Mike and the Haunted Castle: ThomasNATION Fanstory
October 31, 2020
It was the morning of Halloween on Sodor. The stations were all decorated in spooky colors and lights, especially at Arlesburgh Harbor, which was going to host a massive costume party that night, and when it came to preparations, Sir Topham Hatt needed all the help he can get, especially from the Miniature Gauge engines, who were waking up to greet the day. Rex, in particular, was quite excited.
“Happy Halloween, fellows!” he yelled out as he woke up.
“Is it really Halloween already?” Bert yawned. “It feels like just yesterday it was Easter.”
“I know!” Rex squealed in delight. “Now, come on, we need to deliver all these decorations to the harbor for the costume party!”
Mike scowled. “I will never understand the appeal of Halloween.”
“What do you mean, Mike?” Bert asked, curiously.
“What do I…” Mike grumbled. “Look, I just find that Halloween is merely a marketing ploy made up by corporations in order to increase sales for candy, pumpkins and costumes.”
“Oh, come on, now, Mike!” Rex encouraged his friend. “That’s not the only reason people celebrate Halloween!”
“And why is that?”
“This is the time of year where all of Sodor’s ghouls and goblins rise from their graves, seeking the nearest mortal souls and…”
“...and what?” Bert asked, slightly scared.
“...and EATING THEM!” Rex yelled. As Bert yelped, Mike rolled his eyes.
“Oh no, I’m so scared…” Mike groaned, sarcastically. “Look, you guys do what you like, but I don’t want anything to do with Halloween, end of story.”
“Rise and shine, engines!” Mr. Fergus Duncan greeted his engines. “Now, we have 14 hours until the costume party, so I need every one of you to be helping with extra deliveries. Starting with you, Mike, I need you to take boxes of candy, pumpkins and costumes to the harbor by 10.”
“See what I mean, Rex?” Mike grumbled. “That’s what I hate about Halloween the most: how shameless it is!”
Now, that’s not true. Mike did dislike how it seemed like one big marketing scheme, but that wasn’t it. It wasn’t the candy, or the pumpkins, or even the costumes. It was just that Mike wasn’t an easy engine to scare, and after years and years, Halloween after Halloween on the railway, it’s gotten rather old. Why was this a problem? Well, if you didn’t scare easy on Halloween, would you want to be working with an engine like Rex?
As Mike puffed through the countryside, he started to hear a strange rustling. He looked around, and saw a strange shape take form. Mike rolled his eyes. “Rex, I know that’s you…”
Rex emerged from the bushes next to him as they came to a junction. “How did you know that?!”
“You pull this same predictable prank every year…” Mike groaned. “and every year, the same thing happens. You say boo, I’m not scared, rinse and repeat.”
“Oh, come on, Mike!” Rex said. “Besides, if you really want a good scare, then the haunted castle is right up there!”
Rex turned his attention to a strange junction, one track leading to a creepy castle.
“The only scare I’ll be getting in there is from how not scary it is…” Mike groaned.
What is the haunted castle, I hear you ask? Well, it’s very self explanatory, but nobody knows its story. Nobody knows how the castle became haunted to begin with, but all anybody knows is that those who enter never return from the ghosts’ cold, dead grasp.
Rex scoffed at Mike’s unwillingness. “How do you know there’s nothing in there?”
“Because people make this story up all the time, Rex.” Mike groaned. “The mine is haunted. The shed is haunted. Brendam Docks is haunted. You get the idea…”
“Well, if you’re so sure that nothing’s up there, then why don’t you have a look?” Rex teased.
“Maybe I will.” Mike scoffed as he rolled away.
Back at Arlesburgh West, Mike was telling the story to Ryan.
“Can you believe him?” he chuckled. “He really thinks that the castle up on that hill is haunted!”
“Well, I don’t know, really.” Ryan mumbled. “Do ghosts really exist?”
“Of course not, Ryan.” Mike reassured the naive purple engine. “They’re all just silly make-believe.”
Then, Bert approached, having overheard the conversation. “Are you sure? Because every time I pass that castle, I keep hearing this strange wailing sound.”
“Oh, I’m sure that’s just the wind.” Mike scoffed.
“I wouldn’t be too sure,” said James as he approached, again overhearing the discussion. “Rex told me that every night, a strange, luminescent light looms over the castle.”
“Come on, James…” Mike scoffed again. “I’m telling you all, there is no such thing as ghosts.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” James said. “lots of engines on Sodor have spotted ghosts. Just ask Diesel and Duncan.”
But Mike just rolled away, taking no notice to their claims and chuckling to himself.
A full moon shone over the island that night, and the costume party at the harbor was in full swing. Mike, of course, was not taking part and was heading back to his shed. Then, he approached the junction that led to the haunted castle. He rolled his eyes and chuckled slightly.
“Haunted castle…” he thought to himself. “There’s no way that place is haunted…right?”
He started getting a bit curious, and that’s when he started to hear the strange wailing that Bert was talking about. He looked around, to find nobody there.
“Hm…” Mike pondered. “I’m sure nobody would mind if I had a little peek.”
And so, his wheels slowly started turning onto the other track, and into the grasp of the haunted castle.
On the track to the castle, the landscape started getting foggier and harder to see. Mike just about caught a glimpse of the castle through the mist. There was a strange luminescent light around it, just like James said.
“Huh…” Mike said as he looked at the glow. “This castle’s obviously not haunted, but I have to respect their efforts.”
As Mike approached the castle, the wailing noise started getting louder. And slowly, but surely…he got in. The castle was empty, rustic and cold. A chilling breeze blew in Mike’s face as he entered. It was entirely empty.
“Hello?” Mike asked as he moved closer into the castle. He moved a little bit closer, and then the castle gate slammed down, slightly startling the old engine.
“Uh…who goes there?” asked Mike, as he beckoned forward. Then, the blue light from outside started flickering from inside.
“WHO DARES TO ENTER MY CASTLE?” screamed a deep voice.
“HE WHO ENTERS MY CASTLE SHALL PERISH SLOW AND HORRIBLY!” the voice called out. As the voice spoke, Mike noticed a familiar shape in the shadows and stopped feeling any form of fear.
Then, Rex emerged from the shadows. “What? How did you know?”
“Come on, now.” Mike groaned. “It was a good prank, but it’s not good enough to frighten me.”
“Oh, alright.” said Rex as he fessed up. “I was the ghost, I just wanted to give you a little scare.”
“Well, you weren’t that successful, but I appreciate the effort.” Mike chuckled. “So, what was with the glow around the castle?”
“That was just a spotlight!”
“And the wailing?”
“Record player.”
“Ah.” Mike said as his driver pulled the mechanism to lift the gate. “So, what, this castle isn’t haunted?”
“Of course not!” Rex laughed. “You said it yourself, ghosts are all just silly make-believe!”
“GET OUT!!” the voice screamed. This time, Mike chuckled to himself.
“Uh, Mike? That…wasn’t me.”
Then, Mike felt something new. Something he hadn’t felt in ages.
Mike felt scared. He and Rex bolted out of the castle at full speed, screaming until they couldn’t breathe.
At the costume party, Mike and Rex were telling the story of the haunted castle to their friends.
“Whoa, so there really is a ghost up there?” Ryan asked.
“We don’t know what we heard, really,” Rex replied. “it could’ve been anything up there. But the real question is, Mike, do you still not like Halloween?”
“Yeah, I still think it’s a bad holiday,” Mike replied. “but I guess it can have its moments.”
Rex chuckled, both about Mike and his little prank.
And the voice in the castle? Well, no one knows for sure, not even Mike or Rex. Maybe it really is a ghost haunting the depths of the castle…or it could just be Bert, playing a trick on the two engines.
“What?” Bert asked as he emerged from the shadows. “I’m allowed to have fun on Halloween too!”
“Happy Halloween, fellows!” he yelled out as he woke up.
“Is it really Halloween already?” Bert yawned. “It feels like just yesterday it was Easter.”
“I know!” Rex squealed in delight. “Now, come on, we need to deliver all these decorations to the harbor for the costume party!”
Mike scowled. “I will never understand the appeal of Halloween.”
“What do you mean, Mike?” Bert asked, curiously.
“What do I…” Mike grumbled. “Look, I just find that Halloween is merely a marketing ploy made up by corporations in order to increase sales for candy, pumpkins and costumes.”
“Oh, come on, now, Mike!” Rex encouraged his friend. “That’s not the only reason people celebrate Halloween!”
“And why is that?”
“This is the time of year where all of Sodor’s ghouls and goblins rise from their graves, seeking the nearest mortal souls and…”
“...and what?” Bert asked, slightly scared.
“...and EATING THEM!” Rex yelled. As Bert yelped, Mike rolled his eyes.
“Oh no, I’m so scared…” Mike groaned, sarcastically. “Look, you guys do what you like, but I don’t want anything to do with Halloween, end of story.”
“Rise and shine, engines!” Mr. Fergus Duncan greeted his engines. “Now, we have 14 hours until the costume party, so I need every one of you to be helping with extra deliveries. Starting with you, Mike, I need you to take boxes of candy, pumpkins and costumes to the harbor by 10.”
“See what I mean, Rex?” Mike grumbled. “That’s what I hate about Halloween the most: how shameless it is!”
Now, that’s not true. Mike did dislike how it seemed like one big marketing scheme, but that wasn’t it. It wasn’t the candy, or the pumpkins, or even the costumes. It was just that Mike wasn’t an easy engine to scare, and after years and years, Halloween after Halloween on the railway, it’s gotten rather old. Why was this a problem? Well, if you didn’t scare easy on Halloween, would you want to be working with an engine like Rex?
As Mike puffed through the countryside, he started to hear a strange rustling. He looked around, and saw a strange shape take form. Mike rolled his eyes. “Rex, I know that’s you…”
Rex emerged from the bushes next to him as they came to a junction. “How did you know that?!”
“You pull this same predictable prank every year…” Mike groaned. “and every year, the same thing happens. You say boo, I’m not scared, rinse and repeat.”
“Oh, come on, Mike!” Rex said. “Besides, if you really want a good scare, then the haunted castle is right up there!”
Rex turned his attention to a strange junction, one track leading to a creepy castle.
“The only scare I’ll be getting in there is from how not scary it is…” Mike groaned.
What is the haunted castle, I hear you ask? Well, it’s very self explanatory, but nobody knows its story. Nobody knows how the castle became haunted to begin with, but all anybody knows is that those who enter never return from the ghosts’ cold, dead grasp.
Rex scoffed at Mike’s unwillingness. “How do you know there’s nothing in there?”
“Because people make this story up all the time, Rex.” Mike groaned. “The mine is haunted. The shed is haunted. Brendam Docks is haunted. You get the idea…”
“Well, if you’re so sure that nothing’s up there, then why don’t you have a look?” Rex teased.
“Maybe I will.” Mike scoffed as he rolled away.
Back at Arlesburgh West, Mike was telling the story to Ryan.
“Can you believe him?” he chuckled. “He really thinks that the castle up on that hill is haunted!”
“Well, I don’t know, really.” Ryan mumbled. “Do ghosts really exist?”
“Of course not, Ryan.” Mike reassured the naive purple engine. “They’re all just silly make-believe.”
Then, Bert approached, having overheard the conversation. “Are you sure? Because every time I pass that castle, I keep hearing this strange wailing sound.”
“Oh, I’m sure that’s just the wind.” Mike scoffed.
“I wouldn’t be too sure,” said James as he approached, again overhearing the discussion. “Rex told me that every night, a strange, luminescent light looms over the castle.”
“Come on, James…” Mike scoffed again. “I’m telling you all, there is no such thing as ghosts.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” James said. “lots of engines on Sodor have spotted ghosts. Just ask Diesel and Duncan.”
But Mike just rolled away, taking no notice to their claims and chuckling to himself.
A full moon shone over the island that night, and the costume party at the harbor was in full swing. Mike, of course, was not taking part and was heading back to his shed. Then, he approached the junction that led to the haunted castle. He rolled his eyes and chuckled slightly.
“Haunted castle…” he thought to himself. “There’s no way that place is haunted…right?”
He started getting a bit curious, and that’s when he started to hear the strange wailing that Bert was talking about. He looked around, to find nobody there.
“Hm…” Mike pondered. “I’m sure nobody would mind if I had a little peek.”
And so, his wheels slowly started turning onto the other track, and into the grasp of the haunted castle.
On the track to the castle, the landscape started getting foggier and harder to see. Mike just about caught a glimpse of the castle through the mist. There was a strange luminescent light around it, just like James said.
“Huh…” Mike said as he looked at the glow. “This castle’s obviously not haunted, but I have to respect their efforts.”
As Mike approached the castle, the wailing noise started getting louder. And slowly, but surely…he got in. The castle was empty, rustic and cold. A chilling breeze blew in Mike’s face as he entered. It was entirely empty.
“Hello?” Mike asked as he moved closer into the castle. He moved a little bit closer, and then the castle gate slammed down, slightly startling the old engine.
“Uh…who goes there?” asked Mike, as he beckoned forward. Then, the blue light from outside started flickering from inside.
“WHO DARES TO ENTER MY CASTLE?” screamed a deep voice.
“HE WHO ENTERS MY CASTLE SHALL PERISH SLOW AND HORRIBLY!” the voice called out. As the voice spoke, Mike noticed a familiar shape in the shadows and stopped feeling any form of fear.
Then, Rex emerged from the shadows. “What? How did you know?”
“Come on, now.” Mike groaned. “It was a good prank, but it’s not good enough to frighten me.”
“Oh, alright.” said Rex as he fessed up. “I was the ghost, I just wanted to give you a little scare.”
“Well, you weren’t that successful, but I appreciate the effort.” Mike chuckled. “So, what was with the glow around the castle?”
“That was just a spotlight!”
“And the wailing?”
“Record player.”
“Ah.” Mike said as his driver pulled the mechanism to lift the gate. “So, what, this castle isn’t haunted?”
“Of course not!” Rex laughed. “You said it yourself, ghosts are all just silly make-believe!”
“GET OUT!!” the voice screamed. This time, Mike chuckled to himself.
“Uh, Mike? That…wasn’t me.”
Then, Mike felt something new. Something he hadn’t felt in ages.
Mike felt scared. He and Rex bolted out of the castle at full speed, screaming until they couldn’t breathe.
At the costume party, Mike and Rex were telling the story of the haunted castle to their friends.
“Whoa, so there really is a ghost up there?” Ryan asked.
“We don’t know what we heard, really,” Rex replied. “it could’ve been anything up there. But the real question is, Mike, do you still not like Halloween?”
“Yeah, I still think it’s a bad holiday,” Mike replied. “but I guess it can have its moments.”
Rex chuckled, both about Mike and his little prank.
And the voice in the castle? Well, no one knows for sure, not even Mike or Rex. Maybe it really is a ghost haunting the depths of the castle…or it could just be Bert, playing a trick on the two engines.
“What?” Bert asked as he emerged from the shadows. “I’m allowed to have fun on Halloween too!”
About the Author: JF the LOLZOR
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