The Tardis lands on the home world of the Sumaran civilization. The Doctor did not set the co-ordinates for the landing and discovers that Tegan did. He starts questioning if the Mara is still active inside of her from their previous adventure on the Kinda world.
SNAKEDANCE BY: CHRISTOPHER BAILEY Part One First Air Date: 18 January 1983 Running time: 24:26 [SCENE_BREAK] NYSSA: Well? DOCTOR: We're not where we're supposed to be. NYSSA: Where are we? DOCTOR: I don't know. There are traces of anti-matter. NYSSA: Omega? DOCTOR: Oh, highly unlikely he's still alive. It's not a navigational malfunction either. NYSSA: Shall I wake Tegan? DOCTOR: No, no, there's no danger, although it's puzzling. It's very puzzling. NYSSA: (reads) Planet G139901KB in the Scrampus system. Local name, Manussa. Type 314S. Inhabited. Atmosphere ninety eight percent Terra normal, gravity ninety six percent Terra normal. DOCTOR: Well, at least we can breath the air. I suppose that's something. You look different. NYSSA: Yes, Doctor. DOCTOR: The question is, how did we get here? NYSSA: There's more. (reads) Third planet in the Federation system. Status, colony. Former homeworld Manussan Empire, destroyed. Former homeworld Sumaran Empire, destroyed. Present economy, subsistence agriculture and tourism. DOCTOR: Former homeworld? NYSSA: Manussan Empire. DOCTOR: No, no, the other one. NYSSA: Sumaran Empire. DOCTOR: This is serious. Someone's been playing around. Who set the coordinates? NYSSA: Well, you did. DOCTOR: No, no, no. Earlier, I was trying to teach both of you to read the star charts. Now, one of you actually read out the coordinates for me to set. Who was it? NYSSA: I can't remember. DOCTOR: It was Tegan. [SCENE_BREAK] NYSSA: Tegan, what's the matter? What happened? TEGAN: It was the dream. DOCTOR: The dream? What dream? TEGAN: I can't, I can't remember. I can never remember. DOCTOR: But you've had this dream, this particular dream, before. NYSSA: Doctor, stop it. DOCTOR: Haven't you? TEGAN: Yes. DOCTOR: Always the same dream? TEGAN: Yes, I think so. The images fade so quickly. DOCTOR: But the same feelings of fear remain. NYSSA: Doctor. It doesn't matter. You're awake now. It was only a dream. TEGAN: No, it wasn't, somehow. NYSSA: Tegan DOCTOR: She means it. I think she could be right. [SCENE_BREAK] TANHA: Lon, you're not dressed yet. Ambril will be here in a moment. He promised to show us the caves this morning. Have you forgotten? LON: No, mother, I hadn't forgotten. TANHA: Well, then. We must make the effort. LON: Must we? TANHA: Well of course we must. LON: Why? TANHA: It is expected of us. You are the Federator's son. Come, Lon. What's wrong? LON: The Federator's son is bored. [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: Now then, Tegan, where are we? TEGAN: What? DOCTOR: Very simple question, where are we? TEGAN: Well, aren't we on Earth? DOCTOR: No, we're not. So? TEGAN: Well how should I know? DOCTOR: Think! NYSSA: Doctor. DOCTOR: Please, Tegan, think. Reach into the back of your mind. TEGAN: Are we on Manussa? DOCTOR: Good. TEGAN: Are we? DOCTOR: Yes, we are. TEGAN: How did I know that? DOCTOR: Manussa, formerly homeworld of the Sumaran Empire which may or may not ring a bell. Does it, Tegan? The Sumaran Empire? [SCENE_BREAK] TANHA: I agree Ambril can be rather trying. On the whole, you know, I preferred his predecessor. Now what was the man's name? Oh, he was completely dotty, but much more fun. LON: It's not just Ambril, mother, it's all of it. The ceremony and everything. It's all such nonsense, isn't it. TANHA: Is it? LON: Of course it is. And all so long ago. The Mara was destroyed five hundred years ago and yet we're still celebrating it. Why? TANHA: Oh, once every ten years. LON: It occurs to me that the whole thing is kept going solely to remind the people here how much better life is under the rule of the Federation. TANHA: And so it is. LON: Is it? TANHA: Of course it is. Life under the Mara must have been gruesome in the extreme. I mean, look. TANHA: Oh, it is grotesque. You ought to take more interest in our heritage. LON: Why? TANHA: Well, it's the root of our culture. The Legend of the Return. Although, now what was the man's name? Well, the Director before Ambril, he didn't think it was just a legend. He thought the Mara really would return. LON: Am I now supposed to take the ramblings of a mad man seriously? TANHA: He didn't ramble. LON: The Mara was destroyed, not banished to another dimension. It won't return in a dream or in any other form. TANHA: If you say so. LON: I think I just have. TANHA: Well, it made a good story. Quite made my hair stand on end. Ambril's predecessor was rather good value, even if he was talking nonsense. [SCENE_BREAK] NYSSA: Is this necessary? DOCTOR: Yes. We must recover Tegan's dream, and simple hypnosis is the quickest way. NYSSA: But why must we? DOCTOR: Dreams are important, Nyssa. Never underestimate them. Once a man fell asleep, dreamt he was a frog. When he woke up he didn't know if he was a man who dreamt he was a frog, or a frog who was now dreaming he was a man. TEGAN: I'm still possessed, aren't I, Doctor. The Mara from the world of the Kinda is still inside my head somewhere, isn't it. DOCTOR: We'll have to see. TEGAN: But you think so. DOCTOR: It does seem likely. I'm sorry. TEGAN: But where? DOCTOR: Well, obviously below the threshold of conscious thought. I would imagine that when awake your mind is still strong enough to resist, but in sleep it loosens its grip and battle is joined. TEGAN: In my dreams? DOCTOR: Yes. TEGAN: The battle for what? DOCTOR: For control. Come over here. NYSSA: That's why you misread the coordinates. DOCTOR: It's possible the Mara seized temporary control and brought itself home. Now, insert the earpiece, try to relax, and when switched on, listen to the sound. [SCENE_BREAK] TANHA: He thought the only people who knew the truth about the Mara were the Snake Dancers. Once he even took us to visit them. It was miles from anywhere, way up in the hills. It was all wildly unofficial. We had to go in disguise. Can you imagine your father in disguise? Even then. LON: And did they? TANHA: What? LON: Know the truth about the Mara. TANHA: It was so dark and they were so dirty, it was difficult to tell. Oh, they were frightful. They were all covered in ash. Some of them were almost naked. They lived entirely on roots and berries and things, and they put themselves into trances. It was quite disgusting. They handled live snakes, I remember. LON: Why? TANHA: Something to do with their religion. LON: What did father think? TANHA: The Federator, as usual, was not amused. TANHA: Come in. AMBRIL: Good morning, my Lady Tanha. TANHA: Good morning. AMBRIL: Are we ready? TANHA: I'm afraid not quite. AMBRIL: I beg your pardon. In that case, I'll TANHA: No, no, no, no. Please stay. My son can dress quite quickly. LON: What's this? AMBRIL: That, my Lord, is a small token in honour of your presence here deputising for your father. I trust you approve? TANHA: Thank you. AMBRIL: Exquisite, isn't it? LON: Is it a fake? AMBRIL: Oh no, my Lord, it's an original. One of a pair from my collection. Seven hundred years old from the middle Sumaran era. I unearthed it myself. LON: Did you really? AMBRIL: Yes, my Lord. LON: Oh. Here, then. Catch. AMBRIL: Oh, my Lord. [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: Where are you now? TEGAN: On Deva Loka, the Kinda world. DOCTOR: What are you doing there? TEGAN: It's horrible. Is that thing inside my head? You must know I climbed a tree and dropped apples on its head. No. I will never agree to what you ask. Doctor? Am I free of the Mara now? Forever? Am I? DOCTOR: You must go deeper, Tegan. Much deeper. Where are you now? TEGAN: I'm in my garden, silly. Everything grows in my garden. People always come back. I close my eyes, I want them to come back and they do. It always works. I can tell lies too. People don't always notice so I'm safe here. DOCTOR: How old are you? TEGAN: I'm six, silly. DOCTOR: Tegan, now you must leave your garden. TEGAN: Oh, why? DOCTOR: And go still deeper. Deeper and further. Much further. Can you hear me? Now, I want you to go into the dream. TEGAN: No. DOCTOR: Why not? TEGAN: Because I mustn't. [SCENE_BREAK] HAWKER: How about you, sir? Madame, step this way, if you'd be so kind. I invite you to take the most exciting journey of all. The voyage inside. The journey to meet yourself. I address you in the silence of your own hearts. I offer my personal challenge. Dare you bare witness to what the Mara shows? Will you gaze upon the unspeakable? Dare you come face to face with the finally unfaceable? Children half price. [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: Tegan, you're perfectly safe. You must go into the dream. Where are you now? TEGAN: Snake mouth. Cave. Out. DOCTOR: Out where? TEGAN: I'm outside. I'm being fed this image. DOCTOR: Go in. TEGAN: No! Mustn't. DOCTOR: Tegan, you must go into the cave. We need to know what's there. TEGAN: Something in here. Over there. Mustn't look. Mustn't ever look. I'm safe if I don't look. DOCTOR: Tegan. TEGAN: No. DOCTOR: You're perfectly safe. You must look. We need to know what is there. TEGAN: (Mara) Go away! [SCENE_BREAK] HAWKER: Come face to face with the truth about yourself in the Hall of Mirrors. Come along, please. You, sir. For instance, you, you have the look of a humble seeker after life's truth. LON: Do I really. HAWKER: Of course you do. Now, if you'd care to step inside LON: Do you know who I am? HAWKER: No, young man. Do tell us. Who are you? HAWKER: Oh, I beg your pardon, my Lord, my Lady. I'm sure I didn't mean LON: Well, what's in there? HAWKER: In, er? LON: Yes, what exactly does one face in your shoddy little booth? HAWKER: Er, mirrors, my Lord. LON: Mirrors? HAWKER: Distorting mirrors, that's all. People are amused. LON: Are they. HAWKER: Generally, my Lord. TANHA: Lon. [SCENE_BREAK] NYSSA: That voice, what was it? DOCTOR: The Mara, speaking through Tegan's mouth. NYSSA: On Deva Loka you said a physical change took place when possessed by a Mara. DOCTOR: It does, as mental resistance weakens. But this time I can prevent it. NYSSA: How? DOCTOR: With this. It inhibits the production of brainwaves associated with dreaming. NYSSA: Then what? DOCTOR: We must find the cave, the snake mouth in the dream. NYSSA: It's a real place? DOCTOR: Oh, yes. What's more, I would guess it's somewhere nearby. [SCENE_BREAK] AMBRIL: The main entrance to the cave system itself. TANHA: I'd forgotten how impressive it is. [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: Now, she will be experiencing total exclusion of all outside sound, so you must be her ears. NYSSA: She can't dream now. She's awake. DOCTOR: Dreams are occurring in the mind all the time. Come on, we must hurry. [SCENE_BREAK] AMBRIL: The cave system itself LON: Hello! AMBRIL: It's a natural geological formation worn out of the solid rock over hundreds of thousands of years by the action of an underground river. LON: Hello! TANHA: Lon. AMBRIL: The Chamber of the Mara is the largest natural cavern thus formed, but many of our most important archeological finds LON: Big, isn't it. AMBRIL: Beg pardon, my Lord? LON: This place, it's big. AMBRIL: Yes, I suppose it is. LON: Isn't it. Hello! [SCENE_BREAK] NYSSA: Tegan, are you all right? NYSSA: Doctor? DOCTOR: I was right. It seems there's a cave system near by that fits the description. It's, er, this way. [SCENE_BREAK] AMBRIL: This wall constitutes a valuable record of the Sumaran era. Of course, academic interpretations as to its precise meaning do differ, but by paying scrupulous attention to detail and not allowing our imaginations to run away with us, we can form the glimmerings of an idea as to what the pictograms may mean. LON: What about the Legend of the Return? AMBRIL: The legend, my Lord? LON: Do you have an opinion? AMBRIL: Yes, I'm rather afraid I do. LON: Well? AMBRIL: The Legend of the Return is nonsense. Pure superstitious nonsense, invented by the people simply to give themselves something with which to frighten their children. It has no basis, either speculative or proven, in historical fact. [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: Extraordinary, isn't it. NYSSA: Doctor. DOCTOR: It's the cave from her dream. DOCTOR: Now, there's nothing to be frightened of. TEGAN: No! NYSSA: Doctor, she can't hear you. [SCENE_BREAK] LON: Nevertheless, Ambril, your predecessor apparently believed in the legend. TANHA: Yes. Now what was that man's name? AMBRIL: His name, my Lady, was Dojjen. TANHA: Dojjen. Oh yes, of course, that was it. [SCENE_BREAK] NYSSA: What are we going to do? She won't go any further, she's too frightened. DOCTOR: Well, you'll have to stay with her. I'll go into the cave alone. [SCENE_BREAK] AMBRIL: I'm afraid Dojjen came to believe so many things. He became very erratic towards the end. The real work here was sadly neglected. LON: The real work? AMBRIL: Yes, my Lord. LON: Oh, you mean poking about in the ruins and digging for trinkets. AMBRIL: Classified, my Lord. I have tried to reestablish our studies here on a strictly scientific basis. TANHA: And I'm sure we're all truly grateful. Shall we proceed to the Chamber of the Mara? [SCENE_BREAK] AMBRIL: Exquisite, isn't it. LON: What was in its mouth? AMBRIL: The Great Crystal, my Lord. Purely decorative. LON: Where is it now? Is it lost? AMBRIL: Oh no, my Lord. It was removed from its socket when the Mara was destroyed. Traditionally, its safekeeping is the responsibility of the Director. LON: You. AMBRIL: At present I have that honour, my Lord. The image of the Mara is sculpted out of [SCENE_BREAK] AMBRIL (OOV.): Solid rock. It is, as you can see, in the form of a snake, a rearing snake. The imagery is consistent with the middle Sumaran period with only insignificant variation. [SCENE_BREAK] AMBRIL: In Sumaran three period, the head has a tendency to be less pronounced, but in general TANHA: Oh, do be quiet just for a moment. It is horrible. TANHA: I'm very glad the Legend of the Return is just a story. It is, isn't it? DOCTOR: No, I'm afraid it's not. [SCENE_BREAK] PUPPETEER: Excuse me. NYSSA: Oh, no thank you. No, really, not at the moment. PUPPETEER: Look. NYSSA: Yes, it's very good. NYSSA: Tegan! Tegan! [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: There's no need for this. AMBRIL: This is a private view. You have no business to be here. Have him thrown out. LON: Wait. At least let the man have his say. AMBRIL: Why, my Lord? The man's clearly deranged. LON: Is he? AMBRIL: Of course he is. TANHA: Lon, I really think the Director should deal with this. DOCTOR: Director? Director of what? AMBRIL: Research effort into the Sumaran era. DOCTOR: Are you indeed? Then you may be able to help AMBRIL: I think not. Throw him out. LON: Just a moment, Ambril. It has been suggested that I take more interest in our legends. Release him. LON: And where, according to you, is the Mara now? DOCTOR: At present it exists as a latent mental force in the mind of my companion. LON: Does it. DOCTOR: It's using her dreams to increase its power. Eventually it will take over her mind altogether, but I've put together a device to inhibit this temporarily. LON: Oh, how very resourceful. DOCTOR: Why don't you come and meet her? She's outside. AMBRIL: My Lord, I must insist LON: Very well, show us. DOCTOR: Certainly. Follow me. AMBRIL My Lord! [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: Nyssa! AMBRIL: Is this your companion? DOCTOR: Nyssa, what's the matter? NYSSA: Doctor, she's gone. DOCTOR: What! LON: She's gone, apparently. DOCTOR: Where? NYSSA: She took fright. It all happened so quickly. LON: You've disappointed me, Doctor. I should have you punished. DOCTOR: Come on. LON: No, let them go. What's the point? [SCENE_BREAK] SEER: Here, that's better. You can hear me now. TEGAN: No, I mustn't take it off. SEER: Why ever not? What is it, anyway? What does it do? TEGAN: I can't, I can't remember. I mustn't, that's all. Where am I? SEER: You passed out. They brought you in here. Are you feeling better? TEGAN: Yes. [SCENE_BREAK] DOCTOR: Oh, this is hopeless. What state was she in? NYSSA: Terrified. DOCTOR: Well, let's go back to the TARDIS. She might try and find her way back there. [SCENE_BREAK] TEGAN: Who are you, please? SEER: I see into the future. I expect it was all the people. TEGAN: I expect it was all the people. SEER: Of course, that's what it was. It's easy to get confused in crowds. Anyway, I'm glad you're feeling better. TEGAN: In that. SEER: What? TEGAN: You see into the future in that? SEER: Yes. Well, between you and me, not really, I don't. I pretend. I flutter my fingers, gaze deep into the ball and then TEGAN: Then? SEER: Then I make something up. Whatever comes into my head. Whatever I think they want to hear. After all, they're paying. Doesn't do any harm. Mind you, it's surprising what does come into your head. Sometimes I surprise myself. TEGAN: Is it surprise? SEER: What is it? What's the matter? What's wrong? TEGAN: Is it? Well, look now. [SCENE_BREAK] NYSSA: Where can she be? DOCTOR: Well, as long as she's wearing the anti-dream device she should be safe. NYSSA: And if she's not? DOCTOR: I don't know. I just don't know. Why has the Mara returned? Why now, after so long? What does it want? [SCENE_BREAK] TEGAN: Look now.
Snakedance - part 1