"Magic, Miss Smith?" the Doctor asked as he operated the control that closed the main TARDIS doors. They had just left a slightly bewildered Hal outside, after fleeing the explosion of Irongron's castle. When the Doctor had denied being a magician to Hal, Sarah Jane Smith had said she wasn't so sure.
Now Sarah looked about herself, taking in the white roundel patterned walls, the central control console and the impossibly large space inside the Police Box.
"Well, if this isn't magic, what do you call it?" she asked him.
"Science, my dear," he replied, setting co-ordinates and sending the TARDIS spinning into the vortex. "The science of my people is just more advanced than your own," the Doctor continued. "It's rather like comparing the technology of your age with that of Irongron and his friends before Linx arrived."
Sarah took a moment to digest this. "So you're saying that mankind in the 20th Century are savages?"
The Doctor frowned, deepening the lines around his mouth and on his forehead. "Not exactly. Earth is more primitive, that's all. I'm sure you would admit that yourself at times, whenever there is a Hiroshima or other such atrocity."
Sarah nodded. "I take your point. But all this..." She gestured around her at the impossibility of it all. "How does it work?"
The Doctor smiled slightly. "Well, I could explain trans-dimensional engineering and temporal physics, but I don't think you have the time, my dear. It's all rather over your head."
This made Sarah annoyed. "You think I can't take it in, just because I'm a mere human being?"
"That's about it, yes," the Doctor told her honestly.
"Right! That does it! Of all the condescending, high and mighty claptrap I've ever heard!" Sarah paused for breath. "So, explain trans-whatever and temporal whatsit and see if I can handle it!"
The Doctor opened his mouth to argue, then saw the look in Sarah Jane's eyes and thought better of it. "Very well. I think we should adjourn to the library for this. It might be easier for me to explain there."
He led her from the console area through the inner door. Beyond was a long, white corridor.
***
The Doctor was piling books up on a large reading table in a cavernous room he called his library. The ceiling was out of Sarah's sight and stacked high with shelves full of books. The room disappeared into the distance, the shelves going with it.
"Here we are," the Doctor said. "Trans-Dimensional Engineering Made Easy, Trans-Dimensional Engineering for Dummies, The Beginners Guide to Temporal Physics and Blinovitch Tells It Like It Is. That should keep you going for a while."
Sarah looked grimly at the four huge, dusty leather bound tomes on the reading table. Then she saw the slightly smug smile on the Doctor's face. And decided she wanted to wipe it off.
"Right," she said, sitting at the table and pulling Trans-Dimensional Engineering for Dummies towards her. "I'll see you in a couple of hours?"
The Doctor frowned, realising his bluff was being called. "Fine. I'll be back in two hours." He turned and started for the door, some way in the distance.
Suddenly, the tolling of a far-off bell disturbed the peace and quiet of the library. It seemed to resonate through the room.
The Doctor's posture stiffened. Sarah knew instinctively that something was very wrong.
"What's that, Doctor?" she asked.
When he turned towards her, there was trepidation in his face. "That, Sarah Jane, is the Cloister Bell. It only rings in times of dire emergency."
"So that means..."
"Trouble," he confirmed. "Come along," he called over his shoulder as he began sprinting for the distant door.
***
Sarah Jane was out of breath when they reached the console room after a dash from the library. Strangely, the Doctor didn't even appear to be perspiring. Must be fit for his age, she thought.
He was now fussing over the console, trying to deduce why the Cloister Bell was tolling.
"'Ask not for whom the bell tolls...'," Sarah murmured.
"'...It tolls for thee.'" The Doctor looked up from the console, smiling slightly. "Don't worry too much, it's probably something and nothing."
Sarah appreciated his attempt at reassurance, but she could see the truth in his eyes. He was worried.
"Aha!" the Doctor declared, activating the TARDIS scanner. It showed a large spaceship, bearing down on them.
The Doctor nodded. "Imminent collision," he commented.
Sarah was momentarily lost for words. "Collision?" she asked when she found her voice. "Can't you do something to avoid it?"
The Doctor grinned. "Of course, my dear. Hang on!"
He reached under the console and activated a control. The ship lurched and the note of the engines changed.
"What's happening?" Sarah asked, gripping the edge of the console with white knuckles.
"Co-ordinate override," the Doctor replied calmly, seeming to keep his balance without support. "A sort of anti-collision device. Should settle down in a moment."
As if on cue, the buffeting stopped and they resumed normal flight. But only briefly, as the noise of materialisation began.
The time rotor sighed to a halt. The scanner didn't show much, just darkness.
"Where are we?" Sarah inquired.
The Doctor was studying the controls before him. "We seem to have landed aboard that ship," he said, absorbed in his study.
"Is that a good thing?"
"Well, that all depends," the Doctor told her. "If the natives are friendly, there's no problem. If not however..."
Sarah frowned. "Why don't you just take off again?"
"Ah." He looked a little guilty. "It will take the TARDIS a little while to recover from the sudden course change. We might as well explore while it does."
"Oh, great!" Sarah declared. "What if they're not friendly?"
"We leave. Quickly." He grinned at her. "But we'll never know standing here. Come on."
He operated the door of the TARDIS, shrugging on a cloak hanging from the hatstand beside the door.
Muttering under her breath, Sarah followed him into the unknown.
They stepped out of the TARDIS into a dimly lit cargo hold. Crates and drums were stacked on all sides. The TARDIS had landed in a clear area in the middle of the hold.
"Not the most spectacular landscape I've ever seen," Sarah commented, looking around.
The Doctor frowned. "If you remember, we didn't have much of a choice in the matter."
Sarah nodded. "So what now?"
"Now? Now we explore." With a smile, the Doctor marched off towards the entrance hatch, Sarah following behind.
***
On the bridge of the ship a blonde female turned to her commander.
"Manisha, there are life traces from cargo hold three."
"Are any of the crew in that area?"
"No. All crew are accounted for. The life signs are humanoid."
Manisha paused in thought. "Stowaways. Or pirates. Well, we'll soon sort them out. Send two guards to the cargo bay. Tell them to wait for me there."
"Yes, Manisha," replied the bridge officer.
***
The Doctor had produced a slim metal rod from his pocket and activated it near the locking mechanism of the main door. It emitted a slight hum.
"The sonic screwdriver can deal with even the most sophisticated electronic locks," he said, moving the device slightly.
"Really," Sarah replied, looking bored. She wasn't sure she wanted to see more of this drab ship.
Suddenly the door swished open. The Doctor looked down at his sonic screwdriver.
"That was quick," he muttered.
"Erm, Doctor," Sarah said, looking through the open doorway.
"What is it, Sarah?" the Doctor replied. Then he looked up to see what Sarah had seen.
Standing framed in the doorway were three tall blonde women with guns. They looked grimly at the two time travellers.
"Well bless my soul," the Doctor murmured. "Drahvins!"
The lead female spoke. "I am Manisha, leader of this Drahvin ship. Who are you and how did you get aboard?"
"Well..." the Doctor began but Manisha cut him off.
"I did not address you, man. I asked your leader." She looked directly at Sarah.
"What, me?" Sarah looked flustered. The Doctor, standing slightly to one side, gave her a nod and an encouraging smile.
"Speak," Manisha commanded. "Who are you?"
"Well, I'm Sarah Jane Smith and this is the Doctor."
Manisha's eyes widened. "Doctor? Your culture allows men to practice medicine?"
"Erm, yes," Sarah replied. "He's very clever."
The Drahvin leader looked unconvinced. "Men are best kept in their place, as an underclass. Allowing them basic freedoms is a recipe for disaster."
Sarah couldn't help but smile slightly at the pained expression that passed across the Doctor's face.
Manisha was speaking again. "Now we have established who you are, how did you get here?"
"Well, we were travelling in space, when we got a warning of a collision. We had to materialise on board so as not to hit your ship."
"And where is your craft now?"
Sarah pointed back into the cargo hold. "We left the TARDIS back there."
Manisha gestured with her gun. "Show me."
Sarah was about to argue, when she caught the Doctor's warning shake of the head in her peripheral vision. Shrugging, she led Manisha to the TARDIS.
The Drahvin ran her hand over the doors, feeling the slight tremble of power from the craft.
"It is very small," she said. "It must be cramped inside."
"Oh no, it's much bigger inside than out," Sarah explained.
"How is that possible?"
"The application of trans-dimensional engineering," Sarah told her with a grin. She had picked up a little from the Doctor before the emergency landing.
"Interesting," Manisha mused. She looked at the TARDIS exterior once more. "Seems an odd design for a space ship."
"Oh, the TARDIS is much more than that. It travels in time as well."
Off to one side, Sarah heard the Doctor groan. On her other side, Manisha's eyes lit up.
"Time travel," she breathed. "With time travel the Drahvin race shall be invincible." She turned her attention back to Sarah. "You shall give me the secrets of time travel."
"And if I don't?"
"I shall have you killed!"
Manisha glowered at her prisoners. "Think it over," she said to Sarah. "I have ships business to attend to. I shall return soon for your answer." The Drahvin leader then turned to one of the female guards. "You, see that these prisoners remain here until I return."
"Yes, Manisha," the guard intoned as her leader swept from the room.
Sarah expelled a held breath. "Well, she's a piece of work!"
"Indeed," the Doctor replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "I thought you did rather well, except for telling her the TARDIS can travel in time."
Sarah frowned. "Yes, sorry about that. But it's still all so new to me."
"Hmm. Well, I don't think there is too much harm done. I'm sure if we put our heads together, we can work out a plan of escape."
"What about her?" Sarah whispered, gesturing to the guard standing close by. "Won't she report our conversation?"
The Doctor shook his head. "I shouldn't think so. She's just a drone, bred for fighting and running this ship. She obeys her orders and that's it really."
"Like a robot, you mean?"
"Yes, I suppose that's right. I hadn't thought of it like that. If Manisha orders her to repeat what we say, she will. But until she is ordered, she won't report anything we say."
Sarah nodded understanding. "You've met these women before."
"Well, not these exact Drahvins, but representatives of their race. They are the ultimate expression of women's liberation. You should get along well together."
"What? Me and that crone? Not on your life!" Then she saw the twinkle of amusement in the Doctor's eye. "That wasn't very funny."
"I thought it was," he said with a slight smile. "Now, about that plan."
"You've thought of something?"
"I have an idea that might work, yes." Keeping their voices low, just in case, the Doctor and Sarah discussed their possible escape.
***
Within half an hour, Manisha returned to the cargo bay. She marched straight up to Sarah, her gun pointed at the Earth woman's chest.
"Are you going to reveal to me the secrets of time travel?"
Sarah looked the Drahvin leader directly in the eye. "Yes. I will willingly give you the power to travel in time if it will bring universal sisterhood."
Manisha smiled. "Spoken like a true Drahvin."
The Doctor stepped forward. "Sarah, you can't do this!"
"Quiet!" Sarah commanded. "I can do this and I shall." She bowed slightly to Manisha. "Would you like to enter the TARDIS?"
The Drahvin leader stepped forward. Sarah snapped her fingers at the Doctor, who reluctantly produced the key and unlocked the door.
"I would have that man shot for his insolence," Manisha confided in Sarah.
"I'm considering it," Sarah replied, glowering at the Doctor.
***
Manisha looked around the console room, obviously impressed. "It is indeed larger inside than out."
Sarah smiled slightly. "My people are extremely advanced," she boasted.
"They are very advanced if they can engineer this," Manisha replied. "But can it do what you claim?"
"Of course," Sarah declared. "So, where do you wish to go?"
"Drahva, my home planet. Two centuries from now. I wish to see how my race progresses."
The Doctor was standing by the console. "Do you have the co-ordinates?"
Manisha's jaw dropped. "You let this...man pilot such a craft?" she said, horrified.
"But of course," Sarah said smoothly. "You don't pilot your own ship do you? I certainly can't fly this thing."
"But, a man!"
Sarah frowned. "Don't you get the men of your society to do the menial tasks?"
Manisha nodded. "We do. I hadn't looked at it like that." She glared across at the Doctor. "The co-ordinates are on this data screen." She threw it across to him. "I assume you can read?"
The Doctor smiled slightly. "It is a skill I've been taught," he replied, keying the numbers in from the screen. He pushed a final lever and threw the pad back. "We're on our way."
"You should have him disciplined," Manisha growled.
"I will," said Sarah, glancing at the Doctor. "When the time is right."
The time rotor wheezed and juddered to a halt, signalling their arrival. Sarah operated the scanner.
"Drahva, two hundred years in the future," she announced.
"It looks no different," Manisha breathed.
"There must have been a lot of advances in two centuries," Sarah commented.
Manisha agreed. "I would like to look around. I can learn from them, see how we progress." She drew herself up to her full, impressive height. "Open the doors."
The Doctor did as she asked, moving towards the doors.
"Stop!" Sarah exclaimed. He halted, looking embarrassed.
"I am sorry, my lady," he said, stepping back and lowering his head.
"So you should be," Sarah told him hotly. "It is my privilege to be first to step onto an alien world."
"That is no alien world, that is my world," Manisha protested. "Therefore I should be first to step outside."
Before Sarah could protest, Manisha stepped through the doors of the TARDIS.
***
Manisha looked around her new location. "This isn't Drahva." She looked at a sign nearby. "This is cargo hold two!"
She turned to berate Sarah and the Doctor, but the TARDIS doors were closed. She hammered on the outside but the noise of dematerialisation began and the TARDIS vanished from the hold.
Manisha turned and vaporised a nearby supply crate in her frustration.
***
"How did you know she would insist on going out first?" Sarah asked the Doctor.
"Ego. She comes from a society where she is used to being top dog, being obeyed, and going first. It was just a matter of convincing her to go first. Which you did remarkably well, by the way."
"Thank you," Sarah replied primly.
"So, I suppose you would like me to take you home?"
"Well, I don't think I've got enough money for a cab from here," Sarah commented with a wry smile.
The Doctor set the co-ordinates, then looked up at Sarah. "Do you still want to learn about temporal mechanics?"
She shook her head. "I'll leave that to the experts." Then she had a thought. "How did you get the image of Drahva on the scanner screen?"
The Doctor grinned. "Simple. I just copied an image from the TARDIS data banks and posted it up on the screen."
"Oh, is that all? I thought it was something clever!"
She tried to hide a smile and almost succeeded as the TARDIS spun on through the vortex.
