by Gary Russell
Back at the Pharos Institute, Alan reported that the phone was dead.
Sarah Jane, arm around Maria, was at the window. Next to her, the two adult Slitheen, arms around each other looked up at the same vista in the sky, blotted out by the huge moon.
Alan suddenly grabbed a laptop. ‘It’s working,’ he muttered. This place must have its own generators, its own fibre optic lines. We’re online here.’
Sarah Jane looked back at him. ‘Can we use that fact?’
Alan shrugged. ‘Look, I get paid by companies to block cyber-threats. I know viruses, how they work. I’m dead good at what I do.’
‘He is, you know,’ Maria said proudly to the three Slitheen, who nodded back.
‘But Mr Smith,’ Alan continued. ‘Well, he’s more than just a computer.’
‘Dad,’ Maria said as she came over to him. ‘You’re our only chance.’
He smiled at her and squeezed her hand. ‘Then I ought to give it my best shot.’
He stared typing. ‘The FBI have stopped a cyber-terrorist from using this to destroy the entire international banking network.’
‘How did you get hold of it?’
He smiled. ‘Oh Sarah Jane Smith, you’re not the only one with unorthodox contacts.’
He took a disc from the DVD-R drive and handed it to her. ‘There. The Armageddon Codex. My best shot.’
Sarah Jane took the disc and said, ‘One last thing. Have you still got the Slitheen teleport device?’
Luke was semi-conscious, the strain on him so great, as Mr Smith drained his mind.
‘Give me more kinetic,’ the computer urged. Suddenly, Sarah Jane materialised in the room, not even blinking to get acclimatised.
‘Sarah Jane, you came to say goodbye.’
But her attention was on her son. ‘Luke,’ she said in horror, and then to Mr Smith, ‘Why are you doing this?’
‘The collision of the moon with the planet will release the Xylok from beneath the planet’s crust where they’ve been buried for sixty million years.’
‘But that will kill billions of people…’
Mr Smith didn’t seem to care. ‘The Xylok are a crystalline life form. Our crystals have grown and regrown, becoming strong again, but trapped. The release of the Xylok has always been my purpose. Working with you has been an end to that means, trying to find the right technology to aid my Purpose.
‘All this time,’ Sarah Jane breathed. ‘You’ve been using me? You… you’re evil.’ She hugged the comatose Luke to her.
‘Not evil,’ he corrected her. ‘Efficient. We shall do so much more than the human race could ever hope to achieve. The universe is better served with our re-emergence.’
‘Any race that thinks itself superior, more worthy than another, that is evil.’
‘I am not evil,’ he said again.
‘Then what have you done to Clyde?’
And suddenly, curled up on the floor at her feet, was Clyde Langer.
‘I am merciful,’ Mr Smith announced.
Clyde was waking up, taking it all in as Mr Smith was gloating. ‘You made all this possible, Sarah Jane. I owe you the mercy of a swift death.’
Sarah Jane backed away, across the attic, talking all the time as she reached behind her, keeping her eyes fixed on Mr Smith’s screen. ‘What about the other people? Don’t they deserve mercy? You’ve been here all these millions of years, watching us evolve. Don’t we matter to you?’
‘Only my Purpose matters.’
‘Change your purpose.’
‘No, I told you, we all have a Purpose. Yours is to die now, so that the Xylok may live. After all, what life do you have, alone in your attic?’
Alone?’ Sarah Jane laughed. ‘I’m not alone. I have Clyde and Maria and Luke. Oh, and someone else you may remember.’ And Sarah Jane swung open the door on a small metal cabinet built into the back wall.
She stood aside as the door fell open to reveal outer space — a black hole in fact, and there, keeping its primal, destructive energies at bay, her robot dog and best friend, K-9.
‘K-9 —I need you!’
A second later K-9 materialised in the attic and swivelled his small body around, as Mr Smith opened fire.
‘Maximum defence mode!’ cried K-9.
‘K-9, protect me,’ Sarah Jane commanded and K-9’s blaster emerged and fired a pencil thin red beam of laser light straight at Mr Smith.
Sarah Jane helped Clyde hide behind the chaise longue.
‘Take care Mistress and young Master,’ K-9 said calmly.
A couple more blasts zipped around as K-9 moved away from Sarah Jane and Clyde, drawing away Mr Smith’s attention. ‘Safe to proceed, Mistress, I have the Xylok unit covered.’
And as a criss-cross of laser beams took respective chunks out of the attic and the brickwork around Mr Smith, Sarah Jane dived across the room, and shoved Alan Jackson’s Armageddon Codex disc into Mr Smith’s reader.
Instantly, he stopped firing, so K-9 did, too.
Mr Smith’s screen stopped pulsating as well.
Indeed, the machine stopped, until a series of skull and crossbones ran across the screen in a repeated pattern.
‘What have you done to me?’ Mr Smith asked plaintively. ‘I feel… strange.’
‘It’s a computer virus, Mr Smith. It’s closing you down, erasing your databanks, wiping your memory.’
‘The speed of light,’ Mr Smith burbled. ‘It is thirty-six… no… eighty-four… the Metebellis System is home to sixty-nine thousand life forms… forty-seven… the Brontosaurus is large, placid and… I’m forgetting it all. Sarah Jane! Help! Help me! Please?’
‘Without your memories, Mr Smith, you have no Purpose. Without purpose, you can’t destroy Earth. Put the moon back into its original orbit before it’s too late and set Luke free. Now!’
‘I’ve forgotten my Purpose.’
‘Your purpose is to save Earth. Your New Purpose. Your only purpose is to save and protect us all.’
‘Save Earth. Protect humanity. Yes, thank you, Sarah Jane.’
And he stopped. Completely. No lights, no sounds, nothing.
Sarah Jane and Clyde looked at one another.
‘The Xylok unit is non-functional,’ K-9 reported.
‘Is that good?’ Clyde questioned.
And Luke groaned. ‘Sent it back…’ he murmured.
And Clyde ran to the window, realising the ground was no longer shaking the house to its foundations. ‘It worked,’ he yelled. ‘The moon’s shooting backwards.’
‘Is everything satisfactory, Mistress?’ K-9 warbled.
‘Affirmative,’ Sarah Jane smiled at him. ‘Thank you.’
‘I must return to the distortion, Mistress. Without my immediate attention, the black hole will turn critical in zero-point-four-two time spatial increments.’
‘Go now,’ she replied. ‘Good dog. See you again soon.’
And K-9 activated his teleporter and was gone.
Clyde looked across at Luke who was slowly coming round. He was glad to see his friend was all right but couldn’t resist a quick jibe as he awoke.
‘Orange?’ he said, poking the hoodie the Slitheen had foisted on him. ‘Really? Orange?’
Luke managed a smile at this, then glanced towards Sarah Jane.
‘Mum?’
‘Oh, Luke,’ Sarah Jane cried and held the awakened Luke to her. Her son was finally home, safe and well. Thank goodness you’re safe.’
Chapter Thirteen
The final phase
A day later, Sarah Jane and Luke were in the garden at night, staring at the stars. A shooting star seemed to go across the heavens, but they knew better. It was a Raxacoricofallapatorian Police Ship taking the remnants of the Family Slitheen back to their homeworld.
‘Will they be back?’ asked a voice behind them. Alan, Maria and Clyde were stood there.
‘Oh I expect so, Alan,’ Sarahjane replied. ‘Sooner or later.’
‘What about Mr Smith,’ Maria won
dered.
‘Yeah,’ Clyde said. ‘Not sure I can trust him again.’
The Armageddon Codex has wiped his circuits. Alan’s going to re-boot him up for us, complete with a new purpose — to safeguard the world.’
A cough from the gate — Chrissie Jackson was standing there. ‘Thought I might find you both over here with… you know…’
‘Oh we were just saying what a beautiful night it was, Mrs Jackson,’ Sarah Jane said politely. ‘Join us.’
‘Thank you,’ and Chrissie stood to one side of Alan and Maria. ‘Hello, Luke,’ she said. ‘Glad you’re home safe.’
Sarah Jane turned and faced the whole gang. ‘I have found that life can be an adventure, you never know what you might find, living it. But the one thing I never expected to find was a family.’
Luke gave her a hug, while Alan pulled Chrissie towards him and Maria, who in turn took Clyde’s hand and squeezed it.
And Sarah Jane smiled at her family as a bright full moon shone down on them from high in the sky.
Exactly where it should be.
