Fabula
S15E12 · Image of the Fendahl Part 4

Colby delivers Fendahl deadline warning

Colby rushes into the lab, his voice tight with urgency, and counts down the scanner’s shutdown before giving the Doctor a terse three-minute ultimatum. The countdown marks the final window to disrupt the Fendahl’s formation before it stabilizes irrevocably, turning a controlled delay into a ticking clock. Colby’s abrupt departure forces the Doctor and Leela to act instantly, stripping away any margin for hesitation as the lab’s equipment falls silent.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

2

Colby counts down and switches off the scanner, then informs the Doctor they have three minutes.

calm to urgency ['lab']

Colby exits the lab, leaving the Doctor with a time constraint.

['lab']

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

1

Fear-driven urgency masking residual skepticism under time pressure

Colby speaks in clipped, numerical beats while his fingers slam the scanner’s kill switch, then he pivots and sprints toward the exit without awaiting response. His posture radiates controlled panic, the embodiment of a man trading argument for action.

Goals in this moment
  • To create a finite window for the Doctor to act before the Fendahl solidifies
  • To remove himself from imminent danger while forcing others to confront the crisis
Active beliefs
  • The Fendahl’s formation can still be disrupted within a three-minute window
  • Remaining near the scanner increases personal risk beyond tolerable limits
Character traits
urgent decisive pragmatic terse
Follow Adam Colby's journey

Objects Involved

Significant items in this scene

1
Genesis Origin Research Scanner

The Genesis Origin Research Scanner is violently switched off after coldbloodedly counting down from five to one, its twin functions—biosignature analysis and ritual override—silenced mid-operation. The Doctor’s tactical window hinges on the darkness of its screen and the abrupt cessation of its data stream.

Before: Active with flickering screen and geologic timeline overlay, …
After: Powered down with dark screen and halted countdown; …
Before: Active with flickering screen and geologic timeline overlay, approximately 98 hours 56 minutes remaining
After: Powered down with dark screen and halted countdown; case repurposed for tactical manipulation

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

1
Fendelman's Lab Exterior

Fendelman’s lab exterior serves as the cramped stage for urgent science and hasty retreat, its cracked concrete and flickering lamps amplifying the scanner’s silence into a cavernous void. The metallic shriek of sealant under psychic pressure at the threshold momentarily ceases, making room for Colby’s bootsteps to echo toward the exit.

Atmosphere Clammy tension thick with the scent of ozone and static electricity
Function Staging ground for last-second tactical maneuvering and forced departure
Symbolism Embodiment of isolated intellectual hubris poisoned by forces beyond human comprehension
Access Limited to authorized personnel; rapidly becoming lethal to occupants
Flickering high-pressure sodium lamps casting sickly yellow pools Rust-streaked tool lockers groaning under psychic pulses

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

What led here 3

"Colby’s activation of the scanner beam (Beat_37b3cbe8e67734df) triggers the countdown that Colby later confirms as three minutes (Beat_b75f310921d683f8), forming the temporal spine of the climax and evacuation."

Leela and the Doctor race against the clock
S15E12 · Image of the Fendahl Part …

"Colby’s activation of the scanner beam (Beat_37b3cbe8e67734df) triggers the countdown that Colby later confirms as three minutes (Beat_b75f310921d683f8), forming the temporal spine of the climax and evacuation."

Salt arrives as Tyler exits under protest
S15E12 · Image of the Fendahl Part …

"Colby’s activation of the scanner beam (Beat_37b3cbe8e67734df) triggers the countdown that Colby later confirms as three minutes (Beat_b75f310921d683f8), forming the temporal spine of the climax and evacuation."

Doctor reveals containment plan to Colby
S15E12 · Image of the Fendahl Part …

Key Dialogue

"COLBY: Five, four, three, two, one."
"COLBY: You've got three minutes, Doctor."