Disclaimer: I do not own Firefly, nor any of the characters, blah blah blah. Hehe.
The End of Earth
The day started out blindingly bright, white and puffy clouds only touching the sky with a hint. The wind slipped in between the trees creating a slight sway back and forth, back and forth, but that was all the sound heard. No traffic noise, no stray dogs whining in the streets, or any birds sounding off as they soared through the periwinkle skies, except for one.
A pygmy owl took advantage of the unexpected gust of wind, only to drop dead after the few seconds of freedom. It started to softly rain after this, as if Earth were mourning for yet another loss since the wars.
"Damn," Zoe whispered, tracing the birds' actions with her binoculars. Closing the window, she stepped down from the ladder, her feet hitting the floor with experienced balance. She stared sullenly at the now empty makeshift cage.
Zoe was always careful when she did her daily Atmo Toxicity Testing. But today was the day marking her first year alone on Earth. Her friends and family left the planet as soon as they heard that Mercury was succumbed to the sun. Now she was all by herself, in her partially-underground home escaping the harmful atmosphere the best she could.
She and Mal were soon to leave the war rock for good, probably off to fight more wars. But leaving her home, nonetheless, made it all the more difficult. It was all she had left when her loved ones fled to Miranda, but she must depart, for Venus was due for sun-merging any day now, and poor Earth's atmosphere was getting more poisonous with each passing day.
Zoe jumped a little as a loud buzz rampaged through the silence. She hurriedly checked the atmo test, but it was still reading the sample.
"Knock, knock! Or should I say—" Another loud drone filled the underground house, drowning out the visitor's echoing voice. Zoe turned to a screen near the ceiling—which allowed her to view anywhere in the house—and recognized the male figure. The brunette stoically marched to the front door and unlatched several steel locks. As it creaked open, a gust of air flowed past Zoe, brushing a few strand of her curly hair behind her shoulders.
"Nice wind tunnel thingy," Mal noted, pointing up at the newly installed oxygen replenishing system. This was a small room preceding the entrance that furiously removed the tainted air so it wouldn't infect the inside of the house. The fierceness of the wind left Mal's hair looking elegantly dishevled.
"Thanks. I didn't think you were coming here for another week?" Zoe responded, smiling at Mal's appearance.
"What? And leave my Zoe on this soon-to-be explode-y rock?" Mal said with his patented grin, "By the way, had Earth always smelled like all the eggs in the 'verse gone bad?"
Yet another strong buzz sounded and Mal turned every which way to see where it was coming from. Zoe headed back for the den and grabbed the atmo indicator.
"According to the ATT," Zoe double-checked the result and frowned, "it's an eight."
Mal looked puzzled and approached his next question with caution. "...and that's good?"
"Well, seeing as it's from a scale of one to ten—ten being unlivable conditions—I'd say not so good. And it rose more than 30 percent from yesterday."
"Oh." Mal looked around, admiring the decor—or lack thereof. "So...when are we getting off this rock? I—"
"Earth," Zoe corrected. Earth was her only real home, not just some rock.
"Right. I thought you'd be packed up and ready to leave now?" Mal said, his eyebrows raised. He was always set to leave at a moments notice.
Zoe drew in a deep breath, letting it out effortlessly. "This rock is my home, Mal. When do you think I will ever leave it so easily?"
She crossed her arms uncomfortably. Mal averted his eyes and the corner of his lips fell as the silence wore on. "I—" he quickly stopped himself, before he confessed his love to her, and got back to business. "We need you. The Alliance isn't gonna quit until we do, and we sure as hell ain't gonna." He stepped closer to Zoe, his serious eyes beaming into hers. "The future of the 'verse is in your hands."
A few seconds passed before a chuckle had escaped Zoe's full lips. She turned, now walking deeper into the house. "Alright, fine." Mal called out to her, peering further around the hallway to see where she went. "But I can't fight without my best second in command!"
"You mean your only second in command." A far-off Zoe yelled.
"Well, yeah—but you know I won't—" she reappeared amidst Mal's stuttering, carrying a small bag in her left hand. He soaked in her beauty for a moment before snapping back to his train of thought. "You know what I mean. Wait—that's all you've got?"
"What can I say? I pack lightly for wars," Zoe said, patting her gun holster. The two walked out through the front door that led directly to Mal's ship. Zoe took one last look, dismally shutting the door behind her.
"Look at the bright side," Mal began, proudly striding into his ship, "This rock all ended up being Alliance territory anyway, so I'd count it as a win for us!"
"Wow, Mal. You really know how to make things easier for a gal," Zoe said monotonously.
"Hey! That's 'captain' to you. With this ship, the name seems to suit me better," Mal said with a different air about him.
"Shiny, captain," Zoe stepped into the hold, looking around skeptically. She faced the open door with Mal. "Have you picked a name for her yet?" Zoe asked of the run-down ship.
"Nope. But I've a feeling its gonna come to me soon." He hit the switch, closing the doors with a horrific screech. An echoing bang was heard far off in the ship. Zoe and Mal looked at each other, not surprised at the event.
"I might need that."
Author's note: The idea that Mercury and Venus are merging with the sun is based off of a theory I've once heard that said one day Earth would go into the sun. Also the whole air toxicity thing is caused by the heat of the sun mixing with the pollution in the air, since Earth was completly run down after the Alliance wars. So, that kind of clears up any confusion that anyone might have.
--radioactive.zen