The New Doctor! A Doctor Who Alternate History Story

Part 37 - Time Parasite, the 'ship in the bottle' episode synopsis

Opening, a derelict Sontaran battlecruiser hangs in empty space.

Cut to interior of a dimly lit chamber. Hanging cables dangle from the ceiling. Black scorch marks decorate the walls. Debris is strewn around. The camera pans over to find the Tardis. The doors open, and the Doctor emerges with his companions Diamond and Heart, closing the door behind him.

Heart is frightened, there is something wrong here. Another time anomaly has drawn them. The Doctor agrees, surveying the ruins, which include the dead, dessicated bodies of several Sontarans. Only their uniforms and their domelike skulls are left. He stops to examine one, and notes that whatever happened here, happened a long time ago. There's likely no danger. Diamond examines some of the weapons and notes that they are all drained. The Doctor says the passage of time would leach the energies off. Diamond says no, all the weapons were used in battle, their power sources were burned out, drained instantly.

The Doctor finds a communications console. Drawing on the Tardis he uses it to remotely power the ships systems, reading aloud as he works backwards from the log entries, he finds the engines were deliberately burned out, self destruct failed, ancient records of the ship under attack, the crew being wiped out. There was some sort of classified experiment, an effort at hyperdimensional probing, but the data is corrupted. He works his way back to the ship's name, the Emploder.

Abruptly, the Doctor exhibits panic. Stricken with fear, he tells Heart and Diamond that they must leave immediately. They ask him why. He tells them that the Emploder is one of the most famous ghost ships in the Universe. The site of a hyper-dimensional incursion. Something went wrong. Something outside of time and space produced an energy surge. They opened a hole in the universe, and something came through. Something dangerous.

He leads them back to the Tardis, but the doors stand open. It's too late. The Tardis has been breached. They enter the Tardis control room which is dimly lit, with strobing light and strewn with mechanical rubble. Heart and Diamond are carrying Sontaran rifles. The Doctor tells them that the rifles are useless. Heart tells him that they've managed to recharge the rifles from the Tardis power source. The Doctor warns them that it won't do much more than attract attention, but that might be useful.

Diamond asks precisely what they are dealing with. The Doctor explains that it is a being which normally exists in higher dimensions - in a universe or reality with 20 or more dimensions, not just the paltry three that exist in ours. It can only survive by here by devouring the life essences of local dimensional beings.

It's been trapped on the Emploder. If it can gain control of the Tardis functions, it can move its multi-dimensional axis freely throughout our universe. The state of the Tardis control room shows that it has been trying, but it has not achieved it yet. To a hyperdimensional creature, controlling a three-dimensional object, even one with the extradimensional capacities of the Tardis is equivalent to trying to program a VHS with a blindfold and boxing gloves. But it will succeed, if it has enough time.

Just then Heart screams. A towering monster has appeared on the bridge. As it looms menacingly, another monster, this one smaller and skulking shows up on the other side. Diamond is confused, the Doctor said there was only one. The Doctor explains that there is only the one creature, it exists in multi-dimensions, these things are only parts of it, extruded into three dimensional space. The Doctor quickly compares it to pressing fingers against a glass - to a two dimensional creature, the fingertips would seem like two or more separate creatures. Only by going to a third dimension could you know that the fingertips were actually part of a hand, of a single creature. As with this, if we looked into the higher dimensions we could see that these creatures are actually part of a single larger entity.

Diamond unleashes her force blasts, but there is no effect. The Doctor explains that her force cannot reach the higher dimensions. Heart asks what they want, as the monster-aspects close in. The Doctor replies, to devour them. Heart asks what they can do? The Doctor suggests running away, fleeing through the Tardis. If he can reach the auxiliary control room he may be able to expell the monster from our reality. The Heart and Diamond ask what they can do to help. The Doctor says two things: Distract it, and stay alive.

Heart, Diamond and the Doctor flee the ruined control room, the monsters lumbering in pursuit. A lot of shots of Heart and Diamond fleeing the skulking monsters. The Doctor escapes, but returns to the damaged control room. He examines the monitors, showing quick cuts of the monsters all over the Tardis corritors. A large monster advances.

The Doctor flees back into the Emploder, the monster chasing him, moving smoothly as if pushed on a dolly. The Doctor makes his way to the Transdimensional chamber, and finds a machine. He lifts it, but then the monster appears. The Doctor tells it that it will never be able to manipulate the Tardis on its own, but that if it lets him and his companions live, he can use this machine to allow it to pilot the Tardis. The dimensional translation machine is the key.

The Monster hesitates, and then it reaches out and touches the Doctor. Suddenly, they are back in the control room. Under the Monster's gaze, the Doctor proceeds to attach the machine to the Tardis console.

Heart and Crystal cry out, cornered by two of the smaller monsters. The Doctor protests. It ignores them, as the monsters close in. The Doctor holds up the machine, telling it, it will destroy the machine and trap it here forever, if it moves. Heart and Diamond radio that the small monsters have stopped.

The Doctor tells the being that it is complete, that the Tardis will now be under its control. But he's done something more. The hypedimensional key could also use the Tardis energies to return it to its own universe. The Doctor extends a small tool, like a television remote. He tells the creature that this device can send it home.

The Doctor offers it. The creature takes it in its claws, then drops and smashes it underfoot. The Tardis lights strobe on and off violently. The Tardis shakes. When things go back to normal, it has vanished.

The Doctor leans on the console for support. I gave it a chance, he whispers. Heart and Diamond return to the bridge, announcing that all the monsters have vanished. Monster, the Doctor corrects. There was only ever just the one. They ask what happened? The Doctor says that he destroyed it, or tricked it into destroying itself. He gave it a chance to return to its own universe, but it wanted to stay here and devour. It really was a monster, not a being.

Heart asks if the monster was responsible for the time distortion anomaly that has been affecting the Tardis. The Doctor responds no. The monster was only a symptom. The distortion is something else. Someone or something has torn a hole in reality, torn a hole in the fabric of the universe, of space-time, a hole which has been tuned to the frequency of the Tardis. All their travels have drawn them closer and closer to the hole in reality.

The Tardis begins to shake. The lights flickering on and off. The Doctor says that they're too close to the hole. This close to the tear, the monster was the only obstruction. Now that it's gone, they're being drawn into the hole. They are forced to hang onto the Tardis for dear life as the camera begins to shake violently.

Diamond asks where the hole goes. The Doctor responds that he doesn't know, no one can know. To another universe, perhaps.

Heart asks who or what is drawing them, and to what purpose. The Doctor says that they're going to find out. They all scream as the camera goes black.