minutes “Dragonfly” already rose almost steeply over all-terrain vehicle, having headed for the North, and was behind the wood. Soon it returned.
Simakov began to count that moves quicker – “Taiga” or the fire. How it wound the head, results turned out unfavourable.
– Well that? – Ignat asked.
– The fire makes up – Simakov answered. – And by the evening wind has to amplify.
The fire amplified. Fire covering the increasing forest space itself created wind. It already hooted on tops of trees, carrying caustic smoke, but sparks it was not visible yet.
Over “Taiga” cracked and abruptly “Dragonfly” fell by the deck. The excited, reddened Anna Fokina specified the shortest way from the wood.
Day died away. In the sky the first stars were lit. Animals already ran everything, birds flew by.
– Now clouds, a rain, and the sky, as ill luck would have it, pure – Simakov grumbled.
From “Dragon” reported that the fire does jumps: the risen wind transfers the burning boughs, branches, causing the new centers. Business took a serious turn.
From where again mad animals appeared. Different inhabitants of the wood ran alternately, without paying attention at each other. It became difficult to breathe.
– To lay a pipe and rotors! – Simakov ordered.
The high pipe of vetrosilovy installation turned out folding. It settled as if failed. Rotors were put on one side as steamship pipes when passing the steamship under the bridge.
– To stop motors of air draft!
Part of motors calmed down. Propellers, having turned round and round idling, stopped. Dudin and Gritsay quickly removed them and laid in the case.
– Arch!
– Is an arch! – Pomor was answered by Gritsay.
In a nasal part of the overland ship, over the deck, three metal arches, one above another rose.
– To batten down windows!
– Is to batten down windows!
Jim and Ignat expected, what will be farther. “Taiga” reminded the ship before cyclone approach. She was going to enter fight against a fiery storm and elements of the wood. The wood it is tenacious held in the paws, fire persistently made up for the ship.
Simakov deeply sighed. “Taiga” was ready for storm.
– To give lesoreza. Full speed! – the new team was distributed.
“Taiga” quickly moved forward as the tank in the attack. The cutting torch made white-hot podkashivat thick trunks, and they fell diversely. Trees, rustling as sea waves, fell directly by “Taiga”, fell on arches and on them slid off down. Others fell across the road. “Taiga” crept, rising a nose, a stern as the ship at kilevy rolling. Sometimes on the way so many trunks leaned that it was necessary to recede and again to move to scatter them.
– It already reminds fight of the ice breaker against ice – Ignat noticed.
– Yes, but, at least, the fiery tornado does not pursue the ice breaker – Jim noticed.
Absolutely darkened. Despite noise of motors, a crash of the falling trees and hissing of fire extinguishers, the rumble of the overtaking fire was already heard. The darkened night sky in the south became crimson. Small sparks flew by over “Taiga” as meteors.
– Here the spark can get, all this garbage needs to be put away – Ignat told.
– You are right – the captain answered. – Here to you and Jim there was a suitable work.
Jim and Ignat began to dump from the deck of a heap of boughs, needles, cones.
– Teplenko becomes to work – Ignat told after a while, wiping sweat from a face and glancing at Jim.
The black figure of the Black was already brightly lit with glow of the fire and seemed bronze.
– Yes, grows warm – Jim noticed, also stopping to take rest.
To the aid of Jim and Ignat Fokina and Kamneva came.
By ran Gritsay and told on the run:
– Nasty business. There is not enough fire extinguishing foam. Stocks are exhausted. Dubrovina does not manage to produce. Somebody help it.
Anna threw a garbage armful overboard and left.
In the wood already was light-and it is hot, as at July noon.
– Gloomy affairs, Jim – said Ignat in low tones. – Perhaps, it would be quieter us to continue a way on the airplane. At the worst from this hell one-two persons on “Dragonfly” can escape.
– Yes, perhaps, these there above will escape. – Jim showed a hand: highly over the wood “Dragon” brightly shone.
– No, and there to them it is not sweet – it continued, looking after the clouds of crimson smoke rising to “Dragon”.
At this time Ignat and Jim worked aft, near the winch to which “Dragon” was tied.
Gritsay came running and began to give a cable.
– Coils of Tests and Grinev ask to lift them higher, are roasted and choke. They hang over the fire now – explained Gritsay.
“Dragon” began to rise slowly.
The deck was cleared in time. On it sparks and golovn even more often flew. But work could not be given up for one minute: continuously new fragments, boughs, cones from the trees falling on arches and which are rolling down down collected.
Ignat approached the captain’s cabin.
– How are you doing? – he asked Simakov. – Until the end of the wood far?
– Not less than ten kilometers – the captain answered.
From a heat it was already difficult to stand on a nose. Behind “Taiga” on trunks and stubs of mowed trees sparks zmeitsya. One dry tree flared. The fire ran high absolutely close from the all-terrain vehicle. Its case more and more heated up. Was to pant. Heat amplified every minute. But any person from all crew, not excepting girls, did not show panic. Ignat joked:
– And you still were afraid, Jim that you will stiffen from cold in the north. Perhaps, here is warmer, than in your Florida.
Jim smiled, sparkling teeth.
On the deck the heap of needles, another, the third flashed… Dudin ran, filling in a flame with the fire extinguisher.
The fire cracked, hooted, howled, whistled. Birds and animals outstripped “Taiga” for a long time. Only one people conducted the last fight against
