Godliness and Deviltry... Part 3: ~ SURETY ~

Down through the woods they ran. "So we'll need to go the far way around, I think." River'd said as they'd reentered the woods. Kaylee'd quickly thought over the logistics of it and agreed. At present, they were scrambling down a steep embankment, circumventing a longer, more circuitous path down the hillside that would take them down by a winding river. Following the river a ways, they'd come to the colony town eventually, never allowing their pursuers to shortcut them.

They were going as fast as they safely could and talking any was a waste of breath they couldn't much afford. Talking would have been a comfort though, Kaylee thought. Besides the sounds of the wind, the river, and their footfalls on the ground, there was no sound at all. Aside from that first roar, the Reavers were being silent as the grave apparently. It was eerie, and Kaylee was very glad that she had her next footfall (and making very, very sure she did not trip) to focus on, otherwise she'd sure be forever looking behind them out of fear that the great swelling mob of wretched torturous death that was chasing them would be there just behind, about to swarm um. She consoled herself that that many bodies traveling over land couldn't possibly be silent enough for her not to hear them if they'd been close. There'd been miles and a steep cliff between them too, so their head start had been huge. Of course the Reavers wouldn't catch up to them so easily. Maybe they'd even given up? Yeah. Because that was entirely likely, now weren't it?

It was a rule for Reavers, so the wisdom said, that if you ran from them, they always, always would chase. So, running as they were, neither she nor likely River had any intentions of stopping just yet.

Along the riverbank they ran on a small dirt path, River in the lead. As fortune had it, they came upon a small homestead along the way. Their footsteps petered out on the front lawn though, as they beheld the sight before them.

"Om padmo ushnisha vimale hum phat..." Kaylee spoke under her breath. She'd been expecting to see things like this again, but, well... a sane person really can't expect a thing like this, not in any way that would help um much with coming to terms with it at any rate.

The house was a smoldering wreak, and... in the ashes, splayed between poles... were bodies... Two adults... two children... and... and a dog...

The state of them...

Kaylee looked away, the smell making itself known on the breeze then. She tried to stop the images from settling in her mind, tried mightily not to throw up whatever undigested bits of her last few meals still remained in her stomach as well. One breath in, one breath out, that was the way.

River put a hand on her shoulder and told her softly: "It isn't the things that are done to us that make us who we are. What we see here... It's not who this family were, and it can't take away from them what they were either."

River took her hand a moment, their eyes met, and Kaylee gave her a sad smile, tears falling from her eyes. Kaylee stared blankly into those eyes a moment, seeing tears start to fall from River's eyes too. It helped, those tears. River's sure presence helped too. Kaylee seemed to draw strength from her lover's words and touch. She nodded to River. "Thanks, think I needed that a lot." She admitted softly, wiping her tears away.

"We all do... " River answered solemnly, wiping way her own tears. "But now, we need something else even more. Come?" She asked her, dropping her hand from Kaylee's, turning, and walking off.

Kaylee watched her mutely a moment, stopped herself by force of will from turning her head to see... what she'd seen before again, and resolutely walked off hurriedly to catch up with her wife. My wife, she thought, taking comfort from saying it to herself. By now, she found, she had complete trust in River. Had faith that there was a good reason they weren't keeping to running just now. It was an odd realization, just how deep that faith ran in her. But then, she guessed, in the face of such terrors, mightn't it not make a perfect kind of sense to find your faith where you may?

There was a smaller building off to the side that was a shambles, but not burnt, and they were heading towards it. Belatedly, as they got closer, Kaylee realized what the building was and why River was heading for it. She smiled. There was sadness in her smile still, in her heart, but there was hopefulness too. Seeing what she'd just seen would always stay with her, she knew that it would from having seen such things in the past, but she knew too that she could go on... especially if she weren't alone.

They got to the garage and started assessing things. "Here." River observed, moving a slab of fallen roofing aside to reveal a hoverbike. A nice one too. Fancy even.

"Shiny..." Kaylee spoke, helping River pull it out from under the debris. With some effort, they got it out and upright. "A Lightray 672G..." She spoke. "High end. Never seen one like this up close before." Kaylee admitted with some amount of admiration in her voice for the machine before her. She crouched down on her knees and began a cursory inspection. "Fuel main's punched through right here." She observed, her spirits flagging. Seems like this wouldn't be as easy as she might have hoped.

River sat a fuel can down next to her and Kaylee smiled up at her. "Think of everything, don't you?" She said.

"You can fix it?" River asked.

Kaylee shook her head. "Woe that any wife of mine should ever need to ask such a thing." Kaylee answered.

River giggle a little. "A rhetorical question only. I have complete faith."

"Well then, baobei, you are forgiven." Kaylee said, still feeling the presence of what was behind them, both things that were behind them, but she did what she always did and tried to act like everything was its best self, on the idea that acting that way might just make it so every now and again. Besides, River'd said she had faith in her, and, because Kaylee knew her wife believed it, that River truly did believe in her, it made her feel better for real as well.

Kaylee took her pack off and got out her tool wrap. It was a light-weight enough little bundle that she'd decided to take these few essentials with her on the chance that they might well need them once they got to the colony town. She was blessing herself seven ways 'til starrise for that about now. Finding her heat welder/cutter, she rummaged about for a piece of metal that looked likely and set about patching.

River sat on the ground next to her, legs extended out together before her, arms resting lightly on her knees as she gazed out the way they'd come.

"How long you think we have yet?" Kaylee asked softly as she worked.

"We have time enough... if only just." River offered. "Sometimes they travel most swiftly those who know best when to be still."

Kaylee laughed a little. "Another quote?" She asked distractedly.

"...Could be." River answered pensively. "I'm not always sure about these things anymore, unfortunately." She sounded much older saying that than someone who looked as completely youthful and pretty as she did had a right to, in Kaylee's opinion. But, then again... all the things she'd gone through in her life, she had a right to sounding old if anyone did.

"Well, it's a wise thing, whoever did say it first. Here's hoping that wisdom sees fit to give us blessings today." Kaylee muttered as she finished. She got up and opened the engine compartment, looking around a little, then traced over the rest of the machine visually. It looked banged up some, but she couldn't find anything else mechanically wrong with it. River had gotten up and was confidently putting the slightly sour smelling silver liquid fuel into the bike.

"It looks right enough. Wish I had an hour to make sure though." Kaylee remarked, getting to her feet as River set the bike to hovering and turned it towards the road ahead of them.

"I always thought collecting wishes might be a worthwhile hobby." River offered.

"For a suicidal person, maybe." Kaylee half muttered to herself, thinking how very dumb it had been to say what she had about wanting to stay here another hour.

River kissed her cheek. "Stuff and nonsense. I'm a perfectly safe hoverbike driver, I'll have you know."

"Huh?" Kaylee asked as she sat down on the bike and wrapped her arms around River from behind, only to feel the jerk of sudden acceleration the next moment. It was a near thing that she didn't fall off, she considered.

They practically flew down the riverside trail, skimming out onto the water and kicking up a spray at times, Kaylee thought, perhaps as much for River's sake of whimsy and adventure than for any real necessity... Not that she really minded.

Suicidal. Perfectly safe hoverbike driver. Kaylee made the obscured connection in what River's said in her head and she closed her eyes and they raced down a rocky hill into the outskirts of the colony town. Because any logical person would say that they both had a death with doing what they were doing right now.

Still, through it all, she had the faith to hold on and not to scream. Not that the not screaming part of that was always so easy, mind.

She blinked her eyes open again when she could manage to, her heart still going pitter-pat, pitter-pat like a drummer on a sugar high. They were cruising more sedately now through the streets of the town, and Kaylee looked around a little before sighing and resting back against her wife, deciding it really was best not to look...

They pulled up to a building soon and River idled the bike a moment, then turned it off as it settled gently to the ground under them. "You sure know how to make a woman's heart speed up when you want to, I will say that."

River laughed and grinned broadly in joy as she took Kaylee's hand and helped her to her feet. "All delights there are that are mine to give, they are laid bare before you that I might hope to quench your every desire." She spoke in a pretty, warm, lyrical sort of way, coming around behind her and touching her hair, caressing her hip. "Don't you think that's a nice thing to say to someone you're in love with?" She asked in a whisper into her ear as Kaylee involuntarily leaned back into her and let River wrap her arms around her and hold her close.

"Mmm, yeah... A very nice thing." Kaylee agreed, her skin heating in a flush of desire, her heart all the sudden racing for a different, much more enjoyable reason. She could feel River's heat too, feel the beat of her heart against her back. It had them both feeling a little wild, apparently. Not that that was a bad thing at all. Very much it was not.

River kissed her neck and jawline. "Then that works out, because I love you with every breath I take, Kaywinnet Lee... Every one, ever." She declared in a soft, sensual voice, holding her close and leaning her head against hers.

Kaylee took a moment to just enjoy the heat of her, her scent, and the echoes of her voice. Stars above, did she ever love listening to River talk... "Where are we, anyway?" She asked, the very practical question only now having occurred to her, so buzzed on adrenaline, sweet words, and kisses had she been up 'til this point.

"The colony's weather control center." River explained. "It's time you were godlike... I might even start calling you the great and powerful Oz. I could be Dorothy."

Kaylee laughed. That was a story she knew. And it was appropriate enough, wasn't it? Her being a fam girl blown off course so? "A godlike wizard am I now? I take it that means I'm to be about making repairs? Is there another of those storms coming?" She asked worriedly, looking up at the partly cloudy sky. River had a sense for such things, such things and other such things as well, and Kaylee wasn't about to lose her faith now. They'd talked about Kaylee's worries about the climate control system on their walk through the woods before arriving, and River had agreed that it would need looking at soon. They hadn't, however, made plans to check into it before going to Inara's aide. That River had brought them here first now had Kaylee worried.

River smiled though. "I'm very much counting on it."

"...Well, alright then. No percentage in hanging about, then, is there?" Kaylee remarked. River kissed her neck and Kaylee sighed. "That was a very eloquent argument for hanging about, I have to admit." She admitted.

River giggled, letting her go with apparent reluctance and coming around in front of her, holding out her hand in invitation. Kaylee took the offered hand. She'd come to very much like the handholding part of her relationship with River, and she had a feeling River liked it at least as much too. "Tragedies in the darkness. You might not want to see." River spoke a quiet warning.

Kaylee nodded and swallowed, sticking close to River as they went inside the darkened building. Automatic lighting came on around them sporadically. There was a high-pitched electronic buzzing faint in the air, and a now all-to-familiar scent of decay. Kaylee kept close to her wife and didn't take any unnecessary glances about, more than willing to take River's word that it wouldn't be a particularly good idea.

She couldn't help catching a glimpse of a man on the steps as they climbed up to the second story though. He'd... clearly been badly raped and tortured... "Hei'an de emo he diyu shouhu zhe..." She muttered under her breath, only just managing to keep her stomach from rebelling through a stubborn act of will.

The second floor, thankfully, brought relatively fresh air, as there'd been a hole blown in the side of the building, likely a glancing impact from artillery fire from one of the Reavers' ships. The colony town itself had been protected by artillery of its own. It hadn't been enough to save them, obviously. In the end, it had just made more of a mess of the town... as well as killing off some of the Reavers who'd attacked... which weren't a bad thing, come to think.

Kaylee and River looked out over the city through the hole a moment, then, quietly, River lead her away and towards the center of the building. Thankfully, the building's core seemed largely undamaged.

They soon entered the main control hub and Kaylee took a look around. There was a man and a woman here, both dead by their own hand and unmolested by Reavers after their deaths. Kaylee was relieved, though it was a sorrowful relief. Wasn't at all uncommon a thing, for a smart soul to take their own life before a Reaver had the chance to. She might wonder why the Reavers had let their bodies be when that wasn't usually their way, but then no sensible person wondered why Reavers did or didn't do things unless they had to, and, right now? She didn't. Kaylee looked around more. "Well, I'll get to work then, I'd suppose...?" She looked to River.

River nodded. "I will too." She replied.

Kaylee cocked her head to the side in consideration a moment, but then nodded and turned to go inspect things. She wasn't really in the mood for talking or discussing things at the moment. River would speak up if she needed anything from her.

Across the room, she found the monitoring and programming systems intact and set about running diagnostic sequences from the central console. In most cases, she could count on diagnostic sequences like these to give her good feedback to work from. She'd never encountered a weather control system in person like this, but, then, she'd never encountered a lot of things of which she'd been able to figure out the ways of soon enough. She had no reason to think that, with ingenuity and an open heart, this system would be any different.

As the diagnostics ran, Kaylee turned back to the room, leaned against the console, and did an overall assessment. She saw River sitting at one of the secondary control stations. Her clever wife was up to something. She absently wondered what it was as she took a few moments to just let herself enjoy looking at her, at the very endearing way she was so wrapped up in what she was doing... Kaylee licked her lips and wished she had the freedom to just go over to her, climb up on that chair with her, and have her way with her a few times. There were Reavers on the way and dead bodies in the room though, so that wasn't a possibility. Still, she craved it. Craved the way it would take all life's troubles away and give her bliss again... River looked over to her then and smiled, and it was like a sunbreak on a cloudy day...

Kaylee felt her heartbeat pick up again, along with her sex drive, but had to look away after a moment when one of her diagnostics reports chimed to let her know it was done running. Kaylee looked back to River and River smiled a little crookedly. Kaylee actually blushed some as she turned to look at the results she had so far. Focus, woman. You need to focus, she told herself, unable to help the little smile from her lips. River was so great... as a friend, as a wife, and as a lover. She fleetingly wished that she'd let herself see that truth past her worries and fears of her when they'd first met. It was just plain tragic how much she'd cheated herself out of that way...

The report she'd got showed her two things, primarily. That the monitoring system was fully functional, and that the automated control systems were... less than fully functional. With a sort of giddy anticipation, Kaylee tapped a control and saw the a giant holographic representation of the planet's surface appear before her. "Pretty..." She spoke in wonder.

She brought her hand to the touch control and rotated the planet, zooming in and out a few times, testing, until she felt she'd gotten a handle on it. Next, she switched to real-time surveillance of the satellites. Each satellite could bring up high-res images of neighboring satellites. Each satellite also had automated maintenance drones that she could set to do more detailed renderings in a full three-hundred sixty degrees, but it would take time to mobilize them and get their transmissions rendered to her. For what she was doing now, the limited angles she had were enough.

She scrolled through the satellites, one after another. The third one in the line showed some superficial damage to its shielding, but it's drones were repairing it and estimated repairs would be completed in two more days' time. In the meanwhile, it was still going about performing it's assigned function without issue. The fifth one in the line was just so much debris, which was a problem. Ideally, the satellite web would either reposition and automatically compensate, giving priority to hotspots and populated areas, or, failing that, they would either focus on mitigating the worst weather systems, or they would discontinue their functions altogether to avoid making matters worse.

The system was doing none of those things, because, while it had registered that there was a problem, the centralized automated control wasn't functional and couldn't coordinate them properly. Hence the no longer dependable weather. "But why aren't you functioning though?" Kaylee muttered softy to herself as she scanned through the diagnostic reports' details. As she read, two more reports came through and she switched to skimming through those.

Piece by piece, the picture was becoming clear and things were clicking into place, her mind forming a wide-ranging view of how the weather control system worked, where it wasn't working, and what she might try doing to remedy things.

Chinese translations:

"Om padmo ushnisha vimale hum phat..." = (a Buddhist mantra of protection against death, evil spirits, etc...)

"baobei" = "sweetheart"

"Hei'an de emo he diyu shouhu zhe..." = "Demons of the dark and keepers of hell..."

(please note: I'm only getting my Chinese from Google Translate, so I can't guarantee it's accurate at all)

to be continued

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