A/N: I'm finally get this out for you guys to be able to enjoy! I've been wanting to do this a long time, and I am finally putting it up! If you want to learn how the curse got started, check out What A Wonderful World, one of my other stories. It explains how the curse and the Riders came to be. It is also a work in progress, so please be patient. Anyway, on with the story!
Lily was with her grandfather, Burnett Stone, in Lady's shed on Muffle Mountain, helping him dust Lady off.
"Are magical engines built, or... what?" Lilly stuck her head out from the other side of Lady. Burnett looked up from his dust rag, and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Oh jeez... How can I explain this? Um, you see, Lilly, magical engines aren't necessarily built. " Burnett paused, trying to think how to explain this Lilly. He stifled a chortle as Lilly's turn into an expression of disgust. She needed to learn this anyway if she is to carry the torch of taking care of Lady one day.
"They're born, so to speak. They are created in a laboratory through gene splicing technology. They can even take the DNA of another magical engine, and give it any specific traits people would like. After that, they create an environment stable enough to allow the engine to develop, and when the engine is developed enough, they put it up for adoption." Burnett tried his best to make it sound better than what it really was. It didn't seem to help much.
"It's not always like that." Lady looked at Lilly at the corner of her eye. "If you want your engine to look a certain way, you can call a laboratory, and have an engine custom made for you. It's going to burn a hole in your wallet however, so be sure you have enough money to buy, and maintain us."
Lilly cringed. "That sounds like something from a horror movie, so that means Lady is-?"
"A mutant?" Lady cut her off. "Yes. However, it actually benefits us. We have sharper senses than most engines. I was built with a light frame to let me move faster, but I take more damage if I crash." Lady was much better at explaining this to the child than Burnett. It was probably better if he let Lady do the talking when it came to subjects like this. She clearly knew more about this than he did.
"Huh, that's pretty cool. Did it hurt when grandpa was clinging to you for dear life when Diesel 10 chased you, and Thomas?" Lily decided to change the subject. She was starting to feel a little uncomfortable. Lady seemed to take notice of Lily's discomfort. She was more in tune with Lily's needs than her caretaker's. Perhaps Lady sees Lily as her kit, her child. It wouldn't surprise Burnett one bit. Lady instantly took to Lily the moment she saw her.
"A little bit, but he had virtually nothing to hold onto." Lady chuckled. The poor man almost fell off her from going at such high speeds. Burnett apologized after the chase, but it really wasn't necessary. Lady understood he had no choice but to cling to her for dear life as she sped through the island. Thankfully, Thomas was there to help her this time. Despite the fact, she left him in the dust.
"Grandpa?" Lily shifted a bit. She wasn't sure if he could answer this or not. She had heard stories about these people from Junior, but Mr. Conductor rarely talked about it. It was as if he didn't want her to know about them. Perhaps her grandfather had some answers.
"Yes, Lily?" Burnett shook off his dust rag, and stuffed it in his pocket. He himself had many questions about Lady when he was Lily's age, but this one wasn't related to Lady at all. It was more about the history of Sodor itself: the Engine Riders.
"Junior told me stories about the Engine Riders. Who are they?" Lily asked him. Burnett froze, and his expression grew solemn. The question had reopened an old wound.
"They're... special. They have a special bond with an engine. Tasha, your grandmother, was Lady's Rider before she died." Burnett paused, trying to find the right words to describe them. Tasha would be able to answer this question better than he would. However, she was no longer with them. She was walking amongst the stars.
"An engine can only have one Rider at a time, but can have as many as they wish throughout their lifetime. When I was your age, I always hoped an engine would choose me, so I could go out and have adventures with it." Burnett smiled weakly. "But I'm probably too old now."
It was true. He longed to see the world, and wanted to know what it was like to be so close with such a powerful creature, but the chances of him being chosen now was slim, or even nonexistent. He stuffed his dust rag in his pocket.
"I'm going to get some special coal from the truck that Patch got for us. I won't be long." Burnett walked into the tunnel that led outside the shed, and to the magic railroad. The tunnel was actually a series a caverns, each cavern had a special purpose, whether for storage or a means of escape. Lady was even able to travel to Shinning Time, but she's never left the safety of the mountain to explore our reality. Perhaps it was better that way.
Lilly saw the rare opportunity to climb into Lady's cab. This was her future duty: to protect Lady, and the magic railroad from corruption and harm, but she was just as curious about Lady as she was about Lily. Suddenly, an agonizing sharp pain in her head made her hold her head, and scream in agony. It felt like someone had thrust an ice cold dagger set on fire into her skull, and into her brain. Her ears rang as the burning sensation became more intense, and felt light headed, and disoriented. She didn't hear her grandfather dropping his shovel, running towards her, and shouting her name. She tried to step down from Lady's footplate, but her foot slipped out from underneath her, and she blacked out.
A/N: Sorry this chapter ends in a cliff hanger. Feel free to go crazy with your theories as to how the curse came to Sodor. I will eventually reveal how it made its way to Sodor, and if you have any questions about the curse itself, or how the curse altered the engines in any shape or form, feel free to ask me. I will answer them to the best of my abilities. Until we meet again, see ya in the next chapter!