Your Mutt, M'Lady

2

By Crystalquirt

I do not own anything to do with 'The Thunderbirds Are Go ' past or present.

****** How come no one pointed out that i had an incorrect word - right in the TITLE! EEEK! - "Your," not "You're"! And even worse - my new Grammarly software that was freakin' expensive - didn't catch it either. I should just die now. ******

The end of part 1:

The Lion charged Alan, and he screamed. He let go of Sherbet hoping that he at least could escape. The little dog knew where Lady Penelope was and ran to her.

Alan covered his head expecting to feel teeth next, but Virgil yelled a war cry louder than anything that ever came out of his mouth before and charged the lion from the opposite direction.

Virgil jumped over Alan and landed between him and the lion. Still running and yelling and waving his hands in the lion's face, Virgil was determined to scare the cat away from Alan. The lion slid to a stop and took a swipe at Virgil with a big paw.

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Virgil barely got out of the way of the lion's claws in time. He screamed angrily at the lion, and surprisingly the injured lion lowered his head and trotted away, limping severely.

Running to Alan's side, Virgil gasped when he saw his little brother's predicament. "How did you do this to yourself?"

Lady Penelope joined Virgil at Alan's side, and Parker stayed high, watching the lion. Crouched behind the crates, the lion watched the humans, tail twitching.

"I really didn't mean to," Alan panted, "Please get this thing off of my leg!" he cried with tears in his eyes.

"Take it easy. I'll have it off in an instant." Virgil said, adjusting his shoulder light for a short, narrow beam which he aimed at the hinges on the trap around Alan's leg when the laser came on.

When the jaws loosened from Alan's leg, He couldn't help but put his head back to scream. Virgil quickly covered his mouth with his hand and said, "Shhh - Alan, we don't want our friend over there to get overly excited."

Alan still whimpered at little from deep in his throat, and a flow of tears ran down his cheeks onto Virgil's hand. Lady Penelope took over near Alan's head, holding his hand and speaking softly for him to remain calm. When Virgil took the pieces of the trap completely away from Alan's leg, he gritted his teeth again and whined, trying to muffle another scream.

"Sh-sh-shhh," Lady Penelope made the same noise as when she's trying to keep her little dog calm.

Virgil looked up at Parker, who gave him a thumbs up. The lion was licking his wounded shoulder again.

"Okay, the coast is clear – Alan - hang in there- we have to move you without much prep."

"I know - it's okay," Alan spoke bravely. As Virgil came to his shoulders and lifted, Lady Penelope quickly put Alan's injured leg over his other leg so at least it might help protect his injury a little.

"Nnnnng," Alan cried softly with his jaw clenched.

Parker was already at the door and opened it for them, watching for the lion. He went out just after Lady P, helping to support Alan's hips. The door rested against Virgil's back for the last few inches as they carefully moved Alan to the hallway.

Before the door could close, a giant kitty paw reached out and grabbed Virgil's leg. The lion had his claws in Virgil's outer thigh. Virgil yelled, "Get Back!" and had to let go of Alan.

As Alan's torso fell, Parker caught him and lowered him more gently. Lady Penelope held onto Alan's legs, protecting his injury. Alan yelped when he felt himself falling, and cried, "Virgil!" when he realized what was happening to his eldest brother.

To keep the lion from getting out where he could hurt the others, with great effort, Virgil closed the door tightly as the Lion dragged him back into the room. Once away from the door, the lion retracted his claws to get a better hold on his new prey. The claws left four deep gashes on Virgil's left outer thigh, just below the harness that he wore. His suit leg was torn to shreds.

When the lion let go, Virgil tried to scramble away, but the lion pounced, his front paws landing on Virgil's back.

As big a man as Virgil was, the lion's powerful jaws were big enough to get his entire right shoulder in his mouth and chomp down.

"Nnnngh," Virgil let out a soft moan when the lion's teeth sunk in. Virgil tried to hit the lion's snout with his elbow, but his arm wasn't working with teeth in it. The lion started to drag Virgil behind the cages.

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Lady Penelope tried to open the door, and Alan even tried to get up to go back in to help Virgil, but Parker stopped them. "No! Let me do it! M'Lady, please take care of Master Alan."

Lady Lucy's hand shook when she reached for Alan's hand to hold. She'd never seen such suffering or blood before. Alan felt her shivering and told her, "Thank you – and we'll be okay, try not to worry."

"This was all my fault – I was trying to help out – my new boss at the newspaper said I shouldn't come here!"

"You couldn't have known," Alan said, gritting his teeth from Lady Penelope moving his leg a little, "You didn't know this would happen – it's not your fault, Lady Lucille."

"You can call me Lucy." She smiled at Alan. Alan looked up at her briefly, but then stared at the door where he'd last seen Virgil.

Lady Penelope removed her pretty pink slip from under her skirt and tore it up into shreds. She began wrapping the soft cloth around Alan's calf where it was still seeping blood.

"Virgil?" Alan said to Lady Penelope.

"Parker is helping Virgil tame that lion." Lady Penelope said, sounding more sure about it than she felt.

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Parker peeked inside the door and then quietly slipped inside. He went high again to get the lay of the situation.

Struggling with the lion behind the first row of crates, Virgil wound up on his back, and the lion released his shoulder. When the lion tried to bite again, Virgil reflexively put his arm up. So it was his left forearm that the lion chomped down on. A tooth broke the screen on his wrist controller, but hi suit helped protect his arm.

Virgil didn't react at all when the teeth clamped into his arm. He calmly said, "I guess it's lucky for me that you're injured and feeling pretty weak yourself - I promise that if I get out of here, we'll get you the care you need and get you back to wherever you belong."

Virgil spoke to the lion that had his arm in his teeth like he was a beloved pet. Reaching across his chest with his injured, but free arm, Virgil managed to get his shoulder off of its track and the light only function activated. He aimed the bright light in the lion's face. The lion shut his eyes, but still held Virgil's arm.

Turning around to try and go backward, the lion still intended to drag his prey away. The motion twisted Virgil's arm held in the lion's teeth. Virgil groaned loudly. He fumbled with the light on his shoulder taking it off his bandoleer. He hurriedly set the controls to 'Laser' and said, "Sorry big fella, but I don't want to be your lunch - we'll get you something tender after you let me go."

Virgil carefully aimed the laser at the lion's back paw and shot it at a toe.

The lion startled, dropping Virgil's arm and jerking his hind paw up. "I'm sorry - I didn't want to hurt you more than you are already," Virgil said as he rolled up to his feet.

Parker ran to Virgil's side and helped him back to the door.

"Good shot Virgil," Parker said.

The lion rolled over where he was and just lie still. Virgil looked back regretfully and let Parker help him to the door.

Parker made Virgil go through the door first and came through himself, walking backward, watching the lion. Parker closed the door and turned around to see that two more men had joined the others in the hallway. Sherbet was barking ferociously at them but stayed close to Lady Penelope.

They both held handguns. Parker looked them up and down and said, "Me thinks you are not with the GDF."

"No, and all of you are trespassing," The larger of the men said.

Trying to stay on his feet, Virgil leaned on Parker as he said, "The GDF should be here any minute. We're from International Rescue, and this was called in a while ago."

Virgil barely finished his sentence when his knees buckled, and he slid down the wall to sit on the floor. Lady Penelope saw Virgil going down and grabbed his uninjured arm to help guide him to the floor.

"Okay, the lot of you - get back in there. We will cage you like the rest of the animals until we can think of what to do with you." The small man started to open the door with the lion behind it. "Wait, you can't, there's a L -" Parker started to say.

Virgil interrupted him. "We're not moving from this spot until the GDF get here. You're only hope of escape is to scram, right now."

A wave of realization washed over Parker's face as he thought he understood Virgil's plan to get them to go in the room alone and let the lion take care of them, but that wasn't it.

Just then, the sound of choppers and the GDF's heavy planes vibrated the building.

Virgil observed, "It sounds like there's more than one GDF plane up there," Virgil smiled weakly. Lady Penelope was looking at his wounds. His leg was bleeding quite a bit from the four lacerations.

"We should get out of here!" The smaller man said to his partner.

"No Way! Can't you hear that? We're surrounded, Eadric!"

"I heard it, but we have hostages, right, Gable?" Eadric said, looking at the group in front of him.

"Stand up girly! We're taking you with us!" Gable said, poking Lady Lucille. She pulled away and hoped to Alan' opposite side. He sat up as best as he could, intending to protect her. She found his hand to hold again.

"I told you we aren't moving," Virgil said bravely.

"Who cares about you? We're taking the women. You and the kid look pretty bad off - maybe we should just end the both of you now." Eadric threatened.

"You and what army?" Virgil shot back, and with every bit of strength he had left, Virgil got up and launched himself at the big guy called Gable. He knocked the gun out of his hand and Gable went down with Virgil on top of him.

Parker reacted quickly and grabbed Eadric's gun arm flipping him over his shoulder. The gun fell from Eadric's hand.

Gable growled at Virgil sounding a lot like one of the animals he trapped and killed. He kneed Virgil in the abdomen and threw him off. Virgil hit the wall with his back and slid down to the floor.

Parker and Eadric jumped for the gun at the same time, and Eadric was just a little quicker – he grabbed it at the same time he punched Parker in the nose.

"Right you are then," Parker said gloomily, holding his nose to stop the bleeding.

Gable came up and stomped to Virgil, even though he was still down, Gable grabbed his suit front and delivered a powerful right cross to his cheek. Virgil fell back to the floor and Gable kicked his leg, right in the wounds from the lion.

"Aaagnnn." Virgil groaned and slumped to the floor.

Lady Penelope and Alan yelled, "Stop it," and "Leave him alone!"

Gable leaned down and picked Virgil up by his suit front again like he would hit him, but instead, he pulled him back over to the others and dropped him.

"Virgil," Alan whispered, leaning toward his brother, but he didn't answer.

"If you two are finished, we need to let the GDF that we have hostages," Gable said.

Gable and Eadric poked guns at the group demanding they get up and move down the hallway.

Parker, with his bloodied face, rolled Virgil over and picked him up. Lady Penelope helped him get the big boy up to carry across his shoulders. Lady Penelope and Lady Lucy tried to help Alan up to walk between them, but the pain in his leg was too great – he found he couldn't bear any weight and would have landed back down on the floor if the Ladies had not caught him.

Lady Penelope picked Alan up across her arms and carried him, with Lady Lucy going first, she brought up the rear – just in front of the poachers, with Guns.

"Where are you taking us?" Lady Penelope asked.

"Down to the control room, where the communications work," Eadric answered.

AS undignified as it was to be carried by a young woman and one so important as Lady Penelope, Alan was at least relieved that they didn't have to go back in with the lion.

Still, with his injured leg just dangling about, he stiffened and groaned with almost every step.

"How much farther?" Lady Lucy bravely asked, seeing how Alan was suffering.

"All the way to the end of the building."

Lady Penelope stopped. "Well then, we have to reposition."

"Hey, you old goat!" Eadric called to Parker, "Stop a sec, or the women will pay!"

Parker stopped and leaned with his back and Virgil against the wall. "One time I wish you were Gordon. He'd be a lot easier to carry." Parker said to Virgil, with no answer.

Lady Penelope put Alan down, and he groaned loudly when she straightened his leg and crossed it over his other leg as before. "Lady Lucy, please carry his legs, and try to keep them as straight as possible."

"Yes, I shall." She smiled weakly at Alan when Lady Penelope picked up his shoulders again, and they started off with the baddies right behind them.

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When they finally made it to what the baddies called the control room, the Ladies lowered Alan to the floor, only to find that he'd fainted. Lady Lucy dropped to her knees by his head and lifted his head and shoulders into her lap.

"Alan?" she whispered.

Lady Penelope went to help Parker put Virgil down. As soon as he was on the floor, Gable grabbed her arm and pulled her away, "You will get on that radio and tell them that we have hostages!"

"Fine, I will do as you say – and you will end up arrested or dead anyway!" Lady Penelope said. Gable raised his hand like he would hit her and Parker started after him, but Eadric stopped him. "Don't hit a lady, you moron. There are other things we can do with them if need be," Eadric said, looking at Lady Penelope.

Instead, Gable pushed an older model Mic in her hand, attached to an apparatus she thought was probably an antique Citizens Band Radio.

Lady Penelope spun the old dial until she tuned into a channel that sounded like a lot of GDF were talking. She pushed the button on the side of the mic and said,"GDF and International Rescue, this is Lady Penelope."

She was a little surprised that they heard her on the old radio. But Colonel Casey answered, "Lady Penelope, where are you? My men are having some trouble cutting their way into the building – it is heavily sealed off, and everything they touch is electrified."

"That is not our biggest problem. We, Parker and I, Lady Lucille and Virgil and Alan are being held as hostages by two of the thugs involved in the illegal poaching operations going on in here."

Eadric grabbed the Mic from her and said, "Alleged Poaching! We Have every right to be here, and I demand that you all back off – only leave us a vehicle and a billion dollars in the parking lot. You have 15 minutes!"

Parker and Lady Penelope looked at each other and frowned. Colonel Casey, in her command post near Thunderbird 2, said quietly to her second, "That's not ever going to happen."

Into the mic, she said, "Maybe we can negotiate – it will be hard to get that much money here that fast."

"It won't be hard for me to finish carving up the guy in the weird green belt – he's not even awake to fight back!"

"No wait – Please, talk to me first!" Colonel Casey said urgently.

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On Thunderbird 5 John and EOS were listening in on the communications. When he hadn't heard from Virgil or Alan for a while, he sent Scott and Gordon in Thunderbird 1 to check things out.

"Colonel Casey, this is Thunderbird 5!" John announced.

"Yes, John." She answered.

"Any word about their hostage's conditions?"

"No more than what you just heard Thunderbird 5."

"Thunderbird 1 with Scott and Gordon should be there any second. Please keep me updated." John said sadly.

"You and your brothers are smart – they will stop those guys and be okay – after all, you stopped me when I was a bit out of sorts," EOS said.

"Thanks, EOS, I hope you're right – and you are also very smart – and you didn't have guns. These two sound stupid, and they are armed. A bad combination."

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To Be Continued . . .