Only the Truth

[Brax, Harleen, Bailey, maybe a doctor? ]

A little town called Barrington was nothing extraordinary. A quaint village with around two hundred people living in relative comfort, nestled between farmland and forests. But their numbers swelled as the months progressed, reporters and curious citizens gathering within the town limits with fascination. It was a place where no one could lie, where every question asked was answered. No one knew why, but they came in drove to babble secrets to strangers and friends. This ‘truth bubble’ as the people called it reforged some marriages and broke others apart, made friends and family understand each other better.

Summers in Barrington were hot and dry, and normally very quiet. The extra activity had business owners excited and local residents nervous. It was incredible so many people gathered in the place fit to hold only five hundred at most. There could be more than a thousand today, running around the streets like lunatics. It also collected the odder side of humanity, those who’ve seen what the rest have not.

Nicole lingered in the background, huddled in the corner of some outdoor café drinking some fancy smoothe she had chosen as refreshment. It was some mix of banana, mango and pineapple and she was debating whether or not she liked the combination. A weird tango of tangy and sweet was confusing her taste buds. And she really wasn’t fond of pineapples.

Why’d she get it in the first place? She was distracted when she bought it, mulling over the strange occurrence of a truth field. The Cyber Planner knew little of it, or those who were often known to use it, and had been rather unhelpful with its information. More corrupted data in its files, nothing more than broken ones and zeroes strung together in nonsense codes.

She sighed into her cup, eyes glancing around those chatting to each other in mild bemusement. A man got slapped across the street as a woman stormed away from him. Another couple ripped apart by the truth field. It was slightly amusing to her, the fact that people would go here despite their love of keeping secrets. She had her own secrets, but no one would ask the right questions to get the answers. There was some smug satisfaction of that.

But the people she was searching for would be the kind of people to ask her that sort of question. A dilemma for her. She kept a lookout for any oddities of those wandering around, the Cyber Planner as curious as her. One could note, if they were looking close enough, silver mice hidden under the bushes and cracks, extra eyes with improved sensors, watching and waiting for the right person to pass.

Darren walked in the shadows and leant against the wall, he was under a trust treaty that he wouldn't be able to kill for at least 48 hours after being fired from his job.

The pain of not killing was excruciating, he snapped. A new found rage filled his head, he stalked a few aliens, killing then off in the darkness as they past him. He then dropped the blade, blood dripping off his hands as he walked into an outdoor cafe.

"What would you like…" The waitress glanced at his face and then to his bloodied hands. "Sir."

"A normal coca-cola, if you have one, thanks." Darren nearly growled the sentence but managed to keep it slightly light-hearted. The service was quick and he sat down in the nearest booth to the window. He would have to go back to pick up the knife, it was one of those that lasted for a long time for a kitchen knife.

He then saw a couple breaking up and smirked. He forgot all about his drink and walked back towards the man who was on the bench.

"Hey, mate. I understand…how you feel. It happens." Darren somehow managed to get past the truth field and led him to the alleyway.

In one quick movement, he picked up the knife and slashed his throat, blood squirting everywhere. He dropped the body and walked out into the city centre, covered in blood. Aliens and humans alike all screamed as Darren tried to hide his knife and a maniac grin.

Harleen had been travelling for a few days and she ended up in this town that she knew as Barrington and she decided to stay at a bed and breakfast place. She dragged her suitcases along with her face slightly red from all her walking and she was clearly out of breath. She saw a cafe she decided to get some food and drink at and she sighed in relief as she finally sat down at the corner of the room across from a girl she didn't know. She sighed and ordered a large cola drink and she smiled at the waiter, "Thank you." She said to him gently before he asked her name and she immediately said: "Harleen Quinn." She was surprised that she would be so forward to a waiter and she was especially surprised she would say her actual name as Harleen, she would've preferred to have said Harley. She then heard screaming and she ran out of the cafe, forgetting her luggage and she saw a familiar face covered in blood. "Oh Darren! Hello!" She called with a grin and she waved before her eyes widened, "W-what am I doing...?"

The dull hum of people talking, along with the heat of the day was making her a bit sleepy. The Cyber Planner murmured quietly in the back of her mind, its attention on its dear Cybermites patrolling the area. She was aware of them as well, feeling them like little bugs crawling over her skin. It was something she was used to, though she still found it disturbing sometimes. They made her closer to it, more in tuned with its schemes and memories and of course that went the other way too.

A cybermite clicked eagerly to life, sensors turning to a man in the café. The blood had it chirping a warning to Nicole, and her eyes locked on him seconds later. She sipped her drink, looked him over and frowned. He was obviously some lunatic. Another chirped as a woman address this blood soaked man, whirring across the stones in the hopes of clinging to her leg. The other did the same, tailing the man has he led some stranger into an alleyway. It gave another warning as he killed the poor guy in cold blood, giving Nicole a rather unpleasant view of the whole thing.

“Couldn’t have edited that out,” she muttered to herself. The Cyber Planner merely chuckled in the back of her mind, amused at her distaste. She got up from her chair, to talk to the woman. She’d have an easier time talking to her than the psychopath. “Hello,” she said, giving the woman a smile.

Advantage of the truth field in three, two… one. “Do you know that man? Do you know what’s causing the truth field? Who are you? Have you gone on any amazing adventures?” Hopefully she had some beans to spill.

Her heart began to race as Bailey burst through the store's roof access door, two store cops had seen her snag the clothes and food from the shelves and started to follow her. She sighed as she looked around the rooftop for the escapse and started running. The building complained against the weight as Bailey ran as fast as she could toward the fire escape of the roof. The police following her were struggling to keep up, stumbling over their feet in their clumsy boots. Bailey glanced down at the scene below to where the small crowd had started to gather outside a coffee shop. She just shook her head before waving and disappearing down the escape shaft. Her hands burned from sliding down the rails of the metal ladder, but when she looked up the police were gone. Now she needed to merely turn into the chameleon she was known for, merging swiftly with the crowd in the alley, walking past them aimlessly. "Excuse me, sorry. I just mean to get a cup of coffee, excuse me." She said as she hugged her bag tighter to her back, making her way through the small group. The faster I get away from this group, the faster I can get something to eat. She thought as she walked.

Darren quickly spun around at the sound of his name, the maniac grin unfaltering as he took a step towards Harley. He spun the knife around to face her, although the police and the armed responses were on their way, he probably could pull off another few…

"Hello Harley, pleasant day isn't it?"

Blood dripped off his hand as he took another step towards her. Glancing around, he noticed that all the pedestrians were holding their hands over their mouth in the silence that followed. It made it rather uncomfortable and he turned and fled. Everyone watching after him, a blood trail drying out on the pavement.

"Sir! You didn't…what's happening?" The waitress from earlier. She wandered out with the drink he had previously ordered, stopping only to see the shocked expressions on everyone's face. "Could someone tell me what is going on and who the hell is that man?"

No one responded. Darren had gotten away, hiding once again within the safety of an abandoned shack. He screamed, emotions spiraling out of control. He was going to get his revenge on Torchwood and make them see what a mistake they made on firing him. Already, he had killed 14 aliens and only 2 humans. It was almost like his stress toy and the truth field allowed him to do so.

"Torchwood...Myriam...Death..." He muttered over and over, only to be staring at a blank wall, plaster peeling itself off the walls.

Harleen was scared of Darren and she backed up a bit as he stepped forward at her but when he suddenly ran away she blinked in surprise but she sighed in relief that he didn't kill her. She looked towards the woman and she smiled, "Hello." Then when the questions came she smiled and quickly answered them all.
“Do you know that man?" "Yes I do, he is called Darren and he is a murderer but I don't know him personally, if you get what I mean."
"Do you know what’s causing the truth field?" "No idea."
"Who are you?" "I am Harleen Quinn, a famous model in a magazine worldwide but it mostly only sold in cities, not towns."
"Have you gone on any amazing adventures?” "Yeah I've traveled in space, quite a lot of times."

A cybermite was quick to follow the mass murderer, clinging to the shadows to hide its silver case. It kept on eye on him, relaying information on where he went. Nicole shoved the information aside, remembering not to head in that direction if needed.

“Thank you for answering all my questions,” said Nicole, a smile gracing her lips. There was a hint of smugness in her voice. So she was more than likely human, no one interesting, except for the traveling in space part. “You traveled in space? What, on one of those clunky rockets that spiral into the sky?” She laughed, acting as if such a thing were impossible. She was well aware of aliens having the technology.

“Ridiculous,” she commented, folding her arms and giving Harleen a scrutinizing look over. There were quite a few different alien species that lingered on this planet. She could’ve hitched a ride with any of them, but for what reason, she didn’t know. Most aliens would never let some ‘ape’ clamber aboard their ships.

In her head she heard the chirp of a different cybermite, the one in the alleyway just by the fire escape to some building. Some girl was fleeing from the police. An interesting development, but still not as important and finding out the source of this field. Nicole gave her a sparring glance, before returning to Harleen. “My name’s Nicole Baxter, I'd say it was nice to meet you but at this point I’m not sure. Sorry, I meant that.”

The small crowd would pay no attention to Bailey as she squeezed through. Only one thing noticed her, and it was no human. Dressed in a suit with a face that could terrify most people, the Silence clicked and chattered as it stood in the current path of the blonde girl.

Bailey made her way through the crowd, keeping from making eye contact as she walked. Something caught her attention, standing straight in front of her. Looking up slowly, Bailey froze as her eyes scanned over the creature. "I'm sorry, but may I please get through." She tried to whisper, hoping it would hear her and leave her alone. "I just want to go get some coffee, well tea really. Coffee isn't my thing." Bailey couldn't look away from the creature, her instincts telling her to grab her knife from it's holder at her thigh. The moment she moved to grab her knife, she couldn't remember why she needed it. The police are on the roof, and these people don't know what I've done. Why am I reaching for this? She thought as she slid the blade back into the holder and looked back up.

Police lights flashed as Darren tired to be inconspicuous, he threw his knife down, breaking it into tiny fragments. He wasn't sure of his next move but he had put nearly everyone on high alert.
But the itch was only growing itchier, Torchwood would be on their way, a sniper would have its scope set on him.

"I miss my mum…" Darren said, then quickly shaking his head as he realized the truth field was affecting him.

He headed straight for Torchwood, vowing to get his revenge on the people that fired him. He didn't really care in the first place, the only reason he stayed this long is because he wasn't being hunted. He glanced around the corner, the crowd was less chaotic and hopefully, hadn't heard of the event. The HQ was guarded, well-guarded.

"Did you hear? A mad man ran out and threatened to stab a lady, blood everywhere on his body…"

Darren looked skyward and headed to the fire stairwell, overlooking the crowd beneath him.

(I heard that a doctor could be here so...)
The doctor walked out of the TARDIS and onto the street. "Did you here about the man that almost stabbed a lady?" he overheard someone saying. Man that threatened to...looks like i came to the right place at the right time...He thought to himself. He ran through a crowd to find the silence standing in front of a blonde girl. "Excuse me miss but...wait what was I looking at?" He said as he was about to bring out his sonic screwdriver, and slid it back into his Victorian jacket.

Harleen giggled before replying to the girl she just met: "No, I traveled with The Doctor in his space machine called the TARDIS. We go through time and space!" She said before covering her mouth, "W-why did I just say that?" She blinked before she heard something and she turned, seeing a Silence she screamed before turning and she ran off. "Wait. Why am I running?" She muttered to herself before skidding to a stop and she turned back around to see nothing was there and she shook her head in disbelief, she knew she had run away from something scary but she couldn't think what it was. She sighed and went to the cafe and she ordered a diet cola and she sat down at the table and drank her drink so she could calm down. "I am acting weird today." She sighed before murmuring, "I miss my family." The truth field was affecting her.

Doctor? TARDIS? Something about the words set the Cyber Planner humming with a mix of frustration and confusion. A corrupted file it had, information fragmented and completely useless. The words were ‘lord’ and ‘one’, but neither of them connected together. “Oh there’s a truth field,” she said, hiding a smirk. “You have to answer every question directed at you, and answer it truthfully.”

Then this Harleen started screaming and running, and she gave the model a funny look. She turned around and spotted the same thing affecting everyone else; a Silence standing in the middle of a crowd of people. “Wha-,” she spluttered, taking a step back. She looked away for a second, seeing if anyone else noticed this creature. Wait. What was she looking for in the first place?

The Cyber Planner whirred to life, flashing up the memory she’d forgotten. A creature in a suit, not of this world. “I forgot something that ugly,” she muttered under her breath. The image vanished, she forgot, and it was pulled up again. “Okay, I get it. Stop doing that.”

She turned around, faced some stranger dressed like he was from the past, and walked right by him. The Cyber Planner muttered something about him being familiar, but both were focused on the arrival of this strange alien. It was worried about her safety, merely for its survival and she was worried for everyone else’s sake. Were they part of the truth field?

The Silence stepped in front of the Doctor. “Doctor,” it hissed. “Doctor…”

"Stay back!" The doctor told the woman standing beside him. He knew that whatever this creature was,people always forget it after they stop looking at it. He had heard about this from the TARDIS data core. "Im the doctor. You've got a phone don't you? Take a picture of it!" he told her. "Also, remember this: when i say 'scally waggins!' turn around!"

Bailey blinked and looked over to the guy who just appeared at her side. "I..I don't have a phone. I never needed one." She looked back at where the creature was and it vanished from her view. She took a few steps back quickly and looked around her. She couldn't tell what it was that had made her answer him without thinking it through. She had killed people, stolen, but he just simply asked a question. There had to be something especially wrong with her to just answer anyone.

"Fine!...Just take this note pad, and jot down what i just told you! And make a picture! Just don't stop looking until your done!" he told her. "Never mind i'll do it. Just run and find shelter! There's a mad man on the streets, and i'm not about to let you get killed." he told her. "Oh! And stay away from these things, madam!" he said to her.

Darren glanced behind him, a black suited alien, similar to one depicted in a video game stood silently watching him. He stared back and the alien's hand raised. Darren grappled for his knife but realized that he had broken it back down at the alleyway.

Glancing back down to the streets, he couldn't remember what exactly he was doing and decided to climb back down to the pavement. The group was still there, he casually walked through the alley, picking up a hoodie and quickly putting the hood over his head.

"Totally not going to be noticed…" Darren scowled at himself, the damn truth field.

He walked right next to the group, another new edition was handing over a notepad and he glanced at it slightly confused. He needed to buy himself a new knife, or steal one from someone's house.

"May I be of assistance?" Darren said.