Dreaming of a Blue Box | The Doctor {1} ✔️ (Original Version)

The Empty Child - IV

"Rose." The Doctor gave her a look and then turned back to the man.

"He didn't deny it," Rose smirked thinking in her mind.

"Anyways, I'm, er . . are you the doctor?"

"Doctor Constantine. Are you are?"

"Nancy sent us." The Doctor said, avoiding the question.

Constantine nodded. "Nancy? That means you must've been asking about the bomb."

"Yes."

"What do you want to know about it?"

"Nothing." He replied. "Why I was asking. What do you know?"

"Only what is done."

Rose took a look around the room. "These people? Where they all caught up in the blast?"

"None of them were my dear."

Constantine's coughing turns her head back to him. He hunches forward hacking and then made his way to a chair, sitting down. "You're very sick." She told him.

The man nodded. "Dying. I should think. I just haven't been able to find the time." He looks to the Time Lord. "Are you a doctor?"

He shrugged. "I have my moments."

"Have you examined any of them yet?"

"No."

"Don't touch the flesh." He warned as the Doctor made his way to the patients.

"Which one?" Rose asked.

"Anyone."

The Doctor chose the closest patient and use his sonic screwdriver. "Conclusions?" Constantine asked.

"Massive head trauma, mostly to the left side." He replied. "Partial collapse of the chest cavity, mostly to the right. There's some scarring on the back of the hand and the gas mask seems to be fused to the flesh but I can't see any burns."

Constantine nodded. "Examine another one."

The Doctor followed his order and widened his eyes in astonishment. "This isn't possible."

"Examine another."

The Doctor shook his head. "This isn't possible," he repeated.

"No." Constantine agreed.

"What's wrong?" Rose asked in confusion.

"They've all got the same injuries!"

"Yes." Constantine coughed out.

"Exactly the same."

"Yes."

"Identical, all of them, right down the scar on the back of there hand." He turned to him. "How did this happen? How did it start?"

"When the bomb dropped." Constantine began. "There was just one victim."

"Dead?"

"At first. His injuries were truly dreadful. By the following morning, every doctor and nurse who had treated him, who had touched him, had those exact same injuries. By the morning after that, every patient in the same ward, the exact same injuries. Within a week, the entire hospital. Physical injuries as plague. Can you explain that? What would you say was the cause of death?"

"Head trauma?" Rose asked.

"No."

"Asphyxiation?" The Doctor added.

"No."

"The collapse of the chest cavity."

"No."

The Doctor looked at him surprised. "All right. What was the cause of death?"

"There wasn't one. They're not dead." Constantine hit a wastebasket with his stick and all the patients say straight up. They both jumped in surprise. "It's all right." The man assured them. "They're harmless. They just sort of sit there. No heartbeat, no life signs of any kind. They just don't die."

"And they've just been left here?" Rose asked watching them all lay down again. "Nobody's doing anything?"

"I try and make them comfortable." Constantine sighed. "What else is there?"

"Just you? You're the only one here?"

Constantine nodded. "Before this war began, I was a father and a grandfather. Now I am neither. But I'm still a doctor."

The Doctor nodded, swallowing. "I know the feeling."

Rose looked up at him. She knew what he meant and wanted to ask but knew she shouldn't pry.

"I suspect the plan is to blow up the hospital and blame it on a German bomb."

"Probably too late."

"No. There are isolated cases. Isolated cases breaking out all over London." Constantine suddenly bent down and started coughing. Rose step forward to help. "Stay back! Stay back!" The Doctor saw the scar on the back of his hand and took Roses arm, pulling her back. "Listen to me. Top floor. Room eight oh two. That's where they took the first victim, the one from the crash site. And you must find Nancy again."

"Nancy?" Rose repeated.

"It was her brother." Constantine wheezed, "She knows more than she's saying. She won't tell me but he might. . ." She stopped. "Mummy?" The Doctor and Roses eyes widened. They both slowly started to back to the door. "Are you my mummy?"

The two watched in horror as a gas mask encased Constantine's face from the mouth.

"Hello?" A male voice called out from the ward.

"Hello?"

Rose turned in surprise, "Lily?" She shouted.

"Hello?" The first voice called out again.

"Wait." Rose stopped. "I know that voice."

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