Doctor Who: The Adventures of The 14th Doctor

Skinwalkers (Part 3)

Larn watched from the safety of the tent as her father examined the cow carcass. She had opened up the tent, eager to start the day, only to have a mutilated cow greet her.

The Doctor scanned the carcass with his sonic. But it told him nothing. For some reason it wasn't working like it should, which didn't make any sense. He just gave it a tune up....

What was more baffling was the carcass itself. It's eyes had been plucked out. It's lips had been peeled away. It's organs were gone, and the skin was taunt as it stretched across the bones. The blood had literally been drained from the cow.

The Doctor was also able to determine that the wounds that had been inflicted on the cow looked as if they had been cauterized. Whoever did this must have used a very hot tool.

"What did this?" asked a shaky voice behind him. The Doctor turned to meet his daughter's terrified eyes. "Larn, go back to the TARDIS..."

Larn shook her head. "No. What happened to this poor cow?"

"I honestly don't know, my sonic's scanner isn't working. But it's obvious that a predator didn't do this."

He saw Larn stare at the cow's empty eye sockets. The Doctor gently grabbed her by the shoulders. "Why don't we move the tent and the TARDIS away from here, maybe a bit closer to the ranch?"

Larn nodded weakly as her father led her back to the campsite to pack up their things.

The TARDIS materialized behind an old barn and as Larn and the Doctor stepped out. It was eerily quiet.

"Odd, ranches are usually quite noisy." The TARDIS's monitor froze when he tried to bring up the Sherman Ranch's history. Odd.

"Maybe this place is abandoned?" Larn suggested as she followed her father from behind the barn. There was an chicken coop, with no chickens and even a stable, but the place was so quiet it felt like a ghost town.

"Well, let's make the best of it!" The Doctor declared enthusiastically. "We can fix the old farmhouse up and we can stay here for a bit, you'll get to know what it's like living in an actual house!" There was also an old farmhouse, it looked like the wind would blow it over at any second, but Larn couldn't help but feel excited about the prospect of living in a house.

The wooden planks of the porch creaked loudly as the Doctor and Larn walked towards the door.

The Doctor turned the knob and the door creaked opened. The Doctor and Larn stuck their heads in and looked around, it was like peeking into a completely different world. There was furniture, carpet and even the smell of something cooking from the kitchen.

"I don't think this place is abandoned. " Larn said as she breathed in the enticing scent of the kitchen. It smelled like..like...fried chicken!

"That's because it isn't dear." Said a gentle voice. The Doctor and Larn looked up and at the top of the staircase, they saw a woman, in her mid fifties with smoky gray hair with a welcoming smile on her kind face.

"Oh I do beg your pardon, we didn't mean to intrude, we didn't know that someone lived here." The Doctor apologized.

"No need to apologize hon, it's my own fault for not hiring someone to help fix the place up." The woman replied with a understanding smile as she finally reached the bottom of the stairs, meeting the Doctor and Larn at eye level.

"Well, in that case, we'll be off then..." The Doctor proceeded to gently shoo Larn out of the door frame. Larn glanced longingly at the kitchen.

"You both are more than welcome to stay and join me for dinner. I don't get visitors very often and I would greatly appreciate the company."

"We'd hate to impose...." The Doctor said as Larn took in another deep breath, she smelled cream corn, mashed potatoes, gravy, and that fried chicken aroma was making her stomach growl.

"I insist, what's your name hon?" the woman asked.

"Oh, where are my manners, I'm the Doctor and this is my daughter Larn."

"I insist Doctor, especially because your daughter looks hungry." She smiled kindly as Larn blushed.

"Well now that you've mentioned it, I'm getting a wee bit peckish myself!" The Doctor said as he finally stepped inside the house.

The woman, who introduced herself as Nimona, led them to the dining room where the table had already been set. "As you can see, the table is set, take a seat, I'll go get your plates and utensils."

Larn sat down and was gaping at the spread of food. "It looks so delicious."

"It does." The Doctor agreed, "Great Stars, is that a cherry pie?"

"Larn Rema Vliyaya, what a beautiful name." Nimona said as she put another piece of fried chicken on Larn's plate. "Thank you."

"What does it mean?" Nimona asked. Larn glanced at her father and he gave a small nod. It was okay for her to say.

"My first name means rose. My first middle name means Petal and my second middle name means river." Larn replied before sinking her teeth into another plump chicken thigh.

"Rose Petal River, how lovely."

As they ate their desert, cherry pie for the Doctor and vanilla ice cream for Larn, Nimona asked them to stay. She had two spare rooms.

"They'll be perfect for you and Larn, Doctor. This place is perfect for your little getaway."

The Doctor agreed, especially because Larn seemed so at ease here. This place would be perfect.

" We would be honored to spend our holiday here at the Sherman Ranch with you Nimona." The Doctor said as he quickly grabbed a napkin and wiped Larn's face. It was covered in gravy.

"Wonderful! Doctor, Larn, welcome to the Skinwalker Ranch!"

"Skinwalker Ranch?" Larn asked.

"Yes, that's what we locals call it. It used to be quite the tourist attraction back in the day!"

The Doctor shuddered as he felt a chill crawl up his spine.