Disclaimer: I don't own 'em. That's Joss's department.

Notes: Warning: There will be death in this chapter and some implied violence. Nothing too terrible though.

"An Eye for an Eye"

They stood at the airlock, three members of Serenity's crew fully armed and ready for anything. Mal stood in front of the other two, ready to meet his so-called old war buddy. Mal knew better, better then Zoe anyway. He knew that Barnabus Reily very rarely came calling on an old friend unless he had some revenge to discuss with him. Mal figured he'd crossed Barnabus once or twice in their time and this was his revenge for it. Besides, he couldn't shake that funny feelin' in his stomach that told him his crew was in danger. He didn't like that feelin' one bit.

Zoe stood next to Mal, not figuring that anything was different with this particular day. She knew that her captain could be paranoid and tended to worry about Serenity and her crew much more then was necessary most times. There was something about his eyes though; something that told her he really believed they were in danger now. Even though they had no definite proof that Barnabus was here to cause them any trouble, the captain's eyes said differently. Zoe knew Barnabus briefly in the war, not as well as the captain by any means. They'd shared a trench for awhile before Barnabus began to forget what he was fighting for and took the easy way home. He surrendered himself to the Alliance, eventually working for them for awhile before striking out on his own to pursue other illegal prospects. Apparently those prospects had landed him back here in the black, and now he was coming aboard their boat. Zoe understood the captain's worries. Barnabus was a loose canon and his loyalties lied nowhere that anyone could be sure of. She prepared herself for the worst, just in case.

Jayne had his hand planted firmly on his gun belt, fingers nimble and ready to pull a trigger. If Jayne was anything he was a good mercenary, ready to do his job and use his gun without question. He figured Mal was just being paranoid again but didn't dare say it. The ships captain was wound too tight for Jayne to go down that road now; he figured that might just land him in the airlock again. This Barnabus guy didn't seem so bad, but Jayne didn't trust anyone by nature. Except for this crew, some of 'em weren't so bad. For the first time he'd begun to sleep without a gun underneath his pillow. Maybe that didn't mean much to some people, and maybe the others couldn't see his change of attitude, but this was a big thing for Jayne. So standing there, waiting to see what came next, he felt himself tense and ready.

And then the hatch opened. There stood the scraggly looking man, a big grin across his face.

"Mal! So good to see you again old buddy!" He held out his arms as if he was expecting some sort of epic welcoming. He came up to the captain, making Mal mighty nervous and jittery. He waited for a hug that never came and then a quizzical look came over his face. "What? No hug?"

A moment later Mal was crouched over in pain. He'd been punched in the gut and kicked in the face. Jayne and Zoe moved to spring into action, guns out and aimed at Mal's old friend. Their movements were stopped by a familiar voice.

"So we meet again, Mal Reynolds. It has been too long, I believe." The accent was unmistakable. The man behind it was too. Jayne's jaw dropped and Zoe's eyes widened.

"Howdy there Niska. So sorry we couldn't keep in touch." Mal choked out the words from his position on the ground. He didn't dare stand up after seeing the many armed henchmen Niska had brought along with him. Ten men were pointing ten guns at the three crewmembers. Zoe raised her weapon in the air, a sign of surrender. Jayne was reluctant, but Zoe gave him a glare that told him it was the wise thing to do. He lowered his gun and raised his hands, obviously very angry and confused.

"What is it they say when two people have not met in so long? Ah, yes, long time no see. Well now I see you and I am much obliged to have been invited aboard your ship." The small man paced around in front of the crew members, occasionally looking over at his own men with a wicked grin. "Or, should I thank your old friend for that privilege?" Barnabus looked over at Niska and smiled a big toothless grin.

"That mean I get my reward now?" He had his hands out, eager to accept what was coming to him. Mal shook his head and smiled. He knew what the reward was going to be. Niska laughed and looked at his henchmen, who laughed as well.

"Why, yes. I believe it is time to pay you for their services. Boys?" He held out his hand, giving the signal to the men behind him. Bullets rained throughout the cargo bay and in moments the scraggly old man was dead and bloody on the floor. Zoe closed her eyes, not wanting to look at the corpse at her feet. Jayne stood there, cursing at how stupid a man had to be to expect anything concrete as money from Niska.

"I know that we know each other well enough, Mr. Reynolds, so I am going to be very- how do you say?-blunt with you. I am here to take back what was taken from me. Do you remember the last time we met?" Mal didn't answer. He just stared at the man, stared so hard his eyes looked like they would crack open in rage. Two henchmen had moved behind Jayne and Zoe and had force them to their knees on the ground. Niska gave a single nod to the man behind Mal and suddenly Mal had been slapped in the back of the head with a pistol. He was bleeding profusely now and obviously in a lot of pain. He still didn't answer Niska.

"Well it seems I may have to help you to remember, yes?" Niska stood directly in front of him, looking down at Mal in disgust. "You did not fulfill your obligations to me. You killed some of my very best men. But most of all, you did not show me the respect that we agreed upon." Niska was angry, his eyes burned with the heat of his rage, and he looked straight into Mal's eyes. "On earth-that-was, there was a saying: An eye for an eye. I will take from you what you have taken from me, Mr. Reynolds. And I will do it as slowly and painfully as I can."

Mal was angry. He was furious at Niska and the man behind him and Barnabus. But mostly, he was angry at himself. He'd put his crew in a dangerous place once again, and for the life of him he couldn't see a way out of this one. In his anger, he muttered four simple words. "Over my dead body." Niska smiled and stood up. He turned from Mal and looked towards the airlock.

"That can be arranged." He turned quickly back to Mal, a gleam in his eyes. "But not just yet, I'm afraid. There are others on this ship, yes? Women, maybe even children? Well I have always believed in the idea that women and children should go first, after all it is the proper way." He paused and smiled. "Even in death."

Mal's face twisted into a rage that he hadn't shown in years. Jayne took his rage one step further, standing and knocking the man behind him down. He reached down to his ankle and pulled out a small gun that he'd strapped to himself. He aimed it at Niska and pulled the trigger, sending a bullet flying at the man's head. The bullet hit the wall behind Niska, as he had anticipated this move and stepped aside swiftly. But the other bullets, the ones fired from the henchmen's guns, didn't miss. Jayne took three to his back and stomach, sending his face down to the ground. Zoe clenched her eyes and stayed where she was. She'd seen enough of these situations in the war, seen enough men go down in the heat of anger. There was nothing she could do for him now.

Niska laughed and looked at Mal. "Your efforts are useless I am afraid." He knelt down next to Mal, face to face with him, and sneered. "I promise you Mal Reynolds, this is the end for you. There will be no one left to rescue you this time." Mal breathed heavily, managing just enough strength to spit in Niska's face. Niska immediately jumped back and showed a rage like he hadn't had before. "Kill her."

Two words, said so quickly that no one had time to think about them. Shots were fired and Zoe was hit at every angle. She had gotten a few shots off in defense of herself but in the end she went down in grace and dignity.

Mal thought that it was over. He thought that they would kill him next and get it over with. At least that's what he hoped. He knew Niska better then that, but he had nothing left but hope and he refused to give that up, not as long as Serenity was still flying.

"Take them away. It is only civilized to clean up after ourselves, right boys?" The henchmen grunted in agreement and began to move the two fallen crewmembers. Niska moved towards the stairs leading to the crew quarters. Two men grabbed Mal by the arms and lifted him up. He found that his legs would barely withstand his weight, the blow to the head had disabled him something fierce. But the two men seemed to have no problem dragging him along behind Niska.

"Come, Mr. Reynolds. It is time to finish what we have started."

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Rafferty found himself pushing further and further ahead of the new recruit. He had a growing impatience for those who didn't know any better, those like Tucker. The boy thought that he was one of the big boys; that just because he had a shiny new badge and a weapon he was just as good as the others who had come before him. This wasn't the first abandoned ship Rafferty had investigated; he'd seen a few in his day. As much as he wanted to say it, it never got any easier. Most times they would come across one of these old ships and realize that a family had been left dead by space pirates, equipment failure, or even worse, Reavers.

"What do you think happened here?" He heard the young officer talking to him from behind and rolled his eyes again.

"Could have been anything. Maybe they just abandoned ship." He knew that wasn't the case, it rarely ever was. The Firefly was fully functioning and still had its life support systems in tact. There was no logical reason for anyone to abandon it, even if they were thieves or criminals.

"We haven't found any bodies yet. That's a good sign, right?" Tucker sounded nervous, fearful at that. His voice shook and it made Rafferty sigh in frustration. He ignored the question as he would a small child tugging at his pant leg and continued to investigate the corridor. Looking down at the floor, he noticed something. Squinting, he crouched down and stared at a rather large stain on the ground. "What is it?" Tucker stood behind him now. Rafferty reached his gloved hand down and touched the substance. He held it up to his visor and stared.

"Its blood. Not quite dry." Rafferty's eyes dimmed as his findings. It never felt good to know that people had been killed in that same place where he stood. He figured it was another aspect of the job he'd never get used to.

"You mean…" Tucker began his sentence but couldn't seem to find the words to end it. Rafferty looked up from his place on the ground and noticed the first in a series of doors. It had a sign stuck onto it, a sign that was smeared over in blood. He could barely recognize the words on it: Kaylee's Room.

"In there." He pointed to the hatchway and stood up. "That's where we'll find 'em."

"Find who?" Tucker asked, cautiously moving behind the superior officer.

Rafferty took a breath and put on his most composed expression. "The bodies."