THE lights of London could be seen on the horizon as Thunderbird Shadow approached from the North-West. Kayo was busy tracking the signal from Parker sent by Thunderbird 5. "Location confirmed. Thanks Thunderbird 5."

"Be careful in there, Kayo," warned John. "Whoever is behind the attack on the mansion has some serious technology. I'm not sure how we would stand up to it."

"I won't give them the chance, John," said Kayo with determination. "I'll be and out before-" She broke off as her radar screen told her something was closing in from behind at rapid speed. Glancing backwards with a frown, she was surprised to see Thunderbird 1 pulling up alongside. "Thunderbird 1? What are you doing here?"

"Coming to assist you against some very dangerous people."

Kayo blinked in astonishment. "Lady Penelope?"

"Kayo, you haven't faced the people who've taken Parker and Bertie. I have, and I know just how bad they are."

"So you've faced this guy with the ice-weapon before?"

"Him, no, but the man behind the gunmen, yes," said Penelope. "Let us find a place to land and I'll explain everything."

Kayo checked the radar. "We're not quite in the city yet," she said. "There's some fields up ahead. Let's land and we'll talk."

Landing in the field, the occupants exited for a quick briefing on what they were going to be up against.

"This is the man who sent those men," said Penelope, showing them both a photo. "Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot."

Scott looked at the photo. "Ugh," he remarked. "He is one ugly-" But he managed to stop himself.

"I wouldn't say he looks like a predator, but he's not going to win any Man of the Year awards with a face like that," agreed Kayo.

"Let me guess, is he someone from Parker's past?" asked Scott.

Penelope nodded. "Parker worked for his father for a while along with Light-Fingered Fred and the other members of their group. They were planning a heist inside Buckingham Palace but Parker ratted them out to the authorities, forcing the Cobblepots to flee. Now Oswald has returned. We did actually take him down a couple of months ago, but it seems he's managed to get himself out once again."

"And the other hostage?" said Kayo. "Doyle, is it?"

"Bertie Doyle is the winner of Humanitarian of the Year," said Penelope. "He's done so much for the people of London after the previous Christmas, he's gained so much respect. I couldn't forgive myself if we couldn't save them."

"We will," said Scott with confidence.

"And we'll put this Penguin and ice-gun guy behind bars where they belong, too," said Kayo.

"Mister Freeze."

"I'm sorry?" said Kayo, confused.

"He's called Mister Freeze so we heard," said Penelope.

"Riiiiiiiiiight," said Kayo, not sounding at all impressed. She turned to Scott. "No offence, Scott, but there's not going to be much you can do with a stealth mission, except maybe cause a distraction."

"Or an extraction if things go south?" Scott replied.

"That's a possibility, but I don't intend to let that happen," said Kayo. "Lady Penelope, join me in Thunderbird Shadow. I have a spare XE suit you could wear. You're not looking very stealthy in that bright red dress of yours, if you don't mind me saying so?"

"No, I fully agree with you, Kayo," said Penelope. "Let's go. We're wasting time."

Scott watched as the two young women climbed into Thunderbird Shadow. "I'll do a wide sweep around the perimeter of the city," he said. "Call me if you need me. Good luck."

Penelope and Kayo nodded in acknowledgment as the cockpit canopy closed and Thunderbird Shadow lifted off to continue its journey towards London. Scott watched them go, and whilst he had faith, he was secretly a little concerned.

Doyle Industries was located in a large building not far from Paddington Railway Station in the West End of London. Large blue letters on the building's roof gave it away as Kayo flew a now cloaked Thunderbird Shadow around the outside so as not to alert anyone.

"There's two helicopters on the roof pad," said Kayo. "We can't land there."

"Those must be what Bertie and Parker were brought in," said Penelope.

"Have you been here before?" asked Kayo.

"Not this building, no," replied Penelope.

Kayo extended the landing legs and parked Thunderbird Shadow on the side of the building. She then called Thunderbird 5. "John, can you make a scan of the Doyle Industries building and any subbasements it may have for us, please?" Kayo asked.

"Coming right up," said John.

Kayo and Penelope climbed out of the aircraft and onto the roof. They moved over to a set of glass skylight windows and peered inside. Below them was the lobby where they could see a group of Penguin men beating up one of the security guards.

"We have to help him!" Penelope said.

Kayo nodded. "You think you can handle that suit?" she asked.

Penelope looked at the identical nanotech blue and black suit she was wearing that matched Kayo's. She then activated the helmet. "Thought controlled, right?" she said.

Kayo nodded again. "And even if you think it, it won't disengage until any threat has passed," she said. "Stand-by." She took out her laser cutter and began to slice around the edge of the glass.

Penelope called John. "John, how's that scan coming?" she asked.

"About 70% complete, Lady Penelope," said John. "I've covered the top levels and there's a group of men-"

"In the foyer? Yes, we see them," said Penelope. "We're about to take them out."

"Good luck, and be careful," warned John.

Penelope and Kayo positioned themselves on the opposite sides of the skylight. As Kayo finished the cut, the pane of glass fell away, dropping several feet until it shattered on the marble floor, taking the thugs who were beating up the guard by surprise.

"WHAT THE?!" exclaimed one.

"WHAT WAS THAT?!" cried another. They looked around. Nobody was there. They looked up and could feel the bitter cold air from the outside now coming in.

"Go up to the roof and check," said the thug in charge.

"Should we tell the boss?" asked one of the others.

"Nah, he's busy with Mister Freeze," said the thug in charge. "Besides, I'm having too much fun beating up this son of a-YAAAAGH!" He was suddenly yanked back by an invisible cable. Kayo and Penelope had dropped down using grapple cables and touched down on the floor unobserved. The lead thug landed and Penelope's feet and she revealed herself before striking him in the face with her knee to knock him out.

"WE GOT COMPANY!" shouted another thug.

"GET THEM!" bellowed another.

The men grabbed their weapons and took aim but Penelope activated the camouflage and disappeared again leaving them with nothing to shoot at.

Another one then got grabbed and thrown into a nearby reception desk. Another had his weapon yanked out of his hands and then punched by an invisible hand.

The men were now terrified, shooting randomly in the same direction, hoping to hit whoever it was who was attacking them. But when two men were taken out simultaneously, they quickly realised something.

"THERE'S MORE THAN ONE!" screamed one of the thugs. "AAGH!" He then screamed as he was hit from behind and knocked out cold.

This left only two men left, they were trembling so much that they could hardly hold their weapons. One of them grabbed the beaten-up guard and held him up with the weapon jabbed into his back. "WHOEVER YOU ARE, GET OUT OR I'LL KILL HIM!" he bellowed.

The guard then suddenly elbowed him in the stomach causing him to cry out in pain. He lot go and then fell backwards against the doors that lead further into the building.

The other gunman turned to aim the machine-gun at the guard, when two voices said "Hey." The thug spun back around and cried out in shock to see two identical blue and black figures now visible. Their heads were covered by helmets with opaque fronts. Only a pair of glowing blue eyes could be seen staring out at him as they approached. He raised his weapon. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" he screamed in panic, but it was clear he did not know which one to fire at.

Kayo activated her nanotech shield and then threw it. The gunman cried out and jumped clear. It narrowly missed him and then only just missed the guard. It then struck the other gunman in the face as he'd been trying to get up. It knocked him back to the floor before ricocheting back towards the first. The man let out a scream of terror before he too was hit by it. It hit him in the arm and he was knocked aside. Penelope threw up her right leg, kicking the man in the chin and throwing him upwards, causing him to drop his gun. Kayo also leapt into the air, reattaching the shield to her arm and then dropping right down onto the frightened thug's face who barely had time to scream again before he was slammed to the floor into unconsciousness.

"Wow," Penelope remarked. "That was strangely satisfying."

"Don't get complacent," said Kayo. "These are just a small handful of what we've got to face I reckon."

"You'd be right." The guard was now leaning against the wall by the doors. They went over to check on him, deactivating the opaque on the helmets so he could see their faces.

"You're hurt," said Kayo as she began a scan.

"I'll be okay," the guard answered.

"You took quite a beating," said Penelope. "We'll get you an Ambulance."

"I've had worse," said the guard with a smile.

Penelope then heard a groan and saw the thug leaning against the door wasn't quite out cold and looked to be trying to reach for the machine-gun again. She quickly walked over and kicked it away. She then grabbed him, pulled him up and threw him against the wall. It was then when she got a closer look at his face that she realised it was one of the men from the mansion who'd tried breaking into the Drawing Room. "You!" she said with a snarl.

The thug stared back in shock. "Y-You?!" he exclaimed. "B-But how?! You were frozen!"

"I broke out," said Penelope. She tightened her grip. "Now talk! Where is Bertie Doyle?!"

The thug spat at her, which was pointless given the helmet protected her face. She pulled him away and then slammed him against the wall making him cry out. "WHERE ARE DOYLE AND YOUR BOSS?!" she roared.

"ENOUGH!" Kayo shouted, pulling them apart. The thug dropped the floor. Penelope wanted to strike him but Kayo was now in the way. Kayo then gave the thug a hard stare. "You would be wise to answer her question," she said.

"Go to hell," said the thug weakly. "I'm sayin' nothin'."

Kayo gave a nod. "Fair enough," she said. She stood up and turned to Penelope. "Carry on then."

"Gladly," said Penelope. She moved towards the thug who remained stubborn until she thrust her boot onto his chest and made him cry out.

"NO! STOP! STOP! PLEASE!" Penelope removed her boot and both women stood over the now whimpering man. "They're down below," he sobbed. "The Boss, that Freeze guy, Doyle, that old geezer who betrayed the boss years ago."

"Down where?" Penelope demanded, pushing her face into his.

"In the labs," said the gunman. "The cryogenic labs. Where…Where the weapons are made."

Penelope slapped him across the face. "You're LYING!" she bellowed. "BERTIE DOYLE'S A HUMANITARIAN! HE DOESN'T MAKE WEAPONS!"

"What?! NO!" cried the thug. "I'M TELLIN' THE TRUTH, I SWEAR!"

Penelope then punched him, this time knocking him out cold. She then stood up, shaking with fury.

"Penelope…" Kayo began.

"DON'T…speak to me," Penelope said furiously.

Kayo backed away, stunned to see Penelope so enraged.

"Kayo, you there?"

"Go ahead, John?"

"Scanning is completed," said John over the radio. "Sending it to you now."

Kayo looked at her wrist controller and a holographic map of the entire building appeared.

"I've picked up a number of heat signatures in a lab area down one level and towards the West-end," said John. "One appears to be quite large."

"That's got to be this Mister Freeze," said Kayo.

Penelope finally turned to look at the holographic image. "And I suspect we'll find Parker and Bertie there too along with Cobblepot," she said. She tried to push the door open, but it wouldn't budge. "Come ON!" she said angrily and was about to kick it in.

"Use this," said a voice. Both women turned to see the security guard now sitting on the floor. He was holding out a key-card. "Are you trying to save Mr Doyle?" he asked. Penelope nodded. "Take this," he said. "It'll give you access to the whole building."

Kayo took the card. "Thank you," she said. "You stay there and rest."

The guard nodded gratefully and Kayo used the key-card to open the door and go deeper into the building.

Penelope and Kayo used the holographic map to head deeper into the complex. They found a flight of stairs that took them down to below street level. Passing through another set of doors, they found themselves in a large laboratory. There was a distinct change in air temperature. It had suddenly gotten very cold. Vapor was rising from various pieces of apparatus.

"This is definitely a cryogenics lab," said Kayo.

"I…I don't understand," said Penelope. "Bertie's given thousands to those who lost everything in the Rock Snake attack. He's never ever said anything about doing anything with cryogenics."

"Cryogenics doesn't necessarily mean weapons," Kayo said. "Maybe this Mister Freeze has forced him to make weapons? You did say he seemed to be after Doyle in particular?"

"Yes, he wasn't remotely interested in the rest of us," said Penelope. "Saw us as nothing but a nuisance and then froze us all."

"Don't worry, we'll sort this out," promised Kayo. She checked the map again. "They're through here," she said, pointing at another set of doors. Penelope used the scanner in her helmet to see through the doors. Several life-signs were in the next room. "Busting through those doors would give us away," Kayo said. "We have to be stealthy like we were with the others."

Penelope nodded in agreement. "Is there an air vent we could-" She cut off when she saw Kayo pointing to one nearby.

Kayo used the strength in her suit to pull open the air vent cover and then crawled inside with Penelope following.

"I'm so glad these suits are heated," Penelope said quietly. "I hope where Parker and Bertie are, it's warmer than it was in there."

"Sensors are detecting it is warmer up ahead," said Kayo. Then she stopped suddenly. "Hush. Listen."

Penelope stopped and listened. She could hear voices that were travelling down the vent. The voices sounded raised and heated. She recognised them both at once.

"Give me Doyle!"

"You promised me weapons for my crew! Give 'em to me and you can 'ave this loser back!"

"Freeze and Cobblepot," Penelope said.

"Come on," said Kayo.

Quickly but quietly they made their way to the end of the vent where there was another cover. Kayo used her boot and cautiously pushed it off. They then found themselves on a walkway overlooking a control room. At least ten more of Cobblepot's henchmen were in there. Five of them were guarding Parker who was sitting bound with zip-ties on the floor. He was weak and his face looked blooded. He'd clearly had quite a beating and this made Penelope feel sick. Her attention was then drawn to Oswald Cobblepot who was off to their right. He had hold of Doyle, with a machine-gun lodged in his back. But as for Mister Freeze, he was nowhere to be seen.

"I want my guns, Freeze!" Cobblepot said angrily.

"This will not end well for you, Cobblepot!" Mister Freeze's robotic voice said from behind a wall.

"Quit back chatting, you walking refrigerator!"

"Seems like their little partnership is falling apart," whispered Kayo.

Parker then gave a little groan.

"Shut up!" snapped one of the men guarding him and gave him a punch.

Penelope couldn't control her anger any longer. "DON'T TOUCH HIM!" she bellowed and leapt out from their hiding place without a second's thought.

"No, WAIT!" cried Kayo.

But it was too late. Penelope had jumped down from the walkway and was in the room with all of the gunmen as well as Cobblepot. She quickly realised her mistake. In jumping down, she'd not activated the suit's camouflage and was very clearly visible to them all.

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!" bellowed Cobblepot, turning his machine-gun and opening fire along with all ten of the henchmen.

Kayo jumped down in front of Penelope, creating a very large holographic shield to protect them both even though the suits were bulletproof.

Suddenly there came a huge whoosh of ice-cold air and something began forming throughout the room. There came several cries and Kayo and Penelope quickly realised the entire room was being encased with ice. Then all went quiet except for the sound of heavy footsteps accompanied by mechanical whirring. Mister Freeze had used the distraction to his advantage, coming out from where he'd been concealed and blasting everyone in the room with his freeze-gun. He then walked up to where Cobblepot and Doyle were frozen. He grabbed Doyle and pulled him free of the ice. "You're coming with me," he said.

"NO! NO!" screamed Doyle as Freeze walked out of the room with Doyle in his free hand.

Kayo pushed up on the shield to break away the ice that formed over them. They turned round to see the doors close.

"Damn it!" cursed Penelope.

"That wouldn't have happened if you'd just waited!" snapped Kayo.

Penelope hung her head in a mixture of frustration and shame. "You're right. I'm sorry."

"M-M-M'lady?"

Both women spun round and saw Parker trying to crawl out from under some ice that had frozen the henchmen around him.

"PARKER!" said Penelope and ran over to pull him out and onto his feet. She then cut the zip-ties and then they hugged. "Oh, Parker. I'm so glad to see you."

"And I you, m'lady," replied Parker. "I thought they'd…"

"No, Parker," said Penelope. "Kayo and the boys were able to get to us in time. Everyone's safe and the fire was put out."

"Are you freakin' KIDDING ME?!"

They turned towards where the angry voice had come from. It was Cobblepot. Although frozen, his face remained uncovered. Penelope walked over to him and stared him straight in the eyes. "Hey, Ozzie."

Cobblepot's face was twisted with rage. "You SURVIVED?!" he shrieked. "HOW?!" His eyes then looked at Kayo. "AND WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!"

Kayo gave a smile. "You don't know me," she said plainly. "And you never will."

"Where's Freeze taking Doyle?" Penelope asked.

"I don't know, and I don't care!" Cobblepot spat. "Just get me out of this damn iceberg!"

"Yeah, no," said Penelope. "Who is Mister Freeze? What does he want with Doyle?"

"He wants payback," snarled Cobblepot. "For what I don't know. All he wanted was 'elp getting Doyle in exchange for giving me the cryo-weapons made in this complex. Now the arsehole's double-crossed me!" His eyes then fixed upon Parker. "Just like you did all those years ago."

Parker wasn't phased. "I'm not afraid of you, Ozzie," he said, putting his face close to Cobblepot's. "But a lot of people are afraid of you. And this time, we're gonna make sure that you stay in prison."

"You…YOU'LL PAY FOR THI…AAAAAAAARGH!" Cobblepot screamed as Parker grabbed hold of his nose and squeezed it. Then he let go.

"We're wasting time here," said Penelope. "We need to save Bertie and stop Freeze from doing whatever he's planning." She headed for the doors with Parker and Kayo behind her.

"I'LL GET OUT OF THIS!" Cobblepot shouted after them. "AND I'LL KILL YOU ALL! DO YA HEAR ME!"

Penelope, Parker and Kayo headed through the doors but then found there were two more sets of doors. One in front and one to the left. "Which one did they go through?" asked Penelope.

Kayo checked the map. "Heat signatures say to the left," she said.

They headed to the left doors but Parker winced in pain.

"Parker, you're in no fit state to be down here," said Kayo. "You need medical attention."

"I'll be fine, Miss," said Parker, although he didn't sound too convinced himself.

Penelope and Kayo exchanged a look. "Parker, you're hurt," Penelope said. "Scott's nearby. We can get him to come in and get you."

"But, m'lady…" Parker tried to protest but was silenced by the stern look he was getting. "Oh…very well, m'lady."

"I'll take him up," said Kayo. "Penelope, try to locate Freeze and Doyle. But do NOT engage them until I get back. Am I clear?"

Penelope nodded. "Crystal," she said. And she meant it too. She'd already messed up once and did not want to do so again, especially with Doyle's life at stake.

Once Kayo and Parker had left, Penelope made her way through the left doors. She walked down a corridor for a short distance before coming to a right turn that led towards another pair of doors. But it was the doors in front that had caught her attention. A large amount of hazard tape had been placed across with a sign reading 'DO NOT ENTER' on the front of it. Penelope used the scanner in her helmet to try and see what was inside. But it did not seem to give her any clues. The tape was broken suggesting someone had been through it recently. Thinking Freeze and Doyle might be somewhere beyond the door, she cautiously pushed it open and went inside. What she found was a control room looking into another laboratory although everything inside looked like it was frozen. She looked to her right and then caught something out of the corner of her eye which made her look down on the floor. "OH, GOD!" she gasped, jumping back in alarm. There on the floor was the body of a security guard. But he was very dead. His skin colour was blue, just like Mister Freeze's skin was. Penelope, whilst disturbed, scanned the body with her suit. To her amazement it actually could tell her the cause of death. "Heatstroke?" she said to herself. "In temperature's like this? How is that possible?" She looked at the lab. Maybe the answer was in there?

Penelope walked through the first door into what looked like a decontamination chamber and then through a second automatic door into the lab itself. The lab was a mess. Almost everything was frozen. There were two large tanks towards the far end. One looked to be ruptured with a large amount of ice spewing out like a frost creature's deadly fingers. Encased in the ice was what looked to be another security guard. Penelope was stunned into silence. She'd never seen anything like this before. She looked round at the window that looked back into the control room and saw a pair of handprints in the dew. She then turned to the machine next to the ruptured tanks. There was an open section behind like something had been in there. Marks through the ice on the floor suggested something had been wheeled through. On the near end was another desk with a computer on it. There was also a frame with a photo in it. Penelope walked over and picked up the photo. On it were two people. A man and a woman. The woman was ginger with a lovely smile and necklace shaped like a snowflake around her neck. The man was clean-shaven with black rimmed glasses on his face. She did not recognise either of them, but there seemed something slightly familiar about the man. The man in the mech-suit was also bald but had infra-red goggles on instead of glasses. Could they be the same man?

Penelope activated her suit's radio. "Lady Penelope calling Thunderbird 5."

"Go ahead, Lady P?"

"John, I need your help," said Penelope. "Could you do a facial recognition on this photo for me?"

"Sure. Let's have a look," said John.

Penelope scanned the photo and it appeared in front of John aboard the space-station. "A very happy-looking couple," he remarked. "Let's see who you are." His computer made quick work of the facial scan. "Got them. Dr Victor Fries and his wife Nora."

"Fries?" repeated Penelope. "As in Mister Freeze?"

"Seems too much of a coincidence," agreed John.

"Well he doesn't look like that now," said Penelope. She turned and looked round the lab again. "Something very bad has happened here, John."

John could see through the camera on Penelope's suit just how much of a mess the lab was in. "Oh, wow!" he said. "That's one hell of a state. What happened?"

"I have no idea," said Penelope. "But I found the body of a guard outside. He died from heatstroke. His skin was blue, just like Freeze's is."

John did some scans. "The temperature in that room is below zero!" he said. "Perhaps whatever happened has somehow altered his physiology?"

"That suit looked like it keeps his body cold," agreed Penelope as she continued to look around the lab. "Maybe he can't survive outside of a sub-zero temperature?"

"Seems logical," agreed John. "But what could have caused this to happen? What was he doing in that lab?"

Penelope walked round the front of the ruptured tanks and noticed something on the floor. It looked like a cryogenic gun, just like the one Freeze had had only slightly smaller. Its front end was aimed directly at the tank which had ruptured. She then looked back at the machine she'd looked at before and went over to study the computer screen there. "John, could you get EOS to hack into these systems?" she asked. "Maybe it'll tell us something?"

"EOS?" said John.

"Right away, John," EOS said. It did not take her long to complete her task. "I may have found something."

"What is it?" asked John.

"It would appear that Dr Fries was doing research on a rare disease," said EOS. "And it would seem that the test subject was his wife."

"His wife?" repeated John, surprised.

"Nora?" added Penelope. She looked back over at the photo. The image EOS produced of the data she'd uncovered included a picture of Nora frozen inside a pod that had been placed inside the machine in front of Penelope. "He must have put her on ice whilst he tried to find a cure for her," she realised.

"That can't have been an easy choice for him to make," said John.

"Bertie pioneered in medical research," said Penelope. "That makes perfect sense. Someone like Dr Fries must have come to him to help him find a cure for his wife."

"A big undertaking," said John. "According to their records, they're from Boston, USA."

"Gosh," said Penelope. "So why would Dr Fries turn on Bertie after whatever happened here took place? Bertie has always put the safety of his employees before anything else."

"Something must have gone badly wrong," said John.

It was then that something else caught Penelope's eye. Beside the door she'd used to enter were a couple of large pipes. But there was something behind the pipes that had caught her attention. She walked over and looked round to see what it was. Her mouth went dry. It was a hand-gun. "John…do you see this?" she asked as she picked it up.

"Yeah…" said John uneasily. "I wonder how that got there?"

"It must belong to that guard I found outside the lab," said Penelope. "Not that I checked to see if he had one."

"Scan it and I can check if there's any fingerprints," said John.

"Okay." Penelope used the scanner in her helmet to scan the gun as it lay in her hand.

Sure enough it detected a set of fingerprints which John then checked on his holographic computer. "I got a match," he said.

"Who does it belong to?" asked Penelope.

John opened his mouth to answer, but then his face changed to one of surprise and confusion. "Wait…what?!"

"John, what is it?" asked Penelope. "Don't react like that, you're making me uneasy."

John's hologram looked at her. "You might want to see for yourself…" he said shakily.

A hologram of what he'd found appeared from the controller on Penelope's wrist. She looked at it, and her mouth fell open in shock. This couldn't be true…could it?