OUT OF ASHES

Written by Zack Wanzer and Rachel Ravens

Set during Series 7

A black narrow gauge tank engine sat on a flatbed, awaiting one of the big engines to take him to where he was needed. An unfamiliar horn sounded out.

"Timothy, right?" asked the Class 47.

"Er, yes," he responded. "But everyone just calls me Tim. And you are?"

"Christopher," replied the other engine, backing down onto the flatbed. "I heard you're going to Sodor now?"

"I am," said Tim. "I used to work there years ago before I was sold on just so my old line could stay afloat."

"Ah, you must be from the old Mid-Sodor line," Christopher said with a smile. "Well, I also have to drop off some parts at Crovan's Gate. You may run into some old friends there."

"R-really?" Tim gasped. "Oh… th-that sounds wonderful! I… I haven't seen other engines of my old railway for a while now."

"Well, today must be your lucky day, Tim," smiled Christopher. With a toot from his horn, he set off with the little black engine in tow.

Meanwhile, down at Crovan's Gate, Rheneas and Sir Handel were resting at the sheds.

"So that's it, then," Rheneas was saying. "The man who tormented you and Peter Sam is dead."

"Yeah…" sighed Sir Handel. "It's strange, Rheneas. The death of someone that tormented me and my little brother should be a relief. But yet… he was still a person. Could we have done anything to prevent any of this trauma on ourselves, or Duke, or Addison?"

Rheneas was quiet for a moment, looking at the shed wall. "Sometimes… people don't want help. And in this case… it destroyed Hockings."

"And that's not even mentioning how Addison has been affected by his abuse," Sir Handel added. "I just hope she doesn't end up becoming him all over again."

"I… think that ordeal with Duck has proved it," sighed Rheneas.

"Oh, right…"

Just then, the duo heard a horn cut through the air.

"Good day, you two," Christopher greeted. Sir Handel and Rheneas smiled; the Class 47 occasionally made runs to Sodor from the mainland.

"Ah, hello, Christopher," replied Rheneas. "What brings you here today?"

"Just to drop off parts, and something else."

"Oh, hello, Tim… TIM?!" cried Sir Handel. "What are you doing here? I mean, I'm glad to see you again, but I thought you were working for the military!"

"I was," said Tim. "But I was bought for a maritime museum near the, er… Little Western, I think. It's great to see you, Falcon."

"It's Sir Handel now." He glanced back at his nameplates. "It's… kind of a long story."

"I see." Tim then glanced over at Rheneas. "Is that Jennings here as well? I thought she was on static display at the Rolling Hills!"

"Oh, no, I'm not Jennings," the vermillion engine remarked. "My name's Rheneas. I've been here long before the Mid-Sodor Railway opened."

"Really?" gasped Tim. "I didn't know Jennings had a brother! It's nice to meet you, Rheneas."

"Likewise," he smiled. "Sir Handel, Peter Sam and Duke told us all about you."

"Peter Sam?" asked Tim.

"That's Stuart's new name," Sir Handel explained. "He might look a little different to you if he gets here, besides his nameplates."

Just then, two whistles sounded as a green saddle tank engine and a brown tender engine entered the sheds. "Do my eyes deceive me?" gasped Peter Sam. "Tim? Is that you?!"

"In the metal, Stuart… er, Peter Sam," he chuckled. "And hello, Duke."

"Well, I'll be!" trailed Duke. "It's good to see you, youngster."

"I'd better leave you to get reacquainted," Christopher chuckled as he began to shunt Tim's flatbed onto the siding near the sheds.

"I'd better head off too," said Rheneas. "I have the next goods run. It was nice meeting you, Tim."

"Likewise," he called.

Pretty soon, Duke, Sir Handel, Peter Sam and Tim were all talking like old friends, and reminiscing about their time together.

"…and that's how I got my new funnel," Peter Sam explained.

"You have an icicle to thank for that?" asked Tim. "That's a new one."

"Well… it's sort of my fault as well," sighed Sir Handel. "I distrusted Rusty and faked being ill so I wouldn't have to work with him. Then the accident with the trucks happened and… that's how it became bent to begin with."

"Sounds like your distrust was worse than Atlas during that ordeal!" cried Tim.

Sir Handel bit his lip. "Not my best moment, at all…" He looked sheepishly at his buffers, trying to change the subject. "So, Tim… how are Jim and Albert?"

"Jim's doing great; he's been sold to a heritage line, the same one where Jennings is stationed, I think," he smiled.

"Oh yes!" said Duke. "I remember Tasha telling us about that."

"Tasha?!" cried Tim. "She's back?! That's fantastic! Remind me to get in touch with her later."

"And what about Albert?" asked Peter Sam. "Is he doing alright?"

At that question, a chilly silence filled the air. Tim stared down at his cowcatcher.

"Oh, by his Grace's name…" trailed Duke. "Don't tell us…"

"It's a long story," said Tim. "I should warn you that it's not pretty…"

Past

Albert, Jim and Tim had been traveling on their flatbeds for a long time, but at last, they had arrived as their new home.

"Why here?" gasped Tim. "W-why couldn't we be sold off to a quarry or something?"

"I wouldn't have minded working in a quarry," said Jim. "It… would have been safer than this."

"Come on, you two," sighed Albert. "We had to be sold to the highest bidder in order to give our friends a chance to save the Mid-Sodor line."

"If it is going to be saved!" cried Tim. "The Mountain Road was closed off when we left! That was one of the biggest bulks of traffic."

"It does sound quite bad," Jim admitted quietly. "But we have to make the best of this. And I hope Duke, Falcon and Stuart are doing the same thing."

It wasn't long before a khaki-green saddle tank engine with six wheels had been called in to take them off of their flatbeds.

"There you are, gentlemen," she said politely. "Welcome to your new home. I'm Adeline."

"Much obliged, Adeline," smiled Albert. "I'm Albert, and these two are Tim and Jim."

"Hello, Adeline," greeted Jim. "Pleasure to meet you."

"Y-yes…" trailed Tim. "I… guess."

Adeline looked over at the trio. "You're scared of being in the military, aren't you?" It wasn't really a question, more of an observation. "It's completely understandable. Definitely not an easy business to be part of. But we've all got to do our part to help people and engines alike. I'm sure I can talk the manager into starting you out on shunting duties for now."

Tim smiled gratefully at Adeline. "Thank you… that's very generous of you…"

"Shunting duties?" scoffed another voice. "You can't be serious, Adeline." A large ochre tank engine with ten wheels steamed up alongside her.

"Andreas," she muttered, "that is no way to treat newcomers."

"These three coming here was a big mistake," he said snarkily. "If they're too scared to take on the tough work of the military, they shouldn't be here!"

Tim looked more nervous than before; Andreas was a big engine, even for narrow gauge, and already, he knew it would be difficult to work alongside him.

"Give us a fair chance," grunted Albert. "We might not be the biggest engines, but we can still be really useful!"

"We'll soon see about that…" muttered Andreas.

True to Adeline's word, Albert, Jim and Tim started off with shunting duties, arranging vans filled with ammunition and coaches for troop trains. Andreas was left in charge of the troop trains while Adeline was assigned the ammunition trains.

"But how's that possible?" asked Jim. "Wouldn't a spark from your funnel set off the gunpowder in one of the vans?"

"I was built to burn oil instead of coal," explained Adeline. "It's a lot safer this way."

Albert pondered. "Is it possible to get an engine to undergo conversion to do that too?"

"It is, yes," said Adeline. "B-but I'm not going to force any of you to do it. I mean, I know you three are capable of handling trains, don't get me wrong–"

"If you ever need help, Adeline," Albert cut in, "I'd be willing to be overhauled to become an oil-burner."

"You are?!" gasped Adeline in surprise.

"If there's one thing I learned from my time as a Mid-Sodor engine, it's that you can't always think of yourself," Albert replied. "And if being an oil-burner means I can take some strain off your buffers, then I'm willing to do it."

"Very wise words to go off of, Albert," smiled Adeline. "And I appreciate you willing to go through this just to take the weight off of my buffers."

A few months went by, until one day, at long last, Albert reemerged from the works. Cosmetically, he didn't look that much different save for a different coat of paint, but his conversion to oil-burning made for quite the discussion…

"Albert…" trailed Jim. "How do you feel?"

"Honestly? Not that much different," chuckled Albert. "It's strange needing oil instead of coal, but… I believe I can manage."

"I bet Adeline will be pleased to have some help with the ammunition trains," remarked Tim.

"Indeed," said Albert. "I still need to be careful, though. Just because I don't cause sparks from my funnel anymore, doesn't mean those trains aren't dangerous."

"Ah, that's pretty typical of you engines; always so concerned about safety and what not!" The engines groaned as a green Austin Champ jeep rolled up alongside the sheds, brandishing an inane grin.

"Oh, what do you want now, Loki?" grumbled Albert.

"Can't a jeep check up on his friends?" Loki remarked.

"I don't recall any of us making friends with you," said Jim. "All you've ever done is drive wildly around and have near misses."

"You shouldn't be doing it anywhere, much less at the military base!" cried Tim.

"Pah!" scoffed Loki. "You lot don't know what it's like to be able to traverse every terrain imaginable!"

"We don't have to!" snapped Adeline. "Our rails take us where we need to go. And you, Loki, need to be far more careful."

"Always overly cautious," muttered Loki. "At this rate, you'll be writing the rule book about what to do around here…"

"But engines can't write– hey! Watch it!" cried Jim; Loki had nearly rammed into the posts for the sheds.

"That idiot will be lucky he doesn't get himself blown up, the way he acts," scoffed Andreas. For once, no one disagreed with him about that.

Some days later, Albert and Adeline were taking some munitions trains out as usual.

"And… there," said Tim. "Ready to go…"

"Very good, Tim," smiled Albert. "You've gotten really good at shunting those vans."

"Th-thanks," he stammered. "Slow and steady is the best way to go…"

"Indeed it is," said Jim. "You two be careful out there, okay?"

"As always," said Adeline. "We'll see you in a few hours."

But she'd spoken too soon, for all of a sudden, Loki had come barreling into the yards at a fast speed, cackling excitedly.

"Not again!" growled Albert.

"Too bad you engines can't try this!" Loki laughed. "You're so restrictive to your rails!"

"If restrictive means safer, I'm taking restrictive," scoffed Albert. "Come on, Adeline; we'd better get these out of here before Loki does something stupid."

But it was too late; as Albert was leaving first, Loki bumped right into Albert's train. One of the vans rocked side to side for a moment, but it didn't derail.

"Albert!" cried Jim. "Are you alright?"

"I… I think so," he replied. "You and Tim best get back in case something goes wrong."

The two engines did so without question, and within minutes, workmen were dispatched to check the van to see if it was damaged.

"Looks fine to me," said one of the workmen. "You're clear to carry on, Albert. We'll make sure that Loki is dealt with; he could've caused a serious disaster!"

"Why he hasn't been sent away, I'll never understand," added another workman. Albert puffed away without another word, with the others hoping he would be okay.

At first, the journey was uneventful. Albert maintained a steady pace, hoping to make up for the delay.

"That's it, ol' boy," soothed the driver. "We should get this run done before lunch."

"I hope so…" Albert sighed. "I guess I'm still a bit jittery. I mean, who in their right mind messes around with munitions?!"

"I've heard stories about a munitions fire in America back in 1922," said the fireman. "It was caused by some hasty words and bad tempers, leading to innocent people dying."

Just then, there was a bump in the track, and the same van Loki hit rocked slightly. It was followed by the sound of something falling down.

"What was that?" asked Albert.

"We'd better check," said the driver. He and the fireman rushed down the train… only to stop short when they smelled something burning.

"Is that… fire?" asked the fireman. "It can't have come from the firebox."

"It's the first van that's on fire!" gasped the driver. "Some of the loads inside must've been knocked about when Loki hit the van! If the munitions go off, the rest of the train goes up!"

"That could burn the rest of the railway and surrounding areas!" Albert cried. "We can't allow that! Uncouple that van from the rest of the train!"

Quickly, the driver did so, and once he and the fireman were back in his cab, Albert pulled the smoldering van away from the rest of the train.

"We'd better hope that the guard alerts Andreas in time," gasped Albert. "We can't risk innocent people being caught in the explosion!"

Sure enough, the guard had seen the burning van, and ran to find the nearest telephone to alert any oncoming trains coming in or out of the military base. Andreas was heading in the opposite direction as Albert when he came to a red signal.

"Well, isn't that just peachy," he huffed sarcastically. "I'm pulling a troop train here! Surely that must take priority to the base?"

No sooner had he said that, when Albert raced by. "Sorry, Andreas!" he cried. "But this is an emergency!"

"What's he doing with that burning van?!" exclaimed Andreas. "Doesn't he know that messing about with wagons on fire–"

A loud explosion sounded from behind Andreas, rendering him speechless.

Present

Duke, Sir Handel and Peter Sam all stared in shock. There was silence for a few moments before Tim continued.

"Yes, Albert was destroyed in the explosion, and his driver didn't survive either," he said glumly. "His fireman did, though, but he suffered injuries from the blast. Andreas was silent for a few days after the disaster, and when he finally spoke to me and Jim again, he apologized both for the loss of our old friend, and for his behavior towards us when we first came here."

"But what about Loki?" asked Peter Sam. "I can't imagine he got away with his reckless behavior."

"You're not wrong there, Peter Sam," said Tim. "When the general caught wind of Loki's role in the disaster, he ordered for him to be locked up for thirty days. When he was finally let out again, he was a lot quieter and didn't drive recklessly anymore."

"At least some good came out of that," Sir Handel huffed, before sighing. "Still, it was brave of Albert to risk his own safety to save many innocents from disaster."

"Indeed," agreed Duke. "He'd come a long way from how he started out on the Mid-Sodor Railway…"

"Rest in peace, Albert…" Sir Handel said quietly. "You will never be forgotten…"

The engines stood in a respectful silence for a few more moments. It was a tough pill to swallow; a dear friend dying before they could ever reunite with him…

When the quartet finally broke their silence, they heard a whistle. It was Douglas with Toad in tow. "Hullo, everyone," he greeted. "Ah'm 'ere tae tak' Tim tae his new hame."

"One thing has been on my mind," said Peter Sam. "I mean, seeing Tim again is absolutely wonderful, but… how was Tim recovered?"

"I believe I can provide the answer to that." And stepping outside of Toad's cabin and then off his balcony was…

"Mr. Regaby?!" Even Duke seemed surprised to see him; this was one of those rare times in which they saw Henry Regaby without his daughter.

"Hello, engines," he said warmly. "And before you ask, Annabelle wanted to come, but she was sick."

"Who's Annabelle?" asked Tim.

"She's a very dear friend of ours, nicknamed 'The Railway Girl'," Peter Sam explained. "Oh, we wish her a speedy recovery, Mr. Regaby. We know Paul will take good care of her." He turned back to Tim and said, "He's Annabelle's husband, by the way, and one of Mr. Percival's sons."

"Thank you, Peter Sam," he smiled. "And to answer your question about Tim; ever since Duke's rediscovery, there's been quite a lot of interest in the history of the Mid-Sodor Railway, and some have wanted to find out what happened to the other engines that ran the line. I happened to find out about what became of Albert, Jim and Tim thanks to a few military connections, and the Arlesburgh Maritime Museum has been looking for a few new exhibits. With the Mid-Sodor's connection to boat services, Tim happened to be a good fit for them."

"But if Tim will be inside the museum," said Sir Handel, "why is Jim on a heritage railway? Shouldn't they be together?"

"In an ideal world, we would be, but Jim's new home could only afford to restore one engine to operational condition," explained Tim. "I was given a cosmetic restoration for the museum. It's better than being in a park." At this, Duke shuddered. "Oh… sorry, Duke; bad choice of words."

"It's alright, Tim," Duke smiled. "We're just glad that you and Jim are still around and have found new homes."

"Chrisopher mentioned a bus named Algy who could keep me company," said Tim. "I don't think the branch line extends all the way out there."

"Maybe it could one day, Master Tim," said Toad. "You never know."

"Ah wouldnae mynd a langer run," smiled Douglas. "Mibbie Sur Topham Hatt haes plans fur it yin day."

"Perhaps," said Tim. "Well, Duke, Sir Handel, Peter Sam, it looks like our time's up. I'll miss the three of you dearly."

"This isn't goodbye," Peter Sam chipped in. "We can send you letters every week! With our drivers and firemen's help, of course!"

"That's a wonderful suggestion, Stuart," smiled Duke.

"Capital idea!" Sir Handel agreed.

"Thank you so much," said Tim. "I'll do likewise. I'm sure some of the staff at the museum can help."

And as soon as he was ready, Douglas pulled Tim out of his siding and onto the main line again, ready to bring him to his new home.

Tim settled into his new home nicely. He was able to tell visitors stories of his time at both the Mid-Sodor Railway and the military, as well as any new stories his friends sent in their letters. There was also a special section dedicated to Albert and his sacrifice to save others, as well as his old name and number plates being held on display.

"Lest we forget…" Tim said quietly every Remembrance Day. "You will be missed, old friend…"

THE END

Inspired by the Soham Rail disaster that took place on June 2, 1944, when a fire was ignited on the leading wagon of an ammunition train. The signalman and fireman James Nightall were the only casualties in the resulting explosion, while several other people were injured. Nightall and driver Benjamin Gimbert were both awarded the George Cross for preventing a worse catastrophe.

Author's Comments

In an ideal world, I'd have had this story posted on time for Remembrance Day (or Veteran's Day, if you're from America), but there were delays on Rachel's end, which is why the latest Between the Lines story is a day late. Anyway, this story was one that I'd wanted to write up following the completion of Mid-Sodor Memories, especially as it was briefly glanced over in the epilogue, but now, we were able to fully expand upon what became of Albert, Jim and Tim following their departure from the Mid-Sodor Railway, as well as the former's tragic demise. But they weren't the only engines on the military line, for we've also included Adeline and Andreas from Sodor: The Modern Years, with the former being in khaki green, had she appeared in the TV series. Yep, this story does take a bit of influence from Modern Years, even sharing utilizing the same real-life event from the Early Years episode Iron Hero, albeit in a different setting entirely. For the story's ending, I've imagined "One Tin Soldier" by The Original Caste playing, showcasing Albert's history and the aftermath of his sacrifice. Credit goes to Jonathan Downs for the picture of Albert as depicted on the cover.

Next time, we'll lighten things up a little with some antics involving Arthur, Merlin and The Knights of the Turntable!