With slow trembling hands, Jack reached towards the Doctor's neck again and then paused before actually touching him. He had to confirm whether or not the man who lay in front of him was dead. Though either way, Jack wasn't sure what he was going to do. He was a trained field medic, both through the Time Agency and then again by humans during WWI and WWII. He could assist the Doctor and stabilize him until help arrived but at the very least help was three hours away. He realized that he couldn't take him to a normal hospital and with his own doctor dead, he would need Martha. Martha though was still at UNIT just outside of London. Except by the looks of the Doctor a hospital wasn't going to be necessary.

"Jack get it together," He told himself as he continue to stall, afraid of what he would find. Very carefully he pressed his fingers once again against the cool neck. He tried to ignore the slippery coolness of the blood that was covering the Doctor as he searched desperately for a pulse. His eyes burned with unshed tears and he was holding his breath trying to stop the lump in his throat from growing, when he felt it. It was faint and weak, but it was there. He let out his breath slowly and then breathed in deeply through his noise. He realized his mistake almost immediately and began to cough.

The Doctor stunk. Not just of blood and dirt. Gagging Jack pulled out a handkerchief and covered his mouth and nose before breathing again. He wondered why he hadn't noticed the smell immediately, but he had been too concerned on whether or not the man was alive. Moving the handkerchief, he sat it on the ground beside him. The Doctor's head was slightly angled so that his face was mainly pressed into the grating but he was also looking towards the console. Jack moved around him so that he could see the Doctor's face without having to move his head. He carefully ran his hand along the Doctor's neck, looking for any injury. He didn't find one but he was still weary to move him at all.

Even in the dim light, he could see the bruises that covered the Doctor's face. His right eye was swollen shut and the bruise extended down his face, to where his nose was crooked from being broke. His lips were slightly parted and Jack knelt down further, placing his cheek close to the Doctor's mouth. Cool air brushed softly against his cheek, but just like the Doctor's pulse it was too weak and shallow for Jack to feel relief. The Doctor was closer to death then to life at the moment. As a Time Lord he should have regenerated, but Jack saw no signs that he was going to. Not that he knew what a regeneration looked like. He had only heard of them when they learned about the myth of the Time Lords in school and seen evidence of it from the Doctor himself.

"There now, I know it is hard breathing with your face smashed into the grating," Jack told him softly. "We will fix that in a moment and I am going to get you some oxygen and a neck brace." Jack hated to leave his side even for a moment though. That moment, however brief it was, could mean that the Doctor stopped breathing and had faded away. He could normally rely on the TARDIS to assist but he couldn't even feel the TARDIS at the moment. That was a worry for later though, now he had to focus.

"You pick your moment's Doctor, just a few hours ago, I had people to assist me, but you had to wait until after they left." Jack chastised, his tone not changing. He didn't know if the Doctor could hear him or not, but he kept talking to him just in case. He took the Doctor's tattered shirt in his hands and ripped it the rest of the way off his back. The Doctor's normally lithe frame was skeletal. His back was a criss-cross of cuts and where the skin wasn't cut, Jack could see bruises. He needed to check for a spinal injury but was afraid to touch him.

"Jesus Doctor, what happened to you?" Jack asked him, his voice no longer calm. The torture the Doctor had gone through was evident through out his thin frame, but the reason why was going to be harder to find. The only person who may know, was unable to answer him and with the TARDIS disabled, Jack would be unable to obtain the coordinates of the Doctor's last stop. As he continued to check the Doctor he made a mental list of what he would need, besides the oxygen and neck brace, he needed a back board, a splint for the Doctor's leg and lots of bandages and antiseptic. How the Doctor even got to the TARDIS in his current state was one of the biggest mysteries of all.

The Doctor's leg was twisted at an unnatural angle which explained why his legs looked weird when Jack had first observed him. The Doctor's feet were also cut up and bleeding. The bottom of his feet looked as though they had been intentionally cut to stop the Doctor from being able to walk on them. It was probably only soul determination or stubbornness that allowed the Doctor to board. He would have then had to make his way to the controls and set the coordinates, before giving into his injuries. That made the possibility of a spinal injury unlikely, but Jack was still going to be cautious.

Hating himself, he stood and ran quickly out of the TARDIS and into his own autopsy rooms. It was slower then going to the TARDIS medi-bay but in the hub he knew where everything was and didn't have to search for it in the darkened rooms of the TARDIS. Jack grabbed the items he needed and then ran back onto the TARDIS, dropping to his knees once more in front of the Doctor. He lined the backboard up with him and then carefully attached the neck brace before rolling him over. As the rest of the Doctor's face became visible, Jack saw that it was just as bruised as the right. His left eye wasn't as swollen though and Jack hoped he would be able to check his pupil response. He placed the oxygen mask over the Doctor's mouth and nose, turning it on.

"There now that should help." Jack whispered to him. "You just stay with me now. I am going to make sure you are taken care of and find the bastards that hurt you." Jack reassured him as he removed the remains of the Doctor's tattered shirt and saw that his chest was just as bruised as his back. There were also small slices along his sides. Jack placed the Doctor's leg in the splint before moving back up to his head. He had the Doctor ready to move, but he couldn't do it on his own. Now it was time to bring in help. Opening his phone he dialed the first number.

"Ianto, I'm sorry for waking you, but I need you back at the hub as soon as possible. The Doctor arrived a little bit ago and he is badly injured." Jack explained.

"I'll be there soon sir," Ianto answered with a slight groan. He had just fallen asleep, and now he had to go back. Hopefully the situation with the Doctor wasn't as bad as Jack thought and he would be able to get a few hours of sleep on the Torchwood couch before having to return to work. Jack hung up the phone and placed the next call to Martha. This call was going to be harder.

"Hello?" Martha answered, her voice alert but cautious. Jack hardly ever called in the middle of the day for social reasons. Normally social Jack was drunk Jack at two in the morning.

"Martha, the Doctor arrived at the hub a little bit ago and I need you down here." Jack's voice broke a little as he spoke. "He's badly injured Martha and I can't take him to a hospital."

"No, you can't. What happened?" Martha asked.

"I don't know, but he looks as though he has been tortured. When he first landed I thought he was dead. I have him on a back board with a neck brace and oxygen." Jack informed her.

"Is he conscious or responsive at all?" Martha wondered as she moved to the door to begin the trip to Cardiff.

"No. I have Ianto coming into help me move him into the hub so that we can examine him better and take care of him." Jack told her. He gave her a brief description of the Doctor's injuries, including how it was obvious that he had been starved during his capture.

"Get him set up on an IV. If he is that bad he is probably dehydrated as well. I am heading to Cardiff now." Martha advised Jack. "Keep me updated if anything changes but I will be there as soon as possible."

"Drive safely but hurry Martha." Jack hung up the phone. He went to take the Doctor's hand but saw that his fingers were just as bruised as the rest of his body. He desperately wanted to comfort the Doctor but didn't know where he could touch him without causing him pain.

"Hang in there sweethearts help is on the way." He reassured him as he waited for Ianto to arrive.