The Exiles (short story)

Summary
Susan and her grandfather have left their homeworld, and hope that their flight went unnoticed in the confusion. Susan knows her grandfather to be a pioneer amongst their people, but he admits that he’s never actually piloted one of their time machines before; that job was always left to technicians. However, he feels sure that he will be capable of working out its principles. Susan’s grandfather sets the machine in motion, and settles down to rest in the console room while waiting to see what will happen next. Unable to sleep, Susan explores the rest of the ship, and in the wardrobe room, she finds a full-length mirror -- and sees a pale-skinned young man reflected in it. The man steps out of the mirror, baring his fangs at Susan, but then vanishes after telling her that she is not the one. Susan rushes back to the console room, where her grandfather theorises that, since they are now travelling through Time, Susan encountered a brief echo of another era, an event from either the future or the past. It is just the first of many wonders and terrors of the outside Universe which Susan’s grandfather anticipates encountering in the years to come.

Characters

 * First Doctor
 * Susan Foreman

Continuity

 * The strange mirror with the same mysterious reflection would later on be discovered by Ace. (ST: Echo)

Timeline]

 * This story occurs after ST: The Longest Story in the World
 * This story occurs before TN: Frayed