Doctor Who Meets Barney

It was a dreary day on the surface of Betelguise. The barren nature of the star's surface was complimented by the complete lack of any sign of life on the star - save for the dome-like structures that dotted the surface. The domes were not unlike those Quonset huts, the ever-popular prefab building structures seen on 20th-century Earth. They would have been quite conspicuous even to the casual observer. But there weren't any observers, casual or otherwise - at least not yet.

The TARDIS traveled through the space-time vortex at an amazing rate. After his escape from Darth Vader, the Doctor was, if anything, even more arrogant than before. The Doctor had faced many villians in his time, and several of them were more powerful than Darth Vader. Still, it isn't every day that one defeats the ruler of a vast intergalactic empire. A gloat or two was in order.

Adric, for his part, was just acclimating himself to life in the TARDIS. He was, of course, a mathematical genuis, but that did not necessarily make him any more suited to this erratic mode of time-travel and to the various adventures they faced any more than Romana's genius did. At best he came to expect the unexpected.

The unexpected was making a return engagement. Suddenly, the TARDIS lurched and spun, and then, it seemed, was being dragged downward. The Doctor was at the console, assiduously trying to counter the effects of this strange and mysterious force, but to no avail. The time rotor slowed, then stopped.

"We've stopped!" exclaimed Adric. "We can't have landed already!"

"No; something's wrong," confirmed the Doctor. "Whatever it is that pulled us in is draining power away from the TARDIS."

"Are you sure the TARDIS hasn't simply malfunctioned - again?"

The Doctor gave a look of chagrin. "No - it hasn't malfunctioned again," he replied. "The problem is external. Something is draining power away. As if I wouldn't know the difference."

"Where are we, anyway?"

"Hmm - it seems we've landed on Betelguise, in the constellation of Orion."

"Does it have any significance?"

"Other than being one of the brighter stars in this galaxy, no... Hmm, let's see - gravity more or less normal, breathable atmosphere - that's not right. Betelguise should be a desolate rock. Something's definitely wrong.

"Maybe it's been colonized."

"No - this part of the galaxy isn't supposed to be colonized for thousands of years."

"Well, then, let's go out and investigate," Adric suggested.

"No. The last time you left the ship, you were captured by storm troopers. Every time one of us leaves the ship, something bad happens. You'll stay in the TARDIS until I find a way to restore power."

"But surely the only way to restore power to the TARDIS is to locate the source of the energy drain and neutralize it," Adric protested.

"There's another way. The TARDIS has within it a means of drawing energy from its surrounding environment, and storing it. If I can fix it so the TARDIS absorbs energy faster than this outside force can drain it, we may be able to build up enough power to get away from here."

"You can do that?"

"I think so. If it works, we're going to have to take off immediately, because the rate of the energy drain seems to be increasing. In any case, I'm going to need your help with the calculations."

Adric relented. "Very well."

On the surface of Betelguise, a roving patrol of sponge minions swept the perimeter surrounding the domes. Here, they quickly spotted the TARDIS, and informed their Group Leader, Baby Bop. "There's a strange, blue box-like object just outside the perimeter," stated one of the minions. "It looks kind of battered."

"Hmm - it could be some kind of trap," asserted Baby Bop. "Investigate further, then transmat it into the supply dome, and keep it under guard."

The patrol shuffled on towards the TARDIS, unaware of what lay ahead, but numbly obeying the orders of their Group Leader.

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor was patiently waiting for the TARDIS to absorb enough energy to leave. "Can we take off now?" asked Adric.

"No, not yet," answered the Doctor.

"But according to my calculations, we have enough energy to get away," Adric claimed.

"Yes, I know, but we're still building up energy. I want to have as much energy as possible before attempting dematerialization. You know, there is a margin of error in these calculations..."

"My calculations are accurate!" Adric exclaimed.

"Yes, yes, I know...but better safe than sorry, eh?"

Outside the TARDIS, the sponge minions quickly learned that they couldn't break into it. "Hmm...strange. It looks so primitive. Yet we can't get in!" They set up the transmat and prepared to beam the TARDIS over to the supply dome.

Inside the TARDIS, Adric and the Doctor were still at work, unaware of what was happening outside the ship. The Doctor was ready to take off. "OK, here goes nothing," he grumbled. Suddenly, he changed his mind. He reversed the energy build-up, causing the enrgy reserves of the TARDIS to decrease.

"Doctor, are you sure you know what you're doing? Doctor?"

"Huh - oh, yes...I'm...absolutely certain, sure," he rambled. He slowly walked over to the door control, as if in a trance, and opened the door. He left the TARDIS, with Adric close behind.

"Doctor! What's going on?" Adric asked, following him outside. Suddenly, the Doctor appeared normal again, as if he were a marionette that had just had its strings cut.

"What are we doing outside the TARDIS? I told you not to leave the TARDIS!" the Doctor snapped.

"You left the TARDIS first," Adric noted. "But that's all academic now!" He was right. Within a matter of seconds, they were surrounded by sponge minions. Baby Bop accompanied the squad.

"So - it would seem the strange craft is manned," noted Baby Bop. "Guards, take them to Barney! He'll almost assuredly have a few questions for these two!" The sponge minions unquestioningly carried out their orders and marched the Doctor and Adric off to the command dome.

It wasn't long before the Doctor and Adric arrived at the throne room, where Barney, the grand poobah of this desolate rock, greeted them. "Greetings, star travelers! It's been so long since we've had visitors from the outside world! Stu-pen-dous!"

"That's what I was about to say," replied the Doctor. "May I ask the identity of our esteemed host?"

"I am known to those over which I rule as Barney! I'm you're friend through thick and thin. In our kingdom, rule is based on the principle of love. I love all of my subjects, and all of my subjects love me in return. With all the irrational fears and hatreds of the outside world neutralized, we are thus able to utilize our resources for more constructive purposes."

Adric chimed in. "Could you give us an example?"

"Well, the Barney TV show is our primary focus. It is aired on over fifty different planets throughout the galaxy. Through this program, we spread the doctrine of universal love, with which we ultimately hope to eliminate all boundaries between peoples and cultures."

"Oh, yes, I think I vaguely remember your program."

"Super-de duper-de!" Barney gushed.

"You were taken off of American television on Earth late in the twentieth century, as I recall. Now, what was all that about..."

"It's all ancient history, my friend! Anyway, I won't bore you with the details of my past. You're our distinguished guests, and we're going to roll out the red carpet for the both of you! Section Leader, is their room prepared?"

"Yes, Barney. It's ready."

"Good! Well, then, escort our guests to their quarters, without haste!" The Doctor and Adric were led off.

In their room, the Doctor and Adric discussed the current situation. "I don't trust Barney," reflected the Doctor. "All this talk of universal love...it's got to be some kind of cover-up for something."

"Doctor, I think you're totally off base this time. Are you suggesting that nobody can sincerely hold the views that Barney apparently holds?" Adric asked.

"There's something about Barney that's rotten. I can't quite put my finger on it...back on Earth, in the late twentieth century, Barney was featured prominently on American television. He attained quite a following amongst young children."

"So?

"So, at the same time, he came under criticism from many child psychologists and parents. It seems that the show was merely a thinly-veiled attempt to sell merchandise, a thirty-minute infomercial. After a while, it became quite an embarassment to the public television stations carrying the show."

"Yes, but what's that got to do with what's going on here on Betelguise?"

"Well, the final nail in the Barney coffin back on Earth was thait seems that many children who appeared on the show disappeared. The mystery was never solved. Federal prosecutors eventually dropped the case, since the parents weren't really interested in getting the kids back anyway. But the missing kids were always the subject of speculation. Wait, I think I've got it. When the TARDIS dematerialized, the year-o-meter read 2018. Now, how old would you say the guards who apprehended us are?"

"About thirty, I suppose."

"Yes, and if these people are in their early thirties now, they would have been about eight or nine when the disappearances started."

"You're not suggesting that these people are the missing children?"

"It's almost unbelievable, isn't it? But it would explain a great deal."

In the control room, Barney had the Doctor and Adric under surveillance. "A cunning man, that Doctor. He's rapidly uncovering my plan!"

Baby Bop sat in an adjacent chair. "Maybe we should kill him. Someone as intelligent as the Doctor could make a dangerous adversary. I could have my men take him out and - "

"Nonsense," Barney interjected. "As long as we hold him captive, he can do no harm to us. Anyway, as dangerous he might be as an adversary, he'd be even more valuable to us as a sponge minion, and we could drain his intelligence into the master brain." Barney leaned back in the chair. "By the way, have you completed your analysis of the Doctor's spacecraft?"

"Apparently, it's a device called a TARDIS. It enables the driver to travel through time and space."

"So - he's a Time Lord! All the more reason his intelligence should be absorbed by the master brain. Not only will we have a powerful entity with which we can conquer this and other galaxies, but the boundaries of time itself will be within our reach!" Barney waxed enthusiastically.

"Shall I have my guards bring the Doctor here so that we can turn him into a sponge minion?" Baby Bop asked.

Not quite yet...I want to observe the two a bit longer, so I can get a better grasp of their intelligence. The boy, Adric, apparently has attained a high level of proficiency in math. Perhaps he could serve our purpose quite well, too." Barney turned his attention to the monitor, which he watched intently like some rent-a-cop in a condominium security control room.

On the surface of Betelguise, quite a distance from the domes, a small band of soldiers debated their next course of action. It was not an ordinary bunch of soldiers any more than their mission was an ordinary military mission. For starters, they had been trained to resist mind control, so they wouldn't fall under Barney's domination. And their leader was a large purple creature - one uses the word "creature" because that is perhaps the most precise word that could be used to describe the creature. Their mission was to destroy Barney, or at least put an end to his plan to rule the galaxy.

The large purple creature, known as Grimace, briefed the others. "Whoever was in the craft that materialized outside the dome was in all likelihood hostile to Barney. Otherwise, they would have materialized at the landing bay inside the complex. Besides, you saw how they tried to force open the craft. If they are hostile to Barney, they may prove useful allies. Therefore, I propose that we infiltrate the dome and rescue the crew."

As usual, Fry Guy chimed in with various objections. "Let's assume that you are right, and these people are hostile to Barney, although the evidence is scanty. We never actually saw anyone. We don't know that there was anyone inside the spaceship. It couldn't have been much of a ship; it was too small. And we don't know that they'll be of any use to us at all, assuming that they are still alive. Moreover, by attacking now, we will put Barney on notice of the fact that there are enemy forces on Betelguise, potentially endangering our agents within the complex!"

Fry Guy's objections were coherent and logical, but Grimace had a penchant for plans which were bold, even reckless. Besides, this would be an excellent chance to reinforce his authority. "Nonsense. If they were traveling in such an isolated part of the galaxy and they are hostile to Barney, they must have the means for bringing about his destruction. They must be weapons dealers or something. Anyway, this argument is moot: I am the leader, and I have made a decision. Once I get a report back from one of our agents confirming that the crew are alive, we will launch an attack."

Inside the control dome, two sponge minions arrived to escort the Doctor to Barney's HQ. "Guess what, Adric, we get to see Barney again," the Doctor commented.

"No - only you, Doctor. Adric stays here." The guard blocked Adric's exit.

"Nonsense - we go together, or not at all."

"You don't have any choice in the matter." The guards restrained the Doctor and pushed him down the corridor, at the same time locking Adric in the room. Soon, he was once again face-to-face with the evil genius behind it all, Barney.

"Doctor! Good to see you again!"

"You can drop the Mister Rogers treatment, Barney. I know what you've been up to here. I know that you've been kidnapping children from Earth and training them so that they can be serfs in your little empire here. And I know that you've developed some kind of mind control technique."

"Very good, Doctor," Barney said, mockingly. But I wonder - how much do you really know? Do you know about the real purpose of my being here?"

"I expect the reason you built all of this is because ultimately you're as emotionally insecure as the children on your TV show. You have to shield yourself from reality to be happy. So you've built this complex as a barrier from the outside world."

"Wrong, Doctor! I'll admit, the outside world is quite depressing. Wars, famine, disease and death stalk the land. Cynicism abounds, as almost everyone is only interested in looking out for their own interests. The concept of the good of the community is virtually dead. But ultimately, shutting out the outside world is not the answer. No, I have a much better solution. When the universe is remade in my image, then everyone will be truly happy."

"You're mad," replied the Doctor.

"Am I? I will soon have the means of achieving my destiny. Let me show you something, Doctor." Barney led the Doctor off into another room - a room dominated by a large, dome-covered brain. "Impressive, isn't it?" Barney bragged.

"Well, everybody has a hobby," the Doctor said glibly. "Tell me, what does it do?"

"I'm surprised you haven't figured it out already, Doctor."

"Well, I have a sneaking suspicion, but it's almost too horrible to believe."

"This is the means by which I will ultimately rule the galaxy, perhaps the entire universe. For years I've been draining the intelligence of small children, and collecting it into this one master brain. By now, it is quite powerful, as you might surmise."

"I guessed as much. I knew whatever caused me to leave the TARDIS in the first place must be an intelligence of the highest caliber."

"Not the highest caliber, Doctor. As of now, it's almost powerful enough so that I can put the next phase of my master plan into action. But think how much more powerful it could be if it had the knowledge of a Time Lord at its disposal."

The Doctor started to back away from Barney. "No, Barney. I won't allow it. My mind is my own, and you can't have it. You're just going to have to struggle along without it."

"You have no alternative Doctor. If you don't come willingly, I can force you. I will bend your mind until it does my will." Barney walked over to the control panel which stood before the master brain. He twiddled one of the knobs. "I'm increasing the intensity of the mind-control beam!"

The Doctor's expression was one of total concentration; then he broke out in laughter. "Your mind-control beam is useless against me. As soon as I realized someone was manipulating my mind, I threw up a barrier. Why else do you think that I'm the only one in the dome who has expressed any hostility to you?"

"It's because you're a quixotic fool! Give it up, Doctor! You can't stop me now!"

"Can't I?" The Doctor snatched up a chair and threw it at the master brain. But it bounced off an invisible shield, harmlessly.

Now it was Barney who laughed. "You thought you could stop me as easily as that? No, Doctor. I wouldn't leave something as important as the master brain unprotected. Now, it's time to put an end to your meddling. Guards!" One of the doors opened and three sponge minion guards appeared, and moved menacingly towards the Doctor, who nevertheless managed to escape through a side exit. A guard tried to cover the exit, but the Doctor pushed him away. "You fools! How could you let him escape?"

"Don't worry. The compound is sealed off. We'll recapture him."

"Well, I'll just make sure. Have your men bring the boy to the control room," Barney ordered.

"Yes sir." The guards exited, and Barney picked up the microphone for the PA system. He flicked a switch. "Alright, Doctor, I know you can hear me. Because you have escaped from me, you've forced me to use other methods to obtain the information I want. The machinery is ready and Adric is being prepared for minion-fication. If you do not surrender within the next 15 minutes, Adric will be left a brainless pratt. I trust you'll do the right thing."

At that very meoment on the other side of the dome, Adric was being escorted by three guards to the control room. "Where are you taking me? What's this all about?" Adric demanded.

"You'll find out soon enough," one of them replied. But at that very moment, the Grimace, Fry Guy, and one of their men appeared, heavily armed. The shootout was short and merciful. The sponge minions were caught off-guard and were quickly eliminated.

"You're one of the crew members of the ship that landed," stated Grimace.

"Yes - but how do you know?"

"Nevermind. We must leave the compound immediately."

"But we can't leave without the Doctor!"

The Grimace considered this information. "Hmmm...well, our agents did say there were two prisoners. We might as well finish what we started. Where is this Doctor?"

"I think he's in the control room?"

Fry Guy immediately protested. "But that's the most heavily guarded part of the compound! We can't get in there!"

"Well, it is risky. Still, we came here to rescue the crew, and that's what we're going to do."

Fry Guy, unable to stop the assault, decided to do what he could to increase the likelihood of success. "It might be best if we disguised ourselves as guards. And if we created some sort of diversion."

"Well, get going. We haven't got much time here." Grimace and Fry Guy busily ripped the uniforms off the guards while the others stood guard in the corridor.

Back in the control room, the Doctor decided to surrender himself, rather than risk Adric's well-being. "So, Doctor, you have returned," gloated Barney, who bounced around the room. "I never really doubted it. People like you are so infernally good, they really have no choice."

"Really? I'm surprised you're so contemptuous of me. After all, you're supposed, to be good, aren't you?" the Doctor countered.

"Yes, I am good, Doctor. But long ago, I realized that the end must justify the mean. Take my sponge-minions, for example. They had to become brainless so that I could achieve a greater good - universal peace and happiness. Similarly, after I take over, many will lose their independence. But it will all be for the best."

"You're mad, Barney. You've really crossed the threshold into insanity."

"Enough! You no longer have the power to pass judgment over me, Doctor!" Two guards appeared in the doorway. "Guards, take him to the laboratory and prepare him! The Doctor is about to become a sponge minion!" They escorted him to the adjacent laboratory, and strapped him to a table. They were about to begin, when Baby Bop burst in.

"Bad news, Barney! Grimace and his forces have attacked the compound. They've escaped with Adric!"

"You idiot!" screamed Barney.

The Doctor sat up. "Oh, so you haven't got Adric anymore, do you? Well, this changes everything..."

Barney pushed him down onto the table. "It changes nothing! In a few minutes, you will become part of the master brain."

"You don't understand," the Doctor said, sitting up again. "Just as I can block your mind control techniques, I can make my mind useless for your purposes. The knowledge will exist, but an impenetrable barrier will block it from your view. And now that Adric is free, I don't have to worry about anyone else."

"So that's your game," screamed Barney, like an angry child having a temper tantrum. "Well, let's see how long you can last in my torture chamber. We'll see how uncooperative you are after five minutes in there. Take him to the torture chamber!" The guards unstrapped the Doctor from the table and took him into the torture chamber in the next room. With the guards away, he had a chance to yell at Baby Bop.

"You idiot! The only way I could get the Doctor to cooperate was if he thought that Adric was still in our custody - and now you blew it!"

"I'm sorry," she stammered, "I had no way of knowing."

"I'll punish you later," Barney said. "For now, you will only speak to me if spoken to. You are dismissed." With that, Baby Bop exited.

At that moment, Grimace, Fry Guy, Adric and another Jihad member were bringing into fruition their attack on the control room. Fry Guy, disguised as a guard, pretended to escort Adric into the control room. Grimace, far too conspicuous to try to pass for a guard, hid around the corner with the other Jihaddi. Fry Guy and Adric walked up to a guard standing at the entrance to the control room. "I've recaptured the boy, sir," Fry Guy asserted.

"Good," replied the guard. What's the password?"

Fry Guy was fast on his feet. "Uh - stupendous."

The guard leveled his gun at Adric and Fry Guy. "Not even close. Do you really think you could get into the control room as easily as that? We knew you were still in the dome, and it was only a matter of time before you tried something stupid like - "

The guard was cut off in mid-sentence when another Jihaddi rounded the corner and shot him. "All clear!" he called. Grimace and the others appeared, realizing that there chances of success were greatly diminished.

"So much for stealth," said Grimace. "We're going to have to rely on force to get into the control room." Grimace pulled the fire alarm, and Fry Guy rushed into the control room. "There's a gas leak! The dome's about to blow! Save yourselves! The guards began to stream out of the control room. Fry Guy could not find the Doctor, so he began searching the adjacent rooms. In the laboratory, he came face to face with Barney.

"Guard! What the hell is going on?" demanded Barney.

Fry Guy pointed his gun at Barney. "What's going on? Your reign of terror is over, Barney."

The door to the laboratory slid open, and Fry Guy turned in apprehension, but it was only Grimace, accompanied by two Jihaddi and Adric. "The control room has been secured. The guards really think the dome is about to blow up. It's a mob scene out there."

Adric walked up to the once-formidable Barney, now a prisoner in his own headquarters. "Where's the Doctor? What have you done with him?"

"He's in the next room. He's unharmed, as you will soon see." Adric went into the torture chamber, and released the Doctor. As he walked into the lab, he saw Grimace for the first time. "Hallo, what's this?" he asked.

"This is Grimace. He and the Jihaddi are waging war against Barney."

"Well, now that Barney's been captured, all that remains is for us to destroy the master brain."

"Yes, I heard about it from my agents," agreed Grimace. "It's protected by a force field of some sorts."

The Doctor entered the control room, and the others followed. Barney was held at bay by Fry Guy. The Doctor pushed some buttons on the control panel. "We must deactivate the force field. Ah, the computer is prompting me for a deactivation code. I wonder what that would be. Barney, what is the deactivation code?"

Barney was defiant. "I'm not telling you anything, Doctor."

Fry Guy leveled his gun at Barney's head. "You won't get any medals for stupidity, Barney. Tell us the code!"

Barney acquiesced. "OK, OK. It's 835."

The Doctor smiled. "Only three digits? Not a very secure system. He punched in the deactivation code, and within seconds, the force field was turned off. But without the force field blocking its telepathic powers, the brain was immediately much more effective, smashing open the neural pathways of everyone in the room. Even the Doctor could not resist for long. "You bastard! You knew this would happen, didn't you!"

Barney just laughed maniacally as, one by one, the Jihaddi fell under the power of the master brain. The Doctor, in one final act of desparation, snatched a two-by-four, and lunged forward to smash the brain to bits. But Grimace and Fry Guy, once the two most powerful leaders of the Jihad, restrained him. Within moments, he too was a slave to the master brain.

Barney surveyed the scene. Surely this was his greatest triumph ever, with his most powerful enemies now vanquished. But scarcely did he have time to savor his triumph when the master brain began to reach out for control of his mind. "No, no! You cannot control me! I created you!" Nonetheless, the master brain's power was becoming almost irresistable. Barney had to reactivate the force field before it was too late. He switched it back on, but the others still seemed to be under the brain's control. Just then, a sponge minion entered the control room. "Sir! The alarm seems to have been a false one! The dome remains intact!"

"Of course it is, you simpering imbecile! But, you will be glad to know that in spite of your incompetence, I have managed to capture Adric and the leaders of the Jihad!"

"Your cunning overwhelms me, sir," gushed the sponge minion. "What do you want me to do with these people, anyway?"

"Keep them locked up in the lab - all except the Doctor. We have some unfinished business to attend to."

"Are you going to turn him into a sponge minion, sir?"

"No. We have to make up for lost time. Now that his mind has been taken over by the master brain, the process is unnecessary. I will use his TARDIS to travel to Earth with the brain, and I will use the brain to take over Earth. With Earth and its resources at our disposal, we'll be unstoppable. And the Doctor will help us!" The sponge minion led the others into the lab, while Barney began to prepare the brain to be moved. "Come along, Doctor! We have a lot of work to do!"

The next phase of the operation was relatively uneventful. The Doctor and Barney loaded the brain into a truck and transported it to the supply dome, where the TARDIS was kept, and they placed the brain carefully in the TARDIS. Barney did not seem overly nervous, even though this was the culmination of several years' work.

"OK, Doctor, set the coordinates for Earth," Barney ordered.

"Yes," came the reply. The Doctor, incapable of a seditious thought, at least for the moment, went to work setting the coordinates. Barney stuck close to the brain, examining the machine housing it, careful to make sure that the life-support system was still functioning. The TARDIS, sensing that the Doctor was in danger, was nonetheless just as powerless - as a sentient object, it too was in danger of falling under control of the master brain. The Doctor dematerialized, and the time rotor rose and fell. After a few moments, they arrived at their destination. "We've landed on Earth."

"Excellent. You will stay here. The Doctor opened the door. Barney stepped outside, wheeling the master brain in front of him. He was taken somewhat aback by what he saw. It was Earth, but it was prehistoric Earth - it was Earth during the early jurassic period, to be precise.

Inside the TARDIS, within its force field, the Doctor was finally able to break away from the control of the master brain. He wasn't sure how long it would last, but he was determined to make the most of this chance opportunity. He set the coordinates for Betelguise, in the year 2018, and dematerialized.

Barney, turning back towards the place where the TARDIS had been, suddenly found himself stranded. "No!!!!" he screamed. It was all too much - to come this close to universal domination, only to be stranded in the early jurassic period, virtually impotent. Still, there was a glimmer of hope. He had the master brain, and with it, perhaps he could devise a means of escaping this miserable planet.

But the brain no longer needed Barney, who had failed. With a mighty effort, the brain broke through the force field, and burned out Barney's cerebral cortex. "NO! NO! THIS SUCKS! AUGH!" With that, the purple dinosaur collapsed, dead. The brain would find other servants to do its bidding.

The Doctor materialized in the control room, not sure what he would find when he got there. Perhaps Adric, Grimace and the others had all been killed...or perhaps they had been turned into sponge minions. But he returned in the hope that at least some of them survived. Seeing on the monitor that the control room was apparently empty, he stepped out of the TARDIS. A guard who had concealed himself behind a computer stepped into view. "Where's Barney?"

"He stayed behind on Earth. The takeover was successful. He sent me back here to debrief the prisoners."

"They're still in the lab. We haven't done anything with them yet." He opened the door to the lab and stepped in. Immediately he was subdued by Grimace and Fry Guy, who had managed to overpower their captors.

"You're all here, then," noted the Doctor. "You're no longer under the control of the master brain."

"Yes. We were just sitting here - and suddenly, it was as if we were released. Did you destroy it?" asked Grimace.

"I don't know. I left Barney and the brain stranded in the early jurassic period. What's been going on here?"

"Well, the sponge minions still seem to be loyal. Baby Bop is more or less in command."

"I've failed," the Doctor said ruefully. "Perhaps if I hadn't fallen under control of the brain, I could have defeated Barney and his sponge minions once and for all."

Grimace was somewhat more optimistic. "Not at all. Now that the sponge minions have been deprived of their leader, it's only a matter of time before we defeat them. We are greatly indebted to you."

"Well, it's all up to you now, Grimace - up to you and the Jihaddi. Still, getting rid of Barney is a start."

Adric spoke up. "Doctor, I don't think the sponge minions are going to be too happy about our neutralizing their leader. We'd better get out of here."

"Right," the Dotor said. "Let's all pile into the TARDIS and get away from here." The Doctor, Adric, Grimace, Fry Guy and the other Jihaddi got into the TARDIS, which dematerialized.