Only darkness
Word Count: 1.513
Summary: When your senses wane, only darkness remains.
Characters: Ianto Jones, Jack Harkness, Owen Harper
Pairing: Jack/Ianto
Rating: PG-13
Setting: Season 2
Warnings: Dark, only Character Death if you want it to be
Author's Note: Written for the challenge #009 – 5 senses on redisourcolor. Had to include the words water, radio and stars.
Feedback: Can't breathe without it.
Disclaimer: I'm not making money with this fanfic. The tv-show Torchwood and the characters appearing within it belong to their producers and creators. Any similarities to living or dead persons are purely coincidental and not intended.
XXX
XXX
He heard the rain falling all around him, hitting the leaves above him, trickling down the stems of the trees and soaking the already muddy ground beneath him.
He smelled rain-soaked wool and Jack's aftershave, mixed with the pheromones the captain was giving off at all times, making him so irresistible to those he smiled at, flirted with, talked to.
He tasted the drops of rain that were running down Jack's face and gathering between their joined lips when Jack dropped a tender kiss on his lips.
He felt the rough material of Jack's coat under his hands which were clutching the wool, trying not to let go as if he was afraid of falling – and maybe he was.
He looked at Jack in the soft glow of the torch that the captain was dimming with one hand cupped over the light. His eyes were deep blue and caring, then suddenly alarmed.
The captain turned his head away and switched off the torch. He pressed closer to the tree they were hiding behind, watching the dark forest with its shadows and noises. Ianto pulled his legs closer to his body to hide them from view, huddling against Jack's broad chest. His trousers were a muddy mess, his shoes ruined and even his socks were wet. He made a mental note to bring Jack's equally dirty coat to a dry-cleaner. Their trousers would need a good wash and Jack's robust shoes careful cleaning. He had to buy new shoe polish.
Ianto forced himself to focus on Jack and their surroundings, embarrassed that his thoughts were so scattered that he had to actually remind himself of the danger they were in. The rain stopped and the clouds ripped open to allow the moon and the stars to lighten the forest, just barely. Jack was still listening intently, water dripped from his hair onto his shoulders. Ianto shifted uncomfortably and pain ripped through his abdomen where Jack's hand was resting and applying pessure.
"Jack?" Ianto asked shakily. He was so cold.
The captain shook his head. "Just a fox ... or something," he answered softly.
It had started out as a Weevil hunt. They'd traced the creature to this forest just outside of Cardiff and cornered it. Then all hell had broken lose. The sleek, light blue shimmering Halvatian ship had come out of nowhere and even though Jack and Ianto had managed to hide before the aliens had seen them, they'd given away their position to try and talk to them reasonably. The Halvatian race was bipedal, tall and looked a bit like an oversized blue praying mantis. They were known for fast ships, smuggling and slave trade. Jack assumed that they'd come here to catch Weevils since they'd subdued the frightened and surprised creature fast and efficiently as soon as they'd left their ship. For weeks now, the Weevil population was being decimated. Tosh's computers had been able to detect a group of alien lifeforms, not Weevils, that vanished into thin air every time just before Torchwood arrived on scene to catch the Weevil themselves. Now they'd found an explanation. The Halvatians were well-known for their slaves. Fortunately, they didn't sell humans. In their eyes, they were too weak. Nevertheless, they didn't appreciate witnesses, either. At least not the kind of witnesses that challenged them and told them to leave Earth alone.
That's why the two men were cowering behind a tree after a mad flight through the dark forest, waiting for Owen, Gwen and Tosh to arrive. Jack heard a hissing noise, the Halvatians' way of communication, and pulled Ianto closer. "Shit! They've found us."
"You have to leave," Ianto whispered.
Jack shook his head and removed his hand from Ianto's stomach. It was slippery wet with rain and blood. He pushed one of Ianto's hands down onto the wound. "Apply pressure."
Ianto did as he was told but he shook his head. "You have to leave me."
"Shut up already!" Jack hissed and readied his Webley. Ianto felt blood well up between his fingers and pressed down a bit harder, stifling a pained whimper by biting his lip.
They'd shot him while they'd been running. Jack was refusing to see reason and escape without Ianto. The younger man knew that the wound was too deep, the damage too serious. He wouldn't survive this.
Jack saw five shadows move in-between the trees and gauged his chances. Not good. Halvatians were fast and hard to kill.
He'd told Owen over the radio headsets that he and the girls would need the biggest guns they could find in the armory. Owen had answered that they would hurry but time was running out.
Jack checked his watch. Eight minutes since Ianto had been wounded. Seven since they'd huddled down behind this tree. The Halvatians were moving uncharacteristically slow. Their eyes were just as useless in the semi-dark as any human's but they had scanners. Maybe those were picking up too many signs of life this deep in the forest, slowing the hunters down. But now they were getting closer and Ianto was dying and their back-up wasn't coming. Jack looked back to where he'd seen the Halvatians and winced when his eyes failed to catch them. "Shit, shit, shit."
Where were they?
Ianto's hand, the one that didn't apply pressure to the wound, grabbed Jack's sleeve. "Jack."
He looked down at him and turned his head to look in the direction Ianto was facing. There they were. Five Halvatians, taller than Jack and hissing angrily, their filigree weapons in their hands. Jack pointed his Webley at them and clutched Ianto to him with his other hand. "Okay," he said, "turn around now and leave. We won't make a big deal out of this and you are going to find another planet where you can catch Weevils. Deal?" He knew that they could understand him. Halvatians had a technology that enabled them to understand every language ever spoken. He could shoot, but what would be the point? He would kill one of them while the others would kill him and then they would decide that Ianto was too badly wounded to survive, thus a waste of ammunition. They would leave him here to bleed to death slowly and painfully and even though Jack knew that there wasn't a thing he could do to change that without Owen's help or their first aid supplies, he didn't want to leave Ianto to face death alone and he didn't want to wake up beside the lifeless body of his lover.
"Dito, mate," a voice rang out and Jack breathed a sigh of relief. Owen, Gwen and Tosh, all of them with weapons that seemed ridiculously big in their hands, were standing a few feet away, partially covered by trees. The Halvatians turned to face the new threat and pointed their weapons at them. Owen fired and Gwen and Tosh took that as their clue to do so also.
Jack dropped his Webley and dragged Ianto with him around the tree to get out of the firing line. Ianto cried out in pain and Jack laid him down on the wet ground, pushed Ianto's weak hand aside and tried to stop the bleeding with his stronger hands. "It's gonna be okay," he whispered, even though Ianto couldn't hear him over the noise of the fight.
After a while, the noise died down. Then Owen darted around the tree and dropped to his knees beside Ianto, his torch illuminating the bloody jacket and shirt. "Shit, teaboy!" he said and pushed Jack's hands aside for a second to look at the wound.
Jack stared at him questioningly. "Owen?"
The doctor shook his head and let his backpack fall to the ground before opening it and rummaging through its contents. "It's bad."
"He'll be okay, though?" Jack asked.
Owen didn't answer. He replaced Jack's hands with thick bandages. "Apply pressure."
Jack fought back tears and did as he was told. With his eyes barely open, Ianto looked at Owen kneeling next to him on the muddy ground. Owen's jeans would be a mess once this was over. He needed to buy laundry detergent for the Hub.
He whimpered when Owen shone a light into his eyes. "You still with us?" he asked.
Ianto wanted to tell him yes but he was so tired and he was cold.
"He's going into shock, Jack," Owen said and his voice sounded panicky and far away.
Ianto heard the rain start up again and it sounded louder than it should be, drowning out Jack and Owen's voices.
He smelled the clean scent that only a rain-soaked forest could create.
He felt the wet ground beneath his hands and a dull pain where Jack's hands were applying a steady pressure.
He saw Jack's face, so close to his now, and his lips moving but he could barely make out what he was saying. "... okay, Ianto ... die on me now."
Ianto opened his mouth to respond and tasted blood.
Then his senses waned and darkness embraced him.
END
08/10