THE Flyer carrying Colonel Casey and Captain Rigby was almost on the other side of the jungle area. They walked into the cockpit to observe the crew flying whilst heading over the tree-tops.

"I am very impressed with that machine," Colonel Casey was saying.

"Likewise, Colonel," agreed Rigby. "Say, did you invite Captain Madison to the officer's meal?"

"Ah, no I did not," said Colonel Casey. "Thank you for the reminder, Captain. I will do that now." She flicked open a radio link. "Colonel Casey calling Sidewinder. Do you read me?"

To the surprise of everyone, no response came.

"Sidewinder, this is Colonel Casey. Do you read me?" Colonel Casey said again. "Captain Madison, are you there?"

There was still no response.

Rigby went over to one of the operators in the cockpit. "Turn on the rear camera," he ordered. The operator did so, and what Rigby saw made his heart skip a beat. "Colonel Casey! The Sidewinder - it's gone!"

"What?!" exclaimed Colonel Casey as she hurried over to look at the screen. It showed over the trees of the jungle and the desert beyond, and it also showed a very faint plume of what looked like smoke rising from a hole in the ground. "Get us back there, fast!" she ordered the crew of the Flyer.

The crew wasted no time in turning the Flyer around and hurrying back over the jungle to where the smoke was coming from. However they quickly realised that it wasn't actually a fire.

"It's not smoke, it's dust," Rigby said. "Good grief, there's a hole!"

Peering out of the cockpit, they could see a large hole had opened up in the ground and looking down into it, they could just make out the shape of the Sidewinder, lying on its side and unable to move.

"Where the blazes did that come from?" Rigby asked.

Colonel Casey wasn't concerned about where the hole had come from, all she was thinking about were those inside the machine. "Sidewinder from Colonel Casey. Come in, please?"

There was still no response.

"Damn it. They must be out cold."

"Let's hope that's all they are," remarked Rigby.

"Flyer 1 from Conveyor."

"Go ahead, Conveyor?" said Colonel Casey.

"We're at the rendezvous point, Colonel," said the pilot of the Conveyor. "No sign of the Sidewinder."

"There's been an accident," said Colonel Casey. "Home in on our position. We'll explain everything when you arrive."

"Understood. Out."

"Are we going to call International Rescue?" asked Rigby.

"I'm not sure," replied Colonel Casey. "I'd rather not have to bother Jeff and the boys unless we have to. We might be able to lift it out ourselves. I'll just try them again."

"This is Colonel Casey. Come in, Sidewinder? Come IN, Sidewinder?"

Hayley began to stir and come around. She rubbed her head. "Ouch," she said. "What happened?" She was still in her seat but could feel everything seemed tilted over to the right. She then looked around and saw that Mendleson wasn't in his seat, but lying face down against one of the walls. "Oh, God!" she exclaimed, unfastening her safety-belt and scrambling over. "Mendleson?" She rolled him carefully over to reveal he had a big gash on his forehead. "Oh, you idiot!" she fumed. "You didn't fasten your safety-belt, did you?"

"Sidewinder from Colonel Casey! Come in, please!"

Hayley scrambled back over and grabbed the microphone. "Hello, Colonel? It's Captain Madison."

"Captain, you're okay!" said Colonel Casey. "Thank God for that."

"I think I am," replied Hayley. "Mendelson's beat-up pretty bad. Don't know about The Mechanic. I need to go and find him."

"You do that, Captain," said Colonel Casey. "We'll land and await the arrival of the conveyor. Hopefully they will be able to lift you out."

"Lift us out?" Hayley asked. "What exactly has happened, Colonel? One moment we were on our way, the next everything seemed to fall over."

"The ground seems to have given way, Hayley," explained Rigby. "You're stuck down a hole."

"Oh, great!" fumed Hayley. "Everything was going so well, too!"

"Calm yourself, Captain, we'll get you out," said Colonel Casey. "You go and check on The Mechanic and then report back."

"Roger that," said Hayley. "Madison, out." She put down the microphone and scrambled across the control room of the Sidewinder to open the doors and make her way into the engineering bay. She could hear the sound of grunting and cursing coming from up ahead. Making her way through she found The Mechanic upside-down with his arm stuck in a piece of equipment. "Mechanic?"

The Mechanic turned. "WHAT?!" Then he gulped. "Oh, Captain! I'm so sorry."

"Hey, it's okay," said Hayley. "Are you hurt?"

"No, just angry," The Mechanic replied. "I knew something wasn't right. I could feel it under my feet."

"Rigby and Casey say we've fallen down some kind of hole," Hayley said.

The Mechanic grimaced. "That would explain why everything's gone crooked. I take it they're going to call International Rescue to lift us out?"

"I'm presuming so," Hayley replied. "I'd better tell them that you're okay."

"What about the other guy?" asked The Mechanic.

"Mandelson's not good," said Hayley grimly. "I don't think he was wearing his safety-belt. He's hit his head pretty badly. I'd better get back to him and treat the wound."

"You can do that?" asked The Mechanic.

Hayley raised an eyebrow. "I was training as a medic, remember?" she said.

The Mechanic thought and then nodded as he then remembered. "Of course. My apologies," he said as Hayley made her way back to the control room.

FAB1 turned off the M25 and headed towards the big car park at Heathrow Airport. It was unusual for Parker to be alone but he was on his way to collect Lady Penelope who was returning via commercial flight from a long weekend away with her parents in Vienna. Normally Parker would have taken FAB1 out to collect her but due to Lord Patrick having already paid for the airline tickets, it was decided that she would fly back ahead of them whilst they spent a few more days out there.

"I'm just h'arriving at the airport now, m'lady," Parker was saying into the radio. "I take it that you 'ave landed?"

"Not quite yet actually, Parker," Penelope answered via her compact radio. "We had to circle around again. Apparently there's a special visitor arriving in the UK just ahead of us."

"Special visitor?" asked Parker with interest. "Who would that be?"

"I believe it's a member of the Lartirva Royal Family," said Penelope. "Princess Perdita if I'm not mistaken."

"Cor!" said Parker. "That's h'a country that isn't often 'eard of. Must be quite an occasion then."

"I do believe so, Parker," said Penelope. "I believe it's Perdita's first ever visit to the UK and a welcome party is waiting to greet her at the terminal building. My plane's still got a few to land before it so may I suggest you try and get a glimpse of the young royal whilst you wait for me?"

"H'I may well do just that, m'lady," said Parker. "I might h'even get a bite to eat h'as well."

"Splendid idea," smiled Penelope. "Oh, we're banking again. I'd better go. I'll call again when I've landed."

"Right you are, m'lady. Over h'and out."

FAB1 entered the car park and Parker drove the vehicle to one of the higher levels of the multi-story. He found a convenient place to park that overlooked the entrance and exit of Terminal 5, which was where both Princess Perdita was due to arrive shortly followed by Penelope's flight. Parker stepped out of the pink vehicle and looked down at the taxi rank below. Everything looked normal. People were arriving and departing. Taxis, cars and buses came and went. They didn't appear to be closing anything off for security reasons.

The sound of an aircraft coming into land made Parker look up. He saw a small private jet descending down from the night sky and disappeared behind the building. He noticed that it had got some kind of Royal insignia on its tail. "That must be her highness," Parker said out loud to himself. He was about to turn to make his way down to the building when something suddenly caught his eye and made him stop. He frowned as he gazed back down towards the taxi rank. A taxi had just pulled in and the driver was helping the passenger unload a suitcase. Parker wasn't entirely sure, but the man looked somewhat familiar. "'ang h'about." He pulled open the door of FAB1 and then reached into the glove compartment to pull out a pair of binoculars. He then went back to the railing and looked down through them. He found himself looking at a man with jet black hair and a beard who was paying the driver for the ride before taking the case and heading off into the building. "H'I know that guy," Parker remarked. He then took out his phone and zoomed in to take a photo. He then sent the phone through a secret-hacked global Most-Wanted list for he was certain he recognised the man from his criminal past. His heart skipped a beat when the man's face was identified to be exactly who he thought it was. "Floyd Lawton?!" he exclaimed. "H'I thought he was dead! What's 'e doing 'ere?" He looked closely at the case. It was long. Somewhat longer than a normal airline suitcase would be. Also the man didn't head towards the main entrance to the terminal, but instead to a side door where he snuck his way inside. "Something's not right 'ere!" Parker said to himself. "I think I 'ad better go h'a snooping."

The large Flyer that had brought the Sidewinder to Africa had now arrived on the scene and joined the Flyer that had been carrying Colonel Casey and Rigby on the ground. The crew along with the Colonel and Captain were now gathered outside near the edge of the crater discussing what they could do to get it out.

"How easy would it be for you to get it out of there?" Colonel Casey asked the pilot.

The pilot scratched his head, unsure. "In all honesty, Colonel, our craft was designed to interlock with the Sidewinder and carry it about, not use the winches to lift it up any great distance. I'm not sure the cables or the winches are strong enough for that."

"Can you at least try?" asked Colonel Casey. "Three people are trapped down there, one is seriously injured. We need to get him out and transferred to the hospital."

"Well…we can certainly try, Colonel," said the pilot. "But if I think it's going to compromise the safety of my aircraft, I won't hesitate to abort the recovery."

"He's got a point, Colonel," said Rigby. "We cannot risk the Conveyor crashing down into the crater and landing on top of the Sidewinder."

Colonel Casey understood, but remained firm in her wish to try. "Attempt a recovery anyway, Captain," she said to the pilot. "But if you do feel that you have to abort, do so."

The pilot nodded and along with his crew of two others, returned to the Conveyor-Flyer.

The Mechanic made his way into the Sidewinder's control cabin where he found Hayley had dressed the wound on Mendelson's head. He'd come round and was taking some sips of water. "How is he?" The Mechanic asked.

"Sore, and feeling like a complete bell-"

"Hold still, Lieutenant!" Hayley barked. "I'm just finishing the bandage off."

Mendleson sighed. "Sorry, Captain," he said. "But yes, I'm a complete idiot. I didn't realise that my safety-belt wasn't on."

"Lesson learned then?" asked The Mechanic.

Mendleson nodded. "Damn so," he agreed.

Hayley finished applying the bandage. "There you go," she said. "Now just lie still and keep sipping the water."

"Yes, ma'am."

Just then the radio came to life. "Sidewinder from Conveyor. Captain Reynolds, speaking. We're going to try and lift you out."

Before Hayley could get hold of the microphone, The Mechanic grabbed it instead. "This is The Mechanic. That will not work! I did not design that ship for lifting heavy objects! Only to convey them!"

"Yeah, yeah, I am aware of that," answered the pilot. "I'm merely following instructions from Colonel Casey. If you have a problem, take it up with her."

The Mechanic threw the microphone back down and stormed over to the other side of the control room.

Hayley now picked up the microphone. "Sidewinder to Colonel Casey. Mendleson is conscious and stable. But what's this about the Conveyor lifting us out?"

"Take it easy, Madison," answered Colonel Casey. "The crater isn't too deep so it shouldn't be much of a problem lifting you out."

"It'll be a HUGE problem, Colonel!" The Mechanic barked, coming back over. "This machine weighs five-hundred tonnes! Only connected will the Conveyor have the power to carry it about! You need to call up-"

"If this doesn't work, we will be calling International Rescue!" Colonel Casey had to raise her voice in order to silence The Mechanic. "Captain Reynolds has already pre-warned me of the risk and I totally understand his and your concerns, Mechanic. If he thinks it's going to be a problem, he will abort the rescue. Do not worry - we have this in hand. Better make yourselves secure and ready for the lift. Casey, out."

The Mechanic swore under his breath and walked away again, banging his fist on the wall in frustration.

"Hey, Juan, calm down," Hayley said. "Getting angry isn't going to help."

"I know that, Captain," The Mechanic replied. "It's just…Colonel Casey doesn't know what she is talking about. I designed and built both the Sidewinder and the Conveyor. I know full damn well that it is NOT going to be able to perform the task in hand." He then lifted up his wrist controller and pushed a button.

"What are you doing?" asked Hayley.

A quiet beeping sound could now be heard with a red light flashing on the controller. "What Casey should have done," The Mechanic answered crossly.

Parker had been looking around inside the main terminal building for a good twenty minutes as he attempted to locate his former colleague. But so far, Lawton had remained elusive. Walking along a balcony, Parker noticed a section of the main area was fenced off with large groups of onlookers and press people on opposite sides whilst a large number of security guards patrolled around.

A man in a black suit approached a small group of airport security. "The princess has disembarked," he told them. "A personal security detail is bringing her out now."

The security then began checking along the group of onlookers, making sure that they all stayed behind the fence and did not attempt to get through.

Parker watched on from his vantage point. He observed the crowds below. Several people had cameras. But there was one person in particular who caught his eye. It wasn't Lawton, but a big muscular man. He looked like a henchman of some kind. He also had a camera, which Parker thought was odd. He wasn't smartly dressed like the rest of the press people were. He could just be an onlooker, but looking through his binoculars, Parker saw that the camera didn't seem quite right either. But before he had any time to ponder further, his attention was then drawn to a group of four more men in black suits walking towards the escalators leading down to where the crowd was. Tucked in between them was a young girl with dark brown hair. She wore a smart little dress and had a rucksack on her back. Parker thought he was dreaming at first. She was very young indeed - not even a teenager he reckoned. Perdita was not what he expected.

An excitable chatter came across the crowds and cameras started clicking as the young princess and her bodyguards came down on the escalator. As they reached the bottom, Parker finally managed to catch the first glimpse of her face. Her head was down. Her hands were across in front of her. She wasn't paying the crowd any attention at all. She didn't wave. She didn't look at anybody. In fact, she looked quite sad, and somewhat alone despite being surrounded by the security detail.

BANG! A gunshot rang out. It had come from the strange man with the equally-odd camera. Now Parker realised. It had a gun mounted inside the lens. A bullet hit the lead detail in the stomach and he collapsed to the floor. Panic broke out and the crowd scattered whilst the remaining detail tried desperately to get Perdita to safety by rushing her back up the escalator.
"GET HER OUT OF HERE!" one of the detail shouted before the man with the camera gun punched him into unconsciousness.

As it turned out, two more people in the crowd also had camera-guns and were able to take out the rest of the detail. Perdita let out a terrified scream as the one who'd been right next to her was shot and fell back down the escalator, leaving her defenceless and completely at the mercy of the three armed men. One of them raised his camera and got ready for the killing shot, but before he could a small grenade landed at his feet. It burst, releasing a thick cloud of smoke that engulfed the three men and causing them to become disorientated. Perdita watched on in shock as another man, a somewhat older man than she expected to see came running out from the side. One of the men managed to find his way out and saw Perdita. He started to raise his camera only to be punched out by Parker and fell to the floor.

Parker then hurried over to the scared young girl. "Begging your pardon, your highness," he said. "I do believe you need some 'elp."

Perdita looked up into Parker's blue eyes as he bent down to her eye level. Straight away she could see that this wasn't a man who intended to harm her. She felt a little more relaxed and managed a slight smile, but did not seem to have found her voice. But her smile vanished seconds later when the big thug along with the other man with a camera-gun finally made their way out of the smoke. Parker grabbed Perdita and hurried back up the escalator whilst the two men fired their guns at them. They reached the top and hurried along the balcony which like the rest of the terminal building had been hastily evacuated following the gunfire starting. Parker had hoped to get clear before the two men were able to get up to their level. But a gasp from Perdita alerted him to a new danger. Two more men appeared from behind a pillar, both armed with hand-guns.

"Oh, crikey!" groaned Parker and dived to the side as the two men opened fire on them. He dived them down behind a row of seats whilst bullets flew around, bouncing off the seats and the adjacent wall. Perdita covered her ears and stayed down low whilst Parker rummaged inside his jacket for more equipment. He soon got hold of a tiny sonic device which he threw at a nearby window. It attached itself to the glass and after a few seconds it detonated, shattering the window and those on both sides of it. The shockwave also hit the two gunmen and threw them backwards onto the floor. Parker then pulled out his next trick, a grapple gun. "Okay, Princess," he said to Perdita, "h'arms around me neck h'and don't let go!"

Perdita did so without hesitation and Parker ran them forwards before leaping through the smashed window. The two gunmen quickly recovered themselves and tried shooting again but Parker and Perdita were already gone. Parker used the grapple gun to latch back onto the building and carefully ease them down to the ground. They then ran on to conceal themselves behind a parked airliner and then on behind a Fire-Tender. They were about to go on when another airliner came roaring past, forcing them to duck back and up against the side of the Fire-Tender.

"Wooo!" said Parker. "That dragon h'almost got us." He then watched as the airliner headed towards a nearby docking tube.

Perdita finally found her voice and spoke for the first time. "You do realise that I am twelve and do not need fairy-tail metaphors?" she said in a slight accent.

"Beg pardon," answered Parker. "H'It is my first time rescuing royalty."

Perdita smiled. "It is quite a forgivable sin…Jeeves."

Parker was taken aback by this remark. He hadn't expected to hear that from a young lady, let alone one that wasn't English. "I, erm, never h'introduced myself, did h'I?" he said. "Aloysius Parker. But you may call me Parker, h'if you wish."

"Aloysius?" repeated Perdita. "I like that. We both have unusual names then."

Parker smiled back. "Thanks-"

BANG!

Parker grabbed Perdita and just managed to pull her away in time before the bullet struck the tyre of the Fire-Tender which began to deflate. Perdita looked at the tyre with wide eyes and a dropped-open mouth whilst Parker scanned around to try and see where the shot had come from. The sound of the shot sounded a lot louder than the hand-guns that the other thugs had been using. This sounded high-powered. And then, far off in the distance on the adjacent terminal building, he spotted a lone figure standing on the roof, dressed in a strange red and grey outfit with a white hood over its head. Realising they couldn't stay put, he began to run across the tarmac carrying Perdita in his right arm. The figure ran along the roof of the building, firing numerous shots from a wrist-mounted gun on his left arm. Most shots missed hitting anything although a couple hit some oil drums which exploded and caused Perdita to scream, but then one scored a hit right on Parker's right leg right behind his knee.

"AARGH!" Parker cried out and fell to the ground along with Perdita. Despite the pain, he still managed to get them to hide behind a luggage tractor and trailers out of sight of the mysterious assassin.

Perdita pulled herself out of Parker's grip and gasped at the sight of the blood. "Your leg!"

"Yeah…" Parker replied, wincing in pain. "H'A minor setback." He then looked at Perdita, just as they heard the assassin's guns firing again. Turned out he had two wrist-mounted weapons which he was now using to shoot away the many suitcases that were on the tractor and trailers. "You h'are very brave, Princess," he said. "Could you make h'a bandage and tie it h'around me leg?"

Perdita looked at the wound which was still dripping with blood. "Yes, of course!" she said, pulling off her rucksack and opening it up before pulling out a purple scarf. It was one of her favourites and she hated the thought of using it for what she was about to do, but she also knew that this stranger who she'd never met before was risking his life for her. To help him in return was the least she could do.

Parker kept as still as possible whilst Perdita tied the scarf around his leg and secured it in place. A few more of the cases were blown off and they had to duck to avoid getting hit. "Any h'idea why these scumbags are trying to kill you, Princess?' he asked.

"I'm not a princess," Perdita answered as she finished the bandage. "My daddy died last night. I'm the queen now."

Parker stared at her in disbelief. He saw she was hanging her head in sorrow. That explained why she had looked so down and unwilling to look at anyone in the terminal building. "Cor…" he said in admiration. "You h'are even braver than I thought."

Perdita looked up at him, a few tears in her eyes. But hearing Parker's words made her know that she could put her absolute trust in him.

Another blast sent the last of the luggage off of the tractor unit. "We can't stay 'ere h'any longer," Parker said. "Get ready to run!"

"You can run?" asked Perdita, looking at Parker's now bandaged leg.

Parker winked. He took his keys out and pressed a button. It remotely called FAB1 which automatically switched to flight-mode and lifted off out from the car park, homing in on Parker's position.

"You must still 'ave family?" Parker asked, trying to keep Perdita distracted.

"Only one living relative," replied Perdita. "Count Verner Vlaterva."

"So if anything happens to you-"

"He will become king of Lartirva!" finished Perdita.

"Now h'it all makes sense," said Parker. Whilst Lartirva was relatively less-known than its more infamously neighbouring country of Bereznik, stories of a power-struggle between the King and his brother had been known to make the news on the odd occasion. Parker felt sure the name Verner Vlaterva sounded familiar. In order to get control of his country would mean getting rid of the heir to the throne, Perdita. He was determined not to let that happen.

Scott was sitting at Jeff's desk listening to Virgil playing the piano. The island was very quiet as Jeff, Grandma, Gordon, Alan and Kayo were all away leaving only them and Brains left.

"Is this piece for Hayley or yourself?" Scott asked his brother.

"Just another test piece," Virgil answered.

Just then, John called in from Thunderbird 5. "International Rescue, we have a situation."

"What is it, John?" asked Scott.

"A personal distress beacon has been activated," said John. "And not from anyone who you might expect."

"Who is it?" asked Virgil.

"The Mechanic," said John.

"W-What?!" The three brothers looked around to see Brains come running into the lounge. He'd already been on his way when he caught the tail end of what John had been saying. "What's h-happened?"

"I've traced the signal to Central Africa," said John. "It looks like that Sidewinder machine has fallen into some kind of crater. The GDF are on the scene and appear to be attempting a rescue of their own."

"But if the GDF are already trying to rescue them then why has The Mechanic activated his distress beacon?" asked Scott.

"I don't think he has a lot of faith in the GDF," remarked Virgil.

"Well that's something he and I can both agree on," said Scott, which caused Virgil to glare at him. "With the exception of Hayley, that is," he added hastily. "She's the most competent one of the lot."

Brains looked at the hologram 3D satellite image of the disaster zone that John had projected to the table in the middle. He was immediately concerned. "T-That's the special Flyer that The Mechanic designed to help transport the S-Sidewinder around to wherever it is needed," he said.

"And?" asked Scott.

"It's a t-transport aircraft, NOT a heavy-lifter!" Brains replied. "It will n-not have the sufficient power or lift to be able to r-recover the Sidewinder from that crater!"

"Then what do you suggest, Brains?" Scott asked.

"That the t-three of us need to get out there on the d-double!" Brains said.

"Seems a bit odd that Colonel Casey hasn't called us to begin with," Virgil pointed out.

"I'll get in touch with them and offer our services," said John.

"No!" Scott said suddenly, surprising them all. "The Mechanic wouldn't have activated his beacon if he thought the GDF were in control of the situation. He's asked for our help, and he shall get it. Suit up! Brains, go with Virgil in Thunderbird 2."

Brains nodded. "I'll have MAX meet us there!" he said and hurried off.

Virgil also got up and headed for the rocket painting. "See you in the sky, Scott," he said.

John frowned as he watched Scott head for the revolving wall panel. "Scott, are you sure about this?" he asked. "I know we have a good relationship with the GDF, but if they're meant to be on a secret project, I don't think they'll be too happy about us sticking our noses in?"

"Like I said, John, we're answering a distress call from The Mechanic," said Scott. "And The Mechanic isn't employed by the GDF. Colonel Casey won't have the power to turn us away." And with that, he swivelled round and disappeared from John's view.

John was still not comfortable. "Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" he asked himself out loud.

Scott and Virgil headed down their respective launching tunnels and were changed into their uniforms before boarding their craft. Virgil selected Module 3 before lowering the main body down over it. He was joined afterwards by Brains and MAX, the former having also suited up in his brown jumpsuit. Thunderbird 1 was conveyed up the diagonal tunnel from the cavern to the launch bay whilst the swimming pool was moved back. At the same time, the rock concealing the hangar of Thunderbird 2 slid down to allow the green behemoth to taxi out onto the runway with the palm trees folding back to allow it to pass. Once it was on the ramp, the wings folded up and it was lifted into position.

5! 4! 3! 2! 1!

The engines of both machines roared into life with Thunderbird 1 rising up from its launch bay and then Thunderbird 2 soaring off the ramp. The two ships climbed high away from Tracy Island before setting course towards Africa.

"Thunderbirds are GO!" said Scott.

Penelope had now disembarked her flight in one of the other terminals and was bewildered as to why Parker wasn't answering her calls.

"Sorry, ma'am," said a security guard. "You need to evacuate with the others. We have a terrorist incident down the field!"

As Penelope was ushered through the building, she caught sight of the smoke from the exploded oil drums and was surprised to see FAB1 flying over the scene. "Parker? Whatever are you doing?" she wondered out loud. In the confusion, she managed to elude the security and slipped away to try and make her way down towards the danger zone.

The assassin on the roof was also taken aback by the sight of a flying pink car and stopped his attack to watch as it landed near to where Parker and Perdita were hiding.

Perdita was equally surprised by the sudden arrival of FAB1. "Is that…yours?" she asked.

"Not mine. My employer though," Parker answered.

Perdita grinned. "I love the colour," she said.

"Come on, let's get h'out of 'ere," Parker said and together they hurried over to the waiting car.

The assassin saw them break cover and raised his arms ready to fire his weapons again. Then through the heads-up display in his helmet, he saw something that made him stop. "Wait a second." He zoomed in and saw the man's face. "Parker?!" He then began firing more rapidly than before. The bullets bounced off the bulletproof bodywork and dome of FAB1 whilst Parker and Perdita scrambled inside.

Parker got into the driver's seat and took control of the car. "'old h'on tight, Prin- I mean, your Majesty," he said, correcting himself and pulling back on the controls.

FAB1 began to rise up off the ground and move away from the area.

The assassin was enraged by this. "NO! YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY!" he roared and adjusted his right gauntlet. He then fired a small missile out instead which scored a direct hit on FAB1's right-side turbine. It exploded, damaging it and causing the car to start falling.

"BLAST!" exclaimed Parker. "WE'VE BEEN 'IT! BRACE FOR H'IMPACT!"

Both cried out in alarm as FAB1 continued to fall before crashing into a nearby warehouse near to the terminal building.

The assassin watched with delight as the car disappeared inside the building and knocked over several pieces of equipment and supplies as it did so. "Now…time to finish this."