Chapter 22
After Effects
The search was on.
Turlough had stopped brooding and started worrying. The girls had returned ages ago, and there was still no sign of the Doctor. Before alerting security with what might very well turn out to be a false alarm, he decided to go look for the wandering Time Lord himself. Tegan joined him while Shadra stayed behind on the off chance the Doctor returned on his own.
"The last time I saw him," Turlough was saying as he walked purposefully up the beach, "was when we came out of those caves over there. He said he'd catch up later."
They looked around at the cave entrance, finding, to their dismay, that the incoming tide had washed away any footprints that would have indicated the Doctor's movements. A quick look in the tunnel system turned up nothing, and their only reward when they called out was the echo of their own voices.
"You don't suppose he went along the cliff, do you?" Tegan suggested helpfully.
Turlough shrugged. He didn't know what to think and was kicking himself for having left the Doctor in the first place. Tegan's suggestion seemed logical enough, although logic wasn't usually something one relied on when it came to figuring out the Doctor.
Not far away, the Master was strolling casually along the footpath leading back to the beach, blissfully unaware of the close proximity of the Doctor's companions. He was unaware of everything save his own grand plans.
Nothing could go wrong now, he thought gleefully. Nothing...noth...
The Master suddenly felt weak and dizzy and stopped walking, wavering unsteadily on his feet. He put a hand on a large boulder to steady himself, his other hand going to his head. He had been holding off the after effects of the process held off purely as an act of will. But the Doctor's will was also strong. He had struggled fiercely against the power exerted against him in the exchange, and his body had not, as yet, recovered its strength.
After staggering a few steps more, the Master collapsed to the ground.
Tegan and Turlough were slowly making their way along the rough footpath among the rocks. They rounded a bend in the trail and came upon the crumpled cream-colored form that only moments before had crumpled to the ground.
"Doctor!" Tegan shrieked, dashing over to him. With immense relief, she found the steady double pulse and heard the labored, yet regular breathing of the unconscious Time Lord. "He's alive," she informed as Turlough knelt down beside her.
"We'd better not move him," he said gravely. "You stay here, I'll get some help." So saying, the young man sprinted back towards the beach.
Tegan watched him go, waiting until he was out of sight before returning her attention to the motionless figure who was no longer the Time Lord she had grown to admire. Inhabiting the body she nursed so carefully was the Master. The man she hated above all others.
The Master opened his eyes to find himself lying on the bed in the Doctor's suite. Puzzled, he looked fuzzily around at his surroundings. Tegan came rushing over to the bedside and started firing questions at him. He stared wonderingly at her. It wasn't until she called him by the Doctor's name that he remembered what had happened, and who he was supposed to be.
"For pity sake, Tegan, give him a chance to answer," Turlough admonished as he came up alongside her. "What happened, Doctor?" he then asked.
"I don't know, really," the bogus Doctor replied weakly. "How long have I been like this?"
"We found you about an hour ago, but you've been missing all afternoon. You don't remember anything?"
The Master paused to give the appearance of deep concentration before shaking his head. "It's all a blank. The last thing I remember...I was walking through those rocks at the base of the cliff. I remember seeing you go inside the Palace, and then— Then I was here."
King Aaron appeared on the other side of the bed as the pretender spoke. "I couldn't find any physical trauma that would account for this, Doctor," he informed soberly. "But there seems to be all the indications of a psychic attack of considerable proportions."
The Master looked questioningly at the Alterran monarch, wondering if he suspected something or was simply making an educated guess.
Aaron misinterpreted the look as skepticism "I was a Healer long before I was King, Doctor," he said indignantly. He had, in fact, once saved the Doctor's life.
"Yes, yes," the impostor soothed. "I wasn't questioning your qualifications, my dear Aaron. It's your diagnosis that puzzles me."
Aaron's expression did not change. He had an uneasy feeling that all was not as it should be. Something simply did not feel right, but he could not put his finger on what, precisely, the something was. "When Jason gets back, I'm going to have him do a complete scan on your, Doctor. Maybe then—"
"No!" the Master cried. He had momentarily forgotten about the Prince's scanning ability and was thankful the boy had been away when he was brought, unconscious, to the Palace. He had mis calculated the severity of the side effects the process induced. His having passed out among the rocks, while an added bonus to his scheme, had left him dangerously vulnerable. The last thing he wanted was for Jason to scan him, being uncertain as to what he might find. Forcing himself to remain calm, the Time Lord said, "There's no reason to go to all this trouble on my account. I'll be alright after I've rested a bit."
The Doctor's companions exchanged a skeptical look with the King. Tegan glanced over to the equally vexed Baroness, who had been standing silently at the foot of the bed the whole time.
"Are you sure?" Shadra asked gently.
"Yes, I'm quite sure."
"Alright, Doctor," the King said unconvincingly. He took a glass and carafe from a tray on the nightstand and poured what appeared to be a glass of water. "But it would ease my mind considerably if you'd drink this. It's an herbal restorative and will help you get your strength back."
The Master considered the proffered glass warily, thinking it was more likely an herbal sedative. Being familiar with the Doctor's revoltingly trusting nature, and not wanting to force his hand, he accepted the glass, grudgingly drank its contents, and then returned the empty glass to the King before lying back onto the bed.
"Thank-you," Aaron breathed gratefully. "We'll let you get some rest, now."
The Master smiled weakly, watching through half-closed eyes as everyone left the room. Then he waited, expecting to become drowsy. To his amazement, and relief, he did not become sleepy. In fact, he found his strength seemed to be swiftly returning to him and he eyed the half empty carafe with a greater respect. An excellent restorative indeed, he marveled. Now he could rest without the fear of a drugged sleep.