Doctor Who_ Dinosaur Invasion - Malcolm Hulke [38]
In the Reminder Room, the voice of the film’s commentator droned on. Sarah knew that everything the voice said was true. What she didn’t agree with was the way in which these people on the space ship were trying to run away from the problem, and their schoolmasterly attitude towards anyone who thought differently. Suddenly the film and the voice stopped. The door opened and Mark looked in.
‘How are you feeling now?’
‘Hungry, tired, and I’ve got a headache.’
‘Is the film helping you?’
‘Can’t you ever understand? You’re here because you want to be. I’m a kidnapped prisoner.’
He frowned. ‘You will have to drop this ridiculous story, Sarah.’
‘Why? It’s the truth.’
He looked round to make sure no one was listening in the corridor, then quietly closed the door behind him. ‘The elders, Adam and Ruth, are not going to permit a disruptive influence among us.’
‘Do you mean they’re going to kill me?’ She tried to hide the fear in her voice. ‘Is that what they’ll do?’
He averted his eyes. ‘They are really sweet, gentle people. They are both vegetarians because animals have to die to provide humans with meat. But they are determined that nothing shall go wrong with our great mission.’
Sarah thought about this. A veteran journalist once told her, ‘Beware people who know they are right, like Oliver Cromwell. For the good of Humanity, those people sometimes do murder.’ She decided to act up to Mark. ‘Perhaps the time in suspended-animation affected my thinking. I don’t even remember how I came to be here. Tell me about it.’
He smiled, overjoyed that Sarah was no longer persisting with her stupid kidnapping story. ‘There were just a few of us at first,’ he said enthusiastically. ‘We all shared a disgust with the way life was going on Earth. At first there seemed nothing we could do. Then one of our members, an astronomer, told us of this planet that we call New Earth. And another of us, a scientist, invented the space-drive that would take us there. We all contributed money to help build the fleet of space ships.’
‘Did we see the space ships?’
‘Of course not. They were built secretly. Don’t you remember how you were hypnotised before coming on board?’
‘Yes,’ she replied with complete honesty. ‘I remember that part very well.’
‘We had to report to that special place in the centre of London, and then each in turn was hypnotised into suspended-animation—so’s to save oxygen and food on the three month journey.’
‘Of course,’ she pretended to remember. ‘It’s all coming back now. But I can’t recall how I first heard about the scheme?’
‘The organisers advertised in newspapers and magazines.’ Mark grinned. ‘Naturally they didn’t announce what it was really all about! They were small advertisements, seeking people who might be interested in setting up a commune and starting a new life. Thousands and thousands of people replied.’
‘I bet they did. Mark, you’ve made it all clear to me now. Will you take me to the elders so that I can tell them that I now remember correctly?’
‘I’d be delighted.’
He held the door open wide. Sarah dashed into the corridor, pulled the door shut behind her, and bolted it.
‘Sorry about that,’ she called through the closed door. ‘Enjoy the movie.’
As she hurried down the corridor she heard Mark pounding on the closed door behind her.
The Doctor was led, handcuffed, into the classroom at UNIT’s Headquarters. Two armed soldiers marched on either side of him, followed by Captain Yates, General Finch, and the Brigadier.
‘So that’s the end of that,’ barked General Finch. ‘Take those handcuffs off him, and put him into a cell.’
‘With respect, sir,’ said the Brigadier, as one of the soldiers removed the Doctor’s handcuffs, ‘we have no cells here.’
‘Then lock him up in one of the rooms. Make sure he doesn’t escape. The man is dangerous and possibly mad.’
‘Shouldn’t we question him?’ said the Brigadier.
‘There’s no need. I