#Penyghent the diesel - electric locomotive

[cryptic-mythos]

Pls tell me more bout Penyghent. 💚

AAAA OKAY OKAY OKAY

He’s based off of an actual engine! I’ll put an image at the end of the post, but he’s class 44 D8 (44008)! He was built in 1959 at derby rail works, and currently runs on the peak rail heritage line in Derbyshire! His lore is mixed with the engine’s history :)

He was built as one of 10 class 44’s, to start of the “peaks”/Sulzer type 4 locomotives. He was built for freight and is a diesel - electric locomotive! His life was relatively boring for the first decade, until he got into racing. He didn’t really intend to race, but he was asked as a last minute replacement for another damaged engine, and he couldn’t refuse. He was so insanely glad he agreed, because he instantly fell in love with racing. He wanted to become the best out there, and to prove that diesel freight engines are brilliant. He started to develop a not so great mindset about it all, though. Quite similar to Greaseball, he developed the idea that he was the best and the fastest locomotive. He would often resort to cheating to help him get his way.

In 1979, a lot changed. He was in the rail works for some engines repairs, as he had sustained some damage from his last race. His repairs kept getting delayed, and he ended up there for quite a few months. During this time, 8 out of the other 9 class 44’s were scrapped. At derby rail works. Penyghent had to listen to the radio call out for each of them to be scrapped, and it absolutely broke him. There was nothing he could do but sit on the sidings whilst knowing his family was getting destroyed. He fell into a massive spiral of depression after this, refusing to do anything. He refused to race, refused to work, refused every possible thing out of pure spite to those who had scrapped his family.

Until they threatened him.

He didn’t want to get scrapped. At all. But he couldn’t bring himself to get rid of the grudge he was holding deep inside. Until, his brother came along. The only other remaining class 44. The Great Gable managed to convince him to stop laying around, and go back to work. It may have been incredibly harsh, but it was necessary. He even convinced Penyghent to get back into racing a year or so later down the line, wanting to see him back to how he use to be.

He’d pretty much ended up back to how he was before, with a little more anger and frustration. He got his anger out mostly through racing, funnily enough. The competition was almost a form of therapy, stopping him from being a complete dick the rest of the time.

Years later, on his way back from a championship race, he found a miniature diesel shunter sitting all alone on the sidings of the track. Normally, he had no care for kids… but this shunter seemed so upset. He ended up going over to the kid and talking with him, finding out he was all alone and had no family. Penyghent couldn’t just leave him be, and picked him up and took him home, giving him the name of “Little David”.

Penyghent and Little David continued to live their lives for a while, until they were moved to the peak rail yard in 2010. To which Penyghent was told he was no longer allowed to race. In enraged him, and he wasn’t even allowed on the main lines anymore?! He pulled freight main line across this exact line back in the 60’s, but it was all closed off and he could only go 10 miles along the track now.

Safe to say, he was not happy. He grew a lot of anger and hatred, not having a way to let out his anger anymore. He ended up putting himself in charge of the yard, regardless of what the other locomotives had to say. He wanted to keep everything organised, and have everyone around him do what he said. He’s not changed much since then, although he can have a soft spot around kids. Especially his own son.

But around any other adults? He’s typically incredibly rude. Especially to the steamer’s at PRY, such as the 750, Cathryn and K.E.P co. Although he is kinder around certain freight cars. He much prefers hanging around the freight then the locomotives, but begrudgingly has to quite often. He can be nice, and sometimes? He’s actually a pretty nice guy. He’s just got a lot of issues he hasn’t worked through, and he wants to control others so that they don’t reach the same fate that his family did.