//------------------------------//
// Salty's Seaside Trip 
// Story: Thomas and Friends: The Caretakers 
// by The Blue EM2 
//------------------------------//

Salty was sad that Sunny had gone away. He had enjoyed working with her very much despite the interesting times they found themselves in, and Falmouth was a place he felt safe from the chaos of the world that existed outside the harbour. So Sunny being elsewhere in the world felt a bit strange, to say the least.

It didn't help that the person who had been asked to look after him did not have a high opinion of engines. Posey Bloom had been asked to help out with running the dockside whilst the others were away, and she indeed was not fond of the engines. In fact, given that her last real encounter with them was an engine popping through her wall, you could say the situation was rather frosty.

One morning, Salty was out shunting in the yard. It was clear to anybody watching that Posey was yet to get the hang of the diesel shunter's controls, as he jerked about like a hyperactive weasel.

"Careful!" he said. "We don't want to damage the stock, do we?"

Posey groaned. "Why did I agree to this?" she said. "This place is really smelly. And all this fish!"

"I take it you don't like fish," Salty said.

"No. Or beaches. Or the seaside. Or children."

Salty was confused. "Then why did you settle next to the sea?"

Posey huffed. "I'll have you know my house is set a fair way back from the sea, not next to it. And on top of that I bought it because property around here was cheap. As irritating as some aspects of life are in this town, it beats being stuck in a tiny flat in Exeter."

As they moved into some vans, Salty looked about. "Shiver me cylinders!" he said. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Posey asked. "It's hard to hear anything considering the racket you make."

"Something different," Salty answered.

"I can't hear anything different from the normal," Posey said.

"Exactly," Salty replied. "Everything looks the same, sounds the same, and seems to be the same. Which is exactly how I like it."

Posey pondered for a moment. "So, you're not a fan of fast change?"

"I wasn't saying as much as that!" Salty exclaimed. "Change can be a good thing, but when everything changes so fast it can be overwhelming."

"That's precisely how I felt when the magic returned," Posey answered, as she attached the coupling. "Hold on. Did we just agree on something?"

Suddenly, a member of dockside staff appeared with a notice. "You two are to report to the Harbourmaster immediately," he said. "Leave the trucks here and head to his office."

Posey uncoupled Salty again and got back in the cab. "Couple to the trucks, uncouple from the trucks, go here, go there. Sometimes I wish people would just make up their minds."

Salty had no comment as they rolled backwards through the harbour to the main building. The Harbourmaster was there to greet them. "Good morning!" he said. "We've got a bit of a shortage in the main yard, as Porter is needed to assist at Perranwell. You two will therefore shunt the trucks in the main yard. Assemble them into the order shown in the manifest." He handed them a piece of paper with a series of numbers on them.

Posey nodded. "Understood." As they began to reverse, she spoke again. "What are all these numbers?"

"Wagon numbers," Salty explained. "They indicate type and position. It is important to assemble them in the order written down."

Rebecca was sitting there when Salty arrived, and she had some advice. "Don't be rough with the trucks!" she said. "They misbehave if they get bumped. So don't bump them."

"Thanks for the tip, dearie," Posey replied. "Where are you off to now? Collecting your pension?"

Rebecca fumed. "I'll have you know I've worked more heavy trains than you've had hot dinners."

"How do you know how many cooked meals I've eaten in my life?" Posey asked.

"It's a figure of speech," Salty explained.

"I know that it's a figure of speech. And it's a silly figure of speech if you ask me."

Rebecca puffed away with some coaches. I am sorry to say that it wasn't long before things began to go wrong. Posey struggled to understand the shunting instructions, and the yard was soon in an absolute mess, with trucks stuck everywhere and rail vehicles arranged illogically.

Ray was particularly annoyed. "I had this place perfectly sorted out this morning!" he said. "And you've gone and turned it into a complete pigsty! Now we'll have to clean this up!"

Jazz looked out of his cab. "I don't know a huge amount about shunting," she admitted, as she nervously adjusted her hairband. "But I don't think coaches and trucks should be mixed up."

By the time the afternoon train was needed to depart the mess still wasn't cleaned up. When the coaches were placed into the platform the public was cross. And the train ended up departing more than an hour late.

The Harbourmaster was not particularly happy. "That messy shunting has slowed everything down," he said. "It was a mistake assigning Posey and Salty to that yard. We should send them to the quarry. It'll be virtually impossible for them to mess that up."





Afternoon was still going, and Salty was shunting trucks in the yard beyond Lighthouse Tunnel. There was lots of heavy machinery rolling about, and the quarrying machines were throwing up a lot of dust.

Posey had pulled on an oxygen mask to avoid inhaling noxious fumes. "It amazes me that anybody can work in a place like this!" she complained. "How this doesn't violate local pollution rules I have no idea!"

Suddenly, there was a bang, and something shook. The top of the cliffs seemed to be moving.

"What's that?" Posey asked.

Salty looked nervous. "Oh, not again."

Alarms began to blaze within the quarry site. "ATTENTION. ATTENTION. CLEAR QUARRY AREA. LANDSLIDE IN PROGRESS. ATTENTION. ATTENTION. CLEAR QUARRY AREA. LANDSLIDE IN PROGRESS."

Men began running for cover as the machines began to retreat towards nearby structures. Some dived into the trucks, which were currently empty.

"Posey, we have to get them out!" Salty called.

Posey nodded. "Just need to get them assembled first!" She back Salty over the first set of points, switched them, then moved forward into the yard and attached Salty to the first line of trucks. She then attached him to the second line. They were just about to pull away when-

"STOP! WAIT FOR ME!"

A workman had been hit on the head by a rock. His helmet had saved him from any serious injury, but he had been dazed, and rocks were falling all around him.

Posey had attached her oxygen tank to her back, and in one swift motion hopped out and ran over to him. "Come on! This way!" She helped him along to the truck and assisted him in climbing in. She then made her way back to Salty, and gunned his engine in reverse as he backed out of the quarry and into Lighthouse Tunnel.

They got out just in time. As they left the tunnel, rocks began falling on buildings and knocking structures over. A roof collapsed under the weight of all the stone, hitting the ground with such force the set shook. A water tower fell off a hill and landed on the ground, disintegrating upon impact. Water went everywhere.

Everybody was shocked at the mayhem that had just unfolded. But luckily, the Harbourmaster was understanding. "As much as you two did make a bit of a mess earlier, you have just saved a lot of lives," he said. "I think it fair to say that you two are heroes for your actions at the quarry. Of course, it will take a while to dig all the mess out, but you two should be able to help, correct?"

Salty smiled. "Of course. Cheer up, me lads, let your hearts never fail!"