| abstract
| - {Zero-X's hangar slides backwards, revealing Zero-X's main body.} {Zero-X moves up the tarmac a bit then comes to a stop.} {Lifting body 2 moves up the tarmac a little then turns 90° anti-clockwise, meanwhile Zero-X is lifted up by six support stanchions; four under the fuselage and two under the back engine part.} {Lifting body 2 comes to a halt under Zero-X's back engines then the six support stanchions lower until Zero-X is locked together with lifting body 2.} {The six support stanchions start to move underground.} {The overhead rail for lifting body 1 is extended out its hangar and at the very end of the rail, some of it comes down onto the ground forming a 90° angle.} {Lifting body 1 starts to come out of its hangar on a rail-like object attached underneath another overhead rail that is much thicker and after a while it turns 90° clockwise so it can join up correctly with Zero-X.} {Lifting body 1 is then lowered on top of the main body at the very front and is locked together with Zero-X and the overhead rail starts going back to lifting body 1's hangar.} {The end of lifting body 1's wings that contain the undercarriage underneath the booster jet engine fold down 90°.} {Commander Casey presses a button on his control desk that reads "DOWN". His control desk along with the chair he is sitting on leaves the control room and heads down to the control tower stand-by room. When he has reached the control tower stand-by room, he presses another button on his control desk.} Doctor Tony Grant: {nodding his head} "Loud and clear." Commander Casey: "Paul. Greg. Brad. Now this is a tough assignment. But if this mission is successful {Camera pans from Paul to Greg to Brad as he speaks.} you will be the first men to land on Mars. This project has been the most costly yet devised by men. However, the crew of the safety and passengers still takes top priority. Now is that clearly understood? {Short pause} Captain Paul Travers?" {Martian excursion.} {Central Control.} Captain Paul Travers: {to Commander Casey}:"Thank you, sir." {To the crew members} "Right, this is it." {Captain Paul Travers presses a button on his seat with his foot that turns his seat 180° clockwise, Space Captain Greg Martin's seat 180° anti-clockwise and Space Navigator Brad Newman's seat about 150° clockwise. All three pilots, along with some flight controls that are in-between Paul and Greg and in front of Brad, go down a corridor to the Martian excursion vehicle and doors close behind them. Cue Zero-X theme. They go into the Martian Excursion vehicle's cockpit, with more doors sealing behind them. Inside the Martian excursion vehicle's cockpit is Captain Paul Travers and Space Captain Greg Martin, sitting opposite each other, and Space Navigator Brad Newman is sitting behind Space Captain Greg Martin. In an adjacent room to the left are Doctors Ray Pierce and Tony Grant who are sitting next to each other. The Martian excursion vehicle is lowered down to the ground from the side of the Glenn Field Spaceport main building while a green light above the Martian excursion vehicle flashes. Two access bridges previously parallel to the MEV swing back, so they become parallel to the launch building. The Martian excursion vehicle moves up the tarmac a little, turns anti-clockwise 90°, then starts reversing backwards towards Zero-X. The Martian excursion vehicle starts slides up the front of Zero-X to conjoin with the craft. A gantry ascends from underground holding a heatproof nose cone. The heatproof nose cone slides back on its gantry and electromagnetically locks into position over the front of the Martian excursion vehicle.} {A light comes on inside the Martian excursion vehicle. The gantry for the heatproof nose cone slides backwards.} {Captain Paul Travers switches the Zero-X engine on by pressing a button to his left that is off-screen.} {Zero-X's engines hum. A countdown from nine to one appears on a computer screen in a control tower room. Exhaust fuel comes out of Zero-X's engines during ignition. Exhaust fuel then comes out of Zero-X's chemical rocket engines at the back of the craft. Zero-X starts moving up the runway then lifts up slowly.} Captain Paul Travers: "Central control from Zero-X. Height: 20,000 feet. Air speed: Mach 1." {To Space Navigator Brad Newman} "Commence chemical engine countdown on green light." {Inside the fuselage of Zero-X is a bad guy, wearing some engineering clothes and an old-fashioned pilot's flying helmet with some goggles on it. He stands up, preparing to take some photo's of Zero-X's wing mechanism.} {The elevator control hydraulic starts to move, and, unfortunately, the bad guy gets his right foot caught in it, dropping his camera in the process.} {He removes his face, which is really a mask. It's the Hood! He has a disgruntled look on his face. He tries getting his jammed shoe out of the elevator control hydraulic, but with no success.} {Wing compartment.} {The Hood has no choice but to take his foot out of the jammed shoe and be shoeless on his right foot. Zero-X suddenly begins to go into a rapid descent and lose altitude.} Captain Paul Travers: {To the Zero-X crew members} "We're going out of control!" {To Central Control} "Base, this is Zero-X, our control system is jammed! Nose is dropping. Ejecting nose cone!" {Captain Paul Travers presses a button to his left that is off-screen and the heatproof nose cone shoots off the front of Zero-X. The Hood, with blood staining on his white sock, has started to crawl away from the elevator control hydraulic in a prone posture face downwards, leaving his mask behind.} {Commander Casey turns his control desk and the chair he is sitting on 90° anti-clockwise and presses a button on the right side of his control desk with his right hand. An air traffic control system monitoring Zero-X comes up on a computer screen on a wall.} {Two yellow air-sea rescue helicopters take off. Four air-sea rescue jets (silver but with different coloured tails (red, green, blue and yellow)) take off. Zero-X continues its rapid descent.} {Zero-X wing compartment. The Hood continues crawling, his bloodied foot visible. He opens a hatch and drops down from it.} Commander Casey: {On radio.} "Roger, Zero-X. Do not eject until you are at 1000 feet. Air sea rescue is on its way." {Scene cuts to show the jets flying at high speed, then an aircraft carrier, and then back to Zero-X.} {Escape unit. Space Captain Greg Martin, Space Navigator Brad Newman, Doctors, Ray Pierce and Tony Grant are all there.} {He presses a button to his left and his seat moves automatically into the escape unit. It clips in. The door closes shut. Zero-X continues to crash-dive.} {Escape unit. Captain Paul Travers has his hand on a lever. A meter shows the present height. 1500ft... 1250ft...} {Zero-X still descends. The scene shows the empty flight deck, where a distinct stutter can be heard as the engines shut down.} {Escape unit. The meter moves from 1250ft to 1000ft.} Captain Paul Travers: "Here we go!!" {Pulls a lever.} {We hear an explosive sort of noise. The escape unit blasts out of Zero X, which continues nose-diving. The scene alternates between the cockpit stuttering and the Zero-X exterior, before finally crashing into the ocean and exploding in a blazing fire. The escape unit then appears slowly descending with a parachute attached. It lands softly in the ocean and sloshes around. Then the screen fades out.} {The scene fades back into the Space Exploration Centre. The administrators are distinctly conversing before the President addresses them.} Space Colonel Harris: "Gentlemen." {Babble dies down.} "You've now had time to study the very fine report that has been produced by our aviation investigators. We at the Martian Exploration Centre wish to thank those concerned for their untiring efforts in this direction. Although the report runs to 862 pages, and meticulously describes every happening that led up to the crash twenty-four months ago, the conclusion is all too simple: sabotage." {Pauses.} "Now before we progress further with this meeting, I would ask you for a vote of confidence in the findings of this very fine report." {Scene shows two real life human hands pressing the For button. The president looks at the voting board. All men vote For. A green light shines.} {Again, the two human hands show pressing For. Several vote For. Then one presses Against. The camera zooms in on it. The camera then pans along the table from the President, over the other men and focuses on one of them near the other end.} Space Colonel Harris: {Standing up, irritated.} "Are you suggesting, sir, that we are incapable of handling our own security arrangements?" {A lot of arguing breaks out. The camera zooms on the black area in the centre of the conference table. Then it opens to a long shot view of Tracy Island. Scene transitions to the swimming pool, then pans round to the exterior of the luxurious Tracy Villa. Scene then shows a newspaper headline reading "WORLD WAITS" with a picture of the Zero-X craft, then it drops to show Scott, Virgil, Alan and Gordon Tracy looking at their father Jeff.} Jeff Tracy: {In thought.} "This is a tough one. I know how you boys feel. I guess you're raring to go. But as you know we have a strict rule here: no International Rescue craft is launched unless someone is in grave danger. Right?" Scott Tracy: {In agreement.} "Right." Jeff Tracy: "Yeah... However, rules were made to be broken. Now this is what we do." {To Scott.} "Scott?" {Scott walks off.} {Virgil walks off.} Jeff Tracy: {interrupting} "Yes you can. Launch Thunderbird 3 and orbit the Earth until Zero-X has established its course to Mars." Gordon Tracy: {Standing up.} "What about me, father?" Gordon Tracy: {Glumly.} "Yes, sir." {The Thunderbirds theme starts blaring. Shot of Scott at the painting with the two wall lights, turning around to go to Thunderbird 1. Shot of Virgil getting tipped onto his back, into the chute which takes him to Thunderbird 2. Shot of Alan on the settee being lowered into the ground, onto the track which takes him to Thunderbird 3. Meanwhile, back in the living room, the replacement couch rises up, with Gordon watching it.} {Thunderbird 1 has trundled to the firing position. Cut to inside the cockpit.} Scott: (Into radio transmitter) "Thunderbird 1, ready to go." {Cut to Tracy villa, Jeff's desk.} {Back to Thunderbird 1.} Scott: "Thanks, father." (He pulls the right Omni-purpose lever back, and Thunderbird 1 takes flight.) {Shot of Thunderbird 3 igniting and flying off into space. Shot of Thunderbird 2 trundling out to its launch deck, raising up into launch position and taking flight. Cut to Cliff House balcony, with Gordon looking somewhat sad. Scene cuts to inside.} {The camera moves to the picture of Lady Penelope near Jeff's desk. Shot of the outside of Creighton-Ward Manor, and back to Lady Penelope's sitting room; herself is sitting down, wearing something you might see at the races. Parker is standing at the door, in his butler's garb.} (He leaves, camera focuses on Lady Penelope. She pours herself some tea (human hand doing it), when the pot starts making an electronic beeping noise. The other human hand turns the decorative knob on top.) Lady Penelope: "F.A.B., Jeff." (She stands up and pulls on a decorative rope. We hear a bell ringing. Cut to a shot of Parker's duty room, with four bells at the top, each labelled with a different room (Library, Entrance Hall, Sitting Room and another room), with the Sitting Room bell ringing. Back over in Sitting Room. The doors open. It's Parker.) {Int. Tracy Island. It's night-time. Jeff is at his desk, video-calling Scott.} {Shot of Alan riding back on the settee, humming part of the show theme to himself.} {The eyes on Alan's picture light up. Jeff presses a button on his desk, sending the settee down.} {Just then, the settee, with Alan on it, appears.} Jeff Tracy: (angrily) "What goes on around here? Have you all gone crazy? This is International Rescue, remember? We can't leave the base unmanned." (To Tin-Tin) "Sorry, Tin-Tin." Alan Tracy: (frowning) "Well I don't. I'm going to bed." Alan Tracy: "No thanks. It keeps me awake!" (He storms off) {Shot of Tracy Island's outside, later on in the night. Shot of Jeff, working at his desk, obviously quite tired. Shot of Alan, sleeping in his bed. He is groaning heavily, as though he can't sleep very well.} {The scene changes to dry ice and brightly coloured lights. The camera rises, and we seen Alan, wearing a prom suit and top hat, standing alone in a construction of wire.} {FAB 1 pulls up in front of Alan. The door opens to reveal Lady Penelope in a blue glitzy dress and white fur drape, and Parker, in his chauffeur's garb, which is slightly pink.} Alan Tracy: (Stepping into FAB 1) "Of course not. You're dead on time. (The door closes as soon as he's seated)" {FAB 1 drives off, along a bridge. Cut to inside FAB 1.} {Cut to ext. FAB 1, as it starts flying off the bridge, into space. Back to inside FAB 1.} {Shot of FAB1 flying through space.} Lady Penelope (To Parker): "Turn right just past planet Mars, and you should see the Swinging Star straight ahead of you, Parker." "Sometimes I feel you are cheating me Then you kiss me and my mind is free But then I think I should let you know that I've got friends - so baby listen to me.... A shooting star will shoot you and Mars will go to war The man in the moon will jump on you if you don't love me no more.... I saw you in someone else's car You told me that - he won't go too far That may be so but you let him know that I've got friends, so baby listen to me.... A shooting star will shoot you and Mars will go to war The man in the moon will jump on you if you don't love me no more.... You tell me then I'm the man for you But you do things you should never do So now, hear this warning once again, yes, I've got friends, so baby listen to me.... A shooting star will shoot you and Mars will go to war The man in the moon will jump on you if you don't love me no more.... If you don't stop making me lose face I will have you put up there in space So, just do what I'm a-telling you, 'cos I've got friends, baby listen to me.... A shooting star will shoot you and Mars will go to war The man in the moon will jump on you if you don't love me no more....
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