Doctor Who_ Longest Day - Michael Collier [63]
As he tried to move away from the arms reaching out for him, he heard Sangton's voice, a roar of hatred. 'Forget taking him alive. Open fire. Kill them all!'
***
They'd been walking for ages now. Or it felt like ages, but she was aware time had little meaning round here. Eventually, a collection of buildings had come into sight.'Look,' she'd heard the Doctor say ahead of her. 'That must be the headquarters.'
And now here she stood surveying it. The buildings were made of the same crumbly stone as they'd found everywhere else in the area, pressed into square holes inset on metal girders. The roofs were flat. Narrow windows held panes of clear plastic looking out on the mountainous landscape they'd travelled over. One building was obviously for staff quarters. Another was probably a playroom of some kind, judging by the way childish scrawls had been painted over it. Probably by the inmates, thought Anstaar, a little unkindly. Badly drawn birds and people, standing in front of a big sun sitting on top of a hill.
The Georges had finally come to an end at this place. The real George, the living, breathing uniformed body, was leaning back against a wall a little way away. She'd seen the terror in his eyes, moved forwards to try to help, but the Doctor had stopped her. Now he was pacing in a careful semicircle around the terrified man.
'Can you hear me?'
A slow, ponderous 'yes' seemed to pull itself out from his lips. 'Recorded at seventy-eight, played at thirty-three and a third,' muttered the Doctor, cryptically. 'I'm going to reach out to you, now. Don't be scared. Try to stay calm.'
Even from here Anstaar could see the eyes bulging with fear. 'Be careful, Doctor.' she shouted, coming closer. 'And don't even think about dying and leaving me here by myself.'
The Doctor turned and smiled wanly. 'I never think about dying. Or death in general, really.' He turned back to George, his voice low and quiet like that of a sombre child.'I mustn't:
Then he moved forward and embraced George with a low moan of pain.
There was a brief flare of light, and suddenly George was draped over the Doctor's arms. A look of grim triumph flickered over the Doctor's features, but Anstaar felt her jaw drop.
'Praise the deity, protect us,' she murmured.
George had aged dramatically, shrinking into a wizened old man in seconds. Liver spots formed and bled into the wrinkled skin as she watched. He looked at her in pained confusion.
Tell us,' said the Doctor, sinking to one knee and cradling the frail form in his arms. Tell us what this place is for.'
The man opened his mouth, but Anstaar could see the bafflement in his cloudy eyes. The shock. It's too much for him.'
But the Doctor shushed her as George began to speak, trying to put a happy tone in his voice. 'You know what it's for. It's home!'
'Listen to me, it's desperately important,' implored the Doctor, squeezing the old man's hand. Is this some kind of asylum?'
George smiled faintly. "They said I was mad to want to work here.'
Suddenly he tried to sit up straight. 'They never came back for us. They never came!'
'Who?' urged the Doctor.
'Relief guards?' asked Anstaar, but the old man stared round in confusion.
'I - I -'he began, but then sank back into the Doctor's arms. He tapped the side of his head.'I.' It was said like a statement of fact. Then he brightened, smiling. 'I can hear for ages. See for ages. Things are coming.'
'How can he know?' demanded Anstaar, straightening up with a chill.
'He could well be feeling echoes of the senses of those thousands of temporal projections along the track.' He turned back to the frail old man in his arms and whispered, helplessly,'Please, stay with us: The man shook his head. 'I hear well now. Since I...' His voice died away into a solemn muttering,