Valley of Despair - 2
Steve stepped out of his truck, grabbed his bag and headed into the depot. He stopped at a vending machine, punched in his code, and grabbed some essentials for the trip: batteries for his lamp, ear plugs, and an extra pair of safety glasses. He always needed an extra pair of glasses because he had a habit of leaving them on the train after a trip and no one wanted to risk getting reprimanded by the higher ups for not having their safety equipment on a trip. He tucked them all away in his bag and continued down the hall to a small room off to the side. Not much could be said about the room, as it didn't contain much. Just a radio setup, a few small lockers, a table that was as shaky as it was old, and a few dirty chairs. Occupying one of those chairs was his engineer for the night, Jon Berry.
"Evening, Jon," Steve said as he entered the room. Jon Boyd was what they called an old head, through and through. Steve and the other conductors were pretty sure he'd been part of the railroad since it started, back in the 1800s, A portly man, he wore over-sized overalls and a button-up shirt that refused to remain tucked in. His greasy gray hair was smoothed back and hidden away under a baseball cap, and his safety glasses perched atop the brim.
"Ah, Steve, was wondering when you'd show up," Jon said. He looked up and nodded at him for a moment before returning to the paperwork in his hand. His face didn't betray any sort of emotion to Steve or his greeting. "Here, I printed you a copy, too." Jon slid the stack across the table as Steve dusted off one of the chairs and sat down.
"Thanks." Steve looked over the paperwork real quick to make sure it was all there and in order. "Looks like there's a new slow warning at mile marker ninety-two," Steve said.
"Yup, saw that. Other than that, should be smooth sailing. Hopefully there's not a lot of traffic tonight," said Jon. He stood, rolled up his paperwork, and shoved it into his back pocket. "Heard from the other crew just before you got here. They just pulled up outside of town. We'll be heading out to meet them once the van shows up."
"I'm gonna go grab some coffee, want any?" Steve asked as he stood up. Jon shook his head. "Nah, got my thermos with me tonight. I'll be fine."
About half an hour later, the driver walked into the room. "You guys the new crew?" he asked.
"That's us," Jon answered, picking up his bag. Steve grabbed his bag and followed them both out of the room and the depot. They both tossed their bags in the back of the SUV and took their seats in the vehicle. Everyone referred to the transport vehicles as vans, even when that wasn't quite accurate.
The drive was long, but even then Steve was restless. He usually tried to squeeze in a power nap, but tonight he failed. The crew had stopped just outside of the city limits, but being freight trains, the rails hardly ever made for a quick and easy crew exchange. Instead they snaked around outside of town and through all manner of forest and back country. They also needed to park the train somewhere it wouldn't be blocking off access roads for people driving through the area.
Steve scanned the night sky and scenery as they drove. Nothing too exciting, as he'd seen it all hundreds of times before. Clear skies in town gave way to the incoming clouds, and a fog began rolling in as they finally made their way to the train awaiting them. They greeted the crew on the train, exchange pleasantries and news of their trip, with the outgoing crew wishing Steve and Jon good luck as they boarded the SUV. By the time he was settled in the engine, all Steve could see of them was the headlights off in the distance, snaking around a bend on the highway.
"Evening, Jon," Steve said as he entered the room. Jon Boyd was what they called an old head, through and through. Steve and the other conductors were pretty sure he'd been part of the railroad since it started, back in the 1800s, A portly man, he wore over-sized overalls and a button-up shirt that refused to remain tucked in. His greasy gray hair was smoothed back and hidden away under a baseball cap, and his safety glasses perched atop the brim.
"Ah, Steve, was wondering when you'd show up," Jon said. He looked up and nodded at him for a moment before returning to the paperwork in his hand. His face didn't betray any sort of emotion to Steve or his greeting. "Here, I printed you a copy, too." Jon slid the stack across the table as Steve dusted off one of the chairs and sat down.
"Thanks." Steve looked over the paperwork real quick to make sure it was all there and in order. "Looks like there's a new slow warning at mile marker ninety-two," Steve said.
"Yup, saw that. Other than that, should be smooth sailing. Hopefully there's not a lot of traffic tonight," said Jon. He stood, rolled up his paperwork, and shoved it into his back pocket. "Heard from the other crew just before you got here. They just pulled up outside of town. We'll be heading out to meet them once the van shows up."
"I'm gonna go grab some coffee, want any?" Steve asked as he stood up. Jon shook his head. "Nah, got my thermos with me tonight. I'll be fine."
About half an hour later, the driver walked into the room. "You guys the new crew?" he asked.
"That's us," Jon answered, picking up his bag. Steve grabbed his bag and followed them both out of the room and the depot. They both tossed their bags in the back of the SUV and took their seats in the vehicle. Everyone referred to the transport vehicles as vans, even when that wasn't quite accurate.
The drive was long, but even then Steve was restless. He usually tried to squeeze in a power nap, but tonight he failed. The crew had stopped just outside of the city limits, but being freight trains, the rails hardly ever made for a quick and easy crew exchange. Instead they snaked around outside of town and through all manner of forest and back country. They also needed to park the train somewhere it wouldn't be blocking off access roads for people driving through the area.
Steve scanned the night sky and scenery as they drove. Nothing too exciting, as he'd seen it all hundreds of times before. Clear skies in town gave way to the incoming clouds, and a fog began rolling in as they finally made their way to the train awaiting them. They greeted the crew on the train, exchange pleasantries and news of their trip, with the outgoing crew wishing Steve and Jon good luck as they boarded the SUV. By the time he was settled in the engine, all Steve could see of them was the headlights off in the distance, snaking around a bend on the highway.
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