Ianto pushed the rusted warehouse door open. After all these years, he never expected to return to this warehouse, where everything started. It honestly felt like Jason was taunting him, choosing this place to set up his base. The warehouse looked the same as ever, still broken and about to fall apart. He couldn't see Jason, but he could sense that he was here, somewhere, watching over him until he was ready to strike. Ianto's only advantage was he knew all the different ways that they can kill a fae. It was his only advantage to prevent Jason from killing him.
"Oooh well lookie here? I smell a rat in a rat trap. To think that just attempting to capture a friend would draw you out, I would have done it months ago," Jason said laughing as he watched overhead as Ianto walked into the warehouse.
"Charming place you've got" Ianto said his eyes trailed around his surrounding, counting all escape routes or if there were any traps lying around.
"I know, I thought it was the perfect place to become your grave," Jason smirked.
"I would ask why you're doing this, but I've gone past the point of caring" Ianto said, pulling his jacket off and throwing it over an unoccupied chair. He came here to finish this, and that's all he cared about.
"Like I would blab about my plans to you. The fae might not use them but I'm sure if Torchwood knew you were here then they would kit you out with some listening device why do you think I never told the bitch Cooper everything. I expected you to capture her and that would draw you to me. I needed you to figure out where I was hiding without the other fae realising it… well until it's too late that is," Jason smirked jumping down from his perch and landed in front of Ianto.
"Are you really that dumb, do you think I would be here if Torchwood or the Fae knew," Ianto said, scoffing at the mere thought, "No one knows I'm here. There too busy dealing with the mess Cooper made".
"I'm sure you've noticed by now that there is a seal around this warehouse. No fae can get in until one of us dies and when I said one of us, I mean you and you can't leave. You will die here Ianto Jones, I will see to that," Jason said. Falling into a fighting stance.
"I don't plan on dying today. I think it's time we finally finish this," Ianto said, glaring at Jason.
Jason smirked before dropping a fraction of his weight onto his heels to throw himself backwards to avoid the sudden roundhouse kick attack from Ianto. Jason summoned a fireball and threw it at Ianto. Ianto darted to the side, barely missing the fireball as it hurtled towards the roof of the warehouse. Ianto barely paid it any attention as he drew his fists up and punched Jason's face, enjoying the crack of his nose when Ianto's fist made contact.
Ianto and Jason continued to dodge each other's attacks, throwing everything at each other, trying to knock the other off their feet so they could finish the other off. Ianto was slowly gaining the upper hand. His experience and control were slowly wearing Jason down until…
'Shit' Ianto thought as he heard the sound of metal giving way and a steel support bar fell onto him pinning his chest and left arm to the ground. Ianto struggled, trying to use his free right arm to lift the beam off him, but he couldn't get the strength to move it fully without trapping something else. Without even trying to move his left arm, Ianto could tell he had broken it and he wouldn't shock him if some of his ribs were.
"It looks like your trapped" Jason giggled as he stalked over to Ianto's trapped form with the look of glee on his face. "I never thought it would be this easy. Goodbye Ianto Jones".
"You're such an idiot" Ianto choked out as Jason stepped on his right arm pinning it down.
"What?" Jason said. Looking down at the trapped fae as if, after all these years. He had finally lost it.
"I was only a distraction" Ianto said, smiling. He couldn't believe how easy it had been to trick Jason. He never expected that Ianto would bring any back up or at least back up which Jason could sense at least.
"You've lost it, I've got you exactly where I want you. I'm about to kill you and that's your dying words are a plea to distract me. To what end, give you a few extra seconds in hope of rescue," Jason snarled, "no other fae can get in here".
"Who said they were a fae" Ianto laughed spitting blood on Jason's face before straining his neck to look over Jason's shoulder and shouted, "Owen now".
Owen jumped out of the shadows he'd been hiding in, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. Jason barely turned around; his eyes wide when Owen shoved the needle filled with some liquid into Jason's arm and pushed the plunger, forcing the liquid out the needle. Jason grabbed Owen's arm barely controlling his strength and his tightened his grip enjoying the sound of a loud snap before shoving Owen into the nearest wall.
"Is that the best you've got…" Jason started but suddenly stopped when he found it increasingly hard to breathe, "What have you done?".
"The syringe was full of Morphine, unknowingly to many fae, it's deadly. Somehow it interferes with our elemental core and suppresses it. It unlocks your ability to age but the older you are the more you age and well. I'm fairly sure you surpassed a thousand years old a while ago," Ianto explained to a panicked Jason, who by every second was increasingly getting older and older. Jason watched in horror as his hands started to wrinkle then shrivel up.
Ianto looked away, not wanting to look at Jason as he died. It wasn't a satisfactory end to their enemy. It was a painful one, and something he didn't want to witness again. He heard the thud as Jason's dead body collapsed beside him, but still Ianto didn't look.
"I finally see the flaw in my plan of not telling anyone. We can't really push this bar off me" Ianto groaned. Maybe he should have put the location in code that only Jack, The Queen or Tosh could have figured out.
"Ianto don't worry, I sent a message to Jack whilst you were fighting, he and the fae will be here any minute" Owen said, he didn't move from the wall he was thrown against, he couldn't find the energy to move and as a doctor he didn't fancy aggravating any internal injuries until they were looked at and determined it was safe to move him. Ianto wanted to nod, but he felt like he was underwater. Everything was painful. His arm, his chest and his head. He didn't want to do anything, he just wanted to give into the darkness. Ianto just wanted to sleep.
"Ianto" Ianto heard someone shout, it sounded like Jack, but he couldn't tell. The voices were muffled, and it was slowly getting harder to hear the more he concentrated on it. Ianto watched as blurry figures hovered above him and then a heavyweight was lifted off his chest. Ianto wanted to ask what was happening but he couldn't find the strength to open his eyes, finally succumbed to the darkness. He knew he was in safe hands; he knew they protected him. Jack was there, Jack would look after him.
~Two Hours Earlier~
" Ianto, wait up" Owen shouted, running after his fellow Torchwood agent after he slipped out of the courtroom unseen. Hell, Owen wouldn't have realised if he hadn't turned around when he did to see Ianto walk out the room.
"Go back to the courtroom Owen, this doesn't concern you" Ianto said. The last thing he wanted was to bring his friends into this mess. He was going after Jason alone, and that was final.
"Like hell it doesn't! You're going after Jason and I'm going to help whether or not you like it" Owen snapped. Ever since Tosh returned with an injured Reiner and an unconscious Bertholdt, it had haunted his mind with what ifs. What if Reiner got knocked out and Jason took Tosh? What would he do with her? What would Cooper do? Would they kill her? Would they keep her alive until Ianto showed up? Owen once believed that his heart was buried with Katie, but then he found Tosh who accepted him for who he was, and he slowly started learning how to love again. He couldn't lose Tosh too. It would break him to where he knew he would never recover again.
"Jason is more powerful than some alien, I'm not risking you getting hurt. Think about Tosh if you died it would break her" Ianto said. He saw how happier Owen and Tosh became after they started dating. He couldn't put his best friend through the heartbreak of losing Owen to Jason. Especially since Tosh would need Owen to comfort her if Ianto didn't survive this fight.
"I am thinking about her," Owen said, letting out a sigh as he tried to calm himself down, "Jason went after Tosh. He intended to hurt her. I can't just sit here and do nothing whilst that bastard nearly gets away with it. I need to do something, even if I'm just a distraction whilst you kill him".
"Fine, but you're not being a distraction. He'll overpower you in seconds. I'll keep him busy. When you see your chance, I want you to inject this into him. It'll will kill him" Ianto said, handing the syringe full of morphine over to Owen. He knew Owen had decided, the best would be to take Owen with him and make sure he kept out the way then letting Owen find his own way out the fae's world and ruin everything if he came blundering in whilst Ianto and Jason were fighting.
"Any place I need to aim for?" Owen asked.
"No, as long as it gets into his bloodstream Jason's dead" Ianto replied. Only a select few people knew that this chemical could kill the fae, and Jason was not one of them. He wouldn't know to defend himself from it.
"Where's Jason at? Some warehouse wasn't specific by Cooper" Owen said, Ianto must have an idea where to go or he wouldn't have left the courtroom unless Ianto had acted without thinking and he is planning on luring Jason out of hiding. Which could work since Jason wanted to kill Ianto so he would take his chances when Ianto was out in the open, away from any help from the fae?
"I know where it's like Jason's mocking me" Ianto replied. It was so obvious now he thought about it, that Ianto couldn't believe he never thought about this before.
"How come?" Owen asked.
"The first time I'd ever met the fae. I had run away from home and hid inside a disused warehouse. It was old, close to collapse, and one of the steel supports bars had come loose. It nearly killed me, but these creatures came out of nowhere and saved me. Actually, the only reason I was there was because I thought someone was following me and I tried to hide," Ianto explained. The fae had followed him, but because Ianto didn't know who or what they were, he panicked. They well knew it in the fae world that they nearly got one of their chosen ones killed. It led to the change on how to approach a chosen one to prevent anything like this happening again. Jason would have heard the story during his training.
"How can you be so sure?" Owen said, confused. How could Ianto come to that conclusion with hardly anything to go on?
"I just do, now are we going or not" Ianto snapped holding his hand out for Owen to grab hold before disappearing from his world for potentially the last time.
Ianto groaned as he opened his eyes and looked up at a familiar ceiling. His body ached and for a moment he couldn't remember how he even got in this state, then all his memories of the fight with Jason flooded back. It honestly felt like a dream, had he really fought Jason and survived. When he got trapped underneath that bar, he would be lying that he hadn't considered that he wouldn't make it out of there alive. Ianto had come to terms with his death, if it means his world and his family was safe then he would happily die in that warehouse. Ianto forced himself to sit up, ignoring the protest his body made. He was in the fae infirmary. They bound his left arm in a cast which rested against Ianto's chest in a sling.
"Ianto are you awake?" a familiar voice said, Ianto looked over at the small opening in the certain that surrounded his hospital bed. Reiner was stood there looking equally bad as Ianto himself. Reiner had a black eye; his right arm was in a cast and he was limping.
"Where's Jack, Owen and Tosh?" Ianto asked. He had expected to wake up to find Jack at least by his bedside, but one look around his surroundings showed that the only person who had been with him was the medical staff.
"With the Queen. A condition to allow the immortal one to bond with you was for a fae to have eyes on him at all times. Even though he is your mate. They would not let him stay here on his own" Reiner explained, and Ianto couldn't find it in him to blame his fellow fae. They didn't trust Jack yet, the last thing they were going to let him do was leave him unguarded with an unconscious fae, not that it matters if the fae was his mate or not. "The Queen wishes to see you. If you feel up to it that is".
"You know me Reiner, I hate hospitals. Whether it's a human or a fae one" Ianto said already pushing himself to his feet, ignoring the pain in his chest. There wasn't really anything he could do about his ribs, really; he would just have to wait until they healed by themselves. Ianto fell into step with Reiner as they left the infirmary and slowly made their way to the courtroom, both being careful to not aggravate each other's injuries.
"Look at us, we look like a right pair" Ianto laughed before he groaned. His ribs hurt. This was going to be torturous few weeks as his ribs and arm slowly healed, he was defiantly going to be relaying on Jack more to get things done. Although it meant Ianto had an actual excuse to avoid doing paperwork and forcing Jack into doing it instead. After all, his precious mate was injured. Yep, Ianto could see the positives his condition brought, and he wouldn't be surprised if Owen used his condition as an excuse to do nothing.
"I know, I swear during my training someone said that becoming a fae meant living a live without having to deal with mortal injuries," Reiner whined as he limped down the corridor. Each step he took was just as painful as the last.
"Same wasn't it something like 'from hence forth discard your worries from your previous life, aging, pain and injuries. You have been reborn as a fae and these concerns do not affect you anymore," Ianto said. He briefly remembers someone preaching that during his first week as a fae.
"It was, I don't think my body got the memo because I have a broken arm, a fractured toe, pulled leg muscles and I'm bruised from head to toe that I'm sure someone might mistake me for a plum instead," Reiner said.
"I don't even know what all my injuries are. I've got a broken arm and ribs and that I ache in places where I shouldn't be aching," Ianto whined. After this meeting with the queen, Ianto's plan was to sleep for the entire week. "How's Bertholdt?".
"He's fine, confined to a wheelchair for now with his broken legs and arm, but other than that he's good. Complaining, but he should heal as good as new," Reiner said and Ianto let out a sigh of relief he didn't realise he was holding in. "Actually, it's why I wanted to come and get you. I thought when I saw Bertl's unconscious form that I was going to lose him, and I've never been that scared before in a long time. The medical staff weren't expecting him to pull through. If Bertl died, I was planning on asking the Queen to kill me because I just can't live without him. He's my entire world. And then, like a miracle, we get word that Jason was dead and Bertl woke up. I don't know if Jason had cast something on him or not, but… I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for killing Jason and bring Bertholdt back to me".
"You're welcome… but you don't have to thank me Reiner, Bertholdt's a fighter we both know that, he would have never let himself die if it meant leaving you behind" Ianto replied, he wasn't sure what to say. He had killed Jason because they needed to, Jason had caused so many problems with the fae and Torchwood. It had been Ianto's duty as the Commander of the fae to take down their enemy once and for all for the good of his people.
"You wished to see me, your majesty" Ianto said as he entered the courtroom and bowed when he approached his queen, he had seen Bertholdt in his wheelchair sat at the front of the court near to the queen, Jack, Tosh and Owen where there too. Jack's face lit up when he saw Ianto, the pain he had felt through their bond had scared Jack that Ianto wouldn't wake up soon. Ianto wanted nothing more than to just run over to Jack and hug him and never let go.
"Through the discussion of the court we have decided that you Ianto Jones deserve to be the first fae to be knighted by the queen. You have shown us bravery and courage to step up and defeat our enemy at the risk of your own life. You have been unselfish throughout this whole situation, willingly bonding yourself to one of our enemies to ensure that we can work together to bring down a common enemy and after the capture of Gwen Cooper you were able to realise where Jason was hiding and went to face him without the support and backup of the fae to prevent any else from being injured," Ianto's eyes widened. The queen wanted to knight him, something which had never happened before because well, nothing like this had really happened for a fae to deserve to be knighted but Ianto really didn't believe he was worth it because he felt like he was only doing his job of being the commander. He had to protect his people, he had to protect his mate and his friends.
"It would be an honour your majesty, although I think if I kneel now, I might never get back up again," Ianto said smiling.
"Of course, we have taken that into consideration. You were injured, and I would never put you in a position where you could worsen your injuries. We have brought you a chair to sit in" the queen said as another fae brought out a chair. The queen motioned for Ianto to sit whilst the head council fae brought forward the sword the fae people had chosen to be used for knighting if the event had ever happened.
"Ego, Regina Nefertiti de fae, hic declaro in servitutem, et conservus fae Ianto Jones, profectus est ad magna longitudines ad protegendum populum suum et amici eius a nocentibus a perfide unum. Ego cum firmamentum meum, et populus ii, hic dub te Domine Ianto Jones Torchwood. Ut stet. (I, Queen Nefertiti of the fae, here declare that the servitude of fellow fae Ianto Jones has gone to great lengths to protect his people and his friends from the harm of a rogue one. I with the support of my people and council, here dub thee Sir Ianto Jones of Torchwood. You may stand)" The queen said as she brought the holy sword Excalibur on Ianto's left shoulder before moving it to his right. Ianto slowly stood from the chair with the support of Jack, who had darted over the second they had allowed him to.
Jack wrapped his arms around Ianto's waist, pulling Ianto against his chest before press a gentle kiss against Ianto's temple.
"I'm so proud of you. The queen told us how you are the first fae to get knighted. I think you deserve it, hell, you deserve a human knighting as well for everything you've done for Torchwood and the human race, but… we will have words about trusting each other when we're dealing with an enemy. I could have gone with you to fight Jason, I'm immortal. I will always come back," Jack whispered.
"I didn't want to lose you. Even if you are immortal, I hate it when you die, and I would hate the satisfaction it would have brought Jason knowing he had killed you. Even if it had been just once," Ianto replied, closing his eyes. His body was battered, bruise and broken but that didn't matter whilst he was in the safety of Jack's arms.
"I have one last thing I wish to discuss before you leave my court," the queen said turning to face Owen and Tosh who stood on the slide lines leaving Ianto and Jack to have their moment. "You both have shown extreme courage when fighting Jason, if it had not been for you Owen Harper then we may have lost one of our dear fae, your bravely to face an enemy who could easily overpower you is a rare trait that I confess only a few fae have. And you Toshiko Sato, had you not risked leaving the safety of our world to follow a hunch then we would never had captured Miss Cooper, your brilliance and bravery has earn you both a place amongst us fae. If you wish to take up this offer, then once Mr Harper has healed then we can perform the ceremony and turn both you into fae. I don't want an answer right now. You deserve the opportunity to discuss it with each other. Please give me an answer by the end of the week".
"Thank you, your majesty," Tosh said, a little taken back at the offer. Owen looked equally surprised and barely spluttered out a thanks. Ianto just smiled at his friends, no one was more deserving to become a fae then Tosh and Owen were. Hell, it would have surprised him if the Queen didn't ask. The queen smiled before rising from her throne and exited the courtroom with the rest of the fae council following behind her.
The walk back to Ianto's fae house was slow, yet peaceful. Taking in their surroundings whilst they talked about everything and nothing.
"I was wondering, now your fae secret is out. What will you be doing?" Jack asked, he hadn't really thought about it before, what their future could hold and what would happen with Torchwood. If Owen and Tosh became a fae, then they weren't liable to work at Torchwood anymore and Jack didn't fancy recruiting again since his last member was such a hit.
"I want to return to Torchwood. I love my home world, but I miss Cardiff and Myfanwy. My life is in Cardiff, I couldn't leave it plus I really doubt the fae would let you permanently live here and I couldn't leave you all alone in Cardiff, I don't think the city could handle it" Ianto said smiling, he could tell that Jack was worried that Ianto had planned to leave Torchwood behind. Yes, he might have joined Torchwood to monitor its information and contact with the fae, and now Torchwood Three knew his secret. It didn't mean he would want to leave. Torchwood was a big part of his livelihood, not just meeting Jack but protecting his little sister from aliens. His family was in Cardiff and he left Rhiannon once, he wasn't planning on doing that again until after her family had passed on.
"You want to come back" Jack said, almost surprised. He knew how much Ianto loved this world, that it surprised him Ianto would want to leave it.
"Of course, I do, Torchwood is my home just as much as it is yours. Although I protest living in a bunk underneath your office for the rest of my life though," Ianto replied.
"I'm sure we can sort something out. I know some genuinely pleasant houses close to the hub," Jack said, smirking.
"Are you asking me to move in with you, Sir" Ianto asked and grinned at the growl which escaped Jack's mouth.
"I think I am Jones, Ianto Jones. What do you say?".
"As long as it has a part where we can bring Myfanwy, she never gets to explore much. Oh, and a coffee machine" Ianto said pretending to think his answer through even though they both know that Ianto was more than happy to move in with Jack.
"I think that can be arranged" Jack said leaning down and pressing his lips against Ianto's, "I love you Jones, Ianto Jones".
"I love you too Captain Jack Harkness" Ianto mumbled against Jack's lips returning the kiss with just as much passion.
Owen was a little worried. Scratch that, Owen was extremely worried. Since the fae and the other members of Torchwood had turned up at the warehouse, Toshiko hadn't really said much or anything, really. And honestly, Owen was on edge, waiting for the moment that she finally blew. He knew the second he left the Courtroom to follow Ianto that Tosh would be far from happy with what he did; he was a human going up against an all powerful fae and he had seen what the fae was capable of with the attack on the cannibals and then the little pieces that Ianto had showed him. So, when Owen and Tosh headed back to the room they were given during their stay, Owen knew what was coming.
"You are a moron, Owen Harper; you know that, don't you? Going up against a fae with no support! What the hell were you thinking? Forget that, you weren't thinking at all, you just went blundering in without thinking. Owen's heart is in the right place, but his brain is fifty miles back. You could have died, hell had Jason been given even a second longer, he could have killed you. Don't you understand that, these fae are way more dangerous than you could imagine, and you decided it was a fucking great idea to get yourself in the middle of a fucking fae battle. A fae battle, Owen! They can control the elements. What if Jason had tried to suck the air out of the fucking warehouse and killed you? It was too big a risk to put your life on the line. It's not like fighting aliens, Owen, this is different!" Tosh started ranted the second they entered their room.
"I know, when I saw Ianto leave, I really wasn't thinking. All I knew was Jason came after you and you getting hurt was the last thing I wanted to happen if it meant you being safe then I was happy to do anything to get Jason. If it meant being a distraction or hiding waiting for the right opportunity, then I was happy to do anything if you were safe. Tosh you mean everything to me, when I lost Katie…" Owen stopped, thinking about his ex-fiancée still brought up unwanted feelings, "I felt that I lost my ability to love anyone then I met you and you taught me how to love again. I never told you this because I have a reputation to uphold, but it would break me if I lost you".
"Oh, Owen" Tosh said putting a hand on Owen's neck and gently pulled it down to press their lips together. "I will always be here for you no matter what".
"You better because I'd well and truly be a mess without you".
"I know Owen, I know. What's your thoughts on this deal?" Tosh asked, "Would you want to become a fae?".
"I'm not sure, I want to ask Ianto about it, see what his opinion is. But if it's something you want, then I'll do anything for you," Owen replied. It made sense, get as much information from their resident fae before deciding for themselves.
"I'm tempted but I'm not entirely sure yet" Tosh confessed, the idea that she could live forever with the man she loves and get to be around her best friend and Jack so that Jack and Ianto would never lose them was definitely tempting but she didn't want to go along with it if Owen didn't want it. She couldn't lose Owen after only a few years together.
"I'm happy with whatever you choose" Owen replied. It was the truth. He didn't mind becoming a fae if he got to stick with Tosh and he guessed having Ianto around wasn't that bad, especially if he got his heavenly coffee for the rest of his life and he supposed Harkness wasn't that bad either.
"But that doesn't mean I'm not still angry about what you did" Tosh said, and Owen swore under his breath. He guessed that he could live with that.
Author's Note: Apologies if the action scene isn't great, I struggle with them but I did try my best. I do hope you have enjoyed the story so far and I'm hoping to get the epilogue out soon.