The Forgotten Army (18 page)

'She's got all the wrong people,' Amy protested. 'She's mad, she'll try and shoot anything that moves.

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I bet she's rounded up everyone who can't defend themselves. It's outrageous!'

The Doctor had become very pensive. 'Oh, Amy, I think I've missed something very important... I should have seen it... How did I ever think they'd actually make all those people slaves'? Especially when they came here looking for Triceratops and Diplodocuses to haul rocks for them. I don't think that's Commander Strebbins at all. We've been doing what they wanted all along! They put the best people they had out on the streets, and now they're under Vykoid control.'

'Explain?' Amy demanded.

'Last night every single police officer in New York went onto the streets and disappeared.'

Amy realised what he meant. 'Now they're all back, walking a bit funny, and telling us to carry on as normal.'

"That's clever.’ the Doctor marvelled. 'They created the threat. Made everyone hide indoors. Now the police are the heroes of the hour, and they're going to line the streets and pretend to save everyone.'

The TV screen was now showing Grand Central Station.

Hundreds of police officers were standing on every side of the road.

Trinity Wells announced: "The streets of Manhattan will be protected today by thousands of special forces...'

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The Doctor turned to Amy. 'We have to stop this. All of New York is about to be dragged into slavery by its own leaders, and no one will believe a word we say.'

'But how are they going to do it? They've only got a mammoth, and they left it at the Zoo.'

'If they're advanced enough to put a Time Freeze over all Manhattan, they must be a Level 18 civilisation, maybe higher. They don't need that old mammoth any more. New York's built on grids, very regular pattern, pretty easy to map a high-intensity teleport matrix on top of this place. They'll take everyone that's out on the streets. And at 9 a.m., seven million people will be on the streets of New York. They'll be sitting ducks.'

Amy plunged in with her own ideas. 'So, we get Sam, recall the police, let everyone know what they're up to, and shut down the transmitter. Whenever our gang of kids finds it.'

The Doctor didn't answer. Amy looked round and was infuriated to see that he'd wandered off.

She ran to catch up with him, 'Oi! Where are you going?

Oh...'

The Doctor was facing a line of NYPD officers, who were pointing their guns straight at him. As one, they stiffly raised their arms and took off their hats. Sitting under the baseball cap of each trooper was a tiny Vykoid, grinning and waving at the Doctor and Amy.

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Amy tugged at his arm. 'Er, Doctor. Are we the only people in New York who know they're not really the police?'

'I see your point.’ the Doctor agreed. 'In that case we should run!’ They hurtled off down the street with the police-Vykoids following stiffly behind.

'Slow down, Doctor!' Amy called out. 'They can barely walk, let alone run!'

The Doctor looked back and saw the police waddling towards them with stiff legs making awkward strides. The Vykoid controllers were doing their best, but somewhere deep down, the police minds were fighting against them, slowing their movements.

'It's not them I'm worried about,' the Doctor told Amy, pointing to the other side of the road, where a fleet of armoured police vans were pulling up.

'Ah. Point taken.' Amy took the Doctor's hand, and they fled across a crossroad, dodging taxis and bikes.

Amy saw a yellow taxi idling outside an office and leapt into the back. The Doctor had a better idea and jumped into the driver's seat. At a nearby coffee stand, the driver saw them, and shouted 'Oi!' He headed towards them, waving his hands like a drunk Italian.

'Museum, please,' Amy requested, leaning back in the cab.

'Try to avoid the avenging aliens, though, if you could.'

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'Yes, ma'am.' The Doctor slammed the accelerator down and they sped off, heading through early morning Manhattan.

Close on their tail, four NYPD cars were slamming through the traffic, sirens blaring and lights flashing. Amy could see the nearest driver had taken his hat off, and his Vykoid controller was whooping with excitement, full of the glory of the chase.

They might have come to Earth to round up mammoths, but were equally at home hunting Time Lords in New York.

Reaching a red light, the Doctor slammed on the brakes and turned unexpectedly to the right, tyres smoking on the tarmac as they skidded round the corner. Behind them, one of the cars shot off the road, ploughing into a marble building.

'One down, Doctor...' Amy called. 'I didn't know you could drive like this!'

The Doctor swung the car to the right, heading up a narrow back alley. 'I don't often get the chance!'

The remaining squad cars were still close behind, and were gaining on them. A shot rang out, and Amy heard the terrifying sound of bullet tearing through metal. To compensate, the Doctor tried to weave their car from side to side, looking like an out-of-control learner driver.

Reaching a main road, the Doctor shot straight out, aiming for another back alley. This time he clipped a newspaper stand as he took a short cut on

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the pavement, sending copies of the New York Times flying through the air.

The Doctor's driving had taken them into the lurking industrial buildings of Hell's Kitchen, and he turned through more gloomy side streets. As the taxi approached, suspicious workers carrying unmarked crates retreated back into the shadows, unnerved by the sound of police sirens. Amy could see only one car on their tail now, and that seemed to be losing ground. The Doctor turned the taxi onto Broadway and joined the streams of cars.

'It's still with us,' Amy told the Doctor, and he spun the taxi around to the right. The car was heading straight for Central Park and, without warning, the Doctor veered onto the grass, smashing through a fence and circling the lake.

'What are you doing?' Amy yelled at the Doctor.

'I've lost them, haven't I?'

When she looked round, Amy had to agree that he was right. 'But we're in the middle of nowhere... Oh.' While she'd been talking, they'd arrived back at the entrance to the Zoo.

Parked right in front of the Zoo, Oscar was sitting in a squad car packed with schoolchildren. Amy leapt out and ran to hug him, then checked herself. What if he's one of the Vykoids now? Oscar's happiness at seeing Amy was tested when she yanked his hat off, ruffled his hair, and then poked him repeatedly.

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'Good, it is you!' Amy said with relief, and gave him a huge hug. 'Although what's with the normal clothes? I thought a tiara suited you.'

'What are you doing with our team?' the Doctor asked.

'I found them downtown trying to set light to something,' Oscar explained. 'They told me you'd put them up to it. There's a lot of folk going missing right now, so I thought I'd bring them back to you...'

Oscar opened the car door and the sleepy children in the back of his car leapt out and ran to the Doctor. Joe, another boy who was dressed as Batman, and two girls surrounded the Doctor and Amy, talking over each other excitedly.

'We've found it.'

'It's this massive glowing ball.'

'Do I have to go to school now?'

'Joe didn't see it first, it was me.'

'We need to get a boat.'

'Speak slower!' Amy told them. 'One at a time.'

Joe stepped forward. 'We went up the Chrysler Building, and Millie got scared but it was only the wind. Then we went down to CitiGroup, and went out on the roof, and we could see it... It's the Statue of Liberty. Everywhere else is dark, but there's something inside the top of it, like a giant fireball that kept on burning.'

'It was green,' Millie added.

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The Doctor beamed at them. 'That is brilliant, Joe. You have been the best. Truly the best.'

Joe's face lit up with joy.

'I'm going to send you back to Miss Vernon now.’ the Doctor went on. 'Whatever you see, just stay indoors.'

Amy looked downtown, gazing down the lonely deserted streets strewn with rubbish. Every road was covered with detritus of the Vykoids' midnight rampage, and she knew that every obstruction might be hiding the alien army, lurking and ready to ambush them.

'Don't worry.’ the Doctor said. 'We're three kilometres and a short ferry ride away from the Statue of Liberty and, if we don't get there before New York wakes up, all of Manhattan are going to be taken as slaves. I guess you're going to get to see the sights of New York after all, Amy.'

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Inside the Zoo, the
Doctor flung open the gates of the mammoth enclosure and stood in front of the enormous beast. Amy could see what he was thinking. And she flatly refused.

"This is your plan? No way.'

'Come on.' The Doctor started to clamber up inside the mammoth, and beckoned for Amy to join him.

'There's an army of them! Every police officer in New York will be trying to stop us. They have guns.'

'Forget the courage of the mob. We have the single-mindedness of the foolishly hopeful!'

I'm not coming in unless it's bigger on the inside.’ Amy insisted. 'If I have to face the tiny army, I'm 205

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going to do it with dignity.’

'It's definitely faster in here.’ the Doctor said. Leaning back out, he looked sweatier to Amy. 'You still here? I just spent half an hour fixing it so I can steer with this.' He held up a pretzel he'd picked up from a shut-down stall. 'Isn't that funny! Steering with a pretzel? No? Nothing? Not even a little bit?' He wasn't getting any reaction from Amy. 'Anyone ever tell you that you're hard to please?' he asked.

Amy smiled. 'All of them, Doctor.' She had made a decision. 'Now budge over. If we're going in this thing, I'm driving.'

She grabbed the Doctor's hand and hauled herself up. The Doctor had smashed out a space in the neck of the mammoth, and Amy squeezed through the gap, emerging into the empty head of the mammoth. The beast's massive eyes were windows onto the city, and she gasped in amazement.

Outside, everyone was moving in ultra-slow motion. It was like she was seeing people frame by frame. Joe was standing beside Oscar, casually picking his nose in a gesture that seemed to go on and on. Amy was drawn into the sheer graphic wonder of seeing everything in such slow motion.

Behind Joe, two chatting women looked like lazy Guppy fish, mouthing aimlessly. Amy was sure she could see every muscle on Oscar's neck as he breathed. Oh so slowly, he was getting the children back into the police car to deliver them to Polly.

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'Is this what's it's like for the Vykoids?' Amy asked. 'No wonder they've got so far.'

'If we can get to the Statue of Liberty and break their signal, they'll be helpless.'

'Why did you say, if?' Amy cut straight in, a hard note to her voice.

'What do you mean?'

'Don't pretend! You said, "If we can get there". We've just climbed inside an alien spaceship disguised as a mammoth, and you're not sure if it's going to work?'

"The one thing we have is the element of surprise. No one in their right mind would attempt to do what we're going to do.'

The Doctor wired the pretzel to a set of tiny Vykoid controls and pulled back. The mammoth lifted its head, and Amy could see the skyline of New York ahead of her, the Chrysler Tower glinting in the morning sun.

'Whoa!' Amy could feel herself starting to slip backwards. The Doctor had pulled too far, and the mammoth reared up on its back feet.

Looking through the huge eyes again, Amy watched Sam running incredibly slowly to witness the sight of the mammoth at full stretch.

'Down, Doctor!' Amy snapped, and pushed the pretzel-wheel forward. With that, the mammoth crouched down and lowered its head. Amy felt a judder as the enormous tusks dug into the ground.

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The Doctor lowered the belly, and stuck his head out. 'Sam

- where have you been? We need you. Can't quite get a grip of the steering.'

'I noticed that.' Sam pointed at the trenches the rusks had gouged in the ground.

'Good, in that case you'll understand what you need to do. No one knows a mammoth like you.'

Sam took the Doctor's hand and scrambled up, squeezing through the neck to join Amy.

But the Doctor raised his hand. 'Uh, uh, sorry Sam, turns out those Vykoids borrowed a trick from the dinosaurs. Two steering centres, one in the front, the other in the...'

'So you got me up here to go in the back end?' Sam was deflated.

The Doctor clapped him on his shoulders. 'Good man!

Don't worry, you can still see out.'

'How?' Sam asked, and then suddenly realised. 'Oh...'

'What a team we'll be! So, Sam, if you see us going the wrong way, just shout.'

The Doctor crouched by the left eye and grabbed the pretzel-wheel. But Amy shoved him over. 'I'm steering, remember? You had your turn in the taxi.'