This series is dedicated to David Graham...the voice of Parker who sadly passed away recently.
Thank you for the memories, David.
LADY Penelope sat outside in the garden listening to the sound of birdsong. It was a sound she would never grow tired of hearing. There had been a time following the attack of the village around the back of the estate by the Rock Snakes the previous Christmas when all they would hear was the sound of silence. It had taken a while for the birds to come back, but Penelope was glad that they finally had.
Penelope's thoughts were broken by the sound of approaching footsteps. She opened her eyes and looked to see Parker was approaching. "Ah, Parker. What news do you bring?"
"A phone call for you, m'lady," Parker replied. He held out a phone with a hologram projector on its. The caller is making themselves unseen."
"I see…" said Penelope. She took the device and placed it on the table beside her. She then pressed the button to receive the call. "This is Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward speaking."
"Ah, hello, Lady Creighton-Ward," said the voice over the phone. "My name is Evans. I am the Warden of Slade Prison. Most sorry to trouble you at such short notice but can I request an audience with you? One of our inmates has been asking for you."
Penelope blinked and looked at Parker, who had turned as white as a sheet.
5!
4!
3!
2!
1!
"Thunderbirds Are Go!"
"ESTRANGED - PART ONE"
KAYO awoke to the feeling of a cool breeze blowing in through the open window of her bedroom. She let out a yawn and then climbed out of bed. She pulled back the curtains to see that Tracy Island was once again blessed by glorious weather. Looking down at the many rocks, Palm Trees, golden sands and beautiful blue sea, it was something hard to believe what was concealed underneath the exterior.
Kayo's favourite thing to do each morning before breakfast was to have a workout in the gym. She'd woken up a bit later than usual so by the time she reached it, all the others had already been and gone. She had some time on the rowing machine, lifted some weights and finished off on the running machine. She'd soon worked up quite a sweat and an appetite by the time she'd finished. "Phew!" she said to herself after sitting down. "That's enough of that for one day!"
Kayo changed into her regular clothes after a shower and went downstairs for breakfast. The house seemed unusually quiet so Kayo's initial thoughts were that everyone was out on a rescue mission. But after looking outside on the Lido, she saw that the brothers were playing in the pool. It had been a few days since the last emergency call and she could tell they were running out of things to do. It wasn't as bad for them as it had been for Kayo though. It had been almost two months since the battle between International Rescue, the GDF and Warren Grafton which had resulted in the destruction of Thunderbird Shadow, and Kayo was feeling somewhat at a loss without a ship of her own. It reminded her of the days before the Ring of Fire incident when she could only tag along with one of the others in their own ships.
Grandma then appeared with a pot of coffee. "Good morning, Kayo," she said.
"Ah, good morning, Mrs Tracy."
"You're up late today."
"Yeah, I guess there's no real need for me to get up when I'm not needed," said Kayo as she helped herself to a Bagel. "I hope the GDF haven't been too rushed off their feet trying to keep any criminals out there in check."
"Virgil was talking to Hayley last night," said Grandma. "Apparently it's been just as quiet for them as it has been for us."
"Hmmm," said Kayo. "I'm not sure whether that's a good thing or not."
"If I were you, I'd enjoy the peace whilst it lasts," said Grandma. She poured Kayo some coffee and then headed back into the kitchen.
As Kayo sipped the coffee, she thought about what Grandma had said. On the one hand, yes it was good to have a rest. She'd not experienced any of the strange seizures she'd been getting. Jeff had talked about getting her to see Doctor Charles about it. But the incident with Grafton had made them all forget about it - especially as Kayo had not had any since. There'd also been no word on any of the former members of The Cabal since their mass break-up. Whilst The Shocker had been taken into custody and The White Ghost had passed away from her condition, that left The Hood and Silver Swan in one group with The Black Phantom and Techno in another unaccounted for. Again, whilst no news was probably good news, there was a part of Kayo that wouldn't feel at ease until she knew her uncle in particular was back in prison.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of Jeff, not from the lounge where he usually was, but from behind the sealed door that led down to the sub-basement. "Ah, Kayo!" he said with a warm smile. "Just the person I wanted to see."
"Morning, Mr Tracy," said Kayo. "What did you want to see me about?"
Jeff smiled. "Follow me," he said.
Curious, Kayo brought her cup of coffee with her as she followed Jeff through the doorway.
They took an elevator down to the sub-basements and out into the vast underground cavern that housed some of the Thunderbird machines. As Kayo looked to the right, she saw the grey shape of Thunderbird 1 sitting on its trolley whilst the significantly larger red shape of Thunderbird 3 towered behind it in its silo.
They then began to walk up the set of stairs leading to the pad where Thunderbird Shadow had once been based. "Why are we heading up here?" Kayo asked.
"You'll see," said Jeff. He reached the top first and then waited for Kayo to join him. "Here you go."
Kayo almost dropped the cup as her jaw fell open. There, standing on the pad, was a newly-completed brand-new Thunderbird Shadow. "Oh…my…" Kayo was too speechless to finish.
Brains was standing nearby, as was The Mechanic. Both of which had been busy working on the finishing touches to the new aircraft.
"W-What do you think, Kayo?" Brains asked.
Jeff had to take Kayo's mug before she dropped. "Oh, wow. Brains, she's…she's magnificent!" Kayo said. Her eyes were lit up. She then ran forwards and hugged him. Brains went awkward as he wasn't much of a hugger, which amused both Jeff and The Mechanic.
"Sorry it's taken us so long," said The Mechanic. "We had a few issues with waiting for the parts we needed."
"The wait will have been worth it," said Kayo, running her hand down the side of the fuselage of Thunderbird Shadow. It was then that she began to notice that it wasn't quite the same as the previous one. "Wait a minute…she's different."
"She is," said Jeff. "We thought she needed some improvements. Brains?"
"F-First of all, the engines are upgraded," said Brains. "They have t-twice the power of the original. She can n-now achieve speeds of up to Mach 5."
"Secondly, the weapons," said The Mechanic. "Now, I'm aware that Mr Tracy isn't too keen on them, but given recent events we mutually agreed that it's a necessity. Sonic cannon mounted inside the nose. Machine cannon also with two additional smaller ones under the wings."
"Also under the wings are t-two air-to-air rockets and two air-to-ground ones under each," said Brains. "There are also some d-depth-charges, should you need to combat any underwater th-threat."
"One final addition," said The Mechanic. "She now has a twin-seat cockpit. That way if you need to carry a passenger, you can."
"Gosh, you have been busy!" Kayo marvelled. "I can't wait to take her out for the first time. Has she had any tests?"
"N-Not yet," said Brains. "We were rather hoping that you would be able to do some today if you f-feel up to it?"
Kayo grinned. "Brains, it'll be my pleasure," she said.
Just then the alarm began to sound.
"Looks like that might have to wait," said Jeff. "Sounds like we have an emergency to deal with. Let's go!"
Leaving the new Thunderbird Shadow on its stand, Jeff, Kayo, Brains and The Mechanic took the express elevator back up to the house and hurried up the stairs from the dining area to the lounge where they found Grandma along with Scott, Alan, Gordon and Virgil waiting for them. Also waiting was John, only he was in his hologram form projected from the eyes of his portrait.
"Sorry we're late," Jeff apologised. "What do we have, John?"
"Emergency situation developing in Rio de Janeiro, Dad," explained John. "This is a live feed from a News Chopper overflying the city."
A hologram image of a live video appeared from the projector in the middle of the table. Everyone gave a small gasp of surprise. It showed the city of Rio de Janeiro which for the most part looked normal, apart from five plumes of smoke that were rising from various locations around it.
Alan was the first to break the silence. "Well that doesn't look right," he said.
"Stating the obvious aren't you?" teased Gordon.
"Knock it off, both of you!" snapped Scott.
Jeff fully agreed with Scott but decided there was no need to add to it. "What do we know about this, John?"
"Not a lot," replied John. "Reports are saying there were a series of explosions taking place over a five minute period. Wait, I've just heard there's been another."
"There sure has," said Virgil, pointing at the orange flash as another plume of smoke began to rise from another area of the city. "Just look at that."
"This isn't accidental," said The Mechanic, coming for a closer look. "Someone's causing these to happen."
"Are you saying we're looking at a terrorist attack?" asked Gordon.
"That seems to be the m-most logical explanation, Gordon," said Brains. "But there haven't been any confirmed t-terrorist attacks for several years."
"Don't you count The Cabal's antics as terrorist attacks?" asked Alan.
"They never pulled anything like this off," said Kayo. "This doesn't have the hallmarks of them or even any of their past members. This has got to be something new."
"Agreed," said Jeff. "John, have the Rio authorities asked for help?"
"Not currently," said John. "But I doubt it'll be very long before they do."
"I agree," said Jeff. "Try and make contact with them, son. Ask them if they'll accept our assistance. I'll have Thunderbirds 1 and 2 ready for immediate launch the second you get an answer."
"F-A-B," said John and his hologram disappeared.
Jeff turned to face the others. "Boys, this is a big one," he said. "We could need all hands. Alan and Gordon, go with Virgil in Thunderbird 2. You fly ahead Scott and assess the situation when you get there."
"Don't we need to wait for the authorities to confirm they want our help, Dad?" asked Scott.
Jeff nodded at the live image. "With scenes like that, do you really think they're gonna decline any offer of help?" he asked.
Scott felt silly inside. He knew when he'd asked that the question was stupid. "Of course not," he said. He began to make his way towards the revolving wall panel beside the portraits. "See you in the sky!"
Virgil turned to Gordon and Alan. "See you in Thunderbird 2," he said before hurrying towards the painting of the rocket whilst Gordon headed for his suit-up elevator just outside the lounge.
As Alan sat on his seat to go down to the changing rooms, Kayo then spoke up. "Mr Tracy, do I have permission to join the mission with Thunderbird Shadow?"
"What?!" exclaimed Brains. "N-No, Kayo. It's not even been t-tested yet!"
"No offence, Brains, but I wasn't asking you," Kayo said.
Jeff looked between the two. Then he looked at the image of the city with fires within it. "If there are terrorists out there, the boys could be put in greater danger whilst trying to save lives," he said. "Kayo, if you find Thunderbird Shadow is fit for flying after take-off, then follow them out there. As I said, we'll need every available hand out there."
The beeping from John's portrait sounded out again as his hologram returned. "Answer affirmative," he said. "They accepted before I'd even finished asking."
"Then it's settled," said Jeff. "Thunderbirds are GO!"
The suiting up quickly began with Scott swivelling round on the wall before heading down via his express elevator to where Thunderbird 1 was waiting whilst robotic arms attached his suit to his body as he went. It was the same for Virgil, sliding backwards down a tunnel in a harness whilst his suit was attached. Gordon too had his suit attached when going down in his own elevator whilst Kayo and Alan were taken down below floor level in the chairs before splitting off to go through the changing rooms. Alan then headed off to join Gordon and Virgil in Thunderbird 2 whilst Kayo climbed into her new Shadowbike which had been sent down to collect her and she returned to be lifted up inside the body of the new aircraft.
As she began to head up the launch tunnel, she spotted Thunderbird 1 disappearing up its diagonal tunnel towards the launch bay under the swimming pool.
Virgil meanwhile had arrived in the cockpit of Thunderbird 2 and after closing the hatch behind him, sat in the pilot's seat and selected Module 2. As the conveyor brought the Modules underneath the main body, Alan and Gordon arrived to join him. Once the main body had been lowered and the module locked into place, the huge rock that concealed the exit of the hangar slid down to allow Thunderbird 2 to taxi out onto the runway with the palm trees folding back as it went.
Thunderbird Shadow was now in position and the rock face the launcher was mounted on swivelled around so that it was now out in the open with the yellow turntable spinning it from facing down to facing up towards the sky.
The swimming pool was now opening as Thunderbird 1 was moved into position and finally the ramp that Thunderbird 2 was sitting on lifted up into position with the blast shield raising into blast behind the boosters. The wings had also folded out and the entire team was ready to go.
5! 4! 3! 2! 1!
Thunderbird 1 was the first to launch, rising up through the gap where the swimming pool had been. Then it was Thunderbird 2 roaring as it soared off the ramp and into the sky. Finally it was Thunderbird Shadow firing its boosters and being released from its platform before heading off after its larger and faster respective sister-ships.
Jeff, Brains and Grandma watched from the windows as the three ships disappeared into the distance.
"Those boys and Kayo have been longing for some action," said Grandma.
"Yes, Mother," answered Jeff. "I just hope they stay safe. Whoever is behind this may not take kindly to their presence I fear."
Parker couldn't help but feel very uneasy as FAB1 approached the very remote Slade Prison located North of the Pennines. It was a place where he'd been incarcerated long ago and was somewhere he'd sworn he'd never return to. And yet here he was, driving Lady Penelope's car right up to the giant metal gates that stood at the front of the prison.
Penelope hadn't failed to notice how uncomfortable Parker was despite being sat behind him. "I guess it would be a foolish question to ask how you're feeling, Parker?" she asked.
"With the greatest h'of respect, m'lady, yes," Parker answered.
"I figured as much," said Penelope. "Let's just find out why we've been asked to come here and then we'll leave again."
"Yes, m'lady."
The metal doors opened and FAB1 drove through into the large courtyard in front of the main prison complex.
Thunderbird 1 was the first to reach South America, flying over Chile and then Brazil. As it approached the mountains that provided the backdrop to the city, Scott could make out the white shape of the statue of Christ The Redeemer in the distance, arms outstretched as always, looking down towards Rio. As Thunderbird 1 passed around behind it, the city came into view with more plumes of smoke rising than what had been seen in the news footage. Scott found it ironic looking at the statue from behind. It looked like it was welcoming the destruction even though it very clearly wasn't.
"Thunderbird 5 from Thunderbird 1. I'm approaching the Danger Zone," Scott reported. "There seem to be more fires than what we saw on the feed, John."
"Unfortunately so, Thunderbird 1," John answered from the space-station. "Since accepting our offer for help there have been at least three more explosions reported within the city."
"And still no idea who or what is behind this?" asked Scott.
"Negative," replied John. "Nobody has reported even seeing anything suspicious. Everything is normal and then without warning all hell suddenly breaks loose."
"There's got to be an explanation for all of this," said Scott.
"You'd think so," said John. "So far no groups have claimed responsibility for this."
"What about casualty reports?"
"Now that I can tell you, it's not good," said John. "I'm afraid there have been some cases where no survivors have been reported."
Scott felt his stomach churn. "Whoever is behind this will pay," he said angrily. "Tell me where I'm needed, Thunderbird 5."
"There's an apartment block on the East-side of the city that's on fire," said John. "I'm detecting some residents are still trapped inside. The Fire Department is stretched thin. Can you evacuate those on the upper levels?"
"I'll see what I can do," said Scott as he adjusted Thunderbird 1's controls. "Thunderbird 2, Thunderbird Shadow, what are your ETAs?"
"About fifteen minutes, Thunderbird 1," Virgil answered.
"Seven for me," added Kayo.
"F-A-B," said Scott. "John, direct Thunderbird 2 to the area that is most needed. Kayo, we'll need you to patrol the area and look out for anything suspicious."
"F-A-B," Kayo and Virgil responded in unison.
Scott brought Thunderbird 1 down over the city and put into an automatic hover just clear of the burning apartment building. He could see emergency services down on the street helping evacuate those from the floors below the fire which was burning throughout the third floor. That left only the floor above to be searched and Scott exited his craft using his jetpack. He flew over, trying to ignore the heat from both the Sun and the flames. He soon reached a balcony and landed on it. He peered inside and saw a mother and two children huddled inside. He pulled the glass door open. "Hey there. International Rescue. I've come to get you out of here."
"You're…Thunderbirds?" the Mother asked.
Scott nodded. "Is there anyone else here?" he asked.
"No, it's just us," said the Mother.
Scott radioed John. "Thunderbird 5, I've found a family of three in one of the apartments. Is there anyone else on this floor before I get them out?"
John ran a quick scan of the apartment building. "That's a negative, Thunderbird 1. It's just them. Get them out of there fast, that fire's spreading rapidly."
"Understood," said Scott. He thought quickly about what he was going to do. "Okay, here's what I need you to do. I'm going to lower a rescue capsule. I can then lower each of you one at a time towards the ground."
"Take them first, please," said the Mother.
Scott nodded as he took the hand of the visible scared daughter. She did not want to let go of her Mother. "Hey, sweetheart. I know you're scared but you have to trust me," Scott said.
It took some persuasion from the Mother to get the girl to trust Scott as he remotely lowered the rescue capsule from Thunderbird 1. After putting the girl inside, he remotely piloted Thunderbird 1 away from the building and lowered it to the ground where the Paramedics could take the girl into their care. He then brought Thunderbird 1 and the capsule back to the balcony where he put the son into it. The son was a lot more trusting of Scott being the elder of the two and seemed to be very excited by what was happening. "This is the best day of my life!" he said.
"I wouldn't enjoy it too much, buddy," replied Scott as he closed the capsule.
Once again Thunderbird 1 was remotely controlled and lowered the capsule to the ground. Scott and the Mother watched from the balcony as the Paramedics took the boy into a nearby Ambulance to join his sister.
"They're safe," Scott told her. "Now it's your turn."
The Mother hugged him gratefully. "Thank you so much," he said with tears of joy. "If you weren't wearing a helmet I would kiss you."
Scott blushed. "I, er, well, er, yeah!" he said quickly as he remotely brought Thunderbird 1 back up to retrieve them.
It was at that moment that Scott became aware of something moving behind his ship. However he could not see what it was clearly. "Probably nothing," he told himself. But then the Mother let out an almighty scream of horror. Scott looked and saw she was wide-eyed and pointing at something. He turned back around to look just as something silver slammed into him, emitting an ear-piercing screech as it did so.
"GAAAAARGH!"
Who or what is attacking Scott? Answers in the review section please.