Made of Steel (novel)
Made of Steel was a novella written by Terrance Dicks. It was the second Doctor Who Quick Reads release, and is notable for being the first appearance of Martha Jones in any medium, predating the broadcast of Smith and Jones by a month.
Publisher's summary
A deadly night attack on an army base. Vehicles are destroyed, building burned, soldiers killed. The attackers vanish as swiftly as they came, taking highly advanced equipment with them.
Metal figures attack a shopping mall. But why do they only want a new games console from an ordinary electronics shop? An obscure Government Ministry is blown up — but, in the wreckage, no trace is found of the secret, state-of-the-art decoding equipment.
When the TARDIS returns the Doctor and Martha to Earth from a distant galaxy, they try to piece together the mystery. But someone — or something — is waiting for them. An old enemy stalks the night, men no longer made of flesh...
Plot
In the MegaTech Centre, Trevor the nightwatchman is enjoying his cheese and onion sandwich when suddenly, a humanoid creature made of metal appears in front of him and kills him with a blaster mounted on its wrist. As a second Cyberman appears behind the first one, the two proceed to smash open the glass cases separating them from the electronic devices sold in the centre.
Hearing the sound of shattering glass, Kevin emerges from the storeroom armed with his truncheon, only to find himself facing the Cybermen who are standing over the dead body of Trevor. Kevin tries to run away but the Cybermen gun him down as well.
The next morning, the police issue a statement about how the MegaTech Centre has been robbed of some of the latest hi-tech equipment despite the alarms failing to go off. They also explain the death of the two guards, with the older one having died of what is described as a massive shock to the system caused by an unknown force. The younger one is revealed to have still been alive when found before dying in hospital while talking about silver giants.
Another attack takes place in Whitehall where the only survivor, a research assistant, has been talking about silver giants before being moved to a sanatorium. A search reveals that highly secret equipment, such as a decoding machine, is missing.
In a military camp, Dexter Hanson is standing guard at the main gates of Chadwick Green. Half an hour before he can be relieved, Dexter sees a silver humanoid inside the gates. He tells the figure to halt before he fires at him, but the figure replies by firing its blaster at him. Dexter dodges the blast before opening fire, only for the figure to shoot him. The sound of gunfire alerts everyone else in the camp. As the corporal rushes into action with his automatic pistol, the Cyberman kills him. Another Cyberman appears behind the first Cyberman and they both kill the other soldiers one by one, even managing to destroy an armored vehicle with a heavy mounted machine gun. Once the soldiers are dead, the two Cybermen proceed to break down the door to the nearest lab.
The Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones are in prehistoric times feeding a dinosaur which the Doctor has called using a bugle-shaped object. The dinosaur, an Apatosaurus, eats the palm fronds that Martha is holding before it is chased off by a Tyrannosaurus. The Doctor and Martha rush into the TARDIS and dematerialize before the Tyrannosaurus can devour them.
In the TARDIS, the Doctor decides to stick to watching David Attenborough. Martha tells the Doctor that she wants to go to the Royal Hope Hospital so she can see how everyone else is doing after it was placed on the moon, so the Doctor obliges with her request.
The army has removed wreckage from the research centre at Chadwick Green and a new security vault has been dug by a large group of Army engineers. Any dead soldiers and scientists have been replaced and any relatives of the deceased have been given compensation.
Major Tom Burton and his second-in-command, Captain Sheila Sarandon are watching the CCTV footage of the Cybermen's attack on the MegaTech Centre. Sheila explains to Tom that the Cybermen have a hidden base inside the old Torchwood tower on Canary Wharf before the Daleks invaded. Once the battle ended, someone stole some vital alien equipment, including spying equipment and something that is believed to be a teleportation device.
Tom wishes to know what the Cybermen are planning. Sheila thinks that they are planning another invasion and that they may have a whole army of Cybermen hidden somewhere. When she suggests to Tom that the public should be warned about the Cybermen, Sheila is refused as any hint of the invasion happening again would cause a nationwide panic so the story must be covered up, despite the scare stories on the internet which Tom thinks are just being created by conspiracy nuts that no one will pay any attention to.
Tom opens a folder marked "Top Secret" and pulls out the reports of the Doctor who cleared up the invasion of Canary Wharf. Sheila suggests that they put out an alert for him and ask the police to keep a lookout for and old police box. After Tom agrees with her, she begins to make a phone call to the Doctor.
In the TARDIS, Martha, who is getting impatient, asks the Doctor if he should be steering the TARDIS, to which the Doctor replies that he has pre-set the course coordinates. He reassures her that despite having the occasional blip during their travels and the incident involving Mount Vesuvius, the TARDIS is reliable, even though he is thinking of fixing the Chameleon Circuit before realizing that when the Chameleon Circuit was working, it would make finding the TARDIS a lot harder to find.
The Doctor continues studying the dials and explains to Martha that he has picked up some strange readings upon entering her sector of space-time, with such readings including energy spikes and Radio 5 Live, as well as possible uses of teleportation devices. He then explains to Martha what cellular dissemination is: another way of saying matter transmission and even buildings can be subjected to it. He then tells her that cellular dissemination is impossible due to the technology used for it not being invented in her time, even saying that Martha's suggestion of a mad scientist inventing it is unlikely. But what he considers more likely and more worrying is someone using alien technology.
Martha is concerned if it's the Cybermen, but the Doctor assures her that the Cybermen have all been sucked into the Void which has been sealed forever, but then his smile briefly fades before the TARDIS lands.
Upon exiting the TARDIS, the Doctor and Martha find themselves in the Royal Hope Hospital's car park. Martha eagerly decides to introduce the Doctor to her colleagues, but the Doctor tells her not to as some of them might remember him and ask unnecessary questions, instead deciding to walk around the hospital for a couple of hours so he can get the feel of the place. Once the Doctor has walked off, the disappointed Martha makes her way into the hospital.
Some time later, a young police officer named PC Jim Wilkie finds the TARDIS and contacts the Desk Sergeant to inform him that he has found an old police box with no ticket. the desk sergeant congratulates Jim for finding it and tells him that he will pass the message on before telling him to keep an eye on the box in case someone decides to drive it away. After relaying Wilkie's report, the desk sergeant thinks that someone pinched the police box from a museum before drinking his tea.
In the Cybermen's secret base, the two Cybermen who broke into the MegaTech Centre inform their leader that their force field is in place and the monitor is functional, but the teleportation device isn't completely reliable and they don't have the scientific knowledge to carry out their final plan. They also say that the raids they have been conducting, as well as the power losses will attract human attention which will result in them being tracked down.
The Cyberleader tells them that their plan is the only one they have. When his soldiers tell him that only the Doctor has the knowledge to reopen the void, the Cyberleader says that he will return due to them attacking the Earth. Almost immediately, the Cybermen's technology informs them that the Doctor has returned, which will give them the chance to use the Doctor for their plan.
The Doctor comes across a place called "Nick's Internet Café" and enters it. Inside the café, he meets Nick and asks for one hour on one of the computers in the café. After paying four quid for the computer and a cappuccino, the Doctor sits down at the computer at the end of the row. After a young law student asks the Doctor if he needs any help, the Doctor politely refuses her before using the computer to find a series of news channels.
Eventually, the Doctor finds some news reports of the Cybermen and the raids they carried out. After telling the law student that he has found more than he wanted, the Doctor leaves in a hurry as the law student remarks that he was completely bonkers, but rather interesting for what she calls a "geek" before returning to work on her thesis.
In the Royal Hope Hospital, Martha Jones chats with her fellow medical student, Rachel Swales, who asks her about where she's been. Martha tells Rachel that she just needed to get away after the events involving the Judoon, but then Rachel mentions the rumors about Martha going off with a mystery man in a suit before reminding her about the upcoming exams. Rachel's boss, Chambers, calls her to see him, but not before Martha tells Rachel not to tell anyone else that she has seen her. Once Rachel has gone, Martha exits the ward to return to the TARDIS.
Suddenly, a Cyberman appears and asks Martha where the Doctor is. Martha tries to pretend not to know where the Doctor is, but the Cyberman points its blaster at her and tells her that she will be deleted if she doesn't tell it where the Doctor is. Just then, the Doctor appears and goads the Cyberman into pursuing him. Unfortunately, just as the Doctor attempts to enter the TARDIS, another Cyberman appears and grabs him just before both Cybermen disappear, leaving the Doctor and Martha somewhat puzzled.
In the hospital canteen, the Doctor and Martha are enjoying some tea. Martha asks the Doctor where the Cybermen came from and why they disappeared. The Doctor assumes that the Cybermen disappeared due to their teleportation system malfunctioning and that their ability to teleport may have come from some technology that is not familiar to them. He then goes on to say that it should be impossible for any Cybermen who invaded from the void to still be on the Earth due to them being pulled into the void which has been sealed forever.
Martha is told that it should have been impossible that no new Cybermen could have arrived on Earth before the Doctor realizes that they could have been made in their universe after the Cybermen had established their own base inside the Torchwood Tower at Canary Wharf and the ones who were created there could never have passed through the void. Martha then tells the Doctor that her cousin, Adeola, worked at Torchwood Tower when the Cybermen attacked and never came home.
After the Doctor apologizes to Martha for the deaths of numerous people, including Adeola, Rachel calls Martha over to chat with her for a few more minutes. Once Martha is gone, Captain Sheila Sarandon appears and places the Doctor under arrest. Martha, upon noticing the Doctor being arrested, asks Rachel to lend her her coat. After Martha puts Rachel's coat on, a young medical student named Fanshawe arrives and Martha borrows his stethoscope and pretends to listen to his heartbeat so she can blend in with the crowd.
The Doctor continues stalling for time before Captain Sarandon asks him about his companion, prompting him to pretend to not know where she is and offer Captain Sarandon the chance to be his companion instead before he is led out of the canteen. He is told that the TARDIS will reach Chadwick Green after he and Captain Sarandon arrive there. Captain Sarandon brings the Doctor into a police car before explaining to him that Chadwick Green is an army research centre outside London.
The Cyberleader chastises the Cyber-Engineer for failing to capture the Doctor due to their teleportation failing just as they grabbed him. On top of that, they are now unable to locate him due to their scanning equipment failing. The Cyber-Engineer explains that the machine they have been using is unreliable but the Cyberleader threatens to delete him for disputing his authority before asking if the teleportation equipment has been repaired. The Cyber-Engineer says that limited function will soon be restored, which will allow them to test it with another transmission and only one Cyberman being transmitted will reduce the strain. The Cyberleader orders the other 2 Cybermen to teleport him to the same place they last encountered the Doctor.
At the Chadwick Green Research Centre, the Doctor notes that while he was being driven, one of Captain Sarandon's cohorts elbowed him in the ribs. After Captain Sarandon passes it off as an accident, the Doctor pulls the policeman's nose, prompting him to try and tackle the Doctor, only to miss him and allow the Doctor to take his revolver away. Once the policeman is helped back onto his feet, the Doctor hands the revolver to Captain Sarandon before he is taken to see Major Burton.
In the Major's office, the Doctor is introduced to him and then tells the 2 policemen to leave so he and Burton can talk privately. Once the policemen have left, Major Burton tells the Doctor not to waste any more of his time before suggesting that they have some tea and sandwiches.
Martha manages to get away from Rachel and Fanshawe who have been questioning her ever since she met up with them in the hospital canteen. As she decides to wait by the TARDIS, a Cyberman appears in front of her and grabs her. PC Wilkie shows up to witness this event just before the Cyberman teleports away with Martha in its grasp.
The Doctor is being questioned about the raids on the MegaTech Centre and other research centres which were well-protected but the alarms didn't go off when they were raided. He explains that he knew about the raids from reading them on the internet despite the information being classified. Major Burton tells the Doctor about his involvement with the Cybermen's invasion. The Doctor agrees to help Major Burton and Captain Sarandon on the condition that he has one three hand and is not hit in the ribs again.
Major Burton accepts the Doctor's demands and tells Captain Sarandon that they'll both play ball with each other. The Doctor tells the Major about Martha Jones and how she disappeared when Captain Sarandon arrested him. After Captain Sarandon begins to send a car down to the hospital to collect Martha, she asks the Doctor about the crisis, to which the Doctor replies that the crisis isn't as bad as she and Major Burton think as they are not the start of another full-scale invasion by the Cybermen after they were all sucked into the Void.
He then explains that the Cybermen who have been raiding the research centres were created on Earth, meaning that they never travelled through the void and thus been contaminated with void stuff. Major Burton is reminded of a group of Nazis who called themselves "Werewolves" in World War 2. The Doctor tells Captain Sarandon that the Cybermen didn't have the time or resources to make an army that they could hide away and that Cyberman always attack in large numbers if they are able to.
He tells Major Burton and Captain Sarandon that the Cybermen want him because they think he can help them conquer the Earth by opening the void and releasing the Cybermen who were sucked into it.
Martha is brought into the Cybermen's base and interrogated on the Doctor's whereabouts. When Martha refuses to tell them anything, the Cybermen begin to consider killing her, but the Cyberleader decides to use her as a hostage. Once the Cybermen release her, Martha realizes that the Cybermen are actually using the Millennium Dome as their base.
Looking at a map of Greater London, Major Burton begins to think that the Cybermen may be hiding off the map, but the Doctor blows off this suggestion by saying that the Cybermen's teleportation equipment is unreliable. He decides to suggest that they look for places where they can draw power. Just then, Captain Sarandon receives a phone call about a policeman witnessing Martha's capture by the Cybermen. Angered, the Doctor figures out that the Cybermen settled for capturing her after failing to capture him before asking to use the phone to call Martha.
Martha answers her phone and attempts to tell the Doctor where she us, but after hearing that the Doctor is at Chadwick Green, the Cyberleader takes her phone and crushes it before ordering his fellow Cybermen to prepare the attack squad for revival. The Doctor manages to figure out from the one syllable that Martha managed to say to him that the Cybermen are in the Millennium Dome which is close to Canary Wharf.
Martha watches in horror as the Cybermen begin to revive their attack squad. The Cyberleader orders the Doctor to be captured and all other life forms to be deleted. He then tells one of his subordinates to operate the teleportation device and tells the other one to guard Martha. After the other Cybermen teleport out of the dome, the Cyberleader tells Martha that the Doctor will obey their orders and that she will die if he doesn't obey them.
As Major Burton prepares an attack force, the Doctor advises him to keep some men to guard the base, but the Major is confident that the Cybermen won't attack the base now that they know where they are located even though they know where the Doctor is. The Major is still certain that it will take a while for the attack force to assemble and that they have taken some precautions after the last attack. Just then, they hear the sound of shots being fired and see 6 Cybermen making their way across the parade ground.
The humans' bullets have no effect on the Cybermen who are effortlessly gunning them down. Major Burton orders his special squad forward, and two soldiers with a rocket launcher manage to blow up one of the Cybermen. Before the soldiers can fire the rocket launcher again, the Cybermen shoot it and destroy it. Two more Cybermen are taken out by a duo of soldiers who are wielding the same weapon as before, which is soon destroyed the same way as the first one.
The third and final special squad manage to destroy one more Cyberman before being taken out. Major Burton manages to retrieve the weapon and loads it as the Doctor rushes forward to help him fire it. After briefly remembering that the Cybermen used to be human, the Doctor and the Cyberman fire at the same time. Both the Cyberman and the rocket launcher are destroyed and Major Burton is killed in the explosion. The Doctor soon finds himself being held at gunpoint by the Cyberleader, who is the only Cyberman left in the attack squad.
The Cyberleader identifies the Doctor and tells him to come to the dome so he can help the Cybermen or they will kill Martha before he teleports away. Captain Sarandon looks down at Major Burton's corpse and says that he was very brave just like the Doctor was for helping him. The Doctor replies that he doesn't think guns are brave before Captain Sarandon says that she will join the assault force. She is told that she and her men will likely be killed if they attempt to attack the Cybermen in the Dome. On top of that, the Cybermen will kill Martha once a battle starts.
The Doctor reminds Captain Sarandon that she still has the TARDIS and tells her to take him to it so he can rescue Martha and defeat the Cybermen without any more humans losing their lives. He goes on to explain that the Cybermen would have figured out where he was even if he didn't tell them and more humans would have been killed while they were searching for him if he didn't tell them. When asked if he would open the gateway to the Void, the Doctor says that he wouldn't, not even to save Martha, because he can't. He then says that he has a plan that isn't fully worked out and it requires him to be in the Dome. Captain Sarandon agrees with the plan, but tells him that she and her men will attack the Dome to destroy the Cybermen anyway.
As the assault force arrives, Sarandon leads the Doctor to the TARDIS and offers to detail a squad of soldiers to bring it back to the surface for him, but the Doctor declines the offer and enters the TARDIS and begins making his way to the Dome as Sarandon begins to brief the assault force.
In the Dome, Martha is being guarded by the Cyberleader's guards as the Cyberleader arrives to inform them that the attack squad was destroyed by the humans' improved weapons, but soon the Cybermen will return from the Void. One of the Cybermen seems to be trying to become the next Cyberleader as he says that the current Cyberleader has not captured the Doctor yet. The Cyberleader says that the Doctor's capture is not necessary as he will arrive to try and save Martha and they will both be killed once the Void has been opened.
Just then, the TARDIS materializes in the Dome and the Doctor steps out, seemingly amazed with himself for managing a short trip to the Dome. After checking on Martha, the Doctor talks about how the Dome is not really a proper dome and is a mast-supported cable network coated with glass-fiber fabric. The impatient Cyberleader orders the Doctor to open the Void, to which the Doctor seemingly agrees to do despite saying that he wouldn't do it earlier. Martha says that the Cybermen will kill them both even if they do open the Void, but the Doctor assures her that the Cybermen will never break their word.
As Martha reviews the situation, the Doctor asks the Cybermen where they got the technology, to which the Cyberleader answers that some of it is their own equipment from Torchwood Tower and other parts of it are taken from the humans. After examining the teleportation device, the Doctor thinks he can boost the power so that it reaches into the Void and creates the gateway but he needs to link it up to the TARDIS console due to the Cybermen not having nearly enough power to manage the task.
The Doctor reminds the Cybermen that there's an army of humans coming to attack them, but the Cybermen is confident that they will not succeed due to a forcefield being established around the dome. After saying that he hopes the forcefield holds, the Doctor begins to set to work on connecting the teleportation device to the TARDIS with some assistance from the Cybermen.
Outside the dome, Captain Sarandon's assault force is waiting, along with Colonel Barnard who is impatiently waiting for another chance to attack the Cybermen. Sarandon says that they should secure the perimeter first. Luckily, the perimeter has already been secured, but they are unable to advance any further due to the forcefield preventing their approach. Some technical soldiers are sending for a new explosive that will destroy the whole dome, something that pleases Colonel Barnard as he thinks that the Dome never had much of a use.
With the TARDIS console now connected to the Cybermen's teleportation device, the Doctor enters the TARDIS to turn on the power as the Cyberleader reminds him that they still have Martha. Once the power is turned on, the Doctor exits the TARDIS and waits with them as a portal opens in front of them. Martha uses the distraction to escape her captors and attack the teleportation device. She dodges a blast from a Cyberman's wrist-blaster which hits the teleportation device, destroying it.
The Cyber-engineer realizes that the portal does not lead to the Void, but the Doctor says that it does. Suddenly, a T-Rex emerges from the portal and takes two of the Cybermen in its enormous jaws, even bringing one of them through the portal. Enraged, the Cyberleader shoots at the Doctor who dodges and thrusts the main power cable into his chest, electrocuting him. As Martha comes out of hiding, the portal disappears. The Doctor explains that he connected their teleportation set-up to the exact time and place they last landed in prehistoric times, just as the T-Rex was about to lunge for the TARDIS, allowing it to attack the Cybermen.
Captain Sarandon shows up with the assault force and explains that her superiors are interested in the Doctor and they want him arrested and shipped off, but the Doctor says that he and Martha have had enough unpleasantries for one day and that he prefers being pleasant. Sarandon allows the Doctor and Martha to leave in the TARDIS. Once the duo are in the TARDIS, Sarandon and her men watch as it dematerializes. In the TARDIS, the Doctor asks Martha where and when she wishes to go, to which Martha replies that she wants to go somewhere nice and peaceful. Happily, the Doctor states that he knows just the place.
Chapter Titles
- The Raiders
- Field Trip
- Crisis Conference
- Homeward Bound
- Cybermen
- Reunion
- Caught
- Arrest
- Interrogation
- The Doctor Takes Charge
- Hostage
- Attack
- Battleground
- The Gateway
- Arrival
- The Gateway Opens
Characters
- Tenth Doctor
- Martha Jones
- Kevin
- Trevor
- Dexter Hanson
- Harris
- Major Tom Burton
- Captain Sheila Sarandon
- PC Wilkie
- Rachel Swales
- Cyber-engineer
- Cyber leader
- Fanshawe
Worldbuilding
- The MegaTech Centre was the biggest and best computer and electronics store in Britain, possibly the world. It stocked everything from PCs to the latest MP3 player.
- Trevor drinks tea and eats cheese and onion sandwiches.
- The Doctor mentions David Attenborough and Radio 5 Live.
- Martha jokes the Cybermen aren't customers of Teleports R Us.
- The captain compares the stay-behind Cybermen group to the Nazis that called themselves Werewolves after World War II in 1945.
Notes
- This was the first BBC Wales-related work to be written by prolific Doctor Who writer Terrance Dicks.
- This is the first time the Cybermen have featured in a prose piece since the beginning of the revived series. They would not appear in text again until Plague of the Cybermen featuring the Eleventh Doctor. The Cybermen had, however, featured in past novels such as Killing Ground, Illegal Alien and Iceberg.
- This novella was also released as an ebook available from the Amazon Kindle store.
- Because this novel refers to the events of Smith and Jones, and The Lazarus Experiment, but was released well before either, it slightly spoiled these episodes. This wasn't the first time prose from Dicks had spoiled a televised story; his novelisation of The Five Doctors was also released in advance of transmission.
- The Torchwood episode Cyberwoman also focuses on the issue of Cybermen left behind after the events of Doomsday.
- The character Rachel Swales may be intended to be the same person as Julia Swales from the episode Smith and Jones.
Continuity
- Martha met the Doctor when alien forces had invaded and "kidnapped" the Royal Hope Hospital, where she was training. (TV: Smith and Jones)
- Martha's journey of "one trip" became the first of many. (TV: The Shakespeare Code, Gridlock et al.)
- The Cybermen's base in Torchwood One and their exile to the Void is mentioned. (TV: Army of Ghosts/Doomsday)
- The Doctor remembers finding websites dedicated to finding him. (TV: Love & Monsters)
- Martha's cousin Adeola worked at Torchwood and never came home after the Battle of Canary Wharf. The Doctor remembers killing her and several of her colleagues. (TV: Army of Ghosts)
- The military know that the Doctor has a companion, usually a young attractive female. (TV: Army of Ghosts et al.)
- The Doctor uses power from the TARDIS. (TV: Utopia)
Footnotes
- ↑ According to the episode The Sound of Drums, Martha Jones' present day during series 3 of Doctor Who takes place over a six-day period, with the Saxon Master being elected three days after Smith and Jones, and the Toclafane invading Earth five days after Smith and Jones. However, sources differ on which dates these stories are set. According to PROSE: The Paradox Moon, the Toclafane invasion happens on 23 June 2007, placing the events of Smith and Jones on 18 June. According to AUDIO: Hysteria, Smith and Jones takes place in 2008, with a UNIT mission log in AUDIO: Recruits referring to the recovery of moon rocks from Royal Hope Hospital in March 2008. A newspaper clipping in PROSE: The Secret Lives of Monsters places Smith and Jones on a Sunday 4 June, thus placing the Toclafane invasion on Friday 9 June. In the real world, these dates do not fall on a Sunday and Friday in either 2007 or 2008.
External links
- Made of Steel at the Doctor Who Reference Guide
- The Discontinuity Guide to: Made of Steel at The Whoniverse
- The Cloister Library: Made of Steel
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