Chapter 3: Running

Serenity's pilot slipped out the main cargo bay door and disappeared without any fuss or fanfare. Truth be told, he was surprised by how easily it had gone, having felt certain that at least one crewmember would spoil his stealthy exit.

He reminded himself that there was no need to draw attention to himself now and forced himself to walk calmly over the docking ramp and into the cavernous main building of the skyport. If you ran, then you drew the attention of any meat-eaters in the vicinity.

Still, he didn't relax until he was out of Serenity's sight, then he began to walk at a faster pace, took the main staircase up two flights and disappeared into one of the skyport bars. He put his bag down next to a barstool, settled down and ordered a shot of their best liquor. It was expensive, but he felt he deserved a little treat, considering how bad the last few weeks had been.

'Ah, who am I kidding?' He thought to himself. Truth was that he needed the drink to help him keep his resolve to spend the next few weeks away from Zoe.

The bartender poured up his shot and moved on.

"Well, here's to freedom," he said in a low tone and then upended the glass. The fiery liquor burned going down, but it burned in such a good way...

Slamming the glass back down, he stood, picked up his bag and straightened.

"Yaaah!" he involuntarily yelled, seeing as how Kaylee was sitting right next to him on the next barstool. "Wuh duh ma huh ta duh fung-kwong duh wai-shung doh!!! What the hell are you doing here?" he finally managed to ask.

"Knew you'd stop in," she answered with a grin. "Wasn't anything for me to beat you off Serenity and wait for you in this here building. Soon as I saw you heading this way I knew I was right."

"But how did you beat me off the boat?" he asked, a very confused look on his face. He ran a hand through his hair. "And when did you get on that barstool?"

"Now, now..." she admonished. "A girl's got to have some secrets."

He leaned in closer and squinted fiercely at her. "Then answer me this one question... Why the hell are you here?"

She became serious. "I ain't letting you disappear until I know where I can find you. Hell, Wash, you know we don't have the world's best luck. Best that I stick with you until you get settled somewhere."

"I don't have a clue where I'm going yet," he protested.

"Well then, maybe we better start exploring until you figure it out," she chirped.

"Don't you have something better to do, like annoy Simon?"

"Yeah, I could do that, but right now this is the best thing I could be doing," she replied, then grabbed his shirt and pulled him out of the bar after her. "Time's a wastin'..."

"Where's that ambulance?" Mal yelled in frustration. He had been pacing the docking ramp outside his ship for what seemed like hours, although an inner voice told him it was more like a few minutes. Even more frustrating was the fact that aside from himself, the doc and Zoe, everyone else seemed to have already disembarked. He hadn't even been able to carry out what might have been Zoe's last wish: that he keep her husband from leaving.

Just then the sound of retrothrusters firing drew his attention and gave him back some hope. An ambulance was landing right in front of him on the only part of the landing pad not taken up by Serenity.

Maybe his second had some chance at living after all.

As soon as the engines cut off, he ran up to the shuttle. Before the attendants were even out he was barking at them to get a move on.

The men were good. They knew their trade, that he'd give them. Within less than five minutes, they had Zoe strapped onto a gurney and in place.

"Hurry up, Doc!" he yelled above the sound of the ambulance engines as they started.

Simon rushed through the cargo bay with his medical bag and closed up the bay doors before joining Mal aboard the ambulance. Seeing the look Mal shot at his black bag, he leaned in close and whispered, "It might come in handy should I get the opportunity to grab some more supplies."

Mal's eyebrows rose up as he gave him an approving nod.

After that there was nothing to do but count the minutes until they arrived at the hospital.

Wash sat on the bed in his hotel room and idly turned the visitor's information disk over as he pondered what he wanted to do first.

He had finally settled for a moderately priced hotel near the heart of the city. It had everything he really needed: A pool, all the much missed conveniences of civilization, such as running hot water, a shower, a tub, vid entertainment and a great view of the landing areas, as well as the main downtown strip.

Once he had a room, Kaylee had finally left him, but not before trying to get him to take her out dancing somewhere.

He chuckled at the notion. That gal was a real sweetheart, endearingly naive, and a great friend, but somewhat silly to boot. Just imagine him and her shaking it together on a dance floor! Not that he couldn't dance, but really, if Zoe had learned about that... well, he'd be a dead man dancing.

Then he frowned. Besides, it would be dangerous for him to be seen so publicly. It was a risk, him being on this planet to begin with. No sense in pressing his luck.

No, he would have to scurry about the sights the locals frequented; not those that the fly boys liked to patronize when they were on leave.

Speaking of which... where should he go first?

He pondered a while longer and finally decided that a few hours in a virtual game room, followed by some good take out food that he could eat in his room was the way to go.

After what was meant to be a quick shower, but ended up lasting a good half hour due to how great it felt, he combed his hair, put on his most comfortable old jumpsuit and favorite Hawaiian shirt and surveyed himself in the mirror. Hmmm. Too bad his beard was such a light color. He hadn't shaved in several days, but despite a good growth it still wasn't enough to alter his appearance. Times like these, he wished his hair were darker. He'd be less conspicuous in a crowd as well...

He briefly thought about dying it, then dismissed the idea. Zoe loved his hair. Hell, she even loved his pale skin and freckles. She found his coloration most attractive and had said so on many an intimate occasion.

The sentiments were mutual.

He found her exotic, sensual and beautiful beyond belief. Nothing pleased him more than to watch his pale hide moving over her smooth, coffee colored skin. She felt like silk... Silk covering lean, toned muscle.

Nope. No way was he gonna change his appearance. Damn! A glance in the mirror showed that his face was now flushed, each cheek sporting a crimson patch.

He forced himself to change his train of thought.

Not for the first time he wondered what their child would look like. Zoe had told him once that they would make a beautiful baby and of that he had no doubt, but just what would the little fella or gal look like?

Well, if it's a girl, I hope she takes after me, he thought with much amusement. And he would definitely want a son to take after Zoe. What an interesting family they would make!

Then he remembered his situation and the happiness drained away again. What kind of life could he offer them? Could he even convince his wife to leave her fighting ways and dangerous dealings behind and settle somewhere safe? Not likely, he was thinking. Yet he couldn't live with the thought of his child growing up in such surroundings as they were in aboard Serenity. It was just a matter of time before he got caught or Serenity got caught up in a battle she couldn't win, or he took one risk to many trying to outrun a faster boat...

With a sigh, he turned and left the room.

"Damn it, Kaylee!" Mal yelled over the com. "Haven't I told you to always take a communicator with you when you're away from the boat? What if I needed you back here right away?"

"Hey, Cap, Serenity's just fine," she chirped. "No need to be so cranky!"

"Yes there is," Mal's voice dropped to a normal speaking tone, but Kaylee picked up on the anxiety that made it waver slightly.

"What's wrong?"

"It's Zoe," he sighed. "Baby was growing in one of her tubes, instead of her womb, I guess. Her tube ruptured and took out a major artery. She nearly bled to death."

Kaylee felt her face crumble. "She gonna be OK?" she asked as tears began to flow down her face.

"Yeah, but it was a close one." Mal made an effort to calm himself. "Look Mei mei, we need to find Wash pronto."

"I know where he is, Cap. Made him tell me," she sniffled. "I'll call him, tell him that there's been a problem and we need him for a short while..." She wiped her face with the back of her sleeve. "Is the baby..."

"No, mei mei. The baby died when Zoe's tube busted," he said gently.

Kaylee began to sob.

"Kaylee, I need for you to be strong now," Mal urged. "Don't let on to Wash that Zoe's hurt bad, just get him to the hospital, dong ma?"

She nodded. "I'll find some way, Cap."

"Good girl"

Mal cut the line and sank down into one of the uncomfortable waiting room chairs. He was hoping, hoping real hard that Wash would get there soon, before Zoe woke up. As much as he loved her, he didn't think he could bear to be the one to break the bad news to her. Figured that was her husband's responsibility.

Deirdre Dirk's Virtual Game Arcade was located in a shadier area of the city, but it was still light years ahead of any of the virtual places he had seen on the back world planets.

After touring around the multi-leveled game complex for the better part of an hour, Serenity's pilot plucked down some credit to play a flight simulator game. He had watched a few other people give it a go and been taken with it's complexity and realism. Hell, there was nothing better than pushing the limits of human flight ability in a non-lethal simulation. Looked and felt like the real thing, but no going "splat" if you goofed.

He seated himself in the cockpit and chose the most maneuverable fighter in the game list over the most powerful one. Power was a good thing to have, but it was even better to sacrifice some of that speed for grace and precision... He figured that was why so many of those who played this simulator lost – they were in love with the feel of powerful engines, but lacked the real flight experience to know that the real thrill came in turning so fast that your crew found themselves stuck to the walls.

The game was a great deal of fun and it would have been ten times more fun if there was an option not to be the pilot of an Alliance boat. Worse yet, the game involved hunting down Independent boats while other Browncoats tried to blow you out of the sky by hook or by crook. Still, he soon lost himself in the joy of flying, taking the risks that made most pilots back down and vomit.

The simulation was top of the line. It was good, real good! He felt the G-forces, could feel the rumble of the engines in his chest. He lost himself in the joy of flight and was transported back many years to when it wasn't a game, but a reality.

Again he saw buildings disintegrating, giving up huge plumes of fire and debris. He heard his wingmen cheering him on over the com, whooping in triumph.

And then again, he found himself disobeying orders, flying low over the charred landscape and seeing bodies everywhere... Dead children littered the charcoaled dirt like burned ragdolls, women screamed and cried as they looked for their babies...

Wash slapped the pause button and gasped as the agony of those memories made his stomach twist. If he had eaten, his food would already be on the floor. His hands were white knuckled and he couldn't seem to release the death grip he had on the stick. He was shaking, his teeth chattering. Perspiration beaded his face and dripped down his neck.

He became distantly aware of people shouting and cheering and looked up to find nearly every patron in the arcade circling his booth and screaming in excitement. They were carrying on about his score, about the fact that he hadn't even used up one of his virtual lives yet and had already broken all the known records for this particular simulation. Some were screaming that he must be crazy to just stop like that. Others were chanting for him to continue...

He wiped his face with his sleeve and staggering to his feet, left the booth. "Sorry," he mumbled to the onlookers. "Got a might sky sick. Can't continue..."

Wash pushed his way through the disappointed crowd and made the fastest possible getaway that wouldn't raise people's suspicions. He hadn't realized what he was doing. If word of this got around, and he felt certain it would, it was best that he be far away and laying low...

Kaylee had tried to get up with Wash over the hotel com, but unfortunately it seemed that Serenity's pilot was already out somewhere on the town.

Anxious to find him and not one to simply wait around, she had finally decided to go looking for him. She figured that she'd swing by the hotel first on the off chance that he had returned, but when she arrived it had become apparent that something was going seriously wrong...

Pushing her way through the huge double doors of the lobby, she had approached the main desk only to find two men standing there interrogating the desk clerk. She had quickly altered course and acted as though she was reading posted information about the local entertainment.

They looked like military despite their civilian clothes. Their hair was short and neat and way too perfectly trimmed around the ears. Both of them were trying to convince the desk clerk that they had lost touch with a buddy and needed to know if he had checked into the hotel. The man they were describing was definitely a ringer for Wash.

Fortunately the desk clerk knew her business and was above both harassing threats and monetary bribes. Or perhaps she really didn't know about Wash when she said that she had been away from work for several days and had only just started her shift.

Either way, Kaylee was grateful that the two men walked away without any new knowledge. The big question was why they were looking for Wash. Had he done something wrong? Had he accidentally drawn attention to himself?

Or was it that he had downplayed the military's interest in him when he had told her about his past?

Kaylee felt extremely unsettled. Her gut was telling her that Alliance military would not react so quickly to the sighting of a missing pilot unless he was someone of either great interest or significant importance.

She waited a few minutes after the men left before heading out herself. She figured that Wash would be looking for something to take his mind off his troubles. And for Wash, the only thing that would probably do the trick was to fly. Which meant his only option at this time was a simulator.

Stopping at the nearest street level directory, she punched up a list of local arcades. There were at least nine that she felt the pilot might have chosen.

Kaylee printed a list and a map and headed out in search of him.

To be continued...