Chapters
It was Autumn in Ponyville, and the town was cresting on a wave of jubilation. A few days earlier, the world had nearly been destroyed and the magic drained through a hole in the floor. A hole in the floor placed underneath the School of Friendship, but let’s not get into specifics at the moment.
It was thanks to the brave actions of 6 young students, of whom the majority were NOT ponies for once, that the world had been saved. And hence, the entire town was celebrating the bravery of these young individuals, and the defeat of the Arch-Monster herself, Cozy Glow.
So, it was no wonder that the town was in an exceptionally jubilant mood. But this victory was not the only thing that the town was celebrating. As the days grew shorter and colder, it meant that Nightmare Night was approaching, when the town went out trick-and-treating, as well as manufacturers of myriad and various costumes making tidy profits out of proceedings.
Most crucially, the last glorious burst of Autumn signalled the approach of Hearth’s Warming, the celebration of Equestria’s founding and a chance to meet with all the members of family from far and wide. However, what the non-ponies got out of it is hard to judge, given the festival would, in all likelihood, mean little to them.
Sadly, the outpouring of happiness and joy was not to last. That very day, the town would receive a shock that would lead to the demise of their very homes, lives, and town.
An old train clattered out of Canterlot station, swinging under a great viaduct as it steamed along the line. It passed over bridges, through tunnels and even over brief portions of desert as it made its way southward down a single-track railway line.
The train was pulled by an old tank engine. It had 6 brown wheels, a short stumpy boiler, a short stumpy funnel, and a short stumpy dome. It was painted black with red lining, and carried an emblem on its side tanks of an alicorn striding atop a wheel, or as it was commonly nicknamed, ‘cycling alicorn’.
There were 2 carriages coupled to the train. Both of them were old, sturdy 4-wheelers, with 3 compartments each. One was painted blue, and the other green. Behind them was a van painted red and white (although nopony was quite sure why), and to round off the train, a short, compact brake van, with a veranda at each end, painted orange with a single horizontal stripe of purple down the middle.
The train rolled through the countryside toward Ponyville. The driver sounded the whistle to warn people to clear the way as the train rolled down the street and into the station. Unlike a lot of railway stations in Equestria, Ponyville’s platform was a carriage door height, although as a local train this formation lacked the modern coaches with pneumatic doors.
The doors flew open and the passengers alighted. Sadly, there were relatively few these days, thanks to the rival chariot service sucking up so much of the business. However, the local farmers preferred to move the produce by rail, it being much safer than the chariots. They are unpredictable, and have accidents. There hasn’t been a railway accident in Equestria for over 80 years.
The station master walked over to the train. “Any cargo?” he asked.
“Yes,” said the guard, opening the van doors. “This box,” he said, throwing a box with the world ‘fragile’ marked on the side onto the platform, “and this piece of paper.”
“Right then,” the station master replied. “Be ready for the off!”
However, unbeknownst to them, Big Mac was hauling a cart full of apples down the road to the station. Problem was, there was a great big steamroller in his way!
“Can you hurry up?” he called.
The driver of the steamroller (Mac couldn’t quite see them) didn’t reply.
Luckily, Mac knew a shortcut. He swerved to the right and raced through a backstreet, sending produce flying as he raced past them and toward the railway station.
“Hey!” shouted Derpy. “That’s my muffins you’ve ruined!”
“Got a train to catch!” Mac replied. “Sorry!”
At the station, the guard blew his whistle.
“Time to go!” he said.
“We can’t go yet!” the driver replied. “Big Mac hasn’t arrived!”
Several minutes passed. The guard blew his whistle again. Just as the driver was about to set off, the cart arrived, and so appeared an exceptionally red Big Mac. Given he was red anyway, it wasn’t entirely clear how that was different to usual.
“Sorry...I’m...Late!” he panted.
“Sugar Belle hold you up?” the station master added.
“Eeyup.”
The cart was hastily loaded into the van, and Mac jumped onboard the train.
The driver blew his whistle, and the train pulled away, out of the station.
The station master took his piece of paper, and applied some paste to it. He then put it up on the wall. He then walked away, not bothering to see what the sign read.
The notice read as follows:
WITHDRAWAL OF PASSENGER AND FREIGHT SERVICES BETWEEN PONYVILLE, CANTERLOT, APPALOOSA AND DODGE JUNCTION
DUE TO DECLINING PASSENGER AND FREIGHT NUMBERS, AS WELL AS THE INCREASING OPERATING COSTS OF THE RAILWAY FROM DODGE JUNCTION TO CANTERLOT, THE DECISION HAS BEEN MADE TO CLOSE THE LINE FROM HERE TO CANTERLOT, DODGE JUNCTION AND APPALOOSA, EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 16TH, 008 SLR.
ALTERNATE TRANSPORT WILL BE AVAILABLE THROUGH LOCAL CHARIOT COMPANY SET AND CRUST LIMITED.
SIGNED BY THE HEAD OF THE OPERATING BOARD OF EQUESTRIAN RAILWAYS
Jet Set trotted through the yard to the new chariot that had just been acquired by his company. It was sleek and modern, and could seat 50 ponies as well as transport luggage. His wife, Upper Crust, was proudly observing the machine.
“Have you heard?” Set called over. “The railway is closing!”
“At last!” Crust replied. “No there is absolutely nothing in the way of our chariot business. With no alternative, we are free to rip off passengers as much as we like!”
“And bring the future to Ponyville!” Set added. “It will be a utopia of zebra crossings, and traffic lights, roundabouts and T-junctions!”
Both of them laughed. “Just don’t tell Zecora!” Crust guffawed.
Meanwhile, in the school of friendship, the 2nd semester was underway, having got off to a somewhat rocky start with the EEA and then having to deal with a megalomaniac. A megalomaniac who also happened to be adorable and immensely good at hoodwinking people into believing her.
In one of the dormitories, Ocellus sat reading on her bed. Although she had an exam coming up (which she knew she would ace, no problemo), she was reading a book on the railways of Equestria.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. In a panic, the Changeling dropped the book and replaced it with her revision materials.
“Hey, Ocellus!” shouted a muffled voice from outside. “Can we come in?”
“Sure, just finishing up!” Ocellus replied. She stepped over to the door and opened it with her horn-to be sent flying backwards by Smoulder and Silverstream flying through the door.
“It may be advisable to get off our friend, if she wishes to breathe,” Smoulder suggested.
“What’s happening?” asked Ocellus.
“Oh, it’s terrible! It’s terrible!” Silverstream cried.
Smoulder shook her head. “You’ve been paying far too much attention in Rarity’s melodrama lessons.”
“Professor Rarity to you!” came a voice from outside.
“Sorry, professor!” they chorused, in that monotone manner that students do.
“I don’t understand,” Ocellus said, visibly confused. “What’s going on?”
“They’re shutting our railway down,” Smoulder replied, matter-of-factly.
The shock of the news hit the Changeling like a tidal wave. She staggered backwards in shock.
“No,” she whispered. “They can’t!”
“Guess who’s set to make a killing in transportation fares,” Smoulder continued. “Set and Crust, the local chariot firm.”
Ocellus was apparently oblivious to this, apparently in a state of shock with tears leaking from her eyes. “They can’t close it down,” she said, painfully. “It’s the oldest railway in Equestria!”
“But it no longer makes a profit,” Silverstream added. “And OBER doesn’t care how many lives it destroys for the sake of making money.”
This was too much for Ocellus, and she collapsed onto her bed and cried.
Smoulder put her arm around the sobbing Changeling. “It’s OK, it’s OK,” she said soothingly.
“How is this OK?” Ocellus wept. “Surely the Princess can do something!”
“Sorry,” cut in Silverstream, “but when it comes to elected officials and the rules, the Princesses can do nothing. And it’s not like we can just sidestep the rules again.”
A lightbulb appeared over Smoulder’s head. “Actually, there is,” she smiled.
“What?” Ocellus asked.
“We can apply for an LRO!”
Ocellus leapt up. “Of course! That’s how we’ll save it!”
“What’s an LRO?” asked Silverstream. “We don’t have railways back on Mount Aris anymore.”
“What happened to them?” asked Smoulder.
“Storm King blew them up.”
“That sucks.”
Ocellus interrupted. “An LRO is a Light Rail Order! They were introduced to facilitate rail development in poorer and lightly laid areas, with greatly reduced operating regulations in return for a strict limit of 25MPH. That’s how we’ll do it!”
“But what about staff?” asked Silverstream.
“I’ll drive the engine!” Ocellus cried. “I had to infiltrate a railway once, and learned the skills there!”
“I’ll be the guard!” Smoulder exclaimed.
“But how will we raise the money we need to operate the line?” Silverstream enquired. “And who will sell the tickets?”
Smoulder put her hand to her chin. “Filthy Rich could help,” she said. “He’s got a lot of money, if his daughter is anything to go by.”
“Let’s go!” Ocellus exclaimed, and they ran out of the door, excited with their plan.
Silverstream simply stood there, stunned. “By Novo!” was all she said.
Author's Note
Well, this new story is at long last underway.
The Titfield Thunderbolt is a film that has always been close to my heart, and it only seemed the obvious thing to base a story off of it. Seeing as School Daze was essentially the Titfield Thunderbolt with ponies, I thought doing it with the Young 6 would be fun.
Can any of you spot the character parallels? See you tomorrow, everypony!
In Sugarcube Corner, Filthy Rich was watching the stage, as a local country band were performing a set on the stage. It was an old classic he remembered from a couple of years ago. He motioned to the Yak sitting next to him.
“They make a lovely sound, don’t they?” he asked Yona.
“Band are amazing!” Yona replied, in her typical broken Equestrian. “Yona like band!”
Rich smiled. “I’m planning on sponsering a concert of local talent soon,” he said. “I was wondering if any-yak from Yakyakistan wanted to take part.”
“Yaks remember offer!” Yona cried, and sped off toward the door.
Rich got up, and wandered toward the counter. “Another coffee please,” he asked. “On the house.”
“Coming right up!” replied Mrs Cake.
But Rich had no time to savour his drink, as suddenly a dragon and a Changeling slammed into him!
“Steady on!” he cried.
Ocellus stepped back a bit.
“I know you’re excited Celly, but do let him breath,” Smoulder told her.
“Sorry,” Ocellus said, her face going red in embarrassment.
“What do you want?” Rich asked, as he climbed back onto his stool.
Ocellus hopped up onto a stool, and Smoulder touched down on another with the precision of a helicopter.
“A milkshake please!” called the Changeling.
“And an iced coffee for me!” added Smoulder.
Rich looked to his left with fascination. “I thought you Changelings fed off of love,” he said.
“We can digest food and drink. Otherwise lunch break at school would be really awkward!”
The iced coffee landed in front of Smoulder, who promptly blew fire into the mug, turning it into a latte.
“So handy,” she said with a smile.
Mrs Cake trotted back over, and pointed to a sign which read:
DRAGONS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO HEAT DRINKS IN THESE PREMISES
“Oops.”
“Anyway, what do you two want to ask me?” Rich resumed, getting back on topic.
“Undoubtedly you’ve heard the railway is going to close,” Smoulder said.
“A real tragedy,” Rich said sadly. “If only there was something that could be done.”
“There is,” Ocellus told him. “We plan to buy and run it ourselves.”
“How much money will it cost?”
“They want 10,000 bits. We don’t have enough,” Smoulder added.
“But we plan to run a fruit and cake sale,” Ocellus added.
“How much did the last of your fruit and cake sales raise, Ocellus?”
The Changeling’s face fell. “500 bits, but that was only because Spike kept eating the cupcakes!”
“No wonder he malted so badly,” Smoulder snorted.
“He’s not a caramel flavoured drink,” Ocellus corrected. “I believe you were looking for the word ‘molt’.”
“Alright Miss Clever Clogs,” Smoulder growled. It was so frustrating how Ocellus seemed to absorb information like a sponge, whereas she had enough difficulty remembering where the classrooms were!
“How do I fit into all this?” asked Rich again, frustrated at all the endless side-tracks.
“I know you are a very generous pony,” said Ocellus, “so we were wondering if you could loan the money to help us buy the railway?”
“What’s in it for me?” the businesspony asked.
Smoulder suddenly had an idea. “Sir, I believe you are bound by the Commerce Act, which prohibits you from opening certain hours in the week and from selling certain items.”
Rich nodded. “I am bound by that law, yes. But what does that have to do with saving a railway?”
“Those rules do not apply to trains.”
Rich suddenly smiled. “So, if I loan the money-”
“We give you free reign to sell products from Barnyard Bargains on our trains.”
The pony leapt up in the air. “I won’t loan the money, I’ll donate it! This will put untold amounts of money back into the local economy!”
“However, we lack a stoker,” Ocellus told him.
Rich indicated over to the corner, where Gallus was sitting. “Why not ask him?”
Ocellus felt nervous. Gallus had a habit of poo-pooing her ideas. But she had to try. She wandered over to him, and spoke to him. “Hi Gallus!” she said.
“Yeah?” he asked.
“Undoubtedly you know about our railway plan.”
“Yes.” Gallus was being rather unhelpful.
“I was wondering if you would like to be our stoker.”
“Who’d drive?”
Ocellus looked surprised. “I would, of course!”
Gallus laughed loudly. “Don’t be silly, you can’t drive a steam engine!”
“I can!”
“Can’t!”
“Can!”
“Can’t!”
“Stop it you two!” Smoulder laughed. “Gallus, will you at least help us?”
The griffon sighed. “I suppose if it helps the town, then yes, I will. But don’t expect me to hang around for long if I get soot in my feathers!”
“Then it is settled!” Rich cried. “Ladies and Gentlecolts, a toast to the railway!”
And there was much merriment from then on.
The next morning, Smoulder and Ocellus travelled by train to Canterlot. The two of them amused themselves by jumping up and down on the seats (until the guard asked them to stop), and by looking out of the window.
Smoulder honestly wondered how seriously Ocellus was taking this. Yes, she was smart, but could they pull it off?
Upon arrival at Canterlot, the two of them headed into the city. Ocellus adopted a disguise for heading through town. Although Ponyville was tolerant of her kind, Canterlot hadn’t forgotten the invasion of 6 years prior, and as a result there was still some entomophobia there.
After wondering through the streets, and getting lost several times, the two of them arrived at the Department of Transport. The building was an imposing red-brick building, with large windows and long sweeping corridors. The two of them sped over to a desk at the wall.
“How can I help you two?” asked the desk officer.
Ocellus switched back to her normal form, and then addressed them. “We’re here for a meeting with the Director of the OBER.”
“Ah yes, scheduled for 1 o’clock, I believe,” the officer said. “Just down that corridor on your left, 3rd door on your right.”
“Thanks!” said Smoulder. “Race ya Ocellus!”
“You're on!” the Changeling replied, and the two of them sped off down the corridor.
“No running in the corridors!” shouted the attendant, but by then the two of them were long gone. “Kids these days,” she groaned.
They arrived at the door, and knocked on it. “Come in!” said a vaguely familiar voice.
Smoulder turned the door, and the two of them stepped in. The chair was turned away from them.
“I take it you are here to purchase the railway?” the voice asked.
“Yes, we are,” Ocellus began.
The chair swung around, to reveal a grey unicorn with a black beard.
“Chancellor Neighsay?”
“No,” he said. “I am now Director Neighsay of the OBER. But you 6 seem to follow me wherever I go.”
“Are you still the Unicorn in red?”
“No, I am now the Unicorn in pink.”
“What changed?” asked Smoulder.
“An extremely cheap dry cleaners.” Neighsay looked at both of them. “I am aware that I owe you for saving my life during the Cozy Glow incident, but I am afraid the OBER is not prepared to be lenient on this. I can't grant you a Light Rail Order without a Public Enquiry first, which we shall hold tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow, got it,” Ocellus said, committing to the vast repository of knowledge that was her brain.
The next day, the train was packed for the journey to Canterlot. The Young 6 had piled onboard the train, along with many other locals. The train pulled out of the station and headed up the mainline, passing through the desert and over mountains and hills, through tunnels and mountains.
However, it seemed that Set and Crust had got wind of their plans, and flew a chariot alongside the train whilst they shouted slogans.
“Railway are no good! Turn them into guided Chariot-ways!”
“Amateurs can’t run railways!”
Yona stuck her head out of the carriage. “You not be mean to friend of railway!” she bellowed. “You face Yona if not quiet!”
Set jeered. “You not able to talk properly either!” he laughed.
Silverstream poked her head out of the window. “There's no call to be rude!”
Sandbar put his hoof on her shoulder. “Silverstream, just ignore them,” he said. “They’re just bullies.”
Ocellus removed her hooves from her ears. “Have they stopped chanting now?”
The train pulled into Canterlot and the passengers headed for the Department of Transport. Inside, long brown tables had been set up, with chairs for everypony-no, everycreature-there. At the table sat Director Neighsay, who called the meeting to order.
“We are assembled,” he said, “to debate the relative merits of handing the railway line between Canterlot and Ponyville over to an amateur group, who intend to run passenger services on this line.”
The main part of the enquiry went on for an hour, and many opinions were raised. At long last, there was just one pony to speak.
“My name is On Time,” she said. “I represent the Railway Union. They object on the principle that the railway would be operated by foals, without proper overtime and injury pay.”
“We don’t intend to be paid!” Ocellus butted in. “We are volunteers, doing it out of the goodness in our hearts.”
“The Union would not tolerate this state of affairs, as it leaves you open to exploitation.”
“Suppose we want to be exploited?”
That shut the Union pony up. Suddenly, Upper Crust interrupted.
“How can we let these creatures be trusted with one of our most valuable transport links?” she asked. “For all we know, they could use this line to move soldiers into our lands, to strike against us?”
“You clearly weren’t there when we saved Equestria!” Silverstream butted in.
“Saving magic and running a railway are very different things, Hippo,” Jet Set remarked snidely.
“What would you know about running a railway?” Ocellus interrupted. “All you do is run massively overpriced chariot services!”
“Is this about serving your community, or does the bug simply want to play trains?”
“She is not a bug!” Sandbar thundered.
“Oh look, here comes the coltfriend. Besides, she may be brainy, but she doesn’t know everything.”
“That time with the clotted cream does not count!”
Gallus looked in confusion. “What?”
Ocellus shrugged. “Sandbar and I once went to a café after school, and ordered scones. I put the jelly and cream on the wrong way around.”
“What way should it go?”
“Cream, then jelly.”
“Heresy!” shouted somepony at the back. “Only Yaks and Changelings do that!”
“You have problem with yak?” Yona shouted.
Neighsay banged his gavel. “Silence! I believe this enquiry is concluded. Based on the evidence, I believe that at this moment in time it is not appropriate to award a Light Rail Order.”
Ocellus’ heart sagged. She collapsed in a heap on the floor, whilst Set and Crust did a jig nearby.
However, nocreature expected what happened next.
“You’d give in to them?” asked Smoulder. “If they win, it’ll destroy Ponyville, the Friendship Capital! It will become nothing more than a maze of roundabouts and Zebra crossings, heavy carts and chariots! And imagine all the fumes, and the effect it would have on the foals! Please Director Neighsay, reconsider!”
Neighsay looked down from his lofty perch. “I do not feel it appropriate to award a Light Rail Order. At. The. Moment,” he said. “However, I am prepared to give them a probationary period of one month. At the end of that time, I shall make an inspection, and if all is in order, I shall grant them a full Order.”
The Young 6 cheered, as did most of the creatures in the room. “We've done it!” Silverstream cried.
“Well done!” Sandbar added.
Ocellus spoke up. “We haven’t done it,” she said. “We’ve only mounted the first hurdle. The real challenge is yet to start.”
She observed Set and Crust walking away. “Besides, I don’t think we’ve seen the last of those two.”
Author's Note
Well, the story gets further underway. Do you think our heroes can do it? Find out tomorrow for another exciting instalment of 'The Canterlot Cannonball!'
The sun dawned upon Ponyville the very next morning. Slowly, the town awoke to the new day, bathed in the glorious light of the autumn, and they remembered to thank Celestia for her kindness in raising the sun.
Filthy Rich trotted out of the door of his considerable pile, and surveyed his home with pride. It was built in the Plantageneight style, with great vaulting ceilings, thatched roofs (yes, several), and tall windows, each made of 8 sections. The home (for it really was demeaning to call it such a thing) had cost considerable amounts of money, and was a permanent reminder to the townsfolk that New Money was very much on the rise.
Having said that, marrying a Milk had certainly helped. The family was exceptionally wealthy, and that had helped propel him up the social ladder. Unfortunately, it had had a negative effect on his darling Diamond Tiara. Rich shuddered as he remembered the olden times, when she and her friend Silver Spoon had bullied Blanks Flanks wherever they went. He was lucky he hadn’t lost crucial business over it. Getting Spoiled to back down had been the key.
As he trotted down the street, the window opened on the top floor. Spoiled Rich poked her head out from it.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“Just down to the railway station,” Rich replied. “There’s some merchandise that needs loading, and I wanted to oversee it myself.”
“Just be back before 6 o'clock!” she boomed. “There’s a special visitor coming to see us, and I intend to show us at our best!”
Rich nodded, to show he understood, and trotted away. "By Celestia, I have a difficult life,” he thought.
Meanwhile, Silverstream had flown to the station, to see Derpy already manning the ticket booth.
“Season ticket, or return?” the cross-eyed pegasus asked.
“Return please,” Silverstream replied. “As much as I support this scheme, I’m not sure we’ll survive the month.”
“Have some faith!” Derpy exclaimed. “If you guys could save friendship, you can save a railway.”
Silverstream handed over her bits, and walked off. “I have faith alright,” she said. “Faith that somepony will try to ruin everything.”
Amongst the various innovations that had been made in Ponyville, a large engine shed had been built by moving a spare barn from Sweet Apple Acres. Inside it the train was stabled, the engine cold and still.
Ocellus and Smoulder wandered in, to start the train. As the Changeling hopped onto the footplate, she gasped in shock.
“The fire hasn’t been lit!” she exclaimed. “And we only have 30 minutes before we depart!”
“I thought Gallus was meant to be doing that,” Smoulder growled in frustration.
“Did he forget to set his alarm clock?” asked Silverstream.
“Probably slept through it, more like,” Smoulder shrugged.
“I’ll go wake him up!” the hippogriff exclaimed, and flew away as fast as she could. Ocellus, meanwhile, desperately tried creating sparks to light the coal in the firebox, but it was no use.
“Oh no!” she cried. “Our first run, and we shall be late!”
“Let me,” Smoulder suggested, and a blaze of fire roared from her mouth. They had a roaring fire in no time, but the pressure gauge refused to budge.
Ocellus tapped it with all her might as she tried to move it, but the pressure was sluggish and crept up extremely slowly.
Elsewhere, Gallus was sprawled out on his bed, his alarm having been going on his bedside table for at least 20 minutes. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
“Who...is it?” he asked. “Is it breakfast?”
“It’s well past breakfast!” called a rather worried sounding Silverstream. “In fact, you need to be firing a train!”
Gallus rolled onto the floor, and wandered to the door. He grumbled as he opened it, and wandered through. “That Changeling takes this way too seriously,” he complained. “Creatures ought to be happy if trains run at all.”
Gallus flew to the depot rather slowly, and touched down outside the shed. Inside, the boiler pressure had finally reached 170psi, and Ocellus adjusted the regulator and opened the cylinder cocks. A great jet of steam flew from the pipework, and any leftover water was quickly expelled from the cylinders.
And slowly but surely, the tank engine started to roll forward. It rumbled past Gallus and into the platform, only just on time. Smoulder stood proudly in the brake van, her hand on the brake and two flags in her mouth. One of them was red, and the other green. She also had a whistle around her neck, and put the flags down so that she could start loading cargo onto the van.
That day saw a load of eggs for delivery to Canterlot market, as well as a consignment of apples. Filthy Rich was on the platform, and surveyed the scene with pride.
“Oh bravo, bravo!” he cried. “Truly you have all done a splendid job!”
“Thank you, sir!” Smoulder replied, as she wheeled in the eggs. “I think you’ll especially like what we did to the second carriage!”
Rich stepped inside the carriage in question, and was stunned. It had been turned into a mobile store, all stocked with Barnyard Bargains products. Best of all, he no longer had to comply with opening hours as given in law, as they didn’t apply to trains.
Yona was sitting behind the desk, a massive smile on the yak’s face. “Yak happy to see rich pony!” she said. “Rich pony like what we did to carriage?”
“Very much!” Rich replied. “I shall stay in here, if you don’t mind.”
Silverstream suddenly flew into the carriage. “Hi!” she cried, in her typical excitable manner. “Are you excited? I sure am! This is going to be incredible, isn’t it?”
“Have you ever considered shopping at 8 in the morning?” Rich asked her.
“No, actually,” Silverstream admitted. “But we didn’t have shops in Seaquestria. What is shopping like?”
“Shopping like bartering, but with gold things!” Yona said, helpfully.
Gallus finally stepped onto the footplate. “Morning,” he said.
“You very nearly resulted in us being late, you know,” Ocellus told him. “Set your alarm clock properly next time.”
“OK, bossy-hooves,” the griffon replied sarcastically.
Just then the whistle went. Ocellus pulled on the whistle cord, and let off 2 short, sharp blasts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnG-ouiueEQ
The doors closed, and the regulator was opened. With remarkable precision, the train rolled forward out of the station, and onto the main line.
But a chariot was quick to pursue them, racing down the road ahead of the train.
The engine rolled along the line, steam blasting from the funnel as a percussive bark echoed across the landscape.
Ocellus was grinning from ear to ear. She was living her dream at last! The engine rattled round the bends and rolled across viaducts, stormed across deserts and puffed through tunnels. It felt good to be really useful, as the last time she had done this was to pave the way for a Changeling invasion.
But here she was, doing it because she wanted to! Before she knew it, she was singing a song as they rolled along the line.
Gallus, however, had a permanent scowl etched onto his face, seemingly chiselled out of granite. “Will you stop singing that song?” he asked.
“It’s the new Sapphire Shores song!” Ocellus protested. “I got the single for my Hatchday, and it really inspired me this last year!” She paused. “Besides, it sums us up perfectly!”
Gallus put his talons to his face. “I’m stuck here, on the footplate of a steam engine, with a know-it-all Changeling who loves trains, and also sings Sapphire Shore’s entire back catalogue. It’s gonna be a long day.”
Ocellus was, thankfully, completely oblivious to this, and simply whooped for joy as the train sped down the track.
Meanwhile, in the commerce carriage, Filthy Rich and Silverstream were having an animated conversation.
"And, by capturing the whole sale market, purchasing in bulk and slashing all prices, we undermine every other gift market in town, and that's how Rich's Barnyard Bargains became the cornerstone of retail in Ponyville." Rich finished his spiel on his business policy.
“Amazing!” Silverstream cried, as she took another sip of Apple Family Apple Cider. “When I go back to Eris at Hearth’s Warming, I’ll make sure to spread this idea!”
Suddenly, the train juddered to a violent stop. “What the?” asked Rich.
“Trains stop to take on water!” Yona said.
“These engines lack water scoops, and the track lacks water troughs.”
“Well,” Rich suggested, “If we were to fit those, it would remove a lot of slack from the timetable.”
Ocellus stepped out of the cab, and walked over to the water tower, when Gallus flew off in the direction of a nearby field and grabbed something.
He flew back with a rabbit in his claw.
“What have you got there?” the Changeling asked.
“My dinner,” the Griffon retorted.
“Well, you just cost us 25 seconds!” Ocellus snapped.
“What’s 25 seconds in the scheme of things?”
“Time we can’t afford to waste! How many times do I have to keep telling you this before you understand?”
The griffon crossed his forelegs. “Fine,” he said. “I quit.” And he flew off toward Ponyville.
Ocellus shook her head. “Oh, for Thorax’s sake,” she muttered. She shouted after him. “Gallus! Gallus!”
Gallus turned around in mid-air, and flew back. “What?”
“We need your help! I can’t drive this engine on my own!”
The griffon touched down, and leaned into Ocellus’ face. “Let me get this straight,” he said. “You resist meddling in my affairs, and I won’t meddle in yours. OK?”
Ocellus nodded. “Now, let’s use the water tower.”
It took a few minutes before the water tower filled the tanks, but at long last they set off along the line.
Then they encountered another problem. A chariot loaded with bricks had stalled on the crossing. Jet Set and Upper Crust were trying to push it off the road.
Ocellus applied the brakes, and hopped down alongside Smoulder. “What’s going on?”
“The chariot has stalled, and we can’t move it,” Set explained.
“Well, move it!” Smoulder exclaimed. “We can’t wait all day!”
“What do you think we’re doing?” Crust retorted. The jack being used to release a wheel snapped.
Ocellus lost her temper. “Time to do this the hard way,” she said. “Smoulder, stand back! Gallus, watch the track for me!”
She hopped back into the cab, and opened the regulator to full. The engine rolled forward with power and speed.
“Stop!” shouted Jet Set, but it was no use. The engine smashed into the chariot and effortlessly knocked it to one side.
Ocellus stopped the engine, backed up, and set the engine to go ready for another run at the hill.
But before she could move the engine forward, a steamroller rumbled onto the level crossing, hissing steam and spitting water everywhere.
At the controls of the steamroller, looking very angry, was a pink filly with a blue mane, rolled into curls.
Author's Note
Dun dun dun! What will happen next? Join us tomorrow for another excting installment of 'the Canterlot Cannonball!'
The steamroller sat there, on the crossing. Cozy was sporting a look of pure hatred as she looked at Smoulder and Gallus.
“Leave, before I reduced you to paste!” she shouted.
Jet Set wandered over, and took a bill for 1000 bits out of his coat. “Will you do it?” he asked.
Yona had witnessed the entire scene, and shouted in alarm. “NO!” she cried. “Do not take money! They bad ponies!”
Cozy grinned. “I won’t take your money,” she said. “This is personal!”
She pulled a lever, and the steamroller roared into life, belching smoke like a demon as it closed on the tank engine.
“Brace for impact!” Gallus cried. The front roller collided with the tank engine’s buffer-beam, sending the tank engine rolling backwards.
Ocellus was hurled backwards, and smacked into the cab wall. “Oww,” she groaned, sitting up. Reaching for the regulator, she snorted. “Well, if that’s how you want to play it, so be it!” She pulled the regulator open, and the tank engine rolled forward, steam blowing from its cylinders and roaring from its chimney. The engine slammed into the steamroller, knocking it backwards with a bang.
Cozy slammed the brakes on, and the machine stopped. “Here’s one from Tartarus!” she bellowed, the machine trundling forward again and smacking into the engine.
The tank engine rolled backwards, and Ocellus braced herself. “And here’s a blow from Thorax himself!” she cried, as the tank engine blasted forward. Cozy tried to reverse, but it was too late. The engine caught the steamroller’s driving wheel, tipping it over and clear of the track.
The pegasus crawled free of the wreckage of the road engine, and shook her hoof angrily. “This isn’t over!” she shouted.
The engine crew paid her no notice, as the train rolled onwards, its course cleared for Canterlot.
“Well done!” cried Gallus.
“Thanks,” Ocellus replied. “But I think we’ll see more of her.”
They arrived on time in Canterlot. Over the next few weeks, word of the railway’s fame spread. People came from far and wide to ride the train, and see Equestria’s only volunteer run railway.
They certainly made a good amount of profit out of it. Filthy Rich certainly benefitted from the passenger traffic, as people purchased his wares whilst the train was underway.
One evening, Silverstream was adding up the proceeds from the last 3 week’s running. “I’ve got good news!” she said.
“Are we making ends meet?” asked Smoulder.
“Nope!” Silverstream replied, with a grin on her face. “We’re making a profit!”
Ocellus paled. “At this rate, they want to buy the railway back from us!” she cried.
The next morning, the platform was absolutely packed with people. Ocellus looked in amazement as they brought the engine into the platform.
“How will we move all this lot?” she asked.
“With a train,” Gallus sarcastically remarked.
“Apart from the obvious!” Ocellus said, exasperated.
“We’ve moved big crowds before!” the griffon said. “We can move big ones again!”
Filthy Rich boarded the merchandise car, to find another pony standing in his usual spot.
“Hello!” he said. “I’m Filthy Rich, nice to meet you!”
“This is a fine carriage you’ve got here,” he replied. He wore a scarf around his neck, done up in a Windsor knot.
“Well, do you want to buy something?”
Meanwhile, Smoulder was helping load crates of fruit into the van. There were at least 7 to load, and it was very hard work.
“Ah, Smoulder!” called a voice. She turned her head to see Upper Crust.
“What brings you here Mrs Crust?” the dragon asked.
“We at Set and Crust have seen how successful your railway is,” Crust replied. “In light of this, how about we end our rivalry and merge? We can share passengers and goods.”
Smoulder put the last box into position, closed the van door and stepped into the guard’s van. “Frankly,” she said, “I’d rather spend 100 years in Tartarus than 10 seconds working with you.” She blew her whistle and waved her green flag, and away the train went.
Crust wandered back to the chariot, and spoke up. “They didn’t bite.”
“So, we go to the backup plan,” Set replied. “Cozy, you are clear to act.”
Further down the line, Cozy Glow trotted into position, and picked up 3 needles with her muzzle. With precision, she threw them at the water tower. They impacted precisely where intended, the holes causing the water to drain out.
Meanwhile, the train clattered down the line toward the tower, making very good time and causing a wonderful bark to roll off of the hillside. when (what a surprise), Gallus suddenly took off and flew into a nearby field. He reappeared momentarily with a pheasant.
“Got it!” he cried, showing it to Ocellus.
“Ew!” the Changeling replied. “Gross!”
The train rolled to a stop at the water tower, where Ocellus hopped out and pulled up the tank cover. Gallus pulled down on the rope attached to the water tower, waiting for water to come out.
Nothing happened.
He pulled again, and then noticed 3 holes in the side of the water tower.
“It’s sabotage!” he cried. “Water levels were very low, we’ll have to drop the fire!”
“If we drop the fire, it’ll never get going again!” Ocellus replied.
“Well, it’s that or we blow up.”
Just below the railway runs a river. This river is not too broad, so a pony or any other creature can cross by wading it. Ocellus looked at it, and had an idea.
“Everypony!” she called. “We need water or the engine will explode! Come with me!”
The passengers leaped out and galloped down the hill. All except Filthy Rich, that is.
He was most surprised when Yona knocked the mug of cider out of his hand. “What was that for?” he asked.
“We no drink cider!” Yona exclaimed. “We blow up!”
Filthy Rich looked around in shock. “Well, I’d better get out of here!” he cried, as he jumped out of the door.
Meanwhile, Ocellus flew over to a nearby farm, and called out. “Do you have any spare water carriers? We have an engine on the verge of exploding!”
Immediately, the ground was showered in pots, pans, kettles, and many other items. The ponies hurriedly gathered them up and ran back to the river.
Earth ponies filled the utensils, which were then flown to the engine by pegasi. Silverstream even got in on the act, flying buckets back and forth.
All the while, the boiler pressure continued to creep up, and up, and up...
Even more water was dumped into the tanks of the engine, until Gallus cried: “It’s full!”
They all cheered, and clambered back onboard the train. Filthy Rich wandered over to the water tower. “Must remember to fix that,” he said.
There was much merriment in the town that night, but not for Cozy. Her efforts had all been for naught. Even worse, the news was talking about the railway.
“Why is it always trains?” she asked, slamming her hoof on the table.
“Psst!” said a voice. It was Jet Set. “Over here!”
The chariot owners were seated together.
“What is it?” Cozy asked.
“We have a plan to get rid of that railway once and for good,” Crust said. “Here’s what we want you to do...”
Later that evening, Silverstream was awakened by the noise of a steamroller rumbling through town.
“What’s that doing rolling through town at this time of day?” she asked.
“I wouldn't worry about it,” yawned Sandbar.
Silverstream stepped over to the door. “I’m going to go down to the railway,” she said. “I want’ to be sure.”
When she got there, some ponies were wandering around in the darkness. What were they up to?
Silverstream hid in the cab, hoping she wouldn’t be detected, when suddenly a light came on.
Author's Note
What do you think will happen next! Find out tomorrow!
No sooner had the light come on, then a strange whirring and roaring started up from the road. Silverstream looked out of the cab as the engine, two carriages, and the van all started moving, without having a lit fire! It was soon very clear what was moving it along.
There, linked to the locomotive via a chain, was the steamroller. And at the controls of the steamroller, was Cozy Glow.
Silverstream panicked. She knew a downhill grade was approaching, and that meant a crash! She scrambled for the handbrake, but had no idea which lever to turn.
The chain disconnected from the steamroller, which came to a stop. But the engine began to roll straight down the hill. It quickly gained speed, getting up to 30 miles an hour in no time. It was clear they were headed for disaster.
Silverstream looked around, and saw just up ahead, in the dusky moonlight, that a rail had been removed! At the last minute, she jumped from the cab and flew into a nearby bush.
The train was not so lucky.
There was an ear-splitting crash which woke more or less everypony up. Ocellus shot up in her bed, and sped over to her door without a second thought. It wasn’t long until the rest of the school had joined her. She sped down the lane and arrived at the station, seeing only the brake van parked there. Where was the rest of the train?
The answer lay just half a mile away.
It was a scene of utter devastation. The engine lay in pieces, the frames mangled, the tanks spread around and bent. The boiler was in fragments, smokebox having disconnected from the barrel, and the smokebox door had rolled away and bounced into a nearby street. The driving wheels were bent and mangled; the connecting rods had been shredded in the impact. The cab was intact (sort of), but the engine was a complete wreck.
The coaches were no better either. The frames were in order, but the wooden bodies of the coaches had fragmented in the crash and piles of wood lay everywhere. Fragments of Filthy Rich’s merchandise lay everywhere. The van was a total write-off, barely anything of it was left.
Ocellus wanted to cry. “That’s the only engine we’ve got,” she said sadly.
“And the inspector is visiting tomorrow!” Smoulder added.
“Won’t they give you time to repair it?” asked Twilight.
“No,” Smoulder told her sadly. “It we don’t have a train tomorrow, we are automatically failed.”
Ocellus started to sob. “A-all that w-work. F-for nothing!” She ran off, in the direction of the school.
Filthy Rich watched as the others left. Just then he saw Gallus standing there, looking at the wreck.
“I don’t have an engine anymore,” he said sadly.
“I fear this is it,” Rich added. “We’re doomed.”
Gallus’ face suddenly changed to a grin. “I know where we can get another engine,” he smiled.
Silverstream clambered out of the bush and looked at the wrecked locomotive. She had been right all along; somepony had ruined everything. Now the town faced no chance of surviving that chariot company.
She stepped out onto the road, when suddenly she was jumped by a member of the Royal Guard!
“I’ve got them!” he shouted, as he applied magic clawcuffs, and marched her off to Ponyville town hall.
Canterlot depot had a number of locomotives being serviced and repaired. The crew of another E2 stabled it on the turntable, ready for another day, and walked away.
Gallus and Filthy Rich moved quietly toward the locomotive, but stopped when they saw it start to move!
“That’s our engine!” Gallus shouted, and he charged forward. But as he did so, he crashed into a lever, and this caused the turntable to start to move as well. The engine left the rails and rolled along the grass in the middle of the depot.
“Oh dear,” Filthy Rich said. “We’d better get out of here.”
The engine rolled along the ground and smashed straight through a brick wall. People ran in fright as a tank engine rolled down the streets of the great city, past shops and even up some of the stairs!
“Good gracious!” exclaimed Fancy Pants. “Have you ever seen that, Doctor?”
“Great Whickering Stallions!” added a certain Earth Pony with a sand timer cutie mark. “I have not in all my time. Not even when I faced the Mummy!”
Fancy Pants looked in disbelief. “Doctor, I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about sometimes.”
The engine rolled into the courtyard of the Palace of the Two Sisters, recently remodelled after the invasion. The loco rolled forward and crashed into a pillar, stopping at last.
“What beest thou, that which bloweth steam and fire?” asked Luna.
Celestia facehoofed. “Luna, that’s a steam engine,” she explained calmly. “They were around before you went to the moon, remember?”
“But they only had wooden boilers and inclined cylinders!” Luna exclaimed. “This is a world beyond what I know!”
Two stallions suddenly fell out of it, landing on the floor.
“Whosh idea wash it to take it along the shtreet?” asked one.
“I thought it wash yours!”
“SILENCE!” boomed Luna. “YOU HAVE CAUSED CONFUSION AND DELAY! GUARDS, ARREST THEM!”
Ocellus had returned to her room, and opened up her book on railways to get some solace. She turned to the page which talked about this line, and saw a lithograph of the first engine to run on the line.
She must have dozed off, as she suddenly heard the sounds of chuffing, and a whistle echoing in her mind.
She shot forward and cried out in excitement. “EUREKA!”
“Keep it down!” moaned somepony else. “We’re trying to sleep.”
Ocellus didn’t care, as she ran forward excitedly.
Arriving at the mayor’s office, she found Silverstream in chains and Filthy Rich and Gallus both speaking to them.
“Ocellus!” they cried.
“I’ve got it!” the Changeling cried in excitement.
“Don’t let us catch it!” they chorused.
“The Canterlot Cannonball! We use the Canterlot Cannonball!”
Silverstream interjected. “Isn’t that in a museum?”
“We can still steam her, I know it!” Ocellus sure was excited.
“Yeah, there’s a slight problem,” Gallus told her. “Silverstream here has been arrested. They think she derailed the train.”
Silverstream looked at Ocellus. “Celly, if you can get me off these charges, I’ll gladly help you get the engine!”
The Changeling raced off toward the Mayor.
They got Silverstream off, quite easily. Mayor Mare’s influence with the Princesses saw to that. Now they were outside the Ponyville museum, slowly moving the Canterlot Cannonball onto a waiting wagon.
The Cannonball really was a beautiful thing. It had 2 small wheels, and 4 big ones, set under arched splashers. The boiler was long, but perfectly proportioned to the engine, and the cab was short, but comfortable. The tender had 6 wheels, with space for coal and water inside. The engine and tender were beautifully finished in a black livery, with red and white lining.
A group of ponies was lowering the engine down a ramp onto the waiting wagon.
“Steady!” called Ocellus.
With an effort, a grunt, and a shove, the engine was safely moved onto the wagon.
“Thanks for loaning us the wagon Big Mac,” Smoulder said.
“No problem,” the farmer replied. “Ah rely on this railway as much as you do. It’ll be a real sad day when it goes.”
After a short journey, although it took a little longer than expected, the engine was rolled onto the rails.
“There’s a slight problem,” said Silverstream. “Where are we going to get the coaches?”
Author's Note
Well, here we are, almost at the end.
Can anypony spot the references I hid in there?
See you tomorrow!
The next morning dawned in Ponyville, and Ocellus made her way down to the station. Almost everything was ready. The Cannonball’s fire was lit, and Smoulder was already in position in the brake van.
There was only one slight problem; no coaches.
Ocellus took position on the footplate and checked the engine was warming up correctly. The loco certainly seemed to be steaming properly in spite of not having been used for decades. Boiler pressure was soon up to 150PSI, and the Changeling nervously adjusted the regulator.
Steam shot out of the engine’s cylinders as it rolled forward slowly. The brake was applied, and the engine came to a gentle stop.
Just then, a voice called out: “Need some coaches?”
Ocellus looked behind her to see the townsfolk wheel three coaches onto the track. They had doors at either end, and were entirely made of wood. There were several windows, and each sat on two bogies of four wheels each. There was a valence running along the top of the carriages, and each was finished in a white and brown livery.
“Where did you find these?” the Changeling asked.
“They were in a field nearby,” explained one of them. “Seeing as you have no carriages, we thought you could make use of them.”
Meanwhile, Jet Set and Upper Crust were taking a chariot down the road.
“They’re not coming back from this one!” laughed Crust.
“This road business of ours is guaranteed!” Set added.
As they drove into town and past the railway station, they saw an utterly bizarre sight. There was a train in the platform!
“What?” exclaimed Crust. But as she wasn’t looking where she was going, she swerved off the road and the vehicle fell into a ditch!
The two ponies staggered out, coughing and spluttering. Only to see the Royal Guard there.
“Set and Crust,” said Shining Armor, “I am hereby arresting you for dangerous driving, sabotage and property destruction, and acts of sabotage aimed at undermining competition.”
Meanwhile, Ocellus continued to fiddle with the footplate controls when a voice called out. “Ocellus!”
She poked her head over the left-hand side of the cab, and saw who was approaching. Her heart went into overdrive!
“Sandbar!” she cried. Although he had been helping for a while now, she’d never seen him here this early before. Whilst they were friends, she did have a bit of a crush on him.
“I came down early to see what was going on,” he said, with a friendly smile.
“We’re just waiting on Gallus,” Ocellus explained. “Can’t drive this thing solo!”
The Earth Pony laughed. “Very true!”
Just then, Silverstream appeared in the sky. “We’ve got trouble!" She cried.
“What’s happened?” they chorused.
“Gallus fell down the stairs whilst going to breakfast, and broke his leg!” Silverstream exclaimed. “Oh dear, what are we going to do?”
Ocellus looked at Sandbar. “Sandy, can you-”
“Yes, Celly, I’ll fire!” Both of them whooped with joy.
The conversation was interrupted again by Yona. “Come down!” she called. “We got problem!”
Ocellus and Sandbar jumped down to the scene of the issue.
The yak started her explanation. “These things not couple!” she said. “Chain not fit!”
The Earth Pony instantly spotted the source of the problem. “That’s because the couplings are incompatible!” he cried.
“These carriage bodies have been mounted on modern frames,” Ocellus realised. “But when the Cannonball was built, they hadn’t introduced this design of coupling, nor for another 30 years!”
“35 years,” Sandbar added.
Ocellus thought for a bit. “136 BLR, you’re quite right.”
Silverstream flew in, with a piece of rope, and tied them together. “Don’t put any strain on it,” she said. “Or else we’ve had it.”
The passengers assembled on the platform, and amongst them was Director Neighsay.
“What brings you here?” asked a passenger.
“I’m here to inspect the railway,” Neighsay admitted. “But what surprises me is the distinct lack of a train.”
Just then, the whistle sounded, and what should roll forward, steam blasting from its cylinders and producing a beautiful puffing sound, but the Canterlot Cannonball, resplendent with 3 coaches and a brake-van.
Neighsay was impressed. “They restored the Cannonball?” he asked. “I had no idea they were this dedicated.”
“Would you like to board sir?” asked Smoulder.
“Yes please,” Neighsay replied, and stepped in through the door to see the carriage interior. “Neatly furnished,” he noted, as he sat down in a plush seat.
“This really is a blast from the past!” said one passenger.
“This must be what rail travel was like in the time of Laurelore the Firsticorn!” said another.
Neighsay smiled. He then checked his watch.
Smoulder remounted the guard’s van, blew her whistle, and waved the green flag. The engine began to puff away with a rumble and a roar. They were away on time! They had-
“STOP!” shouted a voice. Smoulder slammed the brakes on and brought the train to a screeching halt, the driver not having heard.
Ocellus looked back. “What happened?” she asked.
Shining Armor walked up to Smoulder. “I commandeer this train to transport these two criminals to Canterlot.”
“Yes sir, 3rd carriage is free,” the dragon replied.
After the prisoners had been loaded, the train set off once again. Neighsay noted things down in his journal.
“Allocated departure time, 09:00. Delay of 3 minutes caused by stop.”
“Given the delay,” said Silverstream, “Wouldn’t it be fair to simply time us from when we actually left?”
“The OBER guidelines say that all timings are done from what is written on the timetable.”
Yona ran up to him. “Please be nice pony!”
Neighsay looked in her eyes. “I’m afraid it’s not about being nice, it’s about safety and following the rules. And the Government is getting tired of having its books thrown into lakes; we had enough trouble fishing the EEA guidelines out of the School of Friendship’s pond.”
The engine puffed down the line, making a lovely sound. The train ran smoothly, the passengers were all impressed at the quality of the coaches, and Filthy Rich approved of the job that had been done with the store area of the second carriage.
Sandbar was having the time of his life at the front of the train. He enthusiastically threw coal into the firebox whilst merrily singing along with Ocellus to the latest Songbird Serenade single.
But then, Neighsay got up out of his seat.
“What’s happening?” asked Silverstream.
“Emergency brake test,” explained Neighsay, and he pulled on the cord.
A siren went off in the brake van, and Smoulder slammed the brakes on. This had a knock-on effect throughout the train, as the vacuum brakes were linked to the brake van as the locomotive had not been fitted with continuous braking (yet).
The train juddered to a halt, but the coupling was strained to its limits. With a load groan, it snapped, leaving the coaches stranded on the branch line whilst the engine steamed into the distance!
Neighsay poked his head out of one of the windows. “Test successful!” he called, before pulling his head back in, trying not to get his horn caught in the curtains.
Smoulder sighed, exasperated. “Test successful indeed,” she growled, moving to the back of the train.
Meanwhile, the Cannonball steamed onwards.
“We’ve done it!” Sandbar cried. “We’re home and away!"
The engine rolled to a stop at the water tower. Ocellus hopped off the footplate and gasped.
“Why, bless me!” she cried. “We’ve left our train behind!”
Sandbar groaned. “I knew it was too easy!” He motioned over. “Let’s refill her, and reverse up the line.”
Ocellus filled the tender, and hopped back onto the engine. “The lever’s jammed!” she shouted. She looked to be on the verge of tears. “I knew we couldn’t do it!” she sobbed.
Sandbar put his hoof under her chin, and looked into her eyes. “Whatever happened to the Ocellus I knew?” he asked. “The Changeling who would never give up, no matter what? Who could think her way out of any problem?”
He spoke once more, inspiringly. “You would never let life bring you down, even when all seemed lost at the Tree of Harmony. You never let the tide of fate push you back!”
“Push you back,” Ocellus said. “Push you back! That’s it!”
Sandbar looked confused. “Sorry?”
“We push the engine back up the line; that’s how we link the train back together!”
“Brilliant idea!” cried Sandbar.
The two of them hopped down to the rails and started pushing. But it was hard work.
“It’s very heavy!” Sandbar groaned.
Ocellus suddenly had an idea. Green fire washed over her as she shifted her form to a Centaur.
“Let’s do this!” she cried, as the engine began to roll down the line, faster than before.
Meanwhile, a few of the passengers had climbed out of the passenger train and were helping Smoulder push the train up the line. It was slow, hard work, but the stock moved, slowly, painfully, but it moved.
A few miles up the line, the engine and train met. There was an audible clunk as the two crashed together.
This left the problem of how to couple them together.
“We can’t use the rope again,” Smoulder noted.
Suddenly, the sound of a steamroller could be heard below. Silverstream and Yona rushed off to find it, and found Cozy rolling down the road.
“Stop!” cried Silverstream. The steamroller ground to a halt.
“What do you want?” Cozy asked.
“We need chain for train!” Yona exclaimed.
“You’re not taking my steamroller!” Cozy replied.
Ocellus, who had remembered to switch back to her usual form, saw it all, and started undoing the bolts on the drive chain with her magic.
“What are you doing?” Cozy asked.
Yona walked up to her. “You give us drive chain, we give you pardon from Princess Celestia!”
Cozy looked stunned. “You’d really do that?”
Silverstream smiled. “If friendship has taught us anything, it’s that we should forgive and forget. That’s what Professor Shimmer taught us!”
“Isn’t that the teacher who does flying visits every now and then, and is being bombarded with questions by Lyra?” Sandbar asked.
Cozy grabbed a wrench, and began disconnecting the chain herself. “Here you go!” she called.
They started by linking the chain to the front of the first carriage. Then, they wrapped in around itself several times, to avoid unwanted tension building up in the chain. Finally, they hooked it to the locomotive’s tender.
With a whistle, they were off once again. The Cannonball sped along the line, the clock very much against them. The engine puffed and roared across bridges and tunnels, through hills and past fields. Everywhere you looked, ponies were emerging, waving their hats and cheering the train onwards to its destination.
Mounting the final bank into Canterlot station, the train rolled to a stop in the platform. Ocellus wiped her forehead, which was drenched in sweat.
Neighsay came forward to reveal his timings. “Total time, 58 minutes 47 seconds. Arrived at Canterlot 26 minutes late. Average speed, 24.9 miles an hour.”
Ocellus’ heart fell. “So, we didn’t do it?” she asked.
“If you had gone any faster, you certainly wouldn’t,” Neighsay replied.
“You mean-?” Sandbar asked.
“I’m making the Light Rail Order permanent,” Neighsay told them. “You should all be very proud of yourselves.”
Shining Armour took the opportunity to walk Set and Crust away. Set waved his hood angrily at them. “We’re not finished with you!” he shouted.
“But we are with you,” Smoulder replied coolly.
Just then, Gallus touched down. “How’d it go?” he asked.
“We’ve got the Light Rail Order,” Silverstream told him.
Gallus looked sad. “Ocellus, I’m sorry for mocking you. If anycreature could have pulled this off, it would be you.”
Ocellus smiled. “Don’t thank me, thank us. We couldn’t have done this if we hadn’t worked together.”
Sandbar spoke to her. “Celly, I want to tell you that I-”
He never finished his sentence. The Changeling knocked him over, and both of them locked in a passionate embrace and kiss.
The stationmaster looked over. “Kids these days,” he snorted.
Just then, a photographer arrived. The 6 of them marshalled around the engine, and the picture was taken.
But then a whistle echoed through the station. Ocellus jumped back onto the footplate, and replied with another.
Yet more whistles rang out through the station. Loud ones, harsh ones, sweet ones, quiet ones, chime ones, all whistle types and none were heard that day.
It truly was a day for celebration. For it proved that the old saying was true; you never walk alone.
Author's Note
Cue credits!
Cast-in order of appearance
Based on 'The Titfield Thunderbolt' by TEB Clarke, distributed by Ealing Studios, and 'My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic', by Lauren Faust.
Locomotives and Rolling Stock used:
LBSCR E2 class
LNWR Improved Precedent/'Jumbo' Class
Written for Thomlight Sparkle 1.
Dedicated in memory of Charles Chrichton, 1910-1999.
Author's Note
Well, here we are! Another story concluded.
This was my first ever request, courtesy of Thomlight Sparkle 1. If you are reading this, I hope you enjoyed it. It was an absolute blast to write, probably helped along by the fact that Titfield is one of my favourite films. Given that School Daze was effectively Titfield with ponies, the logical leap wasn't too hard to make.
My next story will land tomorrow. See you then!
Fimfiction proudly presents'The Canterlot Cannonball'
