To many people in Earth's future, Salamander was a legend; the man who founded the Sun-Catcher-a device which controlled the weather and enabled the wold to stabilize itself economically. In reality, Salamander ruled a small group of people who lived underground believing Salamander's leis that the surface was a wasteland, roamed by creatures. Salamander's people were creating natural disasters to destroy vast lands and property. Salamander would then devise ways of saving the people on the surface so they thought that he was a hero. This actually enabled him to rid himself of political opponents and take over as world leader. The Doctor looked like Salamander, and he used this to infiltrate his bases and expose him as a fraud. In turn, Salamander attempted to trick Jamie McCrimmon and Victoria Waterfield into thinking that he was the Doctor thereby making his way aboard the Tardis. Salamander's unfamiliarity with the ship however caused him to open the doors in flight and he was sucked out into the Space/Time Vortex.