Village of the Daleks (Part 2)

The Doctor was hurrying up the sloping lane that led towards the school. He was using his walking stick, but even though Alice was much more younger and fitter, she still found it hard to keep up with him.

“Hold on,” said Alice, running alongside him, “do you know what that explosion was?”

“Not exactly,” said the Doctor, “but I have a few good ideas.”

“Let us in on the secret then,” smiled Alice, looking up at him.

He glanced down at her. “Actually, Alice, I’d rather suggest that you go home. It could be dangerous up here.”

“Dangerous? How?” Alice thought for a moment. “Okay, we’ve just heard a loud explosion,” she smiled up at him, “but dangerous how?”

“You don’t want to know.”

Alice managed to get in front of him and stopped him. “Don’t speak to me like I’m a child,” she said, holding her finger up to him. “I teach children, remember.”

The Doctor arched his eyebrows. “Believe me, you’re all children when it comes to dealing with things like this. Everyone on this planet is.”

They could hear police sirens in the distance and the Doctor hurried on past Alice.

Alice frowned at the Doctor’s bizarre statement. “Well, no matter what you think,” said Alice, jogging alongside him again, “I’m coming with you. At least until the police get there. It’s my school.”

They could see the school on top of the hill in the distance, but it didn’t look damaged. Instead of continuing up the lane, the Doctor took a turn to the left and walked onto the new housing area at the bottom of the chalk cliff that the school stood on.

People were standing outside their houses, gazing up at something on the cliff face.

The Doctor urged them to all stay back as he pushed his way through.

That’s when a couple of police cars appeared. The policeman got out and stopped the Doctor and Alice before they could get any further.

“That’s it, sir. It’s not safe around here.”

“My dear police constable, I am in no mood to be stopped by the likes of you.”

“There’s been a gas explosion at the back of the houses,” said the policeman. “I can’t let you go any further.”

The Doctor laughed. “Gas explosion!” He looked at Alice. “Can you believe this?”

Alice giggled nervously at the policeman and then frowned at the Doctor. “Maybe we should do as they say,” she said cautiously.

The Doctor went to the inside pocket of his blazer and pulled out what looked like an ID card slipped inside a wallet with a clear front. On it read: “UNIT. CHIEF SCIENTIFIC ADVISOR. ACCESS ALL AREAS.”

He flashed it at the policeman who promptly stepped back. “Sorry, sir. I had no idea this was a UNIT matter.”

“That’s okay, constable, you’re just doing your job.” He put the ID back into his pocket. “I suggest you clear this entire area of all civilians and then contact Brigadier Winters at UNIT. Tell them to give me an hour, and then to come in and investigate.”

“An hour?”

“That’s what I said, constable,” snapped the Doctor.

“Yes, sir.” He looked at Alice. “And the young lady?”

The Doctor looked down at the small woman, her eyes big and brown and full of hope. “She’s with me.”

Alice grinned.

“Okay, everyone, step back,” said the policeman as they began ushering the crowd of onlookers away.

The Doctor gave a little grin to Alice and then they both made their way past the final row of houses that backed up against the cliff.

It was then that Alice could see just what had emerged from the explosion. About 10 foot up the rock face was a huge, gaping hole with nothing but blackness inside. The chunk of cliff that used to occupy that space was now in smaller, broken chunks and scattered all over the back gardens of the houses that backed onto it.

“What caused that?” said Alice, gazing up in wonder. “A gas explosion? Like they said?” She felt stupid as soon as she said it. As stupid as the policeman had sounded when he had said it. There would be no gas pipes running through ancient rock.

“I have a few suspicions,” said the Doctor, as he clambered over the rubble until he was at the base of the cliff.

“So you’re some kind of scientific advisor then?” said Alice. “You kept that one secret. What are you doing hanging about as a caretaker.”

“Don’t take everything at face value,” said the Doctor. “I used to work for UNIT. They investigate aliens and what-not. I don’t work for them anymore.”

“Oh,” said Alice.

“Although I do tend to do a bit of freelancing now and again. It’s always handy to have something like UNIT back you up. You don’t sound too fazed about me mentioning aliens,” said the Doctor, gazing up at the hole.

“It’s hard to dismiss the idea these days,” said Alice, joining his side. “We’ve all seen them.”

The Doctor turned and smiled at her. “A good, open mind. Brilliant!”

“It doesn’t take much of a leap to believe,” she said. “I know the government don’t like us to believe in them, but when you’ve seen spaceships in the sky and metal men in the back garden, it’s difficult to un-believe.” Alice smiled. “And you deal with them?”

“In a way, yes,” he said. “Give me a leg up.”

Alice helped him to clamber up to a small ledge sticking out from the rock face. Once he was on it he was high enough to reach the gaping hole. She passed him up his walking stick and then he reached down for Alice, pulling her up to the ledge. They then helped each other to clamber up to the hole.

“What’s the deal with the walking stick?” said Alice, brushing herself down as they faced the darkness beyond.

“How do you mean,” said the Doctor, his hand gripping the stick as if almost forgetting that he had it.

“Sometimes you need it and then sometimes you don’t.”

The Doctor smiled. “That’s because sometimes I need it, and then sometimes I don’t.”

Alice frowned, not quite believing him. “Fair enough. So, where are we going? Onwards?”

“That’s right,” said the Doctor, pointing towards the darkness with his walking stick.

They walked for a good few metres, the Doctor pulling out a strange device with a red glowing end which illuminated the cave.

“Tell me about yourself then,” said the Doctor, turning to look at her.

“Not much to tell really. This is my first secondary school job. I like to teach. I think people - children - should aim for their true potential.”

“Is that what you did?”

“Well, not exactly,” said Alice. “I kind of fell into this job. I was the oldest of the kids in my family. I had four sisters, all younger than me. Mum and Dad had busy schedules and I just ended up helping to look after them. Rosie used to say that I’d make a good teacher and I guess that’s what I became.”

“Interesting.”

“By the time they had all grown up, I didn’t really know anything else. My life was spent looking after my sisters, so I just felt I needed to look after others.”

“But do you enjoy it?” said the Doctor.

“Definitely,” grinned Alice. “Even if this wasn’t the path for me, well, I think I stumbled on a flipping good path.”

The Doctor smiled again. And then stopped. Standing in front of them, occupying the rest of the tunnel were two, large rocket engines. They seemed to be attached to an even larger object beyond.

“Bloody hell!” said Alice. “I knew they were out there but I never thought I’d come face to face with a real life spaceship!”

“Easy, Alice, these are just the rockets,” said the Doctor.

“But what’s it doing in here? All the way under the cliff?”

“Under the school to be precise,” said the Doctor, checking the readings on his device. “We’re directly underneath the quad. And a little more to the right is Mrs Metcalfe’s biology classroom.”

Alice gazed up at the ceiling, as if expecting to see her colleague sat at her desk marking homework.

“There has to be a rear access hatch,” said the Doctor, edging between the two engines. “It looks like these things ignited and blew that chunk of rock out. Well, most of it. Some of it must have been vaporised in the blast. I should have known that was going to happen when the ground vibrated earlier on this evening.”

“I felt that too,” said Alice, following him between the engines. “I was in the bath and it felt like the entire room was vibrating.”

“The entire village in fact,” said the Doctor. “It was the power building up ever so slightly in the engines. And then they just blew. A bit like a volcano. A few tremors and then BOOM!”

“It’s a wonder no one was hurt back there.”

“Aha!” said the Doctor, feeling around a small gap between where the engines disappeared into the ship. “It’s a doorway.” He aimed his device at the door and there was a clunk, followed by the door sliding open with a horrible, grating sound.

“Do you reckon we should?” said Alice, a little worried.

“Do you reckon we should?” asked the Doctor. “Or do you want to go back home?”

“If I step through those doors, my life’s never gonna be the same is it?”

The Doctor let a smile play across his lips. “It changed the moment I opened the gate to the back garden, Miss Stokes. So, do we go on?”

“What the hell,” said Alice, shrugging her shoulders. “We’ve come this far.”

“Just be careful and follow my lead,” said the Doctor as he tripped up on a boulder. He looked back sheepishly at Alice and then they made their way inside.

Inside was a darkened room, which housed the large, containment units for the engines. The Doctor fumbled around in his pocket again and brought out his glowing red device. He shone it around the room. There were no signs of life. Alice suspected that they must have been in another part of the spaceship.

And then they spotted it.

As the Doctor edged a little further into the engine room, the light from the device hit something. It was about 5 foot tall with a silvery domed head, lights on top and a protrusion from the front of the dome. The rest of it was shaped a little like a pepper pot. Around the “skirt” of the pepper pot were blue, hemispheres in a regular, repeating pattern. In the mid-way point was a metal pole with a sink plunger on the end, and another, shorter pole, which looked a little like a heavy-duty egg-whisk.

The Doctor’s face had dropped and there was a worried look in his eyes.

“These look strange,” said Alice, reaching her hand out to touch one. “Like some kind of tank.”

“No,” said the Doctor, grabbing her hand and pulling it away.

“What’s wrong? They look dead.”

“They’re Daleks,” said the Doctor, darkly.

Something triggered in Alice’s memory. A good few years ago, when the Earth was moved across the galaxy, these things had appeared. She had been ill in bed at the time and couldn’t really remember much of what had happened, but she was sure they had been Daleks as well. In fact she was sure of it. They were all over the papers and TV for weeks after.

“They may look dead, but it’s highly likely that they‘re not.” He peered a little closer at the dome. “They’re just hibernating.”

“It’s just sat in there, sleeping.”

“Yes. This is just the travel machine that the Dalek creature sits inside. The thing that it kills with. Like a tank.”

“But how did them and their ship get under here? There’s no sign of an entrance or anything.”

“It’s likely it trans-warped in.”

Alice frowned, clearly not understanding the term.

“Materialised. Appeared out of thin air. An accident.”

“Okay,” said Alice, laughing, “I think I get it.”

“The engines would have been that powerful that the rock that the ship replaced would have just melted away, otherwise the ship would have been crushed to nothing.”

“From what I remember, Doctor, these things are dangerous. Don’t you think we should get away?”

“What I would like to do,” said the Doctor, “is blow this ship and the Daleks up.”

“But you can’t, can you?”

“No. If I do it’ll bring down the entire cliff and the school and crush those houses outside.”

Suddenly there came a sound from the dormant Dalek. The Doctor and Alice backed up as the Dalek’s dome-like head slowly began to turn with a creaking, metallic grate.

“Run?” suggested Alice.

“Wait,” said the Doctor. “We don’t want to cause anymore disturbances. It might go back into hibernation.”

The eye-stalk began to move up and down, slowly rising and falling. It was testing it’s systems. Then there came a low, guttural grate from deep within the creature.

“EX-EX-EX-EX…”

“Oh no,” said the Doctor.

“Run now?” said Alice, her eyes wide with fear.

“EX-EX-EX….EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE! EXTERMINATE!!” screamed the metal monster.

“RUN!” shouted the Doctor.

Next time: The Doctor and Alice are trapped in the school...and the Daleks are coming...! Coming Saturday 18th January 2014.

Village of the Daleks (Part 1)

For a while there was only darkness. No light. No sound. Nothing.

And then a face appeared.

And the face smiled. And the memory faded.




Little Pebbleford was an ordinary village. Ordinary houses. Ordinary buildings. Ordinary people, and ordinary, every day, simple things. Crime was low and happiness was high. People simply got on with their lives. If you were ready to retire and settle down, or were simply after getting away from the hustle and bustle of the busy towns or cities, then Little Pebbleford was the place for you.

Alice Stokes was also pretty ordinary, but she had come from a slightly more hectic background. She was the oldest of five girls, and, being the eldest, had more or less helped her parents to raise her sisters. This experience had led to her desire to become a school teacher. Although she had initially started out with primary school children, she had moved on to more troublesome secondary school pupils.

She had done her training - as an English teacher - a few years back, and had finally received her first secondary school assignment - teaching ages 11-16 at Little Pebbleford School.

She had been there for six months and was enjoying her job and her life. And life couldn’t have been different than what it had been six months ago. Back then she had been in a car crash and had been unconscious in hospital for a few days. When she’d woken up, she’d discovered a new love for life and for the world around her.

She had rented a small house in the village centre and had enjoyed the quiet, peaceful days. School life was hectic, but at the age of 25 she was still able to sympathise with some of the older kids. She was a good teacher and a good friend to them, but she knew how to keep her distance and keep things professional.

But her life was due to change rather dramatically on one grey, Autumn evening, after another ordinary day at school.

She had just finished packing up her stuff and was about to leave when the headmaster - David Groves - walked into the room. He was a tall man with a bald head and just a little bit of hair around the sides. He’d gone bald at a young age and his pencil-moustache always made him look more serious than he actually was.

“Good afternoon, headmaster,” smiled Alice.

“Please, Alice, we’re off duty now. David will do.”

“Good afternoon, David,” smiled Alice again.

David smiled and held out his hand, dangling a bunch of keys in front of her. “Could you pop the new keys down to the caretaker. I was meant to do it at lunchtime, but I had a governors meeting.”

This afternoon the school had had new locks put onto the doors. New security measures.

“Ooh,” said Alice, letting him drop the keys into the palm of her hand, “shouldn’t he be here now?”

“Well I was going to wait for him to get here,” said Groves, “but he said he’d been held up for a few hours. Can‘t wait around forever, you know. Goodness knows what he gets up to at that big old house!”

“I see,” said Alice. “Well, yep, that’s no probs at all. He’s at Casterby House, isn’t he?”

“That’s right. Next to the church.”

“I’ll drop them off now. I’ve gotta pass that way. Need to pick up some eggs from Mrs Blissett’s.”

“Good stuff,” smiled Groves.

Alice noticed Groves itching his right wrist. “You okay?”

Groves quickly looked from his wrist and then to Alice. “Oh, fine. Just the bloody washing powder. I’ve told my wife to change it, but she’s having none of it. Says it brings out the fluffiness of her cardigans.”

Alice smiled, gave a little chuckle, said her goodbyes and then made her way out of the school.




Five minutes later, Alice was on her rather rickety bike, cycling along the little lane that led from the school and down to the little streets that filtered off from the main village square. The school was built on the top of a hill of chalk that now overlooked a new cluster of houses. Apparently, back in Roman days, there used to be a fort there. Alice believed the story, because on a clear day you can see all across the county. A perfect spot to observe the approaching enemy.

Alice took a turn to the left and veered into a small lane that led to a large, white house with a small stone wall and a quaint front garden. Next to it was the small village church, St. Augustine’s, and it’s old graveyard.

Alice hopped of her bike and leaned it against the wall. She opened the creaky, iron gate and walked down the little pathway towards the front door.

Above the doorway was a wooden plaque with golden letters proclaiming the building to be “Casterby House”.

Alice knocked on the door and waited.

There was no answer. She knocked again.

Still no answer.

She decided to post the keys through the letterbox, and then realised that it was screwed shut.

She frowned. “Hello!” shouted Alice, peering around the edge of the house and towards the fence surrounding the back garden. “Is there anybody there?”

No answer.

She sighed and made her way back up the garden path. She needed to get home and have something to eat. Then she’d try again.

Before she got on her bike, she thought she heard a wheezing and groaning sound coming from somewhere inside the house, but there was nothing to be seen. Tutting to herself at being distracted, she got back on her bike and made her way towards the village square.

In the centre of the square was a stone statue of one of the first mayors of the village - Autlock Brown. She locked her bike up against a fence and made her way into Mrs Blissett’s Butchers.

“Hello, dear,” smiled Mrs Blissett, her round face and red cheeks breaking into a smile.

“Hi, Mrs Blissett,” said Alice. “A dozen eggs, please.”

“Coming right up.”

Alice had a thought. “Hey, have you seen anything of the school caretaker?”

“Mr Smith? No, not today. But he likes to keep himself to himself, doesn’t he?”

“I suppose,” said Alice. Alice had never really met Mr. Smith before. She had seen him on the odd occasion, pottering around the school with his walking stick, but she had never spoken to him. He always looked distant and tired, but he also seemed to be looking around for something. Like he wasn’t quite there.

She paid for the eggs and then made her way back to her bike. She put the eggs in the front basket and then set off again. She took a turn up another little lane between the buildings until she reached a small, quaint little bungalow with potted plants and hanging baskets outside.

This was home. The lovely little place she was renting whilst she was working at the school. It had taken a while for her to settle in, but now she had, she couldn’t imagine living anywhere else but here. If she could afford it, she had one day planned to buy the place.

She took her bike around to the back, locked it in the tiny shed, and then made her way inside.

Thirty minutes later she was lying in the hot, bubble-filled bath, her eyes closed as she let all of the days aches and pains ease out of her and evaporate in the steaming hot water.

Her days were manic at the school, but these were the moments she savoured. The moments were she could relax. The weekend was just around the corner, and Alice was determined to spend it relaxing.

For a fleeting moment she found herself starting to drift off back to her days looking after her sisters. There was Rosie, the second oldest and the prettiest of them. She had always been there to give advice to her, even though she was a year younger. Then there was Audrey, Mary and Katy. Katy was the youngest and had often caused Alice to have the most headaches. She was a little tearaway, always getting into trouble and invariably needing Alice to get her out of trouble. Mary was the quiet one. She was into her books, rather than toys, and then Audrey was the oddest. She found it strange to be calling her own sister odd, but Audrey had always been the one who would be found at the bottom of the garden, examining dead birds and mice. Strange.

She rarely kept in contact with them now. Well, except Rosie, who she met up with once a month, but she missed them all. She missed their company.

She was momentarily distracted from her thoughts when she felt something a little…odd.

She thought she could feel the bath vibrating. She opened her eyes and looked at the surface of the water. She was right - it was vibrating. Ever so slightly. The water had small, tiny ripples in it.

And it wasn’t just the bath. The whole bathroom looked as though it was vibrating as well. She could see the glass with her toothbrush in it slowly, slowly vibrating across the windowsill.

And then it stopped.

She frowned, dismissed it as possible building works nearby, submerged her entire head in the water one last time to rinse out the shampoo, and then climbed out of the bath.

After drying and getting dressed, she tied her still-damp, brown her into a ponytail and left the bungalow. She still had to get those keys to the caretaker.




It was now dark and all of the shops had closed for the day. She had put on a woolly, beret-type hat and her long coat and walked across the village square and back towards Casterby House. She needed the night air to wake her up from her sleepy, hot bath.

Once at Casterby House she noticed it was in darkness.

She let out a huge sigh. She needed to get these keys to him somehow.

And that’s when she saw the blue flashing light. It was coming from around the corner and over the gate that led to the garden.

She pushed on the gate, but it was locked.

“Hello?” she shouted, looking up at the gate. “Hello, is there anybody there?”

No response.

She cursed silently. “Mr Smith, I have your keys. The ones for the school. They changed the locks, you know. You need them to get in.”

For a moment she considered throwing the keys over the gate so she could get back home and to her nice warm house, but the headmaster had put more faith in her than that.

“HELLO!!” she bellowed again.

The blue light went out. She heard the sound of footsteps on gravel and then the clunk-clunk of the gate being unlocked.

For a moment she was scared, and then she dismissed the stupid thought straight away.

The gate swung open and standing there was a tall man in a black suit, blue shirt, black tie and a bright yellow smiley-face badge pinned to his lapel. He was completely bald and was leaning on an beautifully carved, wooden cane.

He frowned at her.

“Mr Smith,” said Alice, “I’ve brought you the keys from the headmaster.”

He continued to frown.

“We’ve not met, but I’ve seen you around school. I’m Miss Stokes, the English teacher. Alice Stokes.”

The man broke into a grin and extended his hand. “Ah, good to meet you, Miss Stokes.”

“You can call me Alice, Mr. Smith.”

“And you can call me the Doctor,” he said, shaking her hand.

“The Doctor? What are you a Doctor of?” she said, handing him the bunch of keys.

“Everything mostly. And nothing. Depends on your perspective really.”

She frowned. “And you’re only a school caretaker?” She wondered if he’d been struck off the medical practice for some sinister reason.

The Doctor grinned. “It’s only a temporary position. I’m only here until I find what I’m looking for.”

“And what’s that?” asked Alice, as they both made their way up the garden path and towards the front gate. “I mean there can’t be that much to find in a small village like this.”

“Actually, you can find many things in small villages like these. Many, many secrets.”

“Secrets? What kind of secrets?”

Suddenly, as if to punctuate Alice’s question, a huge explosion and a plume of smoke came from the direction of the school. The ground beneath their feet shook and Alice and the Doctor were thrown to the floor.

“What was that?” said Alice, scrambling to her feet to try and see.

“I’d say that was what I was looking for!”




Somewhere, in a darkened control room, a shadowy object, about the height of a small man, slowly moved on the spot. It was almost as if it was testing itself to see that it still moved.

They were awake…

Next time: The Doctor and Alice discover something buried under tons of rock. Coming Saturday 11th January 2014.

Story 3.1: Village of the Daleks

“Do you reckon we should?” said Alice, a little worried.
“Do YOU reckon we should?” asked the Doctor. “Or do you want to go back home?”
“If I step through those doors, my life’s never gonna be the same is it?”

In the small English village of Little Pebbleford, something is stirring. Something buried underneath tons of rock. An evil menace that has travelled across the galaxy and fallen through time to remain dormant for countless many years.

The Daleks.

For schoolteacher, Alice Stokes, her life is never going to be the same again. Especially not after she meets the mysterious school caretaker known as the Doctor...

This is the first story of Series 3 featuring Richard O'Brien as the Doctor, and introducing Louise Brealey as Alice Stokes.

This four-part story will begin publication from January 4th 2014 and be updated every Saturday until the end of the month.

Series 3: The Lowdown

Series 3 of Doctor Who: Darkpaths is just around the corner. The first story, "Village of the Daleks" will begin on Saturday 4th January 2014. It's an ideal jumping on point for new readers, but I'd advise any newcomers to read the previous two series anyway.

But for anyone who wants a quick refresher, here is the story so far, and what to expect from the new series.

The Doctor played by Richard O'Brien.

This Doctor is a future incarnation. Where in the future? Who knows. We never reference the incarnation number or how far on from the Peter Capaldi Doctor he is, but there is another incarnation before this one who is referenced from time to time and, again, he is not Peter Capaldi's incarnation. These stories are set far on from what is on TV at the moment. And the previous Doctor will be seen this series. But who will he be played by...?

We discovered during Series 1 and 2 that the Doctor had suffered a trauma during his previous regeneration. He has now lost the ability to regenerate, the cells inside having undergone a freak accident, causing them to burn out and die. So now the Doctor hangs on to life, but he knows that very soon that life is going to be over, unless he can find a way to re-ignite the regenerative cells.

The Doctor has recently said goodbye to his previous companions, Caroline Parker and Danny Lennon, leaving them to finally live and get on with their own lives. But the next - and possibly final - stage of his this life is about to get underway. And everything changes when he meets school teacher, Alice Stokes.

The Doctor is played by Richard O'Brien, known for his roles in The Rocky Horror Picture Show, The Crystal Maze and many, many more.

Alice Stokes played by Louise Brealey

Alice is a secondary school teacher in her mid-twenties. She works at the local school in the small village of Little Pebbleford. She's a down to Earth woman, happy with her job and happy with her life.

In her younger days she was responsible for looking after her four sisters and this experienced had led her to seek a career as a school teacher. But this had also had drawbacks. Because she had had to grow up quickly, she hadn't experienced much of an adventurous childhood, so when the Doctor shows up, she jumps at the chance to experience the excitement of life as a time traveller.

Alice is played by Louise Brealey, who people may recognise as Molly Hooper from Sherlock.

The Eyeglass and The General

The Eyeglass is a huge space company, formed from the ashes of the old Torchwood Institute, centuries in the future. The Doctor has encountered them and their agents a number of times during the first and second series, and he is due for one final encounter with them during Series 3.

General Helix (played by Liam Neeson) is the head of the company. Ruthless and efficient, he was a bio-engineered Human being, created by the Time Lords during the Time War. But during the events of the Time War, he lost his battle TARDIS, escaped the War and created the Eyeglass.

The last time the Doctor met associates of the Eyeglass, he defeated their plans. And so now General Helix wants the Doctor captured and brought to him alive, and with his bounty hunter associate, Paragrim, heading up the mission, he might just succeed this time...

Gallifrey and the Time Lords

Although the Time Lords and the Time War get mentioned during our series, we try our best to steer clear of current events with Gallifrey. I think it's safe to assume that a some point in the not-to-distant future, Gallifrey is going to return to our TV screens. Until then, we shan't be going near it. There are reasons why the Doctor doesn't consult the Time Lords with regards to his ill health. This may be addressed in the coming season. If and when Gallifrey returns, we may then start to use it in our stories, but for now we just have to steer well clear of it.

What to expect in Series 3

Series 3 will comprise of 12 stories in total. Each story will have either 4 or 5 parts and each story will be published over the course of a month, culminating at the end of the year with the Series 3 finale.

The stories will see the Doctor take Alice from Little Pebbleford to the ice world of Issenttii. He'll battle deadly reflections and we'll see the Doctor's previous incarnation with his old companion, Ivy Coldstone. He'll do battle with General Helix and the Eyeglass and travel to a mysterious, haunted house which holds a dark secret that the Doctor has tried to keep hidden. Trees will invade Cologne, vampires will crawl from old film reels, and the Doctor and Alice will find them at the very beginning of the Dalek Invasion of Earth. We'll see the familiar face of the Sixth Doctor again, as he teams up with our Doctor. The Master will return and the Doctor will face a final battle, meeting up with a deadly new life-form - The Swych.

And there will also be someone from far, far back in the Doctor's past. Someone who we always knew existed, but who we had never met before...

Christmas Special: The Last Christmas

We last saw Caroline and Danny at the end of the series 2 finale, "Call of the Spirits". The Doctor said a final goodbye to his companions and left them to continue in their (relatively normal) lives. But this is our last visit to those characters and is a short piece set 4 months after they left the Doctor. Merry Christmas everybody.

December 25th, 2012


Caroline sighed and then smiled as she popped the final plate into the dishwasher.

It had been a long, long day. But a wonderful, beautiful day. It had been the best Christmas she had experienced in a long time, and she wasn’t really ready for it to be over.

Three months ago, she and Danny had gathered up enough of their savings and had rented a little house in a quiet little close in the west part of Thornsby.

Danny had gotten a job with an advertising company in Yarathorpe, and Caroline had quit her job at Hypersave to become a full-time stay-at-home Mum.

Being a mum to four-month old William wasn’t her only job, however. She had taken to writing children’s books about a mysterious alien known as Professor Time, who travelled around in his mysterious red telephone box. Well, she thought, she couldn’t exactly use the true details for fear of someone at UNIT or Torchwood stopping them from being published.

Now she was just waiting for the first story, “Professor Time and the Battle Dogs”, to come back from the publishers. All in all, things had taken a turn for the better in her life. She was enjoying life.

Steve bustled into the kitchen, already pulling his coat on and wrapping his scarf around his neck.

“Oh, are you going?” said Caroline, closing up the dishwasher.

“Got to,” smiled Steve. “Mum and Dad are gonna be waiting for me. It took me forever to convince them to let me miss their Christmas dinner.”

Caroline smiled. Somewhere, deep down, there were still feelings for this man, but they had faded now. He was still little Will’s father, and she’d always love him because of that, but the two of them were moving on. Had moved on.

“I’ve kissed Will good night,” said Steve, a hint of sadness in his voice.

“You know you can come over whenever you want,” said Caroline, smiling warmly at him.

“Caroline,” said Steve, his brown eyes and smile making her remember the first time they met, “I still haven’t gotten over you. It’s going to take some time. You and I…well, we went through a lot in such a short space of time.”

“I know,” said Caroline. “I wish it was different.”

“But it’s okay,” smiled Steve. “Our main priority is to make sure William has the best life he can have, and you and Danny - and me - can give that to him.”

Caroline smiled and then gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, smiling again. “Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas,” said Caroline, as she watched him make his way out of the kitchen, say his goodbyes to her guests and then head out into the snow beyond.

She made her way back to the living room. Sat around the table, laughing and joking, each with a different beverage were the oddest collection of people you could meet.

On the surface they looked normal enough, but each one had a story to tell.

There was Danny, a lager in hand, now wearing a pair of glasses, who had just finished telling a joke. Then there was Margot and Ben, the two survivors from the Ancestors. They had gotten a flat in the Victoria Mills complex and had gotten part-time jobs, via Caroline, at Hypersave. They weren’t intending on staying there forever, of course, just earning enough to get them back on their feet.

And then there was Catherine and Tony Parker, Caroline’s adopted parents. Tony had recovered from his heart attack and was doing well, and little William had been the one to bring the family back together. There were still underlying regrets between Caroline and her parents, but they had gotten over the worst. They were building bridges finally.

And finally there was Thomas and Rebecca - Caroline’s real parents. They had opted to stay in Thornsby, firstly to assist Caroline in her powers, and secondly to be friends to Ben and Margot, as well as Lilly and Father Ainslie and the rest of the people who had been deposited in this time. Tom and Rebecca had set up a home for the refugee’s, and were helping them to reintegrate back into the world.

Caroline pulled up a chair and sat down.

“So,” said Tom, taking a sip of brandy, “I see Steve’s left.”

“Tom,” said Rebecca, her eyes flashing him a warning.

Caroline smiled. She never knew what to call her real parents. Initially she had wanted to call them Mum and Dad, and had tried it, but the two of them looked younger than her. So she had opted to call them their actual names.

“Tom,” said Caroline, “he is William’s father, but it’s difficult for him. You’ve gotta understand.”

“Hmm,” said Tom, a cheeky smile on his face, “I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.”

“You listen to your father,” said Tony, breaking into a big belly laugh.

“God,” said Tom, “I remember when you looked as young as us,” he said to Tony.

“Cheeky!” said Cath, slapping Tom on the arm.

Everybody laughed.

Only Margot looked a bit glum. “I remember one Christmas,” she said, a sad smile playing on her face, “must have been, ooh, back in 1963, Jayne came back to the crypt with our Christmas dinner - sandwiches.”

Ben nodded, smiling at the memory.

“We never had a lot back then. We were always trying to keep an eye on the Apparites. We never had time to make money and go out there and have a good time.”

“Work, work, work,” said Ben. “Even when I was being a vicar I never got paid for it!”

“The point,” said Margot, sipping on her mineral water, “is that even back in those days, even when it was a nightmare and we were working 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Jayne still made sure we had some sort of Christmas.”

Tom and Rebecca smiled.

“She always looked after us,” said Ben.

“To Jayne,” said Caroline, raising her recently made cup of tea.

“To Jayne!” chorused the group, each raising their glasses.




Some time passed. Caroline checked on the sleeping William and, when everyone was gathered around the tree, unwrapping their presents, she made her way back to the kitchen.

It was then that she spotted the man in the garden. Standing amongst the snow, watching from the fence at the back. He wore a long, black coat, blue shirt with a black tie, and a yellow smiley-face badge pinned to his lapel. It was the Doctor.

She took a quick look back at the living room, made sure nobody was watching, and then quickly unlocked the back door.

She slowly walked up the garden path, her feet crunching in the snow. Shivering, she stood in front of the Doctor.

He was leaning on an ornate walking stick and had a black scarf tied around him.

He smiled sadly. “Proper snow this time?”

Caroline nodded. “None of your alien stuff. This is the real deal.”

He smiled.

She flung her arms around him. “I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.” She broke away from him. “What happened? Are you okay?”

The Doctor smiled again. “I just wanted to come and see you one last time.”

“One last time?” Caroline frowned. “You mean…?”

The Doctor nodded slowly. “It’s pretty much the end now.”

Caroline put her hand to her mouth, her eyes flooding with tears.

“Don’t be sad, Caroline,” he said, taking her hands. “I’ve lived my life to the full. I’ve been travelling again.”

“On your own?”

“No,” he said. “I met a young woman - a teacher actually. Alice her name is. She’s from a little in your future.”

“And she understands what’s happening to you?”

He nodded. “She knows.”

“Is she having a good time?” said Caroline.

“She’s having the trip of a lifetime,” said the Doctor. “She’s just in the pub down the road now. Said I’d be back soon.”

“And there really is no way-?”

He cut her off. “I met someone who said they had found a way to save me,” said the Doctor, a dark look playing across his face.

“Then do it,” said Caroline.

“No,” said the Doctor, shaking his head. “The cost would be too high. I’m not willing to go that far to save myself.”

Caroline sighed. “You’re a stubborn git, you know?”

He smiled. “I know.” He nodded towards the house. “Having a party, are we?”

“Kind of. I got the rest of them round for dinner. Everyone’s getting on well. Margot and Ben have a flat and jobs, Tom and Rebecca are caring for the refugee’s. Steve’s - well - Steve’s just Steve. Mum and Dad have made up with me.”

“And you?”

“I’m good. William’s healthy.”

“Any problems with your powers?”

“Had a little accident a couple of months back,” she said sheepishly. “Burnt the shed down. But Tom and Rebecca are helping me. I’ll have it under control soon.”

The Doctor smiled. “Good.” He looked at her curiously. “You know, if you ever got those powers under control, I might be able to take you back to William. William Fieldgate, that is. We never really did find out what happened to him. As long as you were safe with your powers, you could have a life with him. It wouldn’t disrupt the web of time-”

“No,” said Caroline quickly.

“No?”

“No,” she said again. “I’ve thought long and hard about William, and I’ve spent a long time trying to get over him. I’m in a happy place now. William was a wonderful thing that happened to me, but it was just one moment in my life. Something I would never want to spoil. I loved him - still love him - and he loves me.”

“I can find out what happened to him. You never did let me finish reading that bit of info on him.”

Caroline considered for a moment. This was her last chance to really find out. “No,” she said. “As long as he was happy, that’s all I needed to know.”

The Doctor pulled out a tablet from his coat pocket, checked the info on it and then smiled. “He was happy. It says it here in black and white. He led a happy, healthy life.”

She smiled. “I’m glad.”

“And how’s Danny Boy?”

“He’s good. You know, we’re kind of together. Well, as together as two best mates can be. I love him. He loves me. But it’s complicated. I think we’re always going to be together.”

“Marriage?” queried the Doctor.

“God, no!” said Caroline. “It’s just not like that with him and I. I guess you could call us…soul mates. God, that sounds cheesy.”

The Doctor laughed. “Take care of him,” said the Doctor. He suddenly clutched at his chest.

Caroline stepped forward to help him, but he motioned for her to stay back.

“Doctor…”

“I’ll be fine,” he said. “I’ve gotta go pick up Alice from the pub. I need to take her home.”

She flung her arms around him again, hugging him tightly. “Thank you again.”

Just then Danny stepped out of the house. He looked at the Doctor and Caroline in shock.

“Hello there,” smiled the Doctor.

Danny gave a slight wave back at him, not really knowing what to think.

“Right,” said the Doctor, opening the back gate. “I’m off.” He smiled at Caroline. “Have a wonderful life, Miss Parker. And Merry Christmas.”

“Get help. Save yourself,” said Caroline, one last desperate attempt to save her friend. And then she smiled. “Merry Christmas.”

And she watched as he stepped into the dark alleyway behind the house, and slowly closed the gate.

“What was that all about?” said Danny, joining her at her side.

“He just came to say goodbye,” she said, sadly.

Danny put his arm around her. “Come on. Let’s go finish Christmas. There’s a bottle of Bailey’s with my name on it.”


THE END

Doctor Who: Darkpaths, returns on January 4th 2014 with the first story in Series 3 - "Village of the Daleks". Keep checking back for more updates on the upcoming series.

Looking Ahead to Series 3.

So with the conclusion of "Call of the Spirits", brings in the conclusion of one of the story arcs that has spanned since the start of the series.

The story of Caroline, Danny and the Ancestors is now over. But that doesn't mean that Darkpaths is ending. No, we are continuing with series 3, which is due to start in January 2014.

Before we look at what to expect from series 3, I'd just like to take a look back at what I've done so far.

On the whole I'm happy with the series. I think sometimes some of the stories were a little long, but overall I've enjoyed writing them and writing the characters. In fact by the time I'd gotten to the end of "Call of the Spirits", I realised I was going to really miss Caroline and Danny.

One thing I would have done differently would be to have not made the stories so arc-heavy. This is something I'm changing for the next series.

The series will have 12 stories. Each story will be much shorter than anything done before. Each story will also have 4 parts to it. The aim is to start in January and have one part a week, effectively giving us one story a month leading up to next Christmas. The stories will be much more varied, less arc-heavy, but still helping to tie up a few loose plot threads.

What are those plot threads that need tying up? Well, in series 3, we'll see the Doctor finally confronting the might of the Eyeglass and the General. We'll also pay a visit to Ivy Coldstone (first introduced in 'Eye of the Jungle'), and see exactly what she got up to with the Doctor's previous incarnation (but who will he be played by...?) And we have the Master back as well. He's out there somewhere, causing havoc and mischief. And finally there's the Doctor. He will take this painful journey with Alice, his new companion, as he heads towards his possible death.

And so to Alice ("played" by Louise Brealey - Molly Hooper from "Sherlock"). She's a teacher living in a small village called Little Pebbleford. When she meets the Doctor she is eager to experience time, space and adventure, and she's just what the Doctor needs to kick start him again, after travelling with the sometime's reluctant Caroline, and the pre-occupied Danny.

One of the questions I thought I should answer is the revelations about Gallifrey/the Time War in the TV episode "The Day of the Doctor". All in all it shouldn't effect anything we've done so far with the series. Although I've used a couple of things relating to the Time War (The General and the Proto-Time Lords), I've always avoided it as best as I could. There's nothing worse than creating your own storyline and alluding to something from the TV series and then having the rug pulled from under your feet.
And that brings me to Gallifrey. Gallifrey may or may not return in the TV series. Luckily, I haven't references what the Time Lords are up to. It's all left open, so nothing will be affected. The question on why/if the Doctor can travel to Gallifrey to get his regenerating problem "fixed" is something that will be questioned in series 3. It's not just a question of going back to his home planet. It's something else...

There are a number of plot lines or changes to the ongoing plot that changed during the course of the two series. Originally Danny was supposed to have died after the events of "Lockdown". He was going to be fighting off the Apparite inside him and at the end wage out to the water where the ghost escaped and he died. The ghost would have taken part of his personality back into their dimension where at the end of "The Story of the Ancestors" a strange amalgamation of Danny and Adrian would have emerged. I scrapped that story line as I liked Danny and wanted to keep him alive.

Also the Doctor was due to regenerate at the end of series 2. I won't tell you who I lined up to take over from him, but I wanted to continue with him a little longer. And the circumstances in which he regenerated would have been different. After regeneration he wasn't going to return to Thornsby, and Caroline, Danny and the others would have had to accept that the Doctor was dead and gone.

So, here's a run-down on each story (ordering could possibly change).

3.1 Village of the Daleks
The Doctor meets Alice Stokes and they discover a Dalek shuttle buried underneath a school in Little Pebbleford.

3.2 The Tipping Point
The Doctor takes Alice to her first planet - the site of one of the first Human-colonised worlds. But, as the colonists begin their terraforming, the Doctor discovers that the ice-world is not as lifeless as everyone thought.

3.3 Reflections
The Doctor and Alice land in an abandoned American town where deadly reflections crawl out of mirrors.

3.4 The Story of Ivy Coldstone
The Doctor recounts the tale of how he first met Ivy, back when he had a different face...

3.5 The Fall of the Eye
The Doctor is finally captured by the General, whilst Alice escapes to Earth where she is pursued by Eyeglass operatives, and is rescued by an anti-Eyeglass group.

3.6 Number 17
The TARDIS lands at Number 17 Westcliffe Drive - a house that is supposedly haunted. And it's a house that brings back some bad memories for the Doctor.


3.7 The Trees of Cologne
A normal holiday in Cologne, Germany lands the Doctor in the middle of a mystery - the trees are moving in on the city, and people are dropping dead one by one.

3.8 The Curse of Nosferatu
The Doctor and Alice are summoned to an old film library where a copy of the old film "Nosferatu" has been stolen. Stolen by a vampire...

3.9 Before the Dawn
The TARDIS lands the Doctor and Alice in the early days of the Dalek Invasion of Earth, where the Doctor is embroiled with a group of resistance fighters. But how can he help them when he knows he must not interfere?

3.10 War of the Machines
The Doctor meets up with the 6th Doctor as they become caught up in the middle of the war between the Centrix robots.

3.11 Friends & Enemies
Alice receives some disturbing information, the Master reappears, and the Doctor is introduced to the deadly Swych - a lifeform that exists outside of any kind of dimension, time or space.

3.12 The Final Battle
As the Doctor reaches his final days, Ivy and Alice team up to find a cure for him. Meanwhile the Doctor returns to UNIT HQ on Earth where he helps them fight off an old and deadly enemy.


As always, if anyone is interested in writing for Darkpaths, then please get in touch with me.

as we go through December I'll be updating the blog with small snippets of info in the build of to Season 3, including another "Story So Far..." piece and, of course, the cover and blurb for "Village of the Daleks".

Also, keep an eye out as we approach Christmas for a little something extra.

We've also redesigned the blog with a few new touches, new colour-scheme and new logo/banner. There may be little tweaks along the way, and if you have any suggestions, please don't hesitate to contact me.

So, for now, it's goodbye. Keep checking up on us and we'll be ready to go with "Village of the Daleks" (Part 1) on Saturday January 4th 2014.

Have fun!