//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 Past and cost part 4 // Story: Night-Mares in Steel // by Bronycommander //------------------------------// Chapter 7 Past and cost part 4 Opening their eyes once more, the group found themselves in what looked like an operations room, with several men gathered around a man at a radio control console as a spaceship showed up on the screen. They looked at it with surprise. “Hold. Get a fix on that.” The man on the console said with an Australian accent, a name tag identified him as Leo Ryan, Communications Officer, his eyes wide at the sight. “It's not moving now,” A woman, Gemma Corwyn, Medical Officer as her nametag showed, stated before a second woman added, “Crossover zero.” Her nametag showed Tanya Lernov. “Triangulate it, Rico. How's it now. Tanya?” Leo asked her “The same.” “Just a slight drift.” Tanya added, yet Ryan shook his head. “No, no the movement isn't real, it's just an illusion caused by slight polar precession.” The moment he finished, an older man, Commander Jarvis Bennett as the nametag showed, entered “How's our mystery rocket?” He asked in alert and the medical officer replied, “Suddenly lifeless.” “Doesn't make sense, sir. It must have been driven by something.” Tyan suspected before his female collogue added, “No radio contact.” “I'm not surprised. I've just checked out its description on the register. It's a Phoenix Mark Four named Silver Carrier.” The commander explained. “Tanya?” Ryan looked at her for answers, not understanding. “The register's even. No crossover reading now.” She explained and he shook his head. “No, it's definitely stopped moving.” “Silver Carrier?” The doctor asked into the round and the commander explained for her. “Supply ship for Station Five. Reported overdue nine weeks ago. It's only about eighty or ninety million miles off course.” “Try radio contact again, Rico.” Ryan ordered his crewmate who did as told. As they tried again without success, they noticed that orbs from the ship were hitting their other hull, unaware that their hull was absorbing the orbs. However, due to the fact that the ship was unmanned and could ram the station through an autopilot, Jarvis suggested destroying the ship. Gemma stated if the ship is on autopilot then it shouldn't have strayed so far from its course, but her superior stayed firm. Suddenly, the radio operators ripped their headphones off in pain as a high-pitched noise came through it and the commander ordered the sound to be tracked. To their surprise, it came from the Silver Carrier. “You're sure?” The commander asked the Russian crewmate who nodded. “Certain. I was fixed on it anyway. There's no doubt.” “Then somebody is on board. Phil!” “Sir.” The lower-ranking crewmate acknowledged. “I want two men to cross over. Organize it, will you?” Phil saluted. “Right sir.” Bennet then let out a sigh. “Eighty million miles off course. If they're alive on board that craft, they must be in a pretty bad way.” As the ponies watched the two men in spacesuits approaching the ship, they saw that Jamie was on the inside, together with an unconscious doctor. The newcomer gestures towards the front of the rocket before entering with his crewmate through an airlock. They repressurized the control room and the door opened, with Jamie happy to see them. “Quick, I've somebody injured in here” He and the doctor got brought to the medical bay, with the former, baring his chest for a check-up. “Breathe in again. Out,” Corwyn advised, her patent did as told. “In again, please. Out. Now, I want you to take a deep breath and exhale as slowly as you can.” Jamie obeyed. “Good. You can dress now.” “How about the Doctor?” He asked concerned. “Concussion, certainly. I am waiting for the X-Rays to see if there's any fracture. What were you both up to?” He titled his head. “Hey?” “Fancy dress or something? Your clothes.” She pointed out, finding it odd. “Look, have you ever thought what you look like walking down the street in those things. People would think you were a wee bit strange as well.” The doctor’s companion countered quickly as he realized she was suspicious. “I dare say. But I don't understand the analogy. We're both in space. It's you and your friend who aren't conforming to custom.” “How about the medical? Do I pass?” Jamie quickly asked to change the subject. “You'll do. If it's any comfort to you, you are in fine physical shape. Can you give me your full name please?” “James Robert McCrimmon. Jamie.” “Thank you. And your friend?” Jamie bit his lip as he didn’t knew how to identify the Doctor. “Er, the Doctor.” “I can't put that down.” She stated and her patent hastily corrected, “Er. John Smith.” This caused Gemma to raise an eyebrow. “Really?” “Aye.” Corwyn’s expression became slightly skeptic as she noticed that her medical equipment was manufactured by John Smith and Associates, yet pretend to believe it. “Doctor John Smith.” “They must be a lot of them about.” Robert assumed with awkwardness in his voice and she nodded. “I dare say. You were passengers aboard the Silver Carrier, were you?” “Er, do you think that I could have a drink of water, please?” He asked in return, yet she had another question. “What happened to the crew?” “I don't know.” Jamie stated honestly. “Could you go further than that?” “Well, I was ill in the cabin, you see. A terrible fever. Raving for days. Well, when I came to, the door was closed against us, the Doctor was hurt and your people came.” He explained slightly nervous. “All the communicating doors were closed against you?” “Aye.” “And your friend didn't tell you what happened?” “No.” He answered her questions, receiving a nod. “All right, Jamie, that'll do for the present. The Controller will want to have a chat with you. We'll have to get you home somehow.” “Aye, that'll be the day.” He mumbled before catching himself with a forced smile. “Oh, of course”. “There should be another ship passing through in a week or two.” She then organized a tour of the station, explaining that it was called the Wheel being, a multi-purpose construction but functioned as a relay station for Earth, a halfway house for deep space ships, a space research station and a stellar early warning station. Jamie then headed for the library, with the doctor reporting to her superior. “He's lying. Not completely and apparently reluctantly. He's very fit both mentally and physically, nice constructive personality. His blood pressure suggests he's not been in space very long.” “Lies about what?” Bennet wanted to know. “He said he had fever aboard the Silver Carrier. He hadn't. His gamma globulins are normal.” She explained in return, yet the commander raised an eyebrow. “Oh? Why should he lie about that?” “I asked him what happened to the crew. Fever was his excuse for not knowing. And then again he lied. At least, I almost sure he lied about his friend's name. John Smith, he called him.” “Well, they do exist, you know.” Jarvis pointed out “Yes, he was looking at that for long enough. Coincidence possibly. Somehow I doubt it. And then, what's the most precious thing in deep space, Jarvis?” “Air, water, take your pick.” He answered her in a neutral voice. “Exactly. In space training even for one journey travelers. He asked me for a drink of water and then he left it. He might have been on Earth. That boy's has no space travel training, Jarvis. He's probably a stowaway, or he may be an agent.” “Sabotage?” The commander suspected before she continued. “Plenty of people on Earth think we should suspend the space programme. Some of them have forced their opinions already.” Bennet started to realize what she meant. “Do you think these two could have stowed away somehow, even disposed of the crew of the Silver Carrier, pretended to drift here helplessly, we take them in and they start breaking things up?” “I don't go that far.2 She replied surprised, but it was clear for the elderly officer. “Well of course, it's fits! Everything fits!” He exclaimed in a slight fit of rage and she held up a hand. “I only suggested it as a possibility, Jarvis. There are others.” “We'll talk about those later. This could be serious.” With that, he stormed out of the doctor’s office. Jamie was lead around, yet had a shocked expression as he overheard some crewmembers talking about that the commander still wanted to destroy the rocket with an x-ray laser. Making sure he was unseen, he sneaked towards the capacitator bank to disable it. The ponies wondered what this had to do with the Cybermen until an alarm on the control room of the rocket sounded. Two larger egg-like spheres were in a corner, power cables sprang to life, taking power from the consoles. The spheres started to grow, their skins glowing and becoming translucent to reveal a humanoid shape curled up inside. One of the spheres burst open to reveal a silver three-fingered fist. The sphere got ripped more and more open, revealing a Cyberman with the tear-drop like eyes. In a matter of seconds, the other sphere busted open too, another Cyberman came out. “Report”; a cybernetic voice sounded and the group saw the cyborgs looking up to a monitor. It wasn’t clearly recognize, only a bulbous, egg-like head as far as the ponies could tell. “Phase one complete.” One of the Cybermen replied. “Cybermats are launched.” Their superior reported back. “Phase two complete.” “You are undetected on the rocket? Questioned the other cybernetic creature and the Cyberman confirmed. “Phase three ready.” “Report again after phase three.” Upon blinking, the group saw Jamie being held at gunpoint by security personal, with a crewmate checking the damage. The laser’s capacitator bank was covered in some kind of liquid that had been sprayed over. After inspecting the X-ray laser, the crewmember told Jarvis that it would be out of action for at least a week. “Sabotage!” The commander exclaimed in rage, yet Jamie refused to accept being accused of this “No.” He firmly stated but it did not matter. “What are you? One of these pull back to Earth maniacs? Where are your friends, eh? Out there in deep space just waiting to come in and attack us when you put our laser out of action?” Jarvis demanded to know. “Och, you're talking rubbish!” The doctor’s friend taunted before the crewmate added, “You can't deny anything, boy. We saw you.” “I'm not denying it.” Shortly after, everyone, safe for the crewmember that had checked the laser, left. He made a broadcast for repair crews, with his nametag now visible. Bill Duggan “All hands to the power room. Immediate and urgent. All hands to the power room. Oh, what a mess” His eyes went down as he spotted a small bug like creature coming into view. “Well, I'll be.” Bill mumbled in surprise but the bug tried to get away as he tried to get a closer look. “Hey. Hey, hang on. Hang on, I'm not going to hurt you.” As it was trapped in a cover, he picked it up and inspected it. The ponies realized it was a Cybermat, looing almost identical to the ones they had seen in the tombs, except that it lacked antennas and had photoreceptors for eyes rather than crystal-based eyes. “Well, where did you spring from? You're metal. Hey, you're a strange little creature, aren't you? Some form of space bug?” Duggan mumbled before footsteps sounded outside. “Well, Billy, we'd better hide you, Billy Bug, or they'll think that I've gone bonkers”. With that, he picked up the Cybermat and put it in a cupboard. Then two other crewmates entered to help with the repairs, with the Cybermat currying away. Blinking, the group’s view switched to a resting room, seeing how the doctor was sitting up against an angled bed. There’s a padded silver chair in the corner and monitoring equipment nearby. He berated Jamie for getting him in trouble, barely remembering what happened on the rocket. Gemma then checked on him, finding him physically fine and Zoe, a female astrophysicist as her nametag showed, asked why he ordered Jamie to protect the rocket and how he managed pilot it, as she figured out that there was no way that the rocket could have drifted so far in such a short period of time and therefore must have been piloted. Plus such a lengthy journey would have meant that the ship would have needed refueling. She had inferred that the Doctor was in charge of all this. “Well, it's an interesting theory.” He responded with awkwardness in his voice, yet the woman stayed form “Oh, it isn't a theory. You can't disprove the facts. It's pure logic.” “Logic, my dear Zoe, merely enables one to be wrong with authority. Supposing there was a faulty automatic pilot.” The doctor countered, only to be asked, “To drive a rocket eighty-seven million miles on fuel for twenty million?” “Well, it's a possibility.” Then the scene switched back to the Cybermen, getting new orders. “We have ionized a star. Perseid meteorites will strike the Wheel.” “Phase three is in operation.” The second Cyberman reported “The Cybermats will consume Bernalium. Without Bernalium the Wheel cannot deflect the meteorites.” “They will discover Bernalium on board this rocket-ship.” The first Cyberman acknowledged and his fellow Cyborg added, “Phrase four is ready.” “Remove telemeter control from Cybermats.” Their superior ordered. In response, the first Cyberman zapped a the clock face on the all and the third hand started whizzing around as the ammeter needle maxed out, switched flick and lights blinked. On the Wheel, the Cybermat's eyes flashed. An engineer entered the power room. He saw Cybermats rooting around the Bernalium boxes, and grabbed a wrench from a shelf with a surprised, yet scared expression. In response, the mats headed for him, their eyes lighting up. With a painful scream, the man dropped the wrench, clutching his wrist and the ponies realized: Whatever this was, it was some kind of paralyzing method. Two more Cybermats appeared, surrounding him. The crewmate grabbed a spray and covered one Cybermat with it. The other two zapped his other hand, causing him again to drop the spray, as both hands were now useless. A scream escaped his mouth as they moved towards him. Alerted, some other crew members checked on him, only to find him dead. Noticing the spray, Gemma ordered it to be brought to the doctor for examination. “The X-rays are processed now.” Zoe reported, curious to see what it is, “Can you turn out the light, Jamie?” He nodded in response and did as told, the picture became slowly clear. “Here we go. Now, let's see what we got.” The doctor was eager to see, yet his eyes went wide in surprise and shock as the image got projected on the wall. “What's that?” The scientist asked curiously, not able to recognize it. In alert, the doctor exclaimed, “It's a Cybermat!” His companion nodded with a surprised expression. “Aye. That means the Cybermen must be here too.” Jamie concluded. “Yes, and there is only one place where they can be. On that rocket!” The doctor pointed with a determined expression on the spaceship on the screen. At the same time, 2 crewmembers entered the rocket. They walked backwards in fear once spotting the cyborgs. One got zapped by the Cyberman’s helmet device, he groaned in pain, holding his head. After a few seconds, he became still, a blank emotion on his face. The other one attempted to grab a crate to defend himself but got zapped as well. With a painful scream, he dropped the crate before he also became still with a blank expression. “You will take us to the Wheel.” One of the Cybermen ordered. “Obey. Inside the Wheel, you will help us. You will obey.” The other one added. None of the ponies could imagine what the cyborgs had planned, before the first one spoke up again. “You will ferry us to the Wheel. Obey. Inside the Wheel you will help us.” Then they climbed into a large empty crate and lie down. The controlled humans fitted a false floor over them then filled the space with Bernalium fuel rods. Upon being done, they trailed the crate behind them as they space walked back to the station. Meanwhile, the doctor tried to inform the controller about this. “And what's all that supposed to mean?” Bennet raised an eyebrow, sounding disbelieving about this. “The Cybermen are threatening this Space Wheel.” The doctor clear stated, sounding slightly desperate, yet his expression was neutral. “Cybermen?” Jarvis asked dumb folded. It was clear to the observers that he did not understand at all. “Where'd you dream up a name like that?” “The study of a system of control and communication in animals, and devices such as cybernetic machines.” Zoe tried to explain, her expression was honest, yet the commander did not understand. “What are you talking about?” “Cybernetics.” “I know all there is to know about Cybernetics. I don't need a lecture from you.” Bennet dismissed it, his eyes slightly blazing, losing patience. “But Cybermen exist. You've got to believe me. You've got to!” The traveler exclaimed, his expression now showing worry, only for Bennet to take a deep breath. “On the evidence of one faked-up X-ray shot.” “It's not faked-up. I took it myself, Controller.” Zoe protested with disgust in her voice and he slowly nodded “Well, what are these Cybermen then?” The elderly man wanted to know and the doctor raised a hand to explain it to him “They were once men, human beings like yourself, from the planet Mondas, but now they're more robot than man.” “You mean half and half?” Jarvis slowly nodded, able to follow him. In response, the doctor’s expression became serious, raising his voice slightly. “Oh no, more than that. Their entire bodies are mechanical and their brains have been treated neuro-surgically to remove all human emotions, all sense of pain. They're ruthless, inhuman killers!” For a moment, the commander seemed to believe him but then, his expression became one of slight frustration. “You really expect me to believe that rubbish!” “It's not rubbish! They'll kill anyone who stands in their path. You've got to believe me. You've just got to!” Then the scene switched to the two controlled men, bringing the crate into the lading bay and the two Cybermen climbed out. Shortly after another crewmember entered and inspected the crate, noticing the false bottom. A metallic hand grabbed his shoulder and he turned around in surprise in fear. Seeing one of the Cyberman, he threw the Bernalium at the Cyborg, making it stagger and attempted to run. The second Cyberman entered and his chest glowed, killing the crewman with his lethal beam. He and the other intruder then disposed of the body, as the two controlled crewmembers, Laleham and Vallance, as the nametags showed, each picked up a box of Bernalium and left. They both carried it to the power room, where the Duggan was waiting. Both reported that the other crewman, named Chang, had cut his hand and went to the Medical bay. They also asked what they could do, with Duggan ordering them to help out. “Now, if you really want to make yourself useful.” He said and turned around, only to face a Cyberman. The human cried it pain as the Cyborg used its hypnosis beam on him. “The Wheel must be protected from the meteorites. We will assemble your laser Defence rays. You will go to Central Control.” The Cyberman said as Duggan’s expression became blank. “Central Control.” He said without any emotion in his voice and Laleham nodded. “The Operations Room.” “These are your orders.” The Cyberman confirmed Duggan moved out. Meanwhile, the doctor got shown around, also being in the operations room as they noticed Bennet entering. He ignored them completely, making them realize something was wrong. But before they could do anything, Bill smashed the communications desk with a heavy spanner. It exploded, killing him. The doctor checked the body, shaking his head. “He's dead.” He then got up, facing the others with a series expression. “Now, now listen, listen everyone. The Cybermen are here, in this Wheel. They took over this poor fellow to stop you sending for help or signaling to Earth.” Now just a minute.” The doctor looked at the medical officer, “Gemma, you must alert the whole Wheel and you'll need something stronger than drugs to stop your people from being taken over. It doesn't matter how crude it is. A metal plate and a transistor will do. Tape them to the back of the neck. It will absorb the Cyber control signals.” They all nodded in agreement and he went to the loading bay with Jamie. They discovered the false bottom but were forced to hide behind the crate as a Cyberman was about to come in. He took one of the boxes of Bernalium then left. The doctor grinned slightly. “It's so easy.” “What?” His companion asked confused, yet his friend answered, “I don't understand them.” “What are you talking about?” “Destroying the wheel, Jamie, that's what I'm talking about. From the outside it's strong enough, but now that the Cybermen are inside…” He mumbled before Jamie cut him off. “Yes, I see what you mean. What do you think they are planning?” “Well, they obviously don't want to destroy the Wheel.” The doctor concluded “What do they want, then?” Jamie was just as clueless “I wish I knew. The first thing we must do is to protect the people here.” His older friend replied, setting his priority straight. “How?” “What's the thing which we need to survive which the Cybermen don't?” The doctor asked eagerly and Jamie thought for a moment. “Food.” This made the doctor chuckle with a slight grin. “Always thinking of your stomach, aren't you. No. Air, Jamie, air.” With a push of a button, he activated a video comm and warned the control room to seal the airlock doors. As they were in contact, Jamie saw something move in the corner of the room, pointing to it. A Cybermat. However, the doctor stayed calm as he instructed, “Listen to me very carefully. Do as I ask and don't delay. One of the Cybermats is very close to us. It'll tune into our brain waves at any minute.” They both backed into a corner as a second one followed, brave expressions. Then a high pitch whine sounded, forcing everyone to cover their ears. The group saw how the Cybermats stared veering around out of control, bumping into each other. One spun around in tight circles until it smoked and stopped while the other rushed headfirst into a wall and exploded. This went not unnoticed by the Cybermen, as one reported from the power room to his superior, “All Cybermats have been destroyed.” “Destroyed? By what method?” The superior asked. “They have used high-current phase contrast.” This caused the superior to suspect, “One human has knowledge beyond our predictions. Report.” “The X-ray laser machine is repaired.” “And operative?” “Yes. In stage of operation.” The cyborg confirmed. “Communication beam to Earth?” “Attacked and damaged.” “Phase six.” Was the order of the superior and the Cyberman acknowledged. “Yes.” “The space station is to be taken over. Complete Phase six.” In that moment, an Engineer with the nametag Flannigan entered and asked if the laser was repaired, only for Vallance to point at gun at him. “Don't point that thing at me, laddie.”Flannigan warned and knocked the gun from Vallance's hand, then threw him to the ground. In response, Laleham brandishes a crowbar, only for the engineer to grin “All right. If it's a fight you're after, I'm your man. Come on.” He dodged the swing with easy and taunted, “You need a few lessons in the noble and manly arts, me bucko! All right, come on!” As they both were fighting each other, Vallance picked up the gun and fired. He missed hitting Laleham instead into the chest. Blood splattered and Flannigan looked at his crewmate in shock as he was dead on the spot. Then a Cyberman entered and hypnotized him as well. He cried out in pain before succumbing. “The Earth machine has been installed?” He asked Vallance who nodded. “Yes.” “A force field has been set around the Operations Control room. How is it operated?” “Only from within the Operations Room.” “Dispose of the body of the human.” In the control room, the doctor speculated that the Cybermen must have caused the approaching meteor shower not to destroy the Wheel but to make them need to use their laser, forcing them to go to the rocket to get the Bernalium that the Cybermats corroded and allowing the Cybermen a way onto the Wheel. When asked why, he stated that the Cybermen were obsessed with conquering Earth and they must see the Wheel as integral for their new plot. Again, the Cyberman got notified by his superior. “The meteorite shower is approaching the Wheel.” “The weapons of the Earth humans have been tested and are operating.” The cyborg reported “Phase six can be completed.” However, the cyborg had bad news “The Earth humans have set up a neutron field barrier on the perimeter of the section containing their room of Operations.” “Do not complete Phase Six. Initiate Plan Three.” His superior decided. A Cybermen with Valance in tow moved to the Oxygen supply room, noticeable by several canisters and tubes, with the human carrying a small box. He confirmed to the cyborg that this controlled the oxygen on the Space Station and opened the box. It contained some silver capsules. “Each section of the Wheel has a separate air supply.” The Cyberman said and his servant nodded. “Insert one capsule into each section. The oxygen will turn into pure ozone. The humans will die.” They were unaware that the medical officer was watching them, hidden behind a bank of machinery. Gemma informed the control room via the comm system about what the cyborgs were about to do. However, this alerted the Cyberman to her presence. She fired a laser pistol, making the threat stumble briefly. Corwyn made a dash for the door but the cyborg recovered, using his death ray, killing her before she could open it, falling lifeless to the ground. At the same time, Bennett was striding along a corridor, turning around to see the other Cyberman. The commander put on a brave expression, walked towards the Cyberman, ready to grapple with it. The Cyborg anticipated this and blocked his attack, easily overpowering the human. The group watched in horror as the Cyberman lifted Bennett up over its head and threw him down the corridor. Jarvis did not move and the Cyborg used it’s chest unit ray to ensure he would stay that way. His fellow cyborg then made a report to his servant. “The meteorites have been destroyed. Now we will take over. You have inserted the capsule in the air supply?” “Yes. “Inject it into the system. Effective penetration should be immediate.” Vallance did as told but nothing happened. “Report.” “Negative. They must have switched over to the emergency supply.” “That cannot be reached?” His “leader” concluded and he confirmed, “No. It is inside the force field.” The Cyberman pushed a button on his chest, activating his portable communicator. “Do you report success?” The superior asked. “No. Our plans are anticipated.” “Wait. The data will be computed.” There was a pause, processing the data. “One of the Earth humans must have experience of our methods. Projection of all identities on the Wheel is essential.” Vallance was given a blast from the Cyberman's head beam and asked to picture and identify everyone on board. He went through everyone until he got to the Doctor, whom he couldn’t name. In the control room, the doctor and crew of the station were discussing why the Cybermen were here, as they suddenly saw something else on the radar. The Doctor identified it as a Cyberman ship. Then Flannigan contacted the Operations Room to explain he had a number of Cybermen captive in a workshop, with the doctor insisting that he will go. He also stated that he was suspicious of Flannigan, that the crewman would turn up in the Operations Room and that he would to have a plate put on his head immediately before rushing off. Shortly after, Flannigan entered the Operations Room with Zoe and Jamie. Leo wasted no time putting the anti-hypnosis device on the back of Flannigan's neck. The moment it was done, the doctor reported via the monitor system, telling he had spare parts to repair communications before signing off abruptly, stating that he had company. Tensed, the ponies watched as the doctor calmly turned around to face the 2 Cybermen. “I suppose you've come for me.” “You know our ways.” One of the cyborgs replied. “Yes, I thought you'd realize somebody did. I imagine you have orders to destroy me.” “Yes.” The other Cyberman confirmed, yet the man was curious. “Tell me one thing. Why did you order Duggan to destroy radio communication with the Earth? After all, that is why you want possession of the Wheel, isn't it?” “You know our ways.” Was the answer of the first Cyberman, only for the doctor to state, “That doesn't answer my question.” “He was instructed to destroy only the transmitting complex.” The second Cyberman explained instead. This was enough for the doctor to figure it out. “Oh, I see. How interesting. Yes, of course. And presumably your large spaceship holds your invasion fleet, and the smaller ships can only enter the Earth's atmosphere by homing on a radio beam.” “You know our ways. You must be destroyed.” “Yes, well, I was afraid you'd get back to that. Well, you'd better come in.” the doctor said without fear, making a gesture to welcome them. As the first Cyberman stepped forward, the Doctor throws a switch and electricity crackled through its headpiece. The cyborg twitched and flailed as it collapsed. In response, the other one tried to use its chest unit, but it had no effect, accusing the doctor to taunt. “You can't get through the field, you know.” “You will be destroyed. Others are coming” The cyborg pointed at him as he walked backwards out of the room, allowing the man to turn the electricity off. Flannigan and Jamie emerged through the tunnels, the former picked up a mini-extinguisher as the Doctor was sure Cybermen would send in reinforcements, probably through the Loading Bay, planning to use the laser to destroy the enemy ship. At the Loading Bay, Flannigan, equipped a spacesuit and saw the other Cyberman and Vallance, with him pretending to still be under Cybermen control as a group of Cybermen was spacewalking to the Wheel. The moment the Cyborg turned his back to him, Flannigan and Jamie approached Vallance, and Jamie putting the metal plate on the back of his helmet. He stumbled In response, looking slightly confused around. The Cyberman turned around but Flannigan used the extinguisher device on its chest unit. It flailed around, reaching for the door controls as it collapsed. His following Cybermen were just paces away as Flannigan closed the outer doors, but the leading Cyborg wedged itself between them and tried to force them open. In that moment, the laser of the station fired. The ponies got a brief look, the Cyber-ship was round, like a cylinder but it’s form reminded of a screwdriver. It got destroyed in a gigantic explosion. “I'll try and operate the neutron force-field. Hold tight!” Flannigan operated a panel. Upon pressing a few buttons, the force field repelled the Cybermen by sucking them into space, and the outer doors closed. With uncertainty, the ponies watched as a Cybermen pushed a button on his chest and a small shuttle-like ship, similar to that of the Moonbase, closed in and he, with 5 others grabbed hold of it, getting on board and flew away. “Fascinating,” Kyle started as they found themselves again in the void, “They were almost wiped out, yet still managed to do this.” “Yeah, but the will to achieve something can be dangerous if desperate,” Fetcher added and Luna nodded. “Indeed. But I believe there must be several groups of different Cybermen, all originating from Mondas. This memory was from 2079, 9 years after the Moon Base.” She said with a slightly surprised tone in her voice. “Why that?” Dinky titled her head. Luna lit up her horn as she replied, “Because this memory is from…1970.”