The pub was noisy and crowded; the perfect place to discuss mysterious goings-on without being overheard. The group crowded into a booth, drinks in hand.

"Isn't this exciting?" Willow said to her friends. "You only have to be 18 to drink here!" Buffy smiled at her friend's comment, then turned to Jack.

"So, why are you out capturing... aliens... And how exactly did you know where it was?" she asked.

"The mission of my organisation is both to keep the city of Cardiff safe from things that fall through the rift and to gather as much information about alien technology in order to protect the human race against what the future could hold for them in the 21st century," Jack explained, taking a large swig of his drink.

Jack's hand snaked out toward the group's drinks when he thought they weren't looking, and poured a measure of a clear liquid in each glass. No one noticed but Buffy, who had been keeping a watchful eye on the stranger since the moment he first appeared.

"Does the name of this 'organisation' happen to be... Torchwood?" Giles asked, as he reached out for his glass.

"Don't drink that!" said Buffy, as she pushed his hand away from the beer. "He's put something in all of our drinks." The group exchanged nervous looks.

"Well, you've caught me," Jack said, clearly shocked. He had spiked numerous drinks over the years, but this was the first time his trick had ever been detected. But even more surprising, this bucket of misfits seemed to know what Torchwood was.

"You mind telling me what that was?" Buffy asked, becoming more and more distrustful of the captain.

"I was attempting to administer an amnesia drug called Retcon to you so you would forget the top secret information I was going to tell you, but it seems like you already know quite a bit," the captain responded. "I'm not sure who you guys are, but I think we should discuss this somewhere a bit more private."

"Where would you suggest?" Giles asked.

"I know of a place or two," the captain said, cracking a smile and flashing his beautiful teeth.


Captain Jack Harkness led the Scooby gang through Cardiff to a seemingly nondescript shop filled with knick-knacks, empty pizza boxes, and postcards. The group was decidedly unimpressed until Captain Jack pressed a button under the counter that revealed a super-secret stone hallway. The group cautiously followed the mysterious Captain until they reached a cog door.

"You must promise that no one besides you beatniks will know about the secrets that lie beyond this door, or you will end up with Retcon in your system whether you've taken it voluntarily or not," Captain Jack threatened. The group nodded.

"Please!" Buffy thought. "I could take this guy out in a second."

Upon confirmation of their secrecy, Jack typed a combination into a keypad and rolled open the door.