Part 8 (2/2)

The Doctor returned his stare. 'A discerning fellow I can tell.' He looked down at his white linen suit muddy trousers. 'Surely you can see I'm an archaeologist.' He leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, 'I have been told it's written all over me.'

Slowly Bannahilk lowered his disruptor. After a second Fortalexa raised his sharply upwards, set the safety and re*holstered it.

'Hi, Benny,' said Ace.

Benny hugged her tight for a moment, and Ace could feel the tension in her arms. 'I'm so glad you're here,' she murmured to Ace.

'Now then,' said the Doctor, smiling round the group gathered in front of him, 'what exactly has has been happening here?' been happening here?'

It never ceased to amaze Bernice how quickly the Doctor could win over a crowd of people and persuade them he was a friend come to help. With only scant character and professional references from Benny he was able impress Gilmanuk, Klasvik and even Lannic with his comments on the theatre; he was able to persuade Bannahilk to give him a summary of the situation and events of the expedition; and he was able to convince everyone that he and Ace had crash*landed at the far end of the tunnel, just out of sight of the lander, while coming to visit their old friend Benny and see how she was getting on. The fact that they were virtually in a war zone, far from the established s.p.a.ce routes, and Benny had had no time to tell anyone where she was off to was quickly glossed over and shrugged off to everyone's satisfaction.

The Doctor had listened carefully to Bannahilk's account of events, his brow furrowing deeper with each revelation. 'Tell me some more about this machine, the Doctor asked.

'Well Fortalexa's the expert.'

'I'll show you, that's probably easiest.' Fortalexa led the way back up through the theatre. The others followed. Benny and Ace waited till last.

'I must say this is very good of you.' The Doctor s voice floated down to them.

'Well I suppose we'd better hear the pearls of wisdom. Then I'll tell you what we've been up to.' Ace made to follow the others.

Benny caught her arm. 'You're right. But before we go, there's something else. Let me tell you what happened when I found the machine what finally persuaded me to call for you.'

The Doctor was enmeshed in a tangle of wires spewing out of the machine's control panel within a moment of Fortalexa agreeing to let him have a look inside. 'You know, this is fascinating,' he said somewhat redundantly as he hooked another wire over his ear. 'Hold this a minute, would you?' He shoved a transparent circuit cube vaguely in Krayn's direction. Krayn took it, surprised.

The Doctor's face appeared for a brief moment from thin the mess. 'Thank you so much,' he grinned, then went under again.

From the far side of the room Benny and Ace watched as they discussed recent events.

'So it's a sort of dream machine, I suppose,' Benny finished.

'Which projects plays.'

Benny nodded. 'Like Hamlet Hamlet.'

'You think there's a connection?'

'Don't you?'

'Must be. We'll ask the Doctor.' Ace glanced over to where the Doctor's hand was reaching up from beneath the machine, groping for a particular switch out of above him. 'If we ever get the chance,' she added.

With a flurry of activity the Doctor was back on his feet, wires and circuitry disappearing miraculously back inside the machine's casing. 'That should do it!' He peered at one of the read*outs. 'That should give us a list of the plays programmed into this thing.'

Lannic pushed forward. She had been watching nervously as the Doctor tinkered with her greatest treasure. Ace heard her sharp inhalation across the room. She looked at Benny and they joined the others.

'This is incredible.' Lannic was reading down the list scrolling through the t.i.tles by drawing her finger down the read*out screen. 'All three plays of The Oresteia, Death's Bane, Love's Labour's Won The Oresteia, Death's Bane, Love's Labour's Won,' she read out.

Ace craned to see as Lannic kept reading, but the screen was just a blur from where she stood.

'You're right, Fortalexa, there are about fifty plays including Hamlet Hamlet ' She broke off. For a moment she was silent, then she turned to face the others, her face drained of colour. ' She broke off. For a moment she was silent, then she turned to face the others, her face drained of colour.

'What is it what's wrong?' Gilmanuk was immediately concerned.

'The list.' They could all hear the disbelief in her voice. 'One of the plays is The Good Soldiers The Good Soldiers.'

The commotion was immediate and prolonged. The archaeologists crowded round noisily, each wanting to see for themselves. Even Fortalexa and Bannahilk seemed impressed.

Ace shook her head, confused. 'What's so interesting?'

Benny was surprised. 'You've never heard of The Good Soldiers The Good Soldiers?'

'Afraid not, though I've met a few.'

'The Good Soldiers was written by Stannoff Osterling in 2273.' The Doctor was suddenly standing between them. 'It was universally acclaimed as the greatest ever work of one of the two greatest every playwrights. Accounts of the first performance and some critical reviews survive, but the ma.n.u.script has been lost for centuries. Except for some pages found on Mordee by Zagglan Crichley in the the mid*thirtieth century and extracts quoted in the reviews and critiques, little is known about it save a brief outline of the plot in a children's story*book.' The Doctor smiled at Ace and she could tell he was limbering up for the full lecture. It could take a while. 'The story concerns six survivors of the battle of Limlough ' was written by Stannoff Osterling in 2273.' The Doctor was suddenly standing between them. 'It was universally acclaimed as the greatest ever work of one of the two greatest every playwrights. Accounts of the first performance and some critical reviews survive, but the ma.n.u.script has been lost for centuries. Except for some pages found on Mordee by Zagglan Crichley in the the mid*thirtieth century and extracts quoted in the reviews and critiques, little is known about it save a brief outline of the plot in a children's story*book.' The Doctor smiled at Ace and she could tell he was limbering up for the full lecture. It could take a while. 'The story concerns six survivors of the battle of Limlough '

'Thanks Doctor. I get the picture.'

The Doctor looked hurt and Benny turned away to hide her smile. 'You don't want to hear about it, Ace?' He seemed genuinely surprised.

'Perhaps another time.'

He considered this. Then he nodded pensively, Another time it is. We have lots of those.'

'I'll examine it here.' Fortalexa was insistent. 'It will be less noisy and I'd prefer to figure it out alone.' He looked to Bannahilk. 'If you can spare me, sir.'

Bannahilk nodded. 'Yes, let's get this sorted out, then we can finish up here and be away before things get too hot.'

Fortalexa went on quickly, 'I'd like your help, Doctor, if you can spare the time.'

The Doctor seemed surprised. 'What me? Oh of course. Thank you.' He beamed round at everyone. 'But I should like a short time to talk with Professor Summerfield,. If I may. We've so much to catch up on. And it must be time for tea.'

The Doctor commented on everything they pa.s.sed on their way to the lander. He was especially scathing of Tashman and Krayn's attempts at steps, pouring sarcasm on their efforts as he hauled himself up each huge block of compacted mud.

'I wouldn't like to have to climb that in a hurry,' he commented to Lannic when they reached the top. He glared at Tashman, who shrugged his indifference. 'Or while transporting anything bulky or valuable,' the Doctor continued, 'Like that machine, for example.'

It hit home immediately. And while the others continued their journey, Tashman and Krayn found themselves back at the water cannon. Benny threw them a backwards glance as she hurried down the corridor after everyone else. She had been tempted to stay with Fortalexa, but she doubted he would accept that, and anyway she was the Doctor's excuse for a tour of the excavation and the lander. Ahead of her she could hear the Doctor muttering criticisms about the uneven tunnel floor to anyone within earshot.

In fact the only thing the Doctor was not critical of was the strange and sudden presence of another artefact standing a foot deep in water just outside the end of the tunnel, a short way from the lander. Instead he suggested that they had all missed it initially because the rain had been heavier. Lannic was enthralled and sent Bannahilk off to get a loader so they could carry it into the hold.

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