It takes Ianto a moment to realize that John is speaking in the past tense as he recounts his memory, because the generator looks pretty active from where he's standing. Especially with how cautious the other man is being in handling it. He stands a few steps back as John works on it, nearly holding his breath as he does despite the fact that clearly the other man knows what he's doing.

One down, he says, and Ianto lets out his breath in an audible sigh, feeling precariously balanced on a wire's edge. This isn't his world. This isn't anything he knows or understands. Hell, he doesn't even know how much of this is real. He's putting his faith in the hands of a man who had proposed an intergalactic take-away venture, and for all that John seems competent in the moment he still can't get the thought of it out of his mind.

"Well. We're not dead yet," he says, comfortingly.