A/N
Sorry for the short chapter folks, it's been hectic at work lately and trying to keep up with my other stories xD thankees for reading and reveiws are always much appreciated!
Happy Reading,
Angie Burrows
Chapter Three
"Temporal rifts? How the bloody hell did that happen."
After being told everything that she knew on the situation, Harkness had requested that Martha to meet him personally at the Torchwood Hub. Gwen Cooper was typing furiously away at one of the many computers, trying to keep up with the constant and ever changing data stream that was coming from Sarah Jane's AI supercomputer, Mr. Smith. Jones watched as Jack tried to explain the situation further. "We've been monitoring ones that have been popping up at random for some time now. It's been happening for the last year or so…came to our attention after a doctor and his team met a prehistoric crocodile that had somehow wandered out of one of those rifts…. But now, it's happening more than once at a time, and they seem to be …synchronizing…" Martha leaned over Gwen's shoulder to get a closer look at the images the data was creating upon the slim screen. Cooper flinched in surprise, having been absorbed in her work, but settled back almost immediately.
The woman was callous enough, but a recent ordeal with Slagethorans still had her a bit jumpy in the knickers. Gwen Cooper was one of Torchwood's finest, having been there since the near beginning. The headstrong woman had been forced into an unwanted vacation after the Day the Earth moved, but now that it was over, she was itching for some action. Never was there a dull day here..but making sure giant, slug-like aliens didn't set up shop in a local sewer wasn't exactly what Gwen had in mind when they asked her to go on the next available mission…
Steely grey eyes flit to the different spots as her finger pointed to the various, swirling masses that appeared upon the screen. The image of Earth's planetary surface rotated slowly, allowing for optimum angle view. "You see there? These rifts are aligning with our planet's poles, kind of like a broken compass.."
Martha took a sharp intake of breath, her mouth curving in a deep frown. "How is this going to effect the population?" Jack reached his arm over Gwen, stealing the keyboard's attention away from it's previous user. Typing stiffly, the projection image shifted momentarily. Coughing lightly at the information, Cooper and Harkness both exchanged horrified glances. "Well, a few possibilities. The planet could revert back to its normal state and this just could be one, big, scary fluke. Or…the anomalies could shift, causing either people to fall through, things to come out, or to be stuck in a loop of the same day over…and over… OR…."
Martha straightened herself, innocent worry staining her velvet brown eyes that normally shone with vitality. "Or? Jack,…or?" For once in his life, Captain Jack Harkness looked deathly pale from fear. Sighing as the image of his home world spun mechanically before him, the timeless man finally looked his friend and comrade straightforwardly in the eye. "Or it could spread, and make the Earth a dimensional black hole…." Backing away from the computer, all three of the humans stared at each other in the shocking silence, realizing that their own mortality was a very real possibility. Martha's voice shook as she finally spoke what all of them were screaming in the back of their minds.
"We need the Doctor."
…
She played with her chain when she read. He had noted that quite a few times now, and it was a source of amusement. Silly humans and their fidgeting habits..
Lying prone backed on the Tardis floor, the Doctor's upper half was concealed by the mass tanglement that was the censor wiring array. Pausing as he slid out of the converter hatch, the entertained man chuckled at his cohort. Dawn was sitting cross legged on the floor as well, reading a volume that he had gotten for her on their last stop. Librinious Seven, the home of intergalactic museum of books. The author had written it in a long dead language (well not dead at the time), but the fact didn't seem to slow the intrigued woman in translating it. Well, with the help of a co- ordinance that the Doctor had given her. Slowly her head rose, as if she could feel the stare's touch that exuded from him. Tools lay scattered across the floor, and over the last hour or so he had carefully instructed which ones to hand up. But thanks to the tome he had given her, the female had become increasingly distracted. Dawn's mouth curved up into an embarrassed smile as she lifted one of the alien utensils that lay nearest to her. "Sorry, here you go, love." Taking the object from her extended hand, the Doctor slid back under the array panel. Tinkering with his task for mere moments, he placed the object down and reemerged seconds later.
Raising her head to look at him once more, Dawn nearly jumped at the intense glare that he focused upon her. "What?" Brushing off his hands and sitting up fully, the confused male ran a hand through his hair. "How did you know what tool I needed? Never popped a say..at all." Dawn's lips fell apart, as if taken aback by the question. Her throat tightened, cheeks flushing a dark ruby hue. Stuttering as she attempted to answer, she was cut off by the flash of a bright, colorful light. Vaulting up from the floor, the Doctor was at the main console blindly fast. Dawn scrambled up after, abandoning her book on the flooring. "Doctor, what is it? What was that light?" Adjusting several different monitors, his wide hands swung what looked like a computer monitor from its unknown hiding spot. His brow was scrunched together, eyes confusedly transfixed on the screen as it fizzled with static. He hadn't gotten a transmission through this since the stolen earth incident… "It's an incoming emergency transmission from Torchwood.."
The Doctor's voice trailed off, pushing an already confused Dawn into a sense of dread. The name 'Torchwood' sounded familiar…and it meant something bad… As he flipped at the switches on the side of the screen, an eerie calm replaced whatever panicking emotion that had been on the man's face before. Static blared within the seemingly small confines of the Tardis, a male voice chirping through and distorted. "Is this thing on? Doctor…hello? Doctor?" The Doctor rolled his eyes, the initial fear all but now disappearing from his face. Passing a hand over his forehead, he half smiled. "Hello, Jack. Seems like we got all but your face. What's the rub?" Normally the a retort about his handsome looks being obscured would have come from Jack, but this time, he cut straight to business. "We need you to return home, Doc. We have a problem; this was the only transmission frequency we could reach you on. We're being blocked on all channels. Oh, and bring your new friend with you." Surprise speckled at the Doctor's face. News traveled fast…
Dawn gave her companion a sideways glance, her sky blue hues clouded with uncertainty. The Doctor returned her stare, his hazel eyes locking briefly with her. His breath hitched in his throat…
Clearing his airway with a light cough, he turned his gaze elsewhere. "Is there something I should know, Jack?" The crackling static hissed, dragging into an unbearable silence that made Dawn want to scream out the question to make sure this 'Jack' had heard them. Finally the audio gave way into a hallow, sighing pitch, the man who had suddenly contacted them sounding worried and deflated. "Oh, you know the usual. The world as we know it could be destroyed, and you're the only one who can fix it."