Virgil got comfy in a duvet with a packet of sweets, "so John, was this because of a mission, or something else?"
John straightened his top hat on his head, "well, it was the night of the day I met EOS."
Gordon pressed his finger to his lips, "careful, she might be listening."
John's lips thinned. "I will assure you that she's not, and even if she was, she knows about it."
John sighed and began his story...
"Firstly to reassure you, I haven't had this happen again since that day. I came down to the island after leaving EOS alone for the first time, and it being late, I went straight to bed deciding I didn't want to discuss what had just happened with anyone as it had scared me and no doubt all of you. I closed my eyes and everything was normal, or so I thought. It must have only been about one in the morning but my room was pitch black as if it was much later. I opened my eyes and went to get out of bed but couldn't. I felt like I was frozen to the spot or paralysed. I blinked and tried to move my head, but I found I couldn't do that either, it was as if something was pinning me down but when I looked up to confirm my suspicions, there was nothing there.
Suddenly I heard a creak and a loud buzzing as if someone was working with machinery, so I wondered if one of you was working down in the hangars. But, as I listened more closely, I realised the sound was in my room and seemingly moving towards me. All of a sudden, the room got darker and darker and this figure appeared beside the bed staring down at me."
He paused with a small gulp.
"I thought it was one of you guys so I tried to call out, more or less to tell you to get out, but no sound came. I thought I was screaming but no one reassured me that I was okay, or to stop. The figure just continued to hover by my bed. I couldn't see any hands, but it reached down and held up the mooring claw of Thunderbird 5 like it was controlling it. The jaws began snapping inches from my face. I wanted to move, anything to get myself away from the figure and the metal claw that hit me, and I was convinced that I was now covered in scratches and bruises the way I was being beaten, and lying paralysed in my bed I fixed my gaze upon the figure again which now had the body of a person but the face of EOS' camera."
"I knew it!"
"Gordon, don't interrupt!" Scott scolded.
John narrowed his eyes, "thanks, Scott. As I was saying…I tried calling out to her to stop attacking me and to understand that I was there to help her and that I owned Thunderbird 5, but I still couldn't move any part of my body to do so. I was convinced that what sounded like words in my brain were coming out of my mouth, but I had no idea if I was saying them in an actual voice or not. The pain I was in was excruciating, and my face was wet with tears and possibly blood, but there was nothing I could do to dry them or protect myself. In my paralysed state I began to panic, and any part of consciousness I thought I could connect with I forced myself to wake up. I was shouting at myself to open my eyes or move, and finally, I found I could. Eerily, I found I could move as if I had never been frozen too. I felt normal. My instinct was to immediately check my reflection; my face wasn't wet, I wasn't covered in blood or cuts and the room had a light glow due to the lights being on in the hallway shining under the door. I hadn't been screaming."
He looked around at his family, "it was the most disturbing night's sleep I have ever had."
Kayo gasped. "Oh John, that's horrible."
Virgil wrapped an arm around him as he sat down beside him, "why didn't you tell any of us?"
"You wouldn't have believed me," John muttered quietly.
"When did you tell EOS?" Scott asked.
John looked up. "The day I went back up to Thunderbird 5. I felt like I had to, and she assured me she would never hurt me again. Then she thought what I saw had happened in my sleep had actually happened, and wouldn't stop apologising until I had to explain to her that what I had experienced was sleep paralysis."
"You told a machine first and not your family?" Gordon laughed in shock. "You really didn't trust us enough?"
"I trust you entirely, but this was too personal."
Scott looked at the time with a sigh, "I think we should have our Halloween party, don't you think?"
Alan turned on their pumpkin fairy lights which cast more light into the room, "let's part-ay!"
Virgil sat at the piano playing an accompaniment to Scott's guitar strumming and Gordon and Alan were occupying themselves eating and throwing popcorn at each other. Kayo watched John walk across the room onto the veranda outside and she got up to follow him.
"Are you okay?"
John nodded. "I guess so."
Kayo looked up at him, "John, what you just told us, you're not the only one to have suffered from it. I've had it in the past too. It happened not long after my uncle changed sides from good to evil." She placed her hand on his arm crossed tightly across his chest, "EOS may be alive, but she's not human. I'm sure she understood your dream in the end, but we would have helped you immediately. I know you prefer to keep things to yourself, but that experience was something you really should have told your brothers as soon as it had happened."
John sighed looking back at the party watching Scott sit down on the sofa with his guitar, "do you think they forgive me?"
"Of course, they will. Come and join us when you're ready."
John watched her glide back into the room, her black dress brushing along the floor behind her then looked up at the sky spotting his satellite dart across, "she's right." He turned and walked back into the room helping himself to a glass of Blue Lagoon which Scott had made for the party, he raised it and sat down in one of the armchairs again. "Happy Halloween, guys."
Virgil raised his glass in return before putting it back down on the shelf above his hand, "cheers, brother."
Kayo smiled at him as she leaned back against Scott's shoulder wrapping his cloak around her then turned her attention back to the guitar he was playing for her, "quicken the tempo. This is a Halloween party."