The young woman opened her eyes as she heard her the key turn in her cell's door lock. Her first instinct was to try to ambush whoever this was, but she hesitated, not knowing whether it was her beloved or her friend from Gallifrey. She sat on her simple bunk as the door opened to reveal the Master. She felt a twinge of fear, but she solidly stood her ground; she had now recovered from his torture that forced her body to regenerate, but the sight of her husband's mortal enemy could still make her flinch. She fully expected to be led back to the torture device. Instead, her captor dropped the key outside the door, walked mechanically into the cell, and closed the door behind him. He moved to one corner of the cell, turned to face Romana, and finally stood motionless. She cautiously arose and moved toward the imposing man in black. When she had convinced herself that he, for some unknown reason, meant no menace to her, she moved closer and noticed the glaze that covered his eyes. Further inspection convinced her that this was a mechanical form, not the human or Gallifreyan make-up she had expected.
Despite the deactivation of his Cyber-created skelton, he was still able to use the vocal chords cloned by Sontaran technology to speak, albeit strained. "help me" he croaked. Romana gave a start at the sudden sign of life, then looked at the Master in astonishment. "I need your help, wife of my enemy. All of us face the same foe now." He realized it would be difficult to convince this Time Lady, who knew his personal history up to his last encounter with the Doctor, that his thirst for vengence against his leader overrode even his bitterness against the Doctor. He began to explain to her the entire story, already recounted herein, of the source of his latest body, and the hold the mysterious fleet commander has on him. He ended the tale with one final plea. "I know where the circuit is that lets him know what I am doing, what I am thinking. You must destroy it. You MUST!"
Cautious, but partially convinced that the Master finally told the truth, Romana asked where the control circuit was located. "At the base of my skull." At this Romana hesitated. They both realized that one mistake in that area could kill him; for all she knew the area was booby-trapped, making the danger to her as great as to him. She was also not fully sure that this was not some new trap he had in mind for the Doctor. "You have no reason to believe me, Romana, but I swear I tell you the truth. You must disable the circuit ... at all costs."
Something in his voice finally convinced her. She put her hand in a pocket and extracted the sonic screwdriver she had constructed long ago from the plans of the Doctor's own long-lost tool. She adjusted it carefully, applied the tip to the top of the Master's neck, and activated the device. The screwdriver's whirring was the only sound heard in the cell for several seconds. Romana carefully watched the Master's body, ready to stop the operation if she noticed any adverse reactions. The expected reaction came as the Master screamed out in pain, his hands clutching his head. Instantly she turned the tool off, and the Master's body dropped limply to the floor.
Somewhere else, a glowing indicator faded. The hooded, black-draped figure turned his head toward the indicator. "The signal from my servant has stopped. Hmm. Well, I had no further need of him." He turned back to his work.
Andred emerged from the lower levels of the Doctor's TARDIS. Clean-cut,
hair combed back, he looked at least a little more presentable. Feeling the
sag in his back, though, he realized that he was still physically an old man.
He turned toward the scanner, still set to circle the perimeter of the outer
shell of the TARDIS. There was no sign of the Daleks returning to the scene,
for which he was thankful. He also regretfully noticed, though, that there
wano sign of either the Doctor, Romana, or the woman who had befriended him.
As the scanner continued its sweep, Andred noticed something glimmer
around one corner. He set the scanner to move back to the spot where he saw
the reflection, and stopped its motion there. The corridor was empty. No,
there was something coming down it ... a troop of Sontarans. He had seen
holograms of them before, but that did not prepare him for the sight of their
unhelmeted faces. He knew that Sontarans were cloned from a gene bank, and
that they all were virtually alike. These, however, varied not only in height,
but in facial appearance as well. Many of them had deformed noses, some of
them had only one good ear, a few of them had no mouths. Before he could
ponder on this further, the troop circled around the TARDIS exterior. They
firmly grasped the sides of the police box and lifted with all their might.
Andred was tossed about, trying desperately not to hit his head. As often as
he could he checked the scanner, to find that the Sontarans were carrying the
TARDIS away from its landing place and down the corridor.
Romana bent down and turned the limp body of the Master over, looking for any signs of life. His eyes opened, and his hands went for her neck, then her shoulders. She then saw something that no Time Lord could ever imagine: a kind smile from the Master! "Thank you, dear lady." Slowly the Master turned and arose from the floor. He moved slowly, testing his arms and legs. "No damage ... except for that accursed leash." He turned toward his lovely cell-mate, still holding the sonic screwdriver, and inquired if she could attempt to open the cell door with it.
"I tried that already, just before you came in. No luck. The lock's vibration-proof."
"As I recall, your husband once turned his sonic screwdriver into an electro-magnet. If we could do that with your own, we might be able to draw the key under the door."
Romana went to the door and stooped down, inspecting the crack below the door. "I don't think we need to be that fancy about it." She produced a barrette from another pocket, opened it, and worked one end through the crack. After only a few tries she had managed to snag the mat on which she had noticed earlier the key had dropped. Carefully she drew the mat under the door. To her dismay, however, the mat just fit in the crack; if she continued to drag it into the cell, the key would be pushed off by the door.
Inside the Doctor's TARDIS Andred suddenly found that the floor had become a bit more stable. He noticed that the scanner showed the TARDIS descending in front of a large door in a wall. He recognized it as a standard "freight elevator" of sorts, installed in many time vehicles to allow heavy equipment to be moved from level to level. Taking advantage of this temporary respite, Andred arose and moved to the control console. After making minor tests to ensure that all systems were still functional, he programmed a small escape course into the computer. His hand activated the dematerialization sequence just as the floor pitched again, throwing Andred violently against the coat rack the Doctor had placed in one corner so long ago. He lapsed into unconsciousness as the center column began to rise and fall.
"Keep bringing it in, but carefully. I have an idea." the Master instructed. Unsure of what he was planning, Romana nonetheless continued to reel her catch in. As the edge of the mat came through the door she could hear the key drop onto the floor, just outside the door. She tried to snag it with the barrette, but it lay just out of her reach. Meanwhile the Master was busy uncurling a support wire from the mat. "This should be more effective." Romana moved out of his way, as he lay down on the floor, spying through the crack the elusive key. The wire brushed the key, but didn't catch. The Master was about to make a second attempt when the edge of a silver foot appeared near the key. A metallic hand reached down and picked up the key. They both got up and moved toward the back of the cell, anticipating the worst. They heard the key turn in the lock, but the door only opened slightly. Carefully the Master opened it further, but there was no resistance from the other side. He completed the motion and peered out the portal, only to see a vacated corridor of his TARDIS. He waved Romana to follow him.
The Doctor, his anger over what his old enemy had done to his wife finally cooling, had returned to the control room, hoping there to find a clue to where she was being held. He scanned the console, noticing that the TARDIS had been programmed to journey to Gallifrey. He turned to the scanner, which was directed aft of the Master's vessel; it displayed the massive fleets of the three races the Master had somehow brought together. He turned back to the console and began manipulating the controls. He noted that the TARDIS was travelling through normal space, probably to keep in view of the fleets, the Doctor thought. Completing his task, he dematerialized the Master's TARDIS. He regretfully noted that he had not been able to veer from the programmed course, though; they were still moving toward Gallifrey, but, he hoped, the Daleks and Cybermen would not be able to find it. He grimaced at what he thought next: the Sontarans had once invaded Gallifrey. They could still lead their allies to the planet of the Time Lords. His train of thought was interrupted when a Cyberleader appeared in the doorway. The Doctor whirled, only to see another Cyberman standing in the door leading to the torture chamber.
The Cyberleader raised his arm. "The commander orders this one to be brought to him. You will take him." The other Cyberman nodded silently, then took the Doctor's arm. He noted that the grip didn't feel as bone-crushingly firm as he had had feared. He began to struggle out of the grasp, but was reprimanded by a female voice coming from the Cyberman. "It will be better for you to come on," it whispered. The Doctor ceased his struggling, and the two departed through the door. The Cyberleader stood firm until the door had closed, then turned and left the control room the way he had come.
The Doctor and his escort had gone through the Master's "chamber of horrors" when the "Cyberman" released her grip on the Doctor. "You're the one who saved me from the Dalek patrol, aren't you?"
"Yes," the woman replied as they continued their journey, "and I helped your friends as well. The inside of your TARDIS is fascinating!"
"How did you know what it was?"
"I can't go into it just now. You must help me. I think you're the only one who can make the commander of this operation see any sense."
"Who is this commander?"
"You'll find out shortly."
The duo had reached the end of the corridor. Behind it the Doctor's enhanced hearing detected a high-pitched whining fading out. He didn't need enhanced hearing, though, to hear the voice boom out it's command, "Enter." With that the door opened.
The Doctor stared in shock. The room was basically empty, except for the structure in the center. It was the structure that so amazed the Doctor. There, standing in the center of the room, was a blue police box! Not just any police box, though ... it had the feel of being dimensionally transendental. The Doctor continued to visually inspect it as his escort led him toward its door. It was familiar, almost too familiar. It was exactly the shape his own TARDIS had taken when he and his granddaughter first landed on Earth, in the twentieth century. Just before the two had reached the structure its door opened. The two entered. The inside was indeed larger than the outside, but on a much smaller scale than the TARDIS itself. Wires hung freely from various points, and the Doctor and his escort frequently had to duck under them. To one side stood a lever which moved a large button in the floor. The Doctor made mental notes of each piece of equipment, also noting along the way that it all appeared to be Earth technology, much of it heavily modified, but still undoubtedly Terran. He noted the almost primative-looking scanner hanging at the far end of the room, pieces of oscilloscopes sitting on shelves suspended apparantly from the ceiling, tubes, controls, and switches all connected by the rat's nest of wires, and the familiar fluid links on a panel to one side of the lever.
Near one set of equipment, the black-robed figure stood bent over, its back to the pair. Upon sensing their presence, it stood up (though still not too straight), turned, and acknowledged their presence. "Greetings. I've waited a long time to meet you."
The Doctor dared to speak to this mysterious figure. "Who are you?
"Why, yes I am. How very observant of you." This response simultaneously
frustrated and puzzled the Doctor. The figure raised his arms and pulled back
the hood that hid his features. Under the hood was a long face. The hair was
short but frizzy and snow-white. The moustache under the prominent nose showed
its rapid approach to the glaring whitness the top of his head had already
entered, but there was enough black still there to make it stand out from the
otherwise pale face. He dropped the cloak, revealing a formal smoking jacket,
simple but well-kept shirt, and large bow-tie, most of which was stuffed inside
the shirt. For a moment the Doctor could see himself, as he was before his
first regeneration, standing there with this foreboding but slightly humorous
figure. The aged but firm voice continued. "For years I've wanted to meet a
Time Lord ... ever since I built Tardis. Since I learned about you, I've hoped
that it would be you I would meet first."
The Doctor hoped what he was thinking wasn't true, yet he dared to ask, "What is your name?"
"Oh, of course it isn't," the gentleman replied. "How quickly you forget things. No, no, it isn't what ... it's Who. Doctor Who!"
Chapter VI
"Return of the Doctor"
Story (c) 1986 Joe Sewell
Melbourne, FL
Doctor Who and related material (c) 1986 BBC
England