A/N: First week of being locked away... It really doesn't help my depression. X_x
Writing helps... or rather... editing... Most of those chapters are written long before I publish them. xD
Anyway... I hope you are all well and healthy, physically and mentally. Take care of yourselves and those around you. x3
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Roka told the Master about what had happened. There was no reason to hide it from him and also no harm in him knowing of it. It also didn't seem to surprise him, although he mocked her for not having found out more about River while at it. Roka only grumbled something inaudible to herself. She wasn't good with these things. Around people she mostly fell back to reacting rather than acting first. Being invisible to everyone certainly did not teach one good social skills.
While she had been away with River the Master had listened to tales of this place. He briefly told about a few, his eyes sometimes twinkling when there was a hint of interesting tech or creatures to be found in one of them. Roka got a feeling they would spend quite some time digging for treasure here. The Master used every available opportunity to fix the broken parts of his TARDIS. Especially now that she was misbehaving so much.
They wandered around for a bit, peeked inside empty houses and tried to open pathways that lead deeper into the ruins. Most doors or holes were blocked, though, and the ones they could open only rewarded them with dead ends.
"We should take a look at that crystal," Roka pondered and fumbled around with her Vortex Manipulator. "Looks like it crashed down from the sky. I wonder what it is."
"A weapon maybe?" the Master guessed hopefully. "There's got to be some reason most people here died out."
"Mhm, possible. Could also be alien. A meteor... probably even a life form. Those roots around it make me curious."
"Looks like a great source of energy, that's for sure." He rubbed his chin and glared downwards. "Could use that."
Roka hummed in agreement and proceeded to stare down. Weird how this thing made her feel, tugging at her insides, gnawing at the edges of her consciousness as if it were alive and calling out to her.
"You... feel anything from the crystal?" she asked the Master.
He slightly shook his head.
Roka rubbed her temples, trying to place the feeling, but it kept slipping away. She moaned quietly in annoyance.
"Headache?" the Master asked absently.
"No... I don't know what it is." She squinched her eyes shut and took some deep breaths. "Something's weird about this place. It... feels wrong." She pensively glared up to where the broken buildings vanished into the darkness, layer upon layers of concrete buildings, remnants of a place long lost.
"Or your head hasn't recovered fully, yet. Let's get somewhere inside and I'll take a look at it?"
Roka blinked up at him, searching for any mischief in his eyes, for a hint of what caused him to behave so evasively before they came here. But there was nothing. Only slight concern and the usual restlessness, hidden behind a mask of composure and calmness.
They entered one of the empty buildings, collected a few things that looked like ancient wood or cloth and piled them together. The Master ignited the small heap with his laser screwdriver and nodded satisfied, before he went outside once more.
Roka really felt a little knackered, still, so she stayed, sat down cross-legged and just watched the dancing flames, let herself be lulled into a slight, comfortable trance for a while, contemplating whether or not to jump back a few centuries to find out what this place used to look like and what had happened to lead to its current state.
Some rustling made her look around only to feel someone behind her all of a sudden. Instinctively she tensed, but a chuckle made her relax immediately.
"You do seem a bit out of your mind today, little crow," the Master muttered into her ear. "It's only me."
"Oh, so having one of the most dangerous men in the universe sitting at my back is supposed to calm me?" she teased, but leaned comfily against his chest.
"Mhm... no, it really shouldn't." He chuckled some more and gingerly held his hands to her head, leaning it backwards and against him so he could look down into her eyes, his own displaying sincere affection. "You should be scared. You should run."
"Because you killed them?" Roka asked quietly and saw something fighting in his hazel eyes.
"No. You know how blood soaked my hands are," he mumbled, stroking his thumbs along her face. "Why isn't it frightening to you?"
It was an honest question, she could feel it. However, this time it wasn't asked because he wanted to scare her, like he loved to try. More as if he wanted to understand her, to know how it could be that even his own race had cast him out, had abused him for their war, had treated him like he hadn't any worth from the very moment of his birth, but she, a mere human, didn't ask or interfere. Even a hundred and fifty years ago, when they had first met, when she had been young and naive and he had threatened her life over and over again, had she not ran.
Instead she had asked to travel with him.
And now she had done so again. With the knowledge of who he was and that he would not change entirely, not ever, had she decided that his side was the place she wanted to be.
Because when I feel your hearts, it calms me like nothing else, because when I look into your eyes I see the beauty of a storm tossed ocean. I see the stars, I see suns burning bright and warm. And all of this is you.
Roka looked at him, not daring to speak out any of these thoughts. Instead she closed her eyes and focused on the warmth he engulfed her with, the soothing doubled beat at her back.
A feeling of sorrow and concern washed over her mind in a sudden rush that made her eyes snap open again.
"It's alright," the Master said softly, his thumbs gingerly skimming her temples. He wasn't in her mind though, that she could feel. But she could also feel that he wanted to go there.
She decided to ask about their connection. Now was as good as any other time. The look in his eyes changed, got darker. Did he sense she wanted to know?
"Master... what..."
"Maybe I can shield you better," he dodged. "Those bots aren't only connected to your biological brain. I should be able to adjust a few things."
"I... uh... actually wanted to ask..."
"May I?"
Damn you!
Roka huffed and snuggled closer to him, unable to resist his gently mischievous smile. "Aren't we a gentleman today? You used to invade my mind whenever it pleased you."
His eyes turned dark and he bit his lower lip. If she wouldn't know it better she would say he was feeling guilty for having done so. His look didn't ask for forgiveness, though. "Not anymore. I don't want to hurt you."
"It... it never did," she mumbled perplex and also honestly.
The Master's smile changed and it was a warm, caring expression, one that made her heart race pleasantly and her cheeks warm up.
"Okay, try it," she mumbled and lowered her head to make herself as comfortable as possible against him.
He waited until she sat still, then his thumbs pressed a tiny little bight tighter against her temples, holding her head firm and secure. Roka felt a nudge in her mind, a light caress against her natural barriers and she opened up to him, felt his presence slip into hers like warm water, flowing through her consciousness, her memories, her very essence, nudging, stroking, moving parts inside her she couldn't name or even point at. His energy moved precise and fast, collected one thing, tossed another one to the side, sorted and then waved together a net of something new.
Roka felt the structure growing rapidly, felt the warm shield of energy in her head, fusing with the technology inside of it. Eventually it was done, she knew it. And still the Master moved deeper, carefully, hesitantly. She let him, curious about what he intended to do and also simply enjoying his presence in her mind. If only she were psychic too. But humans...
...actually had the capacity for it. Dormant, unused, but definitely there, even though most of her species didn't know about it.
She had learned to set up mental barriers, had gained knowledge about how to control some parts of her body, to a certain degree. So why should she not be able to do a little more than that? Roka concentrated on the Master's energy, the way it felt and moved in her head and eventually reached out with her own mind for his. She wasn't sure what it would do. But the urge was just too strong, the wish to...
...touch him.
She gasped when his presence intertwined with her own, like streams of energy winding around each other. It was a sensation far beyond anything she had ever felt before, rushing through her head and her heart. It made her braver and a little shaky at the same time. Once more she nudged her mind against his own. He held her tighter, moved slowly along the streams of her energy, caressing it gently and finally tugged at a spot that made her gasp once more.
On some distant level Roka realized it was a barrier, a border that separated one part of her mind from another. One that reached far deeper into herself than what she even was conscious about. His energy traced around these edges, carefully, tenderly, searching for a way inside without hurting her.
Roka relaxed some more, tried to feel for this barrier, wanted to learn what it really was. A potential maybe. Something humans never used, but possessed nonetheless.
'You wouldn't understand,' the Master's voice whispered inside her head. 'I have no words to explain it to a human.'
She gave him a mental eye-roll and tugged at his presence to try and stop him from poking around there any longer. A silly chuckle went through her mind and she felt something vibrating through her, like a command, an instruction. And suddenly she knew... without being able to grasp it, she simply knew what she had to do.
For a short moment she got aware of everything at once. Of her own body, almost shaking, her breaths, deep, her heartbeat, fast and excited. The Master held her tightly, his hands gliding from her temples, down her neck, his mouth on her ear, following his fingers and biting tenderly into her pulse. A small groan escaped Roka, she stiffened and relaxed at the same time, feeling his hands wander lower, below her jacket, carefully tugging out her shirt from her pants to slide under it.
The mental connection made her senses a thousand times more perceptive, his touch igniting every fibre of her body, letting her feel the heat pooling in her lower abdomen, his hands coming to a rest there, splayed out, his thumbs stroking over her skin.
"Let me have your mind," he breathed out against her neck.
Skin contact. Of course, he was a touch telepath after all. The temples were only the quickest way, but for something bigger he needed more contact, making Roka wonder what would happen if they were connected like this while... She heard him chuckle, remembered he could read her very thoughts.
There was a gentle nudge of his mind against hers, inviting, playful, teasingly. Roka fell back into her head, out of her body and she didn't hesitate for another second, responded to his mental touch. She felt the barrier faltering, not entirely, only enough. A gap, a tiny space from which she could reach out, let him inside and flood her entirely like a warm wave of sunlight.
She forgot where she was, about her body, about all of reality outside. There was only the blackness inside her head and the sparks of heat and energy in it, dancing, twirling, igniting her very being, burning her alive and completely until it was impossible to tell where she ended and he started, merged together in an ever blazing plasmatic fire. She reached out further, felt for him, carefully, then bolder, played with the foreign sensations and let him do the same in return. Strings of sparks and glowing dust, separating, touching, merging and entangling.
She felt him groan against the crook of her neck, felt his arms wrap around her more tightly. Only then did she get aware of reality again, her own ragged breathing, the heat inside her. Her whole body was slightly trembling, made her feel weak and as if she could fade at every second. But she held on to it, wanted more and moaned softly protesting when his mind started to retreat slowly, disentangling from her own, his presence fading like a dwindling candle flame.
Only the fact that he held her so tightly prevented Roka from crying out at the loss of their connection. Her hands gripped his arms and she shivered when his breath brushed against her neck, followed by a light chuckle.
"You have no idea what you did there, have you?" he mumbled against her.
No, she really hadn't. But gosh, had it felt amazing. "You started it," she only breathed, though her head adapted a bright red when she realized that this probably had been something far beyond intimate.
"Mhm..." he murmured, still against her. "Didn't even know humans could do that." His nose tickled the small hair on her neck, his breath sending goose bumps down her spine. "I'm so..." He tenderly bit into her skin, making her gasp and grip his arms tighter, "...so tempted to abuse the situation. You humans have no idea what you're missing out."
She could hardly suppress another moan when his mind nudged at hers again, this time in a way that left no room for interpretation.
"W... wait, please," she ground out through gritted teeth. "Let me rest a little. That was exhausting."
"Is that so," he said softly, but retreated nonetheless and Roka let out an almost relieved sigh, already too worn out and tired to let this go any further.
"Isn't it for you?" she asked curiously.
"No. Not at all. But it's not surprising that it makes you tired." He chuckled a little and rested his chin on her crown, arms securely wrapped around her.
Now that she looked around Roka saw the fire had almost died down. She blinked confused, wondering how much time they had spent inside her head. Being connected to the Master in this way... it had felt like seconds, but had obviously lasted much longer.
She wanted to dwell in the lingering rests of those sensations some more, snuggled back at the Master. But a sudden shift in the air let her drop the thought. She straightened and the Master loosened his grip on her immediately. He, too, seemed alerted. Maybe it had even been him to feel the subtle shift first, and Roka had simply picked it up from him.
Both got to their feet, leaving the house and glancing around the crater and the buildings in search for whatever caused the strange sensation. Tiny red particles started to appear in the air, the same Roka had seen outside, and she stretched a hand out to touch them, although it seemed impossible, the particles too small.
Doors swung open, people rushed outside, from somewhere they heard a loud whaling sound that probably was an alarm of some kind. River was there, too, sprinting to Roka and the Master with a worried look on her face. It changed from concerned to sceptic, though, when she eyed the Time Lord.
"Oi! I've got nothing to do with this!" he whined.
"He's right" Roka seconded. "He was with me the whole time."
"That totally doesn't make it more believable." River shook her head but seemed to believe her anyway.
One of the keleperians slithered to a halt in front of them, gesturing towards some buildings in the opposite of the crater. "The crawlers got inside! Quick, hide!"
He hadn't properly finished the sentence when the first glowing eye-shaped machine appeared in their line of sight. The robots were only a little smaller than Roka and looked much more threatening in reality than as a hologram, their hull painted in black, the three legs covered in dulled, dark metal scales, mechanical claws at each end. Each and every movement produced a strange robotic noise, that rose to a crescendo as countless of them stormed into the settlement.
Roka tore out her knifes, the Master produced his laser screwdriver and River held up a gun, all of them ready to fight against those metal creatures, unwilling to give them any victory.
It was as the keleperian had suspected. The crawlers took no notice of the foreigners and only hunted the inhabitants of this place.
"Ha! That's too easy!" the Master laughed and shot down one robot after the other, executing almost a kind of dance while doing so. "Take that! And that! And you too!"
"Could you stop having so much bloody fun, you idiot!" River shouted and blasted another crawler into pieces. "They are hunting down those people!"
Roka was sure he knew that perfectly well, saw how he jumped over one eye, away from a group of inhabitants only to execute another few machines a good bit away from the exact people in danger, and not even flinching when a crawler rushed to them and brutally shoved them away with one arm.
The people that hadn't been fast enough were already lying dead on the ground. Some crawlers smashed themselves into the makeshift houses, dragged out people with their long arms and crushed their heads, twisted their bodies and tossed them aside like broken toys. Screams echoed all around them, the stench of hot metal and blood burned in Roka's nose. It made her choke, cough.
She stumbled backwards, drew her shirt over her nose and continued to whirl around amongst the robots, slicing them into pieces. Those knifes had been forged in the heat of a pulsar, or so she had been told. The truth didn't matter. They cut through their targets easily and that alone counted. This fight against the crawlers, it was like being a glitch again, woke memories of other fights where she had whirled through masses, without them being able to see what actually hit them.
It was an unfair advantage.
But like back then, it were simply too many. They wouldn't be able to destroy them all. And this wasn't a regular attack. An attack like this had never happened before, she realized as she saw the gravity of the damage.
"What the hell happened?!" Roka shouted towards River, trying to be heard over the noises of the battle.
"I don't know!" she called back while blasting three robots with a single, well aimed shot. "The trap outside is supposed to hold them back. It worked for centuries, they told me." Another few crawlers exploded into ember dust. Next to her the Master giggled happily at the destruction he was sowing among them with ease. "It must have failed somehow, maybe..."
The red particles in the air suddenly flared in the brightest, deepest red Roka had ever witnessed, followed by an ear-piercing shriek that resounded all around them at once. The crawlers began to tremble, to jitter and tumble, curled themselves together like dying spiders.
"It's this crystal," the Master told and pointed down into the depths. "That guy down there is activating it."
Roka and River glanced down, seeing the huge thing glow in the same red colour that ran through itself and the veins around like crimson blood. But...
"I don't see anyone," Roka told.
"No, me neither. The crystal must be activating itself somehow," the curly woman seconded.
To their surprise the Master looked confused and cast another look down. His arm pointed to one side of the crystal. "Are you blind? There!"
The women looked at each other, then back down and to where the Master was pointing. And really, where they had seen nothing before there now stood a figure. From this distance it was impossible to tell if it was one of the inhabitants, but they stood there, one arm stretched out and a hand pressing against the crystal.
The screams from the robots had stopped by now. Those that weren't destroyed or damaged by whatever the crystal was doing to them fled the scene, ran back to where they had come from.
"It seems to work," Roka mumbled and glared down at the figure again. Her stomach felt sick all of a sudden and she had to lean against some debris, eying the last fleeing crawlers and the relieved faces around her.
Everything was fine again.
But it felt so horribly wrong.
Through the smouldering remains of robots and corpses she could see the surviving keleperians return from their hideouts, carefully approaching the chasm to take a look at the crystal. Some children curiously observed the dead crawlers, others sank down in front of their lost loved ones and wept.
The red particles started to pulsate, faded in an out like a heartbeat.
Got stronger.
Roka's chest tightened painfully, the stronger the glowing got. She gasped and swayed, letting out a shaky whimper. In an instant the Master was at her, caught her before her knees could give way. All joy from the fight had left his face.
"What's with her?" River demanded and sunk to her haunches next to him.
"I don't know! Shut up!"
He hurried to press his thumbs against her temples, entered Roka's mind without hesitation and searched for any kind of overload that might be occurring due to the crystal or whatever else. She somehow knew he wouldn't find such a thing. It felt completely different to the last time. So...
...familiar.
A second later he retreated, dropped his forehead against hers and let out a growl.
"Master," she mumbled through the fog in her head. "There's... I don't know..."
She had to tell him, had to warn them. Something was wrong, was happening, shouldn't happen. It gnawed on her, hurt. This wasn't right. She had to... had to... didn't even know, couldn't remember.
It was only wrong.
"It's not in your head," the Master growled. "Nothing is!"
"Then what is wrong with her?!" River wondered and reached for Roka's arm.
The Master pushed her away. "Don't touch her, human!" he spat.
The red pulsated more violently, bright and brutally. It hurt, made Roka unable to speak. It was resonating within her, as if it was ripping at every atom at once. She could feel the crystal, could hear it vibrating through her body and mind. But why did it only affect her?
"It's that person down there, who's causing this," the Master concluded with a sour look, swiped Roka into his arms and carried her to the nearest of the makeshift houses.
Her hands reached out for his jacket, grabbed whatever she could reach of it and clung to him, cuddling her head to his chest. It didn't ease the strain on her body, but if she had to suffer, then at least close to him. As close as she could get.
Because he was the one thing that had been missing all this time in her journey through eternity.
"Someone's down there?" one of the keleperians asked, having obviously overheard their conversation. "But no one has ever found a way to the heart."
"I haven't seen anyone," River answered, her voice echoing faintly in Roka's head.
It felt wrong. No one was down there.
"You saw him just a moment ago!" the Master grunted. "Don't play dumber than you are."
"What? What the hell are you talking about? It's so not the time for jokes or games, Master," the curly woman protested and followed him inside the building. "If you have seen anything, anything at all, then you have to tell!"
No one is down there.
The pain in Roka's chest got worse, her head felt as if it would explode every second. How she stayed conscious was a mystery to her. She tried to mutter his name, wanted to feel it on her lips. It gave her a sense of safety she so desperately needed right now.
Even inside the house there were red glowing particles filling the air. In another time and another situation it would have been a magical sight, but now it only caused unease within everyone. A way too familiar unease. Roka clutched the Master's jacket tighter, but he lay her down on a bed and tried to loosen her hands from him.
He would leave. She knew it. He would vanish and be gone from her life forever. And it hurt so much more than whatever tore at her.
"No," she whispered desperately. "Don't... don't leave me."
His eyes looked down at her in puzzlement, his hand curling over hers, warm and securely.
"Don't be silly. As if I would ever do that again." He took her hands into his, carefully lay them over her chest and stood. "But I'll go and have a good, one might say deadly, chat with that fella at the crystal."
She lacked the strength to hold him back, felt her body shaking and get weaker by the second. He wouldn't listen. But he had to. He just had to.
Something shifted in the air again, all of them felt it, and within the blink of an eye the crimson particles paled to a bright blue, then white. And then they vanished as if they had never been there in the first place.
No one is down there.
As the pain subsided, Roka finally felt her consciousness fading. Her thoughts slipped sideways, falling into the abyss of darkness.
No one was down there.
No one.
Except...
...there was.