BTBD Challenge 30 - Delicate

[m_findlow]

Title: Delicate situation
Fandom: Torchwood
Characters: Jack, Ianto, Gwen
Author: m_findlow
Rating: PG
Length: 2,145 words
Content notes: Written for Challenge 30 - Delicate at beattheblackdog
Summary: The team have to tackle a difficult situation using unusual means

'There's really no such thing as a day off around here, is there?' Gwen said as the SUV cruised along the streets. It was quiet on account of the bank holiday, with most people having opted for a trip down to the beach on this nice sunny day.

'Torchwood doesn't do holidays,' Jack replied.

'But the pay is excellent,' Ianto quipped.

'Rhys and I were planning a picnic down by the river,' Gwen explained.

'Well, if we're lucky, this will turn out to just be some junk fallen through the rift. There'll be plenty of time left for you to go enjoy your picnic.'

'What about you? Didn't you have any plans?'

'Oh, we did,' Jack replied. 'It wasn't a picnic, but it would have been fun,' he said, giving Ianto's leg a playful squeeze.

 

The area wasn't part of the nicer end of the city, full of run down factories and cheap housing. Rubbish littered the gaps between the buildings and empty lots, with old cyclone fencing warped in some places and cut through in others, graffiti splashed on every available surface.

The signal was coming from one of the empty lots situated behind a number of long warehouses, wedged in between them and the train line.

The object stood out like a sore thumb amongst the built up detritus, shimmering brightly in the sunshine. A few steps closer and Jack finally saw exactly what it was.

Jack held his arms out sideways, preventing the others from getting any closer.

'Everybody get back!' Jack ordered. 'Slowly,' he added. 'Don't make any sudden movements.'

'Why? What is it?'

'A bomb,' came the reply.

It was large and round, about the size of a basketball, silvery and yet transparent, looking like it was made from the finest glass. Inside they could just make out that the silvery sheen was moving, swirling inside it like smoke.

'What kind of bomb?' Gwen asked.

'A big one. If it goes off, it'll wipe out everything within ten city blocks.'

'Is it active?' Ianto asked. 'How much time do you we have?'

'It doesn't have a timer denotator, but it's extremely delicate and sensitive. Any sudden movement or sound could set it off.'

'So why are we still talking?' Ianto asked, lowering his voice slightly.

'We're okay so long as we keep our voices low, at least until we can get far enough away.'

Slowly, they backed away from the bomb, all the while watching it, and keeping an eye on where they were putting their feet. No one wanted to accidentally step on a loose branch or some broken glass, and blow them all to oblivion.

Once they were far enough away, Jack clapped them both on the shoulders and let out a brief sigh of relief.

'Okay, start organising an evacuation of the area. So long as we can keep things around here quiet and undisturbed, that'll buy us some time.'

'Time to do what?' Gwen asked.

'Deactivate it.'

'And you know how?'

Jack gave an uncertain look. 'Sort of.'

'Sort of?' Gwen repeated.

'That's why I need you to start evacuating people. Ten city blocks. Fifteen if you can manage it.'

'But that'll take ages!'

'Then get your bobbie friends to help out. Half the area is industrial so that should make it easier. Just tell them for God's sake not to use their sirens anywhere near here.'

'I just realised that my flat is in your exclusion zone,' Ianto commented. 'Just when I was starting to grow attached to the place.'

 

Back at the SUV Gwen and Ianto began putting in calls to local police and emergency services, quickly rounding them up for a level three terror event. That got them moving quick smart. Within ten minutes the first handful of cars and emergency vehicles were arriving whilst Gwen was giving instructions and Ianto coordinating evacuation areas. A local radio and TV broadcast went out asking people to leave the area whilst a bomb threat was being investigated. It would cause a certain amount of panic, but there was no other way to evacuate that large an area quickly. The police were left to doorknock the closest houses to ensure people were moving, and a local bus company quickly moved along the streets, picking up as many people as possible to move them away.

Just when it seemed like everything was going reasonably well, a thought entered Ianto's mind.  

'Oh no,' he said, turning pale. 'Stupid idiot!' he cursed, slamming his hand down on the front of the SUV. 'Why didn't I think of it earlier?'

'What is it?' Gwen said, worried by the unexpected outburst.

'The train line running right next to that spot where we found the bomb! If a train goes past, it'll set off the bomb.'

'But it's a bank holiday,' Gwen said. 'Who runs trains on a bank holiday?'

Ianto didn't wait to give Gwen an answer, already checking the timetables on his phone.

'Oh God, there's a service from Swansea due in twelve minutes.'

'We have to stop it.'

'Argh,' Ianto uttered, hanging up his phone. 'The trains run on bank holidays, but apparently not their customer service number!'

'Can't we hack their operations centre and stop it from there?'

'The signal boxes aren't connected to a central server. We'd have to go there and shut it down manually, and there's not enough time.'

'So what do we do?'

'I'm going after Jack. We have to diffuse that bomb before the train arrives.'

'But, but you can't,' Gwen cried.

'I'm going,' he said, ending the argument. 'Stay here and coordinate with the police to get everybody evacuated as fast as possible. If they've got a spare man, get him to the operations centre and have them shut the whole thing down. It's a long shot, but we might get lucky. Trains never run to schedule.'

 

Ianto jogged the ten blocks all the way to Jack's position, trying desperately to stay light on his feet. He saw Jack kneeling by the device and a cold feeling clutched around his heart knowing they were still in so much danger.

'Jack,' he called out quietly.

Jack turned and saw him, his expression fierce.

'I thought I told you to get the hell away from here?' Jack cursed, before remembering that yelling right now was probably a bad idea.

'And I told you that if you blow up my flat, I won't be happy with you.'

Jack shook his head. 'It's too dangerous for you to be here.'

'And you always think you can do things on your own.'

'I need you safe, Ianto.'

'I need the city safe. And in about eight minutes there's a passenger service from Swansea about to change all that. Now tell me what you need me to do.'

Jack knew better than to argue with Ianto when he got that look about him.

'I don't think there's anything you can do,' Jack said, despondent. 'I've been trying for ages but I just can't shut it down.'

'We couldn't just try cutting the red wire?'

Jack chuckled in spite of himself. 'That might work if it had wires.'

'So how do we stop it?' It really didn't look all that dangerous, more like an elegant oversized Christmas bauble, but knowing that it had the explosive capabilities of a hydrogen bomb, overrode those thoughts.

'It's got a mental link up. You have to be able to sync your mind with it before you can start issuing it instructions. No matter how hard I try, I just can't project a strong enough thought to connect with it. I can sense it, but it's just out of reach.'

'You mean like it's empathic?'

'Yeah.'

'What about a joint effort?'

'It won't work, Ianto. There's three thousand years of evolution that have enabled the brain to develop enough to do this. Even in the fifty-first century the ability is limited.'

'I had training at Torchwood One. It's why I can, never mind. Just try. I'll try to connect with you and then you use me to connect to it.'

Jack looked skeptical. 'Will that work?'

'Power of collective thought? We've got about six minutes to find out.'

Ianto knelt next to Jack and took his hands in his own, closing his eyes. It had been a while since he'd tried anything like this, but according to London he'd been quite exceptionally skilled. In the back of his mind, he could always sense when Jack needed something from him, but he'd never openly tried to connect with him. It felt like an invasion of privacy, tapping into someone else's thoughts. Not to mention that he was a little afraid of what might be hiding underneath the surface.

He forced himself to concentrate, despite the urgency and the danger, settling his mind into a flat calm sea, delicate tendrils of thought reaching out, searching for Jack. He was shocked when it felt like they were roughly grabbed and held tight, hands involuntarily squeezing Jack's as their minds connected. Jack was far stronger than him, pulling him inwards with his thoughts. It was thrilling and yet, he had to focus, reaching out for something else, trying to follow where Jack's thoughts were leading him.

There was another presence, like a shadow hovering nearby and he knew it was the device. He felt Jack trying to reach out to it and added his own efforts, his heart racing. He could feel the smooth casing of the device as if his hand were touching it, seeking out an opening, and feeling the heat of the contents swirling inside it.

'Open it,' came the soft voice in his head. It was only at the that point he realised that he hadn't been riding on the coattails of Jack's empathic link. Jack was providing the conduit, but he was the one in control. He pictured a small opening, brushing a finger along its edge until it lifted up and outwards, revealing the detailed circuitry inside.

'Now you can cut the red wire,' the voice joked.

'There are no red wires,' he said back.

Jack began sending images down the link into the device. Pictures of Cardiff, buildings, the bay, people having fun, lush green hills, music and song, love and laughter. He was showing the device what it would be destroying. Ianto added his own imagery, feeling the connection with the device deepen. It began pulsing and drawing them both deeper inside before a white hot flame rose up out of it, coursing through their minds, burning and rippling, before finally ebbing away into nothingness, the swirling smoke inside it having disappeared, leaving behind an empty crystal vessel.

When he opened his eyes, it felt like coming out of a dream, all a bit hazy, until he heard the shrill voice in his ear.

'Ianto! Ianto the train is coming, get out of there!'

He heard the honking sound of the horn, warning them to get away from the track. Jack grabbed him and pushed him down, before it sped past them just a few yards to their left, whipping up a flurry of grit and air that assailed them as they ducked away.

Ianto was amazed when the train continued to zip past them, that they hadn't been blown to bits.

'You did it,' Jack said, once the dust had settled, reaching out for the clear glass orb. He fixed him with a curious look. 'I had no idea you could do that.'

'Neither did I,' he confessed, still a little unsure just what he'd done or how he'd managed it. He was still reeling from the feeling of being connected to Jack's mind, caught up in it like a raging storm.

'Maybe we could get in a little more practice later on,' he suggested, excited at the prospect of experimenting with their new empathic connection.

'Jack? Ianto? What's happening?'

'We're fine, Gwen,' Jack answered. 'The bomb has been diffused. Everything's going to be okay.'

'Oh, thank God.'

'Tell the police they can start moving people back into their homes. We'll see you soon.'

'Will do.'

 

They rejoined her twenty minutes later, still battling with police and people everywhere wanting to know what was going on. No one it seemed wanted to go back home, not trusting the police, or just general busy bodies.

Jack was carrying the large glass orb in his hands.

'Is it safe?' she asked.

'Completely.'

'But how?'

'Let's just say it turns out two heads are better than one.'

Gwen looked at the pair of them oddly. Jack was grinning like the cat who'd gotten the cream, and Ianto looked equally sated. There's was clearly more to it than met the eye, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to know. As long as the city was safe, she supposed the rest was unimportant.

Comments

[bk_forever]

I always knew Ianto must have some special abilities ;)