2. Final Experiment
Lab report – Day #209 supplemental. The Doctor was hanging on every word I said to him. I told him of my great plans aboard this space station. I hoped he would be impressed with what I had achieved. It seemed he wasn’t. And I wasn’t pleased with his reaction.
“The frontier killer?!” he exclaimed.
“Indeed Doctor,” I said gleefully. “I have absorbed many continents; many areas of space in order to reshape and restart the universe from scratch.”
“And now you intend to do the same with the Parntroltan home world,” the Doctor realised.
“The Parntroltans destroyed the Earth colony I lived on,” I told him. “They killed my wife! They are relentless! And with my energy weapon aboard this station, charged by the power of the Zorbius crystal, I intend to change everything! I shall absorb the Parntroltans for my own uses!”
“That’s hardly a justification for murdering an entire planet,” the Doctor said. “It’s wrong! Genocide! You know that, don’t you?”
“It’s a scientific breakthrough,” I said. “See Doctor! See what I have done!”
I then showed the Doctor the view-screen. It displayed two distinct planets on two distinct star charts.
“You recognise those two planets?” I asked.
The Doctor was mesmerised. “Oh upon my word,” he said. “It’s Skaro – the planet of the Daleks. And Sontar – the Sontaran planet.”
“Within a few seconds,” I said, “I absorbed both lifeforms and their planets. Transported them light years away to this station! There is now only a black patch of empty space where those planets once were.”
“Very ingenious, I’m sure,” the Doctor said ruefully. “Very ingenious mass slaughters of thousands of sentient beings swarming the galaxy!”
“They’re not sentient beings, Doctor,” I insisted. “They’re monsters! They cause chaos and pain in the universe!”
“And you think your actions justify that?” the Doctor challenged me. “To prove that you yourself aren’t a monster? That you murdered them?!”
“I don’t have to justify myself to you,” I said. “I’ve done many great things with my experiments and research. Especially with the allies I’ve gained.”
“Really?” the Doctor said sceptically. “And who might your allies be?
“You’ll find out soon enough, Doctor,” I replied. “Oh yes! You’ll find out soon enough.”
“Why is it there are those who keep me in suspense?” the Doctor sighed.
At that moment, the door opened and in entered my allies – a Sontaran and a Dalek. I looked to the Doctor and saw the horror on his enigmatic face as he saw them.
“Harper!” said the Dalek commander. “Have you completed your assignment? The Daleks grow impatient!”
“So too do the Sontarans,” Marshall Stoor said. “You have wasted too much time with this Doc-tor. There must be a result!”
“Harper, what are these two doing here?” the Doctor demanded, still horrified.
“They are my allies, Doctor,” I told him.
“What?!” he exclaimed.
“I have reconditioned them so that they can follow my guidance.”
“You…reconditioned a Dalek and a Sontaran?!” the Doctor said disbelievingly. “Don’t make me laugh! It doesn’t work like that!”
“I am Marshall Stoor,” the Sontaran began, “of the Sixth Sontaran Strike Force! And you are to be advised not to humiliate the Sontarans for the greater cause, Doc-tor.”
“We know you too well Doc-tor to be deceitful,” the Dalek commander said. “We will counteract any attempts you have against us!”
“I’m sure you will,” the Doctor said shrewdly.
“Dr. Harper has ensured us the reformatting and the recreation of the universe,” the Dalek commander went on. “For the Dalek cause! So that the Daleks may conquer and destroy!”
“Ah!” the Doctor said. “A double-double cross! I should’ve suspected.”
“What does he mean, Harper?” Stoor demanded. “If you intend to deceive us…”
“Don’t trouble yourself, Marshall,” I said. “The Doctor is babbling. You can’t believe a word he says.”
“Want a bet?” the Doctor challenged me.
“Doctor, as much as I’d like to carry on this fascinating conversation,” I said, not really meaning it, “I fear the time for your involvement in this experiment has come.”
“What do you mean?” the Doctor asked, confused. “I don’t understand.”
“Putting it simply Doctor,” I went on, “you are my prisoner! And I intend to use you as resources.” I then barked, “Robots! Place the Doctor in the cubicle!”
At that moment, two of my robots entered. They made their approach towards the Doctor.
“No!” the Doctor cried. “Wait, Harper! Listen to me now!”
I heard the Doctor cry out in pain once the robots had got him. I paid no attention. I was glad the robots dragged him and were inserting him into the cubicle as I instructed before they strapped him in.
“Harper, listen to me!” the Doctor demanded. “Don’t do this!”
“Excellent!” the Dalek commander grated, pleased. “The Doctor is now our prisoner! He will serve the Dalek cause!”
“And the Sontarans’,” Stoor added. “The Doctor will enhance the spread of Zorbius energy across the universe to change history!”
“So,” the Doctor looked and addressed me whilst being held by the robots. “You want me to boost your energy signals across space and time to change the universe. Because I’m connected to the Zorbius crystal.”
“It’s a fair cop, Doctor,” I said. “You can’t refuse that.”
“Fair?!” he exclaimed. “FAIR?! The universe isn’t fair, Harper! That’s why it’s the universe! You mustn’t tamper with it! Not even when you want to bring back your from the dead! You mustn’t tamper with reality!”
“Except you, of course,” I retorted.
“That’s different,” he said defiantly. “I’m a professional and I know what I’m doing. Now let me go at once!”
“Not a chance, Doctor,” Stoor spoke defiantly back at him.
“You cannot oppose us,” the Dalek commander grated.
At that moment, the door opened. In entered a number of Skeletron Hunters into my lab. A rain cloud was above their heads as they entered. I’d been expecting them.
“Ah there you are,” I said, satisfied. “I wondered whether you fellas were going to get here.” I looked back to the Doctor. “I presume you know the Skeletrons, Doctor.”
“Yes,” the Doctor replied sullenly. “The Skeletrons! They work for Zorbius. They’re the foot soldiers that carry out the will of the entity living inside the crystal.” He paused for a moment before looking back to me in horror. “You must be Zorbius, Dr. Harper,” he said. “I’m right, aren’t I?”
I refused to tell the Doctor anything. I just laughed, finding it very funny when the Doctor had a suspicious mind.
On the promenade of Deck #22, Peri looked around. She found herself alone on the station. She walked cautiously, making sure no monsters were about. Peri felt afraid.
“Doctor?!” she called. “Doctor, where are you?! Please answer!”
Peri treaded her way carefully. Very soon, she heard heavy metallic footsteps approaching her. She went to hide. Peri found a small hiding place between two pillars of steel, to which she pushed herself inside.
“Oh please do pass by quickly,” Peri whispered anxiously.
Eventually, a number of robots – looking like the one that manhandled and escorted the Doctor and Peri earlier – came by and patrolled the area. They were accompanied by a couple of Hunters. Peri hid herself to avoid being detected. She saw the robots and their Hunters walk past her hiding place. As soon as they’d gone, Peri came out of hiding. She breathed a sigh of relief.
“Thank goodness for that,” she said.
Peri continued to make her way cautiously through the station. She then looked out of a window to see the view of space. She watched the stars shimmering against the black drape peppered by the fizzling blue energy of the time barriers.
“The Zorbius energy, as I assume the Doctor would tell me,” Peri surmised. “Sizzling out there and waiting to roost. I wish I could see proper stars against a proper star backdrop.”
With that, Peri continued on her way to explore the station. She sighed as she went on.
“Why do you keep wandering off like this, Doctor?” Peri asked out loud, rather anxiously. “I wish you would show up.”
Peri then couldn’t help but feel that her clothes were seemingly wet. It was at that moment that a boy appeared in front of her. Peri was startled. She looked hard at the boy, who was bare chested; dark tanned; had black hair and his legs were covered in fine silk trousers.
“Who are you?” the boy demanded. “Where did you come from?”
Still startled, Peri replied, “I could ask you the same thing. You’re definitely out of time. Your clothes…they’re so ancient. Are you Egyptian?”
“What gives you the right to abscond me from my palace?” the boy continued to demand. “I was in full swing before you ruined everything!”
“Hey, hey,” Peri tried to calm him down. “Just wait a minute here! I’m not here by choice either! Who are you anyway? And what are you doing here?”
“You do not recognise me?” the boy enquired. “I am Tutankhamun – ruler of all Egypt!”
“Tutankhamun?!” Peri exclaimed, astonished. “You’re the nine-year old Pharaoh?! Incredible!”
“You have not seen or bowed before a Pharaoh then,” the boy remarked.
“On the contrary,” Peri said ruefully. “I used to be a friend of an Egyptian Pharaoh once. Me and the Doctor travelled with her for some time. Erimen, her name was. I don’t suppose she means anything to you. Depending whether she came before or after you.”
“I demand to know what’s going on here,” the boy king insisted. “I have a family to get back to. My wife will be expecting me.”
“Your wife?” Peri enquired.
“Yes.”
“You have a wife at nine years old?”
“Yes. Nothing wrong with that is there?” the boy asked.
“Well, you waste no time do you?” Peri quipped.
“I have to keep my family bloodline pure,” the boy kind stated. “If it weren’t for my sister, we would never be married at all.”
“Oh so your sister was responsible for getting you married, was she?” Peri asked.
“No, you don’t understand,” the king said. “Sister and I are married. Though she’s my half-sister and of course my step-mother – Ankhesenamum.”
Peri shuddered at that. “You certainly do pick your women.”
“Now tell me waiting girl,” the boy king demanded, “what is this place I am in. It is not Egypt. For it is cold in here. And wet.”
“Yes, I wondered why it was wet too,” Peri said. “My clothes are soaked through.”
“Will you answer me or not?” the boy king became impatient.
“Sorry, your majesty Tutan,” Peri replied. “Err, may I call you King Tut for short, your majesty? Just to save time.”
“Oh very well,” the boy sighed, “if you insist. Some prefer calling me by that.”
“Thank you,” Peri said gratefully. “Well, King Tut. I have no idea why you’re here; why I’m here and what’s going on. This is obviously a space station I think.”
“A space station?” King Tut replied. “What is a…space station?”
“The Doctor will explain,” Peri answered. “That’s who I’m trying to find – the Doctor. If you come with me, I’m sure we’ll find him together.”
“I should like to meet this Doctor very much,” King Tut said. “He shall be given a great reward if he assists me.”
“Come on then,” Peri encouraged. “This way! We’ll make for the end of the…promenade.”
Peri stumbled for a moment. It was the sound of haunting laughter that put her off as she and King Tut made their way down the promenade. Peri and Tut become apprehensive as they heard the laughter above their heads.
“There are voices in the air,” Tut said. “Do the gods speak to us?”
“I don’t think it’s your gods, your majesty,” Peri told him. “But there is something rather familiar about that laugh.”
“Really?” Tut enquired. “Who do you think it is then?”
Peri tried to think. But as much as she tried, she couldn’t remember. She then shuddered as she suddenly realised something.
“It reminds me of someone…somebody…who’s very hungry. Really, very hungry!”
At Bonecracker’s diner, he and Verazine lay a sleeping Peri onto a table. The rain was doing its work. They lay King Tut on a diner table as well. Bonecracker sharpened his knives, licking his lips hungrily over Peri’s body.
“Oh I wish we didn’t have this rain to contend with,” he groaned. “It ruins the actual flavour of the beast.”
“I wish you didn’t have the nerve to cut her body in half,” Verazine rebuked him. “You think nothing of your stomach, Bonecracker.”
“Where is an Androgum without a stomach if he or she aspires to be a great chef?” Bonecracker asked. “You do not have the same enthusiasm like I do.”
“You prefer watching their organs plop out once you’ve cut them up,” Verazine said. “I’d rather tenderise and cook them as they are.”
“That is something I will do myself,” Bonecracker insisted. “But I wish not to bake it alive. It always seems tastier with the blood mixed in the sauce to flavour it.”
Bonecracker was about to make ready with his knife to cut Peri up in readiness for cooking. As he raised the knife to her throat, the knife was shot out of his hands. Bonecracker became angry as he turned to look and see who knocked the knife out.
“Who dares interrupt the cooking of the Hurzdan Grig?!” he bellowed angrily. “I shall have my solicitors on this!”
Bonecracker and Verazine looked to see two Skeletron Hunters approach them. One had fired an arrow using his crossbow at Bonecracker’s hand, knocking the knife out of it in the process. The Hunter lowered its aim, with the two meeting up with the Androgums.
“What are you doing here?!” Verazine demanded. “You have no business here at our premises this time of the day.”
The first Hunter gnashed its teeth. “The human female is to come with us. Our master commands us.”
“No!” Bonecracker cried. “You will not take this fleshy beast I’ve acquired! She is mine! Not yours, mine!”
“Bonecracker, calm down,” Verazine told him. “I’m sure we can come to some arrangement…”
“NO!!!” Bonecracker bellowed. “The Tellurian is mine! I must have her! She is so delicious! You can’t have her! Nobody can have her! I’ve got to eat her!”
“You will not harm the female,” the second Hunter said. “She is to come with us.”
“You would be wise not to oppose us,” the first Hunter warned.
“You got that specimen,” the first Hunter indicated King Tut. “Lying on the table. The boy. Why not have him?”
“We do not know where he came from,” Verazine explained. “He just appeared out of nowhere. We are not sure whether he is fleshy enough to eat.”
“He looks fleshy to me,” the second Hunter said.
“We do not want this boy,” Bonecracker said angrily. “We want the girl and the boy together! They are our feast! We must have their flesh going down our mouths! We must eat them! We must eat them!!!”
“The girl comes with us,” the second Hunter insisted. “She is a friend of the Doctor.”
“Come,” the first Hunter commanded. “We are wasting time. Let’s take her.”
With that, the Hunters began to pick up Peri as they carried her off from the table. Bonecracker started to become angry. He picked up his knife, which had been knocked out of his hand onto the floor earlier, and raised it up into the air.
“No!” he shouted. “You will not take my flesh prize! I must have that flesh! ARGH!!!!!”
Bonecracker screamed as he advanced to attack the Hunters.
“Bonecracker, stop!” Verazine called.
Soon, Bonecracker and the Hunters were locked in mortal combat. The Hunters showed their skeletal teeth as they gnawed at Bonecracker with fierce intent.
“You cannot defy us!” the first Hunter proclaimed. “We Hunters are stronger than you Androgums!”
“Don’t think you’ll be able to eat our bones off!” the second Hunter said. “They’re as hard as rock!”
“I very much doubt that you are all bones!” Bonecracker exclaimed.
The struggle continued as Bonecracker howled desperately and ferociously.
“Bonecracker!” Verazine cried. “Stop it now!”
Verazine went forward and attempted to draw Bonecracker back as well as his knife away from the two Hunters. Whilst the fight continued and with the Hunters distracted from their task, Peri – still asleep – called to her friend nearby.
“King Tut?” she called, asleep. “King Tut, are you there?”
“I hear you, Peri,” he replied, asleep. “I’m in a waterfall. There’s water all over me. All over my face. All over my chest.”
“We must get away!” Peri insisted. “Come on! Get up!”
“But where to?” Tut asked. “Where shall we go?”
“I don’t know,” Peri answered. “But there’s danger here. Come on! Take my hand and follow me!”
With that, Peri and King Tut got up and off from the table, still asleep and without anybody else looking at them. Peri took King Tut’s hand and the two ran off, away from the diner and escaping with their lives. If anybody saw them from a distance, you could say they were sleep-running.
One of the Hunters saw them go and howled with rage.
“You idiots!” it raged. It was the second Hunter. “Those two humans have escaped!”
“What?!” Verazine exclaimed. “No they can’t have! They can’t!”
“They’re running in their sleep!” the first Hunter insisted.
“No!” Bonecracker raged. “They must not get away! That female! That fleshy beast! I must eat her!”
With that, Bonecracker ran off, chasing after Peri and King Tut.
“We must get after them!” the first Hunter said to the second Hunter. “Come! We will follow after that Androgum and pursue those two humans down!”
The Hunters eventually ran off and chased after Bonecracker who was chasing after Peri and King Tut running in their sleep along the promenade. Verazine watched them go with keen amusement. He soon took a chicken leg off from one of the diner tables and began to bite into it hungrily.
“It’s a good thing I merely serve the food and don’t have to do anything with the hunting and the cut-up of meat itself.”
He continued to munch away into his chicken leg, satisfied.
Lab report – Day #209 supplemental. I’ve begun work on the Doctor in my lab. Marshall Stoor and the Dalek commander were watching impatiently beside him. I grew annoyed by their presence.
“How long is this going to take Harper?” Stoor wanted to know. “My armies will soon reawaken and there will be trouble.”
“As long as it takes, Marshall Stoor,” I replied. “I cannot say how long. But you will have to patient with me.”
“Daleks do not tolerate incompetence, Har-per,” the Dalek commander stated.
“That I’m very well aware of, Dalek,” I said. “Now please let me get on with my work.”
At that moment, another Sontaran – who I learnt was called Major Kurl – and another Dalek entered the room. Kurl approached Stoor whilst the Dalek addressed his superior.
“Our troopers, Marshall,” Kurl said. “They are about to revive. Very soon, battle will commence. Blood will be spilled.”
“In ordinary circumstances, I’d give but longing for glory and battle,” Stoor replied. “But this is not the time under the circumstances.”
Meanwhile with the Dalek addressing its Dalek commander, “Dalek units are being re-initiated. Soon they will have their commands fed into their computer banks.”
“The commands we gave to them long ago before we came to this station,” the Dalek commander realised. It then lowered its voice to the Dalek that came in. Like I couldn’t hear him. “It is vital that the Daleks annihilate all lifeforms. Once this pretence has ended.”
I then noticed the Doctor watching the Sontarans and Daleks communing with one another. He then turned to me, accusingly I might add.
“How many Daleks and Sontarans have you got working under your command, Dr. Harper?” he asked.
“Just two of their races,” I answered. “The commander and its subordinate.”
“You used the Zorbius energy to reshape their history,” the Doctor reminded me. “To follow your commandments, isn’t that right?”
“Correct, Doctor,” I answered. “Though I prefer us to be in alliance with each other. The Daleks and Sontarans aren’t my slaves.”
“Or they could be using you for their slave labour,” the Doctor suggested. “Hasn’t it ever occurred to you that you’re playing into their hands? The Daleks are far too cleverer and cunning for that as much as the Sontarans are.”
I ignored the Doctor, turning my back to him as I looked out of the window. I managed to see the star-field outside where I stood. The stars were so pretty.
“Stars,” I began, “caught in blue energy. It will generate enough power to allow the energy beam to spread across entire continents. Vast frontiers and zones in space!”
“You’re sure about that?” the Doctor queried.
“As sure as you are to be wearing that ridiculous clown outfit,” I scoffed at him. “Honestly, I’ve never seen so many colours.”
“I’m in rather bad taste,” the Doctor quipped. I wasn’t sure if he was joking or being serious. “But you are too, Harper. Having bad tastes in friends. You can’t trust the Daleks and the Sontarans. The Daleks are callous and without pity. The Sontarans can’t be trusted because they don’t have allies. How their honour has managed to keep going, I hazard to guess.”
“You may not like what I’m doing now,” I said, “but rest assured, you soon will. The universe will be changed for the good.”
“I like it less and less how you’re changing it, Harper,” he said. “This space station we’re on is at the end of the universe. The end of the universe, man! With the Zorbius crystal, things can only get worse!”
At that moment, Sara Hines entered. He brought in a crumbled man with her.
“Sara, where have you been?!” I demanded. “Where’s the girl?”
“Yes, where’s Peri?” the Doctor wanted to know. “If you’ve harmed her…”
Sara didn’t look to the Doctor. She looked at me. “Look who I’ve found,” she said.
Sara threw the crumbled man onto the floor. I watched as I saw the man crawl on his hands and knees towards me. He looked up and then I saw it was Dan Limb. I looked upon him with disapproval.
“Well, well,” I began. “So you’ve found our runaway colleague, Sara,” I said to her. I then addressed Dan, “Where have you been, Mr. Limb? You were supposed to report on duty and on time.”
Dan stuttered whilst he was on the ground, “I…I was just…just…”
But Sara interrupted, “I lost the girl, Harper. The girl’s on the run.”
“What?!” I exclaimed. “You are a fool, Sara! What were you thinking?!”
“It’s got nothing to do with me,” she said. “One of the Androgums came and tried to make a grab for her. Fortunately, a few Hunters contacted me and said they were onto recapturing her. It shouldn’t be long before they come in here with the girl in their custody. Apparently she was with some Egyptian boy king during her sleep.”
“Really?!” the Doctor became intrigued. “How enlightening. It take it’s your Skeletrons’ deepening rain that’s causing Peri to sleep, is it?” He was addressing me.
But Sara butted in and shouted at the Doctor, “Shut it, you! You really are getting on my nerves!”
The Doctor seemed affronted. I took over and said to Sara, “It was your responsibility to look after the girl! You should’ve known better, Sara.” I paused for a moment before saying, “You will work with me now on the final experiments regarding the Doctor.”
“Must I?” Sara groaned.
“As punishment for your incompetence,” I said. “Unless you prefer to do something worse.”
“No,” she snapped bitterly. “I’ll work with you if I have to.”
Feeling satisfied, I then turned to Dan. “Mr. Limb! You go out there and hunt the girl. Once you’ve found her, kill her!”
“No!” the Doctor protested.
“You’re the only thing I need now in this final experiment, Doctor,” I told him. “The girl means nothing to me.”
“You can’t ask me to do that, Harper,” Dan protested. “You can’t ask me to kill Peri! I won’t do it! Peri’s a lovely girl. She’s so sweet. I love her! Do you understand? I love her so much! Please, Dr. Harper! Don’t send me out there please!”
“I don’t care about your romantic notions or feelings for this woman,” I said. “Just do as I say! Or I shall have your head cut off by one of these Sontarans! Or I’ll have you exterminated by one of these Daleks!”
“Go on, Dan,” Sara insisted. “You don’t want to upset our employer now, do you?”
Dan sulked and groaned before he said, “Oh alright. You win, Harper. I’ll go and find Peri.”
Dan eventually left the room. It was then I noticed that Marshall Stoor whispered to Major Kurl, saying, “Major, see where that hu-man goes. Follow but do not intervene. Unless he does something stupid that could ruin Dr. Harper’s plans.”
“Yes Marshall,” Kurl replied. “I will go.”
With that, Kurl left the room. I didn’t stop him. Didn’t see any need for it. I then noticed that the Dalek commander was whispering instructions to its subordinate too.
“Go now,” it commanded. “Go and follow the hu-man. Follow and ex-ter-minate him. Understand? Ex-ter-minate!”
“I understand,” the Dalek replied.
With that, the Dalek glided off and headed out of the room. I didn’t stop the Dalek either. Once Kurl the Sontaran and the subordinate Dalek has gone, I turned my attention to Sara.
“Sara, get the tripod reality device ready,” I commanded.
Sara whistled annoyed before she eventually agreed. The Doctor watched her going off and eventually bringing forth the tripod reality device I asked for. Within seconds, the Doctor recognised what it was.
“I know that device all too well, Harper,” he said shocked. “It’s the tripod reality device. The one Salvador and his servant Discipulo used back on Earth when I was attending to that circus business. With U.N.I.T. and everything in the 1970s…or 80s.”
“Yes Doctor,” I replied. “The Master got it for me. He was the one who stole it.”
“What are you doing here, Harper?” the Doctor asked anxiously. “What is this final experiment you’re about to perform on me?”
I eyed the Doctor closely. I felt triumphant. It must have shown on my face as I smirked.
“You have the remaining Zorbius energy within you, Doctor,” I said. “The Zorbius entity is you in a way.”
“So, you’re going to extract my life-force from me,” the Doctor surmised. “Does that include all my future regenerations?”
“Quite right, Doctor,” I said gleefully. “And with your own Zorbius energy as well as that which remains aboard this station, I shall rewrite history. My wife and family will live again! The time for Zorbius is near! It is close at hand!”
Meanwhile, Peri and King Tut found themselves in a Tudor England-like setting. They looked around, trampling over cobbled roads to get their way across. They couldn’t help feel that it was still raining.
“I don’t understand how we’ve ended up in Tudor England after running from Androgums on an alien space station,” Peri said.
“All of this is fascinating and puzzling for me too, dear Peri,” Tut said. “I am most intrigued as to where we should end up next.”
“You seem to be taking it all rather well, your majesty,” Peri remarked. “I mean…considering it’s after your time.”
“Do you know any of these…Tudor people in these lands?” Tut asked.
“Not really,” Peri replied. “Though I have met Richard the Third; William Shakespeare; and Henry the Eighth. Oh he was such a huge guy!”
“Would he help us?” Tut enquired. “This…Henry the Eighth?”
“Trust me, you don’t want to meet him,” Peri told him. “He gets into such a temper. He’d have you dead within minutes. You wouldn’t want to have your wife married to him either.”
“Ah, bad on good manners to women, is he?” Tut suggested.
“Worse,” Peri replied. “He’d have your wife’s head chopped off.”
“Then it is better I do not meet him,” Tut said. “For I would not wish my sister to be married to such an oaf.”
“I’m still getting over that you’re married to your sister,” Peri shuddered.
“Half-sister,” Tut corrected her. “Why? Do you not wish to marry your brother?”
“I don’t have a brother,” Peri told him. “I’m an only child thankfully.”
“So…we just carry on walking through this street then?” Tut asked.
“Until we come across the Doctor, yes,” Peri replied.
Peri then stepped into something mucky. She reacted disgusted once she’d stepped into it.
“Ergh! This path’s covered in poo,” Peri said. “Don’t they use toilets around here? Argh and the stench is terrible!”
“You would’ve liked my palaces, dear Peri,” Tut said. “They are scented with the finest perfume of Egypt.”
“I’d rather be there now,” Peri said. She then enquired, “So…how exactly did you get here, King Tut? I mean, what happened to you before you came here from Egypt?”
“I do not know,” Tut replied. “I do not know how I managed to end up in a place like this. It is most peculiar. And odd.”
“You’re telling me,” Peri quipped.
“I suspect it has something to do with my uncle Ay. He’s been ruling the lands since I’ve been king, playing games and getting married.”
“Your uncle Ay?”
“Yes! Or more accurately – Vizier Ay. A rather boring title if you ask me.”
“Well, if he’s your uncle, he’s certainly got his eye on you,” Peri joked.
Peri laughed. King Tut didn’t.
“I do not understand,” he said.
Peri stopped laughing, feeling embarrassed.
Clearing her throat, she said, “Come on! Let’s get out of this street while we can…”
It was then that Peri stepped into some more poo. This really annoyed her.
“Oh!!!! Not again!” she said.
In Harper’s lab, the Doctor remained strapped in his cubicle whilst Sara worked on the tripod reality device which had been set up. Harper had gone out for a breather.
“Have you been Dr. Harper’s assistant for long, Sara?” the Doctor asked.
“Shut it!” she told him. “I’m trying to work.”
The Doctor shrugged. “I’m just rather bored by this silence. I would like to have some small talk before I’m considerably experimented upon by a zealot. And eventually die.”
“You’re not being murdered, Doctor,” Sara told him.
“Oh but I am,” the Doctor answered. “I’m about to have my Zorbius energy extracted from my body. And it won’t be very pleasant. In fact, it could kill me.” He paused for a moment. “So I would appreciate some conversation to lighten the mood with a delightful person.”
“I don’t make small talk as you call it, Doctor,” Sara said. “I’m not very good at socialising with other people.”
“That’s a shame,” the Doctor sighed. “You could’ve made some really great friends.”
Sara was silent as she worked. She stopped for a moment, before turning to address the Doctor.
“It was on my birthday when I first met him,” Sara said. “Dr. Harper, I mean. He gave me this job and I accepted it. I worked for him for three years.”
“Three years of your life aboard a space station,” the Doctor remarked. “Cut off from the rest of the universe. You must’ve been a brave person.”
“I was trying to get away from my family,” Sara said.
“Oh,” the Doctor was surprised. “Didn’t get on well with them, did you?”
“I despised them,” Sara said. “They made me suffer through their very idle and optimistic lifestyle. They were so happy and carefree. I couldn’t stand it. And my boyfriend was even worse.”
“You had a boyfriend, did you?” the Doctor enquired. “Before Dan Limb, I take it.”
“He was cheating on me,” Sara said. “With some daisy sniffy-nosed thing. I couldn’t stand that either. I had to get away. From my family and friends.”
“I see,” the Doctor stated. “You hoped for a better life away from your hometown. Instead you suffered melancholy and loneliness.”
“Lonely? When have I ever been lonely?” Sara retorted. “I have Dr. Harper and Dan to cope with.”
“But you didn’t feel happy working with them, did you?” the Doctor remarked. “You wish you were back with your family now instead of being stuck out here. I’m right, aren’t I?”
“The problem with you Doctor is that you talk too much,” Sara said.
“I could help, Sara,” the Doctor offered. “I can help you with getting back to your family. If you’d only listen.”
“I do not need your help, Doctor,” Sara said. “Not after all the suffering you’ve caused me.”
“Suffering?” the Doctor was confused. “What suffering have I caused you?”
Sara didn’t say anything then. She eventually attached an implant onto the Doctor’s neck. The Doctor gasped as it stung him. Sara moved back from him.
“This won’t take long, Doctor,” Sara said. “Very soon, Dr. Harper will sort you out!”
Sara went off to where she was with the tripod reality device. She didn’t notice Dan Limb slip back into the lab quietly whilst she worked.
“Please Sara,” the Doctor begged. “Listen to me! If you don’t release me now, the whole universe will culminate into absolute chaos!”
“You’re wasting time with words, Doctor,” Sara said. “You can never persuade me to stop! Not anymore!”
Sara ignored the Doctor’s pleas as she reached out to press a button on one of the control panels. She was then struck on the back by Dan with a metal pole. She turned to look at him, before she slumbered into unconsciousness.
“You,” she said with gritted teeth. “YOU!!!”
Dan struck Sara again with the metal pole – on the nose this time. This caused her to fall down to the ground unconscious. Once she was knocked out, Dan went over to the Doctor to release him from his bonds inside the cubicle.
“There you are, Doctor,” Dan said. “I’ll set you free!”
“Thank you, Dan,” the Doctor said, once he’d been set free. “But I don’t understand why you’re helping me.”
“Don’t you?” Dan asked. “I’ll helping you so you can help me save Peri. You know more about her than I do.”
“Thank you again, Dan,” the Doctor said. “But I’m sure you could’ve rescued Peri yourself.”
“Yes well,” Dan shrugged, “I had to dodge that Dalek and that Sontaran following me. They were on my tail for some time. I needed to shake them off before I came back here.”
The Doctor climbed out of his cubicle once he’d been set free by Dan.
“Are you sure you weren’t being followed?” the Doctor asked.
At that moment, the lab door blew up as an explosion occurred. Dan and the Doctor turned to look and see the Dalek commander as well as its subordinate with Sontaran Marshall Stoor and Major Kurl entering the room.
“Stay where you are!” the Dalek commander said. “You will not resist!”
“Think you could trick us with your deception tactics, hu-man?” Stoor said to Dan. “Well think again! We Sontarans and Daleks are smarter than you!”
“You will come with us!” the Dalek commander grated.
“I think I’ll have to give you some lessons on how to dodge Daleks and Sontarans, Dan,” the Doctor said ruefully.
“Hurry, Doctor!” Dan cried. “Run!”
With that, Dan pushed the Doctor along as they both ran for it, heading for another exit to escape the lab. The Daleks and Sontarans were hot in pursuit.
“Halt! Halt!” the Dalek commander ordered. “Halt or you will be exterminated! Exterminate! Exterminate! EXTERMINATE!!!!”
The Daleks fired their ray guns whilst the Sontarans opened fire with their blasters.
“You are fools to think you can escape us!” Stoor said. “You will never evade Sontar’s finest!”
The Daleks and Sontarans kept on firing whilst the Doctor and Dan made for the other exit to escape.
“Come on, Dan!” the Doctor urged. “Off to find Peri!”
“I agree,” Dan said.
The two escaped through the door, dodging the firepower of the Daleks and the Sontarans chasing after them.
Back with Peri and King Tut, they were still dreaming and still feeling wet. They found themselves aboard a Sontaran spaceship.
“What is this place, dear Peri?” Tut asked. “It’s much colder than it was in my temple courts.”
“We’re on a Sontaran spaceship, King Tut,” Peri said nervously. “And these are far worse than Henry VIII’s palace.”
“Are they that dangerous then?” Tut enquired. “These…Sontarans as you call them?”
“They’re pitiless warriors,” Peri said.
“Then I shall slay them all if I have to,” Tut declared. “I am trained in swordsmanship!”
“You don’t have a sword on you, your majesty,” Peri pointed out. “Neither do you have an army. How do you think you’re going to get pass Sontarans?”
“Ah! That I have not yet considered,” Tut admitted.
“We need to find a way out of here,” Peri told him.
“How do you propose we do that, fair Peri?” Tut asked. “I find all of this overwhelming.”
“Get back!” Peri commanded.
“What?” asked Tut, puzzled.
“Get back before these Sontarans see you!” Peri warned him.
Pulling Tut back, they both hid as a few Sontaran troopers approached. They were discussing war strategies as they went down the corridor, not noticing Peri and King Tut as they passed their hiding place. Eventually Peri and Tut came out, relieved at having not been seen.
“I have never seen the look of warriors like them before,” Tut admitted. “They were far more terrifying than I anticipated.”
“There’s a door over there down that corridor,” Peri noticed. “It may lead to a way out.”
Peri soon took Tut’s hand as she dragged him along down the corridor where the door was. As they reached it, Peri tried to open the door using the nearby control panel.
“Do you know how to open this door, Peri?” Tut asked.
“I’m not sure,” Peri replied. “But Sontarans use three digit keypads to open a secure door. They have three fingers, you see.”
“Have you got three fingers?” Tut enquired.
“No, I’ve got five,” Peri replied. “But it counts.”
With that, Peri applied three fingers to the keypad in order to open the door. Eventually, the door opened and Peri and Tut were able to get through.
“You’ve done it, Peri,” King Tut cheered. “Well done!”
“We’re not out of the woods yet,” Peri said. “Let’s get through before…”
At that moment, they were spotted as Sontarans opened fire upon them. They were charging down the corridor. Peri and Tut ducked to avoid the gunshots.
“Stop right there!” Major Kurl barked nearby. “You are our prisoners! In the name of the Sontar, stop where you are!”
“Quickly, Tut!” Peri cried. “Through the door!”
“Are you sure it’s safe…?” Tut began to ask.
“Come on, your majesty!” Peri insisted. “Get through!”
Peri pushed King Tut through the door. They made a run for it just in time before the Sontarans closed in on them.
Strangely enough, Peri and King Tut found themselves in an ancient Roman street. They became puzzled. They looked around to see market stalls and people walking about in togas as well as fine frocks.
“This isn’t on the Sontaran ship, is it?” King Tut checked.
“No,” Peri replied. “This is a Roman street. We’re in ancient Rome!”
“Rome?!” Tut said, puzzled. “But that’s miles away from Egypt. Why have we ended up here?”
“I don’t know,” Peri replied. “It should be hot. Yet I feel so wet in my clothes. I still don’t know why that is.”
“Ah well,” Tut shrugged. “At least we won’t starve to death. I like the smell of wild boar and pigeons at these market stalls.”
“I’d rather pass with the salad if you don’t mind,” Peri said. “I do like those fine dresses though. They look so gorgeous! I wish I was wearing one!”
“Then allow me to oblige, dear Peri,” King Tut offered. “I shall buy you one right now.”
“Oh no please, your majesty,” Peri pleaded. “Don’t bother wasting your money on me.”
“It’s no bother, dear one,” Tut insisted. “I insist, really.”
“Ah well, thank you,” Peri smiled. “That’s swell of you!”
They soon made their way over to the clothes stall. They approached the woman stallholder who was serving the dresses.
“Now my dear,” Tut said to Peri, “which dress shall you like?”
Peri addressed the woman stallholder, “How much are you selling for these dresses?”
Suddenly, there was gunfire. Everyone scattered. Peri and King Tut looked to see that they hadn’t evaded their pursuers. The Sontarans were onto them in an instant.
“We have you in our sights,” Major Kurl barked. “Surrender now for the glory of the Sontaran Empire!”
“Quickly, Peri!” Tut said urgently. “Run!”
Peri made no argument. She and King Tut made a run for it out of the Roman street they were in. They soon ran into trouble as Roman soldiers marched in. They were led by a centurion.
“Peri!” King Tut cried. “There are soldiers before us!”
“Yeah!” Peri acknowledged. “And the way they’re looking at us, they’re not very friendly.”
The Roman centurion spoke out loud in a clear voice as Peri and King Tut backed away. “You two are under arrest! You are an enemy to the Roman state! You have offended the great Emperor Nero!”
Peri and King Tut were soon surrounded. The Sontarans and the Romans encircled them. Peri and Tut couldn’t understand why they were still wet though. Eventually, out of the corner of her, Peri saw two old ladies. She recognised them.
“Miss Gibbs; Miss Lewis?” Peri said as she saw them advancing towards her and King Tut. “What are they doing here?”
The two old ladies called out to her as they gave her a message.
“You must wake up, my dear,” Miss Gibbs said. “Don’t let them get to you in your nightmares! They’ll scare you!”
“The bone-men will hunt you down!” Miss Lewis added. “They show no mercy! They want you dead! They want to eat you alive!”
The two old ladies didn’t reassure Peri with hope. She felt more scared than ever.
Back in Harper’s lab, Sara woke up. She looked about in the room. She grew angry. She slammed her fist on the floor.
“That idiot, Dan! What does he think he was playing at? And at his own fiancée?! He really can’t have flipped, can he? Fallen for some girl like that?!”
Sara got up from the floor to check to see where the Doctor and Dan had gone. She saw the equipment hadn’t been damaged. But she did see trail marks on the floor.
“Dalek tracks,” she said. “And Sontaran footprints. Those tin pots and those potato heads must have gone through the rear exit door. And they blew holes in the wall! Typical monstrous tactics!”
At that moment, Dr. Harper entered. He was far from happy with what he saw.
“Sara?!” he erupted. “Where is the Doctor? Why is he not in his cubicle?”
“He’s escaped, Dr. Harper,” Sara said, agitated.
“He’s what?!”
“That dumbbell Dan hit me on the head with a metal pole,” Sarah explained. “I saw him with my own eyes before I was knocked out. He must’ve freed the Doctor. And they escaped with those Daleks and Sontarans chasing after them.”
“You idiot, Sara!” Harper said annoyed. “Do you realise you could’ve caused the ruin of my plans!”
“Don’t put the blame on me!” Sara retorted. “These are your experiments!”
“And you’re supposed to assist me?!”
“I’m fed up with having to work for you day and night!”
Harper then went over to the cubicle to check that nothing was damaged. He then went down on his hands and knees to check the tripod reality device.
“They didn’t damage this,” he said relieved. “They only shot holes in the walls of this lab. Well, that’s a relief. I’m glad they didn’t damage the equipment.”
Harper got back onto his feet and had a think for a moment. He then turned to Sara.
“Did you attach the implant to the Doctor’s neck by any chance?” he asked.
“Of course I did,” Sara replied. “I put it on his neck once I’d set up that contraption on the floor there.” She pointed to the tripod reality device. “He can’t take the implant out of him even if he tried.”
“Then that is another good sign,” Harper said relieved. “We’ve been strangely lucky. No thanks to you, Sara.”
“I’m glad for you appreciate it,” Sara snorted.
“Sara, you are to chase them down,” Harper commanded. “Find the Doctor and Dan and then apprehend them.”
“Must I?” Sara groaned.
“Don’t argue with me,” Harper barked back, “do as you’re told! You’ve disappointed me enough already today!”
“As you wish,” Sara snapped back. “But you never listen!”
“Never listen to what?” Harper wanted to kow.
“About how I feel!” Sara replied.
Going off in a huff, Sara slammed the electronic doors behind her. Ignoring Sara, Harper turned back to the tripod reality device as he knelt on the floor. He was alone as he patted the device soothingly.
“Don’t fret, my beloved Anita,” he said condescendingly. He wasn’t talking to the tripod reality device of course. “Soon you shall come back to me. Once I’ve been able to harness the Zorbius energy from that meddlesome Doctor, I shall be able to reshape the whole galaxy.”
Harper then pressed on a number of switches on the tripod reality device. He was about to activate it. A few minutes later, he would be ready to do his work.
“Time for virtual realities…now!” he declared.
Very soon, all over the space station, virtual realities began to be created. Decks and corridors were filled with holographic images and settings for various places and times. A corridor turned into a Tudor England street; a deck turned into a Roman mall; and the promenade turned into Queen Victoria’s palace. The whole station was being reshaped with virtual realities. The number of realities increased at a constant rate. Soon the station was becoming a maze of confusion and make-believe.
Lab report – Day #209.5. I couldn’t help it. I let out my joyous laughter. The tripod reality device was doing its work. I watched it glow with power. I was to have the Doctor and his friends under my spell. I was to have my life back! The way my life should’ve been before I lost it. I went over to the window to see the starry backdrop draped against particles of blue. If I was ever to be a king or an emperor, I should like it very much. But oh to feel the joy of when I should have my wife back!
I soon made my way back to the tripod reality device to check that all the scientific equipment and monitoring instruments were progressing well. Just then, my communicator bleeped. I was receiving a call. I picked it up and switched it on to speak into it.
“Harper here, what is it?” I sounded irritable. Didn’t mean to.
“Sara here,” a voice responded. “Just thought you’d like to know that I’m onto the Sontarans and Daleks that are chasing after the Doctor and Dan. I’m getting close to them now.”
“Then handle them,” I barked into the communicator. “Don’t bother me with it! Just do it! Do it, will you?!”
I switched off my communicator, feeling very frustrated. I don’t know why. I should be happy with plans progressing. Eventually, I eyed the tripod reality device with delight. Yes, yes! Very soon, Zorbius shall be mine to hold! The power of time…will be at my command!
© Tim Bradley, 2020
| Go back to | Go next to |
| Return to The End Dilemma (Z) | |
| Return to Zorbius | |
| Return to The Sixth Doctor by Tim Bradley | |
| Return to Doctor Who by Tim Bradley | |
| Return to Doctor Who | |
| Return to Sci-Fi |
Bradley's Basement 