The man was shocked when instead of hitting solid flesh, the knives bit only into mattress as they passed through the sleeping form.
He would have fallen onto the bed if a hand hadn't grasped him in a painful grip.
He was snapped round and faced what should have been his target but instead he was facing a very much alive and enraged target.
"Assassin, do you think it is that easy to kill the Chosen One. I felt your murderous intent before you even opened the door," his intended victim hissed.
The man couldn't tear his eyes away from the dark orbs that were boring into his. He could see something at the back of them...something awful.
"The Tempter will not stop me halting the Rising. Tell your master this...when I challenge him at sunrise tomorrow he will regret his cowardly attempt at ending me."
The man saw fire in the back of those eyes and when the man touched his forehead, he felt that fire burning through him and felt his mind slip away.
His intended victim smiled sadly. "Another soul lost. It really is time to end this."
It felt pleased with itself; it now knew it had the Time Lord completely under its influence. The Time Lord had passed the test and had truly believed that the man sent to kill him had been sent by the non-existent Tempter.
Now it knew that at sunrise tomorrow the Time Lord would willing give himself up; at least the mythology of this backwater planet had provided it with the perfect disguise and this particular Time Lord's over-developed sense of guilt would do the rest.
Soon it would taste the power of the Time Lord and then it would devour this tiny planet.
Jack had said nothing until the UNIT operative had left and the door was once again locked.
"Execution, UNIT has sanctioned execution. They don't have the right!"
"Clearly, they think they do. Although I'm not sure how they're going to do that," Doctor Stoneleigh said. "No-one's going to get that close to him."
"Sniper, that's how I'd do it," Agent Johnson said. "Straight to the head, kill him clean."
They all looked at the two CIA agents.
"Sure, those UNIT guys must have someone who can kill at a thousand yards," Agent Wilson agreed.
"They'll wait till he's somewhere open, this thing I kept hearing about, some sort of service at sunrise. It's public, it'll cause chaos and whatever team they have inside can slip away."
"No-one is killing him," Jack grated.
"Don't think there's a lot we can do to stop them," Doctor Stoneleigh added.
It was then that Julie spoke. "Listen to you, you're all talking about this like it's some sort of training exercise. The Doctor may be alien but he's still a living breathing person and they're going to murder him!"
They all looked at her, Jack and Doctor Stoneleigh with looks of guilt and the two CIA agents with surprise.
"What, you didn't think he got Level Ten clearance for his dress sense?" Doctor Stoneleigh said.
"Like I said, they're going to murder him."
"Not if I can help it," Jack growled.
"We're locked in this room, we can't help him," Julie said.
"There's always someone," Jack replied.
"Not this time," Doctor Stoneleigh said.
Jack scowled and seemed to physically deflate. "They can't kill him," he said quietly.
They descended into silence as the night drew in, knowing that the dawn would bring death.
Pastor James stopped berating the guard when they brought the body of the assassin out. He noticed the burn marks to the side of his face. Had the creature he was bound to done this or was it the young man that had been chosen?
Whichever one of them it was, it really didn't matter to him; soon it would be out of his hands and the fate of the world would no longer be his responsibility.
He stepped into the room and went straight up to the Doctor.
"Are you okay John, he didn't harm you?"
He shook his head. "I had no choice...I had to kill again."
The Pastor sat on the bed beside him. "You did what you had to do. It's only natural to defend yourself."
"But I'm tainted, more blood."
"No son, whoever he was he made his choice. You cannot bear the burden of a person's falling from the path. Don't think about it, it'll be sunrise in a few hours and you must clear your thoughts."
"I can't, not here...is there somewhere quiet I can go?"
The Pastor sighed. "Sure, there's a nice spot just past the orchard. I'll take you."
"No, I know where you mean. Please, I want to be alone."
The Pastor smiled. "Alright, someone will fetch you when its time."
"Thank you," he said and walked out of the bedroom.
Ianto was beginning to think that he had fallen in with another bunch of religious crazies.
But their plan seemed plausible and he would follow it until he could get inside and then he would break off and leave them to their crazy idea.
He had to stop himself from laughing when they'd talked about a demon rising and it being the end of the world; all he was interested in was finding Jack and the others and getting away.
He only paid attention when the talk turned to the Chosen One and what they said worried him.
Their plan to stop this so called demon was to kidnap the Chosen One and lure the demon into a trap they had found in some old book on black-magic.
Good luck to them he thought; he wasn't going to be there to help them.
He walked through the camp, ignoring the people that called out to him. He sighed when he reached the barn that led to the orchard.
He spotted the two guards at the door of the barn; it was where they were keeping the ones that had tried to take him from the house.
His curiosity roused he approached the two guards.
"I would like to speak to the prisoners...alone."
When the two guards hesitated he snapped. "Leave!"
The two guards nodded, unlocked the door and moved off a short distance.
He opened the door and stepped inside and walked over to the cell at the end of the barn.
It was semi-dark and he stood in the shadow cast by the moonlight.
He could see the people inside, but he could see Jack Harkness the clearest.
"It's nearly dawn and my destiny is approaching. So you didn't succeed in stopping me."
He ignored the surprised gasps and focused only on Jack.
"It's safer for you here and once it's over, either way you'll be free."
Jack moved over to the bars and looked into the Doctor's eyes. "You don't have to do this...we can do this together, fight whatever this is."
The Doctor smiled sadly. "No, only I can do this. I was chosen and you can't change that."
"No Doctor, that Pastor told you that."
The Doctor shook his head. "I'm sorry you can't see it but tomorrow your faith will be regained and perhaps then we shall be friends and perhaps more."
Jack let out a muffled gasp as the Doctor grabbed his shirt through the bars and pulled him into a kiss that seemed to last an eternity.
He moved away from the bars then and turned away and opened the door.
The sky was now tinged with reddish-grey...it was time.