‘What about the VETAC we killed?’ Jamie asked. ‘Does it have a power supply?’
‘Yes,’ Prion said, ‘but again, not powerful enough.’
‘What’s he going to do with all this power, anyway?’ Jamie demanded.
‘Oh, Jamie, we’ve been through all this,’ the Doctor admonished. ‘Prion will focus the energy into the VETAC command network. It will overload their communications and should give them something of a breakdown. At any rate, it will leave them very confused, hopefully for some considerable time.’
Jamie was still not sure he entirely understood, but he nodded anyway. ‘What do you mean by “focus”?’ he asked at last.
The Doctor sighed. ‘Well, Jamie, you know when you have a – what would you call it? – a burning glass, which you use to direct the heat of the sun and set fire to something?’
Jamie nodded. ‘Oh, that,’ he said.
The Doctor was speaking slowly, patiently. ‘Well, that focuses the energy from the sun –’ He stopped, hand raised in mid gesture. ‘Jamie,’ he exclaimed, ‘that’s brilliant.’ He grabbed Jamie’s hand in both his and shook it vigorously. ‘You’re a genius.’
‘I am?’
‘Oh yes. Well –’ the Doctor considered – ‘one of us is.’ He turned to Trayx. ‘Now then, I need to get myself and Prion to the Stardial Chamber you showed me earlier. We can focus the latent energy collected from the stars there and channel it into Prion.’
‘Can we?’
‘Of course I can. You and Jamie go to the Banqueting Hall, and be ready to grab Victoria and the others as soon as Prion sends the signal.’ He beamed from ear to ear. ‘All right?’
‘Just one thing, Doctor.’
‘What now?’
‘The Stardial Chamber is not far – it’s in the next tower – but we happen to be sealed in the Secure Area with VETACs cutting through the shutters.’ Trayx paused before asking the obvious question. ‘How do you propose we get out of here?’
The Doctor sighed. ‘You mean there isn’t another way out?’
‘Doctor, this is a prison. It was designed to keep people in. We are in.’
‘Couldn’t Prion send a signal to the VETACs at the shutters?’ Jamie asked. ‘Just tell them to go away?’
Trayx shook his head. ‘As soon as they realised what had happened, and they would, they’d change their command frequency. Then we’d need another VETAC circuit to find out the new frequency.’
Jamie grimaced. ‘I don’t fancy going through that again.’
The Doctor was frowning, his brow lined with concentration. ‘How,’ he asked slowly at last, ‘when he killed Remas and Sponslor, did Cruger get out?’
For the first time, Cruger was feeling vulnerable. He was in danger of losing control of the situation.
‘Why did you order us into reserve?’ VC5 demanded.
‘The war,’ Cruger started, ‘in case –’
‘There was no war.’ VC5 took a step closer to Cruger, towering over him. ‘From the information we now have, your action may have precipitated the war. Explain.’
Cruger swallowed. ‘I can explain, of course I can.’ He glanced at Haden, but her expression was neutral. ‘I have information that you are not privy to,’ Cruger went on. He had a contingency plan, had hoped not to have to play this move. But now he was talking for his life. If the VETAC determined that Cruger’s actions had been contrary to the goal that it was programmed for, it would cut him out of the command chain. If it seemed that Cruger had been disloyal – or worse – to Kesar, then he was finished.
‘What is this information?’
‘Not here,’ Cruger hissed. He pointed to the three prisoners. They were out of earshot, but he had to get VC5 alone. ‘I will tell – show – you the proof. But just you. Just you and me.’ He nodded to Haden – he might well need backup. ‘And her.’
The VETAC’s huge metal face was a blank mask as it considered Cruger’s words.
The door sprang open with a quiet click. The Doctor stepped out of Cruger’s quarters and joined the others in the corridor. ‘So far, so good,’ he said.
‘But what would he have done then?’ Trayx asked. ‘How will we discover which route he took?’
‘We follow the trail,’ the Doctor said. ‘Easy.’
‘What trail?’ Kesar asked.
‘Well, we know he wasn’t tracked by your observation cameras.’
‘Yes,’ Trayx agreed.
‘And we know that some of those cameras don’t work.’
‘None of them work right now, not without power.’
‘True. But if you can remember which cameras haven’t worked for a while, we should be able to narrow down the possibilities. Perhaps even plot the single possible route to where Remas was killed. Ignoring doors and walls, or course. We’re looking for a secret way through those.’
Prion stepped forward. ‘That information is available,’ he said. ‘There are two possible routes. One of them passes through a single wall between this secure area and an adjacent corridor outside the security zone.’
The Doctor rubbed his hands in glee. ‘That must be it then.’ He turned to the others. ‘Now, I’d like Prion to come with me to the Stardial Chamber so I can hook him up. Jamie, Trayx and…’ hesitated. His finger wavered between Felda and Lanphier as he muttered, ‘Eeny, meeny, miny, mo…’ He finished on Felda. ‘You. You three go to the Banqueting Hall.’ He paused, a sudden horrified expression on his face. ‘Er, if that’s all right with you,’ he said to Trayx. ‘I seem to be forgetting my manners.’
‘Oh, please, Doctor.’ Trayx smiled thinly. ‘If you have a plan, by all means put it into operation. I am a soldier – I’m very used to following orders.’
The Doctor laughed and clapped his hands together. ‘Oh, thank you.’
‘What about us, sir?’ Lanphier asked Trayx, indicating himself and Kesar.
‘Oh you stay here,’ the Doctor said before Trayx could answer. ‘Kesar is much too important to us to risk leaving. And he’ll need you to keep him company and make sure he doesn’t get into any trouble.’ His face broke into a smile. ‘You could play a little chess or something.’
They were in a small drawing room just outside the Banqueting Hall. The predominant colour was blue – the walls and the carpet were complementary shades of blue, and so were the backs of the upright chairs against the walls. There was wooden panelling on the lower part of the walls, painted white. The fire surround was also white, the panelling continuing above the mantelpiece to encompass a large portrait of a man in battle armour. Other, smaller portraits were hung at intervals round the room. All of them depicted soldiers in uniform or armour.
At the far end of the room, opposite the door, a bay window gave out directly into space. In front of it stood a low sofa, again upholstered in blue.
Haden watched Cruger quizzically as he led the VETAC commander to the centre of the room.
‘Shut the door.’
Haden pushed the door closed and stood with her back to it. She did not know what Cruger was up to, and she did not trust him an inch. But his focus seemed to be on the VETAC.
‘Well?’ VC5’s voice seemed louder in the smaller space. ‘We are alone. Provide this evidence you claim to possess.’
‘Very well.’ Cruger reached into a pocket in the sleeve of his armour. He drew out a small optical disc.
VC5 made no move to take the disc. ‘What is this?’
‘Proof. Data. Information.’ Cruger held the disc out. ‘You should read it,’ he said quietly.
Still VC5 hesitated. Then he reached out and took the disc. ‘Very well.’
Haden took a step forward, unsure now what to do. Cruger turned sharply, staring fiercely at her. She stepped back again.
A narrow slot had opened in the VETAC’s chest. He pushed the disc into it, end on. A small red light started to flash beside the slot as the VETAC’s systems accessed the data on the disc.
Cruger was watching closely.
&nb
sp; ‘This is not the data you described.’ VC5 was turning back towards Cruger now, his arm swinging up, the gunport built into it opening as he turned.
‘No,’ Cruger replied quietly. ‘You are correct.’
VC5 seemed to hesitate at this. His arm dropped slightly, then rose again. It dropped back a second time as if it had hit an invisible barrier. There was a low rumble of sound coming from the robot and its movements were becoming jerky.
‘The disc actually contains an executable toxin.’ Cruger was smiling, his eyes gleaming intently. ‘And you have just read it into your main processor.’
VC5 lurched forward. He was speaking, but the sounds that emerged were not coherent words. The low rasp of his voice was rising in pitch, becoming an electronic screech as the robot staggered towards Cruger.
Cruger stepped aside, allowing VC5 to blunder past him. The huge metal figure swung round shakily, lurched forward again, one arm outstretched as he reached for Cruger. The other arm scrabbled at his own chest.
Cruger was laughing now, almost hysterical. Tears were running down his face, catching in his thin beard. But Haden could see what the VETAC was doing. She wrenched the door open, felt it bang into her leg as she rushed to escape.
The sound of the door startled Cruger. He turned, and saw Haden trying to get out. Then he looked back at the VETAC, the laughter dying in his throat as realisation dawned.
The huge metal hand gained a purchase on the chest, the fingers working their way into the small crevice and grasping the ring of metal set into the indented well. VC5 was staggering back towards the door now, towards Cruger, getting as close as possible.
Haden had the door open, was through it. She pulled it shut behind her. Part of her mind was telling her that trapping Cruger in the room was a good idea. But most of it was focused on getting as much protection as possible between herself and the VETAC.
The door stopped. It was not yet shut, but it stopped. Then it was wrenched from her hand as Cruger dragged it open again. Behind him, Haden could see the VETAC commander. He was close now, stumbling – almost falling – toward them. His hand was on the detonator set into his chest, pulling, ripping the firing pin out.
Then Cruger slammed the door shut and they both dived to the ground, hands wrapped behind their heads.
In the drawing room, VC5 lurched heavily into the door. He collapsed against it, one hand clawing at the woodwork, splintering, pulling, ripping through to the duralinium core beneath. The electronic screech that had been his voice was counterpointed now by the ping of the detonator. The lights on his chest were flashing in unison – in time to the racing heartbeat of the countdown.
The whole room shook under the impact. The fireball scorched across the ceiling, stripping paint from the panelling and igniting several of the paintings. The windows cracked, and the carpet burned. The shattered shell of the VETAC commander collapsed in on itself, falling back from the scarred remains of the door.
*
It had not taken the Doctor long to work out how to open the part of the wall that Prion pointed out. A simple pressure point activated a concealed mechanism and a whole section of the wall swung open.
‘He had help setting this up,’ Trayx said.
‘Probably from the unfortunate Remas,’ the Doctor suggested. ‘He must have been bringing in the equipment and materials that Cruger needed.’
‘And Cruger killed him for it.’
The Doctor shrugged. ‘He was finished with the man. And maybe Remas was causing trouble. Making threats, asking for more payment, who knows?’
Once in the corridor beyond the wall, and outside the Secure Area, they split into two parties as arranged. Jamie, Trayx and Felda set off cautiously towards the Banqueting Hall. The Doctor and Prion headed for the Stardial Chamber.
‘Why didn’t Cruger lead the VETACs into the Secure Area using the route we just took?’ Prion asked. ‘They could have taken us by surprise.’
‘I’m not sure,’ the Doctor admitted. ‘But perhaps he is keeping it as a trump card of some sort. It may be that he doesn’t want to tell the VETACs too much. They answer to Kesar rather than him, after all.’
‘And that could be a problem for him?’
The Doctor nodded. ‘I think Cruger and Kesar may be operating on different agendas. Cruger summoned the VETACs here using the sonic beacon I detected earlier. And he called them here without telling Kesar, but in order to rescue him.’
‘So it would seem.’
They were almost there now. Just one more section to negotiate. So far they had seen no VETAC patrols, and the Doctor was striding onward as if he owned the place.
‘Well, Kesar does not seem to me to be acting like a man who wants to be rescued.’
From their concealed vantage point, Jamie, Trayx and Felda had a good view of the main door into the Banqueting Hall. It was shut, flanked on either side by VETAC sentries.
‘Now what?’ Jamie asked.
‘Now we wait,’ Trayx said.
Cruger was already standing as Haden pulled herself up. He grabbed her by the hair, wrenching her to her feet. His small hand blaster was levelled at her face.
‘You tried to kill me. You tried to shut me in there with that thing.’ He jerked his head towards the door to the drawing room, as if he thought she might not know where he meant.
‘I tried to shut myself out,’ she snapped back. ‘There is a difference.’
Cruger was shaking his head. ‘I don’t know what game you’re playing, Haden –’
‘What game I’m playing?’ she yelled back at him, ignoring the blaster. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’
‘Winning.’
‘Oh really? Seems to me like the VETACs aren’t so convinced of that.’
Cruger laughed. ‘That hardly matters now, does it? Through VC5 I have infected their whole command network.’ He jammed the blaster close to her face. ‘By now there isn’t a VETAC of the Fifth Legion still standing.’
Now Haden smiled. ‘Perhaps,’ she said quietly, ‘you should tell him that.’
She was looking over Cruger’s shoulder, and he half turned to follow her line of sight. Then he caught himself, paused, unsure whether she was bluffing or if there really was something behind him. And as he hesitated, VL9’s massive hand closed over the blaster and wrenched it from Cruger’s grasp.
Somehow, when he was walking quickly, the Doctor’s coat looked even bigger on him. It billowed out like a cloak as he marched into the Stardial Chamber, swung immediately through a hundred and eighty degrees and marched out again just as quickly. Prion was still in the corridor outside as the Doctor re-emerged.
‘VETACs,’ he explained quietly.
Prion stepped forward, to the threshold, and carefully looked into the large room. He stepped back smartly. ‘They are leaving,’ he said.
‘Oh, good.’
‘Coming this way.’
‘Oh.’ The Doctor considered. ‘Not so good.’ He looked round frantically, pointing to the side of the door. ‘Quick, hide.’
Prion watched as the Doctor pressed himself into the corner by the door into the chamber, then positioned himself opposite. A moment later, the VETAC patrol – four VETACs in all – marched from the Stardial Chamber. They did not turn or look as they emerged, but strode massively along the corridor without pause.
The Doctor had been pressing himself back into the wall as if hoping it would give way behind him, swallow him up. Now he pushed away, stepping out into the corridor even before the VETACs were out of sight.
‘Ha ha.’ He clapped his hands together, feet shuffling rapidly in a parody of a jig. Then suddenly he turned back to Prion. ‘Right, here we go.’ He led the way cautiously into the chamber.
‘Doctor,’ Prion said as he followed, ‘they did not detect us.’
‘No. No they didn’t, did they?’ The Doctor was standing in the middle of the room, finger in his mouth, and looking around thoughtfully.
‘They have the ability to de
tect human DNA signatures,’ Prion continued. Although his expression had not altered, his head was tilted slightly to one side in a strangely quizzical manner. ‘Battle armour suppresses the signature. If one is wearing it.’
‘Ah well, you’re not human, are you, Prion?’ the Doctor pointed out. His voice was slightly muffled by the finger still in his mouth.
‘It was not my DNA signature I was meaning.’
The Doctor looked at Prion, as if only now hearing him for the first time. ‘Well, perhaps their sensors weren’t working properly.’ He set off for a point at the far side of the room.
After a moment, Prion followed. ‘I also have similar capabilities,’ he said.
‘Good, good,’ the Doctor said absently.
‘Perhaps,’ Prion said when it was clear the Doctor was not about to add anything to this, ‘my own sensors are also not working properly. It would explain much. About you.’
‘Yes, yes. Now then, logically it should be here.’ The Doctor held out his hands in front of him, as if sizing up an imaginary box. ‘Under the floor perhaps?’ He looked up for a moment at the stars and latticework high above. ‘Yes, wouldn’t want to interfere with the mechanism, would we?’
‘What are you looking for, Doctor?’ Prion asked.
‘Here, help me move this block, there’s a good chap.’ The Doctor pointed to the floor. The edges of a square cut into the marble floor were barely visible where they caught the dim light, where the pattern on the stone slightly mismatched. The Doctor dropped to his hands and knees and started crawling round the floor. ‘There must be a pressure point or something to open it somewhere.’
‘Open what?’
‘Well, this section of floor.’ The Doctor paused and looked up at Prion. ‘This is where the energy is collected. Or I hope it is. Rather like a big battery.’
‘And there will be enough energy for the command pulse I shall send.’
‘Oh yes,’ the Doctor said with a laugh. ‘More than enough, I should think. Potential energy. Kinetic energy. Energy from the radiant heat, the light. Lots of it.’ He turned his attention back to the floor, crawling round again slapping at the marble with the flat of his hand. ‘If we can only get at it.’
Doctor Who: Dreams of Empire: 50th Anniversary Edition Page 24
