Thomas and Skarloey's Grand World Tour: ThomasNATION Fanstory [Part 1]
April 16, 2021
It was a busy day up at the Blue Mountain Quarry. Slate was moving up and down the lines and machines, and all the narrow gauge engines were hard at work to make sure they got to their destination on time, except for Skarloey. He, Rheneas, Rusty and Luke were on a break, and were having fun telling each other some fun stories. Rheneas was just finishing his.
“...and then, I was dashing down the old mountain line at full speed!” Rheneas told his friends. “I was Rheneas the Roller Coaster!”
“Wow!” Luke cried out in awe. “How did you stop at such a high speed?”
“It took a while, but I eventually slowed down at the station.” Rheneas responded.
“That’s a great story, Rheneas,” Skarloey said, “but wait until you hear this one!”
Then, Thomas pulled up to the turntable.
“Hi, Thomas!” Luke called out to his friend.
“Hey, Luke,” said Thomas, “don’t mind me, I’m just here to take some slate up to the docks.”
“Oh, you’re load’s over next to Owen.” said Rusty.
Thomas pulled over to Owen’s platform, where he was approached by a workman.
“Thomas, I got a message from the Dock Manager,” the workman said with a frown. “your ship to Brazil isn’t coming.”
“Oh, no…” Thomas gasped. “What do I do now?”
“You can try the harbor in Shanghai,” the workman said, “but there isn’t any ships coming in for another two weeks, so you’ll have to travel by rail.”
“Well, that’s not an issue.” Thomas smiled. “I’ll head off tomorrow afternoon.”
Back at the turntable, the narrow gauge engines were listening to Thomas and the workman’s conversation. Luke gasped with glee.
“Did you all hear that?” he asked. “Thomas is going to China! And Brazil!”
“Wow,” Skarloey smiled. “I didn’t think he had actually done it! You know, I’ve dreamt of travelling the globe myself.”
“You? Go round the world?” Rheneas laughed. “I’d like to see that!”
As Thomas pulled out of the platform, Luke approached him at a junction.
“Are you really going around the world, Thomas?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m going to help out on the Brazilian railway for a week.” Thomas responded. “But first, I need to go to Shanghai.”
“Hey, Thomas!” Rheneas called out. “Skarloey wanted to see the world too!”
“Really?”
Skarloey chuckled softly. “I’ve had one or two thoughts about it, but it does seem like quite the adventure.”
“Well…” Thomas pondered. “if you want, I could talk to Mr. Percival and ask if you can come with.”
“What?!” the narrow gauge engines cried out.
“I mean, only if it’s okay.” Thomas said. “I won’t take him with me if he says no.”
“Well…” Skarloey pondered. “we’ll have to see what Mr. Percival says. He’ll likely say no, however.”
“That’s a chance I’m willing to take!” Thomas exclaimed. And with that, he left, away to go talk to Mr. Percival.
That evening, Skarloey was getting prepared to head back to the depot, when Mr. Percival rolled up on his bicycle.
“Uh, Skarloey?” Mr. Percival asked. “I need to speak with you.”
“Oh,” said Skarloey. “is this about Thomas?”
“Yes, indeed.” Mr. Percival responded. “He told me about how he wanted to bring you along on his little world tour. And I must say…”
Skarloey was ready for Mr. Percival to say no. But then…
“...I think it’s a splendid idea!”
“Wait, really?”
“Yes,” Mr. Percival said with a grin. “I was initially skeptical of Thomas’ plan to travel the world back then, but when he proved it was possible, I thought to myself. What if one of my engines went around the world? So, where are you and Thomas headed?”
“Well, first we need to go to Shanghai,” Skarloey responded. “but our final destination is somewhere in Brazil.”
“That’s stupendous, Skarloey.” said Mr. Percival. “I believe that has a small narrow-gauge railway running through the Amazon. So, what do you say? Are you ready to travel the world?”
“Well…” Skarloey thought to himself. He considered it for a little while, but finally came to a conclusion. “…okay. I’ll do it!”
“Great!” Mr. Percival said. “I recommend staying at the wharf tonight. Colin can load you onto a flatbed for Thomas to collect.”
“Thank you, sir.” Skarloey said as he left for the wharf.
The next morning, Skarloey woke up on a flatbed. He was ready to be able to explore the world. Then, Thomas arrived, ready to take Skarloey with him.
“Ooh, hello, Thomas!” Skarloey called out. “Isn’t it a lovely morning to travel?”
“It certainly is, Skarloey,” Thomas responded. “and if we play our cards right, we should be in Shanghai in about four days.”
“Ooh, that’s quite a long journey,” Skarloey said. “can’t we just catch a ship to China?”
“One doesn’t come in until next week,” Thomas replied. “going by rail is our best option at the moment.”
“Well, I’ll take what I can get.” said Skarloey, excitedly. “Let’s get puffing, Thomas! Adventure awaits!”
“Okay,” said Thomas, “but I think we should stop by Crovan’s Gate first.”
“Oh, very well,” Skarloey chuckled.
Thomas and Skarloey pulled into Crovan’s Gate, to reveal all the narrow gauge engines and Mr. Percival waiting there.
“Surprise!” the narrow gauge engines cried.
Skarloey was taken entirely by surprised. “Oh my! What’s all this?”
“We decided to put this together to say goodbye before your big adventure.” said Peter Sam.
“Thank you all,” Skarloey said, “but I do have one last question. While I’m away, who’s going to look after my work?”
“Well, Skarloey,” answered Mr. Percival. “I’ve arranged for Luke to fill in during your absence.”
“That’s fine by me.” said Skarloey.
“I just don’t get why you’d want to go away halfway across the world!” grumbled Duncan. “I mean, the world isn’t just some big railway worth abandoning your friends over!”
“Duncan, trust me.” Skarloey reassured his friend. “As soon as I’m done over in Brazil, I’ll be coming straight back!”
“He knows that,” Sir Handel chimed in. “he’s only upset because he’s really going to miss you.”
Rheneas chuckled. “Duncan, you big softie!”
As Rheneas laughed at Duncan, Thomas noticed the clock. It read 11:49.
“Cinders and ashes!” Thomas cried. “Skarloey, we’ve got to go! If we leave now, we could reach Germany by sundown.”
“Oh, right on, Thomas.” Skarloey chirped as he and Thomas disembarked. “Goodbye!”
Before long, Thomas and Skarloey had left Sodor and were travelling across the Mainland. Skarloey was looking around, enjoying the journey as they approached a canal.
“I say, Thomas, I never realised the Mainland was so beautiful.” Skarloey said in awe.
“Trust me, Skarloey, the best is yet to come!” Thomas assured his small friend. Just then, a boat dropped onto the tracks.
“HALT!” a familiar voice bellowed.
“Oh, no…” Thomas sighed.
“Hold on,” the voice said to himself. Then, a hook came down and picked up Thomas!
“Whoa!” Thomas screamed.
“Thomas!” cried Skarloey.
The hook lifted Thomas up to reveal his old friend Beresford! “It is! Thomas, my old friend from the island of Sodor! How are you, my good friend, eh?”
“Uh, not too bad, Beresford.” Thomas muttered. "I've just been hanging about."
“Thomas?” called out Skarloey. “Who is this crane? And why is he dangling you around?”
“Oh, Skarloey, this is my friend Beresford.” said Thomas. “Beresford, this is Skarloey.”
“He’s a little small, isn’t he?” asked Beresford.
“That’s because he’s narrow gauge.” Thomas explained. “Now, can you please put me down? I need to go on a trip to Shanghai.”
“Oh, you’re pulling my hook!” chuckled Beresford. “And next week, I’ll be on a rocket ship to the planet Venus, eh?”
“No, he’s being serious, Beresford.” Skarloey reassured the crane. “Kindly put him down.”
Beresford obliged, placing Thomas back onto the rails. “I suppose you chaps will need directions to the English Channel Tunnel?”
“The English Channel Tunnel?” asked Thomas.
“It’s a tunnel leading from Strait of Dover in the south all the way to France!”
“France?” Skarloey gasped. “That’s not anywhere near China.”
“I never said this would be a short trip.” protested Thomas. “But yes, we would like some directions.”
“Just go straight ahead, make a right at the junction and you’ll hit Strait of Dover in no time at all!”
“Great! Thanks, Beresford!” Thomas said as he left with Skarloey.
“Nice to meet you, Beresford!” Skarloey called out.
Thomas was right. This was not at all a short trip. Thomas and Skarloey’s path took them country to country, day after day, night after night. But after six long days of travelling, they had finally reached Shanghai Harbor.
“Finally, we made it!” Thomas sighed in relief. “You really have it lucky, Skarloey. You don’t have to puff so hard non-stop for six days.”
“That is true,” Skarloey claimed, “but now we’ve finally made it.”
Thomas soon noticed his old friend, Yong Bao, waiting for a delivery. “Yong Bao!”
“Oh, ni hao, Thomas!” said Yong Bao as the duo approached him. “I wasn't expecting you to visit. What are you doing here?”
“Well, we need to catch a ship to Brazil,” said Skarloey. “do you suppose you could help us out?”
“Absolutely…uh…I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
“That’s Skarloey.” Thomas explained. “So, uh, where’s this ship to Brazil?”
“Right over there,” Yong Bao gestured over to a ship docked at the harbor. “That ship should take you straight to Rio de Janeiro.”
“That’s perfect!” Thomas exclaimed. “Thanks, Yong Bao!”
“My pleasure, Thomas!” Yong Bao called out, as Thomas was loaded onto the ship.
“Ah…” Thomas sighed. “it’s nice to finally be able to relax my wheels…”
“Yes, but we shouldn’t get used to it, you know,” Skarloey said as he was loaded onto the ship. “As I always say, if your wheels aren’t whirring, you aren’t being a really useful engine.”
“Well, we have plenty of chances to be really useful over in Rio,” Thomas said, cheerfully. “Ready to see the world, Skarloey?”
“I am, Thomas. I truly am.” said Skarloey.
And soon, the ship left, en route for Rio de Janeiro.
To be continued.
“...and then, I was dashing down the old mountain line at full speed!” Rheneas told his friends. “I was Rheneas the Roller Coaster!”
“Wow!” Luke cried out in awe. “How did you stop at such a high speed?”
“It took a while, but I eventually slowed down at the station.” Rheneas responded.
“That’s a great story, Rheneas,” Skarloey said, “but wait until you hear this one!”
Then, Thomas pulled up to the turntable.
“Hi, Thomas!” Luke called out to his friend.
“Hey, Luke,” said Thomas, “don’t mind me, I’m just here to take some slate up to the docks.”
“Oh, you’re load’s over next to Owen.” said Rusty.
Thomas pulled over to Owen’s platform, where he was approached by a workman.
“Thomas, I got a message from the Dock Manager,” the workman said with a frown. “your ship to Brazil isn’t coming.”
“Oh, no…” Thomas gasped. “What do I do now?”
“You can try the harbor in Shanghai,” the workman said, “but there isn’t any ships coming in for another two weeks, so you’ll have to travel by rail.”
“Well, that’s not an issue.” Thomas smiled. “I’ll head off tomorrow afternoon.”
Back at the turntable, the narrow gauge engines were listening to Thomas and the workman’s conversation. Luke gasped with glee.
“Did you all hear that?” he asked. “Thomas is going to China! And Brazil!”
“Wow,” Skarloey smiled. “I didn’t think he had actually done it! You know, I’ve dreamt of travelling the globe myself.”
“You? Go round the world?” Rheneas laughed. “I’d like to see that!”
As Thomas pulled out of the platform, Luke approached him at a junction.
“Are you really going around the world, Thomas?” he asked.
“Yeah, I’m going to help out on the Brazilian railway for a week.” Thomas responded. “But first, I need to go to Shanghai.”
“Hey, Thomas!” Rheneas called out. “Skarloey wanted to see the world too!”
“Really?”
Skarloey chuckled softly. “I’ve had one or two thoughts about it, but it does seem like quite the adventure.”
“Well…” Thomas pondered. “if you want, I could talk to Mr. Percival and ask if you can come with.”
“What?!” the narrow gauge engines cried out.
“I mean, only if it’s okay.” Thomas said. “I won’t take him with me if he says no.”
“Well…” Skarloey pondered. “we’ll have to see what Mr. Percival says. He’ll likely say no, however.”
“That’s a chance I’m willing to take!” Thomas exclaimed. And with that, he left, away to go talk to Mr. Percival.
That evening, Skarloey was getting prepared to head back to the depot, when Mr. Percival rolled up on his bicycle.
“Uh, Skarloey?” Mr. Percival asked. “I need to speak with you.”
“Oh,” said Skarloey. “is this about Thomas?”
“Yes, indeed.” Mr. Percival responded. “He told me about how he wanted to bring you along on his little world tour. And I must say…”
Skarloey was ready for Mr. Percival to say no. But then…
“...I think it’s a splendid idea!”
“Wait, really?”
“Yes,” Mr. Percival said with a grin. “I was initially skeptical of Thomas’ plan to travel the world back then, but when he proved it was possible, I thought to myself. What if one of my engines went around the world? So, where are you and Thomas headed?”
“Well, first we need to go to Shanghai,” Skarloey responded. “but our final destination is somewhere in Brazil.”
“That’s stupendous, Skarloey.” said Mr. Percival. “I believe that has a small narrow-gauge railway running through the Amazon. So, what do you say? Are you ready to travel the world?”
“Well…” Skarloey thought to himself. He considered it for a little while, but finally came to a conclusion. “…okay. I’ll do it!”
“Great!” Mr. Percival said. “I recommend staying at the wharf tonight. Colin can load you onto a flatbed for Thomas to collect.”
“Thank you, sir.” Skarloey said as he left for the wharf.
The next morning, Skarloey woke up on a flatbed. He was ready to be able to explore the world. Then, Thomas arrived, ready to take Skarloey with him.
“Ooh, hello, Thomas!” Skarloey called out. “Isn’t it a lovely morning to travel?”
“It certainly is, Skarloey,” Thomas responded. “and if we play our cards right, we should be in Shanghai in about four days.”
“Ooh, that’s quite a long journey,” Skarloey said. “can’t we just catch a ship to China?”
“One doesn’t come in until next week,” Thomas replied. “going by rail is our best option at the moment.”
“Well, I’ll take what I can get.” said Skarloey, excitedly. “Let’s get puffing, Thomas! Adventure awaits!”
“Okay,” said Thomas, “but I think we should stop by Crovan’s Gate first.”
“Oh, very well,” Skarloey chuckled.
Thomas and Skarloey pulled into Crovan’s Gate, to reveal all the narrow gauge engines and Mr. Percival waiting there.
“Surprise!” the narrow gauge engines cried.
Skarloey was taken entirely by surprised. “Oh my! What’s all this?”
“We decided to put this together to say goodbye before your big adventure.” said Peter Sam.
“Thank you all,” Skarloey said, “but I do have one last question. While I’m away, who’s going to look after my work?”
“Well, Skarloey,” answered Mr. Percival. “I’ve arranged for Luke to fill in during your absence.”
“That’s fine by me.” said Skarloey.
“I just don’t get why you’d want to go away halfway across the world!” grumbled Duncan. “I mean, the world isn’t just some big railway worth abandoning your friends over!”
“Duncan, trust me.” Skarloey reassured his friend. “As soon as I’m done over in Brazil, I’ll be coming straight back!”
“He knows that,” Sir Handel chimed in. “he’s only upset because he’s really going to miss you.”
Rheneas chuckled. “Duncan, you big softie!”
As Rheneas laughed at Duncan, Thomas noticed the clock. It read 11:49.
“Cinders and ashes!” Thomas cried. “Skarloey, we’ve got to go! If we leave now, we could reach Germany by sundown.”
“Oh, right on, Thomas.” Skarloey chirped as he and Thomas disembarked. “Goodbye!”
Before long, Thomas and Skarloey had left Sodor and were travelling across the Mainland. Skarloey was looking around, enjoying the journey as they approached a canal.
“I say, Thomas, I never realised the Mainland was so beautiful.” Skarloey said in awe.
“Trust me, Skarloey, the best is yet to come!” Thomas assured his small friend. Just then, a boat dropped onto the tracks.
“HALT!” a familiar voice bellowed.
“Oh, no…” Thomas sighed.
“Hold on,” the voice said to himself. Then, a hook came down and picked up Thomas!
“Whoa!” Thomas screamed.
“Thomas!” cried Skarloey.
The hook lifted Thomas up to reveal his old friend Beresford! “It is! Thomas, my old friend from the island of Sodor! How are you, my good friend, eh?”
“Uh, not too bad, Beresford.” Thomas muttered. "I've just been hanging about."
“Thomas?” called out Skarloey. “Who is this crane? And why is he dangling you around?”
“Oh, Skarloey, this is my friend Beresford.” said Thomas. “Beresford, this is Skarloey.”
“He’s a little small, isn’t he?” asked Beresford.
“That’s because he’s narrow gauge.” Thomas explained. “Now, can you please put me down? I need to go on a trip to Shanghai.”
“Oh, you’re pulling my hook!” chuckled Beresford. “And next week, I’ll be on a rocket ship to the planet Venus, eh?”
“No, he’s being serious, Beresford.” Skarloey reassured the crane. “Kindly put him down.”
Beresford obliged, placing Thomas back onto the rails. “I suppose you chaps will need directions to the English Channel Tunnel?”
“The English Channel Tunnel?” asked Thomas.
“It’s a tunnel leading from Strait of Dover in the south all the way to France!”
“France?” Skarloey gasped. “That’s not anywhere near China.”
“I never said this would be a short trip.” protested Thomas. “But yes, we would like some directions.”
“Just go straight ahead, make a right at the junction and you’ll hit Strait of Dover in no time at all!”
“Great! Thanks, Beresford!” Thomas said as he left with Skarloey.
“Nice to meet you, Beresford!” Skarloey called out.
Thomas was right. This was not at all a short trip. Thomas and Skarloey’s path took them country to country, day after day, night after night. But after six long days of travelling, they had finally reached Shanghai Harbor.
“Finally, we made it!” Thomas sighed in relief. “You really have it lucky, Skarloey. You don’t have to puff so hard non-stop for six days.”
“That is true,” Skarloey claimed, “but now we’ve finally made it.”
Thomas soon noticed his old friend, Yong Bao, waiting for a delivery. “Yong Bao!”
“Oh, ni hao, Thomas!” said Yong Bao as the duo approached him. “I wasn't expecting you to visit. What are you doing here?”
“Well, we need to catch a ship to Brazil,” said Skarloey. “do you suppose you could help us out?”
“Absolutely…uh…I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”
“That’s Skarloey.” Thomas explained. “So, uh, where’s this ship to Brazil?”
“Right over there,” Yong Bao gestured over to a ship docked at the harbor. “That ship should take you straight to Rio de Janeiro.”
“That’s perfect!” Thomas exclaimed. “Thanks, Yong Bao!”
“My pleasure, Thomas!” Yong Bao called out, as Thomas was loaded onto the ship.
“Ah…” Thomas sighed. “it’s nice to finally be able to relax my wheels…”
“Yes, but we shouldn’t get used to it, you know,” Skarloey said as he was loaded onto the ship. “As I always say, if your wheels aren’t whirring, you aren’t being a really useful engine.”
“Well, we have plenty of chances to be really useful over in Rio,” Thomas said, cheerfully. “Ready to see the world, Skarloey?”
“I am, Thomas. I truly am.” said Skarloey.
And soon, the ship left, en route for Rio de Janeiro.
To be continued.
About the Author: JF the LOLZOR
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