Title: Chilled
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Jack Harkness
Fandom: Doctor Who/Torchwood
Rating: PG-13
Table: 1drabble
Prompt: 9, Cold
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Tenth Doctor or Jack Harkness, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

The Doctor grabbed at the door frame, using it to steady himself. It had been a long time since he had felt this disoriented; he was definitely ill, even though he hadn't thought that was the case only a few short hours before. He was sure that he was going to faint.

He had to make it to the control room, to look at the console and make sure that he was on his way to Jack. He didn't know of anywhere else he could go.

There were other places that he could turn to for help with his illness; whatever it might be. But he had to get to Jack first, to let him know that the Master was planning something. If he didn't, then there might not be a world for him to live in.

It wouldn't matter then if this illness killed him.

He didn't think he'd ever been so cold in his life, not even when he'd been stranded on a planet that was nothing but snow and ice as far as the eye could see. This cold seemed to seep into his very bones, even into his soul, chilling him from the inside out.

It wasn't just a coldness of the body, but a coldness of the soul. The Master had somehow caused this, he was sure of it; the other Time Lord's plans had settled into his thoughts, and the more they took root there, the more they chilled him.

Those plans could spell the end of not only the human race and the Earth, but of the universe as it was now known. The Master could set himself up as the ruler of all -- unless he and Jack found a way to stop that from happening. He had to get to Jack.

Together, the two of them would be able to stop the Master's plans. He had to believe that. He had to keep holding on to the knowledge that he and Jack were a formidable team. If he didn't, then he would sink into despair, and all would be lost.

He couldn't let himself give up that easily.

The cold seemed to increase as he dragged himself down the hallway to the control room, nearly collapsing on the console. He peered at it blearily; yes, it was set for the correct time and place. With any luck, he would be with Jack soon.

Jack would know how to help him. He had to. If he didn't, then he would have to be persuaded to come out into the stars with him and guide hm to someone who did.

And together, as a team, they would find a way to defeat the Master. They had to; if they didn't, there might not be a world left for him to continue living in. That was the last thought in the Doctor's mind as he slumped to the floor, falling into a blackness that threatened to swallow him whole.

***