Doctor Who_ Winner Takes All - Jacqueline Rayner [58]
‘Yeah,’ said Mickey. ‘We’re gonna be getting the prize.’
Things were starting to become complicated – well, even more complicated. The Doctor, who could obviously keep a dozen things straight in his mind at one time, was relaying instructions to Mickey for both the games. Mickey was trying to control the one on the main telly, and pass the instructions on to Kevin too. It wasn’t working. Mickey’s poor controller was ending up going round in circles. He finally handed the control pad over to Jason, and concentrated on separating out the instructions for each game.
Anil kept calling across bits and pieces from his Internet search, distracting Mickey even further. ‘I’ve found one person who’s playing the game right now!’ he suddenly yelled, making Mickey lose his train of thought completely. And he couldn’t even ask the Doctor to repeat himself. Still, the Doctor was obviously following what they were doing; he’d work out where Mickey’d gone wrong.
‘Right!’ Mickey called back. ‘Tell him you’ve got some sure‐fire cheat codes or something. Tell him to jump his bloke around a bit. Then tell him you’re going to send him a series of instructions and he’s got to follow them to the letter. Persuade him somehow, I don’t care what you say.’
There was a ping from the computer. ‘Instant message,’ said Anil. There was a pause while he read it. ‘This bloke says he bought his console from alienkiller1984,’ he said. ‘Well, sort of.’
‘But there wasn’t time!’ said Mickey.
‘Bought it down the pub,’ said Anil. ‘From Darren Pye.’
Kevin and Jason looked up. ‘You didn’t say Darren Pye was involved in all this!’ said Jason, sounding like someone trying not to sound scared.
‘I can deal with Darren Pye,’ said Mickey, with the confidence of someone who’s recently heard that the person in question is on another planet. ‘Yeah, all right, he’s really alienkiller1984.’
‘He says he bought the console off Darren down the pub for a tenner,’ said Anil, continuing to read, ‘and then later Darren comes back, offering to buy it back for twenty. This guy refuses, and Darren tells him it’s for really killing aliens, and he’s going to make a fortune off the Internet. But he thought Darren was a nutter and wouldn’t give it him.’
‘Whatever, keep telling him he’s got to do what you say,’ said Mickey. ‘You’ve got to persuade him to follow your instructions, right?’
‘All right,’ said Anil, sounding doubtful. ‘But if he’s the sort of man who tells Darren Pye where to get off…’
‘Just give it a go,’ said Mickey.
‘Hey!’ shouted Jason. ‘I can see someone!’
Mickey turned to look at the screen. There was a shape in the distance. As he watched, it became clearer, became an image of a short, slim, pretty girl with long blonde hair. She was holding a mobile phone to her ear. Rose.
‘Here,’ said Jason, ‘that’s that Rose Tyler! The one who –’ He stopped, shooting a glance at Mickey.
‘She’s been kidnapped by aliens and forced to do their bidding,’ said Mickey.
‘Oh, right,’ said Jason. ‘What do I do now?’
Mickey turned his attention back to Rose’s voice coming from his phone, and began to pass on the Doctor’s instructions again.
‘He says he won’t. He’s been playing all day and this time he’s determined to win,’ said Anil. ‘He’s going to be the first person to complete the game, he’s going to get the prize, and if he really is killing aliens then that’s brilliant.’
Mickey sighed. It was all getting far too complicated.
* * *
Rose was padding down a tunnel. The Doctor’s words were still pouring out of her mouth, and she was trying to listen to what she was saying. Mickey was jabbering on about stuff in her ear – she’d just heard him tell someone that she’d been kidnapped by aliens and forced to do their bidding.
Tell someone the straight truth, and they never believe you, she thought. They just think you’re being sarcastic. Easier than making up a lie.
It sounded as if she was getting close to someone, anyway. She thought back to that afternoon – good grief, was it really only that afternoon? – and her and Mickey sitting in front of the screens in the Quevvils