Mal strode purposefully onto the ship, his crew trailing behind. A quick glance of the cargo bay showed that River was no where in sight. Mal gave a quick nod to Jayne and Zoe, who began to pull out grates and panels to see if she had hidden away in one of the smuggler's nooks. Kaylee and Simon searched through her room and the corridors as they tried to find any indication she was back on board. Mal knew they would find nothing. His River was gone. She had been taken against her will. He could feel it. He had a foreboding sense of dread that something terrible had happened to her and he had done nothing to stop it, not that he could've. He slammed his fist hard against the bulkhead in anger.

"Captain, we can't find any sign of her," Zoe stated as she walked up beside him. Mal rubbed his eyes and looked at his first mate. Without saying a word, he walked away.

Mal headed up to the bridge and stood by River's seat. He touched the coarse material covering the pilot's seat and closed his eyes. He could almost feel her presence as he tried to recall anything unusual at the bar. Zoe followed him onto the bridge and stood loyally off to the side.

"Zoe," he said, turning to look at his second. "Did you see anything unusual? I'm trying to remember. But I don't think there was anything strange that happened tonight. Maybe I missed something." Zoe put one hand on his shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. She had seen him upset before and had become adept at reading the signs. He cared deeply for River, perhaps too deeply in some ways. It reminded her of Wash.

"No, sir," she responded. "There was nothing unusual. And you know River didn't feel anything, else she would've said something. It's her way." Mal nodded and sighed.

"Where is she, Zoe?" he asked. Zoe shook her head.

"Wish I had an answer for that, sir" she replied then nodded in the direction of his hand. "You should get Simon to look at that Mal."

Mal glanced down and noticed his hand was bleeding, no doubt from when he punched the bulkhead. He was about to reply when Simon and Kaylee walked onto the bridge, followed closely by Jayne.

"Any sign of them?" Simon asked anxiously. He was worried and felt helpless. He didn't know where his sister was and why she had seemingly disappeared. Mal looked down without answering. Simon looked beseechingly at Zoe for any sort of hope. Hope that she couldn't give. Simon sat down heavily in the co-pilot's chair and buried his face in his hands. Kaylee walked over and rubbed his shoulder in comfort, but even she looked as though she were about to break down and cry. Simon stared at the floor, wracking his brain for any memory of anything that might have been slightly off that evening. He could think of nothing.

Something in the corner of the bridge caught his eye. It looked like a capture that had been dropped in haste. Simon bent down and picked it up.

"Captain!" he exclaimed as he turned it over and saw the picture displayed on the screen. Mal turned around and noticed the screen in his hands. He grabbed it and pressed the play button.

The crew gathered around and watched as a man sat down in the pilot's chair and adjusted the vid screen in front of him. He appeared as though was holding onto something just off capture, but they couldn't tell what it was.

"Captain Reynolds," he spoke at the screen. "I'm sure you're probably wondering who I am and why I'm sitting on your bridge recording this message. By now, you've no doubt noticed the disappearance of your lovely pilot, River Tam. Don't worry, Captain, she's safe. For now." With this statement, he pulled River into view. She stumbled into the frame and fell into the man's lap, bound and gagged. Kaylee gasped and buried her face in Simon's shoulder. Simon put his arm around her in comfort.

"She's drugged," Simon informed them, in his clinically detached manner. Mal looked closer at his bao bei on the screen. She looked sedated and her pupils were dilated. Her head lolled forward as the man on the screen continued to speak.

"As you can see, I've taken River into my custody. She'll be safe from the Alliance, that much I can promise you. You see, Captain Reynolds, I found out from your friend, Peter Petrelli, that River is a pretty toy created by the Blue Sun Corporation and as such, I decided I wanted her. So I took her. Now, River is my new toy. She is shiny and interesting and I'm going to have a lot of fun seeing how she works. And when I'm done, I will kill her." Zoe let out a string of curses and Kaylee began to cry. On the vid screen, River passed out from the heavy drugs. If she was even aware of what this man was saying, there was no sign of it. Mal hoped to whatever God was governing the 'verse that she had no idea of the evil seeping through this man's soul.

"You cannot rescue her, Captain Reynolds. You will never find me. You will never find her. My suggestion is to forget she even exists." The man on the screen looked down at the unconscious girl in his lap and gave a low chuckle.

"By the way, Captain," he continued. "My name is Sylar." The man stood and stopped the recording. Mal threw the capture against the wall and let out a string of curses.

"Wo de tian, a," Zoe said quietly and covered her mouth with her hand.

"Kaylee, fire up the engine, Zoe I need you to pilot us outta here," Mal tried to collect his thoughts as he paced back and forth across the bridge.

"But Captain, River might still be on the planet surface!" Simon protested. "You can't just leave her." Mal looked over at the doc and recognized the fear and concern etched on his face. They were emotions Mal himself was feeling acutely.

"I ain't just leaving her, doc," he said in a low voice. "I made a promise to her a long time ago. One I intend to keep." Simon understood. It had taken him a few months to finally accept the Captain's relationship with his sister, but in the end, he knew there was no one better suited to her. Mal had a fiercesome protective streak in him and would fight for her to the bitter end.

"What's your plan, Captain?" he asked.

"Only one man in the 'verse I know might be able to locate her," he replied then turned to Zoe. "Zoe, set a course for Beaumonde. I need to speak with Peter Petrelli."

Wo de tian, a – Dear God in Heaven