The First Days of Phaidon (audio story)

The First Days of Phaidon was the forth and final audio story in the audio anthology Allegiance, the thirteenth series of Gallifrey. It was written by Sophie Iles and featured Louise Jameson as Leela, Carolyn Pickles as Ollistra, Ken Bones as the Eleventh General, Chris Jarman as Rasmus, Beth Chalmers as Veklin and Seán Carlsen as Narvin.

Publisher's summary
Phaidon was one of the first worlds destroyed in the Time War - but now it is back. Daleks and Time Lords race to the planet’s new location: something has arrived which could turn the course of the war. And for Leela, an even greater shock awaits...

Plot
The temporal revocation of the Daleks' destruction of Phaidon becomes the War Room's priority as Rassilon believes that there was a powerful device aboard a Gallifreyan time skiff which crashed into the planet. Rasmus and Ollistra send the General and, at his request, Leela to get the help of Acting Commander Daari of the Warpwrights in locating and destroying the device to prevent it from being recovered by the Daleks; Daari sends Neander to take Leela to the crash site at the Temple of Phaidon, which is now covered by a sentient storm that whispers to them, and they encounter Narvin, who is still working with the resistance and is also after the device.

Whilst the General joins the Warpwrights in their battle against the Daleks, Ollistra having denied him reinforcements, Leela, Narvin and Neander are pursued by Daleks into the time skiff. Neander is taken prisoner and the storm briefly spirits Leela away to test her determination to kill Rassilon and free Romana before returning her, allowing her to confront the Daleks. She is ordered to choose between a sphere, a spear, a sextant and a tetrahedron in exchange for Neander's life and chooses the spear, which kills the Daleks on Phaidon through temporal compression after one touches it. Narvin then takes the sextant and is told that he made the right choice.

Using the sextant, Narvin gets the storm to destroy an approaching Dalek flying saucer and prevent the Daleks from destroying Phaidon a second time. Leela has him hand the sextant over to Daari to protect the planet, which will join the resistance, and he leaves in a TARDIS altered by Ace after encountering the General and saying goodbye to Leela. Upon returning to Gallifrey, the General commends Leela to Ollistra and Rasmus for her work on Phaidon and the War Room returns to work.

Cast

 * Leela - Louise Jameson
 * The General - Ken Bones
 * Narvin - Seán Carlsen
 * Dalek Commander / Daleks / Recon Daleks - Nicholas Briggs
 * Neander - LJ Parkinson
 * Commander Daari - Hywel Morgan
 * The Sentient Storm - Sam Clemens
 * Cardinal Rasmus - Chris Jarman
 * Cardinal Ollistra - Carolyn Pickles
 * Commander Veklin - Beth Chalmers
 * Junior Warpwright - Lara Lemon

Worldbuilding

 * The Daleks are enacting Operation Intercept on orders from the Dalek Time Strategist.
 * Narvin contacts Eris.
 * Narvin uses gravity grenades.
 * Daari met Romana whilst she was President.
 * Leela jokes Ace taught Narvin well.
 * Leela once saw a sextant whilst travelling with the Doctor.
 * Narvin uses a TARDIS modified by Ace, stuck in the form of an arcade game.
 * Narvin mentions the Nekkistani, Sunari and Monans.

Continuity

 * The Daleks had destroyed Phaidon. (AUDIO: Celestial Intervention)
 * Rasmus and Leela aren't getting on after his decision on the Norvis galaxy. (AUDIO: Collateral Victim)
 * Narvin uses a fighting move called the "Therovian Neckpinch". (COMIC: The Therovian Quest)
 * Narvin recalls the Warpwright survivors came to the Time Lords for aid just before the Time War. (AUDIO: Celestial Intervention)
 * Leela reminds Narvin she has fought without a sense before. (AUDIO: Fractures)
 * Leela explains to Narvin what happened after she and Romana left him and Livia. (AUDIO: Homecoming)
 * Narvin mentions that the Celestial Intervention Agency no longer exists. (AUDIO: Assassins)
 * Narvin is a part of the resistance. (AUDIO: Deception)
 * Rassilon thinks a Time Scaphe has landed on Phaidon. (PROSE: Cat's Cradle: Time's Crucible)
 * Daari was Égopolis's attaché. (AUDIO: Appropriation)