Back in the
Disintegrator Room the Administrator received his accomplice's
gushing thanks with indifference. 'You were not to know that the
Doctor had changed his clothes,' he graciously allowed. 'But I still
have a task for you. . .'
'Ask and it shall
be done.'
The Administrator
opened a small metal box which was lying on the table before him.
Inside it were two hand guns. 'I have learnt that the Doctor and one
of his companions are to go back down into the aqueduct,' he said.
'You are accomplished in mechanical matters. Remove the mechanisms
from these guns but leave them looking perfect from the outside.'
'At once.' The
Engineer picked up the guns and turned to go but the Administrator
called him back.
'One more thing,'
he said. From out of his tunic he drew a rolled-up map. 'This is a
plan of the aqueduct. I intercepted the messenger who was to take it
to the Doctor on the Senior Scientist's orders. I have altered some
of the routes on it. Ensure that it is delivered to the Doctor.'
'Immediately, sir.'
The Engineer took the map and left the room, excited at
his responsibilities and eager to please.
The Administrator
smiled. Soon he would be rid of the Doctor and Ian Chesterton. Not
only would they go down into the aqueduct with useless weapons, but
they would be hopelessly lost, at the mercy of the Monsters of the
Caves!
Once again the
unwitting pawn of the Administrator's schemes, the Senior Warrior
entered the First Elder's chamber carrying the two hand guns with
which the Engineer had tampered. Upon the First Elder's command he
instructed the two time-travellers in their operation.
'They are very
simple to use,' he explained. 'The range is considerable and the ray
can paralyse up to a distance of ninety metres.' Proud of the
achievement of Sensorite technology he looked for some sign of
appreciation from the Doctor and Ian.
He did not know the
Doctor very well. While Ian at least affected a polite interest in
the weapons, the old man casually picked up the two guns and tossed
one over to Ian. 'I've never liked weapons at the best of times,' he
admitted. 'But they're handy little things, I suppose.'
The Senior Warrior
was crestfallen. This was most certainly not the way to talk about
one of the crowning glories of Sensorite science!
'Now, how long does
this paralysis last?' asked the Doctor.
'One hour' was the
reply. Was it the Doctor's imagination or was the Senior Warrior
really sulking?
'Well, these
weapons are splendid, sir, and without a doubt they'll make our
mission a great success,' he said, considerably cheering up the
Senior Warrior with this praise.
'And yet I do not
envy you your task,' said the First Elder.
'Oh, there's no
real danger, especially not now we have these weapons,' said the
Doctor. 'Our little business will be finished in an hour or so.'
A messenger entered
carrying the rolled-up map which the Administrator had secretly
altered. 'Splendid!' exclaimed the Doctor. 'Now, let's be on our way.
Are you sure that you're up to it, Chesterton?'
Ian smiled at the
old man who was as infuriatingly indefatigable as ever. 'Yes, I'm
fine now, Doctor.'
The Doctor and Ian
bowed to the First Elder and left the chamber. After they had left,
the Sensorite messenger made so bold as to speak to his leader.
'They are very
brave people, sir,' he remarked.
The First Elder
agreed. 'We will not see their like again.'
'I am glad that
they were innocent of the death of the Second Elder,' the messenger
said.
'I am still anxious
about that,' confessed the Sensorite leader. 'You realise that if
they didn't kill my advisor then he must have been killed by a
Sensorite . . .'
The messenger was
shocked. Such a thing was unthinkable. 'But who would do such a
deed?' he asked.
'Who indeed ...'
The First Elder's voice was strained. 'But I also ask myself why . .
.'
Susan stared in
stunned admiration at the feast the Sensorites had prepared for them
in a lounge in the grounds of the Palace. Golden and silver platters
were piled high with foods of every colour and description: juicy
mouth-watering fruits, succulent cuts of piping hot meats, tangy
cheeses and seeded breads, and goblets of the Sensorites' crystal
water. This was undoubtedly the best way to end any adventure.
John and Carol
laughed fondly at Susan's child-like fascination.
'I can't wait, I'm
so hungry,' she said, licking her lips. 'But where on Earth have
Grandfather and Ian got to?'
'I expect they're
finalising our return to the spaceship,' Carol said. 'I think I'll go
to the Palace and hurry them up.'
'Tell them I'm
starving too!' John called after her as she left the room.
'John,' Susan said
when they were alone, 'I'm so glad you're better now. So's Carol -
well, you can see that for yourself,' she said, stating the obvious.
'She's had a bad
time of it all,' John sighed. 'I've a feeling we'll both give up
space travel when we get back to Earth.'
'And get married?'
asked Susan.
'Yes. She's all I
really care about.'
There was an
awkward silence. Happy to be a witness to a real-life love story,
Susan still felt a pang of jealousy. Carol and John would soon be
going home, settling down, raising a family . . . She
had been travelling so long with her grandfather that she no longer
had a real home: even at Coal Hill School she had always been the odd
one out.
She loved being
with the Doctor and could never leave him; but sometimes she longed
for an end to the ceaseless wanderings through time and space, and
pined for the companionship of someone her own age.
'Cheer up, Susan,'
said John, interrupting her melancholy. 'Come on, let's eat. I'm
tired of waiting.'
He handed her a
large orange which she gratefully accepted.
It was the happiest
time of Carol's life. John was well, soon they would be reunited with
Maitland and Barbara, and then they would be on their way home to
start a new life together. She dreamt of the happy times they would
share: weekends spent miles away from Central City in the
countryside; candlelit evenings for two; starting a family.
If Carol had not
been so wrapped up in these happy thoughts, she might have heard the
soft footfall of the Engineer creeping up behind her as she made her
way to the Palace. A wad of cloth soaked in a sickly smelling
chemical was suddenly pressed against her mouth. Everything went
black and Carol slipped to the floor, unconscious.
The Secret of the
Caves
Carol came to in
the Disintegrator Room. Hovering scornfully about her were the City
Administrator and his accomplice. Their very bearing towards her
radiated their hate and contempt.
'Why are you doing
this to me?' she demanded groggily.
The Administrator
threw a notepad and pen down onto the table beside her. 'Pay careful
attention to me,' he snapped. 'You will write a letter to the man
John.'
'I will not!' she
retorted.
'To argue is a
waste of time,' the Administrator stated coldly. 'Two of your friends
are up in the spaceship; two have gone down to the aqueduct; and the
man John and the girl Susan are waiting innocently for you in the
Rest Area. Your party is divided - and you are helpless.'
The Administrator's
plain statement of the facts forced Carol to realise the hopelessness
of her situation and the futility of resistance. 'What do you want me
to do?' she asked submissively.
'Tell him that you
have returned to the spaceship,' he ordered. 'Then he will not
suspect your disappearance.'
'You can't force me
to do that,' she protested feebly.
'I can see that you
stay alive,' the Administrator argued deriving almost sadistic
pleasure from Carol's helplessness. 'Your life means nothing to me:
so let us strike a bargain. You will write the note and I shall see
that you live.'
Carol hung her head
in defeat, succumbing to the Administrator's cruel arguments. Meekly
she gave her consent and reached for the pen and began to write. The
Administrator looked on gloatingly.
After she had
finished he took up the paper, passed a cursory glance over it and
then turned to his fellow Sensorite.
'You will stay here
and guard her while I arrange for the message to be delivered,' he
commanded. 'She will directly lead to the success
of all my plans.'
'And I shall be
given high office?' the Engineer asked.
'I shall reward all
those who are faithful to me,' the Administrator promised.
As he left the
room, Carol slumped into her chair by the Disintegrator console. Just
when everything seemed to be going so well and they were about to
return home the world had come crashing down about her. A hundred
wild thoughts and questions passed through her mind. What would
happen to her now? Surely the Administrator would not allow her to
survive? Or would she be used as a lure to bring John and Susan down
to this room where they too would be killed?
From the corner of
the room the Engineer watched her closely, relishing the sight of an
Earth-creature finally brought down to its proper place.
Concerned that
Carol had not returned after an hour, John and Susan had gone off to
the Palace in search of her. As they crossed the courtyard a
Sensorite messenger hurriedly pressed a note into Susan's hand and
then rushed off.
John took the paper
from Susan and unfolded it. 'John -have gone up to the spaceship -
Carol,' he read. He showed the note to Susan. 'I don't understand,'
he said. 'Why should she suddenly leave without telling us?'
'I don't know,'
admitted Susan, 'but there's something peculiar about all this - I
can feel it. Let's talk to the First Elder.'
The two were shown
into the First Elder's chamber with the courtesy which was now
customary and were asked to wait.
To their great
surprise and delight Barbara was also there awaiting an audience with
the Sensorite leader. The First Elder had wasted no time in complying
with the Doctor's request and he had sent a Sensorite up to the
spaceship to bring the teacher down to the Sense-Sphere. After Susan
had reintroduced Barbara to John, she quickly recounted their
adventures on the Sense-Sphere and showed her Carol's note.
'She wouldn't have
gone up to the spaceship without telling us,' Susan insisted.
John added his
voice to Susan's. 'If she had done, Barbara would have seen her or at
least passed her on the way,' he said.
Barbara agreed.
'She was obviously forced to write this. But whoever did it didn't
know that I was being brought down to the planet.'
'I bet the City
Administrator had something to do with it!' Susan accused.
'But why kidnap
her?' John wanted to know.
'I should think
that's obvious, don't you?' said Barbara.
'No, I don't. We're
all on very good terms with the First Elder now that the Doctor's
discovered an antidote for the poison,' he said.
'Look - I've been
up in the spaceship so perhaps I can see things more clearly,'
Barbara explained patiently. 'I think we're being used by one of the
Sensorites in an attempt to seize power. Sooner or later I'm sure
we'll have a ransom note. Or Carol will somehow be used to discredit
us and to prove that we are responsible for the poisoning of the
Sensorites' water.'
'You mean we're not
just being attacked because we're from another planet?' asked Susan.
Barbara shook her
head. 'No . . . though I'd be surprised if that didn't have something
to do with it,' she said, and then looked up as the First Elder
entered the room.
'I welcome you,' he
said cordially. 'Your friends expressed so much concern about you
that I arranged for you to be brought down to the Sense-Sphere.'
Barbara smiled at
her host's studied good manners. 'Thank you,' she said, 'but I'm
afraid we must ask for yet another favour. The Doctor and Ian are
missing. Do you have any idea where they might be?' She noticed the
First Elder's hesitation and pressed further. 'Please tell me.'
The Elder tactfully
avoided a direct answer. 'There is a quality in human beings which
intrigues me,' he said, deftly changing the subject, 'and that is
your concern for each other. I can assure you that your two friends
are safe . . .'
'You do know where
they are, then?' Barbara persisted.
'Yes - but they
asked me not to tell you where they went,'
Susan sighed with
irritation. 'That's Grandfather!' she complained.
Seeing that she
would get no further information from the Sensorite about the Doctor
and Ian's whereabouts, Barbara handed him Carol's note. She asked him
to read it.
'I gave no such
order,' he said after a while.
'We didn't think
you did,' Barbara remarked.
'Then why did your
friend write what is not true? It is her writing, I presume?' Not for
the first time the First Elder was deeply puzzled by the humans'
questions and actions.
'Because someone
made her write it!' cried John, infuriated by the Sensorite's
unbelievable naivety.
'She could not have
travelled without my orders,' the First Elder said with assurance.
'Where did you receive this?'
'In the courtyard
near the archways,' answered Susan.
'She is being held
prisoner,' John said, finding it increasingly difficult to keep his
temper in the face of the First Elder's absurd calm.
'Not by any
Sensorite,' the First Elder told him.
'Of course she is!'
burst out John. Barbara urged him to lower his voice as the First
Elder stepped back in pain.
Susan indicated a
smudge of ink on the letter. 'Look -when this was given to me the ink
wasn't quite dry. I put my finger on it and smudged it. That smudge
means it must have been written just before we got it.'