Thunderbirds: Terror from the Deep Part 8

"Kidnapping?" Gordon shook his head. "How is that possible?"
"Yeah, surely there's no way Daphs could have been kidnapped from this place?" Scott said. "No one knows where it is."
"Apart from the Hood!" Alan piped up.
"Give it a rest, Alan!" Virgil said, shoving him. "Anyway, even he did kidnap her, why would he have bothered using narcoleptic gas? Surely that's not his forte'?"
"No, he's got that m-man Mullion who likes breaking down doors," Fermat agreed.
"And that woman Transom with the high voice; surely we'd have heard her?" Tintin added.
"And sneaking around behind our backs isn't really the kind of thing the Hood would do." Jeff put his hands on his desk and sighed. "No, if he wanted Daphne, he'd have kidnapped her right in front of us. It can't be him."
"Then it's General X!" Gordon sprang to his feet. "I knew he was up to no good!"
"Now, Gordon, let's not leap to conclusions-"
"What conclusions? The evidence is there! He knows where the island is and he must have tried to kill Daphs the first time with those sharks of his-!"
"You don't know that, Gordon!"
"Yeah, he was a nice guy!" Tintin argued.
"And K9 said that he clearly didn't poison the food or anything, right, K9?"
"Affirmative!"
"If he didn't want to kill us then, why would he try to hurt Daphne now? It doesn't make sense!"
Gordon groaned and sat back down again. "Pardon me, Master Tracey," K9 piped up, "but in the words of Sherlock Holmes, if you eliminate all other factors, and the one which remains must be the truth. And I have a theory about how Daphne was kidnapped. You see, we of Storm 5 have special robots called Flyspies - which many people see and believe to be nothing other than regular bluebottles. General X is clearly a man of science and technology; he could easily create something similar that could let off a narcoleptic gas and switch me off so that I couldn't alert anyone about it."
"But how would he get her out of the room, K9?"
"I believe he could find some way to do that; possibly with some kind of tractor beam."
Gordon sprang to his feet again. "We've got to save her!"
"But we don't know where she is, Gordon!" Jeff argued. Brains twitched nervously and fiddled with his glasses. Jeff looked up at him. "Don't worry, Brains; we will find her."
"I kn-kn-kn-guess it's silly being so f-f-concerned when Daphne's perfectly c-c-c-able to look after herself; but even so..." he trailed off. K9 waggled his ears. "Pardon me, Master; but my telecommunicator is picking up a message."
The small telecom on his side fuzzed with black and white static and then General X's face appeared on it. "Well, well, here we all then."
His voice was different to the way they remembered; it was now sly and chilling. Gordon threw himself to the floor beside K9. "What have you done with Daphne?"
"Nothing yet; oh, don't worry, she's safe, for now. Until she starts to feel the cold..." he chuckled.
"You'd better give her back!" Jeff said, stepping around the front of his desk. "Or else we'll..."
"Oh, you can have her back."
"What?" Brains stepped forwards. "You'll l-l-l-set her free?"
"Naturally; on conditions."
"What conditions?" Jeff asked.
"I want the Thunderbirds."
"What?" Alan exclaimed.
"Well, you can't have them!" Tintin cried.
"Very well; then you'd better say goodbye to your beloved Daphne!"
"No!" Brains, Fermat and Gordon cried with one voice.
"Just what are you planning to do to her if we don't hand them over?" Jeff asked.
"Well, as I said, she'll feel the cold...when she freezes to death in my great refrigeration unit; or else when she gets ripped apart by my sharks, if she tries to escape."
"You fiend!" Gordon cried.
"Sticks and stones, young man. I'll give you one hour to think it through."
"Wait!" Brains cried. "P-p-please let me speak to her!"
General X considered. "Yes, alright then; it can't do any harm, I suppose."
The screen blurred again and then Daphne's image swam into view. She was sitting with her head burried in her knees, crying.
"Daphne!" Brains cried.
"Dad?" She raised her head. "Dad!"
"I'm here, sweetie!"
"Oh, Dad! Guys! You can't let him take the Thunderbirds! He'll destroy everything you stand for!"
"We haven't got a choice!" Gordon cried. "It's them or you!"
Tears spilled from her cheeks but her voice was defiant and sincere. "Then it was lovely knowing you guys. You're the best family a girl could ask for and I love you all so much but I won't let you give up the Thunderbirds just for me. I'll die before I let that happen."
"But...you can't..." Fermat was looking scared. "You're...you're Daphne...you're not supposed to die now..."
"I'm sorry, Fermat. But you'll be ok. You're a Thunderbird. You can do anything."
The screen blurred again. "Wait!" Gordon cried, but General X was back. "I'll give you one hour to make your choice. Bring the Thunderbirds to my submarine; I'll send you the co-ordinates now; or else Daphne will perish; thought, I would prefer it if it didn't come to that. Dead bodies are so hard to dispose of these days; very messy."
"Wait!" But the screen fuzzed and he was gone. K9 raised his head. "Master? What is to be done?"
Jeff took a deep breath. "It's Daphne or the Thunderbirds; we can only bring one back with us. I pick Daphne."
Brains nodded. "Please; I c-c-c-won't let her die."
"I pick Daphne too!" Scott was on his feet.
"And I!" Virgil said.
"And I!" everyone else chorused.
"And I," Gordon muttered.
"And I!" K9 repeated.
"Then it's decided. We must give up the Thunderbirds to save our Daphne. Man your stations, everyone. Thunderbirds Are Go! For the last time..."

"Please!" Daphne cried, hammering at the walls of her cell. "Please just let me say goodbye to them!"
"Oh, don't worry, Daphne; you'll be with them again very soon! Of course, then you'll be dead."
"You said you'd let me go if they brought the Thunderbirds!"
"Did I? Hah! Promises are so easily breakable, like glass; aren't they?"
"You might as well kill me now," Daphne said. "I won't let you get the Thunderbirds and that's the only way you'll stop me."
"Very well; if that's what you so desire. Feeling the cold yet, Miss Hackenbacker?"
Daphne trembled. In truth the last time she had been this cold it had been a winter's day in England. "N-n-not yet!" she stammered, sounding very much like her father and brother.
"Hm. Then maybe we need to boost it up a notch."

Sitting on the edge of the sofa, Gordon was the only one who hadn't sprung into action. He was thinking hard. There had to be a third option; a way in which they could save Daphne and keep the Thunderbirds.
"Master?" K9 said.
"K9, I think we need to take the enemy by surprise here."
"I was thinking the same thing, Master Gordon. My prime function is to protect my mistress. What is your plan?"
"We get Thunderbird 4 and using the cutting tools to free her. Do you have the co-ordinates stored?"
"Affirmative!"
"Then let's go!"

"We should be there now, Dad," Scott said into Thunderbird 1's radio.
"I see it," Jeff responded from Thunderbird 2. "We're going in!"
The great octopus-shaped submarine had risen from the water so that only the very top was visible above the waves. The rest was quite a way underwater; in the deeper reaches of the sea. The gang looked down below at the small moving dots that were the robotic sharks and shivered as one.

Inside Thunderbird 4, stowed away in Pod 4 aboard Thunderbird 2, Gordon prepared himself for the launch. "K9, can you intercept the radio and telecom signals so he can't locate us?"
"Affirmative!" K9 waggled his ears. "It is done."

General X was so distracted by the sudden problems with his telecom that he failed to notice Thunderbird 4 launch into the water.

"What the-?" Virgil exclaimed.
"Gordon, no!" Jeff said into his radio. Gordon ignored him. Hang on, Daphs; he thought; I'm coming.

Daphne struggled to her feet. She couldn't take this cold. Her limbs were sore and her head ached. She'd rather take her chances with the robotic sharks; there had to be a way to destroy them.
"T-t-time for a S-s-super-Heat--T-t-touch," she murmured, and she placed her hand on the metal wall, wincing slightly at the freezing burn. But another kind of burn was coming; a burn that was melting the ice and surging through the metal, dissolving it away. And then the salt water came rushing in. Daphne hurriedly made the gap bigger, letting in more water. She ahd to gte free fast before she drowned in the room.

An alarm alerted General X to the problem. "What? Prisoner escaping?" He smirked. "Very well, then; she leaves me no choice. Sharks; attack!"

Daphn hadn't realised how far underwater she was and she hadn't taken in enough air when she had the chance. She struggled upwards but the surface seemed so far away and her limbs were aching with each push. And then she saw the robot sharks swimming towards her. This was it, then? She closed her eyes. Please let it be quick, she prayed.

A sudden loud CLANG of metal made her open her eyes. Thunderbird 4 was there and the magnaclamps were out and the metal on the sharks had become attracted to them and stuck there firmly. Daphne saw Gordon grinning at her in triumph; she laughed and then realised she was using up her oxygen. Gordon saw the look of panic on her face. "Come on, Daphne!" he cried, beckoning her over. "Get to Thunderbird 4 and I'll open the airlock!"
She pushed forwards but her oxygen was low and her limbs tired. She collapsed on top of Thunderbird 4. Immedietly Gordon was steering the ship upwards. "Gotta get her to the surface," he muttered.

Thunderbird 4 broke up through the waves with a great crash and Daphne gasped as the fresh air washed over her face. She coughed and tried to sit up. The sun felt so warm on her chilled skin; had it always been that warm before? She had never appreciated it and she resolved to in the future.
Gordon opened the top hatch of the airlock and scrabbled out. He stumbled towards her. "Daphs! Are you alright?"
"Yes," she gasped. "But another second and I wouldn't have been. We have to stop General X!"
"I know!" Gordon placed one arm around her waist and the other he slipped under her legs. Daphne put her arms around his neck and as he lifted her, she kissed his cheek. "Thank you for saving me."
"It's the least I could do," he joked. "Hold on." He sat at the edge of the airlock and jumped down, still holding her in his arms.

"Gordon?" It was Jeff through the intercom.
"Yeah?"
"What's going on?" Brains' voice came through then. "Where's Daphne?"
"I'm here, Dad; I'm in Thunderbird 4! Gordon saved me!"
"Oh!" Brains cried out in relief. "Th-thank G-G-G-the Lord! Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, but we've got a job to do!"
"Right!" Jeff said. "We've got to stop General X; but how?"
"I have an idea," Daphne said, "but I need to get back to Tracey Island first."
"Right," Gordon said, taking up the controls. "Hold on."
"Gordon, what were you thinking?" Jeff said. "That was a pretty big risk you took."
"Dad, can you yell at me later; kinda busy right now."
"But you-!"
"Maybe I did!" Gordon snapped. "But I only did it because I love Daphne!"
Silence. Gordon closed his eyes. "Damn," he muttered. Then he felt Daphne slid into his arms. "I love you too, Gordon," she breathed, and it was loud enough for everyone else to hear through the radio.
"Come on," he said, releasing her. "We have a job to do."

Brains, Kyrano and Onaha were standing on the shore when Thunderbird 4 reached the beach. Daphne was the first one out and as soon as Brains saw her he swept her off her feet in a great hug. She smiled. "Miss me?"
"Very much!"
"What's the plan?" Gordon asked her.
"Super-web."
"But you need the others for that."
"Not this time. K9!"
"Mistress?"
"Hold on to me."
"Affirmative!"
"Stand back everyone!" Daphne took her stance. K9 wheeled up behind her. Two thick steel cables shot from his back and wrapped themselves around Daphne's legs. Daphne took a deep breath and threw the webbing. It was a perfect aim. Now she threw more webbing, twisting it together and pulling the ends until she felt the submarine begin to judder. "Here goes nothing," she muttered and she gave a sharp tug on the line.

Gordon stared in alarm as the submarine shot towards them, rising out of the water; picking up speed. He ducked as it came near but he had misjudged the distance; for the great submarine sailed clean over the island, barely scraping the highest trees, blocking the sun for a second as it flew over the island, dripping great drops of water like a metal cloud and continued sailing over, over until it was out of sight. Gordon turned to Daphne. "Where is it?"
"My calculations deduce that it is about to land in the River Seine," K9 said. "There will be a lot of questions when he emerges."
"I don;t think he'll bother us for a while," Daphne added, brushing her hands together as if to get rid of the webbing. Gordon looked at her. "That was amazing, Daphne."
"Thank you."
"Well done, sweetie," Brains said, grinning at her.
"Thunderbird 2 to K9 and may I just say ditto to what Brains just said," Virgil's voice came through K9's radio.
Daphne blushed. "Nothing to it, really."
"Getting ready to land," Scott warned them.

With his back to the incoming Thunderbird crafts, Gordon reached for Daphne's hand. She turned to him. "I thought I'd lost you, Daphs," he said, softly.
"I thought I'd lost you too," she replied, looking up at him. Gordon brushed her hair back out of her eyes and she moved closer to him, he kissed her, no longer caring who could see them. Daphne closed her eyes, leaning in to his kiss.
The sound of Jeff clearing his throat behind them made them part, but Gordon didn't let go of her. "Dad-"
"Gordon, Daphne;" he came up to them, and, much to their surprise, he simply patted their shoulders. "That was some good teamwork; well done."
"Thank you, Mr Tracey," Daphne stammered as he walked past them. Gordon smiled. So his dad had decided to accept their feelings? That was good. Relieved, Daphne leaned against him and Gordon ran his hands through her hair.
"Aw!" Tintin smiled. "You guys are in love! This is so romantic!"
"Well, obviously!" Alan rolled his eyes.
"I hope you two are going to keep that to a minimum when we're around!" Virgil grinned.
"Can't promise anything," Gordon replied. "Come on, Daphs."

That evening, to celebrate, the whole family had a barbecue.
"You're really ok with this, Dad?" Gordon asked as he helped Jeff with the sausages. "Me and Daphs, I mean."
"Yeha, look, what I said before..."
"About us splitting up?"
"Well, you can understand my concern. It's a possibility with any relationship. But seeing you two there on the beach and the way you tackled General X together; you're a pretty good team. How could you ever split up?"
"Thanks Dad, that means a lot."
"Hey, Daphs!" Jeff called her over. "What'll you have; hot dog or burger?"
"Hot dog, please."
"Here you go."
"Thank you."

"So," Alan said to Fermat, "your sister and my brother."
"I know. Who knew, right?"
"Not me, that's for certain."
"I think it's sweet," Tintin said, swinging in the hammock. "They're so good together."
"Yeah," Alan agreed, "I guess they are. Hey, Dad! What are we gonna do about General X? He's still out there!"
"Yeha, but he's probably being chased by a mob of Frenchmen right now!" Jeff laughed. "And if he does come back at all, we'll be ready for him."
"That's for sure." Gordon slipped his arm around Daphne's waist and gave her a squeeze. She smiled and pressed closer to him. "Always."

General X might be gone for now but the Thunderbirds still have enemies; the question is who will they face next? Find out in the next installment - Thunderbirds: Penelope's Perils coming soon!

Base by BlackNyuu