SHATTERED 11
by Crystalquirt
Thunderbirds Are Go! Fanfiction
I don't own anyone or anything.
Only because Grandma Tracy was occupied elsewhere on base and he was sure she wouldn't catch him, Gordon bounced happily into the kitchen looking for snacks before supper. Alan was already there, staring into the refrigerator. Gordon slapped his little brother in the butt and said, "Hey little guy! Whatcha gonna do this evening?"
"Little guy? I'm as tall as you are - maybe taller." Alan said, standing up straight.
"Yeah, not quite yet," Gordon chuckled, as he pushed Alan's head down slightly. He continued, "Do you want to go swimming with me?"
"You're going swimming again?" Alan grinned. "I'm surprised you aren't waterlogged and internally chlorinated by now."
"Not in the pool! I want to go out in the ocean and take Thunderbird Four. I want to go diving. You up for it?"
"Well yeah, but ... why?" Alan asked. He took two bagels from the bag on the counter and handed one to Gordon as they walked to the dining room table, talking.
"It's been a month since we were um..." started Gordon, rubbing his forehead where the small scar remained. "Well, got our bells rung. Brains said that after a month I can take Thunderbird Four out and go diving. He just cleared me this morning but he said I can't go alone."
"So you need me as your accomplice as well?" said the youngest Tracy.
Gordon shrugged. "Yeah, but Dr. Early was on the Vid-cam giving his second opinion too, so John and Scott can't argue, right?"
"Right, but I was cleared three days ago - and I had more injuries," Alan bragged. "I guess that makes me tougher than you."
The aquanaut glared. "I just got hit a little harder. Do you want to go or not?"
"I guess, but I'm concerned though, if you go deep water you may still give yourself one whopper of a headache."
"No way - I have a headache having to be above the ocean's surface for so long - whatdayasay?"
"Well, do we suit up, or gear up?" Alan asked.
"I'm gearing up so I can go deeper - you do what you want," said Gordon as he headed toward the elevator to put his IR gear on.
"FAB!" Alan said excitedly and went to gear up as well.
In orbit on Thunderbird Five, EOS spotted it first. A blip on John's screens and a yellow icon popped into view. The icon represented Thunderbird Four leaving Tracy Island.
"John?" EOS said in her sweet way. "I believe at least one of your brothers is loose from the Island in Thunderbird Four."
"Let me see..." With a wave of his hand, John pulled the screen that EOS was looking at over in front of him. His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Yes, I believe you are right, EOS."
Flexing his hand that had been broken weeks ago like it was stiff, John called, "Thunderbird Five to Thunderbird Four... Come in please."
Gordon's smiling face lit up over the holo viewer, showing him from the waist up. "Hi John!"
The astronaut narrowed his eyes at the younger man. "What are you doing out in the ocean, may I ask?" John asked, sounding like it was taking some effort to not yell. Admittedly, he was glad that he didn't find Virgil at the controls. He didn't want to think about the day he had to knock out Virgil to save him.
Fortunately his supposedly wayward brothers broke those thoughts. "Brains and Dr. Early released us from jail!" Gordon happily responded.
"Us?" John asked, returning both hands to his holo images, checking on an seaquake near Japan.
Hiding from John at first, Alan sat up straight. He had his head between his knees to keep John from seeing him in the small cockpit until Gordon gave him away. "Hi John." Alan said, running his fingers through his hair.
John's left eyebrow went up and twitched. He didn't say anything else to his little brothers.
First he only called, "Thunderbird Five calling Tracy Island, Brains - Come in," John sighed loudly.
"Brains here -"
"Brains, do you know that..."
The engineer, already analyzing the likely question, put his hand up. "John - and before you get too upset, I did release Gordon just this morning, and Alan was released last Wednesday," he said. "They are not to go too far from Tracy Island and not dive too deeply. Sorry I didn't let you know."
John blushed, then chuckled softly. "Alright Brains. Sorry to interrupt you."
"No interruption, John. It's good to know you're watching over your brothers from Thunderbird Five again," Brains responded, chuckling himself. "I'm experimenting with your helmets. My new nano technology won't break and even if something does hit it hard enough to crack it, the tech will repair itself."
"That sounds good Brains. Each of us has had at least one time where our helmets were cracked. Even Gordon has had it happen while deep water diving."
"Your new helmets will be so strong that I don't believe anything will break them."
"Well if something does strike the new material, instead of breaking the impact will just knock our heads right off - right Brains?" Gordon surmised, grinning.
The engineer looked at the aquanaut, shaking his head. "To determine that, more research will need to be done. But forgive me if that is one experiment that I hope is never completed," Brains said.
"FAB, Brains," John smiled, and then spoke to the security camera hovering over his head, "EOS, will you help me keep an eye on my brothers in Thunderbird Four?"
The AI chuckled. "Of course John. I can watch the seaquake too if you want to rest."
"I don't need to rest, EOS. I just want to make sure those two don't slip away from our attention."
"FAB - I will keep an eye on them."
John looked at Brains. "Brains, you keep an eye on my brother there too," he said, smiling as he continued his observation of the seaquake.
Brains smiled at John's holo image and said, "R.A.D." He and Kayo had a tight grip on a soft white belt that went around Scott's waist. With great effort, the brother's unofficial leader was walking between his two helpers.
The pain and tight scar tissue kept him moving slowly, his jaw clenched.
"Good Scott," Brains encouraged. "Those stockings will keep your legs warm and promote circulation from here on.. Your prognosis wasn't very good at first, but I think you will make a complete recovery, with time."
"How much time?" Scott stopped to ask. "I can't stand being out of the family business."
"I know Scott. I think it's your determination that is helping you recover." Brains put his hand in the middle of Scott's back, guiding him back to his bed. Scott counted, 11 steps back to his bed, Kayo helped him sit down while Brains took scan's of Scott's legs and respiratory system.
Looking at the results, Brains said, "You are doing very well Scott. Try to be patient. In fact, if you'd like to sleep in your own bed tonight I think that would be fine."
The pilot smiled. "I guess it would be nice to sleep in my own bed." Scott agreed.
"Just contact me if you need anything. Don't try to get up for anything alone, Scott." Brains warned him.
"I won't," Scott promised, though both Brains and Kayo didn't quite believe him.
John stared at his screens, floating still, he was thinking. After a few moments, he said, "EOS, if Alan and Gordon are going stir crazy, I'm sure that Virgil and Scott are too - maybe more so. They've been confined at base for weeks. At least Gordon and Alan did get out a couple of times."
"It couldn't be helped, could it?"
"Not at first, but Scott has improved a lot. And I think Virgil has," said John. "I think I've thought of a way that they can get out, without being in any real danger."
"Are you sending them to London?" said the AI, believing it to be the safest place in the world - at least with Lady Penelope and Parker.
"No, not London exactly. I think I've thought of a way that they can be out and we can see how much better Virgil is - and maybe it will help him as much or more than sitting at home on medictions and talking his problems out will."
"I can't imagine how?" EOS answered not understanding the concept. John however floated higher and switched frequencies using the icons on his halo screens.
"International Rescue calling the GDF - Colonel Casey come in please." John called their friend.
"This is the GDF, Corporal O'Reilly speaking. Colonel Casey will be with you in about 50 seconds. She is inspecting the cell block."
"Thank you Corporal O'Reilly. I'll hold." John answered.
John waited on the call watching the seaquake and keeping an eye on Gordon and Alan. He wondered sadly, although he didn't think it was going to happen, what if that seaquake did cause problems that they would have to deal with, now? Could he send Virgil out safely with Gordon and Alan?
He knew his youngest spaceman and aquanaut brothers would respond alone if necessary, but what if it was a bigger situation than they were ready for - or if it was something they didn't have as much experience doing?
Scott and Virgil were the earth, cave and cave in, mountainous climbing, and heavy lifting experts and Gordon would need Thunderbird Two to take his sub to the danger zone to be the most effective if he was needed.
Hearing John make the call to the GDF and waiting on hold, the advanced, AI couldn't help but be curious. "Is there an emergency situation somewhere John? I don't know how I could have missed one." EOS asked innocently. "No EOS, no emergency. I want to ask Colonel Casey a favor. It's about what I said before about getting Virgil and Scott away for a little outing."
"Oh good, I thought I might be malfunctioning."
John was about to correct EOS when he saw the GDF icon change. "Colonel Casey here, International rescue. John, what can I do for you?" The tall, imposing woman said when she came online, her full body visible in the hologram.
"Colonel Casey, my brothers are going stir crazy. Especially Scott and Virgil. We need them and they need what I will call 'therapy' that maybe you can help with."
The older woman smiled. "Of course John, but other than 'stir-crazy' how are they doing?"
"Scott is progressing well, the damaged muscles in the backs of his legs will require a lot of uncomfortable physical therapy to heal without limiting his ability to move his legs. He still has a long road to full recovery," said the astronaut. Virgil, he seems to be doing well, when he's awake. He sleeps a lot with the medications that he is still on, but with Brains monitoring him all the time we know that he's not having nightmares anymore."
"Sounds like mostly good news, John. What can I do to help?"
"If it's not too much of an imposition, would we be able to use GDF training facilities for a day out? My brothers could use a day away from the Island, but Virgil, I'm just not sure if he is ready to return to duty yet," he said. Seeing the colonel about to speak, John continued. "I know that it could take months, or even years for Virgil to recover completely, but I wonder if a day running mock rescues wouldn't be of benefit for him and we can find something for Scott to do too."
She smiled. "It would be my pleasure, and I'm sure my training officers would enjoy it too. We have state of the art training facilities that simulate just about every situation, structure and terrain that can be encountered."
"Can we do it without everyone knowing who we are?"
"Sure, some of my officers have met you guys and worked closely with you already. They know the importance of keeping everything they see and hear on the job, a secret. I will bring in those same officers as training officers. They will not spread the information around and our facilities are under high security, and completely out of the public eye."
"Sounds good Colonel. Would tomorrow be too soon?"
"Not at all. We well be ready. Be here at 0600. I will send you the location on a secured channel to Thunderbird Five."
"FAB and thank you very much Colonel. I'm sure this will benefit us - especially Scott and Virgil." John ended the conversation.
Virgil lie awake in bed, in spite of the evening injections that Brains always gave him. The dosages were smaller after a month had gone by, but frequency was the same and he still felt like a pincushion. He had slept all afternoon only to wake up and talk to Brains and Grandma Tracy about his dreams, his feelings and a bunch of other stuff he'd rather not have to talk about.
Now he was back in bed and the clock was ticking - not a real ticking from a real clock with gears inside, but a simulated ticking from his digital replica of a German Cuckoo clock built in 1960.
He had it set so that it wouldn't 'cuckoo' on the hour at night, but he still had the ticking to remind him about all the time was passing and that his brothers' wouldn't let him go out on any missions. Alan got to take his own Thunderbird Two out the week before. He had helped with a rescue that didn't require Alan having to go EVA.
He did it as well as Virgil would have for sure. The astronaut caught a train car before it went off the end of collapsed tracks over a deep ravine. Alan didn't even rattle the passengers as he put it down into the hands of the GDF.
Virgil hated to think about it but he did feel a little jealous. Alan had little practice with the skill, but he did it as well, if not better than Virgil thought he would have.
OK, he had to admit, it was eating his shorts just a bit.
A crash and an expression, "Crud" in the quiet house interrupted his thoughts. Virgil got up and put his robe on over his shorts. Barefooted, he went out in the hallway and heard another small sound. He tracked it to Scott's bedroom.
"No, it can't be. Scott's in the Med Bay." Virgil thought. "Who's in his room?"
No one told him that Scott would be sleeping in his own bed that night. He cracked the door and peeked inside. It was too dark to see anything so he opened the door a little farther to look and so he could reach the light.
He would never tell Brains or his other ' wannabe psychotherapists', his brothers and Grandma Tracy, that his first thought as he opened the door was that it was the Hood or Mechanic.
When he turned the light on, Virgil noticed that his hands were shaking, but he set his jaw, took a deep breath and clenching a fist just in case, opened the door.
There next to the bed he saw feet on the floor. Human feet, heels up and moving slowly with some weird stockings.
"Scott!" Virgil jumped over the bed and over his fallen brother. Scott didn't acknowledge his presence, and made him ask again. "Scott? Are you alright?" he gently placed his hand on his brother's back.
"Hurts a little." Scott admitted through his clenched jaw. "Sorry I woke you, Virgil."
"I wasn't asleep. When I sleep all day, it's hard to sleep at night. I'm glad I heard you. How long were you going to lay here until you called for help."
"I was gonna lie here until I could get up myself or until morning if necessary. I wasn't planning to call anyone."
Virgil gave a wry smile, patting his brother's back gently. "Too bad, but I guess I'm here now to share in your misery."
Scott made no move to get up, or even roll onto his back so Virgil sat on the floor with his legs crossed next to him.
"Yeah, I guess I am punishing myself, and everyone else. I should have called someone when I had to pee," admitted Scott.
Virgil's eyes widened in worry. "Why didn't you tell me? By now your eyeballs are probably floating. I'll help you up!"
"I'm fine, I made it to the restroom. I fell on the way back. I almost made it before you came in."
"It didn't look that way. You were flopping around on the floor like a fish out of water." Virgil smiled and so did Scott. The oldest was the first to start laughing and for the first time in a long time, Virgil genuinely laughed with him.
"Do you think we should get up off the floor or just stay here?" Virgil asked.
"I'm fine with staying right here," Scott said. "I wanted to talk to you. I haven't seen much of you at all since my accident."
"I know, Scott, and I feel terrible."
"Why? I mean - I know it's hard to watch a brother suffer - four of them. I didn't want to be anywhere near myself while Dr. Early was still here, and even after that."
"I should have been there for you. I don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything," the eldest started. "It's just, do you remember what you told me that time?"
"What?" Virgil admitted to himself he didn't really remember a lot, and what he did was incorrect.
"You said that we all needed me around - well we all need you around too, Virgil. Do whatever Brains and the others say to do and get well as soon as you can, okay?"
"I am, I'm doing what they say now." Virgil said, surprised as Scott found his hand to hold. Virgil gave him a confused look.
"I'd give you a hug, but I can't reach from down here." Scott said, smiling.
"Let's get you up off the floor. It's probably cold for you," he said, glancing down to his brother's feet. "Even though you're wearing white pantyhose."
"Thanks - but these aren't pantyhose! They are therapeutic stockings!" Scott corrected his brother.
Virgil stood up first. Putting his hands back down under Scott's arm, he helped him roll over. Scott groaned softly when he had to bend his knees, but Virgil easily steadied him as he did most of the work, standing up off of the floor.
Before he could sit him on the bed, Scott grabbed him and Virgil thought his brother was afraid he was falling and held on tighter. He quickly realized that Scott was trying to hug him. He returned the brotherly hug and said, "Thanks, we both needed this I think. I'm so glad you aren't angry with me."
Scott broke the hug, "I really need to sit down," he said tiredly. Virgil helped him sit on the bed before he helped him turn and get his legs back under the blanket.
As the middle brother turned to leave, Scott grabbed his arm. "Wait Virgil, I could never be angry with you - no matter what."
Virgil smiled, "Thanks." He turned to leave again, but Scott continued, "John and Brains told me that you blamed yourself for things that were out of anyone's control - The things that happened to me at Brandon's birthday party."
Virgil sat on the edge of the bed and said sadly. "Yeah, poor kid, what a birthday party, huh?"
"Yeah, it went south in a hurry and there was nothing you could have done differently that would have prevented my injuries or anyone else's injuries for that matter."
"I realize that now but still, I feel really bad when I think about it sometimes," Virgil said it, sounding normally, but Scott was sure he saw tears welling up in his brother's eyes.
"Virgil," he said simply.
His brother stood up and and said, "I better go back to bed, I'm getting sleepy now. Goodnight Scott."
"Goodnight Virg."
"Sounds like work to me." Gordon complained the next morning when John told everyone in the control room what he had planned.
"Anything that does not involve food or great amounts of water sounds like work to you, Gordo." Virgil teased. "I think I would enjoy spending a day there."
"Good Virgil. I'll come down from Thunderbird Five and go with you guys. One more day away from Thunderbird Five won't hurt anything," he said, then chuckled. "At least EOS has assured me of that."
"She's right John," Kayo stood up from a sofa in the command center. "I will bow out though. I need to stay on Tracy Island and monitor the security here and I can help EOS monitor for emergency situations too."
John continued, "We will need Brains with us to monitor our progress and make recommendations to the doctors who are working with us and Grandma Tracy. Wait, Grandma Tracy? Will you be going with us?"
"No, I think that will be far too much activity for me. I'd only slow my boys down. Anyway. I have a zucchini cake recipe I've been wanting to perfect. Maybe MAX can assist me."
MAX rolled up and with a mechanical chirp produced an egg beater, a spoon and a tray showing he would help - if anything to ensure something edible for the Tracy brothers when they returned.
"I can fly us all there in Thunderbird Two." Virgil volunteered.
"Okay, sounds like it's on - see you all at 0500!" John said.
At 5:20 a.m., Thunderbird Two raised dust landing in a remote area where two GDF ground vehicles met them. Each military vehicle with only one driver who had been briefed on the plans and sworn to secrecy.
The vehicles rolled up the armored doors for the Brothers and Brains to climb inside.
Wearing plain tactical clothing they looked like everyone else on the training field - with two exceptions. They had their IR helmet prototypes with them and Brains pushed Scott in through the gates in a wheelchair. Still, he and Brains wore olive green tactical uniforms to match everyone else on the training grounds.
"John, why did you include me in this?" Scott questioned, "I can't climb around and play on the jungle gym like the other boys."
"This was mostly for Virgil's benefit, but I think you will benefit too, and maybe even enjoy it." John leaned down and whispered, "And I thought you might like to just sit someplace and shout orders at the rest of us."
Scott rolled his eyes, but smiled at John's point.
The Tracy family stopped in the middle of the yard, near a large building and John began, "I'm glad you all agreed to come today. I really hope it will be of benefit to all of us. If for no other reason, it got you all away from home for a day," he said. "Colonel Casey offered use of these facilities today and any other time we would like to get out and work until we are all ready to get back on the job, full time."
"Sounds good," Alan said, "Now let me at the rides!" He turned to walk toward a large wheel made out of iron, even though he wasn't sure what it was for - it looked interesting.
John pulled him up by the back of his collar. "Sorry Alan, this isn't going to just be a free for all," he said, laughing.
Alan sighed loudly and John turned his attention to Virgil, more sober.
"I know, Virgil, that you were blaming yourself for not finding Scott sooner. But the truth is, that it was already too late, the moment that Scott went in alone." John said, and the others came closer around him. "That is my fault."
Virgil did a double take. "Wait John, you've been telling me all this time that it was no one's fault - Scott told me again last night - How can it be your fault?"
"I guess you're right Virgil. It wasn't really my fault, but here today I want to explore ways to be sure it does not happen again."
"I'm with you there," Virgil said, looking at Scott..
"Good! With five of us, and Kayo and Lady Penelope and Parker also prepared, there really should be no reason for any of us to go into such a dangerous, unpredictable situation alone, ever again."
After that, Virgil stared at his own toes while John spoke. Next Scott tried to defend himself. "I had to go in, every second counted for those kids still inside."
"True, you are right Scott. It just, rather than depend on Brandon to get you out again, for my part, I will make sure that someone else is on the way immediately - even if it looks like they won't be needed at first. Better to have one of the Thunderbirds cancel the call and waste a little fuel, than get there too late," said John. "No one is at fault here - we, Scott and myself are here partly anyway, to make improvements on how we respond."
"How is being here for one day going to help?" Gordon asked.
"It might help a lot, and until we are all back to 100 percent, we might even come back a few more times," he responded, and picked up his helmet. "The helmets that Brains has brought along are all prototypes for his new helmet designs."
"Really? They look exactly the same." Gordon pointed out looking at his.
Brains answered, "The outer design is the same, it is what they are made out of that is the improvement. Wear them where you have to today and if the opportunity comes to smash your head into something, by all means do it. I will measure the helmets' suitability for real missions."
"Thank you Brains, I'm sure that Gordon will be the first to test his new helmet in just that way," said Alan with a smirk.
"Hey, what does that mean? I'm not any more likely to bang my head that any of you are!" Gordon whined.
"Well, that said, here is the plan for the day." John continued.
"Scott will begin with physical therapy, under Brains and one GDF officer trainer's guidance in the weight room. The exercise is to test his fitness and level of recovery. Scott, you wanted a more exact time estimate for when you can return to duty and we think this will help."
"Who's We?" inquired Scott.
"Brains, myself and Colonel Casey. Kayo wasn't in on it at first, but she agreed that it would be beneficial too," his red-headed brother said. John turned back to the others. "I will train with all of you out on the simulators until Scott is finished. Then he and I will run through as many mock scenarios as we can, using GDF systems, discussing strategy and dispatch."
Five GDF officers with 'trainer' bands on their sleeves walked up and saluted the brothers.
"Sirs, Colonel Casey has assigned us to help each of you today in whatever way you think will be most beneficial. I am to assist Virgil. I have not met him, which of you is that?"
"I'm Virgil." he stepped up.
"The Colonel wants us on the bomb disposal exercise first, then to complete five more exercises, or missions before the day is over."
"Sounds good," Virgil said.
The lead trainer who had just called Virgil to his side addressed his troops, "Trainers, please introduce yourselves to your trainees and take them to their first simulations. Before the day is out, our goal is to have you each experience five chosen simulations in turn."
Brains pushed Scott in the wheelchair following behind their training officer. They were the only ones who went right away inside the large building that they had been standing in front of. Scott was a little nervous.
On the way he asked Brains, "Are you sure I'm ready for this? I can hardly walk with assistance, let alone by myself or having to go over hurdles or something."
"Don't worry Scott, I'll make sure we don't push you beyond your limits. Think of it as a sort of stress test at the doctor's office."
"Taking my imagination to a doctor's office does not help!" Scott shot back at Brains.
"Take it easy Scott, after this I think you'll enjoy your time running strategic scenarios on GDF simulators that will test your mind more than your body. John will be joining you when you're ready for that."
The young man gave a half smile. "I'll try to enjoy these things, like you say, Brains, but no promises," Scott sort of agreed.
They entered a large room with wall to wall soft rubber flooring. There were many exercise machines that Scott recognized, and some machines that he had no idea, just from looking at them, what they were for.
They stopped by a table with tubes and a face mask at one end and an apparatus at the other end with straps on pedals like on a bicycle. There were what looked like hand holds about in the middle between the top and bottom of the padded table.
"Okay sir, let's get you lying on the table. I think you can tell which end your feet should go." The Trainer stood in front of Scott and helped him stand. With a simple pivot Scott found himself sitting on the padded table.
"FAB," Scott said sounding uncertain. He laid down and Brains caught his legs. He put Scott's legs onto the table, and pulled one of Scott's pant legs up. "What are you doing?"
"Oh I was just making sure you were wearing the stockings under the uniform."
Scott rolled his eyes. "You told me to."
"Right, and I'm glad you did what I said once," Brains said seriously, but then broke into a grin when he saw Scott's expression.
With Brains on one side, and the trainer on the other, they strapped Scott's feet and hands securely to the pedals and handholds. There were extra padded straps that went around his wrists and ankles to make sure he didn't let go or have his foot slip off and hit by the turning pedals.
Smiling gently as he could see that Scott was a little fearful he put the mask attached to the top of the machine by two tubes over his face.
He kept waiting for Brains or the trainer to tell him what was happening, but no one offered an explanation
"What's going on? What is this thing?" Scott finally couldn't stand not knowing.
"This machine will allow you to work your arms and legs together, without having to be standing or even sitting up so you won't lose your balance," explained Brains. "You turn the handholds like pedals on a bike and the same with your legs."
"Why do my feet and hands have to be strapped to the pedals?
"Because if you let go before you stop completely you could get hurt. Plus, after you reach your limit the machine will sense it and slow you down gradually, ending with very therapeutic gentle stretching of your arms and legs. There is a panic button here," the trainer showed Scott by placing his thumb on the button. "If you experience severe pain or just don't want to continue, push that and it will stop your movement immediately and then release the straps, all four at the same time. Brains and I will remain here on either side of you and catch your legs so they don't fall should it come to that."
"And Scott," Brains interrupted seeing the younger man's face twitch. "The breathing mask you are wearing will not interfere with your normal respirations in any way. It is only there to measure how well your lungs are functioning during this test. My scans show the pneumonia is gone and your lungs are recovering nicely, but this machine will show more about your respiratory system while under stress."
"That's it?" asked Scott, just to be sure.
"For the most part, but full d-disclosure, if it is necessary at some point this system will begin to deliver oxygen to help you breath until you recover. If you can, please keep talking during this test to show if you are becoming breathless. Are you ready?"
Scott nodded, ready for the challenge. "FAB Brains, I'm ready."
The trainer walked Virgil to a small wooden shack only about eight feet by twelve feet with one door and one window. No furnishings, but for one-half of a set of very old, dirty curtains at the small window, a hard wooden chair and a square wooden table.
"Now Virgil, this will be a situation where you have to disarm a bomb. It will take great concentration, and there will be... distractions." His trainer told him. She lead him inside the shack.
"Sounds like nothing I haven't done before." Virgil grinned. A second young lady dressed in a plain dress and high heels walked in.
Virgil watched her sit on the wooden chair in the corner. "Who is she?" He didn't want to just say, 'she's beautiful,' but he was staring.
"She is your distraction."
"Oh, well. You are my kind of distraction, ahum - No problem." Virgil blushed a little.
The trainer went over to the woman and draped a soft rope around her, pretending to tie her to the chair, but there were really no knots in the rope. She could get up anytime she wanted. That made Virgil feel better. He didn't want to even pretend that she was in real trouble.
"Okay, Virgil, you can do this!" he mumbled to himself.
The trainer announced, "You have two minutes." He left and Virgil started to examine the explosive device left in the middle of the table.
Ten seconds in, the bomb started ticking. Virgil said, "Okay, adding a little more realism." He went back to studying the device. Ten more seconds of listening to the ticking, reminded him of the cuckoo clock in his room at home, and it brought back memories he'd experienced over and over during the nightmares that he had in that room.
"Oh wow - this is a tricky one," Virgil said, sweat visible on his brow. "But don't worry Miss, I'll save you," he smiled at her and she started screaming.
"AAAhh! Help! What are you waiting for? Save me! AAAAAAAAaaa! Help! Help! HeelllP!"
"Nice touch." Virgil glanced at her and as she continued to scream he returned his attention to the bomb. She even turned her chair over and landed on her side as though she was really tied into it. Virgil kept true to his mission and didn't go try to help her. It helped when he realized that she just did it to see if he would come help her and forget the bomb.
With a flip of a switch and four wires cut in the correct order, the bomb was disarmed. Still, playing the game, Virgil ran to his victim, who had resorted to cursing trying to distract him. "Such things should not come out of such a pretty woman's mouth," he said and scooped her up in his arms and with the soft rope trailing behind them, he ran out carrying her.
"You are safe now Ma'am," said Virgil very politely letting her legs down first so she could stand up. She smiled at him. The trainer and a few other officers that had been watching came over. The trainer said, "Very good Virgil - you did it with 55 seconds left. I'd say you passed this simulator with high marks."
"Thank you sir, explosives are kinda my thing," he told her.
"Well, let's get you to your next simulation. I believe you are scheduled next for the drowning situation."
"Oh man I guess I'm getting wet then," Virgil said.
"I don't think you can avoid it and still solve the next situation." The trainer smiled in an annoyingly smug way.
In another part of the yard, Gordon was walking with his trainer to his next simulation, the trainer said, "Sir, I understand you are an aquanaut. This next simulation was to be a water rescue, but let's do something else. I mean - we know that you already know how to swim. How about flying?"
"I fly a lot on our missions, too. This still looks like a water rescue with the 100 foot diving board and the pool below."
"You won't be climbing up and diving down. Quite the opposite. You will go up using a jetpack in the wind we have today. And with someone you have to rescue at the top without the help of your normal gear, I think you'll find it challenging."
Gordon looked up the 100-foot ladder that went up to the diving board, and saw a man climbing. He was almost to the top. "So he must be my victim. Sounds fun - when do we start?" Gordon said.
"Right now." His trainer pointed to a jetpack waiting on the ground nearby. Gordon put it on, and put his helmet on. "My helmet feels the same." He observed, whispering to his brothers and Brains.
After a nod from the instructor, Gordon activated the jetpack. Near the ground he wavered a little as he got used to the controls, but once he straightened it out, he stayed in complete control to the top, where the man was lying on his stomach on the diving board.
"Hi Sir! I'm here to rescue you," Gordon said, landing near the man's feet.
"I'm with the GDF." Face down, the man spoke without moving. "It's okay, I know you're from International Rescue."
"Oh well then, you know you're in good hands!" Gordon grinned. He bantered happily with the man as he would anyone who needed rescuing and would be scared. He then looked at the tag on the back of the man's shirt. "Especially as you're unconscious and can't help me."
The GDF officer scoffed. "Are you saying that I'm in better hands with you than you would be if I was to rescue you? You know, my being with the GDF?"
"I'm not saying that, exactly." Gordon grinned.
While they chatted, Gordon wrapped a safety cable around the diving board that was fastened to his belt, and then still talking slipped the end of another belt under the man's belly. The man felt what he was doing and sucked in his gut.
The aquanaut clicked his tongue, chiding. "You're supposed to be unconscious, remember? Can't help me," Gordon told him. He snugged the belt down in the back fastening the buckles and securing them with velcro.
"I am unconscious now, but remember I could come to any time." The man teased back. Gordon fastened his belt into his own so they were both cabled around the diving board.
Gordon tried to lift the man and grunted, not able to life the man larger than himself on the first try.
"Raaaaw!" Grinning, the man growled and pushed himself up from the diving board. He pushed on Gordon's leg and sent him off the board. In turn, Gordon's weight pulled the man off the board. The veteran rescue man pretending to be the victim laughed as he went.
Gordon swung under the board and was not surprised when his helmet, the glass facemask specifically, struck the a bar on a metal brace under the diving board. It snapped his neck back and he grabbed for the brace to stop himself from flailing around.
His 'victim' looked up at his young rescuer in time to see him get a knock against his helmet. "Sorry man, are you alright?" he called up.
"No! Or - yeah! I'm not hurt...but I am hanging under a diving board a hundred feet off the ground and my belt is cutting me in half with your weight hanging on me!" Gordon was trying unsuccessfully to push the belt down from his ribs.
"What a whiner." The seasoned rescuer said. "I told you I could wake up fighting at any time."
"Well, if you wanted to fight, maybe you should have called the GDF instead of me!" Gordon shot back.
The trainer chuckled. "I think I've passed out again - Are you gonna save us or not?"
"I'll save us!" Gordon said with a smile. "At least the new helmet's passed the first breakage test, but I really don't want to tell my brothers about this."
The 'unconscious' victim smiled. "You got it."
Gordon shot a new grapple line up to the top of the ladder and began hand over hand to get them over to the ladder so he could carry 'his victim' down.
The trainer assigned to Alan waited with him outside the next simulation. Alan had his prototype helmet on his hip. They had to wait for John to finish with their next simulation before they could begin.
For Alan the rescue at the diving board was to dive into the pool and save a person who was pretending to drown. The teenager finished very quickly. His 'victim' was female and weighed a little less than he did. He spent the whole time blushing and stumbling over his words - but the rescue part went perfectly.
"Phew! Gravity made that way harder than it looked!" John said when he walked out, with his trainer following.
"What was it? What did you have to do?" Alan asked, excited.
"Shhh! Don't tell him!" Alan's trainer said to John. "It should be a surprise - and besides what he had to do might be very different from what you will have to do, the trainer said, "Let's go in."
John waved at his little brother, and all he said was, "Have fun with it, Alan!"
Alan smiled back, "I bet I'll do, whatever it is faster than you did!"
"I bet you will too," John conceded rolling his shoulder. "I still hate gravity."
John stayed a moment to watch after Alan went inside with his trainer. A beep signaled a call coming in from Brains. "John here. How is Scott doing?"
"Exhausted, but finished with the evaluation. He did very well."
"I didn't do well - I thought I was dyin'!" John could hear Scott yell from the background.
Both Brains and John chuckled. "Sounds like he's ready to hit the computer screens for our simulations." John said.
"Do you know where it is John?"
"Yes, shall I meet you two there?"
"R.A.D." Brains said. "And how is Virgil doing?"
"I haven't seen him or his assigned trainer, but no news is good news, right?"
"Hope so."
"I think they would have told one of us if Virgil was having trouble. I'm on my way to the virtual simulations." John said.
"R.A.D." Brains signed off.
Alan walked inside the dark, three story structure. It smelled of smoke and mold.
"Are you sure this place isn't haunted?" Alan asked.
"We'll no one has died in there, if that's what you mean." His trainer explained, "All you have to do here, is find your 150 pound dummy in the smoke, strap the dummy into the stokes and get it rigged and out through the window."
"Where there's smoke, is there fire?" Alan asked.
"Not this time. This simulation is more about finding your victim and getting them into the stokes and out the window in a hurry. Time stops when the stokes touch the ground. Any more questions?"
"Nope." Alan said and put on his helmet.
"Go smoke!" The trainer yelled and all three floors of the building were full of smoke in seconds.
Alan ran inside. A light at the entrance started the timer running. He didn't run in too far. He couldn't see much outside his helmet on the first floor. He walked around the sparse furniture in each room looking for the dummy as he went. Then checked around the second floor and finally found himself on the third floor. His respirations were coming faster and the rebreather in his helmet was making more noise with each breath.
The combination made him stop briefly, but then he shook his head. "I don't dare stop! What if this was a real person with real fire all around?"
Alan came to the first room on the third floor and on the far side of the small bed, there was the dummy. Alan tried to just heft it up like a sack of potatoes but fell forward with his face buried in the bed as the dummy hit the floor. It was human like with arms and legs, but behaved exactly as an unconscious person would: difficult to carry.
"This things doesn't even have 'bones' in it, but it's kicking my butt!" Alan said breathlessly as he fell with it in the hallway. He dragged it by its head to the empty room with the stokes.
He rolled the dummy into the stokes on its drawn on face and began tying the ropes. "There's no way I'm gonna lift that up to the window sill alone!" Alan complained. Lifting the end where the feet would have been, he swung it around and put it on the window's edge. He found it much easier to lift and slide the other end up so it was balanced. He wrapped the rope under his butt and pushed the stokes out through the window. When it left the sill, it nearly yanked him out though the window with it, but he caught himself. Feeding the rope through his hands and around his butt he gave it a quick and mostly controlled ride to the ground when he heard the trainer yell, "Time!"
By the time Alan got back down to the first floor most of the smoke had left the building through remotely opened windows on each floor.
"Hey! How'd I do?" he called to the trainer.
"Better than that red haired brother of yours!" The Trainer said. He walked up and patted Alan on the back.
"That's all I need to know Sir. Is there something you can give me in writing?"
"I don't have anything handy, but I can send him a text. Name was John, right?"
"That'll do." Alan grinned.
To Be Continued . . .