Born of Fire (Doctor Who AU)

Chapter 19 Aliens and Harems

Daniel drove across the city to the abandoned warehouse district with the same sense of anticipation and excitement, and only a slightly lessened sense of glee than he'd did when he bounded out of the TARDIS. And he loved it. His night couldn't possibly have ended any better. That Marcus would kill him when he found out didn't matter. Well, maybe it mattered a little. At the very least, it would guarantee getting him thrown into the infirmary for breaking both the rules and his promise to not break rules. Then, of course, there was Addie. Once she found about this little adventure, she'd kill him. Knowing the man would have to stand in a line headed by a little German woman was slightly comforting.

His jaw twitched. He'd forced himself to accept all the limitations shoved at him every day. But that didn't make them any less tiresome. <i>Besides</i>, he thought,  <i>I've taken all the proper precautions.</i> And he had. He'd gobbled a couple of bananas and applied a fresh patch. He was fairly certain he wouldn't pass out or have a seizure.

He crossed the River Clyde, negotiated the dimly lit streets and entered the more industrial area of the city. Other than a few pubs, there was nothing to recommend this particular real estate. Filled with shuttered buildings and ramshackle warehouses, it offered nothing to the tourists. Thanks to an appalling lack of streetlights, the area made a perfect haven for aliens and criminals alike. Six blocks on, the only illumination came from his headlights. Daniel drove past a sign with large red words: <i>Glasdùin Wɛrhɑʊs Sreath Lm liczba mnoga fɝbɪdən </i>(Warehouse Road Closed: Entry Forbidden). He chuckled; someone had stolen the gates.

Daniel switched the headlights to night vision mode, instantly turning the sky and the landscape into an eerie green. He negotiated the narrow roadways running between the greyish-black buildings and half collapsed structures following the dashboard tracker. He rolled past the first building with one eye on Jake's and four other field agents bio-signs. He turned east between two buildings, driving past the row of empty shells that once provided generations with jobs. In the distance at the end of the row, he could see the backsides of a Torchwood van and SUV parked by a loading bay. He pulled the nearly silent car up behind the van and eased out, making sure to close the door quietly to avoid startling any entity with superior hearing.

He grabbed the med kit and tracking scanner to locate agents somewhere in the labyrinth. Harry had sounded breathless when he called, fuelling his worry. Daniel tracked their bio-signatures around three buildings before he finally spotted two signatures together, and three more somewhat spread out. The yowl of a cat followed by the squeal of a cornered rat broke the silence. He heard other rats skittering through and around a pile of rubble. Blowing out a nervous breath, he tucked the scanner in his pocket, stepped around the blockage and edged forward. He found two figures, unaware of his presence, crouching at the corner of the brick warehouse. He crept up and laid a hand on an unsuspecting Harry's shoulder. The older agent jumped back, nearly knocking Daniel over.

"Shite, Daniel, don't do that!" Harry whispered.

"Pay attention to your scanners! Where's Jake?" Daniel snapped. "What did you get yourselves into? I thought you were going to find the guy on the DVD."

"We did, he's in that building. Jake has a bio-damper on and we think he's hurt in there."

Daniel shook his head in disbelief. "I had five bio-signatures on mine; who else is here?"

"Ewan Donaldson, Bryce Anderson, and Elliot Munro, Craig Millar is on copter duty," Harry answered.

This is just great, Daniel thought. This was supposed to be a simple operation and Jake has turned it into a training mission. He'd kill Jake when he got him out, and then Pete would kill all of them. "Give me your earwig," Daniel demanded. He turned his attention to the young scientist who had no business in the field. "Steve, when this is over, we're going to talk about why you're even here, but for now, do you have your computer pad?"