I apologise. I said to upload before I went gallivanting off to university, and, obviously, I didn't. Forgive me? I'll try with all my might to upload as regularly as possible! Feel free to beat me up if I don't!
Anyway, enjoy this chapter!
Ianto stumbled as he walked down the corridor, barely able to see where he was walking in the dull lights. As he moved further into the depths a smell rose from the distance. A metallic, iron smell. It got worse as Ianto hung onto the wall for guidance, his feet unable to move fast enough to their destination. As he turned the corner a door came into view, a blue and white flashing light erupting from the small window, illuminating the small, dank corridor. The smell was strong now, causing Ianto to bring his hand to cover his nose and move to save from gagging at the repulsive stench. Slowly he watched as he moved his shaking hand forward to the door, twisting the key in the lock.
"Lisa?" he called out, recognising the room for that which he hid his girlfriend in. "Lisa, are you here?"
The light from the machines blinded him temporarily, his eyes not used to such bright exposure. Standing in the middle of the room he saw a figure, the light shining in the metal covering most of it.
"Leese? Is that you?" Ianto hesitated, moving from the door way and into the room. As he got closer he saw that the figure was almost completely converted; the only flesh exposed was the neck and face. He sobbed as his eyes focused on the features. It was Lisa. Her once beautiful, warm, shining, deep brown eyes were now cold and lifeless as they stared ahead.
"Li-" Ianto sobbed, his face contorted into a pained grimace. "Lisa?"
The figure suddenly moved, turning towards Ianto with metallic clanging on the concrete. "Human recognised. Ianto Jones. Torchwood. Accomplice. He shall be rewarded. He shall be upgraded." the cold, calculating voice assessed.
Ianto took a step back, "no, Lisa, this isn't you. Come on, where are you in there?"
"You will be upgraded, rewarded for all that you have done. Humans are weak, cybermen are strong. Together we shall improve this species."
"No." Ianto sobbed, reaching out for Lisa and stroking the beautiful chocolate skin of her face, the skin he loved to touch. "Lisa, this isn't you!"
The cyberman turned once again to the position it was previously in. It was then that Ianto noticed a body fixed to the conversion unit. It was Toshiko.
Ianto gagged as he looked at her. Blood covered most of her body, her entrails hanging limply from her stomach as her eyes looked up, horrified and lifeless. "Tosh? Toshiko? Please?" He begged, moving closer despite all reasoning, wishing her chest would rise with a breath and her eyes would scan to find him. Pieces of metal stuck out of her body and neck, but her face remained untouched, as if frozen at the point of death.
"She was not compatible. She had to be deleted."
"Tell me you didn't do this."
"Torchwood three were not compatible with the technology; cybermen need strength, they were weak and their feeble bodies could not sustain through the process. You are not weak. Conversion will be successful." Lisa's computerised voice sounded from behind him.
It was only then that Ianto noticed a pile of bodies behind the open door. He moved towards them, frightened at what he knew he would find. Tears were flowing freely from his eyes, tears about Toshiko. Tears for Lisa. Tears for his own self hatred and shame.
"Oh god." he whispered in horror as he was able to look at the bodies. Owen, Gwen and Jack lay mangled onto of one another. Thrown away like scrap. Blood pooled around them, spreading over the floor towards Ianto's beautifully polished black shoes. With a sob he sank to the floor, looking at each of the faces; the same look of horror and fear etched into each of their eyes and features.
"Did you love him?"
Ianto turned quickly at the voice. It was Lisa, but before everything; Canary Wharf, Cardiff.... He watched the woman he loved walked towards him, no metal covering her skin but a pair of aged jeans, a loose t shirt and converse shoes.
"Did he give you what I couldn't?"
"Wh-what do you mean?" Ianto stuttered, confused.
"Harkness." She spat. "Did he satisfy you? Did he make you scream, Ianto?"
"It wasn't like that! He was going to get suspicious, I needed to protect you. It was to distract him. I did it for you!!" Ianto defended himself, breathing heavily as he watched Lisa's face contort into anger.
"How often did you bend over for him? Did you think about me? Did you think about him when you wanked? Tell me, Ianto, tell me!" She screamed.
"No! It- I-. Lisa! Please. You have to believe me," Ianto said, rising to face her. "I was protecting you!"
"You're a whore. A slut. They always warned me about you. They always said that you'd cheat on me eventually, I just didn't want to believe it." A tear escaped from Lisa's eye as she whimpered. " But you did Ianto. You did. You've broken my heart."
Ianto sobbed and tried to touch her, "Lisa-"
"NO!" Lisa spun and grabbed his hand, having suddenly transformed back into the cyberman but kept what was left of her humanity, it seemed. "You betrayed me Ianto Jones, and now this is your punishment. These people," she spat. "Paid the price. You killed them Ianto, this is all your fault."
A hand closed around his neck, crushing his windpipe and dragging him up. "No," he choked, clawing and kicking his legs. "Lisa, no, please, ah-" His eyes scanned to the bodies as the dark closed in.
He did this. He killed them...
----
Ianto jolted awake and scrambled from the sofa to the sink in the kitchen, throwing up the little contents that was in his stomach before sliding down the cupboards to the floor, heaving and panting.
Tears streamed down his face as he sobbed uncontrollably. The nightmares were slowly getting progressively bad. From when Owen had prescribed the sleeping tablets almost a week ago, Ianto had eight hours of sleep a night, sleeping straight through despite his nightmares. At the back of his mind he almost thought that Owen had given him the tablets as a punishment, a way to get back at him for almost killing the team. Yet, rationally, Ianto knew that it was his own subconscious attacking. His guilt and shame was being projected into his sleep, thus making him dream about the horrors that may have happened, in increasingly creative ways. His mother always said that he had an over-active imagination, and now he could finally agree.