The Unmentioned Companion (A Doctor Who Fanfiction)

~Chapter Fifty-eight~

After all of the incredible places that I had been to, I didn't think that any of those places could compete with this. I had seen a galaxy form and I had watched hundreds of others die. I had seen the first bit of life on Earth and dozens of other planets like it. I had been to planets covered in water, fire, sand, and flowers but never something like this.

A giant ball of ice that was home to thousands of species that my world would never even dream of. That was where I was. An extrasolar planet, fifty light years from Earth that was completely hidden from the universe. It was blocked by a field of asteroids stretching on for eight light years. There was no way for anyone to get in or out unless they had something like the TARDIS.

While the entire planet was frozen, it wasn't much colder than England during the winter. Just a very, very cold winter. Luckily, I had brought along my blue, fuzzy parka in case if we ever went somewhere chilly. Hopefully my friend would have something to keep himself warm.

"Do you have anything to keep me cozy?" the Doctor whined, making a pleading gesture.

I slapped my hand to my face and sighed. "I'll go find something."

I walked back to my room to see if I could find something and as I began rummaging through my dresser I found something else. It was an old photograph of the Doctor and I that had been taken in 1816, the year the first camera was made. We had so much fun that day...
Before I started thinking about everything that had happened, I put the picture back.

"Hey, Doctor! You can wear the parka and I'll just wear one of my other jackets," I called to my friend.

My jackets were all piled up in the corner of my room so it didn't take long for me to find my trench coat. Once, the two of us were ready to go, we stepped out into the frosty air. It was worse than I had thought but I put on a cheerful face as if it was fine. I just wanted to make sure that my friend stayed warm. I'd be fine.

We walked in silence through the icy terrain until we reached a small village that was built into the side of a glacier. Homes were placed in the crevices and the villagers roamed about in nearby caves. As we got closer, I could see that the glacier was really an enormous mountain covered in a light, powdery snow.

I waved to the tall people in the caves and they waved back. Two of them walked down the side of the mountain over to the Doctor and I to welcome us.

"Welcome to our home, visitors! My name is Shila and this is my son Rian. You really must get inside soon, it's almost dark," the woman said.

Rian ducked behind his mother and peered at my friend and I. He couldn't be more than a few years old because of his height.

Their hair was as white as the snow on the ground below us and their light blue skin matched their eyes. They all wore dark grey coats that blended in with the rocky houses and caves with fluffy white boots.

Shila led us to her home just as the sky became a deep purple. The people in the caves were heading back to their homes as well carrying sleeping children and baskets of food. Life in the village seemed so perfect, too perfect.

"Would you two like some water?" the woman asked as she closed the front door.

We nodded and sat down on two chairs at a small round table. The house was homey and had two beds, a kitchen, and a few shelves that stored books and the belongings of Shila and her son.

Rian sat down beside us in a shorter chair and peeked through his hands at us. I smiled at the young boy and he blushed.

"Shila, why does everyone head home at night? You all seemed to be in a rush," the Gallifreyan asked as she brought back four mugs of warm water with herbs floating at the top.

"You really don't know? Whoever stays out after dark disappears the next day and is never seen again. There are stories of a monster that comes up out of the ice at night and captures them. My husband, Hallus, went looking for it one night a few months ago and he never came back," Shila explained, staring down at her son sadly.

The Doctor stood up so quickly that the chair that he was sitting on nearly fell over. He thanked the woman and marched over to the door. When I asked where he was going, my friend looked at me with an excited expression.

"We're going to go find ourselves a monster of course," he said with a grin, stepping outside.

I followed after him and closed the door. As soon as it shut, a freezing wind slammed into us. I flew back into the side of the house and dropped into the snow.

"A little help here?" I called from beneath it and my friend rushed over to get me out.

Once I was freed from the ice, I brushed off the lingering snow and scanned the area for any sign of life. Two bright lights flickered just a couple hundred feet away before vanishing.

My friend stared up at the looming mountain above us before turning back to me. He shrugged and I looked away. When I did, I was face to face with a thing that was at least five times bigger than I was.

I screamed just as it reached its ginormous claws towards me. "Doctor!"