88) And I Need You Like A Heart Needs A Beat
Aesir felt a little strange after Hera. No riots for one thing. Cities that at least looked like they were semi clean and organized. Riddick guessed someone had decided people living on top of each other with no relief was a bad idea. Or else Aesir had enough areas without fertile ground that large cities centered around manufacturing (or weaving or whatever you called it) cloth and distilling dye were a lot easier to build. From what River said most of the cities were on the coasts of the different continents. Kinda strange looking, in some spots the buildings were half on land and half on stilts like they'd been built on top of a dock. And the ports were a combination of berths for sea going vessels and spaceships.
Landing was just plain weird. The docks were just that. Actual docks. Over water. He'd never seen anything like it, but the use of space was pretty smart. Spacedocks on an upper level and ship/water docks on the lower level. When you looked at everything from the shoreline the docks resembled a series of platforms connected with stairs, lifts and bridges with water gleaming beneath them against a more traditional set of ship docks. And everything was made of plascrete. That stuff would hold up to hurricane force winds, flex just enough that nothing would break but not so much that a ship couldn't set down on the platforms.
"Be a tā mā de helluva fall," Jayne commented uneasily as they all trooped off the boat. He was looking at the wide expanse of nothing past the railings of the docking platform with a disturbed expression.
"I think that's why they've got the railings Jayne," Mal had his arm around Carolyn who looked a damn sight more relaxed than she had been a few days ago. Riddick guessed that River had gotten Carolyn to spill her guts finally. Or she'd just kept asking questions until she could Read whatever the problem was in Carolyn's head.
"I ain't easy with this," Jayne shook his head. "Why can't we park the boat in a field somewheres?"
"Ain't legal," Zoë informed him, Emma in a basket over her arm, a sunshade blocking most of the baby from view. "Kinda like Hera in that respect. You dock at the ports, or you don't dock at all."
"I'm sure it's perfectly safe," Simon had his arm around Kaylee's waist. "They have warning signs posted and if there were too many accidents, they'd have guards or higher rails."
Riddick noticed that for all his seeming confidence the Doc kept away from the railings too. River grinned at up him, "A marvel of engineering. Well thought out and executed." Riddick nodded his agreement though another potential problem had struck him.
"So where's this training house we're headed for," He asked quietly. "City looks...civilized. I need to be concerned about cameras?"
"Looks are most assuredly deceiving," His sweetheart assured him. "No concerns unless we run into mercs."
Yeah, let's hope Mal's luck wasn't rubbing off on him to the point of that kind of catastrophe happening.
Turned out that from the docks all sorts of public transit ran all over the city. In an effort to keep their citizens from polluting the air and upsetting the balance of the ecosystem the government had decided it was better to have very good public transportation available. And every single vehicle was solar powered. Even the trunks that carried goods from the farms to the factories were solar.
"Illegal to own any vehicle that is not solar powered," River shrugged. "Only exceptions are boats."
"And those are strictly regulated," Simon added as they boarded a train. "The water of the oceans is part of the planet's ecosystem after all. Any factory caught dumping waste in the water or trying to bury it somewhere on land is fined so heavily that they're almost immediately out of business."
"Waste," Carolyn frowned. "Like what?"
"In order to adhere dye to cloth or thread, it requires a chemical reaction or in the case of water-based dyes, a fixative so it doesn't bleed when it's washed again," River had obviously been reading up on Aesir's industries. "Chemicals are not always environmentally safe."
"And they can't reuse the stuff or the quality goes down," Zoë nodded thoughtfully.
"Getting rid of the stuff must be a pain," Jack commented.
"Aesir's magistrate has actually devoted a considerable amount of time and resources in an effort to deal with the problem," Simon sounded approving. "It's been a while since I read anything about it but hopefully, they've developed something that neutralizes the chemicals or utilizes them as they are."
"So what do they do with the stuff," Jayne wondered.
"It gets shipped off world," Simon shrugged. "Other planets actually need some of the chemicals to enrich the soil. Or neutralize something else."
Jayne didn't seem to see the problem, but Carolyn did, "It costs money to contain and ship all of the waste." She told the scruffy gunhand. "If they can figure out a way to use it or neutralize it on planet, they don't have to pay that shipping. Maybe they don't even need to contain it."
"Huh," Jayne shook his head. "Always some catch ain't there."
"Usually," Jack agreed with him.
Riddick scrutinized those two for a moment. They'd begun hanging out together a bit more, Jayne showing Jack the finer points of building muscle, critiquing her fighting, that sort of thing. He hadn't really understood what Jayne got out of it until he overheard Jack reading something to him. Jack might be young, and skinny, but she was smart, smarter than Jayne for certain. Apparently the gunhand couldn't read too well or write anything besides numbers all that much. He and Jack would take turns using the weights, she'd read to him while he worked out and then he'd try to do the same, with her encouraging him.
Riddick wouldn't have thought the older man would have much patience for a kid like Jack, but Jayne seemed to enjoy spending time with her. It probably helped that Jack didn't talk like Simon or River. Made Jayne feel less like he was the dumb one. Which, Riddick had to admit, Jayne kinda was. The man had very specific areas of knowledge, tracking, shooting, fighting and money. Anything out of those realms and he was pretty much humped. Sure, general stuff like cooking or laundry he could handle but the magazines he bought were about guns and ammo or girls. And very few of them had articles. Though Riddick had heard Jack reading a gun magazine to the man, specs and development stuff. Cobb could comment pretty intelligently on anything within his purview. And he did have a way of looking at a problem and summing it up very simply. Or asking questions that made everyone else think, possibly in part because they'd have to explain their answers.
It was good for Jack too though. Jayne didn't mind teaching her how to track when they were dirtside and somewhere the lessons were applicable. The man was also a decent hunter and happy to add that to Jack's lessons as well. Riddick had noticed how happy his little sister was when Jayne thanked her for the help with his letters or reading or complimented her on something she'd done. She got all bright and pleased when Mal did the same. Riddick had been confining himself to brusque but genuine praise in the hopes of making sure Jack knew he wasn't (still) pissed at her, but he wasn't going to encourage (or even tolerate) anymore hero worship either.
River leaned against him with a quiet sigh, and he tuned back into the conversation around him. Tián mì de xié 'è cào, Kaylee was talking about dresses again. He'd hoped she'd exhausted that topic of conversation on the way to Aesir. But apparently not. Jack, on the other side of Carolyn and Mal, and leaning against Jayne's arm for added balance rolled her eyes when she saw Riddick watching and River giggled softly.
"I figure Inara'll know some good places for you to look for a weddin' dress," Mal did his best to cut Kaylee off without upsetting her. "An' Simon ain't s'posed to know anything about it either if I recall."
"He just cain't see the dress or me before the ceremony," Kaylee laughed. "He can hear all about it."
"Oh, I see," Mal made a slight oofing sound and Riddick guessed that Carolyn's elbow had met the Captain's ribs in an effort to improve his attitude about wedding dresses. Carolyn was giving a pretty good imitation of paying attention to Kaylee, as was Zoë, though Simon's eyes seemed a little glazed over.
Riddick guessed that Simon adored Kaylee but clothing, apart from being clean, appropriate and presentable, didn't much matter to him. Carolyn though, she and Kaylee had gone on some real 'take no prisoners' shopping expeditions. The first time they'd pulled Jack and River along with them and Riddick's little sister had come back to the ship looking more than a little wild eyed and definitely discombobulated. River had seemed resigned and tired, but Carolyn and Kaylee had definitely bonded over 'pretties' as Kaylee called them. He figured that last shopping trip, River and Jack had found that common ground they'd needed, neither one of them liked ruffles or fluff.
"You figure to go out with them," Riddick murmured to River curiously.
"Bring Jack along, temper Kaylee's enthusiasm, and bring her back if everything becomes too much," River nodded. "Jack outgrows some of her clothing. Would like to find her supplies to make new. If a sewing machine and dressmakers dummy can be found cheaply, would like to attempt making clothes for herself and Jack and Emma. For him too." She looked up at him with a smile, "Tailored to his shoulders and waist, more comfortable to wear."
"I'll drop a word in Mal's ear about it," Riddick smiled. It was such a simple thing. Useful and kind too. River never really asked for things for herself, just for herself. If she wanted something she would either figure out a way to get it or a way to do without it if the getting of it wasn't practical. She deserved to have nice things. To have something she wanted without having to justify it to everyone else.
"Have most everything I want," River murmured for his ears alone. That beautiful smile curved her lips as she looked up at him. "You most of all."
Riddick found himself constantly amazed by those simple statements. She'd drop them into conversation as if they were solid facts and nothing astonishing. The convicted murderer, the escaped convict who killed without remorse, and she valued him above everything else. He must have been thinking especially loud because River smiled up at him again, "Of course this is how she feels." She shrugged slightly as if this was just another statement of fact. "Love him. In love with him."
They were on a train. A train hurling itself down the track at breakneck speeds to a Companion's Training House without any more stops. Add to that it was still fairly crowded as the district where the Training House resided was a popular one. He could not simply pick her up and start kissing her like she'd just said something that changed his entire life. Even if she had. Deep breaths moron, he forced the air into his lungs and bent down to kiss her, gentle, not like he was going to fuck her right here. "In love with you too," He admitted in his softest voice just before he pressed his lips to hers tenderly. "Love you," He held her closer as he forced himself to stop kissing her.
Oh, he'd say it every day, every hour on the hour if it meant that bright near blinding look of joy on her face. Should've told her before this. When he could do it in a way that was halfway romantic at least.
"Don't need a romantic setting," River's hand settled over his heart, patting his chest affectionately. "Just need him. And truth."
Truth. Well, that was the one thing he could give her that was constant. He never had figured out how to tell a complete lie really. Slight exaggerations…yeah. Leaving things out of a story to lead someone to the wrong conclusion, oh he was real good at that. But an outright lie? It had to be for a damn good reason, and he had to keep it simple. Maybe that was one more symptom of whatever festering disease that Bitch had left inside him. The way she'd lied and misled and manipulated him and everyone around her. He'd learned. And he was good at manipulation.
But he hated, Hated, HATED lies.
Carolyn seemed to figure that out early on. He wouldn't lie but he'd avoid a question or just ignore one, if he couldn't find a way to shade the truth into something useful. She'd spun most of the stories they'd had to tell when they first came on Serenity. He'd supported her, added facts where appropriate, and trusted her and Jack to keep anyone from stumbling across the truth of what had happened.
River's sweet smile curved her lips again and she nodded, "He is honorable. In his way."
That was a new one. But he wasn't stupid enough to contradict her.
Author's Note: So probably the least romantic declaration ever…but the one thing that these two have in common is wanting the truth, no matter how ugly or uncomfortable. It just happened that this is a pretty truth.
Chinese Translations:
tā mā de (damn it! / fucking) (taboo curse)
Tián mì de xié 'è cào (sweet unholy fuck)
