by Nick Walters
She saw something looming directly ahead of them - a fang-like rock. There was no way they were going to avoid it.
Athon spun the steering wheel and grabbed Peri, forcing her across his lap.
Hey!’ she cried, her voice muffled against his tight stomach.
Then she realised what he was trying to do - use their weight to swing them round the rock. Suddenly there was a jarring impact and the vehicle flipped away from under Peri, sending her flying through the air, arms and legs windmilling. She hit the ground face down, stunned, eyes gummed shut with tears and sand, body numb with shock, no sound in her ears but the roaring of her own blood.
She lay immobile for a few moments, and then rolled over on her back in her self-made trough of sand, feeling the heat of the sun press down on her with almost physical weight. She felt weak and woozy. Was anything broken? Where was Athon?
Peri sat up and wiped the sand out of her eyes, wincing in the desert glare. The first things she saw were her knees, blooded an grazed by her fall. Beyond them, the ground levelled away into the heat-haze.
Through which a line of tall figures were marching, shimmering black phantoms.
Another line of figures seemed to be drifting above them.
Peri squinted. Was it an illusion caused by the heat-haze?
Or was she concussed? She could hear a mechanical chattering that sounded somehow familiar.
She scrambled to her feet, trying to get a grip on things.
This could still be a jape by Athon and his pals - or it could be trouble. What did she have to lose by assuming the latter? Only her dignity, and by the state of her that was already pretty well shot. She backed away from the advancing figures, still trying to make them out. They were tall, with long muscular legs and elongated bodies. Humanoid, not human; their V-shaped heads had pointed ears and long snouts. She could hear the growling and snickering of their voices - they didn’t sound friendly. They were carrying large, gun-like objects - no, to hell with it, those were guns.
This was no game.
As for the ones in the air, she hadn’t been hallucinating.
Above their heads, rotor-blades whirled in a shimmering blur. Like miniature personal helicopters...
Peri didn’t wait to see or hear any more. She turned and ran, stumbling as her feet sank into the yielding sand. Her heart leapt with relief when she saw Athon sprawled by the side of the skyboat. It looked miraculously intact, its gleaming silver surface as pristine as the moment she’d first seen it. Perhaps it had some sort of self-repairing forcefield -
she sure wished she did.
As Peri staggered towards him, Athon sat up and got unsteadily to his feet.
‘Athon!’ she cried, indicating the line of advancing figures with a wave of her hand.
In answer there was a distant click, like the release of a safe catch. Something whistled past her ear and thudded into the side of the skyboat. It glinted in the sun, a gleaming metal bolt.
Cackling laughter from behind told her that they had meant to miss. They could easily have hit her. They were toying with her.
She was close enough to see Athon’s face now, contorted in fear, his mouth hanging open, eyes unseeing. He was shaking his head. To her utter disbelief, he scrambled into the skyboat.
Peri ran faster, brushing stinging sweat from her eyes.
‘Hey, you bastard!’
But it was too late. The skyboat lifted vertically from the ground, slowly and gracefully, and began to move off. She could hear its engines, the note wavering and falling. It must have sustained some damage after all.
Peri ducked as a chattering, whirring sound came from directly overhead.
Two of the fliers bore down on the skyboat as it came about. She could see their dangling legs and brush-like tails.
She got a good look at one of them in profile as it turned to bark a command to its colleague. It looked like a fox or a wolf, with reddish fur and black-pointed ears.
She could see Athon’s terrified face framed with his sand-caked golden-brown hair as he looked over his shoulder. The skyboat picked up speed, but it wasn’t enough. The two fox-creatures swooped - their rotor-blades churning the air dangerously close to each other - and reached down in unison, plucking Athon from his seat.
The skyboat flew on, gaining height but not much speed.
Perhaps it was on autopilot, heading back towards the party.
A party that now seemed like a distant memory.
Peri sank down on her knees, mouth agape. The creatures drifted apart, stretching Athon between them. His mouth was open but she couldn’t hear his screams over the sound of the tutor blades. They bore him off into the distance, where Peri could see the dark shape of their pursuer hovering above the sand.
Footsteps scuffed behind her. Peri twisted round, getting to her feet, ready to run some more.
But there was no point in running. There was nowhere to run. There were too many of the creatures standing in a ragged circle around her, tongues lapping out of their black-lipped jaws, tails swishing from side to side. Their eyes were golden-yellow and slanted, shining with purpose and hunger, a wild evil glee at being alive. There was no pity in them, nothing she could appeal to.
Suddenly the smell of the creatures hit Peri in an almost solid wave, a heady animal musk. She retched again, spots of bile darkening the white sand.
The creatures barked with laughter at this.
Well, if she was gonna die, she was gonna die as Peri Brown, not some cowering wretch. Still feeling sick and light-headed, Peri got to her feet and folded her arms. ‘If you’re going to kill me, get on with it.’
One of the fox-creatures stepped forwards. Peri tried not to shrink back. It thrust its face right down to hers. To Peri’s disgust and confusion, it leaned forward and licked her face, from her neck right up to her hairline with a tongue as long as her forearm. Its soft wetness slithered over her face like a gigantic slug, leaving her coated with stinking juices. She gagged at the fetid smell of the creature’s breath as it wheezed over her, its saliva dribbling into her eyes. What did this mean? Were they going to kill her, eat her, or - she felt afraid of hoping - spare her?
The chattering laughter came again, and the creature stepped back, its eyes lustful, licking its lips, relishing the taste of Peri’s sweat. Peri felt her eyes drawn to its teeth. Unlike those of a fox or wolf, they were clustered closely together, rooted in grey gums spotted with black, and had a polished blue-white sheen.
There was a definite air of anticipation among the others.
They were crowding closer, licking their lips, drool pooling on the sand.
The leader swung round and hissed at them. They backed off, tails swinging.
The leader turned to face Peri again. Slowly, it reached into a pouch on its waist and drew out a small, stubby pistol.
Peri sighed. Well, at least they weren’t going to eat her alive.
It raised the gun.
Peri thought of the blind bear back in the TARDIS. Now it would never get its shades back. Perhaps it had been a warning - maybe it meant that you could never tell the future, never see what was going to happen next.
The smiling fox-creature pulled the trigger. Peri felt a sharp stinging in her side, and then her body turned to lead and everything went black.
Chapter Four
Taken by Storm
‘Oh, it’s probably a joke.’ Seryn’s green cat-eyes flashed up at Nine, and then narrowed their aim on the Doctor. ‘Or more gatecrashers.’ She stretched and yawned, almost falling off her chaise-longue .
Which was overdoing the utopian languor a bit, thought Aline.
The Doctor ignored her and addressed Taiana, his voice urgent, expression intense. ‘Tell me more.’
‘There’s nothing more,’ said Taiana. ‘It’s small, fast and heading down towards the desert some miles away.’
The Doctor shook his head in disbelief. Aren’t you even slightly curious?’
‘A little,’ Tai
ana admitted, lips parting to reveal the pale pink tip of her tongue. ‘But we’ll find out who it is when they get here. Anyway, I’ve sent a servitor to intercept it.’ Her golden eyes narrowed to slits as, for the first time, Aline saw her smile. It won’t pretty, like some devil mask. ‘We’re in no danger.’
The other Eknuri murmured their agreement. Somewhere Daeraval began a new song.
No danger. How could there be, in such a tranquil haven? But Aline felt her old fears swirling around the back of her mind, ready to leap out and take over. Since the Encounter, she’d always been able to sense things. The presence of someone behind a timed door, a friend’s image popping into her mind a few minutes before they called, always knowing exactly what the time is, all sorts of seemingly commonplace coincidences. She’d undergone psych-testing without ever thinking she’d rate above the norm, but she had. Far above. Her therapist had a theory that her Encounter had awakened Aline’s latent psychic abilities. Half-intrigued, half-scared by this revelation, Aline had never tried to develop these powers, and tried to suppress them most of the time, but sometimes she couldn’t help it.
Like now Something was coming, she knew. Something that wasn’t the storm. Something far more powerful, more destructive...
And she could almost see the Doctor thinking, his mind racing ahead of everyone else’s. Since Taiana’s announcement his relaxed manner had fallen away and he’d become animated driven by his exasperation with the Eknuri and concern for Peri.
‘Is there any other means of transport on this planetoid?’
Seryn and Taiana exchanged amused glances.
‘Only Athon’s skyboat,’ said Seryn. ‘And your little time machine.’ The Doctor swung away, mouth closed in a thin line.
Perhaps he sensed something, too. Aline went up to him.
‘Can you feel it?’
‘Feel what?’
Aline felt suddenly embarrassed. ‘A sense of oppression.’ She winced. She always found it difficult putting into words what her mind was trying to tell her.
He peered into her eyes. ‘Are you sure you’re all right?’
Aline smiled and tried not to think of how false it looked.
‘Fine,’ she lied. ‘Whoever these visitors are, we’re safe enough here. Eknuri technology will protect us.’ He put his arm around her and led her to one side. ‘Do you really believe that?’
‘No.’ Aline was surprised to realise that this was the truth.
She looked nervously up into the sky, then out to sea, realising how vulnerable they were. At any moment, a warship could come screaming over the top of the cliff, or skimming across the sea. But all she could see was a darkening sky above them, clouds growing, imperceptibly thicker by the minute. The kites had been stilled in anticipation of the coming storm.
She turned to the Doctor. ‘What do you think we should do?’
‘Gather all available information and await further developments.’ His gaze seemed to reach into her mind. She turned away, looking out to sea again. But this time it failed to soothe her. It looked threatening, an arena into which at any moment an aggressor might step.
Aline ran a hand through her wind-blown hair and looked over at Seryn. ‘Their complacency gives me the creeps. How can they be so sure it’s nothing?’
‘They’ve never been at war, they exist within a technocracy which protects them from the vagaries of life, unlike us lesser mortals.
Aline looked at him narrowly, amused that he could consider himself as such. ‘Think how I feel.’
The Doctor suddenly snapped into life, pacing around, one finger raised. ‘This planetoid hasn’t any defences as such -
they’re relying on some sort of subspace warp to whisk them all home at the first sign of trouble, yes?’
Aline remembered her brief but disorienting journey through the Eknuri warpfield. Cleverer and more elegant than traditional matter transportation but just as stomach-churning.
‘Yes, and if the worst comes to the worst the whole place can be tucked away into hyperspace. Or the Eknuri can bring their
“big guns” through the warpfield.’ Aline didn’t have any clear conception of the Eknuri defence system, except that it was silent, invisible and terrifyingly effective.
‘So even if we are attacked, we’ve got nothing to worry about,’ said the Doctor. His optimistic words were laced with acid sarcasm.
Aline smiled. ‘Maybe. Except this whole party seems to me like a group of children who’ve gone into the woods without telling the grown-ups where they’re going.’
‘Well, it’s about time someone started acting in loco parentis.’ The Doctor darted back across the courtyard to where Taiana sat hunched on a stone bench. ‘Any word from your servitor yet?’ Taiana shook her head and frowned. ‘No.’
‘Taking rather a long time, isn’t it?’
Taiana shrugged.
‘Well, can’t you get in touch with Athon’s skyboat?’
Seryn’s mouth curled in a smirk. ‘Already tried. He’s cut it.
Obviously enjoying your young friend.’
Aline winced.
The Doctor’s mouth twitched, but he made no comment.
Instead he turned back to Taiana. ‘What about the forcefield?
I noticed some generators around here earlier.’
Taiana rolled her eyes heavenwards.
‘What’s wrong with it?’
‘It’s decorative - won’t be any defence against energy weapons,’ explained Seryn.
‘Decorative?’ The Doctor looked perplexed.
Aline sidled up to him. ‘They’ve whipped up a storm for their entertainment. The forcefield’s to keep the rain off, nothing more.’
Already the light, strained through the tailor-made clouds, had taken on a dusty, tired aspect which only added to Aline’s feeling of doom.
The Doctor raised his eyebrows. ‘Such frivolous use of technology. Anyway, I advise you activate it until we know if these visitors are peaceful,’ he glanced at Aline, ‘or otherwise.’
Taiana dipped her chin towards the tiled floor. ‘Whatever.’
‘Well, go on then!’
Taiana flashed him a look of golden fire, and flexed her fingers to indicate the two servitors orbiting her head. ‘It’s done.’
‘And I also suggest you activate your warpfield in case we need to escape.’
Taiana stood, like a black piston thrusting upwards. ‘We are more than capable of taking care. of ourselves. Thank you for your concern.’
The Doctor sighed, thrust his hands deep into his coat pockets and whirled away.
Aline hid a smile behind a pale hand. Sarcasm, now - nice to know the Eknuri weren’t above the lowest form of wit.
Then, as she brushed away a stray lock of hair, she saw, out of the corner of her eye, a black speck following the line of the cliffs, too far away yet to make out any detail.
She hurried up to the Doctor and grabbed his sleeve, pointing with her other hand. ‘Look.’
The Doctor and Aline watched as the speck approached, grew larger. Aline winced as it flashed bright silver in the sunlight.
A flat voice from beside her. ‘Athon’s skyboat.’ Taiana had come to join them, her face a mask of concern. At last an Eknuri was paying more than cursory attention to the situation. Aline felt reassured by her statuesque presence, as if Taiana could bring the Eknuri defences to bear with just a snap of her long black fingers.
The Doctor stepped up to the edge of the balcony. ‘It’s heading right for us.’ He frowned. ‘It’s damaged.’
Aline could hear its engines now, a low complaining whine.
It’s out of control,’ said the Doctor. ‘Taiana, is there any way your servitors can gain control of the skyboat?’
Even as he spoke one of the bee-sized AIs zipped away towards the approaching vehicle, passing through the forcefield with a noise like a whiplash. The one remaining in orbit around Taiana’s head looked to Aline rather lonely.
The skyboat was on
a level course with them now, and only a hundred metres away. Aline couldn’t see the servitor.
Taiana’s mouth moved wordlessly as the Al sent streams of information back to her.
‘Can’t - lock,’ shouted Taiana suddenly. ‘Down!’
Strong fingers gripped Aline’s shoulder, pulling her towards the ground. She couldn’t stop herself from looking up, to see the skyboat skim the edge of the forcefield. There was a crackle and a flash, and the skyboat skimmed away, careering down towards the beach.
Aline leaned over the balustrade in time to see the skyboat hit the ground some fifty feet below, a little way along from them. It sent up a fan of white sand, skimmed across the beach and came to rest upside-down, half-in and half-out of the water.
Wavelets lapped at it like investigating fingers.
‘Come on,’ said the Doctor.
‘Where are you going?’ said Taiana, her head tilting in a curious weaving movement as the other servitor returned to its orbit. ‘It was empty.’
The Doctor’s face was flushed red. ‘I know. Don’t you care about Athon?’
Taiana shrugged, her voice dull, but with a sullen, threatening edge, like distant thunder. ‘He’s done this sort of thing before. Last time we were here he trapped some of us in some kind of replicating web. Crystalline duplicates of ourselves everywhere. If we go to investigate, something similar will happen.’
The Doctor’s face darkened and he stepped right up to Taiana. ‘Show me how to get down to the beach. Then go and ready everyone for immediate departure.’
Taiana blinked, her golden eyes going on-off-on like tiny lights, and her mouth opened in a silent gape of astonishment.
