Clash with a Titan

For the first time in Thomas' life, the town of Ulfstead was now in sight.

The extension project had been dragging on for nearly two years now. Accidents and delays had held things up, so much so that several times weeks had gone by without anything happening. But now, finally, the construction was nearing the end, and the final destination was closer than ever before.

Nearly there Thomas thought as he stared eagerly and longingly towards the town, so near yet still so far. There was only a month of construction left to finish laying the tracks and complete construction of the new Ulfstead Station, and preparations were already underway for the big opening ceremony. It was the biggest development to ever occur on his branch line, and Thomas had the satisfaction of knowing that his line would be the first to complete its extension project, even if it had taken so long.

There was still about two kilometres left to go. Thomas had come to a stop several metres from the current point where the track ended, and Kelly the crane was now unloading the steel rails and wooden sleepers that would make up the next stretch of track. Thomas knew this would all be laid over the next week, snaking alongside the road to his left and the ruined castle to his right, as well as the hodge-podge of workers cabins that had been erected during the construction, but just how much closer would it bring him towards Ulfstead?

He had been eagerly eyeing the town the closer the track got to it. His driver had once explained to him it had once been fortified inside giant walls to prevent the townspeople from attackers, but the walls had long fallen into ruins over the centuries. Thomas could see the older cottages and shops that were congregated in the middle of the town, as well as the newer town houses and businesses that were growing around the outside. There was also a clear path marked out for the end of the line, and Thomas could not wait to get there and explore the old and the new and see the stones that were even older than him.

"All done, Thomas!" Kelly called out, and Thomas snapped out of his day dreams. The big blue crane rolled alongside with a wide smile on his face. "Still keeping an eye on the town, are you?" He asked cheerily.

"It seems like we have been building the extension forever!" Thomas huffed. "First the bridge took months to build, and now we have been laying tracks for over a year. I just want to get to Ulfstead and meet all the new passengers, instead of constantly bringing rails and sleepers and never getting any closer."

"I will have you know Thomas that we have been working very hard to keep this construction moving, and I take great offence –"

"None intended!" Thomas said quickly, seeing how easily and quickly he had annoyed Kelly. "I just want everything to move along, that's all." Kelly smiled and nodded, the anger fading to be replaced with a look of exhaustion.

"Don't we all, Thomas, don't we all," he murmured, and gave a weary toot before turning and driving away.

An hour later, Thomas was back in the Ffarquhar Yards. He had shunted his empty trucks away and was having a rest before taking Annie and Clarabel down to Knapford. His driver had parked him outside the sheds with his bunker in the sun, so Thomas was resting pleasantly with the sunlight keeping him nice and warm.

However, he was struggling to keep his eyes shut. All the tank engine could think about was the never ending construction and the last stretch of track that was taking too long to be lain. Is it ever going to finish? He asked himself. Accidents seem to keep happening, there are always delays. What if I fly off the tracks again, or trucks go missing, or the station can't be finished, or… or… or…

"Are you alright there, Thomas?" The voice shook him from his slumber, and a startled Thomas looked around, blinking rapidly as reflected sunlight shone in his eyes. There was a kindly laugh, and he quickly relaxed as he realized it was his driver and fireman.

"I was just thinking about the extension and how long it's taking," he replied sheepishly as the two men climbed inside his cab. "I'm worried something else is going to happen and hold it up."

"Don't be ridiculous Thomas!" His driver snorted. "All the other problems have been sorted out, and there is no snow for you to crash into this time of year! Besides, the Fat Controller is personally helping plan the opening ceremony, so he is not going to let anything happen!"

"Really?" Thomas gasped. "Why is he planning?"

"Don't you realise what year it is?" His driver asked sceptically, and Thomas was forced to shake his head in confusion.

"It has been one hundred years since you arrived on the Island of Sodor, and Sir Topham Hatt began construction on the North Western Railway. This Hatt wants to kick off the celebrations by opening the extension to Ulfstead."

"One hundred years!?" Thomas gasped, and his crew chuckled.

"Yes Thomas, you really are that old! You must be the busiest engine of your class still working," his fireman added. Thomas fell silent as all this began to sink in, and he did not say a word as he trundled across the points to where Annie and Clarabel were resting.

One hundred years…

Thomas remained lost in thought all the way down to Elsbridge, and probably would have kept going down the track if his crew wasn't in charge. With the sun baking his boiler and the sound of his wheels rattling and birds chirping all around him, it was easy for the tank engine to drift off, news of his centenary beginning to sink in.

I have been on this branch line for most of those one hundred years. Look at it, barely changed in all that time: the same farms, most of the same houses, same tracks, same stations. Only the faces have changed, except for me.

His buffers hit something, and Thomas jolted back to attention. With relief he realised it was simply a set of buffers at Elsbridge Station, but the tank engine quickly wondered why he was being shunted when he could see his passengers waiting on the platform.

"We have to clear the track, the new engines coming up the line," his driver said in response to his questions.

"New engine? What new engine?"

"Goodness Thomas, don't you ever listen?" Annie called exasperatedly. Thomas paused for a moment, and he could now recall hearing a new engine was arriving to help finish the construction. However, he couldn't remember anything else: his name, his colour, when he was arriving. Maybe I am really getting old…

At that moment, a deep, almost mournful whistle sounded down the tracks. Thomas peered down the tracks, and saw the passengers on both sides of the platform were staring towards the unfamiliar sound as well. Then, from around the bend, a plume of smoke appeared; this was followed quickly by one of the biggest tank engines Thomas had ever seen.

His paint was dark green, making him look like he was carved out of emeralds, and he did shine like a jewel as he roared towards the station. From afar he looked like Percy, but the closer the engine came, Thomas could see he was bigger and longer than Percy, and the curve of his saddle tank was not as prominent as his friends.

"Is that him? What does he look like?" Clarabel chattered excitedly.

"Big," was all an awestruck Annie could manage, and that summed up Thomas' thoughts as well. The engine roared into the station, a long line of trucks rattling quietly behind him, and the passengers all turned and watched him go.

Thomas tooted his whistle cheerfully and smiled widely at the engine. "Hello there, welcome to Sodor and my branch line!" The engine looked at Thomas as he passed, his thick face solemn and unresponsive, and he merely grimaced before rolling past. Thomas watched him pass in stunned silence, not a single word coming from the new engine, just the clatter of his trucks as they followed obediently behind. Never had an engine ignored Thomas on his own branch line before, and the tank engine remained in shock for the rest of his travels.

It was evening when Thomas returned to Ffarquhar, coming to a halt at the platform so the passengers he had brought up from Knapford could disembark. As doors banged open and passengers clunked about the station, Thomas cast his eyes across the yard, wondering if the new engine was here yet. However, he seemed to be the first engine back for the night: no sign of the new arrival just yet.

"Hello Thomas!" A friendly whistle sounded alongside him, and Thomas smiled as Percy came to a stop on the next track, empty flatbeds banging against his buffers. "We have been so busy down at the harbour today I thought I was never going to get home!"

"I can imagine. Now Percy, did you by any chance see the new engine today?" Thomas wanted to see if the mysterious saddle tank had treated anyone else badly. With a touch of delight, he watched as Percy's smile sank.

"Do you mean Titan? Yes, I saw him," he said with a pout. "He came to collect trucks for the extension from me, and didn't even say Hello or thank me after I shunted them for him! I don't know what I did, but I seem to have upset him." Thomas gave his friend a sympathetic look, though he was interested to see it was not just him this Titan was not being friendly towards.

"The same thing happened to me," Thomas explained as the two rolled into the yards together. "I said Hello to him when he passed me, but he didn't say a single thing in response."

"He is very rude," Percy huffed. "You would think he'd be happy to be on The Fat Controller's railway, it's a much nicer place to be then the Other Railway."

"I don't think it is the railway that is his problem," Thomas replied. "Did you see the size of him? He is much bigger than any of us – well, except Daisy, but she is different. He could probably haul twice the amount of trucks either you or I could, definitely more than Toby. And once the expansion is complete…"

"Thomas, you're not suggesting what I think you are, are you?" Percy gasped, and Thomas solemnly nodded.

"He wants to replace us, just you wait and –"

"THOMAS!"

It all happened in a second. Thomas felt his brakes slam on as a horn sounded in front of him, but it was all too late: a truck appeared out of nowhere, and Thomas slammed into it, feeling the wood break against his buffers. He shut his eyes, expecting something to come crashing over him, but the weight suddenly shifted as shouts sounded across the yard. Thomas opened his eyes and watched as the truck tipped over, cracking open on the ground and spilling stone everywhere.

A moment of silence fell, and Thomas felt every eye in the area shift from the fallen stone to land on him, a very clear and obvious culprit, and all he could do was blush. He looked to his right to face Mavis further down her train, looking at him with pure content, and it was that moment a large shape moved into the yard. Thomas had to stifle his groan as Titan rolled past the scene, casting his gaze over the site before meeting Thomas' eye, and the blue engine was sure there was joy in the new engines eyes.

It turned out some kids had been playing in the yard and had knocked the points, allowing Thomas to plough straight into the middle of Mavis' train. However, his crew and the yard manager still told him off for not paying enough attention to where he was going. Workers had to stay behind to scoop up the rocks and the broken truck, while Mavis and Percy shunted away the undamaged ones. It did not take long, but everyone was annoyed at the extra work, and they were all blaming Thomas.

The blue engine slinked into the shed quietly an hour later once his crew had checked him for any damage. As punishment, he was going to have to take the trucks to the harbour in the morning instead of Rosie. The pink engine normally greeted him cheerfully, but she could see he was down and merely smiled as he pulled next to her. Percy, Toby and Flora came in shortly after, no one saying a word as tension hung in the air. Thomas didn't want to speak, too embarrassed and annoyed to draw attention to himself, but after half an hour of tense silence, he suddenly noticed something.

"Where is Titan?" He said, making the others jump at the sudden noise.

"He's sleeping in the coach shed tonight," Toby said once he had recovered. Thomas paused and mulled it over.

"Won't they build him a spot in the shed, like they did for Rosie and Flora?"

"I'm not sure, Thomas, they might feel there is enough space," Toby replied with a yawn. Percy gasped, and all eyes flickered to him, but he merely mumbled something and pretended it was nothing. However, as everyone else began to drift to sleep, he met Thomas' eye, and the two had a silent understanding: if Titan was going to replace one of them, why bother building extra space when one of them would clearly be gone?

One hundred years… what use am I after then, Thomas asked himself, and he drifted off to sleep that night feeling remarkably less excited for the extension than he had that morning.