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Interlude 4: An excerpt from the script to “Dr. Nick, Private Investigator: The Case Of The Space Zoo,” produced in 1967 by Metro Goldwyn Mayer Pictures. VOICEOVER (Dr. Nick): Little known to us, another unknown menace was approaching. In a tiny black spaceship, which changed structure like liquid to pass through the scan beams, there was another alien, one who all good private investigators had heard of, and a few of us had even tried to track him down. Most of us were too smart to try though. I figured when I finally met him, I’d just introduce him to a couple o’ buddies o’ mine. They both travel light - one in a hip flask - the other in a holster. I never figured on him being at the Space Zoo, though. But, soon enough, the galaxy’s greatest Bounty Hunter was going to arrive. Excerpt ends. An excerpt from “Nick McShane: The Trials Of A Time Traveller” (An unofficial biography, and companion to the official version, by Oolon Coluphid) Some of our readers more attentive to the grammatical structure of the English language, and also to the vernacular of its users, may have noticed a change in style between some accounts. As mentioned previously, at this point in his life, McShane went through a time spent on Alpha Centauri but not doing much else. It was then he decided to chronicle some of his past adventures, before the adventure of “The Mirror and the Pomegranate”. That is why the style of narrative in those accounts, including such tales as “The Extinction Device”, “The Restaurant Of Death” and “Black Sun Rising” is the same as on “The Collector”. It is known though, that his writing style varies wildly in his accounts of future adventures and, without wanting to spoil the ending for unenlightened readers, it is supposed McShane intended to return to these tales and alter his style of telling them. Or maybe he just couldn’t be bothered to put in the effort. Excerpt ends. Interlude 5: The woman in Victorian dress had been walking through the museum, altering the perceptions of those around her to remove her from their perceptions. Their minds were so easily… malleable. She had arrived at the medical bay. She could feel the mind inside, and she saw the room through its senses. She made it go and open the door for her - best to leave no records of her presence here. She stepped through into the medical bay, past the quivering form of the surgeon. She could see the Doctor’s body, glowing a soft blue. She walked up to it and reached a hand through the force field, gently caressing the body. Not even he truly understood what he was - they could have been lovers, not enemies. The body was empty; her enemy had evacuated it and was hiding somewhere else. She turned away from it and back to the surgeon, a small smile on her face. She delved into the surgeon’s mind. He had made a discovery about the Doctor. She licked her lips. Oh, that was perfect. That was far better than anything she could have engineered. What lay ahead for him was truly terrible. She wiped the information from the surgeon’s mind, and instead stuck in a few suggestions that crumbled his mind to pieces. It had caved in far too easily - not very satisfying at all. It was consumed by its own insecurities, and left the Doctor helpless. She looked about. Now that she knew what the future held for the Time Lord she no longer wanted to kill him. She found the controls for the medifield. But she could certainly leave a message for him when he tried to return to this body.
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