Part 38 (1/2)

'Your pilot's ready to leave,' said Chris.

The Doctor decided to ask later. They clambered up the ladder into the shuttle. The Doctor shut the airlock and the s.h.i.+p immediately lifted off, throwing them against a wall. It was a moment before the stabilizers cut in.

The shuttle was small, c.o.c.kpit, lounge area, facilities and storage. The Doctor ran forward. Roz was glaring at the controls, hands moving fast. 'They've launched an interceptor,' she said.

'They're going to shoot us down?'

'No. It'll just use force fields to suck us into its cargo bay. It's three times as fast as we are.'

'Keep going maybe we'll think of something,' said the Doctor. He leant heavily on the door frame. The changes had stopped, at least. Or they were so subtle now he wasn't noticing.

'I don't believe it,' said Roz. 'That interceptor just changed course. It's heading away from us. Look.'

The Doctor checked the tactical screen. 'There's nothing on its course,' he said. 'It's chasing a ghost.'

'Your doing?' said Roz.

He shook his head. 'Thank you, Lady Genevieve,' he said.

The Doctor and Chris stared at each other.

The Model Citizen Model Citizen was a standard, comfortable shuttle design was a standard, comfortable shuttle design c.o.c.kpit, a cabin like a lounge, a kitchen and facilities. There were 267 six seats, in rows beneath the windows, facing one another across the cabin.

The Doctor and Chris sat opposite each other and stared.

'It's good to see you again,' said the Pontifex Saecularis, at last.

'When did you last see me?' the Doctor asked, cautiously.

'Nine no, ten years ago,' said Chris. 'In subjective time, anyway.' He looked down. 'Look, there's no easy way to say this. You died. On Yemaya.'

The Doctor nodded. 'The story had a different ending.' He held up a hand. 'Don't bother with how. It doesn't matter. We only have a few minutes anyway.'

The c.o.c.kpit door slid open, the pilot standing in the doorway.

'Roslyn!' said the Pontifex. 'I didn't dare believe it.'

She took a good, long look at him. He was surprised how much that look could rattle him, even after all these years.

'Nice boots,' she said.

'Thanks,' he said. 'Lady Forrester you are the Lady Roslyn Forrester?'

Roz stared. 'Not exactly. I knew I couldn't let you two out of my sight without something something happening.' happening.'

'There's a second Nexus in the solar system,' said the Doctor.

Roz listened to the Time Lord, but she wouldn't take her eyes off Chris. The Pontifex found himself s.h.i.+fting in his seat like a nervous schoolboy.

The Doctor had taken out his abacus, muttering to himself.

'They have control of it. But not real control, not full control.'

Chris nodded. 'Or they wouldn't have needed to interrogate us.

They could have just whisked us out of existence.' He made a gesture with his hand. 'Whoosh, and we're gone.'

The Doctor looked at him. 'And they certainly wouldn't have chosen this particular Chris out of all the possibilities.'

'How'd you make Pontifex?' Roz wanted to know.

'I'm carrying SLEEPY around in my temporal lobe,' said Chris. He felt her horror even before her expression changed.

'I'm ludicrously telepathic. Don't worry, I'm not reading your mind. I don't bother unless I need to.'

'Like when you're questioning a criminal,' said Roz. 'I see.'

268.

'I wonder what they told Walid,' Chris said.

'The same thing they told Armand,' said the Doctor. 'That they had a weapon, or a tool, depending on how you look at it, capable of altering reality.'

'So they kidnapped you two to demonstrate it?' said Roz.

'No,' said the Doctor. 'Walid left in a hurry just after we were taken prisoner. Ah.' He beamed at the abacus. 'I think I know just where.'

'You can't be certain until the conjunction ends,' said Chris.

'No. But I have a pretty good idea.' The Doctor turned to Roz.

'You were supposed to run for it at the first sign of trouble,' he said sternly.

'Be real,' said Roz. 'I'd have been a cloud of expanding vapour the moment they got a lock on me.'

'They had what they wanted. Why waste ammunition on a low-ranking pilot?'

'Maybe. They're ignoring us right now, and I'll just bet you two know why.'

'Genevieve,' said Chris. 'She used her security access codes to confuse and disable part of the security systems. And then there's me. Doctor, there are only ninety seconds left in the conjunction.'

'What's that mean?' demanded Roz.

'It means I can't keep up this telepathic screen much longer,'

said Chris. 'When it drops, we're going to appear on a lot of screens. Despite the confusion on the ground, there are at least three pursuit s.h.i.+ps in our vicinity.'

'There's something I'd like to try,' said the Doctor.

Chris read what he wanted right off the surface of his conscious thoughts. 'd.a.m.n, that's devious. All right. But just a moment.'