Chapter Four: Small, Dark Spaces
"They've been eating the dead?" Tosh exclaims. She sits inside the shock therapy room and is surrounded by soldiers. Some of whom are guarding her. Others are packing up the rest of Rory's equipment into trucks for the evacuation.
"I've been wondering why they seem so attached to this place," Jack replies. "Here, they have a store of food for when times get tough. It's all a matter of survival."
"But it's dead people. People who have been dead for decades."
"It's better that they eat the dead than people who are alive." Jack finds a scrap of denim and a hiking boot. "As soon as we get back to the hub, I'd like you to do a check for missing people and pets from the surrounding area."
The General tries to sit up from his crawling position so he can examine the remnants of clothing but he hits his head hits the roof of the burrow, causing some of the soil to loosen and sprinkle on his head.
"Jack, how is Rory?" Tosh asks.
"She said that she is happy that she saved your life. She's a strong person, maybe even stronger than I give her credit for."
"Can we cut all the lovey dovey talk?" the General growls. "We don't want to attract attention to ourselves."
"Since you asked so politely," Jack mutters.
As Owen watches Rory work, he's impressed with the speed and precision she uses to plant explosives. "Ianto was right. You've done this before."
"It's among some of my other talents."
"Like what?"
"Let's see. I can speak fluent Spanish. I'm also a good cook. I rock at Guitar Hero III."
"Ianto says you cheat."
"It takes a lot of energy and talent to play the way I play," the alien says in her defense. "Oh, and I'm a good dancer."
"That I'd like to see."
"Maybe you could take me out one day and see for yourself."
"But you're in London."
"Hmm. I guess I am."
Suddenly, one of the soldiers hear the sound of animal claws on the floor. "Get her in a safe place!"
Owen grabs Rory by the arm and shoves her in a nearby padded cell. He closes the door and takes out his gun. The cell is pitch black with a tiny window that occasionally lights up from the passing beam of a flashlight or the flashes of light from the guns being fired. Rory sits in a corner, listening to the gunshots and wonders if her day couldn't get any more surreal. When they stop, the quiet sets in again. She analyzes the connection she made with the dead Woortuk. What she felt was pure instinct. There was no malice in the attacks. It just a fear response – fight or flight. However, very little seemed to frighten them. What would it take to scare them away?
When Owen opens the door, she doesn't get up immediately. Instead, she mutters in a deadpan voice, "Ow."
Owen laughs at her. "Did you ever think you'd end up in a place like this?"
"That's an interesting question. I've always known I was a bit different. Of course, I never thought that the man I was flirting with would be the one to push me inside."
As she sits huddled in a corner, Owen realizes that her skirt is revealing quite a bit of thigh. He allows his flashlight to linger on her legs long enough to for her to notice.
"You know, you could help me up," she says, raising an eyebrow.
Owen gives her a hand and pulls her to her feet. "Come on, you crazy lady."
She brushes past him, back to her work. "All right, you naughty boy."
When Rory sees the dead alien badgers, she reaches for Owen's hand to steady her nerves. For a second, he allows himself to consider the possibilities if it hadn't been for Jack.
"Okay, Jack. You are in the safest position to drop the cannister," Tosh says in her Com as she monitors the screen.
The Captain twists it open and pushes a button. Once he is out and all of his people were in a safe place, it would all be over. "Let's go." he whispers to the general.
"That's it?" Robinson asks.
"Do you want to stick around in here and see if it works?"
The General grunts as he tries to turn his body around in such a small space. He has all the grace of an overturned turtle, and as he moves, small bits of dirt and rock rain into the tunnel. Jack, however, turns around without any problems. He tries to give the General a hand, but Robinson brushes him off as if he was somehow contagious.
"How did you turn around so quickly?"
"I used to date an acrobat. Hmm... Now, he had a lot to teach me." Jack whispers with a smirk.
With much effort, the General repositions himself and is ready to crawl out.
Tosh looks at her monitor and notices two heat signals moving towards the men. "Jack, you may have company soon. There are two Woortuks crawling your way from a fork in the tunnel. They are going to block your exit."
"I'll deal with them once I see them," Robinson growls.
"Be careful," Tosh warns. "The burrow isn't a very structurally sound place to be."
"I know," the General grumbles. He pulls out a pistol and heads toward the exit with Jack behind him.
While Tosh has kept them updated about their proximity to the beasts, the glow of their eyes in the darkest of places still takes Robinson by surprise. He stumbles backwards a bit, almost colliding with Jack. He aims his gun and tries to blast his way out of the burrow. He kills one of them instantly, but the death throes of the other is violent. The beast begins to thrash about, loosening the soil around the tunnel.
"Finish him off," Jack orders.
The General fires again. This time, the animal dies quickly. Jack rolls his eyes and wonders why he ever agreed to let the man tag along. While it was fun to torture Robinson, it was obvious that basic training was a distant memory for him. Robinson begins to crawl awkwardly over the dead creatures and in doing so brushes the top of the tunnel. As his hand sinks into the gooey blood, he instinctively pulls it away. It's a knee-jerk reaction, but the space is confining and the already compromised earth is unforgiving. The drizzle of dust and pebbles suddenly becomes a downpour, trapping both men in the ground.
"Jack!" Tosh says. "What's wrong?"
With all of his strength, Jack pushes his way backwards, using a dead badger to give himself a bit of leverage. In doing so, he swallows some of the dirt causing him to choke and gag.
"Jack!" Tosh screams into the Com. "Please, come in!"
Jack coughs violently after freeing himself from the dirt. "Did I ever tell you about the time I died and was buried alive?"
"What happened?"
"Toshiko, I need switch over to the main channel so I can speak to Ianto and Owen."
"Done."
"Ianto,"Jack says, "Part of the burrow has collapsed on top of General Robinson. I need you to organize the rescue. Owen, I need you at the opening to deliver medical assistance once he's out."
"What about you, Jack?" Gwen asks.
"I'm staying with him until he's rescued. I need to keep a look out for any Woortuks that might decide to try to dig him out for supper."
"Jack, there's a different tunnel you can take to safety," Tosh insists. "I can lead you through it."
"Now's not the time to be a hero," Owen protests. "The man's been a thorn in your side since you first met."
"Just follow orders!"
Ianto, Gwen, Owen and Rory all run to the tunnel entrance, leaving the soldiers to finish the rigging.
Ianto immediately calls for the equipment necessary for the rescue. He takes off his jacket, hands it to Gwen and puts on a pair of coveralls over the rest of his clothing. "Jack, promise me you'll get out of there as soon as I get to the General with the stretcher," he pleads.
"You're not coming in here?" Jack asks in disbelief.
"I thought you liked it when I got dirty."
"I'm going in there with him," Rory says to Jack over the Com. She's already dressed and ready to go.
"Owen, stop her!" Jack orders.
"Owen, don't make me hurt you," Rory warns. "The sooner I get this man out, the sooner Uncle Jack gets out as well." She picks up a rifle and takes out the bullets.
"What did you do that for?" Owen asks.
"I don't know how to shoot, but I can use the metal."
"Let's go," Ianto says, taking the lead. Rory follows him into the graveyard. Owen couldn't help but admire her even though she is clearly insane.
Jack starts to dig desperately, hoping that he can free the General himself before Ianto and Rory arrive. He curses Robinson in every Earth and alien language he can think of. He imagines beating the man senseless as soon as they pull him out – that is if Robinson survives. However, Jack is a pathologically good soldier. He's served with men who disapproved of his personal choices, with men who mistook his confidence for arrogance. None of that mattered out in the field. No matter what, no man gets left behind.
"Tosh," Gwen calls. "Where is the location of the other exit to the burrow?"
"It's near the rubble of the first building."
"I want to be there when Jack comes out."
"Just be careful, Gwen. Don't go there alone," Tosh says.
Gwen takes a couple of soldiers with her to meet Jack. Upon arrival, she sees an alien badger roaming the area, looking for scraps of flesh. She remembers the first time Jack showed her how to shoot a gun. His hands showing her body how to take the proper form, his breath on the back of her neck as he taught her how to breathe. She takes aim and shoots as if he was there guiding her. As the beast falls dead, there is no moment of exhilaration, nor ecstasy. So much has changed since then. Jack is no longer so lonely. She is now engaged. That moment on the shooting range – a moment filled with so much potential – exists only in memory for her. That was a moment of perfect trust – the kind of trust Ianto has to offer Jack, the kind that Rhys has to offer her.
As Rory and Ianto make their way to General Robinson, they hear hissing and grunting from another tunnel. Ianto drops flat on the ground, allowing Rory to crawl on top of him.
Okay, maybe she does walk all over me, Ianto thinks to himself. At least she's pretty light.
She can see the alien badger. "Could you turn off the goggles, please?" she asks.
"Okay." He does trust her and her abilities.
Rory points the rifle at the beast and shocks it. She shocks it again, glowing brighter than before and blinding the beast temporarily. She sends her emotional energy through the metal as a means to establish her dominance. She will not be afraid. The Woortuk cowers away into the recesses of the tunnels.
Rory moves off of Ianto, "Back on."
Jack has just found the General's feet when Tosh calls him over the Com. "Jack, there are four of those creatures headed your way. Two of them are about to use your escape tunnel. You have to get out of there!"
"Jack, we are in position and ready to dig him out," Ianto says. "Get out of there before you get hurt."
When they see General Robinson, his head and part of his arms are out of the mound of dirt. He had been trying to dig himself out, but exhaustion caught up with him. He is still alive, but no longer conscious with the weight of the earth pressing into his body, threatening to crush the air out of his lungs. Ianto begins to dig while Rory keeps watch. Another beast crawls to them, but Rory keeps shocking it until it moves away. Rory sighs in relief.
Although he's filthy with sweat and dirt and tired from the digging, Ianto finds the strength to pull Robinson out of what could have been his grave. He and Rory strap him onto the stretcher. Rory takes the General's hand and feels for a pulse. She can barely feel one.
Ianto calls Owen and Jack, "Owen, pull him up so we can get out of here. Jack, how are you doing in there?"
Jack follows Barney out of the burrows, "I'm on my way out."
As Jack crawls, he finds a piece of a t-shirt and more bones. Some of them look like animal bones. Others look very human.
"Jack, you are about to reach a fork in the burrow. Mind your right side." Tosh warns.
"How many?"
"Two looks like."
Jack takes out his pistol and moves forward very slowly. One of them crawls out which he takes care of swiftly. The other one storms out and charges at Jack, getting close enough to snap at the Captain before it is shot dead. It looked like much younger beast. Perhaps, all of the mature beasts were killed off by this point. For Rory and Ianto's sake, Jack wishes this was true. The inexperienced hunters would be easier to deal with. Perhaps some would be easy to scare.
Rory emerges from the burrow first with Owen's help. He holds onto her small frame for a few seconds longer than he knows she should, but he's relieved that she is fine. Ianto pushes the General out as the soldier pull.
Owen tends to Robinson while Rory helps the Ianto out of the burrow. Ianto lies on the ground, breathing heavily as Rory strokes his hair. They look at each other and laugh.
"Not bad," Ianto says.
"Not bad, indeed," Rory replies.
When she turns around, she sees the doctor trying to perform mouth to mouth. He is about to apply chest compressions, but worries about cracked ribs. Too much pressure might kill Robinson. All of that work would be for naught.
"Bring those magic hands over here, now," Owen orders.
Rory kneels next to the General as Owen rips open Robinson's shirt. He guides her hands to the right spots on the marine's chest. "I need you to feel for a pulse. If you can't, give him a shock."
The Light Keeper does as she's told. She searches for a few seconds unable to find any vital signs. She concentrates on her love for Jack as the electricity passes from her body into his. Robinson gasps and begins to cough while Owen gives him a shot of medication to steady his heart. The soldiers look at one another unsure of what they have just witnessed.
"I could murder some Thai food right about now," Rory sighs.
"I know of a good place," Owen says to her.
Gwen paces around the burrow opening for what seems like an eternity. "Are you sure he's okay, Tosh?"
"He's still with us and in one piece, Gwen. Give him a minute," she replies.
Tosh wasn't lying. Gwen leaps into Jack's arms when he emerges, covering his face with kisses with little regard for grime. Jack holds her close, and he even holds her hand as they walk away from the rubble. Gwen feels so safe and loved she could cry.
"Ianto," the Captain says into the Com. "Still in one piece. Looks like your still stuck with me yet."
With those words, Gwen slowly falls back into reality.
"Everyone to safety so we can blow up this place," he orders.
With Robinson on his way to the hospital and all of the dead workers on their way to the morgue, Jack sets off the canister of gas. Inside the burrows, the Woortuks die quietly just as if they were falling asleep. Rory looks through the binoculars to watch small wisps of smoke emerge from the burrow entrances. She looks up at Jack who gives Tosh, Gwen and Owen the signal. Together they cause all of the buildings to implode, creating a thick cloud of dust.
Ianto misses all of it. He's taking a well-deserved nap in the SUV and not even the explosions can wake him.
Tosh has to ask, "What level of clean-up procedures do we need on this one?"