she said sympathetically.

Kully pulled a grotesque face. 'Fossils. They don't really live, they just exist; he despaired. 'At least your Doctor friend showed some interest.'

'He has a very enquiring mind, luckily,' Zoe said with a smile.

Kully grinned bleakly. 'Then he'll be as unpopular as I am.'

'Whatever do you mean?'

'Oh, I use don't fit the Dulcian mould,' Kully explained wryly. 'Their shapely civilised society. Everybody thinking and living alike.'

Bolan suddenly clapped his hands. 'Quiet. We have made contact with Director Senex,' he announced.

They looked at the screen. A clear image was just beginning to form.

'Here we go,' Kully groaned. 'Words of wisdom from on high...'

'Well, they've no harmed the TARDIS anyway,' reported Jamie after he had briefly inspected the dilapidated structure.

The Doctor was on his hands and knees near by, his nose almost touching the sand as he examined the tacky black markings scorched in the ground. 'Look at this, Jamie,' he muttered, 'most interesting.'

Jamie glanced at the five-pointed star. Then he noticed the sets of tracks. 'Hey, Doctor, what are these?' he cried excitedly.

Scrambling to his feet, the Doctor hurried over. Two pairs of rectangular prints led away among the dunes along the foot of the cliffs. The Doctor pondered a moment.

'Now who or what leaves footprints like these?' he murmured.

'Footprints.. ' Jamie whispered, grinning uneasily as he looked warily around at the desolate landscape.

The Doctor sniffed the air expectantly. 'Come along, Jamie, let's follow them... or it... shall we?' He darted off nimbly over the brittle, ochre-coloured sandhills.

Reluctantly Jamie caught up and they followed the strange oblong tracks for about two kilometres. Eventually, climbing a short slope, they found themselves staring at the huge silver saucer ounted on its broad central column.

Instinctively Jamie threw himself face-down in the sand, but the Doctor remained standing, shielding his eyes from the glare and gazing intently at the opening at the bottom of the shaft.

Slowly Jamie got to his feet. 'I reckon we ought to get back to Zoe now, Doctor,' he suggested nervously. 'She'll be worried.'

But the Doctor had already begun to creep forward towards the awesome machine gleaming menacingly against the cliff.

'You're not thinking what I think you're thinking... are you Doctor?' Jamie whispered, clutching his sleeve.

'Most definitely,' the Doctor grinned, still staring in fascination at the open hatchway.

'Och no...' Jamie pleaded, frowning at the hundreds of track marks criss-crossing the hollow in front of the ominously looming saucer. 'Can ye no keep oot a trouble just for once?'

They finally reached the curved hatchway and the Doctor stopped to admire the underside of the gigantic craft spread out above them.

'How absolutely splendid; he murmured almost reverently. 'Yes, obviously an interstellar craft of quite sophisticated design, no doubt powered by some kind of...'

The Doctor paused as his arm was gripped painfully.

'Don't do that Jamie...' he protested.

Jamie's gasp of horror made the Doctor jerk round. His jaw dropped open and his eyes widened in surprise and dismay. 'Oh dear. Oh Jamie. Oh my goodness,' he muttered, making Jamie wince as he gripped his arm in turn.

Two Quarks were standing a few metres away, cutting off their escape. The Doctor and Jamie stared at the squat, buzzing robots for a moment and then turned back in futile desperation towards the hatchway. The opening was filled by Toba's huge gaunt figure. His ma.s.sive gloves creaked as he opened his hands in a gesture of ironic welcome on the threshold of the s.p.a.cecraft.

'Do not move. Do not move!' bleated the Quarks, in a kind of crazed falsetto.

The Doctor and Jam continued to stare into Toba's expressionless green eyes while behind them the Quarks chattered away, extending their probes and charging their weapon systems. An unearthly smile carved deep fissures in Tobas mask-like face and a livid pink tongue darted out momentarily to moisten his thin lifeless lips. Then his red-rimmed eyes lit up with a hypnotic gleam which seemed to be fired by hate and greed and l.u.s.t and madness, all together.

'Quarks!' he suddenly rasped, his gloves creaking in eager antic.i.p.ation. 'Prepare.

3.

The a.s.sessment Prodded viciously by the buzzing Quarks, the Doctor and Jamie soon found themselves entering the vast circular control centre at the heart of the alien ship. The chamber was filled with a ghostly glow from the fluorescent graphics and systems displays covering the walls. In the middle, on a raised circular dais, stood the main control column consisting of a mosaic of flickering crystal b.u.t.tons set into a sphere which was mounted on a slim metal stalk, like some giant tropical bloom. Otherwise the chamber was streamlined and bare 'Approach!' Rago ordered.

The Quarks propelled their captives across to the dials where Rago loomed over them, his emerald eyes glittering in the soft rainbow luminosity. Toba stood behind them breathing heavily.

'Who arc you?' Jam croaked, his throat dry with fear.

The towering figure glowered down at them. 'We are Dominators,' he announced, his voice echoing around the dome above.

'That's quite evident,' the Doctor muttered wryly.

Toba emitted a dangerous hiss. Jamie shivered despite himself.

'a.s.sess the specimens,' Rago ordered tersely.

'Stand against the panel!' Toba rapped, whirling the prisoners round bodily and thrusting them towards a flat section of wall.

'I will not!' Jamie exploded, tearing himself free.

'Jamie...' warned the Doctor, shuffling obediently to the panel.

'The Dominators are obeyed!' Toba roared.

Jame stood his ground. 'Not by me me,' he retorted.

'Quark!'

One of the robots whirred into action, its long crystal antennae glowing reddish white. There was a rapid throbbing and and the young Scot was flung against the panel. He hung there dazed and limp for a moment. Then he feebly starred to struggle.

'Help me... help me, Doctor...' he pleaded.

As soon as the Doctor responded, the staccato throbbing burst out again and he too was forced against the panel.

Rago smiled contemptuously. 'It is useless to resist. My Quark has bonded your bodies to the panel by means of molecular adhesion,' he boomed.

Toba touched some switches and Jamie's section of panelling immediately slid outward and then swung through 90 degrees to form a horizontal pallet.

'What are ye doing to me?' Jamie gasped, transfixed with terror as a transparent globular apparatus swung out and hung suspended over his body.

'Aliens are oca.s.sionally of use to us,' Rago explained coldly. 'We shall a.s.sess your physiological status. Quark!'

One of the robots tramped rapidly over and connected its two probes into sockets at the foot of Jamie's pallet.

Frantically Jamie tried to twist himself free, his eyes staring wildly and his white face glistening with sweat.

'Doctor... can ye no do anything?' he panted.

'Activate!' Rago snapped, stepping down from the dais.

The Quark emitted a crazed giggling noise and the globular device above Jame started to glow. Helplessly the Doctor watched as Rago took a kind of visor resembling an ophthalmoscope from Toba and slipped it over his head.

Jam was bathed in an eerie bluish aura as the Dominator bent over to examine him.

'Brittle skeletal structure... calcium phosphate...

reasonable degree of flexibility and muscular strength...'

Rago murmured. 'Single heart... superfluous organ present right side...'

Jamie shuddered as Rago's eye, magnified to monstrous proportions by the visor, bored relentlessly into his own.

'Simple brain circuitry...' Rago continued tonelessly, 'signs of recent rapid learning... little intellectual development.' At last Rago straightened up and took off the visor. 'a.s.sessment: possible marginal utility for elementary labour tasks,' he concluded.

'Shall I prepare the second specimen for scrutiny?' Toba asked eagerly.

Rago considered the Doctor for a moment. 'Negative.

They will be identical. Conserve power,' he decided.

The Quark disconnected its probes, the apparatus withdrew and the panel tilted back to the vertical. Jamie hung beside the Doctor pale and drained, his stomach cramped with nausea from the effects of the body scanner.

Toba turned expectantly to his superior. 'Sine these specimens are of inferior quality we can destroy them,' he proposed.

'Negative. They will perform in a labour force.'

'We have the Quarks for such functions,' Toba objected.

'I repeat, Toba: the Quarks' power must he conserved.'

Rago turned abruptly away and stood staring into the Doctor's mild brown eyes. The Doctor stared unflinchingly back, the faintest of smiles flickering around his mouth.

'Set up a Neuro-Initiative Test on this specimen,' Rago suddenly ordered, pointing at the Doctor.

The Doctor's smile vanished at once and he swallowed apprehensively. 'Oh dear me,' he muttered miserably, 'not a NIT.'

In the survey module, Teel struggled to visual maintain contact with the Capitol, but the image of Director Senex oscillated fitfully and finally broke up into a storm of static. However, the Director's imperturbable voice continued to filter faintly through: 'Four image is fading. Educator Balan... I regret that it is not possible to evaluate your...'

'Oh never mind the picture, Father,' Kully b.u.t.ted in irritably, 'just tell us what you're going to do.'

The audio circuit hissed and squealed, and Senex became only just distinguishable. 'I cannot understand you, Balan... Send Kully and the strangers to the Capitol immediately... I will question them here...'

Kully shouldered his way between Balan and Teel: 'Father, listen to me.. ' he shouted into the receiver, 'Father, there's no time...'

Teel shook his head. 'I am sorry, Kully, but they have terminated reception.'

Kully thumped himself on the forehead. 'Typical Dulcian behaviour,' he exclaimed in despair. 'Something unusual happens, something you don't understand, and you just switch off. Up here.'

Kando glanced round from the transporter unit. 'The capsule is priming now, Balan,' she reported.

Kelly wandered gloomily over to Zoe, who had been trying not to get in the way. 'Ever travelled in a capsule before?' he enquired.

'No. How do they work?'

Kully shrugged. 'No idea. Hate the things myself.' He turned suddenly to Balan. 'You see? The girl asked a question, therefore she can't possibly be a Dulcian. She must have an enquiring mind,' he said with a facetious grin.

Balan was unimpressed 'Your father will decide,' he replied humourlessly. Then he turned courteously to Zoe.

'As soon as your two friends return they will follow' in the second capsule,' he explained.

Zoe looked apprehensive. 'Wouldn't it be simpler to wait and all go together?' she suggested with a nervous little laugh.

'Travel capsules carry only two persons,' Kando informed her. 'Capsule one is primed, Balan.'

Balan squeezed Zoe's arm encouragingly. 'There is nothing to fear,' he told her gently.

Zoe giggled. 'Oh I'm not afraid I'm looking forward to it,' she lied.

'Well, I'm I'm not,' Kully murmured grumpily, leading the way over to a section of transparent tube set into the wall. not,' Kully murmured grumpily, leading the way over to a section of transparent tube set into the wall.