Doctor Who_ The Stone Rose - Jacqueline Rayner [30]
The Doctor gave a bow to the crowd. They liked that and applauded. He turned to face Rufus. ‘Nos morituri te salutamus,’ he called, although the salute he gave was probably not one the magistrate recognised. Nevertheless, the crowd applauded that too.
A lion was prowling closer, an old male whose once‐magnificent mane now looked patchy and dull.
‘You look tired,’ the Doctor said softly to it. ‘What life is this for you, the king of the jungle?’ A thought struck him. ‘I think what you really need is a sleep.’ He reached into his belt pouch and pulled out the sonic screwdriver. A few twists and he pointed it at the approaching lion, which was now growling at him, deep in its throat.
He knew he shouldn’t really use the sonic screwdriver, not in front of thousands upon thousands of primitive humans. But he was going to do it anyway. Not so much because he had to save himself, but because he still had to save Rose. And no one was going to stop him doing that.
There was a faint hum from the sonic screwdriver, but only the Doctor knew that it was producing another pitch too, a wave of sound inaudible to the human ear but which the lion would definitely pick up. And sure enough, the lion turned tail and slunk away. A few moments later it lay down on the ground, an elderly cat by the fireside.
There were cheers and jeers from the crowd – a few cheers at this strange man seeing off a lion with what looked like a tiny stick, but mainly jeers from those cheated of blood.
‘Come on!’ the Doctor called out to the audience. ‘Did you really want it over so soon? Isn’t the anticipation half the pleasure?’
Now a huge black bear was lumbering towards him.
‘Hard to believe,’ the Doctor told the bear, ‘that teddy bears are so cute and you’re so… not. No offence.’
He raised the sonic screwdriver again – but the bear did not stop. ‘Ah,’ said the Doctor. ‘Make a note. Bears need a different frequency.’
The bear was getting faster now, obviously sensing prey. The Doctor leapt to the nearby tree and began to climb, nearing the top as the bear reached it.
The bear stood on its hind legs and gripped the tree, shaking it. ‘Note two,’ said the Doctor. ‘Bears are not put off by trees.’
He knew that if he jumped, the bear would be on him in a moment. Holding tightly on to the tree with one hand, he tried to adjust the settings on the sonic screwdriver with the other – but the bear gave the tree a massive shake and the device tumbled to the ground. And now the bear was beginning to climb the tree. It wasn’t a big tree, probably wouldn’t take its weight for long, but whether the bear caught him up high or when the tree collapsed wouldn’t make all that much difference to the Doctor.
Slowly, carefully, he edged round the tree till he was directly above the bear. The creature flailed an angry paw upwards, still just out of reach. But any second now it would be there…
The Doctor jumped. Not on to the ground – but on to the bear’s back. Startled, it dropped back to the ground, on all fours, and tried to shake him off. The Doctor held firm. The bear reared up on to its hind legs, roaring in agitation.
‘Steady on, Ted,’ the Doctor said. ‘It’s not easy being a “bear”‐back rider, you know.’
The crowd loved this. It wasn’t as good as a kill, but it tickled their fancy anyway, the slim young man treating this fierce creature as if it was a donkey or a mule.
The bear slammed back on to all four paws again. The Doctor tensed, wondering what its next move would be. Suddenly it swayed, ready to roll over and rub the irritation from its back. What to do? If he held on he’d be crushed, but if he let go the bear would be on him in a second…
The bear began to fall – and the Doctor spotted a gleam on the ground, out of the corner of his eye. He rolled with the creature, diving off at the very last moment and grabbing at the gleam. He rose with the sonic screwdriver in his hand, and as