14) I Came Out Of The Woods By Choice
He'd known when River started talkin' 'bout things not goin' so smooth that there'd be trouble. And he'd been damned tempted to take Rick up on his offer. The very large, very intimidatin' man would be a touch more reassuring than River. People might be more inclined to take him seriously.
River slanted him an irritated look, but her fingers kept moving on the portable cortex, "Just get the coin Cap'n. I've got them stalled at the door."
"Any idea who it is," Zoë asked as she helped him put the cash in a satchel.
"Someone with three others, in contact with a ship of their own…" River was frowning as she worked but that didn't mean much. She often frowned when confronted with odd information. "Chinese characters tattooed on his face?"
"Ott," Mal muttered as he put the last of the coin into the satchel. "I am gorram tired of him interfering in our business. He's known for getting his way."
"So'm I," River smirked over her keyboard and set up something that looked like an antenna behind one of the brightly glowing wall sconces in the vault. "Jammed his signal. Nothing in or out. Not from the bank or him."
Zoë had a paler than usual look to her as she stood up straight. "I think that's all of it sir."
"Problem is if they're at the front door," Mal shook his head.
"And the back door," River interrupted. "Also stymied."
"How do we get out," Zoë had figured out his cause of concern.
"Sewers," River informed them succinctly. "Grab that, and that," She pointed out two more bags and Mal grabbed them obligingly. "And empty those two safe deposit boxes." The boxes were more like wall lockers but emptying them didn't take long.
Normally he'd quibble a bit about being given orders when he was the Captain, but when River talked in that tone it wasn't wise to argue. In fact, the last time he had, he'd ended up with a bullet in his shoulder for his trouble, and not from River neither. "All right," He grabbed one of the cash sacks the bank kept in the vault and began to fill them with the contents of the cabinets. "Whyfore are we takin' these?"
"Confuses and befuddles," Her tone had gone absentminded. "Down the hall and to the left," She motioned for them to begin leaving.
"And you're comin' along right," Mal paused in the doorway.
"Yes, just rigging the trap," River nodded as she worked.
Well, the girl knew what she was about and no mistake. At least whatever he was carrying along with the cash they'd come to actually take wasn't super heavy. Down the hall and to the left was a janitor's closet with a hatch in the floor.
"Oh, this is gonna be noisome and repulsive," Mal groaned as he got a whiff of the stench. He clicked his earwig, "River, you are right behind us, aren't you?"
"Yes Captain," Her voice chimed in his ear. "Leave the bags I told you to grab from the floor there and go down the ladder to the sewers."
"How're we gettin' out of the sewers little one?" Zoë had a lot of good questions today.
"You'll go down the ladder and face to the right. Start walking," She replied, still with that tone that meant she was thinkin' on harder things than the answers. "Need to walk past five ladders like the one you came down. The sixth ladder you can go up."
"And where will you be?" Mal tied the sack to his belt firmly as Zoë made sure the satchel of cash was secure.
"Rigging the alarm to ring once they are in the vault," River was smiling now, he could hear it. "Breaking the elevator and locking the stairs."
"Why'd we have to go out the sewers if we could use the stairs," Zoë wanted to know.
"Hostile natives," The succinct reply said more than enough. "She will meet you in the alley at the sixth ladder."
"Six includin' the one we came down," Mal verified.
"No," Now she sounded a little irritated. "Came down one ladder, zero. Go Past five more. Ladder six is the exfil point. Go now."
Mal sighed gustily but helped Zoë get a start down the ladder, "I take it we're pulling the hatch shut on top of us?"
"We are," River informed him crisply. "Make haste. Or all effort will be wasted."
"We'll do this at a run," Zoë assured her as she stood in muck.
"Wise decision," Now she got all sardonic. "Move now please."
When they emerged from the sewer in an alley that didn't smell much better, River was there with a hose for their boots.
"How'd you get here," Mal asked as he took the hose and applied water liberally to his footwear before handing it to Zoë so she could do the same.
"Went out through the roof, crossed town and climbed down the drainpipe," River pointed at the side of a building.
"Any reason we couldn't have done that," Mal wanted to know.
"Larger than she is," River shrugged. "Would have fallen to his death. Splat." She tilted her head, "Thought you'd like to avoid such a fate. Ignominious."
"Yeah, you're not wrong on that," Mal looked at his right hand. Zoë seemed even paler than she had in the vault. "Our ride far?"
"Around the corner," River keyed something into the cortex and smiled when the faint strains of an alarm began to ring. "Ott has set off the trap." She took the bag of safe deposit box things from Mal and came up with a doodad of white something. It took a hard stomp of her boot to the knickknack, but the thing shattered into dust and shards.
"Now we go," She led them to the shuttle (when had the shuttle gotten here and where was the mule?) and before the door shut, climbed out with something else in her hands and spilled it in the alleyway entrance. Oil. Like a leaking mule might leave behind. Something Kaylee kept in the mule and the spare shuttle just in case. "Get us out of here," River ordered as she climbed in and slammed the door shut behind her.
"Getting," Mal nodded. "We tryin' to avoid attention or we don't care?"
"We are going to the general store," River told him. "Land behind it. I will go in, use some of the money from the boxes to buy food. You stay here, take off when I come back."
"Because no one will think bank robbers would stop for groceries," Zoë sounded admiring.
"Point me in the right direction," Mal began to increase their altitude and was rewarded with River pointing out an empty lot across from a pretty white church.
"Set down there," She told him and retrieved some of Kaylee's grocery totes from the compartment under the passenger bench. The little bag of coin she retrieved from Mal's sacks was enough to get them food for at least a week or so.
"Take care little one," Zoë cautioned her and was given a sweet smile in return.
Not two minutes after she'd left the shuttle they heard River's voice through their earwigs, "Wǔ' ān." She called to someone, likely the clerk.
The one-sided conversation they heard consisted of comments on the noise of the alarm, the stupidity of robbing a bank in broad daylight, her hopes that the robbers were caught promptly and questions about the food in stock. River dropped hints that her Captain wanted to leave quickly and thus she needed to get the best she could while she could. Within ten minutes she was thanking the clerk and wishing him well as she left.
A few minutes later River climbed into the shuttle and nodded to them. "Can go straight home. Told him the shuttle was here, won't be surprised to see it leaving quickly."
"All right, we're on our way," Mal got the shuttle off the ground as fast as he could and hightailed it to Serenity.
"What about the mule," Zoë asked quietly as they flew.
"Sent it back to Serenity remotely," River shrugged. "The same way I got the shuttle to come to us. Can't do it all the time, definitely not on Beaumonde or Persephone but Constance is open enough that it's possible."
Odd to see the mule drive itself into Serenity without any passengers. But since he heard the spare shuttle disengage and take off Riddick was willing to bet River was working some magic with the cortex. He hadn't seen all of what she could do but he'd seen enough to know it likely wasn't Mal or Zoë.
"Was that the shuttle I heard leave," Inara had come out of hers to stand on the catwalk in curiosity.
"Yep," Riddick nodded. "Guess there was a slight change in plans," He shrugged. "Means I can close up the cargo bay at least."
"True enough," Inara came down the stairs. "How is Jack adjusting?"
"Still some nervy," Riddick admitted as he began to hook up the lift chains to the mule. "But she's gettin' there."
"She doesn't seem to like the lessons in self-defense," The Companion observed.
"Don't think she sees the point much," He shrugged. "She'll figure it out or she won't but she's gettin' the lessons whether she likes 'em or not. She needs to be taught but it's better she learns from someone her own size. I can't teach her, I learned by doing. Don't know any other way and she's so small I could kill her by accident. Plus, my kind of fighting won't work for her. Wrong kinetics."
"You worry about her," Inara smiled.
He'd heard Jack's step on the catwalks near the aft area of the mid deck, knew she was listening. "Well, ain't ever had a baby sister before. I'm a little concerned she'll be more screwed up hanging around bad men like me. Had the thought to leave, but Caro talked me out of it." Might as well reinforce the notion of her being a child to him when he could.
"Mal won't let anything happen to her, no more than he would River," The elegant woman nodded.
"Seems to me like River knows how to take care of herself," Riddick chuckled. "Good to know we can use the cargo bay for practice though. Hard enough to practice by myself without bein' stuck in a little room to do it."
"Oh yes," The Companion nodded. "Without stimulation skills tend to atrophy, like disused muscle."
"That's what I've found," He agreed. "Things goin' all right with you?" Might as well ask, she'd been nice enough to ask after Jack. And it also wouldn't hurt to have Jack see him flirting with someone else.
"Well enough, though I am becoming more concerned about my own skills atrophying," She smiled slightly.
"You ever wanna practice," He ran his eyes over her, insolent and appreciative and not at all ashamed of it. "All you gotta do is say the word."
"I don't service the crew," Inara smiled more widely.
"Oh, not even tea?" He smirked evilly and she nearly grinned. "I figured actin' as hostess for tea ceremony'd be somethin' you don't get to do much."
She laughed lightly, sweet in the air, "That is something to consider Rick." Her amusement was genuine enough, as was her appreciation of the muscles bulging in his arms as he pushed the mule into place.
"An' if you ever take your leave of Serenity, you know I'd be happy to…" He ran his eyes over her again. "Practice anything else on me that you'd like." He'd deal with whether or not he'd completely enjoy himself if the situation ever occurred, something that was highly unlikely.
"Not shy are you," Inara didn't quite giggle, but she did practically grin.
"You're a beautiful woman Inara," He got the mule in place under it's normal hanging spot and got the winch started up to lift the vehicle in the air. "Gotta admit, I'm curious as to how well I'd do, genuinely 'rousing a Companion."
"Oh," She tilted her head, curious now. "How do you mean?"
"I mean part of your job is to appear interested, act interested, like you're enjoying your client's company, even if they're not doing much for you," He shrugged as the mule rose. "I figure you're taught how to fake an orgasm right along with how to serve tea."
"Well, you wouldn't be wrong," She admitted. "In fact, a bit more emphasis is placed on a well faked fall than tea."
"So, I guess I've got some curiosity about whether or not I could actually get you interested," He smiled. They'd played this game, the two of them, since he'd first come on the boat, flirting and chit chat, passing the time. He had a very good idea of what got Inara genuinely excited. And he knew she enjoyed irritating Mal. If he had to admit the truth (which he generally preferred to keep to himself) irritating Mal had become a slightly enjoyable pastime of his own. Fun to see what would put the man's back up. Or not. So long as the Captain didn't become genuinely (and dangerously) aggravated to the point of throwing him off the boat. Sooner or later Mal would figure out Riddick enjoyed playing cat and mouse and he'd stop rising to the bait.
"I suppose I can admit to that same curiosity," Inara smiled. "Even if all this flirting is simply… conversation for you."
"Doesn't mean it ain't fun," Riddick grinned at her before looking up. "There's the shuttle. Guess they got the job done all right."
"There'd be a great deal more panic and Mal howling through the comms if not," She agreed.
"I'd best get up to the bridge, make sure Caro's good to go on the lift off," He gave her one more grin before he took the stairs three at a time and left her staring after him, lust blooming tantalizingly in her scent as she watched.
Carolyn didn't jump quite as high in her seat as Riddick came back onto the bridge. But he also didn't stop and speak while directly behind her, proceeding to the co-pilot's chair and giving her the nod.
"Shuttle two is docked," She murmured and flipped open the comms. "All hands prepare for immediate departure. We are leavin' the world."
She suited action to words, engaging the thrusters and lifting the ship off the ground, simultaneously retracting the landing gear. Now came the hard part, battling the atmosphere as they aimed for the Black. Flick the switches for a higher gear, offset the burn through with the extra flow and brace, keeping her arms hard on the wheel and holding her position so the angle of their exit didn't change. Too steep and they'd crumble. Too shallow and they'd ricochet back to the planet's surface in several (or more) pieces.
Vividly conscious of Riddick in the chair beside her, just in case she needed the help, those big hands resting on the wheel in front of him, deceptively relaxed.
And they were through, past the clouds, lower and upper atmosphere and into the sweet safe silence of the Black. "Āi yā," She sighed as she began to key in a preliminary course to take them out of orbit. "Yóu zhān de tián mì mǔ qīn, I need to work on my upper arm strength."
"Seemed to do pretty well considering," Mal's voice sounded behind her, and she startled.
"Tā mā de niǎo, don't do that," She cursed as her heart beat a mile a minute. Riddick's evil chuckle did nothing to soothe her nerves. "Bad enough he does it," She nodded at the huge man in the co-pilot's chair. "Don't you start too."
Riddick smirked at her, "Work on your situational awareness and you won't get taken by surprise."
Carolyn slanted a warning glance at him, "You were talking about teasing earlier…how'd you like the tables turned Rick?" He smirked but at least he didn't say anything else about it.
"So did we get paid," He asked Mal, his smirk widening to a grin.
"That we did," The Captain smiled. "That we did."
"Any problems might follow us," Riddick inquired, his tone deceptively mild. Carolyn knew better. The less interested he sounded the more cautious Riddick became.
"Thanks to River, no, not a one ever saw our faces," Mal relaxed into the navigator's chair. "Zoë's splittin' it up."
"Where're we headed next," Carolyn chose to address another issue. "Can't float aimlessly, fuel's getting more expensive, not less."
"Set a course for Kowlonshi," Mal told her. "That's where we picked up Kaylee, we got work out that way and she's wantin' to introduce Simon to her folks."
"They're that serious," It was more a question to keep the conversation moving than anything else. Keying in the course and running it through the cortex took most of her attention.
"I haven't ever known the Doc to be anything but," Mal chuckled.
"It's a wonder the man ever left the Core," Riddick shook his head. "He seems so damn uncomfortable out here."
"Used to be worse," Mal shook his head. "I remember one time—"
Everyone startled as they heard Simon's voice, filled with alarm and loud with it, "Zoë! Mal, get down here!"
"Galley," Mal hurled himself out his chair, Riddick right behind him.
Carolyn cursed to herself as she was left to pilot the ship in ignorance of what was going on.
It took her a bit to get the course set and likely River would need to double check her work to make sure there weren't any unnecessary adjustments from the cortex, but Carolyn finally got back to the galley.
"Got the course set," She told Mal quietly. Her eyes went from him to Zoë sitting at the table slowly consuming a cracker and some milk. Simon hovered over the First Mate and Mal had an air of doing the same despite being on the opposite side of the table. Riddick was at the stove, working on something that smelt sort of like soup. River and Kaylee were sitting with Inara on the other side of the table while Jack came running in from the opposite direction.
"It's too much stress," Simon seemed to be continuing a conversation. Obviously, she'd come in the middle. "Physically you're healthy but you're on the outer edge of childbearing years. Your blood pressure goes dangerously high when you become tense."
"An' there ain't any relaxin' on a job," Mal nodded his understanding as Riddick brought over a bowl of soup and Jack handed Simon the cold pack she'd apparently been sent to retrieve. "Does put a crimp in our plans to pull another job like St. Lucy's when we're closer to White Sun."
"Still doable," River disagreed. "Three man job, one to fly, two to wheel gurneys."
"You figure on flyin' River," Zoë asked in a tired voice.
"Captain as medic, Rick to fly, Carolyn as secondary medic," River shrugged. "Substitute the girl, Kaylee or Simon as needed."
"I suppose it's doable," Mal nodded thoughtfully. "But it don't change the fact that Zoë's my usual right hand on the sorta job we just finished."
"I'm sorry Captain but it's not just risky, it's actually dangerous for Zoë to continue that type of work and not just because of the potential for gunfire," Simon firmly but kindly put his foot down. "It's not only her health at risk, but also the health of the baby as well."
"Mal—" Zoë's voice, strained with worry didn't get far.
"Then that's it then," The Captain shook his head. "Ain't riskin' you or the baby. Ain't no amount of coin worth your lives." He leaned against the cabinets with a sigh. "That bein' said, we still need to earn a living." He looked over at Carolyn, Riddick leaning against the doorjamb beside her, "How do the two of you feel taking up some of the duties of a gunhand along with piloting?"
Carolyn exchanged a look with Riddick before she spread her hands, "I'll do my best for you Mal, but I can't really be called an expert with a gun. I can use one, but not well and I don't like them either. Violence…not really my forte."
"I got no problem with it," Riddick's huge shoulders moved upwards in a shrug. Sometime Carolyn found herself surprised that the ship didn't move with him. The man was just huge. "Wouldn't have offered before the job if I did."
"You good with a gun," Mal didn't appear to be questioning Riddick's competence so much as asking for a little reassurance.
"They haven't made a weapon I can't use well," Her lover half smiled. "You might could say I've got a gift."
River chuckled and Carolyn tilted her head at the girl curiously, "Funny?"
"Captain asks for bona fides unnecessarily," River grinned. "When it is obvious to anyone who looks that a tiger is dangerous and handy to have in a fight."
Mal sighed, "Well if you run short of guns or ammo, that's why we've got the armory." He looked at Carolyn, "You'll be our primary pilot then, whenever we're pullin' a job. Rick and River'll be my backup."
Carolyn nodded her understanding, "I'll do my best."
"Want you doing all the landings and take offs for a while, get you real familiar," The Captain ordered. "Rick or River or me'll ride shotgun with you for a bit longer if need be."
"She did fine takin' off today," Riddick offered. "Doubt it'll take long before she's good."
Mal gave her a smile on hearing that and Carolyn felt a little of the tension seep out of her shoulders, "Got no doubt about that."
Well that was something anyway.
Author's Note: So the comic I read (which, IMO, had terrible artwork and some real obvious wish fulfilment as far as pairings went) seemed to imply that Zoe's pregnancy was risky. I'm leaning into that a bit and borrowing a few other ideas from it even if I'm not using everything. This has the effect of Riddick taking the role of a gunhand a bit more but since Serenity seemed to rarely use the autopilot having four people capable of flying her will still be very useful. So Riddick will still be one of our pilots.
Chinese Translations:
Wǔ' ān (Good afternoon! / Hello (daytime greeting))
Āi yā (interjection of wonder, shock or admiration)
Yóu zhān de tián mì mǔ qīn (sweet mother of linoleum)
Tā mā de niǎo (goddamn it /lit. 'His mother's dick')
