The Doctor staggered out of the TARDIS, white-faced. ‘The Astingir! They’ve set off charges in the Functional Abyss.’

‘They’ve stuffed up the workings?’ Graham looked up at her from his hands and knees. ‘But Ryan just came through! Red light came on, I pulled the lever—’

‘Oh no, Squidget’s down!’ The Doctor picked up the quivering interface and cradled it as she studied the blank screen. ‘Massive power surge, it’s shorted him out – along with the whole console.’

‘Where’s Ryan?’ cried Graham. ‘How do we find him?’

‘Oh, my days …!’

At the sound of the familiar voice, both Graham and the Doctor turned to find Ryan, wedged in a split in the middle of the wall behind them, like human Polyfilla. With a disgusting squelch, he was pushed forward as if the fabric of the ship itself was spitting him out. His face and clothes were drenched with slime.

‘Ryan!’ The Doctor dropped Squidget and ran to him with Graham. They took hold of an arm each and pulled hard. Ryan fell to his sticky knees. ‘You must’ve been collected just as the Functional Abyss cut out,’ cried the Doctor triumphantly. ‘There was no power to boost you onwards!’

‘So Ace has been time-stormed away, but Ryan and Yaz haven’t,’ Graham muttered.

‘Ace?’ Ryan shook his head weakly. ‘Not her as well. They’ve already got Chantelle and Kim …’

The Doctor looked appalled. ‘They took Chantelle and Kim?’

‘Easy, son.’ Graham put a hand to Ryan’s sticky head to soothe him. Ryan closed his eyes. ‘That’s it, sleep. You’re all right now.’

‘Why take them?’ The Doctor was frowning. ‘And take them where?’ She jumped up and crossed to the console. ‘I’ll do a broad-range scan, perhaps I’ll find some trace of a trail while it’s fresh—whoops!’

She had tripped over Squidget, which was still convulsing on the floor. As she fell, a blast of energy lanced over her head from behind her and sparked into the console. It exploded in a burst of smoke and flames.

‘Doc!’ Graham pointed a finger at the shadowy shapes at the end of the corridor. ‘Them horse-things are here! What about the TARDIS force field?’

The Doctor slapped a hand to her forehead. ‘Got distracted, didn’t I!’

As she scrambled to her feet, a dark, fleshy barrier dropped down like a guillotine from the ceiling, sealing them off from the approaching Astingir.

‘Fire door,’ the Doctor announced, jumping back up. ‘Thank heavens for that.’ She whipped off her coat and used it to beat out the flames on the console. ‘No time for force fields, we’d better evacuate. Graham, get Ryan into the TARDIS.’

Graham already had an arm under Ryan’s neck and shoulders. ‘What about you?’

‘I’ve got to fix this thing!’ she cried, buzzing the sonic desperately at the charred and smouldering console. ‘That broad-range scan, it’s our last chance to—’