Thomas and the Great War

The Betrayal

Next day, Gordon was talking inbetween Thomas and Percy about 98462 and 87546, who were due to have already been mended since yesterday.

"Where are those two?" grumbled Gordon. "Weren't they supposed to be back by now?"

"It does take a long time for an engine to be properly mended," explained Thomas. "And no engine can be fully repaired in just one day, it can take weeks or months."

"Or years," mourned Percy.

"Not to mention Diesel," added Gordon. "Where do you think he is? With those two rejects?"

"I saw Diesel leaving the sheds during the bombing," explained Percy. "And I don't think anyone has seen him since."

"Well I say good riddance!" huffed Gordon. "I can agree with you on one thing, little Percy, I didn't like his smile or his looks. And if there is another thing to add, it's that you should never trust diesel engines, they can be very...dastardly. Now please excuse me, the Wild Nor' Wester awaits me. Goodbye!"

And he puffed away, leaving Thomas and Percy very worried and very frightened.

Five minutes later, James brought some coal trucks to Wellsworth. Even though he didn't like pulling trucks, he always prefered shorter runs with them and left the long runs with the express. Today, James was still moody over Eagle and would always have Edward by his side to cheer him up, but Edward was feeling unusual in an unhappy sort of way.

"Do you see 98462 today?" he asked James. "I whistled hello and he did not whistle back! Isn't that rude?"

"I can see why," replied James. "That attack seems to have changed our lives."

"For all I know," said Edward. "87546 might even challenge Gordon to a race with the express."

He heard two whistles coming from the station, there was 87546 with a local passenger train and the other side next to him on platform 2 was Gordon with the express.

"Listen Gordy, on the LNER, my class can take passenger trains too," 87546 boasted to Gordon. "And I reckon that you and I can go for 100 mph without stopping any station by the hour on the hour."

Gordon agreed and when the guard blew his whistle, his wheels pounded the rails and 87546 followed after him, disappearing out of sight.

James was worried. "What if they knock each other to bits?"

As they rocketed at a total speed of sixty miles per hour up the hill and past Maron Station, 87546 was gaining speed and heading past a surprised Gordon.

"What's the matter?" he teased. "Fighting a losing war?"

"That's what you think," muttered Gordon, but he said it to himself.

Soon they approached the viaduct where the town of Cronk lay on the other side. A gentle breeze flew through the arches as Gordon and 87546 passed over it, though Gordon hoped that the wind would be strong enough push 87546 off the viaduct.

"See you at Vicarstown!" he said bravely and overshot 87546 by his tender.

But 87546 had another trick up his sleeve, he asked his driver to shut off a cloud of white steam. When he was close enough to Gordon, the naughty B17 had created a dense fog to prevent Gordon from seeing anything and he rushed off toward the end of the line while Gordon had to slow down at Kellsthorpe Road.

"Oh dear," he moaned. "We've lost."

Admitting defeat, he crawled over to the station and dropped off the passengers who were feeling woozy and dizzy over their so-called "roller-coaster ride" and a man in a neat suit had regurgitated his lunch into a rosemary bush. Gordon felt better after a drink and 87546 who did not stop to take on more water, ran dry at Crovan's Gate. This gave Gordon the opportunity to win the race by taking 87546 and his train from behind the express and ran the train as usual, stopping at every station to pick up and drop off passengers.

At Vicarstown, the Fat Director had heard the news and spoke to Gordon severely.

"There have been complaints, passengers from Maron, Cronk and Killdane have missed their trains and I hope you two will not try to do another race, especially at dangerous speeds. 87546, you shall have a drink and some coal and Gordon will take your passengers home."

Gordon obeyed and he took the return trip to Tidmouth the right way while Henry brought 87546 back to the shed where 98462 and Diesel were angrily continuing with their plans.

"I wonder if Edward would make an easy target," thought Diesel and he assigned the job to 98462.

"That goody-goody may be difficult to deal with, but I can assure you that tomorrow will look like an accident...then we can pave way for the diesels of the future."

The three engines gave each other an evil snicker and Diesel's driver had copied his Nazi indoctrinate papers, intent on mailing them to the Fat Director's office, as a way of introducing Nazism to the unknowing citizens of Sodor and giving the Führer permission to annex the island from the mainland and into the hands of the Third Reich...and very soon...it would be Britain's turn to fall.

That evening, Gordon wanted to tell Christopher about his race with 87546, but he was missing. Thomas found the boy sitting down with his legs to his chest on a hill beside the track, looking out into the ocean on a glorious sunset. Gulls called, waves crashed and the sound of ships hooting their horns had faded into the distant world.

Noticing Thomas from behind, Christopher moved his eyes back to him and said.

"I shouldn't have come here."

"But you did," whispered Thomas. "You made my life even better since the day your father came here."

Christopher turned his head back to Thomas before he looked back at the sea, completely ignoring him, but then...

"You made a responsibility, didn't you? To me and my father from before...to love and protect me...like the father he used be before this war. I wish it never happened and I wish I could be back in that time and place when he loved me the most."

"So do I," murmured Thomas, sleepily. "But you did not ask to come here, you ran away because you were mad and sad that your father went away."

"Wouldn't you do the same?" asked Christopher in a hurt voice. "Culdee was right, even engines have feelings too, it has probably been that way since the invention of rail travel. To laugh when you're happy, to scream when you are in danger, to cry when you are lonely...those are what we call the human emotions."

Thomas looked at Christopher for a long time as he continued to stare out into the sunset, looking out into the world that was far away from home.