steam engines – Millie Thom

Flash Fiction for for Aspiring Writers is a writing challenge hosted by Priceless Joy. It asks us to write a piece of fiction from the photo prompt provided in around 100-150 words – give or take 25 words. It encourages us to comment, constructively, on other entries, so supporting each other’s writing. If you’d like to join in with this challenge, follow the above link to see what to do. The challenge runs from Tuesday to Tuesday every week.

Here is this week’s prompt, kindly provided by Louise:

And this is my story:

A Deadly Game

Dusk was falling when Nicole heard the first, distant toot of the 7.15 from Edinburgh. The September air was chill and she hugged her slender frame to stop herself from shivering. The station was deserted, and few people ever alighted the train at this remote spot. She was grateful for that…

The great engine heaved to a halt, a proud warhorse engulfed in billowing steam, its huge brakes screaming displeasure of the controlling rein.

Gripped by fierce determination, Nicole waited for the face to appear at an opened carriage window. Lancasters roared overhead, heading for mainland Europe. Would this cursed war never end?

‘Nicole,’ the man’s voice called. ‘Be quick, before the whistle blows. What you got for us?’

The gun with its silencer felt reassuring as she pulled it from her bag and fired, straight at that detested brow. She’d spent months, working undercover for MI6, to gain this traitor’s trust. Passing him false information was a deadly game.

This traitor would betray his country no more…

Word Count: 168

If you’d like to view other entries, click the little blue frog below:

I hate to say it, but I’m very much in danger of becoming a ‘Steam Engine Geek’. I’ve spent a lot of time in recent years visiting heritage railways and museums, mostly to satisfy grandson, Kieran. Between us in the familiy, we have hundreds of train photos. Louise has visited many of these sites too, but her interest lies mostly in photographing the engines for photography’s sake. She’s also very clever at editing photos, and I love what she’d done with this one. I couldn’t help writing something historical for it. The woman on the station is my eldest daughter, Nicola – with somewhat ‘edited’ clothing! Now, she is definitely not a train geek. She always stands with folded arms when she’s bored to tears!

I’ve done my ‘extra information’ as a separate post this week, as it somehow ended up being a bit too long to put here. For anyone interested, you can find it here.

This past week has been half-term (half way through the summer term) in most areas of the U.K. Until 1978, it was known as Whitsuntide, or in short, Whitsun, or even Whit. The Monday following Whit Sunday was always a bank holiday. Today it is called the spring bank holiday and falls on the last Monday in May.

I don’t intend to elaborate on what Whitsun means in the Christian Church, other than to say that this period is also referred to as Pentecost, the Christian festival celebrating the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples of Jesus after his Ascension, and is held on the seventh Sunday after Easter.

For many people, in various occupations, Whit Monday is a day off work, and as such, many places of interest are packed. This year I went along with my fifteen-year -old grandson and his mum, my eldest daughter, for a day out to the Great Central Railway at Loughborough. We’re all history lovers in our family, and will take any opportunity to go along to events that really bring the past to life. And, as a heritage railway, the Great Central certainly does that. It is currently Britain’s only double track mainline heritage railway and runs for 8.25 miles in total from the large market town of Loughborough to a new terminus just north of Leicester.

The great steam engines are a wonderful sight in themselves, but I was also fascinated by the way the railway stations have been rebuilt to look like those of past times. The one at Quorn Station reflects World War 2, whilst Rothley Station illustrates the Edwardian era. Special Gala days are held throughout the year, when either the 1940’s or Edwardian eras are featured. Stations are packed with people in relevant costumes, and they really go to town to make it all so realistic.

It was not a special day last Monday, and the stations were not so packed. My grandson, Kieran, loves history, and is considering becoming a history teacher (as long as he can be a volunteer worker on steam engines in his holidays!). He’s been many time to the GCR and to the North York Moors Railway (NYMR) on Events/Gala days, and laps it all up. A few people even dress up on non-event days, just for the fun of it, as the top photo shows.

Here are a few photos of the engines and carriages:

I have been feeling ‘all trained out’ this week. But it was an enjoyable day riding up and down the line in the old-fashioned carriages, and Kieran managed to get himself enlisted as a volunteer next summer, after he finishes his GCSE’s!