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One day, Paxton was on his way back from the Blue Mountain Quarry. However, as he trundled along, he didn’t notice a damaged track up ahead, until it was too late. In mere seconds, Paxton had come off the rails.
“Oh no, help!”
~~~
The alarm blared at the Sodor Search and Rescue Centre. The manager approached Rocky.
“Paxton has come off the rails!” he announced, “He needs you, Rocky!”
“But, Emily’s not here yet. What am I supposed to do?” asked Rocky.
“All in good time, old chap,” replied the manager.
Ever since one day when an inspector came to the railway, Emily had been the designated engine to take Rocky to the site of emergencies wherever he was needed. The only exception was a short time ago, when Philip had gotten lost and BoCo insisted on taking the big crane so he could set things right.
Rocky sat in his spot and waited. It felt like an hour before Emily had finally arrived. The emerald engine was panting, because she had to hurry to the rescue centre.
“Sorry I’m late,” she apologised, “I was far away from the rescue centre when I got word of the accident.”
“Well, better late than never,” replied Rocky.
With that, Emily was coupled up and she pulled away with Rocky. Before long, she arrived at the scene, only to find that Harvey had already come to help Paxton.
“You see, you took so long that I was called to help Paxton,” explained Harvey.
“Thanks, Harvey,” smiled the green diesel.
“Don’t mention it,” grinned the crane engine. With that, the two engines went their separate ways. Emily looked down in defeat.
“I took so long that Paxton didn’t even need me by the time I got to him.”
“Cheer up, Emily,” soothed Rocky, “We all make mistakes. Heck, if nobody made mistakes, then there’d be no need for me.”
Emily giggled, “Okay, Rocky, now let’s get you home.”
By the time she got back to the rescue centre, Emily left Rocky in his shed and was about to leave before Belle spoke up.
“Hey, Emily?”
“Yeah?”
“If you really want to be close by when there’s another emergency where Rocky’s needed, I think you should spend the night here.”
“There’s room for one more in our shed,” added Flynn.
Emily grinned, “I guess I will spend the night here, then.”
~~~
Back at Tidmouth Sheds, the engines were all waiting around, keeping eyes out for Emily. Just then, Sir Topham Hatt arrived.
“Oh, Sir,” said Henry, “Have you seen Emily?”
“I haven’t seen her, but I have gotten a call from the Sodor Search and Rescue Centre. She’ll be spending the night there in case of an emergency where Rocky is needed.”
“Good for her!” beamed James, “She’s doing this for the sake of our safety.”
Gordon however, looked glumly down at his buffers. A while back, he’d watched as Edward and Henry went off to different sheds. While Henry had now returned and Edward now slept in Knapford Sheds, Gordon was still upset to have seen another friend go.
“Gordon, are you okay?” asked Rebecca.
“Let’s just get some sleep.” replied Gordon, changing the subject.
~~~
The next morning, as the vehicles were checked over to ensure that they were in good working order if an emergency was to arise, Emily looked sad. Belle puffed up alongside her friend.
“What’s the matter, Emily?”
“I just feel like I should’ve told my friends that I’d be staying here sooner.”
“What do you mean ‘staying here’?” asked Belle, “I thought you’d only be spending the night.”
“I am the designated rescue engine,” explained Emily, “I can’t just go off on other jobs around the island and then scramble for the rescue centre to get Rocky.”
“It’s still early,” said the blue firefighting engine, “Why don’t you go to Tidmouth Sheds and tell your friends about your decision.”
“The thing is, I’m nervous about how they’ll react. Especially Gordon, he isn’t the best at handling change.”
“Which friends do you think will be supportive?”
“Henry, Rebecca, Nia… maybe James.”
“Well, then, I think you should go, regardless of how you think one engine will feel.”
“You’re right!” and with that, Emily set off for Tidmouth Sheds.
~~~
In no time at all, Emily had arrived at the sheds.
“Emily!” the engines all exclaimed.
“Did you have a good night at the rescue centre?” asked Nia.
“I did,” answered Emily, “Now, I’ve got something that I want to tell you all.”
“What?” asked James.
“I think I’m going to move to the rescue centre, because I’m the rescue engine who takes Rocky whenever he’s needed.”
“Go on ahead,” encouraged Rebecca, “If you want to do that, that’s great!”
“Yeah, go on and help any engines who come off the tracks.” smiled Henry
“You’re going to be a better rescue engine than I ever was,” said James.
Gordon felt anger boil up inside his boiler. It was then that he could no longer hold it back and he snapped.
“After all these years, you’re leaving us?!” he growled.
Emily was shocked, “Gordon, I-I…”
“I can’t believe this. Edward and Henry came back, but now you’re leaving?! What’s next?!”
Emily scowled, “Fine, Gordon, if you’re going to be like that, then I’m leaving.”
It was then that Gordon immediately realised what he had done. He tried to apologise.
“Emily, wait, come back!”
But Emily was already gone. Gordon sighed in defeat. He didn’t want Emily to leave, but he also didn’t want her to leave with a bad impression on him.
~~~
As time went on, Gordon had gone to the yards to collect some cars for a goods train. After the day that Pip and Emma, the HST, had come to Sodor, Gordon had decided to take some time off from the express and take on slower jobs.
Gordon was still sad about his incident with Emily earlier that morning, and Edward, who was accompanying Philip, rolled up to the bigger blue engine.
“What’s wrong, Gordon?” he asked.
“I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Emily’s leaving Tidmouth Sheds and is now staying at the Sodor Search and Rescue Centre, to bring Rocky to places where he’s required.”
“I’ve heard. I understand that you’re upset about that. It’s not easy being far away from your friends, just take it from me.”
“It’s not just that, Edward,” said Gordon, “When she announced to us at the sheds this morning, I got mad at her for leaving us and I don’t think Emily wants to be my friend anymore.”
“Oh, Gordon,” soothed Edward, “We all get into arguments sometimes. We get so angry that we say things we don’t mean. Sometimes, by the time we’ve realised our mistake, it’s too late.”
This made Gordon feel even worse.
“But don’t feel bad, Gordon, I’m sure Emily will come around. I saw this happen with Diesel and Sonny a month ago, there’s no doubt the same thing will happen again.”
Now Gordon felt better. With that, his goods train was arranged. Gordon blew his whistle and he set off.
During the journey, the trucks began to cause trouble for Gordon.
“Hold back, hold back!” they giggled.
Gordon growled as the trucks made their tricks. Then, he had an idea.
“How would you like this, you silly trucks?!” called Gordon, before gradually picking up speed. The trucks screamed.
“Not so fast, not so fast!”
“Serves you right!” mocked Gordon. Just then, soot billowed from Gordon’s smokebox and covered the trucks. They coughed and spluttered.
Gordon grinned, “Now that will teach you a lesson.”
Just then, Gordon saw a bend. He tried to stop, but the weight of the trucks pushed down on him, sending him skidding along the rails until he jumped off the tracks.
“Oh, the indignity!” groaned Gordon.
~~~
The word got to the rescue centre.
“Gordon’s come off the rails!” exclaimed the manager, “He needs Rocky right away.”
Emily didn’t care about what Gordon said to her, earlier that morning. All she cared about was that her friend needed help.
Before she knew it, she had arrived at the scene. Rocky was put to work at once. Gordon looked at Emily.
“After what I said to you, you’re helping me?”
“This is my job, Gordon, I need to help engines in trouble, regardless of how I’ve been treated by them.”
Gordon was in bad shape after his accident, so he was lifted onto a flatbed, which was coupled right behind Rocky. Before long, Sir Topham Hatt arrived. He was cross.
“Gordon, what were you thinking?”
“It was the trucks, Sir, they were acting up, so I wanted to give them a taste of their own medicine.”
“Two wrongs don’t make a right, Gordon, you should know that by now.”
“Yes, Sir, sorry, Sir.” Gordon turned to Emily, “And I’m sorry, too, Emily. It was wrong of me to lash out at you for wanting to stay at the rescue centre. It’s just so hard for me to see my friends go.”
“Don’t worry, Gordon,” smiled Emily, “Even though I’m far away, I’ll still be your friend. Change is hard, I know, but it’s not always bad. Change can also be good. For one, you've taken a break from the express, and you’ve been doing pretty well, aside from your accident just now.”
Sir Topham Hatt looked at Emily, “I’ve arranged for Rebecca to take Gordon’s trucks the rest of the way, so now, Emily, you will take Gordon to the Steamworks.”
“Yes, Sir!”
With that, Emily puffed off. Her first day as a full-time rescue engine didn’t go half-bad. Now, she was looking forward to the future.