The students laughed nervously. The security man took his hand from the Doctor’s shoulder and frowned, trying to understand what he was seeing.

34

‘It’s newborn,’ said the Doctor quietly. ‘It’s not fully formed. There’s still a chance, but you must all get away now.’

The police officers surrounded him, while at the same time turning confused, half-amused faces towards the Dalek. Their leader ad-dressed the Doctor. ‘OK, sir, I think it’s time you and your robot left these people to do their job.’

The Dalek moved closer, its eye sweeping over the humans, as if curious.

‘Hey, it’s got a sink plunger on it!’ cried one of the students.

The Dalek croaked angrily and zoomed over to him. Its sucker arm extended, then shot out and fixed itself to his middle. Then it picked him up and tossed him aside. His body flew through the air, coming down with a crunch of bone and flesh on the hard ground.

That was when everyone started screaming and running.

The Dalek lifted into the air, cutting off their escape through the main gate. Its sucker arm shot out and clamped on to the side of one of the police cars. There was a screeching of twisted metal. The car lurched, bumped, rocked on its tyres. Then slowly, straining and creaking, it started to rise. Just a little at first – high on the suspension. Then it left the ground, the Dalek’s terrifying strength holding it. The seats fell forward as it tilted, loose objects flying about inside. The sucker arm suddenly shot out even further and hurled the car forwards. The car flew low across the ground, finally catching on a mound of earth from the dig. It spun, rolled and crashed down, inches from the terrified humans, in an ear-splitting din of glass and tearing metal. Then the petrol caught fire, turning the car into a blazing wreck in seconds and ending any hope of escape.

The Doctor looked on with horror as the Dalek zoomed forwards, forcing the crowd into a narrow alley between two of the flats, ‘No!

Get out of there!’ he cried, running after them.

The Dalek waited until they were all in the alley. Then it followed them, lifted itself up and started to crash between the walls. On top of one wall was a mass of girders and heavy metal scaffolding pipes. The vibrations started to roll them towards the edge. In a few seconds, they would crash down on the huddled, terrified mass of innocent 35

humans.

The Doctor ran forward. ‘Oi, Dalek!’ he shouted.

The Dalek instantly stopped its battering against the walls. Its domed head section whipped round and its eye focused on the Doctor.

‘Da. . . lek,’ it croaked. ‘Da. . . lek. . . ’

‘Yeah, I know who you are. I know what you are. And you know something else? Those are just humans. Any passing evil being from space can have a go at them. That’s easy. But do you know what I am? Do you know who I am?’

The humans used the Dalek’s distraction. They ran out under it as it swooped, as though fascinated, towards the Doctor. Its blue eye zeroed in on him, scanning him up and down.

‘You. . . are. . . not. . . hu-man,’ it said, each word forming slowly.

The Doctor walked forward casually, trying to give the others time to get away. He flung open his coat and pointed to his chest. ‘Give him a biscuit. Take a look at these beauties.’

‘The Dalek continued its scan. It shook slightly, as if surprised.

‘Two. . . hearts.’

The Doctor nodded. ‘Yes. Aren’t you a clever little Dalek? Now, consult your data store. Go on. What does that mean? What does that make me? Come on. I haven’t got all day to waste talking to you.’ He glanced to one side: the humans were running from the site.

Death was on hold, for them at least.

The Dalek’s sucker arm shot up. Its weapon socket clicked uselessly.

‘You. . . are a Time. . . Lord!’ The final word was spoken with the upward screech the Doctor knew so well.

‘And not just any old ten-for-a-penny common-or-garden value-pack Time Lord,’ the Doctor teased. ‘Do you know who I am?’ He leaned forward, almost spitting the words, one by one. ‘I am the Doctor!’

The Dalek quivered.

‘I’m sorry,’ said the Doctor mildly. ‘Did that word upset you in some way? Have another look in your data store, boy. I might be in there under Oncoming Storm, The.’

‘Doc-tor,’ the Dalek groaned. Its weapon socket clicked again. ‘ The Doc-tor!’

36

He waved. ‘That’s me!’

‘The Doc-tor is an enemy of the Daleks!’

‘Wrong! The Daleks are an enemy of the Doctor. No, strike that, the Daleks were an enemy of the Doctor!’

‘The Doctor must be exterminated!’

‘With what?’ The Doctor ran off, with something very particular in mind, leading the Dalek away from the main gate, deeper into the site. ‘If you’re so hard, come and get me!’

The Dalek zoomed after him.

37

CHAPTER EIGHT

KATE’S FOREHEAD WAS PRESSED against the window of the driver’s cab. She watched the B-roads go by. All the little cars with all the little people inside. They were hateful, inferior forms of life. She saw a child standing up on a back seat to wave at her and she cringed.

Why had she never noticed how ugly people were?

There was just no point to people. They were wasteful, always at war with each other. They were better off dead, and the universe would be a tidier place without them. The part of her that was still Kate argued, in a small voice, that they were innocent. No one is innocent! ranted the Dalek part. These creatures were genetically inferior. Only the Daleks were pure.

A wave of bile washed up into her mouth. She winced, sickened, and the shock allowed the Kate part of her to assert itself.

‘You OK?’ asked Rose.

Kate looked into her concerned brown eyes. ‘What’s happening to me?’ she asked, tears welling. ‘I keep thinking disgusting things.

There’s so much hatred, anger, I feel I could kill the world, the whole world. . . ’

She noticed Atif the lorry driver eyeing her oddly. ‘I’m always like that on a Thursday,’ he called over cheerfully.

A stab of evil pierced her. What a stupid thing to say, what a waste of words.

Rose put her arm round Kate’s shoulder. ‘Believe in me,’ she said. ‘I promise you, it’s all going to get back to normal.’

‘And who are you to promise that?’ snapped Kate. ‘You’re just trying to sound like him.’

‘Who?’

‘The Doctor,’ Kate spat. She struck out with her foot, banging her knee on the underside of the dashboard. ‘I know all about him. It’s 39

in my head. The destroyer, the oncoming storm. Always blocking our way. . . ’

‘The way to what?’

‘Purity. I can see it. . . the universe cleansed. So beautiful, serene.

Only us, only Daleks.’

‘You’re not a Dalek.’ Rose stressed.

‘I will be,’ said Kate. ‘You don’t know how good it’s going to be.

Peace for ever. No war.’

‘But quite a lot of shooting to get there,’ said Rose. ‘And what are the Daleks gonna do when they’ve exterminated everyone? Stroll through the meadows in floral skirts, making daisy chains?’

‘Do not be flippant.’ Kate smiled. ‘Daleks working together. Daleks studying together. An ordered empire stretching out for all time. So clean and calm.’ She shook her head as if to clear it. ‘Like the words of “Imagine”. I’d do anything to get there.’

Rose swallowed, looking rather alarmed, and tried to change the subject. ‘Kate, who did you last go out with?’

Kate flinched at the memory. ‘I went out with an inferior. Toby. He spent my money, and it wasn’t even mine to begin with. Because of Toby, I used all the credit on my card. I will find and exterminate Toby.’

Her fist clenched.

Atif kept shooting worried glances at Kate. ‘Is your mate feeling all right?’

‘She’s fine,’ said Rose. She took Kate’s hand. ‘Come on, Kate. You can fight it.’