own in the lower levels three crew members had assembled themselves into a group and were taking stock of their surroundings. Elson had established himself as the temporary leader of the group and had then been able to lead his subordinates, Matthews and Gilbert on a trek further down inside the underground chambers. They had noticed that the further down the corridors they were, the walls were less and less damaged.

Breaches became warps, and they in turn became solid, smooth and untouched. Eventually they had reached what seemed to be an area untouched by the force. The focal point of the corridor was a door which was uniform and bland, with a control panel to the left designed for specific Dalek control. When Elson had at first seen the door he was surprised to see it as it was.

'Look at it!' he breathed, 'There's hardly a scratch on iit, nothing like the others we've seen.'

'How about getting it open?' Matthews asked.

Gilbert shrugged and stepped back. 'Should we?'

Elson knew what he wanted. 'Get on with it,' he ordered, 'Go on!'

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

aptain Johnson and the Doctor made their way up to the control room. They discussed what should be their next course of action. Johnson was stubborn, intending that the mission should be completed at all costs. Similarly, the Doctor did not want to leave either, his curiosity was fully aroused. However, being alien and therefore almost outside normal concerns he questioned his motives, and thus Johnson's.

Johnson wouldn't discuss it, seeing it as a form of surrender that he never got in his day.

'It wants to leave us in peace,' the Doctor insisted.

'I'm not going,' Johnson replied and clammed up, refusing to say more.

The Doctor suppressed a smile. It was the reaction that he had really wanted, but he was still unsure whether Johnson was continuing for the best motives. The Doctor did not doubt his own.

Johnson's communicator beeped and he answered the call gruffly.

'It's the Daleks in the control room, sir,' the voice panicked loudly, 'They've just been seen on their way down through the lower levels. Two are dead after they were exterminated, sir. There were seven of them. They're all on the loose!'

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

lson forced the door. It slid aside easily, he sensed that the grease was still fresh after all this time, but dismissed the thought soon after. How could it be?

The room beyond was dark and the air was fresh. He ordered the torch to be taken in ahead of himself. No point in all of us dying, he thought. The scene it illuminated was astonishing. Computer consoles of incredibly complex design covered every wall. Cables sprouted from every plug and socket, across the room, and into the devices set within a circle at the centre of the room.

They were scanning devices, all of them capable of picking up totally different and subtler radiation waves. Prongs extended towards the centre with uncanny precision, as if holding a wild animal at bay. At the centre of all this was a black stone. It was about three metres high and had an immediate shape of an oblong set upright, but corners along its length were squared off at forty-five degrees to each plane. This was done similarly around the structures base and summit. It was jet black, and reflected a parody of images on each surface. It stood with stoic difference, and dominated the equipment around itself.

The three stepped back gingerly. Elson was sure that he could hear something, very faintly, like a hum or a sigh from the lips of a soul waking from a deep sleep.

'We'd better inform the Captain,' Elson remarked cautiously.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

ohnson received the report with mounting concern. He warned the three about the Daleks and turned to the Doctor, who was wondering what was going on.

'Back down below,' he ordered, 'They've found something. Some kind of statue.'

'Where are the Daleks?' the Doctor asked, finding an uncomfortable link in the two occurrences.

The communicator beeped into life once more. Johnson held it up for the Doctor to hear as well.

'It's completely dead,' he said, 'Whatever this thing is, it's not going to let you save those men down there.'

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

lson was starting to get excited. 'This is it,' he hissed, 'This is the cause of it all.'

'We should get out of here,' Gilbert interceded, pointing towards the door.

Suddenly, the Daleks blocked the entrance. Elson cowered back momentarily before he was cut down by the concentrated firepower of four guns. Showered with red hot fragments, the remaining two crewmembers dived for cover as the Daleks swept into the room.

'Oh my god...' Matthews whispered before a Dalek appeared over him, casting a threatening shadow over his frightened features. He died moments later. Gilbert tried to run for the door, but was exterminated the moment he broke cover. Silently, the Daleks glided into position around the monolith, guarding it with silent obedience. Two Daleks took up position around the door outside and waited.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

he Doctor and Johnson were stopped further down the corridor by a contingent of frightened soldiers. They could see very little from where they were and relied on an eyewitness to tell them what had happened. When he had finished he confided to the Doctor what he had feared.

'The Daleks were killed for finding that thing, now we've found it it'll try and kill us as well!'

Johnson was struggling to get past one of the soldiers. The Doctor reached out and pulled him back.

'We just can't leave them there!' Johnson protested, stricken with grief. Sweat poured from his brow and still tried to escape the Doctor's grip.

'There's nothing we can do,' the Doctor told him. 'We have to get away from here before they find us.'

Reluctantly, Johnson followed in the footsteps of his men, now being led by the Doctor. He hung his head low.

'What now?' he asked.

'I don't know yet,' the Doctor replied quietly.

A shadow was cast over their departing forms. The Dalek glowered threatening for a few moments until the group was gone, disappearing around the nearest corner.