Three

A One Way Ticket

Night had settled like a dark purple blanket over the forest, everything silent apart from the odd screech of a nocturnal creature moving about in the bowels of the woods. The sky was smattered with bright white stars, some of them shooting across the velvety sky, chasing each other in an endless game of tag. There was even the bold blue shape of a comet passing overhead, its tail trailing behind it like a flicker of fire. Donna couldn't help but stare at the atmosphere – the sheer beauty of it was amazing. She had to admit, the place gave her the creeps, but it also filled her with such child-like excitement. The feeling of being surrounded by such wonderful nature gave her goose bumps. Or was that just the icy wind?

The Doctor was fiddling with some contraption of Jack's, carefully passing the sonic screwdriver over it several times. "This is a very good gravity cushion…" He announced, obviously having difficulty with something. "…that explains why you barely have a bruise to your name."

Jack sniggered. "These things don't come cheap. Luckily for me it wasn't one of the things that decided to disappear all of a sudden during the crash."

"Yeah that's strange that is…" He began, flames from the small fire they had made reflecting off the lens of his glasses. "…it didn't seem to happen to the TARDIS. She just started to get really sick and not work properly – at least I now know that's what she was fighting against."

"Hm, my computer told me it was a bug. It reversed the thing in the end…thankfully." He quickly added.

"And that Time Agent device of yours, where did that go?" The Doctor asked, motioning to his left wrist, which was unusually bare. "I would have thought that that was one of the main things you would have kept."

Jack gazed down at what would have been the device's traditional pride of place. He suddenly found it hard to swallow. "You could say that…I lost it."

The Doctor looked at him uneasily, wondering if that was the best thing to point out. But surely it was just a piece of equipment?

Donna suddenly changed the subject. "So then Jack, you've been meaning to tell us. What's up with this…Torchwood place then?"

It took him a couple of seconds to drag his eyes off his wrist. "Oh, right." He seemed quite uncomfortable for once. All the smiles and jokes he'd been cracking since she'd met him were gone in a flash. "It's an institute, and I was sort of kicked out of all that a long time ago."

The Doctor looked at him in surprise. "You? I thought you were in charge of number Three at Cardiff?"

"I was," Jack corrected, staring into the dancing flames of the fire. "It was five years ago now, or 2468 if you want the details."

"Please do tell the details." The Doctor enthused, eyes still plugged into whatever it was he was doing with the Gravity Cushion. He did glance up for a second though, looking for something.

"What?" Jack asked, completely confused.

"The light may be poor but I can see a few grey hairs forming you know."

For a moment Jack seemed quite worried, touching the side of his head like he expected there to be a giant spider sitting there waiting for him. "Hm, I must check that out some time…anyway, the day I was kicked out was probably one of the most horrific days of my life…"

It hadn't been easy. I'd just had to crawl on hands and knees through an entire two miles of red hot steel piping, and I'm telling you, when I came out of there I must have looked like a Kentucky Fried Chicken. The piping led out into a strange corridor, the walls lined with a sticky pink substance, not far off candyfloss. It didn't take me long to realise I'd just stuck my head into where it wasn't wanted – again.

Lucky me, I'd just hit the jackpot on the fleet's nursery, and boy was I in trouble if I didn't move along quick enough. There were hundreds of egg-sacs coiled in amongst the pink webbing, each one the size of a football and a disgustingly pale white. So pale in fact, I could see the unborn creatures squirming around inside. They were ready, but I didn't know if I was. I ran to the only door at the far end of the corridor, dismayed to find it jammed open to the point that I couldn't even fit my hand through. Thanks a bunch Jude, typical of a rookie to get it wrong!

I really didn't have a lot of time to waste – the eggs were going to hatch at any moment, and I could hear the parents screeching a bloodthirsty cry in the distance. Pretty soon I was going to be trapped with no hope for escape, and probably eaten alive in the process. That was it. I was tired of playing hide and go-seek. I grabbed the heavy assault gun slung over my back – which was now useless seeing as I'd used up all the ammunition trying to get this far – and forcefully wedged it in between the gap.

This gun was tough. It didn't dent or bend and break, instead the door feebly gave way as I put the entirety of my body weight into making the gap slightly bigger. After half a minute or so, the hole was just big enough for me to squeeze through. Unfortunately, that was when all hell broke loose. Not only could I get through, but so could the newly born larvae. Their ear-piercing squeals of succession rang through my ears as they leapt on me one by one, the world around me no more than dizzy spin.

I knew exactly what they were doing. They may be small little buggers, but that venom they were each carrying was enough to bring me down a notch. Through all the savage biting and frenzied attacks being bombarded my way, I grabbed my gun again and swung it like a metal club, the blow hitting and hopefully killing a few of the starving creatures. After a few swipes at them, I think they got the message. In shrill little squeaks, half of the marauding horde sank away and retreated to the safety of the nest. Only the brave – and incredibly stupid – bothered to stay and finish the fight.

But there, why try and kill me when mummy and daddy could do it? I had barely got half way down the narrow passage before the adults turned up, seeming so much more bigger than they did when I could shoot them. I risked a quick glance out of the passage's window and to the landmass of Wales and England below, trying to squint past the blurred vision that damn venom had given me. The fighter ships were descending, the purple streams of laser cannons getting lost in amongst the towering flames erupting from the buildings below. The bug-eyed freaks were advancing slowly towards me, their jaws clicking with delight at the fact I could seemingly do nothing.

Like hell I was I going to do nothing. I charged like an enraged bull through the pack of aliens, who were more than a little surprised to see their prey do something so reckless in the face of death. One of them lifted a phase gun, desperately firing orange bolts in my direction. Just as I turned the corner, two of the spiked rounds caught my arm. I tumbled through the shock and pain of having them bite into my flesh with merciless power. Luckily, I fell into the shattered remains of some sort of power room, the door shutting behind me and locking with a reassuring hiss.

Immediately the creatures were at the door, scrabbling and shrieking with the fury of having to starve this long. I simply ignored them. My arm was throbbing, and as I glanced down to inspect the wound, it didn't seem to look much better either. The two bolts were like spiked glass, each one filled with an orange glowing liquid – which was going down rapidly by the second. Great, more venom. I pulled them both out, trying to get on with the job at hand and disregard the fact I was burnt, bitten, poisoned and probably going to pass out any minute now.

I turned my attention to the centre of this shot up room, where a gigantic purple crystal was suspended above me, held into place by crackling blue energy. I could see it was weak, but I remembered the instructions – 'don't bring the ship down, just try and gain control'. Yeah, easier said than done. I checked my watch. It was already half past the hour – meaning the call from this 'Executive' was never going to come. Typical. I jumped up onto a maintenance gantry and stared out of the vast viewing window before me. Everything below was burning. The friendly Earth ships drifting silently in the cosmos were desecrated, the remainder of the crew either dead on board or retreating back to the planet.

These aliens that had attacked with no warning were lethal – their numbers were insurmountable – and they were ruthless. Like robots, they would never give up. They wouldn't be happy until Earth was a burnt out cinder and no good for anything – their greed for pointless conquest sickened me. A black shadow started to creep into the corners of my eyes. I had to do something now, whether I got a call from some big-shot or not. Time was running out for the Earth – and for me. Wearily, I climbed up another flight of steps towards the top of this power generating crystal, searching for some way to shut the thing down for good. All of a sudden, the door to the room gave way. A large, circular dent was scored into the middle of the door as the aliens outside tried with all their might to get in.

Now I had no choice whatsoever – this ship was coming down – I only hoped it would land in the ocean. In the corner of the gantry was a large generator box, a metal coil which was fizzing and sparking wired up to it. With the last of my strength, I smashed the box to pieces with my assault gun, getting a powerful shock or two in the process. The blue energy instantly faded, and soon after the crystal that was keeping the ship running cascaded to the floor, sending shrapnel buzzing like bullets through the air. Just in time too – the aliens had made short work of the door. They tumbled like an angry mob into the room, only to be met and destroyed by the thing they were trying to protect.

I knew the ship was falling. A distant yet heart-rending creak of contorting metal filled the air as the entire ship turned and plummeted to the earth below. My head was clouded with so many things – grief, fear, sickness and even in a small way, joy. I had ended this invasion once and for all. The mother ship was destroyed, and there was no way back for the scattered enemy forces. I had to grab onto the railing to make my way down the gantry. It was all a blur, tunnel vision impairing everything I did. In the end I just didn't care. I suddenly felt my skull connect with the hideously solid metal of the floor.

The last thing I heard was a voice close to my head, muffled yet clearly an important man speaking. "Get him out."


I woke what felt like a year and a half later. Mercifully, I wasn't on the alien ship anymore – instead I was locked in a dark room made up to be a makeshift ward. Despite the several beds around me, I was the only one here, dazzlingly blinded by a fierce, focused light. For a moment it seemed very funny. I thought I was trapped in some kind of cheap 1940's cop movie, but the notion soon faded when I remembered what had happened. Where did the ship land? How many were dead? The drowsy effects of the venom were still going strong, making these frightening thoughts send shivers of panic down my spine.

I did my best to pull myself together and get a grip. If the worst had happened, I would be in serious trouble – no, more than that, I would be dead meat. Suddenly the heavy steel door was harshly unbolted with a thunderous clang. My heart skipped several beats. I must have looked terrified when a small, red faced man strode into the room, his three bodyguards shuffling along behind him. They too looked a little dishevelled, one of them stroking his gun like it was a frightened animal. For a second, the dwarfish man was stood there glaring at me with a grim face. Unexpectedly, he burst into a furious wrath, his eyeballs practically popping out of his head with rage. "I'm very sorry to wake you sunshine, but thanks to you I've got a lot of clearing up to do!" This outburst made me, and his bodyguards jump out of our skins. "Not only do I have the Executive of Torchwood on my ass every second, but unfortunately I have to deal with you too!"

I was quite surprised. "You…your not the Executive?"

At first he batted away the question, by the looks of it trying to calm himself down. I had to admit, he did seem to be on the edge of having a heart attack.

"Oh god no. He would never come down from London to grace the likes of you with his presence. He sent me instead – his personal assistant." He seemed quite pleased with this title, but soon looked disgusted with me again afterwards. "I've been sent to show you the extent of the damage caused by your little plan, and what to do about it next."

That was when my heart sank. I had caused a disaster after all, but I still couldn't help but think I had done the right thing. One of the bodyguards placed at the bottom of the bed a small little box, silver in colour, which at the push of a button projected a holographic screen into mid-air. At once the screen was filled with the horrific pictures of burning cities, one of them I recognised as Cardiff. Streets were churned up with the smoking debris of the spaceship, buildings flattened to ashes and desperate people pushing about in large crowds to try and find aid.

Sure, I felt bad. But nothing in the universe could prepare me for what I was about to see next. Cracked and crunched under a huge chunk of the mother ship was the Roald Dahl Plass, the aging Millennium Centre in the background seeming untouched. Thick black smoke was masking most of the destruction, but I could still see jagged pieces of the once smooth paving – now nothing but a huge ugly heap of rock and cement. My heart was in my throat. "That's Torchwood."

The personal assistant seemed no more phased than he had been before, scratching his black beard with mild interest. "Yes, I know."

"Well did anyone get out alive?" The venom was finally wearing off, and I could suddenly feel my mind clear and my muscles regain their strength – the blood rushing to my head.

"No. From how it looks, I would say they are burnt to a cinder." Despite the shattered look on my face, he seemed to smile. "Now do you see? You were ordered by the Executive to gain control of the ship, not bring it down on the entirety of the South Coast of Wal-."

"Easier said than done!" This had come out without me really thinking. I was so angry, not only with this 'personal assistant' but also with myself. "They can't be dead, there must be someone?"

The man appeared to be quite taken aback for a second, having to straighten his tie and scratch his beard again. "So far, there is no one." He replied, his voice rattling with contained anger.

The bodyguards shuffled uneasily on the spot, not knowing whether to raise their guns at me or be sympathetic.

"I saved this planet. It was this or nothing." I knew exactly what was coming next, but I just had to say that first, not only for their benefit but also mine. Guilt and grief was stacked upon me like a tonne of bricks, and never before had I felt the back of my eyes burn so much.

"Now listen," The personal assistant said, trying not to get too annoyed again. "It is not my responsibility to decide whether you saved the world or not. It is my responsibility to tell you that you will no longer be in charge of the Torchwood Three, starting from this very moment. Three will now be considered null and void."

I recovered myself quickly, trying to ignore the weight on my mind. "So what happens apart from being sacked and completely dissed then?"

"The Executive has agreed that the death penalty will be useless against you…"

"Hm, clever him." I decided that this would be a good time to get a little sarcy.

"…so we have all come to the conclusion that you will be immediately deported from Earth and sent to the outer colonies. Basically, you are hereby banished from the Earth Empire. That is all." He deactivated the holocam, picking it up and placing it in his pocket.

"What? No prison? Is it just me or is the Executive getting more reasonable in his old age?"

The personal assistant and his bodyguards were heading for door, all too ready to leave. At the last moment he turned and smiled. "You can believe what you like, but it won't make a blind bit of difference. Have fun." And he left, slamming the door behind him.

Oh yeah, I was dead meat all right.


This was my world now – living on the outer reaches of the galaxy and bound by a contract to never come back. I never did get to meet this 'Executive of Torchwood' bloke. I was immediately taken to the Refugee World, Khal-Hurun, to serve this everlasting sentence – to never step once within the border of the Earth Empire. It's funny though, I keep wondering what they'll do to me if I ever did return. It's not like they could shoot me on sight. Whatever it is, I don't think I'll hang around to find out.

I was sitting at the bottom of a small sand dune, staring out over the dispossessed of this part of the galaxy. Their homes were tents, their clothes were rags and their faces were pits of misery. I couldn't take it. I wasn't going to spend the rest of my very long life living in this dump. It was at that moment a large, dust ridden sign caught my eye. It was quite a way away, out of the reach of the vast camping ground. Surprisingly, the building was built out of rocks, which looked a damn sight better than the rest of the area. A small, Middle Eastern man was standing outside amongst the piles of rusted junk and abandoned engines, shushing away the children who dared to play outside his humble abode.

Despite being worn, I could just make out the letters on the sign. 'TURIQ'S GREAT SHIP AND SHUTTLE EMPORIOUM!'

The rest was unreadable, but straight away I saw my ticket out of here. I didn't have much money at all; in fact they had only given me enough to just about survive, but surely this guy didn't get many customers. He couldn't be too picky about how much people were giving him. If anything, it seemed to be my only way out of here.

I picked myself up off the floor, starting to jog in the direction of this Emporium – hoping and praying he would take such a small amount of cash. I was smiling all the way though. It's funny how life seems to take you round in circles.


"Well, that is quite an adventure." The Doctor had abandoned the gravity cushion and was now sitting forward, head in hands and listening intently. "You did the right thing though."

Jack didn't look so sure. "You think?"

"Yes. The Sharndrix are like a virus. If they had overwhelmed the Earth any further, the planet would have been lost."

Donna nodded in agreement. "It may have killed a lot of people, but a lot more would have died otherwise."

"I know…but I still feel guilty about it." He leant back against the fuselage of his ship, staring up at the sky. "Torchwood had grown so much in that space of time…it was getting arrogant."

The Doctor snorted. "Huh, tell me about it…you did a good job setting it up again. It should have been you in charge of it all."

Jack smiled. "I had a good four hundred odd years though."

The fire was slowly burning out, and Donna could feel the wind chilling her to the bone more than ever. "It must be midnight by now." She said, tiredness starting to creep into her eyes. Staying up late was her forte, but all the rushing about and excitement of the day had brought her to her knees. Sleep was welcome, despite the fact they were in the middle of a forest that gave her the jeepers creepers.

The Doctor was just about to say something when there came an almighty rumble from the sky. The horrible, screeching wail of failing engines filled the air, so loud Donna had to cover her ears with her hands to stop them from bursting with pain. Another crash? What was this place, some sort of out-of-space Bermuda Triangle? The sky was suddenly filled with the fiery glow of a deteriorating ship, quite small in size and plunging straight for the heart of the forest.

Jack looked at the Doctor, who was in two minds about going to help or not. "Anyone you know?"

All three of them watched as the ship burst into a ball of flames and exploded in amongst the many trees ahead.

"No," The Doctor finally replied, his face a picture of worry. "But whoever they are can't be in a good way right now. We should help if we can."

"What if there's a forest fire from that explosion?" Donna asked.

The Doctor licked his finger and held it up in the air. "We'll have to be quick then. The wind will be driving the fire away from us at the moment."

With no hesitation, all three of them sprinted off into the forest and towards the scene of destruction…again.


She was the only survivor. Her poor brothers and sisters…dead, and it hurt. She couldn't bear to look at them – burnt and mangled from this doomed trip of theirs, something she had said all along would eventually go wrong. But would they listen to their younger sibling? No. They had insisted they go on this short business trip to rid of their pushy uncle, who was adamant that they would take over his casino after he died, but that was in the past now. She was stuck on this frightful planet, completely alone.

She pulled herself out of the blazing wreckage, grumbling at the series of bruises and burns she had acquired in the process. Maybe she would be eaten by some savage creature? She could only wish. Depressed and dejected, she sat on a rock and completely ignored the fact flames were dancing perilously close to her skin. The fire had reached the edge of the forest and spread surprisingly quickly through the wood and bracken – something that dominated this planet's surface, she had noticed. Her thoughts dark, not even the sound of approaching footsteps could deter her from her sullen state.

If they had come to kill her, then so be it. If they had come to help, well, she wasn't sure what she would do to them. All her fight from earlier had gone in a flash. She just closed her eyes, embracing the scalding pain in her heart and waiting for the possible end…

But it never came…