-Crash Site-
It was midnight when Blade found him. 'Oh Dusty...' Blade thought with pity. The poor plane was stuck in the lower branches of a ponderosa pine on the edge of a clearing. Blade landed and look up at him, core yearning for the plane to still be alive. He was severely dented and his paint was scratched up to just barely past recognition. He was missing a pontoon and his propeller was twisted into a painful-looking shape.
"Patch... I found him." Blade stated. "He's in one piece, mostly."
"::Thank Chrysler. That means there's a chance he's still alive.::" She said. "::The county's sending firefighters to help us. I'll send a small team to set up a retardant barrier around him. However, problems have come up.::"
"What kind of problems?" Blade askes worriedly.
"::Windlifter's sling needs fixing, might be a while before we can get him here for repairs.::" Patch told him. "::I suggest coming bac-::"
"I'm not leaving him." Blade stated firmly. "If he is still alive I am not leaving him to be alone in this disaster of a park."
"::Blade-::" Patch tried to make him see reason, but was interrupted again.
"I'm staying with him and that's final!" He roared and cut the transmission.
-Piston Peak Air Attack Base-
"Maru, Blade's staying out there with him!" Patch shouted and the blue and gray forklift sighed. "He won't listen to me!"
"Let him." Maru stated.
"What?! Everyone exclaimed, shocked.
"When we retrieved Blade from the mine; I saw it," Maru said. "Dusty has, somehow, managed to slip his way past Blade's walls and forge a Companionship Bond with him." Instantly, Dipper, Cabbie, and Windlifter had understanding looks on their faces.
"HUH? WHAT'S THAT?" Avalanche asked.
"It's a special bond that can happen between two aircraft. And some forklifts are born with the unique ability to see these bonds. Are you sure, Maru?" Cabbie explained.
"I've seen what it looks like before, so yes. But it's strange." Maru stated.
"Why?" Dipper asked.
"Because it looked as though Dusty already had a Bonded Companion when he arrived. Now, he has two, which is rare."
"This is interesting and all... but WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH LEAVING BLADE OUT THERE?!" Patch yelled, the stress of the last 24 hours getting to her.
"His Bond instincts are telling him to stay with his younger Companion to provide comfort. Even if Dusty isn't conscious." Maru said. "We bring him back by force, we'd have an angry Air Boss and all he'd do is go right back to him. Plus, if there are any changes in Dusty's condition, he can let us know right away."
"Fine... But this doesn't mean I like this..." Patch grumbled as her radio suddenly came to life with the chatter of the backup the county had sent them to help contain this fire.
-Crash Site-
Blade started awake at a core-piercing wail of pain. Looking around, Blade suddenly remembered and looked up. Dusty's eyes were squeezed shut in pain, and he was wriggling, most likely trying to alleviate his pain.
"Hey; Champ. Calm down. You're gonna be okay." Blade called up. Dusty stilled and his eyes cracked open barely.
"B... B... Blade...?" He croaked, his voice barely a whimper. "I... It hurts..."
"I know kid... But, I'm here... And Windlifter will be here to get you as soon as he can..." Blade encouraged. More pain-induced wails filled the woods and Blade's core broke at the thought of the amount of pain the young plane must be in.
"Hey, kid, don't try to move or talk, ok? Just, listen to my voice, ok? I'm sure the team has shown you my old tv show." Blade said with a sigh. "But, there was this one time on set. Nick and I were getting ready to film a scene when we found out the group of kids who'd been on a field trip to the set had played a little prank on Nick." Blade felt a bittersweet smile cross his face as he remembered Nick's panicked face. "The kids had gotten into the special glue we had on set for some scenes and somehow covered his skids in it without us realizing." Blade chuckled.
"He was stuck for an hour while we waited for someone to find the special solution we had to dissolve it. We never let him forget about it either." Blade looked up and realized his eyes had closed again and wasn't responding. 'Even if he's unconscious again, I'll keep talking...' Blade decided. 'Just to distract me from how bad his injuries are.'
[Timeskip an hour]
"::Greetings, Chief Ranger.::" A voice called out, startling the helicopter. "::Sorry we had to meet under circumstances such as these, but you're dispatch said you needed a retardant barrier around here?::"
"Yes. Downed SEAT in the tree I'm under. I would appreciate some protection in case the flames come this way." Blade replied.
"::Wilco. One fire line coming up.::" The helitankers replied.
