The Last Doctor: The Legend of the Maze Master Book 3: In Memoria

Author Note: This is Book 3 in the Crystal Maze/ Doctor Who crossover trilogy.

Summary:

When the Tenth Doctor suffers a potentially deadly snake bite he searches time and space for his distant future regeneration known as Rick, who is rumoured to own a vast collection of poison antidotes.

But then the Tardis is spun out of control by an unknown force, leaving the Doctor and Rose much further ahead in time than they had intended, where they do not find Rick, but instead meet Ed, the Doctor's final regeneration.

As the Tenth Doctor fights the effects of the snake venom, Ed and Ace search Rick's vast archive beneath the maze to find the antidote storage area – while Rose waits and worries as the Tenth Doctor's condition worsens.

Once the antidote is found, Rose learns she will have a long wait for the Doctor to recover from the effects of the venom. And in that time, Ed begins to find her closeness hard to bear as he struggles to remain faithful to Ace as as memories of his love for Rose Tyler resurface.

And then the reason for the forced landing of the Tenth Doctor's Tardis is revealed – and Ed is reunited with yet another face from the past, but one he believed to be long dead – the Master has tracked down the Doctor in his final life, planning to destroy his long standing enemy. The resulting battle will be brutal and the price terrible as the two men fight to the death one last time – and a dark secret is finally revealed...

Rated T

Disclaimer: I own nothing, this is a work of fan fiction.

Chapter 1

The Tenth Doctor's Tardis was hurtling through time and space.

As he clung to the console a trickle of sweat ran down his face as pain throbbed deep in the small double puncture wound on the back of his hand.

"Doctor?"

Rose sounded frightened, and he felt responsible for that.

"I'll be okay," he paused, drawing in a sharp breath, then he gave a brief cry of pain as he slumped against the console and then straightened up again.

"You don't seem okay to me!"

He blinked as his vision blurred and then cleared again.

"I will be okay Rose, I just need to get the antidote...from myself."

He leaned heavily on the console again as the pain in his hand crept up his arm and shot through his body.

"Yourself?"

Rose placed her hand on his arm, and as he turned his head and caught her expression he briefly smiled as he shook his head.

"No, I'm not delirious! Let me explain quickly...there's a far distant future version of me, another regeneration, he has an unusual hobby – he studies poisonous plants and animals from tropical planets and collects antidotes to every single poison."

He hurriedly worked the controls and then drew back sharply, clutching at his throbbing arm.

"I'm sorry about all this, Rose. It was supposed to be a relaxing trip!"

"To a place filled with poisonous snakes?"

The Doctor was still in pain.

"I forgot about the snakes!"

Then he leaned against the console once more as more pain ran through his body. Rose looked on in alarm as he paled and started to tremble.

"Okay...we should be there in a few minutes..." he said breathlessly, "He will know what to do...Rick, tall, slim bloke, wears a leopard print jacket...you'll know him when you see him."

Then he straightened up, staggered and leaned harder on the console, Rose put her arm around him but he still struggled to stand as his eyes widened and he stared at the altering flight plan on the monitor.

"No, that's not right! What's going on?"

Rose looked to the star map and back at the Doctor.

"I don't understand !"

"Neither do I, we just changed course – how did that happen?"

He reached across the console as blood ran from the puncture wounds in the back of his hand and hit some buttons. Then the pain took hold and he slid to the floor, leaning against the console as he loosened his tie and shivered as sweat ran down his face.

"I turned us around... at least, I hope I did...the venom's taking hold..."

And he took in a deep breath as he tried to focus on Rose, who was on her knees beside him.

"I'm sorry Rose," he said weakly, "But you're on your own... it really is down to you now..."

And the Tardis faded out of sight, and shot through to another time and place and landed with a jolt.

Ace woke to birdsong and warm sunshine spilling through the open window.

As she opened her eyes she looked up and then towards the window and wondered why she was not in the bedroom back at the house, and then she smiled as she recalled how she ans Ed had spent the evening in the maze and then gone back to the castle in the Medieval zone for the night.

She rolled over in cool sheets that carried he scent of her lover, and then she slid her hand slowly across the mattress, recalling the way he had taken her in his arms and made love with such passion. She remembered how she had tugged at his shirt and slid it off his toned body as her hands hand run over his shoulders and he had kissed her deeply as she ached for him to take her. It had been a night where they had seen little sleep but as still felt the after glow of their love making and she smiled as she longed for him to hold her all over again.

And the space beside her was...empty?

"Ed?" she called out, but got no reply.

Ace got out of bed and went over to the window and looked out. The view that greeted her was one of rolling fields and blue skies lit by early morning sunshine... yet the maze was underground, how did the Tardis do that?

And then a white horse galloped across the field and leapt a ditch, clearing it with ease.

Ace smiled as she recognised the rider – his red and gold waist coat caught the sunlight and sparkled as he took the horse over the field once more – Ed loved to take his horse Bert for an early morning ride when ever they stayed overnight in the Medieval zone. He said the rest of the time the Tardis took care of the horse, and she wondered how that happened, but she guessed that was yet another mystery she would never solve – the Tardis was a cluster of worlds within worlds, a marvel in its own right...

Ace watched as Ed rode the horse off into the distance and then she turned from the window and headed for the bathroom and a warm shower, she guessed by the time she was showered and dressed Ed would be back from his morning ride.

Ace was thinking about kissing him on his return from the fields and then cooking breakfast, she had not heard the landing of another Tardis nearby...and she did not know their peaceful life together was about to change...

The Tenth Doctor's Tardis had landed sharply.

Rose drew in a frightened breath as she grabbed at the sleeve of his jacket and gave it a shake.

"Please don't pass out!" she said tearfully, "I don't even know where we are!"

He gave a weary sigh and slowly opened his eyes as he fought against the effect of the venom.

"Rose, this is Earth... and I can't get up, you have to leave me here -"

She pushed her hair off her face as she nodded.

"Okay, I'll do it...but I won't go far and I won't leave you for long, I'm coming back, I promise!"

He struggled to focus on her, seeing her face and fair hair through blurred vision.

"Doctor Rick," he whispered, "Go and find him, please..."

Then weakness forced him to close his eyes, and he felt her kiss his cheek and she sounded tearful as she spoke again.

"Okay, I'll go now, I won't be long."

And then she left his side and he heard the Tardis door close behind her, and he gave a heavy sigh as pain and exhaustion took over.

"Please hurry, Rose," he whispered, "I don't think I have much time..."

Ace had returned to the house, then she had glanced at the time and wondered if Ed was back from the maze yet.

She went out into the garden, heard the birdsong in the trees and as the air filled with the scent of roses, she also heard the low hum of the Tardis, and it made her smile as the sound reminded her that the Tardis would always be her home.

Then as she walked down the garden path she caught sight of Ed, and she stopped walking. He was standing in a corner of the garden beside the willow tree, his hands behind his back as he held his riding crop and spoke quietly as he stood over the white marble headstone marking the grave of Jayden Drake.

"I took Bert for a morning ride," he said,"The Tardis made sure the weather was perfect for it, I could see for miles across those fields!"

And then his cheerful tone of voice faded.

"I remember the time I tried to teach you to ride, and you fell off. You wasn't too happy about landing in the mud and ruining your new suit...I miss you so much, Jayden. Of all the companions I've known, you were the one I thought of as a brother, and I still do."

Then he fell silent for a moment as he gathered his thoughts as he looked down at the name etched into the marble.

"And one of these days I'll have to go down to the crypt and sit with you, I feel I should do that – I know Idris keeps you preserved... but I'm just not ready to do it, to see you..."

He hesitated again, not wanting to say it aloud, but then he continued, "I know you're dead. But seeing you in that coffin? I'm not sure I can do it. I'm sure you look very different to how you did when you died, I know the Tardis has probably made you look as you did in life – but I know you're dead. And I also know that when I look at you, I will think to myself, Jayden is dead, my brother is gone. You're the best friend I ever had."

And then he turned away from the grave and smiled sadly as he saw Ace standing close by, and she looked at him apologetically.

"Sorry," she said, "I didn't know you were talking to Jayden again."

"I talk to him all the time," Ed replied, "And I miss him every day, I always will."

And then he turned away from the grave and smiled again, and this time all trace of sadness had left him.

"Anyway, it's time to change the subject. I had a lovely ride with Bert this morning."

And then he put his arm around her waist and they turned back towards the house.

"What's for breakfast?"

"I haven't even started it yet. I was waiting for you."

Ed playfully tapped her backside through the thin material of her summer dress, catching her lightly with the riding crop, and then he laughed as she gave a gasp.

"It's a bit early in the morning for that!" Ace exclaimed.

He pulled her closer and kissed her cheek.

"It's never to early for me," he told her, "Now let's go and eat, before I get too many ideas about you and me and this riding crop, Ace McShane!"

And she laughed as they went into the house together.

Rose blinked away tears as she made her way through the woodland.

Her thoughts were a muddle of all that had happened and all the Doctor had asked of her – and as she looked around, she stifled a sob and the wiped her eyes, trying to focus on his instructions.

"Where do I go?" she said aloud, and then she walked on a little further and saw an old brick wall with a tall wooden gate set into it.

"Please be human – and friendly," she whispered as she approached the gate, "No wait, this is Earth..so they should be human...maybe not friendly... where the bloody hell is this Tardis? I don't see a Tardis!"

And she unlatched the gate and walked into the garden, pausing to close the gate behind her. Then Rose stood there looking down the path towards a house.

And then as she listened, she heard a low him...exactly the same sound as the Tardis?

How could that be?

She looked around again, seeing a pretty garden leading up to an ordinary house I the countryside... yet she could hear the Tardis!

"Where is it?" she said, looking left and right as she walked down the path. Then she paused, feeling slightly unnerved at the sight of a white marble gravestone over in the corner beneath a willow tree... Jayden Drake sounded very much like a person, not a household pet...They had a person's grave in their garden?

"Weird.." she whispered, and then she walked on towards the house, remembering she had to help the Doctor, and that would mean knocking on the door...

After breakfast, Ace looked across the kitchen table thoughtfully as Ed sipped his tea.

"Do you do that every day?"

"Do what every day?"

"Talk to Jayden."

He put the tea down and paused for a moment, then he nodded.

"Yes I do. I don't know if I should be spending so much time at his grave, but I can't ignore the fact that he's there. I thought I'd lost him a century ago and then when Idris brought him back to life – I know he only survived for a brief time, but now I feel as if I've lost him all over again."

"Maybe she should have let him go at the time it happened," Ace said quietly, "I mean, that was when he was supposed to die."

He looked into her eyes.

"But its not that easy when love is involved. If you had the kind of power Idris possesses, and it had been me, what would you have done?"

Ace knew the answer right away.

"I would have done the same thing," she told him, "I wouldn't have let go."

Then she saw pain in his eyes and reached across the table and placed her hand over his.

"I know you miss Jayden. And you can always talk to me about him if you need to, I don't mind listening. He seemed like a really nice bloke."

"He was, he was one of the best."

And then Ace drew in a deep breath, keeping her grip on his hand as she decided now would be as good a time as any to raise a subject she had wanted to mention for some time...

"Do you think you'll ever want us to become a family?"

Ed let go of her hand. Her question had been unexpected and he wasn't sure how to answer.

"I've lived many lifetimes. I've married and raised children, I did all that centuries ago. But I Idris told me one day our children will come along. So yes, I'm looking forward to that happening. But it could take time, Ace. I'm from Gallifrey and you're human and inter species breeding can take a very long time to happen. Me and Barbara tried with no success at all. And believe me, we certainly did try – all the time, every day...we had a great sex life -"

"Okay, shut up about her," Ace said quickly, "I don't need to know that." And then she thought about what else he had just said and her eyes widened in surprise.

"You've got kids already?"

"Somewhere," Ed replied, "Over the centuries, across the galaxies – but my memories are not complete, I cant recall most of them."

Ace gave a sigh.

"Blame your memory damage!"

"I'm not blaming anything!" he said, "I'm telling the truth! My memory was wiped when I was disconnected from the power core, I've got something like one third of it back! You know that, I'm not making up excuses."

"Sorry." she replied quietly,. "It's just that I wasn't expecting to hear that."

"Why did you ask me anyway?"

She looked at him and said nothing.

"Ace?"

"I was just wondering," she replied, and then she remembered with his damaged memory he was not as good at spotting a lie as the Professor had been, and to lie to him now seemed unfair, so she spoke again:

"I was asking because I wanted to tell you -"

There was a knock at the door and their conversation was instantly forgotten.

"The back door?" said Ace, "Someone must have come in through the garden."

And they both got up from the table and went to the door together.

Rose had knocked twice, and then turned back and looked down the path to the gate that led to the woodland. She had suddenly got the creepy feeling that someone was watching her, but had seen no one and put it down to the fact that the grave in the garden had made her feel uneasy.

And then she had no more time to think about it, because the door opened.

"I'm looking for the Doctor, it's urgent!"

Ed said nothing as he stared at the blonde woman who stood there wearing denim jeans and a matching jacket. She looked very familiar indeed...

"You've found him," Ace replied, "Who are you?"

"She's Rose Tyler," Ed said in a hushed voice as his twin hearts missed a beat and memories came rushing back at him so painfully he wished he had taken her advice and let Idris erase her from his mind.

Rose looked at the couple who stood in the open doorway, the woman was in a short, light summer dress, her long hair fell to her shoulders and she looked to be in her mid twenties. The man who stood beside her was older and classically handsome and his style of clothing seemed out of place for twentieth century Earth, his clothing seemed to be Georgian style...and he wasn't wearing a leopard print jacket...

"I need to speak to the Doctor," she said again, "It's important!"

"And Ace already told you, I'm here!" Ed replied.

Rose looked at him in confusion.

"No...the other one...Rick..."

"I'm sorry but he regenerated long ago. I'm the Doctor now," Ed told her.

And Rose drew in a shocked breath as she blinked away tears.

"Oh no! He said we might have gone off course!"

"Who?"

"The Doctor – my Doctor, I think he's Tenth regeneration? He's been bitten by a striped sunray snake while we were on Veyama-six and he doesn't have the antidote! He said Rick kept a large archive of poisons and antidotes, you have to take me to him, take me in your Tardis!"

And she pushed past him and walked into the house.

"Your Tardis, Doctor!" she said urgently.

Ed looked at her apologetically.

"This is my Tardis – and the garden, and a huge hidden maze beneath ground level, too – its all the Tardis. But she can't fly any more, not since she was damaged in the great battle for Earth a hundred years ago. I'm the last Doctor, the final regeneration and I really don't know how to help you."

He saw desperation in her eyes as she blinked away more tears.

"But you have to help me! If he dies won't that mess up the regeneration cycle?"

"I don't know," Ed replied, "But some moments are fixed points in time and I am definitely destined to be here, so it won't affect my existence. My memory was wiped - long story – and I only got part of it back. I probably won't be much use to you at all."

"But he could die, don't you even care?"

Ace looked sharply at Rose.

"Ed was part of the Tardis power core for a century. Taking him out of there caused a lot of damage. Sometimes it takes him a while to work things out. Don't talk to him like that!"

"Thank you Ace, but that's not necessary, I don't need defending..."

Ed sounded distracted as he paced the hallway.

Then he snapped his fingers as a sudden idea came to mind and he looked up, addressing the voice of the Tardis:

"Barbara, do we have a poisons archive?"

"Yes Edward," the voice replied.

"Who's Barbara?" Rose said.

"A computer program," Ace replied, "Ed wrote it to give the Tardis a voice."

Ed was still waiting, but heard no more.

"So where is it?" he asked.

"The archive is located beneath the maze, situated under the access route between the Futuristic and Aztec Zones," the Tardis replied.

"Thank you Barbara," he replied, and then he turned to Rose.

"Where is your Doctor's Tardis?"

"In the woods behind the house – he was to weak to leave the Tardis so he sent me instead."

Ed placed his hands on her shoulder as he looked in her eyes, and as he spoke again, Ace looked on feeling quietly pleased she was witnessing this moment – yet again she was seeing another flash of the Time Lord he really was, before the memory loss.

"Rose," he said, "I want you to go back to the Tardis and stay with the Doctor. Me and Ace will go to the maze and find the archive and bring you the antidote. Don't move him, just stay with him until we get there, okay?"

Rose nodded.

"Thanks," she said, and then she opened the door and hurried off down the path to rejoin the Tenth Doctor in his Tardis.

Ed took hold of Ace's hand.

"Come on," he said, "Let's go to the maze and find this archive."

Then they left the house together, hurrying towards the brick wall and the concealed entrance to the maze.

Rose was breathless by the time she reached the Tardis. She ran inside and fell to her knees beside the Doctor, and then she ran her hand over hair dampened by sweat and spoke to him softly.

His eyes slowly opened and through blurred vision he quickly recognised her.

"Rose," he whispered, "Did you find him?"

She clasped his hand tightly as she sat beside him.

"No, but I found another Doctor – he says he's the last one... he said he's going to find the archive and bring you the antidote."

He breathed a relieved sigh despite the pain that made him tremble and sweat heavily.

"So we did go off course...the last Doctor? I've heard the stories..." And then he drew in a weary breath, "They say he slept for a hundred years, in a dreaming Tardis..."

Then he slipped away again as exhaustion took over, and Rose sat beside him in silence as she clung to his hand and watched the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed heavily, still fighting the venom that threatened to claim him.

Ace and Ed went down the steps into the maze. Ed held her hand as he led her quickly down corridors, taking a short cut through the Futuristic Zone. As they stopped by a lift that ascended to the Aztec Zone, Ace paused to catch her breath.

"Are you sure this is the right way?" she asked him, "Because I thought there was only two floors."

Ed stepped into the lift, waited for Ace to follow and then closed the door.

"I'm assuming as we go up for the Aztec Zone, if I press the down button it will take us to the hidden floor under the maze," he told her.

"You are correct," said Barbara, "Well done, Ed. How clever of you to work that out. Clearly you're much more than just a pretty face."

And Ed laughed and hit the down button, and the lift descended into darkness, then passed down into the lower level, where a vast area with corridors leading left and right were lit by spotlights set in a high, dark ceiling.

"This place is massive!" Ace said as she looked around at the vast lower level.

Ed opened the lift door and Ace stepped out and then he followed.

"Looks like the guidance system is voice activated," he remarked as they stood together looking up at a large screen that bore the message Please state password.

"I hope you know the password," Ace replied, "This place is so big it would take months to search without help."

"I don't need the password, it's my system, it will have to let me in!"

And Ed looked up at the screen again.

"This is the Doctor speaking," he said, "Let me in please, I require the guidance system."

And the message changed:

System locked. Password required.

Ed turned to Ace as panic flashed in his eyes.

"I don't know it!" he said in alarm, "I can't remember the password!"