"The invasion of time" "It's been a long hard road, but at last the future of Gallifrey is assured." "What...?" "What are you looking at?" "Please don't fire that thing." "There is no advantage in killing yet." "Slavery is more efficient." "Do you know these things?" "Sontaran troopers." "I am Commander Stor, of the Sontaran Special Space Service." "The SSS." "Isn't that carrying alliteration a little far?" "You're not like the Vardans." "Vardans?" "They were expendable." "They had served their purpose, to open up the force field and let us in." "Who is Doctor?" "Are you Doctor?" "No." "No, I'm just Lord President... of the Supreme Council of Time Lords on Gallifrey." "Your description fits that of one called Doctor." "Well, that's not my fault." "I'm Lord President, and I'm called "sir"." " Sir?" " Yes, sir." "I call no one "sir" except my battalion leader!" "That must mean many thousand sirs." "Thousands." "The glorious Sontaran army reckons its numbers... in hundreds of millions." "Find Doctor." "I was only trying to help." "I was only trying to help." "There's nothing more useless than a lock with a voice imprint." "I think I believe you, Doctor." "In fact, excellent, Excellency." "Knowledge is the ultimate goal, is it not, Commander Stor?" "A means to an end only." "The ultimate goal is victory." " Victory over whom?" " Victory over all." " Victory over time?" " What?" " I said:" "Victory over time?" " Enough of this idle talk." "Stop." " What was that?" " Celebration chimes." "What?" "Yes, it should have been played at my induction, only 50 times lower." " Someone's trying to help us." " I am." "We'd better split up." "Leela and Andred come with me." " The rest of you scatter." "Come on." " And Jasko, Rodan, Ablif!" "We'll go this way." "I'm sorry, my lord." "It was none of my doing." "To all units." "I repeat, to all units." "The President is to be apprehended." "Kill those with him, but take the President alive." "No." "A Sontaran." " What are these Sontarans?" " A race devoted to perpetual war." " Then I shall kill him." " You don't know how." " Do you know?" " Oh, yes." " Well, tell me." " Small vent at the back of the neck." "Is that all?" "Over here." " That was a prodigious throw." " Prodigious?" " Well, it was an amazing throw." " Oh, it was nothing." "I know, it's just an old hunting trick." " That's right." " Come on." " Unit group 37, report." "Report." " They must be on..." " Where is Level 3?" " I'll..." "Where is Level 3?" "On the way to Level 5." "The President's office, that's where they're heading." "Unit groups 3, 5 and 7, proceed immediately to Level 5." "Expect the President and his bodyguard." " Take him alive." " My lord," " Do not." " ...the President..." "Silence." " Why the office?" " I've got an urgent appointment." "Time Lord, come with me." "This is a dangerous bit." "Five, four, three, two, one." "Go." "Two, three, four, five, six." "I thought you'd never get here." " We were delayed." " Not too long, I hope." "This one, Time Lord?" "Yes, Excellency." "Break it down." "That's not going to hold forever, Chancellor." "A heavy, easily fusible, soft, malleable base metal such as lead, is not the best defence against heat-intensive weaponry." "I agree." "Fortunately, someone had the good sense to reinforce the structure... with a titanium-based alloy." " Your recipe?" " A suggestion of mine, yes." " A holding device only, I fear." " Thanks for the thought, Chancellor." "Is not one of my duties, to protect the President?" "Well, dereliction of duty's pretty rife around here, Chancellor." " Hadn't you noticed?" " Oh, this is not for you." " Your companions, however..." " I'll vouch for them." " Of your own free will?" " Oh, yes." "At your command, Excellency." " Shall I kill him now?" " What?" "No, he's my friend." "He's no friend to threaten you like that." "But he is a friend." "You're my friend, aren't you, Borusa?" "You're the most important friend I've got." "This is useless." "Not even marked." "Return with the troopers, but make sure they are fully armed." "Otherwise, I will negate you." "Now, go." "Bringing up the heavy artillery, I imagine." "The next logical step, I agree." " Evacuation?" " Would appear logical." " I suggest my Tardis." " I agree." "I think the exit through your office would be most expedient." "There's no need for formality, Excellency." "I know." "There's something in there I want rather badly." "Let's go." " What was that?" " I don't know, sir." "What trick is this?" "I have no idea." "Believe me, Excellency." "Chancellor, you and I have things to discuss, urgent things." " Leela." " Yes?" "Take the others back to the Tardis." " No, I'm not leaving you again." " Please." "No, every time I do, you get into trouble." "That's right." "Trust me, please." "All right." "Come on." "I said, "come on"." "Well, Chancellor, you going to help me or kill me?" "Why did you not tell us this before?" "He called himself Doctor for many life spans... before he became President, but I have never trusted him." " When your good friends the Vardans..." " You have met the Vardans?" " Alas, all too briefly." " They had their uses." "You also may be of use to us, Time Lord." "Where is it?" "I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about." " Where is it?" " You ask for the impossible." " I ask for the Great Key." " You already have it." "I have the Rod of Rassilon and I have the Sash." " I do not have the Great Key." " That is a myth, a legend." "Chancellor, would you have me break my oath as President?" "My oath to seek the Great Key?" "That has been incumbent upon every president since time immemorial." "None has ever found it." "Run, run." " Come on, run." " Leave me, Leela." "Save yourself." "They need you, go." "People are dying out there, men, women." "Time Lords, even, have died in that battle." " I know that." " Isn't that important to you?" " Should it be?" " It leaves you unconcerned." "That's the difference between you and me, Chancellor." "I'm very concerned." "Then you should remember your training in detachment." "I'd rather care." "Don't you care about your world being invaded by alien warmongers?" "These are Sontaran shock troops." "A few, still, but soon there'll be thousands, millions, threatening time itself." "They cannot threaten time." "Not while I..." "Yes, Chancellor." "Not while you have the Great Key." "If you wanted to hide a tree, where would you hide it?" "Hmm?" "In a forest." "I read your essay on reason." "Which one is it?" "Hurry!" "Hurry!" " I'll take them all, if necessary." " Take them." "No." "Rassilon was a wily old bird." "No president without the Great Key can have absolute power, correct?" "So, to protect the Time Lords from dictatorship, he gave the Key into the hands of a Chancellor." " None of this is in the Matrix." " I know." "I've been there." "You haven't." "There's no record in the Matrix... of any president knowing the whereabouts of the Great Key." "So who does?" "Not the Castellan." "He's just a jumped-up guard." " But who guards the guards?" " The Chancellor." "Yes." "And I'll kill you before I let that key fall into the hands of the Sontarans." "That will not be necessary." "You are the first president since Rassilon... to hold the Great Key." "But I can't, Excellency." "It is impossible." "No one could connect with the Matrix without the circlet." " Then bypass the Matrix." " It is impossible." "For the strong, everything is possible." "I've tried it every much." "You must widen the gap in the force field, to allow my battle fleet to enter." " But only the President..." " I must have reinforcements." "I must seek out the Doctor." "He will lead me to the Great Key." " The Great Key?" "But that's impossible..." " That was your last chance." "Of course, I know that all things are possible." "Well?" "There could just be a way." "Ah." "There you are." "Got your new orders yet?" "Get in touch with Commander Stor." "He'll put you in the picture." "Of course there are no new orders." "Stop him." "Halt." "Halt." "Great Key, you see?" "Good for years yet." "The Great Key is quite useless against elementary particle salt." "Is it?" "What?" "I don't understand." "The Chancellor's personal force shield." "Unfortunately, the batteries seem uncomfortably low." "So what would you suggest we do?" " Run?" " Run." "Let's do that." "So undignified." "I haven't run like this for centuries." "You're out of condition, Borusa." "That's your problem." "Do you think you can make it over there?" "Naturally." "I didn't mean you." "I mean the batteries." " With luck." " Good." "Maybe I am getting too young for this sort of thing." "Come on." "If you could just open the door." " Well?" " Well, it's difficult." "So much disorder." "I must have reinforcements." "There is a way of patching control through." " What do you do?" " I'm a technician." "Good." "You stand there." "Andred, Control Booth 7, on the right." "K9, go with him." "Off you go." " Leela." " Yes?" " Show Borusa to the VIP suite." " VIP suite?" "The Chancellor's suite, it's down there on the left, up three stages, one down stage." "Turn left, turn left, turn left, turn left again." "The room's marked "No entry"." "Off you go." " Leela." " Yes?" "Take that for me." "You can't give the Great Key to an alien." "I just have." " You trust her?" " I do." " Leela, that's important." " Then I shall look after it." " Good." "Off you go." " Come." " What's your name?" " Rodan." "Rodan?" "R-O-D-A-N." " How do you do, Rodan?" " As well as I can, Excellency." "Well, who could hope for more?" "What branch did you study?" " Quasitronics." " Quasitronics." "I don't know much about quasitronics." "Well, it's a simple field study exercise..." "Yes, I'm sure it is a simple field study exercise." "You wouldn't have a glimmer of astrophysics, would you?" " A glimmer." " Good." "Could you forget everything you ever learned?" "What?" "I mean, could you switch my primary and secondary stabiliser circuitry, into your secondary defence barrier?" "Link your control to the main defence mechanism?" "Well, to close the hole I made in it, yes." "Seal it up and stop any more Sontaran ships coming in." "Have you got a screwdriver?" " How much longer?" " I can't get..." "My battalion commander... insists on immediate entry." "Unless I obey, I shall die." "Before I die, you will die, Time Lord." " You all right?" " Of course I am." " Good." " Crimps." "Crimps." "Crimps." "Are you sure you know what you're doing?" "I do." " 542 lever." " 542 lever." "542 lever." "Steady, old girl." "This won't hurt a bit." " Useless." " What is of no use?" "The primary, secondary and tertiary control circuits are out of order." "Then repair them." "It isn't a question of repair, Excellency." "They have been bypassed." "The only way of doing that is through a time capsule." "And the only one in operation at the moment is the President's." "Doctor." "They could rampage right through the whole universe." "And not just this universe, all the universes." "Nasty thought, isn't it?" "That's why I had to stop them." "Just had to." " Winkle groober." " Winkle groober?" "Were you listening to what I was saying?" " A winkle groober." " Winkle groober." "No, now what were you saying?" "I was saying that what they're after... is the Rod of Rassilon, the Sash and, above all, the Great Key." "These three together linked into the Matrix... provide the sum total of Time Lord power." "That's what they want." "There is an alternative, Excellency." "What is it?" "I believe I can bypass the safety circuits." " Hand." " Hand." " Load of junk." " What is?" " This." " It's my Tardis you're talking about." "There you are." "Look, there's the arrow head, arrow wings, arrow shaft." "Why, it's a perfect Sontaran formation." "Yes." " Why an entire battle fleet?" " Doesn't matter." "The defence screens are up again." "You haven't seen what a Sontaran battle fleet." "Are you sure?" "As long as this Tardis remains secure, you control the defence screens." "As long as the Tardis remains secure." "Better." "Much better, Time Lord." " What's happening?" " He's reversed the stabiliser banks." "But that's impossible." "Only a Time Lord could do that." "A criminal Time Lord could, too." "We'll be thrown into a black star." "Subtilte subXpacio"