Best Worst Day Ever

Best Worst Day Ever
Part 2

When we arrived at Hoofington we received new orders. Uncle Wheeler had adjusted our schedule to allow for regular rest breaks for the team pulling our train.

Jasper and the crew were doing a fine job, and owing to the physical nature of their regular work, had stamina to spare; but they had never seen full team duty before.

The new schedule added an extra fifteen minutes to every third stop along our route regardless and an extra 30 minutes for the team to ”go to beans”, as we railroader’s like to say every six hours. And the way the team was working they needed all the calories they could hold. Arrangements had also been made along the line with volunteers to swap out with the regular team ponies at decent intervals. This let one of the team rest in rotation for a few hours before being back in the harness. Jasper would swap with his team second, Duster, so there would always be an experienced hoof leading the team.

We arrived in Ponyville seven minutes late. As soon as the brakes were set and I whistled to Amber that passengers could detrain, I noticed a very familiar orange pony wearing her trademark cowpony hat march in a bee-line straight from the depot to poor Amber.

I winced as the young farm-pony began conversing with our conductor. I couldn’t hear what was being said, but I’m sure the young mare was none too pleased with our timing, even with the extraordinary circumstances.

As the porters assisted the remaining passengers from the train, Amber had begun to walk along the platform in our direction, the orange pony right along side her, still in conversation.

“an I don’t recall ever havin’ to put up with waitin’ this long for a train; especially one I’ve paid extra for, for such a special trip and all!” The orange earth pony stopped to take a breath when she glanced up to the cab. “Oh, Coal, it’s you.” She looked exasperated.

“Hi AJ.” I smiled “Having a bad day?”

“You could say that. But if you’re here, and you’re late, I guess there is a good enough reason. It’s just that this trip is very special to me, an’ to the family…”

“You know we’ll do our best for you AJ. Now…” I looked over to Amber. “if we are clear of passengers we can move the train into the siding and start loading this special cargo of hers, right Mrs. Conductor?” Amber gave me a glare only years of working together could explain. A combination of thank you and you’ve got a whole lot of explaining to do mister.

“Let me check with my porters and I’ll signal you when we are clear.” she said and excused herself from AJ and myself.

As Amber entered the first car I turned to Applejack. “So, what is so important that you of all ponies would spend the extra bits to hire two full cars?”

“A very special passenger Coal; speaking of which I should go check on him. We’ve been waitin’ in the sun so long I don’t want him dryin’ out.” And with that she trotted back along the train to the far end of the siding.

We backed the train into the siding to clear the main line for other trains and the team took one of their scheduled rests. I had Tie go to the bistro in town to get us some lunch.

I started my usual oiling and inspection, when the commotion at the rear of the train caught my eye. I stood there for a moment just staring as AJ, Big Macintosh and two of our porters were trying to get what looked like a huge tree, still fully branched with leaves and all into the private sleeping car. Amber, who was well out of the way playing supervisor with the station agent, caught my eye and slowly shook her head, wide eyed as if to say “I haven’t a clue either.” I resumed my inspection.

Surprisingly, the tree made it into the private car without too much fuss, and we moved the train back to the platform to receive the regular passengers. Tie arrived with lunch just in time to see the last of the passengers board. “Did you get a look at the special passengers with the Apples?” Tie asked as I took a bite of my rye on wheat with extra sprouts. “It’s the same mares from last Summer Sun festival. The ones that took on the Nightmare? I recognized them from the papers.” He was beaming and trying to look back along the train, obviously trying to catch another glimpse of them. Tie always was a pony with his head to the stars. Not Luna’s beautiful jewels in the heavens, but the earthly variety mostly found in tabloid papers and gossip magazines.

I was about to say something witty when Amber’s whistle blew and I looked back to acknowledge her waving flag. I was about to give the start signal to Jasper and the pulling team when two ponies hurried onto the platform heading for the train along with the station agent frantically waving a red flag in my direction. After a hurried conversation with Amber a brown earth stallion and a grey pegasus mare I recognized as the local postal pony, toted a large chest into the car directly behind our locomotive and hurried inside themselves. Click-clack the station agent nodded to a very perplexed Amber who once again blew her whistle and waved her flag for us to finally resume our schedule. I acknowledged with a whistle and signaled the team to start out. We were seven minutes, twenty-six seconds late.

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. By evening we had made up our seven minutes and were working hard in the final miles before we would enter the arid badlands of the prairie. At our scheduled watering stop Jasper and the team rested as passengers were let out for diner if they so chose. I left Tie to look after the engine as I headed into the depot to check on the line report. Amber trotted up to me with her report in her saddlebag. “So.. Coal..” she asked coyly, “I didn’t know you were quite that friendly with the apple baroness of Sweet Apple Acres.”

“I’m not. I just know her brother Mac and we’ve talked a few times, AJ and I” I replied, trying to quell the conversation. “Besides, she’s much too young for me Amber; you should know that.”

Amber just winked. “Still have a thing for the teacher huh? When are you going to give that up and find some filly that will be good to you Coal?”

“I’ve tired Amber, I’ve tried. With our crazy schedules and commitment to the road, there just isn’t much I can offer any mare other than an empty house and a few days every few weeks at home. No, Cheerilee was my one shot, and we both know how that ended.”
Amber nodded as we entered the depot office. “Mares before squares”, I bowed mockingly as I let her enter first.

“Good. Amber, Coal, glad you made it safe and sound!” The big sea-green stallion rose from behind his desk. Boomer Highstack was an old time railpony, with more years in service than even Uncle Wheeler. He had held nearly every job on the line at one time or another and had worked for the railroad seemingly since before the first rail was laid. His flank-mark, a typical hobo’s bundle on a stick, fit him well, for if ever there was a pony with a wandering streak it was Boomer. “I saw your team pulling you in as you arrived. Brings back memories. Everything working well under the circumstances?”

“Yes sir” Amber and I replied as one.
“Good.” He was looking out the office window at our train. “You have some very important passengers that need to make their destination on time and in one piece.” There was worry in his voice.

“Don’t worry sir,” I replied, “We’ll get the tree safely to Appleoosa.”

“I don’t care about any moon bound tree for Appleoosa Coal!” Boomer spat. “Amber..”

“I haven’t had a chance to tell him yet High, they got on board just before we pulled out.” Amber retorted.

Boomer rubbed at his temple with a hoof. “Cole, this may be one of the most important runs in the road’s history. You have envoys under the Princess’s seal riding with you and they and their cargo are the most important thing in Equestria as far as we are concerned at the moment. We don’t know what they are carrying and officially they aren't even here, but they must make it to Salt lick at all costs. If it wasn’t for these bad gems cascading along the line we could have gotten you another locomotive, but we’re stuck with what we have. This is just too important.”

"Now for the good news” Boomer smiled, trying to make lite of a bad situation. “The Buffalo have been fairly quiet along the line lately. But, we’re afraid that might just be them waiting for a good time to retaliate for some new affront they believe the settlers have caused them. There have been a good number of them near Appleoosa for a while now and tensions seem to be building there. I know you have a drop there, so take care of that as soon as possible and for Celestia’s sake, keep to schedule. I don’t care if you have to ruin the road, get those envoys to Salt Lick.”

With that Amber and I headed back out to the train. Neither of us said a word on the walk back.