They stood silently before her, the hands of blue. River shrunk behind Peter fear etched in her face. She grabbed his shoulders and screamed.
"Not going back, you can't make me go back," she wailed. The two men stepped forward and into the room.
"River Tam," said one, detached and unemotional.
"Remarkable specimen," said the other. "A creature of extraordinary grace."
Peter guarded River with his body.
"Gentlemen," Peter said calmly. "There's nothing for you here." The hands of blue looked at him, as though they were noticing him for the first time.
"Peter Petrelli," said one. "You just won't die, will you?"
"Yeah, I'm not in a habit of it," he replied.
River was shaking harder behind Peter.
"Two by two, hands of blue." She babbled.
"She belongs to the Company. You will hand her over to us immediately," they said.
Peter shook his head.
"I don't think so," he replied. One of the hands grabbed his shoulders and pushed him to the ground.
"I do believe this may be the first time anyone has ever tried to deny us our property to our face," he said as he pulled out a long thin device from his inside jacket pocket.
River backed away and bumped into the wall.
"No, no no," she quivered and covered her ears with her hands. "Can't let them reach in. Blood and tears. Screams. They take and take and take and even you can't stop them."
The man with the hands of blue extended the device and held it out toward Peter. Peter began to seize as the device began to quiver slightly. His eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell to the ground, convulsing erratically. River began to cry as Peter began to scream. She felt his pain as though she were the one experiencing it. Then suddenly, her mind cleared and one single thought was pushed to the front. It was as though she could hear Mal speaking to her.
This is worth fighting for.
This is worth fighting for. Everything she had gained was worth fighting for: her ship, her crew, her freedom. That was her fight. These monsters may have created her. They may be her Doctor Frankenstein, but unlike Frankenstein's monster, she could be redeemed. She rose from her cowering position on the floor and faced the nightmares that haunted her.
"I belong to no one," she said. And for a moment, a flicker of fear passed over the faces of the Hands of Blue. With a lightening fast kicked, she knocked the device out of the man's hand and kicked it under the console. It stopped vibrating and Peter laid still.
Swiftly, she kicked the two men over, using her Academy training to overpower them. One, two, she counted. Then they were on the ground, kneeling before her. River felt a thrill of power course through her veins. They were on their knees before her. She kicked one man hard in the head, knocking him unconscious. Leaning over, she looked down at the other.
"I protect my family," she said in a deadly voice as she stared at him. She stood and prepared to beat him into unconsciousness but faltered when he began to laugh. It was a vicious laugh, full of hate and derision. He pulled himself up and looked at her.
"You always did want to be head of your class," he said, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a device similar to the one his colleague had used on Peter and pressed a button. River fell to the ground with a scream. She lay motionless before him, eyes closed, breath shallow. He knelt down and stroked her cheek lightly.
"Such a shame," he said. "She really was a remarkable subject." He was so focused on her, that he did not see Peter's breathing return to normal and his eyes open. Neither did he see as Peter rose from the ground and pull out his gun. But he did see his blood pour from a bullet wound in his abdomen, as he fell to the ground.
Peter knelt down beside River and checked her pulse. It was weak and thready and her breathing was shallow. He scooped her up in his arms walked out the door. The hallway was eerily quiet, a side effect from the movement of the Blue Hands.
Peter quickly made his way back to the shuttlecraft and prepared to take off. He broadcast a signal to Serenity, warning Mal of their impending arrival. He glanced back at River, strapped into the shuttle cot. She hadn't moved.
"Come on, River," Peter whispered as much to himself as to her. "I promised Mal I'd bring you back safely." He tried to reach out to her with his mind, but was blocked. The force of her block nearly knocked the breath out of him
"What the hell'd they do to you, River," he asked himself. Peter piloted the shuttle toward the rendezvous point.
"Shuttlecraft, this is Serenity. Peter, River, you ok in there?" Mal's voice came over the comm. Peter hesitated before answering.
"We've almost reached you, Captain. Prepare for take-off as soon as we dock," he replied, then added. "We may have attracted an unwanted visitor or two. Not sure if they're up to following us just yet, but I don't want to risk it."
"Copy that, Peter," Mal responded. "Let me speak to River."
Peter looked back at the young girl, still unconscious and unresponsive.
"Uh, she's a bit tied up at the moment, Captain," he replied. "But we'll be at your location shortly. Over and out."
Peter piloted the shuttle closer to Serenity and extended the docking clamps. Feeling the shuttle shudder slightly as they docked, he un-strapped River from the cot and lifted her into his arms.
As he felt the ship take-off, he exited the shuttle. Mal and Simon met Peter in the cargo bay. Simon took one look at the unresponsive girl in his arms and rushed forward to take her from him. Mal beat him to it.
He lifted River out of Peter's arms and rushed her to the infirmary, followed closely by Simon. Mal carefully laid River on the table and stepped back as Simon began to work on her.
"I need to know exactly what happened to her," Simon said while he checked her vitals.
Peter shook his head and stepped back
"I don't know," he replied. "I was unconscious at the time."
"Then I need to know exactly what you saw occur," Simon demanded as he worked. "Just tell me whatever you know."
"We succeeded in breaking into the compound," Peter said. "River sensed danger but was able to focus long enough to hack into the mainframe system and upload the virus we programmed. And then..." Peter paused, taking a shaky breath.
"Then what?" Mal grabbed Peter by the shoulders. "What happened to my pilot?"
"Then we tried to leave," Peter shrugged Mal off and turned away. "But there were these two men waiting for us. They were wearing blue gloves. River was terrified of them. They had a device. I'm not sure what it did to me, but they were able to knock me out with it. When I came to, one of the men was out on the ground; the other was kneeling over River. She was like she is now. He had something in his hand; I'm not sure what it was. I shot him then carried River back to the shuttle. Now you know as much as I do."
Mal grabbed Peter by the shirt and yanked him forward.
"You were supposed to keep her safe!" he yelled. "Why didn't you listen to her when she told you about the danger?"
Peter shoved Mal away from him.
"May I remind you, she wasn't the only psychic in the room!" he shouted back. "I was well aware of the dangers! As was she when she agreed to this mission. A mission that succeeded by the way and wouldn't have without her expertise!"
"Liu kou shui de biao zi he hou zi de ben er zi," Mal ranted. Then he swung his fist at Peter, intent on doing some serious damage.
Peter expertly sidestepped and blocked Mal's punch. The force of his block caused Mal to stumble into some equipment, knocking it over.
"Bi zui, nin hen bu ti tie de nan sheng!" They both stood up at Simon's reprimand.
"I'm trying to save my sister's life," he said. "Get out!" He shut the door behind the two men and turned back to his sister, still lying motionless on the table before him.
He worked for hours on the unmoving body, but despite his best efforts, he was not able to bring her to full consciousness. She was stable for now, and that's all he could do. He walked out into the common area and saw the crew gathered. Word had spread about River's condition and they all wanted to know if she was okay. Even Jayne was sitting on the couch next to Kaylee. Mal sat in a chair on the opposite side of the room from Peter. He looked up as Simon entered.
"She gonna be ok, doc?" he asked. Simon looked around at the crew. His family. He could see the concern etched in their faces.
"I don't know," Simon replied. "I can't figure out what's wrong with her. According to the scans I performed, her body is in perfect working order. Her brain is functioning as though she's awake. Except, she isn't." He paused for a moment, considering the options.
"Peter," he continued. "I'm wondering if it's possible for you to enter her mind." Peter looked up when Simon said this.
"I already tried," he replied. "In the shuttlecraft, as we were flying back. I tried to enter her mind, but I ran into a brick wall. She's not letting me in."
"I didn't know she could do that," Mal said quietly, from the other side of the room.
Peter shook his head.
"Neither did I," he replied. He looked at Simon then Mal, then continued speaking. "There is a possibility that they may have trapped her in her own mind, doc. The device they used on her was different then the one they used on me. It makes sense it would have some sort of psychic effect, considering the nature of her abilities."
Simon tried not to let his frustration show, but he wasn't successful. Kaylee stood up from her position on the couch and went over to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned her head up against his chest.
"She'll be okay, Simon," she said quietly. "She's a fighter. No power in the verse can stop her, remember?"
Simon smiled sadly.
"I want to see her, Doc," Mal interrupted. "That okay?"
"I can't guarantee she'll even know you're in the room," Simon replied, "but she's stable, so it should be fine."
Mal stood up and walked into the infirmary. He made his way over to where River was lying on the table, and took one of her hands in his. He softly stroked the top of her head as he sat on a small stool close to the table.
"Bao bei," he whispered in her ear. "Darlin, you listen to me. I know you're in there somewhere. I know you can hear me." He breathed deeply, trying to quell the onslaught of emotion that threatened to over take him at the sight of her, unmoving on the table.
"Who's gonna fly my ship? No one can fly like my li;' albatross," he said quietly. "Who's gonna sit up all night keeping me company? You gotta come back to me, River." Mal paused for a moment, then leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips.
"I love you, River," he whispered.
Simon stood in the entrance, watching the scene before him, unsure how to react. He cleared his voice to interrupt, when the bio-imaging scanner lit up. Simon quickly hurried over beside his sister.
"Everything ok, doc?" Mal asked, concerned.
"The scanner is picking up some unusual activity," Simon replied. "I think she heard you, Captain, and some part of her recognized you were speaking."
Mal looked at his young pilot lying prone on the infirmary table. He watched as Simon performed more scans.
"Did you mean it?" Simon asked suddenly.
Mal looked up at him, standing over his sister.
"Don't say anything I don't mean, doc," he replied.
Simon nodded in response.
"My sister is a reader, captain. She can feel everything around her. If you two have developed a strong emotional bond, then it's plausible she can feel it. It just might be the safety line she can use to pull herself up. You should continue speaking to her and telling her how you feel," he continued.
"Huh," Mal replied. "Didn't expect you to be so understanding, doc."
Simon looked over at the man who had taken them in so many months previously.
"Captain, if you truly love my sister, then I have nothing to worry about," he replied. "However, rest assured, if you break her heart in any way, I will kill you. Then I will revive you and kill you again."
He said this calmly, but Mal was certain he would follow through with his threat. Mal nodded in understanding, then leaned over River once again and began whispering to her.
"Bao bei," he began. "Did you hear what Simon said? He don't mind about you and me. I plan on taking full advantage of that, but I can't do nothing unless you're awake, you hear me?" The light above the bio-imager began flashing faster, indicating an increase in neural activity.
"I know you can hear me, love," Mal continued. "You listen to me, follow my voice. I can't love you proper unless you're awake and I plan on lovin you good and proper, dong ma?"
River's breathing quickened and she began to stir.
"You're fighting, darlin," Mal whispered to her, holding her hand. "That's good. Now I just need you to fight a little more. This is worth it. It's worth the fight. Open your eyes, bao bei."
River sighed, and, as though she was waking up from a deep sleep, she gradually opened her eyes. She groggily looked from Mal to her brother.
"Mei mei, are you alright?" Simon asked as he bent over her and checked her vitals.
She nodded her head slightly.
"Heard you," she said, looking at Mal. "Tried to block you out, but he couldn't succeed. I heard you anyway."
"Who tried to block me out, darlin," Mal asked.
"It is irrelevant," River replied. "It didn't work."
Mal smiled down at her and kissed her lightly on the lips.
"No, I reckon it didn't," he responded. "I'd best get out of the doc's way. Let him perform all his fancified tests and give you a clean bill of health. You know I expect you back on the bridge, soon as you're able." He winked at her, then got up to leave.
River smiled at him, as she sat up.
"Mal," she called out as he walked out of the room. Mal turned and looked at her. "I love you, too."
Liu kou shui de biao zi he hou zi de ben er zi – Stupid son of a drooling whore and monkey
Bi zui, nin hen bu ti tie de nan sheng – Shut up you inconsiderate school boys