The Orphan and Her Family

Chapter Forty-Three

Jack, Sophie, and Gwen find themselves at a police station. Andy, Gwen's old partner, had called them, hoping they could help him. Andy leads them down a corridor, to the cells. In one of them, is a large, muscular man dressed as a Roman soldier.

"Double murder," Andy explains, the soldier bellowing at them in Latin, "Stabbed two blokes in Penarth. Brutal, it was. No mercy. What are we supposed to do? He doesn't speak a word of English, and he's dressed as a bloody Roman soldier."

"He's not dressed as a Roman soldier," Jack starts, "he is a Roman soldier and he's shouting in Latin."

Andy turns to Gwen, "Only word I could pick out was Gelligaer."

Gwen chuckles, and corrects Andy's pronunciation of the word, "There's a Roman fort out at Gelligaer. Built around 75 AD."

"So he was headed there, time went wibbly, and he ends up here," Sophie supplies.

"Excuse me?" Andy butts in, "Hi. Any time you feel like talking sense."

Jack sighs, "That soldier came through a crack in time."

"He's not serious, is he?" Andy asks Gwen, "This sort of thing just doesn't happen, not in Cardiff."

"Just because you don't understand it, doesn't mean it isn't true," Sophie replies.

"I know it sounds mad, Andy, but..."

The police officer sighs, "All right, Mulder and Scully. Say I do believe you. Which I don't, because it's b*ll*cks. Say I do. How exactly are we meant to handle a prisoner from two thousand years ago? I mean, has he got the same rights as anyone else? How's this gonna work with the CPS?"

Jack smiles, "We'll take him off your hands." He pulls a small case out of his inside pocket. Popping it open, in the same movement, he slides open the observation slit on the cell. The Roman soldier rushes at the door, and starts bellowing at them.

"Ego in semper homo indomitus. Verere. Valde verere!" he shouts.

Sophie raises an eyebrow, "I have always been an indomitable man. Be afraid. Very afraid. Certainly sounds like a Roman soldier."

Jack glances back at her, "Under any other circumstances, an exuberant Roman soldier would be my idea of a perfect morning."

She rolls her eyes, and shoves him lightly. He smiles, and hands her the case, holding a needle between his fingers. He pulls the cell door open, and slips inside. As soon as he's in, Andy and Gwen lean against the door, holding it closed. Once the cell goes silent, they both let go, and turn to look at one another.

While they're talking, Sophie slips away, hoping for a few moments to call the Doctor, and let him know what's going on. She steps down a side corridor, and reaches for her phone. Out of nowhere, she hears a familiar voice. Turning, she finds Morgan smiling happily at her. She takes a step back in trepidation. "Mo?" she breathes.

"I need you to do something for me, Soph," she says, stepping toward the woman.

"What?" Sophie squeaks out, her eyes widening.

"You have to open the rift. Open the rift, bring me back. Open the rift, and let me come home."

She snapped out of her shock, when her mobile starts to ring. She glances away from her friend, checking to see who's calling. When she looks back up, her friend is gone. Sophie takes a deep breath, and answers her phone, "What's up, Doc?" she asks, her heart still racing.

"What do you know, Sophie?"

"It's, uh, the Rift. Owen had to open it, in order to get Tosh, Jack, and myself out of the 1940's. Now, it's gone a bit wibbly."

"Right, as I supposed. Any other strange things?"

"Uh...yeah actually. I just saw Morgan, not like I'm used to, y'know, like closing my eyes, and seeing her body." She takes a deep breath, "It was like she was right in front of me. She asked me to open the rift, to bring her home."

The Time Lord sighs, "I was afraid of that. There are legends about that rift. They say, if you open it, things will get much worse for the world. Release a curse on the planet."

"Right, and legends usually mean aliens."

"Exactly. Whatever you do, do not open that rift."

"Right, thanks Doc. Be safe."

"You too."

Sophie smiles, and slips her phone back into her pocket. She leans against the wall, and takes a few deep breaths, steeling her nerves.

"Sophie!" she hears Jack shout.

Shaking her head, she turns around, and walks back up the corridor, finding Jack standing just outside the cell. He sighs when he sees her, "You can't just wander off like that."

She rolls her eyes, "You sound like the Doctor."

He shakes his head, and swings back into the cell. He crouches over the unconscious Roman soldier, and starts to scan him with one of the many devices that Torchwood has. Gwen leans against the door post, "If Owen managed to open the Rift to get you and Tosh back, can't we do the same thing for these people? We've still got the Rift manipulator."

Sophie's eyes widen, "We can't. We can't open the rift again"

Jack glances up at her, concern etched across his face, "We're talking about taking control of time, not bringing three people back from the past. Besides, look at the damage Owen caused. We mess with it further, we'll put the planet in danger," he turns his attention to the Welshwoman, and winks, "Have I ever let you down?"

She turns away, and walks back down the corridor, freezing in front of one of the cells. Jack stands up, and looks at her. He calls her name, twice, before she finally looks over at him.

"Come on. Hustle," he gestures at the unconscious Roman.