Chapter Two

As his vision adjusted to the bright light flooding into the cell Alan stared at the Hood in surprise and a healthy amount of fear. This was the man who had three years ago invaded his home, had almost killed his brothers when he attacked Thunderbird Five and came close to destroying International Rescue forever. And all out of a desire for revenge. Revenge on his father Jeff Tracy for leaving him to die seven years ago now.

"I wish I could say it was nice to see you again," Alan said sarcastically to the Hood. "But I would be lying if I said it was good to see you again."

"Charming," the Hood replied. "After I so kindly had you brought here." Alan snorted in derision.

"What do you want Hood," Alan demanded to know. "Why have you kidnapped me. You know that it won't get you anything."

"On the contrary Alan," the Hood replied. "You are going to help me get my long delayed revenge."

"Never," Alan replied firmly as he got shakily to his feet.

"Oh but you will help me. Come with me Alan," the Hood ordered but Alan did not move. The Hood sighed.

"Why must you do this that hard way Alan," the Hood asked as a reddish glow came into his eyes and Alan felt a force enter his mind. "Come with me," the Hood commanded again.

Alan felt the force in his mind trying to force him to comply but Alan resisted and did not move and a look of surprise momentarily passed across the face of the Hood. Concentrating the Hood increased the strength of his telepathic probe into Alan's mind.

"Come with me."

This time Alan found that he could not resist the probe that the Hood was just too strong. He felt his body moving in response to the Hoods command. The Hood laughed evilly and led forced Alan out of the cell and through stone corridors. Alan desperately tried to stop the movement of his legs but nothing he did worked. The Hoods telepathic control of his body was just far too strong.

The Hood was aware that Alan was fighting his probe and was surprised by how strong the will of the youngest son of Jeff Tracy was. It was taking far more effort than it should have taken to control Alan's mind and get his body to move despite the objections of Alan's consciousness. Alan had to have an amazing strong will and the Hood could not help but be impressed with Alan's ability to resist him. During their last meeting three years ago he had developed a grudging respect for the young Tracy and Alan was proving himself worthy of still more respect. Yet that would not stop the Hood from using Alan Tracy. No it would not stop him at all. In fact it would make things that much more satisfying at the end of the day.

Alan found that he was forcibly led by the Hoods telepathic control over him into a brightly-lit room with white walls and what looked like a bed of some kind.

"Move over to the bed and lay down," the Hood commanded faint beads of sweat appearing on his brow at the amount of effort he was having to expend controlling Alan Tracy.

Alan found his body doing exactly as the Hood commanded. He tried with all his might to resist but he found himself moving over to the bed and lying down.

"Turn over," the Hood commanded and Alan felt his body do just that. Then he heard movement and felt clamps and straps being placed around his arms, legs, waist, chest, and a strap across the top of his head.

Alan felt the Hoods presence withdraw from his mind right before he felt something prick him in his right on and a terrible numbness filled his body until he could feel nothing, nor could he move. He found he could not consciously blink or move his eyes left to right.

"You have been injected with a drug that has temporarily blocked all voluntary muscle movements," a female voice that Alan believed to be that of the Hoods henchwoman Transom said. "It will also prevent you from loosing consciousness. It is necessary that you be conscious for the coming procedure." What procedure, Alan thought, what are you going to do to me?

"Begin the procedure Transom," the Hoods voice commanded and Alan clearly heard a hint of tiredness and pain in the Hoods voice. Guess him using his power on me like that has weakened him, Alan thought to himself.

"Yes sir," Transom replied.

Alan heard a sound as if something was being moved over to him. Then there was silence for a moment. Then he heard the sound of something moving towards him again. Then stop and he heard a whirring as if something was being positioned. Then he heard the movement again.

He felt something first touch the nape of his neck and then blinding pain blasted through his brain as what felt line a red hot needle dug into this body up into his skull and into his brain. Had he been able to make any noise Alan would have screamed at the top of his lungs. The pain was unbelievable overwhelming even his natural high tolerance for physical discomfort.

The movement stopped but the pain went on and on and Alan silently prayed and pleaded for it to stop. Involuntarily tears started seeping from the corners of his eyes. He prayed for the welcome blackness of unconsciousness to claim him but it wouldn't come. All he knew was the pain as it went on and on and on. Every second seeming to become an hour.

And that was all he knew for what seemed like an eternity. Alan lost all awareness of the world around him all he knew was pain.

And nothing else but pain.

Tracy Island

That Same Time

Jeff Tracy sat quiet behind his desk reading a report from Tracy Aerospace one of the four large companies that together made up Tracy Industries. Though each one was fully functional and could operate on its own. Even one of the four companies Tracy Aerospace, Tracy Transportation Systems, Tracy Telecommunications and Tracy Pharmaceuticals would have made him a billionaire many times over. Combined they made Tracy Industries one of the biggest companies that had ever existed anywhere in the world and made him one of the richest men in the world.

The phone on his desk rung and Jeff picked it up.

"Tracy residence Jeff Tracy speaking," he said.

"Hello Mr Tracy," a familiar voice said but it was a voice that Jeff had not heard in a good long while. It was the headmaster of Wharton Academy Jonathan Petersmith.

"Hello Mr Petersmith," Jeff said in greeting. "Has Alan done something wrong?"

"Ah no Mr Tracy but it is about Alan that I wish to speak." And Jeff suddenly experienced a terrible feeling of dread deep in his stomach. Something was very, very wrong. Something bad had happened to Alan.

"What is it what has happened?"

"Mr Tracy I'm afraid I have some rather bad news."

Poolside

Tracy Island

Scott Tracy smiled as he sat in a sun lounger watching his younger brothers with the exception of John who was up on Thunderbird Five playing around in the diving pool. Things had been very quiet on the rescue front for the last few weeks and they were all enjoying the respite.

The sound of footsteps approaching caught his attention and Scott looked at the house in time to see his father come out onto the sundeck and Scott immediately knew that something was terribly, terribly wrong. Dad had gone pale and there was a vaguely stunned and disbelieving look on his face but there was also a look of worry on his face and a hint of fear.

"Dad what is it," Scott asked. "What's wrong?"

Jeff didn't answer his eldest son immediately but instead looked at the diving pool where hearing Scott speak Virgil and Gordon had stopped playing around and were treading water looking at the father and both looking concerned as they could see the look on his face just as well as Scott could.

"Virgil, Gordon can you get out of the pool please," Jeff said. Virgil and Gordon exchanged a worried look but did as they were told.

"What is it dad," Virgil asked worriedly.

"Boys I'm afraid I've got some very bad news," Jeff said swallowing on a lump that had suddenly appeared in his throat.

"Has something happened to Alan," Gordon asked fearfully

"I'm afraid so," Jeff replied. "I just got off the phone with the headmaster of Wharton Academy. Boys I'm afraid that Alan appears to have been kidnapped."

For a moment there was silence beside the swimming pool as all three boys stared in shock and disbelief. It was so silent that you could have heard a pin drop. Finally Gordon found his voice.

"Kidnapped," Gordon repeated his voice shaking his face gone suddenly pale. Of all his sons Gordon was the closest to Alan. "How? By who?"

"That I don't know. All I know is that Fermat was the first to raise the alarm and that whoever it is that's taken Alan removed both his mobile and his watch and smashed them both."

Again the boys were silent they could understand that Alan's mobile would be removed and destroyed by a kidnapper but the fact that his watch had been as well was very worrying. As it implied that whoever had done the deed and taken their brother knew that they were the thunderbirds and knew about the watch/wristcoms that they all had and how they could use them to track each other down.

"What are we going to do," Virgil asked at last.

"For now we cannot do anything," Jeff replied. "I will be heading to the mainland shortly to speak with the police who are beginning a search for Alan see if they can find who took him. You boys will have to remain here."

"But..." Gordon started to object.

"No butts Gordon. You are staying here." Gordon sighed and nodded submission. "Scott would you go to the hanger and prepare the jet for me."

"Sure thing dad," Scott replied wishing he could go to the mainland with dad but he knew that he could not. He along with Virgil and Gordon would have to remain here on Tracy Island. Whatever happened International Rescue had to remain operational.

"Thank you Scott," Jeff replied. "Gordon I want you to take Thunderbird Three up to Thunderbird Five and bring John back here to the island."

"Yes dad," Gordon replied.

Listening to his father Scott was quietly very worried about Alan and this whole situation. Whoever had kidnapped his baby brother had shown by the actions that he had taken when Alan had been kidnapped that he knew he was challenging more than just the Tracy family in taking Alan. He knew that he was challenging International Rescue as well.

"Now I need to go let John know what's going on," Jeff said before heading back inside the house.

The Hoods Base

Somewhere In The Malaysian Jungle

Alan was barely conscious only the drug that Transom had injected into his system preventing him from seeking refuge in unconsciousness. The pain blasting through his head seemed to set fire to his very thoughts and he prayed that it would stop. He had no idea how long this pain had been going on, but it seemed to be forever. And there was the fear about whatever the Hood was doing to him. Was the Hood hoping to somehow turn him against his family? Alan knew he would never do that, no matter what the Hood did to him.

After what seemed like an eternity Alan heard that whirring noise again despite the haze of unbearable pain tearing through his brain making thinking about anything virtually impossible. After a few more moments he felt something being pressed against the side of his neck and he heard a hiss. And darkness rushed up to greet him and Alan gratefully surrendered to the bliss of unconsciousness.

Transom smiled as she completed the procedure on Alan Tracy and withdrew the extremely slim needle-like object that had thrust its way up into the core of Alan's brain to implant the product of their little device into Alan.

Reaching over to side table she picked up a pressure injector filled with a different drug combined with a counter agent for the drug she had injected Alan with earlier so he would remain conscious though unable to move and in intense pain from the procedure. Pressing the injector against the side of his neck she released the chemical into his blood stream and Alan immediately fell unconscious.

Transom then picked up another device and pressed it against the nape of Alan's neck sealing the small puncture wound where the needle had entered his body. There could be no trace of what they had done to him if the plan was to work properly. And the drug she had just injected Alan with would wipe out all memory for the last four hours. When he woke up again Alan would have no memory of having been here or of the procedure.

"Procedure complete sir," she reported to the Hood.

"Excellent Transom. Are you sure he will not remember what has happened here?" the Hood asked.

"Positive sir," Transom replied smiling.

"Very well. Have him returned to the United States and have our operatives their move up to phase two," the Hood instructed.

"Yes sir."