//------------------------------//
// Chapter 12-Defying Gravity (and Logic) 
// Story: Thomas and Friends: New Frontiers 
// by The Blue EM2 
//------------------------------//

As the train continued to rattle through the outback, the crew came across the damaged Pendennis Castle, who had been left in a siding. Thankfully, most of the damage seemed only to be to the paintwork, as there were no obvious steam leaks or anything like that.

Misty hopped out of the cab to check the huge engine was OK. "Sorry for leaving you like that!"

"Well, in fairness, I don't think anybody would have reacted differently to a situation like that," Pendennis Castle replied. "It could always be worse, remember that."

"We tried that," Hitch said, who had joined Misty outside. "And sure enough things got worse. But we need a new game plan, and fast."

Izzy leaned out of the cab of the iron ore train. "Should we switch engines? I suspect Sprout will be hunting for an iron ore train like this. They aren't exactly hard to spot!"

"Good idea," Hitch said. "It might be a bit of a squash in the cab, but driving one of these large engines isn't that different to a Light Pacific."

"Those rolling spam cans?" Pendennis Castle snorted. "As if. I, a refined engine of the Great Western, am far better to drive than one of those crude tins of lard."

The others ignored this as they transferred their gear onboard the train, and soon enough they were back on their way and off out of the outback. As they rolled along, backwards this time, Izzy continued to scan the skies, as well as make use of water as the heat was getting to be a bit stifling.

"It rather goes without saying we're in danger," Isaac said. "And I think this calls for an urgent change of game plan before we get caught up in anything else potentially life threatening."

"Agreed," Aurora said. "I don't really know Sprout but he seems pretty unpleasant based on that one interaction."

"You don't know the half of it," Misty replied, shuddering as she remembered that day at the steelworks. "Flying back to the UK should be safest, because it's far away from him and we can get back into contact with out friends in Falmouth."

After more conversation, Hitch checked the signals up ahead. "We should be clear to return to Perth," he said. "I'm not sure where we're going to take this engine, though. I doubt he'll fit in the hold, and a boat journey would take days. Not fast enough I suspect."

"There is a flight direct to London," Isaac said, glancing at the laptop whilst his wife continued to be a lookout. "It's about 24 hours."

"WHAT?" said the assembled crew.

"That's an entire day in an aircraft!" Misty exclaimed. "That's a long time to be sitting on a plane."

"The only alternative is hopper flights, which is slower."

"Err, guys?" Hitch said. "Don't want to spoil the conversation, but the ground had turned a rainbow colour."

The light grew to fever pitch, and suddenly the engine and the humans vanished in a flash of light.





Alphabittle fired up his communication software to see if any other LLF units were on station. He had some news, which was probably good.

"Receiving you loud and clear Alphabittle," said one of the other operators.

"I've got good news for you all," Alphabittle replied.

"Is it about the Dacia Sandero?" another voice asked.

"No," Alphabittle replied again. "It's about the Lost Engine. A while ago, I rescued a family who had been captured by Phalanx after looking for a box with clues in it. I've done some looking, and I think I have a clue. There's an old document which makes reference to 'the land where the skies are darkened with smoke'."

"That could refer to just about anywhere," said another voice.

"I know," Alphabittle said. "That is why I've done some digging. I have reason to think the engine is in the United Kingdom, but we cannot be certain. But there is one part of the country which seems to match the description quite well.

"Namely?"

"It's the area around Birmingham, UK. Not Birmingham, Alabama, which I know is confusing but try to keep pace."

"Of course, boss," said another of the voices. "So, what's the game plan?"

"Deploy to Birmingham as fast as possible and try to start the search," Alpabittle made clear. "I'm packing up my operation in Ireland and heading for Britain as fast as possible. I'll meet you there."

He closed down the call and looked over his shoulder. "You guys ready to play to win?" he called.





Elsewhere, work was continuing inside another building. Argyle was currently not looking at the documentation surrounding the lost engine, but was busy wrestling with a booking website. "If these trains are meant to appeal to tourists, why is the English on them often so bad?" he asked rhetorically.

Sunny looked over his shoulder. "Something the problem?"

"Yes," Argyle said. These booking websites are for an overnight train. I know you're not the biggest of fans of flying, so I've decided we should travel by overnight train back to Britain. It should be harder for whoever also wants the Lost Engine to track us that way. The only problem is I'm struggling to understand the interface."

Goldie stepped over. "Switch it over to German," she said. "I think I can back translate what is meant if I see the original."

Argyle nodded, and switched the language display on the SBB website. Sure enough, it was soon in German.

Goldie directed her husband as to what to do, and soon enough they were booked on a train due away from Interlarken to London, with the first stage of the run starting at nine the next day with a running time of about 10 hours.

"At least that will give us a chance to look around this place rather than racing between places like a weasel on soda pop," Sunny said.

None of them knew of the tracking device in Sunny's bag. In another room, Opaline grinned and rubbed her hands together. "Have an agent trail them. We must know what they have discovered."