Sir Handel and the Coal Mines

**Sir Handel and the Coal Mines** is the tenth episode of the first season.

## Plot

It was a normal day at the Blue Mountain Quarry and all the engines were working hard, but except one engine, and that was Sir Handel, he was being grumpy, he angrily bumped some trucks.

"Ow!" one truck cried.

"That hurt!" shrieked another, but Sir Handel didn't care and he continued bumping them. Peter Sam could see Sir Handel bumping the tracks, he blew his whistle loudly at Sir Handel.

"Oh, Sir Handel," sighed Peter Sam, "can you please stop bumping the trucks?"

"I'll try," huffed Sir Handel, "I've not had a good day so far."

"Well if you haven't had a good day, then why don't you do something you like? I'm sure the Thin Controller won't mind." but Sir Handel was still grumpy.

"Huh!" he scoffed. "He probably make me do the boring work!"

"I don't think he will Sir Handel." puffed Peter Sam, "I'd say just do your normal jobs. Okay?"

"Okay," muttered Sir Handel, "I'll do my normal jobs." and Sir Handel got back to work.

After Sir Handel had finished his jobs at the quarry, he puffed to the depot to collect some trucks of coal so he could take them to the mines, but no matter what, the little blue engine was still grumbling. "Huh! I'm still given the boring work." he complained. "But I must stay working, or else I'll be shut up in the shed." so Sir Handel coupled up to some trucks of coal and chuffed away. Sir Handel stayed grumbling all the way to the coal mines. "Pah!" he snorted, "I'm given coal work. Coal Work!" he exclaimed.

"Calm down Sir Handel," said his driver, "it's not your fault that you get to do the boring work."

"I know," muttered Sir Handel, "I just wish the Thin Controller would let be do more better work then this." he huffed.

Sir Handel soon arrived at the coal mines, when he arrived. He just stared at the mine's entrance, Sir Handel really wanted to know if he would be allowed to go in. He thought carefully. "Maybe I could go into the mine just this once." he thought to himself, so slowly but surely he puffed into the coal mine, but when Sir Handel entered the mine. The mine was filled with darkness. Luckily, Sir Handel had a lamp which shone brightly making a hole in the mine's darkness, he puffed forward. "Hello!" he called out. "Is anybody here?" Suddenly, he felt something hit his wheel. He grew pale a little. "What was that?" he shrieked. But it was just a rock lay next to the track. Sir Handel was relieved. "Well, it's just a rock. I'm fine. I can be brave." he puffed, feeling quite vain. Then he started to speed up.

"Woah! Careful!" called his driver, but Sir Handel wouldn't listen to him and he continued to go even faster.

"Haha! This is fun!" Sir Handel cried as he whizzed up and down the slopes, then Sir Handel saw a bright light in the distance, he looked carefully at it. "What's that bright light?" he thought.

"It looks like the end of the mine Sir Handel." said his driver, "or worst..."

"Spotlights?" exclaimed Sir Handel and his driver, Sir Handel watched as he was puffing closer towards the light. He raced through the bright light, water splashed down onto his face, the reason being because there was a waterfall falling off a mountain. Then more worst, Sir Handel seen the end of the rails right in front of him. "Oh no!" he cried. Sir Handel's driver applied the brakes, but it was too late. Sir Handel had toppled off the tracks, he was lay unhurt on his side, he was sad, but also felt quite giddy and dizzy. "Oh," he sighed insufferably, "where am I? This doesn't look like the Thin Controller's railway at all." However, Sir Handel was still on the Thin Controller's railway, but as he had raced through the entire coal mine, he had ended up on an unknown part of the Skarloey Railway, but Sir Handel hadn't knew this.

Meanwhile, back at the depot, the engines were worried about Sir Handel as he hadn't come back to the shed after taking the coal to the mines. "Where is Sir Handel?" asked Rusty. "He should've come back to the shed by now." said the little diesel.

"'A don't know," huffed Duncan, "maybe he's just pulling passengers 'cos he said he wanted to."

"But Sir Handel did say he was coming back to the sheds after taking the coal trucks to the mines." said Peter Sam.

"I think it's best if we go out to look for him." said Duke.

"Yes, I agree." steamed Bertram. "Sir Handel could be in danger."

"Okay then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" said Rusty.

Duncan groaned. Do 'a hav' to?" he asked.

"Yes Duncan, you **do** have to come along." said Rusty, who was a little stern.

Duncan sighed. "Fine, I'll come, but if he ain't showin' up then I'm goin' back to mah sheds."

"Good." oiled Rusty and all the engines set off to look for Sir Handel.

Duke searched for the old shed on his old railway. "Falcon! I mean... Sir Handel!" Duke called. "Are you there?" but Sir Handel wasn't there. "Odd." he said to himself.

Peter Sam and Rheneas searched the Skarloey Railway mountain line and looked at the distant view to see if Sir Handel was there. "Sir Handel, are you there?!" Peter Sam called from the mountain, but Sir Handel wasn't there either, the two engines looked at each other confused.

Rusty and Duncan looked up and down the Rocky Ridge Line to see if Sir Handel would be anywhere, but after searching all over the mountain side, there was no sign of Sir Handel. So Rusty decided to shout for Sir Handel just in case he would be there. "Sir Handel! Are you there?!" shouted Rusty as his voice echoed across the valley, but Sir Handel was still nowhere to be found.

"Pah!" snorted Duncan, "Sir Handel aint there." and Duncan was right. There was no sign of Sir Handel at all.

"Where is he?" thought Rusty.

"A dunno Rusty," Duncan steamed, "he's probably pulling passengers 'lak I said a thousand times now, can't 'a just go back to mah sheds now please?!" he scowled, but Rusty was unsure.

Bertram was chuffing along the line to see if he could see Sir Handel. He thought where he could be. "Mmmm! Maybe I should check at the old mine I use to work at." he thought. "There could be a likely chance he's there."

"I doubt so." muttered his driver. Bertram puffed to his mine, but when Bertram arrived there, Sir Handel was nowhere to be seen. Bertram was worried.

"If Sir Handel's not here and no one has found him yet, then where could he be?" he thought.

"Why don't we check the coal mines?" suggested his driver. Bertram was unsure of this.

"Driver, there's going to be no way Sir Handel would be in there." Bertram said knowingly.

"Well still, there is a likely chance that he could be there." said his driver.

"Okay," puffed Bertram, "I'll go and search the coal mines, but I highly doubt he'll be there either." and he chuffed away, not feeling confident at all.

Bertram had arrived at the coal mines. "Right, here it is driver," he said, "the coal mines!"

"Now let's just go in to see if Sir Handel is in there." said his driver.

"Okay," Bertram puffed, "I am 'The Old Warrior' anyway, so I'm brave enough to go through this mine." so Bertram slowly rolled into the mine. The mine was dark and was surrounded with silence, but Bertram was brave enough to advance, he puffed through the dark shadows of the mine. "Hello! Sir Handel! Are you there?!" but Sir Handel still wasn't there. "Oh, where is he?" thought Bertram. "He couldn't have just left the railway could he?" Bertram carried on, he moved forward and stopped again. "Sir Handel!" called Bertram and he whistled loudly, his whistle echoed around the mine like if it was a ghostly whistle. Sir Handel who was lay on his side outside the mine heard Bertram's whistle and shouted for help.

"Is that Bertram's whistle?" Sir Handel thought, he eared the sound. "Fizzling fireboxes!" he wheeshed. "It is!" And as loud as he could, Sir Handel whistled as loudly as he ever did before. "Bertram! Help!" he cried loudly, Bertram heard Sir Handel's voice and he began to smile.

"Was that Sir Handel's voice?" he thought.

"Well it did sound like it." remarked his driver.

"We must be getting closer to his point." Bertram wheeshed and he continued puffing until he reached the end of the mine. Bertram was out of the mine at last, but he couldn't see Sir Handel anywhere. "What?!" he exclaimed, but then a voice came from below him.

"I'm down here Bertram." said the voice, it was Sir Handel. Bertram heard Sir Handel and looked down at him to find him lay consciously on his side, he smiled.

"Sir Handel!" exclaimed Bertram. "There you are! I've found you at last!"

"I'm glad I'm finally rescued," said Sir Handel, "I don't want to be abandoned here."

"Well, anyway," Bertram began, "I'll have you back on the tracks in no time." So Bertram carefully, but surely pulled Sir Handel back on the tracks. Sir Handel was free.

"Oh, thank you, Bertram," he said, "now I can go home."

"Wait, but before that." Bertram steamed. "How did you end up all the way down here?" the old warrior asked with confusion.

"Well, the Thin Controller sent me to take trucks of coal to the coal mines, so I did, but I wanted to see what it would've looked like if I went inside it, so I looked inside and travelled all the way through it until I reached the end of the mine." he explained, feeling quite sheepish.

Bertram was amazed. "Wow!" he gasped. "That was a good adventure, but let's just go home for now."

"I agree." peeped Sir Handel and the two engines puffed away back to the sheds.

Back at the sheds, the other engines were already there, they couldn't find Sir Handel anywhere.

"I looked all around," sighed Rusty, "but I couldn't see him at all."

"I couldn't find him either." puffed Duke. Suddenly, they heard Bertram's whistle and the engines saw him come back with Sir Handel, the engines were pleased.

"Sir Handel!" exclaimed Peter Sam. "You're safe!"

"At last." Rusty chugged.

"Where was he Bertram?" asked Duke.

"He was outside the coal mines at the very back of it." explained Bertram. The engines were confused.

"B-But how did you end up there?" Rusty stammered.

"I don't really want to talk about it now," Sir Handel sighed, "I just want to rest my wheels in peace." he muttered.

"Oh, okay then." said Rusty. Sir Handel backed into the berth of his shed and happily rested his wheels. But Duncan was still grumpy.

"Pah! No wonder why we had to look for ya'" he said crossly. "You were at th' coal mines the whole time, that's just stupid."

"It isn't!" huffed Sir Handel. "Anyway I want to rest and I don't want any of you lot to talk to me for a while."

"Oh, okay Sir Handel." Duncan puffed and he smiled sheepishly. Sir Handel was sad that he didn't get to pull passengers at all that day, but he did sort of enjoy his mine adventure, but he was more happier to rest his wheels in the shed in peace.

## Characters

* Sir Handel
* Peter Sam
* Rusty
* Duncan
* Duke
* Bertram
* Rheneas (*does not speak*)
* Owen (*cameo*)
* Merrick (*cameo*)
* The Thin Controller (*mentioned*)

## Locations

* Blue Mountain Quarry
* Skarloey Railway Engine Sheds
* The Coal Mines
* Mid Sodor Railway
* Mid Sodor Railway Sheds
* Skarloey Railway Mountain Line
* Rocky Ridge Line
* Bertram's Old Mine

## Trivia

* This episode is a continuation of the stories Old and Wise and Dashing Duncan.
* OliverDuckandToad11 was originally going to make Skarloey appear in this episode, but as he was on an overhaul during the episode's events, the creator decided not to have him in the episode.