//------------------------------//
// Teamwork 
// Story: Thomas and Friends: More Tales from Sodor 
// by The Blue EM2 
//------------------------------//

The testing program was finally complete, and Jock had worked flawlessly up to this point. It probably helped he was a very new engine, and was fitted with of the latest and most up to date features, based on technical ideas of Porta and Wardale, such as an advanced superheat system in the boiler, and a Lempor exhaust system, which made him very powerful indeed. He was so powerful, in fact, that most trains he could handle without any trouble, and he sometimes arrived early at his stops. People came from all over Britain to see the Arlesdale Railway, and sometimes just to see him. This, I am sorry to say, went straight to his smokebox, and made him conceited and puffed up, if you'll excuse the pun.

One morning, Jock was alone in the yard as the other engines were all at work, when suddenly a lorry arrived with a heavy load of sleepers and rails. Unfortunately, the driver couldn't squeeze the lorry into the yard, as the trailer was too big. "Brilliant!" said the lorry driver. "I can't fit the lorry into the yard proper, and we can't unload. What am I going to do?"

Button Mash suddenly had an idea. "Park the lorry next to the crane!" he called. "We'll transfer the equipment to the railroad there!"

"Thank you!" the lorry driver replied, and he repositioned the lorry next to the crane. But they found it didn't fit there either.

"I could tow the trailer into the yard," Jock said. "I've got the power, haven't I?"

"If you're sure you can do it," Button said, and he ran a cable from Jock's front coupling to the trailer. He then went back to Jock, set him into reverse, and began to back up towards the yard. Jock groaned and strained with the effort, but the trailer rolled backwards and into the yard, where it could be safely unloaded.

"Nice work, you two!" said Mr Duncan, who had emerged from his office to see what all the noise was about. "That's what I like to see; thinking outside the box."

Unfortunately, this made Jock even worse. "Road, rail, what do I care?" he said that night in the shed. "I can handle it all."

The other engines looked shocked at this. Rex glanced over. "You really are a most conceited engine, eh?"

"Pah!" Jock snorted. "You're just a fusspot."

The others decided not to speak up, but the next morning, Mike was sitting in the platform with another train. Although the train was fifteen coaches long, Mike could handle this load with ease. He was rather surprised when he saw Jock backing down onto the train, and as the other engine was coupled to the front he decided to speak up.

"Well, what's all this about?" he asked. "I've pulled goods trains heavier than this in the Lake District!"

"Perhapth the Controller wantth to be thertain," Twist said. "Maybe we have important people onboard, and if we were to break down it would be most embarrathing."

"Precisely," said Jock. "The Duke of Sodor is onboard the train, and he's here to see me specifically. So make sure I don't end up dragging the train."

Mike smiled, and whispered to Twist. "I have an idea to make him less conceited," he said. "We'll do it on the way up."

"Good idea!" Twist giggled, and she adjusted her glasses.

The Arlesdale Railway runs level out of Arlesburgh West for two miles, and then passes a place called Arlesburgh Bridge Street. From here, the line begins to climb fiercely, and both engines must work extra hard to avoid stalling. As the train rolled through the station, Twist shut off steam, and the full weight of the train was on Jock's tender coupling.

Button noticed the sudden deceleration, and looked over his shoulder. "Hey, what gives?" he asked.

"Mike's having thteaming problemth!" Twist said. "He needth a bit of a retht!"

"Looks like we're doing this on our own," Button Mash grimaced, and he changed his driving and firing accordingly. Smoke and steam belched into the air, and Jock's exhaust roared like an angry dragon as he stormed up the slope. His teeth were gritted from the strain, and he pitched and rocked back and forth as he continued the climb. When they reached the top, they'd only lost five miles per hour of speed, and even Mike looked surprised.

"I wasn't anticipating he'd be able to get this lot up the hill on his own," he said to Twist, as he suddenly kicked back in.

"Enjoy your rest?" Jock called.

"Yes, thank you," Mike replied. "You seemed to be enjoying yourself."

"Clearly, you couldn't keep up," Jock snorted, and ran off to the turntable.

"Jock!" Button exclaimed. "That wasn't a nice thing to say!"

"Most things aren't it seems," Jock snorted. "You humans have a saying, 'cruel to be kind', isn't it? I always found that idea fascinating."

Mike was so angry his safety valve triggered. When they had run round, he slammed onto the coaches with a bang, causing them to rock.

"Careful!" shouted the guard. "Passengers are trying to board."

"Company ruleth thay that pathengerth mutht not board whiltht the engine ith running round," Twist reminded him.

Once the passengers were onboard, and the signal dropped, Mike blasted out of the station with a roar, getting up to line speed in next to no time.

"Thteady!" shouted Twist. "We're not rathing anybody!"

"That's what you think," Mike said. "I've had quite enough of Jock's insults for one day." When they got to the water column to refill the tender, Twist tried to open the left hand injector.

Nothing happened.

"Could you let some more water into my boiler?" Mike asked.

"We only have one working injector!" Twist gasped. "You're not thafe to run! I'll need to call for another engine."

Mike's fire was dropped, and Jock was the engine to rescue them, towing them home. Little time was lost, and Duck was waiting at the station for any passengers who needed to transfer to the big railway.

When Mike was being fixed, Jock backed into the berth next to him. "Here to gloat?" he asked.

"No, to apologise," Jock replied. "Whilst at Arlesdale End, Button and I had a chat, and I came to realise something. "I'm not marvellous, or special, or the best thing since sliced bread. The only thing I am is a bit of a prat."

Mike felt guilty himself, seeing Jock in this state. "I shut off steam deliberately on the slope, in an attempt to pay you out. I am sorry."

"No worries," Jock smiled. "We need to work together, and stop trying to get one up over the other. What else would we be otherwise?"

"Teamwork underpins all railways," Button continued. "And without it, we cannot be really useful."

Twist smiled. "Friendth?" she asked.

"Yeah, let's," Button replied.

Jock smiled, proud to be one of the team.