Doctor Who_ Father Time - Lance Parkin [18]
The man rolled his eyes. ‘As if I’d tell you that.’
The woman frowned. ‘Why can’t we tell him?’ The man couldn’t think of a reason, so she continued. ‘We’re looking for a powerful alien being called the Last One. They’ve settled on Earth in this time zone, but we want to take them home.’
‘You’ve not met anyone like that?’ the man asked hopefully.
‘No,’ Daz admitted.
‘Shame,’ the man said. ‘That would have made things a bit easier for us.’
The woman looked Daz up and down.
‘What are you going to do to me?’ he asked.
The woman looked puzzled. ‘What would you like me to do?’
Daz considered his answer carefully, but decided not to push his luck. ‘Just don’t kill me.’
‘Kill you?’ The man looked almost offended. ‘You’re not important enough to kill. Just give us your camera and be on your way.’
‘My camera?’
The alien woman pointed at the pouch strapped to Daz’s belt. ‘You did take photographs?’
Daz blinked. It hadn’t occurred to him.
The alien man realised, and tutted. ‘It speaks volumes about this planet that the dominant species are so –’ He waved his hand as he searched for the word – ‘rubbish.’
Daz handed over his camera. ‘How can I be sure you won’t kill me?’
‘Because you’re alive. Now go away.’ The alien man looked away to examine the camera. He pointed it at Daz. ‘Say cheese.’
The flash went off, which left Daz a little dazzled.
The alien man was already walking off, hand in hand with the woman.
Daz was still blinking when Julie arrived. She smelled of cigarettes, Daz noted, although she didn’t smoke.
‘Hi. Sorry I’m late. I stopped to buy a new blouse, then the Mini wouldn’t start. Who were those people?’
Daz tried to smile, but he wanted to get as far away from here as possible. ‘No one. Er... do you want to drive to Stockport and go to the pictures?’
* * *
Miranda put on her blue coat, wrapped herself up in a red scarf and gloves and went outside. All the other children had gone home now, but Miranda had to wait for her mum to pick her up. There were still a few lights on in the main building, and Miranda could see the caretaker gritting the steps. There was no sign of her mum yet, but Miranda was a few minutes early because chess club had finished sooner than usual.
The Doctor was standing in the middle of the playground, right in the football circle, staring up at the sky. He was wearing a black velvet coat, but he hadn’t buttoned it up and it flapped around his knees. He didn’t seem at all cold. It was a very clear night, which made it even colder.
‘Hello,’ he said, grinning, but not looking at Miranda.
‘You can see his breath,’ she said, pointing over to the caretaker. ‘It’s very cold.’
‘Like a kettle,’ the Doctor said.
‘He’s not a kettle,’ said Miranda, because the caretaker wasn’t.
‘I mean it’s the same principle. He’s got water in his breath – when the air he breathes out is a lot hotter than the air around it, the water condenses out. Like steam from a kettle. You do it,’ he suggested.
Miranda agreed, and tried, but no breath came out. Puzzled, she tried again.
‘You do it,’ she said, frustrated.
The Doctor took a deep breath, then expelled it.
Miranda laughed at the Doctor’s efforts. ‘You can’t do it either,’ she chuckled.
‘Why’s that, do you think?’ he asked.
Miranda thought about her answer, then said, ‘Our breath must be colder than his.’
The Doctor nodded. ‘Yes. Which is interesting.’
Miranda rubbed her hands together. ‘This is the coldest place in the world. Why are you out here?’
‘There are far colder places.’
Miranda found that hard to believe. ‘Like out on the hills?’
‘There, yes. This school is in a valley, and it’s very cold, but up on a mountain it will be even colder, and exposed to the wind. The higher you go, the colder the air is.’
Miranda looked up. ‘It must be very cold in outer space.’
‘It is in most of space, it’s almost as cold as cold can be.’
‘That’s a silly expression.’
‘Yes, yes, it is, but there really is a temperature that’s as cold as cold can be. Scientists call it absolute zero.’
‘So cold all the water is frozen, even the boiling water?