fandomweekly | [#175] Better Late... (Torchwood)

Theme Prompt: #175 – Late Arrival
Title: Better Late...
Fandom: Torchwood
Rating/Warnings: PG
Bonus: Yes
Word Count: 1000
Summary: Team Torchwood have some difficulty getting where they need to be.

Cardiff’s one-way system existed for a number of very good reasons involving the reduction of traffic congestion in and around the city centre. It was effective, up to a point, but it could also be a nuisance, especially for anyone needing to get from point A to point B in the fastest possible time.

It didn’t help that the Torchwood SUV was not considered an official emergency response vehicle by the Cardiff police, which was frankly ridiculous, considering some of the things the team had to deal with. Hostile alien invasion forces, rogue Weevils attacking citizens and tourists alike, Blowfish high on drugs, explosive devices rendered dangerously unstable by their trip through the Rift… the police were neither trained nor equipped to handle such things, they wouldn’t have the faintest idea of how to deal with them, which was why Torchwood Three had been set up in the first place.

Unfortunately, as necessary as is might be to keep secret all details of what the organisation actually did, that very secrecy inevitably got in the way of their ability to do their job. They couldn’t contact the police and ask them to clear the route to their destination without explaining why, and to do that would be to risk causing widespread panic, not to mention potentially getting people injured or killed, because most curious onlookers had no sense of self-preservation whatsoever. Chances were, they wouldn’t understand enough about what they were seeing to even recognise they were putting themselves in danger.

So, despite the flashing blue lights on the SUV, Team Torchwood were stuck in traffic. Not even cutting through side streets with Jack’s foot jammed down hard on the accelerator was going to help them this time; there weren’t any side streets, and roadworks in progress had narrowed this section of the one-way system to a single lane, which was almost at a standstill.

“How much further, Tosh?” Jack snapped, revving the engine as he glared through the windscreen. Eight cars ahead of them, the traffic light was showing red; only a couple of cars were getting through each time it turned green.

“Just under a mile,” Tosh responded from the backseat.

“Stupid one-way streets! We were closer ten minutes ago than we are now! We’d be faster on foot! By the time we get there it’ll be too late!” He slammed his hand down on the steering wheel in frustration.

Ianto knew what was coming next before Jack opened his mouth.

“Ianto, take the wheel. Owen and Gwen, with me. Tosh, direct us, and see what you can do about that damned traffic light!”

“It’s not part of the system, Jack, it’s independent and on a set timer. There’s nothing I can do.”

Jack wasn’t listening, he was already out of the car, with Gwen and Owen hurriedly following. Owen managed to snag his medical bag from the rear compartment on his way out, then the doors were slamming shut, and Ianto was scrambling past the central console into the driver’s seat.

Horns sounded as Jack, with half his team in tow, raced across the next street, paying little heed to the traffic. Ianto winced at the sound of screeching brakes, then when there were no sounds to indicate a collision, relaxed and inched the SUV forwards. Only six cars ahead of them now. Not that it helped them much; at the rate the lights were changing, it would be another ten minutes before the SUV was past them, and they’d still have to follow the diversions in place to accommodate the roadworks.

Tosh was busy on her computers in the rear, directing Jack and the others, and Ianto listened with half an ear, at the same time running a street map of central Cardiff through his head, trying to find a quicker route to the coordinates. He had a distinct feeling that the clock was against them. Backup might not be available when Jack needed it.

Rift events were usually over in a mater of moments. A portal would open in a flare of golden light, something would be ejected, and then it would close again, like a match flame blazing briefly into life before being blown out. This one, however, was behaving differently. The alerts had sounded back at the Hub twenty minutes ago, but instead of closing, the portal had stabilised. According to all the data Tosh had collected since then, it was still open, but it was unclear whether or not anything had come through. To make matters worse, there were no CCTV or security cameras covering the patch of waste ground where the portal had formed.

Now there were four cars ahead of the SUV. Ianto gripped the steering wheel tighter. The lights changed again, and two more cars slipped through. He readied himself to slam his foot down on the accelerator, because when the two in front of him went through, he was going with them.

“Brace yourself, Tosh.” Glancing in the rear-view mirror, Ianto saw her grip the seat.

The lights changed, the cars ahead moved, then Ianto was swerving out and around, paying no attention to the blaring of horns. He had the route mapped out in his head now, screeching around corners.

“How are we doing?”

“Jack and the others are almost there, but I think we’re out of time. Something’s coming through, and it’s big.”

Ianto swore under his breath, spun the wheel, cut through an alley barely wide enough for the SUV, out onto another street, round two more corners, before skidding to a halt on the edge of the waste ground. He drew his gun even as he shut the engine off, staring at the massive creature that had emerged.

“What is that?” Tosh gasped.

“No idea, but it’s hostile.”

Jack was already down and unmoving. Gwen and Owen were shooting at it, to no effect.

Opening the boot, Ianto grabbed the Big Gun and readied it.

“Better late than never.” Taking careful aim, he fired.

The End

[#175] Better Late... (Torchwood)

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