The grey world spun around me as I lay half-conscious in the underbrush. The Doctor's hand burned against me for a moment longer before he let go, the skin he'd gripped slowly chilling back down to my regular body temperature. With blurred eyes I watched as he ran out from the cover of the trees, towards the soldiers we'd tried so hard to hide from. They panicked when they saw the Doctor, and I could tell that they were prepared to capture him again. He pointed at me. Shouted. I couldn't make out his words over the constant banging of the drums in my head. The humans were walking towards me now. Standing over me. I shut my eyes, leaving the grey world and exchanging it for the black of sleep.

It wasn't long before the comfortable blackness was replaced by the blinding brightness of bright lights. One of the humans stood over me, shining a flashlight into my eyes. My head had sunk into the cool fabric of a pillow, and a soft blanket was wrapped around me. For the first time in centuries, I felt as though someone had tucked me into bed- I felt as though someone cared for me.

The man leaning over me, wielding the light, spoke in deep, gentle tones. "No signs of concussion- I think you're going to be just fine. Now, you just sit up when you're feeling right and ready, and we can have you in with Boss in no time."

The world was still a bit shaky, and I mumbled due to dizziness and my unfamiliarity with comfort and care. "I don't want to see anyone... I want to sleep. Five more minutes?"

The man laughed quietly and carefully placed a hand under each of my arms, gently lifting me and propping me up against the wall. "If you fall asleep now, I'm afraid you'll be out for a few more hours. You know how that is."

From my position against the wall, I was able to take a good look at my surroundings. It was apparent that I was in a medical trailer of sorts. The place was dimly lit, and three small, metal beds set on wheels were set around the one I lay in- each of them empty. Though the walls were white and the white tiles of the floor shone like those of a hospital, lit red candles gave the place a warm, comfortable feeling. Deep purple curtains shut off a small compartment at the far end of the trailer.

The warmth of the room was reflected in the eyes of my caretaker. His eyes were an even deeper brown than the Doctor's, and wrinkles ran over his black skin like canyons through a valley. The happy glint in his eyes matched the smile on his face.

I redirected my attention to the curtains sectioning off the far part of the trailer. "What's beyond those curtains?"

He let out a low, wheezy laugh. "You're a curious man, eh?" I responded with only a raised eyebrow, so he continued, "Those are my quarters. Bed, dresser, the works."

"You share your space with a bunch of ill humans?"

He smiled fondly at me. "Look around: how many 'ill humans' do you see around here? Patients are rare. After all, not much goes on around here anyways."

"What's the point of your kind settling here anyways? Is it really necessary to plague another planet with your existence?"

My caretaker laughed deeply once more. "You really aren't a fan of us, are you? Anyways," his smile faltered, and he looked at his hands, twisting a wedding ring around a rough, worn finger, "I can't say I fully agree with our... methods." He sighed, shrugged. "But the world is overpopulated. We've done what was necessary to get here, and we'll do whatever it takes to have our people settled here. It's for the good of our planet."

Although I hated to admit it, I began to genuinely care about the man's story. His planet was the garbage dump of the universe and his kind was absolute trash, but he was kind, charming. The Doctor could learn a few things from this man. And, if I was being entirely honest, I could learn from him as well.

I pushed the feelings of fondness out of my mind and heart. "Your name."

"Jupiter. Jupiter Hurrell."

I shook his hand. "The Master." As I leaned back against the wall after withdrawing my hand, I gave him a smirk. "Jupiter, eh? That's a strange name."

"It was all the rage when I was born. At least three Jupiters in each of my lessons growing up. Of all the names, a damn planet that doesn't even exist anymore!" He laughed again for a few moments before fixing me with a fond look. "Anyways, are you ready to get out there and meet Boss?"

"That depends on who Boss is."

"You'll like him." Jupiter shrugged before pausing a moment. "Well, all you really need to worry about is him liking you."

I furrowed my brow out of confusion. "What?"

The sound of three quick, aggressive knocks on the door sent a metallic ring through the trailer. Jupiter looked at me, panic flashing in his old eyes for just a moment before he offered me a sad smile. "Sorry about this."

Moments after he spoke this third word, the door opened with a clash. A woman with choppy short hair swiftly moved inside and practically ripped me out of the bed, standing me on my own two shaky feet.

She held one hand firmly on my shoulder and placed the other hand on her hip, looking at Jupiter expectantly. "Well?"

"He's fine." Jupiter smirked at the woman. "Well, as fine as scum like that can be, anyways."

I was surprised by the sweet man's bitter words. He'd been so kind... Had that been just to throw me off guard? 'Scum...' The unkind word bit deeper into me than I'd like to admit, and I furrowed my brow in disappointment at the man who I'd found such temporary comfort in.

The woman laughed. "You always know what to say, Jupe." Her grip tightened on my shoulder, and she gave me a hard shake, nearly knocking me down. "Come on then, scum. Boss is getting impatient."

The woman lead me out of the trailer, giving me no time to understand Jupiter's sudden betrayal. The grey world seemed even darker than before, due to my ability to compare it with the cozy, colored interior of the trailer.

I wasn't exposed to the dull, grey exterior for long; the woman soon pulled me underground, into a tunnel similar to the one the Doctor and I had briefly been kept in. However, this one was far nicer. The tunnel was well-lit by expensive lanterns, and a long, purple carpet had been rolled down the length of the long hall, partially concealing the rough stone floor.

The tunnel soon opened up into a large, round room. The purple rug stopped when the room began, leaving the entirety of the large space with cold, hard stone as flooring. The room was completely bare besides the single desk placed directly in the center of the room. Two hard, tall-backed chairs sat on one side of the desk, and a leather wingback was placed on the other, facing the entrance.

The woman released her grip on my shoulder and bowed to the man sitting in the wingback. "Here he is, Boss."

"Thank you, Achird." Upon being thanked, the woman straightened her back and left the room, leaving me with the strange human. "Please, 'Master,' have a seat."

I did as I was asked and took a seat in one of the hard chairs facing the man. "You know my name."

"Yes. Believe it or not, I am rather smart."

I smirked. "I have doubts about that."

The man wasn't very intimidating, really. He was about my size, so if I really needed to, I could easily take him down. Freckles spotted across his nose, landing just below a pair of dark brown eyes. He didn't look special at all; why was everyone treating him as though he was?

When he spoke, his voice boomed around the circular room, echoing off the cold stone walls. "Why are you here, time lord?"

"You could say I was kidnapped."

He laughed when I said this, looking at me as though I was somehow inferior to him. "What, by the other time lord you travel with? If you're trying to earn my pity, you really are failing."

"I don't need your pity." I smirked. "However, I do need your assistance." He raised a bushy eyebrow, allowing me to continue. "The time lord I 'travel' with," I said. "He's become a bit of an... issue for me."

"Elaborate."

"He gets in the way. Ruins my plans. I want-" I paused. I need him gone."

Boss stared at me coolly for a moment before allowing the corner of his mouth to tilt up in the hint of a smile. "You're aware of how hard it is to kill a time lord, correct?"

I swallowed, suddenly feeling sweat bead up on my neck. "Believe me, I've tried."

He took a moment of consideration, tossing my ideas around in that big head of his. "I'll think about it. For now-" He stopped suddenly, and his eyes drifted to someone at the entrance, behind me.

Seconds later, the Doctor took a seat next to me, sitting straight up against the hard back of the chair. He glanced towards me, offering a slight eyebrow raise, before turning his attention back to Boss.

Boss' sparse, brown eyebrows shot up in interest as the Doctor took his seat. "And there's the second pea in the trespasser-pod. Might I ask what you're doing here, Doctor?"

He spat out the name with a fury that I respected, pronounced it as though each syllable was toxic on his tongue. I could relate. I remembered the burn of the Doctor's skin on mind, the way his lips' proximity to my face sent me to the ground. I realized, now, why I'd collapsed: his closeness caused me to faint in disgust.

The Doctor held a knowing look, his ego prevalent with each movement of his lips. "I'm just trying to see the universe with my friend, here." He shot me a look, to which I flashed a fake grin in response. "I didn't mean to stumble upon slavery and the theft of an innocent planet."

Boss' face was steady, unresponsive. "You know the Shadow Proclamation, Doctor. We've followed it completely. We've done no wrong."

"See, that's the thing about you humans." Frustration was building in the Doctor's voice. "You always think you're doing right, doing what's good for progress and forward movement."

"And usually we do."

"If that was the case, I wouldn't have had to save you hundreds of times."

Boss shrugged, twiddling his thumbs. "In that case, you helped us get here. We're really only trying to save the human race again, you know. Earth is overpopulated. We needed space, and we found it here."

"If you wanted to conquer a planet, you could have just gone to Tivoli." The Doctor's voice was laced with bitterness.

"And if you wanted to explore, you could have just focused on finding Gallifrey." In response to the Doctor's look of brooding hurt, Boss smirked. "That's right, we know of your past, Doctor. Now, this isn't a soup kitchen; the homeless have no place here."

A small, gelatinous bopyid slithered out from beneath the desk and stuck itself around the Doctor's feet. It looked as though his shoes were trapped in a bowl of Jell-O as he involuntarily stood and was whisked back down the hall and out the door.

"Now, you, Master," Boss told me as soon as the Doctor was out of earshot, "have had your point proven. He's insufferable, and I daresay I want him gone as much as you do."

I smiled, already understanding his positive response to my proposition. The drums hammered away, steadily lining up with my racing, excited pulse.

Finally, the time had come. Finally, I was going to kill the Doctor.