Disclaimer: We do not own the Thunderbirds. No money was made off this endeavor.

NO GREATER LOVE

By: GrumpyMagrat and Magratconvert

"It is a far, far better thing that I do than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known." – A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Chapter 4: Memorial Service

The next morning Jeff, Virgil and Alan sat at the breakfast table. They each had one of the four newspapers that Jeff subscribed to. Jeff had taken the New York Times. Virgil had taken the Miami Herald. Alan had taken the Los Angeles Times. The Chicago Tribune still sat folded next to Jeff. All four of the newspapers, as well as every newspaper around the world, carried the screaming headline: INTERNATIONAL RESCUE OPERATIVE MURDERED AFTER RESCUING CEO." The front page article by the associated press gave a brief account of the rescue. The three women who had been trapped with Mitchner as well as the rescue workers who had worked the scene had been interviewed in order to piece together the sketchy events of the rescue. As expected, Officer Harrison disavowed any knowledge of the "operative's" death. He insisted that the last he knew the operative was taken for medical treatment by his colleagues. Also frustrating the news media was the simple three sentence press release that International Rescue had given.

"The members of International rescue regretfully acknowledge the death of an operative on May 31, 2068 following a rescue. International Rescue will be shut down for two weeks for a period of mourning. We are withholding the operative's name out of respect for his grieving family to whom we extend our deepest sympathies."

The article ended with a media promise to "follow-up" on this story and to report any "pertinent" information.

Jeff skimmed through the article to make sure that the press release was accurate and that Gordon's identity was still a secret. He knew that the press would be desperately searching for any leads to the "operative's" identity. He hoped that the cover story that was released to the press about Gordon's death would hold up. Jeff noticed that both Alan and Virgil had ignored the front page article and opened their papers to the obituary section. Neither said a word as they silently read their brother's carefully worded obituary. Jeff turned to the obituary section in his own paper. Tears sprang to his eyes as he saw his son's smiling face under the headline:

OLYMPIC GOLD MEDAL WINNER DIES AT AGE OF 25.

The world mourns the death of Gordon Cooper Tracy, born February 14, 2043, died May 30, 2068. The cause of death was traumatic blood loss as a result of a shark attack.

Gordon was the fourth of five sons born to former astronaut Jefferson Tracy and his wife Lucille. Growing up he enjoyed and excelled in all aquatic sports. At the age of seventeen, he won a gold medal in the butterfly stroke at the Houston Olympics making him one of the youngest gold medal swimmers.

After school, he trained as an aquanaut. He served in both the submarine service and the World Aquanaut Security Patrol. (WASP) A highlight of his time in WASPs was when he commanded a deep-sea bathyscaphe and spent a year beneath the ocean investigating marine farming methods. He developed a deep love of the ocean and was an accomplished oceanographer. He also designed a unique underwater breathing apparatus which greatly improved the safety factors for fellow divers.

Unfortunately, his promising career in WASP was cut short when he was involved in a hydrofoil speedboat crash. The craft capsized while going 400 knots and shattered. Gordon was told that he would never walk again, but after four months of fight and determined hard work, he did learn to walk again.

After the accident, Gordon went to work for his father at Tracy Enterprises. He has spent the last few years designing and updating safety features for various marine crafts, while at the same time indulging in his own passion for the water.

Gordon and his brother were diving a few miles from their father's island when they encountered a shark. True to his giving spirit, he put himself in harm's way to insure that his brother made it to safety. By the time his brother was able to get him to medical help, the blood loss was too great. He passed away quietly surrounded by his family.

Upon hearing of the death, WASP Commander Ronald Reece said. "It is a sad day indeed to lose such a wonderful person at such a young age. I consider myself very lucky to have served with Gordon Tracy. He was an exceptional officer and had an exciting career ahead of him in WASP. He never complained about the accident that ended that career. He was too busy fighting for what he wanted. Even though he had a fierce determination, he also was one of the most giving individuals that I have known. He always had a kind word for everyone. He had a love for life that shone through everything that he did. It was my privilege to know him, and it was a blessing to call him my friend. He will be sorely missed."

Gordon is survived by his father, Jefferson Tracy and four brothers: Scott Tracy, John Tracy, Virgil Tracy, and Alan Tracy. He is also survived by his grandmother, Effie Tracy. He was preceded in death by his mother, Lucille Evans Tracy and grandparents: Grant Tracy and Clarence and Adelaide Evans.

The body is scheduled to be cremated and a private memorial service will be held for the family and a few close friends.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Gordon's name to the Westfield Oceanographic Research and Learning Delegation (WORLD) or to the Christopher Reeve's Spinal Cord Research Fund. These were two organizations close to Gordon's heart, and any donations made in Gordon's name will be matched by the Tracy family.

Jeff finished reading the obituary and laid the paper aside. Everything seemed to be in order for which he was grateful. Jeff had sent the press the fabricated shark story which seemed to have been believed without hesitation. The rest of the facts were dug out of historical archives. The statement from the WASP commander had been a nice touch. Most importantly, at this point in time, no one had connected Gordon's death with the "International Rescue operative's" death. Now they could mourn in peace for Gordon.


Five days later, Virgil was getting ready to head to the memorial service which was to be held on board the family yacht. Looking at himself in the mirror, he straightened his tie one last time and left his room. As he walked by Scott's room he heard his brother say heatedly. "I've made my decision. Now drop it."

Virgil paused and knocked on the door. An angry looking Scott opened the door. Virgil noticed that Scott was not dressed for the service. "Oh great, what the hell do you want?" Scott groused as he moved away from the door.

Virgil followed him inside the room and found that John was already there. Virgil was puzzled. He turned to Scott and asked. "You sound upset. Is there anything that I can do?"

"Yeah, you can leave and take him with you." Scott said hotly motioning toward John.

John rolled his eyes. "Scott, I…"

"Stuff if John." Scott interrupted. "You've already had you say. Now I want you to leave."

Virgil wasn't sure why Scott and John were fighting, but he knew that now was not the time for it. Whatever was going on they could sort it out after the memorial service. "Come on John; let's give Scott a few minutes to himself to get ready for the service. We'll wait for him in the hall."

John gave out a snort of disgust. "That's just it, Virg. He's not going to the memorial."

Virgil turned to Scott in shock. "What does he mean that 'you're not going'?"

Scott turned away from his brothers and looked out his window. "Just what it sounds like, I'm not going."

Virgil was sure that he was misunderstanding Scott. "You can't be serious. You have to go."

Scott whirled around to face Virgil. Angrily he demanded. "Why? It's not like my going is going to change anything. So what's the point?"

This time John answered. "The point is that you need an opportunity to say goodbye to Gordon."

Scott shook his head. "I did that as he died in my arms."

"Well, you don't seem to be dealing with it very well." John argued. "Maybe it would help being with your family."

"I don't need any help." Scott snapped at John. "I just want to be left alone."

"What about us?" Virgil asked. "What if we need you? Your support? Your strength?"

Scott shook his head and quietly said. "I can't, not this time."

John pounded his fist on the desk in anger. "Oh come off it Scott. Be honest with Virgil. Tell him the truth. Tell him that the real reason that you don't want to go to the service is that you're still blaming dad. You don't want to be around him. It's your way of punishing him."

"Is that true?" Virgil demanded.

Scott turned back to the window. "Of course it's not true. He doesn't know what he's talking about."

"Then look me in the eye and tell me that." Virgil said.

Scott bowed his head but didn't turn around. "Virgil…" He began but stopped.

Virgil waited a few moments for Scott to continue, but he remained silent. "Scott?" Virgil questioned, but Scott still did not speak. As he waited, Virgil's anger began to build. "You can't do it, can you? John is right. This is about your anger at dad. You selfish, son of …"

Scott swung around with his fists clenched in anger. "How dare you! You have no idea what I've been going through!"

"So you think that you have the corner on grief here Scott?" Virgil snapped back. "We all loved Gordon, and we are all grieving him. You're not special."

"Shut the hell up and get out." Scott shouted as he moved toward his door.

Virgil stopped him by grabbing his arm. "You listen to me and listen good." He spat out in anger. "You will be coming to the memorial service even if I have to drag you there kicking and screaming. Now you have exactly ten minutes to get yourself dressed. If you don't, I will dress you myself."

"And you think that you are man enough to take me on?" Scott challenged.

Virgil shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not, but I'm sure that John will help me too."

Virgil and Scott both looked toward John who nodded at them.

"Please Scott," John said. "You need to do this. If you can't do it for yourself, or for us, then do it for Gordon. It's the last thing that you can do for him."

Scott's glare shifted between John and Virgil. Finally he yanked his arm from Virgil's grasp. "Fine, I'll be ready in ten minutes."

"Good," Virgil responded. "We'll be waiting in the hall." With that Virgil and John left Scott's room.

Exactly ten minutes later, Scott, wearing a suit and tie, exited his room.

Trying to placate his brother, John quietly said. "I know you're mad right now, but one day you will thank us."

"Whatever," Scott groused. "Let's just get this over with."


The sun shone brightly on the solemn group aboard the Lucille as it made its way to the far side of the island. They stopped in a small inlet that was a favorite diving place of Gordon's. Reverend Powers stood up in front of the small group that included the Tracys, Kyrano and Tin-Tin, Brains, Lady Penelope and Parker, three of Gordon's friends from WASP and one friend from high school. The reverend began his funeral sermon.

"It is a sad occasion for which we gather here today. It is always difficult to say goodbye to a loved one who has been taken in death, but when that person is young with a potentially full life ahead of him, it can seem impossible. Gordon was such a person, even in his short life, he loved life. He embraced it. Even when it seemed that life had dealt him a raw deal, he fought it. He refused to give up the life that he wanted.

Gordon was a loving and giving person. He gave of himself when he joined WASP to help provide security to the world's oceans. He gave of himself when he helped develop marine farming techniques. He gave of himself when he worked to protect the marine life that he loved. He gave of himself when he designed safer diving equipment so that others could also enjoy the undersea world. Even his final act was a giving one. He gave himself in order to make sure that his brother was safe.

Gordon was also a fun-loving person. I've had a chance to talk to most of you and that was one thing that you all mentioned his wonderful sense of humor. He had a contagious smile and an easy joke. He knew how to make people feel better when they were low. He enjoyed playing practical jokes although he was never intentionally mean. Gordon was a joy to be around and he will be sorely missed.

We grieve for Gordon because of our own loss. It is our love for Gordon that causes us to feel his loss so deeply. Even though we know that Gordon has gone to a better place, a place without pain or sorrow, our grief is borne out of our loss: the loss of a brother, the loss of a friend, the loss of his smile, the loss of his humor, the loss of his love. But that loss is temporary. We do have hope: a hope in a risen Savior. Luke, in the Book of Acts, recounts Paul's defense against heresy charges. "But this I confess unto thee, that after the way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my Fathers, believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets: and have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust." (Acts 24:14-15) That is our hope. There will be a resurrection of the dead. It is mentioned throughout the Bible from the prophesies through the historical references to the books on church teachings. Paul mentions it again in his first letter to the church at Corinth. "So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?" (I Corinthians 15:54-55) Death is not the end. Although we grieve for Gordon now, there will be a time of joy when we are re-united with him at the resurrection. So we grieve at this time. We grieve for our temporary loss. At the same time we need to hold onto the hope of the resurrection. Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, we come before you in our hour of grief. We beseech you for your spirit of peace during this trying time. We thank you for the hope you have given us. Welcome your son Gordon into your glory. We thank you for the time that we had with him no matter how short it was. Make our memories of Gordon sweet and comforting. We humbly ask in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen."

Heads were raised as the prayer ended. The reverend closed his Bible and continued speaking.

"At this point in the service, the floor will be open for anyone who would like to share a thought or memory of Gordon. Alan has asked to go first and Jeff will speak at the end."

Alan stood in front of the group. He cleared his throat and began to speak, studying his feet self-consciously.

"Well…Dad asked me to speak about Gordon, so here it goes. Gordon was more than my brother. He was my best friend. Being the two youngest, we tended to band together against our older brothers. Not that we didn't fight against each other because we did. But I always knew that I could count on him to help me get back at whoever I was mad at. Gordon was full of ideas. To this day, I still don't know how he thought them up.

He helped me a lot through high school. By that time Dad had made most of his fortune. Scott was making a name for himself as a hot shot fighter pilot. John had just been accepted to NASA. My freshman year was especially tough. The teachers expected me to be a great student like John or Virgil. The coaches expected me to be a great athlete like Scott and even to a point Gordon. Fellow students, even ones that I knew from before, either shunned me thinking that I was a spoiled rich snob, or they just wanted to be my friend because of Dad's money. Gordon helped me get through that time. He encouraged me to be myself. He was there for me when I was feeling lonely. He was right. Eventually people began to accept me for who I was.

It scared me to death when he had the hydrofoil accident. But again he encouraged me with his staunch determination. I would have buried myself in self-pity, but not Gordon. He wanted to walk again and he did whatever he needed to do to reach that goal. I know it was hard for him. It was painful. I know that he got discouraged, but he pushed himself through. When he felt that he couldn't keep going, somehow he found the strength that he needed. I will always remember that.

Whenever I find myself with a problem, I will remember these two main lessons that Gordon taught me. The first is to always be myself. The second is to fight even when I don't think I can. It's the least that I can do for my brother who has done so much for me. Goodbye Gordon. I love you."

Alan's voice cracked as tears began to fall from his eyes. He quietly moved back to stand next to Tin-Tin. She wrapped an arm around Alan to quietly give him support.

Commander Reynolds moved to the front of the group.

"I met Gordon when we both joined WASP. One of the first things I noticed was how easy going he was. As with any military organization, the training officers treated us with contempt. We were the lowest of the low. We had to prove ourselves to them. Most cadets would get angry. I did, but I never saw Gordon get angry. He followed orders with a crisp salute and a 'yes sir'. He talked about his family a lot, but he just referred to 'Dad' or 'my brother'. Imagine my surprise at the end of boot camp when Gordon introduced me to his father, the great Jefferson Tracy. I never would have guessed. After all 'Tracy' is a pretty common name. Who would have thought someone whose dad is the CEO of a multi-billion dollar company would have joined WASP in the first place. He never bragged about his dad or the money. He earned the respect of his commanders and his colleagues by being who he was. As we rose through the ranks, we were assigned to different duty stations, but it was clear that Gordon was on the fast track to the top. Even at different posts, I heard about Gordon's exploits. When I heard about the hydrofoil accident, I thought 'If anyone can beat this, it would be Gordon', and he did.

I was saddened to hear of his death, but I was not surprised to hear that he died saving someone else. That was Gordon through and through. The world has lost a wonderful human being but I for one am grateful for the chance to have known him."

Reynolds nodded towards Jeff as he took his place back in the group.

Ben Caine took Reynolds place at the head of the group. He looked uncomfortable as he spoke.

"I wasn't really planning on speaking today, but after listening to Alan, I felt I needed to say something. One of the reasons Gordon knew how to handle the jerks in high school was because he went through it, and I was one of those jerks. It didn't take long when Gordon first got to high school for the gossip mill to let everyone know who he was and more importantly, or so we thought at the time, who his father was. My first thought was 'Anyone that rich MUST be a jerk'. At that time I ran with a group who decided that it was our job to 'put Gordon in his place'. We gave him an awful time. We played tricks on him, awful, mean tricks, but he just took it in stride. Over time I grew to respect Gordon and grew ashamed of how we treated him. Finally, I got up the courage to apologize to him and asked him to be my friend. I never expected him to agree. I really figured that he would hold a grudge, but he didn't. He readily gave me his forgiveness. Over the years, we have become close friends. When we went our separate ways after school, Gordon was one of the few friends that I kept in contact with. It was a great friendship, one that I will hold more precious given these events. Well…that's all I wanted to say."

John and Virgil both headed toward the head of the group. John motioned for Virgil to go ahead of him. Virgil cleared his throat as he stood in front of the group.

"I can't really add to what has already been said. Gordon was a wonderful person with a great sense of humor, a fierce determination, a forgiving spirit, and a giving soul. But the most important thing to me about Gordon was that he was my brother."

Virgil paused and brushed a tear from his eye. He opened his mouth to speak, but the words were choked off as he stifled the sob that rose in his throat. He stared out over the ocean as he fought to bring his emotions back under control.

"I love all my brothers. I don't want people to think that I favored Gordon over the others. It's just…all my brothers are so different and my feelings for each of them are different but just as strong. We have grown up together. We have our strengths and weaknesses. We compliment each other. Now with Gordon's passing there is a huge hole in our family. I can't fill that hole and I don't want anyone to try."

More tears fell from Virgil's eyes. This time he didn't even bother to try to wipe them away. His voice cracked as he continued.

"It's going to take a long time for us to get through this, but we'll do it…together. It's what Gordon would have wanted."

Virgil moved back to stand with his family. Jeff squeezed his shoulder in support. John gave Virgil a pat on the back as he headed to the front of the group. In a quiet tone, he began speaking.

"Like Virgil said, we've heard a lot about the different qualities that Gordon had. Well there is one more quality that I would like to speak about, his human quality. It has been mentioned how things didn't seem to bother him, but they did. He was just good at hiding it. I'm not saying this to tarnish your image of Gordon. It is just another point to prove what an extraordinary person he was. Instead of reacting in anger against the person who hurt him, he would bury it for the moment. Then he would come to either dad or I to talk about it. It was his own version of therapy. I can remember plenty of late night phone calls from my little brother. Those were hard for me. When he would call me, upset, with tears in his eyes, all I would want to do is put my arms around him, but that was impossible through the vid-phone. All I could do was reassure him.

It about killed me when he had the hydrofoil accident. I couldn't get leave for three weeks. Gordon would call me and I knew he was depressed and all I could do was talk. It seemed so inadequate to me, but later Gordon told me that it meant the world to him. He said that it wasn't the words I said, but just the fact that I was there to listen to him."

John paused a moment looking towards the sky.

"I just wish that I had been there for him at the end, to have been able to look him in the eyes and say goodbye. But it wasn't meant to be. This is what I have, a memorial service, saying goodbye to my brother in the wind. I love you Gordon. I know that you will be watching over us. Give mom our love."

John moved back with his brother and was enveloped in a hug from Virgil.

Jeff waited for a few seconds to see if anyone else moved forward to speak. He expected Scott to step forward but he didn't. Scott met his father's questioning look with a hard, angry look of his own. Without a word he spun around and headed toward the aft section. With a sigh, Jeff moved to the front of the group. In his hands he held the urn that held his son's remains.

"I want to thank you all for coming. I know it means a lot to Gordon and to us. "

Jeff paused a moment to collect his thoughts.

"How do you say goodbye to your son? How do you let go? I've been asking myself that question for the past five days. I still don't have the answer to that question. I lost my wife twenty-four years ago and I still mourn her everyday. Twenty-four years from now, if I am still alive, I will look back and make that same statement about Gordon. Even though I will mourn Gordon, I can't let grief paralyze me. Gordon would not have wanted that. Right now, it seems so senseless, a stupid attack. It shouldn't have happened, but it did, and we can't change it. At this point we each need to examine our lives, our relationship with Gordon, our relationship with each other. We need to decide for ourselves what is the best thing that we can learn from this tragedy. Each of us need to decide what is the best way to honor Gordon's memory. Gordon would want us to honor him by doing good. He loved people. He would want us to continue that in his memory."

Jeff bowed his head and looked at the urn. He swallowed back the tears that tried to force their way out. He took a deep breath and continued.

"Now we have come to the hardest part of the service, the scattering of the ashes. Gordon loved the ocean. He loved to swim and dive. This is one of his favorite spots so I decided that this would be a fitting resting place for him. Please gather around me for one final goodbye as I release the ashes."

Jeff waited as everyone gathered around him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw John grab Scott and push him to the railing between himself and Virgil. It was understandable, but it pained Jeff to see Scott in such despair. Jeff pushed those thoughts away. He had to get through this final stage of the service. He removed the lid from the urn and slowly tipped it over. As the ashes began to fall, the wind caught them and scattered them across the water. Jeff said in a tear filled voice.

"Rest in peace, my son. I love you. You will be forever in our hearts."


Author's note: The biographical information used in this chapter came from The Complete Book of Thunderbirds:By Chris Bentley.