Ten minutes later we got our orders, and we jog, geared up, onto the tarmac. We swing into the helicopter beneath the thumping of rotors. In the distance, a finger of black spirals into the sky.

This moment answers all the questions. Why Sherlyn would never understand what I feel, why I would never comply with Dad's request. Inside, I burn a joyful burn, and darkness, momentarily, flees. I hate fire. I want to kill it. But I love it. It dances in my mind.

We hover over the smoke. Radio scratches in the distance.

'Abort guys, wind shifts in the canyon.' The copter pilot announced, turns back and smiles. 'Its not a pretty sight down there. Nothing you can do about it.'

Nobody pays attention. All eyes were on Moxie. A red light flashes across his face.

'Hover!' Mox steps out into the helicopter's skids. 'The IC has the call. And this IC says, GO!' Mox tucks into the pike position, pats his bag, and dissapears down the rappelling rope.

'Guess it is our war,' I say to Harv. 'See ya later.'

Smoke rises from beneath the canopy of trees and sends spindly fingers up to grab me. It's down there, waiting to destroy or be destroyed.

I zip down the line into the suffocating cloud. My feet hit Koss's hands, and I hear curses and laughter. I slow. We descend together. The thicker the smoke, the clearer I think. The cloud in my mind fades away slowly, as the physical cloud engulfs me. The cloud that fogs my mind blows away, and I'm all here. Adrenaline pumping, I got onto the ground. I'm all here. Right now. Let there be light.