SCOTT was horrified when he realised what had happened. "GUYS?! VIRGIL?! BRAINS?!"
"SCOTT!" Virgil cried. "QUICK, PULL US BACK!"
Fear running through his veins, Scott spun the Pod around on the spot before activating the crane arm on the top. He then reversed towards Virgil's pod and lowered the grapple magnet to attach to it. "Hang on!" he said as he heard Brains whimpering over the radio. He revved the engine and the tracks spun, kicking up more snow as he used all the power it had to pull Virgil and Brains back to safety.
Once they were safe, everyone breathed out in relief.
"Th-Thanks, Scott," panted Brains.
As Scott detached the crane, he began to become overwhelmed with guilt. "Guys, I'm so sorry," he said to them. "I shouldn't have gotten so close to you."
"Scott, it's fine," said Virgil. "I allowed you to come closer. Forget about it."
Scott managed a small smile, but the thought of what could have happened was still playing on his mind. "How far are we from the explorers, Brains?" he asked, trying to change the subject.
Brains checked MAX's scanners. "We're c-close," he said. "Another t-two miles. But we'll have to ditch the Pods about half a mile and g-go in on foot. The ledges aren't w-wide enough for them."
"F-A-B," said Scott. "Lead us on, MAX."
MAX warbled again in response. He moved aside to allow Virgil to use the snowplough on the front of his Pod to clear the snow away then took the lead again for the last part of the journey to the trapped explorers.
The last two miles were a gruelling struggle against the heavy snow. MAX's all-terrain abilities were tested as he went up and over them.
"This is as f-far as we can go," Brains said at last.
"Did you catch that, Scott?" Virgil asked.
"F-A-B," Scott answered as both brothers brought their vehicles to a stop. Scott had deliberately stayed a bit further back just as a precaution.
The two brothers and Brains climbed out and followed MAX along the last part of the trail towards the location of the trapped explorers.
"Hey, Virg. You want to know something weird?"
"Go on?"
"Those that are crazy enough to explore places like this wear specially made clothes and yet still feel the cold. Yet here we are, wearing the exact same suits we wear on all missions - and we're not cold at all."
"Hmm," Virgil said. "Never thought of it that way, Scott."
"We're c-close," said Brains. "Get ready."
The Mardon Team had lost all track of time. They were trying to huddle under the overhanging part of the ice bridge in a vain attempt to have shelter. Everyone was going dumb from the cold and they were shivering all over.
"I r-really h-hope th-they g-get here s-s-soon," shivered Dave.
"I'm r-r-r-really c-c-c-cold," added Tanya.
Mike was out in the open, trying to rub himself warm despite the pain he felt in his arm. It was at that moment that his ears picked up an unusual whirring sound coming from above them. "G-G-Guys, I th-think I c-can hear s-s-something a-a-above us!"
The others listened. "I c-c-can't h-h-hear anything," said Dave.
"W-W-Wait, I c-c-can!" said Simon. He crawled out for he couldn't stand on his injured ankle. Tanya and Dave followed and all four looked up towards the ledge to see if they could get a glimpse of what was making the noise. At first they couldn't see anything. But then…
"HOLY-"
"OH, MY GOD!"
"AAAAAAH!"
"WHAT THE HELL?!"
A strange creature had appeared on the top of the ledge. It looked bulky with two legs and was covered in white. Most disconcerting of all though was the fact it only appeared to have one eye which was glowing white.
"W-W-W-What is th-th-that?!" gasped Tanya, her eyes wide with alarm.
"It c-c-c-can't p-p-p-possibly b-b-be!" stammered Dave.
"THE AB-AB-ABOMINABLE S-S-S-SNOWMAN!" they cried together.
"Oh, MAX, you're c-c-covered!"
The explorers stopped trembling with fear and exchanged bewildered looks with one another. Then as they looked up again, they saw three other figures standing beside the first as they brushed the snow off it.
"HEY, THERE!" Virgil called down with a wave. "INTERNATIONAL RESCUE! SORRY IT TOOK US SO LONG TO GET HERE!"
None of the Mardon team responded. They just sat dumbfounded, staring up at them.
"I think MAX might have startled them, Brains," observed Scott.
"It would appear s-so," said Brains. "MAX, show them you mean n-no harm."
MAX waved his right arm at the explorers who remained completely stunned.
"How exactly are we going to get them out, Brains?" Virgil asked.
Brains smiled. "You shall see, V-Virgil," he replied. "MAX…f-fire!"
MAX aimed his arms downwards then fired both his robotic hands off, reeling out lengths of cable behind them. They attached themselves to the ice and dug in. He also lowered a drill out from his underbelly and dug it into the ice, holding him firmly in place.
"Now, t-take those sliders on his arms and slide down to them," Brains instructed.
Scott and Virgil looked at each other, and then at the cables.
"I sure hope these can take our weight," said Virgil uneasily.
"You'll be f-fine," said Brains reassuringly.
"I trust him, Virgil," said Scott as he took hold of one of the sliders on MAX's right arm. Virgil took the left. "On three. One, two, three!"
"WOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" they both said as they slid down the cables before landing on the ice below and amongst the startled explorers.
"Which of you guys have injuries?" Scott asked once they'd reached the bottom.
"S-Simon and M-Mike," said Dave, indicating to the men in the yellow and green suits.
"Let me check you," Virgil said to Mike. "Where does it hurt?"
"M-My a-a-arm," replied Mike.
"And you, sir?" Scott said to Simon.
"A-Ankle."
The brothers got out their medical scan tools and checked the two men.
"You might feel some discomfort but it's not broken," said Virgil. "Brains, how do we get everyone back up to the ledge?"
"Just get them to h-hold on to MAX's sliders and he'll pull them up," Brains answered over the radio.
"That simple, huh?" said Scott. "You two had better go up first."
They helped Simon and Mike up and over to MAX's cables where they held onto the sliders. Simon had to stand on his good foot whilst Mike did what he could to ignore the pain in his arm.
"They're ready, Brains!" said Virgil.
"G-Gentlemen, hold tight, please," said Brains.
The sliders began to move back up the cables thanks to little wheels and motors inside of them. They pulled Mike and Simon up, and both momentarily forgot about their injuries.
"WAY-HEY!" said Mike.
"WOOOOOO-HOOOOOOO!" jeered Simon.
In no time at all, both men were at the top and Brains helped them off.
"Th-Thank you," said Mike gratefully.
"D-Don't thank us yet," Brains replied. "Let's get your c-colleagues out of there first."
Tanya and Dave had no injuries but were still very cold. They waited with Scott and Virgil as MAX sent the sliders back down to them.
Virgil began to frown as he heard an ominous cracking sound. "Say, Scott, do you hear that?" he asked.
"Yeah, I do," replied Scott. He began to scan the ground below them with the heads-up display inside his helmet. "Er, Brains, we'd better hurry this up. I think the edge of this crevice is about to fall!"
"Go! GO!" Virgil urged Tanya and Dave as MAX winched them up - a lot quicker than he had done with Simon and Mike.
As they waited for the sliders to come back for them, Virgil and Scott felt their hearts leap as the ground beneath their feet began to rumble and shudder violently.
"It's gonna go!" Virgil exclaimed.
"Grab MAX's cables!" said Scott urgently. "NOW!"
Both men jumped forwards and grabbed the cables, just as the ice beneath them gave way with a huge rumble and a roar.
"WOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!"
MAX immediately began to reel his hands back in, pulling Scott and Virgil up with him. Tanya and Dave along with Brains were on hand to assist them get back onto solid ground.
"Phew!" gasped Scott. "That was way too close."
"Thanks, MAX," said Virgil. "You're-"
"A hero!" said Brains, hugging his robot proudly. "M-Max…imum effort!"
"Did…he just make a pun?" Simon asked his teammates.
"Yes…" said Dave. "He did…"
Jeff and Gordon headed back to the Tracy Jet which was still parked on the grass near the front of the mansion. "I hope all goes well with Tiger's restoration, Pat," he said. "Let me know how it's going."
"Of course, Jeff," said Patrick.
"You sure we can't persuade you to stay for dinner?" asked Patricia.
"Would love to, but unfortunately duty calls," replied Jeff.
"Of course," she said with a smile.
Gordon and Penelope held hands and rested their heads together. "I wish I could stay."
"Me too," she replied. "But your duty with International Rescue comes first. There might be someone in need of a man in a little yellow submarine very soon."
Gordon broke a smile. "I love you," he said.
"Love you," Penelope replied and they kissed.
The three Creighton-Wards watched the jet take off once Gordon and Jeff were aboard.
Both Patrick and Patricia could see the sadness in their daughter at Gordon having to leave. "Cheer up, sweetheart," Patricia said, putting her arm around your daughter. "We'll arrange for him to come stay some time."
"And for you to go out there," said Patrick.
Penelope smiled gratefully. "You think you can manage two sets of lovers in the house at the same time?" she asked.
Patrick chuckled. "Easily, my dear," he said. "Easily."
The teams made it back to the Pods with Virgil carrying Simon to keep the weight off his foot. They put him in the back seat of Scott's Pod whilst Tanya, Dave and Mike were helped into the container on the back of Virgil's. Then with MAX leading once again, they headed back down the route they'd come, just as carefully as when they'd come to where Thunderbirds 1 and 2 were waiting. They found both ships partially buried in the snow so had to fire up their thrusters to melt it before they could gain access.
Once inside Thunderbird 2, the Mardon Team was put onto heat beds to warm them up.
"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, yes," said Dave as he felt the coldness leave his body. "That's so much better."
"Yeah…I need a cup of tea," said Tanya.
"Seriously, Tanya?" said Mike. "We just met an Abominable Snowman and all you can think about is a cup of tea?!"
Simon laughed. "It wasn't an actual Abominable Snowman, Mike," he said. "It was just a very helpful robot." MAX then appeared beside Simon's bed. "Hello, robot," he said.
MAX warbled in response.
With their guests comfortable, Thunderbird 2 lifted off for the nearest hospital. "I'm getting these people to hospital. See you back at the ranch, Thunderbird 1," said Virgil.
"F-A-B, Thunderbird 2."
Virgil and Brains watched as Thunderbird 1 turned away from Thunderbird 2 and then disappeared off into the distance.
"Is h-he okay?" Brains asked.
"As far as I know," replied Virgil. "What makes you ask?"
"I'm n-not sure, Virgil," Brains answered. "It's just…he seemed a little d-different than usual. Not as talkative. Not as…careless…as he sometimes is. Like he's got s-something on his mind."
Virgil thought for a moment. Then he had a thought. But he didn't feel like revealing it to Brains.
Scott arrived back on Tracy Island and headed up to the house. Jeff and Gordon were back and in the lounge talking with Grandma. Alan was in there as well, and Scott hadn't failed to notice that Alan was sitting as far away from Gordon as possible and playing a game so he didn't have to look at him.
"Ah, Scott!" said Jeff, noticing his eldest son. "John informed me you were on a mission. How did it go?"
"Complete success, Dad," Scott replied. "All four explorers were rescued, thanks to Brains and MAX. Those upgrades to MAX sure saved the day. And us."
"Us?" repeated Grandma.
"Oh, the ice we were standing on fell out from under our feet but we grabbed onto MAX and he pulled us back up again."
"Well, I'm mighty glad to hear that," said Jeff. "Thunderbird 2?"
"Virgil's taken the explorers to hospital," said Scott. "One had a twisted ankle and one had a bruised arm. They were very lucky."
"I'll say," said Gordon.
"How was Lady Penelope and Parker?" asked Scott.
"Parker's doing fine, son," said Jeff. "And Hayley was right. He does seem to have an attraction to the Sister on the ward he's on."
"Wow…" said Scott. "His rough exterior must have broken."
The others laughed.
"Go have a hot shower and warm up, Scott," said Grandma as she walked over to him. "I'll have dinner ready for when Virgil and Brains get back."
"Okay, Grandma," he said and headed up the stairs to his room.
Scott was feeling relaxed as he reached the top, but then realised someone was standing at the top. He looked up and gasped, stopping dead.
"Hiya, Scott," said Kayo with a warm smile.
Scott went white. He tried speaking but nothing came out of his mouth.
Kayo gave a puzzled frown. "Scott? Are you okay?"
"Er, yes!" he said hastily. "Yes, I'm fine. Excuse me. Shower!" He hastily moved around Kayo and scampered off to his room, leaving a rather confused Kayo behind him.