Thomas and the Winter Goddess
Thomas the Tank Engine made his way toward the Magic Buffers with his coaches, Annie and Clarabel. "Why are we going so fast?", asked the coaches. "It's almost Christmas", said Thomas, "and I don't want to arrive on the Island of Sodor late". As soon as he saw them, Thomas rushed through the Magic Buffers and returned to Sodor. He then made his way toward the town of Knapford to drop off his passengers. As soon as he stopped, he realized that it was starting to snow. "Bother", said Thomas, "Now I'll have to wear that horrid snowplow". Thomas hated his snowplow. It was uncomfortable, and hurt his front-end. "Oh, if only I could stop it from snowing", moaned Thomas. "Good luck", said Mr. Owain, the boss of the Sodor Times newspaper, "Only the Goddess Skadi can start and stop the snowfall on this planet". Now Thomas was intrigued. "How will I find Skadi?", he asked. "She usually skies atop the mountains she loves so much. Well, I have to go. The news never waits, not even for Christmas". Mr. Owain like what he just said and scribbled it down on his notepad. But Thomas felt a cheeky smile grow on his face. "If I can spirit the Winter Goddess away", he snickered, "I won't need to use my awful snowplow". He left the station laughing, unaware of the presence of a strange fellow in green.
Meanwhile, in another part of town, Jimmy the reporter exited a store holding a small box. Nearby, Niles started laughing. "You sly dog", he said, "I knew you wouldn't disappoint". "What's so funny?", asked Jimmy. "Jimmy, we've been rivals for many years", said Niles, "While I could never write anything as good as your articles, I do know when you intend to propose". Now Jimmy was laughing. "I guess my adventures have rubbed off on you", he said. "That, and I know every shop on Sodor", said Niles, "Trust me when I say you've picked the right place. Come on, We don't want to be late." The two jumped into Niles' car and raced off.
Thomas stopped at a station near his branch line, still thinking about how he could get Skadi and prevent the falling snow. "How will I do it?", Thomas wondered aloud. Suddenly, a man in a green trenchcoat appeared. He had long, black hair, a gold staff with a blue diamond, and a wicked smile. It was Loki(and yes ladies, he does look like Tom Hiddleston. You're welcome). "I know of a way to help capture the likes of her", smiled Loki. "How?", asked Thomas. "Even Gods can get tired", said Loki, "Just keep chasing her until she stops. But be careful. Skadi is the fastest of the Gods on the snow". "I'll be sure to be careful", said Thomas cheerfully, "Thank you, Loki". With that, Thomas left the station. Loki giggled to himself, when suddenly, Hermes showed up. "Really?", asked an annoyed Hermes. "I said on the snow", said Loki, "I'd like to see you on skis". "I really want to know what you're planning", said Hermes. "Not to worry", said Loki, "I'll have you send a message to her".
Elsewhere, Eliza and Matilda were at a café near the Skarloey Lake. The snow fell onto the window, causing Eliza to smile. "I take it Skadi is on the island?", asked Matilda. "Yes", smiled Eliza, "She must be creating snowfall high up in the mountains. Soon, she'll make her way toward the lower portions of the island". "I sure hope Jimmy and Niles will be alright", said Matilda. "I'm certain they'll make it back", said Eliza, "If the snow is too much, I'll go out and get them myself". "Alone?", asked Matilda. "Not exactly", said Eliza. Suddenly, Bubo the Mechanical Owl flew down and sat outside the window, followed by Woolly the Yeti, who gave some of the café customers a fright. "Never a dull moment with you", smiled Matilda.
Jimmy and Niles soon arrived at the station to meet with Mr. Owain. "Good news", he said, "Our train should here soon". "Excellent", said Niles, "I can't wait to get to office". "Now there's a sentence I never thought I'd hear", muttered Jimmy as Thomas arrived. By now, the snow was falling little by little, but Thomas wasn't worried. It wouldn't be that bad a snowfall once he captured Skadi. As soon as the guard blew his whistle, Thomas raced out of the station and headed towards the Narrow Gauge station. "I hope the weather isn't too bad", said Jimmy, "I don't want Eliza to be worried". "She has Dustin for such events", said Mr. Owain, "Although I don't think anything will put a stop to Thomas".
As it happened, as Thomas made his way over the hills, he witnessed a beautiful woman with blue hair wearing a wolf-skin coat, a quiver of icy arrows, and a bow with snowflake details on the ends. "That must be Skadi", thought Thomas with glee, "Now how to get to her?" He noticed that the Winter Goddess was standing atop some weak snow on the very top of a hill when he stopped at a signal. "Perhaps some loud noise will do the trick", snickered Thomas. As soon as Skadi looked up at the mountains, Thomas blew his whistle as loud and hard as possible! The snow under Skadi fell away, causing her to fall down! But then, she used her skies to gently slide down the hill and catch sight of Thomas chasing after her. "So", she said with a wide grin, "that's how it will be. Fair enough". She then made a left turn and slid onto the other side of the hill, always making sure to stay with Thomas' line of vision. "I'll get you, yet", he growled as he increased speed. But when he did, his driver and fireman fell from his cab and into the soft snow below!
Inside Clarabel, Jimmy, Niles, and Mr. Owain were discussing how they planned their Christmas holiday when Niles noticed something. "Did anyone else notice those guys running after us?", he asked. "They look like the driver and fireman", said Mr. Owain. "Then, who's controlling the train?", asked Jimmy in horror. Suddenly, they felt the train lurch forward! "That's not good", said Niles. Then, as the train went around, Jimmy saw that Thomas was chasing after Skadi. "Alright fellas", he said, "I have good news and bad news". "What's the bad news", asked Mr. Owain to Niles dismay. "Thomas is going at dangerous speeds in order to catch the Winter Goddess for reasons I hope he'll explain when we stop". "And the good news?", asked Niles as he watched the forest rush past. Jimmy simply took out his pager and sent a message. "Eliza should pick us up in a few minutes", smiled Jimmy, "In the meantime, I'm sure the guard will pull the emergency brake and we'll all come to a gentle stop".
The guard did indeed pull the emergency brake, but Thomas was going so fast, and the rails were so slippery, that the brakes had little effect on the speed. In fact, Thomas was now going even faster as he chased after Skadi as she laughed at his attempt. She took her bow and fired an arrow into the sky, creating a small, windy snow storm. But Thomas was undeterred. He blew through the snow in his quest to capture the Winter Goddess. "Silly soft stuff", muttered Thomas, "Can't stop me, won't stop me". He didn't notice that he was going too fast as he sped past Duck and his goods train. "What is he doing?", asked Duck. Skadi noticed the danger as Thomas moved after her even faster than before. But then, she laughed in Thomas' face, making him angrier. Skadi skied up a hill as Thomas rushed into a tunnel! Then, she fired two arrows at the exit of the tunnel, creating the perfect trap for the arrogant tank engine.
Jimmy saw what was coming and yelled: "Everyone, brace yourselves!" All of the passengers hid behind their seats as Thomas came racing out of the tunnel! He slammed right into the snow bank, coming off of the rails in the process! Skadi could barely contain her laughter at this sight, but to make sure that he wouldn't hurt anyone, she fired some arrows at him, freezing his wheels. Then, she slid down to see Thomas, ice-cold in the snow. "I didn't think Loki would use the likes of you against me", she said, "But that trickster always has some joke up his sleeve. It's been fun!" The Winter Goddess then kissed him on the cheek before taking off for the mountains.
No more than five minutes later, Dustin the Snow Engine came over and used his turbine to remove the snow and allow Henry and the breakdown train to go through. Woolly the Yeti dug out the coaches, and Bubo used his lasers to melt the ice on the doors, allowing the passengers to exit from the train. "See?", said Jimmy, "That didn't take long at all". Eliza ran over and hugged Jimmy so hard he nearly passed out. Just then, Terence the Tractor rolled over and moved Annie and Clarabel out of the way as Thomas was placed back onto the tracks. Thomas sighed with relief...until he saw Sir Topham Hatt. "Thomas", he said, "Explain this madness". "I-I-I wanted t-t-to spirit away the Winter Goddess s-so I wouldn't have to use my snowplow", shivered Thomas, "I-I-I'm sorry, sir". "Not as sorry as you're gonna be", said Sir Topham Hatt, "You put your passengers in a lot of danger. However, as it is the season of forgiving, I will go soft on you. But your punishment will still be a lesson well taught".
And so it was. For the next few days, Thomas had only one job: clearing snow banks with his uncomfortable snowplow. Thomas felt like he had been handed a piece of humble pie, and now he was eating it. When he stopped at a signal, he noticed Loki and blew steam at him. "Last time I take advice from you", snorted Thomas. "Hey", said Loki, "I only gave you advice to capture my nemesis. You chose to follow it. Now run along, little Thomas. There's still some snow left." Thomas left in a huff as Loki waved good-bye.
Later at sunset, Thomas returned to his shed, tired and cold. To his surprise, Skadi was there. "I hope you've learned a lesson about trying to take on a Goddess", she said with a smile. "I have", said Thomas weakly, before he fell asleep. "Merry Christmas, little Thomas", said Skadi before she walked off into the snow.
Elsewhere, Jimmy and his friends had gathered at his cottage to relax and celebrate. "Well", said Niles, "Are you gonna do it?" "Not just yet", said Jimmy, "I don't want to embarrass her". They went out into the foyer to find Woolly and the iron man the Professor invented playing Rock-Em Sock-Em Robots. "I guess that's what you and the Professor were up to while Eliza and I were up in Culdee Fell", said Jimmy. "You could say that", said Niles. "At the very least, it works", said the Professor. "And we're all together", said Eliza, "After everything we went through this year, I think that's worth a lot". "Indeed", said Matilda. "A toast then", said Jimmy. Everyone raised their glass and shared a laugh as the snow fell gently outside.
The End.