London, 1963. Returning to the scenes of his first televised adventure, the Doctor and new companion Ace play a tricky game of bluff and deceit involving two rival Dalek factions, local soldiers, and the awesomely powerful Gallifreyan artefact, the Hand of Omega...

With two factions of Daleks involved in a race war on Earth, the Doctor takes care of old business by having the Hand of Omega ceremoniously but quietly buried in a churchyard. His actions do not go unobserved, and leaving behind a bored Ace without a purposeful outlet could spell trouble as well.

The Doctor plans to let one of the Dalek factions have the Hand of Omega (but not too easily, of course) while keeping Gilmore and his military men preoccupied in a safe territory, but that plan could be threatened by a mole in their midst and a miscalculation on the Doctor's part.