Bush Hill Fire
Summer 2021, Week 1
Thursday afternoon
Bush Hill, Victoria Field
DeAndre Walker
With little effort, he knocked the doorknob off another door and swung it open to look inside. "Fire Department! Is anyone inside!?" Peering through the light haze of smoke, Andre did a quick search of the room before moving to the one across the hallway, repeating the process. He was on the top floor of the 5 story rundown apartment building. The second and third floors on the far side of where he was at were in flames by the time his truck had arrived. When they dismounted, the Lieutenant broke the bad news that there were people still trapped inside. That's when his mentor gave him a knowing look and a nod. Into the grinder once again. Since moving to New Victoria a year ago, he always found the environment was different from the rest of the country. But when the ESI was announced it was basically the law that he didn't have to hide anymore. That day he went and told his Lieutenant, who just smiled and told him he already knew. "You smashed in a reinforced door a month or so back during that factory fire like it was cardboard, son." Since then, Andre found himself in the more dangerous situations. And he was okay with that. He could take it...maybe. So, here he was on the fifth floor looking for someone, anyone, who was still trapped here. "Fire Department! Shout out or bang on somethin' so I can get to you!"[x2 Basic Actions, -0EP]
Isaac Crysentine
"Over here!" Isaac yelled, struggling to keep his family safe from the flames. Everything was going wrong. What had started as a controlled burn to rapidly cook some steak for dinner spread to be uncontrollable even for him. It had spread to the washcloths, to the few plants nearby, and finally the wooden cabinets and drawers until the flames raged all around them. Isaac's brother, Nathan, managed to call 911 as Isaac ushered his family into a bedroom in the corner of the apartment, unsure as to the speed at which the flames would spread. Slowly, he concentrated, relaxed, and tuned himself with the small physical and emotional needs of his body. As the flames burst through the door, Isaac put his hands out before him and halted the flames in their tracts. Not by touching them, but by simply willing them to cease. He had never attempted something like this, but this confined doorway through which the fire spread meant there was only a small amount he truly had to control. If he could just hold out until help arrived, then his family might just make it out alive.[x1 Strenuous Action, -15 EP]
DeAndre Walker
Stopping when he heard the shout for help, Andre looked around and saw the door down the hall it seemed like the sound was coming from. It was closer to the side the fire was on, evident by the smoke streaming out from the space under the door. Running towards the door, he shouted "Get away from the door!" as a warning to anyone on the other side. Waiting for a solid count of three, he kicked the door in and splinted the wood around the lock. Entering the house, he looked around for any sign of life and heard more words for help coming from another room. Fire was everywhere, raging in the kitchen and across the living room. If you can't handle the heat, stay out of the--now is not the time for puns! Sue him, he turned to humor when he was nervous. The room was hot, but thankfully not to the level yet as to overcome his naturally enhanced endurance. Though I am starting to wish I had rock skin or something. Turning a hallway, he saw a wall of flames in front of a door just...there? "What the--" Through the flames and the doorway he could see a young man, hands out and strain clear on his face. The fire just flickered there, almost like it was being held in place--oh. Oh. Oh shit. Not time to jump to conclusions, Andre unhooked the mini-portable extinguisher strapped to his back and attacked the flames. Seeing the flames die enough, he saved the rest of the can and jumped through the fire into the room with the--family, not just the young man. "Is everyone okay? I'm going to get you all out of here alright. My name is Andre with the Fire Department, can you tell me your names?" He was distracting them with words as his eyes roved over everyone, looking for anyone he'd need to carry or provide immediate aid to.[x1 Basic, -0EP]
Isaac Crysentine
Thank god. Struggling to speak and barely breaking his concentration, he barely managed to say "Isaac," before the rest of his family gave their names. Thomas for his dad, Jennifer for his mom, and Nathan for his brother. All of them were almost completely fine, save for minor amounts of smoke inhalation and soot on their clothes. Isaac was the most damaged of all, if you could call it that. Flames like this can't hurt me, but can definitely sear through some of my clothes. At this point, the flames had been extinguished enough to the point where complete concentration wasn't necessary and much minimal effort could be applied to the doorway to keep the fire at bay. "Take my family, please. I can hold the flames back for a lot longer now that you've extinguished them enough."DeAndre Walker
Looking at the slightly younger man, Andre's protests fell silent on his lips. His clothes were singed or burned, but he seemed fine. Probably a part of his powers I guess. "I'll come back for you after I get them down, don't worry." His voice sounded a lot more confident then he felt. Three people to get past a wall of flames. Shit, if only I could fly them down. But that was out of the question. He could barely carry his backpack while flying at this point. Carrying them though. Holding out his arms for the Mother, he scooped her up gently as he spoke to the other two. "I'm going to carry each of you to the hallway past the flames. I can hold you high enough that you should avoid any burns. Once we get to the hallway we're making a bee-line out of here." Jennifer did protest, asking about Isaac. Andre promised her he'd get her son after he got all of them out. "Your boy can handle the heat, ma'am. You can't. Neither of us can be worrying about you if we're going to get him out." As often as he could, he did a little jump to hover higher over the flames. It was a bit difficult, but he had enough control he could get them above his normal height. One after the other, he got the family to the hallway and called back to Isaac. "I'll be right back for you, Isaac. I swear it."[x3 Basic, -3EP]
Isaac Crysentine
They're safe, finally. Time to get a little more serious then. Isaac had been holding back for fear of the flames getting around him and getting at his family while he was unawares. Now that they were gone, however, the gloves were off. With a dramatic wave of his arms and hands, he pushed the now-weaker fire completely back into the hallway, far away from the door. The source of the flames itself was still hot, but the immediate area around the bedroom was now clear. He just had to make it easier for Andre to get to him, so slowly he pushed once more to get him closer to the door. Behind him, the flames began to lick up to where he once stood. Isaac was now in the hallway, closer to the apartment entrance but now trapped in a tinier, confined space where the smoke would be denser.[x2 Normal, -6 EP]
DeAndre Walker
It was a few minutes later when the glass of the large--large for Bush Hill apartments--window shattered. DeAndre shrugged himself through the window, missing his large coat. We can argue the merits of abandoning an insulated coat in order to fit through a window at a later time. Dusting off some shards of glass, he gave Isaac a wave when he saw the man was still standing. "The bottom floors got worse after we went through, so I found another way up. Your family is safe and outside. Now it's your turn." Looking out the window and the multiple stories drop he suppressed a shudder. You can do this Andre. You have to do this. "I'm guessing you're immune or resistant to the flames, right? Normally I'd just say stroll out of here, but this building wasn't exactly up to code to begin with. I doubt the stairs could handle either of us right now. So, your personal elevator is here to take you to the ground floor." Perhaps at a speed faster than either of us wants. Andre had never flown with a person. But when he saw the fire grow more intense as he dropped the others off, he had the thought that he didn't exactly need to fly. He needed to descend...in a somewhat controlled manner.[x1 Basic, -1EP]
Isaac Crysentine
"Here, I have an idea. Carry me like you said, but let me do half the work as well. I have just enough strength left to do the trick I think." Without a second thought, Isaac jumped onto Andre's back while mentally preparing himself for trying yet another new thing within the span of the last few minutes. He had just enough strength left to do a controlled burn from his feet, long enough to create an opposing force to gravity and help out Andrew with the descent. Something about using the stairs instead of flying his family down one-by-one told him he just wasn't quite cut out to carry people yet. As Isaac got onto Andre's back, he used what fire he had left in him and lit up his feet to the point of thrust. "There, just to assist you some. Although, I will cut it just before we get too close to the ground so people can't see what I can do."[x1 Minor, -1 EP]
DeAndre Walker
He took the weight of the other man without any concern. Listening to his plan and watching him move his feet around before shooting fire from them, Andre couldn't help but smile. "My own personal jetpack, huh? Sounds good. Everyone else is on the other side of the building so we should be in the clear. Changing laws are nice and all, but I am with you on not making a show." Planting his foot on the windowsill, he crouched enough so both of their heads were clear. Then, with as much concentrated effort as he could muster, he focused on that feeling. It was almost like willing an internal ball inside him, like a joystick, in the direction he wanted to go. But it took effort. At present, he could barely move it enough to get himself flying. But right now, he needed to get them both down safely. Here goes nothing. Leaning forward, they started to fall. The oh shit! didn't slip out because he noticed they were falling slowly, like a parachute was attached to them. Or a jetpack. Isaac's efforts with definitely helping. He couldn't exactly say how he knew that, but he did. After about 10 seconds or so, his feet planted firmly on the ground with only a little bit of knee bend required to absorb the shock of the impact. Letting Isaac down, he wiped the sweat from his brow. Damn. We need to practice more. "Your family is right around the front. I can take you to them."[x1 Normal, -3EP]
Isaac Crysentine
"That would be good! I'm glad they made it out alright. Honestly, I had never done anything like this before, so I feel really lucky this all somehow managed to work out." Isaac said, completely relieved this had in fact worked out. It wasn't long before the two reached Isaac's family, where they embraced him in a long and tight hug. His mom, Jennifer, was in tears, with his dad and brother just holding him in their embrace. Their apartment had essentially been destroyed, but as long as the 4 of them were together their home was just fine. After the touching reunion, the Crysentines all thanked Andre just before the paramedics arrived to check-up on all the survivors. As this was happening, Isaac pulled Andre to the side to have a small word with him. "I need you to promise me something. I need you to promise you won't speak a word of what happened up there to anyone. I know this can jeopardize your job, but if you can come up with some other reason for why the fire started, I would be eternally grateful to you and be in your debt."[x1 Basic, -0 EP]
DeAndre Walker
Andre looked at the man's hand on his arm, but not in anger or irritation--more as a focus point as he processed the request. Letting it sit there for a moment, the firefighter finally answered. "Look, Isaac, that's a big ask. Your powers could have hurt someone, or worse." His golden eyes locked onto his counterparts in the conversation, but all they held was understanding. "But that's not your fault. Just like it's not my fault I can't fly with more than a heavy book in my hands. We've been forced to hide who we are for so long and that's what put people in danger." Sighing and looking around at the still burning building, he nodded. "Your secret is safe with me. So long as you promise me you'll practice. This can't happen again, or at least if it does you can handle it. Hell, with abilities like yours you could be one hell of a firefighter with enough skills. Someone who can stop the flames or move them. So...yeah, no one will hear it from me." Taking out a slip of paper and a pen, Andre wrote his name and number on it for Isaac. "And here, if you ever feel like you just need someone to talk to, hit me up. You aren't the only one learning how to use these gifts."Isaac Crysentine
Isaac looked at the slip of paper and felt a wave of relief sweep over him. "Thank you, Andre, seriously. I don't know what I would have done if my secret got out. I'll be in touch, and I promise I'll do my best to practice when I can. Thank you for everything today man. You're a real one."DeAndre Walker
"You're welcome. That's what we do after all. Help people, fly human jetpacks. All in a normal day's work." DeAndre said with a laugh and a mock salute before he headed off to get back to work.Isaac Crysentine
Laughing at the joke, and fully appreciating Andre’s sense of humor, Isaac got back to his family and let the paramedics check on him. He would have to look for a new apartment with his family, and the place right across the street had a few open spots. He would have to quickly snag them before the rest of his building's occupants got a chance to look. Until then, Isaac was just relieved his family made it out alive.
Type
Record, Historical
Medium
Digital Recording, Text
Authoring Date
June 24, 2021
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