The Imagination Latibule: Doctor Who - Something Borrowed

Chapter 2

It was bigger on the inside.

Bigger on the inside. When the Doctor had beckoned you to the police box and ushered you in, you weren't sure what to expect, and your jaw physically dropped at the sight of what was inside. A futuristic orange console room, with stairs and corridors leading off to more rooms. It was incredible, and you still couldn't get over the fact that it was...

"...bigger on the inside," you breathed and the Doctor's grin widened as he took the stairs two at a time to the central controls.

"I like the bit when someone says 'it's bigger on the inside.' I always look forward to that," he told you, yanking on a lever which caused the lights to flare as the ships bell tolled.

"But how?" You spread your arms wide, half expecting to touch a wall and realise that it was all some sort of projection that was entirely fake. But it wasn't. "What is this?"

"Welcome to the TARDIS," the Doctor introduced. "Time And Relative Dimension In Space. It's dimensionally transcendental."

"Come again?"

"The inside and outside of the ship exist in two different dimensions, meaning that one isn't limited to the other. Or something like that. It's a load of timey wimey stuff but all you need to know is that we can go to any place at any time and still be back for breakfas-" the end of the Doctors sentence was lost as the Tardis shuddered and the two of you were thrown to the floor. You groaned, rolling yourself onto you back and sitting up. The floor was oddly not as hard as it looked.

"Oh no, no, no!" the Doctor cried, kicking the controls and recoiling as he hopped about. "You jammy... The cybermen have sprung a one way forcefield around their base. We're not getting out unless it's deactivated." He rushed around the controls, helping you to your feet. "You alright?"

"Time travel," you gasped in response.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"Sorry - yeah." You frowned. "One way forcefield? How do we get out of here?"

"I don't know," he said, and then his face lit up. "Ooh, but that's brilliant, I love not knowing. Keeps me on my toes." He raced back to the door and opened it, peaking out. There was an alarm blaring faintly in the distance. "Right then. y/n, you stay here, get yourself cleaned up, there's some fresh clothes in the cupboard -" he motioned over your shoulder, "-that corridor, three doors down on the left, and on no account follow me out of this door."

Your legs felt weak, and you grasped at a railing for support as you watched the Doctor run off and the door swing shut behind him. It was too much to comprehend, and you seemed to lose grasp on all sense of logic. You were in a time machine, the coolest and right now safest place you could be. So why then, did you feel your feet moving across the floor and back out into the Cyberman's base? When you swung the Tardis door open, the Doctor was leaning against the cell door, arms crossed. He smirked slightly like he was expecting you to ignore him.

"I'm not staying," you told him defiantly. "I'm not scared." The Doctor smiled as he sonic-ed the cell door and the lock clicked.

"Of course you're not! You're not scared of anything! Aliens transport you to planet, try to turn you into one of them, then a box appears from nowhere, man appears from the box, and look at you! Just standing there!" There was another noise from the end of the corridor and you flinched again. "So you know what I think?"

"What?"

"That must be one hell of a scary noise." He pulled the cell door back and motioned for you to follow quietly. You went to follow when you were stopped in your tracks by a thought.

"Wait," you said and the Doctor turned, looking at you in concern. "There's a trap," you told him. "That's what those cybermen said. They're waiting for someone... is it you?"

"No, well maybe... ...Actually yes, it is me, but don't worry, because I've got a plan."

"A plan?"

"Well, more like an idea, but plans always unfold from good ideas. From bad ideas too, which this probably is, but we won't know unless we do it." He tossed his screwdriver between his hands as he peered down the corridor. "Something tells me getting out isn't going to be as easy as getting in. Come on."

 As the two of you crept along the corridor, sticking to the edge of the path, you noticed the Doctor run his fingers along the wall, and tentatively lick them. He pulled a ghastly face at whatever mucky residue he'd digested, and you found him all the more odd.

"At least 500 years old," he commented. "They never intended to land here. I think they crashed." He crouched down and blew the dust that had settled on the floor, watching it rise into the air with an intense fascination, before leaping back to a standing position. "Survivors, trying to increase their army." 

He took off at a faster pace and you rushed after him, ignoring a cramping pain in your leg that caused you to limp slightly. "What are we looking for?" you whispered, watching him spin around. 

"The control room," he said as the two of you came to a fork. You motioned to the left one.

"It's by their... conversion room -" you didn't know what else to call it as you led him towards it, "- it's down here." He nodded, a single nod, and walked by your side, an arm out slightly in front of you in case anything were to jump out. You flinched again as that same sparking noise sounded, harsh against the slowly rising sound of a siren. The Doctor watched your face as it sounded, and then raised his sonic towards the source of the noise.

"It's the conversion machine," he mumbled softly, and he looked at you with wise and kind eyes. "What did they do y/n?" he asked. "When the cybermen hooked you up to their machines and realised you weren't changing. What did they do?"

"They kept going," you said. "I don't think they're used to giving up."

"I can't imagine the pain. I'm sorry."

"It's ok," you said with a shrug, trying to forget about it. "You're here now."

You're silence said more than words could and you almost got lost in the Doctors gaze as he gave you a look of such sympathy that you wanted him to give you a hug. "You humans never cease to amaze me," he said, and he gave your shoulder a gentle pat. 

With an affirming nod, you both took a step onwards when suddenly, from around the corner, a cyberman appeared. Stomping loudly, its walk sounded like the mix of a drum and cymbal. It's face was one that would haunt your nightmares, of that you were sure, and it towered over the two of you. 

"Doctor," it said, and the Doctor was instantly in front of you, pointing his screwdriver at the alien.

"Alright tin can?" he said. "You got what you wanted. I'm here now; you can let her go."

"Doctor," you whispered, fingers curling around his jacket sleeve and tugging him backwards.

"You are the Doctor, you will stay," the cyberman said. "You will both stay."

"But why?" the Doctor asked. "You know me, I'm not exactly cyber material, not compatible you see. Two hearts and all. And her, well, you tried and failed there. So why?"

"The Doctor is an enemy of the cybermen. We will use your bodies for spare parts and convert this planet and the rest of the universe."

The Cyberman advanced and the Doctors hand curled around yours as he pointed the screwdriver at it. It slowed slightly, staggering as the Doctor short circuited the wiring controlling the monster.

"That should hold it for a while," the Doctor said, looking at you.

"Doctor, what do we do?"

"Run."