As the Quarks continued their work in setting up the drill, the massive imposing figure of Dominator Dalo emerged from the ship and surveyed the progress with the cold stolidity that was common amongst his race. Like most Dominators, he was humanoid in appearance, but towered more than two and a half metres in height. His skin was pale, and he had thin bloodless lips and deeply set red-rimmed green eyes which burned with a cruel intelligence beneath heavy brows. His short hair was black and sleeked back on top of his shallow forehead. He was clad in a standard Dominator uniform, that doubled as a protective suit. This was made up of a black quilted material like rubber, armoured with small overlapping plates and built up around the shoulders so that Dalo appeared not to have a neck. Massive boots encased his long thick legs, which creaked a bit when he moved cumbersomely to survey the completion of the drill.
The operation on this planet had been easy, perhaps too easy. It had been a simple matter for Dalo to land the undetected ship in the volcano and drain off all its energy into the power cells of the craft. It had also been child's play for the Quarks to overpower some of the local inhabitants on this world and bring to him young captives for analysis. Were it not for the destruction of one Quark at the hands of one of the primitives, Dalo would have considered this operation to be entirely flawless.
And now, the time had come to commence the drilling, the prime reason for coming to this unappealing rock in space. He turned to his second in command, a fellow Dominator named Varon, and spoke in a deep voice that echoed through the cavern.
"Varon, initiate the drill. We've wasted enough time on this primitive world as it is."
"Command accepted," intoned Varon, before turning to the Quarks manning the machine. "Commence initiation procedure."
"Acknowledged," squawked the first Quark in its child-like mechanised voice, as it and its fellow robots carefully checked the instrument panels of the machine. "Strength setting to nine point two."
"Good, good," said Dalo, his voice filled with a cold excitement. "This drill will bore straight to the planet's core, then we can leave this miserable planet."
Varon gave an eager grin, like a particularly bloodthirsty child. "And then this world will be destroyed? Utterly?"
"Of course," said Dalo calmly. "That is the prime purpose of our mission."
"Now why would you want to do a thing like that?"
Startled by the unexpected voice, the two Dominators spun around to see a female with long brown hair walking down one of the crystalline bridges that connected the level they were on to the one above. Her hands were raised in a passive, surrendering gesture, and she had a disarming grin on her face.
"Hi there!" the female said in a friendly manner. "Hope I'm not catching you fellas at a bad time."
"Quarks!" bellowed Varon. "Cover the intruder!"
Turning away from the drill for the present, the group of five Quarks moved around to face the alien woman, the weapons in their stubby arms pointed right at her. Dalos noted with interest that the creature did not look the slightest bit afraid.
"Shall I have this alien destroyed?" Varon asked Dalo eagerly. It had been quite some time now since he had last had the pleasure of destroying an inferior life-form.
"No, not yet," said Dalo, as he walked up to face the female. "You are not one of the natives of this planet. What are you doing here?"
"Oh, just a tourist passing through," said the female innocently. "I just love exploring volcanos, though this one is a bit of a disappointment. Not exactly active, is it?"
"That is because we have drained off all its energy into our ship," said Varon boastfully. "It is a more efficient use of power."
"Power for what exactly?" asked the female, narrowing her eyes disapprovingly. "To kidnap young children?"
"You are referring to the specimens we have collected," stated Dalo. "We have taken them to assess their value. They will be used as potential sources of energy for our fleet, or as a slave workforce when they get older. They are fortunate, as this means they will live, unlike the rest of the primitives on this planet."
"Come again?" said the female. "Do I take it you're preparing to invade this world?"
The two Dominators laughed together contemptuously at this.
"Do you really think we consider this primitive backwater worthy of conquest?" snorted Dalo. "Pah! It is of no value to us! The only thing we need from it is its core. We intend to extract it, and use it to power our space fleet. This will of course cause a chain reaction that will destroy this world, but that is of no consequence. The energy release caused by the explosion will be more than sufficient to help power the fleet. It is a simple matter of resource acquisition. Now, tell us, who are you?"
The female gave both Dominators a very hard stare, and she spoke with such steel in her voice. "Who me? I'm the Doctor, and I'm the one who's going to stop you. If you want my advice, leave now, while you still have the chance."
Amazed at the sheer audacity of this woman, Dalo sneered disdainfully at her. "You think you can stop us? One primitive female against the might of the Dominators?" He waved a hand dismissively. "This life-form is clearly deranged and of no use to our purposes. Kill her."
"With pleasure, Navigator Dalo," said Varon with a keen and unpleasant smile.
But all the time that the Dominators and their robot servants had been so focused on the Doctor, Jenny and the Kosronans had been carefully sneaking their way down another of the crystalline bridges down to the chamber floor, right behind the distracted Dominators. Jenny was clutching her mother's Sonic Screwdriver, which was giving off a faint humming noise, specifically tuned like a dog whistle to attract something to come to them.
As the small group had reached the bottom and took cover behind some rocks, Dalo hesitated, as his ears just managed to pick up the sound being generated by the Sonic Screwdriver. "Wait! What is that noise?"
But before anyone could answer him, there came a terrific roar from the tunnel on the level above, and the massive crystalline form of the Wyrmaga burst into the chamber, the light glinting off its scales. For a moment, it paused, confused by its surroundings and the little creatures dotting about before it. Then, it caught sight of the Dominators and the Quarks, the ones who had stolen the warmth of its home, and its eyes flared with rage. The creature thundered down the slope, its heavy footsteps causing the crystalline bridges to tremble precariously. The Quarks, caught off guard, turned their weapons to face the charging beast.
The Doctor looked up, her eyes sparkling with hope and anticipation, while Jenny gripped the Sonic Screwdriver tightly, her heart racing. The Doctor had been right. The creature was highly sensitive to sound, and she had managed to attract it.
"Quarks! Destroy!" yelled Varon in alarm.
But the Quarks were not prepared for the sheer size and ferocity of the enraged Wyrmaga. The creature was a whirlwind of crystalline destruction, its tail swiping through the air and knocking down stalagmites like bowling pins. The Quarks fired their lasers at the creature, which hit with a shower of sparks, but the creature barely flinched. It was clear that the sonic noise was driving the creature into a frenzy, and it was now attacking everything in its path.
As the Dominators watched the unfolding battle in fear and bewilderment, Jenny and Teke darted out from hiding and hurried over to join the Doctor. At the same time, the other two Kosronans had rushed over to the large hover-sled holding the captured Kosronan children, which they quickly started pushing towards a side tunnel away from the chaos taking place at the volcano's heart.
The Doctor watched the scene unfold, her mind racing with the urgency of the situation. The chaos was a perfect distraction, but she knew they had to act fast.
"Now's our chance!" she whispered to Jenny and Teke. "We need to disable that drill!"
"Well, get on with it then!" said Jenny, her hearts thumping as she handed the Doctor her Sonic Screwdriver. Quickly shutting off the signal it was generating, the Time Lady sprinted over to the drill and began tampering with its controls.
While the Quarks were distracted by the rampaging Wyrmaga, the Doctor managed to work her way through the complex circuitry, her nimble fingers moving with surprising speed and precision. Teke and Jenny hovered anxiously nearby, watching the chaotic battle between the Quarks and the Wyrmaga, making sure none of the robotic foes turned their attention to them and noticed their sabotage.
But their luck did not hold for long, as Varon's sharp eyes landed on the Doctor's distinctive form hunched over the drill.
"Dalo!" he bellowed over the din of battle. "The primitive is sabotaging our drill!"
But Dalo could not hear Varon over the loud roars of the Wyrmaga, so the subordinate Dominator charged towards the Doctor himself. But he was stopped in his tracks by a karate kick from Jenny, which knocked him out cold and sent him crashing to the ground.
"Good footwork," the Doctor called over her shoulder, not pausing in her work. She quickly finished her sabotage, commencing an irreversible overload on the drill's main power unit. She said to Jenny and Teke, "Get ready to run. It's about to get a bit... explosive around here."
With a final twist on the wires, the Doctor leapt away from the drill, and they began sprinting down the tunnel after the other two Kosronans. The crystalline floor shuddered under their feet as the drill's power core began to destabilize. They heard the Quarks' frantic squawks and the clanking of their retreating steps as they realised the danger. The Wyrmaga had also seemingly realised the danger, as it had broken off its attack on the Quarks, and was retreating back down the tunnel from whence it had come.
"Cominator Dalo, the machine is overloading," reported one Quark. "Request instructions."
Dalo's eyes grew wide with panic as the drill's lights began to flash erratically. He knew that once a jacenite core overloaded, the resulting explosion could be catastrophic.
"Retreat! Get back to the ship! Now!" he bellowed, his deep voice reverberating off the cavern walls as he sprinted back towards the flying saucer.
The Quarks moved to follow, but they were all just too late.
BLA-WHOOOM!
The explosion was deafening, a cacophony that seemed to go on forever, echoing through the cavernous volcano chamber. The ground underfoot shook violently, sending a spray of volcanic ash and debris into the air. The Doctor, Jenny, and Teke threw themselves flat against the side of the tunnel, shielding their heads with their arms as the shockwave swept over them.
When the dust had settled and the ringing in their ears had subsided, they cautiously poked their heads out to see the aftermath. Where the Dominator ship and the drill had once been, there was now a gaping hole, the blackened rock around it looking like the charred edges of a colossal bonfire. The ship itself was nowhere to be seen, as it had been totally obliterated by the explosion. The Quarks lay scattered in pieces across the floor, their mechanical forms twisted and shattered beyond recognition.
The Doctor picked herself up, brushing off the ash that clung to her clothes. She looked at Jenny and Teke, her eyes beaming. "We did it," she said, her voice a mix of triumph and relief. "The drill's been destroyed, and with it, any immediate threat to Kosron."
Teke nodded, his own expression one of considerable relief and gratitude. "But what of the Dominators?"
"Gone," said the Doctor, a little regretfully. "Along with their ship and their plans for this planet."
Jenny looked back over her shoulder at the smouldering pit where the ship had been. "You don't think either of the Dominators survived?"
The Doctor shook her head sadly. "Doesn't look like it. I wish it had not come to this. I would have preferred it if they had abandoned their plans and left in peace. But their greed and cruelty left us with no choice."
"Try to dwell on it, Doctor," said Teke. "At least our world is safe, and the children are safe. My two fellows are taking them back to the city right now."
The Doctor nodded, her eyes still on the destruction. "I suppose you're right, Teke. I guess we should all be thankful that Kosron and its people haven't had a chance to be blown to atoms."
"Well, there's no point standing around her moping," said Jenny brightly. "Let's get out of here before the volcano decides to take issue with the sudden change in its plumbing!"
They turned and sprinted down the tunnel, following the path the other Kosronans had taken. The walls were now cracked and unstable from the explosion, sending occasional showers of dust and small stones down upon them, but they pushed on. It was slower going without transport, but eventually the light grew brighter as the cavern exit finally came into view, and they were back in the Kosronan city.
The moment the Doctor and Jenny emerged into the light, they were greeted by an outpouring of joy and relief. The streets were lined with cheering citizens, their faces alight with happiness. The two Kosronan guards who had taken the children to safety had returned ahead of them, and the news of their successful rescue had spread like wildfire throughout the city. The children, now freed from their crystal cages, were passed from person to person, and each Kosronan was eager to express their gratitude to the new heroes who had saved their young.
The night grew into a grand celebration, the like of which Kosron had not seen in many generations. The city's crystalline towers gleamed with a new light, and the streets were adorned with colourful banners and garlands, fluttering in the cool evening breeze. The air was filled with the sweet smell of burning incense and the sound of laughter and music, the latter provided by a group of local musicians playing a tune that seemed to resonate with the very essence of the planet itself.
A massive feast had been prepared in the central square, with food and drink brought from every corner of Kosron. The Doctor and Jenny were the guests of honour, seated at a grand table with President Zalar and his family. The Doctor could not help but feel a tad embarrassed by the way she was being praised amidst the alien delicacies, but she enjoyed the camaraderie and the warmth of the people. They ate and drank and shared stories of their respective worlds, the various Kosronans fascinated by tales Jenny told about the vastness of the universe.
Early the next morning, the Doctor and Jenny made their way through the forrest back to the TARDIS, escorted by President Zalar and Teke. The journey was filled with the gentle whispers of leaves and the sweet aroma of blooming flowers, a stark contrast to the fiery chaos of the night before. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon, casting a warm glow on the crystalline trees and the shimmering path beneath their feet. The Doctor walked with a merry pace, her spirit as bright as the dawn that greeted them.
"Of course, you realise there's always a possibility the Dominators might return," Jenny was cautioning Zalar. "If that space fleet those two in the volcano mentioned ever discovered how their plans here were wrecked..."
"If they return, they will find us ready to deal with them," said Zalar resolvedly. "Perhaps we have lived for too long in our simple underground paradise. Maybe it's time for us to relearn the art of science to better defend ourselves."
"Just don't lose sight of what you're defending in the first place," said the Doctor sincerely. "Science is a wonderful thing, but it can easily lead down the wrong path if you're not careful. Don't let the threat of the Dominators or any other invader make you forget the principles of honour and compassion you've stood by for so long."
"We won't, Doctor," promised Teke, before turning his attention to the strange blue box they had just walked up to. "So, what exactly is this strange contraption? Some kind of hut?"
"You could say it's a mobile house," grinned Jenny, as she fondly ran a hand over the side of the Police Box that she had come to think of as home.
"If you need any help in transporting it..." began President Zalar, thinking the box needed horses to pull it like a carriage.
"Thanks, Zalar, but that won't be necessary," smiled the Doctor, as she fished out her key and opened the TARDIS doors. "Well, goodbye, President. Teke."
"Goodbye, Doctor, Jenny," said Zalar solemnly. "Thank you for saving our world. You are welcome here anytime. Remember, the friendship between our people is strong now, and we will not forget what you've done for us."
Teke nodded in agreement. "May your travels be safe, and may the light of the stars guide you to many more adventures!"
With a final cheery wave, the Doctor slipped into the TARDIS, and Jenny followed, the two of them sharing one last look with the two Kosronans before the doors closed behind them with a reassuring thunk.
"Uh, how exactly do you think this odd box is supposed to move, President?" asked a puzzled Teke.
Zalar shrugged in equal bafflement. "I do not know, Teke. I suppose we're about to find out."
Indeed they were, for a few seconds later, there came a groaning, grating sound, accompanied by a strange breeze, as a light on top of the box began to flash. Before the astonished eyes of Zalar and Teke, the box and the occupants inside faded away into thin air. The two Kosronans' eyes boggled at the square of flattened grass left on the ground where the box had been just seconds ago.
"Astounding!" said Teke, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Yes, such wonders we've seen over the last few days," agreed President Zalar, his eyes still wide with wonder as he watched the spot where the Doctor and Jenny had disappeared with their strange blue box. "Who would have thought we would ever meet beings like the Doctor and Jenny? I wonder where in the universe they will be off to now?"
Teke nodded thoughtfully. "Wherever it is, I suspect it will be an adventure like no other. They seem to be drawn to trouble as a moth to a flame, yet they bring a warmth and wisdom that is as rare as it is potent. I'm just grateful they were here to help us when we needed it most. We must ensure that our people are prepared for whatever the stars may throw at us in the future."
"Indeed, Teke," agreed Zalar, as they began to walk back to the underground city. "We have much work ahead of us to ensure the safety and prosperity of our people, starting with restoring the destroyed habitats of the Wyrmaga from Mount Kulcade, and improving the security around the breeding fields. So let's get started!"
Coming Soon: A Christmas Reunion