Trial by Fire

Brilliant hues of yellow, orange, and red pierced the evening sky, turning it from black to a faded purple. Such a beautiful and terrifying sight for all to see, but no one was there to bear witness. The neighborhood was devoid of people and pets. Only the security cameras remained, dutifully recording the sights and sounds of the impending doom. It was an abandoned world, save for one unsuspecting resident.

Frank lived alone and seldom interacted with his neighbors. He traveled extensively for work, which meant he was gone more than he was home. When a national guardsman knocked on his door and received no answer, the other residents told him Frank must be traveling again, but that wasn’t the case. It was a combination of jet lag and a sleeping pill that put him in a comatose state. Now, Frank was about to learn what it meant to be truly alone.

The faint smell of smoke, similar to that of a distant campfire, wafted in from the open bedroom window. The smell made Frank sneeze several times, rousting him from his deep sleep. He wondered why someone would have a campfire burning in the middle of the night. Unable to go back to sleep, he groggily walked to the window. One look outside snapped him into full consciousness.

A raging fire threatened to encircle his neighborhood. Scanning the surrounding houses, Frank immediately knew he was on his own. Having no time to spare, he dressed and headed for the garage. The Mini Cooper convertible wasn’t going to offer much protection against the approaching inferno. All he needed was for it to get him out of his cul-de-sac, and he might stand a chance. Frank manually raised the garage door because moments before, the power had winked out.

Timing is everything, so they say, and unfortunately, his timing was way off. Frank gunned the Mini out of the garage and headed toward his street’s intersection with the main road. His escape route disappeared when a massive live oak came crashing down across the street, blocking his path. This was no time to panic, but controlling his emotions was becoming nearly impossible. Frank watched, almost mesmerized, as the blazing embers floated past his windshield like fairies riding on the breeze. Reality once again regained control when he realized these floating beauties would set his convertible top on fire at any moment. Frank slammed the transmission into reverse and headed back to his garage. He exited his car and simply stood, taking in the destruction happening around him.

It wasn’t unusual to see wild animals in the neighborhood: mostly rabbits, squirrels, and the occasional feral cat. On rare occasions, deer would come to graze on bushes or drink from the fountain in the middle of the roundabout. Tonight, a large buck walked purposefully past Frank’s house and leaped into the fountain. The buck wallowed in the water until his fur became saturated, and then he bolted from the fountain to the downed tree and bounded through the flames to the other side.

Frank just shook his head and laughed out loud. Why did it take a deer to show him how to save himself? Fortunately, his water was still working, which made things much simpler. He grabbed as many bath towels as he could find and soaked them in a sink full of water. Next, he changed his sneakers for heavy-duty work boots, then drenched himself and his clothes. Frank filled several buckets of water and put them along with the towels in the Mini. The last item he added was a pair of work goggles. Arsenal complete, Frank headed back to the blazing tree.

Intense heat from the inferno made it difficult to breathe. He donned the goggles, then wrapped his head and body with the saturated towels. Now was the moment of truth. Would his makeshift fire suit work? There was only one way to find out, to walk on through. Frank took one bucket of water and dumped it over his head, then threw the other two at the fire.

Stepping over a blazing tree, with flames singeing his protective towels, was terrifying. His breathing became ragged and his footing unsure, but he pushed forward to the other side. Frank survived the blaze that destroyed his community thanks to a lone buck.