UnAcceptable Surprises (3/7)

[teachwriteslash]

Chapter 3


July 2983 (old Earth Calendar)


True to his promise, Luke arranged every detail of Ianto’s trip to the Cantalian Outposts within a few weeks.


While the immortal resigned from his job, saw to the transfer of his patients, and arranged the storage of all but his essential belongings, Luke booked his transport on the Torchwood Cruiser, the Cooper.


As humanity reached out across the stars, Torchwood went with them to protect them from threats and ensure peaceful expansion. The Institute also enhanced its humanitarian, scientific, and exploration roles over the century, necessitating the creation of its own fleet of light cruisers, transports, and other ships capable of interplanetary or even intergalactic travel.


Many of the ships, such as the Cooper and her sister ship the Noble, bore the names of heroic figures from Torchwood’s past. Ianto had known most of these figures personally, and always felt a strange mixture of sadness and pride when he visited the ships. His personal favourites were the Sato – a deep space exploration vessel – and the medical frigate Harper. Jack had commissioned those two ships, the Cooper, the heavy transport called the Williams, and the rapid response vessels called the Thomas and the Nightingale during his most recent tenure as director of the Institute. He’d made Ianto a consultant on the design of the Harper – which was meant to respond to medical emergencies like plagues and natural disasters on far-reaching and less developed human outposts.


Exactly two months after his initial meeting with Luke, Ianto stood on the observation deck of the Cooper, watching Cantalian Outpost World Six grow ever larger as they approached. He’d been aboard the ship nearly a month as she patrolled her assigned sector. Since his presence on Cantalian Six was not an emergency, he’d had to ride along until she reached that point in her voyage. He’d spent most of the time researching the outposts and their traffic patterns – which had given him a good idea of what diseases might pose the greatest threat.


“Dr. Jones?” the ship’s captain, an older humanoid male named Alonso Frame, called from behind him. “We’re in teleport range now. You should prepare for transport.”


“My equipment?” Ianto asked, falling in step with the officer as they moved out of the room. The man had been very solicitous and helpful since he’d boarded the Cooper, and Ianto considered him a friend.


“You can take your personal things,” Alonso suggested as they made their way to the transport area. “We’ll use a cargo teleport to send down everything else.”


“I only brought the basics,” Ianto replied, indicating the large black duffle bag that he carried. He’d repacked it this morning in anticipation of their arrival. “I’m used to making do when the need arises.”


“That’s good then,” Alonso replied, holding out two items. “Take these. The larger one is a scanner so that you can navigate your way around the surface on your own. I’m not sure who Mr. Smith has meeting you, so I wanted you to be prepared. The other one is a communications device. It will work planet side, but right now, I've programmed it to our frequency so you can let us know when you’re ready for the equipment. We’ll stay in orbit for a day to get you settled.”


“Thank you, Captain,” Ianto said, shaking the other man’s hand before he stepped onto the transmat. “Wish me luck, Captain Frame.”


“Good luck, Dr. Jones,” Alonso said with a sincere smile and sharp salute.


Ianto felt the familiar pull of teleportation, and found himself standing on a grassy hill. Cantalian Six looked more rugged than his research had led him to believe. He’d expected a well-developed spaceport that hosted lots of traffic, not a park-like setting. “The coordinates must be off,” he muttered darkly. He knew he needed to contact the ship before they transported the equipment. He didn’t want to have to leave the items in the open or arrange for someone to carry them to the spaceport.


Using the scanner Alonso had given him, he searched the area for a population centre, frowning when he did not find one. Next, he tried to raise the Cooper on the transmitter, but got only static. “Damn it,” he sighed, wondering if his luck could really get any worse. Dumped and then stranded a month before his millennial birthday had to be some kind of record.


“You can stop trying,” a familiar voice called. “They left orbit as soon as their equipment indicated you were safely on the surface. It was all part of the plan.”


Ianto looked up, feeling his heart and stomach clench. “Jack?” he whispered, wondering if he was hallucinating.


“In the flesh,” Jack replied with a nervous smile as he pushed away from the tree he’d been casually leaning against when Ianto arrived. He was dressed in worn jeans, a jumper, and the jacket Ianto had given him. His hair was shorter than it had been in the video, and he looked tanned and relaxed. “It’s been too long,” he added gruffly. “Do I get a proper hello?”


“Oh, God,” Ianto gasped, dropping his bag and the scanners. He strode over to the Captain and pulled him into a passionate kiss. Part of him had been convinced that he’d never see Jack again, and he poured every ounce of relief at being wrong into his greeting.


“Wow,” Jack said as they broke apart. “I need to try stealth and subterfuge more often if it gets me a welcome like that.”


“Stealth and ...” Ianto began, taking a step backwards and disengaging from Jack’s embrace as his eyes narrowed. “What are you doing here?” He paused. “And where’s your new partner – the one you were so in love with that you skipped out on plans we’ve had for over eighty years?”


Looking sheepish, Jack suddenly became very interested in where the tip of his boot was working a rock loose from the alien soil. “I sort of made that up.”


“Made what up?” Ianto asked pointedly, arms folded across his chest in a familiar gesture of annoyance. “I suggest you start talking Captain Harkness, because I am not in the mood for games.”


TBC



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