PART TWO: RACE AGAINST TIME
The cataclysm caused by Captain Scarlet’s disappearance rocked Spectrum. Initially, Captain Blue and Captain Grey were sent to the scene to join the emergency rescue teams that had been rushed to the site as soon as the report of the disaster came in. Three men and two women were found buried under the rock fall near the entrance but none of the bodies were Scarlet. The Rescue Team made frequent exploratory sorties back into the caves, but no signs of the three remaining speleologists were found. Their theory was that the landslide, caused by unseasonable heavy rains, had smashed through the upper caverns causing roofs to collapse and block the only known passage to the lower levels. It was assumed that the three missing cavers, all known to be experienced and more than capable, had gone further into the system than their companions and had consequently been buried under thousands of tonnes of rock.
Captain Grey, who had accompanied the rescuers on what was to be their last search, reported to the anxious Captain Blue that there was no way anyone who had been down there could’ve survived, and no way the rescue team could go after them.
Grey placed a sympathetic hand on Blue’s arm, alarmed by the bleak misery on his friend’s face and said quietly, “He’s gone, Adam.”
“He can’t be, Brad. He’s indestructible, for crissake! Even if he died in the accident...” Blue swallowed hard. “Even if he did – he’s alive down there. I know it.”
Shrugging out of his breathing gear, Grey replied, “Well, I don’t think there’s any hope of us getting down there to find him.” He paused, glancing back at the entrance. “So, I sure hope you’re wrong.”
***
Rhapsody Angel pressed the doorbell to Blue’s Cloudbase quarters and waited.
“It’s Dianne,” she called, after there was no response.
The door slid open.
Blue was sitting at his work station staring morosely at the computer screen before him.
He gave her a quick glance; her face was pale and her eyes red-rimmed from weeping. It was obvious that she was finding it difficult to keep her emotions in check. His lips twitched in a compassionate smile of welcome as she walked towards him.
“Brad told me you were here,” she said, her voice trembling as her composure cracked. “He said you… you’ve been lobbying for more resources to continue the search. Will they do it?”
Once the bodies of the other two missing potholers had been discovered washed into the nearby bay, the regional authorities decided that Paul’s body must be trapped underground, but that he couldn’t have survived. Of course, they had no knowledge of Scarlet’s unique capability to survive, and Colonel White, Spectrum’s Commander-in-Chief, could not risk making the information public. So, the official search and recovery operation had been called off and the case closed.
“No. Colonel White decided to go to the top and set up a video conference with the World President.” Blue gave a sarcastic snort. “The WP was supposed to be an ‘independent arbiter’, but he’s never given Scarlet his just deserts after what happened at the London Car-Vu. When the colonel said Spectrum would fund the search, Younger said what funding Spectrum has will need to be used to recruit more agents, specifically to cover ‘the natural wastage Captain Scarlet’s absence is sure to result in’. His words, not mine.”
Tears spilled from Rhapsody’s large blue eyes as she collapsed onto the armchair near the desk. “That man has no heart…“ she mumbled. Blue made no response. Fighting to regain control of herself, Rhapsody continued, “So, there’s nothing we can do? No way we can appeal to a higher authority?”
“There isn’t one, Dianne, and even the colonel can’t overrule the World President’s decision.”
“So, we just have to accept that he’s dead? After all that’s happened to him, all that we’ve seen him survive, we just say ‘Paul is dead’, right?”
Blue gave a helpless shrug. “Even if Spectrum can’t do anything, I can. I told Colonel White of my intention just as soon as the conference ended.”
He swivelled the screen towards her and she read the resignation letter he’d written on it.
“Adam -” she gasped. “No!”
“It’s okay, Di. I know what I must do and the colonel’s accepted my decision. I owe Paul my life more times than I can recall. I will not give up on him.”
“But what can you do alone?”
“I don’t know precisely. Yet. I don’t think I can go into those caves – I know my limitations – but then, I don’t expect to have to do it alone. What I mean is, I intend to contact the best mining engineers I can find, provide the funding for more searches if necessary and put together a rescue team.” He shifted slightly and turned the screen away from her. “I swear to you, Dianne, I will dig the rubble with my bare hands if I have to.”
“Oh, Adam…” She reached out a hand and placed it on his arm. “I know you would, but it shouldn’t be down to you. Can’t the colonel bring any more pressure to bear on the WP?”
His frustration was evident in his compressed lips and jutting jaw as he shook his head. “He tried; I can’t fault him for that. I tried too; I just couldn’t get through to him, Dianne, although I am damn sure he knows full well what the situation is. He just wouldn’t understand why I was so adamant that the search had to continue, even when I reminded him it was because Paul could still be alive down there!”
“I know,” she wailed. “That thought haunts my sleep.”
He opened his arms to her and held her close, stroking her hair as she sobbed against his shoulder. When she pulled away and wiped her cheeks, she pretended not to notice that he was doing the same.
“Better not let Karen see that wet patch on your uniform,” she tried to tease him. “Oh, I’m sorry. My mascara’s run…”
“You leave Karen to me. She’s going to be so mad I’m leaving, that mascara on my uniform will be small beer.”
“If you’re serious about going, then let me help you,” she begged.
He shook his head. “Spectrum can’t afford to lose so many experienced operatives at the same time. They need you.”
“They need you too,” she reminded him. “Both of you…”
He gave a wry smile. “Paul and I can always reapply, once I’ve found him.”
Adam Svenson’s resignation took immediate effect and he left Cloudbase the next day, flying down to his Boston home.
***
John Svenson took some convincing that his son had not returned home simply to rejoin the family’s company. He and Sarah, his wife, listened to their eldest son’s explanations and intentions in silence.
“Adam, even if he survived the initial accident, he’ll be dead by now,” John reasoned.
Sarah hushed him. “Just think, John, if it was Adam down there would you want them to give up? Even if all that they brought back was his body?”
“Paul is an expert at survival techniques, and they had plenty of rations with them,” Adam said. “If anyone could survive down there, it would be him.” Captain Scarlet’s retrometabolism was a closely guarded secret and he had no intention of speaking about it to his parents. He added, “Time maybe running out, but I can’t give up on him; I know he would not give up on me.”
“Have you spoken to his parents?” Sarah asked. Charles and Mary Metcalfe had become close family friends since their sons had joined Spectrum together.
“I don’t want to get their hopes up until I have something positive to tell them.”
“What will you do?” John asked, “How will you go about organising the search?”
“I have the details of some of the best mining engineers and experts in cave rescues. I’m going to contact them and get their advice. Then I’ll act on it.”
John pursed his lips. “It’ll be expensive.”
“I have money.”
John replied evenly, “All I meant was, let me know if you need any more.”
Adam stared at his father, a man not known for his philanthropic impulses. John stared back, his cool grey-blue eyes meeting his son’s with candour.
“Thank you, Dad.”
John nodded slowly, and as he stood to leave them, Adam was almost sure that his father was blushing.
***
Adam spent every waking hour speaking to global mining companies, and engineers. His mother watched him closely, anxious at the strain he was putting himself under and doing what little she could to help.
The crunch came one breakfast time when she took him a cup of fresh coffee, and found him fast asleep at his desk. His computer screen was flashing for the arrival of new emails and his phone showed numerous missed calls. She shook him awake, insisted he go to bed and then worried because he didn’t even argue with her. He slept the clock round.
Sarah called Mary Metcalfe that same day.
Examining her friend on the video screen, she could see the toll the news of her son’s fate had taken on the Englishwoman: her dark hair was streaked with grey and her face was ashen and lined. All of Sarah’s boundless compassion went out to her and reinforced her belief that she was doing the right thing.
Explaining as simply as she could what Adam had done and intended to do, she watched as a glimmer of hope appeared in Mary’s deep blue eyes.
“Adam is a dear,” Mary said. “We already owe him so much.”
“He’s only too happy to do it, but I’m worried that he’s pushing himself to the limits, Mary.” She explained about finding him asleep. “He’s so stubborn that the fact he didn’t argue with me has gotten me even more anxious. I’m going to tell him that he’ll be no help to Paul if he undermines his own health. I was hoping you’d back me up? His sense of obligation is driving him on…”
“Well, of course I will. Men, huh? No common sense.”
They shared a friendly smile and Mary continued, “I wish he had told us before this that the official searches had stopped. Maybe I could’ve been of some help sooner? I know someone with connections to Tracy Construction and Aerospace. I’m sure, if I asked her, that she’d be willing to speak to Jeff Tracy about lending – or at least providing - some equipment.”
“What a great idea! I’ll tell Adam and then if your friend or anyone from Tracy Construction wants to contact him, they can call him here.”
Mary smiled, but then her face resumed something of its previous emotion. “Sarah, please be sure to tell Adam that we both appreciate everything he has ever done or will do for Paul. He often calls Adam ‘the brother I never had’ and we – Charles and I – well, we both consider him as much our honorary son as Paul considers him a brother. He will always be welcome here whatever happens.”
“I think he knows that, Mary, and believe me when I say that we feel the same about Paul. You know, love can move mountains and you should never doubt that Paul is much loved.”
~~OOO~~
Frowning at the videophone screen, Jeff Tracy listened as Lady Penelope carefully explained the situation.
“So, this young man – only in his thirties – is still trapped in this underground cave system. Time is running out and his friend, whose mother is a good friend of my friend, is desperate to save him. Well, as soon as I heard about it, I naturally thought of you and the boys and that you might be able to help him.”
“I don’t see how we can, Penny. International Rescue’s not fully operational yet.”
“I know you say that, Jeff, but you do have the machines all ready to go, don’t you? Does there have to be some major catastrophe before you’re prepared to use them?”
“Of course not. International Rescue’s mission is to save lives wherever and whenever we can. You know that.”
“That is what you told me, when you asked me to be part of the organisation, Jeff. So why can’t you help my friend’s son? The regional authorities have called off the search. I suppose having found seven bodies from the missing eight cavers, they feel they can’t justify continuing, but I do feel so sad for poor Mary. Her son is, from all accounts, a most promising young man.”
Jeff gave her a quizzical glance. “Why do I get the impression there’s something you aren’t telling me? What is it, Penny?”
“Oh. Well, I didn’t think it was relevant. The main thing is this young man who may still be alive down there, isn’t it? And I don’t know why it would make any difference anyway.”
“What wouldn’t make a difference?”
“That Paul Metcalfe – that’s his name – is a Spectrum agent. I expect you’ll have heard of him: his codename is Captain Scarlet.”
“I’ve heard of him,” Jeff growled discouragingly.
“Difficult not to, I suppose,” Lady Penelope replied rather nervously. This wasn’t going as well as she’d expected, or hoped. “He’s something of a global hero, I’m sure you’ll agree.”
“Now look, Penny, you know International Rescue will need to maintain strict security. The technology we have here mustn’t be allowed to fall into the wrong hands. I didn’t set this organisation up to have it used for any malevolent purpose. Spectrum is a World Government organisation; in fact, they’re like some sort of secret police and they’re often implicated in terrorist attacks. They also seem to crop up at any number of major accidents; the exact sort of things where International Rescue will be seeking to save lives. They’re trouble. And the last thing I want is Spectrum getting involved with our organisation.”
“Oh, come now, Jeff. The local authorities and Spectrum have both given up trying to find Paul, so they can hardly complain if somebody else lends a hand now. Besides”, she reasoned, “if they ever do track you down, you have a perfect get-out clause: he was the son of my friend’s friend and she was the one who asked you to rescue the civilian Paul Metcalfe. I’m not asking you to rescue the Spectrum captain. If anyone questions me, I will tell them I don’t know who he is and, therefore, you can’t possibly know either.”
“How do you know who he is?” Jeff asked, distracted for a moment by this somewhat tortured logic. The extent of Lady Penelope’s knowledge never failed to amaze him; her contacts covered the globe and she appeared to know everyone who was anyone.
“I’ve known Mary Metcalfe for years but she didn’t tell me. Mary can keep secrets. I also happen to know Lady Dianne Simms; in fact, she used to work with me - a very capable gel - and after I had to close down FAB, she joined Spectrum as one of their Angel pilots. When I happened to see her at a cocktail party last Christmas, she told me she’s engaged to Mary Metcalfe’s son, and I asked her outright if her fiancé was also in Spectrum.”
“Penny, get to the point.”
She smiled. “I am, Jeff. I’m telling you that although Dianne was taken aback that I knew she was in Spectrum, she did finally confess that Paul was too; and more importantly, she told me just who he was. Although, I don’t think she really intended to tell me that,” she concluded thoughtfully.
“Penny…” Jeff sighed with exasperation. It seemed you could take the woman away from the spying game, but you couldn’t take the habit of information gathering away from her.
She smiled again, gathered her thoughts and continued, “I do know – who better? – how important security and secrecy is to International Rescue and you know I would never compromise it. But I also know secrecy can be an intolerable burden. You Tracys can unburden yourselves to each other if the need arises, and be sure of complete confidentiality and loyalty. Spectrum Agents don’t have that luxury and, personally, I think the organisation is being a little naïve if they expect their agents to never say anything to anyone.”
“I know I can trust you,” Jeff reassured her, although for a moment he did wonder if Mary Metcalfe might be Penny’s ‘luxury confidante’. “But I still think it’d be too risky to get involved and leave International Rescue’s security at the mercy of Spectrum’s operational pragmatism.”
She sighed and looked at Jeff. “I’d hate to think of Dianne losing her fiancé just because he works for Spectrum when International Rescue could’ve saved him.”
Jeff still did not look convinced, so she smiled sweetly at him; one elegant eyebrow raised quizzically. “Please? For me?”
“That’s emotional blackmail, Penny.” He tried to suppress an answering grin as she laughed and nodded. “ Besides, if we do go, I’m not sure about taking this Svenson guy with us. Amateurs can cause problems.”
“I don’t think you need to worry about Adam Svenson, and this way, the whole thing will be seen as a private venture by the heir to SvenCorp-”
“SvenCorp? He’s one of those Svensons?”
She nodded. “- and when you find Paul Metcalfe, Adam Svenson will take over and sort everything out. International Rescue can leave the scene without any official acknowledgement that they were ever there.”
“And what’s Svenson’s connection to this Spectrum-agent-come-fiancé-come-hero guy?”
“He was in Spectrum too. According to Mary, he resigned to continue the search for Paul. He believes most strongly that his friend is still alive.”
“A Svenson that isn’t devoted to just making money 24/7?”
Penny nodded and shrugged. “Seems so. Mary says he’s very sweet. I must remember to invite him over next time I give a party.”
“Now hold on a minute. I’ve had the misfortune to have done business with John Svenson in the past; so, you’re telling me that not only might I have to deal with the World Government and Spectrum if anything goes wrong, I could have to deal with the wrath of SvenCorp too. I wouldn’t trust John Svenson as far as I can spit, so where’s our guaranteed security then?”
“Jeff… You won’t have to deal with the World Government or Spectrum, or even with SvenCorp. Adam Svenson is acting in a personal capacity, and he’ll deal with it all. Besides, I’m sure neither Adam or Paul will reveal your secrets if you don’t reveal theirs.”
There was a considerable pause while Jeff Tracy weighed up the pros and cons. Then, shaking his head in defeat, he pressed a button on his desk and said, “Scott, Virgil, I need you in here immediately.”
Lady Penelope smirked. “Oh Jeff, you are such a darling…”
“Now hold on, Penny. If Scott or Virgil have any objections, the deal’s off.”
She smiled broadly. “It’ll be ‘Thunderbirds are go’, then,” she prophesied. “Those dear boys would never turn down a genuine plea for help.”
~~OOO~~
Adam Svenson’s private jet made a perfect landing at the local airport closest to the cave system, and taxied towards the hangar he’d rented. The bureaucratic airport officers examined his documentation. Their English was adequate for that task, but too rudimentary to answer any of his questions, so he checked his emails and found the information he needed in a cryptic message:
IR:ETA 15:00 Local time.
He spent the remaining 45 minutes dealing with a Government Official, who went through the documents authorising him to visit the cave system and permitting ‘any assistance to be rendered by any international organisation or persons unknown.’
A few minutes later a sleek silver and blue rocket plane with a distinctive red nose cone touched down on the far side of the airfield, attracting considerable attention. Written vertically along the body were the words Thunderbird 1.
Svenson strode across to meet the pilot.
“Mr Svenson?”
The speaker was a handsome, dark-haired man. Slightly shorter than Svenson, but roughly of an age, he was dressed in a blue uniform with a pale blue sash across his body. His accent proclaimed him to be an American.
“Yes, I’m Adam Svenson. You are?”
“You can call me Scott. I’m with International Rescue.”
Svenson gave an amused glance at the plane behind his companion and remarked wryly, “I would never have guessed. Thunderbird?”
Scott smirked. “All our craft are called Thunderbirds. Our submersible, Thunderbird 4, is being dropped off in the bay and then Thunderbird 2 will be here with the rescue equipment. I guess there’s room to set her down over there.” He pointed to an area behind the small cluster of administrative buildings. “How far are we from the mouth of the cave system?”
“Some distance, I’m afraid. I have a map here.” Svenson handed it over. “From what I’ve been able to find out, the cave entrance was hidden by an overhang covered in jungle, so nobody knew it was there. Or at least, it had been forgotten about until about five years ago when some cavers found the entrance.”
“Yes, we saw the news reports about the flash floods and the landslide caused when the overhang gave way. We wondered if we should’ve come out then.”
“I wish you had, then maybe we wouldn’t be in this situation now.”
Scott studied the man beside him before replying a little defensively, “There didn’t seem to be a need; the authorities were doing a good job. Do you really still expect to find your friend alive, so long after the accident?”
“I hope so. Paul is a damn good soldier and if anyone can survive down there, it will be him. Either way, I want to find him, dead or alive.”
“Thunderbird 4 is going to explore for a way to get into the caves along the river. Then we can search as far as possible upstream to see if we can locate him.”
Svenson nodded. “Good thinking.” He paused and then said quietly, “You must think I’m crazy, but I want you to understand. Paul and I served together as field partners. We faced a lot together and he saved my life several times. My fiancée and I are close to Paul and his fiancée. If he is dead, I want her and his family to have a body to mourn and for him to rest in peace in England, where he wanted to be.”
“Nothing crazy about that, Mr Svenson.”
“Adam, please; if we’re going to be working together on this, let’s have no formality.”
Scott hesitated. “I’m sorry, but we don’t take passengers with us, Adam. The success of our mission will depend on our split-second decision making and co-ordinated responses.”
Ignoring the information, Svenson continued, “When we find Paul, I will be the one to fetch him and when we resurface, I will take him to hospital, or the mortuary, whichever is appropriate.” He spoke purely as a precaution. His intention was to prevent Paul’s retrometabolism being revealed to anyone else outside Spectrum. He knew only too well how often Captain Scarlet’s body had ‘died’, but it had never lasted. It was this that kept up his hopes of rescuing his friend alive.
Scott was about to say that they were happy to hand Paul over on the surface, but his words were drowned out by the noise of Thunderbird 2 arriving at the airfield.
His companion stared open mouthed at the enormous green craft as it manoeuvred carefully, fired landing rockets and sank down to the ground.
“Why’s it so big when the middle is a void?”
Scott was surprised at the question. “It’s just delivered Thunderbird 4 in pod 4. The other machines we’ve got here are in the rest of the storage.”
“Modular cargo bays… interesting. How will it be able to pick up a pod that size from water?”
“We have our ways,” Scott replied noncommittally. Then he gave Svenson a hard stare and said frostily, “You seem very interested in our aircraft.”
Svenson smiled and shook his head. “Call it an occupational hazard. I started off in the World Aeronautic Society as a test pilot. Flying was all I ever wanted to do.”
“US Air Force for me,” Scott replied, his mind set at ease, “but ditto. Come on, let’s go and meet Virgil.”
“Virgil?”
“The pilot of Thunderbird 2. And my brother.”
“Your brother? Then I guess you would understand about Paul.”
***
It took the best part of a day to unload and transport the equipment to the rescue site. Surveying the cave entrance from a safe distance, Adam’s heart sank. The local rescue teams had created a hole in the rubble just big enough to give them access, but nowhere big enough to get the rescue equipment through.
Scott and Virgil were beside the transport vehicle conferring quietly and consulting geological maps. Scott came over to join Adam and said:
“We reckon our best option is to take the Mole and drill through the ground underneath the landslide and then come up into what we know is one of the upper caves. From there, we’ll be working blind as the whole system has yet to be mapped.”
“But what if drilling brings down the rest of the mountain?”
“It’s a risk we’ll have to take. We don’t have the time or the equipment to shift all of that rubble. Gordon reports he’s found the mouth of the underground river and has cleared a way through. He’ll start working his way towards us, and will come as far as he can.”
“You think it’s possible Paul’s body was washed into the river and out to sea, like his companions? It wasn’t found after a thorough search of the bay area, but I guess it might be trapped somewhere along the channel.” Adam sighed. “I must admit I hadn’t given that much consideration.”
“Don’t worry, Gordon will find him if he’s there. The main problem will be communication once we’re underground, so the closer we can get the better. Our communication satellite can boost calls and relay them, but it’ll be touch and go if we can co-ordinate effectively.”
“I might just be able to help there,” Adam replied. He produced a compact radio transmitter from his jacket pocket. “This uses dedicated Spectrum wavebands and I can get Cloudbase to boost the signal; it must be closer to us than your satellite as it is currently stationed about 40,000 feet directly above us.”
Scott glared angrily at him. “What’s Spectrum got to do with this?”
“They just want to help. Don’t worry; it’s all unofficial and Spectrum has no interest in International Rescue.”
Scott hesitated a moment and then said, gruffly, “I thought you’d quit Spectrum?”
Adam shrugged.
“You’re not as trustworthy as you like to appear, Mr Svenson.”
“I’m sorry you think so.” Svenson’s regret sounded genuine enough. “I tried to explain, Scott; I will do anything to rescue my friend. I’m afraid this comes under the heading of ‘anything’. And before you ask: no, it is probably not a coincidence that Cloudbase is overhead. Paul has a lot of friends in Spectrum.”
Scott stared at the communication device and gave a wry tilt of his head: being able to co-ordinate the rescue vehicles while they were underground would be useful. “That won’t be compatible with our wavebands.”
“Then you’ll have to take me with you, won’t you? Cloudbase can liaise with your satellite – ”
“Thunderbird 5,” Scott explained automatically.
“Right – with Thunderbird 5 – and use open channels, before relaying the messages to us over the Spectrum wavebands.”
“Are you sure it’ll work?”
“Put it this way, Scott: it’ll be interesting to see if this is as powerful as our boffins claim. In theory it should do the job without a problem. If Paul had taken one of these, we should have been able to contact him.”
Scott glanced back towards the transport vehicle, where Virgil was already unloading the Mole. International Rescue prided itself on its commitment to saving lives and somehow, probably because of Svenson’s unshakeable certainty that Paul Metcalfe was still alive, he believed that if they walked away now, they would be condemning the man to death.
“Suit up; you’re going with Virgil in the Mole. I’ll man the control desk here and coordinate the rescue. But any more surprises like this one, and I’ll order Virgil to leave you in the caves.”
***
There wasn’t much room inside the Mole, especially for someone as tall as Svenson. Virgil, a more compact version of his brother, apart from a yellow sash on his uniform, had a luxuriant head of brown hair and a mellifluous voice that in some way reminded Adam of Captain Ochre’s. He seemed far less concerned about having a passenger than Scott. He welcomed Adam with a smile, apologised for the cramped conditions and promptly returned his attention to the rescue mission.
The Mole trundled through the heavy undergrowth slowly, while Virgil calibrated their position through a GPS link and a variety of geological maps and reports he had in front of him.
Some distance from the rubble, he turned and said, “Strap yourself in, Adam, we’re going down.”
It was a strange sensation as the considerable bulk of the machine was lifted into position and the drill began to rotate, gaining speed until the cabin vibrated and juddered on its base. The concept of the Mole was not a new one, tunnelling machines had been used in numerous civil engineering projects, but such a compact version intended for such a purpose was unique.
“You’ll get used to it,” Virgil assured Adam, as the drill broke through and began to pull the cabin underground. “With luck the route avoids areas of solid rock and the drill can shift soil and shale pretty effectively. Here we go!”
Once they were underway Adam was surprised at the progress they made. The only illumination was from the cabin’s lighting, but then, there was nothing to see as the drill moved them forward, mostly because he had his eyes closed.
“Mole to Control,” Virgil said. “We’re underground. No real obstructions so far.”
Scott’s voice sounded tense: “No tremors detected, Virg, but take it steady. You’re not on the agreed course and you’re a long way down already. The signal is breaking up.”
“Don’t worry,” the imperturbable Virgil replied. “I have it all under control.”
The course Virgil had plotted required several changes of direction, which meant he had to concentrate on the angle of the drill, and so there was no conversation in the cabin. Although the descent seemed to last for an age, Adam’s chronometer showed they had been drilling for just over 90 minutes when the drill broke into the side wall of an immense cavern, and Virgil switched off the engine and locked the caterpillar tracks to hold them steady.
“This cavern is the lower level.” He turned in his seat to explain, and smirked as Adam opened his eyes to peer anxiously into their surroundings. “Scott didn’t agree, but I thought it more reasonable to skirt the upper levels as they’ve been thoroughly searched already. I ran a geophysical scan from Thunderbird 2 and plotted a route straight to these lower caverns; it made it easier too, of course.”
“Sure, I understand,” was all Adam could manage to reply. Crouching in a 12-ton metal box was not doing his claustrophobia much good, but he was determined to keep calm. “I’m not sure Scott will though.”
Virgil chuckled. “He worries too much.” He went on to explain that he was using a thermal imaging camera housed in the drill to search the area. “It’s powerful, so if Paul’s here, we’ll find him.”
“You mean if he’s alive…”
Virgil gave an apologetic smile and turned back to his control panel.
The Spectrum communicator buzzed and a scratchy message was delivered to the effect that Thunderbird 4 had encountered a blockage along the river and would be delayed while it removed enough debris for it to proceed. However, the report concluded, there had been no sign of a body.
“It’s possible,” Virgil reasoned, “that Paul’s body was trapped by that blockage.”
“The other two made it through,” Adam reminded him. Nevertheless, he wondered if Paul had been conscious and had spotted a suitable resting place, preferring to stay this side of the rockfall rather than risk whatever lay beyond. If so, it would be down to Gordon to find him. “Have you ever wished you could be in two places at once…”
“Frequently,” said Virgil succinctly. He turned to Adam and gave a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry; Gordon knows what he’s doing.”
***
The thermal scan showed no positive hits.
“We can’t just leave,” Adam protested, when Virgil showed him the results.
“We’re not going to. I stowed two hover bikes in the back – one reason you’ve had to squash up so much, I’m afraid. We’ll do a visual search here, before we see if we can get to any other caves without returning to the surface. This looked like the biggest one on the geophys radar and the river is down there somewhere, so it seemed like a good place to start.” He looked seriously at Adam. “Are you good to go with me?”
“I’m fine.”
“Claustrophobia is nothing to be ashamed of, you know.”
“Believe me, I’m fine. That cave is the size of a dozen football fields what’s to be scared of?” Adam sounded very much like he was trying to convince himself.
“That’s the spirit.” Virgil smiled encouragingly.
“Are you always so patronising?”
“Nope; it’s just that I have learned to appreciate even minor aspects of personal bravery in someone. You’d be surprised how many people don’t believe they can do what’s necessary to save themselves or their loved ones, yet they do do it.”
He eyed Adam’s tall frame. “I’ll get the bikes. They should be big enough; Scott manages…”
The hover bikes had powerful headlights and Virgil had also brought hand-held spotlights. Once they’d quit the Mole, the humid atmosphere of the cave hit them and left them both feeling drained pretty quickly. Methodically, they started searching the cave floor, which consisted of tonnes of rubble and rock.
“Look over there,” Virgil said, directing his spotlight to a gaping hole high in the cave wall. “Looks like water broke through. Maybe that’s how the bodies got swept away?”
Adam moved his spotlight slowly up and down and along the cliff face. Something reflected the light back for a brief moment.
“There’s something over there, Virgil.”
He increased speed.
“Slow down,” Virgil ordered in a sharp hiss. “Make too much noise and you might bring the whole roof down. Look over there: all of that will go eventually, just don’t give it a reason to go now.”
They moved in tandem across the treacherous jumble of rocks that littered the cave floor and began to rise towards the narrow ledge that lay close to the main fissure.
Their headlights illuminated the entire ledge and there was the detritus of Paul’s stay: isotonic juice cartons and protein bar wrappers.
“He was here!” Adam exclaimed.
“Looks like someone was,” Virgil agreed. “But the question is, where are they now?”
Adam turned the spotlight towards the fissure where the water was still running out. Something glinted.
“A piton!” He steered towards it, Virgil close behind. “But just one…?”
“He must’ve tried to climb out,” Virgil reasoned. “But I don’t think he made it.”
He directed the powerful searchlight down into the depths of the cave and began a slow sweep. They saw the mangled body of Paul Metcalfe sprawled on a line of rocks, along which the water had scoured crevasses on its rush down to the river, still many feet below.
“Is that your friend?” Virgil asked.
“Yes,” Adam replied. “Thank God. Let’s get him…”
“Wait! Be careful. Let’s not rush this, or we could end up dead ourselves. Besides, I think we’re too late. I think he’s dead, Adam.”
“You can’t be sure. He may just be unconscious. How can we get to him? The rocks are too narrow to land a bike…”
“I have a sling.” Virgil handed one end of the strong hammock-like device over. “We’ll need to be careful that the thrust from the bikes doesn’t blow his body down into the crevice….”
“I’ll go!”
“No, you won’t. We’ll go together and then you will hold the sling steady.”
There was no quarrelling with the authority in Virgil’s tone, so albeit reluctantly, Adam didn’t bother to argue.
They moved slowly forward, until the bikes were just above Paul’s body on either side. Virgil attached a safety line to his bike and stepped cautiously onto the running board. From there it was just a few paces to where Paul’s broken body lay, bloody, cold and immobile.
Unwilling to risk Adam’s likely reaction if he announced that Paul was indeed dead, Virgil gently shuffled the stiff body onto the sling.
“Hold it steady and as soon as I’m on my bike, back off slowly and keep everything taut. Then back to the Mole, nice and steady.”
“S.I.G.,” Adam responded from habit.
Virgil grinned.
The journey back shaved years off Adam’s life. He could see easily enough that Paul was dead, and worried even more when the damp soaking into the sling from his clothes was tinged pink by blood. It was obvious Paul had survived the initial accident and had been trying to climb up through the crack in the rock face. What had happened to prevent him doing so would have to wait until he could tell them himself.
Manoeuvring the rigid body into the Mole was tricky, but Virgil proved to be adept at doing the impossible and finally, Adam was seated, scrunched up in his corner, nursing Paul’s body in his arms. Once the hover bikes were stowed away and Virgil went back to the control panel, Adam rummaged for a flask of the rehydration liquid that Doctor Fawn usually used to aid Paul’s recovery and slowly trickled some between the dead man’s lips. Then he reached out for his Spectrum communicator.
The crackle of the communicator sounded very loud in the unnatural silence before the drill engine restarted. Adam spoke clearly and loudly:
“Blue to Cloudbase. I have Captain Scarlet. Code red. Send a Medijet to agreed coordinates.”
“Cloudbase to Captain Blue. Reading you loud and clear! Doctor Fawn is on his way.”
Virgil glanced at his passengers with some surprise. “Captain Blue and Captain Scarlet? Really? I’ve heard of you guys.”
“Really. Of course, you shouldn’t tell anyone who we are.”
“Don’t worry. You can trust International Rescue, Mr Svenson. We have our own security concerns. Now, let’s get back to the surface, shall we?”
“Full speed ahead, Mr Tracy. Full speed ahead.”
“Touché,” Virgil muttered, adding: “Can you remind them to tell Gordon he can pack up and go back to the rendezvous place, please? I’d hate to leave him behind in that underground river.”
***
Scott was waiting with a transport vehicle when the Mole resurfaced. Adam carried Paul out himself and laid him on a gurney in readiness for the arrival of the Spectrum medijet.
“You found him; I didn’t think you would. Well done,” said Scott to Adam, once Virgil had started the slow drive back to Thunderbird 2. “It’s a shame we were too late.”
“I’m not sure we were,” Adam replied, casually taking care to block Scott’s view of Paul’s body by moving to the side of the gurney. “Evidence suggests he survived the original landslide and was attempting to climb out of the cavern we found him in. I think he may have had a fall and be in a coma. I’ve seen a similar case before, where a test pilot was injured in a crash and was believed to have died. Many hours later, after the appropriate care of course, he recovered perfectly, apart from a headache.”
Scott looked at Paul’s cold, grey complexion and shrugged. “If you want to go with that, I hope you’re right.” He drew a deep breath, pushing back his shoulders so that he looked to be standing to attention. “I wish you and Paul all the best, Adam, but, if you have no objection, I will accompany Thunderbird 2 to the rendezvous with Thunderbird 4, and then back to our base. We have no quarrel with Spectrum, but we’d prefer to keep our distance and for you to keep yours.”
“That’s understood, Scott. Please accept my thanks to everyone in International Rescue, on behalf of Spectrum and Paul and myself, for everything you’ve done. It seems to me that what you’re intending to do in International Rescue is a great public service. You and your family are true humanitarians. I can’t imagine we’ll meet again, but if I can ever help you and IR, in any way, you only have to ask.”
Adam extended his hand and Scott grasped it warmly. “Goodbye and good luck to you both,” he said.
He watched Scott walk back to Thunderbird 1 and, as the sleek craft rose vertically into the sky followed moments later by the bulk of Thunderbird 2, he saluted in farewell. Smiling as Virgil tipped his wings to him before the craft turned and flew towards the coast, Adam opened the communicator.
“Blue to Cloudbase, the International Rescue craft have left. Stop tracking them, Lieutenant, and close all communication relays. A deal is a deal.”
“S.I.G., Captain Blue. The medijet’s ETA is about 3 minutes.”
~~OOO~~
Sickbay swung into action the moment the gurney arrived on Cloudbase. Scarlet was stripped, washed, examined and wired up to the monitoring machines.
Captain Blue sat in the waiting area, sipping coffee and watching the medical staff as they hurried in and out of the isolation room. Finally, Fawn emerged and wandered over to speak to him.
“How is he, Doc?”
“No change, but we’ve seen this before. It’s not time to start worrying yet.”
“What condition was he in?”
Fawn poured himself a coffee and sat down. “You know how soon some of his injuries can vanish, so it’s hard to know if this is all there was, but I would say that he has had a shattered pelvis, several breaks in his legs and his spine fractured in three places all in the recent past. There are deep razor-like lacerations all over his body, especially on his back, but these are now starting to heal. There would’ve been internal injuries; he certainly lost a lot of blood at one point. It had soaked into his clothing, but I can’t ascertain where it came from, because there are no internal injuries now.”
“The rocks we found him lying on were certainly sharp.”
Fawn nodded. “I know, I’ve watched your body cam footage.”
Blue shifted uneasily. “That has to be wiped as soon as possible. I don’t want to renege on the agreement with International Rescue.”
“I’ll see to it,” Fawn assured him. “For now, it is classified as a medical record and closed to everyone else.”
“Thanks, Doc. You know, I think Paul survived the initial landslide, although I don’t know about his companions; there was no sign of them.” Blue went on to explain what he’d seen on the ledge. “He must’ve been feeling fit enough to try and climb the wall, at the very least, but he didn’t make it for some reason, and fell a good twenty-plus feet onto those razor-sharp rock formations,” he concluded.
Fawn nodded. “That’s plausible. I’m inclined to think that if he’d landed directly on those rocks at first, the force of the fall would’ve meant he’d have lost limbs and I’m not sure even retrometabolism can grow new arms and legs. Even so, that first fall would’ve been enough to kill him, but his retrometabolism gave him a chance to escape.”
“I felt sure it would.”
“I’m also inclined to believe that the fact that he was able to find water probably saved his life. If he had become dehydrated on top of everything else, he might not have had the stamina to recover. Giving him the hydration liquid as soon as you could was the best thing you could’ve done.”
“Thank you for suggesting I took some with me, Doc. It wouldn’t have occurred to me otherwise.”
Finishing his coffee, Fawn stood and said, “Oh, and before I forget: the colonel wants to see you. Time to be debriefed.”
Adam yawned, stretched and smiled. “I’m not officially back on the staff yet. I just might not go…”
“I think you had better go. The colonel will be wanting to get his report to the World President sorted out, complete with details of how he knew nothing about your plans to go looking for Scarlet using civilian rescue services…”
“I didn’t call International Rescue,” Blue said, with an assumed air of innocence. “In fact, I’d never heard of them before. I rather think it was Paul’s mother who did that…”
“And you knew nothing about it until you got a call from them with rendezvous co-ordinates, I suppose. At which point, you rushed off to meet them without the slightest idea of who or what you’d encounter?”
Blue smirked. “Mrs Metcalfe called and told me she’d spoken to an acquaintance of hers who knew someone who knew someone… you know how these things work. She said a well-equipped rescue team would meet me at the site the following day, so I was to get in one of the company’s private jets and get my ass over there, PDQ. And, believe me, Doc, when Mrs Metcalfe says ‘jump to it’ you say ‘yes, ma’am; how high?’”
“Really? Now I can see where Scarlet gets it from.”
“Too right! Still, it’s all worked out for the best. Paul’s back and on the road to recovery, International Rescue’s none the wiser about retrometabolism…”
“But now knows the identity of two Spectrum Colour Captains.” Colonel White had walked, unnoticed by Blue, into Sickbay in time to hear most of this conversation.
“Colonel, sir!” Blue jumped to his feet and saluted. He gave an appealing glance to Fawn, who was grinning.
“Go easy on him, Colonel,” the doctor requested calmly. “He’s done a good job and you should be able to speak to Captain Scarlet in a few hours and get the whole story.”
The colonel glanced at his officer with the merest hint of a smile on his face. “As you say, Doctor; he’s done a good job. Now, get yourself into uniform and meet me in the conference room in 15 minutes, Captain. We have some explaining to do to the World President. If only to make sure you and Scarlet keep your commissions.”
“S.I.G., Colonel.”
Watching the younger man stride away, White said to Fawn, “I knew I could trust him not to give up, but I never expected him to break all the regulations in the process.”
“Regulations, Charles? He resigned, didn’t he? Regulations don’t apply to civilians.”
White turned his head to look at the genial man at his side. “Yes, he ‘resigned’ – temporarily. Thankfully, he had enough sense to let … someone on board know what was going on, so that we could move the base close enough to be of help.”
“Symphony will be pleased to see him back again.”
“I doubt she even noticed he was away; from her communication log, they were talking to each other every half an hour or so.”
“Well, at least she kept you informed of what was going on…”
“It seems as if most of Cloudbase knew what was going on. Lieutenant Green moved us towards the accident site, Captain Magenta handed over the prototype of the new long-range communicator, and you doled out a retrometabolism first aid kit. I begin to wonder if I am truly in command here.”
Fawn chuckled. “Well, if I were to hazard a guess, none of them would’ve done it without your tacit approval.”
White smiled. “Just don’t tell the World President, Doctor. I am basing my defence on the grounds of plausible deniability.”
“My lips are sealed, Colonel, don’t you worry. Now, do you want to see Scarlet before you go and explain to Captain Blue just exactly what he can tell President Younger about where he’s been for the past 10 days?”
Author’s Notes
“‘Anderson’ and ‘continuity’ do not belong in the same sentence...” as my very good friend and beta-reader, Hazel Köhler, once explained. I couldn’t agree more and so I have played fast and loose with both timelines and fandoms in this story.
Personally, I think that if International Rescue and Spectrum were contemporaneous, Colonel White would almost certainly be contacting them to rescue Scarlet in this case. So, I settled for the concept that the very start of International Rescue’s mission took place well into Captain Scarlet’s adventures. Who knows, perhaps Jeff Tracy finally decided to get his organisation up and running because of the disasters caused by the Mysterons? That’s the fun of the Anderverse.
My thanks go to Hazel for her exemplary beta reading services and gentle prods in the right direction. Any mistakes are mine as I can never leave things alone. Thanks also to Keryn, who steered me towards a solution to my fandom-warping worries.
Grateful thanks to Chris Bishop for hosting my favourite Captain Scarlet website; the place where all my queries about who, where, when and what invariably find an answer.
Marion Woods,
September 2022