Hour Twenty-Four

The following takes place between 11:00 p.m. and 12:00 a.m. on the day Washington, D.C. was destroyed.

11:00:03

"Kyrano!" Jeff roared. "Dr. Gray!"

He bent down and began performing CPR on his friend, puffing air into his mouth, pumping his chest with his hands. Gordon's eyes snapped open as Tin-Tin grabbed hold of him and pulled herself off the bed, then pushed him aside as she reached for her father. Gordon grabbed her arms, hauling her away as she cried and screamed in her native Bahasa Melayu.

"Ayah! Ayah! Adalah tercantum! Jangan cuti! Bukan! Ayah!"

Dr. Gray burst into the room, followed by Penelope and Ruth. He came 'round to the other side of the bed from Jeff and shined a pen light into Kyrano's eyes. There was no response, his pupils did not dilate. Braman approached and stood at the end of the bed, oblivious to Penny, Ruth and Gordon, who were trying valiantly to keep Tin-Tin as far away as possible.

"I need a defibrillator, do you have one?" Dr. Gray yelled.

"Yes..." Jeff said between puffs. "Braman, get it!"

"There is a .seven-eight percent chance that the atrial defibrillator will not restart his weakened heart."

Jeff and Dr. Gray stopped all movement and stared at the machine. Jeff became livid. "I don't give a rat's ass about percentages, godammit! Get it now!"

Tin-Tin had given up fighting and sank to the floor with Penelope, tears streaming down both their faces. Gordon ran into the adjacent room and grabbed the ADF, returning to Dr. Gray with lightning speed. Braman inched closer to the head of the bed. "I can save him."

"How, by standing there and doing nothing?" Dr. Gray retorted.

"You must not waste time with the atrial defibrillator. His brain requires direct stimulation. I can provide the charge he needs in the most effective manner possible. The electrodes of the atrial defibrillator will destroy the damaged tissue of his heart. He will not survive."

Jeff opened his mouth and closed it again, his eyes wide. Sure, Braman had saved Brains' life, and been instrumental in saving his own. But could he trust the mechanical man to save Kyrano's by sticking something into his brain?

"He's right," Dr. Gray said quietly as he scanned Kyrano's chest with a portable MRI. "If I apply those patches directly to this man's chest, it won't do any good. And if I open him up and directly stimulate his heart, it'll tear the muscle apart. It's just too damaged."

Jeff looked at the doctor, then back at Braman. "What do you need to do?"

11:05:26

Ned was satisfied his Rescuees were doing their jobs. They all had received the Invisi-Shield devices and were nearly finished setting them up throughout Southern California. His finger reached for the button marked with an H, when suddenly he stiffened. "What the hell-?" he whispered.

And then his mind went blank.

11:06:16

"I-I think the modifications I've, uh, made to the diffuser will o-offset the possibility of Earth's gravity...what the hell is that?"

Scott and John turned to look at the radar screen mounted on the wall next to the elevator. Three objects had come into range of their sensors, flying in formation.

"My God. They're heading the same place we are," John whispered.

"Those must be the craft that are going to drop the UH-3 bombs!"

"They're moving into position," Brains breathed.

"We can't be too late. We just can't be."

"No, John. We won't be. They won't drop the bombs until just before midnight," Scott said. "By that time, our counter agent will already be in the atmosphere."

"But we have no defense against them. What if they attack?" John asked.

"Then we'll knock 'em outta the sky with our bare hands," Scott replied.

And from his tone of voice, they knew he meant it.

11:08:10

Ned emerged from the elevator into Thunderbird 2's hangar. The one controlling his mind was surprised to find the great ship backed into position within instead of sitting out on the tarmac. But it didn't matter. It made his pawn's job that much easier. An evil laugh echoed inside Ned's mind. "Soon, reporter, soon I will be free. And then...we shall kill Jeff Tracy together."

A tear trickled down Ned Cook's cheek.

11:09:32

Jeff watched as Dr. Gray shaved a bit of hair from Kyrano's temple. His stoic face belied none of the turmoil Jeff Tracy was feeling inside. Precious seconds were slipping away. Even if Braman was successful in bringing Kyrano back, would he be the man he had always been? Deprived of oxygen for so long, could his mind survive? Or would the charge Braman was about to impart not give them the chance to find out?

Braman moved in as the doctor attached clamps to each side of Kyrano's head to hold it steady, then backed out of the way. Everyone held his or her breath as the end of Braman's index finger opened, and a thin needle emerged. He reached down, poking the needle into the flesh of Kyrano's temple. He turned to look at Jeff. "Tell Brains...I said goodbye."

"What?" Gordon said from the foot of the bed. "What do you mean goodbye?"

But Braman did not respond. He faced his patient, extended the needle to edge of Kyrano's skull, and then began rotating it to cut through the bone. Everyone heard it whirring, and then the sound stopped. They next heard a soft click, and Kyrano's body twitched. When Dr. Gray looked at the monitors, he was astonished to see the brain wave line begin to move. There was another click and a zapping sound, and the line moved again.

"It's not working," Jeff said. "It moves, but then it falls flat again."

Another click. And another zap. Another click. And another zap.

There was one more click, and a steady electrical charge flowed into Kyrano's body. All at once, the brain wave and heart rate lines lurched into motion. They began showing a steady rhythm and Kyrano's eyes flew open. The high-powered charge surged throughout his nervous system, coming full circle to return to the point of contact...to the needle extending from the end of Braman's finger.

It shot back up into Braman and he gave an audible cry as his hand jerked away and his body stiffened. He stood motionless for several moments before crashing to the floor.

Brains' greatest invention, the machine who had proven he was quite nearly a man, would never move again.

11:14:36

"Ten minutes to destination," Brains said. "John, we'd, uh, better get down to the Lounge and get suited up."

John and Scott exchanged a look. Brains envied their bond, the bond of brothers, a bond that required no words to express their thoughts. He turned and entered the elevator.

"Hey, Brains?"

"Y-Yes, Scott?"

"You be careful too."

Brains smiled. His connection to the Tracys may not have been coursing through his veins as theirs, but he knew it existed, and he knew it was strong. "I-I will. Just keep her steady."

"F.A.B.," Scott replied before turning back to the console in front of him. "Well, this is it, Scott," he said as the elevator descended and he watched the three ships on his radar screen come to a full stop. "Time to kick some ass." He flipped open a channel to home. "Base from Thunderbird 3. Come in, Base."

11:17:47

Jeff heard the control panel near the Ward's main entrance signal an incoming transmission. He raced to it and opened the line. Scott's face appeared on screen. "Base here, go ahead, Scott."

"Father, we're nine minutes out from Danger Zone."

"Is everything in place?"

"Yes. Brains and John are suiting up now. Father..."

"What? What is it?"

"There are three unidentified ships hovering directly over where we need to be."

"To drop the UH-3 bombs."

"Must be."

"How're you gonna get past 'em?"

"I'll have to come in below them, closer than originally calculated. I only hope they're on some sort of prerecorded mission and not manned. Do the International Rescuees have the Invisi-Shields in place? Just in case we don't succeed?"

Jeff frowned. "Come to think of it, I haven't heard a peep from Ned. He was supposed to call us as soon as he got in contact with them."

Penelope came to stand next to Jeff. She placed one hand on his arm and said, "Do you think he's all right?"

"I don't know, Penny. Let's get up to the Lounge and find out what's going on. Scott..."

"Yes, Father."

"Whatever you do, however you have to play this out..."

"Don't worry, Dad. We've come too far to fail now."

"Just be careful. I-I love you, son."

Scott just stared at him. How long had it been since he'd heard those words from his father? Finally he whispered, "I love you too, Dad. Thunderbird 3 out."

Jeff swallowed hard as Penny squeezed his arm reassuringly.

"Gordon, you stay here and help Dr. Gray and your grandmother."

"No, Dad, if something's wrong, I need to be with you!"

"If something's wrong, you may be everyone's last line of defense. Arm yourself to the teeth and secure the ward as soon as we're outside."

Gordon looked into his father's eyes and nodded. "I'll keep them safe. And...I love you too, Dad."

Jeff smiled and grasped Penny's hand before turning and heading out the door. No matter what happened, he'd never been more proud of his five sons than he was this day. And he knew that somewhere, Lucille was just as proud as he. He could've sworn as they made their way through the hall toward the elevator that he heard her whisper, You did well, Jeff. You did well.

11:20:16

"Decreasing altitude," Scott said into the microphone. "You fellas ready down there?"

"Ready as we'll ever be, I suppose."

"John, you're not helping here."

"Sorry."

"Brains, how's the equipment?"

"Functioning at one hundred percent, Scott."

"Scott, what're those ships up to?"

"They've lined up just above the ionosphere. They're ready to drop 'em."

"How are you gonna get past 'em?"

"We're goin' in low, John, midway to the mesosphere. We should have all the counter agent released by the time they begin to let loose."

"Should have is not giving me a lot of confidence. Don't forget I'll be swingin' in the breeze down there."

"Don't worry. A quick vertical drop'll shoot you right up into the fuselage. Brains has good reflexes. He'll catch you."

Brains chuckled as John replied, "Funny, Scott. Ve-ry funny."

11:24:32

Tin-Tin sat on her father's bed, talking to him softly, explaining what had just happened. Gordon and Dr. Gray lifted Braman and carried him to the last empty bed on the far side of the room. Ruth stripped Tin-Tin's former bed of its sheets and replaced them with fresh ones. Then Gordon and Dr. Gray moved into the operating room, where they hoisted Megan onto a hover stretcher and brought her out into the ward proper.

Ruth helped them get her onto the bed. Beyond Kyrano and Tin-Tin, Virgil began to stir. Moments later, Alan's head moved. Ruth rushed to stand between them. "Virgil? Alan? Doctor, should they be awake?"

"It probably wouldn't hurt. They could use a good checkup, and it's better if they're conscious so I can ask questions."

Tin-Tin's attention was drawn away from her father. For the first time, she saw Alan's hair, his neck and the bandages on his now-bare arms. And she gasped.

"Go to him, my daughter," Kyrano said quietly. "He needs you now."

"No, Father, I won't leave your side," she replied.

"Tin-Tin, somehow, in some way, I was allowed to come back to you. You need not fear for me. Your love for him is strong, my child. Go to him. I will still be here."

Tin-Tin smiled and kissed her father on the cheek before rising to her feet. She walked to Alan's side as Ruth stepped closer to Virgil. Each of the women reached down and grasped the hand of the man in the bed beneath them.

Virgil's eyes fluttered open. It took a few seconds for them to focus, but when they did, he smiled. "Grandma."

"Hi, Virgil. Welcome back."

Alan smiled as he felt two soft, small hands raise his hand to a pair of even softer lips. When those lips kissed his knuckles, he opened his eyes. "Tin-Tin," he whispered. "Tin-Tin, you're safe."

"Yes," she replied, tears stinging her eyes as she took in his general state of being. "Yes, I am. And so are you."

Dr. Gray had just finished making Megan as comfortable as possible. He turned and watched those before him, noting how thick the air seemed to be with emotion...with love. "You are the most remarkable people I have ever met," he said softly. "Ever."

11:29:11

"I don't understand, Jeff. Where could he be?"

"I don't know, Penny, but I don't like this. Not one bit."

"Last time you said that, the Hood showed up."

He looked her right in the eye. "I know."

"We should split up. I'll take the lift down and start from the laboratory."

"No, Penny. We're not splitting up. We have to stay together. If the Hood did get loose, we don't stand a chance on our own."

Penny smiled and reached out, cupping Jeff's cheek with her hand. "Don't you worry about me, Jeff Tracy. I've got a big gun," she said, lifting an automatic rifle into the air with her other hand.

He chuckled as she turned to go, but grabbed her hand just as it left his face. "Penny..." He pulled her into his body and their lips met. Her gun dropped heavily to the floor as she wrapped her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. When at last they parted, he looked into her eyes and whispered, "I love you, Penelope."

She smiled and choked back a sob. "I know you do, Jeff. I love you, too."

11:31:22

"All right, get ready, I'm moving into position."

"No movement from the, uh, ships?"

"No, Brains, nothing yet. I don't think they're manned, they must be running on autopilot as I suspected. Is John ready?"

"Ready to go. Just tell us when."

"Right. Moving into vertical position now."

Scott kept one eye on the radar screen as he brought the great rocket's nose around until it was pointing straight up toward the stars. "Okay, Brains. Open her up."

"F.A.B."

Brains gave the harness around John's body one last tug, and then did the same to his own. He smiled at John through the visors of their space suit helmets. "I won't let you fall."

John winked and smiled. "You never have, Brains. You never have. Let's get this over with."

Brains nodded and popped the rectangular square of floor out of the way, revealing the long, dark entry tunnel below. He slid the piece of floor to the side and said, "E-Extending diffuser."

A large titanium ring, which had been clamped to the underside of Thunderbird 3's tail, released and the unit dropped to ten feet below the rocket's body. "O-Okay, John. You need to get down there before I turn on the net."

John grinned, giving him the thumbs-up. "Anchors aweigh!" He stepped out over the opening and the cables attached to his harness grew taut. Brains started the winch, and slowly but surely, John moved downward. When he reached a point just inches below the ring, he said, "Okay, stop!"

Brains halted the winch. "Can you get a-around to the side o-of the ring now?"

"Yep, think so. Just a coupla swings oughtta do it."

Brains watched via monitor as John began to swing back and forth until at last his legs vaulted over the ring and his hands grabbed hold of it. "How's this?"

"Perfect. A-All right, now. I'm firing up the, uh, net."

"Have at it."

Brains pressed a button and a grid of blue lines criss-crossing the ring in a tight mesh came to life. John could hear them humming, and said, "Okay, seems to be working."

"Right. Scott, we're ready to, uh, drop counter agent."

"Go ahead. Everything's green up here."

Brains pressed another button and portions of the tube surrounding the hole in the Lounge floor slid back, leaving a half-inch wide gap all the way around. Another button pressed shot small spikes into the pouches lining the tube, and powder began to pour out.

"Coming your way!" Brains said.

John began to swing slowly left and right. The powder passed through the entry tunnel and hit the diffuser, making it hum even louder. He then stopped that motion and moved forward and backward, swinging the ring the other way in order to widen the range. "Okay, Scott. Point A's taken care of. Let's hit Point B."

"F.A.B. Hang on."

"You don't need to tell me twice."

Half the rocket's retros fired and, along with its flywheel, pulled it sideways. It barely tipped at all as Scott kept it as upright as possible with the pitch and yaw jets. Within two minutes, Thunderbird 3 was in place over its second target. The powder continued releasing and again, John swung the titanium ring around this way and that. Then they moved on to the final area.

"Nearly through, John."

"Yeah, Scott. And boy, am I glad. I'm all for space walks, but usually all you can see are stars. It's a little creepy being able to see the Earth like this."

Scott smiled and checked the three ships' locations once again. They still weren't moving. It looked like they were actually going to pull this off.

11:40:25

Penny had torn herself from Jeff's arms, retrieved her weapon and left in the elevator. He'd finally told her. He'd finally said it. She smiled as she touched a hand to her lips. "You won't regret it, Jeff Tracy. It's a whole new beginning for us now. For all of us." Then she raised her automatic weapon and turned off the safety. Her face hardened. "As soon as we get rid of the Hood, that is."

11:41:01

Jeff pushed his emotions to the side. As much as he wanted to run after Penny and not leave her alone right now, he knew she'd been right. They had to split up, to more effectively locate Ned and...if he had escaped...the Hood. He was just about to walk out onto the balcony to see if either of them was outside when a low, gravelly laugh froze him in mid-stride.

He turned around, and his worst fears were realized. There stood none other than the Hood. And right next to him was Ned Cook. His face was blank, his eyes glassy and unfocused. Jeff took a few steps into the room, looking from Ned back to the personification of evil next to him. The Hood raised his hand and took aim with a large laser pistol. Suddenly, Jeff was very glad he'd told Penny he loved her.

For he doubted he'd get the chance again.

11:42:59

Just as the last of the UH-3 counter agent filtered down through the diffuser, Scott leapt to his feet. "The ships," he said. "One of 'em's beginning to move. Brains! Brains, get John up now! Now!"

Brains frantically started the winch and turned the diffuser off just as a gleaming silver triangle streaked by. Its wake caused John and the ring to spin around wildly. "Aaaaaaaaa!" John cried.

"Shit! It's coming back! Hang on down there!" Scott strapped himself into the pilot's chair and fired the retros full-blast. Thunderbird 3 moved down, narrowly avoiding a collision. "Brains, is he up? I've gotta fire the chemical rockets!"

"No, Scott, no! He's tangled in the ring straps! Don't fire rockets!"

"Brains, it's coming at us again!"

"Damn!" The winch groaned in its futile struggle to pull John back up. Brains grabbed a small hand-held torch, released his own winch and jumped into the tunnel, falling rapidly until he caught himself on the titanium ring. Wrapping his legs around John's torso, he reached up and fought to burn through the twisted cables emerging from the harness. "Hold on to me!"

"Yeah..." John gasped, clinging to the engineer's smaller frame.

Two of John's cables were now free, leaving just one more to go. When Brains was about halfway through it, Scott fired the pitch jet and Thunderbird 3's nose swung downward as the attacking ship streaked by again. The torch flew from Brains' hands.

"No!" he cried.

"Go on. Get back up there, Brains," John said, their helmet visors touching.

"Not without you," Brains replied. "Help me jerk it free!"

John's face took on a look of steely determination as he reached up with one hand. Placing it on the half-severed cable just below Brains' hand, he said, "1...2...3...tug!" They yanked on the cable, but it didn't give.

"Again!" Brains cried. John counted down and they pulled again as they pirouetted beneath the careening ship.

"John! Brains! I've gotta fire chemical rockets! I can't stay outta this thing's way forever!"

"No, Scott, no!" Brains cried.

But before Scott could even reply, the ship came at them one last time. He blasted the retros and the giant rocket moved sideways.

"Jesus, Brains, look out!" John hollered, his eyes widening in horror. He wrapped himself around the engineer and braced for what was coming.

The triangular ship, less than 1/3the size of Thunderbird 3, crashed into one of the larger craft's three nacelles. Brains and John whipped violently, smashing against the bottom of the rocket as Thunderbird 3 spun end over end, losing height as it fell towards Earth.

Suddenly the last cable holding John to the ship snapped, and his full weight hauled him and Brains down through the ring. They both cried out, clinging desperately to each other as the ship tossed wildly in the air. Flames spewed from the particle gun inside the damaged fin as the rocket apparatus fell away.

Scott heard their cries and fought to bring Thunderbird 3 back under control as his safety straps held him to his chair. All he could do was get her nose pointed straight downward. "Brains! John!" he yelled. "Answer me!"

His only reply was grunts and groans and shrieks of pain. "Are you in the Lounge?" he cried. "Are you in the Lounge?"

Brains moved one hand that had been clinging to John's space suit and strained to reach the pad on his other sleeve. The force of Thunderbird 3's nosedive left him and John twisting and turning behind the rocket like a sick rendition of a sign advertisement being pulled along behind an old bi-plane. At last his finger reached the pad and he pressed a button. Slowly the winch began to haul them up.

The fire spread forward, licking the bottom of the silver ring that housed Thunderbird 3's retro rockets. There was a small explosion, and suddenly the retros fired, jarring the ship as it tried to slow. Brains and John found themselves hurtling toward the end of the fuselage and yelled in unison, bracing themselves for what would surely be a fatal impact.

But to their shock, they cleared the small rectangular opening and John catapulted from Brains' grasp, hurtling through the entry tunnel and slamming into the ceiling of the Lounge, coming to rest against the elevator door. He watched as Brains, now tangled in his own cables, made it as far as the hatch itself. "Brains!" The engineer crawled forward as John pulled himself to the upside-down settee.

Scott's frantic voice rang in their ears. "John! Brains! Get in now! I have to detach escape pod!" John's vision grew fuzzy. "No...shit..." he gasped, struggling to clear his mind. His helmet visor had cracked, and blood trickled down from his forehead into his eye. He kept blinking, trying to see if Brains was inside, if he'd make it in time.

The ship jerked again as the retros misfired. They heard Scott yell, "Shit!" as the missing piece of floor fell towards Brains.

"Brains, look out!" John cried as he and the settee crashed to the floor.

Brains grabbed the edge of the slab just as it started to careen away again. He fought with it for a few seconds before turning on the magnetic seal, which pulled it securely into place. "Scott!" he cried. "Detach now! Detach now!"

Scott jabbed a red button located to the far right of the control panel. There was a soft hiss as the nose detached from the rest of the fuselage just above the retro rocket ring. A large parachute erupted from the nose, and whipped it around so it was upright again. Brains and John fell to the floor with a thud, the engineer on his back and John facedown on top of him.

John lifted his head weakly and smiled at his friend. "Well," he whispered, "you did let me fall. But at least you caught me."

"Brains! John! You okay? I'm coming down!"

"O-Okay, S-Scott," Brains ground out through clenched teeth.

Scott soon appeared in the elevator shaft. He crossed to them and pulled John off Brains. "You two had me worried," he said as he removed John's helmet.

"We had us worried," John replied.

"We did it," Scott murmured as Brains pulled himself into a sitting position and took off his helmet. "We actually did it. And with five minutes to spare."

"Yeah. I-I just hope those I-Invisi-Shields do their job."

11:55:51

Ned suddenly felt something wash over him. Something pure, something that felt completely different from what had control of him. He heard a voice.

Rise. Rise to consciousness. He cannot hold you. Do not let him. Fight it, Ned. Fight it.

Ned blinked his eyes. When at last they began to focus, he saw Jeff standing across the room near the wall of glass. His eyes were wide and his mouth hung open slightly. Then Ned turned his head. He saw a horrible man standing next to him, and fear rose through him like bile. For in his hand, he held a gun. And that gun was pointed directly at Jeff.

There was a noise behind them and Ned turned his head further to see what was causing it. He watched as Lady Penelope entered the room, then stopped short at what she saw. She raised her rifle as Ned looked down at the Hood's hands. His finger tightened on his gun's trigger ever-so-slightly, and as much of Ned's senses as had returned told him Jeff Tracy was about to die.

Ned lunged for the Hood just as he fired his weapon. "Noooo!" Jeff cried.

Ned grabbed the Hood's collar, putting his body between the laser pistol and Jeff, who had started across the room. The Hood cried out and fired again as he and Ned tumbled to the floor. The blast ripped through Ned's stomach, spraying blood everywhere as he grunted from the force of impact.

"You bastard!" Penny screamed as he raised his gun toward Jeff and prepared to fire once more. She lowered her rifle, took aim at the Hood's head and fired.

The Hood was no more.

Jeff cried out as he reached Ned's side, sinking to his knees in a pool of blood. He rolled the man over, cradling him in his arms as he sputtered, blood running out of his mouth. He opened his eyes one last time and looked into Jeff's face.

"Ned...oh, God, you idiot, why? Why?"

Ned tried to force a smile, but couldn't quite make it. He took two labored breaths and gasped, "Never...give up...Jeff T-T-Tracy..."

Ned Cook died in his arms.

He bowed his head over the reporter, their strongest ally and supporter, a man he'd come to know and trust with his life. A man who had just saved his life. Today...it had been too much. Just too much uncertainty and fear, too much anguish and pain; and now this. Another dead friend. At last, Jeff let the tears begin to flow.

Penny looked up toward the television screen just to the side of Jeff's desk, where WNN had been tuned in the entire time. She watched as pictures from a helijet camera accompanied Phil Epstein's voice.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, what you are seeing is a live shot from the skies over Southern California. I don't know how they did it, but somehow International Rescue has diffused nearly every small bomb that's falling through the sky. They're reaching the skies above Los Angeles and look, just look! They're bouncing off something that can only be an invisible force field of some sort! Those that are still live are exploding, but they're causing no damage! I can't believe it! They did it! International Rescue has saved millions of people. On behalf of those in Southern California and people the world round, I say thank you. They did it, Ladies and Gentlemen. They did it!"

Lady Penelope's rifle clattered to the floor as she looked back to where Jeff held Ned's lifeless body. "Yes, they did it" she whispered, tears filling her eyes. "But at what price?"

11:59:58

11:59:59

12:00:00