Hello again, readers! I just got out of a BAD case of writer's block, but good news is that this chapter is more than twice as long as the last chapter, so ENJOY! Also, I have an author's note at the end addressing a few things, but before you begin reading I'd like to let you know that hopefully I'll update more often over the summer. Until then, happy reading!

CHAPTER 5

The TARDIS and the Lifeboat landed with a whoosh in the middle of a sunny, woodsy area. The Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS first, and then walked over to the nearby Lifeboat to help Lucy out of the Time Machine. Rufus and Wyatt soon followed suit, a little shaken up from the rough ride in the Lifeboat. "Yup, definitely looking forward to a ride in the TARDIS," said Rufus, looking around, "Hey, where are we, anyway? The Lifeboat said it was sometime in the 1300's." "This forest looks like something out of a storybook," Lucy commented, looking around. The Doctor allowed a slight smile. "Well, you're not too far off. C'mon." and with that, he set off towards what looked like a small encampment in the distance. "What are we even doing here?" asked Wyatt, trailing closely behind the Doctor. They were way closer to the encampment now, close enough to see that the area looked abandoned. "I'm meeting an old friend," said the Doctor. "Wait, are these the friends who're gonna-" Rufus was cut off when he felt the tip of something sharp dig into his back. A British voice, full of sternness, but with a hint of mirth behind it, proudly said "Surrender your property and your weapons, or face the wrath of Robin of Loxley!"

The Doctor turned around, clearly excited, despite being threatened, and addressed who was speaking. "Robin Hood! It's good to see a familiar face." "Doctor, the pleasure is all mine," the figure, Robin Hood, responded, "But what of these people? They're unfamiliar. Are they with you?" The Doctor, breaking from his excitement, nodded. "Yeah. They're with me." 'Finally,' thought Rufus as he felt the sword tip lower from his back. Him, Wyatt, and Lucy were able to turn and face the stranger. He wore a weird pointed had with a brown feather through it, and green clothes that matched the forest background. He also had shoulder length yellow-orange hair and a neatly trimmed beard. "I thought Robin Hood was just a story?" Lucy said, confused. "Yes, so I've heard," said Robin with a smile. He kissed Lucy's hand. "Hello my dear Lady..." "Lucy," she said, "And that's Wyatt and Rufus." Rufus did a small wave and Wyatt nodded once.

"So to what do I owe this pleasure, Doctor?" asked Robin, leading them to the camp. "Well, I'm here to ask a favor," said the Doctor, "My friends and I have run into an issue which have put their machine in danger." "Is it those blasted Robots of Sherwood again?" "No, something much worse. Which is why I'm requesting that you take the machine into your care until we get back." "Wait a minute," interrupted Rufus, and both Robin Hood and the Doctor turned to look. "You're putting an Actual Time Machine built by 21st Century humans into the hands of a guy from the 13th who we thought was fictional until today?!" the Doctor nodded. "Pretty much." "Worry not," smiled Robin confidently, "No thief has ever stolen something from me and lived to tell the tale." "We don't really have a choice here," agreed Wyatt reluctantly, "I mean, two time machines aren't exactly stealthy and the Doctor seems more experienced with his TARDIS." "I agree with Wyatt," Lucy said, and without waiting for a response she told Robin where they had parked the Lifeboat. "I shall send some men to retrieve the machine right away, Lady Lucy," said Robin, "But until you are ready to leave would you care to stay for dinner?" "Sorry, Robin," said the Doctor, "Not today." "Understandable, Doctor. I wish you luck on your travels." Robin faced Rufus and put a hand on his shoulder. "Not to worry, brave friend, we'll keep your 'Lifeboat' safe." Rufus nodded and smiled uneasily. "Okay, um, thanks." The rest of the party quickly said their goodbyes to Robin Hood and walked back to the TARDIS. In a few minutes, the Gallifreyan ship was flying freely through the time vortex, and the foursome finally had some time to think.

"I bet you're wondering where we're going," said the Doctor, unable to stand the silence anymore, "well, I can tell you it's sometime in the future. Can't track much more than that though, not without a proper thing to get the location from." Still no response from the other three. "C'mon, guys, lighten up! We'll find the Mothership, not to worry!" "This machine-" said Rufus, finally speaking, "it has a supercomputer, right?" "The most powerful in the universe," said the Doctor proudly. "Well then what is there on Rittenhouse?" The Doctor paused, as if he'd expected the request to come at some point. The Time Lord sighed. "That," he said, "Is a tricky question seeing as there is scarcely any info on that organization." "What?" Lucy sounded shocked, "Not even public records?" The Doctor shook his head. "The UNIT branch stationed in America looked into Rittenhouse some time ago, but all that is written here is that Rittenhouse was a clockmaker that lived in the 1800's. Nothing more. It's as if-" "-The records had been erased?" finished Lucy cautiously. "Same thing happens if we try to look anything up on these people," Wyatt said seriously. the Doctor rubbed his chin. "Now that IS interesting. I have a theory on who might have connections to Rittenhouse," the Doctor said, and Rufus seemed to appear right next to the Doctor. "What? Who?!" he asked, somewhat excitedly. the Doctor looked at Rufus with his icy eyes. "The Master."

Anthony Bruhl looked at the adjustments the mysterious Master had made to the Mothership's console again, trying to figure out the materials the stranger had used to tweak the time machine. Feeling as if he were being watched, the scientist turned around in his swiveling pilot's chair to find a figure darkening the doorway. "What are you doing in here?" asked the Master, slightly hunched over as the Mothership's tiny cockpit was too small to stand up straight. "I'm just looking over your adjustments." "Don't." said the Master, his deep, hypnotic voice having an affect on Anthony. "There's no way you /humans/ could understand the Gallifreyan tech that went into this. Now go. I have work to do." Anthony obediently stood up and walked around the Master to exit the time machine, and as soon as he was outside, the door slammed shut behind him. Anthony cursed and kicked the carpet suddenly. The Master had, once again, somehow forced the scientist to do his bidding without hardly any effort. 'Was it some sort of vocal hypnosis?' theorized Anthony, 'Maybe something in the water? No. It doesn't matter.' he shook his head, clearing any thoughts of the Master, and walked over to Flynn, who was reading some sort of book in a chair.

About a week ago, Flynn had agreed to work with the Master in order to take down Rittenhouse. The odd stranger had claimed that he had known who the real organization was from the start, and that he could utterly destroy them once and for all. One Flynn had granted the Master permission to tweak the Mothership against Anthony's wishes, he had disappeared into the time machine, and in an hour they were on their way to a new time, with the Master in the pilot's seat. When they arrived, the Mothership had landed in an expensive-looking suite, with technology and interior decorating unlike Anthony had ever seen. "Where the heck did you take us?" Flynn had asked. He didn't like being kept in the dark, but it was obvious the Master wanted to keep it that way. "You'll learn in time," said the Master with a chuckle, heading towards the suite's door, "I'll be right back." After leaving the room, there was a short buzzing noise and a click, and after trying the door Flynn found it to be locked. He cursed, but decided to investigate the room to find another way out, and told Anthony to do the same. Anthony went to the window first, and drew back the curtains, gaping at the view before him. The city sprawled below the suite's window looked like some kind of desert town in the middle east, with a bazaar just inside the bulky walls protecting the city from the harsh grey-gold desert outside. The sky boasted three bright silver orbs that Anthony assumed were moons, and beyond those the scientist could see an enormous purple and blue planet in the black sky. "Flynn, I've got the feeling we aren't in Kansas anymore," he had said.

Now, a week later, Anthony was 'so done', as the younger generation would say. They were on an alien planet, light-years away from Earth and God knew how many years into the past or future, and Anthony nor Flynn had been able to leave the suite the Mothership had landed in. "Garcia, I'm fed up with this guy," spat Anthony, "He thinks he can just boss me around like I'm nothing! And I have a feeling that when he doesn't need us anymore he'll get rid of us." "Not if we do it first," Flynn responded quietly, slightly lowering his book, "As soon as we figure out how the improved Mothership works we'll be out of here." Anthony put his hands on his hips. "How d'you expect to do that?" he asked. Flynn opened his mouth, but quickly shut it when he saw the Master exit the Mothership. "Gentlemen," the Master said, "I have some business to attend to. I trust you'll stay here as always?" Without waiting for an answer, the dark-dressed man walked out of the room, the door closing with a final click.

A blue police box materialized in a busy bazaar, a slight breeze rustling the colorful banners and papers strung up between stands. No one but the children noticed the box, and they decided to keep their distance, especially when four oddly-dressed strangers stepped out of the door. "Welcome to the bountiful planet of Ichorfall!" the Doctor spread his arms wide, as if the planet were a gift just waiting to be given. "Did you say planet, or did I just hear you wrong?" Rufus looked around, astonished beyond all reason for the second time in 24 hours. "That's right," said the Doctor, "We're actually on a planet in the next galaxy over from the Milky Way, about 200 years into your future." "This.. Is amazing!" Wyatt stuttered, completely astounded. He couldn't stop staring at the exotic food and aliens in the bazaar, and part of him wondered how they would find their way back to the box. As if Lucy had read Wyatt's mind, she turned to the Doctor. "Um, I may not have a history major on other worlds," she began uncertainly, "but won't the TARDIS and our clothes stand out?"

The Doctor shook his head. "No, you'll be surprised how many people would overlook something as out-of-place as a blue police box. Besides,"-the Time Lord shrugged-"The circuit that allows the TARDIS to blend in broke over two thousand years ago." He walked off into the bazaar, and the other time travelers followed. As they weaved through the crowds of humanoid aliens (some looked human and some most definitely did not), smells and colors of all kinds assaulted their senses, while thick, grey-gold sand crunched under their tennis shoes. The Doctor suddenly stopped in front of a booth that was selling some kind of frozen blue treat, and Rufus almost ran into the back of him. "You wouldn't happen to have a few pounds, would you?" The Doctor asked the others. "I have a $20," said Lucy, offering the American currency. The Time Lord took the money gratefully and used it to buy a few frozen treats, but much to the humans' surprise, the blue pop tasted like orange soda.

"So why are we eating these?" asked Wyatt in a flat voice, twirling the blue-stained Popsicle stick between his fingers. "Why not?" asked the Doctor, "New alien world, far into your planet's future: the perfect thing to do is have an ice treat and watch the passerby." "Riiiight," Wyatt nodded slowly, "but when will we find this 'Master' guy you were talking about?" "That's a great question," agreed Rufus, "but another one is: why is everything in English? Shouldn't be like alien...stuff?" "TARDIS translation circuit," answered the Doctor shortly, "And I know the Master is here because my ship has a tracking device. And luckily, I happen to have the old fella's robe from the time he tried to take over and inadvertently got absorbed by the Eye of Harmony." "Um okay," Lucy said, unsure of how to respond to the Doctor's rambling. Before the conversation could get any more awkward, a shrill beep was heard from the Doctor's pocket. Wyatt was immediately on high alert, automatically reaching for his handgun. "Would you stop with the guns?" snapped the Doctor, withdrawing a large device from his pocket. A light on the top of the big screen blinked rapidly, and the screen on the device showed a map with a yellow tracker on it. "Bingo!" said the old man excitedly, "Another Time Lord located! Follow me, and look for someone fishy. He- or she-could be anywhere." "What?!" Rufus looked around, thinking this was an inefficient way to find someone, when he spotted an odd man dressed all in black, with 2 grey streaks in his dark hair and goatee, as well as a sinister expression on his face. "Yo Doc!" Rufus called out, "Is that the guy?" Without responding, the Doctor took off in pursuit of the dark man Rufus had pointed out, and the three others struggled to keep up.

"Any luck with the lock?" Anthony asked Flynn, who was fiddling with the alien lock on the window. This had to be the twentieth time they tried to pick the lock in the room, and frankly, Anthony was surprised that the Master hadn't come back yet. "The lock's not giving," grunted Flynn, frustrated with the contraption. He bit back a curse as he accidentally pinched his finger in the window's hinge, and he leaned back to rest a bit. "Care to give it a try, Anthony?" asked Flynn sarcastically. Before Anthony could think up a suitable response, they heard the doorknob to their room jiggle and try to turn. "Room service!" said a Scottish voice from the other side, followed by a knock at the door. "There's probably nothing in there," said a different voice, this one with an American accent. 'Wait a minute,' thought Finn, 'That voice..' before he could complete his thought, a buzzing noise was heard on the other side of the door, and the two men had just enough time to hide in the closet and bathroom before the mystery people came through the suite's door.

"Well that was easy," said a different voice warily. It sounded like Rufus. "Almost too easy..." the Scottish voice muttered. An unfamiliar device beeped. A female voice that sounded like Lucy spoke next. "Okay, does anyone else get the feeling we're being-" "-Watched?" finished Wyatt, followed by the sound of a gun getting loaded, "Yeah, definitely getting those vibes." "I hate to agree, but I doubt the Master would leave a modified time machine unguarded." Flynn, against Anthony's warnings, now stepped out of the closet and raised a hand gun not unlike the one Wyatt was now pointing at Flynn. "Nice to see you again," smiled Flynn, "Lucy, Wyatt, Rufus, you're all looking well." "Where's Anthony?" asked Rufus. "I'm here," The mentioned engineer stepped out of the bathroom. "Since nobody cares about introductions here, I'm the Doctor. Nice to meet you." Everyone ignored the Time Lord. "What are you doing here?" asked Wyatt, "I doubt Rittenhouse is here." "Let's just say my benefactor wants us here right now." The Doctor shook his head at Flynn. "Look, it's no secret you're working with the Missy, or whatever she's calling herself now." "Who?" asked Anthony, "We don't know any Missy." "He's not lying," said Rufus. Lucy sighed. "So, what now?" "I still think she's behind this," said the Doctor, scratching his chin, "That guy we saw in the bazaar looked like he might have been working with Missy but I didn't get a good enough look at him." Flynn lowered his gun slightly. "Look, I'm confused. Who are you talking about."

A sigh from the Doctor. "I'm talking about the Master, shouty! No need to get tetchy with me." "How do you know the Master?" asked Anthony suspiciously. He didn't want another person like the Master to deal with. "The Master is a dark scoundrel who wants nothing but to destroy me and everything I believe in. Even if that means destroying the Universe or ripping apart time and space." "What an excellent summary, dear Doctor!" everyone turned quickly towards the doors as the bearded Master stepped into the room. No-one had heard him open the suite door and enter. "Well, don't look so surprised," quipped the evil Time Lord, "this was my plan all along, you know." "Oh I doubt it," snapped the Doctor, "What do you need of the humans' time machine? I thought you still had your TARDIS at this point!" "Hm. I see that it's been long enough that you've forgotten that you stole my Dematerialization Circuit for yourself!" the Master grinned slyly and continued, "Luckily I was able to catch a passing Time Agent in a time scoop and steal their vortex manipulator. I'm sure you can guess what happens next, Doctor." "Yes, I can. Now answer this: why not kill us now?" "Doctor!" hissed Lucy. "I know what I'm doing Lucy. Master, why don't you kill us all now? It's obvious we're all pawns here." "I plan to take down Rittenhouse," the Master said. "And do the Universe some good?" the Doctor raised his bushy eyebrows, "No, I do not believe that's your plan." "No, it's true." Flynn spoke, surprising everyone, "That's how he was able to gain the Mothership in the first place. He promised to take down Rittenhouse." "How did you know he could be trusted though?" asked Rufus curiously, "because from what I gather, you trust no-one."

"The Master always has a second motivation behind his plan," the Doctor scowled, "And after hundreds of years' experience facing off against him I know that his plans are never for Earth's benefit. Only his own. Now!" he grinned, "Let's see what you've done with the Mothership, eh?" And before anyone could do anything the Doctor walked over to the time machine in long strides and went inside. The Master followed suit, and soon the two voices could be heard arguing inside. The party looked at the machine, looked at each other, and at the same time Wyatt and Flynn raised their guns at each other. "Now back to old business," grinned Flynn. Suddenly a cry of joy was heard in the time machine, followed by a shout of anger and with a flash, the Mothership vanished with both Time Lords inside.

Okay, now to address the things: First of all, I most definitely think that the Master I'm using for this fanfiction would recognize a post-Pertwee Doctor (even if it wasn't the situation I presented in the fic). Second, I put this story set between certain episodes because (a) I can better judge what the characters would or wouldn't know at that point, and (b) with a time-travel show, things can get Timey Wimey and having the characters be from different timelines keeps me on track. Third, yes I realize Rittenhouse has already been revealed and exposed in Timeless (if you're caught up), but in this fanfiction ****SPOILER ALERT**** Rittenhouse is going to be a Doctor Who villain (to make things more fun). So, share your thoughts in the comments and let me know what you all would like to see in later chapters! Thanks, and sorry for the long Author's note. :)