Chapter 10
Brig, cell #2
The Ergon Skiele
21st century
Jack sighed and looked up at the metal girders above his head. If Ianto were here, he would be teasing him with that dry Welsh wit about always finding himself in the midst of trouble. And naked. Trouble and exhibitionist tendencies would have been just the thing to set Ianto off on his list of "Things that Define Captain Jack Harkness" He sighed again. No matter how many times you do it, sitting in a cell never got more interesting. Cell design didn't even have the decency to change over time or space to give a change of scenery. Same four walls, uncomfortable pallet, monitoring window, toilet sink mirror combination. In his younger days, he would preen in the mirror when he got too bored but he wasn't all that interested in seeing his own face nowadays.
Instead, he whiled away the time pondering the mystery of the Ergon Skiele. What business brought them to this region of space and what were they willing to kill him over? Obviously, secrecy was important to them or they would have dumped his body out the airlock without a second thought.
Equally important, how was he going to convince them not to kill him? He couldn't escape from his cell and any opportunity that might arise would leave him stranded without his wrist strap, a scenario he did not care to consider. His only choice was to ingratiate himself to the crew to the extent that they choose not to kill him. If only he knew why they would want to in the first place.
He heard the sound of a high security door being opened and pushed such thoughts to the side. Lojin, a spindly youth with bad skin and a nasty scar on his left arm. He had been given the task of making periodic checks on Jack, ostensibly to ensure that he hadn't pulled some sort of disappearing act, as well as bring him his meals. This seemed to be a between meals visit and Jack intended to make the most of it.
Jack paced restlessly. It seemed that his efforts had not gone unnoticed that Lojin had not been by in days. Instead, the blonde leader seemed to be coming by personally. Jack gathered that he name was Verj, although he never formally introduced himself. It didn't matter. Before Lojin had been banished to other parts, he had learned quite a bit.
The Ergon Skiele was not a legitimate freighter. Rather, it was a pirate ship working against regulations set by the Shadow Proclamation. They were able to take natural resources from planets not yet sophisticated enough for space travel and sell them on the black market to other regions of the universe. Jack's knowledge of their presence around Earth would be a dangerous blow, one that could result in their deaths; hence, their desire to eliminate the threat that he posed. He also understood that they had lost someone on the excursion before he had arrived. His experience in the con business could be just what he needed to get out of this cell. The trick of letting them know that he could help them without pushing their hand would take quite a bit of effort.
It would be good to get his hand back into the game. After all, he was no longer Jack Harkness, failed human being. Here, he could be whoever he chose to be. And he chose the name Dite Freir. Dite could be whoever he wanted to be, no strings, no baggage. As far he was concerned, Dite was just the person for the job. He closed his eyes and referenced his internal clock. Nearly time for the evening meal, notable because it was not nearly as sweet as the morning meal. Verj would not be as easy to win over as Lojin but all his potential plans depended on getting out of that cell.
After months in this cell, Jack was ready to scream in boredom and impotent frustration. His instincts were correct; Verj didn't trust him and didn't seem to have any inclination to change that opinion. Nevertheless, Jack noticed that there were some cracks in that resolve. As time passed, Verj would consult with Jack over a course of action. Jack was well aware that it was some kind of test and answered as best he could, in the belief that if he proved that he would put their needs first, they would eventually let him out of his cell and gain more freedom of movement. These wishes, however, had yet to be realized but Jack continued to soldier on.
Jack winced. He hated the term soldier. Brought back too many memories from his old life that he had been trying so hard to put behind him. The blessing and curse of so much downtime in a cell was that it gave him far too much time to think. On the other hand, it gave him the necessary solitude to compartmentalize all that he wished to leave behind and built a solid new personality for himself.
When Verj arrived with the midday meal, Jack greeted him with a guileless smile and polite inquiry into his health. Instead of receiving and answer, he was given a package containing his clothing along with his meal. Disappointed, he noted that his wrist strap was not returned to him but covered it before the man had reason to doubt his sincerity. With a smile of thanks, Jack pulled on his vest and pants.
"When you've finished eating, come join me on the command deck. We need to talk."
Jack refused to allow his expression to change.
"I'll be there."
