15
The place was a mess. The entire city a crime scene and Heddlu had given up on the crime scene tape simply standing over the carcasses as UNIT came around to scoop them up.
"Boys!" the Brig called out enthusiastically as his Jeep came to a stop near them, getting out to swagger over and look at the huge demon laying nearby. Well … he was sort of pancaked by a HUGE fist so … splattered? Squished … he was squished nearby "Some mess!"
"Yeah. Sorry. Sort of went off" Jack shrugged with that sexy grin of his to show he didn't really care if a scolding was in the air. He knew that he had done good.
"Well … the gas tank gong off over on the other street was apparently a thing of beauty. I can't wait to watch the playback, they said it was like something simply … ate it." The Brig said as he turned from the carcass to face Jack "Was that some sort of weapon of yours?"
"Now now. You know as well as I do that weapons create booms, they don't swallow them. You think some huge entity simply breathed it in like smoke from a Hookah pipe?" Jack laughed and the Brig did as well, turning back to the huge monster once more as in the distance UNIT men tried to get a rope around it to get it loaded on a transport vehicle.
"Might need the ship for this" Jack finally said softly "you know… that spaceship of yours that barely flies anymore since the atmo shield broke."
The Brig snorted with amusement.
No point denying it.
.
.
.
Over on the other side of town Ianto was standing in the doorway of an old building , leaning on the frame as he watched UNIT trying to pick up a creature that was mostly mush. He felt a small hand sliding around his waist and resisted the urge to shudder letting the child slip under his arm to watch as well.
"You lost some people last night" he said softly.
"Unfortunate. Yes" Faith answered, her head resting against him as she imbibed. Rare for Djinn to give as well as take, rarer still that one would give to her. She scared them, she knew that. Hell … she scared herself.
But this one…. He was scarier than anything she had ever known.
He was not just a Watcher. This was Friday. The End of All Things.
She was safe once more in the warmth of his embrace.
Even if his gaze could turn a man's blood to ice.
.
.
.
.
Owen was whooping as he sped along, swinging the wheel of the SUV to follow the small demon that had alluded them so far. Jack was on comms telling him to let it go, it would only die of starvation out there in the woods anyway, too far from the city to imbibe pet cats or dogs. Let it go.
Owen knew he was right. They had tagged it during the night which was why he could track it so easily now. They could simply come back another day and hunt it down at will before it got too big or obnoxious. But the bloodlust still had him, that bloody thrill of the kill as the night became dawn and a new day began.
Owen wanted one more.
This one would do, one that he tagged all by himself. Hell, he might even get it alive. A live one for some close examination. Why not… he had been good lately, not burning down the Hub or flooding it… recently. Surely he would be allowed anew pet. I mean look at it… scrawny little thing the size of a chicken for fucksake. How much damage can…. Fuck. Owen squealed as it suddenly turned 180 and threw itself at the grillwork of the SUV, slamming into it with such force that the vehicle stopped as if it had hit a brick wall.
Air bags deployed, Owen screamed and the 'little' demon was suddenly ten times its size clambering up the hood of the SUV like a crazed pit bull, slathering as it made straight for Owen's face.
Owen screamed and hit the gas as he tried to struggle the airbag out of the way, slamming through a brick wall… yeah for real this time… and across a field of grass then the very thing Ianto had stopped from happening the night before … like kismet… like… it was supposed to happen one way or another… the little shit drove the shiny sweet SUV off the edge of the embankment and over the side… down… into the river.
Upside-down!
Toshiko cried out as she watched it all on the live dash cam, frantically trying to path in to Jack to tell him and then she took a deep breath, punching another code.
"Ianto!"