Chapter Fifty-One
I've been following some of The Torchwood writers (e.g. James Moran, Joseph Lidster) on Twitter... it's highly amusing! XD
Also – GDL's on Facebook?! *boggles*
Dedication: Galadriel1010 for helping me when I got stuck! :-) And also to WickedTorchwoodFan again, for also helping me when I got stuck!
(A quick note: this is unchecked and a complete first draft, more so than most other chapters, so please forgive anything that doesn't flow right etc... I just don't have enough time at the moment and I figured you'd want a chapter sooner than Sunday!)
Disclaimer: I worship at the shrine of RTD and the BBC.
Ianto and G-Ianto both swung around in synchronisation as the splashing sounds grew louder, the aliens drawing closer. Ianto felt his pulse quicken, and
"What do we do?" G-Ianto demanded in an undertone, his emerald eyes flashing.
Jack flashed him a quick grin. "What we usually do – run!"
Ianto rolled his eyes and chased after Jack, water sloshing up over his shoes; as he ran, he felt his chest tighten and his breathing started to tear from his throat like the ragged gasps of a winded wrestler.
"You okay?" G-Ianto asked, barely even short for breath.
"Fine," Ianto choked out. His eyes were starting to water.
"Jack, we need to stop," G-Ianto called, taking Ianto's elbow and turning a sharp right, into a side corridor. "Ianto's..." he trailed off, unsure how to finish. "We need to stop," he repeated lamely.
Ianto slid down the wall, trying desperately to even out his breathing and get his body back under control. It felt like he was wearing a far-too-tight jacket, which was gradually getting smaller and smaller until he could barely see straight.
He felt a heavy hand on his shoulder, and looked up through streaming eyes to see Jack's worried face, barely more than an indistinct blur.
"Ianto?" Jack asked.
Too loud, far too loud... Ianto closed his eyes and focussed on evening his breathing, but the jacket only got tighter and tighter.
"Ianto, please, look at me," Jack said, his voice still painfully loud.
"Too loud," Ianto muttered, his voice cracking. He didn't open his eyes, keeping perfectly still with his knees drawn up to his chin and his arms wrapped tightly around his shins.
Jack stroked back his hair, his caress gentle. "Talk to me, Ianto," he murmured. "Tell me what's wrong."
Ianto cautiously opened one eye, squinting up at what he assumed was Jack's face. "Too loud." He winced at the volume of his own voice. "Can't breathe. All blurry."
"Ssh..." Jack murmured. "S'okay. Just take deep breaths."
"What's wrong with him?" G-Ianto asked warily, careful to keep his voice low.
"Leukaemia," Jack said shortly. He never stopped running his fingers through Ianto's hair. "We need to get him to hospital."
Ianto was grateful that G-Ianto didn't question Jack, simply looping his arm through Ianto's and helping him to his feet, Jack on Ianto's other side. His head swam as he straightened, his eyes still screwed shut.
Struggling down the corridor, Jack suddenly stopped, taking a step closer to and in front of Ianto.
"What is it?" Ianto asked, exhaustion threatening to overwhelm him.
"I think we've been discovered," Jack said softly.
-T-
The flat was silent at this time of the evening. Martha stared at her laptop screen with glazed eyes, fighting exhaustion.
Toshiko emerged from the bathroom, a towel knotted around her and her hair wet. "You really should get some sleep," she said, her face serious.
Martha shook her head. "I know. Thanks for letting me crash here," she said.
"I mean it," Tosh said. "You look dead on your feet."
"I just... I feel like we're missing something. Something big."
Toshiko frowned, stopping on her way into the bedroom. "What sort of thing?"
Martha shrugged, blinking furiously to try and clear her vision. "I don't know."
"Hang on a sec – I'll just get dressed." Tosh slipped into her room and, seconds later, came back out in a pair of dark jeans and a baggy t-shirt. "So, you were saying?"
"I... I have a feeling that we need to look at the bigger picture. Think outside the box a bit," Martha said, her brain slowly coming back on-line.
Toshiko paused in towel-drying her hair and frowned at her. "I'm guessing you— oh!" Her eyes widened in sudden enlightenment, and she leapt up, dashing over to where her own laptop was on charge and quickly flicking it on.
"What is it?" Martha got up and peered over her shoulder as the computer expert deftly manoeuvred through welcome screens and opened up the internet browser. She noted the tiny Torchwood logo in the bottom right-hand corner and smiled slightly; extra Torchwood access, then.
"We've been so preoccupied with getting Jack and Ianto back that we haven't asked why the aliens chose Ianto in the first place," Toshiko said, speaking quickly and excitedly. She tapped out a quick succession of commands onto the keyboard. "We haven't even wondered what they want – or where they come from."
"Or how long they've been on Earth," Martha added. "We know next to nothing about them."
"I've run a quick search for fish-aliens through the Torchwood species database," Toshiko explained. She jerked her chin to the printer in the corner. "Printing the results now... can you—?"
"Done," Martha said smartly, swiping the sheets up and scanning the small print. "Give me a minute to read through this..."
"I also think that it could be an idea to look through the history of Guernsey and the other islands, see what might possibly be their arrival," Tosh continued, "as well as what they've done, how many they've killed."
"We could get Owen to go through the medical records again," Martha suggested.
Toshiko shook her head. "Not now. We can call him later, if we need him. He's been through them so many times that I'm surprised he can't recite them by heart."
Martha frowned at the print-outs. "Tosh, the only aliens that fit what we know aren't named here," she said. "But it doesn't tell us much more about them, other than that the only case with them was resolved—" she broke off, her eyes wide with shock. She looked up to meet Toshiko's anxious gaze. "The only case with them was resolved by a certain John Smith."
"A.k.a. the Doctor," Toshiko finished, her expression grim.
Martha nodded. She cast the papers onto the sofa and grabbed her bag, retrieving her mobile phone. "I think it's high time we hear an explanation, don't you?"
-T-
The Doctor's eyes were dark and haunted, memories collected in them like smoky wraiths, nightmares which none deserved to be privy to. "You found out," he said quietly. "Took you longer than I expected."
Martha glared at him. "What the hell are you on about?" she demanded, almost spitting with rage, her hands balled at her sides.
"I think we all deserve a better explanation," Toshiko said. She had her arms folded defensively across her chest, but her chin was up and her eyes glittered with cold fury.
"It isn't that simple—"
"It never is with you, is it?" Martha snapped. "I trusted you to help us with this situation, Doctor." She shook her head. "I thought that you were the hero. That you only had all our best interests at heart."
The Doctor crumpled onto the Hub couch, his expression guarded. "I never intended this to happen," he said. "But there isn't anything I can do."
"You knew about their base!" Martha said in disbelief. "You knew where it was – you helped build it, for crying out loud!"
"It was meant as a sanctuary," the Doctor argued. "A place for them to live unbothered by humans who were hunting them."
"Instead it's been used as a prison and torture chamber." Toshiko looked upset.
The Doctor didn't look up, couldn't meet their eyes. "They promised me that they wouldn't harm any humans," he said. "They swore on everything they hold dear. I don't understand—"
"They've gone against their oath, then, haven't they?"
"It might have been their intention from the start," Tosh added.
The Doctor shook his head. "I know them," he insisted. "They have to be being controlled by something else."
"Like what?" Owen startled all of them.
Toshiko spun around, mouth opening in shock. "How long have you been there?"
"Long enough," Owen said grimly. He didn't take his eyes from the Doctor's. "Long enough to hear, anyway."
"It isn't what it seems like," the Doctor tried. "This has to be just a misunderstanding."
"Like, when in telling us about what we're up against, you didn't tell us that you're best mates with them," Owen said.
"Or was that just a 'misunderstanding'?" Martha asked coolly.
The Doctor looked from Martha to Tosh to Owen and then back to Martha again. "At least let me explain," he said. "Give me one more chance to redeem myself."
There was a pregnant pause before Martha said tightly, "Okay, then. But it'd better be good."
Uh... slightly confused as to where that all came from! :-) But I hoped you liked it all the same!
Remember, reviews are loved. You may think: "Oh, she doesn't need any help – other people review." BUT REMEMBER: If you all think that, then nobody reviews!
Take care, all of you! :-D Don't overstress – keep cool!