Fanfic: Alternates (11/?)
Title: Alternates (11/?)
Author: walkwithheroes
Rated: PG (for curse words)
Spoilers: Up to Doomsday
Word Count: 5,326
Disclaimer: The Doctor, Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, Jack Harkness, Jackie and Pete Tyler, Torchwood, etc, aren’t owned by me. The third narrative's dialog is taken directly (or pretty much directly) from the S1 and S2 Doctor Who trailers. I did not write those trailers, therefore the words in them are not mine.
Pairings: Ten/Rose, Alt!Eleven/Tess. Hints at others.
Summary: Jack Harkness and Lily Tyler end up on Lily's Earth, in her Torchwood...and there's something in the basement.
Author's Note: Thanks to my beta, nemesis_cry for understanding the characters, and for giving this story a wonderful beta.
All other parts can be found here: Alternates 1-10
Lily Tyler's Earth
Torchwood Tower, London - 2082
Captain Jack Harkness and Lily Tyler were quietly led to the offices belonging to the head of Torchwood.
The office, Jack noted, was much larger than Torchwood One's old HQ on his world. It was painted a fresh white color and pictures and books lined the walls, as a large window overlooked London.
Jack liked the freshness of the office, even if it was a bit dull looking. For her part, Lily seemed completely at home, so much so that she went straight for the desk and sat in the large leather seat behind it.
They had been left alone, but the sense of security couldn't have been falser; they were locked in, Jack was quick to notice.
Lily sighed deeply. There was something disturbing her, that much Jack could tell. He wanted to ask what it was, but thought better of it and instead busied himself by looking at the pictures along one of the walls.
Almost at once one of the photos in particular caught his eye. It was a yellowing photograph that had been carefully placed in a sliver picture frame. The photo had been taken in front of Torchwood House in Glasgow. Standing in the picture were five people: one of which was him! Jack - the other Jack - was beaming with pride at the camera, his arm causally flung over a woman shoulder's.
She seemed nearly as tall as him, her hazel eyes tinkling with laugher and her soft brown curls blowing in her sun-kissed, heart-shaped face. One of her small hands was protectively holding a very large belly. In front of Jack and the mysterious pregnant woman were three boys, all around two or three years old, and all looking remarkably like him.
Jack could feel some kind of misplaced panic rising up inside him. “Lily? I've just seen something that...”
“Oh, I know.” Lily said in disappointment. “Those drapes are horrible with the carpet. It just looks tacky.” She wrinkled her nose up in disgust. “This is Torchwood for fuck's sake, not bloody Graceland.”
Jack raised an eyebrow, gave her a 'what the hell are you on about' look, before shaking his head. “What? No. Look!” He took the photo off the wall and held it up for her to see. “That's me, with...with a...” he could hardly get the words out. “Is that my - his - family?”
Lily leaned over the desk and peered closely at the photo. She chewed on her lower lip for a moment, before shrugging. “Yeah. Yeah, that's you...him...whatever. Uh, that's Torchwood House...judging by the ages of you...him...and the boys...I'd say that was taken...oh, 2023.”
Lily paused in thought, carefully doing the math in her head. She had decided to leave Levi on Christmas Day 2018, and he had brought her to Torchwood Three in the spring of 2019. The boys had been...yes, the photo was taken in 2023.
Meanwhile, Jack just wanted a strong, stiff, drink. He made his way to one of the seats that were in front of the desk and flopped himself down with a loud thud. He liked kids, he did...but the thought of one of his alternate-selves having them was a bit much.
Lily tilted her head to one side, giving Jack a long look. “Oh, calm down. It's not you with the kids and the wife, it was him. And it was a very long time ago, I'm sure.”
“Did you...know him...them?” Jack questioned her firmly, as he straightened himself out in the chair.
Oh, yes. Yes, she had known them. Very well. But, she couldn't tell Jack that, not if she was to win her and Levi's game. In fact, the faster they finished the better it was for everyone.
Lily sighed, shrugged, and leaned back in her seat. “ 'Sorry, no. Just heard about them. You and your wife were really respected.”
“Were?”
“Yeah, were.” Lily looked down, not wanting to met Jack's firm gaze. “This world's Jack died some years ago. His wife died...” she spared a glance at the calendar on the desk, “two years ago,on Christmas day.”
“Oh.” Jack looked down at the photo, again. His - the other him - family looked so...happy and at peace. He hadn't felt that way in a long time. The boys were adorable, the woman's belly was huge enough for more than one baby, and the woman...she looked very intelligent, very shy...not at all his regular type. “What were their names...the kids and his wife?”
“Oh, I don't...” Lily looked up meeting his gaze. “That's not...no. I shouldn't tell you. I hardly...” Lily quickly got up from her seat and began pacing back and forth in front of the window. “Where in the hell do you suppose the head of Torchwood is? The world could end and he keeps us waiting.”
“Lily.” Jack's voice was firm, hard. Understandably he wasn't ready to let their conversation go just yet.
Lily chose to ignore him. “If we get sucked into the Void...I'll not be a happy person. I'm not saying I'll sue or anything, but things could get nasty. Levi wouldn't like it if I...”
“Lily.” Now, Jack's tone sounded more like he was laughing at her, instead of angry at her. He placed the photo on the desk and rose from his chair. “Stop.”
Lily sighed heavily again. “I just wish...I wish Levi was here. We haven't been apart in...ages.”
“You miss him.” It wasn't a question, it was a statement.
“He's my Doctor. I love him, like you love yours and Rose.”
“Lily I - ”
Jack was cut off by the office door unlocking and opening. They turned to the door in time to see a man in his early sixties. The man's peppered hair was slicked back, his suit had clearly cost more than Jack made in a year, and his eyes were sunken and dark. This man, Jack assumed, was the leader they had been waiting for.
The man gave the two the once over, swallowed hard, and then asked in a posh voice: “Aren't you dead?”
Jack and Lily exchanged a look; for all his knowledge, Jack wasn't sure who the man was speaking to: him or Lily.
“You'd like to think that, wouldn't you?” Lily questioned shortly. “He's not Captain Jack, just Jack. It's...complicated.”
“Complicated? The teleporting into the labs, no TARDIS, a look-alike for the dead Jack Harkness, yes all very complicated.” The man nodded shortly. “I don't suppose you can tell us where the Doctor is?”
Lily chewed on the inside of her cheek for a moment. “I really couldn't say, sorry.”
The man's eyes narrowed on Lily, almost as if he had forgotten Jack was in the room with them. “Mrs...”
“Ms.” Lily quickly corrected. “Ms. Tyler, though Lily's better. I'm not posh. I'll explain everything to you, I promise.” She gave Jack a side-ways glance. “Go on then, you git, say hello.”
Jack shook his head before sticking his hand out. “Captain Jack Harkness.”
The man rolled his gray eyes upward. “I know. I'm Stewart Finch, Head of Torchwood One.” He took Jack's hand and shook it firmly. “It's good you're here. Just don't shag anyone in the closets this time around, alright?”
Jack grinned widely. “Alright. Now, I think we ought to...”
“Leave? Yes.” Mr. Finch nodded sharply. “It would be best if you took a short tour of this Torchwood, while I discuss things with Lily.”
“I don't think so, Stewart.”
“Mr. Finch,” both Lily and Mr. Finch corrected.
Lily went on: “Jack, take the tour.” She gave him a very pointed look. “Mr. Finch is afraid of you.”
“Ms. Tyler!” Mr. Finch began to turn a light red color. “I am not afraid of a dead man's...other self. I simply...”
“Finchy...” Lily rolled her eyes. She turned her attention to Jack, completely ignoring the other man. “You should take the tour. Mr. Finch and I'll talk about the Void and all that lot, but you...things might come up, and I'd rather no one get...hurt. You understand?”
“No.” Jack smiled at Lily. It was a small full of charm, and just a little mistrusting. To an outside viewer, it would have looked as if he was trying to sell something to her. “But, I get it, Mysterious Lily. I'll take the tour.” Jack offered Mr. Finch a little nod. “Finchy, take care of her for me? I'll go see if you idiots are causing the Void to open.” With that, Jack left the offices, closing the door firmly behind him.
Once he was sure that Jack was out of hearing distance, Mr. Finch focused all his attention on Lily, giving her a firm look - one that reminded Lily of a teacher staring down an unruly student - and clearing his throat. “You do not even wish to know what I'm thinking. Where's the Doctor, the TARDIS? How on Earth is Captain Jack not only alive, but ten years younger than he was when you and he met?”
“Well...the Doctor, he's where he was before...with the TARDIS. The other Doctor and our TARDIS...I really have no idea. And, that's not Cap'n. That's just Jack, who was with another Doctor and, well...it's a rather long and complicated story full of Doctors, companions, TARDISes, and undefined sexual orientations. You wouldn't be interested.”
“Mrs...Lily...you picked me to run Torchwood on your deathbed. I believe I have a right to know what in the hell is going on. Also, what's this about the Void?”
Lily took in a deep breath of air. “Alright, Finchy...you may want to sit down. Because, I need to know if your Torchwood has been playing God. You see, several universes are currently bleeding into one another, and this could cause several bad things, including and not limited to Cybermen, Daleks, and the end of the world.”
Mr. Finch could feel his legs weaken and his heart drop into the pit of his stomach. “Is that all? Well, this is more of a social call, then anything else.”
Lily smiled fondly at him. “Really, Finchy.” She shook her head with a dry laugh. “By the way, while we try and save the universe, I was wondering...do you think you could get me some of those little cakes with the balls on top? You'd be surprised, but this is the only planet that makes them. And, they're really at their best around this time in history. The ones in 3012 are complete shit.”
Mr. Finch chuckled lightly in disbelief. “Yes, of course. Anything else?”
Lily thought about that for a long moment. “You got any jelly babies? I love those.”
____________________________________________________________________________
“Captain Harkness!” Jack nearly jumped out of his skin, surprised that someone was actually speaking to him. A man had come flying out from behind a pillar, and was now sticking his hand out for Jack to shake. “I'm Jonathan Guppy, sir. Mr. Finch has asked that I take you to the labs.”
Jack gave the man a long look. He was slightly shorter than the average male. With unkempt dark hair. And a dark suit, that looked like his mother had washed it, and several ink stains on his hands and face. All together, Jonathan Guppy wasn't the type of man Jack would have liked as his Torchwood guide.
“Labs?” Jack questioned, as he shoved his hands deep into his trouser pockets. “Why would I want to go there?”
“Because of wha' we found, sir. Mr. Finch thinks it's the cause of all the rips that are poppin' up 'round the world,” Guppy replied casually.
Jack raised a doubting eyebrow. “Does he? He didn't share that with me.”
“Well, he wouldn't. On account of you givin' him the shivers.” Guppy paused. “Oh, an' he'll want t' see Lily.” A dreamy grin quickly began to spread over the younger man's face. “Certainly turned into a beauty, ain't she?” With that, he didn't wait for an answer, and started walking toward the stairs.
“She wasn't...what?”
“Well, she was all old before, weren't she?” Guppy shrugged casually.
Old? Lily...she couldn't have been more than twenty. Taking the stairs two at a time, Jack rushed to catch up with Guppy. “Johnny, is there something...” Jack trailed off when he noticed that Guppy was starting to look pale. “What?”
“Two things, sir. First: I shouldn't have said nothin'. Second:...” he pointed to the two iron doors that stood in front of them, “it's in there.”
Guppy took a pass out of his suit pocket and pressed it against the lock. "Try not t' look directly at it." He advised Jack as the door slid open.
The two men walked slowly entered the large room. It was an odd sort of place, huge but with only two tables and a computer. Jack was about to make some flip remark about Guppy wanting to get him alone, when his gaze was pulled to a corner of the room. High above them loomed a large black sphere. It seemed to hold pulsing power, and Jack found himself hypnotized by it.
Guppy spotted Jack's intense look, and shook his head. "I did tell you, sir. We had to take everyone out...cause they just kept...staring."
Not looking away from the sphere, Jack vaguely said, "Yeah..."
“Sir?” Guppy waved a hand in front of Jack's face. “Um...do you know what it is?”
“No idea.” Jack stated, never taking his eyes off the sphere. “But, it doesn't feel right.” Jack darted forward and up the steps leading to the sphere. “I think...I should have paid more attention during Torchwood meetings.” Jack chuckled lightly, and glanced back at Guppy, all smiles and charm. “Whatever it is, it isn't good.”
Guppy nodded slightly. “Right there, sir. According to our instruments, the sphere doesn't exist. It weighs nothin'. It don't age. No heat or radiation comes from. It don't even got an atomic mass.”
Jack leaned forward, wanting to get closer to the sphere. “Huh. Fantastic.” He gently shook his head. “This has something to do with the rips and Void, that much I know. But, what I don't know is...what's it doing. It can't just sit there.” He turned back to Guppy. “I need to get back to Lily. She's probably having a heart attack, if Finch has told her what's happened here.”
_____________________________________________________________________________
Lily let out a loud laugh, before putting her hands over her mouth. She really didn't want to snort in the middle of tea. “No, no...we did. Stole the damn thing right off his desk! He was runnin' 'round the place, yelling: 'Where's me damn hat?'"
Mr. Finch chuckled under his breath. “And here I thought you and the Doctor saved the Universe daily.”
Lily smiled. “Only when we have to, Finchy. We spend the rest of our time stealing from heads of state and playing games. We aren't nearly as heroic as the myths make us out to be.” She looked down at her little cake, suddenly feeling unfulfilled and sad by the truth of her life. “The way people talked - the way the Doctor and Rose talked - I thought it'd be different. It was different, but than we regenerated.”
Mr. Finch nodded understandingly, even though he didn't understand. The truth was, he had no idea how to handle this sort of thing. He could hardly handle his wife's 'lady issues', let alone his ex-boss and her, well...alien issues. It seemed immortality and rushing around the universe was only wonderful for a short while. Hadn't that been the reason Lily left the Doctor all those years ago?
“Chin up.” He told her lamely. “You were...we were discussing...the, uh...Void, was it?”
“Oh!” Lily lightened up at that. “Yes, right. The Void's the space between dimensions. From alternate-Jack, you know that there's all sorts of realities around us, different dimensions - billions of parallel universes all stacked together, like building blocks. The Void's the stuff in-between, like the white stuff between those cookies.”
Mr. Finch leaned forward in his chair. “Wh-what's in it?”
“Nothing.” Lily cast her eyes down to her hands, which still held a little cake. “It's empty. Imagine that - nothing. It's all empty. No light, no dark, no up, no down, no noise. No life. No time. It's endless. It's endless...which is why you should be very happy that I'm here to save you from it, Finchy. It's awful in there.” She shivered at the thought.
Leaning back into his chair, Mr. Finch felt himself go pale. “Oh, dear. Mrs. Harkness...I think you ought to come down to one of the labs with me.”
Lily stood, eying Finch suspiciously. “Oh,” she breathed,“what have you done?”
“I think we...we let something through.”
Lily nodded gravely. “Course you did. You're idiots, the lot of you!” She angrily shoved past him, running straight for the stairs and the labs.
____________________________________________________________________________
“Lily!” Two voices called her name, though she wasn't sure which one sounded more urgent and afraid: Jack or Mr. Finch. Lily and Jack met in the middle of the stairs, Finch just behind them.
“You have got to see this,” Jack went on in an uncharacteristic rush. “It's...I don't know what the hell it is, but it's important.”
“They let it through.” Lily told him. She grabbed onto Jack's hand, and dragged him along behind her. “Finch, come on!”
Guppy was waiting by the door, but all three ignored him as they entered.
With a start, Lily stopped dead in her tracks upon seeing the sphere. Inwardly, she cursed every God and demi-God she knew. Outwardly, she was frozen in something that wasn't quite terror. Oh, yes her father was right...humans were idiot apes. Massive, idiot apes.
“Of all the things...” Lily whispered more to herself than to anyone else in the room.
From beside her, Jack tightened his hold on her hand. “Lily...care to share with the class or is it private?”
“No, no, NO!” Angrily, she turned on Mr. Finch. “You...stupid...apes! In all my years...your race is the one that's always the most brilliant and always the most stupid!” With her free hand, she shoved Finch in the shoulder. “Do you know what that is? That's a Void Ship.”
Confused, Mr. Finch shook his head. “A what?”
“Void. Ship,” Jack pronounced clearly.
“Those aren't real.” Guppy spoke up from the back of the room. Suddenly all eyes darted to him. “It's impossible, I mean.” He stammered on. “A theory. Even the Doctor'll tell you that.”
Lily shook her head sadly. “No, it's not. 'Cause we made one, me an' the Doctor. Several thousand years from now. We made it to exist outside of time an' space, 'cause it was safer.” Her brow furrowed ever so slightly. “That is...if this even is our sphere. Could be another one, for all I know.”
“But...” Mr. Finch just couldn't seem to bring himself to grasp the logic. “Why would you make a sphere to exist outside of time and space?”
Lily opened her mouth to speak, but was stopped by Jack: “For a prison. You,” he gently guided Lily to face him. “You and the Doctor - Levi - you put something dangerous in there, didn't you?” He wasn't sure why he was guessing that, but from what he knew of Lily and Levi it made sense. Why should they deal with the horrors of the universe, when they could simply lock them away?
“Image, you could be inside of it forever, and eternity would all pass you by. The Big Bang... end of the Universe, start of the next, wouldn't even touch the sides. We knew they'd exist outside the whole of creation.” Urgently, she touched the side of his face, willing him to understand. “We had to. We couldn't...you can't stop them.”
Jack felt a lump forming in his throat. She couldn't be...oh, it...oh, no. “Lily...what did you do?”
Meanwhile, Mr. Finch was growing more and more nervous. “No. You're saying there's something in there?” He pointed to the sphere, seemingly thinking the others wouldn't know what he was talking about. “How on Earth...you put something in there?”
Lily glanced back to him. “Oh yes.”
Caught by Lily's dark tone, Finch swallowed hard. He wanted to ask what was inside the sphere, but instead he asked: “How do we get rid of it?”
“How did it get here?” Lily retorted, nearly sounding like her old, cheerful self. “Figure that out, Finchy...and, we have an answer.” She let her hand slip out of Jack's and strode off.
Jack, Finch, and Guppy all exchanged a look, before following.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Feeling totally defeated, even though he was not yet defeated, Mr. Finch brought Lily and Jack to his office. Jack stood by the door, Guppy standing just behind him...wanting to feel important, no doubt. Surprisingly - though maybe not that surprisingly - Lily went straight for Mr. Finch's desk.
Lily settled down in his huge chair. “Alright,” she put her feet up on the desk, crossed them, and grinned at Mr. Finch. “Let's discuss a few things, shall we?”
Mr. Finch's eyes lingered on Lily's feet, but he decided to let that pass. She was relaxed...that scared him more than the sphere downstairs. “How could you and the Doctor build the sphere?” He questioned her before she could say anything more. “You two...”
"It's big technology.” Jack cut-in. He folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the doorway, the picture of coolness and relaxation. “Too big, even for a Time Lord.”
A small smile crept over Lily's face. “Ah, well that's the thing. It wasn't our technology.” She shrugged lightly. “We sort of stole it. Not that it matters now, of course. What matters is: where you got the sphere from?”
"We found it.” Finch stated, trying hard to maintain some sort of control over his Torchwood. Control was something he was slowly losing to Lily, and he knew it. “In...” He looked back to Guppy,“uh...”
"Norway!” Guppy shouted out. “Yeah, Norway.” He nodded happily to himself.
Jack looked from Guppy to Finch and then to Lily; A very doubtful looking Lily.
"Wrong.” Lily sat up. “Lies do not become you, Jonathan.” She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, staring hard at Finch. “The tiny little rip that's always in Norway isn't big enough...even with all this Void mess. That and the sphere would not be putting out this much 'scary' unless the source was nearby.”
"You're saying it came from inside Torchwood Tower?” Jack asked, hardly believing that it was possible for a huge sphere to just appear inside a building. Sure, he had seen a lot of freaky things in his day...but, a sphere appearing in a building? That was just...impossible.
"Oh yes.” Lily nodded brightly. “See, what a lot of people don't get is that breaches are the same in every possible Universe. You got major activity in Norway in one, you got the same activity in all the others around it. Which means...”
"Even though this Torchwood isn't opening the breach, it's getting Void stuff?” Jack half-guessed.
"Give the man a prize.” Lily chewed on her lower lip for a moment. “The breach is energy. All pure and powerful...humans love power, can't get enough of it. One of the universes that's right on top of this one is opening the breach for the energy. A lot, by the look of things. Oh...they must have found the breach, probed it, and let all sorts of things come through to their world. And since all the universes are being crushed into one another...things are starting to come through, 'cause the breaches are getting bigger in all the universes.”
Jack muttered, “Holes in the fabric of reality.”
"Holes that let little things pop into universes that are just minding their own business...like this one,” Lily added with a sharp nod.
Looking from Jack to Lily, Finch cleared his throat. “Wait, what are you saying?”
“You lied to me, Finch. I'm saying that the sphere showed up here because the Earth that's actually opening the breach is right next to yours. Sadly, that means we can't send the sphere back, because we can't open the breach.”
Mr. Finch opened his mouth to protest, but Jack held up a hand. “You don't have the means to do it, Finch. You're at the mercy of whoever is controlling the breach. While they have fun with all the free energy, you're getting Void trash.”
“Okay...” Lily took a deep breath. She could do this...she was the Doctor now. “Jonathan, m'luv...find whoever has a pass to the Sphere Room and get the pass back. No one goes in there, get me?” Guppy nodded, happy to have something useful to do, before rushing off. “Finch, I need you to stay perfectly calm...while you and get a plan of action together, just in case something else comes through or the sphere decides to open. Jack...stand there and look pretty.”
“What? Lily, I'm in Torchwood I could...” Jack trailed off when he realized that Lily was not listening to him. In fact, she was climbing Finch's desk. Laughing, Jack asked her: “What are you doing?”
“Yes, Lily...you might fall.” Finch was out of his seat and standing just to the right of his desk. “Come down. This isn't the time for one of your silly games.”
“No...if it was, I'd ask if you wanted to play 'Which Historic Figure Was Actually Gay?'.” Lily replied in all seriousness. “The last time I was here...when the Doctor and I came for those things I wanted...we left something, just in case.”
As she explained herself, Lily carefully took a tile off the ceiling, coughed because of the dust, and then pulled a small tin box out of the ceiling. She dropped the box onto the desk, before climbing back into her seat. “What's in here will help us a great deal, boys.”
The tin box had a little lock on it and hardly looked big enough for a bottle of whiskey, let alone a weapon.
“Have you got the key?” Mr. Finch questioned, eying the new hole in his ceiling.
“Not on me, no.” Lily said. Jack was about to suggest they actually go do something useful, like find the opening of the breach, when Lily reached across the desk and picked up the picture frame that Jack had been looking at earlier. She opened the back and took out a key from behind the picture. “The key.” She glanced up at Finch through the bangs which were currently obscuring her vision. “You wouldn't dare change the frame, Levi knew that.”
A moment later, the box was open...something which caused several layers of thick dust to fill the room.
Jack coughed, waved dust out of his face, and tried to see what Lily was doing. The first thing was an old bottle of whiskey, which she tossed to Finch. “You may like a stiff one, Finchy.” She told him softly. Next was a rotten banana, which she tossed to Jack, who dropped it in disgust a second later. “Always have a banana, in case of a party or an attack.” Finally, she pulled out a pair of 3-D glasses, that looked as if they came from a box of cereal. “These...oh, these are the big thing...the best thing.”
“Why...” Finch shook his head, deciding it was better not to ask. “I'll show you to the place where the sphere came through, shall I?”
He led the pair out of his office and straight to a large white wall, which was just opposite to where they had been. “It came through there, our own...hole in the world. That was a week ago. There's been no more activity, unless we...well, shoot at it.”
“21st century humans and their violence.” Jack remarked with a laugh. He looked over at Lily, who had put her 3-D specs on. She was moving her head around, almost as if she was following pieces of dust that he couldn't see. “You got something?” He asked her softly.
Lily didn't seem to hear the question. She was too busy staring at the wall. With a walk that suggested she had important things to do, Lily moved to the wall, and she placed a small hand over the middle of it. It felt not unlike a perfectly normal wall, but Lily knew better. Still contemplating the wall, she stated: “What a beautiful spatial disturbance.”
Jack watched Lily carefully, nearly in awe - something he had once done around the Doctor - as Lily pressed the side of her face against the wall, almost as if she was trying to hear what was one the other side.
“Can you hear something?” Finch asked, regretting the foolishness of the question the second it was past his lips.
“Not hear, feel.” Jack answered for Lily. “She can feel it, can't you?” He started to move closer to her, thought better of it, and moved back instead.
Lily didn't reply to Jack's question, instead she stated plainly: “When the sphere came through it made the hole, cracking this world. The entire surface of this dimension is starting to splinter. And that's how everything else will get through. That's how they'll get to all the other Earths. Bleed through the fault lines. Walking from their world, across the Void, and into yours.”
She removed her face from the wall, and focused her attention onto Finch and Jack. “Only they can't get through...not yet. But, oh...they are trying so very hard. Just one more good push from the world opening the breach and...” Lily snapped her fingers. “Sphere opens and all the stuff of nightmares comes walking into your world.”
Swallowing hard, Mr. Finch nervously asked: “What can we do?”
Lily laughed softly. “Nothing. You haven't the time or the means to close the hole. You're really at the mercy of the Torchwood on the other side. You'll just have to hope and pray that the hole doesn't get big enough for anything else to come through or for that sphere downstairs to open.”
“But, surely...you know of something that can help?”
Lily removed her 3-D specs and regard Finch sadly for a brief moment. “I've got a banana, whiskey, and 3-D glasses. I've got no TARDIS, no Doctor, and no...well, no anything. All I've got is Jack, and...” she looked at him, her eyes burning two perfect holes into his face. “You're wonderful, but you can't build anything to help in the time we have.”
“How long have we got?” Jack questioned her, his voice suddenly much lower than he would have liked.
Lily shrugged. “Until the...a few hours, at best. Really, all we can do is make sure that what's in that sphere doesn't get out. Because, if they do get out of this Torchwood, it's over...Void opening or not.”
Taking a chance, and feeling a bit awkward, Jack moved to Lily. He placed a hand on the side of her face, guiding her to face him. “What did you and Levi put in the sphere? What was so scary that you and the great Doctor were afraid to fight?”
Lily stared deeply into Jack's eyes, and for a moment it was just the two of them. They were the only two people on Earth, it made Lily feel safe. Her voice shaky and full of fear, she whispered just one word. A word that shook Jack to the core. Lily harshly whispered...
“Cybermen.”
-Most of the 'Void speak' was taken directly or indirectly from the S2 episode Army of Ghost. I did not write that episode and thus do know own the words.
Author: walkwithheroes
Rated: PG (for curse words)
Spoilers: Up to Doomsday
Word Count: 5,326
Disclaimer: The Doctor, Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, Jack Harkness, Jackie and Pete Tyler, Torchwood, etc, aren’t owned by me. The third narrative's dialog is taken directly (or pretty much directly) from the S1 and S2 Doctor Who trailers. I did not write those trailers, therefore the words in them are not mine.
Pairings: Ten/Rose, Alt!Eleven/Tess. Hints at others.
Summary: Jack Harkness and Lily Tyler end up on Lily's Earth, in her Torchwood...and there's something in the basement.
Author's Note: Thanks to my beta, nemesis_cry for understanding the characters, and for giving this story a wonderful beta.
All other parts can be found here: Alternates 1-10
Lily Tyler's Earth
Torchwood Tower, London - 2082
Captain Jack Harkness and Lily Tyler were quietly led to the offices belonging to the head of Torchwood.
The office, Jack noted, was much larger than Torchwood One's old HQ on his world. It was painted a fresh white color and pictures and books lined the walls, as a large window overlooked London.
Jack liked the freshness of the office, even if it was a bit dull looking. For her part, Lily seemed completely at home, so much so that she went straight for the desk and sat in the large leather seat behind it.
They had been left alone, but the sense of security couldn't have been falser; they were locked in, Jack was quick to notice.
Lily sighed deeply. There was something disturbing her, that much Jack could tell. He wanted to ask what it was, but thought better of it and instead busied himself by looking at the pictures along one of the walls.
Almost at once one of the photos in particular caught his eye. It was a yellowing photograph that had been carefully placed in a sliver picture frame. The photo had been taken in front of Torchwood House in Glasgow. Standing in the picture were five people: one of which was him! Jack - the other Jack - was beaming with pride at the camera, his arm causally flung over a woman shoulder's.
She seemed nearly as tall as him, her hazel eyes tinkling with laugher and her soft brown curls blowing in her sun-kissed, heart-shaped face. One of her small hands was protectively holding a very large belly. In front of Jack and the mysterious pregnant woman were three boys, all around two or three years old, and all looking remarkably like him.
Jack could feel some kind of misplaced panic rising up inside him. “Lily? I've just seen something that...”
“Oh, I know.” Lily said in disappointment. “Those drapes are horrible with the carpet. It just looks tacky.” She wrinkled her nose up in disgust. “This is Torchwood for fuck's sake, not bloody Graceland.”
Jack raised an eyebrow, gave her a 'what the hell are you on about' look, before shaking his head. “What? No. Look!” He took the photo off the wall and held it up for her to see. “That's me, with...with a...” he could hardly get the words out. “Is that my - his - family?”
Lily leaned over the desk and peered closely at the photo. She chewed on her lower lip for a moment, before shrugging. “Yeah. Yeah, that's you...him...whatever. Uh, that's Torchwood House...judging by the ages of you...him...and the boys...I'd say that was taken...oh, 2023.”
Lily paused in thought, carefully doing the math in her head. She had decided to leave Levi on Christmas Day 2018, and he had brought her to Torchwood Three in the spring of 2019. The boys had been...yes, the photo was taken in 2023.
Meanwhile, Jack just wanted a strong, stiff, drink. He made his way to one of the seats that were in front of the desk and flopped himself down with a loud thud. He liked kids, he did...but the thought of one of his alternate-selves having them was a bit much.
Lily tilted her head to one side, giving Jack a long look. “Oh, calm down. It's not you with the kids and the wife, it was him. And it was a very long time ago, I'm sure.”
“Did you...know him...them?” Jack questioned her firmly, as he straightened himself out in the chair.
Oh, yes. Yes, she had known them. Very well. But, she couldn't tell Jack that, not if she was to win her and Levi's game. In fact, the faster they finished the better it was for everyone.
Lily sighed, shrugged, and leaned back in her seat. “ 'Sorry, no. Just heard about them. You and your wife were really respected.”
“Were?”
“Yeah, were.” Lily looked down, not wanting to met Jack's firm gaze. “This world's Jack died some years ago. His wife died...” she spared a glance at the calendar on the desk, “two years ago,on Christmas day.”
“Oh.” Jack looked down at the photo, again. His - the other him - family looked so...happy and at peace. He hadn't felt that way in a long time. The boys were adorable, the woman's belly was huge enough for more than one baby, and the woman...she looked very intelligent, very shy...not at all his regular type. “What were their names...the kids and his wife?”
“Oh, I don't...” Lily looked up meeting his gaze. “That's not...no. I shouldn't tell you. I hardly...” Lily quickly got up from her seat and began pacing back and forth in front of the window. “Where in the hell do you suppose the head of Torchwood is? The world could end and he keeps us waiting.”
“Lily.” Jack's voice was firm, hard. Understandably he wasn't ready to let their conversation go just yet.
Lily chose to ignore him. “If we get sucked into the Void...I'll not be a happy person. I'm not saying I'll sue or anything, but things could get nasty. Levi wouldn't like it if I...”
“Lily.” Now, Jack's tone sounded more like he was laughing at her, instead of angry at her. He placed the photo on the desk and rose from his chair. “Stop.”
Lily sighed heavily again. “I just wish...I wish Levi was here. We haven't been apart in...ages.”
“You miss him.” It wasn't a question, it was a statement.
“He's my Doctor. I love him, like you love yours and Rose.”
“Lily I - ”
Jack was cut off by the office door unlocking and opening. They turned to the door in time to see a man in his early sixties. The man's peppered hair was slicked back, his suit had clearly cost more than Jack made in a year, and his eyes were sunken and dark. This man, Jack assumed, was the leader they had been waiting for.
The man gave the two the once over, swallowed hard, and then asked in a posh voice: “Aren't you dead?”
Jack and Lily exchanged a look; for all his knowledge, Jack wasn't sure who the man was speaking to: him or Lily.
“You'd like to think that, wouldn't you?” Lily questioned shortly. “He's not Captain Jack, just Jack. It's...complicated.”
“Complicated? The teleporting into the labs, no TARDIS, a look-alike for the dead Jack Harkness, yes all very complicated.” The man nodded shortly. “I don't suppose you can tell us where the Doctor is?”
Lily chewed on the inside of her cheek for a moment. “I really couldn't say, sorry.”
The man's eyes narrowed on Lily, almost as if he had forgotten Jack was in the room with them. “Mrs...”
“Ms.” Lily quickly corrected. “Ms. Tyler, though Lily's better. I'm not posh. I'll explain everything to you, I promise.” She gave Jack a side-ways glance. “Go on then, you git, say hello.”
Jack shook his head before sticking his hand out. “Captain Jack Harkness.”
The man rolled his gray eyes upward. “I know. I'm Stewart Finch, Head of Torchwood One.” He took Jack's hand and shook it firmly. “It's good you're here. Just don't shag anyone in the closets this time around, alright?”
Jack grinned widely. “Alright. Now, I think we ought to...”
“Leave? Yes.” Mr. Finch nodded sharply. “It would be best if you took a short tour of this Torchwood, while I discuss things with Lily.”
“I don't think so, Stewart.”
“Mr. Finch,” both Lily and Mr. Finch corrected.
Lily went on: “Jack, take the tour.” She gave him a very pointed look. “Mr. Finch is afraid of you.”
“Ms. Tyler!” Mr. Finch began to turn a light red color. “I am not afraid of a dead man's...other self. I simply...”
“Finchy...” Lily rolled her eyes. She turned her attention to Jack, completely ignoring the other man. “You should take the tour. Mr. Finch and I'll talk about the Void and all that lot, but you...things might come up, and I'd rather no one get...hurt. You understand?”
“No.” Jack smiled at Lily. It was a small full of charm, and just a little mistrusting. To an outside viewer, it would have looked as if he was trying to sell something to her. “But, I get it, Mysterious Lily. I'll take the tour.” Jack offered Mr. Finch a little nod. “Finchy, take care of her for me? I'll go see if you idiots are causing the Void to open.” With that, Jack left the offices, closing the door firmly behind him.
Once he was sure that Jack was out of hearing distance, Mr. Finch focused all his attention on Lily, giving her a firm look - one that reminded Lily of a teacher staring down an unruly student - and clearing his throat. “You do not even wish to know what I'm thinking. Where's the Doctor, the TARDIS? How on Earth is Captain Jack not only alive, but ten years younger than he was when you and he met?”
“Well...the Doctor, he's where he was before...with the TARDIS. The other Doctor and our TARDIS...I really have no idea. And, that's not Cap'n. That's just Jack, who was with another Doctor and, well...it's a rather long and complicated story full of Doctors, companions, TARDISes, and undefined sexual orientations. You wouldn't be interested.”
“Mrs...Lily...you picked me to run Torchwood on your deathbed. I believe I have a right to know what in the hell is going on. Also, what's this about the Void?”
Lily took in a deep breath of air. “Alright, Finchy...you may want to sit down. Because, I need to know if your Torchwood has been playing God. You see, several universes are currently bleeding into one another, and this could cause several bad things, including and not limited to Cybermen, Daleks, and the end of the world.”
Mr. Finch could feel his legs weaken and his heart drop into the pit of his stomach. “Is that all? Well, this is more of a social call, then anything else.”
Lily smiled fondly at him. “Really, Finchy.” She shook her head with a dry laugh. “By the way, while we try and save the universe, I was wondering...do you think you could get me some of those little cakes with the balls on top? You'd be surprised, but this is the only planet that makes them. And, they're really at their best around this time in history. The ones in 3012 are complete shit.”
Mr. Finch chuckled lightly in disbelief. “Yes, of course. Anything else?”
Lily thought about that for a long moment. “You got any jelly babies? I love those.”
____________________________________________________________________________
“Captain Harkness!” Jack nearly jumped out of his skin, surprised that someone was actually speaking to him. A man had come flying out from behind a pillar, and was now sticking his hand out for Jack to shake. “I'm Jonathan Guppy, sir. Mr. Finch has asked that I take you to the labs.”
Jack gave the man a long look. He was slightly shorter than the average male. With unkempt dark hair. And a dark suit, that looked like his mother had washed it, and several ink stains on his hands and face. All together, Jonathan Guppy wasn't the type of man Jack would have liked as his Torchwood guide.
“Labs?” Jack questioned, as he shoved his hands deep into his trouser pockets. “Why would I want to go there?”
“Because of wha' we found, sir. Mr. Finch thinks it's the cause of all the rips that are poppin' up 'round the world,” Guppy replied casually.
Jack raised a doubting eyebrow. “Does he? He didn't share that with me.”
“Well, he wouldn't. On account of you givin' him the shivers.” Guppy paused. “Oh, an' he'll want t' see Lily.” A dreamy grin quickly began to spread over the younger man's face. “Certainly turned into a beauty, ain't she?” With that, he didn't wait for an answer, and started walking toward the stairs.
“She wasn't...what?”
“Well, she was all old before, weren't she?” Guppy shrugged casually.
Old? Lily...she couldn't have been more than twenty. Taking the stairs two at a time, Jack rushed to catch up with Guppy. “Johnny, is there something...” Jack trailed off when he noticed that Guppy was starting to look pale. “What?”
“Two things, sir. First: I shouldn't have said nothin'. Second:...” he pointed to the two iron doors that stood in front of them, “it's in there.”
Guppy took a pass out of his suit pocket and pressed it against the lock. "Try not t' look directly at it." He advised Jack as the door slid open.
The two men walked slowly entered the large room. It was an odd sort of place, huge but with only two tables and a computer. Jack was about to make some flip remark about Guppy wanting to get him alone, when his gaze was pulled to a corner of the room. High above them loomed a large black sphere. It seemed to hold pulsing power, and Jack found himself hypnotized by it.
Guppy spotted Jack's intense look, and shook his head. "I did tell you, sir. We had to take everyone out...cause they just kept...staring."
Not looking away from the sphere, Jack vaguely said, "Yeah..."
“Sir?” Guppy waved a hand in front of Jack's face. “Um...do you know what it is?”
“No idea.” Jack stated, never taking his eyes off the sphere. “But, it doesn't feel right.” Jack darted forward and up the steps leading to the sphere. “I think...I should have paid more attention during Torchwood meetings.” Jack chuckled lightly, and glanced back at Guppy, all smiles and charm. “Whatever it is, it isn't good.”
Guppy nodded slightly. “Right there, sir. According to our instruments, the sphere doesn't exist. It weighs nothin'. It don't age. No heat or radiation comes from. It don't even got an atomic mass.”
Jack leaned forward, wanting to get closer to the sphere. “Huh. Fantastic.” He gently shook his head. “This has something to do with the rips and Void, that much I know. But, what I don't know is...what's it doing. It can't just sit there.” He turned back to Guppy. “I need to get back to Lily. She's probably having a heart attack, if Finch has told her what's happened here.”
_____________________________________________________________________________
Lily let out a loud laugh, before putting her hands over her mouth. She really didn't want to snort in the middle of tea. “No, no...we did. Stole the damn thing right off his desk! He was runnin' 'round the place, yelling: 'Where's me damn hat?'"
Mr. Finch chuckled under his breath. “And here I thought you and the Doctor saved the Universe daily.”
Lily smiled. “Only when we have to, Finchy. We spend the rest of our time stealing from heads of state and playing games. We aren't nearly as heroic as the myths make us out to be.” She looked down at her little cake, suddenly feeling unfulfilled and sad by the truth of her life. “The way people talked - the way the Doctor and Rose talked - I thought it'd be different. It was different, but than we regenerated.”
Mr. Finch nodded understandingly, even though he didn't understand. The truth was, he had no idea how to handle this sort of thing. He could hardly handle his wife's 'lady issues', let alone his ex-boss and her, well...alien issues. It seemed immortality and rushing around the universe was only wonderful for a short while. Hadn't that been the reason Lily left the Doctor all those years ago?
“Chin up.” He told her lamely. “You were...we were discussing...the, uh...Void, was it?”
“Oh!” Lily lightened up at that. “Yes, right. The Void's the space between dimensions. From alternate-Jack, you know that there's all sorts of realities around us, different dimensions - billions of parallel universes all stacked together, like building blocks. The Void's the stuff in-between, like the white stuff between those cookies.”
Mr. Finch leaned forward in his chair. “Wh-what's in it?”
“Nothing.” Lily cast her eyes down to her hands, which still held a little cake. “It's empty. Imagine that - nothing. It's all empty. No light, no dark, no up, no down, no noise. No life. No time. It's endless. It's endless...which is why you should be very happy that I'm here to save you from it, Finchy. It's awful in there.” She shivered at the thought.
Leaning back into his chair, Mr. Finch felt himself go pale. “Oh, dear. Mrs. Harkness...I think you ought to come down to one of the labs with me.”
Lily stood, eying Finch suspiciously. “Oh,” she breathed,“what have you done?”
“I think we...we let something through.”
Lily nodded gravely. “Course you did. You're idiots, the lot of you!” She angrily shoved past him, running straight for the stairs and the labs.
____________________________________________________________________________
“Lily!” Two voices called her name, though she wasn't sure which one sounded more urgent and afraid: Jack or Mr. Finch. Lily and Jack met in the middle of the stairs, Finch just behind them.
“You have got to see this,” Jack went on in an uncharacteristic rush. “It's...I don't know what the hell it is, but it's important.”
“They let it through.” Lily told him. She grabbed onto Jack's hand, and dragged him along behind her. “Finch, come on!”
Guppy was waiting by the door, but all three ignored him as they entered.
With a start, Lily stopped dead in her tracks upon seeing the sphere. Inwardly, she cursed every God and demi-God she knew. Outwardly, she was frozen in something that wasn't quite terror. Oh, yes her father was right...humans were idiot apes. Massive, idiot apes.
“Of all the things...” Lily whispered more to herself than to anyone else in the room.
From beside her, Jack tightened his hold on her hand. “Lily...care to share with the class or is it private?”
“No, no, NO!” Angrily, she turned on Mr. Finch. “You...stupid...apes! In all my years...your race is the one that's always the most brilliant and always the most stupid!” With her free hand, she shoved Finch in the shoulder. “Do you know what that is? That's a Void Ship.”
Confused, Mr. Finch shook his head. “A what?”
“Void. Ship,” Jack pronounced clearly.
“Those aren't real.” Guppy spoke up from the back of the room. Suddenly all eyes darted to him. “It's impossible, I mean.” He stammered on. “A theory. Even the Doctor'll tell you that.”
Lily shook her head sadly. “No, it's not. 'Cause we made one, me an' the Doctor. Several thousand years from now. We made it to exist outside of time an' space, 'cause it was safer.” Her brow furrowed ever so slightly. “That is...if this even is our sphere. Could be another one, for all I know.”
“But...” Mr. Finch just couldn't seem to bring himself to grasp the logic. “Why would you make a sphere to exist outside of time and space?”
Lily opened her mouth to speak, but was stopped by Jack: “For a prison. You,” he gently guided Lily to face him. “You and the Doctor - Levi - you put something dangerous in there, didn't you?” He wasn't sure why he was guessing that, but from what he knew of Lily and Levi it made sense. Why should they deal with the horrors of the universe, when they could simply lock them away?
“Image, you could be inside of it forever, and eternity would all pass you by. The Big Bang... end of the Universe, start of the next, wouldn't even touch the sides. We knew they'd exist outside the whole of creation.” Urgently, she touched the side of his face, willing him to understand. “We had to. We couldn't...you can't stop them.”
Jack felt a lump forming in his throat. She couldn't be...oh, it...oh, no. “Lily...what did you do?”
Meanwhile, Mr. Finch was growing more and more nervous. “No. You're saying there's something in there?” He pointed to the sphere, seemingly thinking the others wouldn't know what he was talking about. “How on Earth...you put something in there?”
Lily glanced back to him. “Oh yes.”
Caught by Lily's dark tone, Finch swallowed hard. He wanted to ask what was inside the sphere, but instead he asked: “How do we get rid of it?”
“How did it get here?” Lily retorted, nearly sounding like her old, cheerful self. “Figure that out, Finchy...and, we have an answer.” She let her hand slip out of Jack's and strode off.
Jack, Finch, and Guppy all exchanged a look, before following.
_____________________________________________________________________________
Feeling totally defeated, even though he was not yet defeated, Mr. Finch brought Lily and Jack to his office. Jack stood by the door, Guppy standing just behind him...wanting to feel important, no doubt. Surprisingly - though maybe not that surprisingly - Lily went straight for Mr. Finch's desk.
Lily settled down in his huge chair. “Alright,” she put her feet up on the desk, crossed them, and grinned at Mr. Finch. “Let's discuss a few things, shall we?”
Mr. Finch's eyes lingered on Lily's feet, but he decided to let that pass. She was relaxed...that scared him more than the sphere downstairs. “How could you and the Doctor build the sphere?” He questioned her before she could say anything more. “You two...”
"It's big technology.” Jack cut-in. He folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the doorway, the picture of coolness and relaxation. “Too big, even for a Time Lord.”
A small smile crept over Lily's face. “Ah, well that's the thing. It wasn't our technology.” She shrugged lightly. “We sort of stole it. Not that it matters now, of course. What matters is: where you got the sphere from?”
"We found it.” Finch stated, trying hard to maintain some sort of control over his Torchwood. Control was something he was slowly losing to Lily, and he knew it. “In...” He looked back to Guppy,“uh...”
"Norway!” Guppy shouted out. “Yeah, Norway.” He nodded happily to himself.
Jack looked from Guppy to Finch and then to Lily; A very doubtful looking Lily.
"Wrong.” Lily sat up. “Lies do not become you, Jonathan.” She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, staring hard at Finch. “The tiny little rip that's always in Norway isn't big enough...even with all this Void mess. That and the sphere would not be putting out this much 'scary' unless the source was nearby.”
"You're saying it came from inside Torchwood Tower?” Jack asked, hardly believing that it was possible for a huge sphere to just appear inside a building. Sure, he had seen a lot of freaky things in his day...but, a sphere appearing in a building? That was just...impossible.
"Oh yes.” Lily nodded brightly. “See, what a lot of people don't get is that breaches are the same in every possible Universe. You got major activity in Norway in one, you got the same activity in all the others around it. Which means...”
"Even though this Torchwood isn't opening the breach, it's getting Void stuff?” Jack half-guessed.
"Give the man a prize.” Lily chewed on her lower lip for a moment. “The breach is energy. All pure and powerful...humans love power, can't get enough of it. One of the universes that's right on top of this one is opening the breach for the energy. A lot, by the look of things. Oh...they must have found the breach, probed it, and let all sorts of things come through to their world. And since all the universes are being crushed into one another...things are starting to come through, 'cause the breaches are getting bigger in all the universes.”
Jack muttered, “Holes in the fabric of reality.”
"Holes that let little things pop into universes that are just minding their own business...like this one,” Lily added with a sharp nod.
Looking from Jack to Lily, Finch cleared his throat. “Wait, what are you saying?”
“You lied to me, Finch. I'm saying that the sphere showed up here because the Earth that's actually opening the breach is right next to yours. Sadly, that means we can't send the sphere back, because we can't open the breach.”
Mr. Finch opened his mouth to protest, but Jack held up a hand. “You don't have the means to do it, Finch. You're at the mercy of whoever is controlling the breach. While they have fun with all the free energy, you're getting Void trash.”
“Okay...” Lily took a deep breath. She could do this...she was the Doctor now. “Jonathan, m'luv...find whoever has a pass to the Sphere Room and get the pass back. No one goes in there, get me?” Guppy nodded, happy to have something useful to do, before rushing off. “Finch, I need you to stay perfectly calm...while you and get a plan of action together, just in case something else comes through or the sphere decides to open. Jack...stand there and look pretty.”
“What? Lily, I'm in Torchwood I could...” Jack trailed off when he realized that Lily was not listening to him. In fact, she was climbing Finch's desk. Laughing, Jack asked her: “What are you doing?”
“Yes, Lily...you might fall.” Finch was out of his seat and standing just to the right of his desk. “Come down. This isn't the time for one of your silly games.”
“No...if it was, I'd ask if you wanted to play 'Which Historic Figure Was Actually Gay?'.” Lily replied in all seriousness. “The last time I was here...when the Doctor and I came for those things I wanted...we left something, just in case.”
As she explained herself, Lily carefully took a tile off the ceiling, coughed because of the dust, and then pulled a small tin box out of the ceiling. She dropped the box onto the desk, before climbing back into her seat. “What's in here will help us a great deal, boys.”
The tin box had a little lock on it and hardly looked big enough for a bottle of whiskey, let alone a weapon.
“Have you got the key?” Mr. Finch questioned, eying the new hole in his ceiling.
“Not on me, no.” Lily said. Jack was about to suggest they actually go do something useful, like find the opening of the breach, when Lily reached across the desk and picked up the picture frame that Jack had been looking at earlier. She opened the back and took out a key from behind the picture. “The key.” She glanced up at Finch through the bangs which were currently obscuring her vision. “You wouldn't dare change the frame, Levi knew that.”
A moment later, the box was open...something which caused several layers of thick dust to fill the room.
Jack coughed, waved dust out of his face, and tried to see what Lily was doing. The first thing was an old bottle of whiskey, which she tossed to Finch. “You may like a stiff one, Finchy.” She told him softly. Next was a rotten banana, which she tossed to Jack, who dropped it in disgust a second later. “Always have a banana, in case of a party or an attack.” Finally, she pulled out a pair of 3-D glasses, that looked as if they came from a box of cereal. “These...oh, these are the big thing...the best thing.”
“Why...” Finch shook his head, deciding it was better not to ask. “I'll show you to the place where the sphere came through, shall I?”
He led the pair out of his office and straight to a large white wall, which was just opposite to where they had been. “It came through there, our own...hole in the world. That was a week ago. There's been no more activity, unless we...well, shoot at it.”
“21st century humans and their violence.” Jack remarked with a laugh. He looked over at Lily, who had put her 3-D specs on. She was moving her head around, almost as if she was following pieces of dust that he couldn't see. “You got something?” He asked her softly.
Lily didn't seem to hear the question. She was too busy staring at the wall. With a walk that suggested she had important things to do, Lily moved to the wall, and she placed a small hand over the middle of it. It felt not unlike a perfectly normal wall, but Lily knew better. Still contemplating the wall, she stated: “What a beautiful spatial disturbance.”
Jack watched Lily carefully, nearly in awe - something he had once done around the Doctor - as Lily pressed the side of her face against the wall, almost as if she was trying to hear what was one the other side.
“Can you hear something?” Finch asked, regretting the foolishness of the question the second it was past his lips.
“Not hear, feel.” Jack answered for Lily. “She can feel it, can't you?” He started to move closer to her, thought better of it, and moved back instead.
Lily didn't reply to Jack's question, instead she stated plainly: “When the sphere came through it made the hole, cracking this world. The entire surface of this dimension is starting to splinter. And that's how everything else will get through. That's how they'll get to all the other Earths. Bleed through the fault lines. Walking from their world, across the Void, and into yours.”
She removed her face from the wall, and focused her attention onto Finch and Jack. “Only they can't get through...not yet. But, oh...they are trying so very hard. Just one more good push from the world opening the breach and...” Lily snapped her fingers. “Sphere opens and all the stuff of nightmares comes walking into your world.”
Swallowing hard, Mr. Finch nervously asked: “What can we do?”
Lily laughed softly. “Nothing. You haven't the time or the means to close the hole. You're really at the mercy of the Torchwood on the other side. You'll just have to hope and pray that the hole doesn't get big enough for anything else to come through or for that sphere downstairs to open.”
“But, surely...you know of something that can help?”
Lily removed her 3-D specs and regard Finch sadly for a brief moment. “I've got a banana, whiskey, and 3-D glasses. I've got no TARDIS, no Doctor, and no...well, no anything. All I've got is Jack, and...” she looked at him, her eyes burning two perfect holes into his face. “You're wonderful, but you can't build anything to help in the time we have.”
“How long have we got?” Jack questioned her, his voice suddenly much lower than he would have liked.
Lily shrugged. “Until the...a few hours, at best. Really, all we can do is make sure that what's in that sphere doesn't get out. Because, if they do get out of this Torchwood, it's over...Void opening or not.”
Taking a chance, and feeling a bit awkward, Jack moved to Lily. He placed a hand on the side of her face, guiding her to face him. “What did you and Levi put in the sphere? What was so scary that you and the great Doctor were afraid to fight?”
Lily stared deeply into Jack's eyes, and for a moment it was just the two of them. They were the only two people on Earth, it made Lily feel safe. Her voice shaky and full of fear, she whispered just one word. A word that shook Jack to the core. Lily harshly whispered...
“Cybermen.”
-Most of the 'Void speak' was taken directly or indirectly from the S2 episode Army of Ghost. I did not write that episode and thus do know own the words.