July 28th, 2061 - 12:07 NZST
It has been a quiet sunny day on Tracy Island, which is good considering it is the middle of winter in the southern hemisphere. Gordon and Virgil are lying on the loungers by the poolside talking to Kayo, who is currently sitting up on the diving board. Inside, Sally and Scott walk into the mission control room to see Alan lying upside-down mumbling to himself in his sleep.
"This is Thunderbird 3. I'm making my approach to the comet now. What a view! Decreasing acceleration. Steady!" Alan says. Scott waves his hand in front of Alan's face to check if he is actually asleep and shrugs when he gets no response, taking the seat next to him. Marion enters the room with a hot chocolate in her hand which she hands to Scott, who accepts it with a smile. Sally decides to walk Alan up by flicking him in the forehead. "Steady! Ow! What did you do that for? I was just about to land!"
"Alan, you were flying in your sleep again," Sally states with her hands on her hips.
"Nooooo! Maybe," Alan admits, "Look, I can't help it! The news has been covering the return of Halley's Comet all week. It's all I can think about."
"That's why I woke you up. Some famous adventurer is about to broadcast a big announcement," Sally says.
"Huh? Are they showing the comet?" Alan asks, "How far out is it? Did you know we won't see it again for another 75 years?!"
"It's not the first time you've reminded us about that Alan," Scott deadpans.
"Or the second. Or the third. Or the four—" Marion continues but is cut off by the broadcast starting. A hologram of the explorer appears on the screen.
"There he is! The rich explorer guy... Francie... What's his name?" Alan asks.
"Francois Lemaire here," the guy begins.
"Close enough," Alan shrugs.
"To all of you watching at home, you are about to witness history in the making. Joining me is my personal biographer Madeline Lemaire," Francois says, panning the camera in her direction.
"Oh, and for the record, this wasn't my idea... at all," Madeline says.
"Halley's Comet is making its closest approach to earth in 75 years. What a magnificent ball of fire and ice," Francois continues, turning the camera once again to the viewing window.
"Actually, it's, it's just ice," Alan interjects, not that Francois could hear him.
"And I've just become the first person in history to visit it," Francois says.
"That's so cool!" Alan says, "Oh man, I wish I'd have thought of that."
"I'm glad you didn't. It's a risky move," Scott states, "But as long as he stays out of the comet's tail, he should probably be okay."
"I had planned to make this a fly-by, but it would be a shame not to see it a little closer," Francois explains, "So I've decided this very moment to go inside the Comet's tail."
"No!" Scott yells jumping up, "That is a seriously bad idea!"
"Wow," Alan says amused at the timing, "You do realise he can't actually hear you."
"Amazing. I see chunks of rock and ice everywhere. This is possibly the most dangerous place I've ever been," Francois muses and they watch as a piece of rock comes towards the window which causes Francois to duck down, however this one manages just to pass, "That's a big one. Fortunately, my custom-built space yacht, the Solar Wind, has one of the most sophisticated autopilots ever built." As Francois continues, Madeline suddenly points to the window as another large rock comes directly towards them. "Doing all the—" The link is lost as what Scott and Alan can only guess is that the rock had hit them.
"Oh," Alan says sitting down upset just as John appears on the holo-screen.
"International Rescue we have a situation." John says.
"No shit," Scott mutters, hitting the palm of his hand to his forehead.
5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Thunderbirds are Go!
As John starts to explain, Kayo walks into the room to see what is going on.
"I lost Francois Lemaire's feed at the same time as the networks," John says.
"Do we even know if he's still out there?" Scott asks.
"Yes, I am still able to track his ship." John confirms, "He's in the coma of Halley's Comet, all right. But his ship hasn't moved under its own power since we lost the feed."
"If they don't have flight capability, they're gonna get smashed up," Alan states.
"Lemaire hasn't called for help and there's no emergency beacon, either," John continues, "I can't see his ship lasting long out there."
"Well, it's our job to pull him and his passenger out in one piece," Scott says.
"Maybe if we get closer, we can re-establish communications?" John suggests.
"Alan, looks like you're gonna see that comet after all," Scott says.
"Oh, yes!" Alan says.
"Kayo, want to co-pilot with Alan again, while I'll use the pod again?" Scott asks.
"Sure," Kayo says and walks over to her chair beside Alan's.
"I'll see you guys down there," Scott says, "Let's go Marion." He runs off in the direction of the passenger bays with Marion close behind him.
5
Alan and Kayo descend and start to get suited up.
4
A red pod is loaded into Thunderbird 3's cargo hold with Scott and Marion inside.
3
Thunderbird 3's blast door closes once Alan and Kayo have been lifted inside.
2
Alan and Kayo's chairs roll up to the controls with Scott and Marion in the passenger seats behind Alan.
1
The rockets start up.
Thunderbirds are Go!
July 28th, 2061 - 12:37 NZST
Once Thunderbird 3 leaves Earth's orbit, Scott receives a more detailed scan of the comet from John. It shows the rough location of the Lemaire's ship, which cannot be fully determined until an emergency beacon is pinged.
"According to the latest scan, their ship is still intact," Kayo says.
"Ah, can you believe?" Alan muses.
"Lucky break, given the size of the rocks and ice coming off that thing," Scott says.
"No, no, not that!" Alan scoffs, "Halley's Comet only comes around once every seventy-five years and we are gonna be there to see it up close. This is gonna be awesome."
"Alan, we don't have the time to do 'awesome'," Marion says sternly.
"Real lives are at stake. We have to focus on what's important here," Scott adds.
"Ah! Guys, I totally get that," Alan nods.
"Okay, good," Scott says and looks back at the scans Kayo had passed over to him.
"But isn't it so cool that it's Halley's Comet," Alan gushes causing Kayo to smirk at his reaction.
"Alan..." Scott trails.
"Sorry, sorry. Firing ion engines in three... two... one." Alan says, pulling the thruster up sending Thunderbird 3 off swiftly.
July 28th, 2061 - 12:49 NZST
The holo-screen starts to beep as the emergency beacon flashes over the ship, confirming an exact location.
"Guys, Lemaire's emergency beacon," Alan says.
"Ah, looks like there's still somebody to rescue," Scott replies.
"Some good news then," Kayo responds.
July 28th, 2061 - 13:03 NZST
Thunderbird 3 soon pulls up alongside the speeding comet. Alan checks the parameters to make sure that Thunderbird 3 stays outside the danger threshold.
"Calling Solar Wind, this is International Rescue," Alan calls. Unfortunately, they only receive static in response.
"Great, still nothing," Kayo says turning around to face Scott. Scott lets out a sigh and lifts up his seat arms before getting up.
"Match our velocity to the Comet. Keep Thunderbird 3 parallel to Lemaire's ship. Marion and I will take the pod and going in," Scott orders.
"Okay, I'll just soak up this awesome view," Alan sighs in content.
"I hope you do, but remember you're on call," Scott warns, "Kayo watch him." Wearing an EVA suit, Scott and Marion head through into the cargo hold. The lights flicker on revealing the shiny red pod inside. Near the door there is a control box, which Scott opens. It reveals a hologram of all the different space pod options and Scott selects the Space Rescue Pod. Several mechanical arms get to work attaching engines, thrusters and other equipment to Pod G. The cockpit window opens allowing Scott and Marion to take their seats. As the pod's thrusters ignite, they start moving along the cargo hold. The pod is attached to a magnet on a huge slider on the ceiling and the thrusters push the pod into position over the hatch below, when they power down once again. Pressing a button on his console, Scott opens the hatch and disengages the magnet allowing for the pod to be released from Thunderbird 3. Once clear of the cargo bay, Scott fires up the engines and the pod flies away towards the comet.
"Pod's away. En route to intercept," Marion informs as Scott starts to manoeuvre his way into the comet's tail, dodging the boulders and rocks.
"Guys, there's a lot of debris out there. It can really do some damage," Alan warns.
"F-A-B, we're going in," Marion says and Scott directs them towards the Solar Wind. He underestimates the number of debris coming from the comet and gets a few knocks along the way. They sends sparks flying as the pod is battered around like a tine can in a back alley.
"Argh! This is just going to be trickier than I thought," Scott comments.
"Just think of it like a game," Alan suggests.
"Alright," Scott says. He fires up the engines and turns the pod harshly to the right around a small group of rocks. Taking a looping pathway, he ducks down under a large rock and then over the next. He continues to swoop and dive to avoid colliding with the rocks in his path. Only one manages to hit the pod before a warning light goes off on Marion's screen.
"Scott," Marion calls, "Look out!"
Scott looks up to see they're about to be sandwiched between two large rocks that are on a collision course. "Okay, okay, okay, come on." He dives the pod downwards and avoids getting a direct hit but is forced to do a couple of barrel rolls to prevent getting hit by the dust and the small pieces of debris that break off from the two rocks. "Come on. Woah, that was close," Scott breathes.
"Er, Rescue Pod, is everything okay?" Kayo enquires.
"Affirmative, Thunderbird 3. Can you hear me?" Marion questions.
"Yeah. There's some interference but connection is clear. What's the situation?" Alan asks.
"We've got eyes on Lemaire's ship," Scott informs as the view of the small spacecraft comes into view. It's a streamlined blue with silver stripes that run along the belly of the ship, "It's taken some pretty big hits. I'll see if I can raise him. Solar Wind, this is International Rescue, what's your status?" However, the only thing Scott receives is static. "No response Thunderbird 3. Their whole communication array might be down." Scott moves in closer to the Solar Wind and takes a closer look for any docking clamp and finds one. "The docking ring looks undamaged. Time to pay them a personal visit."
"F-A-B Rescue Pod," Alan acknowledges, "Once you're docked maybe you can make a hardwire connection for comms."
"Great idea." Scott says, "This is Rescue Pod going in." Scott flies just above the ship, allowing its fins to take the damage from the rocks, making it to the front, he docks the pod. "Initiating docking procedures. Thunderbird 3 this is Rescue Pod. I believe I made it past Level 1."
"See? Just like a game," Alan says turning to Kayo who just smirks and shakes her head in amusement.
The pod's comm then beeps, and Francois then appears on the hologram with what looks like cheese in his hand. "Hello," Francois says.
"Solar Wind, this is International Rescue. We've just docked with your ship," Scott states.
"See? I told you someone would come. There was nothing to worry about," Francois muses turning to his wife.
"What's your status?" Marion asks.
"Stuck in the tail of Halley's Comet. Which is amazingly cool. So, you know, it could be worse," Francois shrugs.
"Sir, is anyone injured?" Marion enquires.
"No," Lemaire confirms, "But there will be some very strong words with my cheesemonger when I get home. This is decidedly not an eighteen-month Manchego. Eight months at best."
"Okay, Mr. Lemaire, excuse me, but you need to be wearing your EVA suits," Scott orders.
"They look so uncomfortable is that strictly necessary?" Francois asks.
"Yes. It is strictly necessary," Scott deadpans, "One stray rock could penetrate your ship and you'd both be strictly dead."
"Fine," Francois says just as a red warning is showing on Scott's screen.
"We're about to get hit, brace for impact!" Scott says and Marion quickly puts her head down between her knees as a large space rock hits the ship with a huge amount of force that sends the whole thing into a spiral. The horrible screaming from Madeline could he heard over the comms.
"Do something! Ah!" Francois yells.
"Rescue Pod this is Thunderbird 3. Scott, can you hear me? Marion, can you hear me?" Alan asks.
"Thunderbird 3 looks like we're in for another hit," Marion shouts as she watches as a large rock begins to get closer and closer to them. She gulps looks away from the large rock that. The Solar Wind careens down and smashes into the surface. Darkness.
Systems beep in the background as Scott opens his eyes and puts as hand to his head. He groans and then winces before turning around to face Marion who is still unconscious from the collision.
"Not good," Scott grunts and tests the comms to see if they still work, "International Rescue to Francois Lemaire are you there? Mr Lemaire, are you receiving this communication? Oh, Thunderbird 3, can you hear me?" However, each time all Scott gets is static when suddenly the comms spring into life again.
"Scott! Are you guys okay?" Kayo asks.
"We were both worried," Alan adds.
"Yeah, we're good Thunderbird 3," Scott says, "However, Marion is still unconscious, and Rescue Pod is still docked to the Solar Wind. But contact with Lemaire has been lost. I'm gonna go and..." Scott pauses when a rumbling sound is heard. "Woah!"
"Scott, have you seen where that last impact put you?" Alan asks.
"Locations scanners are out, but I've got a pretty good guess," Scott gulps, "Halley's comet!" He looks around as steam erupts from the vents off the comets bleak and rocky surface. A trail of rocks, boulders and debris trail behind, the trail that Scott has just been battling through in the Rescue Pod. "I'm going… EVA to check on them once I've made sure Marion is alright."
"Okay, Rescue Pod," Alan says.
"Watch your step when you go EVA," Kayo advises. Scott then turns around to face Marion and lightly shakes her to wake her up.
"Hey, Marion," Scott says as Marion starts to groan in discomfort, "You feeling, okay?"
Marion comes to a few seconds later and stares deeply at Scott. "Scott?"
"Yeah," Scott smiles.
"Thank goodness you're alright," Marion mumbles.
"Hey, I should be the one asking you that," Scott chuckles, "We took quite the hit back there you know." Marion gives Scott a weak smile and stretches. "Come on let's go get the Lemaire's."
The couple get out of the pod and go through the airlock into the Lemaire's ship. They make their way into the main room to find Madeline in deep conversation with her husband. "...The wallpaper gives me headache."
"Mr Lemaire, International Rescue. Everybody okay in here?" Marion asks.
"Any injuries? Atmospheric breaches?" Scott queries.
"I'll be with you in just a moment. I'm recording this for posterity," Francois says turning to show he's recording.
"Posterity?" Scott asks, narrowing his eyes.
"Shh," Francois says, "And the world-famous International Rescue has just arrived. As you can see, we're in a pretty dangerous predicament. Madeline, do you want to get in shot?" He turns again to stand beside Scott and push the camera in his face, which Scott rejects the idea of and puts his arm across his face so others can't see it.
"I'll pass," Madeline says.
"Sir, Ma'am, we don't have a lot of time," Marion says politely.
"Oh," Francois releases and points at Scott, "I remember you!"
"That's right, Mariana Trench in '57. Your... birthday party," Scott says.
"You were so helpful. Practically saved our lives," Francois says and puts an arm around Scott's shoulders, "I really do appreciate your coming all this way." Scott pulls away and heads over to stand by Marion on the other side of the room.
"Let's see what's going on here," Scott says.
"Yes, thank you, let's do that," Francois says moving the camera to put Scott and Marion in frame as they work by the controls.
"Okay, let's start over here," Scott says to Marion and starts working.
"So, it looks like this chap is going to repair our controls and get us up and running again," Francois explains to his viewers watching as Scott removes a panel unit after some banging
"Come on. There we go," Scott says.
"Careful please. We've already had enough damage to this ship," Francois says watching Scott rip off a wall panel, "Hey, what—"
"Okay, let's see the other side," Scott says as he and Marion walk over to the control unit on the other side of the room and starts banging and taking apart those units as well.
"Excuse me!" Francois exclaims, "Nano crafted Mahogany imported from Southern Amazonia and he's breaking it up like firewood! Is all that really necessary?"
"Oh absolutely!" Scott says and Marion helps him with the last piece to revel what he is looking for, Ah-ha! Oh, the propulsion system is shot. This ship is never gonna leave the surface of Halley's Comet."
"Well, that is just ridiculous," Francois scoffs, "The Solar Wind is now a historical artefact like those capsules that went to the moon. It deserves to be in a museum!"
"Well, you're welcome to come back and get it in another seventy-five years," Marion fires back.
"Unacceptable. And this is all your fault!" Francois complains, "We were doing just fine exploring the Comet's tail until you had to come and make us crash!"
"We were both impacted by high-velocity debris. And that was because you took your ship into the coma," Scott explains, pointing a finger at Francois.
"Coma?" Francois asks.
"The taily bit of the comet," Marion deadpans.
"I thought you didn't know anything about comet's," Francois whispers to his wife. before turning to face Scott and Marion, "Well, I'll be sending a bill for all damages to International Rescue. Good day!" Francois sanders off, throwing a tantrum like a child and heads into the corner of the room furthest from Scott and Marion.
"Where are you going?" Marion asks.
"Over here," Francois says.
"We can still see you," Marion says in a sing-song voice.
"I'm not listening!" Francois cries.
"Just be thankful that you're still intact!" Scott calls and turns off the camera that's starting to annoy him, "I'll contact Thunderbird 3 to come get us."
Scott calls Kayo to let her know of the situation and leads Madeline and Francois out of the ship and onto the comet itself. "Watch your step. Over this way," Scott says and he heads on with Marion. Francois and Madeline gape as they watch the couple leap up to a rocky surface that is high above them, debating if they should follow.
"Come on," Francois sighs. The Lemaire's leap up and follow them up the high ledge. When they land. Madeline does so gracefully, while Francois lands head first on the surface and rolls away. They pounce along the surface of the comet like a cheetah at full sprint in order to catch up to Scott and Marion.
"There," Scott says and stops to allow the Lemaire's to catch up.
"Er, how much more of this? Aren't we safe right here?" Francois questions.
"We're not safe until we're home," Marion says. Just then, a loud rumbling noise is heard, and rocks roll and crunch before them. If it continues, there'll be no safe route to get back to Thunderbird 3. Scott knows this and narrows his eyes in a calculating manor as he quickly decides what the safest route is. He takes a deep breath as he watches the comet start breaking up, his mind made up.
"Get a move on. Now!" Scott yells and starts moving again, jumping onto a new ledge of the Comet. As they clamber onto the new rock, they all take a brief look back at Solar Wind only to see a large rock crash into it obliterating it into a massive fireball, leaving no remains.
"That could have been us," Francois stutters stunned as the reality of the situation starts to set in for him.
"We'll wait here for Thunderbird 3 to arrive," Scott determines.
"Wait?" Francois asks.
"Don't worry, we're gonna be ok," Marion says as they see Thunderbird 3 in the distance navigating through the rocks. Kayo has managed to lock onto their life signals and is guiding Alan through the easiest route.
"Guys, I've got visuals on you and the others. I'm coming in," Alan says over the comm channel. He presses several buttons on his control panel and the grasping arms deploy from the side of each of the main three engines and rotate to face the front of the ship. He uses the thrusters to slow his red rocket down as they make touchdown on the rocky surface of the comet. As the grasping arms latch onto the rock, Thunderbird 3's nosecone retracts to reveal a large drill that powers up and starts tunnelling into the rock face. This secures Thunderbird 3 safely to the comet, without the risk of it drifting off.
"Thunderbird 3 is locked on, solid," Kayo states.
With Thunderbird 3 cemented to the surface, Scott decides to act now. "Let's go. Now!" Scott says as the surface begins to fall apart, braking away. What was once a straight path to Thunderbird 3 is now an obstacle course to reach it as it starts to drift away from the group. Thunderbird 3 begins falling away from them.
"This whole place if coming apart!" Kayo cries.
"What can we do? It's too late!" Francois panics.
"Not if we jump," Marion says.
"Quickly. I'll follow right behind you," Scott says and gives Marion a firm look as if to let her know not to argue with him. Reluctantly, Marion quickly follows the Lemaire's and grabs onto them.
"I've got you," Marion says and they land on the surface of the rock with a bump. She turns around to look for Scott only to see a red blur go right past her and collecting Scott, bring him over.
"Alan, you should be in the cockpit. What's up?" Scott asks once he lands.
"Well, I just thought that you might need some help as Kayo can handle Thunderbird 3 by herself," Alan says, "And, come on I just had to set foot on Halley's Comet! Even if it's only a little piece of it!"
"Let's get inside," Scott says with a sigh and watches Madeline climbing the ladder, before she stops to turn around and look at them.
"Thank you. You three are totally amazing!" Madeline says. Scott follows her up with Marion close behind as Alan takes another look at the comet.
"Okay, Halley's Comet. See you in seventy-five years," Alan says to himself and turns around as Francois starts up the ladder, "Oh, watch your step, Mr Lemaire."
"Ugh... please! I've conquered Everest!" Francois scoffs but just as he says that the rock ledge shakes and then breaks apart causing him to fall down.
"Oh no. Scott!" Alan yells to let him aware and goes after Francois.
"Alan!" Kayo cries over the comms and presses a button on the console that sends a hoverboard in Alan's direction. Alan actives his jetpacks on the sides of his tool belt to slow him down to weave through the hurtling debris. Francois dead in his sights. As he gets closer, Francois reaches out for him and Alan grabs onto his right arm.
"Hang on!" Alan calls and turns to grab the hoverboard, "Hold on tight. Here we go. Incoming." He ducks as a rock comes flying towards them but luckily overhead. Alan continues to swerve around to avoid the rocks. "Scream if you wanna go faster," he jokes as they make their final approach to Thunderbird 3, "Smooth ride, huh? Hold on tight. Here we go. Preparing for entry." He slows down before coming to a stop once they are inside the cockpit. The door shuts behind them and Kayo rushes over to Alan to make sure that he is alright. Scott smiles at the couple and helps Francois to sit down next to Madeline and helps to remove his helmet.
"Nice catch," Scott says.
"Nice throw from Kayo," Alan responds giving her a smile.
"I think you two are the best when it comes to working together," Scott says sitting down in the passenger seat behind Alan, "You're always so in sync."
"I could say the same for you two," Kayo says with a smirk and nods to Alan to retract the drill and the grasping arms before taking off.
"Now we just have to get out through the debris field," Marion says.
"Yeah, so?" Alan chuckles.
"I've had it up to here with space debris," Scott says, indicating with his hand.
"Scott, we'll be fine," Kayo says, "Don't you trust Alan?"
"I manage to get us here okay. Let me show you how I do it. First, I relax," Alan demonstrates by taking in a deep breath, "And then I don't think. I just watch and do." With that, Alan starts to navigate with ease with only the slight hiccup of a large rock that rolls directly in front of them. "Uh-oh," Alan comments but still bypasses it with ease, "There you go."
"Almost clear," Kayo says looking down at the nav-systems.
"Okay! Looks like Halley's Comet threw one last snowball at us, but life support looks good," Alan says as he goes around another large piece of space debris which hits the side of Thunderbird 3.
"Down to one engine," Kayo checks, "It's going to take forever to get home."
"But we have such fine company. I can't wait to let them know," Alan smiles and contacts the empty cargo hold where the Lemaire's are, "Thirty-six hours is the best we can do."
"What are we supposed to do? There's nothing back here in your cargo hold. No furniture, not even any cargo! Never mind food," Francois complains back over the com causing everyone in the cockpit to laugh.
"Actually, you'll be happy to know there is food. It's something Brains whipped up for long trips," Marion says.
"Brains?" Francois questions, "Doesn't sound like a chefs name."
"Oh, he's very good. His specialty is something called ration bars. You'll find plenty of them in the bin," Scott explains, "Oh and um, Mr. Lemaire, Alan and I have been discussing it and given the obvious inconvenience, we're not gonna bill you for the trip home, so have as many ration bars as you like." Everyone has another chuckle at Francois' expense.
Once things had died down and Alan and Kayo are deep into conversation, Marion leans over to Scott. "Do you think we'll have something like that in the future?" she whispers.
"I'm sure of it," Scott smiles and leans over and kisses Marion on the forehead causing her to blush deep red.
"Hey!" Alan calls, "Keep it for the honeymoon will ya." He and Kayo laugh as Scott turns the same colour as Thunderbird 3. This is gonna be a long trip home.