Doctor Who: Big Finish - Bernice Summerfield [023] - Present Danger (Short Stories) by Eddie Robson

Author:Eddie Robson
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Science-Fiction - Doctor Who
ISBN: 9781844355259
Publisher: Big Finish
Published: 2010-08-31T22:00:00+00:00

Past Caring

Richard Dinnick

The mountain looked like something from a horror film. It was dark and rocky with an irregular outline of jagged outcroppings. A small flying vehicle approached the granite slopes on a pre-determined course.

In the aft section of the snub-nosed craft sat Benedic Haine. He was in a line of chairs facing an identical row opposite. All the seats were taken and all contained members of the elite who worked at the facility.

A slight bout of turbulence caused the personnel carrier to wobble a little but this caused no alarm. Why should it? Haine merely smiled passively at the woman opposite and then stared out of the window behind her as the vehicle made its final approach to the docking port.

The great hangar had been blasted from the rock face and was as far as any flying craft could go at the complex. Security wasn’t so much a necessity as a formality. Nothing unexpected could possibly occur here. Not here.

With a hiss of stabiliser rockets firing, Haine felt the ship touch down on the hangar floor and within moments the crew access door opened and a uniformed member of the clerics informed them needlessly that they had arrived and may disembark. As he made his way forward, the woman bobbed her shaven head at him in deference.

‘Live for tomorrow,’ murmured Haine beatifically as he passed.

The cleric smiled broadly. Such a blessing from a Herald would stand her in good stead for a few days at least.

Leaving the hangar behind, the Herald made his way down a silvery corridor lit by candles and stopped at a thick door that was barring his way.

An Usher rested in an alcove beside it. The humanoid robot was another inessential precaution. It stood, motionless, like a bronze statue: only the steady, pale blue glow from its face visor told Haine it was ready to strike him down should his credentials prove unacceptable.

A light smile brushed the Herald’s lips as he entered a seven-digit pass code into the keypad beside the door. For the merest second nothing happened and then a steady clunking told him that the complex lock system was releasing the integral bolts that usually kept the door firmly closed.

‘Welcome to the Divine, Herald Haine.’ The computer voice was soft and welcoming; the tones of an educated woman – the very essence of the Divine itself.

The door swung open and Haine stepped through into the purity-lock. Here there were no candles; lighting instead provided by bio-luminescence pumped through thick cables recessed into the ceiling. Immediately he started removing his grey robe and then moved on to strip his underwear off. He placed all his clothing in the incinerator and waited while the outer door sealed itself once more. The moment the last bolt clunked into place, the incinerator destroyed his clothing. Their remains, along with any lingering odour, were sucked away by a vacuum system and Haine was now ready for the irradiation shower.

Haine’s body was gently caressed by beams of invisible energy. It tingled slightly and he always found it a most pleasurable sensation.

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