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Then whipping a pair of clippers out of his roomy pocket, he grabbed
a length of the stout cable running between the two parts of the
control console.
He cut the cable free of the wall and started laying it down on
the ground between them and the Cybermats, like a magic circle.
Parry caught on fast, yanked down more cable and helped him.
The Doctor cut the other end of the cable free and jammed the
two ends into two power sockets on the underside of the console.
'Stand back!' shouted the Doctor.
But Callum had drawn his gun and was outside the cable.
'Let's blast the filthy things,' he shouted, still shaken from the
feel of the creature on his chest. He fired three times.
One of the Cybermats, knocked over on to its side, curled up
like. a leaf in a fire, crackled, burst into smoke and the red eyes'
lights went out. But the others crawled on, their antennae like
missiles pointing with deadly accuracy.
'You're wasting your time,' said the Doctor. 'You can't kill
them all with that. Do as I say. Come back here. Keep close to us.'
Callum turned and stepped back into the half circle of the
cable. Towards the cable advanced the Cybermats, bleeping to each
other, their antennae pointed, slowly and relentlessly.
The Doctor turned on the power. A spark seemed to arc along
the cable from the tremendous voltage. The first three Cybermats
swerved and skittered erratically around, travelling in circles, until
they crashed into one another.
'There we are!' shouted the Doctor. 'The current will destroy
them.'
The bleeping rose to a new high as if the small dynamos of the
Cybermats were burning themselves out.
'What are those creatures?'.asked Professor Parry, scientific
curiosity again uppermost.
They looked at the metal crustaceans, now completely
disorientated, running in repeated circles, and, one by one, curling
up, their segments crackling apart with the current.
The last Cybermat turned over, smoke rising from its casing,
its silver legs stiffening, as the machine burnt out:
'How did you do it, Doctor?' Jamie said. It was all beyond his
comprehension.
'By generating an electric field in that cable, I've confused their
tiny metal minds. You might say they've had a complete er, metal
breakdown.' The Doctor smiled at his little joke.
'What about Klieg and Kaftan?' asked Victoria suddenly. 'The
Cybermats have probably attacked them as well.'
'The testing room,' said Parry. 'We'd better go.' Klieg and
Kaftan were standing just inside the entrance to the testing room.
'Ah, Klieg,' said the Professor. 'I must warn you '
Klieg swung the Cybergun from behind his back.
'No, I must warn you,' he said, 'what can you do against this?'
He slowly raised the Cyberlaser and pointed it at. the Doctor.
'Look out, Doctor!' shouted Callum.
Callum rushed forward, the gun fired, Callum jerked back,
clutched his shoulder and fell to the ground.
Parry started towards him but Klieg lifted the gun again.
'Get back,' said Klieg.
'You've killed him! You murderer!' shouted the Professor.
'No, no,' said Klieg. 'He is fortunate.'
'You mean you missed him,' said Jamie.
'Silence,' Klieg said. 'I could have destroyed him if I had
wanted to.' He turned to Kaftan. 'Shall I kill them now?' he asked,
casually.
'No,' said Kaftan. 'That won't be necessary,' she said. 'I'm sure
the Cybermen will have a good use for them.' The Professor looked
at her with disgust.
'You will make excellent experimental specimens,' she said.
'Let me help him,' said Victoria. 'Please?'
Klieg looked at Kaftan. She nodded her consent.
'But no tricks or I shoot,' said Klieg, lifting the gun.
They watched as Victoria went over to the wounded Callum,
crouched down by him and gently opened his space-tunic to examine
his wound. Then Klieg went over to the control panel and pulled the
hatch lever.
'And you still hope to bargain with the Cybermen?' asked the
Doctor.
'Certainly. But this time, on our terms,' said Klieg.
The grinding noise began again, and once again the heavy
metal lid creaked up to vertical. Cold air from below chilled the
room.
Klieg, the Cybergun in his hand reassuring him, went over to
the hatch and looked down the still icy shaft with its gigantic rungs.
'I wish to speak. to the Controller,' he called. Then again,
louder, 'I wish to speak to the Controller. I WISH TO SPEAK TO
THE CONTROLLER!' His voice echoed back at him up the chill
shaft.
11
The Controller is Revitalised
The Cybermen had heard. Klieg's voice, puny and human,
came quavering along the tunnel to the cavern where they stood and
conferred.
'That humanoid is not to be trusted,' said the first of the five
Cybermen to the Controller.
'He is not important, we have power,' the Controller said in his
deeper voice.
'Our energy units are nearly exhausted. We must go up to the
revitalisation machine,' said the first Cyberman..
'The humanoids must first be destroyed,' said the Controller,
adjusting the sequence of necessary events to fit in this detail. 'You
will re-enter the cells to conserve energy,' he said, and in a great
silver wave, the Cybermen began to step back into the honeycomb
cells. 'We shall need the big humanoid, bring him to me,' said the
Controller. Toberman was brought before the Cyberleader. 'Is he
prepared?' the Controller asked.
'He is now prepared,' answered the Cyberman.
'Release him.'
Toberman took a step forward. He was now dressed in a loose
white smock. His eyes were set, unseeing.
'Listen!' said Klieg excitedly at the hatch. He could hear the
metallic thump... thump... thump of their feet along the tunnel.
'They're coming!'
He turned to the others, with a childish eager look on his face.
'Now, gentlemen, you will see how I shall use the power of the
Cybermen!' he said gleefully.
'Use maybe,' said the Doctor. 'But you'll never control a
Cyberman.'
'Eric!' cried Kaftan. 'Behind you!'
Klieg, his heart hammering, turned back to the hatch. And
there, silent, larger than they had dared to remember him, stood the
great bulk of the Cybercontroller. He moved up another rung.
'Stop!' cried Klieg. He lifted the Cybergun, but his hands were
trembling. 'You know what this weapon can do to you,' he said as
steadily as he could.
The Controller stopped moving and stared at him as
impassively as only the Cybermen could.
'That's better,' said Klieg. His voice was firmer. 'You are now
under my control. Do you understand?'
The Controller said nothing.
'Do not think we logicians came here unprepared. We
understand everything about you. We know you have little energy.
We know you must come up to be revitalised, or you will perish.
Agree to my terms, and I shall allow you to survive. Otherwise, you
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