Doctor Who_ Hope - Mark Clapham [95]
Anji was now backed into a corner, and could not escape when Silver walked up to her, lifting her chin with his strong hand, looking into her eyes.
I wish we could still be friends, Anji, but your colleagues have already attempted one attack on my plans. He let her chin drop, and walked away. Take her to the holding room. Lock them up and make sure there are no escape routes.
Two of the Silverati dragged Anji away, their skin cold on hers.
And make sure the Doctor is thoroughly searched, barked Silver. Make sure he has nothing on his person to allow his escape.
Anji could barely hold in the tears. She had betrayed her friend, and all for nothing. She allowed herself to be taken away with little resistance. It was time for her to face the Doctor.
What the hell were those? asked Fitz. He and the Doctor had been separated from Miraso, locked in a featureless room behind a very heavy door. Although bare, the room was large, and Fitz paced as he talked.
They were humans, said the Doctor. At least, they once were. Silver has managed to synthesise Kallisti, the substance which allowed the Endpointers to survive in such extreme conditions for so long. But he hasnt just synthesised that, he has blended it with the liquid intelligence which flows through his own brain. The result is a synthetic, intelligent chemical that permeates every part of the body. And he has clearly been pumping this miracle substance into the bloodstreams of the humans cryogenically preserved here.
Turning them into those things, said Fitz, aghast. There had, he supposed, been something sleek and beautiful about the silverskinned people who had dragged them to this makeshift cell. But there was also a coldness there, an absence of those gestures that betray human qualities. It was as if they never twitched, or itched, or ached; never shuffled uncertainly, or flinched, or shivered.
Precisely, said the Doctor. Fitz had come to a halt, and now the Doctor began to pace. Those humans have been changed, their bodies and minds have been resculpted by this substance, turning them into something other than human. You saw how fast they moved, the deadness in their eyes. Those arent people any more, theyre semiorganic machines. Ruthless, efficient.
Just like Silver, said Fitz.
Yes, just like him. I suppose he thinks of them as his children, whispered the Doctor, clearly horrified by the thought. And after converting humanity, why should he stop there? Hes mixed highly advanced alien technologies to create that substance, Ill bet its smart and adaptable enough to graft itself on to any living thing. The Endpointers will be next. And if he can find a way off world, Im sure Silver will spread his touch through the galaxy. He could infect water supplies, or spread it through the air. Whole worlds could fall to Silver before they even realise theyre under attack.
We have to stop him, said Fitz.
Quite right, said the Doctor. Well, at least Anji is out and about, but we cant wait for her to free us. Fitz, give me
Yet again the Doctor was interrupted as the door opened. But, instead of Silver come to interrogate them, or an execution squad, the Doctor and Fitz were surprised to see Anji being pushed into the room.
They stood in silence for a few stunned seconds.
I suppose I have some explaining to do, said Anji.
The silverskinned men and women had rained blows down on the Doctor, Miraso and Fitz, until they showed no sign of resistance. Then they had been dragged apart, the Doctor and Fitz being taken in the opposite direction to Miraso. She had been carried along by strong hands, too stunned to walk on her own. Carried between these strange humanoids with their shining skin, Miraso had noted the resemblance to those failed experiments of Silvers, the misshapen creatures with their similarly tinted skin. If these were the results of Silvers latest experiment, then clearly he had become more successful in his work. These people were strong, fast, lethal. No wonder the likes of Miraso had become a disposable