Doctor Who: Fury From the Deep by Victor Pemberton

laboratory, for the Doctor had produced all sorts of bottles of chemical liquids and powders. There were also several large, dusty reference books piled up on the control console.
    Victoria was at a workbench nearby, heating some liquid in a test tube over a Bunsen flame. The bench was stacked with bottles and odd-shaped glass containers. 'How are you getting on, Victoria?'
    The Doctor came across to join her.
    'I don't know,' replied Victoria, looking puzzled into the test tube. 'You'd better take a look.'
    The Doctor took the tube from Victoria and held it up to the light. 'Nothing unusual. The seaweed contains the normal iron content.'
     
    Victoria was still uneasy. 'Yes. But I did this other test, like you told me, and I found something which worries me.' She reached across to a bulb-shaped glass container, inside which was a small particle of the seaweed specimen floating in a colourless liquid. The sides of the container were tarnished with something which resembled rust, only just visible through a cloud vapour.
    The Doctor looked into the container with great interest. 'I'm not surprised, Victoria,' he said, pointing to the brown stain around the bulb. 'Do you see the deposit? This means the weed contains some kind of gas - probably toxic.'
    'Toxic?' Victoria exchanged a worried glance with the Doctor.
    'Hey, Doctor!' Jamie was at the Doctor's table, peering into the microscope. 'What are these funny little bits moving about in the weed?'
    The Doctor was still preoccupied with the contents of the glass bulb. 'Just a minute, Jamie. Don't worry me.' But he suddenly turned with a start. 'What did you say?' He quickly put clown the glass bulb, and rushed across to take over the microscope from Jamie.
    'Can you see them?' said Jamie, peering over the Doctor's shoulder.
    'Jamie! This is it!' The Doctor thumped the table jubilantly.
    'There's molecular movement!'
    'There's what?'
    In great excitement, the Doctor pushed Jamie out of the way, rushed across to the control console, and pushed a button. The lights immediately faded into near darkness, and a flap on the wall revealed a large projector screen. Rubbing his hands with glee, the Doctor pressed another button. The microscope slide automatically appeared in magnified form on the screen. It showed a substance full of dots and squiggles, but with definite signs of molecular movement. The Doctor stared at the screen in wonder and bewilderment. 'Incredible!
    Absolutely incredible!'
    'What is it, Doctor?' said Jamie, turning his head from side to side, trying to make some sense of the screen image. 'What does it mean?'
     
    Victoria was also staring in amazement at the screen from her bench on the other side of the room. 'It means, Jamie, that the weed specimen is as much alive as you and me.'
    Jamie swung a look of total disbelief at Victoria. Then he turned to the Doctor, who was nodding his head reluctantly.
    None of them were yet aware of what was going on in the glass tank at the side of Victoria. The heartbeat sound was muffled within the sealed container.
    The seaweed specimen was beginning to pulsate...
     
    'Mr Harris, it's imperative we do something about Robson without delay. He just won't listen to reason.' Van Lutyens was in the Control Hall corridor, where he had been waiting to intercept Harrison his way back from the Compound.
    'I'm sorry, van Lutyens,' replied Harris, whose nerves were now raw with anxiety, 'I've got something more important on my mind at the moment.' He tried to move on, but the Dutchman blocked his way.
    'More important!' protested van Lutyens. 'What is more important than...'
    'My wife is ill! Get out of the way!' Harris practically pushed the Dutchman aside, and rushed off into the Control Hall. Van Lutyens stared after him, bewildered, then followed.
    'Price!'
    'Sir!'
    Harris was calling from the Compound exit door in the Control Hall. 'Doc Patterson still not back?'
    'No, sir. We've heard nothing at all from Rig D.'
    'Right. Get on to