JEFF, Brains and Grandma felt helpless. On the live screen in front of them they could see Thunderbirds 1 and 2 surrounded on all four sides by Thunderbolts 2, 3, 4 and 5. Kayo had been taken out of the fight by Thunderbolt 4 and The Black Phantom whilst Silver Swan had used Thunderbolt 2 to knock out Obsidian and even Captain Liberty had lost his duel, not to mention his shield, to The Hood and Thunderbolt 5. The Chameleon was already out of the fight after Scott had used Thunderbird 1 to take out Thunderbolt 1, but now that seemed to be irrelevant as The Cabal had their sworn enemies completely at their mercy.
"Don't just sit there, Brains!" Jeff snapped. "DO SOMETHING!"
"I c-can't, M-Mr T-Tracy!" stammered Brains. "The s-ships can't t-take them all on at once!"
Jeff grabbed the microphone. "BOYS, GET OUT OF THERE, NOW!"
Suddenly there came a fizzling and a crackling. All three jumped back in alarm as Brains's entire lab console was suddenly overwhelmed by a mysterious orange electricity that covered everything. It only lasted a few seconds before seemingly jumping right into the hologram projector. They all stood there…stunned.
"What in the name of the lord was that?!" Grandma asked, breaking the silence.
"I h-have n-no idea," replied Brains.
5!
4!
3!
2!
1!
"Thunderbirds Are Go!"
"TAKEDOWN"
THE Thunderbolts fired several missiles from their suits at the Thunderbirds. This was followed by a massive explosion, creating a fireball that engulfed the two ships. Scott, Virgil, Alan and Gordon all threw their hands over their faces and closed their eyes tightly. They cried out as the missiles struck.
On the ground, hundreds of horrified onlookers, comprised of the fleeing crowds, the EXPO security people and the GDF including Colonel Jennings, Captain Liberty, Hayley and Amanda along with a recovering Kayo and a concealed Wanda, Luigi and Grafton, the latter three were hiding from view, could do nothing but watch as the International Rescue ships were struck and engulfed by fire.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Kayo and Hayley both screamed.
John, watching from Thunderbird 5, also recoiled in horror. "GUYS!" he yelled.
"BOYS!" bellowed Jeff as Brains and Grandma gasped loudly and covered their mouths with their hands.
Hayley fell to her knees. Tears began to fall down her face. "Virgil…" she whimpered.
Kayo tried to run towards the scene but was stopped by Amanda and Colonel Jennings. "Kayo, STOP!" cried Colonel Jennings. "You can't help them. I'm sorry."
Kayo also began filling up with tears and so did Wanda although only Luigi was able to see this and he put comforting arms around her.
The Cabal on the other hand were absolutely ecstatic with what had just happened. "YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!" everyone cried excitedly except for The Hood who just broke out with a very satisfied smirk on his face.
"WE GOT YOU!" Silver Swan bellowed at the screen.
"YEAH, TAKE THAT, MORONS!" roared The Black Phantom. "HOW DO YOU LIKE IT, HUH?!"
"THAT'S FOR MY LEGS!' yelled The Shocker.
The White Ghost breathed a satisfied sigh of relief. "About damn time," she said to Techno.
"Hell, yeah!" agreed Techno, allowing her to high-five him.
The other Cabal members were now busy grinning and exchanging out of the Thunderbolt controls fist bumps with each other. The Hood on the other hand couldn't take his eyes off the screen with the explosion that had engulfed the Thunderbirds. "YES!" he said with delight. But then his expression changed from evil delight to one of unbelieving shock as the smoke started to clear. "NO!"
The other Cabal members stopped and looked at him. Then they looked back at the screen and froze.
"WHAT?!" exclaimed Silver Swan.
As the smoke cleared away, everyone who'd witnessed the apparent destruction of the Thunderbirds had an equal amount of surprise in store. Thunderbirds 1 and 2 were still there, only now they were surrounded by a strange orange force-field that crackled with the same energy that had gone through Brains's console.
"Wait…what?!" said Amanda. "What's that?"
Grafton got to his feet. At first he'd felt delight at thinking the Thunderbirds had been destroyed, and was bitterly disappointed to see that they weren't. "God DAMN IT!" he cursed and began to continue his escape. What he didn't realise was that his hiding place was close to where Wanda and Luigi were hiding. Whilst they too were surprised by the survival of the Thunderbird ships, their attention was grabbed by Grafton cursing and they then spotted him hurrying off between the trees and shrubs of the EXPO's gardens where they too had been hiding. They looked at each other, nodded, and then began to slink off as well.
Scott opened his eyes. Everything seemed normal until he saw the strange orange energy. "What the heck is this?" he asked. Then he looked over at Thunderbird 2 and gasped. Whatever this energy was, it was coming out of the green goliath. "Virgil? Gordon? Alan? Do you read me?"
Virgil, Alan and Gordon hadn't even noticed the exploding missiles fired from the Thunderbolts. They had been forced out of their seats and were stuck at the back of the cockpit because the orange energy was crackling throughout Thunderbird 2's systems.
"WHAT'S HAPPENING?!" Alan yelled above the crackling.
"I DON'T KNOW!" wailed Gordon.
Virgil then heard Scott's voice over the radio. He tapped his sash. "Scott?! John?! Dad?! Thunderbird 2 is under attack! I repeat - Thunderbird 2 is under attack!"
Brains managed to get a better look of Thunderbird 2 from one of Thunderbird 1's cameras. "Oh, m-my!" he exclaimed. "That's the same energy that we just had come through!"
"What do you mean 'just come through'?" demanded Scott.
"Scott, that energy that's taken over Thunderbird 2 came through Brains's equipment right before they fired at you," said Jeff. "How are you all still there?"
"I've no idea, Dad," Scott replied. "But whatever it is, it's prevented us from being blown to bits!"
"Yeah, but we're about to get microwaved!" Alan cried from Thunderbird 2.
But before anyone could say a word, the shield around the ships faded away but the energy still continued to crackle both inside and outside the hull of Thunderbird 2.
The Cabal couldn't understand it.
"This is impossible!" said The Shocker. "We fired a dozen missiles right into them. HOW ARE THEY STILL ALIVE?!"
"Look, the shield's dropped!" The White Ghost said. "Quick, get them!"
The Hood, Silver Swan, The Shocker and The Black Phantom, all now with fury and gritted teeth, attempted to make another attack on the Thunderbirds. But they didn't get the chance.
Suddenly, without any warning, the after thrusters of Thunderbird 2 roared into life with more power than it had ever done before. It shot forwards and slammed into Thunderbolt 3 which had been right in front of them. The large red mech was now forced up against the nose of the giant ship and despite The Shocker's best efforts, he wasn't able to get any grip or thrust to push himself off.
Virgil, Gordon and Alan found themselves huddled together, all terrified of what was going on. They could see the faceplate of Thunderbolt 3 out of the windows and equally, Shocker could see them through his viewing screen. Seeing he might still have a chance, he tried to activate the laser in the mech's right arm. But then Thunderbird 2 cut power to its aft thrusters and switched to the VTOL jets. It came to an abrupt stop, throwing the brothers forwards onto the floor.
Thunderbolt 3 didn't stop however. The momentum sent it flying backwards off the front of Thunderbird 2 straight towards one of the EXPO's tallest structures - the Peace Tower. It was like a statue of a man with arms held out offering peace to the world. Thunderbolt 3 ended up on a direct collision course with the forefinger on the left hand. It struck it in the back and hit it with such force that the sculpture finger went straight through the suit, impaling it and going right through the power core. The insides were smashed and sparks began flying out as the electronics began to short-circuit.
"AARGH!" cried The Shocker as all control he had over the suit died away. He pulled the headset off in frustration.
Techno almost squeaked as the icon showing power to Thunderbolt 3 went like it had when Thunderbolt 1 had been destroyed. "Thunderbolt 3 down?! IMPOSSIBLE!"
Now there were only three. The Hood, Silver Swan and The Black Phantom hadn't even attempted to attack Thunderbird 1 after being startled by the sudden attack by Thunderbird 2. Like everyone else, they were in shock as well.
Scott realised he hadn't moved either and quickly realised that staying put probably wasn't a good idea. He therefore fired Thunderbird 1's engines and began to climb away, but this alerted the other Thunderbolts. "Oh, no, you don't, Scott Tracy!" rumbled The Hood and he set off in pursuit. "This one is mine," he told the others. "Destroy Thunderbird 2!"
"Yes, boss!" said Silver Swan and The Black Phantom in unison as they began to fly Thunderbolts 2 and 4 towards where Thunderbird 2 and the disabled Thunderbolt 3 were. They didn't get far before they crossed the path of an enraged Obsidian. "Oi, sis! I'm not done with you YET!" he said as he used the boosters in his suit's boots to make him jump high into the air. He slammed into Thunderbolt 2 and knocked it off course.
"WOAH!" exclaimed Silver Swan as her mech went crashing into the ground.
"SWAN!" roared The Black Phantom's voice through the mech.
Silver Swan regained her senses and quickly saw who'd brought her down. "You!" she snarled. "Follow the boss's orders, Phantom! I need to deal with my traitorous brother!"
The Black Phantom turned Thunderbolt 4 back around to continue its run towards Thunderbird 2 which was still under the control of the mysterious energy.
Virgil had plucked up the courage to try and find out what the energy was. He made his way back to his seat and strapped himself in. He tried to take the controls but the energy was too powerful and he thought better after almost getting a shock from it.
"Virgil, status?" John said over the radio.
"Thunderbird 2 is still under hostile control!" Virgil said. "I can't get a hold of the controls to take it back! Brains, can you do anything about this?"
Brains was working frantically with his computer. "I'm t-trying, Virgil!" he said.
"Well hurry it up, Brains!" barked John. "Virgil, you've got incoming!"
It was at that moment that Thunderbird 2 began to turn around by itself and Virgil caught sight of the approaching Thunderbolt 4. Alan and Gordon had decided to strap themselves in on the seats at the back as it was one of the few places where the energy wasn't affecting. Virgil gritted his teeth and readied himself for whatever would come next.
The Black Phantom's heads-up display locked onto Thunderbird 2. "Time to die, Thunderbirds!" he growled. The back-mounted missile launchers rose. But before the Phantom could even think about firing, the red laser mounted on the front of Thunderbird 2 fired first. It struck the launcher behind the right shoulder and it exploded. "AAAARRGHH!" roared the Phantom as he lost control of the mech and it began to fall away as the thrusters started to fail.
Thunderbird 2's main engines then fired again, shooting it forwards towards Thunderbolt 4. The hatch under the module opened and two grapples were launched. They latched onto Thunderbolt 4 and then banked sharply away to the left, dragging it along behind at high speed.
"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRGGH!" wailed The Black Phantom. "WHAT'S HAPPENING?!"
"GET IT TOGETHER, PHANTOM!" bellowed Techno. "WE'RE NOT LOSING ANOTHER ONE!"
The Phantom tried desperately to regain control of Thunderbolt 4. But the explosion of the missile launcher had caused significant damage and the speed it was being pulled around by Thunderbird 2 made it next to impossible to recover from it.
The battle between Obsidian and Thunderbolt 2 was still ongoing. Despite the size difference, Obsidian was holding his own against Silver Swan's machine. "You're going down, sis!" Obsidian said as he ran forwards towards the mech.
"No, Clarence," Silver Swan replied. "You are!" She swung her mech's left arm and punched Obsidian back. He flew backwards for about thirty metres before bouncing like a stone skipping the water along the ground before smashing through one of the EXPO's lavatory blocks.
Obsidian wasn't hurt thanks to the suit, but he did feel somewhat dizzy for a moment as he tried to pull himself together. He then saw Thunderbolt 2 approaching him. Silver Swan's face hologram appeared. "I'm so disappointed in you, brother," she said. "You said we'd be together forever!"
"And we can be if you stop this madness!" Obsidian pleaded. "You think I want to fight you, Catherine? I DON'T. Let's end this now, please?"
Silver Swan hesitated. "No," she said firmly. She raised her arm to bring it down only for something small and round to hit the face-plate of the mech and bounce off. "Huh?"
The object was Captain Liberty's shield. He'd found it and was now using it to attack Thunderbolt 2. "OBSIDIAN! TAG-TEAM TAKE!" he shouted.
Obsidian grinned. "Oh, yeah!" he said.
With Silver Swan distracted by Captain Liberty's shield hitting Thunderbolt 2 again and again, she forgot all about Obsidian being there. "STOP THAT!" she shrieked at Captain Liberty. "Do you honestly think-"
Obsidian then slammed himself into the back of Thunderbolt 2's legs. It overbalanced and lost its footing, beginning to fall backwards. Obsidian was now in front just as Captain Liberty got to him. He put his left hand down on the ground and Captain Liberty's right boot landed on it. Obsidian then used all the power in his suit to literally throw Captain Liberty up into the air. He did at least two forward rolls mid-air before diving shield first onto the chest-plate of Thunderbolt 2. The impact sent it crashing down hard onto its back, causing a few short circuits and disabling parts of the mech.
"GRRRRRRRRRR!" growled Silver Swan. "COME ON, WORK, YOU STUPID THING!"
Techno took a hold of the holographic blueprints of Thunderbolt 2. "Hold it still, Swan. I'll reboot your systems!"
As Captain Liberty and Obsidian stood side-by-side and got themselves ready for if Thunderbolt 2 did get rebooted, their attention was grabbed by Thunderbird 2 flying around nearby, still towing the damaged Thunderbolt 4 behind it. Then a very small orange bolt of energy shot out from Thunderbird 2's hull and hit Obsidian's suit. "What the?!" he exclaimed. Then he stopped dead as a message in orange writing appeared on the heads-up display inside his helmet. It read:
"THROW THUNDERBOLT 2 IN THE FOLLOWING DIRECTION"
This was then followed by a holographic arrow pointing in the direction of Thunderbird 2 and Thunderbolt 4.
"Are you okay, Obsidian?" asked Captain Liberty.
Obsidian didn't answer because he had noticed Thunderbolt 2 was starting to get back up. He glanced at Thunderbird 2 and then back at Thunderbolt 2. Then he grinned. "I'm about to be, Cap," he answered. He ran forwards and grabbed the left leg of Thunderbolt 2. Then before Techno had a chance to fully reboot it, Obsidian began swinging the entire suit around, making Silver Swan dizzy through the viewing screen. As she cried out in surprise, Thunderbird 2 changed course and began to dive down towards the ground where Obsidian was swinging Thunderbolt 2. Then Obsidian let go and Thunderbolt 2 went flying towards Thunderbird 2. At the same time, the energy controlling Thunderbird 2 released the grapples on Thunderbolt 4 and climbed up out of the way just as the two Thunderbolts slammed right into each other. The severity of the impacts caused both their power cores to rupture and there followed two mighty explosions rolled into one as the Thunderbolts exploded and their remains dropped down into the waters of New York Harbor.
"No! NO!" shouted Techno as he lost his control on Thunderbolt 2 and then he saw that Thunderbolt 4 had gone offline as well. "NOOO! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING!"
Both Silver Swan and The Black Phantom screamed in frustration at the loss of their machines. "FOR THE LOVE OF GOD!" screeched Silver Swan.
"GOD FRICKIN' DAMN IT!" bellowed The Black Phantom.
The Hood looked over at them and snarled. "You failed?!" he snapped. Then he growled at them. "Fine! I'll finish this myself! Techno…give me every bit of power you have!"
"Gladly," said Techno through gritted teeth.
The chase between Thunderbird 1 and Thunderbolt 5 hadn't really gone anywhere except round and round the EXPO site in circles.
"This is going on too long, guys!" Scott said. "Brains, how do I take him down? I haven't got the element of surprise like I did with Thunderbolt 1."
"T-Try your twister trick again, Scott," suggested Brains. "Or do a c-crazy ivan and throw him off?"
"I'll try that," said Scott. He cut Thunderbird 1's main engines and used the manoeuvring thrusters to make his ship turn a complete one-eighty degrees before firing the engines again and shooting back at Thunderbolt 5.
"AAAAAH!" shrieked The Hood, only just managing to get Thunderbolt 5 out of the way but the rush of wind caused by Thunderbird 1 threw him off a bit.
"He's stunned," Scott realised. "Going for the twister." He spun Thunderbird 1 around again and began to perform the same trick he'd used on Thunderbolt 1. Whilst he was doing this, Thunderbird 2 was approaching it.
Virgil, Gordon and Alan watched as Thunderbird 1's speed created a twister-like phenomenon around Thunderbolt 5. "We're not going into that, are we?" asked Alan.
"I don't think we have any choice if whatever's controlling us takes us in!" replied Gordon.
The Hood was getting very wound up by Thunderbird 1's twister attack. "Enough of this!" he barked. "Calculate flight pattern. Get me a lock!"
The on-board computer of Thunderbolt 5 began to carry out The Hood's instructions. Due to the twister making visibility poor, he failed to notice Thunderbird 2 approaching.
Suddenly the strange orange energy began to build up around the nose of Thunderbird 2 before shooting off of the hull and through the air towards the twister. Everything inside Thunderbird 2 returned to normal and Virgil found he'd gotten control back. "Huh? I have control again!" he said. "It's left us."
"Yeah, but where's it gone?" asked Gordon, unfastening himself and coming forwards.
They found out soon enough. Scott cried out in alarm as the orange energy found itself on Thunderbird 1 and formed a shield just as Thunderbolt 5 got a target lock.
"FIRE!" said The Hood. Thunderbolt 5 fired two missiles and Thunderbird 1 pulled away as the missiles lost track of their target and began to speed around looking for a new target. "What?!" exclaimed The Hood. "Where did he go?"
Scott tried to fight the controls. "Guys, Thunderbird 1's been taken over!" But then the energy built up around Thunderbird 1's nose and after turning it around to face the missiles, shot off again, giving control back to Scott. "What the hell's going on?!"
From their positions in the ships and on the ground, everyone watched in bewilderment as the orange energy bolts struck the two missiles, jumping from one to the other and causing them to explode harmlessly before darting over and striking Thunderbolt 5.
An alarm rang out on Techno's computer. "What the?!"
"What is it?" asked Shocker.
"Something's trying to take over Thunderbolt 5!" said Techno. "Boss, shake it off!"
The Hood tried by moving Thunderbolt 5 around. But the energy wouldn't shake off as it continued to hack into the mech's systems. "GAH! Get out of my machine!" he thundered. "Get out! GET OUT!"
But the mysterious energy had other ideas. It soon took full control of Thunderbolt 5 and sent a powerful burst of electricity right through the headpiece that connected The Hood to the machine causing him a horrendous amount of pain. "NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRGGHHH!" he screamed.
"BOSS!" yelled several Cabal members.
"GET HIM OUT! GET HIM OUT!" screeched Silver Swan.
The White Ghost leapt forwards and phased herself through the control platform, grabbing The Hood and getting him out but not without getting a taste of the weird energy herself and causing her to scream. Both hit the floor and the others ran to check on them.
"BOSS?! BOSS?!" shrieked Silver Swan despairingly. "Speak to me! SPEAK TO ME, PLEASE!"
Techno ran a body-scan. "He's alive, Swan," he said. "He's out of it for now though."
Chameleon and Shocker checked on The White Ghost. "Are you okay?" Shocker asked.
The White Ghost looked at her hands. Her body had been in a better state since Grafton had been providing her with treatment for her condition. But the energy seemed to have wiped all that out and she was almost starting to flicker in and out of existence. "Oh, God! OH, GOD!" she whimpered. "I'M GONNA DIE!"
"No, you're not, cut that out, Ghost!" snapped Techno. "Get them to the sub. I'll see the self-destruct. We need to leave."
Begrudgingly, the others agreed. The Black Phantom helped Silver Swan remove The Hood from the room whilst The Shocker and The Chameleon lifted up The White Ghost and carried her out.
Techno stayed behind. He began to desperately try and find a way to release Thunderbolt 5 from the control of the strange energy. "I don't know what you are," he growled. "But whoever made you is gonna pay for this!"
Suddenly there came a zap of energy through the controls and Techno realised to his horror that it had used Thunderbolt 5 to gain access to his system in the underground complex and was taking over all the computers as well as the unfinished mechs waiting nearby.
"No, no, NO! STOP THIS! GET OUT OF MY SYSTEM!" he bellowed.
And then a strange holographic skull appeared on all the computers and from the main projector. Behind it was a spanner and a screwdriver positioned in the shape of crossbones. The jaw moved up and down accompanied by a mechanical and maniacal laugh. Then a countdown appeared on the screen. Whatever it was had just set the self-destruct countdown. But only with ten seconds rather than the two minutes Techno had intended to set.
"RAAAAGH!" Techno bellowed angrily and bolted for the door, sealing it behind him. He'd only just made it before the entire chamber exploded, ripping apart the ground and cliffs around it and sending a mighty fireball high into the air. Huge rocks and boulders crashed down for several miles around both on land and in the sea, although fortunately nothing landed on any buildings or people.
It wasn't just the base that exploded either. The self-destruct had also been set in Thunderbolt 5 and it too blew up right in front of the Thunderbirds. The energy seemed to disappear with it as well as nobody could see it anywhere.
"Is it over?" Alan asked.
Virgil responded after a moment of silence. "You know what I believe it is."
"Thank God for that," remarked Scott. "That was way too intense."
"Yeah, and I bet The Cabal are steaming over this," said Gordon.
"Guys? Guys, can you hear me?"
"Kayo?!" they all said.
"Glad to hear your voice," said Scott. "Where are you?"
"On the ground with Hayley, Captain Thompson and Colonel Jennings," said Kayo. "All civilians were evacuated. Some got injured but nobody died thankfully."
"We were lucky," said Colonel Jennings. "That could have gone a lot worse."
"Well, the Thunderbolts are no more and The Cabal is far away from us," said Scott. "That just leaves one little thing."
"Yes," said Kayo, looking around. "Grafton!"
With the EXPO having been evacuated, Grafton was trying to flee through the mostly empty complex. He did not want to be found by the GDF or International Rescue. He was also getting paranoid. With The Hood having exposed their partnership, he feared repercussions by anyone and everyone. He'd gained a lot of clients and support from many different businesses and companies over the years. The majority had intentions better than most of his and he'd kept those to himself. The revelation that he'd been working with the world's most wanted group of criminals.
He reached a deserted roadway towards the rear of the complex. The perimeter fence was just a few yards away. He felt sure that if he could get out the nearby gates and bribe the guards then he'd make a clean getaway. He double, triple and quadruple checked to make sure the coast was clear before running out across the road. He got halfway across before a figure jumped out of nowhere and tackled him to the ground. Grafton hit his nose against the tarmac and felt it break. Blood trickled out. "AARGH! GODDAMN IT!" he cursed as he tried to shake his attacker off. "GET OFF ME!" He looked up and saw it was Luigi who was now standing over him. Then he sensed someone standing in front of him. He saw a pair of bare legs and looked up. It was Wanda. "Wanda…? What is the meaning of this?!"
"Masquerade is over, Mr Grafton," said Wanda. "We're here to make sure you face justice."
"What does that mean?"
"She-a means that you're going a-down for a long-a time," said Luigi.
"I ain't going nowhere!" snapped Grafton. "You're gonna get me out of here!"
"I don't think so, Mr Grafton," said Wanda. "You've tormented International Rescue for the last time."
Grafton was confused. "But…you hate International Rescue?!" he said. "You backed me up on the plane!"
"Like I said, Mr Grafton," said Wanda. "The masquerade is over. Luigi and I are International Rescue agents, and we're tasked with taking you down. Now do come along peacefully."
Before Grafton could answer, the sound of a car engine caught their attention. Luigi turned to see a saloon car speeding towards them without its headlights on. They came on at the last second. "LOOK OUT!" and he jumped over, getting Wanda out of the way before the car could run them over.
The car skidded to a stop beside Grafton and the driver's door opened. It was Hicks. He pulled Grafton up and bundled him into the back of the car. "I have you, sir. You're safe," Hicks said as he scrambled back into the driver's seat. "Nobody's taking you in." He then revved the engine and the car sped away with a spin of the wheels and squealing of tyres. The car raced off down the road before swerving left around the bend and crashing through the security barrier despite the efforts of security to stop them.
Luigi and Wanda had to hide as security officers started searching the area to find out what the commotion was. They waited until it had quietened down, and then began to make their way back to the arena.
Thunderbirds 1 and 2 were now on the ground. The brothers were out talking to Colonel Jennings, Hayley, Amanda, Captain Liberty and Obsidian as well as the manager of the EXPO.
"I can't apologise enough for this," said the manager, shaking his head over and over again. "I should never have let that man onto the site."
"You couldn't have known, sir," said Scott. "I'm just glad nobody's seriously hurt."
"That was a hell of a risk we took," said Colonel Jennings. "And if I'm honest, I'm not sure it was worth it."
"I disagree," said Kayo. "Grafton's reputation is in tatters. He won't be able to run freely anymore. Now that his secret is out, the global authorities will not double hunt him down."
"There's still the problem of his wife," said Gordon. "She was mad. I doubt we've heard the last of her."
"Yeah, but who's she mad at more?" asked Alan. "Us showing them up or the revelation that her husband isn't the man she thought he was."
"That's an interesting question," agreed Amanda. "Like Mr Tracy said, this is far from over."
Scott looked around at the EXPO site. Small fires were still burning and most of the structures had suffered damage. "What a mess," he said to Captain Liberty.
"Yeah, it's regrettable," agreed Captain Liberty.
Obsidian was there as well. He was looking depressed. "Catherine and I came here when we were younger," he said. "Before we lost our parents and were taken in by The Hood." He looked like he was going to shed some tears. "I wish things were like that still."
Captain Liberty handed him a handkerchief.
"I'm guessing Grafton's gotten away?" said Scott.
"I'm afraid so, Scott."
Everyone turned to see Wanda and Luigi approaching them.
"Errr, who are these guys?" Alan asked.
"I have no idea," replied Gordon.
"Excuse me," said Colonel Jennings. "But all civilians were ordered to evacuate. Why are you two still here?"
"It's okay, Colonel," said Kayo. "They're with us."
"Us?" the brothers, Colonel Jennings, Amanda and Hayley all said at once.
"Indeed," said Wanda. She tapped the face of her wristwatch. With a flicker, she disappeared and was replaced by a very familiar face.
"Lady Penelope?!"
Luigi then did the same with his watch revealing himself to be Parker.
"Wait, what?!" exclaimed Gordon. "What's going on here?"
"It's a long story, Gordon," said Penelope. "And I'd rather tell it somewhere a lot more private than here."
Hayley then noticed that Virgil had been keeping out of the conversation. He was standing near to where Thunderbird 2 was sitting, looking at it with a concerned frown, "Are you okay, love?" she asked.
Virgil turned to face her. "In all honesty, Hayley, I'm not sure," he replied. "Something took control of mine and Scott's ships. I don't like that. I hope Brains and John can find where the hell it came from!"
Grafton's car had managed to slip away from the EXPO without anyone challenging it and was heading down a Freeway away from the New York state and South-West into deeper open country. Grafton was very unsettled. He was twitching. He wanted to try and do or say stuff but couldn't think of what to do.
Hicks eventually spoke. "Sir. Your wife's been trying to call you."
Grafton stopped dead. He looked at the projector in front of him mounted in the back of the driving seat. He had a feeling this wasn't going to go well. Sure enough an incoming call message came up. It was from Larissa. Grafton closed his eyes and readied himself before pressing the accept button. The hologram of Larissa appeared. She was as red in the face as her dress. "Ah, my love. Did you make it-"
"DON'T YOU DARE CALL ME THAT!" Larissa's voice shrieked through the car, even making the tough Hicks flinch. "HOW COULD YOU?!"
"How could I what?"
"DON'T PLAY DUMB WITH ME, WARREN!" shouted Larissa. "YOU HIRED CRIMINALS?!"
"It was necessary!" said Grafton.
"WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN?!"
"THEY HATE INTERNATIONAL RESCUE AS MUCH AS WE DO!" Grafton bellowed back, now getting filled with anger himself. "WE DIDN'T HAVE WHAT IT TOOK TO TAKE THEM DOWN! WE HAD A PLAN TO FINALLY GET US WHAT WE DESIRED!"
"THEY ARE CRIMINALS, WARREN!" thundered Larissa. "AND WHY THEM?! THEY'RE THE MOST DANGEROUS PEOPLE ON THE PLANET! YOU WANT TO BE CLASSED AS A CRIMINAL YOURSELF?!"
"I AM NOT A CRIMINAL, DAMN IT, WOMAN!" roared Grafton. "WHY THE HELL DO YOU THINK I ASKED YOU TO MARRY ME?! BECAUSE YOU WOULD KEEP THE LAW OFF MY BACK!"
Larissa's glaring eyes didn't phase Grafton. Nor did his equally deadly stare phase her in any way. "You have done the unthinkable," she said in a low voice. "You've allied yourself with the very kind of people that I dedicated my career to PUTTING AWAY FOREVER!"
"WELL HOW WOULD YOU HAVE DONE IT?!" Grafton bellowed. "TELL ME THAT?!"
Larissa didn't answer for a second. She composed herself. "I would have found a better way," she said. "Have you ANY idea what this revelation is going to do to us?"
"I am a rich man and my wife is an attorney," growled Grafton. "I expect us to do what we always do. Get the results we WANT!"
Larissa lifted up her hand and removed her wedding ring in plain view of her husband. "Correction - your ex-wife is an attorney," she said darkly. "One who will be filing for an immediate divorce and will be laying claim to everything you own!"
Grafton went pale. "What? NO! STOP IT! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!"
Larissa threw the ring down on the floor. "Watch me…ex-husband," she said. "Goodbye, Warren." And with that the call ended.
"Larissa? LARISSA?!" bellowed Grafton. "DON'T HANG UP ON ME!"
"I think she already has, sir," said Hicks. "What's our next move?"
But for once, Grafton had no idea. He did however know of one thing. He buried his face in his hands. "I'm finished…"
The International Rescue team had now returned to Tracy Island. Lady Penelope and Parker had gone there as well and they were gathered in the lounge whilst Colonel Jennings gave them an update. "Looks like The Cabal must have known we'd figure out their location," she was saying. "There's a heck of a big hole in the ground just along the coast from the Grafton residence."
"Any sign of Grafton or his family?" asked Jeff.
"Negative," replied Colonel Jennings. "But I've put out an alert to all global law enforcement. Warren Grafton is a wanted man, and with that wife of his, we cannot afford to let her try and protect him. That's even if she's still on his side."
"I highly doubt it, Colonel," said Kayo. "As a person of the law, I doubt she's taken well to the fact that her husband has been associating himself with criminals - especially The Cabal."
"He can run, but he won't be able to hide forever," said Colonel Jennings. "But we might well need the help of you and Lady Penelope again to bring them in."
"If you get leads, Colonel, just give us a call," said Penelope.
Colonel Jennings nodded. "Will do, Lady Penelope," she said. "Get some rest. You've all earned it."
"I second that, boys," said Jeff. "That was probably one of our most toughest missions ever."
"You can say that again," agreed Scott.
"I'm still trying to get over the fact that Lady Penelope and Parker were aboard Grafton's flight just to get tabs on him!" said Alan.
"Yes, Mr Alan, sir," said Parker. "I was h'aboard the plane and I took care of some h'off the engines."
"Not enough to make the plane crash," Penelope said. "But enough for them to send out a distress call."
"We knew the Thunderbolts would react, but it proved they would take longer to react to a situation that they hadn't caused," said Kayo.
Gordon turned to Jeff. "Did you know about any of this, Dad?" he asked.
"Who do you think approved it, son?" Jeff replied.
Gordon was speechless.
"Dad…no offence, but that was damn risky," said Scott. "That could've gone wrong."
"And now you know why I ordered you to go out there, son," said Jeff. "I'm sorry. It's regrettable. But I knew you'd get there first. You always do."
Scott wasn't sure how to respond to that, so he didn't try.
Virgil didn't seem remotely concerned by anything that anyone had been saying. He was still wearing the concerned frown that Hayley had caught him with. Alan and Gordon had been quick to note that he'd not said a word during the flight home.
"Something on your mind, Virgil?" asked Grandma.
"You could say that," said Virgil. "Brains, do you have any idea what that weird energy was?"
"I'm afraid n-not, Virgil," answered Brains. "I scanned every single piece of d-data from our system. But it has completely v-vanished. There's no t-trace of it."
"Why are you so worked up about it, Virg?" asked Alan. "We'd have been killed if it hadn't taken over Thunderbird 2."
"That's besides my concern, Alan," replied Virgil. "I do not like having control of my ship taken from me. No matter who or what it might be."
"You have every right to be concerned, Virgil," said Jeff. "But whatever it was, or whoever was behind it, keeps to themselves in future. Even if they did help us out."
As the International Rescue team headed to bed for their well-earned rests, none of them could have known that the source of the energy was right under their noses, for it was lying on the bed in the medical section of Brains's lab.