SECRETS AND LIES
Sarah stared in disbelief at the sight before her. "But it can't be Metabelis III," she protested. "I've been here before, remember?"
"This is how it was on my first visit here, when I came looking for the blue crystal," he explained. "You saw it at a later time period, when things had calmed down."
"And we're going out there?"
"No, Sarah. This is something I must do alone."
"But . . ."
"Sarah!" The urgency in his voice stilled any further objections. "I'll be all right," he assured her. "Besides, I need you to stay here." The Doctor lowered his voice. "Keep an eye on the Master. See if you can learn anything."
It made perfect sense, but it didn't make Sarah feel any better. "Just you be careful, okay?"
He smiled. "You're a good girl, Sarah. Don't worry. I'll be back soon."
Sarah watched him march outside, then she turned and looked at the holographic Master, who was prowling around the console looking smug. "What are you looking so happy about?" she asked.
"Why, the Doctor's attempt to delude you."
"What do you mean?"
"The Doctor has tried to convince you that Vestigualamavundar is in fact Metabelis III. He has done this because he thinks it is a reasonable sounding lie that will persuade you that you do not need to see what is out there."
"You mean, that isn't Metabelis III?"
"Correct, Miss Smith. Vestigualamavundar is in fact, as I said earlier, a planet totally unknown to our Time Lord race. And there is a very good reason for that."
"What is that then?" Sarah began.
"Vestigualamavundar used to be the heart of a great and peaceful civilisation. They were a noble race of telepaths who treated each other great respect," the Master explained. "Their culture was full of the noblest achievements in art and science. They would have gone on to perhaps even eclipse the power and achievements of the Time Lords."
"So, what happened to them?"
"The Doctor committed genocide against them."
"No, I don't believe you!" screamed Sarah.
"I'm sorry, Sarah. It's true," said the Doctor as he re-entered the console room. He looked ashen faced. "I'd hoped to hide the truth from you with the lie about Metabelis, but I was looking around the surface for the next component and felt guilty for not telling you. Only to find that the Master had already started enlightening you."
"Doctor, I can't believe it. What happened?" asked Sarah.
"It was during our days at the Prydonian Academy," the Doctor began. "I had heard so much about the Vestigualamavundar civilisation that I borrowed a TARDIS and went on a joyride to visit the planet. Despite all the warnings, my curiosity got the better of me. Little did I know that the warnings to stay away were for a very good reason."
Sarah looked at the Doctor who was looking down in sorrow. The Master continued the story.
"The Vestigualamavundarans had a severe allergic reaction to Alien telepathic communication. When the Doctor arrived here he tried to communicate with the telepathic Vestigualamavundarans in our own form of telepathy. Their reaction was violent and immediate. Within 24 hours the entire race was extinct. Being the Doctor's best friend at the Academy, I conspired to wipe all records of the planet from the archives to protect him."
The Doctor nodded in shame.
"I even managed to wipe it from the Doctor's own memory, to calm his guilt."
"Until we arrived back here and the memories returned," said the Doctor. He hardly dared look at Sarah. "Ghosts return to haunt everyone, even Time Lords."
Sarah placed a comforting arm around him. "Doctor, perhaps it's for the best, coming here." He looked at her, an unreadable expression on his face. "We all have to face our demons sometimes. Maybe it's time you faced yours."
"Yes, I suppose . . ." The Doctor roused himself. "Alright, Sarah. You win." He turned to the Master. "I suppose you're going to disappear again, while we search for the next component?"
"I'm afraid so," he replied. "I have to report your progress to our associate."
The Doctor's curiosity returned. "Yes, who is this mutual friend of ours?"
The Master shook his head. "That I cannot tell you, as yet. But I promise I shall return." He watched the Doctor and Sarah exit the TARDIS. "Good hunting."
They barely gave the Master a second glance as he dematerialised. They were too busy taking in the desolation - Sarah for the first time, the Doctor reliving forgotten, dark memories.
Sarah broke the silence. "Okay, Doctor. Where do we start?"
The Doctor paused, getting his bearings. "The main city was over that way," he replied, indicating to their right. "It's as good a place as any."
They set off, picking their way through the blackened earth.
The two friends were silent throughout the journey. Sarah knew instinctively to say nothing, though she could see how badly this was affecting the Doctor. Occasionally he would offer a brief smile to reassure her, but for the most part he withdrew into himself.
Eventually they arrived in what remained of the Vestigualamavundarans' city. A few building had survived, but these were now just grim reminders of a once great civilisation. It was still hard for Sarah to take in - that the Doctor had unwittingly been responsible for their demise. Her eyes fell upon a building which appeared untouched by the ravages of time. "Doctor, what's this place?"
"Hmm? Oh, that was the Tower of Knowledge. What you might refer to as a library back on Earth."
"It's a bit big for a library. What did it contain?"
"Well . . ." the Doctor thought for a moment. "Do you know, I have no idea." He was immediately intrigued. "I think we should go in and find out."
The Doctor and Sarah made their way into the tower by way or a narrow spiral staircase. After what seemed like half an hour of relentless climbing, they reached a door. The Doctor calmly pressed his hand against it and pushed it open.
The room on the other side of the door was massive. It reminded Sarah of the time the Doctor took her to the future to see the dome in Greenwich, but this was much bigger. Despite its size, the room looked like you would expect a library to look, with endless shelves reaching up for the ceiling and off in to a near invisible horizon. Sarah wondered for a moment how such a room could fit inside the tall but narrow tower they had climbed, but she remembered the TARDIS and suddenly it did not seem so strange.
The two of them began to look more closely at the shelves. At first Sarah had not looked to closely assuming that she would see books but instead the shelves were full of bundles of smokey energy, flashing with shape and colour. The Doctor saw Sarah's expression of wonder.
"The Vestigualamavundarans were telepathic so they did not need books, speech or traditional language," he explained. "If they needed to record an event, a thought or feeling, they were able to mentally concentrate it into a small package of pure energy, like these here. Then later when the individual who had conceived the thought was asleep, dead or otherwise unable to telepathically pass it on themselves, another could come here and absorb the contents."
Sarah reached out and touched one of the swirling balls of energy. She drew her hand away less than twenty seconds later but her mind was swimming. New ideas and feeling were swimming in her mind. She could not understand half of them and the rest were already fast receding as she stepped back from the shelves.
Sarah came to her senses and noticed that the Doctor was marching purposefully down the aisle they were in. She caught up with him as he reached the end. Before them was a giant circular row of shelves like the reading room of the British Library except that these shelves were hundreds of feet high.
"These are the histories of the Vestigualamavundarans, every major event throughout their civilisation is recorded here," said the Doctor.
Sarah looked at the shelves. They had obviously been prepared so as to be filled with generations of experiences. The shelves were crammed full of little bundles of swirling energy, the history books of the Vestigualamavundarans. Sarah was struck by a sudden realisation. The shelves were full to bursting until about halfway across, while the remaining half of the shelving space was empty.
"The end was very unexpected for them. They were expecting to fill these shelves and then build more," said the Doctor.
They moved closer to the final energy ball on these shelves. While all the other energy books had been swirling masses of light and glowing colour this final book was different. It swirled slowly as though it was old and tired but most of all it was black. It was a deep, dark impenetrable black swirl of opaque energy.
"You should see it for yourself, Sarah. See my folly," said the Doctor as he pointed at the black energy book.
Sarah stretched out her hand and let it pass into the black ball of energy. A vista of light seemed to envelope her. Then her vision cleared, and she saw.
To be continued . . .
Sarah stared in disbelief at the sight before her. "But it can't be Metabelis III," she protested. "I've been here before, remember?"
"This is how it was on my first visit here, when I came looking for the blue crystal," he explained. "You saw it at a later time period, when things had calmed down."
"And we're going out there?"
"No, Sarah. This is something I must do alone."
"But . . ."
"Sarah!" The urgency in his voice stilled any further objections. "I'll be all right," he assured her. "Besides, I need you to stay here." The Doctor lowered his voice. "Keep an eye on the Master. See if you can learn anything."
It made perfect sense, but it didn't make Sarah feel any better. "Just you be careful, okay?"
He smiled. "You're a good girl, Sarah. Don't worry. I'll be back soon."
Sarah watched him march outside, then she turned and looked at the holographic Master, who was prowling around the console looking smug. "What are you looking so happy about?" she asked.
"Why, the Doctor's attempt to delude you."
"What do you mean?"
"The Doctor has tried to convince you that Vestigualamavundar is in fact Metabelis III. He has done this because he thinks it is a reasonable sounding lie that will persuade you that you do not need to see what is out there."
"You mean, that isn't Metabelis III?"
"Correct, Miss Smith. Vestigualamavundar is in fact, as I said earlier, a planet totally unknown to our Time Lord race. And there is a very good reason for that."
"What is that then?" Sarah began.
"Vestigualamavundar used to be the heart of a great and peaceful civilisation. They were a noble race of telepaths who treated each other great respect," the Master explained. "Their culture was full of the noblest achievements in art and science. They would have gone on to perhaps even eclipse the power and achievements of the Time Lords."
"So, what happened to them?"
"The Doctor committed genocide against them."
"No, I don't believe you!" screamed Sarah.
"I'm sorry, Sarah. It's true," said the Doctor as he re-entered the console room. He looked ashen faced. "I'd hoped to hide the truth from you with the lie about Metabelis, but I was looking around the surface for the next component and felt guilty for not telling you. Only to find that the Master had already started enlightening you."
"Doctor, I can't believe it. What happened?" asked Sarah.
"It was during our days at the Prydonian Academy," the Doctor began. "I had heard so much about the Vestigualamavundar civilisation that I borrowed a TARDIS and went on a joyride to visit the planet. Despite all the warnings, my curiosity got the better of me. Little did I know that the warnings to stay away were for a very good reason."
Sarah looked at the Doctor who was looking down in sorrow. The Master continued the story.
"The Vestigualamavundarans had a severe allergic reaction to Alien telepathic communication. When the Doctor arrived here he tried to communicate with the telepathic Vestigualamavundarans in our own form of telepathy. Their reaction was violent and immediate. Within 24 hours the entire race was extinct. Being the Doctor's best friend at the Academy, I conspired to wipe all records of the planet from the archives to protect him."
The Doctor nodded in shame.
"I even managed to wipe it from the Doctor's own memory, to calm his guilt."
"Until we arrived back here and the memories returned," said the Doctor. He hardly dared look at Sarah. "Ghosts return to haunt everyone, even Time Lords."
Sarah placed a comforting arm around him. "Doctor, perhaps it's for the best, coming here." He looked at her, an unreadable expression on his face. "We all have to face our demons sometimes. Maybe it's time you faced yours."
"Yes, I suppose . . ." The Doctor roused himself. "Alright, Sarah. You win." He turned to the Master. "I suppose you're going to disappear again, while we search for the next component?"
"I'm afraid so," he replied. "I have to report your progress to our associate."
The Doctor's curiosity returned. "Yes, who is this mutual friend of ours?"
The Master shook his head. "That I cannot tell you, as yet. But I promise I shall return." He watched the Doctor and Sarah exit the TARDIS. "Good hunting."
They barely gave the Master a second glance as he dematerialised. They were too busy taking in the desolation - Sarah for the first time, the Doctor reliving forgotten, dark memories.
Sarah broke the silence. "Okay, Doctor. Where do we start?"
The Doctor paused, getting his bearings. "The main city was over that way," he replied, indicating to their right. "It's as good a place as any."
They set off, picking their way through the blackened earth.
The two friends were silent throughout the journey. Sarah knew instinctively to say nothing, though she could see how badly this was affecting the Doctor. Occasionally he would offer a brief smile to reassure her, but for the most part he withdrew into himself.
Eventually they arrived in what remained of the Vestigualamavundarans' city. A few building had survived, but these were now just grim reminders of a once great civilisation. It was still hard for Sarah to take in - that the Doctor had unwittingly been responsible for their demise. Her eyes fell upon a building which appeared untouched by the ravages of time. "Doctor, what's this place?"
"Hmm? Oh, that was the Tower of Knowledge. What you might refer to as a library back on Earth."
"It's a bit big for a library. What did it contain?"
"Well . . ." the Doctor thought for a moment. "Do you know, I have no idea." He was immediately intrigued. "I think we should go in and find out."
The Doctor and Sarah made their way into the tower by way or a narrow spiral staircase. After what seemed like half an hour of relentless climbing, they reached a door. The Doctor calmly pressed his hand against it and pushed it open.
The room on the other side of the door was massive. It reminded Sarah of the time the Doctor took her to the future to see the dome in Greenwich, but this was much bigger. Despite its size, the room looked like you would expect a library to look, with endless shelves reaching up for the ceiling and off in to a near invisible horizon. Sarah wondered for a moment how such a room could fit inside the tall but narrow tower they had climbed, but she remembered the TARDIS and suddenly it did not seem so strange.
The two of them began to look more closely at the shelves. At first Sarah had not looked to closely assuming that she would see books but instead the shelves were full of bundles of smokey energy, flashing with shape and colour. The Doctor saw Sarah's expression of wonder.
"The Vestigualamavundarans were telepathic so they did not need books, speech or traditional language," he explained. "If they needed to record an event, a thought or feeling, they were able to mentally concentrate it into a small package of pure energy, like these here. Then later when the individual who had conceived the thought was asleep, dead or otherwise unable to telepathically pass it on themselves, another could come here and absorb the contents."
Sarah reached out and touched one of the swirling balls of energy. She drew her hand away less than twenty seconds later but her mind was swimming. New ideas and feeling were swimming in her mind. She could not understand half of them and the rest were already fast receding as she stepped back from the shelves.
Sarah came to her senses and noticed that the Doctor was marching purposefully down the aisle they were in. She caught up with him as he reached the end. Before them was a giant circular row of shelves like the reading room of the British Library except that these shelves were hundreds of feet high.
"These are the histories of the Vestigualamavundarans, every major event throughout their civilisation is recorded here," said the Doctor.
Sarah looked at the shelves. They had obviously been prepared so as to be filled with generations of experiences. The shelves were crammed full of little bundles of swirling energy, the history books of the Vestigualamavundarans. Sarah was struck by a sudden realisation. The shelves were full to bursting until about halfway across, while the remaining half of the shelving space was empty.
"The end was very unexpected for them. They were expecting to fill these shelves and then build more," said the Doctor.
They moved closer to the final energy ball on these shelves. While all the other energy books had been swirling masses of light and glowing colour this final book was different. It swirled slowly as though it was old and tired but most of all it was black. It was a deep, dark impenetrable black swirl of opaque energy.
"You should see it for yourself, Sarah. See my folly," said the Doctor as he pointed at the black energy book.
Sarah stretched out her hand and let it pass into the black ball of energy. A vista of light seemed to envelope her. Then her vision cleared, and she saw.
To be continued . . .