October 5, 2021

"It doesn't make any God damn sense," Raven said to 2nd Captain Bernard Howard of Patch First Aid Squad as they met in the officers' office after running a car accident call in the middle of the day. "I somehow came back from the dead for no reason, and it seems as if my husband dying had something to do with it." She was still in shock over her return, as well as Taiyang's death. "Bernie, I miss him, a lot."

"I can tell," he replied to her. "We all miss him, Captain Branwen. We all do, over here and over at Signal Fire." He was a member of Patch First Aid Squad only, and was a close friend of Taiyang. "Now, you filled out the incident report, right?"

"I did," Raven replied as she showed him the filled-out report on a computer screen. "You've been tremendously helpful in getting me back on my feet, Bernie."

"No problem, Raven." Bernie then got up from his seat. "Well, I gotta go back home and make dinner for my family. See ya later."

"Alright. Bye." Raven waved goodbye as she turned to her computer. She was now all alone in the officers' room. As Bernie closed the door to it and left, tears fell from Raven's eyes. Once she knew nobody was within earshot, she sobbed to herself as she repeated Taiyang's nickname "Tai" slowly. "Why did they have to take you? Why did they have to bring me back but leave you to die? I should have stayed dead, and you should have stayed alive for Yang and Ruby. It's not fucking fair!" She then slammed her fists down on her desk and continued to weep. After she calmed herself, she chuckled and said to herself, "And to think, I would call myself weak for acting like this." She then continued to cry.

Later, Raven stopped by at Signal Fire Company over on the Signal Academy Grounds. There, she was only a regular firefighter, while Qrow was the captain there but only a regular firefighter at Patch First Aid Squad. While checking over Signal's 125-foot tower ladder truck, a 2014 model that survived the attacks, she got a call on her phone just as she put an air pack back into its seat bracket in the back of the 10-seat cab. She answered it, saying, "Hello?"

"Mom," Yang replied on the other end of the line. "I'm gonna be picking up that box of baby stuff from the house once I get over there today. I'll be riding over in my bike."

"No problem," Raven replied. "I'll be over there soon anyway once I get done checking over Truck 109."

"Got it," Yang replied. "Say, wanna get lunch or something one of these days?"

Raven was surprised. Though she and Yang had been reunited for 6 years, they had not done much alone time together due to conflicting schedules and life getting in the way. "Uhh, sure. Any day works for me except for this Saturday, Yang. I gotta give a statement about the attacks that day."

"Works for me," Yang replied. "I have Friday off."

"Good," Raven replied. "Anyways, I won't keep you busy, Yang. See you tomorrow."

"Bye," Yang replied. "By the way, Mom... I love you."

Raven paused. Then, she said, "I love you, too, honey. Bye." She then hung up and thought to herself. "After all this time..."

Theresa and Denis played a game of air hockey in the rec room of the firehouse after Denis had come from school. As the blonde managed to score a goal, she said to her boyfriend, "Alright! I won!"

Denis laughed and replied, "You did indeed."

"How was school today?" Theresa had graduated from secondary school back in June, while Denis still had until June 2024 to graduate. "Is Public Secondary School 77 still bad as ever?"

"Well," Denis replied, getting ready to tell a story. "We had two fistfights in a single day, which is something I've never heard of before."

Theresa, surprised, replied, "Holy shit... Usually it was like one every week or two..."

"Yeah," Denis replied. "I'm as surprised as you are. One kid got hurt so bad he was transported by Valeanian Legion Ambulance 12. Granted, it was only an Alpha response, but still. Two junior firefighters that were part of that company also went with him, too. After the second fight, the VCPD sent in two extra officers to stand by at the school for the rest of the day alongside the two regular school resource officers." He then reset the score counter. "Anyways, wanna play again?"

Theresa then smiled before saying, "Actually, I was hoping we could do something else." She then thought to herself, "I mean, you turned 16 earlier this year and he just turned 14. There should be no harm in it, right?"

Denis, confused, replied, "What do you mean?"

Theresa then took him by the hand and led him out of the rec room. "You'll see when we get there. Don't worry."

Denis then realized what was going on. "Hold up, Tracy."

The girl stopped and turned around, asking him sincerely, "Is something wrong?"

"Please tell me you are prepared," Denis replied to her girlfriend. "I don't want to be a father just yet." He was dead serious.

Theresa blushed. "I am..." She then took a deep breath. "Denis, if you don't feel comfortable, just tell me."

"No," Denis replied firmly before he kissed her. After they split, he said, "I want this, too."

Theresa then laughed, saying, "I'm sorry. It's just that that was..."

Denis laughed as well, completing her sentence with, "Corny? Probably!" The two then walked together out of the rec room, hand in hand.

Twenty minutes later, as the couple got dressed again in the otherwise empty bunk room of the firehouse, Denis said to his girlfriend, "I... I'm glad we did that." He then looked at her and smiled.

Theresa replied to him, "We should have done it sooner." They both then laughed. She then placed a hand on his shoulder and said to him, "Denis, you were okay with us doing that, right?"

"I was," Denis replied, confused as to why she asked after the fact. "Why are you making such a big deal out of this?"

"Because you're 14 and I'm 16," Theresa answered, getting deeply serious. "The age difference might throw some people off, so I wanted to make sure you were absolutely sure about having sex." She was clearly worried. "I... I shouldn't be worried, but I am."

"You're right," Denis told her before kissing her. After they split, he followed with, "You shouldn't be worried, Theresa. There's nothing wrong with us, I swear."

She then nodded. "You're right." She then stood up and stretched before walking into the bathroom. "I'll be right out."

As Denis waited, he looked around and thought to himself, "Well, you did it, Denis. You finally did it."

Around 11 at night, as Ruby did a 12-hour duty shift from 10 at night to 10 in the morning, Vigilant's pagers went off. Ruby immediately sprung out of sleep in her bed in the bunkroom and slipped on her hip boots, which she quickly pulled up before running to the fire pole along with four other volunteers doing their duty shifts, as well as the two paid firefighter-paramedics once they got their bunker pants on. As Ruby reached the ground floor, her eyes adjusted to the lights of the station, turned on by the pager tones, as the siren on the roof of the station roared to life.

Once Ruby got her gear on at her locker, she decided to wait for more people to take Engine 201 out as Ambulance 201 left. The other volunteer left behind, an older member named Harold Ahl who was 66 years old and had 41 years in the fire company, jumped into the driver's seat and started up the brand new engine. Ruby hopped into the officer's seat and handed the rip-and-go sheet to the driver, saying, "Harold, it's gonna be at 552 Reinhardt Street for a car fire next to a building in an alleyway with extension into a dumpster."

"Got it," Harold said before he coughed and turned the front headlights on just as several firefighters ran into the station from home. As they did, Weiss passed by the station in Car 5 as it sped to the fire with its lights and sirens on. A volunteer firefighter going to the station in his motorcycle then pulled onto the sidewalk and stopped before turning his bike off and running inside. A car also pulled into a side parking spot near the station before two volunteers ran from it to the station.

Within 3 and a half minutes, Engine 201 had a full crew. The three firefighters on the rear step signaled to Harold that they were ready to go. Ruby said to Harold, "Turn on the lights and go." As she put her air pack on and tightened the straps, the engine pulled out. She then radioed as she hit the pedal for the engine's mechanical siren, "Engine 201 to Fire Alarm."

"Engine 201."

"Engine 201's responding with 13, 10 interior." Ruby then took her helmet off and put her mask on. As she did, Engine 201 raced through the streets of Vale City in night time traffic. Some pedestrians on the street waved to the engine as Ruby waved back at them. As they came up to a busy intersection, Harold pulled the rip cord in the cab for the air horn and blasted away. Ruby also turned her air pack on and put her gloves on.

Within 2 and a half minutes, Engine 201 arrived as Engine 202 from Goodwill Hose Company 6 tailed behind it. Ruby radioed, "Engine 201 is 10-84." She then quickly stepped off of the engine with a halligan tool as the firefighters on the rear step stepped off and pulled a supply line to a nearby hydrant. As the other interior firefighters stepped off of the truck with packs and masks on, Ruby walked over to Weiss as she asked, "Status on the fire?"

"It's beginning to extend into the walls on 552 Reinhardt Street," Weiss replied. "The ambulance crew made a short attack on it with several fire extinguishers. I'll need an inch and three-quarter and a two-and-a-half."

"Got it," Ruby replied before she connected the tube on her mask to her belt-mounted regulator, going on air. She then yelled to the engine crew as she walked back, "Captain Schnee needs an inch and three quarter and a two and a half stat!"

A lieutenant that sat in the back of the engine then pulled a two and a half-inch crosslay with Theresa, who had also boarded the engine. Theresa would command the nozzle while the lieutenant stayed behind her. Ruby then said to the lieutenant as he and Theresa passed her, "Which one do you wanna attack?"

"We'll get the car first," the lieutenant replied as he and Theresa pushed forward. Ruby then moved in with them by their side. Once they got to the car, Ruby radioed to Harold, "Engine 201 driver, I want you to charge the Red two and a half line!"

Harold replied over the radio, "You got it! Charging the Red two and a half-inch line." As soon as the hose filled with water, Theresa opened up on the car, knocking the fire down as the two firefighters on the inch and three-quarter line opened up on the dumpster next to the car.

Ruby then signaled to the second line as she yelled, "Hold up! Hold up! I'm gonna try to open it up!" As she took her halligan tool and lifted one of the dumpster lids, the fire roared out of it and forced it completely open. Ruby stepped back in surprise before signaling again and saying, "Hit it now! Hit it now!"

Meanwhile, Weiss radioed to Fire Alarm, "Car 5 to Fire Alarm."

"Car 5, go."

"You can hold Engine 201, Engine 202, Truck 201, Rescue 201, Utility 202, Car 5, Car 6, and Ambulance 201 only. You can cancel both of the other companies' apparatus and return Patrol 3, Salvage 3, and the District 2 Assistant Chief at this time."

"10-4."

As Fire Alarm notified the other responding apparatus to cancel their responses and return to their stations, Weiss met up with Goodwill's 1st Captain and told him, "I'll have you guys stay for a bit for backup until we get this under control. I'm sure we can take care of overhaul ourselves."

"Sounds good to me," he replied to Weiss. "We stopped the extension into the building. I got four guys from my engine currently overhauling in there along with two guys from your rescue rig and two guys from your truck."

"Got it," Weiss replied. "We'll be all set here in an hour or so." She then pointed to the building in question. "Any word on the damage?"

"The fire only got into a small part of the walls on the first floor according to my guys," Goodwill's captain replied. "It's mostly the usual smoke and water damage. This should take maybe two months to fix."

"Good thing we stopped in soon enough," Weiss replied. "If it has spread any further, this building would be up in flames right now." The building in question was 7 stories tall and had a convenience store on the first floor with apartments on the other 6 floors.

IN MEMORY OF JOHN A. NUZBACK, SR.

March 2, 1950-July 22, 2017

PAST SCHENECTADY COUNTY FIRE COORDINATOR AND NEW YORK STATE FIRE INVESTIGATOR, LIFE MEMBER AND PAST CHIEF OF THE CARMAN FIRE

DEPARTMENT, LIFE MEMBER AND PAST CHIEF OF THE WHITE EAGLE VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE SERVICE, PAST EMPLOYEE OF SCHENECTADY AMBULANCE

SERVICE, MOHAWK AMBULANCE SERVICE, AND ROTTERDAM EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES, AND PAST CHIEF OF THE KNOLLS ATOMIC POWER LABORATORY

FIRE BRIGADE

YOU WILL BE DEEPLY MISSED