Category: AC Torchwood/Primeval Crossover
Rating: PG-13 to R
Warnings: Slash (nothing sexually graphic), violence, some strong language
Characters: "My" TW team (Jack, Ianto, Gwen, Martha, and Mickey) and PC Andy; the ARC team (Nick, Connor, Abby, Jenny, Sarah, Becker, and Lester, plus Stephen)
Pairings: Torchwood- Jack/Ianto, Gwen/Rhys; Primeval- Connor/Abby, Nick/Jenny
Spoilers: The first two seasons of Torchwood; the first two seasons of Primeval, plus S3 up to Episode 3
Notes: This is completely AC for both shows, as it takes place some time after my fic Matters of Choice (though you don't have to have read that to be able to follow this), and Cutter is still alive. Depending on how well it's received, this story might be the start of a series.
Disclaimer: I don't own Torchwood, Primeval, or either series' characters. I just thought it would be fun to throw the two groups together and have them work as one unit to take care of a problem ;).
As his view of Cutter is obstructed more and more by the gathered predators crowding in closer, Stephen looks away from the door to face his death head on. He retreats step by step, then suddenly feels a pull at his back. He stops where he is and turns around. To his shocked surprise, he sees an open anomaly. He takes only a moment to weigh the pros and cons of going through it, then turns his back completely and sprints inside, thinking to himself, "Better than being torn to pieces by a bunch of hungry predators." He quickly disappears, with three of the predators— the Raptor pair and one of the hunters from the future— in hot pursuit.
One evening, the Torchwood team, back to its original numbers with the additions of Martha Jones and Mickey Smith, is interrupted from a relaxed meal by the alert sound of the Rift monitor. All five get up immediately from the table to take a look, Mickey in the lead.
"What have we got, Mickey?" Jack asks, his mouth full of pizza.
"Some sort of disturbance on the outskirts of Cardiff." He answers, the slice of pizza he had grabbed seconds before still in his hand.
"Any video?" Jack continues.
"No, none at all." Mickey replies.
"We'll have to be prepared for anything, then." Jack observes. Turning from Mickey to the rest of the team, he says, "Okay guys, eat and drink up quick. We've got work to do." The tightly packed group around Mickey breaks up and goes back to the table, where, standing up, each team member hurriedly finishes eating. After giving them a few minutes, Jack says, "Alright, let's go." The others file out, leaving Jack and Ianto alone.
Pausing in his cleanup, Ianto asks, "Are we all going, sir? Or should I stay behind and keep an eye on things here?"
"Nope, you're coming, so take care of the dishes you have and meet us outside by the SUV." Jack answers.
"Yes sir." Ianto replies, smiling, clearly glad that in spite of the team being back to full strength, he isn't going to be relegated to the position of Hub watcher again.
Jack, who had begun walking away after answering Ianto's question, stops and turns back around. "Ianto, come here." He says, sounding stern. Ianto looks at him uncertainly, but after putting down the pile of dishes, comes over anyway.
"Yes, Jack?" Ianto asks when he reaches him.
Putting his arms around Ianto's waist and pulling him closer, Jack replies, "Did you really think I'd leave you here?"
"Well, since Martha and Mickey are now part of the team, I just thought…"
"That I'd put you in charge of watching over the Hub again." Jack finishes for him. Ianto simply nods. His older lover kisses him on the cheek and says, "Then you don't know me very well."
"No, I guess I don't." Ianto replies, smiling slightly. Suddenly, in the spur of the moment, he puts his arm around Jack's shoulder and kisses him fully on the mouth.
The two men separate at the same time, and Jack says, "I'm gonna go up and get my coat while you're finishing down here, then we'll go, okay?"
"Yes sir." Ianto answers, nodding.
Before he heads in the direction of the stairs, Jack takes Ianto by the right shoulder and kisses him lightly on the lips. Following that, Jack pulls away, saying, "I'll be right down." Ianto nods in response, and Jack turns around, heading for the stairs. With Jack out of sight, Ianto returns to cleaning up the dishes and leftovers from the team's unfinished dinner. He completes most of the task within five minutes, just in time to see Jack reappear at the top of the stairs, his coat billowing out behind him slightly. In spite of still needing to wipe down the table, Ianto can't help but stop what he's doing and watch his captain descend the stairs.
He'd always loved seeing Jack in that coat, from the very evening, nearly two years ago, that he had first met him. Ianto still didn't understand why, but every once in a while, seeing his lover in it nearly took his breath away, just like it was doing at the moment.
"Ready to go?" Jack asks him.
The sound of Jack's voice off a little to his right brings Ianto's attention back to his surroundings, and he replies, "Yes sir."
"Okay, come on." Jack responds, brushing past as he starts toward the hatch. Ianto leaves the rag lying on the table and jogs after Jack. He soon catches up, and the two men cover the remaining distance to the hatch, Jack slightly ahead of Ianto. Before they go through, Jack turns to the younger man and hands him a pistol, saying, "I grabbed this for you so you didn't have to rush through cleaning up in order to get it before I went out the door."
"Thanks." Ianto answers.
"Sure." The brief exchange concluded, the couple goes out the door, and it rolls shut behind them. After stepping off the curb, they head right and walk straight until they reach the corresponding corner of the building, where they go right again. A minute or two later, the pair reaches the SUV and the rest of the team. Each member of the group gets in silently, Jack and Ianto in front, the other three in back. Following the clicking of seatbelts, they drive off.
Forty-five minutes later, Jack, who is sitting behind the wheel, glances up at his rearview mirror and says with annoyance, "Jeez, Mickey, when you said outskirts of Cardiff, you weren't kidding! How much further?"
Mickey glances at the screen of the portable computer in his lap and replies, "Our location's right up ahead." Jack drives for a couple of more minutes, then Mickey says, "Okay, we're here." Jack brakes and stops, then puts the SUV in "Park".
All five members of the team get out at the same time. While they are loading their weapons with ammunition, Jack cautions, "Remember, everyone, we have no idea what we're dealing with, so be very, very careful." The quartet nods in unison, then their leader says, "Okay, let's see what we've got." With that, the team, walking in formation, goes to investigate.
After ten minutes, they reach an area with an almost labyrinthine network of streets and narrow, deserted alleyways.
"I don't like the look of this at all— no people, no cars, hardly any houses— not much of anything." Jack comments, almost in a whisper. He turns to Mickey, standing to his right, and asks, "Anything more since we found our location?"
"Just a really faint signal coming from— this direction." Mickey answers, pointing right slightly to the northeast.
"Then that must be our target. Come on." The others follow Jack in nervous silence, looking around as they go.
A few minutes later, they are stopped by Mickey, who says, "This is the place." The team looks up to find itself standing in front of a deserted, empty warehouse.
"Here? Are you sure?" Jack asks.
"Yeah, look." Mickey replies, showing him the handheld Rift activity tracker.
"Wow! That is some strong activity!" Jack answers. "Mind if I take a closer look?" he asks, his hand outstretched.
"No, not at all." the younger man replies, handing the device to him.
"Thanks." The Torchwood leader answers, taking it.
"No problem." Mickey replies. Jack returns to checking out the device's screen. Almost immediately after he gets a good look at it, an expression of complete surprise and puzzlement crosses his face.
From his left, Ianto, who had first seen the look, says, "What is it, Jack?"
Shaking his head in bafflement, Jack answers, "I've never seen a Rift activity signature like this!"
"Like what?" the young Welshman asks.
"Take a look." Jack says, handing the device over. "In all my years working for Torchwood, nothing like that has ever shown up. Have you ever seen a signature with that pattern?"
"No, can't say I have." Ianto answers, shaking his head.
"What are you two going on about?" Mickey remarks.
"The activity signature on the monitor." Jack explains, turning to him.
"What about it?" the younger man questions.
"Its pattern is one we've never seen before."
"Oh, got it." Mickey says, nodding understandingly. "Can I have another look?" he asks.
"Yeah, here you go." Jack responds, handing it back.
"Thanks."
"Mmhmm… ."
Mickey takes the same amount of time looking it over as Jack had, then says, "I haven't been at this for very long, but after hearing what you said about it and looking at it again, you're right— it is different from anything else we've seen."
"What do you two mean, 'different'?" Gwen pipes up.
"Mickey, why don't you show Gwen and Martha what we mean." Jack suggests.
"Sure." He says, handing the monitor to Gwen, who is standing to his right.
"So, Gwen, what do you think?" Jack asks, his hands on his hips.
"I see what you mean. It does look really weird." She replies, nodding. Turning to Martha, Gwen asks, "Martha, do you want to have a look?"
"No, I'm good. That's your guys' thing." She replies blandly. Gwen hands the device back to Mickey, then he and the others wait for further instructions from Jack.
"I think that's all for now. Let's go in and find out what we're dealing with." Their leader says. The quartet nods as one, then follows him into the warehouse. No sooner do they get a few feet inside, when every one of them, including Jack, stops dead in his or her tracks, eyes wide and mouth agape at the sight in front of them.
"What the heck is that?" Martha exclaims quietly.
"I have no idea." Jack says in an awestruck tone, shaking his head. He looks at Mickey, still to his right, and asks, "What does the monitoring device say? Any changes?"
"The activity signature is the same, but it's gotten a lot stronger since we came in here." The younger man answers.
"How much more?" Jack asks.
"Two times stronger, at least. Possibly more." Mickey replies.
"That much?" the Torchwood leader exclaims. Mickey nods. "Wow! Whatever that thing is, it emits a whole lot of energy!" Jack comments, looking back at the whitely glowing, roughly circular, shattered glass-like mass.
"So, what now?" Gwen asks curiously.
In response, Jack says, "Well, first, we should probably stay as far away as possible from this…whatever it is, since we don't know what kind of energy it's producing and how that might physically affect us. As for what to do next, I'd say since it showed up in the Hub as Rift activity, we should take a quick sweep of this place and see what came through, if anything. Are you guys okay with that?"
"Yeah, sounds like a good idea to me." Gwen answers.
"Mickey?" Jack continues.
"Yeah, fine with me." He replies.
"Ianto?" Jack receives no answer. "Ianto, is that…"
Jack is cut off mid-sentence by Ianto saying, "Shhh…, be quiet for a minute. Do you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Jack says with some annoyance. His demeanor changes as soon as he sees the concerned look on his lover's face, however. "What is it?" Jack asks, his voice barely above a whisper.
Ianto's one word response is, "Listen."
Jack does so for a minute and a half, then suddenly stiffens, saying, "We aren't alone in here."
"No, we're not." The young Welshman agrees.
"Good catch, Ianto. Thanks."
"You're welcome." Ianto replies in his habitually demure manner.
Jack turns back to the rest of the team and says, "Alright, you heard what Ianto and I said: something, or some things, are in here with us, so a change of plans is in order. Instead of doing a quick survey, we're going to look this place over from top to bottom and front to back, to see if we can track down what came through this thing. Like I said when we first got here, be very careful. I also want us to stay together, rather than split up. It will take longer to investigate this place fully, but considering we know next to nothing about the situation, I think it would be safer to do it that way. Anyone disagree?" No one gives a sign, either physical or vocal, of such a feeling, so Jack says, "Good. Let's go." Each member of the group adjusts his or her position in the sloppily formed line until they are organized into a rough boomerang shape. Arranged in that formation, with Jack and Gwen side by side in front, the team begins its inspection of the warehouse, guided by flashlight.
Twenty minutes into the investigation, Jack stops them, saying, "Wait, don't move." The rest of the team stops mid-stride, and he continues. "I heard scraping ahead of us on the floor just now. Did you guys, too?"
"I did." Ianto answers first.
Following Ianto's response, Jack asks the three remaining team members the question again, and each one of them, either by gesture or spoken confirmation, answers in the affirmative. Jack then turns back to Ianto and inquires, "Ianto, what direction would you say the noise came from?"
"Mmmm…, probably from the left." He answers.
Nodding, Jack replies, "Yeah, I thought so too." Enlarging his gaze to include the others, in addition to Ianto, the Torchwood leader says, "Okay guys, let's see who or what we're keeping company with in here." The team breaks up its boomerang formation and reorganizes itself into a vertical line, then resumes walking. At that very moment, the scraping sound starts again in a nearby corner, then abruptly stops.
"That sounded closer this time." Gwen remarks nervously.
"Yeah, it did." Jack agrees. "Are you okay to check it out first, or do you want me to?"
"No, I'm fine with it, but cover me, alright?" Jack nods. Gwen advances forward slowly, still with the flashlight in her hand. When she reaches the supposedly occupied corner, she shines the light into the darkness, where it reveals PC Andy and a tiny group of other police officers huddled together, cowering, their faces pale as those of ghosts'. "Andy? What are you doing way out here?" Gwen exclaims.
"G-Gwen? Is that you?" he stutters, rising slightly from the tight crouch he is in.
"Yeah." She replies. Noticing the terrified posture of PC Andy and his fellow officers, Gwen adds, "What's wrong?"
Nearly knocking her over in his gladness to see a familiar face, PC Andy, talking a mile a minute, exclaims, "Oh, thank god! I'm so glad you're here, it was just horrible, like watching a real life slasher film! I don't ever want to witness something like that again, it was just…"
The terrified police officer is suddenly quieted by the firm but comforting touch of hands on his shoulders, and Gwen saying gently, "Andy, calm down. Just relax and tell me what happened, from the beginning to now."
His breathing and heart rate slow little by little until both are back to normal, then he begins his account of the events. "Close to an hour ago, we were phoned about some sort of animal pursuing a man around here, so we came to investigate the report. We saw the guy first, hiding in one of the alleys. He looked rough, but seemed polite and non-threatening, so we asked him if he was the person our contact was talking about. He said he probably was, that it couldn't possibly be anyone else, so we told him we'd do everything we could to help him get away from the animal that was chasing him. He didn't seem too keen on the idea, but he accepted our offer anyway."
Gwen interrupts Andy from giving his account for a minute and asks, "Did he tell you why he had reservations about it?"
"No, but we found out the reason soon enough." He answers.
"You did?" Gwen inquires. Andy nods. "Okay, go on."
"Everything went fine for awhile, but then the creature showed up."
"What did it look like? Was it a Weevil?" Gwen asks.
"No, it definitely wasn't a Weevil, or even one of the other usual spooky-dos of yours we see. It looked like something from a blooming nightmare! It was this monstrosity of a thing I hope to god I'll never have to see again!"
"So some sort of alien we've never encountered before, then." Gwen muses. Andy nods. "Okay, what did you do after you saw it?"
"I split my crew into two groups, thinking it would confuse the creature. About half were with me, and the other half were with our subject."
Gwen nods, then asks, "Did the plan work?"
"Hardly at all." Andy replies, shaking his head mournfully. "Some of my men were armed, but that didn't even do any good. They were barely able to each take two shots at the creature before it was on them, biting and ripping them to bits! It was horrific!"
"How many would you say you lost in all?" Gwen asks.
"A little more than half, probably." Andy answers.
"While all that was happening, what was this man you were trying to help doing? Did he leave it all up to you and your men, or did he take part in fighting off this thing?"
"Oh no, he helped a lot, or at least as much as he could without being properly armed himself. When he saw how badly things were going, he told those of us who were left to run as fast and far away as we could, while he kept the creature distracted. It was a really stupid move, but a brave one, too. Anyway, we took the advice and ran, so that's how we ended up in here."
Gwen nods again thoughtfully, then inquires, "Do you have any ideas about what might have happened to him after that?"
"If he's lucky, the meal the creature made of my men was enough to fill it up, and it just disabled him and dragged him back to wherever it sleeps. More likely, though, he was torn limb from limb and eaten. I don't think you'll be finding any remains."
"No, you're probably right." Gwen says, sighing. "Thanks, Andy." He nods. "Are you okay?" she adds.
"Okay as I can be after going through that sort of thing." He answers. After a momentary pause, he asks, "The rest of Torchwood is with you, right? It's not just you who's here?"
"Right." Gwen replies. "I'm gonna go get them, and I'll be right back, okay?" she explains. Andy nods understandingly, and Gwen goes off to find the others.
It doesn't take her long to catch up with them. Almost as soon as she leaves Andy in the shadows of the corner, Gwen meets up with Jack.
"Is your friend okay?" he asks.
"Andy?" Jack nods. "Yeah, mostly." Gwen answers.
"What do you mean, 'mostly'?" Jack responds.
"What came through that thing at the entrance is some sort of alien, but it's an extremely dangerous one we've never encountered before."
"What makes you describe it that way?" Jack asks.
"When I found Andy and what's left of the crew that came with him, they all looked terrified. Whatever this creature is, it's so deadly that even Andy's afraid of it, and he's seen enough weird, otherworldly things that hardly anything can phase him."
Nodding, Jack says, "That is troubling." He stops for a moment, appearing to be considering something. Finally, he says, "Okay, before we try to catch up with this creature, we need to get your friend and his crew away from here and out of harm's way. Is he still where you left him?"
"Yeah, come on." Gwen replies. Jack and the others follow her, arriving back at the police officers' hiding place within a couple of minutes. Looking into the darkened corner, Gwen says, "Alright, Andy, you and your men can come out now." The form of the young police officer, flanked by three other figures, materializes out of the shadows.
Upon emerging from the corner, the first person Andy sees is Jack, standing to the right of Gwen. "Hi there." The young officer says neutrally. Jack nods back politely. "So, what's the plan?" Andy continues, looking back and forth between Gwen and Jack. It is eventually the latter who answers him.
"We're going to get you and your men out of here and to safety, then go from there."
"And the creature? What about that?" Andy asks.
"We'll worry about that once you and your team are out of the way."
"Okay. Thank you." Andy replies.
"Sure." Jack says. "So, how many of you are there?"
"Just us four."
"Four out of how many?"
"About ten, including me." Andy answers.
A look of amazement crosses Jack's face and he asks, "Seriously?" Andy nods. "Wow, that's…a lot of losses! Okay, um, are any of you armed?"
"Not one of us." Andy confesses.
"Alright, that makes things a bit more difficult."
"More than a bit!" Mickey, standing to Gwen's left, remarks.
"You're right." Jack agrees, looking at him. "But part of our responsibility is to make sure anybody caught in the middle of these situations isn't harmed, so as much as we might prefer to, we can't just let this man and his team be finished off by whatever's lurking around in here."
Seeing some growing tension between the two men, Martha, on Jack's right, asks, "So, how are we going to do this?"
"We need to spread out enough that we can protect PC Davidson and his men, and keep an eye out for our alien. The best way to do that is get into our earlier formation, with them gathered in the middle."
"Sounds good so far." Martha responds. "What else?"
"Each one of us should focus on protecting one of them. That way, one or two won't be more vulnerable to attack than the others."
"That plan works for me. Guys?" The others, who had been listening during the exchange, nod.
The team arranges itself into the boomerang formation again, and PC Andy, having heard the entire conversation, instructs his three remaining officers to join him in the center of the quintet. When that has been done, the group sets off.
The next several minutes go by without incident, then Ianto glances up. His eyes widen in fear, and he shouts, "Jack, look out!" His lover has barely begun formulating a response, when he is knocked violently onto his back by a swift moving, grayish figure. When Jack lifts his head to look at his attacker, he is greeted by a mouth full of long, dagger-like teeth in a seemingly eyeless head.
The creature gives a shriek, then crouches to carry out another pouncing strike. As Jack scrabbles back in the manner of a crab in order to escape the oncoming attack, he glances back briefly at the others and shouts, "Get them out of here right now!" Gwen, Martha, and Mickey turn around immediately and start leading PC Andy and his team away, but Ianto hesitates.
Looking back and stopping for a moment, Martha yells, "Ianto, come on!"
"No, you go ahead." He replies firmly.
"But…!"
"Just go! We'll be fine!" he says, more forcefully. "Go!" he finally shouts. Martha takes one last look at the young Welshman, preparing to fight to save the life of the person dearest to him, then turns back around and continues on her way.
Ianto, satisfied that Martha won't come back, turns to the scene in front of him. He looks up briefly, and for the first time, notices the dingy, whitish glow of fluorescent lights, mounted on the ceiling. Glad he doesn't have to waste precious time figuring out a source of light, Ianto springs into action. With his pistol in hand, he charges forward in a run, firing a series of shots at the creature as he draws nearer to his struggling lover. After being grazed and nicked by several bullets, the future predator backs off. With one last enraged shriek, it leaps onto one of the warehouse's foundational supports and climbs up it, finally disappearing among the building's rafters. Ianto stays where he is, looking around and listening for any telltale signs and sounds that the creature is coming back. After two minutes of standing stock-still, he rushes over to see how Jack fared in his fight with the creature.
"Jack, are you alright?" Ianto asks worriedly, crouching down next to his lover and putting a hand on his arm.
"Other than having a hell of a backache and being scratched all over, I'm fine, yeah." Jack replies blandly. "Thanks for the help." He adds.
Ianto nods, then asks, "Want a hand getting up?"
"Yeah, that would be great." Jack answers, sitting up slowly.
Noticing the careful manner in which his lover had raised himself up to his current posture, Ianto, the tone of concern creeping into his voice again, questions, "Are you sure you aren't hurt any worse than you just told me?"
"Positive." Jack answers reassuringly. Ianto still doesn't appear convinced, so Jack adds, "I'm okay, I promise." To further prove he's being honest with Ianto, Jack kisses him lovingly on the cheek. Jack's reassurances finally do the trick, and Ianto takes him by the shoulder and helps him to his feet. Jack steadies himself without any problem, but is then caught off guard by Ianto fiercely wrapping him in an embrace and giving him an impassioned kiss of relief.
Following his outburst of emotion, Ianto lays his head on Jack's right shoulder and chokes out, "I thought for sure you'd met your match in that creature that attacked you." After expressing that fear, he lifts his head off Jack's shoulder and presses it against his chest.
Taking his left hand from around the young Welshman's waist placing it, palm down, on the back of his head, Jack reassures him, "Nope, not this time." As one final gesture of comfort before returning to business, Jack kisses his young lover on top of the head. "You okay?" he asks, gently lifting it and looking into the younger man's eyes. Ianto nods. "Good." Jack adds kindly, kissing him on the forehead. The intimate moment passes as suddenly as it had arisen, and Jack returns to the situation at hand, asking, "Did Martha, Mickey, and Gwen get our frightened little group of law enforcement officers out of the creature's reach?"
"I think they did, yes." Ianto answers.
"Good, then we'd better catch up with them."
"Yes we should." Ianto agrees.
"There's one little problem, though." Jack remarks, looking around.
"What's that?" the young Welshman asks, slightly bewildered.
"They left with the torch. How are we going to find our way back without some form of light?"
"Not a problem." Ianto answers, smiling slightly.
"How's that?" Jack asks. "Did you bring another one with you?"
"No. It turns out the lights in here still work. Look." The younger man answers, glancing above him.
Jack follows Ianto's gaze, and upon seeing the fluorescents above them, says, "How about that?" Looking from the ceiling back to Ianto, Jack declares, "Good. I guess we'd better get going, then."
"Yep." Ianto agrees with a nod. Following that brief exchange, the couple starts back, both men constantly scanning their surroundings for any sign of the future predator.
They return to the warehouse's entrance and their anxiously waiting colleagues twenty minutes later.
"Are you guys okay?" Martha asks concernedly.
"Yeah, we're fine." Jack answers. "Did you guys get PC Davidson and the remainder of his crew out of here okay?"
"Yeah. We escorted them about halfway to their vehicles, then they went the rest of the way on their own. They took off as soon as they got into their vehicles." Gwen answers.
"Sounds like they were pretty shaken up." Jack observes.
"Yeah" Gwen agrees, nodding.
After a pause, Jack muses, "It's a completely understandable reaction, though. That was one nasty alien. Probably the nastiest one I've ever encountered, actually."
"Really?" Gwen asks.
"Yeah." The Torchwood leader answers, nodding.
"Then we'd better hope it didn't follow the two of you and is lurking around somewhere." Martha remarks. "It didn't, did it? Follow you, I mean?"
"No." Jack answers, shaking his head. "The last we saw of it, it was scrambling up one of the foundational supports, then disappeared into the rafters. We kept an eye out for it on the way back, but never saw it again, so I think we're safe."
"That's comforting to know." Martha says with relief. "Shall we head back?"
"Yeah." Jack says. "But we should still stay alert and be careful. The fact that Ianto and I didn't see it again doesn't mean we aren't going to encounter it at all on the way back to the SUV. In other words, stay focused and watch out for it. It would be a good idea if we don't go back to the SUV the same way we came here, too. Everyone agree with that?" The rest of the team nods. "Okay, then let's go." Jack concludes.
While the team is carefully making its way through the various alleyways in order to return to the SUV, Martha sees a body lying on its side on the pavement.
After checking to make sure her colleagues are close enough so she doesn't have to yell, Martha calls, Jack, guys, come here! I found someone." The other four come running, Jack in the lead.
When he reaches her, Jack asks, "You said you found someone?"
"Yeah." Martha replies, nodding.
"Possibly a witness?" Jack wonders aloud.
"Depends on what shape they're in." the young doctor answers. Turning to Gwen, Martha asks, "Gwen, would you hand me the torch?"
"Sure." Gwen says, giving it to her.
"Thanks."
"Yeah, no problem."
Crouching down, Martha says, "Okay, looks like we have a white male, probably mid-thirties, and it seems he was attacked by our creature."
"Good start. What else? Is he injured? Alive, dead?" Jack inquires.
Moving the flashlight along the length of the body, Martha says, "He's seriously wounded: lots of deep cuts, mostly on his arms, back, and chest, probably from claws or teeth; it looks like he hasn't had anything substantial to eat for a couple of days, and he might be a little dehydrated. In other words, he's in pretty bad shape."
"How bad?" Jack asks concernedly.
"Let me see." Martha replies. Holding the flashlight with one hand, she reaches down with the other and takes the man's pulse. After a minute, Martha takes her fingers off the side of his neck, and whistling with relief, comments, "We got to him just in time. His pulse is faint, but it's there."
"Can we get him to the Hub in time to save him?" Jack asks.
"Yeah, if we bring the car over here and drive fast enough to get back into the main part of town in half an hour or less."
Nodding, Jack answers, "We can do that. I'll go get the SUV." He then turns to Ianto and asks, "Will you cover me, just in case our nightmare creature from hell decides to try and pick us off again?"
"I'd be glad to." Ianto replies.
"Okay, come on." Jack says. Before the pair starts off, he glances at the others and says, "We'll be back as quick as we can." Martha nods, and the two men go off to retrieve the SUV.
"Anything we can do to help?" Gwen asks.
"Well, some of his wounds are fresh, so if there's a way we can slow the bleeding until Jack and Ianto come back, that would be good."
"We'd better hope they get back soon, then, because none of us has anything that would work."
"We don't, no, but he does." Mickey remarks.
"What do you mean?" Gwen asks, confused.
"His clothes, of course." The young man replies.
"He needs them to keep warm or something, though, doesn't he?" Gwen says. She then looks down at Martha and asks, "Martha, you're the doctor. What do you think?"
"Both of you are right, but he could easily die while we're waiting. He's lost a lot of blood as it is. Anymore, and he could be done for, so I think it would be best to take Mickey's suggestion."
"Alright." Gwen answers, nodding. "So, what should we use?"
"His shirt, I think." Martha replies.
"His shirt?"
"Yeah. The thing is in tatters anyway, so it isn't really doing him much good."
"True." Gwen agrees. "So, are we going to use strips of it on all those wounds, or just some of them?"
"Just on the ones bleeding the most." Martha answers.
"Got it." Gwen says understandingly.
"I need to turn him over onto his back before we can do anything." Martha explains. Gwen nods slightly and takes a few steps back so Martha has plenty of room to work. When Gwen is out of the way enough, Martha carefully rolls the man onto his back. "There, now let's get to work." The young doctor declares. Gwen and Mickey both crouch down, one on either side of the man. While Martha holds the flashlight, the pair sets to making crude bandages out of the remains of the man's shirt. The parts of his body where tourniquets are feasible are dressed in that manner, with some instruction by Martha; everywhere else, pressure to slow the bleeding is applied, or parts of the shirt covering any wounds are allowed to remain and soak up oozing blood.
Five anguishing minutes later, Jack and Ianto return in the SUV. As he gets out of the driver's side, Jack asks Martha, "How's he doing?"
Martha checks the man's pulse again, then answers, "He's still with us, amazingly enough, and there doesn't seem to be any change for the worse in his pulse."
"Sounds like he's a fighter, that's good." Jack comments. Martha nods in response. "He doesn't have much protection form the elements, though, especially not his upper body."
"Yeah. Some of that was our doing, though." Martha admits. "Some of his wounds were recent and still bleeding significantly, so I thought it would be better to put him at risk of exposure, rather than let him bleed to death."
"That was probably a good call." Jack responds, nodding. "I'll tell you what: Let's cover him with my coat and move him into the SUV that way."
Martha, surprised at Jack's suggestion, asks, "Are you sure? It might get stained."
"No problem. It can easily be washed." He says, shrugging. "A few stains don't really matter when a man's life is hanging by a thread."
"Totally agree with you." Martha answers, nodding.
"I figured you would." Jack replies, removing his coat and personally draping it over the unknown man's body. "Are we ready to go?" the Torchwood leader adds. The others nod, then he says, "Okay. Ianto, Mickey, how about you two carry him over to the SUV." The two youngest team members nod, and the younger of the pair joins his colleague near the body. One positions himself at the man's head, and the other chooses the feet. "Gwen, Martha, I want the two of you to get in the backseat and keep him from being jostled around during the drive back to the Hub." Jack instructs.
"Do you want us to get in the car now?" Gwen asks.
"Mmmm…, no. Wait until Mickey and Ianto bring him over."
"Gotcha." Gwen answers. A minute or two later, under the watchful eye of Martha, Mickey and Ianto carry the man to the SUV. The two women then take a seat in the back and wait for further instructions.
Before the three men get into the vehicle, Jack asks Mickey and Ianto, "Which of you would rather sit in the back with Gwen, Martha, and our victim?"
"I will." Ianto volunteers.
"Are you sure?" Jack asks, the look of slight concern on his face giving away his worry that sitting with the body of a severely wounded person in his lap, Ianto's memories of Canary Wharf, the bloody body of his half-cyberized girlfriend, and the dying Tosh will come back with a vengeance and torture him, minimal though the effect may be.
"Yeah." The young Welshman replies, the expression on his face reassuring Jack that it won't happen.
"Okay, you've got it." Jack answers before returning to his place on the driver's side. Ianto and Mickey take their chosen seats in the SUV moments later. After the sound of fastening seatbelts and the engine starting, Jack slams on the gas, sending the vehicle speeding out of the virtually deserted neighborhood.
The team returns to the Hub in thirty minutes flat, Jack electing to park the SUV in back. He gets out first, and after opening the passenger door on Martha's side of the vehicle, instructs her to check the stranger's pulse once more. "So, what's the report?" Jack asks after giving Martha ample time to do the task.
"He's still hanging in there." She answers.
"Man, the guy is tough!" Jack exclaims, shaking his head in awe.
Shrugging, Martha replies, "There are few things in this world stronger than the will to survive."
"True." Jack agrees, nodding. "Anything more?"
"Yeah, one other thing. Not only does he still have a pulse, but it's gotten a bit stronger since I last checked it."
"Really?" Martha nods." That's interesting. I wonder what it is he feels he has to stick around for?" Jack muses.
"I haven't got a clue, but whatever it is, it's what's giving him the determination to stay alive."
"Mmhmmm…" After a brief pause, the Torchwood leader says, "Well, we'd better get him inside." Martha nods. Jack notices Ianto following Gwen out of the vehicle and asks him, "Ianto, is there something inside we might be able to use as a stretcher?"
"Probably, but it's going to take time to find it, and I'd guess that's something we don't have." The young Welshman answers. He looks across the way at Martha, still in the same spot, and asks, "Right?" the young woman nods.
"Probably, but it's going to take time to find it, and I'd guess that's something we don't have." The young Welshman answers. He looks across the way at Martha, still in the same spot, and asks, "Right?" the young woman nods.
"Good point, I didn't think of that." Jack admits. "We'll need to carry him in, then. Ianto, are you still up to doing that?"
"Yeah." He answers, nodding. "How do you want us to be positioned?"
"I'll take his head, shoulders, and upper back. You can take his feet and legs."
"Oh, you're going to help me carry him, rather than Mickey?"
Nodding, Jack replies, "Yeah. He's got a computer to carry, I don't have a thing."
"That's true." Ianto agrees.
"Are you ready?" Jack asks.
"Yeah, just let me get out of the way so you can grab him." The younger man says. He takes several steps back, then waits.
Leaning into the side of the vehicle where the man's upper body is within reach, Jack grabs him under the arms and gently drags him off the seat, lifting him just before the upper section of his body reaches the end of it. Within seconds of Jack doing so, Ianto is at the ready, waiting to take hold of the man's lower body. Once it is within reach, Ianto grabs it.
"Do you have a good grip on him?" Jack asks, looking across the way at Ianto.
"Yep." He answers.
"Okay, let's take him in." Jack says. Ianto nods, and with Martha walking alongside to keep an eye on the man's condition, they carry him into the Hub. Once inside, the trio finds Mickey wheeling out a gurney.
"Gwen and I thought it would be good to have one ready so you two wouldn't have to carry him all the way into the medical lab." He explains.
Grinning, Jack says, "This is why I love you guys. You're always thinking ahead and ready to work as a team." He pauses for a moment, which gives Gwen the chance to join them. Looking at her and Mickey, Jack then says, "Thanks for the help, guys."
"Sure." Mickey says, nodding.
"Yeah, no problem." Gwen adds, also nodding.
Looking from her and Mickey to Ianto, Jack says, "Shall we carry him over and put him down?" Ianto nods. The pair carries the unconscious, wounded stranger the rest of the distance, then Jack says, "Okay, now we have to lift him." Ianto nods again. "Ready, one, two, three!" The two men lift their burden without too much difficulty, then lay him down on the gurney, his back on its surface. "There we go." Jack says, picking up his coat, which had fallen on the floor while he and Ianto were putting the man down. "He's all yours, Martha."
"I'm on it." She assures him, walking quickly over. After Martha has reached the gurney and its occupant, Mickey obligingly starts pushing it in the direction of the medical lab, the young doctor walking alongside.
Looking away from the pair (whose figures had already begun shrinking, due to their rapid pace and the distance they'd covered because of it), Gwen asks Jack, "Anything more we need to do?"
"I don't think so, not tonight." He answers. "You can head home if you want."
"I think I will, after we finish dinner. Assuming there's food leftover, that is."
"I think there is." Jack says, nodding. Turning to Ianto, he asks, "Isn't there?"
"Yes, plenty." Ianto answers, giving a nod. "Shall we go upstairs?"
"Yeah, let's." Jack agrees, beginning to walk in the direction of the stairs. Ianto and Gwen quickly follow after him, each eventually taking up a position on either side of him.
Meanwhile, Martha, alone in the medical lab after Mickey's departure, is in the process of conducting a more thorough examination of her new patient. In the glaring light of the room, the direness of the man's condition and the ravages of his recent, so far mysterious experience are clearly obvious. He's pale and unshaven, his slate gray t-shirt is in ribbons, his chest, arms, and back are crisscrossed with cuts, some old and in the process of healing, others relatively fresh and still red, and he appears to be less than his normal weight. Had any of his colleagues in London been present, they would hardly have recognized him.
Looking at him with sad awe and shaking her head, Martha murmurs to herself, "My god, what on earth have you been through?" After carefully removing the remains of the man's shirt, Martha cleans and dresses his unhealed wounds. Following the completion of that, she starts two IV's: one for administering fluids to rehydrate him, and another to restore his electrolytes and enzymes. The young doctor tucks the blanket Mickey had provided earlier further around the man's body to keep him warm. Before leaving to join the others and finish eating, Martha bends down and quietly whispers in the man's ear, "I don't know what it is you want to resolve so badly that you're willing yourself to live, but it's obviously important to you, so keep hanging in there." With those words of encouragement, and after putting away her lab coat, Martha departs to join the others.