Evening, on a rescue

"FAB Scott. Returning to Thunderbird 2 now," Gordon sometimes wondered where their catchphrase came from. It just sort of popped up one day and stuck, unlike Brains' catchphrase RAD. That had been less than successful.

The blonde reversed his pod from the rock pile. Honestly, it was ridiculous how many rocks could get in the way of a door. You'd think they would have run out of space and rolled down the mountain, but no, they all piled up and made the job so much harder than it should have been. How did a house on top of a mountain get caught up in a rockfall anyway? There was literally nothing above it.

The aquanaut frowned. That was kinda weird when he thought about it. He'd have to ask Virgil what he thought.

"Thunderbird 4 to Thunderbird 2. Pod is secure, we are go for module retrieval," Gordon relayed to his brother.

"FAB Thunderbird 4. Bringing you up now," Gordon felt the jolt of magnetic cables pulling up module 2. Virgil had never been very gentle with anything that he didn't deem delicate, which unfortunately spread to this situation. Of course, he treated his own Thunderbird like it was made of glass. Little mercy was given to anyone who damaged it.

He slipped out of the excavator's seat and dismantled the pod. It had been a tiring day and he would be glad to get back to Tracy Island, if only for a few hours.

Gordon slipped into the co-pilot's seat next to Virgil. He was glad he didn't have to drive; He would probably have crashed if he did. Then Virgil would kill him for damaging his Bird, Brains would kill him for damaging the technology and Scott would kill him for giving the rest of them a heart attack. Oh, and Grandma wouldn't let him out for days. He smirked. However much he complained, he wouldn't change his family for anything in the world.

"So, Virgil, how do you think a house on a hill got caught up in a landslide?" The boy questioned, the question rolling around his head.

"What do you mean?" His older brother questioned, twisting around to look at him.

"Well, there was nothing above it. Where did the rocks come from?"

"Huh," The pilot said, turning his attention back to driving. "I hadn't thought about it. Kinda weird."

Gordon looked out of the windscreen, eying the passing fields. Something was definitely wrong here, but he was too exhausted to think much of it. Most likely the reckless inhabitants had tried to make their own hill, not considering the consequences. It wouldn't be the first time.

Evening, en route to Tracy Island

"On approach to Tracy Island," Virgil announced, glancing at his dozing brother. It had been a difficult day for all of them, but Gordon had already been without sleep for over 24 hours beforehand. Honestly, it was surprising he hadn't collapsed earlier. He shook the younger Tracy awake.

"Umph, what?" Gordon mumbled, raising his head.

"Wake up sleepy head. We're back."

"Pssh, I wasn't asleep."

"Uh huh," Virgil replied, rolling his eyes.

Thunderbird 2 landed slightly bumpily, likely due to damage to the hull. He'd have to fix that.

Virgil quickly ran through the post-flight checks and exited the cockpit with Gordon. The blonde boy was swaying on his feet, so Virgil told him to go to bed.

"But I'm not tired," He complained.

"And I'm Langstrom Fischler. You need to sleep." When Gordon tried to argue, Virgil cut him off. "I will drag you up there kicking if I have to. You've been awake over 48 hours."

Once Virgil eventually got Gordon to his bedroom, he found Scott and Kayo sitting down in the lounge.

"Hey, Virgil. Where's Gordon?" Scott greeted as he took a seat next to him.

"I sent him to bed. He was asleep on his feet."

"Did he not rest after the whole lake fiasco?"

"Apparently not."

There was a silence afterwards, no one having anything to say until Kayo stood up.

"I think I'm going to turn in," She said, stretching her arms. "Don't want to fall asleep in the middle of a mission,"

"I think that's a good idea," Scott agreed, rising to his feet. "Virgil?"

"Right behind you," He replied, standing up and jogging up the stairs after his brother. The wood creaked beneath him, the sound bouncing around the empty room. Virgil shivered. Something about it had always seemed sinister to the boy.

The next day

"Tracy Island to Thunderbird 1, what's your status?" Kayo's image popped up on the holographic interface.

"Arriving at the scene now," Scott told her, extending his Bird's landing gear.

"The teen was last seen at a waterfall near the village. You may want to take a first aid kit with you, he could easily have gotten hurt in a jungle like this,"

"Yeah. But of all places, the Amazon rainforest? You'd think the locals would know the dangers,"

"You would. But apparently not," She cut out the communications.

Thunderbird 1 landed smoothly. Scott snatched up the first aid kit next to the door and strapped it to his sash. He was concerned the boy in the jungle may have been bitten by something, but it wasn't as if he could bring every antivenom there was. He'd just have to hope for the best.

Scott picked his way into the threshold of the jungle, checking his wrist control for directions. He began to hear the sound of crashing water after around fifteen minutes of trekking through the trees.

"I've found the waterfall. There's no sign of the kid yet," Scott spoke into his communicator.

"FAB Scott. You'll probably find him to your east," John informed him.

"FAB."

Creighton-Ward Manor

Penelope put down her tea, too anxious to drink. It was silly really, tea usually made her feel better. It was something she'd grown up around, and she always enforced the rule that everything stopped for tea. But Colonel Casey was due to arrive at the manor any minute, and the blonde was nervous for she hadn't been told what the meeting was about. She did, however, have theories. Admittedly, some were more believable than others.

The first - Was it Parker? Had the GDF decided they didn't want him in on security? Penelope couldn't think why, they'd always accepted, even endorsed Parker's past before. No, that couldn't be it.

Thoughts had crossed her mind about it being some sort of check on herself, but again, she'd always been trusted in the past. No, it was much more likely that the GDf needed information, help or both.

She took a deep breath. Yes, that was it. She was an agent, after all, information wouldn't be surprising. But then again, couldn't she have been asked over communications? It would have saved time, and she could have been called anywhere, rather than having to stay in.

"Colonel Casey has arrived, milady. Shall I let her in?" Parker asked, entering the room. She didn't know what she'd do without her chauffeur sometimes. He was more than her bodyguard, he was her friend, someone she could rely on. Sometimes it was hard to imagine him doing anything more nefarious than stealing chewing gum. She wouldn't be able to at all if she hadn't seen him in action.

"Yes, Parker. Show her in," She replied after a moment, realising she'd been deep in thought.

"Everything alright milady?" Parker questioned, immediately picking up on her mood. The man could read her better than anyone else.

"Quite alright Parker. Just a little nervous, that's all," She replied, forcing a smile. It wasn't like she should be nervous, she'd dealt with Casey dozens of times before. Why was now so different?

Parker seemed unconvinced, but he left the room and moments later Penelope heard the door being opened. Voices could be heard exchanging pleasantries, and afterwards, footsteps approaching the living room.

"Lady Penelope. Lovely to see you," Colonel Casey greeted, putting on a smile.

Penelope got to her feet and put out her hand to shake. "Colonel Casey. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

The other woman hesitated. "It's... a long story. Shall we sit?"

Penelope was intrigued. Clearly, the Colonel was bothered by something, and she wasn't bothered by much. As they sat, her mind started racing, trying to think what could cause distress and couldn't be said over the radio.

"You see, Lady Penelope," Colonel Casey began. "The GDF have a problem..."

Thunderbird 5

A few low beeps alerted John to an incoming transmission. He'd been occupying himself by playing chess with EOS, although failing miserably. It wasn't that he was bad, it was just that EOS was too good.

"Hello John," Lady Penelope popped up as a holographic image. It was immediately obvious that she was agitated, her eyebrows scrunched and hands clasped.

"Lady Penelope. What's happening?" He inquired, racking his brains to think if he'd forgotten something.

She locked eyes with him, expression troubled. "I need you to gather everyone in one place. I have some rather distressing news to share with you."