Chapter 12

A Blast From Jack's Past

St Peter's Church, Dunwich.

Sunday, 29th September.

The grey morning clouds complemented the grey stone of the church, and the dark sombre mood of the people stepping into the porch and through the west doorway. Donna and Shaun passed through the door into the west nave. To the right of them was the Norman stone font, and along the south wall, the dark oak door leading to the Norman tower. They walked into the central nave, following other members of the congregation, and saw their friends Richard and Janet, already seated on one of the pews with their children.

Donna and Shaun had a natural affinity with the Haywoods, as they were also from London, and Richard did the daily commute. They had moved to the village only a few months before Donna and Shaun, and both couples had helped each other integrate into the community. Richard stood up and allowed Donna to shuffle past so that she could sit next to Janet. Shaun shook Richard's hand and sat beside him.

The church was filling up, and sombre music in minor chords drifted on the air from the organ which was to the right of the nave. Opposite the organ, was the dark oak pulpit, and the vestry. Through the chancel at the far end of the church, was a magnificent arched, stained glass window.

'I think the whole village has turned out,' Donna said in a hushed voice as she looked around. She could see the recently widowed Mrs Crankhart, whose husband had died on the steps of the inn. Donna presumed it was her daughter who was comforting her. A lot of family members who had moved away from the village to have families of their own, had come to support parents, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, or just close friends at this troubling time.

'Yeah. All except those who are still in hospital recovering from falls or hypothermia,' Janet replied.

Donna continued to look around and saw some khaki dress uniforms in the pews at the back of the church, along with other people she presumed were from the Grange. 'They've got a nerve comin' 'ere,' Donna whispered, nodding behind them.

'Donna!' Shaun whispered back. Sometimes he despaired at his wife's judgemental attitude. 'Don't forget, they were affected by The Narcolepsy as well, And there's no proof that they were responsible.'

The Narcolepsy was the term the villages were using for the unexplained event, after the younger members of the community typed "unexpectedly falling asleep" into Searchwise, and the first hit was "Narcolepsy-Symptoms-NHS".

Donna continued to look at the UNIT officers, and had to admit that their faces and body language didn't look as though they were sheepishly guilty of causing eleven deaths by negligence. They looked more like all the other villagers. Sad at the loss of life, and desperately wanting answers.

The rattle of the vestry door latch made her turn around, and she saw the Reverend Hubert Leebody walk towards the pulpit wearing his red and gold chasuble. He went behind the pulpit and climbed the few steps to stand at the lectern. He put his papers on the lectern and cleared his throat. No one noticed a tall, dark haired man in an RAF uniform, enter the church and sit at the back.

'Welcome to God's house and thank you all for coming this morning,' Leebody started. 'I must admit, I had trouble with that greeting. I was just going to say ladies and gentlemen, but that sounded too impersonal for such a personal service. Fellow villagers? But some of you are from further afield. Friends? Yes I would like to think we are all friends here, and so I just welcome all of you, and leave you to decide where you fit in.'

His sermon proceeded to name the eleven people who had died, and to give a brief summary of their lives as he knew it. He talked of the post traumatic stress that most of the congregation would be suffering from, and how they could all help each other to come to terms with what had happened and pray that the God given talents of the scientists and researchers would eventually give them the answers they were all looking for. There was an Amen to that.

He led them in the Lord's prayer, and on the stroke of eleven o'clock, for the eleven victims, he called for a minutes silence. An eerie silence fell on the church, as even the young children seemed to feel the need for respectful silence in memory of the adults and a child who they would never see around the village ever again.

Leebody came down from the pulpit, and people stood and started to mingle, discussing the sermon and sharing memories of the people who had died. Gordon Zellaby shook Hubert's hand and thanked him for a touching service. The reverend spoke to people, offering words of comfort, and telling them that if they needed to talk, his door was always open.

He moved to the back of the church where the Grange staff were waiting, not wanting to intrude in the villagers grief, and unsure of the welcome they would get. Colonel Bernard Westcott shook Hubert's hand.

'Thank you for coming Colonel,' Hubert said. 'I know it must be awkward for you, knowing that the village gossip is pointing a finger at the Grange.'

'Yes I know, and please, call me Bernard,' Westcott replied. 'Some of the staff have said how the feel of the village has changed when they go into the shop or the inn. Only to be expected really when we're the outsiders and don't have any answers.'

'That is very magnanimous of you Bernard. I am cautioning my flock on jumping to conclusions, and reminding them that you too were affected by what they are calling The Narcolepsy.'

'Yes, quite. And that's quite an apt name for what happened to us all,' Bernard said.

'Yes, and as you say, it happened to us all. If you or your staff have any problems with the residents, or if you need to talk, I have told everyone that I am here if you need me.'

Hubert spoke to Professor Crimm and his staff, and eventually came to the stranger in the RAF uniform.

'Captain Jack Harkness, Torchwood Institute,' Jack said, shaking hands.

'Ah, now I know where I have seen your face. My niece Polly, who is staying with us at the moment, watches your program . . . Thank you for coming all that way this morning,' Hubert said.

'It's the least I could do,' Jack replied. 'I just wish I could do more.'

'Oh don't be silly Captain, your staff have done so much for us already. On the day of wakening, they organised the emergency services and rallied the villagers around to the village hall where they organised hot drinks and sustenance. And the counsellors you sent were a great comfort to us. They are all a credit to you.'

'Thank you for those kind words Reverend. I'll be sure to pass them on to the teams.'

'Is there any progress in the investigation?' Hubert asked hopefully.

'Not as yet I'm afraid,' Jack told him. 'But it's early days. Our laboratories are working through all the blood samples we took. They are also analysing the air, soil, and water samples our forensic teams collected. And there is an interplanetary investigation in progress, so please, rest assured that we are doing everything we can to find those responsible.'

'Interplanetary investigation,' Hubert repeated with a chuckle. 'I still have difficulty coming to terms with that. It sounds so fantastical, and yet the young people accept it the same as they accept being able to record and watch videos on their phones, or chat with friends around the world as though they were in the same room.'

'I know what you mean,' Jack agreed. 'We've seen some changes in our life time.' And Jack thought about the many lifetimes he'd had in another universe.

As the Reverend Hubert Leebody moved away, there was a red haired woman standing behind him who was looking right at Jack.

'Captain Jack Harkness isn't it?' she said sharply. 'I was comin' to see you lot tomorrow.'

Jack's brain was still in the old universe, remembering his past lives, and momentarily forgot where he actually was and what had happened to that worlds Donna Noble.

'DONNA!? Is that you?' he said with an open mouthed smile.

Donna frowned. 'You know me?'

'Donna Noble! Of course I know you,' and then reality hit him like a Jackie Tyler slap.

'Oi!' Donna said holding up her left hand and wiggling her fingers to display her wedding ring. 'It's Templeton I'll have you know. Bein' as I married Shaun Templeton there,' she told him, nodding to her husband who was standing to the side of them.

'Temple-TON?' Jack queried. 'Not Temple?'

'Yes. Temple-TON,' Donna reiterated. She leaned towards Shaun. 'He seems a lot sharper on the telly. It must be clever edittin'.'

'Er, sorry. Yes. Donna Templeton. Of course you are.' He turned to Shaun. 'Nice to meet you Shaun Templeton,' he said shaking hands, which left Donna wondering why it felt as though Jack Harkness was flirting with her husband. 'Sorry. You look just like someone I used to know.'

'And her name was Donna Noble as well was it?' Donna asked with just a hint of disbelief.

'Erm, yes. What are the chances?'

'Quite a coincidence,' Shaun agreed. 'Although, if you think of DNA like lottery numbers, if you have seven billion draws, the probability of getting the same sequence of numbers twice is quite high.'

'What are you on about?' Donna asked.

'Probabilities,' Shaun tried to explain. 'With seven billion people on earth, the chances of having a double are quite high.'

'Yeah. Well, a bit of a coincidence if you ask me,' Donna said.

Jack smiled. 'I quite agree. And I know one particular scientist who would be delighted to tell you just how much of a coincidence it was. So, do you live in Dunwich?'

'Yes. Just over three years now,' Shaun replied.

'And you said you were going to visit Torchwood tomorrow?' Jack asked.

'Well yeah. I was goin' to demand some answers for the villagers. Y'know, get some closure.'

Jack smiled to himself. Different universe, same Donna. 'Well I'm afraid I don't have any answers for you.' He saw their faces drop. 'But I can bring you up to speed with what we know so far. Would that help?'

Donna looked at Shaun and then back to Jack. 'Er, yeah. If that's okay with you.'

'Good. That's settled then. Does that Inn across the Green do Sunday lunch? We could eat as I explain where we are in the investigation.'

Donna linked her arm through Jack's and guided him towards the door. 'They do a lovely roast dinner. And try the Monk's Ale, you'll love it.'

Lunar Conveyor.

100,000 miles from Earth.

The Smith's and Tyler's were on the bridge of the Lunar Conveyor, enjoying a tour of the high tech facility. Rose's phoned vibrated in her skirt pocket to alert her to an incoming text message.

'Are mobile phones okay in here,' she asked Captain Archer as she took the phone out of her pocket. She knew that some airlines didn't like them to be used on airships, although there was no evidence that they had any effect on the electronics.

Archer smiled. 'Yes, they're fine. All communications are beamed to and from earth via the satellite dishes, and the frequencies don't interfere with any of the systems.'

Rose unlocked the screen and read the message. 'It's from Alice. She says Jack has gone to a memorial service at Dunwich this mornin' and they are havin' a minute's silence at eleven o'clock.'

Everyone on the bridge looked at the clocks on the wall. There was one for each time zone on Earth, and the ship itself worked on Greenwich Mean Time, as did the bases on the moon. The clock which had "London" under it said it was ten minutes to eleven.

'I heard about that on the news broadcast,' Archer said. 'As a mark of respect, I'll make a ship wide announcement and ask everyone to observe the silence.'

'That's very kind of you Captain,' Pete said.

'No problem.' Archer made his way back to his command chair with the rip-rip-rip sound of his Velcro shoes on the carpet, and activated the intercom. 'Attention all passengers and crew. This is the captain speaking. In memory of the victims of Dunwich village in Great Britain, we will be observing a minutes silence at eleven hundred hours, and invite you to join us in showing your support for that small community. Captain out.'

Rose texted Alice Dimaggio back to let her know that they would be observing the silence in solidarity with everyone on the ground. A few minutes later, she received a text back saying how pleased she was and she had let Jack know. Captain Archer continued to give them the tour of the bridge, when one of the bridge crew announced that it was one minute to eleven.

'Attention all passengers and crew. This is the captain speaking. It is approaching eleven hundred hours. Thank you for participating in this act of remembrance.'

The captain and his guests bowed their heads as they thought about the unfortunate people who had died in the village. The bridge crew continued with the vital functions of the Conveyor, but did so in respectful silence. When sixty seconds had passed, he activated the intercom and simply said "Thank you".

'This food is wonderful,' Jack said as they ate their lunches. 'And it's so quaint in here. Reminds me of this little place I knew back in . . .' He was going to say the eighteen nineties, but thought better of it. He looked over to the bar. 'It's a nice little establishment you've got here Mrs W.'

'Thank you Captain. The locals like it,' Mrs Williams replied. 'I try to keep it nice and homely.'

Jack turned his attention back to Donna and Shaun. 'So you weren't in the village when it was attacked?'

'Attacked?' Donna said. 'That makes it sound even worse.'

'Well, from our point of view, the village was attacked with a weapon which rendered everyone unconscious for reasons unknown,' Jack explained.

'The locals are calling it The Narcolepsy,' Shaun told him.

'Hmm. Good name.'

'In answer to your question, no we weren't in the village. We were in the Maldives,' said Donna.

'Right. Well the official time of The Narcolepsy was twenty two seventeen. There was no warning. We've looked back at satellite data, seismic activity, electromagnetic signals, and everything we can think of, and there was nothing,' Jack started. 'Rose Smith took a call from UNIT who had lost contact with the Grange and had sent a platoon to investigate.'

'What's Rose really like,' Donna asked, unable to curtail her enthusiasm for celebrity.

'She's an amazing person, as is her husband the Doctor. They make an incredible team, both at home and at work. I knew them before they even joined Torchwood,' Jack told them, and then had a brainwave. 'Would you like to meet them? Because I'm sure they would LOVE to meet you.'

Donna's mouth fell open. 'No way! Seriously? You'd set up a meeting with John and Rose Smith?'

Jack gave her one of his perfect smiles. 'Trust me, I can't tell you why right now, but they will be as excited to meet you as you are to meet them. As you're such a fan, you probably know they're out of town at the moment, but if you give me your number, I'll get them to give you a call when they get back.'

Donna was fit to explode with excitement. 'You, are going to give John and Rose Smith, my number . . . Brilliant!'

Jack had finished his lunch and put his knife and fork on the plate. He had a little chuckle. 'So, back to The Narcolepsy. Doctor Smith used satellite and aerial imaging to define the edges of the affected area, and we sent a team in to stand vigil until we could get into the village. Agent Williams bravely, but unsuccessfully tried to rescue a police officer who was becoming dangerously hypothermic.'

'What? Legs? Was she all right?' Donna asked.

'Yes. John pulled her out with a robot and she woke up with no ill effects. He then went on to examine the village with one of our surveillance tools, and found the body on the steps just outside here.'

'Harry Crankhart,' Shaun informed him.

Jack nodded. 'The night shift used the robot to recover his body and send it to the local hospital mortuary. When John returned the next day, he'd brought some more sensitive equipment which he attached to the robot and went off in search of the culprits. We think he disturbed them, because when he found some unusual readings, everyone woke up and the perpetrators had gone.'

'And that was in the abbey?' Shaun asked.

'Yes. Everyone thought it would be the Grange, including me, but John correctly identified the abbey as the epicentre. We've taken samples from all around there for analysis.'

'So we've just got to wait for the results of all the test then,' Donna realised.

''Fraid so. And even then, there's no guarantee that we will get enough to catch those responsible. We've reported the incident to the Shadow Proclamation, and they're searching their extensive records, looking for similar attacks.'

'That's the outer space police, yeah?' Donna asked.

Jack smiled. 'Someone's been paying attention to the show. That's right. They'll let us know if they find anything. So as you can see, this is far from over.'

'Thank you for your time Jack. That's been very reassuring,' Donna said.

'Any time. It's been my pleasure. And hopefully we'll meet again when you come to Torchwood to meet John and Rose.'

'That's a date.'

Jack gave her a lopsided smile. 'Er, no. I think you'll find that's an appointment.'