Title: Faster The Chase
By: Jennie-x
Pairing: Jack/Ianto
Rating: PG
Warning: WiP
Series: 1) Your Life And Mine, 2) Pain Is The Only Feeling
Summary: Can Jack protect Ianto from the people who are destroying the lives of empaths?***
The hub, for once was silent. Jack stood, staring awkwardly at Luke; one of the few people he couldn't lie to, and he just did. They both knew the truth, yet neither had any intention of admitting it. Jack knew that they would be ready to stop whoever they needed to stop, but he knew there was a possibility that they wouldn't be ready. He knew that he would do anything in his power to protect Ianto, no one was going to hurt him; he was sure of that. But empaths were strong, powerful, collective, which only made Jack shudder. Whoever was going after them were bound to be even stronger.
Laughter broke out in the hub and the two men were pleased for the distraction, especially when the beautiful sound was coming from Ianto. The past few days had been extremely tough on him, and laughter was a rare sound in the hub on a normal day.
"What's the joke?" Jack asked. He and Luke walked further into the hub where they saw Owen, Toshiko and Ianto laughing privately with each other.
Ianto looked up at Jack and smiled warmly, making both Jack and Luke forget their problems, at least for a few moments. "Weevil sex," Ianto stated simply, sending himself, Owen and Toshiko into fits of laughter once more. Jack and Luke exchanged confused glances. "Owen has a recording of weevils participating in sexual activities," he added with a small smile. "He's picking up tips."
"I'm sure Ianto could show you a few," Jack smirked, Ianto and Owen both blushed. "I'm not even going to ask why you have..." The loud, infuriating noise of the rift alarm caused the conversation to end abruptly, as everyone hurried over to the monitor.
"What is it?" Luke asked. He knew a lot about computers, but didn't know too much about how the monitor worked.
"Picking up human signals," reported Toshiko. "Fell through the rift perhaps?"
"Soon find out," Jack grinned. "Me and Luke will go. You three be good now." Owen rolled his eyes at Jack and walked back over to his monitor, Toshiko following; Luke headed over to where he had been working and picked up his stuff.
"Make sure Janet has her boiler suit in tact by the time we get back," Jack smiled. His hand reaching out for Ianto's, the simple touch reassuring them both.
"I'll do my best." Ianto returned the smile. He could sense that there was something wrong and that wasn't entirely down to his new abilities. Though knowing Jack was currently blocking his thoughts from him was as much as a give away as the hand holding. Not that he was intentionally trying to dig into Jack's thoughts, it was normally just there acting as a silent comfort. Not having it there was nerving. The hand holding was much more obvious. Even though Jack preferred physical contact to emotional conversations; physical contact for him often came in various forms of sexual positions. Hand holding was just, different. Though having his fingers linked with Jack's definitely made it a good different.
"You'll be okay, right?" Jack's voice was dripping with concern. Making Ianto even more curious to what Jack was keeping from him.
"Always." Ianto added to his promise by giving Jack's hand a reassuring squeeze. He was pulled into a very soft kiss, which left him craving more as Jack pulled away.
"Wont be long," Jack smiled, before walking out with Luke.
A few minutes after Jack left, Ianto pondered what to do. It was getting late, if it wasn't for the sudden rift alarm he knew Jack would have sent them all home by now. His mind wondered to what he and Jack would be doing now if it wasn't for the sudden emergency. But he didn't think on it too much. He knew something was wrong, and from the way Jack had been acting, he knew it was about him. With nothing better or pressing to do, Ianto slid back over to Owen and Toshiko. He and Toshiko had always been close and he was pleased that the sudden change in him hadn't made her want to run and hide. A friend in Torchwood was always a good thing to have.
It wasn't a long drive, but the tension in the car made the distance feel longer. Both men were wound up with worry. "We're there." Jack's voice filled the silence. He was never one to show his emotions, but after everything he had been through with Luke, he knew his feelings wouldn't be judged.
Jack got out of the car first, he saw what they were looking for immediately. A shaking body, lying broken on the stoned pavement. Jack thought his first assumptions were correct, it was another lost soul which the rift thought of kindly enough to spit back out. But when he saw Luke's reaction once he had got close enough to see the body, Jack knew it wasn't just another case of dealing with the aftermath of the rifts leftovers.
"Chris..." Jack had never heard Luke speak so soft. Yes he was a very gentle man, but Jack had never seen him so delicate. "Can you hear me, Chris?" Luke crouched down next to him. After placing a hand cautiously on the man's shoulder, he became aware of the fact that he was sobbing.
Even in the darkness, Jack could see how scared and young Chris was. It was the fact that he looked close enough or maybe slightly older than Ianto which startled Jack.
Chris looked up at the sound of his name. A vaguely familiar male stood, hovering over him. Next to him was a man he did not know, but he looked scared, worried even. "Are you hurt?" His accent was American, but slightly distant. Confusion swept over Chris like a tide on a sandy beach; why was he asking if I'm hurt? he thought, and why am I on the floor crying? "Can you stand?"
"I... I think so," Chris replied shakily, and before he knew it he was being helped up by the two strangers.
"Do you know who I am?" Luke asked.
"I recognise you. But I can't... I can't place you." He shook his head dramatically as though he was trying to push the pieces together.
"My name's Luke, this is Jack." Jack, at the mention of name smiled reassuringly at Chris, who nodded in return. "We're going to help you."
Chris nodded again, he didn't know why he needed help, he just knew; it was like one of those nagging feelings in the back of his head telling him he left the cooker on; he just knew he needed help.
-x-
Ianto, Toshiko and Owen were sat at the sofas when Jack and Luke walked in, followed by a very nervous looking man. Straight away, Ianto felt his fear, his anxiety, and his confusion. Instead of letting the feelings engulf him, Ianto let his mind wonder back to when he was laughing with Owen and Tosh, even if it was a childish giggle about weevil sex, it was still a good memory. One that he was determined to hold onto.
"What's going on?" Toshiko asked.
"Luke will explain as soon as Owen has done some tests on Chris," Jack said. "We need you to see if there's been any tempering with his mind."
"Got it." Owen smiled over at Chris, who was suddenly feeling very under pressure. He looked over at Luke, not understanding his blind faith in the man.
"It's okay. He's a doctor." The words from Luke were reassuring and Chris followed Owen to the medical bay.
"Toshiko, I need you to call Gwen back in." Jack said, "Then can you see what CCTV footage of the area where Chris was found?" Toshiko nodded and walked over to the phone at her desk.
Ianto stared expectantly at Jack, obediently waiting for his orders. He was surprised when he got a comforting smile, "I could really do with a coffee," Jack smiled. "Make yourself one too, and meet me in my office?"
"Sure." Ianto headed over to the coffee machine, he still couldn't sense what was going on and it made him worry even more.
Jack sat at his desk, he knew he had to be the one to tell Ianto about the empaths, about Chris, about everything that Luke had told him about the monitor. But he wish he hadn't. He didn't want to scare Ianto, though he knew that the youngest member of his team would take it all in his pride, not letting any one know how scared he was. Jack guessed that Ianto would probably try and hide his feelings from himself and Luke, which was about just as useful as hiding a rat from a starving stray.
There was a light tapping at his door, and he looked up to see Ianto standing there, two boiling cups of coffee in his hand. Jack gestured for him to sit down on the sofa, and sat next to him. "We need to talk." Jack started, and he flinched at his own words. "Something is happening, that you need to know about."
"What?" Ianto asked, immediately alert to everything Jack was about to say.
"The man we found, Chris Smith. He's an empath." Jack started with everything that Luke had told him. "He had been dumped in an alley, with no memory. Luke knew him straight away, but he didn't know him. When Luke did a mental scan in the car, he couldn't sense his abilities. Someone had taken them. The same someone who broke into Luke's mansion and stole his empath tracking device, monitor thing." Jack knew it came out in a bit of a frantic rush, but he could tell Ianto understood what he had said.
"Does he know who?" Ianto asked. His voice a little shaken, Jack was pleased that Ianto wasn't hiding his feelings straight away. His fear was evident in his eyes.
"No," Jack sighed. He took Ianto's hand in his, both coffee mugs now forgotten on the floor. "I don't want you to the leave the hub."
"What?" Ianto's voice was loud, and full of surprise.
"You're the strongest empath on Luke's monitor. I don't want you to turn out like Chris, I don't want to find you and have you not know who I am." The words hit Ianto hard. Jack was scared, terrified, not of the thing who was hunting down the empaths but over loosing him.
"Okay. I wont leave your sight." Ianto promised.
"Good." Jack sealed the deal with a bruising kiss.
-x-
Owen had just finished the examination when Toshiko, and Luke walked down. "How is he?" Luke asked. Chris looked tired, exhausted even.
"I've given him a sedative, a mild one." Owen explained. "The tests I've done can be slightly stressful, and he was already scared and tired. He'll sleep for a couple of hours, I doubt he would have been much help now any way. Too scared."
"What have you found out?" Jack asked from the bannisters. Ianto was standing next to him, his eyes washing over Chris. The fear was still there, but slowly being covered in exhaustion.
"He's an empath." Owen said. "Or, was."
"He isn't any more?" Luke asked, though he knew the answer already. "They've taken his abilities?"
"Yes." Owen sighed. "Bloody lucky to be alive, mind."
"What do you mean?" Toshiko asked.
"Ianto, you know the shadow on your brain?" Owen asked, Ianto nodded, they all knew about the shadow on his brain. "Chris had one."
"Had?"
"Yeah, had." Owen grabbed an x-ray and placed it on the screen, it showed a perfectly healthy looking brain, next to it was an older image, one with the shadow. "Same brain, no shadow. The empath abilities must be linked to that shadow, taking that away has taken his abilities, or the other way around. I haven't got a clue, but it's gone."
"But he'll be okay?" Jack asked. He had unblocked his thoughts from Ianto, and they were now sending reassuring thoughts backwards and forwards to each other.
"He's a little disorientated, like he's had a nasty bump on the head. We'll know more when he wakes up." Owen answered. "Going to tell us what's going on?"
The cog door rolled open, and they all looked up to see Gwen standing in the middle of the hub. "Luke will explain everything. Thanks for coming in Gwen." Jack smiled, though he was still a little weary of her. But he needed his team, his whole team for this one.
"You needed me." She smiled simply.
"Luke will explain to you three. I've already explained everything to Ianto." He said to Luke who nodded, and looked over at Ianto, feeling the fear radiating from him, though he hid it well. "Toshiko did you find anything from the footage?"
"Not really. It's all on my screen, maybe you could make more sense of it." She shrugged.
"Thanks. Right, you lot go up to the board room. Me and Ianto will look through the footage."
Jack pulled Ianto close to him once they were all out of sight. "I wont let them take it away from you," Jack promised, kissing him softly on the cheek. Ianto smiled back.
"I know."
***
Ianto ran. His emotions getting the better of him as he fleeted from the hub. How could Jack be so damn insensitive? How could Luke who now what this curse felt like push it onto some one else? Ianto continued to run despite the looks he was getting. He knew where he was going, he always knew that if he went there Jack would be able to find him. Then again he wondered why he wanted Jack to find him.
He sat on the large rock, his legs dangling over the side of the running lake. He stared into the green tinged water looking at his own broken reflection. Everything had got so fucked up so soon. Spitefully, he wished he had never met Luke. All he needed was Jack, because he had promised to make everything better. Maybe I should just stop caring, he thought.
-x-
Jack clenched his fists in realisation of what he had just done. He cursed under his breath and raced out of the hub. Without thinking he ran to where he hoped Ianto would be. Ianto himself had told him that this is where he came to escape, Jack just hoped he was right. Slowing down once he reached the park, Jack followed the small path to the top of a hill which was covered from sight by large trees.
There was Ianto. His legs hanging from the rock, his face buried in his hands. Jack was relieved that he could feel Ianto in his mind, he was angry and he had a right to be. But louder than his anger was his fear, screaming at Jack to make everything stop.
"I'm sorry," Jack said quietly. He figured Ianto knew he was there, could sense him like he could sense his pain. "I really am."
"I know," Ianto's voice was distant and far away. Jack edged closer, he wasn't too sure where he stood with the younger man.
"Want to talk about it?" Jack asked as he settled next to him. He was pleased that Ianto had moved closer, giving Jack the impression that he wasn't too angry at him.
"Words wont change any of this, Jack."
"No, but maybe it will help."
"Maybe it wont." Ianto looked up at Jack and sighed. "Sorry for running away."
"Don't be, you needed to escape. I do understand that."
"But your pissed off at me nonetheless for doing it." Ianto smirked. "I know what you feel remember."
"And I know what you feel," Jack said gently. "I know how scared you are, Yan."
"Like I know how scared you are, you mean." Jack nodded, his arms holding Ianto closer.
They sat there together in a comfortable silence for half an hour, both content in just holding each other. They didn't need words, they could feel each other in their heads and that was enough. The loud ringing tones of Jack's mobile broke the silence. With no hesitation Jack pulled out his phone and answered. "We're on our way." The call ended and Jack smiled down at Ianto.
"What's happened?" Ianto asked, he didn't want too leave this spot. Nothing could hurt him here.
"They're back at the hub, two new playmates for Janet. And Luke wants to talk to you." Ianto wanted to refuse, put his hands over his chest, stamp his feet and scream no. Instead he just nodded. "He's not a bad man, you know."
"No?" Ianto asked, his eye brow raised. "What he did to Gwen was bad."
"Yeah, but a man who has spent his life trying to help people, can't be judged by one poorly made decisions."
"It's those poorly made decisions that give people the reason to judge, Jack." Jack just nodded. He didn't understand why Ianto was so upset about what Luke had done. Yes, Jack understood that it was wrong. But he assumed Ianto's emotions had taken control, using that reason as a scapegoat to run away, and he couldn't blame him for that.
They walked back to the hub hand in hand, the physical contact reassuring them once again. "What ever happens, we'll be okay." Jack promised.
"Always," Ianto smiled. The cog door rolled open and they walked in. They all looked up at them, Owen and Toshiko look extremely pissed off. Gwen shared the same expression, but fear was ghosted over her face. Luke was no where to be seen.
"Where the hell have you two been?" Owen was the first to rant. The young medic instantly wished he didn't. He wasn't an empath but he could see how distressed Ianto's face was. "We were worried, we thought..."
"We just went for a walk." Jack smiled. "Everything okay here?"
"No it bloody well isn't." Owen spat. "Ianto, Luke wants you."
"Where is he?" Ianto asked tiredly, Owen could hear the strain in his voice.
"The board room," Owen replied gently. "You okay mate?"
"Fine." Ianto lied and headed upstairs, closing the door loudly behind him.
-x-
"How are you doing?" Jack asked as he moved over to Gwen.
"My head hurts," Gwen sighed. "Owen wont give me any painkillers yet."
"Why?" Jack asked.
"Ianto didn't get painkillers straight away, and he said I don't deserve them just yet." Gwen said bitterly. Jack looked over at Owen who was talking to Toshiko, the two calming each other down. "I don't get it, Jack. How does he deal with this pain all the time?"
"He's strong." Jack replied curtly. "I'll get you some painkillers."
"Thanks." Gwen smiled.
"Don't thank me. Thank Ianto. I personally believe with Owen and Luke on this one." Gwen nodded solemnly and watched as Jack walked away from her.
-x-
"I need you to help me track empaths down." Luke explained as they sat at the desk.
"How?" Ianto asked, he wasn't too happy about being in the same room with him, but he needed to be and he knew that.
"You can sort of sense each other. I've managed to contact five, all on their way here." He continued. "Just block out everything else, and reach out..." Ianto nodded.
Ianto closed his eyes, putting the pain in boxes he concentrated on the task at hand. His mind was blank, dark and full of loneliness, he wasn't too sure what he was doing. But he was calling for someone, anyone to listen to him. He could sense Luke, his aura was strong. He pushed past it to find others like them. But came up blank.
Ianto.
He heard his name. It was loud and unfamiliar. He walked towards it.
Ianto.
A different voice. Two of them. He was getting closer, he could feel it.
Then it hurt. Everything hurt. His mind was pulled into a never ending darkness and all he could see was red. A thick red, the colour of blood.
"Ianto?" Jack's voice was louder than the one in his head. He opened his eyes, scared that if he didn't he'd be trapped in the darkness for eternity. "That's it, come back to me..." Jack pleaded. He had been downstairs talking to Toshiko when he felt Ianto scream in his head.
"Jack?" Ianto asked wearily.
"It's me, I'm here..." Jack pulled Ianto into a tight hug, he felt a wetness on his shirt and pulled Ianto away slightly. His nose was bleeding, a sign of some one digging around in his head.
"Luke, what's going on?" Jack asked.
"I think I know whose doing it." He gulped. This wasn't good. This was slowly breaching beyond their control.
***
Luke was scared, and that made Jack scared. Luke had been through so much in his life, faced things Jack was too scared to even dream about; but he was scared now. Jack looked down at Ianto who was holding onto him as though his life depended on it. What ever he saw had scared him too. His nose was still bleeding, despite the tissue that was being held in place by a shaking hand. "Why don't we get Owen to give you some of those strong painkillers to stop your head ache?" Jack suggested. He could feel his lovers headache at full force, showing how powerful the people in his head were. Ianto nodded and Jack helped him out. Luke remained sitting at the desk, his eyes darkened with fear and anticipation.
"What the hell happened?" Owen asked as he saw Ianto walk down the stairs, Jack fast at his heels, one arm steadying as he was still shaking.
"Some one was in his head," Jack said softly. "Painkillers?"
"Come on, I'll help stop the bleeding too." Owen offered his arm, which Ianto reluctantly took. He understood that Jack needed to talk to Luke alone, he could sense the fear from both of the and it chilled him down to the bone. They were both supposed to be strong, and alert, they weren't supposed to be the ones who were scared.
Toshiko and Gwen watched anxiously over the bannister as Ianto sat silently on the metal bench. This in its self was unusual as Ianto always had a lot to say when Owen was playing doctor. Owen looked up at the girls with a questioning look. "What happened, Yan?" Tosh asked gently as she walked down the stairs. Gwen staying where she was.
"They were in my head, trying to take control." Ianto mumbled, when he closed his eyes he could still see the red, still feel their tight grip.
"Who were they?" Gwen asked.
"I don't know..."
"What's going on Luke?" Jack asked as he sat opposite him. Luke looked up but didn't answer the question.
"How's Ianto?" Jack shook his head, he could tell Luke how scared, how much in pain, Ianto was but he already knew the answer. "He's scared." Jack said simply. "So are you. What's going on?"
"Let me tell you a story, Jack." Luke looked Jack straight in the eye, the pain evident in his face. "Once upon a time, there were two people. A man, called Jason Davies, and a woman, Sarah Price. They were special, both empaths, powerful empaths and they were connected. Soul mates. But the power of just their abilities wasn't enough for them, and together they joined their abilities, doubled their strengths, but even that wasn't enough for them. They found other empaths, or other people who are known to have abilities, and one by one they cut them down, and took their powers. They did it for about three years, killing over twenty people, that's twenty abilities they didn't deserve Jack. Then it all stopped..." Jack didn't like this story.
"What happened?" Jack wasn't too sure he wanted to know.
"I'm not too sure. Rumour has it that Sarah got pregnant. This was about twenty four years ago. They didn't want the baby, it would slow them down. They wanted to be powerful, to take over the world or do something just as daring to make a name for themselves. They tried to get rid of it, over the three years of killing Sarah and Jason had picked up various healing abilities, and they must have rubbed of on the child because when Jason tried to stab the unborn child, the knife simply snapped in half. They were scared, she carried the baby the full nine months, and then once he was born, she dumped it out side of a church and they ran away."
"You think..."
"I know." Luke stated. "They were in his mind. That's why it was so hard for him to snap out of it. They had a hold on him, the colour red that he said he saw, symbolises their connection. The white light I saw that surrounded you too when I brought him here shows your connection. Their blood connection is stronger than any other connection, and they must know it was him. And when they realise how to, they will come and get him. And there's no telling what they'll do to him..."
"Does he know?" Jack asked, his throat suddenly dry.
"No. He thinks his parents died." Luke sighed. "You're going to have to tell him."
"How do we stop them?" Jack asked desperately.
"They're too powerful to take the powers away, the only way we can stop them is by killing them..."
"His parents?" Jack choked.
"They're murders." Luke said firmly. "You need to tell him, I'm going to try and get in touch with some more empaths, warn them..." Jack nodded and watched as Luke walked away. Jack walked down stairs. Ianto was sat on a bench next to Chris the empath they had brought in earlier, he was now wide awake. Jack walked closer to listen to what they were saying.
"It's going to be okay, you know..." Ianto smiled. "Luke and Jack, they do this sort of thing all the time."
"I don't know what's going on in my head. I don't know you, yet I know I can trust you. Do you know me?"
"Nope." Ianto smiled. "I know it's scary. And I know you're scared, but believe me when I say it's all going to be okay."
"I believe you. I just wish I knew why." Chris smiled and nodded as Ianto excused himself. Owen had started to run some more tests on Chris, who sat their taking everything in, a brave face masking his fear.
"Tell me what's going on, please Jack." Ianto said as he stood next to his Captain. Jack stared at Ianto's young face and pulled him in close, pressing a hard kiss on his lips. Gwen and Toshiko looked up, both could tell from that kiss that something really bad was happening.
"Come on, my office yeah?" Jack asked once the kiss was broken. Ianto nodded. He knew this was going to be bad too.
***
No, Ianto thought as Jack repeated what Luke had told him. Jack watched his reaction, he felt his confusion and reached out to take Ianto's hand in his, only to be pushed away.
"You're wrong." Ianto stated. "Luke's got it wrong!"
"I'm sorry, Yan." Jack said gently.
"My parents died in a car crash." Ianto said loudly. "They were good people, Jack. Not murderers."
"The people who raised you, Yan. They're your parents okay. Sarah and Jason are your biological parents but your adopted parents were your mum and dad." Ianto stared up at Jack with lost eyes. Jack could see his anger wavering and reached out and held him tight.
"I feel so lost, Jack." Ianto sobbed, tears that he had been holding throughout story time finally falling.
"I know," Jack whispered soothingly, his hand stroking Ianto's back and hair.
"What does all this mean for me, Jack?"
"I don't know," and Jack hated himself for it, "but I wont let them hurt you."
"Am I evil?" Jack pushed Ianto away so he could look into his eyes.
"No." Jack said forcefully. "There is not an evil bone in your body."
"There must be." Ianto stated. "I killed Lisa, the delivery girl, Dr..."
"No!" Jack said loudly. "You didn't kill any one."
"It's my fault they're dead though." Ianto sobbed. "Because I'm evil."
"You didn't kill Lisa." Jack shook Ianto, subconsciously trying to shake his fears out of him. "You tried to save her. You did it because you could feel everything she felt, the pain, the fear, you wanted to help..."
"I should have let her go."
"You would have blamed yourself if you didn't try to help, Yan. You just wanted to make her okay, you're not evil because you're capable of love. And their deaths isn't your fault." Ianto didn't say anything, but he could tell that the message had sunk in.
"What happens now?" Ianto asked his voice a little shaken because of the tears. He let his head fall on Jack's shoulder, he felt Jack's arms wrap around him tighter.
"Honestly, I don't know." Jack hated not knowing what to do. It made him feel weak, and right now he knew he needed to be strong. "Luke will know."
"Can I have a minute on my own?" Ianto asked.
"Course. When you're ready come down." Jack placed a gentle kiss on Ianto's lips and watched as he sat down on the sofa.
Ianto sat alone in the office, he needed to think about everything because all of a sudden a bad situation was a hundred times worse. "I'm not evil." He told himself when his mind convinced him that he was. He thought about his parents, the lovely couple who had raised him from when he was four years old. They had told him that his real parents had died, car crash, but every night his mum would tuck him in bed and tell him how much his parents loved him. That they were watching over him. Only now did he know the truth.
His parents didn't love him at all. He was just a thing that they didn't want, they were too corrupted by power to remember what love was. But Ianto wasn't like that, he didn't want power he wanted love, he needed love. And he had it. Jack.
He took a deep breath as he tried once again to pull himself together, now was the time to be strong. When this was all over, then he would cry and show his weakness. But right now, he just needed to be strong.
-x-
"What do we do?" Jack asked. He was worried about Ianto. He knew Ianto was upstairs trying to convince himself that everything Jack had said was true. Jack wanted more than anything to go upstairs and wrap his Ianto in bubble wrap and protect him from the world.
"If he's up for it, I'll need Ianto to look after Chris. There's some mind tricks if you like, that will tell us just what happened to him."
"Will it be like last time?" Jack asked, remembering the blind pain he had found Ianto in, screaming, and so caught up in his own head it took ages to come back to reality.
"I don't know." Luke sighed. "It shouldn't. All he'll have to do is sit with Chris and look in his mind. I would do it, but I think it will make Ianto stronger if he does it himself. Besides, Chris and Ianto already have made a bond."
"A bond?" Jack asked.
"Now is not the time for jealousy." Luke laughed, though it wasn't really there. "How did he take it?"
"He thinks he might be evil," Jack rubbed at the back of his neck, "I tried to convince him he isn't. I'm just hoping it sinks in."
"It will." They all looked up at Owen's voice. "Tea-boy isn't evil. Besides if he did turn... I could take him."
"Like to see you try," Ianto laughed from behind him, making Owen jump. He grinned and looked over at Jack who was smiling at him.
"I could." Owen smirked.
"Who shot you last year?" Ianto laughed. "Any way. What can I do to help?"
"Can you look after Chris?" Luke asked and Ianto nodded and headed over to Chris who was sat with Toshiko and Gwen.
"Hey," Ianto smiled. Gwen and Toshiko turned around to look at him, Gwen a little nervous after everything Luke had told her. "How's the head?"
"Better." Gwen mumbled and walked away. Toshiko rolled her eyes and headed over to Jack to see if there was anything she could do.
"How you doing?" Ianto asked as he sat next to Chris on the sofa.
"Dealing with everything," Chris admitted. "What's going on?"
"Do you trust me?" Ianto asked.
"Strangely, yes. And to be honest, I don't even know why."
"I'm going to tell you something, and it's going to sound stupid and you're going to laugh and tell me I'm an idiot..." Chris raised an eyebrow and Ianto couldn't help but laugh. "You're special."
"Special?" Chris laughed. "You're right, you're an idiot..."
"You don't remember why, because they took it from you. But you had these abilities..."
"Abilities?" Ianto wanted to tell him that he would get this done a lot easier if he stopped cutting in, but just sighed.
"You're an empath." Ianto waited for a heated reaction but instead just got a blank expression in return. "At least, you were."
"An empath?"
"Yes. I don't know what sort of empath you were, I'm not too clear on anything to do with empaths. But that's why you trust me. Because I'm one, and most empaths they're sort of connected."
"You're an empath too?"
"Yes." Ianto sighed again. "Do you believe me?"
"I don't know."
"That's fine," Ianto smiled.
"I don't remember being special, I don't remember anything..." Ianto wanted to wince away at how dejected he sounded.
"Will you let me help you?" Ianto asked softly. Chris nodded his head weakly, he didn't know what else to do. He didn't know if he was telling the truth about being an empath it sounded a little far fetched and more like a fairy tale. But he wanted to remember, he might not know why but he trusted Ianto, and he knew he could help.
***
Ianto sat with Chris on the floor, both legs crossed facing each other. "So what do I have to do?" Chris asked.
"Honestly, I don't know." Ianto laughed. "Did I mention I was new to all this?"
"Once or twice," Chris smiled.
"Just relax your mind, okay?" Ianto looked at him to make sure he was okay, he could feel the nerves coming from him. "It wont hurt." At least I hope it doesn't he thought more to himself.
Chris nodded and closed his eyes. Ianto did the same. Ianto could see Chris clearly, he was a mixture of blues and purples. He knew the colours meant something, but he didn't know what. Jack was white, his parents were a dark red. He made a mental note to ask Luke about it.
He followed the purple swirls, he could see Chris in various stages of life; his childhood, he seemed happy, two loving parents, an older brother and a younger sister. His life at college, again he always seemed happy. Ianto watched as the colour turned to blue, and he followed it. There was the pain, the fear, everything he remembered feeling when he first felt his powers. But they seemed lock, Chris wasn't in the memories, just the feelings. Ianto pushed deeper, and then he saw it.
That dark red.
His closed vision became a mixture of colours, and through the blur of confusion he could make out Chris. Pinned against the wall, an electric blue light that Ianto knew was a crack in the rift had engulfed him, almost in a protective circle. But Ianto realised it wasn't a circle there to protect him, more to trap him. Then his parents appeared. Their forms created from the rift around him. Ianto tried not to look at their faces, he tried not to look to deep into eyes that reflected his own by his father, or his mothers brown fair hair. He failed to notice how tall they both were, how tall and skinny they were. Just like him.
He watched as his parents, pushed their hands through the rift spikes. One of his fathers hand cradled Chris' head, his mothers over his eyes. There was a loud scream, and Ianto watched as the body fell lifelessly on the floor. His parents disappeared and the blue colours came back.
Ianto opened his eyes, he groaned when he felt the pain in his head.
"You okay?" He asked weakly.
"What was that?" Chris asked tiredly.
"What did you see?" Ianto asked, he was too weak to move but he wanted to get up from the floor.
"Just colours." He shivered. "I could feel you though, in my head."
"Do you remember anything?" Ianto asked. He pushed his body up, using the rails around him to pull himself up. He hadn't remembered feeling this tired in ages.
"No. Just the colours, blues, reds, and orange." Ianto guessed he must have been the orange colour. "Your nose is bleeding," Chris said as he dug into his pocket and pulled out a tissue.
"Thanks." Ianto yawned as he dabbed his nose dry.
"Ianto, you don't look so good..." Chris said, and before Ianto had a chance to answer Chris had hold of his arms as he fell. All he could see was red.
"Jack!" Chris yelled. Ianto felt light in his arms, too light. "Jack! Luke! Owen!" He screamed again, and relief rushed through him as he heard footsteps run across the hub.
"What happened?!" It was Jack. He was by his side in an instant, taking Ianto into his arms and holding him tight. Jack could feel how light he was too, and that worried him. Luke was down next to him too, feeling for a pulse which was racing beneath his fingers.
"Chris can you tell me what happened?" Luke asked softly.
"He was in my head, and then he just stopped. He asked me if I was okay and then he just fell."
"Did he say what he saw?" Luke asked, urgency failing to hide beneath his voice.
"No. All I could see was colours." Chris said. "Will he be okay?"
"We'll know that when he wakes up," Luke said.
"He's burning up." Jack said. "I can't reach him," He said, his throat scratched with emotion.
"Take him down to your room. Keep him from getting to hot, and keep trying to reach him." Jack nodded and picked Ianto up in his arms.
"Where is the doctor?" Chris asked. "Owen, where he is? Shouldn't he be looking after him."
"There's nothing he can do for now. And there out..." Luke sighed. There had been a weevil sighted and they had left.
"What happened to Ianto?" Chris asked sadly.
"I don't know, kid." Luke sighed. "I really don't know."
***
"Ianto!" The voice was sharp. Angry. Piercing through his ears. Shivers ran up and down his spine. "Ianto!"
He didn't recognise it. But he had heard it before.
He tried to open his eyes but his eye lids felt as though they were being weighed down. But in his mind the dark fiery red colour had engulfed him completely.
"Whose there?" He shouted. But his lips didn't move.
"Ianto!" It was a males voice this time.
And then it clicked.
My parents, he thought.
"Come to us Ianto!" The voice was grinning. Ianto could tell as the colours moved rapidly around him.
"No. never!" Ianto shouted defiantly but he knew his lips hadn't moved.
It was all in his head. All he had to do was wake up.
"Don't you want to see your mummy and daddy?" The haunting voice made Ianto shiver inwardly. "We want to see our baby boy..."
"I'm not your son!" Ianto spat. "My parents died when I was a kid. You two are nothing but murderers."
"What does that make you?" The female voice spoke again as the colours clouded his vision.
"I'm nothing like you!" Ianto shouted. Jack promised me I wasn't anything like you, Ianto thought.
"Jack was wrong." The males voice laughed. "You killed Lisa, he knows that."
"You're wrong!" Ianto tried to move, but he was anchored to the spot. "Jack doesn't think that..."
"He was going to shoot you. You were on your knees, a convicted man waiting for his death sentence. Three people died because of you!"
"No!" Ianto screamed. "I didn't... it was an accident... I didn't know..." He rambled in shock.
"You're more like us then you know."
Ianto had given up fighting the voices inside his head.
"And we need you to do something for us..."
-x-
"Come on Ianto," Jack cried. He had stripped Ianto down to his boxers, a wet flannel across his forehead trying to lower his increasing temperature. "I need you to wake up for me..." Jack pleaded. He could feel Ianto shaking in his arms, the thought of his Ianto being in pain made Jack will him to wake up sooner. It scared him that he couldn't feel Ianto. He couldn't sense his fear, or his pain. It was as though he wasn't connected to him any more. And that's what scared him the most.
Luke's footsteps pulled Jack out of his fearful daze. "How is he?" Luke asked, though the look on Jack's face told him the answer.
"No change." Jack ran a hand over Ianto's forehead, combing his fingers through his thick hair. "Can you wake him up?"
"If I try to do something it could damage his mind." Luke said. "I can't sense him. He's far away."
"Where do you think he is?" Jack asked, but he was sure he knew the answer already.
"With his parents." Luke sat down on the small chair next to the bed and stared at the two of them. "He's strong, Jack. He'll come back to you."
"I hope so." Jack sighed. He was too scared that he was going to loose him. Life without his Ianto in it would make it nothing more than an existence, and now Ianto's empath abilities promised Jack a longer, much longer life. Jack wasn't ready to loose him yet.
"He's not going any where, Jack." Luke promised.
Jack closed his eyes, his mind suddenly swimming in pain. Ianto's pain. The fear ran through his body made the hair on his arms stand up, he was suddenly freezing cold. The body on his lap started moving frantically. Jack tried to calm him down, but the pain in his head made it hard for him to move.
Luke picked Ianto's thrashing body up and settled him properly on the bed. Ianto's temperature had dropped and he was now ice cold. With a loud, ear piercing scream Ianto woke up.
His eyes blood red.
***
"Ianto..." Jack breathed in a sigh of relief. Ianto was awake.
"Jack?" His voice was cold and far away.
"I'm here," Jack whispered. His whole body was still raging in pain he couldn't work out whether the pain belonged to him or Ianto.
"Jack, his eyes," Luke's voice was full of concern. But his words had Jack confused. He couldn't see Ianto's eyes, he moved around his young lover, the pain spreading to his legs but he pushed it away.
Ianto looked up at him. His facial expression similar to a lost child. But his eyes.
Jack gulped.
His eyes were full of evil.
"I'm scared, Jack..." Ianto's voice was hoarse and he was close to tears. But Jack couldn't concentrate on his voice, the beautiful Welsh accent went past his head, all he could concentrate on was those eyes.
"Ianto, can you hear me?" Luke spoke loudly with false confidence. His whole body was trembling.
"Luke?" A quiet whisper, but those eyes were trained on him. "I'm scared."
"I know," Luke said soothingly. "I'm going to make it better okay."
"Everything hurts," Ianto's voice didn't raise above a whisper, sending chills up and down Luke and Jack's spine.
Jack closed his eyes, seeing Ianto like that was wrong. Right now he wished for him to be asleep again. He had promised him that he wouldn't let him turn, wouldn't let him become like his parents. But he had failed him.
"Jack?" Ianto's voice startled Jack out of his guilty thoughts. "Hold me, Jack?" Jack wanted to say no, but his Ianto sounded so weak, so terrified. "I need you to make me feel good again." Jack looked over at Luke who nodded his consent. Wearily, Jack moved closer to Ianto. He could see his body shaking, and he realised now that the pain he could feel was Ianto and all he wanted to do was make it better.
"I'm here," Jack whispered. His arms wrapped loosely around Ianto's waist, he could feel his skin shivering at the contact. "You're freezing."
"I'm in my boxers," Ianto replied quietly. Jack grabbed the blanket with one hand and wrapped it around them both. Ianto's head resting on his shoulder, his eyes still red. "Promise me something, Jack?"
"Anything," Jack answered though regretted it once he heard what Ianto had to say.
"Promise me you'll kill me before I hurt someone," Jack shook his head and held onto Ianto tighter. "Don't let me become like them." He spat the word them, and Jack couldn't remember him sounding so bitter.
"I promise." Jack fought back the tears. He wouldn't have to keep his promise because he knew he wouldn't let Ianto hurt anyone. Ever.
"So tired," Ianto said weakly.
"You should sleep," Luke said. His skin ran cold as those eyes looked at him.
"Why do you keep looking at me like that?" Ianto asked, Jack and Luke both had looked at him like he was a creature, something that should be looked in the vaults. Panic wrecked his mind, had he already hurt someone? Chris, it must have been Chris...
"Your eyes," Jack whispered in his ear. "They're red, Yan."
"Red?" Ianto's voice broke halfway through and his body let out a strangled sob.
"You should sleep." Luke said. "It could just be from what happened. Sleep and then we'll work something out."
"What if they stay red?" Ianto asked weakly, he didn't want to think of an answer.
"I don't know." Luke sighed. "I'll leave you two alone." With that, Luke headed up the ladder.
Jack knew that he was still worried about the other empaths, he had managed to get hold of four more but out of over a hundred, four was practically nothing. Owen's search had found ten more empaths who were currently in hospital being treated for concussion.
"What happened?" Ianto asked as he linked his fingers with Jack. Jack pulled them both under the covers, holding Ianto close to him.
"You were helping Chris, you remember?" Ianto nodded his head tiredly in Jack's chest. "You saw the attack, then you just fainted."
"I didn't hurt Chris?" Ianto's voice was flooded with relief.
"You haven't hurt anyone." Jack said strongly. "Where were you?"
"With my parents." Ianto said reluctantly a few minutes later. "They... they told me I was like them. That I had already killed three people. They wanted me to do something..."
"What?" Jack asked, the shooting pain throughout his body was slowly going. But was now replaced with fear, Ianto's fear.
"They wanted me to kill." Ianto said quietly.
"Kill who?" Jack asked, his voice was strained with anger.
Jack didn't get an answer. He looked down and sighed when he saw Ianto's eyes closer. He was relieved to see his eyelids, he never wanted to see those red eyes again. But he needed an answer. He knew Ianto's parents were strong. The blood connection between them were stronger then his connection with him. But a promise is a promise, and Jack knew he wasn't going to let Ianto hurt any one.
***
Next part of Faster The Chase.
- Main Torchwood slash page
- New stories page
- Jack/Ianto stories
- Ianto/Owen stories
- Other pairings stories - ie threesomes
- F/F stories
- Gen stories
- Amazon.com - Torchwood: Children of Earth
- Amazon.co.uk - Torchwood - Children of Earth [DVD] [2009]
- Amazon.ca link - Torchwood - The Complete First Season (7DVD)