shrieked above the noise.
The Doctor reached Sarah and dragged her to her feet. Scorby too was free but the butler had disappeared beneath the writhing mass of leaves.
‘Animal fiends! You’ll pay for this!’ Chase struggled desperately past them and ran from the room.
‘Quick, get out,’ ordered the Doctor, covering their exit with a jet of defoliant. The swirling mass of branches and creepers continued to harry them, but not so strongly, and they gained the safety of the Laboratory.
The Doctor banged the doors shut and hauled a heavy filing cabinet into position to secure them. The creepers were already poking through the gaps in the door.
‘I feel like I’ve been pulled through a hedge backwards,’ said Sarah, smiling weakly.
‘What is that stuff?’ asked Scorby, catching his breath for the first time.
‘The latest military defoliant. Still on the secret list. Sergeant Henderson helped me scrounge a few cans from Sir Colin.’
‘Nice to see you, Sergeant,’ said Sarah, ‘but are you all they could spare?’
‘There’s a unit on the way,’ answered the Sergeant with a smile.
‘Yes, and before they arrive we must clear the house of all plants,’ barked the Doctor. ‘They are the eyes and ears of the Krynoid.’ He started to tear out the experimental trays containing plants and seedlings, and the others quickly followed suit.
Within minutes they had successfully disposed of a hundred or so plants into an outside courtyard.
‘That’s all we can find for the moment, Doctor,’ said Sarah.
‘Good. Back inside, everybody.’
As they turned to re-enter the house a loud roar reached their ears and the stone walls of the courtyard began to vibrate. For a moment it seemed the house itself was about to fall down.
Sarah looked up and there, towering above the roof-tops, was the Krynoid. It had grown to about sixty feet, and hundreds more tentacles protruded from its trunk-like body, each one capable of smashing a man to pulp.
‘The door!’ yelled the Doctor and he leapt to open it. It wouldn’t budge. Someone had locked it from the inside!
‘Chase! ‘ exclaimed the Doctor and hammered on the door. But it was solid Elizabethan oak. They were trapped.
‘Look!’ screamed Sarah.
The Krynoid had moved closer and one of its giant tentacles was poised to swoop down on them. This time there was no escape!
Suddenly, there was a blinding red flash and the Krynoid let out a screech of pain.
‘It’s the Major,’ cried Sergeant Henderson. ‘They’re attacking it with the laser.’
They watched transfixed as bolts of red lightning slammed into the upper part of the monster. Distracted by this new threat the Krynoid turned from the courtyard and, letting out a deafening rattle, bore down on the small knot of soldiers operating the laser.
The Doctor saw the opportunity. ‘Quick! Follow me.’ He led the others at a gallop out of the courtyard and along the side of the house.
In the distance Beresford’s commands rang out. ‘Ready—fire! And another—fire!’
The Krynoid was advancing steadily despite the laser and, deciding discretion was the better part of valour, the Major ordered his men to retreat. As the khaki-clad figures scurried into the woodland the Krynoid gave a final roar of defiance and turned its attention once more towards the house.
The Major’s diversion had created precious seconds for the fleeing group to find another entrance, and they were now heading back to the comparative safety of the Laboratory.
‘Well, at least the Major had a go,’ said Sarah rue-fully as they entered. ‘Even if it was like using a peashooter on an elephant.’
Scorby, shaken by their narrow escape, sank into a corner. ‘I never thought Chase
The Doctor reached Sarah and dragged her to her feet. Scorby too was free but the butler had disappeared beneath the writhing mass of leaves.
‘Animal fiends! You’ll pay for this!’ Chase struggled desperately past them and ran from the room.
‘Quick, get out,’ ordered the Doctor, covering their exit with a jet of defoliant. The swirling mass of branches and creepers continued to harry them, but not so strongly, and they gained the safety of the Laboratory.
The Doctor banged the doors shut and hauled a heavy filing cabinet into position to secure them. The creepers were already poking through the gaps in the door.
‘I feel like I’ve been pulled through a hedge backwards,’ said Sarah, smiling weakly.
‘What is that stuff?’ asked Scorby, catching his breath for the first time.
‘The latest military defoliant. Still on the secret list. Sergeant Henderson helped me scrounge a few cans from Sir Colin.’
‘Nice to see you, Sergeant,’ said Sarah, ‘but are you all they could spare?’
‘There’s a unit on the way,’ answered the Sergeant with a smile.
‘Yes, and before they arrive we must clear the house of all plants,’ barked the Doctor. ‘They are the eyes and ears of the Krynoid.’ He started to tear out the experimental trays containing plants and seedlings, and the others quickly followed suit.
Within minutes they had successfully disposed of a hundred or so plants into an outside courtyard.
‘That’s all we can find for the moment, Doctor,’ said Sarah.
‘Good. Back inside, everybody.’
As they turned to re-enter the house a loud roar reached their ears and the stone walls of the courtyard began to vibrate. For a moment it seemed the house itself was about to fall down.
Sarah looked up and there, towering above the roof-tops, was the Krynoid. It had grown to about sixty feet, and hundreds more tentacles protruded from its trunk-like body, each one capable of smashing a man to pulp.
‘The door!’ yelled the Doctor and he leapt to open it. It wouldn’t budge. Someone had locked it from the inside!
‘Chase! ‘ exclaimed the Doctor and hammered on the door. But it was solid Elizabethan oak. They were trapped.
‘Look!’ screamed Sarah.
The Krynoid had moved closer and one of its giant tentacles was poised to swoop down on them. This time there was no escape!
Suddenly, there was a blinding red flash and the Krynoid let out a screech of pain.
‘It’s the Major,’ cried Sergeant Henderson. ‘They’re attacking it with the laser.’
They watched transfixed as bolts of red lightning slammed into the upper part of the monster. Distracted by this new threat the Krynoid turned from the courtyard and, letting out a deafening rattle, bore down on the small knot of soldiers operating the laser.
The Doctor saw the opportunity. ‘Quick! Follow me.’ He led the others at a gallop out of the courtyard and along the side of the house.
In the distance Beresford’s commands rang out. ‘Ready—fire! And another—fire!’
The Krynoid was advancing steadily despite the laser and, deciding discretion was the better part of valour, the Major ordered his men to retreat. As the khaki-clad figures scurried into the woodland the Krynoid gave a final roar of defiance and turned its attention once more towards the house.
The Major’s diversion had created precious seconds for the fleeing group to find another entrance, and they were now heading back to the comparative safety of the Laboratory.
‘Well, at least the Major had a go,’ said Sarah rue-fully as they entered. ‘Even if it was like using a peashooter on an elephant.’
Scorby, shaken by their narrow escape, sank into a corner. ‘I never thought Chase
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