Fabula
S22E2 · Attack of the Cybermen Part 2
S22E2
· Attack of the Cybermen Part 2

Lytton hires Griffiths as bodyguard with grim stakes

Lytton finalizes the desperate mission to steal a time vessel before the Cybermen can divert Halley’s Comet. Under pressure of near-certain death if exposed on the surface, he recruits the reluctant Griffiths as his bodyguard using a mercenary offer. Lytton arms Griffiths with a Cyber gun and frames the task in stark terms: either secure the vessel and earn untold wealth, or face transformation into a Cyberman. The exchange underscores the mission’s peril and Lytton’s ruthless pragmatism in the face of annihilation.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

3

Lytton assigns Griffiths as his bodyguard and explains his role in the mission, emphasizing the importance of keeping him alive.

resignation to acceptance

Griffiths expresses concerns about his role and the risks involved, questioning why he was chosen over the Cryons.

anxiety to cautious trust

Lytton persuades Griffiths with the promise of a large sum of money and the prospect of survival if they succeed in capturing the time vessel.

hesitation to determination

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

3
Griffiths
primary

Terrified pragmatism torn between greed and self-preservation

Griffiths, clad in his rucksack of supplies, stands visibly shaken as Lytton outlines a mission that offers fortune or annihilation. His posture betrays reluctance and fear, though he ultimately accepts the armaments and the precarious bargain.

Goals in this moment
  • • Survive the immediate mission to collect promised wealth
  • • Avoid becoming a Cyberman
Active beliefs
  • • Lytton’s promises may be illusions
  • • Money cannot outweigh the mission’s lethal odds
Character traits
visible anxiety reluctant compliance cautious skepticism defensive questioning
Follow Griffiths's journey
Commander Lytton
Commander
 primary

Calculating detachment masking existential urgency

Commander Lytton stands with measured authority in the cramped maintenance tunnel, offering Griffiths a mercenary contract that is both salvation and suicide pact. His voice carries cold precision as he outlines Griffiths' role and the dire stakes of failure.

Goals in this moment
  • • Recruit a disposable bodyguard to ensure his own survival during the heist
  • • Secure the time vessel to escape Cyberman dominion
Active beliefs
  • • Human life is expendable currency in a war against Cybermen
  • • Only by taking extreme risks can he restore his autonomy
Character traits
ruthless pragmatism authoritative presence cold precision in speech manipulative charm
Follow Commander Lytton's journey
Supporting 1
Threst
Cryon Ambassador
 secondary

Coolly analytical but committed to Cryon interests

Threst, the Cryon negotiator, observes the transaction with detached pragmatism, clarifying the biological constraints that prevent his own involvement in the surface mission. His measured remarks frame the crew’s make-up and the urgency of their alliance.

Goals in this moment
  • • Ensure Cryon needs are met through cooperation with Lytton’s crew
  • • Clarify limitations that shape the crew’s composition
Active beliefs
  • • Alliances with humans are temporary necessities
  • • Biological imperatives dictate strategic choices
Character traits
measured pragmatism detached authority biological constraint explanation facilitative negotiation
Follow Threst's journey

Objects Involved

Significant items in this scene

2
Griffiths' Supply Bag

Griffiths’ rucksack, previously slung carelessly, is now pressed into urgent service as part of his mercenary gear. Filled with ammunition and supplies for the hazardous trek to the time vessel, it becomes the physical burden that symbolizes his reluctant enlistment in Lytton’s doomed mission.

Before: Canvas rucksack resting on the tunnel floor, worn …
After: Worn rucksack now tightly gripped by Griffiths, stuffed …
Before: Canvas rucksack resting on the tunnel floor, worn and unremarkable, before Griffiths struggles it onto his back.
After: Worn rucksack now tightly gripped by Griffiths, stuffed with mission-critical ammunition and supplies that mark his participation in the desperate heist.
Orcini's Backup Pistol

The Cyber gun, issued by Lytton as part of the mercenary contract, is placed directly into Griffiths’ hands. Its unstable violet discharge and menacing hum serve as both weapon and ominous reminder: he holds the means to fight or die.

Before: Cyber gun resting in Lytton’s possession, its angular …
After: Cyber gun now wielded by Griffiths, its cyclical …
Before: Cyber gun resting in Lytton’s possession, its angular receiver and matte-black casing reflecting the dim tunnel lighting.
After: Cyber gun now wielded by Griffiths, its cyclical clicks and faint hum marking him as Lytton’s armed bodyguard on a suicide mission.

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

1
Cryon Base Maintenance Tunnels

The Cryon base maintenance tunnels serve as the claustrophobic stage for Lytton’s last-ditch recruitment. Their narrow confines, flickering lumen strips, and industrial detritus amplify the tension of a mission that offers no safe exit. The air’s acrid bite and metallic tang underscore the desperation of their pact.

Atmosphere Crammed with urgency and fear beneath a veneer of cold calculation
Function Secluded negotiation chamber for clandestine agreements
Symbolism Represents the confined moral space within which choices are made under existential threat
Access Restricted to authorized personnel, likely monitored by Cryon security protocols
Flickering, yellowed lumen strips casting skeletal shadows Rust-streaked metallic walls lined with humming service conduits Ozone-laced air carrying the metallic tang of Cyber technology

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

No narrative connections mapped yet

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Key Dialogue

"LYTTON: Your function, as always, Griffiths, is muscle."
"GRIFFITHS: A minder?"
"LYTTON: A bodyguard."