Doctor Who_ Tenth Planet Part 7

'Are you ready?' asked Williams.

They both braced themselves in their seats, their faces tense and set.

'Fire! '

Again, the capsule began to vibrate violently beneath their feet; the thunderous noise was almost deafening, their faces contorted with the pressure. This time it lasted for 4.2 seconds. Once again the two men relaxed back, shook themselves, and waited for the blood to return to their heads. Every movement now caused them acute pain; both felt weak and exhausted.

'What's it now?'

Schultz was peering at the instrument panel.

'Hurry up ! ' shouted Williams impatiently. Then he saw that the older man looked stricken, almost paralysed, with fright.

'It's fifteen one! We're not slowing... we're speeding up... uncontrollably!'

Williams leant back incredulously, rubbing the sweat from his brow. 'O.K. Fire the retros again!'

Exerting almost superhuman effort, Schultz managed to stretch his trembling fingers to make contact with the operating switch.

Once more, the hissing roar of the rocket motors shook the s.p.a.ce capsule. This time it cut off abruptly after only two seconds.

Schultz looked at the fuel gauge, his face white with fear. 'The fuel's completely out-gone ! '

Williams leant forward, shouting into the mike: 'Emergency! Emergency! Calling Snowcap Snowcap. Emergency!'

In spite of the heating, every limb in Polly's body was trembling-she might just as well have been outside in the snow! Half the personnel of the base were cl.u.s.tered around the monitor, their eyes anxiously riveted to the drama of the stranded astronauts.

Behind them, impa.s.sive as statues, stood the Cybermen.

'Look at that d.a.m.n radar now,' exclaimed Dyson. 'They're accelerating!'

Polly shuddered and wrung her hands. 'Can't you do anything to help them?'

'Their retro fuel's gone,' Barclay answered.

'I don't understand!' Polly was looking desperately from one man to the other.

Before Barclay could answer, Dyson cut in. 'Their course is changing-yes. They're veering out now-accelerating at an enormous speed.'

The television picture of the two men inside the capsule, although streaked with 'snow', was still clearly visible on the fixed screen. The two men had donned their s.p.a.ce helmets. As the time travellers watched horrified, they saw the cabin start to fill with smoke.

The two beams of light from the windows were gyrating wildly, the capsule was speeding faster and faster away from the Earth!

The astronauts were making grasping movements towards the joystick controls but, with the great energy loss and the G-forces produced by the intense acceleration, seemed completely unable to reach them.

'They're beyond escape velocity now,' said Dyson. 'They can't...'

There was a sudden rise in the intensity of the light from the telescope screen-as though an invisible hand had turned up the brilliance control. The interior of the capsule cabin whitened; Polly, and the others had to shield their eyes from the bright glare of the screen. Then it slowly faded away until the television monitor went blank.

Polly took her hands from her eyes, and looked around uncomprehendingly.

Dyson's head was bowed at the console; Barclay was holding on to the side of the desk, as though near to collapse.

One of the radar technicians leant over and flicked a switch, cutting off the almost unbearable screech of static from the loudspeakers.

In the sudden silence, Polly found her voice. 'What happened?'

'I'm afraid the capsule exploded, my dear,' replied the Doctor.

'You mean,' Polly stared helplessly at the screen, 'they're dead... just like that?'

The Doctor put his arm round her shoulders and, at the same time, looked over at the Cybermen. As if in answer to the Doctor's glance, Cyberleader Krail stepped forward.

'Now perhaps you can see that your planet is in great and imminent danger. In order to save you, we shall require information to be transmitted to Mondas.'

'Save us?' queried the Doctor.

'What about those poor men?' cried Polly.

'Now you will realise that you must co-operate with us. Mondas drew the ship away with its gravity. It was unavoidable.'

Dyson stood up. 'How? What's happening?'

The Cyberleader turned to him. 'The energy of Mondas is nearly exhausted. It now returns to its twin planet for energy.'

'It will take the energy away from Earth?' queried the Doctor.

'For how long?' Barclay broke in.

'Until it is completely exhausted,' replied the icy, monotonous voice of Krail.

'But that means that nothing will work-light, power, engines, planes, ships!'

exclaimed Dyson. 'The Earth will die!'

'Yes, everything on Earth will stop.'

Barclay strode forward. 'This is monstrous! You calmly tell us we're all going to die?'

' You You are not.' are not.'

'Then how do you propose to stop the energy drain to Mondas?' asked the Doctor.

'We cannot. It is beyond our powers.'

'Then how can we expect to survive?' said the Doctor.

'By coming with us.' The Cyberleader now had the full attention of every man in the room. 'We are going to take you all back to Mondas.'

Ben had been hunting around the Projection Room in search of a weapon.

Suddenly, his eyes fell upon a long screwdriver. He looked at it for a moment, balanced it in his hand-then drove it into the table. It fell out on to the floor-too blunt to stick in.

'Imagine trying to tackle one of them geezers with a screwdriver!' Ben said to himself, in disgust.

He leant back against the projection table-then nearly fell to the floor as it moved backwards on its trolley wheels. He turned round to examine it.

'Here! Half a mo'!' An idea began to dawn. 'If I turn it on that door, the Cybermen won't be able to see!'

Ben studied the projection table for a moment, then looked at the projector itself. A reel of film was ready loaded. After a moment the sailor found the right switch and pressed it.

The film began to move through the projector gate; a flickering image appeared on the wall by the projection window. Ben recognised it immediately: Roger Moore as James James Bond Bond.

'Cripes ! I saw that film just a few weeks ago!' He shook his head and thought again. 'Twenty years or so by their time!'

He glanced back at the film rack. Round the side of each of the reels, the t.i.tle of the film had been written in large black letters on white tape.

'Ain't there nothing more recent than this?' But the other t.i.tles were unfamiliar to him. He piled the film cans on the edge of the bench, then turned to the projection table and swung it in a big arc. The coloured image of the film flittered over the bench and piled up films, ending on the white surface of the door.

Ben walked over and switched off the light. In the darkness, the square image of the film was clearly visible. Bond was fighting a gang of black-clad Karate students!

He watched it for a moment, then shrugged. 'Easy aint it, Commander! Like to see how you'd handle a Cyberman!' He smiled to himself. 'Wouldn't mind having you in here- just the same!' Picking up the screwdriver, he walked to the door, and started banging on it with the metal grip. Silence.

'Hey, Silver ! ' Ben shouted. 'Where are you?'

He continued banging with the screwdriver. Surely the noise would carry to almost every part of the base?

Finally, Ben watched as the key began to turn in the lock. He shuddered with fear- too late to be scared now! Ben stood behind the door, waiting. Only the flickering beam of the projector illuminated the near-dark room.

Clang! The Cyberman flung the door back and stepped in. For a moment, the silver giant, caught in the glare from the projector beam, was blinded. Only for a split second- but it gave Ben his chance! He flung the screwdriver at the cans of film. They collapsed with a deafening clatter. As the Cyberman wheeled round, Ben s.n.a.t.c.hed the Cyberweapon from its retaining clips on the Cyberman's thigh.

Leaping to avoid a deadly chop, Ben aimed the weapon at the Cyberman's chest.

The edge of the Cyberman's hand caught the door, slamming it shut with a metallic clang.

The Cyberrnan pressed a b.u.t.ton on his chest unit. A dazzling beam of light from the Cyberman's helmet illuminated Ben, who was crouching behind the door.

'Do not resist, give me that weapon.'

Ben shook his head. 'Sorry, mate, I'm giving the orders now.'

The Cyberman paused for a moment, looked at the weapon held in Ben's hand, then started to move towards him.

As the Cyberman's arm slashed round in another terrible chop, Ben ducked and scurried behind the projector table. The Cyberman's hand shattered the bench and sent the remaining cans tumbling to the floor. They burst open, spilling out great loops of film.

'Look! I'm warning yer,' screamed Ben. 'I'll fire!'

The Cyberman moved forward inexorably, sweeping the projection table back against the wall with one flick of his arm. Ben looked around desperately. The tangled reels of film were blocking his escape route. He was trapped. The Cyberman raised his arm to deliver the death blow.

Ben closed his eyes, pointed the Cyberweapon at the Cyberman's chest unit, and pressed the b.u.t.ton.

There was a loud, hard rattle. The Cyberman staggered back. The light abruptly went out on his helmet and smoke started curling from his neck and from the armour-like cracks between his arms and shoulder units. As Ben watched, horrified, the giant's body stiffened and crashed backwards to the floor.

After several tense seconds of waiting, Ben plucked up courage to walk over to the dead Cyberman. Still aiming the Cyberweapon, Ben poked him gingerly with his toe.

There was no sign of life. The Cyberman's plastic chest unit had melted-as though from a terrible heat. A wisp of smoke was still rising from the blackened edges of a jagged, circular hole.

Ben shook his head ruefully. 'You didn't give me no alternative, did you?'

Stepping over the body, he cautiously opened the door of the Projection Room...

8 Two Hundred and Fifty s.p.a.ceships

The Cyberleader had listened sternly to the protests of the a.s.sembled base scientists. Now he raised a hand for silence.

'We will not argue. You must either come with us, or fade away on a dying planet.'

Barclay shook his head. 'There is no scientific proof that this is is a dying planet.' a dying planet.'

'Anyway,' added Dyson, 'perhaps we'd prefer to take our chances here!'

'That is not possible,' replied the Cyberleader. 'You must come and live with us.'

'How can we live with you?' exploded Polly. 'You're so different. You have no feelings.'

'Feelings?' asked the Cyberleader. 'I do not understand... feelings?'

'Emotions. Love, pride, hate... fear.'

'Come to Mondas and you will have no need of feelings. You will become like us.'