Not even twelve hours and Virgil was preparing to take Thunderbird 2 out again, this time with Gordon and John as his companions. The last rescue had left him shaken, but not so much that he couldn't play transport for the computer genius. Gordon had come with the hope of helping the already rattled iR members.

"The entrance is blocked by the cave in," John had the hologram blueprints of the underground factory floating between them, pointing out the main entry point and the damage that had been done. System failures had led to lockdowns and then collapse, trapping the staff inside. "The emergency exit should be accessible for us and then I can restart their systems. Life support is down, so we have a short window to get everyone out."

"FAB, coming up on the location in sixty seconds," Virgil affirmed, already going through the landing procedures in his head.

They hit the ground running once they were down, John already working to access the exit. Gordon had questioned why Virgil didn't tear the door off with the exo-suit, which would have been much faster, but danger of further collapse from the vibration wasn't worth the risk. It didn't take John long, though. The latch gave and the door slid open to reveal faces of men and woman who had been lucky to make it to this section. The brothers and Gordon helped get them situated out of harm's way before working their way into the bowels of the factory.

"Get the lights set up so I can start moving the debris," Virgil instructed as he surveyed the collapsed section keeping them from the other workers and the downed computer systems. It was a mess of shredded metal and dirt, most of which was going to take some careful shifting to prevent more of the debris from raining down on them.

Gordon was quick to comply, Penelope having wished for the genie to do as the engineer asked. A snap and the space lit up with the spotlights and he could get started.

The problem was the dirt. Just shifting the metal shell that had once been the hallway would result in more of the earth coming down. This would take hours without the mole pod. They couldn't rely on it with how fragile this place had become.

Thankfully, they might not need hours. Virgil smiled to himself, wanting to appreciate their new friend, but wondering how many of their own skills might deteriorate over time.

"Alright Gordon, how about some heavy lifting? Think you can shift the dirt back into place so I can position the struts?" Asking felt better than just telling him to do it.

"You just say the word, Virg," amber flashed under the helmet, sparking an excitement in the engineer despite their earlier disaster together.

"FAB, John, can you run scans for placement?" An FAB from his brother and he pulled one of the devices from its attachment to his exo-suit. "Gordo, move the dirt."

Effortlessly, the wall before them separated as the earth shifted up into the ceiling. When it all stopped, John didn't hesitate to send a holographic beam over the space, four markers appearing in its wake. After the first strut was placed, Virgil had the rest up in less than a minute.

"Man," the engineer couldn't help admiring the work. "Don't know if I'll ever get used to you working with us."

Gordon beamed in response and there was that same glee Virgil had felt the first year on rotation. Making a difference did something to you, deep down. It made every day precious.

The time it took to clear the corridor had been detrimental in getting to the smaller sections where the air supply had dwindled with how many workers sat huddled in the location. They would have been collecting bodies if they'd spent the hours necessary to clear the passageway without the genie's help. As it was, the people were able to head to the surface on their own in order for iR to keep going.

The next few sections were much the same, just fewer people. When they arrived at the command center, it was sealed shut, a slight inconvenience to John as he reworked the programming that kept them out. Although Virgil was well versed in the intricate workings of machinery and engines, he still found himself awestruck how fluid his younger brothers work was as he navigated through the coding. So many letters and numbers, symbols that meant nothing to the engineer, yet like a first language to John.

The door slid open and they were greeted by a dark room with red beams flashing the obvious emergency in sporadic bursts with the dwindling power.

"I'll work on getting the systems repaired while you two get to the next group," John took to the main console, already receiving a flicker of life once he'd connected his own suit's system. It was a hopeful sign and gave Virgil and Gordon the motivation to get the job back on track.

"You're a natural at this, y'know?" The raven-haired man let the praise slip free after they had left John to do his work.

"Thanks, I think," Gordon laughed nervously. "I can see why you all do what you do. Most of my masters have been pretty selfish. Now, it's like I can feel the whole of the ocean's energy - if that makes sense."

He wasn't sure it did, but there were a lot of things about the genie that Virgil didn't understand. He knew the rush of a job well done, though. Virgil had lived so many of those moments and could recall the energy that filled him and left him buzzing all the way home. It was wonderful and dangerous at the same time. The crash if a job went wrong - almost debilitating. He hoped his new friend wouldn't have to deal with that ever and with his powers, that potential trauma would be less likely.

"Yeah - I get it," Virgil smiled, pulling back some of the downed light fixtures. "Can be a bit addicting at times."

"Oh?" Gordon sounded genuinely concerned.

"That feeling is great when you have it, but you can come down pretty hard when you run into a victim you can't save," a sad smile accompanied that truth as faces from his past tried to intrude in their current situation.

The genie didn't comment on that, but with how many years he had been on the planet, it wasn't unthinkable that Gordon had experienced great loss. Maybe he was going through his own list of lives lost and no chance of saving them. Maybe there was something worse. Whatever it might be, they were running head long into a situation that could have easily been a disaster without the genie. Lives had already been saved.

They hit a flight of stairs - or what should have been - stopping to peer over the edge and to the floor below. Life signs were showing through his holographic map and it was only a second before he called out.

"This is International rescue! We're here to rescue you!" They were rewarded with the sound of footsteps scuffling over the debris below.

"Hello?" A woman in her mid forties appeared, looking weary until a smile of hope lit up her face. "Oh, thank you! There's fourteen of us stuck down here. Can you get us out?"

"We'll do our best, ma'am," Virgil offered a steadiness that said they would do more than just their best. "Stand back and one of us will come down to get everyone situated." As she did what was asked, he turned to Gordon, already calculating how they would transport so many people in a short period of time. "Want to guide them from the top and I'll haul from the bottom?"

"I can handle that, bossman," Gordon grinned as he pulled out the harness and cables from his pack.

Virgil grimaced at the nickname, knowing it fit far better on Scott. He took the cables and rigged a pulley system they would need. Next, he made sure Gordon was attached to the guide cord and showed him how to use it. So much of what the genie could do was being learned on the job, but he soaked it up better than anyone he had met. Even before they had sequestered John's big brain to help, Gordon had obtained details on underwater submersible use that would have taken months. He had explained away with the ability to never tire. Whatever he learned went in and he was ready for the next piece.

"Ready?" Virgil regarded the blonde as he stood over the pit.

"Ready."

And he was going down at a quick pace that ended with a slight bounce as his boots hit debris. The harness was off a second later and he turned to find his charges.

"Hi, I'm Virgil," he greeted the group huddled in the hallway. "Is anyone injured?" To his relief, they shook their heads. They were frightened, but able to travel on their own. "Alright, I'm going to send each of you up one at a time. My colleague will be up top to help you if need be and then we'll get out of here."

"Sounds great," the woman from earlier praised, helping one if the older staff members to their feet and over to the engineer. They were harnessed and up within minutes. The rest of the group went up just the same until it was just Virgil standing at the bottom, reading the holographic map for any other signs of life. Nothing. This was the last group of survivors that he could see.

He was about to call up to Gordon when a whine through the facility drowned him out. A burst of air hit him, warm and stale, but obviously enriched with oxygen. And then, the lights flickered before remaining on.

"Looks like John's been having fun," Gordon grinned down at him.

That was a relief, at least and Virgil felt the surge to get moving take hold as he used the cables to pull himself up. He took the genie's hand up to the landing and was happy to find the survivors waiting calmly for the pair. There was something to be appreciated about people keeping it together in a stressful situation. Virgil had memories of panic that had led to the team almost losing Scott as he went to pull the frozen victims from a collapsing building.

The trek back to the control room was a short one and the group was instructed to head for the emergency exit to meet up with the rest of their coworkers. John hadn't moved from his spot, still sifting through the coding that kept the facility functional.

"Is everyone accounted for?" Virgil asked as he came up beside his brother.

Without skipping a beat, the astronaut pulled up a schematic showing the rest of the structure, the collapsed areas, and any life signs still trapped within, which were thankfully almost to the surface.

"Alright, looks like we're done here," he made to move towards the exit but the expression on the astronaut's face said they weren't. "John?"

"I've found something," he was back to the screens he had been working on when they'd arrived. "There was a file in the main system. It looks like the shut down was intentional and if I had to guess, the structural collapse wasn't from natural causes."

The seriousness of that statement hit Virgil in the gut and now it was screaming at him to leave. He voiced just that, "Then we should get out before anything else comes down."

"Gimme one second," John was flitting between files, a dangerous expression pulling at his usual calm. He was tracking down the person or people responsible for this disaster. He was bringing justice for the dead that hadn't been able to make it clear of the debris. Virgil wouldn't stop him.

Gordon was standing at his side, watching the markers on the map as they made it to the final tunnel that led outside. He was still smiling like nothing could destroy his day and it sent the corner of Virgil's lip up. They still needed to get out, though, and John's second was quickly reaching the minute mark.

"Done," he stood, grabbing the equipment he had attached to the console. "We can -"

A blast hit, shaking the ground from beneath their feet and Virgil was grateful for the exo-suit as he slammed into the ground. The lights flickered, metal shrieked and a roar filled his head as the quake continued to rain debris around them. His mind screamed to call out, to tell Gordon to get them out, but something heavy slammed into his side, sending him skidding across the floor and into a console. Pain shot across his ribs as the blow finally registered and he realized he couldn't breathe. His lungs didn't want to work even as he rolled to his hands and knees.

And then, fingers dug into the uniform covering his shoulder and light streamed from a helmet. The bright yellow sent a thrill of relief through him, followed closely by panic. Where was John? The structure was still collapsing, sheets of metal sending a cacophony of noise around the already too loud room.

And he still couldn't breathe!

Gordon's hand moved to his chest, helping to steady the engineer as he felt his vision blurring with the spots of darkness. Don't pass out! The demand echoed through his head.

"Virgil, breathe!" The genie shouted, and like a fist had been pulled away, he coughed, lungs burning as they finally took in the recycled oxygen.

"Gord-"

"I've got you, but this place is coming down!" The blonde shouted as he helped support the larger man.

"John?" The name choked out of him with desperation.

"I can't see him! You have to tell me what to do!" Panic didn't sit well on the genie's face, but that probably came from not being able to do anything. He might be about to watch them die for all he knew. It was up to Virgil.

"Gordon," he took in a shaky breath. "Get John and me back to Thunderbird 2's cockpit! You too!"

No silly quips. No jokes to ease his worry. Just a snap.

All sound left them and they were suddenly blinded by the afternoon sun as it shone through the window of the cargo ship. Virgil could breathe again, for just a second, until he turned to find his brother.

John was pale, eyes barely open as his hands scrambled weakly at his abdomen - and he was bleeding.

The exo-suit was suddenly too heavy, too cumbersome and he fumbled with the releases to extricate himself from it. The metal grating came at him fast, unable to catch himself as ribs protested with daggers through his chest. His eyes screwed shut with the ragged breath he drew in and forced himself up, towards John. When his eyes opened, Gordon was hovering over John, Penelope's hologram talking soothingly as he worked a pack of gauze open, followed by another. They were falling onto the wound, soaking up red until they were saturated.

Too fast - he'll bleed out… Virgil scrambled the rest of the way, catching the blonde's hand as he went to apply another piece. "Can you stop this?"

Amber met him, wide and frantic as he nodded, but quickly shook his head. "It's complicated - if I save him, someone else will - someone else could die."

The last word hung in the air between them - cold and angry. Gordon could save his brother, but at a cost. Who would die in his place? Who would suddenly be laying in the puddle of red that was spreading too quickly over the steel floor?

Virgil's head spun with all the medical supplies he would need to just slow the blood loss, but there was no time. He could see it in the slivers of turquoise - the pain and slowing of his hands as he tried to keep his life from slipping away.

And then a question - "What about part of it?"

"What?" Gordon gave a confused grunt as he held blood-covered gloves over the wound, staring at the engineer like he hadn't heard him correctly.

"Heal enough of the damage so that he doesn't bleed out - transfer the rest to me. Can you do that?" Intensity filled every word and it was almost too much to wait for the answer.

When the genie nodded, it was Lady Penelope who protested. "Are you sure, Virgil? If the damage is too great - I fear we could lose you both."

"We have to try!" He pleaded, his eyes never leaving Gordon's. "Please."

The blonde seemed to crumble under the weight of Virgil's decision, his own fear creeping through. "I don't - there has to be another way? I could just get him to a hospital, right? They could fix him." But as they both regarded the red-head, saw the slow, shallow breaths, the fight was gone. They didn't have time for a hospital.

"I'm sorry, Gordon," Virgil placed a hand over the trembling ones that had worked to keep John alive. "I need you to give me part of his injury, so he won't bleed out."

There was a moment of resistance where Gordon's hands stayed in his, but there was no fighting the powers that controlled him. Virgil was ready for the snap.

He wasn't ready for the pain that seared through his gut as the flesh and muscle tore. His breath caught in his throat and he felt himself falling. Strong hands caught him and rolled him carefully into his back.

A grunt of pain burst through his teeth before he asked, "John - is he -"

"He's still with us," Penelope answered over Gordon's shoulder. "John has stabilized, but you both need medical attention immediately."

"What about the workers?" The genie asked as he placed a clean pack of gauze over the stain spreading over his suit.

"You'll need to stay with Thunderbird 2 - get her back to the island," Virgil instructed through ragged intakes. "Send John and me to - infirmary."

Gordon nodded his understanding, but frowned. "I don't know how to fly Thunderbird 2."

That wouldn't be a problem if Scott and Kayo hadn't left to work with the GDF. It wouldn't be a problem if Alan or Dad could fly her remotely, but a concussion and limited training with the new technology made it hazardous. It had to be Gordon. And there was only one way that would be fast enough.

"Take my ability - just, promise you'll give it back." It seemed easy enough. Virgil could live without the knowledge for a short time, but there was no bracing for it as the genie made the promise and in one second, his 'bird was foreign. It was as though a pit had opened in his chest and threatened to swallow him up with despair. He could see her console, but he didn't know her. He could remember her feel under his hand, but couldn't remember what gave her lift.

And then she was gone - or he was - Virgil settling gently on the infirmary bed. A turn of his head and he saw John, quiet and still. Brains, Grandma, and "Dad -"

"Hey, kiddo, we're here. Just hold tight and we'll have you right as rain." A warm hand took his own as the small group began to work. Virgil let himself drift in the loss of his girl, but clung to the hope that it had all been worth it to save his brother.