Light (short story)

was the 38th The Blogs of Doom short story, published in 2020 in Doctor Who Magazine 558. Like other features in the series, it narrated events in the life of a minor Doctor Who TV character before and after their involvement in the Doctor's life.
In this case, the subject of writer Jonathan Morris's attention was Light.
== Summary ==
Light's Log #1 - Light arrives on a new planet with the right conditions for life, and plans to make a note of any indigenous species.
Light's Log #2 - Light is surprised to find all sorts of organisms, expecting only bacteria, and spends several centuries cataloguing everything. Being "dead beat," he plans to take a quick nap and then move on.
Light's Log #3 - A passing spacecraft crashes, sending billions of tons of dust into the atmosphere, causing the temperature to drop rapidly. With the dinosaurs dead, Light's catalog will be out of date, but it's still thorough. The Silurians are gone, too, and Light will leave after finishing his nap.
Light's Log #4 - A spaceship lands and a fellow all covered in hair with hooves and horns says "You ain't seen me, right?" and Light goes back to sleep.
Light's Log #5 - Light wakes up to find icy tundra and wooly mammoths, and makes friends with a very polite young Neanderthal called Nimrod who is the last of his species, which please Light: if they're extinct, they don't have to be added to the catalogue. He goes back to his nap.
Light's Log #6 - Light is awakened in what is now jungle by a man who is shocked and blinded and runs back into the night. Now wide awake, he notices new species and subspecies; the catalogue needs updating, and the task is endless. Light decides to use two aliens in his ship to test "evolution:" He'll move his ship to a population cnetre, beneath a house, and set one alien free while the other remains locked.
Light's Log #7 - Light awakens again to someone "fiddling with [his] alarm clock" and finds Control, taking the lift upstairs to find the the other alien has set himself up as an English gentleman with a "half-witted" scheme to assassinate the reigning monarch. Still on Earth and still seeing evolution making his catalog outdated, Light plans to eradicate all life in a firestorm. A "mischievous" man called the Doctor says the catalog missed out on some creatures and so overcome by the thought of everything being in flux, Light disperses himself all over the house.
Light's Log #8 - Now a disembodied entity pervading an abandoned house, Light enjoys his 'alone time' when a young girl climbs over the call and starts poking around. Light tries scaring her off by creating an aura of intense evil, and the girl takes out matches.
== Characters ==
* Light
* A fellow all covered in hair with hooves and horns
* Nimrod
* A fellow who awakens Light
* Two aliens
* The Doctor
* Young girl
== Worldbuilding ==
* Light arrives on Earth expecting there to be only bacteria, but instead he finds plant life, insects, dinosaurs, and Silurians.
* The Silurians mistake Light for a god, and he goes along with it to keep them happy.
* Light offers Nimrod a quarantine cubicle to sleep in if he'll help out with chores.
* Light is "a light sleeper."
* Light has "suffered" the company of his two aliens for millennia.
* Light was "light headed" upon waking up in Gabriel Chase, unsure if he was still on Earth until he dissects a chambermaid.
== Notes ==
* This story occurs before, during, and after the events of Ghost Light, recapping the important beats of the serial.
== Continuity ==
* Light is cataloging all forms of life in his Catalogue of Life, including "every organism from the smallest bacteria to the largest Ichthyosaur." (TV: Ghost Light)
* A spaceship crashes into Earth, causing the extinction of the dinosaurs (TV: Earthshock) and sending the Silurians to their sleep. (TV: Doctor Who and the Silurians)
* Light briefly encounters Azal. (TV: The Dæmons)
* Light recalls meeting Nimrod, being awoken in Africa, his two aliens, the Doctor, and a young girl burning down Gabriel Chase. (TV: Ghost Light)
Category:The Blogs of Doom short stories
Category:2020 short stories
Category:Short stories set on Earth