Doctor Who: Devil in the Dark.

Prologue.

It was from about seven in the evening that the feeling of hopelessness had begun to work its way into Daniel's system. As the dark began to close in and the temperature gradually decreased his thoughts of ever finding the way out of the woods he currently found himself lost in began to seem more and more ludicrous. He knew he had been hiking for some time, he rarely stopped for rest and only drank from his water bottle on occasion and yet he was both exhausted and nearly out of refreshment. He had lost any real sense of the passing of time since he broke his watch when falling from a tree he had attempted to climb in order to get a better look at his surroundings though he knew he'd been lost for several hours now. After all, it was getting dark and sunset was around seven though this, of course, presented a new dilemma for him – if he had indeed been travelling for as long as his limited sense of time told him he had then he surely would have reached the edge of the woods by now. Yet here he was, still lost and with night slowly closing in on him, its darkness ever threatening to become absolute.

Daniel stopped and sat down on the fallen remains of a tree and looked up at the dark blue sky. The moon was almost completely visible and he realised he didn't have long until total darkness. He wrapped his thick jacket tighter around him and felt the reassuring softness of his woollen shirt against his skin, it was his favourite shirt knitted by his mother for his twentieth birthday, just over a year ago now. He wore it whenever he went hiking along with his heavy, black boots, favourite tatty combat trousers and the thickest pair of gloves he could get his hands on. Daniel always told himself he was prepared for anything and even as he sat lost and alone in the dark he could find humour in his own false belief.

As he sat in the cold, the wind growing stronger, blowing sharply across his face, he looked around at the landscape around him and he remembered why he so enjoyed hiking. Each tree was individual, its bark, height and shape its own unique form and they stood as a testament to the beauty and unlimited invention of nature; he loved exploring each new world and seeing each new detail where ever it was he went. Whilst he was sure some people felt they had to travel the world to see wonders and feel like they had achieved something Daniel was satisfied to know he could find wonder wherever it was he went.

His brief respite and contemplation of his motives fired up his spirit and Daniel decided to press on a bit further until total nightfall. He picked up his things and headed onwards, knowing that every step took him further to an inevitable civilisation. The woods, however much it seemed like it, couldn't go on forever and he might as well try and enjoy this little adventure as much as he could.

"Who's there?" It was perhaps an unrealistic question to ask, any number of explanations could have explained the snapping branch he had heard seconds ago and yet it had set him instantly on edge. He'd only been walking for another ten minutes, at least he estimated so, yet h was feeling much more tired and Daniel guessed that explained his some what more jumpy nature. Still, it was pitch black now and with his torch as his only illumination it was probably time to stop and rest for the night, he could continue his journey in the morning.

He threw down his bag again but as he did so he heard another noise through the dark, slightly masked by the sound of his belongings hitting the floor but clearly a movement of some kind. A movement of something large.

An animal of course, once again he was getting paranoid. He usually handled situations such as this very well but something was certainly getting the better of his senses and, as his feelings of unease increased, he began to doubt that tiredness could excuse his growing fear. Daniel shone his torch about himself in every direction, unsure where exactly the sound had come from.

"Is someone there?" he found himself calling out and immediately chided himself for it. If there was someone and they were trying to scare him he was playing right into their hands. Better to keep silent, listen and be very watchful and then he may catch a glimpse of whatever was the source of the noises.

Ah he listened he heard a scrabbling of leaves followed by silence. He froze, the woods and blackness around him deafly silent and devoid of any sign of life, the only sound he could hear was the rapid beating of his own heart. Suddenly through the silence he heard another sound, something different, almost like the flapping of a birds wings but not quite.

As he shone his torch in the direction he felt the sound had come from he felt his stomach sink in fear and his hearts beat seemed like that of a drum pounding in his chest. He regretted shining his light, he regretted not being wary of his own sense of fear and he regretted ever coming on this trip.

Through the darkness a shape flew through the air, passing through the light briefly. He couldn't make the details out but it was enough, he dropped the torch in panic and stumbled back, tripping over his own belongings.

He had to flew. He scrabbled up as the flapping grew louder and he felt the rush of air as something went over his head. A screech, both familiar sounding and yet not echoed around him as he began to run, sprinting blindly into the darkness. Whatever it was after him he knew it was dangerous, he had sensed the danger and ignored it, rationality getting in the way of his own bodies warnings.

He cried out as his blind panic led into the tree log he had sat on only a short while ago. His legs hit it at great speed and he cartwheeled forward, he heard a crack of bone and agony soared up his shoulder as he struck the floor and rolled in the dirt. He tried to pick himself up but the pain in his shoulder burned stronger and his head was sore from where he had hit the ground.

Daniel tried to remain calm, tried to gather his senses but he couldn't He was alone and injured in the dark and something was after him. He heard cracking wood and looked up, a shape was perched on the log only metres away. He couldn't make it out properly, the darkness and pain conspired to hide the horror of what had pursued him though this was, perhaps, in the end, for the best. As the creature came down upon him he squeezed his eyes closed tight and screamed out into the darkness, a scream that echoed across the empty woods and was soon joined by the piercing, unnatural screech of the devil in the dark.