Part 32 (1/2)

'And?' asked Denman.

'Jack needs needs this,' said the Doctor mysteriously. He shook the test tube gingerly. this,' said the Doctor mysteriously. He shook the test tube gingerly.

'Jack's just a myth,' said Trevor suddenly, though his nervous eyes belied the strength of his words.

'You think so?' said the Doctor sharply. 'A myth with a predilection for human bodies and souls.' His eyes looked beyond the scared humans and out into the cosmos. 'Hakol,'

he said slowly, 'is a place of nightmares.'

'Sorry?'

'It's in the star system Rifter,' said the Doctor. 'I'm starting to see what Jack is.'

'What?' asked Denman, braking suddenly. The car came to a shuddering halt.

'Something terrifying,' said the Doctor. 'I've watched entire planets reduced to lifeless husks by creatures like this.' He stared out of the window, watching the traffic that sped past.

His forehead was creased with worry. 'A Hakolian invasion takes place in three stages. Firstly, a reconnaissance probe is sent to a likely world to check for psychic energy. If that is found in high enough measure, a battle vehicle is dispatched.

The probe and the war creature are designed to function in tandem during the second stage, enslaving numerous individuals and destroying any potential opposition. They feed on hate and fear, channelling the psychic energy of the indigenous population. The bloodshed rises to a crescendo.

Only when the conflict is over will the Hakolians arrive in person.'

'So that thing in Hodcombe you told us about...?'

'The Malus?'

'Yeah,' said Trevor. 'That was the probe?'

The Doctor nodded. 'The psychic energy released by a minor skirmish between Royalists and Cromwell's Parliamentary forces in 1643 woke it up for a while. It a.s.sessed the area, found the surrounding life forms to be full of superst.i.tion and fear, and thus suitable for the people of Hakol. It sent an invasion signal, and became dormant again.

Waiting. Forty years later the battle creature arrived. Only it missed the target by a few miles, and fell on Hexen Bridge.'

'Jack?'

The Doctor dodged the question. 'You know, I always meant to go back and find out why the Hakolians didn't invade Earth after we destroyed the Malus, but I never got around to it. A mistake on my part.' He paused, as if unused to admitting failure. 'We know that the reconnaissance probe malfunctioned at some stage. The battle vehicle, what you call Jack i' the Green, never joined with the Malus. The Hakolians must have a.s.sumed that one or both were destroyed. Perhaps they quietly abandoned any idea of conquering Earth, on the a.s.sumption that if the creatures who lived there were strong enough to defeat either their probe, or their war machine, then it wasn't worth the effort.'

The Doctor beamed delightedly. 'See, there's normally a simple explanation for everything!'

'So Jack is a... machine?' asked Rebecca.

'It's partly a living thing, just like the Malus. A creature with enormous psychic power. Ultimately, the Malus was able to convert that mental energy into a number of actual physical manifestations. Who knows what Jack is capable of...?'

Trevor scratched his head. 'But why is Jack waking up? If he - it - hasn't received any orders to invade...'

'Ah,' said the Doctor. 'Good point.' His fingers formed a steeple in front of his face, deep in thought. 'Either Jack is malfunctioning, too - blindly carrying out its original instructions, just as the Malus did...'

'Or?'

A dark look crossed the Doctor's face. ”What if Jack's orders have been revised? The intent - to destroy and invade - would remain the same, but the means would change.' He swung around to Denman. 'Put your foot down,' he said.

They approached the Chinese restaurant from the rear. Even from a distance they could see that something was very wrong with A Taste of the Orient. An enormous hole gaped in the gla.s.s and metal of the conservatory, and scorch marks stretched up the walls of the main building.

'Fire,' said Ace, as the smell of burning hit her. 'Looks like it's been put out.'

'I know who did this,' said Steven with a snarl, giving Joanna an ominous glance as he led them into the restaurant.

Inside, the damage was surprisingly light. A spent fire extinguisher lay on a large patch of charred carpet. Tables had been overturned, and one wall had suffered some damage. Steven bent down to pick up a blackened piece of gla.s.s. A partly charred paper label still clung to it. He held it up to Joanna.

'A vodka bottle,' he said bitterly. Now, I wonder who in Hexen Bridge would have one of those.'

Joanna looked away, tearfully.

Behind them, someone moved over broken gla.s.s.

Ace and Steven spun around.

'Steven?' said a voice from the darkness.

'Mother?'

'I was so worried,' said the small woman, flinging herself into his arms. 'You must come with me quickly. There has been a fire.'

'I can see that. I should have been here!' Steven looked at his mother closely. 'Are you all right?'

'Yes, but Mr l.u.s.ton and his wife were badly burnt, and your father is ill.'

'Is he in hospital?'

'No, he is in the kitchen. We... We don't want to leave the building. Something's happening on the green.'