Battery Bother - ThomasNATION Fanstory
February 22, 2025
"Hello, lads!" called Stafford as he pulled up to the harbor with some cargo.
"Stafford! You made it!" smiled Ryan. "We were starting to get worried, we thought you got lost."
"No, it's this bleedin' battery." Stafford sighed. "I've had problems with it before, but the last two weeks, it's been nothing but trouble. I reckon it's on its last legs."
"Oh, that's not good." frowned Ryan. "Maybe you should get it looked at if it's causing such a problem."
"There's a good shout, mate." chuckled Stafford. "Let me drop off this train and I'll run over ASAP."
As Stafford dropped off his cargo at the goods yard, he began his trip to the Steamworks...but then there was trouble. Just as he began to ascend the hill...he began to stall.
"Oh no..." Stafford gasped. "No, this can't be happening!"
Stafford began reversing down the hill faster than he had ever gone before. And to make matters worse, he was headed straight for the sea!
"STAFFORD!" cried Ryan.
"I got this!" called Daisy as she started to block the tracks leading down to the sea. But it wasn't good enough, as Stafford raced past right before she had the chance to stop him. "Well, I'm out of ideas."
Stafford raced right down the hill, right into the sea. His door fell right off its hinges, completely submerging his battery. Stafford was officially powerless.
"My battery!" wailed Stafford.
Later, at the Steamworks, Victor took a look at Stafford as he was being repaired. "Stafford, I've got some good news and some bad news."
"What's the good news?"
"I'll be able to fix your windows, door and wheels no problem."
"And the bad news?"
Victor took a breath. "Ay, how do I say this? Your battery, my friend...it's beyond repair. Finalizado. I'm sorry, Stafford."
Stafford was heartbroken. "Victor...surely you have a backup for this, right? Like, from when I first arrived on Sodor?"
"I used to, but I gave it to Kenji. We tried everything, honestly, but we don't have any other options."
Stafford was out of ideas, he looked like he was about to cry. But then Kevin came over to Victor. "Er, boss? Is now a good time to tell you about-"
Kevin was interrupted by Duck's whistle. He and Thomas came in, hauling a brand new battery! "Did someone order a new experimental battery?"
Stafford gasped in joy. "I knew there was another way! Thanks so much, where did this come from?"
"Someone put in a request for Ruth, and she was able to build a new battery out of some spare parts." explained Thomas. "One recharge will last you two days."
"Wow! I don't know what to say." smiled Stafford warmly. "Thank you so much, lads."
Soon, Stafford was all fixed up and fitted with his brand new battery. He felt like a brand new engine. "This is more like it. I feel incredible!"
"Just be extra careful with that battery, Stafford." warned Victor. "Just take it easy until you get properly used to it. No more dips in the sea."
"No worries, Victor!" Stafford laughed. "I think I'm going to be okay."
"If you say so," continued Victor, "but you do need to look out for your own health and safety. If you don't, bam!"
Stafford chuckled. "I don't think it'll be that bad, Victor. I'll be sure to be careful, I promise."
That night, Stafford returned to his shed. His friends, Stanley and Charlie, were waiting anxiously to hear about his new battery.
"...apparently, this new battery can go for two days!" Stafford gushed. "I can probably pull trains all the way to France and back without recharging once!"
"I'm not sure that's how that works." thought Stanley.
"I know," Stafford laughed, "I'm just excited!"
"Well, it's about time you started taking charge!" joked Charlie.
"Aren't you even a little nervous about damaging it?" asked Stanley. "I mean, what if you damage this one?"
"I know to be a lot more careful this time round," Stafford explains, "all I need to do is keep an eye on my health and safety."
A small drop of rain dropped down from the clouds onto Stafford's roof.
"Aw, is it gonna start raining?" sighed Charlie.
Stafford looked up at the clouds. He remembered his accident at the harbor and what Victor warned him about. It was the water that cost him his old battery, so he didn't want to take any chances. He ducked back into his shed.
"What's with you?" asked Charlie. "It's just a little rain."
"The rain will spoil my new battery!" whimpered Stafford.
Stanley and Charlie looked at each other. They both knew this was gonna be a long few days. "Uh oh."
As the days passed, Stafford grew more worried about rain than Henry. Every time it would start drizzling, he would stop in a shed or a station until it stopped. It was starting to annoy some of his friends.
"This is ridiculous." scowled Thomas. "He hasn't shunted a single coach all day!"
"I'm honestly not gonna be shocked if he actually stops in a tunnel." sighed James.
It got so bad that Sir Topham Hatt had to step in and set him right. "I've told this to Henry and I'm telling you, the rain is nothing to be worried about!"
"I know, sir, but I don't want to damage my new battery!" sighed Stafford.
"Honestly, I can't believe we're even having this conversation." Sir Topham Hatt groaned. "You were built with strong wooden boards and a metal roof. No water is going to get into that new battery! Now, I'm going to come back in an hour, and I had better see you back in the yard shunting. Understand?"
"Yes sir." Stafford sighed. Truth be told, he wasn't fully convinced, but he knew he couldn't keep hiding in his shed. After all, it was only a little drizzle. How bad can it be?
Yeah, it wasn't a little drizzle later that day. It was a full blown downpour. Stafford was hiding in a shed, trying to avoid the rain. But alas, the engines kept working...except James. He still needed his last train for the day.
"Oh, hurry up already!" groaned James. "I can't keep sitting around here all day, y'know."
The other engines were busy elsewhere, either shunting or at work with their own jobs. The only engine who was available was Stafford, and...well, you know. Stanley and Charlie looked at him.
"Do you think it's time we talk to him?" asked Stanley. "He's been like this for ages."
"You do it, Stanley." said Charlie. "I'm no good at this sort of thing."
"Right." Stanley approached Stafford. "Hey, you mind sorting James' train? Me and Charlie are a bit busy."
Stafford wanted to, but he couldn't find the courage to leave the shed. "I can't. What if I wreck my new battery? Never be able to shunt again? End up totally useless?"
"Stafford, come on." chuckled Stanley. "Look at me. My cab windows are open in this weather, my firebox could be doused in the rain, and I'm still working."
"But how do you know I'll be fine? How do you know my battery's not gonna stop working?"
"Stafford...who do you think asked Ruth to build you that battery?"
Stafford looked at Stanley, stunned. "What?"
"I heard about the accident at Arlesburgh, so I told Ruth you needed a new battery. And I made sure it was built to perfection, especially making sure something like that would never happen again. You're going to be fine. Trust me."
"Wow...you did that?" Stafford smiled. "Thank you, Stanley."
"Anytime. Now, about James' train?"
Stafford immediately got to work sorting James' train, and for the first time in days, he wasn't panicking over his battery. In fact, he was full of glee as he shunted James' train to him.
"About time!" scowled James as he left.
Stafford felt proud of himself for finally getting over his fears. From that day onward, he never worried about his battery again, especially whenever he remembered the lengths his friends went to make sure he could keep being really useful.
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