The eyes of the firing squad followed Walter Mitty’s every move, as he puffed out a hazy cloud smoke. After half a minute of silence, a haggard look appeared on his face as he stretched his arms out in surrender, his cigarette still dangling between his fingers.

Mitty sighed with impatience, “Now friends, we don’t have all day, do we?”

Suspicious looks were exchanged between the squad. They spread their feet apart simultaneously to assume the position. With a click, every machine gun was upon Mitty, who gracefully closed his eyes, anticipating the piercing bullet. In an instant, a harsh jolt ran through the veins of his body and his eyes widened in shock. The sound of Mrs. Mitty’s voice cut the silence as she tapped her fingernail on his chest.

“How many times have I warned you about smoking? Put a stop to that atrocious smell right now,” she ordered.

She continued down the damp side streets to their parking spot as the click of her pink high heels closely followed. “Come along, quickly! We still need to pick up our mail from the post office,” Mrs. Mitty warned. When she wasn’t looking, Mitty took one last gulp of smoke before he threw the cigarette on the ground. When it met the wet pavement, he stomped on the end, creating a heavy smog that crept from beneath his leather shoes. As he marched past the fire department, he heard a voice bark at him from behind.

… “All fireman report to station twenty-three immediately! We have a huge disaster on our hands,” yelled a young man.

Next to the drugstore, the flames grew bigger and small children ran frantically to their parents in complete pandemonium.

“Mitty, that means you too!” ordered Chief Smith.

The hoses were hauled off the flashing truck and an assembly line started to form on the road. Mitty scurried to join the end of the line, as the water started to flow through the tubes. Some citizens watched the catastrophe from a distance with distraught looks on their faces.

“My puppy! He’s still on the top floor of the building! He’ll get stuck!” cried Sally with tears in her eyes.

Mitty heard her cry and responded right away. With the clunk of his boots, and the swish of his fireproof jacket, he was climbing up the side of the drugstore in a hurry. The mothers gasped loudly and the children’s eyes widened as Mitty went higher. The brave, fierce and powerful Walter Mitty would soon become the town’s next hero.