The Universe's Mixer

Amy Pond was harassing a lamppost. Or rather, a strange bit of technology that was attached to said lamppost.

"Okay. This one is on. Are you sure you're not getting any signal?" With her obviously Scottish accent the young twenty-something year old appeared to speak to no one in particular. It wasn't until she brushed back long red hair over her shoulder with blue painted fingernails one could notice the earpiece. There was a sigh.

"Doctor? Are you there? I said it's on. It's working. Are you there, Doctor?" Apparently she was in some sort of technological dead zone. The TARDIS wasn't picking up signal from either her earpiece or the piece of timey-wimey alien technology. Pulling out her earpiece Amy scolded it, "I really hate you."

She had until then she'd seemed almost normal compared to the madness of The City with it's shifting streets, vampires and unassuming police call boxes that were really alien time traveling space ships. Occasionally people walked past Amy or there would be a car, but for the most part her work was ignored. The City natives got under her skin. Like zombies that didn't eat brains - which somehow made them a little more unnatural.

Amy pocketed the ear piece. The street corner had already changed on her.

"Great. Now I'm lost again."

( excerpt from Dresden's case file )

All tvs, computers, smartphones, anything with a screen that could display video did. Everything was taken over at the same time, whether it was on or not. That was the fun thing about the City; if it wanted people to know, it made sure it did it big. Maybe this was a strange form of apology to those it had wronged recently, or maybe it was a strange announcement to those who would listen.

The screens snowed over, emitting the white noise that went with it. Then there were two ridiculously smiling faces staring out of the screens at the viewers. Frank and Candy were back.

"Welcome back, everyone. We thought we'd lost you." Candy cooed at the camera.

"Ha, ha. No, Candy, they thought they had lost us." Frank corrected her, before the two anchors of the City News looked at each other and laughed in a way that almost looked rehearsed.

"Well, why don't we tell them what has happened?" Candy and Frank looked at the camera at the same time.

"Yes, I think that's brilliant." Frank added a bit of English to that last word, which earned him a panned roll of eyes and grimace from Candy. "I kid. Yes, to be serious, there appears to be a rash of murders."

"I didn't know two counted as a rash." Candy chimed in.

"Well, it's certainly no birthmark." Frank came back, and somewhere someone actually gave the proper drum and cymbals for the joke. "Seriously-"

"Yes, seriously. Two of our very own have been killed recently. The City PD is still looking for clues and suspects, but as of yet, they only know that 'it was gruesome, sick, and a damn shame that anyone would ever do that to another human being,' or so one officer on the scene said." Candy was doing her serious face.

"The victims' names have yet to be released, but we will keep you up to date. There is some rumor that they worked in the asylum." Frank was working on his serious face. It was that or his debonair face.

"Oh, yes, right before they let all the nutjobs out. Probably was one of those complete loons who did it." Candy laughed. "You'd think they'd know better than..." Frank shook his head furiously, trying to smile through it. His finger could be seen on the top of the desk pointing to the camera that was still on. Candy turned to the camera, smiling a rather sheepish smile. "I'm sure they're all wonderful people. Every one of them."

"Yes, every one of them." Frank's smile was glued to his face, as was Candy's. "Now, a question that many men should be considering: Do you know where your wife is?"

Before the KWIT News could continue with the next story, the screens went to the usual snow and white noise that came with these interruptions. Whatever had been on the screens prior to the news report returned as if nothing had happened.