Souls Eclipsed- Doctor Who

The Story Begins

I shoved my shoulder against the hard wood door, jiggling the key around in the jammed lock.

"Yeah, no, Beth really, thanks, but I-" I grunted into the phone, getting cut off yet again by a slew of well wishes.

I jammed my shoulder into the door a second time, and finally, with a loud groaning of the hinges, the large door swung open. I stumbled inside, struggling to keep my balance with one arm holding the phone and the other holding my keys and throbbing from being repeatedly jammed into the door.

I kicked off my black flats and wiggled my toes, they had gone numb from walking home in the cold snow. Instinctively, I padded to the thermostat that sat above the fireplace in the living room. Well, my living room now. The old wood floors groaned with each step but I didn't mind- I was too preoccupied with my current goal of warming up this bloody drafty house.

Beth was still chattering away into my ear, reminiscing of a simpler time when we were both kids. I simply hummed in acknowledgement and plopped down on the cracked leather couch that furnished the antiquated living room. A plume of dust rose up at the motion. I shifted uncomfortably, wondering if I should just take off my stiff black dress and change into something that won't be ruined if dust gets on it.

"Beth?" I cut off her rambling, "I've got to go now, love. I'll talk to you later...." I chuckled as she stammered out a goodbye, "Mkay, bye."

And that was that, I thought to myself, last condolence call of the day complete.

I glanced around the living room, taking in the intricately woven carpets and mass amounts of antique furniture, all sitting in a layer of brown dust. I shook my head slightly, wondering how I would clean all this up. And what, if anything, I would do with all this bloody furniture. There were also a few boxes, I noticed, stacked into a corner. Almost hidden, but not quite. My curiosity was piqued, and I made my way over to the boxes. They were old, that much was clear. Water stains created abstract patterns on the musty cardboard. And what had once been strong packing tape was now yellowed and peeling.

I gingerly peeled back the rotting tape, wincing at the feeling of the old tape on my fingers. The box sprang open at once, like a Pandora, full of secrets waiting to be explored.

It took me a moment to adjust to the dark inside of the box, but as my eyes adjusted to the light I began to make out shapes in the box.

Books, maybe one or two. A few envelopes. And a strange round... thing. Perhaps a yo-yo? I gently reached in and picked up an envelope, it had yellowed with age. The old paper had a rough texture on my fingers, and as I turned it over I discovered a strange sort of water mark comprised of an intricate woven pattern of circles. The strangest thing was, I almost felt as though I was able to read and decipher meaning from the circles themselves. 

Quickly abandoning this train of thought, I carefully peeled back the seal on the envelope and reached in,  discovering a folded piece of paper inside. It, too, was rough to the touch.

Long loops of elegant cursive rested on the yellowed template. Water had damaged it too much, though, and was therefore impossible to read. I felt a small twinge of frustration at this mystery. Moving on, I grabbed the other letters that were scattered in the box and set them on a nearby table. I was ready to get back to the more pressing matters at hand such as cleaning the years of dust off of every surface in this old house. But something stopped me from getting up and turning away. A small feeling in my gut, a whisper in my head.

Turn back. 

Obliging the strange feeling, moved closer to the pit of mystery in front of me. There was something about that mysterious round.. thing... that lay waiting at the bottom of the pit. Suddenly, I was desperate to know what it was. As absurd as it sounds, I was fairly certain that it was speaking to me. Moving closer and closer to the box, I got another strange premonition. The very sudden urgent warning that something was off, my stomach lurched slightly as I moved forward to grab the golden piece.