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The Doctor heard Stotz call, ‘Krelper, go and get the
cutting gear!’ Then, ‘Doctor? Now listen, Doctor, be
reasonable. This isn’t going to do you any good!’
The Doctor glanced at the screen, now entirely filled by
the planetary surface. ‘Sorry, we’ll be touching down in
about two minutes. Or more probably crashing down! You
see I’m a bit out of practice with manual landings. So if I
were you Stotzy, I’d find something firm to hang on to!’
‘I’ll murder you when I get in there, Doctor,’ bellowed
Stotz.
Seconds later, the Doctor heard a hissing sound from
the control-room door. He glanced round and saw the
glowing tip of a thermic lance carving through the metal of
the cabin door like a red-hot knife-tip through rice-paper.
With astonishing speed the lance sliced a jagged square
panel out of the door. Punched from the outside, the panel
dropped into the control room with a clang.
Through the resultant gap the Doctor saw an enraged
Stotz, glaring at him. Stotz reached his hand through the
hole to open the door and gave a yell of agony as his wrist
touched the still red-hot rim of the gap.
Abandoning the idea, he levelled his machine-pistol at
the Doctor. ‘All right, snoop. Hands in the air. Come over
here and open that door.’
‘Why?’
‘Because I’ll kill you if you don’t!’
The Doctor laughed. ‘Not a very persuasive argument,
actually, Stotz, because I’m going to die anyway. Unless of
course...’
‘I’ll give you till a count of three,’ screamed Stotz. ‘One!’
Quite unperturbed the Doctor went on. ‘Unless of
course I can find the antidote...’
‘Two!’
‘I owe it to my friend Peri to try because I got her into
this. So you see, I’m not going to let you stop me now!’
The Doctor closed his eyes.
On the screen, the surface of Androzani Minor rushed
closer...
10
Mud Burst!
‘Three!’ yelled Stotz.
His finger tightened on the trigger – and the ship
slammed into the desert surface of Androzani Minor.
Stotz was thrown back, clear across the corridor.
The Doctor stabbed at the controls, opening the door on
the far side of the room and the exit hatch beyond.
By the time Stotz got the door open and came running
into the control room the Doctor was out of the ship and
haring across the desert.
Krelper and Stark, the other surviving gun-runner,
came tumbling into the control room behind Stotz.
‘Get after him!’ yelled Stotz, and waved them onwards.
Something jingled against Stotz’s foot.
He picked it up. It was a section of broken twisted
handcuff. Angrily Stotz hurled it across the control room.
The Doctor was sprinting like a hare across the bare and
sandy desert surface of Androzani Minor, with Krelper and
Stark at his heels.
Every now and again, the bullets from their machine-
pistols kicked up spurts of sand close to the Doctor’s body.
However, since the Doctor was ducking and weaving and
the gun-runners found it hard to run and shoot straight at
the same time, none of the bullets hit him.
The Doctor ran into an area of dunes and was at last
able to find some cover.
Krelper and Stark came to a halt, scanning the country
ahead of them.
‘That way,’ shouted Krelper. ‘He went down that ridge!’
The Doctor popped into sight behind a distant dune,
and then disappeared again.
‘Come on,’ yelled Krelper. ‘After him. Get him!’
Stumbling and clumsy in the soft sand, the two gun-
runners ran after the Doctor.
An alarm-light flashed on Stotz’s yid-console and the angry
face of Morgus appeared on the screen. ‘Stotz, why have
you disobeyed my orders? I told you to stay in orbit.’
‘I’m sorry, sir,’ said Stotz wearily. ‘The Doctor tricked
us. Somehow he got control of the ship, and – ‘
Morgus cut him short. ‘I don’t want excuses. I’m on my
way to join you. Put out a homing beacon.’
‘You’re coming here?’
‘Yes. My future plans may have to be changed
drastically. I am in beta-drive, so expect me shortly.’
‘Something wrong?’
The screen went blank. Morgus had broken the
connection.
Stotz stared worriedly at the empty screen. He could
sense danger.
Chellak and Salateen were leading their advance party
towards Sharaz Jek’s secret base.
Salateen halted the men at a point where several tunnels
met.
Chellak came up beside him. ‘Trouble, Major?’
‘Not too sure of the route from here, sir. I thought I’d
memorised it pretty thoroughly but...’
‘Take your time.’
‘I remember this cave well enough, sir. The vaulted roof,
those pillars there. I’d swear we’re only a few yards from
Sharaz Jek’s headquarters now.’
Chellak turned to the men. ‘Safety catches off. Stay on
the alert.’
‘The trouble is, I was coming out of one of those
tunnels, and trying to keep an eye on the girl at the same
time.’
Chcllak produced a chart from his belt-pouch. ‘I think
we came this way when we first landed. There’s a
ventilation shaft on the left that runs through to the old
refinery. But the rest is unknown territory. We just haven’t
surveyed this level yet.’
‘I’m pretty sure now, sir. It’s that opening there, on the
left. I remember dragging the girl over that rock-fall.’
Chellak nodded. ‘You’d better go forwards and recce. I’ll
call Red Force to hold their advance, don’t want them leap-
frogging us.’
Beckoning to a couple of men to follow him, Salateen
moved forwards.
They moved cautiously down the left-hand tunnel.
Suddenly an android stepped out in front of them. It
surveyed them with the single eye set into the white-
domed head.
‘Come on, keep moving,’ said Salateen quietly. ‘It won’t
fire at the belt-plate.’
They were his last words – the android shot him down.
As Salateen fell dying, his men opened fire. More
androids appeared and soon a fierce fire-light was raging in
the narrow tunnels.
Salateen’s two men were soon mown down, but by now
Chellak’s men were moving up the tunnels in force and the
androids were blasted in their turn.
Chellak went and knelt beside Salateen’s body for a
moment. He checked the pulse, but there was no sign of
life. Salateen’s blue eyes stared sightlessly at the roof of the
tunnel.
Gently Chellak closed them. He rose, grim-faced, and
led his men forwards.
The burst of energy that had carried the Doctor through
his escape from the space-ship was fading now and his
weakened body was beginning to tire.
The gun-runners pounded remorselessly after him.
They were gaining now, their bullets coming ever closer.
The Doctor found himself running towards an
exceptionally steep dune. He began stumbling wearily
towards the top, his aching muscles screaming for rest.
He was almost at the top when he stumbled and fell.
Rolling over and over he tumbled to the bottom.
For a moment the Doctor lay there in the soft sand, too
exhausted even to move. Wearily he struggled to his feet.
A voice said, ‘It’s all over, Doctor!’
He turned and saw Krelper silhouetted on the top of a
nearby dune.
Krelper raised his machine-pistol. It was an easy shot,
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