A/N: Here's the first episode of The Sound of Drums and we finally get to see the Master, everyone! We'll finally get to see how he and Rhea interact with each other. Don't worry, I've got a lot planned for them ;)
Warnings: Language, Dark Themes, Allusions to Sexual Content etc.
The Dread of Tomorrow and Yesterday
Chapter 73
The Sound of Drums: The New Statesman
"Doctor, there's no way in hell we can hold out much longer!" Rhea shrieked.
"Oh, no, you don't!" The Master shouted from inside. "End of the universe. Have fun. Bye, bye!"
"Doctor, stop him!" Martha yelled.
Rhea, Jack and Martha fought off the Futurekind as they tried their hardest to enter into the laboratory, while the Doctor could only watch in horror and dread as the TARDIS dematerialised.
The Doctor, Rhea, Martha and Jack appeared in the middle of a quiet alleyway, all of them groaning. Rhea pressed her back against the wall and closed her eyes, feeling sick as the churning in her stomach only grew. She opened her weary eyes, feeling as though they had been encased in cement, to see the Doctor holding her up by the arm, steadying her. She gave him a grateful look, twisting her neck to the side to kiss his jaw-line affectionately, feeling his lips quirk up in a smile under her lips. Her hand trailed across his chest as he held her up, Rhea turning to look at Martha and Jack with worry. Martha was pressing her back against the wall, one hand splayed on her stomach and the other clutching her head, while Jack had his hands resting on his bent knees as he heaved.
"Oh, my head!" Martha moaned.
"Fuck, this is like the world's worst hangover." Rhea muttered.
"Time travel without a capsule. That's a killer." The Doctor commented.
Jack twisted his neck, hearing the telltale crack of the bone, before the four left the alley. They walked along a main street, taking in their surroundings, watching for anything out of the ordinary.
"Still, at least we made it. Earth, twenty-first century by the looks of it." He chuckled. "Talk about lucky." Jack shook his head.
The Doctor snorted. "That wasn't luck, that was me."
Rhea, Jack and Martha had their bodies shoved, uncomfortably, against the door, to try and keep the Futurekind out, while the Doctor had Jack's arm held out in front of him, as he used his sonic screwdriver on Jack's vortex manipulator.
"Hold still! Don't move! Hold it still!" The Doctor snarled.
"I'm telling you, it's broken! It hasn't worked for years!" Jack protested.
The Doctor rolled his eyes. "That's because you didn't have me. Rhea, Martha, grab hold!" The Doctor took a hold of Rhea and Martha's hand which had been splayed against the door, their muscles tensing with the pressure placed on it, and wrapped it around the device on Jack's wrist. "Now!"
And in a flash of the time vortex, the four disappeared.
The Doctor, Rhea, Martha and Jack were sitting on a bench in the middle of a pedestrian-only road, watching as throngs of citizens walked past, seemingly unconcerned by the danger that could be walking in their midst.
"The moral is, if you're gonna get stuck at the end of the universe, get stuck with an ex-Time Agent and his vortex manipulator." Jack sighed.
"No," Rhea tipped her head back, wearily. "The moral is don't get stuck at the end of the universe without a time machine and don't convince an old man to open the watch that'll turn him into a psychotic Time Lord with a sadistic personality disorder and a bone to pick." She snapped.
"But this Master bloke, he's got the TARDIS. He could be anywhere in time and space," Martha protested.
The Doctor shook his head. "No, he's here. Trust me." He muttered, looking around and seeing all of the Saxon campaign posters plastered against the wall.
"Who is he, anyway? And that voice at the end, that wasn't the professor," Martha murmured.
"He's a Time Lord. He must have regenerated," Rhea said, darkly.
Martha frowned. "What does that mean?"
"Means he's changed his face, voice, body, everything. New man," Jack finished.
The Doctor frowned, noticing a homeless man tapping a repeating rhythm on an enamel mug.
"Then how are we gonna find him?" Martha threw her hands up in the air.
The tapping echoed.
"I'll know him; the moment I see him. Time Lords always do," The Doctor said, grimly.
"But hold on," Martha's eyes narrowed at the posters. "If he could be anyone…" She licked her lips, nervously, as dread began to churn uncomfortably in her stomach. "We missed the election. But it can't be…"
"You've got to be kidding me," Rhea groaned.
The Doctor pulled Rhea to her feet, both of them standing slowly, as did Jack. They walked over to a giant screen on a building that displayed the news, Martha following them, hesitantly.
"Mr Saxon has returned from the Palace and is greeting the crowd inside Saxon Headquarters."
The screen showed a young, blonde-haired British man walking down with an entourage, a pretty blonde woman at his side.
"I said I knew that voice," Martha trembled. "When he spoke inside the TARDIS. I've heard that voice hundreds of times. I've seen him. We all have. That was the voice of Harold Saxon." She swallowed hard, fear flashing in her dark eyes.
"That's him. He's the fucking Prime Minister," Rhea murmured. "How the hell did he become Prime Minister?"
"Mr Saxon, this way, sir. Come on, kiss for the lady, sir."
"The Master is Prime Minister of Great Britain," They watched as Saxon kissed the woman at his side. The Doctor blinked. "The Master and his wife."
"This country has been sick. This country needs healing. This country needs medicine. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that, what this country really needs, right now… is a doctor." Saxon smiled into the camera.
"Well, if that wasn't a call out, I don't know what is," Rhea muttered under her breath.
Martha, Rhea, the Doctor and Jack sat in their respective places in Martha's apartment.
"Home sweet home," Martha commented, grimacing.
"What have you got? Computer, laptop, anything?" The Doctor narrowed his eyes at Jack, who was busy typing a number into his mobile. "Jack, who are you phoning? You can't tell anyone we're here!" He said, warningly.
Jack shook his head. "Just some friends of mine, but there's no reply…"
Martha handed the Doctor a thick laptop that was customary for that day and age. "Here you go. Any good?"
The Doctor took the laptop from Martha. "I can show you the Saxon websites. He's been around for ages." He sat at the desk, the laptop propped up in front of him.
"That's so weird though. It's the day after the election. That's only four days after I met you," Martha shook her head in disbelief.
"Blows your mind, doesn't it?" Rhea said, dryly.
"We went flying all around the universe, while he was here the whole time," The Doctor murmured.
"But it makes sense," Rhea said, suddenly.
All of them looked towards Rhea, their eyes betraying their confusion.
"What do you mean?" Martha asked, swallowing hard.
"Professor Lazarus' little shindig," Rhea raised an eyebrow. "I was on the guest list, remember."
"So what?" Jack frowned.
Rhea shook her head. "The name on the list was-"
"Doctor Sunehri Adwani," The Doctor's eyes widened as shock coursed right through him. "And you didn't become a Doctor until 2012."
Rhea nodded, grimly. "So, Harold Saxon put my name on that guest list and we know that Harold Saxon is really the Master, so the Master put my name on the guest list."
The Doctor tipped his head back and sighed. "But why would he do that?"
"Because he's a colossal douchebag," Rhea muttered under her breath. "I don't know." She shrugged. "Maybe he's just trying to screw with us. Let us know that just because we know who he is, it doesn't mean he doesn't know who we are – or I am." She turned to the Doctor. "He wants to get to you and he's letting you know that while you may not have a life on Earth, Martha and I do."
Martha raised an eyebrow. "How do you know all of this?" She asked, skeptically.
Rhea shrugged. "I have done a little work in criminal psychology." She told them. "Either way, we solved the Saxon mystery. He's been here the entire time. He's been setting up little traps for us all over the place." She said, pointedly. "We've seen the posters all around the place. He funded Lazarus' experiment and he put my name on the list. He was quite subtle in it. He didn't want us to know he was here before we went to Utopia." She shook her head. "Time travel, man… it fucks with your head." She muttered.
Martha turned to the Doctor, expectantly. "You gonna tell us who he is?" She asked, pointedly.
"He's a Time Lord," The Doctor said, blithely, his eyes focused on the computer screen.
"What about the rest of it? I mean, who'd call himself the Master?" Martha shook her head in disbelief.
"Someone with serious psychological issues," Rhea looked at the Doctor, pointedly. "I want to talk to him." She demanded.
Jack snorted. "Let me guess, you want to rehabilitate a nutty Time Lord/Prime Minister?"
"No," Rhea shook her head, slowly. "I want to get inside his head and see what makes him tick." She blinked, speaking slowly as if she were talking to a small child.
"Oh, yeah, sorry, how could I have missed that?" Jack said, sarcastically.
Rhea turned to the Doctor, tapping her thigh impatiently. "So, who is he, Doctor? This isn't the time to keep things close to your chest." She said, grimly. "He knows who I am; he could go after my mother."
"He's a Time Lord, lovely," The Doctor looked at her, his brown eyes devoid of emotion. He patted her, comfortingly, on the thigh. "Trust me, that's all you need to know."
Rhea scoffed.
"That's all you want to know," The Doctor corrected, lowly, his nose brushing her collarbone from where she was perched up on the desk, her legs swinging beside him. He turned to Jack. "Come on, show me Harold Saxon."
Martha rolled her eyes and walked over to her answering machine, sitting on a nearby table. She frowned down at the blinking red light that indicated that there was a new message and pressed the button that allowed her to hear it.
"Martha, where are you? I've got this new job. You won't believe it. It's weird, they just phoned me up out of the blue. I'm working for-"
Martha rolled her eyes and shut off the machine. "Oh, like it matters." She muttered.
A campaign commercial for Saxon played on the computer screen.
"I'm voting Saxon. He can tick my box any day."
"Vote Saxon! Go Harry!"
"I think Mr Saxon is exactly what this country needs. He's a very fine man. And he's handsome too."
A disgusted sound left Rhea's throat, as Jack stopped the commercial on the website.
"Seriously?" Rhea growled. "The guy might be the freaking Prime Minister of England and they're gushing about how hot he is? Talk about screwed-up priorities."
Jack pursed his lips. "Former Minister of Defence. First came to prominence when he shot down the Racnoss on Christmas Eve." He turned to the Doctor and Rhea, approvingly. "Nice work, by the way." He commented.
The Doctor sat back on the couch arm, his arm thrown around Rhea's shoulders. "Oh, thanks." He grinned.
Rhea nodded, proudly. "It's nice to be appreciated once in a while."
"He goes back years," Martha's eyes narrowed at the screen. "He's famous. Everyone knows his story. Look. Cambridge University, Rugby Blue, won the Athletics thing, wrote a novel, went into business, marriage, everything.
Rhea hummed. "Is he Conservative or Labour?"
Martha frowned. "Why does it matter?"
Rhea shrugged. "It says a lot about a person… which political party they support."
Martha's brow furrowed. "He's a Conservative."
Rhea snorted. "Of course he is. With a name like the 'Master', what else could he be?"
Martha smacked her hands down on the table. "Doesn't matter, does it? He's got a whole life."
"Makes you wonder how he managed it, doesn't it?" Rhea murmured.
Jack was making tea in the kitchen.
"But he's got the TARDIS. Maybe the Master went back in time and has been living here for decades." He mused.
The Doctor was still sitting at the desk, his brow furrowed thoughtfully. "No."
Jack frowned. "Why not? Worked for me." He pointed out, handing each of them a glass.
"When he was stealing the TARDIS, the only thing I could do was fuse the coordinates. I locked them permanently." The Doctor explained.
The Doctor held out his sonic screwdriver, his face drawn into a look of determination.
"He can only travel between the year one-hundred trillion and the last place the TARDIS landed. Which is right here, right now," The Doctor said, grimly.
"Any leeway?" Rhea wondered out loud.
"Well… eighteen months, tops," The Doctor grimaced. "The most he could have been here is eighteen months. So, how has he managed all this? The Master was always sort of… hypnotic, but this is on a massive scale." He shook his head.
"Identity creation to this extent is virtually impossible, not unless you've got a real expert on your payroll." Rhea murmured. She started pacing. "He ran for Prime Minister." She said, confused, looking up. "The opposition must have been constantly vetting him. And they obviously didn't find any discrepancies in his fake life, otherwise they would've brought it to public knowledge. There are only a few people in the world capable of digitally creating someone like this. And to the magnitude that they've gone to cover his tracks, even fewer people could manage any of this."
Martha frowned. "You mean like identity theft?"
"I mean it's like defrauding governments on a magnificent scale. Faking education, income and a birth certificate at the very least. It's hacking into databases and creating a person that doesn't even exist in the first place. It's not easy, Martha. It's not the same as using a fake ID to get into bar or a nightclub. This is textbook computer crime. If I wasn't so concerned about the nutcase in charge of the United Kingdom, I'd be pretty impressed at his hacking abilities. I wouldn't even know where to start to do any of this and I've done a few things like this myself over the years. Passports, identity documents, federal and international database hacking, forging licenses, defrauding banks and ATMs, changing public records, creating a life that doesn't exist – I've done a few of them over the years. But I haven't even heard of anyone, let alone know, who could be capable of this." Rhea said, darkly. "You could even say it's easy for a normal person to create a new identity – new ID and passport, hacking into databases and wiping any remnants of your old life clean – but governments investigate prospective members of the Cabinet extensively. If the Master really has only been here for eighteen months, and he started out as Minister of Defence, none of this is an indication of such a short stay. It's insane to think he managed all of this in eighteen months. Not even a pro could do this… he'd have to be a freaking champion of hacking to manage this extent of identity creation." Rhea shook her head. "If he really were the Minister of Defense at some point, the British government should've figured it out by now."
"I was gonna vote for him," Martha said, suddenly.
Rhea blinked. "Really?"
"Well, it was before I even met you," Martha shrugged. "And I liked him."
"I suppose you're regretting that right now, aren't you?" Rhea said, knowingly.
"Me too," Jack murmured.
Rhea sank down on the couch beside the Doctor. "So, what was so good about him? What was his platform? What did he stand for?"
"I dunno," Martha shrugged, her eyes glazing over in a dream-like state. "He always sounded… good." Her fingers started tapping an ominous rhythm on the back of her hand. "Like you could trust him. Just nice. He spoke about…" Martha blinked as her mind searched for an answer. "I can't really remember, but it was good. Just the sound of his voice." She breathed.
The Doctor tensed and shot out of his seat, gesturing to Martha's hands. "What's that?" He asked, sharply.
Martha was jarred out of her daze, startled by the Doctor's sudden words and actions. "What?" She asked, confused.
"That!" The Doctor snapped, gesturing to Martha's hands. "That tapping, that rhythm! What are you doing?"
Martha blinked, as though it hadn't even occurred to her that she had been doing it. "I dunno." She shrugged, nonchalantly, not seeing the harm in her tapping. "It's nothing. It's j-I dunno!" She said, defensively.
A tune played from the website and all of their eyes were drawn to the 'SAXON BROADCAST: ALL CHANNELS' message that appeared on the screen.
The Doctor growled under his breath, Rhea surprised at the fierce anger that burned in his dark eyes. He leaned over and switched the television on.
"Our lord and master is speaking to his kingdom," He said, darkly.
On the screen, the Master was sitting in front of the ornate fireplace in the Cabinet Room.
"Britain, Britain, Britain. What extraordinary times we've had," The Master smiled and Rhea had to stamp down the urge to find him and punch him in his smug face. "Just a few years ago, this world was so small. And then they came, out of the unknown, falling from the skies."
Rhea narrowed her eyes as a clip of a spaceship crashing into the side of Big Ben showed on the screen.
"You've seen it happen… Big Ben destroyed, a spaceship over London."
Suddenly, Rhea's eyes and ears were covered by hands as the next clip played on the screen. Rhea spluttered and shoved the hands away from her, turning furious and sceptical eyes onto the Doctor, whose blank face glowed with his innocence. But Rhea knew better.
"You wanna explain to me why you did that?" She asked, dangerously.
The Doctor shrugged, the perfect picture of innocence. "You hadn't done it yet. Spoilers, lovely." He smirked when Rhea cursed under her breath. "I wasn't going to mess with the timeline just so you could see a two-second clip of another alien invasion and frankly, you didn't really miss anything. Just another alien occurrence affecting the lives of the British people."
Rhea grimaced. "Tell me, what is it about aliens that they feel the need to make their mark on England of all places."
Martha snorted. "As opposed to having everything happen in the States, huh?"
Rhea shrugged, nonchalantly. "I'm just saying that America should have its slice of the extra-terrestrial, don't you think? Hell, even Australia should get some time in the sun."
On the television was a clip of a large star floating in the sky.
The Racnoss. Rhea thought as she pursed her lips, her eyes widening minutely.
"The Christmas star that came to kill." The Master said, somberly. "Time and time again, the government told you nothing. Well, not me."
Rhea snorted. "Oh, great, another politician with a whole bunch of promises they don't plan on delivering on. And I thought he'd be different." She shook her head. "Or, at least, original."
"Not Harold Saxon. Because my purpose here today is to tell you this — citizens of Great Britain… I have been contacted. A message, for humanity, from beyond the stars," The Master nodded to someone off camera.
A video played, showing a bunch of metallic spheres floating in the air.
"People of the Earth, we come in peace. We bring great gifts. We bring technology and wisdom and protection. And all we ask in return is your friendship."
"Ooh, sweet. And this species has identified itself. They're called the Toclafane."
The Doctor's eyes widened, stunned, and leaned forward in his seat, suddenly agitated. "What?!" He snarled.
Rhea's eyes snapped to the Doctor, her face fascinated by the tightening of his eyes and the solid press of his lips, her psychologist's curiosity only encouraging her suspicions. His fingers tapped, impatiently, on his thighs and Rhea knew that there was more to this whole 'Toclafane' story that the Doctor was keeping his mouth shut about. Just like she knew by the way the Doctor narrowed his eyes every time the Master appeared on the screen that there was definitely some history between the two men. And not a good one.
"And tomorrow morning, they will appear. Not in secret, but to all of you. Diplomatic relations with a new species will begin. Tomorrow, we take our place in the universe. Every man, woman and child. Every teacher and chemist and lorry driver and farmer. And every… oh, I don't know…" A sly smile played on his lips. "Medical student?"
The Doctor's head turned so fast to look at Martha and Rhea, that Rhea feared his neck would break from the pressure, before turning the TV around, haphazardly, to find a bomb counting down to detonation. Rhea hissed under her breath and grabbed Martha's hand, tugging her from the apartment, followed by Jack, while the Doctor grabbed the laptop in a hurry. The four burst out onto the street just as the front of window of her flat exploded, spilling glass, plaster and wood everywhere onto the road, wispy sparks glinting in the air.
The Doctor looked at everyone, hurriedly, before his hand settled on Rhea's shoulders, his fingers tightening around her arms, his eyes searching over her, worriedly, looking slightly crazed. "All right?" He asked, anxiously.
"I'm fine." Rhea said, reassuringly, patting the hands that gripped her steadily, feeling her stomach warm as she saw the unadulterated worry and affection that clouded the Doctor's eyes.
He really thinks he's in love with me.
Rhea's throat went dry. She turned to Jack and Martha, a long, drawn-out breath leaving her body, as she ran her eyes over their bodies, searching for any injuries. "You okay?" She mouthed at Jack and Martha.
"Fine, yeah, fine." Jack sighed, shaking his head.
The Doctor looked down at Rhea, seeing her dig her hand into her pocket and pull out her phone. "What are you doing?" He asked, sharply.
"He knows my name. He knows about me. What about my mother? My brother?" Rhea snapped.
Martha's eyes widened and she pulled out her phone, furiously typing the digits that would allow her to reach her parents. "No. What about my family?" She whispered.
The Doctor growled. "Don't tell them anything!" He said, warningly, to Rhea and Martha.
"Shutupshutupshutup." Rhea snarled, her eyes glaring at him, fiercely. "You don't get to tell me what to do, Doctor, not when it's about my mother." She said, sharply.
"I'll do what I like!" Martha snapped at the Doctor.
The ringing continued and Rhea waited with baited breath until a sweet voice answered on the other line. "Hello?"
"Mama." It just came spilling out, Rhea's voice thick with emotion, something which Martha and Jack were startled by. "Are you okay? Is everything okay?"
"Rhea…" Seraphina's voice went high-pitched and panicked. "Tesoro, where are you? You haven't called in months. You don't even tell me where you are. Where are you, baby?" Her voice trembled, visibly. "Just tell me where you are. I can come and get you or I'll get Ani to come for you. Just tell me where you are." She pleaded.
Rhea hitched in a breath – God, just hearing her mother sound like she was on the edge of breaking down had pain twisting in her. "Mama, I can't… I promise, I will tell you everything soon. I just… I need to know you're okay." She gritted out, her voice thick with fear.
Seraphina took a deep breath, swallowing hard. "Of course I'm okay, tesoro. What is it? What's going on?" She asked, worriedly.
"Has… has anyone been asking about me, mama? Have you been talking about me to anyone?" Rhea asked, hesitantly, her hand clutching her phone for dear life.
"What?" Seraphina said, confused. "Rhea, darling, I don't understand the question." She said, worriedly.
Rhea dragged her hand over her face, breathing out quickly. "It's nothing. I just… I need to go, okay. I'll call you soon. Very soon. I promise. Be careful, mama. I love you." She hung up the phone and slid it back into her pocket, her hand splayed across her stomach as she weakly tried to bury away every single emotion.
Suddenly, she wished she were in San Francisco, close enough for her mother to wrap her arms around her, like she used to. She suddenly wished she was still that toddler that Seraphina would hitch onto her hip and toss the pan in the air, while baby Rhea played with her earrings. She had never felt safer than in those moments.
Seraphina Adwani could soothe any hurt she had. No matter if she were two or twenty-seven. Her hands and her voice worked wonders for Rhea's peace of mind.
She bit her lip and the Doctor nodded, knowingly, holding out his arms. She fell into them, her face crumpling, and buried her face in his chest as the tears threatened to flood her eyes. She felt herself melt inside when the Doctor's came around her body to stroke up and down her back. She felt all the weight leave her body and she settled into her embrace, his touch soothing her frantic nerves in a way that made her feel both sick to her stomach and like she was floating on air. Her heels stumbled against the gravel on the road and the Doctor held her up against his body before she could fall down, her legs losing any strength they had.
"Hush, lovely, I'm here." The Doctor's lips grazed her dark curls, kissing her hairline, gently and affectionately. "Your mum's fine. Everything's fine, lovely."
Martha blinked and looked down at her phone, typing her mother's home number, quickly. She bit her lip, waiting for someone to answer on the other end. When a low voice answered, she started, her hand catching onto her heart as it thumped, irregularly, under her skin.
"Mum? Oh, my God, you're there," Martha cried out.
"Course I'm here, sweetheart. You all right?" Francine said, worriedly.
"I'm fine. I'm fine," Martha said, reassuringly, her hand running through her hair. "Mum, has there been anyone asking about me?" She asked, nervously.
Francine visibly hesitated before speaking. "Martha, I think perhaps you should come 'round."
Martha blinked in confusion and shook her head. "I can't! Not now!" She protested.
"No, but it's your father," Francine said, weakly. "We've been talking and we thought we might give it another go."
Martha snorted. "Don't be so daft! Since when?" She snapped.
"Just come 'round. Come to the house, we can celebrate," Francine urged.
Martha paused and Rhea felt her heart wrench at the naked pain that was splayed on her face. "You said you'd never get back with him in a million years." Martha whispered.
"Ask him yourself."
A deep voice came over the phone. "Martha, it's me."
Martha started. "Dad?" She called out, confused. "What are you doing there?"
"Like your mother said, come 'round. We can explain everything," Clive said, slowly.
"Dad?" Martha began, grimly, her dark eyes finding Rhea's, who simply gave her an encouraging nod. "Just say yes or no. Is there someone else there?" She asked, carefully.
There was a long, drawn-out pause. "Yes!" Clive exclaimed. "Just run!" He shouted into the phone.
Martha swallowed hard when she heard her mother's voice. "Clive!"
"Listen to me! Just run! I don't know who they are!"
"We're trying to help her! Martha, don't listen to him!"
Martha felt the fear rush through her veins, heavy and cold. "Dad! What's going on? Dad?" She shouted. She took a deep breath. "I gotta help them!" She ran straight to her car.
The Doctor cursed under his breath. "That's exactly what they want! It's a trap!" He protested.
Martha rounded on him. "I don't care!" She hissed.
Rhea slipped into the front passenger seat, beside Martha, while Jack and the Doctor jumped into the back seats.
Martha drove, recklessly, down the road.
"Corner!" Rhea shouted, tugging on the steering wheel as they just narrowly missed the curb, the tyres squealing.
Martha held onto her phone, tightly, waiting for the call to connect.
"C'mon, Tish. Pick up," Martha muttered furiously.
"Martha, I can't talk right now," Tish said, quickly. "We just made first contact. Did you see-" Her voice broke off. "What are you doing?!"
There was the sound of the phone dropping onto the floor and nothing after that.
"What's happening?!" Martha sobbed out. "Tish!" She glanced at the Doctor in the rearview mirror. "It's all your fault!" She hissed.
"Shut up," Rhea snapped. "Now's not the time to play the Blame Game." She said, coldly.
"Oh, yeah," Martha laughed, harshly. "That's easy for you to say, isn't it?"
"My mother is in the exact same danger as your family is, Martha. I have people that I love too. People who are completely oblivious to all of this. At least your family knows some degree of what's happening here. Mine know absolutely nothing and I have a feeling that the Master wants me a hell of a lot more than he wants you." Rhea growled. "My mother is all I have left in this world. So, don't think I don't know what you're going through. Don't you dare act like your family's more important than mine, not when it concerns my mother, because I'd burn this world and every other world if it meant keeping her safe." She said, coldly.
Martha looked at her then, seeing nothing but truth and hatred, and was suddenly afraid of what Rhea looked like when she was really angry – what she would do to the Master if he laid a finger on Rhea's mother.
Martha finally drove around the corner to find her mother and father being bundled into a large, armoured van, surrounded by soldiers with large rifles strapped to their bodies. Francine's eyes widened when she caught sight of her daughter, her eyes blazing with fear and worry.
"Martha, get out of here! Get out!" Francine shouted, haphazardly, peeking out of the van.
"Target identified," A woman spoke into the speaker pinned to her lapel.
The police took positions in front of their car.
"Fuck," Rhea cursed. "Martha, you need to reverse. Now." She said, sharply.
"Take aim." The woman spoke again.
The police aimed their guns at the car.
"Get out, now!" The Doctor shouted.
Martha pursed her lips and reversed into a three-point turn.
"Fire!" The woman shouted.
There was a blaze of fire as the police continuously shot at the car that was speeding away from them, the ricochets of the bullets banging off the metal that outlined the car.
"Move it!" Jack growled.
As they took off down the road, the bullets shattered the rear window, glass flying everywhere.
"The only place we can go… planet Earth. Great!" Martha snapped, her knuckles turning white as they clutched onto the steering wheel.
"Careful!" The Doctor said, warningly, as Martha narrowly missed hitting the curb.
Rhea sighed, irritated. She twisted her head and exchanged a knowing look with Jack, who nodded. She turned to Martha. "Now, Martha, I need you to listen to me. Do as I say." She ordered. "We have to ditch this car. They can track the license plates. Pull over. Right the fuck now!" She growled.
Martha took a deep breath and pulled over to the side of the road, all of them stepping out of the car and heading off under an overpass on foot, Martha lagging behind them, her fingers flying on the keypad.
The Doctor growled, seeing Martha dawdling behind them. "Martha, come on!" He snapped.
Martha's eyes widened in relief as she took a deep breath. "Leo!" She exclaimed. "Oh, thank God! Leo, you gotta listen to me. Where are you?" She asked, hurriedly.
"I'm in Brighton. We came down with Boxer. Did you see that Saxon thing on telly?"
"Leo, just listen to me," Martha said, furiously. "Don't go home, I'm telling you. Don't phone Mum or Dad or Tish. You've gotta hide." She ordered.
Leo snorted. "Shut up."
"On my life," Martha swore. "You've gotta trust me. Go to Boxer's. Stay with him. Don't tell anyone! Just hide!"
"Ooh, a nice little game of hide-and-seek," The Master interjected, smoothly. "I love that. But I'll find you, Martha Jones. Been a long time since we saw each other. Must be, what, one hundred trillion years?" He said, slyly.
Martha's face hardened and her lips pursed into a thin line. "Let them go, Saxon." She growled. Rhea and the Doctor rounded on her."Do you hear me?! Let them go!" She shrieked.
The Doctor snatched the phone from her, holding it to his ear. "I'm here." He said, darkly.
"Doctor," The Master breathed.
Rhea blinked. Oh, I could say so much about homoerotic subtext from those three words alone.
"Put it on speaker," She mouthed at the Doctor, who nodded and pressed the button.
"I think someone else here wants to talk to you," The Doctor said, his voice clipped.
"Ah, the lovely Rhea," The Master chuckled. "From what I hear, you're very young, my dear. I gather you haven't experienced some of the… adventures… the three of us have had over the centuries."
"Something tells me I'm not missing out on anything," Rhea said, dryly.
"I've always been an admirer of what you're capable of, my dear. Tell me, what do you think of what I've managed in the span of eighteen months?" The Master asked, curiously.
"Well, you've certainly been busy, I'll give you that," Rhea said, grimly.
The Master chuckled. "Just as disagreeable as always, Rhea. It's good to know you haven't changed." He said, appreciatively. "Granted, I don't know if you're capable of much change, dear. Of course, I don't know what I'd do if you did actually change – you're one of the only constants in my life."
"I'm touched, honey," Rhea said, dryly, ignoring the blow to her pride from his words. "Tell me, does the flirting shtick come with every psychopath, or are you just special?" She mocked
"Special. Definitely. And let's just say that it's a special part of our relationship," The Master said, suggestively.
"I don't know or care about what kind of relationship we may have in my future," Rhea said, honestly. She looked at the Doctor, sharply, who had the decency to look shamefaced and avoid her eyes, determinedly, making her roll her eyes. "You are completely and utterly irrelevant to me."
"Rhea, dear, you're hurting my feelings," The Master threatened.
"You have feelings?" Rhea asked, dryly. "Listen, you may think you're God's gift to women – it's a common delusion in type-A psychopaths like yourself – but you're really not. And you and me… actually, you and any woman other than that poor little mouse you tied down to you… speaking on behalf of all women, alien or otherwise, it's not gonna happen, we had a meeting. So, don't flirt with me; I don't like it." She snarled, throwing the phone to the Doctor.
"So, Master-" The Doctor began.
"I like it when you use my name," The Master confessed.
"You chose it. Rhea's having a field day," The Doctor murmured.
The Master snorted. "She would. And as you chose yours. The man who makes people better. How sanctimonious is that?"
Rhea strode back over to them, unable to draw herself away from the conversation. "Why Prime Minister?" She demanded. "Other than the whole megalomaniac, taking-over-the-world deal?"
"I know. It's good, isn't it?" Rhea could hear the Master smirk.
"Who are those creatures? 'Cause there's no such thing as the Toclafane. It's just a made-up name like the Bogeyman," The Doctor scowled.
"Not any urban legend I've ever heard," Rhea muttered under her breath, annoyed with all of the secrets the Doctor seemed to be keeping.
She looked down at her hands and didn't like the way they were shaking.
She didn't like the way the Master threw her off her game.
"Do you remember all those fairy tales about the Toclafane when we were kids? Back home. Where is it, Doctor?" The Master asked, coldly.
"Gone," The Doctor said, curtly.
Rhea pursed her lips, her hand curling around the Doctor's thigh, as they took a seat on a nearby bench.
"How can Gallifrey be gone?" The Master spat.
The Doctor shrugged, nonchalantly, but Rhea knew better, her hand tightening around his thigh. "It burnt." He said, bluntly.
"And the Time Lords?" The Master asked, carefully.
"Dead. And the Daleks…" The Doctor tensed, visibly, Rhea's green eyes searching him, slowly, narrowing when she found nothing that assuaged her suspicions. The Doctor cleared his throat, the flush rising up the length of his neck at her intent gaze. "What happened to you?"
"The Time Lords only resurrected me because they knew I'd be the perfect warrior for a Time War. I was there when the Dalek Emperor took control of the Cruciform," The Master paused. "I saw it. I ran. I ran so far. Made myself human so they would never find me because… I was so scared." He admitted, carefully.
The Doctor swallowed hard, his hand reaching for Rhea's and his fingers curling around hers. Rhea squeezed his slack fingers back, leaning over and pressing her lips to his jaw for a brief moment, her hair tickling his face. "I know." He said, hoarsely.
"All of them?" The Master said, sceptically. "But not you, which must mean…" He trailed off.
The Doctor tensed, knowing what was about to be said between them. Rhea sidled herself closer to him, the warmth of her body bleeding through his coat and settling in his veins. The Doctor twisted his head to look at her, Rhea's face millimetres away from his, close enough that he could see the flecks of brown-gold in her moss-green eyes. The Doctor sighed and rested his forehead against hers for a brief moment, butterflies fluttering, pleasantly, in Rhea's stomach at such a simple gesture. Her hand splayed against her stomach, as if the touch could stem the tingling that begun in her gut, but to no avail.
God, I hate emotions.
"I was the only one who could end it," The Doctor said, hoarsely. "And I tried. I did. I tried everything." He was almost pleading for the Master to believe them.
"What did it feel like, though?" The Master asked, slyly, a spark of anger lighting up in Rhea's veins as the Doctor's face fell, pathetically. "Two almighty civilizations burning. Oh, tell me, how did it feel?" He purred.
"That's enough," Rhea snapped, watching as the Doctor flinched.
"You must have been like God," The Master continued.
"I've been alone ever since. All I've had is Rhea. But not anymore. Don't you see, all we've got is each other," The Doctor said, pleadingly.
The Master snorted. "Are you asking me out on a date?"
"Somehow, I don't think you're his type, sweetie," Rhea said, dryly, making the Master chuckle.
"You could stop this right now," The Doctor said, sharply, leaning forward, his hand still tight around Rhea's. "We could leave this planet." The Doctor looked at Rhea and she nodded, firmly, her eyes softening.
She was beginning to realise that she would follow this man anywhere and anytime.
"The three of us. We could fight across the constellations if that's what you want. But not on Earth," He said, darkly.
"Too late," The Master said, determinedly.
"Why do you say that?" The Doctor asked, carefully.
"The drumming," The Master said, grimly. Rhea and the Doctor frowned when they heard the familiar tapping echo through the phone. It was a strange rhythm. The same one that Martha had been tapping earlier. "I thought it would stop but it never does. Never, ever stops. Inside my head, the drumming, Doctor, Rhea. The constant drumming."
Rhea swallowed hard and the Doctor patted her on the hand, his long fingers stroking her palm.
"I could help you. Please, let me help," The Doctor murmured.
"It's everywhere. Listen, listen, listen," The Master tapped the table, impatiently. "Here come the drums. Here come the drums."
Rhea and the Doctor were immediately drawn to a homeless man leaning on a building by them, who started tapping his hands against his legs in that ominous rhythm.
The Doctor tensed. "What have you done?" He snapped. "Tell me how you've done this. What are those creatures? Tell me!" He growled.
They could practically hear the Master smile through the phone. "Ooh, look. You're on TV."
The Doctor scowled. "Stop it! Answer me!"
"No, really," The Master chuckled. "You're on telly! You and your little band, which, by the way, is ticking every demographic box. So, congratulations on that. Look, there you are! Ha!" He exclaimed, cheerfully.
Rhea smacked the Doctor on the shoulder and gestured to the television in a shop window, which proudly displayed all of their faces as persona non grata, except for Rhea's, for some reason, which thankfully did not make a part of the vigilante group depicted on the screen.
"…They are known to be armed and extremely dangerous."
"You're public enemies number one, two and three. Don't worry, I left our lovely Rhea out of it. No sense in ruining the timelines before all my fun starts. Oh, and you can tell handsome Jack that I've sent his little gang off on a wild goose chase to the Himalayas so he won't be getting any help from them."
"You don't want to do this," The Doctor said, warningly. "We've played this game before, Master, and I always win."
"Oh, Martha Jones and your little pet freak of nature aren't the only ones I can get to, Doctor." The Master purred.
"Oh?" The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"
"Seraphina Adwani," Rhea stopped in her tracks, her eyes widening with horror as her eyes fixated on the phone. The Doctor tensed, his eyes moving to Rhea's worriedly. "Lives alone at 26 Sunny Vista Drive, Santa Clara, San Francisco, California. Owns and works at a little flower shop a few streets away, which seems to do quite well in the neighborhood. Leaves the house promptly at 7:45 AM to walk down to the shop and leaves the shop every day at 6:35 in the evening. Should I keep going?"
Rhea lunged for the phone, her hands extended like claws, snatching it off the Doctor and holding it up to her ear. The Doctor almost made to pull her back, away from the phone, but he knew she wouldn't appreciate it and her anger would only turn on him next. If there was one thing he had learnt from the centuries he had spent with the trigger-happy psychologist, it was that Seraphina Adwani was off-limits, unless you wanted to risk Rhea burning the whole world to the ground with a smile on her face, for the kind, fierce woman who had raised his Rhea.
"If you go after my mother, if you lay a finger on her, not even the Doctor will stop me from carving out your heart and feeding it to you before I cut your throat to the bone," Rhea hissed. "I will make you regret it, you fucking lunatic. I will rip you apart from the inside out and I will bathe in your blood. I will ruin you."
The Master chuckled. "Keep talking dirty to me, darling. I love it." He paused. "It really is nothing personal, Rhea. But something tells me you have more important things to worry about than what I may or may not do to your mother. Now, you might want to go on, off you go. Why not start by turning to the right?" He smirked.
Rhea turned around and noticed the surveillance camera aimed right at them and smacked the Doctor on the chest to gain his attention, gesturing to the camera. "He can see us." She said, grimly.
The Doctor cursed under his breath and pointed his sonic screwdriver at the camera, breaking the device.
"Ooh, you public menace. Better start running. Go on. Run!" The Master snarled through the phone.
The Doctor looked frazzled, running his hands through his hair. "He's got control of everything." He murmured, stunned.
"What do we do?" Martha asked, worriedly.
Jack looked around. "We've got nowhere to go." He said, desperately.
Rhea rounded on the Doctor. "Doctor, what do we do?" She snapped, wildly.
She didn't want to be here anymore; she wanted to be in San Francisco, with her mother, so she could know the woman was safe.
This was not her home.
"Run for your life, Doctor!" The Master shouted.
"We run," The Doctor said, grimly.
Rhea growled. "We can't be in the open. There are surveillance cameras all over the place and he'll have people searching through the feeds for us. We need to find a place to hide out. Come on." She said, hurriedly.
She grabbed the Doctor's hand, motioning for the four of them to run through the shopping arcade, dodging all of the security cameras as they passed by.
"I said, run!"
A/N: So, there was the first chapter of The Sound of Drums. I think it was an interesting chapter because it showed the Master in all of his glory and it showed some excerpts into the sort of relationship he has with Rhea and the Doctor, especially Rhea. They have this flirty I-kind-of-want-to-kill-you thing going on and I'll expand on it in the next couple of chapters. I plan on doing a filler chapter in between the next chapter and the first chapter of Last of the Time Lords to show some times from the Year that Never Was, especially what happens to Rhea during that time, so if anyone was waiting for more intense, monster-in-a-box Rhea scenes, you'll find it in that chapter.
Rhea's still really wary about her relationship with the Doctor. She's made a lot of headway with him, but she's still dodging the touchy-feely stuff. Sex is okay for her, but feelings put her on the defensive and she's trying her hardest to avoid it. But in classic Docthea dynamics, she can't because he just makes her melt inside ;)
Anyway, hope you guys liked the chapter as much as I liked writing it and drop me a line if you would like to express how much you liked it or give me some feedback if you want. If you don't want to leave a review, you can always drop me a line on Tumblr. I answer pretty quickly :)
Reviews:
NicoleR85: Thank you so much! I can promise you it's going to be an intense couple of chapters!
ImsebastianstanButter: Thank you!
djmegamouth: The whole solving-Rhea's-mortality thing is definitely an interesting mystery, but I can't confirm or deny anything you said, unfortunately!
A Mega Fan: First of all, thank you so much for your review! It was such a long one and I loved reading it! Yeah, while I am a fan of the whole universe jumping trope, it also does get a bit old when the OCs are forced to go along with the storyline because they can't risk changing anything. Granted, I also think that's a perfect reaction, because if it were me suddenly in the Doctor Who universe, I'd probably be changing everything. Or, at the very least, I would have a frank conversation with the Doctor about how much he wanted me to tell him and that he couldn't blame me for knowing shit if things went south. At least, this way, while Rhea does get a sneak preview about some terrible stuff (she does, now, know that something bad's going to happen to Rose), it does give her some complications as to how she broaches this knowledge with the Doctor, especially since she wasn't actually supposed to be listening. I'm glad you like Rhea; honestly, I have pretty bad self-esteem issues myself, so I do understand where you're (and Rhea is) coming from. And I'm sure you'll find your (healthier and more emotionally available) 'Doctor' soon, haha. Don't worry, I won't be messing with Docthea at all. I think Rhea and Donna have a similar mindset – they both dislike bullshit and while Rhea may be a bit more closed-off, she and Donna probably see eye-to-eye on a lot of things. Amy and Rose get her as a sort of big sister, who's not afraid to tell them when they're acting stupid (which I think both of them needed desperately in canon). Rory and Martha get her as a real close friend. And there'll be plenty more of Jack. I feel you on the whole Rhea/River/Doctor ship; I so badly want to write that but I don't know if it feels organic, to be honest. But there will be lots of tension between the three. I've already written The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon and I have a feeling you'll like it! See, I liked Clara in season 7 and 9, but not so much in season 8, but then again, she probably had difficulties with the Doctor's regeneration, more realistic than Rose's sudden infatuation with 10. For Rhea, she may also have a blind spot when it comes to Clara, because Clara was her first companion, and therefore, her first close friend she made when she started travelling with the Doctor. That makes an impact with her, but it doesn't mean she's ready to take bullshit either. And I do like your ideas for The Rings of Akhaten. And yeah, I do have a lot of difficulty defining the Doctor and Rhea's relationship in this point in time – I do like 'something', though. I know and understand why the Doctor is… disagreeable… towards Jack, but Rhea's too young and too human to see it his way and I think she was just pissed that she was being faced with a lot of the Doctor's secrets in that one moment. Oh, and nothing sexual will happen between Rhea and the Master. John Simms is hot as hell, but no. Not happening.
LookAliveSunshine03: Yeah, I wrote that like three different ways and then I thought, 'like hell Rhea would just do what the Doctor told her to do'. Unfortunately, I think I have to say 'continue being scared for Rhea'.
oODaniJadeOo: Thank you! And I feel you about John; I really didn't want to see him go!
mxn1fan: Thank you!
Zatara1324: I'm so glad you like it! I know a lot of OC fics have either the OC or River being jealous of each other, but what if River was jealous of the Doctor instead?
Guest: Thank you!
Guest: I'm so glad you've enjoyed it so far! And I promise I won't abandon this story. Sometimes, it might be a while before I update, but I will always return to it.
thenice guest: Aww, you're so sweet! Thank you so much! It was kind of implied that Martha and the Doctor had a serious conversation after Human Nature/The Family of Blood, but maybe in the future, I might write like an interlude about what they actually said to each other. And, may the force be with you too!
OnceUponAPiano: Well, you probably had good timing, because you only had to wait four days before an update, haha. Thank you so much for your review!