Doctor Who: The Sensorites (8 page)

To prove their good
faith the Sensorites had agreed to introduce John to their scientists
who would attempt to cure him. In return, Barbara and Maitland were
to remain on board the spaceship as hostages in the company of an
armed Sensorite warrior.

As the TARDIS crew,
Carol and John and their Sensorite escort prepared to leave the
spaceship and board the shuttle craft which had been sent up from the
Sense-Sphere, one of the Sensorites took the Doctor aside.

'Ten years ago,
five humans landed on the Sense-Sphere,' he began tentatively. The
Doctor urged him to continue,

'Our planet
welcomed them. Their minds were closed against us, but we sensed they
thought our planet was a rich one; slowly we began to feel the greed
in their hearts as they longed to exploit our mineral wealth.

'Then the five men
quarrelled. Two of them took off in their ship which exploded a mile
in the atmosphere.'

'What happened to
the others?' asked the Doctor.

'We imagined they
hid themselves aboard and fought for control of the ship. Anyway, all
were killed.'

'My dear sir, I can
assure you that we have no intention of robbing you of your precious
molybdenum if that's what concerns you,' repeated the Doctor.

'That is good,'
said the Sensorite. 'But ever since that day our people have been
dying in greater numbers each year, stricken by some unknown
disease.'

Ian had joined the
Doctor and the Sensorite. 'Could it have been caused by radioactive
fall-out from the rocket?' he suggested.

'Perhaps: the power
source of their ship was of a type unknown to us. Our people are
dying: soon the Sensorite Nation will be no more . . .' The Sensorite
diplomatically approached the point of his speech: 'The First Elder
says that he senses great wisdom in you, Doctor. . .'

The Doctor crowed
with satisfaction. 'I sense some bargaining ahead of us,' he said. 'I
take it you will only accede to our demands when I can find a cure
for this disease. Is that so?'

The Sensorite
nodded.

'Very well then.'
The Doctor agreed: in truth he had no choice. He crossed over to
Barbara. 'Reluctant as I am to leave you, my dear, I'm afraid we have
no alternative,' he said.

Barbara smiled.
'I'll be all right,' she reassured him. 'I'm just worried about you.'

'Oh, I dare say
I'll manage . . .'he boasted. 'Now, come along, Susan, Chesterton.'
He beckoned his companions to follow him and marched away toward the
spaceship's docking bay.

As the Doctor's
party made their way to the awaiting Sensorite ship, Barbara and
Maitland waved them goodbye under the watchful
eye of their Sensorite guard.

Despite the
Doctor's assurances, Barbara felt distinctly uneasy. If the Doctor
could not find a cure for the disease that was killing the Sensorites
what would happen to them all? Without the TARDIS they would be
trapped forever in this forgotten corner of time and space with no
chance of ever returning home. Or perhaps the Sensorites would kill
them, not prepared to let them stand by as their race died off one by
one? Or perhaps they too would fall victim to the disease that was
ravaging the Sense-Sphere?

All their fates
rested with the Doctor, as they had done so many times before. But
could even the Doctor save an entire race from extinction?

Hidden Danger

Bounded to the
north and west by a range of yellow mountains, and to the south and
east by a great blue lake and a lush forest, the Sensorites' City was
a haven of beauty and serenity. The sun sparkled down on the domed
buildings and crystalline towers of the City, which in turn reflected
the sun's light in a thousand different colours. Here and there in
secluded gardens Sensorites would stop to talk, their conversations
uninterrupted save for the noise of cascading fountains, and the
gentle songs of birds.

Most magnificent of
all the buildings in the City was the Palace of the Elders, a
brilliant blue crystal dome, built on massive arches and towers, and
soaring above all else in the City. It was here in this Palace in a
small simply furnished chamber at the very apex of the dome that the
First and Second Elders of the Sensorite Nation were seated in
discussion. The subject of their conversation was the imminent
arrival of the Doctor and his party.

The physical
appearance of the two Sensorite leaders was almost identical. Apart
from the two black sashes which the First Elder wore criss-crossed
across his chest, and the single sash worn by the Second Elder, they
were virtually indistinguishable.

Hovering around the
First Elder's splendid golden throne and hanging on to his two
superiors' every word was the City Administrator, a small dumpy
Sensorite distinguishable by the black band around his neck. From
time to time other Sensorites would enter the chamber, bringing
flasks of sparkling water and bowls of fruit.

'Why should we
welcome to our planet the same creatures who have been the cause of
our destruction?' The Second Elder wanted to know. 'The deaths of our
people will increase if these humans are allowed on the
Sense-Sphere.'

'I am the ruler of
this planet, and I have decided to use the humans to
investigate the deaths of our people,' the First Elder declared
firmly. 'Sometimes we must fight fire with fire...'

'The First Elder
makes a wise decision,' ingratiated the Administrator. Neither the
First nor the Second Elder paid him an attention.

'These
Earth-creatures are loud and ugly things,' continued the Second
Elder. 'Why could we not meet them in the desert or the mountains?'

'It is the failure
of all beings that they judge through their own eyes,' the First
Elder answered patiently. 'To them, we may appear ugly.' The
Administrator let out an involuntary gasp of astonishment as the
First Elder continued: 'What we must cultivate between ourselves is
trust: that is why I have invited them to the Palace.'

'There are animals
in our deserts and forests, but we do not invite them into our
palaces,' argued the Second Elder. 'How can we be sure that these
Earth-creatures are not animals also?'

'Do not
underestimate them!' cautioned the First Elder. 'Do we possess a ship
that can traverse the borders of the Universe?' he asked, standing up
and moving over to a circular table upon which lay a short metallic
cylinder - the TARDIS lock. 'This strange mechanism my Warriors
brought to me looks like an ordinary lock, but our research proves it
to be in reality an electronic miracle which reveals a mind of
science far beyond our own.

'It belongs to the
one known as the Doctor. His mind was quick to realise our weakness
in the dark and to use it against us - but not unfairly, merely to
protect the girl called Susan. I sense great wisdom and compassion in
him; perhaps he can help us where our own scientists have failed.'

The First Elder
finally acknowledged the fawning presence of his Administrator and
asked for his opinion on the matter.

'Sir, you were
elected to lead our people because of your great brain,' he gushed.
'I would not dare to question your actions.'

The First Elder's
tone was critical. 'Sometimes no opinion can be worse than a very
dogmatic one,' he said, leaving the chamber and taking the TARDIS
lock with him.

As the door closed
on the Sensorite leader the Second Elder looked curiously at the
Adminstrator. 'You need not fear me,' he reassured him. 'You may
speak your mind.'

The Administrator
approached him with the air of a conspirator. 'You are his second
opinion, yet he makes his decision without consulting you ..."
he began cunningly, playing on the Second Elder's ego.

'He makes a wise
decision.'

'But based on
trust! Do you trust these Earth-creatures?'

The Second Elder
turned away, unwilling to answer the question. 'The decision of the
First Elder cannot be set aside,' he said loyally.

'I would not
suggest such a thing,' the Administrator lied. 'But his mind is pure
- naive. We are realists.' He took a long breath before saying, 'That
is why I have beamed the Disintegrator into this room.'

'Without
permission!' cried the Second Elder, evidently greatly shocked. 'You
are being presumptuous!'

'I am the City
Administrator. It is my duty to protect the City and the One Who
Rules. If the Earth-creatures use force or commit one suspicious
action, the Disintegrator will eradicate them.'

The Second Elder
regarded his junior thoughtfully. He did not trust the
Earth-creatures as did the First Elder, and perhaps there was some
justification for the Administrator's action. After all, the
Earth-creatures were aliens: who could know what their motives might
be?

Finally he said,
'Very well. But you will do nothing until I have considered the
matter fully.' He walked slowly out of the room.

As he did so the
Administrator called after him: 'I am acting for the good of the
Sensorite Nation. We shall not be safe until these Earth-creatures
are dead!'

The journey down
from Maitland's ship to the Sense-Sphere had been swift. Despite
their fascination with the City's dazzling beauty the Doctor's party
were relieved when they finally reached the enclosed forecoun of the
Palace of the Elders. Throughout the short trip from the shuttle
landing bay to the Palace they had been the subject of wary stares from passing
Sensorites who backed away at their approach. It was exactly as if
they had the plague, thought the Doctor, and then realised that that
was precisely what the Sensorites believed. He made his feelings
known to the Sensorite Warrior who had escorted them down to the
planet.

'Earth people are
not. . . popular,' he agreed. 'They fear that you may bring disease
and death to our people.'

'We must explain to
them that this disease - if that's what it is - is nobody's fault,'
advised the Doctor. 'And besides, there are cures and remedies for
every malady.'

The Sensorite
indicated his agreement, but then wagged a finger of warning at the
Doctor. 'Let the Elders explain this to the people,' he said. 'You
are forbidden to talk to the lower castes.'

Susan raised an
eyebrow of surprise. 'Lower castes?' she asked. 'Do you have such
distinctions?'

'Of course,' said
the Warrior, as surprised at Susan's question as she was at him. 'How
else can we tell what each is best fitted to do? The Elders think and
rule, the Warriors fight, and the Sensorites work and play.'

The Doctor chuckled
to himself, rather glad that Barbara was not here. She would have had
a few things to say about this over-simplistic view of a well-ordered
society.

'All are happy . .
.' protested the Sensorite, anticipating Susan's objections.

'. . . but some are
happier than others,' finished Ian, amused in spite of himself at the
Sensorites' naivety.

'I do not
understand,' their escort pursued. 'There is no disgrace in being a
member of one of the lower castes. It is simply what one is best
fitted to do.'

They approached the
inner building of the Palace and the Warrior led them into a lift to
take them up to the Chamber of the First Elder. As he did so, John
clutched at Carol's arm, breaking the silence he had kept ever since
landing on the Sense-Sphere.

'They're near us
now,' he said fearfully. 'I can feel an evil mind. . .'

Carol started to
question him further, but Susan stopped her. 'His mind is open: he
can tell the difference between good and evil people,' she reminded
her, and then looked at the disturbed
astronaut. 'What is it, John? What are you trying to tell us?'

But John was silent
again, unable to put into words the anxieties he felt in his mind. As
he and the two girls followed the others into the lift, a figure
emerged from his hiding place behind the greenery. His fears
confirmed, the City Administrator rushed down one of the walkways to
the Disintegrator Room.

These creatures
were dangerous: it was time to destroy them.

The Disintegrator
Room was located almost directly underneath the Palace of the Elders,
and formed part of the Science Block where Sensorite scientists
and engineers busied themselves in their appointed tasks.

The Disintegrator
itself was a huge complex of computer banks and consoles, capable of
beaming a ray of white hot energy to any point in the City. A remnant
of the Sensorites' warring past, it had been carefully preserved and
was still kept in a state of permanent maintenance. It was now used
primarily as an excavating machine: its carefully precisioned laser
could cut through solid rock more easily than any conventional tool.

As the
Administrator entered the room a Sensorite engineer acknowledged his
presence and stood to attention.

'Is all prepared?'
the Administrator asked his accomplice.

The Engineer nodded
towards the main control console of the Disintegrator. 'All I need is
the Firing Key.'

The Administrator
handed him a long transparent plastic tube, filled with intricate
microcircuitry. The Engineer took it from him and inserted it into a
purpose-built socket on the console. The unit immediately buzzed into
life.

'The Disintegrator
ray must be beamed directly on the Chamber of the First Elder,'
instructed the Administrator, and handed the Engineer five strips of
punched plastic. 'Five places have been assigned to the
Earth-creatures; these are the co-ordinates. In each case you must
aim at their hearts: that way we can be sure of eradicating them.'

The Engineer fed
the five plastic strips into a slot at the side of the machine, and
then drew his superior's attention to a small video screen
on the unit. Across the screen moved five green dots: the thermal
traces of the Doctor, Ian, Susan, Carol and John. 'The Disintegrator
is now beamed and ready,' he said. 'Once the Earth-creatures enter
the room and take their positions I shall fire.'