Broken Promise #3/Memory Loop part 3
Fancy another part :D...here goes:
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“238 passengers and 5 crew members are on board. The pilot reported a disturbance, ground control lost all contact with the plane. It’s still in the air, but it has changed direction. In an hour it will be out of fuel.”
“Understood.” Scott shifted his back against the pilot seat of thunderbird one, trying to get comfortable. It had never been an issue before, but lately, the tension in his back and shoulders never left him. Virgil told him it was stress, but that was as useful as telling him the sky was blue. Of course, he was stressed. His brother was out there somewhere, being tortured and controlled by a mad man.
“Catch up with the plane, match speed, board, and retake control of the computer…I’m feeling a sense of Deja vu.” He snorted, but it was humorless.
Eos didn’t comment.
“How are the others doing?”
“They are performing their rescues at optimum levels.”
Scott released a long sigh. He missed John. God, he missed John. If only he’d held on tighter. Scott shook his head, flinging the thought from his mind. He couldn’t dwell on that while he was on a rescue, that was for later when he drank himself into oblivion night after night and had to be carried to bed by an angry Virgil.
“Scott…”
He looked up at Eos’s hologram. It was rare that she hesitated.
“What is it?”
“I’ve been trying to get access to the plane’s computer since it went offline, but something is blocking me. It’s code. I recognize it. It’s John’s.”
“John? John’s taken control of the plane.”
“It appears so, yes.”
“What…why?” Scott inwardly rolled his eyes. “I know why, the hood, but what does the hood want with a passenger plane. Wait…the manifest. Who’s on that flight?”
“Searching the manifest now…there’s no obvious target.”
“I’m here now,” Scott said, matching speed with the plane below. “Will you be able to access the door of the plane?”
“Strictly speaking, that’s illegal.”
“Eos…”
“Of course.”
“Grappling hook deployed. Helmet on. Jet pack secured. Let’s get this plane back under control. You with me?”
“I’m with you Scott.”
There was a flash of something out of the corner of Scott’s eye during his descent. He stopped, feet firmly planted on top of the plane and stared at the clouds surrounding him. He narrowed his eyes, hoping it would help, but he couldn’t detect anything.
“I noticed too,” Eos said. “There’s someone else there. I picked up their signal for a second, then it blocked me.”
“John?”
“I don’t know. I’m scanning again.”
Scott flexed his hands at his sides, wanting so badly to remove every cloud in the damn sky just to chance seeing him.
“Anything?”
“No.”
Scott sighed. Rescue first. John later. Once he’d saved the plane he’d search every inch of the sky to find his brother if there was a chance it was him.
“Eos, door.”
“Yes, Scott.”
There were screams of terror when he boarded, but after a few seconds, when he’d managed to secure the door, the passengers closest seemed to recognize his blue uniform, and fear turned to excitement. They began clapping and snapping pictures of him on their phones.
Scott grinned at them awkwardly. “Thank you, but I’ve not actually done anything yet.”
“You walked through a door, that deserves a clap.”
The snort escaped Scott before he could catch it. “Sometimes you remind me so much of my brother.”
Eos whirled in his ear, a happy whirl, Scott had learned meant she was pleased. She missed John as much as any of them, maybe more. Not more than Scott though. Scott missed him so much it became a non-stop ache in his chest.
“Scott…”
He backed away from the passengers. One woman lifted her baby at him like she expected him to kiss her child. He tapped his helmet as if that was the reason he wouldn’t. “I’m gonna go fix the plane—
“Scott!” Eos snapped, never happy when she was ignored.
“Yep, I’m here.”
“The plane, the computer. It’s back under the pilot’s control.”
“What?” Scott pushed through to the cockpit.
The co-pilot turned around and gave him a thumbs up. “Thank you international rescue.”
“Urm…No worries.” Scott said, hovering behind. They were talking to ground control, making a plan.
He spoke to Eos through gritted teeth, hoping no one else heard. “Eos, what the hell’s going on?”
“I don’t know, the code resisted all my attempts, then suddenly, it stopped.”
“John stopped it?”
“Scott.” Eos shrieked in alarm. “Thunderbird one.”
“What about her?” He pulled up the hologram from his forearm, noting she looked fine, matching their speed nicely. “The grappling hook is gone.”
“And she’s no longer above, but alongside.”
Scott flung himself at the nearest window, able to see his bird flying next to him.
“There’s someone onboard thunderbird one,” Eos said. “They’re accessing her systems.”
The pilot’s voice crackled over the speakers, announcing the plane was okay, and international rescue had saved them all. Everyone began shouting and cheering, but Scott couldn’t even force a smile. He rushed for the door. “Eos…”
“I can’t open it.”
“What do you mean you can’t open it?”
“Something is blocking me.”
Scott stopped trying to elbow his way to freedom. He pulled up his arm and studied his thunderbird. “Do you know who’s inside?”
He knew. It was a sixth sense. His brother was close by, so close. The ache in his chest throbbed. John was right there, less than thirty meters away.
“Accessing thunderbird ones internal camera…It’s John.”
“Okay.” Scott eased out a breath. His heart was drumming. “Okay, Eos, I need you to take remote control, seal it, fly him back to Tracy Island.”
“I can’t…”
The hologram of thunderbird one coming from Scott’s arm blinked out. “Eos?”
“Thunderbird one has lost all power. She’s falling.”
Scott launched at the window again, watching her fall from view with his heart in his throat. “What? Why?” He slapped his communicator. “Brains. There’s something wrong with thunderbird one.”
“We’ve lost all signal to thunderbird one.” Brains replied. “She’s plummeting. Scott—
“Save her Brains. John’s inside.”
“What?”
“John’s inside!”
The claps and cheers died off. All the passengers were staring at him, uneased by his rising panic. Thunderbird one was dropping from the sky, with John inside. Why was he there? Did he need help? Had he remembered and come back to Scott—
“Brains?” His voice came out in a squeak. He gripped the top of his uniform, tried to tug it, and flap some air down his body. It was hot, too hot, and his heart was pounding far too fast.
“I’m trying Scott, I’m trying.”
“Impact in 10…9…8….”
Scott clutched his chest at Eos's emotionless countdown. John was going to smash into the earth.
“7…6…5…”
“Please,” Scott chanted under his breath. “Please, please, please.”
“Thunderbird one is rebooting!” Brains shouted.
Scott slumped against the side of the plane. “Rebooting…”
“She’s rising Scott.”
He nodded even though neither Brains nor Eos could see him. “Thank God, right.” He back shuffled up the wall. “Brains remote pilot back to Tracy Island. Lock the doors. Wait till I’m back before opening--”
“I…I can’t.”
“What do you mean you can’t?”
“I have no control over thunderbird One.”
“Eos?” Scott gasped.
“John has severed our systems. He’s cut the camera, and disabled the tracker.”
“Disabled the track…”
Scott pressed himself against the window again, not that he had any chance of seeing his brother or his thunderbird.
“He’s taking her,” Scott said numbly. “He’s taking thunderbird One.”
“Taken,” Eos said. “I couldn’t hack him in time. He’s… gone.”
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Back on the Island, Scott sat stiffly on one of the couches, staring at the portrait of his brother. Four months had passed since he had John in his arms, since he’d promised him he’d never let the hood harm him again. Four months since he lied.
Virgil sat down beside him and pressed a comforting hand to his knee. “It’s oka—
“None of this is okay!” He winced, then glanced at Virgil. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to snap. I just…” Scott chewed on his bottom lip. Emotion almost overwhelmed him, but he managed to hold on, and murmur, “I want him home.”
Virgil nodded and tugged Scott closer by his shoulder. He collapsed into Virgil’s side and closed his eyes.
“I know. We all do.”
Scott looked at his other brothers. Alan looked on the verge of tears, and Gordon sat beside him, rubbing his back, whispering things neither he nor Virgil could hear.
Something hissed and crackled. They all looked up at the projection in front of them, beaming from all the portrait's eyes. The hood stood in front of them, smiling ear to ear.
It was completely irrational, but Scott still launched off his seat and tried to punch the smug look off his face. Virgil grabbed him around the waist and pulled him back.
“Eos!” Scott snapped. “Are you tracing this?”
“He’s blocking me.”
“Who?”
“John.” The hood answered. He laughed. “I understand why you hid him away from me for so long. He really is an asset.”
“Give him back.”
“Now why would I do that?” The hood lifted one of his eyebrows. “I was just calling to say thank you for the thunderbird. She’s impressive. Not a fan of the paintwork, she needs a respray, I’m thinking black and red. What do you think?”
Scott ground his teeth together. “When I get my hands on you—
“Good luck with that. I’m now the owner of the faster aircraft on earth, I’d love to see you try to catch me. It will be most entertaining.” He pressed his hands together in a prayer pose. “I want to say a heartfelt thank you for your thunderbird, and your brother.”
“I swear one day…One day,” Scott pointed at the hood. “I’m going to kill you.”
The hood raised his hands. “I can understand why you’re angry, but I’m not an unreasonable man. I’m willing to give you a choice…”
“Choice?” Scott frowned. “Between what?”
“Thunderbirds.”
Scott looked at Virgil, then Gordon and Alan. “I don’t understand.”
“Which thunderbird will John steal for me next. Thunderbird two, or thunderbird three. It’s up to you, Scott Tracy…”
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So, readers (if there is anyone out there) should John try to steal thunderbird 2 or thunderbird 3...AKA should the next chapter feature John and Virgil or John and Alan?
Decisions, decisions LOL
Let me know <3
