Deimos (audio story)

Deimos was the fifth release of the fourth series of The New Eighth Doctor Adventures.

Publisher's summary
Millions of years ago, the noble Ice Warriors fled to Deimos, moon of Mars, hoping to sit out the radioactive death throes of their home planet. When the TARDIS lands on Deimos, the Doctor discovers that the Warriors' ancient catacombs are now a popular stop for space tourists.

But the Martian dynasties are more than history, and the Warriors are far from extinct. It's not for nothing that 'Deimos' is the ancient word for 'dread'...

Cast

 * The Doctor - Paul McGann
 * Tamsin Drew - Niky Wardley
 * Professor Boston Schooner - David Warner
 * Gregson Grenville - Nicky Henson
 * Margaret - Susan Brown
 * Temperance Finch / Mrs Grenville - Tracy Ann Oberman
 * Harold - Nick Wilton
 * The Ice Warriors / Security Leader - Nicholas Briggs
 * Pilot - Jack Brown

Deimos

 * Following the destruction of Mars' atmosphere, the Ice Warriors fled to Deimos, one of the planet's moons, where they constructed catacombs and placed themselves in suspended animation in the hope of one day either reclaiming Mars or conquering Earth. The Ice Lord Izdaal sacrificed his life in order to convince his fellow Ice Warriors that such a drastic step was necessary. Millions of years later, after Mars had been colonised by humans, large sections of the catacombs were opened to the public in the museum in Deimos Moonbase in the 23rd century.

Mars

 * Harold and Margaret are residents of one of the Martian colonies. While Margaret is an enthusiast of Ice Warrior culture, her husband has little interest in it.
 * The Martian terraforming project was cancelled due to the advent of the Great Recession and technical difficulties surrounding the planned atmospheric ionisation technique. Although the plan was altered so as to create several artificial suns and place them in orbit around Mars, it never got off the drawing board due to the high financial cost involved.
 * The Ice Warriors intend to use the atmospheric re-ioniser to return Mars to the state which it was in millions of years earlier. However, this will result in the deaths of all the human colonists on the planet.
 * Mars has a population of approximately 300,000.

Ice Warriors

 * Tamsin describes a stuffed Ice Warrior in the museum as resembling a "two legged, man sized turtle" while the Doctor claims that the museum plaques are all extremely historically inaccurate.
 * Professor Boston Schooner, the curator of the museum, claims to be the leading authority on the history of the Ice Warriors as he was the first person to excavate their ancient catacombs.
 * The Ice Lord Slaadek is the leader of the nine Ice Warriors who have emerged from suspended animation.
 * The Doctor tells one of the Ice Warriors that there are more of his people in suspended animation on an asteroid in the Sol system and that they will awake in several hundred years and found a new homeworld.
 * Professor Schooner places the moonbase's cooling feed on full power in order to make it more amenable to the Ice Warriors. Having spent his entire career studying the Ice Warriors, he refuses to pass up the opportunity to learn from them in person. He believes that the inscription on the tomb of the Ice Lord Vazlor reads, "There is no honour in killing the defenceless." Lord Slaadek tells him that it in fact reads, "There is no honour in allowing the defenceless to survive." In his own defence, Schooner states, "Well, I got it half right."
 * Schooner tells the Doctor that he was mistaken about the Ice Warriors as he believed that they were noble beings with a strict code of chivalry. The Doctor sympathises but is inclined to ask him which part of the word "warrior" he did not understand.

Tamsin Drew

 * Tamsin worked at the London dungeon for one summer, during which she played one of the prostitutes who was murdered by Jack the Ripper.

Subcultures

 * Temperance Finch, the moonbase's security supervisor, refers to the Doctor and Tamsin as "beatniks."

Weapons

 * The Doctor survives the full blast of Lord Slaadek's sonic weapon as his spacesuit insulated him.

Gregson Grenville

 * Grenville's ex-wife is still the beneficiary of his life insurance policy.

Gallifreyan technology

 * Schooner claims that the Doctor's sonic screwdriver "does not look much like a screwdriver."

Boston Schooner

 * Schooner sacrifices his life in order to allow the Doctor to escape and reach the passenger rocket.

Passenger rocket

 * Temperance Finch closes the landing bay's outer doors to prevent the Ice Warriors from reaching the passenger rocket. The Doctor manages to reach it in time. However, Grenville, who had been shot in the leg by Schooner, does not and is killed by the rocket launch.
 * As it sets out for Mars, the passenger rocket receives a text message on an emergency channel which reads, "Hiya Doctor. I'm stuck in the moonbase on Deimos. Please help. Lucie Miller."
 * Including tourists, there are approximately 600 people on the moonbase. While the passenger rocket has a capacity of 500, Grenville believes that they will be able to evacuate everyone, though it will be a tight squeeze.

Continuity

 * The Ice Lord Izdaal was the greatest Ice Warrior who ever lived in Martian society. His studies determined that Mars' atmosphere was no longer capable of keeping out radiation from space. This would eventually kill them all. He told the government that their turmoil was not over and with the evidence of sickening children, he declared that their world was no longer sustainable. He was ignored by his people. Lord Izdaal made the ultimate sacrifice. To prove himself right, he elected to step outside and face the Red Dawn, knowing he would die. His death led to his people coming to the same conclusion and they worked to survive, slowly becoming a conqueror race that took what they wanted from others. (AUDIO: Red Dawn)
 * During his second incarnation, the Doctor encountered the Ice Warriors for the first time on the Brittanicus Base during the Ice Age of the 34th century in the company of Jamie McCrimmon and Victoria Waterfield. (TV: The Ice Warriors)
 * The Doctor tells Tamsin that he witnessed the destruction of Mars' atmosphere million of years earlier. (AUDIO: The Judgement of Isskar)
 * Harold recalls seeing a documentary on the History Channel which stated that the last of the Ice Warriors were killed when their invasion fleet spiralled into the Sun in the late 21st century. The Doctor tells Tamsin, Professor Schooner and Grenville Gregson that he witnessed that event as well. (TV: The Seeds of Death)
 * Grenville refers to the "hippie holiday camp" on Phobos. The Doctor and Lucie Miller previously visited Lunar Park in 2589. (AUDIO: Phobos)