Doctor Who_ The Zarbi - Bill Strutton [50]
During all this Doctor Who and Vicki stood motionless against the wall as if carved out of stone, staring unseeingly ahead, their faces blank.
In their furious excitement and intentness on the battle the Zarbi appeared to have forgotten their earth captives.
Vicki was the first to come ‘alive’. She stole a quick sidelong glance at the creatures chirruping and bustling around the control panel – and then she looked at the Doctor.
She reached out furtively, snatched the necklet from around the Doctor’s throat, and dropped it hastily as if it were hot.
Doctor Who blinked and awoke to an awareness of his surroundings. Vicki quietly put a hand on his arm and motioned him with a finger to silence.
Doctor Who stared at the necklet still encircling the girl. ‘Vicki – you’re still wearing the...!’ he whispered.
She smiled, calmly removed her own necklet, and offered it to him.
She whispered back, ‘It’s the one you treated. I slipped it in the Zarbi’s way when I saw what they were going to do. You succeeded, Doctor – it doesn’t work any more...’
Doctor Who took the necklet and examined it carefully, keeping an eye on the Zarbi. He stared at the smiling Vicki.
She said, ‘When they directed us to the wall, I just...
walked there. I shammed!’
‘My dear child...!’
‘Oh!’ Vicki shrugged lightly, rather pleased with herself.
‘It was nothing, really...’
‘Nonsense! You have a very sharp brain! Now we must take advantage of... this discovery...!’
The Doctor rubbed his chin and swivelled his head carefully to stare towards the Zarbi. Again he pondered the necklet.
‘Hmm... if it no longer works on us, it seems I have managed to reverse the... force field... well, well...!’
‘Careful – look out!’ Vicki breathed.
The activity at the control panel was slackening. The speaker, having hummed a final set of instructions, shut off the big light in the centre of the web indicator faded and blanked out. The Zarbi manning the control panel relaxed.
One of them turned, looked towards the Doctor and Vicki, got up, and marched towards them.
Vicki and Doctor Who stiffened to attention, staring before them, pretending to be still in a trance.
The Zarbi passed them with only a brief flash of its glowing eyes and headed for one of the exits. It vanished down a tunnel.
Another Zarbi moved away from the control panel and crouched sleepily, leaving a single companion manning the controls. Doctor Who relaxed faintly. He took the bracelet he had treated and slipped it on his own neck. He kicked the other necklet in front of Vicki and nodded at it. Out of the corner of his mouth he whispered, ‘Now, child – this is what I want you to do...’
As he whispered to Vicki the Zarbi at the control panel turned its head slightly. Then it rose at a sound from Vicki.
The girl was ‘awake’. She was staring around her bewildered.
‘What’s happened...?’ She called. ‘Where... am I...?’
The Zarbi stared and saw the necklet had apparently fallen from her and was lying at her feet. It chirruped and scuttled across to her from the panel. Its claw reached to pick up the necklet and replace it on the dazed girl. As it stopped Doctor Who moved swiftly. He whipped the treated gold circle from his own throat and thrust it at the Zarbi’s thin neck, between the evil head and the sleek body.
The Zarbi stiffened, reared. Doctor Who tensed against the expected blow. The Zarbi remained staring at Doctor Who.
Suddenly it grew stiff, motionless. Vicki shot a questioning, anxious look sidelong at the Doctor. He watched the Zarbi. He raised a hand – and directed it.
Obediently the Zarbi turned as he pointed.
Vicki smothered a wild yell of excitement. Doctor Who was beaming now, and chuckling.
‘Splendid... splendid...!’
‘But... what can we do now?’
‘Eh?’ Doctor Who pondered that slyly. Slowly his face lit with mischief — and hope.
‘Well — I think we should get our friend to take us out of here, don’t you think? It’s essential that we contact these Menoptera, my dear...’
Vicki flashed an anxious look at the other Zarbi guard still in the control