//------------------------------// // Peace and Quiet // Story: Thomas and Friends: the New Adventures // by The Blue EM2 //------------------------------// "I don't know what the world is coming to!" Henry grumbled, as he pulled away from the docks. "I'm a busy engine, and the workload never seems to get lighter, no matter how many loads of trucks we move!" Sodor had become very busy as a result of recent political realignments, and consequently the engines were constantly moving goods backwards and forwards on the island. Some of the trains were so long and so heavy that they needed multiple engines to move them! Eventually, Sir Toppham Hatt realised that the work was too much for his existing locomotives, and decided to bring in a new engine. One morning, Thomas and Twilight arrived to see a new engine had been offloaded from a ferry and was being warmed up. He was painted orange with red and green lining, and was the longest engine Thomas had ever seen. He had two leading wheels and ten driving wheels, combined with a high running board and a gap in his frames so wide you could see daylight through it. He had a massive boiler, a pair of smoke deflectors, and a tender that looked somewhat American in design. The number on his cabside read 92134. "Who's this?" Thomas asked. "This," said Sir Toppham Hatt, "is 92134. He's a 9F 2-10-0, and he will be relieving most of you of your freight duties." "That's not too surprising," Twilight said. "He does have more than 39,000 pounds of tractive effort." "Hello!" called Percy, speeding by with a pair of flatbeds. "Welcome to Sodor!" The big engine sighed. "You're a chatty bunch," he said, in a soft Scottish accent. "The name's Murdoch, and my driver- wait, where is my driver?" Suddenly, loud bass music blasted from his footplate. A girl with electric blue and green hair and pale cream skin leaned out of the cab. Her eyes were hidden behind a pair of purple sunglasses, and she wore a zipped up white jacket with blue lining, a white skirt with a pair of quavers on them, a pair of purple leggings with pink streaks on them, and a pair of blue trainers with white bases, purple toecaps, and a light blue star set into them. Murdoch sighed. "VINYL!" he shouted. The girl removed her earpieces. "What?" she asked. "You killed the wubs!" "Sorry about her," Murdoch said. "She's Vinyl Scratch, or Victoria Sanders. Now don't we have a train to work?" Vinyl, grumbling, moved Murdoch's regulator, and he steamed away. Twilight glanced at Pinkie, laughing. "Those two are polar opposites!" she said. Murdoch was soon hooked up to a massive train which totalled well over 1,000 tons and seemed to stretch for miles behind him. Getting the right away, he soon set off, effortlessly moving the wagons, which would previously have needed two engines to pull them! As he went on his way, he rolled through noisy industrial areas and loud factories, which annoyed him. "It's a lot louder than the Port Road," he grumbled. "I miss running up and down from Stranraer, don't you, Vinyl?" There was no reply. "Vinyl?" Still no reply. "Probably has her music on too loud." Vinyl, of course, didn't hear a word he said. "This dubsteb is sweet!" she yelled. "And that signal is at amber!" Murdoch shouted back. Vinyl, removing her headphones, saw the signal up ahead and slammed on the brakes. "Good spot, Murdy," she smiled. "Murdy?" Murdoch said. "That sounds like a swear word. Now get your headphones off and listen out! We've got proper work to do!" "Oh, alright," Vinyl grumbled. "Next Bradford's gonna turn up and start bossing us about." "He was quite the character," Murdoch admitted, as they went on with their journey. By the end of the day, Murdoch was very tired indeed. He backed into the shed, looking forward to a good night's sleep, as he was out early tomorrow. The only problem was, the other engines were constantly asking him questions. "What's the heaviest train you've ever pulled?" asked Henry. "Did you ever work Marseilles harbour?" enquired James. "Have you ever had an accident?" probed Edward. "2,200 tons, no, and no," Murdoch replied. "Why would I even go to Marseilles? It's not even on my route!" He paused. "I have a question for you; do you ever shut up? I want some peace and quiet, and the last thing I want to do is share this shed with chatterboxes!" "No need to be rude," Gordon snorted. "We only want to be friendly," Percy added. But Murdoch had already drifted off to sleep. The next morning, Murdoch was resting nicely when suddenly, loud music and thunderously noisy bass echoed through the shed. "What the? VINYL!" His driver, carrying a gigantic boombox, climbed onto his footplate and switched the music off. "What's your problem?" "Must you listen to music so loudly?" Murdoch grumbled. "What are you talking about?" Vinyl retorted. "It's the best way to wake up in the morning." Murdoch set off for his train, another incredibly long working, and they puffed away. This train was bound for Peel Godred, although he would be stopping at Crovan's Gate to let an EM1 take over for the rest of the run. This time, he was mostly running through the open countryside, surrounded by nature and without a person in sight. He, at last, had his peace and quiet." "This is just like home," he said quietly. Vinyl, in comparison, was still listening to loud music. "Dubstep Dishwasher is the best!" she said suddenly. Moments later, she spotted something on the line and applied the brakes. "Sheep on the line?" she exclaimed. "Why don't farmers maintain their fences properly around here?" She jumped out of the cab and went over to the sheep, trying to pursuade them to go back in. The only problem is, sheep have a very poor understanding of the concept of going in a straight line, and as a result getting them back into the field proved to be almost impossible. "I wish Tavi was here," she sighed. "I'll call for help." Murdoch simmered crossly. They had been going so well, and these sheep had just gone and spoiled it. "Please be quiet!" he snapped at them. "Those chatterbox engines were preferable to this!" Moments later, Toby arrived with a rake of cattle wagons. Flash and a farmer hopped off the footplate. "Hello," Vinyl called. "Here to help with the sheep?" "The very same," Flash replied. "You're Vinyl, right?" "Yup!" Vinyl replied. "Flash, isn't it?" "Yep. No time to chat, let's get the line clear!" With the help of the farmer, they were able to get the sheep back into their field. Murdoch was soon on his way. "Thanks for the help, err..." "Toby." "Thanks for the help Toby!" That night, Murdoch backed into Tidmouth sheds, but he was the first to speak. "Sorry about being so rude to you yesterday," he said. "That's alright!" Edward smiled. "You were just tired, that's all, and we were probing somewhat with all those questions." "It reminds me of that time that-" "Is this one of your Sandbar stories?" Percy interrupted. Murdoch laughed as James went on with his tale. Those sheep (and Vinyl) would have kept him awake, but the sound of conversation and laughter was much, much better.