into the higher trees she felt Lilly slip away as the platform - along with the TARDIS - collapsed.

Lilly cried out as she disappeared into the darkness below.

To be continued...

A Beautiful Life (Chapter 2)

Chapter 2 (Flying)

The TARDIS materialised beside a huge tree trunk. Around the trunk was a wooden platform with rope around the edges to prevent anyone from toppling over. A number of gangways and walkways snaked off from the circular walkway and numerous steps that spiralled upwards and towards higher levels.

The Doctor stepped out, gave a furtive look around and then smiled. “Come on out, you three.”

Richard was the first to emerge. The heat hit him first. It felt like stepping off a plane in a hot country and he found himself unbuttoning his shirt sleeves and rolling them up.

“Well,” asked the Doctor, “what do you think?”

Richard looked up at the various walkways and bridges that spanned from this tree to others. He span around on the spot and then broke into a huge smile. “It’s…it’s unbelievable.”

The Doctor smiled and joined him, placing an arm around him as he peered down over the rope barrier. The tree trunk disappeared into the foliage below where there were smaller trees and bushes.

“He wasn’t lying,” said Holly, as she stepped out of the TARDIS, “it is hot out here.”

“And it looks like we’re on the lowest level of the settlement,” said the Doctor, looking down over the edge. “Nothing below us.”

“The lowest?” said Richard. “But we’re still high up.”

Lilly wrinkled her nose as she slowly walked out of the TARDIS. “It stinks.”

“What?” said Holly, frowning at her. “Of what?”

“Hot, sticky, sweaty jungle. Ick!”

Holly rolled her eyes and took her hand. “Cheer up, eh? What’s up?”

Lilly looked at her and then looked at the Doctor and Richard. “Ask me later when I haven’t got such a banging headache.”

“Are you alright, Lilly?” asked the Doctor. “Perhaps you should go back in to rest.”

“I’m fine,” said Lilly, peering over the edge. “I’ve just had a lot on my mind.” Holly looked as Lilly’s hand casually went to her side and began scratching. She frowned, but dismissed any thoughts when the Doctor headed towards the steps that snaked up and around the tree trunk.

“Shouldn’t we wait to be greeted first?” asked Holly.

“They don’t know we’re here yet,” said the Doctor, excitedly. “Let’s go and make our presence known.”

“I have a bad feeling about this,” said Holly, as her and Lilly watched Richard enthusiastically follow the Doctor up the steps.

The four travellers had only been climbing for about five minutes when they reached another platform. This time it was built outwards and spanned across mid-air to connect to another platform. Here a number of huts were dotted about, but there was no sign of life.

“Nobody in?” said Richard, as he looked at each of the huts in turn.

“Maybe they’ve all popped to the pub,” said Lilly.

“No,” said the Doctor, noticing an overturned table and objects scattered over the floor. “Whoever was here left in a hurry.” He picked up something resembling a wooden spoon. It was covered in a sticky, black liquid which he touched with his finger and then sniffed.

“All the huts are the same,” said Richard as he emerged from one at the furthest edge of the platform. “Nobody inside, but there’s stuff lying around.”

“Maybe they were scared off by something,” said Holly.

“Well, this is the lowest of the living platforms in this area,” said the Doctor, gazing out across the jungle. “Perhaps they’ve moved upstairs.”

Holly was about to reply when suddenly there was a sound of something stretching, a rush of air and then she found herself being lifted off her feet. She stifled a scream as she found herself swinging through mid air, over the edge of the platform and then upwards.

She could hear the sound of the Doctor, Richard and Lilly shouting something down below. She finally felt the upwards motion stop and everything came to a stand still. She tried to regain focus on her surroundings. She was perched on a thick branch and the platform she had been on was far below.

And then she started to panic.

She felt a spindly, insect-like hand on her shoulder, tried to move away, almost slipped off the branch and then was grabbed by two hands. She looked up. Keeping hold of her was an insect-like creature. It was blue with large, black eyes, a small body and tiny, thin arms and legs.

“Do not struggle,” came a high-pitched voice from the creatures wasp-like mouth.

“Who-Who are you?” asked Holly.

“Not an enemy,” said the creature, “but I am not at liberty to discuss this with you.”

“How did you get me up here?” said Holly, trying to look for some wings on the creature.

“Vines,” said the creature with what she assumed was a smile from it‘s jagged-toothed mouth.

Holly realised what he was saying. He had swung from one platform, scooped her up and then swung upwards to a higher platform.

“I need to get back to my friends.”

“We are all going to the same place,” said the creature. She looked down and saw Lilly, the Doctor and Richard surrounded by four more of the creatures. They jabbed spears towards them and indicated for them to move up the steps. “I’m sorry you were startled, but we couldn’t be certain that you were not dangerous.” The creature looked at Holly with curious eyes. “What is your name?”

“Holly. Holly Dangerfield.”

“Mine is Kitz.”

“And you’re one of the Gandrans?”

“Yes I am,” said Kitz. He grabbed the vine and put his arm around Holly’s waist. “Hold on tight, Holly Dangerfield.”

Holly instinctively grabbed a hold of his leather-like body as Kitz leapt from the branch. Holly screamed as she soared through the air again and landed - rather gracefully she thought - on the living area platform.

“Welcome back,” said the Doctor as he began the descent of the steps.

“Are you alright?” said Lilly, panicked.

“I’m fine. I’m fine,” said Holly, trying to act cooler than she felt.

“This is brilliant,” said Richard, looking at Kitz and then the other creatures. “Real life alien creatures. It’s fantastic!”

“You’ll get used to it, Richard,” smiled Holly, thinking back to her first time meeting an alien. Unfortunately for her it was a Cyberman and she was scared out of her wits. At least Richard seemed to be enjoying himself.

“Don’t encourage him,” hissed Lilly who had been hanging at the back of the line.

“Why not?” frowned Holly. She looked back at Kitz who was smiling at her. “He needs something to take his mind off back home.”

“Not necessarily.”

“What do you mean?”

“He needs to focus on what he wants. Getting excited at Tarzan-swinging aliens is not focusing.”

“Oh, come on Lilly, it’s his first trip.”

“He shouldn’t be having any first trips or any trips.”

Holly turned to look back at her. “What’s wrong with you? You’ve been grumpy ever since he joined. It’s like you and me all over again.”

“It’s because I liked it as just you, me and the Doctor. We’re in danger of overcrowding the TARDIS.”

“The TARDIS is massive! It’s not going to affect anything, you know?”

“And that’s not just the reason.”

Holly waited for her to continue. “Go on.”

“The Doctor is terrified of being on his own. I think he’s invited Richard along because he’s worried we’re going to leave him.”

“Leave who? The Doctor? Why would we?”

“Eventually you will or I will, and that means that both of us will go.”

“Really?” said Holly. She tried to hide a smile.

“As if you even need to ask.”

Holly smiled and then reached for Lilly’s hand. “Don’t worry about Richard. It’ll all work out in the end. Trust me. And I’m not going anywhere. The TARDIS is my home now as well.”

But Holly noticed that Lilly was scratching at her side again and she still had a permanent frown stuck on her face.

The alien leader finally took them up to another platform where a crowd of similar aliens were waiting. An older-looking alien with long, black flowing robes stepped out from behind the crowd, a smile on his face.

Here the platform was dotted with much larger, more impressive buildings several floors high. They were all made of wood but some had painted, decorative sections and others were trimmed with gold. In the centre of the platform was a three story building with a large doorway and a domed roof.

“Welcome, visitors,” said the alien, his voice almost too jolly.

“See, I told you they’d be friendly,” smiled the Doctor.

“Welcome to Gandra. My name is Tees. I am the governor for Habitant Quill.”

“Habitat Quill?” queried Richard.

“The jungle stretches the entire planet,” said the Doctor, answering before Tees could. “Each area of the jungle has it’s own habitat.”

“Like a town?”

“Exactly,” said the Doctor. He extended his hand and Tees shook it. “So very good to meet you at last.”

“I do apologise for the way in which you were greeted by Captain Jag and his men.” Tees looked at the slightly taller Jag, who shook his head.

“Don’t worry, don’t worry,” said the Doctor, holding his hands out.

“We thought they were Surfacers,” said Jag.

“Surfacers?” said Holly.

“Wild animals,” said Tees quickly. “They live in the lower regions and come up every now and again.”

“Does that explain why that lower platform was abandoned?”

Tees frowned and then broke into a smile. “Yes. It was much too far down. We’ve moved all of our people higher up.”

“Sir, we lost one of our own on our way down - Pol.”

Tees shook his head. “Such a waste.”

“One of the vines was weak and he fell, broke his neck on the way down.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” said the Doctor, sadly.

Richard was again at a barrier looking over the edge, staring down into the endless trees. “I still can’t quite believe this.”

“Is this your first time on another world?” asked Kitz, crossing over to the Earth man.

“Yeah,” said Richard, looking a little nervously at the alien.

“Don’t be afraid,” said Kitz. “We are quite a peaceful race.”

“So I’m led to believe,” said the Doctor.

“Perhaps you would like some refreshments?” suggested Tees.

“That would be nice,” said the Doctor.

“Excellent,” said Tees, clapping his hands together. He pointed to three grey-robed aliens. “Bara, Frax and Impanol, take our guests to a place where they can freshen up. We have a long evening ahead of us.”

“Oh, really? What’s happening?” asked the Doctor, as the three began to guide them away.

“We have an Age Festival tonight.”

“An Age Festival?” queried Lilly.

“Yes. They are most wondrous affairs,” he beamed.

“And what do these Age Festivals entail? A coming of age for the young, maybe?” asked the Doctor.

“Oh, no, no, no. They are for the old. We have two elders attending tonight.”

“That’s lovely,” said Richard, smiling. “They have festivals for their old people. We should have that back on Earth. Celebrate an OAP day.”

“I wouldn’t if I were you,” said Kitz, as he hurried alongside the four of them, his voice low so Tees couldn‘t hear him.

“Wouldn’t what?” asked Holly.

“Have them on Earth.”

“Why ever not?” asked the Doctor.

“Because an Age Festival is where our older people are brought the day before they die.”

To be continued...

A Beautiful Life (Chapter 1)

Chapter 1 (Gandra)

It had been raining. The leaves were still glistening wet with raindrops, but the sun had come out now and it was a hot day. The whole jungle was steaming in the tropical heat; the air humid with not a hint of a breeze.

The old man made his way across the wooden bridge and towards the waiting priests on the other side. He was old, but he wasn’t ancient. He stooped a little and his back was arched, but he still felt alive. His legs felt sturdy and his heart was beating strong in his small ribcage.

As he approached the priests he turned his narrow, insect-like head back towards his family. His eyes were black and wet. He had been trying not to cry. He knew his time was here, but he was still going to miss them.

He raised a thin arm and gave them a gentle wave.

His family on the other side of the bridge held each other close and waved back.

“Are you ready, Bedeck?” asked the priest, his white and gold robes damp in the moist air.

“I could never be ready for this,” said Bedeck, his voice barely audible over the chirruping creatures of the jungle.

He finally stepped off the wooden bridge and the head priest took his hand. “The Age comes to us all, Bedeck.”

“I know. I know.” He knew there was no point in fighting against the inevitable.

The priest closed his eyes and gripped Bedeck’s quivering arm tightly.

And then Bedeck felt the pain. At first it was just a niggle from somewhere beneath his chest, but it soon built up until the pain was too much to hold back. He felt as though his heart was going to burst from his chest.

Bedeck gasped.

His watching family tensed.

And then Bedeck fell limply into the priests arms. The priest lowered the old man to the ground and then placed a spindly hand on his head. He mumbled a few words and then turned back to the waiting family.

“Bedeck is dead. He has passed on to the Age.”

There were cries of despair from the other side of the rope bridge.

“Do not mourn him, my friends,” continued the priest. “He will live on in our dreams forever more. The Age cannot be stopped. The Age will always take the old. The Age is everlasting.”

A smaller, younger creature watched from the shelter of his grieving family. His eyes were narrowed. Something wasn’t right and he was determined to expose them for what they really were.




Richard Hicks finished drying his hair with the towel and then looked at himself in the steamed-up mirror in front of him. Physically he felt good. He had shaved and showered and washed away the chaos of the last few months, but mentally he didn’t feel at all well. He felt like a train wreck.

Thankfully he didn’t remember much about being in the other world, but the effects of him being over there had rippled through his life and dislodged it in ways he could barely piece together.

His wife had moved on with her life - convinced he was dead - and had possibly met someone new. When he had sat there and watched them from the seat of the UNIT Land rover in the park - his wife getting to close to someone else and his kids laughing and joking and playing without him - he wanted so much to run to them and tell them it was all a mistake.

He didn’t.

Was he regretting that decision now? It wasn’t anyone’s fault other than Roger Stark for what had happened to him and his family. He had considered literally returning from the dead, but could he put his family through that trauma? He didn’t intend on staying “dead” forever, but the Doctor had convinced him to come on board his weird time machine and take a break, clear his head and then return once he felt right.

But he still didn’t feel right. The TARDIS was truly a wondrous creation, but it was mind-bending as well. The Doctor had tried to prepare him for what to expect, but when he walked through those police box doors into this new, bigger place, he felt like he had done when he was seventeen and went for his first pint - completely lost and unsure of what to do. What exactly did a 17 year old do in a pub? Other than get drunk, that is? Badly drunk…

He had gone for a lie down in a small room somewhere a few corridors away from the main control room. The Doctor had brought him a cup of tea and a slice of chocolate cake and had shown him the way to the shower.

Even the bloody shower was bigger! A huge, chamber - not unlike a church - with a large swimming-pool sized bath set into the floor and numerous, ornate cubicles.

He returned to his room and pulled out the small holdall of clothes he had brought from storage. When he had “died”, his wife had taken his clothes to the charity shop. Stark, being the devious sod he is, had bought them all back from the charity shop. He supposed he should have thanked Stark for that. The Doctor had made a stop-off at UNIT: X HQ before he had boarded the TARDIS to collect his things.

He pulled out a chequered shirt and held it to his nose. He could still smell his home - the lavender wash powder that Cheryl would always use. But instead of getting upset he resolved to fix this. He would make it right. Once his head was clear he would return to them. He would put his life back together.

There came a knock on the door as he finished fastening up his jeans.

A dark-haired girl popped her head around the corner and smiled. “Hey, how you doing?”

Although Richard had met Holly before, he still didn’t really know her. He didn’t know Lilly or the Doctor either. Not really. But she seemed like the most easiest to get along with. Holly was like him in a way - she had dropped everything in her life to go travelling with the Doctor. If she could be so settled in this place then surely he could.

He shook those thoughts away. No, he thought, I’m not here to settle. I’m here to clear my head.

“I’m okay,” he said, smiling back at her and sitting on the bed. “Just getting used to this place,” he smiled, pointing towards the ceiling.

“Mind if I come in?” she said.

“Go right ahead,” said Richard.

She stepped into the room, shut the door and then sat down on the small, wooden chair beside the bedside cabinet. “How’s the room?”

“It could do with a window,” said Richard.

“Yeah, I know what you mean.” She smiled. “I get claustrophobic in my room sometimes.” She looked at the holdall of clothes on the floor. “Want me to help you to unpack?”

“No,” said Richard quickly. And then he smiled. “Not yet. I…”

“You don’t want to feel settled yet,” said Holly, nodding.

“I’m happy to be here,” said Richard, “but I don’t intend on staying forever. Just until I get my head clear. I’m treating it like a holiday I guess.” At least that was what he was telling himself.

“People unpack suitcases on their holidays,” said Holly.

Richard nodded. “Yeah, I know. I’m just not quite ready for it yet.”

“The Doctor told us everything,” said Holly. “It can’t be easy having your world fall apart like that.”

“No,” said Richard, looking away from her. “In fact it’s horrifying that my family have had to go through these last few months thinking I’m dead.”

“Is that really the problem though?”

“What do you mean?”

“Isn’t part of your sadness because your wife may have moved on?”

Richard smiled and nodded. “If she hadn’t I would have run straight to her and told her everything. It would have been difficult, but it’d be okay in the long run.”

“But because that other man was there you found you couldn’t.”

“Yes. She’s gotten over me.”

“She hasn’t,” said Holly, shaking her head. “She’ll never get over you. She’s just found comfort with a friend. It’s how these things work.” She relaxed a little more in the chair. “It happened to Roxy’s parents, believe it or not. Her dad died and her mum found comfort in another widower. It took time but they fell in love. She never forgot about Mike though.”

Richard looked sadder than ever.

“But that doesn’t mean you can’t go back and make everything better again,” said Holly, noticing his sadness. “It doesn’t mean she’s going to fall in love with that other man.”

“Does she deserve to be put through that though? To have a new life ripped apart by my ghost coming back to haunt her.”

“Well this is why you’re here, isn’t it? To clear your head and to come to those decisions.”

Richard nodded. “You’re right.”

Holly got to her feet. “For now though you need to come back to the control room with me. The Doctor’s taking us somewhere that will help clear your head.” She smiled and held out a hand. “Come on, Richard. It’s gotta be better than my first go.”

“Really?”

“Yep. First time travelling in this box and he took me into the middle of a Cybernetic war zone!”

She guided him through the maze of identical looking, circle-indented corridors until they reached a doorway that led to the large, white-domed control room with it’s weird, technological mushroom sat in the centre.

The Doctor was stood in a long, black coat and jeans with a white shirt and black tie observing the readouts. His hair was a mess, his piercing blue eyes were transfixed on something and he was in need of a good shave.

Or perhaps he was growing a beard in. He wasn’t too sure.

Sat on a sofa on the other side of the room was the blonde girl, Lilly. She was dressed in a blue, Supergirl top, jeans and was reading through a book. On closer inspection it looked like a diary. When she saw Richard looking at her she closed the book and glared at him.

“Mr Hicks!” said the Doctor, his eyes flicking back towards him. “I trust you’ve had a good rest and clean up? How was the chocolate cake?”

“Yeah,” said Richard, hands in his jean pockets and nodding. “I feel much better. And the cake was nice,” he added quickly.

“Excellent,” said the Doctor, clapping his hands together. “There’s nothing like a good sleep when you’ve spent the last few months battling the forces of evil.”

“I didn’t really need the sleep,” said Richard with a sheepish grin. “I spent five months in a coma, remember?”

“I didn’t forget, Mr Hicks,” said the Doctor, smiling sadly.

“Please, you can just call me Richard. None of this Mr Hicks business. I’m just an ordinary bloke.”

“In an extra-ordinary situation…Richard.”

Richard smiled. “Holly says you’re taking us somewhere.”

“Indeed I am,” said the Doctor. He flicked a switch and a large screen descended from the high ceiling. On the screen was an aerial shot of a beautiful, lush, green forest. The sun was shining and he could hear strange birds chirruping.

“The Amazon?” questioned Richard.

“Ah, not so close, Richard,” smiled the Doctor. “This is a new and different world. A planet called Gandra. It’s a jungle world. The trees are several hundred feet high and the Gandrans live in tree houses high above the jungle floor. In fact the entire community is up in the trees all across the planet. Some Gandrans are born, live and die without ever setting foot on the jungle floor.”

“Looks perfect,” said Holly, gazing up at the screen.

“It looks sticky,” said Lilly, joining them.

“Yes,” said the Doctor, checking the readings, “it is a bit warm out there.” The Doctor removed his dark coat and grey blazer and flung them over the console, rolling up his shirt sleeves and loosening his tie.

“Hang on,” said Holly, “are you sure it’s safe to land?”

“What do you mean?” asked the Doctor, as he began preparations for materialisation.

“Well you never know how alien races are going to react when you drop in on them.”

“Nonsense,” said the Doctor, grinning, “the Gandrans are peace loving folk. They don’t get many visitors, but when they do they welcome you with open arms.”

“Famous last words,” said Holly, rolling her eyes at Lilly.

To be continued...

Story 9: A Beautiful Life

“You never know how alien races are going to react when you drop in on them.”

“Nonsense,” said the Doctor, grinning, “the Gandrans are peace loving folk. They don’t get many visitors, but when they do they welcome you with open arms.”

“Famous last words,” said Holly, rolling her eyes at Lilly.


Richard Hicks has just joined the TARDIS team. His first stop: the jungle world of Gandra - a beautiful planet of tree-dwelling inhabitants.

But the lower levels of the tree complex are found to be deserted, the Gandrans having moved higher up.

The Doctor discovers that all is not as it should be on this peaceful world. What exactly is the Age? Who are the Surfacers? And what is irritating Lilly (other than her new travelling companion)?

The Age comes to all...


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

Elsewhere (Chapter 11)

Chapter 11 (Tears Before Bedtime)

The disappearing portal had distracted the few Kro’Tenk foot soldiers long enough for the forces of planet Earth to fight back,

In Huxley, Bambera’s troops made a final assault on the remaining warriors, forcing them to scatter through the town.

Roxanne watched on, concerned, as Lilly, still caked in dry, blue alien blood joined in with the UNIT soldiers as they charged against the creatures.

In the days to come it was reported that a number of the creatures had escaped, but that UNIT weren’t concerned as they posed no real threat. They would find the occasional creature hidden in woodlands or in the sewers, but they were slowly mopping up the remaining survivors.

What concerned Roxy was what would happen to Holly.

And what would become of Lilly.




One Week Later




Holly and Roxy were sat on a bench in the cemetery. Holly stared down at a simple, white wooden cross with the name “Carole Smith” written in black paint on it.

“Sad, isn’t it?” she said.

“What is?”

“That all that remains of Carole Smith is this pathetic white cross. She probably died during the 1960’s or something.”

“How could you possibly know that?” said Roxy, with a laugh.

“Because all of these graves are marked with people who died in the 60’s.”

Roxy sighed. “I see the council are dithering over how best to tackle the repairs to the town centre.”

Holly shrugged. “You know what they’re like.”

“Yeah.” Roxy turned to Holly. “You’re leaving, aren’t you?”

“Yep,” said Holly. “The Doctor forgave me. Told me that I had another chance. We both said things in the heat of the moment.”

“So we need to say goodbye then,” said Roxy, holding back her tears.

“Not forever,” said Holly. “I’ll be back.”

“I don’t think you will.”

“I have family,” said Holly. “Of course I’ll be back.”

“Not forever though,” said Roxy, echoing Holly’s words. “You’ll flit back every now and then to see them, but this isn’t your life anymore. Your life is up there in the box with that torch-shining lunatic and the blonde psychopath.”

“She’s not a psychopath,” said Holly.

“Isn’t she? I told you how she killed that Kro’Tenk captain back in the library. She’s dangerous.”

“It’s just the way she is,” said Holly. “It was self defence.”

“Just keep telling yourself that, Hols.”

“Please, Roxy, let’s not argue.”

Roxy smiled and then relaxed. “I’m sorry. I’m just…I’m going to miss you.”

Holly took her hand and squeezed it tightly. “We’ll always be friends, you soppy sod.”

“Of course we will,” said Roxy. And then the two friends gave each other a hug.

In the years to come Roxy found out that Carole Smith was actually only a toddler when she had died in 1963. She had missed out on so much of the world. Of the twentieth century. But she also wondered if there was another alternate reality out there somewhere were Carole Smith was still living her life as an OAP, being with some grandchildren maybe and reflecting on a life filled with love and hope.

Somehow this comforted her.

“Do you love her?” asked Roxy to Holly as the sun began to set over the cemetery.

Holly didn’t answer. She felt her chest tighten.

“Come on, it’s a simple question. Do you love her?”

Holly turned to Roxy and just smiled.




Sixty miles away Richard Hicks sat in the passenger seat of a UNIT:X Landrover as he watched his wife and two children in a nearby children’s playground. He smiled sadly as he watched his wife try and round their kids up, both of them refusing to obey, instead wanting another five minutes on the slide.

And then he saw the tall, dark-skinned man sat on the bench next to her, his arm almost draped over her shoulder, but not quite.

Sat next to him in the drivers seat was Faith Crossland. She looked at him and exhaled. “His name is Toby Gilchrist.”

Richard nodded. “She moved on.”

“Don’t blame her,” said Faith. “She’s not over you. Not by any stretch of the imagination. She met him at a centre for people who have recently lost loved ones. They aren’t together, but she needs his friendship right now.”

“To help her get over me,” said Richard flatly.

“We can organise you being reintroduced to her,” said Faith. “What Stark did was wrong, but I can arrange for it to be put right.”

“No,” said Richard quickly.

“No?”

“I need time to process it. To process everything that happened to me.”

“But the longer you leave it the closer they may become. You may find it hard to come back from the dead.”

“I just need time,” said Richard. “I don’t know who I am anymore.” He looked at his hand as he clenched and unclenched his fist. “Can you take me back to the Doctor now?”

Faith nodded. “Doctor it is.”




Lilly stood in the large, ornate, Victorian-esque TARDIS shower. She’d showered a number of times since the final battle in the town centre, but somewhere - somehow - she could still see the blue blood smeared all over her face.

She turned the shower on and began scrubbing again as hard as she could. She felt sick to the stomach with what she had done. Holly had been understanding, but she didn’t want to understand it. She didn’t want this anger anymore.

And somewhere she could hear her father’s laugh - the Masters laugh - echoing around her skull.

And she scrubbed.

And she scrubbed.

And she cried.

And she scrubbed.




Stark swirled his ice cube around his whiskey glass and then took a swig of it. He nodded to Bambera. “Sure you won’t have one, Winifred?”

“No thank you, Roger,” she said. “I’m looking forward to going back home.”

The Doctor turned and smiled at her. “Are you sure you don’t need my help to round up the rest of the Kro’Tenk?”

“We’re fine, Doctor,” Bambera managed a smile. She had met the Doctor a few times before, but this incarnation of him was much quieter, much more subdued. He calmed her as well. “It’s good to see you again.”

“You too, Winifred,” smiled the Doctor.

“You’ll have to drop in on myself and Ancelyn sometime,” she said as she got up from the desk.

“You can count on it,” said the Doctor.

Bambera smiled again and then saluted him. The Doctor responded with his own, more casual salute and then nodded. “As you were.”

Bambera turned to Stark, gave him a curt nod, and then made her way out of the office.

“All’s well that ends well,” said Stark, after the door had shut.

“How’s your bruise?” asked the Doctor, pointing to the purple side of Stark’s face.

“I should have him locked away,” said Stark, angrily.

“You had him killed,” said the Doctor, quickly. “Well, you know what I mean.”

“Indeed I did,” said Stark. “Ah, I suppose I should let the chap off.”

“Did your UNIT bods get a chance to look at Aldridge’s TARDIS. It won’t open for me. I’ve put enough power into it to light it up like a Christmas tree, but it won’t activate.”

“Afraid not,” said Stark. “I had the others do some tests, but it’s beyond them.”

“But not beyond you, Roger,” said the Doctor. He leaned back in the chair. “Oh well, I’ll take it away with me then. See what I can do.”

“You do that, old boy,” smiled Stark.

The Doctor got up to go and then turned back. “I suspect we’ll see each other again.”

“Oh, naturally,” smiled Stark.

The Doctor held his hand up to give him a mock wave and then turned to exit.

“And for god sake, man,” continued Stark, “Stop thinking about Jacarthia. That place is finished. We can’t change it now. Not after all this time.”

The Doctor turned back to him and then turned to leave once more.




The TARDIS was sat on the same hill it had stood on in the other dimension when Bessie pulled up with Faith, Richard, the Doctor and Holly inside her.

Lilly was waiting by the TARDIS with the doors open, the wind gently whipping at her blonde hair. She was eager to get away and she smiled when she saw Holly.

Faith helped Richard out of the car and handed him a holdall.

“Are you sure about this?” she asked him.

“Absolutely sure,” said Richard.

“What’s going on?” asked Lilly, frowning at Richard.

“I’ve asked Richard to come along with us,” said the Doctor, taking his holdall. “To help him clear his head and sort himself out.”

“Thanks again, Doc.”

“Don’t mention it, Mr Hicks.”

“Just call me Richard, eh?”

“Is this wise?” asked Lilly.

“It worked out with me,” said Holly, flashing her a smile.

“He’s not my type though,” said Lilly, flashing Richard a dark look.

“Richard is a guest,” said the Doctor. “I’ll show you around.”

“Wait,” said Faith, walking up to the Doctor. “I never got a chance to say thank you.”

“For what?” asked the Doctor, as Richard hovered near the entrance to the TARDIS.

“For saving us. For stopping us from using Oliver’s bloody satellite dish weapony thing.”

“Don’t mention it, Mrs Crossland.”

Faith leant in and gave him a kiss on his cheek. “If you ever get fed up when the twenty-something lovers and lost middle-aged men have all left you, you know where I am, hey?”

The Doctor smiled. “Your seat’s already reserved, Mrs Crossland.”

She laughed.

“Take care of Bessie as well. I’ll be needing her next time I look in on you and Mr Stark.”

“Will do, sir,” said Faith, saluting him. And then she turned to go. As she got into the drivers seat of Bessie, Faith took out her phone and made a phone call. She waited a few moments and then her face broke into a huge grin,

“Hey, sweetheart, it’s Mummy here. I’ve missed you.” She looked at the Doctor as he guided Richard into the TARDIS. “Yeah, I’ve just realised how much this world means to me. How’s Daddy doing?”




Holly waited until Richard and the Doctor had disappeared into the TARDIS and then turned to Lilly.

“You okay with this?” said Lilly, thumbing back towards the police box.

“It doesn’t matter,” said Holly. “None of it matters. Only here and now. And you.”

Lilly narrowed her and eyes and looked a little bemused. “Beg your pardon, Dangerfield?”

“All that matters is you.” She took Lilly’s hands and looked at her deep, green eyes. “Do you get it?”

Lilly nodded. “Yeah, but, what about Roxy and your family and all the-”

Holly put a finger to her lips. “All that matters is you.”

Lilly didn’t blink as Holly leaned in and kissed her on the lips. For a moment the universe stood still. They could have had an army of Cybermen flying over their heads, yet neither would have noticed. After what seemed like a blissful eternity Holly broke free.

“Do you get it yet?” she asked again

Lilly nodded as she continued to look at Holly. “Yeah, Dangerfield, I get it.”




The Beginning

Elsewhere (Chapter 10)

Chapter 10 (Through the Eye of the Needle)

“I want to see my family,” said Richard Hicks as he sat on the edge of the stretcher in his medical gown and slippers.

“You can’t at the moment,” said Faith, as sympathetically as possible.

“At least tell me they’re alright.”

“They’re fine,” said Faith. “Your wife was very concerned about you.”

“So where are they then?”

Faith scratched her head and bit her lip. She couldn’t tell him the truth. It wasn’t her place to tell him the truth. “They had to be evacuated from the town because of the Kro’Tenk.” She decided to change tack. “Do you remember anything from your time on the other side?”

“No,” said Richard, shaking his head. “Just ash and cloud and burning. I remember arriving in the other Richard’s body and then…I think I lost my hand,” he said, bring his hand up to his face and looking at it with curiosity. “But then everything went black.”

“Well we can only assume that your other self’s body was taken care of and kept safe otherwise you wouldn’t be here right now.”

“Where am I anyway? Where’s the Doctor?”

Faith looked around her. “It’s a medical facility on the outskirts of your town - well, actually it’s an old factory that my team have done up into a medical facility.”

“But you’re Australian.”

“Oh, jeez, does that mean I’m not allowed here?” said Faith sarcastically.

“No, of course not,” said Richard, smiling at her.

“I work for a group called UNIT: X. We deal with the unexplained. Aliens and all that stuff. We’ve been taking care of you.”

Richard scratched the back of his head. “A few months ago I’d had enough of working on that bloody market stall. Now I can’t wait to get back to it. To get back to Cheryl.”

“Yeah…” said Faith, distantly. “Look, maybe you should get some rest.”

“Look, Miss…?”

“Mrs. Mrs Crossland.”

“Look, Mrs Crossland-”

“Call me Faith though,” she said, holding up a finger.

“Look, Faith, I want to see the Doctor.”

“You can’t see him at the moment. He’s occupied elsewhere.”

“Occupied? With what?”

Faith exhaled. “He’s over in that other world trying to stop them from getting through.”

“What?!” said Richard. There was an explosion from somewhere in the distance. “It sounds as if they’ve already gotten through!”




Elsewhere…




“How do we know this plan hasn’t been tried in the dimension before this?” said Holly, as Ellie Hicks strapped her foot up with a bandage.

“Well, we don’t,” said Aldridge, who was sat at a table with his arms folded, “but we can only hope that it wasn’t. I think the advantage of them occupying each world for 20 years may work on our side.”

“How?”

“Because times change,” said Aldridge, sounding a little frustrated.

“What the Professor means,” said the other Holly from back towards the door, “is that twenty years ago the previous dimension probably didn’t have the twenty-five nuclear warheads under the surface of the Earth.”

“Exactly,” said Aldridge. “The Osterhagen Project.”

“The most despicable thing this planet has done so far,” said the Doctor with a frown. “Well, one of them.”

“So you detonate the nukes and it blows up the planet?” said Holly, a look of revulsion on her face.

“That’s about the size of it,” said Aldridge.

“Not wanting to be a doom merchant here,” said the Doctor, pacing around the table, “but why didn’t you do this before?”

Aldridge looked straight ahead, smiling. “There was always the hope. The hope that we’d find another way.”

Ellie finished bandaging up Holly’s ankle and got to her feet. “As we approached the twenty year mark we knew that we were running out of options. The Kro’Tenk will murder us all no matter what.”

The other Holly nodded and wiped her nose on her sleeve. “So we’ve gotta nuke them before they leave.”

The Doctor stopped pacing. “The Osterhagen stations though-”

“Have already been occupied for some time by our agents,” said Aldridge. “All that remains is for us to send the activation signal.”

“Supposing one of them doesn’t go through with it? What then?” asked Holly.

“The alternative is being killed by the Kro’Tenk,” said Ellie, slumping to the floor. “Plus each station has two people in them.”

“Just in case one chickens out,” said the Doctor, glumly.

“Just in case one chickens out,” confirmed Aldridge. “It’s not ideal, but it’s the only way.”

“Then why didn’t you do it before they opened up their portal?” said the Doctor, rounding on Aldridge. “You could have saved a lot of trouble the other side.”

“Because I needed you to come through.”

“What?”

Aldridge got up and walked into a corner of the basement where a collection of boxes and storage containers were kept. He picked up what looked like a cube wrapped in a dirty, old rag. He handed it to the Doctor and slowly removed the covering. Underneath was a small, metal cube with ornate and intricate markings all over it. Each side contained a circular design.

“What’s that?” asked Holly, peering at the cube.

“My TARDIS,” said Aldridge. “I knew you’d eventually come to try and fix this little problem. I had to wait until you were safely through.”

“Nekram said he destroyed your TARDIS,” said the Doctor.

“He thought he did,” grinned Aldridge.

“It’s a bit small,” said Holly. “How’d you get inside it?”

“It’s in siege mode,” said the Doctor, turning it over and over in his hands. “It’s kind of like the last desperate mode a TARDIS can take if it’s endangered. It’s takes quite a jolt of power to reactivate it.” He looked at Aldridge. “Forgive me, but why would I want your TARDIS?”

“Because of what’s inside it,” said Aldridge.

“Which is?”

The room shook. Brick dust trickled down on Holly’s nose and she sneezed.

“There’s no time,” said Aldridge. “We need to get you back to your TARDIS.”

“Wait,” said the Doctor, as Aldridge snatched the cube from him and wrapped it back up. “You can’t just expect me to take your TARDIS without an explanation. What’s inside it?”

The room shook again and a wooden beam came crashing down, narrowly missing Ellie.

“Ellie,” said Aldridge, pointing towards the young woman, “signal the operators at each Osterhagen station. Get them prepared.”

“Are we absolutely sure about this?” said the other Holly. Holly could sense the desperation - the fear - in her voice.

“There is no other way,” said Aldridge. Holly wasn’t sure, but she may have spotted a tear trickle down from his eye before he turned away and marched towards the staircase.

“Wait!” said the other Holly, “I’m coming with you.”

“You can’t come with us,” said the Doctor, looking back to her.

“Not to your world,” said the other Holly. “Just to…say goodbye.” She swallowed. “Please. I can’t die in here. I want to see my town one last time.”

Aldridge gave a simple nod of his head and then led them all upstairs.




When Faith and Richard reached the town centre they were blocked by UNIT soldiers. The town centre looked like a war zone, but most of the buildings were still intact.

Faith flashed her I.D. to one of the soldiers and he ushered them both through the cordon.

“Sentinel,” said Stark, rushing up to her from behind a Landrover. “What’s Hicks doing here?”

“He insisted,” said Faith. “Sorry, boss.”

“We’ll talk about this later,” said Stark, flashing her an angry glare. He turned to Hicks. “Please, Mr Hicks, you need to return to your hospital bed.”

“What the hell has happened here?” said Richard, completely ignoring Stark. He looked over towards four rows of burnt out market stalls. “Oh my god.”

“Richard, it’s fine,” said Faith, by his side again. “It’s just superficial damage. They’ll rebuild your town.”

“That’s if anyone can stop these things,” said Richard, nodding towards the sky as a rocket grenade flew over their heads and hit a nearby Kro’Tenk who fell to the floor and clattered down, twisted up with it’s burning bike.

“Double Zero has calculated a 48% chance that we will survive-”

“Shut it,” said Richard, pointing to Stark. “I want you to take me to my family now.”

“I can’t,” said Stark.

“Richard, please,” said Faith, putting her hands on his shoulders. “You need to come back with me. At least take shelter behind the safety line.”

“No,” said Richard, shrugging her away. “Where are my wife and kids?” He grabbed Stark by his lapels and pulled him towards him. Stark looked genuinely terrified. “Where is Cheryl?”

Stark held his breath and then swallowed. “They left town.”

“Why?” growled Richard.

“Because…” He looked at Faith who shook her head in disbelief that it’d come to this. “Because she thinks your dead.”

Richard frowned, staggered and dropped Stark, who backed away from him. “What?”

“Officially….you’re dead,” said Stark again.

The last thing he saw was Richard Hick’s fist flying towards his face.




The two Holly’s and the two Doctors had reached the top of the hill where the TARDIS was standing. The smoke had stopped billowing from inside it and it now stood silent and still. The journey up to the top had been pretty uneventful. Most of the Kro’Tenk were too busy coordinating their world-wide escape plans to bother with individuals now.

“I still can’t believe this,” said Holly as she turned back to the site of her town burning in the distance.

“You need to go now,” said Aldridge, handing the covered-up cube to the Doctor. “And keep this safe.”

“I will. I will,” said the Doctor, taking it from him. “Stop worrying.”

Aldridge took one more look at the cube, closed his eyes, kissed his hand and then placed the palm on the cube. “Farewell, old girl.”

“Listen-” started the Doctor.

Aldridge shook his head in frustration. “If you’re about to say that there has to be another way then please don’t, young man.”

“A man has to try,” said the Doctor, giving him a sad smile.

“Go back home. Save your world.” He extended his hand and the Doctor shook it. “I dropped the name Doctor because it soon became apparent that I couldn’t heal this world. This world didn’t need a Doctor any more.”

“I did something similar once, a long time ago,” said the Doctor, smiling sadly at the distant memory. “So where does the name Aldridge come from?”

“Someone I used to know,” he replied. He cleared his throat. “Now come on, you two. Chop-chop, eh?”

“Thank you, Doctor.”

Aldridge smiled.

The Doctor turned to both Holly’s who were both watching the burning town below. “Don’t be too long, eh?”

Holly turned to look at him, nodding silently and then turned back to her counterpart as the Doctor entered the TARDIS.

“You could come with us, you know?”

“Not my world,” said the other Holly.

“Neither is the Doctor’s world,” said Holly. “I mean all the planets and travelling and things, but it doesn’t mean that I can’t belong there.”

“You have a life back there. A life I have never had.”

“You could have a life too. A real, normal life.”

“I could never adjust to a normal life. Not now.” She turned to Holly. “When I was little I had a teddy bear. His name was-”

“Sir Current Eyes.”

The other Holly smiled and then laughed. “That’s right. Well when the world went to crap he was the only thing I could put my trust in. The only thing that I knew would never die. Would never leave me.”

Holly felt sad. She’d given her Sir Current Eyes away to the children’s hospice when she had grown out of teddy bears and childish things.

“Then one day Sir Current Eyes caught on fire and he was gone. Just like that. Became ash and cinder just like this place.” She shook her head. “The only thing I could rely on - put my faith in - was gone. And so was my faith.”

“I’m sorry,” said Holly, putting a hand on her shoulder.

A gentle hum had started up from the TARDIS and Holly noticed Aldridge sat, cross-legged on the hill gazing out to the unknown.

“You need to go,” said the other Holly. “Please.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ll be happy knowing you’re out there living a life.”

Holly nodded. “I came here because I wanted to see my granddad, but I realise now that I don’t need to. He was your granddad, not mine. Mine passed away six months ago, but at least I got to share that magical time with him. He’s never coming back, is he?”

The other Holly shook her head.

And then Holly leaned in and gave her alternative self a tight hug.

“Do all that you can to be happy, Holly,” she said. “Fall in love. Save lives. Have fun. You never know when it might all end.”

“Holly!” came the Doctor’s voice from within the TARDIS.

Holly broke away from her other self and tearfully made her way back to the TARDIS. She took one more look at the lonely girl stood on the hill, gave Aldridge a sad, goodbye nod and then disappeared inside the box.

Aldridge turned and watched as the blue box shot up into the air and towards the swirling clouds until it was nothing but a blip against the green glowing portal.

When he was sure it was enough time he crossed over to Holly and put his arm around her and squeezed her tight. Then he put a walkie-talkie to his mouth and cleared his throat.

“Lethbridge-Stewart, when you’re ready, signal the operators at the stations. Activate the Osterhagen Project. Goodnight everyone. Goodnight, Alistair.”




Nekrum was standing over a monitor watching Azure coordinate a number of troops when he felt the ground rumble underneath him. He frowned as the vibrations grew heavier and heavier. Then a huge, quake caused him to fall over, landing hard on his armour-clad back.

There were panicked cries all around him and he looked up as the machine that was generating the dimension beam began to shake.

And then the ground opened up beneath them. There was a huge explosion from somewhere underneath him and the machine tipped and collapsed into the huge, gaping hole in the ground. The beam flickered and fluctuated and then winked out as the machine disappeared into the ground. The portal in the clouds closed up and Nekram shielded his eyes as more explosions erupted around him.

“No,” said Nekram. He got to his feet as buildings and ruins slowly crumbled and disappeared into the ever unstable ground. “Nekram to Azure come -”

But Nekram didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence. There was a flash of light and then….nothing.

From space the battered, devastated planet Earth cracked, collapsed in on itself and then disappeared in a flash of pure, white light.

A whole planet full of history, people and life winked out of existence to leave nothing but dust.

To be concluded....