"I'm sorry it's taken us this long to meet. I've been a fan of yours for quite some time, Doctor. You've sent more humans to me than you'd think, like when you torched Rome. I got quite a few good souls out of that blaze." Scratchman said as he led the Doctor and Yarox up a large staircase, which the fire that instantly disappeared had been covering.
"You did what?" Yarox asked?
"It was an accident. Plus it wasn't really me, it was Nero." The Doctor said awkwardly, not even able to look at Yarox in the face.
"Yes but you were his muse, shall we say Doctor."
"Something like that." The Doctor said as he struggled up the steps, with Yarox even having to help him up the staircase.
"Now, now Doctor I can always kill you and you can regenerate into a younger, much fitter man if you want?" Scratchman taunted.
"Thanks for the offer, but I can't see you leaving much left to regenerate." The Doctor said.
"That's true I do get a little carried away."
All round the stair case were screaming fifty foot Demons fighting with one another who were surrounded by nothing but fire. The screams of the damned souls were defeaning at the ground level, but as they reached the top, they became almost completely silent.
At the top of the stair case were two doors made of still dripping flesh and bone. They both swung open on Scratchman's mental command, whilst inside was a long gold dinning table. The room was filled with strange figures, whose heads were nothing but blue flame. The figures remained completely still, though Scratchman assured the Doctor that they were very much alive and in tremendous pain.
There were also several paintings of Scratchman and his Demon hordes invading planets on the left hand side of the room, whilst on the right hand side there was a huge window, with a view of the hellish landscape outside.
Just below the castle the Doctor could see the war between Scratchman's horde and the residents. Beyond the battle however were massive mountains, and pits, all of which were filled with the souls of humans and other strange creatures being subject to the most horrific torture.
"Those idiots trying to make their way into this castle. There is only one way to get to the tower. All the others lead to some rather nasty little traps I've set out." Scratchman said as he sat down and conjured up a glass or red wine for himself.
"I must admit I'm surprised given how elaborate everything else is here that you've chosen such a shall we say human appearance? Is that just for our benefit." The Doctor asked.
"Oh I assure you Time Lord. Nothing here will be for your benefit. I like this face. It belonged to someone from this universe before I took it over. He was a man like you Doctor. He was a traveller, but after saving a few worlds, he got delusions that it made him some kind of hero. He thought I was just another two bit villain for him to defeat and boast about to his followers after. In all fairness he did give me some trouble, but he now rots at the bottom of this castle. I took his face because it used to represent hope to people. He loved that. It meant more to him than anything else, so I thought it would be funny if his face came to represent fear and terror to all the people he once tried to save. I was thinking about doing the same to you, but you've had 10 already. You can never hold on to one too long can you?"
"Yes well this has been fun eh, Scratchman? Or do you prefer Satan?" The Doctor said.
"Please call me Harry Scratch. I've forgotten my real name, if I ever had one. I've been given so many over the millions of years by so many people and they're always so damn negative. Harry Scratch I think has a more casual sound to it, don't you."
"You're a monster." Yarox said.
"You're only just getting that now." The Doctor replied sarcastically.
"I am a monster to you, yes, but then tell me Doctor, what intelligent species doesn't exploit and slaughter what it perceives to be lesser creatures for it's own survival? The great predators of the earth, such as the Lion, the Shark, the Tyrannosaurus Rex, they all hunted less intelligent, weaker creatures did they not? Humanity is not much better. Look at the way they treat animals? A butchers shop may look harmless, even appealing to you Doctor, but to the species strung up in it's windows, it's comparable to my pit out there."
"You don't just kill, you torture your victims. You break them them down to your level." The Doctor protested.
"You are wrong, I feed on fear, chaos and pain. I need the psychic energy it generates as you need food, so I sacrifice lesser creatures to keep myself alive, the same way a human does when it sinks it's teeth into a steak. The gulf between even you and me, Time Lord is far beyond that of a human and animal. My lifespan is greater than that of entire universes, I have knowledge that even your people would never understand. You are all nothing to me, and so I therefore see no evil in making you suffer to prolong my own life, any more than a farmer does when he slits a bovid's throat."
"In spite of your supposed superiority, you still need me and my old, broken down, obsolete Time machine hmmm." The Doctor said as he proudly clutched his lapels.
"Yes well that's only because of the tight situation I have found myself in. Eons ago when I first conquered this universe, the latest in billions I have destroyed I was sealed in here by the inhabitants of another reality. Some of them got wind of what I was, from a few who escaped my grasp in this world. An alliance formed between the most advanced life forms from numerous realities to seal me in here. I could have beaten them all on their own, but the cowards had to cheat." For the first time Scratchman started to show anger as he spoke.
"Now, now Harry, you of all people can hardly complain about people not playing fair." The Doctor said.
"Yes well anyway." Scratchman continued. "For thousands of years I had to make do with just this one universe, and the remains of a few I'd conquered before that I keep with me below as an emergency food source, but it wasn't enough.This universe was gradually decaying into nothing, and with it my food. Once it had gone, I'd be left here all alone, still trapped by the barrier, I'd rot away to nothing. The only reason this place is still standing is because of me."
"Not much of a claim when you're the one who more or less tore it apart in the first place Harry." The Doctor replied flippantly which most annoyed Scratchman.
"Yes quite, but then when all hope for me seemed lost, I noticed a tiny little rip in the barrier. When I was at full power and had struck at the barrier with all of my fury after it was first placed around this universe. I didn't realise it until much later, but I had obviously managed to create a little break. The rip led to a small seemingly insignificant planet named earth. For centuries I could only peer through the rip and influence the natives of that wretched planet every so slightly. A few delusions of grandeur here, the odd lingering resentment towards something, or someone. Eventually I was able to send through the odd creature who I hoped could widen the rip, the odd beast like a Kraken, a demon and so on. Sadly they failed, but they did create a stronger link to me and this earth, which allowed me to absorb several human minds, usually at the moment of death, but sometimes before into this reality. It helped prolong my life by goodness knows how many years.
Over the centuries the primitives told stories about me, even came up with ideas to comfort themselves about how only the wicked were sent to my domain. You should see the looks on the faces of the humans who lived an honest life when they arrive here. Even after centuries they still can't take it in."
"I can imagine" The Doctor replied in a dry tone.
"Serves them right I say, to think they're better than anyone else. Still whilst it was an amusing distraction from my impending death, toying with the primitives, it was only when I saw your vessel arrive at various different points that I realised I could free myself. Other aliens had visited the earth, such as that worthless Charon. However none of them had the technology you did. It took me a while to realise you were different. At first I didn't even know you were the same man, but my followers kept note of enough of your visits to slowly learn the truth.
For centuries I've used all my power to widen the rip to send through more of my minions to capture you. Finally I was able to send through the army on that Island to try and trap you. I've found a way to sense when your machine arrives Doctor. It always leaves tiny little ripples in the vortex, ahead of when it is about to arrive. Think of it as being like the water pushed ahead by a heavy ship. Once I sensed them I immediately sent my elite souls to create portals to allow my elite forces through to capture you on that miserable little island. I must admit I was disappointed at how unprepared my warriors were. I'm glad at least that Pan was of use to me."
"Yes well if he has any semblance of a conscience I hope it torments him forever." The Doctor said.
Your machine, old, outdated and worthless as it may be." The Doctor was getting visibly annoyed at Scratchman talking about the TARDIS that way, but of course the Demon didn't care and continued.
"It still contains tremendous power due to the ingenuity of the Time Lords. If I were to link it to the to the rip and drain all of it's energy into it, it might widen it to be just large enough for me to pass through completely. I'll have to be at my lowest stage of power even to get through it under those circumstances. It's quite funny in a way though Doctor." Scratchman said as he sat back with a smug look on his face, or rather the face he had stolen.
"When you ran away to go exploring, you never thought once how reckless it was to take a piece of advanced technology like the TARDIS with you? If it weren't for your carelessness I would never have gained the means of my escape."
"Yes well I could be forgiven for not thinking, oh dear Satan is going to steal my ship and use it escape from hell, when I first ran away."
"Maybe next time you'll be more careful." Scratchman laughed before taking a sip of wine, or rather what looked like wine.
"I need you to help me break through your ships defences Doctor. Oh sure in time I could easily rip through them, but I don't have much of that left. It's taken all of my limited power to hold this planet together, and that is only great in this castle. That's the real reason I didn't come and get you myself. If I had left this place for even a few minutes I'd have been drained." Scratchman said in a less jovial tone.
"Why would I help you? Aside from the obvious, you can't threaten me with anything but death. If what you say is true in a few days, maybe even a few hours this entire place will crumble."
"I have enough power Time Lord to ensure that at least one person will become an immortal like me, and share my fate in the eternal nothingness this universe will soon become. I can think of no one better to take my frustration's out on than you, Time Lord."
"Well when you put it that way. For now I'll play along. Tell me though where do you come from." The Doctor asked.
Scratchman seemed to stop for a minute at the Doctor's question.
"Why do you care Time Lord?"
"I always care. That's what got me into this mess in the first place."
"If we had only ignored that Scarecrow." Yarox said.
"No I was talking about my entire life." The Doctor said back to Yarox.
"I don't know where I came from." Scratchman said, honestly.
"My first memory is of nothing but fire, pain and struggling with a creature like me before being cast across the stars, that I later destroyed. I tell my followers here that I am god, because I feel it makes no difference. To them I am a deity, and I also believe firmly that I am part of his plan too."
"You believe in a supernatural creator? What makes you think that you weren't just some cosmic accident hmm" The Doctor protested.
Scratchman smiled.
"Something like me could not come about by accident, Time Lord. I am designed to feed on the suffering of others. I am part of the Creators plan. He clearly is not benevolent. How could he be if he created me. As far as I am concerned, I am following the universal way of life for stronger life forms to dominate lesser creatures. Now then let's not delay any longer shall we? I just can't wait to visit your reality properly."