Fic: Complications
Title: Complications
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Sometimes, even a supposedly simple retrieval mission can develop unexpected complications.
Word Count: 1278
Written For: Prompt 213 - Protection at fandomweekly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters. They belong to the BBC.
It was supposed to be a simple Rift retrieval, the kind of thing they dealt with several times a week. According to the available data, the new arrival was an inanimate object; nothing sinister, just another bit of probably useless junk plucked from some other world, some other time, or both, and dumped in Cardiff. As close to business as usual as Torchwood ever got. Since it was already late, the rest of the team having left hours ago, Jack and Ianto hadn’t bothered with calling anyone else in; there’d been no point in waking their colleagues when the two of them were perfectly capable of dealing with whatever had come through. It wasn’t as if they’d never done it before; they made a good team.
Ianto was quite enjoying the excursion. It was a clear night with a brisk breeze; pleasant weather to be out in, especially since he’d spent most of his day in the dusty depths of the archives, continuing the never-ending task of sorting and cataloguing the random bits and pieces Torchwood had collected over the last century or so. Neither he nor Jack was in any great rush to return to the Hub; their plan was to find the item, then make their way back to the SUV at a leisurely pace, perhaps picking up fish and chips to enjoy as they walked. They didn’t get enough evenings like this.
Unfortunately, as was so often the case with Torchwood business, things didn’t exactly go to plan. They located their prize easily enough, but whatever it was, it had already attracted the attention of four large, aggressive bull Weevils, an added complication but not necessarily an insurmountable one.
No one ever went out on a retrieval without making sure they had the standard equipment with them for dealing with curious Weevils, or other unexpected threats, so both men were armed not just with their guns but with Weevil spray, Weevil hand clamps, hypodermics loaded with powerful sedatives, and cloth hoods, because Weevils were always calmer when the couldn’t see. Thanks to frequent Weevil hunts, rounding up un-tagged individuals and new arrivals, Jack and Ianto had plenty of experience with capturing the toothy aliens, and one or two would have caused them no trouble at all. Even three would, in most cases, have been manageable, but four was pushing it a bit, especially since these were some of the biggest either man had ever encountered.
They were also less than friendly, hunching their shoulders and snarling the moment they caught sight and scent of the two humans.
“Maybe we should back off and call the rest of the team,” Ianto suggested.
“Yeah, that would probably be the smart thing to do,” Jack agreed. “Only, something tells me these boys aren’t going to give us the chance.”
Jack was right; even if they called for assistance right now, there was no way their colleagues would reach them in time. Already the Weevils were moving towards them, teeth bared and claws at the ready, and Jack shifted position, putting himself between the savage creatures and Ianto.
“Stay behind me,” he said, without taking his eyes off the advancing aliens.
“Don’t be stupid, Jack! You can’t tackle four adult males by yourself!”
“I know that, but I can protect you while you pick them off. As much as I hate to admit it, riled up as they are, I don’t think we’ve got any hope of taking them alive.” Jack had his Webley in one hand and a can of Weevil spray in the other.
“You’re suggesting we just… shoot them?” Ianto wasn’t happy about that. Torchwood Three, under Jack’s leadership, wasn’t like Torchwood One had been. Killing was usually considered a last resort.
“I’m suggesting we do whatever it takes to get out of this alive.”
“Maybe if we just disable them…” Ianto trailed off as two more Weevils appeared on the scene. “Or we could run for it.”
“Running, I like that idea. How far to the SUV?”
“Half a mile, give or take.”
“Okay, you go get it, and I’ll hold these guys off while you make your escape.”
“Damnit, Jack, I’m not letting you just throw your life away!” If there was one thing Ianto hated even more than killing aliens for doing what came naturally to them, it was Jack sacrificing himself when there were other, better alternatives.
“I’m hoping it won’t come to that, but if it does, I’ll come back. You won’t.” Jack’s voice sounded strained. “I can’t lose you!”
“I don’t want to lose you either.”
“You won’t, not permanently. You know that! Now stop arguing and just go.”
“Come with me. Maybe we can find somewhere more defensible and call the others.”
“Fine, but you go ahead of me. I’ll follow.” Jack took aim at the nearest Weevil and fired. The bullet stung it and it howled, falling back, the others hesitating too. “Go!” Jack yelled, and Ianto turned, breaking into a sprint, Jack pounding after him.
Every hundred yards or so, Jack spun around to fire off another shot at the pursuing Weevils, but he couldn’t take the time to aim, so it didn’t do much to deter them; they just kept coming. Every time he paused to re-load his Webley, thanking every deity he’d ever heard of for speed loaders, his pursuers were closer, and he thought there were a couple more than there had been. But Ianto was getting further and further away, and that was all that mattered to Jack. His own life wasn’t important, as long as his lover escaped intact.
Ianto could see the SUV ahead, only a couple of hundred yards away, when he realised he could no longer hear Jack behind him, and he slowed, looking back. By the fitful light of the waxing moon, he could just make out the Weevils clustering around something on the ground and he stopped dead, started back the way he’d come, raising his gun, before he came to his senses. What good would it do if he charged back and tried to chase the Weevils off his lover? Jack was probably dead already, and if not, he soon would be. There was only one sensible option.
Turning once more, he ran to the SUV, triggering the locks as he went, tearing the door open and diving into the driver’s seat. Gunning the engine, he turned the lights on full and drove straight at the cluster of Weevils, horn blaring.
Shocked by the sudden noise and light, they flinched back, then scattered. Ianto slammed the brakes on, jerking to a halt beside Jack and jumping out.
Unsurprisingly, Jack was dead, chest torn open by savage teeth and claws. All Ianto could do now was cradle his fallen lover and wait for him to revive, all the while keeping watch in case the Weevils returned. Fifteen painfully long minutes later, Jack revived, flailing wildly as he tried to fight off attackers that were no longer there. He calmed down when he realised the danger was gone, and focused on Ianto’s face, torn between relief and annoyance.
“Ianto.” His voice was barely more than a croak. “Thought I told you to run.”
“And so I did.” Ianto gestured to the SUV behind him. “I brought reinforcements. Thought I might have a better chance of scaring the Weevils off if I came at them with something bigger and more imposing. It worked.” He smiled crookedly. “Wasn’t going to let you come back alone, not if I could help it. I'm always going to be here for you if I can. No matter what.”
Relaxing, Jack smiled. “Thank you.”
The End
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Ianto, Jack.
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Nada.
Summary: Sometimes, even a supposedly simple retrieval mission can develop unexpected complications.
Word Count: 1278
Written For: Prompt 213 - Protection at fandomweekly.
Disclaimer: I don’t own Torchwood, or the characters. They belong to the BBC.
It was supposed to be a simple Rift retrieval, the kind of thing they dealt with several times a week. According to the available data, the new arrival was an inanimate object; nothing sinister, just another bit of probably useless junk plucked from some other world, some other time, or both, and dumped in Cardiff. As close to business as usual as Torchwood ever got. Since it was already late, the rest of the team having left hours ago, Jack and Ianto hadn’t bothered with calling anyone else in; there’d been no point in waking their colleagues when the two of them were perfectly capable of dealing with whatever had come through. It wasn’t as if they’d never done it before; they made a good team.
Ianto was quite enjoying the excursion. It was a clear night with a brisk breeze; pleasant weather to be out in, especially since he’d spent most of his day in the dusty depths of the archives, continuing the never-ending task of sorting and cataloguing the random bits and pieces Torchwood had collected over the last century or so. Neither he nor Jack was in any great rush to return to the Hub; their plan was to find the item, then make their way back to the SUV at a leisurely pace, perhaps picking up fish and chips to enjoy as they walked. They didn’t get enough evenings like this.
Unfortunately, as was so often the case with Torchwood business, things didn’t exactly go to plan. They located their prize easily enough, but whatever it was, it had already attracted the attention of four large, aggressive bull Weevils, an added complication but not necessarily an insurmountable one.
No one ever went out on a retrieval without making sure they had the standard equipment with them for dealing with curious Weevils, or other unexpected threats, so both men were armed not just with their guns but with Weevil spray, Weevil hand clamps, hypodermics loaded with powerful sedatives, and cloth hoods, because Weevils were always calmer when the couldn’t see. Thanks to frequent Weevil hunts, rounding up un-tagged individuals and new arrivals, Jack and Ianto had plenty of experience with capturing the toothy aliens, and one or two would have caused them no trouble at all. Even three would, in most cases, have been manageable, but four was pushing it a bit, especially since these were some of the biggest either man had ever encountered.
They were also less than friendly, hunching their shoulders and snarling the moment they caught sight and scent of the two humans.
“Maybe we should back off and call the rest of the team,” Ianto suggested.
“Yeah, that would probably be the smart thing to do,” Jack agreed. “Only, something tells me these boys aren’t going to give us the chance.”
Jack was right; even if they called for assistance right now, there was no way their colleagues would reach them in time. Already the Weevils were moving towards them, teeth bared and claws at the ready, and Jack shifted position, putting himself between the savage creatures and Ianto.
“Stay behind me,” he said, without taking his eyes off the advancing aliens.
“Don’t be stupid, Jack! You can’t tackle four adult males by yourself!”
“I know that, but I can protect you while you pick them off. As much as I hate to admit it, riled up as they are, I don’t think we’ve got any hope of taking them alive.” Jack had his Webley in one hand and a can of Weevil spray in the other.
“You’re suggesting we just… shoot them?” Ianto wasn’t happy about that. Torchwood Three, under Jack’s leadership, wasn’t like Torchwood One had been. Killing was usually considered a last resort.
“I’m suggesting we do whatever it takes to get out of this alive.”
“Maybe if we just disable them…” Ianto trailed off as two more Weevils appeared on the scene. “Or we could run for it.”
“Running, I like that idea. How far to the SUV?”
“Half a mile, give or take.”
“Okay, you go get it, and I’ll hold these guys off while you make your escape.”
“Damnit, Jack, I’m not letting you just throw your life away!” If there was one thing Ianto hated even more than killing aliens for doing what came naturally to them, it was Jack sacrificing himself when there were other, better alternatives.
“I’m hoping it won’t come to that, but if it does, I’ll come back. You won’t.” Jack’s voice sounded strained. “I can’t lose you!”
“I don’t want to lose you either.”
“You won’t, not permanently. You know that! Now stop arguing and just go.”
“Come with me. Maybe we can find somewhere more defensible and call the others.”
“Fine, but you go ahead of me. I’ll follow.” Jack took aim at the nearest Weevil and fired. The bullet stung it and it howled, falling back, the others hesitating too. “Go!” Jack yelled, and Ianto turned, breaking into a sprint, Jack pounding after him.
Every hundred yards or so, Jack spun around to fire off another shot at the pursuing Weevils, but he couldn’t take the time to aim, so it didn’t do much to deter them; they just kept coming. Every time he paused to re-load his Webley, thanking every deity he’d ever heard of for speed loaders, his pursuers were closer, and he thought there were a couple more than there had been. But Ianto was getting further and further away, and that was all that mattered to Jack. His own life wasn’t important, as long as his lover escaped intact.
Ianto could see the SUV ahead, only a couple of hundred yards away, when he realised he could no longer hear Jack behind him, and he slowed, looking back. By the fitful light of the waxing moon, he could just make out the Weevils clustering around something on the ground and he stopped dead, started back the way he’d come, raising his gun, before he came to his senses. What good would it do if he charged back and tried to chase the Weevils off his lover? Jack was probably dead already, and if not, he soon would be. There was only one sensible option.
Turning once more, he ran to the SUV, triggering the locks as he went, tearing the door open and diving into the driver’s seat. Gunning the engine, he turned the lights on full and drove straight at the cluster of Weevils, horn blaring.
Shocked by the sudden noise and light, they flinched back, then scattered. Ianto slammed the brakes on, jerking to a halt beside Jack and jumping out.
Unsurprisingly, Jack was dead, chest torn open by savage teeth and claws. All Ianto could do now was cradle his fallen lover and wait for him to revive, all the while keeping watch in case the Weevils returned. Fifteen painfully long minutes later, Jack revived, flailing wildly as he tried to fight off attackers that were no longer there. He calmed down when he realised the danger was gone, and focused on Ianto’s face, torn between relief and annoyance.
“Ianto.” His voice was barely more than a croak. “Thought I told you to run.”
“And so I did.” Ianto gestured to the SUV behind him. “I brought reinforcements. Thought I might have a better chance of scaring the Weevils off if I came at them with something bigger and more imposing. It worked.” He smiled crookedly. “Wasn’t going to let you come back alone, not if I could help it. I'm always going to be here for you if I can. No matter what.”
Relaxing, Jack smiled. “Thank you.”
The End