LEANNA woke bright and early the day after Boxing Day. She was excited. More excited than Christmas Day itself even. Today was the day she was going to take her first flying lesson. Not much had been discussed but she had spent a lot of time wondering which of the Thunderbird crafts she would be given to try first. She had a small hunch that it would be Thunderbird 1 for it was the smallest of the three flying ships and then move on to fly Thunderbird 2 as the final stage.
As Leanna ate her breakfast, Daniel observed her excitement. "You all set?" he asked.
"You bet I am," said Leanna. "I can't wait to get started. So, do I get your ship or Laura's?"
Laura looked up. "Nobody flies my ship but me," she said.
"Unless you're unwell," Daniel said causing Laura to fall silent.
"Actually, Leanna, Thunderbird 1 is the intermediate," said Beth. "Thunderbird 2 is the advanced. For introductory, you will take the controls of Thunderbird 6. And I will be your instructor."
This made Leanna even more excited. Thunderbird 6 was the only one she had not seen yet. Since the unveiling of Thunderbird 7 on Christmas Day, Leanna had been wondering what it could be as it hadn't even been mentioned before that she could remember.
"Once you've finished, you can go and see Jodie for your uniform," Daniel continued.
"But don't eat it too quickly or you'll make yourself ill," added Joanne. "That wouldn't do any good."
Leanna tried to calm herself down but found it wasn't easy to do so.
Jodie was in her laboratory with MAX when Leanna arrived. There was a very fast knocking on the door.
"Come in, Leanna," Jodie said.
Leanna entered, looking somewhat taken aback. "How did you know it was me?" she asked.
"That's the knock from someone who is excited," Jodie replied with a smile. "And nobody's knocked on my door like that for a long time."
Jodie and MAX then moved backwards revealing what they'd been working on. Leanna's eyes went wide with wonder. Her very own uniform stood in front of her. It resembled Laura's in a lot of ways, except for one thing - the utility sash, which was brown and not grey. Also the actual equipment that went with the sash wasn't included for that would come at a later stage.
"What do you think?" Jodie asked.
"It's wonderful," Leanna said. "Can I try it on?"
"By all means," said Jodie.
Leanna almost ran up to the uniform. Robotic arms operated by MAX took the uniform apart and then attached it to Leanna's body. Within thirty seconds, all was in place. Leanna went over to the mirror and took a good long look at herself from every angle. She was totally awestruck by it all.
"How's the fit?" Jodie asked. "Not too tight?"
"Not tight at all, Jodie," Leanna replied. "It fits perfectly."
"My lords and ladies!" said a voice.
Jodie and Leanna looked round to see Daniel had entered the room.
"Very smart-looking, Leanna," said Daniel. "I approve."
Leanna blushed. "Thank you, Daniel," she said happily.
Daniel smiled. "Well, if you're ready, Beth is waiting for you down in Thunderbird 2's hangar. I shall be listening in and watching all that happens. Best of luck."
"Thanks," said Leanna. "This is going to be awesome!"
Daniel and Jodie watched as Leanna almost skipped out of the room with excitement. MAX let out a confused warble.
"Do you really think she's ready for this,, Mr Tracy?" Jodie asked. "From what I remember, all of the other girls took their flying tests very seriously. She doesn't seem to be."
"She's excited, but the others did their tests on fast jets," Daniel replied. "I don't think she'll have too much trouble with Thunderbird 6. And even if she does, Beth will be there to take over if need be."
Leanna arrived in Thunderbird 2's vast hangar and found Beth already suited up in her uniform waiting for her.
"Ah, you're here, Leanna," Beth said. "Shall we begin?"
"Yes!" said Leanna excitedly. "I can't wait for this. Where is Thunderbird 6?"
"Right through here," said Beth leading Leanna through a small door at the side of the hangar. "I have managed to dust off most of the cobwebs and cleaned her up a bit. She hasn't been outside for quite some time. Definitely not since you've been here."
Leanna followed Beth through the door and almost fell over in surprise after Beth had switched on the lights. She had been expecting a small jet of some kind at least. But instead what she found herself looking at was a small yellow and red de Havilland Tiger-Moth Bi-Plane. "Okay…what…is…that?!" she asked once she had found her voice again.
"This is Thunderbird 6," Beth said. "Only been used on one rescue mission and that was before it was officially named Thunderbird 6. It saved my life, and Lady Penelope, Parker and Karolina's lives as well."
Leanna looked around the small aircraft. "How exactly?" she asked, not sounding convinced.
"Skyship One," said Beth. "Struck the top of an early-warning tower. Thunderbirds 1 or 2 couldn't get in close to evacuate us so this was used to get us off."
Leanna was somewhat speechless. "And…this is what I'm going to be flying?" she asked.
"To begin with yes," said Beth. "My guess however is that you'll become part of the Thunderbird 2 crew with Dad, Katie and Wizzy. You'll be taught how to operate the pod vehicles such as The Mole. but there could come a time when you might need to operate one of the main ships. And for that, you need to be trained in that. So to begin with, we'll start with something nice and simple - Thunderbird 6."
"Please tell me that I'm dreaming," Leanna said, unable to take her eyes off the Bi-Plane.
Beth laughed. "You most certainly are not, Leanna," she said. "Now come on, let's do it. Front cockpit please."
Leanna reluctantly climbed into the front cockpit of the aircraft whilst Beth walked round to the front where the propeller was. She then instructed Leanna to do a few checks before giving the propeller a pull. To their surprise it started first time without any trouble, despite having not been used for a long time.
"That's my girl," said Beth.
"I thought Thunderbird 3 was your girl?" asked Leanna.
"No, Thunderbird 3's my baby," Beth answered. "I've been wanting to give Thunderbird 6 to someone else to take care of. Adrienne and I have too much to do with Thunderbird 3."
I'm not surprised, Leanna thought to herself looking at the few cobwebs in the wing supports that had been missed.
Beth then climbed into the rear cockpit. "You want me to take her out or do you want to?" she asked.
"You do it," said Leanna. "I want to see how it's done."
"Very well," said Beth. "But I will give you control at some point during the flight."
Leanna's stomach lurched. She'd gone from being very excited to very nervous.
"Thunderbird 6 to control," Beth said into her helmet radio for the Tiger-Moth wasn't equipped with a radio. "We're ready to taxi."
"Understood, Beth," Daniel's voice answered. "Hangar doors are opening. Let me know when you are ready."
The big door in front of them opened to reveal the large area that Thunderbird 2 moved forwards into before it would turn and head out onto the runway. As they started to move forwards the cliff door opened out as well.
Laura, Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy were standing on the balcony on the cliff house overlooking the runway to observe what happened next.
"Do you think Leanna will be in charge first or Beth?" Wizzy asked.
"Beth will be," Laura answered. "She'll want Leanna to observe first of all before she's allowed to be allowed out on her own."
"Could be a while then," said Adrienne. "You know Leanna's not the quickest learner."
Laura scowled at her sister. "Does that really?" she asked. "These things are supposed to take time."
"Hush!" Katie said. "I think they're coming."
They all peered down and listened. Sure enough they could hear the sound of a propeller engines from inside. Then Thunderbird 6 slowly emerged outside on the runway before coming to a stop just before the palm trees which fell back despite there being no need for them to do. Thunderbird 6 could've easily fit through.
"GOOD LUCK, LEANNA!" Wizzy called.
Leanna and Beth looked up to see them waving. Leanna was startled by this, but Beth just grinned for she knew they would be there.
"We're ready, Dad," said Beth.
"Clear to go," Daniel replied. "Good luck. Have fun, Leanna."
"Er, thanks, Daniel," Leanna replied. Her nerves were almost at breaking point. Then she took a deep and calmed herself. She didn't want the others to notice.
5…4…3…2…1!
Thunderbird 6's engine powered up and it accelerated down the runway. Faster and faster it went until it gained enough lift to rise up off the runway into the sky. The sound of its engine filled the air as it banked round to the left to begin an anti-clockwise orbit of Tracy Island.
This was very strange for Leanna. She had flown in Thunderbird 2 before and it had felt completely normal because it was all enclosed like being on an airliner. But Thunderbird 6 was a very different feeling for it was an open cockpit. She was glad she'd got her new helmet to keep the wind out of her face as she could feel it rushing around her. But at the same time, the fear that she'd had on the ground had vanished. She looked out to the left and saw Tracy Island. She'd not had the chance to view it properly in the air before so to see it now was very unique and incredible.
"Wow!" Leanna gasped. "It's so beautiful."
"That's what you said when you first saw the island if I recall correctly?" Beth said.
That was a day Leanna longed to forget but would always remember - the day she was abducted from her village and kept prisoner by a Russian gangster and several armoured cronies before being found by Daniel and the girls. As her parents were missing, Leanna had been brought back to Tracy Island, and despite all her sadness, the first sight of Tracy Island had taken her breath away.
"What do you think so far?" Beth asked.
"This is great," said Leanna. Grinning from ear to ear. "Can I have a go?"
"Let's do a round trip of the island first," said Beth. "Then you can take your turn."
"She's such a great plane," said Leanna.
"Aeroplane, Leanna," Beth quickly corrected her. "Never call it a plane."
"Okay…" said Leanna, slightly taken aback by this.
Daniel and Joanne stood at the window in the lounge and watched as Thunderbird 6 flew along over the sea. Cassidy and Sian were out on the patio and turned to wave. Jodie, Rosie and Zoë watched from inside the kitchen.
"She seems to be enjoying herself," remarked Cassidy.
"Would we ever get to become out with you as well?" asked Sian.
Daniel and Joanne looked at them.
"That I couldn't say," said Daniel. "Depends on what your mother thinks."
Joanne looked at Daniel and then at her daughters. "You're both a bit young still," she said. "But then your girls were their age when they started training. I'll give it some thought."
Just then Kerry interrupted. She had returned to Thunderbird 5 early that morning. "Morning all," she said. "I'm afraid we've got a couple of situations that could need attending to."
"Could?" Daniel repeated. "Either we do or we don't, Kerry. What would they be?"
"Firstly an oil tanker is on fire in the South Atlantic just off the coast of Africa," said Kerry. "The crew have been able to evacuate but there are no means of putting out the fire."
Daniel nodded. "And the second?"
"This one I have no definite confirmation about," said Kerry. "But there seems to be some disturbance at the Channel Tunnel."
"Hmmm," said Daniel thoughtfully. "We can use Thunderbird 2 to put out the fire and rescue the crew. But what to do about the tunnel?"
"Lady Penelope perhaps?" suggested Sian.
"Yes!" said Daniel approvingly. "Excellent idea. Kerry, contact Penny and ask her to investigate this. We'll take Thunderbird 2 and proceed to the tanker, and if Penny says we're needed at the tunnel we can head there afterwards."
"F-A-B," said Kerry. "Good luck."
Daniel then contacted the girls on the cliff house balcony. "Katie, Adie, Wizzy - we have a situation. Meet me in Thunderbird 2 right away."
"F-A-B, Dad," the three girls acknowledged. They left Laura on the balcony and headed inside to get into their uniforms.
Daniel then turned to Jodie who'd entered. "Keep monitoring Thunderbird 6 and make sure Leanna is doing as she's told," he said. "I do trust Beth to look after her, but just keep an extra watch out."
"Sure thing, Mr Tracy," said Jodie as Daniel hurried over to the rocket-painting.
Thunderbird 6 had almost completed its first orbit of the island when Jodie contacted them. "Thunderbird 6, be advised. Thunderbird 2 is preparing for take-off. Keep clear of runway until it has cleared."
"F-A-B, Jodie," Beth replied. "Leanna, once Thunderbird 2 has gone, then you can have your turn."
Keeping the Tiger-Moth as high as possible, they looked down towards the island to see Thunderbird 2 emerging from the hangar. The palm trees fell back again to allow it to pass before it came to rest on its ramp. The ramp lifted upwards with the blast shield lifting into place as well.
5…4…3…2…1!
Even though there was wind noise, Leanna and Beth easily heard Thunderbird 2's engines roar as it soared off the ramp and climbed away from the island turning right to head East towards the South Atlantic.
"All clear now," said Beth. "She's all yours, Leanna. Just keep her steady."
Leanna took the controls of Thunderbird 6 and now found herself in charge of it. It was a feeling that she had never experienced before. One of power and authority for the aircraft was now doing what she wanted it to do. "How do I loop-the-loop?" she asked.
"Easy now, cowgirl," warned Beth. "You've only had the controls for two minutes. Let's not cause her any damage now."
"Damage?" asked Leanna. "She looks quite sturdy to me."
"The G-forces in turns and loops could easily rip an aircraft apart if its not done properly," said Beth. "And believe me, Leanna, I've seen what happens when it does."
Leanna gulped and decided to keep flying the aircraft straight.
Lady Penelope was in the Drawing Room of her mansion having tea when the teapot started beeping. "That must be Daniel," she said turning the top of the pot to activate the radio within. "International Rescue - Lady Penelope speaking."
"Hello, Penny. Kerry here."
"Kerry, hello," said Penelope. "What can I do for you?"
"I've been hearing reports of an incident at the Channel Tunnel," Kerry said. "No clear idea as to what the situation is though. Daniel's already out in Thunderbird 2 dealing with a tanker fire. Could you go and see what's going on?"
"But of course, Kerry," said Penelope. "I've been bored out of my skin the past few days. We'll go out straight away."
"F-A-B," said Kerry. "If its a situation that requires International Rescue then let us know immediately so I can direct Thunderbird 2 to assist."
"Will do, Kerry," said Penelope. "Over and out." She put the teapot down and got up to pull the bell.
Within thirty seconds of the bell ringing, the doors opened to reveal Parker. "You rang, m'lady?"
"Yes, Parker," said Penelope. "Get out the Rolls-Royce. We could have a situation."
So whilst Penelope put on her coat and boots, Parker changed from his butler outfit to his chauffeur's uniform and hurried round to the garage. By the time Penelope was ready and walking down the front steps of the house, FAB1 was pulling up on the gravel in front. Parker quickly got out and opened the door to allow her to step into the back. Once she was in, he closed the door and lifted his hat before getting back into the driver's seat.
"Where to, m'lady?" asked Parker as they headed down the driveway.
"The Channel Tunnel, Parker," replied Penelope. "Kerry's heard reports of a disturbance and wants us to find out what. And full speed - people's lives could be in danger."
So once FAB1 was out on the road, Parker put his foot down with FAB1 racing down the country road towards the motorway.
Further down the road, a Police Car was resting in a layby. Two officers, PC Mike Andrews who was a veteran of many years work, and WPC Shona Lewis, fresh out of training school was only on her second shift in a traffic car. They had expected a quiet afternoon when FAB1 came rushing past them.
"Goodness me!" exclaimed WPC Lewis turning on the car's engine but to her surprise, PC Andrews stopped her.
"No, let them be," PC Andrews said. "Her Ladyship never causes trouble."
WPC Lewis was at a loss for words. She thought their job was to stop people speeding. What special permission could Lady Penelope have whereas everyone else would have been arrested for speeding if they were caught, she thought.
Thunderbird 2 was now flying over the South Atlantic. The weather had taken a turn for the worse. The bright blue sky they had had over the Pacific was now grey and windy. Luckily it wasn't stormy but there was a little rain in the air.
"Thunderbird 5, we're approaching the Danger Zone," Daniel said into the radio. "Any updates?"
"Not yet, Thunderbird 2," Kerry replied. "Lady Penelope is on her way to the Channel Tunnel now."
"Let's hope that's nothing serious," said Daniel. "Chances are we'd have to return to base in order to change pods which would be time-consuming."
"Agreed," said Kerry. "Do you have a visual on the tanker?"
"There," said Wizzy pointing to an orange glow in the distance.
"That's affirmative," said Daniel. "Going in now."
"F-A-B," said Kerry. "Be careful."
Thunderbird 2 slowed down as it approached the burning tanker - Latitude was its name, and it was a big one. All the crew had managed to escape in life-rafts but the tanker was completely engulfed in fire. It also appeared to be listing over to port as though it was taking on water.
"Jodie, we're over the tanker," Daniel said. "Is there any specific way that we should tackle this?"
"I'm not detecting any oil-spills which is lucky," Jodie replied. "Just use the foam from the tanks. That should be enough."
"Understood," said Daniel. "Adie, what's the status of the life-rafts?"
"According to radar, both life-rafts are clear," Adrienne replied.
"Good, then they're out of danger," said Daniel. "Katie, commence attack run."
"You got it, Dad," Katie replied. She began to move Thunderbird 2 away from the burning Latitude, much to the surprise of the crew.
"Where are they going?" asked one of the crewmen. "They can't just leave us here!"
"No, wait!" shouted another. "They're turning back."
The hatch in the bottom of the pod had opened and a small crane arm with three silver nitro-glycerine canisters had been lowered out. Then with a whine of its engines, it began to approach the tanker to fly directly over the top and along the full length of it. As they began to fly over the bow, Daniel released the first canister. It dropped like a bomb from a military aircraft down into the inferno and detonated. Once Thunderbird 2 had passed over the full-length of the ship, it turned around so they could see the result. It wasn't good. Roughly a third of the fire had been extinguished. The rest of the tanker was still burning. Two massive explosions ripped through it and the force almost lifted it out of the water.
"Anymore explosions like that and it could be ripped in half," Jodie said, having been watching the action via Thunderbird 2's cameras. "Mr Tracy, you're going to have to hurry this up."
"Katie, take us in again," Daniel said. "We'll have to drop both this time."
"F-A-B," said Katie applying power to Thunderbird 2's engines again.
The crew of the Latitude watched as the green leviathan made its second pass over their ship. Both the remaining containers were released and dropped down into the fire. Both detonated engulfing the flames in a white mist.
Katie turned Thunderbird 2 round again. She, Wizzy, Daniel and Adrienne could only watch and hope that their method had worked. After a few tense moments, the white mist began to clear. The flames flickered, and then died. The fire was out.
"Phew!" gasped Wizzy. "That was close."
"You can say that again," said Daniel. "Base and Thunderbird 5 from Thunderbird 2. The fire is out. I repeat - the fire is out."
"Good news, Thunderbird 2," said Kerry. "I've directed two salvage tugs to recover the tanker so you can take the crew to the nearest hospital."
"Thanks, Kerry," said Daniel. "Thunderbird 2 out."
Leanna was having the time of her life. With every twist and turn she made in Thunderbird 6, she was gaining more confidence which was pleasing Beth.
"Not bad, Leanna," Beth said. "Another couple of days of lessons and you'll be able to fly this thing with a blindfold on."
"I could do that?" asked Leanna.
"Could, but not recommended," Beth laughed. "You might crash. Now, we'd best get back. She's got limited fuel."
Leanna didn't want to go back yet. She was having too much fun. But Beth had taken back control of the Tiger-Moth so there was nothing she could do about it.
As Thunderbird 6 was landing back on the runway, Kerry was talking to Jodie about another situation that she'd just been informed of.
"After lunch we can go back out," Beth said to Leanna as they entered the lounge.
"Not quite, Beth," said Jodie. "Laura might have to take over. You're needed."
"I am?" asked Beth. "What's occuring?"
"A space-junk disposer has gone AWOL," explained Kerry over the holoprojector. "It appears to have suffered damage after being hit by another piece of space-junk. Now it's attacking anything that its detects. It needs to be stopped before it attacks a manned satellite."
"I'm on it," said Beth. "Give me more info when I'm in orbit." She then headed over to one of the seats that would take her down to Thunderbird 3.
"Why you still here, Laura?" asked Leanna. "I thought you'd have gone with the others?"
"Not much for me to do with what they were dealing with," Laura replied. "All I would've done is fly and hover and waste fuel. I can take you back out later if Beth's not back."
Beth was soon back in her suit again, having only been out of it for a few minutes and was boarding Thunderbird 3. It wasn't often that she went out alone, but this was one of the few. Once the outer doors were closed and secure, the blast door swiveled round sealing it off from the rest of the silo. "All systems complete," Beth said. "Ready for launching."
5…4…3…2…1!
Thunderbird 3 roared into life and lifted off through the Roundhouse before climbing towards space.
FAB1 was driving along towards London. It would then loop around the city before heading through Kent to reach the Channel Tunnel. They had been listening to the radio for any news reports but so far they'd not heard a thing regarding any issues there.
"H'are you sure there's trouble there, m'lady?" asked Parker.
"Well, we don't know for sure, Parker," replied Penelope. "But I have to say, if there was trouble, we'd be hearing all about it on the news. There's something rather odd going on. I think maybe I'll give them a call and see what's what."
But as Penelope was reaching for the phone on the back on Parker's seat, a rather battered old pick-up truck pulled up alongside them. He was driving very close to them. Too close in fact. As Parker looked over, he saw a man with scruffy brown hair and a moustache driving. The man was also wearing sunglasses.
Annoyed, Parker opened the window. "OI, MATE! MOVE OVER!" he shouted.
The truck driver didn't reply. Instead he fired a small tranquilizer dart from a pistol into Parker's neck. Penelope gasped in horror as Parker slumped over to the side turning the wheel and causing FAB1 to smash through the fence. It tipped over and rolled down the embankment before coming to rest at the bottom of the field about a fifty metres from the motorway. Once it came to rest, both Penelope and Parker were out cold.
The truck driver stopped on the hard shoulder and stepped out of the vehicle. He looked down the hill at FAB1 which had come to rest upright. "Excellent!" the driver said. "Now for the next step of my plan." He then dialed a number in his phone. "I have them," he said. "Proceed."
"Yes, boss," the voice of Transom over the phone.
The driver was The Hood in disguise. He walked down the hill towards FAB1. He looked at Penelope and Parker. "I have no use for the fool of a butler," The Hood remarked. "But Lady Penelope - she will be the perfect bait for International Rescue!" He then somehow managed to open the rear doors of FAB1 and lifted the unconscious Penelope out before carrying her back up the hill to the pick-up truck. He had to be careful that no other motorists saw what he was doing. He had already positioned the truck to hide the large hole in the fence where FAB1 had crashed through. After putting Penelope into the back of the pick-up truck, he then proceeded to tightly bind her hands and feet so that she couldn't escape. Penelope had started to regain consciousness only for The Hood to gag her with black duct-tape. Her shouts were silenced as The Hood then used chloroform to put her to sleep again. "Calm yourself down, Lady Penelope," said The Hood. "We have a long journey ahead of us." He then climbed back into the driver's seat and headed off, taking Penelope with him.
Thunderbird 3 was now in space and heading to the location that Kerry had given Beth.
"So what's the deal with this Zap-1 did you say it was called?" Beth asked.
"NASA's latest project to get rid of all the space-junk," Kerry replied. "It's been designed to seek out and destroy all space-junk with its highly-lethal laser-cannon. It managed to dispose of its first target, part of the old International Space-Station without any incident. But then another piece which was unidentified went unnoticed by its sensors and they collided. The collision caused a malfunction in Zap-1's systems and its been going haywire. Anything that appears within a fifty metre radius of it gets disintegrated."
"Okay…" said Beth. "And have NASA asked for our assistance?"
"Not officially," said Kerry. "But they've not got anything that can can stop it. Their only craft with a long-range weapon is Zap-1. That's why I've asked you to dispose of it. You should be able to disable it before it even detects your presence."
"Right…" said Beth, feeling a little uneasy. "This is going to be fun."
"According to my scans, you'll be coming in from behind," said Kerry. "Its weapon is on the front. If you can stay behind it, you've got no issues."
"Here's hoping," said Beth. "I don't want another long and dangerous chase like Alan and I had with that space-mine."
"No, and I'm sure NASA didn't fit Zap-1 with a kill-code," said Kerry. "Most likely they thought their new weapons was indestructible."
Beth flew Thunderbird 3 around the planet until she caught sight of a mysterious green flash of light in the distance. It looked like a laser-blast. "I think I have visual," she said zooming in with the nose camera. "Yes, I do. It's just taken out another piece of junk."
"You need to be quick, Beth," said Kerry. "If it continues on its current course, it's going to get within striking distance of the Worldwide Space-Station."
"And if it did, people will die," said Beth. "They'll have no defence against it and I'm not going to let that happen."
"Good girl," said Kerry. "Be careful."
As Beth approached the rogue spacecraft, she began to see it more clearly. It was very small, not even a third of the size of Thunderbird 3. It fact it was probably the same size as Thunderbird 6 if not smaller. That did not mean that the weaponry was superior as she soon saw for herself as Zap-1 approached another piece of debris. It fired its green laser and obliterated it completely.
"Ouch!" remarked Beth, shivering slightly. "I'm going to have to take this very carefully."
"Make sure your stealth-mode is working, Thunderbird 3," said Jodie. "It might not before enough to keep you hidden from Zap-1 but at least anyone from NASA observing the footage won't see you."
"In other words, we want them to think they've stopped it," said Beth. "Got it." She continued to ease Thunderbird 3 forwards and hoped that Zap-1 wouldn't turn around.
On a leafy country lane in Kent, a motorbike and sidecar was speeding along. Riding on the motorbike itself was Mullion with Transom in the side-car. It was them who'd caused trouble at the Channel Tunnel. Not in the tunnel itself but by detonating a small bomb in the customs area. Nobody had been killed luckily but there had been a few injuries which the Paramedics were now taking care of.
Now that The Hood had kidnapped Lady Penelope, Mullion and Transom were heading for their next objective, to cause another distraction at a military base near Dover. They were full of confidence for they felt that nobody would be suspicious of them.
"Only a few more miles and we'll be there," Mullion said.
"And with the RAF's people confused, nobody will notice when the boss makes his escape with his hostage," said Transom with delight.
But as they continued along, the sunlight seemed to disappear and they found themselves caught in a shadow. Looking around, they saw that this shadow was a very unusual shape. They then looked up and stared in surprise for a stealthy black aircraft was flying directly above them. It was Thunderbird 7, but of course they had never seen it before so had no idea what it was.
"What?!" exclaimed Transom. "How could the military know where we were?!"
"Hang on, I'll lose them!" said Mullion, revving the motorbike's engine and racing off.
Karolina watched from the cockpit and smirked. "You can run, but you can't hide from me," she said.
Mullion took a sharp left at a junction almost causing the bike and sidecar to tip over. They thought that they could escape this way, but to their dismay, Thunderbird 7 turned straight after them and continued to pursue.
"Keep driving," said Transom. "I'll soon get rid of these idiots." She picked up a machine-gun before turning herself around and shooting up at their pursuer.
Karolina scoffed loudly as the bullets harmlessly bounced off the hull. "Pathetic," she said. "My turn." She activated Thunderbird 7's own machine-guns and began to fire back. Transom shrieked covering her head and ducking down into the sidecar whilst Mullion weaved the bike about trying to dodge the bullets.
Karolina's concentration was then broken by Kerry. "Thunderbird 7, my scans are registering you're in England," she said. "What's going on, Karolina? I thought you were training?"
"I've found Transom and Mullion," Karolina said. "I'm going to make them talk."
"What? Are you crazy?" Kerry exclaimed. "Karolina, we've not had any info since…wait a second, how did you find them?!"
"When I hear about disturbance at Channel Tunnel I went to investigate," said Karolina. "Then I see a motorbike and sidecar fleeing the scene. I recognise make of bike from my uncle's organisation."
Before Kerry could reply, Karolina switched off her comms so that Kerry couldn't disturb her. She had to make sure that Mullion and Transom did not get away from her.
Transom then spotted what she hoped would be an escape route. "There's a tunnel!" she shouted. "Go hide in there!"
Mullion complied and raced the bike towards the tunnel. "They won't be able to follow us now!" he jeered as they entered it.
But Karolina had her own surprise in store. She brought Thunderbird 7 down close to the road before releasing the motorbike cockpit from the rest of the aircraft. She revved the engine and rocketed off after them. Mullion and Transom were already in the tunnel and hadn't seen the separation. They thought they'd got away but found the tunnel wasn't as long as they thought it was.
"No matter, whoever's in that plane can't follow us through here," said Mullion.
But he was wrong. No sooner were they outside when they saw Thunderbird 7 flying over them. They blinked and stared up at it for there was now a section of it missing.
"What the hell?" said Transom. "Is it some kind of drone?"
Suddenly, their bike lurched and began to slow down. They looked back to see the cockpit motorbike was right behind them having followed them through the tunnel and attached a grappling hook to theirs.
"GET AWAY FROM US!" Transom shouted firing her pistol at the bike. The bullets just bounced off as Karolina continued to apply her brakes and slow them down.
Mullion roared as he continued to rev his bike's engine trying to pull free. Karolina smiled before she released the cable and they shot forwards like a missile, heading straight off the road and smashing into a tree. Both fell to the ground, winded.
Beth thought that Zap-1 was basically a miniature version of the Fireball fleet from the World Space Patrol due to the shape of its hull, wings and tail only the nose where the laser was mounted was the difference.
"How are you doing, Thunderbird 3?" Kerry asked.
"Getting there, Thunderbird 5," Beth replied. "Almost in range."
But then there was trouble. Another piece of space-junk floated up past Zap-1 and it ended up turning to face it. It fired its laser again and destroyed it. But due to the angle it was now at, its sensors suddenly locked onto Thunderbird 3.
"Oh, my God!" Beth gasped. "It's spotted me!"
"Beth, get out of there!" Jodie shouted.
Beth fired Thunderbird 3's main boosters and quickly turned and raced away. But Zap-1 was locked on and set off in pursuit.
"Goddamnit!" Beth said angrily. "This was exactly what I didn't want to hap- WOAH!"
Zap-1 had just fired its laser but had missed when Beth sharply turned Thunderbird 3 away at the last second. The Artificial Intelligence in Zap-1's programming was taken by surprise for it had not yet missed any targets it had encountered.
"Beth, you need to stop it now," said Kerry.
"And how the hell am I supposed to do that?!" asked Beth. "If I turn completely I'd give it the perfect opportunity to fire upon me!"
"Then don't," said Jodie. "There's an old Chinese military satellite not far from your current position. If you can get Thunderbird 3 round behind it, Zap-1 should target that instead which will give you time to get in position to fire back."
Beth looked over and caught sight of the satellite in question. "It's not that big, Jodie," she said as she dodged another blast from Zap-1. "I'm not sure it'd completely block me out from it."
"You have to try," said Jodie. "That thing's a danger to anything in orbit. You have to take it out."
"What else am I going to do?" Beth remarked sarcastically as she raced towards the disused satellite. As Thunderbird 3 passed behind the satellite, Zap-1's sensors lost contact and instead locked on to the satellite instead. However, Beth knew she wasn't out of danger yet. Once Zap-1 had destroyed the satellite, it would most likely locate and lock onto Thunderbird 3 again. She needed to destroy it whilst it was distracted. "It's working!" said Beth. "It's going to attack the satellite."
"This is your chance," said Jodie. "Lock on and fire."
Beth had to work twice as hard as usual. Normally it was Adrienne who operated the other systems of Thunderbird 3, but with Adrienne out with Thunderbird 2, she had to do it all. Spinning Thunderbird 3 around to face Zap-1, she quickly used her sharp eyes and reflexes to lock Thunderbird 3's own laser onto it. She was just in time for Zap-1 fired its laser. It blew the old satellite to smithereens. This was her chance. She slammed her finger down on the button and a yellow laser blast shot out from Thunderbird 3's nose. It struck Zap-1 and blew it apart instantly.
Beth breathed a big sigh of relief. "Gotcha!" she said.
Kerry and Jodie were relieved too.
"Well done, Thunderbird 3," said Kerry. "Return to base."
"F-A-B, Thunderbird 5," said Beth. "Be home in twenty minutes."
As Beth signed off, Jodie spoke to Kerry. "What do you think NASA will say about this?" she asked.
"They can say what they like, Jodie," Kerry replied. "If they do have video evidence, we'll simply tell them the truth and that it would've been a danger to the WSS."
Jodie nodded. "How are the others doing?"
Kerry checked her monitors. "Let's see. Thunderbird 2's dropping off the crew of the tanker at hospital in Cape Town. Looks like Thunderbird 7's stopped chasing guessing that Karolina's either caught Transom and Mullion or has lost them. In fact, Jodie, could you re-open the communications link for she seems to have cut it off."
Jodie frowned. "Why do I think she's taking this too personally?" she asked.
"I can't blame her for it being personal for she wants her uncle to pay," Kerry said. "But I'm getting a bit worried that she'll go too far."
Jodie typed into the computer. "Might take me a few minutes," she said. "I'll let you know when it is done."
Just then Daniel called in. "Base and Thunderbird 5 from Thunderbird 2. We're about to arrive at the hospital. Any news from Lady Penelope about the Channel Tunnel?"
"Not yet," said Kerry. "Now you've mentioned it, she should've been there by now. Hang on." She moved the hologram map of the Earth to England and made it bigger. She frowned, worried, for FAB1's icon wasn't anywhere near the Channel Tunnel. In fact, it hadn't even reached London yet. "That can't be right," she said. "Guys, FAB1's stopped along the M-1 motorway for some….wait, the icon's not even on the motorway! It's off on the side!"
Daniel, Katie and Jodie now frowned too. This didn't sound right at all.
"Can you call them?" Daniel asked.
"Going to now," said Kerry. "I'll patch you both in." She pressed FAB1's icon. Thunderbird 5 calling FAB1, do you read me? FAB1, come in."
But there was no reply.
"This isn't right," said Daniel. "Something's wrong. Keep trying, Kerry. We'll head to England once we've dropped these guys off."
Mullion and Transom woke up to find themselves handcuffed and tied to the same tree that their motorcycle and sidecar had crashed into. As they struggled to free themselves, they then saw Karolina approaching them with a rather smug smile on her face. Her cockpit motorbike was parked by the side of the road.
"YOU?!" shrieked Transom. "HOW DID YOU FIND US?!"
"I have my methods," Karolina said. "And I know that it was you who caused that disturbance at the Channel Tunnel. What was your reason? To create another emergency for International Rescue?"
"You think we're going to tell you anything, you can forget it, bitch!" spat Mullion.
Karolina just smirked and took a pair of tweezers out from her utility belt. She then walked right up to Mullion and placed it under his nose. "Not talking, hmm?" she asked. "Maybe this'll change your mind." And she pulled one of his nose-hairs out causing him to scream.
"DON'T TOUCH HIM!" shrieked Transom. She tried to kick Karolina but missed. Karolina spun and grabbed Transom's leg and pulled it upwards. "OWOWOWOW!" Transom screamed. "YOU'RE HURTING ME!"
"Good," said Karolina. "Where's my uncle?"
"WITH YOUR LONDON AGENT!" Transom shouted. "He's taking her away to kill her!"
Karolina glared. She loosened her grip. "What are you talking about?" she demanded.
"The tunnel was a decoy," said Mullion. "We knew that International Rescue would more likely go to the burning tanker, meaning they would send their London agent to investigate the Channel Tunnel."
Karolina's earpiece then buzzed. "Karolina, come in!" Kerry's voice said crossly.
Karolina sighed, annoyed. "I'm busy!" she retorted.
"So we gathered," Daniel's voice now said. "What are you playing at, Karolina?"
"Getting information about my uncle from his two dimwits," Karolina said.
"By physical torture?" asked Daniel. "That's not how we do things!"
"No, but it's how I do things," said Karolina coldly.
"OI, TRACY!" Mullion yelled hoping Daniel could hear. "THE BOSS HAS GOT YOUR FRIEND. HOPE YOU DON'T THINK THAT YOU CAN SAVE HER, CAUSE YOU CAN'T!"
"What's he talking about?" Daniel asked.
"Ignore him, Mr Tracy," said Karolina, letting go of Transom's leg and walking back up to Mullion. "He's just trying to scare us."
FAB1's crash had finally been discovered and the emergency services were on the scene. Parker was starting to regain consciousness. He wasn't hurt luckily but rather dazed as two Policemen helped him out of the car.
"Are you okay, sir?" asked PC Taz, the taller of the two Policemen.
"Cor, me 'ead!" groaned Parker. "I've never felt so h'ill in h'all me life!"
The shorter Policemen was called PC Menkin. He had seen something small in the side of Parker's neck. "Hold still, sir," he said and he carefully pulled it out.
"What is that?" asked PC Taz.
"Looks like a tranq dart," said PC Menkin.
Then Parker began to remember. "H'oh, h'of course! That truck driver!" he said. "It was 'im who did it! Wait until h'I…" He'd broken off suddenly for he'd seen the rear of FAB1 was empty. "Where's 'er Ladyship?" he asked. "Is she h'in one h'of them Ambulances?"
The two Policemen exchanged a look.
"You mean there was someone else with you, sir?" asked PC Menkin.
"You were the only one we've found," added PC Taz.
The colour drained from Parker's face as realisation dawned on him. He refused medical treatment and began to search the surrounding area for Lady Penelope. But there were no clues that anyone could find. Parker was now starting to realise that this could only mean one thing. "I'd better contact Mr Tracy," he said. "H'I do believe 'er Ladyship h'as been snatched!"
At Daniel's urging, Karolina was trying to force Mullion and Transom into talking. "WHERE ARE THEY?!" she roared punching Mullion in the face before going over and doing the same to Transom. "WHAT WOULD MY UNCLE WANT WITH LADY PENELOPE?!"
"To get revenge on you all of course," said Transom with a sneer. "You kicked him off your island, and he wasn't at all happy about that."
Before Karolina could say or do anything else, an alarm started blaring out from the cockpit bike. The exact same alarm also started sounding in Thunderbird 5, Thunderbird 2, Thunderbird 3 and on Tracy Island. It was the one sound that none of them wanted to hear.
"Emergency alarm!" Daniel exclaimed.
"Where's it coming from?" asked Adrienne.
Kerry checked on the map. "FAB1!" she exclaimed and pressed the button. "FAB1, come in!"
Parker's red and concerned face appeared on the screen. "Oh, Miss Tracy, thank goodness!"
"Parker, what's happened?" Kerry asked.
"There was this truck driver," Parker said. "'e forced us h'off the road! Knocked me h'out with h'a dart. And it would h'appear that he's taken h'er Ladyship!"
The blood in every member of the International Rescue team ran cold. Transom and Mullion were not lying after all.
"That's right, Thunderbirds," said Transom, grinning with delight. "And when he kills your precious Lady Penelope, you know what it will feel like to lose someone close to your hearts."
But Karolina had a comeback that not even Mullion and Transom were prepared for. "No," she said. "Lady Penelope will not die as well as my father!" And with that, she ran and jumped back into her motorbike before racing off leaving Transom and Mullion completely bewildered.
"Wait…did she say what I think she said?" Mullion asked.
"She has to be lying," said Transom. "But unless…"
As Karolina's motorbike raced along the road, she sent a signal to the main section of Thunderbird 7. It swooped down and lowered its platform where she could be scooped up and lifted back into the craft before flying away.
Now they knew that Lady Penelope had been kidnapped, their next task was to find her before The Hood did anything bad to her, if he hadn't done so already. But with no clues as to where they could've gone, there was not a lot they could do. Both Kerry and Jodie were working furiously at their computers trying to get a signal lock on Penelope's watch for it had a location beacon, but so far they weren't coming up with anything.
"Where the hell do we even start?" Wizzy asked.
"This could be a very long wild goose chase, Dad," agreed Katie.
"We're not returning to base until we find her," said Daniel. "We'll head to England and start there."
"There has to be clues of some kind," said Kerry. "Karolina, did you get them to tell you anything?"
"Nothing," Karolina replied. "I'm going to fly to FAB1's location and see if I can locate anything."
"What would you expect to find?" asked Adrienne.
"Tyre tracks," said Jodie. "Karolina, if you use the Shadowbike's tyre scanner, you should be able to follow them and see where that truck ended up."
"F-A-B. I'm on it," said Karolina turning Thunderbird 7 to head towards London.
Laura and Leanna entered the lounge having heard something was wrong. "We heard the alarm," said Laura. "What's happening?"
"It's Lady Penelope," said Sian. "She's gone missing."
"The Hood's got her," said Jodie.
Leanna and Laura looked at each other, shocked. "We need to get out there," said Laura. "I'll take…"
"Laura, we have no idea where they are," said Daniel. "You could be flying around in the wrong area and wasting fuel. Kerry, have you got anything?"
"Negative," said Kerry. "I'm not getting anything at all."
This wasn't the news that they wanted to hear.
"But she's got to be out there somewhere!" said Joanne.
Then Karolina broke in with some news. "Thunderbird 7 to all. I've just been ordered by the Hendon Military Base to divert. They have an emergency situation going on. One of their aircraft is missing."
"What kind of aircraft?" asked Daniel.
"Dad, we're not looking for a missing aircraft!" said Katie hotly.
"We could be!" Daniel snapped back. "Karolina, go into stealth-mode and search around the base. See if you can find a pick-up truck."
"Okay…" said Karolina. She pressed a small blue button on her control console and Thunderbird 7's cloaking device activated. Not only was it completely invisible to radar, but also to the naked eye. The engines were also on silent meaning she could fly anywhere she wanted and nobody would have a clue she was there.
"Daniel," Kerry said. "Are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"
"That The Hood's abandoned his truck and stolen one of the fighters?" Daniel asked. "Yes, I am."
"Dad, with all due respect, that is one of the most ridiculous ideas I've ever heard," scoffed Adrienne. "Why the hell would The Hood kidnap Penelope and steal a jet-fighter?"
"To make a quick escape most likely," said Wizzy.
"And to warn off any potential pursuers," said Daniel.
"I see it!" Karolina said. "Looks like the base's Military Police have found it as well."
"So he was there," said Laura.
"Any idea what sort of jet he's stolen?" asked Beth.
"That I'm trying to find out," said Kerry. "Karolina, can you show us an image of the other aircraft at the base?"
"Stand-by," said Karolina. "Coming to you now."
A photo taken from one of Thunderbird 7's cameras appeared on their screens. It showed a very dark grey hypersonic rocket fighter which looked incredibly dangerous.
"Oh, God!" exclaimed Jodie. "Those are Tiger-Shark jets!"
"The most lethal in the world," added Daniel gritting his teeth.
"My God!" exclaimed Laura. "One of those in the hands of The Hood?!"
"And like Thunderbird 7, they are impossible to track," said Jodie. "They also have enough fuel to do a full circumnavigation of the globe if need be."
"He could be anywhere by now," said Wizzy.
The others hated to admit it but they knew Wizzy was right. They were going to need a miracle if they were going to get any clues as to Penelope and The Hood's whereabouts.
The stolen Tiger-Shark fighter was flying high above the ocean heading West. The Hood was in the front seat of the cockpit, now wearing a pilot's disguise whilst Penelope remained bound, blindfolded and gagged in the seat behind. The Hood could hear her muffled grunts as she tugged at her bonds.
"Stop your struggling, Lady Penelope," The Hood said. "We are almost there."
But Penelope wasn't trying to free herself. Instead she was trying to reach her watch. Using her fingers she was able to find the little dial on the side and push it. This began to transmit an emergency location beacon which she hoped would be picked up by International Rescue.
Kerry's eyes lit-up when the signal appeared on the holomap. "Bingo!" she said. "I've got her!"
"Where is she?" Daniel demanded.
"I'm just looking to see," Kerry said enhancing the map. Then she did a double-take at what she was seeing. "What the…? She's flying over the Pacific!"
"The Pacific?!" repeated Daniel. "We're bloody going the wrong way! Kerry, send us the signal and we'll close in on it. Karolina, you do the same."
"Can I help?" Laura asked.
"Yes, Laura," said Daniel. "Launch Thunderbird 1 and see if you can intercept them. Keep The Hood distracted until we get there."
"F-A-B," said Laura. She then turned to Leanna. "Meet me in Thunderbird 1."
"Oh yes!" said Leanna excitedly hurrying out from the room.
But Jodie and Joanne were quick to protest. "Hold on, Laura, you can't take Leanna with you!" Jodie said. "She's not trained!"
"Are you crazy?" added Joanne.
Laura scowled at them both as she grabbed the wall lamps. "She's just along for the ride," she said. "I won't let her do anything except observe." And with that, she tugged the lamps and the wall swivelled round.
"What's this?" Daniel asked having overheard part of what had just been said.
Jodie went to answer only for Joanne to cut across her. "Daniel, Laura's going to take Leanna out in Thunderbird 1."
Daniel's eyes narrowed. "Laura?"
"Dad, she's just going to observe," Laura answered from the express elevator as she headed down to Thunderbird 1. "I won't let anything happen to her."
"Is Beth not back?" Daniel asked.
"No, still five minutes out," said Jodie.
Daniel sighed. "Fine, Laura. I trust you," he said. "But DON'T let The Hood take any shots at you!"
"Relax, Dad. He won't!" said Laura determinedly. She was now at the bottom of the shaft and in her uniform. Leanna was there waiting in her new uniform as the retractable walkway took them to Thunderbird 1. Once inside, Laura sat in the pilot seat whilst Leanna sat in one of the two passenger seats behind. The trolley began to move Thunderbird 1 up the diagonal tunnel towards the launch bay under the pool once the walkway had retracted. At the same time the pool opened up ready for when it was in position.
"Ready, Leanna?" asked Laura once Thunderbird 1 had come to a stop.
"Ready, Laura," replied Leanna clutching the safety-bars in excitement.
5…4…3…2…1!
Thunderbird 1's engines roared as it rose up out of its silo and climbed high into the sky.
Cassidy, Sian and Joanne watched anxiously as Thunderbird 1 rocketed away into the distance.
"Do you think they can find Lady Penelope?" Cassidy asked anxiously. She and Sian had gotten very attached to Penelope since she'd rescued them from school.
"They will," Joanne said with confidence in her voice. But deep down, she was as scared and anxious as the rest of them were.
Jodie and Kerry looked at each other through their holoscreens. They didn't need to say anything for they already knew what the other was thinking.
The stolen Tiger-Shark fighter was now beginning to descend towards an island near Hawaii. The Hood smiled as he brought it down to land vertically in the square located in the village on the very south-side of the island. He climbed out before lifting a muffled protesting and struggling Penelope out of the back. He then looked at the church that was dominated by the huge mountain that stood behind it. He then looked left to right. There was nobody around. The village was deserted.
The Hood carried Penelope over to the church and pushed his back against the door. It was unlocked. "So they really did all leave in a hurry, didn't they," The Hood remarked as he carried Penelope inside. It was very silent and still inside the church. No artificial lights were on. The only form of light inside was shining in through the beautiful stained-glass windows. The Hood saw a wooden chair sitting near the altar which would do perfectly he decided. It didn't take very long for him to tightly bind Penelope to the chair before removing the blindfold so she could see him. Penelope fixed him a glare and made muffled grunts at him. "Do not be so afraid, Lady Penelope," The Hood said. "Sooner or later they will come for you. But it's simply a question of if they get here before or after it gets to you." Penelope began muffled shouting in anger at The Hood and began to tug hard at the ropes tying her to the chair. "Calm yourself, Lady Penelope," said The Hood stopping to look back at her from the entrance to the church. "He can't help you. And neither will International Rescue."
As the door closed, it was only now that Penelope realised who her captor was. The Hood! She said in her head. How could I have been so blind?! She tugged harder at her bonds desperately trying to free herself, but the ropes were too tight. Then she saw a hymn book nearby. On the cover of the book it said: St. Saviour's Church - Mestifa, Ouato. The name didn't mean a lot to Penelope except she was sure Ouato was in the Pacific Ocean meaning she was a lot nearer to Tracy Island than she'd originally thought. I don't know whether I was able to get a signal from my watch or not, but I need to try and warn them somehow, she thought. It was then that she had an idea. Although her feet were bound together with rope stretching out to the front legs of the chair, Penelope was able to lift her feet up and slam the heels her of boots down on the stone floor. This sent a new signal out which she hoped would be detected by Thunderbird 5.
Kerry jumped when the new signal was detected. "Guys, I've got another signal," she said. "This one appears to be stationary."
"Is it Penelope though?" Daniel asked.
"Affirmative," said Kerry. "And I can get a fix on her location."
"Guessing Laura will get there first," said Katie.
"Where is she, Kerry?" Daniel asked. But Kerry had gone strangely silent. "Kerry?"
"Oh, God!" Kerry gasped. "The Hood's taken her to Oauto!"
"Ouato?" repeated Wizzy. "What does that mean?"
Daniel and Laura both gritted their teeth. They knew what this meant.
"Kerry, are you positive that's where she is?" Daniel asked.
"100%," replied Kerry. "I'm moving Thunderbird 5 over the area to get some satellite footage."
"Thunderbird 1, how soon can you get there?" Daniel asked.
"E-T-A in four minutes," said Laura. "What about you?"
"Our E-T-A is nine," said Daniel. "What about you, Thunderbird 7?"
"Seven," Karolina said. "I'm slightly ahead of you."
"Well don't wait for us," said Daniel. "Get in there and get Penelope."
"Kerry, what state is the volcano in?" Daniel then asked.
"Quiet thankfully," Kerry replied. "No more trouble since you were there last time."
It was now that Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy suddenly remembered.
"Wait, hold up!" said Adrienne. "This isn't the volcano that he dealt with before Christmas, is it?!"
"The very same," said Daniel. "And I really hope The Hood's not going to do what I think he's going to do."
But Daniel's fear was about to come true. At that very moment, The Hood had returned to the stolen Tiger-Shark and was lifting off. He knew that International Rescue would by now be aware that Penelope was missing and would be looking for her. Now he needed to create the extreme peril that would threaten Penelope and put her life in danger. He carefully guided the fighter over the church and towards the volcano. Bringing it to a hover about half a mile away from the crater, he locked four of the missiles onto it before firing them one by one at it. The missiles exploded, ripping big chunks of rock out from the mountainside and causing a fresh stream of lava to start seeping out. This also reawakened the volcano which began to rumble once more.
Penelope was very seldom afraid, but this was one situation that was beginning to make her shiver. Oh dear, what will become of me? Penelope asked herself.
What The Hood didn't realise was that International Rescue was closer than he'd expected. Kerry had brought Thunderbird 5 into an orbit directly above Hawaii. Kerry was watching him through the long-range cameras and was horrified when she saw that the volcano was releasing lava again. "Guys, hurry it up! He's set the volcano off again!" she cried.
The blood in every single member of International Rescue ran as cold as ice. Laura and Leanna gasped when they saw a small plume of smoke rising on the horizon.
"Is that it?" Leanna asked.
"It is," said Laura. "Hold tight. We're going in."
"Be careful of the ash, Laura," warned Daniel.
"Forget the ash, be careful of that fighter!" said Jodie. "Your ships are strong, but so is that fighter."
"She's right," agreed Kerry.
Laura then spotted an object approaching them from the left. "Speak of the devil," she said. "Here it is now."
"Everyone silent," Daniel snapped. "I want to hear what he has to say."
Everyone fell silent and tuned their radios in to Thunderbird 1s. The Hood brought the fighter level to Thunderbird 1 and began to speak. "Tiger-Shark 4 to Thunderbird 1. Your precious Lady Penelope is in a bit of a tight spot. You will land your craft in the village and search for her. She could be in one of many buildings so be quick about it."
"And if we don't?" Laura asked.
"Then she dies," said The Hood with a sinister chuckle. "And so will you if you don't get out before the lava strikes."
"You're a sick man, you know that, don't you, Belargant," said Daniel.
The Hood was taken by surprise. "Excuse me?" he said.
"Cut the act, we know its you," said Daniel.
"We also know that you're The Hood," added Laura.
The Hood was very surprised. "What? How?!" he demanded.
"Your brother told us, right before his passing," Daniel said. "They were his last words."
Now The Hood was shocked. "My brother is…dead?!" he asked.
"That last attack you did after you left us finished him off," said Daniel. "Now you can no longer be a massive arse in his life. He's at peace finally."
The Hood growled. "It matters not!" he snapped. "He was never much use to me anyway!"
This made everyone's blood boil. He really was as cold and uncaring as they'd believed.
"What else, Belargant?" Daniel went on. "How many other times have you been causing us trouble?"
"Ever since the beginning, Tracy," said The Hood. "It was I who planted the bomb on the Fireflash on its maiden flight. It was I who tried to steal the secrets of the Atomic Irrigation Plants in Australia and Africa. It was I who sabotaged the Red Arrow test flights. It was I who hounded your colleagues at Lake Anasta. It was I who tried to dispose of those meddling boys who you took a shine to in Australia. And it was also I who made a mess of the filming set in Nevada by trapping those actors inside."
The International Rescue teams suspicions were becoming clear. It was all making sense now. Several of them began to have flashbacks. First the airliner Fireflash which was unable to land on its maiden flight at London Heathrow Airport. The Atomic Irrigation Plants that had exploded in Australia a year before they had started as well as the one in the Sahara Desert where Lady Penelope had been spooked by a tiny robotic mouse that The Hood had used to spy on the complex. The two Red Arrow fighter jets that had crashed at Heathrow and into the UK TV-Relay Tower in Warwickshire. But the most shocking were those of Lake Anasta where Jodie, Karolina and Wizzy realised it was The Hood who'd hypnotised them and attacked Thunderbird 4 with his own sub; and for Laura who had chased the intruder at Dunsley Tracker and after the film set incident. All of this along with many since then had always been the same person.
It was only when an explosion from the volcano occurred that Laura snapped out of her thoughts.
"You have choice, International Rescue," said The Hood. "You can either stop me, or attempt a rescue of Lady Penelope. You can't do both. MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHA!"
And before Laura could say another word, the Tiger-Shark's afterburners fired and it rocketed away.
"You utter sick bas-"
"Laura!" Kerry barked. "Forget him! Get Penelope!"
So Laura turned Thunderbird 1 back and raced as fast as it would go towards the island. As they went, suddenly a streak of black shot across in front of them. It was Thunderbird 7.
"Karolina?!" Laura exclaimed. "Watch it!"
"I'LL END HIM!" Karolina roared. "I SWEAR!"
Leanna and Laura looked at each other. They didn't like to think for a second what Karolina would do once she'd caught up with her uncle, but they had to save Penelope by any means necessary. As they flew over the island, they could see the lava was almost at the village. The ash from the cloud was falling across the island like black hailstones which began to bounce off Thunderbird 1's hull.
"Thunderbird 5, please tell me you know where she is," said Laura.
"Got her!" said Kerry. "She's in the church!"
"That lava's way too close!" Adrienne remarked having been watching the footage from Thunderbird 5 on the monitor beside her. "Laura, can you even get her out and get airborne again in time?"
"I'll have a damn good go at it," said Laura. "Preparing to land."
"Impossible," said Jodie. "I've been doing some calculations. Judging by the flow of the lava, it will surround the church in less than three minutes. You're not even on the ground yet. The minimum it could take you Laura is four minutes."
"That's…not enough," Beth said. She had returned to Tracy Island and was with Zoe, Joanne, Cassidy and Sian by the desk.
"I have to try!" said Laura stubbornly.
"I'll do it." A stunned silence fell upon the team. It was Leanna who had spoken. "Let me rescue her," she said. "I can get out, get Penelope and when we get back aboard, you can lift off straight away."
"Leanna, you can't. You haven't been trained!" Laura protested.
"SO WHAT?!" Leanna thundered. "LADY PENELOPE'S ABOUT TO DIE! WE CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN!"
Everyone fell silent and looked at Daniel. He wasn't happy with this anymore than they were. But he also knew that Leanna was right. "Do it," he said. "And Leanna, good luck."
There was nothing anyone else could say or do. Daniel had spoken. Laura lowered the landing legs as Thunderbird 1 descended upon the village and landed in the square in front of the church. They could see the lava approaching. It looked very deadly and menacing. Laura opened the hatch and Leanna jumped out. It was lucky she'd remembered to put her helmet on for the ash that was falling was knocking hard on top of it.
"I can do this, I can do this," Leanna said out loud to herself as she sprinted towards the door located round to the rear of the church and round the side. This was near to where the lava was so she wasn't going to have much time to get in, get Penelope and get her out again before it reached it. Leanna kicked the door open and ran inside. Looking down the aisle, her eyes widened when she saw a frantic Penelope tugging desperately at her bonds with wide eyes and was screaming from under her gag. Leanna had sudden flashbacks from when she had been kidnapped earlier in the year and had been tied up in almost the exact same way. But she could hear the rumbling of the volcano and it forced her to act. She sprinted down the aisle and peeled the tape off Penelope's mouth. "Are you okay, Lady Penelope?" she asked as she began to untie her.
"Do I look okay?" Penelope replied indignantly. "Just get me out of here!"
Leanna worked quickly to release the ropes around Penelope and the chair. Then she helped her up.
"Thank you, La-" Penelope broke off suddenly when she realised who it was who was standing next to her. "Leanna?!"
CRASH! Both gasped to see the door off the church sudden collapse as the boiling hot lava began to flood in.
"LEANNA, GET OUT OF THERE?!" Kerry and Laura's voices simultaneously screamed through the radio in Leanna's helmet.
Leanna and Penelope backed away. Fear was flooding through their veins. From what they knew that was the only door into the church. There had to be another somewhere but there was no time to search for it. It was then that Leanna had an idea. "Laura, has the lava reached the window nearest to you?" she asked.
"No, but it'll be there in less than ten seconds," Laura replied. "Just get out of there!"
Leanna grabbed the chair that Penelope had been tied to and threw it as hard as she could at the large stained-glass window. The window shattered and Leanna lept onto a wooden box beside it before glancing out at the lava which was at the next window along. "Now Lady P, jump!" she said.
Penelope passed Leanna and jumped down to the ground. She did a forward roll and got out the way as Leanna jumped down and did the same. The lava was just inches from their feet so they both legged it as fast as they could towards Thunderbird 1. Leanna had to throw her left arm over Penelope's head to protect it from the falling ash.
"Oh dear, this will mess up my hair," Penelope remarked as they reached Thunderbird 1.
As Penelope climbed into Thunderbird 1, Leanna glanced back to see the lava had now completely surrounded the church and all of its wooden features were burning. Leanna then scrambled up after Penelope and the ladder and hatch retracted and closed.
"Hold tight!" Laura said firing up Thunderbird 1's VTOL thrusters and it lifted off into the air barely a second before the lava reached the landing legs. Leanna and Penelope strapped themselves into the passenger seats as Thunderbird climbed away from the village. As they looked back down, they saw the doomed church collapse completely and the lava began to engulf the other buildings in the village.
"Thunderbird 1 to Thunderbird 2, 5 and base," Laura said. "I've got them. Leanna and Penelope are both safe."
Everyone cheered. Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy all high-fived. Joanne hugged Sian and Cassidy and Zoe hugged Beth. Rosie and Jodie just grinned at each other whilst Kerry cleared out the lump in her throat.
"Bring her back to the island, Laura," said Daniel. "Parker's en-route with FAB1."
"F-A-B, Dad," said Laura. "Over and out."
Thunderbird 1 flew ahead with Thunderbird 2 following not too far behind.
"That just leaves only one thing," said Daniel. "Kerry, how's Thunderbird 7?"
"According to my scans, she's closing in now," said Kerry.
"What's she going to do?" Wizzy asked.
"Whatever she wants," said Daniel.
"You're not going to stop her?" asked Katie, surprised.
"No," said Daniel. "This is hers to decide. Not mine."
Katie, Adrienne and Wizzy exchanged looks. They felt this wasn't going to end well for The Hood.
The Hood was racing across the Pacific Ocean very confident of his victory. He was convinced that there was no way that International Rescue could stop him or even save Lady Penelope. "It is done," The Hood said to himself. "International Rescue will lose one of their own and soon their forces will be weakened. Soon their secrets will be mine!"
"You wanna bet?"
The Hood glanced out of his left window and blinked. A Thunderbird craft that he had never seen before was flying alongside his Tiger-Shark. He was even more shocked when he saw who was in the cockpit. "You?!" he exclaimed.
"Hello…uncle!" said Karolina coldly.
"NO!" The Hood shouted and made his jet go even faster. He was now desperate to get away.
Thunderbird 7 chased after the Tiger-Shark. Both aircraft flew high and low and swooped around over the sea trying to outmanoeuver the other.
"GET AWAY FROM ME!" The Hood roared.
"No, uncle," Karolina replied. "You killed my father. Now I'm going to take you down." She used her computer to lock onto the Tiger-Shark and fired a missile. It scored a direct hit on the port wing snapping it off.
"NO!" The Hood cried as it spiralled down out of control towards the sea. "NOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Karolina watched as the aircraft hit the water and exploded. She then flew down and hovered above the wreckage. She looked around, but there was no sign of The Hood. "Good riddance," she said before flying Thunderbird 7 away. But as she made her way back towards Tracy Island, she began to feel bad. Despite all that The Hood had done, to kill him was not how Kyrano would've wanted it. She didn't feel any remorse for The Hood, but she felt bad that she'd let her father down.
Karolina was the last to reach Tracy Island. Penelope had cleaned up and had eaten some food and was feeling a lot better. So was a very relieved Parker who had managed to fly the damaged FAB1 to the island for repairs.
"Oh, m'lady," Parker said. "I h'am so fired, h'aren't I?"
"Nonsense, Parker," replied Penelope. "None of this was your fault. It's not the first time I've been in a situation like this and it probably won't be the last."
"The less the better though, Penny," said Daniel. "One of these days we may not get to you in time."
Penelope nodded. "True, Daniel, true."
All eyes turned to see Karolina enter the room. They noticed immediately that she looked unhappy.
"Karolina, you okay?" Daniel asked.
"I guess so, Mr Tracy," Karolina replied.
"Did you get him?" asked Beth.
"I shot his plane down," said Karolina. "I didn't see any trace of him."
There was silence as everyone exchanged looks.
"I'm sorry, Mr Tracy," said Karolina. "If he's dead, I've failed."
Everyone was surprised.
"But isn't that what you wanted?" asked Wizzy.
Karolina shook her head. "That was my grief and rage that did," she said, turning to look at the setting sun. "But my humanity returned afterwards. Killing isn't what International Rescue stands for. I'm sorry."
Daniel walked over and put something in Karolina's hand. It was a glass of wine. "Not everyone can be saved, Karolina," he said. "I say this many times. We just do what we can do. If your uncle did survive and is foolish enough to return, we will be ready for him." He then turned and beckoned Leanna over to join him. "I would like to propose a toast," he announced. "To Leanna and Karolina - the heroes of the day!"
"Leanna and Karolina!" the others all joined in.
Leanna and Karolina beamed with pride.
