The launch party was being held on Level Ten, in one of the larger conference rooms. The table had been taken out and the walls were bedecked with silver and gold balloons, streamers and ribbons. It was glittery almost to the point of tacky, Sandi thought, as she entered the already crowded room on the Doctor's arm. After sifting through the clothes in her wardrobe, the Doctor had decided on a chocolate brown halter-neck dress that fell to her knees with an emerald brooch set in front. Easy for running in, he had said cheerily, presenting her with a pair of Grecian sandles that, thankfully, had come from the back of her cupboard rather than the TARDIS.

The bigwigs of every game distributor and major press representation were present; all guzzling glasses of wine and champagne, hooting with laugher at every terrible joke. Sandi clutched the Doctor's arm.

'Let's go home. Can we go home? I'll cook us something nice. We can have chips. Nice chips. In newspaper. Oh please, let's go home,' she moaned, tugging at his sleeve. The Doctor stared down at her in amazement.

'You face off against Zriekas, come back from the dead and you're afraid of a few bigwigs?'

'They're disgusting! Scary, nonsensical, fat, balding idiots who've never played a game in their lives!'

'Oh, come on. They're not all that bad.'

'Oi, you, waiter, I've run out of wine,' came a slurred voice from behind them. The Doctor turned to face a fat man in a tux with a press tag. He handed the Doctor an empty wine glass and staggered forward a bit.

'Blurry good party, innit? No bard it all,' he hiccuped and lurched away. The Doctor stared after him bemusedly, before cracking up laughing. Sandi rolled her eyes.

'Excuse me everyone? Can I please have your attention here for a moment,' came a voice over the generic hubbub of the crowd. Everyone turned to face the front of the room, where Rebecca stood at a lecturn that had Torchlink's seal hanging down the front. Torchlink's frontwoman was dressed in a dusty pink backless dress and her red hair was swept up in a french knot. She smiled warmly at the gathering.

'Welcome to the launch of Torchlink's first venture in the world of gaming, the revolutionary new console, the Game Prism!'

A scattered applause met the announcement. A screen descended behind Rebecca as the lights dimmed. Instinctively, Sandi moved closer to the Doctor, who tightened his grip on his sonic screwdriver in his pocket. On screen, a presentation on the Prism began to play.

'The Game Prism is the newest advance in gaming technology. Using a fusion of alien technology and modern ingenuity, Torchlink has developed a brand-new game experience to surpass any gaming system currently on the market. Imagine; complete immersion in any game commercially available, really playing as whatever character the gamer chooses. Its revolutionary design borrows aspects from alien technology salvaged by our sister company, Torchwood, applying it to enriching and enhancing a gamer's experience inside the Prism. Ladies and gentlemen, this is the future of gaming!'

'I think that we should leave. I want a better look around this building,' the Doctor murmured as the presentation continued. Sandi nodded almost imperceptively.

'What do you want to see?'

'Everything. Starting with their distribution records.'

'That'd be in admin, first floor.'

He reached over and squeezed her hand gently.

'Maybe it is time we vamoosed.'

---------

'What are we looking for, exactly?'

'Any file concerning the distribution of the Game Prism consoles and games.'

'Ah, well, since you asked, I just ran a search. There are three million, four hundred and sixty-four thousand, nine hundred and eighty-two files pertaining to those keywords. Where would you like to start?'

The Doctor groaned, rolled his eyes and looked over at Sandi. She was looking at him with a patient, yet rather amused expression on her face. He raised his eyebrows.

'I suppose you think you're funny, don't you?'

'Just a little, yeah.'

'Narrow the search parameters to files created and/or opened in the last week.'

'That cuts it down to... around three hundred thousand.'

'Well. I suppose it's a start. Hmmm. Narrow down to pre-ordered consoles and numbers of distribution.'

'We're down to five thousand. Hang on, let me try the number of distributors.'

'Any luck?'

'Cut it by more than half. We still have two thousand files. Any more ideas?'

'Ah. Lessee... eliminate all the image files that aren't schematics?'

'That still leaves fifteen hundred files. Doctor, this is ridiculous.'

'We need those distribution records. Okay, try all files sent and received by Rebecca Granger and/or any of the CEOs of Torchlink.'

The computer next to him beeped twice. Sandi rubbed her hands together excitedly.

'Ah-hah! Now we're getting somewhere! That's cut it down to just over a hundred files. Think we could split that between us?'

'I think we could,' the Doctor replied, winking cheekily at Sandi. Sandi sighed and sent half the files across to the Doctor's PC. For nearly five minutes, the pair worked in almost total silence, until...

'Got it, well, something that looks like it,' the Doctor said suddenly. Sandi leant over.

'What is it?'

'I have no idea.'

'Gimme a look-see.'

The Doctor pushed his chair back to allow Sandi to peer at the monitor. She scrolled down, speed-reading the facts.

'Oh, this is so not good.'

'You want to elaborate on that?'

'I've got at least seventy-two distributors in the UK alone. The international distributors are going to be at least ten times that in the US alone. World over... I'd expect there's got to be about a hundred different distributors.'

'Oh. That's... not good.'

'Yeah. Not good.'

'Any chance of recalling the whole lot of 'em?'

'You've got a better chance of freezing in hell.'

The Doctor ruffled his hair and rubbed his face. He looked at Sandi expectantly.

'An idea would be really useful right now.'

'Why don't you think of one?'

'Ah, but that would be taking all the credit. Besides, I like to encourage lateral thinking in my companions.'

'Which either means you're too lazy to think of one or you've run out of ideas or, my personal favourite, you have absolutely no idea what's going on and no clue as how to stop it.'

'You know, you really know how to put a dampener on things. Remind me why I put up with you.'

'Look,' Sandi said, scrolling down a little further. She pointed to a paragraph on the screen.

'... blah, blah, blah, here we go, "Torchlink's gaming network is expected to connect nearly a million players all over the world in every language". Must have a universal translator. I wonder how they managed that? That wasn't included a month or so ago.'

'Hang on,' the Doctor whispered, reading on.

'It also says that Torchlink's network won't go online until tomorrow afternoon. Sandi, when did the problems first start occuring?'

Sandi scratched her head thoughtfully

'Possibly when we put the multi-player function in. The boys down in Console Development were forced to modify the console with some new technology that Torchwood had released to us.'

The Doctor snapped his fingers, leapt from his chair and grabbed her excitedly by the shoulders.

'Hah! Brilliant! So now we know where the problems started! Sandi, I need you to pull all the schematics from the computer. Every diagram, every instruction kit, every Do-Not-Press label you can find! We need to get to work!'

'Wait, where are you going?' Sandi shouted he sprinted across the floor to the elevator. He winked at her in the dark and punched the up button.

'Up,' he said cheerily.

'Wish me luck!'

---------

The Design and Development department on the third floor was unnaturally quiet at night. If the Doctor had bothered asking Sandi before rushing to the elevator, she would have taken the time to tell him about the mysterious silence. There should always be some noise. But at night, after everyone else had gone home to their families, the third floor was plunged into a vacuum of noiselessness that lasted until morning. No hum of electricity, no whistle of wind outside the windows. Nothing.

So when the doors slid open on the deathly quiet scene, a sudden and unexpected chill ran slyly up the Doctor's spine. He moved with all the stealth of a cat between the desks, closing in fast on the back of the room, where a large screen was built and five consoles hung on their individual hooks. His steps made no sound as he crept up on the hardware, the only light coming from the halogen lamps positioned over the empty workstations. He sidled soundlessly up, hardly believing his luck as he lifted a pair of the wraparounds off its hook and turned them over in his hands.

'Put the console down.'

The Doctor froze, fear almost freezing his blood solid in his bicardial circulatory system. He relaxed his shoulders and smiled, turning slowly to lock eyes and match the angry stare of the still-human Brent Carlisle. The furious Braxan was broiling with rage, his face a dark purple. The Doctor allowed the feeling of deep worry that was nagging at his mind to sweep through him as he smiled cheerfully at the alien.

'Ah! Well, if it isn't you! Prince... Carlton, isn't it?'

'Carruther,' Brent growled. The Doctor clapped and nodded.

'That's it. Couldn't quite remember. Well, lovely chatting, should catch up sometime later, have to dash, sorry...'

'You will wait.' The statment was final. There was no escaping it. The Doctor sagged slightly, the wraparounds still in his hand.

'Ah. Um. Well, you see...'

'You will wait. You do not have a choice.'

'Yes, well, I don't like ultimatums. They make me itch. So right now, if you don't mind, I'm going to do what I normally do when someone gives me one of those.'

With all the speed of a Western Gunslinger, the Doctor whipped out the sonic screwdriver, flicked it on and pointed it at a computer terminal on Brent's left. The monitor fried instantly, sending angry sparks flying. Brent shouted in pain and threw his arms up to cover his face as the Doctor ducked and ran past. Within a minute, he was at the doors of the elevator. He thumped desperately at the down button as Brent continued to claw at his face, but it appeared that the Braxan has disabled the lift when he had arrived on the third floor. The Doctor sprinted to the stairs and paused in the doorway. He put his fingers to his mouth and gave a shrill whistle. Brent looked up and squinted across the room at him. The Doctor grinned mischievously.

'What I normally do is run!'

As he bolted down the stairs, the Doctor heard the inhuman scream of the furious Braxan, bellowing in pain and rage. As the Doctor leapt down the last few steps of the first staircase, Brent appeared in the doorway above.

'You will not escape again, Time Lord!' Brent roared. Colour drained from the Doctor's face.

'Oh boy,' he groaned. The Braxan began thundering down the steps behind him as the Doctor took off at top speed. He pounded down another two flights of stairs before bursting through the fire escape doors on the ground floor. The Time Lord dashed through the darkened, empty room in the direction of administration. Sandi looked up from the computer screen she had been working at. She watched the Doctor running towards her and grinned, holding up a sheaf of paper.

'Hey! Look what I...' Sandi began, but the Doctor simply grabbed her wrist and yanked her after him.

'No time for chat, more time for running,' the Doctor puffed as he half-dragged the bemused girl out the front doors of the Torchlink building. Sandi opened her mouth to protest, but suddenly noticed Brent Carlisle explode from the fire escape doors. Her feet hit the ground and she sped up, keeping good pace with the Doctor's long-legged stride. He stared at her in puzzlement. She glanced over and gave a half-hearted wink.

'Point taken,' she gasped as the pair hurtled around a corner and slowed to a jog. The papers in Sandi's hand were now thoroughly crumpled as she handed them to the out-of-breath Time Lord the pages. He peered at them closely.

'What are these?'

'They are the blueprints you asked me to get for you. Y'know, the ones on the computer?'

'Oh, those blueprints. Ah. The ones that would go with this, I imagine,' he said, holding up the stolen console and grinning from ear to ear. Sandi clapped sarcastically.

'Oh, well done! Now you've done it.'

The Doctor's smile slid from his face and was replaced by a puzzled frown.

'What do you mean, "Now you've done it"? I thought we needed this?'

'In case you didn't realise, those morons at Torchlink have my home address! They'll track us down! Hunt us like small, furry creatures! We're done for!'

The Doctor sighed and dug in his left jacket pocket, still clutching the console. He pulled out a small, silver key and waved under Sandi's nose.

'Did you forget that we have the TARDIS?'

Sandi closed her mouth and grinned sheepishly. The Doctor shook his head, took her by the hand and led her away. Behind them, the lights on the tenth floor of the Torchlink building glittered in the dark as the festivities surrounding the console's release continued on into the night.

---------

'You lost him again?!? That is IT! I have had enough of you! You are FIRED!'

Brent Carlisle hung his head in shame. This was beneath a Braxan. They were the supreme hunters in the galaxy and he was one of the royal family. Yet here he stood, shame-faced and broken before a livid and red-faced Rebecca Granger who was bellowing in rage. The blonde swept a wisp of hair from her forehead and tucked behind her ear, regaining her temper. She stared coldly at the cowering prince.

'You will explain to me exactly how one man and one... girl managed to infiltrate the party, steal a console and evade capture by one of the greatest trackers in the universe.'

Brent scratched his head thoughtfully, recalling the events of the night. Rebecca scowled at him.

'I'm waiting, Carruther.'

'Y'know, you're supposed to call me Brent Carlisle while I'm on Earth. People'll get suspicious.'

'NOW Carruther!'

'Okay, OKAY! Sheesh. Well, I was patrolling the tenth floor, keepin' a close eye on the guests, when I spotted them. I didn't want to worry everyone and cause a big scene, so I just kept my eye on them for a while. But then the mayor came up and started talkin' to me and, I dunno, I lost sight of them. When I managed to get out of the conversation, they were gone. I figured they were up to somethin' sneaky, so I went straight to the third floor. Sure 'nuff, there he was with one 'a them headset thingies. I told him to put it down, but he said no, then pulled out a sonic whatsit and fried this PC I was standin' next to. The sparks got in me eyes and before I knew it, he was up and out the door. But he stopped to give me some cheek before he ran away. The nerve!'

'Then what?' Rebecca asked casually. Brent shrugged.

'Not much else to say, really. Chased him down the fire escape stairs, he grabbed the girl and made off into the night.'

Rebecca appeared to be deep in thought.

'Perhaps we underestimated their strategism. Do you think it likely that Miss Jenkinson has returned home?'

'Nah. That Time Lord is too smart. He would have taken her somewhere safe.'

Rebecca gave the situation a little more careful thought. A cruel smile crept across her cold face.

'Yes, I suppose he would have. But he wouldn't have thought to take her friends and family with him. It's not in his nature. What do you know of her friends and family?'

'Just that she doesn't remember her parents, but she lives with a friend, Nicola Mills. Young woman. Blonde.'

Rebecca stared out into the night. She addressed the Braxan without turning around.

'You have one last chance. Bring Miss Mills here. Find her and bring her here. Gently, of course. We don't want to harm her.'

'We don't?' Brent asked, slightly puzzled. He had been half-heartedly looking forward to a little carnage. Rebecca held a hand up.

'Not yet. Now go. Find Nicola Mills.'

---------

Nicola sighed as her date droned on and on. Secretly, she was envisaging him being dipped slowly in a vat of hot tar, which led to a glazed expression and a lop-sided grin firmly stuck on her face. Her date, a dim-witted football player, thought that she was paying fantastic attention to him, compared to what normal girls would have. He rattled on and on about his favourite teams, just waiting for the moment that she got up, slapped his face and stormed out of the restaurant. She had already lasted ten minutes longer than his personal record, which was five.

Suddenly, the door of the japanese restaurant imploded, sending waiters tumbling and well-dressed women fleeing to the bathroom in hysterics. Nicola got to her feet as her date scrambled for cover. Through the dust that was settling, she could make out the faint outline of man moving purposefully towards her. She gasped and stumbled slightly backwards. Brent's haggard form leered out at her from the mist.

'What's happenin', doll?'

Nicola reached behind her and picked up a spork. With terrifying accuracy, she plunged it down into Brent's leg. He howled with pain, clutching at the plastic eating utensil stuck in his thigh. Nicola back-handed him across the face, sending the Braxan sprawling to the floor. She stumbled slightly as she edged towards the door.

'Who do you think you are, you creep!? I'll teach you! "Doll", where do you get off, calling me doll?'

Brent sat up and touched his lip, which had busted open when Nicola had slapped. His eyes burned with a fiery rage.

'Okay now, 'Becca told me to be gentle with you but I can see that you ain't plannin' on co-operatin'! So from now on, we play by my rules!'

Long, snake-like tendrils shot out of nowhere and bound Nicola up, pinning her arms to her side. She screamed as the Braxan rose before her, his true form revealed.

'Alright now, doll,' the alien hissed as he slowly dragged Nicola close to his revolting face.

'Let the games begin.'

---------

Safely back in the TARDIS, the Doctor set about hooking up the game console to the main controls. Sandi sat to the side, head tipped slightly to the right as she watched him flit around the control panels like a hummingbird. It was clear from the delighted expression on his face that the Doctor was clearly impressed.

'This is... this is incredible,' he whispered excitedly, hooking more cables up to the console. Sandi raised an eyebrow.

'What's incredible?'

'I haven't see technology like this since...' The Doctor trailed off, his head bowed reverentially. He closed his eyes and rubbed his head thoughtfully. Sandi was startled to see the beginnings of tears forming amongst his thick eyelashes.

'Doctor? Where have you seen this before?' Sandi asked urgently. The Doctor shook his head, wiped his eyes, then looked up.

'Hmm? Oh. Yes. I was going to say, the last time I saw technology like this was on Gallifrey.'

Sandi's mouth dropped open. She stared at him blankly.

'G-Gallifrey? Your home planet? But I thought that was destroyed in the last Time War!?'

The Doctor nodded and began pacing the floor of the TARDIS swiftly.

'Which is why I'm thoroughly worried. Apart from the Utopia, which we already know is shattered into tiny pieces that are no use to anyone, my TARDIS is the only piece of technology left from Gallifrey.'

'So how did Torchlink... Torchwood get their hands on technology from your home world?'

The Doctor threw his hands up and shrugged, slightly discouraged.

'I don't know. I know they don't have time-travel capacity, I would have noticed if they had.'

'Yeah, the TARDIS' scanners would have picked it up in the time vortex, right?'

'Precisely.'

'So... how on earth did this technology get to Earth?'

The Time Lord pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes.

'I dunno. I have no idea where this came from. Gallifrey was destroyed, I saw it happen...'

'Yeah, the only thing left was the sanctuary ship!'

'Yeah, just that sanctuary shi...' the Doctor trailed off. He looked up sharply and stared at Sandi.

'Sandi... you're a genius! A bona-fide genius! You knew the answer all along!'

Sandi stared back, slightly bemused.

'I did?'

The Doctor clapped happily and did a quick, two-step dance across the floor towards her.

'Yep! The sanctuary ship! The Zriekas! It all fits!'

'It does?'

The Doctor caught her by the shoulders.

'Come on now, think. What's the connection between you, the Zriekas, the ship and this Time Lord technology?'

Realisation dawned bright on Sandi's face as the idea hit home with a crashing thud.

'The Daleks!' Sandi shouted. The Doctor clapped and danced away, lighting up the controls of the TARDIS.

'The Daleks! Of course! The Zriekas told you that they had Time Lord technology. Being allies with the Daleks, they would have shared their finds with them. Then when Torchwood opened the rift, the void ship came through, bringing with it the remnants of the Time Lord technology that they had been given from the salvage by the Zriekas before the last Time War! Brilliant!'

'So does this mean, since this is in fact Time Lord technology, that you can fix it?'

'It's certainly a possibility.'

'What do you mean, a possibility? I thought you knew Time Lord techie-stuff?'

The Doctor shrugged and tossed her the console. Sandi turned it over in her hands, looking at it appraisingly. As he continued to pace the central controls, Sandi looked up at him.

'You know... when I was working on this before, I didn't feel anything. I knew what to do and how to do it, but that wasn't anything different to what a normal designer and programmer would be able to do. Now... now when I look at this, it feels like...'

'Like something you've encountered before?'

Sandi nodded, looking at the back of the console.

I've seen this before, came a small voice inside her head. Sandi jumped. The Doctor turned and looked at her.

'What's wrong?'

Tell him nothing's wrong. No need to make him nervous.

'Oh, er, nothing... just got a bit of an electric shock,' Sandi bluffed. The Doctor shrugged and went back to work. Inside, Sandi was panicking.

Shandaiah? Is that you?

Of course it's me! Who did you think it was? The Queen of Sheba?

You could warn me next time you decide to pipe up! Sheesh, give a girl a heart-attack, won't you?

I could if you wanted, you know.

Er... no. No thanks.

Well then.

So? What do you make of this?

Hmm... turn it over again, I want a better look.

Sandi obliged, turning the console over again. Shandaiah clicked disapprovingly.

Okay, now I know I've seen this before. The console's using a form of A.I., a kind of... artificial intelligence. But it's more than that. This intelligence has more than smarts, it has sentience.

Sentience?

It can think for itself. It's much more than a program. It's self-aware, destructive and conscious. This is a dangerous program. You were right not to want anything to do with this.

Thanks for telling me that now. This would have been useful to know when I was yelling at Rebecca about the stupid program.

This is from Gallifrey, you know. I've seen it before, just before we left. It was to be the single most deadly weapon against the Daleks.

What can you tell me about it?

Not a lot, but it appears that it was designed to destroy the Daleks' biosuits.

'As far as I can tell, this is, in fact, from Gallifrey,' Sandi relayed innocently back to the Doctor. The time lord spun on his heels and raised an eyebrow.

'Oh yes? And you have the A to Z on Gallifrey's Most Highly-Advanced Technology memorised, do you?'

'No... but I do have the source of all time stuck inside my crainium 'til death do us part.'

'Point taken. What's Time Almighty got to say about this little piece of tin then, eh?'

You want to enlighten us, then? Sandi asked inwardly. Shandaiah scrutinised the console for a while longer, then reached a conclusion.

It's tactical military. Definitely Time Lord design... far too elegant to be anything designed by a Dalek. Point being, this would have taken a degree of imagination, something only the Cult of Skaro ever possessed and they were far too important to be involved with any silly little Time War. Their existance was to survive, to force the Dalek race forward. This is totally different. This comes from a race that evolved on the basis of imagination and the drive of progress. This is definitive Time Lord. I haven't seen anything like this in hundreds of years...

Can we stick to the topic, please?

Hmmm? Oh, yes. Like I was saying. Definitely Time Lord. You can tell the Doctor that I said that this is top-level military. Not even he will know how to take this sucker apart. The only people who will know how are the people who designed and created the console and companion game.

Sandi looked up at the Doctor, who was tapping his foot slightly impatiently. He cocked his head to the side, a bright and intelligent look in his eyes.

'So? What's our favourite Time Source got to say about this then, eh?'

'Shandaiah believes that it is top-level military and thinks that not even you would be able to pull it apart.'

'Well, she's definitely right there...'

'She also thinks that the only people that will be able to take it apart are the console and game designers.'

The Doctor fell silent for a moment. Then...

'So... we can't do it alone? I mean, we have you. You designed the game...'

'You'd need one of the console developers as well, minimum of assistant project director.'

'Well, that's useful. What's the likelihood that we can get in touch with the project director or his understudy?'

Sandi's face drained of colour as realisation dawned on her.

'Oh my god... Dirk Evangeline went missing five months ago. He was the project director. Brilliant guy, used to write all sorts of papers for games journalism.'

'Most likely removed in case of something like us happening. Go on.'

Sandi thought hard, the last six months racing through her head.

'After Dirk... who was it? Might've been old Clarence, he retired... can't remember why though... but just before I met you, I think it might have been...'

She clapped her hand over her mouth. The Doctor raised an eyebrow.

'Yes? Who was it?'

Sandi looked at the Time Lord in horror.

'Oh my God... Doctor, I think it was Anderson.'

---------

Nicola struggled frantically at the metallic bonds tethering her to the cold, stone wall. Prince Carruther, genuinely pleased to be free of his human form, moved hypnotisingly slowly in front of her. Nicola looked pointedly away.

'Fear not, dollface, you're not the one I'm really after,' Carruther hissed softly. His hostage kept her eyes squeezed shut to force out the some-what snake-like appearance of her captor. The first time she had seen the real Brent Carlisle, she hadn't been able to believe it. The mad story that Sandi had tried to feed her about the new guy she had landed, who, Nicola reflected in a bittersweet manner, had been rather gorgeous... well, no-one would have swallowed that he was an alien. As in an interstellar traveller, not just an immigrant from Mexico.

However, being chained to a wall in the basement of Torchwood Tower in Canary Wharf with a huge serpent-like creature swishing backwards and forwards in front of her was enough of an indication that maybe, just maybe, Sandi had been telling the truth all along.

She still wasn't going to believe that Sandi had come back from the dead, though. That was a bit much.

'Nope, not after you, although you were an interesting side-pursuit,' Carruther muttered, sliding away. Nicola tried to force the terrified feeling away, but it didn't help. She was shaking; still cold and now wet from the water dripping down from leaky pipes, which puzzled her some. Surely an advanced institute like Torchwood would have adequate plumbing?

'You're just the bait. What I'm really afraid is your mate and that gangly boyfriend of hers.'

'Her name is Sandi and that gangly boyfriend of hers is the Doctor, thanks very much,' Nicola snapped back, a lot more bravely than she felt. A half-smile, half-grimace look crossed the Braxan's face.

'Oh yeah, that's right. The alien. Time Lord, 'in 'e? Interesting fella. Heard he was from Gallifrey. Not 'eard of that patch of rock in years.'

'Like I'd know. Sandi didn't tell me anything, just so's you know.'

'I don't think she would have. She's not that stupid. You, on the other hand, you run off at the mouth the moment you think that you're even remotely in danger.'

Nicola closed her mouth and let her eyes fall shamefully to the floor. He was right. She was only trying to save herself. There was far more at stake here than one person. The Doctor had known that. Known it when she'd mentioned Torchlink for the first time at the cafe earlier that day. Known it when he and her friend had returned, out of breath from running, from the headquarters. He'd known all along.

Yet... neither he nor Sandi had bothered to fill her in on the details. She could have helped. She could have done something to aid them. Instead, she was stuck here, tied to a wall with a giant snake for company. She wondered if they knew where she was. Or if they were even going to come and set her free.

No! came a small voice in the back of her mind.

That's not the way you think! That's him! That's that... snake-thing getting inside your head! He's trying to make you work against Sandi and the Doctor!

But I'm right, aren't I? Sandi and that Doctor boy of hers aren't coming. They'd be here by now if they were, calvary in tow. If they're such big damn heroes, where are they then?

Silence. Nicola raised her head to look head-on at the Braxan, who sat regarding her with a cool, reptillian stare. He raised a scaly eyebrow.

'Yes?'

'Suppose... suppose... and I'm not saying that they aren't, but, y'know...'

'Sandi doesn't come to the rescue?'

'She doesn't even know where I am.'

'Then I'll probably be forced to kill you.'

More silence. Carruther turned away for a moment, allowing the dread to settle in Nicola's mind. Then, just when he thought that she was going to stay strong...

'Wait. Maybe I can help you...' Nicola shouted across the room, guilt already burning on her face. Carruther grinned; a terrifying, evil distortion of mirth. He turned slowly, straightening his face. His captive was staring helplessly at the floor again.

'What makes you think that you can aid me, Miss Mills?'

'Tell me,' Nicola whispered, resigning herself to the truth, that she was betraying her best friend and her rescuer.

'Just tell me what to do...'

---------

'So now what?' Sandi asked the Doctor as he danced around the console, lighting up various panels. The TARDIS began making a low whooshing sound. The Doctor stared at her as if she was slightly slow on the uptake.

'Sorry? Oh, right. This Anderson chap, what can you tell me about him?'

Sandi pulled a face and scratched her head absently.

'Dunno, really. He was just a departmental aide for so long. Then, overnight, he becomes a project director. No warning, just a memo one morning in everyone's inbox. I tell you, there were a lot of noses put out of joint over that.'

The Doctor managed a slight grin as he watched the central TARDIS controls carefully.

'Including yours?'

'Oh hell no. You couldn't pay me enough to be authority. Nope, I prefer the behind-the-scenes work. It's a thankless job, this. If I wanted fame, I would have written a book or become a popstar.'

'Oh, I dunno. The way Idol's going, I think you might actually be in with a chance,' the Doctor hit back without thinking first and immediately regretted it. Sandi gaped incredulously.

'You what? Thanks very much!'

'I didn't mean it like that! You humans take everything the wrong way!'

Silence fell uneasily over the pair. The Doctor thought to himself for a moment.

'I suppose congratulations are in order.'

Sandi raised an eyebrow warily.

'Oh? What for?'

'You've been on my, well, frankly wonderful spaceship for some time now and you haven't asked me about it being bigger on the inside.'

'Oh.' Sandi looked around at the familiar surroundings of the TARDIS. The Doctor waited patiently. She looked back at him, an unabashedly unimpressed look on her face.

'Was I supposed to?'

The Doctor's mouth dropped open. Sandi shrugged casually.

'I thought all alien spaceships were like this. Plus, when we first met, I was being chased by Zriekas bent on killing me, ripping my head open and extracting my brain. Sometimes, you miss the small details.'

'And here I was, being all impressive and handsome and heroic! Note to self, the next assistant will be impressionable,' the Doctor said in mock-seriousness. Sandi grinned wickedly.

'Okay, then, why is it bigger on the inside, then? Ten points if you give me a straight answer. Fifty if you give it to me in layman's terms.'

The Doctor grinned angelicly.

'Then I guess I'll have to settle with null points,' he replied, emphasising the french wording. Sandi laughed.

'Humans, one, Time Lord, nil!'

'Nope. Humans: half, Time Lord: half, Doctor: too busy to care. Come on, I need a hand up here.'

Sandi opened her mouth to protest, but the Doctor was already dancing madly around the central console, hammering at parts with the rubber mallet he kept handy. Resigning herself to helping out, she dragged herself to her feet and stumbled over to assist.

'You didn't say much about Anderson? Tell me more! I need to know!' The Doctor shouted over the roar of the TARDIS engines. Sandi clutched at the console as the TARDIS bucked sharply.

'You met him, remember? The guy who sent us up to Granger? That's him. Poor sod didn't even realise what was being asked of him.'

'You didn't think to introduce the project manager?'

'Well, in case you didn't notice, you were off like a shot before I had even opened my mouth to start the niceties. It's your own fault, you know.'

'So bring me up to date! We don't have all the time in the world, you know!'

'Like I said, just a memo one morning. It's odd though. Anderson doesn't have any practical experience in game design at all.'

'Probably removing anyone in power who knew about the flaws in the game. An aide wouldn't know diddley-squat about some high-tech gizmo that the programmers and designers came up with. All he'd be interested in would be the big, fat pay rise,' the Doctor mused as the TARDIS shuddered to a halt. He skidded down the ramp and grabbed his coat from the railing. He spun around at looked at Sandi.

'Well come on! We haven't got until the end of the world!'

Sandi's footsteps rang on metal as she followed him. Bursting through the TARDIS doors, she skidded to a halt and stared. They had landed in a deserted building; old and crumbling, with half the windows smashed in, most likely from rocks thrown from the pavement three floors below. Sandi looked at the Doctor, who was clearly more occupied with something he was holding.

'Where are we?'

'Should be somewhere close,' the Doctor muttered vaguely, holding up the sonic screwdriver, which was quietly humming in his hand. Sandi narrowed her eyes.

'What are you doing?'

'Braxans give off a distinct psychic energy trace when they've fed. Thoughts lined with ideas and laced with a dash of imagination would be what I'd call it.'

'But I thought we were looking for Anderson?'

The Doctor lowered his hand and stared at her gravely.

'You said they knew where you lived.'

Realisation dropped with a nasty clunk as Sandi's hands flew to her mouth and colour drained from her face.

'Oh my god. They've got Nicola!'

---------

Carruther hissed sharply and looked skyward. Nicola, finally free of her chains, looked at him.

'What is it?'

'He's here. The Doctor and that... girl, they're here.'

'It's about time. I could've been dead by now.'

'Ah, but you're not, are you?'

'You promised me, Carlisle,' Nicola said threateningly and the Braxan prince shuddered at his Earth name.

'You said that if I gave you the Doctor, you wouldn't hurt Sandi. That you'd let me go.'

'A deal's a deal, dollface. I said you wouldn't be hurt and Sandi would be taken care of.'

Nicola held her head in shame. She couldn't believe that she had turned over her memories of Sandi, just to get out alive. Carruther grinned at her. The creature's smile horrified her.

'So what now?'

'Now, precious, now you start screaming for help. Another few minutes and I'm certain they'll find you.'

Nicola swallowed the lump in her throat. Then, she took in a deep breath, the kind babies take just before they let out a primal scream when they throw a tantrum. Lifting her head up and staring at the ceiling, Nicola began to scream.

---------

'HHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!'

The scream echoed off the walls and assaulted the ears of the Doctor and Sandi. Sandi dropped to her knees and clapped her hands over her ears as the Doctor quickly tucked the sonic screwdriver in his inside jacket pocket and reached for her hand.

'Run!' The Doctor shouted, grabbing her wrist and jerking her along with him. They ran to the end of the corridor where the TARDIS had landed and opening the rusty fire escape door, which nearly fell off their hinges. The Doctor frowned at the obvious state of disrepair.

'Now come on, think think think, why would a Braxan use a place like this to hold a victim? This makes no sense,' he grumbled aloud as the pair pounded the steps towards the ear-splitting screaming.

'Is it just me, or do we always seem to be running full-pelt down stairs like this?' Sandi puffed, struggling to keep pace with her long-legged companion. The Doctor halted abruptly. Sandi crashed into his back unceremoniously, nearly sending them both flying. The Doctor grabbed her shoulders, a wild grin dancing on his lips.

'Of course! Sandi, you're a genius! It's the stairs! Why didn't I see it before? He's a Braxan... of course, it makes sense! The underground city of Braxi III, I'd totally forgotten,' he said, padding down the steps at a slower rate, obviously satisfied that he'd hit the answer. Sandi probed him for more information.

'What does being a Braxan have to do with this?'

The Doctor rounded on her and looked at her as if he were explaining this for the nineteenth time.

'Carlisle's a Braxan, yeah? Means that that human form he's been taking isn't his real shape. Braxans aren't humanoid like Time Lords. They're herpetoid.'

'Herpetoid?'

'Means they look more like snakes.'

'Oh. Go on.'

'Anyway, on Braxi III, the immortal city of Loorie supposedly has a massive subterranian level, which is where they keep thousands of slaves. A Braxan can't think for itself, can't imagine, can't come up with new ideas, nothing. They rely on the thoughts and minds of others to stop them going completely insane. This does, however, make them excellent trackers. No internal thoughts, perfect concentration and a mind like a finely tuned digital aerial capable of detecting the nightmare off a single-celled amoeboid at two thousand miles.'

'Oh wonderful. Here's me thinking John Edward was good.'

The Doctor gave Sandi a warm smile.

'Oh, my old mate Johnno? Nah, he's only half-Braxan. Come on, work to do. We gotta go save your friend.'

They jumped the last few stairs to land on cold concrete in the sub-basement. The air was stale and chilly, holding a deep sense of foreboding. It was clear that they weren't welcome. The Doctor grew very serious; his boyish face was suddenly stern and cold, his eyes deep with ancient wisdom and fury. The pair forwarded on, following the screams that echoed down the halls to them. As they reached the final corner, the Doctor suddenly turned to Sandi and grabbed both her hands. She looked at him, slightly afraid.

'Doctor, what's wrong?'

'Everything,' he said quietly, as they were assaulted by fresh screams. Sandi looked confused.

'What do you mean, "everything"? I thought this is where we're meant to be! I said we should have turned left back there...'

'No, it's not that. This screaming... if Carlisle was really hurting Nicola, we wouldn't hear a thing...'

'You know, I really hate smart guys,' came a cold voice from behind them. Sandi looked up and screamed as Brent Carlisle/Carruther brought a heavy book down on top of the Doctor's head. The Time Lord groaned, his eyes rolled back and he crumpled to the floor. Sandi dropped her knees and grabbed the Doctor's hand as Brent swung the book upwards for a second blow. She leapt up, clearing the Doctor's fallen form and crash-tackling the Braxan to the ground. The serpent-like being gasped as Sandi latched her hands around its throat and pressed down as hard as she could.

'No-one hurts my Doctor!' Sandi roared, throwing all her weight behind her arms, pinning the snake creature to the ground. Carlisle wheezed as the girl atop him forced the air from his lungs and cut off his windpipe. Something else was happening. Her fury was pulsing through her, he could feel it... an unimaginable power flowing through her, rendering him helpless. Things were starting to go dark...

THUNK

Sandi's grip slackened and she released Carlisle's throat. She keeled over and lay unconscious next to the Doctor. The Braxan looked up to see Nicola standing over them. She clutched the heavy book that he had dropped when Sandi had launched herself at him.

Carlisle/Carruther's cold laughter rang out through the halls as Nicola wept in disgrace.