The Tracy Family and Thunderbirds are the creation of Sylvia and Gerry Anderson

Author's Note: My sincerest apologies, guys for the long delay for which I can only put down to a little bit of 'real life' and a lot of tennis…watching, that is! And my apologies too, of course, to Scotty and Jen for leaving them trapped in there for so long. So…due to immense guilt, on both counts, here is the next, albeit much shorter chapter, by way of compensation!

Chapter 112

"Scott! Jen! Can you hear me!" the copper-haired young aquanaut called out with just barely controlled professionalism and trying desperately to quell the rising panic he felt inside. Gordon held his breath, fighting hard to quiet the loud thumping in his chest, so he could concentrate and feel for that slightest fluttering of a pulse beat and know he hadn't mistaken it for his own. "Come on, you guys….you've just gotta be here," he added in quietly begging pleas.

He adjusted his fingers several times, first on Jenna's neck and then on Scott's, searching for that precise spot, holding his breath for what seemed like an agonising eternity. And then…yes. There it was, the first faint pulsing against his fingertips. To make absolutely sure though and that it wasn't just a figment of his imagination, Gordon pressed his fingers deeper and was rewarded with the reassuring feel of steady but slowed down pulse beats against his tips. It was almost as if they were in hibernation! But then, such is the human body's extraordinary resilience and will to survive that it is able to endure and withstand some quite extreme conditions.

The copper-haired young prankster didn't know whether to laugh or cry so, he did a bit of both! Well, after all, it was semi-dark and his other brothers weren't here to rib him about it, to witness this outpouring of pure relief, the culmination of his, by now, fraught emotions! "Aw, you little beauties… thank gawd."

Gordon quickly regained his composure though, knowing the rest of the family outside were desperate for news and he still had a job to do. There was a long way to go yet in getting the young couple out of here safely and until then, it was down to him, Gordon, to ensure his eldest brother and his girl remained stable and retained those steady heartbeats.

"Dad…Dad…it's good news. They're alive," Gordon called into his headset, unable to contain his sheer relief. "But they're both out cold." Cold being the operative word!

Deep sighs of grateful relief came from all outside, not to mention John who was listening in from high above the earth and, if anything, now inspired them to double their effort in opening up the entrance to get the pair out.

"Thank heavens for that," their father responded, though tinged with caution, knowing this was far from being over. The fact that both were out cold was reason enough to worry, since the family didn't need to be reminded of recent traumatic events! "Can you tell us anything more, Gordon? Have they any other injuries?" Jeff then added, needing to know just exactly what they might be dealing with.

Gordon had already begun to go to work, having felt his brother's broad bared back, as he lay face down and Jenna's arm that lay exposed from under him.

"Gawd, you guys are cold," the aquanaut muttered to himself, knowing the dangers only too well, if left for much longer without any attention. His obvious priority now was to try and retain the little body heat they had left, to not let them get any colder. They needed, first and foremost, to be kept warm.

"I'm not sure yet, Dad…I have to check them over. But right now, I need to get these thermal blankets on them to keep them warm," the experienced rescuer added, talking as he worked and hurriedly retrieving the ultra-thin yet heat-retaining blankets from the Medi-Kit.

Jeff knew it had probably been too early to tell anything else yet. After all, Gordon had only barely arrived on scene. Much as he and the rest of the family wanted to know everything all at once, he knew he had to leave Gordon to it and just let him get on with his job.

"Alright, Son…do what you can for them…..and keep us informed," the Commander-In-Chief acknowledged. "We'll be with you as soon as we can."

"FAB," Gordon returned the acknowledgement, opening out and spreading the thermal blankets over the couple, to cover their nakedness.

He was used, of course, to having seen his big brother in the altogether, from when they were little kids on their Kansas farm to them all swimming up here 'au naturalle'. But Jenna, of course, was a different matter; the least amount of clothing having had the pleasure of seeing her in being her bikini, when they swam in the pool. And what a pleasurable sight indeed it was!

Jenna, now though, was partly covered by his brother's body, as she lay with her face to the side, tucked in under him, indicating Scott's obvious desperation to protect his lover. So, the normally jovial joker of the Tracy family tried, as a matter of gentlemanly honor, to avert his gaze, as he drew the blanket up over what was exposed of the young nurse's rapidly cooling feminine curves and tenderly brushed stray tendrils of hair from off her face.

"I'm not lookin, Scott…I swear!" the copper-haired prankster automatically volunteered, as if his eldest brother's suspicious and dangerously narrowed eyes were suddenly on him. "Well…I mean I am…looking…kinda….but hey, not like that! I have to look to check you guys over….and anyway…it's not as if Jen hadn't got a good eyeful of 'yours truly'! Hey…not that I'm getting my own back…I swear!" Gordon chattered away, as though his brother were fully conscience and demanding an explanation. In truth though, it was more a needing and finding the sound of a human voice comforting and reassuring in the eerie quiet of the semi-darkness, even if it was his own!

Once the couple were covered and having got out some more light-sticks to see by, Gordon set about a preliminary examination to assess what injuries, if any, the pair might have sustained, in order to get them ready for moving as soon as his father and brothers had broken through.

"Okay, guys….let's get collars on you to start with," the efficient and highly trained young professional instructed himself, as he fixed a couple of neck braces carefully in place, by way of standard procedure. Not wanting to take any chances that the pair may have sustained neck injuries, it was a wise precaution, especially since they were in no condition to relay any injuries for themselves and which wouldn't be known for sure until they were brought back to the Infirmary.

Then, starting with Scott first, since his eldest brother was the more accessible, Gordon moved part of the thermal blanket back to begin a more thorough examination, moving his hands swiftly and expertly over his brother's limbs and back. He sighed with relief at finding no obvious injury or broken bones, only a few cuts and some bruising to Scott's back and the backs of his legs, although that by no means ruled out internal injuries, which again, could only be determined once they were brought back home.

After carefully covering his brother up again, Gordon moved around to Jenna's side, uncovering her just enough to examine what he could but from what he could determine, it appeared, thankfully, that, she too, did not have any broken bones. They would have to wait, however, until they could lift Scott off of her, allowing Tin-Tin more access to check her over completely before moving her, while they tended to their brother. It was Gordon's professional opinion, though, that his eldest brother had achieved just what he had set out to do and that was protect his lover by shielding her with his own body.

And that's when he became momentarily distracted!

Satisfied in the knowledge that the young couple were still stable, after having checked their vital signs again, Gordon had caught the sparkle of something in the beam of his torch, something that upon further investigation caused the copper-haired young Tracy to smile quietly to himself.

Just then, his attention was brought sharply back into focus when his headset crackled into life.

"Son….how's it going in there? How are they doing?" Jefferson Tracy asked with as much professional detachment as possible.

"Well, Dad, they're stable….and there doesn't seem to be any other injuries, apart from cuts and bruises, that I can see, although I guess we won't know for sure until we get them home," Gordon informed the anxious family and updating them on the action he had taken so far before going on to tell them of a little happier news! "….and oh yeah, guys…she said 'yes'. Jen said 'YES'."

"What! You mean, Jen's talking…she's come round! What about Scott?" Alan asked, hopeful of the encouraging sign.

"Eh no, sorry guys…they're both still out cold. I meant, Jen's wearing his ring…so she must've said, 'yes'!" the younger Tracy winced in apology at getting their hopes up and realising he probably should have worded that a little better, still….! "Hey…guess that means we've got a 'sister'," he then added, hoping to brighten the mood and lessen the disappointment with that happy thought.

As if there had ever been really any doubt!

Despite the seriousness of the situation and the plight of the young lovers, it was indeed happy news, with Virgil, perhaps more than most, knowing just exactly what Jen's acceptance meant to his eldest brother. With renewed vigour, the Tracy men worked all the harder to open up the entrance and free the hapless pair whose life together hadn't exactly got off to the smoothest of starts. It's one thing to say, 'the road to true love never runs smooth' but this was taking it to quite a different level altogether!

"Alright, Son….just try and keep them warm and keep us updated on their condition," Jeff instructed with Gordon returning the required FAB.

The young man then turned back to the task of monitoring his casualties, again checking on their vital signs while making sure the thermal blankets were tucked in well around them. "Come on, you guys….stay with me," he urged encouragingly.

Then, quite suddenly the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and a cold, involuntary shiver ran down his spine.

Gordon sucked in a breath, his eyes immediately darting here and there in something almost akin to pure cold, naked fear! "Huh! What was that!"