The Playthings of Fo (short story)
Summary
After rescuing the failed inter-galactic mission sent out by the Council of Earth and Mars, Tardis brings Doctor Who and his friends to the planet Rhoos. They materialise on a weird plain that turns out to be the hand of the evil Cyclops, Fo. He has been sleeping through all this, but then awakes and departs, taking Tardis with him. As the Doctor and three of his companions (Hill, Shelley and Chertzog) fly around in their contra-gravity suits on a recce, they are captured by a mysterious space ship.
It belongs to the natives of Rhoos, the Kaarks, who resemble humanoid chickens. The giant Fo has been terrorising them, attacking their cities and stealing their scientists. They have retreated into an underground base. After meeting with the Kaark Supremo, the Doctor agrees to lead a mission into Fo's lair. He is accompanied by the leader of the shop that rescued hin, Ff'ni.
There, they find Tardis amongst a menagerie of animals Fo has collected. These he makes fight the captured Kaark scientists, as Hill notes, "just like the Martyrs in the Colosseum". They flee to the ship, chased by a giant leopard.
But the Doctor cannot leave without freeing the Kaarks from Fo. Batting aside the leopard with his walking stick, he opens a black box. There is blue flash and a smell of ozone, and Fo falls down dead. The Doctor and his friends bid Ff'ni a quick good-bye: they are eager to return to Earth.
Characters
- The Doctor
- Hill
- Shelly
- Chertzog
- Strong
- Dot
- Jack
- The Cyclops, Fo, from the Black Galaxy.
- The Kaarks, the natives of Rhoos.
Notes
Although the Kaarks say Rhoos is the eighth planet of the P'Tuu system, the Doctor states that it is "third of GO-star, eighty million miles from primary". It also has "less axial inclination than Terra".
Continuity
This story takes places after The Devil-Birds of Corbo; their hasty departure has disturbed the Space-Time locator mechanism.
Presumably, Dr. Who gets them back to Earth, as the Doctor appears alone in the next story, Justice of the Glacians.
Timeline
- The Playthings of Fo occurs after DWAN: The Devil-Birds of Corbo
- The Playthings of Fo occurs before DWAN: Justice of the Glacians
