Doctor Who: The Sensorites (16 page)

'Are you implying
that your friend Carol is being held prisoner in this Palace?' The
First Elder made it clear that such a thing was impossible without
his knowledge.

Once again that
insufferable self-assurance. Barbara bit her lip in an effort to
remain calm. 'Are there any other buildings in this vicinity?' she
asked.

'Only the
Disintegrator Room,' answered the Sensorite.

'Where's that?'

'Below the
courtyard. It is rarely used now.'

'Then that must be
where they're holding Carol prisoner!' cried John. 'We must rescue
her.'

'I cannot unravel
this mystery but I see that it worries you. I shall entrust to you
the services of my Senior Warrior.' The First Elder paused for a
moment, regarding the humans thoughtfully; and then he said, 'As for
your other friends I must tell you that they have gone down into the
aqueduct.'

What!'

The First Elder
urged Susan to remain calm. 'They were given light and a good map.
They were also well armed. Rest easy: they are in no danger
whatsoever.'

Down in the
aqueduct Ian threw the two hand guns to the ground. 'The inside
filaments have been removed, Doctor,' he said. 'The weapons are
absolutely useless.'

'That's only one of
our problems, dear boy,' said the Doctor sadly. He directed the
feeble light of his torch onto the unfurled map before him. 'This map
is of no use to us either. Look - all the lines and routes have been
altered; someone's been jigging about with it.'

Ian made an attempt
at optimism. 'We'll still get out of here somehow, Doctor.' He hoped
he sounded confident.

'Oh yes - in time,'
agreed his companion. 'But do we have that time? We brought no food
with us and the only water we have here is that poisoned water. And
to top it all we don't know what else is down here with us. What a
charming outlook!'

As if in answer to
his complaint, from down one of the side tunnels there came a low
rumbling, like the growl of an awakening wild beast. The Doctor
quickly got to his feet and with Ian began to try and find a way out
of the tunnel system -before whatever horror that dwelt in the
aqueduct found them.

Carol looked up in
despair at the leering face of the Engineer. His obvious satisfaction
at her suffering was hideous to behold.

'How long are you
going to keep me here?' she asked.

'I am not permitted
to say,' he said loftily.

She pleaded with
him. 'Look, I've had nothing to eat and I'm very thirsty!'

'That is of no
consequence.'

'But I wrote the
letter!' she protested.

The Engineer looked
at her with scorn. 'Surely you do not seriously believe that you are
to be released?'

Carol's face fell
as the meaning of the Engineer's words sank in.

'All
Earth-creatures are naive,' he continued. 'They live while they have a
purpose. As soon as that purpose is achieved they have no value
left.'

As the Engineer
continued his tirade against his despised enemies, the door to the
Disintegrator Room was suddenly smashed open. Standing in the doorway
was John, his eyes wild with anger. Behind him was the Senior
Warrior; he was holding aloft his hand gun. With surprising speed the
Engineer grabbed a live power lead from the Disintegrator control
console and waved it menacingly in Carol's face.

'Stop!' he spat at
John. 'I have only to touch her with this and she will die horribly!'
he threatened.

'Don't be a fool,'
said John. 'Put it down. It's the end for you now.'

'No Sensorite
should ever be humbled before an Earth-creature,' the Engineer
declaimed hatefully.

Keeping her eye
fixed on the Engineer Carol had edged her foot to the other end of
the power lead. With one quick jerk she disconnected the lead from
the console.

In the ensuing
explosion of sparks and smoke John seized his chance and lunged for
the Engineer, knocking him down to the floor. In a hand to hand
struggle the small Sensorite was no match for the powerful human.
John dragged him violently to his feet and flung him into the Senior
Warrior's arms.

'I have already
imprisoned you once,' the Warrior hissed. 'This time you will not
escape.'

Covering the evil
Sensorite with his hand gun he led him out of the Disintegrator Room.

Left alone, John
raised Carol to her feet and held his trembling fiancee tightly in
his arms. 'It's all over now, Carol,' he said. 'Nothing will ever
part us again.'

A little time later
the City Administrator received an urgent summons from the First
Elder. Having heard of Carol's rescue and of the Engineer's capture
he was worried that the Sensorite leader had discovered his
complicity in the affair. As he made his way to the Palace, he
considered confessing all and pleading for mercy: whatever he had
done he had, after all, acted only in the best interests of the
Sensorite Nation. . .

However, the First
Elder had only requested his presence so that they might discuss
together the serious implications of the affair and to decide what
should be done to the Engineer.

'He is a menace to
our society!' the Administrator declared, cleverly changing his tack.
'He must be punished and made an example to the other Sensorites!'
Privately he was relieved that his servant had still remained loyal,
refusing to divulge his involvement in the crime.

'He will be
punished,' said the First Elder. He was pleased that his deputy was
so anxious to bring the traitor to immediate justice; he was unaware
of his real motives. 'But let us also find out who his accomplice
is.'

'You believe there
is another Sensorite working with him?' asked the Administrator,
affecting, he hoped, just the right amount of incredulity.

'Obviously. He had
to guard Carol. Who then delivered the letter she was forced to
write?'

'She cannot
identify the other Sensorite?'

'She says not.'

'It is a serious
matter, sir.' The Administrator feigned concern. 'To think that a
Sensorite should be capable of such a crime . . .'

'Yes . . . but what
I cannot tolerate is mere accusation. Suspicions and guesses merely
undermine the trust of our society. I must have clear and definite
proof.'

The First Elder
turned to the door as Barbara and Susan were ushered into the
chamber. As they approached the First Elder they regarded the
Administrator warily but kept their silence.

'You have been
questioning the Sensorite Engineer who has acted so treacherously?'
asked the First Elder.

'Yes,' confirmed
Susan. 'And what he's told us is terrible.'

'Has he identified
his accomplice yet?' The Administrator asked cautiously.

'Not yet.' Susan
glared at him. It's you, isn't it, she thought, and we all know that;
but the First Elder won't even contemplate the idea unless we find
evidence against you. And until we do we've got to keep quiet - for
our own safety.

Barbara interrupted
before Susan could say anything rash. 'He did tell us however that
the map and guns given to the Doctor and Ian are
useless.'

'Outrageous!'
declared the First Elder. 'He will die for that.' The Administrator
nodded his head in eager agreement.

'What about
Grandfather and Ian though?' asked Susan.

The First Elder
shrugged his shoulders. 'What can I say?' he sighed. 'Lost and
unarmed in the aqueduct, they are beyond hope . . .'

Barbara clenched
her fists in fury. Once again that infernal passivity, that
emotionless acceptance of the facts, no matter how terrible they
might be. Where was these creatures' will to fight? 'I'm afraid that
answer isn't good enough,' she said firmly.

'Do not be insolent
to the First Elder!' ordered the Administrator. Barbara brushed him
aside.

'You must decide
who your friends are and save them,' she told the First Elder,
unconsciously echoing lan's former arguments.

The First Elder
stretched out his hands in a hopeless gesture. 'There is nothing I
can do,' he lamented. 'You still do not understand: the noise, the
dark . . .'

Barbara silently
cursed the Sensorites' inadequacies. Finally she reached the only
decision open to her. 'Is there another map of the aqueduct?' she
asked. The First Elder said there was. 'If Susan and I find a way to
rescue them will you help us?'

'I am suspicious of
these creatures, sir,' whispered the Administrator, anxious that the
Doctor and Ian should not be saved. 'They ask too much.'

The First Elder
silenced him. 'The one called the Doctor has found a cure for the
poison,' he reminded him. 'He put his life in danger for the sake of
the Sensorite Nation.' He turned back to Barbara who could hardly
believe that she had roused the Sensorite leader to some positive
action at last. 'Yes,' he said. 'I will give you all the help I can.'

By Barbara's side
Susan heaved a huge sigh of relief and gratitude.

In the dark
labyrinths of the aqueduct system the Doctor and Ian's expedition had
turned into a flight for their lives.

All around them, or
so it seemed in the darkness, the angry growls of the Monsters of the
Caves grew louder and louder. As they cautiously tried to retrace
their steps down the poorly lit tunnels and back to the aqueduct
entrance, threatening shadows seemed to separate themselves from the
walls and follow them. They resisted the natural urge to run, knowing
that if they did so they stood the chance of losing themselves in the
tunnels forever.

'It seems to be
getting nearer. Listen. . .' Ian remarked. If only they could see
what was out there at least they would know what they were up
against.

'Courage, my boy!'
said the Doctor. 'Whatever's out there hasn't harmed us yet.'

For an old man at
the mercy of unseen horrors, he seemed remarkably unconcerned,
thought Ian, as if he knew something that he did not. No doubt he
would explain in his own good time; the Doctor always did.

'Doctor, something
moved slightly ahead of us,' Ian whispered, indicating a dark shadow
by one of the tunnel's arches some metres ahead of them. His
companion handed over the rolled-up fake map and urged him on.
Carefully Ian moved forward, probing the darkness with his map,
unsure of what he would find.

Suddenly the
makeshift weapon was wrenched from his hand and the dark shape was
upon him.

The creature
knocked Ian savagely to the ground and instantly grabbed his throat.
For long seconds the two stared at each other, the eyes of each of
them glazed with fear and desperation. With a massive upwards lunge
Ian pushed the cold clammy hands away from his throat and rolled over
with his opponent in the dirt.

But the creature
was far stronger than he was and once more gained the upper hand.
Viciously it banged Ian's head to the ground, again and again, until
it seemed to the schoolteacher that it would split wide open.

The Doctor sprang
to Ian's aid. Grabbing a rock from beside the pipeline he crashed it
down with a massive thump onto the creature's back. For a split
second it glared at the Doctor with enraged eyes and then, realising
that the odds had suddenly been turned against it, it leapt to its
feet and with a snarl dashed
back into the darkness.

The Doctor helped
the panting Ian to his feet. 'Doctor, it was a man!' Ian gasped. 'I'm
sure it was!'

He showed the
Doctor a strip of cloth which he had torn off the creature in the
struggle. It looked like the shoulder flash of some military uniform;
emblazoned in gold lettering was the word INNER.

'Just as I
suspected all the time!' crowed the Doctor. 'INNER: INterstellar
Navigation, Exploration and Research. He must have been one of the
survivors from the spaceship that exploded!' The Doctor really was
most extraordinarily pleased that his suspicions had at last been
confirmed. 'Those are our Monsters, dear boy!'

'But what are they
doing down here?' asked Ian.

'Why, hiding and
poisoning the water of course,' the Doctor explained patiently as
though he were addressing a rather dull-witted child.

'But why poison the
water in the first place?' Ian continued.

'Let's go and ask
him!' the Doctor said cheerily and led Ian off down the tunnel.

At the same time
and unknown to the Doctor and Ian their fellow time-travellers and
the First Elder were staring down at a holographic map of the very
tunnels through which they were walking.

Barbara had assumed
leadership of the attempt to track down and find the two men and was
assailing the First Elder and his men with a barrage of questions.
She needed to know the location of the aqueduct entrance, the route
of the pipelines, and any hidden chambers or caves in which the
Doctor and Ian might be able to conceal themselves from what they
still believed to be the Monsters of the Caves.

'Might I be allowed
to use your mind transmitter?' she asked the First Elder.

'What do you want
it for?' he asked cautiously. The mind transmitter could be dangerous
in the hands of a novice and he was loth to part with it unless
absolutely necessary.

'John and I will go
down into the aqueduct,' Barbara explained. 'Susan will stay here and
guide us through the mind transmitter.'

The First Elder
looked at Susan puzzledly. 'But my scientists tell me that you do not
require the use of the mind transmitter.'

'I can read your
minds,' Susan agreed, 'but only when you let me.'

'Your mind must be
finely tuned indeed,' marvelled the Sensorites' leader. 'The
frequencies covering the Sense-Sphere are numerous. You must be able
to break into the major ones.'

'Well, I can't,'
said Barbara. 'So do you mind if I try it?'

The First Elder
reluctantly gave way. 'Very well, you have my permission,' he said
and handed Barbara the small white disc. 'Try to clear your mind of
everything but the person you wish to communicate with. It is safe
provided that you do not let your concentration slip.'