Doctor Who: Big Finish - Short Trips [018] - Time Signature by Simon Guerrier

Author:Simon Guerrier
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Science-Fiction - Doctor Who
Publisher: Big Finish
Published: 2006-08-31T22:00:00+00:00

Walkin’ City Blues

Joff Brown

An Adventure of the Sixth Doctor

Though the sound overpowers,

Sing again, with your dear voice revealing

A tone

Of some world far from ours, Where music and moonlight and feeling

Are one.

To Jane: The Keen Stars Were Twinkling, Percy Bysshe Shelley

The inspector didn’t bother to take his feet off the table as the constable showed the two strangers in.

‘Couple of time travellers showed up, boss. Usual story: shorted controls, refuelling, la la la. This one’s from Earth, C-twenty by the look of him. The other one’s called the Doctor; looks like one of them Time Lords to me.’

The Doctor cleared his throat. ‘We are… well, we happen to be exactly what he said we are.’

The inspector reluctantly stood up, appraised the visitors and gave his Expensive-Looking Offworlder speech.

‘Well, you’re in what you would probably call the far, far future now. You two, you probably reckon you’ve been around, but we’ve seen it all on this planet, mate. Aliens of all stripes, robots who think they’re better at controlling the world than we are – which they are, but we can’t let them know that. We’ve had clones by the thousand, whole tribes of indigenous freaks invading every few months – that’s why we keep the city mobile. And Maker knows how many power-hungry offworlders with deadly plans, all too stupid to bother employing more than about six henchmen, for some reason. And before you ask, yes, we’ve had the pepper-pots round here too. A right nuisance, tried to occupy, but we eventually sent ’em packing. So don’t think I’m going to be impressed by someone who looks like they’ve lost a fight with a rainbow. Got it?’

The Doctor glanced quickly down at his tartan and yellow coat, bright blue cravat and striped trousers, but was unabashed. ‘Good, good! Then you’ll forgive us if we move on. Flying visit, as you might say. Collect what we need, get out of your fair city and go.’

The inspector shook his head sourly. ‘You’ll need a pass. Nothing happens in this city without a pass. If you haven’t got one, the police’ll pick you up within an hour.’

The Doctor grinned. ‘Can we have a pass, then?’

The inspector sighed heavily and pressed a button on the desk twice, producing two tickets. ‘Whatever you do, don’t lose these.’

‘Why? What’ll happen if we do?’

The inspector smoothed his moustache. ‘I’ll have to press this button twice more, won’t I?’

They left the stuffy police office and stepped out onto the immensity of the police skyscraper where the TARDIS had landed. The city spread out below them, packed with high-rises and tenements, before falling into sky. A big place, but not unusual, William supposed, in spite of the inspector’s boasts.

And then he looked down. And down and… down.

Below the uprush of the ’scraper they were on, the city descended into endless plateaux, dropping vertiginously until the lower levels were lost in the haze of the distance. Every one of the levels was packed with bustle, traffic, the organised chaos of city life.

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