The Time Eater (short story)
The Time Eater was the sixteenth short story in the Short Trips anthology Short Trips: Destination Prague. It was written by Lee Battersby. It featured the Second Doctor and Jamie McCrimmon.
Summary
The Doctor and Jamie have landed in Prague. As they head off for some sightseeing, they encounter an ugly creature that the Doctor identifies as a Hallanian. It chases them, and as they run away they encounter Russian tanks. One shoots at them, but nothing happens. The Doctor searches through a history book of Prague for an explanation, but the pages start to crumble to dust. The landscape surrounding them changes, and they find themselves first in the 10th century, then in the 18th century.
Prague's past history is being erased around them, and the random pattern suggests one thing to the Doctor — a Doredsor. Doredsors eat time, though they are usually found in the centres of galaxies. They search for it and finally locate it. The Doctor contrives a communication device using his recorder and sonic screwdriver. The Doredsor is dying and there is nothing the Doctor can do about it.
Jamie, however, insists that the Doredsor deserves a funeral, so they use the TARDIS to bring it to a star. As it dies, the Doctor and Jamie wait with it, with the Doctor continually sending electrical pulses to the creature to reassure it that it is not alone.
Characters
Worldbuilding
- The Doctor mentions Rabbi Loew and the Golem of Prague, which was actually a Hallanian called Eremite Czarn.
- Prague landmarks include the Jewish Quarter, Kaprova Street, Valentinska Street, Hradcany Hill and Prague Castle.
- The Doctor considers, then rejects, the idea of the Daleks or the Ice Warriors being responsible.
- The Doctor at first thinks they've arrived in London.
- The time periods they visit include 1606, 850, the 10th century, c. 50-60,000 BCE,
- The Doctor takes a book from his jacket on the history of Prague from the 83rd century.
- Prague was one of six Terran cities given permanent display status by the fourteenth Galactic Preservation Council, with the other five being Budapest, Paris, London, Toowoomba and Second Carnac.
- Prince Borivoj had stated building Prague Castle by 850 CE.
- Prague is situated in the Vltava valley.
- The Doredsor is located in the Hradcany Hill.
- In speaking to the Doredsor, the Doctor translates from colour to binary to Solresol to musical notation and back again.
Notes
to be added
Continuity
- The Doctor recalls his meeting with "Old Loew", although the described circumstances of their meeting are somewhat different to their earlier depiction in this anthology, in the story Life from Lifelessness.
- The Doctor uses a "homing device" which is very clearly the Stattenheim remote control he was first seen using in TV: The Two Doctors.
