CHAPTER 13
GETAWAY
"Colonel, the stranger has escaped!" a guard announced as he and several others burst into the Master's lab.
"What!" the Master roared from within his office, appearing in the doorway quite beside himself in rage.
Payne was at his command station and leaped to his feet, mirroring his employer's fury. He struck the bearer of ill tidings with such force that he went flying across the room. The unfortunate man landed several feet away, very definitely unconscious.
"How did this happen?" Payne thundered to his remaining subordinates. The response was mass confusion. The Master immediately intervened. "Silence!" he roared, receiving it instantly. "You're wasting time, you ignominious pack of half-wits! Get after him!"
The mercenaries fled.
Growling to himself, the Master returned to his office. In the corner of the room, and looking completely out of place, was a high backed easy chair. Seated in the chair, and looking equally out of place, was Kyska, a vacant expression on her face. The Master glanced absently in her direction as he entered, dropping heavily into his chair. Payne appeared at the doorway and silently watched his seething employer.
"Fools. Imbeciles," the Master hissed angrily. "That man was my contingent against disaster. And those idiots let him just waltz right out of—" Cutting himself off, he turned to Kyska, who slowly raised her eyes to meet his steady gaze.
"You waltzed with this stranger last night, my dear," the Time Lord purred. "Perhaps you can tell us about him?"
"Who, my Lord?" Kyska asked politely.
It was Payne who answered. "The tall, curly-headed beggar with the scarf."
"Oh! You mean the Doctor," she said brightly.
The name meant nothing to Payne, but he could see it meant a great deal to his employer.
"The…Doctor…" the Master repeated haltingly. Kyska smiled sweetly and nodded, causing the Time Lord's face to darken even further, his eyes narrowing into angry slits. "What can you tell me about him?"
The young woman obligingly told him everything, from the discovery of the Doctor's TARDIS to his arrival in Krystos with Jason and herself.
The Master was thunderstruck. Then he was enraged; growing even more irritated as he realized what a fool he had been the night before. Getting to his feet, he charged past the puzzled mercenary and back into the now partially dismantled laboratory. "I hope you enjoyed your little charade, Doctor," he growled, waving a fist in the air. "Now I know who you are." Rounding on the bewildered Colonel Payne, he roared, "And those fools of yours allowed him to escape!"
"Just who is this doctor, anyway?"
"Only the one person capable of thwarting with my plans."
Payne did not like the sound of this one bit. In their short association, it had become apparent the evil Time Lord had an exceedingly high opinion of himself. That he should worry about this one man stopping him was not good.
"He'll go straight to the King, you can bet on that," the Master said, deep in thought. "Now, how can I use this?"
The Colonel could see only one immediate solution and strode to his command desk to radio his men. "We'll just have to see to it he never gets there."
"No, Colonel," the Master crooned, suddenly in a congenial mood. "Perhaps there's another way. He'll need to arrange an audience first, and that will take time—even for a Time Lord. And while he's waiting…well, who knows what might happen?" He shot a meaningful glance back towards his office.
Colonel Payne was not sure what the Time Lord had in mind, but knew it would be something diabolical. "Tell me, Master," he asked with an evil grin," would you be open to any suggestions?" He slowly turned his gaze to the alcove where Anon hung limply from the shackles. The boy had been brutally, if not mercilessly beaten, his mouth having been sealed with tape to prevent his calling out to Kyska.
"Why, Colonel Payne," the Master purred approvingly, "you are getting creative, aren't you?"
It had taken some time for the Doctor and Jason to arrive at their final destination. They had been forced to stop several times during the long and tiring journey in order for the Alterran to rest and the suspicious Time Lord wondered if it were genuine fatigue or just a delaying tactic. Either way, he said nothing.
Once they arrived in the main building, Jason located the door he wanted and triggered the opening, cautiously peered out. To his relief, he saw a large embroidered wall hanging concealing the opening. This was the one he wanted. "We made it," he whispered. He then looked down at himself. Not exactly the most suitable attire for a Lord of the Court to wear to so important an audience. "I think I'd better change," he whispered. His body shimmered and he was suddenly wearing a completely different set of clothes.
The Doctor blinked, staring in awe at the royal blue garments that would easily have blended into the gala event of the previous evening.
Catching sight of the Time Lord's expression, Jason blushed. "Sorry. I keep forgetting you're new at this. I'm supposed to be representing the House of Krystovan, remember?"
Stepping unnoticed into the corridor, Jason motioned the Doctor to follow and then walked casually down the hallway. The Time Lord did not recognize the section of the building and the Alterran aristocrat explained that they were now in the king's private residence and all entry was restricted.
"Restricted?" the Doctor repeated.
Jason nodded. As they came around a corner he turned his gaze toward the end of the corridor. "See for yourself."
The Doctor stopped. At the end of the long hallway was a very large, ornately carved double door in front of which were two equally large armed guards. "Now what?" he asked, turning back to the Alterran, who looked at him in a way he found both puzzling and unsettling.
"Yes, I think you'll pass," the Healer said approvingly. "But I'll probably hate myself for doing this."
The Doctor didn't like the sound of this at all, but Jason quickly explained that the only thing an Alterran could not change was their eye color. While this was a trivial detail when it came to transmuting, in the broader scheme of things, it denoted one's social rank. Those of the Royal Bloodline, like himself, had sapphire blue eyes. And luckily, the Doctor also had blue eyes. They weren't exactly the right shade, but passable.
It took only a few minutes of idle chitchat before Jason and the Doctor were admitted into the residence block. Jason's being known to everyone in the Palace gave him the advantage, as any story he cared to tell would be believed without question.
Once they were a sufficient distance from the door, and could not be overheard, the Doctor observed, "You lie extremely well, Jason." This was spoken in a combination of admiration and distrust, but its implications eluded the Alterran, who responded with a self-conscious smile.
They came to yet another guarded doorway, and were again admitted without question. The aristocrat found the presence of these sentries odd, but said nothing about it. As soon as the door was closed, he made straight for the inner door. "Let me talk to Terry first," he said quickly. The Doctor made to follow but was halted by an upraised hand. "Alone," Jason said firmly and then vanished through the door.
The Doctor had never heard this tone of authority in the young man's voice and it immediately put him on his guard, as did the sound of raised voices coming from the other side of the door. Before he had the chance to consider all the implication of either of these things, the inner door was suddenly thrown open and King Terran appeared. It was immediately apparent he was not in an agreeable mood as he stood glaring at him from the doorway.
The fair-haired monarch was similar to Jason in size and build, but had taken on a more mature appearance, closer to thirty. He was dressed simply in a red check shirt and dark trousers. Then, just as suddenly as Jason had changed, the king was standing before the Doctor in full regalia; elaborate purple and blue robes with gold and silver trim, a floor length cape, and a jeweled crown upon his head.
The Doctor found himself wondering if he would ever get used to these instantaneous trans-formations when the king suddenly thundered, "Guards!" The sentries burst into the room and Terran pointed at the bewildered Time Lord. "Arrest this man!"