We Can't Stop What's Coming

"Those creatures they killed are their own ancestors."

Writer: Steve Cole

Format: Short Story

Released: October 2019

Printed in: The Target Storybook 09

Featuring: Eighth Doctor, Fitz, Trix

Synopsis

"We're all stories in the end..."

In this exciting collection you'll find all-new stories spinning off from some of your favourite Doctor Who moments across the history of the series.

Discover what happened next, what went on before, and what occurred off-screen in an inventive selection of sequels, side-trips, foreshadowings and first-hand accounts – and look forward too, with a brand new adventure for the Thirteenth Doctor.

Each story expands in thrilling ways upon aspects of Doctor Who's enduring legend. With contributions from show luminaries past and present – including Colin Baker, Matthew Waterhouse, Vinay Patel, Joy Wilkinson and Terrance Dicks – The Target Storybook is a once-in-a-lifetime tour around the wonders of the Whoniverse.

Verdict

We Can't Stop What's Coming was a very good little adventure to continue my reading of The Target Storybook! I must admit that I have somewhat been putting off reading this story from the collection for a little while because I am so far away from the run of the Eighth Doctor, Fitz and Trix in the Eighth Doctor Adventures novels and I was worried that I wasn't going to understand a lot of their relationship or what was going on as I figured that this would continue the theme of the book in that it would be some sort of sequel, prequel or extension of an existing story, with this particular case being something similar for one of their EDA novels. After reading, I'm none the wiser as to whether this was the case as I've only read as far as War of the Daleks in the EDAs, but I felt like this served as a really strong standalone adventure! As far as I am aware, this was my first experience of Trix as a companion and I really enjoyed her and whilst I wasn't a massive fan of Fitz in Fitz's Story as part of The Company of Friends, he was more enjoyable here for sure. I already have the sense that when I do eventually come to this trio in my sporadic reading of the EDAs, it will be Trix that I like more. She was an enjoyable character and the way she was playing the likes of Jakarta and her accounts team into thinking she was also a sim was terrific. She felt a bit cheeky and devious and I liked that. Of course, that could be completely misrepresentative of her character from the books and I won't know for a very long time yet. I liked at the start how both Fitz and Trix were almost mocking the Doctor for 'his thing' when it came to landing the TARDIS and having that first walk around outside to take in the new surroundings of what could literally be anywhere and when. That was nice and would pretty much apply for any incarnation of the Doctor. A time scoop being in play was fantastic and I liked how the Doctor deduced that almost immediately and there was a clear sense of distain felt towards that. Part of the planet had actually been picked up and scooped 10,000 years into the future which was intriguing and I immediately wanted to know the answer. What I got was a horrific prospect with a team of hunters out for a bonus actually unknowingly killing their Neanderthal ancestors and turning themselves into time anomalies or paradoxes ready for harvesting as a weapon! That was an audacious plan from the culprits which I very much admired. It was unique and really well done and I have to admit that from a plot perspective I only wish the story was longer and had more pages to develop. The ending being a case of the Doctor only being able to save Jakarta and her ancestor that hadn't been killed in the hunt was pretty grim because her three comrades had perished by virtue of their generations not existing and there was nothing that could be done. It was an impactful statement for sure. My only major qualm with the story was the format of having it in the first person but from both the perspective of Fitz and Jakarta. That was just unnecessary and made it really confusing at the start as I'm not sure that method was established well or just entirely beneficial. I wasn't a fan at all! Thankfully though, the plot was excellent and really intriguing which made for a great read as a whole.

Rating: 8/10