World War Three

It's pretty much as the title suggests. 'The biggest war the human race will ever see is right on our doorstep.' Captain Jack is falling apart. Is there something different about Torchwoods newest members? And what is the doctor doing in Cardiff?

31st of December, 2008

"Jack?" I called, walking out onto the roof. I could just make out his shape standing out on the ledge.

"Ianto." The wind blew his voice towards me. Could hear the fear in it.

"You okay?" I asked, walking towards him. "It's new-years eve. You should be down partying. Why are you up here by yourself?" I asked. I felt something slippery under my foot and looked down at a dark parch on the ground before stepping out onto the ledge towards Jack.

"I'm waiting." He told me.

"For what?" Snowflakes fell around us and the wind blew strongly, trying to force me towards the Plass, almost one hundred meters below.

"A sign." I reached him, placing my hand on his shoulder and spinning him towards me. Tears soaked his face, dripping off his chin. I could see the blood that was all down the front of his shirt and coat. I could even make out the faint line where something had ripped through his skin. The patch on the ground suddenly made sense when I looked down at the knife in his hand.

"Oh my god." I breathed pulling him against my chest.

"I'm scared , Ianto." He told me. "So scared." I slowly moved back towards the building, away from the edge. We finally stepped onto the concrete of the roof and he fell forwards. I pulled him back towards the door. I finally dragged him onto the staircase.

"Jack?" I asked rolling him over. Blood was seeping through the sleeves of his coat. I ripped the knife out of his hand and threw it down the stairs. After I heard it clatter to the second platform below me I turned back to Jack, pulling up his sleeves. The deep gashes that ran from his wrist to elbow had stopped bleeding. I waited a few minutes before Jack sucked in a huge breath clutching at my leg. I grabbed him and pulled him onto my lap.

"It's okay. I'm here. We will get thought this together." I told him, hugging him against my chest as he cried into my shoulder.

21st of January, 2009

The darkness pushed in on me. I could barely breath. The weight on my chest was to much. I knew my ribs were broken.

"Gwen?" I tried to yell but it was barely above talking volume.

"Ianto," she begged. "Stay with me. The others will be here soon." Her voice was muffled by the stones. I could hear her digging, trying to get to me. "Ianto. Talk to me. You have to stay awake. It's going to be okay." She told me although I think it was more to herself. "Come on. Sa something."

"I'm so tired. I can't… Can't keep my eyes open." I told her. My body heaved as it tried to expel enough dirt so I could get air into my lungs again.

"Ianto. Hold on. Where almost there." I heard Conway over my com. The sound of the SUV in the background. Gravel crunched under tires and doors opened. The speaker was laying on the ground under my head. Soon I heard conversation on the other side on the rocks and a few bangs could be heard as Gwen, Conway and Shorty worked to free me. I was glad Jack wasn't here and didn't have to suffer through this, he had been acting differently since new-years. He wouldn't talk to me, to any of us about it. This worried me more then anything. A rock near my head was suddenly moved and light flooded into the small space around my head. I turned my head so I could see the hole but found myself face to face with a dead Weevil. I immediately shut my eyes but I couldn't get the image out of my head, the image of its mangled face.

"Ianto." Crowed Conway, finally spotting me and ripping away rocks.

"Get me out." I begged him.

"I'm going, mate."

Three Weevil bodies and lot of rocks later I was finally dragged into the sunlight and lay on the grass. The sunlight hurt my eyes even through my eyelids. My body heaved as it once again tried to fore the dirt out of my chest. Conway had pulled my shirt away and was examining the damage.

"At least three broken ribs." He told us. "We need to get him back to the hub." Gwen drove my car home and Conway drove the SUV. I was lay across the back seat with my head on Shorty's lap.

"Does it hurt?" She asked looking down at me with concerned and confusion evident in her eyes.

"A little but the painkillers Conway gave me are helping a lot." I told her. She was so young but she had seen so much, so much hurt and so much death. Shorty had come to us half a year ago, with her brother, Conway. They aren't human but most of the time we forget that. After Tosh and Owen died they became a major part of the team. Conway was a doctor of their species and became out medic, knowing more about the human body then all the Torchwood medics before him and also know a much larger range of species in the universe. Shorty took over Tosh's job with a small amount of help from me. She was so interested in technology and could pick up anything and with in about ten minutes tell you everything you needed to about it as well as everything you didn't. I had grown close to them both, but not as close as Shorty and Jack. I think Jack saw Owen as his son, he took Shorty under his wind and has used her, but not in a bad way, used her to help ease the pain. Like an aspirin for a headache.

"Come on." Conway said haling me out of the SUV.

"When's Jack due back?" I asked them.

"Five or five thirty-ish." Shorty told me.

"We'll have you fixed up by then." Conway told me as he carried me along the hallways towards the hub. They lay me on the cold, metal, autopsy table. Shorty set up an x-ray machine as Conway stripped away the lest of my cloths and started cleaning and bandaging the cuts and gashes caused by the sharp rocks. "At least the Weevil population is no longer out of control." He told me. I chuckled but it ended in a groan as he pushed his fingers against my ribs. Shorty took the x-ray and disappeared to print it off. Conway was still applying gauze to the large gash across my left hip as Shorty came back.

"As you said, three broken ribs and a cracked bone in his thigh." Shorty told us. I groaned. By the time Conway had finished strapping my leg and chest it was four-thirty. Gwen and Shorty had left fifteen minutes before when the rift alarm went off. I groaned in pain as Conway helped me to my feet.

"Take it easy. No bending and no heavy lifting." He told me.

"Like that's going to happed." I mumbled.

"Ianto," He grabbed my arm, turning me so I was looking into his eyes. "Please, just for a couple of weeks. I don't want to have to strap you into bed while those ribs heal." He said very seriously.

"I'll try." I promised earning a pout.

"I'll get you some cloths." He told me walking towards Jack's office. He had found a pair of Jack's jeans and a plain t-shirt. After Conway had finished dressing me I headed towards the coffee machine. As I placed two mugs under the coffee machine I leaned against the counter, not surprised when I heard the familure sound of the invisible lift. I turned to watch Jack posing, hands on hips, as the lift grew closer to the ground.

"Very hot." Commented Conway walking towards me. I handed him his coffee.

"You know it." Commented Jack as he stepped off the lift. He walked towards and I handed him a coffee before making another for myself. Moving slowly and inconspicuously around the bench, jack kissed me on the lips. I chucked.

"That's hotter." Commented Conway lifting the mug to his lips before turning and walking towards the autopsy bay.

"That kid is worse then you." I commented, not willing to move knowing I would be bombarded with questions from Jack.

"Understandable." He muttered.

"How was the meeting?" I asked him.

"Same old, same old. They don't like something that we can't change so they spend the whole time winging. What happened here? Anything interesting?"

"Well, Conway and Shorty found another hairdryer and me and Gwen got into a bit of trouble with some Weevils…" I was interrupted as Gwen and Shorty ran into the hub. Shorty was pointing a small oval shape at Gwen. Gwen groaned which confused both me and Jack. Shorty suddenly stopped and pointed it at Jack. A familure groan of pleasure came from beside me and I turned to look at him.

"I like it." He said walking towards her.

"No." She yelled pointing it at Jack once more before running towards the autopsy bay. I laughed as Jack ran after her. When they had disappeared I slowly made my way to my desk, gently sitting down and sorting though a bunch of paperwork that needed filling in. There was a loud bang as a bunch of tools Conway had been using earlier fell to the floor.

"You are so cleaning that up." I headed Conway yell as Gwen, Shorty and Jack ran around the base of the water tower and headed towards the long hallways of the archives. Conway slowly walked over and sat on the edge of my desk.

"Amazing." He muttered to himself.

"What? The device?" I asked finally looking up at him.

"No, him. Not a month ago… And look at him now." He said as a scream and the cries of a few Weevils echoed around the hub.

"I don't know." I told him. "Sometimes it's like it never happened but then there are times when he just brakes down and I can't put him back together." I confessed pushing my palm into my face, trying to clear my head. "I keep thinking back to what he said…"

"What exactly did he say?" Conway asked.

"He told me he was waiting, he said he was waiting for a sign. After I took him home the whole time he was asleep he was muttering about how the twenty first century is when everything changes." I told him. Conway looked confused. "I don't get it." The conversation was over when the three walked back through the door of the cell block. Jack was holding the device over his head in triumph. I chuckled.

"It's mine. Back off." He laughed at Shorty who pouted and walked towards her desk.

"Your horrible." I commented. I watched the evil smile cross his face. "Don't you…" I was cut off as a wave washed through me. The pleasure ran through my body, through my veins, through my heart itself. I groaned and Jack chuckled.

"You don't need a device for that." Muttered Conway not moving off my desk.

"Damn straight." Muttered Jack. We all laughed.

"I'm going to head home." Gwen told us.

"Tell Rhys we say hello." Jack told her. There was that smile. It wasn't like before. I have always known Jack loves Gwen but over the past few weeks his attitude towards her has changed. He doesn't flirt with her, he barely looks at her. It's like he's backing down and giving her to Rhys. And that smile. It's horrible. It's like he knows she only has so much time left, like she has minutes to live. He feels sorry for her but I don't get it.

"See you tomorrow, Gwen." I called to her.

"Feel better." She called as the cog door rolled back before she sprinted down the hallway. Jack gave me a suspicious look.

"Okay. What happened?" He demanded. I silently cursed Gwen under my breath. I watched Conway slink away into the autopsy area followed by Shorty.

"As I said, Gwen and I got into some trouble with a few Weevils." I told him. He narrowed his eyes as he walked towards me.

"How many is a few?" He asked.

"I don't know." I said looking away from him at the paperwork on my desk.

"Rough guess."

"I'm not sure. Ten, twenty…" I coughed and added quietly. "Forty."

"Speak up." He said sitting on the edge of my desk.

"More then we were prepared for." I told him looking into his eyes. The were hard as ice. "Though I can tell you the Weevil population isn't out of control anymore and we found out a lot about the way they live." I told him.

"Like, how?"

"Well…" I tried to think about the least dramatic way to put it. "Me and Gwen were send to a Weevil sighting out near Splot and it turns out, despite what we thought they are more like a hive of bees then anything else. There as a leader female who is the only female that breeds. She mates with all the males in that 'hive' and keeps it populated."

"And you blew then up?" Asked Jack raising an eyebrow.

"What? No! Well, when trying to remove ourselves from the hive we had a run in with a few of the larger Weevils who caused a cave in…" I trailed off at the end.

"And your both okay?"

"Define okay." I told him. His mouth dropped open. He stood up and pulled me to my feet. Slowly examining the few small cuts and burses I had on my face. Slowly he pulled his shirt off me. He froze as it dropped to the floor. I hadn't see the extent of the bandages and gauze that was strapped across my chest but by the horror in Jack's eyes it was pretty major.

"What's wrong?" Stuttered Jack.

"Three broken ribs." Shorty told him coming back into the hub.

"Sexy, Ianto." Commented Conway walking over. I stuck my finger in my mouth and moved it along my lip seductively. Jack was still frozen.

"Later. You, me, whipped cream and sex chains." Said Conway.

"Totally. I'll have to find the hockey stick." I commented.

"Fully." Conway suddenly slipped his hands into his pants. I glanced at Jack's hand and noticed that the small device was still in his hand. I grabbed it and pointed it at Conway. Jack suddenly tuned back in.

"Wait. Three broken ribs from a Weevil attack." He asked. I started continually pushing the small button on top of the device.

"No… The cave was another thing entirely." I told him over the noises Conway was making. Shorty was laughing so hard she was on the floor clutching her sides.

"Ianto, please. What happened?" I looked at the worry in his eyes.

"While we were trying to get out of the tunnel one of the Weevils hit a week spot on one of the walls and the whole tunnel caved in. I got stuck." I told him. He suddenly snatched he devise off me and walked towards his office. I didn't like the look that was turning his face into a constant frown. "Jack." I called. Conway ripped his hands out of his pants.

"I'll teach you to laugh at me." He yelled jumping on Shorty.

"EWW!" She squealed. "Get away from me. I know where that hands been." She jumped to her feet and tore out of the room followed closely by Conway.

"Damn, stairs." I muttered trying to walk up and follow Jack into his office. It didn't take me to long before I pulled open the door to find Jack sitting at his desk, crying into his hands. I limped over and pulled him up into a hug. Not caring how much my ribs hurt as he clung to me. We stood like this for ages. I could hear the occasional bang or shouted comment from downstairs. Jack finally lifted his head up and looked into my eyes. His eyes were bloodshot and tears still streaked down his face. I leaned forwards and gently kissed them away. The salty water wetting my dry lips before I pulled back so I could look at him.

"Talk to me." I begged him. "I can't deal with this when I don't know what's wrong. Please, talk to me." He took my hand , sitting down on his chair and pulling me onto his lap.

"I guess it all started on Christmas eve, 1999." He told me. "We found a small locket washed up on the beach. I didn't really take much notice of it at the time but Alex, the leader of torchwood before me, took it and tried to work out what it did. I didn't think about it again until I walked into the hub on new-years eve. I found him sitting in front of the TV watching the new-years eve festivals. "Twenty-first century, Jack. Everything's going to change and were not ready." He had shot all of the torchwood team. The locket had shown him the future. He told me he would have killed me if it would have worked before killing himself, leaving Torchwood to me, Ianto." He told me, the tears starting again. "Mercy killings, he had called them. I can understand how he thought that, It seams the right thing to do. When I was young I was told stories of the twenty-first century. The most violent and death filled century in the history and future of the Earth. If I was strong enough I wouldn't bring you through it." He told me, avoiding eye contact with me.

"Oh, Jack." I wrapped my arms around him and kissed his forehead. "What are you waiting for?" I asked him, scared to know but even more scared to let him carry that burden on his own.

"Well, it's all ready started but at the moment I'm waiting for John and The Doctor. When they arrive the world is in danger." He told me.

"Started how?" I asked, confused.

"Everything started when Grey first came back into my life, but now that Conway and Shorty are here everything I have seen is starting to fall into place. The biggest war the human race will ever see is right on out doorstep. It makes the world wars look like an argument between two children. The world is about to be introduced to the universe for the first time."

5th of February, 2009

"Rift alarm, Ianto. Iantoooo…Wakey, wakey. I know your enjoying the dream your having about me but we need you." Conway said gently shaking my shoulder. I opened my eyes and realized I had fallen asleep at my desk. My ribs throbbed and my neck was stiff from the way I was bent over.

"Damn, It wasn't real." I muttered sitting up and stretching, causing my ribs to hurt even more.

"Oh, I'm sure I can make your dream come true. Although the real thing is sooo much better then a dream." He said sitting on the edge of the desk and moving his legs so his feet were sitting on the arms of my chair. The jeans he was wearing fitted tightly across his groin giving me a good picture of what was hiding underneath.

"Conway, stop flirting and do your job." Muttered Jack leaning against the railing of the stares. It probably would have been threatening is not for the huge grin plastered across his face.

"Eye, eye Captain." He said standing up and saluting Jack before skipping over to see how his sister was going.

"Coming?" Asked Jack pulling on his huge coat and walking down the last of the stairs.

"Hope so." I said standing up and pulling on my sit jacket.

"Maybe later." Laughed Jack, raising an eyebrow and holding his hand out for me. I took it and we followed Shorty over to the invisible lift. Conway jumped on at the last minute, hugging onto me. His face a little to close to the back of my neck and his body pushing into me a little to hard to be an accident. I pushed back into him as we emerged into the sunlight outside the hub. He leaned forwards and nipped the back of my neck, stretching the skin a little but not enough o be painful before releasing it and licking the skin he had been playing with. Jack moved his other hand up and hit Conway across the back of his head before stepping onto the Plass. Gwen had the SUV parked close to the water tower. People were looking at her weirdly and a security guard was walking towards her. She undid her window.

"Hurry up." She winged. We made our way over and Conway opened the door for me.

"You. In the front." Jack said firmly from the other side. With a smug smile he closed my door behind me and got in the front. Jack sat in the middle and as soon as Gwen started to drive the computers folded out in front of me. My heart sank through the seat as I looked at the CCTV footage displayed in front of me.

"Jack." I whispered."

"What's wrong?" He asked. I turned the screen towards him, showing him a man standing on the roof of a familure car park waving at the camera.

"Gwen. Your old friend has come to visit." He said, his voice not changing and a grim frown spread across his face. Captain John Hart stood in the middle of the car park playing with his wrist strap.

"Took you long enough." Muttered John who was now sitting with his legs hanging off the edge of the building. We all climbed out of the car and walked towards him. He turned around so he was only leaning against the wall.

"Nice to see you again." Said Gwen from her position behind everyone.

"You too Gwen. New team members." His gaze wondering to the faces and bodies of Conway and Shorty. "Captain John Hart." He told them

"Oh, another false Captain." Commented Conway, moving one hand to my hip and sitting his chin on my shoulder. I watched the amusement flash across John's face.

"Conway and Shorty." Jack told him before hitting Conway over the head and stealing me away from him. "And I'll have you know, I worked my way up through the ranks." He just shrugged and walked over to his sister, leaning on both her shoulders. "Come on. Lets go back to the hub." Commented Jack walking towards the SUV. He climbed into the back seat. "You in the front." He said threateningly to Conway before pulling me into his lap.

"You know, Ianto. There's a lot more room in the front with me." He said rubbing his leg. Shorty and John climbed in beside us as he turned to face the front again.

As soon as the car pulled up Conway was up, helping me out of the car and for once I was grateful. The way I had been sitting had put most of my body weight on my broken ribs.

"Told you. You should have sat in the front with me." I watched in amusement as he want for flirty and playful into serious and concerned in two seconds flat.

"It's fine." I told him. I had one hand against the side of the SUV and the other was clutching Conway's shoulder.

"Come on." Said Jack carefully lifting me into his arms making sure there was no pressure of my ribs. We all walked into the hub and Jack sat me on the autopsy table. Conway was at my side again, unbuttoning my shirt and pulling it off. I heard it fall over the railing at the bottom of the stairs as he began undoing the bandaging.

"I mustn't have done it tight enough." He mumbled to himself. I looked up at the four faces above me. One looked concerned, one looked confused and the other two had the same expression as last time they witnessed Conway strapping up my chest. When he was finally finished he ran his hands down my stomach, in a seductive manor. I couldn't stop the shiver of pleasure but I managed to suppress the moan. "It's still going to be sore." He told me taking my hand and helping me to my feet, one hand resting on my ass as I steadied myself.

"Kind of realized that." I commented rubbing my hand across the bandages. He walked over and picked up my shirt, helping me put it on.

"So… John. I've been hearing a lot about you." Said Conway not looking away from my chest as he did up the buttons, running his fingers across my bare skin as much as possible.

"Oh, good things, I hope."

"Not really. What are you doing back in Cardiff?" I could hear the hostile tone to his voice, his hands slipping away from me. All playfulness gone.

"I don't know. It's been a while for me. Decided I'd drop in and say hi."

"Conway. Don't you have some paperwork to fill in." I commented harshly.

"Step into my office, captain." Said Jack leading the way towards his office.

"Coffee, sir?" I called.

"What would I do without you?" He called back.

"Die a horrible death due to lack of caffeine." I said to myself. As soon as they were gone I hit Conway across the head the way Jack always did.

"What's the matter with you?" I demanded.

"Nothing. He just annoys me." Conway told me walking towards his desk.

"He annoys everyone." I commented.

"There's something different about him…"

"He is from the future." I commented.

"No, so is Jack. It's different. His energy signature is all wrong, off balance. He doesn't make sense."

"I can feel it too." Shorty told us coming over to us.

"What do you mean?" I asked them.

"It's just… I can't… It's so hard to explain using terms you will understand." He said rubbing his hands down his face. I walked towards the coffee machine as the siblings talking. Handing them their mugs, I made my way to Jack's office. John was sitting in Jacks chair and Jack was sitting on the desk amongst the piles of untouched paperwork. As I handed the coffee to then Jack kissed me lightly.

"Thanks." He said pulling me onto his lap. "Okay, John, question for you." John sat playing with his wrist strap.

"Mmm…" He mumbled not looking up.

"I want to offer you a position, you know what is coming and we need someone like you on the team."

"It's going to take a lot more then me to save your precious little world." Snapped John.

"You know you belong here. You have heard the stories. You know you belong…"

"Right so… Yea fuck off John, but now the world needs saving its all oh, save us."

"Don't make me beg." Threatened Jack.

"That would be amusing." Commented John. The door suddenly opened.

"Giant spider locked in a warehouse at the docks. Conway, Shorty and I are heading off." Gwen told us.

"No. John come on. Just like the good old days." Said Jack as I climbed off his lap. "Remember the last time we tried to kill a giant spider."

"We were scrubbing spider guts off us for months." Both men laughed.

"And in the mean time its escaping." I said sarcastically.

"Oh yeah." Said Jack grabbing his coat. "How are the ribs?" He asked as we ran down the stairs.

"He's not going." Conway told him, sounding very serious.

"Shorty's gone to get the SUV." Gwen told him following him out the cog door and all of a sudden the hub was very quiet.

"Damn. I'm stuck with you." I teased walking towards my desk. I could feel the tension he was emitting.

"Ianto. Can we talk?" Asked Conway.

"As long its not another –why is my dangly but sticking up- question. It was hard enough trying to explain an erection to a full grown man." I shuddered at the memory.

"Oh, come on, you know you enjoyed demonstrating. Anyways… I think John saved my life. He saved my family…"