Doctor Who: Apollo 23

by Richards, Justin

  The hatchway opened. A figure in a red spacesuit clambered down the ladder. It bounced experimentally on its feet in the dusty surface. It mimed licking its finger through the spherical helmet and holding it up to check the non-existent wind.

  ‘This way, I think,’ the Doctor said, though he knew no one could hear him.

  He blew upwards from the side of his mouth in an effort to detach a loose clump of hair that had flopped into his eyes. Maybe he needed one of those balaclava-like things that Garrett and Reeve and the others had worn under their helmets. Or maybe he could just stand on his head. He bounced again in the low gravity. Maybe not.

  The Doctor glanced back at the LEM as he walked away from it. There was a dark gash down one side of it. The Doctor had done his best to patch the hole, for neatness as much as anything. In their full spacesuits, he and Ashton had pumped the air out of the Command Module before the Doctor had entered the LEM for the descent. The Doctor looked up, wondering if he’d catch a glimpse of Ashton going overhead. But the orbit would take a while yet. As soon as he was back on the right side of the moon, Ashton would report to Houston and Hibiscus. Now the Doctor was on his own.

  Reaching the top of a shallow rise, the Doctor saw Base Diana lying in its shallow crater, almost exactly where he had expected to find it. He made no attempt to stay hidden – they knew he was coming. He strode down the incline towards the base, stuffing his hands absent-mindedly into pockets his spacesuit didn’t have.

  Whether they were waiting for him or not, the main airlock was a bit obvious. There must be another way in. The Doctor walked slowly round the base, expecting any moment to see white-spacesuited figures coming after him. But he saw no one. Not until he spotted Amy.

  He caught sight of her hair first – a splash of colour against the white and grey. She was watching from a round porthole. The Doctor waved, and she waved back, then pointed to one side – the way she wanted him to go. The Doctor gave a clumsy thumbs-up hampered by his bulky glove, and followed her directions. Sure enough, a short way along was a small airlock. He pressed the access panel, and the door swung slowly open. The Doctor kept his helmet on, even though he could hear the air rushing in. Best to be careful. He might need to step outside again in a hurry.

  But when the inner door opened, there was only Amy. She hugged him, struggling to get her arms round the large spacesuit. The Doctor removed his helmet and finally brushed the hair from his eyes.

  ‘Been itching to do that for ages,’ he told her. ‘So what have you been up to, Pond – having fun?’

  ‘We have to get away from here,’ Amy said. ‘They’ll have seen you, or detected the airlock opening or something. We can’t trust anyone, not any more. Jackson’s accelerated the process. You know about the process?’

  ‘Whoa, slow down.’ The Doctor stripped off his spacesuit, adjusted his bow tie and straightened his crumpled jacket. ‘Yes, I know about Jackson’s process. And I’m fine thanks, pleased to see you too. Met some people, mended their rocket, fought off an alien assassin and here I am.’

  ‘Good for you.’ She didn’t sound impressed. ‘Come on, they’ve been after me for hours.’

  Amy led the way through the base. Before long they reached the canteen. Amy glanced inside, then stepped back to let the Doctor see. The place was a mess – broken crockery strewn across the floor. Star-shaped patterns of dust and fragments where plates and bowls had broken apart.

  ‘You’d think they’d have cleared it up,’ Amy said.

  ‘What happened?’

  ‘Riot. I let the prisoners out. Got away from the bad guys in the confusion while the prisoners went on the rampage.’

  The Doctor crouched down to examine the remains of a plate.

  ‘They were throwing stuff,’ Amy explained. ‘But the soldiers rounded them up. Plates and cups against guns – no contest really.’

  The Doctor straightened up, dusting his hands down his lapels. ‘And you? What – you ran and hid?’

  ‘Of course. I’ve been hiding for days. What else could I do?’

  The Doctor nodded. He looked into her eyes and smiled sadly. ‘What else could you do?’ he agreed.

  ‘So, what’s the plan? How do we stop the Talerians now you’re back?’

  ‘Talerians?’

  ‘That’s what they call themselves. I overheard.’

  ‘Interesting.’ The Doctor drummed his fingers together. ‘Yes, that makes sense. Um, plan – yes, right. Well we need to get to a transmitter. The radio we spoke on when I was stuck on Earth, that’ll do.’

  ‘Then what?’

  The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver. ‘Then I can adjust the frequency, boost the signal, and send a jamming wave so no more Talerians can come through. Dealing with the ones already here will be easy enough. They’ll be trapped so we can blow up the base and kill the lot of them.’

  He paused, waiting to see if Amy reacted. But she said nothing.

  ‘So they’ll all die horribly, and serve them right,’ he added. ‘OK?’

  ‘Fine. Sounds good to me.’ Amy turned to go.

  ‘I was afraid it might,’ the Doctor murmured as he followed her down the corridor.

  He soon recognised the section they were in, and was pleased if slightly surprised that they were close to the Communications Room.

  ‘I sort of assumed the main computer systems would be somewhere near here,’ the Doctor said. ‘Makes sense to keep them together.’

  ‘The processors, maybe,’ Amy said. ‘But not the data storage. That’s all oxygenated hydrogen molecules. The spin of the electrons equates to the binary ones and zeroes. It’s very cheap and highly efficient. Or so they tell me.’

  ‘But a bit fragile and rather bulky,’ the Doctor said. ‘I suppose water hasn’t been an issue till now though, so it makes sense. Cutting-edge stuff for this day and age. I didn’t realise you were an expert.’

  Amy paused in mid-step. ‘Captain Reeve was telling me about it.’

  ‘I see, I see,’ the Doctor said casually, like it wasn’t really important. In the same tone he went on: ‘You’re not really taking me to the Communications Room, are you?’

  ‘No,’ Amy said at once. She stopped. ‘Ah. No…’ She frowned. ‘I had a better idea.’

  ‘Thought so. I could tell. Written all over your face. I could see it in your eyes.’ The Doctor had his sonic screwdriver out again. ‘Your expressionless face. Your cold, grey eyes that are usually so bright and intelligent. So caring, but you didn’t even blink when I said I’d kill the aliens and not even try to save the people they’ve mind-wiped. And then there’s the crockery in the canteen.’

  ‘What?’ Amy was still, face blank as the Doctor shone his screwdriver in her eyes.

  ‘It hadn’t been thrown at anyone. You can tell by the pattern it made when it broke. Those plates were dropped. Your Talerian masters like to put on a bit of a show, do they?’

  Her voice was completely level. ‘I don’t know what you mean.’

  ‘If that’s true, it’s only because you’ve not been programmed with the information. But you’re up to date on the local data storage, so that must be important. A race that can download itself into people’s brains must be conscientious enough to keep back-ups after all.’ The Doctor stepped closer, adjusting the settings on the sonic screwdriver. ‘Now then, where are you, Amy? Are you still in there somewhere? They must be using some sort of alpha-wave inhibitor to suppress the host personality…’

  From behind him, the Doctor heard the sound of someone clapping. Amy’s eyes closed and her head tilted forwards, as if she was falling asleep. The Doctor turned slowly round.

  Professor Jackson and Captain Reeve were standing behind him. Reeve was holding a gun. Hurrying to join them was Major Carlisle, her face as blank and expressionless as Amy’s had been.

  ‘Shame.’ The Doctor pocketed his screwdriver. ‘Thought I’d have more time than that.’

  ‘Time to carry out your ridiculous plan to jam our signals?
’ Jackson sneered.

  ‘Oh, that wasn’t my plan,’ the Doctor told him. ‘Made that up for Amy when I saw she was under the influence.’ He grinned widely. ‘I’ve got a different ridiculous plan to defeat you.’

  ‘Well, whatever it is, it’s over,’ Reeve snapped.

  ‘And what about Amy – is she over?’

  ‘Her program came to an end when we arrived,’ Jackson said. ‘The Blank can follow a simple set of instructions, then afterwards it is again simply… Blank.’

  The Doctor took a step forwards, but Reeve jabbed his gun in warning. ‘If you’ve hurt her…’

  Jackson laughed. ‘Empty threats, Doctor. You know, the hardest part was programming in enough information so that she could cope with any questions you might have – about us, Base Diana, anything. But when it comes down to it, you’re not so impressive after all. We needn’t have bothered.’

  ‘But then I wouldn’t know that you’re really Talerians.’

  ‘Which probably means nothing to you,’ Reeve said.

  The Doctor shrugged. ‘So where is Amy? What have you done with her mind, her essence, her personality?’

  ‘We’ve wiped it,’ Jackson said simply. ‘It’s gone. For ever. And soon, your mind will follow. The next transmission is due in an hour. You will be blanked, and then imprinted with a new personality – with one of us.’

  The Doctor nodded. ‘What a surprise. But that still gives me an hour. An hour for you to tell me all about who you are, what you’re up to, why you’ve decided to invade Earth. An hour for a chat and cup of tea – what do you say?’

  ‘I say, an hour for you to ponder your fate and see what your meddling has done to your friend. An hour in a cell in the prison hub while I prepare the Process Chamber.’ Jackson smiled, but the expression did not reach his cold, grey eyes. ‘This time, Doctor, there really is no escape.’

  Chapter

  18

  The gun jabbed painfully in the Doctor’s ribs.

  ‘I’m going to enjoy locking you up to await your fate,’ Captain Reeve said. ‘Just as I enjoyed locking up your friend.’

  ‘I’m sure,’ the Doctor said.

  Jackson was already striding off down the corridor. ‘I’ll need some help,’ he called back.

  ‘You go,’ Major Carlisle told Reeve, unholstering her own pistol. Her mouth twisted into a vicious smile. ‘I’ll deal with these two. My turn to have fun.’

  Reeve stared back at her for a moment. Then he nodded. ‘I’ll see you again soon, Doctor. And I shall watch every moment of the process with interest.’

  ‘Bye then,’ the Doctor said. ‘See you later.’

  Reeve’s face showed a flicker of amusement at the Doctor’s apparent indifference. Then he turned on his heel and marched off down the corridor after Jackson.

  Carlisle turned back to the Doctor and Amy. Her gun was aimed unerringly at the Doctor.

  ‘Funny how some life forms can be so clever and yet miss the obvious,’ the Doctor said. ‘Mind you, humans are the same.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ Carlisle demanded.

  The Doctor leaned towards her. He tapped the side of his nose conspiratorially. ‘I mean,’ he said, ‘that your eyes are the wrong colour. They’re chocolate brown, and if you’re really a Talerian, they should be grey like Jackson’s and Reeve’s. And Amy’s.’

  Major Carlisle’s smile was more genuine now. She glanced over her shoulder, checking that Jackson and Reeve had gone. ‘Perhaps they’re colour blind. They did actually process me, so they have an excuse.’

  ‘What went wrong?’

  Carlisle shrugged. ‘Power failure at a critical point, I think. It’s all a bit muzzy, to be honest. I can sort of hear one of them, like it’s trapped in my head. So I’ve got some clues as to how to play along. But I’m hoping you can fill in the blanks.’

  ‘That’s what I’m here for.’ The Doctor took Amy’s lifeless hand, feeling for her faint pulse. ‘Literally to fill in the Blanks. With their own personalities again.’

  ‘I tried to help her,’ Carlisle said as the Doctor inspected Amy’s eyes. ‘I gave her a chance to grab my gun, but I think she was too scared. Then I helped her let the prisoners out.’

  ‘Was there really a riot?’ the Doctor wondered. ‘Amy said that was how she escaped. Except of course she didn’t.’

  Carlisle shook her head. ‘The prisoners are in no state to cause trouble. A distraction, no more. She could have made a run for it, but she… Well, I guess she was just shocked. She seemed to want to help them.’

  ‘That sounds like Amy.’

  ‘Reeve got her. They blanked her out, or whatever, and here we are. Is there anything you can do for her? For any of them? I don’t know Jackson, not really, but Jim Reeve was a good man.’

  ‘Let’s hope he still is,’ the Doctor said. ‘And that we can find where they’ve stored him.’

  ‘Stored him? What do you mean?’

  ‘I mean they kept a back-up copy of his personality. At least, I’m hoping they did.’

  All the time they had been talking, the Doctor had been examining Amy – checking her pulse, her eyes, looking for any sign of self-will or consciousness. There was nothing.

  ‘So what’s the plan?’ Carlisle said.

  ‘Amy asked me that.’ The Doctor turned and looked into the Major’s eyes. ‘Double bluff? No, I don’t think so.’ Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed her hand, including the gun. But he wasn’t trying to get the gun from her, he shook her hand – gun and all. ‘Welcome to the team. And the team plan is to get to the main computer facility. You know where that is?’

  Carlisle nodded, still startled by the Doctor’s sudden handshake. ‘What do we do with your friend?’

  ‘She can come with us.’ The Doctor waved his sonic screwdriver. ‘Quick bit of optical stimulation and she’ll respond to simple verbal instructions. I hope.’

  ‘Quick bit of what?’

  ‘I’m going to shine a light in her eyes.’

  Access to the computer facility was on the other side of the base. But with the Doctor and Amy accompanied by Major Carlisle, there was a chance they could make it without being challenged. If they were, Carlisle had her gun – either to bluff she was taking her prisoners to the hub, or for defence.

  ‘There are only a few of the guys left who haven’t been processed,’ Carlisle explained. ‘A lot of the others don’t even know they’ve been blanked. They’re programmed to act as normal until they’re ordered otherwise. Means we have no idea who we can trust. But I guess that bears out your theory they’re keeping the original personalities on file somewhere. Somehow.’

  ‘I guess it does,’ the Doctor agreed. ‘They’d need to reload the original personality data temporarily, with an instruction to blank it out or override it when necessary.’

  He stopped at a junction of two corridors. Behind him, Amy kept walking, silent and blank-faced, and cannoned into the back of him.

  ‘Yeah, right, when I said to follow me I kind of meant “and stop when I stop” sort of thing, right?’

  She didn’t answer, but stood waiting for the Doctor and Carlisle to move on.

  ‘She’s very literal-minded,’ Carlisle said.

  ‘Not usually.’ The Doctor sighed. ‘Someone is going to be in so much trouble for this,’ he said quietly. ‘Right – onwards!’

  They passed a couple of soldiers, who acknowledged Major Carlisle, but didn’t seem concerned or worried by the fact she was with the Doctor and Amy. Carlisle kept her gun out of sight, but ready in case she needed it.

  Gradually, as they moved along, the base seemed less utilised. There was dust on the floor, and the lighting was at a lower level.

  ‘No one comes here much,’ Carlisle explained. ‘Just for maintenance. Like the quantum displacement equipment, the computer facility is in the basement, built into the bedrock under the crater. For good reason.’

  ‘Oh? What reason is that, then?’ the Doctor asked her.

  Befo
re she could reply, a white-coated man stepped out of a side corridor just in front of them. He stared in surprise at the Doctor and Amy, then looked enquiringly at Carlisle.

  ‘What are you doing here? Professor Jackson’s put this whole area off limits, except for his personal assistants.’

  ‘I know that, Gregman,’ Carlisle snapped. Her hand edged towards her gun.

  But Gregman was quicker. He pulled a pistol from his pocket and aimed it at the Doctor. ‘I shall have to report this. You’d better have a very good reason for being here. The Doctor is meant to be in a cell awaiting his turn in the Process Chamber. I know, because Professor Jackson sent me to connect a back-up unit ready for the transfer.’

  ‘Ah, so you do keep back-ups,’ the Doctor said. ‘That’s good to know. It means we’re heading the right way.’

  ‘Not any longer.’ Gregman jabbed the gun towards Carlisle. ‘Keep your sidearm holstered, Major,’ he warned.

  Carlisle raised her hands to show she had no intention of going for her gun. As she did so, a figure pushed past her. She assumed it was the Doctor, but it wasn’t. It was Amy.

  Blank-faced, she walked slowly towards Gregman. He frowned, watching her. ‘You can stop now,’ he said. ‘Your programming is at an end. Just blank out. Stop.’

  But she kept walking, past Gregman and on down the corridor. Confused, the scientist turned, tracking her with the gun.

  ‘I said stop! Stop, or I’ll—’

  His words became a grunt of surprise and pain as the butt of Carlisle’s gun thumped into the back of his head. Gregman collapsed to the floor, and Carlisle stood over the unconscious man, gun aimed.

  ‘Just leave him,’ the Doctor said, striding past.

  ‘But—’

  ‘If you shoot him, we can never return the real Gregman’s mind to his body,’ the Doctor pointed out. ‘Now stop dithering, and come on.’

  He turned down the side corridor from which Gregman had come. ‘This way, Amy.’

  ‘She’d stopped,’ Carlisle said as she followed the Doctor. ‘She’d stopped, like you told her to when we did. Then she started walking again and distracted Gregman. Was that deliberate? Can she have done it on purpose, do you think?’