Thunderbirds Are Go
The Halloween Collection
2022 Edition
By Lee Homer
Disclaimer: All rights reserved. I don't own Thunderbirds and any of the characters involved. You know the drill. We're back for another collection of tales of the weird, the depraved and the paranormal. I hope you enjoy these stories and Happy Halloween.
Eyes in the Snow
By Virgil Tracy
In the early hours of September 22nd, a small hiking expedition went missing in the Himalayan Mountains. Moments before their disappearance, they activated an emergency SOS message which was picked up at a local park ranger station, several hundred miles away. When they set a rescue party up to their campsite, they found the tattered remains of their camp along with blood stains and the smell of rotten flesh. They went to report it to control, only to find themselves in a similar predicament. Up in Thunderbird 5, John listened in with horror as the rescue team screamed and begged for assistance. A large animalistic growl could be heard over the recording. It lasted a few minutes before the voices fell silent. Disturbed by the message, he reported it to Dad in great detail. We all congregated in the lounge, as John's figure floated over the projector from his wall portrait.
"I haven't heard anything like it, Dad," he explained. "It sounded like the rescue team were attacked by some kind of animal up there in the mountains. Base control is worried that something has happened to them as well as the missing hikers. They've asked if we could assist them?"
"Of course, we will, John," came Dad's reply. "Virgil, Gordon and Kayo will assist in the search."
I stood up from my spot on the couch and beckoned Gordon and Kayo to follow me. I suited up as I took my mechanical launch chute down towards Thunderbird 2. The others soon turned up in their utility suits and were on our way. As soon as we were airborne, Gordon and Kayo discussed the topic of cryptids and mythical animals. Gordon and I were believers in the existence of Bigfoot and other large bipedal creatures that could be lingering in the wildest parts of the planets. Despite her horrifying encounters with such things, Kayo remained sceptical of the whole phenomenon. Perhaps she was in denial of the whole thing after her encounter with a swamp monster a few years back. Who knows? I could feel the tension rise as their conversation started to heat up.
"Are you seriously telling me that after your experiences, you still don't believe that there are monsters out there?" Gordon asked her provocatively.
"I don't know what I saw that night, Gordon, for all I know I could have been hallucinating from the drugs Godber ambushed me with." Kayo huffed. "I fail to see why large ape creatures would exist and be roaming the woods. Plus if they're so tall like say 7 feet, then are they so elusive?"
Gordon smirked. "My dear Kayo, that's part of the mystery around them. All the reported sightings build them up to be some sort of curious but reclusive animal. Perhaps they don't kill unless they feel threatened by us? I still say we're dealing with a Yeti!"
"And I still say you're being an idiot," Kayo glared. "There's a perfectly rational explanation for what's happening up in the Himalayan mountains.
"Will you two knock it off!" I grumbled. "We'll reach the campsite in a few minutes. We'll know more then."
A thick dark cloud enveloped the mountain peaks when we arrived at the snow-covered plateau. It was still a few miles away from the campsite, but the trail was large enough to accommodate one of our explorer pods. I navigated the mountain range, gently setting us down in the freshly fallen snow. It was bitterly cold out there on the mountain. Our utility suits were able to keep us warm, but the cold and ferocious winds told us that we were in for an unsettling mission. The three of us assembled the pod explorer as a rush of cold air and snow wafted up the ramp and into the pod. An ice-cold chill went down my spine. It had suddenly gotten darker out there. Thick black clouds robbed us of daylight, warning us that a snowstorm was coming in. Climbing aboard the pod explorer, we set off into wild mountain terrain, traversing the trail on three caterpillar tracks.
"It should be around the next bend," I informed them as the beam of our searchlights lit the way, revealing an endless blanket of snow ahead. "If these coordinates are right, we should spot the camp any second now."
As we rounded the next bend, Kayo spotted a distant glow up ahead. It was caused by a heated cube which illustrated the contours of a tent. We pulled up alongside it and disembarked the explorer pod. I could feel flecks of snow stab away at my face as I trudged through the snow towards the tent. Two figures sat inside, huddled around the large heat cube. One of them responded to my voice as if startled by our appearance and hesitantly shuffled towards the door. The zip lowered and a man crawled out. He wore red arctic gear and sported a rescue badge of his own.
"Hey fellah," I smiled. "We're from International Rescue. We got your call for help. Are you alright?"
The man had a perplexing look in his eye. It was as if he didn't expect to see us. He ushered us inside the tent where we soon introduced ourselves to the other figure. She seemed more terrified than her colleague. Her face was pale, brought on by the cold as she cocooned herself in a foil blanket. She trembled as she struggled to make eye contact with us. It took a while before they could summon the confidence to open up to us. The Man introduced himself as Mark. The woman was his wife, Sarah. Sensing the collective fear between them, Kayo leaned toward the pair.
"Tell us, Mark," she said. "Tell us what happened to you?"
The couple glanced at each other for a moment. Mark tried his best to detail the incident. The snow and wind lashed the side of the tent as it flailed about in the approaching storm. It was loud, but it didn't distract the man from his incredible story.
"It was horrible," he said. "We arrived at the camp to see it in tatters. There was blood everywhere, the hiker's tents and supplies were left scattered about the place and we could smell something rotten in the air. It looked as if something had come in and torn the place apart. Sarah felt sick from the site of it all, so I took her back here. As we turned to head back, we heard a loud growl. It sounded like a bear at first only it shook the ground as it walked. We could hear it tear into the rest of our team as they cried for help. Their screams. We couldn't help them."
"And then what happened?" Kayo asked.
"Everything fell silent. The screams, the roaring sounds. It all stopped at the drop of a hat. Sarah looked back and saw a large… shape skulking around in the trees over there. Something had followed us back, but we couldn't see what it was."
Curious by the account, I stepped outside into the snowstorm. Visibility was poor, but I could faintly make out the tree line ahead. Kayo stepped out after me, while Gordon remained inside the tent. Together, we trudged through the deepening snow towards the trees. It felt like an eternity to make the short stride towards the trees. The snow came up to our calves when approached the treeline. We stood there, staring into a black veil that swallowed the trail ahead. It looked so thick that a powerful torchlight couldn't cut through it. An unnerving silence enshrouded us, dampening the sound of the storm around us. Then, as we debated about heading back, Another sound stopped us in mid-conversation.
"What was that?" Kayo whispered. "That sounded like…"
The sound came again. It was a deep guttural growl which echoed through the darkened trees. As it growled, the sounds of shuffling accompanied it. Something was moving in there. We could hear the snapping of twigs and branches as the tops of the trees swayed wildly, not caused by the snowstorm. I shone my power shoulder torch into the woods to see if I could make out what was moving amongst the trees. I couldn't be sure at first, but I thought I saw a large mass moving amongst the trees. Its footsteps grew louder as it approached us. Kayo gripped my arm as she saw it too. At first, I thought we were dealing with a survivor. Perhaps one of the rescue members had found their way back to camp, but as it grew closer, it became evident that it wasn't the case. Whatever this thing was, It stood at 7 ft tall, was covered head to toe in dirty white fur and had the face of a large Gorilla. Its angry yellow eyes looked at me in the beam of the torch light. With a deep hiss, he snarled at me, showing me its complement of sharp razor teeth.
Our fight-or-flight instincts kicked in as I told Kayo to make a run for it. We kicked our heels in the snow as fast as we could as the ground began to shudder beneath us. This thing emerged from the trees and began to chase us. He growled and hiss as it kept pace with us down the trail towards the tent.
"Keep running, Kayo!" I cried. "We've got to get to the pod explorer!"
"We all won't fit!" Kayo replied.
"We've got to try!"
We approached the tent, our cries alerted Gordon to the situation happening outside. He emerged from the tent with Mark and Sarah, clocked the large Ape creature that was chasing us and ushered the two researchers towards the pod explorer. The creature continue to pursue us, closing the gap on us as we all bungled into the pod explorer. It was a hell of a squeeze, but we managed it. Kayo cuddled up into me as I threw the gear in reverse. The sound of the pod's engine startled the creature for a moment, but it didn't deter it from chasing us. Instead, it flailed its large hairy arms in the air, before beating his chest like a war drum. It let out a deep whale as it prepared to pounce on us. I didn't look back, I floored the accelerator and sped down the trail towards Thunderbird 2. The relentless pounding continued as the beast gave chase once again.
Thoughts entered my head. Would this beast attack Thunderbird 2? and if so, would survive its ferocious attack? We quickly descended the trail towards the plateau where we left my bird. However, as we were about to make it down the last slope, a large boulder slammed into the ground in front of us. I swerved around it, clipping the side of the mountain. This thing had resorted to hurling projectiles at us in a bid to destroy us. Approaching the Pod, we frantically dodged an incoming hellfire of rocks and boulders. We hurried into Thunderbird 2 and prepared for launch. I climbed into my seat and ignited the thrusters. I looked out of the cockpit to see the beast just standing there at the edge of the trail. He stared directly at me, boring into my soul. As my engines tore into the snow, it staggered back slightly and took off running back up the trail and into the storm. We were all shaken to the core that day. Whatever that thing was, it wanted us out of its territory.
I believe it was a Yeti, most commonly referred to as the abominable snowman. Even the sceptical Kayo couldn't deny the possibility. We left the Himalayan Mountains behind and headed for the nearest hospital. Mark and Sarah were later treated for shock and spent the next few days under observation. As for the missing hikers along with the rescue team that perished out there on the mountain, my heart goes out to their families. I'm sorry we couldn't save them all. This encounter further proved to us that such bipedal creatures exist out there in the wilderness. They could be lurking in our woods and forests, in our deserts or up in our mountain ranges. I can't say if it intended to kill us or merely chase us away, but if it is an animal, one that we haven't discovered yet, then I urge that nobody dare try and hunt it. It could be the missing link in the chain of our evolution and it can also be very deadly. Its growl, its teeth and its eyes will forever haunt me.