Disclaimer: I don't own Firefly or Final Fantasy.

Pyreflies

Leaving Serenity was a wrench for all the members of her crew, her family. Kaylee almost fell from the speeder upon which she was a passenger as she craned her neck round to get one last glimpse of her glinting in the evening sun. Luckily her driver realised and pulled her back on to the craft, gibbering in that funny language, and much as she wanted to Kaylee didn't try to get another look, although she couldn't stop a few tears rolling down her face as she closed her eyes against the harsh desert winds. She hated having to leave her baby behind.

Mal distracted himself from the unease of leaving his ship behind by keeping a watchful eye on his crew. Book, Inara, River and reluctantly the doctor were, like Kaylee, perched on the back of the curious speeder-like craft the Al Bhed were operating. This was partially because of convenience and partially because Mal thought they would be safer there, protected by drivers who obviously knew the terrain, and how to deal with any unfriendly creatures, as well as being stocked with those handy magic potions. Magic…he wasn't sure he was ever going to get over that one, and neither was Simon. From the stiff position the Doctor held, he could tell the young man was not enjoying the experience half as much as his sister appeared to be, but Inara and the Preacher seemed to be doing fine. Reassured that they were all okay he turned his attention back to his miraculously healed first mate and his mercenary in the back, who were busy scouting the bland sandy terrain surrounding them, while Wash controlled the mule. He knew that they, just like him, were alert for signs of the flying bird like creature that had attacked them earlier. He had a hunch that making it mad then escaping hadn't done them any favours. And he was right…

It was the eerie, bone chilling screech they heard first, causing many of their Al Bhed escorts to look around anxiously.

"Sir…" Zoe asked tensely, her Hogleg cocked and ready.

"Sounds like our friend came back for more," he responded searching the skies for the creature. He didn't have to search for long. There were a few cries of "fiend" from the Al Bhed, as the giant monstrosity came into view. Its huge wings looked almost putrid, moulting giant feathers as it beat its way towards them; evil eyes glaring at the end of its over large neck. The convoy of vehicles had come to a standstill as the Al Bhed armed and readied themselves to fight the beast. Grabbing his gun Mal vaulted from the mule, running to join the strangers in their attack.

"Wash, get the women-folk to the mule!" he called to his Pilot over his shoulder as he took a place at Cid's side, gun ready as the creature came into range.

"Now you get to learn how to really deal with fiends!" Cid remarked to him with satisfaction as his men opened fire.

XXXOOOXXX

Wash had successfully located Inara and a petrified Kaylee, pulling them over to hide behind the mule.

"What Is that?" Inara asked, horror struck by the giant monstrosity hovering above the group of travellers, screeching wildly. The shower of bullets it was suffering seemed only to anger it as it began to swoop around them.

"Best not to ask…" Wash replied, trying not to think about it, keeping his mind focused on staying safe rather than the fact that is wife was right now fighting that thing. He turned to the mechanic who was staring at the beast with wide eyes.

"Kaylee, where're River and Simon?"

"They…they were over there…" Kaylee pointed towards the abandoned speeders, and Wash craned his neck for a better look.

"Ai ya tien ah!" he exclaimed, spotting Simon accompanied by the shepherd, desperately trying to control his sister who had picked the exact worst time to have an episode.

"Rung tse song di ching dai wuo tzo…so much rage!" the girl was sobbing as she struggled against her brother's restraining arms.

"Got to stop…make it stop…please make it stop!"

"Mei-mei please…" Simon begged as the girl tried to fight him off.

"River, it's going to be all right," the Shepherd tried to soothe her, all the while keeping an anxious eye on the battle being waged not 30 feet from their position.

"Never all right…ripped from life…so angry, so so angry. Don't want to die, don't want to leave, don't want to live. Vengeance and rage bubbling and boiling, can't contain!" she screamed, then with a wrench she broke free from the two men, and to their horror ran straight out into the open…and into the Zu's sights.

"No!" Inara cried in warning, but it was too late. The creature, deeply wounded by its current victims, had caught sight of this easier target. As it wheeled around in pursuit of the girl Mal saw what had happened, his eyes on River, exposed and vulnerable staring wide eyed at the foul beast charging towards her.

"Ta ma duh!" he gasped, then, desiring drastic action he ordered, "Jayne, grenade!"

At the same time Cid called to one of his men, "Knahyta!" and both delegates let their charges fly.

The two explosives hit the creature's back in mid swoop, the resulting blast enough to knock the closest people backwards and sending River sprawling on her back. It did the intended though as the monstrosity dropped out of the sky a few feet from the girl, stone dead. Jayne crowed in triumph, the thrill of battle still pumping through his veins, as Mal and the doctor ran to check on the girl lying motionless next to the beast.

XXXOOOXXX

"You blew her up!" Simon yelled indignantly at the captain as he urgently examined his sister. Mal started in surprise at his accusation.

"You rather I let that thing eat her instead?!" he asked incredulously, "You were the one who let her run out in front of it in the first place!"

The younger man scowled at the Captain, choosing not to answer and instead continuing to frantically examine the limp girl lying on the floor.

"River…mei-mei…can you hear me?" he called to her, checking her pulse and pulling back her eyelids.

"Is she alright?" Inara asked in concern as the others joined them.

"She's alive…." Simon began, glaring once more at the Captain. When he turned back to his sister's supposedly unconscious form, however, he jumped in shock to see her wide eyes staring back at him.

"River…how do you feel?" he asked, relieved that she was conscious but still wary of any possible injuries from the blast. He was also all too aware of the episode she had been having before she was knocked of her feet, and was bracing himself for its return. Instead of a scream however he was treated to a serene smile as she sat bolt upright.

"Peaceful release," she declared, gaining confused looks from the captain and her brother until she pointed behind them at the dead monster.

"Look," She commanded, staring past them, still with the smile on her face as she continued in an almost melodic voice, "time to go, far away, to the place of flowers and waterfalls."

The crew who had gathered round her were completely nonplussed as to what she meant but curiosity dictated that they follow her gaze to be presented with the strangest sight they had ever laid eyes upon.

The black mass of feathers that was the creature they had slain appeared to be evaporating before their very eyes as small blueish-green orbs of light floated lazily upwards from its disappearing carcass. Kaylee, already unnerved by the fight, grasped tightly onto Simon's arm as she took in the vision.

"What the ruttin' hell? That ain't right!" Jayne gasped at the spectacle, unconsciously shifting Vera's weight in his arms into a more defensive stature.

"What are they? Those lights…they're so beautiful…" Kaylee said in a hushed tone as they all watched their lazy dance in awe. Cid approached the bemused group.

"Pyreflies. The souls of the dead."

"People? Those are dead people floating around there?" Wash asked in a weak voice, as Kaylee's expression of wonder turned to horror, and the muscles around Zoe's jaw tightened.

"That's what makes a fiend, the souls of the dead wreaking vengeance on the living." Cid responded in a morose tone.

"Spira's seen a lot of death, so we have a lot of fiends. You can thank Sin for that."

Mal stared at him blankly, not even asking what Sin was supposed to mean to a group that furiously denied religion; he was too busy digesting this latest gem of information about how this planet worked. First it had been magic, now the souls of the dead were trying to kill people? This world was beyond comprehension. His crew looked equally dumbstruck as the last of the "pyreflies" floated away, leaving no trace of the beast they had brought down. Jayne stared moodily at the now empty patch of sand and Mal distinctly heard him mutter, "Ain't right," as he was the first to turn away and head back to the mule, still clutching Vera as if she would offer him some protection from the troubling thoughts running through all of their heads. River was still smiling in an eerie way, and Mal was glad when the Doctor turned back to check on her, using her brief unconsciousness to distract himself from the troubling spectacle they had just witnessed. The girl's happy expression was more than a mite creepifying, and Mal was concerned as to how at ease she was with the events of the day. It seemed typical that she would be apparently at ease when everything around her was completely alien to the rest of them. Turning away from her, Mal's eyes instead came to rest upon the preacher who seemed to be the most unsettled of them all. He appeared to have an almost vice like grip on his small leather bound bible and was staring unblinkingly at the sky, a taught look on his face. Mal recognised the symptoms all to well. There had once been a time when his faith had taken a battering, confronted with a huge obstacle. In his case his faith had lost the battle against its challenges. For once Mal felt pity for the shepherd; what they had just seen must have been a huge blow to the faith of a man whose whole current life revolved around his belief in the Christian way. Inara followed Mal's gaze, and her companion instincts instantly told her what the problem was. Mal was relieved to see her go over to stand by the grey haired man and engage him in quiet conversation. The preacher was in need of comfort and he was damn sure Inara would handle it a whole lot better than he ever could.

XXXOOOXXX

"We better get a move on," Cid told the group now, disturbing their silent musings. "New home's not far, we'll be there by nightfall."

Quietly the group took up their positions on the vehicles again, glad at least that they would soon reach safety and shelter. Mal had imagined New Home to be a village of sorts, perhaps a small settlement based around a desert oasis; a hamlet. It was yet another surprise then, when they topped a sandy dune to be confronted with what looked like a giant metal structure, somewhat resembling a half opened flower. The construction seemed to still be in progress, surrounded as it was by an amount of scaffolding and a veritable city of tented buildings, but it was an awe inspiring sight; such a huge structure in the middle of a barren wasteland.

"Hell, that thing looks like an alliance buildin'," commented Jayne suspiciously as they approached.

"Sure is imposing," Mal agreed, "but I'm thinking we've left the alliance as far behind us as everything else in the verse. 'Bout the only thing that's good about this whole world."

Wash, however, was distracted by something other than the feat of engineering before their eyes.

"I want to drive one of those!" he exclaimed in excitement, pointing to some sort of vehicle that appeared to be powered by a huge fan attached to the back.

"Zoe, you think I could drive one of those?"

The mercenary woman smiled despite herself at her excited husband.

"Wash, honey, you can drive anything you like if you just concentrate on getting us there in one piece," she remarked as he accidentally took them into the side of a small dune due to his diverted attention, showering them all with sand.

"Seems we may have underestimated these people somewhat," Mal remarked, his eyes still fixed on the glistening superstructure ahead.

"When you say we…" Zoe spoke, raising an eyebrow at her captain in amusement.

"You tellin' me you expected to see this?!" Mal asked her in disbelief.

"No, but I didn't compare them to hill folk on Jiangyin either." She smirked slightly, reminding the captain of his earlier lapse of judgement. Mal looked flabbergasted.

"But you…" he didn't understand how his first mate knew about a conversation that she'd been unconscious for, until he saw Wash's suppressed smile and slight blush.

"Sorry captain. She wanted to know everything. I had to tell her!"

"'sides Mal, it's a good story. Should' a seen your face," Jayne smirked at the captain, happy to have the high ground over his boss for once. Before Mal had the chance to come up with some form of retaliation, however, the mule pulled up behind the speeders at the edge of the tent city. Kaylee came bounding over; looking the happiest that she had been since the crash. The sight of the mechanical masterpiece before her had obviously improved her mood drastically.

"Have you seen this place?! It's so shiny!" she beamed at them. "I bet they got all sorts'a bits and pieces we can use to fix up serenity!"

The rest of the crew came to join them, Simon apparently having some difficulty guiding River who was staring around, wide eyed.

"She ok?" Mal asked the young man, noticing the girls distracted temperament.

"She seems calm at least," he replied with a slight sigh, "there are just a lot of people here, I think it makes it hard for her to concentrate."

"Well, see you keep an eye on her," Mal responded, giving an unnecessary order, "best she doesn't go wanderin' off round here."

"So what do you think?" Cid asked proudly as he approached them, gesturing towards New Home.

"Sure is somethin'" Mal stated, smiling in a constricted way, at the man before him. He still seemed trustworthy, but the events with the Zu had made Mal even more determined to start getting answers from him regarding Spira.

"Course we'll have to put you up in tents for the time being, at least until we can get your ship here. Things aren't quite ready inside. The Machina still has a few glitches."

"Y'mean machines right?" Kaylee asked, slightly timidly, but her eyes belying her intense curiosity about the construction. If anything was likely to keep Kaylee happy it was the promise of a shiny new machine to play with.

"We call 'em machina normally, but yeah that's what I mean. You understand 'em?" The older man asked her, eyeing her thoughtfully as he remembered her angered outburst on Serenity.

"Our Kaylee's the best mechanic in the 'verse," Mal answered, complimenting his mei-mei and being rewarded for it with a glowing smile from the brunette.

"Hmm maybe you could help us out around here. What d'you say?"

The girl turned to look at her captain excitedly, and he knew he couldn't argue with that face. Besides, helping to work on New Home could buy them some extra brownie points and a better chance of figuring out how Spira worked and how to get out of here.

"It can't hurt," Mal agreed, "although if I'm lending you my mechanic perhaps you can get around to tellin' us some of that history you were talking about. Me and mine seen some pretty strange things today, and we could do with some answers."

Cid grunted at him.

"I guess you need filling in before you go upsetting people or getting yourself killed. I'm not the best teacher mind, but I'll tell you what I know. Follow me."

The group followed the man through the canvas jungle, until they reached a large empty tent in the centre, strewn with makeshift seats and boxes.

"Welcome to headquarters," Cid spoke in an offhand manner, "we best go through to my office. We won't be disturbed there." He walked along a canvas corridor and Mal went to follow him before he was called back by Shepherd Book.

"Captain, mightn't it be best if we stay here? Seems it might be prudent if you get the whole truth without any distractions."

Mal looked around his crew, and their weary faces. He also saw River still looking wild eyed and he recognised that she was barely holding herself together against the activity going on all around them. He nodded towards the grey haired man.

"Preacher's right. Y'all get some rest. I'll tell you everything when I get back."

And with that he followed Cid, leaving his crew to finally relax in the various seats and crates situated around the very sparse headquarters, watching the Al Bhed come and go as they went about their daily business.

XXXOOOXXX

It had gone dark, and it seemed that hours had passed before Mal re-emerged, looking pale and shaken.

"Mal?" Inara asked, coming towards him, as the rest of the crew got to their feet. "What did he tell you?"

"Y'ain't gonna like it," Mal replied, "place is a hell of a lot gorram weirder than we thought."

"Y'think?" Jayne responded sarcastically, impatient to hear some answers and earning a glare from Zoe.

"We need to know Mal," Inara spoke gently, trying to hide her impatience. An argument between them now wouldn't help their situation at all. Mal nodded

"S'right, you do," he sighed. "Y'all sitting comfortably?" he remarked with bitter sarcasm before he started to retell the story he had just been told himself.

He told them of how Spira was once full of technology, like the core worlds, and of the war that had sprung up because of it. He told them how a man called Yu Yevon from a place called Zanarkand created a thing, a weapon, called Sin, a creature whose sole purpose was to kill and destroy. He spoke of how Sin helped to end the war, but did so by destroying on both sides, including the destruction of Zanarkand. They listened as he described the only way to kill Sin; through summoners who worshipped the religion of Yevon summoning huge powerful beings called Aeons, and completing a pilgrimage. The culmination of this pilgrimage involved the calling the final Aeon that would defeat Sin but in doing so kill the summoner. They were horrified when he explained that the sacrifice was all in vain, that Sin would always return and kill again. He told them of Yevon, the corrupt religion that supported this cycle of endless pilgrimages. It was Yevon, he said, that banished machines, or machina, blaming them for Sin, and that turned the Al Bhed into hated heathens, hunting them for their continued use of machines and their unwillingness to follow Yevon.

Then he told them about how one summoner took a chance, and tried to do things differently. How she, Cid's niece, accompanied by her friends including Cid's daughter, killed Sin for good, but lost the one she loved. The story was bittersweet but as Inara tried to speak Mal cut her off, as he went on to describe the next chapter in the story. He told them how the high summoner, vanquisher of Sin, battled again, Cid's daughter and another by her side, against a dead man, an "unsent", who tried to unleash another weapon on the world. And how as a reward she was reunited with her love.

XXXOOOXXX

"That's such a beautiful story," sighed Kaylee as Mal finally finished.

"Is that it? A rutting fairytale?" Jayne asked, his face contorted in disgust. "Gorram it Mal, I thought we was lookin' for answers!"

"We were. That's what we got Jayne. Deal with it," Mal answered tersely.

"It don't make no sense!" the mercenary replied, raising his voice.

"Mythical beasts and magic and the dead? You outta your gorram mind! You're makin' less sense than moon brain!"

"How much of what we've seen does make sense Jayne?" Zoe asked, challenging the man with her eyes. "Things are different here, that's a fact we just have to get used to."

"You ain't fallin' for it too? Damn it Zoe, thought you had more brains than that."

"It does seem a little far fetched…" Simon began tentatively, hating himself for siding with Jayne.

"And yet we've seen this stuff happening right in front of our eyes!" Mal retorted heatedly.

"So we're going to believe what he had to say?" Inara asked now, giving Mal that piercing look she seemed to reserve just for him.

"Don't see that we got a choice. At least it sheds light on some of the stuff li'l Albatross here was talking about. We're going to have to play along with it all for a while."

The young girl smiled at him from her position on the floor, seeming calmer now than she had been.

"Do as the Romans do," she remarked appraisingly towards her Captain.

"Mal it can't be true," Jayne said, his voice now sounding less threatening and almost more pleading, which was unusual for the big man.

"It just can't be."

"Wish I could say it wasn't," Mal replied steadily, "Maybe I'll wake up in the morning and this'll all be some crazy dream. But until then, I'm gonna do what I can to make sure we stay alive and out of trouble, and right now that means we turn in. Tomorrow's like to be just as long as today."

One by one the group left, heading towards the tents that had been set up for them, until just Jayne and River were left, Jayne staring after them all in disbelief

"They're all just gonna lay down and believe that ri shao gou shi bing," he murmured aggressively, more to himself than to the girl although she still responded.

"Truth is a difficult pill," she remarked sagely, "not so strange, ape man. Guns still shoot, crime still pays. Don't be scared." She smiled then slipped around him and out of the tent. She wanted to get to the tent before her brother. She wanted the comfy bed.

"Didn't say nothin' 'bout bein' scared," Jayne grumbled, refusing to admit the comfort her words had brought him as he also headed out into the desert night.

XXXOOOXXX

It seemed to Mal like he had only just closed his eyes when suddenly the sun was shining onto them again. Too used to sleeping in his windowless bunk, the natural brightness seemed ridiculously overpowering. He groaned, and turned over; hoping to avoid the glare, but the sound disturbed the young girl who was sitting on the floor of the tent, lazily tossing a colourful orb into the air.

"Ooo you're finally awake!" she exclaimed happily quickly scrambling to her feet. At the sound of her voice Mal sat bolt upright, reaching for his gun, as he stared at her in shock. She pushed long golden braids out of her face as she smiled cheerily at him. She couldn't have been any older than River although, Mal noticed, she wore significantly less clothes, dressed as she was in a bikini top and mini skirt. Shaking his dazed and sleepy eyes away from her attire Mal approached the more important question.

"Who the ruttin' hell are you and what you doin' in my tent?!" he demanded, trying to be threatening although he was half clothed and in bed.

"You're a grumpy one," she commented, frowning before smiling once more, completely unfazed by his attempted scariness.

"Sorry if I woke you, but when Vydran told me about the spaceship, I just had to come and find out about it! My name's Rikku, nice to meet ya!"

She waved slightly at him, and the way she kept smiling reminded him strongly of Kaylee's cheerfulness. Two Kaylee's both getting excited over mechanical bits and pieces on his boat… He groaned and pulled the covers up over his head. Today was going to be a loooooooooong day.

XXXOOOXXX

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