A/N: There will be a major death in this chapter as you can probably tell. If you don;t like the scene, my apologies. Anyway, sorry for the lateness of this update.

Please, please, tell me what you thought of this chapter. Even if it's negative stuff, I still want to know what you thought.

See you guys next time.

:)


Present

"Where is he, Transom?" The Hood demanded as he rounded on the frightened computer genius.

"I-I don't know, sir" Transom typed away at the camera controls that monitored the entire island. She had been watching for the past 15 minutes scouring the island she still couldn't find any trace of him "No sign of him. But, he released the prisoners. They've escaped the compound and disappeared into the jungle"

"Damnit!" The Hood swore as he slammed his hand on the desk. Those prisoners were his last chance of getting out of this cleanly. And, now they had been stolen from him. By this child!

But, he could still get out of this. This agent hadn't witnessed what The Hood could do. The powers he possessed.

"When you find him, I want you to-"

"Love what you've done with the place" A voice said from the side

The Hood and Transom's heads snapped over to the entrance to the office where Alan was leaning leisurely against the door.

"You…" The Hood growled as he snarled at Alan

"Yes, me" Alan pushed himself off the door and walked around Command and Control. Alan raised his Beretta and pointed it at Transom "How you doing Brains?" he asked as he passed the scientist.

"You cost me billions!" The Hood spat "The perfect plan and you ruined it. I had it all figured out. The Thunderbirds taking responsibility, the-"

"You know, I have had it up to here with all your crap today" Alan said as he raised his hands above his head "I've been kicked. I've been punched. I've been soaking wet. I just got thrown around a hanger by Bigfoot. And, I am not in the mood for a useless monologue right now" Alan said as he listed things off on his finger "I have reached my limit of shit-taking"

"Oh, you haven't seen anything yet, agent" The Hood growled. His eyes flashed red as he used his powers on Alan. But, then something strange happened.

Nothing happened. Alan just stood there, unaffected.

Alan raised an eyebrow at The Hood "Hmm, an Intellect. It's been a while since I've come across one of your kind in the field" Alan said with an amused expression "Yeah, I'm afraid all E.O.S.T.C agents have at least basic training to resist your kind of powers, so I'm afraid your last card ain't such a wining hand after all"

The Hood frowned confused "What?" he asked as he squinted at the boy in front of him "Who the hell are you?" he asked. He had never met anyone who could resist his mind powers before.

"It was you" Alan realised as he looked from side to side as the pieces came together "When your mine came under attack by our strike team, you became desperate for a way out. A lot of adrenaline was surging through your body. I'm guessing that's when your power activated. Your mine wasn't brought down by incorrect building, it was brought down by you. Your cowardice got three brave men killed, Mr Belegant. And, now it's time you face justice for it" Alan informed him calmly

"What are you talking about?" The Hood demanded

Alan ignored the question "Now, I think we're done here, Mr Belegrant. How about you? Anything else?" Alan smirked as he mocked the criminal. The Hood just silently glared at Alan. Alan raised an unimpressed eyebrow "Didn't think so"

Alan aimed his Beretta at The Hood and smirked when he saw the slight look of fear on the criminal's face.

"Trangh Belegant, you are hereby charged with the enslavement of the innocent civilians of Malaya, the illegal profiteering in the black market, with the purchase of weaponry used to sabotage and destroy private households, with the murder of three E.O.S.T.C agents and the attempted murder of five other men aboard the rescue vehicle Thunderbird 5. Under Section 4 of the Operating Code of the E.O.S.T.C, you are hereby sentenced to death" Alan said, sticking to the script that he had been taught to use for these very circumstances by Higgins. "Do you have any final words? Please note- anything you say will never be released to public records" Alan said as he aimed for Trangh's head.

The Hood scoffed "Do you honestly expect me to believe you're going to pull that trigger?" he sneered "No, you're just a boy. You don't have the guts to do it, do you?"


Three years ago

Alan stepped off the helicopter that he and Higgins had been on for the past three hours. The ground was gravelly and the air was cold and damp. The helicopter had landed in a small gorge that was several metres high. There was only a thin walking pass heading north that seemed to go on for miles.

Higgins hadn't told him where they were going. He had just showed up at the training hall and told Alan to meet him in the hanger within the hour. And, when Alan had arrived there, Higgins was waiting for him and told him to get on-board for a day trip. Alan had agreed instantly without any complaint. You didn't question your Mentor. You just did as they tell you. Always.

And, it was just the two of them. No back-up, no mission. Just Alan and Higgins, alone. Alan wanted to say that since he was only a Class 1 agent, he shouldn't even be off the base. But, Alan decided to keep that argument to himself.

The helicopter rotors revved up again as it took off, leaving Alan and Higgins. Alan watched as it disappeared off into the clouds and headed back towards the base.

When Alan looked down again, he saw that Higgins had already started off down the pathway. Alan quickly ran to catch up and soon they were walking side-by-side again.

"So, where we going?" Alan wondered

Higgins didn't even acknowledge that Alan had said anything. He just kept his head pointed forwards as he walked

"Ok, grouchy" Alan said

Higgins whacked Alan on the back of the head without even looking. How does he even manage to do that?

"Ow" Alan rubbed his head as he slowed slightly "Alright, then…Why are we out here?" Alan asked as he lifted his arms

"It takes more than a loaded gun to kill a man, Alan" Higgins said, not looking back at the younger agent "It takes the will to pull the trigger. The will to look your target in the face and then do what you have to do to protect people"

"And, the reason why we are out here is…"

"Because you need to see what happens when your will runs out when you're in the field"


And so, they walked, and walked, and walked, and walked. Mile after mile through the gorge, Alan silently walked along behind Higgin as the older man led the way. For hours, Alan didn't see one sign of civilisation.

That was, until he saw what was at the end of the gorge.

The steep rocky terrain eventually hit a dead-end. There were several dozen old, wooden houses burnt to a crisp. They were arranged in a sort of semi-circle shape around the dead end facing the path going through the gorge.

Alan took several minutes to explore through the old village and he found nothing. The wood groaned and creaked as the wind changed direction. It seemed that no-one had been here in years.

"What is this place?" Alan asked

"Its name no longer means anything. But, it was once known as santuário. Portuguese for 'Sanctuary'"

"And, why is this place so special?" Alan asked as he looked around the desolate houses

"Because, Alan, directly beneath your feet is a mass grave of over 200 people"

Alan's mouth opened and closed several times as he tried to find the right words "Why?" he finally whispered quietly

"Seven years ago, we received intel on a weapon being smuggled through Brazil. The village they chose to hide it was santuário – right here. We dispatched a nearby agent called Hernandez Glazen to investigate and when he arrived he discovered the weapon had already been armed and set to explode. It was a trap intended for us. There were three minutes to detonation and instead of trying to disarm the weapon like any E.O.S.T.C agent should, Hernandez chose to run. He ran and ran, yet it made no difference. The bomb went off and he was still incinerated along with the 200 innocent civilians of santuário. Hernandez Glazen is the only agent ever to lose their life in disgrace" Higgins said

Higgins crouched down to the ground and ran his fingers through the gravel. He picked some up and stared at the small pebbles in his hand before scattering them again. He sighed as he looked around the village.

"I was the one that led the recovery team. After analyzing the debris, we discovered that it would have been a simple job to stop the countdown if Hernandez had stayed to look instead of running" Higgins chuckled humorlessly "200 people dead for nothing. All because one of us lost the will to fight for what he believed"

Higgins walked over to where Alan was stood silently as he listened to the story. Higgins placed a hand on Alan's shoulder.

"Alan…I don't care what you choose to draw strength from and I don't care how…" Higgins whispered into Alan's ear "Just make sure that it will never expire. Because, if you lose it in the field and you're unable to pull the trigger, I can guarantee you that someone else will. And, you'll end up dead or worse"

Higgins stepped away from Alan and turned, walking several paces away before turning back around.

"Do you see why I brought you here, Alan? When out in the world, you can't have doubts, you can't be afraid, you can't choose to run. You do that, you'll die as will anyone else you've been sent to protect" Higgins said as he walked back over to Alan.

Alan nodded "I understand" he said sincerely

"Good" Higgins then pulled out his radio and pressed the transmit button "Bring it down"

Moments later, the helicopter descended into the village and hovered mere inches from the ground. Higgins walked over to it and puled the door open and climbed inside. Alan walked over and pulled himself up inside.

"Hang on a sec, if the helicopter was able to land here, then why in the hell did we just walk all the way here?" Alan asked, frowning.

Higgins shrugged "Exercise"

Alan rolled his eyes and slid the door shut.


Present

"Believe me, Mr Trangh, I have plenly" Alan said

"Death comes for us all, agent" The Hood smirked "I wonder how long it'll be before it comes for you" he said with a short maniacal laugh

"You know sometimes I lay awake all night just thinking about that" Alan said sarcastically as he rolled his eyes "Still, at least I get the satisfaction of knowing you left this world before I did"

Alan tightened his hold on the grip of his gun and pulled the trigger.

A gunshot echoed through the house as The Hood collapsed to the ground…a giant hole through his forehead.

Transom stared, shocked, as her employer laid dead by her feet. She whipped her eyes backwards and forwards between The Hood and Alan Tracy. She quaked in fear as her hands shook nervously

"And now, onto you" Alan said as he pointed his gun at Transom

"You said you wouldn't kill me" she raised her hands in surrender "Please, you said you were going to-"

"Please…"Alan held a hand up to stop her "I told you I was going to let you live and that's what I'm going to do. Now, turn round" he instructed

Transom silently spun on the spot as Alan came up from behind her. He ziptied her hands together and removed any equipment she had in her pockets and tossed them to the floor. When Alan was certain she no longer had anything stuffed up her sleeves, he sat her down on the ground.

"Now, let's see what the damage is" Alan said as he walked over to a computer "Thunderbird 5 geosynchronous orbit compromised-not good. Life support down to critical- not good. Venting atmosphere in 30% of the station- not good. Temperature rising to 70- not good. Thunderbird 3 engine failure- eh, that's not too bad" Alan listed the problems off as if they were nothing "You really did a number on this didn't you" Alan joked as he glanced at Transom out of the corner of his eye

Alan walked over to another computer screen and began to type "Now, if I do this, and a little bit of this, a few seconds of engine bursts there, reinitialising life support and gravity and…" Alan slapped his finger down on a button on the keyboard dramatically. The computer beeped inacceptable at his commands "Thunderbird 5 is back online" Alan said triumphantly as he smirked

"Where's Mullion?" Transom asked worriedly. She had heard Mullion when he was fighting the Tracy kid and had grown increasingly worried the longer she hadn't heard from him.

"He'll be fine. Now; I think it's time we left. Do you concur? Yes? Good" he said, not actually giving Transom a choice. Alan reached into his backpack and pulled out a radio "Higgins, requesting pickup in 20"


20 minutes later, Alan was stood on the roof of the island house with Transom kneeling by his side and Mullion lying on his back, still holding his leg wound.

They heard the quiet sounds of rotors whirring grown louder and louder until they saw the small, black craft emerge and go from being a dot in the horizon to the full size it was. It came in to hover and then touched down in front of Alan. The door slid open to reveal Higgins along with two other agents by his side

"Good to see you again, Alan" Higgins said as he stepped off the helicopter

"You too" Alan greeted his old Mentor "I've got a little present for you" he waved his hand at the two people on the floor by his side "Transom and Mullion of Trangh Belegant's organisation. His two lieutenants. There are other men scattered around the house but we can leave them for Jeff Tracy and the police. They are of no concern to us"

Higgins nodded in understanding. He motioned for the two other agents to get Transom and Mullion secured on board the helicopter. They rushed forwards and first, they went for Mullion who yelped in pain and grasped his leg when he was picked up. Then, they went back for Transom and pulled her to her feet before dragging her inside and setting her down inside.

Alan and Higgins turned to the body bag that Alan had also dragged up with him "That him?" Higgins asked

"Yeah, Trangh Belegant. The man the .T.C has been looking for, for all these years. Did you know that he was an Intellect? That's how he brought down his mine the first time"

Higgins raised his eyebrows in surprise "No, we didn't" he answered truthfully as he looked at Alan. He placed a hand on the boy's shoulder "Good job, by the way. You handled yourself like a true agent today" he said proudly as he smiled

Alan smiled back at him "Thanks"

"Now, I believe we have something to do before we leave, don't you?" Higgins smirked . He turned to the two agents "Directive 48" he declared

"Yes, sir" they both nodded and climbed down into the house.


Alan and Higgins followed on behind the two agents as they all made their way to Alan's room.

The agent in front pushed open the door and stepped inside. He went straight for the shelves and tore down the several decorations on the top of it. The other agent started tearing apart the room and piling up everything at the centre of the room. Alan and Higgins both chipped in too, collecting up any trace of Alan and adding it to the slowly growing pile in the middle of the room.

Barely five minutes later, everything had been stripped of the walls, every piece of clothing from the wardrobe had been ripped out and all the furniture had been broken and smashed into small pieces and thrown on the pile.

Alan and Higgins stood by the door, the other two agents had already returned to the helicopter. Higgins passed a lighter to Alan "You ready?" he asked

Alan lit the lighter in his hand and tossed it onto the pile. The fuel they had poured onto it burst into flames instantly, and started to burn everything.

Alan and Higgins walked out of the room. The fire suppressant systems would kick in soon enough but not before everything on that pile was nothing but ash. The rest of the house would stay standing. Only Alan's room would burn.

And, that was just how they wanted it.

Directive 48 – to wipe out any evidence of an agent's existence when his cover was no longer needed. Thanks to Jeff Tracy's fierce paranoia, they didn't have to worry about the media being a problem. There were only about 20 people outside of the E.O.S.T.C that knew Alan even existed.


Alan went back to Command and Control and found the horrified Brains still sat on the floor, tied up.

"A-A-A-Alan, you just k-k-k-killed him" Brains said as he gawped at where the Hood's body used to be with his mouth slightly ajar.

"I'm sorry it had to end this way, Brains" Alan said as he placed a cylindrical grenade on the table. He clicked his way through a menu at the top and watched the different options go by 'Frag', 'Incendiary', 'FlashBang', 'Semtex' before finally landing on 'MemWipe'. He pulled the pin on the grenade. There was a small pop before smoke started to rise out of the top of the grenade and slowly started to fill the room with a thick smog.

The smoke soon enveloped Brains who started to cough and choke as he tried to hold his breath. But, he couldn't stop himself from taking a breath. As soon as the smoke had filled his lungs, he started to feel himself grow weak.

Alan watched as Brains slumped against the wall, unconscious. Alan quickly made his way out of Command and Control before he too got caught in the smoke.


Alan met up with Higgins as they made their way back to the helicopter.

"You find it?" Alan asked

"Yup, all security footage of the past four hours have been erased and the servers destroyed. Your family nor anyone else will find any evidence of you or me"

"Good, 'cos without evidence, all my dad can do is whine about how much the repairs are gonna cost" Alan laughed

"Oh, I'm sure he will" Higgins agreed


Alan and Higgins quickly made their way back onto the roof. Alan was about to pull himself through the helicopter door when Higgins cleared his throat theatrically. Alan just looked at him innocently. Higgins raised an eyebrow

Alan rolled his eyes "Fine" he said glumly as he pulled out a remote and pressed the button "Locking mechanism of Thunderbird 5 is re-activated" he said as he climbed inside

Alan strapped himself inside one of the passenger seats opposite Higgins

"Get us in the air" Higgins ordered

"Yes, sir" The pilot immediately responded as he started the engine and the rotors spun loudly. Alan felt as the helicopter lifted off the ground and started to climb.

Transom and Mullion looked around from where they sat next to each other on the floor. They shared a short look with each other and in that moment, they both communicated what they dare not say out loud.

How had it come to this? Being ambushed by a child. Their boss killed. Being kidnapped by a secret organisation.

What next?