Doctor Who_ Wooden Heart - Martin Day [43]
Petr laid a sympathetic hand on Saul’s arm. ‘Wherever Jude is… we must accept that we can’t do anything for her now. I’m sorry.’
Martha was intrigued by Saul’s sudden mention of some sort of religious belief; she was sure she had seen no churches in the village, and yet both men clearly shared a vocabulary that – however rarely used – required no further explanation.
She was about to question them on this when the dark silence of the forest was cut asunder by another piercing roar. At least one vast creature was moving towards them; Martha could hear the distant sound of trees toppling and being forced aside.
‘What are those creatures?’ asked Petr. He started to walk through the trees, towards the paths and tracks that led back to the village. To Martha’s great relief, Saul was soon walking at his side.
‘They mark the edge of our world,’ said Saul simply. ‘And our world is getting smaller all the time…’
‘Where did you spring from?’ exclaimed the Doctor, delighted. He’d given Jude a huge hug, and was now looking her up and down, amazed by her very presence on the research station.
‘I don’t know,’ said Jude honestly. ‘I was in the forest, then I was here! I woke up in a dark room. I think I fell.’
‘You’re so lucky!’ exclaimed the Doctor. ‘The barriers between our two worlds were breaking down. You could so easily have ended up in space, or just been snuffed out like a candle – but here you are! Large as life and twice as wonderful!’ He looked around slowly, as if the full implication of his own words was only just dawning on him. ‘Here you are… in the real world,’ he whispered quietly. ‘How is that even possible?’
‘I didn’t mean to go into the forest,’ continued Jude, glancing around guiltily. ‘I’ve only ever gone there with Dad before – he’s always telling me it’s not safe. But I wanted to see what you all were talking about. I wanted to say goodbye to you properly.’
‘And instead you stumbled into that monster!’
‘I’ve never seen anything like it!’ said Jude, wide-eyed.
‘Like so much of your world,’ said the Doctor, ‘it’s as if countless legends and fables have been simmered down, condensed, pureed together in a blender…’
‘Is my father going to be all right?’
‘Martha went after him,’ said the Doctor. ‘I’m sure they’ll be fine.’
‘Where are we?’ asked Jude. ‘All I’ve seen so far are little rooms and long corridors. I’ve been wandering about for ages, but I can’t work out what sort of building we’re in.’
‘We’re in… a ship, I suppose you could say. The Castor, it’s called – part prison, part science lab. We’re drifting in deep space, millions of miles from the nearest planet. Your world, your home… well, it’s sort of generated by this ship, and contained within it.’ He sighed. ‘That was gobbledegook, wasn’t it?’
Jude nodded. ‘You wouldn’t make a very good teacher,’ she said, giggling.
‘Ah, well,’ said the Doctor, feigning hurt. ‘I’m more of a… hands-on kind of teacher, you know. I’d much rather show you something and let you make up your own mind.’ He paused, thinking, then dashed off down the corridor, Jude close behind. He found a window, sealed shut, and operated a control at its base. The shutter slid open, revealing the haunting beauty of the profound darkness of space beyond.
Jude’s eyes widened. She stared in silent and wondrous awe, allowing the Doctor to walk quietly back to the computer screen. He busied himself at the keyboard for a while, trying to reassure baffled software and overwrite recalcitrant protocols. Then he became aware of Jude’s presence at his side.
After just a moment or two of confusion, Jude seemed to have understood where she was and what the Doctor was trying to show her. The girl