[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
was shimmering. I discovered I could walk straight
through it, and found myself on the Empress.’
‘Why didn’t you tell anyone when you realised you
could get out? Why did you go sneaking about the ship
disguised as a passenger? And why did you stun me and
take Secker’s Vraxoin?’
‘Because of what I am and what I’m doing.’ Stott
produced an identi-plaque and handed it to the Doctor.
‘I’m a Major in the Intelligence Section of the Space Corps,
on a special drug-running assignment.’
The Doctor examined the plaque and returned it. ‘And
you thought I was the one you were after?’
‘Well, when I found you by Secker’s locker – with
Vraxoin in your pocket...’
‘What changed your mind?’
‘I overheard you two talking in the lounge.’
‘Tryst says you’re the drug smuggler,’ said Romana.
‘Now he’s saying Della’s involved as well. He says he didn’t
realise his machine was being used to transport Vraxoin –
if you store it inside a projection on the CET machine, it
doesn’t show up on a scan.’
‘Well, if the Vraxoin’s here in the Eden projection, I
haven’t found it,’ said Stott wearily. ‘The smugglers will
have arranged for a pick-up somewhere along the line.
That means they’ll have to get the stuff out of the machine
and pass it on.’
‘Secker must have been working with them,’ said the
Doctor. ‘They made him an addict and paid him off with
the drug. He only had a little though – you took the last
phial from me.’
‘That would have been his personal supply – just a tiny
sample. I need to know where the main supply is hidden –
and more important, where’s the new source?’
The Doctor stood up. ‘The first thing to do is to get this
projection safely sealed off again – which means we’ve got
to separate the ships. Tell me, can we get out of the
projection somewhere near the Empress’s power room?’
‘Certainly. You can leave the projection at any point in
the matter interface.’
‘Then let’s get moving. Lead the way, Major Stott!’
Stott led them to a place where the jungle ended in a
wall of frozen fog. They plunged in and found themselves
in the strange slow-motion world of the matter interface.
Stott led the way confidently, and after an unmeasurable
amount of tine they emerged from the blurred zone to find
themselves in the power room – facing an astonished K9.
‘Look out!’ yelled Stott, and reached for his blaster.
‘It’s all right,’ said the Doctor cheerfully. ‘This is a
friend of mine.’
‘What is it?’
‘Oh, just a perfectly normal electronic dog. This is
Major Stott, K9, he’s a friend.’
The Doctor looked round. They were in a long steel
chamber, the walls of which were studded with control
panels and crammed with dome-shaped reactor housings.
‘Now let me see – liquid-hydrogen pump, turbo-pump
exhaust, reactor core, pressure shell. All looks simple
enough.’ The Doctor produced his sonic screw-driver and
attacked the main power console.
Romana looked dubiously at him. ‘Doctor, do you really
think you can get this thing going?’
‘Of course I can. I can start anything from a steam
engine to a TARDIS. Got a match?’
‘Whatever for? It’s not-gas-fired is it?’
‘No, but I need to jam this switch down. Ah, this’ll do.’
The Doctor fished a wooden toothpick from his pocket,
jammed the switch and set to work.
K9 glided up to him. ‘During your absence, my sensors
detected the presence of alien creatures in this area. Large
ferocious beasts of limited intelligence.’
‘Mandrels!’ exclaimed Romana.
‘Name of alien creature noted, Mistress.’
The Doctor looked up from his work. ‘You’d better
guard the door, K9. How many were there?’
‘Five units, Master.’
The Doctor looked worried. ‘Five! We’d better get a
move on or they’ll be swarming all over the ship!’
‘Shouldn’t we try to deal with them now, Doctor,’ asked
Rotnana.
‘As long as the projection is unstable, Mandrels can
enter the ship from Eden whenever they like. It’d be like
trying to bail out a small boat with a sieve.’
The large and determined woman to whom the Doctor had
given a jelly baby was marching along the ship’s corridor
escorted by an embarrassed young crewman, who was
trying to mollify her without success. ‘I assure you we’re
doing everything possible, Madam. The Captain’s got an
expert to advise him –’
‘We should have been on Azure hours ago, young man.
My fellow passengers have asked me to represent them and
I insist on taking our complaints to the Captain.’
‘I’m afraid the Captain’s unwell at the moment, Madam.
But I assure you we’re doing everything possible to get you
to Azure-’ The crewman talked on, but the large woman
refused to listen.
‘I insist on seeing the Captain!’ [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl chiara76.opx.pl
was shimmering. I discovered I could walk straight
through it, and found myself on the Empress.’
‘Why didn’t you tell anyone when you realised you
could get out? Why did you go sneaking about the ship
disguised as a passenger? And why did you stun me and
take Secker’s Vraxoin?’
‘Because of what I am and what I’m doing.’ Stott
produced an identi-plaque and handed it to the Doctor.
‘I’m a Major in the Intelligence Section of the Space Corps,
on a special drug-running assignment.’
The Doctor examined the plaque and returned it. ‘And
you thought I was the one you were after?’
‘Well, when I found you by Secker’s locker – with
Vraxoin in your pocket...’
‘What changed your mind?’
‘I overheard you two talking in the lounge.’
‘Tryst says you’re the drug smuggler,’ said Romana.
‘Now he’s saying Della’s involved as well. He says he didn’t
realise his machine was being used to transport Vraxoin –
if you store it inside a projection on the CET machine, it
doesn’t show up on a scan.’
‘Well, if the Vraxoin’s here in the Eden projection, I
haven’t found it,’ said Stott wearily. ‘The smugglers will
have arranged for a pick-up somewhere along the line.
That means they’ll have to get the stuff out of the machine
and pass it on.’
‘Secker must have been working with them,’ said the
Doctor. ‘They made him an addict and paid him off with
the drug. He only had a little though – you took the last
phial from me.’
‘That would have been his personal supply – just a tiny
sample. I need to know where the main supply is hidden –
and more important, where’s the new source?’
The Doctor stood up. ‘The first thing to do is to get this
projection safely sealed off again – which means we’ve got
to separate the ships. Tell me, can we get out of the
projection somewhere near the Empress’s power room?’
‘Certainly. You can leave the projection at any point in
the matter interface.’
‘Then let’s get moving. Lead the way, Major Stott!’
Stott led them to a place where the jungle ended in a
wall of frozen fog. They plunged in and found themselves
in the strange slow-motion world of the matter interface.
Stott led the way confidently, and after an unmeasurable
amount of tine they emerged from the blurred zone to find
themselves in the power room – facing an astonished K9.
‘Look out!’ yelled Stott, and reached for his blaster.
‘It’s all right,’ said the Doctor cheerfully. ‘This is a
friend of mine.’
‘What is it?’
‘Oh, just a perfectly normal electronic dog. This is
Major Stott, K9, he’s a friend.’
The Doctor looked round. They were in a long steel
chamber, the walls of which were studded with control
panels and crammed with dome-shaped reactor housings.
‘Now let me see – liquid-hydrogen pump, turbo-pump
exhaust, reactor core, pressure shell. All looks simple
enough.’ The Doctor produced his sonic screw-driver and
attacked the main power console.
Romana looked dubiously at him. ‘Doctor, do you really
think you can get this thing going?’
‘Of course I can. I can start anything from a steam
engine to a TARDIS. Got a match?’
‘Whatever for? It’s not-gas-fired is it?’
‘No, but I need to jam this switch down. Ah, this’ll do.’
The Doctor fished a wooden toothpick from his pocket,
jammed the switch and set to work.
K9 glided up to him. ‘During your absence, my sensors
detected the presence of alien creatures in this area. Large
ferocious beasts of limited intelligence.’
‘Mandrels!’ exclaimed Romana.
‘Name of alien creature noted, Mistress.’
The Doctor looked up from his work. ‘You’d better
guard the door, K9. How many were there?’
‘Five units, Master.’
The Doctor looked worried. ‘Five! We’d better get a
move on or they’ll be swarming all over the ship!’
‘Shouldn’t we try to deal with them now, Doctor,’ asked
Rotnana.
‘As long as the projection is unstable, Mandrels can
enter the ship from Eden whenever they like. It’d be like
trying to bail out a small boat with a sieve.’
The large and determined woman to whom the Doctor had
given a jelly baby was marching along the ship’s corridor
escorted by an embarrassed young crewman, who was
trying to mollify her without success. ‘I assure you we’re
doing everything possible, Madam. The Captain’s got an
expert to advise him –’
‘We should have been on Azure hours ago, young man.
My fellow passengers have asked me to represent them and
I insist on taking our complaints to the Captain.’
‘I’m afraid the Captain’s unwell at the moment, Madam.
But I assure you we’re doing everything possible to get you
to Azure-’ The crewman talked on, but the large woman
refused to listen.
‘I insist on seeing the Captain!’ [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]