Scene 28

As The Doctor hurried along, Clara clutched tightly to his chest, she began to revive.

Whimpering with obvious discomfort, she moved slightly in his grasp.

He stopped for a moment to adjust his hold on her, speaking softly, comforting her.

"Shhhhh! You're okay, My Clara, I've got you. Hold tight to me. We're going to the Tardis."

He could not risk being seen, he'd been lucky so far.

Wherever the creatures had gone, they'd soon be returning, once the radio frequency room had been repaired.

He knew that would only be a matter of time.

Nothing else mattered now but returning to his faithful Blue Box.

"Doctor. I'm here...find me."

Clara was still sending her message to his mind, still trying desperately to contact him, but she was weakening, he could feel it.

By the moment.

He had to get her safe.

He reached for the invisibility watch, pressed the button.

Because Clara was clinging to him, they both disappeared together.

Jack had told him to look out for his marks on the walls. They counted down in lines as he got closer and closer to the room where the Tardis had been abandoned.

Mercifully the door was unguarded.

Clicking his fingers as he ran towards it, the door sprung open and he stumbled inside.

Once he entered his ship there was no time for worrying about how Clara was.

Not just then.

Not at that moment.

Setting her down, he took off his coat spread it on the floor then laid her on it...no time, no time.

"Look after her." He cried, looking up towards the ceiling, invoking the sentient being that was the heart of the Tardis.

The 'Old Girl' hummed, and a beam of warm light enveloped Clara's inert form.

She stilled, quieted and curled herself, still wrapped in Jack's greatcoat.

Frantically he hurled himself around the console, switching on every connection, every button, as the Tardis sprang to life around him.

The Doctor punched in the coordinates of the Vortex Manipulator, which Harkness wore on his wrist.

oOo

Returning to the holding place for the Children of Earth, Jack laid the rest of his explosive devices. His original plan had been to blow the labs, release the viral contents. But now he realised, he had to destroy these poor innocents too.

Or leave them to die a slow death, unattended by their carers, once the bacteria hit and killed them all. The virus could not reach them, but no one would be left alive on the outside to care for them.

He looked up at the row upon row of compartments, each containing a miserable half life.

He could not dwell on what he was about to do.

He really didn't have a choice.

"Forgive me...Please." He whispered.

Then turned to leave.

Using the palm pilot, he punched in his key code. The red lights on the display flashed to green.

He now had fifteen minutes before the whole place blew sky high.

It was barely enough time.

If he ran hard, he could just make it back to the room where the Tardis was.

The Doctor would wait until the last possible moment, he knew.

God, he was weary! So bloody tired.

Slipping through one of the doors, it snapped shut behind him and he came face to face with several of the 456.

"Oh shit!"

There was no escape.

No point in trying.

A mellow voice he recognised spoke to him.

"I believe we've met before."

The sound was sickly sweet.

"I believe we have. Captain Jack Harkness, at your service." He growled...

"...Thames House. 2009. Earth. I thought my radio signal killed you."

"You thought incorrectly, I transported back. We thought you had been destroyed also...

Your plan was clever but it was thwarted."

"Takes more than a virus to finish me." Harkness laughed.

He held the gaze of the lead creature, defiantly, whilst he deftly secreted the palm pad into the back pocket of his trousers, out of sight, as he spoke again.

"You left empty handed. That was the main thing."

"That will not happen again. We have The Doctor. He will deliver us all the children we require."

Harkness laughed again.

"I wouldn't be too sure of that, I think you'll find your bird has flown."

Jack glanced at his watch.

Ten minutes.

Confusion seemed to strike the aliens, they conversed with each other, in a strange tongue.

What they were saying, he could not understand, but he grasped that they were very angry.

They appeared to be communicating thoughts to others, in other parts of the complex.

"It would appear the Doctor has escaped. None of you will leave this planet alive, and he will not try to leave without his friends, he cannot go anywhere without his ship."

The creature moved towards him, Jack backed away, pulling his stun gun as he did so.

"You will be taken to our factory. You will be placed with the human female. The Doctor will come for you both."

"You're too late. The human woman isn't there either. I freed her myself."

"You are an extremely irritating member of your species, Captain Harkness. You and your Torchwood have been a constant annoyance."

"My Torchwood is no more. I work alone now. I like it better that way."

How much time now?

Five minutes.

Jack didn't have time to reach the Tardis now.

It was too late. He would be eviscerated with them all.

Well, he knew he couldn't die...somehow he would come back.

He knew that.

Christ! How many times had he died now!

It didn't get any easier.

Three minutes.

He just had to keep them talking.

He stepped back again, raising the gun slightly.

"So...did you enjoy my little diversionary tactic?"

"Ah! So you are the source of the radio frequency malfunction?"

"You'd better believe it!"

"You are clearly determined to anger us. I'm afraid it will bring about your swift demise."

"I'm counting on it."

"You would sacrifice yourself? You humans are remarkably stupid."

Two minutes.

"Oh, believe me, it's more than worth it. I have some old scores to settle with you. I lost people I loved. People who were close to me. And a man killed himself and his family because of you."

"You humans die...all the time. We offer your children a long life."

Jack laughed aloud.

"You offer them nothing. You take their lives away. You take away the essence of what makes them human. Laughter. Tears. Love. Hatred. Anger. Happiness. Everything. You are nothing more than fucking drug dealers. The lowest of the low."

One minute.

There were seconds remaining, Jack braced himself for death, yet again.

Only this time he actually felt good about it.

He was euphoric.

A smile playing on his lips.

This one would be a good death...