CHAPTER TWO
"They're what?"
"They're back, Sir! They're back!"
"You've gotta be kiddin' me," Arnie said, racing down the hall after his costume designer, Laura Lane.
"No, I'm not!" she threw back over her shoulder. She raced into the Finishing Room with Arnie hot on her heels.
"Well, I'll be damned," he said softly as he took in the six International Rescue marionettes hanging from their hooks in the ceiling. "When did this happen?"
"We don't know, Sir. I came in here this morning to get the Daxon puppets and there they were, like they'd never left!"
"Well, get the Longfellows on the vid!" Arnie yelled. "It's only two days 'til Christmas!"
"Calling International Rescue. Calling International Rescue. Come in, please."
Blonde-haired, blue-eyed John Tracy was working on correcting a minor fault in the Duplicate Monitor Room. He heard the voice wafting over the airwaves and headed through the double emergency airlock doorways into the Main Monitor Room. Arriving at the Control Panel, he opened a channel.
"This is International Rescue receiving you. Go ahead."
"Oh, hello, there. Could I speak to Mr. Tracy, please?" a child's voice asked.
Taken aback, John frowned lightly. "Who is this?"
"It's Nicky, Nicky Longfellow."
Face lighting up, John smiled as he responded, "Nicky! How are you? This is John. Remember me from the picture on the wall?"
"Oh, yes, I remember! You were someplace far away and couldn't be home last year. I'm fine, John, just fine. I wonder if I could speak with Mr. Tracy. I have something for all of you, for Christmas, but I don't know how to get it to you."
John had pointed Thunderbird 5's powerful antennae toward Nicky's signal. The scanners detected nothing out of the ordinary, just that the boy was in his home with two adults, presumably his parents.
"You have something for us for Christmas?"
"Yes. I wanted to repay you all for the kindness you showed me last year. I have something very special for you."
John smiled. He and his family knew all about the marionettes Nicky had gotten Living Puppets to create for them. It had been all over the television and newspapers. But he didn't want to spoil the surprise for the young lad, so he pretended to know nothing about it.
"That's awfully nice of you, Nicky. I'll patch you through to Mr. Tracy now. Hang on, would ya?"
"Sure thing. Thanks!"
John did the equivalent of placing Nicky on hold while he opened the line on the special frequency used for direct communications to Tracy Island. "This is Thunderbird 5 calling International Rescue."
He watched as his father's kind face appeared on the monitor. "Hello, John. What's up?"
"Guess who's on the line, Father?"
"Who?"
"It's Nicky. He has some Christmas presents for us."
Jeff Tracy smiled. He'd been wondering when they were going to hear from the boy. After reading about the marionettes, whose pictures had not been released to the public, they all knew it was only a matter of time before they'd be contacted.
"Well, put him through, son!"
"Okay, Nicky, Mr. Tracy's here. Go ahead."
"Mr. Tracy?"
"Hi, Nicky."
"Oh, I'm so glad I got hold of you! Why can't I see you? It says 'Sound Only Selected'."
Jeff smiled and hesitated only a moment before switching to video mode. After all, Nicky already knew what he looked like and, true to his word, had never told anyone the details of his experience. He knew the young man could be trusted.
"Here I am, Nicky. How are you? How are you enjoying your new family?"
"Oh, Mom and Dad are great, Mr. Tracy!" Nicky replied as he watched his Santa appear...minus white beard and red suit...before him. "They're here, but I told them they couldn't watch because of the Secret."
Jeff couldn't help the broad smile that graced his features. "So what's this I hear about Christmas presents?"
"I wanted to thank you for what you did for me last Christmas," Nicky began. "As I've told Mom and Dad, my visit with International Rescue changed my life. I had to find a way to repay you, so Dad helped me."
"What kind of presents would these be?" Jeff asked, playing along with John's mock innocence.
Too young to comprehend that International Rescue, as well as the rest of the world, already knew about the gifts thanks to the media, Nicky grew increasingly excited at the thought of springing his surprise on his friends.
"Oh, Mr. Tracy, if I told you, it would let all the fun out of it!"
Jeff laughed. "Well, are these gifts small enough to fit into Thunderbird 2?"
"Oh, yes, Sir!"
"All right, Nicky. Why don't you have your parents take you back to Coralville? I'll get in touch with the doctor and let him know Thunderbird 2 will be arriving within the next couple of hours."
"You mean it? I'll get to see you again?"
"No, not me, Nicky. I have to stay here and man Base, you know."
"Oh, right," Nicky replied reverently.
"I'll send Virgil and Gordon. How'll that be?"
"Oh!" The boy's face lit up. "That'll be fine!"
"Okay, Nicky, now you take care. We'll contact you on Christmas Day so you can watch us open your gifts. All right?"
"Yes, Sir! Thank you, Mr. Tracy!"
Jeff chuckled as he closed the vid line. The boy was so excited; he hadn't the heart to tell him they already knew what their gifts were. Still, there would be some element of surprise, as they'd no idea what the marionettes looked like.
Virgil, Alan and Gordon walked into the Lounge.
"What's so funny, Father?" Alan asked.
"I just got off the line with Nicky."
"Really? Was it about those presents he's giving us?" Virgil asked.
"Sure was. Virgil, I want you and Gordon to head for Coralville Children's Hospital. I told Nicky you'd meet him there to pick up the gifts."
"F.A.B.!"
Virgil walked to the far wall of the Lounge and turned, resting his back against a floor-to-ceiling painting of a rocket ship. The picture upended, sending him sliding back into a long chute that would deposit him right into the pilot's chair of his beloved ship, Thunderbird 2.
Just outside the Lounge, Gordon entered the passenger elevator. It dropped him straight down, coming to rest in the hangar far to Thunderbird 2's right, elevated about ten feet above her cockpit. The elevator doors opened and the lift cage extended outward on a gantry until it was above the cockpit, then the chute lowered through the entry hatch and locked into place behind and to the left of Virgil, who was now fully dressed in his International Rescue uniform.
"I'll just be a minute," Gordon said, heading for the closet that housed one of each of the operatives' spare uniforms.
"Right. Starting engines now," Virgil replied, firing his baby up. "This oughtta be fun!" he yelled over his shoulder to his brother.
"Yeah, I can't wait to see these marionettes. What do you think they look like?"
"I don't know," Virgil said, easing Thunderbird 2 out of her hangar. "Living Puppets said Nicky was very specific when he was meeting with the designer. They destroyed all the design specs and no photographs were allowed. Nobody's been able to find out what the puppets actually look like."
"Yeah, and you know Nicky wasn't talking!"
"He's a good kid. It'll be nice to see him again and meet his new parents." Virgil pressed one of a plethora of squares on the flat keypad panel in front of him. "This is Thunderbird 2, ready for takeoff."
The great green freight ship taxied down the runway and came to rest as the platform beneath it angled it upward, nose pointing at the bright blue sky.
"You are cleared for takeoff. Get back soon, just in case, son."
"We will, Father."
Virgil pressed another button and Thunderbird 2's turbo jets roared to life, fire spewing out of her tail into the blast shield. Slowly, like a great, lumbering giant, she moved up the ramp until at last she was airborne. At 2,000 feet her boosters cut out, leaving her running smoothly on her atomic pile.
Nicky was beside himself as he waited none-too-patiently in the large yard outside Coralville Children's Hospital. At International Rescue's request, the doctor and nurse had drawn all the shades closed 'round the hospital so no one would see what was going on outside. Only Nicky, dressed in his honorary International Rescue uniform, and his parents were present, along with six colorfully wrapped two-foot tall rectangular packages and a few smaller items.
A high-pitched whine cut through the stillness of early evening. Nicky jumped up and down, breaking free from his folks and running forward as Thunderbird 2 appeared in the distance.
"They're here! They're here!" he shouted.
The three watched in awe as the great bird landed so softly you would never know it weighed several hundred tons. The hatch on the underside of its nose slid open and a small platform descended carrying two men in International Rescue uniforms.
Suddenly shy, Nicky backed up until he was standing right in front of the gifts. He watched as Virgil and Gordon approached, recognizing them right away, even though it had been almost a year to the day since he'd last laid eyes on them.
"Nicky!" Gordon smiled as they approached.
All shyness soon left the boy as he ran toward them, his broad smile threatening to crack his face in two. "Gordo! Virg!"
The brothers laughed at Nicky's use of their family nicknames.
"Look! It's our youngest member!" Gordon laughed, taking in the small uniform the youngster wore.
"How are you, sport?" Virgil asked, shaking Nicky's hand as the boy skidded to a halt in front of them.
"I'm great, Virg, just great!"
"Good to see you again, Nicky!"
"You too, Gordo! Hey, I want you to meet my folks. They're right over here!"
Nicky led them to the man and woman standing just behind the row of presents. Gordon and Virgil took in the six-foot-tall redheaded man and his five-foot-six black-haired wife. All parties were full of smiles as the adults shook hands.
"I'm Marvin Longfellow, and this is my wife Teresa."
"Very pleased to meet you," Virgil replied. "We're so glad Nicky has a family now. He's a very special kid."
"We couldn't agree more," Teresa replied. "We're very blessed to have him in our lives."
Nicky tugged at Gordon's sleeve, pulling him toward the pile of gifts. "Gordo, Virg, come here, come here! Here are your presents!"
"Oh, my," Virgil breathed dramatically. "Are all those for us?"
Nicky nodded, beaming as he watched the men's faces light up. "Yep! There's something for everybody, even Tin-Tin and Grandma! And Kyrano and Brains!"
Marvin and Teresa exchanged glances, wondering at all these names Nicky was throwing around. But they knew better than to inquire, quite content to allow Nicky and International Rescue to keep their secret between them.
"They'll be so happy, Nicky. It was very thoughtful of you, you know," Gordon said, kneeling so he was face-to-face with the nine-year-old.
"Well, it's like I told Mom and Dad," Nicky replied, suddenly serious. "I was so sad before you took me to your base. I didn't think I'd ever be happy. It was the greatest thrill of my life."
"We had a lot of fun too, Nicky," Virgil said as he knelt next to Gordon.
"I know it's not much, Virg, but I had to thank you. I just had to."
"You know, you're far too grown-up for your age," Virgil replied softly, ruffling Nicky's hair. "We really appreciate it. No matter what's in those packages, Nicky, it's the thought that counts. Thank you."
"Yeah, Nick, thanks," Gordon said as the brothers rose to their feet. "We'd better get these loaded onto Thunderbird. Wanna help?"
The serious moment over, Nicky jumped up and down, laughing as he picked up two of the smaller packages. "Yes, yes, may I? Oh, may I?"
The adults laughed as Nicky helped Virgil and Gordon carry everything over to Thunderbird 2. They loaded the gifts onto the platform, and then returned to Nicky's parents.
"It was nice to meet you," Virgil said, extending his hand to them once again. "Take good care of this young man."
"We will, Sir. And thank you," Marvin replied.
"Yeah, nice to meet you," Gordon added as he shook their hands in turn. "And you, Nicky, you make sure you keep an eye out for danger."
"I will, Gordo!" Nicky said, standing at attention and saluting.
Gordon laughed as he headed back toward Thunderbird 2.
"Bye, sport!" Virgil said, shaking Nicky's hand.
Nicky gasped as he realized Virgil had left something behind in his hand. He looked down and found a small, flat four-inch square object with a vid screen at the top and two pad buttons, one red and one green, below it. He raced after Virgil, who had begun walking away.
"Virg! What's this?"
The chestnut-haired man turned and knelt in front of him. "This is our little secret," he said, his face quite serious. "If you're ever in trouble, you just push that green button. We'll answer."
"You mean it?" Nicky asked, his eyes filling with tears. "A direct line to you?"
Virgil nodded. "And the red button is how you disconnect. Now, you keep this close to you always, and don't let anyone else touch it. Okay?"
Nicky nodded, one tear escaping his eye. "Gee, thanks, Virgil."
Using his thumb, Virgil wiped the tear from Nicky's cheek. "Anytime, little man. Any time. Now you be a good fella, like the member of International Rescue that you are."
"I will. I promise I will."
Virgil smiled and rose to his feet. "Bye, Nicky."
"Goodbye."
Teresa and Marvin didn't see their son pocket the communicator as they walked up to join him. Within minutes, Thunderbird 2's VTOL rockets fired and the giant craft rose into the air. The red lights on each wingtip flashed in rapid succession and Nicky and his parents smiled and waved. Before they knew it, the turbo jets roared to life and Thunderbird 2 was gone.
"What'd he give you, son?"
"Oh, nothing, Dad. Just something to remember them by," Nicky said softly, staring into the sky.
The adults smiled at one another before gently urging Nicky to follow them back to the hospital. Yes, their adopted son was definitely one special little boy.
Down in Thunderbird 2's nose sat ten neatly arranged Christmas gifts. As the great craft neared her homeport, one of the larger packages seemed to move. Something inside it shuddered, causing it to sway before toppling over. Then a strange sound emerged from it...a sort of hissing sound...before a high-pitched laugh rang out. The package shuddered once more. Then it was silent.
Virgil and Gordon chatted amiably; commenting on how good the little family had looked together, how happy Nicky had seemed and how thrilled they were to have seen him again.
They had no idea what they were taking home.
