Doctor Who_ Wooden Heart - Martin Day [59]
Jude wasn’t sure she could hear anything at all.
‘This way!’ said the Doctor urgently. ‘Nearly there. Where there’s noise there’s…’
He stopped suddenly. A solid wall of shadow blocked the corridor in front of them; at its heart, like some great carrion bird flying against the wind, an ethereal figure hovered silently. A twisted angel, unfathomable and random and with no comprehension of what the Doctor was trying to do.
‘We’ll have to go back,’ said Jude, grasping the Doctor’s hand tightly.
‘Can’t,’ said the Doctor Simply. ‘The control room, the heart of the ship… It’s right over there.’
‘But you said if we saw that thing again… it might kill us. It might drain us, or scare us witless, or…’
‘You’re young!’ said the Doctor positively. ‘How many bad things can you have done?’
‘Enough,’ said Jude.
‘Even so,’ said the Doctor, a stiffer determination in his voice now, ‘we need to get to the door behind that creature.’
‘You go,’ said Jude, suddenly not feeling at all brave. ‘I’ll wait here.’
“Fraid I’m going to need your help,’ said the Doctor in a whisper. ‘I can’t do it on my own.’
Jude paused, trying to make sense of everything. She supposed she was just a normal child, that she’d not done much wrong. She’d certainly never deliberately set out to bully or to hurt anyone. But if this creature was going to sift them both like wheat from chaff, was that enough? Her reading of books about morality indicated that there was more to a good life than an absence of evil. How many positive things had she actually done?
There was a beggar in the village, a scary old drunk with a habit of talking to himself and randomly shouting at the children as they played. Had she ever given him food or drink? Had she ever even tried to talk to him? And, even if she had – had she done it for the right reasons, or because people expected her to be good and kind? Did she hope for rewards when she did good deeds, or was she truly good?
Anyway, this monster of shadows… Who was to say its idea of good and evil was the same as hers? At school, she had a reputation as a know-it‐all, as a brain on legs. It was certainly true that she’d always enjoyed philosophical discussions almost as much as the science and history lessons that were so dear to her heart.
But she had never once expected them to have a practical use.
‘All right,’ she said after a moment, and she grasped the Doctor’s hand even more tightly. ‘If it’s the only way I’m going to get home…’
‘That’s the spirit,’ said the Doctor brightly, starting to walk forward with Jude at his side. ‘Just be positive. Think happy thoughts, good memories. Moments when you could have been selfish or hurtful but you chose not to.’
‘All right,’ said Jude. Her eyes were half-closed now, and she allowed herself to be guided forward by the Doctor. She glanced sideways at him – he was concerned, yes, that much was evident from his face. But he was absolutely determined, his strong jaw set forward. He was going to survive this, and save Jude’s world, whatever the cost.
They took three more steps, right into the heart of the creature. It was like stepping outside and away from the warmth of a burning fire; the air was suddenly cold and still, and just for a moment there was silence.
Suddenly, someone, somewhere, was shouting out – overlapping cries of terror and anguish. It was only when the dark shadows flowed directly into Jude’s mind that she understood – distantly, as if all this was happening to someone else – what the sounds were.
She and the Doctor were screaming.
Martha leapt away from the side of the boat as one of the lake creatures pushed its head through the splintered wood of the stern. The beast’s stubby face reminded Martha of a shark, with ragged, random teeth and tiny eyes – three of them, arranged in a perfect triangle at the top of its head. The skull was ringed with