Rylan Clark

It is the year 2925 and, the Harmony Arena space station is buzzing with excitement as the 803rd Interstellar Song Contest is about to begin. As Rylan Clark steps out of cryogenic suspension and onto the stage, The Doctor and Belinda Chandra emerge from the TARDIS, which has just materialised in one of the viewing pods. Initially oblivious to their surroundings, The Doctor takes a Vindicator reading, still focused in his quest to find a way to return Belinda to Earth on the 24th May 2025. Once The Doctor has finished taking the reading, they both turn towards the stage. Realising where they are they unanimously decide to stay and watch the contest.

They are unaware that they have an unwanted watcher in the audience. Mrs Flood is secretly observing them from afar. She is thrilled to see that the Vindicator is primed, which she refers to as ‘the final link’. Meanwhile, in a corridor outside the viewing pod occupied by The Doctor and Belinda, married couple Gary and Mike Gabbastone, having arrived late, argue over their inability to enter the viewing pod. They are unaware that their seats have been taken by The Doctor and Belinda.

Backstage, a horned humanoid named Kid, and a Hellion, bursts into the control room and seizes control of the production along with Wynn, another Hellion. They quickly detain everyone and switch the livestream to a recording of a dress rehearsal in order to mask the takeover from the outside world. However, The Doctor’s keen observation reveals that Rylan is present on the stage but he is absent from the broadcast as he was not part of the dress rehearsal.

The Doctor

As The Doctor begins fiddling with some wiring near his seat, the first song of the contest begins. At this point Kid disengages the space station’s safety protocols and deactivates an oxygen dome. This opens up the arena to the vacuum of space allowing all the oxygen to be sucked out, along with the vast majority of the audience, including The Doctor and the TARDIS. Two members of the audience, Contestant Cora Saint Bavier and her associate Len Kazah, are spared when Wynn discreetly seals their pod. Belinda is also spared being sucked into outer space when she manages to cling on after being thrown violently against the ceiling of her viewing pod, making them the only survivors. Director Nina Maxwell tries to persuade Wynn to help rescue everyone, but her pleas are ignored as Kid initiates the final phase of his plan, revealing a device designed to generate a delta wave. Unbeknown to the watching viewers the Song Contest continues its transmission amid this turmoil. Belinda steps out of the viewing pod and meets up with Cora and Len, who inform her that the space station is under a communication lockdown until the scheduled end of the show to prevent manipulation of the betting markets. This therefore leaves them without any way to call for help.

Having being sucked out into space, The Doctor finds himself floating in space above the space station and freezing. In a vision, he encounters an older version of his granddaughter, Susan, seemingly aboard the TARDIS. She encourages him to return to the space station and to find her. The Doctor suddenly jolts back to consciousness and on realising where he is he seizes a nearby confetti cannon which he uses to propel himself to the space station's airlock. There a shocked Mike and Gary assist him back aboard the space station and revive him. The Doctor explains that while everyone floating in space is frozen, but they are not dead. He also reveals that he had increased the gravity, allowing them to remain within the space station’s range.

Belinda

Accessing the space station's systems, through a nearby terminal, The Doctor discovers that Kid is uploading a delta wave that he intends to broadcast during the song contest. This deadly signal could potentially kill three trillion viewers across the galaxy by destroying their brains. Searching for a production booth, so that he can use a caustic hyperlink, The Doctor comes across a museum showcasing the history of the song contest, featuring a holographic Graham Norton.

Meanwhile, Belinda, Cora and Len manage to hack into the space station’s systems as well. But when Kid, notices the interference, he confronts The Doctor, which results in an exchange of threats. The Doctor though is unaware that Belinda, Cora and Len are eavesdropping on them and so is still unaware that Belinda is still aboard the space station. During this exchange Cora catches sight of Wynn in the background, prompting Len to question Cora, who is forced to reveal her identity as a Hellion, a secret she has kept to avoid the stigma attached to her kind, as they are often subjected to disparaging rumours that bars her from singing in the contest. She has even gone as far as cutting of her horns.

Cora also recounts how their peaceful planet, called Hellia, was ravaged by the Corporation, the creators of a beverage flavouring called PoppyHoney and who are the sponsors of the song contest. It is revealed that Kid is driven by vengeance as he sees the viewers of the contest as complicit in the Corporation's exploitation of his home planet. Despite Len being unhappy that Cora has been lying to him throughout their songwriting partnership, Cora persuades Len to join their cause to stop Kid.

Mrs Flood

In the control room, The Doctor suddenly appears as a hologram, distracting Kid long enough for him to slip in unnoticed and dismantle the delta wave before it can be transmitted. Angered by the destruction Kid attempted to unleash upon the galaxy, The Doctor begins torturing him with a control glove. Despite receiving another vision of Susan, who implores him to stop, The Doctor only hesitates briefly before continuing, ignoring her pleas to stop. He only relents when Belinda arrives and he sees that she is safe and also her horror at the extent of his actions.

With the crisis over, The Doctor sets Gary and Mike to work, retrieving everyone floating in space and utilizing Rylan's cryochamber to revive them. When most of the attendees have returned to the main arena, Rylan announces that the song contest has been officially called off. However, he introduces one final contestant, that he wants everyone to hear. This is Cora who boldly declares herself a Hellion and that the Corporation attempted to suppress her story and song. With passion, she then sings a heartfelt song in her native language about Hellia, stirring the crowd to applause and be moved to tears.

A little bit later The Doctor and Belinda locate the TARDIS in the museum, having been retrieved by the contest’s staff. In their conversation, they mention the Earth, prompting the hologram of Graham Norton to appear. He the delivers some shocking news when he announces that Earth was destroyed on the 24th May 2025 - the very day they have been unable to return to. Alarmed by this terrible news, The Doctor and Belinda hastily make their way back to the TARDIS, where the fully primed Vindicator should allow them to travel to that date on Earth. The Doctor promises Belinda that he is not just going to take her home but he is also going to save the Earth. However, when he activates the TARDIS, the roundels flash red and the ominous sound of the Cloister Bell chimes. As the TARDIS groans an explosion suddenly rocks the TARDIS, flinging its doors off their hinges.

Meanwhile, back on the space station, Gary and Mike revive the last person. This is Mrs Flood, who is very disorientated and eager to find out if The Doctor is still aboard the space station. When she learns that he has already left a regeneration process starts. Gary and Mike watch in disbelief as Mrs. Flood splits into two individuals. Having undergone a bi-generation, the new incarnation identifies herself as being The Rani. Clearly confident, she is instantly dismissive of her earlier incarnation and announces while Mrs Flood became a Rani, she is the true embodiment of the title. Mrs Flood defers to her and hands over the readings of the Vindicator. The Rani strides off, declaring her intent to bring The Doctor absolute terror, her former incarnation in tow.