I’m Maddie Sunbeam and this is my weird lil corner of the internet! She/Her pronouns please! I’m a total nerd and a Voice Actress! Enjoy mostly reposts and the occasional art >:3 Matching PFP with @strawberry-bytes
"Usually, it was his name that they yelled before helplessly barreling into the ditch, and now he was yelling one of theirs. He wanted to laugh, but his breath was spent on trying to remain in contact with the metal beneath."
At one point in film school my professor tried to legally rent a movie to show us and even though she had paid money, it wasn't working. So she went "I'm going to turn around and one of you will find the movie somehow".
“On Another Track”, Part 2 (Post-StEx Headcanons!)
special notes before we begin:
First, yeah, this DID take me a literal eternity to produce. Work got in the way. Exhaustion got in the way. Having no ideas got in the way. Heck, just about EVERYTHING got in the way before I could even edit this...but please. Try to be kind and understand that I can't do this as often as I would like, and I hope there's at least one interested person left to give their seal of approval.
Second, I’ve seen the character of Electra described with both the pronoun sets of ‘he/him’ and 'they/them’ in this fandom, so it only seemed fair to continue this in my writing just in case it really is both.
Third, I’m writing this version of Greaseball as a person whose own school bus bully had to rethink his entire life after almost dying in a car accident…so, this one in particular might (re) grow up a lot more during the course of this little experiment.
And fourth, but also the most important…in no way are the villains described in this going to end up winning. ;)
That being said, here is the first installment on what I think could continue the Starlight Express plotline, if by some odd chance it got transformed into an animated film sequel and had a few horror elements added to it.
part one:
special notes before we begin--In case I didn't mention it before...I'm getting through the first re-watch of what I'm sure is a Bochum perf
@vessels-cape @starlightdust-dreamergalaxy and anybody else who wants to give this a read!
ASHLEY.
"You. Can't. Be serious."
After hearing the idea from C.B. that she'll have to start derailing other engines again, especially if she ever wants her 'Coach Club' back, Ashley is nothing short of livid.
"Why would I want to go out and hurt someone else's racing partner?"
"Why not," C.B. presses, not sounding too happy either.
"Didn't you do the same thing as me not too long ago...?"
"That was just to keep Bobo and Turnov from smashing each other up! And anyway, it's not even race time, so why try it?"
"Oh, I think you already know why..."
C.B. conveniently gestures to the empty space around them, indicating all the other Coaches that would normally have been there before.
"...This place used to be yours, remember? You, Buffy, Dinah, and that sweet new girl, Pearl? Who's going to live here now, if steam is really supposed to be coming back?"
"It won't be like that at all," Ashley snaps back, going on the defensive. "Rusty's already got a home of his own, never mind a family. There's no way in oil that he'd even think about making a grab for mine!"
"And what if dear Rusty decides instead that you're too much of a bad influence on his precious Pearl...?" C.B. continues, a self-satisfied look coming over him. “What if all this new horsepower goes straight to his head, and he turns out to be no better than Greaseball?"
Ashley is stuck trying to figure out her answer as the focus shifts back to the Freight Yard, and incidentally, also back to the mild chaos growing within it.
RUSTY:
Both Rusty and Poppa have taken a seat off to one side at this point, Electra sitting at their farthest left, and all three look on at the odd scene of Greaseball trying to gun his engine two more times, only to collapse in both instances from the lack of fuel.
"Don't think it's gonna work, mate," Flat Top observes as Dustin barely holds back his own laughter.
"Maybe you're gonna need something other than oil!"
"I'll be just fine once I get outta here," Greaseball insists, playing the tough guy angle as always. "And anyways, somebody's gotta go find Dinah, right?"
"You sure about that, son?" Poppa asks in a cautionary tone.
" 'Course I am, what's the big deal here--"
"--The big deal is," Rusty joins in, "if you go outside alone after sunset, you just might run into Old Cody."
This instantly gets most of the potential tusslers to go still and silent, all but Greaseball, who is by now looking a tiny bit nervous.
" 'Old Cody'...? Who the track is that?"
"That," Rusty begins, reciting the story from memory, "is the name of the engine whose story began on May 12, 1948, in a freight yard that looked a lot like this one. On that day, Cody the Steamer had been prepared for another trip around the track, or so he believed as his human minders stocked him up for the journey ahead."
"As usual," Flat Top continues, moving the story forward in a Round Robin sort of way, "Cody had been given a full boiler of water; a full room of coal; and a complete check of the wheels, so as far as he knew, they weren't about to let anything bad happen to him.
However…it wasn’t until he started traveling up a steep hill that he found his water level going down, and of course he whispered to his handlers right away, I’m so thirsty.”
As the Freight Family each takes a turn relaying the tale, the lighting around them goes dark and small white lights appear in the background, within which the story of Old Cody is visually told either through shadow puppets or animated black paper cutouts.
“Those ‘andlers, though, paid him no attention at first,” Dustin says when it’s his turn. “Maybe his engine ran too loud, so they couldn’t hear his whispers. Maybe the handlers themselves were too busy talkin', or jokin', or just plain concentratin' too much to notice what was taking place right under their noses.
Whatever the problem, though, it didn’t stop Old Cody one bit. Even though he continued losin' water and his boiler plates started to overheat, still he insisted to anyone who would listen: I’m so thirsty."
"Finally," Hip Hopper 1 concludes, "somebody paid attention to the fact that the boiler was growing dangerously low on water, and decided to act in order to avoid an accident…oh, but by that time, it was too late.”
One by one, the freight workers from Poppa all the way down to the third Hip Hopper removes either his helmet or hat, indicating the exact time that Old Cody’s boiler exploded as well as his ultimate demise. Behind them, however, a slightly different tale is being told—the boiler is seen exploding in a flood of steaming water as three of the humans vanish to symbolize the number of casualties…but at this same time, a great number of Cody’s pipes slowly warp and twist into a mass of writhing tentacles, indicating something truly monstrous has awakened in the destruction right before all the spotlights turn off at once.
“Three of the railroad workers would ultimately perish in the disaster beside poor Cody, whose body was reduced to a mangled piece of machinery that now had nothing but pipes in place of a face. Never again would he feel the breeze blowing through his railing, enjoy the tastes of water and coal, or feel the solid ground beneath his wheels. Never again would he enjoy the feeling of another job well done, as poor old Cody was no more…and yet.”
A ghostly, echoing cross between a human scream and a train whistle sounds in the distance, suggesting in one go that a remnant of Old Cody still remains…though to what end is unclear.
“Every time that night falls on the anniversary of his death, still there are some who hear his lonesome whistle, while others hear his final words in the middle of the night: I’m so thirsty…”
JOULE
The mood breaks as soon as an evil cackle erupts from the shadows, sending Greaseball and all three Hip Hoppers jumping three solid inches into the air before the owner reveals themselves. The culprit turns out to be Joule, who must have beaten Dinah and Pearl back to the freight yard by a few minutes and decided to have a little fun in the meantime. Electra isn't exactly in the mood for games tonight, as they waste no time in asking her if she's out to scare them all to death. Joule just shrugs it all off in return, and playfully suggests that she only did it to see how spooked they would all get.
"Well, it sure worked on me," Hip Hopper 2 grumbles, attempting to roll his way past her. Joule, however, isn't so keen on letting him disappear.
"Oh…? So quickly?"
She conveniently rolls into his path for a better look, her thin black eyebrows raised in faint interest.
"I don't remember seeing you before…do you come around often?"
"I'm here every day for work, plus parties on Saturday nights," Two answers, looking a tiny bit confused now. "Why…?"
"I think our brother might be a target for a hitch-up," One stage-whispers to Three, barely holding back a snicker.
"Let's just hope she doesn't hitch him up too hard," Three jokes back.
Meanwhile, Rusty takes advantage of the shenanigans going on by sneaking off to the gate to wait for Pearl, and attempts a whistle into the darkness beyond in the hopes of getting a fast answer. Fortunately, he doesn't have to wait for very long.
PEARL:
And speaking of...once she and Dinah finally reach the gate, that's also when everything gets just a little awkward. First, when she decides to check in on Greaseball's 'condition', Dinah very nearly pushes her aside to enter.
"I'll be the one to deal with him, thank ya very much. Worry about your own engine."
"Sorry...?"
"I'm sure she's fine," Rusty tells her, trying to keep things calm. "It's just been a wild few days, right?"
"More than that," Electra says, leaving his place on the sidelines. "I don't think anybody's checked on you yet..how are you feeling?"
"Fine," Pearl says flatly, not quite meeting his eyes.
"Just 'fine'...?"
"What does it matter?"
This is when Pearl flashes Electra a dirty look, clearly harboring some bad feelings about all that took place during the races.
"You didn't have a problem zapping me with your electric shocks!"
"Those shocks weren't meant for you," Electra says firmly, though not without first lowering their voice in order not to sound too angry.
"Now...is it all right for us to go take a rail and talk about this, or would you rather be alone for a while instead?"
Pearl takes a cautious look over at Rusty, who gives her the 'O.K.' gesture and so encourages her to work this out with them. The two then move to the nearest corner for a little privacy, and hopefully to settle their issues without any arguments.
DINAH:
This, in turn, leaves Dinah to deal with Greaseball...and, while Poppa, Joule, and almost everyone else look on in quiet amusement, she's fixing him with the stink-eye before speaking up.
"Causing trouble already, 'Mister World Champion'...?"
" 'S not my fault," Greaseball insists, jabbing a finger in the direction of Dustin and Flat Top. "They're the ones who won't let me get outta bed!"
"That's 'cause you keep crashin' out with no fuel," Dustin shouts, grabbing up a handful of coal and motioning for Flat Top to follow.
"Not this time, though...open wide!"
Greaseball attempts to get away once more, only this time, Flat Top's got him caught from behind and holding him still while Dustin forces the needed coal into his mouth; then makes sure he's unable to do anything else but swallow it down. For the first five seconds, it's unclear if he'll keep it down or not, as the transformation process is not yet complete...then, a telltale glow comes and goes from beneath the bandages, after which Greaseball is allowed to stand back and dust himself off.
"Feeling better?" Dinah asks sarcastically, both eyebrows raised.
"Maybe," he admits reluctantly. "Think I might be getting the old spark back."
"You're a steamer now, lad," Dustin scolds him, pushing another dose of the coal into his hands. "Y' just might try actin' like one!"
This leads to a strange reaction from Poppa, who up until now has appeared to be in full celebration mode like everyone else. Once Dustin utters this line, however, he suddenly goes unnaturally silent.
RUSTY:
This silence gains the attention of Rusty, who at first tries to keep the mood light by asking Poppa, "What's with the long grill?" Unfortunately, Poppa's not much in the mood for humor tonight, because his only thought is to go spend the rest of the evening beside the coal pit.
"You kids go ahead and have your fun, all right…? Best not for me to sour the mood out there."
"You still haven't healed up from your accident," Rusty counters, slowly rolling over to Poppa's side. "I don't mind going out there with you, anyway, it's just for one night--"
"--No, Rusty," Poppa insists, raising a hand to stop any further arguments. "Just give me this one night to clear my head, and I'll be back to normal tomorrow. Think you can do that?"
Not wanting to push the matter too much, Rusty silently nods his agreement. Poppa's always had his fair share of secrets, after all, so of course, maybe some of them are best left up to Poppa himself to reveal when he feels the time is right.
"Tomorrow," he echoes, leaving his mentor to his thoughts as he returns to the main garage, if only to reassure himself that the others aren't about to burn anything by accident. Once he reaches the edge of the enclosure and does a little head count, however, that's when he notices it.
Ashley is nowhere to be found.
ASHLEY:
"Just think it over for tonight," C.B. presses, conveniently dialing back his own venom to sound a little more convincing. "Give it some time, and who knows…you just might end up seeing things my way for once."
"If I ever decide to take YOUR advice," Ashley snaps back, "I'll be sure that you're the very last derailer to know. Goodbye, C.B."
She angrily moves out of listening range of the troublesome caboose, fully intending not to pay him a second more of attention as she makes her way back to the Coach yard. Once she's back once more in familiar territory and she passes by that poster again, though…?
That's when she stops right in front of it, her form outlined by the glow of the lights surrounding it and the telltale notes of 'There's Me' playing a second time, almost as though it's a worship service for trains and the poster itself is either a religious icon…or a somewhat shiny trap.
BOSS DIESEL:
Back in the shadows, Boss isn’t wasting any time sleeping, because now, it’s time to wake up The Six, also known as his Gang of Duplicates. This is accomplished one by one by The Assistant, who calls six different locations across the U.S. to reach six men with the same height, build, and appearance, though certainly dressed differently every time in order to properly tell them apart. For example, the Duplicate in Dallas wears a cowboy hat and loves football; the Duplicate in St. Louis works as a Catholic priest; and so on according to the average Human habit of the region. All of the Six look as though they're both sound asleep and standing at the ready for battle, even if none of them are moving so much as one muscle.
Once the call comes for each of them and there’s no more need to keep up the Human act, however…that’s when they all spring right to life, going back to their original forms of dangerous men with oil wells for eyes; jagged fangs in place of human teeth; and the sense of something burning deep inside every copy though not a single one is on fire.
"So we meet again, Boss...what are your orders?"
And once all of these Duplicates are once more reunited with the Head of their group, that’s when Boss Diesel dispatches them to follow him to the same exact location.
"Meet up at the gate of Poppa’s Freight Yard, get into formation…and as always, be prepared for a fight."
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