Izzy and Porter have been called back to Bury to assist with the East Lancashire Railway's pre-Spring Steam Gala, which this year is themed to the late 1960s and the Summer of Love. She asks her friends if they'd like to help too, and not knowing the area hugely well they agree.
What follows is a celebration not just of Britain's railways, but of the Countercultural spirit that defined an entire generation. So buckle up and join us for the Half Term of Love!
Based on the MLP G5 special Bridlewoodstock, and written to mark both the 40th anniversary of Thomas and Friends and the 55th anniversary of Woodstock. Also my 150th story.
On a cool winter evening, two figures walked through the darkness of a small forested area.
"Where are we going, Mister Blossomforth?" asked one.
Alphabittle laughed. "You'll see very soon, Izzy," he said. They walked along the field and into the main section of a small park set near some railway lines. He pointed forward with his free hand. "Look up ahead. What we're looking for shall soon come into view over there."
The pair continued onwards, and as they made their way across the park the moon gently glowed in the sky. This produced a silvery light that lit up the landscape. "It's beautiful," Izzy said, her eyes in awe.
"Not as beautiful as what's to come," Alphabittle replied, and before long they stopped in a small clearing before the copse of trees began again. He checked his watch. "It should be starting any moment now."
As his watch ticked, the landscape began to shift and move. The flowers in the area began to bloom, one by one. And as they did, they began to glow and light up, bathing the area in bright colours.
Izzy was entranced, and dropped to her knees to look at the flowers. "It's beautiful! How are the flowers doing this?"
Alphabittle smiled as he kneeled down. "It's called bioluminescence. Basically, the plants produce their own light source. We call this the Lumabloom, and it always happens for one week in February. Nobody quite knows why, but it was first observed in the 16th Century and has been going ever since."
Izzy looked at the world around her with only the sense of wonder a child can have. "I want to come back to see this every year!"
"That won't be too hard," Alphabittle replied, "seeing as you live locally. Besides, the railway always runs an event to coincide with it, so you'll be kept in the loop. Now ten, it's probably best you get off to bed. There's a lot to do in the morning."
As the pair headed away from the scene, neither of them noticed a figure watching them with interest.
It was a peaceful Saturday morning in Falmouth, which was precisely how locals liked it. The dockside was yet to start up, and the travel flow was slightly lower than usual as the half term was technically yet to start. The schools had let out for the break, and this meant more people at home for a week or possibly travelling to other places and locations within the country.
Inside one house, Izzy was hard at work sorting her glitter collection. "Now, if I put pink glitter here and blue glitter here, I'll have an easier time finding it in future!" she said. "After all, blue and pink are like each other."
"They're different shades and have no letters in common," Isaac pointed out. "And how do you even have this much glitter?"
"I've put it together over many years!" Izzy objected. "You can never have too much glitter!"
"If you say so," Isaac sighed, and continued on his way. "Good thing the oil rig is behaving itself this weekend. There's been quite enough craziness in town for the last few weeks for my taste."
Izzy went back to her work and continued to sort the glitter around, including moving a bit of glue. This was quite a fun pastime for her, even if it didn't result in making something. Having the place in order was important as it made later creativity easier.
She flipped her hair back over her back (as some of it was risking getting in the way of her actions), and continued to sort even as the day continued. Suddenly, another voice cut through the soundscape.
"Izzy! Letter for you!"
"Coming, mom!" Izzy replied, putting the box down and sealing the lid. She dashed out of her room and down the stairs before stopping in front of the door. She picked the letter up. "Oooh, how vintage! Who sends letters these days?"
"That badly worded Secret Santa letter you got probably qualifies," Aurora said. "It's also normal for official correspondance to be done by letter as that way people have things in writing."
"It's also in writing if it's in an email," Izzy pointed out. "Just the words are on a screen."
"I think it's partly psychological," her mother admitted. "Somehow words on a page feel more permanent than digital ones. Anyway, aren't you going to open it?"
Izzy flipped it over to see it was addressed to her, even seeing it had used her birth name. "Whoever this is, they need to be told I don't go by Isabelle." She quickly opened the letter packet and slid the letter out to read it. Her eyes widened in excitement as she started to read the text on the paper.
Sunny checked the timer on her phone to see how the time was coming along. She'd put the eggs on and was keeping a close eye on them, but her other concern was the bacon. Seeing as it was the weekend, she had decided to put on a full cooked breakfast for her friends, and had gone to town with the food. Bacon, sausage, eggs, tomatoes (for those who wanted them; she knew Hitch was partial to a good tomato), hash browns, baked beans, and some muffins for those who wanted them were being prepared, and would soon hit their plates.
She quietly hummed a jaunty sailing tune to herself. This was one way she had of keeping her spirits up, and seeing as today was a quieter day Salty probably wouldn't be singing sea shanties yet. Still, the sea air drifted in through the windows of the cottage she called home.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. "Just a moment! I've got the cooker on!"
Argyle then appeared, and looked at Sunny. "I can get the door for you if you'd like."
"Thanks," Sunny replied, focusing on her work.
The doors opened, and Izzy and Pipp suddenly stepped in, both looking quite excited. "Did you get it?" they both asked.
"Get what?" Sunny asked.
Izzy then began to speak. "IgotaletterfromtheELRandit'sinvitingusto-"
"Izzy, slow down," Sunny replied. "I'm having trouble understanding you."
Izzy took a seat and began to speak once more. "I got a letter from the ELR and it's inviting us to their half term steam gala!"
"I got one too!" Pipp said, looking equally excited. "I've been invited to help with the entertainment, seeing as I'm a singer myself, and I was wondering if we could discuss that over breakfast!" She looked over Sunny's shoulder. "Looks great, Sunny! What's the calorie content?"
"I'll add it up in a moment," Sunny answered. "I'm kinda busy at the moment."
A few minutes later, the others wandered in, and sat down at the table as Sunny served them the food she had cooked. "Enjoy!"
"Hey Sunny!" Zipp said. "Where's your folks?"
"Dad's busy with some marking, and mom's in Europe on business." Sunny dropped her shoulders. "It's not been easy being around them, given... you know..."
Pipp put her hands on Sunny's shoulders. "It's not your fault," she said, soothingly. "You weren't in control. If we find Opaline, we'll make her pay for what she did."
Izzy glanced up, and decided to change the subject. "I haven't helped at a steam gala in such a long time! It'll be amazing to see the Lumabloom again!"
Hitch looked at her. "What's the Lumabloom?" He glanced at Sunny. "Coffee, please."
"The Lumabloom," Izzy explained, "is a bioluminescent light thing that happens around this time of year. It's a lot of fun as it draws in a lot of visitors. It happens just outside Bury, and the East Lancashire Railway runs a steam gala to coincide with it. They often have music as well."
"And what a time period they've picked!" Pipp said. "It's the Summer of Love! I can't wait to make Sgt. Pepper style costumes for us!"
Izzy looked slightly concerned though. "I don't think the railway's plan to run trains through the night is a wise one, though."
"Why not?" Misty asked.
Izzy looked very serious all of a sudden. "The troggles."
"Troggles?" Zipp asked. "Some sort of local phenomenon?"
Izzy nodded. "The troggles are old creatures from Lancastrian folklore. Hundreds of years ago, a witch called Black Annis roamed the countryside, cursing people and doing evil things wherever she went. One of the things she hated the most was the sound of happiness and joy, so she sent evil spirits, called troggles, to steal their voices. They only came out at night, and are rumoured to operate during the Lumabloom. We were all taught this poem as a reminder of what not to do."
She then started to recite a poem, looking somewhat wild whilst doing so.
"Eyes of the monster, form of the pig! Sing, laugh, or yell, step foot on a twig! Troggles appear, steal what's to be! No cure to be found, past the red ruby!"
Pipp looked over. "Normally I'd be sceptical such creatures existed, but considering what we've seen in the last year or so I'd be eating those words pretty fast. But to lighten the mood, any suggestions for musical talent?"
"I know just the perfect acts short of booking Paul McCartney," Hitch said. "Shame we can't pursuade the Gallagher brothers to stop feuding. But I have a suggestions- Electric Blue!"
"The rock band?" Zipp said. "I'd second that! Their sound is fantastic!"
Pipp nodded. "I was thinking of booking Ruby Jubilee."
Misty's eyes suddenly lit up. "She'd be perfect! She's a fantastic musician and supporter of good charitable causes, and not only that she lives locally! I could talk to her!"
Pipp looked over to Sunny. "Any suggestions, Sunny?"
"This may be a curveball, but how about the Dreamlands?" Sunny suggested. "They were the British girl group of the Eighties!"
Pipp raised a quizzical eye. "I thought they broke up in 2003."
"I know, but I think we can convince them to get back together. Crazier things have happened in the music world, such as Take That reuniting in 2006."
"Well, our mission is set," Izzy said. "To find musicians we go!"
Zipp brought Charles to a stop at Truro, which was convenient. She had heard through the grapevine that Electric Blue would be performing for two nights at the Corn Exchange, and planned to catch them there.
To just her luck, the band were unloading equipment from a train. "Be careful with the drums!" called a man. This was Fretlock, their lead singer.
Zipp dashed over. "Need a hand?"
Fretlock glanced back. "We could always use a spare pair of hands."
After a few minutes, the train was unloaded, and Fretlock was pleased. "Thanks for helping, uh... what's your name?"
"Zipp. Zipp Storm."
Fretlock's eyes widened. "I remember you! We were booked to play at one of your birthdays!"
Zipp smiled at the memories. "Still one of my favourite memories. But I was wondering if I could ask you something?"
Fretlock nodded as his bandmates appeared. "Sure."
"Would you be available to perform in Bury next weekend?"
"That's an oddly specific request," Fretlock said. "What's the gig?"
"A charity event hosted by the East Lancashire Railway," Zipp said. "It's at night, and there's really spectacular light effect with would help set the mood."
The band members glanced back and forth.
Zipp knew how to convince them. "It's Summer of Love themed and you guys will be headlining the night time show."
Fretlock smiled. "Summer of Love, huh? Why didn't you lead with that?"
Outside a cafe in Falmouth, Sunny, Hitch, and Grandma Figgy sat down and waited. And waited. And waited.
"Any clue when she'll be here?" Hitch asked.
"Patience, Hitch!" Figgy replied. "Minty is a person with her own schedule."
"Fair point," Sunny admitted, checking her own watch. "Perhaps order a drink while we wait?"
"Anybody for tea?" Hitch offered.
Just then, Grandma Figgy looked over and indicated in a direction. "There she is! She's arrived!"
A woman with green skin and white hair, and dressed in what seemed to be jogging gear, was approaching them.
"She looks older than I imagined," Hitch admitted.
"Remember most of the photos of her performing were taken when she was in her late teens and twenties," Grandma Figgy pointed out. "The passage of time changes all of us, and sometimes not for the better."
Just then, Minty seemed to spot them, and she walked over and took a seat. "Hey Figgy. It's been a while."
"No problem, Minty," Grandma Figgy replied. "It's like old times." Seeing Hitch and Sunny's confusion, she turned to them. "I used to bake for Minty and her bandmates, Snuzzle and Bluebell. They just could not resist my Key Lime pie!"
"That's always true," Minty smiled, remembering the old days. "But that was then, and this is now. Anything I can help you with?"
Sunny nodded. "There's a special event happening in Bury this weekend, and features music. We were wondering-"
"Who's 'we'?" Minty asked.
"Me, my friends, and the East Lancashire Railway," Hitch clarified.
"But anyway," Sunny continued, "we were wondering if you could get the Dreamlands back together to perform at it?"
Minty's face fell. "I don't know. We had a pretty nasty falling out when the Dreamlands broke up, and I haven't spoken to either Snuzzle or Bluebell in a long time. We more or less embarked on solo careers. And who would be interested in seeing some group from 40 years ago performing? We're a bunch of old fossils!"
"I wouldn't call 58 old," Grandma Figgy said. "You shouldn't be so harsh on yourself, Minty. People still listen to the Dreamlands."
"Yeah!" Sunny said. "You continue to sell millions of records every year, are discussed in major musical publications, and arguably created the girl group phenomenon in the 1980s! People still love you guys, and I have absolutely no doubt they'll turn out in droves to see you all perform again. Just remember how many people turned out when Bellowhead reunited a few years ago!"
Minty smiled. "You do have a point. I'll see if I can do what Paul McCartney was unable to do and reunite the Beatles. Hopefully there won't be too much animosity." She then spotted a basket. "Figgy, is that a Key Lime Pie?"
"Guilty as charged," Grandma Figgy smiled.
Minty glanced back to Sunny. "Just one more thing. We won't be shoved off to the side on some old timer stage, will we?"
"Nope!" Sunny said. "I'll see to it you three headline!"
"Here's hoping I can still hit all the notes!" Minty laughed.
"Thanks for agreeing to speak to me!" Misty said, as she sat down in a chair.
"No problem!" said the figure she was meeting, a woman with purple and red hair currently arranged in dreadlocks. She had reddish skin combined with green eyes, and was currently dressed fairly casually in a T shirt and jeans. "I always make sure to leave time for my fans. After all, without you guys I wouldn't be where I am now."
Misty smiled, clearly excited to be meeting her musical idol. "I was wondering if we could discuss a concert?"
Ruby nodded to a guard. "Well, what's the proposal?"
"There's this place somewhere in the north of England who are putting on a special music event and I was wondering if you could appear? They could really do with a big act," Misty said.
Ruby took a look at her journal and skimmed to next weekend. "Is this a for profit or charity?"
"The concerts are supporting Musical Minds, a charity that helps disadvantaged children discover music."
Ruby smiled. "Why didn't you lead with that? They're a charity I support, given music is how I was able to escape poverty. There's just one slight problem."
"Oh." Misty's face fell.
"I like to write a new song for every venue I perform at, as it gives a personal connection to each location. The only problem is I've never been to- where did you say it was?"
"Burrs Country Park, near Bury in Lancashire." Misty flicked to a photo on her phone that Pipp had advised her to show. "This is what's currently going on. It's called the Lumabloom or something similar."
"This is perfect inspiration material!" Ruby grinned. "In fact, I'm already having some ideas!" She grabbed a notepad and scribbled some words down. "Consider me onboard!"
Misty nodded. "Well, it was nice talking to you, Ruby. I need to be on my way now as the last train back to Falmouth leaves soon, but thanks for agreeing to do this."
"No problem," Ruby smiled, as Misty went on her way. "Hmmm. Something about her felt different somehow."
Pipp was waiting for the others in her room when suddenly there was a buzz on the desk. She reached over and pushed a button. "Hello?"
"Miss Phillipa, your friends have arrived," said a voice.
"Send them up, Wadsworth," Pipp replied, whilst saving her existing music. One person sea shanties could wait until they'd finished talking.
A few minutes later, every walked in through the door. "So, how'd it go?"
"We've got Electric Blue!" Zipp said. "They agreed after learning it's Summer of Love themed. They even plan to perform Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band in its entirely."
Pipp put a hand to her chin. "I wonder how they intend to do 'A Day in the Life'?"
"They'll probably have some clever technical way," Zipp noted.
Hitch was the next to speak. "Minty has said she'll contact Bluebell and Snuzzle and try and get the band back together. It's not the best result but it's a start."
"Best of luck to them," Pipp said, ticking another box on a piece of paper. "Well, that's two groups booked. Misty, how did your expedition to Exeter go?"
Misty bounced up and down excitedly. "Ruby Jubilee agreed to do it! I'm still slightly in disbelief myself, but it clearly worked!"
Pipp smiled. "So, that's all three acts, but there's an added logistical challenge we need to tackle."
"What's that?" Sunny asked.
Pipp smiled nervously. "I was on the phone with the event organiser earlier today..."
Pipp's phone suddenly buzzed, and she lifted the phone to her ear. "Hello?"
"Is this Pipp Petals?" asked a voice in a strong Northern accent.
"Yes. Why?"
"I'm Jerry Calsterwell. I'm in charge of the event planning for the East Lancashire Railway's Half Term Gala. We talked previously over email?"
"I remember," Pipp said. "How can I help you?"
"Thanks for agreeing to try and secure some musical acts," Jerry said. "But I presume you'll be bringing the others, right?"
Pipp's eyes temporarily darted about. "Who are 'the others'?"
"The engines of Falmouth are very famous- a lot of people want to see them as a result of that feature on the BBC about a month ago. We think the engines could be big tourist draw for visitors, so we were wondering if you could bring them with you to Bury?"
Pipp looked a tad nervous. "I'll see what I can do. Thanks for calling!"
She placed her phone down, and looked out of the window. "What have I gotten myself into?"
"Well, it's not impossible to get our engines to Bury, as last December demonstrated," Hitch pointed out. "It is a bit of a long journey, but we can do it."
"Why not have the diesels tow the others to Bury?" Misty suggested. "Otherwise we'd be using more fuel than we need to. Do we have a timetable?"
"We'll get them when we arrive," Pipp replied. "I think that's all we need to discuss."
A few days later, the engine crews were finishing coupling their engines together. Sophie and Charles were coupled to the front, and their engines were rumbling as they prepared to set off. Behind them was Rebecca, and completing this rather wacky formation were Salty, Bellerophon, and Porter.
"We ready to go?" Sophie called.
"I hope they have passenger coaches in Bury," Charles said. "After all this time shunting quarry trains I deserve a passenger turn."
"We'll see," Zipp replied. She picked up the radio. "Are we ready to move off?"
"Good to go here!" Hitch called.
"Cleared for movement!" Misty added.
"Engines secured and axle boxes lubricated!" Sunny radioed.
"Motion stored and ready for motion!" Izzy said. "Just keep an eye out for the Troggles!"
That last comment had the others concerned, but they set off anyway on their long journey to Bury, for the events and times that awaited them.
Later that day, the convoy pulled into Bury, stopping just beyond the station. "What's going on?" Porter asked.
"There appears to be some sort of traffic jam!" called Sophie. "We'll probably be sat here for a bit!"
As they waited there, they noticed something else odd going on. More engines seemed to be arriving from the other side of the yard and rolling into the shed. But this wasn't what was bizarre. The sheer number of engines was what was concerning the others.
"Have any of you counted the number of engines arriving?" Zipp asked. "I'm not sure the line was intended to handle this many locos."
After a wait of a few more minutes, the signal to their line finally changed, and the formation pulled forward into the station to be detached from their towing engine and placed onto the shed. This was proving to be a complex move, owing to the number of engines moving about the shed.
A separate loco was towing the engines into the shed, and Porter was the first to be hooked up. The shunter began its pull into the shed, when suddenly a loud whistle blast caused them to stop.
A goods train suddenly rattled over a diamond crossing, and a big black tender locomotive rumbled past, the tender leading a long formation of trucks. "Read the signals and watch where you're going!"
Porter rolled his eyes. "At least I'm not the one going backwards."
"Technically," Izzy said, "the engine isn't going backwards. If the destination is in that direction they're going forwards. They're just running tender first!"
After a short pause, the process of moving the engines into the shed continued, being parked on different roads in front of and behind each other. Bellerophon was the last to be positioned, and as he looked over he saw a large red locomotive with four leading wheels, six driving wheels, and no trailing wheels. His tender was tall with curved railings at the top, and the tender was marked with the text L M S.
"Hello!" he said. "I take it you're visiting." His voice was firm yet friendly at the same time.
"Just for the gala," Bellerophon replied. "And you?"
"Likewise," the engine replied. "My name's Kolhapur. I'm named after a city in India, in case you're wondering about the name."
"I wasn't particularly," Bellerophon admitted. "But how many engines are there on shed?"
"At least 25, if I was to hazard a guess," Kolhapur replied. "There's a lot to do, I reckon. Shunting, freight, passenger- they must have an intense timetable if they're using this many locomotives."
A familiar voice suddenly spoke from the footplate. "I'll be away for a moment! Don't go anywhere!"
"I don't have much of a choice in the matter!" Kolhapur replied jokingly.
Misty was doing some other checks on Bellerophon's footplate, and looked over to her surprise to see who was descending the cab steps of Kolhapur. "Ruby Jubilee?"
The pop star looked over in surprise. "Misty?" she asked. "Fancy seeing you here!"
"I didn't know you owned an engine!" Misty said.
"Well, I've seen musicians own stranger things. Pete Waterman funded his steam empire from the royalties from songs he wrote."
More engines began to arrive on the shed and parked up, and another man arrived. He looked very important. "I can't recall asking for this many engines," he said. "We asked for 13 engines for the gala!"
Pipp, who had been doing work on Sophie, got out some paperwork and looked at it. "It says 30 engines here," she said.
The man sighed and facepalmed. "Seems like somebody misheard me," he said.
Sunny had completed work on Salty, and walked over as well. "Something about this didn't seem to make sense," she said. "It's a five train timetable, and I can count at least 30 engines. How are we going to use them all over a three day period?"
Sophie then spoke up. "Top and tail every train. That way you eliminate the need to run round the train at the termini and can hold the timetable much more easily."
"Good idea!" said the man who looked important. "I shall tell the General Manager immediately."
Izzy walked over. "More engines than expected, and nighttime running. Let's hope this isn't Jinxy."
The next morning, the gala was into full swing. The first ten locomotives were fired up, plus another pair to do demonstration shunting around the yards near Bury station, as that at least gave the visitors something to watch. One of them was a shunting engine local to the line, who reminded Izzy somewhat of Percy. The other shunting engine was Bellerophon, who was allocated to the sidings outside Bury Transport Museum. He and Misty spent the day rearranging the trucks in the siding whilst passenger trains rattled past on the main, heading to and from Rawtenstall.
Overall, things were going fairly well during the day, apart from some unfortunate problems. One of the steam engines failed at Ramsbottom with leaking tubes and had to be shunted into a siding, away from the main as other trains needed to use the line. There was also another problem with a diesel conking out with a faulty brake ejector, forcing Bellerophon to draw the train into the platforms at Bury.
This resulted in the remaining eight engines having to be stretched thin. At Rawtenstall, Charles was cut from one carriage rake as the train prepared to depart. "What's going on?" Charles demanded.
"Engines are being reallocated," Zipp explained. "You're needed for another service."
Charles looked aghast. "Me? Dumped here?"
"Pipp, can't we just dump Charles in a siding?" Sophie asked.
"You can't dump me!" Charles protested.
"Why not?" Sophie asked.
Charles snorted, as if the answer was obvious. "Because I have a steam heating boiler and you don't!"
It wasn't too good with the musicians as well. Tempers were flaring amongst the Dreamlands, who had not performed together in decades.
"I'm telling you Minty," Bluebell said. "If we don't update our sound the audience is going to turn off. We don't have the benefit of youth on our side anymore."
"Since when was age a factor?" Minty countered. "Look at The Rolling Stones. Mick Jagger's eighty and he's still going strong!"
"The key difference is he's a man," Snuzzle said. "You're fully aware the music industy has a double standard when it comes to men and women. They see us as washed out old farts. You've seen the kids at the event. We're old enough to be their grandmothers!"
"That does rather come with having been born in the 1960s," Minty admitted. "But you saw some of our old fans out there. They'll want to hear the sound they remember!"
The conversation was interrupted with a shout from the main stand. "I HAVE BLISTERS ON MY FINGERS!"
Pipp stood in the concert area, fretting, waiting for her friends to arrive. Suddenly, she saw them. Walking over were the members of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and a hippy. "Groovy, huh!" Misty called. "All you need is love!"
Pipp, however, had no time for that. "We've got a problem!" she said. "All three of the major acts think they're headlining!"
"I wonder how that happened," Hitch said.
"Ah," Zipp said.
"Is something going on?" Pipp asked.
"I told Fretlock he and the gang would be headlining to entice them to come," Zipp said.
"Really, Zipp?" Pipp snapped. "You didn't think to check this with me first?"
"In her defence, you didn't say she couldn't use that as an enticement," Hitch pointed.
Pipp put her head in her hands, a massive headache coming on. "So, you all told the performers they were headlining? Great. But we can fix this! We just need to pursuade them to play in a different order and we should be good to go."
"Right then," Sunny said. "Let's get to work. I'll talk to the Dreamlands, you can handle Ruby, and Zipp can try and pursuade Electric Blue."
After several minutes of fraught negotiation, they finally hashed out a running order. Ruby agreed to go on first, followed by Electric Blue (who were already in firm psychadelic mode with the Sgt. Pepper outfits), and finally the Dreamlands would round off the night.
As the final sound checks were being performed, the team stopped for some food, the local hot dog stand being very popular for that purpose. Izzy was still looking around for anything that might harm them. "I'm worried the Troggles will come," she said.
"Wouldn't the train noise have attracted them?" Pipp asked.
"They only go after human voices," Izzy replied. "At least, according to the legend. We'll have to be extra careful from now on to avoid drawing them out."
As they conversed, a figure looked over the area with a pair of binoculars. She grabbed a radio. "My lord, we are almost ready to begin."
"Hold the plan until the perfect chance," said a voice on the other end.
At first all seemed to be going fairly well for proceedings. As the light continued to fade, the trains continued going up and down the line, either picking up or dropping off passengers either getting on or off at Burr's Country Park to watch ongoing proceedings at the concert. Or to try and escape them, depending on whose context it was regarding the music.
The girls, at least, were having a whale of a time, enjoying the sound of the music of Ruby Jubilee. Misty was especially enthusiastic.
"You're cheerful!" Pipp called over the noise.
"I know all her songs off by heart!" Misty replied. "Her music really helped me settle into regular life in the world, and to see her performing live is a blast!"
Proceedings rattled onwards as the sun dipped lower and lower in the sky. Eventually, as time went by, the sun was gone, and the plantlife in the park began to glow a variety of interesting colours which lit up the trees and landscape in all sorts of interesting colours and shapes.
The perfomance rolled towards its conclusion as it did so, the speakers and sound systems continuing to blast out beat after beat. It was as if nothing could go wrong.
Ruby shifted her mike slightly. "Hello, Bury!" she called.
There was a loud cheer from the crowd.
"Phew, time flies, huh? We're nearly at the end of my setlist. But before I go, I have one last song to perform for all of you. It's one I wrote specially for this event, and embodies this place, the landscape, but most importantly of all my fans. Because without you guys I would be nothing."
She looked over to the technician regulating the recordings. "Hit it!"
The technician nodded and pushed a button on her console, and new music began to play.
(Iconic... Iconic...)
Backing vocals flooded into the speakers as Ruby confidently strode back onto the stage and turned back to the audience. "This song is called 'Iconic', and is my gift to all of you!"
"Oh, tell me, can you hear that rockin' sound? (Oh, oh, oh-oh) If you listen, you can hear it comin' 'round? (Oh, oh, oh-oh)
"Yeah, we're movin' to a brand new beat, oh-ohhhh! (Oh, oh, oh-oh) And you can see us dancin' in the street! (Oh, oh, oh-oh)
"So call your favorite bestie and bring 'em along/ 'Cause we're movin' and we're shakin' to our favorite song! Oh-ohhhh! Yeah, it's always in style!" (Yeah, it's always in style!)
A visitor got his phone out to start filming, but suddenly noticed something strange. "That's weird. I had signal a moment ago."
Pipp overheard this and checked hers. "Yeah, I haven't got any myself. My phone plan's in date, though!"
On stage, Ruby launched into the song's chorus.
"Iconic, ooh, yeah, you know it's magic! Iconic, ooh, yeah, you know it's classic! Iconic, when we are together! Iconic, yeah, we are forever! Iconic, yeah, we are forever!"
(Iconic... Iconic...)
The light equipment continued to switch between colour patterns and rotation patterns to light the stage up in an incredible kaleidoscope of colours and sounds. There were some odd warnings on the panel though, so the technician lowered the volume slightly to avoid overloading the speakers.
"Yeah, you can see them movin', young and old, oh-ohhhh! (Oh, oh, oh-oh) Dancin' together, yeah, they feel it in their soul! (Oh, oh, oh-oh)
"We're with all of our friends, yeah, we're singin along/ To the sparkle and the magic of our favorite song! Oh-ohhhh 'Cause they're always in style!" (sty-y-yle) (Oh, yeah!)
Proceedings were building up to the climax of the song, and Ruby winked at the audience as she launched into the final chorus. "See you soon, Bury!"
"Iconic, ooh, yeah, you know it's magic! Iconic, ooh, yeah, you know it's classic! Iconic, when we are together! Iconic, yeah, we are forever! Iconic, yeah, we are fore-"
Before she could sing the final syllable, the stage suddenly fell quiet, and the lights failed, plunging the area into darkness.
"Who turned out the lights?" asked a voice.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, we are currently experiencing some technical difficulties. We should have the problem resolved shortly, so please stay calm and remain in your current position."
Suddenly, the speaker system switched back on- but it wasn't the friendly voice of the announcer. "You thought you knew better than the legends, didn't you?"
"Who's that?" Zipp asked.
Izzy's face had drained of most of its colour, and she looked around in fright. "It's Black Annis!" she squeaked.
"I warned all of you that to defy me was to suffer. And nobody defies Black Annis. You will pay the price for your foolishness. "Now go, my minions! Bring me a harvest of voices!"
In terror, people started to run, using their phones as flashlights. But the lights started to fade as loud buzzing began to fill the space.
Sunny saw somebody next to her turn to her friends. "Come on! This wa-"
She never finished her sentence as buzzing was near her, and she collapsed to the ground, coughing violently.
"What's going on?" Zipp asked.
Izzy looked around. "The Troggles are stealing their voices!" she said.
"Well, how do we stop them from stealing voices?" Hitch asked.
Misty smelled the air, and covered her mouth. "Guys... do you smell gas?"
Hitch pointed. "Grab an air tank and strap it to your back! Use it to breath!"
Hitch guided the others over to the first aid tent, and began to pass the emergency air tanks to his fellows, all whilst the buzzing continued all around them. The Troggles were certainly very noisy if nothing else.
Once they were all on, Pipp had an idea. "I remember from the Festival plan that this place has a backup generator. Hitch, Zipp, you go get that started! I'll dial 999 and get the emergency services out here!"
Misty began to make her way back towards the stage, using a nearby torch to light her way. The scene was horrifying. People were lying everywhere, coughing, and spluttering, and struggling to breath or speak. Almost as if something had stolen their voice.
The speakers suddenly cut in again, and a loud gasping was audible. Misty knew exactly where it was coming from, and dashed over the landscape as best she could, dodging buzzing objects and the rest of the objects brought down in the incident.
She made her way up the stage steps and adjusted the light, seeing several members of stage crew writing about in pain. A roadie looked at her. "Help... Ruby..." he wheezed. "She's... not... in a good... way!"
Misty nodded, and headed across the stage, continuing to breathe from an air supply. She bent down when she saw Ruby, and removed the face mask before placing it over Ruby's mouth and nose.
The musicians abrutly stopped writhing as life saving air flowed into her lungs, and her eyes looked up in recognition at her saviour. "Misty?"
Suddenly, the lights cut back in, lighting the place up. "Looks like Hitch and Zipp got the generator going!" Misty said.
Suddenly, the objects kept buzzing about, until a blast of orange light lit up the area. "LEAVE THESE PEOPLE ALONE!"
The objects fell to the floor, one crashing near Misty's position. Misty looked at it in confusion. "Do Troggles usually have propellors?"
The ambulance services arrived a few minutes later to administer care to those who needed it, and the fire brigade were on hand to help with any other issues. A group of policemen had also arrived to start an investigation. With the lights restored, they could finally put face to their enemy.
A police technician looked over from a display. "I've got evidence of external intrusion into the system," she said. "Somebody accessed the control systems for the lights and sound before broadcasting the message."
"Send it to the lab for decoding," the Sergeant replied. She then looked at the object that had landed near Misty, which appeared to be some sort of drone. "Hmmm. This drone has some capsules in it, connected to nozzles. Each capsule was loaded with some sort of noxious gas that left the victim unable to speak or move properly."
"So, no Troggles?" Izzy asked.
"No," the Sergeant replied. "This was a certain and deliberate attack. And whomever did this shall be brought to justice."
Suddenly, an engine started nearby, and a machine raced off down the line.
"STOP RIGHT THERE, CRIMINAL SCUM!" shouted a policeman who began to give chase.
Sunny and her friends ran to their engines to try and get them moving. But something was wrong. "Guys?" Sunny called. "Salty's fuel tank is empty!"
"So is Sophie's!" Pipp called.
"And Charles'!" Zipp added.
"Somebody's thrown Rebecca's fire out!" Hitch noted.
"And as Porter and Bellerophon are in the middle of a formation, we can't easily move them out!" Izzy noted.
"What sort of scallywag did this?" Salty asked.
Suddenly, the voice of Ruby Jubilee surprised them. "I can help. Follow me!"
The darkness was fighting back against our heroes who were flying along at speed through the darkness towards Bury. Kolhapur's lamps glowed in the darkness, and the landscape around him was dark and cold. But onwards he went. "Whomever this is, they're determined to not be caught!" he said.
"That's rather the idea with crime!" Sunny noted, who looked out of the cab. "Any idea of how far ahead this guy is?"
"Not a clue!" Zipp answered. "I've got my drone looking for them, but the night vision module seems to be playing up!"
Ruby, on the other hand, was at the controls of the large Jubilee, maintaining superb control over the large machine. "Just passing the station approaches!" she called.
Moments later, the gas lights of Bury Bolton Street flew into view, and they roared through the platform and into the next section of the yard. The small petrol cart was visible up ahead briefly, and a small, hunched figure was seen in the gloom, a gloom briefly cut through by Kolhapur's lamps.
"Keep going!" Hitch shouted. "But watch our speed on the bends!"
Izzy checked her watch. "We have to be careful," she said. "The ski jump is coming up!"
The engine rumbled round the bend and up into the grade, Ruby increasing steam pressure to handle the climb. Speed dropped as they began to clumb to the top, but before long the summit came and they were over.
But this was soon about to go wrong. The track drops steeply on the other side, and speed began to rise rapidly. "This isn't good!" Kolhapur shouted. "Apply some brake, would you kindly?"
Pipp was trying to figure out what was going on through her phone monitor, but the speed at which they were travelling and the bumpiness of the track was causing her problems. She had driven this route before- not just for Christmas, but during their first ever adventure together- but even so the place felt alien in the dark. "I'm trying to get a snap on that driver!" she said.
"I think they're too far away!" Sunny replied, looking ahead herself. "Just hold on and try not to fall out of the cab!"
They flew round another bend and maintained some impressive speed, the cart they were chasing briefly visible one again as they flew along in the dark. Suddenly, the AWS siren in the cab went off, and Ruby leaned out to see a yellow signal. "Looks like we're stopping!"
She applied the brakes and brought Kolhapur to a stop as safely as she could, with the line up ahead being the main line beyond Heywood. Hitch and Zipp jumped out of the cab and ran down the platform to try and figure out who had been there, but they scowered up and down and found nobody there at all.
They returned with this disappointing news. "Whomever was there is now gone," said Hitch. "They vanished a long time ago. We're out of luck this time, but at least we drove them off."
Owing to the disruption caused by the incident, the concert did not resume until the next morning. But those who did attend said it was worth the wait. Electric Blue put on an incredible performance of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and the Dreamlands proved to be surprisingly popular considering it had been decades since they had last performed together.
Proceedings rumbled on and the visitors enjoyed the musical spectacle. Although the lack of bioluminescence during the day rather changed the tone of the event, it wasn't a problem to most visitors, who were simply happy to be able to enjoy the band performances at all.
And as the concert drew to a close, they all had one last surprise for everybody. Pipp stepped onto the stage and grabbed a microphone. "Thank you, all of you, for coming today!" she said. "I know that not everything went to plan, but we are glad we were able to have the time to perform here in Burr's Country Park, and intend someday to come back. To round off this performance, we have written a special song to remind all of us that, no matter when or where you're from, when we all work together we can work wonders!"
Music blasted through the speakers as the lights came up on Electric Blue, still in the Sgt. Pepper costumes, but having switched to a distinctly heavier rock sound. "What's up!" shouted Fretlock. "Hello Bury!"
The lights then came up on the Dreamlands, the older members of the crowd going wild at seeing their teen idols performing again all these years later. "Let's do this, girls!" Minty called over the mic.
The last set of lights illuminated Pipp and Ruby, representing more modern music, and as the beat shifted the three groups began.
The Dreamlands went first.
"Ohhhhhh, hey! Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh, oh, oh! Put your hands up, put your hands up! Hey! Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh, oh! Put your hands up, put your hands up!
Pipp was next to sing.
"Generations comin' together! Celebrations, dancing, and laughter! This is a call to you from all walks of life! Lift up your hooves now under the starlight!"
"We were going to perform this at midnight," Pipp quickly explained.
"There's magic rainbows for hundreds of miles-
The Dreamlands then cut back in.
"Me and my buddies never go out of style!"
Then, in a marvellous blend of music, all of them joined in together.
"We don't hang our heads/ When things get too hard! We put our hands together! 'Cause we're forever friends! Making our mark/ And putting hands together!"
There was a shift in the music, and the lights shifted over to the Dreamlands.
Minty went first, as lead vocalist.
"All new places, the lengths that we've gone to/ Newfound faces, the friendships that grew!"
Bluebell then took over as the other dropped back to harmony.
"This is a call to you from all walks of life!"
And Snuzzle joined in on the next line.
"Lift up your hands now under the starlight!"
The vocal then shifted back to Pipp.
"There's magic rainbows for hundreds of miles!"
And, as before, the Dreamlands sang the next line.
"Me and my buddies never go out of style!"
And all of them then joined in together once more.
"We don't hang our heads/ When things get too hard! We put our hands together! 'Cause we're forever friends/ Making our mark! And putting hands together!
"Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh! We put our hands together! Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Put our hands together!
The beat dropped back for the middle eight, and the Dreamlands once again resumed lead vocals. Naturally, Minty went first.
"If it ever feels like there's something out to get ya!"
Bluebell took over once more.
"Or if it ever feels like you're wasting time!"
Snuzzle filled in the next line with a smile on her face.
"Yeah, we come runnin' from across Englandia!"
This caught her an odd look from Fretlock. "I'm Welsh!"
Luckily, Pipp cut back in before anything else could happen.
"You just reach out and touch your hands to miiiiiiiiiine!"
And then they all sang together once more, the crowd dancing and cheerful.
"We don't hang our heads/ When things get too hard! We put our hands together! 'Cause we're forever friends/ Making our mark! And putting hands together!
"Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh! Put our hands together! Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Put our hands together!"
Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Put our hands together! Whoa-oh-oh-oh-oh/ Whoa-oh-oh-oh!"
Then Pipp sang the final line of the song.
"Putting hands together!"
The crowd received the performance well, but everybody concerned had been up and awake for a very long time, and as such fell asleep on returning to their allocated rest space, which considering the demands of the day was well earned.
The next morning, the Falmouth crew prepared their engines to depart for Falmouth. The formation was assembled and ready to go, with the last brake checks being done in preparation for towing.
A figure was watching from the platform. "A shame I never got a chance to ride behind the Battle of Britain," he said. "My family has a close connection with the class; my grandfather fought in the Battle of Britain."
"Sir, the engine is a West Country," an aide said.
"The two designs were mechanically identical," the figure replied.
"Air Chief Marshal?" asked another voice. "You are wanted on the telephone."
Down in the yard, Ruby and Misty were speaking. "So, I guess this is goodbye," Ruby said. "Thanks for saving my life. I owe you a debt I can probably never repay."
"I did what I had to do," Misty replied. "But it was an honour to meet you in person, and I think we all had fun."
"Time to go!" Pipp called from Sophie's cab. Misty hopped onto Bellerophon's footplate as the train pulled away towards the main line.
Misty looked back and saw Ruby waving, even until the yard vanished out of sight.
Anna Sani - Young Izzy Moonbow Phil LaMarr - Alphabittle Blossomforth, Jerry Calsterwell Kimiko Glenn - Izzy Moonbow Steve Blum - Isaac Moonbow Felicia Day - Aurora Dawn Vanessa Hudgens - Sunny Starscout Michael McKean - Argyle Starshine, additional voices Sofia Carson - Pipp Petals James Marsden - Hitch Trailblazer Bahia Watson - Misty Brightdawn Liza Koshy - Zipp Storm Andrew Jackson - Fretlock Ellen Ray-Hennessey - Grandma Figgy, additional voices Elena Juacto - Minty Sophia Wylie - Ruby Jubilee Teresa Gallagher - Sophie Jeremy Clarkson - Charles Richard Hammond - Porter Cary Elwes - Kolhapur Joseph Swash - Bellerophon Stacey Kay - Bluebell Lexie Galante - Snuzzle Athena Karkanis - Arpeggia Julie Lemieux - Unknown female figure Henry Shields - Mysterious Male Voice Keith Whickam - Salty
Boomer watched the scene from a nearby hill. "It seems as though somebody is trying to compete with us," he said over the radio.
"Interesting," Opaline replied. "We shall have to keep an eye on this woman. She may well cause us trouble if not kept under control. Did you get a good look at her?"
"Unfortunately, no," Boomer replied. "But I did get a sound recording, so we know what she sounds like."
With Geoffrey Rush as P. T. Boomer and Athena Karkanis as Opaline.
