This story is a sequel to Thomas and Friends: Northern Soul
After a few weeks of chaos, the Falmouth crew fancy a break, and as such agree to a crew exchange with the Strasburg Railroad in Pennsylvania.
However, what at first seems like a working holiday soon turns into a bizarre mystery as mysterious events soon begin to affect Dutch Country. Even as Sunny's doubts threaten to undo her, the Mane 5 may have met their match in the form of a terrifying new foe...
Based on the 2016 film Legend of Everfree, and written as a tribute to the Strasburg Railroad.
Chapters (12)
I can tell the dialogue is sumiyto the opening of Toby and the flood, especially the last sentence.
Sounds like something straight out of Duncan gets spooked.
11822690
1. That was derived directly from the narration.
2. Indeed. It's inspired by a scene in a fanfilm.
great start mate keep it up
in the middle with other streets spiralling off it.*
Because it is.
That's because it's not him/the one you know...
Mr Conductor?!
And here I thought only Duck would say that.
If there's 1 thing I didn't expect in this chapter it's that there'd be 3 more engines that don't work on Strasburg. I'm referring to Baldwin 26, 4449, and 611. Although she has operated there in 2019, and again between 2021-2023, I wasn't expecting this at all. But if there's 1 thing I'm glad 89 is still seen as when LOE came out in 2016, she was out of service for a rebuild, and wouldn't be back til late September 2017. Which, happened to 475 2 years later following a 9 month rebuild that was completed in time for the N&W reunion of steam event.
awesome chapter mate keep it up cant wait for the next chapter
11822706
Thanks!
11822708
1. Fixed. My E key was playing up when I wrote this story, so it may randomly vanish,
2. Seems Izzy's weirdness is rubbing off on Pipp.
3. Indeed.
4. Kinda had to reference that. (Yes, I am aware the exterior shots of the station were filmed at Castletown on the Isle of Man).
5. Seeing as the engine worked for the Great Western Railroad, it kinda had to be in there.
I added the visiting locomotives as the Strasburg at the moment has only three operating steam engines. As you acknowledge it has had visitors, so adding two mainline performers seemed obvious.
11822722
Glad you enjoyed.
11822733
It's a good thing this doesn't take place in 2024 as 90 recently went down for her 1472. Plus, there have been many rumors that Strasburg might be close to finishing 7312/31 but I'm still taking it with a grain of salt.
Crikey! What a prologue!
Pardon me for use of vocabulary, but that was one Hell of a dark backstory you made. Utilizing the 1989 Runaway on Calhon Pass with Ducan gets Spooked and The Ghost Train all in one? Man! That is both clever and cunning! And then Sunny's nightmare really made it worse!
The roaster of Engines is quite nice.
I'm surprised you made an OC based on The Daylight. But it is a welcome one. But it leads me to ask, since this is clearly an OC, does it have a different road number or is it going by 4449? Cause even with The Daylight being the only running GS4, there's no law that says there can't be more than one.
And I guess I'm not the only one who made an OC based on the N&W J 611.
And I don't know about you, but I already can feel something ain't right.
Moreover, it doesn't surprise me Pipp had more than one luggage, however the reason why is rather unique compared to how I'd expect it.
11822863
I'm wanting to experiment with darker influences in my writing, and mixing together bits of several runaways and Halloween Thomas episodes seemed to sit well. I actually combined two different Cajon Pass incidents there; there's a bit of 1994 in there as well.
As for the nightmare... well, LoE gives me loads to work with. In terms of content it's the darkest of the EqG movies, not least as it's the only EqG production in which characters are killed onscreen. Admittedly it was a nightmare, but still...
11822874
Marilyn is intended to be 4449; I partly incorporated the engine as I know you have a soft spot for the GS series engines. I am aware a GS-6 survives in St. Louis, and a tender from another can be found in Portola.
The J Class is an immensely popular loco online, and a member of the class is a central character in KaneFan701's The Clinchfield Curse (which serves as a spiritual sequel to Ghost Train).
You are entirely correct that tension is in the air.
The joke about Pipp's cases is inspired by a Jinglemas story from last year, where Pipp takes hours to decide on a dress to take with her to Zephyr Heights for a theatre visit. She ends up taking most of her wardrobe with her.
11822903
Oh yes, I see the 1994 one now.
True there. It kinda erks me that the show didn't do anything like that. (G4 Pony setting, I mean)
11822917
I do appreciate that, although, I've normally portrayed the Daylight as male myself in my settings of where it's a character, and always called it Daylight. But one of my friends has an OC based on it too, but she's got a Henry style character arc to her.
I haven't seen it yet, (let's just say a former comrade of mine got too obsessed with Timothy the ghost engine and kept bugging me about it so much I had to step away from it, so I never watched it)
It definitely sounds like something Rarity would do. But I can imagine that would end up coming back to bite her in the end, somehow.
11822923
Thunderbolt Siren 1000 Productions' video on it is heavily referenced in other videos; the dramatisation of the radio calls between crews was used in TSC rail disasters' video on the incident owing to how well acted it was.
Indeed.
That makes sense. Choosing loco names can be tough, given TTTE uses a mix of human given names and class allusions; Derek was originally going to be called Paxman, for instance, as an allusion to the Paxman Engine Company. Similarly, BoCo is a nod to his odd bogie configuration.
Sorry to hear that.
A common pratfall in that sort of scenario is a lack of wardrobe space.
11822938
I know the videos you’re referring to.
Well, when it comes to me and the Famous Daylight Engine. I noted how Flying Scotsman is portrayed in The RWS when in real life, many people address it as female. But to me, it is and always will be male. Moreover, since 4449 already has “Daylight” on it, it makes sense just to call it as is. Or in other cases, it remains a faceless NPC style character. But if I were to make an OC based on it, I think for my case, it would be colored differently, and have a different road number back when it was still running. (Since Bachmann makes 2 different GS4 engines for their stock. Both the Daylight itself and another one, 4454 (or some other number)
Yeah, I can’t tell you have many users I’ve had to deal with who let obsessions cloud their judgment.
Yeah, there’s that, but there can also be that the extra luggage becomes too much weight.
11822964
OK.
Referring to railway locomotives with female pronouns is a holdover from nautical culture, where ships are referred to using female pronouns, with one notable exception; the Bismarck. This particular ship is referred to exclusively using male pronouns. When it comes to locos something similar can be observed; UP 4000 Class engines are often referred to using male pronouns, which is often not extended to the 3900s. Faceless characters also intrigue me, as it led to a debate in the fandom as to precisely how sentience works; how are Duck and City of Truro able to have a conversation if the latter has no face in the episode? (The book avoids this by having Truro facing away from the viewer in his only appearance.)
My time on the internet has only made me too aware of this.
The weight of cases gag made its way into TYT; in Sisters Take Flight, Thunder and Zoom are struggling to remain aloft under all the weight.
11823023
I gotcha. But in my opinion, I think it’s rather unneeded to stick to just one pronoun for any vehicle.
I hear you there. However, I didn’t mean the Daylight could speak while being faceless, I meant that it isn’t sentient. Yes, I have non-faceless engines, but I like to throw in a few nonsentient ones. But they are still named. I have a fleet of 4-4-0 steamers that are all named for a certain railway company but are not sentient.
Yeah, you already met one of the guys that gives me trouble.
And they’re both royal guards so I can see how they would struggle. Yes, a guard is trained to carry heavy weight, but not like that. If anything, I’d like to see Rarity or Pipp have to be the ones to carry their heavy gear and get the point of why packing heavy is a bad idea. (Not to mention have Rarity get a taste of what she made poor Sweetie Belle go through in the first camping episode)
11823069
True. And it's rather a moot point with NFVs as they have established genders anyway.
Ah. I had misunderstood.
That would be a fun idea. Pipp isn't the most muscular of ponies.
11823080
Quite right.
No worries.
Aye, I still remember that one bit where she was struggling to lift that one box. I can imagine Rarity isn’t as muscular as most either. Yes, she is a unicorn, but her magic isn’t that strong. I mean, with how she hates most physical labor, I could imagine she’s not the best with muscular lifting. (Now I have an image in my head of Rarity and Pipp have to work together to carry something.)
11823086
You know, that could make for a fun short story or a skit.
I know this was just a funny skit and nothing will come of it, but it would be awesome if Twilight showed up here alongside Thomas. That could set the Timber/Twilight ship going (is it a ship when it involves trains...or is it a loco?
)
YAY! You put it in! How wonderful!
This will be interesting to see the differences between American and British trains, as well as cultures.
11823201
I agree.
11823505
1. OK, I'll say that's a pretty good joke.
2. I thought it was a superb idea, old bean. And I do look forward to comparing American and British operation.
11823670
I'll see if there's an obivous way to fit it in.
11823705
Knowing how well you produce your stories, I know you’ll get it figured out.
11823706
Thanks.
great chapter mate keep it up cant wait for the next chapter
The Polish resistance movement and intelligence provides the first reports on the v1 and v2 rockets
11823786
Thanks.
11823792
The Dutch, French, and Norwegian resistance helped too, as there were also launch sites in those nations.
I saw it for myself back in 2022.
Yep, and her real number was 8063. Making her a, 'permanent' masquerade.
Or worry about snow.
At least it wasn't a Amtrak delay.
Looks like we've found our Filthy Rich.
First off, I wasn't expecting 311 would be in this. Second, Strasburg does run trains at night, just not daily, only on selected days throughout the year. And I know that as I watch their virtual railfan camera all the time.
Something tells me she's been in this situation before.
11823829
1. I saw it in 2023. Sadly the transport galleries were shut owing to engineering works.
2. It's certainly a wacky case of loco preservation. Another example is 46100 Royal Scot. In reality, this engine is 46152 The King's Dragoon Guardsman, as it permanently swapped identities with the original 46100 for the 1933 US tour.
3. Nope. The winter coat story is based on something my mother experienced whilst travelling through the US.
4. 45 minutes late is considered on time for Amtrak.
5. Yes indeed. And a right sleazeball too.
6. I like to be surprising. And I was aware of the night time trains. Clearly Timber is not quite correct on things...
7. Remember this for later.
11823844
I see, btw I made another comment yesterday that you might've missed on 90.
11823851
Gonna go back and look now.
11822738
That is true. We'll just have to wait and see.
11823860
mhm
11823880
Talk about a slow inspection if it takes over 4 years though.
11823901
They've been busy with other work which is why 7312 has been taking so long to return. In just a few weeks, it'll mark 15 years since it last saw steam.
11823926
Interesting to know. Thanks for this!
11823937
If you need someone who knows stuff on Strasburg, I'm the guy. I know a lot of things about it and what's happened in the last few years there.
11824018
That's very kind of you. I've only been there once, though was aware of it from a young age thanks to TATMR.
11824175
I've known about it since childhood from TATMR, but also a dvd I own. Which can be found on youtube too.
11824200
Link?
11824264
One step ahead of you.
11824310
Naturally.
Down here, doodlebugs are little isopods that we also sometimes call rolly-pollies.
And, hey, the Thomas look-alike is back! Wonder if he'll talk?
Quite the amazing history run, I'm surprised a replica of the John Bull was there. (Does it speak too, or is just a static prop)?
As for that sleazy man, UGH! I don't know what he plans on doing with the railway, but the way he spoke to Goldenella, God, that was so cringe! He seems like a womanizer!
11824329
According to the interwebs, doodlebug originally meant idiot. It, of course, also refers to actual insects, an oil hunter, a flying bomb, self-propelled railcars, homemade tractors, and god knows what else.
11824394
That's a real exhibit at the museum. For reasons of consistency in this setting all vehicles are capable of speaking, just don't always have something to say. After all, just because somebody uses loads of words does not mean they have anything to say.
If TV writing has taught me anything, an efficient way of making somebody hate a character is to make them an utter sleazeball. Especially if the subject of their unwanted advances is a married woman.