AUTHOR'S NOTICE: Finally! After a good few months and dealing with work and personal problems, this chapter is finally finished! As always, big shoutout to Goldsaddletank for editing and adding her own pieces to this chapter!

Disclaimer: Thomas and Friends belong to Mattle, humanized forms and new characters belong to me

Enjoy!

"Dear me - Farmer McColl lost more cows last night." A 29-year-old male tutted, reading the newspaper at his office desk. He had short cornflower-colored hair and stunning sapphire eyes sparkling with intelligence and kindness. His skin was as pale as alabaster.

He wore a beautiful, exquisite blue suit, with red stripes on the sleeve cuffs, a white dress shirt, a neat jet-black tie, and a golden pin in the shape of the number '2' on the breast of his jacket.

His feet were shod with smart, immaculate black slacks, free of scuffs and scratches.

"A fishing boat lost fish last night as well." A 30-year-old male sighed softly as he looked over the man's shoulder. "It's one attack every week. When will they bloody stop, Edward?"

The second male was a few inches taller than his blue-haired friend, his short brown hair combed back professionally. His green eyes dazzled with intelligence.

He wore a suit similar to his companion, but it was bright green in color, and wore a gold '8' pin on the breast of his jacket.

"Indeed." Edward sighed softly as he folded the newspaper up. "I'm curious to find out what is happening. There aren't any large predators that can attack and kill cows on Sodor. There's been whale sightings near Sodor, but… there's nothing to suggest a whale caused the fish to disappear."

"Hm." Duck said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. "It is a mystery, my friend."

Edward was about to reply to this when;

"Breakfast!"

Both Edward and Duck looked at the doorway and saw a small teen standing there, smiling brightly. His chocolate brown hair was still mussed from sleeping but his bright blue eyes glittered with enthusiasm. He wore an identical outfit to Edward, but he wore a number '1' pin instead.

"Thank you, Thomas." Duck chuckled as he walked past him, ruffling his hair.

Thomas giggled before replying cheerfully "You're welcome, Duck!" before skipping over to Edward. "What were you two doing?"

"I was collecting everyone's jobs while Duck and I were talking about the missing cows and fish." Edward hummed softly, gently fixing his youngest brother's hair as best as he could without a comb.

"I feel bad for them." Thomas sighed softly, letting Edward mess with his hair. "Farmer McColl has been upset about losing money from his missing cows and is worried about the price of feed for his animals."

"It is taking a toll on him." Edward agreed softly, standing up and grabbing a stack of papers, before holding the door open for Thomas, "but I'm sure answers will be found soon," he smiled as his brother joined him.

"I hope so." Thomas softly said before smiling brightly. "Now let's get some breakfast!" He giggled before jogging towards the dining room.

Edward chuckled softly as he followed Thomas into the dining room, looking at his siblings and their friends. "Alright everyone, I have your jobs for the day here." He said before walking around the table, and handing them their paperwork.

The sounds of utensils being placed on porcelain plates rang out as everyone grabbed their respective paperwork.

Everyone wore a similar suit to Duck, Edward, and Thomas, but of different colors. There were varying shades of green while there were other colors such as blue, red, black, silver, teal, magenta, yellow, and brown.

Some of them had numbered pins on their jacket collar. Some didn't, but only the one dressed in silver had two metal stripes pinned to his suit.

"I don't know why I should even get a job list." A tall, muscular male huffed in annoyance, grabbing the paper. "I only pull the Express!"

The man also wore blue, but his jacket was draped over the back of his chair, and his shirtsleeves were rolled up, easily showing his muscular arms.

His chocolate hair was combed back with hair gel, his eyes a sparkling sapphire.

"Because there are days where you do pull goods trains, Gordon." Edward hummed as he looked at his adoptive brother.

"My engine wasn't built to pull smelly goods trains." Gordon huffed in a snooty way. "It's beneath me…" He grumbled before resuming eating his breakfast. He grunted when he realized he was out of coffee, and groaned when he saw who was holding the precious coffee pot hostage.

"And how many times has that bitten you in the ass?" A seventeen-year-old teen teased, his ruby-colored eyes sparkling tauntingly. He smirked when he saw Gordon give him the stink eye and silently demanded the safe return of the coffee pot.

His work suit was a brilliant red color with black pants and shoes. His short hair was ebony black with red streaks. A gold '5' pin shone on the breast of his jacket.

"You're one to talk, James." Gordon grumbled under his breath, glaring at him. "Now give me the damn coffee pot, James, or I'll ensure you spend your last living moments screaming down MY Hill -"

"Shant". James retorted, chuckling at Gordon's response, only to wince when he felt a hand hit the back of his head. "What was that for?" He huffed, glaring at the Japanese male sitting next to him.

"You know better than to talk like that, James." Hiro, the Japanese male scolded softly, slowly taking a sip of his matcha tea. His suit was black with gold lining and a gold 51 pin on his jacket. His hair was neatly combed back and his eyes as black as ebony.

Gordon smirked as James sulkily surrendered the precious vessel back to the center of the table - he gleefully snatched it up again and poured himself a cup of coffee before James could try anything else.

"So what were you two doing?" A woman asked, using a napkin to dab her lips delicately to avoid ruining her lipstick. She had beautiful blonde hair done up in a neat bun and sapphire eyes.

Stunning blue eye shadow sparkled in the sun, the light complimenting the blush adorning her cheeks. Her work suit was bright green with yellow lining, and was very prim and crisp in appearance.

"Just talking about the missing cows and fish, Daze." Duck said as he sat between her and his boyfriend, who also happened to be Daisy's brother, BoCo.

"They still haven't figured it out?" BoCo asked before taking a bite of his scrambled eggs.

His dark brown hair was combed and styled with gel. His brown eyes sparkled with curiosity. His suit was similar to Daisy's but without any yellow lining.

"Apparently." Edward sighed softly, sitting between Gordon and Thomas.

During the rest of breakfast, the entire Steam Team talked about the disappearances of animals - Farmer Trotter had lost pigs earlier this week, and Edward had heard that those in the mountain communities had not escaped unscathed; having lost sheep, goats, chickens and more cows.

This eventually - and inevitably - turned to the loss of money for those who make a living from rearing these animals and selling them and their goods such as meat, wool, eggs, and milk.

Although three of them were silent through this conversation - James, Gordon, and a third male who sat on Gordon's other side, Henry.

His height and build were similar to Gordon's, and he was around 23 years old. His silver hair, flowing down to his shoulders, was neatly brushed. His eyes were a stunning emerald green. He wore an apple-green work suit with red lining and a gold 3 pin on his jacket.

The three just silently glanced at each other as they slowly ate their breakfast, though they all ate very little.

….

After a while, everyone had cleaned the kitchen and were busy getting their engines ready for another day of working on the North Western Railway.

As Henry shoveled coal into his engine's firebox, he looked over at Edward.

Despite Gordon and James telling him that he's getting old and should retire his engine, he was amazed how it never fazed Edward the slightest.

Though it bothered him to no end.

"I seriously don't know how you could still eat."

Henry sighed as he heard James and Gordon bickering once more before looking out of his cab. "The same way the two of us did, James." He said

" We only had one meal last night." James sputtered indignantly before pointing at Gordon. "While he had like, fifty !"

"Be quiet, you idiot!" Gordon whispered angrily, quickly looking around. "And it wasn't fifty." He hissed. "It was one, the same as you two."

"Don't pull me into this argument, you two." Henry huffed bitterly. "I'm too tired and too full to deal with this…"

"I'm going to have indigestion from all the food…" James grumbled under his breath, climbing into his engine's cab. "It's going to be a long fucking week."

"Tell me about it…" Gordon grumbled as he inspected his engine. "I rather be sleeping in the sun…"

"That's saying something if you want to be under the sun." Henry teased, loving how irritated Gordon looked.

"Watch it…" Gordon warned as he glared at him.

"So Henry, riddle me this." James hummed softly, looking at him.

"What?" Henry asked irritably, he just wanted to get to work… and not deal with the two of them - preferably ever again - but, unfortunately, it was kinda hard to do that…

James smirked as he easily jumped over to Henry's cab, hanging off the door of it. "When are you going to make a move on Edward?" He whispered quietly.

"The day when you go after Thomas and Gordon goes after Connor." Henry deadpanned before glaring at his companion. "And it isn't so much as 'going after him', you dumbass." He hissed quietly. "It's not like we can casually show them."

"Are you three done talking?" Edward asked from his engine on the turntable. "You'll be late."

" I'm never late! You're simply projecting, dear Edward!" Gordon teased. "Besides, we're coming, Old Iron." Gordon called out, only to hiss in pain when a piece of coal hit him on the back of his head.

"Shut. It." Henry warned him before his engine started to puff forward.

Sadly for him, James had developed feelings for Thomas and Gordon had likewise been mooning over Connor a lot…

Seeing as Thomas and Gordon were both Edward's younger brothers, Henry wouldn't be able to get away from Gordon or James in a hurry.

Listening to Gordon grumbling some very vulgar words made him feel a little better, though.

…

"That will be £2.27." An elderly barista happily said, handing Henry a cup of lemon and honey tea.

"Thank you." Henry smiled as he paid her, grabbing his tea and walking off, cradling it in his fingers.

"You think the police will investigate the missing animals?" A guy asked as he and his friend read the daily paper. Henry caught their conversation mid-air.

"Probably with some zoologists and marine biologists." His friend said in a melancholic tone. Henry vaguely recognized the second one from the harbor. "These have been happening for years and they have yet to figure it out."

"I guess you're right." The first guy replied thoughtfully, putting the paper away. "There's no evidence or carcasses for them to study though. That's what makes this case so baffling…"

The men walked away, and, despite himself, a small smile crept onto Henry's face as he drank his tea.

"Think you can help me, beautiful?" an unfamiliar voice said. Startled, Henry looked over and nearly choked on his drink, glaring in the direction of the voice; it had come from a tall, muscular man standing in front of Edward, a sly smirk on his face as he eyed the smaller male.

His dark gray hair was combed back and his dark brown eyes sparkled excitedly from the nervous look on Edward's face. His suit was just like his but navy blue and gray with yellow lining and buttons.

Henry felt his teeth grinding, his hand tightly gripping the plastic mug that held his tea. He felt a familiar bitter liquid build up in his mouth as his pupils quickly shrank to narrow slits.

He didn't like the uncomfortable look on Edward's face as he tried to smile nervously at the stranger. He held back a low growl in his throat. Tightening his fist, he heard the plastic cup crack before shattering in his hand.

Hearing the noise, Edward and the stranger both looked over at him.

A look of relief broke over Edward's face, before he muttered a polite "Excuse me…" before he quickly walked away from the stranger, making a beeline to Henry.

Henry swallowed the bitter liquid in his mouth as he looked at his hand, now covered in sweet tea.

"Are you okay?" Edward asked concerned, gently inspecting his hand

Henry smiled, his pupils back to their normal circular shape as a soft blush decorated his cheeks. "I-I'm fine." He reassured him. "I just gripped it too tightly."

"Honestly." Edward sighed softly, smiling gently as he pulled his handkerchief out. "You are too strong for your own good at times." He giggled while wiping the tea off Henry's fingers.

"If only you knew…" Henry thought as he watched him. "Thanks. So um, who was that guy you were talking to?" He asked. "You didn't look too keen to talk to him. Was he bothering you?"

"His name is Vinnie Clark. He was bringing a goods train from the Mainland and got lost." Edward sighed. "Wanted me to help him find his way back."

"He knew exactly how to return." Henry muttered under his breath before looking at Edward. "Well, he can find someone else to help him. He looks like trouble."

"I told him how he just needs to follow the tracks around the station and it'll take him back onto the Mainline." Edward chuckled softly.

Henry, still remembering the look on Edward's face, was unconvinced.

"Are you on your break?"

"I just got on it." Henry shrugged as he looked away, his cheeks a dusty pink from being so close to him.

"Want to join me for lunch?" Edward asked softly. "Unless you have other plans for your break…?"

Honestly, Henry was planning on going to his forest to deal with some… stuff, but looking at the chance to be alone with Edward, he would gladly take it.

Looking back at Edward, a warm smile appeared on his face. "Sounds good to me." He said before noticing Edward's hand. "What happened to you?"

"Oh, I just burned my hand on my engine's boiler." Edward chuckled nervously, looking at the bandage on his hand. "Nothing to worry about." He shrugged before smiling. "Come on, let's get some lunch. My treat." He said before walking away.

"Yeah…" Henry muttered quietly, following him. "I'll treat." He smiled as he removed a memory from his mind.

Looking behind them, Henry glared at Vinnie's retreating body.

He'll leave him be this time - but if that creep showed up and started harassing Edward again… well, he'd get rid of him without hesitation…

…

"Ugh…why do I pretend to eat a normal meal…?" James groaned as he held his stomach, leaning against his engine's cab as it puffed down the tracks.

The cool air felt soothing to him as he brushed against his face, ruffling his hair in the process. As much as he enjoyed the feeling of the summer air, he'd rather be where it was always hotter, hotter than the summer temperature.

And British summertime tended to be a letdown a lot of the time. Doesn't help that he always had a higher body temp than normal humans - meaning he didn't get cold during the winter.

A chuckle found its way out of his mouth as he remembered how Henry always looked tired and Gordon was grumpier than ever during the winter months.

James blinked when he noticed a blanket of white steam covering the tracks before seeing a familiar blue tank engine at a water tower. Feeling the smirk growing on his face, James slowed his engine to a stop next to said tank engine, leaning against his cab's door.

"Having some trouble, Thomas?" James asked teasingly, the smirk never leaving his face.

Thomas was soaked from top to toe; he was holding the hose for the water tower in his hands and he looked cross. His now wet jacket had been carelessly slung over the boiler.

"The stupid thing broke and water put out my engine's firebox…" Thomas grumbled in annoyance, shivering a little.

James bit his lip as he stared at Thomas, feeling bad for teasing him about his bad luck but also the thoughts from seeing him drenched in water - especially when he looked at Thomas's chest…

He kicked himself in the leg for even thinking such thoughts, he didn't want to deal with them again! Humming softly to calm his brain, James grabbed a towel from his bag and draped it onto Thomas' head.

"Go dry yourself up some, I'll have a look at your firebox." James said as he climbed out of his engine before climbing into Thomas's engine.

"Good luck." Thomas sighed as he walked away a bit, a light blush on his face. "It's soaked through - it'll take bloody hours to get going again. Now I'll be late! Perce will never let me hear the end of it! Or Mavis…"

James just watched Thomas walking away. Making sure he wasn't close, James looked around before removing his glove. A ball of fire formed in his hand.

Remaining vigilant, in case Thomas came back unexpectedly - he and Percy had learned how to sneak up on people undetected and scare the shit out of them - he watched the water quickly evaporate from the heat of the flame.

Once the water had completely dispersed, he shoveled some more coal into the tank engine's firebox before lighting the coal on fire.

When the fire in his hand was extinguished, he put his glove back on before jumping out the cab. "You're good to go."

"How?!" Thomas gasped, looking at him with bright eyes. "How did you get it dried that quickly?"

"I'm just that good at playing with fire, baby." James boasted, holding out a fire lighter. He winked before putting it away. "What's your next job?"

"Taking some empty trucks to Brendam Docks." Thomas replied after a beat. "You?"

"I actually have to go to Brendam Docks as well to pick up a goods train." James gagged, hating that job already.

Thomas laughed.

James felt a small smile grace his lips from hearing Thomas laugh. It was a sound that he heard in his dreams.

James felt his heart ache from those memories but he pushed it down, forcing a smile.

"Want a race?" James asked tauntingly. "Unless you're engine is too slow for my splendid engine."

"You're on!" Thomas smiled, his eyes sparkling for the challenge.

Both teens quickly climbed into their engines' cabs, the smiles never leaving their faces as they waited to start their race. Looking at each other, that challenging look never disappeared as the engines started to move rather slowly.

It wasn't long before they picked up speed though.

…

Gordon sighed softly as he leaned against his engine's cab door, looking at the streamlined engine on the other side of Vicarstown Station - mainly at its driver, with his teal-colored eyes sparkling in the sun's light, under a crown of mussed dirty blonde hair.

His suit was teal, with thick gray stripes down the side. Gold seams outlined the collar and cuffs of his jacket. His pristine gloves were stuffed in his trouser pocket, hanging limply as he inspected his engine.

Sighing, he went back to subtly watching Connor as he worked on getting his engine ready to go - unusually slowly. He hoped he wasn't being too noticeable.

Hearing that low, but loud whistle, Gordon looked up and watched as Connor's engine slowly puffed out before picking up speed. It only took a few seconds for his engine to disappear before Gordon felt his shoulders sink.

Most of the time, both Connor and his little sister, Caitlin, stayed at Tidmouth Mansion with the rest of the Steam Team or they stayed on the Mainland.

He knew that both Irish-American streamlined engine drivers could take care of themselves, and looked out for each other more often than not - but he couldn't help but feel the pain in his heart all the same.

His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar whistle that was just a tad higher than his own, causing Gordon to groan in annoyance.

He watched as a dark green engine with two tenders slowly reversed into the station. Other than that, and a pair of smoke deflectors affixed to the smokebox, his engine was basically identical to his own.

"Hello, little brother." A smooth voice called out teasingly.

"Scotsman…" Gordon grumbled as he glared up at his twin brother. "Shouldn't you be on the Mainland?"

"Aren't you glad to see me, Gordon?" Scot smirked as he climbed out of his engine's cab.

Even though the two were twins, there were a few differences between them. His body had the same physique as Gordon's, and their facial structure was identical, but that was the only physical commonality.

Scotsman's hair was jet-black neatly brushed and styled. His eyes were the color of coal. His suit was identical to Gordon's but was dark green with white lining; all the buttons were buttoned and his sleeves rolled down.

The number '4472' was embroidered in yellow thread under the breast pocket with a small pin that read 'Flying Scotsman' pinned above it.

"No." Gordon huffed, going back to inspecting his engine. "Now, go away you impertinent creature, I'm busy."

"So you did miss me, little brother." Scotsman teased as he looked down at him.

"We're twins." Gordon grumbled as he stood up, glaring at him as he folded his arms. "Only five minutes apart."

"Ergo, that makes you my little brother by five minutes." Scotsman chuckled while looking down at the tracks. "Looks like Connor left for the Mainland already."

"He did…" Gordon muttered, feeling himself tensing up whenever his brother said Connor's name. "Like he does every time he works."

"I wonder if he'll stay where I'm staying." Scotsman teased, giving Gordon a sly look. "Might even invi-"

"Shut. The. Fuck. Up." Gordon hissed, his pupils narrow slits as a forked tongue flicked out of his mouth.

"Alright." Scotsman chuckled as he held his hands up, his teasing quickly ending. "But in all seriousness, there is something I have to tell you." He said in a stern voice.

Gordon blinked as his pupils returned to their normal spherical shape. In all the years, he's never heard his twin talk in a tone like that - ever.

Looking around, Scotsman walked closer to Gordon and leaned towards his ear.

"There are rumors on the Mainland that there's a scientist who will investigate the disappearances of those animals." Scot whispered warningly. "And not just any scientist."

"Scientists have never found out what happened." Gordon whispered back, looking around. "We don't leave evidence behind." He added, offended.

"He claims that he knows. " Scot warned, narrowing his eyes. "He may well end up finding nothing, but there is something about this guy I don't like, and I would hate to have your death on my conscience, brother - or worse."

"What do you mean, 'worse'?" Gordon asked incredulously.

"That is exactly the sort of question you should ask yourself." Scot replied, seriously. "Whatever you do, be very careful. I have a feeling that this 'scientist' is up to no good."

Gordon felt a shiver travel down his spine, the way Scotsman was talking to him was slightly scaring him. Gulping quietly, Gordon nodded.

"Warn Henry and James as soon as you can." Scot added. "It's possible he'll come to the island as soon as tomorrow, but he'll be here before the week is out."

Gordon swore. He had little time to protect his friends from danger.

"Alright. I'll tell them. Tonight." Gordon whispered, watching Scotsman step back. "Thanks for the warning." He said seriously.

Scotsman nodded before smiling slyly. "As much as I loved this visit, it's time for me to leave, little brother." Happy to see the scowl return to Gordon's face as he climbed into his engine's cab. "But I do have passengers to take care of. Flying Scotsman, coming through!" He happily said, blowing his engine's whistle as he left the station.

Gordon grumbled under his breath as he climbed into his own engine's cab.

Once inside, faced by the roaring fire, however, his face slowly changed to a look of worry as he thought about Scotsman's warning.

A sickening feeling filled his stomach. Pulling his phone out, he quickly texted Henry and James that he needed to talk to them when they had the chance, before pulling out of the station with his Express coaches.

…

That night, the moon shone brightly over the Island of Sodor, casting its ancient silvery blanket across the land.

Up in a secluded section of Harwick, James, Henry, and Gordon stood silently in the center of an old, ruined kingdom. All of the buildings were destroyed, some with only walls still standing as a reminder of what was lost. They were coated in vines, plants and flowers, minus a small spot in the center of the destroyed kingdom.

A burnt wooden beam, a wooden trellis, and a metal rod stood in a line, the area bare of life.

"Why are we at this location, exactly?" James huffed bitterly, glaring at the trellis before kicking it.

"We could've talked in one of our rooms, Gordon." Henry sighed softly, gently placing his hand on the wooden beam.

"Too risky." Gordon muttered, glaring at the rod. "I received a warning from my brother today."

"What kind of warning?" Henry asked, concerned, looking at him.

"A scientist will be arriving on Sodor later this week to find out the causes of these 'missing' animals." Gordon said firmly, looking at them.

"Seriously? There's been plenty of scientists who came here and failed." James groaned. "What makes this one different?"

"He knows ." Gordon plainly said, clenching his fists.

Both Henry and James froze, looking at him.

"What do you mean 'he knows'?" James asked, narrowing his eyes. "He knows what?"

"He knows what we are, dumbass." Gordon growled as he glared at him. "He's coming to investigate, and get proof of our existence ."

"That isn't possible." Henry shook his head. "No one on Sodor even knows we exist!"

"Scotsman said that the scientist has been going around, claiming he knows what we are and will look for evidence." said Gordon

"Then we won't leave evidence." James shrugged, clearly shaken up by this ordeal. "Simple as that."

"We'll just be careful." Henry muttered quietly, looking away.

"And we will." Gordon nodded. "But we also must watch our tracks - take that as literal as you will. Scotsman said he has a bad feeling about this guy."

"Great…" James muttered.

"We…we should get going…" Henry muttered as he started to walk away. "We don't want the others to worry about us."

Gordon and James looked at each other before following Henry into the surrounding forest, starting their journey back to their engines.

Henry brought up something the others didn't want to think about.

What about their loved ones? Their friends, their siblings, their crushes…their mates ?

Could they end up hurt in this?

…

In the shadows of his lab, sitting in his chair, looking at multiple computer screens in front of him; at images of various snakes and snake hybrids from ancient mythologies scattered the screens with multiple articles surrounding them.

A sly smirk etched its way onto his face as he stood up, walking over to a lit pedestal. Laying on top was an old, leather journal, showing its age from the years of being used.

"Soon, the world shall know of these monsters and how you escaped their wrath, my ancient grandfather."

The man sneered gleefully, picking the journal up, stroking the aged leather with tenderness. "The only one was sneaky enough to escape that even your master failed to notice." He laughed before walking over to the monitors, pulling a map of Sodor up onto the biggest screen. "And once I find those beasts, I'll make them my new pets and the world can bow to me!" He excitedly said, laughing menacingly.

He pressed a button on his desk, and three spotlights switched on, shining down to reveal three huge collars resembling shackles. The insides of these collars were spiked - and sparking.