Chapter 4

Morning came, and Rose's first task was to get herself in place, along with Pete, by the appointed time. Ace would be on guard in the outer room of the power chamber. Mickey would be in London, ready beside his computer. Kevin was not part of the plan from this point forward, and Rose hoped he'd stay far away -- the less complication, the better.

She and her dad needed to get back to the laboratory, with its bank of monitors looking in on the outer room and perhaps further in; to the degree they would be able to control anything, the means to do it were there. After her return last night, she had explained it all to Pete, and in the morning, he got them where they needed to be: by simply asking.

"We've had a chance to analyze the schematics," Pete said. "Superficially of course, but we'd like to talk to Dr. Shaw again."

"No problem," Van Statten said from the screen communicator. "I'll send an escort."

By the time the guard showed Rose and Pete into the lab once more, Van Statten was waiting there. Rose was relieved to see no Kevin.

Dr. Shaw did not even look up from her work -- she seemed mildly put out by the disturbance. She had no idea just how much more she would be disturbed, if all went according to plan.

The plan … It seemed reasonable last night, but the thought that Ace might open that door, a lone human, and come face-to-face with a Dalek or some other unknown horror, now it seemed foolhardy, no matter Ace's confidence. She hadn't fully understood what she might be up against, had she?

Too late now. Rose couldn't reach Ace, she couldn't reach Mickey -- and they were the ones who would set this whole thing in motion. Rose could only stand by and wait.

"So," Van Statten said, "Miss Tyler here sent the schematics to Torchwood. Don't play dumb -- why else would you leave the base last night? To have a beer in a small town dive bar? Sure, I played along, but I'm not stupid."

"You got me," Rose admitted. She had indeed sent the schematics -- to Mickey. Let Van Statten believe what he would. It was obvious and harmless: Why wouldn't she send it to her bosses, the potential buyers?

Pete picked up the lie and carried it forward. "She had to get out. It's hard to keep in contact with our superiors here. Can't get a signal."

"Of course not," Dr. Shaw interjected. "That's a side effect of our containment field."

"And why is such a containment field necessary?"

"I was concerned from the start about the stability of the power source and the effects on the staff and the immediate environment. Containment was the first thing I established, over Mr. Van Statten's objections. He was rather more anxious to start production before assuring safety."

"So, what … the energy is radioactive?" Rose asked.

"There are many dangers in dealing with alien technology. I would expect a Torchwood employee to know that."

Rose glanced at a clock mounted on one of the lab's bright walls. Ten minutes until Mickey brought down that containment, unleashing … what?

Neither Van Statten nor Dr. Shaw paid attention to the monitors, Van Statten with his back to them, and Dr. Shaw engrossed in her work. But with her own full view, Rose saw Ace engage in some earnest conversation with her fellow guard, who soon nodded and, on either her order or suggestion, left the room. Ace briefly leaned out the door, still talking, and then ducked back inside and locked her coworker out. She was now alone, according to plan. Rose tried to return her attention to Van Statten, who was blathering to Pete about Geocomtex's "proven track record" of powering Cybus Industries.

And it was time. Past time. One minute … two. Rose could feel the tension behind her dad's smile; she wasn't sure if Van Statten noticed. Mickey would have begun -- who knew how long it would take? On the screen, Ace was pacing, then caught herself. How would they even know when something happened?

Something happened: a beeping from a console.

Van Statten frowned at the distraction from his own voice, but with the briefest inspection, Dr. Shaw was seized with alarm.

"The containment … it's collapsed."

"What the hell?" Van Statten spluttered, then barked: "Do something!"

Dr. Shaw already was, searching on the computer for the cause. Van Statten shouldered her out of the way.

"It's gotta be a security breach. Get Barrett up here!" He turned to see no one following his orders, just Dr. Shaw glaring, and Rose and Pete feigning confusion.

To the door Van Statten strode, and flung it open to yell his order at a guard. When he turned back inside, the monitor caught his eye at last: There was Ace, attempting to open the inner door.

"Hey! You!"

Ace didn't look up, of course. Van Statten found the comm system and opened a line.

"You!" he repeated. This time Ace heard him, and jumped at his voice. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" he said.

Searching for a camera to face and finding it as she spoke, Ace answered, "Mr. Van Statten, sir. I heard a strange noise coming from the inner room. I was checking it out."

"You are not cleared to do that, do you hear me? I'll send someone qualified. Stay put." To Dr. Shaw he said, "Go check it out," and he returned his full concentration to the computer console.

Dr. Shaw took this chance to do something more than watch irritably as Van Statten mucked up her computer. She left, brushing past a terrified Kevin, who got yanked in by the guard who had fetched him, and then…

A sudden melee: Pete was in front of Kevin, colliding with him in a way that looked accidental -- as if Pete were trying to pursue Dr. Shaw. But he pushed Kevin into the startled guard, and as soon as Rose saw her dad get his hands on the guard's gun, she joined in the tussle. They shoved the guard and Kevin out into the corridor, onto the floor, slammed the door shut and locked it, all by the time Van Statten stood from his chair. He moved no farther when he saw the gun Pete pointed at him.

His glance back to the console told Rose he now understood they were behind the containment collapse. "Torchwood. I should never have trusted you guys. You're not getting out of here alive, you know."

"Out of the way," Pete said, and Rose, who was dialing up Mickey on her phone, took Van Statten's place at the console.

She grinned at her dad. "Look at you, action man."

Pete gave a modest shrug. "You learn a few things fighting Cybermen."

"Mickey!" Rose cried. He had answered the line. "You did it; the containment's down."

"Yeah, I could tell. You won't believe the readings coming out of that place now. If Torchwood's picked them up, they're going nuts."

"Is it dangerous?"

"I don't know. It's alien, I think, but other than that…"

"Judging from the way Van Statten is not panicking -- he's just sitting here, plotting ways to ruin us -- I think we're safe for now."

"He's letting you talk to me?"

"Dad's got him at gunpoint. Listen, Mickey, we've got these monitors to the outer room -- but not inside, where the power source is. Can you get us a look in there before Ace goes in?"

"I can try."

Ace called out, "Rose! What's going on?"

"We've got control of the lab. Mickey's trying to get us a look into that room."

"Just get him to unlock the door."

"We don't know what's in there."

"Maybe, but I know what's outside in the hallway, and I'm not going to be alone in here for long."

Across the line, Rose noticed muffled yelling and banging in the background and understood. "Mickey…"

"Yeah, I'm patched in. I heard. Hey, Ace -- good to hear your voice."

"And you. Gonna help me?"

"Hold on …" And then: "Got it!"

But Ace didn't rush in. "Mickey, it's still locked."

"Let me try again … uh oh. As soon as I unlock it, it locks up again. I got the code but -- I think there's someone else patched in."

The realization hit Rose: "Kevin." Who else could do it? The boy had lost his nerve, caved into pressure.

"Look, whatever," Ace said. "Keep trying, and I'll get this door open before it re-locks."

It took three tries, but finally, Ace yanked on the handle at just the right time, beating the re-lock just as three guards broke into the outer room and ran over -- to have Ace slam the inner door in their faces.

Rose flinched at the deafening sound of two or three gunshots -- not coming from the guards, but from inside, where she had no view.

"What happened? Who's shooting?" Could Ace even still hear the comm in that room? Was she alive to hear?

She was. "That was me. I blew out the lock. Er, I think I'm stuck in here, but they can't get in either. And whoever was fighting Mickey over the lock, there's nothing they can do about it now."

"What do you see?"

"Dark, mostly. Blinking lights … Ow! Hit my shin."

"Mickey, can we look in there?"

"Working on it. Bloody hell! Look at your monitors."

They had all gone blank. "That our friend?" Rose asked.

"He's really out to play hell with us."

"Good," Van Statten said. "I do have some loyal employees."

Ace was still audible, muttering to herself. "Shoulda brought a torch, stupid."

"Hang on," Mickey said. "I can get you lights. There you go."

A slight buzz could now be heard from Ace's end, and Rose heard her gasp.

"It's not one of your Daleks," she whispered. "It's a woman."

A stunned silence, and then Mickey said, "I got the monitors coming up."

They sprung to life again, with different views of a new room, and there was Ace, facing a complicated mass of cables and machinery. In the dim light, Rose could just make out a human-shaped figure in the middle of it all.

"It's not what you think," Van Statten said. He was still held under the guard of Pete, who was distracted by the screens.

"Oh yeah?" Rose retorted. "It's exactly what I think."

"It's not human. It's just alien technology."

Rose turned her back on him. "Ace, do you see a way to disconnect her?"

"Not yet. Still wish I had a torch."

"Mickey, anything you can do?"

"I'm looking, but that guy's still blocking me at every turn."

"I think Kevin cracked, Ace."

"Could be. He's not exactly the most strong-willed…" Ace gasped again. "Her eyes opened!"

"She's conscious?" Rose exclaimed.

"What?" Van Statten said. "Since when?"

Ace was speaking gently: "Can you hear me? Do you understand? I'm gonna get you out of here."

"Ha!" Mickey said. "He let his guard down, and I got through. All his tricks just showed me where to look. Ace, there's a computer behind you to your left. Disable that, and --"

"Rose Tyler."

An unfamiliar male voice, strong and clipped, had interrupted Mickey. Pete and Van Statten started as well as Rose.

"Stop this," the voice said. "Stop what you're doing now."

"Who are you and why should I listen to you?" Rose asked.

"We've met. I'm hurt you don't recognize me. I was looking for Dr. Shaw, you were looking for your father -- or so you said -- when you spilled a drink on my shoes and we struck up a pleasant conversation."

For all Rose had heard it only once, she did know that voice. "In the ballroom, in Salt Lake City."

"Exactly."

"So you're involved in this. You did seem like a creep, and what a surprise -- you turn out to be outright evil."

If Rose knew the man, the expression on Van Statten's face showed he clearly did not, and was losing patience. "I demand to know what's going on! Who is this guy?"

"Imbecile," the voice snapped. "Shut up."

Until that point, Van Statten had maintained some degree of cool, even held at gunpoint. Now rage overtook him. "I am Henry Van Statten, and--"

"And you are nothing. You are a puppet. You're not in control of this project, you never have been." In the man's voice, Rose could hear the contemptuous smile as he added, "You're not even in control of that room. That person would be Rose Tyler, and I will only speak with her."

Rose resisted feeling flattered. "All right, it's me. What do you want?"

"I want you to stop what you're doing. Leave it be."

"Not a chance."

"You don't know the forces you're letting loose."

"Save it. We've already heard it, but Mickey took that containment field down and nothing happened."

"The containment field served other purposes. But dismantle that set-up in the smallest way and you will effect a cascade that will, within a half hour, trigger an implosion of that room. Possibly the entire base."

"How do you know?"

"Because I designed it that way."

"You did what?"

"One more thing. Your friend Ace may escape the room before it's destroyed. But the creature you are trying to save will not. Disconnecting her will, quite simply and quickly, kill her. So I ask you: Is that how you want your rescue mission to end?"