I am stunned by how few of you commented on "Utopia." Either you were speechless, or everyone was crowding around "The Big Bang" finale for "Rising From The Ashes." I'm hoping it was the first one. Thank you to Maddythewriter for commenting, at least!

In this chapter, Jack and Martha still have no clue which Time Lord Saxon is, the Apocalypse still isn't telling, so what's going to happen when Jack finds out he's about to meet his "brother?"

Enjoy "The Sound of Drums!" I promise, you'll love the end of it!

***

"Gimme that!" the Apocalypse barked, jumping on Jack's Vortex Manipulator. "Hold still!" she ordered, using her sonic screwdriver. "Don't move! Hold it still!"

"I'm telling you, it's broken!" Jack shouted. "It hasn't worked for years!"

"That's because you didn't have me!" she retorted. "Martha, grab hold, now!"

Martha slapped a hand on the Vortex Manipulator, and they disappeared. They were spat out in an alleyway, groaning. "Oh, my head," Martha whined.

"Time travel without a capsule," the Apocalypse shook her head. "That's a killer."

"Still, at least we made it," Jack smiled as they walked out onto a street. "Earth, 21st century by the looks of it. Talk about lucky."

"That wasn't luck," the Apocalypse grumbled. "That was me."

"The moral is, if you're going to get stuck at the end of the universe, get stuck with an ex-Time Agent and his Vortex Manipulator."

"But this Time Lord, whoever he is, he's got the TARDIS," Martha said. "He could be anywhere in time and space."

"No, he's here," the Apocalypse shook her head. "Trust me."

"Who is he, anyway?" Martha asked. "And that voice at the end, that wasn't the Professor."

"If he's a Time Lord, then he must have regenerated," Jack guessed.

"What does that mean?"

"It means he's changed his face, voice, body, everything. New man."

"Then how are we going to find him?"

"I'll know him the moment I see him," the Apocalypse answered. "Time Lords always do."

"But, hold on," Martha frowned as they looked around. "If he could be anyone, we missed the election. But it can't be!"

"Mr. Saxon has returned from the Palace and is greeting the crowd inside Saxon Headquarters."

They looked up at television screens attached to lampposts to see the Master walking down stairs with his wife. "I said I knew that voice!" Martha grinned. "When he spoke inside the TARDIS, I've heard that voice hundreds of times. I've seen him. We all have. That was the voice of Harold Saxon!"

"That's him," the Apocalypse blinked. "He's Prime Minister. He's Prime Minister of Great Britain." She blinked, seeing her brother kiss the blonde with him. "And his wife?" I've got a sister-in-law?

"This country has been devastated," the Master spoke to the cameras. "This country has been destroyed. This country was obliterated. In fact . . . I'd go so far as to say that what really happened to this country . . . was an Apocalypse." He smiled innocently.

The Apocalypse huffed. "Show off."

"Do you know who he is?" Jack asked, looking at her.

The Apocalypse bit her lip. "Not yet," she lied.

Jack frowned, knowing that was a lie immediately. But if she knew, who knew who it was.

***

"Home," Martha said as she unlocked her door.

"What have you got?" the Apocalypse asked, going inside. "Computer, laptop, anything?" She frowned, seeing Jack on his phone. "Jack, who are you phoning? You can't tell anyone we're here!"

"Just some friends of mine, but there's no reply," Jack shook his head.

"Here you go," Martha said, bringing her laptop over. "Any good?"

"I can show you the Saxon websites," Jack offered. "He's been around for ages."

"That's so weird, though," Martha smiled. "It's the day after the election. That's only four days after I met you."

"We went flying all around the universe while he was here all the time," the Apocalypse grumbled.

"You going to tell us who he is?"

"He's a Time Lord."

"What about a name?" Jack asked. "What's his name?"

"I don't know," she ground out. "He's a Time Lord, and that's all you need to know. Come on! Show me Harold Saxon!"

Jack went to work, and Martha switched on her answering machine. "Martha, where are you?" Tish's voice asked. "I've got this new job. You won't believe it! It's weird, they just phoned me up out of the blue. I'm working for - !"

Martha sighed, switching it off. "Oh, like it matters."

"Former Minister of Defense," Jack told the Apocalypse as they watched supporters of the Master fly by. "First came to prominence when he shot down the Racnoss on Christmas Eve." He smiled at her. "Nice work, by the way."

"Oh, thanks," she nodded.

"But he goes back years," Martha said. "He's famous. Everyone knows his story. Look, Cambridge University, Rugby blue. Won the Athletics thing. Wrote a novel, went into business, marriage, everything. He's got a whole life!"

"But he's got the TARDIS," Jack pointed out as he went to make tea. "Maybe he went back in time and has been living here for decades?"

"No," the Apocalypse shook her head immediately.

"Why not? Worked for me."

"When he was stealing the TARDIS, the only thing I could do was fuse the coordinates. I locked them permanently. He can only travel between the year one hundred trillion and the last place the TARDIS landed, which is right here, right now."

Jack raised an eyebrow, knowing how precise his sister was. "Yeah, but a little leeway?"

She sighed. "Well, eighteen months, tops. The most he could have been here is eighteen months. So how has he managed all this? Loads of Time Lords are hypnotic, but this is on a massive scale!"

"I was going to vote for him," Martha mused.

"Really?"

"Well, it was before I even met you, and I liked him."

"Me, too," Jack nodded.

"Why do you say that?" the Apocalypse asked. "What was his policy? What did he stand for?"

"I don't know," Martha shrugged, absently tapping the armrest. "He always sounded good. Like you could trust him. Just nice. He spoke about . . . I can't really remember, but it was good. Just the sound of his voice . . . "

"What's that?" the Apocalypse asked, nodding at her.

She blinked. "What?"

"That!" She pointed. "That tapping. That rhythm. What are you doing?"

Martha looked. "I don't know. It's nothing. It's just . . . I don't know!"

A pop up came from the laptop that said Saxon Broadcast All Channels. The Apocalypse went to the TV and turned it on, rolling up her sleeves. "Our lord and master is speaking to his kingdom," she said sarcastically.

"Britain, Britain, Britain," the Master sighed from where he was inside the Cabinet room. "What extraordinary times we've had. Just a few years ago, this world was so small, and then they came, out of the unknown, falling from the skies. You've seen it happen. Big Ben destroyed . . . "

+++

There was a horn above them, and the Apocalypse quickly pulled Rose to the ground as a spaceship with black smoke billowing from it passed overhead. They watched it crash through Big Ben, then land in the Thames. Rose's jaw dropped as she stared down at it. "Oh, that's just not fair!" she complained.

The Apocalypse just cheered happily and took off for the stairs down the building. Rose shook her head and ran after her. "Wait up!" she shouted.

+++

"A spaceship over London . . . "

+++

The glass in the living room shattered, and Rose quickly ran out, looking up overhead. A huge powered rock glided overhead, and Rose stared up at it before running back inside. "Mickey, we're going to carry her," she told Mickey, heading to the Apocalypse's room. "Mum, get your stuff, and get some food. We're going."

"Where to?" Mickey asked.

"The TARDIS," Rose replied. "It's the only safest place on Earth."

"What're we going to do in there?" Jackie asked.

"Hide."

"Is that it?"

Rose took a deep breath. "Mum, look in the sky," she said slowly. "There's a great, big, alien invasion, and I don't know what to do, all right? I've traveled with her, and I've seen all that stuff, but when I'm stuck at home, I'm useless. Now, all we can do is run and hide, and I'm sorry. Now, move!" Jackie left, and Rose turned to Mickey. "Lift her up."

+++

"All those ghosts and metal men . . . "

+++

"But these Cybermen, what've they got to do with the ghosts?" Jackie asked.

"Do you never listen?" the Apocalypse complained. "A footprint doesn't look like a boot."

"Achieving full transfer," the CyberLeader announced.

"They're Cybermen," the Apocalypse explained. "All of the ghosts are Cybermen. Millions of them, right across the world."

"They're invading the whole planet!" Yvonne gasped.

"It's not an invasion," the Apocalypse said darkly. "It's too late for that. It's a victory."

+++

"The Christmas star that came to kill. Time and time again, and the government told you nothing. Well, not me. Not Harold Saxon. Because my purpose here today is to tell you this. Citizens of Great Britain, I have been contacted." The Apocalypse sat straight up. "A message for humanity, from beyond the stars."

A sphere of some sort appeared and started to speak in a female voice. "People of Earth,we come in peace. We bring great gifts. We bring technology and wisdom and protection. All we ask in return is your friendship."

"Ooo, sweet," the Master grinned. "And this species has identified itself. They are called the Toclafane."

"What?" the Apocalypse yelped sharply.

"And tomorrow morning, they will appear. Not in secret, but to all of you. Diplomatic relations with a new species will begin. Tomorrow, we take our place in the universe. Every man, woman, and child. Every teacher and chemist and lorry driver and farmer. Oh, I don't know . . . " He smirked. "Every . . . medical student?"

The Apocalypse blinked, then spun the TV around to see explosives strapped in the back. "Out!" she screeched, and they took off out the door, the Apocalypse snatching the laptop as they ran.

The house exploded behind them, and the Apocalypse held up her hand, blocking the heat wave from hitting them. "Everyone all right?" she asked.

"Fine, yeah, fine," Jack nodded.

"Martha?" the Apocalypse asked, turning. "What are you doing?"

Martha looked up from where she was dialing on her phone. "He knows about me. What about my family?"

"Don't tell them anything - "

"I'll do what I like!" she snapped, raising her phone to her ear. "Mum? Oh, my God, you're there!"

"Of course I'm here, sweetheart," Francine answered. "You all right?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Mum, has there been anyone asking about me?"

"Martha, I think perhaps you should come round."

"I can't, not now."

"No, but it's your father. We've been talking, and we thought we might give it another go."

"Don't be so daft," Martha snorted. "Since when?"

"Just come around! Come to the house. We can celebrate."

"You said you'd never get back with him in a million years."

"Ask him yourself."

Martha frowned, then Clive came on. "Martha, it's me."

"Dad, what are you doing there?" she asked.

"Like your mother said, come round. We can explain everything."

"Dad?" Martha frowned. "Just say yes or no. Is someone else there?"

Pause, then - "Yes! Just run!"

"Clive!" Francine shouted.

"Listen to me! Just run! I don't know who they are!"

"We're trying to help her!" Francine shouted as Martha's eyes widened. "Martha, don't listen to him!"

"Dad? What's going on?" Martha asked. "Dad?"

"We've got to get Martha away from him!"

Martha hung up, heading for her car. "We've got to help them!"

"That's exactly what they want!" the Apocalypse shouted. "It's a trap!"

"I don't care!" she yelled, getting into the driver's seat.

The Apocalypse got into the front seat, Jack in back, and Martha drove off. "Corner!" the Apocalypse yelped, and Martha narrowly avoided one.

Martha dialed a number on her phone and held it on her shoulder, driving with both hands. "Come on, Tish, pick up," she hissed.

"Martha, I can't talk right now," Martha said. "We just made first contact, did you see?" A moment later - "What are you doing? Get off! Linda, tell them!"

"What's happening?" Martha panicked. "Tish!" She glared at the Apocalypse. "It's your fault! It's all your fault!"

Jack put a hand on her shoulder supportively as Martha wheeled around the corner to see men in black hauling the Joneses into the back of a police van. "Martha, get out of here!" Francine shouted. "Gt out!"

"Target identified," a woman in black said, and armed policemen ran to her side.

"Martha, reverse," the Apocalypse urged.

"Take aim."

"Get out, now!"

"Fire!"

"Move it!" Jack shouted.

Before the bullets could go far, the Apocalypse made a shoving motion, and the bullets slammed back into the police. The woman in black screamed, and Martha high tailed it out. "The only place we can go, planet Earth," Martha grumbled. "Great!"

"Careful!" the Apocalypse yelped as they avoided incoming traffic.

"Martha, listen to me," Jack urged. "Do as I say. We've got to ditch this car. Pull over, right now!"

Martha wheeled over to an underpass, and they got out of the car. "Martha, come on!" the Apocalypse shouted as she tried to dial again.

"Leo!" Martha sighed in relief. "Oh, thank God. Leo, you got to listen to me. Where are you?"

"I'm in Brighton," he answered. "Yeah, we came down with Boxer. Did you see that Saxon thing on telly?"

"Leo, just listen to me, don't go home. I'm telling you, don't phone Mum or Dad or Tish. You've got to hide."

"Shut up!"

"On my life! You've got to trust me! Go to Boxer's, stay with him. Don't tell anyone. Just hide - "

"Ooo, a nice little game of hide and seek," the Master's voice chuckled. "I love that. But I'll find you, Martha Jones. Been a long time since we saw each other. Must be . . . what, one hundred trillion years?"

"Let them go, Saxon!" Martha shouted. "Do you hear me? Let them g - !"

The phone was telekinetically ripped out of her hand, and the Apocalypse put it under her ear, storming off. "I'm here," she said.

There was a pause, then the Master said softly, "Banja."

"Risterrin," she answered. "Or do I call you the Master?"

"I like it when you use my name."

"You chose it. Psychiatrist's field day."

"As you chose yours. The woman who destroys all, and she married the Doctor, the man who makes people better. How sanctimonious is that?"

"Just tell me, did he survive?"

" . . . I don't know."

The Apocalypse sighed, sitting down on a bench. "So . . . Prime Minister, then."

"I know. It's good, isn't it?"

"Who are those creatures? Because there's no such thing as the Toclafane. It's just a made up name, like the Bogeyman."

"Do you remember all those fairy tales about the Toclafane when we were kids back home? Where is it, Banja?"

"Gone."

"How can Gallifrey be gone?!"

"It burnt."

"And the Time Lords?"

"Dead. And the Daleks, more or less. What happened to you?"

"The Time Lords only resurrected me because they knew I'd be the perfect warrior for a Time War. I was there when the Dalek Emperor took control of the Cruciform. I saw it. I ran. I ran so far. Made myself human so they would never find me, because I was so scared."

The Apocalypse closed her eyes. And he'd left the Doctor somewhere there, too. "I know," she said softly.

"What's she speaking in?" Martha asked.

"Gallifreyan," Jack answered, frowning. "The language of the Time Lords. Private conversation, then."

"All of them?" the Master asked. "But not you . . . which must mean - "

"I was the only one who could end it," the Apocalypse confirmed. "And I tried. I did. I tried everything."

"What did it feel like, though? Two almighty civilizations, burning. Oh, tell me, how did that feel?"

"Stop it!" she cried.

She could hear him swallow. "I'm sorry."

"I know. But I've been alone ever since. But not anymore. Don't you see? All we've got is each other."

"Sister, I love you, but I'll leave the dates to others . . . assuming I let them go so far."

"You could stop this right now. We could leave this planet. We can fight across the constellations, if that's what you want, but not Earth."

"Too late."

"Why do you say that?"

"The drumming. Can't you hear it? I thought it would stop, but it never does. Never ever stops. Inside my head, the drumming, Banja. The constant drumming."

"I could help you. Please, let me help!"

"It's everywhere. Listen, listen! Here come the drums! Here come the drums!"

The Apocalypse turned, seeing a man slap his thighs in the same four-beat rhythm Martha had been tapping earlier. "What have you done?" she asked, standing up and walking over. "Tell me how you've done this! What are those creatures? Tell me!"

"Ooo, look, you're on TV!"

"Stop it! Answer me!"

"No, really, you're on the telly. You and your little band, which, by the way, is ticking every demographic box. So, congratulations on that. Look! There you are!" The Apocalypse turned to see that inside the shopping center, the TVs had their pictures on them, with them designated terrorists. "You're public enemies number one, two, and three. Oh, and you can tell handsome Jack that I've sent his little gang off on a wild goose chase to the Himalayas, so he won't be getting any help from them. Now, go on, off you go. Why not start by turning to the right?"

The Apocalypse turned to see a camera aimed right at her. "He can see us," she snarled, making a fist.

The camera exploded, shards of metal going everywhere. "Oh, you public menace," the Master laughed. "Better start running! Go on! Run!"

"He's got control of everything," the Apocalypse breathed.

"What do we do?" Martha asked.

"We've got nowhere to go," Jack confirmed.

"Apocalypse, what do we do?"

"Run, Apocalypse!" the Master shouted, going back to English. "Run for your life!"

"We run," the Apocalypse answered, taking her brother's advise and taking off.

"I said run!"

***

Martha returned later that evening to the warehouse they'd made their base, a bag of takeout in her hand. "How was it?" Jack asked as the Apocalypse bent over the laptop, sleeves rolled up.

"I don't think anyone saw me," Martha shook her head. "Anything new?"

"I've got this tuned to government wavelengths so we can follow what Saxon's doing," Jack began.

"Yeah, I meant about my family."

"It still says the Jones family taken in for questioning," the Apocalypse said. "Tell you what, though . . . no mention of Leo."

"He's not as daft as he looks," Martha chuckled, handing out takeout before she paused. "I'm talking about my bother on the run. How did this happen?"

Jack took a bite and nodded. "Nice chips."

The Apocalypse nodded as well. "Actually, they're not bad."

Jack turned to his sister. "So, Apocalypse, who is he? How come the ancient society of Time Lords created a psychopath?"

"And what is he to you?" Martha asked. "Like, a colleague or - ?"

"Our best friend," the Apocalypse answered with a smile. "Well, was."

Martha chuckled. "I thought you were going to say he was your secret brother or something."

The Apocalypse cringed. That was a bit too close to home. "You've been watching too much TV."

"But all the legends of Gallifrey and what you've said about it made it sound so perfect," Jack said.

"Well, perfect to look at, maybe," the Apocalypse admitted. "And it was. It was beautiful. They used to call it the Shining World of the Seven Systems. And on the Continent of Wild Endeavor, in the Mountains of Solace and Solitude, there stood the Citadel of the Time Lords, the oldest and most mighty race in the universe, looking down on the galaxies below. Sworn never to interfere, only to watch. Children of Gallifrey, taken from their families age of eight to enter the Academy." She swallowed. "It was like with my brother, the Master. There were rumors of him, that that's where it all began, when he was a child. That's when the Master saw eternity. As a novice, he was taken for initiation. He stood in front of the Untempered Schism. It's a gap in the fabric of reality, through which could be seen the whole of the Vortex. You stand there, eight years old, staring at the raw power of time and space, just a child." She swallowed. "And it hurts."

+++

The Apocalypse had to be torn away, she'd been staring for too long. Her eyes remained so wide, she couldn't focus on anything . . . until she bumped into someone. "Hey," a boy not much older than her frowned. "Are you all right?"

The Apocalypse just sniffed and shook her head, trying get the pain out of her head. "Th . . . the pain," she sobbed.

"Hey, it's OK," he soothed, hugging her immediately. "It's OK. Come on."

"BJ!" the Master's voice called, and he ran over, his eyes wide in worry. "Oh, Rassilon, BJ, what happened?"

The Apocalypse just fell into her brother's arms, sobbing, as he hugged her tightly, the Master looking over her shoulder to his best friend, a hard look in his eyes.

+++

"Some would be inspired. Some would run away. And some would go mad." She shivered. "Brr. I don't know."

"What about you?" Martha asked.

"Have you seen her?" Jack joked. "She ran away."

She laughed. "Yeah, and I never stopped."

Jack looked at his Vortex Manipulator when it beeped. "Encrypted channel with files attached," he said. "Don't recognize it."

"Patch it through to the laptop," she nodded.

Jack gulped. "Since we're telling stories . . . there's something I haven't told you."

The Apocalypse frowned . . . then the Torchwood logo appeared on the screen. Martha watched in surprise when the Apocalypse went from weary and tired to at attention, fully awake . . . and growling? "Torchwood," she muttered before glaring at Jack, hurt and betrayal in her eyes, and absolute fury as her eyes glowed gold. "You work for Torchwood?!"

"I swear to you, it's different," Jack said quickly, hurt in his eyes, too, that his sister was this upset with him. "It's changed. There's only half a dozen of us now - "

"Everything Torchwood did, everything they did, separating Rose from us, and you're part of it?" she snapped.

Jack cringed. "The old regime was destroyed at Canary Wharf," he insisted. "I rebuilt it, I changed it, and when I did that, I did it for you in your honor."

The Apocalypse continued to stare at him, but she just turned and hit the play button. An older woman sat in a chair nervously. "If I haven't returned to my desk by twenty two hundred, this file will be emailed to Torchwood, which means if you're watching this, then I'm . . . " She cleared her throat. "Anyway, the Saxon files are attached. But take a look at the Archangel document. That's when it all started. When Harry Saxon became Minister in charge of launching the Archangel Network."

"What's the Archangel Network?" the Apocalypse asked.

"I've got Archangel," Martha answered. "Everyone's got it."

"It's a mobile phone network," Jack explained as Martha pulled out her phone, the satellites appearing on the laptop. "Because look, it's gone worldwide. They've got fifteen satellites in orbit. Even the other networks, they're all carried by Archangel."

She brightened. "It's in the phones!" she gasped. "Oh, I said he was a hypnotist! Wait, wait, wait, hold on." She took Martha's phone and tapped it on the table, and the four-beat pattern rang out. "There it is. That rhythm. It's everywhere, ticking away in the subconscious."

"What is it, mind control?" Martha asked.

"No, no, no, no, no, it's subtler than that. Any stronger, and people would question it. But contained in that rhythm, in layers of code, Vote Saxon. Believe in me. Whispering to the world. Oh, yes! That's how he hid himself from me, because I should have sensed that there was another Time Lord on Earth. I should have known way bak. The signal canceled him out."

"Any way you can stop it?" Jack asked.

"Not from down here, but now we know how he's doing it."

"And we can fight back?" Martha suggested.

She grinned. "Oh, yes!"

***

Parts of the laptop and phone were sonicked onto TARDIS keys later. "Three TARDIS keys, three pieces of the TARDIS, all with low level perception properties because the TARDIS is designed to blend in," the Apocalypse said, handing them out. "Well, sort of. But now, the Archangel Network's got a second low level signal. Weld the key into the network and Martha . . . look at me. You can see me, yes?"

"Yes," she nodded.

"What about now?" she asked, putting her key on. Martha blinked, her eyes sliding from the Apocalypse to next to her. "No, I'm here. Look at me!"

"It's like I know you're there, but I don't want to know."

"And back again." She took the key off. "See? It just shifts your perception a tiny little bit. Doesn't make us invisible, just unnoticed. Oh! I know what it's like! It's like . . . it's like when you fancy someone, and they don't even know you exist. That's what it's like! Come on!" Martha sighed and followed them. "Don't run, don't shout," the Apocalypse warned. "Just keep your voice down. Draw attention to yourself, and the spell is broken. Just keep to the shadows."

"Like ghosts," Jack said.

"Yeah, that's what we are. Ghosts."

***

They stood later that night, watching the Master interact with President Winters, before Martha tried to step forward to get to her family. "Don't move," the Apocalypse warned.

"But the - !"

"Don't."

"I'm going to kill him," Martha muttered.

"What say I use this perception filter to walk up behind him and break his neck?" Jack suggested.

"I'd say no," the Apocalypse said bluntly. "And I'd say that sounds like Torchwood."

He shrugged. "Still a good plan."

"He's a Time Lord, which makes him my responsibility. I'm not here to kill him. I'm here to save him."

Jack nodded, then worked on his Vortex Manipulator. "Aircraft carrier Valiant. It's a UNIT ship at fifty eight point two north, ten point oh two east."

"How do we get onboard?" Martha asked.

"Does that thing work as a teleport?" the Apocalypse asked.

"Since you revamped it, yeah," Jack nodded. "Coordinates set."

They all put their hands on the Vortex Manipulator, and they disappeared, getting disposed in the engine room a moment later. "Oh, that thing is rough," Martha complained.

"I've had worse nights," Jack shrugged. "Welcome to the Valiant."

"It's dawn?" Martha asked, looking outside. "Hold on. I thought this was a ship. Where's the sea?"

"A ship for the 21st century, protecting the skies of planet Earth," Jack answered, looking out.

***

They ran down the halls when the Apocalypse suddenly stopped. "We've no time for sightseeing!" Jack complained.

"No, wait," the Apocalypse held up her hand. "Shush, shush, shush, shush. Can't you hear it?"

"Hear what?"

"Doctor, my family's onboard," Martha reminded her.

"Right," the Apocalypse nodded before pointing. "This way!"

Martha groaned, following the Apocalypse, but they all cheered up when they saw the TARDIS. "Oh, at last!" the Apocalypse grinned.

"Oh, yes!" Martha cheered.

"What's it doing on the Valiant?" Jack asked.

The Apocalypse opened the door, and nearly buckled over at the overwhelming wave of pain the TARDIS sent her telepathically. Jack caught her and looked around in horror at the glowing red console room. "What the hell's he done?" he demanded.

"Don't touch it," the Apocalypse warned weakly.

"I'm not going to," Jack shook his head.

"What's he done, though?" Martha asked, listening. "Sounds like it's sick."

"It can't be," the Apocalypse whispered, going around. "No, no, no, no, no, no, it can't be!"

"Apocalypse, what is it?" Martha asked.

"He's cannibalized the TARDIS!"

"Is this what I think it is?" Jack asked.

"It's a paradox machine!" She tapped a gauge. "As soon as this hits red, it activates. At this speed, it'll trigger at two minutes past eight."

"First contact is at eight," Jack nodded. "Then two minutes later . . . "

"What's it for?" Martha asked. "What does a paradox machine do?"

"More important, can you stop it?" Jack cut in.

"Not till I know what it's doing," the Apocalypse shook her head. "Touch the wrong bit, blow up the solar system."

"Then we've got to get to Saxon," Martha nodded.

"Yeah," Jack nodded. "How are we going to stop him?"

"Oh, I've got a way," the Apocalypse nodded, then blinked when they glared at her. "Sorry, didn't I mention it?"

***

"For as long as man has looked at the stars, he has wondered what mysteries they hold," President Winters was saying as they entered quietly. "Now we know we are not alone."

"This plan, you going to tell us?" Jack hissed.

"If I can get this around his neck, cancel out his perception, they'll see him for real," the Apocalypse answered. "It's just hard to go unnoticed with everyone on red alert. If they stop me, you've got a key."

"Yes, ma'am," Jack nodded.

"I'll get him," Martha promised.

"And I ask you now, I ask of the human race, to join me in welcoming our friends," Winters said. "I give you the Toclafane." He turned to the spheres as they appeared. "My name is Arthur Coleman Winters, President Elect of the United States of America, and designated representative of the United Nations. I welcome you to the planet Earth and its associated moon."

"You're not our Master," one of the spheres said.

"We like our Mr. Master."

"We don't like you."

Winters blinked. "I can be master, if you so wish. I will accept mastery over you, if that is God's will."

"Man is stupid."

"Our master is our friend."

"Where's our Master, pretty please?"

"Oh, all right, then," the Master grinned, jumping to his feet. "'It's me. Ta da! Sorry, sorry, I have this effect. People just get obsessed. Is it the smile? Is it the aftershave? Is it the capacity to laugh at myself? I don't know. It's crazy!"

"Saxon, what are you talking about?" Winters asked.

"I'm taking control, Uncle Sam, starting with you," the Master sneered. "Kill him." The spheres disintegrated Winters immediately, and everyone started to panic. "Guards!" the Master shouted.

"Nobody move!" one of the guards ordered. "Nobody move!"

The Master smirked at a camera. "Now, then, peoples of the Earth. Please attend carefully - "

The Apocalypse ran forward, yanking her key off. "Stop her!" one of the guards ordered.

But as they ran forward, the Apocalypse held out her hands, and the guards were telekinetically pushed to opposite sides of the room. Jack looked out worriedly, afraid for the Apocalypse, but he was stunned to see the Master . . . smile? "Apocalypse," he said softly. "It really is you."

"Did you ever doubt?" the Apocalypse countered.

"I had my reasons." He stepped down off of the stairs, tapping his screwdriver of some sort in his hand. "But I knew. Oho, I always knew. As if a perception filter's going to work on me. And what about the girlie and the freak? But which one's which?"

Jack made to run, but the Apocalypse gave him a look out of the corner of her eye. "Just look at what you're doing," she pleaded. "Everything you're doing, try and see it from what we can see!"

"Why should I?" the Master shouted angrily, narrowing his eyes. "Your beloved human race! Always defending them, and they always kept you here, away from your home! How do you think it felt for us on Gallifrey?"

"I couldn't stay!" the Apocalypse shouted. "Look at us! Look at what they've made us! You know what they did, what they forced me to do! I couldn't keep living like that! Surely you understand that!"

The Master swallowed. "There were people who could have - and would have - helped!"

"And just like I can help you," she pleaded. "The sound in your head. You know I could help. Please, just let me do it!" She shook her head, tears in her eyes. "Please," she begged, switching to Gallifreyan. "We're the only ones left. We're the last of the Time Lords."

The Master swallowed harder . . . and lowered his screwdriver. The Apocalypse gave a weak smile -

"Calypsie!" Jack shouted in horror as the guards finally moved.

The Apocalypse spun, and one of the guards raised what had to be some sort of a dart gun and shot her. It hit her right in the chest, and with a gasp, she collapsed backwards. Jack ran out, yanking his key off, Martha doing the same, hoping to get to her -

"Not one more move!" the Master yelled, aiming his screwdriver and firing a laser from it. Jack and Martha scrambled to a halt as the Master stalked forward, screwdriver raised, and aimed at the guards. "Don't you move!"

"Harry?" Lucy Saxon asked, standing worriedly. "What's - ?"

"Shut it," the Master snapped at her, running to the Apocalypse's side and putting an arm around her shoulders, lifting her up. "BJ?" he asked softly. "BJ, can you hear me?"

" . . . yes," she whispered faintly, her head falling backwards, her eyes clouded.

The Master looked up angrily. "What was that dart?" he demanded. "What was in it?"

The guards looked at each other, stunned. "Um . . . "

The Master shot the other guard, the one that hadn't taken the shot, and they all gasped as he was incinerated. "Answer me!" the Master roared.

The guard swallowed. "It's just a tranquilizer, could knock her out."

The Master looked down at the Apocalypse, seeing her eyes flutter, and he rested his hand against her chest. He listened to her heartsbeats before scowling at him. "Was there aspirin in there?" he asked.

The guard blinked. "Sir?"

"Was there aspirin?" he repeated, sounding dead calm.

"Yes."

The Master snarled, aiming and disintegrating him as well. "No one touches her!" he ordered, lifting the Apocalypse into his arms and standing, a fury in his eyes that made Jack and Martha feel even more sorry for anyone that messed with such a Time Lord. "Do you hear me?! No one!"

" . . . not their fault," the Apocalypse whispered hoarsely.

"And you try to defend them still?" the Master asked roughly. "No. Not after this. I am not losing you! Not to stupid humans!"

The spheres appeared again. "Is it time?" one asked in a male voice. "Is it ready?"

"Is the machine singing?" the female sphere asked.

"Two minutes past," the Master muttered before turning to Jack. "You."

Jack narrowed his eyes. "What is it you want with her?" he demanded.

"Captain Jack Harkness, yes?" Jack nodded, and the Master nodded back grimly. "Seems we're brothers, then."

Jack's face blanched of color. "What?" Martha shook her head. "How's that possible?"

"It's you," Jack whispered, eyes wide. "You're the Master."

The Master nodded. "Take her," he said.

Jack didn't hesitate to step forward, and the Master shifted the woozy Apocalypse from his arms to Jack's. Martha instantly rushed over as the Master turned. "So, Earthlings. Basically . . . the end of the world." He smirked. "Here come the drums!"

"He's insane," Martha shook her head, still not believing that this man was the Apocalypse's older brother.

"Go," the Apocalypse whispered.

"What?" Martha's eyes widened.

The Apocalypse leaned up and whispered in her ear, and Martha swallowed. "Go," Jack urged Martha, taking off his Vortex Manipulator and handing it to her. "There's nothing we can do."

"How many do you think?" the Master asked as the sky split and spheres came rushing down.

"I . . . " Lucy shook her head, still stunned by his display of care for the Apocalypse. "I don't know."

"Six billion," he laughed. "Down you go, kids!" The spheres flew down to the Earth and started firing. "Shall we decimate them?" He grinned. "That sounds good. A nice word, decimate. Remove one tenth of the population!"

Martha got to her feet shakily, strapping the Vortex Manipulator to her arm. "Valiant, this is Geneva," a report came in. "We're getting slaughtered down here! Valiant, report! Help us! For God's sake, help us! They're everywhere!"

Martha swallowed, then teleported out. She stood down on Earth, slipping her TARDIS key, and glared up at the Valiant. "I'm coming back," she swore before heading off.

***

Jack held the Apocalypse close to him, the woman's breath coming in short gasps. "And so it came to pass that the human race fell, and the Earth was no more," the Master said softly. "And I looked down upon my new dominion as Master of all, and I thought it good." He turned to Jack with a glare. "What would you do to save your family?" he asked roughly. "No one is harming my little sister while I have her with me."

Jack nodded at him. No way in hell was he going to attempt something while the Apocalypse was out, but he could still speak for himself. "There, at least, is one thing we can agree on."

The Master gave a smirk and a laugh, as the Apocalypse finally fell unconscious, her blue eyes sliding shut as the aspirin sank into her system.

***

And now we know the Apocalypse's and the Master's names for good: Banja and Risterrin respectively. I know rumor has it the Master's true name is Koschei, but hey, it's fanfiction. I can change what I want, and Risterrin sounds better for the Master to me.

Ooo, humans. You just made a very bad enemy by threatening the Apocalypse in front of the Master. Who liked the protective older brothers here? :) No hand, no aging Apocalypse. No hand . . . no Metacrisis that we know of.

Makes you wonder what's going to happen at the end of "Last of the Time Lords," huh? I swear, I just want to make people cry in this series. I was crying at the Harkness reunion. I am going to be a mess by the end of the next episode. :(

But, anyway! "Last of the Time Lords" will be updated soon! Keep an eye out, people, because we're almost done with this book! Just that episode and the epilogue, and then it's onto Series 4!