Doctor Who_ Companion Piece - Mike Tucker [4]
His words became a howling scream as the cube suddenly flickered and changed,its surface distorting and bulging, folding itself in impossible directions. Lighting danced in crackling spirals around them. Anne-Marie began to cross herself, and to pray.
`Holy Mary, Mother of God . . . '
Then there was a sudden and impossibly bright pulse of light and, in her last few moments of terror, Anne-Marie saw her hands wither to stalks in front of her face, before blackness took her over.
The energy pulse hit the SaintAugustine without warning. Ellen struggled to keep the ship on an even keel as every light on the instrument panel went red.
Static flared in her earpiece. Tearing her headset off, she hauled back on the control column. Alongside her, Charles frantically tried to reboot the ship's systems. 'Cathedral beacon is down. All the automatics are offline:
Ellen gave a cry of frustration. 'Come on you piece of junk. Come on!'
`She's lifting!' Charles was incredulous. 'She's lifting!'
The smile had barely reached Ellen's lips when the wave of pain washed over her. Ellen convulsed in her chair. She could hear Charles screaming as the ship began to roll. The last thing she was aware of was the spire of the cathedral looming in the view-port and her Saint Christopher biting into the palm of her hand.
next to his head, showering him in drops of molten metal. He brushed frantically at his smouldering jacket and bellowed into the gloom of the battleship, desperately trying to locate his companion.
`Cat? Cat, where are you?'
His voice attracted unwanted attention, and bolt after bolt of energy slammed into the wall above him. Clamping his hat onto his head, the Doctor scampered from his hiding place, ducking behind one of the bulky crane controls that littered the platform.
From the shadows of the service corridor he could hear the clicking, rattling voices of the W ierdarbi, see the glint of metal and the low flickering light that burned deep within their artificial compound eyes. On the other side of the cargo bay was the TARDIS, its familiar blue, box-like shape nestling amongst the harsh alien technology of the W ierdarbi battle platform. The Doctor sighed. There was no cover between him and it.
One of the W ierdarbi scuttled out from the corridor, antennae quivering, a fearsome looking pulse-laser clasped in the claws of its forearms. Head darting back and forth, it gestured to its comrades with a secondary arm, and slowly more and more of the aliens began to edge their way out onto the platform. The Doctor's mind was racing. He was
running out of places to hide!
Searing pulses of light suddenly raked across the metal floor, and the W ierdarbi scattered, mouthparts chattering angrily, blazing eyes searching for their attacker.
`W ell, don't just sit there, you dozy pillock, run for it!'
The Doctor stared up to see his young companion perched precariously on one of the gantries that criss-crossed overhead. She waved frantically at him, then hoisted the cumbersome W ierdarbi laser off her hip and unleashed another burst of energy at the retreating aliens.
The Doctor launched himself towards the TARDIS, brogues skidding on the oil-smeared deck-plates. Behind him he could hear the screeching, metallic staccato of the W ierdarbi commandant's voice and the roar of laser fire. Overhead he could see Cat haring across the gantry, racing for the ladder that scaled a steel pillar next to the TARDIS. The Doctor fumbled in his pocket for the key. There would be no second chance at this.
He was ten metres from the TARDIS when the