{"id":2126,"date":"2020-12-12T19:44:36","date_gmt":"2020-12-13T02:44:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/?p=2126"},"modified":"2020-12-19T19:12:39","modified_gmt":"2020-12-20T02:12:39","slug":"smokejumper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.evardsson.com\/blog\/2020\/12\/12\/smokejumper\/","title":{"rendered":"Smokejumper"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

prompt: \u00a0Write about a character arriving in a place unlike anywhere they\u2019ve ever been….<\/em><\/em>
available at Reedsy<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The day after finishing her basic firefighter training, Maya Estrada travelled farther than she had ever before. Under her uniform she wore a ring on a chain. It had been her father\u2019s, but her mother had passed it on to her when she left for mandatory service. Probably as a reminder of what could happen<\/em>, she thought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya knew her mother wasn’t happy about her choice of service, but she wasn’t one to intervene. “You are your father’s daughter,” was all she said. Maya was to be a firefighter, like her father before her. He had started in his mandies as well, and continued on until he died fighting a wildfire when she was nine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was her first time off-world. When the liner entered the jump gate she was prepared to be amazed. It turned out, however, that super-C was boring. An even, smooth, featureless grey filled the window. She watched for a few minutes, hoping for some change, but only strained her eyes. Maya darkened the window and ran her hand over her close-cropped, tightly curled black hair. The haircut was required in basic, and seeing her reflection made her turn away from the window. She felt the short hair made her least-liked features, a sharp nose and thin lips, stand out even more. While her skin was a deep black-brown with a reddish undercast like her mother\u2019s, her features were sharp like her father\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When lunch was served she was ready to refuse in some way without making it clear she had no credits. Instead it was placed in front of her and before Maya could say anything the server said with a smile, “Compliments of the Federation. If you’d like any alcohol, cannabis, soporific or stimulant that will be charged, though.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She was on her way to smokejumper school. Firefighters in areas too rough for robots or vehicles. When she was one of the four candidates selected out of training to go straight to advanced training, she already knew that was what she wanted to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The exit from super-C to normal space was at least a little interesting. The featureless grey flashed a blinding white, then was replaced with the blackness of space, stars becoming visible as her eyes re-adjusted. The planet below was far different from Earth. Maybe closer to Earth as it used to be eons ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She saw huge swaths of green around and between the cities. There were a few places on Earth that were still that way, but nothing like what she now witnessed. The cities were smaller than what she was used to, and most had an agricultural area directly around the city itself. Still, most of the planet was green.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya went from the space port to an airport where she got on the smallest plane she\u2019d ever seen. From there it was a few hours flying over those vast expanses of green. They landed at a small strip adjacent to a small building, no more than eight or nine stories. The construction seemed solid enough, though lacking in any decoration besides a sign with a parachute over a flame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The building wasn’t what held her attention, though. All around the clearing trees reached for the skies. The air smelled like the rooftop garden on the block, but stronger. The  sharp, resinous aroma of the evergreen trees mixed with the rich, loamy scent of decaying plants carried far in the humid heat. She stepped off the airstrip onto the grass. The ground was soft underfoot, and uneven. She dealt with momentary vertigo as her body tried to interpret the strange sensation of not standing on a truly solid surface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the other members of the cohort arrived she noticed that only one other was a Junior Troop like herself. Most of them had been wildlands firefighters for at least a year before qualifying for the program. A few of them, Troops wearing the green tab signifying they were still in their mandatory service period, eyed the two fresh recruits with obvious suspicion. The older candidates, those past their mandies and higher in rank, had no sour looks for any of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other Junior Troop approached her. \u201cJunior Troop Estrada,\u201d he said, looking at her name tag, \u201cMel Travers, Sol 2. Just finished basic. You?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She extended a hand. \u201cMaya Estrada. Same, only Earth. You\u2026 look like you\u2019ve spent a lot of time outside. Is that from training, or\u2026?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mel laughed. \u201cNo, I\u2019m straight off the farm.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAh, yeah, Venus,\u201d Maya said. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to assume.\u201d She looked at the grass under her feet and shifted her weight from one foot to the other, getting used to the sensation. \u201cSo you must be used to this,\u201d she said pointing at the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHave you really never been outdoors before?\u201d Mel looked puzzled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWell, sure. But always in the city.\u201d Maya inspected her nails. \u201cWhere there\u2019s solid concrete underfoot.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019ll get used to it in no time,\u201d he said with a wink.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eager to change the subject Maya pointed out that the head instructor was coming out of the building and the other candidates were beginning to line up. They joined in the line up, falling in as they\u2019d learned in basic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once the line had settled the instructor called the seven highest ranking candidates forward. She passed a tablet to the senior ranking candidate and spoke with them in low tones for a moment before turning back to face the rest of the candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am Commodore Jihane Ibrahim,\u201d she said, her face reflecting the glow of the sun in its deep, cool brown; faint lines around her eyes visible only by the slight shadows there. \u201cYou may call me Commodore, or Sir. I am not your mother or your father, and I am not a civilian instructor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She wandered past the line of nineteen candidates remaining in the formation. \u201cI\u2019ve been a wildlands firefighter for 22 years, an officer and smokejumper for 19 years, and a Doctor of Government in Wildlands Emergency Management for nine years. I\u2019ve run this academy for six years, and will continue do so until I retire.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI see I have five mandies with experience, and two fresh out of boot. I\u2019ve selected the highest ranking candidates to pair up with you. The other twelve of you, pair off as you see fit.\u201d She returned to her place at the front. \u201cFrom this moment forward, you will do nothing<\/em> on your own. Your partner will be in line of sight or hearing at every moment. If I ask you where your partner is you should be able to answer immediately and precisely. Losing track of your partner is an automatic fail.\u201d She nodded toward the high ranking candidates she had pulled out earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first was Lieutenant Kal Markham, a lanky blond with pink showing through the dun of his tanned skin. \u201cJunior Troop Estrada, you\u2019re with me.\u201d The next chose Mel, and the other mandatory service members, all Troops, looked at them with daggers in their eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kal took his place beside Maya, and leaned over to whisper in the nearest unhappy Troop\u2019s ear. \u201cWe had to pick the fresh recruits, as they\u2019ll need the most help to stay alive.\u201d This mollified the Troop and the word passed through the rest of the formation in whispers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once the pairing-off had finished, and the assignments were noted in Commodore Ibrahim\u2019s tablet, they were given their first task. \u201cOn the seventh floor you will find your rooms, marked with your names. You and your partner will drop your luggage there, then inspect and pack the rucksacks you find there with the gear that is laid out. You will mark your rucksack with one<\/em> of the adhesive name tags that are being passed out now. Then you and your partner will report to the ninth floor to receive your fire suits. Mark the trousers, jacket, gloves, boots, helmet liner and helmet each<\/em> with another of the adhesive name tags you have been given. You will then report back here in formation, geared up. There is no lift. You have thirty minutes. Go!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSir, yes Sir!\u201d the formation called out in unison, then began a mad scramble into the building. Kal and Maya both reached out to hold the other back, and laughed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThirty minutes is a lifetime,\u201d Kal said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYeah, uh, yes, Sir. It was like this in basic,\u201d Maya answered. \u201cMy bag is light enough I can run up the stairs if I need to, so why get caught in the crush?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They finished their task, Kal taking time to show Maya how to inspect and pack the gear she wasn\u2019t used to. The rucksack was heavier than Maya had thought, and carrying it up to the ninth floor was painful. However, once she had her fire suit on, Kal helped her adjust the numerous straps and pads on the pack making it far more comfortable than she had expected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kal and Maya, without rushing, arrived with five minutes to spare. Many of the others were sweating from the exertion of their mad scramble in the high humidity. Most of them, however, had made it back in under half the time allowed. Something she knew she\u2019d have to get used to soon enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Commodore Ibrahim returned, followed by a Captain, and three Senior Sergeants. \u201cThe trainers will now hand out radios and navigation devices. You have forty hours to reach all the locations marked in the devices and pick up the markers at each stop. Each pair of you has different locations between here and the end goal. Failure to pick up any of the markers is an automatic fail of this school. Failure to show up at the end goal within the forty-hour time limit is a strike. Two strikes and you fail the school. Any questions?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSir, no Sir!\u201d the candidates called out in unison. As the trainers handed out the devices the pairs took off into the woods at the edges of the clearing. Kal and Maya were the last to be given their device and leave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI heard what you told that Troop, Sir,\u201d Maya said. \u201cIs it true?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot at all,\u201d Kal said. \u201cI argued with Sub-Lieutenant Obele over who got you. Your academic and fitness scores are no joke. Travers is a very close second. The rest of the mandies are all good enough, I guess, but you two are cut out to be exceptional.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThank you, Sir.\u201d Maya watched as they approached the tree-line. It seemed dark and otherworldly to her eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd when we\u2019re out here, I\u2019m just Kal,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s plenty of time for the Sir crap in garrison, but on the fire line there\u2019s no time for that. If I, or any of the others with experience tell you to jump, you do it. That\u2019s how we all stay alive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They walked in a silence broken only by the humming of insects, the chirping of birds and tree frogs, and the occasional check-in on the radio. The canopy closed over her head, the branches high above her threatening to fall on her at any moment. It was somehow both claustrophobic and comforting. Under foot, the ground was uneven, rich odors rising from every footstep. The air felt thick in her lungs, sweat soaked into her helmet liner, and more trickled down her spine. Every little breeze made the needles rustle in the trees around her and mixed the resinous aroma of the trees with the rotten smell of the loam below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The day wore on, and they had picked up three of eleven markers, but Maya had trouble discerning where the sun was. They were in a place of constant gloom under the towering trees. \u201cSir, uh, Kal,\u201d she asked, \u201chow long have we been out here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He checked the navigation device. \u201cJust coming up on nine hours. Let\u2019s stop and eat.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya nodded. \u201cGladly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kal showed her how to quickly drop her pack by pulling on the latch at her chest. \u201cIt takes a little extra time to reconnect everything before you pick it up, but dropping it like this should become as natural as breathing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It took her a couple tries to find the latch without feeling around for it. \u201cYeah, if I needed it off in a hurry right now I\u2019d already be too late.\u201d She reconnected all the straps and sat down leaning against the pack. \u201cOf all things, my ankles<\/em> are exhausted.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kal smiled. \u201cYeah, I never left the block until my mandies,\u201d he said, \u201cso I know exactly<\/em> what you\u2019re talking about. It took me about three weeks to get used to walking in the wild.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya pursed her lips, \u201cI can handle three weeks. I\u2019ll be used to it before I graduate, at least.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They ate protein bars and sipped on their water. \u201cWith the way the light has barely changed I thought I might be too soft for this,\u201d Maya said between sips. \u201cHas it really been nine hours?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt has.\u201d Kal looked at her. \u201cI figured if someone as smart as you were coming to Dem 2, you\u2019d have looked it up. 38 hours, 17.4 minutes per planetary rotation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya snorted, \u201cI would\u2019ve, only I didn\u2019t know where<\/em> they were sending me. Never saw my orders. They just said \u2018get on this liner,\u2019 and then \u2018get on this plane.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWell, then, welcome to Erinle, second planet of the Dem system.\u201d Kal stood. \u201cI need to piss, then you should do the same, and we\u2019ll get to the next marker.\u201d  He turned his back to her and relieved himself against a tree. \u201cDon\u2019t you start until I\u2019m done. That\u2019s another habit to pick up. One of us should always be on lookout.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMakes sense.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Kal finished up he said \u201cyour turn.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She moved a meter away from her pack, dropped her trousers and squatted, keeping her eyes on Kal. \u201cI\u2019m going to pretend that my ankles aren\u2019t tired and we\u2019ll continue straight on through to the end, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kal shrugged. \u201cThe first three markers were pretty far apart. If they\u2019re all like this we may well have to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya stood and fixed her undergarments and fire suit. She knelt down and shrugged into her pack the way Kal had showed her, and they continued on. The next marker was just a few hundred meters ahead and they reached it in what seemed like no time. The trail they had been following, though, came to an end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHm.\u201d Kal pulled the marker off the tree and placed it in her pack. \u201cIt looks like we need to make our own path from here.\u201d He pointed off the side of the path. \u201cThe next marker is that way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where the trail had been hard-packed, with an occasional rock or root to trip her up, making her way through the trees was downright treacherous. Ferns, which Kal told her were called fire ferns, grew out of the thick, soft pine duff. Fallen branches, some five or six meters long, provided constant obstacles. The occasional downed tree had to be circumnavigated or climbed over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll of this,\u201d Kal said, pointing to the duff, the ferns, and the fallen wood around him, \u201cis fuel for wildfires. A great deal of your job will be to clean stuff like this up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They reached a small clearing, where Maya could once again see the slowly darkening sky. She noticed a new smell here, too, reminding her that she\u2019d grown accustomed to the smell of the forest. \u201cWhat\u2019s that smell?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kal stopped and took a deep breath. \u201cOh, nice.\u201d He walked to a pine growing on the edge of the clearing, smaller than the ones they\u2019d been walking past and with a different pattern of bark. He pulled off a small piece of the bark and sniffed at it before handing it to Maya. \u201cHere, check this out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bark smelled of vanilla. The scent was heady and sweet. \u201cWhat is this?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPinus erinle,\u201d Kal answered. \u201cEngineered from Pinus ponderosa on Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStudying botany?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo, you\u2019ll come to learn the names of the trees and plants you protect.\u201d Kal shrugged. \u201cOr at least, I did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo you\u2019re from here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWell, no, I\u2019m from Kiwa, Bul 4a.\u201d They crossed the clearing. \u201cI\u2019ve been stationed here for two years. We\u2019re at the end of the wet season, and it\u2019s been drier than normal. Fire season\u2019s going to be bad this year.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya mopped the sweat from her brow. \u201cThis is dry<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor the wet season, yes.\u201d Kal pointed out their next marker. He pulled it and put it in Maya\u2019s pack. \u201cSure, it\u2019s 80 percent humidity. But we\u2019ve had less than thirty centimeters of rain this season. Come dry season, this entire valley will be a tinderbox.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to imagine all this on fire,\u201d Maya said. She was going to say more until she saw another clearing ahead. This one, however, was black, not green.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDust mask and goggles on.\u201d Kal didn\u2019t bark it like an order but Maya felt the seriousness of it all the same. \u201cThe ash produces fine particulate that\u2019s both bad to breathe and painful in the eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya stepped into the burn area with Kal. Even with the mask the smell of burnt wood overtook everything. The ground was coated in a thick layer of ash, the ghosts of burned trunks dotted throughout the landscape. As they crossed the thousands of hectares of scorched land, Kal pointed out small green nubs, pushing out of the ashes. \u201cThat\u2019s why they\u2019re called fire ferns. They\u2019re the first thing that comes back. This fire was last season.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maya compared the desolation she stood in with the trees behind her. If there was any way to protect them, she would do it. \u201cDo you think I can be stationed here?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Kal said. \u201cBut if you prove my instincts about you right, I\u2019ll personally request you for my platoon.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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