Emerging from the T-Mat cubicle the Doctor looked around him with interest. The administration building he had just left was a grandiose structure, with a high vaulted ceiling, fluted columns and marbled panels lining the walls and complementing the marbled floor. By comparison the Think Tank was a much more sober affair. The corridors were half-cylindrical, with a rippled, corrugated effect, reminding the Doctor of the Nissen huts of old Earth.
A woman approached him, ‘The Doctor, I presume? The Judicial Office said you would be coming through. If you would like to follow me.’
The Doctor flashed a smile at her and opened his mouth to ask a question but, as if she had read his thoughts, she responded, ‘My name is Doctor Morris, this is my rest period, and no, you didn’t disturb me from anything. I have another ten hours before I have to report for work and I usually only take about six hours of sleep a day.’
‘I hope I don’t take up too much of your free time. May I ask what field of expertise are you in?’
Doctor Morris smiled but said nothing. The Doctor guessed that she had been told to show him where to work but nothing more. It was also likely that she was to keep an eye on him. His only hope was that he could convince these people to trust him and then that would allow him the chance to have a look around. While he didn’t doubt the sincerity of everyone he had met, nor did he believe that the colonists were malevolent in any way he did sense something. An instinct buzzed at the back of his mind, the same instinct that over time had grown and seemed to urge him to enter specific co-ordinates in the TARDIS computer. Co-ordinates which seemed random and yet they brought him down slap bang in the middle of something, or just in time to see the beginnings of some terrible scheme.
There was something going on here and he was determined to investigate it. Sometimes it was something minor, other times it threatened the very web of time. Of what he had seen so far he sincerely hoped that the problem was at the former end of the scale. Until he knew what was going on here he had no intention of returning to the TARDIS and leaving.
They passed by doors set into the walls of the corridor. Glass panels set into the top portion of the doors allowed the Doctor to glance into the adjoining huts on the other side. Doctor Morris vaguely referred to each of the laboratories but he listened on a peripheral level, focusing his attention on keeping an eye out for anything that warranted deeper investigation. His mind instantly snapped alert when Doctor Morris stopped at one door and introduced him to the Pyronics Lab.
‘The Pyronics Lab? Something to do with fire, or are you making that up?’ a playful smile crossed his face and Morris laughed in return, ‘I’m sorry, Doctor, it probably sounds like an obvious trap. I was meant to lull you into a false sense of security and then try and trip you up. My apologies.’
‘Oh, there is no need to explain. You were doing your job, besides you don’t want these scavengers stealing any vital discoveries or projects you are working on.
‘Would I be correct in saying that the project I am supposed to be working on is non-vital? An equivalent to community service?’
Morris looked closely at the Doctor, she wasn’t sure how far she could trust him, but she sensed that she could to the same extent she would any of her friends. It was more than his evident intelligence. She had watched him keenly observing the labs as they had walked around the complex but it was more than that. There was an air of innocence, trustworthiness, sincerity and honesty about him, combined with a confident body language. His guess about the assignment did not really surprise her.
‘Yes, Doctor, but its only a short community service in your case. The adjudicator expressed his confidence in you and his opinion that you could be trusted. I am to take you to a particular project, non-vital as you say, let you have a look at it and examine the validity of your opinion.
‘If you will come this way, I think its time we got down to business.’
Morris led the Doctor a little further along the corridor and opened a door. The room inside was quite dark, although a few small red lights enabled a modicum of vision. Within a minute his eyes had grown accustomed to the dim lighting and he took in his surroundings. There were a number of trays, covered with polythene covers, moisture coating the underside.
‘Simulated night, an experiment in phototropism?’ The Doctor glanced at Morris.
‘The latter, its part of a series of ongoing experiments to determine if it is possible to settle worlds with one hemisphere permanently facing away from its sun. We can create artificial lighting, but the amount of light is insufficient to simulate true sunlight. This experiment simulates the candle power of an artificial sun placed in the troposphere and operating within current Interplanetary Space Regulations.’
‘And are you asking if I can suggest an alternative?’
Morris said nothing which left the Doctor facing a personal quandary. He knew many solutions to such a problem, but all of these were technologically ahead of the human race or any of the worlds he believed they were allied with at this point in time. In spite of his interference it was always to assist people with problems that otherwise might threaten their very extinction. Anything else would be interference that even the Celestial Intervention Agency would frown upon.No, there was nothing he could reveal now which would go unnoticed.
Staring at the plants he tried to imagine a current solution, something that anybody in this time zone could come up with. A smile crossed his face as he concluded that perhaps he was trying to answer the wrong question.
‘Exactly who would be settling on the permanent dark side of a planet? Research teams? In such a case, I am sure you can either focus on a specific area, or - and I would suggest that this is probably the more ecologically sound of the two ideas - or they could set up a hydroponics centre. Some sort of enclosed environment where the team could grow its own supplies, presuming that the team themselves are not in a sealed environment, in which case...’
‘I think that will do, Doctor. The average Locust wouldn’t have been able to suggest an experiment in phototropism. Your other ideas - are currently on the drawing board. Unless you’re a mind reader, and I don’t think you are, or a highly skilled Locust - which is extremely unlikely, then I think we can trust you.’
She lead him back out into the corridor, ‘I’ll inform the Judicial Office that you can be permitted temporary civilian status. That allows you the same privileges as any other citizen on this planet. Should you choose to leave, then that is also your right - but I wouldn’t plan on returning - at least not with company.’
‘I’m still under suspicion?’ The Doctor watched her face for any sign that she might know something about whatever was nagging at the back of his mind.
‘Let’s just say that if we accept you as one of us and then you go off only to return - how do we know that you are not a spy? You could be a Trojan Horse, sent here to gain our confidence’
‘Point taken. Look, is there another name I can call you. All these Doctors can be very confusing.’
‘Angela Morris. If I recall you seem to be identified only as the Doctor,’ her eyes looked at him expectantly, as if to say that surely she was charming enough to warrant that most hidden of secrets - the name of an unknown man.
‘There is nothing only about being called "Doctor". In my case, I’ve been referred to as such for so long that I wouldn’t respond to anything else, not even my name.’
Sighing, Angela pointed further along the corridor, ‘In the meantime, Doctor, I suppose I should introduce you to a little project which we need many hands to assist with. I hope that you can help us.’
Together they headed towards a set of double doors which lead to another corridor. At the far end was, evidently, a new addition to the complex. The corridors were new, the concrete looked only recently set, certainly no proper flooring had been placed. The room beyond was vast, a huge dome like structure which covered a huge arena like complex. The ground floor they stood on led onto a gallery which circled the dome and looked down onto this science arena. Cubicles could be seen with people working away at desks or at computer terminals.
‘This way,’ Angela lead the Doctor along the gallery to a door set into the wall. As the doors swished open to reveal a small chamber beyond the Doctor realised that it was an elevator car. Within seconds they were descending.
As soon as the car stopped the doors opened and Angela lead the Doctor out onto the floor of the arena.
‘This is the Special Projects Section. This is where a great many new advances will hopefully be made. Right now we are working on a project which you may find interesting. Its connected to law enforcement. In time you’ll understand, but for now perhaps you should see what we are doing here.’
The first row of stalls were occupied by scientists busying themselves with computer terminals. The screens were filled with complex programs. As they watched, one scientist seemed to finish whatever he was doing by delightedly motioning to a nearby colleague. The Doctor drew forward, attracted by the enthusiasm that was emanating from this area. Angela made no move to stop him, but she watched him all the same.
The scientist and his colleague were watching the computer run its program. A nearby arm, almost human in appearance, but evidently artificial, flexed and then reached out towards a row of objects.
‘Round,’ said the scientist and the Doctor watched as the arm hesitated and then snatched up a small spherical object. Looking at the objects closely he noticed that they were a variety of shapes, but only the sphere could be called round, the others comprised flat sides and varying edges. Another glance showed him that the arm was connected to a small box. The box itself didn’t look impressive but it comprised a number of grilles. Curious he moved forward so that the other two could see him.
‘Would I be correct in assuming that this box is some kind of sensory device - eyes and ears in this case?’
The scientist looked at the Doctor and then beyond him to Angela. At her nod he replied, ‘Yes, it also contains an advanced processor. I’ve just programmed it to recognise objects and sounds. As you can see it was able to find the round object.’
The Doctor was puzzled, as far as he knew the human race had various forms of artificial intelligence by this time period, so why the enthusiasm? No answers were forthcoming from either of the two scientists and the Doctor sensed that it was a question he should not ask, at least not yet.
Turning he realised that Angela was watching him and he began to conclude that she was more than just some scientists assigned to this Think Tank. Deciding to test his suspicion he approached her, ‘You’re the head of this facility, aren’t you?’
Where previously there had been a welcoming, "helpful secretary" look about her, Angela now shifted the set of her features. A sharp, authoritative face now confronted him. The Doctor chided himself and hoped that his new incarnation was not going to end up too trusting.
‘Yes, Doctor, I run this facility. Of course, when you consider it you wouldn’t be allowed just anyone to show you around. It would have to be someone who could make an on the spot decision.’
Honesty was something the Doctor appreciated, he disliked having to try and read a person’s face, searching for the tell-tale signs that he was being fed lines. Although her face did not betray her thoughts the Doctor could tell that Angela was being straight with him and would probably continue to do so.
‘Have you made a decision?’ he watched her face as she responded, watching for that blink of an eye reaction that would tell him whether or not she was trying to pull the wool over his eyes.
‘ I think you can be trusted.’
A simple enough statement, but non-committal when you thought about it. How far would that trust go? the Doctor wondered. He sensed that he was getting closer to whatever it was that had drawn him to this planet. The experiment he had just witnessed was connected in some way. He tried to think why it was so disturbing to see such a primitive display of artificial intelligence, but there was no obvious evidence as to why he felt this way.
‘I think the time has come to stop pussyfooting around, Doctor. You are evidently an intelligent man and I would hazard a guess that you have a curiosity which needs to be sated. I would prefer that any wandering you decided to do is properly supervised. You might just spoil a vital experiment - by accident, of course.’
The emphasis Angela placed on those last four words suggested to the Doctor that she suspected he might sabotage the experiment. He must be getting nearer to the heart of the matter.
‘Lead on,’ if he was about to put his head in the noose, the Doctor preferred that he at least chose the path for himself.
Angela led him past many other booths until finally they arrived at a huge steel door. A palm print reader glowed on the wall beside the door and Angela placed her right hand flat on the plate. A light scanned her palm, at the same time she muttered a word into a small grille set into a panel beside the reader.
With a grinding sound the door began to rise, drawing up into a recess in the ceiling. Chill air began to waft in through the gap and the Doctor shivered, but not from the cold. This was what had drawn him here.
When the base of the door had reached his eye level he stared beyond, but was greeted by mist, as the cold air within mixed with the room temperature air of the arena. Then he began to make out a huge figure striding through the mist. Even before the figure was fully visible the Doctor recognised the outline - the square shape of the head, the rigidity of the arms at the sides of the massive torso, and the powerful stride that finally propelled the being into full view.
‘Cybermen,’ he breathed.
Story © D.S.Carlin 1996