Typically when the Doctor heard someone call for help, he came running. When that someone was Jack then that had to mean there was a lot of trouble. Well. Either that or Jack thought it might be a good idea to call for help so he could be naked when the Doctor came running to find him, but there was a note of urgency to his voice that made him discard that theory.
Then there was the thing about a knife and, well. Unfortunately he put two and two together so that by the time he reached the console room he wasn't even surprised. He looked at the cables in the Master's hand and at the console, then he locked eyes with Jack, wincing when he noted the blood on his throat.
"You think I'd use you as bait and you alone? Oh please, do I look like an amateur? I can easily threaten both," the Master dismissed easily, rolling his eyes as he waited patiently. Well, not really patiently. He did fidget a little. Oh but it was worth it, he could hear those battered old trainers slapping on the floor with every step. And of course, within moments, there he was. The knight in shining armour.
Yanking the cables a little more towards himself, the Master brandished his knife in a rather showy manner and instead of directing it at Jack, he directed it at the central line, the knife was easily sharp enough to slice into the plastic casing already. Not quite the heart of the TARDIS but enough to do serious damage.
"Yes, a party. If you like then sure, we'll call it that. I prefer 'take over time' personally," the Master suggested with a smug grin, kicking his foot out a little so he just about clipped Jack's ribs to make sure neither of them had lost focus. His eyes met the Doctor's and a challenging look came about, he'd planned a nice little party game for them. "So, Doctor, here's the thing. I'm leaving today. Whether you want me to or not, I'm leaving. But you have a chance to make this end on good terms. Before I could very easily severe all these pretty little connections your TARDIS has and still have time to gut Captain Freak before we all crash horribly. And we will, by the way, these are very important for navigation. Good look steering without them."
He really didn't fancy crashing horribly himself but hell, he'd do it. He'd do anything for freedom. "Now! If you do what I say, we can get out of this with both TARDIS and Harkness unharmed."
So Jack had no idea what the wires in the Master's hand even did, but he was sure that the Master did, and he was usually one to make good on his threats. Great. And he was insane enough to follow through on it despite any risk of bodily harm, as well. He didn't like the way that the Master sort of... hovered over him still, but Jack couldn't reach him to do anything about it, either.
He looked over at the Doctor, looking a little embarrassed for having gotten himself captured and for looking a mess. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine," he said. He could take whatever the Master dished out to him, he was sure.
"Oh, I'm not worried, Jack. It's a party, right? Me, I like parties. Of course, this one is lacking a bit." The Doctor walked further into the console room, rubbing the back of his neck. He made sure to keep his eyes on the Master and the knife in his hand, because he knew well just how far the man was willing to go for attention. "That cable? Ohh, that's very important, really. Without that, nobody's going to go much of anywhere anymore in this. Probably the last TARDIS in the universe, just crashing. That'd be suitably dramatic, eh?"
He paused a few steps away, since he didn't actually want to provoke any reaction, but he reached out with one hand to touch the console, almost as if he wanted to reassure his ship. "So what's your plan, Master? Because I'm not sure about this whole suicide routine. It just isn't very you."
"It's not the last TARDIS," His was out there, somewhere, waiting for him. And he wasn't able to get to it because here he was, dicking around with the Doctor and being his prisoner. He couldn't take it any longer, the endless bored and constant restraint. This has nothing to do with attention, this was entirely to do with freedom. He hated it here. "But you'd like to think that, wouldn't you? That this piece of rusted junk was the last."
The Master grinned but it wasn't really a pleasant one. It was the kind of a shark would give, unpleasant with just a little too many teeth showing. "You think I'm bluffing?" Then, like that, he sliced through three intertwined wires just by the main one. None of which were really that important but they did make the TARDIS panic. The warning signal sounded and the light dimmed slightly. Probably having to relay power. "Death would be a blessing. You're right, normally I'd back out like a coward but not this time. Oh no, I can't go on like this. I never thought you'd drive me this mad but well done, you did it!"
Said a lot for the Doctor's company, didn't it? Gritting his teeth, he slid the knife back towards the more important wires, a determined look on his face. "Enter the co-ordinates I ask you to or I'm going to crash this TARDIS. Worst case scenario? Death. And that's never stopped me much before. Best case? New regenerations! Won't that be exciting, I think it will be." Maybe the next regeneration would have less trouble coping with the drums?
Jack's eyebrows lifted when the knife sliced through the wires as if they were nothing. He swallowed hard and bit his lip, hating how useless he was like this. The Master was too far up his body to kick and not close enough to his head to bite, so really, what could he do? He felt a little sorry for the TARDIS, having her wires cut like that.
"You're insane. Stop this. If we crash and you survive, you'll just be trapped with us anyway, only it'll be less fun than it is even now."
The Doctor's eyes widened when the Master cut the cables, taking a step forward as if he wanted to rush him before he could stop himself. He tightened his hand to a fist and looked at Jack. Time to disappoint him, he supposed. He turned to face the Master, considering. So he had a TARDIS. Good, that's what he'd wanted to find out. Of course, finding that out would have been more satisfying if it didn't appear as if the Master would have told him anyway.
"So you want me to play taxi and bring you to your TARDIS?" The Doctor shook his head. "You must think I'm an idiot. Well. Even more of one than I admittedly just might be for having you on board in the first place. You're going to do it either way. Cut through the cables. I'd rather you did it so we both end up crashing and burning, instead of you getting away by yourself."
He smiled at Jack. "Don't worry. You'll be fine. Well. Eventually." The Doctor opened his arms and caught the Master's eyes. "Go ahead, Master. Crash us."
"I don't want to take you to my TARDIS. Why would I do that? It's mine to know of. I want to be elsewhere. I mean really, Doctor, you idiot. Please think. Do you honestly believe I'd destroy your TARDIS if I can help it? Oh no, I'd like to keep it. Spare parts, you see," the Master insisted as he held his knife steady, knowing he was being goaded and yet aware of how stupid it was to give into pressure. "This is my last resort and I really don't want to damage her if I can. But I will if you push me."
He dug the knife a little future into the central one, going just passed the plastic casing and into the wire, not enough to ruin it but enough that the console screen glitched a moment and all the lights dropped into emergency mode. "We can part ways amicably or we can do it like this. Give up, Doctor. Don't make me kill two of your friends and cause a regeneration for you. Isn't that a little much?"
Moving a little further back, he withdrew the knife, debating how far he could get it into Jack before it jammed. He didn't want to risk disarming himself, that'd be unfortunate. "Now, let me give my co-ordinates. I promise you'll like them. No, really, you will!"
God he wished he had a better weapons, guns were so much more threatening! "
Where was the Master wanting to be taken? Some place shared by him and the Doctor, no doubt. He watched the Master's footing carefully, waiting for an opening. But the way that he was brandishing his weapon made it seem as if he was poised to strike him for trying to retaliate. Still, he had to try. Any attack from the Master would certainly be better than the TARDIS crashing.
Jack pulled himself up just a bit and twisted his hips to sweep the Master from the back of the knees. Maybe if he fell over, he'd drop the knife, too!
"Right." So... Alright, he had the Master's plan mostly worked out and he knew he couldn't let it happen. But one step at the time, he would have to play along until an opportunity presented itself, especially since the man seemed to be close to accidentally cutting the wire just while he threatened. The Doctor took a deep breath and gave a nod. "Give me your coordinates then. And please, oh, please, take that knife a bit further away from the cable while you're just threatening."
It was at that moment that Jack kicked him and the Doctor's eyes widened. He moved forward immediately, intent on catching the Master if he could. In the end he just fell on his knees right by them, shooting something close to a glare in Jack's direction. "I know this is a stressful time for us all, but, please, Jack, could you not kick the man who has a knife right at the TARDIS?"
It had been going so well, he was just about to finally get his co-ordinates out and that happened. Fantastic. His legs did indeed go out from under him and as so, the grip on the knife loosen. He didn't catch how it happened or in what way the knife fell but when it flew up into the air, he didn't expect it to land pointy side down or anywhere near him.
At first he didn't notice, he was far too busy trying to get onto his feet and retain some dignity and perhaps a few cables when a tingling feeling hit him and just as he moved his hand out to get the wires, he noticed something very much in his hand.
Ah. So that's where the knife went. There was a long moment of silence as he inspected the knife, long and pointy, currently stuck in his hand. And then he went a strange shade of pale.
"Well I had to do something!" Jack called back to the Doctor. "I wasn't about to let him get away with this, was I?" There was always a third option, and as much as the Doctor didn't like it, it often involved violence.
The Master, however, was strangely quiet for someone who had just ended up on his back. Jack pulled himself up to sit and examined his work, surprised, and even a little horrified to see where the knife had landed.
"...Oh." Okay, maybe there was a little self-satisfaction there, too. "Well. Karma's a bitch, isn't it?"
"He could have cut them accidentally!" The Doctor might have argued further, but then he saw what the other two were staring at and, well. He didn't call himself the Doctor just for the pompous title. Without even thinking about it he crawled over to close the distance between them and he put an arm around the Master, grabbing his wrist with one hand. "Hold still, alright? Try to keep your hand as relaxed as you can."
He grabbed the hilt of the knife with his free hand, moving his fingers to make sure to hold the Master's hand steady. "I'm going to pull it out now. Are you ready?" In theory it might be wiser to wait with pulling it out until they were in the infirmary, but doctor he might be, but he was also the Doctor and he wanted the knife in his possession and the Master back under his control as fast as possible.
The Master had been putting all his strength into not making any sounds of pain or agony at the current sensation he was feeling so when the Doctor was suddenly all over him, hands close to the knife, he had to take a very long and sharp inhale to even be able to get words out. His voice was definitely lacking his usual confidence but who could be that cocky when impaled? "Shit."
Okay, he could have been more eloquent with his words but dear lord in heaven, there was a knife sticking out of his hand and -- hang on, what was the Doctor doing? "No, no, no, no! Get off! Don't help, you'll make it worse," the Master insisted because yes, he knew the Doctor. And he knew how well he could balls this up. So, in his panic, he stomped very hard on the Doctor's foot in an effort to make him back off and stumbled free, hand throbbing the whole time. "Don't help me! You're not a qualified doctor, you barely passed first aid!" the Master snapped as he grabbed the hilt himself and even that was enough to make him yelp in pain. Oh Rassilon, how the hell did this even happen?
"I can do this. I can do this," the Master kept repeating... but he very much wasn't doing it. Hey, a coward was always a coward. Especially when impaled.
There was no hiding the satisfaction on Jack's face at the Master's suffering. Turnabout's fair play, and he couldn't do anything to help even if he wanted to, so he just lay there, enjoying watching the Master bleed all over himself, though the wound did look particularly gruesome.
"You look like you're having a bit of trouble there. It really can't feel very good, can it? Being stabbed? Too bad it's only the once, though." He rocked his feet back and forth so he could just watch. "Don't lose too much blood now. You might pass out and die."
The Doctor spent some time hopping on one foot and rubbing the other, but he had no time to focus on that considerable pain - had the Master broken one of his toes? - when someone else was dealing with something much worse. "Do you ever stop to consider that I might have done something since academy days? I actually have a doctorate. A couple of them. Granted, I didn't always graduate in the right century, but I did study. Now let me take this out before you make it any worse."
He held out a hand but stayed where he was, since he didn't want to get stomped on again in case the Master still didn't trust him. He did however look at Jack and arch an eyebrow. Alright, so he'd just been killed by the Time Lord, but this wasn't how one was the bigger man.
"When I get this out, I'm ramming it through your eye and twisting it till I scramble it into liquid," the Master hissed at Jack because now was not a time to deal with the freaks taunts. And no, he wasn't kidding. He was very much determined to do that, Jack had impaled him and it was really an act of war. "And I'll leave it in. Good luck coming back without dying in agony."
Still grasping the end of the knife, he gave the Doctor a look that clearly showed how much he trusted him and gently eased his hand away, leaving the knife sticking out rather crudely. To say it was agony was an understatement. Taking a very deep breath, the Master looked at the Doctor and gave him an uneasy look. Was it really safe to remove the knife? Weren't you meant to keep them in? Against his better judgement, he held his hand out towards his greatest enemy.
"I want that knife back, by the way," the Master grumbled, not sure if the Doctor was that dumb. Maybe?
Jack's eyebrow lifted at the threat. He was sure that the Master had every intent on doing exactly as he said, but honestly, Jack really couldn't be arsed to care much at the moment. He watched the Master extend his hand, and, okay, yeah, it did look pretty painful, but he deserved it, he told himself.
There was a morbid curiosity on Jack's face as he watched the Doctor work. He didn't often get to see other people with horrific wounds like that, so this was something of a treat... in a way. "You'll need something to stop the bleeding as soon as it's out, Doctor."
"Yeah, yeah, I know that." The Doctor considered for just a moment, then he shrugged out of his jacket. He should take the Master to the infirmary, but he had a feeling that wouldn't go over well. What he intended to do was to end this stand-off as fast as possible, so once he got the knife out he could treat the Master probably and then work on repairing the TARDIS.
"Why, of course I'll give that knife back to you. Please." The Doctor grabbed the Master's wrist and then the hilt, this time intent not to waste time. "Let's get back to you threatening me right away."
With that bit of sarcasm he pulled the knife out and then, right away, he wrapped his jacket around the Master's hand, tying it off tightly. The knife however... Well, he made sure to put that out of the way immediately. "You should sit down before you faint."
The Master didn't need to sit down. As much as he tried to appear as together as he possibly could, it took seconds for his legs to give out and hit the grating rather hard. This was insanely unfair, he was doing so well. If Jack hadn't of kicked his feet out from under him, he'd of been fine. Oh, first chance he had, he was going to strangle that freak. He'd beaten him once before, he could do it again. Chain him up in that needless little hat room the Doctor had and leave him to starve for eternity, see how cocky he was then.
"I don't need first aid advise from the freak," the Master sneered, like Jack understood what it truly meant to be impaled, he probably didn't feel it much any more. Or that was how the Master viewed it. With all his will and efforts, he forced himself back onto his feet because there was no way he was going to remain kneeling in front of the Doctor.
"This still counts as a win," the Master insisted childishly, even if he didn't much look like a winner. "This TARDIS is going to crash, you know? Though less immediate and more a matter of time."
Jack visibly winced when the Master's weight hit the grating, and again, couldn't help but to take some satisfaction in it. What else could he do locked up like he was? "Oh, just let him pass out. It'll give us time to fix things up before we crash." Though he did wonder exactly how long they had. The flashing lights on the console weren't exactly a beacon of hope in this situation, and he really was hoping to get free in time to do something about it.
He watched the Master struggle back to his feet and rolled his eyes. This was getting tiresome, and there really was an emergency on. "Doctor, do something!" He rattled his cuffs against the railing, reminding him of his uselessness. "Could really use some freedom here!"
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Then there was the thing about a knife and, well. Unfortunately he put two and two together so that by the time he reached the console room he wasn't even surprised. He looked at the cables in the Master's hand and at the console, then he locked eyes with Jack, wincing when he noted the blood on his throat.
"You're having a party without me?"
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Yanking the cables a little more towards himself, the Master brandished his knife in a rather showy manner and instead of directing it at Jack, he directed it at the central line, the knife was easily sharp enough to slice into the plastic casing already. Not quite the heart of the TARDIS but enough to do serious damage.
"Yes, a party. If you like then sure, we'll call it that. I prefer 'take over time' personally," the Master suggested with a smug grin, kicking his foot out a little so he just about clipped Jack's ribs to make sure neither of them had lost focus. His eyes met the Doctor's and a challenging look came about, he'd planned a nice little party game for them. "So, Doctor, here's the thing. I'm leaving today. Whether you want me to or not, I'm leaving. But you have a chance to make this end on good terms. Before I could very easily severe all these pretty little connections your TARDIS has and still have time to gut Captain Freak before we all crash horribly. And we will, by the way, these are very important for navigation. Good look steering without them."
He really didn't fancy crashing horribly himself but hell, he'd do it. He'd do anything for freedom. "Now! If you do what I say, we can get out of this with both TARDIS and Harkness unharmed."
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He looked over at the Doctor, looking a little embarrassed for having gotten himself captured and for looking a mess. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine," he said. He could take whatever the Master dished out to him, he was sure.
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He paused a few steps away, since he didn't actually want to provoke any reaction, but he reached out with one hand to touch the console, almost as if he wanted to reassure his ship. "So what's your plan, Master? Because I'm not sure about this whole suicide routine. It just isn't very you."
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The Master grinned but it wasn't really a pleasant one. It was the kind of a shark would give, unpleasant with just a little too many teeth showing. "You think I'm bluffing?" Then, like that, he sliced through three intertwined wires just by the main one. None of which were really that important but they did make the TARDIS panic. The warning signal sounded and the light dimmed slightly. Probably having to relay power. "Death would be a blessing. You're right, normally I'd back out like a coward but not this time. Oh no, I can't go on like this. I never thought you'd drive me this mad but well done, you did it!"
Said a lot for the Doctor's company, didn't it? Gritting his teeth, he slid the knife back towards the more important wires, a determined look on his face. "Enter the co-ordinates I ask you to or I'm going to crash this TARDIS. Worst case scenario? Death. And that's never stopped me much before. Best case? New regenerations! Won't that be exciting, I think it will be." Maybe the next regeneration would have less trouble coping with the drums?
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"You're insane. Stop this. If we crash and you survive, you'll just be trapped with us anyway, only it'll be less fun than it is even now."
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"So you want me to play taxi and bring you to your TARDIS?" The Doctor shook his head. "You must think I'm an idiot. Well. Even more of one than I admittedly just might be for having you on board in the first place. You're going to do it either way. Cut through the cables. I'd rather you did it so we both end up crashing and burning, instead of you getting away by yourself."
He smiled at Jack. "Don't worry. You'll be fine. Well. Eventually." The Doctor opened his arms and caught the Master's eyes. "Go ahead, Master. Crash us."
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He dug the knife a little future into the central one, going just passed the plastic casing and into the wire, not enough to ruin it but enough that the console screen glitched a moment and all the lights dropped into emergency mode. "We can part ways amicably or we can do it like this. Give up, Doctor. Don't make me kill two of your friends and cause a regeneration for you. Isn't that a little much?"
Moving a little further back, he withdrew the knife, debating how far he could get it into Jack before it jammed. He didn't want to risk disarming himself, that'd be unfortunate. "Now, let me give my co-ordinates. I promise you'll like them. No, really, you will!"
God he wished he had a better weapons, guns were so much more threatening! "
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Jack pulled himself up just a bit and twisted his hips to sweep the Master from the back of the knees. Maybe if he fell over, he'd drop the knife, too!
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It was at that moment that Jack kicked him and the Doctor's eyes widened. He moved forward immediately, intent on catching the Master if he could. In the end he just fell on his knees right by them, shooting something close to a glare in Jack's direction. "I know this is a stressful time for us all, but, please, Jack, could you not kick the man who has a knife right at the TARDIS?"
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At first he didn't notice, he was far too busy trying to get onto his feet and retain some dignity and perhaps a few cables when a tingling feeling hit him and just as he moved his hand out to get the wires, he noticed something very much in his hand.
Ah. So that's where the knife went. There was a long moment of silence as he inspected the knife, long and pointy, currently stuck in his hand. And then he went a strange shade of pale.
Shit.
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The Master, however, was strangely quiet for someone who had just ended up on his back. Jack pulled himself up to sit and examined his work, surprised, and even a little horrified to see where the knife had landed.
"...Oh." Okay, maybe there was a little self-satisfaction there, too. "Well. Karma's a bitch, isn't it?"
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He grabbed the hilt of the knife with his free hand, moving his fingers to make sure to hold the Master's hand steady. "I'm going to pull it out now. Are you ready?" In theory it might be wiser to wait with pulling it out until they were in the infirmary, but doctor he might be, but he was also the Doctor and he wanted the knife in his possession and the Master back under his control as fast as possible.
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Okay, he could have been more eloquent with his words but dear lord in heaven, there was a knife sticking out of his hand and -- hang on, what was the Doctor doing? "No, no, no, no! Get off! Don't help, you'll make it worse," the Master insisted because yes, he knew the Doctor. And he knew how well he could balls this up. So, in his panic, he stomped very hard on the Doctor's foot in an effort to make him back off and stumbled free, hand throbbing the whole time. "Don't help me! You're not a qualified doctor, you barely passed first aid!" the Master snapped as he grabbed the hilt himself and even that was enough to make him yelp in pain. Oh Rassilon, how the hell did this even happen?
"I can do this. I can do this," the Master kept repeating... but he very much wasn't doing it. Hey, a coward was always a coward. Especially when impaled.
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"You look like you're having a bit of trouble there. It really can't feel very good, can it? Being stabbed? Too bad it's only the once, though." He rocked his feet back and forth so he could just watch. "Don't lose too much blood now. You might pass out and die."
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He held out a hand but stayed where he was, since he didn't want to get stomped on again in case the Master still didn't trust him. He did however look at Jack and arch an eyebrow. Alright, so he'd just been killed by the Time Lord, but this wasn't how one was the bigger man.
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Still grasping the end of the knife, he gave the Doctor a look that clearly showed how much he trusted him and gently eased his hand away, leaving the knife sticking out rather crudely. To say it was agony was an understatement. Taking a very deep breath, the Master looked at the Doctor and gave him an uneasy look. Was it really safe to remove the knife? Weren't you meant to keep them in? Against his better judgement, he held his hand out towards his greatest enemy.
"I want that knife back, by the way," the Master grumbled, not sure if the Doctor was that dumb. Maybe?
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There was a morbid curiosity on Jack's face as he watched the Doctor work. He didn't often get to see other people with horrific wounds like that, so this was something of a treat... in a way. "You'll need something to stop the bleeding as soon as it's out, Doctor."
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"Why, of course I'll give that knife back to you. Please." The Doctor grabbed the Master's wrist and then the hilt, this time intent not to waste time. "Let's get back to you threatening me right away."
With that bit of sarcasm he pulled the knife out and then, right away, he wrapped his jacket around the Master's hand, tying it off tightly. The knife however... Well, he made sure to put that out of the way immediately. "You should sit down before you faint."
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"I don't need first aid advise from the freak," the Master sneered, like Jack understood what it truly meant to be impaled, he probably didn't feel it much any more. Or that was how the Master viewed it. With all his will and efforts, he forced himself back onto his feet because there was no way he was going to remain kneeling in front of the Doctor.
"This still counts as a win," the Master insisted childishly, even if he didn't much look like a winner. "This TARDIS is going to crash, you know? Though less immediate and more a matter of time."
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He watched the Master struggle back to his feet and rolled his eyes. This was getting tiresome, and there really was an emergency on. "Doctor, do something!" He rattled his cuffs against the railing, reminding him of his uselessness. "Could really use some freedom here!"