The leafy bushes around the pool shuddered as Thunderbird 1 returned to its hanger and the pool slid shut. Jeff returned to his desk, finding it difficult to wait patiently for his youngest sons to enter the living room. The concealed doors swished open and Jeff got to his feet as they staggered into the living room. Immediately he moved to Alan's aid, supporting Gordon and helping him down the hall towards the sick bay. Gordon was stumbling between Alan and his father as they picked up the pace.
"How are you feeling Gordon?" Jeff asked him.
"Sick…" Gordon moaned, his head falling forward. Jeff glanced in concern at Gordon.
"Sick?" he repeated, frowning when he saw Gordon smiling softly.
"Alan's flying…" he explained. Jeff slowly understood and managed a soft laugh as he lay Gordon down on the bed, taking the blanket he'd clutched around him from him, replacing it with a fresh one. Brains came to Gordon's side, reassuring him and explaining what he would do to help him. Alan stared at his brother in shock before Jeff gently touched the side of his arm, steering him towards the exit.
"He'll be fine. It's nothing too serious," Jeff assured him, closing the sick bay door, allowing Brains to fix up Gordon. Alan looked pale, his blue eyes wide, the fright from the earlier accident still present. He sat down against the wall and rubbed his face vigorously.
"We could all have died…" he mumbled finally. "Scott and Virgil still could…" Jeff closed his eyes, a knowledge he was only too aware of. He pressed his lips together, glancing towards the lounge where he wanted to be, but the devastation on Alan's face made him remain beside his youngest.
"John is keeping in constant contact. I had to see you and Gordon though." Alan's eyes were fixed on a landscape painting by Virgil that hung across from him. He tilted his head and frowned.
"That looks like the rescue site…Virgil's picture I mean…" Alan's face fell, as if even mentioning Scott and Virgil was some kind of jinx. He looked away from the painting, brushing his hand across the coarse fabric of the carpet.
"Can I sit with you until I know they are ok?" Alan asked, looking up at him with apprehensive eyes. He looked so young, despite being a father and dealing, on an almost daily basis, with dangerous rescues. Jeff reached out, taking his sons hand and pulling him to his feet.
"I would love you to Alan," Jeff said, leading him down the hallway, his hand a reassuring pressure against his back.
The sudden sharp pain across his eyes when he saw the first shard of sunlight through the cracks in the rocks stopped Virgil in his tracks. He looked down at the golden spot on his hand, feeling the warmth of it, watching it highlight the creases and scars across his palm. Someone likes me he thought with a thankful smile. He turned to face Scott, his features obscured by the dark shadows.
"What's wrong?" Scott asked instantly, his voice strained, as it had been since Virgil had found him. Virgil got down next to his brother, allowing him to see his happy expression.
"We made it Scott…I can see sunlight, we've got just a few rocks to go…" Scott's frown lightened and he strained to see the sunlight Virgil was speaking of.
"I can't…" he grumbled.
"Hold on a minute…" Virgil said, getting to his feet and pulling out the rock cutter. He placed it against the rock and pushed, but nothing happened. Virgil tried again, but there was no whirring sound as it fired up, no creaking from within the rock, no crumbling as it fell apart…Virgil looked in wonder at the machine in his hand before he let out an incredulous laugh.
"Virgil?" Scott's voice was weak and Virgil looked at his brother for a moment, debating what to tell him. Instead of facing facts, Virgil tried repeatedly to break through the tiny amount of rock that stood between them and the great outdoors. But there was nothing, the rock mass remained in place and only that single spot of sunlight on Virgil's palm remained. Determined to get both him and Scott out of this, Virgil began hammering frantically on the rock with the cutter, pounding it and flinching as sharp shards flew around him, nicking his cheeks. He paused to catch his breath and noticed he'd only succeeded in making a few marks on the otherwise intact rock.
"Oh for f…" Virgil began, but was cut off by John.
"Hey, you guys have stopped…what's going on?" His pleasant voice alleviated Virgil's anger and disappointment for a moment, before he remembered what had just happened.
"Would you believe me if I said I can see sunlight, but I can't get out?"
"What?"
"The rock cutter has packed in…and I swear there is only one boulder between us and freedom…" Virgil trailed off as Scott moaned softly from the stretcher.
"Tell me you're kidding Virg…"
"Ok, don't panic. I can get the guys outside to try and hammer through. They did the same for Gordon and Alan earlier," John told them, trying to ease the obvious aggravation both were feeling being so close to being out of the caves, but unable to quite make it. There was a short pause as John communicated with the men outside before he returned to his brothers.
"Ok, they're going to smash through and help you and Scott get out. You better get clear," John instructed.
"F.A.B," Virgil said, grabbing the end of Scott's stretcher and tugging it back into the darkness. Scott mumbled softly as Virgil sat down next to him, crossing his legs.
"Almost there," Virgil promised him, reaching out and wiping the mud from Scott's pale cheeks. He noticed they were damp, and pressed his hand against his forehead to determine his temperature. He was a little cold, but not sweating. Scott opened his eyes, they were bloodshot and slightly swollen around the edges. Virgil swallowed audibly as Scott tried to smile, but his lips merely trembled. Virgil tried desperately to think of what he could possibly say to make the situation any easier, but all words were lost, fallen from his mind as he watched a perfectly shaped tear trace its way down the contours of Scott's face.
"Sorry…" Scott apologised, his voice cracking with the effort of holding back the tremendous fear that had been building since he'd woken and found he couldn't feel anything past his waist. The whole time Virgil was working to clear the rock, he'd mulled over the shock in his mind, wondering if the feeling would return in that minute…or the next hour…He'd grit his teeth, trying to wiggle his toes, his brain screaming to his feet to carry out the task. But still his feet remained motionless. The agonising frustration was tearing him apart and as he broke down in front of his brother, he couldn't even begin to tell him what he felt. He was so close to Virgil though, he realised he didn't need to say anything. He was scared, terrified and Virgil would be there to comfort him. He moved to wipe away the tear, but Virgil caught his hand, gently returning it to his side.
"If you can't cry in front of me now Scott, there's something really wrong," he said tenderly. He rubbed his thumb across the top of Scott's hand and gave, what he hoped to be, an optimistic smile. Scott returned the smile as they heard the sounds of a hammer being slammed against the rock.
"We'll have you out of there in a jiffy lads!" a cheery voice called to them. Virgil felt Scott's fingers shift so he was gripping Virgil's hand in his own. Virgil looked back at Scott and this time the smiles they exchanged were real.
Simon returned to the site, wanting to film some kind of aftermath scene. He stood in the cover of some trees, looking towards the small hole that had been battered through the fallen rock. He positioned his camera and began to film.
"This is what remains of the caves. Incompetence caused this? Perhaps, but then, why were these caves still open if they were unstable in the first place? The explosion above only served to push these caves into a greater instability. It's a miracle there were not more injuries."
Just as he was about to switch off his camera, he saw two battered, exhausted figures struggling out of the cave. A group of locals were instantly at their sides, handing them blankets, tending to the man in the stretcher. About to offer assistance himself, he paused, recognizing the uniforms, realising who the two men were. His eyes dropped to the camera in his hand and back to the two men. He knew about their policy on no cameras, but they seemed preoccupied. One of the men had been injured, the other was obviously concerned about this and looked as though he was ready to pass out at any moment. Surely, a tiny bit of footage wouldn't hurt…it would only serve to back up his story about how unsafe the place had been. Simon lifted his camera and focused on the two men.
