Chapter 45

Long Shot

The Master went purple with rage, much to Jason's delight. The Doctor, however, was aghast. "Jason, what the devil do you think you're doing?" he gasped.

"I've a score to settle, Doctor," Jason said calmly, crossing behind his horrified friend to stand at his side furthest from the TARDIS. Turning to the Master, he went on. "A little something to do with mental power, I believe. Your will against mine?"

The Master's face darkened further, causing Jason to grin innocently and then shake his head. "What a fool I've been," he sighed. "To think I've been afraid of you all these years…and now I learn it's you who's afraid of me."

The renegade Time Lord's eyes narrowed, a growl rumbling from his throat.

"Why else would you feel the need to use artificial means to control me?" Jason asked reasonably, adding, "Which, by the way, you didn't." As he spoke, he motioned the Doctor aside almost imperceptibly.

"Have a care, boy," the Master snarled. "I shan't hesitate to destroy you." This, in point of fact, was not the case. The Prince's role in his drama was to act as a deterrent against disobedience from Lady Tostine. Just as she suspected, the transmat had been rigged to act as Jason's prison. If she showed even the slightest hint of defiance, the Master planned to carry out his retribution on the captive Prince Jason.

The Doctor stared wonderingly at his Alterran friend. What was the boy trying to do? The Master was far too dangerous an opponent to taunt so flagrantly. It was an open invitation to death. An invitation the Master would be only too willing to accept. Jason knew this all too well, and seemed to be ignoring it as he openly goaded the Master, seemingly oblivious to the TCE aimed straight at him.

At this point, the Doctor would have readily agreed with his companions that the Prince was cracking up. He received a second wave aside, and this time he haltingly obeyed. All the while, he marveled at the way Jason was gleefully continuing his abusive barrage of insults.

Jason threw everything he could think of at the enraged Master, who was controlling himself with visible effort. The enjoyable show of disrespect ended with the observation that the Doctor was so much more the Master's intellectual superior that he was not fit to carry his shoes, much less try to fill them.

Finally, Jason had brought forth the catalyst that induced the reaction he was striving for. Screaming with rage, the Master leveled the compressor and fired. The ray struck the unwavering Alterran full in the chest, passing straight through and striking the wall directly behind him. Then he promptly vanished.

The rival Time Lords stood staring in stupefied amazement, exchanging a look of mutual disbelief. To their added astonishment, the Doctor was suddenly caught from behind by several tendrils and unceremoniously yanked into the TARDIS, the door slamming loudly behind him.

The Master howled angrily, beside himself for having been taken in a second time by the Alterran's ingenuity. The Prince was a true protégé of the Doctor and deserving of equal retribution. Throwing a glance in the direction of the hidden entrance, the Master's eyes narrowed. His revenge would be swift and exacting. First, he would kill the boy's father. All he had to do was get to the transmat…

At that moment, Captain Devron pushed open the stone door.

Being too far from the entrance to the computer room, the Master fled to the safety of his TARDIS, not realizing in his haste that the key should not have been in his pocket.

Then the disguised TARDIS promptly vanished.

Any rescue from certain death can be a bit of a shock. But to have it performed by someone who has just vanished into thin air can be traumatic, even for the Doctor, who has had more than his share of exceptional rescues. It took even him a minute to recover.

The scanner was still active and they all watched as the Master escaped, a devilish smile coming to the Doctor's face as his rival's TARDIS dematerialized. It would be quite some time before his enemy unraveled his little job of sabotage. But he would get it sorted out…eventually, and then he would be back. Of that fact, there was no doubt.

It was also in the future.

Right now, the Doctor was more interested in sorting out the present, starting with his miraculous rescue. Switching off the scanner, he turned to the Prince. "Jason, may I ask how you did that?" he asked mildly.

Jason gave him a blank look, the suddenness of the question momentarily throwing him. "Did what?" He received a dark look in reply. "Oh, that! Psychic projection. I was really behind the TARDIS the whole time," he said simply.

The Doctor marveled at him. When he had first become acquainted with Jason and his remarkable abilities, he had resolved that nothing the Alterran could do would surprise him. He now concluded that he had been wrong, as this latest demonstration was completely astounding. "Wherever did you learn to do that!"

Jason blushed, suddenly unable to look his old friend in the eye. This was not going to be easy to explain.

"Jason…?"

Jason cleared his throat nervously. "I didn't learn it, exactly, Doctor," he began meekly. "I…eh, well, I linked myself into the Cavern… Sort of."

The Time Lord was none the wiser. "Do you think you might be a little more specific?"

"Well…as I understand it, the crystals are interconnected. They form something called the Cavern Matrix. It's—Oh, I don't know. I guess the best way to describe it is to say it's a giant psychic amplifier. When placed in conjunction with a crystalline molecular structure it establishes the symbolic resonance that—"

"Amplifies the power of the mind," the Doctor concluded, now completely fascinated. He threw a quick glance in the direction of the exterior doors. The Cavern suddenly warranted a second look.

"That's the theory, anyway," Jason added hurriedly.

"How very interesting. A completely artificial—" The Time Lord broke off when his friend's comment finally sank in and he looked pointedly at him. "What do you mean theory?"

Jason blushed yet again, shifting uneasily on his feet. "Well…eh, to my knowledge, it's… never actually been tested. It's…more of a legend…really," he replied, his voice trailing off to a mumble.

Turlough was appalled. "A legend! Do you mean to say…you tried all that…based on a legend!"

"I did say it was a long shot," the Prince reminded. "And besides, most legends are based on some fact."

"Yes, like King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table," Turlough snorted. "A magical sword in a stone and a magician who ages backwards!"

Jason's eyes lit up and he turned sharply to the Doctor, who knew instantly what he was thinking. When last they met, the Doctor appeared older than he did now.

"Yes, who would ever believe someone could travel backwards in time?" the Time Lord grinned, receiving a sour look in reply. "And wasn't it you, Turlough, who said molecular transmutation was only a legend?"

"I stand corrected," the young man said acidly, accepting defeat.

"I'm still in the dark on one major point," the Doctor began slowly, "and after what you've just told us, I'm almost afraid to ask, but… Did you or did you not say that the process could only be reversed in the Cavern?"

"I did. And I know what you're going to ask, Doctor," Jason said quickly, "and the answer is, yes. I was lying through my teeth."

"Indeed?"

The Alterran went on to explain the rationale that had gone into his dangerous bluff, the Master's limited knowledge of the exchange process being the key factor in his desperate attempt to buy time.

"Bluff!" Tegan found her voice at last. "You could've gotten us all killed! And now you stand there saying it was just an act?" She didn't know if she wanted to strangle him for nearly scaring her to death, or hug him because it had worked.

Jason would have gladly hugged her, confessing, "It was no act, Tegan, not by half. In fact, if you hadn't pulled that crystal when you did…" He shook his head, not really wanting to contemplate the outcome.

"I suspected you were up to something like that," the Doctor remarked thoughtfully. "Still, a rather substantial bluff on your part."

The fact that his mentor was so clearly impressed caused Jason to glow with pride. "Well, I was taught by a master," he quipped.

The Doctor groaned inwardly. Now, on top of his love for idiomatic expressions, the Alterran had also picked up the Time Lord's own penchant for puns. With a grin, he quipped back, "I think you've just earned your doctorate."

With a smile, Jason inclined his head and bowed slightly.

"So far we've only got part of the puzzle worked out," the Doctor stated as he pulled the door lever. "Cetera desunt," he added loftily, striding out the door.

Jason smiled at the blank expressions on the faces of the Doctor's companions. "Latin," he informed helpfully. "It means, the rest is missing."

"Too right," agreed Tegan forcefully, barring the Alterran's way. "I'd like a few explanations myself. In English!"