Fanfics mostly

I am both excited and nervous to share today's scene with you as Captain Blue arrives at the aether vendor to requisition a Pursuant Engine.

I already took some small liberties with the Captain Brown/metal detector scene, but here I've turned what essentially amounts to four lines and a few seconds into a massive scene all of its own.

I've always loved the trope - deliberate or accidental - in CSATM that Captain Black and petrol station staff never mix well. The Night Porter scene in Macbeth is also a boogeyman of legend among English teachers and their students for fear it might come up on the exam. Even I'm not sure if the story that it did so one year is actually true. (Edit: it did, but with a different exam board to the one I teach, back in 2019!)

Anyhow, the two intersected, and here we are. I caution, more than at any time before, that my efforts here are but a playful wink to the Andersons and Shakespeare both. In a Captain Scarlet first (and last, I do believe):

Here on this, our stage today,

No aether vendors in harm's way.

ACT III

SCENE I. A countryside aether-vendor.

A sound of an aether-chariot and bell without. Enter an Attendant.

Attendant

Here's a ringing indeed! 'Tis wonder an honest aether-man can sleep at all on nights so cursed. Strange times are these and stranger too my dreams.

A bell.

Methinks when I close my eyes I dream of a man in a customary suit of solemn black. This self same shadow my brothers assails, all goodly aether vendors like myself.

A bell.

Here's one all hoisted to the eaves and pressed to death while lab'ring on a chariot. Belike his music while he toiled was not to this inky-cloak'd spirit's liking.

A bell.

Here's another, 'fill your chariot full?' says he, 'back!' says he, but the self same lightless ghost holds course, anon the aether-man is dead with chariot wheels upon his head. Much good may it have done him to say 'stop! Hold!' withal.

A bell.

A knell, a knell, a knell. 'I go and it is done.' Went it not so? Belike this sable-cloakèd man comes now for me!

A bell.

Anon, anon! I pray you, remember the aether-vendor.

Opens the door.

Enter BLUE.

BLUE

Of goodly Spectrum Captain Blue am I,

Pursuant Engine A-Six-Nine I seek.

Attendant

Mercy, mercy, thou black and midnight shape. Wherefore do you walk from my dreams and on the earth? Live you? Or are you aught that I may question? The aether hath bubbles, as the water has, and I pray that you are of 'em! Hast thou come for me to slay me as thou didst my brothers?

BLUE

Good sir, attendant, fear this Captain not,

Upon my weeds 'twere best to cast your glance,

The hue I bear is day's - not midnight's - skies,

For wayward Black thou hast this Blue mistook.

Attendant

Blue? Not Black? Yet shaped like he. The self same tunic, boots and peak. Is't so, the devil hath a brother now, who comes to finish the deed?

BLUE

This self-same Captain Black is my sworn foe,

We hunt the self-same shadow of your dream.

But come, the hour now hath almost slipp'd.

For yon Pursuant Engine have I come.

Attendant

Tarry a while, blue-coated, gold-haired man. You know as well as I these vexèd days be. A tunic alone I cannot trust. If ye be not of the house o' the devil, show me a seal, a sigil, a token!

BLUE

Good fellow here's gold to purchase your haste.

Attendant

By my troth, 'tis a token whose language I speak well, but nay, good Captain, your warrant, not your purse, I seek.

BLUE

Then mark thou here, good sir, the Colonel's seal.

Attendant

The Colonel's seal and more withal. 'Tis writ plain here a learnèd man in all matters of the Pursuant Engine you be. Now tell me, good Captain, is't the challenge they say? To ride into battle, but backwards with nought but Venetian glass to sight your course?

BLUE

The more 'tis done, most natural it becomes.

A sound without. A waggon opens to a Pursuant Engine.

What? Chariot in chariot doth hide?

A cunning, learnèd aether-man thou art!

Enter a CHORUS OF Attendants.

CHORUS

Imagine now in this yard rude and small,

A wonder born in Vulcan's fiery forge,

No common coach you see upon the street:

Ten-wheelèd master of all lands it rides.

Eight tons of steel assur'd in double proof,

An azure armour'd, engin'd artifice,

A cannon in the bow to smite its foes,

As good a bark on sea as 'tis on land.

Behold the sorcery of the design,

Inverted sits her pilot to the course,

With back to danger, eyes Venetian glass,

With aid of relay'd image steers her path,

At sixty leagues an hour giveth chase.

And these, concealèd, goodly Captains find,

In ev'ry corner of this sceptr'd orb.

Behold, Pursuant Engine, Spectrum's pride,

Thus into battle Captain Blue will ride.

Exit CHORUS. Enter DESTINY and RHAPSODY, above.

DESTINY

God den, my Captain, colour of the sky,

Foul Captain Scarlet's chariot I spy,

Upon the road towards fair London's walls,

Upon us now this leaden summons falls.

BLUE

And I to London too, good Destiny,

Belike anon shall see our former friend.

Exit BLUE.

DESTINY

Behold, my winged companion, Rhapsody,

Two roads alone dread Scarlet's bark can take,

The first of these a Prospect intercepts,

Where Scarlet's bark has no hope of escape.

Away, good Rhapsody, let it come down,

Upon the other road that leads to town.

RHAPSODY

Our Spectrum now is Green, that road is doomed.

Alarum. Exit RHAPSODY.

DESTINY

'Tis done and wicked Scarlet alters course,

The steerage of his journey, Blue, we force!

Away from London, Scarlet hesitates,

The prospect of the Prospect now awaits!

I've always been somewhat ahead of the scenes I've been publishing.

Only on re-reading the full thing last night did I realise that I'd gone back later and added choruses to describe the Angel Interceptor and SPV, but had not done so for the MSV despite having published the scene already.

If you want to go and see the Chorus in-situ, follow the link at the bottom, otherwise:

SCENE III. New York. A street.

Enter CHORUS

CHORUS

Let painted fancy in the mind take shape,

A Spectrum carriage of assur’d escape,

Against the elements entombèd all,

‘Gainst Fire, water, air and earth withal.

And even that elusive quintessence,

‘Gainst even this the carriage gives defence.

As if by Vulcan made infallible,

‘Tis said that it be indestructible.

Within such waggon Captain Brown doth ride,

With President o’th’orb sat safe beside.

Meanwhile, over in another document:

PROLOGUE. An alleyway.

Darkness and silence. Enter BLUE and SCARLET, pursued by an assassin.

BLUE

Sworn enemies of Earth the Myst’rons be,

Of personage or object they do see,

Ability to copy make exact,

But first the Mysterons must death enact.

Alarum. A skirmish. Assassin falls. A drum.

A man made indestructible by fate,

Doth for Earth's cause, 'gainst Mars, participate,

His deeds upon this stage we now acclaim,

And Captain Scarlet is our hero's name.

Exeunt.

You know, just in case I ever wanted to start writing the script to another episode after the first, not that I'm doing that all. Definitely not right now. Absolutely not.

Exit CHORUS. A bell tower chimeth the quarter hour. Enter MACY and two Corporals of the Watch.

😗🎶

Sennight near concluded be,

A happy Friday God give thee.

Let's rejoin the action in my adaptation (loving, and loving alone) of the first episode of the Andersons' Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons but as if Shakespeare, had in fact, written it.

SCENE II. The clouds.

Enter CHORUS.

Within your minds a picture now design,

An iron hawk of Vulcan forge divine,

In but a day full compass of this space,

Can falcon swift as Destiny's embrace,

And nought besides machines of godly race,

No steely eagles faster in this place.

Arrayed with artificèd talons fierce,

An iron dart that could the heavens pierce.

In such as this fair Destiny gives chase,

And angel wing'd the fate of human race.

In greater still a bustard Scarlet flies,

Where Presidential destiny doth lie.

Exit CHORUS. Enter SCARLET and PRESIDENT YOUNGER, pursued by DESTINY.

DESTINY

Full tempest force do we to London fly,

Yet fearsome dispatch now from Cloudbase hails.

Returning Scarlet homeward is my charge,

What portends this I cannot yet divine.

What ho! My captain, tis decree'd, that you

Must homeward set your sail. Good Captain do

You mark my words? My colonel: no reply.

Enter WHITE and GREEN, above.

WHITE

Right sure I am some consequence doth fall,

Upon our Scarlet ally in distrust,

Belike the Mysterons affect our friend,

Grave danger means this to our President.

The English shores they surely now traverse,

With Destiny grave conf'rence must I hold.

Direct with her, Lieutenant, would I speak.

Fair Destiny, now mark me close with care,

A feint upon the Captain's iron bird,

Is yours to make, so goeth my command.

Let fly your cannons, clam'rous but belied,

And mark you this: be sure you miss the mark.

DESTINY

The destiny of iron cannons mine,

This Destiny shall bend to miss the mark.

I mark you, sir. Our Spectrum now is Green.

PRESIDENT

Thou villain, Scarlet, homeward steer our course.

Mark this, the Angels find their mark erelong,

Full well know I your ears their calls attend.

Alarum. Destiny attacks.

Hail Spectrum, I saluteth thee -

SCARLET draws.

Alack, this villain hath unseam'd my chaps!

Alarum. Exeunt SCARLET and PRESIDENT, falling.

DESTINY

Hail Cloudbase, Scarlet doth his wings desert,

I say again the Mysteron hath flown.

WHITE

Brave Destiny, our Spectrum now is Green.

This grounding flight and flight on ground survey.

And landing, when tis made, you must relay.

DESTINY

We maidens bear the name of angel proud,

Our leader will I closely overwatch,

In this respect I will an angel be.

Exit DESTINY.

WHITE

With Spectrum London shall I now commune,

Lieutenant Green, anon convey my will.

GREEN

Tis done. With patient ears they do attend.

WHITE

What ho, 'tis I, your chieftain, Colonel White,

Bleak tidings bring I unto you this night.

Forsaken wing and on the ground alight,

Our President and man-shap'd Martian spite.

Full seven leagues from London watchmen's sight,

We'll send Pursuant Engine now to fight.

Enter DESTINY.

DESTINY

My colonel, landing made I do advise,

Their sails abandoned in a field I spy.

This villain now our President doth take,

By sharpest sword-point to a waiting bark.

Unto the frozen pole they take their flight.

WHITE

Our Spectrum now is Green, brave Destiny,

Pursuant Engine right anon I'll send.

To allies on the ground you shall relay,

The Captain's longitude as he makes way.

Four exciting things to share with you tonight - and a request.

The first: we head into Act 2 of my adaptation of The Mysterons in the style of Shakespeare, which follows below. As ever, it is written with nought but love for the Andersons and Shakespeare both.

The second: the full 'play' is finished in its ~5,000-word, 24-page glory. I am immensely proud of it. Looking over what I share with you today, it feels like nothing in comparison to what's coming!

The third: I am seriously considering - but still only considering - adapting one of my other favourites next: Big Ben Strikes Again or Manhunt. I'd like to see how the rest of The Mysterons is received and let my brain rest for a bit!

The fourth: my wife is encouraging me to have the finished piece printed as a truly unique piece for this fan. While my means have limit, I would love to commission some cover art and properly remunerate a fellow fan than resort to AI. If you - or someone you know - could help, I'd love to hear it.

Anon, return we now to Spectrum tale,

Will humans o'er Mysterons prevail?

ACT TWO

SCENE I. Cloudbase.

Enter WHITE, SCARLET, GREEN and PRESIDENT YOUNGER.

WHITE

This misadventur'd Martian o'erthrow,

Is all for nought: the Mysterons have fail'd.

Anon another fortress we shall choose,

But first: to see what truly came to pass.

PRESIDENT

But Captain Scarlet I do stand amazed.

SCARLET

Good sir, if you with patient ears attend,

What here you miss, we two shall strive to mend.

WHITE

Mark what is written here in this report:

Two truths are told. The first, your close escape,

The next that Captain Brown did wildfire bring,

Belike more powder in the fortress still.

PRESIDENT

And as before I do but stand amazed.

If your suggestion here I do have right,

This Captain Brown was party to this plot.

WHITE

The Captain was a man on whom to build,

A trust so absolute - this do I know.

And since our voyagers return'd from Mars,

A multitude of portents strange and dark.

Our Captain Black - another I did trust -

Hath melted into air, been not seen since.

And now these portents to our fears doth add.

To London, Captain Scarlet, you will go,

With Angel guard and President withal.

Unto your hands I do commend his life.

I say again, my mind is full of fears,

When I reflect on foes from outer spheres! 

Exeunt SCARLET and PRESIDENT YOUNGER. A drum. Enter CHORUS.

CHORUS

The Mysterons their Martian scheme advance,

In peril placed the President by chance,

As he and Captain Scarlet take their flight,

On iron wings into the evening light,

The maiden Angels do their charge attend,

But know not yet that they shall fight their friend...

A drum. Exit CHORUS. 

GREEN

I should report that which I know I heard,

Yet know not how such tidings to relay.

A league beyond New York our soldiers note,

Good Captain Brown most dead upon the ground.

My liege, what doth this strange event portend?

WHITE

False-fac'd was he in wildfire lost ere now,

I fear yet more did pass upon that street,

Some chance that we are yet to comprehend.

GREEN

Scarlet lies there too!

WHITE

And Scarlet too?

What dreadful fate befell poor Captain Brown,

Belike hath seized good Captain Scarlet too.

Lieutenant Green, to Destiny relay,

Bring Captain Scarlet here without delay!

Every now and then a difficult period like this comes along: so it's time to request some assistance.

I've kind of been neglecting my vision for the past year or so, aware that I needed new glasses (and to go have a consult for possible eye-related surgery), but putting it off... and now the situation has, as it were, come home to roost.

The other day, when I was typing something and then (to check it before posting) had to pick up the Mac and hold it up to my nose to see what I'd typed... I realized that if this went on much longer, even with dictation (because after you dictate, you still have to edit...), I wouldn't be able to write.

That would be bad.

I need to go see my Eye Lady, get examined, and get both sets of glasses re-fitted with new prescriptions. This—as usual, each time it needs to be done every year and a half or two years, due to Weird Eyes—is going to run into a low-four-figure-ish kind of money. And due to other recent unexpected medical expenses, right now there's not enough dosh around (or spondoolicks or whatever term you prefer...) to get things sorted.

Therefore: can I get people interested in keeping a writer, you know, writing (as I've got three novels working at once at the moment...), to consider doing one of these things?

(a) Go over to Ebooks Direct and buy a book. (Or a bundle. Or a gift card for somebody else who might like my work.) And if you do: thanks so much!

(b) Stop by my Ko-Fi and drop a little something in the pot. It'll be most appreciated.

And if you can't do either of the above:

(c) Reblog this and let other people see it?

Generally you unbutton and re-button a suit coat when you sit down and stand up.

You’re supposed to hold wine or champagne glasses by the stem to avoid warming up the liquid inside. A character out of their depth might hold the glass around the sides instead.

When rich/important people forget your name and they’re drunk, they usually just tell you that they don’t remember or completely skip over any opportunity to use your name so they don’t look silly.

A good way to indicate you don’t want to shake someone’s hand at an event is to hold a drink in your right hand (and if you’re a woman, a purse in the other so you definitely can’t shift the glass to another hand and then shake)

Americans who still kiss cheeks as a welcome generally don’t press lips to cheeks, it’s more of a touch of cheek to cheek or even a hover (these days, mostly to avoid smudging a woman’s makeup)

The distinctions between dress codes (black tie, cocktail, etc) are very intricate but obvious to those who know how to look. If you wear a short skirt to a black tie event for example, people would clock that instantly even if the dress itself was very formal. Same thing goes for certain articles of men’s clothing.

Open bars / cash bars at events usually carry limited options. They’re meant to serve lots of people very quickly, so nobody is getting a cosmo or a Manhattan etc.

These events are almost always open bar. They're not trying to make their money back on alcohol. They want you to drink and eat and donate generously.

If there are cocktails, there will be at most two on offer, pre-made in large tubs. You cannot order a different version, it is what it is.

There are two types of events: cocktail style or seated. The first includes roaming hors d'oeuvres or a fancy buffet with tiny plates called a grazing station. For a long night, the roaming food will get a little bigger throughout the evening and have a 'main' at some point based around a protein.

A seated event will usually be more structured and may include multiple courses. Silver service is not in vogue anymore. You are likely to get either alternating meals brought to you like at a wedding, or served banquet style. A good caterer can get a plate to everyone in a 300 person event in about three minutes.

Drunk people are the same no matter how expensive their suits. They still laugh too loud, spill their drinks and slip on the dance floor. They are usually less embarrassed about doing coke in the bathrooms.

A full scale event that starts at 6pm will have staff arriving at noon to begin setup. Earlier if there's a light show or pyrotechnics. Typically venues don't just have 30 tables and three hundred chairs lying around, let alone table cloths, chair covers, etc. It's all rented and brought in on the day. Bands and DJs will be running audio tests in the background throughout.

Most heritage buildings that host these things, like museums and manor houses, aren't really designed for them. They might put down mats so you're not walking in stilettos over two hundred year old wooden floors, the kitchens are weirdly far away, and there are not enough taps. There is never anywhere for staff to sit, so if you open the wrong door you might find half a dozen waiters sitting on upturned milk crates in a room full of million dollar paintings, eating the left over bread.

Really old buildings don't have enough bathrooms, which means the staff will be sharing with the guests.

Clean up starts the second the event ends, if not sooner. Unattended glasses will start to disappear first, then table decorations. When the timer ticks over, the lights come back on and exhausted staff strip the tables, pack up dirty glasses and unopened wine bottles and have to Tetris it all into the back of a van. The venue is booked for that day only, so everything has to be gone before anyone can go home. A large event that finishes at midnight might take until 3am to be cleared away.

Told myself I'd post this chapter today, very nearly forgot, but remembered! Just about!

Anyway! Here's chapter two of this fic! Bit shorter than the last one. Things are still a bit rough for the boys, and Paul's trying to figure things out. I don't really have anything else to say, so I'll leave my rambles there. Enjoy!

Ch 1 AO3 Link

Now gather round, tis 'time, and pray you sit,

Next scene of Captain Scarlet hath I writ!

This really has taken on a life of its own and all my free time, and I regret neither. Today, we retell Captain Brown's attempt on the President's life, but less 2068 and more 1598 as we ask, with due reverence to both: what if Shakespeare, not the Andersons, did our indestructible hero create?

I've struggled the most with this scene as the original is so reliant on the soundtrack and setting - a lot of the dialogue is actually quite humdrum and expositionary without the glorious sights of MSVs, Angels and helicopters! So, I added a bit of a naughty exchange here in what's played as a horribly tense moment in the original (Brown's cigarette case triggering the metal detector) and then rapidly followed it up with Brown confirming he's a Mysteron. Likewise, I couldn't work out whether to have Brown or a Chorus announce his explosion.

At the moment, the joke stays and Brown closes the scene. I ask you to make the final call on how well it works ahead of reposting the whole thing when it's finished.

SCENE III. New York. A street.

Enter BROWN, PRESIDENT YOUNGER with WHITE, Angels and Spectrum officers above.

WHITE

Good Captain Brown, the Angels fly above,

They espy you, your chariot and charge.

BROWN

Mark that, 'tis true, our Spectrum now is Green.

Exit WHITE.

PRESIDENT

No thing 'twould seem hath Spectrum left to chance.

BROWN

My leader, nay. All caution did we take.

Pray mark through yonder window Spectrum guards,

On ev'ry roof along our plotted way.

A helix screw doth shadow us withal,

And Angels swift the country round do skirr.

Exeunt Spectrum officers and Angels.

PRESIDENT

For such a band of maidens fair and wise,

A name more apt a man cannot devise.

So stand I much impressed, good Captain Brown.

And yet my mind misgives, there's no repose,

Aye, better will I feel when we arrive.

We fight a foe we do not comprehend.

Enter Spectrum officers.

FIRST OFFICER

So please you step this way, my President.

PRESIDENT

What sorcery is this, good Captain Brown?

BROWN

Our artificers cunning means devis'd,

To search for hidden weapons we forbid.

'Tis well, 'tis manifest, you bear no sword.

Alarum. Officers draw.

FIRST OFFICER 

What vileness here with stealth concealèd be?

A pistol, poignard, dagger or a sword?

Full soft and slow, not fast of hand, reveal,

Whate'er's beneath your tunic forg'd of steel.

BROWN draws.

BROWN

Stand not amazed, dear friends, I mean no ill,

Mark that, you do but look upon my pipe.

[Aside]

But a spark before the fire!

PRESIDENT

But for a moment did my mind misgive.

They descend.

BROWN

All's well, good sir, 'tis done, we do arrive.

PRESIDENT

Thus far our fortunes keep an onward course.

Behold, dear Brown, our home for some time yet.

My hope it is in chess you have some skill.

BROWN

'Tis often said I do play well, my lord.

PRESIDENT

But soft, in yonder wall what is't I see?

BROWN

Fear not, 'tis but an eye alchemical,

An eye that looks upon our ev'ry move.

PRESIDENT

Right well I see in Spectrum's careful hands,

That there remains no thing for me to fear.

Good Captain, do you mark my words? I said

That Spectrum holds my safety in regard.

O, Captain Brown? O Captain, art thou well?

BROWN

Drop this mask this Mysteron can,

Thou art now a doomèd man,

Smoke and flame and blast so fleeting,

President, thus ends our meeting!

Alarum. BROWN dies. Exit PRESIDENT. Enter DESTINY.

DESTINY

To Cloudbase must I bring my words of dread,

Our fortress falls, our President lies dead!

Ao3 link here 12. Coordination (noun) the planning or coordination of the elements of a situation to produce a desired effect, especially surreptitiously

... Preparation is the quiet form of confidence. – Ravi Kapoor

...

The war council was held in the conference room, 0800 hrs Cloudbase time. The New York press conference had been yesterday at 2100 hrs on this end of the world, and while the delay gave UnNamed time to act, Colonel White wanted his people to be fresh (and in Ochre’s case coherent), and for them to have the time to assess the world’s reaction to UnName’s attempts to whitewash over the scandal, and review the different messages and interviews that were now cropping up.

We're back! Thank you for all the kind comments and reblogs so far.

With full respect to authors all,

Do join me now for Scarlet's fall.

We ask: 'what if Shakespeare, not the Andersons, created our indestructible hero?'

SCENE II. Cloudbase, outside New York

Enter CHORUS.

CHORUS

A hov'ring fortress perched among the clouds,

Two leagues above the multitude of crowds,

Floats now betwixt the Earth and Martian foes.

Alas, Black's home, ere Mars his life did close.

Good Colonel White arrays Earth's champions true,

The other captains, fearsome Angels too,

Swift pilots in the clouded azure skies,

To guard the world from every dark surprise.

Exit CHORUS. Enter WHITE, GREEN and Angels.

WHITE

Lieutenant Green, give order to dispatch,

Let fly the Angels, one and two and three.

GREEN

Fair Destiny, to arms, at once take flight.

DESTINY

Our Spectrum now is Green, I hear you right.

GREEN

And Rhapsody and Harmony besides,

Betake you now into the azure skies.

Forthwith, go to, at once, without delay,

Let fly from hence the Angels two and three.

HARMONY

I go, tis done, our Spectrum now is Green.

Exeunt Angels.

GREEN

In iron birds of valour, speed and might,

Three Angels fair into the skies take flight.

WHITE

With Captain Scarlet now I will confer.

Enter SCARLET and BROWN, below.

What ho, my Captain, do your ears attend?

SCARLET

They do, my Lord, New York is one league hence,

Tis as we planned, we'll make our rendezvous.

World President, we come to shelter you,

In Spectrum's fortress, 'gainst the Martian foe.

WHITE

And Captain Brown, but one more word with you.

BROWN

My liege?

WHITE

Into your hands entrust this task I do.

Before your own do place our leader's life.

BROWN

My lord.

WHITE

And Scarlet once his life is made secure,

Hence here to Cloudbase render him with haste.

SCARLET

My lord.

Exeunt WHITE and GREEN.

Your first assignment, fortune good to thee.

BROWN

Right glad am I, dear Captain, full of thanks.

Bethink you, by your troth, our President

Doth bide in mortal danger sure and true?

SCARLET

When I upon this Martian tale of woe

do cast my mem'ry this I do surmise:

Belike foul Myst'rons verily and true,

Full deed to airy words can surely give.

BROWN

Would that we fought a foe we understood,

Foe sensible to both our sight and touch,

Full realised in all dimensions three.

SCARLET

I hear thee right, your words I comprehend,

Insensible to feeling as to sight,

Their fearsome voice we Earthmen hear and yet

My mind misgives that they are ever near.

Exeunt SCARLET and BROWN. A sound of calamity without.

Enter SCARLET carrying SCARLET's body.

SCARLET

(Aside)

Sudden, rapid, cruel death,

Steals away my mortal breath;

Snuffed in noise and fire and flame,

Mysterons the deed doth claim.

Now a stranger thought is bred:

Living, though I should be dead.

Scarlet fell in swift surprise,

Copy mine in place doth rise.

Mars I serve, for Mars I cry:

President, 'tis time to die!

Exit SCARLET carrying SCARLET's body. Enter WHITE.

WHITE

What ho, what noise, what mischief is there here?

Enter SCARLET.

I give thee joy, good Captain Scarlet, true,

From dark death's clutches you walk forth unscath'd.

What news, good Captain? Give me your report.

SCARLET

(Aside)

This the Earthen fool doth reckon,

Death did not good Scarlet beckon.

Earthman shall my voice resemble,

Thus the truth I do dissemble.

My gracious Colonel, thanks I give to thee.

Nor Brown nor Scarlet time or place did fail,

Confirm'd we both the President's defence,

New York stands clear'd and soldiers plac'd on guard.

Our leader lies in Brown's assur'd regard.

Chapter 4 | AO3

Synopsis: Five times Gordon asked Scott not to leave him and the one time Scott asked Gordon. A Scott and Gordon growing up fic. Pre-iR.

With much thanks to @the-original-sineater and @mariashades for all the help!

~

Gordon sighed.

He’d swam well today and his Coach had just told him that he’d qualified for the Olympics next year. He’d told his family and they had been ecstatic but without Scott knowing the praise felt hollow somehow.

But Scott was due to call today. Now, actually. And Gordon was sat in front of the phone waiting for his call.

It didn’t come.

Virgil Tracy is in Maranello with his F40… he’s been invited to Ferrari’s factory.

I always imagine Virgil having a classic car like the F40.

It just suits him so well.