Turlough and the Earthlink Dilemma (The Companions of Doctor Who) by Tony Attwood

Author:Tony Attwood
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9780426202240
Publisher: Target
Published: 1986-07-05T05:00:00+00:00

07: TRANSPORT!

The revised plan involving ARTEMIS II had a lot going for it besides the additional safety of Juras and Turlough. Not least it reduced the time taken to organise the operation by something in the order of 90%—for which Turlough, for one, was grateful. Yet having solved the problem theoretically in his moment of insight as he rowed across the river, he was becoming bored with the practicalities and waited impatiently for time to pass as the new system was built.

Juras meanwhile sold the local leaders the idea of the need for safety during the first major test of the revised nuclear system, and late one evening a week later the grand population of some one thousand people poured across the placid river onto the island. In their makeshift control room at one end of the grand Assembly Room Turlough and Juras sat quietly until the word was given that everyone was inside. They then switched on their force barrier, now conveniently stretching from water’s edge on one side, over the towers, and to the edge on the far side, and waited. After thirty seconds it was clear all was working well. Not one particle of air was moving in or out of the island.

To the locals this was a fall-out protection measure, to Juras and Turlough something rather more daring. Keeping an eye on The Magician to ensure he was still smiling (he was), Turlough initiated the switch-on. Silence—but only for seconds. There then came the most awful scream of tearing rock and shaking foundations.

Panic ensued. There was a clamour for the machine to be turned off. Juras was pushed over as a group of politicians ran forward to the controls. Turlough was knocked against a wall but had foreseen the chaos. The control mechanism was now locked in place, through a numeric code. No one could remove it now save himself. Not even Juras.

And then suddenly they were all on the floor, as the screaming, tearing sound came to a halt and the entire building lurched upward. Anything not tied down flew across the room—including people. Juras had known the moment would cause injuries, but there had been little she could do. A warning, any warning, would have aroused suspicion.

As people at last began to pick themselves up a dominant figure pushed his way into the central research area. ‘Explain!’ shouted Sseradd. ‘This isn’t a nuclear test—or if it is, something has gone dreadfully wrong.’

Turlough looked for Juras. Instinctively he felt she could do better than he at admitting what had been perpetrated. But Juras was out cold, her head having hit the side of the work bench during the great jolt. At that moment however, and much to his relief, Turlough heard a familiar voice wafting across the room. ‘Friends, friends.’ The Magician; at last he was doing something useful. ‘The Clansfolk have supplied you with much much more than a bomb. They have indeed provided more than you deserve with your continuous talk of war and fighting.

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