The Doctor crept nervously down the dark hall that the service door had opened on. It wasn't so much that they were on a deserted ghost ship or that something had just tried to kill him. He was used to that. What he was so nervous about was the relationship that seemed to be unfolding in front of his eyes. The growing closeness between Sandi and himself. The way that his hearts skittered when he felt her small hand in his. The way he had felt when he was wrapped around her, protecting her. It felt... right, almost as if they were meant to be that way. The Doctor shook his head. Whatever was inside Sandi's head was obviously also slightly empathic and was manipulating his feelings. The strong connection between the two of them was basic Time Lord telepathy. Nothing more.

Inside Sandi's own head, a whirlwind of questions was doing an extremely accomplished job of tearing up any reasonable thought that dared to cross her mind. The Doctor; this strange, handsome time traveller was willing to risk his own life to save hers. He wanted to protect her. But there was something in the way that he looked at her now and then that made her think that perhaps it wasn't just his own moral chivalry that led him to guard her as such. Sandi shivered. No, it wasn't that. Obviously, the Doctor was interested in getting the Time Lord soul out of her and restored to it's own body. Then he would have no more use for her. He might not even take her home...

Sandi padded in the Doctor's footsteps, forcing the terrible feeling of helplessness out of her mind.

Wires hung like plastic spaghetti from the ceiling, sparking feebily as the pair crossed beneath them. The light from the bridge had faded long ago and it was almost total darkness as the Doctor moved cat-like further on. His right hand brushed a small control panel which bleeped to life. The Doctor knelt beside it, examining it closely. Thirty seconds and some quick screwdriver reflexes later, a door sprang open beside it. The Doctor rubbed his hands gleefully.

'Now we're getting somewhere,' he muttered.

The door opened onto a room much like the bridge, but smaller. It was circular, white with three steps leading down into the centre of the room where a large pillar reached from the ground all the way to the ceiling. The control panels were similarly smashed to those on the bridge, but unlike the main command centre, the room seemed to focus in the centre. The Doctor leapt down the stairs and ran over to the pillar, as Sandi moved around the outside, examining the computers.

'I... know this technology,' Sandi said in a low, amazed whisper to herself. She strained to look over at the Doctor, who was peering curiously at the pillar with his glasses on. Sandi focussed her attention back on the computers. She reached a terminal that looked semi-functional despite the battering it had received. A few switches flicked and a button press later, neon lights flickered on in the room, making the Doctor and Sandi leap back in surprise. Sandi grinned, her face red.

'Sorry,' she said meekly. The Doctor rolled his eyes and shook his head. He investigated the side of the pillar furtherest from Sandi, sonic screwdriver working overtime. He eventually gave up.

'It's no use. It's locked with a deadlock seal and I can't get in...' the Doctor began, but stopped as his eyes fell upon Sandi. His companion was lighting up various panels of controls, bringing the entire room back to life.

'The equipment is only physically damaged, the memory and general operational procedures are still running,' Sandi yelled over her shoulder as the machines hummed to life. The Doctor scratched his head, lost for words. A crooked grin spread across his face.

'You really are something, aren't you?' The Doctor whispered, eyes alight. Sandi didn't hear him properly, but she looked around at her new friend and grinned at him.

'Not bad for a girl who plays with ancient relics, eh?'

Without warning, the pillar in the centre of the room gave a sharp hiss, like gas decompressing. The Doctor leapt back as the white outer casing slid down into the floor to reveal six status pods. As soon as they were unveiled, the pods slid forward slightly and a computer panel in the side of each bleeped to life. The Doctor stared, wide-eyed as Sandi bounded over the steps and down beside him. She skidded to a halt and stared up at the pods in amazement.

'Well, I think we just found the last Time Lords,' she whispered in awe. The Doctor closed his mouth.

'I think you're right,' he replied.

---------

She has entered the chamber.

We move now.

---------

The Doctor examined the closest pod. It was at least seven feet high and looked much like an opening flower bud, its inner primary casing constructed from what looked like frosted glass. A secondary casing reached approximately halfway up the pod, wrapping around like petals. On the right hand side of the secondary casing, the small computer panel with a tiny screen flickered and beeped at various intervals. There was a thin metal band that circled the base of the pod above the base that hissed quietly on occasion. The base was composed of a dense, heavy, metal with a bronze plate set into the front. The Doctor knelt before it and touched the plate. The word TARRANT was engraved into it. As soon as the Doctor's fingers touched the name, the frosted glass began to clear slightly. The blurred outline of what looked like a tall, handsome young man with dark, wavy hair cut to his ear appeared. Sandi gasped in shock and stumbled backwards. The Doctor rose to his feet and whirled around to face his companion.

Sandi was pallid, all colour drained from her face. She raised a hand shakily and pointed at the boy in the pod. The Doctor frowned at her.

'What is it?'

Sandi sucked in a sharp breath.

'I know him. I know who he is. I've seen him... met him before.'

'Who is he?'

Sandi gulped, unsure of how to tell him what she knew to be true. She sighed and decided that the honest fact would be the best for both of them. She looked the Doctor squarely in the eye.

'That boy in the pod is Tarrant.'

'I gathered that. Generally because his name was on the base of his pod.'

'No, you don't understand. Tarrant... he's my brother.'

The Doctor froze. His eyes were pleading with her to tell him it wasn't true.

'You told... you said that there was no-one. No more family,' he said shakily. Sandi clutched at her head, shaking.

'My... my family. Doctor, I couldn't remember my family. But I know... I remember. Tarrant, he's my brother. He almost made it, too.'

'To where? Made it to where? Sandi, tell me where!'

'To... our TARDIS,' she wheezed. The Doctor's eyes widened as Sandi's eyes rolled back in her head and she crashed to the ground. As soon as she hit the floor, a blinding light surrounded her body. The Doctor shielded his eyes, reaching into his pocket for his glasses. He fumbled for a moment, then managed to shove them against his face. But the moment he could see, the light faded. Sandi was gone.

The Doctor spun wildly, staring around, desperately seeking his companion. But she had gone. Disappeared. Here he was, completely alone on a deserted ship with an angry alien race trying to annihilate him. He shrugged, clutching his sonic screwdriver. Stranger things had happened.

'I'll find you,' he whispered aloud to Sandi.

'Whatever it takes, I'll find you.'

---------

Sandi's head was spinning so badly that she felt extremely nauseous. Her stomach heaved as her eyes flickered open tentatively. As her blurred vision started to slide into focus, she gazed around the room she was in. The first few seconds had told her that she wasn't with the Doctor any more. That in itself was enough to scare the pants off her. As the room around her stopped spinning, Sandi gaped at what she saw. It was definitely the inside of a TARDIS, only... she wasn't sure which one.

Climbing shakily to her feet, Sandi looked around. The central navigational computers were the same as the Doctor's, but the layout was... different. Almost as if it were a different breed of TARDIS. Further study showed that the interior of this TARDIS was far more complex and much grander than the Doctor's ship. The walls were a soft pink and the floor was carpeted. The controls looked brand new and hardly touched. Sandi wobbled over to them, brushing her hand against the consoles.

'Where am I?' Sandi asked aloud to herself. She leapt a foot in the air when someone answered her.

You are onboard my TARDIS, Sandi. Welcome.

Sandi spun in a wild circle. On the far side of the room was a pod, much like those she had examined with the Doctor. She sprinted over and skidded to a halt. Inside the status pod was a young woman who looked much but not quite like Sandi. Her hair was longer and was a jet black. Her skin was paler and she was slightly thinner. Her perfect cupid bow mouth was turned down in slumber. Sandi pressed a hand against the glass, a feeling of understanding washing through her. She didn't even have to read the bronze plaque on the base.

'Shandaiah,' she whispered. The voice came again.

Yes. I brought you here because you are in grave danger.

'But what about the Doctor? I can't just leave him!'

You are the only one who can save him, which is why you are here. I have been with you, Sandi. All along. Throughout your entire life, I have done my best to help you and now you must help me. I am still weak and cannot be moved from my pod yet.

'I don't understand. What's been happening? I...' Sandi trailed off, gripping her head as a wave of pain wracked her skull. Shandaiah's voice floated through her subconscious.

You need to know from the beginning, when the Face of Boe rescued us and left us here. When the Zriekas arrived on the Utopia, we children of darkspace fled. Tigrus, Tarrant and Xylon fought back while Tangala, Aerynth and I ran for the pods. Our pods are designed to jettison the moment non-Gallifreyan entities enter the room. Tigrus and Xylon fell to the hoards while Tarrant fought them back at the doors of the regeneration chamber. Tigrus, you must know, is my cousin and Xylon was my nephew. Aerynth was married to my brother, Tarrant. Xylon was her son. Tangala was my close friend.

'Your brother? I thought he was my brother?'

Apologies, that was my influence. I haven't seen my brother in many years and I lost control. I took full hold, which caused your pain. But I digress. Let me continue with my story.

Sandi sat cross-legged before the pod.

'Go on.'

I escaped to my TARDIS as soon as I heard my brother fall. Tangala and Aerynth were already inside their escape pods.

'But, why do you have a TARDIS while the others only have pods?'

Surely you must have noticed the extremity of my powers? A mere pod could not take me far enough from harm. The pod you see here is a simple status pod, merely caring for my broken physical form.

'So how did you escape? Why was the ship all banged up when the Doctor and I arrived?'

The Zriekas are an intelligent race, much more so than their allies, the Daleks. They think quicker and act accordingly. They had an idea that as soon as they breached the room, the pods would jettison.

'Then why didn't they jettison when I walked in?'

I was occupying your mind. The sensors would have recognised such and prevented jettison. Or perhaps the equipment is damaged so greatly that it didn't register that you were not actually Gallifreyan.

'I love theories. Explanations that explain nothing. Continue.'

So upon entering the room, they smashed the equipment that we required. It was a stroke of luck, however, that they were unable to smash open the pods. It was the only way that Aerynth and Tangala survived.

'But Tarrant? Xylon? Tigrus? The Doctor and I saw them! They're in their pods. They're fine!'

A short pause intervened. Sandi had a terrible thought that Shandaiah had gone, but then...

That wasn't I. When I left this ship, Xylon and Tigrus were fallen on the bridge and Tarrant lay defeated in the doorway to the regeneration chamber. My only guess is that they regenerated and were returned to status by the Face of Boe.

'Hmmm, he did say that he found them dead. But perhaps they were regenerating,' Sandi reasoned.

There is more. When I escaped to the TARDIS, I knew if I were to leave in it, the Zriekas would track me across the galaxy relentlessly. So I returned to the status pod you see before you and left my body. Existing as mere consciousness, I fled across the stars to Earth, a planet I had heard of from council members on Gallifrey. They said it was somewhat a second home for another Time Lord, an exile who defended both planets relentlessly. A man named The Doctor.

Sandi felt her chest swell with pride to hear her friend described as such. A bright grin crossed her face. The voice chuckled.

I know you like him. I've seen your mind, your heart. You like him. He's strange to you, a weird and somewhat wacky alien who makes no sense whatsoever, but there is something about him that reminds you so much of yourself, like he really does understand you. This is part of the reason why I brought you here. A love so strong is a powerful weapon against injustice.

Sandi blushed, chewing her bottom lip. She cleared her throat.

'How can I help him? I'm just a useless human, aren't I?'

You are no more useless than I am. But there is a decision to be made. It is a terrible one, but it has to be.

Sandi felt her stomach drop in a nasty way. The colour drained from her face.

'What do you mean, a terrible decision? I thought we were going to help the Doctor!'

And it is this decision which will save his life. You see, I never finished my story. When I arrived on Earth, I needed a corporeal form. So I chose the body of a child who was almost dead, but whom I knew was much like myself. I saved the child from death and spent her life with her. That child was you. But now I have returned, I have my own body to use. Once I leave your body and return to my own, your body will begin to break down almost immediately. You will die, but I can save the Doctor and destroy the Zriekas. Or I will remain with you and we can die together, trying to save the Doctor. Do not misunderstand my intention, for I love the Doctor as well as you do. But this decision must be made. The Zriekas are already on board and have tried to kill him once. They draw closer as we speak. It is time, Sandi. You must choose.

The words hung in the air like an ominous blanket as Sandi registered the meaning of it all. It was simple; either she died and the Doctor lived, or she lived for a while and they both might survive. Maybe. Possibly. She stared at the occupied pod, leaping to her feet.

'Why can't you make this decision?'

I have to be released willingly, the same way I was accepted. Your childish mind accepted my protection when you were young, in order to survive. You must make the decision to let me leave.

'If I choose to let you go, how long will I live?'

It is difficult to say. Your brain will deteriorate rapidly, I fear. It has taken a great deal of power to sustain it thus far. The ancient, regenerative power of the Time Lords allowed me to regenerate your body in the form it was, since it was not my own form.

'There is one more question I have. While we were travelling here, I glowed. The Doctor said that the last time he saw anyone glow, it was Rose and she held the entire time vortex inside her head. Why was I glowing?'

I would imagine it had something to do with housing the source of all time inside your head.

Sandi swallowed, forcing the lump from her throat. Her mouth was dry now and she was shaking considerably. She stared helplessly at the stationary form.

'I... care about him. I don't want him to die.'

Neither do I.

'But I don't want to die either!'

That is a decision only you can make. Live and let the Doctor die, or die and save his life. Your choice.

Sandi closed her eyes and exhaled slowly. This was the only way to save the Doctor.

'Do what you need to, then,' she whispered. She began to glow, but the glow was soft and radiant, as if her soul was leaving her body. The light moved across to the pod and sank through the glass, illuminating the other girl's body. As Shandaiah's golden, glowing eyes flickered open before her and the world turned black, Sandi smiled tiredly.

'Tell him... tell him...' she gasped, unable to finish, crashing to the floor with an almighty thud. The pod hissed open and Shandaiah stepped out. A radiant glow surrounded her as she swept across the floor, dressed in a long, white and flowing dress. She knelt before Sandi fallen form.

'If I have anything to do with it, you'll be telling him yourself,' she swore. As she stood, a gilded mist rose from Sandi's body and followed her. A loud noise came from outside the TARDIS. Shandaiah's eyes glowed angrily like firey coals. The doors exploded open.

---------

The Doctor crept down another empty corridor, willing the definite chill in his spine to go away. After thoroughly searching the pod chamber, he was convinced that Sandi was no longer in the room. The pods were all deadlock sealed, rendering it impossible to break into them. Right, so the plan is... find Sandi and get the hell off this ship, go back to Earth and hide, he thought, peering around a corner surreptitiously. The next hall was empty. The Doctor breathed a sigh of relief. The hand clutching the sonic screwdriver was shaking involuntarily. He slumped against the wall and rubbed his face. This was stupid, completely and utterly stupid. Idiotic. Where would he hide? The Zriekas had tracked Sandi across time and space. They could do the same to him. There was only one option: fight.

The Doctor wriggled around the corner and crawled along the hall. Ahead of him, he could see another door, the light on the other side shining through the cracks. Fast running out of places to run, the Doctor scrambled to the entrance. A few moments of sonic humming and the door slid open smoothly. He hurried inside and the door shut behind him. It appeared to be a medical bay, complete with beds, charts, scanners and medical equipment. The Doctor tucked his sonic screwdriver away and clapped his hands, rubbing them with glee.

'The Doctor is in,' he said cheerfully. He examined the equipment closely, marvelling at the familiarity of the technology from his home planet. Then he heard it. A faint noise that disturbed him. The same noise he had heard in the lift on the bridge. He didn't turn around, didn't dare move. He remained absolutely still.

'So you found me,' he said gravely. The ticking became a whir. Then a voice, metallic and thin wheezed from behind him.

You will tell us where the child is.

The Doctor raised his hands in surrender, turning slowly to face the enemy. There, standing in the doorway, were three Zriekas. The Doctor's mouth went dry. His arms felt numb and fear riccocheted around his body. He'd never seen anything like them before.

The Zriekas were tall, humanoid creatures, save for the fact that their skin was a mottled grey-cream and that many body parts were visibly replaced with cyborg implants, which clicked and whirred, giving the impression that they were somewhat clockwork. The right hand of each being was encased in metal, fashioned into a crude ion cannon which sat glowing at the Zriekas' sides as they studied him, one eye replaced with a scanner.

Speak, organic. Where is the child?

'By child, you mean Sandi and by Sandi you mean Shandaiah?' The Doctor asked casually, looking far more comfortable than he felt. He afforded the Zriekas a lop-sided grin.

'I haven't the foggiest. I was looking for them when you lot barged in.'

You brought the child here. You will tell us where she is.

'Look, I just told you, I came here with Sandi, yes, but she disappeared in the pod room! There was this... bright light, then poof! All gone!' The Doctor said, folding his arms decisively. The Zriekas appeared to be confused, whirring bemusedly at each other for a bit. The Doctor scratched his head thoughtfully as the trio decided what to do. Finally, one stepped forward, obviously the leader of the group.

We will take you to the Master, organic. Perhaps you will speak then. For if you fear not for your own life, then you should fear for the child's.

The other two Zriekas swept forward, surprisingly agile considering the amount of hardware they carried around. They grasped an arm each and dragged the Time Lord from the room. The Doctor didn't struggle. The guards followed a new path from the bay, down corridors the Doctor hadn't explored. Eventually, they reached the heart of the ship; a dark, dank place where the only light visible effused from the ship's interior walls. The Zriekas yanked a stumbling Doctor in to a large room, larger than any of the chambers he had previously visited. One guess told him that this was engineering; the area of the ship that kept everything running. But where there should have been myriads of computer screens, equipment and devices, there was nothing. Absolutely nothing. Not a scrap remained of the central computers that kept the ship alive. The room dipped in the centre like the pod room, but there were no pods here. Just empty space.

The Doctor was forced roughly into the centre of the room, sending him tumbling down the stairs. He sprained his ankle, catching his sneaker on the last step. He crashed to the floor, wincing in pain and clutching at his ankle. The Zriekas that had hauled him in stepped back. The leader of the squadron stepped forward.

Master, we have brought the Doctor.

The air in front of the Doctor wavered, like it was being super-heated on a summer's day. A form slid into focus. The Doctor struggled to concentrate through the pain as a vaguely humanoid form came into view. The being hissed and whirred menacingly.

Doctor. We meet at last.

The Doctor stared at the creature. It was somewhat taller and more heavily set. Both eyes were completely removed, replaced by a thin metal band that acted as a scanner. Its skin appeared more splotchy than its counterparts, but its texture was that of scales rather than skin. Both hands were missing, one replaced by the customary ion cannon, the other substituted with a claw-like contraption. The Doctor felt his blood run cold as his heartrates increased with fear.

'You... you must be the leader of the Zriekas,' he gasped. The figure inclined it's head slightly.

I am the Master, yes. You, Time Lord. You are the eldest of your race. Supposedly the last of a race of overseers, destroyed by their inability to act in time to save themselves from the Daleks. You never knew of the Children of Darkspace, did you?

'No, I didn't.'

As with all cultures, every individual has secrets. Your council hid the children in order to ensure the Time Lords future. They did not reckon with your ability to survive.

'No, they didn't,' the Doctor replied, gritting his teeth half in anger, half in pain. The Zrieka nodded.

Then you know nothing of the child's whereabouts?

'Look, I've just told your dim-witted lackeys here that Sandi disappeared just after we arrived in the pod room! But still, no-one seems to be listening to me,' the Time Lord sighed heavily, throwing his hands up in desparation. A wave of pain promptly wracked his leg and the Doctor dropped back down to grab at his ankle. He squinted at the leader.

'What is it that you want with her, anyway? I know you were the allies of the Daleks, but they were destroyed! Look out of the window! Right now! At this very moment, Rose Tyler is on Satellite Five, the time vortex running through her head and tearing the Daleks atom from atom!'

She has only the time vortex in her head. She is nothing, a mere insignificance to us. We were the Dalek's allies, before we learned of the child and her power. We seek the source.

The Doctor stared blankly at the Master, expecting an elaboration. None came. He sighed, waving a hand.

'Go on, tell me, I know you're dying to. The source of what?'

The source of all time in the universe was the curt reply, as if he should have known the answer all along. The Doctor frowned.

'Time doesn't have a source, it just is! If there were a source, the Time Lords would have known! I would have known!'

They did, as did you. Queen Shandaiah in your legend. Mother of the race of Time Lords. Able to rebuild the lost empire. Only a primitive mind would assume that the child would grow to be the mother of Time Lord children. She is the beginning, the end, the alpha and omega. She is where time begins and where time ends. The source can harness time, bend it and use it to her will, be it as a weapon or tool of salvation. All that would be necessary for her would be a temporal shift and a time loop large enough to trap every Dalek inside. Once there, she could simply age them with borrowed time, turning them to dust long before their own time was up.

The Doctor stared, open-mouthed. The old legend had been a little vague on the details about exactly how Shandaiah was supposed to resurrect the race of Time Lords, but he had always assumed that she would escape the Time War or that she would indeed mother the new Time Lords. Never had he thought that the Queen would possess the power to control time outright, let alone being the source of all time in the universe. He glared at the Master, attempting to look fierce.

'So, you want to utilise her power? Take her hostage and control her powers? What makes you think that she wouldn't turn on you? Destroy you?'

We do not plan for her to remain alive. We plan to kill her and take her power as our own. Psychograft her gifts into the minds of every Zrieka alive.

'How? Do you plan on downloading her like share files? Are you the collective mind?'

Zriekas are individuals. We have no collective. We learn and grow through imagination, unlike the Daleks. Each Zrieka will undergo a shared psychograft, splitting the child's consciousness between millions of beings. From one individual, many will benefit. The Zrekian Empire will expand and dominate after the destruction of the Time Lords.

The Doctor struggled to his feet, ignoring the dull throb in his ankle. He threw his shoulders back, lifted his chin, jutted his jaw and stared defiantely into the cold eyes of his captors.

'So... now I know. Right, time to run!'

The Doctor bolted for the door. The Zriekan guards that lolled idly there were stunned as he dashed past, shoving them aside. He tore back down the corridors, past the medical bay, in the direction of the pod room. His only chance of escape lay in getting back to the TARDIS. As he ran, the Doctor thought desperately of Sandi. He had no idea where she was or how he could get to her. He could only leave her there; maybe to die, maybe to escape. He skidded to a stop. That was unacceptable. He couldn't leave Sandi if she was on the ship. The Doctor made a quick decision and ran left, away from the corridor that led to the TARDIS. From the loud, pounding behind, he surmised that the Zriekas were close.

The pounding grew louder as the Doctor crashed through another door, which opened into a small cleaning equipment storeroom, at which point he promptly fell face-first to the floor. He slammed the door shut behind him, crawling away to hide behind the equipment as the footsteps drew closer. The heavy steps slowed outside the door, stopping for a moment. The Doctor tried valiantly to slow his breathing, but the pain in his leg was like fire now and adrenaline was coursing through his veins. His breath was ragged as silence fell and the Zriekas idled by the door. They know I'm here, he thought in despair. The Doctor closed his eyes and awaited the entry of the cyborgs. But they never came. The Doctor heard the echo of footsteps leading away from the storeroom. He breathed a sigh of relief. Opening the door a tiny bit, the Doctor peered outside. The corridor appeared empty. There was no sign of the Zriekas or their terrifying master. He slid from the room and crept along the corridor after the retreating unit. When the coast was clear, the Doctor headed back in the direction of the pod room, determined to find Sandi.

---------

A lone guard stood outside the room, picking at the healing scabs around his ion cannon. Suddenly, an explosion erupted from the room. The Zrieka blinked confusedly and squinted through the dust. It gasped.

You.

In an instant, the Zrieka began to rapidly age. Within a minute, it was nothing but a pile of dust on the floor. Shandaiah stepped cleanly over it.

'Yes,' she said curtly, a hand on the doorway as she half-turned to acknowledge her victim.

'Me.'

---------

Sandi blinked tiredly. Suddenly, breathing was a lot harder than she thought. The room was fuzzy, sliding in and out of focus. She clawed her way towards the door, knowing it was futile, considering the pounding headache being her indication that her brain was collapsing. All options covered, it wasn't the best way to die. Sandi's eyes flickered again. Maybe it would have been better if Shandaiah had never saved her. Then a fragment of a thought crossed her mind. The Doctor. She smiled tiredly as a warmth started in her chest and moved out through her fast-cooling limbs. She hadn't meant to leave him, but at least Shandaiah had promised to save him and it wasn't like she couldn't keep an eye on her. Although human, Sandi had her gifts. She closed her eyes again and lay still. Her breathing slowed and stopped. Silence enveloped her dying form as the doors banged shut. She was alone now.

---------

The Doctor thundered down the last corridor towards the pod room, determined to recommence his examination of the status pods. He clattered into the room unceremoniously. Five of the pods were perfectly fine, just as the Doctor left them. But the sixth was open. The Doctor strode over, curious, but trod in something. He bent down. A pile of fine dust lay on the floor. As he looked up, the pod slammed shut. The Doctor sprang to his feet and raced over, but it was too late. Try as he might, it was impossible to open. He stared at it. It was different to the other five, almost imperceptively, but different. He looked down at the name plaque.

SHANDAIAH.

The Doctor's eyes widened. He sprinted from the room, heading back towards the bridge. As he ran, he hoped that he wasn't too late.

---------

The master had relocated to the bridge in an effort to track the Doctor's movements around the ship. So far, all his guards and crew had demonstrated was the fact that Time Lord technology was infinitely superior and far harder to use than any other race's technology in the galaxy. The Zriekas had mastered them all, but Time Lords were something else.

Master, we have located the Doctor, said a lieutenant on his left. The master shuffled ungainly over, peering at the screen.

It appears he is heading towards us.

Continue to track him. Let us wait for the prey instead of expending energy and hunting him.

What of our primary target, the child?

The Doctor is our new target. He is far more dangerous than we reckoned.

Orders, Master?

Destroy the Doctor. Then find the child.