Spot Fire – Part One
After the craziness of fighting the Piston Peak inferno (and surviving, no less), earning their certification, and having fun at the Corn Fest, Dusty and Sky welcomed the down time they suddenly had. It especially gave Sky a chance to fully heal from her injuries. Sometimes people would stare at her new scars, but Sky didn't care. They were the scars of a noble profession, as Mayday put it.
But getting their certification didn't necessarily mean the end of their training, as Blade explained to them before the Air Attack team returned to Piston Peak. They knew how to fight wildfires, but now they just needed to learn how to fight building fires to be prepared for multiple situations. This training came at the end of fire season. When Blade got the all-clear, he returned to Propwash Junction to help Mayday train the newest firefighters in structural fires. Autumn and summer colors began to mix as the seasons transitioned, and Dusty heard Leadbottom talk with several of the farmers about the upcoming harvest.
But he had to focus. Skipper's racing training was one thing, and Blade's firefighting training was another. Who knows what Mayday would be like? After all, he was the one who trained Blade in the first place.
First up was Dusty learning how to drop water on a burning building.
"This is where target practice is useful." Blade explained. "Now, generally, structural fires are taken care of with trucks rather than aircraft. Since you and Mayday will need to work together, you're going to have to learn how to drop the water so you put out the fire without inadvertently causing more damage."
"Right." Dusty nodded, listening closely.
"What you want to do is drop the water carefully so it can spread out." Mayday instructed. "Too much water in one place could cave in a roof. Also, you're aim needs to be spot-on. Miss the building, you gotta circle around and try again, and time is of the essence with structural fires."
To practice, Sky and Sparky arranged some firewood in a large block formation and set fire to it, creating a field of fire for Dusty to put out. Dusty flew over and tried dropping the water in his tank. Luckily, his practice at Piston Peak paid off for this one. He had a few misses, but managed to get the fire out in a few drops. He did this three times in a row, so Mayday had the target made smaller and smaller to force Dusty to really practice his aim. It brought Dusty back to his crop dusting days, but he knew crop dusting was much easier than aiming at a fire.
While Dusty practiced his aim, Sky received her own training. "You're going to be an active member of the ground crew, Sky." Mayday explained. He, Blade, Sparky, and Sky made their way down a dirt road, right towards an old barn outside of town. "Which means you'll have to learn how to perform rescues. This often will require you to maneuver through fire."
"So then what's with the axe?" Sky asked, holding up the tool in her hands.
"That is a pulaski." Mayday corrected. "Axe on one end, adze on the other. Very useful in wildland firefighting, but also beneficial in a structural fire. Say we had a civilian trapped inside a burning building? Well, you'd use the pulaski to break inside and get them out."
"Okay. Makes sense." Sky nodded.
"So you're going to practice on this." Blade said as they stopped in front of the old barn. The wood long since turned dark from age, and some of it was rotting.
Sky raised an eyebrow. "You sure?"
"The farmer who owns this barn has been meaning to tear it down for a while." Mayday assured. "When I told him I had a firefighter in need of training, he gave us the all-clear. Don't worry; we'll take this one day at a time so you're not exhausted."
Sky shrugged. "Well, okay. What do you want me to do?"
"Go on in there and find a section of wall to start on." Mayday instructed. "When I give the word, you start hacking away at the wood and Sparky will time you. Remember: time is of the essence, especially with rescues. You gotta make a hole big enough for you and the civilian to get through, and you gotta do it quickly. Got it?"
"Okay!" Sky nodded. She eagerly jogged inside, finding a section of wall and standing next to it. She leveled the pulaski in her hands, ready to use it.
"Ready?" Mayday called. He nodded to Sparky. "Go!"
Sky swung the pulaski like a baseball bat, the axe impaling the wood. But when she tried to pull it back, she quickly discovered the tool became stuck. She lost her grip and fell backwards, landing on her tailbone. Blade snorted a little, pursing his lips to keep his laughter at bay. Sparky slapped a tine over his lips. Mayday chuckled.
Sky glared at them in irritation, both with them and herself. "What're you laughing at?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about." Blade said innocently.
"Come on, Sky!" Mayday called encouragingly. "Clock's still ticking."
Sky pushed herself to her feet. "Right. Got it." She wrenched the pulaski free after a few tugs, and she went back to slamming it against the wall. The pulaski got stuck again a few times, and when she tried to use the adze side it became so stuck that Sky had to spend a few minutes pulling it out again. By the time Sky made a hole big enough to crawl through, sweat drenched her forehead and her arms and shoulders were sore. She panted a little as she approached Mayday, Blade, and Sparky. "So…..how'd I do?"
"Including the number of times you got stuck….." Mayday glanced to the watch as Sparky held it up. "About twenty minutes. You and the civilian most likely burned to a crisp."
Sky groaned. "Great."
"Take a breather and go again." Mayday said. "You may be strong, but using a pulaski requires a certain set of muscles. It's almost like cutting firewood."
"Mayday, not that I'm disagreeing, but I've chopped firewood before." Sky said. "I can say, without a doubt, that this is really not the same thing."
"That sounds like you're disagreeing." Sparky pointed out jokingly.
Sky rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
"Go on, Sky." Mayday encouraged. "Try again."
"Try to really lay on it." Blade advised. "Don't hit the wood with the axe, go through it."
"Copy that." Sky nodded. She prepared herself, and Sparky started the timer again. Sky put all her strength into it, but she felt it was slow work. This was so much more different compared to other work she had done, even when firefighting.
At one point, Sky had to jump out of the way when some wood and debris broke off and fell down just next to her. She paused in her work to look up, checking to see just how much debris she'd have to avoid.
"Get back into it, Raven!" Blade called. "You'll be inside a building that's on fire. Stuff is going to be falling around you. Be aware of it, work around it, and keep going."
"Right." Sky nodded. She resumed her work. Come on, Sky. Focus. You can do this.
Two hours later, Mayday finally dismissed Sky for the day. Sky was sweaty, tired, and her muscles shook. The barn walls were riddled with holes. Blade and Mayday complimented Sky on a job well done for a first day learning the tool. Sky thanked them, but secretly she felt she didn't accomplish much.
Sparky helped Sky relax back at the hanger with Skipper, icing down her sore shoulders. He stared at Sky for a moment, noticing she hunched over a bit and stared at the ground. "Something bothering you, kiddo?"
"I'm not a kid, Sparky." Sky scoffed softly.
"Sure you are." Sparky grinned. "You're my and Skipper's kid."
Sky smiled softly, and she sighed. "I guess I'm just getting a bit of a reality check. I feel like I'm back at Piston Peak, training under Blade."
"Does that mean this is worse or better than your first training sessions?" Sparky asked.
"Not better, but not exactly worse either." Sky said. "When we fought wildfires, we usually only had to worry about a wild animal, and most of them could get away on their own. With building fires, there's a much higher risk of people being trapped inside." She sighed again. "I've never been in situations like this. I mean, lives will be on the line, and whether or not they get out all right could rest on my shoulders."
"That's what being a firefighter is all about, sweetheart." Skipper said.
"I know." Sky assured. "What started as a promise to Mayday became my real desire to learn what being a firefighter truly means. I think I'm just starting to feel the pressure with this new training."
"It'll pass, rest assured." Skipper said.
"I just don't want to let Mayday down." Sky said. "And I don't want Blade to think all that training went to waste."
"I highly doubt he'd think that." Sparky said. "And no way are you going to let Mayday down."
"The fact that you're thinking about this stuff shows you're dedicated." Skipper said. "Just don't dwell on it. You'll do great."
Sky didn't answer for a second, but she still smiled. "Thanks. I needed to hear that."
It took another week's worth of training, but Dusty and Sky steadily began to adapt their new skills. Dusty's aim definitely got better. Sky continued working on the old barn, and soon she got the hang of using a pulaski. One of her last training sessions caused little exhaustion.
"All right, Sky." Mayday said. "You take down the rest of this barn in under thirty minutes, I can clear you for using a pulaski."
Sky looked to what remained of the old barn: the building equivalent of a skeleton, really. The rafters and corners were there, but most of the walls and the entire roof was gone. Sky leveled the pulaski in her hands, feeling much more comfortable with the tool.
"Ready?" Mayday called.
"Ready, Chief!" Sky nodded.
Sparky held up his stopwatch. "And…go!" Mayday ordered.
Sky started towards the nearest section of destroyed wall, but she paused. In scarcely a few seconds, she analyzed the entirety of the structure. A second later, she raised the pulaski over her head. To Blade's, Mayday's, and Sparky's surprise, Sky suddenly threw the pulaski with all her strength. The axe side hit the point where the rafters and the wall supports met, sticking there. The structure began to creak and groan. Blade, Mayday, and Sparky tilted somewhat to one side as they watched the remains of the barn fall over and crash to the ground. The boys stared in shock, Sparky just barely managing to stop the stopwatch in time. Sky marched over to the fallen wood and grabbed the pulaski, yanking it free. She twirled the tool skillfully, resting it on her shoulder as she turned to the boys.
"Uh, Sparky?" Mayday asked. "Time?"
Sparky checked. "17.09 seconds."
Sky shrugged. "Does that count?"
"I'll count that." Mayday nodded. "Not bad."
"That was so cool!" Sparky exclaimed.
"Unorthodox, but impressive." Blade admitted.
Sky laughed. "Thanks."
"Come on, let's go celebrate!" Sparky cheered. "Ice cream on me!" Everyone else chuckled at Sparky's enthusiasm, and they followed him back towards town.
"I think I'll go check on Crophopper's target practice." Blade announced, turning and going off towards another field nearby.
"You did very well today, Sky." Mayday complimented.
"Thanks, Mayday." Sky said. "Certainly wasn't easy."
"But you did great." Sparky said. "You make one heck of a firefighter."
"Sure do." Mayday agreed. Sky smiled with pride. She held the pulaski out towards Mayday. "Why don't you hold onto that, Sky? You seem to work well with it."
"Really?" Sky asked, resting the pulaski back on her shoulder. "Thanks, Mayday."
"It's a little old, but it served Max well." Mayday said.
Sky's eyes widened a little, and she stared at the pulaski blade. "This…belonged to Max? I thought you said it was used for wildland firefighting."
"Well yeah." Mayday nodded. "Max was a wildland firefighter before he came to work with me."
"And you're sure I should be using this?" Sky asked uncertainly.
"Max would be happy to know the old thing's finally being used." Mayday assured.
Sky rubbed the pulaski handle with her thumb. It didn't feel right, but she didn't argue with Mayday. Reminders of Max sometimes made Sky's heart ache, no matter how proud she was to be a firefighter like him.
Suddenly, an alarm rang out from the fire station. Amongst Mayday's upgrades, Sparky also found time to make a new alarm bell that could be heard across town. Mayday immediately snapped into action, driving as fast as he could over to the firehouse. Sky and Sparky followed as quickly as possible. By the time they got there, Mayday already finished his call with dispatch.
"Wildfire starting in the woods near the river." Mayday reported. "Sky, load up and let's go. I'll call Blade and Dusty."
"Right." Sky nodded, hurrying to the office area to get her harness and fire extinguisher.
"Blade, come in." Mayday called into his radio.
"I read you, Mayday." Blade responded in less than a second.
"Wildfire starting near the river. We could use your help." Mayday said. "Meet Dusty at the Fill N' Fly to load up and then start heading towards the fire."
"Copy that." Blade signed off.
"Let's go, Skylar!" Mayday called.
"Ready!" Sky called back. She hesitated for a moment, but then grabbed the pulaski and hopped onto Mayday's tailgate to hang onto his water tank. Mayday tore out of the firehouse, Sparky waving and wishing them luck. Mayday's siren screamed as he shot straight towards the fire. Sky looked up and saw Blade and Dusty right above them. The fire didn't look too big, thankfully, but it could very well jump over to the fields and then things would get even more dangerous.
"All right, Mayday, where do you want us?" Blade asked over the radio.
"You and Dusty start circling the fire and create a line." Mayday ordered. "Search for anyone possibly in the fire. Skylar and I will work on things down here."
"Copy that." Blade and Dusty said at once. They swooped in, Blade taking command of the aerial attack. Mayday started spraying water onto the flames, and Sky took out her fire extinguisher to do the same. She kept an ear open for Mayday's orders while also glancing towards Blade and Dusty now and then. So far, so good.
Just gotta keep it up. Sky thought, focusing on the fire and keeping tabs on how much water she had left.
Blade scanned every inch of the blaze, careful not to miss anything. He wasn't sure who would be out here, but they would have to be quick if they found a civilian out here in the fire. Blade gave the fire another once-over, and at first it looked like an easy firefight. Then, he noticed something standing out in the flames: a spot of white amidst the orange and yellow. Blade looked again, and he quickly switched on his radio.
"Ranger 301 to Chief, we got someone in the fire." Blade reported.
"Age?" Mayday asked.
"Indeterminate."
"What?"
"It's a dog."
"A dog?"
"A dog?" Dusty and Sky echoed.
"A dog." Blade confirmed. "Stuck right in the middle of this thing. Fire's closing in fast. We gotta get it out of there."
Mayday nodded in thought. "All right, come get Sky. You can lower her down and we'll get it out. Sky, you copy that?"
"Copy that!" Sky confirmed, running back to Mayday. Blade returned to the pair, lowering his hoist down so Sky could grab on. He flew her over the fire, and Sky leaned out of the hoist hatch to see a small clearing not yet burned. Cowering under a tree was the dog Blade mentioned.
"I see the dog." Sky said into her radio. "Going down now."
"Copy that." Mayday said. "Be careful."
Sky held onto the hoist again and Blade lowered her down. Sky jumped and hit the ground with a dull thud, standing again and walking over towards the dog. She could now see the dog to be a black-spotted Dalmatian with nut brown eyes. Sky started towards the animal, but the Dalmatian whined and darted away from her. Sky tried again, but the dog just kept running away while also steering clear of the fire that surrounded them.
"Hey, hey, take it easy." Sky said soothingly. The Dalmatian continued to whine and dart around, clearly terrified of both the fire and Sky. "Just calm down." Sky said, desperate to calm the poor animal. "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you." The Dalmatian whined, trembling in terror. While the dog didn't dart around anymore, he or she still wouldn't come any closer to Sky. "Come on, dog." Sky groaned, coughing a few times.
"Raven, what's the holdup?" Blade demanded over Sky's radio.
"Dog's scared and not coming to me." Sky said.
"Sky, this thing's spreading rapidly." Dusty chimed in. "You gotta get out of there."
"Just give me a minute!" Sky snapped.
"You don't have a minute." Blade said. "You gotta get out of there now."
Sky stared at the Dalmatian for a moment. Then, she heard something cracking. Looking up, Sky saw the burning branches of a nearby tree about to fall. Sky ran and dived, and the Dalmatian only flinched as Sky tackled the dog to one side. The burning branches crashed to the ground, missing Sky's feet by inches. Sky coughed as she sat up, checking over the Dalmatian. The dog gave another whine, but then licked Sky's face in thanks. Sky laughed, but noticed the fire getting closer. She hooked an arm around the Dalmatian's neck.
"Blade, drop the hoist and get us out of here!" Sky called into her radio mic.
"Copy that. Comin' down!" Blade hovered above the clearing, lowering down the hook. Sky grabbed the hook and clipped it to her harness, hugging the Dalmatian to her chest. Blade lifted them up, trying to go slowly so the Dalmatian wouldn't freak out so much. After making sure the two of them were safe inside, Blade flew them back to Mayday. Sparky stood there as well, a tank of oxygen and a first aid kit next to him.
"Blade, go reload and return." Mayday ordered. "We're just about done here."
"Copy that." Blade nodded, taking off again. Sky sat with the dog, petting the animal soothingly. The Dalmatian whined and fidgeted on her feet. But Sky's soothing voice and soft stroking helped keep the dog still, and Sparky started his checkup.
"Doesn't look too bad." Sparky finally said. "Little smoke inhalation, but no burns."
"Good." Mayday nodded. "Sky, why don't you take the little fella back to the firehouse? See if you can figure out where he belongs."
"Can do, Mayday." Sky nodded. She pulled off her harness and looped part of it around the Dalmatian's neck, leading the dog off with Sparky beside them. The Dalmatian stayed so close to Sky that she almost tripped over the dog. But they made it back to the firehouse and Sky laid out a towel for the Dalmatian to lay on.
Sparky looked the dog over again. "Huh, that's weird. No collar, but she's been spayed. She's gotta belong to somebody."
"How long do you think she's been away from her family?" Sky asked. She grabbed a bowl from the kitchen area of the firehouse and filled it with water, setting it down in front of the dog. The Dalmatian drank it. A good sign for the dog's health.
"Not sure." Sparky admitted. "She's not exactly malnourished, but it looks like she's gone a few days without food." He gently prodded at the dog's ribs, but the Dalmatian whimpered and suddenly darted around to hide behind Sky. Sparky blinked in surprise. "She seems to like you."
"I guess." Sky laughed, gently petting the dog. "She's so skittish."
"Better hold onto her until Mayday comes by." Sparky said. "I'd say she just needs some water for now."
Sky nodded, thanking Sparky as he drove off. Sky guided the Dalmatian back to the towel so she could lay down. The Dalmatian finally relaxed, most likely out of exhaustion, and Sky began petting her again.
"You poor thing." Sky cooed softly. "What could've happened to you?"
After about an hour of fighting the fire, Mayday cleared Dusty and Blade to land and drove back to the firehouse. When he arrived, he discovered Sky rolling a tennis ball across the floor for the Dalmatian to fetch. The Dalmatian darted after the ball giddily, but when she noticed Mayday she suddenly skidded to a halt and galloped back to hide behind Sky.
"Nervous little thing, isn't she?" Mayday noted.
"She is on the skittish side, it would seem." Sky admitted. She rubbed the Dalmatian's head soothingly.
"Any idea where she lives?" Mayday asked.
"Nope." Sky shrugged. "Sparky and I managed to get her to a vet, but they didn't find a microchip on her."
"I guess we'll have to ask around town." Mayday suggested.
"What if we can't find people who own her?" Sky asked. "I mean….where will she go?"
Mayday smirked knowingly. "Well, where do you think she should go?"
Sky couldn't keep her grin off her lips, and she kept petting the Dalmatian. "I mean, if she doesn't have a good home…maybe we could give her one."
Mayday chuckled good-naturedly. "You have such a kind heart, Skylar. It's always nice to see it show. But she might be a stray. We have to at least try and find out if she has owners."
"Did you tell Mayday about your crazy plan too?" Sparky said as he appeared in the doorway of the firehouse.
"It's not crazy to take in a dog off the streets." Sky protested. "Or, in this case, out of a fire."
"This coming from the girl who once tried to 'adopt' a raccoon raiding our trashcans." Sparky pointed out. "You know Skipper doesn't like animals in the hanger. He once tried to convince me that he was allergic to animal hair."
"But we need to keep her safe until we can find where she belongs." Sky said.
"She can stay in the firehouse until then." Mayday offered.
"Great." Sparky nodded. "Come on, Sky. Skipper says it's time for dinner."
"Okay." Sky stood up, giving the Dalmatian one last pat. "See ya, doggie." She began towards the door, but paused when she heard whining. The Dalmatian paced nervously, looking back and forth between Sky and Mayday. The fire truck observed the dog's erratic behavior for a moment, and then he reversed back into the office space. The Dalmatian darted forward and curled up around Sky's feet.
"Good gracious." Mayday breathed.
"What a scaredy-cat." Sparky snorted. "I mean, dog."
Sky knelt down and petted the Dalmatian. "You sure we can't take her home temporarily, Sparky?"
"Skipper doesn't like animals in the hanger, and I don't think it's a good idea to put a skittish dog next to a giant warplane." Sparky pointed out. He stared at the dog for a minute. "But, for the sake of the dog, maybe it would be a good idea for you to stay with her tonight. If that's all right with you, Mayday."
"Of course." Mayday assured. "I'd be happy to have some company in here."
"I'll bring you over a sleeping bag and some dinner." Sparky offered, driving off.
"You're the best, Sparky!" Sky called after him. She encouraged the Dalmatian back to her makeshift bed, sitting down beside the dog.
Mayday observed how closely the Dalmatian stayed to Sky. "Poor thing's traumatized. Wonder how she got lost."
"Being in a fire must've been bad enough." Sky noted.
"I bet she'll be okay by tomorrow." Mayday said. "Especially with a little TLC."
"I can give her plenty of that." Sky assured with a smile.
That night, Sky slept in her sleeping bag on the floor of the firehouse, well out of Mayday's potential driving path should there be a fire. The Dalmatian slept curled up on top of Sky's legs, her warmth passing comfortably into Sky. On any other night, the warmth would've been enough to lull Sky into sleep. But she couldn't stop staring off into space, and her eyes wouldn't stay closed. She glanced over to a pile of gear just next to her pillow, ready to be used just in case. Three pieces of equipment rested there: her harness, the pulaski tool, and Max's old firefighting helmet he gave her so long ago.
Sky sat up quietly, careful to not wake the Dalmatian, and she lifted the fire helmet in her hands. The helmet was red in color, with a clear visor that slid up and down. It looked like a typical firefighting helmet, but it wore scars of the noble profession. Sky stared at the labels on the front, reading them quietly to herself.
"'Max Wesley. Propwash Junction Firefighter. Captain.'" Sky stared at that last one. "Captain?" A shadow passed over Sky, blocking the moonlight coming through the window, and she looked up to see Mayday in front of her.
"That was Max's role in the station." Mayday said, gesturing to the helmet. "I needed a second-in-command, and after a few years he proved himself fit for the job. Of course, he would always say that I just chose him because he was the only other firefighter in town." He and Sky laughed.
"Max said this was one of his spare helmets." Sky suddenly remembered.
"He always liked to keep two helmets around." Mayday explained. "In case he ever lost one."
Sky's smile soon fell, and she hugged the helmet to her chest. "I miss him."
Mayday sighed, nodding. "Yeah, I miss him too, kiddo. He was a good one."
"Do you…do you think I'll ever be as good a firefighter as him?" Sky asked.
"Now I don't want you thinking like that, Sky." Mayday said. "I don't want you to be as good as him. I want you to be as good as you can be."
"I'm just afraid I'm going to mess up."
"That's typical of most firefighters, even veterans. But you're doing very well."
"You sure?"
"Absolutely."
Sky started smiling again. "Thanks, Mayday." She gave a half-laugh, half-sigh. "Why am I freaking out about this? You and Blade are great teachers and I'm apparently doing well. I wasn't this nervous with racing."
"Well, it's a different ball game." Mayday reminded her. "There are going to be people relying on you."
"Because lives will often be at stake in this line of work." Sky guessed. "Well, that's it then. Never been responsible for someone else's life. Not like anyone was responsible for me."
"Skipper and Sparky are, aren't they?" Mayday pointed out.
Sky bobbed her head. "I guess so."
Mayday stared at her for a moment. "Must not be easy for someone to be responsible for you and then forget about that responsibility."
Sky didn't answer. Mayday was one of the few people in Propwash Junction who fully understood her story. The entire town knew she became an orphan because of abandonment, but only a handful knew the details: Skipper, Sparky, Dusty, Chug, Dottie, and Mayday. But, though they were never in her shoes, at least they understood how to help Sky whenever she became forced to remember her birth parents.
Sky looked to the Dalmatian, then up to Mayday again. "Thanks for everything, Mayday."
"It's always nice to talk to you, Skylar." Mayday chuckled. "Sleep well."
"Goodnight." Sky said.