Chapter 1

The TARDIS materialized aboard the Monitor. Ace approached the door. "Timothy is a telepath of extraordinary talent. He's a rather unique person. He's not what you might expect, Professor."

Ace and the Doctor exited the TARDIS into the Monitor. Timothy Elder was standing there waiting for them. He was a young man, with wide, dark eyes. He appeared nervous. He was informally dressed, not at all officious.

"Welcome aboard the TARDIS. I'm…"

"The Doctor. Here…" Timothy reached into his pocket and produced a data cassette. He flipped it casually to the Doctor as he stepped into the TARDIS. The Doctor caught it, annoyed. Timothy's attitude was abrupt and rude. "You want to know all about your mission," Timothy continued. "Everything's on there. Orders and briefings. Destination and co-ordinates, all that."

The Doctor was visibly annoyed. He handed the cassette to Ace, who accepted it and followed Timothy as if to ask a question.

"I sensed you were out here," Timothy said to Ace. "How've you been?"

Ace was embarrassed by Timothy's tactlessness, but she still couldn't help smiling. "Fine, but Tim, I…"

"Thought you were on Chandra Five," they both said at the same time. They laughed- this was a familiar routine to them both.

The Doctor came to stand behind Timothy, unnoticed. "Sir…"

Timothy whirled on the Doctor as if a rocket had just gone off behind him. No one had ever approached Timothy Elder without his awareness. Until now. "Who…what are you?"

The Doctor was puzzled. "You know I'm the Doctor."

Timothy locked gazes with Ace, reading the answers he wanted from her mind. Then he looked back at the Doctor, fascinated as a child with a new toy. "Incredible, a Time Lord. I can't read you at all. It's like you're not there."

The Doctor frowned, puzzled. "Let's take a look at that cassette, Ace. Please run the orders, scan the technical schematics, and be ready to brief me in ten minutes." They entered the console room, where Nita was waiting for them. "Nita, please work with Ace to go through our orders and new co-ordinates."

"Ok, Doctor."

"And we'll have a mission briefing in…fifteen minutes. Mister Elder. Would you like to see your quarters?"

"No," Timothy replied flatly. "I'd rather get this briefing over with. Then be left alone until I'm needed."

Timothy exited the console room. Ace looked apologetically at the Doctor, who was looking severe. The Doctor dematerialized the TARDIS and they exited together after Timothy.

Meanwhile, the Monitor veered away to starboard.

Nita and Ace were walking down the corridor.

"I've heard something about Gharusa Prime," said Ace. "Weren't about forty people killed…"

"Forty-seven, including the captain of the Adelphi."

"What happened?"

"It was a first contact situation. The Gharusans values are so complex, and so different, that UNIT sent along a specialist. To prevent misunderstanding."

"That was Tim? And what happened was his fault?"

Nita considered a moment, before answering. "Not directly. Board of inquiry blamed Captain Dawson's carelessness about Gharusan cultural taboos." She paused. "But if Elder's so good, why didn't he warn Dawson? What was he there for, if he couldn't sense that much hostility?"

The Doctor, Ace and Nita were at the console. The Doctor was loading the data chip. Nita and Nita stood at his shoulder.

"Nita, Ace… do you ever feel as if I'm not "there?" That is to say… not "here"."

Ace clasped the Doctor's shoulders as if testing his solidness. "You seem to be all here."

The Doctor considered this, then turned his attention to the screen where the information was appearing. "Our destination is the Beta Stromgrem system, following the path of the Mars Nine probe that veered off course."

"That's beyond Earth's furthest manned explorations in this century."

"That's correct, Nita. Apparently the probe has discovered…" he paused, reacting to something he saw on the screen. "Astonishing."

The Doctor, Nita, Ace and Timothy Elder were in the console room. Timothy was standing next to the Doctor. Timothy appeared distracted by pain, from a bad headache. On the screen was a red supergiant star. Flashing around it in close orbit was a tiny, brilliant white light.

"This is the star Beta Stromgren. Scientists have discovered that it is in the final stages of an alternating cycle of expansion and collapse, which will soon result in a supernova. However, the long-range unmanned probe which the British space program sent to observe Mars but veered off course has discovered something much more."

"Oh, Doctor, don't waste time," said Timothy, exasperated. Timothy reached past a startled Doctor and punched the projector controls. The screen froze its motion. A frame appeared around the star's tiny companion, and the framed area was magnified to replace the star image.

The new image was a slender object which pulsed with light, of organic appearance. At the aft end of the object were two glowing orange grids, clearly engines. The whole surface of the thing was networked by faintly pulsing pale white energy paths, suggesting something between lightning charges and a human circulartory system.

"They call it "The Ship". The Mars Probe found it orbiting Stromgren."

"Looks like a ship."

"It's energy source is unknown. The people who've studied the transmission think it's a starship. And they're sure it's alive."

"Alive? How so?" asked the Doctor, immediately fascinated.

"A cybernetic organism, like the Cybermen?"

"No, no, NO! Here…"

Timothy manipulated the projector controls again. The Doctor looked on, bemused, as the image on the screen was replaced by rotating multi-plane artwork representing interior diagrams and schematics of The Ship.

"The British Space Centre believes it's an organic creature, born in space, living its life in the wastes between stars."

Timothy winced slightly and paced the room, growing more excited as he spoke. Ace noticed his discomfort.

"No one knows where it came from, or why it's here now. And we're going to meet it. We're going to talk to it. I'm going to talk to it."

Nita regarded Timothy dubiously. "Have attempts been made…"

"To communicate with it by subspace. Of course – linguacode, universal translation, all that. It won't work. The Ship is too different. Direct mind-to-mind contact is our only hope."

"The opportunity for discovery is extraordinary, but I don't yet understand the BSC's urgency."

Timothy turned to Ace, a little blankly – the telepath was lost in imagination.

"The Sontarans…"

"Hell, I forgot…the Sontarans…"

"They claim the sector of space in which Beta Stromgren is located."

"The Sontarans claim all that is within their field of vision."

"And they routinely monitor the telemetry of Earth's deep-space probes. So it's quite certain they'll be sending a ship of their own to investigate this Ship."

"No… Actually, they're sending two. Uh, Doctor…"

Nita reacted, concerned.

"That is correct. Starbase one twenty-three detected two Scout class Battlecruisers on an intercept course. The top speed of this class vessel is of course no match for our own. We therefore have some advantage. So, it's a race? An alien intelligence, a new life-form, representing a technology far beyond that of either the Sontarans or the Humans. The Sontarans will take whatever measures, military or otherwise, are required to secure the creature for study."

"Study as in dissect, I'd bet."

"So, Doctor, I guess you're the brains of this outfit, huh?"

"Mister Elder, one reason I want you to work closely with a member of my team is to avoid any further … omissions. The possibility of an encounter with Sontarans on this mission is hardly trivial. Yet you…"

"All right, all right… I should have brought up the Sontarans earlier, but I was distracted."

Nita looked annoyed. Timothy read her thoughts, and turned to glare at her. "And no, Nita dear, I wasn't distracted on Gharusa Prime. If Delamar had listened to me, no one would have died. And I don't care whether you believe that or not."

Timothy left angrily, leaving Nita, the Doctor and Ace doubtful and concerned.