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Ms R said something very rude in Malagasy, scrambling out of the way as the Ogron and Chris started walloping each other. Roz tried to snatch the ape-faced monster’s weapon, but neither of them could get past Chris to pull the blaster from its holster.

The next thing she knew, the Ra’ashet’s fish-reptile head was poking over the rim of the airlock. The alien hauled itself up, tossed Chris easily to one side, and took a big bite out of the Ogron’s head.

The rest of the Ogron went very suddenly slack as the Ra’ashet chewed thoughtfully on its skull.

The telepath managed not to actually throw up. ‘How many more?’ said Roz.

Chris, who was getting his breath back after slamming into the wall, tugged out his handscan. ‘Three,’ he said.

‘One’s behind the inner airlock door.’

‘And very pleased with his clever strategy,’ added Ms R.

She was breathing deeply, keeping her eyes shut, trying not to listen to the munching sounds. ‘He can’t see in here.’

‘One in engineering,’ said Chris.

‘Asleep on the job,’ said Ms R.

‘And one up in the control room, I guess.’

Roz said, ‘Er, could you pass me the Ogron’s blaster, please?’

The Ra’ashet obligingly opened the holster and plucked out the weapon with a slick, scaled hand. He passed it back to her without stopping his meal.

‘Thanks,’ said Roz, trying to hold the gun without actually touching it.

‘No problem,’ said the Ra’ashet.

Good to have a weapon again. Nice chunky gun. Pity about the slobber and blood. Roz took up a firing stance, the blaster pointing at the inner door. Chris stood by the controls, ready to open it.

‘Needs salt,’ commented the Ra’ashet.

The missile protruded from the ground, just the tip — avionics and payload — visible, ringed by a metal railing. There were more uniformed corpses scattered on the floor. Sword wounds, and worse, chunks of flesh gouged from faces and hands.

Albinex was in his own body, wearing an archaic Navarino uniform, fierce white and green cloth stretched over his stumpy frame. There were twin ceremonial swords strapped to his back. He had dragged a desk across to the railing, and was working hard on a computer from his ship.

He glanced at them, once, double-took when he saw the Doctor, and went back to programming the weapon.

‘I say,’ called the Time Lord’ moving towards the missile.

Cables trailed from it where Albinex had slaved its onboard computers to the console. ‘I’ve come all the way back from the

dead to thwart your evil scheme. You could at least say hello!’

The Navarino didn’t look up.

‘Look out!’ shouted M’ Kabel.

Two Ogrons came at them at a run, blood and shreds of flesh trailing from their mouths.

‘Check this out,’ Chris said. He stepped to one side so that Roz could get to the yacht’s console. ‘Look at that telemetry.’

‘He’s tracking a satellite,’ said Roz. She ran a fingernail under a blip moving across the screen. ‘It looks like geostationary orbit. Wish I could read Navarino.’

‘I’ll tell you one thing,’ said Chris. ‘I’ll bet it’s not a TV

satellite.’

‘Daleks,’ said Roz.

‘Yeah.’

‘We need to get our asses out of here,’ said Roz.

The Ra’ashet was already standing in the corridor outside, an Ogron arm hanging from its scaly mouth. It rolled its fish-eyes at them. Ms Randrianasolo ran up behind it, holding the blaster. ‘I fused the door to engineering,’ she said. ‘The, er, arm... the third Ogron’s stuck in there.’

‘We’re done,’ said Roz. ‘We’re outta here.’

The Doctor tripped up one of the Ogrons with his umbrella’

ducking the monster’s killing blow with surprising agility.

M’Kabel snatched out his wand.

Isaac ran for Albinex, zig-zagging to avoid an oncoming Ogron’ his eyes locked on the Navarino.

Benny flung herself after her father.

She could see Albinex tugging out his gun, a stubby Navarino gun, one purple limb working on the console. She could see Albinex pausing, aiming the gun at her father. She could see that he was too far away for her to grab the gun or to pull him to safety or to get in the path of the projectile.

She could see the