Everyone says the Tracy farm is the most efficient in the district. What they don't know is that Jeff's eldest son is a speed freak at harvest time, the second eldest uses math as a weapon, the middle kid can build and repair pretty much anything, the second youngest is into aquaculture and may or may not have a pot crop in the basement, and the youngest, well, there was that strange explosion last week. Jeff and his mother are decent folk, if a little eccentric - TBC
Meet The Tracys
The cloud of violet smoke hung low as it rolled over the town of Sharon Springs, Wallace County, and Sheriff Eli Williams sighed deeply. This time the explosion had been felt not only in their town but in Wallace, nine miles east, and Weskan, 12 miles to the west. Someone was talking about an earthquake.
But Eli knew better.
‘Dan, write an incident form and put it in the file under Tracy, and get the car ready. It’s time to go visiting.’
Dan ‘yes Boss’-ed him and filled in the incident form as requested while Eli made a couple more calls, mainly to his counterparts in the other two towns, reassuring them that he was dealing with it. Neither sheriff believed him, grumbling about ‘them damn Tracys’. Eli took it all in his stride.
The Tracy Farmstead – colloquially known as Thunderbird Farm due to the ancient petroglyph found on a cave wall on the farmland – was one of the largest wheat producers in the county, and as such commanded both respect and leeway.
Respect because it was also the oldest farm still held by the original family.
Leeway because, well, them Tracys were an odd bunch.
Grandma Tracy was the undisputed matriarch. Sally to her friends, she had no rival when it came to baking. Her apple pie won every award in every county show, her jams were fought over and if she invited you over for dinner you knew you were in for a feast.
Jefferson, her son, was an excellent farmer, but he was definitely the start of the eccentricity. Jeff had left the farm as a teen, joined the air force and then a brief stint with NASA, before returning home and settling down with a wife who was more absent than he had been to care for his sons.
The boys were where the eccentricity started in full.
Scott, the eldest, was outwardly very normal. Long legged and quite the lady’s man, he had followed his father into the Air Force before returning. No one talked about why he had come home, but Eli knew there had been medals awarded and for the first year he’d been home he had not appeared anywhere off the farm. He was also the local crop duster, flying for free over every farm in the county that wanted him (which was most of them).
But there was something about the man. He had a reputation and was hated by all the neighbouring farms. He was fast, could clear a field faster than anyone else. No one could work out how he could, but year in year out he beat the competition with plenty of time to spare. And he took his plane out for joyrides frequently.
John, next eldest, was the odd man out – for a Tracy. Rarely seen off the farm without another brother, he was quiet and withdrawn, and no one could really figure the man out. The Tracy’s had built him a special barn on Thunderbird Hill where they’d installed some kind of telescope. John Tracy had his head in the sky.
Virgil Tracy was the all-rounder. Mechanic extraordinaire, artist, pianist, the man could turn his hand to anything, absolutely anything. He was always elbow-deep into some machinery or other every time Eli popped over. He could often be seen around town fixing stuff for townsfolk, playing the piano in the church on Sundays and his paintings hung in almost every building. Virgil was as down to earth as could be, and he was the brother most often seen in the company of the eldest.
Gordon Tracy was the joker of the family. He was the cause of the giant swimming pool out the back of the house and just like his eldest brother he had done a stint in the forces, this time for WASP, and had also returned home injured badly enough that he too hadn’t been seen for almost a year.
He was also the second most frequent cause of Eli visiting the homestead. The boy liked to prank, and not everyone was…appreciative…of his expressions. Eli quite enjoyed the variety that Gordon could come up with and he was secretly delighted when the boy pulled off a new prank.
The farm bordered Willow Creek and it was known that Gordon was experimenting with some aquafarming. He was growing some kind of special plants in the basement that he had told Eli would eventually produce a plant that could be used as a natural pain killer.
(If it looked like pot and smelled like pot Eli wasn’t going to say anything, especially since pot had been legalised in 2023.)
The youngest one, Alan Tracy, was the one who Eli worried about the most. Not yet eighteen, with four older brothers he was desperate to emulate. But there was not much left for him to stand out.
Alan Tracy was the cause of the regular explosions that rocked the small county of Wallace County. Often accompanied by smoke of various colours rolling in over Sharon Springs and accompanying earthquakes, they were the primary cause of Eli’s visits.
No one could or would ever tell him what on earth the boy was doing, but Eli trusted the rest of the family to keep an eye on him.
As Eli approached the farm the smoke became thicker and darker purple. He chuckled to himself, thinking that one day he’d get to the bottom of whatever the boy was creating. But for now, it would be his customary (and frequent) warning he would be issuing.
As he pulled over he espied Sally sitting on the porch rocker. She stood up and waited for him to exit his car. He took off his hat and inclined his head in greeting.
‘Thought you’d be by, Eli. Come in and have a slice of apple pie and an iced tea.’
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WIth thanks to @the-original-sineater for her help with keeping it American and also to @mariashades for the read through.
~
Most places that still ran ploughing competitions usually made it a two-day event. One to plough the fields and one to celebrate as a town.
But not in Sharon Springs, Wallace County.
Folks here and in the neighbouring Wallace and Weskan had long ago given up hope of there being anyone other than Scott Tracy crowned as King of the Harvest, and in a cunning plan had decided to switch the usual way of things and have the drinking celebrating first in an effort to level the playing field.
It had not worked yet.
But they lived in hope.
A vain hope, but they hoped nonetheless.
The celebrations were rapidly approaching. A cloud of cinnamon hung over all three towns as the baking became intense. The air smelled sweetly of stewed apples and other baked goods, interspersed with wafts of berry jams and the slightly sour smell of mash.
Sheriff Eli Williams breathed in deeply and appreciatively. His nose was gifted with the ability to be selective, years of training at *not* smelling mash and absolutely *knowing* that his fellow citizens did *not* make corn whiskey and home brew…
It was Wednesday evening, three days before the celebratory weekend, and he could tell it was going to be a long night. The signs were there.
In the shape of a green pickup and four young men all dressed in jeans and various shades plaid.
(Scott is getting rescued after a mission gone awry)
Scott: How did you find me?
Virgil: Oh, I saw this huge explosion in the distance and wondered, 'Now, who could that be?'.
Scott: Huh. A bit of a giveaway...
Gordon’s Phone: (Screams with ear-blistering static)
Gordon: Okay, okay! Jeez!
Gordon’s Phone: (Stops)
Gordon: There once was a boy called Alan
Alan: Scott! He’s doing it!
Scott: Gordon!
Gordon: Fine!
Gordon: There was an artist called Virgil
Who … who … um
Virgil: Yeah. Nothing rhymes.
Gordon: Wow. Talk about stifling other people’s creativity.
Virgil: Literally not my fault. Take it up with Dad.
Jeff: Take what up with Dad?
Gordon: Um.
Virgil: Gordon’s trying to make up limericks. Nothing rhymes with Virgil.
Gordon: Why aren’t we allowed to call him ‘Virg’?
Jeff: Because there are too many things that rhyme with ‘Virg’, none of which Hannah Coleman should have known about at the age of thirteen, much less written ‘love’ poems about and send them to your brother.
Scott: What?!
John: What?!
Alan: What?!
Gordon: What?!
Virgil: Not talking about it. Except to my therapist. Excuse me.
Gordon: Hey, Virgil, wait!
Virgil: What?
Scott: Did you save the poems?
Notes:
Yeah, so this took an unexpected turn on me. I don’t know where Hannah Coleman came from, or what the ever-loving hell she wrote, but apparently it … wasn’t good.
The standard disclaimers, I do not own Thunderbirds, either the Original Series, the Movies (both Supermarionation and Live Action), or the Thunderbirds Are Go Series. (Although I do own copies on DVD.)
I do not do this for money, but for my own (in)sanity and entertainment.
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Scott Tracy breathed a sigh of relief as he felt the wheels of the ‘conventional’ jet he was flying left the tarmac.
His never failed to feel lighter once he was no longer touching the earth, but this time the relief was more intense than usual.
As he guided the executive jet – once Jeff’s favourite plane, a sleek long-haul commercial jet that had been the Aviation arm of Tracy Industries flagship product, and dubbed ‘Tracy One’ – exactly through the ‘gateway’ at the end of the runway climb out, the radio crackled to live. The heavily accented English of the Departures Controller for Trondheim Lufthavn gave him his final instructions to clear the Lufthavn’s controlled airspace and join his filed flightpath out of Norway and back to Tracy Island.
He only let himself relax as he hit his cruising speed and altitude, and activated the pre-programmed autopilot.
Reaching back he caught the retractable tray table and dragged it towards him, before picking up his insulated mug, a custom-made gift from Brains that allowed him to ensure he had hot coffee available on a solo flight in the plane.
He couldn’t help glancing back at the safe built into the bulkhead at the back of the cockpit. He still had grave reservations about getting TI involved in the construction of the World Government’s new high-security computer system to be based in Norway; but the World Government had wanted Tracy Industries for their reputation for excellence and security, the TI Board wanted it, and most importantly John wanted it.
Scott tried not to think about the fact that his brother was likely to include a backdoor to the system.
But Scott had been convinced that it was in the best interests of all involved to take the project on, and he had gone to Norway to meet the key personnel and personally take receipt of the plans. TI facilities would produce the various key components and they would be shipped to Tracy Island for construction by one Hiram K. Hackenbacker
Scott sighed, even Brains had been excited by the prospect of getting to look at the designs, and the attendant programming that the hardware would be running. Something about the specifications for the “new ‘unbreakable’ encryption protocols”, and “the next major breakthrough in computing, practically quantum!”
Scott was worried that the two – three if Alan inserted himself into the mix – computer nerds would back-engineer the TOP SECRET computer and incorporate it into International Rescue’s equipment.
When – and Scott was not an optimist when it came to this sort of things, so it was when and not if – the rest of the world figured out that they had that technology, there would be some uncomfortable questions that Scott would be left to try to answer.
And he was resolutely NOT thinking about what Eos could do with all that processing power. Scott had reached a truce with the Space Monitor’s pet AI, but he hadn’t made peace with it … her. She had come dangerously close to killing John, ‘misunderstanding’ or not, ‘self-defence’ or not.
Harming his family was the one sin Scott Tracy could not forgive.
The next hour or so disappeared quietly as Scott brooded on his misgivings, carefully watched the plane’s gauges, and the sky.
Sometime after the onboard computer indicated that it had successfully completed its mandatory handshake with Chinese Air Control Scott stretched, arching his back and spreading his toes within the confines of his shoes. Flying alone was great for relaxation, flying alone long distances however … no matter how good the autopilot, a good pilot never left the controls unmanned.
Tracy One, while fast, was no Thunderbird One. I’m getting soft, Scott thought bemused. Too used to the multiple mach speed of his usual means of transportation.
Settling back into his seat, Scott once more scanned the gauges … only to see them all fade out as the engines whined their rollback to idle and shutdown.
Scott swore, unbelieving, hands once more on the controls, as he quickly hit two buttons, setting his transponder to squawk distress mode, and deploying the RAT, a small drop down wind turbine that dropped from the planes undercarriage and caught the airflow, generating enough power to get some gauges and controls working.
Fingers automatically worked at the controls, reconfigure for maximum glide, run through the midair engine restart procedure. And …
Nothing.
As Scott immediately recommenced the restart, he was on the radio: “Mayday, Mayday, Maday. This is November Tango India Zero One Charlie. Twin engine roll back, loss of power. Attempting restarts. Requesting assistance to squawk location.”
No response. Scott cycled through another engine restart attempt as he waited, nervously watching the altitude numbers seemingly freefall. There was no way he was descending that fast, surely?
Two more attempts at transmitting the mayday resulted in silence. The engines refused to restart.
Scott reached for his collar and swore. The meeting had been so high security even IR’s integrated collar coms were not allowed. And Scott had been in such a hurry to get back to the Island that he hadn’t changed his clothes, only ditching the ordinary – albeit obscenely expensive – coat, suit jacket, tie and cufflinks.
No direct link home. No mid-air rescue for Scott Tracy.
No matter. He could manage.
Abandoning his attempts to restart as the altitude numbers screamed down under the threshold.
His plane was going to kiss dirt. All he could do was make it as gentle as possible.
Scott switched his attention to scanning the ground below him, looking for a suitable space. Thank god he had elected to fly west towards home, meaning he was over the Gobi Desert.
Sand was preferable to water, no matter what Gordon said.
Sand would make for a nice soft runway, provided Scott managed a tail-first. Letting a leading edge dig in would be a disaster. Even with the International Rescue approved safety features retrofitted to the standard executive jet, there wouldn’t be much for his brothers to recover if she dug in and flipped, or windmilled around a wing.
“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday. November Tango India Zero One Charlie. Restart negative. Unpowered landing necessary. Requesting immediate assistance to squawk location.”
Scott breathed carefully, focusing on his search and not the possibilities.
There!
Off in the distance Scott spotted a level area, large enough for the plane to coast to a stop on her belly.
He breathed out, mentally calculated the distance and descent, and carefully reconfigured the plane, setting the ailerons and stomping on the rudder to bring her tail around into the head wind and shed speed: side-slipping. He gently slewed her back the other way, ensuring she maintained the correct heading, but shedding altitude and speed.
This was a dangerous aerial ballet. More so than any dogfight he had been in during his service. One wrong move …
Scott’s hands were sweating on the control yoke. His heartbeat deafened him.
Oh, there was going to be so many lost of control drills for his brothers in the future. It had been too long since they had run any.
His luck held all the way down.
He managed to line up to the long axis of the space, and his tail kissed sand at the edge of the smooth space.
Metal screamed as sand ripped at the undercarriage as Scott gently lowered the length of the plane onto the dirt, and deployed all flaps and slats, increasing the resistance to the air, even as the sand resisted the movement of the hull.
And Scott became a passenger.
He kept his feet at the rudder pedals, trying to keep the plane moving in a straight line. Yaw risked rolling. But it was largely a futile effort, the path was set, determined by physics, geology and … geography!
Scott’s heart leapt into his throat as the plane hurled itself over the top of a rising dune that had been hidden by his approach angle. It was a significant drop down the other side, and the plane had lost enough momentum that it had little aerodynamic power.
The nose fell, and Scott heard yelling.
It took the eternity the plane was falling to realise that it must be him.
Impact was hard.
Metal screamed as sections of the cockpit rushed towards him, dislodged and distorted.
Something above him broke loose, swinging down into his field of vision.
It was the last thing Scott saw.
Notes:
This is Part One of my last Febuwhump Prompt from MariaShades, Part Two will actually address the prompt, but work's been mental, and Scott's been a little shit and really didn't want to crash his plane ... Oh well, better late than never.
And if I post this half, I'll stop faffing around with it and actually write the second half. In theory.
Lucille Tracy was still not convinced. “Jeff, are you sure about this?”
Jeff smiled reassuringly. “Very. We’ve got to leave town for the day – a very long, very boring day – so you can get the next lot of scans for the baby. Mom has her hands full looking after Pa, and your parents couldn’t get away from the Ranch. We can’t take Scott, he’s too young, and, um …”
“Hyperactive?” Lucy raised an eyebrow.
“Excitable,” Jeff decided, “to be spend the day in the hospital with us. Lee was visiting anyway, and he is Scott’s godfather …”
“Who requires every bit as much adult supervision as the two year old we’re asking him to supervise.”
Jeff frowned. “That’s not fair, Luce. Lee …”
She sighed. “I know.” She met his gaze. “It’s only one day, right? And as he keeps reminding us, the Space Agency trusts him with their multi-billion dollar equipment, so we can trust him with Scott?”
Jeff kissed her on the forehead. “Exactly right, on both counts.”
Lee Taylor was miffed.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to look after his two-year-old godson, and it wasn’t that he wanted to look after his two-year-old godson – kids had never been his thing; but his best friend’s wife was giving the impression that she didn’t trust Lee with the boy.
For goodness sakes, the Space Agency trusted him with multi-billion dollar it, didn’t they? (Not on your own, they don’t, a traitorous little voice whispered. Lee resolutely ignored it.)
Jeff trusted him with his life, surely his wife could trust him with their son?
Captain Lee Taylor was a fully trained astronaut, with five moon missions, and one Mars landing under his belt. Captain Lee Taylor could handle a two-year-old boy. No problems. Easy peasy, light and breezy!
Captain Lee Taylor was a fully trained astronaut, with five moon missions and one Mars landing under his belt. Captain Lee Taylor was not qualified to deal with a two-year-old boy. I’m an astronaut, get me out of here!
It had started off well enough, wave bye-bye to Jeff and Lucy, watch as the boy climbed the tree in the backyard – “Are you allowed to climb that tree?” “I am if you say I am, Uncle Lee.” (He wasn’t too sure about that decision, he had a feeling Lucy wouldn’t allow it, but the kid was fine.)
A snack, reading a book about airplanes, that morphed into a storytelling session about Jeff flying in his plane, bright blue eyes stared up adoringly as he listened to stories of his Daddy’s adventures. (And, maybe, he shouldn’t have been quite so honest about Jeff’s time in combat? But the kid loved it.)
But it had fallen apart after that. Inspired by the stories, Lee had been roped into an energetic game of ‘fighter pilot’, where Lee was the “boogie” to the boy’s Jeff. Lee had to ‘fly’ and try to avoid the little boy chasing him. At the shrill shriek of “Direct hit!” Lee had to fall down, before he was allowed up to play the part of another “boogie”. After three hours, Lee was exhausted.
And the kid was hungry. So Lee found the (premade? Lee could handle making sandwiches, for heavens sake!) sandwiches in the fringe, and poured juice into a large glass. The biggest he could find, don’t want the boy to get dehydrated. That the large heavy glass tumbler wasn’t suitable for little hands was a retroactive thought, after it smashed on the ground. But that was okay, just a broken glass and spilled juice. No blood, no foul. Lee found another – plastic – tumbler and replenished the boy’s drink, before cleaning up the mess.
Lee had a thought that kids should sleep after eating, need time to let the food settle, right? But he was having none of it, wanting instead to return to playing ‘fighter pilot’. Lee couldn’t face another round of that, so he compromised with some tv time. Managing to find an old kids movie he remembered that should meet the boy’s approval, they both settled on the lounge, as onscreen Dusty Crophopper chased his dream of flying around the world.
Only for Lee to wake abruptly some time later alerted by some weird sixth sense, just in time to catch the boy as he launched off the top of the bookcase – and how the sam hill had he got up there? A frantic examination proved the kid was fine, albeit disappointed by his failure to ‘fly’. So Lee took him out to the tyre swing so he could ‘fly’ there.
It was an unknowable time later, growing dark and Lee’s back and arms were burning with exertion when Jeff and Lucy arrived home, take away Chinese in hand, only to laugh at Lee’s exhaustion, and the kid’s excitement.
Dinner was a quiet affair, as Jeff and Lucy – mainly Lucy – interrogated them on their day. Jeff quietly amused and Lucy exasperated as the story of broken glass came out, and horrified at the ‘bookcase incident’. Lee had been hoping that they could keep that to themselves.
And yes, he had been conned. The tree was strictly off limits.
Lee hoped to make a quiet escape to his guest room, but the kid wasn’t having any of that. Apparently the little monster had decided that since he was spending the day with him, that was the whole day. 24 hours.
Lee wasn’t quite sure how it happened, but somehow he ended up agreeing to sleep on a camp bed in the kids room. The operative word was ‘sleep’, right? The boy would sleep. Lee sure would. Somehow exploring new worlds was less exhausting than babysitting one two-year-old.
Jeff smirked as Lee was dragged up to the kids room, for a round of bedtime stories, and “G’night, Uncle Lee.”
Lee glared as Jeff smirked at him as he checked they were both safely tucked up in bed, before turning off the light.
Lee was going to get his best friend for this.
Small sharp fingers clamped onto his eyelid and pulled, painfully, forcibly, opening his left eye, and startling Lee into wakefulness.
Bright blue eyes peered into Lee’s sole open one. “Is you awake, my Uncle Lee?”
“I am now,” he grumbled, feeling his back complain about the camp bed he had slept – too briefly – on last night.
The little boy clapped happily, before grabbing his upper arm and trying to pull him upright. “Up!”
Lee resisted. “Too early, kid. Go back to bed.”
His best friend’s son bounced – bounced! – onto the bed and then onto his chest, driving all the air from his body. “The sun’s awake, so we’re awake. It’s time to play, so let’s all go Outside today!” He sang gleefully, bouncing in time to the tune.
Lee managed to catch him in the air, and rolling half over, deposited the boy on the floor beside the bed. He stared at the little boy, who was practically vibrating in excitement.
“You like this every day?” Lee demanded.
The boy bounced on his toes. “Yep!”
Lee swore under his breath. No wonder Jeff and Lucy were so darn tired. He eyed the blue-eyed menace in front of him. “Alright,” he muttered. “But we gotta let your Mom and Dad sleep, okay?”
He bounced again. “Okay!”
Lee dragged his protesting body out of the camp bed. Every morning. Darned if he knew why Jeff and Lucy wanted another one after this.
Jeff Tracy woke when the sun managed to find the exact right spot to shine through the gap in the curtains, and hit his face.
He lay still half asleep in bed, and wrestled with the fact that something felt wrong.
Very wrong.
The house was silent, he couldn’t hear anything except Lucy snuffling – not snoring. Never snoring. His wife DID NOTsnore! (He had learned that fact the hard way.) So there was no break in, and Scott …
Scott.
Scott, who hadn’t let his parents sleep past sunrise pretty much since the day he was born. Scott, the solar-activated ball of hyper-energy that should have bounced his parents awake the second the sun’s first rays hit the horizon. Scott, who should have been nyrooom-ing his thundering way up and down the hall and stairs.
The house was silent.
The house was still.
Scott!
Jeff was awake in a flood of adrenaline, launching himself off the bed towards the door, and running towards his son’s room.
The bed was unmade, and Scott was gone.
In a blind panic, Jeff rushed toward the bed, and ended up sprawled across the floor.
He turned, and sagged with relief. He had tripped over a discarded blanket, kicked aside from the bed camp bed that had been made up for Lee after Scott had insisted that ‘Uncle Lee’ have a sleepover with him.
Jeff took a moment to calm his breathing and heartbeat. Lee. Scott waking would have woken Lee; and Lee, knowing how tired he and Lucy were, had taken the boy off to play so they could sleep.
Thank god for Lee.
He had just about regained his composure when Lucy rounded the door. “Jeff?” She was still groggy from sleep, having been woken by his mad dash for the door. “What is it?”
Jeff got up from the floor. “I woke up,” he admitted, sheepishly. “And I panicked when I realised how late it was.”
“Huh?”
Jeff huffed, “Fine. I’m not used to being able to sleep so late. I freaked when I realised Scott hadn’t woken us, and I couldn’t hear him. Scott must have woke Lee first, and Lee took him out to play so we could sleep.”
Lucy stared, still uncomprehending, then shook her head. “Coffee. I need coffee. I can’t logic without coffee.”
Jeff grinned. “I’ll put the kettle on.”
He went downstairs, as Lucy went to take care of ‘the necessities’. And glanced as he filled the kettle, looked out the window.
The backyard was deserted.
Come to that, he couldn’t hear anything from outside, either. Scott wasn’t by nature quiet, and Lee, well, his lack of volume control was yet another side effect of that disastrous training exercise.
Jeff frowned as went to check the front yard. It too was deserted, but Lee’s rental car was missing.
Okay, so Lee had taken Scott somewhere to play so he wouldn’t disturb them. Nothing to worry about. Jeff spent the next ten minutes looking for a note explaining where they had gone.
Nothing.
No note. No car. No Lee. No Scott.
Lucy wandered down the stairs, and was a little put out to find the coffee unmade. She sighed as Jeff explained the situation. “Jeff, did you think to call Lee? You know, let him know the coast is clear to come back?”
Jeff grimaced guiltily, and went to the phone. He dialled from memory, and was rewarded by the sound of an obnoxious ringtone. It was some god-awful pop song that ‘celebrated’ the first manned landing on Mars, and Jeff hated it, so naturally Lee had chosen it as the ringtone for Jeff’s numbers.
Lucy picked up Lee’s phone and rejected the call, silencing the offending ring tone. They both stared at the device. “Trust Lee to forget his phone,” Lucy said, but her voice was worried.
“Yeah, just like him.” Jeff bit his lip. “Luce, I’ll take the car, and go find them. I’ll bring breakfast home, yeah? From the bakery? You give them a call, and tell them I’ll collect it when I’ve found Lee, they might even know where they are.”
“Lee pays,” Lucy said. “Payback for scaring us silly.”
Jeff grinned. “Fine. Lee pays.”
He was halfway down the road when Lucy called. “I’ve placed the order, but they haven’t seen them.”
Jeff grinned. “That just means that Lee hasn’t spoiled Scott’s appetite.” He considered. “I’ll swing past the airfield first, maybe Lee took Scott to see the planes?”
Lucy chuckled nervously. “Sounds about right. You let me know the second you find them.”
“Of course. Though they’ll probably turn up at home before I find them, so make sure you let me know.”
Twenty minutes later Jeff did a slow patrol around the airfield, looking for Lee’s car parked outside the perimeter to watch the student pilots taking off and landing. Nothing. So he went into the complex, and parked outside the hangar where his family stored their aircraft.
Lee had flown in from Houston, where he still lived. Maybe he had taken Scott to look at his plane? Jeff tried not to think about the fact that Lee’s car wasn’t visible.
The hangar was deserted, and the three planes were all safely stowed. So Lee hadn’t taken Scott for a flight.
As Jeff exited the airfield, having carefully checked the interiors of the three planes, just in case, his phone rang, with the generic ringtone. Mouth dry, Jeff answered.
“Jeff, it’s Sheriff Reichs. I’ve just been in The BakeHouse, I understand you’ve misplaced that friend of yours, and your son?”
Jeff grimaced. He should’ve known better. That he’d ‘lost’ Scott would be all over town. He quickly explained the situation, careful to emphasise that he had no concern for Scott’s wellbeing.
Sheriff Reichs chuckled. “Well, I’ll keep an eye out for you, and you make sure you let me know when you find ‘em.” The older man was reassuring. “This’ll make one hell of a good story for the boy’s twenty-first.”
Jeff promised to call him second thing – Lucy remained firmly first in line – and thanked the sheriff for his help. A couple of the smaller playgrounds and parks were on Jeff’s way, and he slowed to drive past, carefully scanning them for signs of his son and friend.
Nothing.
It was only when he got to the large park in the centre of town that he found the first sign of his quarry. Lee’s rental car was parked, haphazardly across two spaces, by the corner that was on the direct route from their house.
Jeff parked more carefully next to his friend’s car, and as he got out the Sheriff’s cruiser pulled into the slot on the other side.
Reichs got out of his car, and eyed Lee’s rental, before turning to Jeff. “Well, I sure hope he parks a space rocket better than he parks a car.”
“There’s a reason the Space Agency insists we’re chauffeured everywhere on their watch.” Jeff almost managed to keep a straight face.
“Is that why they’re talkin’ ‘bout bringin’ back ocean landin’s?”
Jeff laughed.
Reichs chuckled. There was a delighted shriek from deeper in the park. “Higher, Uncle Lee! Higher!”
A broad grin spread across the Sheriff’s face. “Sounds like you’ve found what you’re lookin’ for, Jeff. I’ll not hold you up.”
Jeff thanked him again, backing away towards the shrieks of delight, and as soon as he was able, turned and hurried – not run, he was not running – to the source of the noise.
Just before he broke the treeline that screened the large, well-equipped playground, Jeff forced himself to stop. There, on the high swings – that Scott was most definitely not allowed on – was his son, his best friend pushing the boy ever higher.
He pulled out his phone, and took a minute’s video, before sending it to Lucy.
The response came as a text message: Thank God. Bring them home. I’m hungry.
He snorted and put the phone away, stepping out of the concealing treeline and starting towards the swingset.
“Daddy!” Scott had spotted him, and before anybody could react, the boy launched himself forward off the swing at its zenith. Lee’s strangled yell as the boy fell to the ground. Landed a good six feet from the edge of the swing’s reach…
… and immediately ran towards his father, cannonballing into Jeff with a force that knocked him over, and would have knocked the air out of him, had there been any left in his body.
Jeff grabbed him in a massive hug, as Lee sprinted up to them, spluttering what could have been words.
Scott hugged Jeff back, just as tightly, although for different reasons. “Did you see me, Daddy? I was flying!”
Jeff pulled back a little. “Yeah, I saw you buddy. And it’s a good thing your Mom didn’t. What have you been told about jumping off the swings?”
The little boy deflated. “Don’t.” Blue eyes pleaded. “But I was flying. Just like you. And Uncle Lee.”
Jeff groaned. “Scott Lee Tracy, your Uncle Lee and I have all sorts of safety gear to keep us from getting hurt.”
And just like that, Scott perked up. “Ok, Daddy. I bring my helmet. It’s keeps me from getting hurt.”
Jeff swallowed. He was in real trouble this time. “We’ll ask your Mom,” was all he could say.
Lee fidgeted, “What’re you doing here, Jeff? Luce kick you out?”
Jeff glared at him. “Would it kill you to leave a note?”
Lee winced, guiltily. “You could’a called me. Save the trip.”
Jeff reached into his pocket, and pulled out Lee’s phone. “Didn’t work so well.”
Lee deflated. “Oh.”
“Yeah. Oh.”
“But you got to sleep in, right?”
Jeff sighed. “Yeah. But next time, leave a damn note. It took years off my life.”
Lee winced again. “Lucy’s mad at me, isn’t she?”
“The Sheriff was looking for you both.” Lee paled. “And you’re buying breakfast.”
“Uncle Lee and I had beek-fast!” Scott chirped. “Uncle Lee brought me don’t’s an’ a milkshake.”
Jeff stared at his friend. “Doughnuts and milkshake, for breakfast?!”
Lee went even paler. “Where’d Lucy order from, anyway? You get him home, and I’ll bring breakfast.”
Jeff glared. “You’d better. I am not explaining this to his mother on my own.”
Lee grabbed his phone and ran, yelling over his shoulder, “Message me the address!”
Jeff looked down at Scott, “Come on, kiddo.” He swung the delighted boy onto his shoulders. “We’d better go after him before he gets lost.”
Scott shrieked with delight, and pulling violently on Jeff’s hair, kicked him in the chest with his heels. “Faster, Daddy! Faster!”
Jeff broke into a trot after his best friend. Please, God, let the next one be quieter.
Notes:
Ask, and ye shall receive! (Although not always this quickly!) By popular demand, this is the story of Scott’s first adventure with ‘Uncle Lee’.
@janetm74, @onereyofstarlight, and @womble1, this one’s for you!
The standard disclaimers, I do not own Thunderbirds, either the Original Series, the Movies (both Supermarionation and Live Action), or the Thunderbirds Are Go Series. (Although I do own copies on DVD.)
I do not do this for money, but for my own (in)sanity and entertainment.
It's (finally!) time for more Tracy Island comics! ✨🏝️✨
In which Gordon tries to walk it off after another bone-shattering rescue stunt (which looked cool as hell!) but Field Nurse Virgil is NOT having it. His personal private hospital ward isn't officially baby jail, but those sheets are tucked so tight Gordon's going nowhere! >:|
And iR's social media rakes in those thirst clicks, but it's ALWAYS just the boys doing some wild frat bro challenge on a day off - like cramming Gordon down the laundry chute to test Lady Penelope's high-end, totally-not-designed-for-espionage skincare products. At least he and Alan can pop out of Grandma's grip like greased weasels while their big brothers face consequences! :D
He's been on the ground less than a day and fell asleep reading with the lamp still on, but don't worry - Scott'll wander in in a minute, roll his eyes, and go tiptoe off to find a blanket to tuck around him <33
[Caption: ten gifs of S2E7 Up From The Depths Part 2. End caption.]
Favourite Things About Thunderbirds Are Go :: 3/∞ :: Episodes
Up From The Depths Part 2
"So he and Brains built the TV-2?"
"It was beautiful. A dream come true."
"Until the Hood crashed it."
"But it didn't crash his dream. Your father didn't care about being fastest anymore. He only cared about being first. First on the scene when people need help. First to act when someone's in trouble. And instead of one ship to do it all, he built five."
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Coloured Pencil and Poster Painting of Characters 29
Coloured pencil and poster painting of Hiram K. "Brains" Hackenbacker from Thunderbirds by Azleea Ameera - 19 January 2026
I made my 29th coloured pencil and poster painting tonight. This is Hiram K. Hackenbacker, also known as "Brains", from Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds and I painted him a light brilliant cerulean background.
The day the Zero-X exploded, Jeff Tracy was presumed dead. That same day, International Rescue ended, and his sons soon left Tracy Island behind to persue careers of their own.
Now, a decade later, Alan Tracy has picked up a transmission from space.
Prompts: 3 - Isolation, Found Family, 12 - "It'll be for nothing.", 14 - "In the end, it's worthwhile.", 15 - Failed Rescue Attempt, 30 - "I'm putting my trust in an entire half-empty glass.", Confrontation
Chapter 2: Virgil & Scott
“Before you knock on that door, can we confirm he’s actually expecting all of us this time?”
“Yes.” Alan rolled his eyes, not even bothering to look at Gordon as his brother made his unnecessary comment. “I called him and told him everything we know.”
“Just checking,” Gordon muttered from behind him at the same time Alan knocked on the door, not willing to hear his brother make any other comments.
A number of seconds passed as they waited for any sound of movement, and Alan found himself suddenly trying to contain a yawn. All this travelling was getting to him. He wasn’t sure when he’d last gotten more than a few hours of sleep at a time, not to mention how exhausting he was realising it was to explain this situation to his family again and again.
He rubbed his eyes with the back of his knuckles, trying to push away the exhaustion-induced headache he could feel creeping in.
There was a noise on the other side of the door, and Alan tried to stand up a little straighter as he heard the sound of a lock sliding open. A moment later, the door opened and Alan was looking into the face of his second oldest brother, who looked just as tired as Alan felt.
“Alan?” Virgil’s voice was gruff with sleep and he stifled a yawn with the back of his hand.
“Sorry, did we wake you?” Alan asked as a greeting, shifting on the spot where he stood as he wondered if Virgil was going to send them away.
“Did you not call him again?”
Alan could picture the look Gordon was giving him, and he was too scared to turn around and see it in person.
While attending a Charity Event with Lady Penelope, John must save the day when the Hood strikes and blocks all communications.
The episode title is a homage to the original shows title The Man from MI. 5.
It's pretty clear that John suffers from social anxiety in this episode, which could be another sign that John is autistic.
The episode starts off on Tracy Island, Scott is sitting at desk, with Gordon sitting on it. It looks like they looking at the scan of the Sentinel, so possible foreshadowing. Alan is sitting on the couch possible playing a game.
Then Lady Penelope contacts them, I love Gordon's reaction when he sees her.
Penny is going to a charity auction and Scott has donated something for it, which is Jeff Tracy's pilot wings.
As soon as Gordon hears party, he asks her if she wants a date and he could get there quickly and even asks Scott if he could borrow Thunderbird 1 (possible foreshadowing, as we know he does fly Thunderbird 1 in season 3, SOS part 1).
Penny tells him she already has a date and then John is shown in the car with her and he looks nervous.
This is the 2nd Tracy Brother in FAB1 and we know who the 3rd is in season 3.
Gordon is gobsmacked and Alan is surprised that they got John to leave Thunderbird 5. Penny says John could do with some fresh air. Lol at Gordon's little whine and Scott tells him, that John wanted it kept quiet and Gordon says he's the obvious choice and that John hates social events.
But then Gordon asks who's going to do space monitor duty, which then John says, funny you should mention that, which Gordon realises he has to do it, so Alan tells him, you walked right into that one, so John tell him, who do you think is taking him up there. it looked like Alan was about to protest that but admits defeat.
This would be the first time we see Gordon and Alan on Thunderbird 5. It's also a reference to the original show as John and Alan swapped places on TB5 every month.
They nearly arrive at the charity event and then Brains appears, he made John's tuxedo and it has some secret functions, secret radio in his collar but John tells him this isn't a spy mission its a quiet charity auction but then Penny says that she may understated the quiet part a bit.
When they arrive they are greeted by a few people including paparazzi. Aww poor John, he looks so anxious.
Penny and John are inside, John saying that he would rather talk to people from space and not in person. Lol that photographer notices something isn't right about the photo he took.
Then they bump into Bernard Bottomsley, who we last saw trying to flirt with Kayo in Fireflash and here he turns his back on the lady he's with and try and flirt with Penny but he notices she's with John. The Lady he's with is annoyed with him and walks away.
I always wondered what everyone is drinking, alcohol, or a non alcoholic drink or just water.
Penelope notices Umberto Sandalio, she hopes that he would buy something. Then Parker says that in his day, this would be goldmine for pickpocketers.
Penny excuses herself and then Brains starts talking which makes John jump, Brains continues telling him all the gadgets in his tuxedo. His tie obscures his face from photos, his jacket arms contain stabilising foam, his socks are magnetic. Brains is about to mention the cufflinks when John interrupts him and asks him if they make him invisible to crowds, which seem some people heard and Brains says he should of thought of that.
Then we cut to Gordon and Alan getting ready to go to Thunderbird 5. Gordon prefers to take the elevator up instead of going in Thunderbird 3 so he asks EOS to bring the elevator down but she's being difficult and refuses to bring it down and even teases Gordon over his hairstyle. So they decided to go up in Thunderbird 3.
Back at the event Penny asks Umberto if he would be bidding on anything but he says no and moans about the canopies and wants to complain to the staff, so he heads towards the kitchen. (I wonder if he's related to Gordon Ramsey, LOL)
Then some lady starts talking to John asking what's his job is. John tells her he works in space, which then she says that she bought a new penthouse (apparently people live in space now) and hopes she would see him at some point but then John, he tells her, considering his line of work, for your sake, I hope not. Even though it sounded rude, I can understand where he was coming from, that most people who contact him are in danger and need saving and he doesn't want to see her in danger as well.
Then Sherbet detects something is off and so does Parker. He then bumps into Umberto who was coming out of the kitchen and notices he being very cheerful. So Parker enters the kitchen and notices there's no kitchen staff making food and even hears something from the cupboard. He opens the door and is surprised who he sees but we don't see who it is but we know it's Umberto tied up and Parker is then confronted by two of the waiters.
On Thunderbird 3, which is now locked into Thunderbird 5, Gordon and Alan are waiting for EOS to open the airlock but again she being difficult and stalling and her excuse is that she's got get the pressure just right but then asks for a access code which a new protocol against space pirates. So they decided to contact John (or Mr Party which Gordon calls him) and tell him EOS wants a access code. So John says the access code is EOS let them in or I'll swap your processors with a pocket calculator. So EOS reluctantly lets them in.
Back in the kitchen, Parker is fighting with the 2 imposter waiters.
Then it cuts to Penny starting the auction and when she hears something from kitchen, jokes that they making there desserts. The first item up for auction is the item that IR donated which turns out to be Jeff Tracy's pilot wings.
Penny starts the bidding of at 10 thousand, Bottomsley and Umberto? have bidding war over them but they get to 1 million and is the winner. Bottomsley even questions how he's even going to pay for it, by robbing them. Which Umberto says that's right and reveals to everyone he's the Hood.
The Hood and his goons hold everyone up, John even thinks that he would of seen it coming if he wasn't distracted by the party. He tries to contact for help but can't get through, even a lady couldn't use her phone so The Hood reveals he put up a jamming bubble so they couldn't call for help (but they could still call each other).
The Hood reveals he's going to nick everyone's money, not by raiding their pockets and bags, but by digitally, so transferring money from there bank account to the Hood using there fingerprint.
Bottomsley says why would he willingly give him his money . The Hood reveals he's put laser cutters on the cables that hold up the chateau, he even cuts one of the cables and the road collapses.
The Hood says he won't cut any more cables as long everyone complies, so everyone starts to transfer there money to him.
One of he Hood men says that John is not on the system. This is interesting, I have a few theories. It could be due to the Tracy's safety (like this situation or something similar), they've probably got extra security on there bank accounts and can only access them by other means. Or Scott or Grandma have one big account and they only transfer money to everyone else accounts when they need it. Or John doesn't have a bank account because as he's on Thunderbird 5 most of the time and maybe it's pointless having one.
The Hood questions who he is, so he doesn't recognise John, I think they exchanged words in previous episodes but maybe the Hood didn't see him, or maybe The Hood would of recognised him, if john wore his IR outfit. John tells him he's nobody and won a ticket at work. So the Hood tells Penelope to transfer a double amount of her money.
Penny tells John that they can't let him get away with it, so John tells her he could get outside to disable the other laser cutter but they need a distraction. So Parker becomes the distraction by moaning about the food and throwing stuff around.
On Thunderbird 5, EOS is still being difficult, Gordon keeps asking her to display status on emergency broadcasts but she tells him she's checked it herself but Gordon wants to check himself But EOS tells him he wouldn't understand and says she found a puppet show that he would find entertaining (Original show reference). She even disables other things, food processors, toilets, and now gravity. Lol Gordon get hit in neck by Alan's leg.
Gordon tries to contact John, telling him his AI is being evil again but he can't get hold of him and they think it's EOS again but she tells them that it isn't her and can't reach him either so she comes to her senses and offers to help so Gordon need to contact Tracy Island.
Back at the Chateau, Parker is now handcuffed and we see that John has got outside and climbing up the wall. For someone who spends most of his time in space on TB5, he's a good climber.
The Hood tells everyone, as soon as everyone finishes giving him their money he will be on his way and when he's out of the jamming bubble the money will be transferred to him and then we see Bottomsley grabbing a candle stick, behind his back.
On Tracy Island, Scott tells Gordon and Alan that they haven't been able to contact John either. Gordon suggested that maybe fog could of stopped communications but Brains disagreed with that so Scott sends Kayo out there to check on them but use stealth as they don't want to disturb the party. So Kayo heads out.
Back at the Chateau, John starts to walk along the cable, Inside The Hood is about to leave but then Bottomsley tries to attack him with the candlestick knocking The Hood's tablet out of his hands, hitting the floor and setting off the other laser cutters.
The Hood tells everyone they are doomed and flies of the window wearing a flight suit with his other goons.
The cables start breaking, John is able to slow 1 of them down by jamming it with a fork and Penny will get everyone out. Another cable breaks and John starts to fall but his magnetic socks, stop him from falling and is able climb up the cable.
Kayo arrives and sees that the Chateau is in danger of falling and tells Scott to come. Then she hits the jamming bubble causing issues to TBS but she's able to get out of it. Alan tells her that it's a dampening field and her ship will be useless, so she has to abandon it, giving flight control to Alan and wears her own flight suit to get into the bubble. Kayo contacts John to help him but John tells her to go after the Hood and destroy his tablet.
Penelope and Parker start to help people to safety by sitting in a chair and sliding down a cable to the other side but Bottomsley moans and doesn't like this idea, so Penny has a go at him and tells him she expects him to help the others first and if he's lucky he'll leave before this place falls down on his head like a rock. So he surrenders.
John is able to stop another laser cutter by using the stabilising foam on it.
Meanwhile Kayo, is catching up with The Hood, she takes out 2 of his goons but The Hood sees her and starts gloating about nicking peoples money claiming it greatest triumph but Kayo tells him it's just one of his petty thefts. One of his goons tries to take out Kayo but she takes him out instead and she continues going after her uncle.
Back at the Chateau, Penny has only got half the people out, another cable breaks and a section of a pillar breaks and is about to fall , so John needs to bring down a 10 ton rock on it, he realise his cufflinks contain lasers and he uses it to cut the rock and it falls on the pillar.
The Hood leaves the jamming bubble and starts to uplink the money but then Kayo tackles him and his tablet falls, stopping the uplink. He's annoyed and tells Kayo she delt him a setback and allow him to return the favour, so he activates her parachute and escapes.
John smashes one of the laser cutter, Scott contacts him telling him that the jamming bubble is gone and will come to get him.
Penny and Parker have got everyone to safety, including themselves. The last cable breaks bringing down the Chateau, and everyone sees John falling too.
But then Penny is relieved to see Scott has saved John. Scott even teases him calling him party boy.
John asks him to put him down but then sees the crowd and says anywhere but hear and starts climbing up the rope.
Back on Tracy Island, John has returned to Thunderbird 5, I assume he went home with Scott in Thunderbird 1. EOS tells Gordon and Alan that they weren't useless after all. Penny tells them that everyone has donated to the World Life Preserve, by thanking them for saving them and there money. Apparently there were loads of news articles about John but his face was blurred in every photo.
Penny tells she's received dozens of messages inviting him to other parties around the world but John declines and would rather watch world from Thunderbird 5.
Phew, this was a long one and I still got to do original episode The Man from MI. 5 yet, so I have to do a part 3.
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Some doodles I made whilst watching Lord Parker's 'Oliday
Thoughts on the episode:
Dude, that's the TARDIS console
Solar power, how... revolutionary...
Socks and sandals? I see that Parker really is a true Englishman!
I love fancy dress parties - somebody invite me to one; it's been too long! 😔
Cass has got himself a new job 👀
Good to see that Lady Penelope's driving has improved! Nevermind, she just drove off a pier... oh, she meant to do that, ok.
So International Rescue are allowed to take pictures but nobody's allowed to take pictures of them? This is a double standard! Smh... 😤
Why is he trying to slide his way up that slippery metal when there's a perfectly good frame right next to him that he could pull himself up with? 🤨
Having seen some of the falls that the puppets in this show have supposedly survived unscathed from, I was genuinely surprised by that bait-and-switch, ngl
