Pinkie and Fluttershy enjoy their work at the harbour, pulling and pushing trucks full of cargo to and from the quay. But one morning, the engines were exhausted. The harbour was busier than ever. The Fat Controller promised that another engine would be found to help them.
“Huh! It’s about time,” said Fluttershy.
“I ache so much I can hardly get my wheels to move,” agreed Pinkie.
They waited for the engine to arrive. It came as a shock when she did.
“Good morning,” squirmed Gilda in her gruff voice.
The two engines had not worked with Gilda for a long while.
“What are you doing here?” gasped Fluttershy.
“Your worthy Fat er – Sir Topham Hatt sent me,” replied Gilda, “I hope you are pleased to see me. I am to shunt some dreadfully tiresome trucks.”
“Shunt where?” said Pinkie suspiciously.
“Where? Why from here to there…” purred Gilda, “…and then again from there to here. Easy, isn’t it?”
With that, Gilda, as if to make herself quite clear, bumped some trucks hard.
“OOOOOOH!” screamed the trucks.
“Grrrrh!” growled Gilda.
Pinkie and Fluttershy were horrified. They did not trust Gilda at all. They refused to work and would not leave their shed. The Fat Controller was enjoying his tea and iced bun when the telephone rang. “So, there’s trouble in the harbour yard?” he answered, “I’ll be there right away.”
Gilda was working loudly and alone. Cargo lay on the quay. Ships and passengers were delayed. Everyone was complaining about the Fat Controller’s railway. Pinkie and Fluttershy were sulking in their shed.
“What’s all this?” Demanded the Fat Controller.
“Er, we’re on strike, Sir,” Said Fluttershy.
“Yes. added Duck, “Beg pardon, Sir, but we won’t work with Gilda, Sir.” Then, in a quiet hurt voice, she added, “we don’t like her because she’s been mean to us, Sir.”
“Lady has given Gilda a second chance to make up for her actions in the past. I am trying to help you by bringing Gilda here. Now you must help me. She was the only engine available.
Pinkie and Fluttershy went sadly back to work. Next morning, things were no better. Gilda’s driver had not put her brakes on properly and Gilda started to move. She went bump, straight into Pinkie! Pinkie had an awful fright.
“Wake up there, squirt,” scowled Gilda, “You have work to do.”
She didn’t even say she was sorry to Pinkie. Later, Gilda bumped the trucks so hard that the loads went everywhere.
“What will the Fat Controller say?” gasped Fluttershy.
“He won’t like it,” said Pinkie.
“So who’s going to tell him, I wonder?” said Gilda, “Two little goody-goody tell-tales like you, I suppose.”
Pinkie and Fluttershy did not want to be tell-tales, so they said nothing. Gilda, thinking she could get away with her bad behaviour, was ruder than ever. Next day she was shunting trucks full of china clay. She banged the trucks hard into the buffers, but the buffers weren’t secure. The silly trucks were sunk. Soon the Fat Controller heard the news. The trucks were hoisted safely from the sea, but the clay was lost. The Fat Controller spoke severely to Gilda.
“The harbour master has told me everything. Things worked much better here before you arrived. I shall not be inviting you back to help at the harbour,” said the Fat Controller angerly, “Now Pinkie and Fluttershy, I hope you won’t mind having to handle the work by yourselves again.”
“Oh no Sir. Yes please Sir,” replied the engines.
Whistling cheerfully, they puffed back to work while Gilda sulked slowly away.
The engines on the Island of Sodor liked feeling responsible, reliable and really useful. They worked hard to compete their jobs on time. They don't like confusion and delay. But the troublesome trucks delighted mischief, and their mischief causes trouble, as poor Applejack found out. The Fat Controller visited the equestrian engines in their shed.
“Applejack has had an accident and been sent for repairs,” said the Fat Controller, “There are no other engines available. So Gilda will help until Applejack returns.”
“Yes sir,” huffed the engines, but they weren't happy. The engines didn't like Gilda. She was always being rude and always showing off.
“I hope Applejack is mended soon,” said Fluttershy.
“She moves more trucks than three Griffons put together,” agreed Twilight.
“Trucks are no one’s friends,” huffed Rainbow. The next day, Gilda was working at the docks.
“Those stupid engines,” she said to herself, “I’ll show them that Gilda gets to do what Gilda wants. And I’ll show them how better I am than them.”
This gave the troublesome trucks an idea. As Gilda was shunting them together, they started to sing. “Is that all you can haul? AJ’s loads are longer. Is that all you can haul? AJ must be stronger.”
Gilda was cross. She was sure she was stronger than Applejack. “I'll push you all at the same time,” She said.
The trucks giggled, “Push us all, that's the longest, push us all, you'll be the strongest.”
“That’s me,” said Gilda, “The strongest engine in the world!”
And so Gilda shunted five trucks together...
…then ten...
…then fifteen. Soon she had an enormous line of twenty trucks.
“What’s Gilda doing?” cried Pinkie.
“She thinks she's the world's strongest engine,” Replied Twilight. Gilda didn't know the shunters have the brakes on the trucks. The troublesome trucks knew but encouraged Gilda to push anyway.
“Push, push, push!” they yelled.
Gilda pushed, and she pushed, and she pushed, but the trucks didn't move. So Gilda decided to pull the trucks instead. She tried pulling the trucks forward, but she couldn’t.
“Heave ho, heave ho, you can pull but we won't go,” sang the trucks. This made Gilda very cross. She pulled, and she pulled, and she pulled. Until the coupling snapped, and Gilda zoomed down the line.
“Help!” Gilda called out as she crashed through some buffers, fell on the rails and landed on a barge.
“Grease and oil,” Gilda sulked, as the trucks laughed and laughed.
The Fat Controller arrived onboard a mended Applejack and looked down crossly at Gilda, “I thought you would be a proper dockyard diesel, but I was wrong,” he said, “Can you make up for lost time, Applejack?”
“Righty’o sir,” Applejack replied happily. She backed up to the trucks and the shunters released the brakes. Then Applejack pulled away as easy as pie. And the engines cheered. Gilda was sent to the Diesel works in disgrace. But the engines had learned a lesson.
“Even troublesome trucks can do you a favour sometime,” chuffed Twilight.
“Like getting rid of stinky old Gilda,” puffed Pinkie.
A cement works had been opened on the Equestria Branch, and Twilight was told to run it, when she’s not busy on the Thomas’ or the Equestria Branchline. She knows all the rules and obeys them. One day, The Fat Controller brought Gilda to the cement works
“I need Gilda to help for a while,” the Fat Controller said, “Twilight please show her around.”
“Yes, sir,” said Twilight unhappily. She knew how troublesome Gilda could be. Later, Gilda was being careless. She bumped some trucks out her way.
“Not like that,” snapped Twilight, “do it right.”
“Don’t interfere,” sneered Gilda. But Gilda was underneath a hopper and quarry dust poured onto her roof.
“You don't know the rules!” Shouted Twilight. Gilda was very annoyed with Twilight and started plotting a devious plan. Later that day, she pretended to have news for Twilight.
“The fat Controller wants you to work at the smelters,” She lied.
“Me?” Twilight asked, “but I’m meant to work here.”
“Not anymore,” Gilda replied grimly, “the Fat Controller says I'm better than you. So I'm going to stay here.”
“It's not fair, he would never say that,” Twilight said as she puffed away, “I love working here.” But she knew that really useful engines have to do as they are told. As she puffed out of site, Gilda was laughing like a robber.
Twilight and her grew arrived at the smelters, “I wanna go back to the cement works,” wailed Twilight, “None of the other engines like coming here it's so scary.”
“You're right,” said her driver.
Just then, the scrap diesels arrived, “Hello. Are you happy to be here?” they remarked.
“NO!” Cried Twilight, her driver was scared too.
“Come on, Twilight, we're going to escape,” he said as he drove Twilight in reverse. And for the first time, Twilight broke the rules. The Fat Controller was enjoying some tasty kippers when he heard that Twilight was missing.
“That's not like Twilight. There must be something wrong,” he said, “I will send Cadence to look for her.”
Twilight and her grew turn onto a disused track to find a place to hide. Twilight was frightened, so was Cadence. She puffed up and down the line. She couldn't see Twilight anywhere.
“We could search the old mine track,” said her driver.
“That line is dark and spooky,” whispered Cadence But she had to be brave and find her sister-in-law. Twilight was on a siding. Her fire had gone out. Then, she heard a sound.
“It’s an engine,” she cried.
Twilight!” whistle Cadence, “Whatever are you doing out here?”
“Hiding. I don't wanna work at the smelters,” Twilight sniffed, “The Fat Controller is going to be cross with me.”
“What gave you that idea?” Cadence asked, “he’s not. He’s worried about you.”
“Really?” Twilight said hopefully, looking into Cadence’s eyes.
“Of course,” puffed Cadence sweetly. Twilight felt better. Cadence pulled Twilight all the way to the smelters yard where she knew The Fat Controller was waiting.
“Twilight explain yourself,” said the Fat Controller.
“I ran away, it’s scary here,” replied Twilight.
“Gilda told Twilight that you wanted her at the smelters forever,” Cadence chimed in.
“Nonsense, Twilight, you are a pride of the Equestria Branch,” said the Fat Controller, “I shall send Gilda to the smelters and, you can go back to your normal work tomorrow.”
“Oh thank you sir,” said Twilight happily. Twilight knew she could rely on Cadence, and Twilight was still a pride of the Equestria branch.