precipice.
What he and the Doctor saw in the bright pool of light made their flesh creep. The sandy floor of the cavern appeared to have come alive and to have formed itself into a huge beast of terrifying size and menace. Its vast head was the size of a small room and it tossed savagely from side to side as if trying to tear the stale air apart.
The enormous jaws were armed not with teeth but with curving scimitar gums as sharp as blades. On each side of the head was a giant luminous red eye whose dilated pupil enabled the beast to see quite easily in its dark habitat.
Around the thick neck there was a kind of ruff of bony spines alternating with weblike plates. The creature’s massive body was plated and hinged like that of an armadillo or a rhinoceros, and its dry horny skin, pitted and grooved, was the colour of the sand itself. The monster’s thick legs were so short that its belly dragged perpetually along the ground and its long tail thrashed the sand like a whip.
The Doctor and Ian stood transfixed on the ledge above, watching the behemoth as it caught their scent and reared up on its hind legs. It uttered another deafening raucous bellow and its hot foul breath made them turn aside in disgust, their gorges rising.
‘What’s that nightmare thing?’ Ian whispered, trying to press himself into the rock out of harm’s way.
The Doctor shook his head grimly. ‘I have no idea, my boy. My only concern is that it is down there and we are up here...’ The Doctor emitted a squawk of alarm as a portion of the ledge gave way beneath him.
Ian grabbed his companion’s sleeve and managed to drag him to safety a little further along the ledge. The monster’s baleful eyes glowed like red-hot rings just a few metres below them and its huge purple tongue lashed greedily out of its cavernous mouth.
‘Thank you,’ muttered the Doctor grudgingly. ‘But we really cannot dawdle along gawping at the local fauna, Chesterton. This is not a zoo. Come on!’
Ian Chesterton could quite happily have pitched his infuriating companion into the monster’s gaping jaws, but he controlled his irritation with heroic forbearance and watched as the creature slumped back on all fours and dragged itself off along the cavern floor in the direction they themselves were taking. ‘Doctor, that thing’s got eyes, so presumably it must have come in from the outside,’ he declared, easing cautiously along the perilous shelf again.
‘Good. Very intelligent observation my boy,’ the Doctor said affably, following close behind him. ‘Sort of reasoning I might have employed myself...’
Ian grinned smugly to himself as he edged, like a crab, along the ledge.
‘However, I happen to know better,’ the Doctor added mischievously. ‘You should also have noticed that the beast possesses luminescent irises and can therefore provide its own light source. Ergo , it does not necessarily inhabit the open air.’
Ian bit his tongue and fumed in silence, trying to concentrate on his hazardous task.
‘However,’ the Doctor agreed after a pause, ‘it is possible that the beast may lead us out of the caves.’
Ian shone the torch down into the well of darkness. The beast had disappeared round a huge buttress of rock, though they could still hear its thunderous movements and its stentorian breathing. Ian directed the torch along the ledge again. ‘It seems to get wider in a minute,’ he whispered, anxious not to attract the beast’s attention. ‘But it slopes a lot more by the pillar and there are hardly any decent hand-holds anywhere.’
‘What is that just ahead?’ exclaimed the Doctor excitedly, pointing to something glinting in the rock face near the wider part of the ledge.
Ian aimed the torch. ‘Looks like a couple of old fashioned doorknockers.’ He squinted at the two heavy metallic rings fixed at shoulder height. ‘You know, the sort with rings hanging out of lions’ mouths. Somebody’s obviously been this way before
What he and the Doctor saw in the bright pool of light made their flesh creep. The sandy floor of the cavern appeared to have come alive and to have formed itself into a huge beast of terrifying size and menace. Its vast head was the size of a small room and it tossed savagely from side to side as if trying to tear the stale air apart.
The enormous jaws were armed not with teeth but with curving scimitar gums as sharp as blades. On each side of the head was a giant luminous red eye whose dilated pupil enabled the beast to see quite easily in its dark habitat.
Around the thick neck there was a kind of ruff of bony spines alternating with weblike plates. The creature’s massive body was plated and hinged like that of an armadillo or a rhinoceros, and its dry horny skin, pitted and grooved, was the colour of the sand itself. The monster’s thick legs were so short that its belly dragged perpetually along the ground and its long tail thrashed the sand like a whip.
The Doctor and Ian stood transfixed on the ledge above, watching the behemoth as it caught their scent and reared up on its hind legs. It uttered another deafening raucous bellow and its hot foul breath made them turn aside in disgust, their gorges rising.
‘What’s that nightmare thing?’ Ian whispered, trying to press himself into the rock out of harm’s way.
The Doctor shook his head grimly. ‘I have no idea, my boy. My only concern is that it is down there and we are up here...’ The Doctor emitted a squawk of alarm as a portion of the ledge gave way beneath him.
Ian grabbed his companion’s sleeve and managed to drag him to safety a little further along the ledge. The monster’s baleful eyes glowed like red-hot rings just a few metres below them and its huge purple tongue lashed greedily out of its cavernous mouth.
‘Thank you,’ muttered the Doctor grudgingly. ‘But we really cannot dawdle along gawping at the local fauna, Chesterton. This is not a zoo. Come on!’
Ian Chesterton could quite happily have pitched his infuriating companion into the monster’s gaping jaws, but he controlled his irritation with heroic forbearance and watched as the creature slumped back on all fours and dragged itself off along the cavern floor in the direction they themselves were taking. ‘Doctor, that thing’s got eyes, so presumably it must have come in from the outside,’ he declared, easing cautiously along the perilous shelf again.
‘Good. Very intelligent observation my boy,’ the Doctor said affably, following close behind him. ‘Sort of reasoning I might have employed myself...’
Ian grinned smugly to himself as he edged, like a crab, along the ledge.
‘However, I happen to know better,’ the Doctor added mischievously. ‘You should also have noticed that the beast possesses luminescent irises and can therefore provide its own light source. Ergo , it does not necessarily inhabit the open air.’
Ian bit his tongue and fumed in silence, trying to concentrate on his hazardous task.
‘However,’ the Doctor agreed after a pause, ‘it is possible that the beast may lead us out of the caves.’
Ian shone the torch down into the well of darkness. The beast had disappeared round a huge buttress of rock, though they could still hear its thunderous movements and its stentorian breathing. Ian directed the torch along the ledge again. ‘It seems to get wider in a minute,’ he whispered, anxious not to attract the beast’s attention. ‘But it slopes a lot more by the pillar and there are hardly any decent hand-holds anywhere.’
‘What is that just ahead?’ exclaimed the Doctor excitedly, pointing to something glinting in the rock face near the wider part of the ledge.
Ian aimed the torch. ‘Looks like a couple of old fashioned doorknockers.’ He squinted at the two heavy metallic rings fixed at shoulder height. ‘You know, the sort with rings hanging out of lions’ mouths. Somebody’s obviously been this way before
Similar Books
