Doctor Who_ The Algebra of Ice - Lloyd Rose [26]
‘You’d better tell Molecross I don’t exist,’ the Doctor said to Lethbridge-Stewart.
‘Well, officially you don’t.’
They were in the Brigadier’s office having tea.
‘I need not to exist for him. If he persists, persuade him Dr Smith is real.’
56
The Algebra of Ice
‘Whatever you want. We took some new aerial photos and one of our spe-cialists made a diagram.’ He turned his computer around so that the Doctor could see the pattern, neatly rendered in green lines.
‘How were these lines laid over the earlier ones?’
‘Almost exactly on top of the first pattern. They didn’t miss this time. It was your circle that threw the spanner in.’
The Doctor could see that. Lines were interrupted by the circle, broken.
‘Amberglass was right.’
‘Hm?’
‘He said the straight-edged patterns were all rational. The circle isn’t. That’s what blocked them.’
‘Mm, yes, of course.’ The Brigadier put his cup down. ‘You plan to keep using this chap Amberglass? He’ll need clearance.’
‘He already has some, because of his job. But no, I’d rather not involve him further. He shouldn’t have been there last night. That was Ace’s idea.’
‘Impulsive girl, I seem to recall.’
‘That’s one word for it. Is he doing all right?’
‘Yes. Seems to be. We have him under observation, but I don’t think there’s any real need. He said he often gets these sorts of headaches.’
‘Yes, I’m afraid he does.’
‘More tea?’
‘No, thank you.’ The Doctor set his half-full cup on the tea tray.
‘So, what do you propose to do next?’
The Doctor put his hands behind his head and leaned back, gazing at the ceiling. His hat stayed on. ‘I’m not sure. I think the circle will hold off whatever it is needs holding off.’
‘What if they choose a different site?’
‘Why wouldn’t they have done that the first time they failed? No, there’s something special about that place. Some thinness between universes, perhaps.’
‘And that little circle is stopping them?’
‘You don’t smash through universe walls. The area of possible entry is in-variably quite small, in terms of both space and time. It takes very delicate handling. I’ve known cases where a mote of dust scuttled the whole thing. We don’t know whether it’s a “them”, by the way. It might be an impersonal force of some sort. Molecross thinks it’s some heretofore-undiscovered power from the centre of the Earth.’
‘Molecross! What are we going to do about him?’
Chapter Six
57
‘Nothing. Let him go home when he’s able. Any claims he makes will sound ridiculous, if not outright mad. He can’t do any harm.’
The Brigadier smiled and sipped his tea. ‘You’re right there.’
The Brigadier said, ‘More tea?’
The Doctor looked down. There was a cup in his hand. It was empty.
Oh no.
‘Er, no, thank you,’ he said, carefully placing the cup on the tea tray.
‘So,’ Lethbridge-Stewart said as he poured, ‘what next?’
‘I don’t know,’ the Doctor said hastily. ‘I think that circle will hold things off for now, but obviously we need to find out exactly what’s going on. In fact, I think I’d better return to the TARDIS and get to work.’
‘I’ll order you a car.’
They had to be happening everywhere, these glitches, the Doctor thought as he hurried down the hall. Like bubbles that popped up in the time stream then broke and were gone, leaving the stream itself unchanged. So far, no actual harm had been done. But what if matters escalated?
‘You were right,’ said Ace. ‘I was wrong. I’m sorry.’
‘So that was an adventure,’ said Ethan. He was propped up in the medical-ward bed, still looking slightly shell-shocked.
‘Well, yeah, it was.’
‘Not a catastrophe.’
‘Oh no. Catastrophes end badly.’
‘Like, say, if I’d lost my hand.’
‘Like that, yeah.’
Ethan thought for a minute. ‘You know that thing you said about my not having a life.’
‘Yeah,’ she said, embarrassed.
‘I don’t think I want a life.’
At the moment, Ace had no argument for this. ‘You sure you’re all right, then?’
‘You keep asking me that. And I keep telling you, it was just one of my headaches.’
‘It looked bad.’
‘They are bad.’
The Doctor poked his head in the door. Ethan