37

Phoenix and Bennu stood, close enough to touch as they reached for one another.

"Tad?"

"its OK baby" Phoenix crooned, "I won't let anyone hurt my chicks."

"Good" Bennu whispered, "I am afraid."

"Wanna know a secret?" Phoenix asked, turning to look at his child, "Me too."

The ship came closer and Phoenix found himself stepping back from the screen.

"Tad?"

"It's OK." He laughed softly, "Silly. Creepy."

Suddenly the screen burst into life and they found themselves looking at a sneering man. He seemed to be studying them, then his eyes moved and Phoenix realized he couldn't see them.

"Tosh?"

"He was quite rude thinking he could just hack in" she huffed, "So I'm giving him a look at our night shift vids."

Everyone snorted as the thought of the silent and empty bridge being played back. Like his unscheduled call was going unanswered.

"Can we use this?" Ianto asked, "Tosh, can you use the link to send something?"

"Clever!" she giggled and they watched the face change as chaos happened in the background.

"A Trojan" she giggled, "Their systems are going a little … haywire."

"Thanks, should slow them down for a while" Phoenix huffed, "What about their weapons?"

"Can't be sure" she said sadly, "No guarantees if I've managed to disable them or not."

The answer was a blast to their shields and Jack cursed as they were thrown off course from the force of the hit.

"TOSH!"

"Shields holding" she said as she checked her systems, "power pulses. This will damage me after a while."

"Recommendations" Jack barked as he looked at the readouts scrolling across the screen.

"Run" Phoenix said immediately as Bennu nodded.

"We can't" Tosh said sadly, "we are boxed in, they have timed this well."

"Well? What then!" John demanded, looking at Jack as they had a strange silent conversation.

John stepped forward and Bennu gasped as he drew away from him.

"You mean to take me!" he snarled, "You mean to snatch me away from my fam…"

John has hooked his wrist and they disappeared as the VM activated.

"Where are they?" Leia asked.

"Safe, where these bastards can't find them" Jack replied and Phoenix groaned deep in his throat.

"No they're not Cariad, they are over there!"

"I'm afraid Phoenix is correct Caption" Tosh said softly, "They intercepted the jump and have acquired …"

John slammed into the grating by Jack's chair with a soft grunt, still grasping at the wound to his shoulder that was pumping out precious blood.

"Bennu, where is he!" Phoenix screamed, opening the bond as he spoke and feeling the pain of both John and Bennu.

More than one shot had been fired and they had obviously expected a child, not a young man. Bennu was injured and alone.

There was no choice, as those stirred at the feeling of Phoenix thrumming through the bond, Phoenix reacted to his child's agony.

He roared with anger, reaching out and seizing John's wrist, "Go back!"

Jack cold only gape as Phoenix and John jumped to Bennu.

Now they had both firebirds.