Fall of the Doctor

by Sixes_And_Sevens

Storm Brewing

The Doctor and Ditzy had managed to work their way through most of three crosswords when a steady footfall from down the corridor caught the attention of everypony in the cell. The Doctor only glanced up for a moment before going back to writing in the puzzle book. The clouds parted to reveal a pair of blue-eyed earth ponies with grey coats. They marched into the cell. One held a hoof up pointing at the Doctor. “Ooh,” he said brightly, “Are we playing charades? I love charades! Go on, how many words? And, you know, you really aren’t allowed to point—”

“Pocket,” Ditzy whispered, “I don’t think this is really the right time.”

“Nonsense,” he scoffed. “There’s always time for charades.” He turned back to the stoic pair of ponies. “I always say, if you’re at a party and they won’t play charades, you should really just leave. Don’t you agree?”

The two ponies marched closer. “Ah. Okay. I’m guessing… Run? Go? Move?”

Apple Bloom straightened up. “Th’ door!” she hissed to Dinky. “They ain’t closed the door!”

Dinky’s eyes widened as she realized what the Doctor was hinting. “Come on,” she whispered. “We don’t have much time…”

“March?” the Doctor suggested as the duo grabbed him firmly. The two young mares slipped out of the opening, and he relaxed. “Ah. I have it now. It’s ‘come’, isn’t it?”

The identical guards dragged him from the room. “No? Leave? Exit?” Ditzy heard him guess before the doorway closed once more, sealing her away in the cell once more. Alone. She sighed, and slumped back against the wall. Suddenly, she felt something against her back. Surprised, she turned around to see the book of crosswords lying on the floor. She smiled. At least she wouldn’t be bored. She opened it up to the page that appeared to have been bookmarked by a pen. Much to her surprise, however, not a pen but the sonic screwdriver rolled out of the book. She looked back at the crossword. Scrawled hastily over it was a message.
Ditzy. Wait until the girls are out of range. Point the screwdriver straight down, and get ready to fly. Good luck. -T.T.

Ditzy looked at the screwdriver with a critical eye. “Range?” she wondered. “What is this thing’s range?”

She glanced behind her. The fillies had to be far enough away by now, right? Taking a deep breath, she set the crosswords aside, inserted the little tool as far into the fluffy floor as she could, and activated it. There was a brief buzzing and a blue light and then Ditzy was falling through the rain and cold, the floor having dissolved under her hooves. She managed to catch herself, zipping back up to nearly cloud height. Squinting against the wind, she thought she saw a movement out on the horizon, a little light that seemed to dance across the sky.

Down below, the traders and salesponies of Timbucktoo looked up in shock as rain began to patter down, tapping at windows and roofs and awnings. In the distance, the wind began to howl like a hunting horn.

***

Rumble was a careful pilot, slow and steady. The TARDIS shook a little as he piloted it with unsteady hooves. “Gah!” he growled as the controls slipped away from him once more.

Sweetie Belle, meanwhile, had recovered enough to watch Button play his video games, making impressed-sounding noises each time he unlocked another achievement. Scootaloo stood against a panel on the opposite side of the console, carefully maintaining their altitude. Both pegasi were watching monitors which showed the outside world. Suddenly, Scootaloo started. “What’s that?” she asked, squinting at her screen. Button and Sweetie looked up. Rumble peered closely at his screen as well. “It looks like a pegasus…” he said slowly.

“Blue eyes?” Button asked, eyebrows furrowing in concern as he rose to his hooves.

“Too soon to tell,” Scootaloo replied, looking closer. “Though actually… Rumble, I think that’s Ditzy!”

“You’re right!” the colt agreed, looking closer. “Sweetie, get the door!”

The unicorn levitated the chair to one side and swung the doors wide. Moments later, a bedraggled grey pegasus flapped in. “Oh, thank the Sisters,” she gasped. “I don’t know how much longer I could have stayed in the air like that.”

“I’ll get a towel,” Button volunteered, running down a hallway.

“What happened?” Scootaloo asked.

Ditzy sat down in the nearest chair. “We were stuck in a cloud bank,” she explained. “I don’t know how, but it was thick enough to allow anypony to walk on, and completely impervious to magic. I had to use this to escape.” She held up the sonic. “New model. Very nice.” she said absently.

“What about the others?” Sweetie asked anxiously.

“Dinky and Apple Bloom escaped,” Ditzy explained, “But they took the Doctor away, and I don’t know where or why. Oh, thank you, Button.”

The last was added on as the colt draped a striped towel across her sodden wings.

Scootaloo sighed, turning back to her monitor. “So. If we can’t get in and they can’t get out, how are we going to rescue them?”

Ditzy looked up. “Whoever said we couldn’t get in?” she asked with a grin, holding the screwdriver aloft once more.

***

The identical guards dragged the Doctor backwards along the floor. He considered objecting to this, but he doubted it would make any headway. Anyway, the cloud was quite soft and malleable, rather like being dragged over a sponge cake. Mmm, sponge cake. He wished that he’d not been abducted right before lunch. Never did to get dragged through dungeons or go fighting alien menaces without a bit of a snack first. He would’ve settled for chips. Or a muffin. He realized that while he was pondering his lunch, the guards had come to a halt. He glanced at each of them for a moment. Neither of them spoke. Quelle surprise, he thought, rolling his eyes. “Not much for conversation, are you?” he asked.

Much to his surprise, they actually turned their heads to look at him. They smiled identical unpleasant smiles. Suddenly, the Doctor found himself flat on the floor. When he pulled himself back to his hooves, the guards were gone.

“Huh,” he said, scratching the back of his head. He turned around. He had been left at the doorway of a large, rather extravagant room. On either side of the doorway, fountains sprayed beautiful formations into the air. Cloud pillars supported an arched ceiling across which lightning danced and skittered. Statues of various beings adorned the room. Despite the beauty, however, the Doctor was rather more struck by the terrible nature of the room. The fountains were frozen, water turned to ice. The lightning overhead struck far too often for comfort, and the statues all appeared to be experiencing various forms of torture, judging by their expressions.

Walking through the room, the Doctor shuddered from the cold. But there was something else, too, some nagging feeling… What was it?

Fear, he realized. Pure, blind fear, being pumped through his mind as though from a hose. He shook himself sharply. Why was he afraid? He didn’t even know what he was facing yet. It was deeply unlike him to feel this way at this stage of the game. Unless… “Emotional manipulation,” he said to the room at large. “Very impressive, well done. Almost didn’t spot it.”

No reply. “You’re not a big talker either, I see,” said the Doctor, looking around for the source of the manipulation. He trotted up a set of steps, humming to himself as he went. “Oh… whenever I feel afraid, I hold my head erect, and whistle a happy tune so no-one will suspect I’m afraid…” he sang, half to himself. “Hah! Julie Andrews, what a brilliant woman.”

Mounting the top of the steps, his smile died on his lips, fading into a look of sheer astonishment, and more than a little fear. “No,” he whispered. “It can’t be!”

For there, sitting in a glass case, was the Crystal Heart, pumping out fear and sorrow across the room and beyond.

Comments

[Coyote de La Mancha]

Ditzy. Wait until the girls are out of range. Point the screwdriver straight down, and get ready to fly. Good luck. -T.T.

💞💕

For there, sitting in a glass case, was the Crystal Heart, pumping out fear and sorrow across the room and beyond.

Oh, bugger every last kind of goat.

[SunflowerSwirl]

Love how well you're portraying the Doctor, with his fairly simple yet creative plans, overwhelming emotions, strategic dialogue, and especially his thoughts. Those are an interesting 'comedic relief', even though the whole story has funny moments, from those where the Doctor outwits his opponents, to when you know what the antagonist will say and he walks right in and gets them to say it. Bravo, good sir!

[Sixes_And_Sevens]

9652973
Thanks! The Doctor's always a bit tricky to get just right, and I'm pleased you think I'm doing well.