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The Doctor had always known the violence that Koschei was capable of, yet seeing it was another thing entirely. Even if her attack on Rassilon could be classed as self-defence, the manic gleam in her eyes and wide open mouthed grin betrayed the fact that she was enjoying herself. The Master had brought her sharp little knife down several times in quick succession, all the vulnerable soft spots… groin… neck…eyeball…

The Doctor's stomach rolled and he was grateful that it had been so long since he had eaten otherwise he might have emptied the contents of his stomach over the floor. Yet even if he didn't look he could still hear the gargle of air and blood combining as Rassilon screamed through the neat little puncture wounds Missy had gifted him.

"Stop it." He commanded, pleaded, entreated. His hand shooting out to grip hold of the control console as his knees buckled under him…just the smell alone was taking him back to a place he didn't want to go. "Mistress stop…please.."

To being trapped and helpless and screaming…Rassilon's mocking laughter ringing inside his head as he pushed on and on, the crippling pain and the tang of his own blood on his tongue…

No he couldn't afford to fall apart now he had to save Gallifrey.

Focusing on the viewscreen The Doctor was able to manipulate some of the controls, his shaking hands scrambled over the switches, turning on certain feeds and trying to shut others off. Yet it seemed no matter what he did, even with the sonic, there was no way of simply switching off the energy feed. It was locked wide open and the weapon controls were encrypted.

The Doctor could only watch helplessly as the energy fed into the space above Gallifrey, as it ripped and twisted and warped.

"Come on come on." The Doctor urged his sonic, watching as painfully slowly it unlocked single threads in the encryption string. Yet even as he pushed the terrible truth aside The Doctor knew in his hearts there was simply no way the sonic would be able to decrypt the targeting system in time.

Soon the balance would be too far out and space would collapse in on itself…a black hole…trapped inside a pocket dimension…Gallifrey didn't stand a chance.

Screaming out his frustration and powerlessness The Doctor beat his burnt and bloody hands against the dashboard. Not again he couldn't lose it again, not after only just saving it. He had bled and cried for Gallifrey, he had spent years thinking he had destroyed his home world, only to save it and lose it all over again. Yet he had hope that one day he would find Gallifrey again and be able to finally go home. Yet now he knew that wasn't going to happen.

He was only left with one choice…only it wasn't much of a choice and he screamed out his frustration…it just wasn't fair!

The Doctor lashed out in surprise when a second later strong hands were gripping him firmly but gently as the world around him spun out of control. Wet sticky bloodied hands raked lovingly through his hair and as disgusted as he was by her actions The Doctor wasn't strong enough to push aside the comfort that Missy was offering.

"Shush love he can't hurt you anymore." Missy cooed gently, her mind brushing reassuringly against The Doctor's own as if soothing a frightened child. "I won't let anyone hurt you…"

I'll protect you.

But who will protect me from you?

The Doctor questioned in the relative privacy of the space where their conscious's met, his blue grey eyes so very weary as he forced himself to look at her, to take in and really see the fine misting of Rassilon's blood across her face or the way her pupils were blown wide and dark from the recent violence.

"You're mine Thete." Missy replied simply, tilting her head to one side as if trying to puzzle him out, her too bright blue eyes boring into his own as if to pick him apart and work out what made him tick. "And I protect my things; I take great care with them remember?"

The protest died on his lips. The Doctor wanted to object that he couldn't be owned by anyone least of all her and yet in some way she wasn't lying. He had given her power over him several lifetimes ago, he had once given her his hearts and trust and had never fully reclaimed either, and that was a form of ownership…a willing servitude forged through the bonds of friendship.

See I knew you understood

Missy's mind voice echoed in his head and The Doctor wrenched his mind away suddenly, not caring if the suddenness of it caused them both a headache. He didn't want her reading him; he didn't want to feel her pleasure and he certainly didn't want her feeling that minute part of him that still sung in joy when their minds and souls touched.

"On the topic of our continued survival don't you think it is time we were leaving? My Tardis is on the surface…" Missy was suddenly all business again.

"We can't just leave…" The Doctor began only for Missy to huff roll her eyes fondly before cutting him off.

"Fine we can even save Gallifrey first if it would make you happy Thete?"

"We can't I tried…" The Doctor all but sobbed. "He has it encrypted I can't switch it off."

"Maybe not but I bet we can blow it up." Missy countered her eyes feral at the prospect of more destruction. "Destroy the power source, solve the problem."

"Do…you'll…kill us all…" Rassilon's blood garbled warning surprised them both and they turned to stare down at his mutilated body, already the tell-tale golden glow was appearing at the extremities.

"Oh no you don't get to regenerate." Missy hissed her fist clenching around her little knife that she planned on ramming into her prey until the timelord stayed dead this time.

Yet the firm grasp of The Doctor's hand around her arm stopped her in her tracks.

"If it would mean saving Gallifrey then I would gladly die." The Doctor replied his gaze steady even as he looked down into Rassilon's carved and bloodied face. "Our lives mean very little by comparison."

"Speak for yourself honey." Missy tutted a pout pulling at her lips as she turned her attention back to the console, her blue eyes narrowing as she studied the readings for herself.

"So noble…" Rassilon spat literally, his lip curled in disgust even as he choked on his own blood. "Doctor…the…man who makes people better." He wheezed the name out like a curse.

"We could try and rig up a dead switch, trigger it remotely." Missy was theorising mainly to herself as The Doctor continued to stare horrified at a bloody smiling Rassilon.

"Not just you…You'll destroy…the children…" Rassilon added a sadistic smile pulling at his lips. "It's Gallifrey…or…them…decide…Doctor."

Stepping back as if slapped The Doctor could only reel in horror. He had forgotten about the looms. Forgotten about the new race of timelords Rassilon was breeding beneath their very feet somewhere, his offspring and The Master's and Rassilon's.

"You can't…save…both." Rassilon added, savouring this moment of victory for what it was. "You cannot win."

A whole planet of men women and children or thousands of innocents? Either way he would have blood on his hands today, blood of his own people.

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