For fear of sounding like a stuck record, the engines of the Island of Sodor are proud of how useful they are. They love their work and how they conduct it, and it makes them feel very important. But no engine feels more important than Gordon the Big Engine. One day, he was waiting at Tidmouth station to pick up passengers for an express working to Vicarstown. Rainbow Dash was currently changing his lamps over, when Percy rolled in to the station with an empty stock movement, then Boco stopped with some trucks.
"Please do watch where you put that soot," said Gordon. "It'll make my paint look sooty. And I don't want to look sooty."
"Or else I'll need to Sweep it up!" Rainbow Dash added. Everybody stared at her blankly. "What?"
"Moving trucks is a messy job," said Boco. "But then again, you wouldn't know about that, would you?"
"I have worked trucks, and have no desire to do so again!" said Gordon. "It's utterly undignified."
"Undingifried?" asked Percy. "I know dingifried, but not undingifried."
"That's how you make Scottish Mars Bar cake!" Pinkie exclaimed. "You deep dingifry it and then serve it in batter!"
"Pinkie, that's disgusting," Rainbow Dash replied. "Why not just have fish and chips?"
"Besides, neither of those are words," snapped Gordon. "It's 'dignified' and 'undignified'. The word means that-"
"You're full of yourself?" Filty Rich interjected.
"Too big for his buffers is the correct term," Boco added.
"I can see where you're coming from," Pinkie grinned. "Dashie here did write a song about how aw-"
"Look! It's time to go!" said Gordon, hurriedly, and blasted away before anybody could say anything else.
"What about the passengers?" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
That night, fog covered the Island of Sodor. Everything was slowed down, as under fog rules, trains must run at slower speeds in order to run safely and stop at signals (although all engines on the island have Automatic Warning System). Soon, the docks were stuffed full of waiting lines of trucks, and there were only so many that Donald, Douglas, and Murdoch could handle.
At Tidmouth Sheds, Sir Toppham Hatt led an emergency meeting. "We need more engines to help clear the mess at the docks. Bill and Ben have been dispatched to assist with moving stock to the marshalling yards, but I need Thomas, Percy, and Henry to assist with assembling the trains."
"On our way, sir!" Thomas exclaimed, and the three engines set off, one after the other, as the turntable needed to release each of them.
"Donald and Douglas are handling some of the trains, but Murdoch cannot pull all of them himself. James and Edward, I want you two to double head one of the trains."
"There's no engine more splendid than me suitable for the job!" James exclaimed.
"I do hope this work is completed sooner rather than later," Rarity sighed. "A lady does need her beauty sleep, after all."
"Sweetie Belle is younger than you and has been helping clear Brendam Docks with Stepney," Edward pointed out. "I didn't hear her complain once." And both engines set off into the night, with their drivers.
That left Gordon. "Gordon, I need you to- Gordon, are you even listening?"
Gordon was snoring and talking in his sleep. "Call me Star... Shooting Star."
Sir Toppham Hatt sounded an air horn, and Gordon woke up as Rainbow Dash finished lighting his lamps. "I need you two to work a through freight. You'll get more details when you arrive at Tidmouth."
"Trucks?!" said Gordon. "Whatever is the world coming to?"
"I'm watching you this time, so no jamming the turntable. Understand?" Rainbow Dash more than made her point clear, and Gordon puffed away. But he was still grumpy nontheless.
Gordon was soon coupled to a long, heavy mixed train, lamp on top and centre iron, as he waited for the signal to drop. As Percy propelled backwards to collect another set, Stepney puffed through. "Hello Gordon!" he said. "Why the long face?"
"I am doing work that is unsuited to me," Gordon sighed, "but if I must pull them, I shall show Boco how an LNER engine does it!"
"Careful," Boco said. "Running at night in the fog requires extra dilligence. Keep an eye on the signal."
"That's two of us," Rainbow Dash sighed, and opened the regulator, Gordon steaming away majestically with the trucks, 30 behind him, and none could match him (except maybe Murdoch).
Sweetie Belle spoke up. "Any way we can help?"
"Go assist Thomas and Percy. I imagine they need help marshalling trucks."
Later on, Gordon was steaming through the night, and going along at a fine old pace. "This is how you do it!" he smiled. "Partially fitted stock, clear lines, fifty on the speedometer. How are we for time?"
"There's no need to rush!" Rainbow Dash replied. "We've got plenty of time. These Class H workings are slackly timetabled."
Unfortunately, danger lay ahead. A signalman had gotten confused in the fog, and accidentally left the signals and points to route the train onto the Peel Godred line. Gordon knew something was wrong when he swerved to the left. "This doesn't feel right!" he said.
Rainbow Dash looked out of the cab. "Start of electric working?" she asked. "Oh no! We're on the electric line!"
The signaller at the next box saw Gordon approaching, and was stunned. "Steam engines aren't meant to come this way!" he said, and immediately put the signal to red on both the Up and Down lines. He also set the switch to move Gordon onto the freight line left there in case the power failed. Gordon went onto it, but the embankment had been designed with tank engines in mind, not a tender engine. As Rainbow Dash slammed his brakes on, the embankment gave way.
"JUMP!" Gordon called. Rainbow Dash bailed from his cab as he and his trucks fell down the embankment, rolled through a field, demolished a barn, and came to a stop in a muddy ditch. "Oh not again."
Sir Toppham Hatt came by later, after Rainbow Dash had helped stabilise Gordon and shut off his steam. Electra had towed the breakdown train to their location, and Thorax was helping get the cables secured. "Cheer up Gordon!" he said. "The accident wasn't your fault. That signalman set the points wrong, and that embankment could never have taken your weight. It was only meant for tank engines, after all."
"What'll happen?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Gordon will be repaired, and you'll get some time off to recover. As for the signalman... I'm not sure about what to do with him."
"Go easy on him sir," Thorax asked. "He had to react to a situation very quickly, and if Gordon had stayed on the main line, he would've crashed into the back of an electric goods."
Gordon was soon back to work, and found himself at Tidmouth waiting for passengers. Boco pulled into the station. "I heard about your accident," he said. "Sorry to hear that, old chap."
"I was a bit too big for my buffers," Gordon admitted. "Shall we move on?"
"A very good idea," said Boco. And all the engines whistled and sounded their horns.