The Taisho fire

Markings

We're getting a little action today. Brace for impact.

When Gwen walked into the station that day, still reeling from Yokai legends, the state of agitation caused her to freeze. All thoughts of the Captain's writings fled her mind as she rushed to her team leader.

"Erik!", she called. "What's wrong ?"

The bulky man turned to her, features tense.

"The garage door is stuck."

Gwen turned to the massive metallic lift over gate that kept their vehicle safe during the night.

"Shit."

"We called the repair team, they said it would take a few hours."

A few hours... anything could happen within a few hours, but the firetruck wasn't needed every day. If luck was on their side, this would be the only stressing moment of the day.

"Let's cross fingers that...", she started.

A hand landed upon her mouth, startling her.

"Argh ! Shut the hell up, you're going to jinx us. Go and play the piano instead."

The piano ? In the middle of a shift ?

"But... ?"

"That will help us unwind", Erik concluded, walking away.

The young woman shrugged, and tucked her bag below the piano, extracting music sheets and shuffling through. Choosing some Einaudi composition, Gwen allowed her fingers to lull the fire station and herself to a suspended moment of contentment. Le onde was one of her favourite pieces. Funny, how her love for the piano was used as a psychological support whenever things went awry.

Afterwards, Gwen shifted to the newest Simon Daum composition It's gonna be alright. She cursed through every mistake, but her team mates didn't seem to mind as they milled around. In the back of her mind, though, the young woman counted the minutes before the repair team could make it. Being short of the firetruck was akin to running a marathon with a missing leg. A fleeting though ran to her Captain, up there, who must be having a fit.

Or perhaps not; the man was always calm when facing danger. Probably a result of many years spent in the army... As she was starting another piece, the blaring alarm split her ears. Gwen's fingers landed on the piano awkwardly, the sound echoing through the basement.

"Fuck", she swore, flying from her seat to join her unit.

"We need the truck !", someone shouted.

Gwen's stomach plummeted. Damn murphy ! Curses sounded as the whole station sparked to life. Erik and three of their strongest men attempted to lift the massive door that kept them trapped, shouts and grunts telling her the mechanism was stuck.

"Call the eleventh !", a booming voice sounded from upstairs.

Would the eleventh station be able to cover the distance in time ? Every minute counted in a fire.

The Captain nearly jumped down the pole, his hand barely touching the metal bar. Wide eyed, Gwen watched his knees bend to accommodate the one story fall as if he's just jumped over a bench. He took off at once, dragging a heavy ladder over his shoulder to reach for the mechanism of the garage door.

"Watch out!", he bellowed, ripping the cover with his bare hands. The piece of heavy plastic fell below them, indentations in the place his fingers had dug into it. Then, Taishō reached for the chain and yanked – hard. The muscles of his arms budged, his whole body tensed as he pulled like a madman.