Henry looks up from going over the notes from the experiment the next
morning when an unfamiliar sound  comes from the corner of the room.
Everybody there looks in that direction as an object starts
materializing in the corner, solidifying into a blue box with the
words police box over the door.

The door opens a few seconds later and a man who is nearly bouncing
with excitement comes out. “Dr. Henry Deacon? I'm the Doctor, I hear
you have a little predicament you need my help with.”

“Oh good, I was hoping your friends at UNIT or Torchwood would know of
a way to get hold of you.  Did you get the notes we sent you?”

“Yes, and can I say I'm impressed.  I don't know what your man was
trying to do, but  this level of time technology shouldn't be possible
in the current time period.”

Xander's body snorts in the corner. “I don't think they knew what they
were trying to do, Doctor. I'm Dr. Nathan Stark, the man at the heart
of the matter. And this,” he waves a hand at the body he's inhabiting,
“Is Alexander Harris,  the young man I'm possessing.”

“Can you tell us if Nathan's body is still inside the machine?” Jack
Carter asks suddenly. “Because I swear I saw it dissolving in little
blue sparkles, but Stark is convinced what Fargo and I saw was just
time restarting outside the chamber and he's still inside.”

“And I'd like to get my own body back if possible, Doctor. I'm sure
Xander would like to have his own back as well.” Nathan says.  “And
...my fiancee is pregnant, I want to hold my son or daughter in my own
hands when they're born.”

“Well, we can get one thing out of the way right now.” The Doctor says
cheerfully, pulling out his sonic screwdriver and scanning the
machine. He looks at the readout for a second and smiles. “Yep,” he
says, popping the p. “There's definitely a body inside the chamber.”

“Is. . .is he alive in there?” Allison asks, holding onto Nathan.
..err Xander's arm.

“Nope.” The Doctor says with a grin. Everybody's face falls. “But he's
not dead in there either, he's frozen in time, sort of like a fly in
amber. He's not alive or dead, he's nothing until time starts moving
for him again.”

“Well, that's something at least.” Nathan murmurs, patting Allison's
hand.  “Do you know how we can get my. . .my body out of there?”

“That,” the Doctor says, looking at him.  “is the 64,000 dollar
question, isn't it? Tell me exactly what happened.”

Nathan looks at Carter, who starts to tell the story.

The time finally arrives.  All the modifications the Doctor, Henry,
Nathan, in Xander's body, and Jack had performed on the original
equipment has been made, checked, double-checked, and triple-checked.
Allison chuckles softly when she sees Carter crossing his fingers out
of the corner of her eye.  She'll never admit it, but he's not the
only one calling on a little divine intervention for this to work.
The dark glasses everybody is wearing makes things difficult to see
clearly, but she swears she can see the Doctor smiling as he pulls up
a large lever attached to the machine, the light growing brighter and
brighter as Jack Harkness calls out numbers until it's too bright to
see inside the lab, even through the special glass of the observation
level and the dark glasses everybody is wearing.

Nathan and the Doctor had flatly refused to allow her. . . .and by
extension the others, into the lab when the process of trying to
remove Nathan from the machine, too dangerous he had told her. Only
Xander's hand cupping the baby bump and her child moving in her womb
had finally made her accede to the requests, though she'd threatened
to kill Nathan if he got himself dead doing this.  Jack Carter had
blinked but Nathan had chuckled and kissed her gently on the cheek as
she made her way up the stairs to the area that had been set up for
the others to watch.

Jack Harkness keeps calling the numbers on the display he's reading,
he can feel the time energy ripping through the room.  It had taken
them a week to make the changes needed to do this, most of the time
had been taken up by shielding to make sure the energy didn't leave
the room, this amount of energy could do more damage than merely a
'bad groundhogs day impression' as Jack Carter had called it when the
Doctor had asked what sort of experiences the machine had caused. The
Doctor had blinked, but Ianto had chuckled and been able to explain
the popular culture reference to the Time Lord.

“Now Jack,” the Doctor calls as Jack continues to call out numbers.
Jack Harkness quickly runs across the room as the Doctor opens the
machine from his spot across the room, he reaches in and pulls
Nathan's body to safety.  Jack can hear the Doctor quickly shutting
things down as he drags Nathan across the room before the overdose of
energy kills him.

The Doctor is across the room as soon as the energy levels start
falling to levels that safe, for him anyway, like Jack just proved the
energy isn't safe for anybody but a Time Lord.  He drags them to the
shielded area they'd created, propping Jack up against the wall before
turning his attention back to Nathan.

He's still breathing and the Doctor sighs as he feels a strong
heartbeat against his palm.  Looking at the readout on the remote he'd
hooked up to the machine, he unlocks the room when the energy levels
have dropped until it's safe for humans.  He's not surprised when a
rush of feet head down the stairs from the observation level, raising
his voice instead.

“Dr. Stark, please come in here.  Everybody else stay out, especially
you Dr. Blake, we don't know what chronal energy can do to a baby
still in the womb.”

He can hear Dr. Blake complaining about being ordered to stay back, he
smiles as he hears two voices talking quietly before a body drops down
beside him.

“I hope you know what you are doing?” He asks Xander, it's obvious
who's in charge of the body this time.

“I hope so too,” Xander says before closing his eyes and starts
chanting.  The Doctor blinks at the ancient Latin that crosses his
lips, it's not a language he hears everyday.  Obviously it's something
the younger man learned by rote, the pronunciation of some of the
words are not quite right.  Xander's hand lingers lightly on Nathan's
body, one on his chest over the heart and the other on his temple.
Xander's body shudders and collapses.

Nathan's eyes flutter open as the younger man is rolled off of him by
the Doctor. “Are you okay?” he asks him, scanning him with his sonic
screwdriver.

“I believe so,” Nathan says slowly, moving arms and legs he hasn't
been in for nearly six months.  “Although I feel like I could sleep a
week. How's Xander?”

“I . . .hate. . .exorcisms.” Xander complains softly from his spot
next to Nathan.  “Though sleeping for a week? Sounds real good right
about now.” His voice trails off as he gives up the fight to stay
awake.

“Can somebody please call the infirmary and have a couple of
stretchers brought down?” The Doctor calls, raising his voice
slightly.

“Already on their way.” Jack Carter says, squeezing into the remaining
area of the room. “Can they be moved?”

“Yes.” the Doctor says.

Carter looks down at Stark and smirks. “Now who's laying down on
the job, Stark?” he says with a grin, hand clapping the other man
on the shoulder.

“Told you I'd see you around Carter.”

The stretchers arrive a couple minutes later and Stark, complaining
the entire time about the indignity of being carried out of the room
and he's fine, he doesn't need to go to the infirmary, is lifted onto
it by Carter.  Allison immediately grabs his hand when he's out of the
room and holds it to her cheek, crying.

Xander is carried out of the room next and everybody but Ianto and
Jack Carter follow them up to the infirmary.

“Are you . ..oh my god, he's dead.” Carter says when he touches Jack
Harkness, still slumped against the wall.

“Yes, the energy released opening the chamber killed him.” the Doctor
says calmly.  “It was the only way.”

“Why didn't you tell us?” Carter asks sadly. “One of us. . .”

“Isn't this how your friend got into the chamber in the first place?”
The Doctor asks calmly. “Jack volunteered.”

Ianto touches Jack Carter calmly on the shoulder. “It's okay Sir, the
Captain is. . . .special.”

Jack Carter jumps when Jack Harkness jerks and takes a deep breath at his feet.

“And that,” the Doctor smiles, “is why we didn't want everybody to
come in here. Ianto, will you help Jack into the TARDIS so he can rest
while I start dismantling everything?”

“Do you need me to come out and help you Sir?” Ianto asks, taking the
key from the Doctor's hand as  Carter helps Jack Harkness onto shaky
feet. Looping an arm around Jack's waist, Ianto leads him over to the
TARDIS.  The Doctor watches Ianto open the door, looking forward to
the Sheriff's 'it's bigger on the inside' exclamation, but it doesn't
happen.  Carter just looks over his shoulder at him and grins. “I've
lived in Eureka for nearly four years now, nothing surprises me
anymore.”  Jack Harkness laughs at the pout on the Doctor's face
before the door shuts behind the three of them.

Carter comes out a few minutes later and walks over to the Doctor,
taking over the job of dismantling the dampening panels used to shield
the room so the Doctor can take them back into the TARDIS. An hour's
work with the three of them, Ianto having came out when Jack had told
him the TARDIS could watch him sleep, he didn't need to stay with him
and watch him, because while that's sweet after they'd just made love
god wouldn't that be boring right now?, has nearly one wall uncovered
and a cart of panels ready to be taken back into the TARDIS when Fargo
comes back into the room.

“Sheriff Carter, you're needed in the infirmary.” Fargo says.

“Stark throwing a fit?” Carter smirks.

“Yes Sir,”  Fargo smiles.  “And I never thought I'd be glad to hear
him complaining.”

Carter smiles, boxing up the last few screws they'd used to hold the
panels together and putting them on the cart before following Fargo
out of the room. The Doctor grins at them as they walk from the room
before taking the cart into the TARDIS.

He'd talked to Nathan and Henry, this level of technology was
dangerous in the wrong hands. Nathan had just snorted and nodded, he'd
be dismantling it while he was removing his additions to the room and
taking it with him.  Nathan hadn't even bothered to complain, merely
waving his hand at the chamber where his body was trapped, the machine
had caused nothing but trouble for them. Global Dynamics wanted the
machine gone, Stark didn't want to be reminded of what happened, and
the lab could be used for something else.

Carter grins as the nurses all look at him with 'get in there and shut
him up' looks when the elevator opens and he can hear Stark
complaining from a room.

He leans against the doorway. “Stark, we all thought you were dead for
nearly six months and we've had to deal with Eva Thorne and duck
Allison's mood swings,” he's out of reach, but she swats in his
direction anyway, “Let them fuss.”

“How is everything?”

“The Doctor is taking down the shielding, the takeover of Global
Dynamics by DCIS is in Fargo's capable hands . . .and saying that with
a straight face is just wrong.”  Carter grins at Fargo to take the
sting from his words.

Fargo grins.  “Xander already had the job of troublemaker on the team,
I had to settle for Deputy Head.” he says with a chuckle.

“Vincent is in love with Faith and the girls who came
with Daniel, he finally has somebody who both appreciates his cooking
and has a hell of an appetite, Dawn is in love with the spa, last I
heard she was begging Daniel to build one on their base,  right now
the closest one is the town that's a few miles away and they have to
make appointments a month in advance with so many girls there.”

Xander is in the other bed of the room, sleeping the sleep of the
'been possessed by the Snarky Bastard of the Century, been in the
middle of remaking the lab so he can have his own body back for nearly
a week and performed a fucking exorcism on myself thank you very much,
I am fucking exhausted and going to lie down for a week and now I have
to listen to everybody bitch because I was possessed and it wasn't my
fault this time' when there's a knock at the door.

“Dr. Stark, we haven't been formally introduced,” Daniel says, his
lips twitching as he comes into the room, “I'm Daniel Jackson, the
head of DCIS.  Your company is no longer under the umbrella of the
DoD, DCIS will be taking over.” he introduces himself formally.

Stark, his lips twitching as well, while they hadn't had the time to
really talk since the Doctor had arrived and they'd started working on
getting Stark back his own body they had talked at least once, gravely
holds out his hand for the other man to shake. “Okay, now that we have
the formal bullshit out of the way, what do we have to do to make
everything work smoothly between us?” Daniel asks, pulling over a
chair so he's sitting between Dr. Stark's and Xander's hospital beds.

“Shoot Larry?” Carter asks, his lips twitching.

“Don't tempt me.” Stark and Allison say in near unison, smiling at each other.

Daniel looks over at the bed where Xander's sleeping.  “Xander, you're
going to be ready to leave in the morning, right?  After all, you
getting possessed is the reason we're here a week longer than I had
planned.”  Daniel's grin says he's teasing and Xander opens one eye,
glares blearily at him and flips him the bird before yanking the
covers over his head.

“Just for that, you get to do  the paperwork over this.”

“I came, I saw, I was possessed, I got unpossessed, the end.” Xander
says from his bed. “How soon can I get out of here?”

“Not until I do kid,” Stark complains.

“And the longer you complain, the longer you both have to stay.” Allison says.

“Don't make me call in House.” Daniel threatens  “Our doctor,” he says
at the others looks. Fargo just grins. “He's the Snarky bastard of the
century and hates it when Xander tries to escape the infirmary, he
keeps threatening to tie him to the bed.”

“Kinky bastard, needs to use them on Wilson, not me.” Xander complains.

“Go back to sleep Xander, you're getting silly.” Daniel says, rolling
his eyes. “I'd warn the nurses about him trying to escape when he
feels better.”

Stark looks at Carter, “That sounds familiar.”

The next morning has Stark dressed in a suit talking quietly with
Allison and Daniel as he goes over the final paperwork putting Global
Dynamics under DCIS, the rest of the team had finished going through
the experiments and files they'd been sent to look over, Xander might
have been busy getting Stark out of his head and back into his own
body, but they'd had jobs to do.  The Slayers and most of the others
had headed back to the base last night, the only people still in
Eureka were Xander, Daniel Jackson, and Fargo.

Stark wraps an arm around Allison as the jeep carrying the three of
them pulls out of the parking lot. “Be it ever so humble,” Stark says
looking around as an explosion can be heard in the building and
Carter, sighing, heads in the direction of the elevators, Stark's gaze
lingering on him until the doors close. “it's good to be home.”  He
scowls a second later. “Larry,” he bellows, bringing the other man
running. “I'm going to miss Fargo though.”

“Yes Sir, Dr. Stark?” Larry comes running up.

“Find out what the hell happened and have the report on my desk.” he
waves a hand the direction Sheriff Carter had gone. “I'm going to be
with the Doctor the rest of the day.”

Larry stands staring after the heads of Global Dynamics as they walk
away.  Suddenly, being assistant to the Head of GD isn't looking as
good as he thought it would. How the hell is he supposed to know where
the explosion had came from? A second explosion and a bellowed 'Larry'
has him running towards the elevator.
 
 

Josette said "this is The End."