Doctor Who_ Winner Takes All - Jacqueline Rayner [63]
As the Doctor threw himself back upright, silver box in one hand, Robert made Rose execute a pretty impressive karate kick on the insect monster.
‘Twenty seconds…’
Robert passed the controls back to the Doctor. ‘You’ve got to get her out of there!’ he said.
‘Looks like you were doing a pretty good job on your own,’ the Doctor said. On the screen, the Mantodean had reeled away; the kick had been effective. ‘I think it’s time for Rose to run, though…’
The Doctor guided her through a narrow gap, and set her running at top speed. ‘Right, you take over again,’ he said to Robert, passing back the pad.
‘Ten seconds…’
The Doctor pointed the silver control box at Gerdix the Quevvil. Nothing happened. He shook the box. It rattled. ‘Something’s come loose!’ he said.
‘Can you repair it?’ asked Robert, dizzy with the adrenalin of having saved – did he dare call it that? Yes! – of having saved the life of the perfect girl. Of even now being in control of her destiny. Of being in charge of her…
‘Yes,’ said the Doctor, prising the top off the box, ‘it’s just a matter of time…’
‘Five seconds…’
The Doctor jabbed a finger in, restored a connection. The top went back on. A button was pressed.
‘One second…’
Gerdix took a jerky step forward.
And the door of the room exploded.
* * *
NINETEEN
Rose was shocked when she found herself face to face with another Mantodean, amazed when she found herself shooting at it, and surprised but not unpleased to find herself delivering a hefty sideways kick to its abdomen. Forget Buffy, this was Rose the Giant‐Insect Slayer…
She had been taken away from the creature, but then found herself standing still for what seemed like a very long time.
Then, suddenly, she spoke again. ‘Rose, it’s me,’ her voice said. ‘It’s all gone a bit pear‐shaped this end. I’m not going to be able to say much in case they notice what I’m doing. Can’t let you speed along either, they’d notice that too. I can’t get you out of there, not yet. If you don’t carry on to the middle, they’re going to kill everyone. But I’ll sort it. See you later.’ There was a pause, and then, as if he felt he should be signing off like on a letter, ‘Love, the Doctor.’
And that was it.
She felt a bit aggrieved, because she was his best friend, and he was choosing to save the lives of all these other people instead of her – and although he wouldn’t be the Doctor if he didn’t, and of course she’d have said, ‘No, no, save them not me,’ if she’d been asked, the point was she hadn’t been asked, and she thought it was perfectly reasonable to feel just slightly put out in the circumstances. The circumstances being her heading off to her probable death right now.
* * *
The door had exploded, and three Quevvils armed with laser pistols had kicked their way through the smoking remains. Two of them held their weapons on the Doctor and Robert, while the third went to the intercom and reported to Frinel. A few minutes later Frinel himself joined them in the room.
There had been some alarm when they’d seen Gerdix frozen in the middle of the room, one paw still raised just off the floor. Frinel had called in some sort of scientist Quevvil, who’d finally got the forehead disc removed. The Doctor had been muttering angrily under his breath while this had been going on, stuff about how they obviously hadn’t designed the things to be reversible. Robert was more glad than ever that his disc had never been activated, but he was worried about Rose. Oh, and the others. The Doctor said that once he’d got his sonic screwdriver back, removing the things would be a piece of cake.
That was if Rose ever got out of the stronghold.
‘What about your plan?’ Robert had whispered to the Doctor. The Doctor said that his plan would still work. Was still on track. His main plan, his big, important plan, the saving‐Earth one. It was just the getting Rose out part of it that had hit a snag…
Frinel had said that it had been a mistake leaving the Doctor with only one guard. He would remedy that. Robert and the Doctor were marched