Everything
was going perfectly, the project was nearing completion. Those bumbling idiots at the Ministry suspected nothing of his real
intentions. "Soon my dear Doctor, soon." He was whispering but the words seemed to echo off of invisible walls, turning his
voice into a booming roar.
"Come
on Jo, feel that fresh breeze. Breathe in the clean countryside air."
Jo
took a lungful of air and coughed. "Urgh, smells like the farmers been putting manure on the fields." She retched several
times. This was supposed to be a nice relaxing stroll through the countryside while the Brigadier put his troops through a
gruelling exercise. So far she had climbed up a sheer cliff face, waded through four rivers - four bone-chilling rivers -
and she had been almost lost in a thick hill fog. Now they were having a twenty-mile forced march through just about every
bramble hedge the Peak District had to offer.
"It's
nature Jo, the disappearing countryside is something everyone should be worried about. Too much of it is being consumed by
factories and quarries you know."
"I
know Doctor, but what can we do about it?"
"Write
to your MP, get involved with Friends of the Earth, even Greenpeace."
"I'm
not chaining myself to an oil tanker, Doctor."
"Yes,
well it did get a bit of publicity."
"Doctor, your face was transmitted to every home in Britain last Saturday."
"Well
never mind, we should be getting back, last thing we want is for Alistair to get lost or something. Hand me that map would
you?"
"What
map?"
"Good
grief Jo, the map I told you to bring with you."
"You
never told me to bring a map. You said 'we don't need a map Jo, I have the homing instincts of a pigeon.' We're lost aren't
we?"
"Well
maybe if we keep walking we'll find a village and we can phone for help."
"Perfect."
He looked into the viewing sphere and chuckled softly to himself. "He's walking straight into my trap." He laughed again.
"Oh my dear Doctor, this time you are mine."
The
first indication that things were going wrong was when Jo noticed the tree line was shifting about. Coming closer towards
her and then retreating away again. Before she could alert the Doctor she felt a fizzy sensation in her mind. Suddenly everything
went dark as she fainted.
"Squad
one, collect the two guests from Beta sector. Treat them with the utmost care, I don't want them damaged at all." He switched
the microphone off. "At least not yet." The Master began to laugh again.
Jo
opened her eyes. There was a bright light shining straight into them. She quickly closed them again. She tried to sit up but
her arms and legs were pinned down. She tried to shout for the Doctor but she had been gagged.
"You're
awake at last Miss Grant, you know I was beginning to think my little toy had caused brain damage."
Jo
knew this voice; rich, dark, and deep. It was the Master. What was he up to this time? Nothing good she suspected. She had
to escape, find the Brigadier and get help.
"Now,
now, don't struggle like that. We don't want you getting injured do we? Especially when I have such big plans for the two
of you."
Jo
wondered what the Master was talking about when she felt herself being moved. She was taken along a series of corridors into
a Spartan white room. She was lifted upright, still attached to the metal bench and she saw the Doctor was now opposite her.
"Behold
Miss Grant a perfect duplicate of that meddling fool, the Doctor."
Jo
was stunned. This wasn't the Doctor? But it simply had to be; there was no way it could be anything else. No one could create
a copy as perfect as this could they?
The
Master removed Jo's gag and she took in a deep breath. "Why are you doing this and what have you done with the Doctor? The
real one?"
"Why
Miss Grant I'm sure he'll be touched by your concern. He's having a rest next door. The duplication techniques are exhaustive
but very complete."
"Why
create a duplicate of the Doctor? What can you possibly be doing this for?"
"Why
humiliation of course. Nothing as mundane as simple revenge or greed but to besmirch his name and reputation with his so called
friends."
She'd
get help of course. "When I explain this to the Brigadier he'll stop your plan." He'd sort the Master out and free the Doctor.
"Oh
but you won't Miss Grant, at least the duplicate of you won't. You see the Doctor needs his pretty assistant, doesn't he?"
"You're
going to duplicate me?" This came as a huge shock to her.
"But
of course and I have to say it won't be pleasant, for you at least. The, technique will enable me to take your every measurement
and use it to re-map the contours of the copy. It will be perfect, she will become you."
"Who
are you going to use?" No, she didn't want to know.
"Oh
someone special. You see for some time I have been employed by your Government in giving them Time travel technology. The
Doctor wouldn't provide it for them so they came to me."
"They
made you an offer you couldn't refuse?"
"But
of course, they have given me everything I need and much more besides. Resources, equipment, test subjects for a few side
projects and an unlimited budget. Little do they know I have no concern on whether they get the technology or not. It was
a means to an end to repair my TARDIS and collect two very special people from Earth's past. I have substituted one of them
for the Doctor already. You know him as Genghis Khan I believe. I did consider Charles Manson but he's too stable for even
my power to control."
"What
about my replacement? Who have you got to exchange for me?"
"Oh
a special woman of strength, drive and character. Her name is Elisabeth Borden, she's exactly your height already so there
will be very little disorientation after the treatment is complete."
Lizzy
Borden? Jo’s mind raced. She was a crazed killer, wasn’t she? "What
will you do with me then?"
"Why
I do believe you will have to complete the rest of her life sentence once I've altered your appearance."
"You're
going to make me look like her?" He's going to put me in prison with her face? Jo didn't want to hear anymore.
"Oh
don't cry Miss Grant, we can't have those nice eyes of yours all tearful now can we?"
Jo
sobbed as the Masters insane laughter filled the room.
This
was it. Her body had been examined and measured without privacy or discretion. She felt sordid, used and like a piece of meat.
It didn't help that she had Lizzy Borden telling her how much she liked her body. All she wanted to do was be as far away
from here as possible.
Red
and blue laser danced over her skin. Fortunately she had been put inside a steel tube and she felt a modicum of dignity returning.
There was a strange elasticity about her skin and then it began to get warmer and warmer. Muscles ached in her face, arms
and legs. Breathing in and out was difficult and her hair seemed full of static electricity. She couldn't move, couldn't scream,
couldn't even cry; the Master had made sure she was totally helpless.
Finally
things got better, the pain ceased and the lights had gone. Arms pulled her out of the tube and she was dressed roughly in
a simple denim dress.
"Ah
Miss Grant, or should I say Borden? No doubt you're curious as to how much or how little of you is left? Well as you can see
in this mirror the process was perfect. You are an exact recreation of one of history's most evil people."
Jo
looked in the mirror and screamed. She had another woman's face. "That's not me, that's not me, it's not me." Even her voice
was different and she started to cry once more.
"Compose
yourself now, I'm sure you'll agree that your duplicate is very much the ideal assistant for the Doctor."
Jo
looked up to see the mirror image of her standing with the Doctor. "No, it's not true, it can't be true." They laughed at
her as they carried her out of the room and threw her into a room with a barbarian warlord. "Doctor? Is that you?"
"Jo?
Good grief, you as well. I never knew the Master would stoop so low for his revenge. Never mind, I got a good look at the
instrumentation and I'm fairly sure I can reverse the process."
"Oh
Doctor, the Master is going to replace that killer with me. He's sending me to jail." Jo had to hug the Doctor to stop herself
from breaking down completely.
"I
can't say the idea of being a Mongol warrior is my first choice for a career change either Jo. We'll get through this. The
Master isn't as clever as he likes to think he is."
"How
do you mean?" There was a way out of this? Dare she hope?
The
Doctor pulled a tooth out of his mouth. I lost the real one in those caves with the Silurians, rock fell on me and smashed
it out. I made a small homing transmitter see, it will attract the attention of our U.N.I.T friends."
After
many hours of waiting they finally heard the sound of gunfire. Their cell door was thrown open and the Master entered, laser
pistol raised and ready to fire. "So your friends have finally found you? I suspected they might. Not to worry, I can give
them the copies of you two in a daring rescue and who would notice two dead criminals?"
"I
would, respect for life is a virtue I aspire to."
"You
would, you weak snivelling coward. You don't have the honesty to admit that you are superior to these humans do you?"
"I
have more than enough humility to realise that even humans can teach us a thing or two about life, Master."
"Bah,
I've wasted enough time talking to you. Prepare to die Doctor."
Jo
screamed and the gunfire got much louder.
"They're
too close, time to leave. I'll let that military imbecile take care of you two, goodbye Doctor. Maybe you will regenerate
into a better person, but I doubt it."
"Look
if you're going to go, just go. You'll just have to gloat at a distance old chap."
After
the Master had left them alone a U.N.I.T. soldier entered and pointed a gun at them. "Don't move or I'll shoot."
"My
dear chap I have no intention of moving or being shot at by someone who took seven attempts to get their marksman's badge."
"How,
how did you know that?"
"Just
take me to the Brigadier and I'll try to explain everything."
"I'm
sorry but this is the biggest fabrication I've ever heard. I'm prepared the believe you are both look-alike actors hypnotised
by the Master but to believe you and this woman are really my scientific advisor and his assistant is really too much."
"You
have to believe us, these frauds are not the real Doctor and myself." Jo tried to sound convincing.
"I
haven't got all day Captain Yates take them back to the camp and debrief them."
"What
if I can give you a simple way of proving who we are?" Jo had an idea.
"Go
on."
"Feel
the Doctor's chest, notice anything odd about it?"
"Now
look here." The Brigadier was about to protest when he noticed there was something wrong. "One heart, but the Doctor has two."
"Exactly.
He's not the Doctor."
The
fake Jo leapt at the real Jo and tried to strangle her. It took three soldiers to separate the two women.
"I've
had about enough of this for one day would someone please explain exactly what is going on? Doctor?" He looked at the short
Asian man. "What is the Master up to?"
"It's
simple, replace me and Jo with two perfect copies. He can them discredit me and have U.N.I.T. disbanded. That would leave
Earth vulnerable to an assault by any alien race he can convince to invade."
"Can
you change your face again? I'd like the small chap back if you can manage it."
"Certainly
not. We'll use the Master's machine to restore both Jo and myself, then we can deal with these two impostors. They should
be returned to their proper places in the web of time."
Finally
Jo could relax, she was back to her normal self once more. All in all it hadn't been that bad, once the shock had worn off.
In a way it had given her an insight into what the Doctor had to deal with when he had changed from the nice version with
the recorder into the familiar white haired Doctor she had met several years ago. The two fakes had been returned to their proper places in time and now she could
afford to relax and enjoy a nice hot cup of chocolate. It was just a pity she had missed seeing John Benton falling into a
huge muddy puddle yesterday. Fortunately Carol Bell had taken a few pictures and should be back from the developers any time
now. Now there was just the Master to deal with again, but Jo was sure she would see him again. Sooner or later he always
returned, like the proverbial bad penny. Then she saw the pictures her duplicate had taken of herself and an empty Dalek
casing and an acompanying letter. "Oh God, they printed them too!"