They'd split off into smaller groups once they reached the passageways. Spreading out to cover more ground. It hadn't taken long for them to realise just how far the corridors went and how much they split off into different directions. They'd also realised that there was something blocking their ability to mentally contact one another down there. They needed to find their future selves, find a way to stop whatever was blocking their ability to contact them mentally in order to find them and they also needed to figure out a way to stop these Cybermen the Master had created out of their people. It was an almost debilitating thought for both the Sandshoes wearing Doctor and his leather jacket clad younger self, both fresh from the Time War and their version of its ending as they were. They'd done the deed already, or so they'd thought, the memory of destroying Gallifrey and its people still fresh in their minds. This was just rubbing salt into the wound for them both. Not that it was a particularly pleasant one for the rest of them.
Ryan, Yaz and Graham decided to split into a group each, all of them being able to contact each other with their phones still. They handed the Doctor's phone over to fourth group, to River Song who, being the only one of them capable of handling the spoilers on said phone without the time lines taking a beating, turned it over in her hand for a moment before smiling knowingly.
Yaz stuck with the Sandshoes Doctor and Eyebrows one. Their companions in Donna, Bill and Nardole coming along with them. The Ponds had chosen to stick with them, Amy apparently deciding that they must've had the best chance of finding both versions of the Doctor that had been taken.
Graham had been swept up in conversation with the youngest three versions of the Doctor, so he'd gone with them already, his phone in his pocket ready to give a ring should they run into any trouble. Ian and Barbara were with them, along with Susan, Jamie, Zoe and Jo.
Ryan hadn't had much of a chance to choose before he was being manoeuvred down one of the passageways by the Doctor in the horrifyingly colourful outfit, the two versions of him beforehand following with a shared glance between one another. Their companions came along too, Sarah Jane, Tegan, Turlough and Peri.
The last group with River had the last three Doctors, the one wearing questions marks, the one in the cravat and the one in the leather jacket. Their companions as well, Ace, Lucie, Jack and Rose.
The first group had walked down the centre pathway, peering into the different rooms that they walked passed, the two Time Lords the main ones keeping their eyes peeled for any traps that the Master may have laid out for them. It was after about a half hour of walking that they finally saw anything. The rooms they'd peered into on the way to finding the first trap had looked cleared out. In a rushed way, like someone had wanted to get everything out but some minor things were still left behind. Scratches and other marks still marked the floors and walls where things had been ripped out of place.
"Alright, stand back." Sandshoes sat an arm across in front of Yaz, stopping her from stepping forward. He grimaced down at the patterned flooring in front of them. It stood out obviously from the rest of the blank marble flooring that had spread throughout the rest of the passageways and rooms they'd peeked into on their way through. "Typical Master, overly complicated traps and all."
"What is it?"
"Well, it's a trap, that's for sure."
"Yeah, we got that," Donna piped up from behind him next to Bill, "what does it do?" He sighed, casting her a look before relenting with a little shrug.
"I don't… 100% know. It'll do something."
"Well, isn't that helpful. Fish something out of those pockets of yours then, chuck it on it."
"Oh, good idea." He grinned at her and reached deep into his jacket pocket until he could fish out a little wind up mouse and gave it a chuck onto one of the middle rows of checkerboard on the floor. There was a split second where nothing happened. Just long enough that he wondered if anything was actually going to happen in the first place. Then a low crackling noise picked up and within seconds there was a flash of white light and the small wind up mouse was now dust on the floor. They'd all flinched back at the flash of light and blinked at the mouse remnants, all looking varying degrees of horrified. "Ah, it's one of these."
"Just like the good old days, eh Doctor?" they all looked up as the Master's voice came from across the room and a holographic figure of him stood with his hands clasped behind his back as he smirked at them. "A lot of this stuff was down here already, Rassilon was set in his ways about his traps."
Memories of the Death Zone arose in the Doctor's mind. Both versions of him present and they both scowled at him.
"Where are you?" The Doctor with the Eyebrows questioned him but Yaz spoke up, all but cutting him off in an angry tone.
"Where's the Doctor? What have you done to her?"
"I haven't done anything. Yet. At least not completely."
"And what's that supposed to mean?" Sandshoes asked. The Master just smirked, head tilting just slightly to the side, the movement taunting and the Doctor's jaw clenched in frustration, "what are you doing to them?"
"A trip down memory lane. For one at least."
"And the other?" There was a pause as the Master thought over his words, then another calm smile settled on his face.
"Well… it's definitely more of a tumble." A grin spread across his face as he spread his arms, "hope you're fast enough. Not sure how much longer she's going to hold out." There was a crackle, like an old sound system booting up, and seconds later the sound of screams came through. They were unmistakably the Doctor's. Yaz let out a sound like she'd just been punched in the gut and the Doctor with the Eyebrows was the one to reach for her when she began storming forwards, forgetting the trap momentarily in her rage.
"What are you doing to her?" she yelled at him and his smirk spread out into a full out evil grin, clearly finding the outrage and worry on the other faces in the room amusing.
"Like I said, more of a tumble." With one last grin the hologram flickered out of existence and the screaming was cut off and a horrible silence followed.
"We need to find her." Yaz's tone turned pleading, any previous anger gone. Her frustrations with the Doctor could take a back seat until she was sure the other woman was going to be okay.
"We will." The Sandshoes Doctor assured her, sitting a hand on her shoulder and stooping slightly to look her in the eye, "we'll find both of them." He looked to the Ponds who were both looking just as worried.
"Do you think he's hurting him as well?" Amy asked, voice slightly wobbly.
"I don't think so." The Eyebrows Doctor said, voice hesitant but he sounded sure enough that the Ponds let out the breaths they'd been holding, "I more think he might just have him stuck somewhere out of the way. Talk of memory lane?"
"The Matrix?" Sandshoes supplied and the Eyebrows Doctor shrugged with a nod.
"I think so, yes."
"What's the Matrix?" Rory asked.
"Time Lord supercomputer. It uploads memories into it like data onto a hard drive. He could be showing him anything in there." Sandshoes supplied.
"Doesn't he have access to all of my version of you's memories?" Yaz asked, "what if he shows him his future?"
"It's fine. So many versions of us in one place, timelines are already fraying to keep everything straight. None of us will remember any of this."
"So, what's the trap?" Bill asked, after a beat of silence, finally getting them back on track. They all looked back to it.
"Some kind of pattern, you'll need to walk across the squares in a particular order to avoid being vaporised. I've seen it used before." Eyebrows told them, stepping to the edge of the patterned floor, "a long time ago." Bill caught his arm before he took a step onto the first row of squares.
"Hey! What're you doing?"
"Sir!" Nardole cried out his own objections and the Doctor turned to them with a hand thrown out towards the trap.
"Last time it didn't affect the first three layers."
"Right, and you think this one's the same?" Bill's voice was slightly squeaky.
"Might be, that's why I'm checking."
"Sir, surely it would be bad for your future self if you yourself end up dying here and now out of sheer stupidity?"
"Nardole?" the smaller man hesitated for a second before answering, his tone wary.
"Yes sir?"
"Do shut up." Nardole's face flattened out into something distinctly unimpressed and no one could make any other protest as the Scotsman took a quick step backwards onto the first line of squares. He visibly winced, eyes squeezed shut as his shoulders hunched up to his chin as he waited to see if he would be vaporised. When nothing happened after a few seconds his posture relaxed and he held his hands up with a grin towards everyone else who'd all tensed the second he stepped a foot onto it, "See! Fine."
"I can't believe you." Bill hissed, "what if you'd died right now?"
"Then we all would have been very sad, me especially. It would have meant I made a very stupid decision. But I'm not dead and it all worked out. That just means I'm just very clever."
"Do you just get more thick headed as you age or is it just the same and I haven't noticed?" Donna asked, pretty much deadpan and the Sandshoes wearing Doctor tossed her an offended look.
"Oi."
"Just asking."
"Couldn't you just chuck more things from your pockets onto the squares? Figure out which ones which?" Rory asked, Bill pointing to him in agreement of the common sense.
"Fine, give me your shoe." Eyebrows Doctor raised an eyebrow at Rory who blinked in confusion, "I already used something of mine. Not ruining all my stuff. If you don't wanna do it my, then we'll make it a group effort. Give me your stuff." Rory gaped at him for a moment, glancing to his wife and the others to see if he was being serious. Bill just grimaced then looked back to the Doctor.
"I don't carry anything with me, since learned better." She sat her hands on her hips for a moment.
"Yeah, seconded. I've lost two phones travelling with you." Rory grimaced.
"Well then, guess we're going with my plan. Unless Nardole feels like pulling out some nuts and bolts for the greater good?" Nardole glared at him and the Doctor smirked and continued, "now, are you all going to let me figure this out for a moment or will you continue? We do appear to be on a time limit though." The group fell silent almost immediately, watching the older man as he looked back across the chess board looking design on the ground, then up to search for the disintegrator beams, "Ah ha." He beamed suddenly, taking the next step forward onto the next square one level up and two down. As his foot made contact with it there was a distant hissing noise, and everyone tensed, waiting for what would happen.