6: Unveil
The familiar sight of Knapford Station loomed into view as I puffed around a bend. Its size was only rivaled by that of Vicarstown. It was made of brick, had four platforms, and six tracks. Two of which being terminus tracks. With a glass canopy sat atop the entire building, it was - in my opinion - the nicest looking ‘big station’ the island had.
I let out a whistle as I pulled into platform one, weeshing steam from my cylinders as I stopped. I smiled as doors opened from the rake of express coaches behind me, ones with the cream and green liveries of the North Western Railway.
Minutes passed before I heard the coach doors close and a guard's whistle blow. With two toots of my own whistle, I set off quick and easy down the line.
Truth be told, it felt strange being on Sodor rails again. While the rails were in fact some of the best Britain, they still felt leagues below Equestrian rails. I would have to ask somepony about how they made their rails. None of which even had ballast! If they added ballast to their rails, the quality would increase tenfold.
“So, this is the Island of Sodor?” I heard a familiar voice call out.
“What the?!” I exclaimed, looking to my right to see Luna flying beside me. “Luna? How are you here?”
“It is something I can do,” Luna replied. “I can enter any dream I want.”
“... So you can raise and lower the sun and moon and enter dreams. What else can you do?”
“I can manipulate dreams to my will.”
“Okay. But how in blazes are you able to to move the sun and moon?”
“Magic. They are kept in our planet's gravitational pull. Both I and my sister help them along their paths.”
“...”
“Is it different in your world?”
"It is. While our moon also orbits around Earth, it does so without needing assistance. As for the sun, we orbit around it.”
“How intriguing. Is it possible we could stop someplace? That way we can talk better?"
"Alright. There's a siding up ahead. I can pull into there if you change the points."
Luna nodded and flew ahead. She landed next to the track switch and changed it, allowing me to pull into the siding. After I stopped, Luna sat next to the tracks in front of me.
"What did you want to talk about?" I asked.
"I was wondering if there was anything specific you wanted to do at your unveiling."
I stayed silent, thinking. No matter what, ponies would be gathering around me with questions, most of which I was sure were going to be "How are you alive?". I would be stuck for hours, maybe even the whole day. As much as I love asking questions, it would get very boring rather quickly.
Unless...
"How does an excursion sound?"
Luna blinked. "A what?"
"An excursion. I pull a passenger train, ponies ride it. For leisure purposes."
Luna tilted her head. "How would that be different from any other passenger train?"
"Believe me. Ponies will love it. No wondering when the next stop is, no wondering if they'll be late. Just hours and hours to sit and chat with their friends.”
Luna nodded. “That does sound like an interesting idea. But the train would need to be rather long to accommodate the amount of ponies who would want to travel on it.”
“Oh please. I feel like I could pull close to a thousand tons with how much power I have.”
Luna grew confused as she looked at me, presumably noting how small I was.
“No... Surely you would not be able to pull that much.”
I chuckled. “Us engines can pull a lot more weight than one would expect as long as the track stays nice and level. Obviously, if I were to come up to a hill, I’d need help. Especially on that climb up to Canterlot.”
“...”
“Actually, I just had a thought. A way to make sure I don’t stall out on a hill.”
“Oh? What is that?”
“Luna, have you ever heard of a Double-Header?”
Luna tilted her head. “A Double-Header? No, I have not.”
“It’s a train pulled by two engines. Having another engine behind me would help for the steeper grades."
"Oh. In that case, which engine would you like helping you? Lode Star?"
A devilish smirk appeared on my face. "I seem to recall being promised a train double-heading with City of Truro, a few decades ago. A promise that was never upheld."
Luna's ears flattened. "You want to double-head with Truro?"
My smirk vanished. "Is something wrong with that?"
Luna looked down. "It is just... Truro is my personal train. He-... It has only ever pulled the coaches I found it with. And only I drive it."
"What's wrong with double-heading it?"
"Nothing, but... who will operate it?"
I raised a brow. "You will? If It's your train, I don't see why you wouldn't drive it."
Luna sighed. "I suppose I am just a little nervous."
"Just be glad you're not the one who is an entirely new form of life being revealed to an entire city."
"Heh, fair. That settles it then. We will perform this 'Double-Header' as part of the excursion."
The two of us remained silent for a time. I did so out of respect for the princess while Luna was simply thinking.
"You know..." Luna slowly began. "Before my sister retired to her chambers, she mentioned that she was concerned that somepony would try to steal you. To use you for nefarious purposes."
"...What would anyone want to do with a non-faceless engine?"
"My words exactly!"
"The only reasons someone would take me would be if they wanted me to run trains for them. Why wouldn't they just steal a faceless engine? Faceless engines can't resist. They can't talk back. They can't drive themselves.”
Luna nodded. "Exactly. My words to her were eerily similar to yours."
"You'd have to be pretty dumb to want to steal a sentient engine. There is zero benefits from it."
"Once again, I agree."
An idea flew into my funnel.
"Would you like me to give you a tour of Sodor?" I asked with a smile.
Luna returned the smile. "I would like that."
For the next hour, I gave Luna a tour of the island's main line. To my surprise, she had the ability to bring my driver - who I will be calling "Eric" from now on as to remove confusion between him and Thomas The Tank Engine - into the dream. An ability both him and I appreciated.
The princess marveled at how cozy the island was. The rolling hills, expansive flatlands, and distant mountains gave views they had seen only few times before.
As we puffed through Crosby Station, I took the time to ask the princess how in blazes Equestria's rails were so good despite lacking ballast. After I explained to them the concept of ballast, they proceeded to tell me.
Long story short, it was what I expected. During the forging process, the rails were magically treated to have a highly refined structure and remove any impurities that form. That includes air pockets and stray material such as sand. This made for extraordinarily strong rails that were better than any foundry on Earth could create.
The rails, when being laid down for a new line, were seamlessly joined together via - you guessed it - magic. Though they were sometimes traditionally welded together for one reason or another.
The railway sleepers - those small platforms under the rails - were also far better than those found anywhere on Earth. They were predominantly made of wood, typically dark oak, which was once again magically treated for a refined structure. They were then chemically treated so that insects and termites would be deterred.
Concrete sleepers were used in cities. They were far more refined and allowed for very smooth running. When I asked why they didn’t use concrete sleepers more often, Luna replied with a simple and very agreeable answer.
“Wood simply looks better.”
After that explanation, I fell into silence. I heard Luna and Eric start another conversation, but tuned it out as I looked around at the scenery.
…
This was a dream, right?
I know I’ve been on this island for over sixty years, but was my memory of the island really this precise? Every sleeper, misaligned rail, tree, blade of grass was perfectly visible along with the mountains in the distance. There was no blur nor aperture. Nothing unnatural, anyway.
And the more I looked around, the more we traveled, the more eerie it felt. It didn’t even feel like how Sodor felt back when I first came here. There was simply nothing. No workmen tending to signals, no passengers waiting at the platforms, no cars driving along the roads, no other engines. Only rolling stock.
This didn’t even feel like how the island felt back when I first arrived. Back then, there were very few engines that worked on Sodor. Myself, Thomas The Tank Engine, and Toby from the Elsbridge and Knapford Railway, Neil, Clive, and Mathew from the Sodor and Mainland Railway, and Colin, Lily, and Adam from the Wellsworth and Suddery Railway.
Only nine engines worked on Sodor’s standard gauge lines. Granted, the amount of standard gauge lines that existed on Sodor between 1907 and 1923 were nowhere near what it was in present day, but this felt like a barren wasteland. A place once filled with life, now devoid of such luxury.
I began feeling sick to my boiler. This wasn’t Sodor. And yet, it was. This was meant to be my home. Now I’d be a fool to call it that. Not with such a lack of life.
“EDWARD!”
“AH! Uh, what? What is it?” I asked.
“I was trying to tell you that I brought my sister into the dream!” Luna replied.
“Oh. Right… Hello, Princess Celestia.”
“Uh… Hello Edward,” the sun goddess replied. “Is everything alright?”
I sighed. “Sorry. I was just thinking.”
“Thinking about what?”
I was surprised. “Do none of you see the issue? This doesn’t feel right.”
“What doesn’t feel right?” my driver asked.
“Wha- Eric! You’ve lived on this island your whole life! You mean to tell me you don’t notice the problem?”
“...Can’t say I do. Besides the lack of other engines, of course.”
“Exactly! There’s no life! Sodor is meant to be full of life! With engines puffing down the line every few minutes, passenger waiting to board their trains, farm animals eating, all that! Not this! It feels like a wasteland. You can’t tell me you don’t feel uneasy when looking around.”
We went silent for several seconds as my driver looked around. Slowly but surely, his ears dropped lower and lower.
“My god you’re right…”
I took a breath. “Yeah…”
“I will admit,” Luna began. “It does seem a little strange for this much track to be this disused.”
“It only seems a little strange because you two are used to only ever seeing two trains run the whole country. Plus, you’ve never been on Sodor before.”
“No, we have not.”
I let out a heavy sigh. “You highnesses, you know Twilight better than-... Actually, nevermind. I’d rather think about this when I don’t need to be well rested for tomorrow’s event.”
“What were you about to ask?” Celestia asked.
“Nevermind that,” I replied. “How about we just sleep for now? I understand that you two like spending time here on Sodor, but I would like my mind to be rested.”
Celestia sighed. “Very well. Luna? Are you in agreement?”
“Yes. Edward is right,” the Night Mare stated. “We should all be resting for the event.” She turned to Eric. “Eric?”
“Yeah, yeah, I need to ‘rest my mind’ as well,” he replied.
Luna smiled. "That settles it. We shall meet again in the morning. Edward, is there a specific time you would like to wake up at?"
"What time is it now?"
"Three in the morning."
"Then eight should be fine. Nine at the latest. I want to look my best for the event."
Luna nodded. "Very well. Thank you for letting me and my sister get a glimpse of Sodor.”
"You're welcome."
"Goodnight, Edward."
"Goodnight you three."
That morning, I woke up well-rested, ready for the event.
Soon enough, the others entered the shed, all except for Celestia, Twilight, and strangely enough, Starlight. The former two were overseeing preparations while the latter was simply missing.
But we couldn't dwell on that. There were three engines in this shed that needed to look more polished than a car dealership.
Which, by extension, meant there was some competition between Luna and Eric about who could get their engine cleaner. They spent two full hours cleaning and polishing every centimeter of City of Truro and myself using the highest quality polish I have ever seen.
By the end of it, with an hour left before the event, you could see the whole shed in the reflections on our paintwork. There wasn't a clear winner between Luna and Eric, so they decided to call it a tie, saying they would hold another competition soon. I - thankfully - told Eric to get another engine, for I didn't like the idea of being subject to thorough multi-hour-cleanings bi-weekly.
Celestia had come in not too long after this. Both she and a white unicorn, Rarity, were impressed at how clean we were, going so far as to say we were cleaner than the castle halls. This certainly did boost Luna's, Eric's, and my egos.
We began to discuss the plan. I'll spare you most of the details, but I will say that she expressed interest in livening the event up with music. To this, I looked her square and the eyes, and promptly said "No". There would be no brass bands, no special effects, nothing. Just the sights and sounds of steam locomotives. That's how they are meant to be looked at.
Celestia respected my choice and obliged, but not before asking if she could still get some ponies to craft a theme for me. I reluctantly said yes under the condition that they put effort into the theme, and that I was to be the first to hear it.
After going over the rest of the plan - which we mostly agreed to - Celestia and the others left the shed, leaving myself, Eric, and Luna alone in the shed.
"Alright you two," I began. "You know what to do?"
"I'll be driving Lode Star," Eric said.
"And I will be operating Truro," Luna added.
"Excellent. As soon as Celestia finishes her speech, we all puff forward and make our way into the yard."
Eric mewled. Rather adorably, I might add. "I never thought I'd be this excited for an event like this."
"Same here."
"Though under the excitement, we are all nervous, correct?" Luna asked.
"Of course," I replied. "Why wouldn't we be? But anyway, get Truro and Lode Star steamed up, and we can begin."
"Alright then. Clean the coaches behind me, and we can begin!"
Outside, Celestia stepped up to a pedestal, holding up her hoof to silence the throng of ponies in short order. It took no more than ten seconds flat for the once-whispering crowd to be wholly silent. On her left sat Twilight and the rest of what I like to call the "Mane Six", and on her right sat Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor. All of whom were adorned in beautiful regalia.
Seeing the crowd grow silent, Celestia cleared her throat and began to speak. Slowly and thoughtfully with practiced ease.
"We are gathered here in celebration of a momentous occasion," she began. "Two nights ago, a very special machine appeared in our land alongside his driver. A machine that, with his knowledge and expertise, will help reshape Equestria's railroads into a model of efficiency. Despite the short time he has been with us, he has already given both I and my sister several tips on how a railroad should be properly run."
I watched as Luna and Eric gently opened the throttles on their engines. Steam entered the cylinders on Truro and Lode Star, allowing the Great Western Duo to puff forward and out of the shed. I followed behind them with my coaches in tow, as was the plan.
"Though this machine is entirely foreign," Celestia continued, motioning over to the two engines slowly puffing into the yard, steam billowing from every nook and cranny. "I can safely assure you that he is very familiar to those who live near train tracks."
I know Celestia wanted it to be a surprise that I was a steam locomotive, and I know I am in fact mostly a machine, but I didn't particularly like being referred to as a machine.
"I am proud to announce that a new kind of life has appeared in Equestria. Known as the non-faceless vehicle. Without further ado. Fillies and Gentlecolts, may I present for the very first time..."
City of Truro and Lode Star stopped next to the crowd just as a shape began parting the steam between them.
"Edward of the North Western Railway!"
I blew my whistle long and loud as I emerged from the steam, grinning broader than ever before. If I ran on my ego, I would have had more explosive force than the bomb that hit Hiroshima.
Steam hissed from my cylinders as I slowed to a stop, looking around at the throng of ponies now staring directly at me. They each wore faces of wonder, confusion, surprise, and outright astonishment.
"Hello everyone!" I called out.
"Edward is a new form of life known as the Non-Faceless Vehicle. He is from a special little island called Sodor," Celestia stated. "And though both he and his driver, Thomas Eric Galindez, did not come here by choice, they will be staying for some time in order to help Equestria's Railways. The changes he has already proposed to me and my sister include brand new infrastructure, more engines and rolling stock, revitalized services, and more."
"But before any of that happens, we will be hosting a special excursion train hauled by both Edward and my sisters private engine, City of Truro. As you can see, Edward is pulling brand new coaches that will be coupled to the coaches you can see at the station."
She gestured to the rake of three Great Western Railway Pullman coaches sitting at one of the two nearby platforms.
"This excursion will be going all over Equestria. Not just because I want to give all of my little ponies a chance to see Edward, but also to give Edward and his driver a tour of our amazing land."
"But before that," I began. "I will be taking any questions you may have for the next hour. However, there will be a few that I will refuse to answer. That isn't to say you should be overly wary of what you ask, but just keep it in mind. I uh, well... I honestly don't know what to say! I'm happy to be here and look forward to working with you ponies!"
"And we look forward to working with you, Edward," Celestia finished.
"I'm sure of it," I chuckled. "Now! Who wants to go first?"
We’d be here all day if I told you all the questions both myself and Eric were asked. So, I will tell you the most notable ones asked of us, and answer them accordingly.
The first question I’ll talk about is one that came from the Princess of Love herself, Cadance. And it is actually the second most common question asked of us non-faceless lot. “Do we feel love?”
Yes, we do.
I will concede that, being machines, we likely feel love dramatically different to humans. Or, in this case, ponies. But I don’t think that makes it more or less significant. Like humans and ponies, our relationships often form from common interests and matching personalities. Some can last a lifetime while others are just a passing fancy.
The next question is: “Do we ever get sick?”
Yes.
In terms of us getting sick, we are most certainly different from humans and ponies in that regard. One way we can get sick is by taking on a batch of bad coal. The kind that has us shooting soot out of our smoke boxes. A comparison for this would probably be coughing out exhaust smoke. Then there’s boilerache. The closest comparison I can make to this is constipation. There are other ways we can get sick, but most are related to very technical reasons I don’t fancy getting into.
The third and final question is: What is the difference between us and normal engines? Are there any advantages and disadvantages?
I’ll first start with the advantages. First off, we have the ability to ignite and extinguish whatever form of combustion we have. Best of all, it's instantaneous. Which means there is no fussing about. Once we’re firing, we’re off.
Another advantage is that in the event of a breakdown, we can tell our crews and workmen exactly where a fault lies, which saves them the time of locating it first.
One more advantage is that, because we don’t have to look through the windows of a cab and past a large boiler, our visibility is far greater than that of our drivers and fireman. This makes it that much easier to spot trouble ahead. Though, this doesn’t mean we’re always attentive. We can get distracted just as much as humans and ponies can.
Of course, nothing is perfect. And we do have some disadvantages.
For one, we’ve been called an impediment to progress. Technology, especially that on a not-so-shoddy railway, is always advancing. No sooner does one thing come out, something newer and better replaces it. The older generation is then discarded by way of scrapping.
But since a non-faceless vehicle cannot be scrapped, our companies and owners are simply stuck with us. And although they do have a duty to care for us by way of proper maintenance, they are under no obligation to effect repairs that would price them out of business.
Backing away from that, once questions were answered and everypony had a bit of time to get used to seeing a face on the front of an engine, I combined my rake of coaches with the ones at the platform, and both myself and City of Truro buffered up to the train. Though there were some issues and complaints as passengers got on, they did so in a timely manner, and we departed likewise.
At least, we would have, if not for something rather interesting happening.
Somepony by the name of Night Light decided to climb into the cab of Lode Star - which was now sitting a few tracks adjacent to me and City of Truro - and decided to pull the whistle. He was definitely an amateur that had never operated a whistle before, but I find it funny to see a stallion his age having fun.
But then Luna decided to blow Truro’s whistle. It was a bit higher pitched than Lode Star’s and less pronounced, but Luna still did it just to have some fun.
That was until Night Light looked at her and blew Lode Star’s whistle again. A long commanding blast. Luna looked at him and blew it again, and it suddenly turned into a whistle battle. Luna versus Night Light. Lode Star vs City of Truro.
The two went back and forth between each other, each coming up with their own rhythms. I myself tried to stay out of it, but temptation got the better of me. Once there was a break in their fight, I interjected with my own loud blast.
This little row continued for a dozen seconds. Just when I was letting off a very creative tune, we were all hit with a scare that drowned out every one of our whistles.
FoooOOOOOOOOOOO!!! FOOOOO! FOO! FooooOOOOooooooOOOOOOOOOO!!
A clear, crisp, and authoritative sound echoed throughout the city as all eyes were drawn to the engine puffing into the yard. When I looked at the engine, I froze.
The engine was a 4-6-0, but unlike Lode Star, was smaller and clearly American. Its front four driving wheels were under the boiler and close together while the rear two were further away, sitting directly under the cab.
It was black with a silver smokebox on the front. It had a cowcatcher on the front, a bell atop the boiler, a large whistle, and black tender with two four-wheeled bogies, said tender having a number 3 on its side.
Behind this stately and handsome American was a small green combination passenger car riding on bogies similar to that of the tender. Above the windows were words that only sealed the deal on what this engine was. The car was the Number 5 Combination Car from the Sierra Railway.
It was the most famous engine in cinematography. It was the Movie Star engine. The Hooterville Cannonball. The locomotive built the exact same day I was, that being March 26th of 1891.
Sierra Railway Number 3
In the movie star’s cab was none other than Starlight Glimmer, who stopped the engine just in front of me on the adjacent track.
“How’s THAT for an entrance?!” she yelled out.
“How in fizzling fireboxes did you find Sierra Number Three?!” I exclaimed.
“I woke up on it!”
“You what?”
“I woke up on it! I don’t know why, I don’t know how, all I know is that it was already moving and I had to get back here! So I did the only thing I could do and drove it here as fast as I could.”
“I- uh, wow! I just- Sorry, I just can’t believe I’m finally meeting the Movie Star herself!”
“The Movie Star?” Luna asked.
“This engine has starred in more movies than any other. It is among the most famous engines ever built,” I explained.
“How intriguing. Well, Edward, I am glad you are happy.”
“Yeah. I needed this. Kelley will make a very fine addition to Equestria’s fleet.”
“Kelley?”
“Yes. That’s the name this engine was originally given. W. N. Kelley. After a treasurer of the company it was built for.”
I looked at Starlight.
“What are you going to with it?” I asked.
Starlight looked at the engine. “I dunno. I haven’t really been into trains. I have to admit, driving it as fast as I could here was a lot of fun. My spine wants to murder me, but it was fun.”
I chuckled. “Yes, operating a steam engine by yourself is hard work. But what exactly are you going to do?”
Starlight shrugged.
Luna stepped out of Truro’s cab and up to Starlight. “Well, Starlight Glimmer, given this particular engine’s historical significance, I believe I should take custody of it to preserve its heritage.”
“But you’ll still let it run regular services?”
Luna nodded. “I believe Number Three would be perfect for passenger and goods work for smaller towns. Particularly those within Central Equestria.”
“Then why do you want to take it?”
“So that I can ensure the engine’s preservation.”
“Huh. Well, I like preserving things, so you can have it.”
“Can we PLEASE get moving already?!” Eric exclaimed.
“I agree!” I said. “We’ve been delayed long enough! Let’s go!”
Eager to make up for lost time, we quickly departed. The fanfare we got upon leaving the city was immense. Far more than I’d like to admit. There were more than a few saddened faces from those who didn’t get to ride, but Celestia - who was flying above us - told them that they would get their chance very soon.
Throughout the rest of the day, we traveled throughout Northern Equestria, visiting each and every town we could in the timeframe given. From the city of Seaddle to the village of Whinnyapolis. And both myself and Eric loved them all. Every one of them had their own feel, with the villages being my favorite because of just how tightly-knit their residents were. They were always so cheerful.
We stayed at these towns for about thirty minutes each, up to an hour for the bigger towns and cities. Each time, we were greeted with warm welcomes by confused but excited ponies who wanted to get a look at us. I made sure to answer questions, have good chats with a few of them, and to always remain cordial and to respectfully tell off those who were being annoying.
As for Lode Star, that engine was running its own service throughout Northern Equestria. A fast freight service that, because of Equestria's ultra-high-quality coal, the engine's high-pressure boiler, four cylinders, and eighty inch driving wheels, was achieving speeds of up to eighty miles an hour despite the heavy train. The residents of the towns it visited loved this service, as it allowed them to ship goods to anywhere they needed in a very timely fashion.
I’ll admit, touring Equestria like this and meeting its residents is one of the best experiences I’ve had. Meeting the ponies, learning their lifestyle, taking in the sights and sounds, it was far different than staying on Sodor. And I loved it. So much so that there were several points in which I didn't want to go back to the island.
Of course, because of how many towns the northern part of Equestria had, we weren’t able to visit them all. So we decided to stop and rest for the night in a small town called Green Neigh. The town only had a single siding that would have in no way been able to hold myself, City of Truro, and all of the coaches, so two more were very quickly built with nothing but rails. The process should have taken hours at most, but pegasi, unicorns, and the princesses helped to reduce that down to a mere half hour. A time which I could hardly fathom.
After the work was completed and tested by rolling a coach over them, we settled in for the night. The passengers either slept in the hotels or stayed on the train.
Before we went to bed, Luna and Celestia stepped up to me and Eric.
“I must say, Edward,” Celestia began. “This excursion has been extraordinarily successful. My little ponies all love it.”
I chuckled. “I’m glad they do. I must say, touring Equestria like this has been an experience I’ve sorely needed.”
“Same here,” Eric stated.
“I have to agree,” Luna replied. “Though, I did not realize how long it would take to explore even this part of Equestria. We haven’t even begun on the northern mountain range.”
“That’s how these things go,” I said. “If Equestria is as big as I think it is, we may be looking at a week-long tour.”
Celestia nodded. “That we will be. I will make the necessary announcements to the rest of Equestria and get ponies working on a new route.”
“Alright then. I can’t wait to see what the new route will be like. There are just so many places I’m now interested in seeing.”
“Well, don’t worry. You’ll be getting to see all of Equestria soon enough.”
I only smiled.
“Anyway, we must all be getting to sleep. We’ve all had quite the day.”
“Interesting that you say you need sleep, sister,” Luna noted. “Considering us Alicorns can stay up for days at a time.”
Celestia looked at Luna. “That doesn’t mean we have to,” she replied before looking at me. “Goodnight, Edward.” She looked at Eric. “Goodnight, Eric.”
“Goodnight, princesses,” we replied.
The sisters left, leaving me and Eric alone. Eric looked at me.
“Some day, huh?”
“Yeah, it really has been some day,” I replied. “Though, as I said before, this tour was something I never knew I needed.”
“Same here. I love it. And if I’m being honest-” Eric trailed off for a few seconds.
“If you’re being honest?” I asked.
“Uh- Sorry. If I’m being honest, I actually like it here. No, that’s an understatement. I love it here. More than Sodor.”
I didn’t say anything. Eric looked up at me, tilting his head in confusion.
“What about you? How do you like it here?”
I sighed. “I have to agree. This kingdom is amazing. It’s bigger than Sodor, the rails are better, the landscape and overall views are better, It’s just… Koh. I don’t even have the words.”
“Is it just better?”
“Yeah. It’s just better.”
“Mmmm. Well, I best be off to the coach. I need sleep.”
“Make sure you ask the princesses to get you a fireman. I could tell how tired you were getting.”
“Right! Right. I’ll do that the first chance I get. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.”
Eric stood up and walked back to the forwardmost coach, opening the door and climbing inside, leaving me by myself. I resisted the temptation to let my thoughts wander about, instead closing my eyes and letting myself drift off to sleep.
I found myself awake once more several hours later. There had been no dream. No time I was able to spend on Sodor. I scoffed as I looked to the sky, spotting Luna’s moon just behind what I had been told was Mount Everhoof.
I looked around, scanning both the town and forest. Not a single soul was awake. It was just me. Just me under the stars.
Looking ahead, I noticed an extra set of tracks that I couldn’t recall having previously been there. It wasn’t a siding. Just a single track that lead over to a nearby tunnel. A tunnel with a sign above it that I couldn’t make out.
The gentle wind that was blowing through was becoming deafening, so I lit my fire and waited a minute for the steam to generate. Then, after checking around to see if anyone was awake, I slowly moved forward and out of my siding as quietly as I could.
The track switch, strangely enough, was already lined in for the tunnel track. So I was able to puff towards the tunnel to read the sign. As I got closer, I was finally able to make it out.
Big Thunder Mine
Of course, with the tunnel being entirely open, curiosity got the better of me. Ignoring the opinions of any number of cats, I slowly puffed forward to the entrance of the mine and flipped my headlamp on to see inside.
Inside, I could see that the tracked slowly descended further and further until out of sight. I sighed as I looked around, noting the presence of two other disconnected caved.
Suddenly, I could hear the rumbling of wheels on rails. Ones coming from right behind me. I couldn’t see behind me, so I did the one thing I could do.
“Hello?” I called out. “Who’s there?”
No reply. The sound only got louder.
“Is anyone-”
BANG!
Something suddenly shoved itself into my bunker, ramming me forward and into the tunnel. With a yelp, I immediately applied my brakes. This, however, did little to slow me down.
I blew my whistle as loud and hard as I could, wheels screeching as I careened around bends. The rails rattled in my wake as they were in no way designed for the speeds I was doing.
As I rounded one last bend, the track evened out, and in turn straightened out. Ahead, illuminated by my headlamp, was very clearly the front of an engine. My eyes widened as I shoved my valve gear into reverse and threw the throttle wide open. This practice, though painful, helped to slow me down even faster. My wheels skidded fiercely as the shape came closer and closer.
BANG!
While it sounded like a loud bang, it really wasn’t. My buffers had sustained minimal damage and I was overall fine. Just shaken up is all.
“Hoh… Hoh… Huh… Son of a… Ugh.” I groaned. “Just my luck. Some git sends a coach up my bunker and I end up at the bottom of a mine.”
Suddenly, I gasped, noticing the sheer size of the engine in front of me.
It was both taller and wider than any other engine I had ever seen. It was entirely black, with a large cowcatcher on the front, a large boiler, a large frame, everything about this locomotive was simply large. And while I couldn’t see around the locomotive, I knew it had to be a long one.
“Good lord what have I found?” I asked nobody as I stared at the red and yellow numberplate on the smokebox door.
1218
I sighed. “Well, no way my whistle can reach the surface with how deep I must be right now. No doubt I need to reverse back up.” I looked at the engine in front of me. “I’ll make sure to tell the others about you.”
I began reversing, but was stopped as my front coupling tightened. I looked down at my buffers and, to my horror, saw that my coupling was stuck on the front valance of this giant of an engine.
“You are joking.”
I moved forward and back, trying to get my coupling unhooked. I tried everything I could but to no avail. Clearly, if I was getting out of here, I was going to have to bring this monster with me.
“OH SON OF A-”
PEEP!
I blew my whistle in anger as I looked down at my coupling. I calmed myself down and psyched myself up for the heavy pulling I would have to do. But as I looked at my coupling, I noticed three characters on a nameplate just above the cowcatcher.
N & W
“N & W?”
I racked my mind for anything with those initials. I knew I had heard them before, but their meaning slipped my mind.
“N & W, N & W, N & W,” I chanted, trying to get something to click.
…
…
…
“Norfolk and Western?”
Timestamp: 10:37
Listen to the movie star sing! Ya'll didn't think I'd let the British have all the fun, did you? THINK AGAIN! LONG LIVE AMERICA!
Once again, sorry for the extended wait between parts. Life stuff, a writer's block, and a freaking ban for (rather idiotic) plagiarism screwed me six ways from Sunday. So here's an extended part that-I-honestly-think-might-be-horrible-in-terms-of-pacing!
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Holy moly the sole surviving Class A locomotive? In Equestria? That’s awesome man what’s next Mallard or a NYC Hudson what ever it is keep it up man
Great chapter! I'd love to see a Y6A or Y6B Norfolk & Western 2-8-8-2 (2171) if possible!!
Glad to have you back here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33KwU4jlV5U&list=PLrDK8elGHmQrmLFOV8TPjP8IhgTUyv_N5&index=1
11275975
Glad to BE back!
Also that reaction is freaking golden. I'll be saving it for later.
11276080
About the reaction: the playlist (if it appeared in the link, if not, it should be on the channel. It’s named “Forum Weapons”) also has “You don’t wanna know” from the April Fools special.
11275888
You're welcome and it's ok , i want just help you ^^
Can I have some more please
11276213
Soon! Soon. I hope.
11275907
Now I have TWO psychics that have commented on my stories. I was heavily considering the NYC Hudson being found before I made the switch to 1218!
I must say, I'm REALLY liking this story so far, so great job! This story has ticked off a number of boxes for me. 1. I've been a longtime fan of Victor Tanzig, and his "Stories of Sodor", as well as all of the lore that goes with it. 2. I've always loved Edward; he's my second-favorite "TTTE" character after Gordon. 3. I've also been a tentative fan of "Sodor Fallout", and I think that it's unique that you referenced it here, though I enjoyed the twist that the nuclear power plant exploding, and the sky turning red was actually just a hallucination by Edward. My only dislike of the story so far was Sir Topham Hatt being unable to get onboard Edward's train before he took off; I think it would be funny to see Sir Topham Hatt as a Pony
Though I did have 2 questions.
1. Will any other engines from Sodor arrive in Equestria in this story, or just engines from Real Life?
2. Will you ever show what's going on back on Sodor? Surely by now everyone, people and Non-Faceless Vehicles alike, have noticed that Edward is missing, and are no doubt looking for him, and wondering what happened to him, and his driver Eric
11282359
Ah yes. The two questions I really don't want to answer.
Okay, that's a lie. It's the first one I'm not going to answer. The second one, on the other buffer, is one I've heavily debated. It's a 50/50 tear for me.
11282486
1. Oh, you're not going to answer it? Bummer. Fingers crossed that at least one of them does
2. I really think that you should show what's going on on Sodor after Edward, his driver, and the coaches "disappeared", what everyone thinks about it, and the search efforts to find them. The story just wouldn't feel complete if you only focused on Edward in Equestria, rather than at least a scene or 2 about what was going on back on Sodor