AN: Thank you for all the wonderful reviews and support. It really means a lot that people take the time to read this story. This is probably one of the longer updates that I have written thus far, and I am hoping to keep this trend up on some of the more meatier episodes coming up. This update would have been posted sooner, but I re-read it before I was going to post it and was not liking what I had written, so it got delayed a bit. Hope you guys enjoy =)
Chapter 19 Danse Macabre and Furious Angels
XXX
Riddick's POV
It doesn't make sense that she could want to stay on this damn boat after being on it for less than a day. I mean, what the gorram hell is so special about this place or these people. The Captain's annoying…the mechanic's naïve…the merc is just stupid.
I open the door to the bunk we had our stuff in and curse my luck as I see the preacher look up at me from where he sits on the bed reading a book.
"Lover's quarrel?" He asks as I slam the door shut.
I don't say anything and move to one of the duffels that holds the weapons. I open and begin laying out some of the things we might need for this little job the girl seems hell bent on helping on. Far be it for me to pass up a bit of violence.
"You don't trust her do you?" He asks from behind me.
I tuck a few throwing knives into my cargo pants. "With a life like mine, you don't trust many people Shepherd."
"It's just interesting you wouldn't trust her…you acknowledge her skill, you lust after her…but you do not trust her."
Man is just all kinds of irritating. "You got a point?"
"He who does not trust enough, Will not be trusted."
I shake my head at the idea. "Trust is what gets you killed preacher."
"You know that isn't always the case. And do you really think she would betray you? You are so alike it would be as if she betrayed herself."
"You really think that would stop her if it came down to it?" I challenge. "I don't trust anyone…not even myself."
"Then I feel sorry for you."
He gets up and leaves the room as River walks in. She goes over and sits down on the bed, pulling her legs up in front of her and hugging her knees.
"Do you really think she would betray you?" She asks after a minute of silence.
"Wouldn't be the first time someone has."
"Not the…me." She pauses. "…I… wish I could give you reassurance. But words are not sufficient in dealing with an issue such as this."
I look up at her now. "So what are we supposed to do?"
"Give her a month. If all goes according to the girl's plan, the Captain will offer us employment. Give the girl a month to look for the answers she thinks she can find here. If after a month she has not, she will leave with you."
"Why would you?"
"Because…I trust you."
"…Fine, one month."
XXX
When the doors to the cargo bay open, Mal and Zoe are greeted with the familiar site of desert. Nothing but woody shrubs, cactus, weeds, and some hills to the east. They stand there for moment and just take in the landscape before them. They are here earlier than the time Patience specified to hid the goods and stake out the area.
It's when Zoe clears her throat that Mal knows she has something to say.
"You got something to say Zo' you might as well say it."
"Sir, are you sure that taking them on the job is the best idea? I mean Jayne has a point…and I never thought I would be saying that."
Mal turns and looks at her, sees the concern on her face and can't help but feel a might concerned as well.
"Do you remember how Jayne got on this boat Zoe?" He is answered with a chuckle and a nod.
"Sometimes we get lucky and things work out."
And with that they walk down the ramp with Jayne on the mule lugging the box of stolen goods not far behind.
XXX
River's POV
Her head is swimming with excitement. It has been so long since she has had a proper place to show off her talents and this job promises to be a very 'fun' display. She wishes everyone else could hear the music she is making right now, her beautiful Danse Macabre. She twirls a little as she walks through the hallways.
"What kind of music am I playing today?" Orpheus asks as he looks at her jump to and fro.
"Today it is not his music the girl listens to, but her own. She is playing her fiddle and is calling forth for a dance of death." She practically sings as she stretches into an arabesque.
Riddick merely smirks and watches her twirl.
The dancer and Riddick finally make their way out and meet the warrior woman and the captain just outside the cargo bay. They are studying the coordinates they were given for the meet while the ape man buries the treasure…X marks the spot.
"May she have a look?" She enquires as she approaches the pair.
Mal looks at her with skeptical eyes but she gives him her best innocent smile. "They lead to a small valley to the east about two klicks away." He says as he hands over the map and the coordinates.
"Looks like a nice place for an ambush."
"It is." Riddick says studying the map and then the landscape in front of him.
She hands back the coordinates to Mal and then starts walking towards the meeting location.
"Where do you think you are going?" Mal says with surprise.
"Further calculations are needed before the scheduled meeting in four hours. She would like to do a little reconnaissance. She and the Riddick will be back in one hour, well before any snipers are in position… That is, if it's alright with you Captain." She says ever so sweetly.
He studies her for a moment then relents. "Alright, but make sure you ain't seen. Don't want Patience to think we're setting up a double cross." He says as he retreats back into the cargo bay.
Zoe gives her a discerning eye and the girl knows she does not trust her...but will not go against what the Captain says. She also goes back into the cargo bay.
With that River turns and begins walking towards the small valley, Riddick right on her heels. They pass Jayne coming back on the mule as they go.
"Where do you think you two are goin'?" He says as he looks back at them.
She does not bother to look back. "To bury something in the sand!"
She can hear the ape man's mind trying to decipher her words but he comes up short. Riddick just chuckles as he walks beside her.
XXX
Riddick's POV
After about twenty minutes of walking we are greeted by the sight of a small valley. I can see her mind whirling with activity, studying the scene before her and how she thinks will play out.
"Ground reached through narrow gorges, retreated from by twisting paths…is enclosed."
She smiles. "You know your Sun-tzu." She says with a smile.
"Doesn't everyone?" I ask. She just smiles wider. Damn girl can piss me off to no end, but when she smiles like that at me it makes her a little more tolerable.
XXX
River's POV
"Exploit the enemy's unpreparedness; attack him unawares; take an unexpected route…If we were to plant the flash grenades we purchased on Persephone in front of the advancing enemy, they would be momentarily blinded, giving us a 1.4 minute advantage." She says as she walks closer to the clearing in the center of the small valley.
"Is that enough time to do anything useful though?" Orpheus asks.
"Depends on what we do with it."
She closes her eyes and watches the calculations. It as if everything speeds up and she can see the numbers and figures flood her mind.
"Each grenade has 4.5 grams of magnesium/ ammonium nitrate yielding a 1.5 meter blast radius. If we were to place the grenades half a meter apart we should create the desired dust cloud. The biggest concern is how we rig the grenades to explode in unison." She says as she turns to look at him for suggestions.
"I put money the ape man has some longer fuses we could string together." Riddick says as he bends down to look at the sand.
"Probable, but the likelihood that he would assist the pair with their plan is less than ideal after our earlier encounter."
"Why don't we just tell him? Hell he's getting paid on this job…we aren't."
She pauses to consider his words. "That is true. If we appeal to his desire to receive payment, he could be more cooperative."
XXX
About twenty minutes later both River and Riddick stroll into the cargo bay of Serenity, finding one hired gun preparing the ear pieces for the job. When he hears them walk on board he looks less than pleased.
"Thought you two were going to bury your heads in the sand or something."
"Neither Riddick or the girl possesses the necessary neck length to accomplish such a feet." River says as she approaches where Jayne is sitting and seats herself.
He looks up at the pair then back to his work. "You got something to say, say it fast…I'm workin'."
"You wouldn't happen to have any blasting fuses would you? One's we could remotely detonate?"
Now this gets Jayne's attention and he turns to look at the two. "What do you want with it?" He asks warily.
"Girly here seems to think we need to set up a little distraction for the meet later." Riddick states evenly.
"We plan on stringing flash grenades together but lack the necessary components to manufacture the remote detonation. Hence we ask if you have said components."
"Why should I help you two? Seems to me you two were the ones threaten 'bodily harm' to me earlier."
"The girl apologies for earlier actions, and promises to try and avoid further confrontation. If the man they call Jayne does not wish to assist us that is fine, we are not being paid for our services, we just thought you might like the increased percentage of success said services would bring."
"Huh?" Jayne says in confusion.
"She means you're more likely to get paid if we help."
"Affirmative. 87 percent chance of success versus 17 percent without our assistance."
"Well why didn't you just say that! Hell I got some remote crap you can use." He says as he gets up and walks towards one of the side compartments in the cargo bay.
"Told you he'd help if it means he's more likely to get paid." Riddick says with a chuckle.
XXX
…About three hours later…
River, Riddick, Jayne, Zoe, and Mal all stand around the cargo bay of Serenity, looking over the topographical coordinates while Jayne hands earpieces to the group. He puts his in and proceeds to test it.
"Testing. Testing, Captain, can you hear me?"
Mal just rolls his eyes and deadpans his answer. "I'm standing right here."
"You're coming through good and loud." Jayne says as he adjusts his ear piece.
Now everyone else just shakes their heads at the merc. "'Cause I'm standing right here." Mal says again.
That's when Jayne looks around a little sheepishly. "Yeah, well... but the transmitter's..."
"Anyways." Zoe says. "What do you think Sir?" She looks over at Mal, who is studying the map intently.
"All right. Patience is gonna figure we buried the cargo. Which means means putting us to our ease 'fore there's any action. She'll come at us from the east," he says pointing at the narrowing in the valley. "Talk the location out of us. She'll have the coin to show us first. We get it, give the location, snipers hit us from...there…. and there." He points at two higher locations in the hills that flank the valley.
"You figure they're in place yet?" Riddick asks.
"This close to the meetin' time…Should be. You and Jayne feel like taking a walk around the park?"
That's when Jayne's mouth gets the better of him. "Sure you don't just wanna piss yourself and back down like you did with Badger?" He chuckles.
Mal stares at him 'til he stops. "Walk soft. I want Patience thinking they're still in place. Don't kill anyone if you don't have to. We're here to make a deal."
"Come on funny man, we got some snipers to look for." Riddick says as he moves out the cargo bay.
XXX
River's POV
They take off and Mal looks at them a little worried. "They aren't gonna kill each other out there are they?" He questions the girl.
"Negative. An understanding has been reached. Neither will provoke the other for the time being."
He still looks a little concerned. "That's good...I think." Mal says.
"I still don't think it's a good spot, sir. She still has the advantage over us." Zoe says drawing Mal's attention back to the map.
"Everyone always does." He says turning back to her, smiling. "That's what makes us special."
"Actually, we have tactical advantage now." The girl chimes in, smirking slightly.
"How do you figure that?" The warrior woman asks.
"She doesn't want to give away the surprise; it should be quite a show." She says as she twirls around, a smile plastered to her face.
Mal looks more than a little worried. "Well ain't that just a bit creepifing."
XXX
…Meanwhile…
The last of the duct tape finally gives way and Dobson flexes his fingers to get some of the blood flow back. He goes over to his suitcase and opens it, digs in and grabs his portable cortex and turns it on. The screen flashes to life and he clicks on central mainframe icon.
CONNECT TO CENTRAL CORTEX pops up onto the screen and he hits it in frustration. He waits, and then it flashes INTERFERENCE: UNABLE TO CONNECT.
Furious, he hurls the computer against the wall, smashing it. Reaching into the bottom of his suitcase he pulls out one gun and then another.
XXX
Riddick's POV
I have to say I am truly surprised at the ineptitude of hired help today. I mean you think a sniper would have his ears pricked for trouble. Instead I find the sha gwa with fuckin' earphones in for some portable music player. I mean really, you think they would try and act a little professional. I guess it's just hard to find good help these days.
I relieve the sniper of his weapon. "Riddick, it's Jayne, you read me?"
"Loud and clear. You find your mark?"
"Idiot didn't even hear me comin', had a nice piece of hardware though. Thinkin' it looks like a Candy."
"You name your weapons?" I ask with a chuckle.
"What? They do by right by me, they deserve a name."
"If you say so."
XXX
"Will you both bee-jwa." Mal grunts into his com. "Don't want to give nothin' away."
Mal, Zoe, and River are all standing in the clearing that River and Riddick scoped out earlier, waiting for Patience and her crew to arrive.
They don't have to wait long before they see Patience and her crew of six - as they come through the narrow run off on horseback - all but one, who drives a mule like the one on Serenity.
"Showtime." River says with a smirk.
XXX
River's POV
"Ah!" Patience chuckles. "Mal! How you doin', boy?"
"Walkin' and talkin'."
"Is that Zoe? You still sailin' with this old bum? Who's the little bit you got with ya?"
"Niece of mine, just helpin' out for the time being." Mal says.
"…So…never would have pegged him for the family type…"
"Awful lot of men to haul three crates." Zoe eyes the group skeptically.
"…She's hiding something…"
"Yeah, well, I couldn't be sure my Mal here wouldn't be lookin' for some kinda payback. You understand."
"…And the idiot wouldn't recognize a setup if he saw one…"
"We're just on the job, Patience. Not interested in surprises."
"I really hope the lil' bit was right about not getting shot…"
"She lies." The girl whispers under her breath.
"What was that she said?" Patience asks.
"She said you're nice." Mal says as he glances over at the girl.
"Uh-huh…I don't see my cargo anywhere..."
"And you're not gonna, 'til I'm holding my two thousand in platinum."
She looks a little more cross now. "Oh, come on, Reynolds. I'm supposed to take it on faith you've got the goods?"
Mal pulls out the bar from inside his duster and tosses it to Patience.
"It's pure, Patience. Genuine A-grade foodstuffs. Protein, vitamins, immunization supplements. One of those'll feed a family for a month. Longer, if they don't like their kids too well."
She rips the foil off to reveal those awful energy bars she was force fed at the Academy. The girl cannot help but crinkle her nose as she takes a nibble of it.
"Yeah, that's the stuff." She hands the bar to her the man next to her and pulls a small bag from her pocket, which she tosses to Mal. "So where's the rest?"
XXX
…Meanwhile back at Serenity…
Kaylee is tinkering around the engine room when she hears a noise behind her. She turns around to find Dobson standing there with a gun pointed at her.
"You and I are going for a little walk girly." He says as he moves to grab her arm. "Make so much as a sound, and I promise the next bullet won't miss."
All she can do is look at him with genuine horror.
XXX
River's POV
"Then east half a mile, bottom of the first hill. You'll see where it's been dug." Mal tell Patience.
"I reckon I will."
"…Now turn around like a good boy Mal so I can shoot...again…"
"Well then."
"Yep."
"I'd appreciate it y'all turn around and ride out first." Mal says hopefully.
"Well, you see, there's a kind of hitch."
And that's when the girl decides to raise the curtain and dance. "River wants a big boom," whispers into her comm as she pushes the trigger in her pocket.
"What?" Mal says. He barely has time to look at her before there are a series blasts from the buried grenades and the area is filled with dust.
The girl grabs both the Captain and the warrior woman and hauls them behind some nearby rocks.
"Liu kuoshui de biaozi he houzi de ben erzi! WHAT THE BLOODY HELL WAS THAT" Patience and her men are now firing around wildly and Mal ducks down to avoid any lucky shots.
"The opening act." River says with mirth.
"You and I are going to have a serious talk when this is over." He says as he pulls out his gun.
She just rolls her eyes and un-holsters her own guns. "Yes Captain Daddy."
XXX
Riddick's POV
"That would be our cue Jayne." I say into the com as I find my first target.
"Ain't got to tell me twice." He says as I hear the sound of his sniper rifle through the com.
XXX
Book is walking towards the bridge when he sees Dobson dragging Kaylee at gunpoint towards the cargo bay. He runs up the stairs to the bridge two at a time.
"Dobson just took Kaylee!" He yells as he runs back out in the direction Dobson was taking Kaylee.
Wash is about to as well, but there is a beeping - a proximity warning. He stops, looks at his screen.
"Oh, don't. Don't you dare!"
XXX
Jayne and Riddick managed to pick off three of the men on horseback during the confusion due to their elevated position, which gave them a clear view despite the dust in the air. One of the last on horseback and the man on the mule ride off as fast as they can while Jayne fires after them. He looks up from his scope when the last one makes it around the corner and out of his sights. "Hwin dan!" he yells.
Now it's just Patience and the one other. Zoe takes aim and hits the last man in the stomach and he falls off his horse with a sickening thud.
That just leaves Patience, who has gotten off her horse and has her shotgun propped on the saddle, using her horse for cover.
Mal stands; no longer taking cover.
"Mal, don't you take another step…"
He doesn't listen though and fires at the horse, which rears and then falls half on top of her. He stalks forward, shoves his gun right up in Patience's face.
"Now I did a job. I got nothing but trouble since I did it, not to mention more than a few unkind words as regard to my character so let me make this abundantly clear. I do the job and get paid without any hassle."
He moves his gun from her face. "Go run your little world."
XXX
Riddick's POV
I can already see this is going to go the girls head. But I have to admit, she did plan it very well. I just won't be telling or thinking that around her. I move the scope to look at her as she comes out from behind cover, but what I see wipes any smirk I had right off my face.
The girl looks like she's seen a ghost and is starting to pale.
Shit. And with that I grab the sniper rifle and start running towards her as I hear the pilot come over the com.
"The Reavers followed us!"
I get to River and the other's about the same time Jayne does. Like me, he is slightly out of breath.
"Mal! It's Wash! We got a ship coming in. They followed us. The gorram Reavers followed us!"
"Back to the ship!" He yells as he runs towards the horses left from the dead men.
"What's wrong with her?" Mal asks as I gather River up.
"Hell if I know. You can ask her about it later!" I say as I haul her up onto the saddle of a horse with me.
XXX
…Back at Serenity…
Book runs out onto the upper landing and sees Dobson with Kaylee below, his grip on her loose right now as he looks around him, heading for the closed airlock. He hits the release button and the cargo bay doors start opening.
"Kaylee!" Book yells.
This gets Dobson's attention and he fires towards Book, who takes cover in behind the metal door frame.
"Move and I shoot the girl!" Dobson yells up to him. Book doesn't move.
"What do you think you're doing lawman? She has no part in this!" Book yells down.
"I have a job to do. To uphold the law… that's what we're talking about here. I'm going to trade this girl for the other one. I think the Captain is more than likely to make that trade, seeing as little Kaylee here is a member of his crew."
Wash's voice comes on over the speakers now. "We are air born in one minute!"
XXX
Mal, Zoe, Jayne, and Riddick are riding as fast as they can towards Serenity. Riddick just holds onto River as she sits against him unconscious.
XXX
…Reality Shifts…
She looks around her, nothing but the desolate streets of an unknown city. There is a quietness that is unnatural. And then like a flood of water…it hits her…
…Like a sentence to death
I've got no options left…
"Run-tse duh shang-dee, ching dai-wuhtzo... make them stop!" She screams to herself.
…I've got nothing to show now…
And you can't go now…
They're everywhere. Every building, every... every room; they're all inside her mind!
...I'm down on the ground
I've got seconds to live…
The girl can hear them… all of them….and they're saying... NOTHING! She crumples to the floor, holding her head between her hands and begins rocking back and forth.
…Cause love, like an invisible bullet has shot me down and I'm bleeding - yeah,
I'm bleeding…
"STOP! Please STOP!" She screams at the voices.
…And if you go, furious angels will bring you back to me…
"Wuo-shang mayer, maysheen byen shr-to. Please God, make me a stone."
…Reality Shifts Again…
XXX
The airlock is completely open now and Dobson begins to pull Kaylee outside. Book moves from behind the doorway and begins to run down the stairs.
Dobson fires towards Book who ducks for cover behind some crates. Hearing the gunshot Inara comes out from her shuttle.
"I'm not playing anymore." Dobson yells.
As if on cue, Mal and the others ride up to Serenity at this moment. Mal stops dead in his tracks as he sees the Fed has a gun to Kaylee's head.
"Stop right there Captain!" Dobson yells as he turns to face Mal, who stops and raises his hands.
"Anybody makes so much as a…" But that's all he has time to get out before a throwing knife lands in his right eye. He crumples to the ground and Kaylee jerks out of his grasp and runs towards Inara who is coming down the stairs.
Mal looks behind him to see Jayne and Zoe staring speechless at Riddick, who is not only holding River, but just managed to make a near impossible kill.
"What?" He says as he walks up the ramp. "Told you I would do it for you." He says passing Mal.
Mal looks amazed and horrified. "Ai ya! hwai leh!." He says as he checks to see that Dobson is indeed dead. Satisfied that he is he stands up. "Jayne!"
Jayne jogs up beside Mal and the pick him up like a rag doll.
"Wash we're on!" Zoe says into the comm. She then hits a button near the comm and the cargo bay doors begin to close.
Mal and Jayne proceed to run Dobson across the cargo bay and tossing him off the closing ramp. Jayne and Mal run back in, narrowly missing the closing airlock doors.
XXX
Riddick's POV
I pass the shepherd on the way to the infirmary with River. He looks from me to her and then begins to follow me.
"What happened?" He asks with concern.
"Girl went catatonic out there." I say as I lay her down on the table in the middle of the room. "Happened about the same time Wash said the Reavers followed us."
"You think they caused this?" He asks as he looks through the cabinets for something that might help.
"This shit happened earlier when the Reaver ship passed us. Girl just shut down then too."
He brings over a blanket and proceeds to put it around her. "This can't be good." He says as he looks at her unconscious form.
"No shit Sherlock."
XXX
Mal and Zoe run up to the bridge with Jayne close behind them. Wash is already strapped in and maneuvering away from the Reavers.
"How close are they?" Mal says as he looks at the screens.
"About twenty seconds from spitting distance."
"Well, lose 'em!" Jayne yells a little out of breath.
Mal turns to Zoe. "Give me rear vid."
She turns and punches a few buttons to bring up the feed. They see the ship approaching from behind. "Ai ya, women wanle." She says.
"C'mon, Wash, you dumbass, dodge 'em!" Jayne says from behind the pilot.
"If everybody could just be quiet a moment..." Wash says incredibly calm like. He veers hard.
"I need Kaylee in the engine room please." He says.
"Kaylee get your ass to the engine room now!" Mal screams into the comm. "Jayne! Go help her!" He says turning to the merc who then runs from the room. He turns back to Wash. "How we doing?"
In a rather droll voice Wash responds. "I don't mean to alarm anybody... but I think... we're being followed."
XXX
Riddick's POV
I'm standing next to River when I see Jayne and Kaylee both running towards the engine room. Book turns and looks at River and then out the door.
"I think I can help Kaylee out." He says as he turns and walks out the door past the companion who is entering the infirmary.
"What happened?" She asks me.
"Question of the day." I mutter as I dab the sweat from River's head. "We're all gonna have to ask her when she wakes up."
XXX
Wash's voice booms out over the comm in the engine room. "Kaylee, how we doing?"
"Ready when you are Wash." She says in response. "You thinkin' about an Ivan?"
"Not just yet, but set it up." Is his response.
"Okay, Jayne I need you to pull on this when I give you the word." She says as she points the merc to a large lever.
She turns to Book now. "You know where the press regulator is?"
He looks about, heads to a part of the engine, points at a panel and Kaylee smiles. "Head of the class. Now when I cut the hydraulics I need you to reset the press regulator."
XXX
…Back on the bridge…
Zoe watches the Reaver ship out of a porthole. "They're on us."
Wash grabs the com, "Kaylee you ready?"
"As we'll ever be." She answers back.
"Everybody hold on to something." Wash says. "Here's something you can't do..." he says softly as if talking to the Reavers.
He slams down a lever and there is a squeal as Serenity lurches into a perfect one-eighty, spinning on a dime. He then flips the lever again and Serenity is now flying straight towards the Reaver ship, which it dodges at the last second.
"NOW!" Wash yells into the comm.
XXX
…Reality Shifts…
She's strapped to a metal gurney. The medical overhead light is blinding and she has to squint.
She can't see anyone but she can hear them scurrying around.
…You're a dirty needle
You're in my blood and there's no curing me…
"Subjects One, Two, and Three were exposed to the compound with moderate success before further experimentation killed them… So we will be trying multiple doses on Subject Zero," says the disembodied voice of Dr. Mathais.
…And I want to run
(like the blood from a wound)
To a place you can't see me…
She hears his voice again and squints to try and see around her. "Prep Subject Zero for exposure to the G-23 Paxilon Hydrochlorate." And then she feels hands holding her down even though she is already strapped down.
...You're a cold piece of steel between my ribs and there's no saving me
And I can't get up from this wet crimson bed that you made for me…
She feels a needle being jabbed into her skull, feels the cool liquid being pushed into her brain matter.
…Cause I can't get up
I'm as cold as a stove
I can feel the life fade from me…
And then she feels as if her head is in a vice, as if they are trying to crush her skull. Her vision begins to blur and her entire body seize violently…
…I'm down on the ground
I've got seconds to live
Then what's there that waits for me?...
"…SHES CRASHING!...Prep…"
She can barely register what's being said around her now. She closes her eyes and prays for it to be over.
"…NO!" We are finishing… inject her again…"
And she feels another needle jabbed into her skull and a moment later her body relaxes and she opens her eyes.
…Cause love, like a sentence of death has left me stunned, and I'm reeling - yeah, I'm reeling
And if you go, furious angels will bring you back to me…
"…We did it..."
…Reality Shifts Again…
XXX
Riddick's POV
River begins to violently shake, and it takes a fair amount of strength for me to hold her on the table.
"Find a smoother!" I yell at Inara who is already frantically searching the cabinets for some kind of drug to give River.
"What the hell did they do to her?" She asks in horror as she injects the clear liquid into River's arm.
"I don't know, but I intend to find the fuck out!" I growl as I watch her body slowly start to relax after the smoother hits her bloodstream.
XXX
As Kaylee cuts the hydraulics Book hits the button to reset the system and Jayne pulls on a lever, causing the engine to suddenly turn faster, and it glows a bright orange.
XXX
After a few tense moments of Wash pulling up at the controls with all his might he finally eases off, quietly pleased.
Mal and Zoe are kind of amazed.
"Knew I hired you for somethin'." Mal says as he claps Wash on the back.
There are audible woops of joy from the engine room over the com, and wash moves to cut the link. Zoe leans over the back of Wash's chair, visibly relieved.
Wash turns and looks at Mal. "We should have just enough left in us to hit a fuel station. We'll need to do some patching up. I hope we got paid today."
"We did. Lil' bit proved might useful before she went all wooly."
Zoe exchanges a look with Wash. "Sir? I'd like you to take the helm, please." She then proceeds to pull Wash out of his chair. "I need this man to tear all my clothes off."
Mal says nothing, just smiles and indicates the way out.
"Work, work, work..." He says as he leaves the bridge.
And Mal throws himself down into the pilot's seat. Let's out a breath he's been holding for about two days and starts flying. Jayne enters a few minutes later.
"Well I got to say, she wasn't half bad." He says as he seats himself in the other chair.
"Do my ears deceive me or is that praise I hear comin' from Jayne Cobb?" He says with amusement.
"Only givin' credit where it's due." He says with a shrug. He pauses before he continues with what he has to say. "The lawman said they'd keep looking for her. Something about her brain being all special. Important to the Alliance brass."
"After what I saw today I suppose so."
Neither of them says anything for a good while, until Mal breaks the silence.
"Funny how the lawman got out of his room. You having tied him up so well and all."
"I didn't have nothing to do with that. Anyway it all turned out just fine. Buzzards're the only ones gonna find him..."
"But he did try to make a deal with you, right?" He looks at Jayne, who says nothing.
"How come you didn't turn on me, Jayne?"
Jayne doesn't answer for a good while. "Money wasn't good enough."
Mal turns and looks at him. "What happens when it is?"
Jayne smiles and gets up to leave. "Well... that'll be an interesting day."
Mal turns back to flying. "Imagine it will." He says to himself.
XXX
…Sometime later…
Riddick's POV
I'm standing over a still sleeping River when the Captain comes in some time later.
"How's she doing?" He asks.
"The companion gave her a smoother about two hours ago; I figure she'll sleep for another few hours or so."
He comes up and stands on the other side of the table and looks down at her, studying her.
"Well she sure as hell did give me quite a show." He says as he moves to stand against the counter.
I chuckle and shake my head, in complete agreement with the man. He stands there for a few more minutes before he says anything else.
"If the Alliance is after her as bad as she says, you're probably safer on the move. And we never stop moving."
I don't bother looking up at him, just shake my head a little. Can already hear her saying I told you so in my head.
"What's the cut?" I say. If the man wants to talk business might as well cut to the chase.
"10 percent each to start. You can have your own rooms and…"
"We only need one." I say.
And this is where he decides to get all protective of the girl he wasn't too happy to have on his boat to begin with. "Is that so?"
"She will tell you the same thing when she wakes up if you don't believe me." I grit out.
"I got a rule against shipboard romances."
"Then how come your first mate and pilot are married?"
"Zoe was with me in the war…only time she every challenged my authority was when I said she couldn't marry Wash. She told me to go to hell and said either they got hitched or she left."
I chuckle "Are you always this sentimental?"
He laughs at this and moves to leave the infirmary. "I had a good day…Let me know when she wakes up." And with that he leaves.
XXX
AN: Hope you guys enjoyed the update. Ffeedback is always appreciated…Till next time =)