"What the hell are you talking about? Stop looking at me like I'm supposed to know what you're talking about." Her voice was slightly raspy at first but Murdar's tone still held telltale annoyance. "I mean, come on, we grew up together- last I heard you'd gone insane."

"I know, I didn't realize we were related either but oh my future self was clever. Taking you back there. Still don't quite know the reason- to attempt making us partners perhaps? But I do know what happened when you looked in the void... You know it too, don't you? You see it. Feel it watching... And when I heard that well, I had to track you down and use it to my advantage."

"You're lying."

"Am I?" He laughed manically and backed away.

The Doctor continued standing between them, never breaking eye contact with The Master. There was a frown on his face and his forehead was creased in deep thought as he attempted to piece together the information.

"Tell me, Outcast, how many regenerations do you have left? After my little game I'm sure you lost a few- you lost a few people at least." The Master mocked, allowing them to rejoin their little group. It wouldn't matter anyway. He'd seen the look in her eyes; Death would come and his plan would complete. Of course, he'd be long gone before he succumbed to it along with the rest of the world. "All she needs is a little push... one death? Two?"

"Murdar, stay behind us." Jack took her arm once she was within reach and guided her behind him, passing her off to the others while he questioned The Doctor. "What's the plan? He's got to be bluffing, right?"

The Time Lord was silent for a few moments before shaking his head. "No. No, he isn't... I saw what happened when Murdar regenerated in the first dimension we were sent to. Her eyes went completely black- didn't realize it was possible but... Death is coming. Literally. It only needs a host connected to the afterlife and thirteen human lives- it's happened before long ago."

"What are you saying Doctor? That Murdar's going to kill us? How do we stop it?"

"...I don't know." He shook his head, genuinely uncertain. "This isn't exactly like what happened before- the person who stopped it was already dead. Murdar isn't and if she has thirteen lives then it can just feed off those."

"We can't let her die. Not until we figure out how to break the connection."

"Oh, I'm afraid that isn't possible." That Cheshire grin was back on The Master's face as he interrupted their conversation. "You see, that entity attached to her the minute she went through her first regeneration after looking into the Untampered Schism. You'd have to take out her human genetics to break that connection and that technology is far too advanced for this point in time."

"Jack, we have a TARDIS, couldn't we just go into the future and see if there's something-"

Gwen was cut off as The Master chuckled. "Oh, I'm afraid it's far too late. It's already grown too strong. Even now it's stealing her life energy- it's a slow process but this will happen."

She wanted to tell the others it was all just a load of crap. That she was fine and everything would be okay so long as she left before her last regeneration. But that would make her a liar. Murdar could feel the entity sapping at her energy. All these years she'd known something was there, speaking dark whispers and showing her nothing but death but Death itself? That wasn't exactly what she'd expected. She needed to get away from them- away from the city if possible.

"I need to leave." She edged away from the others, ready to bolt if they reached out to stop her. "It's the only option we have right now."

"Have you lost your mind?" Jack turned on her.

The others rounded on her as well, all seeming to agree with their leader's words. Murdar flinched out of their reach, continuing to back away as Owen and Gwen matched her step for step.

"You aren't thinking straight. You need to stay here where we can monitor you." Owen reached out slowly, trying not to send her running off.

"I have to. If I stay you're all in danger. Maybe... maybe if I get far enough away before whatever's going to happen starts it'll buy you time."

Jack stared at her for a moment, contemplating their choices. He couldn't kill her and solve this. Going to a different time period would just kill them off in the future anyway... A different dimension perhaps? It would kill everyone in it but they'd be safe.

"No!" The Doctor's shout startled everyone.

They didn't have time to react to the gunshot until Murdar was already on the ground. The Master grinned at their reactions. "Sorry, wanted to speed this up a bit."

Owen reached her first, his mind racing as he assessed the wound and began applying pressure. The Master was laughing behind him, taunting them. He didn't need to listen to the man's words to know this wasn't going to save her. Keep her alive a little longer, sure, but Owen was certain the bullet had struck several vitals.

"Owen, how much time we got?" Jack risked a glance back at the Torchwood doctor but didn't turn away from the enemy.

"Not long."

"We have a TARDIS right? Can't we just go back in time and change this?" Gwen looked between Tosh and Jack before turning to The Doctor. "Right? It would work?"

"We'd have to go back to a point in time where you wouldn't run into your past self but-"

The Doctor was cut off as the other Time Lord spoke again. "Wrong! See, I made sure you were separated from your TARDIS, Doctor. And this little handheld one- how cute- is in my control. Try using it and I'll send you... Hmmm... Oh, I know, how about to a dimension filled with Dalek? Or how about some Cybermen?"

"You're bluffing..." Tosh's hand hovered over the device but didn't dare to use it.

"Am I?" A malicious grin crossed his face and he pulled out a remote-like device. With a press of a button, Tosh was gone. He ignored their demands to bring her back, all the while retreating further away. After a few minutes he pressed the button again, returning their poor friend. "Well, I've wasted enough time here. I think I'll take my leave. If you were wise, Doctor, you'd do the same. You can't stop this now."

Owen could hear the screams behind him as the sound of a body slumped to the ground. He could hear Jack ordering Gwen to go with him after the Time Lord and The Doctor's insistence that they needed to focus on the bigger problem. Pretty soon it was just him, Ianto, and Murdar. At least it was quiet so he could think.

"She's not regenerating..." He growled under his breath in frustration before turning to Ianto. "We can't leave her here. Go find a car, we're taking her away from the city."

"But Jack-"

"I don't care what Jack said. I'm telling you what to do. Now, come on, there isn't much time!" His patience was quickly wearing thin. Murdar's pulse was slowing much too rapidly; it was only a matter of time before Death took control... possibly forever. "If she thought getting away from people is the best choice then we'll have to try..."

The car was more cramped than he liked but it wasn't like he was about to be picky and make Ianto steal a better one with their time limit. It was hard to check Murdar's vitals when he was practically on top of her in a cramped car swerving and jostling around. A particularly sharp turn sent him falling off the back seat and he grumbled before glaring at Ianto.

"So now you drive like a maniac. Is this why Jack always drives?"

"I'm not used to going this fast on a time limit, Owen, I'm sorry." Ianto sure didn't sound sorry. "Would you like me to slow down?"

"No." He glanced out the window, motioning towards an empty area near the water. "Pull over out there. Hopefully it's far enough."

Owen braced himself for the sudden brake before gathering Murdar up in his arms and exiting the car. Her pulse was next to nonexistent and at this point, he wasn't sure she was even breathing. Opening one of her eyes, he could see a disturbingly familiar black seeping over their usual color. He took her knife, uncertain about leaving her with a weapon, and left her body on the ground before running back to the car.

"Move over, I'm driving." He climbed into the driver's seat and began reversing, barely giving Ianto time to close the passenger door.

"We're just leaving her? What if this doesn't work? We wouldn't know where it went."

"Oh, I think we would." If this thing was Death then he was rather certain they'd just have to track the bodies.

Nevertheless, he parked the car within viewing distance so they could watch. It would be a few minutes before anything happened but then a smoke-like mist rose from Murdar's body. It shifted and twisted, bones becoming visible and disappearing within as the ghostly figure of Death itself grew and took shape. The being seemed weak and lost as it struggled to rise completely into their world.

Despite this, Owen could feel his heart pounding in his chest. One touch from that thing and it was game over. He wasn't ready to die yet now he was sitting in a car staring at Death with Ianto of all people. It wasn't the way he would've chosen if he got to pick.

The entity was hobbling further and further from Murdar's body, the creature sensing the pair's life force. Owen watched as it got closer and closer, his hand hovering over the gear shift in preparation to throw it into reverse again and getting out of there. For a brief moment he thought back to that ice dimension and what became of the world- of himself- after Death wiped everything to the brink of extinction. He couldn't let that happen. He wouldn't become that twisted monster hunting down his team mates like animals just to survive.

"W...wait." Ianto looked pale and shakily reached a hand out to stop Owen from moving. "It's weakening- fading."

"Not fast enough." He floor the gas and backed away, slowing only once a good chunk of distance was returned between them and Death.

"No, but this means it doesn't have thirteen lives right? We can still save everyone."

"...But that would mean Murdar still has a regeneration left." Panic was seeping through him, though he refused to let it take over. "And we just left her there with that thing."

He glanced back at the skeletal reaper coming after them. It was indeed getting weaker. The hobbling shakier with each step and the cold mist more disbursed and faded. If it had fed off twelve of Murdar's lives then why the hell was it coming after them? She was much closer.

Then it hit him. The Doctor had practically told him she didn't have all thirteen regenerations... She'd given him one when she'd brought him back. She was dead, which meant he and Ianto were the two closest living things for it to feed on.

It didn't matter much longer. The entity crumbled and faded before it could reach them, though it got uncomfortably close. Owen sat in the car for a while longer just to be sure before driving forward again and getting out to grab Murdar's body. She was cold and while her eyes had cleared of the darkness, they were glazed over with death.

"Let's get back to the Hub, I told Jack we'd meet him there... Don't think he's too happy." Ianto slid his phone back into his pocket and stared at him; Owen could only silently oblige.