TEN STORIES SEVEN DOCTORS ONE ENIGMA Edited By Mark Stammers & Stephen James Walker First published in Great Britain in 1994 by Doctor Who Books an imprint of Virgin Publishing Ltd 332 Ladbroke Grove London W10 5AH Playback © Stephen James Walker 1994 Fallen Angel © Andy Lane 1994 The Duke of Dominoes © Marc Platt 1994 The Straw that Broke the Camel's Back © Vanessa Bishop 1994 Scarab of Death © Mark Stammers 1994 The Book of Shadows © Jim Mortimore 1994 Fascination © David J Howe 1994 The Golden Door © David Auger 1994 Prisoners of the Sun © Tim Robins 1994 Lackaday Express © Paul Cornell 1994 The right of each of the authors listed above to be identified as the author of the story whose title appears next to their name has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988 'Doctor Who' series copyright © British Broadcasting Corporation 1994 ISBN 426 20411 Cover illustration by Mark Salwowski Typeset by Mark Stammers Design, London Printed and bound in Great Britain by Cox & Wyman Ltd, Reading, Berks This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher's prior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser Editors' Note Doctor Who short fiction has a long and distinguished history The earliest examples saw print in the first Dr Who Annual, way back in 1964, although the Daleks pipped the good Doctor to the post in 1964's The Dalek Book, and stories have continued to appear in a variety of different publications ever since that time Perhaps the chief exponents of the form have been the fans of the series who, over the years, have put the good Doctor and his companions through countless original adventures of their own devising Their work has formed a staple ingredient of a whole host of different fanzines — including some, such as the Doctor Who Appreciation Society's Cosmic Masque, devoted entirely to fan fiction — and a number have since gone on to write professionally This book is, however, something of a milestone in Doctor Who's literary history, in that it is the first bona fide short-story anthology ever to be published And rather than presenting a straightforward collection, we have tried to make it even more special by placing the stories within the overall framework of a linking plot — an idea which might be familiar to some from old horror anthology movies like Dead of Night This means that while it is possible to dip into Decalog and enjoy the individual stories in isolation, readers who work through the book from the first page to the last will hopefully gain something extra from it We would like to offer our heartfelt thanks to all the writers who have contributed to this project — including those whose submissions we sadly weren't able to use — and also to Peter Darvill-Evans and Rebecca Levene at Virgin for their support and enthusiasm Read on, and enjoy! For Gordon Roxburgh (the best man) — MS For Mum & Dad — SJW CONTENTS PLAYBACK (introduction) FALLEN ANGEL Andy Lane THE DUKE OF DOMINOES Marc Plat THE STRAW THAT BROKE THE CAMEL'S BACK Vanessa Bishop SCARAB OF DEATH Mark Stammers THE BOOK OF SHADOWS Jim Mortimore FASCINATION David J Howe THE GOLDEN DOOR David Auger PRISONERS OF THE SUN Tim Robins LACKADAY EXPRESS Paul Cornell PLAYBACK (conclusion) Playback Stephen James Walker A cool afternoon, a few days short of Christmas 1947 I was sat in my office in downtown LA with my hat over the telephone and my legs slung over the end of the desk, practising my foot-dangling The air was heavy with tobacco smoke, so I rested my cigarette in the ashtray and leaned back to push open the window - the one with the words 'Bart Addison - Private Investigator' painted on it in big black letters The scent of greasy food wafted up from Frank's Diner four floors below It didn't clear the air, but at least it added a touch of variety A few moments later, the open window also admitted a large purple butterfly, which perched tentatively on the sill before setting out on an exploration of the room I watched as it fluttered past the peeling lemon wallpaper, the out-of-date pin-up calendar and the three battered green filing cabinets, two of them as empty as my stomach, before finally coming to rest on the floor, just inside the door Suddenly the door was flung wide open and a man staggered in, inadvertently trampling the butterfly into the threadbare carpet, where it made an unwelcome addition to the pattern Following my gaze, he looked down and saw what he had done, but made no comment I thought I had better break the silence 'Come in, Mr ?' He left the question unanswered, but came in anyway and collapsed breathless into the clients' chair on the opposite side of the desk I regarded him cautiously The first thing to catch my eye was his pullover, a brightly coloured affair with a question-mark pattern, not quite as tasteless as a Hollywood party Then there were his trousers, light brown with a large check, just the thing for an afternoon on a hicksville golf-course His jacket was a shapeless, dark brown item which might once have belonged to Chaplin, or maybe Chaplin's grandfather The whole ensemble was topped off with a battered panama hat and a large umbrella with a red question-mark handle I decided to say something else 'What can I for you, Mr ?' Again he ignored the question, holding up a hand, palm forward, while he struggled to catch his breath Eventually he spoke 'I'm sorry, Mr Addison I seem to have been through rather a trying ordeal.' He had an unusual accent, which I couldn't quite place 'You're not from around these parts, are you, Mr ?' 'No.' He gave a strange sort of smile 'You could say I'm on alien territory.' 'Yeah, well, I was raised in England myself.' Finally I decided to get unsubtle 'So, you have a name then, or what?' Again the stranger smiled 'Ah, that's just the point,' he said 'I have a name, I'm sure, but right now I can't quite seem to remember it.' 'I get it You want to stay anonymous What is it, a divorce case?' 'No, no, no That's not it at all!' He frowned 'At least, I don't think so The thing is I've lost my memory.' He frowned again 'Or perhaps it's been stolen.' I grinned at that 'Ah I think you've made a small mistake, bud The psychiatrist's office is down the hall, to the left and along -' He shook his head, emphatically 'No.' 'No? You mean you're not looking for the doctor?' 'The doctor ' He paused, as if considering, then shook his head again 'No It's a private detective I want I looked in the city directory Yours was the first name on the list.' 'Yeah, I get most of my business like that But, look, I don't see what I can for you If you've got amnesia, you need a doctor.' 'No Something's happened to me in this city I've been brainwashed or hypnotised or something Anyway, my memory's gone, and I want you to help me find it You can retrace my steps since I arrived here Find out where I've been, who I've seen, what I've done.' I leaned back in my chair, retrieved my cigarette from the ashtray and inhaled deeply The stranger watched me intently, and I knew how an insect must feel when placed on a microscope slide I half wondered if he was playing some kind of a crazy practical joke on me, but he seemed too serious for that, too intense 'Okay,' I said 'I'll see what I can for you.' Well, what the hell? I hadn't had a case all week, so it was either that or sit there staring at the wall 'My rate's forty a day plus expenses,' I added quickly 'Ah, money.' A worried look came over the stranger's face, and over mine too 'I'm not sure if I've got any of that.' 'Well,' I said reasonably, 'why don't you turn out your pockets and have a look? Who knows, you might even have some ID in your wallet and we can wrap this business up straight away.' Judging from his reaction, this simple idea hadn't actually occurred to him: his face lit up as if I had just given him the next week's racing results Maybe he'd lost his marbles as well as his memory The stranger stood up and began to turn out his pockets, depositing the contents in an untidy pile on my desk I'd thought he might have maybe four or five items on him, but after a couple of minutes it began to seem that he must have more like four or five dozen It reminded me of a cheap nightclub act I'd once seen, where a magician had opened up a suitcase and dragged out an impossible number of large and unwieldy objects - which in actual fact he'd been pulling up through a concealed hole in the top of his table Only this time I couldn't see how the trick was done At length, the stranger finished his performance and sat down again 'What, no aspidistra?' I asked He scratched his head in puzzlement, and for a moment I thought he was going to start patting his pockets, just to make sure 'Private joke,' I added quickly 'Private joke?' He frowned 'But I thought you were a private detective.' Now it was my turn to scratch my head Yes, it really was going to be one of those days I leaned forward and started to examine the motley collection of effects now spread across my desktop A few things I could identify There was a kid's catapult; a telescope with polished brass fittings; a pair of wire-rimmed specs; an egg-timer; a crumpled bag of jelly-beans; and a rolled up copy of a local newspaper with a headline about the latest UFO scare Most, though, left me completely in the dark A discshaped mirror with a hole in the middle; a glass phial with a silver clasp at either end and a few drops of mercury inside; a little black cube covered in strange hieroglyphs; a brown, card-shaped piece of plastic patterned with a tracery of metallic solder; and many other articles the purpose and origin of which I could only guess at Just about the only thing he didn't have there was a wallet, or anything else which might give some clue as to his identity No business card, no bank book, no library ticket, no driver's licence, no dry cleaning receipt, nothing There was a draw-string purse containing a few assorted coins of various shapes and sizes, but they weren't like any that I had ever seen before Whatever they were, they certainly weren't US currency 'It looks like you're right out of ready cash,' I said at length 'Oh Er, does that mean you won't help me?' I shuffled his possessions around on the pitted wooden surface of the desk, making a pretence of considering the matter In truth, I was just seconds ago — Kate threw herself out of the cyclotron, grabbed his saxophone and neatly swatted him over the head with it She was followed by a very angry cricketer, who savagely wrenched the rifle from his amazed grasp and swung it to cover him 'Be extremely glad that I have to play by the rules of the game!' he shouted in a quavering pitch And then he turned the gun on the room, emptying the full clip of the plasma rifle into the gleaming new surfaces and computer banks He hauled the female scientist after him into the blue box Then he jumped inside himself, pausing only to toss the rifle back to Paxton The box vanished in a rumble of grinding gears A Steppe Guerilla entered the room 'Hey,' he grinned 'What happened to your saxophone?' Paxton frowned 'Complex ' he muttered Behind them, on a barely functioning instrument panel, a pattern swirled for the first time: a pattern of particles forming and vanishing out of and into the structure of the universe itself The TARDIS sighed through the vortex, comfortingly normal again 'Tea?' the Doctor asked, having frowned at what Nyssa and Tegan had done to his instruments He found that he was holding a battered saxophone in his hand, and placed it carefully on the console 'Please ' Kate had been looking at her hands, aghast, and had barely noticed the greetings of the Doctor's companions 'My God, what I was prepared to Is the universe safe?' 'Oh yes!' The Doctor tapped the TARDIS console affectionately and handed her a steaming cup of liquid 'Universes are hardy old things.' 'But I nearly Why did I that?' 'Why we anything?' The Doctor met her gaze seriously 'That's one thing I think physics will take some while to sort out, the science of moments What we and why If it ever does I think it'll be time for me to go home and start a bookshop Speaking of which —' He picked up the TARDIS manual from the floor 'There's a whole appendix on universal warping, which would have —' He stopped The pages were torn out 'Probably served as very effective kindling.' He frowned at his companions, somewhat abashed 'Well done.' Earth The Doctor and Kate wandered along the campus walkways He had his hands stuffed deep in his pockets, happily sniffing the spring air She was more uncertain, gazing around herself like this would all vanish in a moment 'I'm still getting used to the idea of living in sequence,' she told him 'I can't relive all those memories now They'll change and decay in my mind, be written over with all sorts of sentimental rubbish I've lost my past ' 'Ah, but you've gained a future.' The woman looked suspiciously at his boyish grin 'I'm not sure if that's a good bargain And I'm still worried about the consequences of you rescuing me You took me out of that thing before you found me Doesn't that break a law somewhere?' 'Oh, possibly There will always be a creature that's you in the cyclotron Whether or not it's the real you, or just a photocopy Best not to ask, isn't it? Nobody will know unless they look, and since I'm the only one who's ever looked, I'm going to delude myself into being absolutely certain about it.' He grinned again 'Do you know, I think I just said the most complete nonsense.' Alec and James looked up from their game of pool and dropped their cues in shock Catherine, who'd been gone for only about two months, had marched back in through the door and struck a pose 'How How did you get home so early?' James goggled 'Hitched a lift,' she told them Alec glanced over his shoulder, quickly 'I, ah, found your cat!' he grinned 'He came back I put down a litter tray for him in the lab Tell you what, let's go and see him ' Kate shook her head, smiling 'In a minute.' She pointed to two women who were carrying drinks back from the bar 'First I'd like you to introduce me to your girlfriends.' From a corner table, the TARDIS crew watched the scene Alec and James were frantically making gestures and trying to placate three women at once 'Men,' Tegan opined 'Indeed,' the Doctor nodded Nyssa raised a finger 'I've just worked it out You did break the —' 'Hush, Nyssa Besides, it looks like Kate doesn't have too many awkward decisions to make after all.' 'Kate?' Tegan looked at him suspiciously 'Catherine,' the Doctor corrected himself 'Time we were going, I think.' 'Yeah.' Tegan got up from her seat 'So, what about Adric?' 'Tegan, Tegan, Tegan!' the Doctor sighed 'Haven't you learned anything?' The argument began again as the three friends made their way out of the building and headed back towards the TARDIS Later that evening, Kate finally got hold of a substitute key (neither of the boys were talking to her) and opened the door to the chemistry lab where her cat had been left She coughed There was an acrid smell in the air 'Puss?' she called The lab was dark Switching on a light, she moved slowly through the jumble of equipment A nervous call answered her On top of a lab table stood her cat On the floor beneath it were the remains of a glass canister labelled Prussic Acid Kate ran to the window and opened it Prussic acid was highly poisonous Only a miracle could have saved her pet from being killed Which was bad news for physicists everywhere But jolly good news for the cat Silverman sank back into his chair and closed his eyes, physically drained by his efforts If it wasn't for the fact that he always looked like a corpse, I might have been worried After a few moments he revived a little and, leaning forward, returned the saxophone mouthpiece to the table To my astonishment, he then began to sift through the various bits and pieces still piled up there, apparently intending to try another one 'Hey, hang on a minute!' I protested 'I think this has definitely gone far enough now We could sit here all week sorting through this pile of junk, and still be none the wiser.' The psychic fixed me with a steely gaze 'I assure you, Mr Addison, that I am devoting my utmost efforts to the task Fantastic though they may be, the tales I have recounted are true descriptions of the history of these objects.' 'Look,' I replied, 'I'm not doubting your powers If you say these things happened, then I guess I have to believe you But there are still a lot of unanswered questions Even if I accept that my client here is the Doctor, and that he flits about in time and space in a blue box called the TARDIS, I still don't know what brought him to LA, how he came to lose his memory or where he's put this cylinder thing he's after.' 'It's imperative I find that cylinder!' The stranger was becoming increasingly agitated, squirming in his seat and mopping his brow with a paisley-patterned handkerchief taken from the top pocket of his jacket 'We must go on until we find something which relates to my experiences here in the city!' I looked pointedly towards the newspaper that he had earlier prevented Silverman from examining, but said nothing 'I am more than willing to go on, if you wish me to so,' offered the psychic 'No ' I made a pretence of considering the matter 'No, I'm grateful for all your efforts, Silverman, and I'd be glad to return the favour if you ever need my help again, but I think it's time I tried a different line of enquiry.' 'But this is ridiculous!' My client had risen from his seat and was literally hopping up and down now 'You've just admitted we've learned absolutely nothing here!' 'No, that's not what I said at all! I may not have got all the answers yet, but I've picked up quite a few leads.' The little man was baffled 'But how can you have learned anything from what Silverman has told us? All these recollections have been totally irrelevant!' I tapped the side of my nose with my forefinger 'I'm the private eye, remember Let's just say I've made a few deductions You know, like Sherlock Holmes.' Silverman had Ramon show us out, and we made our way back down the overgrown trail to the car We'd spent longer with the psychic than I'd anticipated, and the first rays of the rising sun were already creeping over the horizon as we drove away My client's energy seemed undiminished after the bizarre all-night session, but I was feeling pretty done in and insisted that we stop off at a roadside diner for some breakfast I demolished a plate of ham, eggs and hash browns, swilled it down with a mug of coffee, then visited the washroom to splash some water on my face and freshen up a bit The little stranger, though, just sat there at the table, picking over his food and saying nothing We got back in the car and I drove out on to Highway 178, heading away from the city and towards Death Valley Despite the time of year, the morning sun became uncomfortably hot as we moved further west and scrubland gradually gave way to desert I slipped my coat off and threw it on to the back seat My client grew more and more uneasy as our journey progressed, constantly shifting his position and mopping his brow with his handkerchief At first I thought it was just the heat that was bothering him, but then he started glancing nervously up at the sky, casting his eyes about like someone waiting for a bomb to drop I followed his gaze, squinting up into the bright sunlight, but could see nothing out of the ordinary 'Expecting rain?' I asked He quickly switched his attention back to the road, a slightly guilty expression on his face 'Why have you brought us all the way out here?' he muttered, with obvious annoyance 'Just following a hunch,' I told him His agitation intensified when, a few minutes later, I turned off the main highway and on to a side road leading to Ballarat, one of the old prospecting towns which sprang up during the gold rush 'It's a mistake coming out here,' he grumbled 'I've got no recollection of this place at all.' 'Maybe not,' I replied, 'but then you've lost your memory, haven't you?' 'I think we should turn back,' he insisted 'I'm sure it was somewhere in the city that I left the cylinder -' 'Look,' I interrupted 'you hired me to find out who you are and how you came to lose your memory, not to track down this cylinder thing And when I'm on a case, I'm the one who decides how to go about it I'm the private detective, remember.' Although clearly unhappy, he settled back into his seat and we drove on in silence for a while When the town came into view, I pulled off the road and brought the car to rest around the side of an old, disused gas station, out of sight of any other passers-by The little guy seemed relieved that we were going no further, but puzzled as to why we had stopped 'What you expect to discover here?' he asked, irritably 'Well, why don't we get out and have a look around?' I suggested With an exasperated snort, he climbed out of the car and slammed the door behind him I followed close on his heels The building was little more than a derelict wooden shack The windows were all boarded up and the sign creaked back and forth on rusty hinges Two broken-down gas pumps stood on the dusty forecourt, both registering empty 'That place over there is Ballarat,' I said, pointing towards the town 'Ring any bells with you?' The stranger walked a few paces forward, peered into the distance, then shook his head emphatically 'No As I told you, I've no recollection of having been here before.' 'Are you sure? I thought perhaps you might have.' 'What's that supposed to mean?' he spluttered 'I can't see how anything Silverman said could possibly connect me with this place.' 'No, that's true.' 'Then why in heaven's name have we come here?' he shouted 'Well,' I replied, 'Ballarat is the place where they've been having all these UFO sightings - you know, the ones reported in that newspaper of yours - and I thought maybe we might find the Doctor somewhere out here.' The little guy turned to face me, his mouth dropping open in astonishment as if I had just brayed like a mule His expression showed even greater surprise when he saw that I had pulled a gun from my pocket and was now pointing it in his direction 'But I am the Doctor!' he protested 'If there's one thing we learned from Silverman, it's that.' I smiled and shook my head 'No you're not You might look like him - although, seeing as how he changes his appearance about as often as I change my shirt, I don't know about that - but you're not the same man.' For a moment I thought he was going to argue about it, but then he gave a resigned shrug of the shoulders, accepting that he had been caught out His form began to shimmer and change, like heat haze rising from the desert sands, and then there was someone different standing in front of me A tall man with sharp, angular features, he looked almost comical crammed into the same shapeless brown jacket, now several sizes too small for him His other clothes, though, had transformed with him, and he now wore just a simple tunic cut from a shiny, jet black fabric I regarded him thoughtfully 'Mr Mykloz, I presume?' He inclined his head in acknowledgement 'Very perceptive of you, alien And how did you reach that conclusion?' I grinned broadly 'Well, to be honest, this whole business seemed pretty fishy right from the start That cock-and-bull story about losing your memory, it just didn't ring true And then, when we first got to Silverman's, you would have killed Ramon if I hadn't stopped you That struck me as pretty odd in itself, but the more I learned about the Doctor, the more I got convinced that he would never have done that He's not the sort of guy to kill someone in cold blood I don't think he would even have stepped on a butterfly without at least saying he was sorry about it And he certainly wouldn't have sat in silence while we drove half way across the state; from what Silverman told us, he couldn't keep his mouth shut for five minutes, whatever body he was using.' 'It seems I may have underestimated you.' 'Well, this shape-shifting business is pretty clever, I guess, as conjuring tricks go, but there's more to a man than his outward appearance: there's also his character, and that's not so easy to fake Actually, you made things pretty simple for me I mean, there was the newspaper, and then there was that visa thing If you hadn't tried to stop Silverman looking at it, I'd never have guessed it was particularly significant.' I regarded him thoughtfully 'So, this is where you landed up after Bukol, eh?' 'Indeed And I have not been idle since my arrival.' He looked down at my gun, still pointed steadily in his direction 'Now that you have discovered the truth of my identity, what you propose to about it?' He tried hard to sound casual, but there was an edge of desperation creeping into his voice 'Well,' I replied, 'I propose to get you to answer a few questions for me Like why you wanted me to trace the Doctor's movements in LA; what this cylinder is that you're after; and how you happen to be wearing the Doctor's jacket.' He smiled slightly, but did not reply 'Look,' I said, 'this is a gun I'm holding When somebody points a gun at you, you're supposed to what they tell you.' He opened his mouth as if to say something, but suddenly recoiled in horror 'Look out!' he shouted, pointing over my shoulder I laughed out loud 'Now you really are underestimating me! That's the oldest trick in the -' At that moment, I became aware of a high-pitched whine coming from somewhere above and behind me I spun round and saw, hovering into view over the roof of the old gas station, one of the UFOs from the newspaper reports A rapidly spinning silver disc with circular port-holes spaced at regular intervals around its outer edge, it looked like something out of a low-budget monster movie, except I couldn't see any strings holding it up The air around it was rippling slightly, making it difficult to keep in focus, and I had trouble picking out the finer details As I stood there squinting up at it like an idiot, Mykloz took the opportunity to jump me He wrestled me to the ground, grinding my face into the dust, then shoved me roughly to one side Scrambling back to my feet, I saw that he had somehow managed to get the gun away from me and was now aiming it straight at my head 'I guess that wasn't very smart of me,' I said, ruefully 'But then, it's not every day I get to see a flying saucer.' With a grim smile, Mykloz tightened his finger on the trigger I braced myself to make a desperate and probably futile leap to one side Then, to my amazement, he seemed to change his mind, almost as if he couldn't bring himself to it Glancing up at the alien ship, which still hovered in midair somewhere out beyond the gas station, he motioned me towards the car with the barrel of the gun 'Get in and drive!' he yelled 'Quickly!' I didn't stop to argue Leaping into the car, I started it up and sent it shooting forward, barely giving Mykloz time to jump in beside me The tyres squealed in protest, sending up a shower of gravel in our wake Ignoring them, I swung the car back on to the road and headed full- speed towards Ballarat Mykloz kept me covered with the gun as we drove, but was more preoccupied with staring out of the back window at the UFO Glancing in my rear-view mirror, I saw that it seemed to be following us 'What we now?' I asked 'Keep driving!' the Malean shouted back, sweat dripping from his forehead Just before we got to the outskirts of the town, he ordered me to turn off onto a dusty track running along the side of a low ridge I looked back over my shoulder at the UFO, and for a moment I thought we had lost it It hovered on towards the town, getting quite a reaction from a pair of young hitchhikers on the road below Suddenly, though, it changed course and came after us again I kept the gas pedal pressed firmly to the floor, and we were jolted about in our seats as the car lurched along over the uneven ground After about ten minutes of this, an old wooden ranch house came into view It looked about as rundown and deserted as the gas station we'd just left, and I would have driven on past it if Mykloz hadn't grabbed me by the arm and told me to stop Almost before the car had come to rest, the Malean had leaped out and was motioning me to follow He shoved me inside the house through the battered front door, which half off its rusty hinges, then took me at gun point into a musty back room which had once served as a parlour Through the broken glass of the window, I could see that the UFO had now caught up with us and was hovering just a short distance away As I watched, a series of landing legs emerged from the underside of the hull and it dropped slowly down to settle on the ground, sending up a plume of dust as it did so Mykloz, meanwhile, had crossed to the wall and was fiddling with the lock on what looked to me to be nothing more than a walk-in cupboard Flinging it open, he bundled me inside and slammed the door behind us To my surprise, I saw that we were standing in a small, metal-walled chamber illuminated by a concealed light in the ceiling Mykloz punched a button on the wall and I felt the unmistakable sinking feeling of descending in an elevator When we came to a stop, the Malean threw open the door and pushed me out After everything I'd seen and heard in the last few hours, I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised by the sight that greeted me, but still it took my breath away The room was about the same size as the parlour above, but that was where the similarity ended In the centre of the floor was a large bank of instrument consoles, bristling with switches and levers, and around the walls were arrayed a multitude of screens and read-out panels Suspended from the ceiling was a large black globe with a number of lens-like extensions protruding from it Everywhere there was the glint of metal and glass In a state of near panic, Mykloz dashed aimlessly about the room, adjusting controls and peering at dials He was making only a token effort to keep me covered with the gun and I thought about trying to get it off him, but before I could anything about it there was a whirring sound from the wall behind me The elevator was going back up again - no doubt summoned from above by the occupants of the flying saucer Galvanized into action, Mykloz shoved me across the room to a door on the far side Stabbing out a sequence of numbers on a small keyboard set into the wall beside it, he got the door open and pushed me through Then he shrugged off the Doctor's jacket, threw it in after me and slammed the door shut again, locking me in My cell was a small white room, the only notable feature of which was a screen and accompanying control panel in the middle of the far wall Seated on a low stool in one corner, with his mouth gagged and his hands bound behind his back, was a man I instantly recognized I went over and got him untied 'So here you are, Doctor,' I said 'I guessed you must be somewhere about.' The little guy stared up at me, perplexed 'Er, I'm sorry Mr ?' 'Addison.' ' Mr Addison, but I don't recall Have we met?' 'Well, only in a manner of speaking.' Grinning broadly, I picked up the jacket from where it had fallen on the floor and handed it over to him 'This belongs to you, I think.' 'Er, yes, that's right ' 'Now,' I said, 'maybe you can tell me what the hell's going on around here What's this Mykloz character up to, and why's he had you locked up like this?' Leaping to his feet, the Doctor crossed to the screen and started adjusting controls on the panel beside it 'Explanations will have to wait, I'm afraid I need to find out what I've missed while I've been out of action.' I was about to protest, but the words stuck in my throat as suddenly the screen displayed a perfect colour picture of the outside of the ranch house, with the imposing form of the UFO looming over it 'I see Mykloz has company ' mused the Doctor 'Yeah,' I replied, still gazing in amazement at the crystal-clear picture on the screen 'They just arrived.' 'Only just? Good, good ' He adjusted the controls again, and the picture changed to show Mykloz's control room The Malean had calmed himself down a bit since I had last seen him and was now standing by the door to the elevator, waiting for it to descend again As the Doctor and I watched, the door swung open and two creatures emerged I had half expected them to be hideous monstrosities, but in fact they looked pretty much like Mykloz: tall men with sharp, angular features, wearing identical jet black tunics Mykloz gave them a strange kind of salute, tapping the clenched fist of his right hand against his left shoulder, and they returned the gesture 'Harkoz, Syloz Greetings in Conformity.' The new arrivals exchanged a curious look 'Greetings in Conformity, Mykloz,' replied the one he had identified as Harkoz 'We have been attempting to rendezvous with you for some time.' 'We came in response to your signal,' rasped the one called Syloz, 'but were unable to locate you in this zone.' 'Yes, I I ' Mykloz seemed almost lost for words 'I had arrangements to make, in the city.' Again the two newcomers exchanged a look 'But when we finally located you,' continued Syloz, 'you drove off in one of the humans' primitive vehicles.' 'Well, I I thought it would save time if I made my own way back here to the base.' Syloz regarded him sceptically 'Are you unwell, Mykloz?' 'No, no, of course not Why you ask?' Harkoz stepped forward and addressed him in low, urgent tones 'My friend, we have received word from the Grand Council They are far from satisfied with the progress of operations on this planet.' Mykloz was clearly shocked by this news 'The the failure of the racial-purity exercise in Europe was indeed unfortunate -' 'Unfortunate!' exploded Syloz 'It was a shambles! We had spent years preparing the ground, substituting our own people for leading figures in the Nazi regime, only to have our efforts completely wasted! And the failure was not so much ours in Europe as yours here in America Let me remind you that it was your responsibility to keep America out of the war.' 'There there were unexpected difficulties.' 'Your agents, Mykloz, were totally unsuccessful in their efforts to infiltrate this country's power base Do our shape-shifting abilities count for nothing here?' 'The Grand Council are growing impatient,' interjected Harkoz 'They feel it might be better if we were to terminate our operations here and destroy this world.' Mykloz was dismayed 'No, that would be a mistake! There is enormous potential for us in this country Racism is endemic Under our influence, an organization like the Ku Klux Klan could easily become another Nazi Party We could start again! And then, perhaps, a eugenics programme -' Syloz brusquely interrupted Mykloz's babbling 'We would not have to start again if you had not failed us in our mission! Perhaps you were better suited to the role of a hunter than to that of an organizer.' 'No, no, the failure was not mine This planet must not be destroyed ' Mykloz seemed on the point of breaking down His two associates now exchanged a look of outright suspicion Syloz stepped forward, fingering the spherical blaster holstered in a pouch at his side 'You are behaving irrationally, Mykloz Why be concerned for the fate of these humans? If I did not know better ' Mykloz made a visible effort to compose himself 'My concern is not for the humans, but for the valuable resources we would waste if we abandoned our operations here.' Harkoz shook his head 'I cannot accept your assessment, Mykloz I feel the Grand Council have judged wisely in this matter.' As the three Maleans continued to argue amongst themselves, the Doctor again adjusted the controls beside the screen The picture disappeared, to be replaced by a diagram showing what appeared to be a series of electrical circuits 'Just as I suspected,' he muttered, frantically punching buttons and turning switches 'Time is very short It's tempting to leave Mykloz to his fate, but when they realize he's going mutant they won't stop at killing him, they'll obliterate the whole planet So I have no choice but to intervene.' 'Intervene?' I asked him 'Isn't that going to be pretty tricky, cooped up in here?' 'Mykloz has grown careless,' he replied 'Through this control panel, I now have access to his computer network, so it's a simple matter to hack into the control systems of his central power source and set up a positive-feedback loop.' 'Come again?' 'I can make this whole place blow up!' With a dramatic flourish, he completed his work on the panel 'There!' 'Er, so how long we have before this explosion happens?' He scratched his head thoughtfully 'Oh, about ten minutes, I should say.' My jaw dropped 'In that case, hadn't we'd better get out of here?' 'Ah, yes, that would be a good idea.' He went over to the door and started to examine the little keyboard set into the wall beside it 'The trouble is, this operates on a combination lock and it'll take me at least ten minutes to crack the combination.' 'Well, if that's our only problem ' I went over and nonchalantly tapped out a series of numbers on the keyboard The door started to swing open, and the Doctor looked up at me in astonishment 'I saw Mykloz type it in on the other side,' I admitted As we emerged into the control room, the Maleans reacted with varying degrees of surprise and alarm 'What are these vermin doing here?' hissed Syloz, reaching for his blaster 'You want to be careful who you insult,' I retorted, picking up a nearby chair and throwing it at him The blow caught him on the side of the head and he tumbled backwards, cannoning into his compatriots In the confusion, the blaster fell from his hand and rolled across the floor towards us The Doctor gleefully scooped it up and held it out towards the three Maleans 'Put your hands above your heads,' he shouted, 'or I'll I'll fry you like mincemeat!' His attempted threat sounded pretty feeble to me, but luckily it had the desired effect The Maleans raised their hands, glaring at us with undisguised hatred I went over and retrieved my gun from Mykloz, then followed the Doctor into the elevator He hit the 'up' button and the door swung closed behind us A couple of minutes later, we were back on the surface Holding Syloz's blaster at arm's length in front of him, the Doctor aimed it at the elevator controls and pushed the trigger The whole wall collapsed in an eruption of smoke and flames 'Pretty impressive,' I admitted 'You'll see something a lot more impressive in a few minutes,' he told me 'And if you don't want to be caught in the middle of it, I suggest we get out of here.' Dropping the blaster casually on the floor, he raced for the door I didn't hang around to admire the decor Outside, we both jumped into my car and I sent it leaping forward down the track, heading towards the main road After about five minutes, the Doctor decided we'd got far enough away and told me to pull over We looked back just in time to see the ranch house engulfed in a massive explosion The flying saucer caught the full force of it and toppled slowly over on to one side Then it too went up, and a huge fireball blossomed over the desert sands A short while later, at the Doctor's insistence, we were driving back towards the site of the explosion I took the opportunity to try to get some answers out of him 'So, it was the newspaper report that tipped you off?' 'Yes I saw it quite by chance, as it happens, but immediately recognized their so-called flying saucer as a Malean command ship.' 'And when you came out here, to the source of the reports, you ran into Mykloz?' 'Mykloz, yes It's quite ironic, I suppose After years of hunting down and slaughtering Malean mutants, he himself had started to mutate He'd actually started to develop a concern for other creatures; something that's usually alien to the Malean psyche, at a basic genetic level That's the thing about shapeshifters; their genetic make-up's just as changeable as their outward appearance.' I scratched my head, trying to make sense of it all 'So what's this cylinder thing that Mykloz was after?' 'Genetic stabilizer It could never have been more than a temporary solution, mind you But it would have bought him some time.' 'And you swiped it from him?' 'Er, yes.' He looked a little shamefaced for a moment, but then started to chuckle 'He caught up with me in Los Angeles, eventually, and was convinced I'd hidden it somewhere in the city He tried everything he could to get me to reveal where I'd put it, but of course I told him nothing Malean mind probes have never been exactly top of the range.' 'So that's why he came to me for help.' 'Yes, the act of a desperate man.' 'Thanks very much!' I laughed When we got to the area of the explosion, we found no trace of either the UFO or the ranch house Where they had stood, there was now just a huge crater We climbed out of the car and looked down into it Lying on its side at the bottom was a tall blue box with a light on top 'The TARDIS?' I asked 'The TARDIS,' confirmed the Doctor 'I left it in the ranch house kitchen Fortunately, it's indestructible.' He was about to set off down the side of the crater, but I caught hold of him by the arm 'Hang on a minute There's one thing I still don't get: where did you hide Mykloz's cylinder?' Grinning, he rummaged in his pockets and pulled out one of the strange objects I'd noticed earlier: the little black cube covered with golden hieroglyphs What he did next was even more amazing than all the other amazing things I'd seen over the past couple of days: flipping open one side of the cube, he reached in and pulled out a cylinder about an inch in diameter and at least a yard long, covered in flashing lights and buttons 'Dimensional transcendentalism,' he said, as if that explained everything 'A science the Maleans have never mastered.' He lowered the cylinder back into the cube, closed the lid and was just about to return it to his pocket when suddenly he changed his mind and handed it over to me 'You have it,' he told me 'Call it a souvenir Something to amuse your friends with at parties.' That said, he scrambled down the side of the crater and made his way over to the blue box Producing a key from a chain around his neck, he unlocked the door and went in I thought I heard him call out to someone - a guy by the name of Benny - but then the door clicked shut behind him and he was gone A few moments later, a loud grating noise started up and, before my eyes, the box faded away to nothing I pocketed the little cube, got in my car and started the long journey back to my office ... TEN STORIES SEVEN DOCTORS ONE ENIGMA Edited By Mark Stammers & Stephen James Walker First published in Great Britain in 1994 by Doctor Who Books an imprint of Virgin Publishing Ltd 332 Ladbroke... the subsequent purchaser Editors' Note Doctor Who short fiction has a long and distinguished history The earliest examples saw print in the first Dr Who Annual, way back in 1964, although the Daleks... his identity No business card, no bank book, no library ticket, no driver's licence, no dry cleaning receipt, nothing There was a draw-string purse containing a few assorted coins of various shapes