L is for Last Call

Blade shuttered as he felt his engine slowly began to grind to a stop.

The firefighting life was hard on any frame, but it broke some people more than others. Blade would be one of the vehicles it broke. Eventually, he reached the point when he had too many bad landings, too many burns, too many rotor strikes. His body started to show metal fatigue and he knew that it was only going to be a matter of time before he started developing microfractures. Knowing he was drawing close to the end of his operational life, the helicopter had chosen to retire on his own terms instead of being forced into medical retirement.

Blade had wanted to slip away from Piston Peaks National Park quietly, but neither Jammer nor Windlifter would allow that. They had thrown him a proper retirement party. It had been a good farewell to the place which had been his home for so many years and it had given him the courage to strike out on the next stage of his life alone…but the universe seemed to have a different plan in store for him.

To Blade's surprise, Maru chose to follow him out of the service. At first, he had tried to convince tell his old friend that he didn't need to sacrifice his career like that, but Maru had just shrugged as he shoulder his tools and asked if Blade had an apartment picked out. He of course did…a little hangar located in a small town high in the Colorado Rockies. One with big picture windows overlooking the forest and just enough local resources to be comfortable.

To say that the next four years were idyllic, would be an understatement. Blade wasn't particularly wealthy…but he also wasn't poor either, and the knowledge that he was living on borrowed time encouraged him to not hold back. He ate out when he wanted, went to performances the piqued his curiosity, and purchased fresh cut flowers just because. He lived like there was no tomorrow because he knew that his days were numbered.

The day of his last flight had come unexpectedly. He made a quick run down to the grocery store only to have to be driven back to his home on the back of a trailer. Maru had done his absolute best to try to cheer him up, but there was a piece inside of him that had shattered. His body had betrayed him, and he would never feel lift beneath his rotors or the feeling of flight in his tanks. His ability to fly was gone and with it, his will to fight the forces of entropy.

Once it became clear that his systems were beyond repair, Blade had requested a DNR notice be added to his medical file. The pain in Maru's face had been immense, but the mechanic hadn't argued with him as he arranged for a notary to visit their home perched on the edge of the forest. That night after the deed was done, Maru had poured himself a tall glass of high grade, pulled out a stack of papers, and made Blade answer the difficult questions about the end-of-life care he wanted. Blade regrated not telling his friend just how much comfort that conversation brought because even though they never spoke about it again, it was a comfort to know that Maru had made sure that Blade was in control of what was to come.

The decline happened far faster than anyone would have hoped, but in truth that wasn't too unexpected. As the seasons turned from summer to fall, and the forest turned from green to brilliant reds, yellows, and oranges, Blade felt the color in his own life starting to fade away. Even though Maru did his best to always make sure that hangar was well stocked with things to eat, his appetite was gone, and the food tasted like ash on his tongue.

It was clear that Maru knew that the end was near because there was a steady stream of friends who came to say goodbye. There were people who he had known back in his Hollywood days and those with whom he had fought fires. There were vehicles from the town he grew up in and others who were his current neighbors. Blade both delighted in these visits and found them completely exhausting…but even these visits started to slow to a trickle as the weather slipped from autumn into the first hints of winter.

"It is okay, Blade."

Today he had woken up, with his breath rattling in his intakes and he knew deep down that there wasn't going to be a tomorrow.

"It's okay. You can be with Nick now."

At the word Nick, Blade felt a spark of warmth kindle deep within his frame. He still really didn't want to go, but if Nick was on the other side of things then…well, there was nothing to be afraid of.

"It's okay."

He could feel his world dissolving away until the only thing that was left was the feeling Maru pressed against his side and the sound of his best friend's words. Even as his consciousness faded, Blade couldn't help but feel immense gratitude that he had been blessed to have a companion who was by his side to the end.

"You can let go now."

Blade gave out one last shuttering breath, then he listened to Maru and allow himself completely to shut down.

After the autopsy the coroner classified Blade as a Line of Duty Death, which meant that even though was retired at the time of his passing he would be given every honor fitting a station chief. It was only right given the specter of pain that must have plagued Blade through the last years of his life. Reading and rereading the report had only made Maru wonder if he had done enough to keep his friend comfortable in his twilight days.

Taking a deep breath, Maru tried to push the dark thoughts out of his mind and focus on the moment in front of him. After all, Blade deserved a friend at his send-off.

The helicopter before him looked unnaturally peaceful, decked out in his full firefighting livery and black funeral bunting. The local volunteer firefighter station had gone out of their way to make sure that Blade had been treated as one of their own. But now only one ceremony was left.

The bell wrung out three times as the funeral attendant guided Blade's mortal remains into the crematoria and locked the door in place. There was a moment of silence the director motioned Maru over to push the button that would begin the process. Maru rolled forward, but before he reached a tine forward, he closed his eyes and whispered one last goodbye. He swallowed hard, the gentle pushed the button and with that, Blade faced the flames for the last time.

Term – Last Call – When a firefighter dies, there are a number of honors that they can be given. One of these honors is called the Last Call or Last Alarm. For this ceremony, a bell (or some departments a siren) is rung in a pattern of three. The Last Call represents both the alert to fight a fire as well as the alert that a fire has been extinguished and is viewed as a reminder of the firefighter's life of service.