Dusk-Stargazer

It's not magic, it's ones and zeroes. And we're just atoms, and our perception of reality is just chemical reactions. Take those away, and poof. There goes the universe.

[duskstargazer]

Not Alone

[1976]

The day had been exhausting. James had tried to follow Rebecca’s advice, and it had worked… for the most part. He felt he still had a lot to learn in the way of keeping his anger in check - especially around the engine that had taken his place in the big sheds.

James still didn’t have it in him to return to Tidmouth - especially not if that big awful electric diesel might be there. Instead, Rebecca invited him into the big shed at Knapford.

Charlie greeted him in her usual way as he backed in.

“Yo, surprise seein’ you here.”

“Hey, Charlie.”

“Stafford and I were just playing charades.”

James didn't have the energy to imagine how two industrial engines could play charades.

“Yo, James!” Almond called out. It had been some time since he had gotten a friendly greeting from anyone.

“Is something the matter, James?” Stafford asked.

He considered lying. He considered blowing them off with a nothing answer.

In the end, he told them everything that had gone down between him and Gordon and Murdoch.

“Alright.” Stafford said in a tone James didn't recognize from the battery-electric. “I'll talk with Murdoch about it when I see him.”

“Man, screw Gordon.” Charlie added. “He's always on some s--t.”

“Yeah.” Almond nodded. “Probably just wants someone to be mad at with the whole Subpar Ed fiasco.”

“But… what if he's right?” The red engine asked, quietly.

“That you summoned some Supersonic Electronic Disaster with an ego the size of every yard in Tidmouth combined by getting into it with some troublesome coal trucks?”

“Well-”

“Also, I don't think Super Ed is long for this railway anyhow.” Stafford added. “The coaches don't seem to like him much - not to mention that he's supposed to be delivering coal. We have to have been waiting nearly a month now for our last several shipments.”

“Steve, Tom, Shawn, and Dan miss you, by the way.”

James gave a faint smile. He missed his coaches too.

“They aren't vibin’ with Super Electrolyte-Dysfunction.” Charlie chimed in. “And to be honest, I don't blame them. I don't think I'd be very comfortable being dragged around by a microwaved brick like that.”

“If Mr. Electro-d--kweed gives you any more trouble, you come ‘nd find us, yea?”

Somehow, even in the worst of times, Charlie always seemed to get even a chuckle out of James.

[duskstargazer]

Any reason you didn't censor the swears in one of the newer story posts?

I only do it if it fits the tone of the scene. James's outburst for example wouldn't have had the weight it needed if I censored the cursing. Plus, the content warning at the beginning ought to be enough.

[duskstargazer]

Letting it Out

[1976]

“James?”

The downpour had eased up a bit - enough that Rebecca heard James struggling to control his breathing.

She then noticed the damage done to James's side. She winced.

“Are you okay, James?”

“…”

“..N-no.”

“You can talk to me.” She said, softly. “I'm here.”

James took a breath. He hadn't opened up to… well, really to anyone about matters like this. Not to Henry, not to Thomas, certainly not to Gordon. Not even to Emily.

“I… I couldn't fight him.” He stammered. “I wasn't strong enough. I've never been.”

“You shouldn’t have to.” Rebecca said, breathlessly. “If I’d just said something in the sheds-”

“No. I… I didn’t handle it well. I haven’t been handling anything well.”

“You’ve been put through a lot.”

“I just… I got angry. I couldn't handle what he's been saying, and what he's been doing and… and I said a lot of stuff I shouldn’t have. Why does that keep happening? What’s wrong with me?”

“Anger is a perfectly natural feeling. It’s what you do with it that matters.”

“Really? Because all I can seem to do with it is make things worse.”

“It’s never too late to change that.” Rebecca gave another reassuring smile. “I remember I used to give in to my anger all the time when I was young. It never did me any good. Over time, I learned to vent it out with kindness. I know that approach isn’t going to work for everyone, but it’s how I dealt with it. At first, it was a petty move. I “got back” at the others by riling them up and putting on an unbothered attitude. I made them think nothing they said could get to me, and got my satisfaction from how bewildered and upset they got.”

She sighed. “I can confidently say in retrospect that it wasn’t at all productive. I’ve since taken a more mediating approach - try and disarm their negativity with positivity.”

“I don’t think I can do that.”

“You don’t have to. Just make sure Super Ed doesn’t see that he’s getting to you. If you keep your head up and don’t bite when he taunts you, either he’ll tire himself out, or the shame of his actions when no one sides with him will keep him from repeating them. It’s not on you.”

“…”

Rebecca looked James over as the storm wore on overhead. The tears he'd let slip almost seemed to be rinsed off by the rain.

She paused.

"I never knew you had freckles."

"Hm?"

James groaned.

"I thought it'd stopped washing off in the rain." He sighed.

"Why do you hide them? I think they look cute."

James grimaced, his face reddening.

"They look ridiculous. It completely betrays the look of a proper main line engine. When's the last time you saw an express engine with freckles??"

Rebecca chuckled softly.

"Every time I see myself in any reflections."

James froze.

"I- I didn't mean…" He stammered.

“I know,” she laughed, “and there’s nothing wrong with them.”

“They look… stupid!!”

“They do not. And besides, why even go to such lengths? You don’t have to force yourself to uphold some grand image, you know.”

“That’s easy for you to say! You were built for mainline passenger trains!”

“And still picked on for my adhesion problems.”

For the second time, James found himself halted in his tracks.

“No engine is perfect, James. We can only be us. And you’re perfectly fine the way you are - freckles and all.”

“I…” James choked. “I’ve always had to measure up to the express engines here. Gordon, Henry, Bear…” He trailed off.

“…You…”

“I… it’s always been…” He stammered. “It was always do or die. I don’t know how much you know about the… the railways before the LMS, but… it… it wasn’t great.”

Rebecca had heard things from engines visiting Sodor when she’d first arrived, and the older among them always seemed quite rough around the edges. Mainly those built for goods traffic.

“They may have made you, but they don’t make you who you are.” She said at last. “You’re James the Red Engine. You’ve made a name for yourself here, a legacy. No one can take that away from you. What your old railway from decades ago did to you then doesn’t define who you are now. Gordon doesn’t. Being rostered coal trains doesn’t. Pulling the express doesn’t.”

“You do.”

“…”

“You don't have to set unreasonable expectations for yourself. What you are now is good enough.”

James swallowed hard. The two stayed in the yard together the entire night. They talked about anything and everything, from the rush of pulling trains at high speed to late night mail runs to even passengers’ bootlaces. Even as the sun peaked over the hillsides and the northern mountains, Rebecca never left his side.

[duskstargazer]

WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE

[duskstargazer]

Is there any day when Murdoch doesn't act like a jackass?

That depends on who you ask.

[duskstargazer]

'LEAVE HIM ALONE!'

[1976]

“LEAVE HIM ALONE!”

James couldn't recall the last time he'd heard Rebecca raise her voice, especially not to this degree. She rushed in, steam blasting in all directions, and stopped on the points, blocking the Electro-Diesel from advancing any farther.

The two big engines stared each other down.

“Leave him alone.” Rebecca repeated.

The Electro-Diesel hissed. “Are you trying to tell Super Ed what to do?”

“I'm not going to have you hurting one of my friends.”

Another tense silence filled the yard.

Super Ed's eyes hardened.

“You…” he said, slowly, “you were supposed to be different. You were supposed to understand.”

A shrill whine came from his system.

“You're no better than they were.”

He slunk away, a mix of anger and hurt on his face.

Rebecca watched him leave. She knew she had to protect James, but at the same time, she wanted to help Super Ed, too.

At least this time, she'd managed to do some good.

[duskstargazer]

So is Super Ed's ego boost caused by how the engines treated him before he got his rebuild?

Ed attributes all his faults and shortcomings to his diesel motor. He was criticized both on Sodor and the Mainland for his inconsistent performance whenever he had to rely on it. Now that he's using it solely to power his electric system, he's on something of a power trip. That being said, he is particularly going after engines that he feels "wronged" him - and also the diesel engines that he sees as beneath him.

[duskstargazer]

'You'll NEVER Have a Place on this Railway!'

CW // Coarse language

[1976]

Super Ed stormed out of the shed. He hadn’t a clue where he was going, but he wanted nothing more to do with the residents of Tidmouth.

He pulled into a big yard where he noticed a familiar, filthy red engine working.

Perfect.

James was sorting trucks in the yard. All he wanted was something dull enough not to be too taxing, but demanding enough to keep his focus - something to keep his mind from wandering back to how awful everything had become.

Plus, The Ffarquhar engines always appreciated their yard already being in order when they arrived.

Unfortunately, James's solitude wasn't to last.

“Working late, are you?”

James scowled at the Electro-Diesel.

“See, this is the difference between you and Super Ed. Super Ed does not need to stay out so late to get a job done. Super Ed-”

“I know your fucking name!” James snapped. “You really couldn't have picked something less becoming of a mid-life crisis?”

“You're one to talk. An engine from the Victorian Era with such gaudy paint reducing himself to shunting trucks in the dead of night?”

“I'm not from the Victorian Era!”

James rammed into another truck, sending it hurtling across the yard - missing Super Ed by mere inches.

“And you are no one to talk about gaudy liveries - which mine is not. I'm not the one with honest to god lightning bolts like some moving film advert!”

“Super Ed's livery is iconic!” The Electro-Diesel fired back. “It isn't the same flat two-tone colours everyone else has, and it certainly stands out against all the green diesels this railway has!”

The two engines stared each other down, both tempers flaring. The roar of thunder closed in overhead as the sky lit up in flashes.

James kept a level gaze at the Electro-Diesel. He reminded him of Gordon - only at his worst. The new engine was self absorbed, overly flashy, and trying much too hard to be something he wasn't.

Just… like him.

Super Ed wasn't a nuisance. He wasn't annoyingly brash and eccentric.

He was everything James hated about himself.

James snapped.

Hate. It was always said to be such a strong emotion. James had used it to describe his feelings towards troublesome trucks. He'd used it when Edward kept him waiting a few times too many. He thought he knew it when Gordon and Saint kicked him around back when he was the station pilot.

But here, now, staring down the haughty, belligerent engine that'd turned half the island against him with his presence alone, James felt he truly understood just what it meant to hate someone.

“Well,” James said, darkly, “it certainly suits you. It's overly flashy, and it's a fucking eyesore. It reeks of someone so insecure that they have to refer to themself in the third person just to force anyone to remember their name!”

Super Ed recoiled. James pushed further.

“The other diesels at least know what a proper livery is supposed to look like! You, though? You look like an identity crisis in motion! And you don't act much better! For all the talk, the only thing you've done well is turn engines away. I hear engines are getting sick of you, and I don't blame them! Everything was so much better before you showed up! Why don't you save us the trouble and go crawling back to the Other Railway? We both know that generator shit isn't gonna last forever. Take your electric systems, take your lightning shtick, and FUCK. RIGHT. OFF!”

“You'll NEVER have a place on this railway!!”

Super Ed snarled. All of a sudden, he was advancing - quickly. James had only seconds to react before the Electro-Diesel slammed into him, sending him hurtling across the yard.

James cried out as he was forced backwards. A loud scraping sound nearly drowned out the strikes of lightning. A tanker lurched and nearly left the rails as James struck it with the side of his running plate.

A long, jagged scratch appeared on James's side as part of his valence contorted upon impact.

The red engine slammed hard into the buffers at the end of the siding. The buffers, old and wooden, felt weak against his weight. It felt as though any more force would've destroyed them. Behind them was nothing but dirt and discarded coal.

James was panting hard. Moisture stung his eyes. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been in a fight. He knew Super Ed outweighed him. The Electro-Diesel was faster, bigger, and stronger.

“You're just as old and weak as you look, Little James.” Super Ed sneered. “You-”

The yard suddenly filled with light. Both engines winced at the painfully bright light. A whistle cut through the growing storm, loud, shrill, and fierce.

“LEAVE HIM ALONE!”

[duskstargazer]

Hey, Dusk, I'm curious about Cedric's basis.

Is he an SECR N Class...

...or an SR U Class?

SECR N Class

[duskstargazer]

'We're Asking You to Leave'

[1976]

Super Ed glided smugly up to Tidmouth Sheds, ignoring the glares shot his way.

“Make room.” He ordered. “Super Ed has kept the railway moving all day, and has earned a proper rest.”

“Super Ed makes me wanna super end myself.” Cedric muttered.

“You stole another engine’s train and shoved me and my coaches halfway down the main line at unsafe speeds.” Emily argued.

BoCo nodded with a severe expression.

“And by that you mean rescued. Now make some space, your new express engine needs his rest.”

“We have no new express engines.” Gordon rumbled, making for the turntable. “Not on this railway.”

“Super Ed has proven invaluable in many regards. You also may notice the lack of corporate blue. You would be fools to see Super Ed as anything less than a permanent resident.”

“Engines on this railway do their work without issue.” Emily scolded. “Your job was to deliver coal. Now you've got countless orders backed up, villages and depots without the supply they need, and poor Rebecca making up for your refusal to do the work you were explicitly brought in to do.”

“One engine can’t do all that work alone.” BoCo added. “Rebecca’s movement was only a temporary affair brought out of necessity, but deferring your work onto her has only caused trouble for everyone!”

“Don’t you have an engine specifically for that? The chump with the eight wheels?” Super Ed scoffed dismissively. “You'll be fiiine.”

“We most certainly will not!” Henry snapped. “You were taken in by our works, and were given the best care available - not to mention being cured of your ailments. All you've done in return is spit in the face of that generosity and abused your abilities! If we end up running out of coal because of you, I swear to god!”

“I had to do a disputation for you!” Hermes shouted from the nearby yard.

“Not to mention making a right nuisance of yourself!” Gordon rumbled. “If you think you have so much as a chance with my express-”

“It isn’t a matter of chance, old man.” Super Ed replied. “It’s a matter of time. Why, Super Ed can certainly go as fast as any of you - probably faster! Super Ed is f-”

“I don't want to hear any more of your nonsense about lightning! Piss off and get struck by it for heaven's sake!”

“Maybe then we’d have some peace around here.” Henry agreed.

“Seriously,” Cedric sighed, “who let this electrified catastrophe in - couldn’t he have stayed a fever dream?”

Super Ed grimaced as even Emily nodded silently.

“All in favor?” Gordon called out.

Henry, BoCo, Emily, and Cedric all sounded out their agreement.

“Any opposed?”

Though Gordon was almost certainly asking as a formality, he still gave a clipped edge to his words, as though daring anyone to speak against him.

Rebecca tensed. “I… uh…” She stammered, barely above a whisper.

She had to say something. There was still time to salvage this. There had to still be a way to appease everyone.

“Uh…”

She couldn’t get her voice loud enough for even Cedric to hear.

“That’s settled then.” Gordon declared.

“What are you-” Super Ed began.

“Get out.”

“We’re asking you to leave.” Henry said, slightly more diplomatically than Gordon.

“Better to take it while we still are.” BoCo warned.

“This- this is ridiculous!” The Electro-Diesel snarled.

He looked around the sheds. No one spoke up in his favor.

“Hmph. None of you are deserving of Super Ed’s company anyhow!”

With a crackling hiss from somewhere in his system, the Electro-Diesel stormed out of the yard.

Rebecca remained tense. She hated to see an engine so forcefully dismissed from the shed. Furthermore, she felt awful for not sticking up for him.

As the engines began angrily talking about the newcomer behind his rear cab, Rebecca sighed to herself.

In the end, she hadn’t managed to please anyone.

[duskstargazer]

Super Ed's Rescue

[1976]

Super Ed soared down the main line.

“Eighty-seven… eighty-eight… eighty-nine…” He murmured, pushing himself faster by the second. “Come on, ninety, come on…!”

Detonators suddenly lit up beneath him, making him cry out in surprise.

“What on- what's going on?!”

He came to a grinding halt a few miles farther down, where he got his answer.

Emily and her coaches stood in the middle of the main line.

Her driver walked up.

“Emily’s out of coal. D'you think you can get us to the next station?”

“Super Ed will get you all the way to Vicarstown.” The Electro-Diesel said, confidently.

“Are you sure? We're still several miles out and-”

“Of course! Leave it to Super Ed.”

Without waiting another minute, the Electro-Diesel pulled up behind Emily’s train.

“So, out of coal are you?” He teased. “Imagine running out of fuel in the middle of the main line.”

“Well,” Emily replied, bluntly, “someone hasn't been keeping up with his coal deliveries.”

“Aaah, must be that clunky old BoCo.” Super Ed deflected. “To be expected when you leave such work in the care of a barely sentient toaster.”

“BoCo is one of the kindest and most dependable engines on this railway!”

“Kindness doesn't run a railway, grandma.” Super Ed retorted. “And if a Metrovick is one of the most dependable engines here, then that says more about the railway than it does about him specifically.”

Emily’s fury was beyond words, but before she could properly give a voice to it, Super Ed started pushing the train. The emerald engine yelped as she was shoved into motion.

The whine in Super Ed's system grew louder. The cramping sensation returned.

He refused to let on to it.

Emily's train arrived early at the big station, as The Limited had been expected to overtake hers. Passengers from both trains praised Super Ed.

“That's the power of an Electro-Diesel!” He boasted. “Stronger than a diesel and faster than lightning!”

Emily growled under her breath.

“Even with slow traffic in the way, Super Ed prevails!”

The passengers cheered. Emily and the coaches rolled their eyes.

[duskstargazer]

The Way Things Were Before

[1976]

“Come on, James! I haven't got all day!”

For an engine so obsessed with peace and quiet, Murdoch could be quite loud when he wanted to be. Maybe Bear was onto something there.

Whatever the case, it was up to James to sort his train, since Stafford was almost exclusively handling coaches in preparation for the summer rush.

James grumbled to himself.

“Not enough to run me out of my own shed, now he's got to order me about, too.”

He caught sight of Neville coming in with a mixed goods train. Neville was typically quiet, but he usually always gave a smile. Now, he wouldn't even return James's gaze.

“Hey,” James said. He paused as Neville still avoided eye contact. “So, you know this yard, right? Where-”

He got no further, as Neville hurried away without a word, as though he was afraid of being caught in the red engine’s presence.

James watched as Neville left. Even Neville had it out for him? Seriously?

He recalled a similar interaction between him and BoCo earlier. The Metrovick had kept the conversation short, and had kept glancing around - likely either searching for an excuse to vanish on James or fearing someone might catch them talking.

It was starting to feel more and more like everyone had it out for him.

“Next you're gonna tell me Molly's got issues with me too.”

“I don’t intend to spend the entire day here!” Murdoch bellowed.

“It’s not even noon.” James growled to himself.

He thought back to the night that Murdoch had stood with Gordon in tearing him down. Emily and Oliver had stood up for him, but how long was that going to last? He couldn’t remember the last conversation he’d had with the Western Engine, and if even Neville could be turned against him, what was stopping Emily from outcasting him as well?

And then there was Rebecca. She hadn’t said a thing. That was telling in and of itself. All the big engines either hated him, or had decided to keep their distance. Sometimes, that was all it took.

He continued ramming trucks into line, ignoring their cries. All the while, he wondered how - or even if things could go back to the way they were before.

[duskstargazer]

Dismissive Deferring

[1976]

Rebecca pulled into a station with a rake of coaches fresh from the Works, when she saw Super Ed arrive from the opposite direction.

“Morning, Rebecca.” He smiled.

“Hello, Super Ed.” She replied. “Have you made the entire order of coal already?”

“Ehh, Norbert can handle it. Super Ed has passengers to deliver and records to set!”

Rebecca's brow furrowed. “One engine can't keep up with all that alone. The towns and villages will need their coal - as will us steam engines.”

“A-yeyeah, it'll be dealt with,” the Electro-Diesel said, in a dismissively quick voice, “in time. Our passengers take priority, and a lightning fast engine is what they need.”

Rebecca grimaced. To be fair, passengers were always an urgent matter. However, coal still kept the island running - and she could tell the Coaling Plant was falling behind.

She began to wonder if she should ask to be transferred back to coal deliveries. She was worried that Super Ed might continue to avoid doing them.

“Speaking of priority,” The Electro-Diesel said abruptly, as the guard’s whistle blew, “must get going! Super Ed is running record pace!”

Super Ed hurried out of the station. As he did, Rebecca took notice of a sharp whine that she hadn't heard before coming from the Electro-Diesel's system as he quickly gathered speed.

[duskstargazer]

Burning Worries

[1976]

Super Ed continued to pull express trains, in spite of what Sir Topham Hatt had said. The passengers enjoyed their trips with him, but the coaches did not.

They grumbled whenever he took them for runs, and were always shaken by the end of the journey.

“Come along!” Super Ed would say, obliviously, “we have timetables to meet, and an island to impress!”

“It's ironic to bring up the importance of timetables while actively exceeding them.” A coach grunted.

Predictably, Super Ed paid no attention.

The other engines were growing fed up with him as well.

“Does this guy have any personality traits other than being an ass?” Almond sighed, relieved to see Super Ed disappear from sight with the coaches he'd brought for him.

“I'd gladly go back to putting up with Norbert again if it meant not having to deal with him anymore.” Henry agreed.

“Wait - if you're not still delivering coal, then who is?”

Henry looked back towards his own coaches, his expression growing tense.

“BoCo, I think?”

“Nah, he's on passenger work, too - I saw him out with a local train the other day. …Then there’s Rebecca and her locals…”

“And Bear's off helping out on the Other Railway…” Henry trailed off.

“And I think we both know Norbert's not gonna do the extra work all on his own.” Almond added.

The two steam engines shared a look. One thing was for certain - things were about to get a lot harder for everyone.

[duskstargazer]

Seeing Red

[1976]

The new diesel was pulling coaches. Express coaches.

That was all James could think about as he finished his shunting.

“If you can’t behave…” He recalled Sir Topham Hatt saying. The new diesel was being told off, but did that mean anything if he’d already advanced to express work?

Just how quickly had he been replaced?

Dusk had settled as James slunk into the shed. At least he still had Tidmouth to call home.

“That new diesel is nothing but trouble!” The big engine rumbled. “Insinuating that he'll take over my express! It's a disgrace!”

“He's much too loud.” Said Murdoch.

“He's dangerous is what he is.” Put in Emily.

“He's almost as bad as the Kings from the Great Western!” Chipped in Oliver.

“So he's having teething troubles adjusting to working on our railway,” Rebecca began, diplomatically, “but he-”

“The diplomatic attempt is commendable,” Gordon interrupted, “but he's undeserving of it. Now, we're running low on coal, and have an insufferable nuisance giving us ceaseless grief - and we all know who to thank for that!”

Oliver and Emily exchanged confused expressions.

“James.” Gordon growled, properly acknowledging the red engine for the first time since the accident.

The red engine winced as the accusation hit him.

“What?!” Emily snapped.

“He's right.” Murdoch said. “James's carelessness has left the coal yards backed up, and the engine brought in to substitute him is giving us all migraines. There's no other way to put it - not to mention the wreck he caused putting the main tower out of commission.”

“Precisely.” Gordon nodded. “Thank you, Murdoch.”

“That's ridiculous!” Oliver huffed.

“James didn't get to choose who replaced him!” Emily chimed in.

“Doesn't matter.” Gordon argued. “Murdoch put it best - James's carelessness brought that Electric Diesel and has made it all our problem.”

“James didn't bring him here - Sir Topham Hatt did.” Oliver insisted. “James's accident could've led to any engine coming over, Ed was just coincidence!”

“Absolute rot!” Gordon spat.

“Stop saying that!” Emily snapped.

“Nonetheless, James has had plenty of chances to shape up, and he's blown every one. Perhaps this will see him finally shape up.”

Gordon continued to badmouth the red engine in that way he always did - as if the engine he was talking about wasn’t standing right there.

James grimaced. Though it had gone unspoken - for now, at least - the point was clear.

Maybe it would be better if he wasn’t.

On any other day, James would’ve argued. He would’ve fought to defend his innocence. He would’ve stood up for himself even a little.

But here, even he couldn’t help but feel responsible for the newcomer and the damage he’d brought. Seeing said new engine take over all of his old jobs with ease had only served to beat him down further. Truly, what would’ve been the point in raising his voice now? Gordon only ever listened to him when it was convenient, and right now Gordon was angry with him. No point trying to reason with him now.

And even then, he felt his attempt would only ring hollow, since he’d be arguing a stance he wasn’t sure he believed in to begin with.

And so it was that, instead, James left Tidmouth Sheds without a word. He had no desire to stay where he wasn’t wanted.

It wasn't like anyone was going to notice him leave.

[duskstargazer]

''If You Can't Behave...'

[1976]

Super Ed glided back into the big station. In spite of the growing irritation in his system, he was feeling very pleased with himself.

“There you go!” He beamed. “Get ahead with Super Ed!”

“I would prefer if my engines would stay in the present.” Sir Topham Hatt stood on the platform - he did not look pleased.

“You were brought here to assist with the coal trains.” He began, sternly. “Nowhere in that were you assigned express work. Now, coal deliveries are getting backed up, and my telephone has been ringing off the hook all afternoon about it. Furthermore, your run with The Limited was nothing short of reckless. I heard from Bear and his crew that you cut them off at a junction, and I personally was in Rebecca’s train this morning.”

Super Ed tensed.

“So I witnessed firsthand you breaking speed restrictions and cutting in front of another engine - leaving out that you were only so far ahead of schedule due to excessive speeding and driving dangerously. If you can't behave, I shall take away your blue coat, and leave you in the shed for the foreseeable future. Am I understood?”

Super Ed didn't like that at all.

“Yes, sir.” He said, trying not to show how cross he was.

[duskstargazer]

Pressure and Performance

[1976]

Super Ed glided into the final station feeling very pleased with himself. The stationmaster was quite taken aback.

“The Limited isn't due in for another twelve minutes.” He said. “The connecting service hasn't even arrived yet.”

“Super Ed always arrives early.” The Electro-Diesel said, confidently. “Stronger than a diesel, and faster than lightning!”

“Speed alone doesn’t make an express service.” Gordon criticized. “If-”

“Super Ed isn’t merely speed.” He scoffed. “No no, Super Ed is triple speed!”

“Well your passengers won't appreciate you rushing about like that. If you're going to pull coaches-”

He got no further as the doors opened and passengers swarmed out, giving the Electro-Diesel nothing but praise. They were unaware of the various rules their engine had broken and only had the smooth, fast ride to talk about.

“You were saying…?” Super Ed flashed a cocky grin.

Gordon only growled under his breath.