TTV Series Episode 10: The Haunting

Chelsea Harris stood up and walked down the train carriage. The other passengers ignored her as she opened the door at the end, and looked through it.

“Excuse me?” she called. “Why has the train stopped? I’m supposed to be going to a party, and…”

She trailed off, realising it was no use. She pulled her phone from her pocket, and tentatively dialled it. She was ringing her dead sister, and wasn’t sure if she’d receive an answer.

“Hello?”
“Oh hi,” Chelsea smiled. “I wasn’t sure if you would answer… you know, being dead and all.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
“Sorry,” Chelsea laughed. “I just wanted you to know that I’m trapped on the Underground. Something weird is going on… the train just stopped 10 minutes ago. The driver hasn’t given us an apology or anything, and I’m supposed to be going to Tasha’s party.”
“I’ll be there in a minute,” Crystal said. “Doctor, can you take us to the London Underground?”

Chelsea couldn’t hear the Doctor’s reply, but sure enough, the sound of the TARDIS dematerialising filled the air. She muttered a quick goodbye, before returning to her seat.

***

The TARDIS materialised on the platform, and Crystal burst through the doors. She made her way over to the tracks, but the Doctor pulled her back.

“What?” Crystal snapped.
“The tracks are live,” he replied. “You could’ve been electrocuted!”
“Oh. So what’s the interest in the London Underground?”
“Interest?” the Doctor asked.
“Well, trouble in the London Underground; it’s a bit unexpected isn’t it?” Crystal laughed. “I thought delays were the only thing to worry about.”
“In the last few years there have been talks,” the Doctor explained. “Sightings, if you like, of aliens. They call it The Haunting – possible alien life living in the tunnels of London.”
“And you haven’t thought to investigate before?” Crystal asked. “You’ve let The Haunting live in the tunnels, and now maybe one of them has boarded a train?”

The Doctor didn’t answer, and instead climbed onto the back of the train, pulling open the door. Crystal slipped past him, and entered the first carriage. She looked around, but could not see Chelsea.

“She’s not in this one,” she said as the Doctor closed the door behind them.
“Hello everyone,” the Doctor beamed. “We’re just here… inspecting trains!”
“We haven’t moved for almost 20 minutes!” one elderly woman complained.
“Your comments have been noted,” the Doctor said.

He pulled Crystal to the next carriage, and the next, and the next, until they found Chelsea.

“Thank God you came!” Chelsea smiled, hugging her sister. “I was about to die of boredom. No offence.”
“None taken,” Crystal grinned.

The Doctor was about to interrupt when the lights flickered, before going out. There were screams coming from the next carriage, and sounds of grating metal.

“If I’m not mistaken, the driver’s just been killed,” the Doctor said. “If you could all stay in your seats, myself and my lovely assistants will sort this out.”
“If you would like to make a complaint,” Crystal added. “Calmly make your way out through the back carriage and onto the platform, before heading to the front desk in the station.”

Chelsea opened the door her sister had just stepped through, and ushered everyone out. Within a few minutes, the entire train was empty, except for the Doctor, Crystal, Chelsea and the unidentified monster.

“Right, now that everyone’s out of the way,” the Doctor said. “I’m gonna go look for the monster. You two wait here – I’ll probably run this way in a second.”

Without waiting for a reply, he opened the other door, and made his way along the train. A few seconds later, there was an alien-like scream, and the Doctor emerged once more.

“I think we should run.”

The Doctor and Crystal ran to the other carriage and burst through the door. Chelsea remained, frozen in place, as the other door opened. A small child stepped out, and smiled at her. She smiled back.

“Hello, my name’s Chelsea,” she said.
“They call me Nigel,” the boy smiled.
“Listen, we need to get out of here,” Chelsea continued. “There’s an alien on the loose. I’m surprised the Doctor didn’t take you with him.”
“I was hiding in a cupboard,” Nigel replied. “Shall we go, quickly?”

He took Chelsea’s hand, and led her to the door of the carriage. His small hands opened the door, and Chelsea was surprised that Crystal and the Doctor weren’t behind it, waiting for her.

“They must’ve forgotten me,” she muttered, folding her arms. “No, don’t climb onto the roof; we can jump across to the next carriage!”

She reached up for Nigel’s small feet as he climbed onto the train’s roof, but it was no use. Sighing, Chelsea began to run after him.

“Where’s Chelsea?” Crystal cried as she ran along the train.
“I dunno,” the Doctor yelled. “Watch out!”

He dived to the side, as the alien tentacles leapt at him. Crystal climbed under a table, screaming as a tentacle landed on top of it. She crawled out just as it broke in half, only to be grabbed by a second tentacle. She was lifted off her feet, and watched as the Doctor was also captured.

“Let us go!” she shouted, hitting the tentacle.
“Wait, Crystal, wait!” the Doctor said, waving his arms.

Crystal hesitated, and her arms fell to her sides. The tentacles continued to sway, but did nothing else. The Doctor grinned triumphantly, and pointed down the train carriage.

“Have you noticed that this carriage goes on for a very long time?” he asked. “And that we aren’t on the London Underground anymore – we’re on an old style train, with food tables where windows that aren’t dirty?”
“Did it teleport us?” Crystal frowned. “I didn’t notice.”
“That’s because we weren’t teleported,” the Doctor explained. “And this tentacle waving creature isn’t real. It’s all an illusion, created by the real monster – a fearsome beast called Nigel – who can change people’s perceptions. Like a shape shifter, but instead of changing his appearance, he changes things around him, and how other people see him.”
“That’s sneaky,” Crystal nodded. “But why isn’t the tentacle thing killing us yet?”
“Because old Nigel didn’t expect us to be caught,” the Doctor chuckled. “I’ve met old Nigel before, and I left a bit of an impression on him. Plus, if I’m right, he’s too busy with Chelsea to concentrate on our tentacle bad boy.”

Crystal didn’t know whether to be relieved or scared – she and the Doctor would be safe, unless Chelsea was killed, or Nigel remembered they were there. She could do nothing except wait until Chelsea returned – or Nigel killed her.

“Wait, Nigel, please!” Chelsea yelled.

She stumbled, and clung to the train’s roof. Nigel was a few feet ahead, and turned back, helping her to her feet.

“Thanks. I haven’t seen that alien yet,” Chelsea frowned. “I’d have thought it would be after us. Nigel, what are you doing? Oh.”

She fell to the floor as Nigel began to mutate in front of her. He now resembled the Doctor, who grinned with his boyish charm.

“Come on Chelsea, we’ve got to go,” the fake Doctor said. “I bet Crystal didn’t explain that I could do this – it’s handy when we’re getting into places. We need to go before that monster arrives.”
“You can really shape shift?” Chelsea asked. “I thought you were the monster. Prove to me that you aren’t.”

Before the fake Doctor could speak, a tentacle shot through the roof, grabbing Chelsea around the throat.

“Help!” she screamed. “Doctor!”

It pulled her through the roof, and she landed next to Crystal and the Doctor.

“What are you doing here?” she demanded to know. “Doctor, you’re up there!”

She pointed to the roof, as a tentacle shot through the hole. It emerged once more, carrying the fake Doctor, who nimbly dropped to the floor.

“I’m afraid I lied,” the fake Doctor laughed. “I’m the alien, not that thing.”

He nodded at the tentacle creature, which disappeared, dropping the Doctor, Crystal and Chelsea to the floor. Nigel was about to continue, when he twitched.

“What was that?” he asked, turning around as if he was a dog chasing its own tail.
“You didn’t just absorb my looks,” the Doctor explained. “You absorbed my entire body. And I’m afraid it’s a bit too much for you to handle, sorry.”
“You’re bluffing,” Nigel spat.
“We’ll see,” the Doctor folded his arms. “Just two seconds more.”

Nigel was about to reply, when he exploded into ash. Chelsea looked around in amazement, as the train morphed back into the Underground train, and the food tables disappeared, only to be replaced with broken seats. She smiled, and turned to face Crystal, but there was nobody there.

“Bye Crystal,” Chelsea muttered quietly.

The sound of footsteps running down steps filled the air, as the police announced their arrival. Chelsea picked her way through the wreckage, and stepped out onto the platform. As a policeman came to meet her, she heard the sound of the TARDIS fading away.

“Are you all right, love?” the policeman asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Chelsea smiled. “Just fine.”

The End