The Transcendence of Ephros (audio story)

The Transcendence of Ephros was the first story in The Third Doctor Adventures: Volume 2. It was written by Guy Adams and featured Tim Treloar as solely the Third Doctor, for the first time, and Katy Manning as Jo Grant.

Publisher's summary
The Doctor and Jo arrive on the dying planet Ephros, where Galactux Power Inc is exploiting the world's remaining resources. But something is stirring beneath the surface...

Part one
The Doctor and Jo arrive on the planet Ephros only to discover that something is wrong with it. They discover something interesting only to be interrupted by a tremor into which the TARDIS falls into, seemingly stranding them until they find a way to retrieve it. Hearing a strange noise, they make a run for it and when they are cornered, they are saved by Temper, a follower of Sultan who brings them to the camp of followers and mistakenly assumes they are followers of Galactux. There they meet mother Finsey who explains the purpose of the camp. The Doctor and Temper set out to retrieve the TARDIS using some of the camp's equipment and the Doctor asks him about "The Transcendence" which is to take place tomorrow and the Doctor discovers that they are harnessing the energy that will be released when the planet explodes tomorrow which will kill them all...

Part two
The Doctor and Jo are horrified to learn about the followers' belief that the planet blowing up will help them ride to the next level of consciousness by riding the shock-wave, calling it "The Transcendence" in imitation of Sultan. Finsey reveals to Jo that she knows they lied earlier about being followers and asks Jo to tell her why they arrived and more about her companion, the Doctor, taking a greater interest in him. The Doctor and Temper descend into the tremor to retrieve the TARDIS while Jo gets into a tricky situation after being taken hostage by Quail and tries to convince him that she's not a spy, and manages to escape and attempts to find the Doctor. Meanwhile, the Doctor and Temper successfully get to the TARDIS, then once inside check the data banks regarding a creature they saw earlier and discuss their present problems and next course of action. Jo is saved by Bartram, another Galactux employee in league with Quail and sent by their HQ on their orders. She explains the situation to Jo and says there's an unstable energy flux after which they find the Doctor and Temper's vehicle, suspecting the TARDIS is nearby. Just then, a violent tremor occurs and Jo falls in...

Part three
Luckily Jo is saved by Bartram and the Doctor's TARDIS, with the Doctor and Temper inside, are beamed aboard a station via transmat, while Jo, unaware, tries to dig them up, thinking they've been killed. The Doctor and Temper are then confronted by Karswell, who demands they explain themselves. Jo and Bartram return to camp where she finds Quail dead and realises in horror they've stumbled onto something big and nasty while Jo visits Finsey and asks for her advice. She tries to persuade Jo to follow in her footsteps and just as she learned from her mentor, they must find their own way.

Bartram and Jo chat, becoming friends and Bartram finds the planet is behaving strangely and not in a scientifically explainable way. They investigate further. Meanwhile the Doctor, given free-reign to use the station's equipment by the president, discovers the cause of the tremors and the planet's upcoming explosion are due to Throxian Lavaworms, which the Doctor deduces had to be put there by someone, suspecting Galactux, however, he is knocked out by Temper who welcomes the planet's destruction. Jo and Bartram are suddenly taken hostage by Finsey, who reveals she is behind the events, inspired by her idol, the Master...

Part four
Finsey reveals her history with the Master before he tried to kill her and explains the religions are just her creation, with the whole plan a way to make money through Galactux. Temper ties up the Doctor to stop him from stopping "The Transcendence" and makes his way to the central control where he finds Finsey who reveals her deception and shoots, him, then leaves. Temper manages to free the Doctor before dying, renouncing his faith and begging him to save his family, including his wife and child. The Doctor finds Karswell has begrudgingly decided to help and the Doctor manages to get in touch with Jo and Tessa (Bartram). The Doctor instructs them to change the frequency of Finsey's frequency modulator device as it seems to be agitating the worms, causing the current problem hoping to buy some time. Finsey contacts the Doctor to gloat before getting away and reveals to him that the Master was her inspiration and explains that she made up all the religions and tricked the followers and has now swindled said worshipers, disgusting the Doctor. He warns her about the Master's influence and tries to offer her redemption but she cuts contact. Meanwhile Jo distracts a lizard creature from earlier while Bartram extracts DNA from the worms which allows the Doctor to draw out the worms and kill them. However, the Doctor finds it difficult due to his moral qualms and so Karswell takes charge and does it instead, to the Doctor's sadness. They try to explain to the worshipers that they have been saved from the uprising but they are disappointed and angry and boo the Doctor and Jo away. Jo, upset, gives a final goodbye to Bartram and she and the Doctor take off. Finsey's fate is unknown.

Cast

 * The Doctor - Tim Treloar
 * Jo Grant - Katy Manning
 * Temper/Follower 1 - Simon Bubb
 * Mother Finsey - Richenda Carey
 * Karswell - Bernard Holley
 * Quail/Deputy - Nigel Peever
 * Bartram/Follower 2 - Karen Henson

Continuity

 * The Doctor refers to the recent business involving Draconians, Daleks, and Ogrons. (TV: Frontier in Space)
 * The Doctor claims he's been offered as a sacrifice by a fair few religions. (TV: The Daemons, AUDIO: The Entropy Plague et al.)
 * The Doctor mentions the Timelords are his people. (TV: The War Games et al.)