Doctor Who_ The Sea-Devils - Malcolm Hulke [37]
On top of the cliff, Trenchard turned to the Master. ‘What do you mean? Look out to sea?’
The Master patted the little black box that he still carried with him. ‘I managed to finish this sooner than I expected,’ he said. ‘So some little time ago I transmitted a signal that will bring to us the people who are sinking the ships.’
Trenchard was confused. ‘Whatever are you talking about?’
‘Look,’ said the Master. He pointed to the waves coming in on the sandy beach.
At first Trenchard thought he was seeing things. Was it some kind of seaweed just under the surface, or fish? Then the heads of six Sea-Devils emerged from the water —huge lizards that walked upright like men as they came in from the sea. Each was armed with some strange gadget that resembled a gun.
Down on the beach the firing from the prison officers stopped. Jo saw that they had seen the monsters, and were themselves running—in panic. One, however, held his position, making it impossible for Jo and the Doctor to escape that way.
‘We’ve got to go through the minefield,’ called the Doctor.
The Doctor raced towards the barbed wire, Jo following. There were breaks in the strands, and they were soon through to the other side of the notice that warned them to keep away.
‘Doctor,’ called Jo, ‘we’ll get blown to pieces!’
The Doctor had already stopped and produced his sonic screwdriver. ‘Possibly not, Jo,’ he said, scanning the sand ahead of them with the screwdriver.
As a beam from the screwdriver hit an underground mine, the mine exploded. Jo was knocked off her feet, but otherwise unhurt. By the time she’d got up, the Doctor had advanced to a point beyond the crater caused by the explosion and was already scanning the, sand ahead with his screwdriver. Another huge explosion, but Jo was prepared for it this time. She looked back and saw that one of the Sea-Devils was slowly making its way towards the barbed wire.
On the cliff top the Master was watching the Sea-Devil advance toward the Doctor and Jo. ‘Kill them, you idiot,’ he shouted. ‘Fire your gun and kill them!’
‘Those terrible creatures,’ said Trenchard, ‘what are they?’
‘Enemy agents,’ said the Master, laughing. He called out once more to the Sea-Devil down below. ‘Exterminate them, you ugly-looking idiot.’ Fortunately, the Sea-Devil could not hear from this distance.
In the minefield the Doctor had by now exploded three mines, and the Sea-Devil was closing in. ‘We’ve got to take a terrible risk,’ he told Jo: ‘We’ve got to run a long way forward and hope that we don’t set off a mine with our feet, then set one off between us and that thing.’ He grabbed Jo’s hand and they ran forward together.
With every step Jo wondered if her life was about to end in one terrible explosion. She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth, and followed where the Doctor was pulling her. Then the Doctor stopped. They were now some distance from the approaching Sea-Devil.
‘Let’s just hope,’ said the Doctor, ‘that somewhere under the sand there’s a mine between us and it.’
He scanned the sand behind them with his sonic screwdriver. Suddenly, there was an enormous detonation, but a few yards in front of the Sea-Devil. It staggered, then retreated back a couple of paces.
‘If we’re lucky,’ said the Doctor, ‘it’ll think we threw some kind of bomb at it.’
The Sea-Devil had stopped and seemed now to be thinking. Then it turned and started to go back slowly towards the others, who were standing in a group on the beach.
Jo wanted to kiss the Doctor but restrained herself. ‘We’ve got away!’
‘We aren’t out of this minefield, yet,’ said the Doctor. He started to scan the route ahead, seeking a means of escape from the cove.
8 The Submarine
Lieutenant Ridgway wished that Captain Hart had given him a little more information about what he was supposed to be seeking on the sea-bed. He discussed it with his Second-in-Command, Sub-Lieutenant Tony Mitchell.
‘Maybe he doesn’t know himself,’ said Mitchell.
‘I had the feeling,’ Ridgway concluded, ‘that Captain Hart was holding something back. Still, let’s do