Arsha, Malak, Dalengor, Bashoon and a Standard Gauge tender engine Mechanica man of the RIA, Officer Furnaf, had learned that the mana barrel came from the western harbor in Grefnak. The rails there were Narrow Standard Gauge, so they had to wait for the engine who collected the barrels and the Standard engine who delivered the mana shipment. The Narrow Standard engine was a Mechanica tender engine woman, and the Standard engine was a non-Mechanica tender engine, so they had to interview its crew. The driver was an Incubus, and the firewoman was a Zephyr\/Orc Blender. \u201cAll right,\u201d said Arsha to the Standard engine\u2019s crew, \u201cwe want you to run through the events as they happened when you delivered that shipment.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt was two days ago,\u201d replied the driver as his tail and wings stayed still. \u201cAround 26:30 when we arrived. It took about an hour for the workers to fully unload the train.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt usually takes half that time,\u201d supplied the firewoman, \u201cbut we had to wait for Ms. Farna,\u201d she pointed to the Narrow Standard engine, \u201cas she had suffered a delay.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet\u2019s just say,\u201d explained Farna, \u201cif I had my way, it wouldn\u2019t be \u2018birdbrain\u2019, it\u2019d be \u2018sheep-brain\u2019!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter we unloaded our train onto hers,\u201d continued the firewoman, \u201cwe had to rush for the dairy near Castle Town in the north.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd you were the one who collected those barrels, Ms. Farna?\u201d asked Officer Furnaf.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes, Officer,\u201d confirmed Farna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDid anything unusual happen that day, aside from your sheep mishap?\u201d asked Bashoon. \u201cLike a fight? An accident? Anything else like that?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo, Ma\u2019am,\u201d replied Farna. \u201cThe sheep were my only problem that day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDid any of you see someone lingering around here?\u201d asked Dalengor. \u201cSomeone who didn\u2019t belong?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo,\u201d said the Standard driver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNo one,\u201d supplied the Standard firewoman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSorry, but no,\u201d reported Farna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNothing,\u201d said Farna\u2019s fireman. Her driver, being a mute man, shook his head in the negative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe manifest says,\u201d remarked Malak, \u201cyou delivered those barrels to the mana refinery north of the harbor, Farna. Did anything happen up there?\u201d Farna and her crew replied that they didn\u2019t see anything. Officer Furnaf stroked his chin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry we couldn\u2019t be more helpful, everyone,\u201d sighed the Standard firewoman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou can\u2019t tell us what you don\u2019t know,\u201d assured Furnaf. \u201cFarna, will you be heading to the refinery at any point today?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes,\u201d answered Farna. \u201cThis train of spare parts is headed there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPerfect!\u201d cheered Dalengor. \u201cMalak, Bashoon, the RIA constables, and I will be needed there! May we hitch a ride?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOf course! Anything to end this craziness!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what we\u2019re trained to do,\u201d replied Furnaf. Dalengor, Malak, Bashoon, and the RIA constables entered the brake-van, the workers confirmed that the train was secured and ready, the Conductor blew his whistle and waved his flag, Farna whistled her reply, and the train set off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Farna got to the mana refinery a few minutes ahead of schedule. One of her colleagues, a Mechanica tender engine man named Drufath, stood at the platform with his coaches, ready for his express run. He and his crew saw the Realmfleeters and RIA officers leave the brake-van. \u201cHey! Farna!\u201d called Drufath\u2019s driver, a male Stone Elf. \u201cWhy are the cops on your train?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPerhaps she\u2019s decided to turn you in, Rudal,\u201d joked Drufath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh, shut it!\u201d Drufath laughed a bit, then dropped his joking demeanor and spoke to Farna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn all seriousness, why IS the RIA on your train? And Realmfleeters, by the look of it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s because of the accident Lushar had near Dropath,\u201d explained Farna. \u201cTurns out one of the mana barrels I delivered here two days ago was used to make it happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThat\u2019s\u2026most alarming.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTell me about it. Do you and your crew know anything that could help?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m sorry, but I don\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cNor do I,\u201d said Rudal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMe neither,\u201d replied Drufath\u2019s fireman, a Free Golem named Fregna. \u201cA rare thing indeed that I<\/em> should be ignorant about something.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s probably for the best, Fregna,\u201d remarked Drufath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Why?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBecause if either of you had an idea that led to an arrest, we\u2019d never hear the end of it!\u201d Drufath and Farna laughed. Fregna stepped outside and looked at the brake-pipe in the coaches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh dear,\u201d he called. \u201cThere\u2019s a hole in the pipe. Better get the shoe-string!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNO!\u201d shouted Drufath as he went red in the face. \u201cABSOLUTELY NOT! YOU PRO-! \u2026Oh, I hate you!\u201d Fregna and Rudal were laughing at their engine\u2019s outburst. Fregna went back to the cab. \u201cHonestly, I get no rest and no respect from you two!\u201d The Conductor blew his whistle and waved his flag once he finished checking the coaches. Drufath whistled his readiness and the train set off. \u201cOff we go!\u201d called Drufath as the train picked up speed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Further down the line, someone invisible stepped out of the bushes near a set of points. They hammered the points to another direction, then disappeared back into the bushes. The line the points were turned to was a dead-end that stopped at a set of old buffers. It was supposed to lead to a branch line, but the project never came to fruition as the people there simply took their carriages. Because of the dead-end, the points never needed changing unless absolutely necessary, therefore whistling for the points to change was not a usual sound for the signalman. Drufath continued on his journey at his usual speed, not knowing what happened to the points. When he realized he was on the wrong line, it was too late. He went too fast for the buffers to safely stop him, so they vanished under him, causing him to go down a small hill and into a barn. The barn walls damaged his buffer beam but didn\u2019t slow him down. It was a massive pile of dirt that stopped him. There Drufath stood, dazed and confused with a damaged front. He put that aside. \u201cRudal! Fregna! Are you all right?!\u201d he called.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019re fine!\u201d assured Rudal. \u201cFregna\u2019s checking on the passengers now! What about you?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou know the Rail-type Mechanica phrase \u2018bust my buffers\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think I have. My front ones, to be exact.\u201d Fregna then came up to them with the farmer, a female Passion Dragon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNone of the passengers are hurt, just shaken up,\u201d said Fregna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd my livestock\u2019s okay too,\u201d said the farmer. \u201cI\u2019m stunned.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo, I\u2019m the only one who suffered any damage,\u201d muttered Drufath. \u201cI have to say that\u2019s incredibly lucky-!\u201d He and his crew\u2019s eyes shot open and looked down at his front. He had a lamp on his left lamp iron, but it was missing. \u201c\u2026No.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI mean, it could have been!\u201d gulped Fregna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNow that\u2019s just silly!\u201d retorted Rudal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cExcuse me, Mister!\u201d called a Frostik boy as he and his parents came running up to them with a railway lamp in his hands. \u201cIs this yours?\u201d he asked Rudal. Rudal took the lamp and looked at the back. The writing on it once indicated that it was built by the Lunark Trackside Lamp Company, but time took away all the letters except five so that it spelled \u201cLucky\u201d!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt is!\u201d laughed Rudal. He thanked the little boy and showed Drufath the lamp. Drufath laughed in amazement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Lucky Lamp saves us all!\u201d he cheered. He then kissed the front of the lamp, rubbed it, then patted the lamps top five times. \u201cThank you,\u201d he said to the lamp.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat lamp,\u201d explained Fregna to the Frostik Family, \u201cis the Lucky Lamp, a travelling Railway good-luck charm. Anytime there\u2019s an accident on a railway, but no one dies or suffers serious injuries, the Lamp always makes sure it\u2019s there BEFORE the accident takes place to minimize the damage.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd it\u2019s been all across the Realms,\u201d continued Drufath, \u201cmaking sure serious accidents are minimized. Railway workers and the industries we support have an online site that keeps track of where and when it pops, trying to find a pattern. And you have to properly thank it for its help.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTo do that, you gotta kiss the Lamp\u2019s front, rub the front, pat its top five times, then you say, \u2018Thank you\u2019,\u201d explained Rudal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, it was a good-luck charm for my farm,\u201d said the farmer as she pointed to the barn. \u201cI\u2019ve got a big supply of wood and nails to help patch the barn up and my animals ain\u2019t hurt, so I don\u2019t need anything from you guys except answers on why you went to that dead-end.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnd hopefully, the officers of the RIA,\u201d declared Drufath as he gritted his teeth and looked up at the line, \u201ccan help provide them for us all!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Arsha, Malak, Dalengor, Bashoon and a Standard Gauge tender engine Mechanica man of the RIA, Officer Furnaf, had learned that the mana barrel came from the western harbor in Grefnak. The rails there were Narrow Standard Gauge, so they had to wait for the engine who collected the barrels and the Standard engine who delivered […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5352,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97,239],"tags":[482],"class_list":["post-5353","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-three-realms","category-the-three-realms-book-6-the-eternal-age-of-unity","tag-fantasy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5353","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5353"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5353\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5354,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5353\/revisions\/5354"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5352"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5353"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5353"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5353"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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