The tears stream down my face as I gasp for breath. I can barely see through all the smoke as I initiate emergency protocol 3.2 in my shabby escape pod. This is not safe, I think to myself as I strap myself in. But it's my only chance of survival, and a risk I must take. For my family.
I can hear the metallic voices getting closer now, the rough timbre searing through my head. Just as I'm about to seal the pod, I hear them rolling into the room. It has to be now. I kiss my palm softly and hold it up to the thick glass of the pod.
"Goodbye" I whisper as the escape pod begins to launch. The pod thrusts upwards suddenly, tearing through the roof above. As I'm launched through the atmosphere of my planet, I manage to get one fleeting glance. It's burning, the whole thing. It looks like an ember, fresh out of the fire, glowing a brilliant vermillion before it crumbles into ashes, the colour being extinguished by the ever persistent darkness.
The scanners in the escape pod flash and beep intermittently looking for habitable planets within range. Within a matter of seconds, the scanners lock on to a small planet and the pod lurches forward into deep space. I shut my eyes and hold on to the sides of the pod as it twists and turns unmercifully, tearing through space and time. I'm not quite sure how long passed before the shrill grinding sound of air resistance and the rising temperature of the cockpit signalled that the escape pod had entered another atmosphere. I kept my eyes tightly shut as I prayed I would survive the landing. There was no such thing as a safe landing in this escape pod. I heard an earsplitting screech as the rough metal of the pod collided with the surface of the planet. I felt the ground diverge beneath the pod and became aware of the feeling of falling. My mind struggled to keep up with the rapidly changing environment and I could feel my consciousness ebbing away. I fought to stay above the water in my mind that was threatening to pull me into its depths. Finally, the tumbling subsided and the escape pod came to stop, just as the water succeeded in dragging me into darkness.
*****************************************
The eerie silence of the Torchwood Hub in the early hours of the morning was broken abruptly by the loud wailing of the rift monitors. Captain Jack Harkness lifted himself out of his bed and rubbed his eyes groggily. Of course, he thought to himself, one of the few nights he manages to get some sleep and the rift has to cut it short prematurely. Jack wasn't too surprised find Ianto Jones, a young Welshman, already at the hub tidying. He had a tendency to come in before everyone else, although Jack wasn't quite sure why.
"Morning, Ianto." Jack murmured
"Sir," Ianto dipped his head slightly in Jack's direction. "Something rather large and rather powerful has slipped through the rift this time." Ianto motioned towards a screen, displaying stats and information about the rift.
Jack sighed. "Can you get onto Tosh and Owen? I'll get Gwen. Looks like we're gonna need the whole team for this one."
Ianto nodded and walked away, drawing his mobile from his pocket. Toshiko Sato, Torchwood's tech whizz, answered on the first ring.
"Ianto? Is everything alright?" Tosh questioned, concern filling her voice.
"Yeah, Tosh, just something large and powerful has come through the rift. We need you back at the hub."
"I'll be right there," Tosh answered swiftly, before hanging up.
Next, Owen Harper, the team medic. Ianto groaned mentally. The young doctor was irritable enough on any normal day, but at 5 in the morning he was sure to be painfully grouchy.
"You had better have a bloody good reason for calling me so early," Owen snapped, not surprising Ianto.
"And I do; something substantial has come through the rift, Jack wants you here now." Ianto replied shortly.
"Oh, Joy. Fine." Owen growled before hanging up.
Not long after, the Hub's cog doors rolled open revealing Tosh, who was followed soon after by Owen.
"Right," Jack kicked into action immediately. "Owen, Ianto, you're with me. Tosh, you stay back and monitor things from here."
"What about Gwen?" Owen asked, as the team armed themselves and got ready to go.
"We're picking her up on the way. Right, Tosh, stay in contact." Jack ordered as he headed towards the door.
"Good luck!" Tosh called as they walked out.
The SUV sped down the sleepy streets of Cardiff, stopping briefly for Gwen Cooper, an ex-police woman, to jump in the car. Gwen was relatively new to Torchwood, having only been there for about a month. She mumbled a quick greeting as the car pulled away again. As the SUV barrelled towards the source of alarm, the sun was just peeking over the horizon, bathing the city and the bay in a warm orange colour. Jack briefed the team on what was known so far.
"Something large has landed in a forest area North of Cardiff. We need to find it as quickly as possible, and check for anything living. It generated a large burst of energy, so at this point we are unable to pinpoint its exact location, or whether there is any alien life, so we need to split up. Okay, ready everyone?" Jack gave them no time to reply as he swiftly exited car and began walking cautiously into the forest.
Owen, who was apparently not over his bad mood, was still complaining. "And we don't even know what we're looking for. Great start." He mumbled sarcastically, as he made his way into the foliage.
****************************************
The shiny metal of the escape pod sizzled slightly in the damp vegetation. The girl that was inside it was just beginning to stir from unconsciousness. As she awoke she became aware of the pain all around her body. She reached out and pressed a red button, popping the escape pod open and allowing her to slide out. Right, she thought to herself as she stretched out, surveying herself for injuries, a dislocated shoulder, a few broken ribs, and... Looks like I've got a dislocated knee, too. Great. Slowly, she dragged herself over to a nearby tree and wedged her injured shoulder against it. With her good leg, she pushed her body upwards against her shoulder, in attempt to pop it back into position. It resulted in a loud grunt of pain, with her shoulder still dislocated.
"Hello? Is someone there?" Came a male voice, with a strong welsh accent.
The girl's eyes darted up to where the voice came from, but her view was obscured by thick vegetation. Maybe if she stayed quiet, the man would pass her without noticing her. But she heard footsteps creeping towards her, and suddenly a large branch of a tree that was hiding her was swept out of the way. A man, perhaps in his late 20's, stood looking down at the girl, before his eyes swiftly moved to the escape pod, still steaming, behind her. His hand reached up to tap the small communication device in his ear.
"Jack... Yeah, I've found it... Alright, bring the others... And there's a young girl here too... I'm not sure, but I think she's injured... Yeah, ok." The man's eyes returned to the girl. "Are you ok?" He asked her politely.
The girl, still unable to find her voice nodded slightly. Act innocent, she told herself, you were on a morning walk, and this thing came from the sky and threw you into a tree.
"Ianto!" Jack's American accent called from behind the trees.
"Back here, Jack." Ianto called back. The sound of many approaching footsteps frightened the girl, who began to shake slightly. The branches were suddenly pulled back, revealing three figures. Jack's eyes flew immediately to the escape pod, before falling upon the girl, a look of sympathy coming upon his features. Slowly, he crouched down in front of her. He reached out to her touch her shoulder, but she flinched back.
"It's okay, we won't hurt you. You're injured," Jack stated, noticing the unnatural set of her knee and shoulder. "Owen." Jack called back to the doctor, as he straightened up and walked over to the pod, motioning for Gwen and Ianto to follow. Owen walked over and laid his bag down on the grass next to the girl. His hands went straight to her injured shoulder.
"Okay, you have a dislocated shoulder and knee. I can fix it, but it might hurt a bit, okay?" Owen kept his voice strong and steady, trying to reassure the girl. She didn't reply, just stared numbly at him. "Ready? On the count of three, One, Two," before he got to three, Owen pushed against her shoulder, returning to its correct place. The girl moaned and shut her eyes tightly. "I need to do the same for your knee. Okay. On the count of three again." But this time, he popped it back before he even began to count. The girl gasped and kept her eyes tightly shut. "Are you hurt anywhere else?" Owen asked, reaching into his bag for a pair of rubber gloves.
"No," she breathed, opening her eyes slightly. "Th-thank you..." She stammered, fear still colouring her voice. Owen glanced up at her skeptically. It was clear to him that he had only scratched the surface of her injuries.
"This will only take a second," he said, as he reached out to her. Her eyes followed his hands suspiciously as he felt over her head, before moving down to her stomach, fingers probing her ribs. He didn't miss her wincing as he felt over her broken ribs. His hands then moved down to her legs, noticing the many cuts and bruises. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a penlight, lifting her eyelids gently and shining it into each eye.
"Okay. You're okay, apart from a few broken ribs and cuts and bruises covering just about your whole body." At that moment the girl shivered, and Owen shrugged off his coat and laid it over her. "And you're in shock, too. We can drop you off at a hospital on the way back." He reached out and grabbed her wrist, feeling for a pulse. The girl tugged at her wrist, attempting to free it, but Owen held on firmly. Owen's eyes crinkled in confusion as he looked down at her. "On second thought, I think you should come back to the hub with us." He released her wrist and she pulled it back towards her body, fidgeting uncomfortably.
"Owen," Jack called, walking back to where the doctor was packing up his bag again. "What's the verdict?" Owen filled Jack in on the girl's injuries, and then Jack glanced over to where she was hunched up against the tree.
"What's your name?" He asked.
The girl thought for a second before replying. "Emily." She stated. Jack didn't look convinced.
"Do you know anything about this?" He asked, motioning toward the escape pod behind him.
"No, I was, uh, on a morning walk, and uh, it came from nowhere and threw me against the tree." She finished uncertainly
Owen glanced at Jack. "I think she should come back to the hub with us." He stated simply. Jack nodded in agreement.
"Okay, Gwen, Ianto, finish up over there. I'll organise it to be moved later on today. Owen, help her to the SUV."
"No, I'm okay now, uh, my mother is expecting me home." The girl called out. She knew she had to make a run for it. They suspected her. She just needed to find the right time...
"No. You're coming back with us. Owen can check you over, and then we'll take you home. It won't take long." Jack replied firmly. Owen moved to help the girl up. She took his hand, and he hoisted her to her feet and put an arm around her waist, supporting her.
"It's okay, I can walk on my own." The girl said quietly. Owen seemed unsure, but let her go anyway, staying close behind her. I'll bolt as soon as we can see the car, she thought to herself.
"Tosh... Yeah, we're on our way back, doesn't look like any major threat... Alien life? I think... Yeah, I thought so. We've got her anyway. Talk soon." Jack, who had been talking into his comm, stopped and turned to look at the girl suspiciously. "So apparently, Tosh was able to scan for alien life, and she found it right next to us..." The girl blinked at Jack, expressionless. Without warning, she turned and dashed into the forest, Owen's grasp narrowly missing her arm. She ran in the direction of the road, thinking it would be better if she could get to civilisation. She could hear the others yelling as they ran behind her, in close pursuit. She chanced a glance backward, and could see Jack, his great military coat billowing out behind him, hot on her heels. Running was hard and she tried to ignore the sharp stabs of pain from her broken ribs and the dull, burning ache in her limbs. But she was good at running, if she could just outlast them... She heard the car start up behind her, and saw it tear down the road beside her. It stopped somewhere ahead, but she didn't have time to think about it as Jack's fingertips grazed her shoulder. She made a sharp turn and jumped out onto the road, gaining some distance from Jack and finding it easier to speed up on the paved surface. As she rounded a bend, the SUV suddenly loomed up in front of her, blocking her path. She swerved back into the foliage, but the short detour gave Jack the time he needed to lunge forward and wrap his arms tightly around her waist, pulling her back violently and causing her to fall to her knees.
"Jesus, Jack, take it easy, there's no need to injure her more." Owen scolded, getting out of the SUV and walking towards them.
"Sorry, just don't want anymore escape attempts." Jack panted. He still held the girl's shoulders firmly. The girl coughed, before making a valiant attempt to get back up. Jack's firm grip didn't loosen however, and she fell back to the ground, giving up. She groaned as the adrenaline began to wear off and the pain began to make itself known. She shut her eyes tightly and could hear Jack and Owen talking in low voices, but she couldn't make out what they were saying. Suddenly a wave of nausea overcame her and she scrambled forward on her hands in time to throw up everything that had been in her stomach. She felt hands on her back as her stomach heaved, and to her surprise, they began rubbing soothing circles until she collapsed once more in a heap on the ground. Someone, she guessed Jack, lifted her gently off the ground and placed her in the back of the car. She opened her eyes slightly to see Owen digging through his bag, before pulling out a capped syringe. He looked down at her, and seeing her eyes open, smiled slightly before pulling back her sleeve. She was too weak to protest as the syringe slipped easily into her vein. She closed her eyes again as the drug took effect, and swept her into a painless, dreamless sleep.