CHAPTER SEVEN
Day One
"Mr., uh, Tracy, could I, uh, speak to you for a moment?"
Jeff removed his glasses and laid them on his desk. He could tell by his engineer's face that something wasn't quite right. "What is it, Brains?"
"Well, uh, it's about Virgil, Sir."
"What about him? Is he hurt?"
"I-I can't be certain, Mr. Tracy. But he seems to have forgotten the, uh, the rescue."
"Forgotten it?"
"Yes, Sir. John, er, thanked him for saving his life. Virgil asked me what he was talking about, so I told him that he'd pulled John from the well tank."
"And?"
"And he doesn't remember. He doesn't even remember going to, uh, Oklahoma Peanuts."
"Nothing at all?"
"Nothing."
"Any ideas?"
"Well, uh, the only thing I can think of is the virus."
"But I thought you said it was gone."
"It was...er...I mean, it is. I just finished testing a fresh sample of his blood for traces of it. It's not there."
"So you're saying this might be an aftereffect? Sort of a time-release symptom?"
"I just don't know. I don't have enough information on the Corginus Machinis virus to make an adequate assessment. Tin-Tin's down in the lab now running some tests to see if we can come up with anything more."
"Right. You let me know the second you find something. In the meantime, I'm going to check on Virgil."
"F.A.B," Brains replied, heading out of the Lounge.
Jeff sat back and scratched his chin in thought. Virgil couldn't remember the Oklahoma rescue? They'd only returned two hours ago. How in the world could he have forgotten?
Virgil heard a knock at the door and turned in bed so he could see who was coming.
"Hey, you. How're you doing?"
"Hi, Scott. Not too good, I'm afraid."
Scott saw the confusion in his brother's eyes and frowned. "Yeah, I was down in the Lab talking to Tin-Tin. She's testing your blood as we speak. She said something about your memory."
"Well, it's the darndest thing. Brains tells me we just returned from rescuing a guard stuck down in a well...but Scott, I don't remember any of it."
"You don't remember being down the well pipe?" Virgil shook his head. "Or diving into the tank when John went under?" He shook his head again. Scott cracked a smile. "Or the fact that I called you a drowned rat?"
"No, Scott," he replied quietly, pulling himself into an upright position. "I don't remember any of it."
Scott pulled a chair over next to the bed and seated himself, his eyes never leaving Virgil's. "Do you have any idea when this started? This memory loss?"
Virgil shook his head, looking down at his hands folded in his lap. "I know I started feeling funny when we were standing in the Lounge talking to Father. I remember us all being there, we were talking about...about...what were we talking about?"
"The Hood," Scott replied, growing more concerned with each passing moment. "How we thought the Hood had created the Oklahoma Peanuts rescue just to get us out there."
"Why would he do that?"
"Virg, do you remember Father's theory?"
"About what?"
"He thinks The Hood is the one who let that virus loose on Cumbaquay because he wanted to kill us."
Virgil looked into his brother's eyes once more, a slight frown creasing his forehead. "What virus?" he asked. "What's Cumbaquay?"
Jeff rose from his chair as Gordon entered the room. "Hello, son."
"Hi, Father. Wanna play a game of chess?"
"Not right now, Gordon. I need to have a visit with Virgil."
"Is he all right?"
"I don't know. Brains was just here, and told me Virgil doesn't remember the rescue."
"You mean the one we just returned from?"
Jeff nodded.
"What gives?"
"Brains isn't sure. He thinks it might be an aftereffect of the virus we had, but he and Tin-Tin are running more tests to try and figure it out."
Gordon frowned as he leaned against Jeff's desk. "Father, if it is something the virus left behind, we could all start forgetting things."
"I know, Gordon," Jeff replied grimly. "I know."
Having left Gordon in charge of Base Control for the moment, Jeff headed down the hall toward Virgil's room. He chanced upon John coming out of his own room.
"Hi, Father."
"Hi."
"How's Virgil?"
Jeff explained what Brains had said about Virgil's memory loss. "Say, you were a little out of it on the way home. Are you feeling all right?"
"Sure, but I never contracted that virus from Cumbaquay, remember? If it's a result of that, I wouldn't be affected."
Jeff frowned.
"Can I tag along, Father? I'd like to see how Virgil's doing, too."
"Sure. Come on."
Scott came to his feet as Jeff and John entered Virgil's room. He took his father off to the side as John spoke with Virgil.
"Father, what's going on here?"
"I don't know for sure, Scott. How bad is he?"
"Bad. Not only doesn't he remember Oklahoma, he doesn't even remember Cumbaquay."
"What?" Jeff turned to watch John and Virgil speaking quietly. "You're telling me he doesn't remember the last two rescues you were on?"
"That's what I'm saying. He seems to recall the older stuff: Fireflash, Eddie Houseman, the Seascape, being shot down by the Sentinel. But he's lost the last coupla weeks."
"And you're certain he wasn't injured in Oklahoma?"
"No, I can't see how he could've been. Gordon says he watched Virgil make a straight, easy dive from the pipe into the tank. He was underwater for a few minutes, but was fine swimming back to Thunderbird 4 and all the way home. And you saw him when we were together in the Lounge."
"Yes. At first he seemed fine, but...I guess that's when things started going fuzzy for him."
"Father?" Virgil called out from the bed.
"Yes, son." Jeff crossed the floor and took the seat John had just vacated.
"What's wrong with me?"
"We're not sure yet, Virgil. Brains and Tin-Tin are working hard to find out. Now, I don't want you to worry."
"How can I not worry? I can't remember the last two weeks of my life!"
Tin-Tin appeared in the doorway and clucked her tongue in dismay. "Now, now, everyone, leave Virgil be. He does need his rest, you know!"
"That's okay, Tin-Tin," Virgil said. "I don't mind."
"I know you don't," she replied, pushing John toward the door. "But as the resident nurse, I insist my patient not be mobbed by family members! Out! Out you go!"
"Aw, Tin-Tin-"
"No, Scott, leave. You can come back in a few hours."
"Tin-Tin, have you found anything?" Jeff asked.
She held up a finger, indicating he should wait a moment. He nodded, and headed for the hall. Then Tin-Tin turned and smiled brightly at Virgil.
"How do they ever expect you to get any sleep if they're in here bothering you? I knew I should've left you in the Sick Room!"
"Tin-Tin, I'm not really-" yawn "-sleepy."
"Right. Here, why don't you just lie back and rest?" she said, fluffing his pillow and pushing him gently onto his back. "I'll be back to check on you in a moment."
Virgil nodded. All the effort of trying to recall events that seemed to be wiped clean from his mind had indeed been exhausting. Before Tin-Tin's feet had crossed the threshold of his room, he was asleep.
Jeff was waiting just outside the door, but Tin-Tin motioned for him to follow her to the Lounge, where Gordon, John and Scott waited.
"What's going on?" John asked.
"Well, I'm not certain yet," Tin-Tin replied as she and Jeff approached the group. "Brains thinks he found something odd in Virgil's bloodstream, but he can't make heads or tails of it."
"Odd in what way?" Gordon asked.
"Well, it almost looks like...waste."
"Waste?" Scott questioned.
"Yes. All living organisms secrete whatever their bodies don't use, as well as by-products of their biological processes. Brains has picked up extremely minute amounts of something that doesn't look like it belongs in Virgil's system. But it's not viral or bacterial. In fact, it's been broken down to extremely simple compounds, which is why he thinks it's a waste product."
"But a waste product of what?" Jeff asked, crossing his arms.
"We don't know, Mr. Tracy. I need to take another blood sample. I don't want to worry Virgil any further, but Brains wants a CT scan and an MI scan."
"The CT scan I can see, since it's obviously his brain that's affected," Scott said. "But why the Micro-Imaging scan? That's for locating...microorganisms. The waste in his blood...an MI scan...does Brains think Virg is infected with something other than a virus?"
"We're just grasping at straws, Scott."
"Yes," Jeff interjected. "We need to run every test we have until we find out what's caused Virgil's memory loss. How about the rest of you? Are you still in retention of your memories?"
"Think so," Gordon said.
"I'm fine, Father," John replied.
"Yeah, I'm okay too, Dad. I remember everything about Oklahoma."
"Good. You must let someone know the minute you feel something's wrong. Understood?"
"Yes, Father," they all replied.
"I'd better get those scans done," Tin-Tin said. "John, would you help me with the mobile scanners?"
"Sure thing," he replied, following her out of the room.
"Hey, I just had a thought."
"What's that, Scott?" Jeff asked, seating himself behind his desk.
"Well, Brains thinks there's waste product in Virgil's bloodstream that doesn't belong there. But he also says the virus isn't there anymore. I know it sounds crazy, but what if the virus evolved?"
"Into what?" Gordon asked.
"I don't know. It was just a thought."
"We'll have no more speculation on the matter. We need to stick with cold, hard facts; something we have very little of at this point."
"Right, Father."
"Sorry, Father." Gordon started out of the room, intending to head for Thunderbird 4. He wanted to check her over one more time. He was always overprotective of his ship right after a mission, and would sometimes spend hours going over her with a fine-toothed comb.
Suddenly, though, he shook his head. The motion was almost imperceptible, but Jeff picked up on it like an eagle spying a field mouse from far up in the sky.
"Gordon?" he said, coming to his feet.
"What is it, Father?" Scott asked, approaching his brother.
Jeff was instantly next to them. "Gordon, are you okay?"
"I-I don't feel so good, Father. I think I need to go lie down."
Scott and Jeff looked right at each other. This was exactly how it had started with Virgil.
Day Two
Being it was rather late, Gordon had fallen asleep quickly after being escorted to his room by the two eldest members of the Tracy clan. Scott watched over Virgil throughout the night, while Jeff kept an eye on Gordon. From time to time, Grandma or Kyrano would bring them coffee or juice to drink, neither of them able to sleep any better than the others.
Tin-Tin and John, having successfully completed their scans on Virgil's head without waking him, had taken them down to Brains' Lab. There, the three of them worked all night on various tests, experiments and theories as to what was happening. When Jeff buzzed the Lab to inform them that Gordon seemed to be acting the way Virgil had at first, they redoubled their efforts, putting their heads together to try and come up with anything and everything they could think of.
When dawn broke on Tracy Island, Tin-Tin, John and Brains staggered into the Lounge, bleary-eyed. In spite of their tireless efforts, they'd come up with nothing at all to explain Virgil's missing memories.
"I still don't understand why the MI scan came out blurry in the northern quadrant," Brains yawned as he removed his glasses and placed them next to him on the couch.
"Perhaps we did something wrong," Tin-Tin offered, stifling a yawn demurely through her hand.
"Yeah, I'm not exactly an expert running medical diagnostic equipment," John added.
"W-We'll have to try a second one, Tin-Tin," Brains said, yawning again.
Jeff walked into the room in exactly the same clothes he'd been wearing the day before. "You three find anything?" he asked, taking a sip of hot coffee from the mug in his hand.
"No," Brains replied dejectedly, his shoulders slumping.
"Are Virgil and Gordon awake yet, Father?"
"No, John. Gordon was still sleeping when I left his room. I looked in on Virgil. He and Scott are both still out."
"Scott?"
"He spent most of the night with Virgil, while I looked after Gordon."
"So you say Gordon started acting the same as Virgil?" Tin-Tin asked. When Jeff nodded, she said, "How?"
"Well, he, Scott and I were in the Lounge. It seems innocuous, I know, but suddenly he shook his head just like Virgil did right before he started forgetting." Jeff sighed. "Maybe I'm looking for things that aren't there."
"I don't think you are, Jeff," Grandma said as she entered from the hall.
"What do you mean, Mother?"
"I went in to check on Gordon just now, and, well, I think you'd better come talk to him."
Jeff followed his mother into the hall, with Brains, John and Tin-Tin right behind. When he entered Gordon's room, he found him standing in the middle of the floor turning this way and that, as though looking for something.
"Good morning, son," Jeff greeted as he walked through the door.
"Good morning, Father."
"Are you, uh, are you looking for something?"
Gordon cocked his head and looked at Jeff, a frown creasing his brow. "I don't know. I think I am, but...I can't remember what."
A knot began forming in Jeff Tracy's stomach. "Could you sit down? I want to ask you a question."
"Okay, Father," he replied, seating himself on the bed.
"Do you remember taking Thunderbird 4 down into a reservoir yesterday?"
Gordon frowned. "Uh...I took Thunderbird 4 out yesterday?"
"Oklahoma, son. Do you remember going to Oklahoma with your brothers?"
He shook his head slowly. "No, I don't think I've ever been to Oklahoma."
Jeff came closer and sat down in the chair he'd occupied the whole night previous. "What about Cumbaquay?"
"Cumba-what?"
Jeff turned and looked at the others, who were gathered in the hall just outside Gordon's bedroom door. Then he turned back to his copper-haired son, recognizing a look of utter bewilderment in his amber eyes.
"What's the last thing you do remember, Gordon?"
"Um...well, I, uh, I guess the last thing I remember is taking the boat out with Alan. Yeah, that's it. We went fishing together. We didn't catch anything but little sunfish, but it was fun all the same."
Jeff turned to look at the trio in the hall once more. Whatever it was, he was now certain Gordon had it, too. Alan and Gordon's day at sea had happened almost three full months before the Cumbaquay rescue.
Scott was stretched out on the chair next to Virgil's bed, his legs crossed at the ankles and arms folded. He snored lightly, his chin resting on his chest. He nearly fell out of the chair when Virgil yelled:
"Scott!"
Jumping to his feet, it took a moment for Scott to realize where he was and why. He looked at his brother, who was sitting on the edge of his bed, his eyes wide and puzzled.
"Virg! Jeez, man, you tryin' to give me a heart attack?"
"Sorry," Virgil mumbled.
"S'okay, don't sweat it. How are you feeling?"
"I'm, uh, I'm okay."
"You don't look okay."
Virgil concentrated on some invisible point just over his brother's shoulder. "I guess I'm not."
"Why's that?"
"Scott, what year is it?"
"Huh?"
"What year is it?"
"It's 2031."
Virgil paled and looked even more distraught.
"Virg, what is it?" Scott asked, crouching next to the bed so he could look at his face.
"I knew something was wrong when I looked at the paper," Virgil replied, gesturing to yesterday's newspaper that sat on his bedside table. "It said 2031, but I didn't believe it until you said it, too."
"Why didn't you believe it?"
"Because I'm certain it's 2027."
Jeff paced to and fro across the Lounge. For the rest of the family, seated or standing here and there, it was a bit like watching a tennis match.
"I just can't understand it!" he bellowed, face drawn tight in a frown. "Virgil and Gordon weren't the only ones to contract the Cumbaquay virus! It just doesn't add up!"
"Four years," Virgil whispered to no one in particular. "How can four years just slip away like that?"
Scott placed a hand on his brother's shoulder and squeezed it tight.
"Brains! Tin-Tin! What the hell is happening to my boys?"
"S-Something has occurred to me, Mr., uh, Tracy."
"Well?"
"Don't you find it rather, uh, odd that Virgil and Gordon didn't begin to lose memories until after the Oklahoma rescue?"
Jeff literally stopped in mid-stride, pivoting to face his engineer. "That's it, Brains. That has to be it!"
"Yes...I had an uneasy feeling throughout the whole rescue. Like it was too easy!" Scott chimed in. "And the wellhead blowing up...an explosion at the intake valve..."
Tin-Tin frowned from her perch on Jeff's desk. "Are you saying you think this guard down the well was another attempt on your lives?"
"It makes sense," Jeff replied. "It all makes sense."
"But what on Earth could make us lose our memories? And for that matter, why weren't Scott and I affected by it?" John asked.
"That's a good question, son," Jeff said, resuming the act of wearing a hole in the floor. "Think, think, we have to think!"
Alan spoke from his vid portrait on the wall. How he wished he were there in person to help them. "Let's assume your theory is correct. Let's assume the Hood is the one who gave those dogs on Cumbaquay the virus."
"Okay," Scott said. "So he got the dogs sick, probably knowing they'd go insane and start attacking people. That spread the virus."
"So when we arrive on the scene," Alan continued, "we pick up the virus, too."
"It slowly drives us t-to madness," Brains said, "the point of which seems to be that we all k-kill ourselves."
"Right," Jeff nodded. "But we don't die. We survive. How could he have known that? We didn't have another rescue call after we recovered, not until Oklahoma. How could the Hood have known we were alive?"
"A spy?" Grandma offered.
"But where, Mrs. Tracy?" Tin-Tin asked. "We haven't had any visitors."
"None that we're aware of," Jeff corrected.
Everyone silently mulled that over for a moment before Alan continued. "Okay, let's leave that part of it for later. Somehow he figures out we're alive. So he sets up the Oklahoma Peanuts rescue."
"He blows up the wellhead and stuffs Pete inside the well. When the first workers arrive for the day, they find him and call for help."
"Okay, Scott," John said, "But why Oklahoma Peanuts? Why that factory?"
"And why the well? He could've just blown the plant up or something," Alan said.
"That must be the key," Jeff said, leaning back against his desk. "The well must be the key."
"A-As if he wanted them t-to go in it?" Brains asked.
"Yes, Brains, I think that's it!" Tin-Tin cried, leaving the desk and walking out onto the floor. "I think you have it! It's the water. It has to be!"
"The water?"
"Yes, it all makes sense now. I can't believe I didn't think of it before!"
"Think of what, Tin-Tin? Spit it out!" Jeff said...not altogether unkindly, just rather at his wits' end.
"All right, let's work this out, shall we? Gordon and John go down into Rush Springs reservoir in Thunderbird 4."
"Right," John said.
"You both had to swim into the well tank, because the intake valve was too small for Four."
"Right," John said again. "But what's your point?"
"My point is that you were both swimming in water. And, my guess is you both swallowed some."
"You think...you think something was put in there!" Scott breathed.
"And Virgil dove into the tank after Pete fell from the pipe and knocked me for a loop!"
"Yeah, but John," Scott reminded him, "you're not having problems with your memory."
"Uh, fellas?" came a quiet voice from the couch. "What's going on?"
Everyone turned to look at Virgil. His voice seemed smaller than usual, like he was standing down at the far end of the hall talking to all of them out here.
"Virgil?" Jeff said, crossing to his son.
"Father?" Virgil sounded somewhat like a frightened child as he looked all 'round the room.
"What is it, son?"
Virgil looked from Jeff to his desk to the piano to the patio. His eyes finally came to rest on the five portraits. He recognized himself and his four brothers...but...
Everyone watched as Virgil came to his feet and cautiously approached the pictures. He stood in front of his own and traced the outline of his body with his fingers, lingering over the yellow sash. He then moved to the right, eyeing Gordon's picture and again, touching the uniform and the sash. He looked up at where Alan's picture normally would've been but saw instead the real live Alan watching him. Virgil jumped back as though surprised to see him.
"Virgil?" Alan asked.
"Alan, what...what are you wearing?"
"What do you mean, Virg? I'm wearing my uniform. I am on duty, you know."
"Uniform?"
Scott blanched. "Oh, dear God."
Virgil backed up and stared for a moment at the pictures of John and Scott before turning to face an entire roomful of people...three of whom he did not recognize. His eyes came to rest on Kyrano and Tin-Tin, who were standing quite close to one another, and Brains, who was near Jeff in the middle of the room.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"Oh, Virgil, you don't recognize me?" Tin-Tin asked, fighting back the tears that wanted to come to her eyes.
He shook his head, his face crumbling as his mind knew only chaos. "What are these blue uniforms?" He looked around the room once more as if seeing it for the first time. "This isn't home. Where am I? What's going on?"
Gordon slowly approached his stricken older brother. "Virgil, it's me, Gordon. Do you know me?"
Virgil nodded, daring to look nowhere but into Gordon's eyes. His own were full of anguish as Gordon placed a hand on his arm.
"Listen, I don't know what's going on any more than you do. I don't know what it is we're all sitting here talking about. I don't know what's wrong with you. But I do know that something's wrong...with both of us."
Virgil swallowed hard, eyes still locked with Gordon's.
"We'll figure it out, Virgil. Come sit down. We'll figure it out."
Virgil nodded, but didn't move as he looked back out at the crowd of anxious faces. He bit his lower lip and looked back at Gordon, who was gently pulling at his arm. Finally, he allowed Gordon to lead him to a nearby chair. Once Virgil had seated himself, Gordon stood beside him, his hand still upon his arm.
"We'll figure it out. Right, Dad?"
Jeff tried to swallow the lump in his throat. "Yes, Gordon. We will. I promise you both. We will."
"If this keeps up," Jeff said as he poured himself a cup of coffee, "they're going to regress back to childhood."
"I know, Jeff, I know," Grandma said soothingly. "But Brains, Tin-Tin and John are working overtime in the Lab. They'll work it out."
"I really think we were making headway out there before...well, before Virgil's...episode."
"I think so, too. I have an idea. Why don't I go ahead and take care of Virgil and Gordon for you? That way you and Scott can join the others in the Lab and continue your conversation."
"I don't know, Mother. What if...what if they go off the deep end again? You'd be defenseless against them."
"Oh, Jeff, those boys wouldn't hurt me no matter how confused they get. They need you right now, but not holding their hands...that's what I'm for. They need you doing everything you can to solve this."
"You know, Mother, you're a very wise woman."
"And it only took you sixty-one years to figure that out," she smiled.
He managed a small smile before the all-too-familiar frown settled back into place. "I guess Scott and I'll head down to the Lab. Here," he said, removing his watch from his wrist. "You take this. Just in case you need to call us."
"Oh, pish-posh, I won't need that thing."
"Take it. Please. To ease my mind."
"All right," she acquiesced, taking the watch from his hand and stuffing it into her apron pocket. "Now, go."
"Father feels so helpless right now," Tin-Tin said to John as Brains adjusted the portable MI scanner. "He doesn't want to upset Virgil by hanging about when he doesn't recognize him."
"There's got to be something we can set him doing," John said thoughtfully.
"Yes, but what?"
"I-I think I have an idea," Brains said softly. "John, you and Scott will, uh, have to be the ones to try the MI scan on Virgil again since he doesn't kn-know Tin-Tin or me. I want you to, er, get a scan of Gordon, too."
"All right, Brains. But what about Father?"
Jeff and Scott entered the Lab.
"What about Kyrano?" Jeff asked.
"I was just telling John that he feels so helpless. He doesn't know what to do with himself right now."
"Doesn't he play an instrument of some sort?" John asked.
"Why, yes, he does," Tin-Tin replied. "He plays the di."
"Well, Virgil loves music. It's ingrained into every fiber of his being. Even though he doesn't remember your father, I'll bet Kyrano could put him at ease with it."
"It's worth a shot, Tin-Tin. Why don't you go talk to Kyrano, see if you can't have him work some of his magic?"
"All right, Mr. Tracy."
"Mr., uh, Tracy, I was about to ask Scott if he could help John give both Gordon and Virgil MI scans."
"Fine. You two do that while Kyrano prepares for his impromptu concert. In the meantime, Brains, you and I are going to do some serious thinking."
"Uh, y-yes, Sir."
Virgil sat at the piano. He didn't' recognize it, but it was beautiful. He found it odd that he could recall entire pieces of music given his current state of mind, but decided to use that to his advantage.
Even though Grandma had tried explaining what was happening, he'd never been at such a loss in his entire life. As his fingers slowly moved across the keys, he looked up to see Gordon standing on the patio overlooking the ocean. The ocean. They were on an island. They lived here. Virgil kept telling himself that over and over. Trying desperately to hang on to information he was supposed to know. Grandma assured him things would work out, that he'd recover his stolen memories and be back to normal.
But Virgil didn't know what normal was. He watched as Gordon slowly turned 'round and looked him in the eye. Even from this distance, Virgil sensed something was wrong. He stopped playing and came to his feet.
"Gordon, what is it?" he asked.
"Virgil?"
Grandma rose from the seat she'd been occupying and stepped out onto the patio. "What's the matter, Gordon?"
"Grandma? What--where--?"
"Oh, dear boy, you look so confused."
"I am, Grandma. Where am I?"
"They're melting away little by little, Brains. There won't be anything left of 'em by the end of the week if this keeps up! We've got to think of a solution!"
"I, uh, I know, Mr. Tracy. I was thinking a-about what Scott said b-before, in the, uh, Lounge. About the fact that John was in the water along with, uh, Virgil and Gordon, but that he doesn't s-seem to be having any t-trouble with his, er, memory."
"What are you getting at?"
"Well, uh, supposing the Hood did put something in that water."
"But if that were the case, John would be sick, too."
"N-Not if it were somehow related to the virus, he w-wouldn't."
Jeff looked up. "Related in what way?"
"It could be, uh, several different things, Mr. Tracy."
"Such as?"
"Well, I've, uh, I've ruled out the virus itself. No matter how many tests I run, it's simply not th-there. B-Besides the virus making us lose ourselves, er, what is the one thing that happened to us after w-we were cured?"
"We couldn't remember what we'd done."
"R-Right."
"I'm not sure I follow."
"What if the Hood put something in the, uh, reservoir, that would only affect those whose memories were already, uh, damaged?"
"What type of thing could do that?"
"I'm not sure, but I think we need to g-get back out to that well tank and get a s-sample of that water. It's the only way I-I'm going to be able to h-help them."
"Okay. You and Scott will get to Oklahoma and back as fast as you can in Thunderbird 1. Meantime, is there anything we can do while you're gone? Anything at all?"
Tin-Tin rushed into the Lab, followed closely by Scott and John.
"Brains!" Tin-Tin said breathlessly. "Brains, you have to see these!"
"What is it?" Jeff asked.
Tin-Tin popped a digital disk out of the mobile MI scanner Scott was holding. She placed it into a nearby display unit and pressed a few buttons. Appearing before them on the monitor was a brain...with an odd spot about the circumference of a pencil that was blurry.
"I-Is this Virgil's?"
"Yes, Brains. That smudged spot...it's still there. Just like the previous one we took."
"Where's Gordon's?"
"Right here," she replied, pressing a button. A second brain came into view...with the same strange splotch in the northern quadrant, only somewhat smaller than the one in Virgil's.
"It wasn't a malfunction," Brains breathed.
"What is this?" Jeff asked. "What am I looking at?"
"These fuzzy spots here," Tin-Tin replied, pointing it out on first one slide and then the other. "The MI scanner is programmed to display any disturbed portion of the object being scanned."
"Disturbed?"
"A-As in, something b-being there that, uh, shouldn't."
"So what is it that's there?" Jeff asked, growing impatient.
Peering at the smudge, Brains' normally placid countenance crinkled into a frown.
"What is it, Brains, for heaven's sake!"
"I c-can't be sure, b-but it looks almost like...something's living in their brains!"
"Living? So it is a virus!"
"N-No, that would've shown up in our t-tests."
"What could it be?" Scott asked.
"I don't kn-know, but it's more critical than e-ever for me to g-get a sample of that w-water."
"Go, Scott. Get him to Oklahoma now!"
"Right, Father. Come on, Brains, let's go."
As the two disappeared up the stairs, John, Jeff and Tin-Tin stared at the image of Virgil's brain. Jeff shook his head. What could it be? And how would they ever stop it?
Gordon sat on his bed, watching as Virgil fiddled with his model of Thunderbird 4. Grandma had momentarily left them there while she went to fetch some food. Suddenly they heard a sound neither could recall hearing before. It was a soft musical sound, like a gentle breeze blowing over bamboo stalks.
"What is that?" Virgil asked.
"I don't know. Let's go see."
"Grandma told us to stay here."
"Oh, come on, Virgil." Gordon walked out into the hall and toward the sound of the music.
When he and Virgil entered the Lounge, they saw the man Grandma had told them was named Kyrano. He was sitting on the step that led up to the piano, holding a one-foot-long instrument that resembled a flute to his lips. A haunting and sweet melody rose from its wooden casing as, eyes closed, Kyrano played on.
Virgil was entranced. He was a bit wary since he didn't recognize this man, but the music...anyone who could make music like that couldn't be half-bad. He and Gordon watched and listened until Kyrano finished the piece and brought the instrument down to rest in his lap. He looked up at the men before him and smiled.
"This is something I learned to play in my country," he said softly. "It is called a di."
"It's beautiful," Virgil breathed. "Won't you play some more?"
Kyrano nodded and brought the di to his lips. He began blowing gently into a hole about one-quarter of the way from the end of it. Once more, soft notes drifted into the air. Moved, Virgil seated himself on the piano bench, followed by Gordon. Before Virgil knew it, he was picking up the tune and playing soft accompaniment on the ivories. His body felt the music and honed in on it as something he knew, something he could grab hold of. Something that would make the uncertainty go away.
Gordon sighed as he listened, watching Virgil's fingers work their magic. Then something made him start...like a twinge...he felt it in his mind. Virgil noticed and stopped playing. Suddenly, he jumped almost imperceptibly as a small jab of pain coursed through his head. Frowning, he and Gordon looked at one another as Kyrano continued to play.
"Virgil?" Gordon whispered. "I-I don't feel so good."
"Me either."
They swayed, blinking their eyes and taking deep breaths, trying to keep the dizziness at bay. Gordon grabbed hold of Virgil's arms to steady himself, and Virgil did the same.
"We gotta...we gotta lie down," Virgil said, shaking his head.
They came to their feet and unsteadily made their way past Kyrano. When he saw the state they were in, he stopped playing and rose to his feet.
"Mr. Virgil? Mr. Gordon? Are you well?"
Still clinging to one another, Gordon and Virgil half-turned to reply. But before they could, they gave one last great sway together before their legs gave out and they crashed to the floor.
"Mr. Virgil!" Kyrano cried, kneeling next to them. "Mr. Gordon!"
Grandma came running into the room. When she saw her grandsons passed out on the floor, she dropped the tray of food she'd been carrying and rushed to their side.
"What happened?"
"I do not know, Mrs. Tracy. I was playing the di, and Virgil was on the piano in accompaniment. Suddenly they rose and walked to this spot before collapsing."
"We'd better call Jeff."
Kyrano nodded just as a terrible feeling came over him. Oh, no. No. Not now. Not now, please, not now. He grasped his head and cried out in pain.
"Kyrano!" Grandma exclaimed. "Kyrano, what's wrong?"
He gritted his teeth and moaned, doubling over from the effort of trying to resist the fog that settled over his mind. "N-Noooooo!" he cried out.
Grandma yanked the watch her son had given her out of her apron pocket.
"Jeff!" she yelled into it. "Jeff, get up here right now!"
KYRANO!
He writhed on the floor, eyes squeezed shut.
"Kyrano?" Grandma asked, laying her hands on his arms.
KYRANO, YOU WILL SPEAK!
"No! Leave...me...alone!"
Grandma frowned.
YOU WILL TELL ME WHAT I WISH TO KNOW. ARE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE SICK? ARE THEY?
Kyrano grunted. Normally he would just think the answer whenever this happened, but something told him to say it this time. He opened his mouth with great difficulty and replied, "Y-Yes. Two...memory...loss."
ONLY TWO?
"Y-Yes!"
Grandma watched in horror, he jaw dropping and eyes growing wide. To her, it seemed as though someone were asking Kyrano questions, and that he was answering them. She grasped his shoulders and shook him gently.
"Kyrano! Wake up!" she demanded.
KYRANO! YOU MUST DO SOMETHING FOR ME!
"Nooo! I will not hurt them any longer!" he cried out.
"Kyrano, snap out of it!" Grandma ordered, shaking him a little harder. Suddenly she figured it out. She knew what was going on. "Kyrano!" she yelled, the strength in her voice much stronger than expected for her years. "Don't listen. Fight him! Fight him!"
"Fight who? God, what's going on?" John asked as he, Tin-Tin and Jeff came bounding into the room.
"Mother, what is it?"
But Grandma paid no attention to her son or the others. "Kyrano, it's me, Ruth. Please, listen to me."
Kyrano's head rolled from side to side, sweat pouring from his skin. Tin-Tin knelt near him, but sensed something was going on she shouldn't interrupt.
"Kyrano, listen to me. Fight him. Don't let him use you like this."
Jeff and John, in the midst of checking on Gordon and Virgil, exchanged glances.
"Come on, Kyrano."
KYRANO! MY POWER OVER YOU IS STRONGER THAN ANYTHING! YOU WILL LISTEN AND OBEY!
Suddenly Kyrano sat bolt upright, his eyes snapping open. "No! I will not obey!" He turned to look into Grandma's eyes, trying to find anything that could be an anchor.
"I'm here, Kyrano. I'm here," she soothed, grasping his arm. "Don't let him do it. Fight it. You can fight it."
Kyrano nodded, but the pain became unbearable. He grimaced as tears began rolling down his cheeks. "Must...fight..."
"Yes, that's right," Grandma said.
"Must..."
But before he could finish, Kyrano fainted into his daughter's arms. Grandma sat back on the floor, looking equally as exhausted.
"Mother? What was that all about?"
"I don't believe it," she breathed. "All this time it was right under our noses and none of us figured it out."
"What are you talking about, Mrs. Tracy?" Tin-Tin asked, cradling her father as she rocked to and fro.
"The Hood. That's how he gets information on us. He's been attacking Kyrano."
"Attacking Kyrano?" Jeff bellowed.
"Yes, somehow, inside his mind. It's like...he's invading his thoughts, forcing him to answer questions."
Everyone was quiet for a moment before John spoke. "If that's true, Grandma, then how on Earth can we stop him?"