There were five highly-expensive laser rifles that Mal didn’t even recognize trained on the foursome as they stepped through the airlock onto Damian Ritter’s ship. He doubted that even Jayne would recognize them. “Hands above your head,” Ritter ordered, stepping forward. Mal noticed that he, himself, had no weapon in his hands, although a laser pistol was strapped to his thigh. Ritter’s boots sounded hollowly against the polished, steel deck. The ship was as cold and sterile on the inside as it appeared from the outside. “Don’t remember bein’ in the same room with such fancy equipment before,” Mal prompted, placing his hands on the back of his head as Ritter patted him down. “Too bad the imcomps you sent before used bullets; I could’ve gotten some use out of laser technology.” Ritter straightened. “Oh, don’t be mistaken. Vance and Bridger were new to the team, so they had yet to acquire the... ‘thespian-esque’ skills they should have used, but they were *very* skilled in the art of target termination.” He extended his hand, expecting Mal to shake it. “Your boy, Davin, was just *that* good.” Mal lowered his arms, but did not shake the proffered hand. Ritter shrugged, moving on to pat down Jayne and Zoe. When he got to Kaylee, he actually took great care not to jostle her casted arm as he searched her. “Who are you, Ritter?” Mal queried. “Call me Damian, please,” the soldier insisted. “My team and I...” He chuckled. “Well, let’s just say we’re too good for the Alliance, which is why we are no longer in the military.” He stepped back, but gave no order for his team to lower their weapons. “I recommend we move to the briefing room. We have quite a lot to talk about. Moments later, Mal, Zoe, Kaylee, Jayne, and Damian were seated in polished, steel chairs around a polished, steel table. There was no computer equipment installed in the table’s surface; it was a simply-constructed item of solid furniture. The five soldiers stood around the room, weapons still trained on Mal and the others. “We were sent to stop the Reavers from attacking your ship,” Damian began. “Looks like we were a little late.” “Looks like,” Mal agreed. “I will be very direct, very honest, and very blunt with you, Captain,” Damian continued. “My team and I were hired to capture Gabriel Davin alive for purposes that are none of your concern. We have no interest in your or your crew, and we have no interest in River Tam.” He pulled a packet of chewing gum from a compartment in his black, tactical vest. Popping a stick into his mouth, he offered some to Mal and his crew. None of them accepted. “We are also connected with the Alliance in no way, shape, or form, nor is our employer.” He placed the gum back into the pocket and began chewing. Mal stared the man down with a fierce gaze. “You seem well-informed,” he mentioned. “You must, then, be aware that I’ve had a conversation exactly like this in the past, an’ you must know how that conversation went.” “Yes,” Damian confirmed. “The Operative, when he was attempting to extract the psychic for the Alliance.” He leaned forward over the table. “I hope you realize that this situation is completely different. I am *not* asking you to turn Davin over to me. As we speak, you are *completely* at my mercy. You have no adequate ship available, and there are five of the best weapons in the galaxy, held by ten of the best hands in the galaxy, trained at the four of you. I have but to raise my hand...” He raised his right hand. “...and they will gun you down right here, and right now.” At his right elbow, Mal felt Kaylee flinch expectantly. Mal did not flinch. “Make your point.” Damian leaned back into his chair again. “Regardless of how this situation goes, all four of you will be leaving this ship alive and returning to your own as long as you make no aggressive move toward myself or any of my team. We merely keep you out of our way until we are finished with what we must do.” Mal sat silently, glaring with intense hatred welling in his core. Damian’s face was a mask of expressionless regard. “What’s the matter, Captain? No clever quips or taunts? How uncharacteristic of your portfolio.” “How’s this?” Jayne spoke. “Kiss my ruttin’ ass.” *************************************************************************

“I mean...” Jayne grunted, extending his weight-laden arms to full extension before, once again, bringing to barbell to his chest. “...It ain’t like I’m against the idea of settlin’ with one woman...” He forced one more pump out before Book helped guide the weight back to its seats on the bench. Jayne sat up, wiping sweat from his forehead with the back of a hand. “...It’s jus’ the bein’ as I ain’t never met one yet worth keepin’ around for more than a few days.” He stood, stretching his seething arms and chest. “I like to keep my options open, yanno?” “Lots of folk cherish companionship,” Book offered, moving to replace Jayne on the weight bench. “But some find that it just isn’t for them, particularly those who are as constantly moving as you are.” Jayne swung his arms a few more times before moving to the head of the bench to spot the shepherd. “Well, ‘til recently, you didn’t fit in neither group. S’pose men o’ God fit into a third group, huh?” Book gripped the bar. “Once upon a time, you know, there was a woman in my life.” Jayne’s curiosity immediately spiked. “That a fact? What happened with her?” The shepherd lifted the bar from its seats. “Our lives were moving in different directions.” He lowered the barbell, then shoved it into the air. “It was a very long time ago.” “Right,” Jayne grunted. “When you were all ‘overpaid government agent’ still, or whatever ya were. Don’t pop a gasket in yer brain, now,” he warned as Book pumped out several more reps. “That bounty hunter wholluped ya a good one.” “I’ll be all right,” Book assured him. “At least... *grunt*... I didn’t get shot. Poor Simon.” “Bah,” Jayne exclaimed. “I been shot plenty. Good fer the kid. Builds character.” Book pumped out one more before surrendering the bench to Jayne. “Only if scar tissue and walking on crutches for a time is what you consider ‘building character’.” *************************************************************************

The first thing Simon did upon returning to Serenity was yank off his helmet and move quickly past River and Inara to cross the cargo bay. “Is he okay?” Inara inquired. Gabriel stepped through the airlock, looking extremely drawn and pale as River had never seen him before. She wished that she didn’t know the things he had seen. “He upchucked in his helmet,” Gabriel replied. “I ain’t *never* settin’ foot in a gorram Reaver ship again in my life.” “How are your eyes and testicles?” River prompted. Gabriel looked at her. “Well, I can see just fine. As for the other...” He winked with a grin. “Hard to say.” He took a few steps forward, stumbling and nearly collapsing. River grasped his arm for support. “You need rest,” she insisted. “You’re tired, and you’re injured.” Straightening, Gabriel shook his head. “Not until the instant that I turn this ship back over to Mal Reynolds.” “And right now, you’re acting like him,” Inara put in. “You can’t help anyone if you’re unconscious.” Gabriel eyed her. “That’s sorta the point of me stayin’ up an’ about, ain’t it? Stay conscious. An’ as for the first part, I accept the compliment.” He reached into the pocket of the red, flannel pants that he’d worn since his and Kaylee’s rescue. River much preferred the black cargo pants he’d previously sported. She caught the pistol that Gabriel tossed to her. “Laser pistol,” he announced for the benefit of Inara. “They got a whole mess of ‘em stockpiled in there.” “Looks like your theory was accurate,” River, the psychic, confirmed. “What was your theory?” Inara inquired. Gabriel ran his hand through his hair. “‘Bout a third of the Reavers had these on ‘em. Explains the occasional burn on the walls. They didn’t get these through raids, though. Ain’t *nobody* got laser pistols en mass this far from the Core, not even Alliance patrols. The few an’ far between you’ll find are owned by rich yuppsters.” “Then how did they get them?” As Gabriel’s thoughts passed through his head, River voiced them for him. “Someone gave ‘em the pistols,” she explained, speaking the way Gabriel did. “‘Least, as close as ya can get to givin’ Reavers somethin’ without gettin’ yourself et.” “Most like, someone left crates somewhere the Reavers would know to pick ‘em up,” Gabriel finished. “An’ I think I got an idea who knows about it.” At that last, he eyed River knowingly. ‘Least, this all seems the most likely scenario.” Inara suddenly looked very uncomfortable. With the exception of the voice, River’s and Gabriel’s sentences could have come from the same mouth. “You two must realize how creepy it is when you do that,” she informed. “But anyway, what do we do now?” “The engine room’s back in order,” River announced. “Nothing major was seriously damaged besides a few fittings. It seemed they just ran in, bashed a few things, and ran back out. Darcy’s still on the bridge, monitoring the Comm, and we have a full fuel supply.” “We got a very, very large number of bodies on this ship,” Gabriel stated, “but no time to dispose of ‘em yet. Let’s go see to yer brother,” he decided, “an’ go get our missing.” *************************************************************************

Matthew Cobb brought the vehicle to a halt and turned to the little girl in the seat beside him. “Okay, Janie,” he began, “Uncle Mattie’s got some friends he needs to talk to. My friends can be a little grumpy. You don’t wanna be around grumpy folk, do ya?” Janie shook her head. “Grumpy folk’re no fun.” “No,” Matt agreed. “No fun at all. So you just wait right here, in this seat, an’ don’t go *noplace*, an’ soon as I get back, yer uncle’s gonna take you out for Ice Planet.” “What’s Ice Planet?” Matt stared in shock at his niece. “You’ve never had *Ice Planet?*” Janie shook her head. “Well, surely yer mama let you try ice cream, right?” Janie grinned. “I love ice cream!” Matt grinned back. “Okay, good. Ice Planet is ice cream on a string an’ a stick. Loads more fun to eat than borin’ ol’ ice cream. You’ll love it, but you gotta stay right here ‘til I get back, dong ma?” Janie bounced up and down in her seat. “Promise!” she swore, and as Matt opened the door and exited the vehicle, he heard the girl singing, “Ice Planet, Ice Planet, Ice Planet,” to herself. Matt grinned. *Cute kid my bro’s got*. He marched up to the decrepit hole that, at some point in the past, resembled a house, and drew a snub-nosed, .38 revolver from his leather jacket. Not bothering even to knock, he kicked the disintegrating door off its hinges and stormed into the room. A pale, scrawny man with a bushy beard and frazzled hair leapt to his feet, but Matt was too quick, slamming the burnout against the wall. “No, Cobb, Please!” the man whined, grasping at Matt’s jacket. “I didn’t do nothin’!” Matt clocked the man on the nose with the revolver, breaking it, and the man howled in pain. “Don’t you dare lie to me!” he hissed. “You hocked twelve grand in stolen Lerotine, Lava, and Drops from my stash.” He pressed the barrel of the gun to the man’s chin. “Lie to me again, Larry, please. I beg you.” “I’m sorry, Cobb!” Larry the Burnout sputtered, blood from his nose than had run onto his lips speckling Matt’s face. “I was desperate! I got no job, an’ I needed a fix jus’ *so* bad, an’ the money was-” Matt grabbed Larry’s wrist, slammed his hand into the wall above his head, pressed the revolver to his palm, and pulled the trigger. The blast ripped through the man’s hand and the wall behind it, and Larry screamed. “Yer lucky I’m such a merciful sorta guy,” Matt growled, releasing the whimpering man and aiming the gun at his head. “Most other dealers woulda blowed yer face off.” He finally slid the .38 back into his jacket. “You owe me fifteen, Larry. Twelve for the drugs and three for the inconvenience.” “You’ll get it, Cobb!” Larry insisted. “I swear to God, you’ll get it!” “Good,” Matt voiced. “Next time I gotta come here, yer losin’ a kneecap.” He turned and exited the stinking building with haste. He halted at the car to give his speckled face a quick wipe-down before climbing in. “I did like I was told!” Janie exclaimed. “I stayed put!” Matt grinned. “Yeah, ya did. Yer a big girl to take on a responsibility like that.” He nudged her chin with the knuckle of one finger and started the vehicle. “Ya just earned yerself yer first Ice Planet, bao bei.” “Yay!” Janie crowed. *************************************************************************

“We gotta do somethin’,” Jayne insisted in a soft voice. “Anything. They’re gonna take Gabriel an’ cut ‘em up, I jus’ know it. I actually took a likin’ to the kid, an’ ya know how rare that is.” “Nobody’s cuttin’ nobody up,” Mal assured him. “An’ case ya haven’t noticed, we’re kinda helpless right now.” “Gabriel ain’t helpless,” Kaylee voiced. “And he’s got River with him.” Mal shook his head in despair. “These people have infallible intel. Whatever they’re plannin’, I doubt they forgot to take the talents of our crews’ youngest into consideration.” “I really don’t see the point in speaking so softly,” the female soldier by the door interjected. “I can hear every word you’re saying.” “Boy,” Jayne began, his voice still quiet, “ya should’ve seen the paycheck that pornographic studio just mailed me. Seems my performance was stellar.” Zoe snorted, covering her mouth with a hand. “No,” Jayne continued, winking at Mal, “I’m dead serious. Folk in the business are startin’ to refer to me as the ‘Pony Express’...” The guard rolled her eyes and ignored the mercenary. Damian strolled into the room at that moment, followed by one of the men, and the guard snapped herself to attention. “At ease,” Damian muttered, then glanced around the room. “Everything remaining calm in here, Hayze?” “As calm as any other spectator at a rodeo,” Hayze the guard reported. Jayne busted out laughing. *Okay, so the robot’s got a sense of humor...* Damian regarded her for a moment. “Okay, so an inside joke, of which I am not privy.” He turned from Hayze and strolled to the head of the table. “Perhaps I should be glad.” “Warn’t none of yer business, anyhow,” Jayne replied. “The lady an’ I were just havin’ a bit of a flirtation-” “I have no interest in conversing with pee-ons,” Damian interrupted. “Only the captain has anything of value to say, and, if he’s incapacitated, then his first mate. The other two of you interest me not in the slightest.” Jayne felt a flush of anger. “Hey, who you callin’-” “Captain,” Damian continued, dismissing Jayne as if he weren’t even there. “I was just contacted by your ship. Apparently, they’ve located us, and, interestingly enough, they are currently captained by our very own target.” Mal’s eyes widened. “Gabriel is in charge on Serenity?!??” Zoe buried her face in her hands and shook her head. “We’re all doomed,” she joked in a crestfallen tone. “Indeed, it appears he is,” Damian confirmed. “I informed him of the hostage situation, and claimed that we would kill you if he did not surrender himself immediately. He agreed without hesitation, which confirms my suspicion that he plans to take us out single-handedly.” *About ruttin’ time somethin’ went right*, Jayne thought. “I regret to inform you that any optimism on your part would be foolish,” Damian directed toward all four. “I have seen the tapes from the Academy, I have reviewed every file and report religiously, and I assure you, Gabriel Davin poses about as much threat to me, personally, as any of you could hope to accomplish. As for the psychic...” He paused. “Tam is more like the snake, if I were a mongoose.” He grinned. “I think your saviors are in for a little surprise.” “I hope they kick your robot ass from here to kingdom come,” Jayne growled dangerously. Damian actually paid attention to Jayne, although only to smile in amusement. “They won’t,” he declared. ***********************************************************************

“I have a very bad feeling about this,” River voiced from the pilot seat as Gabriel contemplated behind her. “A *very* bad feeling. I wish you wouldn’t go.” Gabriel shrugged. “I’m sorry?” He turned to Simon. “Feelin’ better?” “Cleaner,” Simon replied. “Not so sure I’d call it better, though.” Gabriel spied at him curiously. “You look depressed. You should smile more.” Simon frowned. “...I... *What?*” Gabriel gave him a stern, very serious look. “As acting captain, I order you to smile. Either you smile, or I strip down nekked, put my undershorts on my head, an’ run around the bridge flappin; my arms an’ clucking like a chicken.. I’ll do it,” he warned, “I swear I will.” Despite himself, Simon started laughing. “Aw, that doesn’t sound so bad to me,” River hinted with a smile. “I feel sorry for you,” Darcy commented to Inara. “You hafta live with this?” “Every day,” Inara confirmed. “Although nobody’s gotten naked yet. Well, except for once when Mal was stranded in the middle of a desert...” River turned in her seat, grasping Gabriel’s wrist. “There is something about this Damian Ritter that I *really* don’t like. Maybe it won’t happen today, or tomorrow, but...” Her brown eyes drilled through Gabriel’s head with diamond tips. “He’s not bluffing about killing them,” she added, changing the subject. “He told them he won’t really do it, but he will.” “I know,” Gabriel replied. “But, as I promised before, no way a member of this crew will be harmed on account of me.” River released her grip. “Our own ball of yarn...” she muttered. Although it made perfect sense to her, Gabriel didn’t know what River meant, nor did he ask. “Take us in,” he ordered.