The Master's Game (Doctor Who)

A wish

The pain made her legs weak. If she wouldn't still clutch his jacket she probably would just fall. The Master though didn't move, didn't help her in any way, just stood there, like cold rock, watching as she desperately fought to stay conscious.

"Och, come on, don't make such a fuss about it," he snickered. "Wretched human body, eh? Can't stand anything."

She had been injured before. Once or twice even rather badly. But never before in such a way. Taking in one breath after the other, slow and deep, she tried to stabilize herself, tried to get her focus to something else but the pain, throbbing in her flesh.

"Let's see... I'm not the best with spontaneous ideas." The Master chuckled and loosened Roka's hands from his lapels before taking a few steps back, eyes fixated on her as she dropped against the wall with closed eyes, breathing heavily. "Such a pathetic thing. You're not even worthy being called my enemy. Where's the fun in that?"

Finally Roka forced her eyes open to stare at him, still unable to form a proper thought. All she could do was silently watch as he went on rambling.

"How about a proper hunt? What do you think?" He grinned madly at her. "There is a functioning Vortex Manipulator in the TARDIS. I could give it to you. See how far you come while having me in your back." Excitedly he strode around, his voice filled with enthusiasm. "Or even better... you don't age. You have all the time ever needed. How about I just leave you here?" He laughed out loud at the thought. "I bet you would even have fun with that. Using all that fine tech around to build yourself your own time machine... can you do that?"

She glared at him, eyes pinched, having to clench her teeth to bare the pain, while she felt blood still oozing out of the cuts.

"Oh, I bet you can. Or maybe steal a ship. There are enough space traveling species around."

Was this how everything would end?

"I could set a time limit... maybe... a hundred years? What do you think? Too long, too short?" He threw a quick glance at her, but obviously didn't even await an answer.

A century... that was whole human lifespan, her tired mind reminded her. A whole life she would have to spend as a ghost, trying to... to what even? To hold on long enough until he would come back to...

"After that I might even grant you a nice death. Or a slow one. Depending on what you earned yourself." Again he chuckled.

"What..." she barely brought out. "What's the point of this?"

With a few quick steps he was back in front of her, pushed one arm to the wall behind her and glared down at her with a manic glint in his eyes.

"You want that imbecile Doctor to be free, eh? How about you go and free him yourself." He put a finger under her chin to raise her head.

There was so much raging chaos in his eyes, it was hard to look at them for long. It scared her, in a new and different way than what she had felt moments ago. This was who he usually was. Who he had been. Slowly the thought crept into her mind that he had changed since they were traveling together. So slow and subtly that neither she nor him had even noticed it. All this time he had been a little calmer, a little more composed. And seemingly a tiny little bit happier.

All of it gone within one single moment, wiped away, maybe never to return.

"What if I... refuse to play along?" She forced a mean smile onto her face.

For a moment he thought, but then his face lit up with a happy grin. "I'll just go back and kill him instantly." With that he pushed himself away from the wall again, still towering above her.