CHAPTER TWO
"Cobb! Jayne Cobb!"
The postman's voice rang through the station. He'd heard that the Firestorm had docked for supplies, and when he saw the familiar mercenary entering his establishment, that fact was confirmed. For once, he was glad to see the big lug. He waved one hand in the air to attract Jayne's attention.
Jayne ambled over to the post window and looked inside. "What? You got somethin for me?"
The postman nodded and reached a hand under the counter.
"Yeah. Got a recorded wave. Had it a while. Tried to bounce it to you, but it's an old format. Kept giving my cortex fits. Had to store it in this."
The man held up a small data storage device.
"Works fine. Just plug it into your data port. But I'll tell ya, I'm not real sure how it even made it this far. Signal's pretty degraded. Od format, like I said."
Jayne nodded and roughly took the storage device. He flipped the postman a coin.
"Yeah, well, thanks," he said.
The postman nodded, glad to be rid of the message and the man. Jayne shoved the device in his pocket and wandered off. He was frankly confused as to who would send him a wave, especially an old, degraded one. His mama had passed on last year, and he didn't know anyone else who would take kindly to communicating with him. Jayne shrugged. He'd figure it out when he returned to the Firestorm later. For now, he had shopping to do.
XXX
It took him longer than he'd expected to pick up everything he needed, but when Jayne returned to the ship later that afternoon, he had a full complement of ammunition, grenades, and even a new pistol at his disposal. Business had been good lately for his captain, and he'd been paid well for his part in it.
As he stowed his new weapons, Jayne remembered the data storage device in his pocket. He sat down in his bunk and plugged the small machine into his cortex display.
The image that came up was indeed fuzzy, and static overlaid some of the sound, but the message was understandable enough. Jayne stared at a face that seemed more than a bit familiar, but he couldn't quite place it. Then the audio started to play, and a voice Jayne did remember spoke to him slowly.
Jayne Cobb… probably don't remember… you set down here some time back… wanted to tell you sooner… ain't no doubt, you know… you got a son, Cobb. I know he's yourn, cuz I got sick right after and couldn't favor nobody else for near two months. He came seven months later, Cobb. Don't need nothing from ya. Just thought maybe you might maybe wanna know.
The message cut off. Jayne sat and stared at the screen with wide eyes. To be fair, he wasn't entirely surprised by the fact that he had a child somewhere. He knew that most whores took measures to prevent that, but he also knew that nothing was perfect in this verse and that he'd favored enough women to have gotten unlucky somewhere along the way. He just never expected to be told about it, and he never expected to feel much of anything about it.
But as he sat and stared at his cortex, a myriad of emotions fought for control of Jayne Cobb.
He was angry first. Angry that this whore had waited so long to tell him about this. Then he was glad she had. Then he wondered why the hell she was telling him at all, and especially why she was telling him now. The time stamp on the wave was from ten years ago, for crying out loud. And Jayne was scared, too. Scared that somehow she needed something from him, even though she'd said she didn't - and he worried that whatever she needed was something he might not be able to give. But mostly, Jayne was filled with a sense of wonder that blew him away. He would've never predicted this, but he was simply amazed and astounded that he had a son.
As he tried to sort out his feelings on the matter, Jayne's cortex assailed him with a constant stream of static, but he didn't notice. Suddenly, though, it rippled to life again. A much cleaner picture, with crystal clear sound and a recent timestamp, continued his message.
So I raised him here. He's a fine boy, but this ain't no place for him. He decided that on his own. Took off last week. Heard tell he hitched on a freighter called Nova. Don't know much about it, but I heard it's a fair ship. Don't know what you can do or if this will even reach you, and I know you don't owe us nothin, but if'n you're so inclined, I'd be mighty grateful if you'd try to look after him a bit. He ain't a man just yet, and he might be needin one to look after him for just a little while longer.
The transmission ended, bathing Jayne in another dose of static.
Jayne sat stock-still for a full ten minutes, starting at the electronic snow on his screen. No further messages appeared, and when his cortex blinked into power-save mode on its own, Jayne jumped to his feet.
XXX
An hour later, everything Jayne Cobb owned was packed in a large duffel bag that was slung over his shoulder. He stepped onto the bridge of his latest ship and cleared his throat.
His captain turned around from his place at the helm and regarded Cobb. When the older man saw Jayne he snorted a small laugh.
"So, you're leavin then?"
Jayne nodded. "Got somethin I gotta take care of."
"Well, we ain't never had no contract," said the captain. "You're free to go as you please."
"Yep."
"Where you headed?"
"Don't know yet," answered Jayne.
"Ah, those are the best kind of voyages," mused the captain. "Can I expect you back?"
Jayne shrugged. "I might be around again."
"Til next time, then, Cobb."
"Til next time," agreed Jayne, then he turned and left the bridge.
He was a man on a mission. A man with purpose. Yes, Jayne Cobb had a plan, and he wasted no time in implementing it. He walked straight off the Firestorm and into a bar.
XXX
Three hours later, every returnable new purchase was no longer in Jayne's possession, and a few older things had been sold, as well. Jayne's luggage was lighter, but his wallet was fatter.
He returned to the post office, smelling slightly of stale beer and too-old peanuts, and hailed the man behind the counter.
"What can I do ya for, Cobb?" said the postman.
"Just need to send a wave," answered Jayne.
And send a wave he did. He very nearly changed his mind and backed out several times before he finally went ahead and sent his message, but after one last huge sigh, he initiated the call. He'd half hoped that it would go unanswered, but he had no such luck.
Almost immediately, a familiar face appeared on the other end of the transmission.
