"No," thought Moriarty, "this isn't how it's supposed to end!"

Moriarty grabbed his office desk and rammed it into the door with all the strength that was left inside him. He clutched his chest and sank to the ground, breathing heavily. There was a low growl from outside his office door and then silence. Moriarty shut his eyes and lightly started knocking his head against his desk. With every knock, the drumming in his head became louder and louder, until it was the only thing he could hear. Moriarty could no longer hear the snarls of the Vashta-Nerada outside his door, nor could he hear as they clawed relentlessly, hungry for his flesh. He slowly stood up and made his way to the window. The sky was clear, with not a cloud in sight and the university campus below him was empty.

"Turn around," a voice spoke suddenly.

Moriarty was startled and did as he was told, turning around slowly. The drumming started to fade as his eyes locked with The Master's.

"It's been two days," The Master chuckled, "are you with me, or am I going to have to kill you?"

Moriarty gave an exasperated sigh and said "no, I'm sorry, but no. I think I'd be better on my own."

The Master grinned. "I thought you would say that." His eyes lingered on Moriarty and then he looked down at his shadow.

"Count the shadows," The Master whispered.

Two, Moriarty had two shadows.

"No, please, no, get them away from me!"

Moriarty tried to look for a way out, but he had no strength left inside him to move his desk away from the door. The Master smirked as Moriarty paced around the room, stammering and pleading for his life.

"It's not my problem now," The Master laughed, and with those words, he was gone.

Moriarty's ears rang with the laughter of The Master. The drumming was louder than ever now. He tried to block it out, but when he pressed his hands up to his ears he could feel the warmth of his blood trickling down the side of his face. Moriarty lowered his hands and to his horror his flesh was being ripped off revealing the white bone that was hidden underneath. It was over now; there was nothing he could do. He dropped to his knees and screamed out in excruciating pain.

One, two, three, four.

One, two, three, four.

The drumming continued as the Vashta-Nerada feasted on his flesh. Blood splattered across the floor as Moriarty tried to catch his breath. He tried standing, but his legs were now bone.

"Fantastic!"

The pain suddenly stopped. Moriarty looked around. No blood, no missing flesh, just the soft drumming in the back of his head. There was a loud bang and a book dropped on his head.

Moriarty awoke, gasping for air, the drumming loud in his ears. But he wasn't in his office; he was at home in his study, lying on his couch, tucked in with a white blanket. Moriarty looked around. It was the next day, he knew because the sun shone through the window, meaning the morning had just begun. He had until tomorrow evening to decide what to do with The Master.

"Sorry," called a voice from above him.

Moriarty looked down. He had in fact, been hit in the head with a book. He grumbled and looked up to see The Doctor, a tall skinny man with brown hair, wearing a blue suit and dark rimmed glasses, swinging from the large furnished, wooden ladder that was placed against the grand bookshelf in his study. The Doctor smiled sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders, "you have a great collection here, Jim!"

Moriarty frowned and lifted himself up a little to get a better look at what The Doctor was doing.

"Sorry! I'm The Doctor, by the way..." The Doctor paused and waved at Moriarty, whilst giving him a little smile. "I was in the neighbourhood and you were being hunted by Vashta-Nerada. Nasty creatures they are, in groups of course. They feed on flesh... Till there's nothing left of you, just bone."

Moriarty didn't move a muscle, nor did he say a word.

"I made you a cup of tea," The Doctor pointed towards Moriarty's desk where a porcelain teapot stood next to a small cup and saucer.

"Thank you," croaked Moriarty, "for everything."

The Doctor smiled and nodded. He then reached out his arm and grabbed a small book from the shelf. "This... This looks interesting!" He exclaimed, turning the book over several times.

Moriarty closed his eyes and laid his head back on the pillow, musing about The Master and hoping The Doctor wouldn't break anything in his study.