WE HAVE A SITUATION

ella. uk based. I blabber a lot when I have things to say, mainly about thunderbirds on this account (fallout sideblog: @followingthefreedomtrail). DO NOT FEED MY WORK INTO AI!!

[barrycoganart]

Intercepting.   When a security situation of global proportions a rises, Spectrum waste no time in pulling out its big guns. A heavy but versatile piece of machinery, the Spectrum Pursuit Vehicle is always on standby. Here is one pulling off a hard maneuver in pursuit of such a threat. Enjoy!

[hyperspacegryphon]

Thunderbirds - Gameboy Colour!

Unrelated to the other things, I found my Gameboy Advance SP and Gameboy Colour in the attic today, and the Thunderbirds game!

My best friend got into Thunderbirds shortly after I met him, and leant me this. He was happy for me to keep it after!

[thunderbirds-tracy-island]

[hebuiltfive]

Gahh, Scott and his lil’ Mondrian pattern top there 🥹 reminds me that I still need to finish making Penelope’s red, black and white dress version!

[star-shard]

Sometimes, fanfiction is carefully plotted out stories, with plot points and call backs and themes that all tie it up in a meaningful and exciting way.

And sometimes fanfiction is, ‘Watch me do a fucking KICK FLIP off this cool sentence!! Also here's some sex'

Both are beautiful forms of writing.

[hebuiltfive]

WIP NOTWEDNESDAY

Right. Really going to put my head down and try and write at least 10 days worth of the AU-gust prompts in time... Let's see how this pans out.

How about a lil' WIP from one of the days to get the ball rolling?

They didn't have any celebratory banners in the correct colour, so World President Younger commanded they use the black bereavement flags instead.

A triangular sheet, trimmed with silver tassels and decorated in a trio of different shades—a central column of onyx flanked by a darker grey on either side—usually heralded a time on global mourning, but there cries on the streets weren't from wailing. They were from cheering.

It unnerved Paul to see how quickly the people seemed to jump at the sight of a seemingly brave hero. He wasn't sure there was this much of a fanfair when he showed himself to the world, and yes, that made him feel petty.

Paul wasn't the sort of man who sought admiration and love from everyone. He didn't have an ego that big, but to watch everyone seemingly forget him in favour of the shiniest, newest best thing? It felt like he'd been discarded like an old action figure.

And to be replaced by him? Had the world authorities already forgotten the extent of damage Black had caused over the last couple of years, actively working with their nemises?

[thunderbirds-tracy-island]

[call-me-casual]

GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT GRONT

[coco9728]

😂💕

[hebuiltfive]

Gront in his lil' top hat at the races 🥰

[soniabigcheese]

My plushie collection - not shown ...Baby Four that was usually nested inside TB2 he's a little grubby because he went with me on my travels and even accompanied me when I went through surgery last year

Please note:

These are NOT an attention grabbing posts

I genuinely wanted to give away my Thunderbirds items

As I volunteered at a charity shop many years ago, I know how the system works

They'll cherry pick through the collection and take what's interesting and valuable to them and leave the rest behind - thus splitting the collection up and I do NOT want that to happen

I am being very realistic here, my family has a history of not making it past the age of 60 ... with the exception of just one person, my auntie who lived till 62

I do NOT want to be a statistic

And neither do I want my family going through my stuff, only for them to do exactly what I feared - donate all of my collection to charity

So, yes Thunderfam, I am giving these items away because I know that they'll be loved and cherished by your lovely selves

[hebuiltfive]

Dang it, I already own half of them. And I wouldn't be able to come and collect anyway (travelling is still not easy for me - had a panic attack going 35 minutes, still within my own county, on Saturday 😬).

Signal boosting to anyone who could be interested.

[kings-out-of-pocket-hell]

The controlled waltz

[hebuiltfive]

I swear, if I see one more post about a Thunderbirds fancast made with AI I am going to scream.

Stop. Using. Gen. AI!!!

[thebirdfantasy]

There’s another one?!

[hebuiltfive]

Thankfully it was on Tiktok and not here, but yes. I just don't get this obsession. It was all dark and dreary too. Very much not giving Thunderbirds. AI slop is ruining everything 🫠

[hebuiltfive]

I swear, if I see one more post about a Thunderbirds fancast made with AI I am going to scream.

Stop. Using. Gen. AI!!!

[thunderbirds-tracy-island]

[thundergeek59]

Ma boy in his fluffy hat!

[thebirdfantasy]

Unfinished WIPs - 2. A Comic

I’m having a horrible month, so here’s an Alan-centric sketch I made a while back that I only made for funsies and have no intention of actually contuing or even finishing

No, I will not explain myself.

[call-me-casual]

SCREAMING WHAT DID YOU DO

But also the stick figure of Scott(?) cracks me up, I love using them for placeholders they’re so weirdly expressive

Oh and GODDAMN THESE POSES YOU’RE SO SKILLED

[hebuiltfive]

Looking again at my MRes thesis ideas and realising I'm going to have a lot of Anderson, Doctor Who, Blake's 7, Quatermass and other Sci-fi watching in my near future... Oh, how terrible! 😁

I'm actually really excited to properly start researching this. Hopefully it'll be a good enough line of research and they accept me next year 🤞

[thebirdfantasy]

Unfinished WIPs - 1. The Coins

There was a point in time where the storage facility on Tracy Island was revisited at least three times every week. That was until the Tracys discovered that they have money and that they don’t need to constantly go searching for their old things.

Now, Alan is exploiting his free time to scavenge through the old storage unit at the back of the hangars for anything worth salvaging. So far, he has found nothing tech-savvy at all. There were a few half-taped cardboard boxes stacked on top of one another, concordantly, they all had the minimalistic, old “Tracy Industries” logo branded at each corner.

What was in them? Alan was never going to find out because he had learnt the hard way that he doesn’t have the physical strength to check. So, for now, the already opened, arenaceous boxes will have to do.

He finds himself exploring the facility for hours, pushing empty picture frames and dusty books aside to look for anything that may pique his interest. It isn’t until he’s half way through he unit, deep inside one of the boxes situated over a damaged mahogany round table, does he come across an strange, blue box. Or at least, from what he can feel with his fingers, must be a box.

Except it didn’t feel like it was made out of wood. It was cold to the touch, and almost moist but not; like some kind of enamel — a material that’s usually found on Scott’s collar pins. Alan leans over the table to get a good look of the box, and sure enough, its a small, palm sized box. Covered in a neat, dark yet vibrant blue.

So it is painted in enamel, Alan realises, but that means it’s made of metal underneath.

There’s some kind of logo at what is most likely the front side of the box. Unfortunately, it’s angled away from him. But there’s a solution to that: With a quick shove, the teen manages to squeeze his fingers into the sides of the small box and get a good grip. Then, all it takes is a tug and the thing comes out gracefully; re-exposed to the open world.

Et voila: A hand sized, blue box, completely coated in blue enamel, with an ever so slightly lighter blue mixed into it, forming marble like patterns across the top of it. It’s frame is sleek, consisting of very few lines, made of brass. Alan rotates the mysterious contraption along his hands until he locates the front side. His eyes widen.

It’s a golden crest surrounded by light blue enamel; with a familiar logo in the dead centre of it. A white circle with an illustrated bee in the middle.

No, not a bee.

A wasp.

“WASP.” He accidentally registers under his breath.

Noticing his twitching palms, Alan plops the chest down onto the rustic table as swiftly, and as smoothly as possible. As soon as his hands are free, he shivers. Because that’s Gordon’s box, and Gordon never let’s anyone in the family touch anything of his if it has a emblem like that stamped on it.

This isn’t stamped.

This is detailed.

Except it’s too small to fit confidential files inside, so surely it can’t be too dangerous to open, right?

Ah, but it is made of metal. That must mean it’s more important than some puny government secrets on paper.

But what if it’s not?

What if it’s just a fancy gift box? But why would they give Gordon afancy gift box?

Do they give fancy gift boxes?

Is that a military thing? Like those badges that Scott keeps in his dresser?

The fingers that trace over the enamel design pause for a moment in hesitation, a spark of harmless curiosity forces a shiver down his nerves. The dulled, yellow crest shines against a small beam of light emitting through the ajar door from afar.

Gordon clearly cared enough to keep this emblem in pristine condition, there’s barely any sign of fingerprints on the metallic thing, aside from the ones on the corners. Alan decides to change that by prying his fingers under the locking mechanism centred at the front of the box. it’s a tiny brass latch, it easily flips up with a sonehort, distinct clicking sound.

The lid is slowly lifted open at its hinges. Alan peers into it, and gasps.

[idontknowreallywhy]

…. This is amazing! The amount of cool stuff that could be buried in there I want to be exploring alongside him!

Buuuuuuut no good can come of that logo Allie 🫣 knowing bloody WASP it’ll be something cursed that Aztec gold from POTC 🙄 either way… this is not gonna forge a harmonious relationship between the tinies!

“Puny government secret” 🤣 oh the arrogance of youth 🤣🤣🤣

Veeerry intrigued by this!

[mariashades]

Oooooohhhh this could be very interesting indeed!

[thundergeek59]

Ooh Alan, you're going to regret opening that box! Desperate to know ow what's inside!!

[hebuiltfive]

Gaaaah, what could possibly be inside the box?

This was wonderful! I chuckled out loud at the part where they remembered they're rich 😂 I could totally see them doing that. It's a very rich person thing to do, to forget that money isn't a problem. Brilliant! 👏

[thebirdfantasy]

Funny story: The money detail was an idea that I came up with last year while I was playing video games 😂 Basically I have a Minecraft Server that I’ve been playing on for 4 years, and it’s gotten to the point where I’m the richest person there.

So when I one day broke one of my most valuable tools and got upset, I had to shake myself out of it cause I realised that I could just casually get another one because I’m rich.

“I don’t know why I panicked… I’m rich” 🤣

[hebuiltfive]

Ahhh, I love that!! 🤣 It's always a nice surprise to know you have more than you thought!!

[mariashades]

Backhand

Inspired by @janetm74's quest to get Troy Tempest punched by as many people as possible

Colonel White steepled his fingers before his face as he stared at his officer, standing at attention before his desk. Scarlet was rumpled but healed after a small fracas groundside in a civilian-but-popular-with-WASP bar, which itself had been after a joint exercise between their two organisations. Blue and Grey had also been involved - both in the exercise and in the fracas - and they would have been present but Fawn hadn’t released them yet and as the alleged instigator, the responsibility rested on Scarlet’s head.

“Why did you backhand Tempest?” he finally asked. 

“With the relative positions of myself, Captain Blue, Captain Grey, the other officer, his buddies, and the furniture, I judged a backhand was the best tactical option,” was the crisp report.  

The cheek of it would have gotten a smile from him if it hadn’t been for his years of command experience. “That’s not what I asked, Captain.”

“No, sir,” was Scarlet’s ready agreement.

“So tell me, Captain Scarlet, why did you hit him?” 

Somehow Scarlet drew himself into an even stiffer ‘attention’. “Sir. I did not hit him when he and his buddies were unknowingly mocking Captain Grey when they discussed the captain of the first Stingray prototype. I did not hit him when they insulted Spectrum as an organisation. I did not hit him when he turned to insulting you personally, sir, nor did I hit him when he started insulting myself and Captains Blue and Grey. At that point Captain Blue, Captain Grey, and I attempted to deescalate the situation by removing ourselves from the area but the other officer continued to escalate. I hit him,” his jaw clenched, “because he insulted the Angels.” 

“I see.” Privately, White was almost certain that list would have been half as long if it hadn’t been for Grey and Blue’s presence. He had already watched the security tapes, he knew his officer’s temper and the pride he had in Spectrum, and he also knew how short Scarlet’s fuse could get when someone started in on his favourite people. “What was the nature of this insult?” 

“Sir, I am uncomfortable repeating it word for word but I will relay exactly what he said in my report on the incident. Tempest stated that the Angels are on Cloudbase for decorative purposes and,” Scarlet’s mouth thinned, “and to provide… entertainment for the male senior officers.” 

“I see. Any mitigating factors in this situation?” 

“They were drinking, sir. We were not, which appeared to trigger some of their commentary.” 

Choosing to ignore the admission that Scarlet had information on Grey’s life before Spectrum - because this meeting was not about that - White sat back in his chair to consider what to do next. With that damning accusation against him, it was almost a surprise that the WASP officer was alive to complain. ‘Shore is generally a reasonable man, but unfortunately the person in question is one of his favourites and this little incident has stung WASP’s pride as well - my three gave Shore’s five a sound drubbing.’ Decision made, White took some time to pick his words - again, he knew his officer. “While your actions are understandable, I cannot condone inciting violence against other organisations, no matter how unacceptable their actions are. We cannot claim the high ground by sinking to their level. I believe it was George Bernard Shaw who had a rather pithy saying about ‘don’t mud wrestle with pigs, you’ll both get dirty and the pig likes it’ - but while we do not start fights, Captain, we do finish them.” 

That got the barest twitch at the corner of Scarlet’s mouth. “Yessir.” 

“In any case,” White continued, “despite any personal opinions that may be held on the matter, the forms must be observed. Along with your report I want a formal apology letter on my desk by 1800 and after your duty shift tomorrow you will be spending three hours as fetch-and-carry for Medical, they have a restock arriving at 2100.” 

“Yessir.” Scarlet accepted it without reservation: they both knew that his punishment should have been much worse. 

“Dismissed.”

[hebuiltfive]

GO SCARLET!! 🎉

[thebirdfantasy]

Unfinished WIPs - 1. The Coins

There was a point in time where the storage facility on Tracy Island was revisited at least three times every week. That was until the Tracys discovered that they have money and that they don’t need to constantly go searching for their old things.

Now, Alan is exploiting his free time to scavenge through the old storage unit at the back of the hangars for anything worth salvaging. So far, he has found nothing tech-savvy at all. There were a few half-taped cardboard boxes stacked on top of one another, concordantly, they all had the minimalistic, old “Tracy Industries” logo branded at each corner.

What was in them? Alan was never going to find out because he had learnt the hard way that he doesn’t have the physical strength to check. So, for now, the already opened, arenaceous boxes will have to do.

He finds himself exploring the facility for hours, pushing empty picture frames and dusty books aside to look for anything that may pique his interest. It isn’t until he’s half way through he unit, deep inside one of the boxes situated over a damaged mahogany round table, does he come across an strange, blue box. Or at least, from what he can feel with his fingers, must be a box.

Except it didn’t feel like it was made out of wood. It was cold to the touch, and almost moist but not; like some kind of enamel — a material that’s usually found on Scott’s collar pins. Alan leans over the table to get a good look of the box, and sure enough, its a small, palm sized box. Covered in a neat, dark yet vibrant blue.

So it is painted in enamel, Alan realises, but that means it’s made of metal underneath.

There’s some kind of logo at what is most likely the front side of the box. Unfortunately, it’s angled away from him. But there’s a solution to that: With a quick shove, the teen manages to squeeze his fingers into the sides of the small box and get a good grip. Then, all it takes is a tug and the thing comes out gracefully; re-exposed to the open world.

Et voila: A hand sized, blue box, completely coated in blue enamel, with an ever so slightly lighter blue mixed into it, forming marble like patterns across the top of it. It’s frame is sleek, consisting of very few lines, made of brass. Alan rotates the mysterious contraption along his hands until he locates the front side. His eyes widen.

It’s a golden crest surrounded by light blue enamel; with a familiar logo in the dead centre of it. A white circle with an illustrated bee in the middle.

No, not a bee.

A wasp.

“WASP.” He accidentally registers under his breath.

Noticing his twitching palms, Alan plops the chest down onto the rustic table as swiftly, and as smoothly as possible. As soon as his hands are free, he shivers. Because that’s Gordon’s box, and Gordon never let’s anyone in the family touch anything of his if it has a emblem like that stamped on it.

This isn’t stamped.

This is detailed.

Except it’s too small to fit confidential files inside, so surely it can’t be too dangerous to open, right?

Ah, but it is made of metal. That must mean it’s more important than some puny government secrets on paper.

But what if it’s not?

What if it’s just a fancy gift box? But why would they give Gordon afancy gift box?

Do they give fancy gift boxes?

Is that a military thing? Like those badges that Scott keeps in his dresser?

The fingers that trace over the enamel design pause for a moment in hesitation, a spark of harmless curiosity forces a shiver down his nerves. The dulled, yellow crest shines against a small beam of light emitting through the ajar door from afar.

Gordon clearly cared enough to keep this emblem in pristine condition, there’s barely any sign of fingerprints on the metallic thing, aside from the ones on the corners. Alan decides to change that by prying his fingers under the locking mechanism centred at the front of the box. it’s a tiny brass latch, it easily flips up with a sonehort, distinct clicking sound.

The lid is slowly lifted open at its hinges. Alan peers into it, and gasps.

[idontknowreallywhy]

…. This is amazing! The amount of cool stuff that could be buried in there I want to be exploring alongside him!

Buuuuuuut no good can come of that logo Allie 🫣 knowing bloody WASP it’ll be something cursed that Aztec gold from POTC 🙄 either way… this is not gonna forge a harmonious relationship between the tinies!

“Puny government secret” 🤣 oh the arrogance of youth 🤣🤣🤣

Veeerry intrigued by this!

[mariashades]

Oooooohhhh this could be very interesting indeed!

[thundergeek59]

Ooh Alan, you're going to regret opening that box! Desperate to know ow what's inside!!

[hebuiltfive]

Gaaaah, what could possibly be inside the box?

This was wonderful! I chuckled out loud at the part where they remembered they're rich 😂 I could totally see them doing that. It's a very rich person thing to do, to forget that money isn't a problem. Brilliant! 👏

[augustwritingchallenge]

Dear diary this list came to me in my dream! Looks like AU-gust 2026 is here...

What is AU-gust? It stands for Alternate Universe August, and it is a creative challenge for everyone. Writers, artists, fans; anyone can join! Be sure to check out our FAQ for more answers! Join us on BlueSky, AO3, Discord and under the tags #au gust and #au gust 2026.

Special thanks to @yaoyorozoops for creating our wonderful graphics!

[ID] 31 days challenge prompt list as follows: 1 Steampunk, 2 Roommates, 3 Boogyman, 4 Hero, 5 Farmers and Markets, 6 Magic Realism, 7 Long Lost Relative, 8 Alternate Timeline, 9 Seamstress, 10 Arthurian Mythos, 11 Small Business, 12 Reality TV, 13 Cults, 14 Isekai/Reincarnation, 15 Fourth Wall Broken, 16 Only One Bed, 17 Time Travel Fix-It, 18 Sirens, 19 Animal Trainer, 20 Graveyard Keeper, 21 Glitch in the Matrix, 22 Technopunk, 23 Midlife Crisis, 24 Post, 25 Monster Hunter, 26 Soul-bound, 27 Virtual Reality, 28 Bad End, 29 Survival, 30 Earth Two/New Planet, 31 Two of the Above. You have four Jokers: Not Related, Daemons, Furry, TTRPG Players.