Ajare--Chapter Four

Ajare
Chapter 4 - Going Underground
by Greg McCambley

 Andrews came quickly into the room, pushing the door so forcefully it began to swing back into its closed position. There was madness in Andrews' eyes, and he looked all too keen to stab Lynch with as much ferocity as he could muster. Which, Lynch thought to himself, looked like it could be quite a lot. Although the Directory had told him to maintain cover, Lynch wasn't about to let himself get killed for the sake of it. Lynch quickly scrambled backwards, away from Andrews and the knife.

 Andrews kept moving forward, keeping the knife ready to plunge it deep into Lynch's chest.

 "Now, Lynch," Andrews giggled, "stop messing about. This won't hurt a bit."

 As he pushed himself backwards across the floor, Lynch's hands closed around a sturdy, rectangular object just under the bed. His suitcase. He quickly pulled it out and kept it in front of him, without taking his eyes off Andrews. Keep it calm, Lynch, he said to himself, and you'll get out of this.

 "Mr. Andrews," he said, "may I say you aren't looking particularly well, Sir?"

 Andrews straightened up a little, lowering the knife a little bit. There was still a mad gleam in his eyes, but there was something else there. Was it a look of pleading, perhaps? Lynch wasn't sure. He'd never been good at reading emotions. All he knew was that Andrews was insane. And that insanity made him dangerous.

 "Do you really think so, Lynch? I have to say that I've never felt better."

 Lynch slowly eased himself up, until he was standing. The suitcase was still held firmly in front of him.

 "Indeed, Sir? Then perhaps I'm mistaken."

 And then Lynch, with all his strength, pulled the suitcase back and then threw it straight at Andrews' head. It connected with a sickening thud, and Andrews fell into a heap on the floor. Lynch bent down and felt for Andrews' pulse. It was feeble, but steady. He then set about tying up his hands and legs with the bedsheets. Finally, Lynch stood up.

 "I regret to inform you, Sir, that I have to tender my resignation. I'm giving you my two weeks notice."

 Lynch quickly went through the room and gathered all sorts of items, putting them in his suitcase. He opened the door to the closet and took down a small box from the top shelf. Opening it up, he dumped its contents onto the bed. He picked up a revolver and several boxes of bullets and packed them in the suitcase. Going over to a picture on the wall, he took it off its hook and removed the backing. He pulled out a map and, after checking to see if it was the correct map, put it in the suitcase as well. Finally, he took the rod from its drawer and put it in last.

 "Time to move to a safer location, I think," he said, and he closed the suitcase. He quickly left the room, locking the door behind him.

 

The villagers were moving closer and closer to the Doctor and Rakshan. The Doctor was standing by Harry, stroking the horse's head and feeding him a carrot which he pulled from one of his pockets. Rakshan just glared at him. This is a Time Lord?, Rakshan asked itself. One of the all-powerful Masters of Time itself?

 "Why are you just standing there, feeding that animal? You're a Time Lord! Why don't you do something?"

 The Doctor turned to look at Rakshan, a bemused look on his face. He continued stroking Harry's head. The horse was calmer than it had been a few seconds ago. "What do you suggest I do?", he asked.

 "I don't know!", Rakshan snapped. "Use your powers, Time Lord!"

 "Powers? What powers?", the Doctor asked in response. "Oh, I suppose I could try to charm the locals with my natural grace and wit, if that's what you mean."

 He really must be mad, Rakshan said to itself. "Can you not stop time, somehow? Freeze the villagers so we may escape through them? Is that not why you are called Time Lords?"

 The Doctor sighed. "That's the problem with pretentious titles. People always expect more from you." Then the Doctor smiled a wide, toothy grin. "You know, I remember telling Alexander that."

 Rakshan grew more irritated, its skin turning a darker shade of red. Its hand moved down to its holster, keeping a firm grip on its weapon. "What are you talking about?!"

 "Alexander the Great. I remember telling him that he shouldn't give himself any sort of title, that people would remember him for his accomplishments. He listened, but his people didn't."

 Rakshan raised its arm again and trained the weapon on the Doctor. The rod sat in Rakshan's hand, and the hooks looked as if they were ready to spring towards the Doctor at the slightest provocation.

 "Perhaps I should just kill you here and now, Doctor."

 

The villagers continued their progress towards the Doctor and Rakshan. They sensed that their prey had no means of escape. It was trapped. Confident of success now, they slowed down slightly. Soon they would get what they needed. 
The Doctor stepped away from Harry, his hands thrust into his pockets. He walked over to the edge of the cliff, the faint sounds of the sea below reaching his ears. Rakshan's gaze and weapon followed his every move.

 "I don't think killing me will solve anything, Rakshan." The Doctor paced along the side of the cliff, staring down at the sea and unwrapping his scarf. "If killing me is a solution, then why did you choose to escape the village with me? Why not just kill me there, hmmm?"

 Rakshan moved closer to the Doctor, but kept the weapon up. It was about to speak, but the Doctor, turning to look at Rakshan, interrupted.

 "It's because, despite your protestations to the contrary, you need me alive. Correct?" The Doctor kept pacing, his gaze returning to the sea and the villagers who were slowly moving forward. He held his scarf out in front of him, as if he were offering it up for sacrifice.

 Rakshan stood there, unsure of whether to speak or not. It had been informed about the Time Lords and their possible involvement, and it had been told about the Doctor. What it had been told, however, did not seem to fit with the Time Lord in front of it. No weapons. No powers. I must kill him, Rakshan said to itself. Those are my orders. And I must obey my orders.

 "I must follow my orders." Rakshan aimed the rod at the Doctor, preparing to fire. "I must."

 Must I?

 No. Not yet.

 Slowly Rakshan's skin began to return to its normal red shade. Or, at least, to whatever shade the Doctor assumed was normal. Finally Rakshan put the rod down and stepped next to the Doctor.

 "You're right, Doctor. I do need you alive, for now. I..."

 Before it could finish speaking, the Doctor thrust one end of his scarf in Rakshan's hand and pulled it over the side of the cliff.

 

The villagers, closing in on the Doctor and Rakshan, stopped as they saw the two figures fall over the side. After their prey disappeared, they stood still, confused. Did its prey kill itself? They lifted what remained of their faces, trying desperately to catch a sense of where their prey was. After a few moments, the villagers turned, and began to move back to their village.

 

Lynch moved quickly through the villa, listening for the sound of possible pursuit. He may have tied Andrews up well, but why be careless? He finally found the room he was looking for, and he unlocked the door. The library was crammed full of bookshelves, each of which was also crammed full of books. A few chairs were placed around the room, as were one or two tables. The tables were covered in layers of dust. Neither of the Andrews had used the room, or indeed had probably not been aware of its presence. Which is just as the Shadow Directory had wanted, Lynch smiled to himself. He locked the door behind him and walked over to one of the bookshelves. He reached up to the third shelf from the top and pulled a book away. He heard a soft `click', and the shelf slowly swung out, revealing a flight of stairs leading down.

 "Home, sweet home," Lynch said, and he moved down the stairs. The shelf slowly swung shut behind him.

 

They had fallen about twenty or thirty feet down the cliff, and it had taken Rakshan all its considerable strength to hang on when the scarf had hit the rock. The Doctor and Rakshan were swinging in the wind, the scarf draped over a medium sized rock. They had fallen about twenty or thirty feet down the cliff, and it had taken Rakshan all its considerable strength to hang on when the scarf had hit the branch. The Doctor, however, showed little exertion. He smiled at Rakshan.

 "Not exactly something I want to try again, but still. Nothing quite like stepping out, hmmm? Ha Ha!"

 Rakshan was holding onto the scarf with both hands. Despite the danger of falling, Rakshan imagined pulling out its weapon and killing the Doctor. It said "Doctor, now I really am going to kill you." It hesitated a moment before adding, "*Soon*!"

 The Doctor laughed. "Nonsense! When we're back on solid ground you'll be shaking my hand and thanking me."

 Rakshan's red skin was slowly creeping into the darker shade again. "And just how do you propose to get us back on solid ground?"

 The Doctor pointed behind Rakshan. "There's a ledge just behind you, and what looks like a cave. I didn't notice before because of the dark. I found it the second time because I was looking for it."

 Rakshan shifted itself around, so it was facing away from the Doctor. At first it saw nothing, but then it began to see that there was a sort of darker patch of space nearby. Rakshan slowly edged out its foot, and it hit an area of rock that was lying flat. It swung over, and was able to put both feet on the ledge. It held onto the scarf and let the Doctor swing onto the ledge as well.

 "There, Rakshan, you see?", the Doctor smiled, his white teeth gleaming in the darkness. "I told you you wouldn't kill me." He finished re-wrapping his scarf around his neck. "If you wanted to kill me, you could have let me drop."

 Despite its anger at being tricked, Rakshan couldn't help but be impressed by the Doctor's abilities. Rakshan could barely see the cave up close, yet the Doctor had seen it from up on the cliff top. Smart and ingenious. It seems I was right not to kill him, Rakshan said to itself.

 "When I want to kill you, Doctor, I will do it myself, and I won't use something as unreliable as gravity."

 The Doctor took out another carrot from his pocket. He first offered it to Rakshan, who declined. "Wonderful vegetables, carrots. Does wonders for your night vision. Now, let's see where this tunnel goes, shall we?"

 Rakshan fingered its weapon in its holster, and went off after the Doctor.

 

"Release me, tentacled ones, or pray to your Gods I do not free myself!" Leela struggled against the bonds which held her to the wall. The beasts were busying themselves around the room. One of them was removing the remains of the villager from the table, sweeping them into a sack with its tentacles and dragging it out of the room. The thing with the box turned to her, and Leela heard the squelching sound it made as it moved to confront her.

 "Defiance and bravado! Oh my, you truly ARE a wonderful specimen, aren't you?", the creature in the box said. "Most of the specimens we find begin to babble about these "Gods" you referred to. Or at least one of them." It reached out a tentacle to a nearby set of buttons. "We recorded the babblings of a few of them, before it got all repetitive and boring. Would you like to hear them?"

 "What I would like, tentacled one, is to be free, so I may rip that magic box off of you and slice off your tentacles one by one!" Leela continued to flex her arms, trying to break the bonds. The creature merely tittered at her.

 "I'm afraid that's quite impossible, but please don't stop trying. It's all so fascinating, and we're not quite ready to study you."

 Just then, a short warbling signal began to sound. The creature turned, and went over to the source of the sound. A tentacle reached out to press a button, and symbols appeared out of nowhere on the wall. Leela could not help but be impressed by the magic, no matter how evil it was.

 The creature turned again, the box aimed at Leela. "The sensors have detected the presence of another being, one even more different than you! Could this mean it's your friend the Doctor?" The creature tittered even more. "This is really very exhilarating. This outpost will finally have some important and exciting work to do!"

 

The bookshelf swung open again, and Lynch came back up out of the darkness into the library. He slipped the revolver into the pocket of his jacket. "There," he said in satisfaction. "Everything should be safe down there." The bookshelf swung shut, and Lynch put a chair in front of the shelf to hide the signs that any such door existed. Satisfied that a cursory examination would show nothing out of the ordinary, he left the library and locked the door.

 With all his equipment hidden from Andrews, Lynch was ready to continue his role as butler. For the benefit of the Doctor and his companion, of course.

 "And now, I believe I shall make some tea to go with those sticky buns."

 He moved off down the corridor towards the kitchen, whistling to himself.

 

Pain. Brightness. It hurts. Stop it! Stop it! Mother help me! Help me! Mother, where are you? Mother... There is no more mother, only me. And Lynch.

 LYNCH!

 The memories began to flood back into Andrews' head. The door. The knife. The suitcase. As the memories returned, the giggling began again. It was Lynch. Lynch did this. Dear, sweet, loyal Lynch. "Well, Lynch. I'll have to give you a bonus for this, won't I? Perhaps instead of just stabbing you, I'll cut your heart out first. And then I'll give you to mother." He tried moving his hands, but he couldn't. He continued to struggle against the bonds.

 

"Doctor, I still do not believe you when you say you aren't on a mission for your people." Rakshan's hand was almost always on its weapon now, partly because of the Doctor, and partly because of the tunnel itself. They had been walking through the tunnel for several minutes, and had left the cave mouth far behind them. The Doctor stopped walking and turned to face Rakshan. He had lit a match to cast some light.

 "And I still don't believe that you're going to kill me, Rakshan. I suppose that makes us even." The Doctor then dropped the match as it burnt his fingers. "Ouch!", he said.

 "But you are a Time Lord, Doctor."

 "Yes, I'm a Time Lord, Rakshan. But I'm afraid I haven't paid my membership dues in quite a while.", the Doctor said as he lit another match.

 Once again Rakshan was not sure just how sane the Doctor was. "But if you are not here on the bidding of the other Time Lords, then how do you explain arriving in the middle of an infestation?"

 "Dumb luck, I suppose," the Doctor said, patting his pockets. "Aha!", he cried, and pulled out a small, cylindrical rod. Rakshan's hand immediately pulled out its weapon. "What is that, Doctor? I thought you said you had no weapons!" The Doctor raised the rod to his chin and turned it on. His face was suddenly bathed in light. "Boo!", he said, his mouth breaking into a grin.

 Rakshan returned its weapon to its holster. Despite itself, a smile began to spread across its face. "You certainly don't seem to take my threats very seriously, Doctor." The Doctor shrugged. "I always try to look on the bright side of every situation. You haven't killed me yet." He shone the flashlight over the tunnel walls, looking for anything of interest. "What do you make of this cave, Rakshan?"

 Rakshan looked around. "Roughly circular. Walls are smooth. Highly improbable it was formed naturally." The Doctor nodded his head in agreement. "I'd say highly impossible it was formed naturally. Nothing on Earth could make a tunnel like this, so high up in a cliff." He shone the flashlight down the tunnel, finding nothing but darkness. "So far, we've travelled about, what, 800 feet?" Rakshan smirked. "I wouldn't know. Earth measurements aren't my specialty." The Doctor smiled. "800 feet, then. 800 feet, and we haven't seen a single tunnel branching off from this one. What does that suggest?"

 "That there is another end to this tunnel somewhere down there," Rakshan said, pointing further into the darkness. "An end that perhaps it might be in our best interests to find?"

 The Doctor nodded. "Exactly. Let's go find it, then."

 Rakshan and The Doctor moved off down the tunnel.

 

Unnoticed by the Doctor and Rakshan, a small sphere was wedged in a crack up in the tunnel's ceiling. The sphere had been following the movement of the Doctor since it had first detected him. It let out a short warbling signal.

 

"Excellent! Your friend is approaching our post. His ability to find his way here shows a great deal of intelligence." It tittered with excitement. "I really can't wait to examine his brain." The creature pressed a series of buttons, and suddenly an image of the tunnel appeared on the wall. The image showed a beam of light bouncing along, the figure of the Doctor barely registering because of the darkness. The creature turned to face Leela. "This is your friend, the Doctor?", it asked.

 Leela did recognize him, but she was wary of saying so. Confirming the tentacled one's suspicions might do the Doctor harm. "I... cannot be certain, the image is too dark", was all she could think to say.

 "Then I shall make the image lighter," it said, and it depressed another button. Suddenly the image brightened, and the Doctor's face was clearly visible. Behind his shoulder, appeared the head of Rekshan, and the alien suddenly recoiled. "THAT is Ajare!", it screeched, turning to look at Leela. "He is with Ajare! He must be infected by Ajare! He is no longer a suitable subject for examination!" The creature turned to another of the creatures. "Release the Xhirlim! The invaders must be destroyed!" The other creature sent out a tentacle and pressed a button.

 

At the end of the tunnel the rock split, and an opening appeared where one hadn't been before. Inside the opening something stirred, and began to move into the tunnel...

 To Be Continued

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