Fic - Doctor Who: Undergound Part Two

[charleygirl]

Title: Underground Part Two
Author: charleygirl
Rating: PG
Type: Gen, action/adventure
Characters Involved/Pairing: The Eighth Doctor, Lucie Miller
Summary: There's something nasty in the caves...
Disclaimer: Everything barring any original characters belongs to the BBC/Big Finish Productions.

UNDERGROUND

 

PART TWO

 

 

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

 

It was very damp in this part of the mine. Jason knew that the rainwater could take days, even weeks to penetrate through the rock and reach the lower levels, but compared with the main visitor route the tunnel he was in was positively soaking. He could feel rather than see the water lying on the ground, sloshing over his boots as he walked.

 

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

 

The sound of the water running down the walls to hit the puddles on the floor was a steady, regular rhythm. If he hadn’t been aware of the source of the noise and had been of a fanciful nature, he might have thought that it sounded like footsteps, coming down the tunnel behind him.

 

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

 

Jason stumbled, his foot catching on an uneven rock. He put out a hand to catch himself and started as he realised that though the wall beneath his fingers was wet, it was running with moisture as he had supposed. There was not dripping, because there wasn’t enough water on the rock.

 

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

 

He froze. That strange feeling he’d had when he heard that weird noise earlier returned tenfold. He tried to tell himself that it was just an irrational reaction to the almost complete darkness, and that it was the cold that was making him shiver; tried to tell himself that he hadn’t been followed down the tunnel and that there wasn’t someone standing behind him right now, no matter what his senses were telling him.

 

Steadying himself he turned, bringing up the torch to shine the beam back down the way he had come. In the yellow light, he thought he saw something move –

 

- and then the tunnel was plunged into inky blackness as the torch abruptly went out.

 

 

***

 

“Doctor? Come on, Doctor, this is getting really old now. I’m freezing my bits off, things are still dripping on me ‘ead, and I’ve got the weirdest feeling someone’s watching me.”

 

Lucie wasn’t surprised when the Doctor didn’t reply. According to her watch he’d been unconscious for nearly forty minutes – he was stone cold, despite her attempts to try and rub some warmth into his hands, which couldn’t be good. She’d been shouting for what seemed like forever, to no avail. Maybe they’d landed in a deserted mine, with no one for miles. Or perhaps they were cut off from the outside world by a rock fall, trapped underground…

 

“Don’t think like that, Miller,” she told herself sternly, trying not to shiver and for once actually missing the Doctor’s old velvet coat. It would have been a lot warmer, and he probably would have had a scarf or a pair of gloves, or maybe even a portable heater hidden away in the pockets.

 

She flapped her arms, trying to generate some warmth, and looked around her. Nothing but rocky tunnel in either direction, and their friend the cave man in the middle, standing guard over the bend. Lucie ventured a little closer to it; more to try and keep herself warm than anything else. The Doctor had been touching it before his collapse. There was definitely something freaky about it – when she got near, she felt…well, strange. Almost as though there was a kind of buzzing in her ears.

 

“You’re well weird, you know that?” she informed the figure.

 

Unsurprisingly, it didn’t reply.

 

“Great. Stuck underground with such fascinating company. This tops even that weekend in Scarborough when Dan went out and got so rat-arsed he fell off the pier and we spent all Saturday night in A and E. Even that was more fun than this.” Lucie turned her back on the figure, bending over the Doctor once more. He still seemed to be breathing OK, but nothing she did could get even a flicker of the eyelids out of him. “Right,” she said, making a decision that she should have made some time before, “I’m going to find the TARDIS. Does she have a distress flare or an alarm or something?”

 

No response.

 

Lucie sighed. “OK. You sit tight there – well, lie there, anyway. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She looked around, shoving her hands into the pockets of the Doctor’s jacket, and blew out her cheeks. “Now, which way was it?”

 

Both stretches of the tunnel looked alike. She took the torch from the crevasse in which she’d wedged it and shone it past the rock man. The figure’s outstretched arm seemed almost to be pointing down the passage, its shadow thrown in sharp relief on the wall.

 

Lucie frowned. Hadn’t the figure been pointing the other way a moment ago? She turned the torch onto the rock man itself, and felt something very much like a scream rise into her throat as the thing’s lumpen head slowly and creakily turned to look at her…

 

 

***

 

 

Jason tried the torch.

 

The battery couldn’t be dead – it had only been replaced the day before. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end as whatever was behind him – There’s nothing behind you, it’s all in your mind, you idiot! – came closer.

 

“Come one, come on…”

 

 

***

 

 

Lucie stared at the rock man, and the rock man stared at Lucie.

 

Or rather, it would have done, had it actually possessed eyes to stare with. She took a step backwards, holding the torch in front of her like a vampire hunter with a crucifix. The beam passed over the creature’s face, and it moved its head from side to side, making a deep rumbling noise, almost as it if didn’t like the light much.

 

Who are you?

 

It was the same voice Lucie had heard before – strange, echoey, unreal. She realised that it wasn’t in the tunnel; it was in her head, in her mind. The rock man couldn’t be speaking because the rock man didn’t have a mouth. She held out the torch, directing the beam at the thing’s head. It rumbled again. “I’m Lucie Miller, rock-head. Who’re you?”

 

We are old…we need no name…

 

“Handy. What did you do to my mate?”

                                                

We did nothing but touch his mind…he is not of this world…

 

“Blimey, no flies on you, are there?” Lucie, emboldened by the effect the light was having on the creature, turned up the beam. The rock man swayed, jerkily raising one arm as if to shield itself from the light. “Ha! Don’t like that, do you? Was that you calling before, kidding on that you needed help?”

 

We need help…need…your…help…

 

“Oh, yeah?” asked Lucie. She cocked her head to one side, a hand on her hip. “What for, exactly? If it’s some kind of really weird blind date you’re after, you’re really not my type.”

 

The figure steadied, straightening itself, arms still raised. As it moved, little cracks appeared where its joints should be, only to heal over and vanish back into its rocky surface. Lucie watched, fascinated despite herself. The rock looked almost alive.

 

You will help us…help us to feed…we have been so long without…sustenance…you bring us…fresh meat…

 

“Oh, no you don’t! I’m no one’s burger and chips!” Lucie took a tighter grip on the torch. “I’ve got light, and I’m not afraid to use it!”

 

The torch picked that moment to go out.

 

Lucie stood there in the dark, feeling a right prat. She could hear the creaking of the creature as it moved, moved towards her.

 

“Er, Doctor…I think we might have a problem.”

 

 

***

 

 

“Come on, come on!”

 

Whatever it was behind him was getting closer. No matter how much he told himself that he was a rational man, that he didn’t believe in ghosts and that Halloween was a festival of trash imported from America, he couldn’t deny the shivers that ran down his spine.

 

“Who are you?” he demanded, trying to sound normal and not let his voice shake. “What’re you doing down here?”

 

There was what almost sounded like a low chuckle behind him, and a voice that was like a cold wind blowing through his head whispered,

 

Food…at last…food….

 

 

***

 

 

Lucie backed away as far as she could, only to end up against the wall of the tunnel. The rock thing was blocking both escape routes.

 

Crouching down, she dragged the Doctor half upright and tried to pull him away from the creature’s approach. “Oh, come on, you always carry junk with you,” she muttered, desperately searching through the contents of his pockets. “Now would be a great time to wake up and get us out of this, y’know.”

 

There might have been a low groan in response, but she couldn’t be sure. Her hand closed around something long, cold and cylindrical in his inside jacket pocket. Bingo! The sonic screwdriver. Lucie had no idea what setting it was on, or even if it would work, but it was her only hope at that moment. Lifting it up, she pointed it in the direction the creature seemed to be in and pushed the button.

 

Immediately a high pitched warbling filled the air, setting her teeth on edge and threatening to vibrate her fillings out of her mouth. It had a drastic effect on the creature – with an unearthly screech that was even worse than the noise made by the sonic screwdriver, there was a deafening crack and a rumbling noise so loud that Lucie thought she might have inadvertently started an earthquake. The sound of rock hitting rock reverberated around her, bouncing off the walls.

 

She crouched there for several moments, waiting to hear the inexorable creaking of the creature as it began its pursuit once more. When nothing happened, she tentatively got to her feet, waving away the dust that suddenly filled the tunnel, and leant the Doctor gently against the wall. Her finger slipped on the screwdriver, and a bright light appeared from the end of the handle, making her jump. “Now that’s a good idea,” she told no one in particular, turning the tool upside down and shining the beam ahead of her to where the rock man had been.

 

“Oh.”

 

There was no creature. Just a pile of rubble and jumbled rocks, as though the ceiling had fallen in.

 

“Bloody hell. Wall of Sound, eat your heart out.”

 

 

***

 

 

The crash startled Jason.

 

It came barely a moment after the torch had come back on. His first instinct was to think it had been a rock fall – his reflexes had taken over, feet guiding him towards the source of the sound before he even realised that the presence behind him was no longer there. He was too relieved by the fact to bother analysing what had happened too deeply. If those kids he’d heard were still down there they could be trapped. He tried his radio again, but it was still dead. Too deep to get a signal here – that could make things tricky.

 

“Hello?” he shouted, “Anyone there? Are you OK?”

 

 

***

 

 

Lucie heard the voice.

 

It was a real voice this time, a human voice, not some weird echo in her head. It was real, and it sounded close.

 

“Oi! My friend’s hurt!” she called. “We’re in this narrow tunnel – can you hear me?”

 

“I can hear you perfectly. Think you’re round the next – oh.” The beam of a bright torch appeared, momentarily dazzling her. When she could see again without little coloured dots in front of here eyes, she could make out a man standing behind the rubble that had been the rock creature. He looked wonderfully normal, dressed in a fleece and hardhat, the torch held in one gloved hand. He squinted at her. “How did you get in here?”

 

“Can we leave the awkward questions till later? My mate’s not well – we need to get him out of here.”

 

The man clambered over the rubble and crouched down beside her, peering at the Doctor. “What happened?”

 

Lucie shook her head. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

 

 

***

 

 

She couldn’t be more than twenty, Jason thought, glancing at the girl again. Kneeling on the floor, huddling in a suit jacket that was too big for her and did nothing to cover her bare legs, she hardly looked the type to go climbing down and abandoned mine shaft for kicks. She pushed her bobbed blonde hair away from her grimy face and bent over her friend.

 

“Doctor? Doctor, it’s Lucie. Can you hear me?”

 

A groan came from the crumpled shape on the ground. Jason’s torch picked out a man, rather older than the girl, though it was difficult to tell by how much as the harsh light bleached his features of any lines they might have had. He raised a hand, weakly, to shield his eyes from the glare. The girl – Lucie apparently – helped him to sit up.

 

“Your timing’s rotten,” she said quietly to him, “Why couldn’t you have come round five minutes ago?”

 

Jason was hopelessly confused. These two didn’t look like travellers, or nutters with a penchant for courting danger – they looked relatively ordinary, and far too well-dressed for a caving expedition. The girl looked more like she was going to a party, a flimsy summer dress just visible beneath her jacket, and ludicrously impractical sandals on her feet. The man was wearing a suit, with a gold watch chain clipped to his waistcoat which glinted in the torchlight. What the hell were they doing in the tunnels? There was no way that they could have got there before him, as the main gate had been locked and bolted as usual when he arrived, but here they very definitely were. It was a puzzle, and Jason had never liked puzzles.

 

“Hello?” said Lucie sharply, bringing him back to reality, “Are you going to help us, or what?”

 

“Lucie…” the man said softly, his tone mildly reproving.

 

“We’re a long way below ground here,” Jason told the girl, nettled by her attitude, “This is the deepest part of the mine, and it’s unstable. Not the best place to be taking a stroll.”

 

“Yeah, I’d gathered that. Good job I didn’t choose it for me morning walk, then, isn’t it?” she asked, giving him a challenging look, chin raised. “Look, mate, I - ”

 

“Is it a long walk to the surface?” the man asked, interrupting her.

 

Jason looked at him. His face was good-looking in a rather unsettling sort of way, the eyes sharp but friendly, their colour lost in the torchlight. Jason wondered whether Lucie was his daughter – he looked about old enough. “A fair distance,” he said. “Do you think you’re up to it?”

 

“Well, I don’t think lying around down here’s going to do me much good. It’s a bit parky, isn’t it?” With Lucie’s assistance, he got to his feet, though she had to put an arm round his waist to steady him. He looked around. “Hello, where did our friend go?”

 

Jason frowned. “I’m - ”

 

“Not you,” said Lucie, and turned back to her companion. “I’ll tell you about it later. Are you sure you’re OK?” Her tone was softer than the one she’d used when addressing Jason.

 

“Not entirely, no, but we won’t worry about that for now.” The man looked at Jason and smiled. “I’m the Doctor and this is Lucie. I must thank you for coming to our assistance.”

 

Jason found himself shaking the outstretched hand. It was clear the man had been lying around on the rock for too long – his skin was icy cold. “You’re lucky I was down here checking the place over. How the hell did you get in? This is private property – you’re trespassing.”

 

The Doctor’s face fell. “Is it? Oh, dear, I do apologise. I had no idea. We didn’t come via the usual routes, you see.”

 

“He means we came by time machine,” said Lucie bluntly, and the Doctor groaned. “It’s in a cave back there somewhere – big blue box, you can’t miss it.”

 

Jason frowned again, not sure if she was having him on or not. She certainly sounded serious enough, but her statement was completely ridiculous. “I could call the police - ”

 

“Oh, I’m sure there’s no need for that – we’re quite harmless. You’ll have to excuse my friend,” the Doctor said, earning himself a glare from Lucie, “Manners seem to have passed her by. Can you lead the way above ground? We’re a little…lost - ”

 

“That’s an understatement,” Lucie muttered.

 

“ – and it would be helpful to pin-point our exact position on the map,” the Doctor finished smoothly, as though she had never spoken.

 

Jason shrugged. “Sure. Maggie’s got some maps at the office you can take a look at if you like.”

 

“Thank you, Mr - ?”

 

“Lane. Jason Lane.”

 

“Thank you, Mr Lane. You’ve been very helpful.” The Doctor beamed at him. Lucie just rolled her eyes and hunched deeper into her jacket. Another look at her shoes reinforced Jason’s suspicion that, however they had got in; it hadn’t been down one of the shafts. Who the hell were they? They seemed eccentric, certainly, but didn’t appear to be a threat. He shook his head. Too many things had happened this morning that he couldn’t put an explanation to.

 

“Come on then,” he said, turning to clamber back over the rubble that was blocking the tunnel, “It’s this way. Oh, and watch your feet- we’ve had a lot of rain round here recently.”

 

 

***

 

 

“Doctor, what happened to you back there?” Lucie hissed as they followed the light of Jason’s torch. The tunnels seemed to be widening as they headed upwards, the floor gently sloping underfoot.

 

“I don’t know – psychic feedback, maybe?” he rubbed at his forehead and grimaced. “It certainly gave me a good kick in the brain, whatever it was.”

 

“Well, you scared the pants off me, I can tell you. I was already getting creeped out by this place. And then - ”

 

“It certainly does have an unusual ambiance,” the Doctor agreed. He glanced at Jason’s back curiously. “I wonder if our friend there can feel it, or if it’s something more subtle.”

 

“You mean something you can feel because you’re not human?” Lucie suggested.

 

“Could be.”

 

“Then how come I can feel it, clever dick? I’m human, aren’t I?”

 

“That’s debateable,” muttered the Doctor, and then held up a hand when she opened her mouth to argue. “Let’s discuss it when we get out of here, shall we? I’m starting to feel claustrophobic.”

 

“I’m not surprised. Doctor,” said Lucie, keeping her voice low so that Jason couldn’t hear her – it wouldn’t be a good idea to let the cave boy know that there had been a walking lump of rock down in his precious tunnels. “I know what’s down here.”

 

The Doctor stopped walking (well, staggering, really, as he was still leaning on her) and looked at her, eyes wide in surprise. “How - ?”

 

Lucie paused, trying to decide what to say, but also for effect, something the Doctor did on a regular basis and that she found seriously annoying. It wouldn’t hurt to give him a taste of his own medicine for once. He watched her, expression changing from disbelief to mild irritation as the moments passed.

 

“I don’t know what it is exactly,” she said finally, “but it’s old, it’s hungry, and I think we may have woken it up.”

 

 

TBC