All disclaimers apply
Ch. 25- Regroup
Inara pressed one perfectly manicured finger to the comm radio behind her ear.
"Wash, tell Simon the chicks have landed and the roosters are intact. That's an a-okay at the trash bin, do you copy?"
Mal looked at her incredulously. "You mean to tell me that you are running this little rescue op?"
Zoe answered first. "Sir, we're all running this little rescue op." She had straightened up and was silently daring the Captain to discredit the women around her.
Mal shuffled slightly; he knew that look and decided to back off. "Thank you, Ladies; I can see this was an efficient and well-run operation." He smiled widely at Inara, hoping to weasel his way back into her good graces.
Inara, to her credit, was fully aware that the man that could set her on fire could also, well, set her afire when it came to him saying exactly the wrong thing. So she did what any strong, self-aware woman does when her chosen one says something stupid; she let it go.
"Thank you, Mal. We couldn't have done it without River's… special talents." By then she had realized there were three men she did not know behind Mal; however he seemed at ease with them, so while she relaxed her guard, there was no point in giving away vital information.
The medium height, brown-haired one stepped forward. "Ma'am, Lt. Jay Shaw, and these are two of my men. I think we've met your Captain's approval. Jus' saying as I see you lovely women seem to have several power right hooks between you." He smiled, took her hand gently, and then stepped back without kissing it. He knew within seconds of stepping in that room that this was the Captain's woman (or maybe the other way 'round, he mused) and that being polite and then backing off immediately was probably the best option.
"Lieutenant," Inara replied gracefully. "This is Zoe Washburne, the Captain's First Mate, Kaylee there is our Chief Technical Officer, and River is…"
Inara looked around. Kaylee was preening at her new fancy title, and River and Jayne were nowhere to be seen.
"Where are those two?!" demanded Mal. "If they're off in some side room…" He halted as both River and Jayne walked back into the room.
"Captain," River began, "your presumption that we would be off in some corner fooling around while on a job, well, it just sickens me." She turned on the fully pout-driven face.
"Yeah," Jayne joined in. "Just sick that ya think we aren't on the job all pro-fessional-like." He twisted his mouth in an attempt to project his own form of pompous face.
Mal tried not to stutter. "Okay, well, where were you two just now?"
"Looking for the object they took from us," River replied.
"And?" Mal, David, and Shaw all asked impatiently.
"And, it's not here." Collective groans resounded through the warehouse. "But I think I do know where it is."
"And that would be, l'il one?" Zoe coaxed.
"Not too far, but more heavily guarded than here. Jayne and I searched what passed for their office here and I was able to break into their computer files. There is a toy company in the next town over that specializes in modeled home animatronic companionable mammals."
"What??"
"Robot pets. Jeez Mal, get with it." Jayne shook his head, as if River had not had to explain to him what they were two minutes earlier. Mal glared at him while Kaylee giggled.
The Captain sighed and looked to Shaw. "Looks like we're gonna need to reconnoiter on this op, Lieutenant."
Shaw nodded thoughtfully as Mal turned back to his crew. "Okay, River, let's get you, Kaylee, and Kaylee's new friend there back in that office and gather up any additional intel you can. Jayne, Zoe, how's about we take a quick little inventory of weaponry here…" One of the men on the floor near Mal's feet started to groan. Mal leaned over to whack him out again. "Let's make this quick people. I want to be out that door and back toward friendly territory in five."
&&&&&&&
The door guard had no useful information; Jayne had wanted to 'interrogate' him, but Kaylee wrapped an arm around the shuddering soldier's shoulders and led him into the back office River and Jayne had gone to earlier.
River was bent over the keyboard when they arrived. "Anything more?" asked Kaylee hopefully.
"Not much. I've pinned down the location, but we're going to need to do some recon, there's no specs here." She sat back, disappointed. She looked over at the soldier standing with Kaylee. "Anything you want to tell me?"
He shifted nervously. "Miss, I would tell you anything you want to know if I knew anything. I was shipped here, told to guard a door, then you people showed up." He kept glancing back towards the open office door. "Please, Miss, don't hand me off to the big one. He was smiling at me and licking a knife."
River smiled gently. "Don't worry, we'll leave you intact." She turned to Kaylee. "We'll have to knock him out if we're going to leave him here."
Kaylee grimaced as the soldier started to back away. "Well, okay, I guess you're right. You'll have to do it though."
The boy was busy backing towards the door. "Please, Miss, I really don't think I'm cut out for this, maybe I can just pretend that you knocked me out?"
River shook her head and began to walk over to him. "Sorry, but one minute under interrogation when your commander wakes up and you'll be found out and in big trouble for not trying hard enough to stop us. No, it's better for you this way." She stepped closer.
"Maybe you can just tie me up?" he asked hopefully. He hadn't seen Jayne approach from behind.
"Tie you up?!" he roared. "Why you sneaky, kinky l'il bastard, tryin' to get with my girl…" he let loose a single hand chop to the back of the kid's neck, effectively knocking him out.
Kaylee looked to River. "Well that went well."
&&&&&&&
Everyone had gathered up by the door where it had all gone wrong for the guys initially. Mal looked over his group to do a quick head count.
"Where's the l'il guy?" he asked River.
"We took care of him," she said simply. David shuddered at the implication. He hadn't looked River in the eye since their rescue; but he hadn't let her out of his peripheral vision either. He just didn't know what to make of what he had seen. He knew she had been tampered with, after all she had spoken of it to him back when they were hanging out together. But to see the results in action, to see the fighting machine the Alliance had created, was something else entirely. Furthermore, David had a sneaking suspicion that he had only seen a small glimpse of her capabilities. He wasn't sure how to feel towards her. While he was grateful for the rescue, he was also scared at what she was capable of. He couldn't stop glancing sideways at her.
River, for her part, was doing her best to push away David's conflicting emotions for the moment. Time later to deal with her friend's feelings. She felt a tinge of sadness as she realized that he wasn't sure he shouldn't be afraid of her.
She looked to Jayne. He had scooped up some of the better sidearms from the soldiers the women had knocked out and was comparing them to decide which ones he wanted to keep before the Captain repossessed the rest. He felt her watching him and looked up. Seeing her face he quickly stepped over to her.
"What's wrong, sweetheart?" he said quietly, not wanting to draw any attention to River until he knew what was going on, and also not wanting anyone to hear his endearment. When her look deepened, he quickly placed the weapons onto the floor beside them and grasped her forearms in his giant hands. She looked so sad, and he realized that it actually hurt him to see her look like this. She sighed and looked down at her hands.
"Tell me, tell me what's wrong," he implored. Mal and the others hadn't noticed them yet, they were discussing the best route back to the ship.
River was trying not to start sniffling. "I can't help it, it's not my fault."
"What? Baby, girl, what's wrong?" Jayne implored.
"It's not my fault, it's what they made me," she continued to sniffle and actually began to shake a little. She looked forlornly into Jayne's eyes. "Are you scared?" she whispered.
Jayne heard a shuffle and cough close by; he glanced over and saw David seemingly concentrating hard on what the Captain was saying. He knew immediately what River's problem was. David had seen her abilities for the first time and was freaked out. River may have decided to be with Jayne, but he knew she still considered David a friend and was upset at his reaction. Damn him for hurting her.
Jayne stood back up and guided River further away from the group. He pulled her chin up with one hand and let the other one rest lightly on her hip.
"Listen, Princess. I am not afraid of you. I know what was done to ya was wrong. I also know that ya have done a wonderful job dealing with it. Ya only use ya'r 'bilities now to help us, ya'r family. I'ma li'l regretful that us guys didn't get ourselves outta this pickle a li'l faster, but I'm grateful that ya came to get us. I'm proud of ya and everythin' ya can do, ev'rythin' ya're capable of." He bent down on one knee and leaned in to touch his nose against hers as he looked deeply into her eyes.
"I love ya 'zactly the way ya are."
River's eyes grew even bigger and rounder if that were possible. He loved her? She threw her arms around him and squeezed as tightly as she could. All she could feel off him was warmth. Now she knew she had everything she could possibly want.