Doctor Who, "Descent" Vicki | rated G

[paynesgrey.livejournal.com]

Fandom: Doctor Who (Classic)
Title: Descent
Author: Paynesgrey
Characters: Vicki, Ian, Barbara, First Doctor, Steven
Word Count: 680
Rated: G - all ages
Warnings: None
Spoilers: None. Takes place around the end of "The Chase" in Classic Who Season 2.
Notes: Written for "The Bad Guys" one-shot for who_contest.
Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who.

Summary: Vicki's fear of heights consumes her.



She wobbled on her feet, her vision spinning as the contents of stomach flopped around. She didn’t know if she could do it, but her friends were persistent and the Doctor would have none of her protests when all their lives were at stake.

Looking around, she saw the scattering mists of the skies. They were high enough to feel the cold wetness of the air, and she supposed if they were all on the ground - safe - they’d be looking up into the clouds next to the tall Mechanoid structure.

She cried, tears falling down her cheeks as they led her to the side of the building. Oh, why did she have to go first? She felt dizzy and faint, falling into the safe motherly arms of Barbara, who tried to console her. Yet, Vicki felt safer hugging her knees rigidly, and she heard Barbara say her name, and then Steven suggested they lower her to the ground.

“I can’t, I can’t!” she cried as Barbara held her. Her blood felt cold in her body, and she stiffened as Barbara’s delicate hand lightly guided her.

When the Doctor put the blindfold on her, she whined loudly despite his assurance she’d be perfectly safe. As they all tried to reassure her, she found she disliked the darkness just as much as the possibility of being guided down the side of a tall building without having her wits about her.

She felt them wrapping the cable around her, and suddenly all their voices blended together, and she cried as they lightly dropped her over, secured by the cable. They reassured her profusely, but she resisted them, trying to remove the cable and clinging to Barbara as her legs swung over the edge. Her fears took over her thoughts, and she surely thought she would die. While still resisting the descent, Barbara managed to guide her over, and she clung desperately to the cable and wailed. She fell downward, her hands so tight around the cables they burned raw.

Without warning, she heard the newcomer Steven yell something, and the Doctor hollered as Vicki lurched fast and down on the cable. She screamed wildly when her security teetered, and she felt unsure on just how far she was down from the top or how close she was to her own death.

She whimpered as the Doctor and Ian grabbed control, and she felt another weight on the cable above her, and she hoped it was Barbara.

Cries still escaped her lips, even as the blood in her ears began to drown out most of the sounds around her. She panicked again when she smelled smoke, and she gathered through the Doctor’s and Ian’s voices that Steven had left them to go back for his mascot, and down below the Mechonoids and Daleks were fighting each other.

Vicki supposed that it was better if the bad guys were more focused on each other than them, and maybe they had a chance to get away. Maybe she’d get down this blasted building alive and well.

Time expanded, and the smoke and fire burned her lungs. She coughed, and she felt relief when she and Barbara finally made it safely to the ground. Soon after Ian and the Doctor followed. Once she removed the blindfold, she felt instantly elated they made it.

A pang in her heart formed when it was evident that Steven didn’t escape with them, and she hoped that he wasn’t dead.

Looking back at the Mechanoid structure, Vicki hoped that if the Mechanoids and Daleks had finished each other off, that they wouldn’t have to run anymore, and Ian and Barbara were already planning on using the Dalek time machine to return home.

Before they returned to the TARDIS, she looked back at the exploding structure of the Mechanoid buildings. She sighed deeply, and she felt a residual shudder within her bones. She couldn’t believe she actually made it safely down that building despite her fears, and Vicki hoped she’d never have to descend from something that high again.

END