TTV Series Episode 3: Crash and Burn Girl

The Doctor looked up from the TARDIS console as Madame Rene entered the room, clutching several heavy books. She dropped them onto a seat, and sat down next to it.

“Any luck?” the Doctor asked.

For the past few hours, Madame Rene had been looking at books on the Inner Circle, wondering if there was any way they could get to it.

“No,” she sighed. “But they all seem to mention immortals – maybe we need one of them?”
“They are one member down,” the Doctor nodded. “We could offer them a seventh member.”
“They wouldn’t take the bait,” Madame Rene shook her head. “None of them are that stupid.”

The Doctor nodded reluctantly, his brain kicking into gear. A few seconds later, he grinned.

“What?” Madame Rene asked.
“When Crystal was first taken to the Inner Circle, she was captured by Podmore,” he explained. “He’s the Inner Circle’s messenger boy – and he’s pretty stupid.”
“Great,” Madame Rene smiled. “Now all we need to do is find ourselves an immortal.”

A few hours later, the Doctor was writing on a blackboard in chalk, while Madame Rene read out helpful quotes from various books. They had so far worked out when Hadrius Andes and Tina Felden died, which was fairly unhelpful as both were members of the Inner Circle.

“I’ve hit a dead end,” the Doctor sighed. “We know when Tina and Hadrius died, but we don’t know anyone else! If we only knew one more person, we could map out a pattern and find another immortal!”
“Maybe we could ask the Death Collectors?” Madame Rene shrugged.
“No,” the Doctor shook his head. “They said that we should stay away, cos the Inquisitor wants revenge on them and they can’t risk having anyone in their realm.”
“Hang on!” Madame Rene grinned. “Crystal! You know when she died, right? Place her death into the equation!”

The Doctor grinned, and began to furiously write on the chalkboard. After several more hours, he had a result, and set the TARDIS in motion. When it had landed, the Doctor led Madame Rene out of the double doors, and into a cramped ship.

“It looks like we’re in a plane,” he said. “And it’s… Oooh, about…”
“1937,” Madame Rene finished. “Let’s explore. Did you find out who the immortal was?”

The Doctor shook his head, and opened the door to the cockpit.

“Is anybody there?” a voice called. “Hello? Blasted radio!”
“Can I do anything to help?” the Doctor asked politely.
“Who are you?”

The woman looked around, and stood up. The Doctor gasped as he realised who she was.

“But... You –”
“If you’d like to wipe that perhaps permanent look of alarm off your kisser, you’ll discover we’re having an emergency,” the woman replied.
“But you’re Amelia Earhart!” the Doctor beamed. “You’re a legend!”
“Why thank you,” she bounced. “Now, help me get a signal on the radio, buck.”

She indicated the pilot seat, but the Doctor hesitated.

“I can’t help you,” he said sadly. “I need you to help me.”
“What do you mean, ace?” she asked.
“One second,” the Doctor smiled.

He ducked out of the room, almost banging into Madame Rene. She leaned forwards, trying to get a look at Amelia.

“It’s Amelia Earhart,” the Doctor hissed.
“The famous pilot?” Madame Rene smiled.
“Yes!” the Doctor whispered. “And her plane’s about to crash! She’s an immortal!”
“I know,” Madame Rene nodded. “You worked out the pattern. It has to be her – oh, wait. You just said the plane was about to crash.”

The Doctor nodded, and Madame Rene ran back to the TARDIS. Amelia appeared at the door as the Doctor closed the doors to his ship, and it faded away.

“I’m not one to shy away from danger,” she said, returning to the cockpit.

The Doctor ran to the TARDIS console, as it exploded in a shower of sparks. Madame Rene assisted him in flying the TARDIS next to the plane, which was beginning to crash into the sea.

“The old girl’s not used to flying!” the Doctor cried. “She hasn’t in a long time!”
“Lucky you’ve got such an excellent pilot,” Madame Rene replied.
“Thank you,” the Doctor smiled.
“I meant me,” Madame Rene replied.

The TARDIS flew down through the air, landing just above the water, hovering slightly. Madame Rene ran to the doors, and opened them.

“The plane’s crashed,” she confirmed. “Actually – I think you hit it!”
“My TARDIS flying skills are perfect,” the Doctor scowled. “Can you see Amelia?”

He looked back at the console, before returning his eyes to the door. Madame Rene was gone, and he quickly heard a splash. With a gasp, he ran towards the doors, and leapt into the water. Everything was dark, but nonetheless, he swam down, looking for Madame Rene.

“Over here!” she called, waving a hand.

Before the Doctor could begin to work out how she could talk under water, he swam down and joined her. Amelia was pinned to a rock, under a large piece of her plane. Next to her, her immortal body was forming, and slowly running out of air. Madame Rene pulled the body up, and swam to the surface. The Doctor leant across to Amelia’s body, and sadly closed her eyes.

“Air!” he gasped, as he reached the surface.

Madame Rene reached down and pulled him from the water, wrapping a towel around his as he lay on the TARDIS floor. After catching his breath, he looked up at Amelia’s immortal body, which was laying on the floor the opposite side of the console. She coughed and spluttered, waking up.

“What’s going on?” she asked. “Where am I, lady?”
“My name’s Madame Rene,” Madame Rene replied kindly. “And you’re in the Doctor’s spaceship. We need your help, I’ll explain everything.”

The Doctor watched Madame Rene explain the ins and outs of being an immortal to Amelia, and smiled – maybe he would get to the Inner Circle after all.

“Hold on Crystal,” he muttered quietly. “Hold on…”

The End