Doctor Who_ The Bodysnatchers - Mark Morris [93]
'What I'm going to tell you may be very hard for you to believe, but I assure you that it's true. All you have to do is look around you to confirm the truth of what I'm saying.'
Sam watched the faces of the group as the Doctor told them about the Zygons. About how they could transform themselves into those whose bodies they copied; about the giant machine creatures, the Skarasen, that served them; about their ship, like a massive living creature which had been secreted beneath the waters of the Thames, and which they were now all trapped within.
He flooded them with information, told them how he had inadvertently destroyed the Zygon race, and about how Balaak, their leader, had set the self-destructor unit before escaping.
'So you see,' he said, speaking as calmly and clearly as if he was delivering a lecture at some revered institute, 'it is imperative that we all work together to effect the quickest possible escape from this place.To do this I need you all to trust me. I need you to accept what I'm saying without question and to follow my instructions to the letter. Dissent will only lose us vitally precious seconds, even minutes. Now I know that this is an extraordinary and traumatic situation for all of you, which ideally you could all do with some time to come to terms with, but I'm afraid we don't have that time.The simple choice is this: work together under my guidance or perish. Which is it to be?'
The men's faces were still etched with fear and confusion, but there was something else there now too: a collective expression of awe. They looked, thought Sam, how she imagined cave dwellers might look when encountering modern man for the first time.
After a short silence it was Emmeline who spoke.
'I am certain I speak for us all, Doctor, when I say that we will all do precisely as you tell us. I for one wish to take my leave of this terrible place as swiftly as possible.' There was a rumble of assent. Heads nodded vigorously. 'Well then, that's half the battle won,' said the Doctor. He turned to the alcove behind him, containing Nathaniel Seers's unconscious form.
As his fingers played deftly over the crystalline panel, he leaned towards Emmeline and murmured, 'I think it best if you keep the news of your mother's death from your father for the time being. If we're going to get out of here, we all need to keep our wits about us as much as we can. Can I rely on you to give your father the emotional support he needs while at the same time impressing upon him the need for urgency?'
'Of course, Doctor,' said Emmeline firmly. The Doctor twisted the trumpet-like controls and the cowl detached itself from Seers' head. Immediately the factory owner's mouth gaped and he released a low moan, then he slowly opened his eyes.
'Father?' Eimneline said hesitantly.'Father, it's me - Emmeline.' He looked at her with no recognition whatsoever for a moment. Then he blinked and his mouth struggled for articulation before he whispered
'Emmeline?'
'Yes, Father. Oh yes, it's me!' She stepped forward, arms outstretched.Tears sparkled in her eyes.
He swayed, then stepped from the cubicle, unsteady as a toddler. As she flung her arms around him, he reciprocated, slowly raising his arms to enfold her in an embrace.
They stood there for long seconds, clutching each other, not saying anything. Finally the Doctor cleared his throat and Seers looked up. 'Good day, sir,' he said wonderingly. 'Whom do I have the pleasure of...' Then his voice tailed off as he took in his surroundings. 'Where am I?'
'In danger,' said the Doctor, 'and I'm afraid there's no time to lose. Would you all follow me, please?'
'Danger?' mused Seers, but the Doctor had already turned and walked away. The rest of the men obediently trailed after him. Sam hung back to help Emmeline with her father.
'Is he all right?' she asked.The blank bemusement on Nathaniel Seers's face reminded her of her dad's gran, who'd suffered from Alzheimer's and had died