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'No!' cried the Doctor. 'If that's true, then you'll be responsible for the murder of thousands of living beings!'

'Only a start, Doctor,' said the Leader.

***

Sam allowed herself to be led along by Tanhith. She didn't know what else to do. Following the Kusks had been her plan and now Tanhith was committed to it too. Entirely committed, it seemed.

They'd been walking for what seemed like hours. The gun had dropped from her hand some time ago, and she hadn't bothered to pick it up.

Crichter limped in silence beside them. The sun was still fixed resolutely in the sky like a gleaming pin. The landscape was so empty, stark and bright that it looked like a page from a Bible storybook. Sam could hear her grandmother reading to her. The voice blurred and became the Doctor's.

Something about revelations. Plagues and curses. The end of the world - of all worlds.

'Sunstroke. I'm delirious. Blondes are crap in the sun,' she announced in a faraway voice.

Tanhith pulled her along.'Come on, Sam. Don't give up yet.'

'Or you'll kill me?' She giggled, the sound catching in her throat.'I keep forgetting life is cheap.'

'You brought me back. Well, now you can live out this happy time with me.'

He attempted to smile, but his eyes were dark.What had she pushed him to?

She saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Its orange colouring made it hard to spot against the sand. A cat. A tabby cat. It stared at her for a moment, then sauntered off behind a rock.

Sam stared, and blinked hard. Her eyelids felt full of grit, her mind full of rubbish. Why can't I be a cat? she wondered. Independent. Stylish.

Uncaring.

'I saw a cat!' she announced, shaking her head.'How can that be?'

Tanhith stopped still and grabbed her. He held the back of her head and pulled her face close to his. She squirmed to try to get away, but he held her fast. He kissed her lightly on her caked dry lips. She broke off by dropping her face down, breathing hard. Crichter trudged past them, seemingly oblivious.

Tanhith let go of her. 'That woman was evil, Sam.'

'I know. I just never got close to someone who could kill that way in cold blood before.' She looked at him and shrugged, her voice hollow.'That's all.'

'Perhaps you don't want a man at all,' said Tanhith quietly, 'just an ideal.'

But Sam had already set off after Crichter and the Kusks.

***

Felbaac screamed, and the noise reverberated in his ears as the ship spun crazily out of control. Yast's body suddenly slid through from the corridor outside as the craft pitched forward.

'Yast! Yast, help me!' Felbaac's voice was desperate. But as he turned Yast over his heart sank. His aide's black hair had turned snowy white. His skin was so wrinkled it was difficult to discern any features at all.

Decaying consoles detached themselves from rusting walls. Dead terminals sparked and fizzed over the screech of failing engines pushed too far.

I'm not beaten yet I'm not beaten yet -

An explosion snatched his vision and splashed it over the darkness of the bulkhead he smashed against. Trembling, he waited for his eyes to clear, feeling the vibrations of the ship as it began to take itself apart.

***

The Kusks were heading for the large cave in the mountainside. There was nowhere else for them to go, unless they were planning on walking straight through the rock. But having seen the creatures' power, Sam couldn't rule it out.

Crichter was peering cautiously over the top of a large rock. Tanhith was leaning against it out of sight, looking up at the sky, at the birds that wheeled overhead with their low calls and shrieks. His face was red, badly burnt. His eyes seemed vacant. Sam still felt detached, divorced from events. She watched him, watched the lack of feeling in his oddly handsome face. Felt ashamed of herself, guilty for having wanted him. A murderer. A scared, clinical murderer. The gun looked small in his large hand.

'Your friend,' announced Tanhith.'Up on the moon.'

'Yes.' Sam looked away from him.

'Do you love him?'