Jeff released the scientist's hand, watching Brains float away to potentially begin preparations for their return home. Only -
"Virgil," his whisper caught the second eldest's attention easily enough. The young man had yet to stop fussing over his health.
"Dad -" Virgil's question cut off at the finger pressed to his father's lips. As he came closer, he whispered, "what's wrong?"
Grey eyes flicked to the figure imitating his old colleague, "That's not Brains."
Virgil's eyes widened and he could see the battle of trust warring behind them. His father had been gone for eight years. How would he know there was something amiss. "How do you know?"
Jeff swallowed, hoping to make himself as clear as possible. He wasn't wrong about this. "Brains has never called me Jeff."
The engineer seemed to consider the reasoning, turning to regard the scientist in question. Whatever his son was thinking, Jeff hoped he would make a decision soon. There was no way he could protect his family in his current condition.
Eventually, Virgil nodded, "Wait here." He pushed off, heading for Gordon and catching his arm and mimicking the same hush motion to keep the blonde from alerting their stowaway. Jeff couldn't hear their conversation, but a look of determination flitted over his second youngest's face. The elder man would've questioned why Gordon was Virgil's first choice, but there was still so much he didn't know about his boys.
Both floated over to Brains who was hovering behind the controls. He doesn't know what to do. It was all too obvious.
"Hey, Brains," Gordon started, the lie easy for his mischievous son. "Thunderbird 2 took a pretty big hit while we were out there. Virg is worried it'll affect launch."
"Oh, it sh-shouldn't be a problem," the scientist didn't turn from the console.
"I don't know," Virgil added, drawing the attention of the other three boys. "It was a pretty big hit."
Jeff found himself intercepting John's confused look, holding it back with a hand.
"Better check it out, just to be safe." Bless Scott and that authority Jeff suspected came from years at the helm of International rescue.
For a long second, Brains didn't move. The tension in the old astronaut's shoulders grew with each tick until he watched the scientist shift, heading back towards the door. Gordon and Virgil were close behind and now it was John's turn to alert Scott to the potential situation.
A hand slipped into his and he turned to see Alan watching him with concern. Jeff gave a wavering smile, squeeze his youngest's fingers before returning to the group heading out. If the imposter was going to make a move, now would be the time before he lost access to the Zero-XL.
Brains floated through the hatch, flanked from the side and behind and for a moment, Jeff didn't breathe - not until Brains turned back to look at him, a wicked grin on his face, his right eye flickering gold.
And then, the hatch slammed shut.
OoOoOoO
"Brains? What are you-" Virgil bristled, turning back to the door controls. Gordon kept his eyes on the scientist, watching the smile grow as he cut the question short.
"Oh, let's drop the charade, shall we," the voice distorted into one of the man Gordon feared might have been behind this. The Hood's features appeared as Brains' flickered away. A device sparked in his hand and before Gordon could move, a bolt slammed into gut, shocking the breath out of him as his suit took most of the electrical discharge. It also managed to send him into the wall and he sucked in air before kicking off.
He was aimed for the villain's face, glad at the surprise he saw flash over it. It was almost satisfying, Gordon wanting to slam his fist into the bald man's jaw, but as he swung, the face shifted. The Hood's hand caught his arm and used the moment of his launch to send him into the wall.
"Gordon!" Virgil cried and the aquanaut wished he hadn't. The pressure on his back relented, but only so another bolt from the stun baton could strike the engineer and send him careening past them. It did offer an opening for Gordon to send an elbow into the Hoods sternum, wrenching himself free to spring off the wall. They hit the opposite side of the corridor, the impact sending a grunt from the villain and he released the blonde.
Dammit, move! The low gravity left Gordon feeling slow and uncoordinated as he pushed off the Hood, spinning to try and get a hold of the weapon. He grabbed the wrist as sparks flew, streaking past his head and into the plating. Amber stared into yellow, brows narrowed as they fought for control of the device.
And then another pair of hands took hold, ripping the baton free. Gordon got a brief glimpse of blue and green and fear just before a fist caught the bridge of his nose, sending sparks of pain and bright flashes over his vision as it snapped.
He heard his own cry and would have cursed his mistake if an arm wasn't wrapping around his throat. The Hood shifted away from Virgil and the weapon, pulling Gordon into his chest. Inwardly, he was screaming at himself to react even as tears filled his vision and droplets of blood floated in front of his face.
Keep your airway Kayo screamed inside his mind and Gordon instinctively grabbed the arm, tucking his chin against his chest. It did nothing to loosen the hold, but at least he could breathe as they floated backwards. Slowly, his vision blinked clear and the blonde saw Virgil, fear impossible to miss - along with the rest of his family as they moved through the door that had been pried open.
"Hood!" His father's voice was rough with anger. "Let him go!"
"Now, Jeff," the Hood taunted through deep breaths of effort as Gordon did his best to twist in the grip. "I had hoped we would never meet again, yet here we are."
"I swear -"
The Hood tsked, jerking the aquanaut until his arm pressed into the broken nose. Gordon couldn't stop the cry and it took all he had not to lose his grip. "Here's how this is going to work. I can either move further into this ship, find an airlock and your boy here can take a walk outside without his helmet." His eyes grew wide at the threat, finding his father and brothers looking just as shocked. "Or you move away from the bridge, I take Gordon here as insurance and we head back to Earth. I get the T-drive and maybe, you all get to live."
Silence met his ears, overwhelmed by his own pulse that sent a throb behind his eyes. He felt sick. The Hood was using him against his family - against his father - and that fact made him want to tear the Hood's arm from his body.
"Fine," Scott growled. "You can have the T-drive, but you will release my brother."
"In due time. Now, get out of my way." The Hood kicked off something solid enough to send them towards the open hatch, turning as they passed and Gordon caught the desperation on his family's faces as they fought the need to reach out and grab him.
"Just hang on, kiddo," his father whispered and Gordon again tried to break the hold around him.
"It would be in your best interest to stop resisting," the villain hissed as they made it through the hatch. "The door, gentlemen, if you -"
A loud, metallic crack sounded through the bridge, all voices frozen as it echoed around them. The next thing Gordon knew, the arm trying to cut off his airway fell and he was free. Movement happened at once, his brothers and father spilling into the room. Hands grabbed his arms, pulling him away and he was met with Virgil's face, his father right beside him.
"Gordon, you okay?" The medic side of his brother was in full force.
The aquanaut waved the hands away from his head, blinking away the tears and sparks of pain now that he was no longer having his face crushed. "Yeah, jus' a broken nose -." His vision cleared and curiosity took charge as he turned to see what had happened.
The Hood was unconscious and floating above the floor, John and a bright red fire extinguisher not far away. He stared at his brother, quickly realizing the Hood had miscalculated. "Johnny -"
The red-head offered a shaky smile as Alan and Scott secured the Hood, "You good, Gordon?"
He nodded even as he watched another droplet float away from his face. "Thanks."
"Virgil, get Gordon patched up," Scott ordered, his voice still strained from the ordeal as he and Alan pulled the Hood along. "We're going to go secure the Hood and find Brains."
A mechanical whir sounded down the hall and they turned to see MAX floating around the corner, the scientist right behind. As soon as he caught sight of them, he deflated with a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness!"
"Brains! You're alright?" Their father's voice was still right by Gordon, Virgil gripping his shoulder as he opened a med kit to retrieve some gauze. He tried to focus on the reunion of old friends, but the touch of the fabric under his nose sent a curse past his lips.
"Sorry, bro," the apology didn't lessen the pressure. "You're getting blood everywhere, though." Which was true, but it still hurt like hell.
The drama ended as quickly as it had begun, the Hood shoved into the same locker where Brains had been kept, the Thunderbirds check for the return home. Virgil had relinquished his duties of Gordon in order to ensure their father was alright and properly strapped in, much to the aquanaut's relief. He could manage his own first aid.
Until they launched.
His eyes opened to the very worried blue of his little brother and a splitting headache.
"Gordo?" Alan was still thankfully in his seat. Passing out for longer than a few seconds would do nothing to ease the worry of his brothers.
"-'m good," the aquanaut waved off the concern until he realized they were about to re-enter Earth's atmosphere. "Can we take the landin' real slow?"
"Mmm - please," Jeff chuckled with a groan.
"We can take it as slow as you need, Dad," Scott's voice was the gentlest Gordon had heard in quite a while. "I'm going to call and let everyone know we're back."
Gordon was all for taking a break, another set of gauze packs placed in front of him and he gave a quiet thanks to Alan. An ice pack pressed to his forehead, sending webs of pain behind his eyes until the cool could seep in.
"Man, I hope his headache's worse than mine," he groaned.
Alan let out a nervous laugh, "John did hit him pretty hard. Think he'll stay out until we can drop him off with the GDF?"
Peeking out from behind the pack he'd slid gently over his nose, Gordon could see the teen worrying the cuff of his glove. A tired smile and he grabbed the hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. "The Hood's not going anywhere. And if he does, John can kick his butt again."
Alan let out a genuine laugh, Gordon unable to help the chuckle before wincing. It also didn't help that his little brother was changing the gauze.
"Bleeding's slowed," the younger blonde noted before gently placing another in the nostril.
"Och - owww."
"Quit moving," a hand held the top of his head.
"It hurts," and he was hoping Alan couldn't see the tears hidden under the ice pack.
"Don't be such a baby," the astronaut finished, lifting up a corner of the compress. "Hm, looks like it's gonna bruise pretty bad." Gordon let out a whine rivaled only by young children and he heard more than one laugh accompany Alan's. "Don't worry, I think it'll be an improvement."
"You get a hard C for bedside manners," the pack went back to covering the swelling appendage. "Where's Virgil? He's way better."
"Sorry, Gordo, Dad's got all his attention right now." The affection in that statement softened any desire to switch. "You want Scott instead?"
If glares could pierce through frozen gel, Alan would have one pointed straight at him. It wasn't that he disliked the attention of their eldest brother, but he had a way of making Gordon seem incapable of taking care of himself. Scott liked to smother them like they could break at any moment.
The silence must have gone on too long, the commander voicing his disapproval, "Hey, I'm not that bad."
"Uh huh, so I can go help Alan get the Thunderbirds ready for landing?" He smirked, already knowing the answer.
"You're going to sit right here with Dad while Virgil checks you out. The rest of us can take care of the Thunderbirds." His voice said there would be no arguments from anyone.
And no one argued, all of them more than willing to do what was needed to get home.
Gordon removed his ice pack as a hand brushed his shoulder and he looked up to see Virgil standing over him. "Hi."
"How are you feeling?" Virgil took the pack, wanting to get a better look at his brother's face.
"Just a headache," the blonde squinted against the bridge lights. "How about you?"
The medic looked slightly confused until Gordon tapped the spot on his chest where the bolt had struck. "I'm fine, as I suspect you are too. I figure the insulation saved us."
Good. One less thing to worry about. "Hurt, though."
"That's true," Virgil rolled his shoulder subconsciously. "Did you pass out?"
"From the shock?" He was given an impatient glare, encouraging him to cooperate if he wanted a clear bill of health any time soon. "Maybe just a little when we launched. No more than a few seconds."
"Alright," his voice was stern as he regarded both of his patients. "As soon as we're home, I want you both in the infirmary."
Gordon would have griped, but as he heard the distinct "FAB" from their father, he knew there was no where else he'd rather be and he couldn't stop the smile as it spread over his face.
Owww, bad idea…