29 - A Unique Build
City of Truro was roused from his sleep by the sound of engines approaching him. He currently slept in Ulfstead Castle alone. Green Arrow was currently out working with the Scottish Twins and Flying Scotsman himself was giving his brother a special birthday gift with Lady Olivia.
Leaving him alone in the sheds.
He panicked slightly, his boiler running cold as he feared that Mallard was returning for him, coming for his soul, his gold dust, for everything he held close.
He didn't want to be alone. If he was alone that meant he was vulnerable to Mallard, to the black smoke, to the anxieties that sat in the back of his mind and tormented him no end.
His wheels trembled and he felt sick as the cold fear gripped his boiler but a familiar voice made his anxiety evaporate.
"City of Truro?" Pendennis's voice asked of him and he opened his eyes wearily.
He looked up at his friend with a tired smile. Flanking the Great Western express engine were two little tank engines. One he recognised as his good friend Duck and the other was a little saddle tank he had never met before.
"Croeso hen ffrind," Truro said sleepily. "I do apologise for my dreary state. I have not been in the best condition as of recently."
"But you are alive and that's what matters," Pendennis smiled at him.
"Thanks to you," Truro smiled at his friend but Pendennis looked away.
"I failed to save you," Pendennis said bitterly. "Green Arrow is the one who saved you."
"But you did try," Truro assured him, his voice calm and collected. "Something I am eternally grateful for. Thank you, my old friend."
Pendennis smiled but then shifted on his wheels uncomfortably, anxious about his next words.
"King Edward I," he started. "I know have no grounds to speak against a royal engine but-"
"He left me to die, I am aware," Truro cut over him, his gaze hardening into a scowl. "I will deal with him in due time. He will wish that I had died."
Pendennis shut his mouth very quickly and the two tank engines froze, Truro's threat very clear and very poignant.
Truro's face softened and he turned his attention to Duck and the Saddle-tank.
"Croeso Duck, I apologise for being absent for such a long while," Truro greeted the Pannier. "I was… preoccupied."
"I know, I wanted to help you sir but," Duck paused and looked at his lamp. "I am only a small engine."
"You more than anyone know that small engines are capable of big and important things, Duck," Truro smiled at him. "You should be proud of yourself, regardless."
Duck seemed to puff himself up on his wheels at the words. "I am proud sir, but I uh, have my doubts."
"Doubts? What would a strong-headed engine like you have doubts about?" Truro asked, confused.
"Them Twin Kings have been controlling and spoiling the poor lass, Lady of Legend sir. She was distressed and upset," the Saddle-tank interrupted suddenly. "We went to talk to you on her behalf but we uh met the First and he had some opinions on the Great Western Way and your- relationship with the Flying Scot, shall we say."
Truro stared at the saddle tank before looking back at Duck.
"Sir, I have been away from the mainland for so long that I-" Duck paused and looked up at Truro, his eyes filled with doubt and confusion. "I don't think I deserve to be called Great Western anymore. And don't think I want to if what King Edward I said is true."
Truro took a moment to process Duck and Trojan's words before tutting.
"I knew that King Edward I had issues with such things but I would have thought he would be more accepting, with King George also preferring similar partners," he mused. "But I was wrong. Thank you for bringing this to my attention, I will have Lode Star informed of such things and we will decide how to deal with him."
Pendennis raised an eyebrow.
"Lode Star? I didn't think she would care about that," he pointed out.
"Lode Star keeps her business private and it's not your place to assume your superior's preferences, Pendennis," Truro scolded him. "Rest assured, this behaviour will be dealt with."
"Yes sir," Pendennis lowered his gaze while Truro turned his attention to Trojan.
"You must be Trojan," Truro smiled at him and the Saddle-tank looked surprised. "A pleasure to meet you at last."
"You know of me, Mr Bossman?" He asked surprised.
"Certainly, Pendennis likes to tell me stories about you," Truro explained and Trojan immediately glared at the big express engine.
"You've been telling stories about me yer bloody Aussie!" he shouted angrily and Pendennis glared back at him.
"I have not! I only told him stories about our friendship!" Pendennis defended. He paused. "And maybe that one time you got stuck between a consist accidentally."
"I knew it! You bloody snake!" Trojan yelled and began hissing steam at him. "You and your flapping lips! Embarrassing me in front of the big bossman!"
"Trojan stop! You're doing that yourself!" Pendennis shrieked but Truro just smiled amused, enjoying the two friends bickering, while Duck looked extremely embarrassed at Pendennis and Trojan's childish behaviour.
At least Truro wasn't alone for the anxiety creeping back into his mind. For now, that was.
"No!" Tornado's voice shouted angrily, echoing around the yard. "I don't need fixing! There's nothing wrong with me! I'm fine!"
"Tornado there was steam leaking into your firebox again," Iain scolded her. "Two of your stays have weakened and it's obviously causing you pain. We can fix them for now-."
"No. No please!" Tornado begged almost to the point of tears. "I don't want you fiddling with my firebox again! I was doing well! I haven't had a problem for a long time, please!"
Having the stays in her firebox replaced had felt excruciating. For a human, it would be comparable to having teeth pulled without anaesthetic.
She didn't want to go through it again.
"Why do you have to replace so many?" She whimpered, sounding terrified. "Don't you realise how much it hurts me?"
Iain looked on sympathetically.
"I'm truly sorry Tornado, but sometimes stays wear loose," he tried to assure her. "It can happen to any steam engine. We'll fix them up for now and then we can have you still run but they will need to be fixed next overhaul, alright?"
He stepped forward and gently touched her cylinder block to try and give her a reassuring pat but instead she shook very violently all of a sudden and yelled at him.
"Don't touch me!" She shrieked suddenly, shaking herself so he would stop touching her.
Iain jumped back startled and held up his hands defensively.
"Easy, easy young lady, I'm just trying to comfort you, that's all," he explained but Tornado glared down at him.
"Maybe if I was engineered better I wouldn't have all these stupid fucking problems!" Tornado snapped angrily at him, clearly frustrated.
"Tornado!" Matthias was aghast at the sudden profanity.
Never had he ever heard the young engine swear so venomously before. It was uncharacteristic for such a usually quiet engine.
"Tornado do not be so vulgar and crude!" He chastised her.
"You can shut up!" Tornado shrieked at her engineer angrily. "I didn't ask to be faulty! I didn't ask to be put through so much pain because of people's incompetence! You don't understand how it feels! Why do you think I hid the symptoms for so long!?"
Tornado had begun to cry freely now, sobbing loudly and making her rambles incoherent and muffled.
Iain and the volunteers standing around all looked concerned and worried but no one dared approach the poor whimpering and crying engine who was shaking in fright.
Matthias gazed up at his engine with a saddened and broken look before approaching her.
"Tornado, look at me," he spoke kindly to the engine.
Tornado sniffed and looked at her engineer through unshed tears.
"None of these people wants to hurt you, you know that don't you?" Matthias assured her. "Your design may have had flaws but these people tried everything they could to help you, bring you to life and fix you. They love you, they would never willingly put you through any pain."
Tornado looked at the people surrounding her and saw them gazing up at her with concern.
Many of the people here had been there when she had first woken up and had been through every tribulation that she had been through, always worried that the money would run out, that Tornado would be left in a broken state.
"I know that," she sniffed. "I know that."
"And now you have a lot of engine friends who will support you now," Matthias pointed out. "I know that this is scary for you Tornado but we don't ever want to put you through pain willingly. But we also don't want you to do permanent damage to yourself or have a serious accident, okay?"
Tornado still trembled but she seemed to have calmed down with her engineer's words.
"Okay," she muttered quietly.
"It's perfectly okay to be scared Tornado," Iain assured her. "We understand that it hurts you and you're frightened of what's going to happen. We'll do everything we can to make you comfortable."
Tornado sniffed and blinked her tears away.
"Okay," she said in a very small frightened voice.
"We can weld up your stays for now and let you run as normal," Iain explained kindly. "As long as no more stays become problems you're still free to tour. What happened last time probably won't happen again Tornado, those were very different problems to now."
Tornado sniffed and gave a weak smile seeming to understand.
"I'm sorry," Tornado mumbled. "I'm sorry I reacted like that I just didn't- I didn't want to be in that amount of pain again. I- I don't want to be broken again!"
"At the time we couldn't sedate you because the railways and museums so closely guarded the many things about steam engine workings," Iain explained.
"Like Gold Dust?" Tornado sniffed and Iain nodded at her.
"Like Gold Dust. But now that we have proven ourselves, we have people willing to share that knowledge, we can help you in a lot more ways than we did before." Iain explained. "So please tell us if you're in pain or you think something is wrong. Alright?"
"Alright," Tornado smiled, tears still slipping down her face.
"We'll transport you to the NRM's workshop by lorry," Iain explained. "For now, you can hang out with Charlie and keep him company."
Tornado smiled a genuine smile.
"I love Charlie, he's my baby brother," she cooed clearly smitten.
"He adores you to Tornado," Matthias spoke as he gave her a reassuring pat.
Tornado beamed happily, her thoughts turning to the bubbly happy baby engine that had taken over her place of birth. She knew she was the lifeblood of her Trust. If she didn't work then no money would go to finishing Charlie.
"You'll finish him won't you?" She asked and Iain nodded.
"Of course Tornado," he assured her. "We will do everything we can to finish him and get him his new tender. You just keep on chugging, young lady."
"I will sir!" Tornado declared with a proud huff of steam.
Godred stared angrily at Flying Scotsman. While he was somewhat pleased that it had proven that an engine's soul could be separated and returned to its original engine, he was distraught that it hadn't been him.
Said engine looked spotless and gleamed brilliantly under the lights of the shed, like any amount of dirt would simply be repelled and slide off of the engine's frame. Said the engine watching him curiously as several railway controllers slowly appeared gathered around the engines.
"You're back in your engine, lucky you," Godred remarked his arms folded and a deep frown upon his face.
"Well, how I returned to my engine wasn't exactly… nice," Scotsman muttered his face holding a brief look of being haunted. "There was a moment when I thought I was lost."
"You did die," Godred pointed out. "It was… horrifying."
Flying Scotsman looked away from him, troubled with the implications.
"I hope that the event does not linger with you, Godred," Scotsman spoke softly and solemnly.
"It isn't me you should be worried about, Pacific," Godred stated coldly and immediately Scotsman felt uncomfortable, knowing that the mountain engine spoke of Great Northern.
Before he could speak again Sir Topham Hatt arrived with his two assistants, looking quite annoyed.
"What is this about? I have a railway to run?!" He demanded.
"Well so do I but you don't hear me complaining about it!" Mr Richards snapped. "Flying Scotsman was the one who called this meeting."
"Flying Scotsman?" Lady Olivia turned to look at her engine, not at all impressed.
"I have a good reason for calling it ma'am!" he claimed but Olivia did not at all look convinced.
"I would have to agree with my big green friend here!" Sir Robert announced as he swung himself out of Flying Scotsman's cab and hung out of it with all the swagger of a man half his age.
Lady Olivia rolled her eyes, Mr Richards gave a deep sigh and Sir Topham just glared at the Earl.
"Now if Robert agrees then I know this is a bad idea," Sir Topham muttered as the Earl climbed off of Flying Scotsman's footplate.
"Now, now Topham! Do you have so little faith in your old friend?" The Earl asked and the Fat Controller stared at him with a deadpan expression.
"Do you really have to ask that?"
Sir Robert paused at stared down at his friend. "Perhaps not, but Scotsman here has a good one I promise!"
Lady Olivia raised an eyebrow in doubt.
"Most of Scotsman's ideas usually involve him disappearing or himself and Bittern playing pranks on each other and damaging railway property," she explained and Scotsman gave a nervous chuckle.
"Well, this one is very different to my usual plans and more like the suggestion I made to save Green Arrow from becoming an exhibit," Scotsman explained. "It's about returning Godred to an engine."
Godred stared up at Flying Scotsman shocked as the Railway Controller's turned to look at him.
"Return me to my engine?" He scoffed. "My engine is long gone you oversized kettle. It was long gone before you were even drawn up!"
"I said returning you to 'an' engine," Scotsman clarified.
"Preposterous," Godred snorted. "Gold Dust does not work like that."
"Not necessarily," Sir Robert cut in. "A railway in Japan managed to do it and I believe they're trying to do the same in America."
"The T1 trust? The one that's aiming for Mallard's record?" Olivia asked and Sir Robert nodded.
"The very same ones," the Earl grinned. "They saved one of the T1's souls and since Tornado was successful, they started building a new one."
A brief scowl flashed across her face but it quickly disappeared and a genuine smile appeared across her face.
"Good for them," she smiled.
"There is just one rather large problem with your plan," Mr Richards stepped forward. "The Switzerland works that built Godred, Culdee and their siblings have since long closed down, Even if we could build you a new engine Godred, it probably wouldn't be the same and it might not even accept Godred's soul."
"There are very few Rack and Pinion railways in the world Scotsman," Olivia explained. "The techniques and the original drawings would be extremely difficult to get a hold of if they even still exist. Fixing Culdee and the others is one thing, drawing up a new engine is something else entirely."
Flying Scotsman frowned.
"Considering how long Godred has been desperate to return to his engine, I think it would be worth it," Scotsman said. "Have you ever bothered to try and understand why Godred was so desperate to cannibalise parts of his siblings and try to rebuild his own engine? Someone who loved his siblings that in the right mind would never dare to entertain such a thing?"
Mr Richards paused and glanced at Godred who was staring at his knees avoiding looking at anyone.
"I'm not meant to be like this," he ground out through gritted teeth. "I'm not a squishy helpless human. I'm an engine. Sometimes, I just wish they hadn't bothered to try and save me. Because then it wouldn't have taken me almost a century to realise that old man had lied to me about building me another engine."
Scotsman looked desperately to the railway controllers gathered around him.
"Please, I know Godred was nasty to me and is constantly difficult to deal with but, I think he deserves a chance," he pleaded with them.
The controllers glanced at one another while Mr Richards stepped forward and gripped Godred's shoulder firmly.
"Culdee and the others might be hesitant to have you back after you tried to rip parts off of them," he explained. "Especially Alaric, he almost fell off the mountain in the same way you did because of your actions."
Godred looked away from Mr Richards tears in his eyes.
"I wouldn't have done it if your father hadn't ignored me and just used me as a servant," Godred said bitterly. "I saw the plans! He had plans to rebuild my engine from your grandfather!"
"He had what?!" Mr Richards asked completely shocked. "Why- why didn't you tell me? We could have found them and given you back your-"
"He burnt them," Godred snapped suddenly. "I kept asking him, begging him to rebuild my engine but he instead told me that I wasn't worth the money, my engine was just for spare parts and threw them in the fireplace. He said that I wasn't a real person so I wasn't worth spending the money on. So I went out and sabotaged my siblings in revenge to stop him from earning money!"
Mr Richards looked at Godred shocked as he stared back with hatred in his eyes.
"Godred-"
"He found out what I did and so I ran, I fled to Ulfstead Castle and lived in its ruins until Sir Robert's father renovated it and gave me a place to live in exchange for work and wages! It wasn't until a few years ago when Sir Robert took me to meet Silver Fox and Bonny at the Bluebell that I told him the truth and I reconnected with Mr Richards," he said bitterly.
Godred felt himself become self-conscious as he felt the eyes of everyone in the room on him.
"I regret damaging Culdee and the others, I was angry, so, so angry," Godred shook his head bitterly. "I never meant for Alaric to almost die. I was just… so mad. I'm sorry."
Mr Richard knelt so he stared eye to eye with Godred before drawing him into a tight hug to which Godred froze, uncertain of what to do.
"I must apologise for my father's actions Godred," he said, his voice muffled as he spoke into Godred's jacket.
"No- nothing for you to be worried about," Godred muttered uncomfortably and freaked out. He pushed Mr Richards away from him and he took the hint and quickly released him.
"I am sorry for making you uncomfortable, Godred," Mr Richards apologised. "But why didn't you say anything, I could have helped you."
"You looked up to your father, you respected him," Godred explained, looking at him sadly. "I didn't want to ruin the image you had of him."
Richard nodded to Godred.
"That's incredibly considerate of you Godred, but you still should have told me."
Godred sighed and looked away. "It doesn't matter anyway, there's no way my soul will return to an engine. Your engineers are skilled but they'd be at a loss as to where to start with building a new engine from scratch."
"I have friends in Australia, they can contact the small rack and pinion railway in Tasmania," Scotsman proposed. "Although their engines are different, their engineers are highly skilled. If they were to combine their knowledge with the Culdee Fell engineers, then they could work something out."
"Perhaps," Mr Richards said. "But building a new engine costs a lot of money. Money that we do not have."
"I have a lot of money left over from my rebuild," Flying Scotsman pointed out. "I could donate some. It was donated to me and so I still want it put to good use helping heritage railways."
"That will barely cover the cost of a new engine," Olivia pointed out. "Even a small one like a Godred."
"You forget, Lady Olivia," Sir Topham gestured grandly. "We on Sodor take pride in our heritage! Godred's story is one of the famous legends on the island! People will be quite happy to see him returned to the rails."
Godred looked at the Fat Controller, apprehensive but with hope in his eyes.
"Are you… are you sure sir?" He asked, embarrassed. "The story of myself falling off a mountain due to my stupidity… is not something of great achievement."
"Still, it's a story that made Culdee Fell quite famous," Mr Richards noted. "Its legacy owes a lot to you Godred."
Godred bowed his head again, deeply embarrassed.
"I still don't know," Godred muttered. "I've- I've lived almost all my life as a human… can I even return to an engine?"
"You never know until you try!" Scotsman said encouragingly and for once Godred didn't scowl at the famous engine. He nodded at him instead.
For a moment, everything seemed calm and relaxed.
Until a very large familiar blue A4 barged into the sheds causing several of the controllers to yell and a brief panic ensured before they realised who it was.
"Oh, it's just the real Bittern this time!" The Scotsman laughed. "You gave us all a fright, you enormous door wedge!"
"What do you mean the 'real' Bittern? Of course, it's me, you gormless plonker!" Bittern shouted at Flying Scotsman. "Can't even recognise your best friend, your rebuild was that bad huh? What's wrong with you?"
"Many things," Scotsman grinned at the blue A4 who just rolled his eyes and muttered, 'stupid'.
"Must you always go around being such a clumsy engine?!" Olivia shouted at Bittern angrily.
"Well I don't have to Ms Olivia but then again I don't go around forgetting about important engines in random sidings now do I?" Bittern scoffed at her.
"What are you-" Olivia suddenly caught sight of the engine Bittern was pulling into Ulfstead Castle after him and went as pale as a sheet as she realised her mistake. "Oh no! Sir Nigel!"
Said engine surprisingly wasn't glaring at her, instead looking very amused.
"While I do appreciate the wildlife of Sodor, Lady Gresley, I would prefer a more scenic siding to be stuck in for several days," Sir Nigel remarked amusedly.
Olivia quickly ran over to Sir Nigel and hugged his cylinder box apologetically.
"I am so sorry! I can't believe I forgot you!" She apologised profusely. "Why didn't your Fireman come and find me or call someone!?"
"Ah well, the funny thing is that after you disappeared from my cab, Phillip did too," Sir Nigel explained. "I'm not quite sure why."
"I uh, can answer that," Scotsman spoke up suddenly. "I sent him home and wiped his memory so that he wouldn't talk about what he saw. I may have also affected Ms Olivia's memories too, although accidentally. I was so preoccupied with dealing with Mallard and the black smoke that I genuinely forgot about you, Sir Nigel."
"I do not hold it against you cousin," Sir Nigel chuckled amused. "Granted everything that has happened, my predicament was quite amusing."
Bittern watched on confused.
"Mallard? Gold Dust? Important engines being left in sidings and forgotten about?!" He asked incredulously. "Just what exactly happened while I was in Shildon?!"
"It is," Scotsman started with a glance at Ms Olivia. "A very long and bizarre story."
"Try me," Bittern challenged.
Scotsman gave a deep sigh.
"Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you."
"Someone here to see you Rhion," King Edward II's driver gently woke the large blue King Class engine with a knock on his running board. Several of his other support crew were opening the doors to his makeshift shed.
Said shed was in tatters and an appalling state. However, he wanted nothing to do with his brother and so put up with the dusty, grimy and filthy space.
"If it's one of those lower-classed Sudrian Engines then tell them to go away," the King class sneered. "I have no time for silly little engines and their ways!"
"I would expect a King Class such as yourself to not be so crass and insulting to the engines who are hosting you as a guest, young Rhion," the stern and commanding voice of the City of Truro scolded him as the doors to the shed revealed the City class sitting outside his shed patiently waiting.
"City of Truro sir!" King Edward II went pale and almost lurched himself forward into the sunlight in surprise. "Ple- please forgive my unkept coat! I was not aware that I would be in your presence-"
"Stop," Truro snapped angrily and the Second fell immediately silent.
Truro took in his appearance as he moved forward to survey him with a critical eye as the big blue engine stared at his buffers, avoiding his superior's gaze.
"There are more important things than appearance Rhion," Truro explained. "I do not care if you are covered in mud when there are more important things to discuss."
"Yes sir."
Truro paused and stared at Rhion. He looked understandably nervous. The confrontation with Mallard was still at the forefront of his mind.
"I was aware of everything while Mallard had me, hostage," Truro explained and Rhion took a nervous and shaky breath. "I thank you for standing up and defending me from your brother. I know that the both of you are very close and that wasn't an easy thing to do. You have my gratitude and my favour for doing so."
"Yes sir, thank you, sir," King Edward II gave Truro a small smile. "I am proud to have you as the ambassador of the Great Western. I had no idea that my brother would be so treacherous."
"One never knows the intentions of another, you are not at fault Rhion," Truro assured him.
"Thank you, sir."
"I will deal with your brother," Truro assured the King class. "According to several eyewitnesses, he has also been saying some repulsive things towards my personal preferences. Do not expect him to return to Didcot with you, Trojan and Pendennis when you leave in the next couple of days."
Rhion stared behind Truro knowing what was going to happen but it still stung hearing it. Merfyn was his brother after all.
He kept his composure and looked back at Truro.
"What will you do with him?"
"There is a shortage of freight engines in the South West," Truro explained. "Merfyn is big enough to handle such a task."
King Edward I relegated to a freight engine was an enormous insult for one as proud as he.
"I understand sir," King Edward II accepted. No matter what he said, his brother would complain to him that he didn't try hard enough to defend him.
"Now," Truro said with an air of finality. "I heard that Lady of Legend requested an audience with me and I am more than happy to oblige."
Rhion immediately panicked.
"She's not ready to be seen by you, sir! We haven't finished teaching her proper etiquette of the Great Western Railway!"
"If she is requesting an audience with me then I must oblige," Truro warned King Edward II. "If I find out that you were abusing her because she didn't turn out to be Maindy Hall as you wished, you will join your brother in the freight industry."
King Edward II fell completely silent at Truro's words.
Maindy Hall had been a close friend to both Kings. When the Cold Iron Sleep had taken hold of her they had given her to the Saint Project, in an effort to save their dearest friend.
"I am aware of what happened to Maindy Hall and how you both went against the wishes of Olton and his siblings to keep her stationed under your protection," Truro revealed. "Lady of Legend is not your toy to play with. She is her own engine and she deserves to know the truth of her and be with her siblings."
"She is still Maindy Hall!" Rhion argued. "She just needs to- remember! The other Hall classes gave up on Maindy! My brother and I did not! We know she's still deep in that engine somewhere!"
"Enough!" Truro shouted angrily at Rhion. "Lady of Legend is her own engine, she is no longer Maindy Hall and I wish for her to say her piece. I will decide how to approach her when she explains herself without people speaking for her. That is all!"
Truro began to reverse away from Rhion, clearly having enough.
"I am sorry Rhion," Truro apologised to the blue engine who was staring at him angrily. "I know that you both loved Maidy Hall like a sister, but she is gone. She isn't coming back."
Rhion stared at the tracks before him, tears burning in his eyes from sorrow.
"Lady of Legend is another engine and if you give her a chance, maybe you could love her just as much," Truro advised him.
The Blue King class said nothing as Truro left, only staring at the rails, knowing deep in his boiler that the City of Truro was right.
"Good evening Flying Scotsman," Edward greeted the famous engine cheerily as he rolled up to Tidmouth Sheds. "You look quite grand."
"Thank you, Edward!" Flying Scotsman grinned and Gordon rolled his eyes. "I do indeed!"
"What brings you here, Scotsman?" Thomas asked the big engine.
"Well, Ms Olivia and I came to give my brother his birthday present," Scotsman revealed and Gordon raised an eyebrow at him.
"And I'd thought you'd forgotten," Gordon rumbled and the Scotsman chuckled. "And my build date was some months ago, little brother. You missed it."
"I'd never forget such a momentous occasion," Scotsman scoffed. "And I was undergoing my rebuild so that made it a little hard, but never mind, I'm here now and I think you'll love my gift."
"I doubt it," Gordon humphed.
"Don't knock it till you know what it is Gordon!" Ms Olivia chastised him as she approached him with a large cardboard box that looked quite heavy. "Myself and Sir Topham worked very hard to make Scotsman's present come to fruition."
"Yes Lady Gresley," Gordon mumbled but still gave his brother an annoyed look.
Olivia laid the box before him and began to unwrap it, revealing a headboard that looked newly forged.
"A Flying Scotsman headboard?" Gordon stared down at the metal board before him unimpressed.
He looked back at his brother and frowned at him.
"Just like you to give me a birthday present that's self-centred," the big blue engine remarked snidely.
"I guess it is in a way," Flying Scotsman agreed. "But in truth, the headboard is just the ribbon bow on top."
"What do you mean?"
"Pretty Polly and I were in charge of the King's Cross Flying Scotsman fleet for many decades," Scotsman explained. "While the board of directors were ultimately the ones who made the decisions, Polly and I could accept or reject any engine they rostered on. It was to make sure that only the fittest and best engines would fit in with our team and keep everything running smoothly."
Gordon huffed and grew annoyed.
"I don't see how your boasting has anything to do with my 100th birthday!" He snapped.
"Well, the Azuma's and the Diesel's who ran the line previously carried on that tradition, of having my blessing for running the express. The current LNER directors make a point of it in fact," Scotsman said sheepishly. "Any engines, no matter their type or class need my approval to run on it. That includes you."
Gordon's eyes widened in shock.
"Me?" He asked surprised. "I have never run the Flying Scotsman Express in my entire life."
All the engines suddenly stared at Gordon as they realised what was going on. Gordon however looked blankly at his brother, not understanding.
"Better late than never then big brother?" Scotsman gave a soft chuckle.
Gordon frowned and looked from his brother and back down at the headboard as his friends suddenly started whispering excitedly among themselves.
His brother had gifted him a headboard that was only for those who ran on the Flying Scotsman Express, a prestigious and famous train that only the best express engines pulled.
Gordon's jaw dropped as he realised what Scotsman's gift actually was.
He had always been told by his siblings, even by Sir Gresley himself, that as a prototype he would never be fit to run the Flying Scotsman. That he was too weak or too old and riddled with faults and problems.
And so he took great pride in pulling the express on Sodor, even if it wasn't the world-famous Flying Scotsman, it was still an express train. It was his proof that he wasn't a failure of a prototype.
"Me? Run the Flying Scotsman?!" He spluttered wholly shocked. "Is this one of your fangled tricks?"
"No trick brother. They'll be proper Pullman coaches and workers dressed up like the good old days just for your run. Ms Olivia and the museum have been planning it for over a year now," Scotsman grinned from smoke deflector to smoke deflector. "Happy Birthday Gordon!"
Gordon stared down at the headboard before looking around at his friends who were all gathered around, smiling and proud of him.
Even Green Arrow who was sitting a distance away from the others had a smile on his face.
"Thank- thank you!" He stammered in complete shock as he looked back at his brother. "Scotsman… thank you!"
"I did promise, back in the workshop when we were both young and green that one day you would pull the Flying Scotsman," Scotsman recalled. "Apologies for taking so long to fulfil my promise to you."
Gordon laughed at that.
"Better late than never Scott!" He laughed heartily.
"We can have you painted into LNER green if you like," Ms Olivia offered. "Just for the occasion."
Gordon felt too overwhelmed to speak, instead, he sat there with the widest and goofiest grin on his face as Tidmouth sheds erupted into singing him happy birthday, cheers and whistles as they applauded him.
He felt like his boiler would burst from pride and happiness.
He was going to do what his siblings were made for.
What he was made for.
Tyfil was drifting off to sleep as Ryan came in from his day of delivering trucks to Arlesdale.
"Hello, Ms Tydfil!" Ryan greeted her cheerily. "Did you have a good day?"
Lady of Legend frowned at him.
"The Green King yelled at me again today," she said quietly. "Even though I didn't do anything but talk to your controller."
Ryan looked mournfully at the young engine. She looked upset and he genuinely wished there was something he could do to help her.
"We should try and talk to that City of Truro fella again," Ryan urged and Tydfil just sighed and looked away.
"We don't even know if he is back from getting his wheels fixed yet," Tydfil grumbled, annoyed. "Let's just leave it okay?"
Ryan frowned, wanting to press further but decided not to, instead reversing into the space beside Tydfil and starting to settle down for the night. He wanted to talk to her but the poor engine seemed exhausted and so he left her to sleep.
Ryan himself was drifting off to sleep when a loud unfamiliar tinny whistle woke both himself and Tydfil up.
"Oh, those stupid night trains!" Tydfil cursed angrily, upset at being woken up.
"But I don't recognise that whistle," Ryan mused. "It's not anyone who works at Harwick with Daisy and me."
"Then who-"
A large engine came into view as Tydfil spoke. They were unfamiliar and they steamed towards them, their puffs sounding short and like a small bark. They looked similar to Tydfil, having a very notable Great Western look to them.
For a moment, Tydfil panicked, thinking that it was one of the Twin Kings coming to yell at her or take her away but then she realised that the engine was a lot smaller than either King Class.
She stared at the engine as it came to a gentle stop, sitting quietly before them.
"Many greetings, I was told that I would find the lovely Lady of Legend here," the engine spoke in a warm rich elderly sounding voice. "Are you her?"
"Yes I am," Tydfil answered. "And I prefer Tydfil and you're interrupting my sleep, what do you want?"
"A pleasure to meet you, I am the City of Truro," the engine introduced himself. "My dearest Flying Scotsman told me that you wanted to talk to me."
Tydfil gave a strange squeak of fright and immediately turned bright red in embarrassment.
"I am sorry sir! I did not mean offence sir! Please don't ship me off to the docklands or another country sir!" Tydfil squeaked rapidly.
"Hush now dear one, I am not going to do any such things," Truro said to her kindly before he suddenly noticed Ryan. "Who is your friend?"
"This is Ryan sir," Tydfil introduced. "He is my friend. I don't care if he's not high class! He's my friend!"
Truro noticed the defensiveness Tydfil was displaying and realised just how much the Twin Kings must have been pushing her.
"It does not matter what class or rank an engine is, a friend is a friend," Truro smiled before turning to Ryan. "It's nice to meet you, Ryan. Your livery is quite striking."
Ryan blushed. "Thank you, sir! I know it's quite unusual but I like it, sir."
"Taw Valley would not agree but to each their own," Truro said with a chuckle. "Now Lady Tydfil, I want you to tell me the truth. I will not hold anything against you and I want you to speak freely with whatever you wish to say."
"Yes sir," Tydfil smiled at him. "I- I- just feel so sheltered at Didcot. Coming to Sodor and seeing all the Steam engines, meeting Ryan."
Tydfil paused and looked at Ryan who smiled at her encouragingly.
"It made me realise just how much of the world I've been missing sir," Tydfil explained. "All the Twin Kings ever do is order me around, tell me to be proper and never teach me how to pull trains or anything! And when I do pull trains they yell at me for doing it wrong!"
Truro's gaze softened as he watched the young engine rant.
"Do you feel like the Kings try and force you to be someone you're not?" He asked and Tydfil gazed at him confused before a look of realisation spread across her face.
"Yes! Yes, they do! They call me Maindy and they get mad whenever I try to tell them my name is Tydfil!" Tydfil exclaimed.
"Just as I feared," Truro said concern in his voice. "They refuse to accept Maindy's death."
"Who is Maindy?" Tydfil asked. "Every time I ask the King's just get angry at me!"
Truro paused and gazed at the young engine sadly. She didn't know how or why she was how she is.
"What do you know about your build, young Tydfil?" Truro asked.
"That I am a new build like that Tornado girl," Tydfil said proudly. "But I am better than that oversized piece of junk."
"Tornado is a good engine that has proven herself to me while you have not," Truro scolded her, his voice suddenly stern. "Do not slander an engine you do not know."
"Yes sir."
"You are a new build but in a very different way to Tornado, Tydfil," Truro explained. "For one, you are not as new as you think you are."
Tydfil looked confused. "What does that mean?"
"Tornado is mostly made from newly forged parts," Truro explained. "She has of course got parts from previous engines such as one of her whistles. One of them is from an A4 named Golden Eagle. She was almost given Flying Scotsman's spare tender before Bittern took it."
"What does that have to do with me?" Tydfil asked annoyed.
"You, on the other hand, young Tydfil are very different to Tornado in that most of your parts came from a previous engine," Truro told Tydfil as something began clicking into place in her mind about what he was saying. "You were built on top of another engine's… for lack of a better word, corpse."
Tydfil fell silent as her mind processed the information.
Suddenly a lot of things made sense. Why Olton Hall called her 'sister', why that Black 5 had called her an abomination, why did almost every engine she met always stared at her like she was some kind of freak?
"Maindy Hall," she said quietly. "I was once an engine named Maindy Hall."
"Yes," Truro explained. "Maindy Hall gave herself willingly to the Saint Project, in the hopes of giving an extinct class a chance. The Twin Kings cannot accept that you are a brand-new engine I am afraid."
Tydfil was silent. She stared at the ground, no longer listening to the City of Truro, his words muffled and a mess of dull noise.
She was a freak. A zombie.
She didn't know whether to cry or scream, her thoughts battering her smokebox like a treacherous monsoon downpour.
A gentle nudge of her buffers brought her to her senses and she suddenly found the City of Truro right in front of her, looking at her deeply concerned.
"Mr- Mr Truro?" She asked, suddenly confused.
"This is a lot for you, I will leave you to process what you have learned," Truro told her gently.
"But- but I wanted- I wanted to stay here! To learn and, and stuff-" She stammered, all of Tydfil's enthusiasm and snark were gone, her mind was a confusing mess of feelings, thoughts and fears.
"I will have to make arrangements, but rest assured, I have made sure that the Twin Kings will not bother you while you sort your feelings and thoughts out young Tydfil," Truro assured her. "You are always welcome to speak to me if you wish."
Tydfil said nothing, only stared at her buffers.
Truro looked over at Ryan who was staring at his friend deeply concerned.
"Look after her won't you, Ryan?" Truro asked for the purple engine. "I fear I may have shocked her too much with the revelation of what she is."
"Of course sir, I'll look after her sir," Ryan pledged.
Truro looked back at Tydfil.
"You are not a freak or a horrible monster Tydfil," he assured her. "You are a unique build and special engine like no other. Remember that."
Tydfil managed to look up at the City of Truro, wanting to cry but instead found his warm expression and encouraging face.
At least he had told her the truth. A truth she had always known deep down but was always dismissed by others around her.
"Thank you for telling me the truth, sir," she croaked. "Up until now, I was living a lie."
"Well then, now you can embrace your truth and be stronger for it," Truro declared and Tydfil managed to smile, sparks of resolve lighting in her firebox.
"I will sir. I promise you that."
A big thank-you to a friend on Tumblr who's been helping me with some research into Steam Engines (Specifically Tornado and her firebox issues) and gave me some fun facts about our Young Iron Tornado.
-She has two whistles, a LNER 'peep' whistle and an A4 Pacific 'Screamer' whistle from 4482 Golden Eagle.
In her early life, she had A LOT of firebox issues, like, Henry's levels of firebox issues. I do regret not knowing this early because I think it would have made such a good chance to have her befriend Henry with them having similar struggles. But then again this is probably something she doesn't want to talk about and I would understand if she wanted to keep it a secret.
-She deserves the world.
~For updates, extra lore or to ask questions or discuss the fic, you can find me on tornadoyoungiron tumblr
There is also a Tumblr where you can directly ask the characters of this story at Ask Young Iron
