Fic: The Broken Key (1/4)
Title: The Broken Key (1/4)
Author: shinyopals
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Rose/Ten II
Summary: Trapped and imprisoned, with no hope of rescue from Torchwood, the Doctor and Rose are forced to go to desperate lengths to save each other and the universe from a deadly enemy who's been watching them for a long time.
Author's notes: Thanks to ginamak for beta reading and various others for encouragement!
Episode 19 and the finale of of a virtual series at the_altverse, following Clocksleepers last week.
Virtual Series Masterlist
The Master stepped forward to bring himself nose to nose with the Doctor. The group of armed guards he’d bought with him shuffled further into the room and spread out.
“You,” he began accusingly, “were in another universe.”
“And you were dead,” said the Doctor. “Looks like we’ve got come catching up to do.”
The Master grinned suddenly, then held out his hand. “I’ll take your screwdriver,” he said. “It was all a lot of fun to see what you did with it in the maze, but the games are over now!” Silently and slowly, the Doctor reached up to his pocket. “Oh!” said the Master, holding up a hand to temporarily stop his movement. “I forgot to mention. You try anything - anything at all - and my friends here-“ he gestured to the guards, “are shooting your wife. Multiple times.” His lips curled into another mocking smile as he said the word ‘wife’ and he turned to idly look Rose up and down.
The Doctor tensed. Every part of him wanted to jump forward and do something. He didn’t even know what he could do. He just knew he had to find some way of getting Rose out of there and away from the Master.
He bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood, the sharp pain and coppery taste forcing him to concentrate on the present. Rose was still standing a little behind him; to his relief, she stayed still and quiet. Keeping all his movements slow and controlled, he handed over the sonic screwdriver, wishing his hand wasn’t shaking so obviously. There was no other choice. One gun he might be able to freeze up or deflect, but with a whole group of guards ready to shoot at Rose, he couldn’t take that chance.
The Master buzzed it on and off a couple of times with a slightly mocking expression before dropping it to the floor and crushing it under one shiny, black shoe.
Then he turned back to Rose. The Doctor flinched, at which the Master’s smirk only broadened.
“And you’ll be Rose Tyler,” he said, leaning forward as he studied her.
Something inside the Doctor snapped and he pushed Rose back, forcing himself in between the two of them.
“Leave her out of this,” he growled. “This is between you and me. It’s got nothing to do with Rose.”
“Oh, but this has plenty to do with Rose,” said the Master, voice sickly sweet. He looked over the Doctor’s shoulder now. “I’m told you looked into the heart of the time vortex. All that power.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t like being bored,” said Rose.
He narrowed his eyes a little, still watching her. The Doctor shifted uncomfortably, willing Rose to just keep her head down and not draw attention to herself.
The Master was going to kill her. He’d known ever since the man had walked in and greeted them, but now the certainty of it overwhelmed him. A cold rush of fear washed through him; he wanted to vomit. She was going to die and he was going to watch. The best she could hope for was that the Master found her too boring to draw it out.
“Who’re you, anyway?” she asked. “You seem to know all about me. What about something in return?”
The Master’s face filled with delighted scorn and the Doctor winced. “Don’t you know?” the Master said, sounding joyful. “Didn’t your dear husband fill you in?”
The Doctor heard Rose shrug, rather than felt it. He could just picture her face, which she’d no doubt be keeping carefully blank. He probably should have warned her about this. He’d thought they were safe here. Safe in a parallel universe. No Daleks, all the Cybermen gone and no Time Lords. His oldest and most dangerous enemies were nothing more than memories. Now, here was Rose, completely unprepared for the ruthlessness and sheer insanity facing her. No other enemy would drag out her murder and get so much joy from it, all to watch the Doctor suffer.
“He’s a Time Lord,” he barked out, before the Master could answer in his own way. “He hid from the war and survived, and now we’re the last two.”
The Master didn’t respond by denying the Doctor’s genetic heritage, which must have meant he didn’t yet know. Whatever files he’d accessed at Torchwood, and whatever information he’d obtained through hypnosis, the Doctor’s half-human status hadn’t been part of that. The Doctor supposed it wouldn’t even have occurred to him to ask. No doubt it would come out sooner or later, but for now it was good to have something up his sleeve, even if all he had was the ability to die more quickly than the Master had planned.
Rose didn’t seem to notice his phrasing, but the sharp intake of breath when he said the words ‘Time Lord’ was unmistakeable. He wasn’t sure he’d get a chance to properly explain things, but he suspected she might understand better than most what this meant.
“I think we really should go somewhere more comfortable to catch up,” said the Master, gesturing to guards, their faces blank and hypnotised, who closed in on Rose and the Doctor from their positions around the room. Before the Doctor could say anything else, two of them grabbed and pulled him forward. Behind, he heard Rose shout and struggle for a moment before giving up. He turned back to see her held in place by two of them. She shot him a smile still filled with hope that twisted his stomach in knots.
He couldn’t let anything happen to her. He just couldn’t.
The Master took off at a jaunty pace, leading them out of the room. The maze itself was now blank white corridors, with no trace of the strange landscapes. It had been a very well done illusion. The Doctor was half dragged along until he was able to fall into step and walk. A glance over his shoulder revealed that Rose was in a similar position, and behind her he could just see the top of Captain Jed’s head over the remaining guards. Jed and Isabelle had zoned out the moment the Master arrived, their faces as blank and expressionless as those of the guards.
The Doctor turned forward again and sped up as much as he could while being held in place by either arm.
“How are you alive?” he demanded.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” came the response, the Master slowing down to draw almost level with him and shooting him a grin.
“Yes, and you want to tell me,” he replied, already fed up of this game. What he wanted to know, more than anything, was what was going to happen to them, but he forced himself to avoid the subject. Whatever the Master was going to do with Rose, he didn’t need extra time to think about it.
“Did you really think I’d just refuse to regenerate?” asked the Master derisively.
“I’d hoped,” muttered the Doctor.
“That’s not what it felt like when you were begging me to live,” he drawled. “What a fun way to go, I don’t think. I’d made plans. Humans are so easily led.”
“And how did you get here? Conan Doyle’s key?”
“Conan Doyle?” The Master blinked. “Who? It was a key. The story of how I got that key is quite an entertaining one that I think I’ll save for later.”
“Why didn’t you just go back?” demanded the Doctor. “Why would you land here and stay? This universe is so quiet.”
“Yes, very quiet,” agreed the Master, halting by a door and turning to watch the Doctor again. “I didn’t realise until I read a newspaper, of all things, that you were here. I wouldn’t have thought being in another universe stopped us from feeling the other.” He stepped closer. “Even now, you’re nothing.”
“This world’s out of sync with ours,” agreed the Doctor, in no rush to let the Master know this had nothing to do with the universe and was instead because he was part human.
“Is this what it’s like to be you?” demanded the Master roughly. “All alone in the big, wide universe.”
“Yes,” replied the Doctor quietly, feeling a lump settle in his throat, not out of pain but out of pity. It was funny how none of that seemed to matter any more, now that he was half-human. The acute knowledge that he was the only one had faded so much that, especially with having this new life with Rose, he didn’t even think of it any more. But he remembered what it felt like all too clearly. Now the other him and the Master were both stuck with that crushing loneliness. At least if they’d been together, in the same universe, it wouldn’t have been like that. “So why don’t you go back to him? There’s nothing for you here.”
He couldn’t even feel that guilty for saying it: they’d be less alone and the Time Lord Doctor would be far better equipped for dealing with the Master. Not to mention Rose would be safe.
“Ha!” the Master jumped back and whirled around to the door, pulling it open with a mocking glance over his shoulder. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Leave you and your precious Rose alone.” He stopped in his tracks and narrowed his eyes. “And what do you mean him? He is you, isn’t he?”
The Doctor mentally cursed. Presumably the Master had been assuming this was a loop in the time line: perhaps that the Doctor planned to live with Rose for the rest of her life before returning to their original universe. But if the Master guessed something was off from a single, awkwardly said pronoun, he’d never be able to get away with lying. They knew each other too well.
“Biological metacrisis,” he said. “I grew from the hand.”
The Master stared at him for a few moments. “You’re a knock-off!” he said, sounding amused. “I end up in a parallel universe with a clone of the Doctor. How’s that for serendipity?”
“What do you mean by that?” asked the Doctor sharply. “And I am the Doctor, anyway. Same life, same experiences, same memories. Just... another one.”
“Oh, you don’t need to convince me of that,” said the Master. “Nobody but you could have sounded quite so pretentious when giving speeches.” He paused and considered for a second. “Well, you and Captain moron back there, anyway.” He gestured over the Doctor’s shoulder and grinned. “Did you like my little homage?”
“Loved it,” muttered the Doctor sarcastically.
The Master’s grin widened and he turned to head through the door and down a corridor. The rest of the party was dragged after. They were out of the maze now, in dark and windowless tunnel with pipes running along the ceiling and the remnants of a few health and safety posters on the wall. This was part of the original warehouse, the Doctor suspected.
“But you haven’t said why you’re still here,” he began, trying to skip to keep up with the Master’s strides, wishing the guards would loosen their grip just a little. “You could just go back home!” He was aware he was practically begging now, but despite his own presence, this universe couldn’t hold that much attraction for the Master. Not when there was another Doctor in a place where the universe was right and the Master wouldn’t feel like the last.
Despite his desperation, he still had his wits about him enough to notice a slight stiffening of the Master’s posture.
“You won’t go home... or you can’t?” he asked. The Master gave him a dirty look, which only confirmed it. “The key?”
“Broken,” said the Master shortly. “You’ve seen it?” A nod. “Then you know it’s powerful to look at, even with the perception filter. I didn’t realise what it would do when I found it, so I tried it out. And when I got here, things went wrong.”
“Things went wrong?” the Doctor repeated dumbly.
“Enough of the yapping,” snapped the Master as they reached the end of the tunnel, probably remembering how many times explaining things had ended badly for him in the past.
“But the key- I can help you fix it!”
The Master turned and glared at him. “I don’t need your help!” he replied.
Then he threw open the door and led them into a large room. Like the corridor before it, this one held traces of the original building in the form of pipes and scuffed walls. The Master had clearly set something up here, though. There were computers and multiple screens as well as a few chairs dotted around.
He drew them to a halt maybe twenty feet from the door beside a large, ornate desk which appeared to house the central computer controls. He turned to watch them and leaned back to perch on the edge of the desk. The group gathered around a little, with the Doctor, then Rose (both still held in place by the guards), and then Isabelle and Captain Jed. Their faces were still completely blank.
At the top of those walls ran a line of grubby windows through which the Doctor could see that the sun had already set. He’d hardly thought about time in the virtual maze and he was beginning to remember there was a time limit. Just after half past seven tonight, the world was supposed to end. How far off were they?
The Master seemed to read his mind as he glanced at his watch.
“Nearly seven,” he said cheerfully. “Maybe I’ll put the telly on for a bit! Today’s episode is going to be such a tear-jerker. Poor, poor Captain Jed and Isabelle.” He pretended to wipe his eyes and blow his nose.
“What’s going to happen?” asked Rose.
The Master started. He seemed to have forgotten Rose was even there. The Doctor winced. Why had she had to remind him? The Master must have guessed, from their marriage, that Rose was more than just an ordinary companion for the Doctor. Yet he could never truly understand just how special she was. He’d kill Rose, given the chance, in order to hurt the Doctor, but he’d have done that with anyone the Doctor had travelled with. If she could just stay quiet and keep out of things he might kill her quickly... but the Doctor had no way of explaining this properly to her.
“Ooh, I forgot: you’re a human,” said the Master, walking over towards Rose. “Did you see some of the show?”
“A little bit,” Rose admitted. “What’s gonna happen to them?”
Was the hypnosis taking hold again? The Doctor wasn’t sure. She’d seemed to have broken that link earlier, but she wasn’t running for her life anymore. Maybe it was harder to concentrate on other things now she was still. Especially with Isabelle and the Captain in the room. He only hoped Rose wasn’t trying to distract the Master from him. That would never work.
The Master studied her face with a smirk. The Doctor’s stomach flip-flopped. He could read the contempt in the Master’s eyes - the stupid human girl who was affected by his hypnosis.
“How are you getting back?” he demanded of the Master, desperate to direct attention back to himself. He could keep the Master talking for a while, maybe annoy him a bit. Anything to keep the focus away from Rose.
Unfortunately, the Master seemed to know what he was trying to do, because he dismissed the Doctor with a laugh and kept his attention on Rose. He reached forward to caress her face. Rose leaned back, clearly both revolted and frightened. The Doctor struggled in the tight hold. His fingers were starting to go numb.
“Master, this has nothing to do with Rose!”
“Funny how someone from a species so weak and pathetic could look into the heart of the TARDIS and survive.”
“Jealous, much?” said Rose.
The Doctor spluttered out a badly suppressed laugh at the sudden surprise on the Master’s face before he could stop himself. Rose really shouldn’t be provoking the Master though, and he tried to express as much with his eyes. She wasn’t looking in his direction, instead her gaze was focussed intently on the Master.
“I wonder if I could use you,” murmured the Master. “You’ve got a TARDIS here. Not, I’m assuming the original, but a TARDIS nonetheless. Perhaps you could channel her power...”
“You can’t! That’ll kill her!”
The Master gave the Doctor a look. “Oh no, really? Will it? What a tragedy.”
The Doctor tried to pull away from the guards again. “Just let her go,” he said. It wasn’t any use but he had to try. “Please. I’ll stay here. I’ll do whatever you want.”
He had to save Rose. He couldn’t let anything happen to her. Especially not at the hands of the Master. He’d take almost anything over this. A Dalek would at least be quick. But this - just knowing that soon the Master would tire of talk and could do anything - this was the real torture. Would he kill Rose soon, just for the Doctor’s reaction? He’d planned to kill Martha. Maybe he’d made a bit of a ceremony about it, but it would have been quick.
That had been a symbol, though. Martha had represented, in his mind, the last hope of the humans. He’d been quite happy to keep her family alive, but humiliated. Would he do that for Rose? Keep her there and forced to obey him, just to keep the Doctor in line? It seemed likely. Would it be enough for him, though? The Doctor suppressed a shudder as he remembered Lucy’s bruises and some of the things he’d heard them say. Lucy had been a mockery of some of the Doctor’s companions, he knew that.
“I rather think,” said the Master idly, “that you’ll be doing what I want anyway.”
The Doctor had no answer to that.
“Where’s the TARDIS?” the Master asked suddenly.
“Broken,” said the Doctor.
“I said where?” he said, bringing his hand up to Rose’s face again, less than an inch away.
“LEAVE HER ALONE! At Torchwood. The TARDIS is at Torchwood!”
The Master smirked but dropped his hand. “Key?”
“My pocket, but she is broken.”
The Master stepped forward and the Doctor paused, waiting for him to help himself to the TARDIS key. The Master hesitated, then gestured for one of the guards to drop the Doctor’s hand. “I’m not searching in your suit,” he said, with a roll of his eyes. “Slowly now!” The addition came with another significant look at Rose.
The Doctor handed the key over sullenly. His arm was quickly grabbed again and he wondered how long it would be before the Master used more permanent bonds - or something just as effective, considering what he’d done the last time they’d met. If only the Master would just leave them be... he could take the TARDIS and go anywhere. But that was too much to hope for.
A gesture at the guards behind them made one step forward. The Master handed over the key and a packet from one of his pockets. “Go,” he said. “Canary Wharf.” He turned back to the Doctor. “I don’t think the problems you’ve been having with your lovely little TARDIS are going to apply to me, you know.”
He glanced at his watch again. “Awww, it looks like we’re going to miss the show. What a pity. I think we’ve both got more than enough to be getting on with, though, don’t you?”
“What are we missing?” asked Rose in the same desperate tones as before. The Doctor winced. He’d really thought the hypnosis has worn off, but it clearly hadn’t. And now she seemed to want to have a conversation with the Master about it.
The Master circled around her like a predator. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“Just a hint!” she pleaded. “If you’re not gonna let us watch it you might as well tell us.”
“Well,” he drawled, “let’s just say it doesn’t work out all that well for our friends the Captain and Isabelle.”
“No!” She sounded so horrified. The world was going to end and she was begging for spoilers for a show. Doctor gritted his teeth. How dare the Master do this to her mind?
“It was never going to work, though, was it? An almost immortal alien and his little human companion?” The Master sneered. “Impossible. Tonight, though, they’ll get split up before their time, leaving the dear Captain Jed to wander alone.”
“No!”
It took a moment before the Doctor realised that the cry had not come from Rose. As he turned, he saw Isabelle launch herself at the Master. They seemed to topple to the floor almost in slow motion. The Doctor had trouble tearing his eyes away from the ridiculous scene, but he managed to turn to Rose.
She winked at him.
“Get her off me!” shouted the Master.
The guards stupidly lumbered forward. Their inability to think for themselves made their reactions slow and clumsy. One of them had the presence of mind to keep holding the Doctor, but his other guard left, giving him a free hand.
Now or never, he thought, remembering the conversation he’d had with Rose before they left the Tylers.
“I’m not carrying that! I don’t need it!”
“You said it yourself, Doctor: this is a trap. And it’s been set by someone who knows us. Anyone who knows you won’t bother to search your pockets for weapons because you’d never carry them. So carry one now!”
He pulled out the small grenade from his pocket, thanking his lucky stars he’d given into Rose’s suggestions. Had he really changed so much in such a short time? He took a deep breath and activated the explosive, before throwing it away from the fray and towards the computer table.
A second later there was a loud BANG and a blast of burning light hit his face, sending him tumbling backwards. He’d been prepared for the explosion, but that wasn’t enough to keep himself upright.
He found himself staring up at the ceiling, blinking rapidly as vision returned to his eyes. His ears were still ringing and the rest of the noise in the room seemed somehow distant. How long had it been? It felt like hours but it couldn’t have been more than a few seconds.
Danger, he suddenly remembered and rolled over, tripping over ungainly legs that seemed longer than he remembered as he managed to drag himself upright.
“Oh no you don’t!” snarled the Master, seemingly out of nowhere, grabbing the Doctor’s arms.
The Doctor struggled, feeling the Master’s grip begin to weaken. The Master might be a Time Lord, but he didn’t spend his life running away from things or doing anything terribly physical. His hold on the Doctor’s arms slipped until he was barely gripping jacket and the Doctor staggered back triumphantly.
Unfortunately, the short delay had allowed one of the guards to recover enough to grab him in a tight hold. He was trapped again.
Looking around the room for the first time since the explosion, the Doctor took in the small fire, the blackened mess of computer equipment, and the shattered windows. He couldn’t help but notice that there was no sign of Rose, Isabelle or Captain Jed.
He grinned at the Master as the relief spread through him. Rose was safe - for now!
“Hello again!” he said cheerfully, feeling the return of hope for the first time since the Master had walked through the doors.
Part 2
Author: shinyopals
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: Rose/Ten II
Summary: Trapped and imprisoned, with no hope of rescue from Torchwood, the Doctor and Rose are forced to go to desperate lengths to save each other and the universe from a deadly enemy who's been watching them for a long time.
Author's notes: Thanks to ginamak for beta reading and various others for encouragement!
Episode 19 and the finale of of a virtual series at the_altverse, following Clocksleepers last week.
Virtual Series Masterlist
The Master stepped forward to bring himself nose to nose with the Doctor. The group of armed guards he’d bought with him shuffled further into the room and spread out.
“You,” he began accusingly, “were in another universe.”
“And you were dead,” said the Doctor. “Looks like we’ve got come catching up to do.”
The Master grinned suddenly, then held out his hand. “I’ll take your screwdriver,” he said. “It was all a lot of fun to see what you did with it in the maze, but the games are over now!” Silently and slowly, the Doctor reached up to his pocket. “Oh!” said the Master, holding up a hand to temporarily stop his movement. “I forgot to mention. You try anything - anything at all - and my friends here-“ he gestured to the guards, “are shooting your wife. Multiple times.” His lips curled into another mocking smile as he said the word ‘wife’ and he turned to idly look Rose up and down.
The Doctor tensed. Every part of him wanted to jump forward and do something. He didn’t even know what he could do. He just knew he had to find some way of getting Rose out of there and away from the Master.
He bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood, the sharp pain and coppery taste forcing him to concentrate on the present. Rose was still standing a little behind him; to his relief, she stayed still and quiet. Keeping all his movements slow and controlled, he handed over the sonic screwdriver, wishing his hand wasn’t shaking so obviously. There was no other choice. One gun he might be able to freeze up or deflect, but with a whole group of guards ready to shoot at Rose, he couldn’t take that chance.
The Master buzzed it on and off a couple of times with a slightly mocking expression before dropping it to the floor and crushing it under one shiny, black shoe.
Then he turned back to Rose. The Doctor flinched, at which the Master’s smirk only broadened.
“And you’ll be Rose Tyler,” he said, leaning forward as he studied her.
Something inside the Doctor snapped and he pushed Rose back, forcing himself in between the two of them.
“Leave her out of this,” he growled. “This is between you and me. It’s got nothing to do with Rose.”
“Oh, but this has plenty to do with Rose,” said the Master, voice sickly sweet. He looked over the Doctor’s shoulder now. “I’m told you looked into the heart of the time vortex. All that power.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t like being bored,” said Rose.
He narrowed his eyes a little, still watching her. The Doctor shifted uncomfortably, willing Rose to just keep her head down and not draw attention to herself.
The Master was going to kill her. He’d known ever since the man had walked in and greeted them, but now the certainty of it overwhelmed him. A cold rush of fear washed through him; he wanted to vomit. She was going to die and he was going to watch. The best she could hope for was that the Master found her too boring to draw it out.
“Who’re you, anyway?” she asked. “You seem to know all about me. What about something in return?”
The Master’s face filled with delighted scorn and the Doctor winced. “Don’t you know?” the Master said, sounding joyful. “Didn’t your dear husband fill you in?”
The Doctor heard Rose shrug, rather than felt it. He could just picture her face, which she’d no doubt be keeping carefully blank. He probably should have warned her about this. He’d thought they were safe here. Safe in a parallel universe. No Daleks, all the Cybermen gone and no Time Lords. His oldest and most dangerous enemies were nothing more than memories. Now, here was Rose, completely unprepared for the ruthlessness and sheer insanity facing her. No other enemy would drag out her murder and get so much joy from it, all to watch the Doctor suffer.
“He’s a Time Lord,” he barked out, before the Master could answer in his own way. “He hid from the war and survived, and now we’re the last two.”
The Master didn’t respond by denying the Doctor’s genetic heritage, which must have meant he didn’t yet know. Whatever files he’d accessed at Torchwood, and whatever information he’d obtained through hypnosis, the Doctor’s half-human status hadn’t been part of that. The Doctor supposed it wouldn’t even have occurred to him to ask. No doubt it would come out sooner or later, but for now it was good to have something up his sleeve, even if all he had was the ability to die more quickly than the Master had planned.
Rose didn’t seem to notice his phrasing, but the sharp intake of breath when he said the words ‘Time Lord’ was unmistakeable. He wasn’t sure he’d get a chance to properly explain things, but he suspected she might understand better than most what this meant.
“I think we really should go somewhere more comfortable to catch up,” said the Master, gesturing to guards, their faces blank and hypnotised, who closed in on Rose and the Doctor from their positions around the room. Before the Doctor could say anything else, two of them grabbed and pulled him forward. Behind, he heard Rose shout and struggle for a moment before giving up. He turned back to see her held in place by two of them. She shot him a smile still filled with hope that twisted his stomach in knots.
He couldn’t let anything happen to her. He just couldn’t.
The Master took off at a jaunty pace, leading them out of the room. The maze itself was now blank white corridors, with no trace of the strange landscapes. It had been a very well done illusion. The Doctor was half dragged along until he was able to fall into step and walk. A glance over his shoulder revealed that Rose was in a similar position, and behind her he could just see the top of Captain Jed’s head over the remaining guards. Jed and Isabelle had zoned out the moment the Master arrived, their faces as blank and expressionless as those of the guards.
The Doctor turned forward again and sped up as much as he could while being held in place by either arm.
“How are you alive?” he demanded.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” came the response, the Master slowing down to draw almost level with him and shooting him a grin.
“Yes, and you want to tell me,” he replied, already fed up of this game. What he wanted to know, more than anything, was what was going to happen to them, but he forced himself to avoid the subject. Whatever the Master was going to do with Rose, he didn’t need extra time to think about it.
“Did you really think I’d just refuse to regenerate?” asked the Master derisively.
“I’d hoped,” muttered the Doctor.
“That’s not what it felt like when you were begging me to live,” he drawled. “What a fun way to go, I don’t think. I’d made plans. Humans are so easily led.”
“And how did you get here? Conan Doyle’s key?”
“Conan Doyle?” The Master blinked. “Who? It was a key. The story of how I got that key is quite an entertaining one that I think I’ll save for later.”
“Why didn’t you just go back?” demanded the Doctor. “Why would you land here and stay? This universe is so quiet.”
“Yes, very quiet,” agreed the Master, halting by a door and turning to watch the Doctor again. “I didn’t realise until I read a newspaper, of all things, that you were here. I wouldn’t have thought being in another universe stopped us from feeling the other.” He stepped closer. “Even now, you’re nothing.”
“This world’s out of sync with ours,” agreed the Doctor, in no rush to let the Master know this had nothing to do with the universe and was instead because he was part human.
“Is this what it’s like to be you?” demanded the Master roughly. “All alone in the big, wide universe.”
“Yes,” replied the Doctor quietly, feeling a lump settle in his throat, not out of pain but out of pity. It was funny how none of that seemed to matter any more, now that he was half-human. The acute knowledge that he was the only one had faded so much that, especially with having this new life with Rose, he didn’t even think of it any more. But he remembered what it felt like all too clearly. Now the other him and the Master were both stuck with that crushing loneliness. At least if they’d been together, in the same universe, it wouldn’t have been like that. “So why don’t you go back to him? There’s nothing for you here.”
He couldn’t even feel that guilty for saying it: they’d be less alone and the Time Lord Doctor would be far better equipped for dealing with the Master. Not to mention Rose would be safe.
“Ha!” the Master jumped back and whirled around to the door, pulling it open with a mocking glance over his shoulder. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Leave you and your precious Rose alone.” He stopped in his tracks and narrowed his eyes. “And what do you mean him? He is you, isn’t he?”
The Doctor mentally cursed. Presumably the Master had been assuming this was a loop in the time line: perhaps that the Doctor planned to live with Rose for the rest of her life before returning to their original universe. But if the Master guessed something was off from a single, awkwardly said pronoun, he’d never be able to get away with lying. They knew each other too well.
“Biological metacrisis,” he said. “I grew from the hand.”
The Master stared at him for a few moments. “You’re a knock-off!” he said, sounding amused. “I end up in a parallel universe with a clone of the Doctor. How’s that for serendipity?”
“What do you mean by that?” asked the Doctor sharply. “And I am the Doctor, anyway. Same life, same experiences, same memories. Just... another one.”
“Oh, you don’t need to convince me of that,” said the Master. “Nobody but you could have sounded quite so pretentious when giving speeches.” He paused and considered for a second. “Well, you and Captain moron back there, anyway.” He gestured over the Doctor’s shoulder and grinned. “Did you like my little homage?”
“Loved it,” muttered the Doctor sarcastically.
The Master’s grin widened and he turned to head through the door and down a corridor. The rest of the party was dragged after. They were out of the maze now, in dark and windowless tunnel with pipes running along the ceiling and the remnants of a few health and safety posters on the wall. This was part of the original warehouse, the Doctor suspected.
“But you haven’t said why you’re still here,” he began, trying to skip to keep up with the Master’s strides, wishing the guards would loosen their grip just a little. “You could just go back home!” He was aware he was practically begging now, but despite his own presence, this universe couldn’t hold that much attraction for the Master. Not when there was another Doctor in a place where the universe was right and the Master wouldn’t feel like the last.
Despite his desperation, he still had his wits about him enough to notice a slight stiffening of the Master’s posture.
“You won’t go home... or you can’t?” he asked. The Master gave him a dirty look, which only confirmed it. “The key?”
“Broken,” said the Master shortly. “You’ve seen it?” A nod. “Then you know it’s powerful to look at, even with the perception filter. I didn’t realise what it would do when I found it, so I tried it out. And when I got here, things went wrong.”
“Things went wrong?” the Doctor repeated dumbly.
“Enough of the yapping,” snapped the Master as they reached the end of the tunnel, probably remembering how many times explaining things had ended badly for him in the past.
“But the key- I can help you fix it!”
The Master turned and glared at him. “I don’t need your help!” he replied.
Then he threw open the door and led them into a large room. Like the corridor before it, this one held traces of the original building in the form of pipes and scuffed walls. The Master had clearly set something up here, though. There were computers and multiple screens as well as a few chairs dotted around.
He drew them to a halt maybe twenty feet from the door beside a large, ornate desk which appeared to house the central computer controls. He turned to watch them and leaned back to perch on the edge of the desk. The group gathered around a little, with the Doctor, then Rose (both still held in place by the guards), and then Isabelle and Captain Jed. Their faces were still completely blank.
At the top of those walls ran a line of grubby windows through which the Doctor could see that the sun had already set. He’d hardly thought about time in the virtual maze and he was beginning to remember there was a time limit. Just after half past seven tonight, the world was supposed to end. How far off were they?
The Master seemed to read his mind as he glanced at his watch.
“Nearly seven,” he said cheerfully. “Maybe I’ll put the telly on for a bit! Today’s episode is going to be such a tear-jerker. Poor, poor Captain Jed and Isabelle.” He pretended to wipe his eyes and blow his nose.
“What’s going to happen?” asked Rose.
The Master started. He seemed to have forgotten Rose was even there. The Doctor winced. Why had she had to remind him? The Master must have guessed, from their marriage, that Rose was more than just an ordinary companion for the Doctor. Yet he could never truly understand just how special she was. He’d kill Rose, given the chance, in order to hurt the Doctor, but he’d have done that with anyone the Doctor had travelled with. If she could just stay quiet and keep out of things he might kill her quickly... but the Doctor had no way of explaining this properly to her.
“Ooh, I forgot: you’re a human,” said the Master, walking over towards Rose. “Did you see some of the show?”
“A little bit,” Rose admitted. “What’s gonna happen to them?”
Was the hypnosis taking hold again? The Doctor wasn’t sure. She’d seemed to have broken that link earlier, but she wasn’t running for her life anymore. Maybe it was harder to concentrate on other things now she was still. Especially with Isabelle and the Captain in the room. He only hoped Rose wasn’t trying to distract the Master from him. That would never work.
The Master studied her face with a smirk. The Doctor’s stomach flip-flopped. He could read the contempt in the Master’s eyes - the stupid human girl who was affected by his hypnosis.
“How are you getting back?” he demanded of the Master, desperate to direct attention back to himself. He could keep the Master talking for a while, maybe annoy him a bit. Anything to keep the focus away from Rose.
Unfortunately, the Master seemed to know what he was trying to do, because he dismissed the Doctor with a laugh and kept his attention on Rose. He reached forward to caress her face. Rose leaned back, clearly both revolted and frightened. The Doctor struggled in the tight hold. His fingers were starting to go numb.
“Master, this has nothing to do with Rose!”
“Funny how someone from a species so weak and pathetic could look into the heart of the TARDIS and survive.”
“Jealous, much?” said Rose.
The Doctor spluttered out a badly suppressed laugh at the sudden surprise on the Master’s face before he could stop himself. Rose really shouldn’t be provoking the Master though, and he tried to express as much with his eyes. She wasn’t looking in his direction, instead her gaze was focussed intently on the Master.
“I wonder if I could use you,” murmured the Master. “You’ve got a TARDIS here. Not, I’m assuming the original, but a TARDIS nonetheless. Perhaps you could channel her power...”
“You can’t! That’ll kill her!”
The Master gave the Doctor a look. “Oh no, really? Will it? What a tragedy.”
The Doctor tried to pull away from the guards again. “Just let her go,” he said. It wasn’t any use but he had to try. “Please. I’ll stay here. I’ll do whatever you want.”
He had to save Rose. He couldn’t let anything happen to her. Especially not at the hands of the Master. He’d take almost anything over this. A Dalek would at least be quick. But this - just knowing that soon the Master would tire of talk and could do anything - this was the real torture. Would he kill Rose soon, just for the Doctor’s reaction? He’d planned to kill Martha. Maybe he’d made a bit of a ceremony about it, but it would have been quick.
That had been a symbol, though. Martha had represented, in his mind, the last hope of the humans. He’d been quite happy to keep her family alive, but humiliated. Would he do that for Rose? Keep her there and forced to obey him, just to keep the Doctor in line? It seemed likely. Would it be enough for him, though? The Doctor suppressed a shudder as he remembered Lucy’s bruises and some of the things he’d heard them say. Lucy had been a mockery of some of the Doctor’s companions, he knew that.
“I rather think,” said the Master idly, “that you’ll be doing what I want anyway.”
The Doctor had no answer to that.
“Where’s the TARDIS?” the Master asked suddenly.
“Broken,” said the Doctor.
“I said where?” he said, bringing his hand up to Rose’s face again, less than an inch away.
“LEAVE HER ALONE! At Torchwood. The TARDIS is at Torchwood!”
The Master smirked but dropped his hand. “Key?”
“My pocket, but she is broken.”
The Master stepped forward and the Doctor paused, waiting for him to help himself to the TARDIS key. The Master hesitated, then gestured for one of the guards to drop the Doctor’s hand. “I’m not searching in your suit,” he said, with a roll of his eyes. “Slowly now!” The addition came with another significant look at Rose.
The Doctor handed the key over sullenly. His arm was quickly grabbed again and he wondered how long it would be before the Master used more permanent bonds - or something just as effective, considering what he’d done the last time they’d met. If only the Master would just leave them be... he could take the TARDIS and go anywhere. But that was too much to hope for.
A gesture at the guards behind them made one step forward. The Master handed over the key and a packet from one of his pockets. “Go,” he said. “Canary Wharf.” He turned back to the Doctor. “I don’t think the problems you’ve been having with your lovely little TARDIS are going to apply to me, you know.”
He glanced at his watch again. “Awww, it looks like we’re going to miss the show. What a pity. I think we’ve both got more than enough to be getting on with, though, don’t you?”
“What are we missing?” asked Rose in the same desperate tones as before. The Doctor winced. He’d really thought the hypnosis has worn off, but it clearly hadn’t. And now she seemed to want to have a conversation with the Master about it.
The Master circled around her like a predator. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”
“Just a hint!” she pleaded. “If you’re not gonna let us watch it you might as well tell us.”
“Well,” he drawled, “let’s just say it doesn’t work out all that well for our friends the Captain and Isabelle.”
“No!” She sounded so horrified. The world was going to end and she was begging for spoilers for a show. Doctor gritted his teeth. How dare the Master do this to her mind?
“It was never going to work, though, was it? An almost immortal alien and his little human companion?” The Master sneered. “Impossible. Tonight, though, they’ll get split up before their time, leaving the dear Captain Jed to wander alone.”
“No!”
It took a moment before the Doctor realised that the cry had not come from Rose. As he turned, he saw Isabelle launch herself at the Master. They seemed to topple to the floor almost in slow motion. The Doctor had trouble tearing his eyes away from the ridiculous scene, but he managed to turn to Rose.
She winked at him.
“Get her off me!” shouted the Master.
The guards stupidly lumbered forward. Their inability to think for themselves made their reactions slow and clumsy. One of them had the presence of mind to keep holding the Doctor, but his other guard left, giving him a free hand.
Now or never, he thought, remembering the conversation he’d had with Rose before they left the Tylers.
“I’m not carrying that! I don’t need it!”
“You said it yourself, Doctor: this is a trap. And it’s been set by someone who knows us. Anyone who knows you won’t bother to search your pockets for weapons because you’d never carry them. So carry one now!”
He pulled out the small grenade from his pocket, thanking his lucky stars he’d given into Rose’s suggestions. Had he really changed so much in such a short time? He took a deep breath and activated the explosive, before throwing it away from the fray and towards the computer table.
A second later there was a loud BANG and a blast of burning light hit his face, sending him tumbling backwards. He’d been prepared for the explosion, but that wasn’t enough to keep himself upright.
He found himself staring up at the ceiling, blinking rapidly as vision returned to his eyes. His ears were still ringing and the rest of the noise in the room seemed somehow distant. How long had it been? It felt like hours but it couldn’t have been more than a few seconds.
Danger, he suddenly remembered and rolled over, tripping over ungainly legs that seemed longer than he remembered as he managed to drag himself upright.
“Oh no you don’t!” snarled the Master, seemingly out of nowhere, grabbing the Doctor’s arms.
The Doctor struggled, feeling the Master’s grip begin to weaken. The Master might be a Time Lord, but he didn’t spend his life running away from things or doing anything terribly physical. His hold on the Doctor’s arms slipped until he was barely gripping jacket and the Doctor staggered back triumphantly.
Unfortunately, the short delay had allowed one of the guards to recover enough to grab him in a tight hold. He was trapped again.
Looking around the room for the first time since the explosion, the Doctor took in the small fire, the blackened mess of computer equipment, and the shattered windows. He couldn’t help but notice that there was no sign of Rose, Isabelle or Captain Jed.
He grinned at the Master as the relief spread through him. Rose was safe - for now!
“Hello again!” he said cheerfully, feeling the return of hope for the first time since the Master had walked through the doors.
Part 2