A/N: And so, the final arc of my story! Summary for this arc: Sky and Dusty's career as racers is suddenly brought to a grinding halt because of Dusty's damaged gearbox. And if that wasn't enough, Sky is starting to wonder if being a racer really is all she wanted to do. As they pursue the job of firefighter to help Mayday and Propwash Junction, Sky makes an amazing discovery that enhances her powers. But will this new discovery push her and Dusty apart? Or can they stay together through one of their toughest challenges?

Enjoy!

Connection Through Fire

Chapter One: Forced Vacation

Dedicated to the brave firefighters around the world who risk their lives to save the lives of others.

It only took that one win in the Wings Around the Globe Rally to launch Dusty Crophopper and Skylar Amelia "Sky" Riley into infamy. The two years that followed were simply part of the adventure. They became racing legends, traveling across the United States and even to a couple different countries around the world to participate in races and make appearances. It wasn't all about the racing, of course. They still made time to be at home in Propwash Junction and be with their friends. Skipper, Sparky, Chug, and Dottie did their best to join the pair at their races, watching in amazement as Dusty and Sky wowed the audience with the teamwork and flawless flying. Though proud of their titles as Honorary Jolly Wrenches, Dusty took on his old orange and white paint scheme and Sky went back to tying her hair back with a bandana and wearing her aviation goggles. At Sky's request, she and Dusty began making regular visits to the orphanage where Sky once lived. Though the now-nineteen-year-old used to always keep in touch with Rosa, she found she missed seeing her old foster mother. The children of the orphanage were all big fans of Sky, and meeting both her and Dusty was like a dream come true for them. Having Skipper as her father, Sky continued to see Rosa as her mother even though she didn't live in the orphanage anymore.

Now, with it being the middle of summer, Sky and Dusty decided to return home to Propwash for a while. The entire town prepared for their annual Corn Fest, coming up in a month. It was nice to be home for a while. Dusty and Sky lived to race, but nothing beat Propwash Junction.

"Awesome picture, you guys!" Sparky said, picking up a newspaper outside the Fill N' Fly. "Except, uh, your eyes are closed, Dust."

"Nice." Sky laughed, standing beside Chug as he refueled Dusty.

"You and Sky make quite the team." Mayday said. "Saw it all on my radio with pictures."

Dusty, Sky, Sparky, and Chug blinked. "You mean your TV." Dusty guessed.

"No, that's clearing up." Mayday said. "My bumper was nearly corroded right though. All rusty and blistered."

"Charming, Mayday." Sky said with a giggle. Like most folks Mayday's age, sometimes they didn't know when to not talk about something like that. But at least the old fire truck never lost his touch when it came to his job. Sky assumed that much; emergencies don't happen much around Propwash Junction.

"Hey guys!" Sparky piped up. "Listen to this! 'After their Red Bulldozer win, Dusty Crophopper and Skylar Riley return to Propwash Junction where they will be performing at the town's annual Corn Festival.'"

"They mentioned the Corn Festival?" Mayday asked, surprised.

"That's great!" Dusty asked happily.

"That ought to bump up attendance!" Sky noted.

"It's gonna be the biggest Corn Fest yet!" Dusty agreed.

"Dusty! Skylar!" Skipper greeted, his propeller spinning. "Ready to do some flying?"

"Absolutely, Skipper." Dusty nodded, dipping a wing and allowing Sky to hop up on him.

"Don't stay out too late!" Mayday called.

"Later, Dust! See ya, Sky!" Sparky waved.

"Remember to open your eyes!" Chug chuckled.

Dusty and Sky rolled their eyes, but laughed as they made their way to the runway. "Hey, Propwash Tower! This is Crophopper Seven. Flight of two plus one, ready for takeoff."

"Crophopper Seven, Propwash Tower." The attendant in the tower said. "Wind's calm. Runway two-seven clear for takeoff. Have a great flight, fellas."

Sky lowered her goggles over her eyes and gripped the handlebar on Dusty's canopy. She focused on her psych-man abilities. "Crophopper Seven, this is Jolly Wrench Riley. Connection's up and ready to go!"

Dusty laughed. "I read you, Jolly Wrench Riley. Let's go! Crophopper Seven flight, on the roll." He and Skipper took off down the runway, the two planes pulling up into the air. They looped around, flying over Propwash Junction and skimming the corn fields as they headed out to practice.

Sky relaxed from her jockey-like position and leaned back, spreading her arms and letting the wind blow against her. She sighed in content. This is why she loved racing with Dusty. It didn't matter if she couldn't fly on her own; riding Dusty made the feeling all the better.

"Skylar Amelia Riley." Skipper said into the radio.

Sky laughed. "I know, Dad! I'm an active rider, not a passive one." She gripped the handlebar again and pushed her feet into the stirrups at Dusty's sides, hoisting her body up a little more to her usual flying position. Skipper knew when to draw the line between coach and father, but once he slipped into Coach Mode he seemed to go right back into his Navy Commander attitude.

Skipper called into their radio with tips as they approached the grain silos, threading through them as they practiced their radial-G turns. Skipper kept close behind Dusty and Sky as they shot over the landscape, knife-edging trees and making smooth rolls and turns.

"Now let's work that vertical!" Skipper ordered.

"Roger that!" Sky said into the radio. "Come on, Dusty!" The two of them shot under a bridge over the river, pulling up and shooting up into the clouds. Thank goodness Dusty's fear of heights was long since conquered, otherwise they'd have a repeat of what happened their first training session with Skipper.

As they cleared the first level of clouds, Dusty's engine began sputtering. An alarm beeped at them and a small warning light flashed on the plane's panel, indicating something was going wrong. Sky gasped in pain as she felt like someone pinched her. "Dusty?" She called worriedly. "Hey, our connection's failing! What's wrong?"

"I don't know!" Dusty said, sounding confused. Then, Dusty's propeller stopped spinning altogether, and he did a flip as he spiraled down towards the ground.

"Dusty!" Sky called, desperately trying to reactivate their connection. "Dusty, the connection's not working! Pull up!"

"I…I can't!" Dusty gasped, desperately trying to get his gearbox to respond.

Skipper dived down after them. "Dusty? Skylar! Are you okay?"

Dusty's propeller started spinning again, allowing the racers to stay in the air. The two of the panted, still shocked over what happened. "My…..my engine!" Dusty gasped.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!" Skipper said calmly. "Steady there."

"Dusty, head back to the airport." Sky said. "The connection's back up, but I don't trust that won't happen again."

"R-right." Dusty agreed, still a bit overwhelmed. Even Sky panted a bit, trying to get her heart rate back down. It felt like her heart literally skipped a beat as their connection failed without warning. What the heck just happened up there?

Sparky checked out Sky while Dottie did some preliminary work on Dusty. As far as the forklift medic could tell, Sky had a clean bill of health. But not he nor anybody else could explain why Sky and Dusty's connection seemed to stall like Dusty's engine did. Dottie berated Dusty, yet again, for pushing himself so hard.

"Come on, Dot." Dusty scoffed. "You saw me and Sky at the Red Bulldozer race. And hey, Speed City Airfest is just a few weeks away! Sky, I think if we get a little more speed coming out of our turns, really work that radial-G, we can definitely improve our time. What do you think, Sky?"

Sky laughed from her spot on Skipper's wing. "Hey, take it easy, Dusty. We only got back from our last race less than two days ago. Take a break. It feels like we've been doing nothing but racing this entire year."

"Maybe, but it's fun!" Dusty said excitedly.

Sky laughed again. "I guess I can't deny that." Still, she wished she could tell Dusty that she wanted to take more than a few weeks off from racing. There was usually a set racing season, but Dusty and Sky found themselves often going abroad during the off season, save for holidays. If they did both Speed City Airfest and the Corn Fest, it'd be a back-to-back set of races….again. Sky loved to race, just like Dusty. She loved the feeling of the wind in her hair and the exhilaration of the speed. But she also relished the moments when they were back home and she could relax with her guitar and her family.

"Well, no damage to the casing or compressor blades." Dottie reported, coming around to be face to face with Dusty.

"See? I told you." Dusty said confidently. "Just a hiccup. Which explains why the connection went wonky."

"Makes sense." Sky shrugged.

Dottie's face didn't seem convincing. "But there is—"

"Dusty! Sky!" Chug honked his horn as he came tearing into the garage. "What happened? Are you guys okay? Was it your fuel? I promise I tested it before I fueled you up! I always take a little sip."

"Yeah, we need to evaluate whether or not that's good for your health." Sky noted, sounding both sassy and concerned.

"It's okay." Dusty repeated. "Sky and I got quite a little scared there—"

"Him more than me." Sky teased.

Dusty smirked. "But it's all good."

"Dusty!" Dottie suddenly spoke up. "Your reduction gearbox is failing."

Dusty paused. "My gearbox?"

"Your chip detector had a cluster of steel shavings on it." Dottie explained. "Flakes from the gears. That's what caused the trouble. The resulting 'hiccup' is what caused your connection with Sky to break."

"I knew it couldn't have been my fault. I'm perfect." Sky said teasingly.

"As if." Dusty laughed.

Sky laughed too. "But in all seriousness, you better get that fixed."

"Don't worry. A gearbox can be replaced." Dusty assured. "We'll order a new one." He looked to Dottie. "Right?" Dottie's face fell, and her eyes looked everywhere except towards Dusty. The former crop duster didn't smile anymore, staring worriedly. "What?"

Everyone stared at Dottie, concern etched into their features. Dottie finally sighed. "Your gearbox…..it's…it's out of production. Long since discontinued. Can't even remember the last time I saw one."

"Why would they discontinue it?" Sky asked curiously.

"It's a complex piece of machinery." Dottie explained. "Must've cost too much to manufacture it."

"But Dottie…..come on." Chug pleaded. "Can't you just build Dust a new one?"

"No." Dottie said. "It's too complex. It has to be factory."

Dusty could see this wasn't going in a good direction. "So what does that mean?"

"You have to back off the torque." Dottie told the orange and white plane. "Don't go over eighty percent."

Dusty jolted. "What?! Eighty percent? Dottie, you've got me cranked up to 140. Sky and I need that to race!"

"We hold back, we won't stand a chance!" Sky chimed in.

"If you push yourself into the red, your gearbox will fail." Dottie said.

"No, no, Dottie!" Dusty shook his nose, not wanting to hear or believe what the forklift told him.

"And then your engine will seize."

"Maybe the test that you did was wrong!"

"Dusty, listen!"

"But I've got a race coming up!"

"YOU'LL CRASH!"

Dusty went silent, staring at Dottie in shock like most everyone else did.

"You push yourself into the red, you'll crash." Dottie repeated.

"No he won't." Sky hopped down, walking to stand beside Dusty. "I can help. Our connection lets us share power, maybe I can help ease the stress, take some of the pain—"

"No!" Dottie said, firmly yet worriedly. "Sky, you can't use your powers with his engine anymore; it will only make things worse."

"You don't know that." Sky said, glaring.

"But I do know that if Dusty's gearbox fails and his engine seizes while you two are connected…." Dottie swallowed. "The resulting injuries will carry through your connection and you could get seriously hurt, maybe even killed."

Sky wanted to protest, but the serious look in Dottie's eyes made her own widen in realization. "But…..I mean….."

"I'm gonna install a warning light on your panel." Dottie told Dusty. "If it comes on, you'll need to pull power."

Dusty stared at the forklift, crushed beyond belief. "But….Dottie, you're…..you're saying…I…..I can't…" He looked to Sky. "….that we can't…race anymore."

Sky stared at her racing partner, feeling a similar sensation of crushing defeat. "Dottie?"

Dottie stared at them sadly. "I'm so sorry."

Everyone went silent. Sky sat down on Dusty's wing, feeling weak, and gently placed a hand on the plane's flank. Dusty slumped on his landing gear, fighting the urge to cry.

It's over.