The construction on the hotel was going well. The driveway and car parks had finally been completed, filling the luscious green forest with hideous grey concrete. But the actual hotel building was being started. The floor had been laid and the walls were starting to be put up. The machines were all desperate to work on the hotel, but other areas needed their attention. The pool had to be dug, trees had to be moved, and the golf course and children's area needed to be completed. Cedric stopped by occasionally to check the progress, but the rest of the time he seemed far too busy to come over. The pack didn't mind, but they were starting to wonder what he always up to.
Earlier one morning, a week after Cedric had arrived, the Pack had just woken up. They were all chatting excitedly about the day ahead when Miss Jenny walked over, followed by the Foreman and Jacob, Cedric's bodyguard.
"Good morning everyone." Miss Jenny said. "Before I announce today's jobs, Jacob from Mr Berrob's office needs to talk to you." The Pack exchanged cautious looks: they all found Jacob to be very frightening.
"Hello." Jacob said, taking his dark sunglasses off. "Mr Berrob requires the assistace of several machines for a very important job." He then pulled out a small note of paper. "He needs the green excavator, the transporter, and one of the dump trucks."
"We do have names." Alfie huffed.
"Yes, but I don't have the time to learn them." Jacob replied. Alfie wanted to argue, but the Foreman gave him a look, and he remained quiet.
"Are we going to leave now?" Nelson asked. Jacob nodded, and walked over to towards one another black Chrysler 300.
"I don't want to do a job." Max grumbled.
"Do you think I want to?" Monty huffed.
"Well I don't care what you want!" Max growled.
"Yeah, and I don't care what you want!" Monty shouted back.
"Oh give it a rest!" Kelly sighed, and the two dump trucks remained quiet, but they continued to growl and glare at each other.
"Monty, you can go." Miss Jenny said. Max grinned deviously, and Monty reluctantly rolled away with Nelson and Alfie. Monty rolled onto Nelson, the Chrysler started up and they headed off.
"Ok, now I have to give out the rest of your jobs." Miss Jenny smiled. "Ned and Jack, I need you two to start digging up the swimming pool; Max can take away the dirt. Oliver and Byron, you two can do more work on the golf course. Isabella and Magenta, there are a number of supplies for you to collet."
"How unusual." Isabella grunted, and Magenta laughed loudly, but they stopped at Miss Jenny's scowl.
"Fredrick, Buster and Patrick, I received a phone call from the aluminium works manager this morning." The Foreman said. "One of his lorries spotted a landslide near a tunnel on the old Mid Sodor railway. It is blocking a road and has damaged the surrounding area, so I need you three to clear it away and fix the road up."
"Right away sir." Fredrick beamed.
"Oh, one last thing. Cedric hasn't used Thumper in the past few days, despite the special request, so he will be digging up some rocks to be used in the gardens, so keep away from that area today." Miss Jenny said. The Pack all agreed, and then headed for the gate. Isabella and Magenta went off one way to collect their supplies, while the rest headed off, talking about the day ahead. No one of them realised a certain steamroller watching them through the trees.

A large area had been allowed for a swimming pool, as Cedric wanted it to be a fun area for the whole family, and to allow lots of people to accommodate it. Jack and Ned knew these, but they weren't expecting the size of it when they saw it.
"This is probably longer than the driveway!" Ned gasped.
"I suppose he wanted an Olympic sized one." Jack said.
"But it is so big!" Ned gasped. Jack rolled forwards, past several men who were digging up the ground for the fence.
"Let's just start doing this, it is going to take ages!" Jack sighed. Ned nodded, and the two instantly started work. Max had been lagging behind, so they had to put the Earth to a corner for the time being. Fifteen minutes after they started, they had barely scratched the surface, even though the pile of earth was getting bigger and bigger. When Max finally arrived, the mud was practically tipping over.
"Where have you been?" Jack said. He tried to snap, but was already exhausted.
"Sorry, I just didn't want to be here." Max grumbled, as he eyed all of the earth.
"Ned, load up him with as much of that as possible." Jack said. Ned nodded, and quickly rushed over.
"Whatever you do, don't stuff up!" Max growled.
"Of course not!" Ned smiled. He went to scoop it up, but he hit the side of the mound instead. Jack let out a cry of laughter as it all tumbled down, covering Max from bumper to bumper in mud.
"Oops, sorry." Ned said, looking guilty. Max just let out an angry growl and drove off. Ned looked at Jack, but he was too busy laughing to notice.

The landslide team soon arrived, and found that it wasn't as bad as they had first expected. Only a small section of the road was damaged, and the main damage came from some large rocks.
"Where are you going to put it?" Buster asked, as the three came to a halt.
"I am sure there is some hill he can toss it down." Patrick huffed.
"I will most certainly not be tossing the rubble down the hill!" Fredrick growled.
"I am sure I saw an old station down there, we could move it down when we are finished." Buster said. Fredrick nodded, and he moved over towards the rubble. He dug his scoop in and lifted up as much as he could. A lot of rocks got in, along with some dirt, and then Fredrick lifted it up and moved to the side of the road. It was very hot, and Buster and Patrick were tired from the drive and didn't feel like talking. Fredrick went back and picked up his second lot. As he moved away, some dirt trickled down to fill in the gap, and Buster saw something inside.
"Hey, there's something in here!" He cried. Fredrick quickly dumped the dirt and rushed back.
"What is it?" Patrick asked, trying to get a good look. It was pale, and definitely didn't belong in the dirt.
"I'll clear it out." Fredrick said, and carefully nudged away some of the dirt. More dirt fell, and then the pale thing was revealed to be a hand. Fredrick stopped, and the three exchanged looks.
"You don't think..." Buster said, but his voice trailed off. Fredrick quickly pushed more dirt aside. Soon, the upper body of man was revealed. He smelt disgusting, and his head seemed to be rotting away. There was a squeal, and a rat scampered away. The man was wrapped inside a velvety fabric, and it was stained with blood and dirt.
"Well...." Patrick said, stunned.
"Yes, well...." Fredrick agreed, as they stared at the corpse.

The Pack had worked all over Sodor: from clearing a landslide at Kirk Machan, to assisting in rebuilding the Dryaw Station. However, they had never been to the castle ruins at Arlesburgh.
There were a large amount of tourists, taking pictures of the derelict building and the lighthouse nearby. The fields were very bare, with nearly no trees and a very flat, consistent surface. The tourists never really paid attention here, but there was a mild buzz today. For some reason, three vehicles were moving across the fields, with a man standing on top of one.
"This is so tedious and boring!" Monty grunted.
"My wheels are about to fall off!" Alfie groaned.
"At least you don't have a car on your back!" Nelson hissed. After travelling the same way the Pack usually went, Jacob led them down towards Arlesburgh, where they waited for half an hour on the Small Railway while Jacob collected Cedric. The Chrysler was then driven onto Nelson, much to Monty's displeasure, and they headed towards the castle ruins.
"Why are we going there?" Nelson had asked.
"Mr Berrob wants you to find an old battleground." Jacob replied instantly. "It was covered up after a war, but Cedric heard that there are some valuable treasures around, and wants you to look for them."
"Why?" Monty asked, and Jacob got very snappy at this point.
"It is for the lobby, now drive!" And so they had. They had been roaming around the bare fields for twenty minutes, and the sun was glaring down on them.
"I just want to stop!" Alfie whimpered. "My engine is about to die!" As if his prayers were answered, a grumble issued from inside the Chrysler. Jacob, who was standing on the flatbed, nodded, and then tapped his foot.
"Stop!" He cried. The three machines gladly agreed, and stopped instantly. Jacob nearly lost his balance, and Alfie stifled a snigger as he stood back up and pretended it hadn't happened.
"This is the spot Mr Berrob wants you to dig." Jacob boomed. Alfie looked around, and saw that it looked exactly like the rest of the surrounding area.
"Okey dokey." Alfie said, and dug his scoop into the ground. "Am I looking for something in particular?"
"Yes, wood." Jacob said. "They put wooden planks over the trenches, so people wouldn't fall in. Hopefully, none of you will fall in, I don't think Mr Berrob would like that."
"I don't think we would either." Nelson muttered, and Alfie and Monty laughed weakly. Alfie tapped his scoop onto the ground, and found dirt. He sighed, and moved forwards slightly, with the same result.
It was going to be a long day.

Max soon returned to collect the rest of the dirt, while still covered in most of his delivery. But by the time he had gotten back, there was twice the amount.
"Can't you lot slow down until I have cleared all of this away?" The dump truck scowled, as a man waited to scoop it in. Jack looked up to him, completely red in the face and an angry look that seemed to be fixed there.
"Have you seen the area we have to dig?" The front loader growled, moving forwards and shaking his scoop. "We have been working for about forty minutes and we don't even have a tenth of it done yet." Max was much bigger than Jack, but the front loader had such a furious expression that the dump truck cowered slightly.
"Fine, dig up as much as you want." He said. "But you better help load some of this in next time." The worker gave him the thumbs up, and Max turned and raced away, leaving a cloud of smoke behind.
"Good riddance!" Jack growled, and he moved back to his area. Ned looked up to him as he approached, looking slightly sad.
"Do you think this will take much longer?" The steam shovel asked. "I am just really tired, and I can't keep moving backwards and forwards all day, taking small amounts of dirt."
"I know this is boring, but everyone will be helping when they can." Jack said, though he didn't sound encouraging. However, Ned smiled all the same. He dug up his latest amount of dirt, and then headed towards the mound.
"Max really should hurry up, there is far too much dirt here, and he can't take it all on his own today." Ned said.
"Watch it!" Jack gasped. Ned turned, and didn't realise he had gone of course, and was now heading towards the workers. He tried to swerve, but he crashed into the dirt, knocking it onto several men, and then he continued forwards. Ned eventually stopped, but ran over bits of the fence as he did.
"You stupid machine!" One man yelled. He was covered in filth, and was shaking his fist and hard hat. Another man came over, and calmly told Ned to move backwards, and then pulled the fence away.
"Sorry, I really am sorry!" Ned blustered.
"Come on Ned, let's just get back to work." Jack said, and Ned nodded. As the men argued and shouted about the incident, Jack heard a whistle from behind him, followed by an all too familiar voice.
"Goodness Ned, you still are a bumbling idiot!" Jack let out an angry sigh, and then turned around. Sure enough, George, Mac and Grudge were right behind him, smiling widely.
"Hello Jackie boy, miss us?" Mac sneered, and George and Grudge erupted in laughter, as Jack struggled to contain himself.

Fredrick, Buster and Patrick stared at the corpse, entirely unsure about what to do. After about ten minutes though, they really needed an answer.
"Maybe we should hand it in to the police?" Buster said at last.
"That would be a good idea." Fredrick nodded.
"I disagree." Patrick said. Fredrick and Buster turned to him, shocked. "I think we should hide it."
"Are you serious?" Buster fumed.
"Yes, I am." Patrick said, turning to them. "Look at it this way: after Buster and the others found the first body, Jack, Alfie and Isabella get struck by a bomb, and there was that fire on the same night."
"Do you think it had to do with the body?" Fredrick asked.
"I am almost certain." Patrick replied. "And then there was the second one, which wasn't that far away from the first." Fredrick and Buster exchanged looks, and they couldn't help but agree.
"This is true..." Fredrick mumbled.
"So, you think that they are connected?" Buster asked.
"I am almost certain!" Patrick nodded. "And there is the safe as well, I am bloody well certain they are connected?" Buster and Fredrick looked back at the corpse, and Fredrick moved forwards. He stuck his scoop in underneath, and the lifted up. The body and the dirt rose up, with some trickling down over Fredrick's rusted scoop.
"I think we should bury it nearby, but in a different place." The digger said, trying to keep the smell away from his moustache. Buster and Patrick moved down the road, looking for an appropriate burial place.
"Come over here, this place looks good!" Buster cried from a distance. Fredrick rushed over as fast as possible, keeping the scoop steady so the old body wouldn't fall out. The steamroller was underneath a bridge, over old tracks.
"I figured we could bury it here." Buster explained. "It is easy enough to find, and I don't think many people come around here."
"Good idea, and the bridge would be a perfect shelter." Fredrick nodded. Patrick came over, and he and Buster moved to the side. Fredrick placed the body down, and then scooped away a section of Earth. The cement mixer and steamroller watched in silence, as Fredrick dug a hole, and then drop the body in, and quickly covered it up.
You wouldn't have even known it exsisted.

Thumper was enjoying his work with the pack. He wasn't being harassed about his work that much, and was enjoying being out in the sun, soaking it all in and doing what he does best: digging.
"Ah, I haven't had such a fun job in years." Thumper said in his rough, gravelly voice. His pistons were pounding into the side of the mountain, making cracks in the surface. Rocks were trickling down, and several men were standing by the trees, watching it.
"Keep it up Thumper!" One of them yelled.
"This rock is really hard." Thumper replied. "I don't think it'll come down as easily."
"Just keep trying." Another yelled. Thumper sighed, ignoring the dust floating around him. He liked his job, but didn't like having to damage the rock when there was no hope.
However, he was unaware of the damage he was really doing. Hundreds of feet above him, the ground was shaking in a less stable area. The lake of Corloey is a reasonably small lake, compared to others on the island, but the water from it went downhill and led off to other lakes and rivers. There were many mines deep beneath it, and it downhill towards a forest behind it. As Thumper destroyed the rock face down at ground level, several rocks began to stream down the river banks. The number grew, and grew, and grew. Then, all of a sudden, a large crack began to form under the water.
And it began to trickle into the mines.

George rolled forward, smiling in triumph.
"Aren't you going to welcome us back?" He sneered.
"I thought you lot got locked up." Jack snarled back, trying to stand up to them.
"Yes, we were impounded for a while." George said, sighing a little. "However, the police found some evidence that proves it wasn't us."
"What do you mean?" Jack gasped.
"I don't know who tried to blow you up." George snapped. "Someone obviously dislikes you lot, which isn't really a surprise." As George spoke, Ned rolled nervously backwards, looking for help. However, all the other vehicles were doing their own jobs, and the workers were dealing with the fences.
"Let's just cut the chit-chat." Mac growled. "I want to finish what we started!"
"Calm down!" George snapped.
"I want to fight as well." Grudge huffed.
"SHUT IT!" George and Mac said together, and Grudge looked a little dejected.
"I am a part of this team as well." He said, but was ignored.
"Let's get rid of these two first." George said, smiling widely. "I wouldn't want them going for help when we go for the building."
"Agreed." Mac sneered, and he charged forwards. Jack reversed and turned, and Mac skidded past.
"You can't do this, this is unfair!" Jack said, his voice cracking.
"Your right, two against one is a bit unfair." George smiled.
"What about Ned and I?" Grudge asked.
"We aren't counting the idiots." Mac said angrily. Ned was shocked: he knew that he wasn't the brightest tool in Miss Jenny's shed, and that he could be clumsy at times, and has caused several accidents in the past, but he didn't think he was an idiot. Ned swelled up with anger and pride, and looked around. He noticed that a large rock had been picked up with some of the dirt, and was lying nearby. Just as George was about to head towards Jack, two honks sounded in the distance.
"It's Magenta and Isabella!" Jack said excitedly. George and Mac looked over temporarily, but Grudge cried out.

"Oh no!" He cried. Mac turned, just as Ned opened his bucket, dropping the heavy rock onto Mac's windscreen.
"Argh!" Mac groaned, as the glass shattered.
"No so useless now, am I!" Ned huffed, and then turned his body and swung, getting his scoop under Mac's roof. He then lifted it up, and tore the metal.
"Oh god!" George said.
"Looks like you weren't expecting this!" Jack sniggered, and then rolled forwards. He shoved his scoop into George's roller, catching the steamroller by surprise, and he began to move backwards. The cries could be heard all around the area, and several workers were rushing over, and Isabella and Magenta were turning around.
"This is really bad!" Grudge muttered.
"Then go then!" George snapped, as he tried to push back Jack. Mac, meanwhile, was trying to flee from Ned.
"Who's the idiot now?" Ned said, as he bashed Mac on the back of his tipper. Mac spun out of control, and Grudge yelled out and rushed forwards.
"You won't go far!" Isabella yelled. Grudge realised the two lorries were in front of him, and he quickly turned to his right. Men leapt out of the way as he roared through the mud, splashing mud everywhere.
SMASH!
The battle froze, as people listened for the source of the calamity. Grudge had driven straight onto the railway tracks, unaware that Jock was trying to pass with several ballast trucks. Black dust were in the air, and Jock's gleaming yellow paint was filthy.
"What is going on here?" Jock asked. Everyone had frozen, amazed by the collision. Then, Mac splashed through the mud, spraying Isabella and Magenta. George then pushed Jack into Ned, causing them to slide into a freshly dug hole. Mac then slammed into George, giving him a needed push, and they sped away.
"Good job Ned." Jack said, as the workers began to move again, and rushed to examine them.
"Thank you." Ned smiled.
"What are we doing with him?" Magenta asked, staring at Grudge, who was being reversed away from the trucks.
"I think we should let him go, he isn't that much of a threat." Jack said.
"Probably not." Isabella nodded. "Have any of the others gotten back yet?"
"No." Jack said, shaking his head.
"I wonder what Cedric's special job is." Magenta pondered, and they all spared a thought, thinking of their friends.

Thud.
Alfie had been searching for a wooden covering for three hours. The sun was baking down on him, and he could barely concentrate. Monty and Nelson were sitting in the shade of one of the trees, smirking as Alfie continuously smashed his scoop into the ground. He wasn't expecting anything, and was thoroughly surprised to hear a thud.
"I think I found something." He croaked. He heard Monty groan, but ignored him as he smashed his scoop into the ground again. This time, the grass disappeared, and there was a snap: some sort of plank had smashed. Alfie began to ignore the heat, glad that he had finally found something. He moved his scoop and body around, pulling up more ground and wood. There was soon a wide enough hole, but the little excavator was happy he continue to tear up the field, letting out squeals of delight. Monty finally arrived, with Nelson close behind. Jacob leapt off the flatbed, whipping out a flash light.
"Move back!" He said, and flashed it into the hole. Alfie couldn't help look, and saw some benches, and some sort of tarpaulin. There was a loud thud, and the machines looked as Mr Berrob came out of the Chrysler, wearing the usual suit.
"Finally." He mumbled, and jumped off the flatbed, landing perfectly and ignoring the mild pain.
"I believe this is the right place." Jacob said, and Cedric nodded.
"What is down there?" Nelson asked.
"I am not sure, the artefacts." Alfie said, Jacob rushed to the car and got a rope ladder out. He attached it using some pegs, and then rolled it into the trench.
"This better be the spot." Cedric said.
"Your calculations suggest it is." Jacob said, and he clambered down. Cedric followed, covering the rungs with a cloth as he went.
It was very dark inside the trench, and there was very little light, except for the torch. The mud was covered with wood, though it was poking through. It smelt very mouldy and rotten, and bugs were crawling around. Cedric gagged, and Jacob flashed the light around. It caught the tarpaulin, and Cedric looked at it.
"Open it." He muttered, staring eagerly. Jacob nodded, and bent down. He whipped the tarpaulin off, and then backed off, gagging. Cedric ignored him, and smiled. Lying on the tarp was a corpse, most likely male, with worms crawling around. Jacob threw up, disgusted by this. But Cedric just smiled.
"It is nearly complete." He whispered, and pulled out a small notepad and a gold pen from his pocket, and made a small check on a map of Sodor.
"Three down, two to go."