The gunpowder factories main job was to supply blasting caps to nearby areas, mainly the quarry. Recently, a variety of rockslides in the area had caused some boulders and sharp rocks to be dislodge and move, making it a hazard to the workmen and the engines. They need a special kind of blasting cap that would turn the rocks into complete dust and wouldn't cause any other rocks to fall down. The only problem was that it was very hard to come by and very expensive. Neville was being sent down to the docks that day to collect the new shipment. Everyone was talking about how he had acted at Tidmouth Sheds and engines avoided him as he headed to the docks. Neville didn't really care about it, though deep down, he felt hurt.

Upon arrival at Brendam Docks, Edward, Rocky and James were the only ones in site.
"Hello Neville, how are you feeling?" Rocky asked cheerily.
"I am feeling well thanks Rocky." Neville replied, and forced out a smile. James scoffed as he give his tar wagons a biff.
"Be careful James, trucks don't like being biffed!" Neville warned as he idled into a siding.
"Henry didn't like being biffed last night either!" James snapped.
"James!" Edward gasped. "Don't talk like that!" The trucks all giggled.
"Yes James, don't be so rude!" They giggled. Edward gave them a small bump and Rocky dropped some crates on them by accident, and the trucks laughed harder.
"Henry provoked me with his rude comments!" Neville shouted at James. A workman coupled him up and Neville started to chug off towards Cranky.
"Take it easy boy." His driver said soothly. "James is just an arrogant idiot." But James called out as he turned the bend "Run off you pathetic wimp!" Neville fought back a tear and hurried on. Murdoch came past with a long train with containers on them, and gave Neville a whistle.
"Hello Neville!" He beamed. Neville smiled back and whistled. Then, he noticed something. Murdoch and James were on the same line.
"Something's wrong, we need to go back!" Neville called. His driver pulled a lever and the train raced back. Neville caught up with Murdoch and yelled "Slow down" as he raced to warn James. James and Edward were arguing.
"You need to show some consideration for others!" Edward was growling.
"Oh shut it you old codger!" James snapped. Rocky thumped him with his arm.
"Mind your mouth!" The crane growled and raised his arm threateningly. James snorted just as Neville screeched back into the siding.
"James, you must move, Murdoch is coming around the corner on your line!" Neville wailed. James scoffed again, earning him a whack on the boiler by Rocky, though his driver released the brakes. Just then, Murdoch came screeching around the corner, being pushed by his trucks.
"JAMES, MOVE!" Murdoch yelled. A workman rushed to change the points, the guard leapt from the van but James was too nervous to move, and the trucks weren't helping! Rocky's quick thinking operator used Rocky's arm to give James an extra shove, and it was enough to get him moving slowly out of the way. Murdoch hit the back buffers of the Breakvan and it derailed, but he changed lines and kept going through! Edward, James, Rocky and Neville whistled and Murdoch gave them a friendly toot and called "Thanks" as he head off to Elsbridge.
"Great work Nev-" Edward began, but just then, Basher rolled up.
"Come along, steamer!" Basher grumbled. "We need you over at quarry now!"
"Sorry Basher, there was a small pro-" Neville began, but Basher honked his horn loudly over the rest and drove off. Neville went to give the others a friendly smile goodbye but it seemed to come out as glare as he chugged off after him. Edward and James exchanged looks as the blue engine let off steam and headed off in the opposite direction.
"Who is that ute?" Rocky asked as they turned round a bend.
"I don't know, but I promise that we'll find out soon enough."

The Sodor Quarry was probably the second busiest place, apart from Brendam Docks, when it came to the workload. A very hard working team of engines is always there, with at least one of them working through the night. As Neville and Basher rolled in, he could clearly see why the special caps were needed. Piles of rubble, broken rocks and dirt were piled up high at the bottom, with giant gaps in the cliff face. One of the workman's huts had lost a wall due to a boulder falling. Some of the sidings were buried in rock and track had been damaged. Xavier was hoping that these caps would help make everything run smoothly and not make as much of a mess as the other type. Bill, Ben and Mavis were shunting trucks together.
"Hi guys, what's with all the fuss?" Neville asked as he came to a halt. Mavis looked up from her train and smiled, while Bill and Ben scuttled away.
"The Queen is coming here today as part of her tour. She is going to break the ground for the site of our new offices." Mavis explained excitedly.
"Oh wow, that is amazing! Should blasting really be done at this time?" Neville asked.
"Every day is a day for blasting, that's for a say." Basher chuckled in a greasy tone, and he set off to unload some of his goods. Neville looked up at the blasting site. Over a dozen men were high above on the cliff face. A pulley system was set up so small goods could be moved between the site and the ground. Crates of special equipment were piled against the walls. A single railway line came in between this all so that dangerous loads could be brought up safely. Some men were taken samples of rocks to be studied, and using special gadgets to check everything that was essential was a smooth blast.
"Neville, would you mind shunting your train out of the way please?" Mavis asked.
"Oh, sorry." Neville chuckled. "I was just staring at the work." And he reversed back into a siding, when he hit something!
"Watch it, tubby tender!" Ben snapped, and Bill laughed loudly. Neville looked around, and didn't realise they had scooted into the siding while he had been day-dreaming.
"Your more clueless than the rocks in this quarry!" Bill sneered, and Ben roared with laughter.
"You two better hurry off in the next ten seconds or I'll push you into the tar pit!" Mavis roared, and her horn blared.
"Neville nearly did himself." The twins whispered in unison and Neville moved so that they could race off. BoCo came around the corner, and honked at the two as they chortled off. Behind the diesel was a shiny red coach.
"The Queen is here!" He exclaimed to the quarry, and idled up to the workman's hut. The Queen came out of her coach and shook hands with the Quarry Manager and walked inside, talking animatedly.
"That's a pretty flash coach!" Neville gasped.
"The Fat Controller had to have it brought over the London Mainline." BoCo explained. "It is priced at over 100,000 pounds!"
"I don't even think Bill and Ben are worth that much." Mavis chuckled. Just than, a workman hurried up to BoCo's crew.
"We need the blasting caps taken up to the men right up, so they can begin the arrangements." He explained. His driver nodded and the workman uncoupled the coach as BoCo went to take Neville's train. As BoCo started up the steep slope to the men, Mavis went to shunt her trucks and Neville was left on his own.
"We might as well be heading off." His driver called out, and Neville whistled in reply. Basher raced around the corner, and honked loudly.
"See you back at the factory!" He shouted, and sped off. Neville sighed and was to leave when the Queen came out of the hut.
"Oh, hello engine, have your recovered yet?" She scowled when she saw him. Neville just glared at her and started off. He gave one last look at the mountains, and look at their graceful beauty and wondered how long they had stood there, peaceful, resting
And then they exploded.
A blast rocked the entire quarry as a huge fireball rose over the quarry, and Neville could see it was coming from the blasting site. The cliff face started to collapse as avalanches started all around the quarry. A hopper tipped over in the quake, and BoCo had derailed and was hanging dangerously over the edge of the cliff. Neville tried to escape, but people were filing across the lines, climbing into his cab, and the only option was to head towards the sheds. As he race along the quivering line, a cloud of dust poured across the line and Neville couldn't see. He couldn't see that one of the avalanches was heading straight for him, and screamed as the rocks smashed against him and lifted him off the rails. Though his scream could not be heard as he was tipped sideways and skidded into a sleep.

Xavier Xedlop stared out of the window in his office. He had heard a distant explosion, and could see a dust cloud rising slowly into the sky. His assistant, a twenty year old, who called himself Red, was sitting in a chair on the other side of the desk.
"I see the plan worked." Xavier smiled.
"Basher has arrived back, but Neville was still there when he left." Red explained.
"He could just be running late." Xavier snarled back.
"There haven't been any sightings from any of our delivery vans. They think that he might be trapped." Red added. Xavier turned around in his seat and stood up, his face twisted in rage.
"Than go to the quarry and dig through the rocks with a spoon if you have to!" Xavier roared. "He is essential for my plan so make sure he comes back here in one piece. DO IT NOW!" He shouted and Red leapt up and ran from the room. Xavier took a deep breath and sat back down, and listened to the sounds of emergency services rushing to the quarry, and started to laugh in joy.