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By Root 178 0

stegosaurus’s nerve centre set in its hip reacted to pin pricks of pain. No doubt a tyrannosaurus or a pterodactyl would have enjoyed the little mammals, as a between-meals snack, but the stegosaurus longed only to munch peacefully on big green leaves. It wished the little mammals would all go away. In anguish at being trapped in this uninviting valley, it swished its tail. The fronts of three houses shattered and crumbled with a roar of falling bricks and masonry. As the dust cleared, the three houses looked like dolls’ houses with the front taken away—each floor left intact with the furniture now exposed to view.

The jeep which was carrying the Doctor and the Brigadier screeched to a halt. A UNIT corporal ran forward and saluted.

‘Corporal Norton, sir!’

The Brigadier jumped down from the jeep. ‘What’s the situation, corporal?’

‘As you can see, sir, we’re containing the steggi in this street.’

The Doctor raised his eyebrows. ‘The steggi ?’

‘We had to shorten their names,’ explained the Brigadier. ‘This Latin scientific stuff got a bit beyond some of my men.’

‘Whatever you call it,’ said the Doctor, ‘it’s a remarkable specimen. I must get a better look.’ He strode towards the great mound of armour-plated flesh that blocked the little street.

‘Do be careful!’ called the Brigadier.

‘It’s all right. These things were vegetarians.’

The stegosaurus was backing further and further into the street. It swished its tail in fear, totally destroying two more houses.

‘It’s causing terrible damage to private property,’ the Brigadier shouted. ‘We’ll have to lay charges under it and try to kill it.’

‘Don’t be so bloodthirsty. What we need are ropes and a strong net.’ The Doctor returned to the jeep.

‘If you insist,’ said the Brigadier reluctantly. ‘Corporal, what ropes have we got?’

‘There are towing ropes in all the vehicles, sir,’ replied the incredulous corporal. ‘If we catch it, how are we going to move it, sir?’

‘Good point!’ The Brigadier turned to the Doctor. ‘How indeed, eh?’

‘One thing at a time,’ said the Doctor. ‘If we can rope its legs together, that will stop it moving. Then we could get one of those giant trucks they use for transporting heavy equipment. I want to get it somewhere quiet so that I can observe it under laboratory conditions.’

‘And what if it struggles?’

‘That’s one of the many risks we shall have to take. But it may be quite docile. Its brain is only the size of a walnut.’

‘We’ll give it a try then,’ said the Brigadier. ‘Corporal, get all the towing ropes we have to hand—and tell your men to be careful. One swish of that tail and they’ll be squashed like jelly.’

‘Sir! ‘ said the corporal, saluting smartly. He hurried away to the Army vehicles standing close by.

‘I don’t mind telling you,’ said the Brigadier, ‘that in my opinion this is a lunatic scheme...’

The Brigadier suddenly froze, as though Time was standing still. The Doctor turned quickly to look at the stegosaurus. The huge reptile was already transparent, and in a moment had vanished. From the corner of his eye, the Doctor saw the corporal running backwards towards them. He looked now at the Brigadier. The Brigadier blinked, and cleared his throat as the corporal returned to stand in front of him.

‘Tell your men to be careful,’ said the Brigadier. ‘One swish of that tail and they’ll be squashed like jelly—’ The Brigadier stopped mid-sentence. ‘It’s gone! It’s disappeared!’

The corporal turned to look. ‘Blimey, sir. How did that happen?’

Sergeant Benton placed two mugs of tea on a desk top next to Captain Yates and Sarah. ‘Thought I’d do a brew up, sir, while the others are chasing after that steggi.’

‘Very kind of you,’ said Yates.

Benton smiled and left discreetly.

‘You were telling me about Wales.’ Sarah said.

‘After all that business with the giant maggots, I had to have a spot of leave.’

‘Had to?’

‘The people who created the maggots put me under some hypnotic spell.’ He smiled, very charmingly Sarah thought. ‘Lot of nonsense, really. Anyway, I’m all right now.’

‘I hope so.’ Sarah took her steaming mug of tea over