Nyssa tried not to worry as the Doctor slipped out of sight. Turlough would be fine, the Doctor would make sure of that. Besides, she had no time to dwell on anything but the present. The girl had retreated into herself, the gunshot taking her back to the horrors she had witnessed no doubt. He clung to her mother's unmoving hands as she rocked back and forth, barely even acknowledging Nyssa's presence. The older woman leaned forward. "It's alright, Little One", she spoke with a low and steady voice. "You're safe here. We won't let anything happen to you".
The child's gaze snapped to Nyssa's, staring her down with an expression of terror. "P-promise?" she whispered so quietly Nyssa almost didn't hear her.
The Trakenite nodded with enthusiasm. "Promise".
()
The Doctor gasped in pain as he was thrown to his knees. The thugs held on tight, pinning his arms behind him with nearly enough force to dislocate them. The ones that weren't busy holding him, disappeared swiftly out the doors. The Time Lord breathed out slowly through his nose. "Your hospitality leaves a little to be desired." he spoke through a grimace, trying his best to ignore the pain in his shoulders. He smiled his most innocent smile. "You haven't even offer me a cup of tea, let alone introduced yourself. That's always the first step to good hospitality, I say!" He hissed in renewed pain as one of the thugs twisted his wrist into a distinctly unnatural position. "Although in your case", he grinded out, "I'd say the first step would be to stop murdering innocent people." He shot an angry look at the leader.
The thug leader sauntered up to his new prisoner, towering over and forcing the Doctor to look up at him. "You will call me Akesh." he smiled and waved his hand dismissively. The soldier stopped twisting.
The Doctor smiled back. "Although that's not your real name is it? Akesh. It sounds much more like a title to me. What does it mean? Murderer? Torturer? Leader? Trapeze Artist?"
A look struck Akesh's face before it just as quickly disappeared again. "You are funny". He smiled his predatory smile. "Too bad I do not have the time for that".
"A pity."
Something flashed in the man's eyes. The Doctor did not register the flurry of movement in time and the fist connected with his jaw. The force of the hit drove his head violently to the side. The rest of his body followed as he sagged against the men holding him. He let out an involuntary cry as pain blossomed across his jawbone. That hurt, far more than he felt it should have. Sucking a breath in through gritted teeth, the Doctor willed himself to focus back in on the man before him. He raised his head again to meet him only to find Akesh's face less than an inch from his. The leader shoved his face directly into the Doctor's, forcing him to shrink back. "Do not mock me, KAKE!" he screamed. Spittle flew from between his gnashing teeth and his eyes blazed with fury. "If I wanted to, I could kill you right now!" He had a little scar running across his left cheek, the Doctor noticed.
He looked up at Akesh with calm eyes. "You say that, and yet you still haven't killed me, have you?" Something twitched in the man's expression. "You didn't seem to have any trouble with the rest of the town", the Doctor's eyes grew dark, "So, what's stopping you now, hmm?" For a moment, neither of them moved, both staring daggers at each other. Then, the leader's body relaxed and the tension eased out of his shoulders.
Slowly, he reached out and the Doctor hated himself for flinching away. With deceptive gentleness, he ran his fingers down his prisoner's jawline. The Doctor forced himself not to move or break eye contact. This violent little man would not win. "Well, I wouldn't make any money if I did that", Akesh whispered before abruptly removing his hand and standing up.
"Money?!" he said in disbelief. A sense of deep, burning anger flowed through the Doctor. All the needless killing and cruelty for something so trivial. "And what about the town, were they not worth sparing?" he all but spat the words, trying and failing to control his outburst.
Akesh shook his head with a laugh. "Of course not!" He said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I can't make anything from criminals and blood-traitors. I just need the Kakes they tried to hide".
"Kakes", the Doctor echoed, "I keep hearing that word. What are Kakes?"
The leader laughed. A sneering, growling laugh that rang harshly in the Doctor's ears. "Now you're wasting my time", he spat. "And I don't like time-wasters!" He loomed over the Doctor. "Thieves", he hissed, venom dripping from his voice, "Murderers, rapists, impure filth," With each word, he took a careful step closer, "Foreigners, invaders, aliens". He was now inches from the Doctor's face again, his expression twisted with hatred and disgust.
Impure, the Doctor thought, a sick feeling spreading into his gut. The reality was saying started to sink in. All those bodies… He struggled to find his voice. "Foreigners", he breathed, hardly daring to admit it. "You're wiping out anyone who doesn't have pure human blood", his voice hitched, "That's monstrous".
Akesh shrugged. "Their blood is not of our world and it carries the stink of decay. We cannot let it contaminate the purity of Ge'Phaidros", he said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Is that why you killed those people?" The Doctor swallowed hard. "Because they were helping foreigners?" He trembled against his captors, anger and grief starting to overwhelm him. This regeneration was turning out to be a little more emotional than the last.
Akesh cocked his head to the side, a dangerous look starting to appear. "They were criminals", he said automatically, "They got what they deserved".
The Doctor closed his eyes. "You know, I've been around for a long time", he said in a disturbingly calm voice, "but the depths of depravity that some people can fall to, never fails to turn my stomach".
They were coming. Nyssa could hear them. They had started a systematic search of the huts on the other end of the street. They would make their way here in a matter of minutes. Did they already have the Doctor and Turlough? She shook her head, she had no time to think about that. The girl had finally allowed her to sit alongside her. As the child heard the men approaching, she grabbed Nyssa's hand like a lifeline. Nyssa took a deep breath. Brave heart. A strangely soothing voice echoed in her head. She found the little girl's eyes and smiled warmly. "Hey little one", she said as pleasantly as she could, "I need you to do something for me". The child binked at her. "Is that okay?"
The girl's face shifted with uncertainty for a moment. After a bit, she gave Nyssa a little nod, pressing her thin frame closer to her newfound guardian. Nyssa blinked away sudden, strong emotions as she thought of Neeka. She never realized how much she missed her little daughter.
Nyssa took a deep breath. She couldn't let the soldiers get to the child. "Okay. Do you see those boxes, little one?" She pointed to the corner where a haphazard pile of crates had been stacked. The girl nodded, her breath quickening. "I need you to go hide behind them and be as quiet as you can, okay?" Nyssa spoke clearly and slowly to make sure the child understood. The girl looked to be on the edge of panic, her eyes wide and unfocused with fear. "Little one!", Nyssa said a little more forcefully. The girl snapped her gaze to Nyssa's. "Do you understand?"
The girl took a breath in. "Yes", she squeaked back, before getting up and hurriedly scurrying behind the boxes.
Nyssa gave her one last reassuring smile before getting to her feet. With the lightness that one might associate with a tight-rope walker, Nyssa made her way over to the hut entrance and flattened herself against the wall. She took a moment to quiet her breathing in preparation for what was to come. She was the only thing standing between those men and the girl. She would not fail. Every little scuffle from the thug's boots screamed in her ear. Every thrum of her own heart pounded like a drum. He was getting closer. One of the soldiers had broken off from the other. His shadow fell across the doorway.
Nyssa tightened her muscles in anticipation, like pulling back the drawstring as the enemy moved closer. His weapon entered her view first. A long, jagged blade made of black metal. Nyssa held herself back for a fraction of a breath, and just as the tip of his nose entered, she struck.
The Traken woman launched her body forward with all the strength and speed she possessed. The man yelped in shock as she collided with him. He hurdled to the ground with her still on top of him. Nyssa lashed out desperately, knocking the sharp implement far out of his reach.
By this point, the thug had recovered from his surprise somewhat and newfound anger darkened his eyes. He struck out with his elbow and caught Nyssa in the stomach. Her gasp hitched in her chest as he rolled and managed to throw her off. He got to his feet quickly. Quicker than Nyssa as she held a hand to her torso. The battle was won, she knew, as he rained down blow after blow on her knelt form. Even so, she continued to struggle, refusing to let so much as a whisper of pain slip through her lips as he grabbed a fistful of hair and dragged her bodily from the hut.
She couldn't help but smile slightly, despite the pain and indignity of being hauled through the dirt. The child was safe.
()
The heavy thump of military boots as they stomped there way to the hut was unmistakable. The Doctor's head turned automatically as he heard the thugs return. The rest of the men turned with him, eager to see what they brought back. A thin little thrill of fear raced through him.
Had Turlough escaped?
The squad emerged in the doorway and the Doctor's tentative hope plummeted to the bottom of the deepest pit.
No no not her please not her!
Nyssa was in an alarming state. Covered in head to toe with dirt, cuts, and bruises she almost looked like a different person. Or perhaps it was the eyes. The eyes that always held such care and gentleness, alive with fury. The Doctor's thoughts shot back to the place he had left her. Where was the child? Had these men murdered her too? The thought was too grim for him to dwell on.
Akesh took a look at Nyssa and let out a cackling, mocking laugh. "Just you and the orange welp was it?" he sneered, his every word filled with enjoyment. "You should have told me you had such a beautiful little Najjik with you!"
"Whatever you hope to achieve," Nyssa breathed softly, "you won't get it." There wasn't so much anger or defiance in her voice, but a sense of conviction. The Doctor's insides squirmed in fear as the leader drew himself closer to Nyssa. It was a real, deep dread. The kind of dread that settled around him like amber. He could always deal with a threat to himself, but he could never bear the thought of being helpless to protect his friends. An image of an exploding freighter forced its way into his mind.
"Akesh, listen to me," The Doctor kept his voice low, taking every care to be sure his words wouldn't evoke retribution. "You can do whatever you want with me. I'll do anything you want! But please just let her go. She can't possibly be of any use to you!" Desperation and just a little bit of panic edged his words.
Nyssa's sky grey eyes found his. She did not speak and yet she held an aura of great resolve.
Don't worry about me, the eyes said.
Akesh looked at him in mild amusement, as if he was an adult listening to the pedantic ramblings of a child. "Anything?" He abandoned his interest in Nyssa and drew closer. "I wonder what you mean by 'Anything'?" A soft chuckle bubbled in his throat. "You would not even kill one enemy to save your friends." Akesh paused, looking his prisoner up and down. The Doctor stared silently back. "I am forced to wonder what 'Anything' means to such a coward."
"Coward isn't exactly the label I'd use." He looked straight into the thug's malevolent face. "In fact, I find a man who kills the defenseless is far more likely to be named such a thing." The Doctor could see his comment spark a glimmer of anger in his opponent, but Akesh quickly hid it. Instead his expression took on a look of faint confusion.
He shook his head quizzically. "You make no sense. Is a farmer a coward for butchering his pigs?" Disgust shuddered through the Doctor's body and he found himself unable to answer.
Victorious, Akesh turned back to Nyssa with a grin. "Put her with him." The Doctor watched as his friend was forced over to him and thrown to the ground. The thugs didn't bother to hold her arms. Nyssa pushed herself up to her knees, brushing herself reassuringly against the Doctor as she did. "As tempting as your offer is, Doctor. The simple truth remains the same." The two prisoners looked up at him. "Two Kakes are worth more money than one." The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment. No plan. No apparent means of escape, and Nyssa's life resting precariously next to his. He tried to draw strength from Nyssa's familiar warmth as he looked up at the man whose name he now understood the meaning of. Akesh. Their Owner. Their Master.