Home, the long way round [1]

Chapter 10 - The Hungry Earth

“Behold Rio!” The Doctor opened the doors.

Amy looked outside as she muttered. “Nuh-uh.”

“Not really getting the sunshine carnival vibe.” Rory comment.

“I’m glad that I’m not dressed for Rio.” Maddie comment, making Amy glare at her.

“No. Ooh, feel that, though, what's that?” The Doctor jumped on the ground. “Ground feels strange... Just me. Wait…” Then he noticed the blue patches of grass. “That's weird.”

“What's weird?” Rory asked to him as Maddie looked at him weirdly.

“Doctor, stop trying to distract us. We're in the wrong place.” Amy complained as the Doctor rushed forwards on the graveyard. “Doctor, it's freezing and I've dressed for Rio. We are not stopping here. Doctor! You listening to me?” The others followed him while Amy continued to complain. “It's a graveyard! You promised me a beach.”

The Doctor crouched down and grabbed a few grass that were blue. “Blue grass. Patches of it all round the graveyard.” Then he stood up again. “So, Earth, 2020-ish, ten years in your future, wrong continent for Rio, I'll admit, but it's not a massive overshoot.”

Then Amy noticed people waving in the distance. “Why are those people waving at us?”

“Can't be.” The Doctor looked at the two people in the distance.

Rory started to wave back but Amy smacked his arm down. “Don’t.”

“It is! It's you two.” The Doctor smiled at them.

“No, we're here.” Rory pointed to where they were standing as he looked confused. “How can we be up there?!”

“Ten years in your future. Come to relive past glories, I'd imagine.” The Doctor comment as Maddie rolled with her eyes. “Humans, you're so nostalgic.”

“We're still together in ten years?” Amy asked, sounding surprised.

“No need to sound so surprised!” Rory replied to her.

Then Maddie looked at the Doctor. “Where am I?”

“Hopefully you are still traveling with me.” The Doctor replied, but sounding unsure.

“I hope so too.” Maddie reassured him, making him smile at her as she smiled back at him.

“Hey, let's go and talk to them!” Amy grabbed by Rory’s arm. “We can say hi to future us! How cool is that?’

“No, best not, really best not.” The Doctor stopped them, before they could to go any further. “These things get complicated very quickly, and oh, look!” He pointed towards a large drill into the distance. “Big mining thing. Oh, I love a big mining thing. See, way better than Rio! Rio doesn't have a big mining thing.”

“We're not going to have a look, are we?” Amy groaned, knowing what the Doctor would do next.

“Let's go and have a look!” The Doctor called as then he grabbed Maddie’s hand and to they were off. “Come on, you two, let's see what they're doing.” He called over his shoulder as he and Maddie were walking towards the drill.

“What did you mean with the ground feels strange?” Maddie asked to him as they were walking towards to the drill.

“It felt like there was a disturbance.” The Doctor replied to her. “You should have felt it too, since you also a Time Lord.”

Maddie looked at him. “You know, I’m still learning about all of it, Doctor.” 

“I know.” He told her.

When they were by the drill, Amy came towards them as Maddie asked. “Where’s Rory?”

“He putting away my engagement ring.” Amy replied to her. “He was afraid I would lose it.”

“Understandable.” Maddie shrugged a little.

Then they hear the Doctor read out loud. “Restricted access. No unauthorized personnel. Mm.” then he pulled out his sonic and pointed at the lock to unlock it. When he unlock it, it came a little smoke from and a bang.

“That is breaking and entering.” Amy gasped at him.

“What did I break?!” The Doctor comment to her. “Sonicing and entering, totally different.”

Maddie rolled with her eyes. “Yeah, right. Totally different.”

Amy also rolled with her eyes as then she walked in it and called them. “Come on, then.”

“You're sure Rory will catch us up?” The Doctor asked/called.

“Yes.” Amy called back.

“Well, you first.” The Doctor motion to Maddie.

“Thank you, Doctor.” Maddie smiled at him as she went through the open gate. Then the Doctor followed after her.

~00~

“What about now, can you feel it now?” The Doctor asked to the girls as they were walking in the hallway.

“Honestly, I've got no idea what you're on about.” Amy replied to him.

Maddie shrugged as she really tried to feel it, she felt something, but didn’t know what that was. “I don’t know, it does feel weird.”

The Doctor nodded to her. “The ground doesn't feel like it should.”

“It’s ten years in the future, maybe how this ground feels is how it always feels.” Amy comment.

“Good thought!” The Doctor said cheerfully. “But no. It doesn't.” He explained. “Hear that, drill in start-up mode. After waves of a recent seismological shift and blue grass.” Then he pulled blade of grass into his mouth.

Maddie looked at him weirdly as Amy asked. “Oh, please! Have you always been this disgusting?”

Then he pulled the blade of grass out of his mouth and said. “No, that's recent.” Then he saw a room as he thought out loud. “What's in…” He popped his head into the doorway. “Here?” Then he saw a woman standing there. “Hello!” He called cheerfully.

“Who are you?” The woman asked. “What're you doing here? And what're you wearing?”

“I dressed for Rio!” Amy replied grumpily.

Then the Doctor pulled out his psychic paper. “Ministry of Drills, Earth and Science!” Then he put it back in his pocket. “New Ministry, quite big, just merged, lot of responsibility on our shoulders, don't like to talk about it. What're you doing?”

“None of your business.” The woman replied boldly.

“Where are you getting these readings from?” The Doctor looked at the screen as Maddie walked over to him and also looked at the screen, frowning.

“Under the soil.” The woman replied to him as she moved some equipment from the patched up hole in the middle of the room.

Just then a man came into the room. “The drill's up and running again. What's going on? Who are these people?”

“Amy, Maddie, the Doctor.” Amy replied in a bored tone. “We're not staying, are we, Doctor?!”

The Doctor ignored her as Maddie asked to the woman. “Why's there a big patch of earth in the middle of your floor?”

“We don't know, it just appeared overnight.” The woman replied to her.

“Good, right, you all need to get out of here very fast.” The Doctor told her.

“Why?” The woman asked to him.

“What's your name?” The Doctor asked her instead.

“Nasreen Chaudhry.” She replied to him.

“Look at the screens, Nasreen, your readings.” The Doctor pointed at the screen. “It's moving.”

“Hey, that's specialized equipment!” The man demanded to him. “Get away from it.”

They ignored him as Nasreen asked to the Doctor. “What is?”

Suddenly Amy asked as she looked at the hole. “Doctor, this steam, is that a good thing?”

“Shouldn't think so.” The Doctor frowned. “It's shifting when it shouldn't be shifting.”

“What shouldn't?” Nasreen asked as the whole room began to shake.

Maddie thought with the Doctor. “The ground, the soil, the earth, moving, but how? Why?”

“Earthquake?” Amy suggested as the place continued to shake.

Maddie shook her head. “No.” Then she looked at the Doctor, who nodded to her.

“What's going on?” The man asked to them worried.

“Doubt it. Cos it's only happening under this room.” He moved back to examine the patch of soil, puzzled. Maddie jumped back as two more holes appeared in the ground. Then more holes appeared near Amy and the man. “It knows we're here.” The Doctor muttered. “The ground's attacking us.”

“Not possible!” Nasreen said in shakily voice.

He ignored her as he told them all. “Under the circumstances, I suggest…” he looked around wildly and then he ordered. “RUN!”

He reached out for Maddie as she grabbed his hand as then Nasreen runs past her as the Doctor also grabbed her hand, then they run for their safely. Then they turned to look at Amy and the man, she was behind him as then there appeared more holes in the ground. The Doctor pushed Nasreen to the door turning back for Maddie just as the man screamed in pain as a hole opened right beneath his foot, causing him to fall in. “Tony!” Nasreen cried as Amy dashed over to help the man.

The Doctor called urgently, alarmed. “Stay back, Amy! Stay away from the earth!”

“It's okay.” Amy helped the man up as then another hole appeared under her. “It's pulling me down!” She cried out.

“Amy!” The Doctor shouted rushing over to her, Maddie followed him.

“Don’t move, Amy.” Maddie grabbed her hand as the Doctor grabbed her other hand.

“Doctor, help me, something's got me!” Amy called terrified. “Doctor, the ground's got my legs.”

“I've got you.” The Doctor told her.

“Okay.” Amy said shakily as the Doctor and Maddie tried to her out, but Amy didn’t move. Whatever had grabbed her, had a good hold on her. “Don't let go.”

“Never.” The Doctor and Maddie both promised, but Amy sank a little further in.

“Doctor, what is it, why is it doing this?” She asked desperately.

“Stay calm, keep hold of my and Maddie’s hand, don't let go.” He shouted over his shoulder at Nasreen and Tony. “Your drill, shut it down! Go! Now!”

The pair ran out as Amy asked to them. “Can you get me out?”

“Amy, try and stay calm. If you struggle, it'll make things worse.” The Doctor told her. “Keep hold of my and Maddie’s hand.” The drilling sound started to decrease, but the ground was still violently and Amy was slowly being pulled into the ground, her face was becoming paler and paler as she tried not to panic. He tried to heave her up again, getting to his feet and tugged, Maddie helped him, but there was a violent quake and they fell back on the ground, his grip on Amy failing. Amy squealed in fear as they backed up to her and tightened they grip on her. “We are not going to let you go.”

Amy was sinking further and she began to cry in panic. “Doctor, it's pulling me down, something's pulling me!”

“Stay calm.” He urged her. “Hold on, if they can just shut down the drill I can't hold on!”

“What's pulling me?” Amy begged them. “What is under the earth? I don't want to suffocate under there.” Her eyes were filled with tears, eyes wide as it was now only her head and arms sticking out of the soil.

“Amy, concentrate.” The Doctor pleaded. “Don't you give up!”

“Tell Rory…” Amy managed to get out as her head began to sink into the ground.

The grunted out as he and Maddie pulled as hard as they could. “No. Amy!”

“Amy!!” Maddie shouted at her as the girls head slipped under the soil.

“Amy, no!” the Doctor shouted as Amy’s head disappeared and there nothing they could do as the girls arms wrenched from their grips and Amy was gone. “No! No! No! No! No! No. No!” The Doctor dug at the soil as Maddie sat on the ground for her friend loss. “No. No. No. No!” then the doctor stood up and pulled out his sonic and pointed at the ground desperately, but there was not use the girl was gone into the ground as then the drill finally stopped and the room went quiet.

Nasreen and tony came running as then they stopped to look at them. “Where is she?”

“She's gone.” The Doctor replied flatly. “The ground took her.” Maddie looked at him, she felt his emotions on over drive as then she stood up as well and hugged the Doctor. She sighed as she couldn’t bear it. Then she finally broke out in tears as the Doctor hugged her tightly, feeling her as well. The other two looked sad as they bowed their heads in sympathy.

~00~

“Is that what happened to Mo? Are they dead?” Toby asked to the Doctor as he pointed at the ground.

“It's not quicksand.” The Doctor replied to him. “She didn't just sink, something pulled her in, it wanted her.”

“The ground wanted her?” Nasreen gasped.

“You said the ground was dormant, just a patch of earth, when you first saw it this morning.” He thought out loud. “And the drill had been stopped.”

“That's right.” Tony comment to him.

“But when you re-started the drill, the ground fought back.” The Doctor pointed it out.

“So what, the ground wants to stop us drilling?!” Nasreen scoffed. “Doctor, that is ridiculous.”

“I'm not saying that, and it's not ridiculous, I just don't think it's right.” The Doctor pulled out his sonic and pointed at the hole. “Oh!” Then he gasped in thought. “Of course! It's bio-programming!”

“What?!” Nasreen asked confused.

“Bio-programming!” The Doctor explained to them. “Oh, clever. You use bio-signals to resonate the internal molecular structure of natural objects! It's mainly used in engineering and construction, mostly jungle planets, but that's way in the future, and not here. What's it doing here?”

“Sorry, did you just say jungle planets?” Nasreen looked at the man as if he was crazy.

“You're not making any sense, man!” Tony comment.

“Scuse me, I'm making perfect sense, you're just not keeping up.” The Doctor comment rudely.

“Rude.” Maddie comment to him.

“And still not ginger.” The Doctor comment back. 

Maddie rolled her eyes at him as the others looked confused, before she explained it to them, the Doctor spoke up. “The earth, the ground beneath our feet, was bio-programmed to attack.”

“Yeah, even if that were possible, which, by the way, it's not, why?” Nasreen disbelieved him. 

“Stop you drilling! We find what's doing the bio-programming, find Amy, get her back.” The Doctor told them as then he heard something. “Ssh ssh ssh! Have I gone mad?! I've gone mad!”

“You are already mad, Doctor.” Maddie comment to him.

The Doctor looked at her. “Oi!”

“Doctor.” Nasreen looked at him.

“Ssh ssh! Silence! Absolute silence!” He looked at them. “You stopped the drill, right?”

“Yes!” Nasreen replied to him.

“And you've only got the one drill?” He asked to them.

“Yes!” Nasreen replied flatly. 

“You're sure about that?” He asked to them, seriously.

“Yes!” Tony replied, looking annoyed.

Then the Doctor lied down on the ground as he listened. “So, if you shut the drill down why can I still hear drilling?” Then the others listened as well. “It's under the ground.”

“That's not possible.” Toby breathed out.

Then the Doctor stood and dashed over to the computers and soniced it. “Oh, no, what, what are you doing?” Nasreen cried out.

“Hacking into your records.” The Doctor looked at the screen. “Reports, samples, sensors, good, just unite the data, make it all one big conversation, let's have a look.” He began to type at the computers as they showed various data tabs. He indicated a mapped model as he spoke quickly. “So, we are here and this is your drill hole.” Then he sounded surprised. “Well done!”

“Thank you. It's taken us a long time.” Nasreen thanked him.

“Why here, though?” Maddie asked to her as she walked closer to the Doctor. “Why drill on this site?”

She looked at her. “We found patches of grass in this area, containing trace minerals unseen in this country for…”

“The blue grass?” The Doctor interrupted her. “Oh, Nasreen, those trace minerals weren't X marking the spot, saying dig here. They were a warning. Stay away. Cos while you've been drilling down somebody else has been drilling up.” He let see them a network of tunnels. “Oh, beautiful. Network of tunnels all the way down.”

“No, no, we've surveyed that area.” Tony pointed on the screen.

“You only saw what you went looking for.” The Doctor comment.

“What are they?” Nasreen pointed at the three signals.

“Heat signals.” The Doctor explained. “Wait, dual readings, hot and cold, doesn't make sense. And now they're moving. Fast.”

Maddie looked at Toby. “How many people live nearby?”

“Just my daughter and her family.” Toby replied to her. “The rest of the staff travel in.”

“Grab this equipment and follow me.” The Doctor commanded them.

“Why? What're we doing?!” Nasreen asked confused.

“That noise isn't a drill.” The Doctor explained to them. “It's transport. Three of them, looks about 150km an hour. Should be here in ooh, quite soon, 12 minutes.” He grabbed a computer and motion to Maddie to follow him as then they walked to the door. Then he called back to them. “Whatever bio-programmed the Earth is on its way up, now.”

~00~

“How can something be coming up when there's only the Earth's crust down there?” Tony asked to the Doctor as they were walking.

“You saw the readings!” The Doctor replied to him.

“Who are you, anyway?!” Nasreen asked confused as she pulled with the stuff around in a cart. “How can you know all this?” Then a dome appeared as she looked up. “Whoa, did you see that?”

“No, no, no!” The Doctor murmured as he pulled out, from his jacket, an catapult and he shot with a rock up to the dome. Then he pulled out his sonic and pointed into the air. “Energy signal originating from under the Earth. We're trapped.”

Just then, Rory walked with two people to them. “Doctor!” He called to him. “Something weird's going on here, the graves are eating people.”

“Not now, Rory!” The Doctor called rudely.

“Rude!” Maddie called to the Doctor.

The Doctor ignored her as he told them all. “Energy barricade. Invisible to the naked eye.”

Maddie looked at him. “We can't get out and no-one from the outside world can get in.”

“What?!” Rory looked confused. “OK, what about the TARDIS?”

“The what?!” Nasreen looked confused at him.

“No, those energy patterns would play havoc with the circuits.” The Doctor replied to Rory. “With a bit of time, maybe, but we've only got nine and a half minutes.”

Rory checked his watch. “Nine and a half minutes to what?”

“We're trapped.” Nasreen stated. “And something's burrowing towards the surface.”

Then Rory noticed that Amy isn’t there. “Where's Amy?”

“Get everyone inside the church!” The Doctor ordered, before he told him. “Rory, I'll get her back.”

“What d'you mean, get her back?” Rory asked confused. “Where's she gone?”

“She was taken.” The Doctor replied, solemnly. “Into the Earth.”

“How?!” Rory asked, horrified. “Why didn't you stop it?!”

“I tried.” The Doctor looked solemnly. “I promise, I tried.”

“Well, you should've tried harder!” Rory shouted at him.

“I'll find Amy. I'll keep you all safe.” The Doctor promised him. “I promise. Come on, please. I need you alongside me.” Then Rory nodded to him. Then they all walked to the church and went inside of it.

~00~

The Doctor was setting up al the equipment inside the church as Nasreen and Maddie helped him. Rory was standing in the corner, arms crossed and frowning while Tony and Elliot stood on the other side, the older man looked guilty and the boy was worried as Ambrose paced around the church. Then she finally stopped and turned to them and said in a mix of irritation and worry. “So we can't get out, we can't contact anyone. And something, the something that took my husband, is coming up through the Earth.”

The Doctor walked towards her. “Yes. If we move quickly enough, we can be ready.” 

“No, stop.” Ambrose snarled. “This has gone far enough. What is this?”

“He's telling the truth, love.” Tony told to her seriously.

“Come on!” Ambrose sighed heavily. “It's not the first time we've had no mobile or phone signals. Reception's always rubbish.”

“Look, Ambrose, we saw the Doctor's friend get taken, okay?” Nasreen explained to her. “You saw the lightning in the sky. I have seen the impossible today, and the only person who's made any sense of it, for me, is the Doctor.”

“Him?!” Ambrose asked surprised.

The Doctor looked at her. “Me.”

“Can you get my dad back?” Elliot asked to him.

“Yes.” The Doctor nodded to him as then he looked at Ambrose. “But I need you to trust me and do exactly as I say from this second onwards because we're running out of time.”

“So tell us what to do.” Ambrose sighed, looking at him.

“Thank you.” He said to her, before he started with explaining. “We have eight minutes to set up a line of defence. Bring me every phone, camera, every piece of recording or transmitting equipment you can find. Every burglar alarm, every movement sensor, every security light. I want the whole area covered with sensors. Right, we need to be ready for whatever's coming up.” A few minutes later, after they had done around the church to setup the stuff. They were back inside as the Doctor told to them. “I need a map of the village, marking where the cameras are going.”

“I can't do the words. I'm dyslexic.” Elliot told to him.

“Oh, that's all right, I can't make a decent meringue.” The Doctor told to him. “Draw like your life depends on it, Elliot.”

“Works in quadrants, every movement sensor and triplight we've got.” Tony announced. “If anything moves, we'll know.”

“Good lad!” The Doctor praised him.

Another few minutes later, Elliot cam into the church running towards the Doctor and Maddie with a drawing from around them and the church itself. The Doctor praised the boy. “Look at that! Perfect! Dyslexia never stopped Da Vinci or Einstein, it's not stopping you.”

Elliot looked confused. “I don't understand what you're doing.”

“Two phase plan.” The Doctor explained it to him. “First, the sensors and cameras will tell us when something arrives. Second, if something does arrive, I use this to send a sonic pulse through that network of devices, a pulse which would temporarily incapacitate most things in the universe.”

“Knock 'em out.” Elliot told him. “Cool.”

Maddie looked at Elliot. “Lovely place to grow up, round here.”

“Suppose. I want to live in a city one day.” Elliot sighed. “Soon as I'm old enough, I'll be off.”

“I was the same, where I grew up.” The Doctor looked at him.

“Did you get away?” Elliot asked curious.

“Yeah.” The Doctor replied with a small smile on his face.

“Do you ever miss it?” Elliot asked another question.

“So much.” The Doctor replied to him as Maddie felt his sadness as if it was her own, she looked over at the Doctor. Then the Doctor looked at her, she gave him a reassuring smile, then he smiled back at her. After all he didn’t felt alone anymore, he had her for now on.

“Is it monsters coming?” Elliot asked to him as then the Doctor walked forwards to him. “Have you met monsters before?”

“Yeah.” He replied.

“You scared of them?” Elliot asked to him.

“No!” The Doctor replied seriously. “They're scared of me.”

“Will you really get my dad back?” Elliot asked the question again as he asked earlier, but didn’t get and response then.

“No question.” The Doctor replied to him.

“I left my headphones at home.” Elliot realized as then he rushed away.

Then Maddie looked at the Doctor. “I’m going after him, Doctor.”

The Doctor looked back at her as then he walked towards her. “Be quick then, we are about to be ready.”

“Okay, Doctor.” Maddie told him as then she kissed him on the cheek. “I will be fast.” Then she hurried away to find Elliot.

~00~

Finally, Maddie got up with Elliot, who had his headphones already and wanted to go back the church. Just then it went dark outside. They looked at each other as then they run towards the church and started banging against the door. “Mum! Grandpa Tony! Let me in!” Elliot cried out.

“Elliot!” His mother shouted from the other side from the door.

“Let me in.” Elliot cried.

Then the Doctor shouted. “Is Maddie with you?”

“I’m here.” Maddie spoke up.

Before the Doctor say any further Ambrose shouted to them. “He's out there!” The boys tried to open the door, but wouldn’t open. “Help me. Open the door!”

“Doctor.” Maddie shouted to him, in fear.

“Maddie.” The Doctor shouted back.

“Mum!” Elliot shouted in fear as well as something came towards them. “There's something out here!”

“Oh, god.” Maddie banged at the door. “Why won’t this door open?”

“Push, Elliot, push, Elliot!” Ambrose shouted at her son.

“Mum!” Elliot shouted back. “Hurry up!”

“I don’t like this, Doctor.” Maddie cried out.

“Me neither.” The Doctor shouted back as he helped the others.

“Mum!” Elliot shouted again.

“Come on!” Tony shouted annoyed at the door. When they got the door open, neither Maddie and Elliot were there in sight. They were taken away with the Silurian’s, that were above the earth.

~00~

Author’s note: Cliff-hanger, everyone.