Doctor Who_ Curse of Peladon - Brian Hayles [7]
‘But your Chancellor has been killed...?’ insisted the hexapod nervously. ‘An atmosphere of violence is not suitable for a balanced assessment!’
‘The circumstances were... mysterious—but the truth will be brought to light,’ assured the young ruler. ‘I assure you that there is no danger to you or to your fellow delegates. The Commission can continue with perfect safety.’
The tentacles became less agitated, and their colour became almost normal once more. Alpha’s voice too, dropped to a less hysterical pitch as the king anxiously awaited the reply.
‘Naturally,’ murmured the hexapod, ‘I accept your majesty’s assurances...’
‘Do not condemn us for being ruled by our ancestors,’
begged the king. ‘We have many primitive traditions that must seem strange to you... but we are willing to learn.’
With a small gesture, Peladon indicated that the audience was at an end. Hepesh bowed and moved towards the throne room doors.
‘Chancellor Hepesh will escort you to the delegates meeting chamber,’ the king said, quietly dismissive, and settled back on to the throne. Alpha Centauri turned gracefully and followed Hepesh out. But Peladon’s eyes, as he watched them go, were dark and deeply troubled...
The path leading up the mountainside was growing increasingly steeper. Negotiating the narrow, boulder-strewn way was made no easier by the cutting, swirling wind, and Jo was desperately tired. The Doctor seemed to have limitless energy, and frequently half-carried Jo over the more impassable sections—
but they seemed nowhere near to reaching the mighty castle set high above them. Coming to a wider, scrub-covered ledge, Jo leaned against the rock face in an attempt to escape the wind and get her breath back. Seeing her tired face, the Doctor came back to her, and shielded her, sympathetically. Her hair, wisping into a wild parody of the elegant style Jo had set it in for her dinner date, added to the strain in her face. She looked upwards, past the Doctor, then back into his face and shook her head.
‘It’s no use, Doctor. I can’t go any further. I just can’t.’
The Doctor tried to coax her gently into continuing. He knew the dangers of exposure on a mountainside in weather like this. ‘I know its tough, Jo... but you’re doing fine.’
‘I’ve nearly broken my neck getting this far!’ she complained miserably, and she slumped back against the rock face, near to tears. But the Doctor’s determined face showed he would make no concessions and his voice was equally purposeful.
‘Well, we can’t go back. And we can’t very well stay here all night, can we? We’ll take a breather and press on.’
The breather was only a short one; but it gave Jo enough time to pull herself together and make a further effort. By the time she was ready to go on, the Doctor had scouted their situation and come up with a plan.
‘The path has crumbled away further up—we’ll have to traverse along this ledge and find another way, that’s all,’ he decided. ‘I’ll take a look on this side. Stay here, Jo, will you?’
Jo was only too happy to rest for a moment longer, and tucked herself into a corner of the rock which was partly protected by a dense patch of scrub. When the Doctor returned she was nowhere to be seen. His features tightened in alarm.
What had happened?
‘Jo!’ He shouted against the howl of the wind. ‘Where are you? Jo!’ He glanced at the edge of the rock shelf, and for a sickening moment wondered if Jo had been swept over into the chasm far below—then the sound of her voice made him turn with relief to the rock face behind him.
‘Over here, Doctor!’ came Jo’s excited voice. At first, he couldn’t see any sign of her. Then, from the side of the clump of scrub, her tousled head looked out at him, bright-eyed and smiling.
‘It’s a tunnel—behind this bush,’ she cried. ‘Come and see.’
As soon as he was inside the entrance of the tunnel, the Doctor knew it was out of the ordinary. For one thing, it should’ve been in total darkness—but it wasn’t. Jo was much too pleased