Captain Blue and Destiny pilot the Mercury shuttle into orbit. Their mission - to deploy a satellite that should be able to detect Mysteron energy on Mars and give Spectrum some warning regarding a strike. Everything seems to be going according to plan, until the shuttle changed its orbit without warning, and Destiny cannot regain control.

On Skybase, they receive a ransom demand. As long as Spectrum pay the ransom in diamonds, control of the Mercury shuttle will be restored to Destiny, and the mission can continue. If they don't, the shuttle will crash-land in Washington D.C.

Scarlet travels to the International Space Agency to determine who might be able to access the shuttle's remote control. The mission commander, Dr. Kopalski is rather brusque with him, saying that she has already been over the details once - with Captain Black. Scarlet tracks Black to the records office. Black manages to escape and steal Scarlet's Cheetah. Scarlet 'requisitions' an ISA helicopter and chases after Black. Harmony takes over the chase and destroys the Cheetah, but Black has already made his escape from the vehicle. Scarlet knows it, but cannot find where Black is hidden. White calls off the search and Scarlet heads back to the ISA.

The US government agrees to pay the ransom, and the extortionist requests that Dr. Kopalski delivers it to a diner in a deserted mining town.

Kopalski takes the case to the diner, backed up by Captains Scarlet and Grey, who are in a Rhino two streets away. She leaves it as instructed and drives away. When day breaks and the extortionist has still not turned up, Scarlet inspects the case at the diner for himself and finds it empty. He realises that it is Kopalski herself who is in control of the shuttle, and switched the cases before making the drop.

Back in her apartment, Kopalski is visited by Captain Black. Captain Scarlet discovers her unconscious not long after. She seems unharmed, and says that Black hypnotised her into giving him the access code to the shuttle system and the location of the laptop she was using to control the shuttle. Scarlet and Kopalski set off for the tracker station in the desert where the laptop is hidden.

In the Rhino, Kopalski attacks Scarlet and takes control. It is not until she crashes into a rock that Scarlet is able to activate her seat controls - turning her seat outwards and opening the door - and regain control of the Rhino. She falls to her death in a canyon.

Black finds the laptop and initiates the re-entry procedures. White reluctantly orders the Angels to launch, knowing that he will have to destroy the shuttle if Scarlet does not succeed.

Scarlet manages to locate Black quickly and knocks the Mysteron agent out. Whilst he is working on the laptop, Black comes around and tries to attack Scarlet. They scuffle, and Black is thrown from the dish.

 Scarlet realises that he cannot access the shuttle's systems quickly enough to prevent the crash, so he takes the only course of action remaining to him - he destroy the dish that is sending the signal.

White orders Harmony to destroy the Mercury shuttle, and she reluctantly complies. Before the missiles impact, control returns to the shuttle. Harmony gladly destroys her missiles, and Destiny manages to pull the shuttle out of the collision course after a very tense few moments.

Satisfied that his friends are safe, Scarlet goes to look for Black's body, but all that he finds is his uniform cap.

Quotable Scarlet
Scarlet: Captain Scarlet, Spectrum.
Kopalski: I'd never have guessed.

Black: We should join forces. We're both looking for the same person, even if our reasons are at opposite ends of the spectrum.

Destiny: Do you always get this deep when you're in orbit?
Blue: Only when some crazy is planning to use me as the wrecking ball from outer space on Pennsylvania Avenue - and I can't do a damned thing about it.



Did you spot...?
Captain Blue's spacesuit has his real surname - Svenson - sewn onto it. I thought that Spectrum agents were supposed to have secret identities?


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