Disclaimer: All characters belong to HiT Entertainment.

Chapter 1

Late one winter afternoon, inside the Pontypandy fire station, I was helping Penny and Elvis manage some leaks that were dripping from the ceiling in the garage. One might be forgiven for thinking that the leaks were caused by melting snow, but in fact the leaks were being caused by some damaged water pipes. I was very concerned, because I knew that our lovely old fire station was due to be decommissioned in just a few short months, but even I doubted it could last until the end of winter.

A few weeks earlier, I'd gone to Newtown with Station Officer Steele, for a meeting with HQ. They'd informed us of their plans to decommission the old fire station, and build a new one in its place. They'd even showed us some of their ideas for our new fire station. Looking at them reminded me of what the Pontypandy fire station had looked like when I'd first become a member of the team. Back in those days, the garage had only been large enough for Jupiter, but it hadn't needed to be any bigger, because Jupiter had been our only emergency vehicle. The building had also contained a kitchen/common room, Station Officer Steele's office and, upstairs, a quiet area for us to have a nap, if we needed it between jobs.

So much has changed since then though. There are even some firefighting methods I was taught back then that I wouldn't even dream of using today, because they're too dangerous. Funny how they weren't considered dangerous back then…

Snapping back to the present moment, I watched as yet another drip fell into the saucepan in front of me. It was almost full. Just then, Elvis ran downstairs, carrying another empty saucepan. Between drips, he managed to replace the full saucepan with the empty one.

"Well done, Elvis," I praised, albeit tiredly. I hadn't had a very good night's sleep, because Radar had been howling at the moon for most of the night. He was probably cold, so perhaps I'll let him sleep inside my house tonight.

Standing up, Elvis scratched the back of his head. "Oh, dear! I'm running out of pans! I've got nothing to cook my spaghetti in."

"Don't worry, Elvis. We won't be here for much longer," Penny reminded him. Seeing a drip move along the ceiling, she kicked a bowl over so that the drip fell straight into it.

"It's still a while before the new fire station is built," I pointed out. "I just hope we have enough pans to last till then."

The others silently agreed with me. At that moment, we heard Mike Flood's voice as he emerged from Station Officer Steele's office.

"It's no good, Station Officer Steele," Mike was saying. Station Officer Steele and Chief Fire Officer Boyce followed him out of the office. "I've been tinkering with your flange joints all morning, and I'm afraid your pipes are just too old."

"And the roof needs replacing, and the floors are crooked…" Chief Fire Officer Boyce added.

Station Officer Steele glanced down at the floor. "Oh dear! Well, I suppose we can struggle through for a few more weeks."

Chief Fire Officer Boyce shook his finger at Station Officer Steele. "No! I'm sorry, Norris. I'm not sure we can struggle through a few more hours. For safety purposes, we're going to have to shut your fire station down tonight."

I was shocked, and so were the others.

"Tonight?" Penny exclaimed.

Clearly, we were all thinking the same thing – how on earth would we operate without a fire station?

"Keep calm, firefighters," Chief Fire Officer Boyce soothed. "We've got a Mobile Command Unit that you can use, while you're waiting for your new fire station to be built."

I was very much saddened by this news. I was not prepared to say goodbye to the old fire station so soon, but it appeared as though I would have to. "Be a shame to leave the old place, though," I mussed, expressing my thoughts aloud.

"I wonder if there'll be any emergencies on our last night?" Elvis said.

As Elvis was still speaking, the fax machine inside the office started beeping an alert. Station Officer Steele ran into his office.

"Looks like there might be," I said hopefully. I was glad, because an emergency would be a fitting end to the old fire station. Going out with a bang, as they say.

A few seconds later, the old heritage alarm that had served us well for so many years, began ringing. Then, Station Officer Steele announced the emergency over the loudspeakers.

"Trevor Evans' bus is dangling over the edge of Pontypandy cliff, and it's full of passengers!"

I was already running over to the switch panel, in order to open the garage doors, before he'd even finished speaking. It wasn't the first time the bus had been left dangling over the edge of the cliffs, but my first thought was, My family! I knew that my sister-in-law, Bronwyn, had decided to take my niece and nephew, Sarah and James, shopping in Newtown. No doubt there would be others on board as well, but my first and most natural instinct was to save my family. However, I also knew that as lead fireman, I was responsible for the welfare of all passengers on board, as well as for the welfare of my colleagues. I thought fast as I pulled the switch to open the garage doors.

"Penny, Elvis, you take Venus. I'll go ahead on Mercury."

After Penny and Elvis had put on their helmets, they climbed inside Venus. As usual, Penny was drove her. I pulled on my quadbike helmet before I dashed outside through the backdoor. The air was freezing outside due to the snow, but that was the least of my concerns. Adrenalin coursed through my body as I leapt aboard Mercury and started her up. Seconds later, I drove Mercury down the driveway, followed closely by Penny and Elvis in Venus.

With sirens blaring and lights flashing on the vehicles, we made our way as quickly and as safely as we could along the snow-covered roads towards the cliffs. In my mind, I ran through all the possible scenarios that could happen with this kind of emergency, and how I would deal with each situation. Years of experience had taught me how to do that, and now it all just came instinctively. I could only hope that everyone had managed to safely get out of the bus before we got there. Knowing Trevor as well as I did, I was sure he'd keep everyone calm.

As we approached the cliffs, I saw Norman's pet lamb, Lambykins, digging in the snow beside the road. I did my best to avoid her, and I made a mental note to ensue she got back to her field later.

When we arrived at the scene, I took one look at Trevor's bus in its precarious position, and I immediately felt sick. Everyone was still on board! However, seeing that the bus was almost at its tipping point, I knew we didn't have a moment to lose. I turned off Mercury's engine, before I ran over to Venus. There was only one thing I could do in this situation. I grabbed Venus' tow winch.

"Elvis, come with me!" I instructed. "Penny, I need you to stay at the wheel."

"Roger that, Sam," Elvis and Penny replied in unison as Elvis got out of Venus.

Carrying the tow cable's hook in my hands, I ran towards Trevor's bus. It was starting to fall, and I could hear everyone screaming inside. I know I would only get one chance to save them.

Jumping into the air, I somehow managed to catch the tow cable's hook in the bus's front tow ring. I landed heavily on my stomach, but the soft snow padded my landing, and I was able to roll myself clear of the bus. Standing up, I saw that the bus's descent had been stopped, for now. I knew that Venus would not be able to hold the bus for long.

"Back her up, Penny!" I ordered desperately.

Penny tried to reverse Venus, but as I suspected, Venus didn't have the weight or the engine power to pull the bus back up.

"She can't take the weight!" Penny informed me, confirming what I already knew, so I turned my attention to getting the passengers to safety.

"Elvis, get ready to move the passengers clear," I instructed, pointing to a safe place on the far side of Mercury.

Taking off my quadbike helmet, I opened the bus's door. My friends and family looked absolutely terrified, but I knew there was no time to try and reassure them. I needed to give my instructions clearly, so there'd be no misunderstandings.

"I want you all to move towards the door, very carefully," I instructed.

Sarah and James came towards me first. I quickly lifted them down, followed by Mandy and Norman. With the kids now safe, I turned my attention to the adults.

"That's it," I encouraged as Bronwyn and Helen stepped out of the bus. "Keep coming!"

"Stand clear, everyone," Elvis instructed the children. "Don't worry. It'll be okay."

As I helped Trevor off the bus, he pointed towards the back seats. "Dilys is still inside. She's too scared to move!"

I looked inside at Dilys. Sure enough, the poor woman was gripping the back of the seat in front of her, shivering with fear. This isn't a good time for you to freeze, Dilys, I thought. But after all the times I'd rescued her, I knew that the best way to snap her out of it was by talking gently to her.

"Come on, mum!" Norman shouted from outside.

"I can't look!" Dilys replied. "I'm too frightened."

The winch creaked, and I knew that the bus was about to go over the edge. Sure enough, some rocks supporting the bus gave way, and it slipped even further over the edge. Turning, I grabbed my quadbike helmet. I knew I had no choice but to go inside, and the helmet might just be enough to save my life if the bus fell while I was still inside.

"Keep her steady, Penny!" I ordered. "I'm going in!"

I entered the bus before I heard her reply. I had to hang onto the railings to keep my balance as I moved cautiously towards the back of the bus. The bus shifted under my weight, and Dilys screamed as she let go of the seat in front of her.

"Keep calm," I soothed. "I've got you, Dilys…"

Seeing me, Dilys grabbed my outstretched hand. "Oh, no!" she yelped as the bus shifted again.

"Come on, Dilys," I encouraged as I pulled her towards the door. "Quickly!"

I nearly pushed Dilys out of the door as the bus shook again. As soon as I saw that Dilys was safe, I leapt out of the bus, summersaulting myself clear of the vehicle. Everyone cheered as Dilys was reunited with Norman, but I knew the danger wasn't over yet. Trevor's bus was almost over the edge now, and if we didn't act quickly, it would take Venus and Penny with it.

"I can't stop it, Sam!" Penny shouted anxiously.

"Elvis! Get the wire cutters!" I ordered, and he promptly ran over to Mercury. "Stand back, everyone!"

With the passengers a safe distance away, I ran over to Venus, and I tried to get a grip on the winch cable. Trevor's bus was definitely going over the edge. There was nothing we could do to save it now.

Venus, Penny and I were getting dragged closer and closer to the edge of the cliff, when Elvis appeared right behind me.

"Sam!" he shouted as he held out the wire cutters.

Grabbing the wire cutters, I used them to cut the winch cable. "Uh!" I exclaimed, due to the physical effort I'd just put my hand through to cut the cable. Venus braked abruptly, and a deathly silence filled the air as Trevor's bus finally fell over the edge. Seconds later, an almighty crash was heard as the bus landed at the bottom of the cliff.

"My bus!" Trevor whimpered sadly.

Standing up, I removed my quadbike helmet with a relieved sigh. Penny rested her forehead on Venus' steering wheel, clearly also very relieved.

"Just another day in Pontypandy," I said, trying to lighten the mood. But, deep down, I knew that it wasn't. Nothing would ever be the same again. A shiver ran through my entire body, but I ignored it. Taking a deep breath to steady my nerves, I approached the passengers. "Is everyone okay?"

"I think so," Helen replied. "At worst, we're just a bit shaken."

"Right, well, I'm afraid we won't be able to give you a lift back to Pontypandy this time…"

I let the sentence hang. I was starting to feel quite dizzy, and I couldn't stop shivering. I knew I was going into shock, but I didn't want to admit that to anyone. It would only make them worry. However, Helen, being the nurse that she was, noticed that something was wrong as soon as I started hyperventilating.

"Sam? I think you'd better go and sit inside Venus," she told me firmly.

"No, I'm fine," I muttered feebly. I'd just taken a step towards Mercury, when my vision clouded over and I felt myself falling forwards.

"Sam!" I heard Elvis shout in alarm, but then everything faded away into nothing.

Hehe! Cliffhanger! You're all going to hate me for that, I know! But, anyway, please let me know what you think, and I'll keep writing more.

Spoiler alert - the next chapter explains the reason while I'll never put Sam and Penny into a relationship, and why nobody else should either (only my opinion though. Nothing personal against anyone who does put them together). I'll explain my reasoning for this after the next chapter.