FanFic:2030: The Year Trains Make Contact

2030: The Year Trains Make Contact is a crossover/parody of 2010: The Year We Make Contact and Thomas the Tank Engine. It is the sequel to 2021: A Railway Odyssey.

Plot

Nine years after the failure of the Discovery Express mission to investigate the monolith, Duck (Dr. Heywood Floyd) has been fired from his position of chairtrain of the National Council of Railway Exploration. He is approached by a diesel, who tells him of a mission to investigate the failure of the Discovery Express mission. Although steamies and diesels are at each other's throats, Duck, ACEL's programmer Victor (Dr. Chandra), and Discovery Express designer Stepney (Walter Curnow) are sent aboard the diesel train Rudolph Diesel.

Before leaving Victor discusses with his working locomotive ABEL 10000 about reconnecting ACEL, then attempts his plan for ACEL on ABEL.

Duck is removed from his flatbed early by the diesel captain Mavis (Tanya Kirbuk) because they have recieved a distress signal from a Japanese train, the Disukabari. The message is from an engine named Hiro, who details that, while crossing a line in the barren Misty Plains, his train hit a wheel (a sure sign of trains), although no trains had passed in many years.

The Diesel arrives at Viacrstown near Misty Plains. ACEL is reactivated, and Victor informs the others that ACEL malfunctioned because of contradicting journey directions, (cross the river, but don't cross the river), and fear of failure made him malfunction. Duck denies his involvement with the journey directions. A diesel engine (Bert) is then sent out to the monolith, but he hits it and derails, bursting into flame.

Later, the steamies and diesels officially remove themselves to seperate railways, and Duck, Victor, and Stepney must move to the Discovery Express.

Meanwhile, Thomas visits his past wife Rosie in the form of a face on a truck, and tells her that something wondeful is going to happen. Then, he meets his grandmother, who is soon to be scrapped, and plays her a song on his whistle like he did when he was a young engine.

Thomas then appears to Duck, telling him that he must leave Vicarstown in two days, or else. Duck and Mavis work out a plan in which they use ACEL to push the Diesel to give them the neccesary boost up Culdee Fell and leave in time. However, the Discovery Express will be detached and left to its fate. Just then, they catch sight of hundreds of monoliths appearing around the railway line, and along the border of Misty Plains.

ACEL is not told of the plan. However, during the start-up, Victor breaks down and tells the truth to ACEL, who accepts the situation and the need to sacrifice himself for the engines. The start-up is succesful, and the engines escape. As they leave, the weight of the monoliths causes the edge of Misty Plains (including Vicarstown) to collapse, resulting in the creation of Misty Island. Thomas appears beside ACEL as he speeds away from the collapse (although nowhere near fast enough to escape the collapse) and tells him that he'll go wher Thomas is, and instructs him to send the message:

ALL THIS LAND
IS YOURS EXCEPT
MISTY ISLAND.
RUN NO TRAINS
THROUGH THERE.
USE IT TOGETHER.
USE IT IN PEACE.

Inspired by this message, the steamies and diesels make peace. On Misty Island, a single monolith stands amongst a matrix of rail lines.

Characters

• Duck - Floyd
• Thomas - Bowman
• Mavis - Tanya Kurbik
• Victor - Chandra
• Stepney - Curnow
• Bert - Max
• Rosie - Bowman's Widow
• Unnamed Engine - Bowman's Grandmother
• ACEL 10000 - Hal 9000
• ABEL 10000 - SAL 9000