Doctor Who_ Tomb Of The Cybermen Part 15

The Captain got to his feet and looked around. 'Yes,' he said.

'Mr Klieg... and Toberman. They're still down there.'

Klieg had found a niche in the tunnel, used to give access to the maze of electrical cables that ran throughout the Cybermen's underground workings.

Smoke from Callum's bombs still swirled through the tunnel, hiding him as three Cybermen marched past in heavy unison. They looked up the ladder. Klieg strained to hear what was being said.

'The humanoid has escaped,' came the deep voice of the controller.

'Yes,' replied the Cyberman, who had pursued the Doctor.

'They have secured the hatch. We must return to the tombs once more.'

The Cybermen tramped back along the pa.s.sage looking neither to right nor left and disappeared in the smoke towards the cavern.

As quietly as he could Klieg ran along the pa.s.sageway, hoping their fine hearing antennae would not pick up his footsteps. He reached the ladder and looked up at the closed hatch.

As he clambered up, the rungs were still slippery with the remains of the ice, and more than once his foot skidded off the metal, bringing his body into painful impact with the iron walls, but nothing stirred below. Another few rungs and he was at the top.

He stood there undecided. What could he do? If he banged on the hatch, the Cybermen would hear him. If he didn't, the humans above would never know he was there, and it could only be a matter of time before the Cybermen returned.

He looked at the unmoving lid, dented from the impact of the Cyberman's incredibly powerful fists and shuddered. Then he raised his fist and knocked softly.

In the control room the humans, recovering from the. chase, thought they heard something. They listened. One tap. Two taps.

Soft, not the great rending clangs of the Cyberman.

'Don't open it,' said the Professor. 'It may be the Cyberman.'

'No, no,' said the Doctor. 'Too soft. Human knuckles this time.

It must be Toberman and Klieg. We must open the hatch.'

Hopper and Callum stared at him.

'Come again,' said Hopper. 'After all they've tried to do-you want to let them up here?'

'He's right,' said the Professor primly. 'We can't leave them down there, even if they are killers.'

The Captain looked at him as if wondering how a man could be such an innocent fool.

'Most likely they're both frozen solid by now,' said Jamie with a shudder.

The knocking started again.

'You must let them up,' said Kaftan. 'They must be saved.'

'Yes,' said the Doctor.

'But why, Doctor?' said Jamie. 'Ye canna trust that man.'

'Agreed,' said the Doctor, 'but they're more dangerous to us down there than up here.'

Hopper drew his gun. 'Now you're making sense,' he said.

'O.K., Jim.'

Callum began to set up the sequence for opening the hatch again. Jamie grabbed one of the stools and stood ready.

The knocking started again, soft, persistent.

'O.K.,' said Hopper. 'Let it go.'

Callum worked the opening levers. The others watched tensely as the lid slowly ground up. Hopper raised his gun and levelled it.

Out of the hatch burst Klieg and flopped over the rim on to the floor.

Hopper ran to the hatch and looked down the shaft for Toberman.

'Eric,' cried Kaftan. 'Where's Toberman?'

'They've got him!' gasped Klieg hysterically, breathless.

'They've got him! Close it, quick!'

Hopper nodded to Callum who started the closing sequence.

Everyone held their breath as the hatch began its slow descent, only letting it out as the lid finally closed up tight again.

They gathered round Klieg, who lay on the floor, leaning against the table, looking up defensively. Hopper kept his gun ready in his hand. 'Still convinced that you can form an alliance with the Cybermen, Mr Klieg?' asked the Doctor.

But Klieg's jaw tightened and the fanatical gleam came back into his eyes.

'If I'd only been in a stronger position to bargain with them,' he said.

The Professor turned away contemptuously. 'The man's obviously out of his mind,' he said.

'You're in no position to bargain with anyone right now,' said Hopper grimly. 'What are we going to do with him and the woman?'

he asked the Professor.

'I'd feel happier if they were not left in here,' said Parry.

'What about the testing room?' suggested the Doctor. 'There's only one door. They can't get out.'

. 'A good idea,'. said Parry. 'They'll be quite safe in there.

Callum!'

'O.K., Mr Klieg, let's go,' said Callum. He drew his gun and led off.Klieg and Kaftan, Hopper following behind.

They pushed them into the testing room, slammed and locked the door, watched by the others.

'Now,' said the Captain briskly. 'If I don't get back to that orbiter, we're not going to take off inside a week.'

'We'll come with you,' said the Professor, preparing with much relief to leave. To find Cybermen in tombs was an archaeological triumph. But to find Cybermen rising from the dead and taking over the universe: that was something quite different. He wanted to get away as soon as possible, while his rolls of film were still intact.

'I've told you, not until I'm operational again,' said Hopper.

'You stay right here till I'm ready for you.'

He picked up his anorak and s.p.a.ce-torch, ready to leave.

'I don't think you'll have any more trouble with our friends down there,' he said, as he pa.s.sed the hatch.

'We shall see,' said the Doctor quietly to Jamie.

10.

Release the Cybermats Below in the cavern the Controller and his five head Cybermen consulted together by the control board. He came to a decision and raised his hand. 'We shall release the Cybermats! We will use the power of Cybernetics on the humanoids.'

He pressed a b.u.t.ton on the control desk. To the right of the Cybertombs a large square sheet of metal slid silently aside. Behind it were a series of pigeon-holes, some twenty in all, in each of which lay a dormant Cybermat.

'Test them,' said the Controller. 'The brain of this humanoid will be their target.' He indicated Toberman, who lay unconscious on the floor at their feet.

The Cybermen carefully drew out three and placed them on the floor near Toberman.

The Controller turned to the control panel and turned a large k.n.o.b clockwise. The Cybermats' head lights came on and the low humming sound came from their bodies, but they remained still.

'These Cybermats are dormant through lack of use,' said the Controller. 'Activate them!'

The Cybermen picked up the three silver creatures, turned them over and opened up a small compartment on the underside.

With skilled precision, they adjusted some small electronic controls, then carefully put them back on the floor next to Toberman.

Inside the testing room Klieg lay asleep, exhausted by his flight from the Cybermen.

Kaftan sat by him, as cool and collected as ever, her uniform neat, her hands folded, thinking. She looked around the testing room, then saw something that made her start to her feet.

The shattered remains of the Cyberman target still lay where they had fallen-among them, a short length of black, deadly barrel protruding-was the Cyberman weapon.

She picked it up curiously. It was about as long as a forearm, black, with a short stock and a b.u.t.ton instead of a trigger.

As she turned away her feet caught the Cyberman arm sh.e.l.l. It clattered down on to the metal floor. Klieg was startled into wakefulness.

'What's that?' he shouted, still dazed.

'Just me,' said Kaftan's soothing voice.

Klieg grunted angrily. 'Well, keep quiet and let me sleep,' he muttered, turning over ready to sleep again.

'Sleep later,' said Kaftan sharply. 'Look at this!'

Klieg sighed. He wanted to sleep. He wondered in the moment between sleeping and waking if he would ever have come this far on this wild chase for power, if it had not been for this unrelenting woman.

'What is it?' he asked, raising himself on to his elbow.

'It's one of the weapons they were testing,' said Kaftan.

'Here, let me see,' said Klieg, sleep forgotten.

He scrambled to his feet, took the gun and examined it. It felt cool and sleek in his hand. A gun. A gun better than anything yet developed on Earth.

'You're right!' he whispered in excitement. 'It's a Cybergun!'

'Take a look at that control. Make sure everything is switched off,' Klieg continued.