May 10th, 2050

"I'm home!"

"Hey, Dad."

"Hey, Scott.  Is Gordon home?"

"Yeah.  Grandma went and got him about twenty minutes ago."

"Good."

Scott looked up from his tablet, which he was using to do schoolwork.  "Oh, hi, Brains."

"H-hello, Scott.  What are you working o-on today?"

"Trig."

"Oh, yes.  I-is school a-almost out?"

"Yeah.  We only have a week left.  Mrs. Fin insists we work for a few more days."

"T-that's good."

"Hey, dad, hey, Brains!" Gordon entered the kitchen.

"Hey, son, how was practice?"

"Good.  Daniel almost broke his foot, though.  He kicked it on the floor as we were doing underwaters.  He has a nasty bruise."

"How l-lovely," Brains said sarcastically.

Gordon opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water and a bag of carrots.  He went to the table and sat down next to Scott.

"Dad, guess what?" Gordon asked as he opened his carrots.  He handed his water to Scott to open.

"What?" their father asked as he sat down at the table.  He took off his blue, pitched hat that he wore with his uniform and set it on the table.

"Coach Lena says I might be able to go to the Skyline Meet at the end of the summer!"

"Didn't you go last year?" Scott asked, looking up from his work.

"Yeah, but she says I'll actually make finals this year!"

"Hey, Virgil, are you doing anything?" Their dad asked as the nine-year-old walked into the kitchen.

"Actually, I was about to go and practice some piano, do you need-"

"Daddy!" Alan raced into the kitchen and jumped into his father's lap.

"Hey, buddy!" he greeted his youngest.

"How fast did you go today?" Alan asked eagerly.

Their father chuckled, "Almost mach twenty-one."

"A-almost," Brains emphasized.

"Wow!  When can I fly it?"

Scott looked up and scowled.  "Not until after I fly it!"

"What?  I wanna fly it!" Gordon exclaimed.  "All my friends keep asking how cool it is!  It would be awesome if I could tell them I've flown the TV-21!"

"Someday you'll all get to fly it," Their father chuckled, "but that day is after what I'm about to tell you."  He raised his finger and counted each of his sons. "There's only four of you.  Where's John?"

The brothers shrugged.  "Probably in his room," Scott said. "The last time I saw him was a few nights ago when Mr. Taylor was here talking about yours and his space travel adventures."

Their father sighed.

"I'll go get him," Virgil offered.

He left the room and returned a few moments later with a very scowl looking, twelve-year-old red-head.  Their Grandmother was following suit.

"Good.  Everyone's here," their father said once they all had gathered around the table.  John had found a home in the corner opposite of his father.

"We're moving."

"What?"

"Why?"

"No!"

"But, my friends!  And the Skyline Meet!"

The kitchen just about blew up.

"Calm down," their father commanded.  "Let me finish."

The boys went silent.  Virgil looked concerned.  Scott was furious.  John looked like he was about to murder someone, and Gordon had fear coating his face.  Alan, on the other hand, looked up excitedly.

"When do we leave?" he asked excitedly.

Jeff chuckled.  "This summer, after school ends."

"Where are we going?" Virgil asked hesitantly.

"To a place better suited for our future," Jeff pulled out his phone and clicked a few things.  He then turned on the holo-projector that was anchored in the table.  "Here."

A picture flickered up to above the projector.  The boys gazed upon an island.  It had obviously once been a volcano, and centered on a large, rocky cliff about halfway up the slope was a large house.  It had pitched ceilings and outer walls entirely made of glass.  The house was surrounded by jungle and rocky cliff.

"Whoa," Alan breathed.  He had leaned in over the table to get a better look.

"Is that an island?" Scott asked.

Gordon had mixed emotions on his face.  John scowled.

"That's not just any island.  That's Tracy Island," Jeff told them.

"Wait," Alan looked confused, "aren't we the Tracy's?"

"You bought an island?!" Scott exclaimed.

"Well, the Global Defense Force helped.  Let's say the GDF and International Rescue made a deal."

"International Rescue?" Scott asked.

Their father nodded.  "About a year ago, Brains and I had a meeting with the GDF.  We proposed an idea called 'International Rescue'.  The TV-21 is just the beginning of this high-tech rescue service.  Brains and I have started plans on at least two more ships, maybe three.  It will be easier to build, store, launch, and operate these ships and the whole organization from Tracy Island.  It's all part of the deal we made with the GDF," Jeff explained.

"Cool!" Alan exclaimed.

Jeff looked at the rest of his sons' unhappy expressions.  "Now, before you all complain, let me show you a few close-ups," he flipped through the pictures using his phone, showing pictures of different rooms.  Virgil's expression softened a little when he saw the piano.  "The island has all of the latest technology, and more, thanks to Brains."

The room was silent.  Jeff sighed, "All right, Virgil, you first."

"I like the piano.  And it looks peaceful enough, but Falcon and I have been taking piano together for five years."

Jeff sighed, "I know.  Gordon?  You look like you have mixed feelings.  The pool was added as a twenty-five meter pool so you could still train."

"I noticed that, and it's so cool that it's surrounded by water and there's a training pool, but it's only going to be us on that entire island, right? There'll be no other people, and most importantly, none of my friends will be there! What about Daniel?  And Jackson?  And Lecil?  And Danielle?  And Franx?"

"There will be the six of us, plus Brains and Grandma Tracy on the island."

"Uh, I have a question," Scott said.

Jeff looked at him.

"What about school?  We can't exactly catch a bus or walk to school on our own little island."

"We will have study areas and you will all take your classes via computers," Jeff told him.

The room was silent.

"Listen," their father sighed, "I know it will be a change, but this is best for our future.  Not to mention, I've already told the GDF our move date."

"Which is when?" Virgil asked.

"July eleventh."

The boys all wore faces of discontempt, except for Alan.

"I ask you guys to find the positives in this.  There are many, trust me."

They all gave slight nods, except for John.  "I don't see any."

"John?" Jeff turned to his second-oldest, who was scowling in a corner. "What are you thinking?"

John glared at his father before speaking.  "I don't want to go."

"Why not?"

"Because." John crossed his arms and looked away.

"John, you'll like it.  We'll be in the middle of the Pacific, so the stars will be brighter than you've ever seen.  You'll be able to star-gaze like never before.  Your mother would've-"

John cut his father off.  "That's just it!  Mom!" John let out his anger.  "She's here!  In this kitchen, in that family room, out in that hammock where we star-gazed together.  She's in this house.  You know where she isn't?  On 'Tracy Island'!" Tears were threatening to spill in John's eyes.  "We can't just leave her here, dad!  I can't leave her!" Tears ran silently down his cheeks, and he lowered his head

After a moment, Jeff spoke again, "John, it's been almost four years.  You need to let her go."

John's head shot up, "No!  I will never let her go!  She was my mother!"

Jeff sighed in defeat.  Alan slid off his lap and waddled over to his older brother.  He reached up to touch John, but the red-head jerked away.

"Don't touch me!" John glared at Alan, who shrunk away at the sharp gaze. "You're the reason she's not here anymore, and for that I will always hate you."

"John!" Jeff exclaimed.

However, John ignored him.  The twelve-year-old left the kitchen and stormed up the stairs.

After a minute, Scott broke the silence.  "There's no way we're going to change this, is there?"

"The house has already been built," Jeff confirmed.

Virgil spoke next, "Then I guess we're just going to have to embrace it."

××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××

July 11, 2050

"Is he back yet?"

"No, Alan."

"How about now?"

"No."

"Now?"

"Alan, you'll hear the engines when dad comes to get us," Scott explained.

"We're going to Tracy Island, we're going to Tracy Island!" Four-year-old Alan ran around his oldest brother.

The five brothers, plus their grandmother and Brains, sat in Jeff's now empty office that was in the same building where the TV-21's hanger was.

Scott was calming Alan, Virgil and Gordon were playing a game, and John was reading something, alone in a corner.  Brains and Grandma Tracy were supervising.

Suddenly, a large roar escalated from somewhere around them, until it was so loud it was almost unbearable.  Then, it cut off, and Brains led everyone to the hanger.

They all boarded their dad's ship, and witnessed the last time the TV-21 launched from it's original hanger.

"To Tracy Island!" their father exclaimed as he engaged the booster.

"To Tracy Island!" Scott, Virgil, Gordon, Alan, and Grandma Tracy shouted in reply.

They soared over land and water, and fifteen minutes after they launched, they were landing.

The family stepped out of the ship, and gazed upon their new home.