Chapter 4

The Doctor, Ace and Nita were sitting in the observation lounge, faces grim. Ace was checking over readouts. "The crystal lattice is breaking down. We'll have to pick up repairs when we can reach a starbase."

"The optimist in the group," said the Doctor. "How long do we have shields based on current calculations?"

"Under two hours, Doctor," replied Nita. "And the radiation field has increased by seventeen percent."

The Doctor turned to Ace. "Impact on fatal exposure?"

"Down to twenty-six minutes."

"If we resist, we die," said the Doctor. "If we don't resist, we die. Ace, have we shut down all non-essential energy usage?"

"Yes, Professor. In fact, I need to set some back…I'm working on that program in the Holoroom."

"How's it going?"

"As you know, I've gone back to the beginning, to the earliest entries. I've created a propulsion design model to assist me. I believe we're making progress."

"Computer, reinstate holoroom program."

"Holoroom program is reinstated."

"Ace, your best suggestion in one hour."

Ace arrived at the Holoroom. "Computer, resume Holoroom program."

"Enter when ready."

Ace entered. She and Rasilon shared a look of concern.

"There isn't much time left."

Ace acknowledged her, her mind working. "We have to get out of here.
The booby trap eats energy."

"How do we fool it, block it, shut it down?"

"OK, we know that for every move the TARDIS makes, there's a countermovement
by the energy field."

"Can we use that to our advantage?"

"Maybe. There must be a time differential between force and counterforce."

She made an entry into the terminal. She felt Rasilon moving up behind her, looking over her shoulder.

"If we can adjust the link-ups before the counterforce reacts, we might just move this bucket."

"Yeah."

"Yes!"

She turned and looked at him with enthusiasm, and she felt a strange attraction to him.

"Rasilon, do you like Italian food?"

He looked at her and smiled at her from behind and lay a hand on her shoulder.

"Italian? I don't know what that is, but I am willing to try."

As they looked at the computer display that came up..

"OK. Fusion reactor uplink to navigation processor."

Connections between the master computer and other controls were changing rapidly.

"But then we have to adjust the drive coils, and the vector processor, it's impossible."

Ace was sitting tiredly in her chair, had been sitting there for a long while, and Rasilon began massaging her shoulders.

"Don't do that."

"Sorry, I thought it might feel good."

"I don't' want to feel that good right now. What time is it?"

"Coming up on 4pm."

"Crap, what am I supposed to tell the Professor?" She stood, frustrated. "It's possible
and yet it's not possible. Everything says we can't adjust it but if we could, it might work."

"I could do it."

"The Doctor couldn't even do it. It'll take a thousand adjustments a second. How will you do it? It's humanly impossible."

"I'm not human."

And that hit Ace and after a beat she laughed at herself for getting so caught up in her program, but it was a little sad too.

"You mean the computer could do it."

He acknowledged her. The door slid open and the Doctor entered.

"Professor, We...I've been examining the force-counterforce response times, trying to create linkage at maximum power."

"And?"

"There's a...There's a chance we could if we turn the ship over to the computer."

And she felt awkward as she said it. And the Doctor's eyes told that he loathed the idea. But his feelings weren't relevant right now. "What chance?"

"I don't know yet. But we can program it and try it out on a few simulated runs."

"Proceed."

He started to exit, and paused. "This is the only way."

"I think so, Professor."

The Doctor acknowledged her, and left without glancing again at Rasilon. Ace exchanged a look with him.

The Doctor was in the console room, staring into the middle distance. Nita entered. "Any word from Ace?"

"She's come up with something that might give us a chance. If we agree to stay out of it."

"Doctor?"

"She proposes to turn control of the TARDIS over to the computer because she is capable of making quicker adjustments than any person."

They exchanged a look.

"But don't you do that anyway?"

"Not really. I program the co-ordinates and fly her. Mostly. Sometimes she lands somewhere different. But I'm usually mostly in control. But what choice do I have? You know, Nita, you missed something not playing with models. They were the source of imaginary voyages, each holding a treasure of adventures. Manning the earliest spacecraft,
flying an aeroplane with only one propeller to keep you in the sky. Can you imagine that? Now the machines are flying us."

In the Holoroom, Ace and Rasilon were watching a viewer. It seemed like a super sophisticated graphic arcade game…the TARDIS moving through the asteroid field…when it got too close to one, there was a brilliant beam of energy that covered the ship…the image froze. "Fatal radiation exposure."

"Computer, reduce thrust levels another four percent. Adjust trajectory angle
to compensate. Begin simulation again."

The image of the TARDIS moved cautiously through the asteroid field…and this time it got through.

"There you go, we got out."

Ace wasn't satisfied. "Repeat simulation, same levels."

The image of the TARDIS just began to move when radiation wiped it out.

"End simulation. Fatal exposure."

"Same variables, only the computer didn't quite make it."

The console screen went to static. The Cloister Bell sounded.

"Deflecter shield failure. Lethal radiation levels. Fatal exposure in twenty-six minutes."

Ace exchanged a glance with Rasilon. The Cloister Bell continued.