When Ember Shard walked in, it was just another day on the job. He never knew what he was going to have to do on any given day, but that was a part of what made the job so exciting. That, and the sense of satisfaction he got after a good day on the job.

As a member of the Manehattan Fire Department, his job was helping to put out fires and save anypony trapped inside the flames. He had volunteered to be the guy who went into the building for fire rescue. Initially, he did it for the extra pay grade and even greater retirement benefits, but later, it became more about the ponies he was saving. Getting to carry an injured or unconscious pony out of a burning building was thrilling in itself.

Ember worked with some solid guys in his ladder division. There was Granite, a massively muscled stallion, and the other guy who always went into the buildings with Ember. They were tight like the threads of a rope. More than once, they had saved each other’s necks, literally on some. There was no one else that Ember would wan by his side more than Granite.

There was also Morning Glory, resident mare with different colored eyes, amethyst and emerald, and the toughest chick Ember knew. She was a pegasus, and her job was to fly over the building with her breathing gear and drop water from above, if necessary. Otherwise, her job was to fly up to windows and assist ponies in getting out that way.

Then, there were four guys, Coal, Wicker, Rapid Jet, and Quick Torch, who were in charge of blasting water at the flame until it was gone. They were some of the finest stallions that Ember had met. They could put out just about any fire in no time. They were somewhat… hooliganish, in nature, but they were awesome guys.

Together, they were the fire fighters of their ladder division. The other guys were Sonny, the head honcho, an older guy who was basically there when fire departments were invented. There was Gustov, the driver of their engine, the only griffon in any Manehattan fire company. He had been permanently injured ears ago when he went in to carry some foolish college kids out of a building they set ablaze in a drunken stupor, lost one full wing and half of the other. Didn’t stop him from serving, though.

The last one was the only unicorn in their group, Starshine, the unicorn. He was a somewhat odd character, but his magic kept the flames from extending beyond whatever they were already burning. He liked to play poker with everyone, but never did win. Every Friday night, tonight, in fact, they would play, and he would lose. They only bet small money, though, to avoid conflicts.

When Ember walked into the prep room, where they all started for the day, he spotted Granite sitting next to the locker with their gear and waved. Granite waved right back with a big, toothy grin. Ember walked over and hoof-bumped his buddy.

“Nice to see you decided it wasn’t casual Friday,” Granite greeted enthusiastically.

“Nothing casual about this Friday,” Ember said. “It’s the start of these colleges’ Spring Breaks. Anypony that didn’t go home today is gonna lose their mind tonight.”

“Amen to that,” Granite said. He set about getting his gear partially on. “So, how’re things with the wife n’ kids?”

“Great, since I told you yesterday,” Ember said with a laugh. “The kids are still having fun at school, just like I said they would. They didn’t believe me at first, though, when the year started.”

“Ha! They never do,” Granite replied heartily.

“The wife is still fretting over them every second,” Ember went on. “I keep telling her they’ll be fine at school. The teachers will take care of bullies, and I showed the kids a thing or two about dealing with bullies on their own.”

Granite smiled mischievously. “Ah, showed ‘em the good, ‘One, two, done with you’!?” he asked.

Ember grinned and chuckled. “You know it.”

Ember and Granite continued to chat while they put half of their gear on to wait out the day. They wore half of their stuff, mostly just the jackets and such, because if a call came, they had to move fast. It wasn’t a weights day today, so there was no need to take them off at any point. They just had to be ready to go on call at any moment, which was a part of why Ember loved the job so much. Every day was a new adventure.

When he and Granite left the prep room for the engine bay, they found out they were the first ones to arrive for the day. The night crew didn’t leave until both Ember and Granite were there, though, so they had a quick greeting before leaving. Both Ember and Granite were familiar with driving the truck, so in theory, the two of them could respond to a call. It would end in tragedy, losing either a pony or a house, but it was better than nopony answering the call.

It wasn’t long before the others started to file in. The water handlers, as the group referred to them, were the first ones to come in. They always came in together, as if they lived together or did other things together. When questioned about it, they would always just say, “Don’t worry about it.” It made everyone worry about it more.

“Hey, if it isn’t the door kickers themselves!” Coal shouted as he and the others walked in. He had actually been Royal Guard Special Division before, so when he started calling the Fire Rescuers “Door Kickers”, they happily accepted. “Early as usual.”

Granite smiled. “Well, early to bed, early to rise.”

“Coal here got real early to bed last night,” Wicker said with a coy smile.

“Oh?” Ember replied. “Pray tell, what did occur?”

“I must not tell a lie,” Coal said. “So I will simply not be answering your question.”

“Ah, come on, it can’t hurt,” Ember said.

“It can, actually, and it can hurt me quite a bit,” Coal said with a nervous chuckle. “And you know you can’t interrogate me.”

“Bah, every stallion has his breaking point,” Granite said.

“You don’t,” Quick Torch said, hopping over and sitting near Granite. “You’re a dang stone wall.”

“It’s because I don’t slack when I lift,” Granite said, earning a whistle from Ember and the others. “I add slack to what I move, not what I do.”

“Shots fired,” Coal said with mock insult.

“I got good jeans,” Quick Torch replied. “I wouldn’t want to ruin them by making too many gains.”

“So now you’re a fashion pony?” Ember asked with mock disgust. “I am utterly appalled by this development.”

“What can I say? It takes effort to look this good. So maybe I’m not the lazy one…” Quick Torch said.

“Ha!” Rapid Jet laughed. “Shots fired back.”

“Yeah, yeah, I don’t have to look pretty to get a mare to see me,” Granite said. “I just have to show 'em this build.”

“You know, when a stallion is so big, it usually means he’s compensating for something,” Rapid Jet said innocently, but not innocently.

“Then why don’t you make some gains?” Granite replied. “Your good name isn’t always good when it tells the mares what you do.”

“OOOHHHHHHH!” Ember shouted. Everypony laughed. “Get those hoses of yours, you just got burned.”

Rapid Jet chuckled. “I might need an aerial evacuation,” he said.

“Well, if you do,” Ember said, looking to the door he heard opening. Through it, walked Morning Glory. “Here it is.”

The guys all turned to see Morning Glory strutting her stuff over to them. She always liked to mess with them like that, since she knew that a couple of them would steal glances her way when they weren’t working. Of course, she had her eyes on one particular guy, though she would never say who it was.

“Morning, boys,” she greeted.

“Morning, Morning,” Granite said in his characteristic greeting to her. They were like barnacles to whales, though who was which was uncertain. “Are you on the yearly calendar yet?”

Morning Glory laughed. “Ha! No, they still don’t want me on,” she said. “They think it’ll give unfair favoritism to us if I do.”

“I mean, wouldn’t it?” Rapid jet asked. “Get some of that wet mane action going, those tight coveralls…”

“Keep dreaming, Speedy, cuz you’re not gonna see it,” Morning Glory replied. “Not when you uphold that name of yours so well.”

“Oh-ho ho!” Ember said. “What have we here?”

“Now, you hurt me!” Rapid Jet feigned offense. “I assure you, I am more than just a one-and-done. I am, at the very least, TWO.”

Everypony loved to have a field day with Rapid Jet. The jokes about him and his name stemmed from some of his older experiences he had back in his post-college days before he became a firefighter. Suffice it to say, he never should have shared them at the pub the one night he did.

Now, they were just waiting for the last few members of the group to show up. They knew that Sonny wasn’t going to be there that day, as he had to deal with some political nonsense with the mayor and funding and whatnot. He was a master at it, though. None of them would have anyone else handle it.

That left Starshine and Gustov. Starshine was almost always the last guy there, competing for that title with Sonny, but Sonny had an excuse. Of course, Starshine was the only unicorn with his firefighting capabilities in the city, so if everyone else could operate without it, so could they. They just preferred not to.

After a few more minutes, Gustov walked in accompanied by the typically late Starshine. They were chatting about some sort of new machine or other that was good for building decks and other home areas. Both of them were obsessed with home improvement, and if they weren’t working or with the group, they were trying to one-up each other on improving their houses. That was a part of why it was only ever one of the two of them who hosted work parties.

“Finally!” Ember said. “The team is altogether for the day.”

“Minus Sonny,” Gustov said in his thick accent. “The only one with any class is sadly not here.”

“What, you don’t have class?” Wicker asked.

“Is that even a question?” Gustov asked with a grin. “You shoulda seen me in my prime.”

“What, like, a hundred years ago, when you and Sonny invented firefighting?” Rapid Jet asked.

“Nah, before that, when we first invented fire and then realized how bad of an idea it was,” Gustov replied. “Also when everyone liked to take their time with their personal activities, enjoy it longer.”

Rapid Jet shook his head and sighed. “Wishing I hadn’t told you guys about that.”

Morning Glory patted his back. “Well, look at it this way. We’re having fun.”

Rapid Jet snorted. “I live to serve,” he said.

“So, what’s on the watch list for today?” Gustov asked, leaning up against the engine. “I heard the college kids’re gonna be a lot to handle.”

“Spring Break starts,” Ember said. “Not gonna be easy.”

“Ugh, I hate drunken students,” Gustov said. “Same now as they were a thousand years ago. Belligerent, resistant, and floppy. I hate dealing with them.”

“I wish there were more ambulance companies so they wouldn’t need us,” Wicker said. “I joined to fight fires, not avoid fighting wasted ponies.”

“We joined to serve,” Granite said. “We’ve saved more than a few kids’ lives doing what we do at times like this.”

“Very true,” Coal agreed. “It’s about keeping them alive to pay our pensions, right?”

“Amen to that!” the whole group said in unison.

To prepare for the day, everypony went off to his or her respective section of the engine bay. Granite and Ember went to their fire axes to ensure they were in good order for use. With the development of composite materials, though, the axes were almost always in working order. They mostly just checked the steel heads for rust or dulling on the blade.

They also had to check on their oxygen tanks, make sure they were pressurized and ready. Hydrostatic testing dates were on the calendars, so they knew they were good for that, but they had to ensure that the valves worked. They tested them by breathing a few breaths of the pure oxygen, which always felt extra nice starting the day off. They were waiting for some new technology called a rebreather to replace the tanks, and from what they heard, it would be a real game changer.

The insulation equipment to protect them from the one thousand degree or more heat in the fires was always in working order. So long as it wasn’t torn or cracked, it worked perfectly well. None of the gear was magically enhanced, though, because if the spell were to falter, someone would certainly die. It was better to rely on material than magic.

Elsewhere in the room, the water warriors were checking hoses, pumps, and pressurizers on the engine and with their own equipment. They had to ensure that the hoses weren’t compromised, like a kink or tear at a key point. Their gear was always in perfect working order and looked brand new.

Other than that, they mostly just wore hardhats, uniforms, and had gas masks in case the flames released toxic fumes. Everyone in the company had that, though Ember and Granite had the most heavy-duty gear. Morning Glory had a light, but powerful gas mask for her job, and Gustov and Starshine were usually hanging back, pretty far from the flames. The special gear that they all had, except for Ember and Granite, was a flak vest. In case something exploded, they needed protection from shrapnel. For Ember and Granite, if something exploded and they were next to it, they were done.

Morning Glory checked her wing guards. They were there to protect her feathers from potentially burning. When she flew over flames, it got pretty hot, and certain parts of her got hotter faster than others. She needed a mask, wing guards, and a hind protector that kept her rump area and tail from being burned. It was standard for pegasus firefighters.

Gustov wasn’t just a driver of the engine; he maintained it. He checked breaking mechanisms, accelerators, hose retractors, windows, if you name it, he checks it on his vehicle. Truth be told, the engine they used was incredibly old and outdated, but Sonny and Gustov were attached to it, and no one wanted to take it from them. And it still worked, so it wasn’t a problem, even if newer ones had so many bells and whistles.

“Yo, Gustov!” Granite shouted, getting the griffon’s attention. “How long ‘til you retire that thing?”

“How long ‘til I retire?” Gustov returned.

“… Dang it,” Granite said, earning a chuckle from the old griffon. “So my replacement is gonna be riding around in that old thing?”

“And his replacement, and his after that,” Gustov replied. “When you’re as young as me, you tend to hang around for a while.”

“I’m sure you do hang around a lot,” Rapid Jet joked.

“I know you don’t,” Gustov replied casually. “But you don’t tend to stand up for yourself much, either.”

“I don’t know that-“ Rapid Jet was cut off when a jet of water blasted him from the side and knocked him over. “What the heck!?”

Coal stood there with a hose. “Sorry, but I thought I saw Gustov start a fire on your coat,” he said. “I couldn’t save you before you suffered a third degree burn.”

“Ha-ha,” Rapid Jet said, standing back up. “Much clever, very trickster.”

“I’ll be here all day,” Coal said with a bow.

“Getting wet over there?” Morning Glory asked from a safe distance.

“Sure are,” Wicker answered slyly. “Care to join us?”

“Ha, I’ll stay dry, thanks,” Morning Glory said. “I don’t think you boys could get me anyway.”

“Maybe not these boys, but how about an adult?” Gustov asked.

“Keep hoping, feathers,” Morning Glory said. “You could use a bird bath first.”

Gustov chuckled. “Nothing I can’t do.”

“I don’t know,” Ember commented as he and Granite walked over to the engine. “If you could, wouldn’t you have by now?”

“He was born before baths,” Starshine said. “It’s like a whole new world for him.”

“I follow the old ways,” Gustov said with a bow, as if he was an ancient master.

“Please, master, teach me the art of picking up chicks,” Starshine said.

“Chicks are a little much for you,” Gustov said. “I’d recommend ponies for you rather than griffons.”

“He just wants them all for himself,” Morning Glory said.

“Because you know I can have them,” Gustov said with a sly grin. Morning Glory rolled her eyes and went back to her station.

“So, if everything is in working order, I think we can get on with our day,” Gustov suggested. With one last check, everyone agreed and moved onto the break room, just a sliding pole above the engine room. That was how they rapidly deployed when they got a call. Although, Morning Glory was able to fly to the fire first, so she normally went and did that to assist in building evacuations.

Whenever they hung out in the break room, waiting for a call, they would typically read newspapers, chitchat, or listen to a radio. The department was saving up money to be able to give all the companies television sets, but that was going to cost a shiny bit or two, so it had to wait. Not that it mattered for these guys; Sonny and Gustov wouldn’t be too intent on it.

When they were all sitting at their table, Gustov immediately went to the fridge, which they kept fully stocked, and started pulling out ingredients to cook something. While he was a griffon, and natural ate meat, he was respectful of the ponies and didn’t eat meat when he was with them. Instead, he made mouthwatering confections of sweets and cooked, seasoned veggies that he often refused to share. Morning Glory was always able to get some from him, but it was only occasionally that the others got anything.

“So, whatcha makin’?” she asked him as he got to work.

“I’m putting together steamed broccoli, lightly grilled lettuce with cumin, cinnamon sticks, a nice chocolate milkshake, and some steamed carrots,” Gustov answered, earning hopeful looks from everyone else.

“So, how you gonna eat all that on your own?” Ember asked. “Sounds like an awful lot.”

“Well, I WAS going to share it with my favorite firefighter,” Gustov said with a shrug. “I wonder who that could be?”

“Well, of course it’s me,” Ember said with a puff of his chest. “I mean, how could you not love me?”

“Step aside,” Rapid Jet said, getting in the front of the nonexistent line. “Who else but the fastest guy in the whole department would make the fastest friend?”

“That only works for being friends with guys,” Morning Glory said, earning a chuckle from Gustov. “And I think I’m the one who’s closest to this handsome old stud.” She walked up and leaned up against him. “Right, big guy?”

“Well, as inclined as I am to agree with you, I have to say that I think Granite earned it. And just look at him, wasting away, losing all his gains over there,” Gustov said, poking a talon toward Granite.

“Woe is me, who hath lost all his glorious gains,” Granite said, pretending to faint. “I need sustenance!”

Gustov chuckled. “Nah, don’t worry. I’m making enough for everyone. We’ll need our energy today.”

There was a group hoorah, and everyone waited for Gustov to finish cooking up a good meal. It was already approaching lunchtime when he finished, so everyone was pretty hungry. The fabulous smells making their way through the building didn’t help abate their hunger, only made it worse. When the food was served, everypony dug right in.

“You boys could learn a thing or two from Gustov,” Morning Glory said. “Ladies love a guy that can cook.”

“They also love guys that are mad hot,” Granite said.

“I’m so sorry for you, Granite,” Quick Torch said. Granite laughed.

“Don’t be jealous that I stole your gains,” Granite said.

“He even gave some of those gains to me,” Ember piped in. “I’m just a receiver, though.”

“Yeah, but you’re just as bad ‘cuz you don’t need ‘em,” Col said. “You, who gave up your freedom thrice now.”

“Hey, being married and having kids is great,” Ember retorted. “I got a lady I love and wake up next to each morning, two beautiful kids I can raise to be like me and her, and benefits coming that’ll let me retire fantastically someday.”

“Remind me to be you someday,” Coal joked.

“I would, but that position is taken,” Ember replied.

“Geeze, Gustov, this food is awesome,” Rapid Torch suddenly complimented. “Where did you learn to cook like this?”

“I learned back in the day when all males could cook, if for nothing other than survival,” Gustov said. “Of course, why survive, when you can thrive?”

“Amen to that,” Ember said. The others all agreed with the sentiment.

When the food was gone and digesting in their bellies, everyone took a minute to sit around and just listen to the radio. There was a hoofball game today, two teams that weren’t from the area and no one cared about. Unfortunately, it was one of the only stations with something other than music, so they had to listen to it. It was the third down, and it looked like there would be a switchover soon.

Unfortunately, but not sadly, the group would not get to hear the end of the game. The bell started ringing, indicating that there was a call somewhere for them to answer. With an efficiency only attained by incredible training, practice, and experience, Morning Glory flew out and everyone else slid down the pole to the engine, grabbed their gear, and headed out. While he drove, Gustov got on his engine radio and got word of where they had to go.

Ember and Granite donned most of their gear while they rode to the fire. The water warriors were already all set up and ready to go with their hoses, and Starshine rode with Gustov in the main cabin of the engine. Apparently, the fire wasn’t too big, but it was still enough that everyone would be needed. A one story home had experienced a small gas explosion. No one was home, but the fire still had to be put out.

Granite tapped on Ember’s shoulder. “So, what do you think we’ll see in this house?” he asked, thinking of the weird things they had seen before.

“Well, hopefully we won’t find another crime scene,” Ember replied. The previous week, they found a cache of contraband that got the homeowner arrested and detained for quite a while. They also found a number of ”personal” items that indicated just how depraved she was.

“That was… ugh, that was just traumatizing,” Granite said with a shudder. “Who knew that somepony would like ten-“

“Please, do not remind me,” Ember begged. “I nearly had it blacked out until now.”

“Stories to tell the kids when they’re older,” Granite said with a chuckle.

“I’d rather tell them about the time we had to rescue a bunch of fillies and colts from an orphanage fire,” Ember said.

“Easily the highlight of our careers right there,” Granite said in agreement. “Other guys only dream that they can do something like that.”

“Although I do hope it never comes up as an opportunity again,” Ember said.

“True,” Granite agreed. These two tended to agree on these sorts of things.

The ride to the house fire wasn’t very long. When they arrived, Morning Glory was already keeping ponies away from the house. There was a lot of smoke, but for the most part, the fire was already dying down. Coal, Rapid Jet, Quick Torch, and Wicker went to take care of the remaining flames from the outside. A hole was blown in the side of the house by the explosion, making it easy for them to get to.

In the meantime, Granite and Ember donned their helmets and hopped off the engine. Ponies were all around them, watching them do their work like well-oiled machines. Some cheered as they watched the rescuers go into the house to check for pets that might still be inside. Maybe they weren’t intelligent creatures, but they were still a part of someone’s family.

Ember went first to open the door, and it opened very easily. Inside, there was smoke everywhere, though it wasn’t too hard to see through. Ember turned to let Granite know the way was clear, and they could search the house. He would take the left half, and Granite would take the right, since splitting up wasn’t too hazardous in a house this size.

When Ember turned to take his section, he immediately saw what they had come in for; a small dog, lying on the ground, motionless. He immediately went and picked it up, and before Granite even entered his half of the house, Ember motioned to him that he was taking the dog out. Granite copied, and went on to search the house.

Ember carried the dog out to the fire engine, where Gustov and Starshine awaited him with the gear already set up and in place. They had a small oxygen tank and respirator specifically for small ponies and pets to breathe out of. The department funded it when they learned how depressing it was to lose pets when a Dalmatian was lost to a building fire years ago. Ember and his company wanted a dog, but were unable to get one yet.

Ember left the dog in the good care of Gustov and Starshine, with Gustov getting a wet cloth to cover the dog and Starshine applying the oxygen tools to try to revive it. Before Ember made it back to the house, he overheard the crowd exploding into cheer behind him at what was most likely another success story of saving a pet.

When he reentered the house, Ember went back the way he initially started and went to search for more pets. Typically, houses like this that had dogs only had the one dog, but that wasn’t true in individual cases, so they had to search. The police department had also asked them to search in case a fire was started by an illegal activity, which they were fine with. Nopony knew they cooperated with the police like that, and as long as it stayed under wraps, it would be totally fine.

Ember was in a very large living room that took up nearly half of the house. There was a pretty big TV up against the wall, vases knocked over and shattered, a table flipped. The explosion had been bigger than they were told, obviously, if it did this much damage. Or, maybe the owner was just incredibly slobbish. They had encountered that many a times.

He couldn’t see any other pets, so he started checking the items sitting around for either criminal activity or a potential explanation of how the explosion occurred. There were wet mane magazines, Sports Drawn issues, and several beer cans. This was quite a bachelor pad. At least, Ember hoped it was, since that was the only socially acceptable explanation.

After his search was done, Ember made his way out to the engine, where everyone was awaiting him. Granite was taking his gear off, the others chatting, and Gustov talking to police about what happened. As Ember approached, everyone smiled.

“Job well done, everypony,” Ember said.

“This was a piece of cake,” Rapid Jet said. “Nothing we all couldn’t handle. Nice work finding that dog so fast.”

“It was right there,” Ember said. “Easy to spot and grab.”

“Did the locals give you much trouble this time, Morning?” Ember asked.

“Some of them wanted to be heroes, but I kept ‘em back,” Morning Glory replied. “It’s pretty easy once you go into gruesome detail about the burns and boils you get in thousand degree heat.”

“That’s why we love you,” Ember said with a chuckle.

“Well, not just that,” Granite said.

“It’s my riveting personality,” Morning Glory said with a swing of her short mane.

“I don’t see what else it could be,” Granite replied, earning a punch to the shoulder from the lady of the group.

Gustov walked over to everyone after dealing with the police.

“So, it looks like some moron left his gas on, right, Granite?” he asked. Granite nodded. “Alright. That’s what the police’ll put in their report, and us in ours. No one found any contraband, just gross irresponsibility, so we can go back to the firehouse.”

“Awesome,” Coal said, hopping onto the back of the engine. “I’m getting hungry again.”

“Hey, I can’t always cook,” Gustov said, he and Starshine getting into the main cabin. “You guys gotta learn eventually! Starshine here already has some skill!”

“I got that skillet skill,” Starshine said. “Maybe someday you guys can be half as good as me.”

“I can’t wait,” Rapid Torch said sarcastically.

“Have fun eating his food, guys,” Ember said. “I got a lady that packed up my lunch for me. Fabulous PB&J, with lettuce, tomatoes, and extra love.”

“I might gag,” Granite said.

“Ah, I know you’ve got your eyes on a lady out there,” Ember nudged knowingly. “I’ve seen her.”

“Oh, really?” Granite scoffed. “And who might you think this lady is?”

“Well, if I told you, it would ruin my plan to get you together,” Ember said.

“Pssh,” Granite said. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“… She has an alabaster coat,” Ember said.

Granite spun around, face growing red. “What?!” he said.

“Come on, you never chat up anyone after helping them out of a fire,” Ember said. “That fashionista, the squishy marshmallow one, managed to catch your eye. Admit it.”

“Nope,” Granite said with stout refusal. “I have nothing to admit.”

“The hard Granite, falling in love with the fluffiest, sweetest mare ever,” Ember said, making a kissy face. “Soooo romaaaaaaantic!”

“Bah,” Granite said.

“Hey, she likes you too,” Ember said. Granite’s ears perked up. “I know she doesn’t live nearby, but with how long our vacations are and how often she said she comes here, you could make it work.”

“Really?” Granite admitted it all in one word. “You think so?”

“She was basically drooling over you, Mr. ‘I’m-the-Cover-of-the-Calendar’,” Ember said. “You just had to mention that?”

“Well, she brought it up, saying she recognized me,” Granite said in his own defense.

“She wants the rock,” Ember said, earning a blush from his best friend. “Go for it. I assume you’re hanging out this weekend?”

“Maybe we are,” Granite said.

“Just go for it,” Ember said. “Ask her to hang out some more, then ask her out for real.”

“Yeah… yeah, maybe I will do that,” Granite said. “Thanks, Ember.”

“You’re Granite; granite doesn’t burn,” Ember said. “You need an ember to help kindle the flame.”

“You… you… ugh, you’re a character,” Granite said with a laugh.

“The best character, and hopefully best stallion,” Ember said with a joking nudge.

“Well, I do have to return that favor,” Granite said.

When the engine returned to the house, everyone took off their gear for a bit and checked it all. They always did this after a fire to be sure that if they had to go out again, they would be ready and able. There had been times when gear was damaged and the only reason they were alive was because they checked it before going back out. After the loss of an entire ladder company to broken gear two years before, no one took that issue lightly.

Ember and Granite were glad to be out of their heavy gear and oxygen tanks. They knew the tanks were safe, but still, having pure oxygen on their backs in burning buildings was always a cause for caution. It could go in flames up if the tank was ever compromised, and surely kill anyone nearby.

It was back to the break room for everyone, and before anyone knew it, it was dark outside, and the real fun was set to begin. Now, they weren’t even waiting in the break room, but next to the engine to minimize response time. Even a few seconds could save multiple lives tonight.

“So, how was college, for those here who went?” Coal asked. “I never went, but I hear it’s the bee's knees.”

“College was fun, but it was certainly hard on the brain and liver,” Gustov answered. “I studied arson investigation. The work was tough, but those who work hard tend to play hard, at least in their youth.”

“We don’t play that hard,” Quick Torch whined.

“That’s because we get such awesome other stuff when we’re done,” Rapid Jet said. “Why waste ourselves now when we can enjoy it to the max later?”

“Truth,” Granite agreed.

“I never went to college either,” Morning Glory said. “I spent some time with the Air Guard, then came here when I decided that fighting isn’t for me.”

“I’d still bet you could kick my butt,” Coal said.

“You just need to start making gains,” Morning Glory replied. “There’s a first time for everything.”

“Dang, she’s on fire,” Rapid Jet said.

“It looks more like you guys who are on fire with all these burns,” Ember said.

“You went to college, Starshine, right?” Coal asked. “What did you do there?”

“I studied meteorological control with magic,” Starshine said. “That’s how I can keep the fires we deal with from spreading so easily while you guys put them out. I know how the dynamics of the weather and flames work.”

“How do they work?” Granite asked.

“Well, when dealing with a fire, you have to observe the angle at which the wind is coming at in a 3D field,” Starshine began. “From there, you can take the gradient vector to find the rate at which it’s moving in a given direction in the 3D world we live in. When I account for that, I’m able to alter the winds and use magical shielding to keep the flames in place.”

“What?” Coal asked.

Starshine went on with a grin. “From there, I take the cross product of the two primary vectors of the flame’s direction to find the normal vector to figure out the plane on which the flame exists. I can then direct the flame itself, a feat that only powerful unicorns can do with straight magic.”

“Sounds complicated and math heavy,” Ember said. “I studied anthropology, and this weird, mint-green mare in my class was always asking about these old mythological creatures. I think she thought they were real.”

“Probably still does,” Granite said with a chuckle.

“I bet,” Ember said. “She was a strange one. I remember once, she-“Before Ember could keep going, the bell furiously began to ring, and Gustov was already on the radio finding out what was going on.

“Frat house, five stories!” Gustov announced. “LET’S GO, PONIES! GO, GO, GO!”

Morning Glory threw on her stuff and blasted out of the firehouse to get to the destination. Everyone else rapidly threw their own gear on, sure to check everything first, and then sped out of the building, sirens blaring.

They didn’t have to go far to know where the blasé was; an ominous orange glow it up the sky ahead, and smoke billowed up from the building that was the source. Ember had a feeling that it was an absolutely massive blaze, and this thought was confirmed   when they arrived.

The building was large, and every corner of it seemed to be on fire, with some of the brickwork already turning red from the heat. Morning Glory was up high, taking idiotic, drunken stallions out of the building one by one. She had already rescued a whopping fifteen by the time the engine arrived. No one could say these guys didn’t respond fast.

Before the engine even came to a full stop, Granite and Ember were jumping off, fully laden with their equipment, and rushing toward the building. They were the first responders on scene and had to move fast. Coal, Rapid Jet, Quick Torch, and Wicker moved to a fire hydrant and quickly attached the hose to start combating the blaze.

Gustov was radioing for backup, while Starshine did what he did best. Few ponies around noticed, but the wind patterns were already changing to be favorable for battle the fire. The flames themselves were getting more uniform in direction now, making it easier to keep them under control. There was so much fire, though, that the strain was clearly visible on Starshine’s face, and Gustov had to get some extra water to keep him fresh while he worked.

Granite ran up to the door and, with a single, powerhouse kick, blew the door open. For a moment, as the flames rushed out the front door from the high-pressure zone that was inside the house, he was engulfed and invisible. Ember knew he was fine, though, as he did this every time they encountered a fire of this magnitude.

The duo rushed inside the building to look for stallions stuck in the blaze. The first floor was a quick clear, no one anywhere. Most of those stallion shad probably run out immediately.

When they moved to the second floor, Ember led the way through the hellish inferno. Everything was an angry shade of orange in the building, and wooden structures were already failing and falling apart. They didn’t have much time before they wouldn’t be able to stay or come back.

“Looks like someone had too much fun!” Granite said into his radio as he climbed the last stair to the second floor.

“Hardly any fun, from what I’m seeing,” Ember replied. He moved to the right to a closed door. “Here!”

Ember raised his fire axe and laid waste to the door with it, busting through the area around the doorknob and around the hinges. When he finished, he turned around and bucked the door down, blowing the already burning door into pieces. Granite rushed into the room, since he was already facing the door, but saw no signs of anyone.

“Clear!” he said. They were moving to another door when their radios crackled into life.

“Ember, Granite, I’ve got a stallion here who says that the second, fourth, and fifth floors are clear!” Morning Glory called in. “He’s sober. But he thinks some guys are stuck on the third floor!”

“Copy, we’ll move up there now!” Ember said. “Come on, Granite, up the next set of stairs!”

As they moved toward the staircase, from up above, the ceiling started to fail, and that also meant the floor on the next level. Ember felt a cascade of burning wood fall on his back. Thankfully, his oxygen tank was on his chest.

“You good?” Granite asked.

“Good! Keep moving!” Ember shouted.

The stallions advanced to the next upwards staircase, flame slicking at their protective overwear. The gear kept them safe from the intense fires that surrounded them in every direction, but they could tell it was hot. As they gingerly trudged along, they could only hear the sounds of oxygen sucking through the respirator hoses and the sounds of breaking and burning wood threatening to kill them at any moment.

When they made it to the stairs, Ember took one step before realizing how dangerous this would be. The wooden step was of flimsy construction, and under the intense and destructive heat, warped and cracked under his hooves. He turned to Granite and signaled to him that they had to go one at a time in case the staircase was compromised. Granite nodded and allowed Ember to scale the stairs first.

Ember stepped as lightly as he could in his weighty safety gear. Every step made him wince, as each step could have easily become his last. The stair rail next to him was already burned to a char and collapsed under its own miniscule weight, not speaking well of the material the rest of the building may have been made of. Amazing, how some ponies would skip out on important safety features in living space to save an extra bit.

Ember was halfway up when he heard the last sound he ever wanted to hear. From behind him, he heard a massive crash, and embers and dust flew out from the source and up past him. When he turned around, he saw that the ceiling above had collapsed and landed on the spot he had been standing in only seconds before, collapsing his own staircase. Granite looked on in shock and frustration.

Ember keyed his radio. “Granite, the stairs are compromised! Get out of the building!”

“Got it, but what about you?!” Granite asked. “I can’t leave you here!”

“I won’t leave those students here, but this is the only way up that can make it in the time we have!” Ember replied. “I’m ordering you to go back down and get out! NOW!”

“Dammit!” Granite cursed. With no other option, he started moving back to the first staircase. “If you don’t get out of this building, I swear to Discord, I will find your carcass and drag it out to kill you!”

“You won’t have to,” Ember assured his closest friend. “Go!”

When Granite made his way to leave, Ember started back up the stairs with a new level of urgency. He couldn’t afford to make each step take several seconds, not with the ceiling above him coming down. At this point, there was a good chance that the remaining stallions in this building were gone, but Ember couldn’t make that assumption.

When he finished climbing the staircase, he looked back and found that it had been slowly breaking down as he walked up. It was a miracle he hadn’t fallen through; the stairs were actually thin as a stack of paper, made of Yellow Pine. Ember felt his heart racing and decided that running was his only choice of movement now.

In situations like this, the best way to approach the problem is to think like you have a time limit. With how quickly this building was going down, Ember figured he had about five minutes to search before he would be able to just barely make it out. He had five minutes to check an entire floor, so he had to be quick on his hooves and rapid with his eyes.

He knew that the rooms in the front and back of the building would be clear, as Morning Glory had come in first to rescue stallions trapped in the upper floors early on. That left the middle rooms, particularly the ones that didn’t have windows. Ember started with the one closest to the front of the building, taking his fireaxe and swinging like a maniac at the door to chop it down.

It took thirty seconds to get a hole in the door big enough to look through. Inside, he couldn’t see much, as there was too much smoke. After wasting four precious seconds trying to look, Ember hacked the door down in only ten more seconds, destroying it and the hinges that supported it. Thankfully, the owner of the building wouldn’t exactly care about the stallion chopping up the door.

When Ember rushed inside, the place was a complete mad house. Smoke and flames shot out of the windowless room through the door he cut down, clearing some of his vision to see ceiling supports collapsed and tables crushed. Bookcases burned along with all their great, likely unread tomes, and a couple had been knocked over. The angry orange glow dominated the room, casting a single shade of light on everything.

What Ember finally saw made his heart sink like a ship under cannon fire; a stallion was lying under the ceiling support, totally unmoving and with burns already apparent on his body. Ember rushed over to his side and tried to move the support, but it was too heavy to just move.

“Dammit!” Ember yelled. He poked at the stallion’s head. “Come on, stay with me, kid!”

When he poked the stallion’s head, Ember’s heart floated right back to the surface, as the young stallion started moving sluggishly on its own. He probably had a serious concussion that needed immediate attention, but he was alive, and the most immediate need he had was to be out of the building.

“Hang on, kid, I’ll get you!” Ember said.

By now, three minutes passed, leaving Ember with an estimated two left. He couldn’t move an entire support beam, but he did have his axe. With ferocious swings that would terrify any royal guard, Ember bellowed as he destroyed the support, sending splinters of flaming wood in every direction. He aimed it carefully so as to avoid creating more pressure on the stallion’s possibly damaged spine, though he prayed the stallion wasn’t in such a position. Moving him would cripple him if it were so.

It took a solid minute to chop the log up, leaving him with only one minute left. Around him, the entire building was coming down, and his radio crackled to life.

“Ember, this is Morning, you have to get out of that building!” Morning Glory screamed.

“I got a stallion here! I’m coming out now!” Ember shouted back, picking up the limp stallion. He could hear several nasty cracks as he picked the boy up. “I should be able to-“

As he walked over to the doorway, the entire ceiling above him cracked, with one enormous line going through the center of the whole thing. When Ember looked up, his pupils became pinpricks, and he put the stallion on the ground and covered him with his own body. The whole thing came down on them.

“Ember?” Morning Glory said with horror. “The fourth floor collapsed, are you okay? Ember!? EMBER!?!”

Ember pushed himself up and out of the rubble that covered him and the stallion. The wood was heavy, and the flames were all around him, circling him like vultures, waiting for him to die so they could devour him piece by piece. But he wasn’t going to die here. Not when he had a family to go home to.

“Ember!?” Morning Glory screamed, sounding like she was crying.

“I’m fine!” Ember grunted into his radio. He picked the stallion back up. “I’m coming out!”

Ember started to move forward, but when he got to the doorway, he saw that there was too much debris to simply push through it. Wooden beams, sheets of plywood, metal rods, and other building supports blocked his way. He started to grab the metal rods one by one to move them so he could chop through the wood.

When he was done and reached for his axe, though, he found out it wasn’t there. Panicked, he turned around and looked to see it lying on the ground, the handle bent to the point it was already breaking. The axe was unusable now, and it left Ember with only the option of kicking the debris.

Still trying to cover the stallion and with no time left, Ember desperately started to kick at the debris, but to no avail.  No matter how hard he kicked, even if the supports cracked, the plywood sheets simply absorbed the impact and tried to throw it right back at him. Eventually, he turned around to see that the floor was starting to crumble and threatened to take him along with it.

He keyed his radio. “Guys…” he said.

Before he could continue, he heard a crack at the doorway. When he turned around, he saw an axe repeatedly chopping through the wood, and before even a few seconds, he saw Granite coming through the other side. Ember’s face was graced with the most relieved of smiles as he moved back to the doorway.

“I thought I told you to go!” Ember shouted into his radio.

“You’re not my supervisor, so I don’t take orders from you!” Granite replied. After a few moments, the debris was cleared, and Ember already had the stallion on his back.

“How do we get out of here?!” Ember asked.

“Concrete stairwell!” Granite replied. “Follow me!”

Granite led his friend to the staircase, where, thankfully, nothing had collapsed and they were able to descend quickly and safely. They could hear the building coming down on the other side of the wall, but ignored it and kept running. The concrete stairwell could still come down, but it added a lot of extra time for their exit.

When they hit the bottom, Granite bucked the emergency exit door open, and the pair rushed outside with the injured stallion, going straight for the ambulance. They didn’t pay any mind to anything else; not the spectators, no the other fire companies, not their own company; they just ran straight for that ambulance.

When they arrived, the paramedics took the stallion, put him on a stretcher, and rushed him off to the hospital. When he was finally out of sight, the stallions sighed their relief and started taking off their helmets as they made their way back to their company in front of the building.

As they approached, the water warriors were the first to see them and gave them a raucous cheer to draw everyone’s attention their way. Before long, the crowd that had accrued at a safe distance started to cheer as well, whistled and declarations of love coming from afar.

From out of the sky, Morning Glory made a dive bomb maneuver their way and slammed her hooves into the ground before them. When she looked up, she had tears in her eyes and a quivering lip.

“It’s never been that close before,” she said.

“No, no it hasn’t,” Granite replied.

“Get that crap off and give me a hug!” Morning Glory demanded.

With exhausted smiles, Ember and Granite got about removing their armor against flames and happily embraced their solemn teammate. Not a moment later, Coal, Quick Torch, Rapid Jet, and Wicker were also in on it, and even Gustov came over to pat some backs.

“Good work, ponies,” he said. “Couldn’t have done it better in my days.”

“Techniques evolve over time,” Granite said with huffing breaths. “Maybe we can teach you a thing or two, old birdie.”

“Now let’s not get carried away,” Gustov said with a smile. “Good work, you two.”

“I can see reporters coming,” Coal said, glancing backwards.

“Well, we did our job,” Granite said. “Gustov will stay like always to talk to the police. Let’s get out of here.”

“Hoorah,” Rapid Jet agreed.

Everyone hopped onto the engine and Starshine drove it off, leaving Gustov to handle giving the police the details of what had happened. He was privy to everything that was going on, so it was easy for them to do it this way. It was also better so that the news media couldn’t get a hold of the company’s designation or members. Fame was more trouble than it was worth.

When the company made it back to the firehouse, everyone took off their gear after a job well done and checked it up. It was still possible that they would get another call in the night, and they had to be ready. It wasn’t likely; there was rarely ever more than one major fire in a night; but they were professionals, and had to act like it.

Once everything was set and ready to go again, everypony went up to the break room to chill and pull out the cards. They always waited for Gustov to get back if something went down on a Friday, but they would often play another game like Egyptian Rat screw, nearly busting hooves along the way. When these guys played, they played to win.

After a short time, Gustov came back, hitching a ride in a police cruiser. The only department that actually had engines, of course, was the fire department, as the item was pretty expensive. The police had incredibly strong stallions dragging their carriages, effectively making every police patrol unit three stallions. Ember preferred it that way.

When Gustov came tick-tacking in on those talons of his, he wore a bright smile and a skip in his step. He regaled the company with how the police were so pleased with the fire department’s performance on every occasion, but this company in particular. The mayor was always trying to give out awards, but few of the fire fighters ever accepted them. It was a part of the job.

And so, the Friday night poker game commenced.

“So, that was quite a day,” Coal said, practically hugging his cards to his chest. “Went to a house fire, rescued a dog, pulled college kids out of a burning building…”

“Morning Glory cried,” Granite teased.

“Tears of joy,” Morning Glory shot back playfully.

“I imagine it would have been helpful to you,” Ember said. “That massive stature of his must be distracting to you.”

“Ha! Hardly,” Morning Glory said. “But I would have missed you, Ember.”

“Sorry, hun, I appreciate it, but I’m married,” Ember said with a grin. “Though I understand Rapid Jet is single…”

“Eh, I’m trying speed dating right now,” Rapid Jet replied.

“More than just speed ‘dating’,” Morning Glory poked.

“I’m like a machine gun,” Rapid Jet explained. “I ratta-tat-tat at high speed, but I gotta cool down real good when my belt is spent.”

“And you know, those machine guns take a while to reload,” Wicker said.

“True,” Rapid Jet conceded. “But they also tear up the target and get the job done better than anything else.”

“Except a rocket,” Quick Torch said.

“But unlike them, I’m not a one and done,” Rapid Jet said. “Takes more than one touch to get me to expend my payload. I need a steady trigger hoof.”

“Please, even if it’s true, you’re a light machine gun,” Gustov said. “It’s better to be the old fashioned, hard-hitting heavy machine gun. Thunk thunk thunk thunk, lasts longer and hits harder.”

“Teach us your old ways, Master Gustov,” Starshine requested with a bow.

“Soon, padawan, you will learn. But it takes many years to gain such a mastery of the force,” Gustov replied with closed eyes and a talon pointing to the ceiling.

“But if you want to learn how to use the force the RIGHT way, ask Ember,” Morning Glory said. “After all, he got a permanent master by his side.”

“I think he mastered the mind trick,” Coal said with a grin. “How else did he get her to be with him?”

“I’m no master of the force, but she is the master of my heart,” Ember said. Morning Glory squee’d at his comment and all the guys just rolled their eyes. “Fell into my life one day out of nowhere.”

“And then the kids came, but you dropped those on yourself intentionally,” Wicker said. “I don’t envy that level of responsibility.”

“We’re responsible for saving ponies whose lives are in danger, and you’re afraid of raising a kid?” Ember asked, mocking disappointment.

“Look at me, you know me,” Wicker said. “You want me raising kids?”

“Hell no,” everyone else immediately responded in unison. They and Wicker fell into hysterics for a bit, then continued to play their game.

Before long, the next group came in to relieve them of their duties, and everyone was free to go home to get some well-earned sleep. They were actually coming up on a set of two weeks off, which would be a great time for family bonding. Both families.

Ember put his gear away and waved his goodbyes, then started his walk home. He didn’t live too far from the firehouse, so he just walked or ran there each day. It was a good bit of exercise to stay in shape, unlike some other firefighters in other companies who let themselves go and ended up only handling hoses. No one in Ember’s company was that way, and he wouldn’t allow it to happen.

After a brisk commute, he made it home, and it was pretty late. The wife was probably waiting for him in bed, reading her book, and the kids were definitely asleep. Ember Shard walked up to the door and sighed his relief and joy at it all. He lived a great life; loving family, meaningful job, and the best of friends. What more could a stallion want?

Quietly, he opened the door and went in to greet the love of his life and sleep in her warm embrace, ready to rest his weary body and continue living the life of a professional hero.