Doctor-less!Master for rude_not_ginger
A/N: I have never, ever written Martha before this so I hope I did it well enough even if it's only a tiny part.
Martha walked next to Jack down the corridor. "You're certain it's him?" asked Jack, worry forming a hard lump in the pit of his stomach.
"Quite certain."
"And there's no sign of the Doctor?" He couldn't hide the worry in his tone.
"The TARDIS let us search some of the rooms, but not his own. She's... different somehow. Changed by the Master or something he's done. Reminds me of the sort of trauma that would show in a human that witnessed something horrible and blocked it out." she said, unable to suppress a shiver. The kept walking, the two Companions, towards the end of the corridor but she stops well before they reach the heavily guarded room. Jack gives her a quizzical look, a silent, "Aren't you coming?".
"For all the things that monster has done. It's wrong. He's just.. Something isn't right with him. In his head."
"This is the Master we're talking about, Martha, of course there's something not right going on in that head of his." he scoffed, trying to make light of the situation.
"Don't you think I know that?" It's bitter and sharp and she regrets it the moment it comes out. Yes, Jack was on the Valiant, but she was on Earth. They looked on from above while she had to live that Year. That terrible Year. "I'm telling you. Whatever's happened to the Doctor, it took that brilliant, sadistic mind of his and-" She stopped then, closing her eyes a moment and taking a steadying breath. How could she explain this?
"He's just wrong."
Jack feels a chill settle deep in his bones at her words and the look on her face. "So you aren't coming in with me." It's more a statement of fact but she answers, though not directly, anyways.
"I've kept him sedated after he tried to get out the first time. It's not enough to knock him out but he's a bit slow. If you plan on having an actual conversation with him, you'll have to be patient. He's given it regularly enough so you should have a good hour or so."
Jack took a deep breath, nodding curtly and looking to that lonely door at the end of the hall. "I don't plan on being long." He strode away from Martha then, the soldiers at the door, checking his identification for what felt like the billionth time before allowing him entrance to the room. "Just give a shout if you have any troubles, sir." Then they opened the door.
As the door shut behind him, he had to take a moment to adjust to the dim light in the room around them. The light above them flickered and reminded him of a bad horror film but it had more than likely been broken by the Master since he could still see the small, glittering shards on the floor. Not enough to be dangerous, so obviously someone had cleaned up the mess.
"Go away."
Jack frowned. "Master?"
Silence and he thought he saw a dark form shift from a huddled position in the corner. His sight adjusted and he saw the Master watching him, as if he couldn't quite place if he were real or something imagined. Jack took a step forward and he tensed like a wounded animal that was trapped, eyes looking around to find another spot to move. Following his instincts, he went still again, Martha's words in his mind from before and that sense of wrong was like a cloying vapor in the air.
"Do you know who I am? Do you remember me?"
The Master might have scoffed then or he could have simply shifted to sit, his suit catching on the wall. "My very favorite toy. You're wrong."
He couldn't help but tense at the cavalier announcement but there was still the very real sense of not right to all of this.
"Do you know where the Doctor is, Master?"
He was met with silence again and was the Master, rocking? Slow, halting movements and wringing his hands. He asked again, this time with all the authority and firmness in his voice he could muster, despite his growing dread. "Where is the Doctor!"
The Master didn't laugh and Jack found himself surprised at that fact since he had expected it. So grand announcement of the Doctor's demise. The confession, that wasn't even really a confession, was crueler than anything. "He's sleeping."
He thought to question, snap at him out of anger until it dawned on him. Sleeping. Oh, something horrible had happened to them. All three of them and it had started with the Doctor. Maybe it had been an accident or maybe it had been planned out and purposeful but now... The deed was done and it had broken what mind the Master had left and sent the TARDIS into her own kind of madness.
Jack felt like he should be sick, scream, something, anything but he just turned away and to the door. "We're finished in here." he announced, trying to hide the tremble in his voice.
The Master half fell, half crawled out of his position on the floor towards him. "No.." His mind and body were still very weak from the sedatives they'd been pumping through him but he managed another half crawl to grab onto the edge of his coat.
"I can fix it. They've tipped but I can fix it. Let me fix it." he blurted out, so far from his typical restraint and Jack only felt sorry for him.
"There's nothing to fix." he said, leaning down and removing his hand from his coat. The Master stared in confusion, still uncomprehending and Jack couldn't help but feel so very sorry for him.
"There's just living with it."
prompt: Doctor-less!Master for rude_not_ginger
words: 1010
Martha walked next to Jack down the corridor. "You're certain it's him?" asked Jack, worry forming a hard lump in the pit of his stomach.
"Quite certain."
"And there's no sign of the Doctor?" He couldn't hide the worry in his tone.
"The TARDIS let us search some of the rooms, but not his own. She's... different somehow. Changed by the Master or something he's done. Reminds me of the sort of trauma that would show in a human that witnessed something horrible and blocked it out." she said, unable to suppress a shiver. The kept walking, the two Companions, towards the end of the corridor but she stops well before they reach the heavily guarded room. Jack gives her a quizzical look, a silent, "Aren't you coming?".
"For all the things that monster has done. It's wrong. He's just.. Something isn't right with him. In his head."
"This is the Master we're talking about, Martha, of course there's something not right going on in that head of his." he scoffed, trying to make light of the situation.
"Don't you think I know that?" It's bitter and sharp and she regrets it the moment it comes out. Yes, Jack was on the Valiant, but she was on Earth. They looked on from above while she had to live that Year. That terrible Year. "I'm telling you. Whatever's happened to the Doctor, it took that brilliant, sadistic mind of his and-" She stopped then, closing her eyes a moment and taking a steadying breath. How could she explain this?
"He's just wrong."
Jack feels a chill settle deep in his bones at her words and the look on her face. "So you aren't coming in with me." It's more a statement of fact but she answers, though not directly, anyways.
"I've kept him sedated after he tried to get out the first time. It's not enough to knock him out but he's a bit slow. If you plan on having an actual conversation with him, you'll have to be patient. He's given it regularly enough so you should have a good hour or so."
Jack took a deep breath, nodding curtly and looking to that lonely door at the end of the hall. "I don't plan on being long." He strode away from Martha then, the soldiers at the door, checking his identification for what felt like the billionth time before allowing him entrance to the room. "Just give a shout if you have any troubles, sir." Then they opened the door.
As the door shut behind him, he had to take a moment to adjust to the dim light in the room around them. The light above them flickered and reminded him of a bad horror film but it had more than likely been broken by the Master since he could still see the small, glittering shards on the floor. Not enough to be dangerous, so obviously someone had cleaned up the mess.
"Go away."
Jack frowned. "Master?"
Silence and he thought he saw a dark form shift from a huddled position in the corner. His sight adjusted and he saw the Master watching him, as if he couldn't quite place if he were real or something imagined. Jack took a step forward and he tensed like a wounded animal that was trapped, eyes looking around to find another spot to move. Following his instincts, he went still again, Martha's words in his mind from before and that sense of wrong was like a cloying vapor in the air.
"Do you know who I am? Do you remember me?"
The Master might have scoffed then or he could have simply shifted to sit, his suit catching on the wall. "My very favorite toy. You're wrong."
He couldn't help but tense at the cavalier announcement but there was still the very real sense of not right to all of this.
"Do you know where the Doctor is, Master?"
He was met with silence again and was the Master, rocking? Slow, halting movements and wringing his hands. He asked again, this time with all the authority and firmness in his voice he could muster, despite his growing dread. "Where is the Doctor!"
The Master didn't laugh and Jack found himself surprised at that fact since he had expected it. So grand announcement of the Doctor's demise. The confession, that wasn't even really a confession, was crueler than anything. "He's sleeping."
He thought to question, snap at him out of anger until it dawned on him. Sleeping. Oh, something horrible had happened to them. All three of them and it had started with the Doctor. Maybe it had been an accident or maybe it had been planned out and purposeful but now... The deed was done and it had broken what mind the Master had left and sent the TARDIS into her own kind of madness.
Jack felt like he should be sick, scream, something, anything but he just turned away and to the door. "We're finished in here." he announced, trying to hide the tremble in his voice.
The Master half fell, half crawled out of his position on the floor towards him. "No.." His mind and body were still very weak from the sedatives they'd been pumping through him but he managed another half crawl to grab onto the edge of his coat.
"I can fix it. They've tipped but I can fix it. Let me fix it." he blurted out, so far from his typical restraint and Jack only felt sorry for him.
"There's nothing to fix." he said, leaning down and removing his hand from his coat. The Master stared in confusion, still uncomprehending and Jack couldn't help but feel so very sorry for him.
"There's just living with it."
prompt: Doctor-less!Master for rude_not_ginger
words: 1010