Chapter 3

"Doctor, what is it?" Clara took a step towards The Doctor, slightly cowering behind him. There wasn't any point though, for the corridor was littered with cells containing those...'things', as The Doctor would put it. Right now, though, the 'things' very much had his attention. Suddenly he was very wary he was amongst intellectual life. Very intellectual life. Life that knew what it was doing, and that it was wrong to do so.

"Right then! Who or what are you?" His curiosity never wavering to his fear, he boldly took the stage, appearing to a most peculiar audience.

"We ran." The beings inside the people all answered at once, using the bodies' voices as one, scaring everyone. Except The Doctor. Instead it fuelled him.

"What from? Where from?"

"Calebous."

The Doctor suddenly realised what he was dealing with, and contemplated sending Clara back to the TARDIS. No, he realised, she wouldn't leave.

Clara, by now, had seen his worried expression. "What is is, what's wrong?"

The Doctor paused a bit before responding with a slightly hushed tone. "The Calebous. One of the few naturally gaseous lifeforms in the universe. They've been here since the dawn if time, and they live on until the end of it."

"So why are they in my people's bodies?" Emily interrupted, not caring about the lifeforms inside, but for those they had taken from her. She didn't yet trust The Doctor, but she could sense that he know what he was doing- which annoyed her even more.

He turned his gaze to Emily to answer her question. "They can't survive in this atmosphere. I'm sorry."

After a while she worked it out, speaking solemnly when she did. "So they needed the bodies to survive."

"They don't take them menacingly. They've evolved to only live in another's body. Otherwise they die."

"What about the people? Do they survive?"

The Doctor replied with a solemn shaking of his head, before turning back to the prisoners. "So then. You said you ran, and you're a long way from home. So tell me, what happened?"

"The Phoenix."

"There is no such thing." He chuckled slightly at the notion.

"Nevertheless, that is the form it took. A firebird, devouring whole planets, leaving dust and ash in its wake. It travels across the cosmos, it's soul purpose to eat."

"And so that's why you're all here."

"Our planet was taken from us. We escaped inside a meteor, landing in the green fields. We found being after being, using their bodies."

Emily interrupted, having heard their side of the story. "But hold on. You could've used anyone's body. Anyone body on this planet. So why use only the council members?"

"Yeeees, that's a question to answer." He then turned to Emily, still remaining chirpy. "Brilliant thinking." He then returned to the Calebous. "Go on, answer her question. Why them?"

"We will begin again, rebuild our once majestic empire."

"And... You'll begin again in those bodies? Why?"

"This planet has an empire ready to take over. This planet will be ours." At this, everyone in the room panicked- except The Doctor, who ushered everyone out. But it was already too late. Two of the prisoners opened their mouths, releasing a breath of black fog twinkling slightly as it moved. With this, the two men fell lifelessly to the floor, dead. The Calebous veered themselves quickly towards the two guards, flowing through their nostrils and mouth, consuming their souls. After a few facial flinches, the guards were killed, replaced with two sinister beings. One of them moved towards the switch that controls the prison cells, whilst the other spoke with its new voice. "But we do not need this planet now, Doctor. For we can use you to control the universe." With that, the other guard pulled the switch, causing the doors of the prison cells to slowly open. The prisoners all took one step out, before turning to see their new target: The Doctor. Acting fast, The Doctor whipped out his sonic screwdriver, activating its luminous green bulb once he stepped out of the door and closed it.

He then turned to his two friends, and with a worried smile on his face, he gave them one instruction: "Run." And so they did. Lead by The Doctor, they hurried along the narrow corridors, eventually finding a maintenance cupboard- dark due to the lack of light, but fairly roomy. He almost pushed his friends inside, before climbing in himself, illuminating the room as he used the sonic to lock the door.

The Calebous all stormed into the empty throne room, the older guard taking a seat on the throne."First we shall take this planet, then the universe, and lastly we shall hunt The Phoenix creature and avenge our people."