(Part 3 to Something Splendid)
Meanwhile at Knapford, Percy pulled into the station hauling the mail train, blissfully unaware of what was happening with Thomas and James.
He whistled to the workers as they all went to get the bags of packaged mail from his trucks. He then felt his fireman pat his side "We'll be back, Percy. We must give these fellas a hand with the mail"
"Ok, Mr Fireman" Percy replied happily as his crew departed from his cab.
As Percy's crew left to assist the other workers with the mail, he let out a yawn, unaware of the strange transformation about to befall him. However, as a tingling sensation spread throughout his frame, he couldn't ignore the growing ache that accompanied it. It felt odd and uncomfortable, like nails were digging into him.
Percy winced and let out a dog-like whimper as the discomfort intensified into an ache "Ow...ow...owww" He muttered. The weird ache was getting sharper and stronger, his firebox fizzling in response to the strange sensation.
Suddenly, the quietatmosphere at Knapford was shattered by a very loud wheeshing noise anyone had ever heard, causing everyone to gasp and point in shock.
Sir Topham Hatt rushed out of his office, his expression a mix of confusion and concern as he heard the noise. "What the bloody hell?!" he exclaimed, his voice cutting through the air as he sought to make sense of the sudden commotion.
As the steam and smoke gradually cleared, revealing the spot where Percy once stood, the onlookers were met with a sight that defied all logic and expectation. Instead of the familiar green saddle-tank engine, sprawled out on the rails before them was a towering 16-foot-tall humanoid figure.
With a pudgy yet muscular build, the grey-skinned man possessed digigrade legs adorned with small green locomotive wheels on his ankles. His face was obscured by a thick mane of curly brown hair that cascaded down his back, while a stumpy little funnel protruded from the top of his head. Adding to the surreal spectacle, the humanoid sported cat-like ears on the sides of his head, completing the baffling transformation.
The workers and passengers stood frozen in disbelief, struggling to comprehend the incomprehensible sight before them.
As Percy's driver and fireman exchanged bewildered glances, reeling from the sight before them, the possibility that the giant figure lying on the rails could indeed be their beloved engine was high. But only the fireman could see that.
"I- what?!" the driver spluttered, his disbelief evident as he scratched his neck in confusion. "Could it be Percy? Why the hell is there suddenly a giant 16-foot-tall man laying on the rails unconscious?"
The fireman stared on wide-eyed, his mind racing to make sense of the inexplicable transformation. "Jesus... do you think that's Percy?" he whispered, his voice tinged with disbelief.
"Percy? You think that giant MAN is Percy?!" the driver exclaimed incredulously, shaking his head "It's probably just a coincidence. There's no way that's... that just can't be him."
The fireman shrugged, his expression still filled with uncertainty. "Dude, Percy disappeared in a huge puff of smoke. LITERALLY. Then that thing appeared," he pointed at the giant man on the tracks. "That's a pretty huge coincidence."
"Percy's a steam engine. That thing is... well, I haven't got the foggiest idea! There's just no way," the driver argued vehemently, his disbelief becoming borderline stubbornness.
Sir Topham Hatt soon approached the two, his expression shifting from sternness to shock and confusion as he surveyed the scene before him. "What on earth...?" he murmured, trailing off as he struggled to comprehend the inexplicable transformation that had unfolded.
"What happened?!" Sir Topham Hatt demanded, his tone stern as he focused his attention on Percy's bewildered crew.
The fireman raised his hands in defense, looking uncertaint. "We don't know, Sir! Percy just... turned into that!" he explained, gesturing towards the giant humanoid figure lying on the rails.
The driver quickly interjected, his voice tinged with doubt. "But we don't know for SURE if it's Percy!" he added, earning an unimpressed look from the fireman.
Sir Topham Hatt stared at the scene before him, his expression a mix of frustration and bewilderment. "Oh dear, oh dear... out of all the strangest things that happen on this damn island, this certainly takes the cake," he muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. Having his engines become beasts was already stressful enough, but humans??
"Can one of you at least go down and check if it IS Percy? If it isn't, I don't have a bloody clue on what else to do..." he sighed, his exasperation palpable.
The fireman put his hand up "Not it"
The driver grunted and rolled his eyes in annoyance before reluctantly and carefully hopping off the platform, landing on the ballast covered ground below (good thing he had strong legs).
When he looked back up at the creature that was supposedly Percy, he gulped. The size of the creature was much more daunting and intimidating than on the platform. Taking a deep breath, Percy's driver carefully tiptoed up to the beast.
The humanoid's ear twitched a little, and steam puffed out of its nostrils, albeit covered by its puffy hair.
The driver delicately brushed his fingers along the strands of hair before slowly pushing a good amount of its hair. As he took in the details of the colossal man's face, he gasped in even more disbelief;
"Oh god! It IS Percy!!" He exclaimed. Sir Topham Hatt gasped "Wait, it is?!" He asked in disbelief, his voice now tinged with worry for his engine. He along with a few other workers quickly made their way down the platform to see for themselves. All the while, they desperately tried to avoid looking at Percy's...ahem...jewels
The driver continued staring at Percy's face in shock until Percy started to stir; he was waking up.
Suddenly, a soft growl could be heard from Percy as he began to stir more and more, making everyone back up in fear. The humanoid saddle-tank's nose twitched and his nails dug into the ground as he came around. He yawned and opened his eyes tiredly.
Once he saw where he was, Percy frowned in confusion "Huh..?" He mumbled as he noticed everyone's faces. A strand of curly hair fell on his face. Thinking he was in his monster form, Percy sat up and simply reached up and pulled it away, only to yelp in pain as it felt like something was pulling at his skin as he tugged on it.
More brown curls then fell over his face, and his tried pulling those away, only for more sharp pain "Ow!" Percy grunted, pulling his paw away.
But when he looked at his paw, he noticed something very off; his paw was more slender looking and his fingers weren't as stubby.
The workers watched in hushed silence, not knowing what to do as they watched Percy flex his fingers, his expression becoming more and more horrified.
Percy saw his driver and whimpered "D-Driver? What's happened?"
The driver reached up, trying to sound calm and reassuring "Okay...uh, Percy. Everything's ok...just don't look dooowwnnn..." Percy did the exact opposite and looked down at the rest of his body "....and he look down" the driver sighed to himself, mentally face-palming.
Percy let out a mighty scream that echoed through the station as he took in the details of his body. He cried and continued to scream as adrenaline began rushing through him, making him instantly stand up, only to fall down due to the unfamiliar feeling of his new legs.
The workers and Sir Topham Hatt quickly cleared away as Percy whimpered and cried, tears of fear streaming down his cheeks as he clutched on to the mail truck for support. The wheels on his ankles spun frantically, his claws digging into the wood of the trucks as he began hyperventilating.
"What– What's happened to me?!" He sobbed.
Sir Topham Hatt, albeit quite stressed out himself, tried to calm him down "Percy! I understand this is very distressing, but please calm down!" He called out. Percy looked down at his controller through teary eyes, choking on a sob, he replied "S-Sir...? I–"
Percy's ears pricked up as he looked ahead of the tracks to see two other humanoid creatures like himself. One was the same size as him and the other was very tall. Both of them also had very familiar faces...
"T-Thomas...James...?" He hiccuped, letting go of the truck. He then made a weak attempt to crawl towards the two "H-Help...me" He whimpered, reaching his hand out to grab either Thomas or James's.
Thomas himself wasted no time and quickly crawled towards Percy, grabbing his hand and helping him on to his knees. Everyone watched as the two smaller humanoids then hugged each other for comfort, James slipping in to join. Thomas let out a shaky sigh and whispered;
"I-It's ok, Percy...everything's gonna be...ok..."
tangentwithtanner
amandla
vaporwave
ellievsbear
romaincrisis
