UNIT:X (Chapter 1)

Chapter 1 (The Smell of Eggs)

“I warned you!” shouted the Doctor as the room shook, two glasses of water falling to the floor and smashing.

“We had to find out!” yelled Reikon over the din.

“If a box is sealed up for a reason with no way in and a warning from beyond the grave, then you don’t open it up!” said the Doctor, staring into his eyes.

The light on the other side of the door was growing bright now; the locked door struggling to stay closed. Whatever was on the other side was threatening to burst out.

“I had to know,” said Reikon. He looked at the Doctor again, his eyes shadowed. “I had to know.”



Earlier

The TARDIS door closed shut and Holly marched purposefully into the console room. She was dressed in a slinky gold dress and red necklace. Her hair was neatly tied up into a 1920’s haircut and she looked annoyed.

“Miss Dangerfield!” said the Doctor, clapping his hands together. “I trust the mission was a success.”

She raised her eyebrows. “I nearly got myself killed.”

“Nonsense,” he replied, setting the TARDIS in flight. “Did you get the item I needed?”

“The little circuit with the two electrical prongs?” She put her hand down the front of her dress and pulled out the small device. “It wasn’t easy getting near that skinny guys pocket though.”

“Aha!” he said, taking it from her and kissing the top of it. “The object of my desires.”

“What is that thing?” asked Richard, leaning across the console to look at it.

“An Odial Filament. You may have noticed that this old girl’s been rattling around a bit of late. The Odial Filament stabilises our journey a little more.” He opened a panel on the console and slotted the circuit into it.

“How’d you know that skinny guy would have it though?” asked Richard.

“Tell him, Miss Dangerfield.”

Holly removed the jewellery from her hair and sat down on the sofa, crossing her legs. “Believe it or not, Richard, that skinny guy in the brown suit was him.”

Richard frowned as he looked between the Doctor and Holly. “You?”

“A previous incarnation,” smiled the Doctor. “A rather hyperactive one I might add.”

“Incarnation?” said Richard. He was getting lost.

“It’s...alien.” Holly smiled. Then she frowned. “I don’t get it though, won’t he recognise me in the future when he’s you.”

Richard scratched his head.

“Nah,” said the Doctor, flicking some controls and setting the TARDIS in flight again. “I remember now though. You see I lost my last Odial Filament ages ago when I was him, and then I realised where I’d lost it. Sometime in the 1920’s.” He grinned at Holly. “And then I recognised you.” He winked. “The cause/effect time loopy thing triggering the buried memories.”

“But she wasn’t real, was she?” asked Holly, taking the beads from around her neck. “The part of the person I had to play?”

“No,” said the Doctor. “The Unicorn was created purely by the TARDIS writing you into history.”

“So you stole this filament thing from your own self?” asked Richard, looking even more lost.

“Genius, yeah?” said the Doctor, grabbing hold of the zig-zag lever.

“It’d make sense if you never stole it from yourself in the first place,” said Holly, collapsing onto the sofa and kicking her legs up. “That way you’d never have to steal it from yourself to get it back.”

“Crazy,” said Richard. “So let me get this straight – you realised you needed this filament thing that you’d lost when you were a different version of yourself. Then you realised when you’d lost it and you remembered someone who looked like Holly. So you sent her back in time to steal it from yourself so you could get it back. Therefore creating some sort of weird already-happened-loop, yeah?”

“Bingo,” said the Doctor.

“This is why I need a bit of normal now,” said Richard, scratching his head.

“Just don’t get me to steal any plans for the Death Star, yeah?” said Holly.

“I just don’t do time loops. Aliens, yes, but not time loops,” said Richard, exasperated.

The Doctor smiled sadly at him. “Yes, I’m sorry Richard. I did say I’d get you home.” He straightened up. “Are you ready for this?”

“I’m ready,” he said.

“Then let’s take you home.” The TARDIS began to materialise as the time rotor slowed down. “Miss Dangerfield I suggest you change into something more practical.”

“Aye-aye, sir,” she said, mock saluting. “What kind of a name was ‘the Unicorn’ anyway?”



It had been raining, but the worst of it had passed. Large puddles remained on the pavement and raindrops dripped from the leaveless branches of the trees. It was getting dark and there was a chill in the air.

The TARDIS had landed at the end of a street lined with attractive terrace houses. The door to the ship opened and Holly and Richard stepped out. Richard had his holdall packed and Holly had changed into jeans, leather jacket and white top.

“Funny smell,” said Richard.

“Yeah,” said Holly, wrinkling her nose. “Smells of –”

“Gone off eggs,” said the Doctor, emerging from the TARDIS and locking the door. “Oh,” he said, smiling and sticking out his tongue to let a drop of rain land on it, “and it’s been raining.”

“Getting cold though,” said Holly, fastening her jacket up.

“Yes, we’re sometime in November.” He checked his watch. “Late afternoon.”

“Has there been a power cut?” asked Richard.

“What do you mean?” asked the Doctor, looking around him.

“Well, look,” said Richard, indicating the street lights. “Usually they’re on by now. And what about everyones homes? No lights on? No TV’s?”

“Maybe that doesn’t happen in every street,” suggested the Doctor.

“Of course it does, silly,” said Holly. “Something isn’t right here.”

“And there’s the smell of eggs too,” said the Doctor, tapping his right nostril.

The three of them made their way down the street before turning onto another one. Everywhere they went the houses were in darkness. Not a sign of life or a sign of light. They finally arrived at Littlefield Avenue – where Richard’s house was – and made their way to his front gate.

Richard stood in front of the iron gate and put his hand on it. The raindrops soaked his hand and he frowned.

“Well, here you are,” said the Doctor. “Home at last.”

Richard shook his head. “I don’t even know if Cheryl is still renting it.”

The Doctor pulled out a data pad and pressed a few switches. “Well, providing you don’t change history in the next few minutes this house still belongs to you and her. Or at least is still rented by the both of you.”

“But that other bloke, Toby Gilchrist. The guy she was with in the park –”

“Ah-ah, I can’t tell you too much information.”

“Spoilers,” said Holly, tapping her nose.

“But I can’t just walk in,” said Richard.

“Of course you can!” said the Doctor, clapping him on the back. “She’ll probably scream and faint and then have a cry and then you’ll be all happy families again.”

“But he can’t walk in, Doctor,” said Holly.

“Nonsense!”

“I really can’t,” said Richard. He indicated the darkened windows leading into the living. “Like every house down this street and the others around it there doesn’t seem to be anyone in.”

The Doctor frowned and pulled out his sonic screwdriver. He twirled around on the spot, frowned, flicked the device, checked it again, spun around two more times and then pocketed the device. “Interesting.”

“And it still stinks of eggs,” said Holly.

“Tell you what,” said the Doctor, looking both ways down the street, “why don’t we split up and see what we can see.”

“Sounds like a plan,” said Holly. “Meet back here in fifteen minutes, yeah?”

“Agreed,” said the Doctor. He turned to leave and then turned back to Richard. “Take care, Mr Hicks.”

Richard nodded and smiled.

Holly headed off down one way whilst the Doctor headed down the other. Richard then turned back to the door of his house, knelt down beside a plant pot on the top step leading to the door and lifted it up revealing a shiny yale lock key.

He exhaled, closed his eyes and then unlocked the front door.



Holly hadn’t intended to come home so soon. When she had said goodbye to her family she had promised to return eventually, but she had decided to have a life with Lilly out there in the beyond. Now she was back in Huxley she wasn’t entirely sure what she was going to do. Her parents’ house was only a fifteen minute walk away, but she didn’t know if she should go back there. It might stir up emotions in everyone. She wasn’t sure she was ready for that yet. She didn’t envy Richard and the emotions he was about to stir up.

“Thinking of me?” came a voice. It was as light as a whisper and she barely heard it. She spun around but there was nothing there.

“Hello?” said Holly. She listened. Nothing. “Stupid Dangerfield.”

She continued down the road, turned a corner, headed down a street with shops and then checked her watch. This was stupid. There should be some sign of life somewhere, but this entire part of the town was dead.

And then she started thinking back to her parents again. Back to her sister. If this part of the town was in darkness and abandoned, what about her part of the town?

She shook the thoughts away from her head. She knew she’d have to go and check it out, but she also knew that she had barely ten minutes left. By the time she met up with the Doctor again he’d have an answer to it somewhere.

She turned the corner into Maple Street and froze. Standing there in front of her, a rifle pointed directly at her face, was a man dressed in black combats and a red beret. He only looked to be in his early 20’s, his green eyes flickering with fear.

“Hi,” she squeaked.

“On your knees,” he trembled. “Or I’ll shoot you dead!”

To be continued...