Fanfic / Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure Bad Ending

Get ready to step into a different Island of Sodor…

Sodor’s Legend of the Lost Treasure Bad Ending is a Thomas & Friends fanfic made by Kingofallkongs, alongside others such as DerekFan19 and Ivansmells22234. It started out on DeviantArt before spreading to YouTube as well.

As the title suggests, it is a Dark Fic that details an alternate bad ending to the 2015 Thomas & Friends movie, Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure that leaves the Island of Sodor changed forever. The Bad Ending begins when Sailor John, the film’s Big Bad, actually kills Thomas during the climactic chase scene. To make matters worse, this is after the Fat Controller had yelled at him to go to his shed and Gordon had teased him, causing them both to be filled with Parting-Words Regret. The Fat Controller, blaming himself for the “Harwick Disaster”, resigns as a result, and his final act as Controller before he and the rest of the Hatts leave Sodor for good, is to ban Gordon from anything other than goods trains and shunting - permanently. Gordon becomes Hated by All for his treatment of Thomas, and eventually he is unable to take it anymore - and is Driven to Suicide by cliff.

The main story is set a few years later. The North Western Railway now has a new female controller, Charlene Bellis, and some of the engines have undergone major changes, in personality, or otherwise. The railway even has some new arrivals working there.

Unbeknownst to the engines of Sodor and their friends (both people and other vehicles), however, some of those new arrivals are part of an alliance called the Barrow Union of Diesels, made up of both old enemies to the engines of Sodor, and new villains. They are secretly concocting a dastardly plot to seize the railway as their own…

This AU can be found on DeviantArt and on Youtube, and is still developing and growing.

Tropes of this AU include:

• Adaptational Backstory Change: The canon version of Rebecca was brought to Sodor to replace Henry after the latter moved to Vicarstown Sheds to work with Rosie. In this version, she was brought to Sodor as a replacement engine to help with pulling the express (Along with Spencer, Henry and James) after Gordon committed suicide.
• Adaptational Dye-Job: Henry has been repainted from green to blue in memory of both Thomas and Gordon. It is a Call-Back to the early part of The Railway Series, in which Henry was painted blue after coming out of his Tunnel in Edward, Gordon, and Henry, before being repainted back into green by the time Henry and the Elephant started (which occurred in this AU too), except that while Henry’s first blue-livery period occurred when he was in his old shape, this time his repaint occurs long after his crash and rebuild at Crewe in The Flying Kipper.
  • From what we’ve seen so far in this AU, Rosie remains pink. In canon, she has been painted red by the time Season 21 and Journey Beyond Sodor take place.
  • Spencer is a downplayed example. His livery remains silver, but he now has yellow N.W.R lettering on his tender.
• Adaptational Heroism: Norman Spencer here never plans to replace the steam engines of the NWR with diesels unlike his Sodor: The Modern Years counterpart (pre-Face–Heel Turn).
• Adaptational Job Change: Norman Spencer was a former deputy controller of the NWR before becoming the director of the North West Package Express in Sodor: The Modern Years. Here, he’s a member of the Railway Board.
• Adaptational Name Change:
  • Averted with Sixteen. Even after arriving on Sodor, his name is still, well, Sixteen, instead of Sheffield, Kirby, or Glenn.
  • The Big City Engine (from Gordon Goes Foreign) is named Patriot here, like his Enterprising Engines counterpart.
• Adaptational Nationality: In The Stories of Sodor, Samantha worked in Wales before coming to Sodor, and has a Welsh accent too. Her counterpart here, however, comes from England.
• Adaptational Nice Guy: Spencer here is a far less arrogant and rude engine. Justified, as because of remorse over his past crimes, he Took a Level in Kindness.
• Affirmative-Action Legacy: Well, if you count running a big railway as action, as the white, straight, bald Sir Topham Hatt is succeeded by the darker-skinned, lesbian Charlene Bellis, who has a full head of long hair.
• Alternate Universe Fic: One where Thomas is killed by Sailor John, Gordon is banned from passenger work, becomes Hated by All, and is then Driven to Suicide, and the Fat Controller resigns and is replaced by a woman, among other changes. And Sailor John, having escaped from prison, has allied himself with other enemies of Sodor’s engines, including D261/Bowler, D199/Spamcan, D40125/Old-Stuck-Up, Splatter, Dodge, PT Boomer, Crovan/87546, and Alfred/98462, along with a mafia group called the Firearms of Furness and a group of criminals founded by John named the Rail Pirates. to exact revenge on their shared enemies.
• A Pirate 400 Years Too Late: Sailor John remains this, but he’s also the leader of an entire group of Rail Pirates, criminals that steal and perform sabotage and vandalism.
• Ascended Extra: Lots of characters who only appeared once or sporadically in Thomas and Friends media have larger roles here. D261/Bowler (who appeared in both versions of Bowled Out) and D199/Spamcan (who only appeared in Enterprising Engines and never appeared in the TV Series) are both major antagonists there, two of the leading members of the Barrow Union of Diesels. But they are not the only examples.
  • Fred Pelham, a Railway Series-only Troublesome Truck who made his only appearance in the Railway Series version of Oliver Owns Up, is now working as an informant for the Barrow Union of Diesels, with a hidden recorder that transmits what he is saying to his bosses in the Union.
  • Old Stuck-Up, a diesel who only appeared in James and the Diesel Engines and never got any merchandise, is now a major antagonist alongside D261/Bowler and D199/Spamcan as one of the three leading Class 40 diesels in the Barrow Union of Diesels.
  • Splatter and Dodge, despite only appearing in Thomas and the Magic Railroad, play a major, more villainous role as members of the Barrow Union of Diesels.
  • Sixteen only appeared in “Cab Over Wheels” in Wilbert the Forest Engine, but here he gets a larger role and joins the NWR, akin to Sodor the Early Years, even though here he arrives under different circumstances and doesn’t get renamed Sheffield.
  • The class 08 diesel with his face on his cab that tried to hunt Oliver, Isabel, and Toad in Enterprising Engines is not only named Levi, like many other fan works, but he’s a member of the Barrow Union of Diesels, albeit more reluctantly.
  • The Flying Thistle, who was a magazine-only character, also has a bigger role.
• The Atoner: Spencer has finally started regretting all of his past crimes, especially his treatment of Gordon and his attempted scrapping of Hiro, and is now resolved to be a better engine.
• Berserk Button:
  • Never, never, threaten to scrap an engine that is Charlene’s property.
  • James still doesn’t like any dirt getting on his paintwork.
• Beware the Nice Ones: Charlene Bellis is a nice, warm, friendly railway controller, but she is not afraid to defend her engines. Case in point: when a diesel engine working for the Barrow Union of Diesels refuses to give up stolen mail vans and threatens to scrap Oliver, Charlene slaps the diesel on his face hard enough to hurt him!
• Big Bad / Big Bad Duumvirate: The Barrow Union of Diesels, a Legion of Doom (including D261/Bowler, D199/Spamcan, 98462/Alfred, 87546/Crovan, Splatter, Dodge, D40125/Old Stuck-Up, many other diesel engines, Sailor John and his Rail Pirates, PT Boomer, and the Firearms of Furness, are an alliance of villains plotting to take over the NWR.
• Call-Back: Plenty.
  • Henry’s repaint into a blue livery had happened before from after coming out of the tunnel and helping Edward pull the express to just before encountering an escaped circus elephant in the same tunnel, but this time, it’s in memory of the now-deceased Thomas and Gordon.
• Chest Insignia: Well, tender insignia, but Rebecca has N.W.R lettering on her tender, as in canon. Spencer has also had the same lettering added since joining the N.W.R.
• Cool Train: Of course.
• Cynicism Catalyst: For Jack, seeing the Fat Controller harshly scolding Thomas, then learning that Thomas died after that in the Harwick Disaster. This caused a serious shift in the digger’s personality and resulted in him blaming the Hatts for the Harwick Disaster.
• Dark Fic: Despite being different from Sodor: Dark Times, Sodor Fallout, and Shed 17, it is still much, much Darker and Edgier than the original Thomas and Friends and The Railway Series, being a bad ending to one of its most intense movies. For starters, we have the show’s titular hero and one of his friends being Killed Off for Real and the Fat Controller resigning out of guilt. Then we have certain characters having to deal with the deaths of their friends and how they had treated one of them before his suicide, and there is a new alliance of villains (including certain diesels such as Splatter, Dodge, and Bowler who are far, far worse than in canon).
• The Dragon: Katherine “Kat” Drake, an acrobatic burglar, is the second-in-command to Sailor John in the Rail Pirates.
• Exactly What It Says on the Tin: In this reality, Sodor’s Legend of the Lost Treasure ended badly.
• Eyepatch of Power: Mitch, a narrow-gauge diesel owned by the Ministry of Defence and stationed at Boulder Quarry, has an eyepatch over his right eye, and Holmes, a Class 08 diesel and member Barrow Union of Diesels who stole four mail vans and threatened to scrap Oliver (before Charlene stopped his threats with a literal slap to the face), is a villainous example with an eyepatch over his left eye.
• Hat of Authority: Averted with Charlene, who doesn’t usually wear a hat, unlike her predecessor, Sir Topham Hatt.
• Hero Killer: Sailor John here managed to kill off Thomas the Tank Engine himself, and the fallout of his actions led to Gordon’s suicide, thus making him both directly and indirectly responsible for the deaths of two of the most heroic and iconic steam engines on the Island of Sodor. And he, along with his Rail Pirates and their allies in the Barrow Union of Diesels, plans to add more to his kill count…
• Horrible Judge of Character: The Duke and Duchess of Boxford purchased a new private engine after Spencer went to live on the NWR permanently. Said engine? 87546 (Crovan), a rude, pompous, bullying Jerkass who is far, far worse than Spencer ever was, AND who is also secretly a member of the Barrow Union of Diesels. Molly even lampshades it.
• How the Mighty Have Fallen: An extremely tragic case with Gordon just before his suicide. The engine who had proudly pulled the Express for decades spent his final days only doing goods work, shunting, and nothing else, consumed with guilt over the Harwick Disaster and subsequent death of Thomas, all while being treated with absolute scorn by the other engines.
• Lady in Red: Charlene Bellis not only has a red ribbon as part of her business attire, but she also sometimes wears model attire, in the form of a red dress, heels, and bracelets.
• Legacy Character: After Thomas’ death and Gordon’s final punishment and suicide, Henry decided to take over as the main engine pulling the express trains (such as the Wild Nor' Wester) that Gordon had once pulled.
  • Spencer is also working as an express engine, to live up to his cousin’s legacy.
  • As Henry became Gordon’s Legacy Character, he got a Legacy Character of his own, as Arthur has taken over pulling the Flying Kipper, with Henry’s blessing.
  • And let’s not forget that Charlene is this for the Fat Controller.
• Legion of Doom: The Barrow Union of Diesels.
• The Mafia: The Firearms of Furness are a British example, led by Reginald Marklin. And they are allied with the Barrow Union of Diesels.
• The Mentor: After Henry stepped down from pulling the Flying Kipper, he became one to his successor, Arthur.
• Misplaced Retribution: The Avenge Thomas movement, a protest movement that claims to want “revenge” for Thomas’ death in the Harwick Disaster, blame the Hatts for the tragedy, even though neither Sir Topham Hatt or his family wanted Thomas to be killed by the actual murderer, Sailor John.
• Nothing Is the Same Anymore: Oh, you bet. Thomas is dead, Gordon’s committed suicide after being relegated to shunting and goods trains permanently, the Hatts are no longer in charge, Henry’s now painted blue and is no longer taking the Flying Kipper, Spencer has reformed and is now one of the main steam engines pulling express trains along with Henry, James, and Rebecca (who, along with Nia, arrived on Sodor several years early), Arthur is taking the Flying Kipper, Winston is now owned by the Earl of Sodor, the Duke and Duchess of Boxford have 87546 (Crovan) as their private engine after Spencer joined the NWR, Boulder Quarry has been occupied by the Ministry of Defence, Victor is helping out on the Skarloey Railway with deliveries for the M.O.D - oh, and several groups of vengeful old villains (including D261, D199, D40125, Splatter, Dodge, PT Boomer, and Sailor John) and new criminals (including a Sudrian version of The Mafia) are forming a Legion of Doom…
• Passing the Torch: After taking over as an express engine, Henry decided to retire from pulling the Flying Kipper, but not before passing the mantle to, and mentoring, Arthur.
• Point of Divergence: Thomas’ death in the Harwick Disaster serves as this from the main timeline. This leads to the Fat Controller’s resignation and replacement, and Gordon’s tragic fate.
• Plot-Triggering Death: Thomas’ death marks the Point of Divergence from canon, and Gordon’s suicide is part of what prompts a repainted Henry and a remorseful Spencer to take over as express engines alongside James and Rebecca, and both of their demises cast a shadow over the surviving engines.
• Posthumous Character: Both Thomas and Gordon are this, as their demises triggered the plot and still cast a shadow over the railway.
• Reasonable Authority Figure:
  • The Fat Controller was this for the NWR’s engines (just like in canon), before the Harwick Disaster forced him to resign.
  • His successor, Charlene Bellis, is naturally also this. She is a Team Mom to the NWR’s engines, and won’t hesitate to defend them.
  • The Thin Controller (as in canon) remains this to the Skarloey Railway’s engines.
• Rose-Haired Sweetie: Cindy Jones, Knapford Station’s new librarian, has pink hair and is a kind and cheerful young woman.
• Shout-Out:
  • Cindy Jones’ notebook has a picture of a purple winged unicorn named Twilight on the front.
• Team Mom: Charlene Bellis, being the new controller of the NWR, is naturally this to the engines. One way to get on her bad side is to threaten one of her engines with scrap, as Holmes, a diesel working for the Barrow Union of Diesels, learned the hard way.
• Twofer Token Minority: Charlene is a POC and a lesbian.
• Took a Level in Cynic: Jack the Front Loader has lost much of his humorous side and gained a hatred of the Hatts, after seeing the Fat Controller telling off Thomas before the latter was killed in the Harwick Disaster. Alfie also became more cynical for a time, but he’s gotten better and he and the rest of the Pack, along with Miss Jenny, are trying to help Jack.
• Took a Level in Kindness: Spencer. After Gordon’s suicide, Spencer (who had been purchased by the NWR), was stricken with both grief over the death of his cousin (even after what happened before the Harwick Disaster) and guilt over all of his past actions (chief among them being trying to scrap Hiro). He has since then become a friendlier, humbler engine, his personality now more like Gordon’s.