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The Master Chronicles 18 - A Saxon Union

Uvodni Ship, High Orbit…November 2007…

The ship of General Uvlavad Kudlak was hovering above the Earth where it had been undetected for nearly twenty years, the General who had been one of their most decorated warriors in the Signus Brigade until he had been wounded in battle and forced to retire. He had then heard of the human race and their natural nature as warriors and had taken many children to be sent to replenish the diminished Uvodni Army for the war against the Malakh Empire.

He had not received many reports on the status of the war which worried him a great deal but the Mistress who ran his vessel had told him she had received signals telling them their people had not fallen yet and the soldiers he had been sending were of great use to their people.

He had been doing this for nearly twenty years, using a variety of 'games' as they were known to find those that would make the finest warriors from the youth of Earth. All kinds as long as it showed the skills that would serve them well on the battlefield but this 'laser tag' as they called it was a good one and had helped tremendously in finding young soldiers for the war. Many brave young Earthlings had been sent to the fronts of the war.

Unfortunately, the scale of abductions had begun to get noticed, while he doubted Earth authorities were a genuine threat to him given his species had superior technology and had no idea that he existed they had identified several of his games as being related to the missing children.

So, he had been forced to close most of them down rather than risk the authorities confirming it and so he had been forced to confine his recruitment to one small island for now under another cover 'Combat 3000' which showed great promise he admitted, another few months and he would be able to take it worldwide and increase recruitment again. Only this morning he had sent another twelve to the front and it wouldn't take long to find more.

- x -

Unknown to Kudlak, there was someone on Earth that could detect him.

And now that they had the transmat Torchwood had salvaged, which had only taken a moment for the Master to fix they could reach the ship.

A party of armoured actives materialised on the ship, Echo led the team of seven as they adjusted to their new location and the dimmed lights before fanning out.

The Mistress detected the intruders immediately and activated the alarm which made Kudlak start.

"Intruders Kudlak, seven have transmatted aboard." The Mistress reported calmly despite the danger of the situation. "Dispatching Security drones to intercept."

"How is this possible Mistress? Have the Malakh found us?" He demanded and she reported.

"Negative, the intruders are not Malakh and trace of the Transmat indicts Earth is the source." Mistress told him and Kudlak was momentarily stunned by shock as it should be impossible for humans to do that. They didn't even have efficient space flight yet so how had they suddenly not only detected him but gained the ability to get onboard his ship?

He watched as the security drones engaged the intruders and was again surprised as they used much more advanced Particle guns to take the normally resilient drones down, the clean and precise movements not to mention organisation and marksmanship displayed showed them to be professional warriors. Highly skilled and under any other circumstances he would have been admiring their abilities but they were cutting through his security drones like a laser pistol through cloth and he was grabbing his pistol to join the fighting when he was shot from behind by a stun blast, one of the intruders having managed to get through the drones and shot him.

When he managed to recover, he was tied to his chair and unable to move as seven humans stood around him. All older than the adolescents that he took, younger adults he noticed and had now removed their helmets. They looked at him with triumphant smirks before turning to look at someone behind him, one of the soldiers swinging the chairs around so he could see just who they were looking at.

"Oh, I had hoped for a little bit more…maybe an invasion but, you know what…what you have done has more than made up for it. I am the Master by the way and you are now…my prisoner." The human man said with a sadistic grin on his face. Being a lifelong army veteran Kudlak had encountered people like him before, people who enjoyed killing, lived for it and took the greatest amount of pleasure from it. He detested people like that, he killed only when his duty demanded and never an innocent, this man he could tell would kill just for a quick laugh.

"I demand you release me!" Kudlak said, trying to maintain a veneer of a professional soldier in the face of the enemy. "I am a general in the Uvodni Armed Forces and my people will not take kindly to this."

The Master in a business suit laughed at him, a mad and loud laugh that honestly sounded demented. Kudlak realised to his own discomfort that whoever the man was, he was clearly insane and that didn't bode well for his chances to get out of this.

"Oh, this is going to be so good. Now pay attention to this my children, I am going to show you how to break a person." The Master said to the other people in the room which they all looked on with eagerness, showing themselves to be as mad as he was. Kudlak himself was forced around again and turned towards the screens while the Master leaned on top of the chair, before telling him with great expectation. "I was looking through all the records of this war of yours, a bit dull but a nice little struggle in all. Then I found this, sent by your Emperor nearly ten years ago."

The screens lit up with the image of the Uvodni Emperor and played a message.

"Vessels of the Imperial Fleet, this is your emperor. We have agreed an armistice with the Malakh, after all these centuries, peace at last. Come home all my proud warriors, come home we have much to rebuild." The recording of the Emperor said before the message ended.

Kudlak was immediately sure that this was some kind of trick and said so to his captors.

"What Malakh subterfuge is this?" He demanded with anger but the Master turned his chair to face him.

"That message was in the database of your own ship, kept from you by the Mistress you served so faithfully all these years. Tell him, my deadly little computer…tell him the truth." The Master said and the image of the Mistress appeared on the screen.

"Peace did not compute; peace did not compute." The Mistress said, glitching as it was faced with something it didn't understand. Kudlak's faith started becoming a little less certain as he realised the truth.

"Your people are pretty bad at designing computers; you didn't even think the war would end so you never even thought to make sure your computers could understand the concept." The Master told him with a sinister grin staying right next to Kudlak so he could see every moment of this. "It couldn't cope with the idea of peace especially since there would be no need for it when the war ended, so it buried the message and let you keep collecting children to send in the most horrible of places. How many have you sent since you started? How many since the war ended? Lila my dear, how many did the databanks say again?" He asked a blonde-haired woman who was standing with the others.

"About fourteen thousand in nearly twenty years. All younger than sixteen years old." Lila said with a mocking pout that looked adorable.

"Fourteen thousand! By the Dragonstar you have been a naughty boy General Kudlak. So many children ripped from their world and their families and sent off into the depths of space to fight and die or just be abandoned on worlds far from home with no way to return against their will. Poor little mites." The Master said with mock sadness and wiped away an imaginary tear from his eyes.

Kudlak honestly was horrified as the full weight of what he had done hit him, he had been so blinded by the war and his faith in the Mistress that he had failed to remember that these were children he was taking! Children he was ripping from their families and sending off to war, to bleed and die on other worlds in a war that was not their own. He had been so bitter when seeing their own young be forced to fight and each death had hurt him deeply, now he had become the very thing he despised…a slaver, a kidnapper, a tyrant and a killer. He had become the very thing he had been fighting to defeat and now realised just how much misery and pain he had caused for not just those taken, but for the families that would never know what happened to their young.

"Now, I care nothing for humans and about children even less but because I am trying to teach my own children…I am going to make you suffer General. I may kill you eventually but I will ensure you are faced with the consequences of what you have done." The Master said with sadistic grin as Kudlak was too stunned to react, unaware of the nightmare that now awaited him.

- x -

Unknown Location, A Day Later…

Kudlak struggled against his restraints but the chair he was stuck in would not budge and then the Master and a dark-haired woman next to him said.

"Well, it took us a day or two but we managed to identify most of the children you took and so we prepared this show, so you can know the results of your recruitment efforts. Enjoy." The Master said before he left the room with the woman and then the screen lit up with a pair of crying human parents in some kind of press conference.

"Please, if anyone has any information…please let us know! We just want our son back!" A female called out with tears running down her face and Kudlak felt tears running down his own face too as he was faced with the devastation that he had inflicted on the parents of the children he had taken.

Clark's Maze, London…December 2007…

The Master was having a good meal, cooked by Kilo who was now his personal chef for the evening as he sat down for a quiet dinner with his potential wife Lucy.

She was quite lady like he thought with some satisfaction and disappointment, good table manners and reasonably good in conversation. He found her the most enjoyable candidate so far.

The Master played nice till he had enough hooks in Lucy to make sure she could be pushed without running. "I was wondering if you might like to meet my sister, she has been wanting to meet you for a while and as my only family I would love it for the two of you to get along." The Master suggested.

"That would be wonderful! I have heard she is as smart as you are charming, not that you're not smart too." Lucy said with a smile that was almost too warm and kind to be taken seriously.

Had the Doctor met you first, you would probably have fallen in love with him and been travelling in his Tardis the Master thought with arrogant dismissal. He pretended not to take offense and told her.

"My sister has always been the science one of the family, I am just glad we are as close as we are." The Master said with such kindness it almost made him feel sick. "But first I have arranged a little something for you."

"For me? Harry you shouldn't have." Lucy said with a gasp of surprise but also delight so he took her hand and led her to the back garden where she saw her father, Lord Cole or as he was otherwise known Damien Rushby and a lot of her friends and Harry's own standing around much to her surprise.

"Harry? What is this?" She asked with confusion before Harry got down on one knee and her breath caught in her throat as she realised just what he was about to do.

"Lucy Cole, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?" The Master said, producing a ring he had taken from one of the more upper-class Templar women. It was a lovely platinum ring with white diamonds in the shape of doves.

Lucy was shocked as she and Harry had only been dating for a short while but that same time…he was easily the most exciting, daring, cunning and powerful man she had ever met and being the daughter of a multimillionaire business magnate and an English lord that was saying something. She honestly felt so small next to him, almost overpowered by the strength of his personality and drowning in him. She honestly couldn't get enough of him and would follow him anywhere.

But at the same time there was a little voice in the back of her mind telling her that she was losing herself and was out of her depth here, to run away from him before something awful happened to her.

But in the end, she just couldn't resist.

"Yes, oh a billion times yes!" Lucy told him and he eagerly got to his feet and kissed her deeply while everyone exploded with applause. Harry slipped the ring on her finger and it fitted her perfectly she thought brightly, but then Harry never made mistakes she thought brightly and wondered just what the future held for them both.

She then noticed her future sister-in-law coming over, wearing a suit like Harry's and eagerly she came up to her and told them both.

"Congratulations! It's amazing to see my brother has finally found a woman that can keep up with him! I'm his sister and I can barely manage." Teresa said with a chuckle which Harry returned, the strong bond between them clear there for all to see. She then turned to Lucy and gently hugged her before saying. "I will be glad to have you as my sister-in-law."

"Me too." Lucy said with a smile, Teresa was a stunning woman she thought and really was a genius. But she had such good taste it would be nice to have someone to speak too about things like that.

Arclight Power Station, Outside London…

A large crowd had assembled outside the newly built Arclight Power Plant where the world's first Cold Fusion energy would be generated. The media were out in force to see this historic occasion and many important figures were present.

The Master and Lucy were busy planning their wedding so unfortunately, they couldn't be here, they were getting married in a week so everything was rather rushed.

Teresa wasn't upset though; she could get angry but never upset she thought with satisfaction at her lack of empathy or other such weaknesses and it was rather nice to be doing this herself after being at the Master's side so much. Like dealing with the men that had been paid to sabotage the plant by oil and other companies that had previously dominated the energy market. If her cold fusion power was successful then it would almost certainly end many of them, much of their power and wealth gone in the blink of an eye.

She had been quite happy to leave them dangling feet first over a large turbine, turning it on and then dropping them in.

Good times she thought with a sick glee.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen. I present the first activation of the Cold Fusion Reactor." Teresa said with a smirk as she flipped the switch that would start the reaction.

It was silent for a moment but then the machinery came to life, starting up with a mechanical whirling noise and dials showed the incredible power readings being achieved.

Everyone waited for a moment, not sure if it was going to hold or not but when it stayed stable and no issues emerged, the crowd all began to clap and cheer as the plant successfully began operations.

Teresa was in her element, for once being the centre of attention it felt really good, she thought with a great sense of satisfaction.

Once the clapping and applause had fallen to a much lower-level Teresa spoke again.

"Thank you, as you can see, the Arclight Cold Fusion Power Plant is a success! A power plant with capacity to provide clean energy for over half the country. And I can now announce the construction of Northlight, a sister plant in Scotland to power the other half while plans for third plant built in a joint project with the Republic of Ireland are well underway. The future, everyone is here at last and it is bright!" She told them all which started the applause again which she lapped up, feeling like she was on top of the world.

Blackfield, Home Counties, Next Day…

"This is magnificent!" Lucy said with awe as she looked at the Master's home from home. The Master and Teresa both shared a look of amusement as they looked at her childish excitement, neither of them could really do that so readily anymore.

"Indeed, but it's time to share with you the truth of where I come from and why I am doing what I'm doing." The Master said with a grand gesture and Lucy looked confused at what he was talking about. He offered her his hand and she took it confused as they approached a large blue box which had 'Police' written on it. Lucy had never seen one before but when the Master opened the door, Lucy gasped at what was inside.

It was enormous, she blinked sure it was a trick but she ran around the whole box and saw it was no illusion and as she stepped inside, she could see it was real.

"Oh my god!" Lucy said with shock and awe as the Master and Lucy entered behind her and shut the door. "It's bigger on the inside."

"Does everyone say that when they see a Tardis for the first time?" Teresa asked the Master who shrugged.

"You didn't, most of the Doctor's companions though probably." The Master said with a dismissive wave of his hand before turning to Lucy. "The story of my life Lucy, Harold Saxon that is all fake. I come from another world, another time far in the past or future depending on where you stand." The Master explained to her. "Cut off from my own people, I found myself here trying to stop the end of everything."

"Harry, you're scaring me." Lucy said with her breath fast from fear, too much was happening too fast for her. The Master pulled some levers on the console and its central column began to move, the ship shook and Lucy almost fell over but 'Harry' caught her in his arms and held her in an exaggerated pose for a second before telling her the rest as the ship continued to shake while Teresa took over on the controls.

"I am the Master, the master of time and space. And I came to this world so I could save it." He told her with worry as he started dancing with her, Lucy was so overwhelmed by everything she just followed his lead as he danced with her while Teresa rolled her eyes in exasperation as she manipulated the controls. "I never expected to find someone like you Lucy, someone I want at my side as I work to make sure that what I am about to show you does not happen." The Master said, Lucy so lost and confused as the ship finally stopped shaking and the column stopped moving could only ask.

"Stop what?" She honestly had no idea just what was going on. The Master led her to the doors of the Tardis and with great excitement flung them open.

Lucy's eyes widened and she gasped in horror as she saw what was beyond them.

The sky was completely black, there was nothing there at all, no stars, no planets, no light of any kind. But on the surface of the world ahead of her was a massive complex of furnaces, burning fiercely as they worked, the Master forcefully grabbed Lucy's hand and pulled her out of the Tardis, the lifeless ground beneath her feet.

"Welcome to Utopia. The final resting place of the human race." The Master said with a grand sense of the dramatic. "We are in the year One Hundred Trillion…welcome to the end of the universe." He told her as she looked around in shock. Not able to accept what she was seeing, Teresa stood at the doors to the Tardis while she watched Lucy take her first steps onto an alien planet and wondered if she had felt like that once. But she honestly didn't think so, it had been more boring in her case.

"The universe is collapsing all around us, soon the terrible cold will envelope everything and all things will end. Incredible, isn't it?" He asked her with a sinister grin as he knew what effect this would have on her.

Lucy collapsed to her knees, not able to cope with what she was seeing. The idea that everything would end, that nothing was truly forever and that everything even love would die…there was no point…no point to anything she thought as the cold weight of everything began to press in on her.

The Master honestly was delighted, Lucy was breaking right before his eyes and as everything fell apart, he would be there to pick her up again but as his little doll…his little puppet to play with he thought with sinister smirk on his face. To twist as he saw fit.

"I am here, to make sure that this doesn't come to pass. That we find a better way and I want you with me at my side." The Master told her with apparent sincerity.

Lucy was so broken by all of this, when he mentioned he was going to prevent it she looked at him suddenly.

"You can stop this?" She asked him, almost begging and he smiled at her as he kneeled down so he was face to face with her, taking her chin almost possessively so he could look her in the eyes.

"Of course, if you help me. Will you join me?" He asked her with false hopeful look in his eyes, Teresa knew full well that he would just abandon her here and leave if she said no. It would be a slight setback to their plans but they had other ways to break her if needed.

Lucy didn't wait long before giving them her answer.

"Yes, I'll join you. Please, don't let it end like this!" She begged him and he leaned forward and kissed her gently which she gratefully accepted.

"Welcome to the family." Teresa said with a smirk on her face but then they were interrupted by the sight of a number of silver-coloured spheres approaching. They hovered around them and spoke in a childish electronic voice.

"Master! It's the Master! Please is it time yet? It's coming sir! The darkness sir, the terrible, terrible cold. We have to run sir!" The orb or one of them anyway said and the Master told them calmly.

"The time is approaching my children. This is my future wife, Lucy." The Master said as he introduced Lucy to the spheres. Lucy herself was shocked at their appearance but the Master pulled her to her feet and told her. "These my dear are the Toclafane and it is with their help we are going to save the universe."

Lucy honestly never had a chance Teresa thought with a shake of the head, she was far too soft to hold out against the Master.

London, Christmas Eve 2007…

The wedding of Harold and Lucy Saxon was a rushed affair but with Teresa's organising hand behind the scene it was all arranged extremely fast; a church was organised and all the trimmings scheduled for tomorrow. A honeymoon was unfortunately not possible right now but that was just as well because soon the time would come for the Master to take power and everything had to be in place before then.

Teresa was standing at the bar in a club that the Actives had taken as their own in the heart of London, it was their place to kick back and relax between missions. A club with a dance floor and tables and a fully stocked bar.

It was called, with some irony…Dollhouse.

Teresa just shook her head, smirking as she knew how much contempt they all had for that place or those places as the case was. She had put them up in a block of flats she owned here in London, while they weren't expected to pay rent, she did give them a good allowance so they had money to spend on the things they wanted or needed. Case in point she thought as she saw Whisky, Sierra and November come in with shopping bags before sitting at one of the tables to have a drink while Victor and Echo played pool nearby. Others were on the dance floor, enjoying themselves as music blared out and they drank. It was their Christmas Party and she was felt a great deal of kinship with them…like her they had been taken from nothing and made into something far greater than they could ever have been before. Now they had all these incredible skills and power not to mention positions of influence that would enable the Master to rise to power, and they would rise with him as his elite.

They were going to rule the world in his name, Teresa thought with pride. She saw Echo had just whooped Victor at pool again from her not-so-subtle victory dance and with a smirk led the grimacing Victor over to the bar.

"Bar keep, two of your best beers…on Victor." Echo said with a victorious smirk. Teresa smirked herself before handing them two bottles. "When are you gonna learn Victor…I'm unstoppable at pool." Echo teased and Victor frowned.

"I will beat you at something someday Echo…I am not going stop till I find it." He said with annoyance and she laughed along with Teresa as Victor looked depressed but then the sight of Sierra coming towards him with her incredible smile made his evening as she dragged him out onto the dance floor with the others while everyone else looked on.

Echo and Teresa smiled despite themselves; their wholesome relationship was too good not to make them smile before throwing up again at how sweet it was. They both took a beer and made a silent toast.

Church, London…Christmas Day 2007…

The wedding was a special one, many people had given up their plans to make it and it was a big event.

Lucy was sat in a chair as November made up her face again so it was perfect for the pictures, her maid of honour, Naomi Stern, daughter of one of the biggest hoteliers in London was helping adjust the dress until everything was ready. Lucy was surprisingly calm at the fact this was her big day, which had surprised those that knew her especially her father but she just smiled and told them.

"I know this is what I want."

At the altar the Master stood looking dashing in his tuxedo with his groomsmen being led by Victor and his side of the church being made up of Actives and those who he thought it would look better to invite. Jaime stood at his side with a tuxedo of her own, acting as the 'best woman'.

"Nervous?" She asked teasingly and the Master rolled his eyes before telling her.

"Hardly, I mean I have faced down armies of daleks, crossed dimensions, rewrote time and more stuff than we can go into here. This is easy." The Master told her and Teresa smirked as the wedding march began.

Lucy was beautiful as she walked up the aisle in her wedding dress on her father's arm, holding a bouquet of beautiful red roses. The Master and everyone else smiled at her as she approached and stood next to the Master. The vicar began the service.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to join this man and this woman together in the most sacred of vows. To stand together in the eyes of God and of the world as man and wife." The Vicar said with a solemness that didn't really fit the ceremony. He turned to Teresa and asked her. "Do you have the rings?"

"I have." Teresa said with a smile as she pulled two golden wedding bands out of her pocket and handed them to the Master and Lucy. The Vicar with that over with carried on with the ceremony.

"So, Harold Saxon…do you take this woman as your lawfully wedded wife…to have and hold…in sickness and in health…for as long as you both shall live." The Vicar said, the repeating of the vows being something they had decided against as the repetition would have driven the Master mad.

"I do." Harold Saxon said with a smile, gently placing the ring on her finger. The Vicar then turned to Lucy who held her breath as he spoke.

"Do you…Lucy Cole…take this man as your lawfully wedded husband…to have and to hold…in sickness and in health…for as long as you both shall live?" The Vicar asked her.

For a moment, indecision crossed Lucy's face…she knew this was her very last chance to back out. To run as far away from the Master and try to keep herself safe from his schemes or warn the world what he was planning. She could do it, just for a moment she was ready to run…a moment of indecision before finally she broke and finally embraced him and his schemes with her entire being.

"I do." Lucy said and smiled before putting the ring on his finger. The metal band around her own made her feel chained to him, like from this point on her destiny was tied to his and it was she realised with some ambivalence. He would take her over, completely make her what he wanted her to be.

And she would just let him do it.

The realisation wasn't unwelcome either, she thought to herself, she had always been uncomfortable with who she was before.

Never bright enough, never beautiful enough…never strong enough.

But with Harry, she thought with a warm smile on her face. She was the most beautiful woman in the world because he had chosen her to be at his side, to be with him when he conquered the world.

That made her feel powerful and special for possibly the first time in her life. She was so caught up in that feeling she almost missed the vicar saying.

"Then by the power invested in me, I pronounce you man and wife. To have and to hold, for as long as you both shall live. You may kiss the bride." The Vicar said and the Master without any more prompting took Lucy into his arms and kissed her possessively as the crowd cheered.

- x -

From there they went to the hotel where they were having the reception, a grand five-star hotel with all the trimmings. They all sat around the table, eating and drinking, listening to speeches and just having a good time when they were rudely interrupted.

They looked outside and saw an enormous starshaped spaceship hovering over London, the Master's face tightened as he apparently recognised it and Lucy pouted with anger.

"They're ruining our special day, Harry." She said with anger and the Master was understanding and took her in his arms, holding her in an almost tender way.

"I know and they will pay for this. Phone." He said to reassure her, turning first to Lucy then to Teresa who handed him the mobile phone she had in her pocket for emergencies. He took the phone and told the guests. "After we had that Cyberman Invasion, I had a tank unit assigned to London just in case. They will deal with this." He told them as he dialled the number in.

"Excalibur Squad, proceed to Central London with all speed. The alien ship, shoot it down." The Master ordered before clicking off in time to see the ship now shooting out bolts of lightning at the ground below. Teresa from her reading of the Black Scrolls and other books on the history of Gallifrey recognised the design too.

"The Racnoss." Teresa said to herself with annoyance and was assured that at least their weapons would work on this one. The railguns and particle cannons would work against that ship, they were going down she thought with certainty.

Sure, enough as the tanks got into position, they opened fire on it. The ship had depleted much of its energy already and wasn't ready for an assault, the tanks let rip with their cannons the moment they were in range. Tearing clunks out of it as they hit and not long into this relentless attack, the ship exploded in a fireball over London.

Clark's Maze, London…January 3rd 2008…

With Lucy moving in to the Master's London house, Teresa had moved to a townhouse which she now kept for her own use.

The new year had been quite quiet really compared to Christmas, beyond the Master announcing that he intended to run for Prime Minister and was now establishing his own political party for election, named rather arrogantly the Saxon Party. A lot of politicians though seemed to know he was a top contender and had rushed to join him, giving him potential MPs in every part of the UK.

Construction on Northlight Cold Fusion Plant was going well and would within a few months be completed, the negotiations with the Republic of Ireland on the third plant were being slowed by energy companies throwing their money around and despite Arclight operating safely for months without any problems at all now all sorts of stories were being published in the media of it being 'dangerous' or 'issues at the plant' or 'reactor leakage' and all sorts of stuff like that which could be linked back to them as well. But despite all these claims and morons that believed everything they read being up in arms about it, they forgot quickly as she managed to shift the attention on the terrorist groups the Master had created, having them hit back at the same people that were blackening her project she thought with disgust at them. She would enjoy killing them when she had the time.

She was too busy with running her hidden empire, research projects, finding targets for the terrorist groups, managing much of the Master's network and keeping an eye on their enemies/targets, not to mention organising his supposed birthday party next month. Honestly it was a blessing the Master had decreased her need for sleep or she likely would have had a nervous breakdown by now Teresa thought with a raised eyebrow.

She was however about to get something of a break as those energy companies were about to make another attempt on her life, she thought with strange calmness. Apparently having learned their lesson from the failed sniper they'd sent after her last time, they now were trying to blow her up.

A bomb had been planted and she was moving herself to the safest part of the house, the rear sitting room so when it went off, she wouldn't be hurt too badly but enough for the Master to use her 'life being threatened' to get rid of several enemies. Actives were standing by, posing as emergency services to 'rescue' her she thought amusement, it honestly was funny she thought with a smirk as the timer counted down and exploded.

- x -

Saxon Party Headquarters, Press Conference…The Next Day…

"I am outraged that someone has tried to kill my baby sister! She has devoted her life to creating a sustainable future for everyone in the entire world and somebody has tried to end her for it! I swear to you all that I will not rest till I get to the bottom of this and find those responsible." The Master said, acting furious at what had happened in the face of the press before leaving to go to the private room where Teresa was 'recuperating'.

She had applied makeup to make it look like she had been cut up and bruised but in reality, she had been healed by the antrocytes within moments of the explosion, so he found her sitting up in bed with Lucy at her side as they read magazines.

"Aren't you supposed to be unconscious?" The Master asked with a smile as this little stunt was going to allow him to remove several potential rivals and enemies. Teresa smirked before telling him.

"No rest for the wicked. And you know I'll go crazy…okay crazier if I have nothing to do." Teresa told him before mentioning. "I have another conference in Paris in two weeks and if it's okay I'll take Lucy on a girl's trip. Give you some time to yourself."

The Master frowned, not wanting either of them outside his sight as while he was secure that they would never betray him, his paranoia didn't like it. Still having some time to himself sounded nice, he thought as it would allow him to torture some prisoners and otherwise ruin lives on his own.

"Sure, enjoy yourselves. Don't go too crazy." He told them with a smirk which they nodded now smiling.

Milan, Italy…Three Weeks Later…

Early February in Italy was much better than in Britain and allowed Teresa and Lucy to enjoy themselves more than normal. They enjoy themselves in the café drinking genuine Italian expresso while they were surrounded by brand new shopping bags, each full of clothes and other things they'd bought for themselves. They had plenty more back in their rooms as they had been to Paris just before and had some much-needed time to themselves.

They both had sat in silence as they enjoyed their coffee, the day was surprisingly sunny and fairly nice and since it wasn't the regular tourist season things were much quieter than usual.

"Do you think Harry will like the red dress?" Lucy asked Teresa as they sat watching the world go by, Teresa was amused as she knew full well that he would likely hardly notice as long as it didn't mess with his plans. Lucy hadn't yet realised just how unstable the Master really was, the fact he kept exposing her to horrible things just to see what her reaction was should have made the woman run a mile but she was clearly obsessed with the Master, he was filling up her mind so much there was little room for anything else even herself. If she had been the same woman she had been before meeting the Master, she would have been telling Lucy to get out but she wasn't Teresa thought, Jaime Sommers was her past now.

"I think he will love the sight of you in it." She told Lucy though as honestly, he loved beautiful things so Lucy being dressed to kill would likely endear her to the Master, at least for a while. "Remember Lucy, the Master is short tempered and easily enraged so do not push him or he will likely explode on you. He is mad Lucy, remember that." She told her 'Sister-in-law' who looked unsettled but nodded.

She was loyal to him, but she knew what he was and like an animal, you have to be extremely careful or it would bite you and if the Master turned on you…well whether death or life was preferable depended on just what he could come up with that day.

Either way, Teresa thought with calm acceptance, you would suffer.

Hotel, London…Late February 2008…

The Master or rather Harold Saxon's birthday party was in full swing.

Teresa had gone all out, knowing if things went to plan it would be likely the last time that they had to bother with these things so they might as well enjoy it.

Apart from five-star food and high style environment though the Master was enjoying a performance from some of his favourite bands.

"Just how did you get the Scissor Sisters and Rogue Traders to perform at the party?" Echo said with astonishment as the bands took turns in performing songs that the Master particularly Voodoo Child by the Rogue Traders which particularly liked due to it mentioning the coming of drums. The Master was up there on the dance floor with Lucy right now.

Teresa smiled before leaning over and telling her over the loud music.

"Money and influence. I have quite a bit of pull here and there." Teresa told her with a smirk, it had been child's play to arrange it she thought with amusement.

That being said she was also taking care of other things that were going much slower, surveillance on the Jones Family had given no indication of any contact with the Doctor yet. It was frustrating as they had no idea just when or where the Doctor would pick up Miss Martha Jones.

But at least they had achieved something, arranging a little trap for the Doctor Teresa thought with smugness.

- x -

Lazarus Labs, London…Same Moment…

"The Foundation has found your work to be of particular interest to us Professor Lazarus and we are more than willing to providing funding for you to continue your development of the genetic manipulation technology." Constance Clarke said with a smirk as she saw opposite the old Professor Lazarus. She found it annoying at how he kept staring at her legs, for goodness' sake could he not be obsessed with women for one meeting she thought with disgust, despite the fact she was in a way older than him.

She like Charlotte, Zoe and Lucie had once been a proud companion of the Doctor, born in the early twentieth century she had been lifted from her own time and joined the Doctor in his travels and even been a part of a small gang with him and Philippa or Flip as she preferred to be known. She had planned to go back to her own time and live a boring life but thankfully the Master had found her and raised her up.

Made her more than human and given her a life of importance and so much more, she thought with a sinister grin that unsettled the Professor so he at least stopped staring at her legs.

"I hope you will take into considerable our little…request." Constance said with an expectant air, the implication that they would pull the funding he needed so desperately to complete his work and build the 'hypersonic soundwave manipulator' although Constance didn't reveal to him that she knew what it was or how it worked.

"Yes, Miss Jones will be offered the job as head of PR for the Labs although why we should put someone with so little experience into such a role I don't understand." Professor Lazarus said with dismay at hiring someone who wasn't really qualified to hold such a position without more experience. Constance knew his opinion would likely change when he got sight of the young Letitia Jones or Tish as she was known.

Constance herself had met men like him when she had worked at Bletchley, males who thought just because they had a position and she was away from her husband she would be eager to fall into someone's bed which made her almost sneer in disgust. Even back then she had put them in their place and ensured none of her wrens had been hurt or used by them.

But as she left, sitting in her car smirking all the time she was there. The Master and Miss Teresa had briefed her on their intentions and would let the Professor develop the technology before they stole it for his own use. In the meanwhile, it would be a nice little trap for the Doctor, she thought with disgust at having ever thought well of the man. He was a fool of the highest order she mocked and would enjoy seeing the Master's victory over him.

The Doctor's Tardis, Saxon Headquarters, London…March 2008…

The Master laughed, almost hearing the Tardis cry out in pain as he began to convert it into a paradox machine, a vital part of his plan now that he finally had the Toclafane as he called them under his control.

When it was complete, he thought gleefully as he cut deep into the Tardis and enjoyed its version of a scream, he would be able to unleash the Toclafane on the human race, their own ancestors he thought with enormous anticipation at finally getting to prune this little species down.

The lights in the Tardis turned from their normal yellowish colour into a sickly red hue and the normal gentle hum that ran through it was replaced with an insistent banging of the cloister bell and an awful kind of wheezing, like it was sick. The Master loved the change, it honestly was perfect he thought with enjoyment.

He had much to celebrate at the moment as everything was going as planned, he thought with satisfaction. The Valiant would be launched soon and he would take it as his command centre, the actives were all in positions to remove any potential obstacle and the Toclafane were all too eager to serve him. He had everything he needed and wanted and victory in the election was all but assured. The Archangel Network was operating nicely too and ensuring that no one questioned him.

He had even scored more public opinion points as his 'taskforce' he thought with mocking humour, had dismantled the terrorists who had been causing global chaos, earning him much approval and almost worship which he loved. The attention he was getting from this was brilliant and he loved every moment of it.

Of course, it had been easy to arrange as those terrorists had been either captured Templars or just people taken off the streets, imprinted and used to fake attacks to liven things up! He thought, it could get so boring on this planet so he thought that they needed a wakeup call to make sure they had something to worry about the Master thought with amusement.

- x -

Some hours later he emerged from the Doctor's Tardis with a good deal of the conversion work done, smiling widely as hurting the Doctor's Tardis was almost like hurting the Doctor himself and in absence of the actual Doctor it was enough to keep him satisfied for now.

But the sight of Teresa coming up towards him with a frown on his face spoiled his good mood.

"We may have a problem." She told him with regret. His eyes narrowed at the idea of something going wrong, hating it and likely someone was going to die soon.

"What is it?" He asked her and she told him.

"The Berkut Group. They are investigating me." She said handing him a pad which showed attempts by them to get into their system and reports from the actives of people tailing her in recent days. "Ever since I started going to conferences, they must have recognised me and realised who I used to be." She told him regretfully, not liking to remember the stupid little Jaime Sommers she had once been.

"Pests!" The Master exclaimed in anger, irritated at someone ruining his good mood. He thought about destroying them but then realised they might have a more 'amusing' way to hold them at bay for now and send them off on a wild goose chase. A smirk coming to his lips again as he told her.

"Perhaps it's time we use your resemblance to Lady Christina de Souza." He said and he had thought Teresa would have been glad about it but a frown crossed her face briefly, like she wasn't entirely happy with the plan although a smirk did come a moment later and she reassured him.

"Good, she means nothing to me."

The Master was surprised at her reaction and wondered if there was some kind of connection between them after all, one his slave wasn't sharing with him, something that made even her vicious as she was hesitate for a moment.

"Good thing you look good in all black. Now, this is what we need to do." He told her and she listened, nodding as she realised what he wanted. Again, it seemed slightly forced but she did as he commanded anyway.

- x -

Cairo Museum, Egypt…A Week Later…

Teresa, climbed up the roof of the museum with her hair dyed black and wearing a black leather jacket, a tight black t-shirt, black leggings and black leather knee high boots with a large black bag on her back just like Christina. She easily made her way to the roof and pulled on a balaclava before she picked the lock on one of the skylights and with a rope and harness, slipped herself inside and down to the ground floor.

She carefully removed a glass cutter as she approached the case where an extraordinary collection of golden jewellery with fantastic gemstones lay on a purple velvet cushion. The incredible collection had belonged to an ancient Egyptian Queen whose name was now long forgotten but the jewels had survived and been discovered in her tomb. When she had cut a hole in the glass she gently reached inside and started pulling out the jewellery out of the case and stuffing it inside. Then as she reached for the last piece, she grinned and smashed the glass as she pulled the ring out.

The alarm sounded immediately and quick as a flash she started running out of there, moving so fast she easily slid under the security shutters as they were closing before elegantly rolling to her feet and continued to run, pulling off her balaclava and letting her face appear for the security cameras and her dark hair fly free.

Seeing four security guards ahead and the cameras in the room, Teresa smiled at them with a smirk that honestly was as enchanting as it was deadly. But not as deadly as what she did next.

She moved so fast they couldn't keep up with her, appearing almost like a blur as she grabbed and threw the men around with the same ease as if they were twigs. They smashed hard into walls, displays and furniture with extreme force, two were killed while the others suffered injuries. One of them looked at her as he lay on the ground in great pain.

"Who are you? What are you?" He asked in barely a whisper and Teresa smiled before giving him her answer.

"I'm Christina. Goodnight." She told him before running off, smashing her way out of the window and into the night.

- x -

Saxon Headquarters, London…Next Day…

"Oh perfect. This has worked out just as we hoped." The Master said with a smirk as he looked at the paper, announcing the theft in Cairo and how the authorities were now hunting for a 'Lady Christina de Souza' who had been identified as the culprit by one of the surviving guards, both of which had suffered extensive injuries and would need months if not years to fully recover.

But what mattered is that he had jewels for his own collection and the Berkut Group was now chasing Christina who had jumped to the top of many wanted lists after this stunt. So far, she had managed to elude the authorities but it might take a good while before she stuck her head up again.

"Should keep them off our backs until June." Teresa said with a smirk as she admired one of the rings she'd stolen before handing it over to him. June of course being the election month, Lucy was trying on one of the necklaces and frowned slightly before handing it over to him. He smirked and told her.

"When we rule the Earth, you can have your pick of any of the best jewels on the planet." He reassured her and she smirked, having her mind almost filled by him and eagerly now awaiting the day when 'Harry' would take power.

"I can hardly wait." She told him and he kissed her gently while Teresa rolled her eyes at the sight.

Northlight Power Plant, Scotland…1st June 2008…

Teresa attended the opening of Northlight, Britain's second Cold Fusion Power Plant which would finally mean that nearly all of mainland Britain was powered by Cold Fusion. The first country to have this.

That was something for the history books, Teresa thought with pride, while they were still able to write them. The Master would be doing all that soon she thought as the election was only a few short days away.

They had been campaigning like crazy, apart from all the posters they had been sticking up all over the place they had been travelling around the entire country; The Master, Lucy and herself to campaign together using their slogan 'Working together to build a better Britain'. The entire 'Saxon Family' such as it was campaigning together had won them the family demographic and their growing list of accomplishments didn't hurt either.

Her own was growing as at last she had managed to get the construction on the third plant in Ireland started, one that would serve both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland and there had been some interest displayed by other nations, especially those in Western Europe while tentative queries had come from other shores. The Valiant too had been launched and was now in UNIT's service, ready for the Master to take possession when the time was right.

The only real issue, despite very careful surveillance of the Jones Family and Martha Jones especially there had been no real signs of any contact with the Doctor. No sign of him at all since Christmas and it honestly was starting to worry them. If the Doctor didn't pick up Miss Jones before the election, they would need to maintain this ruse longer than planned.

Even though they had the paradox machine, they needed to make sure that the Doctor went to the end of the Universe with Miss Jones and Captain Jack so the Master could return and come to the present. If they didn't and the Paradox Machine failed, not only would he be sent back to the end of the universe and the gullible and foolish Professor Yana but all of the work they had done so far would be undone.

Teresa frowned at that possibility wondered if they needed to take more drastic action to ensure the two met when she felt her mobile going off. She pulled it out of her pocket and answered the incoming call.

"Our Master is commanding you return to London immediately. We have indications of possible alien activity at the Royal Hope Hospital." Whisky's voice said in a matter-of-fact kind of way. Teresa said simply.

"Understood."

Inwardly though she was sighing in relief, if there was genuine alien activity around the place where Martha Jones worked, they it was almost certain she was going to meet the Doctor soon. Climbing into her car for the long drive back to London she took out her laptop and started working as Kilo drove her. She called up the plans she had been working on, the rockets that the Master wanted to build to establish his new empire across the stars, with a black hole converter in every ship to cause the most incredible amount of destruction. Enough that planets would all soon bend down to the Master, she thought with a smug smile.

Saxon Headquarters, London…4th June 2008…

"Okay, I wasn't expecting that." Teresa said with a raised eyebrow as she and the Master looked at the screen. The image was taken from a news helicopter and showed the hole in the ground where the building used to be.

"The building wasn't destroyed." The Master said with an irritated look on his face. "They used H2O scope to take the building intact and move it somewhere."

"Who's 'they'?" Lucy asked confused and the Master sighed with irritation at her ignorance so Teresa filled her in.

"Judoon. Think large rhinos who are just unthinking thugs who are employed by the Shadow Proclamation to enforce intergalactic law. Annoying bastards." Teresa said with disgust at the ridiculous species. She and the Master had both had run ins with them during the Time War and they were an absolute pain! Short-sighted, thick-headed thugs who didn't even use what little brains they had.

"They must have taken the hospital to isolate a fugitive, hopefully not the Doctor." The Master said with frustration if they somehow had to get him out.

"I just hope they put it somewhere with oxygen. You know how stupid the Judoon are." Teresa said, aware that both Martha Jones and the Doctor were inside, they couldn't care less about the other people but they needed those two alive. If the Judoon screwed up the timeline for them, well Jaime was going to personally wipe the lot of them out she thought with anger.

A couple of hours passed before it was finally returned and surprisingly intact with most of the population still alive, the surveillance unit noted the Doctor had returned to his Tardis the moment they had returned…without Miss Jones who was recovering like the rest of them from being starved of oxygen as apparently the Judoon had screwed up and both them had nearly died along with everyone else in the hospital but thankfully they had nearly all survived.

The fact he had left without Miss Jones worried Teresa and the other actives but the Master was smirking with confidence.

"Echo." The Master said and the young woman in question came over, ready for orders. "If the information we have is right then Miss Jones saved the Doctor's life so he will be looking to offer her a quick trip in the Tardis which will undoubtedly turn into more. Follow Miss Jones wherever she goes and keep a close watch on her. Don't let her out of your sight." He warned the young woman who nodded.

"Sir." Echo said before leaving the room to go and do as he had instructed. Charley came over with a pad in hand and told him.

"I turned down the offer for you to appear on Big Celebrity Dance Mania, and I prepared your statement about the event today." She said handing him the files and the Master smirked in triumph as everything was happening just as he planned.

- x -

Later that evening as the statement regarding the confirmation of Alien life went out, earning him even more votes in the election which was literally about to happen, the Master, Lucy and Teresa watched a screen as Echo carrying the Torchwood contact lenses cameras watched Martha Jones spot the Doctor and head off to speak to him.

Echo, perched on the roof watched them both with her enhanced hearing as she waited to see what was going to happen. They watched as the two talked and then the Doctor proved to Martha that he could travel in time, inviting her for one trip just as the Master had predicted and then her overblown reaction to the bigger on the inside Tardis. Honestly the Master and Teresa, both found it hard to believe that so many people struggled to wrap their heads around that.

Then they watched as the Tardis dematerialised and disappeared into thin air, Echo saying she would return to base.

The Master, Teresa and Lucy all stared at the screen with smug smiles on their faces as at last, they were ready.

"Now it begins." The Master said with a demonic and victorious glint in his eyes, his rise to power was finally after over a year and a half of work at last happening and even the Doctor would be powerless to stop him.

There we are, hope you liked it and please leave a review to let me know what you thought.

Damien Rushby is a character from the BBC series Hotel Babylon who played Emily James's father, who was played by Alexandra Moen who also played Lucy Saxon in Doctor Who.

Constance Clarke was a companion to the Sixth Doctor in the Big Finish Audios. A Wren from Bletchley Park during World War 2 she was a no-nonsense companion. While her eventual fate has not been revealed yet I decided to use her in this story. Played by Miranda Raison who also played Tallulah in Daleks in Manhatten and Evolution of the Daleks.

Next Chapter - The time for the Doctor and the Master to go to war with each other as Harold Saxon becomes Prime Minister and we catch up with the Berkut Group.