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'You have come here,' said Okdel, 'of your own accord?'

'Of course,' said the Doctor. 'I think it's high time we all had a good talk.'

'We do not talk with apes,' said Morka.

'You used to,' said the Doctor. 'You used to talk to a man called Quinn, until you killed him.'

The old reptile man, Okdel, looked questioningly at Morka.

'You killed him?'

'He tried to hold me prisoner,' said Morka. He returned his attention to the Doctor. 'You wish to talk, ape. What about?'

'I want to help you,' said the Doctor.

'Just a minute,' Major Barker cut in. 'What do you think you're doing? I thought you were going to get help for our side!'

'I think their side may need it more,' said the Doctor.

'Do you realise that is treason, sir?' said the Major, then quoting from the law, ' "Assisting a public enemy at war with the Queen"!' He turned to Okdel and Morka. 'This man is a traitor! If you, gentlemen, are true soldiers you will have nothing to do with him!'

'How do you wish to help us?' asked Okdel, ignoring the Major's outburst.

'I have come to warn you that men will shortly be entering these caves to look for you,' the Doctor said. 'If you do not attack them, they will not attack you. I want you to meet them in peace.'

'We do not "make peace" with apes,' said Morka. 'We exterminate apes.' He walked away purposefully.

The Doctor appealed to Okdel. 'Isn't it possible for both sides to live in peace?'

Okdcl looked long and hard at the Doctor, then silently turned away.

'Come back!' called the Doctor. 'We have much to talk about.'

But Okdel had gone.

The Brigadier had stopped his men near where the water was dripping from the roof. Using their torches, he and Sergeant Hawkins looked at a map of the caves. The map was only partly complete, based on what passageways potholers had located and noted over the years. The Brigadier's plan was to inspect every inch of the caves by going down the passageways in an organised way.

'We shall proceed in that direction,' said the Brigadier, pointing to an opening in the cave wall.

'Yes, sir,' said the Sergeant. He called to the soldiers. 'This way, lads.'

They started to move off again, still paying out the telephone wire that led from their field telephone. Suddenly there was a cracking sound above them. The Brigadier and Hawkins shone their torches up on to the roof just ahead of them. A crack had appeared and was widening.

'Mind out!' called the Brigadier, but as he spoke a whole section of cave roof fell before them, blocking their way. The passageway was choked with dust from the fall. As the dust started to settle, the Brigadier shone his torch ahead in the direction they had been going. The cave was completely blocked.

Sergeant Hawkins said, 'That looks like the end of that, sir.' He sounded almost pleased not to be able to go any deeper into the caves.

The Brigadier looked at the map again. 'We can go back down here,' he said, 'then work our way round again through some of these smaller passages.'

'About turn,' called Sergeant Hawkins. 'Back the way we came!'

The soldiers turned round to retreat down the main passageway. Then there was another cracking sound. Within a moment the cave roof further down the passageway had fallen in.

Huge rocks barred their escape. They were completely trapped.

... a whole section of the roof fell before them, blocking their way The Major glared at the Doctor from his cage. 'You had no right to tell them about the Brigadier's plan!'

The Doctor tried to reason with the Major. 'I simply want to prevent a massacre,' he said. 'Killing people isn't the only way to settle an argument.'

'It's the only way these creatures are likely to understand,' said the Major. 'Watch out, that vicious one's coming back.'

Morka came up to the cages. 'I wish to thank you for your warning,' he said to the Doctor. 'Your soldiers have all been killed.

And now I shall kill you.' Morka focussed his third eye on the Doctor. The eye started to pulsate