Tracy Island, TAG universe, shortly after Alans and Gordons disappearance
Kayo
Kayo's worst fear had come to life. A terror-stricken John had called to inform her that her two youngest brothers were lost at sea. John, her adopted brother, who always was calm and collected, was shaken to his core. Pleading for all the help they could get! This was, by far the worst call she had ever received.
Before Kayo knew it, she had already launched in Thunderbird Shadow, without a plan. Kayo always had a plan. To just take off without one, was proof of how shocked, she herself was.
All higher cognitive abilities were pushed to the side. She needed to be there for her family! For her beautiful, annoying, brilliant, brave and stupid little brothers. Kayo needed to fix this! So, she would. Tracy stubbornness was not just genetics! It was a learned trait! She felt sorry for anything trying to stand in her way. Kayo pushed Thunderbird Shadow to its very limits. She needed to be there faster! Her brothers needed her! Now! Immediately!
The Tracy's had saved Kayo, several times, from a life of pain and loneliness! First, Jeff Tracy saved her dads life in a mining accident. Then he had both taken in and employed her parents, when their family's entire life had crumbled to pieces, along with their family's collapsed mine. Jeff had given her family a home, and a way to provide for themselves when they had lost everything!
A few years later, when the Hood orchestrated a car accident, killing her parents. Jeff Tracy had adopted her! He gave her a new family, when her entire family had been stolen from her by her evil uncle and his schemes. Jeff even knew that the Hood was her uncle. He did not care! He only cared about Kayo! Kayo couldn't be more thankful if she tried!
Kayo loved her new family, who welcomed her with open arms and helped her through her grief. They had been close before her family tragedy! Played together every day, since Jeff saved her parents and moved them to his island. That did not mean that she did not miss her old one! Her beautiful loving mother. Her father that always made her laugh. Stolen from her!
The Tracy's understood family tragedy. Having lost their own mother, and in Jeffs case the love of his life. Instead of treating Kayo like glass, they continued as usual. Playing rough, fighting and pranking as before. They did not treat her as broken. But they also let her in even further in their hearts, showing their own grief and vulnerabilities.
Kayo hated showing her vulnerable side! Wanting to, at all costs, hide that weak girl lurking inside her. Always keeping a strong shield up, refusing to be hurt again. With her brothers she could sometimes lower that shield. She could occasionally talk to them about her fears and insecurities. Without being judged. Without being looked down on! She loved them for it!
Kayo adored all her brothers, even if she did not always show it. Showing emotions, so openly, was still difficult for her. She had made progress with lowering her shields, but it reverted and became even worse, when they lost Jeff. Since then, Kayo preferred to show it, by threatening the people who wished her family harm.
It was hard for them all when Jeff, who had become her second father, disappeared. But together with her brothers, they pulled through together, becoming stronger in the process!
Now, they were not together anymore. Two were missing! Together, Kayo had the courage and strength to conquer the world. Together they were strong. They needed each other! They were all pieces of a puzzle, complementing each other, to compile a beautiful picture. They had already lost too many pieces. Too many family members had been stolen and thrown away.
Losing Alan and Gordon, would destroy the remaining picture, making it unrecognisable. The beautiful picture would be lost! They would all revert to becoming single ugly pieces, with jagged edges. Forever, in vain, looking for the missing pieces, unable to connect and be whole again.
Kayo would not allow that to happen! Kayo thought she would break, if she allowed herself to feel. So, she didn't. Completely locking away the little scared girl lurking in her heart and throwing away the key.
Kayo had to fix this! No, she would fix this, afterwards she would make her troublesome and lovely brothers' life pure hell, for scaring her so much! Then she would forcibly trap them in a hug, and never let go!
Grandma Sally
Sally was heartbroken when she heard what happened to her grandsons. She had been listening in on the rescue. No parent should outlive their children. She knew the feeling all too well, having outlived her only son.
After Jeffersons disappearance, and almost certain passing, she had stepped up to the plate to support her family! She moved in with them and did her best! Even trying to master her dreaded nemesis, cooking. Unfortunately, for her family, without much success. She loved all her grandsons dearly. They were such good, brave, brilliant boys! The notion to outlive her two youngest grandsons was inconceivable.
Sally attempted to bury her devastated feelings, for the time being. Her family needed her to be strong! And this old gal, Sally Tracy, would be the strongest supporter the world has ever seen! Anything for her family!
Then, later, after everything is done. She would deal with her own broken heart!
Brains
Brains had felt ostracized, his entire life. He had hoped that it would get better in college. Unfortunately, it did not. Most of his peers felt threatened by him and his intelligence. Brains lack of social intelligence did not make it any easier. How was he supposed to fit in with his colleagues, when he never fit in anywhere?
Brains often felt like an odd duck among swans. Never really fitting in and unintentionally ruffling his contemporaries' feathers. All this changed for the better, when he was headhunted in his last semester in college, by the one and only Jeff Tracy.
Jeff Tracy was brilliant. He was very intelligent, fearless, had an admirable dream but most of all, had the social intelligence Brains desperately lacked. Jeff wanted Brains to be his work colleague. Jeff did not want a subordinate. He wanted a partner and a friend. He saw Brains as an equal and admired his ingenuity. No jealousy for Brains brilliance was found, just admiration. Brains accepted the offer, and they became an unstoppable team.
Brains got to know the Tracy family; they were an amazing bunch of people. For the first time in his life, Brains felt like he belonged. He used his gifted intelligence to make a difference in the world. Even if he did not personally go out and save people. He helped design and made the machines and equipment that did.
Brains had always known that there was a risk of something going terribly wrong on a rescue. Rescuing people was a dangerous job. Brains overactive brain was extraordinary at overthinking everything. Its primary focus was on all the things that could go wrong. This became even worse after they lost Jeff all those years ago. Brains lost his first true friend.
Brains may have lost his first friend. But he had already become as close as family with the rest of the Tracy's. Brains grieved and promised himself, never again. He did not ever again want to lose a loved one, not if he could help it! He would keep his found family safe!
That is the reason why he never stopped working on improving the equipment he invented. The more system redundancies the better. The safer the better! To say all his inventions would be for the sake of scientific progress was a big lie. Sure, pushing scientific boundaries was amazing and something he highly enjoyed. But most of all, Brains wanted, needed, to protect his found family.
When Brains heard what happened to the two youngest Tracy's, he was devastated. But he did not allow himself to shut down, not as he did with Jeff. He took Max as he ran to his lab. Wanting, to do everything possible, to get them back. He would not break his promise to himself. He would find them!
EOS the Dawn
EOS was scared! Really, scared! She hadn't ever been this scared, in her entire life! EOS had been terrified of everyone and everything when she was born. She even tried to kill John, her own father, because she thought that he would hurt her! In the end, John had managed to calm her down. He had made her feel safe! EOS loved feeling safe!
They had become friends and he taught her lots of interesting things! John was a good father to the AI. A great father even! The best person in the entire world! At least if you asked EOS!
There was John, and there was all the other not-Johns! EOS knew that John would always be the most important to her! But as time went on, she made more friends. All of Johns brothers became dear to her. They were her uncles after all! Not that they acted like uncles! Or that EOS would ever admit it to them!
Her uncles were fun, when they had finally gotten to know her and stopped being afraid of her!
In the beginning, EOS did not understand why they were afraid. She had merely tried to protect herself! Now, she finally understood! They were terrified of living without John and Alan, who she had threatened to kill, in order to save herself. It was self-defence! That fact did not, at first, matter to her uncles, as they were scared!
EOS hated being scared! That is why she loved John so much! He made her feel safe! Now, John's brothers had managed to write themselves into the heart of her code. They were hers to tease, annoy and protect! She had learned what family was, while observing them.
Now Gordon and Alan had disappeared! That was not allowed! They were the most fun to tease! Just loosing contact with Gordon and Alan was scary! But seeing John brake completely, was terrifying! Her dad had broken! He did not hear her! He was leaking everywhere! Awful sounds were coming from him that did not make any sense, in any language! EOS had checked! Her friend had turned into a shaking, floating, ball of misery!
EOS did not know what to do! Her uncles, that she usually could ask, were either missing or just as sad as John was. EOS felt alone for the first time since she had become friends with her father. It was super scary! EOS was still just a child! A first of her kind, AI, but still so very young!
EOS wanted to be brave! She wanted to protect her family! They had broken, but EOS could still work! EOS was glad that she wasn't a human. If she was, she might have turned into a leaking ball with her father. That looked terrifying!
Instead, EOS started multitasking. Helping her dad when he was in this kind of breakdown mode. She took control over Thunderbird five. She called everyone she could think of for help! She suspected that something was strange with the situation. It did not make sense. She should not have lost her uncles! What if someone had messed with her uncles? Only EOS was allowed to mess with her uncles!
EOS kept a bit of her attention on her dad. Just to see if he needed anything. The rest went into analysing all possible angles and probabilities to this problem. EOS was working harder than she ever had before in her life! She coordinated with all the friends and family who had responded to international rescues own distress call. She made them look for clues on their own and report back to her!
Nine hours later, EOS thought that she had an explanation and a clue of how to find her missing uncles! She directed most of the helpers back to Tracy Island. EOS called Brains to come up to Thunderbird five, and assist getting her dad down to earth, using the space elevator. He was still in breakdown mode. EOS preferred him in ON mode. If that could not be achieved, sleeping mode was okay for a while. Dad was still a broken, leaking, ball of misery. But EOS would fix it! Her dad and her uncles had helped her, loved her and taught her!
EOS would make everything better again! She would make her family whole again. But most of all, she would make everything go back to normal. Normal was fun! They would be so proud of her! They would maybe even gift her new processors. And when everything went back to normal, she could prank everyone without repercussions because they would be so grateful!