CHAPTER FOUR

Brains walked up the front porch steps of the farmhouse, opened the door and stepped inside. He found himself in the living room, which covered the entire front half of the structure. The carpet beneath his feet was plush and the color of saffron. There was a baby grand piano to his left, and several pieces of furniture to his right, along with a large fireplace that covered the entire west wall.

In front of him was an entryway leading to the kitchen. As he entered, to his immediate right was another doorway that led to the dining room. He walked through there, and then on to the den, another large room that spanned the entire rear of the house. Brains crossed to the opposite side of the room, where a vidphone unit sat on a wooden table against a wood-paneled wall. He seated himself in the one wooden chair and turned the vidphone on. The screen read Dial your number, please. He took a deep breath and dialed the eight-digit number for the vidphone behind Jeff's desk.

"This has to work," he whispered, staring at the screen as it said, Dialing. "It just has to."

Having been advised of the situation, Scott had launched in Thunderbird 1, with Gordon, Alan and Virgil close behind in Thunderbird 2. Jeff waited at his desk, his fingers drumming on its smooth surface. It was a mudslide. His sons hated mudslides. They were messy and unpredictable…and extremely deadly. With all the technology we have nowadays, he thought, you'd think we'd be able to keep wet dirt from sliding.

But the rains in Uruguay had been terrible this past week. And even though the small South American country had become more modernized over the last fifty years, there were still a few bands of indigenous Amerindians who chose to live as their ancestors had, living simply off the land with very little in the way of modern conveniences. This time, it was a rather large village in the north of the country that had become the latest victim of Mother Nature.

Jeff only hoped they weren't too late. The last time they'd been called out for a mudslide, more than two-dozen people had already perished before International Rescue had arrived. It had taken days for the boys to get over what had felt like a failure, but was, in reality, something they could have done nothing to stop. He and his sons all had a tendency to blame themselves for things they knew they had no power over. They were in the business of saving lives. And when even one life was lost, it hit the entire group like a ton of bricks.

He sighed, leaning back in his chair. Best not to let his mind wander like that. It was downright depressing. Just then, the vidphone behind him buzzed. He turned around and opened the line, then frowned. For the screen turned bright white and then the words THUNDERBIRD 6 - SIMULATION SCENARIO 1 appeared.

"What in the Sam Hill…?"

"What is it, Mr. Tracy?"

Jeff turned as his old friend deposited a steaming mug of black coffee in front of him. "I don't know. A call came in, and when I answered, this is what I got."

Kyrano and Jeff both watched as the words faded, to be replaced by a landscape that reminded Jeff of the farmland of his youth. There were fields of golden wheat as far as the eye could see. In the foreground sat Alan's little Tiger plane, and in the distance he could see a white farmhouse, a concrete grain silo and a red barn.

"What are we looking at?"

"I don't know, Kyrano. Wait…wait a second…it said Thunderbird 6 Simulation Scenario…yes, I do know! This must be one of the programs from the VRVS!"

"Mister Brains' new invention?"

Jeff nodded as they continued to watch. Soon the dark skies within the picture opened up and it began to pour. As it did, a beeping sound from the opposite wall caused Jeff to look away. The eyes in Scott's vid portrait on the wall were lighting up in time to the signal. Jeff turned and opened the channel to his eldest.

"Here, Scott. What's the situation?"

Kyrano focused on the vidphone, not even hearing what was being said behind him. A movement near the farmhouse caught his attention. As Jeff closed the channel with Scott, Kyrano said, "Mr. Tracy! Look! Something is moving there!"

Jeff turned and looked at the scene. It was very dark thanks to the storm, but he could just make out a shadow in front of the farmhouse that seemed to grow progressively larger. "What is it?"

"I cannot be certain. However, it looks like it might be a person running toward the plane."

His brow furrowed, a thought occurred to Jeff that he tried to dismiss as impossible. But as the shadow drew nearer, he was certain he recognized the gait. It moved very much like his lanky engineer. He shook his head slowly. It was the most outlandish thing he'd ever thought, and he dismissed it immediately. The person's face was almost visible when a sudden roar blasted through the vidphone speakers. "What on Earth?"

"It is a tornado, Sir!"

Jeff watched in horror as the cyclone appeared from the left and swept toward the lone figure, which had begun running back toward the farmhouse. He rose to his feet, still leaning on the console behind his desk, his face glued to the vidphone screen. "Run," he whispered. "Run!"

But the cyclone was too fast for the person, and Kyrano and Jeff could only watch in disbelief as the figure was dragged up into the funnel right before their eyes.

"My God!" Jeff bellowed. "What did we just see?"

"The last few moments of someone's life, I am afraid, Mr. Tracy." Kyrano watched Jeff's face as a myriad of thoughts was expressed through his eyes. "What is it, Sir?"

"Why would the VRVS call my vidphone and play out one of Brains' scenarios?"

"I do not know. What are you thinking?"

Unwilling to even give credence to his original train of thought, Jeff just shook his head. "I'm not sure what to think, Kyrano. I'm not sure what to think."

The connection had gone through, much to Brains' relief. He could see Jeff Tracy, then saw Kyrano walk up and stand next to him. Both of them seemed to be looking right at him, but no matter what he did, he couldn't make them hear him. He wondered what exactly they were seeing, and decided the most logical conclusion was that they were viewing the programmed scenario he was in.

"If that's the case," he said, "they won't be able to see me unless I'm outside by the Tiger."

He left the vidphone channel open and ran back through the house to the front door. He descended the front porch steps and trotted across the grass toward the bi-plane; all the while fervently hoping they could see him. He knew the plane would be in the foreground of the scene, if indeed that's what they were viewing, so if he got close enough to it, they should be able to discern his identity.

When he was about halfway to the Tiger, a roar sounded in his ears and he felt the air pressure drop so rapidly it made his ears pop. "Oh, no," he said, looking to his right. "I forgot about the tornado!"

Glancing once more at Thunderbird 6, Brains turned and began running back toward the farmhouse. Since it didn't get hit in the scenario, he knew he'd be safe there. Revealing himself to Jeff and Kyrano would just have to wait until the twister passed. As he ran, though, he realized it was moving much faster than he. The wind whipped up around him and shafts of wheat drove into his body like tiny knives.

He cried out. He knew he wasn't going to make it. He felt his feet leave the ground, which got farther and farther away as he flew up into the air.

"No!" he cried. "VRVS! End program! End program!"

The vidphone suddenly went dead, leaving the welcome screen in place of the horrible scene they'd just witnessed. Kyrano shook his head sadly as Jeff swore, "Dammit!"

Kyrano started slightly. He wasn't used to Jeff losing his temper, at least not while he was in close proximity. "Who do you think that was?" Kyrano asked.

"I-I just don't know."

"Yes, Sir. I think you do."

Jeff looked up at him. "It can't be, Kyrano. Such things are not possible."

"More is possible within and without than man is prepared to admit, Mr. Tracy."

"You think Brains is stuck inside the VRVS?"

"What do you think?"

Jeff turned away, trying to gather his thoughts and wrap his mind around something that seemed not only illogical, but also downright unfeasible. Finally, he turned back to face his friend. "I can't shake this feeling I have, Kyrano."

"You should listen to your feelings. Sometimes your 'gut', as you call it, is all you have to go on."

He nodded. Suddenly, he didn't care if what he was going to say sounded ridiculous or not. Because he felt it. In his gut, as Kyrano had said. "I think that was Brains. He's stuck inside the VRVS. And he's trying to contact us."

Kyrano smiled, pleased that Jeff was willing to voice his theory. But then his smile faded as he asked, "What shall we do?"

Jeff sank back into his chair. "I don't know. The technology of the VRVS is way beyond me; I don't know the first thing about virtual reality. Maybe the boys will have an idea when they return from this rescue." He paused, running a hand through his hair. "You said you thought we were watching the last moments of someone's life. If that was Brains, I can only hope you were wrong."

Kyrano nodded before retreating to his rooms. He felt that right now, a meditation was in order. A meditation for Brains. He didn't really know the engineer all that well, but deeply respected him as he did the Tracy family. Perhaps he would be able to reach out and find Brains' mind somehow. If…and it was a big if…Brains hadn't been killed by the tornado. But somehow, Kyrano felt he hadn't. He didn't know if he could contact Brains, especially if he really was stuck inside a machine, but it was worth a try.

Brains once again found himself suspended in nothingness and exhaled the breath he'd been holding. "That was a close one," he said. "Guess I need to use a scenario without a disaster." He thought for a moment. "Ah, yes, that's it. I know which one to use. VRVS, this is Brains. VRVS on."

Once more the blinding white light surrounded him.

"VRVS, load Thunderbird 4, Simulation Scenario 1."

All at once he was seated in the cockpit of Thunderbird 4. He had programmed this scenario for them to learn how to handle the small sub should underwater disasters occur…things like gas jets or submerged volcanoes, for instance. Therefore, he reasoned, as long as he didn't launch Thunderbird 4, he wouldn't have to worry about getting caught by any disasters.

He was dressed in his International Rescue uniform, complete with brown sash. Once again, he appreciated his mind's attention to detail. He'd programmed the VRVS to recognize the different members of the organization and clothe them appropriately. Brains rose from the seat and opened the side hatch. He stepped out and found himself in Pod 4, which was sitting beneath Thunderbird 2 on the conveyer belt.

He remembered that he'd also programmed the VRVS into this scenario, just for the sake of making everything as true-to-life as possible. He wondered what would happen if he used the virtual reality VRVS while actually inside a VRVS world.

"Well, only one way to find out." Brains crossed the hangar to the VRVS and seated himself in Seat 1. He put on the gloves and glasses and settled in. "VRVS, this is Brains. VRVS on."

He didn't realize that the virtual reality world in which he found himself was beginning to lose solidity. Portions of the world here and there would grow fuzzy, then return to clarity, then flicker, revealing a red digital grid behind it.

The VRVS he was sitting in came to life. There was one scenario he'd made that he'd no intention of sharing with anyone else. But if he could get this to work, it might just be his saving grace. He smiled slightly as he spoke. "VRVS, load Tracy Island, Simulation Scenario 1."

The sixty-inch screen in front of him displayed the name of the program, and then faded as a shot of Tracy Island appeared, as though someone were viewing it from the ocean. Simultaneously, the real VRVS tried to load the second program even though the Thunderbird 4 scenario was already running. Brains heard several popping and crackling sounds and ripped the glasses from his face.

He jumped out of the VRVS and stared as Thunderbird 2 hangar somehow began to take the shape of the Lounge in the house, but still keep the look of the hangar. "Oh, no," he whispered. "What have I done?"

Jeff crossed Thunderbird 2's hangar, headed for the VRVS. He had no idea what he was going to do, but he wasn't about to let Brains stay stuck inside that machine…if, indeed, that's where he was. He'd left Tin-Tin in charge of Base up in the house and headed down here after Virgil had checked in. He hadn't informed them of his suspicions…hell, even he thought it was a crazy notion. But how else could Brains' disappearance and the strange vidphone call be explained?

He turned the corner and approached the machine. It was on! He watched in amazement as the very island he lived on came into view. From the angle it was at, you would never know anyone lived on that hunk of rock. He sat down in Seat 1 and placed the gloves on his hands. He raised the glasses to his face, then stopped in mid-motion as the screen before him wavered. He frowned, wondering what was going on.

The image seemed to fade a little, and an overlapping image of Thunderbird 2 in her hangar began to settle over the top of what was now the Lounge. "Something's wrong," Jeff said, taking the gloves off. He squeezed in between the two control panel screens and walked right up to the large view screen in the front of the VRVS frame. It was difficult to make much out since there were two pictures vying to occupy the same space.

But to the right of Thunderbird 2, he could see something…no, someone. It was Brains! He could see him as clear as day!

"Brains!" he yelled, doing everything he could to keep his eyes focused on him. "Brains, can you hear me? Brains, it's Jeff, can you hear me?"

Without warning, the machine began to hum very loudly. Jeff could only watch as the two pictures flickered and seemed to cut out before showing again. The hum rose to a high-pitched whine and sparks began flying out of the side panel on its frame. Jeff backed away from the view screen. He watched as Brains seemed to yell something.

And suddenly, he could hear him. "No!" Brains yelled. "VRVS end program! VRVS off! VRVS-"

"Brains!"

The pictures disappeared and the view screen glowed a blinding white as the acrid smell of smoke filled his nostrils. He began to cough as he made his way out of the machine, waving his hand in front of his face to try and fan the smoke away. He reached the control panel, which was sparking and smoking, and quickly jabbed the 'off' button with his thumb.

As he backed away from the VRVS, Jeff continued to cough. At last he got himself under control. The smoke seemed to have cleared, but the control panel was now hanging from the frame. He could see that some wires and components behind it had been burned.

"My God," he said, shaking his head. "Brains. It's true. You really are in there. But look at this machine, it's ruined. What are we going to do?"