Doctor Who_ The Ice Warriors - Brian Hayles [43]
‘A communicator! How useful!’
The Doctor had always known the risk of discovery.
Realising what he had been trying to do, Victoria gasped in fear of Varga’s retaliation. Neither of them expected his response.
‘When the time is right,’ hissed the warlord arrogantly,
‘we will use this device ourselves.’ He stepped closer to the Doctor.
‘You have been most helpful, Doctor. You will forgive interruption of your warning to your friends. Shall I complete it for you?’ He laughed cruelly. ‘ Better that than... be conquered by these Martians! And you are right!’ He gestured towards the engine complex, and his next words struck fear into both the Doctor and Victoria.
‘There is one thing we need to complete our power,’
hissed the Martian arrogantly. ‘Then we shall be invincible—
and this planet will be ours to conquer as we please!’
8
The Martian Ultimatum
Leader Clent stared at the blank video screen and said nothing for several seconds. It seemed that with the Doctor’s message ending so abruptly—their last chance had vanished.
‘What can we do?’ asked Jan. ‘The Doctor! We’ve got to help him!’
Clent shook his head. ‘You heard what he said.
Regardless of the consequences, he wants us to take the risk and use the Ioniser.’ He frowned. ‘But he’s not only offering himself as a sacrifice—it’s us as well!’
‘If only he could have said more... Perhaps he means the spaceship’s reactor isn’t dangerous?’
‘But the aliens are...’ replied the Leader grimly. ‘It’s no good guessing, Miss Garrett. We must have facts!’
She had to agree. ‘Until we programme the computer with the correct information, it cannot instruct us how to act.’
Clent turned back to the Ioniser monitors. They were stable, but almost dormant at half power. ‘If only the Ioniser would hold...’
‘At present output, it’s steadily losing ground to the glacier.’ Inside her mind, a silent voice shouted Jan’s real opinions. Forget the glacier! Do something to save the Doctor and the girl! We owe them that much! We cannot let them die! Aloud she said, ‘We dare not increase power... not yet.’
Clent turned to her. She sensed the deep confusion in his mind. He was torn between duty, humanity and the need for action—knowing that whatever decision he took, the result could spell disaster... Suddenly, the computer hummed into life.
‘ World Director, Ionisation Programme. to all sectors. The new control equation originating from Brittanicus Base will be adapted to conditions prevailing each sector, and linked to World Central Control. On central command pulse, a concerted intercontinental attack on the glaciers will commence in six hours exactly. Report readiness in three hours. Leaders to confirm status report one hour to zero. Message ends. ’
Jan tanned desperately to Clem. ‘We can’t do it!’ she cried hopelessly.
Clent’s face was stern; like a soldier taking orders in the face of imminent destruction, he knew instinctively that he must act without question. ‘If we don’t act, the world plan must fail! We have no choice, Miss Garrett!’
Jan was too well trained to defy her superior, but she clutched desperately at one last straw... ‘The computer must be told,’ she insisted firmly, ‘as a matter of procedure.’ As Clent started to protest, she added quickly, ‘With the fresh directive from World Control, it may be able to resolve our local situation.’ She was relying desperately on Clent’s addiction to the rule book and, to her relief, he nodded in reluctant agreement.
‘Very well, Miss Garrett, feed the relevant data to ECCO, if you must.’ But at the back of his mind he instinctively knew what the computer would say in answer to the grim dilemma. There was only one reply it could give—
and that answer would save no one. Seconds later it gave its response.
‘ As instructed, set up all circuits to the new equation. No action to be taken until further data available regarding potential nuclear explosion. Prepare to notify World Control in event