Apollo 23 Read online

The soldier was still staring blankly at Amy, just as before the lights failed.

  'What are you doing?' she demanded, bracing herself for the attack.

  But the man didn't move. He just stood, staring.

  Unmoving. Then, slowly, his eyes closed. His shoulders slumped slightly - like he had fallen asleep while still on his feet.

  As if he'd been switched off, Amy thought. Like a computer program that had reached the end, completed its task, and simply stopped.

  On the lunar surface, a sudden, impossible breeze stirred the dust between the line of receptors. Two space helmets - one white, one red - lay half-buried. A gloved hand was stretched out towards one of the helmets in a final desperate dying attempt to reach it.

  Then the breeze was gone, taking with it the last of the air.

  Leaving only the dust and the dead...

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  A rasping breath wracked the Doctor's whole body. He wheezed and choked, coughing until his throat was raw. The ground beneath him was warm and sharp -like tiny knives cutting into his palms as he pressed down in an effort steady his body.

  He was lying on his back, staring up at an azure sky. The faintest wisp of cloud skittered across his vision. The sun was a burning disc that hurt his eyes.

  Slowly, as the coughing and gasping died away and he caught his breath, the Doctor pushed himself upwards. He sat staring round at the undulating landscape. Not the grey, barren moon, but the warm sandy desert. He climbed to his feet.

  The lines of receptors had gone. The link was broken and they would be back on the moon. There was no sign either of the Doctor's helmet, or of Colonel Devenish. The Doctor sighed and shook his head sadly, knowing all too well what that must mean.

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  'Sabotage’ he murmured. The stiff desert breeze ruffled his hair and blew up a ground-hugging swirl of sand.

  'Sabotage and murder.' He licked his finger and held it up, gauging the direction of the wind.

  'Deep in the heart of Texas,' the Doctor remembered Devenish had said. Texas was enormous - the second largest US state. But he was sure someone had mentioned that Base Hibiscus was close to Houston. Assuming that the quantum link had actually brought them to Texas somewhere near the base. If not he could be anywhere. There was no guarantee, he thought ruefully, that this was even Earth.

  Assuming the lines of receptors had been the start of a pathway to the base, and assuming too that he remembered which way they'd been aligned, the Doctor started walking through the empty desert.

  'Could be worse,' he said to himself. 'It might have been Alaska.'

  After a while, the Doctor was beginning to wish it was Alaska. Without the helmet, his spacesuit wasn't sealed and the heat got trapped inside. He stripped off the spacesuit and staggered on in his slacks and shirtsleeves, bow tie hanging untied round his neck. The breeze was cooling, but it whipped up the sand and blew it in his eyes so he could hardly see.

  In the distance, peering through the bright sun and the stinging sand, the Doctor could see a dark cloud. More sand, swirling across the desert towards him. A sandstorm? He looked round, but there was nowhere to shelter - no cover whatsoever.

  As the whirling sand grew closer, the Doctor saw that it was kicked up by a jeep, racing towards him 96

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  through the des ert. It slewed to a halt a few metres away, engine idling. Three uniformed soldiers jumped out of the back of the jeep and ran towards the Doctor, unshouldering their assault rifles.

  The Doctor stood up and reached out to shake the nearest soldier's hand. The soldier took his hand, but dragged the Doctor forwards before spinning him round and wrenching his arm up behind his back. Together with another soldier, he marched the Doctor over to the jeep and shoved him roughly over the bonnet.

  The Doctor gasped as his cheek pressed down on the hot metal. 'Ouch - careful!'

  'This is a restricted area’ another soldier barked.

  I kind of guessed, actually.'

  'What are you doing here? How did you get in?'

  'I'm helping.' The Doctor forced himself upright. He raised his hands in the air and turned round. 'I've got papers, a pass, authorisation - everything.'

  'Show me.'

  'Rightio.' The Doctor shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. Except the pockets weren't there, and neither was the jacket. 'Ah. Sorry. Left my paper - my papers, I should say

  - in my jacket. I'd go and get it but it's a bit of a way away.'

  'Gets hot out here,' one of the soldiers said. It was the first half-friendly tone the Doctor had heard. 'How far away's your jacket?'

  'Quite a way, actually,' the Doctor admitted. 'I left it on the moon.'

  It seemed like an age before anyone came. Amy 97

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  watched through a mass of pipes and cables. The soldier continued to stand in exactly the same spot, without moving at all.

  'I have to stop doing this’ she muttered to herself in her hiding place. But it seemed safer to stay out of sight for now.

  Eventually, Nurse Phillips arrived. She sighed when she saw the charred mass of fused cables and wires. She inspected the soldier's face, gently turning it from side to side.

  'Come with me. We'd better get you to the medical centre.'

  The soldier jerked upright at the sound of her voice. His shoulders straightened, his eyes opened again.

  'Follow me. Let's get you sorted out.'

  Since she knew where they were headed, Amy waited until they were long gone before she emerged from hiding.

  By the time she had got to the medical centre -having taken several wrong turnings along the way -Nurse Phillips was bandaging the soldier's hand. He sat on a chair in the small reception area. His face was cleaner, but showed several slight burns. He seemed to be behaving perfectly normally as he glanced up at Amy and smiled. But there was no recognition in the look.

  'What happened to you?' Amy asked.

  'Oh, stupid accident. Burned my hand trying to fix a toasted sandwich.'

  'Your face too, by the look of it.'

  'Eye-level grill,' Nurse Phillips said. She finished 98

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  attaching the bandage with surgical tape. "There, all done.

  Get a salad next time.'

  'Sure thing.' The soldier stood up. 'Sorry to be a bother.'

  'You remember what happened?' Amy asked.

  Nurse Phillips frowned, but said nothing.

  'Yeah,' the soldier said. 'Sure I do. Pretty much.'

  'That's fine,' Nurse Phillips told him. 'A touch of shock, that's normal. You'll be all set in a day or two. No worries.'

  'No worries,' the soldier repeated, his voice devoid of expression. Then happily, he added: 'Hey, I feel better already. Thanks.'

  'Can I help you?' Nurse Phillips asked as soon as the soldier was gone.

  'I thought maybe I could help you’ Amy said. 'I heard there was a soldier injured.'

  'Oh?'

  'One of the other men - saw him coming in, I guess. I didn't know how serious it was...'

  "That's kind of you. But as you see, I'm managing fine.'

  'As I see,' Amy agreed. 'Sorry, didn't mean to imply you couldn't cope.'

  'It can be difficult with just me. Professor Jackson has some medical training, though, so that helps.'

  'I'm sure it does’ Amy said.

  One word changed everything. As soon as the Doctor mentioned the moon, the soldiers' demeanour changed completely. They helped him into the back of the jeep, and one even offered him chewing gum.

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  The Doctor declined.

  'My spacesuit is about half a mile that way’ he explained. 'Any chance we can swing by and pick it up?'

  'No problem’ the driver assured him.

  The jeep sped away, kicking up a storm of fine sand behind it.

  Half an hour later, with the Doctor's spacesuit (but
not his helmet) duly recovered, they arrived back at Base Hibiscus.

  The base was made up of a collection of low brick-built structures. It looked every bit as incongruous sticking up from the desert as Base Diana had on the moon.

  Guards on the gate waved the jeep through, and it screeched to a halt outside one of the low buildings. A sentry on duty outside glanced suspiciously at the Doctor before waving them all through. The interior of the building was more like an office than a military base. There were grey carpet tiles on the floor, and blotches of colour in expensive frames on the wall.

  'You know’ the Doctor said, 'modern art isn't really as bad as it's painted.'

  One of the soldiers was generous enough to smile. They continued in silence in the elevator to the third floor, where the Doctor was shown into an office. The door closed behind him, and he found himself facing an important-looking soldier across an imposing desk.

  'I'm sorry if I' m supposed to know who you are’ the Doctor said, sitting down. 'General?' he hazarded, seeing the stars on the man's shoulders.

  'General Walinski, and that's fine. I don't know 100

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  wh o y o u are eit h er. Th o ugh th at is a bit mo re o f a pro blem , giv en I'v e recent ly ch eck ed t h e files o f ev eryo n e wh o 's sup po sed t o be o n Base Dian a.'

  'Guessin g I wasn 't o n t h e list .'

  'Dam n right y o u weren 't . So wh o are y o u, an d h o w did y o u get t h ere. M o re t o t h e p o in t , h o w did y o u get back ?'

  'W ell, th at 's a lit t le difficult really . I'm an exp ert , sent in to h elp . Th ey 're h av in g a bit o f t ro uble wit h t h eir quant um lin k, t h o ugh I ex p ect y o u k n o w t h at.'

  'It 's been n o t iced. Go o n - y o u were sen t t o fix t h e link .'

  'I did fix it . But t h en it wen t wro n g again an d d um p ed m e back in t h e desert . Co lon el Dev en ish ...' Th e Do cto r's vo ice t ailed o ff.

  W alin sk i lean ed fo rward. 'Cliff Dev en ish - wh at abo ut h im ?'

  'He was wit h m e, fix in g th e recept o rs. He didn 't m ake it . I'm so rry .'

  W alin sk i lean ed back , n o ddin g slo wly . ' Go o d m an , Dev en ish . So h o w co m e y o u m ade it back an d he didn 't ? Ch an ce, was it ? Luck ?'

  'A bit of both , th e Do cto r adm itted. 'An d m ay be I can surv iv e a lit t le lo n ger wit h out o xy gen .'

  W alin sk i lean ed back in h is ch air. 'Yo u see, t h e t ro uble I'm h av in g h ere is t h at p eo p le are dead an d y o u t urn up o ut o f n o wh ere an d seem to be an ex pert o n a t op secret sy st em . I do n 't k n o w if I can t rust y o u.'

  T h e Do cto r suck ed in h is ch eek s. 'T h at 's y o ur pro blem not m in e.'

  'Do n 't be so sure.'

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  'Devenis h trusted me, if that helps. At least, he told me he did.'

  'You could be lying,' Devenish pointed out. 'Though you don't look like a liar.'

  'Well,' the Doctor told him, 'good liars don't. But Devenis h trusted me enough to agree when I told him the systems had been sabotaged.'

  Walinski's eyes narrowed. 'How did you get to Diana?'

  'My assistant Miss Pond and I went up from the shopping centre where the astronaut appeared.'

  Walinski seemed to relax at this. 'Typical CIA. They sent their own team up - local Brit team, I guess - and they didn't even tell us.' He stood up, towering over the seated Doctor, and strode to the door. He pulled it open and shouted: 'Get Agent Jennings in here now.'

  Jennings arrived almost at once. He was nearly as tall as Walinski, and just as broad. Unlike the General, Jennings was wearing a black suit. He was wearing glasses, and the lenses were as dark as the suit.

  'This Doctor guy one of yours?' Walinski demanded.

  'Not so far as I know.'

  'Hi, by the way’ the Doctor said.

  Jennings ignored him. 'But Control doesn't always consult me personally before putting agents into the field. You want me to double check?'

  The Doctor stood up. 'Look, this is all very cosy and matey and fun, and we can play "my boss is bigger than your boss" for as long as you like. But my friend is up on your moonbase, and there's no

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  way for us to get to her and there's no way for her to get to us.

  Whether you know it or not, something's sabotaging your systems. They deliberately cut you off from the moon, and they did that for a reason. Now I don't know what that reason is, not yet. But I think we should find out, don't you?'

  'And why do you think someone would sabotage a base that's operated without problems for forty years?' Jennings asked.

  'I didn't say someone, I said something.' The Doctor looked from Jennings to Walinski, and saw that they were both watching him closely. 'And I don't know why. But if I had to hazard a guess, and I think I'm probably more qualified than anyone else here to do that, then I'd say...' He hesitated, wondering if the two men would be ready for what he was about to tell them.

  'Yes?' Walinski prompted.

  'I'd say you're being invaded.'

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  Cap tain Reev e h ad o rg an is ed a roo m fo r Am y . Sh e was tempted to tell him about what she'd seen and overheard. But when it came to it, she wasn't sure she could trust anyone. Captain Reeve seemed pleasant and friendly enough - certainly in contrast to Major Carlisle. But maybe he was just a bit too laid back.

  Could it all be an act? It was just typical of the Doctor to naff off and leave her on her own. When she saw him again he deserved a good slap.

  'Looks like you could be staying with us for a while’

  Reeve said.

  'Any news of the Doctor and Devenish yet?' Amy asked.

  'No. But it's a tricky job. The Colonel was on local comms only for some reason. Wasn't talking to us. That's not normal procedure. But they've got enough air for a few more hours yet, so Major Carlisle says we should leave them to it.

  They'll shout if they get a

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  p ro blem , o r if t h ey do n 't we'll go lo o k in g wh en t h eir air get s lo w.'

  'Yo u seem t o h av e a lot o f sp are liv in g sp ace,' Amy said, as m uch t o ch an ge t h e subject as an y th ing.

  'Th e n um ber o f p eop le st at io n ed h ere v aries. W e h av e cap acit y at t he m o m ent.'

  Am y n o dded. Sh e h adn 't seen t h at m an y p eo p le. A few scientist s in Jack so n's team, Nurse Ph illip s, an d t h e so ldiers. 'Ho w m an y h ere at t h e m o men t?'

  'M ay be t wenty in all. M ajo r Carlisle co uld t ell yo u th e exact n um ber.'

  Reev e left h er t o 'set t le in ', th o ugh Am y wasn 't sure wh at h e t ho ugh t sh e n eeded t o do t o sett le in . It wasn 't lik e sh e h ad an yth in g to unp ack . Sh e lay o n th e bed an d st ared at th e p lain wh it e ceilin g. Not ev en a co bweb. D id t h ey h av e sp iders h ere in t h e base? M ay be so m e h ad wan dered in t h ro ugh th e quan t um t h in gie, o r co m e wit h th e build in g m at erials. Sh e clo se d h er ey es, decidin g sh e co uld do ze fo r a few m in ut es. Just t ill th e Do ct o r go t back . He wo uldn 't be lo n g.

  Sh e was wo k en wh at seem ed lik e secon ds lat er by a kn o ck in g at h er do o r.

  'W h at - wh o is it ?'

  'Do wn h am , m a'am .'

  Do wn h am was a so ld ier. He st o o d t o att ent ion wh en Amy o p en ed t h e do o r. 'Yes?'

  'T h e Do ct or wo uld lik e t o sp eak t o y o u, m a'am .'

  'Yo u can cut t h e "m a'am " st uff. I'm Am y .'

  T h is way ... m iss.' He m arch ed o ff do wn t h e co rrido r.

  'So wh ere are we go in g?' Am y ask ed, wo n derin g 106

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  why the Doctor hadn't just come to find her himself.

  'Communications Room.'

  'And that's where the Doctor is?'

  'Not exactly. You need to speak to him on the radio l
ink.

  They're bouncing the signal off a couple of satellites so we can have voice contact.'

  'Voice contact? Hang on - where exactly is the Doctor?'

  The soldier hesitated in mid-stride, just slightly. 'Base Hibiscus. He's on Earth, ma'am.'

  Captain Reeve was already talking on the radio when Amy arrived in the Communications Room.

  'General Walinski, he's the officer in charge of Hibiscus,'

  Reeve said quietly to Amy. Louder he said: 'Sir, I have Miss Pond with me now, if the Doctor's still there.'

  To Amy's surprise, the General ignored Reeve and kept talking:

  '... which means that our number one priority must be to get the quantum displacement link operating again.' He paused, then went on: 'Glad to hear that, Reeve. The Doctor is just here.'

  'He's a bit slow on the uptake,' Amy said quietly.

  "There's a few seconds' delay’ Reeve explained. ' Should be more but your Doctor friend has done something to boost the signal, but there's still a delay before they hear us, and another before we hear their reply.'

  'I had a teacher like that,' Amy told him.

  'I'll give you guys some privacy,' Reeve said, 'I gather the Doctor wants to talk technical to you without 107

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  us non-techies getting confused and interrupting.'

  'I hope he was n't too rude about it,' Amy called after Reeve as he left. He closed the door behind him, leaving Amy alone in the room.

  'Pond - good to talk to you.' The Doctor's voice was slightly tinny over the speakers. ' Sorry I'm stuck down here. What do you mean?' he sounded suddenly offended.

  'Of course I wasn't rude.'

  'A few seconds' delay’ Amy said. "This is going to be fun.'

  'Now the first thing you need to know,' the Doctor said, 'is that there's a slight delay... Oh - you do know. So it'll be a few seconds before you hear my reply to your question.'

  'Gotcha.'

  'But I expect Reeve's clued you in, so you probably know that too, right?'

  'I do.'

  'What do you mean "Gotcha"? '

  'No, no - that was last time. The Gotcha was for the slight delay bit.'