Thanks for the reviews!! Just so you know, I am almost finished this story. Also that I understand that everything in this story is no exactly like that of both the Star Trek and Firefly universe, but I try to make it as close as possible and if there are any discrepancies, I will try my best to make it understandable with what is going on and how something's were able to happen. Such as the overcome of the Reavers ship with the Romulans ship. (For the sake of the story, they were able to overtake them). Thank you.
Mal knew they would come. They always had more questions to ask, to try and understand their situation, where they came from, why they did what they did. He didn't think they understood how difficult life was for them. While Enterprise and their worlds revolved around peace and equal life for everyone, their system worked mush differently. Riker, Data and Deanna had asked to speak to them about the incident with the Reavers, but mostly, he knew, they wanted to talk about River. It was written on their faces. No doubt, they had cameras or what not stationed everywhere on the ship, and had no doubt watched River in action, something he had only seen marginally.
"You know why we are here." Deanna had started out.
"Fairly obvious innit?" He responded.
"You could say it's unusual for someone to kill off 47 people." Crusher nodded, knowing that exactly 47 of the creatures had been personally killed by River.
"Well she's an unusual girl." Mal smirked.
"We have records that indicate that you, Zoë and River were in engineering when our computer controls for important safety protocols were deactivated." Riker changed the subject.
Mal cocked his head to the right. "Don't really remember where I was all day yesterday. Kinda hard to keep up with all that happens round here."
"You're lying." Deanna stated simply, looking him straight in the eyes.
"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. Don't stop the fact that if that protocol weren't turned off, no doubt your officers would have died and me and mine would have been useless." He shot at her.
"You are lying." She said again. "One of you tampered with the controls."
"She's right." Riker supported, turning to Mal. "You see, Deanna's empathic, she can tell whenever someone's lying or keeping something from us. We don't mean you any trouble, we just want to know what's going on."
"Nothing's 'going on' that you don't already know." Mal shouted, waving his hands in the air.
"There's no need to shout." Riker raised his voice to let him know he was serious. Mal seemed not to hear Riker and instead turned to Deanna.
"I'd rather be back in my world, Reavers an all, least I don't prance round in those one pieces you got there. And then maybe we wouldn't have to save your asses to save our own." Mal retorted, his words striking a cord in Riker.
"Saved us? As I seem to remember it, we saved you!" His anger seemed to raise more in the company of this man.
"So I guess now we're even. If little River hadn't taken out those Reavers, then you and your ship would just be another wreck, or more likely, they would've taken it as their own." Mal defended himself.
"You seem so threatened by them, and yet River made such quick work of them. It was extraordinary, the way she moved. It was almost as if she knew exactly what they were about to do." Deanna changed the subject back to River, wanting answers and to stop the shouting match from escalating into something more.
"You want to know bout River? Best person to talk to is her brother. Course he don't know as much as you seem to have figured out on your own." Mal folded his arms, knowing that if Deanna was 'reading' him, she would know he was telling them the truth.
Riker shot Deanna a quick look to which she nodded slightly.
"The repairs are done. Me and mine have come to the decision that, as much as we love your company," the sarcasm in his voice was evident; "we need to get on our way."
Riker sighed, he knew the conversation would end this was, and he couldn't blame them. Nodding, his anger depleted, "Mr. Data has been able to find a way that should be able to get you back to your own dimension. He'll load the calculations into your computer, and by sending out several repulser-beams at the exact place in which you entered our space, it should create a rift big enough for your ship to get through, before closing." He explained the plan. Mal nodded his thanks as the two rose from their seats and headed to the Captain to tell him the news. As the doors closed behind them Riker turned to Deanna; "I guess we may never know what really happened with those Reavers, but off the record," his stride stopped; "Mal's just protecting his crew, and I understand that."
Deanna nodded in agreement. "River really is a mystery. To them and to us."
Simon was taking his last look around one of the most well equipped infirmaries he had ever seen (the Enterprise Sickbay) before they undocked and attempted to make their way back to their own universe. It saddened him that they would be leaving this seemingly perfect world. He knew that if he chose to stay, he and River might actually have a good life, there would be no alliance, no Reavers, but he also knew that their was more then overpowering danger as well. He had overheard conversations about The Borg. A cybernetic race more destructive and horrible then Reavers. Of course, that's just what he'd heard. But the main reason he was going, was that he had made a home on Serenity, and River was at peace there, it seemed. Doctor Crusher had asked to meet with him before he and everyone else left, she had said she had something to discuss with him. Making his way into her office, she looked up at him as they exchanged small smiles.
"I can't stay long; we're getting ready to go." Simon said. Beverly nodded before handing him a padd and bending under her table to retrieve something. Pulling out a small case she laid it on the table and opened it before him.
"I know it's not much, but this might be able to help your sister. I know there's nothing I can do to reverse the damage done to her, and quite frankly, I'm surprised she's even lucid enough to have half a conversation. But I saw hat she did to protect this crew, and maybe this will help a little." Inside the silver case sat several vials of unknown liquid and a few of their hyposprays.
"You don't need to give me this." Simon was shocked to say the least as he ran his hands over the contents.
"I want to give you this. No one at her age should ever have to go through what she's gone through. If I can to anything to help, I will." Crusher smiled sympathetically as Simon closed the case.
"Thank you, for everything. I really appreciate this."
"Anytime." Beverly replied as Simon headed out the door for the last time. "Anytime." She whispered, even though he had already left.
"Everyone got everything?" Mal shouted down the Serenity corridor as they were ready to undock with Enterprise.
"Ready to take flight, or more, ready to be jettisoned into space, care of the really big powerful ship that would more then probably be better for us to stay then on this hunk of junk they can't believe is our ship ." Wash was saying as Mal shook his head, walking down to engineering.
"Everything ready?" He called to Kaylee.
"Everything's shinny Captain." She replied, taking her eyes briefly off her engine to acknowledge him, then turning back.
As Mal made his way back to the bridge, he was joined by Inara and Shepherd.
"Now theirs a crew one could say they were proud to be apart of." Shepherd sighed.
"Not my boat to float." Mal grinned slightly. "Captain's a bit of a prick, I'd hate taking orders from him."
"You hate taking orders from anyone." Inara put in.
"Yeah well……."
"I will be glad when we're back home." Inara said.
Mal stopped walking and turned in surprise to her. "And here I thought you'd love a place like that." He continued his stride. "Perfect ship, don't have to pay for anything."
"I think it was the fact that no one had the use for a companion, actually." Shepherd said quietly. Inara glared sharply at him, he had struck a nerve.
"Oh, I see. Well then, that's makes perfect sense. Leave one ship who constantly mocks your life to visit another ship who's disgusted by what you do before coming back to the ship you hoped to leave." Mal smiled a teasing smile as he turned to Wash. "Well what are we waiting for. Get us the hell off this ship."