#we watched fvr today and i was thinking

[charmac]

[esquimaltnanaimo]

Royal Rescue Ch.2: Cause for Alarm

"No!" cried Ellie. "That's awful! Can we… can we do anything?" A silence reigned for a moment, before Jordan cut back in. "Well… the hell could we even do? She's done for… Even after all she's done for rail preservation and tourism in this province, they're gonna disable her for the rest of her life as a static display." Abigail made a small sound. "Well, hang on," said Duncan, "You're talking with a warlock, and his diesel shunter girlfriend." "…your point being?" asked Jordan, looking empty. "Well, I'm sure we can do something." The big widecab looked at Duncan. "…OK, I know you can do portals and shit. But there's no place we could take her with a portal, even if you can make one big enough. She's a giant steam engine with a huge tender." Ellie's face brightened. "We could take her to Sodor!" Another silence, as the four looked thoughtful. Ellie sighed. "I know it's far, but…" "Wait," said Jordan, "That's Britain, isn't it? Loading gauge, man." "Fudgecicles!" cursed the little switcher. "And if I take her to the FVR, she might get sent back." "What the hell do we do…" "I wish Tillie was here…" said Ellie quietly. "She'd know what to do." "It's--"

A loud, dischordant horn startled the two GMs, their two-stroke engines backfiring. "Fuck--! Christ's sake, Abigail, why don't you just fucking say something?" grumped Jordan, calming his engine back down. "I've been trying to…" said Abigail calmly, "but you all kept talking." Ellie recovered, staying quiet. "Anyway…" began Abigail, "What if we brought Gloria here…? To the island?" "You mean, like, on the E&N?" asked Jordan, surprised. "You can't be serious, we don't have any oil or water supplies." "I didn't say we need to run her here…" went on Abigail, "We just need to keep her safe, until we find a better place for her to go." Jordan looked thoughtful. "That's… actually a pretty good idea," he said. "Yeah," chimed in Ellie, "And even if she ends up staying in one place for a while, she won't be permanently disabled!"

Duncan, meanwhile, was lost in thought about Gloria's fate. God, that'd be like if someone broke my kneecaps, he thought. "I mean, I guess it could work… But how would we even get her here?" asked Jordan. Duncan snapped out of his thoughts. "Oh, uh. Ellie and I." Abigail looked concerned. "Goodness… are you sure? You don't know your way around the mainland… do you?" "I have no idea," said Ellie simply. "I'm sure we'll be OK, though." "We'll think with portals," said Duncan with a smile, drawing a giggle from his girlfriend. Just then, the sound of a familiar engine approached, accompanied by a distinctive electronic bell. Abigail looked up, and her expression lightened. "Oh, Chloe…! Welcome back," she said, with a small smile. "Hey, Abs… what's everyone gathered out here for?" asked Chloe, rolling to a stop next to her switcher cousin. "We need to save Gloria," began Ellie, but her boyfriend cut her off before she could explain why. "They're gonna break her kneecaps," he said. Chloe blinked. "We need to save… wait, what?" Duncan shook his head. "I mean, uh… they're going to make her static." Chloe was still confused. "Hang on… I can explain," said Jordan. Chloe looked at him. "You remember Gloria, right Clo? The Royal Hudson, over on the mainland?" he asked. "Of… course I do, yeah," said Chloe, "I worked with her once." "You know how she's in a museum?" "Yeah…?" "Well… she said in her letter today…" Jordan went on to explain the situation more thoroughly. Gloria, the Royal Hudson, was in a museum that was very possessive of her. The staff there didn't have enough money to return her fully to steam, but they didn't want anybody else to have the chance to either, in case she ever changed owners. So, the plan was to decommission her, and keep her as a static display so nobody else could have the pride of an on-site Royal Hudson. Chloe was horrified. "No… You're kidding." Jordan looked grim as ever. "Fuck, Clo, I wish I was." "Duncan and Ellie said they'll try to save her…" said Abigail gently. "Wait, how?" asked Chloe. "Portals and the cloak of nighttime," said Duncan. "You know… magic and illusions," added Ellie, smiling. "With… a giant tender engine." "Yes." "…Look, Duncan, no offense, but… that doesn't sound safe," said Chloe, concerned. "I can make portals big enough for the biggest steamies on the FVR," replied Duncan, reassuringly. "So you'd just… portal there, pull her out of the museum, and portal back here or something?" "Exactly." "Okay, interrupting here," said Jordan suddenly, "But do you actually know where 'there' is?" "Well… not quite," said Duncan, "I don't know Gloria personally, so I can't lock onto her location." Abigail looked worried. "She's all the way in Squamish," she said quietly. "Well, then Ellie will have to take me there first." Ellie looked determined. "And he'll lock on here after we save her, and we'll bring her through!" "Safely, and not broken," concluded Duncan, with a smile. "OK, let me rephrase my question," said Jordan huffily, "Which you didn't answer, by the way. Do you know where Squamish is?" The switcher and her boyfriend looked at each other. "…No," they answered, almost in unison.

Abigail chimed in quietly. "I know how to get to Squamish…" Ellie looked over at the old ALCo. "Would you be able to tag along, Abby?" "I…dunno." she replied gently, looking unsure. "It's a long way, on a big mainline, and… I dunno if I can do that anymore." Ellie was about to reply, when Chloe revved her engine. "I'll go," she said confidently. "You sure?" asked Duncan. "Sure I'm sure," said Chloe with a smile. "We've got a map of the railway lines in the shop, we'll find our way somehow." "Fuck, Chloe, are you sure you want to go back to the mainland?" asked Jordan, looking surprised. "Why wouldn't I be? There's an engine on the line, here!" "You're a Geep, though. Haven't you heard what's been happening to Geeps?" Ellie made a small sound. "Uh… Not really." Jordan sighed. "You haven't heard of the ECO program, huh…" Duncan thought for a moment, swearing to himself that he'd heard that before. "ECO?" asked Chloe. "ECO, like… Economic?" That did it. Duncan snapped to attention. "Cyborgs," he uttered. Chloe looked over. "Cyborgs?" "Okay," said Duncan, "This is going to sound crazy. Like… tinfoil hat stuff." Jordan looked at him flatly, but Abigail shot the big SD a glare before he could say anything. "I watched a horror movie once. One made in Ellie's world, and… well." Everyone listened closely. "Diesels get rounded up, and… like… They get gashed open and their innards are taken out, while still awake, with no anesthetic." Abigail's old ALCo engine backfired with a loud clatter, and she looked deeply shocked. "Wh… what?" she squeaked. Across from her, Ellie began to cry. "It got worse. Their engines, generators, and… everything that kept them alive, really… were replaced with machine parts." Jordan looked sad, while Abigail wore a look of abject horror. "So they're… made into machines?" asked Chloe slowly, looking afraid. "Basically," replied Duncan, looking grim. "I didn't want to think about it, but… I sort of figured it wasn't just a made-up thing in the movie." "That's so awful…" whispered Ellie, tears rolling down to her pilot. "So, wait…" said Chloe, "That's actually happening?" Jordan sighed. "Ask any GM-looking engine that looks like it's got a new coat of paint, Clo." Duncan sighed as well. "It's not just the rebuild that happens," he said. "The engines that get… selected… lose the ability to move themselves. They can't control their own engines, and… they lose their memories. Of what they were, who they knew, what they've done… gone.” "So…" began Chloe, after a moment. "…My family. On the Southern… are they…?" Duncan shook his head. "I don't know," he admitted. There was silence for a long time. The only noise from the four locomotives were their idling diesel engines, and Ellie's gentle sobbing. Chloe suddenly released a loud blast of air from her compressor, and everyone snapped to attention. "We have to focus," she said, uncharacteristically serious. "We have an engine to save."