Rose stared wide eyed in terror at the scene in front of her. She almost couldn't move to do anything, but she finally managed to spur herself into action when the Doctor finally collapsed, a totally new person.
"Jack, do something!" Rose hissed running to the door and yanking it open.
"Harkness, what is she doing here?" Yvonne started yelling at Jack as Rose was grabbed by a guard before she could reach either the Doctor or their child. "I thought I told you to keep her in for questioning?"
"Yes Miss Hartley, but I thought she might be more willing to talk if we showed her what would happen if she didn't," Jack replied as Rose stopped struggling in the grip of the new guard and stared. He had his back to her and she could see him making a very subtle thumbs up sign.
Yvonne seemed satisfied with his answer and turned back to talk with her associate about the Doctor. Jack's mind raced as he tried to figure out what to do. He'd have to keep up pretences if he didn't want to get his mind wiped.
He walked through the door and up to the guard restraining Rose. The guard was considerably bigger than Jack, but Jack stood his ground.
"I'll take Rose Tyler back to her holding cell," he said taking Rose's arm firmly, but not as roughly as the grip the guard had had on her.
As soon as they had left the room and were back in the corridor Jack began a steady stream of whispered instructions out of the corner of his mouth.
"I'll take you back to the room we were in before, and you'll have to stay there," he hissed. "Be ready because as soon as I can I'll rescue Jack and then I'll get past security and fetch the Doctor. It shouldn't be too hard to get out of Torchwood with my security clearance, but we'll still have to be on the lookout for-"
"We don't have to get out," Rose hissed back. "They've got the TARDIS. They'll never get in, but we can."
"Perfect," Jack smiled slightly. Trust Rose and the Doctor. "I'll grab baby Jack then and you two can hide in the TARDIS while I fetch the Doctor."
Rose nodded as they reached the holding room again. Jack opened it and let Rose in. She turned to look at her friend.
"I'm sorry we left you," she said quietly. Jack shrugged.
"You didn't know I was alive," he replied. "Besides if Torchwood had never have picked me up, I'd've never met Charlie."
Rose frowned.
"Charlie?" She asked confused.
"Oh, yeah," Jack face fell for a moment. "Will the Doctor mind if there's one extra?"
Rose shook her head and Jack grinned, disappearing out of sight before she could say anything else.
The Doctor could hear some sort of commotion going on but he didn't have the energy to lift his head. He knew it had happened. He'd regenerated. Part of him dreaded to know what his new form looked like for fear of rejection, but the other half of him was intrigued to know what his new quirks would be.
He was vaguely aware of several people lifting him onto a bed and wheeling him away, but he couldn't even protest anymore. His systems needed to reboot after the power it had just taken to regenerate.
Hang on minute. Power. That was it. That was why they had wanted him to regenerate; they wanted to harness the power for something. But for what and how did they know so much about him and Rose?
Jack had to access the mainframe computer to find out where baby Jack and the Doctor were being held and that was risky. His job was interrogation, not medical (the Doctor) or captives (Jack). Yvonne would start to get suspicious and nothing got past that smart woman. Only the week before a man had been taken in for eating his sandwich funny. Turned out that he'd been receiving messages in his lunch box.
Jack knew he'd have to work quickly. Not only would the mainframe be being watched, but someone like the Doctor would have extra security. Jack almost jumped a mile when someone threaded a hand through his.
"What ya doing?" Asked a man of about Jack's age with dark brown eyes, golden coloured hair and a hint of a Scottish accent.
"Jeez, Charlie!" Jack said, his heart thumping. He paused for a second. "I'm rescuing some mates of mine. Listen I don't have time to explain but they're going to help us close down Torchwood, so I need to help them out."
Charlie stared at him for a moment and then nodded.
"Ok," he replied. "Who are we looking for?"
"Well, I've got Rose Tyler in a holding cell, so I just need to find the Doctor and…" Jack paused suddenly realising how weird it was to know that his best friend's child was named after him. "And their son Jack."
"Yvonne's got the Time Lord?" Charlie exclaimed in a loud whisper. "Jack, do you realise how dangerous it will be to try and save him?"
Jack gave Charlie a sarcastic look.
"Know, I have no idea of the death defying situations that will arise from trying to rescue the Doctor," he replied rolling his eyes.
"I'm only saying!" Charlie said a little hurt. "They'll kill you if they catch you."
"Which is why I need your help," Jack said, rubbing Charlie's hand gently. "'Cause we're leaving with them."
"Right," Charlie tapped a few keys on the computer Jack was searching. "I'm guessing their kid will be here-" He indicated several holding cells in the south side of the building "-and the Time Lord will probably be here, in the top security section."
Jack nodded thinking.
"That's what I thought," he pondered. "Ok, I'll fetch the Doctor; I need you to get Jack for me. I doubt there will be any other kids to confuse him with. Then fetch Rose from questioning room six."
Charlie squeezed Jack's hand gently.
"What do I do after that?" He asked. Jack grinned then, knowing that the look on Charlie's face when he set eyes on the TARDIS would be priceless.
"Meet me in holding bay three," Jack said clapping Charlie on the back as he set off in one direction, Charlie heading in the other.
It didn't take Jack long to track down the Doctor. He was, after all, the most valuable and therefore the most heavily guarded alien in the building. The tricky part was getting the Doctor out.
Jack wandered down the corridor purposefully and avoiding eye contact with everyone. He stopped at the big glass window through which he could see the Doctor. He was surrounded by guards and it would take nothing short of a miracle to distract them long enough for Jack to get in. Fortunately Jack had been in this situation before and knew exactly what to do.
Charlie made his way carefully towards the holding cells. His mind was racing, considering different plans to distract the guards. It shouldn't be too difficult; most of the security at Torchwood were big, but very stupid. Most of them anyway. Charlie just had to pray he didn't get the smart ones.
He paused at the top of the corridor glancing carefully round the corner. There were two guards standing in front of a door, which Charlie assumed contained Jack. He looked around for anything he could use to get past them. Little did he know his prayers were about to be answered.
Jack knew he had one shot at this and he only hoped Charlie had Jack before the lockdown began. Taking a deep breath and he smashed his fist against the fire alarm in the corridor and instantly an alarm rang through the building, high pitched and wailing.
The guards immediately darted off to find a senior member of staff and Jack took this chance to sneak in. He paused in shock for a moment as he saw the new Doctor properly for the first time.
He was fairly tall, with big bushy brown hair and angular features. Jack decided he found the Doctor more attractive even if Rose didn't. Jack felt guilty then when he remembered Charlie, especially since Charlie was helping him with this rescue mission.
Carefully Jack untied the bonds holding the Doctor down and scooped him up into his arms. He made his way as quickly as possible back the way he had come making sure the Doctor was still alive along the way.
Charlie jumped slightly, startled by the sudden noise of the alarm. He knew instantly that Jack was to thank for the distraction and as the guards in front of Jack's room darted off Charlie ran down the corridor to free the child.
He opened the door carefully and darted inside, picking up the toddler in the pen on the floor.
"Hello," Charlie whispered as he headed back. "I've come to rescue you."
"Where's Mummy?" Jack asked in a small voice, his eyes threatening tears.
"I'm taking you to her," Charlie replied hitching Jack higher up on his hip.
Rose paced anxiously in the holding room. She hoped Jack would return soon. She wasn't sure how much more waiting she could take. It was bad enough that she the Doctor and baby Jack had been split up but then there was the added pressure of the Doctor's obvious regeneration. Would he still love them? Would he still want to be with them?
Rose rubbed her face in irritation. Her thoughts were going round in circles and she was going to end up driving herself insane.
Suddenly someone opened the door and though Rose was surprised it wasn't grown up Jack she was happy to see her child. She took him from the golden haired man who was holding him out and hugged Jack tightly.
"Who are you?" Rose asked suspiciously.
"My name's Charlie," Charlie said smiling slightly as Jack clung to his mother for dear life. Rose remembered what Jack had said earlier and smiled back.
"Thanks Charlie," she said quietly, looking down at Jack to check he was ok.
"We've got to go though," Charlie continued. "They'll know he's missing and they'll come looking for him. Jack said to meet him in holding bay three."
Rose nodded following Charlie out of the room again and down the corridor.
"My name's Rose by the way," Rose said walking briskly beside Charlie.
"I know," Charlie replied. "Jack talks about you all the time."
Rose paused in thought for a moment. Jack obviously thought highly of Charlie and, piecing together everything Jack had said about him, Rose was beginning to think that perhaps they were more than friends.
Jack made his way carefully through the building heading back towards the TARDIS. So far he'd managed to avoid running into any guards by ducking down side corridors and taking the more deserted routes.
Finally he reached the TARDIS and surprisingly managed to enter. Jack smiled up at the old Time Ship as he took the Doctor through to the infirmary.
"Still remember me then," he said to the TARDIS. The TARDIS chirruped in reply.
As Jack placed the Doctor carefully down on one of the beds in the infirmary he began to stir.
"Doctor?" Jack asked quietly. The Doctor sat bolt upright and almost launched himself at Jack until he saw who it was.
"Jack?" He stared wide eyed. This couldn't be possible, Jack Harkness was dead. A trick of Torchwoods maybe?
"It's me," Jack replied grinning. The Doctor saw where he was then. The TARDIS. That meant that it really must be Jack stood in front of him. No one else would be able to get into the TARDIS.
"Where are Rose and Jack?" The Doctor asked standing up and immediately heading for the console room.
"They'll be here any min-" Jack didn't finish his sentence. The TARDIS door was thrown open and Rose Tyler ran in with Jack in her arms, Charlie just behind.
"Hello tiger," Jack said, running to met Charlie in a hug. Rose stood in front of the Doctor looking at him carefully.
"Hi," the Doctor said softly. Rose didn't reply; she just took in the Doctor's face. "Rose, we talked about this, it's still me."
"I know," Rose replied uncertainty still evident in her voice. Jack looked round from the arms of his Mum and grinned up at the Doctor.
"Hello Daddy," he said holding his arms out to be picked up by his father. The Doctor grinned back taking Jack from Rose.
Rose smiled weakly, tears threatening to fall. If her son knew who the Doctor was then she should have no problem with him either. She put her arms round him hugging him as tightly as she could without crushing Jack.
"I never thought I'd see you again," she whispered.
"I know," the Doctor said taking in Rose's warmth and scent. "Are you both ok?"
Rose pulled back slightly to look up at the Doctor.
"Yeah," she said stroking Jack's head as he lent against the Doctor. "You?"
"I am now," he grinned, making Rose laugh softly.