all of us.' He glanced down. 'All of us.'

'Like that French chap and his teacake!' announced Need Trevithick triumphantly.Need 'So the power of our emotion, our memory, summoned Need these ghosts into being?' whispered Holly.

The Sentience hissed with delight. Perfect.

256.

257.

[image]

'John?' croaked Medcalfe in disbelief.Need His mind raced, unbidden, through the other names on The Sentience relished Lowc.o.c.k's contact and grew the memorial. So many friends.

stronger still.

Medcalfe backed away. There were others now, appearing Suddenly, there were faces crowding the window, out of the mist in a staggered line. Some he recognised. Billy pressing their features against the cold panes and grinning.

Atkinson with his shiny black moustache. Cyril c.o.c.kayne, Grinning.

his arm in a sling just as it had been the day the sh.e.l.l wiped One of the gas-masked figures pushed itself to the fore him off the face of the Earth.

and Medcalfe saw his own face reflected in the blank gla.s.s Others were anonymous behind gas masks, strutting sockets. He screamed.

remorselessly across the graveyard like hideous blind pigs.

'Not this time!' insisted the Doctor.

'But why?' cried Ace plaintively.

The Doctor looked about evasively. Cooper was staying behind to monitor things on the surface. Holly, Vijay and Trevithick, who wouldn't hear of being left out of the adventure, had elected to accompany him below ground.

But Ace was not to come.

'You're...' The Doctor looked up but managed to avoid Ace's eyes. 'You're too important.'

Ace frowned but then decided this was a rare compliment, something not to be sniffed at. She smiled warmly.

'OK. No tantrums. You win, Doctor.'

He touched her arm and smiled thinly.

'Is it really that bad?' said Ace.

The Doctor didn't reply. Ace sighed. There were deep Medcalfe felt someone by him and turned in fear. It was shadows under his eyes. He looked fit to drop. Robin put George Lowc.o.c.k.

his arm around Ace and the Doctor clapped a hand on the The policeman stood and stared at the spectres through boy's shoulder. 'Look after her,' he whispered.

the frost-covered window. He didn't recognise a single one, Ace watched the party leave through the double doors, but he believed in them.

shrinking back as another blast of wind from the moor He believes flooded into the station.Need It was as if he didn't expect to come back.

258.

259.

The moor was like a battleground, a fierce gale whipping The Doctor sniffed. There was a faint but noticeable odour and lashing through the heather. The Doctor pulled up the of decay.

hood of his coat and wrapped his scarf over his mouth as he, 'It's the same,' said Trevithick in a sepulchral whisper.

Trevithick, Vijay and Holly struggled towards the cave Holly moved off into the darkness. 'It's stronger further entrance.

down.'

'There, Doctor!' called Vijay, his face hidden by the bulk The Doctor pointed his torch before them and led the way.

of his parka.

Trevithick looked back as they descended deeper into the The Doctor ran towards the cave mouth which the tunnel, the rain-lashed entrance now a diminishing half subsidence had uncovered, plunged his hand into his circle of grey light.

pocket and produced his torch.

Ace stapled the last sheet of polythene across the 'Are you going to try and reason with it?' shouted shattered window and watched the rain drum against it.

Trevithick above the noise of the wind.

Even through the distortion of the plastic she could see the The Doctor scowled and didn't reply. Instead, he swept fantastic display lighting up the sky. If she hadn't known the torch-beam around the cave, the beam creating a broad how sinister were its implications, she would have yellow cone of light in the fog.

marvelled at its beauty. It was as if the oceans had been 'Man made,' he said softly. 'Well done, Vijay.'

drawn up into the clouds, torrents of light creating a 'But if this is the quarry, Doctor, what's made it show up?

magnificent effulgence against the pale December sun.

Why has the ground...'

Cooper had given up even attempting to make sense of The Doctor looked Vijay in the eye, crinkling his face the data overwhelming her computers. She sat rubbing her against the onslaught of the elements. 'This thing has come temples as sheaves of paper pooled around her shoes.

fully to life, probably for the first time, and it's growing.

She glanced up as lightning spat across the sky, Expanding under the ground. That's what Edmund must illuminating the whole room. Robin caught her eye and have seen in the lower levels of the station: a tremendous smiled.

build up of energy. It's shaking off its earthly shackles and 'Had enough?' he said.

this is the result.' He gestured around at the scorched, 'Now I know it's not from s.p.a.ce,' she gestured at the disrupted ground.

steady pulse of data, 'it's not such a burning issue. I was Trevithick stepped forward. 'Well, let's see where it goes, giving myself a heart attack trying to make sense of it. Turns shall we?'

out to be just nonsense. This "thing" below us flooding the The cave floor began to dip almost immediately, leading systems.'

into a steep tunnel. The rock walls glistened with moisture.

Robin sensed her helplessness and felt sorry for her. It Holly wrinkled her nose. 'Can you smell that?'

couldn't be easy having so many of one's certainties turned on their heads like that. He looked at the chattering consoles 260 261.

with interest and decided to engage Cooper in conversation, Ace grinned. 'The Doctor taught me everything I know.'

preferably on a topic she was expert at. Almost guaranteed 'Anyway, they're very rare,' Cooper continued. 'One of to perk her up.

the reasons we're here is to look for their remains. We call 'And what's that?'

them pulsars. A friend of Holly's discovered the first one in He pointed to the small bank of monitors to Cooper's left.

February.'

She smirked. 'That, son, is the only thing we can get a fix on Ace sat down next to Robin, deciding to continue at the moment. Our own private nova.'

privately with her impressive monologue. 'The iron core Robin chewed his thumb, struggling to recall his half-collapses and becomes so dense that the, that the...'

heard science lessons. 'And that's an exploding star, right?'

'Atomic nuclei,' called Cooper, without looking up. Ace Cooper nodded. 'Mmm.'

smiled ruefully at Robin. "Those, anyway, are crushed Robin held up his hand and looked into s.p.a.ce together. It spins on its axis and produces pulses which they thoughtfully. 'So what's the difference between that and a - can detect with the telescope.'

what d'you call it - super nova?'

Robin grinned at her. 'Right.'

Ace saw her chance. This was going to sound impressive.

'Anything else you'd like to know?' said Ace chirpily.

'A supernova is...' she hesitated, remembering one of the 'Yes. How long you'll be staying around.'

Doctor's short but instructive lectures, 'a supernova is an Ace's face fell. She'd been expecting this moment. 'Well...'

old star. Its centre gets hotter and hotter till it tries to burn Robin looked at her. 'You said the Doctor wants to stop heavier elements...'

travelling. Settle down. Is he likely to do that here?'

'Helium, carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, silicon...' added Ace shook her head. 'He's got universes to choose from.'

Cooper helpfully.

'Any time, any place, any where. He's not called Doctor Ace cast her eyes upwards, praying she wouldn't forget.

Martini, is he?'

'And finally iron,' she said triumphantly.

Ace smiled sadly. 'Anyway, I doubt he'll choose 'So?' Robin shrugged.

Yorkshire in the late sixties.'

'When the centre of a star is made of iron,' said Cooper Robin shifted uncomfortably. She knew so much that he with mock gravity, 'it has an energy crisis, because the wanted to know.

thermonuclear fusion of iron absorbs energy instead of 'Tell me about the future, Ace. Will things be OK?'

releasing it.'

Ace frowned. 'I can't tell you that. It's not fair. You'd be Ace knew that bit and was a little annoyed she hadn't expecting things, or dreading them.'

been allowed to say so. 'Anyway,' she put in, before Cooper Robin took her hand. 'Well, there is one way of making could steal any more of her thunder, 'the star collapses like sure I just take things as they come.'

a house of cards and boom!'

Cooper smiled. 'You're remarkably well informed.'

262.

263.

Ace looked at his serious expression, his thick black hair, 'No. It's me.' Ace's voice was indistinct through the hiss brilliant eyes and oh-so-delicious lips. 'Stay with me,' he of static. 'Dr Cooper's monitoring a slow build-up. The said at last.

pulse is getting stronger. I think it's on its way. Over.'

'Right. Thank you. Over and...'

Holly, Vijay and Trevithick had hung back a little whilst 'Doctor?'

the Doctor went ahead with his torch. After a time, he 'Yes?'

returned, a look of puzzlement on his face.

There was a long pause. 'Nothing. Take care. Over and 'Come on. It's all right.'

out.'

They followed him down the narrow tunnel until they Vijay's eyes widened in fear. 'Let's get out of here.'

emerged in a large cavern, its black rock walls glistening 'No,' muttered the Doctor. 'We came here to confront it with moisture. Rain from the drenched moor above trickled and that's what we must do.'

down through the roof.

Trevithick looked about uneasily in the darkness. 'I say, Trevithick chose a boulder and sat down, tired by his gone awfully quiet, hasn't it?'

exertions. The Doctor shone the torch around the cavern, They all exchanged glances. A thick hush had descended picking out chunks of stone upon which the mark of human on the cavern. Even the steady drip of water from the interference was obvious.