IN LONDON, BRITISH PROVINCE
Lady Penelope, Sherbert and Parker were sitting in front of the television, watching the (very biased and censored) news. To their surprise, there was a report on the "amazing progress" of the meeting of the world's four leaders. Live news footage showed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin ben Gurion, United States President Donald de Jersey, and the Galactic Emperor Edward IX and Prime Minister David Southern exiting the meeting.
"This isn't right," Penelope said. "De Jersey and ben Gurion are prisoners on Mars."
The four leaders stood in front of a crowd of excited reporters. One of the reporters called out, "Mr President, what have you and the other leaders accomplished?"
"Well," de Jersey responded, "we have developed a constructive agreement that merges both the United States and Israel into the World Government. Our armed forces are also merged with the world ones. It's a win-win situation."
"This is ridiculous," Penelope remarked as the leaders and reporters rambled on. "Something's not right. Parker, get that new device Brains gave us."
"You mean the one that can see through holograms, m'lady?" Parker asked.
"Yes," Penny replied.
"Ah," Parker mused as he went and got it out of a hidden compartment in the wall. "I like what you're thinking."
Setting the device in front of the holographic television, he pointed the camera at the TV, and turned it on, freezing a shot of de Jersey and ben Gurion. The machine beeped. A rotating hologram of them was projected from the machine. Then the holographic disguises were peeled away. Parker gasped. The man disguised as de Jersey he did not recognise, but there was no mistaking the other one.
"It couldn't be," Parker said. "I killed him."
Penelope was beginning to recognise him. "Impossible."
The agent disguised as ben Gurion was none other than Bloody Bert.
ON TRACY ISLAND
The evacuation was in full swing. They were halfway through. Lady Penelope's picture beeped. Jeff pressed the button on his desk, and her hologram projected into the middle of the room. "Any news, Penny?" he asked.
"I just saw on the news that ben Gurion and de Jersey, in their meeting, have agreed to merge their countries and militaries into the World Government," Penny announced. "Even had alive press conference of the leaders outside the building."
Jeff gaped. "But they're on Mars!"
"Exactly," Penny replied. "So I used Brains' hologram device. It's not them. These are the real persons pretending to be them."
And with that, she showed the holograms of de Jersey and ben Gurion. Their disguises were then peeled away. Kyrano, who had just entered the room, gasped. "That's my brother!" he exclaimed.
"What?" everyone turned to him.
Kyrano stepped forward. "The one who disguised as ben Gurion. He's my half-brother, Bert Campbell-Green. And the one who disguised as de Jersey, he looks like Bert's son, Harold."
Parker was quite surprised. "He's also an old crim chum of mine, Bloody Bert, the best in the business. Eventually recruited by intelligence."
"In other words," Jeff interjected, "an agent of theirs."
"Yes," Parker continued. "In fact, he was ben Gurion's chauffer. But here's the thing: I killed Bert, just in the last couple of days. He's dead!"
Jeff turned Kyrano. "Did Bert have a twin?"
"No," Kyrano replied. "He was the only child my father had with his mother. It was an extramarital affair. And that's definitely him. He's older, but there's no mistaking him."
"Hmm," Jeff mused. "This is strange. Brains," he said as he pressed a comm. Brains' hologram appeared. "Take a look at these images," he said, and sent them over. "These pictures were taken a few minutes ago. But get this: one of them has been dead for a couple of days. Find out what you can from the pics."
"Certainly, Mr Tracy," Brains said in his Indian accent. "I'll see what I can find." And he hung up.
AT IR BASE, MARS
Thunderbird 3 made its approach. There was almost a delay when Zac and John-Michael's sister, Racheal, returned from her vacation in the Pleiades.
Once landed, Alan and Kayo entered the main room. J-M, Zac, Racheal, and IR Mars' engineer, Dr Hackenbacker (Brains' brother), were all gathered. "Hello everyone," Kayo said.
"Hello," one of the younger Mustchin brothers, Paul, replied as he entered the room.
"Alright," John-Michael said. "Now, we know the President and PM were taken to SQ Base, here," he pointed to a spot on a holographic map. "Dr Hackenbacker has been showing us all the intel and info we have on it."
"Yes," Hackenbacker replied, pulling the info up. "We know alot about their security, layout, entrances, etc. Including, crucially, where the two leaders are likely being held. The prison cells here." He looked up at everyone. "In other words, we have the best intel we're likely to get in order to plan a jailbreak."
IN CANBERRA, AUSTRALIAN PROVINCE
Colonel Casey walked into the secure room. She had given instructions for the two occupants of Thunderbird 2 to be brought here. There they were, in the centre of the room, handcuffed to the chairs they sat on. A couple of GDF officers stood at the walls.
Colonel Casey immediately recognised the two, and her dread increased further – if that was possible. "Virgil and Gordon Tracy," she said in as cool a fashion as she could.
Gordon was puzzled. "How do you know that?"
"It's our business to know everything," Casey quickly replied. A little too quickly. Virgil noticed something strange in her eyes, as if she were hiding something. She then continued. "So, you're part of International Rescue."
Virgil sighed. "Isn't that obvious?"
Casey ignored him. "Who else is in the organisation?" Stone cold silence. "Is anyone else in your family part of IR?" Silence. "What about... Jeff Tracy?" They remained silent and impassive, but something briefly flickered.
"Shall we get one of the torture instruments?" one of the soldiers asked. Both Virgil's and Gordon's eyes widened.
"No!" Casey replied, a little too quickly.
Virgil again saw something in her eyes. What is it with her?
"Put them in a cell," Casey ordered. "We'll try and get them to talk later. We're busy right now."
ON TRACY ISLAND
Jeff's desk beeped again. He pressed the button. This time it was Brains. "Find anything?"
"Yes, Mr Tracy," Brains replied. "I've scanned through the images, and determined that there is a microchip behind Bert's right eye."
"A microchip?" Jeff asked. "What does it do?"
"It was developed a few years ago," Brains explained. "It records your every memory, your every awake moment. In the event you die, a clone of you can be made and implanted with the chip. The clone will then inherit all your memories and personality and believe itself to be you. All of the clone's subsequent memories are recorded, so when it dies and is cloned, the second generation clone inherits both the original person's and the first clone's memories, and so on. The idea is to allow you to live forever. In reality, of course, you'll be dead, and a clone will simply take on your identity. But this chip appears to be special. According to my scans, it has an additional function: communication."
"Communication?" an interested Jeff asked.
"Yes," Brains continued. "He can communicate with others, and others can communicate with him – all in his head. A conversation no-one can overhear. Like telepathy. Only, it can only communicate with other persons with this chip, or with the right equipment. Which only his bosses will have."
"This explains why he's alive despite being dead," Jeff mused. "So, it's not even really him. It's a clone."
"Exactly," Brains replied.
ON MARS
A GDF truck made its way to the SQ Base. It was carrying weapons' supplies for the upcoming Pleiades invasion. The two drivers were naturally on the lookout for the reptilians who prowled the planet. As they drove along a track surrounded by large rocks, they saw a large tyre lying in the track, blocking their way.
The two drivers looked at each other. Probably from a truck that got attacked. Hugely nervous and armed, they got out to shift the wheel to one side.
They failed to notice four people with blue suits hurry into the truck behind them. All went into the cabin, but two of them went through the gap into the back.
The two drivers finished moving the wheel to one side. Then the truck's engine revved. To their shock, two people sat in the cabin! They yelled and started running, but the truck took off towards the base (another hour away), leaving the two drivers behind.
In the driver's seat, Alan looked at Paul. "Well, so far, so good."