The Birth of the Unfeeling: Davros' Final Command
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Davros orders Gharman to implement chromosomal variations into the Dalek embryos, which will remove all sense of morality, right or wrong, from the creatures, to which Gharman objects but is silenced by Davros.
Nyder confirms the Daleks' readiness, and Davros declares it is time for them to act, setting the stage for their deployment.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Horror-stricken and despairing, torn between his duty to Davros and his moral conscience, which he knows is about to be erased from the Daleks forever.
Gharman stands before Davros, his hands trembling as he holds the chromosomal mutation instructions. His voice is strained, his protests desperate as he warns of the consequences of removing conscience, emotion, and pity from the Daleks. He pleads with Davros, his eyes wide with horror, but is silenced with a single command. His body language—hunched shoulders, clenched fists—betrays his internal conflict between loyalty and moral outrage. He leaves the room defeated, his last protest cut short by Davros’s authority.
- • To persuade Davros to reconsider the moral implications of his orders, even as he knows it is futile.
- • To delay or subvert the implementation of the chromosomal mutations, if only for a moment.
- • That the Daleks, without conscience, will become unstoppable monsters capable of unimaginable atrocities.
- • That his own complicity in this process will haunt him, even if he is powerless to stop it.
Cold, calculating, and triumphant—his emotional detachment masks a deep-seated belief in his own infallibility and the righteousness of his vision for the Daleks.
Davros stands at the center of the Thal control room, his mechanical chair humming with quiet authority as he hands Gharman the chromosomal mutation instructions. His voice is cold and precise, each word a scalpel cutting through Gharman’s protests. He dismisses moral objections with clinical detachment, insisting that the Daleks’ lack of conscience is not a flaw but an improvement. When Nyder confirms the Daleks’ readiness, Davros’s face remains impassive, his declaration to proceed marking the moment as irreversible. His posture and tone exude absolute control, leaving no room for dissent or hesitation.
- • To ensure the Daleks are created without moral constraints, making them perfect weapons of annihilation.
- • To eliminate any dissent or hesitation in his team, reinforcing absolute loyalty to his vision.
- • That morality is a weakness in warfare, and its removal will create the ultimate soldiers.
- • That the Daleks’ existence is justified by the necessity of total domination over Skaro and beyond.
A mix of horror, urgency, and helplessness—he knows the stakes of what is happening but is powerless to intervene directly in this moment. His silence is heavy with the weight of what is to come.
The Doctor is present in the Thal control room but is not directly involved in this specific exchange. His earlier conversation with Bettan about the Daleks’ development has set the stage for this moment, and his determination to stop them is palpable. Though he does not speak during this event, his presence looms as a silent witness to the moral horror unfolding. His earlier dialogue with Bettan—where he reveals his knowledge of Davros’s true intentions—hints at his internal turmoil and the impossible choice he will soon face.
- • To absorb every detail of this moment, knowing it will inform his future actions to stop the Daleks.
- • To remain unnoticed, lest he be stopped before he can act.
- • That the Daleks, as they are being created, represent an existential threat to the universe.
- • That his intervention is the only thing that can prevent a future of endless genocide.
Detached and professional, his emotions either suppressed or nonexistent in the face of his duty. He is a tool of Davros’s will, devoid of personal conflict.
Nyder stands at attention near Davros, his posture rigid and his voice steady as he reports that the Daleks are in position and ready for deployment. His loyalty to Davros is absolute, and he shows no reaction to Gharman’s protests or the moral weight of the moment. He is the embodiment of obedience, his role reduced to confirming orders and ensuring their execution. His presence underscores the inevitability of Davros’s command, as if the Daleks’ readiness is a foregone conclusion.
- • To ensure that Davros’s orders are carried out without delay or interference.
- • To reinforce the impression of absolute control and readiness in the Daleks’ deployment.
- • That Davros’s vision for the Daleks is the only path to victory, and that moral objections are irrelevant.
- • That his role is to execute orders, not to question them.
Bettan is not physically present during this specific event, as she has already left the Thal control room after her …
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The **chromosomal mutation instructions** handed to Gharman by Davros are the physical manifestation of the Daleks’ ideological birth. This piece of paper outlines the systematic removal of conscience, emotion, and pity from the Dalek embryos, ensuring they will be devoid of moral constraints. It is not merely a scientific directive but a **blueprint for genocide**, a document that seals the fate of Skaro and the universe. Gharman’s horror at reading it underscores its significance: this is the moment when the Daleks transition from potential weapons to **ideological abominations**, their very existence a rejection of humanity. The paper is passed from Davros to Gharman, its contents becoming the irreversible command that sets the Daleks on their path.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The **Thal control room** serves as the sterile, high-tech epicenter of this moral catastrophe. Its glowing consoles, humming machinery, and cold, clinical atmosphere reflect the Thals’ false sense of triumph and the detached efficiency of Davros’s commands. The room is a **symbol of institutional power**, where the fate of Skaro is decided not through battle but through bureaucratic decree. The Doctor’s silent presence in the room contrasts sharply with the Thals’ jubilation, underscoring the **dissonance between victory and moral horror**. The control room is also a **temporal pivot point**: the moment when the war’s end becomes the Daleks’ beginning, and where the Doctor’s impossible choice is forged.
Organizations Involved
Institutional presence and influence
The **Daleks**, though not yet physically present in this event, are the **ideological and genetic offspring** of Davros’s commands. Their involvement is **embryonic but existential**: the chromosomal mutations ordered here will define their nature as **monsters without conscience, pity, or hesitation**. The event is the **birth of their ideology**, where their lack of morality is not an accident but a **deliberate design**. Nyder’s confirmation that the Daleks are ‘in position’ hints at their impending physical manifestation, but their true power lies in the **moral vacuum** Davros has engineered for them. This event is the **moment of their conceptual creation**, where they transition from potential weapons to **inevitable forces of annihilation**.
The **Thals**, as an organization, are represented in this event through their **institutional blind trust in Davros** and their **unquestioning celebration of victory**. The Councillor’s earlier declaration of amnesty and the Thal people’s cheers create a backdrop of false security, while the control room’s sterile efficiency reflects their **bureaucratic detachment from the moral implications of their actions**. The Thals’ involvement here is passive but critical: their victory has enabled Davros’s rise, and their celebration will soon be shattered by the Daleks’ betrayal. The organization’s power dynamics are shifting beneath the surface, as Davros’s true intentions begin to unfold.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"The Councillor's announcement drives the Doctor to reveal Davros's treachery to Bettan, attempting to shatter the illusion of peace."
"The Councillor's announcement drives the Doctor to reveal Davros's treachery to Bettan, attempting to shatter the illusion of peace."
"Davros's order to remove morality from the Daleks is followed by Nyder confirming the Daleks' readiness, leading to their deployment; building cause and effect progression."
"Davros's order to remove morality from the Daleks is followed by Nyder confirming the Daleks' readiness, leading to their deployment; building cause and effect progression."
"The Doctor's warning to Bettan about Davros's ruthlessness thematically parallels Davros's instruction to remove morality from the Daleks; both emphasize Davros's lack of conscience."
"While Davros declares the Daleks' rise, the Councillor celebrates a false peace, creating dramatic irony and highlighting the thematic contrast between Davros's destructive ambition and the Thals' naive hope."
"While Davros declares the Daleks' rise, the Councillor celebrates a false peace, creating dramatic irony and highlighting the thematic contrast between Davros's destructive ambition and the Thals' naive hope."
"The Doctor's warning to Bettan about Davros's ruthlessness thematically parallels Davros's instruction to remove morality from the Daleks; both emphasize Davros's lack of conscience."
"The Councillor's announcement drives the Doctor to reveal Davros's treachery to Bettan, attempting to shatter the illusion of peace."
"The Councillor's announcement drives the Doctor to reveal Davros's treachery to Bettan, attempting to shatter the illusion of peace."
"The Daleks' readiness leads directly to their attack on the celebrating Thals, shattering the illusion of peace."
"The Daleks' readiness leads directly to their attack on the celebrating Thals, shattering the illusion of peace."
"Davros's order to remove morality from the Daleks is followed by Nyder confirming the Daleks' readiness, leading to their deployment; building cause and effect progression."
"Davros's order to remove morality from the Daleks is followed by Nyder confirming the Daleks' readiness, leading to their deployment; building cause and effect progression."
"The Doctor's warning to Bettan about Davros's ruthlessness thematically parallels Davros's instruction to remove morality from the Daleks; both emphasize Davros's lack of conscience."
"The Doctor's warning to Bettan about Davros's ruthlessness thematically parallels Davros's instruction to remove morality from the Daleks; both emphasize Davros's lack of conscience."
Key Dialogue
"**GHARMAN**: *Davros, this will create enormous mental defects.* **DAVROS**: *Not defects, improvements.* **GHARMAN**: *It'll mean creatures without conscience, no sense of right or wrong, no pity. They'll be without feeling or emotion.* **DAVROS**: *Correct. Now see that my orders are carried out.*"
"**DAVROS**: *Without question, Gharman.*"
"**NYDER**: *The Daleks are in position. They will act on your command.* **DAVROS**: *I see no reason to delay any longer.*"