Doctor Who - The 8th Doctor - 14 - Vanderdeken

by Christopher Bulis (pdf)

  thatcouldbeassembledinthetimefromwhattherewasavailable.

  Bendix he already knew was keen enough. Perhaps a little brash and

  overconfident,butthatwasnotnecessarilyafaultifonehadthenervetobackit, ashejudgedBendixdid.He'dbeenthesamehimselfonce.

  Manders, the chief engineer, and her two assistants were presently nursing thecounter-interferencesystem,whichhadbeenhastilyretrofittedtotheshuttle.

  They were an unknown quantity, but Lanchard had assured him of their

  competence.

  Thepilotnavigator,LieutenantJenez,appearedridiculouslyyoungandhad

  apparently graduated only a year ago. From the expression on his face it was clearthewholebusinesswasanadventuretohim.Buthishandsweresteadyon

  the controls and he flew the small craft with precision and assurance. Rexton hopedthereflexesofyouthwouldnotbeputtothetestinthenextfewminutes.

  RextonleanedforwardfromhisseatimmediatelybehindJenezandpointed.

  'There,Lieutenant.Undertheoverhangingshelftotheright.Thereshouldbe anairlockhatchlargeenoughforus.'

  'Iseeit,sir,'Jenezreplied.

  Bendix, in the right-hand seat, glanced across at him curiously. But if he wonderedhowRextonknewwheretodirectthem,thenhehadthesensenotto

  ask.TheDoctor,however,hadnosuchinhibitions.

  'You seem very familiar with the layout of the alien ship, Councillor,' he observedmildly.

  'I've been studying it carefully,' Rexton replied. The Doctor raised his eyebrowsbutsaidnothingmore.

  Thederelictbecameawallofintricatecomplexityglidingagainsttheports.

  Rexton waited for the first sign of instability, but their trajectory remained smooth.

  'Engineer,whatisthestatusofthecounter-interferencegenerator?'

  'Ifitwasn'tfunctioningproperlyyou'dalreadyknowit,Councillor,'Mander

  replied simply.'As long as we keep below five hundred k.p.h. we should

  manage.'

  Rexton sat back in his seat with a slight smile. He could accept a straight replyaslongasthespeakerknewtheirbusiness.

  ThelastofthekeycrewmembersRextonwaslessconcernedabout.

  Dessel,theCirrandaria'smaster-at-arms,wasanex-soldier.Onlyhelooked

  at ease with the pistol strapped to the waist of his suit. He was also cradling a heavierriot-controlguninhisarms.

  Nothing like the firepower the Nimosians could muster, of course, but

  Rexton realised he should be grateful regulations demanded interstellar liners carry basic armaments at all - a hangover from the last skirmish with the Nimosians.Heremindedhimselftoseethatprovisionswerestrengthenedwhen

  thiswasallover.

  Of course, if all went well, perhaps there would be no need for Emindian civilianshipstocarryweaponseveragain.

  'Pulse signal coming in from Cirrandaria ', Bendix said from the forward console. "The Nimosians have acknowledged our message informing them we wouldbelandingaparty...andtheysaythey'reabouttodothesame!'

  'Soitwillbearaceafterall,'theDoctorsaid.

  ***

  MattTanehunchedforward,staringoutoftheviewportoftheshuttleResolveat

  theslowlyswellingbulkofthederelict.Hewishedtheycouldtravelfasterbut

  cautionedhimselfagainstimpatience.ThecounterphasegeneratorthatRengwas monitoringinthecompartmentbehindhimputastrictupperlimitontheirsafe

  speed.Heconsoledhimselfwiththeknowledgethatitwasprobablythesamefor

  theEmindianshuttle.

  It was an interesting irony that both sides had overcome the interference to allow them to land on the derelict within minutes of each other. And the Emindians had taken such trouble to ensure they knew they had a Moderator withthem.TryingtowinfavourwiththeFederation,nodoubt.

  Well that would not prevent him carrying out his orders .The Emindians

  would soon discover that merely landing on the derelict was one thing, taking controlofitquiteanother.

  ***

  The entrance hatch, which Sam saw was segmented like a camera shutter,

  nestledinthevalleybetweentwoofthehugeprojectingfinsthatgrewoutofthe base of the derelict's central tower. At Rexton's direction, Jenez set the Doria downbesidethefifteen-metre-widering.Thehissoftheunderjetsdiedawayas

  thecraftsettledonitslandingskids.

  'Downandsecure,sir,'Jenezreported.

  'There should be a manual control point close by,' Rexton said briskly, fasteninghissuit.

  'You'llnotgooutsidewithoutanescort,General,'saidDesselfirmly.

  Rextonsmiled.'Thankyou,MrDessel.'

  'Perhapsweshouldstretchourlegsaswell,'theDoctorsuggested,asheand

  Samlockeddowntheirvisors.

  'Asyouwill,'Rextonsaid.

  WynterandDelraywerealsopreparingtoexitthecraft.Samsawalookof

  disdainpassoverRexton'sface.

  'You understand I take no responsibility for your safety out there,' he told them.

  Lyset nodded impatiently while Delray said lightly, 'Message received,

  Councillor.'

  They squeezed into the Doria's small airlock and waited as the air was exhausted. After half a minute the outer hatch slid open and a small flight of stepsunfolded.Beforedescendingtheyfastenedinertia-reeltetherstotheirbelts and clipped the ends to eyelets beside the airlock. If there was a gravity shift Jenez could hold the shuttle steady with the thrusters and gyrostabiliser until theycouldpullthemselvesbackinside.Theysteppeddownontothehullofthe

  derelict, moving easily in the half-gravity field. As Rexton flashed his torch abouthimLysetWynterbegansnappingpictureseagerly.

  Samnotedthat'down'wasnowalmostdirectlybelowthem,indicatingthat

  the derelict's centre of gravity must have shifted away from its far end. They hadn'tdetectedthechangefromspacesoitmusthavebeenlessspectacularthan

  before.Samhopedthederelictwassettlingintosomestateofequilibrium.

  Theartificialvalley,whichwasaboutthirtymetresacross,curvedsmoothly

  upintothegreatfinsthatencloseditoneitherside,reducingtheskytoastripof speckled blackness that arched over their heads. The dancing circles of their torches picked out muddy rainbows of colour that rippled across the floor and intothe-walls,remindingheroffoldedrocksediments.

  At either end of the valley two more of the fins cut the sky. They were piercedatrightanglesbytwooftheslendercolumnsrisingfromthemainhull

  ofthederelict.

  'Overthere,'Rextonsaid,hisbeampickingoutascallopedalcoveinthebase

  ofoneofthefins.Evenoverafewmetrestheinterferencecracklethreatenedto

  drown the signal of his suit transmitter. They loped across the green-bronze-rippledfloorinlongstrides.Araisedblackdiscorwheelsomehalf-metreacross wassetatheadheightinthewallatthebackofthealcove.Mountedonopposite

  sidesofitsrimweretwoshortprojectingpegs.Itsfunctionwasobvious.

  Rextongraspedthepegsandtwistedthewheelinaclockwisedirection.

  Itdidn'tmove.Rextontriedagain,exertingmoreforce.Samheardhisgrunt

  ofeffort.

  'Needsaspotofoil,perhaps?'theDoctorsuggested.

  'Letmetakeoneside,sir,'Desselsaid.


  Buttheircombinedstrengthcouldnotbudgethewheel.

  The Doctor examined their surroundings as they strained. His torch beam

  cametorestonapanelalittletoonesideofthedisc.Itwaspatternedwithasix-by-sixgridoffist-sizedraisedsquares,eachofwhichhadadistinctivegeometric characterembosseduponit.Samsawsquareswithadotinthecentre,zigzags,

  rightangles,achannel,arrowheadswithadotinthecorneroppositethearrow

  pointandwhatmighthavebeenapisymbol.Afteramomentsherealisedthere

  wereonlysixsymbolsindifferentcombinationsandorientationsonthepanel.

  'Acodelock?'Samwonderedaloud,asRextonandDesselceasedtheirfutile

  efforts.'Base-sixnumerology?'

  'Perhaps,'theDoctorsaid,tiltinghisheadfromsidetosideasheexamined

  thearray.'Idon'tsupposeyouknowthesolution?'heaskedRexton.

  'WouldIbewastingmytimehereifIdid?'Rextonsaidsharply.Wynterand

  Delrayhadwalkedacrosstojointhemandtheflashofhercamerawasobviously

  notimprovinghistemper.

  'No,Idon'tsupposeyouwould,'theDoctoragreed,continuingtoscrutinise

  thepanel.'Youjustexpectedittobeunlocked.'

  'WhatIexpectedisofnoconcernofyours,Doctor,'Rextonsaid.'Ifyouhave

  anyusefulsuggestionstoofferIampreparedtolistentothem.

  Otherwisewewillfindanotherhatchwayandtrythat.'

  'Andifthat'salsolocked?'

  'ThenIwillsendbacktotheshipforcuttingequipment.'

  'Youdon'tthinkthismightbeasignthatyourpresenceisnotwelcome?'

  theDoctorsuggested.'Lockeddoorsoftenare.'

  'Anycrewhavehadampleopportunitytocommunicatewithusbeforenow.

  Itisaderelictand,onewayoranother,Iamgoingtotakepossessionofit.'

  'Yes, you are determined, aren't you?' the Doctor agreed after a moment's silence.'IsupposeIcanatleastpreventunnecessarydamage.'

  And he turned to the panel and depressed six of the keys with his palm in quicksuccession.'Nowtrythewheel.'

  With evident incredulity Rexton grasped the manual-release wheel and

  twisted.This time it turned smoothly. Sam swung her torch about to see the segments of the hatchway set in the floor of the valley begin to slide open, revealingdarknessbeneath.Lysetlopedquicklyovertoit.

  Delraysaid,'CarefulLys.Don'tfallin!'

  'It'sjustalandingbay,'shesaid,takinganotherpicture.'Abouttwentymetres

  deep.Seemstobeempty.Plentybigenoughfortheshuttle.'

  Rexton stared at the Doctor.'How did you know the correct code?' he

  demanded.

  'Isimplyworkeditout,'theDoctorreplied.'Youcouldhavedonethesameif

  you'dthoughtaboutit.'

  Rexton looked baffled but apparently decided not to press the matter

  further.'Backtotheshuttle,'heordered.

  Sam turned off her radio for a moment and touched her helmet against the Doctor'ssoonlyhecouldhearher.'Howdidyoudothat?'

  'Itwasverysimple.Toosimple.Quiteabsurdinthecircumstances.'

  'Howdoyoumeanabsurd?'

  'Tellyoulater.'Hesoundedmoreconcernedthanhehadbefore.

  Dessel took over at the wheel and slowly the hatch aperture widened. In a minuteitwasfullyopen.TheymadetheirwaybacktotheDoria'sairlock,reeling

  in their safety lines as they went. As they climbed the steps Sam took one last glancearound-andhaltedabruptly.

  'What'sthat?'shesaid,pointingdownthevalley.

  'Where?'Lysetasked,swinginghercameraabouteagerly.

  'Somethingmoved,'Samsaid.'Aroundthefarcorneroftheright-handfin,or

  hill or whatever it is. It was dark - man-sized, I think. It was just there for a moment,thenitslippedaside.'

  Theothersstrainedtheireyesbutcouldseenothing.

  Sam shivered. From being a place of wonder the bleak, starlit, improbably artificial landscape suddenly seemed full of shadows and menace.'I think we're beingwatched,'shesaidquietly.

  'Iwouldn'tbeatallsurprised,'theDoctoragreed.

  'ItmaybeaNimosianscout,'Rextondeclared.'Weknowtheywereheading

  for the other side of the ship, but they may have sent somebody round. The soonerwegetinsideandclosethehatchthebetter.Pilot,signaltheCirrandaria thatwe'reabouttoenterthealienship.'

  ***

  Overfivehundredmetresawayontheothersideofthetower,Taneshieldedhis

  eyes against the glare of the primitive but functional gas cutting beam. So far theyhadfoundtwosmallhatches,butbothhadbeenlocked.Tanehaddecided

  not to spend time puzzling out their opening codes. Now they were employing more direct methods against the third and larger hatchway they had come across.

  TheResolverestedonthenarrowstripoflevelsurfacebetweentheedgeof

  the pipework tangle and the base of the tower. While the technicians were workingonthehatchthemarineswerespacedinaringaroundthem,lookingout

  alertly along the long furrowed hill that was the main hull of the derelict. Sho wasmovingbetweenhismen,followingthesafetylinestheyhadstrungacross

  thederelict'ssurface.Tanecouldseehishelmetturningfromsidetosideashe

  ceaselessly scanned their surroundings. He had to admit he found his presence reassuring,fortherewasanuneasyatmosphereaboutthisvastsilenthulk.This

  wastheplaceTechnicianKervenhaddied,andhisbodywasprobablynomore

  than a couple of kilometres away. When they secured the craft for Nimos a proper search would have to be mounted for him. He hoped he would not get thatdetail.

  The blue-white brilliance of the cutter faded, leaving a glowing cherry-red groove in the material of the hatch. Reng pushed up his tinted visor and examinedit.

  'Well?'Taneaskedimpatiently.

  'It'll be a long job; Reng said. "This stuff's highly conductive and the heat

  dissipatestooquickly.'

  "Thenwe'llhavetopunchahole.Howthickisit?'

  'Atleasttencentimetres-that'sthedeepestI'vegot,anyway.'

  Tane scowled. Standard demolition packs wouldn't do.They'd need Type

  Sevenshaped-ringcharges.Morethanhe'dbargainedfor.

  'I'llsendtheResolvebackforheaviercharges.Meanwhiletryanotherspot.

  Seeifyoucanfindsomewherethinner.'

  Tane trudged back towards the Resolve until he stood at the foot of its extended ramp within its counter-interference field. To his relief, the persistent crackleoverhisearphonesfadedandhecouldspeaknormally.

  'Argen,gobacktotheshipandcollectsomeextraexplosivepacks.I'llsend

  andtellthemwhatIneedsoit'llbereadyforyou-'

  Hesawaflickeroutofthecornerofhiseye,andfeltamomentarysensation

  ofdizziness.Hetookastepasidetosteadyhimselfandlookedaroundhim.Was

  thisthepreludetoanothergravityshift?Nobodyelseseemedtonoticeanything

  amiss. Reng's team were still crouched by the surface hatch and the marines appearedasvigilantasever.Wasthisplacegettingtohim?

  'Sir?'Argen'svoicecametohim.

  'Nothing.Beasquickasyoucan.'

  He stepped back and watched the ramp retract and close up. The Resolve's lift jets flared and it rose smoothly into the sky and in a moment it was gone.
>
  Tane made his way over to the tripod- mounted emergency communications

  reflector and picked up the sending key. The battery-powered bulb began to pulse.

  HATCHWAYHEAVIERTHANANTICIPATED,hesentincode.

  PREPAREMUNITIONSPACKS7AND10BFORTRANSFERTO

  RESOLVE.

  ***

  Vegaensuredthe explosivesTanehad requestedwereready andwaitingwhen

  theResolveglidedthroughthefaintlyglowingpressurecurtainofthehangarbay

  fiveminuteslater.Onthebaymonitorshewatcheditsetdownandopenupto

  receive its cargo. As the packs were loaded he conversed over the command circuittotheIndomitable'sfirstpilotandtemporaryshuttlejockey.

  'Howarethemodificationsholdingup,Del?'

  'Fine,sir,'Argenreported.'HandleswellaslongaswekeephertopV

  down.'There was a pause and Vega saw him frown.'But I'll be glad when

  Hentletakeshisspell.'

  'Why?Yousaidtheflyingwaseasy.'

  'It'snotthat,sir...it'sthatplace.Itmakesyoujumpy.TheengineerandIboth noticed it on the way back up. You want to keep looking over your shoulder, evenwhenyou'veleftit.Andthecoldstayswithyou.'

  Itwasn'tlikeArgentotalklikethat,Vegathought.Conditionsonthederelict

  mustbestrangerthantheyhadanticipated.Perhapsheshould-

  'Commander!'thelanding-partyobserversaidurgently,lookingupfromthe

  scope relay screen.'Multiple energy discharges on surface of derelict in the vicinityofMrTane'steam.Ithinkit'sgunfire,sir.'

  Thecommunicationsmonitorsaid,'Partialsignalfromsurface,sir.

  EmergencycodefollowedbySHADOWSOUTOF-That'sall,sir.'

  'Marinesecondsquad,tohangardeckatthedoublel'Vegaordered,thewords

  spillingoutquicklybutclearlyevenasicegrippedhisheart.'FlightControl,hold launch of Resolve until they are on board. Helm, take us in to four kilometres overtarget.Observers,reportimmediatelyanyactivityinlandingzone.'

  HefelttheIndomitablebegintodropdowntowardsthederelict.