Snakedance

Part One

[TARDIS]

(On a patch of sand surrounded on two sides by large stone slabs, an old man is sitting and meditating. He wears a blue gem on a string around his neck.
Meanwhile, Nyssa comes out of the interior of the TARDIS wearing a circular striped skirt over a pair of knee-length shorts and a bright blouse, and shows her new costume off to the Doctor.)
NYSSA: Well?
DOCTOR: We're not where we're supposed to be.
NYSSA: Where are we?
DOCTOR: I don't know. There are traces of anti-matter.
NYSSA: Omega?
DOCTOR: Oh, highly unlikely he's still alive. It's not a navigational malfunction either.
NYSSA: Shall I wake Tegan?
DOCTOR: No, no, there's no danger, although it's puzzling. It's very puzzling.

(Tegan still sleeps as Nyssa fetches a large reference book.)

NYSSA: (reads) Planet G139901KB in the Scrampus system. Local name, Manussa. Type 314S. Inhabited. Atmosphere ninety eight percent Terra normal, gravity ninety six percent Terra normal.
DOCTOR: Well, at least we can breath the air. I suppose that's something. You look different.
NYSSA: Yes, Doctor.
DOCTOR: The question is, how did we get here?
NYSSA: There's more. (reads) Third planet in the Federation system. Status, colony. Former homeworld Manussan Empire, destroyed. Former homeworld Sumaran Empire, destroyed. Present economy, subsistence agriculture and tourism.
DOCTOR: Former homeworld?
NYSSA: Manussan Empire.
DOCTOR: No, no, the other one.
NYSSA: Sumaran Empire.
DOCTOR: This is serious. Someone's been playing around. Who set the coordinates?
NYSSA: Well, you did.
DOCTOR: No, no, no. Earlier, I was trying to teach both of you to read the star charts. Now, one of you actually read out the coordinates for me to set. Who was it?
NYSSA: I can't remember.
DOCTOR: It was Tegan.

(Tegan is having a dream about being in a cavern temple, and walking up some steps into an giant open snake's jaw. She screams, and wakes herself up.)

[Nyssa and Tegan's bedroom]

(We are shown a silver snake with a blue gem in its mouth. A young man walks down a spiral staircase into the room. Everyone embarrass Martin Clunes by saying Hi! He picks up the sculpture and sits on a fur-covered chaise-longue.
Meanwhile, Nyssa is at Tegan's side. The Doctor stands in the doorway.)
NYSSA: Tegan, what's the matter? What happened?
TEGAN: It was the dream.
DOCTOR: The dream? What dream?
TEGAN: I can't, I can't remember. I can never remember.
DOCTOR: But you've had this dream, this particular dream, before.
NYSSA: Doctor, stop it.
DOCTOR: Haven't you?
TEGAN: Yes.
DOCTOR: Always the same dream?
TEGAN: Yes, I think so. The images fade so quickly.
DOCTOR: But the same feelings of fear remain.
NYSSA: Doctor. It doesn't matter. You're awake now. It was only a dream.
TEGAN: No, it wasn't, somehow.
NYSSA: Tegan
DOCTOR: She means it. I think she could be right.

[Federator's residence]

(A woman enters to see her son lounging about with the statuette.)

TANHA: Lon, you're not dressed yet. Ambril will be here in a moment. He promised to show us the caves this morning. Have you forgotten?
LON: No, mother, I hadn't forgotten.
TANHA: Well, then. We must make the effort.
LON: Must we?
TANHA: Well of course we must.
LON: Why?
TANHA: It is expected of us. You are the Federator's son. Come, Lon. What's wrong?
LON: The Federator's son is bored.

[TARDIS]

DOCTOR: Now then, Tegan, where are we?
TEGAN: What?
DOCTOR: Very simple question, where are we?
TEGAN: Well, aren't we on Earth?
DOCTOR: No, we're not. So?
TEGAN: Well how should I know?
DOCTOR: Think!
NYSSA: Doctor.
DOCTOR: Please, Tegan, think. Reach into the back of your mind.
TEGAN: Are we on Manussa?
DOCTOR: Good.
TEGAN: Are we?
DOCTOR: Yes, we are.
TEGAN: How did I know that?
DOCTOR: Manussa, formerly homeworld of the Sumaran Empire which may or may not ring a bell. Does it, Tegan? The Sumaran Empire?

[Federator's residence]

TANHA: I agree Ambril can be rather trying. On the whole, you know, I preferred his predecessor. Now what was the man's name? Oh, he was completely dotty, but much more fun.
LON: It's not just Ambril, mother, it's all of it. The ceremony and everything. It's all such nonsense, isn't it.
TANHA: Is it?
LON: Of course it is. And all so long ago. The Mara was destroyed five hundred years ago and yet we're still celebrating it. Why?
TANHA: Oh, once every ten years.
LON: It occurs to me that the whole thing is kept going solely to remind the people here how much better life is under the rule of the Federation.
TANHA: And so it is.
LON: Is it?
TANHA: Of course it is. Life under the Mara must have been gruesome in the extreme. I mean, look.

(She takes the snake statuette from Lon.)

TANHA: Oh, it is grotesque. You ought to take more interest in our heritage.
LON: Why?
TANHA: Well, it's the root of our culture. The Legend of the Return. Although, now what was the man's name? Well, the Director before Ambril, he didn't think it was just a legend. He thought the Mara really would return.
LON: Am I now supposed to take the ramblings of a mad man seriously?
TANHA: He didn't ramble.
LON: The Mara was destroyed, not banished to another dimension. It won't return in a dream or in any other form.
TANHA: If you say so.
LON: I think I just have.
TANHA: Well, it made a good story. Quite made my hair stand on end. Ambril's predecessor was rather good value, even if he was talking nonsense.

[TARDIS]

NYSSA: Is this necessary?
DOCTOR: Yes. We must recover Tegan's dream, and simple hypnosis is the quickest way.
NYSSA: But why must we?
DOCTOR: Dreams are important, Nyssa. Never underestimate them. Once a man fell asleep, dreamt he was a frog. When he woke up he didn't know if he was a man who dreamt he was a frog, or a frog who was now dreaming he was a man.
TEGAN: I'm still possessed, aren't I, Doctor. The Mara from the world of the Kinda is still inside my head somewhere, isn't it.
DOCTOR: We'll have to see.
TEGAN: But you think so.
DOCTOR: It does seem likely. I'm sorry.
TEGAN: But where?
DOCTOR: Well, obviously below the threshold of conscious thought. I would imagine that when awake your mind is still strong enough to resist, but in sleep it loosens its grip and battle is joined.
TEGAN: In my dreams?
DOCTOR: Yes.
TEGAN: The battle for what?
DOCTOR: For control. Come over here.
NYSSA: That's why you misread the coordinates.
DOCTOR: It's possible the Mara seized temporary control and brought itself home. Now, insert the earpiece, try to relax, and when switched on, listen to the sound.

(Tegan puts the box on a wire around her neck and puts in the earpiece.)

[Federator's residence]

TANHA: He thought the only people who knew the truth about the Mara were the Snake Dancers. Once he even took us to visit them. It was miles from anywhere, way up in the hills. It was all wildly unofficial. We had to go in disguise. Can you imagine your father in disguise? Even then.
LON: And did they?
TANHA: What?
LON: Know the truth about the Mara.
TANHA: It was so dark and they were so dirty, it was difficult to tell. Oh, they were frightful. They were all covered in ash. Some of them were almost naked. They lived entirely on roots and berries and things, and they put themselves into trances. It was quite disgusting. They handled live snakes, I remember.
LON: Why?
TANHA: Something to do with their religion.
LON: What did father think?
TANHA: The Federator, as usual, was not amused.

(There is a knock at the door.)

TANHA: Come in.

(A servitor in a short cape shows in a man in mostly Cossack clothing.)

AMBRIL: Good morning, my Lady Tanha.
TANHA: Good morning.
AMBRIL: Are we ready?
TANHA: I'm afraid not quite.
AMBRIL: I beg your pardon. In that case, I'll
TANHA: No, no, no, no. Please stay. My son can dress quite quickly.
LON: What's this?
AMBRIL: That, my Lord, is a small token in honour of your presence here deputising for your father. I trust you approve?
TANHA: Thank you.
AMBRIL: Exquisite, isn't it?
LON: Is it a fake?
AMBRIL: Oh no, my Lord, it's an original. One of a pair from my collection. Seven hundred years old from the middle Sumaran era. I unearthed it myself.
LON: Did you really?
AMBRIL: Yes, my Lord.
LON: Oh. Here, then. Catch.

(Lon doesn't really throw the statuette at Ambril.)

AMBRIL: Oh, my Lord.

(Lon finally gets up to leave, and tosses the statuette at Ambril, who fortunately catches it.)

[Nyssa and Tegan's bedroom]

(Tegan is lying down on the bed in a trance. Nyssa is watching from a peacock chair in the corner.)

DOCTOR: Where are you now?
TEGAN: On Deva Loka, the Kinda world.
DOCTOR: What are you doing there?
TEGAN: It's horrible. Is that thing inside my head? You must know I climbed a tree and dropped apples on its head. No. I will never agree to what you ask. Doctor? Am I free of the Mara now? Forever? Am I?
DOCTOR: You must go deeper, Tegan. Much deeper. Where are you now?
TEGAN: I'm in my garden, silly. Everything grows in my garden. People always come back. I close my eyes, I want them to come back and they do. It always works. I can tell lies too. People don't always notice so I'm safe here.
DOCTOR: How old are you?
TEGAN: I'm six, silly.
DOCTOR: Tegan, now you must leave your garden.
TEGAN: Oh, why?
DOCTOR: And go still deeper. Deeper and further. Much further. Can you hear me? Now, I want you to go into the dream.
TEGAN: No.
DOCTOR: Why not?
TEGAN: Because I mustn't.

[Market place]

(In the covered souk, a man stands at the entrance to a large, decorated tent.)

HAWKER: How about you, sir? Madame, step this way, if you'd be so kind. I invite you to take the most exciting journey of all. The voyage inside. The journey to meet yourself. I address you in the silence of your own hearts. I offer my personal challenge. Dare you bare witness to what the Mara shows? Will you gaze upon the unspeakable? Dare you come face to face with the finally unfaceable? Children half price.

(No takers.)

[Nyssa and Tegan's bedroom]

DOCTOR: Tegan, you're perfectly safe. You must go into the dream. Where are you now?
TEGAN: Snake mouth. Cave. Out.
DOCTOR: Out where?
TEGAN: I'm outside. I'm being fed this image.
DOCTOR: Go in.
TEGAN: No! Mustn't.
DOCTOR: Tegan, you must go into the cave. We need to know what's there.
TEGAN: Something in here. Over there. Mustn't look. Mustn't ever look. I'm safe if I don't look.
DOCTOR: Tegan.
TEGAN: No.
DOCTOR: You're perfectly safe. You must look. We need to know what is there.
TEGAN: (Mara) Go away!

(Tegan wakes up.)

[Market place]

HAWKER: Come face to face with the truth about yourself in the Hall of Mirrors. Come along, please. You, sir. For instance, you, you have the look of a humble seeker after life's truth.
LON: Do I really.
HAWKER: Of course you do. Now, if you'd care to step inside
LON: Do you know who I am?
HAWKER: No, young man. Do tell us. Who are you?

(Ambril and Tanha join Lon.)

HAWKER: Oh, I beg your pardon, my Lord, my Lady. I'm sure I didn't mean
LON: Well, what's in there?
HAWKER: In, er?
LON: Yes, what exactly does one face in your shoddy little booth?
HAWKER: Er, mirrors, my Lord.
LON: Mirrors?
HAWKER: Distorting mirrors, that's all. People are amused.
LON: Are they.
HAWKER: Generally, my Lord.
TANHA: Lon.

(The distinguished party and their bodyguard move on.)

[Nyssa and Tegan's bedroom]

(The Doctor is making adjustments to his hypnosis machine.)

NYSSA: That voice, what was it?
DOCTOR: The Mara, speaking through Tegan's mouth.
NYSSA: On Deva Loka you said a physical change took place when possessed by a Mara.
DOCTOR: It does, as mental resistance weakens. But this time I can prevent it.
NYSSA: How?
DOCTOR: With this. It inhibits the production of brainwaves associated with dreaming.

(The Doctor plugs Tegan's earpiece back into his device.)

NYSSA: Then what?
DOCTOR: We must find the cave, the snake mouth in the dream.
NYSSA: It's a real place?
DOCTOR: Oh, yes. What's more, I would guess it's somewhere nearby.

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

AMBRIL: The main entrance to the cave system itself.
TANHA: I'd forgotten how impressive it is.

(They all go inside.)

[Market place]

(The TARDIS has quietly parked herself behind some decorative hangings.)

DOCTOR: Now, she will be experiencing total exclusion of all outside sound, so you must be her ears.
NYSSA: She can't dream now. She's awake.
DOCTOR: Dreams are occurring in the mind all the time. Come on, we must hurry.

[Cave]

AMBRIL: The cave system itself
LON: Hello!

(Lon's voice echoes back.)

AMBRIL: It's a natural geological formation worn out of the solid rock over hundreds of thousands of years by the action of an underground river.
LON: Hello!
TANHA: Lon.
AMBRIL: The Chamber of the Mara is the largest natural cavern thus formed, but many of our most important archeological finds
LON: Big, isn't it.
AMBRIL: Beg pardon, my Lord?
LON: This place, it's big.
AMBRIL: Yes, I suppose it is.
LON: Isn't it. Hello!

[Market place]

(The Doctor is getting directions from a stall holder.)

NYSSA: Tegan, are you all right?

(All Tegan can hear is a high-pitched whining.)

NYSSA: Doctor?
DOCTOR: I was right. It seems there's a cave system near by that fits the description. It's, er, this way.

[Cave tunnel]

(By a colourful wall painting.)

AMBRIL: This wall constitutes a valuable record of the Sumaran era. Of course, academic interpretations as to its precise meaning do differ, but by paying scrupulous attention to detail and not allowing our imaginations to run away with us, we can form the glimmerings of an idea as to what the pictograms may mean.
LON: What about the Legend of the Return?
AMBRIL: The legend, my Lord?
LON: Do you have an opinion?
AMBRIL: Yes, I'm rather afraid I do.
LON: Well?
AMBRIL: The Legend of the Return is nonsense. Pure superstitious nonsense, invented by the people simply to give themselves something with which to frighten their children. It has no basis, either speculative or proven, in historical fact.

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

DOCTOR: Extraordinary, isn't it.

(Tegan stops at the bottom of the steps.)

NYSSA: Doctor.
DOCTOR: It's the cave from her dream.

(The Doctor takes Tegan's arm and leads her up.)

DOCTOR: Now, there's nothing to be frightened of.

(Tegan hears a scream in her head and pulls away.)

TEGAN: No!
NYSSA: Doctor, she can't hear you.

[Cave tunnel]

LON: Nevertheless, Ambril, your predecessor apparently believed in the legend.
TANHA: Yes. Now what was that man's name?
AMBRIL: His name, my Lady, was Dojjen.
TANHA: Dojjen. Oh yes, of course, that was it.

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

NYSSA: What are we going to do? She won't go any further, she's too frightened.
DOCTOR: Well, you'll have to stay with her. I'll go into the cave alone.

[Cave tunnel]

AMBRIL: I'm afraid Dojjen came to believe so many things. He became very erratic towards the end. The real work here was sadly neglected.
LON: The real work?
AMBRIL: Yes, my Lord.
LON: Oh, you mean poking about in the ruins and digging for trinkets.
AMBRIL: Classified, my Lord. I have tried to reestablish our studies here on a strictly scientific basis.
TANHA: And I'm sure we're all truly grateful. Shall we proceed to the Chamber of the Mara?

[Chamber of the Mara]

(A giant relief of a snake is carved into the end wall, with steps leading up to it.)

AMBRIL: Exquisite, isn't it.
LON: What was in its mouth?
AMBRIL: The Great Crystal, my Lord. Purely decorative.
LON: Where is it now? Is it lost?
AMBRIL: Oh no, my Lord. It was removed from its socket when the Mara was destroyed. Traditionally, its safekeeping is the responsibility of the Director.
LON: You.
AMBRIL: At present I have that honour, my Lord. The image of the Mara is sculpted out of

[Cave tunnel]

(The Doctor makes his way along.)

AMBRIL [OC]: Solid rock. It is, as you can see, in the form of a snake, a rearing snake. The imagery is consistent with the middle Sumaran period with only insignificant variation.

(The Doctor looks at the wall painting briefly, then follows the voice.)

[Chamber of the Mara]

AMBRIL: In Sumaran three period, the head has a tendency to be less pronounced, but in general
TANHA: Oh, do be quiet just for a moment. It is horrible.

(The Doctor keeps out of sight.)

TANHA: I'm very glad the Legend of the Return is just a story. It is, isn't it?

(The Doctor breaks cover.)

DOCTOR: No, I'm afraid it's not.

(The bodyguard twists the Doctor's arm behind his back.)

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

PUPPETEER: Excuse me.

(His tray is full of jointed wooden snakes on sticks.)

NYSSA: Oh, no thank you. No, really, not at the moment.
PUPPETEER: Look.
NYSSA: Yes, it's very good.

(He waves one in front of Tegan, who screams and runs away.)

NYSSA: Tegan! Tegan!

[Chamber of the Mara]

DOCTOR: There's no need for this.
AMBRIL: This is a private view. You have no business to be here. Have him thrown out.
LON: Wait. At least let the man have his say.
AMBRIL: Why, my Lord? The man's clearly deranged.
LON: Is he?
AMBRIL: Of course he is.
TANHA: Lon, I really think the Director should deal with this.
DOCTOR: Director? Director of what?
AMBRIL: Research effort into the Sumaran era.
DOCTOR: Are you indeed? Then you may be able to help
AMBRIL: I think not. Throw him out.
LON: Just a moment, Ambril. It has been suggested that I take more interest in our legends. Release him.

(Nyssa loses Tegan in the market.)

LON: And where, according to you, is the Mara now?
DOCTOR: At present it exists as a latent mental force in the mind of my companion.
LON: Does it.
DOCTOR: It's using her dreams to increase its power. Eventually it will take over her mind altogether, but I've put together a device to inhibit this temporarily.
LON: Oh, how very resourceful.
DOCTOR: Why don't you come and meet her? She's outside.
AMBRIL: My Lord, I must insist
LON: Very well, show us.
DOCTOR: Certainly. Follow me.
AMBRIL My Lord!

[Cave]

(Tegan faints in the market. Nyssa runs back to the caves.)

DOCTOR: Nyssa!
AMBRIL: Is this your companion?
DOCTOR: Nyssa, what's the matter?
NYSSA: Doctor, she's gone.
DOCTOR: What!
LON: She's gone, apparently.
DOCTOR: Where?
NYSSA: She took fright. It all happened so quickly.
LON: You've disappointed me, Doctor. I should have you punished.
DOCTOR: Come on.
LON: No, let them go. What's the point?

[Fortune teller's booth]

(The woman, whose headdress is arranged so that her face looks like it is surrounded by an open snake's mouth, takes Tegan's earpiece out.)

SEER: Here, that's better. You can hear me now.
TEGAN: No, I mustn't take it off.
SEER: Why ever not? What is it, anyway? What does it do?
TEGAN: I can't, I can't remember. I mustn't, that's all. Where am I?
SEER: You passed out. They brought you in here. Are you feeling better?
TEGAN: Yes.

[Market place]

DOCTOR: Oh, this is hopeless. What state was she in?
NYSSA: Terrified.
DOCTOR: Well, let's go back to the TARDIS. She might try and find her way back there.

[Fortune Teller's booth]

TEGAN: Who are you, please?
SEER: I see into the future. I expect it was all the people.
TEGAN: I expect it was all the people.
SEER: Of course, that's what it was. It's easy to get confused in crowds. Anyway, I'm glad you're feeling better.
TEGAN: In that.
SEER: What?
TEGAN: You see into the future in that?

(A crystal ball.)

SEER: Yes. Well, between you and me, not really, I don't. I pretend. I flutter my fingers, gaze deep into the ball and then
TEGAN: Then?
SEER: Then I make something up. Whatever comes into my head. Whatever I think they want to hear. After all, they're paying. Doesn't do any harm. Mind you, it's surprising what does come into your head. Sometimes I surprise myself.
TEGAN: Is it surprise?
SEER: What is it? What's the matter? What's wrong?

(Tegan laughs the Mara cackle. She is fully taken over.)

TEGAN: Is it? Well, look now.

[TARDIS]

NYSSA: Where can she be?
DOCTOR: Well, as long as she's wearing the anti-dream device she should be safe.
NYSSA: And if she's not?
DOCTOR: I don't know. I just don't know. Why has the Mara returned? Why now, after so long? What does it want?

[Fortune Teller's booth]

TEGAN: Look now.

(The image of a snake's skull fills the crystal ball. The seer screams and the ball explodes.)

Part Two

[TARDIS]

(When the seer finishes screaming, Mara Tegan has gone.)

DOCTOR: We don't know nearly enough. Without more information we are simply blundering around in the dark.
NYSSA: The TARDIS databanks?
DOCTOR: No, no, no. This is the Mara's homeworld. The answers we need are out there. I'll try the Director of the Research Institute, and you look for Tegan in the market. We'll meet back here.
NYSSA: Right.

[Market place]

(There's a crowd and a commotion outside the Fortune Teller's booth but Nyssa is talking to another trader.)

NYSSA: Well, thank you anyway.

(Tegan sneaks up behind Nyssa and taps her on the shoulder.)

NYSSA: Tegan!
TEGAN: Come to see the fun?
NYSSA: The fun?
TEGAN: Yes, she's still in there. She screamed and screamed.
NYSSA: Are you all right? Where've you been?
TEGAN: I'm fine. Why shouldn't I be?
NYSSA: You're not wearing the anti-dreaming device.
TEGAN: I took it off. It wasn't necessary.
NYSSA: Tegan, what about the Mara?
TEGAN: Stop fussing. What Mara? Look, here she is. Quick, she mustn't see me.

(Tegan crouches down as the Seer is gently led away by two men.)

TEGAN: You should have seen her face. It was so funny. When she screamed, you could see right down her throat.
NYSSA: Tegan, what's the matter with you? What's been going on? Tegan, look at me.
TEGAN: Nyssa, help me. Help me. I made it appear.
NYSSA: What?
TEGAN: You fool. Leave me alone. Just leave me alone.
NYSSA: Tegan!

[Director's room]

(Ambril is sitting at his desk examining an artefact with a large magnifying glass while a servant lays a dining table at the other end of the room. A young man enters.)

CHELA: Er.
AMBRIL: Yes, Chela, what is it?
CHELA: It could be the man you were talking about.
AMBRIL: What man?
CHELA: The man from the cave.
AMBRIL: Oh, that man. No, can't possibly. Tell him to go away.

(The Doctor enters.)

DOCTOR: Er, hello.

(Nyssa chases Tegan through the market place.)

AMBRIL: I know exactly what you want.
DOCTOR: Do you?
AMBRIL: Yes, you've come to pester me with some extravagant theory you've dreamed up concerning the Mara, and should I, the Director, fail to take sufficient notice of your colourful improbabilities, it will be the end of civilisation as we know it at least. How am I doing so far, hmm?
DOCTOR: Look
AMBRIL: Sorry to disappoint you, but, you know, you're hardly the first. For some reason, the study of the Sumaran era has always attracted more than its share of cranks. Particularly when a ceremony's due.
DOCTOR: What ceremony?
AMBRIL: Commemorating the destruction of the Mara by the Federation. Surprise me. Tell me you didn't know.
DOCTOR: When is it to be held?
AMBRIL: Tomorrow.
DOCTOR: Impossible! It must be called off. At least until my companion is found.
AMBRIL: Oh, certainly.
DOCTOR: What?
AMBRIL: Yes, I'll cancel the whole thing. At once. Now my assistant will show you out.

(Tegan runs into the Hall of Mirrors, and Nyssa carries on. Tegan comes out, then changes her mind and goes back inside.)

DOCTOR: Look, the facts are these. First of all, my companion brought us here, to this world, without ever having been here before. Now why should she do that? Why here, why now? Then I used hypnosis to establish the presence of the Mara in her head. You see, she has a recurring dream
CHELA: A dream?
DOCTOR: And in this dream. What is it?
AMBRIL: It proves nothing. Merely that he's acquainted with the legend.
DOCTOR: The Legend of the Return?
CHELA: Yes.
AMBRIL: Don't encourage him.
DOCTOR: Well, tell me! Look, all I want's a little information. What possible harm is there in that?

(Ambril devotes his whole attention to the artefact. The Doctor turns to Chela.)

DOCTOR: Tell me about the legend.

(The distorting mirrors in the Hall have snake decorations round them. Tegan has fun with the first two, but the third shows a snake's skull over her head.)

AMBRIL: All right, all right, humour him, Chela. But remember, there are no actual facts to impede the full flow of the imagination.
CHELA: The Legend tells that the Mara was not destroyed by the founders of the Federation, but only banished.
DOCTOR: To the Dark Places of the Inside.
CHELA: Yes.
DOCTOR: I'm so sorry. Do go on.
CHELA: Anyway, according to the Legend, the Mara will return in a dream.
DOCTOR: What does it want?
CHELA: It returns to regain its power over men, when the minds meet again in the Great Crystal.
DOCTOR: The Great Crystal?
AMBRIL: That's enough.
DOCTOR: How can minds meet?
AMBRIL: How indeed. Wishy mystical mumbo-jumbo.
CHELA: What about the Snake Dancers?
AMBRIL: It appeals to a certain type of mind. Primitive, lazy, uneducated type of mind. Even my assistant here isn't immune. You'll find that the Legend becomes more and more vague the closer it approaches anything resembling any factual detail.

[Market place]

(Nyssa is outside the Fortune Teller's booth.)

NYSSA: Hello?

[Fortune Teller's booth]

NYSSA [OC]: Hello?

(Nyssa enters. She sees the shards of the crystal ball on the table, and almost steps on the anti-dream device on the floor. She picks it up.)

[Director's room]

(A ceremonial helmet with a crest of five faces is on a display stand.)

AMBRIL: Now take this, for example. It dates from the middle Sumaran era and unusually is mentioned quite specifically in the Legend. Oh, there can be no doubt. The reference is to the Six Faces of Delusion. Now count. One, two, three, four, five. You will observe there are five faces, not six as the Legend would have it. Now, my point is this. I do find it quite extraordinarily difficult to take seriously a Legend that cannot even count accurately. Of course, artistically speaking, it's an entirely different matter. The piece is exquisite. An undoubted masterpiece.
DOCTOR: What is it?
AMBRIL: Hmm? Headdress.
DOCTOR: Try it on.
AMBRIL: What?
DOCTOR: Try it on.
AMBRIL: Certainly not. Whatever for?
DOCTOR: Please. I want to show you something, then I'll go and leave you in peace.
AMBRIL: Very well.

(Ambril puts on the headdress.)

AMBRIL: Well?
DOCTOR: Now, count the faces again.
AMBRIL: Do as he says.
CHELA: One, two, three, four, five.
DOCTOR: And one makes six. The sixth Face of Delusion is the wearer's own. That was probably the idea, don't you think?
AMBRIL: Get out! Go on, get out!

[Hall of Mirrors]

TEGAN: No, please.
MARA [OC]: Face me.
TEGAN: No. No, I mustn't. I can't.
MARA [OC]: Face me.
TEGAN: I'm so tired.
MARA [OC]: Then borrow my strength.
TEGAN: How is it possible?

(The Hawker, the owner of the Hall of Mirrors, enters in the background.)

TEGAN: On the Kinda world, the Mara was repelled by mirrors.
MARA [OC]: On the Kinda world, I was trapped in a circle of mirrors. There is no circle here.
TEGAN: Why am I so confused?
MARA [OC]: You're divided against yourself. A stranger in your own mind. You are pathetic. Look at me! I can make up your mind.
TEGAN: No.

(Tegan faces her reflection. The snake skull speaks.)

MARA: Why not? What are you afraid of? Just who do you think you are?

(The skull vanishes from the mirror, and the snake tattoo appears on Tegan's right forearm.)

[Market place]

CHELA: Doctor? Take this.
DOCTOR: What is it?

(It is a small blue crystal, like the old man is wearing in his meditations.)

CHELA: The Snake Dancers use them in their rituals. They call them Little Mind's Eye. In the Legend, the Great Crystal is named as the Great Mind's Eye.
DOCTOR: Indeed.
CHELA: Perhaps there's a connection. Perhaps they're even made of the same substance. I don't know, Ambril refused to let me run the tests.
DOCTOR: Why are you telling me this?
CHELA: I must go.
DOCTOR: Do you believe in the Legends?
CHELA: No, of course not.
DOCTOR: One more question. Who are the Snake Dancers?

(But Chela is gone. The crowd turn to stare at the Doctor.)

[Hall of Mirrors]

HAWKER: Highly convincing, young lady. A trick, of course. Voice projection, the art of the ventriloquist perhaps, but in different registers. Oh, very original, all in all. Various possibilities present themselves immediately, should you be, er, along the lines of a partnership. A booth, perhaps and so forth. And me outside enticing the passer-by. Talking them in, relieving them at the door of some small token of their sincere interest. You inside in the half dark, talking away to yourself and scaring them all half to death. Highly satisfactory all round. What do you think?

[Market place]

DOCTOR: Nyssa!
NYSSA: Doctor.

(The Doctor holds up the crystal.)

NYSSA: I saw Tegan. I spoke to her.
DOCTOR: Well, where is she now?
NYSSA: She ran away from me. I lost her in the crowd. But Doctor, look.

(Nyssa hands him the anti-dream device.)

NYSSA: She was behaving very oddly.
DOCTOR: Was she marked?
NYSSA: I don't
DOCTOR: On her arm. The mark of the snake.
NYSSA: I didn't look, I didn't notice.
DOCTOR: It must be the Mara. Come on.

[Hall of Mirrors]

HAWKER: Enough's enough. I said I was impressed, as impressed as I need to be. I'm not a curious man. I was once, a long time ago. I was a humble student of life's mysteries. A treader of the secret pathways, a delver into the darker corners and so forth. All rubbish, of course. At the end of the day, when the lights come up, as in one form or another they always do, there's always somebody standing there with their hand out, waiting to be paid. I decided long ago that person might as well be me. Or, in present circumstances, us.
TEGAN: Us.

(Tegan talks with her unaccented Mara voice.)

TEGAN: Who exactly are you? You're not important. There is only one. Only he matters more than what is to be done here.

[Federator's residence]

(Lon is lying on the chaise longue, again. Tanha enters, followed by a servant carrying her golden cloak.)

LON: I'm not coming.
TANHA: Good.
LON: I beg your pardon?
TANHA: It's probably just as well. You'd only spoil it. Your behaviour in the caves this morning was unforgivable. The poor man was quite disconcerted.
LON: Ooo.
TANHA: You were taking advantage of your position.
LON: Oh please, you're going to be dreary.
TANHA: No, I am not going to be anything. We are invited to dinner, I am going. Are you just going to lie there being bored?
LON: Yes, do you know, I rather suspect I am. After all, what else is there to do?

[Cave]

DOCTOR: Come on.
NYSSA: Why are we here?
DOCTOR: Facts, Nyssa, facts. There's something I noticed before. I need to take another look.

[Cave tunnel]

NYSSA [OC]: At what?
DOCTOR: The pictograms. There's a ceremony taking place commemorating the supposed destruction of the Mara.
NYSSA: So?
DOCTOR: The Mara's waited a long time for this return. I think it plans to be spectacular.

[Federator's residence]

(Tanha enters.)

TANHA: Oh, Lon. Do come to the party.

(Lon turns his back on her.)

[Cave tunnel]

DOCTOR: There! Now look. What do you make of that? There in the centre. Could that represent the Great Crystal?
NYSSA: Could do.
DOCTOR: And these lines from the centre, energy of some sort?
NYSSA: Mental energy.
DOCTOR: What?
NYSSA: Well, presumably. The lines go to the heads of the figures.
DOCTOR: Hmm. Minds meet in the Great Crystal. But what are these? Now, everything in this pictogram tells us something if we know how to read it, so what are these?

[Federator's residence]

(A knock at the door.)

LON: Who is it?

(A servant lets the Hawker in.)

HAWKER: Excuse me for intruding, my Lord. Your lackey
LON: The showman.
HAWKER: Oh, I'm flattered you remember me.
LON: Of course I remember you. Go away.
HAWKER: Ah. Our previous encounter, rather unfortunate. Heat of the moment, press of the crowd, various misunderstandings, so forth.
LON: What do you want?
HAWKER: I've been sent to fetch you.
LON: Have you indeed?
HAWKER: You are, er, summoned.
LON: Summoned? I am summoned? How extraordinary. By whom?

[Cave tunnel]

NYSSA [OC]: Doctor!

[Chamber of the Mara]

DOCTOR: Hmm?
NYSSA: If the Great Crystal of the Legend ever really existed, then logically there is where it would have fitted.

[Market place]

(The place is empty. The Hawker brings Lon to the Hall of Mirrors.)

HAWKER: In here, my Lord.
LON: This is your booth. I'm beginning to regret this. I hope for you sake that I'm not going to be disappointed.
HAWKER: Please, my Lord.
LON: Can I have your personal assurance?
HAWKER: She's inside.
LON: So I should hope.

[Hall of Mirrors]

(Tegan is still standing in front of that mirror.)

LON: You, er, summoned me, apparently. It's not something I'm accustomed to, but here I am. Well, what happens now?

(Tegan turns and holds out her right hand.)

LON: Yes. After all, why not.

(He takes her hand to kiss it, but she changes the grip to interlacing fingers. Lon screams as the snake skull appears.)

[Chamber of the Mara]

DOCTOR: Obvious.
NYSSA: What is?
DOCTOR: The Great Crystal, the Great Mind's Eye. That's the clue! The lines do represent the flow of mental energy, but not going to the individual figures, coming from them.
NYSSA: And meeting in the Great Crystal.

[Cave tunnel]

DOCTOR: Just as a lens focuses the rays of the sun, the Great Mind's Eye gathered all the individual thought energies and concentrated them, and amplified them, and redirected them there.
NYSSA: But it's blank. It's been scratched out!

[Chamber of the Mara]

DOCTOR: Now, according to the Legend, the Great Crystal is the source of the Mara's power. But where is it now? What exactly were its properties? Oh, if only we could take a look at the Great Crystal itself. Unless, I wonder.

(The Doctor takes the Little Mind's Eye from his pocket. )

[Director's room]

(Ambril is caressing a curved jar.)

AMBRIL: Then you see, my Lady, we draw a complete blank. It's quite clear that the Manussans of the pre-Sumaran era were a highly civilised people. Their technology in some senses was considerably in advance of our own. Then, suddenly, almost overnight, the Manussan civilisation simply disappeared. It was certainly subjected to a cultural catastrophe of unimaginable proportions.
TANHA: Shall we eat?
AMBRIL: Yes, to such an extent that when the Federation record begins some six hundred years later, they speak of the Manussans as a primitive people in thrall to the Mara, sunk in barbarity, degradation and cruelty.

(Tanha yawns.)

AMBRIL: Are you all right, my Lady?
TANHA: Yes, yes, of course. Please do go on.
AMBRIL: A shame your son could not be with us.
TANHA: Yes, I'm sure he would have found it all most illuminating.

[Hall of Mirrors]

(Lon has gained a snake emblem on his arm, and is laughing at his reflection in the mirrors.)

TEGAN: Silence! Follow me.

(The Hawker follows them out.)

[TARDIS]

DOCTOR: Come on, over there. Now, sit down.
NYSSA: Doctor, I'm not at all clear what we're supposed to be doing.
DOCTOR: Just think about it.
NYSSA: What?
DOCTOR: Sit down.

(Nyssa sits on the floor, facing the Doctor.)

DOCTOR: Now, simple test. The Great Crystal focuses thought in some way. Now, if this is the same sort of crystal, it should exhibit the same properties. We must direct our thoughts at it and observe what happens.
NYSSA: Now?
DOCTOR: Yes.

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

LON: Come on, hurry up.
HAWKER: I, er, where's she taking us?
LON: Come on.
HAWKER: I, I, I don't.

(Lon grabs his arm.)

LON: Come on.

[TARDIS]

(Nyssa sighs and sags.)

NYSSA: I'm sorry, Doctor. I can't concentrate hard enough.
DOCTOR: It doesn't matter.

(Nyssa picks up the crystal.)

NYSSA: I feel so foolish.
DOCTOR: We'll try another way.

[Chamber of the Mara]

TEGAN: Where is the Crystal? Who has dared to remove the Great Crystal?

[TARDIS]

(The Doctor is wearing the anti-dream device.)

NYSSA: What are you doing?
DOCTOR: Hmm? I'm adjusting the frequency. I need to eliminate all unnecessary outside noise as an aid to concentration. There. Right, let's try again. You come and stand over here, watch the crystal closely and observe any changes. You ready?
NYSSA: Yes.
DOCTOR: Right.
(The Doctor sits on the floor, holds the crystal in his fingers and closes his eyes.
In the Chamber of the Mara, Tegan puts her snake mark against part of the relief, and a secret door opens. They all go through. It is a secret vault with treasures littered about. The Hawker investigates.
Meanwhile, the small crystal begins to glow.)
NYSSA: It can't be. It's impossible.

(The glow fades and the Doctor opens his eyes.)

[Secret chamber]

TEGAN: You're not impressed.
LON: Not overly, no. Why, did you expect that I would be?
TEGAN: Leave them alone.
LON: Toys for children.
HAWKER: Toys? You don't understand. These are the real thing, the genuine article. They're worth money, a fortune!

(The dust makes him sneeze.)

LON: Now tell me about the Great Crystal. That interests me. It interests me very much indeed.

[TARDIS]

NYSSA: And then the light faded.
DOCTOR: Well, of course, it's small. It's power is obviously limited.
NYSSA: But there was only a blue light.
DOCTOR: You're missing the point, Nyssa. It's not what you saw but that you saw anything at all. It proves the crystal has the quality of transforming thought into energy.
NYSSA: I see!
DOCTOR: Perhaps even into matter itself. Just think of the power the Great Crystal must have. Whatever's in your thought, whatever in your mind, it can actually make it occur.
NYSSA: And if the Mara's in Tegan's mind
DOCTOR: Exactly. The Mara needs the Great Crystal in order to make itself reoccur. Er, stay here.
NYSSA: Where are you going?
DOCTOR: To warn Ambril. He knows where the Great Crystal is now. He must be made to listen.

[Secret chamber]

LON: Yes, I do know where it is.
TEGAN: Where?
LON: Or rather, to be more precise, I know who knows where it is, and how he may be persuaded to tell us.

[Director's room]

(The guests are finally round the dining table.)

AMBRIL: A toast to the Federation in the person of this charming lady

(The Doctor barges in during this.)

DOCTOR: I do assure you it is most important. Where is the Great Mind's Eye?
TANHA: The what?
DOCTOR: The Great Crystal from the snake in the chamber.
AMBRIL: I beg your pardon, my Lady.
TANHA: No, really, I love surprises.
DOCTOR: You know where it is.
AMBRIL: I certainly do.
DOCTOR: Where?
AMBRIL: Wherever it is, I can assure you it's perfectly safe.
DOCTOR: The Great Crystal is the source of the Mara's power. It needs that power to make itself reoccur. That's why it has returned.
AMBRIL: I think we've heard enough. Take him away.

(The Doctor is dragged out backwards.)

DOCTOR: Through the Great Crystal the Mara will reoccur as a physical fact here on Manussa!

[Secret chamber]

LON: Only one thing remains to be decided.
TEGAN: Yes.
HAWKER: Me? Oh, er, I could assist in whatever capacity, using my discretion.

(Tegan and Lon link hands.)

HAWKER: Or, or, I could simply forget. Whichever and whatever you prefer.
TEGAN: He has served his purpose.
LON: You are no longer necessary.
TEGAN: Look at me.
HAWKER: No, no, please, what are you doing?

(The Hawker tries to hide his face in his fur trimmed hat.)

TEGAN: Look at me!
HAWKER: No!
TEGAN: Look at me. I'm not going to harm you. Look at me.

(Lon speaks with the same Mara voice.)

LON: That's right. Look at me. Look at me.

(Tegan's eyes glow red.)

Part Three

[Secure area]

(The Doctor is alone in a very large cage.)

CHELA: I brought you some food.
DOCTOR: How long am I to be locked up here?
CHELA: Do you want it?
DOCTOR: Well, come on, surely at least you can tell me that?
CHELA: You're to be kept here until after the ceremony this afternoon.
DOCTOR: That will be too late. Whatever is to happen will happen at the ceremony.

[Secret chamber]

(The Hawker is just staring straight ahead.)

LON: What about him?
TEGAN: He's not important. Only the Great Crystal is important. I need the Great Crystal.
LON: Well, I'll have to see what I can do.
TEGAN: You must not fail me.
LON: No. No, I understand.

[Secure area]

DOCTOR: Do you think I'm inventing all this? What would I have to gain?
CHELA: I don't know.
DOCTOR: But you're not sure it is all nonsense, are you.
CHELA: Yes, of course I am.
DOCTOR: Why did you tell me about the Crystal?
CHELA: Because you're not the first. Dojjen, the Director before Ambril, he too was convinced that the Mara would return.

(The old man is still meditating - presumably Dojjen - and a snake watches him.)

DOCTOR: What happened to Dojjen?
CHELA: It doesn't matter. The Great Crystal is safe. Ambril has charge of it.

[Federator's residence]

(Lon enters and heads straight for the stairs.)

TANHA: Lon, where have you been?
LON: Out.
TANHA: Come here.
LON: Whatever for?
TANHA: I want to look at you.

(Lon returns, hiding his right arm behind his back.)

TANHA: When I realised your room was empty, I very nearly raised the alarm, but I didn't want to embarrass you.
LON: Embarrass me?
TANHA: Yes, if you were out somewhere having fun. Were you? While your poor mother was stuck at the official dinner being bored into tiny pieces. I shall never forgive you.
LON: No, mother, I wasn't.
TANHA: Promise me. What are you hiding?
LON: What?
TANHA: Show me.
LON: It's just a cheap fake. I picked it up at the market.

(He hands Tanha a beaker that the Hawker had picked out of the hoard in the secret chamber.)

TANHA: Since when have you been interested?
LON: It caught my eye, that's all.
TANHA: Well, then, why won't you
LON: Mother, I won't have you asking questions.

[Director's room]

(Nyssa hides as Chela comes out of the Detention area and along the corridor into the Director's office.
Ambril is at his desk, reading a small book with a magnifying glass.)
AMBRIL: Well?
CHELA: I've taken him food.
AMBRIL: He should be grateful. Was there something else, Chela?
CHELA: I think he's harmless.
AMBRIL: Harmless? Of course the fool's harmless.
CHELA: He is a doctor.
AMBRIL: Doctor? Of what? I'm sure the man has no academic standing whatsoever.

[Institute corridor]

DOCTOR [OC]: I do not want any more blankets! I want to get out of here. Tell your master I want to see him.

(Nyssa hides by the door as the lackey comes out, then goes inside.)

[Secure area]

DOCTOR: Nyssa!

[Federator's residence]

(Lon comes downstairs, wearing elbow-length gauntlets, to find Tanha still examining the beaker.)

LON: Give it to me. Thank you.
TANHA: Where are you going?

(Lon leaves.)

[Director's room]

(Ambril hands over the small book.)

AMBRIL: Look at this, Chela.
CHELA: What is it?
AMBRIL: The meanderings of another crank. Written by Dojjen in the months before he decided his particular line of research was best pursued up in the hills with a snake wrapped round his neck. You'll find the last entry of interest, medical interest. He addresses what remained of his wits to the question 'where is the Mara'. Well, read it.

(Lon appears in the doorway.)

CHELA: (reads) Where the winds of restlessness blow, where the fires of greed burn, where hatred chills the blood, here in the Great Mind's Eye, here in the depths of the human heart, here is the Mara.
AMBRIL: You see?
CHELA: Is it a code?
AMBRIL: Code? Course it's not a code. It's nonsense, pure and simple woolly minded nonsense.
LON: I'm very pleased to hear it.
AMBRIL: Oh, my Lord.
LON: Good morning to you both.
AMBRIL: Good morning.
LON: I need to ask a favour. A private favour, if you don't mind.
AMBRIL: Of course, why should he mind. Chela, out, out, out, out.

(Chela bows and leaves.)

AMBRIL: Now, my Lord, what can I do for you?

[Secure area]

DOCTOR: Oh, it's no use, Nyssa. I have tried.
NYSSA: This is so stupid.
DOCTOR: The lock is extremely primitive. It's practically a museum piece. There's no electronic impulse matrix to decode, no sonic microcircuit to disrupt. Crude mechanical six barrel movement, key operated. Primitive but adequate. Well, it's more than adequate, actually, because the key is what we don't have.
NYSSA: There must be something

(A noise outside the door.)

DOCTOR: Quickly.

(Nyssa hides as Chela enters.)

DOCTOR: Have you come to let me out?
CHELA: I've brought you this. It was written by Dojjen. Look at the last page.
DOCTOR: I'd much rather you unlocked the door and let me out.
CHELA: You know I can't do that.
DOCTOR: Why, don't you have the key?
CHELA: No, I don't.
DOCTOR: Ambril, I suppose.
CHELA: What?
DOCTOR: Has the key in his room.
CHELA: Yes, I suppose so. What are you talking about? I thought you might be interested, but
DOCTOR: No, wait, wait. Of course I'm interested. The last page, you say?

(Nyssa sneaks out, unseen.)

[Director's room]

AMBRIL: My Lord, I am bound by an oath. An oath I had to swear on taking office. An oath dating back to the time of the destruction of the Mara.
LON: But you do know where the Crystal is.
AMBRIL: Oh, my Lord, not even the Federator himself may see the Great Crystal, though I am gratified by your awakened interest.
LON: Well, you know how it is. With time on one's hands, one pokes around.

(Lon takes the beaker from his gauntlet.)

LON: Surprising, really, what one can turn up.
AMBRIL: Yes.

(And does a double take at the artefact.)

[Secure area]

(The Doctor reads the last entry in the notebook.)

CHELA: Well?
DOCTOR: It's a reference to the Great Mind's Eye.
CHELA: And it was the last thing Dojjen wrote before he
DOCTOR: Before he what?
CHELA: Now give it back to me.
DOCTOR: Before he what?
CHELA: Before he danced the Dance of the Snake.

[Director's room]

AMBRIL: Where did you find it? Oh, my Lord, I'm sorry, but you understand what a discovery like this means to me.
LON: Is it valuable?
AMBRIL: Beyond price.
LON: And rare?
AMBRIL: It's unique, my Lord.
LON: How strange. As far as I could see, they did seem to be scattered around rather.
AMBRIL: Scattered? They? How many?
LON: I didn't count them.
AMBRIL: Many, though? Many? Lots? My Lord, tell me!
LON: Perhaps you'd like me to show you where they are.

(Lon and Ambril leaves, passing Nyssa hiding in the corridor. She enters the Director's room.)

[Secure area]

CHELA: The Snake Dance was banned by the Federation nearly a hundred years ago.
DOCTOR: Why, what was the function of the Dance?
CHELA: Well, according to the Legend, the Mara's return may only be resisted by those of perfectly clear mind. The Dance was a dance of purification in readiness for the return. However, the Federation held that the Mara no longer existed. That's why they drove the Snake Dancers into the hills. Oh, apparently it involved the use of certain powers.

(The Doctor looks at his Little Mind's Eye.)

DOCTOR: What kind of powers?
CHELA: Mental powers, easily misunderstood.
DOCTOR: Yes, of course.

[Director's room]

(Nyssa finally finds a key in a pyramid shaped box on Ambril's desk. She turns to see Tanha and a masked guard.)

TANHA: What do you think you're doing?

[Market place]

(Adults and children alike are watching a Punch and Judy show.)

PUNCH: That's the way to do it!
JUDY: He struck me!

(Judy fetches a large saucepan.)

JUDY: Don't care. Was made to care.

(And the Judy puppet fetches Punch a clout on the head. Punch fetches his large club and battle is joined until Judy is dead.)

PUNCH: Wake up, Judy.
CROWD: Aw.

(Ambril and Lon enter.)

PUNCH: Oh dear. Oh dear oh dear.

[Director's office]

TANHA: Where is Ambril? He should be here. I am really not sure what to do with you. It is hardly a situation one meets. Ah.

(Tanha takes the key from Nyssa.)

TANHA: I think perhaps you had better come with me. Isn't that what one usually says in this kind of situation.

[Market place]

PUNCH: Oh, I've been naughty.
LON: Just what we need.
AMBRIL: My Lord?
LON: Wait here.

(Lon picks up candlesticks from a nearby stall. A snake appears on the Punch and Judy show instead of a crocodile.)

PUNCH: What is it? Go away, go away.

(The snake takes firm hold of Punch's nose.)

PUNCH: Go away, go away.

(The snake chases Punch until it can drag him down out of sight. The audience applauds.)

LON: Right.
AMBRIL: What are they for, my Lord.
LON: We must be equipped.
AMBRIL: Where are we going?
LON: Just you wait and see. Come on.

[Secure area]

DOCTOR: So, Dojjen believed the legend of the Mara to such an extent that he gave up everything, went up into the hills to purify himself in readiness.
CHELA: Doctor, nobody these days believe in legends.

(Tanha enters.)

CHELA: My Lady.
TANHA: Bring her in.

(The guard brings Nyssa in.)

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

(Ambril walks straight past the steps up to the entrance.)

LON: Ahem.
AMBRIL: In there? Oh no, it's impossible, my Lord. All the passages have been thoroughly explored over the years.
LON: Come on. No, wait. We may as well do this properly.

(Lon hands the candlesticks to Ambril and takes out a kerchief.)

AMBRIL: What's that?
LON: A blindfold.
AMBRIL: No, certainly not.
LON: You don't have to. It all depends on how badly you want the honour of having made this discovery on your own.
AMBRIL: You'd allow me to take the credit?
LON: Certainly. It's up to you.

(Ambril turns around and Lon blindfolds him.)

[Secure area]

(Nyssa is now in the cage with the Doctor, who is lying on a bench reading Dojjen's notebook.)

NYSSA: What are we going to do?
DOCTOR: Shush.
NYSSA: Doctor!
DOCTOR: What do you suggest?
NYSSA: We've got to get out of here.
DOCTOR: How?
NYSSA: If only we still had the sonic screwdriver.
DOCTOR: Well, we haven't, so for the time being we must make use of what we do have.
NYSSA: What.
DOCTOR: This.

[Director's room]

(Tanha puts the key on Ambril's desk.)

TANHA: I was actually looking for my son.
CHELA: Oh, he was here, my Lady. He had something to discuss with the Director.
TANHA: Did he? How very odd.

[Chamber of the Mara]

(The candlesticks shine like glow-sticks.)

LON: And another three steps. That's it. Now forwards. Wait there.

(Lon removes his right gauntlet and places his snake against the relief. The secret door slides open.)

AMBRIL: What is it?
LON: Don't worry, it's all right. Now, over the step, and stop.

(The door closes behind them.)

[Secret chamber]

LON: You've done splendidly.
AMBRIL: Where are we?
LON: Where do you think?
AMBRIL: We're there?
LON: You can take off your blindfold now. Look. I trust you're not disappointed?
AMBRIL: Not disappointed, my Lord.
LON: So it was all worth it, then?
AMBRIL: Oh, my Lord, the existence of these objects is entirely unsuspected. Oh, my Lord, this is genuine. It's amazing. This is the greatest hoard of all

(Ambril comes up against the Hawker's boots. Lon laughs.)

HAWKER: Entertainment. Children half price. Step this way please for the spectacle of a lifetime. Tread the mystic corridors of time to visit the dark and distant shores of the imagination.
AMBRIL: What is this place?
TEGAN: Silence! Stop wasting time. Where is the Great Crystal?

[Secure area]

(Nyssa is looking through the notebook.)

DOCTOR: Well?
NYSSA: Doctor, what exactly are you asking me?
DOCTOR: This is a record of a journey, a private mental journey. Now, he must have discovered something that finally decided him.
NYSSA: To do with what?
DOCTOR: Oh, I don't know. The Mara, the history of the planet, the origins of this crystal.
NYSSA: To function as they do, the crystals must possess a perfect molecular structure tuned to the exact wavelengths of the human mind. Doctor, the crystal is man made!
DOCTOR: What?

[Secret chamber]

AMBRIL: It's all a hoax, isn't it, my Lord? This is just a prank at my expense. These are friends of yours, aren't they? It's just an elaborate hoax, isn't it?
LON: And these?
AMBRIL: These?
LON: Are they a hoax? After all, you're the expert.

(Lon smashes a bowl.)

AMBRIL: No!
TEGAN: Where is the Great Crystal?

[Secure area]

DOCTOR: Yes, of course, I should have realised. Structurally perfect. It has to be free of all flaws and distortions. Even the minute distortions produced by the effects of gravity.
NYSSA: What are you saying?
DOCTOR: The crystals were designed and built by a people who had mastered the techniques of molecular engineering in a zero gravity environment.
NYSSA: But the Manussans are not that advanced.
DOCTOR: No, and according to Chela this crystal is eight hundred years old.

[Secret chamber]

AMBRIL: No! Why is everyone suddenly interested in the Great Crystal?
LON: Everyone?
TEGAN: Who else?
AMBRIL: Some crank.
TEGAN: His name?
AMBRIL: He calls himself the Doctor, although personally I rather doubt it.
TEGAN: The Doctor must not interfere. He must be killed.
AMBRIL: Killed?
LON: Take no notice. My friend has a theory, and in order to test it the Great Crystal must be placed in its socket during the ceremony.
AMBRIL: No, it's quite impossible.
TEGAN: Nothing is impossible.
AMBRIL: Please, my Lord.
LON: Now listen to me. If you don't cooperate, I promise you you'll never set eyes on any of these trinkets ever again. You'll always know that they existed somewhere, that you discovered them once, held them in your hands once, and then lost them forever. It's up to you.

(Smash!)

AMBRIL: Oh! No! Wait! All right, I agree.

[Secure area]

NYSSA: But there would be records. A people eight hundred years ago capable of molecular engineering?
DOCTOR: Not necessarily. I suspect that when they built the Great Crystal they overlooked one vital factor. The nature of the mental energy would determine the nature of the matter created. The Great Crystal absorbed what was in their minds. The restlessness, the hatred, the greed. Absorbed it, amplified it, reflected it.
NYSSA: And created the Mara.
DOCTOR: Indeed. And in the reign of evil which followed they must have forgotten the most important thing of all, that the Mara was something they themselves had blindly brought into being.

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

(Lon removes Ambril's blindfold. Ambril's coat is covered in dust and cobwebs.)

AMBRIL: Where are they?
LON: They're quite safe. If you cooperate, you can discover them again after the ceremony.
AMBRIL: Your friend?
LON: She's looking after them for you. Come on. You can discover them again after the ceremony.

[Secure area]

(While Dojjen meditates, and the snake on Tegan's arm comes alive - )

NYSSA: But if Dojjen had worked out what had happened
DOCTOR: Only some of it. The rest he must have learned from the Snake Dancers who kept the knowledge alive, hidden in traditions and legends.
NYSSA: And if he became convinced that the Mara would return
DOCTOR: He didn't know exactly when, and nobody would listen, just as no one will listen to us.
NYSSA: Then why didn't he simply destroy the Great Crystal when it was in his charge?
DOCTOR: Good question. I don't know.
NYSSA: And in the meantime?
DOCTOR: We wait.

[Director's room]

TANHA: It is difficult for him, isn't it. He is young, impatient. He knows that one day he will be Federator and rule over the three worlds. My husband is an old man, but he is lingering on rather. He could live for years, and so my son must wait. The young do not like to wait, do they. As a rule. You may speak freely. Strictly between ourselves.

(The door opens.)

TANHA: Lon! Where've you been?
LON: Nowhere, Mother. Just exploring.

(Ambril enters.)

LON: Ambril has been showing me around, haven't you.

[Secure area]

(Nyssa hits the cell door.)

DOCTOR: Patience.
NYSSA: How can you be so calm? What if Chela doesn't help?
DOCTOR: I think he will.
NYSSA: You can't be certain.
DOCTOR: No.
NYSSA: And meanwhile the Mara could destroy Tegan.

[Director's office]

(Lon tries to brush the dust off Ambril.)

LON: My fault, I'm afraid. I did rather insist, and he's got a little dusty in the process. Ambril has an announcement to make.
AMBRIL: Do I?
LON: Yes, you do.
AMBRIL: Oh. Oh yes. In honour of the special esteem, esteem
LON: Ceremony.
AMBRIL: Yes, in the ceremony this afternoon Lon, the son of the present Federator, will play the part of his illustrious ancestor who five hundred years ago defeated the Mara and founded the Federation. In honour of this special occasion, the Great Crystal, the Great Mind's Eye, will for the first time be inserted into its rightful place
CHELA: No!
LON: Oh? Will that be difficult? I know sometimes these last minutes changes of plan
CHELA: Director, it is expressly forbidden.
AMBRIL: Superstition, just foolish superstition.
LON: It's my fault, I'm afraid. You see, it was my idea.
CHELA: My Lord.
LON: Mother, do you have any objection?
AMBRIL: Those are my instructions and I will have them obeyed to the letter.
LON: Then fetch the Great Crystal, would you?
AMBRIL: Now?
LON: Yes, why not? We may as well have a look at it.

(Ambril leaves. Chela looks at the Director's desk.)

LON: Well, I think a drink while we're waiting. Will you join us?
CHELA: Er, no, my Lord. I'm afraid I have other duties.
LON: Of course. Highly commendable. You mustn't neglect your duties.

(Behind Lon and Tanha's back, Chela takes the key.)

TANHA: Lon, will you please tell me what is going on?
LON: Of course, Mother, I'd be only too pleased.
CHELA: Excuse me, my Lord, my Lady.

(Chela leaves.)

LON: What was on the table? He picked something up off the table. What was it?

[Secret chamber]

TEGAN: Well, showman, do you still dream of my success? Perhaps you do. After all, you have no choice. You have got to look.

(Venom drips from the snake's fangs.)

[Secure area]

(Chela unlocks the cage.)

DOCTOR: Well done!
CHELA: Quiet, there's no time.
DOCTOR: What made you change your mind?
CHELA: Come on.

[Director's room]

(Lon is watching the corridor.)

TANHA: Are you sure? He seemed such a pleasant young man.
LON: He's taken the key. That proves he's involved.

[Institute corridor]

CHELA: We must get out of the building at once.
NYSSA: And back to the TARDIS?
DOCTOR: You're forgetting Tegan.

[Director's room]

(Lon speaks to a guard at the door.)

LON: I want all the entrances sealed. They must not escape.

(The guard leaves.)

TANHA: Oh, Lon, I really do feel
LON: Mother, do you expect me to allow those who plot my death to go free?
TANHA: Your death?
LON: Isn't it obvious?

[Institute corridor]

(Chela, the Doctor and Nyssa are confronted by a guard wearing a sword behind his back.)

DOCTOR: Back the way we came.

(There is another one behind them.)

DOCTOR: All right, all right, we give in.
LON: Give in? You talk as though you had a choice. Kill them.

(The guards draw their swords. Nyssa screams.)

Part Four

[Institute corridor]

TANHA: You can't do that!
LON: Why not?
TANHA: It is preposterous to think that anyone is plotting against you, least of all these people.
DOCTOR: Your mother is right.
LON: I'd expect you to say that.
DOCTOR: My only concern is for Tegan and the Great Crystal.

(Ambril comes round the corner carrying an ornate wooden box.)

AMBRIL: Why should the Great Crystal concern you?
DOCTOR: If I'm allowed to live long enough, I'll explain.

[Secret chamber]

(In the market place, a giant stuffed snake with a blue crystal in its mouth is carried in and put on the ground.
Mara Tegan has a real snake coiled around her arm. The hawker can't take his eyes off it.)
TEGAN: Puzzling, isn't it. How can it be happening? Can you believe your eyes? You have no choice.

[Director's room]

DOCTOR: You must not do that.
TANHA: And why not?
LON: Mother.
TANHA: No, no, the man is entitled to his say, however preposterous. Of course we can do it. And the Director has agreed, haven't you.
AMBRIL: The Great Crystal will be returned to its rightful place during the ceremony.
DOCTOR: But why?
LON: Why what?
DOCTOR: Why did you request it, and why did he agree?
TANHA: Why not? It is actually one of the few advantages of being a member of the Federator's family.
CHELA: But it's forbidden. It's forbidden by tradition going back five hundred years!
LON: Is that why you propose to assassinate me?
TANHA: I thought we'd cleared that up.
DOCTOR: Who said we wanted to assassinate you?
LON: I'm not here to be questioned by you.
DOCTOR: No, of course not. How foolish of me. I've been very stupid. Do you remember me telling you, Nyssa, on the Kinda world, the mark of the Mara? I should have realised.
LON: They'd never believe you.
TANHA: What are you two talking about?
DOCTOR: Where's Tegan? What have you done with her?
TANHA: Tegan? Who is Tegan?
LON: Another of the Doctor's companions who apparently he has lost.
TANHA: Why is he asking you about her?
LON: How should I know, Mother? The man's a complete fool.
DOCTOR: You won't succeed. In the end, evil never does.
TANHA: What does he mean, evil? Who is evil?
LON: Oh, I am, Mother. Isn't it obvious? Your son is evil. After all, why else would they want to kill me. Don't you see?
TANHA: I most certainly do. Take them away. Take all of them away.
LON: No, I think we can afford to be generous on today of all days. At least let them see the Great Crystal just once, just for a moment, don't you think?
AMBRIL: My Lord.
LON: Indulge me. That's close enough. Right.
AMBRIL: Shall I?
LON: If you wouldn't mind.

(Ambril raises the lid of the box.)

DOCTOR: Now!

(The Doctor and Nyssa run for the door while Chela tries to get the Crystal away from Lon, who has picked up the box.)

DOCTOR: Come on, there's no time for that!
LON: Well, don't just stand there, after them!
AMBRIL: Me?
LON: Yes, you, and take that fool with you.

[Market place]

(They hide behind a stall.)

CHELA: Where are we going?
DOCTOR: To find Tegan.
CHELA: We don't even know if she's still alive.
DOCTOR: Tegan won't die until the Mara within her is free.
NYSSA: If Lon has been affected by the Mara, why hasn't he changed?
DOCTOR: Same reason as Tegan. He still has a lot of his own personality.
CHELA: But he is influenced?
DOCTOR: Very much so.

(A guard walks past.)

DOCTOR: Come on.

[Director's office]

(Lon holds the Great Crystal, which is still only a fraction of the size of the Metabelis crystal. Ambril enters.)

LON: Well?
AMBRIL: No sign, my Lord. I'm afraid they seem to have got away.
LON: Do they.
AMBRIL: Yes. I've issued the necessary instruction. A search party is being organised.
LON: It doesn't matter. What can they do now?
AMBRIL: As you say, my Lord.
LON: Well?
AMBRIL: I only wish to remind you, my Lord
LON: I've not forgotten.
AMBRIL: Our arrangement.
LON: Yes.
AMBRIL: You promised immediately after the ceremony, my Lord.
LON: Go away.

(Ambril leaves.)

TANHA: Lon, what arrangement? What did you promise him?
LON: Nothing, Mother. It doesn't matter.
TANHA: I know you, you're planning something. Is it to be a surprise?
LON: Yes, Mother.

[Market place]

DOCTOR: In here.
CHELA: It's all right, I think we've managed to lose them.

(A masked figure jumps out and shakes its maracas at them. They all yelp.)

CHELA: I'm sorry, Doctor, it's just the surprise.
DOCTOR: What is it?

(The figure touches the Doctor with a maraca.)

CHELA: You've been touched by an attendant demon. You must forfeit a coin. It's the custom, I'm afraid.
DOCTOR: Custom?
CHELA: On the day of the ceremony, the attendant demons seek out the unwary. Anyone they touch with the evil must pay up or, er.
DOCTOR: Or what?
CHELA: Have water tipped over their heads. It's part of the fun.
DOCTOR: I'm afraid I don't have a coin.

(Chela pays up for the Doctor.)

CHELA: Here you are. May you never feel the serpent's tooth.

(The 'demon' rattles its maracas and leaves.)

DOCTOR: I wish it was that easy.
NYSSA: Doctor, what are we going to do?
DOCTOR: How long have we got? When does the actual ceremony begin?
CHELA: Well, first the Great Snake is taken in procession through the streets before going up to the cave.
DOCTOR: How long?
CHELA: A few hours.
DOCTOR: I wonder if there's still time. There must be. It's our only hope. Come on.

(The Doctor puts the Little Mind's Eye round his neck.)

CHELA: Where are we going?
DOCTOR: Change of plan. To find Dojjen.

[Director's room]

TANHA: But if it's nothing, why won't you let me see it?
LON: I told you, Mother, it's just a scratch.
TANHA: It could become infected. How did it happen? Why didn't you tell me?
LON: It was an accident.
TANHA: What sort of an accident? I would just like to check
LON: Mother! For the last time, will you leave me alone!

[Market place]

(The procession has begun, and the snake we saw earlier being laid out on the ground is accompanied by a man with a megaphone.)

MAN: Now the Great Snake has come to claim his own. Who has the power to turn away his face? Which one of you has the strength to turn away? Who can protect us now? Submit! Submit!

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

DOCTOR: Come on.
CHELA: If you'd let me steal the Great Crystal, this trek wouldn't be necessary.
DOCTOR: It's not as simple as that.
NYSSA: Why not?
DOCTOR: We wouldn't be preventing the Mara's return, only postponing it. It would continue to exist as a mental force. No, this time we must destroy it completely.
NYSSA: But how?
DOCTOR: I don't know.
NYSSA: And you think Dojjen will be able to tell us?
DOCTOR: I hope so.
CHELA: Dojjen hasn't been seen for ten years. He could be anywhere, assuming he's still alive.
DOCTOR: You're forgetting we do have this.

(The crystal.)

CHELA: How will that help to find him?
DOCTOR: It won't. It will help him find us. Trust me.

[Director's room]

(Ambril enters carrying a golden headdress with a 'little' crystal in it, and followed by a servant bearing a cushion with some regalia on it.)

LON: Well?
AMBRIL: I've taken the liberty of bringing the costume that you must wear for the ceremony, my Lord.
LON: Oh good. Look, Mother.
AMBRIL: It's an exact replica of the costume worn by your ancestor, the Founder of the Federation, when he destroyed the Mara five hundred years ago.
LON: How very appropriate.
AMBRIL: I beg your pardon, my Lord?
LON: Don't you think so, Mother?

(Tanha stands at the window with her back to them, very still.)

LON: Well, I'm going to try it on. Are you coming?

(Lon picks up the box containing the Great Crystal, and leaves. The servant follows.)

[Ruins]

(Looking just like the place where Dojjen has been seen meditating, except there is no one here.)

CHELA: How far are we going?
DOCTOR: This should be fine.

(The Doctor sits on the ground.)

NYSSA: What now?
DOCTOR: Sympathetic resonance.
NYSSA: Doctor?
DOCTOR: Thought directed at this crystal should set up a resonance which is picked up and echoed by another.
CHELA: So?
DOCTOR: Well, the Snake Dancers wear these, don't they?
CHELA: So I gather.
NYSSA: Of course. The crystal will act like a radio wave, transmitting thoughts instead of words.
CHELA: Establishing a mental link.
DOCTOR: Hopefully.
CHELA: Will it work?

(The Doctor closes his eyes and concentrates. The crystal begins to glow. There is a hum, then it fades.)

NYSSA: Well?
DOCTOR: Now we wait.

[Director's room]

(Lon has returned in a bizarre short white tunic with blue clouds on it, the gold sunburst headdress with blue crystal, gold roman sandals and red gauntlets.)

LON: Mother?
TANHA: Let me look at you.
LON: Am I forgiven?
TANHA: What? Oh yes, of course. Aren't you always? Come here.
LON: Well, what do you think?
TANHA: You look splendid. It fits exactly, don't you think so?
AMBRIL: Remarkable fit, my Lady, truly remarkable.
TANHA: Let me look at you. Oh, I am going to be so proud.

[Ruins]

CHELA: If what you say is true, why didn't Dojjen destroy the Great Crystal while he was still Director?
DOCTOR: Good question. Nyssa asked exactly the same thing.
CHELA: Well?
DOCTOR: I don't know. Perhaps we'll find that out too.

(The crystal glows.)

NYSSA: Doctor!

(A skinny old man with a large staff and a bag has arrived.)

CHELA: Dojjen.

[Market place]

(The snake is still whirling amongst the crowd.)

MAN: Abandon yourselves and follow the path of the snake. Follow the path. Who dare resist the power of the snake?

[Ruins]

(Dojjen sits opposite the Doctor, takes a small snake out of his bag and lets it bite his wrist. Then he hands it to the Doctor.)

NYSSA: Doctor, no. What are you doing?
DOCTOR: I'm afraid we have no choice if we're to have any hope of saving Tegan.
NYSSA: But its bite could be deadly.
DOCTOR: Yes, I do know.

(And he puts the snake to his wrist. )

(Ambril leads Lon, Tanha and a guard through the cheering crowd outside the cave, followed by local dignitaries.)

DOJJEN [OC]: No, look into my eyes. You have come this far. You must not now give in to fear. Look.
DOCTOR [OC]: It's the poison. The effect of the poison.
DOJJEN [OC]: Fear is the only poison.
DOCTOR [OC] Fear is.
DOJJEN [OC]: Ask your question.
DOCTOR [OC]: How, how can, I must save Tegan. It was my fault, so how, how can. Destroyed. How can the Mara? It was my fault.
DOJJEN [OC]: Steady your mind. Attach to nothing. Let go of your fear.
DOCTOR [OC]: What is the Snake Dance?
DOJJEN [OC]: This is, here and now. The dance goes on. It is all the dance, everywhere and always. So, find the still point. Only then can the Mara be defeated.
DOCTOR [OC]: The still point? The point of safety? A place in the chamber somewhere. Where?
DOJJEN [OC]: No, the still point is within yourself, nowhere else. To destroy the Mara you must find the still point. Point. Point. Point. Point.

[Chamber of the Mara]

(Lon is studying a scroll very intently.)

AMBRIL: The snake is approaching, my Lady. We should take our seats.
TANHA: Yes, certainly.
AMBRIL: My Lord, the Great Crystal.
LON: I will tell you when.
AMBRIL: Very well, my Lord.

[Outside the Snake Mouth]

MAN: Following the path of the great snake. Submit! Abandon yourselves and follow in the path of the great snake.

(The man leads the snake up the steps to the cave.)

[Ruins]

NYSSA: Doctor? Oh, thank goodness. I thought for a moment
DOCTOR: Thought what? No, I survived.
NYSSA: But how?
DOCTOR: I don't know. Somehow he saw me through.
CHELA: We must hurry.
DOCTOR: Yes, of course. The ceremony.
NYSSA: Did you find out what you needed to know?
DOCTOR: I think I did, we'll have to see. I just hope we're not too late.
CHELA: Doctor.

(They bow to Dojjen.)

[Chamber of the Mara]

(The man leads the snake in to applause and laughter.)

MAN: Who will challenge the Mara? Who will pluck the Great Crystal of knowledge from between the Mara's jaws and set us free?
TANHA: (sotto) Lon.

AMBRIL: Not yet, my Lady.
MAN: For the second time I will ask it. For the third and final time.
LON: I will.

(Cheers.)

MAN: Bring the stranger forward. You dare to challenge the power of the Mara?
LON: I do.
MAN: And in whose name do you wish to do so?
LON: In the name of the Federation, and in my own.

(Cheers.)

MAN: First, let the stranger prove his worthiness. Prepare him for the test.

(Lon removes his left gauntlet.)

MAN: Are you ready to face the triple temptation?
LON: I am ready.
MAN: The first temptation is fear. I offer you fear in a handful of dust.

(Dust is poured from a skull into Lon's left palm.)

LON: I do not fear. I spread my fingers and the dust trickles away. I know that whilst I live my hand is clean, my eyes are bright. That is enough.

[Outside the Snake's Mouth]

(Nyssa is pushing her way through shrubbery.)

DOCTOR: Come on, jump.
NYSSA: Thank you. It wasn't necessary.

(They go into the cave.)

[Chamber of the Mara]

MAN: The second temptation.
LON: I am ready.
MAN: The second temptation is to despair. I offer you despair in a withered branch.
LON: I do not despair. I turn my hand and the branch drops to the earth. I know the sap will rise again and the roots will sprout. That is enough.

(Applause.)

[Cave]

NYSSA: Shush.
CHELA: The ceremony must have started.
DOCTOR: Well, let's hope we're not too late.
NYSSA: Doctor, look.

(A guard blocks the passageway.)

[Chamber of the Mara]

MAN: The third and final temptation is to succumb to greed. Stranger, now you must look into the crystal without greed for knowledge. I offer you greed in the hidden depths.

(Lon reaches for the gem in the snake's mouth. The crowd gasps.)

MAN: My Lord, you must not touch it. Not yet.
LON: Why mustn't I?
MAN: The crystal of knowledge has hidden depths.
LON: What do you mean, hidden depths. Where are they? Show them to me. It's just a fake. Your whole ceremony is a fake.

(Lon takes the crystal from the snake's mouth.)

LON: It's nothing. It's just glass.

(Lon smashes the crystal on the floor.)

[Cave]

(The guard moves forward.)

DOCTOR: Come on, come on. Hurry up.

[Chamber of the Mara]

LON: A childish fake at the centre of a farce created by a civilisation that has gone soft. Today I bring real knowledge. Real knowledge and real power. Give it to me.
AMBRIL: My Lord, I really do think
LON: Give me the Great Crystal.
TANHA: Lon, no, please. What is wrong with you?
LON: Mother, let go.

(Lon removes the right gauntlet to reveal the snake on his arm.)

TANHA: What is that?
LON: Now, give me the Great Crystal.

[Cave]

(The guard draws his sword and approaches the Doctor.)

DOCTOR: Now!

(Nyssa and Chela grab the guard and knock him out.)

DOCTOR: You left that a bit late.

[Chamber of the Mara]

(Lon goes up to the wall sculpture.)

LON: Now listen to me, all of you. I hold in my hands the Great Crystal. The Great Crystal that was removed from its socket by my ancestor, when the Mara was banished to the dark places of the inside. Now, after five hundred years, the Mara has returned. It's fitting that it should be I who restores the Great Crystal to its rightful owner.

(Lon opens the secret doorway and Tegan comes out, holding the snake.)

TEGAN: Go on, do it now.
DOCTOR: No! No!

(Too late. Lon inserts the Crystal, and energy lines stream out towards Tegan. A noise fills the chamber and the audience grab their heads in pain. All except the Doctor. Tegan comes down the steps and puts the snake on the floor where it grows.)

DOCTOR: No! No more, you must not look! The Mara is feeding off the fear and panic. It needs it. You must not believe what you see. The Great Crystal is absorbing the belief and creating the Mara. Don't look! Reach inside yourselves and find the still point. Oh Nyssa, Nyssa.

(The Doctor stares into his crystal. The giant snake appears to absorb Tegan, so that just her face is visible in its gaping jaws.)

TEGAN: What is happening? Who dares to interrupt the Becoming? Who does not believe? Submit. All minds must submit. Look at me. You must look at me. You cannot resist. It is impossible. No! Stop him! He must be stopped. Help me, Doctor. What's happening to me? Please, look at me, Doctor. I need your help.
DOCTOR: No, I will not submit.

(Dojjen's face appears in his crystal.)

TEGAN: No! The crystal! Destroy the crystal! It will prevent my

(The Hawker grabs at the Doctor's crystal. There is a hissing sound, he screams and falls. Lon tries, and his hand is burnt too.)

DOCTOR: Thank you.

(The Doctor runs up the steps and pulls the Great Crystal from its socket. The Mara screams. The snake shrinks and dissolves. Tegan collapses. The crowd are freed from its influence. Dojjen walks away from the ruins. The Doctor goes and sits next to Tegan, who is back to her old Aussie self and crying. )

TEGAN: It was awful. It was awful.
DOCTOR: It's all right. It's all over now.
TEGAN: The feelings of hate and rage. It was terrible. I wanted to destroy everything.
DOCTOR: Well, you're free of it now.
TEGAN: The Mara's gone for ever?
DOCTOR: Yes. The Mara has been destroyed.

Transcript originally provided by Chrissie. Adapted by TARDIS.guide. The transcripts are for educational and entertainment purposes only. All other copyrights property of their respective holders.

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