A/N:As promised, Part 2 is now up. Hope you enjoy it :)

There never seemed to be a stop to the work in the Torchwood Hub. Spencer had only been there for three days and he and Tosh upgraded the entire computer system, he helped Owen refill his stock of alien drugs, as well as made sure they were all safe to use on humans and spent an entire afternoon helping Gwen correlate between Torchwood and the local PD.

While at it and as if it was nothing special – which, to be honest, it probably wasn't – they also captured four Weevles who ran loose and created havoc in the streets of Cardiff and monitored two peaks in the rift's activity.

Truly, if it wasn't for Ianto's apparent ability to look at someone and prepare the ultimate coffee for their needs, Spencer would have killed Jack after the tenth time the former Time Agent proposed that they'd take a break in Spencer's hotel room. Or in Jack's flat. Or office. Or, once, the holding cells.

He was no longer as angry at the Welsh as he had been before, knowing that the Battle wasn't his fault and knowing that he had lost a great number of friends that day, as well, but though he managed to be friendly with him he didn't think they could ever truly become friends.

There was simply too much baggage to carry between them.

It was on Christmas Eve that Jack finally revealed the true reason he wanted Spencer to come visit. The team got a night off, leaving only the two of them in the Hub as Jack revealed his immortality to the Time Lord. Spencer frowned, running a couple of scans on Jack before sighing.

"I knew that something was wrong when I looked at you," he admitted. "But I didn't think of it much because I knew that the Doctor travelled with you, so I thought that I imagined it. But now…" he sighed again. "Somehow, at a certain point between the Doctor starting to travel with you and when you were left on Satellite Five, you became a fixed point in time."

"Sorry," Jack said with a confused frown, "I thought that only events could be fixed points in time."

"Theoretically, yes," Spencer replied. "A person being a fixed point… it shouldn't happen. It's a mistake – no offence," he quickly added.

"None taken, I think," Jack sighed. "So, is there anything you can do? Can you… can you fix me?"

"I… I'm sorry, but there's nothing I can do," Spencer sighed. "Maybe the Doctor could do something with the TARDIS, but I very much doubt it. Once something becomes a fixed point, there's nothing you can do to change it."

"So, what?" Jack asked. "I'm stuck like this? I'll never be able to die?"

"I don't know," Spencer admitted. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Jack sighed. "Should have expected it, really, but I couldn't help but stay hopeful. After living so long…"

"Yeah," Spencer sighed. "I know."

"And my team…" Jack added. "I've never grown this close to a Torchwood team before, and to know that one day they'll…"

"I know," Spencer repeated. "I'm trying very hard not to think about…" he trailed off at the sound of beeping coming from Jack's computer, frowning in confusion. "What's that?"

"Alert on alien aircraft inside Earth's inner atmosphere," Jack replied, moving to check it more closely. "Let's see if we can get a picture… oh."

"What?" Spencer asked, moving closer to look as well. "What is – oh."

The two men looked at one another, knowing that the video that appeared on the screen could only mean one thing.

One car-drive later found Spencer laying on the bed of his hotel room, trying to wrap his mind around everything that happened. In less than an hour, news would spread and he would have to answer stressed phone calls from his teammates, but for now he had some peace to think over what happened.

He would seek a thorough explanation further on, but judging on what he knew so far, the entire situation screamed 'Doctor'. Honestly, a spaceship flying over London was the Doctor's equivalent to putting up a sign declaring his presence on the highway. Just as sending out military troops to blow the ship up was the Master's equivalent to sending out a message saying 'I'm here' to replay on every television.

As if summoned by his thoughts, Spencer's cellphone started ringing in the special ringtone he set as the Master's. He knew that he couldn't simply ignore it, no matter how much he wanted, and reluctantly brought the phone closer to him.

"What do you want?"

"Oh, Professor," the Master sighed. "So rude. Did you really forget all of the etiquette lessons they gave us as kids? Then again," he mused, "I remember you offering a much better way to spend these lessons."

"I asked you a question," Spencer said through gritted teeth.

"And I chose to ignore it, Professor."

"Don't call me that," Spencer bit out. "That's not my name."

"It's the name I knew you as," the Master said. "If I recall well, you didn't used to have a problem with me calling you that – or, more accurately, me calling that name in general while we –"

"What do you want?" Spencer cut him off sharply. "I'm really not in the mood for this, Master."

"The dear Doctor's back in town," the Master said. "Did he call you, yet?"

"Kind of hard to with you clogging the line."

"This regeneration really is quite rude," the Master said again. "Didn't dear mummy teach you manners?"

"Go to hell," Spencer replied, turning to hang up the call only to be stopped by the next words the Master said.

"You didn't say anything about my present, though."

"What?"

"My present," the Master repeated. "The pretty missiles, I made them for you."

"Don't you dare call shooting a spaceship and killing everyone inside something you did for me," Spencer all but snarled. "You kill because you enjoy it, Master. Nothing more, nothing less."

"There was a Racnoss inside, Professor," the Master said. "You can't just expect me to –"

"Don't call me Professor!"

Spencer was breathing hard, his hearts pounding quickly in his ears. He couldn't do it. He couldn't keep in touch with the Master any more, it will drive him to be as crazy as the other Time Lord is. He had to cut it off, and he had to do it now.

"Goodbye, Master," he said simply, removing the phone from his ear.

"Spencer, wait –"

But he had already pressed the button, falling on the bed and closing his eyes.

It had been two months since the Master first contacted him, and six since he last spoke to the Doctor. He knew that even if his friend would call now he wouldn't tell him about the Master being back – there was too much risk, especially considering he had just hung up in his face – but he needed to hear his voice, to know for certain that he as alright.

More than that, he needed an explanation. He deserved an explanation.

The Doctor picked up after the first dial, but Spencer suddenly found himself at loss for words.

"Spencer?" the man on the other end of the line asked. "Spencer, are you there?"

It was like a dam broke at the sound of the Doctor's voice, and Spencer didn't know if he was ever going to be able to close it again.

"Where the hell have you been?" he growled. "Six months, Doctor. Six months since Canary Wharf, and even when you finally do come back, you don't even bother to call me?"

"I only just came back," the Doctor said. "Spencer, I planned on calling you as soon as I had the time, I was just… busy."

"Busy," Spencer repeated. "Yeah, I saw. Drained the Thames. Found the time for that, didn't you?"

"It wasn't by choice," the Doctor said. "There was a Racnoss –"

"Do I sound like I care for your excuses?" Spencer asked. "Six months, Doctor!"

"It was less than a day ago for me!" the Doctor called out. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry I didn't call you sooner but I couldn't! I still can't! I can't talk about it because Rose and her mother –"

"I know that they're dead!" Spencer called back. "Not that you bothered telling me, though, I had to find out from the list of the dead!"

"They're not dead!"

At that, Spencer froze. "What?" he asked, confused.

"They're not dead," the Doctor repeated, still breathing heavily after the screaming match that proceeded his words. "They're… they're in another universe – they're trapped in another universe. The one Mickey is in. The one where… the one where Pete Tyler never died."

"They're… trapped?" Spencer asked.

"They're alive," the Doctor said. "Rose is alive. But I'll never be able to see her again."

"What about…" Spencer swallowed hard. "What about the Cybermen?"

"Also from the other universe," the Doctor said. "There was a breach in the walls between worlds and they came through."

"And…" Spencer swallowed hard. "The Daleks?"

The Doctor was silent for a moment before speaking, sounding as if saying the words caused him physical pain.

"From the Void," he said, and Spencer's breath hitched. "From… they came from the Time War. The Time Lords trapped them there. When the walls between worlds breached…"

"There was access to the Void and they came back through," Spencer sighed. "Where are they now?"

"Back in hell," the Doctor replied with a darkness Spencer rarely heard in him. "The Cybermen and the Daleks, all back in the Void."

Spencer took a shaky breath, closing his eyes. "How does it always happen?" he asked. "Why… why do they keep on winning, when we always lose?"

"They don't win," the Doctor said. "Spencer, they didn't win. All of the Daleks are gone now."

"That's what you said last time," Spencer replied. "So how do they keep coming back when all of our people are gone?"