Following the Doctor's directions, River headed through the console room once more in search of the men who hurt Jack. The Doctor needed the machine that was used in order to figure out how to reserve the damage that the electricity had caused Jack's cells. She wasn't able to tell the Doctor anything about the machine as she honestly didn't know that Jack had been blind and deaf at one point. Jack had interacted with her on many occasions and she would never have guessed he had once spent time lacking those two senses. Although, it did also explain why he didn't like dark quiet spaces. Being a time traveler herself, she was also aware that the timelines could have changed and there were many other possible explanations for that phobia as well. Dwelling on why he was afraid wasn't going to help her find the men, though. Pushing the thought aside, she ran her hand along the controls for the TARDIS.
"I need the coordinates to the cabin that Jack was kept in," She flirted. The TARDIS hummed happily at her. Looking at the monitor, she saw coordinates listed on it as well as a date and time. "Is that when the Doctor found him?" She questioned. A gust of warm air blew across her. "Thank you, sweetie." The TARDIS hummed again as River headed to the door as she typed the coordinates into her vortex manipulator. She made sure to set the time for after the Doctor found Jack as she didn't want to interfere with the time lines.
She landed in what was supposed to be night time. She could smell the smoke thickly in the air and the forest was ablaze with the fire that was consuming the cabin in front of her. Hearing a cry for help River took off towards the cabin as quickly as she could. She had to save the man who was inside it as she had no doubt in her mind that he would know what happened to Jack. She surveyed the cabin as she approached it, looking for the best way to enter as the cry continued. To just rush in would be suicide, even with her manipulator, if the floor collapsed she could be killed before she had time to escape. Still, if there was someone alive in that cabin she had to act quickly or they would perish before she could save them. Pulling up her shirt so that it covered her mouth she forced the front door open.
Flames flew out, licking at her exposed arms. She pulled back from the heat of the fire. She wasn't going to be able to get inside through the front door, there had to be another way. She couldn't use the manipulator to go inside as she had no idea where the man was located and she could land herself in the middle of the fire. She hurried around the side of the cabin looking for anyway in. The man was still calling for help, but his cry was abruptly cut off as the sound of three gunshots filled the air. River cursed under her breath as the knowledge of what happened to Jack was lost with the sound. She moved back into the shadows of the trees inputting new coordinates as she did. She would wait as long as possible so that she could explore the wreckage once it was safe. In the meantime, she kept an ear out for anybody who might be still in the cabin.
As the flames died down, though, it became clear that no one who was in the cabin was still alive. It didn't surprise her that the man who killed them had left by other means. During this time period, it wasn't uncommon to find a Time Agent with a vortex manipulator of their own lending their services to the person who paid the most. Some actually had morals but for others they didn't care what the job was as long as the credits were paid. Standing, she made her way carefully to the cabin, stepping over what use to be the living room wall. Pieces of wood still burned brightly and she was careful to avoid them as she walked. She kept a constant look out for the body of the man she had heard. She didn't see it as she explored the now destroyed cabin.
As she walked the floor gave out from under her. She barely had time to cry out as she landed hard on the basement floor. Her ankle jolted painfully underneath her and she fell forward. She instinctively put her hands out to catch herself, screaming in pain as her palm landed on a piece of smouldering wood. She pulled away rolling her body away from it as she grabbed her hand in pain. She needed to get back to the TARDIS quickly so that Martha could attend to her hand, she couldn't leave yet, though. Shaking in pain, she pulled herself to her feet and looked around her. The bodies of two men lay on the floor. A third man was hanging from the ceiling. Their bodies had been destroyed by the fire, but she didn't have to examine them to know that they had died from gunshot wounds. She limped forward as her eyes followed the blackened wires to the machine it was connected to. The machine was also destroyed, but she hoped that the Doctor would still be able to get the answers he needed from it.
It was a little hard to disconnect the machine with only one hand, but she managed it. Thankfully the machine wasn't attached to the floor. It was trickier to bring a machine with her then it was a human because it had to touch the manipulator in order to travel. Thankfully she had done it in the past and knew what she needed to do. Taking off her coat she tied it around the machine, wrapping it as tightly as she could. She then used the wires still connected to the machine to attach it to the manipulator. Finally, she held the coat tightly in her hand as she rested her arm on top of the machine. Inputting the coordinates for the TARDIS, she hoped silently it would work as she sent herself on her way.
-DW-
Jack was thankful that once Martha was done examining him, the Doctor had led Jack back to the privacy of his bedroom. Today had been nerve wrecking with the trip to the small cafe. While the food had been good, Jack had found himself panicking due to the fact that he couldn't see or hear one around them. The only thing that had kept him anchored to the seat was the fact that the Doctor was there holding him. The Doctor asked for Jack to trust him and he had. Still, he was thankful to be back aboard the TARDIS, even if that meant having Martha examine his wrist and neck. The Doctor had informed him that both were doing well but also showed little to no signs that they were healing. Jack tried not to let his disappointment in the news show through as he knew he would only heal properly once the Doctor figure out his energy problem. It must have shown on his face, though, because as soon as Martha was done, they had headed to their room.
Settling on the bed, the Doctor kissed Jack softly on the lips as he wrapped his arms around him holding him close. Jack leaned into the Doctor's touch as he relaxed against him. He decided right then and there that he just wanted to stay in the safety of the Doctor's arms until he could see and hear again. For once, Jack didn't try to initiate sex between the two of them. He hoped there would be plenty of time to learn the Doctor's body later and to have the Doctor learn his. He had thoroughly enjoyed the Doctor taking charge earlier and fulfilling one of his fantasies. For now, though, he just took comfort from the Doctor's touch.
"I love you," he whispered as he snuggled against the Doctor. He felt the Doctor drop a kiss on the top of his head. The Doctor ran his hand along his back and Jack felt him drawing circles on it with his fingers. Jack realized after a moment that the Doctor wasn't just drawing circles but was writing in his native language. Jack didn't have to ask him what it said as he was pulled closer to the Doctor's chest. He kissed it softly as the Doctor rested his head against his. Closing his eyes, Jack drifted off to sleep, listening to his lover's heartbeats.
