Chapter 1
Since Gael lost his grandparents in a car accident at the age of 15, he had done everything possible to continue his high school education with the goal of becoming an engineer and volunteering as a firefighter at a station in Indre-et-Loire. To achieve this, the young man always made sure to get good grades and learn as much as possible about the various inventions that changed the world. However, as he approached eighteen, his heart wasn’t in it anymore, and his grades plummeted to the point where his head teacher doubted he could pass his exams as early as October. He hoped to catch up during the All Saints’ Day break, but fate had other plans.
Heavy rains swept across the country, causing water levels in the department to rise continuously, necessitating the call-up of all reservists until reinforcements arrived. Without a second thought, when Gael received the message on his phone, he grabbed his alternation bag with all his gear already prepared and drove to the station. He barely had time to put on his firefighter uniform before boarding a truck where he received his instructions on the way. For an entire week without rest, he spent his days pulling boats with people inside or using fire hoses to pump water and rescue trapped residents. He also reassured locals forced to sleep in a gymnasium away from their homes. To stay near the flood, all the firefighters slept in a military camp, where Gael struggled to do his homework with little success.
Three days before the end of the break, he was relieved to return to the station exhausted, dreaming of spending a night in a comfortable bed. The repetitive jolts of the fire truck helped him take a short nap before he set about cleaning and checking the equipment. Once his chores were done, he wanted to leave immediately and shower at home, but the captain summoned him to his office. Reluctantly, Gael made his way to the stairs, gripping the rail to leap down the steps, but he felt it tremble and the ground shake beneath him. Reflexively letting go of the rail when he felt warmth, he wondered what was happening, before the captain’s voice rang out above him.
“Why are you still on the stairs when I called you five minutes ago?” he said, looking at him sternly, standing upright.
“Didn’t you feel a shock?” Gael replied, bewildered.
“What nonsense are you talking about?” the captain retorted with a quick glance. “Follow me to my office now; I’d like to finish my day as soon as possible.”
Gael fell silent and followed him into his office, where he closed the door behind him and stood waiting for the captain’s permission to sit. Through the window, he saw the fog thickening, obscuring the nearest seasons of the station. The captain opened his old service computer to display a file, tapping his desk gently to get Gael’s attention before speaking.
“Since you’ve been with us for over a year and a half, I’d like to conduct your annual review, which I haven’t had time to do with the workload we’ve had. Let’s get through it quickly if you don’t mind. You became a volunteer firefighter at sixteen, shortly after losing your grandparents who were also your legal guardians following the death of your parents during a military operation?”
“That’s right,” Gael said, feeling somewhat drained. “We were evacuating due to an arson, and a hit-and-run driver struck us before fleeing in Var. The navy firefighters didn’t arrive in time for my grandparents, and I woke up in the hospital.”
“Is it because of this event that you wanted to join us?”
“Yes, to prevent anyone else from experiencing the same fate.”
“I heard those same words from you when I was a lieutenant. I remember having serious doubts about your intentions then, and it was your social worker who convinced me otherwise. He said it could help you move forward and avoid being placed in foster care if you were monitored here.”
“I didn’t want to relive what I went through with my parents’ loss, that’s why I refused to be placed.”
“If I were to speak to you as a man, I think you made a mistake,” he admitted, typing quickly on his keyboard. “It’s never good to grow up too quickly, and that’s what I see in your eyes and your way of doing things. However, as a volunteer firefighter, it’s a plus, and everyone here appreciates you a lot. You’re proactive, you perform well in emergencies, and although there was a slight mistake during your baptism of fire, you took the feedback well and haven’t repeated it. You’ve had no absences, and you’ve responded to all alternations when not on duty like this week. That’s rare enough to be noted, to the point where I wonder how your studies are going?”
Gael looked down somewhat shamefully before murmuring, “Not very well since the beginning of the term.”
“Why is that?” the captain asked, pausing in his typing to look at him directly. Gael took a moment to gather his thoughts before responding.
“I feel like I don’t belong in these studies; I don’t see how I can combine both careers with these courses.”
“Yet in my opinion, becoming an engineer and a firefighter fits together very well. That’s why we have experts. They help us lead rescues during building collapses; you inform us when it’s no longer feasible to extinguish a building fire. There were a few during the flood to manage the dikes.”
“I hadn’t seen the job from that angle,” Gael admitted, observing the captain. “I spend my days behind a lathe or on a screen designing calipers. I expected more manual activity, to be honest.”
“Practice and theory go hand in hand, Gael. For the coming year, I’ll ask you not to change anything as a volunteer firefighter, but to put the same effort and devotion here as in your studies, alright?”
Gael nodded, and the captain stood up, turning to the window where he couldn’t even see the tarmac. The young man grimaced inwardly, unsure how he could get home in such weather. The captain placed a hand on Gael’s firefighter coat, contemplating the mist.
“I’ve never seen fog like this here. I hope you’re not planning on navigating home in this weather,” he said.
“No,” Gael replied disappointedly. “That’s a recipe for ending up in a ditch.”
“That’s what I want to hear. Do you have spare clothes?”
“Yes, in the trunk just in case.”
“In that case, go get them to shower in the locker rooms and put that coat away in your locker. I’ll open the rest area for you, and if this fog doesn’t lift, I’ll have them open a room for you.”
“Thank you, Captain,” he said politely, wanting nothing more at the moment than a place to rest and recover. He left the office to return to the stairs, where he gripped the railing again, only to find it normal in temperature. “It’s fatigue playing tricks on me,” he thought to himself as he descended the stairs normally to retrieve his car keys from the locker room. He briefly smelled a fire from the showers emitting a lot of steam, while a colleague emerged with a towel around his torso, laughing.
“Why are you still here, Gael?” he said, surprised. “I thought you’d be home by now.”
“Not at all,” he replied, opening his locker to return his keys. “There’s quite a fog outside; I’ll rest in the rest area until it clears. I’ll pick up my things from the trunk.”
“Alright, we’ll be waiting at the bar then.”
Gael gave him a tired smile and left the locker room to go to the station entrance, where he felt slight tremors again, unnoticed by any other firefighter. He rubbed his eyes and opened the entrance door, seeing nothing but a white wall of fog and the ground two meters in front of him. Slowly and heavily, he made his way to his car to open the trunk where his two gym bags, a fire extinguisher, and an emergency response bag provided by the firefighters were stored. He yawned deeply before slinging the first bag over his back and the second over his shoulder.
Placing his hand on the trunk to close it, a stronger jolt caused him to fall headfirst into the trunk. The smell of fire became more present in his nostrils before he heard cries for help in the distance. Instinctively, he grabbed the emergency bag and extinguisher before running towards the station to alert his colleagues to what he had sensed and heard. The smell of smoke grew stronger, and the calls became so noticeable that he was sure the station would already be on alert by the time he arrived. Several minutes of running passed, and he was surprised not to have reached the station yet when one of his feet slipped into a puddle, causing him to fall in.
Gael let out a slight groan of pain and tried to get up, feeling dirt and leaves in the palm of his hand. The smell of smoke made him cough slightly, prompting him to put on a mask before his hand encountered more leaves and a tree trunk.
“Why are there dirt and trees in the middle of the city?” he wondered to himself, feeling increasingly uncomfortable in his clothes. He tightened his belt and hurried on, hearing the same female voice calling for help again, closer this time. Pushing through some foliage and branches obstructing his path, he covered his mouth, seeing clearer in front of him. Continuing to cough and feel his throat hindered, he crossed one last obstacle before exiting the smoke cloud. He put on a mask designed to breathe purified air, noticing he was walking in a field.
When he raised his head to see where he was, he was completely disoriented. Before him lay a medieval village engulfed in flames, located in a valley by a river, surrounded by mountains. He stood on a field where barns were ablaze, emitting thick black smoke into the sky. Feeling unsettled, he took a few hesitant steps, looking around, before hearing the voice of a woman coming from one of the wooden and earth houses outside the village.
Gael decided that saving as many people as possible was more important than getting answers to his questions and ran towards the voice that needed him.
