"Gallifrey rises!"
The shouts echoed throughout the hall as the Great Council of the Time Lords appeared in a brilliant white light. The Master grinned. This was perfect. He began to laugh, squinting at the blurred figures came into focus.
"Sir!" Came the interrupting voice of one of his clones. "I think I should warn you…"
"Not now!" came the Master's sharp reply. Couldn't the stupid fool see that he was busy?
His clone opened his mouth to reply, but dropped any warning and ducked, shielding his body from some invisible enemy. Almost immediately, the glass ceiling shattered above the Master, throwing down the limp form of the Doctor, who hit the marble floor with a sickening thud. He looked down at his enemy in disbelief, then peered up through the broken dome to see a spaceship soaring off in the other direction. The fool must have leapt off the ship to land in the building. The Master watched as the Doctor curled his fingers around a gun, wincing in agony, and raised his arm to aim at the Lord President. Too weak from his fall though, the gun dropped and the broken man closed his eyes, gasping for breath.
The President smirked, walking forward to address the two Time Lords. "My Lord Doctor," he rumbled. "My Lord Master. We are gathered for the end."
The Doctor struggled to pick himself up then, winding up kneeling on the hard floor, looking up at Rassilon desperately. "Listen to me! You can't!" But his words were ignored, and instead the Lord President turned to the Master.
"It is a fitting paradox that our salvation comes at the hand of our most infamous child!" said Rassilon with something resembling praise. The Master grinned evilly.
"Oh, he's not saving you!" hissed the Doctor. "Don't you realize what he's doing?"
"Hey, no, hey!" interrupted the Master, pointing accusingly at the Doctor. "That's mine! Hush!" He turned away from the Doctor, grinning up at Rassilon. "Look around you." he began, spreading his arms and gesturing to the clones surrounding them. "I've transplanted myself into every single human being. Who wants a mongrel little species like them?" The Master paused, narrowing his eyes menacingly. "Because now I can transplant myself into every single Time Lord." Rassilon returned the Master's look, narrowing his eyes and curling his lip distastefully. "Oh, yes, Mr. President, sir!" he mocked. "Standing there all noble and resplendent and decrepit. Think how much better you're gonna look – as me!" But Rassilon said nothing, and instead rose his right hand to the Master. The metal glove he wore clicked loudly, and began to glow and spark with blue Artron energy.
The Master's smile vanished, and his eyes began to flick wildly around the room when Rassilon opened his hand, casting the energy from the glove. All of the Master's clones began to shake, their heads spinning back and forth as they changed back to their original human forms. "No, don't!" shouted the Master, bringing his hands up to grasp his hair in disbelief. "No, no, no, stop it, no! No! No, no, no, don't!"
He turned around to glare at the President, and the Doctor looked around in disbelief. Rassilon ignored the two Time Lords, stepping forward and raising his arms. "On your knees, mankind!" The humans obeyed, falling to their knees and staring around the room in confusion.
"That-that's fine, that's good, because you said salvation," argued the Master desperately. "I still saved you! Don't forget that!"
"The approach begins!" bellowed Rassilon.
The Master spun around in confusion, his face showing how scared he really was, like a small boy in the face of a monster. "The approach of what?" he questioned the Doctor urgently.
"Something is returning," hissed the Doctor through clenched teeth. "Don't you ever listen? That was the prophecy – not someone, something!"
"What is it?"
"They're not just bringing back the species," he explained angrily. "It's Gallifrey! Right here, right now." The Master's eyes widened in fear, but he just as soon turned back to Rassilon, falling to his knees, his face alight with victory.
"Aha!" he exclaimed. "I did this! I get the credit! I'm on your side!" By now the entire room shook with the force of the returning Gallifrey.
Just then, Jack sprinted into the room, making his way over to the Doctor and helping him to his feet. "Damned cactuses," he panted. "Kicked me off their ship and flew away." Before the Time lord could respond, Jack was distracted by the sound of tapping on glass, accompanied by someone pleading for help. He turned sharply, seeing one of the scientists trapped inside the glass radiation booth. Leaving the Doctor, he stepped into the opposite side of the container, pressing the button to let the man escape. "Don't worry; I've got ya."
The Doctor turned his attention back to the Master, who was desperately attempting to find a positive side. "But this is fantastic, isn't it?" The Doctor glared at him. "The Time Lords restored!"
"You weren't there in the final days of the War!" he shouted. "You never saw what was born. But if the Time Lock's broken then everything's coming through, not just the Daleks, but the Star of Degradations, the Horde of Travesties, the Nightmare Child, the Could-Have-Been-King with his Army of Meanwhiles and Never-Weres – the war turning to Hell!" The Master stared at him, not sure what to think. "And that's what you've opened. Right above Earth. Hell is descending."
"My kind of world!" retorted the Master gleefully.
"Just listen! 'Cause even the Time Lords can't survive that!"
"We will initiate the final sanction!" came Rassilon's booming voice. The Doctor dropped his head, sobbing in despair. "The end of time will come at my hand! The rupture will continue until it rips the time vortex apart! "
"That's suicide!" objected the Master.
"We will ascend!" explained the President. "To become creatures of consciousness alone. Free of these bodies. Free of time and cause and effect. And where creation itself ceases to be!"
"You see now?" hissed the Doctor. "That's what they were planning in the final days of the war. I had to stop them!"
The Master ignored the Doctor, stepping forward and spreading his arms wide. "Then – take me with you!" he pleaded. "Lord President, let me ascend into glory!"
Rassilon sneered. "You are diseased!" he spat. "Albeit a disease of our own making. No more!" He raised his gloved hand, aiming at the Master. Suddenly, a loud click broke the tension. The Doctor stepped between the two Time Lords, releasing the safety on the gun in his hand and aiming at Rassilon. He clenched his jaw, tightening his hold on the trigger as Jack took in the scene before him, his face a mask of horror.
"Choose your enemy well," threatened Rassilon. "We are many. The Master is but one."
"But he's the President!" interrupted the Master. "Kill him and Gallifrey could be yours!" But the Doctor suddenly turned, aiming instead at the Master. "He's to blame, not me!" he pleaded, but then realization struck him. "Oh! The link is inside my head! Kill me, the link gets broken, they go back." The Doctor's face tensed as if in agreement, about to pull the trigger as the Master shifted, meeting the other's gaze. "You never would, you coward!"
Their eyes stayed locked together, and the Master's certainty began to dwindle. The Doctor's face softened momentarily, and he wondered if he could actually carry through. Could he really kill the man he loved?
"Go on then," taunted the Master. "Do it!" He swallowed hard when he saw the Doctor's finger tightening on the trigger. His golden eyes went round with fear, and he gave a small subconscious shake of his head, silently pleading. But, much to his relief, the Doctor swirled around again, aiming at Rassilon. "Exactly!" goaded the Master, so easily switching back to confidence. "It's not just me, it's him! He's the link! Kill him!"
Rassilon sneered. "The final act of your life is murder! But of which one of us?" The Doctor stared blindly, indecisive. Which one? His mind set back to the Master. Where others saw a murderous madman, he saw Koschei; his best friend with an innocent heart. He could never hurt him. He glanced to the side of Rassilon, to one of the figures covering their faces in shame for having dissented. The woman slowly revealed her face, and the Doctor's breath hitched. It was the woman who had helped him escape the High Council.
Finally making a decision, the Doctor spun around again, the gun pointing at the Master, who shook his head pleadingly. "Get out of the way." The Master's face twisted in confusion, and then his eyes lit up with understanding. In a split second, he dove to the side just as the Doctor shot the pistol, hitting instead the machine that held the connection to Gallifrey. It exploded in a brilliant ball of fire.
"The link is broken," shouted the Doctor triumphantly, turning around to face the President. "Back into the Time War, Rassilon! Back into Hell!"
"You die with me, Doctor!" screamed Rassilon, raising his hand and aiming at the Time lord.
"I know."
"Get out of the way," commanded the Master, beginning to rub his hands together. The Doctor looked sharply over his shoulder, then dove out of the way just as a bolt of energy shot from the Master's hands, hitting Rassilon in the chest and causing him to stagger backwards.
"You did this to me!" the Master screeched. "All of my life! You made me!" His flesh turned transparent once again in a sickly blue, revealing his skeleton as blast after blast of energy struck Rassilon. "One! Two! Three! Four!"
The Doctor watched in horror as the same bright light returned from before, engulfing the mass of people in front of him. After what seemed like an eternity of noise, the room quieted, and Earth returned to normal. Sitting back, the Doctor began to sob in disbelief. "I'm still alive…" He looked around the room, desperately searching for the Master, but couldn't see him anywhere.
Tatatatap…
The Doctor pricked his ears, trying to find the source of the all-too-familiar noise.
Tatatatap…
There! Sitting hunched over, curled into a ball in the corner was the Master. Tears stung the Doctor's eyes as he made his way over to the other Time Lord, placing a tentative hand on his shoulder. The blonde flinched at the contact, scuttling backward against the wall. It took him a moment to recognize the face staring back at him with relief and concern. He shook his head, hunching back over and wrapping his arms around himself loosely. "What happened?"
The Doctor opened his mouth to respond.
Tatatatap…
Both Time Lords' heads shot up, as neither of them had produced the sound. Both looking around wildly for a moment, the Master finally snorted, groaning loudly and dropping his head into his hands.
"What?" demanded the Doctor. He followed the Master's pointing finger to the radiation booth. Inside was Captain Jack, knocking on the glass and giving a tentative wave. His face went blank as he stared at the human. Finally, "God dammit, Jack!"
Jack chuckled. "What's up, Doc? Forget about me so soon?"
The Doctor stood up, exasperatedly running his hands through his hair. He stopped outside the booth, pointing an accusing finger at the human. "What the bloody hell are you doing?"
"Tryin' to get your attention, actually. How do I get out?"
The Doctor sighed dramatically. "Well, you're gonna be stuck in there for a minute. All the excess radiation from the machine is about to flood that case."
"And that'll kill me?"
"Yep," he confirmed, almost a little too cheerfully. "Just hit that green button and you can come out when it's over." The Doctor walked away, making a point of leaning back over the Master, checking that he was okay.
"Bastard," muttered the Master, pushing the Doctor away lightly as relief washed over his face. "Why would do that to me? Dragging that shit out so long – I thought you were going to shoot me, dammit!"
"Good," replied the Doctor. "You needed some time to think. Better to have fun while I'm at it."
"Bastard," he repeated, softer this time, crossing his arms and looking away.
A soft electric crackle suddenly filled the room, and the Doctor looked over his shoulder to see Jack curled up on the floor of the booth, twitching violently as his body absorbed the radiation.
"You'd better go comfort him," said the Master bitterly, referring to Jack.
"Nah, he deserves it." The Doctor smiled. "Especially after how he treated you."
The Master grinned. "I love you."
They both leaned forward, meeting halfway and wrapping their arms around each other. "I love you, too."