He turned to his left and lying on a bed next to him was Alison.
“Hey,” he said groggily. “Hey, Alison. You okay?”
There was no response. She was still out cold.
He sat himself up and immediately felt dizzy, putting a hand to his head. “Jeez,” was all he could manage. “What the hell happened?”
“How do you feel?” came a voice from the other side of the room.
Danny looked up and standing beside the door was a figure in a white cloak, it’s hands folded. He couldn’t make out the persons face. It was concealed by a hood.
“I’m…I’m fine. Thank you.”
“That’s good to here,” said the person. It’s voice was male and gruff, but well spoken. “We weren’t sure how other races would be affected when coming through the barrier.
“The barrier?” said Danny, looking around. “What’s going on? Where are we?”
“You’re still on Trixatin,” said the person. “Just…not quite where you were.”
“I don’t understand.”
The door behind the figure swished open and another, slightly smaller figure walked in dressed in similar robes, it’s face hidden.
“Is this him?” said the second figure - a female voice.
“It is, Director Villa.”
“Good.” The second figure - Villa - crossed over to Danny. “Now listen to me, young man,” she said, a strictness in her voice, “You know that this planet is out of bounds to outsiders.”
“Yes, we came here by accident,” said Danny, trying to get a glimpse under the hood. “So did the school ship.”
“We understand that,” said Villa, “but why has none of your own kind even attempted to come back for you?”
“The communications are down. They’ve been trapped on the planet.” Danny looked around him and noticed all the computer banks lining the walls. “What happened here? The data banks say this planet is a paradise.”
“It is,” said the woman. “We will help you get off our world, if you promise never to return. We are very private people.”
“Funny paradise,” said Danny.
“Do you promise?” asked the woman, getting a little closer to Danny.
“Yeah, yeah. We promise. Are you not gonna tell me what’s happened here then?” asked Danny.
“No. It’s none of your business.” She turned and walked towards the door, spoke quietly to the male figure before she left, and then disappeared through the sliding doors.
“I’ll bring you some food,” said the man, “and then I’ll take you back to the wastelands and help you find your friends.”
He left through the same exit that Villa had.
“Wastelands?” said Danny to himself. Funny name to give your planet, he thought to himself as Alison began to stir next to him.
Meanwhile the Doctor, Caroline and Hideo had been escorted into the large brown structure. The inside was hollow and a number of tents were dotted around. Caroline looked up to the top of the pyramid-like roof which disappeared into the darkness. Around the walls were burning torches and as they were led to the centre of the structure, which still had a floor of sand, many of the dogs returned to sitting outside their tents.
“What is this place?” asked the Doctor, gazing up at the roof.
“A wing of a starship,” said Magnus Blackmore. “A huge starship. It crashed here and Doomclaw and his group ripped out the circuitry from inside and made it their home.”
“I don’t understand what’s going on,” said Hideo. “Magnus, you’re meant to be dead.”
“Sit,” said Blackmore, indicating for them to sit around a small fire.
The three of them sat followed by Blackmore and a suspicious looking Doomclaw.
“Are you going to explain then?” asked the Doctor. “Like Mr Sanada said, you’re meant to be dead.”
“It’s a long story,” said Blackmore, with a smirk on his face.
“We have time,” said Caroline.
Blackmore tilted his head and pointed to the Doctor and Caroline. “You two weren’t on the Pythagoras. You came in the blue box.”
“Yes, we did. But that’s beside the point,” said the Doctor. “You’re supposed to be dead,” he said again, looking Blackmore in the eyes.
“Yes, I am, aren’t I?” he smiled.
“Just tell them,” growled Doomclaw. “I get fed up of hearing your voice.”
Another dog came running up. The one who had taken them prisoner at the top of the dune. “Sir, we are running out of food.”
“By food, you mean Reynolds,” said the Doctor, looking disgusted.
Doomclaw narrowed his eyes and growled at the Doctor.
“How did you make him last?” he asked.
“When you live out here, it starts to become easy,” said the second dog.
“Easy to ration out,” said Doomclaw, “but not easy to stop yourself from eating it all at once, eh, Jawlock,” said Doomclaw to the second dog.
“No, sir,” said Jawlock.
“You are animals!” spat Hideo. “Dirty, disgusting, evil animals.”
“Well of course they are!” laughed Blackmore. “They need to survive.”
“But eating people….eating innocent people…”
“Oh, put your morals back in your box,” said Blackmore. “It’s the way it is. You can’t stop it.”
Caroline piped up. “All of this isn’t explaining what’s going on here.”
“Exactly,” said the Doctor.
Blackmore turned to Doomclaw. “Which one do you want?”
“What do you mean?” asked Caroline.
“We need to eat,” said Doomclaw. “We need to eat soon.”
“You can’t mean to eat one of us?” asked Caroline, fearfully.
“Of course,” smiled Blackmore, “why do you think we brought you here?”
Back at the Pythagoras Tointon had been informed by one of the students about Danny and Alison’s disappearance. He had searched the ship from top to bottom and back again, but without any luck. He was about to go and see Annie, when he heard a crackling of a radio static from a side room. He was about to go in and investigate when he heard Annie speaking from behind the door. He stopped himself going in and put his ear to the wall. He couldn’t quite make out what she was saying but she was talking quietly and quickly.
Back in the pyramid the group were interrupted when Blackmore’s radio activated. Annie’s voice came over the speaker.
“Magnus, are you there? Are you there?”
“That’s Annie,” said Hideo, a look of realisation dawning on him. “You were both in on this?”
“Oh, shut up!” spat Blackmore. He put the radio to his mouth and spoke into it. “Yes, I’m here. What do you want?”
“Did you get the three of them?”
The Doctor shook his head and closed his eyes.
Blackmore stayed looking at the Doctor. “Yes, I have the three of them.”
“Brilliant,” said Annie. “Have they given you anymore information yet?”
“No,” said Blackmore. “I don’t think they will until they have Tointon here as well.”
“No,” said Annie, “it stops now. Reynolds was enough and with Hideo and the other two they have enough.”
Doomclaw growled by the side of Blackmore.
Blackmore looked across to him and back to the radio. “We need this technology. Bring me Tointon.”
“And where does it stop, Magnus,” she said. “Do we start offering up the kids as well? That Danny lad and Alison have already disappeared. Tointon’s been all over the ship looking for them.”
“They disappeared?” asked Blackmore, concern in his voice.
“Yeah. Did Doomclaw get them too?”
Doomclaw shook his head. “You’d have known about it, Blackmore.”
“He didn’t,” said Blackmore. “You need to find them. If they’ve gone through the barrier, all of this may have been for nothing.”
“They don’t know about the mission,” said Annie. “Even if they have gone through, they can’t ruin the plan.”
“Just get Tointon here. I don’t care how you do it. Just get him.”
Blackmore switched off the radio and then turned to smile at the Doctor.
“I’ll ask you again, Mr Blackmore,” said the Doctor, interlocking his fingers, his face straight. “Explain what‘s going on here.”
Blackmore got to his feet and started pacing up and down. “Do you really think I’m so foolish, Doctor, that I’d go and reveal my plans to you like some pantomime villain of the old days?”
“I’ve always hoped for that to work one day. Clearly not.”
“Clearly not,” repeated Blackmore.
He pointed to Hideo. “Take him if you want, Doomclaw.”
“No!” shouted Caroline as Jawlock grabbed a shaking Hideo. “You can’t do this!”
“Don’t worry,” said Hideo, trying to hold back his fear, “It’ll all work out in the end. We’ll be alright.”
Hideo was dragged back by Jawlock and two other dogs to a bigger tent on the far side of the pyramid.
“You have to stop this, Blackmore! What could be worth butchering people and letting these dogs eat them?” said the Doctor, getting up and crossing over to Blackmore.
Doomclaw jumped to his feet and grabbed the Doctor. “Sit down, ape. You’re next.”
“Blackmore motioned for Doomclaw to ease his grip on the Doctor. “It’s alright. Maybe I should tell you a little of what’s going on here. You’re an intelligent man. I can see that. Perhaps you can help us.”
“I’ll never help you,” said the Doctor.
“Maybe you will when you know what’s going on here,” smiled Blackmore.
In the medical bay, the male figure, who had introduced himself as Haltrix, had returned with a plate full of fruit and drinks for Alison and Danny.
Danny had helped to wake Alison up and they were now happily eating the fruit.
“This is good,” said Alison, her mouth full of apple.
“It’s brilliant,” said Danny, popping a slice of orange into his mouth. “I’ve never tasted such good oranges.”
“And we still don’t know where we are.”
“What do you mean?” asked Danny, taking a pip out of his mouth.
“Well…where are we? We went through that shimmering thing and then here we are.”
Danny smiled at the young girl. She clearly had a bit of intelligence in that young head. “You’re right. While we’re sat here stuffing our faces with fruit, our friends are out there somewhere possibly in danger.” He extended a hand to her. “Come on!”
“Let me finish my apple first,” said Alison, frowning.
Danny laughed, waited for her to finish and then they both took each others hands and headed towards the door.
The door led to a cream coloured corridor with metal panelling along the walls. At various intervals there were columns of light running from the ceiling to the floor, and the air, Danny noted, smelt of lemon.
They turned the corner and were in a wider corridor with doors leading off. It reminded Danny of an expensive hotel back on Earth which he had stayed in a few years back. Towards the end of the corridor, either side of some lift doors, were large windows.
The two of them looked about to check that they weren’t being watched and then crossed the floor towards one of the windows. Alison had to stand on her tip-toes to see, but Danny was able to take in the full view.
Outside the building they were in where gleaming, metal and glass skyscrapers of all different shapes and sizes. Some curved, some narrow, some rising higher than the clouds. Above the skyscrapers the sky was clear and the stars shone down, glittering like pins that had been pushed into a black, velvet cloth. On the ground the buildings were surrounded by blue coloured trees and lakes of silver water. In the distance there were rolling, desert hills with more trees and buildings on top of them and all along the streets and paths they could see figures milling about and going about their daily life. This was the Trixatin that the Doctor had told them about.
There was a voice from behind them. “Enjoying ourselves, are we?”
Danny and Alison span round to see the female called Director Villa standing a few metres away. Next to her was, Danny assumed, Haltrix.
“We just wanted to look,” said Alison quickly.
“You would have been shown in all good time,” said Villa sternly.
“I don’t quite understand what’s happening here,” said Danny. He pointed towards the window. “Is that really out there?”
“It is indeed, young man,” she replied.
“Then where have we just come from?”
Villa stepped closer and reached her white gloved hands up to her hood. She pulled it back slowly to reveal a snout and a smiling dogs face.
“Oh no,” said Danny, as Alison cowered behind him.
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