Author's Notes: I don't really have an explanation for this. I know I have a multi-chaptered fic to update, and I will do so tomorrow, but this seemed to be more pressing into my head, so here it is.

References: Demons are known to make deals in biblical myths, and Lilith was the first demon, so there's a bit of a wink to that here.

I hope you enjoy the story and I'd love to know what you think, so feedback is appreciated!

The sky was completely black, all the stars blinded by the enormous cluster of light in the middle of the sky. They called it the Tantalus Eye here on Moldox and it was, as far as Jack had been informed, a wrinkle in time. It was an anomaly; a paradox named so only by its mere existence, and Jack felt he could sympathise with it, especially today. He stared deep into it, where the Time Vortex sang its endless song and where the locals believed all the secrets of the Universe were hidden, and sighed deeply.

"You've got something weighing on your heart, soldier."

Jack looked up. A woman sat next to him and stared at him intently, apparently curious. She looked like all the others on that planet – long white hair, despite her apparent youth, darker skin and strikingly green eyes. It seemed to be the most common appearance here, even if it varied occasionally.

"You could say that," he agreed softly. "Bad day."

"I can see that," she said, tone sympathetic. "I'm sorry for your loss."

Ah, yes. They were mildly telepathic too.

"It was a long time ago, but thank you."

"Not long enough for you to stop mourning, was it?" the woman persisted. "When did he die?"

Jack laughed mirthlessly. "That would happen to be the thousand year anniversary today."

Her eyes widened and, even though she was trying to hide her surprise (even so far into humanity's development, when everyone was much more honest about everything, there was a little tact left when it came to death), Jack knew shock when he saw it. "And you haven't been looking for help? Who's worth grieving for that long?"

"Of course I've looked for help," Jack snapped. "Don't you think I've tried a million times to fix myself? It's not working. Nothing I try is working. He was– something else."

"I didn't mean looking for distractions," the woman said carefully. Her voice was soft and melodic and Jack found himself calming down gradually, only to become agitated once more by her next words. "Why haven't you tried bringing him back?"

"Impossible," he shot back immediately. "And when it is possible, it doesn't end well."

"And why would that be?"

"Because if someone's dead, they're dead. And there's nothing you can do about it."

Jack wasn't trying to be rude; he just wanted to end the conversation as quickly as possible. He'd come into the Palace's gardens for some peace and quiet in the overpopulated human colony he was currently inhabiting. He just wanted to be alone.

A thousand years. He'd loved and lost so many people, but most of the memories about them had slipped from his mind like sand through his fingers and had hardly left anything behind except for the vague realisation that time was passing and the weight added to all the losses he'd already had to endure. And yet, one particular ghost had never left him.

He hadn't even had to make himself remember. Ianto had seared himself into his mind like a star forever stuck in the last moments before its explosion – painfully bright and terrifyingly beautiful; too big of an energy even or itself. Jack remembered everything about him down to the most ridiculous details and not once or twice he'd had wanted to forget, to let him go, just so he wouldn't have to keep suffering.

And here he was, a thousand years later. The Earth was hardly habitable now and most of its citizens had fled nearly two centuries ago and he'd found himself on one of the human colonies – Moldox – and had decided to stop here for a few days. The summer of 3009 wasn't all that eventful for them, which was a gift for him.

Jack looked around himself. Ianto would have loved all of this; he knew it. He'd have watched everything around himself with that quiet awe that was usually saved for the most intriguing artefacts they got through the Rift and the Captain could imagine him here and now, even as his heart felt heavy with the overwhelming sorrow that took over him sometimes.

"Not if you know someone who holds the laws of the Universe in his hands," the woman threw in enigmatically and pulled him out of his thoughts.

"And you know such a person, don't you?" Jack wasn't in the mood for mysteries. He wasn't in the mood for anything, as it were.

"I happen to, yes." She didn't seem at all perturbed by his hostility. "Everyone near Tantalus does." She leant in conspirationally. "There's a man who can toy with life and death as easily as it is for you to breathe. His family has had the gift for it for millions of years and they see and hear everything that happens in the Universe. Universes, even; the potential results of everything are their business."

"And that's your offer?" Jack asked sceptically. "That's what you've got on Moldox? A faceless god who takes care of all your needs?"

"Of course not." The woman's smile was condescending. "It's not magic; it's science. Thousands of years ago, the first of their line found a way to fly to the Eye and even managed to enter it. Or, well, that's what we're told today. That's how they got their gifts. Then it started running in the family, reaching–"

"–your current ruler," Jack finished instead of her. "What happened to the previous one?"

"The people from his family don't age and very rarely die, but they can choose to do so if they want to. We call it 'going to sleep'. They die– deliberately."

"They die by choice?" Jack asked incredulously – and not without some small dose of jealousy – and raised an eyebrow. She nodded. "And why do you think that he's going to help me?"

"Because he's a benevolent god." The woman shrugged and looked down. "His father was often cruel to us, but the king we have now is kinder. They say that it's because he grew up on Earth, but I don't know how that would have anything to do with it. Earth was barbaric." Jack made a small sound of acknowledgment. "Some of the legends say that he lost the one he loved and it made him more willing to help others; others say that this was where he found love and that's why he helps. The ones before him rarely – if ever – brought people back from the dead. Nevertheless, if he's going to do it, he's going to want something in return."

"I can pay anything you'd want," Jack said quickly. Because really, what price could possibly be too big if he didn't have to be alone anymore?

The woman smiled and got up gracefully from her place next to him. "Good. He says that you can come in whenever you like. Consider yourself lucky; audiences are rather rare."

"How do you communicate with him if he never gets out of that castle?"

She tapped her temple. "Telepathic, remember? I'm his– receptionist would be a good word, I think."

"And why has he shown interest in my case?" Jack called after her as she started walking in the direction of the building. "Does he think that I have a lot to offer?"

"Oh, I don't think it's that at all." The woman turned around with a small smile. "He says he's bored."

o.O.o

Jack looked up at the castle towering over him. For all the technical development of the human colonies, it still looked very much like any medieval castle he'd seen on Earth and, while he had to admit that it was rather fearsome, he couldn't wait to get inside.

He didn't even know what to expect. The planet itself was so lively, so full of hope, and their leader was shrouded in darkness and the fog that plagued the whole place.

Maybe he just liked being dramatic. They could probably click together well, if he was human at all. Perhaps they could click together well if he wasn't human, too.

"What's your name?" He asked. The woman was leaning against one of the columns and was watching him expectantly.

"Lilith." Her voice was soft and her eyes were curious. Jack wondered how many people had dared to do what he was about to and how many of them had returned.

"Well, Lilith, I think it's time your boss started socialising."

She chuckled darkly and patted him on the back as he went past her. "Good luck with that. And remember – there's always a price."

Of course there was, Jack thought. Bringing someone back to life was a rather complex process and he idly wondered if he'd gone insane for trying this at all. There was mostly desperation reigning inside him and yet, hope was blossoming as well, so he decided that it was perhaps time to act on it.

Ianto. Maybe after all these centuries, just maybe, he would see Ianto again.

When the doors swung open before him, Jack was welcomed by darkness ahead and a dimly lit corridor on his left. It led to a long line of doors but he ignored them; he was quite sure that he was meant to go straight forward and into the door he could just make out in front of him. When he did, it closed right behind his back – which wasn't all that surprising – and he was left in complete darkness.

"Hello." The voice came from nowhere in particular and Jack heard it echo around the – apparently – vast room. It was deep and rich and sounded rather amused, which immediately got him on guard. He didn't even know what he was facing here. God knew what kind of creature amused itself by making people's wishes (especially ones that went against nature's laws) come true.

"Hello." Jack felt ridiculously small. "I was told that you could help me."

"I know." He was suddenly much closer and Jack swirled around, only to be met by more darkness. He couldn't make out anything; not even his own hands when he looked down. "I heard you."

"How?" Jack's voice was shaky now and he was rather embarrassed to admit it, but he quickly realised that he couldn't control it. "The people outside– I asked about you. Everyone says that you can do anything they want you to do."

There was a scoff that sounded strangely human and Jack found himself relaxing. Still, there was fear brewing inside him – some deep, ancient terror that the mind probably produced when it realised that it could as well be talking to its own creator.

"I can. Doesn't mean I do any of it. But," the voice was higher pitched for a moment and Jack turned around once again as it moved from his left to his right. "I heard you."

Jack tried to swallow past the lump in his throat. "And what made me so special? Why did you call me in?"

"Because I can see and hear everything." There was no sound but the voice went around him and Jack got the impression that he was pacing in a circle around him. "I heard all of the prayers directed at any god or goddess at any point in time and space. And it's all the same. I want, I want, I want. And all of a sudden, there you are.

"And you want a lot as well," the voice conceded after a small pause. "But what impressed me was for how long you've wanted it. You've lost your lover, haven't you? Except... that's not really the word in your head, is it?" Jack tensed. He'd never spoken to anyone about this, never. "Ishti, as you'd say it in your native language. Beloved. Because 'lover' sounds as if it's someone else doing the loving, and you've had a lot of that, haven't you? You can have many lovers, but the beloved is only one."

Jack nodded, even though there was no one to see him. The darkness was too thick, unless the other participant in the conversation had some sort of night vision tech.

"So I was curious. I started wondering why. He was just a boy from Earth. Died when he was, what, twenty-five?"

Jack nodded again. "He would have been twenty-six in a month," he said quietly, surprised by the tenderness in every word he spoke. He knew that there was love, yes; he was aware of its overwhelming presence every waking moment, but he hadn't expected that even after all those years he could find it in himself to be fond of Ianto.

"See? That's what I mean. He's barely even lived at all, and you spend centuries mourning him. You're willing to make a deal and pay a possibly dangerous price for it just to get him back, even after all the time that's passed. What for?" Jack opened his mouth to speak, but he wasn't given the chance. "You've tried bringing him back once before, too. House of the Dead, was it? And you almost did it. But he tricked you. Sealed himself on the other side of the Rift just to save a world that didn't care nearly enough."

"Stubborn bastard," Jack muttered, mostly to himself. "That's why I loved him so much." The last part he'd said louder so the voice could hear. "You wanted to know why; there it is. Because he was so young and there were so many days that never came, so many possibilities wasted for a world that never gave him all that much. An entire life swallowed by Torchwood and the Rift. He was lost, just like me. We were both broken and the shards managed to fit together. I want that back." His tone had dropped down to a whisper once again. "I just want him back."

There were several moments of silence and, just when Jack was starting to fear that the man – it he was a man at all – wasn't here anymore, the voice echoed around the room once more.

"I lived on Earth once," he started. "Normal, standard human, or so I thought. Then I was informed of my– heritage and I was told that it had all been with educational purposes for me. So I could understand humans better, you see. I was offered the chance to go home.

"I didn't. Since you've asked about me, you've heard the stories. Love lost or love found; there are two versions. In fact, both of those happened. By the time I was faced with that choice, I had fallen in love, I was in too deep. I got carried away. So believe me, I know how you feel."

"So you can do it?" Jack asked, voice raspy with anticipation and a healthy dose of disbelief. "You can bring him back for me?"

"I've already told you." Now the voice sounded bored again. "I'm capable of everything."

"Will you, then?" Jack took a deep breath when there was no response. "Will you do it? Get him back to me?" It still sounded so surreal, but Jack was holding on to it for dear life. It was like waking up after a long, long dream; suddenly every breath and every blink and every particle of dust in the air seemed a thousand times more significant and real.

There was a deep sigh. "Yes, I will. You can have your Ianto back."

"There'll be a price, of course," Jack said, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible. If he needed to make a bargain, then he would, he'd give up anything that he was asked to – not that he had so much material possessions, really – but he'd do so with dignity.

"Oh, not really. I already told you; I know how you feel. And your case is– special. It is to me, anyway."

Jack laughed incredulously. "So you'll bring back a man from the dead for free?"

"It won't take as much effort as you probably imagine. You were right, Jack." The darkness around him started dissipating and suddenly Jack found himself looking straight into the eyes that had haunted him for the past thousand years. "Ianto Jones was something else."