Wish You Were Here (ST short story)

Wish You Were Here was the thirteenth short story in the Short Trips anthology Short Trips. It was written by Guy Clapperton. It featured the Sixth Doctor.

Summary
The Doctor visits Nestra, a tourist planet run by the Thetrans, in search of an old friend, Korriklimm. Korriklimm created the leisurebots that serve the tourists on Nestra, and when tourists started going missing, Korriklimm came to Nestra to check things out. His family asked the Doctor to find him.

The Doctor meets Janis Carma, who is pretending to be a tourist but is really a Thetran agent, also investigating the disappearance of tourists. They discuss the problem over tea, served by a robot named Lakksis, which is programmed to give the tourists whatever they like and refuse them whatever they don't like.

When Janis and the Doctor separate, she is captured by Lakksis. Meanwhile, the Doctor encounters an old friend, K’tarth. Lakksis comes after the Doctor, and he and K’tarth run away, ending up in the infirmary. There the Doctor finds his friend, Korriklimm, and many others. Korriklimm tries to warn him, but gas fills the room and the Doctor loses consciousness.

When the Doctor awakens, he is chained up, along with Janis. His friend, K’tarth, is revealed to be an artifical life form that Lakksis used to trap the Doctor. Through questioning, the Doctor realises that Lakksis’ programming does not allow him to see the consequences of his actions. The people in the infirmary are sick from over-indulgence, and Lakksis refuses to give them medication, as it is something they don’t like, and that goes against his programming.

After Lakksis leaves to resume his duties, the Doctor and Janis escape. The Doctor meets up with Lakksis and explains what he has been doing wrong. The robot seems to understand, but suddenly he is destroyed by Janis.

Later, the Doctor, saddened by Lakksis’ death, is ready to leave Nestra. He encounters Janis, who shows him a new robot, Lakksis-2. She salvaged some of the original as robots are too expensive to waste. After the Doctor leaves, Lakksis-2 recognizes Janis as the one who killed his “brother”.

Characters

 * Sixth Doctor
 * Janis Carma
 * Lakksis
 * Korriklimm
 * Lakksis-2

Continuity

 * The Doctor refers to Skaro (TV: The Daleks) and Telos (TV: The Tomb of the Cybermen) as well as his former companions K9, (TV: The Invisible Enemy) Kamelion (TV: The King's Demons) and Peri Brown. (TV: Planet of Fire)