Chapter 11
"There was no need for that," the Doctor shouted, ignoring the pain that soar through him as he did. He gritted his teeth tightly, aware of the Master's amused expression at his attempt to speak through the pain. "You wanna hurt me, hurt me," he breathed deeply to stop himself wincing from the pain, forcing himself to continue with what he needed to say. "There's no need to bring others into it."
"But you obviously weren't listening, my dear Doctor," the Master replied, his voice calm and controlled. "The War was all innocent victims. The War was made up of watching people who had done nothing wrong killed slowly and painfully while you were helpless to do anything about it."
"The War had nothing to do with humans!" The Doctor insisted, "They would never have been involved, they're deaths were pointless. You judge me-"
"Don't even go there," the Master told him in a warning tone. "I judge you because you, because you turned away from your planet when it needed everyone it could get. You're a traitor. Every judgement you get you deserve."
"And where's Gallifrey now?" the Doctor asked quietly, his voice full of pain, which mostly had nothing to do with the shock collar.
The Master stared at him without answering for a long moment. The answer clear on his face, the answer clearly known from the Doctor tone. The Doctor needed to know though. "Don't," the Master told him. "Don't pretend you give a damn. Don't pretend you care. It's too late to care now." The Master stepped forward and smacked him across the face. "You're a hypocrite!" he hit him again, "You're a liar. You deserve everything that is coming to you. All those Time Lords, all those innocent victims, they didn't deserve what happened. They didn't deserve any of it. I'm not going to pretend I didn't enjoy parts of it, because I did, I relished in the pain and the torment, but it was wrong. It was so wrong. THIS isn't. I'm going to relish in hearing you scream and cry and beg because of me. Because it's what you deserve. It's a fitting punishment. You want to know what happened to Gallifrey? Where it went? Let me tell you all about it, Doctor. Let me see if you, the precious Doctor, the saviour, the healer, the one who makes everything better, let me see if you can make THIS," another hit, "better."
The Master pulled a key out of his pocket and removed the collar from around the Doctor's neck, before undoing the cuffs and removing as well. "If I were to tell you about the all-consuming fire that threatened Gallifrey's existence. The all-consuming fire that I ended. I stopped the War. I stopped it. I made it better for everyone. D'you want to know how? Go on, ask me how?"
The Doctor was rubbing his wrists gently once he was freed, he looked up at the Master, almost scared to ask, scared of the answer, "How?"
"By destroying it," the Master said, laughing hysterically.
The Doctor stared at him, hearing the words but not quite computing what they meant. He couldn't quite come to terms with the fact that the Master was saying that Gallifrey had been destroyed. "What?" he said, eventually very quietly. "What do you mean?"
The Master laughed again, "Let me explain in simple terms. Gallifrey is gone. I destroyed it. I stood on the edge of the Time War, seeing it safe in the Time Lock and watched it burn and explode. Imagine that for a moment, Doctor, imagine it. The great and powerful Gallifrey exploding at my hands. And then just…." He mimicked and explosion with his hands, "gone. As though it was never even there. Brilliant isn't it."
"You're a monster," the Doctor told him.
The Master slapped him and hissed, "And you're a traitor."
"You're accusing me of treachery towards the planet that you destroyed," the Doctor retorted, "Which of us is the real traitor?"
The Master punched him clear in the face and the Doctor winced before glaring at him again. They both ignored the Doctor's now bleeding nose and the Master told him, "You are because at least I tried. I hated that planet, I hated everything they did, everything they stood for but I still fought. I still stood side by side with the Time Lords and did everything I could to protect that planet because that was what was right. That was my duty. That's what everyone did, regardless of personal feelings. Except for you. Why?"
The Doctor didn't reply, he attempted to move away from the Master, but the Master grabbed him by the shoulders and slammed him against the wall. "Tell me why? What could possibly be a good enough excuse for you to turn your back on Gallifrey when it needed you the most?" The Doctor remained silent, "I saw people we knew in that war. So many of them. People who remembered us from old. People you should've been fighting with, you should've been protecting. Your Dad."
The Doctor forced himself not to react but couldn't help but widen his eyes slightly.
"Your brother," the Master continued and the Doctor gasped. "Oooh, that got a reaction," the Master added in amusement. "Yeah, I saw your brother, he really hadn't changed since the Academy had he? Do you want to hear about it?"
The Doctor stayed quiet, knowing that however he answered the Master would still do what he wanted. The Master smiled, "See you weren't very good at the whole being quiet thing when it was hurting you, yet apparently you have nothing to say now. Oh well, you just stay quiet and your Master will tell you a nice little story.
"I fought alongside your brother for a long time. Both of us glad for someone familiar, someone we knew to fight alongside," the Master eyes clouded over as he started talking, "The War does that you see, it makes you cling to whoevers there because if you're alone then you are completely alone, and vulnerable and that makes you weak. No one can bear to be weak. Weakness would bring us down. Weakness would kill us. Strength was in groups. Except, your brother was weak. Almost weaker than you. I guess weakness must just run in your family, don't you think?"
The Master paused, giving the Doctor time to comment on that but the Doctor didn't. The other was too busy watching him in horror, wishing he would just continue. The Master sighed, "This silence of yours is rather dull, Doctor," the Master told him, "Nevertheless, story to tell. Where was I? Oh yes. Your brother was weak. He gave in to the Daleks. He betrayed Gallifrey, he agreed to join them, to help them. Because he was scared of them. Pathetic. Traitor. I guess treachery runs in your family as well," the Master tutted, "Honestly, how would your Father feel with you two as sons? But anyway, my point. Your brother was a traitor, and in a War which was quite literally take no prisoners treachery could not be accepted. Your brother had to be dealt with. Know where this is going?"
The Doctor had a clear idea where this was going by he stayed quiet, the fear and dread written all over his face.
"I can see it in your eyes, Doctor, you know what I'm going to say," the Master teased. "Your brother was a traitor so I killed him."
A/N: My apologise for being so long in updating. Thank you so much if you've stuck with me and I'll try and update faster now.