Flash Fire

Part Two

Written by Zelda

 

                Seconds after the explosion came a trumpeting warning cry from the dragon in the air, causing her to nearly drop the first aid kit. The sound was barely heard over the blast itself, and was drowned out completely by a roar of panicked car horns. She spiraled higher into the air to avoid any shrapnel that could blast out to her distance, spotting against the contrast of flames a blue light on the ground below.

                Wildwing had his shield out in front of him, nearly hauling a man out of the passenger seat of his car, arguing with him loudly over the roar of the fire. There were still two cars crushed under that tree, it would only be a matter of moments before their gas tanks ignited as well. “I said GO!” Wildwing shoved the man roughly away. “Forget about your stuff, do you want to end up in the hospital?” In his head, he was cursing the lack of common sense these humans were showing. He reached down for his com and opened a channel. “You okay up there Zel?”

                “On the other side of the fire!” she replied, the crackling of the flames spitting into the mic. “Wind’s still coming towards you Wing, when those other cars go you’ll need to be back more if you don’t want to be fried!”

                “Roger that, any people stuck over there?”

                “All clear.” she reported back. “The explosion sent them running. No sign of the firetrucks though, we’re on our own for now.”

                “Peachy.” Wildwing grunted. “Come back over on this side, we’ve still got people sticking with their cars.”

                “On my way.”

                The connection snapped shut and Wildwing turned, looking across the lines of vehicles piled up on the road. His eyes caught onto a pair quickly, a woman that seemed to be tugging at something in her backseat. Wildwing rolled his eyes and grumbled again as he ran towards her, hopping over the hood of a car on the way. When would these people realize they didn’t have time to haul their luggage with them? “Let’s go lady, leave your stuff behind!” he called out to her, waving as he approached. The woman didn’t seem to hear him, or ignored him, and continued clawing frantically. But as Wildwing reached her, his attitude swung radically. She wasn’t trying to pluck a suitcase from her car, but get her baby out of its carseat. The child’s frantic crying was blotted out by the flames.

                “Please!” she spun as soon as she realized someone was nearby. “Help me get him out!”

                “Just a second.” Wildwing nodded, reaching into a pouch in his belt. He brought out a puck which had a serrated blade concealed within it. “Try to keep him still.” he advised, quickly leaning into the car and starting to saw away at the seat straps. The kid in his ear was wailing and squirming, but finally he was cut free. “Alright, now go!” he pointed, handing her the child and gesturing off.

                “Oh thank you!” she yelled, grabbing the boy tight across her chest and fleeing quickly.

                Wildwing breathed a short sigh of relief as he watched her run, but only had a second to pause as a loud thud sounded from the hood of the car behind him, and he turned to see Zelda climbing toward him, on top of the roof.

                “You alright?” she asked.

                “Not charbroiled just yet.” he nodded. “Keep trying to shoo these people back, I’ll see what’s the ETA on the others getting up here.” Zelda snorted an affirmative and flapped off while Wildwing raised his com again. “Mallory, status report!”

                There was a slight pause before any response came, a crackling taking up the empty space. “Don’t exactly have a middle lane for you yet, but we’re working on it!” she replied.

                “Good enough, I need both you and Grin to move forward, start getting these people to take that center lane and start walking out.”

                “Rodger that Wing.” Mallory answered.

                “Just keep your distance from this main fire here, the wind’s starting to shift…” and as he spoke, smoke blew around him, shrouding him in a veil of half-light, stinging his eyes and nose with the burning tar. “It’s--- pretty acrid stuff---“ he finished with a cough.

                “Over and out.”

Mallory’s com clicked, and Wildwing closed his eyes to block out the smoke, patching in a different com link purely out of memory. “Tanya--- you still with the ‘Grator?”

                “Yeesh Wing, you sound awful!” Tanya responded. “What’s going on out there?”

                “Fire’s getting smoky--- Gonna need you to bring the ‘Grator closer--- we need to evacuate these people---“

                “Got that.” Tanya agreed. “We can hold quite a few in the Migrator, but anyone who isn’t injured or doesn’t have kids should try and get out on their own. How many are we looking at?”

                “---Can’t tell---“ Wildwing confessed, squinting. “Hard to see---“

                “The wind direction’s changed.” Tanya’s voice started to edge with concern. “The smoke’s blowing back towards us instead of up into the sky. You may need to use your rebreather, I don’t know how healthy it is out there…”

                “I’ll be fine---“ Wildwing nodded. “Let’s just get a move on with these people---“

                “Be right up with you.” Tanya replied, and cut her connection as well.

                Left with the crackling flames and the few shouts of distressed people, Wildwing waved his hands around to try and clear the smoke, and get some clean air. The fire was definitely getting worse, through the haze he could see the flames already crackling on the other side of the road, as if the fire had just flowed right across the highway. And then, another one of the other cars trapped beneath the fallen trees exploded. Smoke billowed back into Wildwing’s face, and he was forced to duck from the wave of heat. Staying down, he brought up his shield and held it over his head for protection from any falling debris. With his other hand, he opened his com again. “Zelda?”

                “I’m okay!” she responded quickly. “Got a guy with a burned arm in the cars here, I’m patching him up.”

                “Need my help?” he asked, half-standing in anticipation.

                “It’s not bad, and I’ve got the med kit.” she answered. “Stay put until the wind shifts again, all the ash is blowing this way, hope no embers come with it---“

                And there was another explosion, cutting her off. Wildwing thought that it might have been the final car stuck under the trees, but it was far too loud, and the wave that hit him seconds later nearly blew him off his feet. Glass hailed down on him, from somewhere very nearby. And people were screaming. It was one of the other cars, ones that had been abandoned along the road, one of the cars right around where he was standing! In a split second, Wildwing put it all together as he curled underneath his back armor for protection from the heat. Embers from the fire must have blown back and ignited the other cars, or maybe it was a chunk of flaming debris. Either way, it was now setting off a chain reaction of the cars around it, another explosion sounded even closer this time. Despite all of the heat, Wildwing’s blood ran cold as he thought of all the people that, although they were out of range from an explosion from one of the crushed cars, would not be safe from the cars that they were still close to. All of these abandoned vehicles around him had become time bombs. And the people were aware of it, now sounding like they were fleeing for dear life. This was only the beginning, too. It would be a matter of moments, maybe minutes or just seconds, before the other cars around him started to explode. Finding his legs, Wildwing sprung to his feet and started running away from the smoke, the wind at his back. He was about to radio Tanya and tell her not to bring the Migrator too close, but something about the situation made him hesitate. Maybe a little of Zelda’s instinct was rubbing off on him, because he knew that something was wrong. And then his com crackled.

                “---You alright?!” It was Mallory’s distressed voice at the other end. “I heard that one from back here!”

                “I’m fine! Do me a favor and tell Tanya to hold the ‘Grator back a bit when you see her, we’ve got a much bigger problem on our hands!”

                “It’s not just the cars Wing!” Zelda suddenly cut in on the transmission. “The explosions, they left us with no place to go!” There was a strange distortion on her line.

                “Are you okay?”

                “For the moment---“ she coughed. “The burning car cut a lot of people off from that empty lane, they’ve ran back into the woods, to your right, the woods the fire’s coming from!”

                “Are they crazy?” Wildwing skidded to a stop, trying to see through all of the smoke in the direction Zelda was calling from.

                “I followed them, they’ve all scattered, and with the wind shifting the fire is blowing back in my direction!”

                “Keep at it girl, and watch yourself, I’ll be right with you!” Wildwing ordered, and quickly switched his com link over. “Dive, Duke, you still awake back there?”

                “Bro?” It was Dive who answered first. “What’s with all the fireworks up there?”

                “We’ve got big trouble, I’m calling you two in closer, I need you to meet Zelda at her coordinates, use your autotracker to find her.”

                “Just a moment, Wildwing.” Grin’s voice crackled up over the link. “They are the only ones without rebreathers. I suggest Mallory and I go in.”

                “That’s right…” Wildwing blinked the stinging sensation out of his eyes. “Thanks a ton Grin, I forgot about that. Go ahead then, meet up with her and help direct those people out ASAP. Dive, Duke, you’ll meet with me, we’ve got to try and keep this crowd moving as far away from here as possible.” He started coughing again before he was able to continue his order. “Tanya--- still need you here--- just not as close. We’ve got injured, people with kids, they need a quick ride out.”

                “They’ll get it.” Tanya responded. “I’m almost to Mallory and Grin’s positions now.”

                “Then everyone move, and do it fast, I don’t want this fire overtaking us!” Without any more additions from his com, Wildwing continued his retreat from the scattering of abandoned cars. Behind him, he heard another one explode as he fled, felt the heat nearly singe the feathers on the back of his neck. He wouldn’t be of any good if he was burned to a crisp. He still had the small fire extinguisher in his hands, and he intended to use it, no matter what little effect it would have on the growing inferno behind him.

 

                The heat was intense, the smoke was burning her nostrils even when she wasn’t breathing. A wide-eyed and frantically searching dragon bound across the forest floor, littered with burning logs, and constantly watching for those that would descend from the timber that was still burning overhead. By now, every instinct was screaming for her to get out of this place. No creature in its right mind would willingly run into the path of a forest fire. Leave it to the humans to do just that. Now she was chasing after them, catching a flash of a business suit here, a summer dress there. Some distance ago, she had passed a charred sneaker. There was no use in stopping to get a scent, the fire was moving faster than she could, and now she was in just as much danger as any of the people who had fled in here. But she could still see the road, at least, through the billowing smoke. If anything happened, she’d be able to bail into an open space in relatively little time.

                “Everyone! Back to the road!” she roared out ahead of her. “You’ll be safer there!” Hopefully these crazy humans would heed her warning, they’d all be in much deeper trouble if they didn’t.

 

                “You see her anywhere?” Mallory called out.

                “Not yet, but she is close.” Grin replied, his voice calm as he ran just behind her.

                “We should split up.” Mallory suggested. “Priority one is getting these people out!”

                “Agreed.” Grin broke rank as he spotted a man in the distance. “Keep a com line open, I will be nearby.”

                Mallory kept running, beelining straight into the forest, and suddenly finding herself in a giant, orange-glowing furnace. So this is what a brick oven pizza must feel like… She stopped for a moment, looking up and having to squint, the contrast of the fire and the blackened trees against the cloudless blue sky. A violent breeze whipped smoke back at her, forcing her to then duck down, hands over her eyes and gagging for breath. Thank goodness for Tanya and those rebreather things. Mallory felt that she was going to need them. She ran sideways, barely able to see, and was able to escape the veil of smoke. Leaping clean over a fallen log that was disintegrating into ashes, she heard a sound that caught her attention. It was a short sort of moan, and Mallory changed course, trying to peek around the smoldering debris. Something large and black went barreling past her, and Mallory knew the source of the noise. It was a black bear, fleeing from the fire as well. It startled her so much that she let out a frightened yelp, and the sound was mirrored by a man that was standing nearby.

                “Hey, you there!” Mallory snapped herself back to order. “This place is gonna get you killed, get back to the road!”

                “Yes--- yes of course!” he stammered, then turned on his heels and was quickly lost in the smoke.

                Coughing, Mallory took a moment to brace her hands on her knees and get her bearings again.

               

 

                The distant wailing of sirens was an incredible source of relief to Tanya, and she sighed audibly as she spotted three large fire tankers on the Migrator’s radar. “Wing, we’ve got some official help on the way, I’m reading three tankers just a quarter mile out!” she called, over her com.

                “Great.” he sighed with equal relief. “And they’ll have a good route through with that clear lane, thanks for the head’s up Tanya.”

                “No problem.” she nodded. “I don’t see an ambulance with them yet, but these people in the back with me aren’t that bad, they’re patching each other up. Any word from those in the woods yet?”

                “I think all the heat is interfering with our signal, I can’t get a clear connection through to them.”

                “Me neither.” Tanya started. “They could have moved some distance away…”

                “They’ll be alright.” Wildwing reassured. “Our first concern has gotta be these people---“ He was cut off by a very harsh crackling, what Tanya had now come to recognize as another exploding car. After a few seconds, things cleared again. “The firefighters’ll help us find the others. I still have Duke and Nosedive here with me. But just keep an eye out on the radar, if they come up on the Autotracker, let me know.”

                “You’ve got it.” Tanya nodded, looking over her shoulder to see if she could spot the fire trucks out of the side window. “I’d give an ETA of about ten minutes to those tankers.”

                “We’ll be waiting.” Wildwing said, and then shut his com.

 

                She had gone in far too deep, that was clear. Long ago, she’d lost track of Grin. Had Zelda really gone this far into the woods, chasing people? She couldn’t imagine anyone running all the way back here. A loud crackling resounded over Mallory’s head, and she had to jump aside as part of a treetrunk, engulfed in flames, came thundering down merely feet away from where she had just been standing. “This is nuts!” she said aloud. “No way I’m stickin’ around here.” Taking a glance around to make sure nothing else would fall on her, she opened her com and raised her wrist. “Grin? You find Zelda yet?” She listened for a few seconds, and was met only with static as a response. “Grin, come on!” Still no answer. Frustrated, Mallory pressed a few buttons and switched over to her Autotracker, only to find that it wasn’t working!

“Aww, great.” she muttered, banging on the device. All of his heat must have been interfering with their signals, and now she didn’t know where anyone was! Mallory made up her mind then and there to get out of this crazy situation, before she got roasted. She started backtracking in the direction that she thought the road was in, calling out for her teammates every once and a while. But with all of the fire around her, landmarks were burning and collapsing by the moment. She quickly lost her sense of direction, the heat wearing on her, and the danger unnerving here. She wanted out now. If only she could find her way…

 

                Even for a firebreather, this was not her element at all. Zelda took a high leap over a young pine, crumbling to the ground with crackling noises and a bloom of smoke as is burned beneath her. In the distance, she could hear the howling of sirens, guiding her back to the road. And it was a good thing that the firefighters had arrived. Although she’d been involved in thankfully few brushfires in her life, she knew that this one was bad. It was moving fast, the ground that hadn’t been scorched already was as dry as a tinderbox. It was good to have some professionals on the scene, who could battle the fire back from the road, and get the people out of harm’s way. This situation had overwhelmed the seven Ducks by now, and she was glad to have the help. There was an instant rush of cooler air as she emerged back onto the roadway, brought on by a misty spray of water vapor from the already active hoses. But the stink of the burning cars was still thick, and gasoline fumes still hung in the air. Zelda shook herself free of ash, feeling her dried scales crackle, and roared out for her teammates.

                “There you are girl!” It was Duke’s voice that answered, waving from far off.

                Relieved at the sight of him unsinged, Zelda ran, panting by the time she caught up to him halfway.

                “My tailfeathers girl, you look like you’re well-done.” he shook his head, kneeling down by her to make sure she was really okay.

                “That’s one bad fire.” she nodded, rearing up and trying to catch her breath. “What kind of backup do we have now?”

                “Three fire tankers, I think more are on the way.”

                “Good stuff.” she nodded, turning back to look at the approaching fire. By now, it had continued to run across and to the other side of the road, engulfing more and more cars as it spread.

                “You look exhausted.” Duke pulled a water bottle out from where he had it stored in a belt loop. “Here.” He squirted some into grateful jaws, and then over her face and back.

                Zelda swallowed and shook herself off, sighing. “Now that feels good. At this rate, I’ll be shedding scales for weeks.” She turned back to look at the side of the forest she’d just emerged from, and flattened her ears. “Are we all out?”

                “I saw Grin just a moment ago…” Duke started, looking around. “There, see? He’s over there.” he pointed off towards the Migrator.”

                “But where’s Mallory?” Zelda asked, growing visibly unsettled.

                “Haven’t seen her.” Duke stood, looking back into the burning forest. “She might be in the Migrator though, our coms aren’t working, I wish we could just radio in and check…”

                “I have a bad feeling about this…” Zelda muttered, her brows creasing in worry. “We should go back in there.”

                “Are you crazy?” Duke asked, pointing. “You’ll get char-broiled! Look, why don’t we take a quick run back the ‘Grator and just make sure. And if she’s not there, we’ll call the firefighters and they’ll send a team in. We can’t go back in there girl, it’s suicide!”

                The dragoness wasn’t swayed, still staring into the woods. “I’ve just got the worst feeling that she’s lost in there Duke. Look, I’ve done this before, I can fly my way over the fire, do a little scouting. It won’t take me more than a few minutes, and if I can’t find her, I’ll know she’s here and I’ll come back.”

                “Zelda, let’s just check first--- Hey!” Duke reached out to try and grab the dragon as she was suddenly airborne, flapping off. Zelda let out a loud roar, looking back at him and gesturing to the Migrator. “Crazy dragon.” he snorted, turned on his heels, and was off for the vehicle.

 

                “She did what?” Wildwing asked, as he looked up from wrapping a sheet of gauze around a burned elbow. “You let her go back in there?”

                “It’s not easy to stop her when she’s ten feet over your head.” he frowned. “But you guys haven’t seen Mallory either?”

                “This is bad Wing.” Tanya frowned from the passenger-side computers. “You know how Zel gets those hunches.”

                “But she could be anywhere by now, we can’t track her with Drake 1 and we can’t just tell a fire crew to go in blindly.”

                “Then we should, bro.” Nosedive piped up. “I know we don’t stand much of a chance with just some extinguishers and rebreathers, but it would be easier for us to find them both, than some strangers, right?”

                “He’s right.” Grin nodded. “If we agree to stay together, we should all be relatively safe.”

                “This is nuts.” Duke smacked his forehead.

                “Nuts or not, we don’t leave our teammates behind.” Wildwing tucked his bandaging into place and replaced his armored gauntlet. “We’re going in, so everyone grab what you can carry, and Tanya, take a first aid kit just in case.”

                “I hate it when he says stuff like that…” Duke whined, as the team filed out of the Migrator, to face the raging fire before them.

 

 

End of Part 2…

 

 

Mighty Ducks-The Animated Series, including all logos and characters (except me) are copyright and property of Disney. You may copy, print, or whatever with this document, so long as it is not altered and I (Zelda) am credited. Thanks!