Sorry for the delay in updating, had a hectic few months!
Troy stood on the balcony looking over the terrace, watching the black clouds of the gathering storm drift closer to the island. There was a powerful bellow of rolling thunder in the distance. He'd just watched Thunderbird 2 sink into the horizon and was now embracing the island's humidity, which was getting increasingly powerful and overwhelming by the second. A few raindrops were in the air and had started to intermittently pitter-patter against his skin.
He felt a tap on his shoulder and he turned to see a smiling Marina by his side, joining him on the balcony. She was running her fingers through her long hair. It was starting to frizz in the blaring heat. Although she was wearing a bright and colourful short-sleeved summer dress that Atlanta had bought for her, Troy could tell she was still too hot and beginning to feel the pressure of being in such a tropical climate.
"You okay, gal?" he asked affectionately, taking her hands in his own.
Marina opened her mouth and pointed to the sky to convey her exhaustion from the continual heat. She fanned her hand close to her face as a bead of sweat dripped down the side of her head.
"Why don't you have some water, honey? Are you thirsty?" Troy asked, gesturing back towards the kitchen.
Marina shook her head. She pointed at the approaching storm.
"Sure looks like a big one, huh? Good thing we managed to get all the pool equipment and garden furniture secured in time. Look's like it's due any second now! Bet it'll be terrific."
"They usually are." Jeff's staccato voice joined them as the patriarch walked onto the terrace. "We get them most afternoons."
Marina opened her mouth to convey surprise. It was interesting to see how acclimatized the older man was in comparison to Troy and herself.
Troy smiled in greeting. "Hi Mr Tracy. How were the Thunderbird launches?"
"They all took off fine despite the inclement weather in the area." Jeff replied, "The Thunderbird craft have all been built to withstand flying in a Category Five hurricane regardless so I foresaw no issues."
"Those machines are incredible." Troy smiled. "I don't know how you did it. If the World Aquanaut Security Patrol ever produced aircraft like that then-"
"There would indoubtly be less peace in the world." Jeff cut in. Marina nodded.
Troy took that as his cue to change the subject. "So, what do you and your sons normally do when you're stormed in, so to speak? Must be difficult to be so… contained with one another, but I suppose you wouldn't find it very hard considering you're family, right?"
"My boys often find different ways to entertain themselves during bad weather, but similarly in good weather too so they're not always on top of each other. Usually there's only four of my sons on the island at any given time, but Thunderbird Five is undergoing maintenance which is being performed by my engineer, Brains, which is why John's having a stint on the island."
"I see."
"Virgil occupies a lot of his time by painting, or playing the piano. If he wasn't on a rescue right now he'd be doing either of those things. Probably painting in this instance. He loves to paint storms." Jeff said. "Scott and Gordon like to play chess and checkers which can take up a fair bit of time. Alan likes reading his magazines or watching television and John's the same really, if he's not watching television or getting lost in a book he'll be stargazing." he smiled fondly. "But if they're not doing their hobbies they'll be performing maintenance checks on their Thunderbirds."
"Strange how Gordon's into chess. When I knew him he had no patience." Troy chortled. "Well to be fair, neither did Scott."
"It is surprising, I admit, but I suppose it's the strategic yet competitive nature of the game which appeals to them."
A roaring crack of thunder struck above them, making Troy and Marina jump.
"It's probably time for us to head inside now. You wouldn't want to be out here during the downpour." Jeff chuckled, signalling for his guests to walk inside ahead of him. After making sure the balcony chairs and glass tables were safely secured against the wall, the aging patriarch followed behind and shut the sliding doors, the stickiness of the outside being instantly evaporated by the air conditioning.
He let out a sigh of relief.
Troy made his way over to where Alan was lounging on the couch, head in a magazine, just as Jeff had told them.
"Alan, sit up and make room for our guests." Jeff reprimanded. The younger man let out an annoyed huff under his breath and slid himself into a sitting position, allowing Troy and Marina to sit beside him. Across from them sat John, Phones and Gordon who were all sharing a couch, seeming pretty engrossed in a conversation about the weather.
Phones was the first to notice them. "Hey skipper, Marina. Did you hear the thunder just now? It sounded mighty fierce. Nothing like we get in Marineville."
Hearing Phones' question, the girl turned to her friend and nodded her head with a smile. He smiled back and took a swig of his cola.
"It would be hard NOT to hear the storm from anywhere on this island." Troy amusedly shook his head.
"Well the Thunderbird silos are pretty soundproof. Solid too." John enlightened them.
"I'm assuming they're pretty low to the ground. Have you had any issues with flooding?"
"Not for a while. We had a heck of a storm a few years back which flooded Thunderbird 1's silo and prompted us to make a lot of improvements, so all silos are pretty much flood-proof now." Gordon informed them.
"That's great! Boy you guys put a lot of work into the efficiency of this place."
"What can I say? We've got a lot of time on our hands." Gordon smirked, causing Alan to roll his eyes.
"I don't know what you're on about. You're always in the pool!"
"I'm not in the pool now!" Gordon defended himself with a wink, causing Alan to groan.
"If you had your way you would be! It's too bad we don't have an indoor pool for you to utilize during the bad weather!"
"I keep telling Dad we should build one, but he won't let me!"
"And where do you suggest we put this new swimming pool, son?" Jeff overheard his moan, raising an eyebrow.
"Alan's bedroom!"
"That is not funny, Gordon!"
Everyone laughed.