Mallory felt tears prickling at the corners of his eyes as he battled to stay in control of the emotions threatening to destroy him. His only blessing was the blindfold. The blindfold cut off anyone from seeing his tears, the headphones drowned out Q's cries. It was only a small blessing as Gareth couldn't get the last image of the quartermaster out of his head, Q screaming for it all to stop, his eyes broken.

The deafening sounds coming from the headphones had no effect this time, Mallory had finally learned to block out the noise. The only problem was it was being replaced by a worse noise inside his mind, Q's screams. He suddenly realised that he was struggling not to break down and sob, if Q had broken then what was the point anymore?

Stop thinking like that. He needs you to be strong.

The stubborn reminder came from deep within his mind, from a part of him he had thought he'd said goodbye to a long time ago. The part of him that survived Ireland. M took a shuddering breath in as he allowed the words to wash over him, empowering his resolve and will. Just hold on a bit longer, just a bit longer. That's what he had to do, keep going until…

Well until he was dead or help came.

He was interrupted rudely by the shock of icy water crashing into his face, his mind panicked for a few moments as he flew back to the feeling of drowning. It was suddenly so difficult to breath, his chest tightened in panic as he expected the next lungful to be his last before the towel came back down…

Snap out of it! You're not drowning!

The harsh voice inside of him screamed, it was like a slap to the face and served its purpose. As his blindfold and headphones were removed Mallory forced himself to take slow deep breaths, coughing and grimacing as the simple act of breathing set his insides aflame.

He opened his eyes tiredly and immediately sought out Q. Shit shit shit. If it were at all possible the quartermaster actually looked worse, he was barely reacting to the change in light and sound. He looked vacant and the young man's eyes had lost their intelligent spark.

Mallory felt hatred like never before, his whole body trembled with outrage at what these monsters had done to Q. They had broken him.

M ignored John as he sauntered back into the cell, if he saw that stupid triumphant smirk one more time he didn't think he'd be able to stop screaming at the man. He didn't think he'd be able to stop struggling until his hands were round the mad-man's throat, damage to himself be damned. The bastard needed to pay for what he had done to Q.

Finally Q registered his surroundings and additions to the room, his eyes darted round terrified as the men began to unlatch his chair. They both knew what this meant, it was Q's turn. M tried to catch the younger man's eyes to try and calm him but Q was lost in himself, he thrashed wildly against the chair and Mallory winced when he saw fresh blood seep from the young man's wrists.

Mallory distantly heard a chair being pulled up next to his and turned to watch John, the man was staring at Q's predicament with an unbelievable level of detachment. Seconds later Q was flat on his back with men gathered round him ready to begin, everyone froze.

John finally broke the silence. "Do you really think he can take much more of this M?"

No. His brain supplied immediately, if he could see Q was done then surely so could John.

"Give me the information I need and this will all be over."

Mallory found himself leaning towards the comforting offer, the temptation was overwhelming. The little voice screaming in his head to just hold on was being drowned out, it wasn't just about him this time. He looked at Q again hoping to see anything that suggested the quartermaster was strong enough to continue. Mallory noticed Q had averted his eyes and smiled sadly at the action, he didn't want M seeing the defeat there. He didn't want to make this any harder on M than it had to be.

Gareth had clearly stayed silent for too long as he heard John order the men to begin. He watched horrified as the men picked up the water containers and moved to block Q's airways.

"No… Please no…" Q's heartbreaking pleas were silenced ruthlessly by the towel and soon all M could hear was the young man's struggles as he fought against his captors for breath.

"I don't know how much you know about Q's past." John began conversationally, M could barely hear him. He couldn't take his eyes off Q. "But did you know he drowned once as a child, still has nightmares about it now according to psych reports. This must be very traumatising for him."

Shut-up! M's head screamed as John pushed and pushed.

The guilt was overwhelming him, the remorse, the agony at watching his friend suffer. M felt his whole body shake as Q's struggles weakened. He then realised one terrifying thing, they weren't letting Q come up for air.

"You're killing him!" He screamed at John incredulously.

John looked over at Q's near lifeless form and nodded at the guards, finally the towel was removed and Q's chair was tilted upwards as the young man fought for breath. Mallory watched horrified as Q heaved in precious breath and saw the quartermaster's petrified eyes darting round in confusion.

John grabbed Mallory's jaw and forced him to look at him, M shivered as he saw the lack of anything in the man's eyes.

"Tell me M. Or I'll let them go all the way."

M couldn't believe what he was hearing, they needed Q he knew that. Distantly he could hear the quartermaster's sobs as he struggled to recover and breathe again.

"You won't do that." M whispered, almost not believing it himself. "You need him alive."

John's grip became painful and Mallory winced as he saw a flash of rage cross the crazed man's face.

"We will drown him over and over again, each time he's brought back he will wish for death more. We won't let him die."

The words were edged with such malice that it caused M to flinch in John's hold. He stared into John's remorseless eyes and saw that he was telling the truth, he would really go that far. Mallory realised he was trembling, he was afraid. He knew then he couldn't watch Q being killed over and over and he knew damn well the kid couldn't handle being drowned continually.

Mallory's brain froze as he realised what he was saying, he was about to give John everything he needed. When he opened his mouth to speak he heard no sound come out, something was holding him back and he didn't know what. John saw it too.

"Drown him." He ordered harshly.

Q's sobs died as he screamed and yelled against the towel descending on his face. M felt his heart breaking at the sight, he had to stop this.

"Wait!" He roared at the men about to tip the container over Q's head.

Silence echoed around the room as the men stopped in their tracks and M held his breath waiting for John to intercede. Worryingly Q had gone quite still under the men's hold.

"Remove the towel." John ordered and M felt unparalleled relief as he saw his friend take in one shaky breath after another.

John stood in front of M, tape recorder in his hands ready. "Well?"

Mallory couldn't believe he was doing this but he couldn't allow Q to suffer such a heinous fate, he wished John had left him dead on the floor after he had been drowned. M saw the impatience creeping into John's features, and realised he couldn't keep the man waiting any longer otherwise the retribution for Q would be swift and merciless.

"I…" He began quietly as he resigned himself to defeat.

An interruption halted his next words. The ground shook violently and the lights in the room flickered, Mallory heard a distant rumble and recognised an explosion had just gone off. Could it be?

The flicker of alarm and fear in John's eyes almost cemented the answer in M's head, MI6 had found them. John paced over to a far wall and began speaking urgently to voices on the other end of communications, recorder and questioning seemingly forgotten. The other guards in the room exchanged nervous glances as they all heard further explosions and gunfire echoing at some distance. The sounds were slowly growing closer though…

Mallory observed almost in disbelief as John quickly ordered all but one man out of the room to the main control hub, the men all scarpered in a flash. M couldn't help but grin as he watched John pace and noted that for the first time that he was not in control.

"Trouble?" Mallory asked innocently.

John pivoted on the spot and charged over to M fist raised. The fist hit his jaw and he felt a tooth loosen inside but the only reaction he could manage was laughter, which really pissed John off. The mad-man grabbed M by his shirt and leaned in menacingly.

"My men and I are going to deal with this problem. When we get back, we are going to drown Q over and over again."

M felt the smile slip off his face at the threat, now he felt rage. The familiar fury was growing in his stomach and he silently wished John wouldn't die up above. He wanted to make this man feel just a fraction of what Q had felt before he sent him to hell.

John roughly released his hold on Mallory's shirt and turned to flee the room, just when Q decided to be a smart-ass again.

"Say hello to 007 for me." The quartermaster started laughing.

Mallory was seriously concerned that Q had utterly lost it but it was certainly nice to see just a glimpse of the old quartermaster back, the kid could never help himself. M almost laughed at the comment, that was until John unsheathed his knife strode towards Q and plunged it deeply into the young man's shoulder.

"Q!" Mallory shouted desperately as his friend's cries resonated around their cell.

"I'll bring you his head." John sneered before storming out of the room, leaving his knife embedded deeply inside Q. His final order was directed to the final guard to watch over the prisoners.

Mallory's previous joy at the appearance of MI6 had been dampened, he watched aghast as a worryingly pool of blood formed around Q's shaking body. The quartermaster had his eyes squeezed tightly shut, most likely attempting to regulate his breathing to slow the blood loss.

"You've got to get that knife out of him, check the wound." Mallory stammered at the only remaining guard who kept casting nervous glances towards the nearing gunfire.

The guard shook his head vigorously. "Boss said to watch."

Mallory felt like punching the idiot in the head. "Yeah and what if he bleeds to death?! Think about how angry your boss would be if that happened!"

M implored the fool to listen to his logic, it was highly unlikely that this man would ever feel John's wrath but if Q's artery had been hit then they couldn't afford to sit and wait for agents to reach them. The guard battled with the idea for a few more moments before rushing over to Q's side and looking at the wound.

Mallory waited silently on the edge of his seat as he watched the man expertly assess the seriousness, finally making a decision the man pulled out the knife swiftly and threw it behind him. Q groaned loudly at the action and hissed when pressure was applied to the area. The guard quickly and efficiently tied a towel around Q's shoulder's keeping the bleeding under control.

"Didn't hit an artery." The man finally announced before returning to his posting near the door, not giving his prisoners any more attention.

Mallory breathed out a sigh of relief at the news, he could see from his position that Q's bleeding was slowing so it wasn't a fatal wound, yet. Still best to keep the quartermaster awake and talking.

"Q, how are you doing?" It was a pretty stupid question but it seemed to amuse Q who actually cracked a smile.

Q's pain-filled eyes opened and met Gareth's. "Better, now he's here."

M knew he referred to 007, he knew the pair had grown close over the years and he wasn't oblivious enough to miss the rumours about the duo. Mallory smiled at the change in Q, against all odds he was becoming his old self. Mallory had been deeply worried that Q was too far gone, it had to have been close.

"How do you know it's him?" Mallory asked with an amused expression on his face, he glanced over to the fidgeting guard by the door and realised euphorically the gunfight had reached this level.

Q snorted with laughter. "Who else would ring the doorbell with a bomb?"

Mallory chuckled along with Q as the image formed in his mind; who was he kidding anything involving explosives always had James Bond's fingerprints all over it. The man was a menace, but this time he didn't give a shit about how much damage 007 wrought.

Their laughter was cut short as urgent footsteps reached Mallory's ears and the door swung open harshly, M felt the disappointment drowning his senses as the last person he wanted dragged himself through the door. John.

The previously composed man staggered in covered in blood and soot, M then noted the limp and looked down to see a bullet wound in their captor's leg. He really hoped it was causing the man agony. John ordered the terrified guard out into the corridor with a manic cry, his desperate eyes darting round the room for any means to escape. Mallory saw Q open his mouth, probably to deliver another wise-ass comment. He shook his head seriously and surprisingly Q's mouth snapped shut obediently, John was arguably even more dangerous now he had nothing left to lose. Just because MI6 were breathing down his neck did not mean that the man wouldn't do them serious damage before he left this world.

Mallory took advantage of John's wild state and started an interrogation of his own. "You know if you give yourself up I'm sure you can make a deal."

John stopped pacing abruptly and ceased his efforts to try and get through to anyone over the comms, clearly no-one was answering anyway. Mallory watched as John seemed to finally take in where he was and who he was with.

"Why would MI6 give me a deal."

Ah good, M saw John latch onto the idea of hope and redemption. He had dangled a chance in front of someone who was just realising he had no options left.

"For information." John still looked at him blankly. "About your employer, and the people behind this."

John suddenly barked out laughing and strode up to Mallory's chair, limping even more visibly now. "I don't know anything!"

Mallory frowned, "You've been in contact?"

"Never in person, never over the phone. I've only ever been in contact with them over the internet, hell I've never even heard a name!" John continued his rant as he paced behind Mallory's chair.

M allowed a smile to tug at his lips as John fell right into his play, cornered people were usually very talkative. He would have never given the man a deal after what he did to Q and now he knew for sure there was nothing the man could give them that his tech wouldn't.

"What about the mole?"

John shook his head vigorously, "No the mole was their asset, I just got passed on the information."

Mallory caught Q's shocked expression as John confirmed what they had both feared, the intelligence leak hadn't been a breach. Someone inside MI6 had betrayed them. The information although alarming was a problem for another day. M had gotten everything from John that he needed, the man was useless now.

John stopped pacing as he heard pistol shots before a thud outside the door, the guard was down. He rushed to a place behind M and pulled his own gun out as the trio heard slow deliberate footsteps pacing towards them. Mallory felt the gun press against the back of his head, he almost didn't notice the threat as he held his breath for whoever was coming through the door.

The door swung open slowly and James Bond walked calmly into the room, pistol drawn. Mallory observed the agent perform a scan of the room and noted the hardening of his grip when his eyes landed on M and then Q. No-one moved, barely breathed as Bond walked further into the room. His aim never wavering from John.

Mallory could see the fire and fury building in Bond's expression as he took in the room and the state of the two captives, he made a decision before Bond could take it out of his hands.

"Wound."

Bond responded immediately and fired two shots at John, one slamming into the man's shoulder causing him to tumble and the other tearing through John's gun-hand. Mallory heard the pistol clatter to the ground behind him followed closely by John with a grunt. M watched Bond stalk across the floor and aim his weapon at John's head, he could tell by the way the agent was shaking that was struggling not to shoot.

"Secure him Bond."

Bond looked from the writhing man beneath him over to M and finally to Q. Mallory recognised the rage in Bond's eyes and for a second thought the agent was going to disobey orders. Eventually though he pocketed the gun and roughly flipped John over, securing the man's hands behind his back. John was dumped upright against the wall with excessive force, M revelled in the sounds of pain.

"Is there a particular reason why you won't let me kill this monster?" Bond eventually ground out as he stood above John with his gun aiming at the prisoner's head, finger still twitching on the trigger.

"Yes, because I'm killing him."

Christ that felt good to say. He watched as the tension left Bond's body, the internal battle about John's fate over now he knew he would die. 007 turned to look at Mallory partly surprised but mostly happy.

"Good." Bond then strode over and quickly cut through Mallory's bonds.

Bond helped M get to his feet, steadying him as he almost tumbled as soon as he was vertical. Mallory fought off the encroaching blackness as his head span violently, he had to last to do this. He needed to do this. Bond offered his gun to Mallory, M glanced down at the weapon and shook his head. His eyes sought and found the knife that John had plunged into Q's body. Bond followed his gaze and actually grinned when he saw the blade on the floor, he retrieved it for M and handed the weapon over.

"Go help Q." Mallory whispered quietly as his fingers gripped the knife tightly, ignoring the blood dripping off the implement, Q's blood.

Bond hesitated for a second. "Go Bond, I've got this." 007 nodded once then turned and raced towards Q's fallen chair.

M distantly heard the agent call into his communications for medics as he turned and stared at the author of all his and Q's suffering; he felt a burning hatred like no other that spurred him onwards to John's slumped body. He felt echoes of all his wounds as he shuffled over to the downed man but blocked out every single one ruthlessly, he was running on empty and purely fuelled by vengeance.

He slumped to the ground as he reached John and relished in the agony the gunshot wounds were causing the mad-man. As he glared down at John he remembered all the things this bastard had done to Q, worst of all the sadist had enjoyed every second of it. Well now Mallory was going to enjoy this.

John eyed the knife warily before chuckling madly. "What are you going to do with that M? You can't hurt me now I'm unarmed."

Mallory wiped the smug smirk right off John's face as he plunged the knife deep within the man's leg, M felt warm liquid rush over his fingers and watched happily as John's smile transformed into a scream. He viscously yanked out the knife, uncaring of the damage caused as he did so which caused John to cry out again.

See how you like it…

Gareth leaned in further and drove the knife right into their captor's shoulder, mirroring exactly where Q had been stabbed heartlessly. Mallory ignored the pleading look in John's eyes and the screaming intensified as he twisted the knife before pulling it out slowly.

"Please… please…" John whimpered pathetically.

Mallory was not a man without mercy but he categorically believed John didn't deserve any. His mind flew back to Q's pleas when he was being drowned which John had callously ignored, hell the man had loved every part of their torture. He deserved to die.

"I told you I would kill you." Mallory whispered harshly.

As John's terrified mind realised he was about to die, Mallory thrust the knife up into John's chest catching the man as he fell forwards in shock. M looked into John's agonised face as he pushed the knife further into the man's chest, he stared right into his tormentors eyes as he watched the light leave his eyes.

John's struggles grew weak and a moment later his chest stopped moving all together, John became a dead weight in Mallory's grip as his head slumped forward lifelessly. Gareth finally released his grip on the knife and with a struggle pushed John's considerable weight off him. Mallory felt oddly numb as the man toppled over with a thud, blood already pooling round the corpse. He looked down at his own blood-soaked hands with a detached gaze and wiped them onto his shirt with disgust, he was sick of blood and pain.

He felt his chest tighten as he dragged himself to his feet unsteadily, he almost toppled flat on his face as he tried to take baby steps towards Q. He needed to know if Q was okay, the urgent thought over-wrote his own injuries.

Bond suddenly looked up as he heard Mallory's struggles, the agent's eyes glanced over to John briefly but didn't react to the dead body.

"M you've got to sit down before you collapse." Bond ordered softly.

Mallory reached the chair finally, wincing as his ribs grated against one another. He suddenly felt very light headed and why was it difficult to breathe all of a sudden?

"Q?" He wheezed anxiously.

Bond had got to his feet now giving M a look at the quartermaster, it felt like his heart was exploding as he saw Q's still face and closed eyes.

"He's passed out." Bond supplied quickly, seeing M's reaction.

Only then did M see the steady rise and fall of Q's chest, it should have relieved the ache in his heart but the pain only grew worse. He scrunched up his features as the agony shook his entire body, feeling his legs buckle under his weight finally.

He was shocked and grunted when strong arms caught him as he fell. Bond eased him to the ground slowly as Mallory fought for every breath, what was happening to him he couldn't breathe! M watched as Bond ripped open his shirt and put an ear to his chest, the agent's intelligent eyes swept the room finally landing on the erratic heart monitor in the corner. His eyes spotted the metal band on his boss's arm next and he made the connection immediately.

"M did your heart stop?" Bond's urgent question drifted straight over Mallory's head as he sank into the darkness. He couldn't get any air at all now and it was like drowning again and he…

A slap to his face wiped the memories away and focussed his eyes on Bond's immediately. "Gareth this is important, did your heart stop beating?"

Mallory saw the urgency in Bond's face as he gripped M's shirt roughly. "Yes." Mallory managed weakly.

He allowed his head to drop to the ground and stared at Q's peaceful face, at least Henry was now safe no matter what happened to him. He could die happy now. Mallory distantly heard Bond's urgent calls for a medic and a defibrillator as his vision greyed out slowly, he no longer heard the agent's pleas to stay awake. His last image was of Q as he closed his eyes and his heart stopped beating.