Post by Fitz Kreiner on Jan 2, 2010 19:31:30 GMT
16
Wasting My Hate.
Wasting My Hate.
“What is this?”
The Doctor’s question made Ulrich look up from where he was now sat, working. He felt guilty and hugely uncomfortable in doing so, but what choice did he have? He could do nothing but watch as the Cyber leader reached towards the Doctor and placed a wire skull cap, not too dissimilar from the ones that the previously missing crewmen and the Doctor’s young friend were wearing. He winced as the Doctor screamed out. It was like no scream he had ever heard before; a mixture of pain, sorrow and agony. He could only imagine what horrors the Cybermen were inflicting on the stranger.
The scream seemed to echo around the Gravitron control for minutes, even though the Doctor was now looking more and more placid. Ulrich watched as his face twisted from agony to peace, then to what appeared to be a blank expression. His eyes opened and stared blankly ahead, and he straightened. The Cybermen to either side of him let go of him and his arms dropped to his sides.
The Cyber leader reached back up to the skull cap and removed the black wire it had plugged into it, returning it to where it came from at the back of its head.
“Raise your right arm,” the silver creature said.
Ulrich watched as the Doctor seemingly complied.
“Drop,”
Obeying, the Doctor’s arm dropped back to his side.
“Raise your left arm,”
Again, the Doctor obeyed, continuing to stare blankly ahead.
“Drop,” the Cyberman stepped back and raised its hand to its chest. A thin areal slid up and the creature held its hand flat, palm down, to its chest. “Control has been established,” it said, before falling silent as if receiving a silent reply. “Understood,” the areal slid back down into its home in the chest unit as the Cyberman turned.
The Cyber leader was receiving instructions or orders from someone or something else. Ulrich’s eyes widened as he realised this. Was someone controlling the Cybermen or was there a higher power Cyberman who had not entered the base? Ulrich felt a chill go down his spine at the thought. There could possibly be an even greater threat than the five Cybermen in the base.
“Wolfe,”
The Cyberman’s electronic voice brought Ulrich rapidly out of his reverie. He knew that Wolfe and the science team were in league with the Cybermen, but there was something about watching the Professor walk stiffly over to the Cyberman that sent another shiver down his spine. How easily these creatures seemed to control people, and how great a sense of anxiety they seemed to inflict upon the rest, including him.
“The T-Mat operation will begin immediately,” the Cyberman said.
“I understand,” Wolfe said flatly.
“The Doctor will accompany you. He has great scientific knowledge. Use it.”
“I understand,” Wolfe repeated.
Turning, the Cyber leader faced one of the Cybermen stood flanking the Doctor. “Accompany them. When the task is complete, take him for mind analysis and conversion.”
“Understood,” the Cyberman replied.
Ulrich watched as the three filed out of the dome and towards the science department, a great sense of fear and foreboding descending over him. The Doctor, the only man it seemed who may have had any sway over the Cybermen was now under their control and the metal creatures had complete control over the base and Gravitron. It felt to Ulrich, that there would be no stopping them, from here they would advance to Armstrong and then to the Earth, and nothing would be able to stop them.
*
Christina Miles watched as silently, the Cyberman stepped from the office and into the science lab, its weapon trained on Tom and Christina. Following the young Time Lord, Christina raised her hands, her hatred of these silver creatures almost brimming over. She wanted to run at it, attack it, but the gun it held stopped her. She could see Tom stood just before her, his right hand was held lower than his left and she could see the Cyber gun tucked in his belt. She instantly knew what he was thinking, but she could see that it would be the end of him if he tried it.
Swallowing hard, she took a short step behind him. Where was Anneke? There only seemed to be the three of them in the room now; Tom, the Cyberman and herself. Slowly, the silver creature stepped towards them. The black holes in its head seemed to be boring into her soul. One step after another, it advanced carefully, keeping them covered.
The sickly blue emergency lighting glinted dully off the silver creature, its helmet and faceplate seeming blanker and even more menacing, the blackness of the holes for the eyes seeming blacker. Christina couldn’t tear her eyes off the Cyberman. It seemed even scarier that she had remembered; silent and deadly. She was aware that Tom was fully tensed just before her, seemingly frozen in fear.
“Stay where you are,” the Cyberman said, its head turning slightly to observe the two of them. “Stay where you are.”
“We heard you the first time,” Tom said, grimly, swallowing hard and raising himself to his full height.
Christina took another careful step towards Tom, her left hand now hidden behind the taller man. A quick glance down told her that she could reach the Cyber gun, hopefully without the Cyberman noticing. She just hoped that Tom wouldn’t do anything stupid, or that he could keep it talking, keep it distracted. Where was Anneke? She’d been there moments before.
“Do not move,” the Cyberman said, trying to reiterate its point. It was now mere meters away.
“What do you want with us?” Tom asked.
“You belong to us, you will be like us,” the Cyberman said blankly.
“I don’t think so,” Tom replied.
Christina’s heart skipped a beat. He was about to do something stupid, she could sense it. The experiences he had had with the Space Madness must have affected his reasoning and his brain. He was about to get them all killed. Where the hell was Anneke?
The robotic artificial arm flew out from behind a desk, propelled with some force and struck the Cyberman right in the side of the head with a loud clang. The creature reacted instantly, swinging round to seek out the source of the missile. Its weapon fired with the horrific rattle that Christine was now disturbingly far too familiar with. It fired several times, notebooks and pieces of researched scattering and smouldering under the onslaught.
Christina turned to see what happened, only to find her falling backwards. She looked back to see Tom moving across her. She realised that he’d pushed her back. The world seemed to have moved to a sickening crawl as the young Time Lord moved across her path. He was pulling the Cyber gun out from his belt whilst ducking behind one of the desks.
Hitting the floor with a painful bump, Christina looked up. She couldn’t see the Cyberman anymore, which must mean that it could no longer see her. She quickly pulled her legs up and hid behind the desk as the deadly rattle of the Cyber gun continued to ring out in her ears. The sound of the Cyber gun was interspersed with the sound of scientific equipments being destroyed under the deadly beams.
The sound of the Cyber guns ceased as there was an electronic screech. Taking a chance, Christina peered over the top of the desk she was hiding behind. The Cyberman was slowly collapsing to its knees, smoke billowing from its chest unit and from the eye holes. Watching it collapse, she got to her feet, her hands still trembling. Anneke was rising from behind a desk as well, breathing heavily. She looked round to see Tom already standing, his face grim, holding the Cyber gun out before him, a small wisp of smoke curling from the end.
“That’s another gone,” he said grimly.
“It came from somewhere in Wolfe’s office,” Anneke said, pointing through the large glass window.
“Secret passage,” Christina said. “Do you think that’s a way to their spaceship?”
“A secret tunnel?” Tom muttered as he headed towards the office door. “How bloody clichéd.”
Reaching the entrance to the passage, Tom cautiously peered down the dark recess. The light seemed to darken out after about ten yards. Turning back from the passageway, he crossed back into the science lab, passing Christina and Anneke, attracting puzzled looks from them, until he reached the fallen Cyberman. Tucking the Cyber gun back into his belt, he stooped down and grabbed the Cyberman under the arms and started dragging it back towards the passage.
“What are you doing?” Anneke asked.
“If this silver bastard is found here, they’ll know where we are,” Tom explained, grimacing at his mention of the Cyberman. “Otherwise, they’ll think we’re hiding in the base somewhere.”
Anneke and Christine looked at each other, eyes widening with realisation.
“Three of us against the Cybermen?” Anneke asked.
“Why not?” Tom replied. “They’ve got the Doctor and Jess, and we’ve got to stop them somehow.”
“How?” Christina asked.
Tom shrugged. “Anyone got a torch or something? We’ll need it in that tunnel,” he nodded to the open passageway.
“I’ll have a look,” Christina said, turning to rummage through Wolfe’s desk.
Turning back to Tom, Anneke stepped out of the office and helped him carry the metal creature into the passageway. The passageway was metal, walls riveted roughly together, and the floor was uneven. Anneke stumbled almost immediately she entered the passageway, dropping the Cyberman’s legs.
“nuts,” she muttered, picking herself up and looking into the gloom.
“It’s ok,” Tom said.
There was a dull clang as he dropped the Cyberman’s head and walked back towards the entrance to the passage. Peering through the dull light, Anneke looked at where Tom was looking; there was a small instrument panel on the wall near the door containing only one button. It didn’t take much for her to realise what it was; a door handle.
“The only thing I could find was this,” Christina said, stepping through the doorway, brandishing a small pen light.
“It’ll do,” Tom said pulling her through and into the darkness, putting a finger to his mouth to quieten her as he hit the control and the doorway started to close.
Puzzled, Christina looked back through the closing door in time to see three figures enter the science lab. The first she recognised as Alexis Wolfe, staring straight ahead as with the rest of the science team. She was followed by the Doctor and a Cyberman. The Doctor, she had time to note, had a bizarre and almost flimsy looking, wire skull cap, with red blinking diodes. He was staring blankly ahead, his face flat and expressionless. It seemed as though he were in a trance, although she was sure, as the door closed, that he had caught and held her and Tom’s eyes for a brief second. Then the base was gone, the only light coming from the small pen light she held, which cast an eerie yellow glow on Tom’s features.
“Shall we?” he asked, his expression unreadable in the semi-dark as he turned and started to walk down the corridor.
*
The door to the science department closed as the Cyberman stepped into the room. It was apparent that there had been a fight of some kind in the room, several desk tops were scorched and their computers destroyed.
“What has happened here?” it asked aloud.
“There must have been some rogue elements,” Wolfe replied. “They must have fled.”
“They will be found,” the Cyberman said, its chest areal raising. “Proceed with your work.”
Turning, the Cyberman made its report to the leader as the Doctor and Wolfe walked to the T-Mat cubicle, sat incongruously in the corner of the lab. Stopping just back from the cubicle, Wolfe raised her arm.
“Prepare the generator housing and particle receptor for immediate transference,” she said, directing the Doctor, who bowed in acknowledgement.
“Understood,” he replied blankly before reaching up to the upper housings of the cubicle.
Turning, Wolfe walked to a desk where she sat down at the computer terminal. Reaching out, she activated the video communications system, the International Space Command logo flashing onto the screen along with the small image of a clock, the word ‘connecting’ flashing beneath it.
“International Space Command, how may we direct you,” the soft electronic female voice said.
“Put me through the T-Mat control research, London,” Wolfe said, her voice returning partially to normal.
“Connecting, one moment please,” the voice replied.
After several seconds, the ISC logo faded out and the blackness slowly dissolved to show the face of a blonde woman in her late twenties, her long hair tied back into a high pony tail.
“Professor?” she asked.
“Miss Kelly,” Wolfe said, folding her hands before her. “I want you to prepare for immediate preparation of all global T-Mat cubicles.”
Gia Kelly’s expression dropped into one of astonishment. “But Professor Wolfe,” she stammered. “We haven’t yet had time to work out all the glitches; we’re at least two months away from global activation. Why would you want to start so early?”
“All glitches have been worked out up here,” Wolfe replied curtly. “Moon control will be established. Test components are to be sent worldwide. I want you to report back within the hour to confirm.”
“Are you sure?” Kelly asked. “I’m still not picking up the carrier wave here.”
“It is unimportant,” Wolfe replied. “The carrier wave will come. It will signal a whole new era for planet Earth. Make sure that it is ready.”
Without waiting for a reply, Wolfe reached forwards and disconnected the video link.
“All is prepared on Earth,” Wolfe reported to the Cyberman before turning back to the T-Mat cubicle.
If she any longer had the ability, Wolfe would have been surprised with what the Doctor had done. The whole top of the cubicle had been dismantled and he was busy re-wiring the reassembly generator. A silver instrument was protruding from the breast pocket of his frock coat. Occasionally he would pull it out and point it at what he was working at, the device making a strange buzzing sound.
“How long will the process take?” Wolfe asked.
“Not long,” the Doctor flatly replied, not looking up. “I estimate twenty minutes.”
Nodding in understanding, Wolfe turned back to the computer terminal. There were some complex calculations to be worked out so that the plan could commence in the given hours time scale. Behind Wolfe, the Cyberman stood motionless, observing the two humans go about their instructed tasks.
*
The walk down the Cybermen’s passageway was a slow and arduous one. The little light provided by the pen light that Christina had found didn’t give a great deal of light for them to see by. The floor remained uneven, eventually becoming almost gravelly and crunchy underfoot. Quickly flashing the torch down, Christina could see that the metal was being covered with moon dust and small rocks and stones from the surface.
She wasn’t sure whether it was her imagination or not, but the tunnel seemed to be getting colder. Bringing the torch up to light the way ahead again, Christina saw that her breath was condensing in the air before her.
“We’re not going to come out onto the surface are we?” she asked nervously. “Only it seems to be getting rather cold in this tunnel.”
“I wouldn’t have thought so,” Tom’s voice replied form the darkness. “If they took humans down this way, then it must have air in it, otherwise their prisoners would die. Stands to reason, doesn’t it?”
She couldn’t be sure, but for some reason she had the feeling that Tom was smiling when he said it. It seemed to be the first think he had said in a lighter mood since he had awoke in the sick bay. Christina had a sudden thought that it could have been the first light hearted thing he’d said since he arrived in the base.
It was whilst entertaining this thought that she tripped over the rough ground and fell to the floor, the torch falling from her hand and skittering across the uneven ground before blinking out. The darkness that descended was like none she had ever seen before. It caused both Tom and Anneke to cry out in alarm at the sudden change in light. Christina hadn’t realised just how big a difference the feeble light had made.
“Where did the light go?” Anneke asked, her voice faltering.
“I dropped the bloody thing,” she said as way of an apology. “I don’t know where it went to.”
“No matter,” Tom said. “There’s only the one tunnel, hopefully, so as long as we follow it, we should be alright.”
“‘Hopefully’?” Anneke queried. “That doesn’t fill me with confidence.”
“If it leads to the ship, then it’s just a straight corridor,” Tom said, blindly feeling his way along the roughly riveted metal walls. “Unless they diverted it to another part of the base, then we’ll have another passage to worry about.”
In the darkness, the trio’s progress was slowed even more. Tom lead the way down the metal lined corridor, all three of them groping their way in the blackness. The walls were starting to get colder and colder the farther they progressed.
“This wall’s getting colder,” Anneke pointed out.
“So’s the air,” Tom replied. “I think we’re getting closer. There’s air, so we’re pressurised, but I doubt we’re hugely insulated against the outside cold.”
“How much further do you think it is?” Christina asked.
“No idea,” Tom replied. “They could be one hundred meters out or a mile or more, I just don’t; oof.”
“What,” Anneke started before walking into the back of Tom; seconds later having Christina walk into the back of her.
“I think we’ve found it,” Tom said squeezing out from where he was sandwiched between Anneke and the metal bulkhead. “Either that, or it’s a very sharp corner we’d not accounted for.” Blindly, he fumbled against the wall before him, seeking out a control to open the door.
“Is there a control to open the door?” Christina asked, pulling herself off Anneke.
“That’s what I’m looking f- a-ha!” Tom cried as a doorway slid open before them; a silvery white light creeping through. “Come on,” he said, pulling the Cyber gun from his belt.
Carefully, Tom stepped onto the metal gangway and looked around. It was an extendable docking port, reaching out of the ship and to the doorway in the wall of the crater. At the other end of the gangway was the outer airlock of the cyber ship. Turning to the two women behind him, and ignoring their concerned looks, Tom beckoned them to follow him. With some trepidation, Christina and Anneke followed Tom to the airlock, as he looked at the controls before him.
“Easy now,” Tom muttered as he jabbed at a control on the side of the lock.
When nothing happened, he scratched the back of his head before prodding another. He almost jumped back as the doors glided open, revealing the air lock within. The interior door was also open, leading into the Cyber ship. Tom turned to look at Anneke and Christine, the anxiety he felt at the prospect of entering the ship was mirrored on their faces. Swallowing hard, he turned back to the air lock and stepped inside. Slowly, Anneke and Christina followed.
The light inside the Cyber ship was brighter, causing the trio to narrow their eyes after the darkness of the tunnel. The walls were blank and surgical looking and there was an almost clinical smell in the air. The temperature was also as cool as it was in the tunnel, causing Anneke to say as much.
“The Cybermen don’t need an atmosphere to survive,” Tom said. “However, if they’re converting base crew, they’ll be needing oxygen, just not necessarily the heat.”
“What is this conversion?” Christina asked, feeling a shiver go down her spine in anticipation of the answer.
Tom stopped and turned and fixed both women with a cold stare, his blue eyes seemed to get icier and colder. “The Cybermen don’t reproduce as organic species do,” he explained. “They don’t build like robots either. They kidnap humans and humanoid species and turn them into themselves; replacing organs and limbs with artificial limbs of metal and plastic. They enhance senses such as sight and hearing, increased speed. They’ve got the strength of ten men, they don’t tire and they don’t get ill. The Mondasians did that to themselves to survive as their planet drifted out from its orbit, but it got out of hand. Now, to survive, the Cybermen do this to anyone they can to increase their numbers.”
All light and humour had gone from the young Time Lord’s eyes as he gave the brief run down on the Cybermen, and were replaced with loathing and hate. His eyes now looked as though they were colder than the depths of space.
“That’s horrible,” Anneke said, grimacing at the thought. “How can they do that? Don’t they have any conscience?”
“They have no feelings,” Tom said grimly. “They remove all emotion and conscience; they’re conditioned only to survive.”
Anneke opened her mouth to ask another question but closed it as the sound of a clanging of metal on metal rang through the corridors. Her eyes widened and she looked round in fear, as did Christina. Holding his hand up, Tom cautiously crept round a corner. Carefully following, Anneke followed. Farther down the corridor was a large arch. Tom was already at it carefully peering through. Anneke could see his eyes widen and he pulled himself back, leaning against the wall, his face pale.
“What is it?” she asked.
“The TARDIS,” he said faintly. “They’ve got the TARDIS.”
