Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, guys. I recently tore my left shoulder ligaments, and have found it very painful to type. I've managed to type this one handed, which is why it's taken me so long. I don't know when my shoulder will have healed, so I don't know when next I'll be able to update.

But I'm not going to abandon my stories or anything like that. Promise.

To make up for being away for so long, here's a nice long chapter. Review? :)

The Master and the Doctor were still staring at each other. Only a few minutes had passed but the tension in the corridor had risen to almost breaking point. They were still crouched on the floor, squaring off with an expanse of pale white floor separating them.

"Who gave you the bomb?" the Master asked suddenly.

The Doctor blinked, their spell broken. "Romana."

"Huh," the Master sneered. "Our fearless Madame President."

The Doctor honestly didn't know what correcting him would achieve, so remained silent.

"Why did you do it?"

The Doctor stared at the Master. He had a kind of sadness in his eyes, which the Doctor didn't want to associate with the Master. "There was no choice."

"There's always a choice," the Master spat, rising to his feet. The Doctor remained where he was. "You could have found another way. You always did before."

The Doctor took a deep breath, lowering his eyes to the floor. "Don't you understand?" He looked up. "It was over. The Daleks were winning. They were going to destroy us."

The Master swallowed roughly, turning away. "I'm going back to the TARDIS."

"Wait." The Doctor hauled himself up, wincing at the pain in his head, and followed the Master, pulling himself along by the wall. Catching up with the other man, he caught the Master's arm, but was roughly shaken off. He gritted his teeth, forcing himself to keep going as the Master rounded a corner, moving out of sight.

Another bolt of pain rushed through the Doctor's head and he cried out, doubling over again. Why me, he thought? How had the Master been able to resist? He was meant to be stronger than the Master; that's how this worked.

Another wash of pain came, and he felt an unwelcome tugging at his mind. He turned slowly, still leaning against the wall, and watched as the light rounded a corner down the other end of the corridor. There was nowhere to go; he couldn't outrun this thing, the Master was gone... and there was no way he was going to call for the Master again.

Lucy had been pacing her cell for the last 7.23 minutes. The cell was exactly 8 steps long and 7 steps wide. The bed took up 5 steps width and 8 steps length. There was nothing else in the cell.

It had been 8.45 minutes since she had been put back in her cell, and her thoughts had not left the man who had offered her freedom. She had taken in every detail: the grey suit, ironed flat, the red tie, with a stain near the end that would never come out, the blue eyes, wary and cautious, almost as if she was something to be feared, the deep voice, rolling syllables off the man's tongue with ease.

He had seemed perfectly normal. Just another bureaucrat, out to make a name for himself by finding the infamous Harold Saxon. But when he had offered a way out, she had seen something behind his eyes. A kind of self assurance that she couldn't say no. Well, of course she couldn't. Look at where she was. But it was more than that. He was the kind of man that didn't take prisoners, couldn't bear to be outsmarted. A little like Har... the Master.

Lucy stopped pacing, moving to sit down on the mattress that was spread across the floor. The man had told her he would come back tomorrow and would expect an answer then. What would happen to her if she didn't say yes? Surely nothing could be as bad as where she currently was.

She sighed and lay down, pulling a thin blanket over her shoulders. The pipes were creaking and spluttering around her, but she had long since learnt to block them out. She needed all the sleep she could get.

"It's... it's beautiful." Lucy walked up the ramp into the control room. Harry Saxon followed her, smiling. "But... how is it so big?" Lucy asked, looking back at him. "It was tiny on the outside."

Harry raised his eyebrows. "It's very complicated, my dear. Don't worry. You're perfectly safe."

Lucy resumed her walk, circling the console. "What does it do?" she asked in an awed whisper.

"She's a ship." Harry moved behind her, drawing her into an embrace. "She travels through time and space."

Lucy laughed. "Funny." She pulled away from Harry and moved round the console again, running her fingers across the buttons and levers.

Harry made a noise that sounded like, 'How the hell does the Doctor do this?' and followed. "I'm serious." He caught her arm. "She's called the TARDIS... She'll go anywhere."

As Lucy glanced back at the console there was a rumble from deep within it, as if to say 'no' to Harry. "Are... are you being serious?" she stuttered.

Harry nodded. "Yes." He smiled. "Deadly serious."

Lucy looked back at him, still not sure if this was a joke or not. "Okay." She crossed her arms. "Take me somewhere."

A light lit up behind Harry's eyes, dancing. "Your wish is my command." He began moving round the console, pushing buttons and pulling levers. "Welcome to the end of everything."

Before Lucy could say anything about that decidedly disturbing sentence, there was a jolt from beneath her, making her grab onto the console with both hands.

"There we go." Harry stroked the console lovingly. "A much better landing than any he could have done."

"Who's 'he'?" Lucy asked, still holding onto the console.

Harry remained far away for a minute, before suddenly extending a hand to her. "Doesn't matter. Take my hand. Let me show you the universe."

Lucy bit her lip, strangely thinking that her cat would need feeding soon, but took his hand anyway. He led her to the doors through which they'd entered the machine, and he threw them open. Lucy gasped. The black of space stretched out in front of her, endless.

"Where are we?"

Harry stepped up beside her. "The end of the universe."

She scoffed without thinking. "The universe is infinite."

Harry turned to her. "Not since Logopolis."

"What's that?"

He shook his head. "Never mind. Come on. I want to show you something." He raised a foot, and looked to step outside of the TARDIS.

"Harry!"

He froze. "What?"

"That's space!"

He looked at her. There seemed to be a pitying look in his eyes, but it was gone a second later. "There's a force shield." He took her hand. "I've got you. You're safe with me." He smiled.

Lucy took a deep breath, watching as Harry stepped out of the doors. As she followed him, a slight tingling started moving across her skin. She ignored it as nerves. Harry led her around the TARDIS, to the back, and pointed.

There was a planet below them, dark and grey, covered in what looked like rocks. But Harry was pointing at a rocket, moving slowly away from the planet's surface. "The darkness is coming," he said.

Lucy glanced at him, beginning to feel afraid. "Harry? What is this place?"

He turned to face her. "I'll show you." He lifted his hands to her face, fingers settling on her temples, and pushed.

Her mind instantly exploded with images.

A man, old and worn out, hearing something in his head. "All my life. Every waking moment. This noise."

Another man, younger this time, wearing a long brown coat. The first man took the second man's hand. "Good. Good." "It's good apparently."

A woman, small and dark skinned, sprinting down a corridor. "He's got this watch. A fob watch... just like yours."

A third man, well muscled. Only this one was different. Energy echoed from him. It made Lucy feel sick. He was pressing buttons on a control panel. "You might not be the only one left."

The woman. "Isn't that good?"

The man with the brown coat. "Yeah. Yeah, course it is. Depends which one."

Someone in makeup. A woman, blue skinned, holding a gun.

The brown coated man, shouting. "Let me in! We're the only two left. There's no one else!"

Another voice, with no image. "I am... the Master."

A scream. A bolt of lightning. A key fitting in a lock but not turning. Fading from sight... pain, drums, regeneration. New, old, young, strong, death, life.

Lucy fell away from Harry, holding her head. He was at her side in an instant. She was crying. "Harry... this is the end of everything. The universe dies. Everything that happens... it doesn't mean anything. My race is going to die out." She looked up at him, pleading. "Help me."

He took her in his arms, holding her close. "It's all right." He began stroking her hair. "I'm here. Everything's going to be okay. You're never going to have to be alone again."

By the time the man had arrived the next morning, Lucy's mind was made up.

The Master pulled himself from the Doctor's grip, and practically threw himself round the nearest corner, still moving. He just couldn't deal with the Doctor right now. When they got back to the TARDIS, he would have some space, some time to think things through. But right now, the only thing he wanted was to get away from the man who had destroyed the only home he had ever known.

The drums were pounding in his head, strong once again. They seemed different though, as if someone had shattered them and put them back together, without quite knowing how they worked.

He came to a halt as the signal ripped through his mind, distorting the drums even further. The drums seemed to consider the noise, then retreated, knowing it wasn't a threat. The Master ground his teeth together. He had no wish to go anywhere near the Doctor at the moment, but he was the only one who could fly the TARDIS, and the Master needed him because of that, if he was going to get there in time.

Gritting his teeth, he turned back the way he'd come. Bloody Doctor, he thought. Why couldn't he keep up?

"Isn't that... the PM's wife?" Toshiko asked, a note of incredulity appearing in her voice.

The Brigadier nodded silently. He watched as Lucy stopped pacing her small room, and settled down on the thin mattress taking up one side of the room. He had no idea that she was being kept in these conditions. As he glanced at Jack, he could tell the Captain hadn't either. Lucy might have been married to one of the greatest threats the world had ever known, but she was still a human being. One that had probably been hypnotised by the Master, the Brigadier reasoned, and none of their own deserved to live like that.

He turned to Toshiko. "Do you know where the image is coming from?"

The woman swallowed, tearing her eyes away from the mobile, and back to the computer. "If I can locate the satellite the signal's bouncing off of, I can trace it back to its source."

Jack looked up from his mobile. "You know..." He shook his head. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" He directed the question at the Brigadier. Toshiko didn't even turn round.

"I didn't know she wa..."

"You expect me to believe that!" Jack shouted. The Brigadier saw the two men who he had been talking to before, Ianto and Owen, come out of the medical area and begin to walk towards them.

"Why shouldn't you?" The Brigadier asked quietly.

Jack scoffed. "Because it's always the same. You bloody humans will kill anyone who disagrees you, whether they're your own or not."

There was a sudden silence in the hub, all three men staring at Jack. Toshiko remained fixed on her computer screen. Had he heard that right, thought the Brigadier? "Are you saying you aren't human?"

A dangerous look appeared in Jack's eyes. "Try and lock me up in a small, dark room, and we're going to have major problems." He squared up to the Brigadier.

"Sorry to interrupt your..." Tosh turned round. "Well... whatever it is that you're doing." The Brigadier scowled. "But I've found the satellite that was supplying the signal rebound platform. It led me to a remote in..." A few taps of the keyboard. "Sussex."

Owen, who had moved to Jack's side, as had Ianto, blinked. "That was... random."

Toshiko continued. "I can't get past the blocks there though. There must be someone on the other end, monitoring the connection. As soon as anyone gets close, deliberately or not, they cut the signal, and swtitch satellites."

"Can they tell you're trying to get in?" Ianto asked, still staring at the Brigadier. He and Owen were flanking Jack, making sure the Brigadier knew not to try anything.

"Well... I'm sure they can see the IP addresses so, if I keep going, it's only a matter of time before they make the connection that I keep popping up."

Jack's phone rang suddenly. He lifted it to his ear, signalling for quiet. "Hello?"

"Is this Captain Harkness?" came the reply.

"Yes," Jack answered cautiously. "Who is this?"

"I am the Collector. Do not bother trying to trace this call. I am not using a satellite.

"What do you want?"

Jack heard a light chuckle. "I am a civilised man, Captain. I do what I do because I love the universe." There was a pause. "But I am also dangerous. Do not think I am exaggerating. I have killed many men."

Jack didn't know who the hell this random person was, but he didn't have time for idiots right now. "Either tell me what you want or sod off!"

Jack heard a sniff. "I am giving you a warning. I am aware that you have broken the Data Matrix code. I have certain... interests in property that you will not take from me. If you get in my way, you will suffer. Do you understand?"

"What do you mean by 'your property?"

"Property," the man stated. "Something of value that is owned." There was a pause. "It is mine simple because I wish it to be. I will find the value and I will leave. But..." Jack could feel a threat coming. "You also interest me. However, you are not the prey in this hunt. If you remain silent then I will leave without harming you or your compatriots in any way."

"Who is your property?" Jack asked.

"That is none of your concern, Captain." There was a crackle from Toshiko's computer, and the monitor shut down. The man continued. "I suggest you warn your friends not to tamper with anything further. If you remain in your base, and allow me to take my property, the Earth will remain intact."

"And if I don't?" Jack signalled Toshiko not to try and turn her computer back on.

"I am going to have to leave you now, Captain. The time is at hand, and I must be ready. The answer to your question is in the absence. Do not forget that."

Author's Note: The Master's line: "Not since Logopolis", is a reference to a 4th Doctor story, entitled 'Logopolis', which is also the 4th Doctor's last story. There's a planet called Logopolis that apparently holds the entire universe together with their mathematics. The Master destroyed Logopolis, and therefore started the collapse of the universe. Several billion miles of space were swallowed up into nothingness.

I've never been entirely sure how the Doctor stopped this, even though I've watched it about ten times, but that is where the quote comes from.

I chose Sussex as the place from where the signal would be traceable to because that is where Lucy grew up. I thought it would be fitting.

Disclaimer: All quotes taken from "Utopia" are not mine.