About a week has passed since the small fight at Knapford Station. Ever since then, the engines and humans have been keeping a close eye on the ponies. The ordeal was also affecting how most interactions would go.

The reactions vary as James the red engine found out. He grumbled as he pulled into Wellsworth station with a local passenger train. As his passengers disembarked he just moaned. “As if that pony has taste. Like he would know what a good coat of color is.”

“Oh? What’s that about a good coat?” asked a voice. James looked on to the platform to see a white unicorn with a dark purple mane. He knew this pony was named Rarity. A well known fashionista from Equestria.

“Oh great, here to say my splendid red coat is ugly on a human made machine?” he grumbled as he looked away.

“Oh no darling, I think your red coat is splendid.”

This caught James by surprise as his eyes darted back to the unicorn. “Really? My coat is splendid?”

“Oh yes darling, I do believe red is a proper color for an engine like you,” she said.

“Oh, why thank you, it's nice to know some ponies have taste,” James said.

“Yes and if I might say those stripes look-” she stopped as she heard a buzzing from the saddle bag she had on. Her horn lit up and she pulled out what looked like a mobile phone. After a few seconds of glancing at the screen her once confused look went to worry. “Oh so sorry darling, I have to go,” she said as she turned and trotted into the station.

James was confused and it only grew as he glanced around the platform to see other ponies reacting the same. Getting a message on their phones and leaving the platform. “What's all that about?” he asked himself.

Meanwhile Ryan, a purple class N2 tank engine, was traveling up the line with a small goods train. It hadn’t been an easy morning for him as newfoals had been protesting in the streets and berating humans. It didn’t do the situation good considering the conversion clinic was built in town. At least he would be away from there for a while. “Typical baseless propaganda nonsense,” complained his driver.

“I know,” Ryan said. “Now we can only hope Charlie doesn’t make them worse with his jokes.”

“Or we can hope they can make him shut up,” his fireman complained. “I never did like his jokes.”

Ryan continued on until they reached a junction where their signal was red. After stopping Daisy, the diesel railcar slowly came by. She had barely a few passengers on her. As she passed by she looked at Ryan with a frown. “Good luck,” Ryan said.

“Thanks,” Daisy replied as she passed.

After a few more minutes the signal dropped. Ryan started to move when a strange booming sound came from behind them. “What is that?” he asked.

His driver looked back and gasped. There in the distance a strange dome was slowly expanding. “We have to move!” he shouted as he opened the regulator. Ryan took off like a rocket down the track as the dome behind them expanded.

They began to slowly outrun the expanding forcefield behind them as they rounded a bend and there was the Miniature railway. All three engines watched in shock as Ryan charged through.

Ryan just shut his eyes and prayed the little engines would be safe but then he felt his driver put on the brakes and he began to slow down. “What are you doing? We need to…go?”

He stopped only to notice the giant dome stopped expanding and it was so close to touching Rex’s buffer. Rex carefully moved away and joined Mike and Bert as he asked the obvious question. “What’s all this about?”

Meanwhile Thomas was making his way to Knapford with his two coaches. Then he heard a strange sound and saw something growing over the horizon. “What is that?” He asked, alarmed.

“That doesn’t look good,” said his driver.

They slowly entered the station where a crowd of people were looking out in the distance at the glowing translucent dome with concern and alarm. Even the workers and shunters in the yard stopped what they were doing and watched. Many radios and the few televisions in the station were tuned into the news to see what was going on. Thomas listened carefully to the one radio that was placed near him. “We are now receiving many reports of strange domes forming all over the world. The only thing we know about them is that they are originating from towns and cities that have conversion clinics set up, including, I regret to say, the one on Sodor,” explained the News anchor. “We urge any residents near Harwich to-”

The news was cut off as static flooded both the radios and televisions which caused more concern to flood the station. The static then cut off and the Television displayed an image of Princess Celestia. “Citizens of Earth,” began Celestia, her voice as cold as an arctic chill. “While we appreciate you opening your arms to the prospect of friendship, I have reason to believe your species has long been plagued by war, greed, and bigotry. For that I offer you a solution: join my society of harmony and become my subjects and you'll be free from the problems of humanity. Should you refuse we will have no choice but to see you as the enemy. We don't want to but in times like these we need to make sacrifices for the good of harmony.”

After that the static returned briefly before the news returned. Thomas felt scared as did the crowds of people. He was so scared he actually started shivering. He then heard a calm voice. “Thomas?”

The blue engine darted his eyes and saw Sir Topham Hatt standing before him. “Thomas, leave your coaches and go back to the sheds. There will be an emergency meeting,” he said.

“Y-yes sir,” Thomas responded as he left the station. A while later he was in his berth at Tidmouth sheds. He then saw two more engines approaching. Those being Emily and James.

“Guys? What’s going on?” Thomas asked.

“We were told to abandon our current jobs and come here,” James said as he backed into his shed.

“Have you guys seen the others?” Thomas asked.

“I’ve seen Edward,” began Emily. “He was helping Salty and Porter at the docks when all this started. He’ll be spending another night here because the yards at Wellsworth are full.”

“Is Percy…”

“I’m sure he’s fine,” finished James, “And so are the others. Wherever they are.”

Meanwhile in the hallway of a clinic a human was thrashing himself on a gurney as it rolled down the hall. “Please! Let me go! I do not consent to this!” It all happened so fast. One her town was trapped under a dome the next moment some pony guards trapped her and forced her and a few others into a carriage all the while he saw two of Sodor’s engines being forced into a shed as she passed a yard.

“Please ma’am,” the pony doctor said calmly. “This will all be over soon.”

They soon arrived in a room where another pony was holding a syringe. “Be still ma’am this won’t hurt a bit. After a while you will love your pony body and our ruler.”

All the woman could do was scream as the doctors made another pony out of a human civilian.

In a forest a yellow pegasus just stared at the dome in the distance. She sighed as a deer nearby nuzzled her. “Thank you but are you sure I can trust him to help me?” On a tree nearby, the Sodor Warbler, a rare bird, tweeted to her. “Yes he is my friend but can he-” She was cut off as the bird chirped more. “You’re right, I have to be brave and hope for the best.”

She slowly stepped out from the bush she was hiding and looked down the track. Then a whistle sounded. Fluttershy smiled as she recognized the whistle. Somehow she felt comfort knowing an engine who appreciated the forest was coming. Deep down she hopes she is still friends with the engine that was slowly approaching her. The engine that was named Henry.

Author's Note

Sorry its been a while. Had to deal with some stuff.