Hi, you guys. =) Guess it's about time for that heart-bruising "they don't belong to me" disclaimer. Thank you, Tikatu, Thunderbird Shadow, Bow Echo, Creative Girl and Whirl Girl, for reading and reviewing. It's nice, having a conversation about the characters we all love.

5

Thunderbird 1, high above the rolling Pacific, late afternoon-

Scott wasn't alone in the cockpit, but he waited until he had the all-clear from Base and was up at cruising height, before facing his passenger, Captain Wayne Rigby. Lawyer, Marine, unkillable alien-host and WorldGov spy, the square-jawed blond raised every hackle Scott Tracy possessed… which meant that the pilot had stayed very soft-spoken. Very polite, until now.

Once his Bird had settled at 40,000 feet, with a good, fast tailwind, and her autopilot engaged, Scott cleared his throat. (Had to do it twice, actually, because the first time, Rigby didn't hear him over the rocket plane's cabin whine and muted throb.

Eventually, the other man looked up from his work. He'd been filing an electronic brief for the Colonel, on behalf of two of his sons, Scott and John, who wished to evade active duty. Tough case, because they had been sworn in; taking the oath to defend and uphold, etc.… And commissioned officers were always subject to recall, even after retirement. Death might get you off, but only in special cases. On the other hand, there was no pressing global emergency that absolutely required a fighter pilot and astronaut/ systems analyst. Also, there were recent precedents, such as 2063 Preston vs. United Terra, that clearly showed…

A sudden noise made Rigby glance up from the online brief. Noticed immediately that the dark-haired pilot was craned around in his seat, looking sternly backward. So far, they'd not said two words to each other beyond the usual 'strap-in, flotation device and vomit-bag' instructions. The IR pilot had to have something important in mind, Wayne figured. So, he saved the work, cleared his device screen and sat back a bit.

"Something we missed in the preflight briefing?" he hazarded, reaching up to remove a pair of wireframe glasses that he no longer really needed; not since his 'guest' had moved in and corrected all of his physical issues. He wore them out of habit, and because a lawyer ought to look professional, darn it.

Scott gave him a very direct, rock-drilling stare and said, over the music of wind and engines,

"What makes you think you're good enough for my sister?"

Rigby blinked. Could've gotten angry… Scott seemed to be after a fight… but instead became formal, saying,

"I could answer that question any number of ways, Mr. Tracy. I assume that you've faced something similar, from Sir Hugh Creighton-Ward…?" Scott's sudden flush, his thinned mouth, spoke volumes. Touchy subject, evidently. And, just maybe, something they had in common. Moving on, Wayne said, "I'll give you the best response I know, which is to say that Kayo thinks I'm good enough, and what better qualifications can I offer? I could talk about my law degree, my service record, or the fact that my people have owned land in the Virginia Territories for over a hundred years… but I doubt you want to hear all that."

"Not what I'm after," Scott answered tightly, his blue eyes terribly grim, fierce and cold.

Right. What, then? Wayne thought of his own little sister, Amelia, and of what he'd expect from some upstart, no-good, girl-in-every-port Marine jock who'd dared to push in like he owned the place. Rigby glanced out through the Bird's canopy, then looked back over at Scott, saying,

"You want to hear that she's safe with me… that I won't play around and just dump her. That I won't make her cry, or break her heart. Marines have a reputation, Mr. Tracy, and believe me, I've heard it all. But Kayo… Tanusha, well… she's something special; beautiful, powerful, precious. If… if… she was ever to give me a real chance with her… not just flirting, I mean… Well, I'd be the luckiest man alive. But, that's up to your sister, Mr. Tracy. Not you, and not me."

Scott had begun to relax by slow degrees, listening to Rigby talk about Kayo. Yeah, the man was an effing lawyer. He could make anything sound wholesome as chocolate-chip pancakes, but some part of Scott was beginning to trust him. A little.

"Call me Scott," he said, stiffly.

The glasses went on again, as Rigby settled back into legal mode.

"You're a client, Sir. Until this case is settled between your father and the world government, I'd rather remain professional. But… thank you. The offer means a lot."

Scott nodded, but he didn't smile. There was still part two of his little test, after all.

"Yeah, well… let's see how you feel about this family after a few missions. We work hard, Captain Rigby, and sometimes it gets very intense. I'm headed for Kyoto, and the woman I love might be drowning right now, at the bottom of the d*mn Pacific."

Rigby winced.

"Your brother's there, too, Mr. Tracy. My other client. I'm assuming that between them, Ms. Creighton-Ward, Mr. Parker and your brother can handle most anything. As they say where I'm from: cheat death and leave him smiling over the bargain he got."

Wanted to clasp the pilot's shoulder, but didn't do it. Conflict of interest on multiple levels, getting too close to a Tracy. Well… maybe one of them.

"I'm sure you're right, Captain," said Scott, moving back around in his seat to face forward, again. They would reach Japan in twelve minutes, so he began the process of switching back to manual flight mode. Never felt better than he did when making love or flying a plane. Sort of a toss-up, which one was better. Depended on mood and circumstance, maybe.

His heads-up display showed the Japanese island chain from several angles, with red concentric circles marking that sudden seismic disturbance. Kind of odd, because there was no scheduled fault de-stressing, today. There shouldn't have been any earthquake activity, there, unless…

"John… I mean, Dad?"

"Fire away, Son," his father replied, sounding harassed.

"No one's found Havok or Fuse, yet, have they?"

Momentary silence followed, as the Colonel checked his facts with the GDF database. Outside, meanwhile, the lowering sun struck spangles from the wavetops. Then,

"They're still at large, according to WorldGov. You think they might have caused this mess?"

Scott nodded, although their contact was audio, only.

"I think it's a possibility, Sir. Have you gotten through to Reeves, yet?"

"In process," his father responded.

Scott would have probed further, but then his wrist comm lit up, on John's frequency. The pilot's heart took a giant, galloping leap as he slapped the comm's face saying,

"Hey, Buddy. Tell me something good."

The reply was tapped in Morse code, and nearly made Scott turn his Bird around, right then and there:

'Alive… trapped water… getting out… Pen safe… loves you.'

Scott Tracy's fists curled tight on his flight controls as he took a moment to regain control of himself. Got it together enough to fire back,

'Understood… be safe… love her too.'

And, God, wanted to be there. Only, duty wouldn't let him. Instead of rushing to help the woman he loved, he had to find Dr. Disaster, again, and maybe square off with a pair of brutal, enhanced criminals. Sometimes, life hurt, but you had to keep going, anyhow.

"Take care, Buddy," he whispered, as Thunderbird 1 began her approach. "Get her out of there, safe."

His father had more to say, as did Brains, but Scott was listening with only half of his mind, and none of his heart. Must've been on subconscious autopilot, himself, because he got clearance from Kyoto air-net, plus permission to conduct rescue operations, without being aware that he'd done it. Funnily enough, it was Virgil's voice and holographic image that dragged him back to the here and now. His raven-haired brother looked busy, and very concerned.

"Thunderbird 1 from Thunderbird 2. Scott, I've just picked Gordon up, and we're headed out to Pacifica City. Once Fishstick's down, I'll…"

"No," Scott snapped, as he lined up with a mostly abandoned carpark conveniently near the Kyoto Space Port tower. "Cancel previous order, Virge. You're to stay on site, and provide any help that Gordon needs with Pacifica City. I, uh... heard from John," he added.

"They're okay?" Asked his brother, starting forward a bit in his seat and fighting to keep the strain from his voice.

"So far, so good… but I need you on site. Rigby's here, with his little friend. We've got things covered, Virge. Trust me."

…Of course, that was before he landed in Kyoto, and well before Gordon discovered the stowaway.