Tales from the rails

Dan's Real Exploit

The train was going smoothly, Dan passed through the countryside slowly and the passengers enjoyed their time. The coaches were playing Eye Spy. "I spy with my little eye something... brown!" Said David. "Is it the sleepers?" Asked Clara. "Yep!" Said David. "Okay, my turn!" Clara then thought. "I spy with my little eye something... moving!" The two coaches looked around. "Is it those deer?" Asked Henry. "Yep!" "Alright, alright, my turn." Henry looked around. "I spy with my little eye... JONAH?!" "Henry, that's not a...." David started as he looked back. "IT'S JONAH!" Yelled the coaches as Dan perked up. "Dear god, faster Dan!" Delilah said as she shoveled some more coal into the firebox. Dan opened his regulator as the diesel began to gain on him. "You can run but you can't hide!" Jonah yelled as he chased Dan. "Points!" Dan yelled to the signalman, and he was switched onto the shadow mainline while Jonah stayed on the mainline. "Bother, I guess he can hide. "Just keep going Jonah, we'll run back into him again." Z said in the cab. Meanwhile, Joe, Christina, and P.T. Bonnet were working on a bomb at the main support of The Grand Gap. "That reminds me." Said P.T. Boomer. "We gotta get going, Jessie and Serena are in a goods train up there, and they're gonna blow up the bridge!" "Then what have we been setting up?" Asked Joe. "It's a back up bomb, worst case scenario, if their bomb doesn't blow up then ours will, or they'll both go and make this bridge go bye bye!" P.T. Explained. "Then let's go!" Yelled Christina as she walked to her car. The three sped off as Josh thundered over The Grand Gap. One of the Gunpowder van's door flung opened, a barrel was kicked out and a small ticking fell with it. "Let's go." Said Jessie and the two hopped out of the van as the train rolled back onto solid ground. The car rolled up to them and they got in, Jessie and Serena got into the back, and they drove off. "How far away is safe?" Asked Christina. "Give it another minute of driving!" They drove on as Dan looked into view, they turned the car around and began watching. "BOOOOM!!!" The two bombs had exploded at the base of the bridge. Dan thundered through the smoke and he screamed in pain! "OH, OH!" He had been hit by a small burst from the laser, and a hole melted through his boiler. "We got him!" Jonah yelled with a cackle. Then the bridge began to crumble. Henry was worried. "NOT AGAIN!" He yelled as the rails gave way under him, Henry's back wheels had left the the coaches were scared. "Dan!" Yelled David. "Henry!" Yelled Clara. Dan struggled to hold the coaches up. Jonah couldn't cross the bridge, the gap between the tracks was too wide, but it didn't matter to him, he was watching the D&D pride of the line fall from grace and to his doom.

Dan was struggling to keep the train up, steam billowed from his boiler and his cheeks turned red as his wheels slipped ferociously. The coaches felt heavier and heavier, the diesel laughed maniacally. "Struggle all you want, just gives me a better show!" Jonah cackled. "Oh boy, I'm getting Deja Vu." Dan mumbled, trying to lift spirits in a very serious time. That's when DD had a thought. "Delilah, open the sandboxes!" DD said as he cleared smoke from the outside. She did so, and Dan was able to get some grip on the rails! "Come on Dan, come on, come on!" Henry began to get back onto the rails. "Here we go... Here we go!" Dan said as he began moving forwards, everyone in the car, Jonah, and Z were surprised! "No!" Z began to charge up the laser beam. The coaches were now cheering Dan on, the passengers and crew were too. They were about to round the bend when the car driver in front of them. "We aren't letting you go!" Said Christina. "Aunt Christina, move!" DD said as Dan braked slowly. Then Delilah was ripped from the cab by her neck! "Delilah! Everyone yelled as Jessie and Serena chuckled. "Heheheee. Ssso DD, I'm guesssssing now you want to sssave Delilah sssince we have her now." Jessie said as she took out a knife. DD stepped out of the cab, Dan was stopped in front of the SUV. "Now then, you're gonna do what I tell you to, or ssshe getsss it! And no funny busssinesss." She held the knife to Delilah's throat. Billy watched from the Guard's Compartment. Henry whispered to him. "Pssst, Billy. Billy!" "What Henry?" "Get in my cab controls, drive Dan into the SUV and cause a distraction!" "How do I-" "I'll tell you how, just get into the controls." Billy did as he was told and got into the cab. "Alright, turn the reverser to the left three times, and the open the regulator to 50%, to the marking." "Uhhh, okay." Said Billy, opening the regulator and letting steam flow through Dan. He turned the reverser three times, and Dan's axles groaned. He began to move slowly forwards. "Chuff... chuff!" Dan rolled forwards, a little faster every turn of his wheels. "AHHH!" Screamed Christina as her car was crushed under Dan. Luckily, no one was in the car, but everyone was stranded. Everyone just looked at Dan. "You stupid engine!" She yelled. While everyone was distracted, DD kicked the knife out of Jessie's hand, while Delilah socked Serena in the face. The two ran back into Dan's cab and yelled a, "Thank you Billy!" As the train picked up speed. There we go, 99... 100 percent!" "Uh, boss, they got away." "WHAT?! NO!" Z yelled angrily, his threw his laser on the ground, and it went off, shooting through Jonah's claw. One of the bars that held it up snapped and hit Jonah. "Ow! Aww man."

Dan was gaining a little speed, but he had to climb the Lickey Incline, he was worried about the outcome. "We're in the clear for now. We shouldn't have to worry about them catching up for a while." Commented Delilah. Then there was a low rumbling sound. "I think you spoke too soon." Said DD, and there was P.T. Boomer on his motorcycle, with Jessie onboard. DD then had an idea, he began to use his power to patch the hole in his boiler and the pipes. This allowed Dan to get more steam to his pistons, and get Dan to move faster! "Come on, come on, come on!" Dan puffed to himself, he charged at the hill. P.T. Boomer and Jessie gave chase, climbing up the hill on the tracks. It was a bumpy ride for them, but when they made it to the top, Dan was thundering down the incline, rattling around the bed. "Bother!" Said Jessie as she got up and threw a fit. "Shut up!" Said P.T. Boomer, "We got to get to the boss." Dan thundered down the hill, gaining speed as his momentum pushed him on. DD was sweating, he had never used his power this long, and had to sit down. "Oh... my...." He said, his power cut off and his hands were shaking. Dan began to slow down again, but he was able to keep going down the line under his power. "You rest, I'll take over." Delilah said as she put her shovel down and began to watch the dials. Dan chuffed through Lickey Station, on his way home. The coaches were cheering him on, "Come on Dan, you can do it!" They said as Dan moved down the line. A big grin appeared on his face, but he couldn't say anything. Dan then began to think of a way to go faster. He thought back to the boat trick, and the engines sucking in air through their funnels! "That's it!" He thought as he puffed down the line, and then he started sucking in air, turning his boiler into his funnel, and he was able to bring more pressure into his pistons and he kept going down the line. He shot the ash and some tiny bits of burnt up coal through his funnel instead of his cab. The passengers were pleased to be heading home, it wasn't super late but the sun was setting in the distance. "Did you guys hear?" Asked Marvin. "What?" Asked Jayden. "You really didn't hear?" Asked Marvin again. "Well no one's told me anything today! Besides my jobs and the morning news!" "Well do you know what?" "I can't know what 'what' is unless you tell me what it is!" "A bomb went off at The Grand Gap! They already started repairing the rails but we've been cut off from the other half of the railway until it's been repaired, which is surprisingly going to be done in a few weeks." "Feels like Deja Vu, but wasn't Dan also here to deliver the news to us?" Asked Rhys, he had recently been released from the works that week. "PEEEEEEP... PIP!" Came a whistle. It was Dan! "Speak of the devil." Said Dom. "Look, steam's billowing from his side like last time!" Rhys said. The tank engine with his train rolled into the station on their own. The passengers clamored out, thanked Dan for getting them home on time, the coaches cheered as well, and his crew, mostly just Delilah carrying DD, stepped out of the cab. The passengers thanked them too, shaking their hands as they left the station and to the buses. "Hey guys. The bridge is down... again." Said Dan as he looked around the station. "So we've heard." Said Dom. "Uh-huh." Said Jayden. Dan was too tired to sleep, he took a deep breath and went to sleep on the spot. "This feels like big Deja Vu." Said Marvin. "I know! Like, it's the exact same thing that happened, except...." Dom thought for a moment. "Dan needed Rhys to pull him into the station!" Said Jayden. "That's right, I wonder what happened out there though." Dom added. "I would like to find out, but also, I certainly wouldn't wanna be there." Marvin commented. "I think it's better if we let the past be the past." Said Rhys as he buffered up to Henry and towed the train into the sunset.