If it wasn't for the brightly coloured scales that covered the top of its head and disappeared down the back of its shirt, the being could have passed for human.
Intensely grateful that – for now, at least – it didn't appear to be hostile, Jack approached cautiously, gun in hand but at his side so as not to appear openly threatening.
As he neared, he noticed that the creature appeared to be fiddling with a small device resembling a PDA as it stared intensely at the bemused-looking ewe before it.
Getting closer still, he realised that he actually recognised the device the being was gripping and poking at. It was a Universal Translator – very popular and in widespread use throughout much of the universe from about the 32nd Century onwards.
It would translate instantaneously both to and from thousands of languages from hundreds of planets around the universe, but not, evidently, the language of sheep.
Hoping that it was an advanced enough model to automatically switch to a recognised language, and that English was still included in the default language pack, he spoke up tentatively.
"Hello?"
The alien looked up, startled. Scrambling to its feet, it took a few steps away from Jack and Tosh before looking down at the Translator. After studying the screen for a brief moment, it looked back at Jack and Tosh.
"Hello?" To Jack's experienced ear, the slight distortion caused by the Translator doing its job was clear. "Where am I?"
"Earth. Early 21st Century." Jack told the clearly shaken and nervous alien.
"Earth? But, I was…" The being's shoulders slumped. "What happened?"
"You were sucked into a space-time rift that runs through this area. I'm sorry." Jack answered.
"Can I get back?" the alien asked hopefully.
Jack shook his head sorrowfully. "I really am sorry, but probably not. We can't control the Rift."
"Great," the alien sighed. "I crash land on an alien planet thousands of light years from home, I'm not even in my own century, and I'm probably stuck here. This day just couldn't get any better, could it?"
Despite the Translator distortion, the tone and content of the alien's statement reminded Jack distinctly of Owen, and he fought down a smile at the reality that species, home planet and time period didn't really matter – the same personality traits emerged everywhere and every time. Pushing the thought to the back of his mind, he pushed his professional persona to the forefront again.
"We'll do everything we can to help you, I promise." He tried his best to look reassuring.
"And who would 'we' be in that scenario?" questioned the alien, not looking particularly reassured.
Jack stuck a hand out to shake, taking a brief second – after he had done it – to hope that the being wasn't from a culture where handshaking was considered rude or obscene.
"Captain Jack Harkness." The alien took a hesitant step forward and shook Jack's outstretched hand, a wary glint in its eyes. Dropping the contact, Jack gestured to Tosh, and then to Owen and Suzie who were approaching at a brisk walk. "And this is my team, Toshiko, Owen and Suzie. We're Torchwood."
If the name sparked any hint of recognition in the alien's memory it didn't show on its face. "Oelmue," it – he – volunteered. He looked thoughtful for a long moment before speaking up again. "So… if you can't send me home, what exactly do you mean when you say you'll help me?"
"We can't send you home, but we can help you deal with being stuck here." Jack explained.
"And maybe one day in the future we'll know enough that we can send you home," Tosh added optimistically.
Jack opened his mouth to explain further, but changed his mind before he started speaking. "Let's get you back to our Hub. We can explain more there."
Jack turned to head back across the fields, but hadn't taken more than three steps before he realised that Oelmue had made no move to follow. When he spun back to face him he noted the uncertainty in the alien's face. He raised his eyebrows in query.
"What about my craft? It's crashed, and I don't want to just abandon it."
"We found it," Jack assured him, "and we'll get it somewhere safe before anyone else spots it." Oelmue gave him an oddly confused look. "The majority of this planet's population don't know for sure yet that there is life elsewhere." Despite the regular near-invasions he added silently.
Oelmue nodded slightly and allowed himself to be led back to the SUV.