Baron Saturday Visits Cardiff 9/?
Fandom: Torchwood
Title: Baron Saturday Visits Cardiff
Chapters: 9/?
Length (words): 6002 this chapter / 39,715 so far
Series: (Yep. Eventually. No title yet.)
Pairing: Jack/Ianto
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Spoilers eps 2x6 Reset, 2x7 Dead Man Walking. References through seasons 1 and 2. Set between eps 2x11 Adrift and 2x12 Fragments.
Alerts: Action! Adventure! Hurt/Comfort! Angst!
Summary: Something's gone wrong with Jack and now the living undead are walking the streets of Cardiff. How did this happen? How will the Torchwood Three team handle it? Will Owen join the ranks of the zombie forces or find a new reason for living? All this, and more!
This Chapter: Jack and Ianto face down Blevins in the Hub.
Beta: Thanks to demotu and
caladria for being wonderful betas.
Previous Chapters: Here
Chapter Nine
“What is this strange fetish you have for naming things? Am I going to wake up one day with sticky labels on my -”
Saturday, March 22, 2008, 8:31pm - The Hub
22032008 - 2031
Mainframe Alert: Z3
Number of Zombies Detected: 329
Number of Zombies Dispatched: 308
Number of Zombies Remaining: 21
Number of Players: 6
Add New Player (y/n)
Scores
Dead-boy: 6
Oversexed Git: 0
Gwen: 1
Toshiko: 1
Tea-boy: 0
PC Andy: 7
“Ow!” Ianto eased himself out of the maintenance access hatch in corridor 12C. The lower levels of the Hub were laid out oddly, reminding Ianto of a cross between a submarine and a cruise ship. The Victorian era brickwork, tile, and cement that gave the Hub its historic feel became steel, plastic, and other modern construction materials only a couple of levels down. In some places, such as the cell blocks, the Victorian construction met the modern construction and gradually gave way to it. Ianto always marveled at the way the brickwork halls became steel corridors with numbered designations, bulkheads, hatchways, and access panels.
Ianto allowed himself to slide to the floor in one of the modern corridors, resting his back against the open I-beam where it met the wall, carefully stretching his bruised leg out while pulling the other leg up to brace his arm upon. His spanner had slipped when he was putting the final twist on the last connection needed to fix the Hub’s sensors, and he’d banged his index finger on the metal panel. Glancing at the injured finger, he stuffed the knuckle in his mouth and sucked. Allowing his head to drop back against the wall, Ianto closed his eyes. Even with the nap he’d had earlier, he was exhausted.
“Ianto?” Jack had been monitoring his comm and must have heard the ‘ow’.
Pulling the knuckle from his mouth, Ianto answered the comm. “I’m fine Jack - just skinned my knuckle. You certainly took your time checking on me. Flirting with Andy again?”
Jack’s warm chuckle came over the comm. “Jealous?” Jack asked.
“Hardly. Andy seems capable of withstanding your charms.”
“I can be pretty charming when I put my mind to it. Don’t count me out yet,” Jack said, teasing.
“I’m sure you can, but if you start anything with Andy it won’t be me you have to worry about. Gwen will most likely shoot you herself,” Ianto warned.
“You’re probably right,” Jack agreed. “Not that I disapprove. In this business, it pays to be homicidally protective of your friends. How are the repairs coming?”
“Done. It’s safe to try the sensors.”
“Great!” Jack replied, sounding relieved. “Can you wait there while I run the system diagnostic?”
Ianto snorted. “As if I’d leave before then. We’ve already blown my repairs twice by not running the diagnostic first. I’m not going anywhere until you get the blasted things online.”
“Sorry Ianto. I should have known better the first time, but the second time was an accident.” Jack sounded conciliatory.
“I know.” Ianto considered his injured finger, before dropping the hand in his lap. He’d rather talk to Jack then suck his finger. Briefly, Ianto’s mind flitted over things he would like to suck. He found it hard to concentrate when he was this tired. Right. Talk to Jack.
“How are the others doing?” he asked.
There was a slight pause before Jack responded. “Nobody’s injured, but it’s been hard on them. The zombies aren’t just mindless, inhuman monsters. They’re turning into predators, but it’s still easy to sympathize with the people they were only - what - thirteen hours ago? Before…”
There was silence over the comm.
“Jack?” Ianto prompted. “It’s not your fault,” Ianto continued, when Jack remained silent. “I know you feel responsible, but you couldn’t help it.”
“This doesn’t change the fact that I caused this situation.”
“If you’re going to take the blame, then you have to share some of it with the Doctor and Rose as well. Rose brought you back, didn’t she? She made you like this. If anything, it’s more her fault than yours.”
“She couldn’t help it. It’s not everyday someone merges with the time stream. Rose did the best she could. The human race would have been wiped out if she hadn’t destroyed the Daleks.” Jack took a deep breath. “You already know this.”
“Yes, I do,” Ianto said, firmly. “And so should you. Listen to yourself. ‘She couldn’t help it.’ You’ve told me that - for a short amount of time - Rose had the power of a god, that she could see all of time and space. She must have known this would happen, yet she still brought you back. Rose certainly must have thought you were worth it. Trust her.”
“Rose wasn’t always right. She was thinking with her heart.”
Jack sounded a little less sure of himself. Good. Ianto moved on to his next point.
“What about the Doctor?” Ianto asked Jack. “You’ve told me how smart he is. ‘Absolutely brilliant’ were the words you used, I believe. Is that true? Or were you just building up your ex to make me jealous?” Ianto grinned as Jack laughed.
“Ianto! You know it wasn’t like that for the Doctor and me. There was no time for sex between the sheer terror and running for our lives.” Jack paused. “Okay, if I’d had my way we would have found the time, but he wasn’t interested. Rose was very important to him.” There was a longer pause this time, and when Jack continued, his voice was thoughtful. “Are you trying to wind me up?”
“Yes, just a little,” Ianto replied. “You’re not thinking; you’re feeling. I’m a great believer in guilt when it keeps us from repeating our mistakes, but, you’re accepting more than your share. If the Doctor is really that smart, why didn’t he warn you? Why didn’t he give you some fantastic sonic gizmo to keep you from creating zombies?”
“He didn’t know! With the whole of space and time to draw on for information, the Doctor told me that he’d never heard of this happening before. All he had for me was a label. You’re a freak, Jack. Congratulations and stay the hell away from me!”
Ianto’s mind froze on those last couple of sentences, and his hand clenched into a fist.
“He said that? About you?” Ianto’s voice was tense and quiet. Far from being tired, Ianto was now a hairsbreadth from being as angry as he’d ever been in his entire life. Jack had never shared that bit of information with him before.
“It’s okay,” Jack spoke hurriedly. “He…we…we’re friends. After the Valiant, he offered to let me travel with him again. We’re good. Really.”
“Yes, fine. But he put that thought in your head, didn’t he? He made you think of yourself as some giant, cosmic mistake.”
“People make mistakes,” Jack soothed. “No matter how smart he is, the Doctor is still just a person. He and Rose forgave me for nearly killing off the human race. I think I can forgive him for running from something he’d been taught to fear his entire life. The Time Lords weren’t gods, but sometimes they thought they were. Finding something brand new in the universe at his age - something that didn’t fit - probably shocked the hell out of him.” There was a beep over the comm.
“Gwen and Andy,” Jack told Ianto. “And I’d better contact Tosh and Owen for a report. Don’t go anywhere.”
“Where would I go?” Ianto asked, but Jack had already broken the connection.
Slowly, Ianto unclenched his fist and considered what he’d just learned. The fact that Jack had never told Ianto about this one thing meant that it had hurt him, badly. The Doctor’s careless words had given Jack more pain to carry, more self-doubt, and a greater need to prove himself to the universe. Ianto wanted to find the Doctor, stun gun him, and lock him in one of the cells for a decade or two, but Jack was right. If he and the Doctor had settled their differences, there was no need for Ianto to interfere…as long as it never happened again.
Ianto sighed. People made mistakes. Ianto had used Jack and betrayed him - something Jack had forgiven him for long ago. The Doctor gave Jack a second chance; Jack gave Ianto a second chance; it only stood to reason that the Doctor deserved a second chance as well. Unfortunately, Ianto still had to convince Jack that the Doctor had been wrong. Jack was unique, not a freak. Surely the universe was large enough to support the existence of at least one fixed point?
“Ianto?” Jack’s voice was tentative.
“Still here,” Ianto said. “Don’t worry, I’m not about to hunt the Doctor down, stun gun him, and lock him in a cell for a decade or two.”
“That’s…good to know. Thinking about it, were you? What changed your mind?”
“Second chances,” Ianto said with a sigh. “But, he’s getting decaf if he comes for a visit.”
“He drinks tea.”
“Then Owen’s making it for him.”
“Ouch,” Jack sympathized. “I think that falls under cruel and unusual.”
“Doesn’t matter. That’s my final offer. Take it or leave it.”
“I’ll take it,” Jack said, quickly. “You might change your mind once you get to know him.”
“Then he’ll still have had to drink at least one of Owen’s noxious concoctions. As punishments go, that should be enough. Any problems with the other teams?”
“No. We might get lucky enough to get this wrapped up by midnight. I’ve got the locals doing the clean-up and holding the bodies until we can pick them up. With any luck, I can send everyone home to get some sleep tonight.”
“Now you’ve done it. Don’t forget, we’ve still got to track down Blevins,” Ianto warned.
“That should be easy enough once we get the sensors running again,” Jack predicted. “Speaking of which, the diagnostic just finished. Looks good. Re-initializing sensors now. You can come back. It’s going to take awhile for the computer to run data checks and get all the sensor relays back online. I should have the main Hub areas back up in ten minutes, but it’s going to take longer for all the less important areas. We’ve been lucky so far. I want you back here where I can keep an eye on you.”
“Right. I’m on my way.” Ianto pushed himself carefully to his feet. After nearly twelve hours, the effects of the Tennarite Numbing Stone were wearing off. His injured leg was starting to ache, and it was stiff and painful to use. He’d finished the repairs just in time.
“Jack?”
“I’m here.”
“Good. Listen. You need to try and understand this.” Ianto considered his next words carefully. He knew this wasn’t really the time or the place, but he also knew that if he gave Jack time to brood about the situation, it would be harder to convince him. “Given that the Doctor is brilliant, given that he has ‘all of space and time to draw from’, and given that he had no idea that this would happen, you can’t honestly say that you should have known. This zombie making event, your energy surge, was unpredictable. And don’t try to tell me you should have figured it out from the first time on the Nova Chrysalis. You didn’t even know you were immortal yet. Maybe, just maybe, if the Doctor hadn’t deserted you, he would have figured it out and this wouldn’t have happened.”
“He was dying,” Jack said quietly. “He didn’t know. He…”
“He made a mistake. He didn’t know, but neither did you. You’ve forgiven Rose. You’ve forgiven the Doctor. Now forgive yourself.”
Ianto continued to limp down the corridor, dreading the climb up the narrow ladder he’d have to make, and waiting for Jack to think it through. His comm remained silent for several minutes. He’d climbed up the ladder - two levels - and preceded halfway down one of the Victorian style hallways before Jack spoke again.
“I’ll try. That’s the best I can do. Now, less talking, more walking,” Jack ordered.
“Trying is good enough for me. I’ve reached the lowest brick-work level. It shouldn’t take more than ten minutes from here.”
“You’re moving slowly. Is your leg bothering you?”
“Yep. I think the Tennarite Numbing Stone is wearing off.”
“The what?” Jack asked, startled.
“Alien medical device Owen used on me,” Ianto replied. “I named it.”
“What is this strange fetish you have for naming things? Am I going to wake up one day with sticky labels on my - Fuck!”
“Jack?” Ianto stopped. “Jack, answer me.” Leaning against a wall, Ianto tried to ease his leg, wondering if he was going to have to attempt running on it.
“Quiet. Don’t speak unless you have to. The sensors just came online in the cells. The weevils are dead. CCTV shows blisters on their faces. Blevins must have gotten to them.”
“All?” Ianto asked quietly. “Janet?” Ianto had become accustomed to her, and the thought that she might be dead hurt him, even though he didn’t understand why it should.
“If he’s near the cells, he’s near you, so don’t talk,” Jack ordered. “We’ve got four weevils still alive. He stopped three cells away from Janet. Now, move! I want you out of that area.”
Acknowledging Jack with a tap of his comm line, Ianto moved. He made his way down the straight halls quickly, pausing when he came to corners to check around them before proceeding. Jack continued to report on the progress of the sensors as more areas came online and muttered about needing a program to monitor the CCTV. Pattern recognition and motion detection via the cameras would have allowed them to track Blevins even while their sensors were down. They should have considered the possibility of total sensor failure and planned accordingly. Ianto was sure Jack wouldn’t let this happen to them again. Revamping of the Hub’s CCTV system would be added to Tosh’s ‘To Do’ list.
One last ladder and Ianto would be at the shooting range. Listening carefully, he climbed the ladder as quietly as he could. Unfortunately, zombies didn’t make any noise at all unless they were moving.
Ianto had just reached the top when his comm activated.
“Ianto! Go back! He’s right on top of you!”
That was true. Blevins had been standing only a foot away, hidden in the shadows by the wall. Ianto lunged to one side to avoid Blevins’ grasp, but the pain from his bruised leg made him falter. The zombie swept his other leg out from under him, and Ianto dropped to the floor. Blevins bent and brushed one bare finger over his cheek. Ianto screamed as pain ripped through him. It felt like the cells in his skin had exploded, as if for a single moment all the energy in his body had tried to flow through that one point of contact. His chest tightened and his heart throbbed painfully, leaving him weak and gasping for breath. Ianto was helpless to stop Blevins from taking his weapon. The zombie stood back, stance casual but alert, training the weapon on him.
Ianto lifted his head and blinked teary eyes at the zombie, before dropping it again. Trying to get his breathing under control, he raised one hand and gently explored the mark Blevins finger had left. The skin was blistered and hot to the touch. If that was the effect of a single finger, there was no hope in taking Blevins hand to hand.
“Ianto, listen,” Jack ordered over the comm. “We don’t have much time. Do whatever he says; give him whatever he asks for. Remember, his UNIT special ops training makes him more dangerous. I’m going to lock him out of our systems, out of the mainframe. You won’t be able to give him anything he can use. Stay alive! Do whatever it takes, but stay alive. I’ve got an idea, but you’re going to have to trust me. I promise you I won’t do anything I don’t have to. Stay alive. Trust me; I’ll get us both out of this. I’ve got you on CCTV. Look at the camera if you understand.”
Raising his head again, Ianto gazed at Blevins before looking directly at the camera and blinking deliberately. Blevins followed his gaze and smiled at the camera.
“Ah, Captain Harkness,” Blevins said. “Do tell your man to cooperate. I’d hate to have to hurt him again. And tell him to hand over his comm so that you and I can chat. It would be a shame if I had to take it from him myself. Skin to skin contact would be unfortunate.”
“Do it,” Jack said, “and if he asks for me then lead him to the main Hub. I won’t be there when you arrive. I’m already on my way. Trust me.” Pulling the comm off and tossing it to Blevins, Ianto knew that he trusted Jack to save his life. His only worry was that Jack wouldn’t be as careful with his own.
“Wise move Captain,” Blevins said into the comm. “I assure you I have no urge to hurt Mr. Jones. I’ve feasted quite well today and I don’t believe I shall need to eat again for several hours.”
There was a pause, during which Ianto assumed Jack was speaking. Blevins smiled, and motioned for Ianto to get up. Bracing himself carefully against the wall, Ianto pushed himself to his feet, gingerly testing his injured leg, while Blevins spoke to Jack.
“Alien monsters that you keep locked up indefinitely? And I’m supposed to believe you care about what happens to them? Today they served a higher purpose. As will you. By feeding on them, I have no need to kill your friend. By feeding on you, I won’t need to kill again ever - at least, not permanently. You should be grateful I’m capable of showing such restraint after I discovered you’d falsified the maps of Torchwood Three on file at UNIT Command. Now,” Blevins voice, which had been warm and genial, turned hard as steel, “I do hope that your man will guide me to your command center without any fuss. I can and will kill him in a heartbeat if I have to, though I’d much rather keep him around to keep you in line.”
There was another pause. “Very good. I’m looking forward to meeting you face to face, Captain.” Blevins turned his attention to Ianto.
“You heard what I said to your Captain. Do you feel the need for any tiresome heroics before you do as I say? If so,” Blevins raised a single finger, “do let me know now so I can remind you of why that would be a very bad idea.”
“Ah, no,” Ianto replied. “No heroics. The main Hub is this way.”
Blevins motioned Ianto to walk ahead of him. Ianto led Blevins through the shooting range, up a ladder, and down the long hallway that ran near the cells.
“It’s just up there,” Ianto said, gesturing towards the final ladder. “One more short hallway after this leads onto the main floor by the vaults.”
“Excellent. Lead the way, slowly.”
Ianto and Blevins emerged onto the floor of the Hub near the armoury. With a quick motion of the gun and a raised eyebrow, Blevins indicated that Ianto should lead. The working platform was deserted; true to his word, Jack was gone. The IV bag was still duct taped to the wall, but now there was a sheet of paper taped beside it. Plain block lettering in Jack’s hand said, “Didn’t want to make it too easy for you.”
Blevins shoved Ianto to the floor beside the sofa before checking the area quickly and efficiently. Ianto shuddered at the contact, but the zombie’s cold hands touched only his shirt. Warmth flushed his skin at the points of contact, but he wasn’t burned. Stretching his sore leg out in front of him, Ianto leaned against the wall and waited. Blevins had the upper hand for now. Unless an opening presented itself, it looked like Ianto would have to trust Jack to make the next move.
Blevins picked up a second note and a comm set from the coffee table. A quick glance and he crumpled the paper, tossing it aside, before tossing the comm into Ianto’s lap.
“Put that on Mr. Jones,” Blevins said. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to teach your captain a lesson. So very sorry, but he’ll need to be able to hear you.”
Ianto hooked the comm over his ear and waited. He was pretty sure he didn’t like the idea of Jack being able to hear whatever came next. Blevins crouched beside Ianto before activating his comm and contacting Jack.
“Captain, you’ve made a foolish mistake. I have, of course, been expecting it, so you needn’t worry that I’ll overreact.”
“I just need to know what you think you’re going to do here Blevins,” Jack’s voice sounded over the comm.
“No Captain,” Blevins replied. “What you need to do is listen to this.”
With that, Blevins stroked Ianto’s other cheek with one bare finger. Once again, Ianto screamed as fire burned across the touch and pain exploded throughout his body. His breath caught and his heart throbbed, and darkness danced across his vision, sweeping him under.
Ianto came to with his face pressed against the side of the sofa. Groggy, but somewhat functional, he kept his eyes closed and took a quick inventory. He was still alive. Actually, that rather surprised him. He’d expected Blevins to kill him. As for the rest, his cheeks burned, his leg ached, and his entire body felt strained, sore, and weak. Running and fighting were out of the question, but he thought he might be able to handle sitting in one place for awhile. Hopefully, Jack’s plan wasn’t dependent on Ianto being able to land a blow.
“Good. You’re awake,” Blevins said, making Ianto flinch as he crouched beside him again. “Do let your captain know you’re alive.”
“Jack,” Ianto said weakly. “I’m alive.”
“Ianto,” Jack said, his voice a quiet breath over the comm.
“Excellent. Now gentlemen, lets not waste any more time.” Blevins stood and pulled a sealed glass vile from his pocket. “You see Captain, I know you’re delaying until other members of your team can arrive to help you. It’s quite obvious. I however, know how to put the Hub into lockdown even though you’ve managed to seal me off from your mainframe computer. I also know where your doctor keeps his biological samples for testing.” Blevins moved over to one of the wall mounted sensor units and held the vile beneath it. “All I need to do is this,” with that Blevins broke the vile, crushing the glass against the wall, “and your emergency outbreak protocols will do the job for me.”
Immediately, the Hub’s systems sent out warnings and all of the outer entrances sealed shut. Ianto watched, horrified as Blevins calmly wiped his hands.
“Blevins! What have you - ” Jack’s voice was abruptly cut off. Ianto heard an “oof” followed by a couple of thuds before the comm cut off entirely.
“Jack! Are you all right?” Ianto called frantically. “Jack!”
“Pity,” Blevins said, taking a seat and watching Ianto. “Now I suppose we’ll have to wait until he revives before we can find him. Whether he’s dead or unconscious really makes no difference, does it?”
“Bastard!” Ianto began to lever himself to his feet, but Blevins raised one amused eyebrow before motioning him back down with the gun.
“Do try to remain calm Mr. Jones,” Blevins advised. “I really have no plans to kill you. As a matter of fact, my plans require that you stay alive and I hate to change my plans.”
“And what plans are those Blevins? You can’t honestly think Torchwood won’t be able to find you. You’ve got nowhere to go.”
“Oh, but I do,” Blevins said, smiling. “Do you know what I did after I became too old to go into the field any more? I planned. Strategic and tactical planning of special ops missions was my specialty. When I was finally ready to retire, I planned that as well. I knew I’d be coming to Cardiff.”
“Why?” Ianto asked.
“What?”
“Why Cardiff? Why are you so interested in Cardiff?” Ianto asked again.
“My sister and her family live here. I’m rather fond of them,” Blevins said. “I am - or was - only human. I never had a family of my own, so I made plans to spend time with hers. Surely you don’t think I moved here because of Torchwood?” Blevins laughed.
Ianto shifted uncomfortably. “Well, you seem to have more knowledge of the Hub than I would have expected of a retiree.”
Blevins tapped his head with the gun and said, “Planning Mr. Jones. When I knew I was going to be living in Cardiff, I began to study your organization. UNIT has some very comprehensive files on all of you. You can’t imagine we actually trust you, do you? Your captain is a maverick, with an uncomfortable habit of returning from the dead. Despite his claim of knowing the Doctor, we find his actions suspicious and possibly threatening. Miss Sato is a criminal. She’s betrayed her country once, and we fully expect her to do it again given time. Dr. Harper is a loose cannon. People like him can’t be trusted. And as for you…well. You can’t honestly expect to be trusted again after your collusion with the Cybermen.”
Ianto stared at Blevins, stunned. Torchwood Three was such an insular group, it had never occurred to him to wonder how their actions would be viewed by outsiders. While Blevins had gotten the facts right - though Ianto did wonder about Tosh, he couldn’t imagine her betraying anyone deliberately - his conclusions were skewed. Owen was a loose cannon, but he was also a good doctor. Jack was a maverick, but he would sacrifice himself time and again to save others, even narrow minded idiots like Blevins. Tosh was no criminal. Ianto was sure of that.
As for his own “collusion” with the Cybermen, Ianto supposed he deserved that. But, it had never been about them, only about her. Lisa. He hadn’t been able to see the monster in her, only the love. If fools like Blevins didn’t understand that, so be it. The only people who mattered both understood and forgave him. Tosh, Owen, Gwen, and Jack - especially Jack - accepted him, flaws and all. He’d never betray them again.
“Gwen?” Ianto asked. “I notice you didn’t mention her.”
“She’s of no consequence, an adequate constable, but overall unremarkable. She’s been less than trustworthy since joining Torchwood, but what can you expect? We don’t view Miss Cooper - pardon me, Mrs. Williams - as offering a sufficient level of threat.”
Ianto allowed his head to drop back against the sofa and closed his eyes. There was no point in setting Blevins straight. With any luck, he’d soon know how badly he’d misjudged Ianto’s colleagues and friends.
“So,” Ianto continued, “you read up on Torchwood before moving here?”
“I’ve been in touch with a few old friends as well,” Blevins agreed. “They’ve kept me filled in on current goings on.”
“How do they get the information?”
“Ah, ah, ah. That would be telling. I have no intention of confessing all like the overweening villains in a James Bond movie. If you want to know how UNIT has been keeping track of you, you’ll just have to find out for yourselves, assuming you’ll be in a position to do so.”
There was a groan over the comm.
“Jack?” Ianto said.
“Here.” Jack’s voice was weak. Ianto could barely hear him.
“Good,” said Blevins. “We’ve only got about forty-five minutes before the lockdown ends.”
If that was true, then -. “You used a biologically inert testing material, not an actual germ sample,” Ianto stated.
“Very good Mr. Jones,” Blevins said. “I did say I would prefer you alive, didn’t I? Now, get up. Since the good captain can’t come to us, we’ll have to go to him.” Blevins stood back holding the gun as Ianto levered himself to his feet.
“Captain,” Blevins called over the comm, “do be so kind as to tell Mr. Jones where you are. I’m running out of time and will have to be much less pleasant if you don’t do as I say.”
“Three levels down, two over, corridor 8E, engineering. Don’t hurt him,” Jack begged.
“Then don’t disappoint me again.” Blevins motioned Ianto forward.
Ianto led him back through the shooting range and down, before taking corridor 7D over to the engineering area. Ianto wasn’t as familiar with this area of the Hub. He’d only been down here once or twice before, and always with Jack. Every time he took a wrong turn and they had to retrace their steps, Blevins looked increasingly agitated. No matter how many weevils the zombie had consumed, it appeared that the energy was fading more quickly. Perhaps stolen life force didn’t last as long as Jack’s energy.
“Quit stalling,” Blevins growled, grabbing Ianto by the shirt and shoving him against the wall. “I can feed off your captain, or I can feed off you. But I’m done waiting.”
Ianto swallowed hard and nodded.
“Corridor 8E is just around the corner and down the ladder,” Ianto said. “I just chose the wrong corner.”
Blevins clenched his jaw and nodded before releasing Ianto and motioning for him to continue. When they reached the door marked “Engineering” in corridor 8E, Blevins gripped Ianto by his shirt and held on before opening the door.
The room was large, about the same size as the main floor of the Hub, but only two stories tall, and semi-spherical, the floor being the only flat surface. A large pillar, approximately twenty feet in diameter, made of some clear material, possibly crystalline, stood in the center of the room, surrounded at its base by control consoles. About halfway between the central pillar and the wall was another semi-circular section of consoles facing inward and surrounding the crystal pillar like an outer ring. The pillar itself contained some sort of interconnected discs that appeared to be embedded within it. The room itself and most of the equipment was white, making the spatter of blood near one of the consoles easy to spot. Where was Jack?
There was a soft sound from overhead, and Ianto glanced up in time to see Jack swinging down from one of the ceiling panels to kick Blevins in the back, knocking him into the room. Blevins’ grip jerked Ianto with him - spinning Ianto slightly - until it was loosened and they tumbled in different directions. Then, Jack was dropping and rolling into the room, a strange weapon clutched in his hand which he swung at Blevins.
The zombie threw himself sideways, but quickly regained his feet. Jack lunged again, but slipped and was forced to dodge Blevins’ attempt to grab him. Ianto watched the two warily facing off against each other. There was blood on the floor, and bright red staining Jack’s side - he was still wearing just the loose trousers, no shirt - indicating he’d already been injured before the fight. Blevins looked depressingly healthy. Luckily, he seemed to have dropped Ianto’s gun at some point. Ianto stood carefully, wary of his bruised leg, and scanned the floor. There it was, on the far side of the room. Ianto decided not to risk getting too close. He wanted to help, but if he got near Blevins, he’d only be a liability.
“Laser welder?” Blevins asked, indicating the tool Jack was holding. “So that’s what you came down here for? Why didn’t you just take something from your armoury? Surely you could have found something more effective than a laser welder.” While he spoke, Blevins slowly tried to position himself closer to Ianto. Jack moved with him, keeping himself between Ianto and Blevins.
“Sorry to disappoint, but you kind of rushed me back there,” Jack replied, panting slightly. “No time to hit the armoury, but plenty of time to get to one of these.” Jack raised the laser welder slightly. “It should do just as much damage.”
“If you can get close to me, which you can’t,” Blevins said, calmly. “At least not while protecting him.” Blevins jerked his chin in Ianto’s direction.
“Good point. Ianto, get out of here.”
With that, Jack once again swung the laser welder, this time opening a gash on Blevins neck; the zombie flung himself sideways in time to avoid a beheading. Rolling fluidly to his feet, Blevins ducked Jack’s next blow, hand dipping into his pocket. When he came up, he flicked a small knife directly at Jack’s face. Jack jerked his head sideways as Blevins followed up the move by leaping directly at Jack. He connected solidly, ramming Jack in the chest with his shoulder.
Blevins must have managed to brush him with bare flesh. Jack screamed and shoved the zombie away from him, the laser welder dropping from his hand as he stumbled backwards to fall against the consoles at the base of the crystal pillar. He slid to the floor and lay gasping for breath, while Blevins kicked the laser welder away from both Jack and Ianto, and retrieved the gun.
“Mr. Jones. Over here if you please,” Blevins ordered, gesturing towards the pillar.
Ianto limped over to Jack.
“Good attempt Captain,” Blevins said. “I expected no less from a man of your reputation. Pity it didn’t work. I wasn’t sure you’d actually be here when we arrived. I expected a man of your ingenuity to have at least one trap rigged up somewhere along our route, though perhaps you didn’t know which route we’d take since Mr. Jones could barely find his way here.” Blevins grabbed Ianto again, shoving him down beside the prone man.
“I don’t appreciate you talking about Ianto like that,” Jack said, reaching out to grip Ianto’s hand. “If you’ve got a problem with one of my people, come to me first. I’ll be sure to take it under advisement.”
“Very droll. Let’s stop wasting time, shall we?” Blevins dropped to his knees and reached for Jack.
“Now Mr. Blevins,” Jack said pleasantly, holding up a hand to halt the zombie, “we haven’t even been properly introduced yet. Not that that’s ever stopped me before, but for you I think I’ll make an exception.” Jack’s grin was large and far from pleasant.
Things happened quickly after that. Jack slapped his raised hand down on one of the control consoles and dragged Ianto in close for a firm kiss. There was a vibration and noise from the central pillar as golden light filled the room. Ianto felt faint, drained, and tired, but the warmth of Jack’s kiss pushed life and energy into him. Golden motes swam in his vision until he was surrounded, invaded, and suffused in gold. How long the kiss lasted, Ianto couldn’t tell. It was as if time held itself in abeyance. Ten seconds, ten minutes, ten hours, ten years - Ianto honestly couldn’t tell.
Then the crystal pillar stopped vibrating, the golden light vanished, and Jack collapsed limply to the floor. Ianto sat beside him, stunned. Holding up one hand, he gazed at it in wonder as a vague golden glow disappeared from his skin. Blevins was gone. A pile of dust marked the spot where he had been. Turning to look at Jack, Ianto noticed that he didn’t appear to be breathing. Gently, he re-positioned his lover more comfortably on the floor, placing Jack’s head in his lap, determined to wait until either Jack revived or the others found them. However long it took.
Author's Notes: Big action chapter! Hope you enjoyed it. I do believe that the next chapter will be the last in this particular story. An epilogue of sorts. I still have a couple of surprises and explanations up my sleeve. Stay tuned. :P
Title: Baron Saturday Visits Cardiff
Chapters: 9/?
Length (words): 6002 this chapter / 39,715 so far
Series: (Yep. Eventually. No title yet.)
Pairing: Jack/Ianto
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Spoilers eps 2x6 Reset, 2x7 Dead Man Walking. References through seasons 1 and 2. Set between eps 2x11 Adrift and 2x12 Fragments.
Alerts: Action! Adventure! Hurt/Comfort! Angst!
Summary: Something's gone wrong with Jack and now the living undead are walking the streets of Cardiff. How did this happen? How will the Torchwood Three team handle it? Will Owen join the ranks of the zombie forces or find a new reason for living? All this, and more!
This Chapter: Jack and Ianto face down Blevins in the Hub.
Beta: Thanks to demotu and
caladria for being wonderful betas.
Previous Chapters: Here
Chapter Nine
“What is this strange fetish you have for naming things? Am I going to wake up one day with sticky labels on my -”
Saturday, March 22, 2008, 8:31pm - The Hub
22032008 - 2031
Mainframe Alert: Z3
Number of Zombies Detected: 329
Number of Zombies Dispatched: 308
Number of Zombies Remaining: 21
Number of Players: 6
Add New Player (y/n)
Scores
Dead-boy: 6
Oversexed Git: 0
Gwen: 1
Toshiko: 1
Tea-boy: 0
PC Andy: 7
“Ow!” Ianto eased himself out of the maintenance access hatch in corridor 12C. The lower levels of the Hub were laid out oddly, reminding Ianto of a cross between a submarine and a cruise ship. The Victorian era brickwork, tile, and cement that gave the Hub its historic feel became steel, plastic, and other modern construction materials only a couple of levels down. In some places, such as the cell blocks, the Victorian construction met the modern construction and gradually gave way to it. Ianto always marveled at the way the brickwork halls became steel corridors with numbered designations, bulkheads, hatchways, and access panels.
Ianto allowed himself to slide to the floor in one of the modern corridors, resting his back against the open I-beam where it met the wall, carefully stretching his bruised leg out while pulling the other leg up to brace his arm upon. His spanner had slipped when he was putting the final twist on the last connection needed to fix the Hub’s sensors, and he’d banged his index finger on the metal panel. Glancing at the injured finger, he stuffed the knuckle in his mouth and sucked. Allowing his head to drop back against the wall, Ianto closed his eyes. Even with the nap he’d had earlier, he was exhausted.
“Ianto?” Jack had been monitoring his comm and must have heard the ‘ow’.
Pulling the knuckle from his mouth, Ianto answered the comm. “I’m fine Jack - just skinned my knuckle. You certainly took your time checking on me. Flirting with Andy again?”
Jack’s warm chuckle came over the comm. “Jealous?” Jack asked.
“Hardly. Andy seems capable of withstanding your charms.”
“I can be pretty charming when I put my mind to it. Don’t count me out yet,” Jack said, teasing.
“I’m sure you can, but if you start anything with Andy it won’t be me you have to worry about. Gwen will most likely shoot you herself,” Ianto warned.
“You’re probably right,” Jack agreed. “Not that I disapprove. In this business, it pays to be homicidally protective of your friends. How are the repairs coming?”
“Done. It’s safe to try the sensors.”
“Great!” Jack replied, sounding relieved. “Can you wait there while I run the system diagnostic?”
Ianto snorted. “As if I’d leave before then. We’ve already blown my repairs twice by not running the diagnostic first. I’m not going anywhere until you get the blasted things online.”
“Sorry Ianto. I should have known better the first time, but the second time was an accident.” Jack sounded conciliatory.
“I know.” Ianto considered his injured finger, before dropping the hand in his lap. He’d rather talk to Jack then suck his finger. Briefly, Ianto’s mind flitted over things he would like to suck. He found it hard to concentrate when he was this tired. Right. Talk to Jack.
“How are the others doing?” he asked.
There was a slight pause before Jack responded. “Nobody’s injured, but it’s been hard on them. The zombies aren’t just mindless, inhuman monsters. They’re turning into predators, but it’s still easy to sympathize with the people they were only - what - thirteen hours ago? Before…”
There was silence over the comm.
“Jack?” Ianto prompted. “It’s not your fault,” Ianto continued, when Jack remained silent. “I know you feel responsible, but you couldn’t help it.”
“This doesn’t change the fact that I caused this situation.”
“If you’re going to take the blame, then you have to share some of it with the Doctor and Rose as well. Rose brought you back, didn’t she? She made you like this. If anything, it’s more her fault than yours.”
“She couldn’t help it. It’s not everyday someone merges with the time stream. Rose did the best she could. The human race would have been wiped out if she hadn’t destroyed the Daleks.” Jack took a deep breath. “You already know this.”
“Yes, I do,” Ianto said, firmly. “And so should you. Listen to yourself. ‘She couldn’t help it.’ You’ve told me that - for a short amount of time - Rose had the power of a god, that she could see all of time and space. She must have known this would happen, yet she still brought you back. Rose certainly must have thought you were worth it. Trust her.”
“Rose wasn’t always right. She was thinking with her heart.”
Jack sounded a little less sure of himself. Good. Ianto moved on to his next point.
“What about the Doctor?” Ianto asked Jack. “You’ve told me how smart he is. ‘Absolutely brilliant’ were the words you used, I believe. Is that true? Or were you just building up your ex to make me jealous?” Ianto grinned as Jack laughed.
“Ianto! You know it wasn’t like that for the Doctor and me. There was no time for sex between the sheer terror and running for our lives.” Jack paused. “Okay, if I’d had my way we would have found the time, but he wasn’t interested. Rose was very important to him.” There was a longer pause this time, and when Jack continued, his voice was thoughtful. “Are you trying to wind me up?”
“Yes, just a little,” Ianto replied. “You’re not thinking; you’re feeling. I’m a great believer in guilt when it keeps us from repeating our mistakes, but, you’re accepting more than your share. If the Doctor is really that smart, why didn’t he warn you? Why didn’t he give you some fantastic sonic gizmo to keep you from creating zombies?”
“He didn’t know! With the whole of space and time to draw on for information, the Doctor told me that he’d never heard of this happening before. All he had for me was a label. You’re a freak, Jack. Congratulations and stay the hell away from me!”
Ianto’s mind froze on those last couple of sentences, and his hand clenched into a fist.
“He said that? About you?” Ianto’s voice was tense and quiet. Far from being tired, Ianto was now a hairsbreadth from being as angry as he’d ever been in his entire life. Jack had never shared that bit of information with him before.
“It’s okay,” Jack spoke hurriedly. “He…we…we’re friends. After the Valiant, he offered to let me travel with him again. We’re good. Really.”
“Yes, fine. But he put that thought in your head, didn’t he? He made you think of yourself as some giant, cosmic mistake.”
“People make mistakes,” Jack soothed. “No matter how smart he is, the Doctor is still just a person. He and Rose forgave me for nearly killing off the human race. I think I can forgive him for running from something he’d been taught to fear his entire life. The Time Lords weren’t gods, but sometimes they thought they were. Finding something brand new in the universe at his age - something that didn’t fit - probably shocked the hell out of him.” There was a beep over the comm.
“Gwen and Andy,” Jack told Ianto. “And I’d better contact Tosh and Owen for a report. Don’t go anywhere.”
“Where would I go?” Ianto asked, but Jack had already broken the connection.
Slowly, Ianto unclenched his fist and considered what he’d just learned. The fact that Jack had never told Ianto about this one thing meant that it had hurt him, badly. The Doctor’s careless words had given Jack more pain to carry, more self-doubt, and a greater need to prove himself to the universe. Ianto wanted to find the Doctor, stun gun him, and lock him in one of the cells for a decade or two, but Jack was right. If he and the Doctor had settled their differences, there was no need for Ianto to interfere…as long as it never happened again.
Ianto sighed. People made mistakes. Ianto had used Jack and betrayed him - something Jack had forgiven him for long ago. The Doctor gave Jack a second chance; Jack gave Ianto a second chance; it only stood to reason that the Doctor deserved a second chance as well. Unfortunately, Ianto still had to convince Jack that the Doctor had been wrong. Jack was unique, not a freak. Surely the universe was large enough to support the existence of at least one fixed point?
“Ianto?” Jack’s voice was tentative.
“Still here,” Ianto said. “Don’t worry, I’m not about to hunt the Doctor down, stun gun him, and lock him in a cell for a decade or two.”
“That’s…good to know. Thinking about it, were you? What changed your mind?”
“Second chances,” Ianto said with a sigh. “But, he’s getting decaf if he comes for a visit.”
“He drinks tea.”
“Then Owen’s making it for him.”
“Ouch,” Jack sympathized. “I think that falls under cruel and unusual.”
“Doesn’t matter. That’s my final offer. Take it or leave it.”
“I’ll take it,” Jack said, quickly. “You might change your mind once you get to know him.”
“Then he’ll still have had to drink at least one of Owen’s noxious concoctions. As punishments go, that should be enough. Any problems with the other teams?”
“No. We might get lucky enough to get this wrapped up by midnight. I’ve got the locals doing the clean-up and holding the bodies until we can pick them up. With any luck, I can send everyone home to get some sleep tonight.”
“Now you’ve done it. Don’t forget, we’ve still got to track down Blevins,” Ianto warned.
“That should be easy enough once we get the sensors running again,” Jack predicted. “Speaking of which, the diagnostic just finished. Looks good. Re-initializing sensors now. You can come back. It’s going to take awhile for the computer to run data checks and get all the sensor relays back online. I should have the main Hub areas back up in ten minutes, but it’s going to take longer for all the less important areas. We’ve been lucky so far. I want you back here where I can keep an eye on you.”
“Right. I’m on my way.” Ianto pushed himself carefully to his feet. After nearly twelve hours, the effects of the Tennarite Numbing Stone were wearing off. His injured leg was starting to ache, and it was stiff and painful to use. He’d finished the repairs just in time.
“Jack?”
“I’m here.”
“Good. Listen. You need to try and understand this.” Ianto considered his next words carefully. He knew this wasn’t really the time or the place, but he also knew that if he gave Jack time to brood about the situation, it would be harder to convince him. “Given that the Doctor is brilliant, given that he has ‘all of space and time to draw from’, and given that he had no idea that this would happen, you can’t honestly say that you should have known. This zombie making event, your energy surge, was unpredictable. And don’t try to tell me you should have figured it out from the first time on the Nova Chrysalis. You didn’t even know you were immortal yet. Maybe, just maybe, if the Doctor hadn’t deserted you, he would have figured it out and this wouldn’t have happened.”
“He was dying,” Jack said quietly. “He didn’t know. He…”
“He made a mistake. He didn’t know, but neither did you. You’ve forgiven Rose. You’ve forgiven the Doctor. Now forgive yourself.”
Ianto continued to limp down the corridor, dreading the climb up the narrow ladder he’d have to make, and waiting for Jack to think it through. His comm remained silent for several minutes. He’d climbed up the ladder - two levels - and preceded halfway down one of the Victorian style hallways before Jack spoke again.
“I’ll try. That’s the best I can do. Now, less talking, more walking,” Jack ordered.
“Trying is good enough for me. I’ve reached the lowest brick-work level. It shouldn’t take more than ten minutes from here.”
“You’re moving slowly. Is your leg bothering you?”
“Yep. I think the Tennarite Numbing Stone is wearing off.”
“The what?” Jack asked, startled.
“Alien medical device Owen used on me,” Ianto replied. “I named it.”
“What is this strange fetish you have for naming things? Am I going to wake up one day with sticky labels on my - Fuck!”
“Jack?” Ianto stopped. “Jack, answer me.” Leaning against a wall, Ianto tried to ease his leg, wondering if he was going to have to attempt running on it.
“Quiet. Don’t speak unless you have to. The sensors just came online in the cells. The weevils are dead. CCTV shows blisters on their faces. Blevins must have gotten to them.”
“All?” Ianto asked quietly. “Janet?” Ianto had become accustomed to her, and the thought that she might be dead hurt him, even though he didn’t understand why it should.
“If he’s near the cells, he’s near you, so don’t talk,” Jack ordered. “We’ve got four weevils still alive. He stopped three cells away from Janet. Now, move! I want you out of that area.”
Acknowledging Jack with a tap of his comm line, Ianto moved. He made his way down the straight halls quickly, pausing when he came to corners to check around them before proceeding. Jack continued to report on the progress of the sensors as more areas came online and muttered about needing a program to monitor the CCTV. Pattern recognition and motion detection via the cameras would have allowed them to track Blevins even while their sensors were down. They should have considered the possibility of total sensor failure and planned accordingly. Ianto was sure Jack wouldn’t let this happen to them again. Revamping of the Hub’s CCTV system would be added to Tosh’s ‘To Do’ list.
One last ladder and Ianto would be at the shooting range. Listening carefully, he climbed the ladder as quietly as he could. Unfortunately, zombies didn’t make any noise at all unless they were moving.
Ianto had just reached the top when his comm activated.
“Ianto! Go back! He’s right on top of you!”
That was true. Blevins had been standing only a foot away, hidden in the shadows by the wall. Ianto lunged to one side to avoid Blevins’ grasp, but the pain from his bruised leg made him falter. The zombie swept his other leg out from under him, and Ianto dropped to the floor. Blevins bent and brushed one bare finger over his cheek. Ianto screamed as pain ripped through him. It felt like the cells in his skin had exploded, as if for a single moment all the energy in his body had tried to flow through that one point of contact. His chest tightened and his heart throbbed painfully, leaving him weak and gasping for breath. Ianto was helpless to stop Blevins from taking his weapon. The zombie stood back, stance casual but alert, training the weapon on him.
Ianto lifted his head and blinked teary eyes at the zombie, before dropping it again. Trying to get his breathing under control, he raised one hand and gently explored the mark Blevins finger had left. The skin was blistered and hot to the touch. If that was the effect of a single finger, there was no hope in taking Blevins hand to hand.
“Ianto, listen,” Jack ordered over the comm. “We don’t have much time. Do whatever he says; give him whatever he asks for. Remember, his UNIT special ops training makes him more dangerous. I’m going to lock him out of our systems, out of the mainframe. You won’t be able to give him anything he can use. Stay alive! Do whatever it takes, but stay alive. I’ve got an idea, but you’re going to have to trust me. I promise you I won’t do anything I don’t have to. Stay alive. Trust me; I’ll get us both out of this. I’ve got you on CCTV. Look at the camera if you understand.”
Raising his head again, Ianto gazed at Blevins before looking directly at the camera and blinking deliberately. Blevins followed his gaze and smiled at the camera.
“Ah, Captain Harkness,” Blevins said. “Do tell your man to cooperate. I’d hate to have to hurt him again. And tell him to hand over his comm so that you and I can chat. It would be a shame if I had to take it from him myself. Skin to skin contact would be unfortunate.”
“Do it,” Jack said, “and if he asks for me then lead him to the main Hub. I won’t be there when you arrive. I’m already on my way. Trust me.” Pulling the comm off and tossing it to Blevins, Ianto knew that he trusted Jack to save his life. His only worry was that Jack wouldn’t be as careful with his own.
“Wise move Captain,” Blevins said into the comm. “I assure you I have no urge to hurt Mr. Jones. I’ve feasted quite well today and I don’t believe I shall need to eat again for several hours.”
There was a pause, during which Ianto assumed Jack was speaking. Blevins smiled, and motioned for Ianto to get up. Bracing himself carefully against the wall, Ianto pushed himself to his feet, gingerly testing his injured leg, while Blevins spoke to Jack.
“Alien monsters that you keep locked up indefinitely? And I’m supposed to believe you care about what happens to them? Today they served a higher purpose. As will you. By feeding on them, I have no need to kill your friend. By feeding on you, I won’t need to kill again ever - at least, not permanently. You should be grateful I’m capable of showing such restraint after I discovered you’d falsified the maps of Torchwood Three on file at UNIT Command. Now,” Blevins voice, which had been warm and genial, turned hard as steel, “I do hope that your man will guide me to your command center without any fuss. I can and will kill him in a heartbeat if I have to, though I’d much rather keep him around to keep you in line.”
There was another pause. “Very good. I’m looking forward to meeting you face to face, Captain.” Blevins turned his attention to Ianto.
“You heard what I said to your Captain. Do you feel the need for any tiresome heroics before you do as I say? If so,” Blevins raised a single finger, “do let me know now so I can remind you of why that would be a very bad idea.”
“Ah, no,” Ianto replied. “No heroics. The main Hub is this way.”
Blevins motioned Ianto to walk ahead of him. Ianto led Blevins through the shooting range, up a ladder, and down the long hallway that ran near the cells.
“It’s just up there,” Ianto said, gesturing towards the final ladder. “One more short hallway after this leads onto the main floor by the vaults.”
“Excellent. Lead the way, slowly.”
Ianto and Blevins emerged onto the floor of the Hub near the armoury. With a quick motion of the gun and a raised eyebrow, Blevins indicated that Ianto should lead. The working platform was deserted; true to his word, Jack was gone. The IV bag was still duct taped to the wall, but now there was a sheet of paper taped beside it. Plain block lettering in Jack’s hand said, “Didn’t want to make it too easy for you.”
Blevins shoved Ianto to the floor beside the sofa before checking the area quickly and efficiently. Ianto shuddered at the contact, but the zombie’s cold hands touched only his shirt. Warmth flushed his skin at the points of contact, but he wasn’t burned. Stretching his sore leg out in front of him, Ianto leaned against the wall and waited. Blevins had the upper hand for now. Unless an opening presented itself, it looked like Ianto would have to trust Jack to make the next move.
Blevins picked up a second note and a comm set from the coffee table. A quick glance and he crumpled the paper, tossing it aside, before tossing the comm into Ianto’s lap.
“Put that on Mr. Jones,” Blevins said. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to teach your captain a lesson. So very sorry, but he’ll need to be able to hear you.”
Ianto hooked the comm over his ear and waited. He was pretty sure he didn’t like the idea of Jack being able to hear whatever came next. Blevins crouched beside Ianto before activating his comm and contacting Jack.
“Captain, you’ve made a foolish mistake. I have, of course, been expecting it, so you needn’t worry that I’ll overreact.”
“I just need to know what you think you’re going to do here Blevins,” Jack’s voice sounded over the comm.
“No Captain,” Blevins replied. “What you need to do is listen to this.”
With that, Blevins stroked Ianto’s other cheek with one bare finger. Once again, Ianto screamed as fire burned across the touch and pain exploded throughout his body. His breath caught and his heart throbbed, and darkness danced across his vision, sweeping him under.
Ianto came to with his face pressed against the side of the sofa. Groggy, but somewhat functional, he kept his eyes closed and took a quick inventory. He was still alive. Actually, that rather surprised him. He’d expected Blevins to kill him. As for the rest, his cheeks burned, his leg ached, and his entire body felt strained, sore, and weak. Running and fighting were out of the question, but he thought he might be able to handle sitting in one place for awhile. Hopefully, Jack’s plan wasn’t dependent on Ianto being able to land a blow.
“Good. You’re awake,” Blevins said, making Ianto flinch as he crouched beside him again. “Do let your captain know you’re alive.”
“Jack,” Ianto said weakly. “I’m alive.”
“Ianto,” Jack said, his voice a quiet breath over the comm.
“Excellent. Now gentlemen, lets not waste any more time.” Blevins stood and pulled a sealed glass vile from his pocket. “You see Captain, I know you’re delaying until other members of your team can arrive to help you. It’s quite obvious. I however, know how to put the Hub into lockdown even though you’ve managed to seal me off from your mainframe computer. I also know where your doctor keeps his biological samples for testing.” Blevins moved over to one of the wall mounted sensor units and held the vile beneath it. “All I need to do is this,” with that Blevins broke the vile, crushing the glass against the wall, “and your emergency outbreak protocols will do the job for me.”
Immediately, the Hub’s systems sent out warnings and all of the outer entrances sealed shut. Ianto watched, horrified as Blevins calmly wiped his hands.
“Blevins! What have you - ” Jack’s voice was abruptly cut off. Ianto heard an “oof” followed by a couple of thuds before the comm cut off entirely.
“Jack! Are you all right?” Ianto called frantically. “Jack!”
“Pity,” Blevins said, taking a seat and watching Ianto. “Now I suppose we’ll have to wait until he revives before we can find him. Whether he’s dead or unconscious really makes no difference, does it?”
“Bastard!” Ianto began to lever himself to his feet, but Blevins raised one amused eyebrow before motioning him back down with the gun.
“Do try to remain calm Mr. Jones,” Blevins advised. “I really have no plans to kill you. As a matter of fact, my plans require that you stay alive and I hate to change my plans.”
“And what plans are those Blevins? You can’t honestly think Torchwood won’t be able to find you. You’ve got nowhere to go.”
“Oh, but I do,” Blevins said, smiling. “Do you know what I did after I became too old to go into the field any more? I planned. Strategic and tactical planning of special ops missions was my specialty. When I was finally ready to retire, I planned that as well. I knew I’d be coming to Cardiff.”
“Why?” Ianto asked.
“What?”
“Why Cardiff? Why are you so interested in Cardiff?” Ianto asked again.
“My sister and her family live here. I’m rather fond of them,” Blevins said. “I am - or was - only human. I never had a family of my own, so I made plans to spend time with hers. Surely you don’t think I moved here because of Torchwood?” Blevins laughed.
Ianto shifted uncomfortably. “Well, you seem to have more knowledge of the Hub than I would have expected of a retiree.”
Blevins tapped his head with the gun and said, “Planning Mr. Jones. When I knew I was going to be living in Cardiff, I began to study your organization. UNIT has some very comprehensive files on all of you. You can’t imagine we actually trust you, do you? Your captain is a maverick, with an uncomfortable habit of returning from the dead. Despite his claim of knowing the Doctor, we find his actions suspicious and possibly threatening. Miss Sato is a criminal. She’s betrayed her country once, and we fully expect her to do it again given time. Dr. Harper is a loose cannon. People like him can’t be trusted. And as for you…well. You can’t honestly expect to be trusted again after your collusion with the Cybermen.”
Ianto stared at Blevins, stunned. Torchwood Three was such an insular group, it had never occurred to him to wonder how their actions would be viewed by outsiders. While Blevins had gotten the facts right - though Ianto did wonder about Tosh, he couldn’t imagine her betraying anyone deliberately - his conclusions were skewed. Owen was a loose cannon, but he was also a good doctor. Jack was a maverick, but he would sacrifice himself time and again to save others, even narrow minded idiots like Blevins. Tosh was no criminal. Ianto was sure of that.
As for his own “collusion” with the Cybermen, Ianto supposed he deserved that. But, it had never been about them, only about her. Lisa. He hadn’t been able to see the monster in her, only the love. If fools like Blevins didn’t understand that, so be it. The only people who mattered both understood and forgave him. Tosh, Owen, Gwen, and Jack - especially Jack - accepted him, flaws and all. He’d never betray them again.
“Gwen?” Ianto asked. “I notice you didn’t mention her.”
“She’s of no consequence, an adequate constable, but overall unremarkable. She’s been less than trustworthy since joining Torchwood, but what can you expect? We don’t view Miss Cooper - pardon me, Mrs. Williams - as offering a sufficient level of threat.”
Ianto allowed his head to drop back against the sofa and closed his eyes. There was no point in setting Blevins straight. With any luck, he’d soon know how badly he’d misjudged Ianto’s colleagues and friends.
“So,” Ianto continued, “you read up on Torchwood before moving here?”
“I’ve been in touch with a few old friends as well,” Blevins agreed. “They’ve kept me filled in on current goings on.”
“How do they get the information?”
“Ah, ah, ah. That would be telling. I have no intention of confessing all like the overweening villains in a James Bond movie. If you want to know how UNIT has been keeping track of you, you’ll just have to find out for yourselves, assuming you’ll be in a position to do so.”
There was a groan over the comm.
“Jack?” Ianto said.
“Here.” Jack’s voice was weak. Ianto could barely hear him.
“Good,” said Blevins. “We’ve only got about forty-five minutes before the lockdown ends.”
If that was true, then -. “You used a biologically inert testing material, not an actual germ sample,” Ianto stated.
“Very good Mr. Jones,” Blevins said. “I did say I would prefer you alive, didn’t I? Now, get up. Since the good captain can’t come to us, we’ll have to go to him.” Blevins stood back holding the gun as Ianto levered himself to his feet.
“Captain,” Blevins called over the comm, “do be so kind as to tell Mr. Jones where you are. I’m running out of time and will have to be much less pleasant if you don’t do as I say.”
“Three levels down, two over, corridor 8E, engineering. Don’t hurt him,” Jack begged.
“Then don’t disappoint me again.” Blevins motioned Ianto forward.
Ianto led him back through the shooting range and down, before taking corridor 7D over to the engineering area. Ianto wasn’t as familiar with this area of the Hub. He’d only been down here once or twice before, and always with Jack. Every time he took a wrong turn and they had to retrace their steps, Blevins looked increasingly agitated. No matter how many weevils the zombie had consumed, it appeared that the energy was fading more quickly. Perhaps stolen life force didn’t last as long as Jack’s energy.
“Quit stalling,” Blevins growled, grabbing Ianto by the shirt and shoving him against the wall. “I can feed off your captain, or I can feed off you. But I’m done waiting.”
Ianto swallowed hard and nodded.
“Corridor 8E is just around the corner and down the ladder,” Ianto said. “I just chose the wrong corner.”
Blevins clenched his jaw and nodded before releasing Ianto and motioning for him to continue. When they reached the door marked “Engineering” in corridor 8E, Blevins gripped Ianto by his shirt and held on before opening the door.
The room was large, about the same size as the main floor of the Hub, but only two stories tall, and semi-spherical, the floor being the only flat surface. A large pillar, approximately twenty feet in diameter, made of some clear material, possibly crystalline, stood in the center of the room, surrounded at its base by control consoles. About halfway between the central pillar and the wall was another semi-circular section of consoles facing inward and surrounding the crystal pillar like an outer ring. The pillar itself contained some sort of interconnected discs that appeared to be embedded within it. The room itself and most of the equipment was white, making the spatter of blood near one of the consoles easy to spot. Where was Jack?
There was a soft sound from overhead, and Ianto glanced up in time to see Jack swinging down from one of the ceiling panels to kick Blevins in the back, knocking him into the room. Blevins’ grip jerked Ianto with him - spinning Ianto slightly - until it was loosened and they tumbled in different directions. Then, Jack was dropping and rolling into the room, a strange weapon clutched in his hand which he swung at Blevins.
The zombie threw himself sideways, but quickly regained his feet. Jack lunged again, but slipped and was forced to dodge Blevins’ attempt to grab him. Ianto watched the two warily facing off against each other. There was blood on the floor, and bright red staining Jack’s side - he was still wearing just the loose trousers, no shirt - indicating he’d already been injured before the fight. Blevins looked depressingly healthy. Luckily, he seemed to have dropped Ianto’s gun at some point. Ianto stood carefully, wary of his bruised leg, and scanned the floor. There it was, on the far side of the room. Ianto decided not to risk getting too close. He wanted to help, but if he got near Blevins, he’d only be a liability.
“Laser welder?” Blevins asked, indicating the tool Jack was holding. “So that’s what you came down here for? Why didn’t you just take something from your armoury? Surely you could have found something more effective than a laser welder.” While he spoke, Blevins slowly tried to position himself closer to Ianto. Jack moved with him, keeping himself between Ianto and Blevins.
“Sorry to disappoint, but you kind of rushed me back there,” Jack replied, panting slightly. “No time to hit the armoury, but plenty of time to get to one of these.” Jack raised the laser welder slightly. “It should do just as much damage.”
“If you can get close to me, which you can’t,” Blevins said, calmly. “At least not while protecting him.” Blevins jerked his chin in Ianto’s direction.
“Good point. Ianto, get out of here.”
With that, Jack once again swung the laser welder, this time opening a gash on Blevins neck; the zombie flung himself sideways in time to avoid a beheading. Rolling fluidly to his feet, Blevins ducked Jack’s next blow, hand dipping into his pocket. When he came up, he flicked a small knife directly at Jack’s face. Jack jerked his head sideways as Blevins followed up the move by leaping directly at Jack. He connected solidly, ramming Jack in the chest with his shoulder.
Blevins must have managed to brush him with bare flesh. Jack screamed and shoved the zombie away from him, the laser welder dropping from his hand as he stumbled backwards to fall against the consoles at the base of the crystal pillar. He slid to the floor and lay gasping for breath, while Blevins kicked the laser welder away from both Jack and Ianto, and retrieved the gun.
“Mr. Jones. Over here if you please,” Blevins ordered, gesturing towards the pillar.
Ianto limped over to Jack.
“Good attempt Captain,” Blevins said. “I expected no less from a man of your reputation. Pity it didn’t work. I wasn’t sure you’d actually be here when we arrived. I expected a man of your ingenuity to have at least one trap rigged up somewhere along our route, though perhaps you didn’t know which route we’d take since Mr. Jones could barely find his way here.” Blevins grabbed Ianto again, shoving him down beside the prone man.
“I don’t appreciate you talking about Ianto like that,” Jack said, reaching out to grip Ianto’s hand. “If you’ve got a problem with one of my people, come to me first. I’ll be sure to take it under advisement.”
“Very droll. Let’s stop wasting time, shall we?” Blevins dropped to his knees and reached for Jack.
“Now Mr. Blevins,” Jack said pleasantly, holding up a hand to halt the zombie, “we haven’t even been properly introduced yet. Not that that’s ever stopped me before, but for you I think I’ll make an exception.” Jack’s grin was large and far from pleasant.
Things happened quickly after that. Jack slapped his raised hand down on one of the control consoles and dragged Ianto in close for a firm kiss. There was a vibration and noise from the central pillar as golden light filled the room. Ianto felt faint, drained, and tired, but the warmth of Jack’s kiss pushed life and energy into him. Golden motes swam in his vision until he was surrounded, invaded, and suffused in gold. How long the kiss lasted, Ianto couldn’t tell. It was as if time held itself in abeyance. Ten seconds, ten minutes, ten hours, ten years - Ianto honestly couldn’t tell.
Then the crystal pillar stopped vibrating, the golden light vanished, and Jack collapsed limply to the floor. Ianto sat beside him, stunned. Holding up one hand, he gazed at it in wonder as a vague golden glow disappeared from his skin. Blevins was gone. A pile of dust marked the spot where he had been. Turning to look at Jack, Ianto noticed that he didn’t appear to be breathing. Gently, he re-positioned his lover more comfortably on the floor, placing Jack’s head in his lap, determined to wait until either Jack revived or the others found them. However long it took.
Author's Notes: Big action chapter! Hope you enjoyed it. I do believe that the next chapter will be the last in this particular story. An epilogue of sorts. I still have a couple of surprises and explanations up my sleeve. Stay tuned. :P