The sound of drums, part 2.
Martha hurried through the abounded warehouse they had found, carrying a bag of hot chips that she had been sent out to get seeing as she was less likely to be recognized. The Doctor and the Hatter looked up as they sat in front of the laptop, Jack stood off to the side while he fiddled with his Vortex Manipulator.
"How was it?" Jack asked, looking up as the Hatter asked the same thing.
"I don't think anyone saw me," Martha sighed as she opened the bag, rummaging through it, "Anything new?"
Jack tapped his Manipulator, "I've got this turned into the government wavelength so we can follow what Saxon's doing".
"Yeah, I meant my family," Martha gave him a cold look, shoving a package of food into his hands, walking over to the Doctor and the Hatter.
"I'm sorry, Martha," the Hatter sighed sadly, reading the news report off the computer screen, "It's still saying that the Jones family have been taking in for questioning".
"Tell you what, though," the Doctor added, taking the package that she handed him, passing it to the Hatter so she could open it, "No mention of Leo".
Martha smiled, "He's not as daft as he looks…" she slowly lost her smile as it hit her what they were talking about, "I'm talking about my brother on the run. How did this happen?"
"I'm sorry, Martha," the Hatter reached out and patted her arm gently, "I know this is hard but we'll get through it".
Martha smiled at her as Jack took a bite of his chips, "Nice chips," he remarked, sitting down on an old chair they had managed to find.
"Actually, they're not bad," the Doctor nodded, popping one it his mouth, "Hatter, here," he gestured for her to open her mouth before popping a chip in.
"I'm not a baby bird, Doctor," she rolled her eyes, chewing before she kissed his cheek, making him grin broadly, "But I can't fault you on being sweet".
Martha sat down and looked at Jack, nodding toward the Doctor and the Hatter.
"So, Doctor, Hatter, who is he?" Jack asked, looking toward them, "How come the ancient society of Time Lords created a psychopath?"
"And what was he to you two?" Martha added, looking in-between them both, "Like a colleague…"
"A friend, at first," the Doctor replied.
"I thought you were gonna say he was your secret brother or something," Martha half joked, the Doctor, the Hatter, and Jack stared at her.
"You watch way too much television," the Hatter shook her head.
"What about you, Hatter?" Martha turned to her.
"Like the Doctor said, friends," the Time Lady shrugged, "I was always a little unsure of him, of course. Something about him didn't quite sit well with me but I could never work out what. We were all close and got along well, mostly," she gave the Doctor a pointed look, "When he wasn't arguing with the Rani, anyway. He slowly development a bit of a crush on me later on in our school years…"
"Go on," Jack smirked slyly, the Doctor glared at him.
"Harkness!" the Doctor growled.
"Deep breaths, Doctor," the Hatter said slightly amused, "And no, nothing ever happened between us despite his attempts or shameless flirting, I mostly ignored it and hoped he would hurry up and move on to someone else. I didn't expect that girl to be my own sister, though".
"It doesn't sound like he's over you," Martha commented.
The Hatter shook her head, "He's always been all talk and no action…well, that's not quite true…" she trailed off, looking thoughtful before shrugging, "Whatever his feelings are toward me is neither here nor there, I've never thought of him anymore then a friend".
Jack nodded before frowning, "But all the legends of Gallifrey made it sound so perfect".
"Well, perfect to look at, maybe," the Doctor sighed, leaning back has the Hatter leaned her head on his shoulder, "And it was, it was beautiful".
"They used to call it the Shining World of the Seven Systems," the Hatter smiled softly, almost being able to see that once beautiful planet in front of her as the Doctor wrapped his arm around her waist, "And on the Continent of Wild Endeavour, in the Mountains of Solace and Solitude, there stood of the Time Lords…"
"The oldest and most mighty race in the Universe," the Doctor continued, dropping his own head on the Hatter's, "Looking down on the galaxies below, sworn never to interfere…" the Hatter had to stop herself from giving him a look, remembering him breaking that rule and having her dragged along with him in his punishment of being sent to Earth, along with a forced regeneration, "Only to watch".
"You see, children of Gallifrey were taken from there family's at the age of eight to enter the Academy," the Hatter explained, sighing, "And some say that's when it all began, when he was a child…"
"That's when the Master saw eternity," the Doctor cut in, "As a novice, he was taken for initiation, it's a gap in the fabric of reality through which could be seen the whole of the Vortex," the Hatter shivered, thinking about her own initiation, the Doctor pulled her closer to him, "You stand there, eight years old, staring at the raw power of time and space, just a child. Some would be inspired, some would run away, and some would go mad…"
"What about you two?" Martha asked softly, unsure if they would answer.
"Oh, the ones that ran away," the Doctor laughed with his mouthful, "I never stopped!"
"Please close your mouth, Doctor," the Hatter sighed, putting her finger under his chin and closing it, "And he might have ran, I was inspired. I was one of the lucky ones, I almost went mad with the raw power but I managed to pull myself away…" she looked thoughtful, "Well, perhaps I did go a little mad".
"I wouldn't have you any other way," the Doctor smiled, kissing the side of her temple, making her blush.
Suddenly, Jack's Manipulator beeped, "Encrypted channel with files attached," he frowned, "Don't recognizance it".
"Patch it through to the laptop," the Doctor sat up, nodding toward the laptop.
"Um, since we're telling stories," Jack mumbled, looking ashamed, "Um, there's something I haven't told you".
They moved closer to look to the laptop when the Torchwood Logo popped up on screen.
"You work for Torchwood!" the Doctor demanded, eyeing him as the Hatter winced.
"I swear to you, it different," Jack tried to explain, "It's changed. There's only half a dozen of us now".
"Everything Torchwood did and you're part of it?" the Doctor said angrily, glaring at Jack.
"The old regime was destroyed at Canary Wharf," Jack told him, stepping back slightly, "I rebuilt it, I changed it. And when I did that, I did it for you, in your honour".
The Doctor opened his mouth but the Hatter stepped in between them, "That's enough," she said firmly, giving Jack and the Doctor stern looks, "Were supposed to be working together not arguing," she turned and faced the Doctor, "I know how hard this is for you, my dear, Doctor. Truly I do but you need to remember that this is Jack, the man who no doubt saved your life more than once. I trust him, Martha trust's him, and just because we now know who he works for does not mean that he is the same. Give him a chance, Doctor".
The Doctor stared at her a moment, "But Rose…"
"Yes, what happened to Rose was tragic and I wish it had never happened," she nodded, "But it could have been so much worse, she could have been killed or…" she shivered at the thought, "Or she could have been sucked into the Void. A fate that we both know would be worse than death, at least now she is save and loved by her family. Jack played no part in what happened that day so we mustn't blame him," she gave him another look, "Now, apologise to him".
The Doctor stared at her before sighing, running a hand through his hair as he turned to Jack, "She's right, I'm sorry".
Jack blinked, not expecting any of that, "It's fine, don't worry about it".
"I love it when things work out well," the Hatter smiled, exchanging a look with Martha as the Doctor opened the file, an older blonde women popped up.
"If it haven't returned to my desk by 2200 hours," the women began to explain, "This file will be emailed to Torchwood. Which means, if you're watching this, then I'm…" she trailed off, clearly swallowing hard before continuing, "Anyway, the Saxon files are attached. But take a look at the Archangle document. That's when it all started. When Harry Saxon became Minister in charge of launching the Archangle Network".
They clicked on an icon that appeared at the bottom of the screen and looked at the various graphics, pictures of the satellites all around the Earth that appeared.
"What's the Archangel Network?" the Doctor and the Hatter asked.
Martha fiddled around in her pockets, "I've got Archangel," she said, pulling out her phone and tossing it to them, "Everyone's got it".
"I don't," the Hatter remarked.
"You don't have a phone, though," the Doctor shook his head, glancing at her.
"From my human life I do," the Hatter corrected, smiling, "I kept it. I guess it was a bit of a keep sake, it does have quite a few pictures on it that I've been meaning to save on a hard drive," she looked thoughtful, "Some of them would be good in picture frames".
"I can't believe that after all these years, I'm still learning things about you," the Doctor smiled.
"I would hate to become predictable, sweetheart," she grinned cheekily before turning to Jack and Martha, "Sorry, you were about to tell us about Archangle?"
"Right," Jack shook himself, still struggling with how happy the Doctor seemed from how he was when they first meet, "It's in the mobile phone network. 'Cos, look, it's gone worldwide. They've got 15 satellites in orbit. Even the other networks, they're all carried by Archangel".
The Doctor grabbed the Martha's phone and flashed his sonic at it, "It's in the phones!" he muttered, "Oh, I said he was a hypnotist! Wait, wait, wait. Hold on," he tapped the phone against the side of the table, a moment later it began to beep in a 4-beat rhythm, "There it is. That rhyme, it's everywhere".
"Just ticking away in the subconscious," the Hatter breathed.
"What is it, mind control?" Martha asked, looking slightly alarmed at the idea.
"No," the Hatter shook her head, closing her eyes as she listen closer to the rhyme, "It's subtler that that. Well, it would have to be, wouldn't it? Any stronger and people would start asking questions".
"But contained in that rhyme, in layers of code…'Vote Saxon,'" the Doctor added, nodding his head, "Believe in me. Whispering to the world…" he glanced at the Hatter, both realizing the same thing, "Oh, yes! That's how he his himself from us. We should have sensed there was another Time Lord on Earth. The signal cancelled him out!"
"But not compliantly," the Hatter frowned, "Remember, Doctor? Every time we landed in London, I could feel something. It felt like someone was calling me but I dismissed it. The only person that could have done that was the Master".
"Why didn't the Doctor feel it?" Martha frowned.
"The Master wants me to know he was here," she sighed, "He knew that it would annoy me, he always did get great pleasure in annoying people".
Jack shook his head, getting back on topic, "Any way you can stop it?"
"Not from down here," the Doctor shook his head, "But we now know how he's doing it".
"And we can fight back!" Martha smiled.
"Oh, yes!" the Doctor and the Hatter grinned, setting to work taking both the laptop and Martha's phone apart with the sonic while Martha and Jack watched.
"You keep working, I'll have a look around for a bit of wire," the Hatter nodded to the Doctor, hurrying around the old warehouse as she searched, a moment later Jack and Martha joined her, "We just need a piece of wire about an inch long," she told them.
"Hatter?" Martha asked, glancing at Jack.
"Hmm?"
"Is there something you're not telling us about the Master?" Jack asked, eyeing the Time Lady as she looked up sharply.
"Some advice," the Hatter said firmly, "The more you know about the Master, the more danger you put yourself and everyone you care for in. The Doctor, the Master, and I were close friends; the Master killed someone in my family and made me forget. The Doctor helped me to unlock that less then pleasant memory but by then it was too late, the Master had already become a renegade, leaving Gallifrey to make chaos across the stars".
"Who…" Martha cleared her throat, "Who did he kill?"
"She was one of my youngest and less annoying cousins," the Hatter sighed, going back to searching some of the junk scatted around the place, "I witness the Master murder her when we're still in school, when I tried to stop him, he wiped the memory from my mind. It would be a couple of centuries before I would get my memory back".
"Why?" Jack frowned, looking slightly sick.
"My cousins all looked remarkably like me, or maybe I looked like them," the Hatter said thoughtfully before shrugging, "Black hair, blue eyes, pale skin, we even had similar facial features. I introduced my baby cousin to my friends while I helped her with one of her assignments; the Master took a special interest in her. I shrugged it off as him just having a thing for her, soon after they started dating which was odd because my cousin knew that, that behaviour in our family was against the rules," she gave Jack and Martha a look, "That's all you need to know, perhaps I will tell you another time".
Jack and Martha opened their mouths but the Hatter spotted a piece of wire and hurried back over to the Doctor, Martha and Jack trailing behind her.
"Brilliant!" the Doctor grinned, grabbing the wire and using a pair of wire cutters to cut it to the right length, the Hatter got Martha and Jack to hand over there TARDIS keys as they welded some circuitry on the back of the keys, tying some string to each of them.
"Right, four TARDIS keys," the Hatter pushed the keys forward on the table, "Four pieces of the TARDIS with a low-level perception because the TARDIS is supposed to blend in," she gave the Doctor a look, "Not that I don't mind the phone box…"
"Well, sort of, but…" the Doctor rubbed the back of his neck, "Now! The Archangle Network's got a second low-level signal. Weld the key to the network and…Martha," he stepped back, holding one of the keys in front of him, "Look at me. You can see me, yes?"
"Yep!" Martha nodded, the Hatter hid her smile at what was about to happen.
"What about now?" the Doctor slipped the key around his neck, making Martha blink and look away from him, "No, I'm here," he waved his hand, "Look at me," Martha continued to blink and look away from him.
"It's like…" Martha frowned, "I know you're there but I don't want to know".
"And back again," the Doctor pulled the key off and stepped forward, Martha's eyes widened, "See? It just shifts your perception a tiny bit".
"It doesn't make you us invisible, just…unnoticed," the Hatter added.
"Oh, I know it's like. It's like…it's like when you fancy someone and they don't even notice you exist. That's what it's like".
The Hatter looked slightly guilty, "If you had told me all those years ago…"
"I know, I know," the Doctor kissed her lightly, making her blush as she remembered that Jack and Martha were standing right in front of them, "I was a coward…"
"Don't you dare call yourself a coward, Doctor," she gave him a look, "There's nothing wrong with being afraid to tell someone how you truly feel, I pretty sure everyone's gone through that at one point or another. And don't forget, I didn't plane to tell you how I felt".
"Still," he sighed before shrugging, looking at Jack and Martha, "Come on!" he grabbed the Hatter's hand and pulled her out of the warehouse.
Martha watched them go, smiling slightly as she tried not to show how embarrassed she was about ever having feelings for the Doctor, "You too, huh?" Jack asked, glancing at her.
"At first, yeah," Martha admitted, "But once I got to know the Hatter, I knew I didn't have a chance. Not with how close they are".
"Come on you two!" the Hatter called over her shoulder, making them run after them as they made their way down a street.
"Don't run," the Doctor warned, they quickly stopped running as they fiddled with the keys still in their hands, "Don't shout".
"Keep your voice down," the Hatter added, casting a look around the street, "Draw attention to yourself and the spell will be broken. Keep to the shadows as much as you can".
"Like ghosts," Jack remarked.
"Yeah, that's what we are," the Doctor nodded quietly, "Ghosts," they slipped the keys over the heads and continued on their way.
….
"Mr President, Sir!" they watched from the edge of the tarmac of a small military base as the Master mockingly saluted a man dressed in a suit.
"Mr Saxon," the President sighed, looking far then pleased to be there, "The British Army will stand down. From now on, UNIT has control of this operation".
The Doctor and the Hatter exchanged looks, "You make it sound like an invasion," the Master remarked.
"First contact policy was decided by the Security Council in 1968," the President glared at the Master, "And you've just gone and ignored it".
"Well, you know how it's like," the Master shrugged, "New job, all that paper work. I think it's down the back of the settee. I did have a quick look. I found a pen, a sweet, a bus ticket and uh…" he glanced at the blonde women standing beside him, "Have you met the wife?"
"Mr Saxon, I'm not sure what your game is but there are provisions at the United Nations to have you removed from office unless you are very, very careful," the President gave him a hard look, "Is that understood?" the Master mimed zipping his lips shut, "Are you taking this seriously?" the Master nodded, "To business. We've accessed you're files on these…Toclafane. First contact cannot take place on any sovereign soil. For that purpose, the aircraft carrier Valiant is en route. The rendezvous will take place there at 8:00 am," the Master tried to speak with his mouth still zipped, "You're trying my patience, Sir".
The Master mimed unzipping his lips, "So America is completely in charge?"
"Since Britain elected an ass, yes," the man replied, glaring harshly, "I'll see you on-board the Valiant," and with that, he turned and began to leave.
"It still will be televised, though, won't it?" the Master called after him, making him turn back around, "Because I did promise, and the whole world is watching".
"Since it's too late to pull out, the world will be watching," the President said, "Me," he turned and walked over to his waiting car.
The Master smirked slightly, leaning closer toward his wife, "The last President of America. We have a privet plane ready and waiting. We should reach the Valiant within the hour," he gestured for his wife to go first, "My darling," he turned and watched as the President drive away before he glanced over to were the Doctor, the Hatter, Martha, and Jack were standing when a police siren made him turn. A van pulled up and the Jones's were pulled out, all but Leo, "Hi, guys!" he grinned, laughing, "All will be revealed!"
"Oh my God," Martha gasped, almost shaking from anger.
"Don't move," the Doctor and the Hatter warned, glancing at her.
"But…" Martha looked at them.
"Don't," the Hatter repented, softer then before as she lightly touched her shoulder, "Calm down or you'll put your family in even more danger. Just…breathe".
They watched as Martha's family were forced into another car, kicking and screaming.
"I'm gonna kill him," Martha breathed, the Hatter shot her a concerned look.
"Say I use this Perception Filter to walk up behind him and break his neck?" Jack asked seriously.
"Now that sounds like Torchwood," the Doctor remarked, sending him a look.
"Still a good plane," Jack shrugged.
"Boys," the Hatter sighed, shaking her head, "Besides, he's a Time Lord, which makes him our responsibility. We're not here to kill him".
"We're here to save him," the Doctor added.
Jack glanced at them and nodded, fiddling with his Vortex Manipulator, "Aircraft carrier Valiant. It's a UNIT ship at 28.2N and 10.02E".
"How do we get on-board?" Martha asked, frowning.
The Doctor turned to Jack, "Does that thing work as a teleport?"
"Since the Hatter revamped it, yeah," Jack nodded, holding out his wrist, "Coordinates set".
"I suggested you try holding your breath this time," the Hatter told them as they reached out and gripped the Manipulator; they did as she suggested before activating it. A moment later they landed in the engine room of the Valiant. Martha and Jack fell to the floor, groaning as the Hatter almost collapsed along with them; luckily the Doctor grabbed her before she did.
"Sorry, I'm still getting used to it," the Hatter muttered to the Doctor as he pulled her closer to him, "This body seems to be quit clumsy when I'm not really focusing on what I'm doing".
"Like I said, I wouldn't have you any other way," the Doctor grinned, kissing her forehead.
"Oh, that this is rough," Martha groaned, holding her head.
"Oh, I've had worse nights," Jack muttered, standing and cracking his neck, "Ah! Welcome to the Valiant".
"It's dawn!" Martha gasped as she walked over to the porthole, looking out, "Hold on, I thought this was a ship," she frowned, "Where's the sea?"
"A ship for the 21st century," Jack explained, walking behind her to look through the small window, "Protecting the skies of planet Earth".
….
The Doctor, the Hatter, Martha, and Jack ran down the maintenance corridors, looking for an exit when the Doctor and the Hatter suddenly stopped.
"We've got no time for sightseeing!" Jack called to them the Doctor and the Hatter shook their heads at him.
"No, no," they replied, "Wait. Shh, shh, shh. Can't you hear it?"
"Hear what?" Jack frowned.
"Doctor, Hatter, my family's on board," Martha shot them both looks, storming past them.
"Brilliant!" the Doctor grinned, "This way!" he quickly turned and lead them in the opposite direction, turning down a corridor to find the TARDIS standing beside some crates, "Oh, at last!"
"Hello beautiful!" the Hatter laughed as she ran forward with the Doctor.
Martha laughed along with them, following behind, "Oh, yes!"
"What's it doing on the Valiant?" Jack frowned.
The Hatter paused, losing her smile as she realized that he had a very good point, her eyes winded as she thought of the many horrifying things he could have done, "Please tell me he didn't," she breathed, throwing the doors open and running inside to find the entire room bathed in a red light, the console torn apart with a cage like structure around it.
"What the hell's he done?" Jack demanded, staring at the room.
"Don't touch it!" the Hatter warned, stepping forward, looking sick at the sight, "Not a thing!"
"I'm not going to," Jack told her.
"What's he done though?" Martha asked, looking around the room, confused, "Sounds like it's…sick".
"Very much so," the Hatter muttered.
"It can't be," the Doctor whispered, shaking his head, not wanting to believe it, "No, no, no, no, no, no…it can't be!"
Martha looked at the two Time Lords, "Doctor, Hatter, what is it?"
"He's cannibalized the TARDIS".
"Is that what I think it is?" Jack gasped, stepping back as he looked at the Doctor and the Hatter in alarm.
"It's a Paradox Machine," the Hatter breathed, she ran around the console before spotting a gauge and knelt down next to it, "As soon as this hits red, it'll activate. At this speed, it will trigger…" she glanced around before spotting Jacks watch, "At two minutes past 8:00".
"First contact is at 8:00 and then two minutes later…" Jack nodded, following along.
"What's it for?" Martha cut in, still looking confused, "What's a paradox machine do?"
"More importantly, can you stop it?" Jack shook his head.
"Not until we know what it's doing," the Doctor sighed, the Hatter nodded, standing, "Touch the wrong bit and blow up the solar system".
"Then we've got to get to the Master," Martha said, egger to get to her family and make sure they were alright.
"Yeah," Jack nodded his agreement, "How do we stop him?"
The Doctor glanced at the Hatter before grinning, "Oh, I've got a way. Sorry, didn't I tell you?"
….
The Doctor, the Hatter, Martha, and Jack quietly entered the bridge of the Valiant were the President was giving his speech to the world, "…as long as man has looking to the stars, he has wondered what mysteries they hold. Now we know we are not alone…"
"This plan, you gonna tell us?" Jack whispered as they slowly crept into the room, watching the Master as he sat at the front beside his wife, the Hatter couldn't seem to fight off the unsettling feeling that he knew they were there.
"If I can get this," the Doctor whispered back, holding up his key, "Around the Master's neck…cancel out his perception…"
"They'll see him for real," the Hatter cut in, nodding before sighing, glancing around the room, "It's just going to be extremely hard with everyone on red alert".
"If they stop me…" the Doctor said, looking at them, "You've all got a key".
"Yes, Sir," Jack nodded.
"I'll get him," Martha said firmly, glaring at the back of the Master's chair.
"I'll leap across the table if I have to," the Hatter agreed.
The Doctor looked at her, grabbing her shoulders and pulled her around to face her, "Not a chance. You stay here and…"
"Keep safe," the Hatter finished, rolling her eyes, "Not going to happen, Doctor. I'm not a child and I do wish you would remember that, my dear. Now, you focus on doing your job, I'll focus on mine".
The Doctor blinked a few times before turning his attention back on task, knowing that she was right despite what he wanted.
"And I ask you now, I ask the human race, to join with me in welcoming our friends," the President continued with his speech, "I give you the Toclafane," the silver spheres from earlier appeared, hovering in mid-air around him, "My name is Arthur Coleman Winters, President-Elect of the United States of America, and designated representative of the United Nations. I welcome you to the planet Earth and its associated moon".
"You're not the Master," one of the Toclafane replied in a child-like male's voice.
"We like the Mr Master," a second sphere added, this time sounding like a little girl.
"We don't like you," the third sphere agreed, almost seeming to be glaring at the man.
"I…can be Master, if you so wish," the President Winters said, looking confused and slightly weary, eyeing the sphere's, "I will accept mastery over you if that is God's will".
"Man is stupid," the third Toclafane laughed.
"Master is our friend," the first agreed.
"Where's my Master, pretty please?" the second asked, sounding upset.
"Oh, alright then," the Master called, smiling, "It's me!" he jumped out of his chair, "Ta da!" he laughed, "Sorry. Sorry, I have this effect. People just get obsessed. Is it the smile? Is it the aftershave? Is it the capacity to laugh at myself? I don't know. It's crazy!"
"Saxon, what are you talkin' about?" Winters demanded, turning around and glaring at him.
The Master looked at him, losing the smile as he crossed his arms, "I'm taking control, Uncle Sam. Starting with you," he looked toward the Toclafane, "Kill him".
One of the Toclafane moved forwards and fired a laser at Winters, disintegrating him before he could do more than shout. The entire room gasped, some screaming as the room erupted in chaos, everyone trying to run out but the guards held them back with their weapons.
The Master laughed, running up to the spot that Winters had been standing, talking in to the camera, "Now then, people of the Earth, please attend carefully".
The Doctor started to run forward, pulling off his key. The Hatter went to run after him but Jack pulled her back, putting a firm but gently hand on her shoulder.
"Stop him!" one of the guards shouted, a moment later, two guards grabbed his arms and forced him to kneel on the floor in front of the Master.
"We meet at last, Doctor," the Master laughed, "Oh, ho! I love saying that!"
"Stop this!" the Doctor shouted angrily, "Stop it now!"
"As if a Perception Filter's gonna work on me," the Master rolled his eyes, looking over to were Jack, Martha, and the Hatter were standing, "Oh, and look, it's the girlie and the freak. Although, I'm not sure which one's which," he nodded his head and suddenly the Hatter was grabbed from behind and handcuffed, being marched to the front of the room where she was forced to the ground beside the Doctor.
"Let go of me!" she shouted, struggling to shrug the guards off but they merely tightened their grip, "Let go!"
The Master laughed, looking delighted as he jumped down the stairs and pulled her up, dragging her along with him, ignoring her shouts for him to let go while the Doctor could only watch helplessly.
"Calm down or you'll hurt yourself, darling," the Master rolled his eyes, grinning madly as he put his arm around her, practically breathing in her ear, "And we wouldn't want that, would we?"
"I'll tell you what I would like to do," she snapped, struggling to break free but he only laughed, tutting as he kissed the side of her head, pulling off his tie and using it as a gag around her mouth.
Jack suddenly ran forward, unable to watch anymore but before he could reach them, the Master pulled out a device, similar to a sonic screwdriver and fired a laser at him, killing him, "Laser screwdriver, who'd have sonic?" he smirked, glancing at the Doctor as he tried to break free, looking furies, "And the good thing is, he's not dead for long. I get to kill him again!"
Martha gasped, looking sickened as she ran to Jack's side, kneeling at his side.
"Master, just calm down," the Doctor tried desperately despite his anger, "Just look at what you're doing. Just stop. If you could see yourself…"
The Master sighed, looking back into the camera, "Oh, do excuse me, little bit of personal business. Back in a minute," he looked at the guards holding the Doctor, "Let him go".
They pushed him forward and he landed on the floor with a yell, "It's that sound, the sound in your head," he pleaded, looking up at him while the Hatter continued to struggle, "You said the Hatter tried to help, what if we worked together? What if we could help?"
"Oh, how to shut him up?" the Master used his free hand to mime chatting, "I know. Memory lane!" he dropped onto the lower step in front of the Doctor, forcing the Hatter down with him, "Professor Lazarus. Remember him? And his genetic manipulation device? Did you think that little Tish got that job merely by coincidence? I've been laying traps for you all this time. And if I could concentrate all that Lazarus technology into one screwdriver…But…" he trailed off, resting his chin on his palm, looking thoughtful, "Oh, if I only had the Doctor's biological code," he snapped his fingers, "Oh, wait a minute, I do!" he pushed the Hatter over to one of the guards while he walked over to a case, opening it to show the Doctor's severed hand, "I've got his hand! And if Lazarus made himself younger, what if I reverse it? Another hundred years?"
The Hatter's eyes winded, gasping around the gag in her mouth as she looked fearfully toward the Doctor. The Doctor glanced at her and nodded, trying to comfort her as the Master aimed the laser at him, turning it on. He began to scream, convulsing in agony as his entire genetic makeup was aged. The Hatter closed her eyes, forcing herself to look away as tears that she had been holding back broke free, she couldn't even move she felt so devastated at hearing the Doctor's screams of pain.
"Teleport," Jack told Martha quietly, handing her the Manipulator, only just being revived.
"I can't," Martha breathed, shaking her head.
"We can't stop him," Jack tried, "Get out of here. Get out".
The Master stopped and the Doctor collapsed on the ground, now a very old man with grey hair and wrinkles. Martha crawled to his side, "Doctor, I've got you," she told him, putting her arm around him, doing just what she knew the Hatter would have done.
"Aw, she's a would-be doctor," the Master remarked, smiling as the Hatter glared at him, struggling once more as she forced herself to stop crying, knowing it wouldn't help, "But tonight, Martha Jones, we've flown 'em in all the way from prison…" he gestured toward the door that slide open, showing the Jones's being shoved in.
"Mum!" Martha gasped.
Her mother shook her head, sobbing, "I'm sorry".
"The Toclafane, who are they?" the Doctor asked, breathing heavily, the Master crouched beside him, listening closely, "Who are they?"
"Doctor, if I told you the truth," he placed his hand over the Doctor's hearts, smirking, "Your hearts would break".
"Is it time?" the first Toclafane asked, reappearing.
"Is it ready?" the third asked.
The Master stood, walking over to the guard holding the Hatter and pulled her toward him, grinning widely as he noticed the look the Doctor gave him despite how weak he felt.
"Is the machine singing?" the second asked, sounding hopeful.
The Master looked down at his watch, "Two minutes past," he announced, dragging the Hatter up the stairs and joining his wife before turning back to the still rolling cameras, "So! Earthlings. Basically, um, end of the world," he held up his screwdriver, shouting, "Here…comes…the drums!"
And with that, the song 'Voodoo Child' was blasted through the room as the Paradox Machine activated and a massive red rift parted it's way in the sky outside, sending millions of Toclafane pouring through. The Master ran to the window, forcing the Hatter along with him as they looked out. The Hatter gasped in horror, staring transfixed.
A moment later the Master pulled her and his wife up to the bridge, sending a mocking kiss to the Doctor and Martha on his way up, "How many do you think?" the Master asked his wife, staring outside the widow.
"I don't know," she breathed, shaking her head.
"Doctor, you remember the plane we came up with?" the Hatter asked, calling to him with her mind as she received a weak reply back, "I think it's time you tell Martha and…tell her good luck from me".
"What about you, Hatter?" the Master questioned, leaning close to her ear again, "What do you think? Have I impressed you?" she tried to say something but couldn't through the gage, "Oh, right," he took it off her.
"You sicken me," she spat as soon as she could, glaring fiercely at him.
The Master seemed to falter for a moment before he smirked, "Good," he turned back to his wife, "Six billion," he told her, flicking a switch and activating the loudspeaker, "Down you go, kids!" he turned back to his wife, "Shall we decimate them? That sounds good. Nice word, decimate," he turned back to the speaker, ignoring the Hatter as she shouted at him to stop, "Remove one-tenth of the population!"
The Hatter burst into tears as people started coming over the radio, crying for help as the Toclafane set to work, massacring the humans.
"Valiant, this is Geneva!" one women came over the radio, crying for help, "We're getting slaughtered down here!"
Behind them, Martha stood, taking a few steps back from the Doctor.
"Help us, for God's sake! Help us! They're everywhere!"
"Please, please, make it stop," the Hatter gasped, sobbing as she closed her eyes painfully, trying to bloke the sound of the humans out as they reminded her of the Time War, hearing the pleas for help and not being able to help, "Please…just…stop".
"Too late," the Master replied without any emotion.
"This is London, Valiant! This is London calling! What do we do?"
Martha looked at her family, tears running down her face.
"They're killing us! The Toclafane are killing us!"
Martha glanced at the Doctor and over her should toward the Hatter, almost breaking into tears herself at the sight of the usually happy Time Lady now openly sobbing, looking heartbroken. She shook herself before activating the Manipulator, disappearing.
The Master handed the sobbing Hatter over to one of the guards before grabbing the Doctor and forcing him to look outside the window, not caring that Martha Jones had just escaped, "And so it came to pass…that the human race fell and the Earth was no more. And I looked down upon my new dominion as Master of all and I thought it…good".
Dear me, I wonder what will happen now that we know that the Master not only killed the Hatter's cousin, but wiped the memory of witnessing him do it from her mind? No wonder she and the Doctor became enemies but in the next chapter, you might be surprised at the Hatter, I won't say what or why but it will involve the Master. Or maybe you won't be at all, I have no idea. Anyway, I hope you liked it, please review :)