Doctor Who_ Companion Piece - Mike Tucker [17]
The Doctor had already suspected from the few snippets of information he'd gleaned from the frightened populace that a malfunctioning TARDIS had landed on this planet. The fact that it had been totally destroyed indicated a catastrophic failure of the failsafe procedures. The dimensional forces held check by the vast engines of a TARDIS were of a staggering magnitude. If the dimensional barriers had failed . . .
`W hy are you here, Doctor?' del Toro asked lightly.
`I'm on holiday,' said the Doctor.
`A Time Lord, holidaying here, on Haven? Even if I believed you, the insult alone would be enough to condemn you to death.'
`Yes, well I wasn't aware — '
`Silence!' the Inquisitor barked. 'You are my prisoner on my ship. You are alone, save for a single girl, and she will soon be in my custody. Your TARDIS will be brought aboard, dismantled and analysed:
`You won't have much luck getting into it.'
`Oh, we will, Doctor. You will give us the access codes.'
The Doctor snorted. `Do you really think so?'
`Sixteen months has been ample time for me to learn how co-operative a Time Lord can be when encouraged.'
`The occupants of that TARDIS . . . '
. . . have been most forthcoming with their information, though it has been of limited practical use since their ship was so spectacularly destroyed.'
`W hat have you done to them?'
Del Toro pressed a small control panel on the desk before him.
`See for yourself, Doctor.'
Cat forced herself to bite her lip as one of the guards pushed her sharply in the back. Keeping her eyes firmly fixed on the floor and her shawl pulled tightly around her face, she heaved on the rough rope, tucking herself amongst the straining mass of bodies that struggled to raise the TARDIS
from the back of the cart.
It had been back-breaking work getting the police box from the square below. The cobbled entranceway to the cathedral had been steep and slippery, and the cart dangerously overloaded. Gradually, by sheer weight of numbers, they had managed to get the TARDIS through the cathedral doors.
Once inside the quiet stillness of the cathedral, the cart had been unhitched from its exhausted animals and the unwilling workforce roped into their place. Scurrying priests had cleared a passageway through the central nave, and the doors to a secluded chamber had been unlocked.
Now they were trying to manhandle the TARDIS through a narrow passageway, spurred on by the shouts of the guards and the nervous cries of the priests. Cat kept her head down, waiting for any opportunity to break from the group. The cathedral was huge; a great dark tangle of openings and passageways. She should have no problem concealing herself, if only she could slip away unseen.
There was a sudden cry of alarm as one of the guide ropes lashed around the TARDIS's wooden shell gave way with a sharp crack. People scattered in all directions as the huge blue box toppled forward off the cart, crashing to the floor with a deafening thump. There was a scream of pain from one of the guards. His comrades-in-arms hurried forward, and Cat seized her chance.
Ducking around the back of the cart, she darted from the passageway, keeping tight to the shadow-flecked walls. Tentatively she eased her way back out into the vast open space of the cathedral. Figures slipped through the quiet gloom, some casting concerned looks towards her, startled by the noise and cries of pain. Keeping her movements calm and unhurried, Cat made her way slowly towards the altar. Running now would achieve nothing. She had noticed several passageways leading off from the rearmost wall. Long, dark, pillared cloisters ideal for her to keep out of sight. W ith any luck, she would be able to find a crypt or vestibule; somewhere dark and quiet, away from prying eyes.
She cursed under her breath as the Bishop and several of his priests emerged from one