Title: Jagged Shards
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Tenth Doctor/Brendan Block
Fandom: Doctor Who/Secret Smile
Rating: R
Table: 5, 10_hurt_comfort
Prompt: 5, Broken
Warning: Rape.
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my own imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the Tenth Doctor or Brendan Block, unfortunately. Please do not sue.

***

Brendan came to slowly, his head pounding. For a moment, he didn't remember where he was -- then all that had happened over the past few hours came back to him in a rush, each image embedded in his mind's eye as though it would never be erased.

His first thought was for the Doctor; he had no idea if the Time Lord was still here in this place with him, or if the Master might have taken his lover to some other place while Brendan was unconscious. He had to find out if the Doctor was close.

He groaned as he opened his eyes, the light in the room seeming bright, even though it had long since been dimmed. For a few moments, all he could see was black spots swimming in front of his eyes, and he was sure that he would pass out again.

The pain that knifed through his body when he lifted his head almost made him cry out; Brendan was sure that he wouldn't be able to move, that he would only be able to lie here helplessly until the Master came back to inflict more torture on him.

No. He wasn't going to let himself pass out. He was going to find the Doctor and, somehow, get them both out of here and safely back to the Tardis before the Master could lay another finger on either them. Or he was going to die trying.

It only took a few moments for his eyes to focus on what he was looking for -- the Doctor, lying on the floor only a few feet away from him in a crumpled heap. Brendan's heart clenched in his chest when he saw the other man, his breath catching in his throat.

He couldn't tell if his lover was dead or alive, but Brendan was sure that the Time Lord was still a part of this realm. He hadn't regenerated, after all; he was still the same man, in the same body. So he had to be alive -- didn't he? He couldn't be gone.

Getting to his feet was impossible; Brendan managed to lever himself to his hands and knees before he gave up on trying to walk. Slowly, inch by painful inch, he crawled across the floor towards the Doctor's body, glad that the tile was smooth, even if it was freezing cold.

It seemed to take forever for him to reach the Doctor; he collapsed on the floor next to the other man, closing his eyes and panting for breath. Just moving that short distance had taken a toll on him; he was feeling dizzy again, and he was sure that he would black out.

But as he lay there, his vision began to clear, his breath coming easier. He might not be able to walk out of here under his own power, but hopefully, the Doctor wasn't too physically damaged to help him get to his feet. If he was .... well, they'd cross that bridge when they got to it.

Brendan reached out with a shaking hand to touch the Doctor's shoulder, using what felt like the last of his strength to turn the other man over. The Time Lord groaned softly, opening his eyes and raising a shaking hand to his head.

"B-Brendan?" he whispered, his voice barely more than a croak. He reached out a shaking hand to brush back a few errant stands of hair that hung over Brendan's brow, his anxious dark eyes moving over his lover's face. "How did you ...."

His voice trailed off as he swallowed, then coughed. "He must have left, but we don't know for how long," the Time Lord said, his voice gaining strength. "We've got to get out of here before he comes back, Brendan. I don't know what else he might try to do."

Brendan didn't think that the Master could possibly do anything worse, but the didn't want to stick around to find out. He nodded at the Doctor's words, almost groaning again when the movement made a spike of pain shoot through his head.

"I agree with getting out of here," he managed to say, his voice little more than a whisper. He was hoarse from screaming; his throat felt raw and sandpapery. "But I don't think I can walk by myself. You'll have to help me, Doctor -- if you can."

The Time Lord nodded, wincing as he sat up and surveyed his nude body. He was bruised and battered, but Brendan could have sworn that his wounds were healing -- much more quickly than a human's would. Was that one of his regenerative abilities?

He didn't voice the question; it wasn't something that needed answering now. At the moment, they had to concentrate on finding something to cover themselves with and finding their way back to the Tardis. The first order of business was to ensure their own safety.

Brendan was absolutely sure that he couldn't get to his feet on his own; he desperately wanted to help the Doctor, but he was as weak as a kitten. At least it didn't hurt to take a breath; the Master hadn't damaged him so badly that he wouldn't recover.

But at the moment, he almost felt overwhelmed by the idea of getting back to the Tardis. The Doctor would help him, but he didn't want to lean on his lover too much; after all, the Time Lord had been through a great deal as well.

The Doctor managed to get to his feet, looking around the room for a moment before moving slowly to one corner and picking something up out of the shadows. Brendan squinted for a moment at what he held, before he realized that the Time Lord had found their clothes.

The other man came back over to where Brendan lay, crouching down beside his lover and wrapping an arm around Brendan's waist. He didn't say anything as he slowly helped Brendan to his feet; it was a few moments before Brendan realized the reason why.

The Doctor's face was contorted, as though he was holding back tears. It was obvious that he was trying hard not to cry, and Brendan knew that the cause of his lover's anguish wasn't the Doctor's own pain. No, this came from a different cause.

"Doctor ...." Brendan's voice was a hoarse whisper; he could barely force the words out, but he had to say something. "Just help me get back to the Tardis. I'll be okay. I promise." He knew that he shouldn't make any promises, but he had to reassure the other man.

The Time Lord nodded, gulping audibly. When he spoke, his voice was tight and controlled; Brendan could tell that he was trying his best to keep his emotions in check. "I'll get you there, Brendan. I'll take care of you, love. I'll get you to someplace safe where you can heal."

Brendan nodded, turning his head to look into the Doctor's eyes. What he saw there made him want to burst into tears himself; the depth of the anguish in those dark eyes was more than he could stand to look at. So much pain -- because of him.

Something had broken inside the Doctor when the Master had taken him. If the Doctor hadn't been forced to watch and to know exactly what was being done to him, the pain might have been lessened -- but the TIme Lord had seen and heard every excruciating moment.

That was the worst thing about what had happened. Brendan knew that he would eventually be able to get past what the Master had done to him -- with the Doctor's help. It had hurt him, caused him more pain than he'd ever felt, but it hadn't broken him.

But the Doctor had been broken. Seeing what had happened to Brendan and being helpless to do anything to help the man he loved had caused something inside him to shatter into jagged shards, and Brendan had no idea how to put those pieces back together again.

Whatever he had to do for the Doctor to fix what the Master had broken, he would do, Brendan vowed. He would sacrifice anything of himself that was required. And when he was capable of hunting the Master down and repaying him for this, he would do that as well.

For the moment, though, they needed to get back to the ship. And he was fast losing his ability to get there under his own power in any way; he could feel himself slipping into unconsciousness again, though he tried to hold onto the daylight world.

Brendan could feel his legs buckling under him, threatening to make him topple to the ground. But the Doctor's arms were around him; his lover was whispering in his ear, words that he couldn't make sense of. But that comforting presence was surrounding him, keeping him safe.

Was it the Doctor who had been broken -- or was he fooling himself and it was really himself who had been taken apart? Brendan relinquished his grip on the conscious world without having an answer to that question, or knowing what would happen next.

***