Work Text:
4th September 2003
Time had passed, and the topic of Proteus had disappeared and faded away from the engine’s minds on the Skarloey Railway. The summer holidays were over, and the traffic had slowed down, meaning the only think the engines had to worry about was transporting goods deliveries and locate passengers. Mr Percival had received a large order of limestone for the Mainland in Europe, and this cause for extra work and help at the Blue Mountain Quarry. The Thin Controller went to speak with the engines that night in the sheds. They all listened carefully and some were annoyed at the extra work.
“Och. More work to do. It wears an engine out,” complained Duncan.
“I know, Duncan, but you rather have something to do than stay in the sheds,” added Adelia, reminding Duncan about the bad winter last year, where all of them had to stay locked up in the sheds, while Rusty went about clearing the lines. Duncan just rolled his eyes.
“We just came out of a busy summer rush. Surely, they can wait sir, or get another company, sir,” asked Duncan, not realising how stupid he sounded. The Thin Controller’s patience was running thin with his engines, especially towards Duncan.
“Look Duncan. We are the only railway available, and they want it now. Plus, this money will help the railway and you all open and running. Now goodnight,” he said, turning around crossly and walking away from his engines. Duncan wisely didn’t say anymore.
“I told you,” said Adelia smugly.
“That’s enough,” said Skarloey, as the others stayed quiet. “We can get through it together. The Thin Controller said he will have us take turns with the goods,”
“Expect Luke. He is stuck shunting our trains,” interrupted Sir Handel. The Thin Controller had asked Luke to shunt the trains and help the miners at the quarry. Luke didn’t mind it; he liked working with trucks.
“What’s wrong with that?” he asked.
“Well, you would have to work at night, shunting the trains and working with the men in the mines. Remember what the Thin Controller right said?” asked Rusty. Luke was only listening into half of the conversation; he only knew that he was to shunt trucks and that was it.
“Uhmmmm. A Little,” he replied, as the others sighed with annoyance.
“You will have to do the work at night, mining the limestone, putting them in trucks and have them organised by the time it’s dawn. The company wants them delivered at around morning time for them,” explained Rusty. Luke now understood what he was getting himself into.
“Oh, I see,” he replied, a little nervous. He never worked at night before, not in a long time however, but he was determent to not let the Thin Controller down. Meanwhile, Skarloey and Rheneas were in the back of the sheds, watching everyone start talking. Skarloey looked over to Rheneas, who seem a little sad.
“Are you alright, Rheneas?” he asked, as his little brother sighed.
“Do you remember when Proteus’ used to do that?” he asked. Skarloey thought back to those days. He did remember when Proteus was kind enough to shunt their morning trains at the old slate mines.
“I do, but this is the little difference, no one uses the forest anymore,” Skarloey lied. Rheneas didn’t seem any happier after that. Skarloey was unsure. Was Rheneas sad because he misses Proteus or was, he scared that it would happen to others? Getting lose in the forest… or worst.
“I’m sure we will have someone to help you out, Luke,” said Duke. “Maybe Falcon could help you,”
“In your wildest of dreams,” replied Sir Handel as everyone laughed, expected Skarloey and Rheneas, who were too buys thinking and remembering Proteus.
That late afternoon, Luke awoken to see a new fireman and driver. The driver was Liam, and the fireman was Stephen, they were young but knew the ropes of an engine.
“Where are Alex and Tom?” asked Luke to the new crew.
“At home. They will be with you in the morning however, we will help you at nighttime. You can say we are your nighttime crew, if you would like,” explained Liam, and once Luke had enough steam, Liam pulled his regulator and Luke puffed away to the Blue Mountain Quarry.
The Quarry is slowing getting quiet. Rusty and Adelia had left with their trains. Luke was now all alone, but not for too long, as he suddenly heard a very familiar whistle and voice.
“Good evening, Luke. How have you’ve been?” and they’re alongside him; was Peter Sam. Luke was very surprised to see Peter Sam arrived.
“Peter Sam? What are you doing here?” he asked surprised, but Peter Sam just chuckled.
“To help you out. The Thin Controller has asked me to help you. Plus, you get to help me take the trains to the yards,” he explained. Luke was very happy to have his friend with him, and very grateful too. The loads were heavy and there were lots of limestone being put into the trucks. Luke and Peter Sam found them very heavy to push and pull around the quarry, but they managed well. By the end of the night, both their wheels and axels ache, but as they were starting to settle down for the night, the Quarry Manager came up to them.
“Thank you for your help tonight, boys, but I need one of you to do one last favour for me,” he said. “I need someone to take some this small delivery of stone. It’s for Donald’s train for Barrow, he will be arriving at 6am to collect it,” Peter Sam looked over to look who was so exhausted, he couldn’t muster a replied, so he decided to take it.
“I’ll take it for you, sir,” said Peter Sam.
“Thank you, Peter Sam. Make sure you have your lantern ready too. It’s still a little dark out,” he said, as he walked away, and Peter Sam puffed away to collect the train.
He collected the train of stone and was coupled up to it. His driver, Tabby, was adjusting Peter Sam’s light, when suddenly, it turned off. Tabby was confused.
“What the?” she looked to see what was wrong and she sighed. Peter Sam was concerned.
“What’s wrong Tabby?”
“Your lantern has blown itself,” she explained, as she showed the broken lamp. “I’ll quickly see if they are any spares for me to use,” she said, as she walked away, but by the time she could back, she was empty headed. “There aren’t any spares lamps, and they don’t have any spare batteries for the lamp,”
“What about Luke’s lamp,” asked CJ, the fireman.
“Liam and Stephen have already left with Luke back down to the sheds,” she replied. “I’m sorry, Peter Sam but we will have to proceed with cautious,” Peter Sam was annoyed but understood that he must be careful when travelling. Last minute adjustments were made and Peter Sam standoff, but the worst was yet to come. To get in and out of the Blue Mountain Quarry, it runs along on track and at the bottom of the track are a set of points, one going to Skarloey Station, while the other goes to the M.O.D base, which none of the engines go there anymore. The points were always set to Skarloey Station, and never the base, but for some strange and unexplained reason, the points were set in the base’s direction. Peter Sam and his crew didn’t realise until it was too late.
“Peter Sam, stop! We are going to wrong way,” said Tabby, as she slammed on the brakes, and Peter Sam screeched to a haul.
“Wh-what’s going on?” he asked confused.
“We are pointing in the wrong way,” said Tabby, as she put the regulator into reversed, and made Peter Sam go backwards, but despite the small train, the trucks were too heavy for Peter Sam to reversed back.
“Great, now we are stuck,” said CJ.
“Well, it isn’t my fault, it’s the stupid points,” replied Tabby.
“The points are never set to the base,”
“Well, how was I meant to know?” as the two started to argue, Peter Sam sat there, upset, and feeling bad for his crew, and he couldn’t bare to hear them arguing over a simple mistake, then, he remembered something.
“Peeeeep! Peeep! Hey! Listen up, you two,” said Peter Sam. “I know a shortcut through here.” The pair stopped arguing and listened to their engine. “There is a short cut I have always taken to get to the yard quicker, and if we take that route, we will get to the yard faster and we won’t have to be in the dark for too long either. We drop the goods off and head back to the sheds,” Peter Sam explained. CJ and Tabby looked at each other, a little confused.
“A secret line?” asked CJ. “That’s just stupid,”
“It’s better than going back the way we came,” said Peter Sam, to which Tabby agreed.
“Come on, Peter Sam, let’s go,” as she pulled the regulator to go forward, and Peter Sam puffed away, towards the line.
Peter Sam slowly started to make his way through the secret line, and very carefully too. It was hard without his lamp. He was starting to get scared, but he bravely puffed on through.
“Gosh. You can’t see anything now, can you?” said Tabby, as Peter Sam huffed nervously through the forest. Just then he felt a rush of wind, slipping in between his wheels, and wrapped around his special funnel. Peter Sam was shocked by the sudden wind, until he started hearing a strange creaking noise, and he started to get flashbacks.
“The wind, the creaking…. The lamp?... Proteus’ lamp!” he called out, as he looked up, and saw a light up ahead, swinging right and left, and it was flicking on and off, off and on. Peter Sam didn’t know what to think. Was this Farmer John’s lamp…. Or…. Or was it for real this time. Peter Sam started slowly down as he noticed a lantern dancing in the wind. This lamp looked difference from the last time he saw it, but lanterns have changed from the last 30-ish years ago. Tabby and CJ sighed frustrated and looked out and saw the lantern.
“Heh! What luck we have, ey?” said CJ looking up at the lantern. He went to go grab it, but Tabby was unsure.
“But we don’t know who’s it is,” she said, but CJ wasn’t listening.
“Look Tabs, we need light to guide us. Plus, this seems bright enough, you could see from miles,” said CJ, as he grabbed the lantern. Tabby was in deny about it, but before she spoke up again, CJ notice something interesting about the lamp.
“Hey, check it out,” CJ said.
“What is it?” asked Peter Sam and Tabby.
“This is a gaslit lantern. Surprised these are still around,” he said, as he looked the back of the lantern. “It’s dated from 1900… and with a name too,” he pointed to Tabby, but she too couldn’t read the name either.
“Gosh, who knows about to pronoun that,” she said. “Come on, CJ. We are waiting time. We can’t leave the manager waiting. Now, come on,” she said, and instructed CJ to put the lantern on Peter Sam, so, he did. He places the lantern in the centre of his running board at the front and made sure it was put on properly and wouldn’t fall off.
“Are you sure about this?” asked Peter Sam to CJ. “Sparks from the funnel might land on the lamp and it might stop a bad fire,”
“I’m sure it will be fine, Peter Sam,” he said, but as CJ finished, Peter Sam started to feel as if he was being watched… the same feeling he had all those years ago. He was imagining he was re-living that night with the MacDonalds’ with Glenn and Harris in ’73…. He was remembering Proteus…. CJ climbed up into the cab, and just as Tabby was about to pull open the regulator, they heard it.
“Peter… Sam… Wait….” Came a raspy and deep voice. The three froze in fear.
“What… the hell… was that?” asked CJ to Tabby, who was to stun to speak.
“I… I….” but Tabby was cut off by the voice.
“My…. My….,” came the voice again. Peter Sam was now frightened.
“W-w-w-w-w-w-h-h-h-h-h-o-o-o-o-o-o g-g-g-g-go-es-s-s th-th-th-ere?” he shivered, but before the voice could answered, Tabby pull the regulator open and Peter Sam dashed away, as fast as his walks could go. He didn’t stop until they reached the yards.
Peter Sam came into the yards with a loud whistle and his piston pumping, as he screeched to a haul, right at the platform. He was so frightened and shake up from what he heard.
“Whoa, Peter Sam, you aren’t that late,” said one of the workmen, but soon he notices his face. He was so scared. “You alright, Pete?” he asked, but Peter Sam was so scared he couldn’t muster up a response, until Tabby and CJ came out of the cab and explained to workmen what had happen.
“Maybe you were hearing things,” said another
“Or perhaps it was a ghost,” said the others, as the teased the youngsters about it, but Peter Sam was convinced it wasn’t a ghost. If it was a ghost, how come it knew my name, thought Peter Sam to himself, as the yard manager came up, he had heard everything, and wasn’t too pleased about what CJ and Tabby did.
“That forestry line is forbidden to go down. I will be reporting this to Mr Percival,” he said sternly, just as Peter Sam stepped in.
“Please, sir. There is someone in those woods, I’m sure of it. I heard them myself,” he said. “I have been going that line for years and never heard a voice before. Oh please, Mr Wellson, please listen to us,” Peter Sam begged, but he wasn’t having any of it.
“I will be talking to Mr Percival about this, Peter Sam. You should know better than to go down that line.” He said, as he turned away to his office. Peter Sam felt terrible. He had accidentally told his secrets and he had gotten Tabby and CJ in trouble on their first shift and he was to blame.
“I knew I should have done what Roger said once I became controller of this railway,” said the Thin Controller later that morning to Peter Sam in the sheds. “I thought you knew better Peter Sam about going down that line, but it seems you don’t,”
“I’m sorry, sir,” said Peter Sam, who looked like he was about to cry.
“I will be taking you off night shifts. Skarloey will be doing night shifts now with Luke until he gets the hang of it,” he said sternly.
“But sir, please. I heard a voice in the woods. I was there, I’m not crazy. I… I really did,”
“And was that voice telling you, not to go down that line?” asked the Thin Controller. Peter Sam was struggling to get the words out of his mouth. The Thin Controller sighed. “I don’t have the time for this, Peter Sam. In the next few weeks. I will be ripping those trucks up, and make sure NO ONE, and I mean NO ONE, goes down there.” He said to all the engines, who were quiet, but understood. As they watched the controller cycle away, Peter Sam started to sob.
“Why does no one believe me!” he cried. “Am I really going crazy? I swear I heard a voice. It called my name. Oh, please believe me, guys. Please!” he begged, but no one could muster a response, all but one.
“I do, Peter Sam,” came a small Irish voice. Everyone looked to the open shed, where Luke was. “I heard it months ago. It was calling for help… but I didn’t know what to do,”
“Well, you are two are both hearing it, surely your crews could have done something about it,” pointed out Rusty, but Luke and Peter Sam looked a little upset with themselves.
“But that’s the thing, my crew said they never heard a voice,” explained Luke.
“And Tabby and CJ were frightened like me, they thought it was a ghost,” added Peter Sam. The others didn’t know how else to help them. Skarloey sighed, as he looked down at his buffers, and the ground, then, looking over to Peter Sam and notice the lantern. Tabby and CJ didn’t take it off after they left early that morning. He looked at the familiar object in shocked.
“Peter Sam?” he asked, as the No. 4 who had tears running down his face looked up at the Old Faithful Engine. “Where did you get that lantern?”
“From the forest… last night,” he sniffed. “CJ found it,”
“The forest? I see, does it have a name on the back?” asked Skarloey.
“Yeah, but… I can’t make it out. Neither could CJ and Tabs,” Peter Sam explained, as he tried to calm himself down, Luke watched and joined in helping Peter Sam relax. Skarloey looked around and saw Duncan’s fireman preparing him for the day.
“Uhmm, Excuse me, Olivia, but could you do me a favour?” Skarloey asked in a gentle voice. Olivia looked over to the old engine.
“Like what?” she asked.
“Could you be a dear and see if it has a name on the back of it?” he asked politely.
“Sure,” she said, as she went to see the lamp and looked at the back of it.
“What was it say?” asked Duke.
“I don’t know how to pronoun it, but it starts with a P,” she said and showed it to Skarloey
“Indeed, it does,” he said smiling. “And I know who this belongs to,” he added. All the engines were quiet and confused.
“Is it yours?” asked Sir Handel.
“Not quite. I did use these types of lanterns prior to 1900, but this one is very special,” he said.
“What’s so special about an old gaslit lamp?” asked Duncan.
“This lamp, belonged to Proteus,” said Skarloey. The engines were quiet and were shocked.
To be continued...