Sand Ochra Bay

Sand Ochra Bay

The burrowed TARDIS finally landed and the Master went out to navigate telling the girls to stay exactly where they were.  He hoped he would have better luck than the Doctor but no, one of them disobeyed his command: “I told you to stay in the TARDIS!” he hissed as he was scouting underneath giant ferns, yellow phallic looking plants that the Master avoided.

“That body and face means more to me than it does to you!” Nyssa hissed back, “I will kill any future version of yourself but not any past and definitely not the present form!”

“I have no doubt you would, dear Nyssa!” the Master smirked. He could play on that later.  “Are you not going to ask where we are?”

“Sand Ochra Bay!” Nyssa replied, “Part of the Equatorial Galaxies - each Planet gradiates in warmth.  This is in the heart of the warmth - The Planet’s name is unknown but this particular area has a name due to the fact that …” she gazed at the Master and blushed, “sorry, this is your job!”

“Is that how the Doctor operates?”

“Yes,” Nyssa said, “it is perfectly acceptable for him to tell us where we are!”

“Before he rushes into a situation where you end up imprisoned; infected with a deadly poison, have to release a bomb, or have to fight me?” the Master smirked.

“So he is not perfect I still lo- like him!”

Love him, the Master’s eyes twinkled.  He could use that later on too: “Carry on, Nyssa,” Nyssa lowered her eyes and saw something and ducked down.  The Master followed her gaze and followed suit.  “I adore your sense of caution, Nyssa, it bodes well!” he whispered.

An Alien walked forward with a very unsavoury looking companion of the same species a female, she was showing too much cleavage for Nyssa’s tastes.  Her green hair and amber eyes seemed to pierce through velvet: “He said he’d be here, Glax!”

“Why do we rely on him, Firsha?”

“Because he has the vessel, Glax!”

“He won’t look at you, Firsha, if that is your intentions to stay loyal!”

“I am after the treasure he brings back.  We’re stranded, here, in case you had forgotten.  He promised to help us!”

“Yeah, that was five years ago now!”

“Sssshhhhh!” Firsha whispered.

“What?”

“I think we’re being observed!”

Nyssa wrapped her fingers tightly around the handle of a knife and the look in her eyes made the Master almost want to take her there and then back to the TARDIS but he wanted to see how she would work this out by herself.  Glax stepped forward.  Nyssa had a good view of his knees.  Quietly, she grabbed a purple tendril and managed to tie his legs together without him noticing as the foliage at the spot was wide enough for her to work and for any movement that his companion complained about he replied that it was probably a sea rat scuttling back to home.  Carefully she threaded the rest of the tendril through the spare gap and she glanced at the Master: “Go!” she whispered.

“Not without you!” he whispered back.

“I will be fine!”

“Where did you le…”

“No time, just go!” she hissed.

The Master crawled through on the mud on his hands and knees and saw a stone and decided to give Nyssa some time to get back to the TARDIS.  He picked it up and threw it in the opposite direction and it landed where some beautiful birds were hiding and they squaked and flew in the air as the stone landed amongst them.  Firsha snarled and ran to see what the fuss was about. and to kill one of the creatures.  This was when Nyssa yanked the tendril causing Glax to land flat on his back as the knot tightened against his legs.  

The Master stood up quickly and Nyssa grabbed his hand and together they ran through the jungle back to the TARDIS, disguised as a palm tree.  They dashed inside.  Once safe the Master laughed leaning against the walls, hysterics overtook him!

“What is so funny?” Ace asked looking at Nyssa.

“What did you do?” Leela asked.

The Master’s eyes streamed tears from laughing so hard and, in his euphoria, he rushed to Nyssa and lifted her by the waist circling her in the room before putting her back on the floor and hugging her close to his body.

“That was brilliant!” he said once he calmed down wiping the tears of joy from his eyes.

“Thank you, I think!” Nyssa was close to laughing.  At that moment a part of her father had returned to her and she was happy too, “but what did I do?”

“Maybe you are not such a goody goody after all!”

“I told you I was not!”

“But where did you learn such an underhanded trick?”

Nyssa shrugged her shoulders: “I did not, just that the tendril was there, his legs were nearby - everything matched so I took the logical step!”

“By tying it to his legs allowing enough to make him fall flat on his back?” the Master giggled more and rushed back to Nyssa and rubbed her hair away from her face.  Her flush made her more attractive, “that was bloody inspirational!”

Ace gazed at the two of them and suppressed her jealousy; Leela walked up to the pair and rubbed Nyssa’s back: “You are a Warrior, Nyssa of Traken.  You acted on instinct!”

“So, I take it I did something you all liked?” once her eyes rested on Ace, Ace’s pang of jealousy stopped.  If this was the first bad thing Nyssa had done then she was all for it, “Dorothy?”

“If you made one of the Pirate’s cronies disabled then you are really and truly wicked!”

“I will take that as a compliment!”

The Master had his arm around her waist not wanting to let go and, oddly, his praise meant the most to her!  “The Doctor was right about one thing,” he said, “not to be on the wrong side of you.  Remind me to never again double cross you!”

Nyssa blushed even further.  “I still do not understand what I did that was so good!”

The Master patted her hip and pushed her closer towards him, Ace smirked and and decided Nyssa had best move away: “I think we had better get a rest,” she said to Leela.  “Is the Pirate close to coming here?”

The Master was too busy reliving the moment in his head and barely heard what Ace said: “Ace has just asked a question, Time Lord!” Leela barked.  

“Oh, the Pirate will be here soon enough.  The Time Lords programmed this TARDIS - so it should have got us here in good enough time to get our bearings bond more and get used to the landscape if we need too!”

“So we have time for a nap?”

“Yes, I should think so!” the Master hummed.  Leela and Ace walked up to the door.

“Are you coming, Nyssa of Traken?” Leela asked.

“Um, in a minute!” Nyssa sighed.

Ace and Leela left the Control Unit leaving Nyssa alone with the Master: “Go on, Nyssa, you may as well rest!” he said squeezing her to his body again.

“I need to understand what it was that made you so … euphoric?”

“It was watching you work.  You, this beautiful tiny girl with the the strength to yank down that beast of a male and - oh it was artistry in motion, no doubt some would have considered it amateur but they have not a clue!”

“It was childish!”

“No, you do not get it,” the Master sighed turning her around so they were looking into each other’s eyes, “it was brave of you to do that.  Yet not in a foolish way, you … you knew I was going to create a diversion, didn’t you?”

Nyssa could not help but twist her mouth into a tiny smirk: “Know thine enemy,” she sighed, “you want to keep yourself alive, at this present moment it means making sure we are all right!”

“True!” the Master sighed still smiling.

“That meant you had no other choice but to create a diversion of some kind,” the Master arched an eyebrow, “when the birds went up squaking…”

“You saw your chance,” he brushed her hair behind her ear, “you have suddenly become my favourite thing in the entire Universe - travel with me?”

“I am!”

“I mean alone - leave the Doctor, if only for a short while, and travel with me.”

“Alone?” Nyssa’s voice trembled.

“Alone!” his voice suddenly became deep, serious, he was no longer laughing.

Gulping Nyssa stepped a little away from the Master: “I will have to think about it!” she stammered, he stepped forward and took hold of her hand.

“Can I at least kiss you?”

Nyssa was about to say no when the TARDIS bleeped a message from the Doctor: “Master, are you reading me loud and clear?”

“This is not your TARDIS, Doctor, it works to a very good standard.”

“Yes, very well,” the Doctor sighed, “update, I will be beaming in another Agent, one other former companion of mine.  He is about to walk the Plank!”

“Why?”

“Because the Time Pirate told him too!”

“That’s my thing!”

“ALL Time Lords can use the Power of suggestion and this was one of our founding fathers of our kind, just remember that!”

“How can I forget it?” the Master snarled bitterly.

“How are the girls?”

“I’ve cooked and eaten them for breakfast!” the Master said sarcastically.  

“YOU WHAT!”

“He is joking, Doctor!” Nyssa jumped in with, “we are all well! What is the name of this other agent?”

“Jamie McCrimmon,” the Doctor said.

“Doctor, there are some cronies of the Time Pirate’s here.  Firsha and Glax!”

“Ah!” The Doctor said, “well, mind how you tread then, and do not antagonise the situation.”

“Doctor,” Nyssa’s tone quivered, “when… when am I to see you again?”

“When the Time Lords say you can, Nyssa,” the Doctor sighed, “I am missing you too, my dearest friend!”

Tears stood in Nyssa’s eyes and she was about to declare her love for him but the voice cut-out: “What does he mean when the Time Lords let him see me again?” Nyssa slammed her hands against the unit and kicked the nearest wall in her frustration and folded her arms crossly.

“I wish I knew too,” the Master sighed, “but it means I can get to know you a bit better!”

“Why?” her tone was softer but still uncertain, “do I have a magnet attached to me? You seem to be staying awfully close to me all the time” The Master managed to separate her arms and placed his warms hands on her waist.  “What are you do…”

Suddenly, she felt the Master’s mouth on hers as he kissed her swiftly and passionately: “Nyssa,” he murmured hungrily inside her mouth, deepening the kiss making her melt inside.

“No!!” she murmured back gently pushing him away, “not yet!”

“I will hold on to that yet like a star made of diamond in the palm of my hand!”

“I think I had best take that nap,” Nyssa said seriously.

Once alone in her room she touched her lips and stared at her reflection, she could not believe she let it get that far, that quickly.  She had always sworn to hate him.  To despise him.  Today though, something else had happened within her.  The moment he lifted her up and swung her around the room with that lovely smile, his eyes alight and then bringing her back down to the floor in a hug was enough to completely mix up her heart and turn it to the consistency of hot milk!

Little did she know more trouble was in store for her heart …