Doctor Who_ Last of the Gaderene - Mark Gatiss [14]
Gogon’s men advanced forward but the general spat venomously at them. ‘No! Back! Leave him. He’s mine!’
He managed to throw the Doctor off and the opponents shunted backwards, like wrestlers sizing each other up. The Doctor rose to his full height and ran a hand through his mane of silvery hair, now flattened and soaked with perspiration.
‘You’re finished, Gogon,’ he said calmly, his eyes darting from side to side to assess his chances of escape. ‘The people have risen against you. And if you cut us down, there will be countless thousands to take our place.’
Gogon sneered, a trickle of blood threading from his mouth. ‘I do not know who you are, Doctor. Or how you came to my world. But I swear I will be avenged for the chaos you have brought in your wake.’
He stretched out both his arms, shifting from one foot to the other. The Doctor did the same and moved left, inch by inch, his boots sliding through the muddy ground. Soon the two men had completed a circuit, surrounded by Gogon’s troops who once again held Rujjis at gunpoint.
‘You might as well give up,’ said the Doctor with a sly grin. ‘Perhaps the new regime will be kinder to you. There are always prospects for a fella with ambition, you know.’
With a roar of anger, Gogon launched himself towards the Doctor who immediately grabbed his shoulder, lifted him off his feet and threw him into the jungle. There was a splintering crash and the general cried out as he hit the earth with a force that sent a plume of mud shooting into his eyes.
Rage transformed his face into an ugly mask as he came at his opponent again. This time he caught him off-balance and it was the Doctor who ended up on the ground. He rolled over at once, ignoring the sharp pain in his side, and jumped to his feet.
Gogon ran forward again screaming and, with a high-pitched Venusian war cry, the Doctor landed a devastating chop to the back of his neck.
Gogon crashed to the ground but hurled himself bodily at the Doctor’s ankles, dragging the Time Lord down to his level and pummelling his chest with his fists.
The Doctor struggled to fight back, but Gogon’s claws closed inexorably around his neck.
Tighter...
Tighter...
The Doctor could feel the alien’s long, black nails digging into the flesh of his throat. His eyes began to bulge and he had to fight for his next breath as Gogon pressed down on his chest with his knees.
At last he managed to pull his hands from under him and chopped the sides of both palms simultaneously into the general’s sides.
Gogon gasped and slumped forward, easing his throttling grip just enough for the Doctor to thrust his knee upwards into the alien’s stomach and then continue the trajectory so that Gogon flew over his head and splashed into the shallows of the lake.
The Doctor sprang up, shaking his woozy head to clear it.
Gogon emerged from the water, dripping wet, dashed to one of his soldiers and grabbed the weapon he was holding.
The Doctor gave a small laugh. ‘Run out of options, Gogon?’
‘The last refuge of the scoundrel,’ hissed Rujjis.
Gogon wiped the moisture from his face and pointed the long weapon directly at the Doctor. ‘Better a live scoundrel than a dead fool.’
‘No!’ cried Rujjis.
Just then the night sky was brilliantly illuminated by a blinding white flash. The percussion of a massive explosion hit them and everyone ducked instinctively as it rolled down from the mountains like thunder.
The Doctor kicked out one long leg and knocked the gun from Gogon’s hand. The general backed towards his troops.
‘Kill him!’ he screeched.
The Doctor looked up at the distant mountains, now a broad band of fiery orange that could only mean the destruction of Gogon’s citadel.
‘Your palace, I presume,’ said the Doctor evenly.
He turned his attention to the troops and his voice took on a tone of unmistakable authority. ‘Gogon’s rule is now finished. I advise you all to think very carefully about what you do next.’
There was a long, expectant pause. Gogon looked at his men, his yellow eyes twitching nervously. The soldiers looked him up and down, their expressions