I wasn't going to do any writing today, but I had this idea, and I sat down and this is what happened. There will be another chapter - probably just one more - when I get a chance.


Scott and John are in trouble. Big Trouble. This is a bit dark but hopefully not too graphic. Be warned.


"You promised Scott. Remember your promise." John's voice was rough and cracking. "You promised. You promised."

John had been repeating that for the last few minutes. Scott had tried to talk to him, but he didn't think John was with it enough to hear, even if they had let him. John's eyes were closed, head hanging. Scott wished that his brother was still unconscious and oblivious to what was coming. Scott would give anything to stop what was about to happen. Well almost anything. Anything apart from what they were asking.

Scott watched as the hooded man moved closer and saw his brother shrink away. How quickly he had learnt to fear the man's heavy step. There had been six visits from the brute, each lasting longer than the last. Six to John anyway. There had been one to Scott first.

He had woken up facing the window. Hands were tied behind his back, feet to the chair leg. He tried to move it but it must have been bolted to the floor. He was stripped of his suit, but still had the t-shirt, socks and shorts on that he wore underneath scant protection though that was against the cold from the damp room.

"You will tell me all about your machine. How it works and what it can do." The confident voice had come from behind him and crackled as it was projected over a loud speaker.

"I won't" Scott had said, defiant.

"Then this is a taste of what the future holds."

A hooded man stepped from behind into Scott's line of sight. He was tall and broad and wore only black. If there were anymore detail than that Scott missed it as the man had turned on the cattle prod he held in his hand and pushed it firmly against Scott's chest.

Scott felt fire bloom from where metal met man. Lightning sped down his arms, down his legs, into his chest. He was screaming - he must be screaming - though his ears were too full of the roar of blood to hear properly. He was fighting against his bonds, trying to get free, to tear that horrific implement away from him. But he was tied tight. All he could do was scream and thrash and yell. The prod was removed, but it took far too long for the pain to go – it continued to send waves though his nerves. It was long minutes before he managed to silence himself and bring back some form of dignity.

"Consider" said the voice and the hooded man left the room.

Scott considered. He considered the last conversation he had had with John. He hoped he was still alive, he wished deeply for it. Standing outside the stricken Thunderbird One, hands in the air as armed men approached them they had managed to exchange a few quick words.

"What ever the ask, whatever they want, we give them nothing."

"If they ask if the sky is blue – nothing."

"If they ask if the sea is wet – nothing."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Promise."

Then a blast of energy hit them and Scott had woken up here.

Scott wondered if this was the only pain in his future – would they come up with something else? How long would he last before he passed out? Would... would he die here? These were dark thoughts but he never considered the alternative. He would never give them what they wanted. He would never put his organisation – no, his family – at the mercy of whoever this was. And he had promised John in those moments before they were taken, and Scott Tracy never broke a promise.

Scott knew that they had given him this time – this respite -to fear for his future, to despair and imagine the horrors that were to come, but they didn't know him at all. Scott didn't hold fear for himself, he never had. He feared enough for the others that there was never enough left over for himself.

Scott considered that he was ready for the hooded man to return, he knew what he was facing, what they wanted and had steeled himself to weather it.

He hadn't been ready, however, for the mirror in front of him to change to a window, like in a police interview room, and to see John sat the other side also tied to a chair. John had also been stripped of his suit, just in shorts as he couldn't usually fit a shirt under his more form fitting uniform.

"Have you reconsidered? Will you tell me what I want to know?" The voice crackled from behind him.

"No." It was quiet, barely a whisper. Scott didn't think that he was answering the question, more expressing his disbelief. He hadn't thought of this.

The hooded man was standing behind his brother, weapon in hand. It looked like John was trying to talk to the man, but Scott couldn't hear a thing.

"Very well. You know what is coming."

The hooded man stepped forward and forced the cattle prod against his brothers exposed back.

Six times Scott had had to watch his brother be tortured. He had watched as his skin became a patchwork of burns – arms and chest and leg and probably his back as well though he couldn't see it. He watched as John thrashed and squirmed as the current flowed though him. He heard his brothers screams and cries and how he begged for it to stop.

After the first ….. session they had left the audio on. He had tried to talk to John then but the audio only seemed to go one way so Scott could still only listen. It was a few minutes before John could ready himself to speak, before he could lift his head.

"They're... not asking me anything. And that is probably a two way mirror... which means that you are probably on the other side Scott... Which means this is for you. To get you to talk? Yes, must be." John was thinking out loud and with little information and a few pain filled minutes had formed the right conclusion. His brother really was smart.

"But I know you won't." John was continuing. "Not matter what... happens in this room. No matter what they make you watch. Because I know you will never give the others up, I know you never break a promise, I know..."

The audio had been cut off. He could still see John speaking, eyes fixed on the glass in front of him, only a little off from looking Scott directly in the eye. But there was no sound and Scott was not a lipreader. Scott guessed that John wasn't saying what they expected. He wasn't begging for mercy, he wasn't pleading for release or for Scott to give them what they wanted. Instead he was bolstering Scott: reminding him of the stakes and letting him know that he was okay with the cost. That didn't mean that Scott was okay with it, but there was no other option.

"Please don't" Scott begged each time the hooded man walked back in the room.

"Will you answer our questions?" Said the speaker behind him.

"You promised Scott" John would rasp when they allowed the sound of his brother's voice to reach him.

"No." Scott still defied them.

"Then let's begin again."

They not only turned the audio off after each visit but returned the panel to a mirror too. Now Scott could not see or hear his brother apart from when he was screaming. Scott would scream along with him, calling their faceless tormentors any name he could think off. He pulled and thrashed as John did, trying to get himself free but only won bleeding wrists and ankles.

When he only had his own face staring back at him he was desperate to see John again – to know he was alive and that they hadn't taken him somewhere else. And when he was allowed to look into John's room he felt first relief and then wished that he had never wished for this. He felt the one burn he had from the 'demonstration' he was given ache and shuddered at the thought of being covered with them as John was. He wished horrible deaths on everyone involved. He offered money. But he wouldn't give them what they wanted. International Rescue technology in the wrong hands would be disastrous for the world and dangerous for everyone he had ever loved. Giving that information up was not a promise he would allow himself to break.

As the sixth session ended he began to wonder how long John would last. He had passed out before the man had finished the last couple of times, going limp yet still twitching from the electrical current being applied. Were they doing permanent damage? Were they going to give him a heart attack? That they still wouldn't let him see John afterwards gave Scott some hope – he must still be defying their expectations and refusing to beg his brother to make it stop. But all John's brave words were going to waste. John's head was hanging lower at each arrival of the hooded man and his screams getting hoarser. Scott may have just given up one brother for the others and the guilt was all consuming. It was like...

A crash interrupted Scott's thoughts – the crash of the door bouncing back against the wall having been forcefully opened. A figure stood there – tall, solid, real in blue and green. Not his imagination.

"Virgil?"

"I've found Scott" Virgil said into his comms, as he strode forward to cut Scott free.

"Are you hurt? Look at me? Are you hurt?" Virgil asked, calm and commanding but with a layer of worry as well. Scott was having a bit of trouble accepting the reality of the man in front of him and felt dazed.

His wrists and ankles were bleeding from where he had thrown himself against them, numb from cold and he was very, very thirsty, but that wasn't what Virgil meant.

"No... no I'm not. John..." He managed to stammer, not able to complete the sentence. Luckily he didn't need to – Virgil understood.

"Where is he?"

"The other side of that." Scott pointed at the mirror in front of him.

Virgil didn't storm out into the corridor as expected, instead he went straight for the glass, direct as always. He set a tool against the glass and it began to vibrate until the whole window shattered, revealing John still bound to the chair, head lolling to one side.

Virgil paused for just a moment before stepping through the hole he had just made, taking in the scene before him.

"Stay there" Virgil ordered, but Scott didn't heed him or the glass covering the floor. Scott saw Virgil roll his eyes as the both approached - nothing would stop him getting to his brother.

"John? Wake up. Virgil's here." He said softly. Reaching his side Scott knelt down so he was at eye level and tried to get John to look at him.

"V'gl?" John's voice was thin, but it was there.

"Yeah that's right bro" Virgil said also gently, completely at odds with the harsh grim room they were in. Virgil cut John's ropes as he had with Scott's and it was only Scott's presence that stopped John falling off the chair: instead he was supported by Scott and leant his head on his shoulder.

"Virgil's going to take us home."

"Promise?" John's trembling voice matched his trembling body – he still hadn't opened his eyes and his brow was creased with pain.

"Promise."

"Can you walk?" Virgil asked Scott.

"Sure."

"Good. I'll take John." Virgil paused. "Are those electrical burns?"

Scott nodded and Virgil's face hardened as he spoke again into his comms.

"I've got John. He needs help getting out, Scott is under his own power. Time for that diversion Kayo" A pause.

"We've got five minutes. You sure you're not hurt Scott?" Said Virgil, moving round so he was kneeling next to Scott in front of John.

"Nothing that needs looking at now I promise." A few cuts on the soles of his feet from the broken glass did not count.

"Ok then. Drink this." Virgil said somewhat dubiously holding out a canteen. "It's just water. John, can you open your eyes for me?" Virgil turned his attention away, and so did Scott even as he was gulping back the fresh cold water.

John weakly lifted his head and slowly opened his eyes. They were red rimmed and bloodshot, and he was clearly having some trouble focusing.

"Good, that's good John. Have you been hit on the head at all? Bleeding anywhere?" Virgil was asking the standard first aid questions, but this really wasn't a standard situation. Why were they not getting out of here? Oh, that's right, they were waiting for a diversion.

John had shaken his head, and was able to follow Virgil's finger as he moved it slowly in front of his face. "Now I'm just going to give you a little something to help with the pain, ok?"

Virgil took out a needle and syringe, injecting the contents into John's arm. "Time to go" he said standing up. Virgil pulled one of John's arms around his shoulder, grabbed his waist and pulled him to his feet. "Scott, follow me closely."

Scott did as he was told, only a few paces behind his brothers. It was easy to keep up as it was the injured John who set the pace, despite the help he was getting. Scott followed as Virgil led confidently down corridor after corridor, took turn after turn. This place was a maze and much bigger than he had imagined. He would never have been able to get John out alone. He was allowing himself the fantasy that he would have even got that far.

After about ten minutes Virgil stopped, leaning John against a wall.

"I just need to check the coast is clear, will you to be ok?"

"Sure we will" was Scott's reply, moving closer to John who was breathing heavily, head back against the wall, but looking more awake and at least able to stand.

Virgil gave him a look that showed his doubt. "I'll be two minutes. Don't move." And then he jogged off round the next corner.

"Scott, we need to talk." John croaked out.

"What?"

"About what happened back there."

"Let's not get into this right now." Scott said, trying to keep any eye out for anyone who was not Virgil.

"No, it has to be now. While I can still think clearly." John's eyes were clearer, and he looked a lot more himself than he had for a while. A lot more together. "Whatever Virgil gave me was strong so I don't think it's going to last long. And this has to be said now, before it gets a hold on you. What happened back there" John paused and shuddered at the memory "you promised. We agreed it was for the best."

"That's not what I thought I was promising." Scott admitted.

"It doesn't matter. Do you know I was glad every time they came back? It meant that you hadn't said anything. It meant that they were still safe."

Scott looked at his brother both amazed and confused. Amazed that someone could be so strong, could accept his fate like that. That John could stand there, cold, burnt, in pain and say it was for the best. More he was confused that John just didn't get it.

"I was meant to keep you safe as well."

John gave a tired smile. "You never stop being the big brother do you? I'm serious though Scott. You made the right choice."

John's gaze was steady, though Scott was having a hard time meeting it. He appreciated the words, but Scott thought it would be a long time before he would be able to shake away the guilt of what happened in that chair.

They didn't have a chance to continue the conversation as Virgil rushed back around the corner, a quick glance taking in both his brothers, checking them for further injury. As if they could get hurt just standing in the corridor.

"It's all clear, but we're going to have to run. Can you do that Scott?"

"Yeah, I can run, run where?"

"To Thunderbird Two, Alan and Gordon are waiting. And as for you.." He said turning to John.

"I feel better, but not up to running I'm afraid."

"I know, which is why I'm sorry about this."

In one quick movement Virgil hoisted John over his shoulder into a fireman's carry, despite the curses. Scott couldn't understand why John hated being upside down on Earth so much when he did it often enough in space. Something to do with bloodflow maybe.

"Ready? The let's go." Virgil turned and sprinted round the corner. Scott followed close behind, ignoring the pain from the slivers of glass still in his feet. He was more than ready to go home.