I have changed the chapter titling a little to give the story a little coherence and, maybe, sophistication. I'm trying to tie at least three plot lines together which is why it's taking so long, there seem to be many ways the next chapters could go, and my style is to create the story as I go along. Maybe you've noticed that already! Anyway, thank you to all readers and reviewers, and I'll try to give you more to critique.

Ianto leaned on Jack's desk as he finished the phone call. "Yes, you will hear from us if there is any related rift activity. I'll report to Captain Harkness, but I must say he will probably be calling you as soon as he returns. Yes, and he may have some input that will influence your strategy. Lieutenant Colonel, I can't stress to you enough there are aspects to this situation we don't even understand, and I don't think it is advisable to take action until we sort them out. No, sir, I'm not second in command. Yes, sir, I'll report to the Captain and he'll call you straighta—" the line went dead before he could finish the call.

He slammed his fist on the desk. Just as he feared, UNIT had surrounded the castle with hundreds of troops, setting up portable artillery and preparing to take out the castle, all its history and all its current inhabitants. He couldn't explain that it was built there because the ancient Welsh knew it was a center of some kind of power. He couldn't tell him the Castle was itself a rift anchor, one of very few locations around the globe where rift flares that came near it were neutralized, and the arrival of the alien warriors at that very spot was hugely significant. He couldn't even tell himself the reason for that. This knowledge was hidden deep in his genetic memory and could not be accessed now. He'd have to leave that to Tosh and her devoted study of the rift movements.

Jack strode in through the hub door just as Ianto was taking his frustration out on Jack's desk. Water was streaming from his vintage RAF greatcoat. He muttered under his breath about Welsh weather and then called out to Tosh. "No major arrivals from that flare – a piece of space junk we'll have to deal with later. I hid it so we can retrieve it after we solve our top priority issue – those warriors. Owen, report on the condition of our team."

Owen dragged himself up out of his work area and leaned on a desk – sleeping on the floor, even cuddled with Gwen, was not the best way to refresh a wounded man. Ianto handed him his coffee and he reported to Jack that everyone except Fern was ambulatory and strong in spite of their wounds, and Fern had regained consciousness but he had advised her to rest a little longer. Jack turned to her expecting to find her asleep on the couch, but she was sitting upright, quite alert, with a kind of fire in her eyes. "What is it, Fern. How are you feeling?"

"I feel just fine, Captain, but I overheard what Ianto was saying in his conversation with your Unit people. You can't let them rile up those barbarians – there will be nothing but blood filling Cardiff Bay if Unit engages battle with them."

"Ianto?"

"Yes, sir. Lt. Colonel Bryce is holding off on attacking, awaiting word from you but they have the castle surrounded." He led Jack up to his office and showed him schematics Bryce had e-mailed to him of the layout of their arms and troops. "I was about to call you with the information when you returned…" Jack was studying the schematics too intently to be irritated about not being informed immediately. It was close enough. Unit hadn't made a strike and that is what mattered the most.

Suddenly the Hub alarms started blaring as the massive cog door opened. Jack got to his window just in time to see Fern racing out and leaving the Hub in an unexplained rush.

"Tosh – cameras. Where is she going?"

"She's running incredibly fast, Jack, almost inhumanly fast, toward the Castle, I have no doubt. But I can't imagine why."

Jack paced back and forth, hands on his hips. "OK. I'm going to have to go up to the castle and try to keep Fern from getting herself killed. Owen and Gwen, go ahead to the coordinates Tosh will give you where this morning's flare dropped the space junk. By the time you get it back here I'll let you know if I need you at the Castle."

"Jack that's insane. You can't fight those barbarians yourself. You may be immortal but you aren't bloody Superman." Owen's typical smart mouth let loose.

"Save it, Owen, we're not having a discussion. Unit will provide all the firepower I need if it comes to that, but that's what I'm trying to prevent. I also think Fern…well I'll let you know if my theory is right about her relationship to these people. And Owen, you may think they look barbarian, but you have no idea how advanced they are or aren't. They are a complete unknown and I'm not making any assumptions ahead of knowing them better. I'm out." He headed down the tunnels to the SUV and was gone.

"But Jack!" Owen tried one more time, but he knew he would be ignored. He was.

Jack sped toward the castle, part of him fuming at Fern for taking off on her own, wondering if she was even physically up to it, and part of him remembering that completely unexplainable moment the three of them had just recently shared. He respected her, sure, but never expected to feel drawn to her as he was. He belonged to Ianto and Ianto alone. For the first time in his memory he was totally confused about his feelings. And determined to stuff them into the background so he could function and, if necessary, fight.

He was considerably surprised and confused when he arrived at the castle, having passed through the UNIT perimeter with no resistance. What he found was Fern talking to one of the 'aliens', a man head and shoulders taller than her. Her hands were on her hips and her stance was strong but ready to defend herself. They were talking, well almost shouting in the alien language. He kept his distance but moved perpendicular to her so she might see him out of the corner of her eye, in case she chose to call on him for help.

Instead, she stepped back for a moment, and hung her head. Then she straightened her shoulders, and as the warrior turned back towards the castle, she followed him, and in seconds was swallowed up behind the huge wooden doors of the main entrance. Immediately Jack head a blood-curdling roar from the men inside the castle. Evidently there had been some kind of negotiation, and they felt they had won.

Jack suddenly felt the strongest urge to burst down those doors and stop whatever was happening in there. His feeling of dread was almost incapacitating. He needed Fern. He desperately needed Ianto. He hated needing anyone. He rested one knee on the damp, dewy ground, leaned his forehead on his hand, feeling a little like he was waiting in the Garden for their Savior … to do what? He couldn't help but wonder what sacrifice she was about to make.