TITLE: The Case Of The Dying Machine pt2
AUTHOR: Talepiece
RATING: 12 cert.
PAIRING: Vastra/Jenny
SERIES: The Casebook Of Madame Vastra
CONTINUITY: This is the second of a three parter which continued from The Case Of The Artist's Legacy.
DISCLAIMER: I own them not, please sue me not.
CREDITS: This story is based on EM Forster's The Machine Stops.
NOTE: Apologies for the delay in posting the new Casebook stories. 2015 has been a series of unfortunate events so far and it's knocked me off my stride. (Friendly Advice #2: any plumbing job described as "quick and simple" will take at least six weeks and involve repairs to the kitchen ceiling.)
Volume Four will be one story told over three parts, each a direct continuation of the last. They're based on EM Forster's truly remarkable short story The Machine Stops. I first read it years ago and try to revisit it regularly. I've been looking for a way to get it into the Casebook stories and this seemed the perfect time.
POSTED: June 2015
As lurid as some readers may believe my tales to be, few can imagine the horrors to which a race might succumb when they abdicate their individually to an artificial construct. How long can it be before the mighty Colossus rules our lives? And what might befall us, should the machine stop?
Jennifer Strax Vastra-Flint.
London, 1949.
"The Machine stops!" the man cried and then he was gone, the shaft sealing itself with a rush of air and the heavy thud of a new slab of metal locking into place.
Vastra and the Doctor stared at the place where last they had seen the man.
"The machine stops, Doctor?"
"No idea," he said absently, "but it sounds rather ominous."
Vastra's heart thudded in her chest, "And if Jenny and Miss Brown have been taken in such a manner?"
The Doctor gave a curt nod and said, "Yes, yes, I know. Well then, Madame, it looks like we need to get that hatch open. Wouldn't you say?"
He hurried to the centre of the hollow and ran his hands over the slab of metal, already reaching into his pockets for tools. Vastra stood for a moment, her attention caught by the airship that now passed almost directly overhead. She stared up at the grey and black vessel that glided through the air with barely a hum audible from the ground. With a flash of some insight that she could not fathom, Vastra knew that she should be on that ship.
"- Madame?" the Doctor's tone hardened as he repeated his words.
Vastra forced her attention from the slowly fading speck in the sky that had been the airship. She considered the Doctor as he fumbled with some tool or other, wedging it into the edge of the airlock and muttering to himself.
Hurrying to him, she heard a distinct catch of metal and a grinding sound as of newly installed steel shifting for the first time. She stood over the Doctor's prostrate form and watched as he attempted to turn the great circle of metal. He could not and Vastra eased him aside, ignoring his protestations and bending over the airlock.
She wrapped her hands around the grips that circled the top and tugged with all her might. The metal creaked but would not give and the Doctor added his own strength to hers. With them both turning against the weight of the metal and the stiffness of the new mechanism, the airlock began to give. It turned slowly at first, then moved more quickly as the seal broke and the mechanism within yielded to their force.
When it released, it did so with a gasp of escaping air and one last rapid turn that threw them both off balance. Vastra righted herself with one hand and used the other to keep the Doctor from tumbling into the darkness that was now exposed below them. The shaft dropped straight down, plunging into blackness before even the top of any ladder could be seen.
"Thank you, Madame," the Doctor said absently, adding, "It would appear that we take a leap of faith."
"I have done nothing else since we first met, Doctor."
With that, Vastra stepped from the soft grass of the hollow and allowed gravity to carry her into the shaft. Her hands lashed out for the first hold she could find and she grunted as her arms took the weight of her body until her feet could find support as well.
"A little less than one yard, Doctor. Give me a moment to-"
But the rotund figure was already dropping into the shaft above her and Vastra had to scramble down a few rungs to get her head clear of his rapidly approaching legs. She cursed under her breath and reached up with one hand to help his flailing feet locate a perch.
"Well, I say."
"Indeed," Vastra glanced down but could see little beyond the next rung, "We have quite a descent, Doctor."
"Then onward, Madame, forever onward."
"Downward, surely," Vastra hissed as she took the next step.
Just as they entered the dining room, the airship gave a little rolling jerk and Jenny had to steady herself on the frame of the entrance. She cast a nervous look towards Peri, who merely shrugged and whispered, "Guess we're taking off." The sounds of the pneumatic doors sealing and the support structure falling away from them rang loud for a moment and then there was nothing but a gentle hum of distant engines and a soft vibration that ran through the entire vessel.
Jenny was disappointed to find that all of the portholes around the dining area were closed. The wide room was cast in the eerie glow of the same artificial light that had illuminated the subterranean corridors below. Another attendant, this one a cheery sort of woman with ebony skin and dark eyes greeted them. Peri responded in a friendly manner but Jenny hesitated for a moment, thinking of all of the tales of the heathen lands that her father had spouted during her childhood. It was nonsense, she told herself firmly, her relationship with Vastra should have shaken such prejudices from her mind.
She grinned, somewhat sheepishly at the woman and settled into the seat that was offered to her. Peri sat opposite, a narrow table between them. They were at the outer edge of the ship, the dining room taking up the width of the vessel towards the front of the gondola. The shielded portholes ran all around them and one was set just above the table.
"Can we have this open, please?"
Jenny noted the surprise on the attendant's face but there was little delay as she reached over and eased the cover open.
"I'll do the rest, if you'd like?"
There was a hint of excitement in the woman's tone and Jenny nodded eagerly. She and Peri watched as the attendant pulled up each blind with what might pass for gay abandon in this uptight world.
"Well," the attendant clapped her hands together, "how lovely that is."
"You don't usually open them?" Peri asked.
"Most people don't like it. They're not used to it, I should say."
"Does everyone live underground?" Jenny said and the attendant froze, eyeing them both suspiciously.
"We're not from around here," Peri smiled through gritted teeth, "Just visiting, you know."
There was a long pause, the attendant glancing around the room before her attention returned to them. With a little nod of decision, she settled herself into the seat across the aisle from Jenny and studied them closely.
"I thought you didn't look like the usual sort," she said absently.
"The usual sort?" Peri encouraged.
Another look up and down the room, eyes lingering on the entrance, and then the attendant began to speak.
"The ones that barely believe there's still an outside world are the worst; all pale-faced and pinched horror," she gave a sad little laugh, "They say people always used to travel between the hives, used to visit family and even see something of the world. Even if it was only from above."
"Now they don't?" Peri said
"Not if they can help it they don't. Less and less of them and never a one who wants to look outside." The attendant's eyes fixed on the sky beyond their porthole, "Thought I was the last one who liked to see the sky," she whispered.
"I think it's wonderful," Jenny smiled as she looked out at the crisp blue flecked with soft, white clouds that lingered around them as they levelled out, "I always wanted to travel in one of these."
The attendant seemed to be ready to ask a question of her own but the door to the dining room opened and the man who had shepherded them into the airship stepped through. Immediately, the dining room attendant was on her feet.
She gave a curt nod to her guests, though managed a wink as she turned away from the man, and said, "I'll get you those menus now."
Jenny leaned forward to whisper to Peri, "What sort of a world is this?"
Peri shrugged, her eyes watching the male attendant who was watching them closely. She beamed a fake smile and waited until he turned away.
"Something must have happened down there," Peri tilted her head towards the porthole and considered for a moment, "Maybe a war or something and everyone went underground."
"And this?" Jenny indicated the airship with a sweep of her hand.
Another shrug, "The surface not safe maybe?"
"Guesses and maybes, Miss Peri."
Peri tensed at the perceived criticism before recognising the glint of humour in Jenny's eyes. She smiled warmly this time and sighed, "Life with the Doctor can be like that."
Jenny's face fell and Peri reached out to pat her hand. Rallying, Jenny said, "How will they find us?"
Peri laughed, again attracting the attention of the man. She ignored him and whispered, "Trust me, that fella can find anything when he wants to. Especially if there's trouble brewing."
Jenny looked around nervously, "You think we're in trouble?"
"I think maybe something's going on here." To Jenny's raised eyebrow she added, "Wherever the Tardis goes, there's trouble brewing."
Jenny sighed, "Vastra can be like that too."
She looked out of the porthole, leaning towards it to look down as best she could. There was a flash of silver far below on the bright green grass that coated the land. She watched more flashes and thought that there must be someone on the surface. Or something. A sudden urge to be there filled her and she swallowed against it.
"You OK?"
Jenny nodded vaguely but kept her eyes fixed on the land below them. There was something down there, she felt certain of that, and she wished that she were down there too.
Kuno awoke with a start. He tried to sit up but his entire body protested, his muscles screaming in pain. He remained absolutely still, his blurring vision slowly clearing to reveal the drab silver metal of his room's ceiling. He gave a whimper of impotent rage and closed his eyes again.
As his body relaxed and the pain slowly receded, Kuno sat up. Immediately the bed reshaped itself around him, forming the familiar support of his chair. All was exactly as it had been before his adventure. Had he known any expletives, he would have used them liberally.
Instead, Kuno tapped at the private communication controls. He expected to find a notice of Homelessness; the worst and final punishment that the Machine could exact. Homelessness meant expulsion from the hive - from any hive - and a life...where? On the surface. Kuno's heart rate picked up with a sudden rush of excitement. Homelessness was the very thing that he sort.
But his heart fell when he found no such missive. Nothing, in fact, but the usual nonsense from his supposed friends and vague acquaintances. Nothing even from his Mother.
Kuno closed the communications docket with a bone-weary sigh and stared around the bland room. For all that it was failing around them, the Machine had not lost its capricious nature. Or perhaps that was the humans who purported to control the Machine? Yes, Kuno decided, such an act of deliberate malice could come only from the mind of a human.
He wallowed in his disappointment and it turned to anger. Making an attempt to stand, determined to rip the room open from the inside, Kuno shook violently. He fell back into the chair and it tilted back with his fall. The ceiling opened and tentacles - thinner and less aggressive than those that had imprisoned him - snaked down. Each had some form of medical equipment at its end and Kuno could do nothing but yield to their ministrations.
Even Vastra's thickly skinned hands were raw as their long descent continued. The Doctor had found a pair of stout gloves to protect his own, less well padded digits. Vastra wondered idly at the infinite capacity of his coat pockets but she set the thought aside as irrelevant and focused on the ladder. It was of some considerable age and had been ravaged by time and use. Though very little use in the recent past, of that Vastra was sure.
Between heavy pants of exertion, the Doctor had posited a number of theories, none of which Vastra thought relevant to the matter at hand. Hand being the operative word.
"Madame?" the deep voice rang down from above her.
"Doctor?"
"Do I detect a change in the air perhaps?"
Vastra drew in a deep breath, considering the cool air. Not so cool as it had been, though; the middle section of their climb had been undertaken in distinctly chilling circumstances. Cleaner air too, not so stale and heavy. Artificial, admittedly, but more comfortable to her straining lungs.
"I believe you may be correct, Doctor."
"Then I suspect that we may be reaching the conclusion of our trek. Do mind your step, Madame."
I have been minding my own and yours, Vastra thought somewhat tartly but she merely grunted and allowed more of her focus to shift below them. The darkness was breaking a little, the pitch black now tinged with a grey that might indicate light, as it were, at the end of the tunnel. Though, as her beloved companion was want to say, that light could always be an oncoming train.
That idea Vastra also set aside, though her body tensed in readiness all the same. Yet the ladder continued its downward path as did they. It was some time before the air was noticeably warm and pure. By then the darkness had given way to a dim illumination. The shaft had narrowed and widened at different points but it ended suddenly.
"Halt, pray!" Vastra called up urgently.
She was relieved to sense the Doctor respond to her barked order. They remained silent for a moment, listening to the susurration that now filled the shaft around them. There was a gentle vibration too, barely enough to cut through the raw nerves of their hands and the aching of there muscles, but there all the same.
"I believe we may have arrived."
"Indeed, Doctor. The question is: where?"
"Perhaps we might find an exit and learn more?"
Vastra's jaw snapped down on her annoyance and she said only, "What a clever idea, Doctor."
They had no more chance to talk to the female attendant, who could only carry their food and water in to them under the sharp eye of the man. She cast them a grim smile as she laid down the tray, filled their glasses and then was gone. Jenny watched her leave as Peri watched the male attendant retire to the far end of the dining room.
Jenny sipped at her water and found it bland. She pulled a face and Peri lifted her own glass to her lips, hesitating for a moment before she took a drop.
"Hey, that's good."
"It's got no taste to it."
"It's water," Peri raised the glass in salute, "it's supposed to be pure."
Jenny gave the liquid a suspicious glare and refrained from taking more. Peri picked at the food on the platter and grimaced.
"But the food," Peri pointed accusingly, "the food is bland. Tastes like cardboard coated in hand cream."
"You eat that often?" Jenny teased.
"Hey, Victorian Maid Lady, don't get cute with me." Peri laughed and instinctively looked up to check the response of the male attendant. She was surprised to find that he had slipped from the room, "Our watchman has gone."
Jenny turned in her seat to glance back at the entrance and was thrown a little off balance as the airship lurched. She grabbed for the armrests and pushed herself back into the chair. Peri did the same but eased forward to look out of the porthole.
"We're going down."
She leaned further forward to get a better view of the world below them. Just at the edge of her field of vision was the familiar grey of another support structure.
"We're here," she added, "We'd better get in the queue."
As the airship levelled out, slowly positioning itself to dock, the two women made for the door. Just as they reached it, the attendant returned and glared at them.
"You should remain seated until informed otherwise," he said.
Peri shrugged, "We just wanted to be first in line."
He said nothing more, simply indicating that they were to follow him. Stepping out of the dining room, they found the narrow corridor that ran around the gondola was empty, though the platform was still making it's slow circuit. The attendant held them back until there was a creaking protest from the airship, another dramatic lurch and then the hiss of pneumatic locks driving home.
Finally, all was still but the momentary peace was shattered by the doors of each individual room opening as one. They stepped out on to the platform behind the attendant and began to wend their way around the gondola. Some of the rooms were empty but many held their fellow travellers. All of them stood, uncertain and unmoving, their eyes blinking hard against the natural light that shone in on them.
None of them spoke and there were only the few words of command from the attendant and the sounds of the platform mechanism to break the silence. Then the platform turned back and approached the wide entrance to the gondola itself. There was plenty of noise now and it troubled the passengers greatly.
The platform deposited them at the entrance and they were forced to walk again, stepping out of the gondola and into another large, glass lift. The attendant remained with them and their initial ascend was matched by a slow, nervous descent.
Jenny stared out and smiled at the wide expanse of perfect green and blue that rolled away from the dark grey superstructure which rose up around them.
There was more nervous shifting from the others and the old woman hissed, "She smiles at such a sight!"
Peri closed in on Jenny, taking up a protective position though she couldn't think why; she had no doubt that Jenny could look after herself quite well. Still, Peri thought, it was best to defuse the situation before anyone came to harm.
The lift dropped to a bouncing halt and the glass doors opened with a pained hiss. The attendant lead them out and indicated the transit tubes that raced off in three directions. He gave a long spiel about levels and destinations but little of it meant anything to either woman.
"We really have to look like we know what we're doing," Peri whispered.
Jenny watched the people disperse. Always alone, always wordlessly. What a soulless place, she thought and felt a wave of unexpected pity wash through her. One of the last to reach the tubes and state her destination was the miserable old lady with whom they had shared a car earlier.
"Let's follow the old biddy," Jenny said and strode away.
"Yeah, that's a great idea," Peri muttered but she hurried to catch up.
They darted into the transport car just as the doors were beginning to close. Vashti's gasp of horror filled the air around them and Peri cast her a fake smile.
"What a coincidence."
Vastra lashed out with all her might, her legs pounding against the slightly offset tiles that covered one particular part of the shaft's wall. The Doctor had found some form of device in one of his many pockets and had used it to cast a weak light on the area. Thanks to that device, they had identified what both hoped was a loose run of tiles that might be exploited.
That exploitation was proving a little harder than expected. It was difficult to believe that the cacophony which now filled the shaft would not be heard on the other side of the wall. Vastra could only hope that whatever might await them, a Silurian warrior and a brightly-clad Time Lord would be their match.
"I really do regret loosing that sonic screwdriver, you know. Such a clumsy oaf, my last regeneration."
"So you have said, Doctor."
"Ah, yes, sorry. Not much point" another screaming clank filled the shaft, "mulling over the past just now."
Vastra gave the wall one final kick and it burst under her assault. She half slid, half fell through the hole, blinking in the dust cloud that came with her. The Doctor stepped out somewhat gingerly, careful to preserve the material of his coat despite its already dishevelled appearance.
He dusted himself down with a flourish and then offered his battered, filthy hand to Vastra. She ignored it, hissing a little as she pushed herself to her feet and looked around them.
They were in a long tunnel of sorts, one that reminded Vastra of the underground railway tunnels in London. These were more cleanly hewn though and clad in the same grey tiles as the wall that she had just broken through. There was a gouge cut deeper into what formed two narrow platforms on either side. Yet there seemed to be no manner of entrance or egress, simply the tunnel itself.
The air gave the same clean but artificial breath as the lower levels of the shaft and the buzzing vibration was stronger still. Excepting that, the tunnel was utterly silent.
"There are no creatures here," Vastra's tongue flicked out, "and there have been few for some time."
"Some sort of maintenance platform perhaps?" the Doctor said absently, "I suppose we'll have to walk along the tracks."
"That could be dangerous."
"Oh, I don't know, we'd be sure to hear anything coming our wa-"
The Doctor was cut off by the sudden appearance of a vehicle of some kind. It was a sleek, grey bullet that flashed before them and was gone. There appeared to be no engine at all, only the car itself.
"Or perhaps not," the Doctor muttered.
"We must follow that vehicle, Doctor," Vastra said and she was already striding for the edge of the platform.
The Doctor grabbed at her arm, "Madame!"
"There was someone in that device."
"More than one, from the brief glimpse I had."
"We must follow them," Vastra hissed.
The Doctor took a step back, loosing his grip on the tense arm. "Quite, yes, of course. However," Vastra hissed again and he rushed on, "there must be some method of summoning a car for ourselves, surely?"
"You have two minutes, Doctor."
"Excellent, no pressure then, as Peri would say."
Jenny's head twisted violently as the car flashed past another short platform.
"You OK?" Peri whispered, staring in concern at her companion.
"There were people back there. I thought..." she trailed off.
"Thought?" Peri waited but Jenny had sunk into a troubled silence. She glanced at the old woman, who was studiously avoiding them, and then said, "Listen, I know this is tough but, hey, we'll deal with whatever's going on here and then we'll get back to the Tardis. Trust me, if the Doctor and Madame Vastra don't find us first, they'll find us there. Nothing could keep the Doctor away from his beloved Tardis," Peri added with a weak laugh.
Jenny forced a smile to her lips, "Right you are then. Where do you think she's going?" she said with a tilt of her head towards Vashti.
Peri shrugged, "No idea but she certainly ain't happy about it."
The car slowed rapidly and came to a shuddering halt and the old woman tensed noticeably. The side wall folded away, opening on to a short platform that was exactly like the one outside Vashti's own room. The thought gave her both satisfaction and an odd sense of disquiet. She longed to return to her room, longed to turn back the last hours of travel and terror.
That was ridiculous, Vashti told herself. She looked at the two young woman who were also standing. Would she never be rid of the creatures? A flash of anger troubled her balance and she reached out to steady herself, weak legs trembling with the exertion. She was emotional and that above all was anathema to her.
She straightened her back, head held high, and stepped from the car. Peri shrugged again and indicated that Jenny should precede her. They were only just safely on the platform when the wall closed up behind them and the car raced away.
"Worse than the Baltimore Metro," she muttered.
Jenny lingered on the edge of the platform and watched the old woman hobble towards a particular section of the wall. There didn't appear to be any reason for her direction, though she seemed quite sure of herself.
Peri wondered off a little way, checking the tunnel as it disappeared into the dark rock. She returned to Jenny and began to speak.
"No lights in the tunnels, no doors in the walls. What the-"
And then the patch of wall that Vashti had so determinedly approached folded away to reveal a narrow entrance to a room beyond. They watched as the old woman hesitated, staring into the room but not crossing the threshold. There was a man inside, rushing to get up from a large armchair that took up most of the centre of the room. There didn't appear to be anything else inside.
The man stepped towards the old woman, his arms opening in welcome. She recoiled, stepping back out on to the platform itself. The man staggered against his momentum but righted himself, his arms dropping limply to his sides.
"Mother," he said and sounded as shocked as Jenny and Peri were.
"Jeez, fancy having that for a Mom?"
Jenny said nothing, watching as Vashti finally made it into the room. As the wall closed again, the last thing she saw was the two of them, standing a yard apart and staring at each other in discomfort. Just as the final tiles rushed back into place, she caught the man's words, "I am so happy to-" and then the wall was whole once more.
"-see you, Mother."
"You can see me at any time, Kuno, through the communication apparatus."
"But in the flesh," Kuno emphasised the word, "It is good to see you in the flesh."
"And what is the point of that?"
Kuno stared at his Mother. She stood ramrod straight, barely inside the room, her back pressed to the now complete wall. She had shown no interest in embracing him, no interest in seeing him at all. He thought for a moment of offering her a seat but dismissed the idea; she would never accept.
"I have had a terrible journey and greatly retarded the development of my soul," Vashti said, her hard eyes boring into him, "I have met with the rudest people," she shivered visibly, "and the sun almost touched my skin. Windows!" she shrieked, "Holes in the walls of life."
Kuno didn't know what to say to the accusation that weighed heavy in her words. He had wasted her time - which was oh so precious, of course - and bought her here for what? Now even he could not remember.
"Mother, please, I have seen the surface."
"How? It is illegal."
"I found my own way, I explored and escaped."
"And yet you are here."
Kuno staggered back as if struck, "The Machine. There were arms, tentacles, they found me, pulled me back."
"They should have left you there to die," Vashti said, not a hint of compassion in her words or gaze.
"Yes, Mother, that is true."
There was a long, hard silence. It angered Kuno but Vashti merely said, "You have nothing to add? Then I must leave. I will depart on the next available airship," another violent shudder and she muttered, "I must subject myself to it once more."
She turned to leave and Kuno said desperately, "Mother, the Machine stops!"
"You are a fool, Kuno," Vashti said over her shoulder, her hand raised to open the portal once more. She had wasted her time on this pointless exercise, had been indulgent of this silly child and she regretted it deeply.
"Mother, please I beg you, you must listen. The Machine stops. The glitches in your music, the delays in requested items. It will only get worse. It is getting worse."
Yet his Mother had already touched the controls and the wall was folding open as he spoke. Vashti did not turn back to her son, she showed no sign of even hearing his desperate words. As she stepped from the room and on to the platform again, he shouted out his urgent message.
"The Machine stops, Mother, the Machine stops!"
Vastra's tongue flicked back and forth in the hope of finding Jenny's scent. All that she could taste was the artificial air, though here and there were traces of some rank odour, as of a once clean house left uncared for a little too long. There were few traces of any creatures, certainly no animals, barely any insect life and very few humanoids such as the man they had seen on the surface.
The Doctor had yet another of his strange little devices in hand, another treasure from his endlessly bountiful pockets. He was still muttering about his beloved sonic screwdriver and Vastra's nerves were beginning to fray.
"Doctor, pray, determine to procure a new one at your earliest convenience and set the matter aside," Vastra snapped more loudly than she had intended.
"Well, yes," he blustered, "yes, of course that's what I plan to do. Quite right too, Madame," he rallied, "must remain focused on the job at hand. I would like to know more about the devices that snatched our latter day Robinson Crusoe from the surface."
Vastra rolled her eyes at the innocent tone, "You have been scanning for them since we began our explorations, Doctor."
"Ah, as Peri would say: busted. You have been scanning for Miss Flint, yes? In your own particular way."
Vastra acknowledged that and spoke of what she had - or had not - sensed. The Doctor mulled this over for a moment, glancing at the device in his hand as they continued along the narrow walkway that edged the tunnel.
The Doctor had been unable to summon a car and Vastra's patience had quickly worn thin. After precisely three minutes, she had dropping down to the tracks and begun her march. The Doctor had harrumphed noisily but declined to comment, merely hurrying to catch up.
His makeshift lighting device had given Vastra enough illumination to make an inspection of the tunnel's opening. She had found that a narrow gantry ran down one side of the rail. It was barely wide enough for the Doctor's larger form and he would certainly have to breath in deeply should a car come rushing past.
Still, the Doctor himself had insisted on leading the way and now they were making slow progress through the fourth section they had come across. It seemed that the tunnel opened on to short platforms at regular intervals. Each platform was identical to the first; a run of clean, grey tiles on both side. Each tunnel was identical too; the narrow gantry, the rail at its centre, the artificial air with heavy, metallic tang.
"There must be people here though," the Doctor finally said as they neared yet another platform section, "More than that one poor chap, I mean. Which rather gives me an idea."
He indicated that they should halt their journey and pulled himself up on to the platform. Vastra vaulted up behind him and watched as he strode towards the centre of one wall and ran his free hand along the tiles. His other hand dropped the scanning device back into a pocket and began to do the same.
He moved a few yards to his left then back to his right, eventually finding a spot that seemed to interest him. With two deliberate prods of an extended finger, he took a step back and held out his arms dramatically as the wall opened up before him.
"Open sesame!" he said with a flourish and then quickly added, "Oh, I do beg your pardon, Sir."
With that, he hurriedly tapped at the same spot on the wall and it closed on his muttered, "Just a general portal inspection, nothing to be concerned about." Vastra watched, a smile touching her lips as the entrance closed on a startled looking man whose naked torso could be seen above the rim of a slab-sided bathtub.
The Doctor turned away somewhat sheepishly and shrugged at her, "Well, Madame, I think I've found out where all the people are."
"Bathing, apparently," Vastra laughed.
"Yes and well he might, I'm surprised you couldn't smell the man from over here," the Doctor said as he came to stand beside her, both looking back at the now smooth wall.
"It was not him, I assure you, but the water that was dirty."
"Bathing in dirty water?"
"Indeed, though he did not appear to notice. He certainly noticed you though, Doctor."
"The Machine stops, Mother, the Machine stops!"
Jenny and Peri pressed themselves back, attempting to keep from the old woman's steely gaze as the wall opened again and she shuffled out. Her eyes burned with disgust, her withered body taking short but determined steps back to the platform. Behind her, the wall closed on the screaming man who had declared himself her son. He was weeping.
After only a few moments, another car ground to a halt in front of Vashti and she ducked painfully to enter it. The door closed and she was gone. The platform area was silent once more. Silent, at least, but for the infernal buzzing that was setting Jenny's teeth on edge.
"What machine?" she said.
Peri shrugged, "No idea but apparently it's stopping."
"Let's find out, eh?" Jenny said and strode to the patch of wall that had admitted the old woman. She ran her hand over the smooth tiles but could find no method of entering. Peri came up beside her and examined a specific part of the wall. She tapped at it for a moment and it gave a faint glow.
"Mother?" the man's voice sounded hopeful despite the tinny quality.
"'Fraid not, sorry," Peri said, "but we'd really like to talk to you about this machine."
There was a heavy sigh, a brief pause and then the wall folded out before them. The man stood exactly where he had when his Mother had left. His face was pale, his eyes red and the tears still glistened on his cheeks.
"You are from the Correction Committee?" his tone was hopeless now, resigned to some terrible fate.
"Er, no, Sir," Jenny glanced at an equally baffled Peri, "We're just visitors."
"We want to talk about the machine you mentioned. Is it stopping?"
Kuno stared at them. He had never seen people quite like them and imagined what his Mother would say. That thought cheered him, though he did not know why.
"Who are you?"
"I'm Peri Brown and this is Jenny Flint. We're..." Peri trailed off.
"Explorers," Jenny finished for her and the man's face lit up.
On hearing the word, Kuno's entire body shifted from despondent to elated. He beamed a smile that had both women returning it.
"Explorers?" he approached them and then stopped himself, "How wonderful. I am Kuno and I too am an," he hesitated only for a second, "explorer. Have you been to the surface?"
"Not yet," Peri said, sensing that he did not mean the airship structure, "but we've been wondering about it. Why don't you tell us where you've been?"
Jenny cast her a hard stare, wondering why her companion had not asked about the Machine. Peri turned away from Kuno and mugged furiously in the hope that Jenny would allow her to steer the conversation. Jenny rolled her eyes and said nothing. It was not unlike working with Vastra, after all.
They listened to Kuno's recounting of his journey to the surface and enforced return. It was hurried and breathless, words tumbling over each other in a rush. Kuno's arms waved around wildly and Jenny noticed that he was considerably stronger than any of the other men they had seen on the airship. His face shone with excitement as he told of the too-pure air, the soft green grass and the endless expanse of blue sky.
The women allowed him to have his say uninterrupted and his voice dropped to a hollow tone as he spoke of the Machine taking him back, rending him unconscious and pulling him deep into the hive.
"But," he said and his voice gave out on the word.
"But?" Jenny encouraged.
Kuno leaned towards them, his entire body quivering with emotion, "I saw them. They exist."
"They?" Peri said, suddenly fearing that the man was truly mad.
"The Surface Dwellers. I saw two of them, though they were strange creatures indeed. I suppose they would have to be," he added, his voice and gaze far away as he considered, "to have survived on the surface after the Great Disaster."
"Great Dis-" Peri began but Jenny slapped at her arm.
"These funny looking surface people? What did they look like exactly?"
"They came over the lip of the hollow, looking down upon me with great surprise. I could barely call out, the arms of the Machine all around me, but I saw them and I know that they saw me."
"And?" Jenny said, trying to keep the impatience from her voice.
"A man, I think, though he wore the strangest garb. A man of stature with a frock of all the colours that the Machine denies us. And another creature. A woman, perhaps?"
"Let me guess, big and green and kinda scary looking," Peri said.
Jenny smacked at her arm again and muttered, "Hey, that's my gal that is."
Kuno stared hard at them, his gaze shifting from excitement to anger, "You lied, you have been to the surface!"
Peri threw her hands up in defence, "No, no, I swear we haven't. We just...er-"
"We're travellers from far away. We're not from here at all and those people weren't your surface dweller folk, they were our friends," Jenny said, though not unkindly.
Kuno's face fell, his eyes reddening once more. Peri quickly added, "But that doesn't mean they don't exist too. Maybe we could help you find them again. There has to be another way outta here."
Kuno shook his head sadly, tears trickling down his cheeks, "The Machine has condemned us all to remain here until it - and we - die."
"OK," Peri dragged out, "But, on the upside, you've never met people quite like us before. So, tell us about this Machine."
After their brief moment of enlightenment with the bathing gentleman, Vastra and the Doctor had continued to make their way down the short spans of rail. Twice they had been forced to press themselves hard against the cold walls as a car flashed before their eyes. Vastra feared for the front of the Doctor's ostentatious coat. Though not a very great deal. The Doctor feared less apparently, remaining quite chipper as the second car flew past.
"Someone in that, I think."
"Indeed, Doctor, a woman I believe."
They moved on in silence and came to a platform that was not quite as the others had been. Instead, this had one set of large, though plain, doors in the centre of the tiled wall. The wall on the opposite platform bore a large sign that read, 'The Committee Of The Mending Apparatus'.
The Doctor read the sign aloud before glancing at Vastra. She inclined her head towards the closed doors and they moved forward. The Doctor tapped politely and then pushed them open without awaiting a response.
The doors protested loudly but gave way and opened on to a large room lined with consoles. At its centre stood a broad table ringed with chairs, all of them thick with a dark grey dust. The Doctor approached the table and ran a finger through the dirt. He raised the digit and tutted loudly, muttering, "Dirty water and inches of dust."
"If not this machine, then someone is certainly not doing their work."
The Doctor smiled at Vastra, "What the place needs is a determined Victorian maid, wouldn't you say Madame?"
"Every home should have one, Doctor," Vastra said and surprised herself by keeping the note of fear from her tone, "These terminals," she added, approaching one of the consoles, "they presumably run this Mending Apparatus."
"Some of them at least."
Little more than half of the consoles showed any signs of activity, many of them were clearly not functioning at all. On those consoles where lights flashed or text scrolled across the monochrome screens, the colour red appeared to dominate. Vastra considered one such panel and noted the warning text that accompanied the red lights.
"This one is shutting down," she said.
"And this one. Ah," the Doctor settled himself into the small seat in front of one particular console, "this one looks likely."
Vastra joined him, standing behind the seat and ducking down to read as the Doctor pecked away at the small keyboard set into the console itself. Text hurried across the screen, all of it in some form of highly formalised English.
"Do every alien race use standard English, Doctor?"
"Says the Silurian who lives on Paternoster Row," the Doctor grinned up at her, "eh, Madame?" Vastra's multiple eyelids blinked at him impassively and his grin faded, "Anyway. Let's see, shall we?" He tapped some more, leaning over the keyboard in concentration. Straightening, he pointed at the screen and said, "Well that doesn't look good."
"The young man was correct; this machine is malfunctioning."
"Failing rapidly, I should say. Now then..."
Before the Doctor could return his hands to the keyboard, a blaring klaxon filled the air. The room shook around them and dust rained down from the weakening ceiling. Panels opened high in the walls and silver streams rushed out at them. The Doctor shot up from his seat and Vastra grabbed his arm, pulling them both towards the door.
Metal tentacles writhed around them as they had snapped at the unfortunate creature on the surface. They might have creaked and hissed but still they menaced. After some moments of chaos, the blaring ended and the Machine's arms withdrew into the walls. Vastra and the Doctor stood unmoving in the doorway, their eyes remaining on the ceiling.
The Doctor shrugged off Vastra's firm grip, "Well, I say," he fidgeted with his much-abused coat and dusted off the shoulders, "that was unexpected."
"Indeed," was all that Vastra said. After a long pause, she added, "Should we not move on?"
"Yes, yes, quite right too. Let's see if we can find someone who actually knows what's going on here."
"Let us attempt to find our companions, pray," Vastra said firmly and pushed the doors open, "If anyone has been able to uncover the truth, it will be-"
Kuno told them about the Machine. Some of it in short, gasping sentences; some in long, windy explanations that both women found hard to understand. There was a pause when he finally came to a weeping halt.
"So, basically, you all live down here with a computer telling you what to do and now the computer's gone capput," Peri summarised.
Jenny considered the word, "Computer? Like an accounts clerk?"
"No, like a thinking machine."
"Why would you want one of them? Can't you people think for yourselves any more?"
Kuno sighed, "Many cannot, I'm afraid."
"And now you're in trouble," Peri said.
"We will die without the Machine."
Jenny and Peri considered the man, his quiet words lingering around them. Kuno's face was wet with tears, his eyes so red and heavy that he had aged decades in the short time they had been speaking.
"What if we just fixed this thinking machine of yours?" Jenny said, adding, "Miss Peri could do it, couldn't you?"
Peri groaned, "Oh yeah, they taught me all about that in Botany class." Jenny's elbow met her ribs and Peri yelped, "But, hey, why not have a go at it?"
"You believe you could repair the Machine? Truly?" Kuno brightened a little, though his expression was wary, "If the Committee Of The Mending Apparatus cannot, how would it be possible?"
Peri glared at Jenny for a moment before forcing an optimistic smile to her face. She knew it looked false but this Kuno was so desperate for any hope that he could find, maybe he'd believe them for long enough to find the Doctor.
"Let's just say, if we can't, we know a man who can." With that, Peri indicated the wall behind them and said, "Ready for another adventure?"
Kuno laughed and hurried to tap at the control that opened the wall, exposing the platform beyond. They stepped out, the wall sealing behind them, and within seconds a car screeched to a halt. They stepped inside but Kuno remained standing.
"We will need to disembark quickly; the Machine does not favour journeys between platforms."
"These things are only used to get to the aerodromes?"
Kuno hesitated,"The vomitoriums? Yes. Though long in the past, many people used to travel between rooms to talk in person."
"You're all mad," Jenny muttered, "Why would you- What's that bleedin' racket?" she interrupted herself.
Kuno was staring through the clear front of the car as it fast approached the opening of the tunnel. A sound could be heard, not yet loud but piercing, racing towards them from further along the track.
"A warning, I think," Kuno said.
"Oh boy," Peri grinned, "that's gotta be the Doctor."
The car slowed dramatically, the wall folding open and Kuno pushing them forward all in one rushed moment. They tumbled out and landed on the platform, Jenny and Peri struggling to keep their balance. The car was already racing off into the next tunnel. The platform rang loud with the blaring of a klaxon and the screeching of protesting metal. All of which came from within the large doors that stood stark in the wall opposite.
Jenny glanced around her and noticed the large sign on the wall behind them. "Mending Apparatus," she read.
"We have to get over there -" Peri said and mid-sentence the sounds stopped, "- before it's too late."
"Come on then," Jenny said and bounded down from the platform.
"Be careful!" Kuno shouted after her.
Peri grabbed at his arm and pulled him with her, dragging them both over the deep step on to the smooth rails and hurrying them across. Jenny was already pulling herself up the other side and Peri hoped that the cause of all that commotion really was Vastra and the Doctor. If it was something else, Jenny would have to deal with it first.
The doors burst open and Peri looked up to see a cloud of dust tumble forth. A heavy scent of filth and rust billowed over the platform and she was blinded for a moment. Kuno tugged at her arm and levered her up onto the platform. They lay in a heap on the edge of the cold stone and metal structure as the air cleared, a strange hissing-sucking sound loud while whatever filtration system this Machine operated did its work.
"Madame!" Jenny's voice rang loud around them.
Peri grinned and looked up into the clearing air to find a hand reaching down for her. The familiar yellow and red material around it was thick with dirt and ripped at the cuff but the voice that boomed around her was just as chipper as ever.
"Peri, you made it."
"You make it sound like I'm late to a tea party, Doctor."
Her words went unanswered as the Doctor hefted her to her feet and turned his attention to Kuno.
"Well hello there. Good to see you in one piece, old chap."
Kuno stared at the beaming, if filthy, face in awe, "The Surface Dweller."
"More a visiting dignitary," the Doctor said and ignored Peri's barked laughter, "but I'd be surprised if there aren't any people up there. Wouldn't mind having a word with them myself; I rather fear you're all going to have to make your way up soon enough."
Peri only half heard his words, her attention drawn to Vastra and Jenny. They were standing a few feet away from each other and smiling with such pure joy and love that Peri felt a strange combination of pleasure and jealousy. She shook it off and shouted, "Hey, kiss the girl already."
Vastra cast the loud American a disapproving glare but Jenny merely laughed. She reached up, taking Vastra's face in her hands and pulling them together. Vastra's hesitation was momentary and soon they were holding each other close, their lips parting but their bodies still touching.
Peri sighed and turned to the Doctor, though not without adding, "Now getta room."
"Really Peri!" the Doctor shook his head indulgently, "Must you be so," he sort the correct word and settled on, "American?"
"Yep," Peri said and smiled until she saw Kuno's expression. He was staring at the women in a mixture of shock and curiosity. Peri's tone hardened and she said, "Got a problem with that?"
The Doctor tutted and waved Peri's concerns away, "I rather suspect that our friend here hasn't seen an awful lot of affectionate displays in his life."
"Let me guess: the Machine makes the babies around here?"
Behind them, Jenny stroked Vastra's face, feeling the roughness of the damaged scales. She stepped back a little and considered her lover's tattered clothing and blood-stained hands.
"You've been through the wars, Madame," she tried to keep her tone light but failed, covering her emotions with, "And why are you wearing these old rags?"
Vastra reached out a finger and tilted Jenny's head up. Smiling into her eyes, she said, "I am quite well, though much of my clothing has suffered recently. As has yours, I suspect," Vastra cast a lascivious glance at Jenny's outfit. Jenny punched her arm and Vastra finished, "We had a difficult climb down, my dear."
"Climb? Why didn't you just take the Teagle?"
"The lift, my dear?" white teeth flashed in the dirty green of Vastra's face, "Why ever didn't the Doctor and I think of that."
Jenny swatted at her arm again, "Don't you cheek me, Madame."
"I would never dare, my dear."
Vastra leaned forward to kiss her again. Their lips brushed together but they were forced to part when the platform beneath them began to shake violently. Vastra stumbled a little and Jenny caught her. They spun around to see the Doctor's arm lashing out, pushing Kuno away just as a silver streak loomed down upon him and Peri.
Kuno stumbled back and Jenny tried to move towards him but the floor shifted again. Vastra caught her lover as she fell and carried them both towards the sprawled man. Beyond him they could see little of the two time travellers. Both had been grasped in the now closing maw of one of the Machine's tentacles.
"Get them out of here!" the Doctor called out as they were lifted from the platform and yanked towards the ceiling. A wide expanse of tiles opened up and the tentacles rushed away from them. Only the tails of the Doctor's coat and four thrashing legs could be seen in the grip of the giant arm.
And then the jaws of the ceiling snapped shut around them, silencing Peri's scream.