Part Four
Looking back, Ianto knew that it was his actions, and his alone, that had caused the danger, the pain, and the sadness. It had taken the Welshman a while to get over it, and many of the things he remembered were, in some, if not most ways, distorted terribly. Some parts of his version of the events were accurate, but much of his memory was clouded by emotions.
Some of the things he remembered were without emotion. He could remember ordering pizza for the rest of them; he could remember the emptiness he had felt when Lisa had thrown him to one side. He had never imagined that she might turn against him, but she had, and Ianto had been left with a cold, aching hole on the inside.
He loved Lisa, and knew that a part of him always would. But as he had laid there, cold, aching and so deeply hurt, someone had pulled him. Someone had pulled the Torchwood Tea Boy up and out of the darkness that had been threatening since the start of his deception to overwhelm him; to crush him until not even his spirit was left.
Someone had breathed life into him. They had breathed light into an impossible inner darkness. Ianto had felt as if someone was lifting him up and out, forgiving his mistakes. The breath of life and light soon turned into a kiss, and when Ianto opened his eyes, he realised who the perpetrator was. The one who was saving him was the one who wanted her dead. The man whose eyes showed the pain, joy, sadness and experience of hundreds of years that seemed to be beyond the capabilities of his age.
Ianto looked up, quite literally stunned to see that his saviour was Jack. It took him precious moments to regain movement; the man who had saved him was, to all intents and purposes, against Ianto, and he could not let anything bad happen. He loved Lisa, and he had to help her; he had to save her, whatever the cost.
A heart-wrenching yet electronically-distorted scream tore violently through the air, ripping through the two men, reminding each of them of their present situation. Jack, of his duty to keep the rest of his team safe; Ianto, to keep Lisa safe, just the way he had promised her, despite her rejection of him.
Ianto left his Captain lying on the floor. His so-called leader may have revived the Welshman, but he could not afford to stay. He could not afford to let the small act of humanity that Jack had displayed to get in the way of what he had to do. Ianto had to help Lisa, he just had to. He had to save her. Yes, she was a Cyberwoman, but that didn't matter, because he loved her, no matter what would ever happen, he loved her. To Ianto, Lisa's life was more important to him than that of each of the other team members. More important than Owen's life; more important than Gwen's life; more important than Toshiko's life; more important than his own life and safety; and far, far more important than the life of Jack Harkness.
When they arrived in the autopsy bay, the Welshman dropped to his knees in front of the seemingly-dead Cyberwoman, Lisa. Ianto could faintly hear Owen's apologies, but they were insignificant. They simply did not matter when Lisa was dead - Owen could never begin to apologise enough for what he had done. Lisa was dead, and it was all Owen's--
A shout came from Gwen as Lisa's eyes snapped open, an electronic pulse of life running through her engineered veins. Ianto backed away, fearing a slight fear as the Lisa he had known looked at him with a primitive desire to kill, updated to a technological desire to delete. He would never hurt her, he loved her.
"Ianto! Move! Get out, Ianto!" it was Gwen as she pushed Ianto to one side. Ianto stayed, staring, transfixed with a fear that he had never felt - he had never had a reason to fear the one he had loved, but now, he wasn't so--
"Get out, I said! Move!" the Welshwoman pushed him forwards, away from Lisa, "Move!"
The three of them fled up the stairs and towards the main Hub, Gwen spurring Ianto onwards, who continually glanced behind them at Lisa who was up, and making her way slowly towards them. She gained speed until she was blocking their only exit; the one way out, and there was no way through without the pain of certain death.
Then Jack came - ever the hero, Ianto couldn't help but think bitterly as he looked between his Captain, and the Cyberwoman that he loved.
"You should be dead!" Owen shouted over at Jack who smiled twistedly.
"I," he said, brandishing what looked like a blow-torch, and a bottle of condiments of some sort, "am the stubborn type. Now, get behind me."
Gwen took Ianto's arm and steered him away from the Cyberwoman who threatened each of their lives. But Ianto couldn't let this go; another try, that might be all it needed, "Jack!" the Welshman cried out. It was a harsh sound, a sob mixed with a primal scream, "Help her! Give her the chance to surrender! It's still in the cells - we can reverse the process."
"Hold him back." Jack said, ignoring Ianto's pleads for his help as Gwen and Owen took a hold of Ianto's arms and dragged him back onto the 'invisible' lift.
Then, Jack did the most absurd thing that left Ianto, Gwen and Owen confused, and unsure of what was going on. He squirted the contents of the condiments bottle - later identified as barbecue sauce - over Lisa before stepping back onto the lift platform himself.
He looked at Ianto, almost seeming to be sincere as he spoke the words; "I'm sorry."
It was then that Ianto realised what was happening, and the same, primal sob escaped him again as he tried to pull away from the firm grips of Owen and Gwen. How could Jack do this to him? How could he use everything against him?
