The Mercury Room Chronicles- Generations- Chapter09

CHAPTER NINE MOVING ON ‘…And that is why,’ The Third Manager said as he emerged from the doorway with a smug expression. ‘You don’t send an idiot cowboy with a foam finger to challenge the might of Nigel Martin.’ There were stifled cheers and nods of agreement from The Managers as the Third incarnation collected a crystal from the awaiting Raljex and disappeared with a crackle of energy. ‘Hmmm, I had my doubts about that yellow Hippo from the get-go,’ The Sixth Dr. said solemnly to his team mates. ‘Trust Eleven to go all over optimistic at a time like this.’ ‘I can’t fault his reason,’ The Third Dr. replied. ‘Though his appraisal of the facts could have been better.’ ‘Yeah, and he should have thought about it more as well,’ The Tenth Dr. nodded, finishing off a large bottle of beer. ‘I really do wonder sometimes how I survived to be me,’ The Thirteenth Dr. whispered quietly to the fourth. ‘Well now,’ Raljex said, folding his arms. ‘The Manager finally joins the game.’ ‘I said it all along, The Dr. was merely enjoying a brief spell of beginner’s luck,’ The Eighth Manager smirked. ‘Is that a fact?’ The Eighth Dr. retorted, narrowing his eyes, his mass of curly black hair billowing in the breeze. ‘Want to put your money where your mouth is?’ ‘My dear, simple Dr.,’ The Eighth Manager cooed, squaring up to the smaller, thinner man. ‘I would crush you at any contest, you are simply no match for me.’ ‘Well then, what’s say you and I go the next round?’ The Eighth Dr. snapped. ‘Eight on eight.’ ‘I’ll beat you like a public schoolboy,’ The Eighth Manager sneered dangerously. ‘Wanna bet?’ The Eighth Dr. said, his eyes widening. The Manager frowned and sighed. ‘You do realize what the purpose of this contest is, don’t you? You simpleton.’ ‘Hey, dude,’ The Tenth Dr. whispered casually to Eighth, all the while sipping from his hipflask. ‘You might want to think twice before rilin’ him up.’ ‘I’m not scared of him!’ The Eighth Dr. protested. ‘Not my point,’ Tenth replied. ‘Only issue is, that if you’re pitting yourself against him, and it’s my recollection that the pudgy bastard gets the next pick of game. Now it’s fairly common knowledge that you ‘ain’t exactly got all your cylinders firing all at once, that says to me that should Nigel choose the path of a Mental challenge, well then, that’s a crystal we may as well as just hand to them.’ ‘Wow,’ The Ninth Dr. cut in, folding his arms at Tenth. ‘I always thought you were nothing more than a crazy drunk. I had no idea there was still brains in there somewhere.’ ‘Somewhere,’ The Tenth Dr. nodded, taking another long drink from his flask. ‘But with any luck, not for much longer.’ ‘You’re an embarrassment to us all,’ The Twelfth Dr. growled quietly to himself at the edge of his incarnations. ‘We can’t all have sticks up our arses,’ The Fourth, Allucian Dr. commented. ‘On the note that The Dr.’s have just been discussing,’ The Eighth Manager said venomously. ‘I would like to pick the next challenge, as is my right after our incarnation won the last game.’ ‘Patience,’ Raljex’s ethereal form said slowly, his head turning towards the sun set that was filling the horizon. ‘We have used up our time here in the Aztec Zone; it is time we moved on to our second destination.’ ‘Oh, joy,’ The Fourth Manager puffed. ‘And just what fresh hell are we to be treated to next? Sugar Puff world? The land of the dancing pink unicorns?’ ‘Oh, better than that,’ The Sixth Dr. said, ruffling his own purple hair.

‘Dare I dream?’ The Fourth Manager scowled. ‘Lumber world?’ ‘All will be revealed in due course,’ Raljex said as he stepped through the two groups and proceeded over to what looked like a large drain that trickled water into a small stream. ‘Through this tunnel is our next destination-’ ‘You’re not serious!’ The Sixth Manager declared, looking between the grimy walls of the tunnel and his pristine suit. ‘You’re not suggesting we’re to crawl our way through here?’ ‘I think that’s exactly what he means,’ The Thirteenth Manager snapped, forcing his incarnations aside and setting off into the tunnel. ‘Show some backbone man, you can buy a new suit when we’ve won this contest.’ ‘But this suit is from Paris,’ The Sixth Manager sneered. ‘The planet one, not the city one … and I can’t get a new one because I blew it up last month … they tried to chase me up for missing Library books.’ ‘You sure showed them then,’ The Sixth Dr. said, appearing at The Manager’s elbow. ‘That’ll teach ‘em.’ ‘We will have plenty of time for discussion once we reach our second destination,’ Raljex said in an impatient fashion, standing over the various Video Lords who were crowding around the tunnel. ‘A little haste would be in order.’ ‘What’s the rush?’ The Fourth Dr. questioned as he watched the Managers file into the tunnel unappreciatively. ‘The rush,’ Raljex said serenely. ‘Is that this Zone will only last until dark, as I only had need of it for one day. Once the sun disappears, so too will everything you can see here.’ ‘I see,’ The Dr. nodded quietly to himself as he leaned around his incarnations to The Managers who were picking their way carefully along the tunnel. ‘Let’s put a move on it people!’ He shouted. ‘No time like the present and all that lot!’ Raljex smiled to himself as the Video Lords filed into the void towards the second Zone. Things were moving on according to plan. Nobody suspected. Nobody would even consider what was to occur. But the time was approaching. He knew which of them he needed. It was just a matter of steering that person into the right game. So far, things were progressing nicely. The one he needed would be manipulated into position easily enough. It was simply a matter of time. But it had to be done before the complications set in. One of them was quickly approaching, the other would occur at the Endgame. Raljex knew it because he had already seen it once before. Once a very long time ago. He was uneasy about what was to come, but he, above all others, knew of its inevitability. Things could not be changed. Things like time could not be bent or broken, merely observed and experienced. But that was all to come in the future. Now was the present, now he would have some fun. The Dr. was leading in the preliminary battles by one point. Both The Manager and The Dr. were taking to these trials as though they were the deciding factor of this competition. They did not realize how futile their actions are when compared to the final battle between them. Fourth against Thirteenth. Then the fun would really begin. Then Raljex would show them exactly why he was The Supreme Being. Allowing himself a small chuckle, he followed them through the tunnel. He exited, following the last of The Dr.’s and emerged into the interior of a large, ornate-looking ballroom, or rather, what had once been a large, ornate ballroom. ‘I’m having a horrible feeling of déjà vu,’ The Fourth Dr. said, turning through threehundred and sixty degrees, taking in his surroundings. ‘You’re not the only one,’ The Third Dr. said, chewing on his lip. ‘I knew it!’ The Sixth Dr. said giddily, rushing over to the side of the room and looking out of a window. He pressed his nose to the glass and watched as a shoal of fish swam by. ‘Ocean Zone,’ he breathed happily. ‘Though it’s a little different than I remember,’ The Thirteenth Dr. said, looking around the sunken ship they were standing in. Unlike the one from the television programme, this craft was not in pristine condition. This was an actual sunken ocean liner that had

been exposed to the elements of the Ocean itself. The dampness of everything around them and the several surprised sea creatures floundering in small puddles could only mean that this whole place had been filled with water only moments before their arrival. ‘Points for authenticity,’ The Sixth Dr. said over his shoulder from the window, which he realized was actually cracked and broken. Nobody questioned how they were able to breath; they were all men of science and knew that Raljex had constructed a forcefield around the vessel. They were in no danger. At least not from drowning anyway. ‘This is giving me the creeps,’ The Third Dr. said, twirling one of his blonde strands of hair between his fingers. ‘Why does this place look so familiar?’ ‘Because,’ The Thirteenth Dr. said with a smile as he examined the room more closely. ‘This is The Titanic.’ ‘Again?!’ The Fourth Dr. exclaimed. ‘I’m spending more time here than I did on Betamax.’ ‘Yes, yes, it’s all lovely and decadent and waterlogged,’ The Eighth Manager said with a grumble. ‘Now, can we please get on with the contest? I do believe The Eighth Dr. has challenged me personally, and I will answer it, with a Mental Game.’ ‘Balls!’ The Eighth Dr. said, snapping his fingers. ‘I was hoping he wouldn’t choose that one.’ ‘That’s probably why he chose it,’ The Sixth Dr. tisked. ‘A Mental Game,’ Raljex pondered, beckoning them over to a steel hatchway against the far wall. ‘I have just the thing for it. Now, this game has no links with Oceanic activities, but it is more concerned with the correct time period … so that is my justification, I defy anybody to argue against my reasoning.’ ‘As long as this is actually a Mental game,’ The Eighth Manager cut across him. ‘I see no grounds for complaint.’ ‘Then everybody is happy,’ Raljex said with a slight bob of his head. ‘I’m not too thrilled,’ The Eighth Dr. said despondently. ‘Yes, well, it’s a good job nobody cares about you opinion, Dr.’ The Eighth Manager smiled smugly. ‘Six Assistants,’ Raljex announced after rolling his dice on the conveniently placed sidetable. ‘Yes, about that too,’ The Eighth Manager said, adjusting his spectacles. ‘This time, could I actually be assisted?’ Raljex shrugged. ‘You make it difficult, Nigel Martin. The Dr. has uncountable allies who would readily assist him. You lead a secluded life of evil, there are very few in the galaxy who would rally to your aid.’ ‘Then just get me some plebs to hypnotize,’ The Manager retorted. ‘That will do you no good in this game, Manager,’ Raljex replied. ‘This is a game of deduction, cunning and guile. Hypnotized minions will be useless to you.’ ‘More use than those bloody Cidermen were!’ The Fourth Manager called over them. ‘Enough,’ Raljex said, waving a dismissive hand. ‘I am The Supreme Being, do not challenge my way of operating. I will find you assistants fitting to this task, Nigel Martin, and you, Dr. Though I cannot say whether they will be equally valuable or equally useless. I would not want to be accused of giving The Dr. an unfair advantage, though, it was you, Manager who wanted to have these games assisted. You brought this difficulty on yourself.’ ‘Just start the game,’ The Manager growled. ‘As you wish,’ Raljex said, opening the door to permit them entry. ‘The very best of luck to you both.’ ‘Wow,’ The Sixth Dr. said to Raljex as he watched the two combatants enter the room. ‘It almost sounded like you meant that.’ Raljex turned to face the purple-haired Dr. ‘Almost,’ he said simply. The Eighth Dr. followed his counterpart through the doorway and stepped out into a finely furnished sitting room. Five people sat around the centre in lush arm chairs and sofas, while another leaned against the hearth, gazing into the fire. Around the room, they were flanked by severe-looking aliens holding weapons.

A clock chimed from the top of the mantelpiece as The Dr. and The Manager entered. ‘Sir,’ One of the large aliens said gruffly to The Manager, turning in their direction. ‘We have detained the suspects.’ The Dr. looked away from the aliens, whom he recognized as Badabooms; a massive military race that resembled elephants who got their name due to their love of making things blow up. The elite and deadly race was bred by the galactic police to be storm troopers. They were heavily armoured before they strapped on their riot gear, but they were also keen observers with acute skills of perception. His eyes rested on the humans who were present, recognizing them each in turn. Jason, the Allucian Moderator sat in a purple suit jacket in a leather arm chair, looking annoyed as usual. Next to him was Roxy in a dark blue cocktail dress, talking heatedly with Ron who was dressed in khaki hunting gear. Pater Aurelius was the one stood over the fire in his minister’s outfit, while Bellerose sat in another armchair in a red dress, quietly sizing up the Badboom soldiers. ‘What’s going on here?’ The Eighth Dr. asked the Allucian members quietly. ‘Isn’t it obvious?’ A voice drifted from behind him. The Dr.’s face grew dark as he turned around and came face to face with Elysium wearing her usual white gown. ‘Ah,’ The Dr. grumbled. ‘My dear wife.’ ‘There’s no time for pleasantries dear,’ Elysium said, tapping a small name badge on her gown which read. “Mrs White”. The Dr. looked around at the other Allucians who all had name badges. “Professor Plum”, “Mrs Peacock”, “Colonel Mustard”, “Reverend Green” and “Ms. Scarlet”. Elysium put her mouth close to The Dr.’s ear and put on a Scottish accent as she growled. ‘There’s bin a murr-durr.’