Chapter 5

"All right," The Captain nodded as Riddick and River entered the room. "Now that the prairie harpy is off the boat and we're no longer in danger of being hijacked, I think it's about time we found out what in the gorram hell is going on!"

Riddick tugged River closer to him and put her hand on the back of his belt. He felt her fingers move over the shiv hidden inside the leather and knew she'd be able to get at it if she felt threatened. He wore others but that one would be the easiest for her to reach, apart from the obvious blade strapped to his thigh.

The Captain didn't make him nervous but there was no way that he was going to have his wife unarmed when at least three people in the room were wearing guns and the rest of them were complete unknowns. Mal had the bad habit of raising his voice when he was trying to make a point and eventually he'd learn it didn't work on Riddick. Not on River either if her calm scent was any indication. They'd both seen scarier things than Reynolds in a temper. He'd seen the scars on his wife's body that proved it.

"I'm sorry but apart from the thrilling heroics of River and this...very large intimidating looking person, entrapping Saffron and keeping her from killing us all," The pilot nodded at the two of them. "Thanks for that by the way." He continued after a moment of figuring out where he'd left off in his thought, "Oh, yeah. So do we even know who this is?" He looked at Riddick, "No offense, but you don't look like the type who tolerates crazy or unstable very well. And River sort of defines those characteristics."

Riddick slanted a glance down at his wife and grinned at her, "Dunno. River, you been feeling crazy or unstable?"

"Only when you kiss me," River shrugged and a little cat smile played about her lips. "But you told me that was normal."

"I want to know how this happened," The Doctor burst out. "How did they even meet? River how could you let him do that to you? It's wrong. I won't have it. This marriage is being annulled." He ranted on for a good five minutes in a mixture of Chinese and English. He called River's sanity, Riddick's parentage and sexual practices into question with the use of disturbing and detailed profanity. Most disquieting was his conviction that Riddick had been sexually sadistic and abusive to his delicate looking wife. River flinched back against her husband as her brother spewed his vitriol.

Riddick had had enough when the boy began to say River was likely diseased now and no fit man would ever have her. She'd destroyed her good name and character by marrying and bedding Riddick and she'd be lucky if she wasn't left riddled with sickness and dying on some desolate moon after her husband inevitably abandoned her.

"Shut up," Riddick kept his voice low and even and dead cold. "Before I show you just how little I care about your life. River is my wife." His voice and threat were a direct contrast the Captain's near yelp of his Doctor's name. The eyes of the crew around the table were shocked and appalled. Apparently they'd never seen the Doctor like this before.

"I notice you don't deny any of it," Simon sneered at him and Riddick growled low and ugly in his chest. He'd never hurt someone smaller than him who hadn't come at him with intent to harm first. He'd kept kids and women alive and he'd ignored smaller men posturing at him because he could smell their fear. There was no point in killing the smaller and the weaker. The idea that he'd harm the woman who'd voluntarily vowed herself his, his Mate, his Home and Wife...

It was a sickening thought, against his own personal code and everything he'd learned of his People. The Core man had no idea just how insulting Riddick found his insinuations. More and more he was getting the itch to feel the man's blood flowing over his hands. He didn't usually kill people who hadn't tried to kill him but for Simon Tam he'd make an exception and do it with pleasure.

"All right everyone calm down," The dark woman slammed her wooden mug on the table with a loud enough bang that everyone shut up. "Now first, might be a good idea if we all knew each other's names." She glanced at Riddick and River, "I guess you two already know each other, in more than one sense."

"Well spotted," River drawled. Her amusement was almost palpable and Riddick gave her a half smile. The Core boy had pretty much killed his sense of humor for the moment but he could appreciate his wife's attempt to lighten the mood.

"Right," The woman shrugged. "I'm Zoe Washburne, I'm First Mate on this ship." Riddick studied her for a moment. Dark hair, a shade or two darker than her skin, attractive but she had a no nonsense demeanor about her. He'd bet she was just as good at running the ship as the Captain but less flamboyant about it.

"And I'm her husband, Wash. I'm the pilot," The cheerful man gave a little wave. He was about the same height as his wife, maybe an inch or two taller and wore a shirt that Riddick was sure would be garish if he could still see colors. He was obviously Caucasian with hair that was probably blond or very light brown. His eyes and face were cheerful and it was obvious from his demeanor that solemnity was fairly foreign to him. Riddick guessed he and the first mate were a pretty balanced pair.

"Malcolm Reynolds, I'm the Captain and the owner of this boat," The tall man at the head of the table nodded and indicated the even taller man to his right. He was tall, though shorter than the gunhand, with dark hair and eyes that weren't dark enough to be black. He was probably accounted to be handsome and wore his coat and gunbelt with an ease that told Riddick he'd had both for a good long time. He also was accustomed to command, mostly had always been charismatic and the warn had honed his leadership into a fine point. "This here's Jayne Cobb, he's our gun hand."

"The one talkin' about selling her," Riddick remembered and his lip curled up derisively.

"Hell I was drunk," Jayne dismissed that with a shrug. "Iffen I don't remember sayin' it an' Mal don't remember gettin' married don't see how it can be held against me."

"I remember," Riddick promised coldly. Unless he saw proof of the man's intentions otherwise it would be a chilly day in hell before he ever forgot. The man was taller than he was by several inches and just as muscular. His hair was some shade of brown and he wore it short and curly with a goatee that covered his chin and surrounded his mouth. He wasn't clumsy or unobservant according to what Riddick remembered of the man. He wore at least two guns and three knives with the likelihood of more being stashed on his person or around the ship.

"Uh huh," Reynolds clearly didn't want another scene because he pointed out the short curvy woman with the sunny smile. "This here's Kaylee Frye, she's our mechanic. Keeps us in the sky." This was another cheerful crew member. Her hair was darker than the pilot's but her eyes were closer to the Captain's shade. She was clearly pleased for River and a bit confused as to why the doctor was acting so badly.

"I'm Inara Serra," The elegant woman was clearly friends with the mechanic from the way they were sitting together. Like his wife, the Companion was a study in contrasts. If it weren't for the scent of cosmetics and perfume he might have found her attractive. But her beauty was calculated for maximum effect, her grace studied and practiced. Her coloring was the only thing that made her similar to River. It was easy to compare the two and find his wife superior. Everything about River was real. This woman was too much of an illusion, a mask.

"The Companion," Riddick nodded semi politely. He remembered she'd been gentle with River, allowing the girl to sit and pick clover after they'd wandered around the village. "You kept hold a River like she would've run off." It was nothing more than a statement of fact but the doctor seemed to take it as an insult.

"Because she would have," The Doctor argued. "She's not stable. She hasn't had her medication in days and-"

"That's the Doc," Reynolds interrupted before the Core man could get going again. "Doctor Simon Tam. River's older brother. Obviously." Riddick could see the physical resemblance the siblings had to each other. Both of them slender with very dark hair and eyes. Pale skin and an air of elegance about them despite the slightly decrepit ship they lived upon. But River was warm and sweet and saw possibilities in him whereas her brother saw nothing but trouble and mayhem in the worse possible way.

"And you and I were introduced by Elder Gommen," The older black man with the whitish hair nodded politely. "Shepherd Derrial Book." The convict nodded. The man had a very penetrating gaze for all that he acted so genially. Everything about him screamed that he was hiding secrets. He seemed to see just as much as the more militant members of the crew which screamed either a mercenary background or military training of some kind, Alliance or Independent. Riddick nodded politely and wondered exactly why the man was on this ship. Running or just traveling?

Riddick looked down at his wife and wondered if he should give them the whole story or just what the folks on Triumph had known. " Need not the tale told in its entirety," River murmured the advice for his ears alone. "Not the whole history, but his name will make clear that he is...not to be trifled with."

Riddick tilted his head thoughtfully and figured since she was a Reader she'd have better odds than he would for figuring out how this would go. He usually counted on things going pretty badly wrong. "All right," He shrugged and was rewarded with River pressing a kiss to his jaw. "Name's Richard Bledig Riddick."

"Richard B. Riddick?" It was the gun hand, Jayne. He was staring at Riddick like he'd seen a ghost. "Mal, turn off the lights." Two seats down from him the Shepherd's gaze sharpened slightly and Riddick knew that two people had recognized his name at least.

"Jayne what are you playin' at?" The Captain was staring at his gun hand like he'd lost his mind.

"I ain't playin' Mal," Jayne snapped. "Turn off the gorram lights an' then see iffen you don't recognize the name."

With a sigh Reynolds turned the lights completely off and cursed in shock as Riddick's night vision kicked on with a vengeance. River's mouth brushed over his and Riddick grinned down at her. The gun hand was holding his head in his hands as if he was praying. Book was nodding slowly as if his expectations were confirmed. Everyone else was in various stages of shock or awe. Ignoring them until they got control of their tongues again seemed like a good idea so Riddick decided he'd just enjoy kissing River until they turned the lights back up.

Eventually the crew finished gaping and Riddick had hauled River up in his arms and was very much enjoying her curves and her mouth when someone finally regained their senses and turned the lights back on. The shout of anger from the Doctor was more than he needed to inform him that the crew could see him again. Riddick felt his pretty wife sigh in resignation against him. "They are remembering finally why his name is known," She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Please don't let go of me."

"Won't," Riddick pressed another kiss to her mouth and kept River right where she was, secure in his arms. "So you know my name. What do you plan to do about it?" Unspoken was the implication that they could try to take him. Try to put him off the ship. They'd wind up dead if they did.

He looked at them. Some of them, the mechanic, the Companion and the Doctor really didn't know what was going on. The Shepherd was studying him as if he was making a comparison in his mind. The pilot, Wash, was blinking in shock still and looking at his wife as if to make sure he wasn't going crazy. The remaining crew members were on guard and apparently waiting for him to make a move.

"Wouldn't have expected to find you on Triumph," Reynolds commented finally. Riddick shrugged and held River closer. She was shivering against him and he rubbed a wide palm over her spine to sooth her. He wouldn't gut her crew for asking questions. He wouldn't do anything to them so long as they didn't try anything stupid like annulling his marriage to her or trying put him out the airlock. "Neither would I have figured you for the marrying kind," The Captain added after a moment.

"He's obviously not," Simon snapped out bitterly. "It's some sort of scam so he can defile my sister." He would obviously have gone on at length but the Furyan had had enough.

"You done?" Riddick stared at the man sitting across from him, "The marriage is legal."

"Suppose you tell us a little of how that came about," Shepherd Book suggested quietly.

"Saw River," Riddick shrugged. "I play least in sight 'til know if a ship is interested in me or not." He looked down at his trembling woman and rubbed one big hand up and down her spine. "Beautiful woman... Said hello and went on my way."

"It's a long way from seeing a pretty girl to wanting to marry her," Wash commented idly. "Not that you don't seem committed to the marriage. You know, what with the threats and the growling." His mouth quirked up in a half smile, "River, don't dump soup on this one's head. You don't want a husband with burns on his scalp. Might make him grumpy."

River giggled a bit at the pilot's joke and Riddick shrugged. "We talked some," He admitted with a smile at his wife. "I liked her. Didn't need too much convincing. We got married." He used his free hand to cup her jaw and rub his thumb against the silky skin over her cheekbones.

"I'm sure you didn't need any convincing at all," River's older brother snorted derisively. "My sister is a beautiful young woman and you're a lecherous yú chǔn zì jiāo de dà zi ròu ."

Riddick rolled his eyes and would have ignored the stupid boy but River took umbrage at her brother's words. "He is not stupid, nor lecherous. More concerned for her than his own wellbeing. Made certain she knew what marriage would entail. More than vows, more than words, to be bound to him for her entire life and he to her equally. Promised to take care of her. Wished to prove himself a good husband. And plagued by constant interruptions during that endeavor."

"Why?" Simon groaned, "Why him? Why not a nice farmer? Or a shop clerk from Osiris? Why not Badger even?" He might have gone on and continued into another rant but thankfully he was interrupted.

"Hey Doc that's goin' a little far," The First Mate objected quietly. "Your sister might be crazy but far's I know she hasn't done a thing to deserve a fate worse than death."

Riddick looked down at River and found her staring up at him with a sweet little smile. "Probably about time you gave them your reasons for marrying me," He kept his voice for her ears alone. He liked talking to her. He wasn't entirely sure he liked talking with her crew just yet. He would if he had to. They were hers after all and she was his. But that didn't mean he had to like it.

To his surprise, she gave him a delicious little pout, "Like hearing your voice. Delicious rumbling in your chest. Like chocolate and coffee with Kerry whiskey in my ears. Part of why I chose you. Skin tingles when you talk."

Riddick couldn't help chuckling and slid his hand from her back down to her pretty little ass and squeezed. "Talk to you later on, after we're done with this," He reminded her of why he was sitting with these crazy people. He wouldn't be doing this, wouldn't be bothering to play nice if it weren't for her.

"Very well, if my husband wishes it," River leaned up and kissed his chin, the only part of him she could reach unless he lifted her up. Riddick grinned and obligingly bent down for her and she gave him a sweet kiss on his mouth for his trouble.

"Now you act like you're obedient?" Riddick snorted and rolled his eyes. He knew damn well that she'd never been obedient a day in her life. He could smell it on her.

Her giggle was amused agreement to his ears and nose and she shrugged against him, "Husband is very intelligent." She turned her head to look at the rest of the table and smiled. "Stabilization is not complete, but I am much improved with my husband's presence."

"Please stop saying that word," Simon groaned his interruption.

"Will. Not. Stop." River's soft voice grew hot with anger and she smelled even better to his sensitive nose. It had been a little bit since she'd gotten angry and he'd put it out of his mind. But what it did to him, he was hard as a rock under her pretty curved thighs. "Riddick is my zhàng fu ."

"Since when are you aware enough a what you're doin' to marry anyone," Reynolds was staring at River more than Riddick. It was obvious to the convict that the presence of a murderer was slightly less disturbing to the Captain than the resident crazy girl talking straight. It said something about the Captain's peculiarities but so long as the man didn't start yelling at River the Furyan could care less. The man would get used to it or he wouldn't.

"Read about Triumph in the Encyclopedia before we landed," River shrugged. "I like to read about places we're going. Heard talk of Triumph." She lifted the hand Riddick had on her thigh and pressed kisses to his knuckles until he was cupping her jaw against his palm and stroking his thumb over her cheek. This woman just kept pulling him in tighter and tighter and strangest of all he didn't even mind. Being tangled up in her was the best feeling of his life so far, including killing or fighting. She was His. And for damn sure he was Hers.

"Uh huh," The Captain rubbed a hand over his face. "So you read about the moon. An' the marriage ceremony I guess. An' then what?"

"Inara and Simon escorted me off the ship. Wouldn't let me wander," River threw her brother an irritated look. "But saw my zhàng fu on the hill. Handsome. Hunter and warrior. Bright and clear and solid." She took a deep breath, "My husband's effect on me..." River turned her face towards Simon. "In the twentieth century angina pectoris was commonly treated with nitroglycerin tablets. The nitroglycerin was stabilized with beta-lactose in order to rend it safe for processing into the tablets."

"Right," Simon nodded but he clearly didn't understand what his sister was getting at.

River sighed in frustration and Riddick couldn't help chuckling at the Core boy's idiocy. "River thought you said your brother was gifted?" He looked over River's head with a smirk at the doctor, "She's nitro. I'm beta-lactose."

"That's impossible," The Doctor nearly stuttered the words.

"Wait a minute," The pilot, Wash was shaking his head. "A girl who, while pretty, no offense sweetheart, could barely make sense of a soup spoon, walks up to you, puts a hat made out of a tree on your head, hands you some wine to drink and dances with you. You know it's a marriage and you still did it?" He looked around the table, "Is anyone else wondering if he's crazy too?"

The question, as it stood was a good one, considering the shorter man didn't know the whole story. Riddick stared at him hard for a moment and then looked at River. The pilot liked the girl he called pretty and crazy. It might have come out a little insulting but he was just trying to understand. Sincerity was all over his scent. Sincerity and a brother's affection for River.

"Nah," Riddick answered the pilot finally. "She came up. Asked if she could sit. Might sound crazy to you; not me. We talked." He left out the sparks, the chemistry that had practically ignited between them when they'd touched. They wouldn't understand about Shirah or his Furyan heritage that had promised him this perfect woman would come.

"One person, calm, steady, exquisite control over his reactions, in perfect balance between the Primal and the Evolved," River's soft voice was a bit breathless. "Perfect mate for her."

"I ain't gettin' it," Jayne spoke finally. "Sure she's a fine enough piece. But marryin' her? Where's the percentage in that? Vows are always ya know. Ain't no goin' back, 'cause it's done."

Riddick had been near to gutting the gun hand when he first started talking. River had put her hand on his and tilted her head. Oddly enough she hadn't smelt insulted or angry. "Oh," She looked up at him and smiled. "He can't help being crude. He means that he can see you'd like my looks. But his family doesn't believe in divorce so marriage is forever. So they wait until they're sure before exchanging vows. He just can't understand you being so impulsive. Me, yes, because he thinks I belong in a bughouse."

"Uh huh," Riddick rolled his eyes and figured if he didn't spit it out why River wanted to marry him they'd be stuck in the galley all night. He had definite plans for the rest of the night and they didn't include talking to her crew. "She explained what was wrong with her. That she's missing a piece and she needed someone who used that piece a lot in order to help her stay...balanced I guess." He looked down at the slender woman in his arms. "That about right?"

"Yes," River nodded and gave him a smile of gratitude, presumably for his ready explanation of her difficulty. "Academy stripped my amygdale. Made to feel everything. Forced to hear. All the voices never stop. Richard is Balance and Control and Strength. Helps me keep the Voices out. Helps me to hear clearly, to choose what to hear. Keeps me stable."

"This just proves she's not fit to marry, she's hearing voices and talking about someone else making her sane." River's brother was running his mouth again and Riddick was getting real tired of it. He was seriously contemplating explaining his position while holding the doc at shiv-point if the boy didn't stop running his mouth.

"Son, I'm afraid that her mental state makes no difference as to the legality of her marriage to Richard," The Shepherd spoke up before Riddick could succumb to his impulse to gut the doctor. "She married him on Triumph, in their tradition. Richard was a resident there and Elder Gommen spoke highly of him as a member of their community. They are married. There is nothing you can do."

"Made sure of it with absolute certainty," River spoke from within Riddick's arms. Her voice and scent were smug. "By laws of Osiris she is wed. Bound to him for life. Completed the Rites. Spoke the Words."

"Ō, zhè zhēn shì ge kuàilè de jìnzhǎn," Simon groaned. "You couldn't have. You were never taught the rites. Even if you vowed... No. It can still be undone. The dissolution rites could be performed, a true marriage made for you eventually." He stared at his sister, "River this is wrong. He is not intended for you. He's a violent, vile, crude, and uneducated lout who makes Jayne look civilized. This will be undone. It's for the best."

"No," Riddick could smell that his wife was hurt and irritated by her brother's behavior. Her voice was almost trembling with her emotions. "He is mine. I'm his. I'm his Home now. He is my husband. I need him. And he is so good to me. I feel right with him." She tried to cajole her brother into seeing reason but Simon wasn't having any of it.

The Doctor shook his head, "What about all the bruises and bite marks on your body? What if you were harmed? Torn? I need to examine you and give you a few shots. Conception would be…" He shuddered visibly, "Disastrous. Who knows what pregnancy would do to your body chemistry, to your mind. You could be permanently ruined. Why you didn't think of what you owed your lineage..." The slender man sighed condescendingly and held out his hand, "Come with me now. I'm going to make sure this disaster doesn't have any permanent consequences."

River hand twisted her hands into his shirt and was pulling herself as close as possible to his body. Her scent was twisted with fear and desperation. Riddick wrapped his arms around her tightly, pulling her against his chest. Her fear was igniting his blood, inciting the Animal until all he wanted to do was bathe in Simon Tam's blood. He could almost feel it flow over his hands. His fingertips twitched in anticipation of what his shiv through the abdominal aorta could do to the smugly condescending doctor. He wanted, almost needed, to destroy this bastard who would take River from him. No chance for their marriage, no interest in what she was to him. The Core man's absolute certainty of what was right for his sister was almost as insulting as suggesting that Riddick would hurt River.

She was shivering against him, he had to take care of her. If he killed her brother then he wouldn't be able to do that. Folks frowned on murders plying their trade and continuing merrily on. He had to get control of himself, get a leash on the Animal side. A bloodbath at the galley table wasn't what his wife needed. But that red...that hunger for blood...it had a good hold of him now. And River was the only reason he had to hold back.

It would be so fucking easy to give in to it. Give into the red that dripped into his eyes and made killing so easy it might have been breathing. He might not see colors straight anymore but he knew Red. It was the color that had turned him from a wrongfully convicted man to a killer. Red was the symptom and reminder and the cost of what he was. The bright color of blood seeping into his grey vision and turning the world into a massacre. He was ready to make that vision a truth if this man did not stop threatening River and their marriage. The Doctor was threatening a child that wasn't even conceived yet. It was against everything the Furyan knew and believed. It felt like his entire being was roaring for the man's blood on his blades. Dimly he heard the growl vibrating through his chest and the heat of the Mark warming his skin.

He tried to hold it back, tried to control the Mark, the Wrath. But the Red seeped back in. He could control one but not the other. One meant certain death for River's brother. The other... God and the Ancestors only knew what it would do to the crew and ship. They had to get out. Had to go dark. It was the only way they'd survive.

So long as Simon was standing there and speaking of aborting River's children and annulling her marriage to Riddick they were all in danger. The spirit of Furya he carried with him would not stand for any threat to his wife, to his children. Shirah would not have it. He was the last of her children. River was the hope of their race now. And Furya would not allow such a threat to continue. The Wrath was growing even as he tried to fight a battle on two fronts. He was going to lose at least one. He could feel it. The heat was growing and the light, that ghostly light, the Fury of his race...it was almost too late.

"What in the-" Reynolds was swearing.

His wife was issuing instructions with undeniable authority. At least she'd heard his thoughts. Heard and understood. She knew what needed to be done. She'd straddled his hips, her hands on his face, trying to calm him, "Wash, Kaylee, we have to go dark. Even the air. All of it. Fast as we can. He'll burn it all out. Seal yourselves off afterwards." He could hear the two crew members scrambling madly for their respective places and not fifteen seconds later the sounds of the ship died. His mate was still speaking, "The rest of you run. Get off this deck. As far away as you can. The cargo bay. The infirmary... Run now!"

They were leaving, the sheer worry in her voice compelling them to run. All except her idiot brother. That was fine with him. But the fool was still talking. Then he was too close...hands on River. Pulling at her.

The world seemed to explode into white light. All he saw was River's face and then the world was gone.

Author's Note: Sorry. This was a short chapter mostly because this was just the perfect place for a cliffhanger. Next one will be longer most likely. And I didn't plan it but Simon is just turning into a total ass on me. He's really irritating isn't he? But I didn't set out to make him like this. He's just really...every time he has dialogue he says something...stupid or rude or really insulting.

At least Mal and the rest of the crew seem to be dealing okay. Sarcasm, humor and, on Jayne's part at least, some uncouth remarks, but they aren't freaking out. And hey, Riddick was trying to play nice. Major strides for him huh?

I'm really trying to emphasize that this is less about Riddick the murderer and more Riddick the Furyan. He really is the last one and if Shirah was satisfied with Zhylaw's death I think her ambitions would turn to rebuilding the race. And then Riddick wouldn't be alone.

But...on we go. Hope all of you will let me hear your thoughts. I love questions and comments. And thank you for all the reviews, faves and follows. You folks really make my day.

Chinese Translations:

yú chǔn zì jiāo de dà zi ròu - stupid inbred sack of meat

zhàng fu - husband

Ō, zhè zhēn shì ge kuàilè de jìnzhǎn - Oh, this is a happy development