Heart of Darkness
Title: Heart of Darkness
Author: stevwil
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: They're not mine. I'm just playing with them.
Summary: Angsty depression thrown in with some Torchwood style action.
A/N: Thanks to both the fabulous zazajb and equally fabulous iantosdreamer46 for their help and encouragement with this one!
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
The first days after Ianto had been taken by the Rift created by the destruction of John Hart's vortex manipulator were a flurry of motion.
After witnessing Ianto being drawn into the void, Jack had reestablished contact with Tosh but still been unable to raise Owen and Gwen. He'd ordered her gather what information she could on the spike that took Ianto, begging her to find him. Jack had tracked the GPS unit in the SUV to a small lot at the far end of the street. Popping open the back door, he found a Owen and Gwen bound and gagged in the back.
He freed first Owen then Gwen, letting them remove their own gags.
Owen yanked his gag off shouting, “Where is he?! Where is that fucking Hart?!”
Jack started to answer, “He -”
Gwen yanked her own gag off. “He's got to be stopped! We can't have him here -”
“Shut up! Both of you!” Jack shouted, stunning them into silence. Jack did not shout. He commanded, he barked orders, he demanded but he did not shout. “He's gone and so is Ianto.”
“What?!” Gwen exclaimed and actually looked at Jack. His face was haggard and blood ran down the front of him. “Your shirt...”
Owen said, “Fuck. What happened?”
“I'm not really sure. He had a gun to Ianto's head and ended up shooting me. I revived and heard him screaming about Ianto shooting him. I saw Ianto shoot him through the wrist as he was trying to teleport away. A crack in the Rift opened and they were both drawn into it.”
“Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Owen exclaimed.
“What can we do?” Gwen asked calmly.
There was an uncharacteristic note of pain in Jack's voice. “I don't know.”
Both Tosh and Jack had worked themselves into exhaustion and beyond trying to determine what actually had happened to Ianto.
Jack returned to the warehouse accompanied by Gwen and examined it inch by inch with both his vortex manipulator and Tosh's hand scanners. The data was inconclusive. The crack in the Rift hadn't been a natural occurrence nor had it been a standard vortex manipulator teleport. It was something that Jack had never seen before, even in his days as a time agent.
Toshiko spent her time with her computers trying to puzzle out what had happened to no avail. She simply didn't have enough data to work out the equations. With the proper calculations they could attempt to use the Rift Manipulator to follow Ianto but she didn't have the necessary information.
Owen and Gwen hovered. Neither of them had the skill set to offer any real help so they did whatever was asked of them growing more and more frustrated. Jack started ignoring them completely and after Tosh had lost her temper and started screaming at Owen to “leave her alone, she was working” he sent them home.
“Both of you go home,” he ordered. “I'll call you if I need you.”
“Jack, I'll stay. I want to help,” Gwen argued.
“I'm out of here,” Owen said, not needing to be told twice.
“Keep your phone on!” Jack called at the retreating medic's back. Turning his attention to Gwen he said, “Go home to Rhys. You haven't seen him for days. I'll call if I need you.”
She pursed her lips, obviously irritated. “Call if you need anything at all. I'll come back immediately.”
After Gwen left Tosh said, “Thank you. I can't think with them hovering.”
“I know,” Jack said leaning against her desk. He was quiet for a moment before continuing, “Tosh, can you find him?”
“Honestly?” she asked. At his nod she continued, “I don't know. I won't stop trying.” She reached out and grasped his arm before turning her attention back to the computers.
Life draining out of Jack's voice, he said quietly, “I'll be in my office.”
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
Ianto had been gone a week, taken by the Rift along with John Hart and he could do nothing about it. He'd been happy for the first time in a long time and now it was over. He was alone. He would always be alone. If he was lucky he got to watch the people he cared about grow old and die but that was a rare occurrence. Most of the time they were there and gone in a flash. He'd wanted things to be different with Ianto even if the odds were against it.
Members of Torchwood didn't grow old. They were killed in action. They went mad from the things they faced day in and day out. Their memories were taken from them and they were placed back in a normal life with no idea that they'd ever been part of something fantastic. He hoped it would be different with Ianto.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
Ianto was so calm, cool, collected, so competent. He was prepared for anything. No alien could get the best of him. Insanity wouldn't dare mar that perfectly tailored suit. Ianto would never leave him. Underneath that fine veneer of propriety and control, Ianto was magic. He was passionate and he was loving and and he was funny and for a short time he'd been Jack's and Jack had been his.
He was fond of surprises. Just thinking of the motorbike brought a sad smile to Jack's face. Jack was surprised by Ianto constantly but the biggest surprise was that he was gone and it was Jack's fault.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
John Hart, Ianto was gone because of John Hart. He'd come back to 21st century Cardiff looking for Jack, obsessed with him. They'd been partners and lovers long ago in the Time Agency but Hart's homicidal tendencies among other things had driven them apart years ago. He'd come to Cardiff once before and Jack had let him leave but Hart was mad and his madness had taken Ianto.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
“Jack?” Gwen called, standing in the doorway. She watched him stare lifelessly off into space. When it became obvious that he wasn't going to answer, she said a bit more forcefully, “Jack? Are you okay?”
He turned his head slowly, eyes focusing on her. “What do you want, Gwen?” he asked in a flat voice.
“I asked if you were okay. You've been in here for days.”
“No Gwen, I'm not okay. Why would I be okay?” Jack snapped, a spark of life returning to his voice.
“There's no need...” Gwen stopped and took a deep breath. “Jack, we've done all we can for now.”
“It wasn't enough.” Jack replied.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Gwen asked. “I can pack up his apartment if-”
“You'd like that wouldn't you?” he interrupted, voice cracking like a whip, eyes hard.
“What do you mean? I just want-”
“You can't wait to box him up and get rid of him, can you?” Jack said coldly.
“That's not what I - I miss him too,” She nearly shouted, voice a little shrill.
Jack gave her a hard look and then turned away and said softly, “Maybe you do at that. Regardless, do not touch his things.”
Owen stepped into the office and walked up behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Let's go Gwen. Now is not the time.”
She whirled on him, eyes shining with unshed tears of hurt and frustration. “But I just want to help.”
“Sweetheart, that's nice but have you ever heard the saying 'like a bull in a china shop?' Let's go.” He took her firmly by the arm, guiding her away from Jack's office door.
“Go home. I'll be here if anything happens,” Jack called after them, his flat voice again.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
Tosh glided into the office and leaned against Jack's desk without saying anything. She picked up a grainy photo of Jack and Ianto that looked like a CCTV still. “I've never seen this before,” she said, running the tip of one delicate finger over it.
Jack smiled a wan smile. “Ianto pulled that from footage of when we first met. It was on the desk down in my quarters. He had a sentimental streak.”
“He did,” Tosh agreed and sat silently staring at the picture for a while. “We talked some about the two of you. He was happy, you know.”
“I'm glad,” He was quiet for a minute then added, “So was I. Did he tell you about the motorbike?”
She shook her head. “I didn't know he had a motorbike.”
His smile was genuine, his eyes drifting as he thought about that wild ride, “Neither did I. He took me for a ride one morning. He was a maniac that day.”
She sat for a moment looking into his eyes. “When you're ready, if you want, I'll help you with his things. I loved him too.” She leaned forward brushing her lips against his forehead and stood. Walking to the door, she paused, “The others are gone. Do you want the alerts transferred to your wrist strap?”
He nodded. “Tosh?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you.”
She inclined her head gracefully and was gone.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
An insistent beeping roused him from his stupor. Looking at his wrist strap he thought, “Weevils. Just what I need.”
He checked the time. The others had been gone for hours. He decided to handle it himself. They'd been picking up his slack for the last week and there was no need to drag them back out this evening. Standing, he grabbed his coat, Webley, and a canister of Weevil spray and headed for the SUV.
* * * *
The large black SUV screeched to a halt blocking the entrance to the alley. The door was flung open and Jack leaped out and hit the ground running. He'd spotted the figure halfway down the block shuffling along in the shadows, startling it as he steered the SUV directly towards it. Blinded by the powerful headlamps the weevil shielded its eyes with an arm, fleeing to the alley.
Webley drawn, he chased the figure down the dimly lit alley. Light from the row of businesses it ran behind, including a reasonably good pub he noted, illuminated it well enough that he didn't need a torch. Jack wrinkled his nose as he pounded past a row of rubbish bins behind the restaurant. The combination of the rancid smell of the bins and the aroma of fresh food wafting from the pub would make this area irresistible to a Weevil.
Jack turned a corner and followed the Weevil between two buildings, heading back towards the street. A high wooden fence blocked the space between the two buildings, stopping the weevil short. It turned hissing at him in the low light, head turning slowly left and right.
“Now, now, just calm down,” He said, more for his own benefit rather than the weevil's. He fumbled with is left hand trying to pull his weevil spray out of a coat pocket.
The weevil bobbed slowly from side to side, cocking it's head as it's hiss grew louder becoming a low keen. It moved away from the fence shuffling slowly towards him.
Jack smiled. He needed this. The distraction was temporary at best but for now he could concentrate on the hunt. “Enough of that. Don't make me shoot-”
He was interrupted by an answering keen, and then a second, third and a fourth, all coming from behind him in the alley. This wasn't good.
His smile faded and risked a quick glance over his shoulder. “Shit.”
The entrance to the alley was blocked by four weevils, moving slowly towards him, swaying from side to side.
“Dammit,” he muttered. The first weevil charged and he aimed and fired instantly, shooting it three times in the chest. Leaping over the body before it hit the ground, he ran the last ten feet to the fence, putting his back to it.
“This is just brilliant,” he said to himself. He doubted he could take all four. Being weevil food wasn't the best way to spend an evening.
He'd revive eventually but still, dying was dying. He'd gotten used to Ianto waiting for him when he came back. Jack's eyes would flutter open and he'd smile. Ianto would let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He'd give him a slow, sweet kiss and then explain to him in great detail that watching someone you cared for die was not an experience he enjoyed even if he knew they'd come back. At the same time he'd be fussing over him, making sure he had clean clothes, coffee, chocolate or whatever he deemed necessary at the time. He'd give anything to be scolded like that again.
The weevils moved in keeping him pinned against the fence. He glanced from side to side. The fence was chained and high. The weevils would be on him before he could climb it. They paused at the corpse, the keening bordering on a wail before turning their attention back to him.
The shadows deepened and the already dim light started to fade. A sense of unease radiated from the pit of Jack's stomach that had nothing to do with being dinner for four weevils. The weevils felt it too. They stopped moving towards him and looked around nervously. The keening that had started with the confidence of a pack of hunters moving in for the kill now had a fearful, hesitant quality to it.
Darkness rolled in casting the far end of the alley in deep shadow and then obscuring it completely in an inky blackness. Jack's sense of unease deepened. He steeled himself, ignoring the primal fear building in him, verging on panic. At the chuckle that emanated form the darkness, he jumped in spite of himself. The weevils squealed turning to face the noise.
“I'm going to be very cross if you get yourself killed after I went to the trouble of finding you this evening,” a familiar voice said from the shadows. Jack's panic drained away only to be replaced with irritation.
“Fuck,” Jack muttered. “Just what I need.”
A gloved hand snaked out of the shadows grabbing the weevil to Jack's left by the front of the ragged jumpsuit it was wearing and yanked it into the darkness. The weevil let out a blood curdling scream and Jack to a couple of involuntary steps towards the shadows. The remaining weevils cowered in place unsure what to do.
Jack heard the sound of flesh being struck; one, two, three times and then the sickening crack of bone breaking. The scream was abruptly cut off and the battered and bloody body of the weevil was hurled out of the darkness landing in a heap at the feet of the remaining weevils.
They shrieked and turned to flee the darkness. The gloved hand shot out grabbing the next weevil by the collar and pulled it into the shadows.
The final two weevils bolted towards the fence, dashing past Jack and ignoring him completely.
“Well?” The question was emphasized by the crack of breaking bone in the darkness, “I've told you before I'm not going to do all your work for you.”
Jack peered into the darkness for a fraction of a second, the familiar words taking him by surprise. He turned to face the weevils. They were panicked, trying to batter their way through the fence. He shot them both quickly and efficiently without hesitation. He then turned to face the darkness, gun in hand.
“This has gone on long enough,” Jack said, a hint of anger in his voice. “Who are you? What are you?”
“The gun is unnecessary, Jack.”
Jack started. There was something familiar about the way the dark man said his name. “Who are you?” he asked again.
The darkness retreated and the sense of unease faded. The dim light revealed a tall, achingly familiar form dressed in an elegant dark suit. He stood nonchalantly, dark hair slightly ruffled, gloved hands resting on an ebony walking stick.
“Did you miss me?” he asked with a wan smile.
“Ianto?!” Jack threw himself into the familiar arms of the man he never thought he'd see again.
Author: stevwil
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: They're not mine. I'm just playing with them.
Summary: Angsty depression thrown in with some Torchwood style action.
A/N: Thanks to both the fabulous zazajb and equally fabulous iantosdreamer46 for their help and encouragement with this one!
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
The first days after Ianto had been taken by the Rift created by the destruction of John Hart's vortex manipulator were a flurry of motion.
After witnessing Ianto being drawn into the void, Jack had reestablished contact with Tosh but still been unable to raise Owen and Gwen. He'd ordered her gather what information she could on the spike that took Ianto, begging her to find him. Jack had tracked the GPS unit in the SUV to a small lot at the far end of the street. Popping open the back door, he found a Owen and Gwen bound and gagged in the back.
He freed first Owen then Gwen, letting them remove their own gags.
Owen yanked his gag off shouting, “Where is he?! Where is that fucking Hart?!”
Jack started to answer, “He -”
Gwen yanked her own gag off. “He's got to be stopped! We can't have him here -”
“Shut up! Both of you!” Jack shouted, stunning them into silence. Jack did not shout. He commanded, he barked orders, he demanded but he did not shout. “He's gone and so is Ianto.”
“What?!” Gwen exclaimed and actually looked at Jack. His face was haggard and blood ran down the front of him. “Your shirt...”
Owen said, “Fuck. What happened?”
“I'm not really sure. He had a gun to Ianto's head and ended up shooting me. I revived and heard him screaming about Ianto shooting him. I saw Ianto shoot him through the wrist as he was trying to teleport away. A crack in the Rift opened and they were both drawn into it.”
“Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Owen exclaimed.
“What can we do?” Gwen asked calmly.
There was an uncharacteristic note of pain in Jack's voice. “I don't know.”
Both Tosh and Jack had worked themselves into exhaustion and beyond trying to determine what actually had happened to Ianto.
Jack returned to the warehouse accompanied by Gwen and examined it inch by inch with both his vortex manipulator and Tosh's hand scanners. The data was inconclusive. The crack in the Rift hadn't been a natural occurrence nor had it been a standard vortex manipulator teleport. It was something that Jack had never seen before, even in his days as a time agent.
Toshiko spent her time with her computers trying to puzzle out what had happened to no avail. She simply didn't have enough data to work out the equations. With the proper calculations they could attempt to use the Rift Manipulator to follow Ianto but she didn't have the necessary information.
Owen and Gwen hovered. Neither of them had the skill set to offer any real help so they did whatever was asked of them growing more and more frustrated. Jack started ignoring them completely and after Tosh had lost her temper and started screaming at Owen to “leave her alone, she was working” he sent them home.
“Both of you go home,” he ordered. “I'll call you if I need you.”
“Jack, I'll stay. I want to help,” Gwen argued.
“I'm out of here,” Owen said, not needing to be told twice.
“Keep your phone on!” Jack called at the retreating medic's back. Turning his attention to Gwen he said, “Go home to Rhys. You haven't seen him for days. I'll call if I need you.”
She pursed her lips, obviously irritated. “Call if you need anything at all. I'll come back immediately.”
After Gwen left Tosh said, “Thank you. I can't think with them hovering.”
“I know,” Jack said leaning against her desk. He was quiet for a moment before continuing, “Tosh, can you find him?”
“Honestly?” she asked. At his nod she continued, “I don't know. I won't stop trying.” She reached out and grasped his arm before turning her attention back to the computers.
Life draining out of Jack's voice, he said quietly, “I'll be in my office.”
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
Ianto had been gone a week, taken by the Rift along with John Hart and he could do nothing about it. He'd been happy for the first time in a long time and now it was over. He was alone. He would always be alone. If he was lucky he got to watch the people he cared about grow old and die but that was a rare occurrence. Most of the time they were there and gone in a flash. He'd wanted things to be different with Ianto even if the odds were against it.
Members of Torchwood didn't grow old. They were killed in action. They went mad from the things they faced day in and day out. Their memories were taken from them and they were placed back in a normal life with no idea that they'd ever been part of something fantastic. He hoped it would be different with Ianto.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
Ianto was so calm, cool, collected, so competent. He was prepared for anything. No alien could get the best of him. Insanity wouldn't dare mar that perfectly tailored suit. Ianto would never leave him. Underneath that fine veneer of propriety and control, Ianto was magic. He was passionate and he was loving and and he was funny and for a short time he'd been Jack's and Jack had been his.
He was fond of surprises. Just thinking of the motorbike brought a sad smile to Jack's face. Jack was surprised by Ianto constantly but the biggest surprise was that he was gone and it was Jack's fault.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
John Hart, Ianto was gone because of John Hart. He'd come back to 21st century Cardiff looking for Jack, obsessed with him. They'd been partners and lovers long ago in the Time Agency but Hart's homicidal tendencies among other things had driven them apart years ago. He'd come to Cardiff once before and Jack had let him leave but Hart was mad and his madness had taken Ianto.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
“Jack?” Gwen called, standing in the doorway. She watched him stare lifelessly off into space. When it became obvious that he wasn't going to answer, she said a bit more forcefully, “Jack? Are you okay?”
He turned his head slowly, eyes focusing on her. “What do you want, Gwen?” he asked in a flat voice.
“I asked if you were okay. You've been in here for days.”
“No Gwen, I'm not okay. Why would I be okay?” Jack snapped, a spark of life returning to his voice.
“There's no need...” Gwen stopped and took a deep breath. “Jack, we've done all we can for now.”
“It wasn't enough.” Jack replied.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Gwen asked. “I can pack up his apartment if-”
“You'd like that wouldn't you?” he interrupted, voice cracking like a whip, eyes hard.
“What do you mean? I just want-”
“You can't wait to box him up and get rid of him, can you?” Jack said coldly.
“That's not what I - I miss him too,” She nearly shouted, voice a little shrill.
Jack gave her a hard look and then turned away and said softly, “Maybe you do at that. Regardless, do not touch his things.”
Owen stepped into the office and walked up behind her, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Let's go Gwen. Now is not the time.”
She whirled on him, eyes shining with unshed tears of hurt and frustration. “But I just want to help.”
“Sweetheart, that's nice but have you ever heard the saying 'like a bull in a china shop?' Let's go.” He took her firmly by the arm, guiding her away from Jack's office door.
“Go home. I'll be here if anything happens,” Jack called after them, his flat voice again.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
Tosh glided into the office and leaned against Jack's desk without saying anything. She picked up a grainy photo of Jack and Ianto that looked like a CCTV still. “I've never seen this before,” she said, running the tip of one delicate finger over it.
Jack smiled a wan smile. “Ianto pulled that from footage of when we first met. It was on the desk down in my quarters. He had a sentimental streak.”
“He did,” Tosh agreed and sat silently staring at the picture for a while. “We talked some about the two of you. He was happy, you know.”
“I'm glad,” He was quiet for a minute then added, “So was I. Did he tell you about the motorbike?”
She shook her head. “I didn't know he had a motorbike.”
His smile was genuine, his eyes drifting as he thought about that wild ride, “Neither did I. He took me for a ride one morning. He was a maniac that day.”
She sat for a moment looking into his eyes. “When you're ready, if you want, I'll help you with his things. I loved him too.” She leaned forward brushing her lips against his forehead and stood. Walking to the door, she paused, “The others are gone. Do you want the alerts transferred to your wrist strap?”
He nodded. “Tosh?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you.”
She inclined her head gracefully and was gone.
Ianto was gone and Jack sat staring listlessly at his office wall.
An insistent beeping roused him from his stupor. Looking at his wrist strap he thought, “Weevils. Just what I need.”
He checked the time. The others had been gone for hours. He decided to handle it himself. They'd been picking up his slack for the last week and there was no need to drag them back out this evening. Standing, he grabbed his coat, Webley, and a canister of Weevil spray and headed for the SUV.
* * * *
The large black SUV screeched to a halt blocking the entrance to the alley. The door was flung open and Jack leaped out and hit the ground running. He'd spotted the figure halfway down the block shuffling along in the shadows, startling it as he steered the SUV directly towards it. Blinded by the powerful headlamps the weevil shielded its eyes with an arm, fleeing to the alley.
Webley drawn, he chased the figure down the dimly lit alley. Light from the row of businesses it ran behind, including a reasonably good pub he noted, illuminated it well enough that he didn't need a torch. Jack wrinkled his nose as he pounded past a row of rubbish bins behind the restaurant. The combination of the rancid smell of the bins and the aroma of fresh food wafting from the pub would make this area irresistible to a Weevil.
Jack turned a corner and followed the Weevil between two buildings, heading back towards the street. A high wooden fence blocked the space between the two buildings, stopping the weevil short. It turned hissing at him in the low light, head turning slowly left and right.
“Now, now, just calm down,” He said, more for his own benefit rather than the weevil's. He fumbled with is left hand trying to pull his weevil spray out of a coat pocket.
The weevil bobbed slowly from side to side, cocking it's head as it's hiss grew louder becoming a low keen. It moved away from the fence shuffling slowly towards him.
Jack smiled. He needed this. The distraction was temporary at best but for now he could concentrate on the hunt. “Enough of that. Don't make me shoot-”
He was interrupted by an answering keen, and then a second, third and a fourth, all coming from behind him in the alley. This wasn't good.
His smile faded and risked a quick glance over his shoulder. “Shit.”
The entrance to the alley was blocked by four weevils, moving slowly towards him, swaying from side to side.
“Dammit,” he muttered. The first weevil charged and he aimed and fired instantly, shooting it three times in the chest. Leaping over the body before it hit the ground, he ran the last ten feet to the fence, putting his back to it.
“This is just brilliant,” he said to himself. He doubted he could take all four. Being weevil food wasn't the best way to spend an evening.
He'd revive eventually but still, dying was dying. He'd gotten used to Ianto waiting for him when he came back. Jack's eyes would flutter open and he'd smile. Ianto would let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He'd give him a slow, sweet kiss and then explain to him in great detail that watching someone you cared for die was not an experience he enjoyed even if he knew they'd come back. At the same time he'd be fussing over him, making sure he had clean clothes, coffee, chocolate or whatever he deemed necessary at the time. He'd give anything to be scolded like that again.
The weevils moved in keeping him pinned against the fence. He glanced from side to side. The fence was chained and high. The weevils would be on him before he could climb it. They paused at the corpse, the keening bordering on a wail before turning their attention back to him.
The shadows deepened and the already dim light started to fade. A sense of unease radiated from the pit of Jack's stomach that had nothing to do with being dinner for four weevils. The weevils felt it too. They stopped moving towards him and looked around nervously. The keening that had started with the confidence of a pack of hunters moving in for the kill now had a fearful, hesitant quality to it.
Darkness rolled in casting the far end of the alley in deep shadow and then obscuring it completely in an inky blackness. Jack's sense of unease deepened. He steeled himself, ignoring the primal fear building in him, verging on panic. At the chuckle that emanated form the darkness, he jumped in spite of himself. The weevils squealed turning to face the noise.
“I'm going to be very cross if you get yourself killed after I went to the trouble of finding you this evening,” a familiar voice said from the shadows. Jack's panic drained away only to be replaced with irritation.
“Fuck,” Jack muttered. “Just what I need.”
A gloved hand snaked out of the shadows grabbing the weevil to Jack's left by the front of the ragged jumpsuit it was wearing and yanked it into the darkness. The weevil let out a blood curdling scream and Jack to a couple of involuntary steps towards the shadows. The remaining weevils cowered in place unsure what to do.
Jack heard the sound of flesh being struck; one, two, three times and then the sickening crack of bone breaking. The scream was abruptly cut off and the battered and bloody body of the weevil was hurled out of the darkness landing in a heap at the feet of the remaining weevils.
They shrieked and turned to flee the darkness. The gloved hand shot out grabbing the next weevil by the collar and pulled it into the shadows.
The final two weevils bolted towards the fence, dashing past Jack and ignoring him completely.
“Well?” The question was emphasized by the crack of breaking bone in the darkness, “I've told you before I'm not going to do all your work for you.”
Jack peered into the darkness for a fraction of a second, the familiar words taking him by surprise. He turned to face the weevils. They were panicked, trying to batter their way through the fence. He shot them both quickly and efficiently without hesitation. He then turned to face the darkness, gun in hand.
“This has gone on long enough,” Jack said, a hint of anger in his voice. “Who are you? What are you?”
“The gun is unnecessary, Jack.”
Jack started. There was something familiar about the way the dark man said his name. “Who are you?” he asked again.
The darkness retreated and the sense of unease faded. The dim light revealed a tall, achingly familiar form dressed in an elegant dark suit. He stood nonchalantly, dark hair slightly ruffled, gloved hands resting on an ebony walking stick.
“Did you miss me?” he asked with a wan smile.
“Ianto?!” Jack threw himself into the familiar arms of the man he never thought he'd see again.