Chapter 13

"Transmuting Will Not Save You!"

In the blink of an eye, victory changed sides. Inside the booth a creature that was half-man and half-beast replaced the form of Prince Jason. It reminded Tegan of the creature Bigfoot rumored to live in the northwestern portion of North America on Earth. The Beast-Prince let out an angry, deafening roar and tore out of his bonds as if they were crepe paper.

Roberts dropped his laser pistol and fled as Turlough dragged Tegan to the ground. Snatching up the abandoned weapon, Turlough emptied the power pack into the transference junction box the same instant the Beast-Prince smashed free of the booth.

The junction box exploded in a shower of sparks and pyrotechnics. The Master howled with rage, slamming a fist onto the podium, which promptly blew up, throwing him and the stupefied Saunders back against the wall.

Smashing open the booth imprisoning the Doctor, the Beast-Prince tore the restraints from the table and gingerly lifted the motionless Time Lord into his massive arms. Crossing to where Tegan and Turlough were still crouched on the floor, he gently placed the fragile, limp form before them.

Tegan shrank back, afraid there was more beast than man before her. The "beast" looked up at her and she found herself staring into Jason's tear-filled blue eyes.

Turlough pulled the gag from the Doctor's mouth and held his hand to it. He then put his hand on the chest of the inert Time Lord. "He's not breathing!"

Tegan grabbed the Doctor's wrist, put her fingers to his neck and finally listened to both sides of his chest. "His hearts have stopped! Oh, Turlough!" she wailed as tears began staining her face. The Master had already murdered her beloved Aunt Vanessa that fateful day when she stumbled in to the TARDIS. How long ago it all seemed now. So many adventures. So many different worlds. Was this where it all ended? The Doctor's death at the hands of the Master?

The Beast-Prince rose to his feet, returning to the more familiar human form of Prince Jason. He turned to face the Master, his eyes burning with blind hatred.

The Master was still reeling from the havoc that had been wrought before his very eyes. He examined the twisted, smoking mass that had been the transference junction. "Useless. All completely useless," he hissed bitterly. "Everything will have to be rebuilt."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Jason stated venomously, now perilously close to the brink of a full-blown rage. He had already resolved that, if they were all going to die, he was going to take the Master with them.

The Master looked disdainfully at him. It was bad enough having to deal with the Doctor, but this insolent boy was becoming intolerable. "Foolish boy, all the information is in the data banks. It can easily be extract—" He broke off when the computer suddenly sprang to life on its own, every screen having the same message…

COMMAND OVERRIDE

PROGRAM PROCESSING

Now it was Jason's turn to revel in victory. "Not for long. That program is presently erasing the entire memory core. The system can't be shut down until the program has finished running," he informed triumphantly.

The Master's eyes narrowed and he shot a quick glance in the direction of the Containment Area.

"They won't do you any good, either," Jason went on. "The contents of the Containment Area is as useless to you as that transference device. You're through playing god, Master."

The renegade Time Lord went purple with rage, pulling out the black rod that caused the Alterran Prince to stiffen and take a fearful step back. The Tissue Compression Eliminator—the one weapon he feared.

"You'll join the Doctor in death for your interference, boy," the Master spat, taking careful aim at the wide-eyed youth.

During this entire confrontation, Saunders had been quite forgotten by all concerned. The events of the entire day were a jumble in his mind and he stood watching his Commander in a daze. He had murdered a fellow guard, bullied his men, imprisoned the entire staff, and brutalized the Doctor and his companions. And for what? The raving maniac who stood before him.

At that moment, something finally snapped. Saunders let out a loud cry and sprang at the Master, taking him completely off guard. The TCE flew from his hand and slid under the door to the storeroom.

Saunders drew his laser pistol and the Master grabbed his wrist attempting to turn the weapon back on the Guard Leader. The two men grappled for a moment before the Master's superior strength overpowered the inflamed guard. The weapon discharged, taking the ill-fated Saunders full in the chest. He screamed and fell dead to the floor.

The Master spun around to face Jason, who seemed rooted to the spot. "Now it's your turn," he snarled, leveling the gun.

The Alterran gave him a knowing smile, transmuting into a creature the Doctor would have recognized instantly. His true self.

The Master was momentarily taken aback by the extraordinary being looming before him. There was nothing "human" about it at all. Jason had once been described as looking like a cross between a jellyfish and a nest of snakes, his bulbous cream-colored main body having sapphire blue crystals evenly spaced around the circumference. Numerous tendrils snaked their way to the floor, yet barely seemed to touch, as the Alterran hovered in the air.

After looking the creature up and down, the Master collected himself and snarled, "Transmuting will not save you," and fired the weapon pointblank. To his astonishment and horror, the laser bolt struck the Alterran and was completely absorbed.

"Human weapons are useless against me, Master. They always have been. And you've lost the only effective weapon you had," said a liquid voice that was Jason, and yet, was not Jason. "In human form, I'm always vulnerable. But in my true form, I am invincible!"

The long tendrils suddenly lashed out and wound around the Master's wrists, drawing him closer. The laser pistol clattered to the ground. More tendrils snaked their way around the struggling Time Lord, some coiling around his neck.

"I could kill you quickly, mercifully, but I think I'm going to enjoy squeezing the life out of you, Master," the Alterran said coldly as the tendrils started to tighten very, very slowly.

Tegan and Turlough were transfixed by the deadly drama playing out before them, unsure as to whether they should try to stop it, or even if they could. Had she not been so overcome with grief, Tegan felt she might even have been cheering from the sidelines. She almost jumped out of her skin when the Doctor's hand moved inside her own and he spoke her name.

"He's alive!" she cried, scarcely believing it herself.

The tendrils around the Master's neck slackened slightly at Tegan's cry and he fought wildly to free himself, but to no avail. He was held fast.

The Doctor had floated in the blackness that had swallowed him, uncertain as to how long he had been there, or even how he had gotten there. His mind was blank. Enveloped by the warm, gentle calm, he wondered if he might be dead. Thinking, however, was much too difficult, making it impossible to sort anything out. He could hear sounds and voices, far away at first and then drawing nearer. Listening in a detached sort of way, he became aware of someone crying very close by. The voice seemed familiar. Perhaps it was someone he knew.

With considerable effort, the Doctor concentrated his muddled brain on the sound and was horrified when he realized it was Tegan. Something was dreadfully wrong and he had to try and call out to her. He had to try…

"Tegan," the Doctor said again, almost inaudibly. His eyes fluttered open and he tried to sit up, falling back, exhausted. "Wh…what happened?" he asked weakly.

The tendrils tightened to resume throttling the Master with renewed vigor. "The complete and utter destruction of the most vile creature in the universe," came the succinct reply.