Chapter: 8
"Where?" Mal ordered as he reached the top step and advance onto the bridge. "Two systems away. It's a Alliance capital ship. Which looks like a full flyer squadron running escort. "Why the hell are the Alliance out this far?" "Every day the Alliance gets farther and farther out." Was explained as he glided his hands over his console. "How's, River?" Wash could see that when he spoke of River's name that is struck a nerve. "She's asleep. What vector are they headed? Will it take them close to the Rising Star?" "Negative. But if one of the flyers decide to get board, they could follow us and lead them straight to the Rising Star." "Means we'll have to take an alternate route. And we can't much tell the crew that we're going to be late. They could track our transmission from source to destination. And I don't care much for answering questions today." "I'm already on an alternate route." Wash announced as he gestured towards the nav terminal. Displayed on the terminal was star charts of the region and a red line representing a course." "Looks good," Mal nodded. "Hide us in the upper atmosphere of the near gas giant and the Alliance will breeze right past us. Do it." Mal ordered. "Aye," Wash announced as he hit the commission key and before they could breath the Serenity's engine nacelles glowed to life and the deck began to shudder as the boat veered towards the near bye gas giant. "Will the Alliance pick up our drive exhaust?" "Negative. Well, may be. If they're right on our exhaust trail and they know what to look for before the exhaust dissipates. But the closer we get to the grav well of the giant, the quicker the exhaust will disrupt." "Let's hope for some good luck today." "So, River's asleep. She's okay? From the sound of your voice, I thought something was wrong." Mal looked into Wash's eyes that signaled Wash's heart to begin to dim. "She's asleep in her cryo box. There wasn't anything the Doc could do." "Jey za shin," Wash breathed. "Simon?" "I don't know. He's locked himself in the infirmary." Mal and Wash stood silent as the gas giant grew closer and closer. Standing silent was all they could do. They could not start a conversation. They mourned. And soon the entire crew of the Serenity would mourn. "It was starting to be such a good year," Mal remarked as he sat in the rear seat of the bridge and just sat motionless, veering out to the twinkling stars.
On the Rising Star, Kaylee sat knelt by the engine drive with her diagnostic tools as she examined the possible cause for the power fluctuations. And like the seven times before, she came up empty. "Find out what's wrong with the boat?" A voice came from the hatch sounded. Kaylee's heart jumped nearly through her throat as she continued with the diagnostic. Hoping by some miracle that Mitch would leave. "I've ran through everything I know of. Nothing." Please Zoe, call for me. Please. "Your mad at me, aren't you?" "I'm not mad," Kaylee announced as she changed the frequency of her analyzer. Trying to keep her mind busy. "You hate me, don't you?" "Well. I Haven't had much love for you lately," Kaylee declared as she dropped her analyzer and looked at Mitch. Gazing in his eyes. Those eyes. I've missed those eyes. "I know how you much feel. Me packing up, shipping off without telling you where I was going?" "Not knowing that two months down the road that you might be dead. Or moved onto someone else." "Is that what you think I may have done." "I don't know what you would have done. It's not my business. You weren't the same man I fell in love with." So she did love me, Mitch thought. "You just up and go, and never come back." "And why do you think that we've stumbled upon one another today?" "It's a big universe. But not that big," Kaylee remarked as she returned her gaze at her analyzer. In a swift motion before she knew it, Mitch was kneeling beside her, holding her hand that was holding the analyzer. "Please, don't ignore me." "I don't have anything else to say." "I know you do. I see it in your eyes. You never stopped caring for me. Just like the way I never stopped caring for you." "Oh yeah, like I believe that." "Why not?" "I know your type. You go from port to port, system to system. Find a target that you can occupy for the time that you there, and move on. Just like the damned Alliance!" "Look in my eyes, Kaylee." Mitch urged. Sitting breathless until her face turned to his direction and there again was contact. Contact with the windows to the soul, as Kaylee's grand mother had always called the eyes. If you want to know something about someone, look into their eyes. They are the windows to the soul, her grand mother had always said. And as she looked into his eyes, she saw the man that she fell in love with. "You know I've never lied to you, Kaylee. So when I say I never stopped loving you, you should, you must believe me. There has not been a day that has gone by that I have not thought of you." A tear began to streak down her cheek. Before she could grab her handkerchief to wipe it away, Mitch had already done so. But not with a piece of cloth, but by his hand. The compartment was blaring loud with silence as Mitch began to lean forward. Don't do it, Kaylee urged herself. Think of Simon. Think of Simon, damn you! In the end her please were unanswered, as Mitch leaned forward to kiss her. And at that moment all the feelings that she surprised, all the good and bad times that she and Mitch had for two years had gone away. And in the end, for a moment that seemed to last forever, they kissed. As Mitch began to put his hand on the back of her neck, Kaylee's eyes snapped open and she pulled back. "No! I can't do this!" "Kaylee, I love you." "Yeah, and I love someone else." She said as tears began to streak down her cheek. "Kaylee, I'm sorry. You didn't say---" "I didn't have time to say, damn you! You think you can walk out of my life and just one day happen to come across my path and come back to it? No! You left me when you left that day for your calling in the Defenders." "I want you back, Kaylee. Come with us. We'll settle on the planet that the colonists are planning to settle on. It will be like the old times." "And what of, Simon?" "Simon's his name, uh? Well, if you ever loved me, you would leave him. We belong together, Kaylee. Always and forever." "We did belong together." "You love me, Kaylee. You can't deny it." "Your right and wrong." "What do you mean?" "I did love you. I don't anymore." Kaylee announced as she moved away from Mitch and returned her attention to her diagnostic. "If that's the way it's going to be. I gave you a chance at happiness. And you threw it away. Good bye, Kaylee," Mitch said as he stood and left the compartment. Leaving Kaylee knelt beside the drive reactor. Tears falling down her cheeks uncontrollably as she grabbed her analyzer and threw it against the bulkhead. "What have I done?" Kaylee cried as she knelt in a fetal position where she cried and rocked herself. Wishing she could take back that mistake. Wishing she could take back everything that had happened. "Why?" She cried softly. "Why!?"
Chapter: 9
"Where is the Captain?" Zoe asked as she paced the bridge that was by far more enormous than the small bridge of the Serenity. Also on the bridge was Chambers. "Our scanners are down," Chambers announced. "Has your engineer managed to localize the origination of the power spikes?" "I talked to Kaylee twelve minutes ago and she was still running tests." "I have to say, that if your chief can't localize what we haven't been able to, we may need a tow to the next outpost." "How far is the next outpost?" "Other than Delphi 9, two systems away at standard tow burn," Chambers announced. "Captain won't have a problem with the tow." Zoe announced. "I knew he wouldn't," Chambers smiled. "So, a little bit of background on you and the Captain. Where'd you two meet up?" "He never spoke of me?" "Nope," "I'm hurt," Chambers remarked as he deactivated his terminal and gestured for Zoe to take a seat. "I met him when I was captain of the Hunter." "Cap' never made mention of him ever serving on a starship," Zoe announced as Chambers moved to the supply compartment where he removed to canteens of water. "Always figured he did, though." "He came onboard as nothing more than just a hired hand," Chambers stated as he took a sip of his water. "But, four years later after I lost my OX in a decompression incident, Mal went for the job. And I knew he could do it. I trained him myself." "How long ago was that before the War?" "I'd say about, three years. And when the War broke out between the Alliance and the Independents, I opted to run guns for the movement, and he decided to stay and fight. I lost a good man that day." A smile broke out on his face. "But I see he's done pretty well so far." "He has his days," Zoe smiled as she took a sip from her canteen. "All captain's have their days. You'll see that one day." "Who, me? Captain? I've never even thought that far ahead." "You have to think ahead. You can't always go through life a minute at a time. You have to consider the future and all its possibilities. And when you see where your going, that's when you go in that direction." "And did you ever think you'd be running colonists instead of guns?" "Me? Hell no. But one day I got tired of running guns for the highest bidder. Just got tired of everything. I guess you could say, after the War ended, I got tired of the universe. And decided to go out here," Chambers said as he pointed at the star field through the cockpit. "Out here, I've found my peace." Zoe smiled as she took a last sip from her canteen and placed it on the terminal beside her. "You think now, that you'll always serve under Mal? Always be on the Serenity of yours? You'd be surprised at how often I felt that. I've been on starships since I was thirteen. And look at me now." Chamber's hands stretched out to point at his surroundings. "Running families off to the fringe." "Destiny has a funny way of dealing the cards when you least expect," Zoe announced as her thoughts returned to her dilemma that was before her and Wash. Her thoughts and the silence between the two stopped as Zoe's comm sounded. "Zoe, go," She said as she spoke into the comm in her grip. "It's Kaylee," the voice sounded. Automatically Zoe's senses came online and could hear that the young girl had been crying. "How is it on your end?" "I've done everything I can, Zoe. I don't know what else I can do?" "Are you okay, Kaylee?" "Yeah, I'm fine," Kaylee responded in the purest sense of bravado. "Any word from the Captain?" "Negative. We're still waiting." "The sooner, the better. What else do you want me to do?" "Wait one, Kaylee." Zoe said as she dropped her comm and looked at Chambers. "Anything else that you need help with?" "Nothing we can't handle." Chambers waved off. "What ever it is, let me do it," Kaylee urged. That which Zoe thought was odd. The girl was a hard worker, but the way she was urging for something to do was odd. "Well, since the young dear insists, we've been having trouble keeping one of the storage compartments pressurized. We can't seen to find the source of the problems. "You have any EVA suits onboard?" Kaylee asked as Zoe felt like all she was was the conductor between two points. "Several," "I'll get right on it." "Understood," Zoe responded as before she was about to de-activate her comm she double thought her act. "I'll send Jayne out with you." "I'll be fine on my own, Zoe. Honest. Promise." "Understood. But protocols state otherwise. Don't worry, Jayne'll probably be to busy hujanghing in his suit to give you much trouble." "That'll be a present sight." Kaylee said before the comm went dead. "She okay?" Chambers asked. "I don't know," Zoe said as she looked out at the stars. Her thoughts centering on her husband. And random thoughts of the encounter with her and that Defender. And her thoughts of Simon. Zoe feared only the worse. And when she did get to that level, she was always right.
"Where?" Mal ordered as he reached the top step and advance onto the bridge. "Two systems away. It's a Alliance capital ship. Which looks like a full flyer squadron running escort. "Why the hell are the Alliance out this far?" "Every day the Alliance gets farther and farther out." Was explained as he glided his hands over his console. "How's, River?" Wash could see that when he spoke of River's name that is struck a nerve. "She's asleep. What vector are they headed? Will it take them close to the Rising Star?" "Negative. But if one of the flyers decide to get board, they could follow us and lead them straight to the Rising Star." "Means we'll have to take an alternate route. And we can't much tell the crew that we're going to be late. They could track our transmission from source to destination. And I don't care much for answering questions today." "I'm already on an alternate route." Wash announced as he gestured towards the nav terminal. Displayed on the terminal was star charts of the region and a red line representing a course." "Looks good," Mal nodded. "Hide us in the upper atmosphere of the near gas giant and the Alliance will breeze right past us. Do it." Mal ordered. "Aye," Wash announced as he hit the commission key and before they could breath the Serenity's engine nacelles glowed to life and the deck began to shudder as the boat veered towards the near bye gas giant. "Will the Alliance pick up our drive exhaust?" "Negative. Well, may be. If they're right on our exhaust trail and they know what to look for before the exhaust dissipates. But the closer we get to the grav well of the giant, the quicker the exhaust will disrupt." "Let's hope for some good luck today." "So, River's asleep. She's okay? From the sound of your voice, I thought something was wrong." Mal looked into Wash's eyes that signaled Wash's heart to begin to dim. "She's asleep in her cryo box. There wasn't anything the Doc could do." "Jey za shin," Wash breathed. "Simon?" "I don't know. He's locked himself in the infirmary." Mal and Wash stood silent as the gas giant grew closer and closer. Standing silent was all they could do. They could not start a conversation. They mourned. And soon the entire crew of the Serenity would mourn. "It was starting to be such a good year," Mal remarked as he sat in the rear seat of the bridge and just sat motionless, veering out to the twinkling stars.
On the Rising Star, Kaylee sat knelt by the engine drive with her diagnostic tools as she examined the possible cause for the power fluctuations. And like the seven times before, she came up empty. "Find out what's wrong with the boat?" A voice came from the hatch sounded. Kaylee's heart jumped nearly through her throat as she continued with the diagnostic. Hoping by some miracle that Mitch would leave. "I've ran through everything I know of. Nothing." Please Zoe, call for me. Please. "Your mad at me, aren't you?" "I'm not mad," Kaylee announced as she changed the frequency of her analyzer. Trying to keep her mind busy. "You hate me, don't you?" "Well. I Haven't had much love for you lately," Kaylee declared as she dropped her analyzer and looked at Mitch. Gazing in his eyes. Those eyes. I've missed those eyes. "I know how you much feel. Me packing up, shipping off without telling you where I was going?" "Not knowing that two months down the road that you might be dead. Or moved onto someone else." "Is that what you think I may have done." "I don't know what you would have done. It's not my business. You weren't the same man I fell in love with." So she did love me, Mitch thought. "You just up and go, and never come back." "And why do you think that we've stumbled upon one another today?" "It's a big universe. But not that big," Kaylee remarked as she returned her gaze at her analyzer. In a swift motion before she knew it, Mitch was kneeling beside her, holding her hand that was holding the analyzer. "Please, don't ignore me." "I don't have anything else to say." "I know you do. I see it in your eyes. You never stopped caring for me. Just like the way I never stopped caring for you." "Oh yeah, like I believe that." "Why not?" "I know your type. You go from port to port, system to system. Find a target that you can occupy for the time that you there, and move on. Just like the damned Alliance!" "Look in my eyes, Kaylee." Mitch urged. Sitting breathless until her face turned to his direction and there again was contact. Contact with the windows to the soul, as Kaylee's grand mother had always called the eyes. If you want to know something about someone, look into their eyes. They are the windows to the soul, her grand mother had always said. And as she looked into his eyes, she saw the man that she fell in love with. "You know I've never lied to you, Kaylee. So when I say I never stopped loving you, you should, you must believe me. There has not been a day that has gone by that I have not thought of you." A tear began to streak down her cheek. Before she could grab her handkerchief to wipe it away, Mitch had already done so. But not with a piece of cloth, but by his hand. The compartment was blaring loud with silence as Mitch began to lean forward. Don't do it, Kaylee urged herself. Think of Simon. Think of Simon, damn you! In the end her please were unanswered, as Mitch leaned forward to kiss her. And at that moment all the feelings that she surprised, all the good and bad times that she and Mitch had for two years had gone away. And in the end, for a moment that seemed to last forever, they kissed. As Mitch began to put his hand on the back of her neck, Kaylee's eyes snapped open and she pulled back. "No! I can't do this!" "Kaylee, I love you." "Yeah, and I love someone else." She said as tears began to streak down her cheek. "Kaylee, I'm sorry. You didn't say---" "I didn't have time to say, damn you! You think you can walk out of my life and just one day happen to come across my path and come back to it? No! You left me when you left that day for your calling in the Defenders." "I want you back, Kaylee. Come with us. We'll settle on the planet that the colonists are planning to settle on. It will be like the old times." "And what of, Simon?" "Simon's his name, uh? Well, if you ever loved me, you would leave him. We belong together, Kaylee. Always and forever." "We did belong together." "You love me, Kaylee. You can't deny it." "Your right and wrong." "What do you mean?" "I did love you. I don't anymore." Kaylee announced as she moved away from Mitch and returned her attention to her diagnostic. "If that's the way it's going to be. I gave you a chance at happiness. And you threw it away. Good bye, Kaylee," Mitch said as he stood and left the compartment. Leaving Kaylee knelt beside the drive reactor. Tears falling down her cheeks uncontrollably as she grabbed her analyzer and threw it against the bulkhead. "What have I done?" Kaylee cried as she knelt in a fetal position where she cried and rocked herself. Wishing she could take back that mistake. Wishing she could take back everything that had happened. "Why?" She cried softly. "Why!?"
Chapter: 9
"Where is the Captain?" Zoe asked as she paced the bridge that was by far more enormous than the small bridge of the Serenity. Also on the bridge was Chambers. "Our scanners are down," Chambers announced. "Has your engineer managed to localize the origination of the power spikes?" "I talked to Kaylee twelve minutes ago and she was still running tests." "I have to say, that if your chief can't localize what we haven't been able to, we may need a tow to the next outpost." "How far is the next outpost?" "Other than Delphi 9, two systems away at standard tow burn," Chambers announced. "Captain won't have a problem with the tow." Zoe announced. "I knew he wouldn't," Chambers smiled. "So, a little bit of background on you and the Captain. Where'd you two meet up?" "He never spoke of me?" "Nope," "I'm hurt," Chambers remarked as he deactivated his terminal and gestured for Zoe to take a seat. "I met him when I was captain of the Hunter." "Cap' never made mention of him ever serving on a starship," Zoe announced as Chambers moved to the supply compartment where he removed to canteens of water. "Always figured he did, though." "He came onboard as nothing more than just a hired hand," Chambers stated as he took a sip of his water. "But, four years later after I lost my OX in a decompression incident, Mal went for the job. And I knew he could do it. I trained him myself." "How long ago was that before the War?" "I'd say about, three years. And when the War broke out between the Alliance and the Independents, I opted to run guns for the movement, and he decided to stay and fight. I lost a good man that day." A smile broke out on his face. "But I see he's done pretty well so far." "He has his days," Zoe smiled as she took a sip from her canteen. "All captain's have their days. You'll see that one day." "Who, me? Captain? I've never even thought that far ahead." "You have to think ahead. You can't always go through life a minute at a time. You have to consider the future and all its possibilities. And when you see where your going, that's when you go in that direction." "And did you ever think you'd be running colonists instead of guns?" "Me? Hell no. But one day I got tired of running guns for the highest bidder. Just got tired of everything. I guess you could say, after the War ended, I got tired of the universe. And decided to go out here," Chambers said as he pointed at the star field through the cockpit. "Out here, I've found my peace." Zoe smiled as she took a last sip from her canteen and placed it on the terminal beside her. "You think now, that you'll always serve under Mal? Always be on the Serenity of yours? You'd be surprised at how often I felt that. I've been on starships since I was thirteen. And look at me now." Chamber's hands stretched out to point at his surroundings. "Running families off to the fringe." "Destiny has a funny way of dealing the cards when you least expect," Zoe announced as her thoughts returned to her dilemma that was before her and Wash. Her thoughts and the silence between the two stopped as Zoe's comm sounded. "Zoe, go," She said as she spoke into the comm in her grip. "It's Kaylee," the voice sounded. Automatically Zoe's senses came online and could hear that the young girl had been crying. "How is it on your end?" "I've done everything I can, Zoe. I don't know what else I can do?" "Are you okay, Kaylee?" "Yeah, I'm fine," Kaylee responded in the purest sense of bravado. "Any word from the Captain?" "Negative. We're still waiting." "The sooner, the better. What else do you want me to do?" "Wait one, Kaylee." Zoe said as she dropped her comm and looked at Chambers. "Anything else that you need help with?" "Nothing we can't handle." Chambers waved off. "What ever it is, let me do it," Kaylee urged. That which Zoe thought was odd. The girl was a hard worker, but the way she was urging for something to do was odd. "Well, since the young dear insists, we've been having trouble keeping one of the storage compartments pressurized. We can't seen to find the source of the problems. "You have any EVA suits onboard?" Kaylee asked as Zoe felt like all she was was the conductor between two points. "Several," "I'll get right on it." "Understood," Zoe responded as before she was about to de-activate her comm she double thought her act. "I'll send Jayne out with you." "I'll be fine on my own, Zoe. Honest. Promise." "Understood. But protocols state otherwise. Don't worry, Jayne'll probably be to busy hujanghing in his suit to give you much trouble." "That'll be a present sight." Kaylee said before the comm went dead. "She okay?" Chambers asked. "I don't know," Zoe said as she looked out at the stars. Her thoughts centering on her husband. And random thoughts of the encounter with her and that Defender. And her thoughts of Simon. Zoe feared only the worse. And when she did get to that level, she was always right.