Previously on…THUNDERBIRDS ARE GO!

John sees a series of mysterious green lights erupting from the surface of Mars

Lady Penelope and astronomer Ogilvy fail to convince anyone that there is a danger to Earth

Thunderbird 3 discovers the first of a series of cylinders flying through space

The first of the cylinders crash-lands in England and is revealed to have Rock Snakes inside

Thunderbird 2 destroys the cylinder and Rock Snakes after they start to attack

Penelope and Parker are visited by a soldier whose unit was supposedly wiped out by Rock Snakes

After helping evacuate the nearby village, Penelope, Parker and Hayley witness the Rock Snakes attack resulting in Parker being injured, the village of Creighton destroyed and Penelope becoming separated from the others

Despite the efforts of the GDF and International Rescue, they are unable to find Penelope who instead is found by a train driver

Penelope finds herself in London and after escaping the train tries to find her parents but witnesses a second cylinder crashing into Kensington Gardens

Thunderbirds 1 and 2 attempt to remove the cylinder before the Rock Snakes can get out but find they're already too late

After failing to find her parents, Penelope chases a purse-snatching thief dressed as Santa and hands him over to the Police just before the Rock Snakes start their attack on the city

The Rock Snakes cause havoc in London, breaking Penelope and Gordon apart following a brief reunion and damaging Thunderbird 2 forcing its retreat

Thunderbird 1 destroys the Rock Snakes but then more appear out of nowhere

Penelope finds herself in a hospital camp in Kent and almost reunites with her parents when she sees them aboard a Paddle-Steamer heading out to sea

A group of Rock Snakes appear and attack the fleeing vessels but are destroyed by the warship HMS Verulam but it later proves ineffective as a whole new group appear out of nowhere and destroys the ship and the hospital camp

Penelope is now lost and alone in the countryside of England with nobody able to help her.


5!

4!

3!

2!

1!

"Thunderbirds Are Go!"


"WAR OF THE WORLDS" Part 2

CHRISTMAS had been without a doubt a very depressing time for so many people, especially those who lived in the United Kingdom. Those who hadn't managed to escape the country in ships were forced into hiding to try and avoid attacks by the Rock Snakes whilst those who had managed to escape were now in other countries where they were made as welcome as possible. Ireland, France, Spain, Belgium, Holland and Norway had all taken people in whilst several thought hiding in Wales and Scotland was better despite the fact both countries were connected to England.

Huge groups of Army and GDF forces were deployed along the borders of these two countries as well in a vain attempt to try and prevent the Rock Snakes from spreading out further. The Prime Minister and the President of France also made the somewhat bold decision to have the Channel Tunnel sealed off at both ends in the hope of preventing the Rock Snakes from using it to get across the channel to mainland Europe.

Many air attacks to try and dispose of the Rock Snakes had taken place around Christmas Eve and most of Christmas Day, but all it seemed to achieve was make the Rock Snakes multiply and not even the scientific people in the United Nations and Unity City could come up with an explanation as to why. Casualties were high as well as some group and air units as well as some naval ones fell victim to the Rock Snakes own attacks and by the end of Boxing Day, the World President decided enough was enough. He declared the United Kingdom a No-Go Zone forbidding any aircraft or ship to go anywhere near the country. This left those left in England, Scotland and Wales alone to fend for themselves. Northern Ireland remained unaffected. All the people in the military forces and those civilians in hiding could do nothing but wait and prepare themselves for a battle to the death with the Rock Snakes. But it was an attack that didn't come.

John in Thunderbird 5 looked thoughtfully at the holographic satellite imagery of the UK. On it were well over a thousand orange dots displayed. These represented the heat signatures from the Rock Snakes. There were so many scattered around England that he'd decided it wasn't worth counting. As he flew the space-station over the country from the safety of orbit, he took several long-range photos from a powerful camera underneath and then sent them back to Tracy Island as well as bringing in both The World President and Colonel Jennings to brief them on what he had found.

"What are they doing?" The World President asked in confusion, gazing at the mysterious rock coils that littered the countryside.

"What Rock Snakes do most of the time, Mr World President," answered John. "Sleep."

"You mean all we needed to do was just leave them be?" asked Colonel Jennings.

"Maybe that would have been the better option," remarked Jeff. "We still have no idea how they're able to multiply the way they have."

"It seems to happen after they get destroyed," said Scott. "That's what the reports from the battle down near the mouth of the Thames and from what we saw in London seem to say."

"That sounds a very far-fetched idea, Tracy," said Colonel Jennings. "Killing them should simply just kill them, right?"

"We're d-dealing with life that we don't fully understand, C-Colonel," said Brains. "Nobody has ever b-been able to study a Rock Snake and understand its physiology."

"Could this be the perfect time to get one?" asked Alan. "If we get hold of one and make sure it doesn't wake up then perhaps-"

"No," The World President said. "They just need to be disposed of. But how we do that is still to be figured out."

"With respect, sir," said Jeff. "Getting hands on one might be the only way to figure that out. I'm sure we could do it if we're careful now that Thunderbird 2 has been repaired."

The World President shook his head. "I'm sorry, Jeff. I really am," he said. "But too many lives have been lost to those creatures. I'd hate to lose anyone else…especially you guys. The world needs you." He turned away for a second. "My apologies. I have a meeting. Will be in touch later." He then signed off before anyone else could say anything.

"I'm surprised he's that unwilling," observed Virgil.

"Should we do it anyway, Dad?" asked Scott.

Jeff shook his head. "No, son. I'm afraid what he says is final," he said. "I've known the World President for a very long time and we have a lot of trust in one another. I am not prepared to break that."

"Well, something has to be done," said Kayo. "We can't just leave those poor people in England at the mercy of the Rock Snakes."

"But the snakes aren't doing anything," said Alan, pointing to the photos. "You can see for yourself. They're just sitting there."

"But it only takes for one to be disturbed and then the attack will start again," said John. "It's far too risky."

"Then what do we do?" asked Virgil.

Silence fell for a moment as everyone tried to figure something out.

The Mechanic had been standing in the shadows like he normally did. As he watched them all racking their brains for an idea, he stepped forward and made himself known. "If you can't go to England and deal with the Rock Snakes there," he said. "Maybe you could focus on the main problem?"

"Main problem?" repeated Scott. "What would that be?"

"To try and figure out how they got here," said The Mechanic as he reached the middle table where Brains was. He swiped away the photos and brought up a hologram image of Mars. "They came in those cylinders. But how? Those things don't have arms. They can't have built them."

"He's r-right!" said Brains. "Someone will have b-built the cylinders, somehow managed to capture those on Mars and load them inside before l-launching them at Earth!"

"But who would be crazy enough to do such a thing?" asked Virgil.

Alan jumped to his feet. "The Cabal!" he declared.

Everyone stared at him. "Really, Alan?" said Kayo with raised eyebrows.

"Aw, come on, Kayo!" replied Alan. "You heard Virgil and John say how insane The Hood went after he discovered he'd failed to kill Virgil and Hayley. This has the signs of a crazed lunatic written all over it!"

The others all looked at each other.

"Your theory isn't impossible, Alan," said Brains. "But I f-find it hard to believe personally."

"Yeah, sorry, Alan, I'm not buying that either," agreed Scott. "We haven't heard a thing from The Cabal since that day."

"Exactly!" said Alan. "It's been months since we heard from them. Perfect amount of time for them to get to Mars and come up with something diabolical like this."

Grandma then spoke up. "Actually, Alan, you're just talking baloney," she said. "You know what day that was, right?"

"Yeah, it was John's birthday."

"And when did John see the first launching of the green gas?" asked Grandma.

"Errrrr…I dunno?"

"It was about a week later roughly," said John.

"Which is nowhere near enough time for The Cabal to have gotten out to Mars, especially after the beating they took from us," said Virgil.

Alan sat back down and folded his arms in a sulk. He muttered something but nobody could make it out.

Jeff then spoke again. "That theory might be far-fetched, but I do believe The Mechanic has the right idea," he said. "John, when was the last time you spoke to the Mars colony?"

"About a month ago I think," said John. "Dr Travers claimed they had no knowledge of anything unusual going on on the planet."

"Which is highly suspicious in itself," said Kayo. "They're the only ones living on the planet and they have very sophisticated systems. They'd have known if anything unusual was going on."

"Unless she was being forced to say that…" Jeff thought out loud. "John, how did Dr Travers seem when she talked?"

"She sounded like she always does," said John. "She didn't sound uneasy or anything."

This only confused everyone even more.

"This smells very off to me," said Colonel Jennings. "Maybe you guys do need to investigate. We certainly can't allow whoever is behind this to send more Rock Snakes to Earth."

"Agreed," said Jeff. "Leave it to us, Colonel."

Colonel Jennings nodded. "Make sure the World President knows what you're doing," she said. "Good luck." She then signed off.

Jeff turned to face the others. "Okay, this is what we're gonna do," he said. "Brains, I'd like you and The Mechanic to get as much survival equipment and supplies as is physically possible to get aboard Thunderbird 3. Better make sure that the Maximum MAX node is added as well just in case it is needed."

"Yes, Mr T-Tracy," said Brains. "Let's go, Juan."

"F-A-B," said The Mechanic as he and Brains left the lounge.

"Hmm," remarked Scott once they'd gone. "Never heard him say that before."

"Sounds weird, doesn't it?" agreed Virgil.

Jeff now addressed them. "Boys, Kayo, this is a big one. Probably one of the most difficult we've faced together."

"More so than the Oort Cloud and Venus?" asked Alan."

"On par perhaps then," said Jeff. "We have no idea what we're going to be facing out there so the more we can take and the more of us who can go the better. So Alan, Scott and Kayo, get an early night. We'll be blasting off at dawn tomorrow."

"We're?" said Scott.

"Yes, son. I'm coming as well," said Jeff.

"You are?!" said Grandma, alarmed. "But, Jeff-"

"But, nothing, Mother," snapped Jeff. "My best friend is out there. And the fact we've heard nothing from him about this cements the fact something is very wrong out there." His stern expression turned into one of concern. "If…Lee's still even with us…"

"Oh, man…" said Alan. "I forgot Captain Taylor's still seriously ill."

John listened to what was going on with interest, keen to know what the rest would get to do. EOS then spoke up. "John…"

"Yes, EOS?"

"Ask him."

"Ask him what?"

"Ask if you can go as well," EOS said. "You did say you've always wanted to see Mars."

John was taken aback by this. "But, EOS, I…"

"Go on," she urged. "Thunderbird 5 won't be unmanned. I'll still be here."

"Only four of you though," Virgil's voice was heard to say. "That's still quite low."

"Well we could fit one more in Thunderbird 3's cockpit," said Alan.

"No, Virgil, I need you here," said Jeff. "As hard as it may be, International Rescue will likely have other situations to deal with whilst we're gone. So I need some of you to stay behind."

"That's only me, Gordon and John then," said Virgil.

"Yeah…if Gordon ever comes out…" said Scott.

Gordon hadn't been seen since they'd come back from London and had verbally threatened Jeff if anything happened to Lady Penelope for she was one of the many people who remained unaccounted for.

"He will," said Grandma. "I'll make sure he does."

"Very well then," said Jeff. "I admit, one extra pair of hands would be appreciated, but-"

"I'll come."

All eyes turned in surprise towards the hologram of John.

"John?" said Jeff. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, Dad," said John. "I'm about the only one of us besides Grandma who's never been to Mars. And EOS will still be aboard Thunderbird 5 so she can direct any distress calls to the island."

Everyone looked at each other again.

"Very well, son," said Jeff. "Do you want to come down here and board or shall we stop by and pick you up from Thunderbird 5 in the morning?"

"I'll come down tonight," said John. "It'll be better than wasting time transferring between the two ships."

"That's settled then," said Jeff. "Everyone get some rest. Blast-off, dawn tomorrow!"


Grandma went upstairs and along to the door that led into Gordon's bedroom. She knocked on it. "Gordon!" she called through. No answer came. She wasn't surprised. Gordon had ignored everyone who'd tried to get him to come out. Even her and Jeff. "Listen to me very carefully, boy," she said. "Your father, three of your brothers and Kayo are heading to Mars first thing tomorrow morning. This'll just leave you and Virgil behind on Earth to carry out any rescues that come in. And you WILL pull your weight, do you understand me?" Still no answer. "You'd better come out of there very soon, kid," Grandma finished off. "Or else I will have to get Brains to open this door for me. And lord help you if it comes to that!" She turned and walked away.

Inside the room, Gordon, hiding under his bedsheet, had heard everything, and had very mixed feelings about it.


It was the afternoon of New Year's Eve, and Lady Penelope, against all the odds, had managed to stay alive by sourcing what food she could get hold of out in the wilderness of England. After finding an abandoned barn to shelter in from Christmas Day. She lived off a few chicken eggs as well as some food from a farmer's market which, like the rest of the farm, had been abandoned by its owners. But she quickly began to realise that the air attacks had stopped telling her something major had had to have happened for them to be stopped. I have to somehow get a message to International Rescue, she thought to herself. It's been so long. They will all be wondering where I am. Especially Gordon. Poor Gordon. I hope he's not in too much of a mess over me. And Parker. I wonder how he's doing? Hope Hayley's been able to get him out of the country as well. Oh, dear. You never realise how much you depend on someone until they're taken from you. She sat on a fence looking across a field. In the far distance was just visible the town of Chatham which no doubt was probably abandoned as well. The snakes have destroyed most power stations and communication hubs, she thought. Maybe I should get back to London and see if I can find an underground communication station that might have been left untouched by the Rock Snakes. She shivered as some bitter cold wind blew past her. She looked up at the sky and the dark clouds that were coming in from the East. Those look threatening. She thought to herself. I'd better get going. I have a bad feeling that snow is on the way.

Among the many things abandoned at the farm was an old Land Rover. Penelope had managed to find the keys hidden inside the glovebox and used it to start the engine. She then set off down the road, hoping that the path to London would remain snake-free.


There was a village not far from the farm she'd been taking cover at. Driving through, she saw nobody. Not even a left-behind cat or anything. It was eerie and unsettling. As she went down the high street, she found herself slightly sickened by the sight of several smashed windows as those left behind had raided the shops for any food and clothes they could get their hands. Even though it was done as a means of survival, she still didn't like seeing it.

On the other side of the village and up a hill, she noticed something that made her slow down. There was smoke coming from behind the trees. Fearing there could be danger nearby, she slowed down and crept around a corner to see what it was. It turned out to be the village church. It looked as though it had been burning for a little while. The roof was gone and most of the walls seemed to have collapsed. Only the end wall and the bell tower remained standing. Penelope knew there wasn't much she could do so was about to drive on when something else caught her eye. "Oh my!" she exclaimed out loud and slammed on the brake. The Land Rover came to a sudden stop and she got out. Hurrying around into the churchyard, she saw what looked like a figure in black robes lying on the ground about twenty metres from the end wall of the church. There was no mistaking what the figure was. It was a vicar. He was mostly bald but had some hair around the back of his neck. His face and robes were stained with dirt and a little bit of blood. He was lying flat out on his back clutching a Bible in his right hand and a cross in the other. Both were placed across his chest. He was completely motionless like he had laid down to allow himself to perish. Penelope walked around and bent down beside him. His chest didn't appear to be moving up and down and what was visible of his skin was very pale. "Poor guy," Penelope said mournfully. "He's probably frozen to death out here. I can't leave him like this. I should bury him with honour and dignity."

Despite there still being some flames from the ruined church spitting out over the tops of the damaged walls, Penelope began to search the grounds for a shovel. She found one propped up against a nearby Oak Tree which hadn't been touched by any sparks from the fire. Penelope looked at the piece of open grass between the tree and the gravel path that linked the road to the church.

Here seems as good a place as any, she thought to herself as she pushed the blade of the shovel into the ground to start digging a makeshift grave for the vicar.

"NATHANIEL?!"

Penelope stopped dead and looked around. The cry of a woman's voice had been heard from somewhere behind the church. Then she noticed a woman in a dark blue outdoor winter coat, brown trousers, a pink woolly hat and wellington boots emerge from around the far wall of the building. The woman then let out a gasp of horror at the sight of the vicar lying on the ground. "NATHANIEL!" She ran towards him and dropped down to her knees.

Penelope put down the shovel and hurried over. "Hello?" she said.

The woman looked up. "Oh, thank goodness! Help me!" she pleaded. "We have to help him."

"I think we're already too late for that," said Penelope, looking at the vicar. "He's already d-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"

Both Penelope and the woman screamed as well but in surprise as the vicar suddenly sat bolt upright and let out a bellow.

"Good heavens!" exclaimed Penelope in shock. "He's still alive?!"

"Nathaniel!" the woman said. "You're alive! Oh, thank-"

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" the vicar exclaimed, scrambling back away from her.

"But it's me, Jessica, you're wife!"

"NO, YOU'RE NOT! YOU'RE ONE OF THEM! THE DEMONS THAT FELL FROM THE SKY!"

"Oh, he's delirious!" groaned Jessica.

The vicar scrambled to his feet. "I SAW THEM! THEY CAME FROM THE SKY! IT'S A SIGN! GOD IS ANGRY WITH US! WE HAVE SINNED! HE'S SENT THEM TO WIPE US ALL OUT!"

Penelope couldn't believe what she was seeing or hearing. A man of God losing his mind? It didn't seem possible. A man like him should be what the people left in the country would need for guidance, she thought.

Jessica ran in and held Nathaniel tightly. "Nathaniel, darling! It's me, Jess. I thought you were dead! I saw the church go up in flames and-"

"It's the end, isn't it?" Nathaniel cut her off. "God has his ways of making us pay for what we have done."

"You're not making a lot of sense," Jessica said.

Penelope felt a drop of what felt like rain on her nose. She looked up at the clouds which were getting darker. The wind whistled through the leafless trees and the bitterness of it went right through the thick coat she was wearing. "Sorry to interrupt, but we ought to take shelter," she said.

"Agreed," said Jessica. "That cottage is our home. We can go there. Could you help me, please?"

Penelope helped Jessica guide her still stuttering husband away from the ruined church and across the road to the cottage on the other side. The door was open and Jess took Nathaniel inside whilst Penelope moved the Land Rover around into an open farmyard round the back. There were no animals to be seen anywhere. The sheds and barn looked derelict compared to the cottage which looked warm and cosy.


Once she'd made her way in through the back door, Penelope went into the living room where she found Jess had made Nathaniel comfortable in an old armchair and covered him in blankets which she gathered wood to make a fire from in the fireplace.

"Thank you for finding him," Jessica said.

"No, thank you for waking him up," Penelope said as she took off her coat. "I didn't check and believed him to have frozen to death. I was just about to dig him a grave when I heard you call out for him."

"God, I was so scared," said Jess. "I don't know what caused the church to explode like that. It was probably one of those things that fell from the sky - whatever they are."

"Rock Snakes," said Penelope. "They're called Rock Snakes, Jess. And they're not a punishment from God, I can tell you that. They're from Mars."

Jess looked at her, confused. "How do you know that?" she asked.

"Because I've seen them before," Penelope said as she looked out of the window across the fields in the fading light. "I went to Mars last year. They're without a doubt the most terrifying things I've ever seen."

Jessica wasn't entirely sure she believed what Penelope was saying. "Yeah…sorry, lady, I don't think I caught your name? But I'm not exactly buying that claim. No offence."

"None taken. I didn't think you would. Would you believe me if I said I was Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward?"

Jessica looked at her again. "Sorry, but…no, I wouldn't," she said. "You're a member of the high society and all of them would have managed to get out of the country whilst us lower people get left behind to fend for ourselves."

Penelope sighed quietly to herself. "That, Jessica, I'm afraid, is where you're wrong," she said. "I am Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward, and whilst my mother and father made it out of the country safely, I wasn't able to. I'm as stuck here as you are."

Jessica wasn't sure what to say in response.

"ULLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Both women froze like statues. Nathaniel, who'd seemed to have been asleep in the chair suddenly jumped up and stared upwards at the ceiling.

Jessica dropped fully to her knees and began to pray. "Dear God, help us!" she cried.

"THE CRY OF THE DEVIL!" yelled Nathaniel.

"Shhhh!" Penelope hissed. "Keep it down. Do you have a cellar?"

"Yes," said Jessica.

"Then go down in it, both of you!" Penelope ordered.

Jessica grabbed her husband and ushered him away down into the cellar. Penelope made sure every light was off and was about to follow them down when she saw movement outside one of the windows. Stopping to look, she could just make out what looked like a small group of military vehicles running across one of the fields. The flashes of machine guns, grenade launchers and a tank firing could be seen attacking something. Then she saw the unmistakable snake off to the right. The orange glow inside its body told her what was about to happen. And then it did. A huge whoosh of flame was seen erupting from his mouth which struck the group and totally destroyed it. Penelope couldn't watch any more. She hurried away and scurried down into the cellar to join the vicar and his wife. Closing the door behind them, they all sat in silence and could do nothing but pray that the Rock Snakes wouldn't decide to target the cottage.