The Curse of the Black Spot (TV story): Difference between revisions

On a becalmed ship called the ''[[Fancy]]'', a man with a minor cut is brought to the captain, [[Henry Avery]]; Avery declares that he's a "dead man" after discovering a black spot on the man's palm. The man grabs a gun and flees outside as a woman can be heard singing on the deck. A few minutes later, he can be heard screaming as the song cuts to a stop. The crew departs the cabin to investigate, with Avery remarking that the disappearance is the same as all the others. As a banging is heard below deck, a wooden grille is pushed open to reveal the [[Eleventh Doctor]], [[Amy Pond|Amy]], and [[Rory Williams|Rory]].

The trio is brought to Avery's cabin, where the Doctor reveals that they picked up the ship's distress calls; the crew, however, insists that they made no such calls. When the Doctor compares the [[time travel]]lers to "sailors," they are held at gunpoint by Avery and accused of being stowaways. The captain, knowing there is too little [[water]] to sustain all of them until the wind picks up, orders the Doctor and Rory to walk the plank while commanding Amy to the scullery. She is shoved below deck, where she discovers trunks of pirate garb and weaponry. As the Doctor is prepared to jump into the water, Amy reappears, brandishing a sword, frightening the crew, who do not wish to be injured. One crew member advances on her to get the sword away from her, but she puts up a fight, accidentally cutting his hand. He explains that she has killed him, prompting her to call him a "baby" for overreacting. A second fight ensues and Amy drops the sword, accidentally cutting Rory as well. Black spots appear on both of the men's palms, prompting Rory to ask the Doctor what's happening.

Avery does not believe that [[The Doctor's TARDIS|the TARDIS]] is truly the Doctor's "ship," and levels his pistol at him, demanding that he make it "sail". The Doctor, however, feels that they're merely fighting over who's in charge. Another crewmember realises that a [[leech]] has bitten him on the leg, and they all scramble to remove themselves from the still water as the black spot appears on the man's hand. All of a sudden, the Siren appears and takes the man, allowing the Doctor to [[deduce]] that she is using water as a portal; therefore, they must make for the driest room on the ship — the armoury. Arriving there, they discover [[Toby Avery|Toby]], a young boy who is revealed to be Avery's son. The boy stowed away on his father's ship, wanting to meet the man his mother described as an "honourable Navy captain" before she died the previous year. However, he is very ill, and soon reveals a black spot on the palm of his hand. Because he possesses no injuries, the Doctor realises that the Siren is coming for the sick as well as the wounded.

[[File:Eyepatch4.jpg|thumb|left|The Patch Lady looks at Amy through the hatch.]]

As everyone sleeps, Amy sees the [[Madame Kovarian|woman with the eyepatch]] staring at her through a hatch in the side of the ship, however, the hatch disappears. She goes to Avery's cabin, where the Doctor stands staring out the window and is prepared to tell him of the woman when he interrupts her, questioning whether or not she feels as though she is being watched. Suddenly, a storm breaks, and all head to the deck to lift the sail. In the chaos, a crown falls out of Avery's jacket, even though the Doctor had previously ordered Avery to rid the ship of all the treasure so that they might limit the Siren's means of reaching them. The Siren appears, taking Toby, but the Doctor is able to throw the crown overboard before she can go after Rory. Nevertheless, Rory is knocked overboard and begins to drown. Though Amy prepares to jump in after him, the Doctor explains that Rory will die unless they let the Siren take him. He pulls the lid off a bucket of still water and orders the woman to go save him. The Doctor realises that their only means of reuniting with their loved ones is to prick their fingers and let the Siren take them as well. She appears, and they all touch her hand, instantly blacking out.

They wake on the floor of an invisible [[Alien ship (The Curse of the Black Spot)|alien spaceship]], which the Doctor quickly [[deduce]]s is taking up the same space as the ''Fancy'', lending credence to his previous belief that they were all being watched; every window on the spaceship is a portal that leads to the ''Fancy''. Amy realises that the distress signal they answered was coming from the spaceship, not the ''Fancy''. As they explore, they discover the skeletons of the ship's crew members, with the Doctor ascertaining that they all died years ago from an [[Earth]] disease.

[[File:Siren-angry.jpg|thumb|The Siren prepares to "sterilize" germs]]

In the TARDIS, Amy and Rory say goodnight to the Doctor, who responds by referring to Amy as "Amelia." Amy notes that he only does this when he's worried about her. The Doctor retorts that he always worries about her, leading Amy to remember his impending death and admit that the feeling is mutual. As they depart the console room, Rory reminds her that she cannot tell the Doctor about what happens at the lakeside in the future. The Doctor scans Amy for pregnancy again, with the readings still flickering between positive and negative.