Thunderbirds: Silence

Chapter 1

A few weeks earlier...

"Come on, Scott, you're not even trying."

Scott grumbled as he ran for the shuttlecock hurtling towards the ground on his left, patting it upwards with his badminton racket. His brother was already on the mark and quickly served back, the shuttlecock travelling over the brunette's head and landing on the court floor behind him.

"Oh that was just tragic." his opponent smirked, rolling his own racket between his fingers. "Turns out you're even worse than Alan. I don't even know how that's possible. What with your calves-"

"Can it!" Scott aggressively served back. The shuttlecock flew over the net separating the pair and Gordon enthusiastically served it back - much too fast for Scott, who got so worked up in trying to locate where it was going to land that he tripped over his own laces, falling over in an undignified heap.

The first thing he heard post-impact was Gordon's addictive laugh echoing around the sports hall. Rolling his eyes, Scott moved his head up to see Gordon doubled over in laughter, arms wrapped around his shaking midriff.

"And this is why I stick to running." Scott couldn't help but smile at his own clumsiness and Gordon's hilarious response. Scott jumped to his feet and dusted himself down, retrieving his racket from where it had flung during his trip.

When Gordon had finally calmed down and wiped the tears out of his eyes, he turned back to his older brother. "It's moments like these that keep me going, I tell ya."

"Real funny."

"But seriously, are you alright?"

Scott snorted, "Going soft on me, Gords?"

"Pfft- as if. Just wanted to know if the old man requires a hospital visit." he beamed, causing his brother to frown. Scott knew he'd walked into that one.

"This 'old man' is doing much more physical activity in his day job than you, Mr 'sitting in a bathyscape at the bottom of the ocean for a year'." Scott snarked back. "I'm surprised they let you out."

Gordon turned his racket upside down and started strumming it like a guitar. "That, my good man, was research. Underwater farming methods are my speciality. Besides, I was due some shore leave."

"Exciting."

Gordon whipped his racket out in the direction of his brother. "Oh yeah? Well what have you done lately that's sooo interesting, flyboy?"

"Flight support missions, weaponry exercises, general peacekeeping - all the fun stuff. Gotta say that trumps what you're doing by a mile, squirt."

Now it was Gordon's turn to roll his eyes. The aquanaut picked up the fallen shuttlecock and batted it against his racket towards his brother, who actually managed to hit it back. "Well actually... that might be changing pretty soon."

The two men hit the shuttlecock back and forth, easing into a gentle rally. Scott's curiosity was piqued. "What do you mean?"

Gordon hit the shuttlecock back to Scott. "I'm not supposed to be telling you."

"Just like that time I wasn't supposed to tell you I was being posted to Bereznik?"

"And just like that time I wasn't supposed to tell you about the new WASP radio equipment."

Scott winked and Gordon grinned like a cheshire cat. They enjoyed sharing minor trade secrets with one another that their brothers wouldn't understand or appreciate. The first time Gordon had probed Scott about trade secrets, his brother had remained staunch and hushed about anything Air Force. But now Scott was as bad as his brother; sometimes even initiating it! Gordon definitely had a way with his brothers. A STRONG influence indeed.

Gordon batted the shuttlecock over the net. "WASP are testing new, totally top secret equipment and guess who's been chosen to be the crash test dummy?"

Scott returned the hit. His mouth dropped open in surprise. "You have? What kind of equipment?"

"I don't know, they haven't told me much about it. Troy got wind of the higher-ups and brainboxes developing some new combat submarines or something, but the rest is just hearsay." Gordon said, bouncing the shuttlecock back. "To be honest I'm kind of excited about it. I've never been asked to do anything like this before. I guess they trust me enough to get the job done."

Scott saw through his brother's words. It had taken a long time to get to this stage. Gordon the teenager had turned out to be Gordon the insecure - always masking his problems with a joke or a hollow laugh which the rest of his family eventually started to pick up on. Gordon had never really been open with his true feelings around his brothers and could be really hard on himself sometimes.

"Gordon, I'm super proud of you."

Gordon's eyes actually lit up. Praise from Scott was like an angel's gift. "Really?"

"Of course! You're obviously moving up in the rankings in their eyes, which means you're doing well. You're impressing them, Gordon! Keep it up."

Gordon grinned. "I guess you're right. I was thinking about telling dad and the others but I didn't really want to worry them or anything. You know how Alan can get."

"I know yeah." Scott caught the shuttlecock in his hand, signalling the end of the game. "His worry for the others rivals mine at times."

Gordon smiled. "Besides, what could there be to worry about?"

~~~~~

A few days later, Gordon had found himself back at Marineville, sitting in a boring meeting which explained the nature of his participation in the tests. It turned out that the rumours had been correct; the World Aquanaut Security Patrol were developing secret submarines and hydrofoils to be used in combat, with speeds in excess of 500 knots. Gordon, among a few other elite members of the Navy, would be testing the limits of the craft to see how they coped under stress and various conditions.

After the briefing was over, Gordon found himself in his quarters, anxiously waiting the morning to come. He couldn't wait to show off his skills, to prove to his superiors that they had been right to choose him for the project. He knew the controls of a hydrofoil inside and out, so having the honour of testing a brand new one thoroughly excited him.

He'd hardly slept that night, and when the morning finally came and the orange sky greeted Gordon as he waited for his orders on the harbour pier, he felt all was right with the world. Like he'd made it. His career would be for life, and he'd do everything in his power to protect it. Help and provide for his family.

Gordon watched intently as his superiors arrived and explained what would be happening throughout the day. Gordon and two other crew members were tasked with testing the hydrofoil MVS-4, a superpowered vessel with a top speed of 550 knots, an unparalleled example of weaponized seamenship.

As Gordon stepped aboard, he paused for a moment, enjoying feeling the gentle wind tussling his auburn locks. A seagull croaked overhead. The seawater glistened in the newborn sun.

This was it.