Guns out and running, everyone was looking for cover. It took most people a while to find their bearings but Urie and the crew were already firing back as a small team of the Alliance advanced. A few of Urie's men were firing too. Maybe two soldiers of the Alliance fell. Four of Urie's brave know-nothings went down faster. There was nothing to be done really except keep firing and don't let the Alliance get to the free people who sought refuge with Urie.

It was all beginning to look hopeless. Mal found himself praying River would find it in herself to show him how she managed to defeat all the reavers. He didn't believe it but it sure would be nice to see. Especially right now. But he couldn't see River. Or Kaylee or Simon. All he could see was Urie, Jayne, Zoe and strangers. This did not sit well with him.

Running footsteps came from behind him. He turned to shoot. He watched Zoe turn to shoot whoever was after him but Lan rolled past him and kept running. He and Zoe's eyes met and they knew where she was going. They turned back to the Soldiers and kept firing.

Then Cai appeared, knives flashing in his hands. And something strange happened.

Lan attacked him.

Not right away, she disarmed some Alliance soldiers first and gave Mal and company a chance to advance a little further, take up better positions. She assisted her brother and then the pair of them started wrestling.

Seriously.

"What in the gorram-" Jayne started but Mal ignored him and tried to keep firing. He had to reload. He ducked, did so and rose back up to find the siblings firing at Alliance soldiers with their own guns. When they were dealt with, Lan chucked the gun and jumped on Cai's back.

From the path Simon, Kaylee and River were running towards the shooting from, having taken their own weapons from their attackers after River disappeared and reappeared, Simon saw something all too familiar.

"Get down!"

He pushed his sister and his girlfriend down to the dirt as someone pushed a pulse into the ground.

Zoe had noticed the pulse being raised and called out, "Down!" as Simon had. All within earshot didn't question her command and dropped to the floor. Of course, the siblings didn't. Cai threw Lan to the floor and the pulse dropped him like a fly. Lan leapt back into action above her brother as the Alliance swarmed him. One gun shot was heard. The Alliance walked away leaving one body behind.

Helplessly, Lan screamed, "Cai!" as he brother was taken away.

When everyone who had avoided the pulse used to knock out those it came into contact with, they noticed the Alliance leaving and none of them wanted to give them reason to turn back.

Mal, Zoe, Jayne, Urie, Simon, Kaylee and River all walked out into the open to watch them go. Simon ran to bodies checking if they were dead or unconscious. Mal walked straight to the panting, silent Lan on the ground and knelt to talk to her.

"Why'd they take him away?" he said shorty. She didn't answer. He realized her breathing was shallow called to Simon. Simon directed Kaylee and River to check those he had missed before jogging t Mal's side. By the time he got there, Mal had pulled away the leather waist-coat the girl had been wearing and was putting pressure on the hole in her lung. She groaned, already in shock.

"Is there an infirmary here?" he asked Mal.

"Only on the ship." Mal replied soberly.

Simon ripped at his shirt and knotted it tight around the girl's waist. He turned to Mal,

"Moving her isn't ideal but if I operate out here she'll die of infection. She needs to be on board Serenity."

Mal hesitated before agreeing, getting a familiar feeling. Simon enlisted Jayne's and the help of a few locals to transport Lan, while Mal approached River.

"What do you know?" he asked.

"She's not like me if that's what you mean." she replied, looking around, her face jerking as though she were hearing and seeing into a world Mal couldn't.

"And the brother?"

"No. But his wife was. They think the children are valuable."

"Who?"

"The Alliance." She said, her eyes on her feet. She didn't like to talk about them. She walked away from Mal, who turned to Zoe for council.

"This is all a little too familiar for me." she commented as he approached.

"Good, we agree. Should we take the girl on board?"

"She'll want to go after the alliance."

"We can't leave her here. They might come back for her if they don't get what they want from him."

"Then take her on board, we'll dump her when we can." Zoe said coldly. Since the death of her husband, she had mourned in private. This was the first thing Mal had seen truly bother his first mate. It was a bad sign, but he didn't want to put Urie's flock in the same kind of trouble he had Book's.

He walked to Urie.

"How are your injured?" he asked, and Urie looked at him with anger and sadness that wasn't evident in his tone when he calmly replied,

"Manageable. Will you take her on board?"

"We'll get her out of your hair. If the Alliance come back -"

"We're going to move camp a little more Easternly. We'll make it look like we're headed for the skies. Don't worry about us."

Mal clapped him on the shoulder and turned to look for his crew. He saw Jayne and announced,

"Lets get back to the ship before they come after us."

"Won't they have seen Serenity?" Kaylee asked, worried they would track and destroy her home.

"I think they were a little preoccupied to notice," Mal replied, still walking towards his ship, "We'll throw a few tricks at 'em none the less."