A/N: Happy New Years! I've had a lot of good things happen this holiday, and I hope everyone else's season went well and will continue to do so. I'm excited because this chapter is the kick off of the final plot arch. It's kind of scary, but I'm really glad to have finished a major fic!
Warnings: Major Character Death
Review Responses:
TrinaMarina: Did you mean the Doctor? Because I think the Master's been coming out on top (for once!)
The Winged Lion of Coruscant: The Master/Doctor fandom spoils me, I'm merely returning the favor. I think everyone's going to want to hug the Doctor by the end of the chapter, though.
Crowded Mind: I know! What will I do with my free time after this? Oh yeah, write more fic!
Bad Werewolf: Thanks!
Miharu-desu: Here it is!
Jenny spent the morning turning River Tam's book in her hands. It would pass from one River to another, it seemed. Jenny sighed and wondered what else River had known, why she always seemed to treat the Master and the Doctor with sympathy.
"Jenny!" Donna said, popping her head into the girl's room. "Here you are. Want to come with me and convince the Doctor to take us somewhere fun?"
"Oh, most definitely!" Jenny replied with a grin, carefully tucking the book away so Donna wouldn't see it. Donna would recognize it and Jenny wanted to keep it just between her and... well, River.
They found the Master and the Doctor working on the TARDIS. The Doctor lay underneath the console with his sleeves bunched up round his elbows and tools scattered around him while the Master stood in front of the screen and called out suggestions as he recalibrated it.
"So..." Donna said, leaning on the console. "I was promised a beach."
"That you were," the Doctor agreed as he sat up, rolling his sleeves back down his arms.
"But I don't want a beach. Too much work. I want to be pampered," Donna announced, biting her lip in thought. "I want a spa."
"A spa?" the Master repeated. "Donna, I am not going to spa."
"You don't have to come!" Donna protested. "Just... I dunno, think of a place that has a spa for me and something for you lot to do."
"We can think of somewhere new," the Doctor added, standing up and putting his coat on . "I'm rather in the same mind as her, actually. I just want to be somewhere."
"So... new and with a spa then?" Jenny said, looking at the Doctor and the Master expectantly. "Surely there are some places even you two haven't been."
"Well..." The Doctor stretched out the word before his eyes lit up. "Oh I know! Midnight! I've never been to Midnight."
"What's Midnight?" Donna asked. "I want a proper spa, mind, not one of your kinky ones."
"It's a planet made of diamonds, Donna. Granted, they're toxic diamonds so you have to stay inside the skyplex, but I've heard its gorgeous. And yes, it has a spa."
"I could go for that, yeah," Donna said, glancing around. "Jenny? Master?"
The Master shrugged. "No arguments here."
"Well then," the Doctor said, quickly entering the coordinates into the console. "Allons-y!"
------
Midnight was as beautiful as the Doctor said it would be. Jenny had poured over the tourist pamphlet with him, while the Master enviously watched Donna stroll towards the spa. She wasn't going to get sucked into one of their little adventures.
"Look!" the Doctor said, pointing at a box on the glossy paper. "Tour of the Sapphire Waterfalls."
"That sounds amazing," Jenny said, peering down at it. "And the tour bus hasn't left yet! We can still make it."
"It's a four hour trip," the Master pointed out, sighing when Jenny and the Doctor gave him imploring gazes.
"It's not that long. We'll be back in time for dinner," the Doctor said.
The Master shook his head and threw his hands into the air. "No, we never listen to me, do we? Fine, lets go. But next time I get to decide the entertainment."
"Deal." The Doctor beamed up at him before he scampered off to get tickets.
"Thank you!" Jenny said, giving him a large smile and a squeeze on the arm. The Master gave a small smile back. These moments terrified him, but he was beginning to like them all the same. Of course, by the time they boarded the train and he realized he was going to be trapped with talkative humans for four hours, the Master was quite willing to rethink his decision.
"You're sitting in the aisle," the Master said as the Doctor headed for the front row. The Doctor shook his head fondly and allowed the Master to squeeze in ahead of him.
Jenny settled in behind them, eagerly peering at the other passengers while the stewardess heaped complimentary items on the Master and the Doctor.
"I thought they would've stopped serving peanuts altogether by now," the Master murmured. "They're poisonous to at least five different species and some humans are still allergic to them."
"Oh, but peanuts have value. Very good protein intake. It's a four hour trip and we all know you get cranky when your blood sugar drops," the Doctor teased.
The Master scowled. "I'll show you cranky."
"Ladies and gentleman and variations thereupon, welcome on board the Crusader Fifty," the stewardess began once they were all seated. The Master ignored her and closed his eyes, leaning back in his seat. The drums, the double heart beat, had been pounding louder in his head recently. It was irritating to say the least. He had behaved and the Doctor and him were... well, they were closer than they had been in a long time. They were almost close to functioning.
The Master winced as the stewardess began turning on the multiple entertainment stations, the different sounds and images clashing horribly.
"A dignified Time Lord does not use earplugs," he huffed before nudging the Doctor. "Take care of it, will you?"
"Working on it," the Doctor muttered, subtly activating his sonic screwdriver. Only the woman across from them noticed and she gave the Doctor a small grateful smile.
The stewardess rushed forward, trying to fix the system. "I'm sorry, it appears that we are experiencing a failure of the entertainment system."
Everyone around the compartment reacted with either relief or disappointment.
"What are we going to do for four hours?" a man asked.
"We can talk to each other," the Doctor said, bouncing up in his seat. "Share some stories, get to know each other. Hello, I'm the Doctor. What do you say?"
The other passengers glanced at each other and the Doctor flashed a large grin at them.
"Calm down," the Master said with a sigh from his seat beside him. "You'll make everyone nervous."
"I'm Dee Dee," said the girl sitting two seats back from them said. Jenny peered over the back of her seat.
"Hello, I'm Jenny," she said, reaching to shake her hand.
"Professor Hobbes," said the portly man sitting next to her.
"What about you?" the Doctor asked the woman sitting across the aisle from them.
She glanced up from her book and gave him a weak smile. "Sky Silvestry."
"We're Val and Biff," said a middle aged woman from the middle row, gesturing at her husband and then the boy across the aisle from them. "And that's our son, Jethro."
"This is the Master," the Doctor said when the Master only raised an eyebrow at everyone's expectant looks. "Ignore him, he gets a bit shy."
"I'll show you shy," the Master snorted but didn't say anything more.
"Right," the Doctor said, crossing his arms. "Anyone know any good jokes?"
----
By the end of the first hour the Doctor had already bonded with every person on-board.
"Typical you," the Master said, accepting a cup of tea from the Doctor as they stood at the drink station. "Bet you already know all their life stories."
"Oh, there's not enough time for that," the Doctor said before smiling. "Thank you."
"For?"
"For coming with us. I know sitting for four hours wasn't something you were keen on."
The Master shrugged. "Yes, well it was either that or go with Donna. We all know how that would have turned out."
"Her listing your faults and trying to play psychiatrist?"
"Exactly." The Doctor nodded in amusement before glancing around them. When the Master looked up to ask him what was the matter the Doctor grinned mischievously and tugged on the Master's tie, kissing him.
"You could have just asked," the Master said with a sigh as he moved his tea cup from between them, trying to avoid having hot liquid down his front.
"Better to ask forgiveness than permission," the Doctor replied with a grin before the Master raised an eyebrow and kissed him again.
"Gross," said Jethro, rolling his eyes as he and Jenny turned back around in their seats. "I hate it when parents go all public displays of affection."
"I don't mind so much," Jenny said cheerfully "But I've only known them for a few months, so I don't exactly know if I consider them 'parents'."
"A few months?" Jethro asked before nodding in understanding. "Oh, lived with your Mum, then?"
"Yeah, something like that," Jenny said. "But now I just travel with them and Donna. Oh, you'd like Donna."
"You like traveling with them?" Jethro asked, wrinkling his nose. "Lucky. My parents always drag me to the stupidest places. Half of the time they insist on it having 'educational value.'"
"The Doctor's not a traditional parent," Jenny replied with a laugh.
"So.. the Master isn't like, an adopted father?"
Jenny laughed. "No, and he'd probably kill me if I pretended he was. We're getting closer, though. He has a pretty tough exterior."
"And it isn't awkward?"
"It's mostly hilarious, really," Jenny replied. "They do like to bicker but they always know somewhere fun to go. If it wasn't for that I wouldn't be here to keep you company."
"I bet you say that to all the boys," Jethro said with a grin.
"I'm fairly new to traveling and there wasn't... time before the Doctor came. He's still a good father though, he likes to teach me himself."
"How does that even work, anyway? What was he, fourteen when you were born?"
"He's a lot older than he looks and I'm actually younger than I look," Jenny replied with a nervous laugh as the stewardess brought out the dinner trays, providing a useful distraction. At the end of the meal Professor Hobbes took out his slides and borrowed the Crusader's slide machine. As Dee Dee operated it, he gave them a lecture on the non-existent history of Midnight. Even the Master was a little intrigued when the vehicle rumbled to a stop.
"Have we stopped?" Val asked, looking around. "Are we there?"
"It's too soon," Jenny said. "It hasn't been four hours."
"Well, we can't have stopped, Crusaders never stop," Hobbes began.
"Ladies and gentleman and all variations in between," the stewardess interrupted, strolling up the aisle. "Please take your seats. We are experiencing a brief delay while the engineers stabilize the engine feeds. We'll be on our way shortly."
"Oh, now that's interesting," the Master murmured, sharing a glance with the Doctor. The Doctor brushed past the stewardess holding up his psychic paper and slipped into the cockpit.
"What's interesting?" Jenny asked as she sat down in the row behind him.
"These vehicles have micropetrol engines," the Master whispered. "They don't need stabilizing."
"So what's wrong?" Jenny asked.
"Either something very bad they don't want us to know about, or something they can't explain."
"Can the Doctor fix it?"
"One of us can."
The Doctor emerged from the cabin and Mrs. Silvestry jumped up to accost him. "What's wrong in there?"
"Oh, just what they said. Everything's fine," the Doctor replied quickly.
"This is completely unacceptable. I am on a schedule!" she snapped as the stewardess sent them back to their seats and disappeared into the cockpit herself.
"Well?" the Master asked when the Doctor sat down beside him.
"The junior mechanic thought he saw something moving outside," the Doctor whispered back.
The Master frowned. "That's Xonic radiation out there."
"I know."
"Doctor," Dee said quietly, peering around the seats. "Micropetrol engines don't need stabilizing. What's going on in there?"
"Just a bit of flim-flam. It's fine," the Doctor replied, causing Hobbes to pop his head up.
"Will that affect our air supply?" he asked, causing Val and Biff to jump into panic mode. The Master chuckled to himself as they continued to yell until the Doctor silenced their shouts.
"I've spoken to the captain and I can guarantee you, everything's fine," the Doctor said as two knocks echoed against the side of the Crusader. The Master swung up in his seat to stand beside the Doctor, staring at the wall while Hobbes offered a few measly explanations. The two knocks continued their way around the vehicle, jumping briefly unto the roof before it found the fire exit and tried to open the door. It slid its way to the entrance and knocked there.
"What is that?" Val demanded, her breath high and panicky. "Can it get in?"
"That door is on two hundred weight hydraulics, nothing can force it open," Dee Dee assured her. Biff stepped up to the door and touched it before pounding his fist against it three times.
"Nah," he said, nodding in approval. "Nothing can get through that door."
Whatever was outside knocked back three times.
"Oh my god, it answered!" Val hissed, quickly backing away.
"Right, alright, calm down," the Doctor said, gently pushing her away before turning to the door himself. He pressed his ear against the cool metal and knocked four times, frowning when he received four knocks back. The Master quickly came to stand beside him.
"Doctor?" he asked quietly.
The Doctor shook his head. "No idea..."
"I must insist that everyone return to their seats!" the stewardess cried as she picked up the phone and attempted to call the drivers. Mrs. Silvestry began to panic, screaming and shouting at all of them.
"Calm down!" Dee Dee tried as the knocks returned to the roof, pounding their way to the front.
"It's coming for me," Mrs. Silvestry gasped, backing towards the door Jenny got out of her seat, holding out her arms and trying to calm the frantic woman down. "Oh dear god it's coming for me. It's coming for me!"
"Get there!" the Doctor yelled, darting forward as something punched in the metal beside Mrs. Silvestry's head. Suddenly the lights cut and the Crusader rocked from side to side, sparks showering down on them.
When it ended, the Master experimentally flexed his muscles and did a quick scan of his body to make sure nothing was injured. He looked up to see the Doctor doing the same.
"Everyone all right?" the Doctor asked, turning to face them. He didn't see Rose Tyler's face flash across the screen behind him, but the Master did. He frowned, wondering how she was able to find the Doctor from another universe.
"There are torches in the back of the seats," the stewardess said as the Doctor came to check on the Master.
"I can stand up by myself, you know," he hissed irritably, pushing him away as Jethro swung his light to the front of the seats.
"Jenny?" he asked, his torch casting a thin stream of light on a pile of torn up seats.
"All the seats have been destroyed," Val gasped, shining her torch on them. "What the hell could have done that?"
"I'm fine!" Jenny called back from underneath the rubble. She shifted before crying out.
"Jenny!" The Doctor was beside her in a second, shining the torch into the center of the jumbled mess to see her.
"I'm not hurt, I'm just stuck," she said wiggling her foot. "I just twisted myself the wrong way, that's all."
"Here," the Master said, kneeling down beside the Doctor. "I'll cut her out."
"You aren't allowed to have a weapon on board!" the stewardess exclaimed as the Master slid his laser screwdriver out of his pocket and quickly began to cut through the metal.
"Bit late for that," the Master muttered. He cut the last bit away, allowing an armrest to clatter to the floor. Jenny squeezed out, sighing with relief as the Doctor quickly checked her over.
"I'm fine," she repeated before glancing at the front. "Is Mrs. Silvestry okay?"
They all turned to see her cowering in the corner, her hands firmly planted on the top of her head.
"Mrs. Silvestry, it's over," the Doctor said, laying a hand across her shoulders comfortingly. "You're okay. The wall held, you're fine."
"Driver Joe, can you hear me?" the stewardess called into the phone, before hurriedly walking to the front. "The communication comms must be down, excuse me."
She opened the door and was met by a blinding light as alarm bells echoed through the Crusader. Everyone's hands flew up to protect their eyes and the Master's laser dropped onto one of the seats. The stewardess pressed the button and stumbled back as the door closed.
"What the hell was that?" Val shrieked, clinging to Biff.
"The cabin's gone," the stewardess gasped, blinking rapidly. "It's not there, like it's been ripped away."
The Doctor took his sonic to the control panels, gasping as it popped open to reveal sliced wires.
"It was separated from the cabin," the Doctor said quietly, causing the stewardess to frown.
"But if it's cut off then..."
"Their compartment lost integrity. I'm sorry, but they've been reduced to dust."
"What about us then?" Val demanded, brushing away tears.
"The Crusader would have automatically sealed itself," the Doctor explained, "But they sent a distress signal, they saved our lives. We are going to get out of here, I promise!"
"Doctor," the Master said quietly. "She's still not moving."
"Sky," the Doctor said as he knelt down beside her. "Can you turn and face me? That's all I want you to do. Can you do that?"
Everyone held their breath as she slowly lowered her hands before snapping around and staring at them, her eyes piercing and searching.
The Doctor leaned forward and she swung her head round to him, barely glancing at the Master as she focused on the Doctor's face.
"Sky?" he asked, pausing as she imitated his every move.
"Sky?" she replied hesitantly.
The Doctor frowned. "Are you alright?"
"Are you alright?"
"Are you hurt?"
"Are you hurt?"
The Master leaned forward, eyebrows drawing together as she continued to repeat everything the Doctor said.
"Why's she doing that?" Biff asked, causing her to snap forward to look at him, repeating his words.
"What's she doing?" Val demanded, flinching when Sky echoed her. "She's gone mad!"
"I don't think she can help it," Dee Dee said, echoed by Mrs. Silvestry's voice.
"Why are you doing that," the Doctor asked once he got the humans to be quiet. "Why are you repeating?"
"What is that?" the Master asked as she turned too look at him as she copied his every word. "Learning? Copying? Absorbing?"
The Doctor glanced at him before rattling off the square root of pi, going through fifteen numbers before he leaned back in amazement as she repeated every numeral.
"There's no way she could have done that," Dee Dee gasped.
"Make her stop!" Val cried, flinching away when Mrs. Silvestry turned to look at her. "Make her stop looking at me!"
The Doctor and the Master shared a disturbed glance as everyone began talking at once. Mrs. Silvestry, or whatever she was, repeated every word.
Suddenly the lights came back on and everyone relaxed when the stewardess began to give instructions and Mrs. Silvestry didn't repeat a word. Jenny turned to ask if she was alright and gasped as she noticed her lips moving.
"Doctor..." Jethro murmured nervously.
"Yes," the Doctor replied, staring at Sky. "I know."
" Now step back, Doctor,," Hobbes said calmly, with the air of someone who was used to always being listened to. "I think you should leave her alone."
The professor stilled as he realized that Sky was talking with him, her eyes no longer wide and curious but dark and malicious.
"She's talking with you!" Val gasped before letting out a little cry. "And with me! Biff, how's she doing that?"
"She's repeating," Jenny said. "She's repeating at the same time!"
"I think it's time for everyone to be very, very quiet," the Doctor said softly, giving everyone a firm look. "Have you got that?"
"How is she doing that!" Val yelled.
"Mrs. Kane, please be quiet," the Master said sharply.
"She's got my voice! She's got my words!" Val continued, falling silent only when Biff held her back.
"Val, just be quiet," he began before staring at Mrs. Silvestry. "Oh god, she's doing it to me!"
"Everyone just be quiet, please!" the Doctor snapped before kneeling down, staring into Mrs. Silvestry's eyes.
"Now then, Sky," the Doctor said, frowning as she eyed him appraisingly and continued speaking with him. . "Are you Sky? Is Sky still in there? You know exactly what I'm going to say. How are you doing that?"
The Doctor leaned back before naming random words, wondering if she was merely guessing or actually did know. "Roast beef. Bananas. The Medusa Cascade. Bang! Rose Tyler, Martha Jones, Donna Noble, TARDIS. Shamble bobble dibble dooble. Oh Doctor, you're so handsome. Yes I am, thank you. ABCDEFGHIJKLMNO..."
The Doctor paused and stood up warily.
"First she repeats and then she catches up," the Master said, turning to look at the Doctor. "What's the next stage?"
"The next stage of what?" Dee Dee demanded, standing up.
"That's not her anymore, is it?" Jethro asked, slowly coming forward to help Jenny off the floor. "That's not Mrs. Silvestry anymore?"
"I don't think so, no," the Doctor said softly, causing Val to cry into Biff's chest. The Master frowned to see the creature even copying the sobs. "I think the more she talks the more she learns. Now I'm all for education but in this case... Maybe not."
He trailed off and the Master began herding everyone into the drink station and away from the creature.
"She's not strong," the Doctor said, planting himself in the doorway as a sort of barrier. "She hasn't anything but our voices. We only have to wait fifty more minutes and then that's it. If we can just be silent until then, we'll be fine."
Everyone stood quietly in the back, trying to quell their rising panic.
"We must not look at goblin men," Dee Dee began, shattering the silence. "We must not look at goblin men, we must not buy their fruits. Who knows upon what soil they fed their hungry, thirsty roots."
"Not helping, Dee Dee," the Master snapped, shaking his head as the other humans took in sharp breaths.
"But that poem is very rare. She couldn't have known it!" Dee Dee protested.
"She's not a goblin or a monster," Professor Hobbes said. "She's just a very sick woman."
"Maybe that's why it went for her," Jethro suddenly said, causing the Master to glance at him considering. "I mean, when it started knocking she was the most terrified and it went straight for her. Maybe that's what it needed. That's how it got in."
"Right, fine, yes," the Doctor began. "I do think there is some kind of consciousness inside Mrs. Silvestry. But we need to stay back until help arrives, because maybe the next stage is becoming us and I don't want her becoming me or things could get a whole lot worse."
"Oh like your so special," Val scoffed.
"As it happens, yes I am," the Doctor replied, making the Master's eyes gleefully shoot up. He filed this particular line away for future use. "But right now, we need to wait. When the rescue ship comes we can get her to the hospital."
"I think we should throw her out," the stewardess hissed. "That thing took over Mrs. Silvestry and it killed Joe and Claude. If it's copying us and learning, what happens when we take it back to civilization?"
"We can't throw it out, we can't even open the doors," Biff snapped.
"Actually we can," Dee Dee finally said. "Crusader doors use a pressure seal. When we opened the front door we weren't pulled out, we had a couple of seconds. It takes the pressure door six seconds to collapse. That's enough time to throw someone out. I wouldn't try that door twice but this door should work."
"That's just what we needed, Dee Dee," the Doctor hissed, glaring at her.
"Would that kill her?" Val asked.
Dee Dee shrugged. "It might not kill the thing but it would certainly kill the body."
"No one is throwing anyone out!" the Doctor shouted, "Listen, for all we know that's a brand new life form over there. It might not even know what it's done. If we can get back and let me take a look at her, maybe I can find a way of getting Mrs. Silvestry back."
"But what if it spreads? We can't risk it!" the stewardess said. "If she gets any worse we are throwing her out!"
"If you do that, you'll have to go through me," the Doctor announced, glaring at them.
The stewardess glared back. "Okay. If we have to, we'll throw you out as well."
"Oh, now you won't be doing that," the Master interrupted with a laugh. "Because I wouldn't let you. And even if you did manage to kill the Doctor, none of you would live to tell about it."
"Are you threatening us?" Biff demanded, coming to stand directly in front of the Master.
The Master flashed all his teeth in a deadly smile. "Yes."
"I'd like to see you try," Biff snapped, causing the Master's eyes to light up, but Jenny quickly pulled them apart.
"Everyone calm down," she said. "The last thing we need right now is all this posturing! Mr. Kane please step away and as for you, Master, behave!"
"You actually call him 'Master?'" Val asked. "Is that even legal?"
"And you, Doctor, what kind of Doctor are you exactly?" Hobbes said.
"They just turned up out of the blue," the stewardess added. "Everyone else booked in advance but the three of them just showed up minutes before we left."
"Where are you from, exactly?"
"We're just travelers," Jenny replied, her eyes growing wide. "We came here on a whim and we hadn't planned anything out. We only bought tickets because we saw it on the pamphlet!"
"Really? You decided to come to a toxic planet just because?" Hobbes snapped. "I find that hard to believe. And even now, Doctor, you're bouncing around with a sort of... glee!"
"I'm interested, yes!" the Doctor admitted. "But that's only because this new life form is fascinating!"
"So you wanted this to happen."
"No!"
"And we saw you talking to the woman alone, we all did!" Biff shouted.
The Master scoffed. "He talked to all of you alone and I don't see the rest of you turning into her."
"But the wiring!" Dee dee said. "After we crashed you went into the box and opened up the wiring. How did you know how to do that?"
The Doctor's eyes widened. "That was after."
"Yeah," Biff added. "Why did you go straight there?"
"Because I'm clever!" the Doctor snapped. Everyone in the cabin stared at him in disbelief.
"Oh, so what does that make us?" Val snarked.
"You really do have a way with people," the Master remarked, looking amused.
"You've been looking down on us since the moment we walked in," Biff sneered. "You know what I think? We throw him out as well."
"Now stop it!" Jenny yelled after pushing the Master back as he started forward. "I understand that this is a very stressful time, but are you honestly suggesting killing him because he used a poor choice of words?"
"If we have to," the stewardess said coldly.
"Right, just... hold on," the Doctor began nervously, beginning to realize what the humans were thinking. "I know you're scared. I am too, but we all have to calm down and cool off and think!"
"Then perhaps you could tell us your name," Hobbes replied.
"What does it matter?"
"Why not tell us?" he asked again.
"John Smith," the Doctor replied automatically. Everyone in the cabin scoffed.
"What do you think we are, idiots?" the stewardess demanded, setting off another cascade of accusations.
"Now listen to me!" the Doctor shouted. "You need to listen to me right now because you need me! If we are going to get out of this, then you need me!"
"You've been repeating yourself more than her!" Hobbes yelled back before Jethro silenced them all.
"She's stopped," he said, staring at the creature. "Just look."
"When did she- No she hasn't she's still doing it," the Doctor murmured, seeing her lips move as his did. The Master frowned and went towards her. The creature remained still as all the humans spoke.
"Sky?" the Doctor said, following the Master. "What are you doing?"
"She's only still doing him," Hobbes announced.
"Brilliant observation," the Master snapped, trying to ignore the prickles down the back of his neck.
"Why me?" the Doctor asked. "Why are you doing this?"
"You're the oldest," the Master whispered under his breath so only the Doctor could hear him. "Maybe she's stealing life force?"
"If it was that, you'd think she'd be after Jenny," the Doctor muttered back, frowning as she continued following his words.
"They're together!" Biff exclaimed.
"No they're not!" Jenny protested.
"How do you explain it, then?" Hobbes snapped. "Since he's so clever, why doesn't the Doctor tell us why she's only repeating him?"
"I don't know," the Doctor replied. "I said stop it, just stop it!"
"Look at the two of them!" Val cried, causing the Master to round to her.
"Look at them what? Look at her singling out the Doctor and stealing his voice? He's not capable of keeping his mouth shut, why the hell would he willfully give up his voice?"
"Mrs. Silvestry, I'm trying to understand," the Doctor said, coming to kneel in front of her, watching as she continued to speak with him. "You've captured my speech. What for? What do you need?"
"Master, what's going on?" Jenny said quietly. The Master shook his head.
"You need my voice in particular," the Doctor continued, understanding lighting his eyes. "Because I'm the only one who can help? Oh, I'd love for that to be true but your eyes, they say something else."
"Something's wrong," Jethro whispered to Jenny, "Look at her eyes!"
"Listen to me, whatever you want. If it's life or form or consciousness or voice you don't have to steal it! I'll help you. Now what do you think," the Doctor paused, eyes widening as he saw her lips moving first. "Do we have a deal?"
"She finished first!" Jenny gasped as the Master stared at them in alarm. "She... he repeated her!"
"Oh," the creature said, flexing her neck as the Doctor echoed her. "Look at that, I'm ahead of you."
"Doctor, what's happening?" Hobbes asked. The Master knelt down between them, horror crossing his face as he saw the Doctor struggling and failing to move.
"I think it's moved," the creature said, smiling when the Doctor haltingly repeated her. "I think it's letting me go."
"Mrs. Silvestry, is that you?" Hobbes asked urgently.
"Yes," she said, flexing her fingers and arms. "Yes, it's me. I'm coming back. Listen, it's me!"
"It's transferred," Jethro said, staring in shock.
"No," Dee said, shaking her head. "That's not what happened."
"But look at her!" Val insisted.
"Look at me," the creature said, closing her eyes in delight as the Doctor echoed her. "I can move. And look at him, he can't move."
"Doctor?" the Master asked softly before pressing his fingers to his temples and closing his eyes.
Scared scared so scared and now I can't move and Master don't risk yourself just make sure they don't throw me out I can't help but repeat whatever it is has stolen my voice I've lost all control and I might die Master you know what to do if I do and they trust it and not me and Master if it gets back to civilization it'll destroy everything I've seen it's fire and rage and its so dark and cold and-
The Master tried to radiate calm and comfort. "Don't worry. I'll help."
The Master drew out and found only Jenny beside him. The rest of the humans had clustered around the creature, staring at the Doctor with fear and hatred.
"It's inside his head," the creature said, looking satisfied. "It killed the driver and it killed the mechanic and now it wants to use him to kill us."
"Do you even hear yourself?" the Master shouted. He stood up and marched over to it, grabbing it tightly by the arm. "The Doctor would never kill any of you!"
"It's waited so long in the dark and the cold," the creature continued. "Until you came with bodies so hot with blood and pain. Listen, just listen to him. There he goes."
"I can hear him say it!" Val exclaimed.
"Of course you can, you idiot!" the Master snapped. "He's repeating whatever she says!"
"But he's the voice," Biff insisted.
"No!" Dee Dee cried. "She is. He's not saying anything, she is! And she's draining him!"
"That can't be," Val said. "I saw it pass into him. I saw it!"
"I did, too," Biff added quickly.
"No you didn't!" Dee Dee cried. "You think you did but you're only making it up! I know what I saw and I saw her stealing his voice."
"Someone shut her up," Val hissed.
"But I know what I saw!" Dee Dee continued until the professor exploded.
"Shut up you stupid girl!" he shouted. "Acting like you're so smart with your mechanics and hydraulics, when I can tell you you are nothing more than average at best. Now shut up!"
"Oh, do you want to pretend you're the genius, Hobbes?" the Master sneered. "I assure you that when I say I was smarter than you when I was eight, I am grossly understating things!"
"That's how he does it," the creature said, grinning as it heard the Doctor's echoes. "Creeps into your head and makes you fight. Creeps into your head and whispers. Listen, just listen. That's him inside your head."
"Get him out of my head!" Val yelled. Jenny remained beside the Doctor, her hands fluttering uselessly when she couldn't get him to move. She became more and more panicked as the Doctor's face contorted with fear as she tried to brush his tears away.
"You're being useless!" Val continued, yelling at her husband. "Do something about it!"
"I will," Biff decided, stalking towards the Doctor. "I'm going to get him out."
"Yes!" the creature cheered. "That's it! Get rid of him. Now!"
Biff stormed past the Master and grabbed onto the Doctor and tried to heave him forward.
"You let go of him!" Jenny cried, jumping up. She shoved him away, sending him sprawling on the ground. "Don't touch him!"
"How the hell were you able to do that?" Val demanded before her eyes glared murderously at her. "You're just like him, aren't you?"
"He's my father!" Jenny shouted back. "I'm not going to let you kill him."
"If we take him back it'll spread," Val said, putting her hands on Jenny's shoulders. "We have to save everyone else. He'd want us to do that!"
"But he's not the problem," Jenny hissed before she heard grunting behind her. She spun around to see Biff grabbing hold of the Doctor once more. Jenny pulled herself out of Val's grip and jumped onto Biff, trying to get him to pull away as Val retrieved something from on top of one of the seat cushions.
"Jenny!" Jethro exclaimed, in shock. Jenny swung her head to look at him and Biff took the opportunity to wrench her off, throwing her into the torn seats. Her head slammed against an armrest.
"Jenny!" Jethro shouted again, pushing past his father to kneel down beside her. The Master growled and stepped forward.
"Oh no you don't!" Val announced, holding up the Master's screwdriver. "Try to stop them and I'll shoot her."
"Don't be stupid!" the stewardess exclaimed as Biff began to pull at the Doctor, getting the professor to help him.
"Jethro, get over here!" he barked.
"I think I'm bleeding," Jenny muttered, frowning as she found wetness on the back of her head. Jethro's eyes widened as he ignored his father. He pulled his sweatband from his wrist and pressed it on Jenny's wound.
"Put him down!" the Master started and Val fired a warning shot near Jenny's head, nearly hitting her own son.
"That's the way," the creature said, echoed by the Doctor's voice. "You can do it!"
"I don't know what you are but I will stop you," the Master hissed as his eyes fell on Mrs. Silvestry's hands. They were tapping a rhythm on her sides.
The Master knew that pattern. It had echoed in his head since he was a child. The drums.
Suddenly, something clicked into place and he understood.
"You're whatever was creating the drums," the Master hissed, turning to face her. "And now you're going after the Doctor."
"What?" Jenny asked. The Master glanced at the Doctor but he couldn't see his face.
"That's why you went after Mrs. Silvestry. After that traumatic break up she was falling apart. So you used her mental instability to get inside, because the Doctor's a bit stronger now, isn't he? Almost broken but not quite. Too bad, because I'm going to kill you first."
The Master leveled his screwdriver before he paused, seeing the faintly triumphant flicker in the creature's eyes. "No, that wouldn't work, would it? Because there's still one other person in this room who's still crazy enough for you to get in."
"Who?" Jenny asked after a moment's pause.
The Master's eyes never left the creature's. "Me."
"You're not-" Jenny began, but the Master held up a hand to stop her.
"No, I am. Ever since I was a child. Ever since..." and here the Master trailed off, remembering River Tam's words.
"But you don't- you honestly don't remember. And you hate him because… Neither of you 'll remember when you'll need to. I won't tell you, Master. Deep down you already know it yourself. You're hiding from it. You always have been."
And suddenly he could remember why he hated the Doctor and what happened that night. He remembered the anger and helplessness of being Koschei. He remembered when Theta ran away from him, never to return.
"You," he hissed at the creature. "It's your fault. Everything that's ever..."
"He doesn't love you," the creature reminded him. "You don't love him."
"That's because I can't," the Master replied. "I can, however, do this." He straightened his coat and tossed his screwdriver to Jenny, who caught it before staring at it in confusion.
"Master?" she asked, but he had already grabbed the creature and pulled it to the door. He hit the door open button and turned to the Doctor.
"Doctor!" he shouted, subduing the creature as it struggled to get away. "Goodbye. I'm sorry. Don't... forget me. Don't forget-"
And then the Master and the creature were torn from the compartment, the Master's last action to hit the button as he flew by, allowing it to slide closed behind them.
"No!" the Doctor shouted, half echoing the creature's dying words, half his own thoughts as the Master's consciousness was ripped from his mind. It was not like in the Library, when it had merely been muted or on the Valiant when it had slowly faded. No, this was sudden and wrenching.
"He's gone, he's gone, he's gone," the Doctor gasped, rolling to the floor. "He's gone, he's gone, he's gone, he's gone."
"Doctor?" Jenny's voice cracked as she helped him sit upright. Suddenly all his emotions rushed together.
"It was good this time!" he screamed, hands clenching into unbearably tight fists. "He was good. We were alone, we're the last ones. . It hasn't- not since we were children have we been able to... It was good!"
A heavy silence hung in the air, broken only by heavy breathing and sobs.
"I said it was her," Val suddenly insisted.
The Doctor's head shot up and he glared at her murderously, but it was Jenny who broke.
"Shut up!" she shrieked, standing shakily. "You stupid woman, you ignorant- He's dead because of you! He died because you all killed him!"
"Jenny," Jethro said quietly, laying a hand on her shoulder. Jenny flung herself into his arms and sobbed into his chest.
"We didn't-" Val spluttered, but Jethro glared at her over the top of Jenny's head.
"Be quiet, Mum." He guided Jenny over to a seat and sat down beside her. The Doctor leaned against one of the armrests and stayed there, his blank eyes staring at the floor. No one moved until the rescue crew came twenty minutes later.
----
As they quietly filed into the rescue vehicle, the Doctor pressed his hand to the rear exit door and closed his eyes. He stayed like that for a minute, then he followed Jenny into the other Crusader. One of the men there checked them all for injuries, while another one pulled the stewardess to the side. He listened to her, writing notes down, before he gestured at the Doctor and Jenny as they sat side by side, Jethro sitting nearby.
"You're the Doctor, then?" the man asked. "Identification please."
The Doctor pulled out his psychic paper and held it up for the man who inspected it before nodding. "I'm sorry for your loss. Do you have Master's identification?"
"Not on me," the Doctor replied miserably. The man nodded and added a note to his paper before he turned to talk to his superior. Once back at the Leisure Palace, they were taken into a small waiting room, each of them interviewed before being allowed to return. As the Doctor was being questioned, Jenny sat waiting for him, watching as Jethro stormed past his parents when he was released.
"I hope you're happy," Biff snapped once his son was out the door. "You've turned him against us."
"If he's turned against you it's because he watched you try to kill an innocent man in front of his lover and daughter," Jenny replied coolly.
"We didn't know!" Val protested.
Jenny shrugged. "Neither did we. But we never tried to kill anyone."
"But-"
"Unless the next words out of your mouth are 'Words can't describe how sorry I am' then you'll want to leave now," Jenny replied, her lips in a thin, hard line. Val and Biff finally left and Jenny nodded good-bye to Jethro through the window.
When the Doctor finally emerged Jenny took his hand and they left to find Donna. She was right were they left her, sunbathing near a pool in a fluffy white bathrobe. When she heard them approach she looked up with a smile, but one look at the two of them and her faces told her something had happened.
Wordlessly she walked over and drew them into a hug, her arms tight on their backs as she ignored the tears dripping onto her robe. She held them there until they were ready to let go.
"What happened?" Donna asked once they were sitting at a table and the Doctor was ready to talk.
"I don't know," the Doctor replied softly. "Some sort of consciousness. It got a hold of me, scared the humans they... he died to save me."
"He said some weird things to it, though," Jenny said. "Like he recognized it."
"He might've known it from somewhere, though," Donna said. "I mean, there might have been something he'd read about that you hadn't."
"He was talking to it..." the Doctor admitted, brows furrowing. "What was he saying? I couldn't... I couldn't understand anything just then."
Jenny bit her lip in thought. "Drums, something about him being insane. He said something about protecting you from it."
"He died for me," the Doctor closed his eyes. "I never..."
Donna placed her hand over his and squeezed tight. "He wanted to protect you Doctor. And he did, didn't he? He probably saved everyone here."
"Yeah," the Doctor said quietly, nodding before he slowly stood up. "They want me to get his papers."
"Let's go see if they're in the TARDIS, then." Donna replied softly.
Jenny was the one who ended up piloting the TARDIS away, as the Doctor disappeared into its depths. They didn't see him for days and Donna was not surprised to see the Doctor's room empty and not slept in.
The Doctor's bed now seemed too large for one Time Lord.
Next Time: The Final Battle Part I: Stolen Earth