Chapter Four
Taylor stared at the monitor on board the ship, he'd removed his mask and gloves since he didn't need to conceal himself anymore, and began to panic. "Guys we have a problem..."
"What is it?" Weno asked; her green skin and sharp pointed teeth visible now she'd removed her mask.
"As a failsafe, in case the counter was faulty, I installed a remote which could set off the bomb from here...well someone is piggy backing on that signal."
"What do you mean?" Xeo asked, getting up from the chair and walking over to Taylor and the monitor which he was fixed on.
"Someone is using that signal to find the bomb!" Taylor exclaimed, he was really freaking out; he wasn't like the rest of the group, he wasn't an evil person, he was just easily mislead and yet somehow he'd managed to do the most work out of all of them; if they were caught he was going to go down harder than the rest of them.
"Relax man," Zarlon said, walking over. "It's fine we can just set off the bomb before they get there."
"Actually we can't," Taylor replied. "The remote device only works after the countdown and even if I reprogrammed it in time, the device he's using to track the signal is also blocking it; the remote was the transmitter for the signal, a bridge between here and there but now he has the bridge to the bomb."
"So you're saying that we can't set the bomb off or even control it?" Weno asked, slightly worried.
"Yep," Taylor sighed.
The three of the aliens cursed loudly; their perfect plan was falling apart around them.
The Sonic screwdriver beeped a notification to the Time Lord that he was close to the source of the signal. He smiled and realised that the bomb was inside the building that the countdown screen was connected to.
"Found it," The Doctor grinned, switching the sonic's mode and aimed the red nib of the device at the lock of the nearby door. The lock vibrated and clicked open, the Time Lord opened it and walked into the building with Scarlett following behind.
"Why are they trying to blow up the planet?" Scarlett asked as they sprinted up the nearest staircase.
"I honestly have no idea," he replied, storing the sonic probe back in his pocket and continuing to ascend the steps.
"So they're terrorists?"
"Terrorists who don't want anything, just to make themselves known, the worst kind."
"So they're performers?"
The Doctor smiled as he turned another sharp corner, "Sort of, yeah, I suppose they are really; all they really want is attention."
"So they won't blow up the planet?"
"Oh of course they will," The Doctor told her. "But first they want to make a scene for publicity. They'll get the publicity but I'm going to let them turn this place into a cinder!"
They arrived at a door; The Doctor produced the sonic and checked this was the location before running up to it and unlocking it with a whir of his sonic device. He opened the door to see a large office area; desks and computer filled the space but The Doctor was attracted to the large metal box in the centre.
They jogged into the room and the Time Lord stared at it with a calculating gaze. "So want can you make of it since you are a Physicist yourself."
"Technically I'm a Space Time Engineer but I see what you're saying," Scarlett crouched beside the object and stared. The box was made of metal, clearly homemade but it had a slight professional touch, it was sturdy and had no external controls; clearly it had been squished into the box for safety. "Whoever made it knew their stuff."
"Yes they certainly did," The Doctor replied, holding the sonic to his ear; the device gave off sounds which each had a different meaning so The Doctor could understand the readings come off of the device without a screen attached to it. "From the signals the sonic is receiving, the bomb has a counter which will set it off and a remote control for a failsafe but only if the counter fails..."
"So basically you can't stop it or set it off," Scarlett replied. "And it looks like the controls are all on the inside and this looks sturdy."
"Not for long it won't," The Doctor took of his grey top hat and gloves and handed them to his companion. "Hold these for me won't you?" The Time Lord held the cane in two hands and raised it above his head before bringing it down onto the metal box.
"You're going to smash it open!" Scarlett exclaimed. "But that's highly dangerous!"
"No it's not," The Doctor grunted as he swung again. "The explosives inside are clearly well insulated so as to give off a small energy signature so it should be fine."
Scarlett stepped back, to avoid the metal splinters, as The Doctor struck the box over and over; the metal began to bend and twist until it finally popped open. The Time Lord wiped the sweat droplets off his forehead and bent down to the box. He grabbed either side of the hole in the metal exterior and pulled the box wide open with surprising amount of ease.
Inside the box was a mesh of wires, a small screen which displayed a counter and an insulated orb which sat in the centre of the box which the wires were connected to.
"Now that's what I call a bomb," Scarlett remarked but then she noticed what The Doctor had been staring at. The counter showed they only had ten minutes to disable the bomb!