3.06: End of the Line

## Episode

Continuing from the last episode, Live Control agents surround the base's entrance and with Dan out cold - Shane is trapped at gunpoint.

"Put the gun down Alexa, you don't have to do this" Shane orders whilst also trying the sympathetic approach.

"Oh but I do, thanks to my friend here" she smiles at Ral "Shoot him!" Ral orders.

Before she can shoot though, Shane launches himself at a red button on a desk nearby "CODE RED EMERGENCY" an automated voice says around the base as red lights flash and a siren goes off -elsewhere what look to be U.N.I.T (Unified Intelligence Taskforce) soldiers can be seen hanging out they notice Torchwood's Code Red emergency and start quickly preparing themselves as they respond to the code red.

Back in the base, the sirens in the base have disorientated Ral and Alexa, they have also brought Dan back around with their loud noise, Shane grabs Dan quickly and the two run to another part of the base where an elevator awaits.

"They have agents out there" Dan says - "We're going the back way" Shane replies as the elevator ascends, Alexa gets a shot off but it misses, Shane and Dan react to the shot though.

The elevator comes up in an abandoned room, Shane and Dan leave the room and head back into the city - the two see the Live Control agents checking the people of Lincoln possibly for conversion but not expanding their search much further.

Shane quickly finds a back alley and him and Dan head into a building through a back door and up some stairs.

"We're in a shop Shane" Dan says in a confused way.

"Yes we are, now just try and blend in" Shane says with a cautious tone "Our main problem is stuck in the base, they aren't getting out anytime soon plus U.N.I.T will be here soon so we have to hold out until then." - Dan then says after a pause "Can't believe Alexa turned on us, I would gut that bitch if I could" his tone comes across as passive-aggressive.

"No hard feelings I hope, she is in step with Live Control and possibly even The Trickster's Brigade after all" Shane says in response.

"No, I mean she has betrayed our side as far as I'm concerned, I'll never work with her again." Dan says again rather passive-aggressive.

"You wont have to once we're done with Ral and Live Control" Shane reassures Dan.

Back in the base, Ral and Alexa continue to try and find a way out as the elevator route has been shut off due to the base's security protocols - Ral and Alexa try to open the front door to no avail so Alexa uses her Torchwood ID to open the front door, now they are out.

Shane and Dan see the two escape "Fuck...Run" Shane says to Dan urgently, the two of them flee the shop but aren't seen as the crowd is distracted by Ral and Alexa's escape.

Running onto the Brayford Waterfront, Shane and Dan think of a plan only to be distracted by an advertising screen which has a black beetle on it (the calling card of The Trickster's Brigade) - Shane and Dan look around to see if there's any sign of the brigade anywhere other than the advertising screen but there is not however now Shane has his gadgets back, his scanner picks up some very strange energy readings coming from the Lucy Tower parking garage.

Back in town, Ral and Alexa can be seen trying to find Shane and Dan. Ral screams inhumanely in anger as Alexa points her gun at random people demanding they tell her where the two Torchwood agents went but they obviously have no idea what she is on about because she isn't getting any response. Ral starts getting impatient and organizes a party of Live Control agents to start searching the city - he also organizes another party of Live Control to round up the citizens for "recruitment."

Back at Lucy Tower parking garage, Shane and Dan explore the floors of the parking garage firstly not finding anything but empty cars however on the middle floor, Dan notices three hooded figures (there features completely hidden) with black beetles in their arms, Shane seems scared as he seems to know that they've just found The Trickster's Brigade.

Dan says to the three hooded figures "We've been looking for you" Shane seems reluctant to engage the Brigade at all - The three hooded figures say nothing like there not even there - Dan goes as far as aiming his gun at them but they dont even flinch and just stand there, beetles in arms.

"Well do something, you're just standing there!" Dan shouts at them and the three start advancing towards him, he backs away from them a bit and in this moment Alexa and some Live Control agents suddenly arrive at the parking garage.

"Crap" Shane says knowing him and Dan are about to get surrounded, Shane and Dan look for escape options but find no way out so with no other options Shane and Dan run and launch themselves off the parking garage hoping to the land in the water below - they do just that and they both manage to survive the fall.

In the parking garage, the three hooded figures point at Alexa as an echo like voice can be heard around "Finish the job and we will give you your freedom." Alexa then turns around revealing the reason she turned on Shane and Dan - there's a black beetle on her back. Ral then arrives at the parking lot "Recruitment is under way, the city will be converted and watch Torchwood fall with it." he declares.

The three hooded figures turn to Ral and Ral seems to have another mental breakdown "It's...you" he says like he's about to go insane, holding his head "Get away from me" he screams as the hooded figures surround him, the words "Chaos is good" can be heard echoing around the parking garage.

Alexa then notices Shane and Dan getting out the water so herself and some Live Control agents head downstairs to try and finally end Shane, Dan and even Torchwood as a whole, outside - Shane knows he needs to act now or this is going to be the end of the line for him.

Alexa and Live Control storm towards the two men, guns drawn "Do you really want to do this?" Shane shouts to Alexa - Alexa uncharacteristically twitches but before she can speak Dan fires a warning shot which scares the hell out of Shane and even the Live Control agents. The shot hits a parking meter making a loud noise startling everyone.

The Live Control agents then advance more, Shane's gadgets then start beeping and the sounds of van brakes can be heard "FIRE" someone can be heard saying as U.N.I.T soldiers rush the waterfront evacuating citizens and firing their guns at Live Control, a shootout ensues.

Shane helps U.N.I.T out by throwing some lightning bolts at some Live Control agents whilst Dan seizes the moment and charges at Alexa - Alexa is caught off guard by this and Dan grabs her by the arm.

Shane rushes over and takes her other arm and the two of them take her away only to be stopped by Ral who holds his hands up and says "Let her go, she's under my control" he says like he's about to confess something.

Shane and Dan drop Alexa who looks like she wants to say something - Alexa stammers "Help me" she even hugs Dan "Please..." but Dan wants nothing to do with her, so she kisses him on the lips, Shane and Ral look on confused "This is wrong" Ral says in shock.

Alexa looks at Shane with tears in her eyes "Help me" before running away, Ral steps up to Shane seething "What have you done?" he asks "Nothing" Shane say with a smirk "It's just what happens when you mess with someone's humanity...humanity always wins" Ral just looks at Shane like he can't believe what he is hearing from Shane. He then charges at Shane with rage in his eyes but he is stopped by the three hooded figures who hold up their hands as if to say stop - Ral now seems conflicted, he pulls out a knife from a dead Live Control agent and holds it to his chest "I am the last of my kind, so if anyone kills me here you will have killed off my species...think about it."

Shane looks at the three hooded figures and back to Ral "We can't risk it" - The hooded figures don't seem to like this remark so advance towards Shane and Dan.

"RUN" you say to Dan "I'll be alright."

Dan runs to find Alexa as Shane stands off with the hooded figures "So, your members of The Trickster's Brigade - you lot usually work behind the scenes, Live Control must mean alot to you." Shane remarks to them.

"Live Control will cause chaos on Earth, we are agents of chaos - once Live Control is established, our leader will walk the Earth for eternity...ETERNAL CHAOS" the three hooded figures say in unison.

"We are not the enemy...We only survey, we only plan" The hooded figures say in unison again.

"Because manipulating people from behind the scenes makes it looks like their the bad guys" Shane says to them sarcastically before continuing "But if you lot are so fine upstanding and only trying to help, why don't you help your so called leader walk on this Earth like his ego demands?" - The figures go silent "You blaspheme our leader" the hooded figures say in unison.

The shootout has seemingly stopped now and a UNIT general comes up to Shane and says that their moving out as Live Controls agents are neutralized, upon hearing this Ral gets up and gets in the faces of the hooded figures "YOU PROMISED ME EVERYTHING" he shouts "YOU PROMISED A BETTER LIFE" he clearly starts having a mental breakdown "YOU PROMISED LIVE CONTROL WOULD BECOME SUPREME" the hooded figures just look at Ral.

"Your mind was easily manipulated" the figures say in unison - "And now look at you, a broken mess...the chaos inside you is admirable" the figures say to Ral in unison once more.

Ral is now in a full mental breakdown, he doesn't hear anything the figures say and is just screaming "I WANT MY DAUGHTER!" - "You said you were the last of your kind" Shane says askingly, he then kneels down to Ral and whisper in his ear "Choose your actions carefully."

Ral snaps out of his mental breakdown as if nothing had happened "Go" he says to Shane.

Shane respects this and goes to find Dan and Alexa whilst Ral asks the hooded figures "It was you wasn't it?" he asks the hooded figures."We only work for the greater good" they reply in unison once again.

"ANSWER THE QUESTION" Ral barks.

"We are not the enemy...you are." the figures reply in unison once again.

"I AM THE ENEMY?" Ral is seething "The only enemies I see are you and now look around you, Live Control is all but dead and with Torchwood still around, is there any point continuing?" - The hooded figures look at Ral "You have failed" they simply say before disappearing knowing that they are beaten.

Ral drops to his knees and reaches for the knife he dropped earlier and simply plunges it into his chest whilst screaming "I HAVE NOTHING LEFT" whilst bleeding he jumps into the water and doesn't resurface instead a strange red light engulfs his form and he also disappears.

Elsewhere, Shane and Dan are back at the Torchwood base trying to use Alexa's Torchwood ID to track her, the computer beeps as CCTV has picked Alexa up walking into a coffee shop.

Shane and Dan walk inside and immediately recognize her from the CCTV footage, the shop is empty so Shane and Dan walk up to the barista stand and order a coffee, Alexa sees the two and runs into the toilets, Shane looks at Dan who carefully walks up to the door and hear a whispered "Oh God" - Shane joins him and opens the door and sees Alexa on her knees vomiting. Dan continually asks if she is OK.

Dan is alerted to the black beetle that was on her back has dethatched itself and is dying "Why" it asks in a similar echo like voice to the one of the Brigade however only Alexa seems to hear it "Why did you harm me?."

Alexa is too busy trying not to vomit to answer and just shakes her head "I don't know."

Shane comforts her "You broke their grasp on you, your brilliant you really are...your will power is something I could use actually" Shane says offering her a job at your Torchwood base. Alexa stares at him seemingly ignoring his request to join "I don't know what came over me, I was certain I was doing the right thing."

"They took control of you for the sake of internal chaos, rip us apart from the inside" Dan responds, the two of men help Alexa up as the black beetle seemingly disintegrates after Shane mentioned will power.

"I feel so dirty" Alexa says as the group all walk out of the coffee shop "Do you think they were behind the deaths of my friends?" - "Likely, they killed alot of people for their own gain...they even killed their own recruits if they didn't fit in with their plans, not to mention the Brigade watching over them all the time." Shane says trying to reassure her.

"Now to sort out the compounds they operated from" Shane continues - "Cant we just get UNIT to do that?" Dan asks "Sure, why not" Shane shrugs. "I can get UNIT to do shit if you back me up." he smirks - "So what are you proposing" Dan asks.

"You two wanna join up? I've got vacancies" Shane says offering Dan and Alexa some Torchwood: Lincoln City ID cards - They both look at the ID cards but Alexa shakes her head "Sorry...I don't think I can." She says handing hers back before walking over to Dan "Come with me" she says.

"Where?" Dan asks "Everywhere" she smiles before she kisses him on the lips taking Dan by surprise but after everything the two have been through Dan doesn't resist it and seemingly enjoys it.

Shane stares at the pair of them for a moment before sitting down on the kerb "Just my luck right?" Shane mutters to himself. Dan then says "Shane...wait" he turns around to see him and Alexa locked in a kiss.

"Thank you" Dan says when they part "Come on, lets go" he says to Alexa "Remember though, you wanted this" he adds cheekily.

Alexa then walks over to Shane and hugs him "Thank you" she says before following Dan.

Shane sits back down on the kerb and puts his head between his hands "Why did I do that?" Shane asks himself "I work better alone" he adds.

Life at the new look base is surprisingly mundane, apart from the daily trips out to the compounds to do jobs with UNIT so Shane can monitor how they are taking the Live Control compounds down, one day Shane can be heard thinking to himself "Where are they now I wonder."

Elsewhere, Dan and Alexa can be seen dating - Dan seems anxious like it was forced upon him to be in this position but over time him and Alexa become a great couple together, travelling the world - we see them on a boat as the series ends.

## Characters

* Shane
* Dan
* Alexa