Arknights story · Operator Records
Flammables
Shaw fails to save a man trapped in a fire. The only thing he left behind was a stamp album.
1 scenes, 252 lines
1. Interlude
252 linesShaw's Work Log
Jan 5 \ Overcast
There was a fire at a residential building downtown.
Everyone, don'tpanic! Pleasefollowourinstructions andevacuatetooutside thecordonedoffarea. Donotpanic...
It's gone... My life savings... all gone...
Hahaha... That's what I'm talking about! Burn this whole stinking place to the ground! Hahahaha...
M-Mommy...
......
Clear a path! Use triage! Care for the heavily injured first!
*cough*, *cough* *cough*...
Are the residents all clear?
Chief, no sign of anyone still trapped.
Mommy!
Mio!
*Sigh*...
Everyone, please take a look around and see if there's anyone you know who hasn't evacuated?
Has anyone seen the weird guy who lives on the second floor...?
Right, now that you mention it, I don't think I've seen him.
The second floor? Isn't that where the fire started?
That doesn’t sound good. Do you know if he's home?
I... I don’t know...
I do!
He leaves his blinds open every time he goes out, but his blinds were closed when I came down the stairs just now.
Well, crap...
Hey! Hey—
Tell HQ! There's someone trapped inside. The fire has grown so big that the firefighters can't go back in. Send fire trucks. Right now—
Letmego! I'llfigureoutaway togetthisguyout!
Don't be ridiculous! That's suicide!
The fire’s probably from an Originium fire starter explosion. It might set off a chain reaction any minutet—
Soit'sallthemoredangerous foranyonestuckinside!
But––
Stay in contact... and be careful.
Shaw, how’s it going in there...?
I'vemadeitinside. Thefire'sburning ataround450degrees.
It'sanoldresidentialbuilding. Reinforcedconceretestructure. Ifwedon'tputthefireoutsoon, itmaynotbeable tosustainitsload!
Thefiredoesn'tseemtohavespreadto thefirstflooryet, butthesmokehere isverythick.
I'vereachedthefireescape. Nowproceedingtothefirstfloor.
Roger that. Be careful.
Shaw, give me a status report.
*Cough*... There’saverythick layerofsmoke onthefirstfloor... Thesecondfloor mightbeevenworse.
Anyonewho'sstillinside isinseriousdanger. Igottahurry.
Ican'tseeverywell...
Shaw, don't push yourself. If you can't get inside, come back down right away!
Chief, thefireescape canstillbeused! I'mproceedingtothesecondfl—
Shaw!
*Cough*... I'mfine, Chief! Justashelffalling.
(Igottamakeapointofthis inmynextfiresafetylecture. Youcan'tputallthisstuff nexttoafireexit.)
Be careful...
Help... Help... me...
Help... help me...
Sir? Icanhearyou!
Please, coveryourmouthandnose. Don'ttalkandsaveyourstrength! I'llfindaway togetyouout!
The tiny Zalak slams on the burning hot steel door with her shoulder. It doesn't bulge.
(Crap, thedoorframe'sstartedtodeform becauseoftheheat!)
(Let'sseeifIcancutitopen withmyaxe.)
Sir, stayawayfromthedoor, please! Watchout!
Hyah—!
It'sworking! Icandothis!
Sparks fly everywhere. Shaw's axe turns scalding hot from the heat of the fire.
She tightly grips her axe's handle and slams it toward the door's lock. The fissure on the lock is already clear.
Shaw?
Shaw, Shaw! Wake up!
Isthefireout—?
Shaw!
You scared the hell out of me. I’m glad you’re awake...
H-How'sthefire?!
Don't move!
And don't worry. The fire's out. You did great.
But now I’m worried about you. The medic says you breathed in a little too much carbon monoxide. You need to get some rest.
Don't move too much, and keep your oxygen mask on.
Oh, wait! Whataboutthatguy?! Whathappened totheguywhowastrapped inthebuilding?! Igotta—
Shaw!
Chief, Icanstill—
It's too late.
Shaw never expected to find such a small room behind the door.
Everything inside has been burned to ashes, which in turn makes the room look that much more open.
There is a safe in the corner of the room. Although warped from the heat, its contents are miraculously intact.
A small stack of LMD bills and a stamp album.
......
Shaw.
Pack it up.
The fire erupted so quickly. In the end, one person died, with eleven in critical condition.
That was the first time I saw a life extinguished right before my eyes.
Jan 8 \ Showers
I found a pet fowlbeast.
I got distracted during training; got reprimanded. Had to write a self-reflection report.
Jan 11 \ Clear
The investigation into the fire the other day has wrapped up. It was started by a worn-out home-use Originium fire starter device, which set off a chain of explosions. The residents had too many things strewn around the building, which helped the fire spread.
I was commended at the ceremony today.
Jan 13 \ Overcast
I took the day off.
Y-Yousaidyoucouldn'tfindanything?
Right. You were there yourself. His whole life was burned to a crisp. There weren't any clues for us to work with.
We asked around in the neighborhood. All we learned is that the deceased was a single male. No idea what he did for a living or what his relationships were like.
Whatabouthisfamily? Hisfamilyhastoknow.
We put a notice in the papers asking anyone to come forward to claim his remains. We still haven't heard from anyone.
Butwhat... whatifhisfamilydidn'tseeit? Whatifhedoesn'thaveanyfamily inLungmen...?
That's not something we have to worry about.
Oh, that thing, huh? We looked into it.
No idea why he kept it in the safe, but analysis shows it's just a normal stamp album. There aren't even any fingerprints. We couldn't find any leads at all.
Why are you still asking about the fire, Shaw? The investigation must be over by now.
It was a home-use Originium fire starter that burned the place down. Both the L.G.D. and fire department arrived at that conclusion. There's nothing suspicious about it.
If we go by the book, we're supposed to destroy all personal effects left behind by nameless victims. I could give it to you, but what for?
Chief... There'ssomethingveryimportant thatIgottafigureout. Idunnohowtoexplain, but—
*Sigh*, what do I do with you... Come with me.
Thanks!
The guy who lived on the second floor? Didn't you ask me just a couple days ago? I didn't know him!
Every time I had to see that shitty face of his, it was all I could do to keep from punching it in. He never gave anyone the time of day. Why would we care about him?
Look, half my flat got burned down. I don't have the time to worry about some guy. I'm busy. Now leave me alone.
Sorrytobotheryou...
There aren’t many of us in this building, so we all know each other, more or less...
But that guy never talked to anyone. He never left his room during the day, either, so nobody knew much about him...
I met that uncle once. He was really big! He was like thiiiiiis tall!
He smiled at me and gave me a candy, too!
Huh? Was he an uncle or a grandpa? I'm not too sure...
Mio! How many times have I told you not to accept things from strangers?!
I'm sorry, we can't help you. We have some errands to run. Bye now.
Jan 15 \ Overcast
I took the day off.
I talked to a lot of people, but no one knew anything about the man.
It was like the fire burned away every trace of his life, like he never existed at all.
No, this isn't in my job description. I can't write about this here...
...Pleaseholdon!
Hello, sorryforinterrupting, doyouwork atthepostoffice? CanIaskyousomething?
Takealook atthisstampalbum!
Oh? If you want an appraisal on your collectibles, you need to make a reservation with the postal collectible specialists, and I'm about to clock out...
No, that'snotit! I'mverysorry, Ijustwantedtoask, wouldyoubeable totellanythingaboutitsowner justbylooking atthestampalbum?
What do you mean by that... It's not yours?
No... ActuallyIguessitkindofis. Anyway, couldyoupleasetakealook? It'sreallyimportant...
Alright, alright. Slow down. Hand it over.
Hm... You don't see a collection like this very often.
Didyoufigureoutsomething?!
Not really. It's just strange. Why would someone collect stamps like this?
W-Whatdoyoumean?
When people collect stamps, they’re usually either limited edition stamps or stamps that have some special significance, right?
But the stamps in here are all very common. There's no value in it whatsoever.
Novalue? Butitsowner keptitverysafe...
I can't tell you what the collector was thinking. The stamps' themes and years are all jumbled up, and he kept both postmarked and non-postmarked stamps together...
A lot of it has Kou-wu landscapes, though. Look, from this page onwards, it's all Kou-wu sceneries.
Now this 'Hui-ch'i Foothills' one is a classic. If my memory serves, it was issued a couple decades ago? They printed a lot of them, though, so it's not worth that much money.
That aside, I couldn’t tell you what's so special about this collection.
Isthatall...?
If you wanted to learn something about the owner from the collection, I'm afraid there's not much.
If I had to give you an answer, maybe he likes the landscapes in Kou-wu?
Come in, come in. Take a seat anywhere.
Hellothere... Iamwondering... ifyouserveauthentic Kou-wunesecuisinehere?
What? Girl, go ahead and ask every restaurant in Lungmen. See if anyone dares to say they serve more authentic Kou-wunese food than me?!
People from Kou-wu? Of course. We've served many Kou-wunese expats here. All of them say our food takes them right back home.
If you don't believe me, why don’t you try it yourself?
Boss... Iwanttoaskyouaboutacustomer...
He... HewasprobablyKou-wuese... Areallytallman, andprobablykindofhardup. Heprobablylookedalittleangry... maybenot... buthewouldcomefodinner intheevenings, otherwisealwayskeepingtohimself...
Hmm...
MaybeI'mnotexplainingitclearly... butdoesthatringanybells?! Evenasmallcluewillhelp!
You said... it was a tall guy?
That rings a bell... Yes, it does. There's a customer like that.
Doyouknowhim?!
Yeah... He’s a regular, sort of.
—!
It's just like you said. He always comes by himself, and always around midnight just before closing. I always have to stick around an extra hour for him.
He never orders much, either. Just a finbeast and a small side dish. A thing of liquor, too. He hangs around a little after he's done before heading on home.
Yeah, he looks real scary, but he's not a bad fella. Helps me clean up once he's done, too. Sometimes he talks about home when he's had a little too much to drink.
Boss... Doyouknow... ifhehasanyfriendsorfamily?
Friends or family? He never told me about them, but he certainly doesn't seem like he's married.
If you want to know, I could ask him for you next time? Wait, no, this is a customer's privacy we're talking about... *Sigh*... You'll just have to ask him yourself.
Won't be back again? No way. He loves my food. He's one of the ones I was talking about, always saying my cooking reminds them of home.
You're right, though. I haven’t seen him in a while...
I wonder what that young man's been up to.
Right, he's a young man. Maybe a little older than you, but probably not by much.
Now this 'Hui-ch'i Foothills' one is a classic. If my memory serves, it was issued a couple decades ago?
......
Hey, hey now, girl. Why are you crying, all of a sudden? A-Are you looking for family?
A-Alright, the next time he shows up, I'll ask him every last detail. Don't cry, okay?
Hey, speak of the devil. Now you pop in, eh, kid? Look at this girl, she's been asking after you, even started crying.
I have no idea what's going on, but help me out here.
I-It'syou...!
Shaw?
This brings me back.
'Hui-ch'i Foothills...' I grew up in a small town at the base of Mount Hui-ch'i. A place just like this.
I even remember this small pond behind the mountain. All the finbeasts we ate when I was a kid were from there.
You can buy the freshest fins at the docks here, but there aren't any great fincatching spots like that pond.
It's been years since I've been home, but the place still looks just as lovely as always, at least on these stamps.
Doyouthinkthatman wenttotheseplaces?
Hard to say...
Kou-wu isn't a big place, and there's not that many people there either. But, I can’t say I know him.
That said, now that you told me all this, I guess he doesn't feel a total stranger to me anymore. What a thorough girl you are, though. Not even we were this meticulous in our investigation.
Chief... Whatkindofaperson... doyouthinkhewas?
Hard to say... but he was probably homesick.
So you took the stamp album because you wanted to find his family?
Why are you so obsessed with him?
I... Icouldn'tsavehim...
Iheardhisvoicethroughthedoor... Heaskedmetosavehim...
IfIwasevenalittlefaster... maybeIcould've...
Nooneshouldjustvanish likethis.
Attheveryleast, Iwanttofindhisfamily, handthemthisstampalbum, andtellthemI'msorry.
Shaw, I'll say this no matter how many times it takes. You've done your job. Under those circumstances, no one could've done better, not even you yourself.
I can't tell you that's a wrong way to think, but with this kind of baggage, can you really throw yourself into the next fire without hesitating?
I... I...
Shaw, it wasn’t your fault.
Alright, I've said enough. This is something you have to figure out. I’m in no position to lecture you.
It's chilly tonight. Head home soon.
Shaw's Work Log
Jan 16 \ Overcast
Today's the last day of my vacation. I did something really embarrassing.
In the end, I couldn't find anything about the man. I don't know what to do to pull myself together, but I still have more important work.
Jan 17 \ Clear
Today's my first day back on the job.
I've fallen behind on my training, so I gotta catch up. I might've caught a cold, and I need to get better!
SoIjustdemonstratedthedangers thatyoureverydayfirestarters mightpose.
Theexamplewetalkedabout isn'tjusttheory. Therewasafire justliketheoneItalkedabout inLungmentwoyearsago.
Wemustalwayskeepinmind howtoproperlyescape thesceneofafire, butintheend, themosteffectivewaytofightfires isbypreventingthemfromhappening inthefirstplace.
UnlikeCatastrophes, it'susuallypeople whostartfires, butittakesmorethan ourwillpoweralone tostopfires.
Wecanstopanaccident atitssource, butonceatragedystrikes, there'snoturningthingsaround nomatterhowremorsefulwefeel.
Hey, Skyfire. Is it just me or did the squirt sound like she was kinda nervous that whole talk?
Shh—Listen to her. She's telling this to you, specifically. Now stop interrupting!
As if she doesn’t mean you—
Still, she looks kinda sad, though. What should we do? Cheer her up, maybe?
Pipe down and listen!
Did... Dideveryonegetallthat?
W-WasItalkingtoofast?
Don'tbenervous, don'tbenervous... *phew*...
*Cough*... S-Sowejusttalkedabout firestarteraccidents, buttherearemanyotherways afirecanstart.
Nextup, we'lltalkaboutelectricalsafety. EngineeringOperators, pleaselistencarefully.