Chapter 103 - Mission to Alvega

Just because they were working with the Daleks didn't mean he wanted them to know everything, like where the Time Lords' pet witch kept her magical supplies.

Oswin had done her thing and got them a vague idea, but according to her "Any mention of Alvega is ancient, like really ancient, which probably means it's deadly, or a result of the Time War."

Which was lovely to know.

So here they were; at the currently deserted Vega Station to access their Trans-Galactic internet link.

Harry wrinkled his nose. "This place smells like a particularly awful Wetherspoons after a hen do on a Bank Holiday."

"You know that I don't understand any of those references Harry," Oswin said, her lights illuminating the blackened walls.

The burn marks and the slightly dented airlock bulkheads suggesting that something war-related had gone down here.

"Smells like stale beer and bad choices," Harry explained with a mock sigh. "The carpet is cheap and nasty, I bet the toilets smell of piss."

"I've accessed the Trans-Galactic internet, just requesting information about it from the Felsecar archives," Oswin reported.

Why they couldn't just go to Felsecar came down to the fact that they were literally on one side of the universe, and getting there, even with their Timeship would take them a while, and through a large chunk of the Time War. Where they'd left the funky saucer after they'd dealt with the TARDIS was safer, relatively speaking.

The spider Daleks could deal with the reports and whatever. The Dalek Time Strategist would continue with its plans, or maybe it knew they'd departed already. There was something far too intelligent about that Dalek, it reminded him of the regular Strategist whom he'd had a few long chats with, and was who had gotten him into this mess in the first place, along with the Eternal.

Now though, after that mess of a fake Hogwarts and two Ginnys he sort of felt he could relax a little bit. This should be straight forward and would deal with one major issue, and a niggling question about Ginny's potion supplies and that would mean just two more Ginnys to deal with…and of course the original one.

But he always knew, in the back of his mind that they'd have to go to Gallifrey, that the Time Lords had created different versions meant that they'd keep the original safe somewhere.

Of course, that would mean they'd need to go to the Eternity Circle to confirm that she was there. At least he'd be able to quiz them about what all the obsession about vampires was about.

Everything he knew about the Time Lords suggested they feared vampires vehemently.

Harry found himself looking around, moving away from where Oswin was plugged into the system.

"Where are you going?" Oswin called, her Dalek-y voice arched with concern.

"This is a cheap and nasty pub right?" He asked.

"Yes," she said carefully.

"And empty?" Harry pressed.

"Probably," she confirmed vaguely.

"I'm just going to nick their booze," Harry said simply.

-/

It looked like beer, and all his spells suggested it was safe, raising it to his lips he stopped and put it back down on the bar. A moment later Oswin glided in.

"You're not drinking?" she asked as she came to a stop at the bar, her manipulator arm hovering and rotating in front of the glass of beer.

Harry shook his head coming around to the other side of the bar.

"It's safe," her eyepiece swivelling to watch him.

"I'll have a beer or some other booze when we're out of all of this," he said through an arm around her shell. "Come on, if you're done."

"Yes, Harry," her lights illuminating the area around them. "Done, and wiped the logs of us being here as well."

"Do we need to blow up the station?" He asked looking around. "It might improve the smell."

"Maniac," she teased. "No, this station will continue to drift."

"It's drifting?" Harry asked as they walked back to the Timeship.

"Yes," her tone was of surprised amusement "that's why it was so hard to land here."

"I wish we still had that saucer, at least that would have been easier," he commented. "Not that the Timeship is difficult, but it's a time craft first, and a most excellent one," he praised as they went inside.

"But lacking in armaments," Oswin glided over to the side controls. "Emptied all the data about Alvega I managed to get," she explained, now in human form as she inputted the coordinates she'd gathered.

"Excellent," Harry said as he waited for Oswin to finish before dematerialising the Timeship. "You know I never thought being away from normal space would be relaxing," he commented. "And" he paused to look at the other screens, one of which was the radar which wasn't, showing clear skies, which weren't skies around them, "no Time Lords."

"And worrying about the Time Lords?" She asked.

"I always worried about them, the Doctor, Master and Iris told me stories about them, the Doctor and Master especially, Iris met her once but it felt like a lifetime," he smiled in remembrance. "We'll have to call her up when this is all over," Harry chuckled. "I think she'd appreciate the anarchic turn my life has taken in relation to the Doctor."

-/

Alvega was, or had been a planet where the Daleks might have landed fantastically early in their space-flight development.

Due to temporal intervention and manipulation some of these facts are subject to alteration, change and mistakes.

That was a phrase that seemed to be throughout the information Oswin had gathered. Harry felt like all the information carried a 'this information requires further verification', he wondered whether Oswin got some of it from the galactic Wikipedia or some such, maybe Felsecar wasn't so good with ancient facts about planets.

Alvega has or had no known fauna, but 'hyper advanced flora', considered as dangerous or dangerously intelligent by Professor Gustous R Thripsted. His work on Genetic Politics Harry had tried reading, he'd flipped through the pages on the Time Lords and Faction Paradox, and put it on his pile of 'to read when I'm not recovering from danger'. What he would have liked at this point is Thripsted's Flora and Fauna of the Universe which might have helped shed some light on the fauna of Alvega and have the benefit of being edited and published.

Not that it would have helped much given the temporal nature of the universe they were in.

An interesting fact that was disputed, but mentioned several times, is that Alvega was at one point in its history 'in close proximity to the Skaro system'.

Which was weird for several reasons, chief amongst which the coordinates weren't anywhere near Skaro, and two supposedly the Doctor destroyed Skaro in 1963, or that's when he tricked Davros into pulling the trigger whenever he was from when the Shoreditch Incident happened. And Alvega was close enough according to some of the data to be caught in the blast.

Warning giant earthworms may cause problems.

"How is that just dropped in there?" Harry exclaimed out loud to himself and shook his head, he'd chosen the laboratory to read in quiet, Oswin was in the control room, or having a nap or something. When they were in transit they tended to each do their own thing unless they needed to be in with one another.

Alvega may have been destroyed by a fledgling Dalek Empire early in their space exploration. 'Information requires further exploration via primary investigation - Notes: Meta-analysis of local group does not reveal any planetary debris or evidence of Dalek incursion. Suggest delete, information apocryphal'.

Harry wrinkled his nose, they might as well go in without any information and he should have had that beer on Vega Station. It would have at least raised his mood regarding this.

-/

"Well, it certainly looks like it exists," Harry commented looking at the green and brown planet on the screens, they weren't in orbit of it, but were close enough to look at it, without attracting too much attention.

"Information regarding its non-existence is debatable," Oswin commented.

"You find anything?" Harry wondered. "I feel like we'll be able to write a better entry than anything that's been written on the space Wikipedia."

Oswin gave hime a puzzled look and shook her head. "Just that it might be dangerous for Daleks, as in fatal."

"The flora or the giant earthworm?" Harry wondered. "Maybe sit this one out while I chat to the psychic sentient plants?"

"You saw that as well?" Oswin asked.

Harry nodded with a shrug. "Or it could be the person who wrote it got bored."

"It's more actively updated than the Encyclopedia Galactica Harry," Oswin chastised.

"Anything else?" Harry asked as he made to aim for coordinates on the surface.

"Slight temporal readings suggesting temporal activity, maybe a time vessel," she said adjusting the controls as one of the screens focused in on the equator. "Can't see any closer than this, we materialised quite far out."

Harry nodded. "Let's put down close enough, but far enough away that we'll hopefully not be detected."

-/

The Amarylls shifted, they felt the push and pull of a breeze and wind as the craft materialised on the surface of their planet.

It was unlike anything that had made an appearance before. It did not push and pull on reality as the intruders' craft did. It appeared as though a part of the environment, but did not attempt blend in as the intruders did.

The intruders had been on Alvega for a long time, long enough that the Controller had been sampled by the intruder and made subservient, long enough that its tendrils had withered and died at the intruder's hands. The Amarylls had not withered and died with it, they had grown stronger, but wary of the intruder.

Its base was cemented, controlled, cut off from the Amarylls.

With some there was an understanding with the intruder, that they could continued to live, while the intruder used the ground, the nutrients by the rivers and lakes for itself.

"Hello?" Called a being inside the craft. "I'm coming out, I'm here to deal with the invader."

-/

Harry looked around and wondered if he needed the 'Babel Fish in a tube' he had it, but he could already feel something, not like the Eight Legs of Metebelis III, but there was a something.

Some of the information he'd read suggested that the plants were psychic. Although psychic seemed to be a place word for 'anything that doesn't use vocal chords'. He really wanted words with whoever wrote the information on Alvega.

Outside of the Timeship there were large daffodil-shaped plants, all looking like they wanted to kill him.

No change there then.

"Hello," Harry said brightly.

"You have come, from beyond Alvega?" One of the plants asked.

Harry nodded though wasn't sure who to address. "I have, to kill and destroy the invader."

"The intruder," they corrected.

Harry still wasn't sure if they were projecting or talking. He was relatively sure it was the former, rather than the latter, as he couldn't see any larynx or other sort of things that might make noises.

He nodded. "I have come to destroy the intruder," he looked back towards the Timeship. "My friend appears as a Dalek…"

A hiss went through his mind. "The ancient enemy."

Harry had to take a step back from the power of the words. He had made sure he continued to practice his occulmency skills before, during and after his torture by the Time Lords, it helped in varying degrees.

"Look into my mind," Harry grit his teeth and took a step towards the daffodil shaped plants that seemed to be moving around on the ground like some sort of Triffids. "I know you're projecting into my mind," he finished as he made an effort to lower the barriers within his mind, bringing forward memories and concepts of Oswin.

-/

The Amarylls moved forward, one amongst the many moved forward towards the new visitor to Alvega. A bipedal creature like that of the intruder. His profile within Alvega felt different and yet the same.

He closed his mind off from the Amarylls, but now, open. Reaching out with their tendrils they felt the memories, the thoughts of his friend, the image of the being's associate was different from the memories of memories of the ancient enemy.

"I'm just here to deal with the intruder, I can help return the area she's used to you," the being said, a phrase 'Harry' within his mind was present.

"We are the Amarylls, Harry," they said. "And we will let you and Oswin pass and onwards on your mission on Alvega."

-/

As the Amarylls finished Harry felt an image, a concept be broadcast into his mind of a large wall, impenetrable to the Amarylls. Dull grey and hard on the environment, dug deep into the soils where no roots could reach.

Harry smiled and bowed his head. "We will deal with the intruder and return," he paused and called towards the Timeship. "Oswin it's okay, we'll deal with this together. The Amarylls won't attack you."

"Your diplomacy at work again Harry," she said gliding out of the Timeship.

Harry felt a psychic rustle through his presence but nothing beyond that. He was glad that Oswin had come out in Dalek form, although he couldn't explain the different between her forms to himself let alone the Amarylls.

Harry outstretched his arm. "They've shown me where to go."

"And we'll just pop over there?" Oswin asked as she glided over.

"After the Eight Legs being in my mind, psychic plants aren't much more of a stretch," Harry said with a shrug as he put his arm around her and focused on the grey wall.

-/

"Plasticrete, not very good for the environment, with a carbon weave and some sort of electrostatic coating, probably to keep anything from getting too close and climbing on it," Oswin reported; her manipulator arm out in front of the wall.

"No door either," Harry said jumping off the broom and slipping it back into one of his expanding bags. He'd flown a few hundred meters along the wall. "It's got a slight curve in it, but I don't know how far the compound would be to actually achieve a walled off area.

Oswin's lights lit up and she twitched a little bit. "I could work it out, but it's probably not useful information," she paused and looked up. "Do you want to go over it?"

Harry shook his head. "I think that's how we get shot, don't you think?"

Oswin waggled her eye piece. "Yes."

"Can you see through it?" He asked. As he cast spells around them concerning apparition safety. "There's nothing stopping us apparating to the other side of the wall. Just not sure what's there."

"Just a moment," she shifted left and right. "Not used these systems in a while, got to find the right…" she made a noise.

"You okay?" Harry asked worried, looking to her.

She made a noise that he recognised as her amused Dalek laugh. "I didn't think I could see that far, I think I'll have a headache later, it's clear enough, just the same shrubs and trees."

"I doubt it's the same," Harry commented gesturing around. "I think all of this might be connected in some way with the Amarylls."

"I'll have to set you up with your own docu-series on flora and fauna, when we're out of this," Oswin commented.

"Okay," Harry took a few breaths of air in and out before putting his arm around Oswin and disapparated.

There was a bit of resistance as they appeared on the other side, but no splinching thankfully.

"You okay?" Oswin poked him in his arse with her manipulator arm as he bent over breathing deeply.

"Unexpected resistance, not any charms just…" He trailed off as he stared at the ground. "I've only ever seen that in history books," he gestured at the ground. "It's an ancient form of mistletoe, I remember studying it in History of Magic, supposedly Merlin had it growing on Arthur's castles…" Harry trailed off "to prevent incursions from fae and other witches seeking to infiltrate their bases."

"That means we're in the right place?" Oswin asked as Harry picked himself up.

"Yes, but where it came from is one of many good questions that probably won't get an answer," he said drawing his wand. "And I hope that all of this isn't connected like what's out there," he jabbed a thumb back.

"Doubtful, planet-wide gestalts aren't common, I bet the Amarylls aren't even that they're probably connected the same way the PathWeb is, communication not constant connection, if there's not something that existed in your wizarding, then forcing that into plants would be less than useful," Oswin commented as she hovered a little higher off the ground.

Harry made a point to look down as she did so.

"Just being careful, she might not care about a biped walking around, but Dalek is another thing," she twitched her gunstick. "Gotta be ready, can't have you getting complacent and getting shot," she swivelled her eyestalk to him as they continued forwards "again."

Harry laughed. "I feel like blacking out on a saucer is more a habit."

It was, Harry mused like walking through a herbology textbook, except everything was real and there were a lot of extinct or 'only in this one garden owned by a reclusive witch/wizard, make sure you bring gingerbread for them' plants. They'd come across a small wood that he was relatively sure had woods for wands and for brooms. He'd almost tripped over some mandrakes, he'd never seen them that large or growing in the ground, they'd always been in pots at Hogwarts.

Onwards they'd pushed their way through masses of dittany, that at least made sense as he explained to Oswin about its healing abilities, as they got through it Oswin was able to hover higher to see, she said it looked like it went on for at least a kilometre.

Eventually they came across a structure, the main parts of it wasn't huge, but it had high supports.

It was deep green hues with a several seals around it and on the supports. Harry only recognised the seal of Rassilon, but there were others which looked like modern Gallifreyan, a language he was slowly piecing together an understanding of, in between being shot at.

"I don't like the look of that," Oswin said, now in her red dress.

"Why the change of clothes?" Harry asked, in the hour or two that they'd been wandering through the trees and gardens he'd found comfort in Oswin's Dalek presence.

"Under the gaze of Rassilon's seal, it's intimidating," she said in a softer tone. "I'm still here to blast anything away Harry."

Harry threw and arm around her shoulders. "You know I don't care," he looked up. "I doubt he's hanging out here. We both know where he's likely hiding out. And you know your firepower isn't why I want you watching my back."

"Not just my firepower," she teased.

"Let's go and find out what what defences Ginny has in store," Harry said walking forward and holding his hand back behind him. "Plunger or hand I don't care what takes it," he said as she took it with her plunger.

-/

This was weird, Harry thought to himself, and not weird like the castle that was a TARDIS they'd encountered a few days ago. This felt like the Ministry buildings, Hogwarts and many other wizarding buildings he'd been in, but all the iconography, everything seemed very Time Lord-ish.

Harry wrinkled his nose. "Follow the smell of potion ingredients I think."

"That seems like it's everywhere," Oswin commented still in Dalek form now they were within the structure and away from the seals of Rassilon and whatever's gaze, she rotated each way slightly twitching as she glided along.

Harry nodded. "Obviously nothing to alert that we're here, just lots of corridors."

"Otherwise we'd have been shot at by now," Oswin commented rotating around scanning the room they were in, essentially an entrance hall to the building. "Still don't like it."

"No," Harry murmured closing his eyes and feeling his way through his magical senses, Draco said when they were on Earth in the past that that was something Harry lacked education in, you grew up learning it. He took a few steps forward. "This way," he gestured towards a left hand corridor.

At the end of green tinged corridor there were a set of double oak doors at the end, and a smell of potions growing stronger.

"Jackpot?" Oswin inquired.

Harry nodded as they approached and pushed open the doors. It was appropriately gloomy inside with lights only above some of the benches.

There were bunsen burners or something like them on the benches, herbs in jars and others hanging from the roof.

As they walked in further Oswin projected softly. "I think there's a TARDIS in here."

"Don't go blasting just yet, maybe we can pretend we're lost," Harry muttered as they continued walking.

"Hello?" Called a voice. It was male, curious, and dangerous. "I know you're in here, I heard the doors creak."

Harry shook his head to Oswin as they continued, he didn't want to shoot this person just yet. Harry held his wand out, a spell ready on his lips as Oswin glided silently into the gloom.

"I won't ask again, you're intruding and I am ready to stop you," called the voice again.

There was something familiar about the tone, if not the voice.

"As am I, show yourself Time Lord, and I might only kill you once," Harry called in a cool tone, his hand going for his Time Lord crossbow he had in a pocket.

Then a man stepped out from the gloom, smiling broadly. He was holding some sort of device. He had a white beard and dangerous eyes. "My, my, Harry Potter, you have taken a more wild approach to diplomacy, what would the Doctor think?"

"The last time I saw the Doctor I rammed the station he was in with a saucer and then fired temporal torpedoes at his TARDIS," Harry answered casually. "So I think he might be a bit pissed."

The man, the Time Lord before him laughed, although he didn't put down the device he was holding, Harry assumed; a weapon. "You aren't the man I remember Harry Potter, you've grown beyond the Doctor's shadow," the man commented smiling.

And here I thought you ran from the Time War, Harry thought to himself. "And what of you, Master, has the war changed you?"

The man laughed again. "It certainly has you Harry Potter, you recognised me then?"

"Not your aspect, but your manner, I've learnt to be wary of the Time Lords," Harry commented.

"Is that why your companion is lurking in the shadows? Waiting to shoot me?" The Master asked curiously.

Harry shook his head, lowering his wand. "If I was going to kill you, I would have."

The Master raised an eyebrow, but also lowered his device. "You know I think you might, what happened Harry? Can I help?" He asked sincerely, he almost sounded like the man whom he'd met all those years ago when he'd been young and taught some valuable lessons.

"I was tortured," Harry answered in a short tone.

"By my people?" The Master asked.

Harry nodded.

"You survived," the Master observed.

"Thanks to your lessons," he praised idly "and the Doctor's comments on mind probes, along with my own experimentation, and a mistake by two Time Lords, I taught them a lesson too."

"Which Time Lords?" he asked curiously. "I might pass them in a corridor."

"Last I saw of Voran he was facing the Daleks," Harry answered.

"After you threw a saucer at him?" The Master enquired.

Harry nodded. "Waym I don't know."

The Master nodded. "Well, as much as this reunion is unexpected, why are you here on a very uninteresting planet in a backwater of a system?"

"I could ask you the same thing Master," Harry countered.

The Master laughed again. "Oh, but I asked first."

"Seen a woman around here, she was probably full of pomp and mad as a hatter?" Harry asked curiously, he wasn't sure if there would be a Ginny watching over things.

The Master beckoned to follow him and gestured someone slumped on the floor. "She was very curious and then quite angry that I found her little base here, thought all the symbols and seals would frighten me!"

"Is she dead?" Harry asked.

"Stunned, she reminds me of your old flame at Hog-" the Master was cut off.

Harry fired a killing curse at her, she jerked a little bit and then collapsed.

"You are a changed man Harry, I think you're rather dangerous, it's quite riveting," the Master commented.

Harry bent down to go through her pockets for her wand and anything else, as he was pocketing the items he heard the Master move.

"Stay where you are, do not move!" Shouted Oswin.

Harry stood up and saw the Master with his hand on the device he'd had; pointed at him as before.

"A Dalek? You brought a Dalek with you?" The surprise and anger in the Master's voice was palpable.

"This is my friend Oswin," Harry said plucking the device from the Master's hand and looked at the Master as he stepped away from him, vaporising Ginny's body as he did so. "I'm sure you're aware that given the company I keep, I'm quite capable of ending your life Master," Harry paused and smiled cooly. "All of them."

The Master looked at him and smiled broadly. "You're certainly different, Harry Potter, not even I imagined you could be this."

"And I wonder if the Doctor ever did?" Harry mused.

"The Doctor is the greatest of manipulators, haven't you worked that out yet Harry?" He tutted.

"What are you here for Master?" Harry asked calmly.

"Is that why you are here?" he briefly looked down and back to Harry. "Dealing with Ms Weasley?"

"And her influence, she's my responsibility, and I'm dealing with it," Harry answered.

"An honest answer, good. Certain life preserving and healing substances have been used by my people, I want them, I presume, crafted by the deceased Weasley?"

Harry nodded. "I'll collect everything she's got here for you."

The Master looked surprised. "That's it? You'll give it to me and I can go?"

Harry shrugged. "You're not my enemy Master, you and the Doctor are the only Time Lords I consider a friend."

"You said you shot at the Doctor," the Master pointed out in an amused tone.

"You and the Doctor shoot at each other all of the time!" Harry exclaimed and shook his head.

"That's different Harry," the Master wrinkled his nose.

"Sure it is, it's foreplay right?" Oswin commented drawing the attention of the Master.

"You're not a regular Dalek are you?" The Master tried to take a step forward.

Oswin shot at his feet. "I'm a better shot than some."

The Master raised his hands and took a step back. "Very well," he looked to Harry. "You choose your companion better than the Doctor, too many young things."

"You think he should have a crazy-haired psychopath with a gun travelling with him?" Harry challenged lightly.

"Yes! That'd rile him up," he laughed to himself.

"Let me get your potions Master," Harry looked around the room until his eye didn't fall on a space of wall. "Your TARDIS is over there?"

The Master turned around with mock surprise. "Yes, you have become quite knowledgeable Harry haven't you?"

"I've learnt a lot from being here," Harry drew a breath and exhaled. "Not a lot of it useful beyond war."

As he moved away from view the Master called. "I wouldn't say that Harry, there's always a use for knowledge like you have, especially with an intelligent mind attached to it."

-/

Oswin watched the Master carefully, as he did her, she didn't like it. The Dalek side of her wanted to exterminate the Time Lord right now. The more travelled side of her knew not to.

"Oh, and Master, harm Oswin and I will kill you, through both your hearts if necessary," Harry called as he walked behind the Master.

"Oh, you are a tease Harry, such a violent proclamation in such a casual way," he chuckled. "You're almost a man after my own hearts."

"Or I can scythe off your head," Harry called, Oswin could hear beside her Harry placing jars into a box, and feel as the air shifted each time he slotted one into the box. "That'd work as well wouldn't it?"

"Oh yes! Very messy, lots of energy released if you do that, especially to a younger Time Lord."

"Which I understand you're not," Harry said as he carried a box over to the clock in the back of the room.

"You shouldn't ask about a Time Lord's age, it's very rude," he commented with mock offence.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind the next time I'm tortured by one. After you bring up vampires and Faction Paradox, then comment on the powerlessness of their chapter house, there's only so many things you can mock a Time Lord for to get them riled up," Harry commented idly.

The Master looked over at him surprise with…an almost impressed air. "And do you still have a burning hate in you for Voran and Waym?"

"Not exactly, I could have watched Voran get exterminated," Harry answered.

"But you didn't, you like the unknown, that you might cross paths with him in the future, you wanted a more personal revenge?" The Master pressed.

Harry walked around one of the benches with some more jars of liquid. "I can always play some footage of him revealing himself to be a traitor," he paused watching the senior Time Lord, Oswin adjusted her aim as the Master shifted to look at him. "there would be some…satisfaction in his own people torturing him."

"As he did you?" He smiled. "Yes, I can see the irony and amusement that may bring."

-/

Harry looked around the other benches, there were a few more pots of healing potions, but he wanted them to test for himself. He filled a final box taking it over to the grandfather clock, he'd not seen it when he'd pointed it out to the Master, just the lack of something against the wall. Now he was closer he could see it as it was. He'd even been inside it, if it was the same TARDIS from those years ago.

He looked past the Master and nodded to Oswin to back off a little bit.

"Here we go Master," Harry gestured.

The Master looked to Oswin and then walked over and joined Harry, opening the door with a simple brush of the hand. "No keys like our dear Doctor messes around with."

"With his ancient TARDIS you mean?" Harry asked in an amused tone as the Master picked up with of the boxes and disappeared into the TARDIS. Harry was tempted to follow him in, but didn't. He had met a few different incarnations of this Time Lord, including his future. This man seemed dangerous, but there was still something, something of his friend there, unlike some of his past and future incarnations.

"Indeed Harry, indeed," he stepped back out and wasn't holding a weapon, which was a little bit surprising. He took the last boxes and disappeared into the TARDIS again, leaving the door ajar.

"I still think of you as one of my oldest friends Master, even if you are dangerous," Harry commented idly looking through the ajar door into the darkened time craft's interior.

The Master stepped to the threshold a moment later. "That is delightful to know Harry," he smiled. "Perhaps we'll meet again."

"Perhaps," Harry said and handed him back his device. "Don't return to this planet Master, I'll make sure all of this is destroyed and the natives will know how to defend themselves."

"Against?" He asked challenging him.

"Anyone who might come and impose themselves as Ginny did," Harry said casually taking a step back.

The Master smiled widely. "Be seeing you Harry, it has been enlightening."

Harry stepped back and watched the Master's TARDIS quietly dematerialise.

"He was dangerous, you meant everything didn't you?" Oswin asked, still in Dalek form.

"Yes," he smiled. "I felt I could be more honest with him than I could with the Doctor."

"Does he meet a nasty end?" Oswin asked.

Harry nodded. "Couldn't have killed him, not really," he said putting an arm around her. "Come on, we need to move the Timeship closer and then ask the Amarylls what they want done with this facility."

"Not just burning it all to the ground?" Oswin asked as she rotated around and looked around the room carefully.

"Anything?" Harry asked.

"No, just being cautious, I guess that's what you were doing while having your chat with the Master?" she asked.

Harry nodded. "I wasn't just bantering with him, and bugger the timeline if he'd tried anything."

"Do not worry, I would have paralysed or stunned him if he tried." Oswin commented.

"Which one?" Harry asked with curious amusement.

"I hadn't decided, it depended how much of a leery look he' gave me," Oswin said as they exited the room.

-/

It was going to take more than a day to empty everything, he'd told the Amarylls as much but they seemed to just say.

"When it is completed," and then left him to it.

Harry leaned back in a hammock he'd strung up between two of the larger trees nearest to the facility and looked up at the sky. There was an easel leaning against one of the smaller trees, he'd again tried his hand at art. Something to de-compress from everything, he remembered Daphne saying something like that, that he needed to try to not always be thinking, worrying. It felt like such a long time that he, that he and Oswin had been in the Time War. It felt good, just for a little bit to lie back and relax, even if the work wasn't yet done.

It had been an exhausting time sorting, checking and moving stuff into bags or into the Timeship.

It was all top notch potion work, some quite advanced, some just boring Pepperups.

He'd also found a lot of notebooks; there weren't any computer systems that he had managed to find, and Oswin hadn't found a TARDIS in her searches, but they had found something that bore the seal of Rassilon.

To Harry it looked how Harry Sullivan had described a Time Ring in his UNIT report, Sarah had talked about it to him, but hadn't given him a detailed description. Neither he nor Oswin was game enough to touch it. They couldn't know if it'd take them to a Time Lord base, space station or even Gallifrey. The latter might be useful, but he wasn't willing to roll the dice on those odds. But he also wasn't sure about just leaving it behind, he still had some bits and pieces of damaged stuff left from the Skaro Degradations planet in the Timeship that might work as a storage box, maybe. He hadn't quite decided yet.

Harry felt and then heard Oswin hover over.

"Finished surveying the wall," Oswin commented, he heard her dome swivel to look at his easel and art work. "Nice art.'

Harry nodded, "And how big is it?"

"A little bit under 2.6 kilometres in diameter," Oswin reported.

"That's a lot of plasticrete," Harry commented.

"I think I've discovered the tensioning system, it's solar powered on the other side, if we disconnect, then it should be more permeable to the Amarylls," Oswin explained.

"Good, just resting for a bit," Harry said in a drowsy manner. "Didn't realise how much concentration sorting stuff out took," he commented, "Took a break later," he gestured at the easel.

"We've been at it for a few days Harry, it's not as though we had a break after the last confrontation," she said.

Harry looked from the sky over to Oswin whose eye stalk was also pointed skywards. "Nothing of concern?"

"Just looking, a girl can gaze up at the skies," she said.

Harry smiled. "It's nice to relax," he paused. "That's 11 dead Ginnys so far, one more and then the original," he let out a breath "and then that's it."

"I think you've earnt a night to doze Harry," Oswin said softly.

"Maybe," Harry said as he continued to look up at the sky, he wondered if he deserved it though?

-/

The next morning as the sun properly rose above them and the Amarylls were out doing whatever psychic sentient daffodils did. Harry went out and explained everything and their options.

"In short it's your planet, we're just here to do what you want," Harry said as he finished his explanations.

-/

The Amarylls observed the structure that Harry had explained to them, that held the organisms not of Alvega and considered their options.

"Remove structural pieces of the barrier, but we do not wish for fire to be turned on them," the Amarylls said.

-/

Harry nodded touching his ear where the communicator sat. "Oswin you can disconnect the wall."

Harry watched the Amarylls as they seemed to react, maybe through the soil, he wasn't sure reaching out.

"You have done a great service to the Amarylls Harry," they said.

Harry reached into his coat and offered them something else. He had flipped through some of Ginny's early notebooks, he'd barely looked through them, but had been curious about how she'd come to be here. Supposedly she had found the 'Controller' some large organism that the Amarylls worked with, some large root structure or something. She'd killed it, and she'd hoped stopped the Amarylls interfering with her work here, it had enabled her or the Time Lords to construct the plasticrete structure.

"I offer you this," he held out the blue crystal. It was one of several that he'd been given. "It's from a planet called Metebelis III," he explained as one of Amarylls moved forward to look at it. At least that's what it looked like, they were weird looking alien plants that were reading or projecting into his mind. It was all a bit strange. "There are a group of beings there, also quite adept, psychically wise, whose planet was injured by the Time Lords; the intruder," Harry explained. "They gave me crystals like this, I don't know if this will help you, but…"

-/

The Amarylls moved forward to the blue crystal, it had sympathetic vibrations, not like the Controller, but, it was something new, something different. Untainted. It spoke of distant mountain ranges, communities of beings, unlike those on Alvega, but with similar struggles of food, and preparation. It was offered honestly, Harry, the being stood, unconcerned with their approach. He had been honest, and dealt with the intruder and granted access to the intruder's walled off land.

The Amarylls reached out a tendril to take the crystal, and then withdrew, gesturing to a secluded location and the stump of a fallen tree. "Here, Harry," they said.

-/

Harry placed the crystal down on the stump, unsure if he was doing the right thing, but it felt right, and with so many things going around in his head, he'd learnt to go with how things felt.

As he made to go one of the Amarylls spoke again.

"Will you instruct us on the meaning of those within the barrier?" they asked.

Harry indicated, yes, of course.

Oswin was waiting on the other side of the wall when he apparated.

"They want me to explain what the plants in here are," he said.

"And what will you tell them?" She asked, her eye stalk shifting towards the wall were plants were pushing themselves up from the ground.

"The truth, Ginny imposed these plants here, it's their planet the Amarylls deserve the knowledge to manage these things," he paused. "It would have been an ordeal to fire bomb all of this."

"We could have rigged forcefields over it all," she said, "But you're right, it is their planet."

-/

Harry burned the mandrake to a crisp, as the Amarylls watched. They had indicated some plants were 'incompatible with life'.

The small forest of trees would remain, as would the dittany.

The Amarylls didn't like the seal of Rassilon about as much as Oswin didn't, he got her to hover up and go around melting it away, but the structure would be 'returned slowly'.

It was night fall before they'd done a loop around through all the plants and they were back at the Timeship.

"I hope you can return to your existence from before the intruder arrived," Harry paused at the entrance of the Timeship.

"You have gained us the freedom from the intruder, Harry, farewell," the Amarylls said.

-/

"Happy?" Oswin asked curiously.

"Satisfied, doing a little bit of good here and there, helping a few people wronged by Ginny and the Time Lords, he nodded. "Does make me happy."

"And now?" Oswin asked.

"I'm going to have a shower, and then we'll go and find the Eternity Circle, see whether their concerns about vampires are all guff or something more worrying."

"Our luck it'll probably be the latter," Oswin muttered.

-/

A/N:

Harry finally gets to meet the War Master as played by Sir Derek Jacobi in Big Finish's audio dramas, especially The War Master series.

When I started planning this arc he'd not actually appeared in any audios, so I hadn't planned to include him. But I'd left a few of my chapter plans open in case, so I could include stuff like this in them.

The Amarylls are from a 1960s Dalek comic called 'The Amaryll Challenge'. They're basically talking alien daffodils.

I've taken a liberty or two with them, mostly their planet which gets destroyed by the Daleks in that comic, but it's the Time War, so anything can happen.

Vega Station also exists (I try to avoid inventing locations or people and draw them from the Doctor Who universe). It first appeared in the novel Demontage.

And as Harry says, 11 dead Ginnys, one more and the original to go.

Thanks for reading.