Because I'm a mean, evil person, this story has been split into 3 chapters and an epilogue. The chapters are also short for dramatic effect.

Thanks to everyone who has continued to read even through the disturbing topics. This story effectively ends this arc in the series, though there will be more to come because not everything will be resolved by the end of this story.

Many thanks to TamSibling for the constant critique and content suggestions.

And much thanks to Wanmei for the medical information contained in this chapter.

Thanks to everyone for the shiny comments on the last chapter. I hope this one lives up to your expectations.

Though it may not be as violent and bloody as everyone wanted, its what I felt balanced the crew's anger and their humanity. The mercy shown here, if you can call it that, made them better men than Niska could ever hope to be.

There is one more chapter and then an epilogue to this story.

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Chapter 2

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Niska looked in amazement at the dead men that littered the room, his gaze falling finally on a calm, stone-faced River. The man standing over Mal drew his own weapon as Zoe recovered from the barrage of gunfire and barreled toward him. She knew River could take care of herself.

The man beside Mal raised his weapon at Zoe, while River easily danced out of the way of the three guns pointed at her. A tiny fist shot out, catching one man in the solar plexus, while her leg delivered a solid kick to the hand of another man. Both men dropped their guns, leaving one more, who, in the split-second River had taken to execute her move, fired his weapon.

Jayne barreled into the room then, taking down the man aiming at Zoe before getting off a shot at the one man standing beside River. Both than man and River collapsed to the floor as Simon hurried in at Jayne’s back and immediately rushed to River’s side.

Without hesitation, Zoe moved to Mal, unfastening the restraints that held him imprisoned on the table. She helped him to his feet and he swayed a bit before righting himself with a determined huff.

Simon stared at his sister as she pushed herself upright, scowling at the thin line of blood that trailed across her arm.

“I’m fine, Simon.” River pushed him away as he reached for her, glancing toward Mal and then Niska, who was trying desperately to blend into the wall. She quickly replaced the empty clips in her guns and calmly fired two shots, both hitting Niska in each leg and dropping him to the ground instantly.

Niska cried out in pain as Jayne made his way to the old man, grabbing his immaculate coat and pulling him forward almost hard enough to snap his neck.

Mal clutched one hand to his side and approached the siblings while Zoe moved to the one and only entrance into the room and barred it from the inside. If anyone had heard the shots, they would be coming shortly and she wanted to make sure they found it rather difficult to enter uninvited.

Simon reached for Mal but he pushed the doctor’s hands away and glared at Niska, on whose no longer immaculate jacket Jayne had a death grip.

Mal swallowed hard and charged toward the man, Simon on his heels, and slammed his fist into Niska’s cheek. “That’s for me.” The angry Captain swung again, hitting Niska’s other cheek, snapping his head to one side with the force of the punch. “That’s for me again.”

The older man’s wounded legs buckled instantly and he was soon held upright only by Jayne’s iron-clad grip. Niska stared at Mal, who had raised his fist to strike him again, but was stopped by Simon’s hand wrapping firmly around his wrist.

“Doc, don’t you dare –” Mal warned, his eyes shooting darts at Simon. That Simon had dared to stop him was unconscionable. He would have to have a talk with the doctor about interrupting his work.

“Doctor? Good! I seem to have acquired a few wounds that need tended.“ Niska gritted out through the pain, struggling to remain smug in the face of very dangerous, and angry men.

Simon’s head slowly swiveled toward him and a tendril of unidentifiable fear snaked down the crime lord’s spine at the scathing look of pure hatred Simon shot at him.

“I wouldn’t be so sure he’ll be willing to help you, Niska.” Zoe approached from the side, River from the other, as Simon pushed himself into Niska’s personal space.

“You won’t let them hurt me,” Niska said, confident in his belief that a doctor would do no harm.

“What kind of man orders his men to attack and rape innocent women?” Simon’s voice was calm, but the edge with which he said the words caused Niska’s blood to run cold. “You are the worst kind of slime and you’re right, I won’t let them hurt you.” Simon inched closer, his eyes narrow azure slits of angry fire. “I’ll be doing that myself.”

“My men will be here any minute and then you will regret –” Further words were wiped out of his mouth as Simon’s clenched fist collided with his cheek.

Jayne dragged Niska over toward the table on which Mal had been bound and held him down as River slowly, meticulously, anchored the straps around his limbs.

Jayne stepped back and joined River and Zoe as Simon and Mal took positions on either side of the now trapped and worried Adeli Niska.

“Your men raped my wife,” Simon said simply, turning steely blue eyes on the bound man. Slowly, he reached into his vest pocket and drew out a needle and a vial of unidentifiable liquid. His hands shook as he realized what he was about to do. It had to be done. He’d come to far to turn back now. If there were regrets, he would deal with them later.

Niska’s eyes darted toward Mal, to the three standing still at the end of the table and back to Simon, wincing when Simon shoved the needle into his arm and dispensed the contents. “This is a neural stimulant called acetylcholine. Do you know what it does?”

His question was met with a stubborn silence.

Simon cocked his head. “Well, thank you for asking. It is commonly used to heighten sensation.”

“Meanin’, anything we do to ya will doubly painful.” Jayne clarified with a gleeful smile as he slid his very favorite knife out of its sheath, sidled up beside Mal, and drew a thin line of blood across Niska’s cheek.

The man pressed his lips together to keep from crying out and Jayne frowned at Simon. “Stupid drug didn’t work.”

Simon’s face was expressionless as his gaze shifted toward Jayne. “Perhaps you should find a more sensitive area.”

Jayne lips twisted into an excited smile as he drew the knife down Niska’s chest, sliding easily through every layer of material. He then drew it up Niska’s arms, deftly slicing away each layer covering the man’s pale torso. He’d not been too careful in the shredding of the clothes, and red lines trailed down his chest and arms at the cut points, where the knife had accidentally gone too deep.

Simon placed the vial in his pocket and drew out another. He held it up so that Niska could get a good look. “This is a common vasoconstrictor called tetrahydrozoline. Do you – No, never mind. It’s doubtful you know what it does. But I’ll tell you anyway.”

Simon’s cold, icy demeanor and the ease with which he spoke chilled Mal to the bone. When Simon filled the used needle and none too delicately shoved it into a vein, Mal vowed silently to never piss off the doctor.

“It is used to increase respiratory rate. Helps you breathe easier. Unless you’re given an overdose of it.” Simon replaced the vial in his pocket and dropped the needle onto the floor. “I’ve just given you three times what a man Jayne’s size is considered normal.”

Niska’s eyes widened but he still said nothing. He craned his neck to look toward the closed door, clearly wondering when his men would burst through it and save his miserable life.

“In short, whatever these normally very kind,” he glanced at Jayne and shrugged, “well mostly kind, men do to you, as your blood pressure rises you will begin to breath heavily, erratically, and it will become harder to do so.” Simon leaned his hands on the table and stared into Niska’s eyes. “I suggest you concentrate on every breath you take because a large enough dose will eventually cause your lungs to stop functioning all together. I’ll let you ponder whether the dose I administered will cause such a reaction.”

“You’re no doctor!” Niska cried finally. “You’re a - “

Mal continued for Niska, glaring down with hatred blazing in his eyes. “A very angry man whose family you have hurt for the very last time.”

Simon glanced down at Niska, his face still expressionless. “It was large enough.”

“He won’t live long enough for that drug ta work,” Jayne assured Niska with a wide smile. He lowered the point of his knife to Niska’s ribs and drew a long, slow line from one side of his body to the other.

“I was under the impression we wanted his death to be slow and painful.” Simon turned unblinking eyes on Jayne.

The mercenary felt an involuntary shudder crawl down his back at the cold emotionless tone of Simon’s voice. This wasn’t the Simon he was used to seeing and Jayne briefly thanked Shepherd Books God that the doc was on his side.

The old man bit his lips to keep from uttering a sound as every head turned toward the door Zoe had locked when they heard movement and shouting behind it.

River raised her hand and moved toward the door. “I will take care of them.” Her duty was to protect her family. She would do what she had come to do and nothing more. She had many an unsuspecting man upon whom to take out her anger. She smiled happily and bolted through the door.

Jayne didn’t bother to look up from his work, drawing a bloody pattern along the most sensitive portions of Niska’s chest. His lips were curled into a happy smile. If he never did another thing in his life, he would die a contented man after being permitted to take out his considerable rage on this disgusting man.

Beside him, Simon brought out another vial, his expression softening ever so slightly. At Niska’s expectant look, Simon shook his head, anticipating the question. “No, this is not a painkiller. “ He drew out another needle and filled it, steadfastly refusing to look at the blood that covered Niska’s chest. He tapped the needle to make sure there were no air pockets.

Jayne continued to pierce the crime lord with his thick knife as Simon stuck the needle into Niska’s arm. “This is a common blood thinner called Heparin.” He glanced down finally at Niska’s many, as yet, mostly superficial wounds. “We wouldn’t want your blood clotting at an inopportune moment.” He dropped this needle and stepped away, replacing the vial in his vest pocket. He took a deep, shaky breath and met Mal’s eyes. “I’ve done my part. I – will not – can not draw blood.”

Mal nodded slowly, understanding Simon’s need to have a hand in this monster’s demise, but knowing how difficult it was for him to go against the Oath he had taken when he became a doctor. Mal also knew that the combination of drugs that Simon had just given Niska would likely kill him even if they turned their backs and walked out now.

Clear, precise shots echoed outside of the closed door where River had just gone. And they all took a moment to reflect that she had been the best person for that job. She could keep Niska’s men at bay until they finished what they came here to do.

Suddenly, Jayne raised his knife and thrust it into Niska’s shoulder, causing the man to cry out sharply in pain. “That’s ok, doc, I’ll spill it for ya.”

“Enough, Jayne,” Mal dropped a firm hand on the mercenary’s shoulder and pushed him gently away. When he glanced down at the moaning Niska, his gaze was cold and unwavering. “Another woman on my boat was raped too. One I love very much.” He un-holstered his sidearm and stepped back so that Niska could get a good look at the weapon. “I made her a promise that I couldn’t keep. You understand how that irks me a bit? Man like me?”

“I – feel for you – Reynolds,” Niska grit between clenched teeth.

“No you don’t.” He raised his gun. “But you will.”

Simon set his jaw and waited for Mal to pull the trigger. The sound echoed around the small room and Niska once again cried out as his knee was shattered by the close impact of the discharged weapon.

Jayne took a step forward and uncaringly yanked his favorite knife out of Niska’s shoulder, grinning gleefully when he felt it strike bone. The old man cried out once again but no one batted an eye. Jayne noticed his face was flushed and his breathing erratic. “Hey now, I aint hit no vital areas.” He glanced toward Simon. “Hey doc, maybe your drugs are finally workin’.”

Simon approached again, his eyes, the window to his soul, favoring Niska with a pitying look. Niska was going to die. And Simon had a rather large hand in making that a reality. He swallowed hard, guilt and disgust for this creature tugging his heart and his mind in conversely opposite directions. He pulled out the last vial, the one River had silently agreed that he bring, and filled the very last syringe he’d brought with a low dose of medication.

He shoved it into Niska’s arm, not caring if the stick was good, only that the medication did its job. “This is a common analgesic called Alfentanil. Though the dose I’ve given you is minimal, it will dull the pain.”

Jayne frowned at Simon. “Ah, doc why you gotta spoil my fun?”

Simon tore his eyes from the old man’s battered body. “Jayne, this man is going to die. Even if you don’t lay another finger on him.”

“Yeah, but I’m gonna and I want to see this piece of go se feel a little bit of the pain he caused Kaylee ’n ‘Nara. Why you gotta be all noble?”

Simon swallowed sharply, his anger rising again. But instead of giving in this time, he simply said, quietly, “I refuse for us, any of us, to become like him. Mercy is the mark of a great man,” Simon added, catching Mal’s gaze. He had heard the Wing story plenty of times. He dropped the needle and stepped away, taking in the other used syringes at his feet. Shrugging, he looked back to Mal and said, “I guess I’m just a good man.”

Mal shrugged once in return as he cocked his gun and blew out the writhing man’s other knee. While Niska screamed in pain, Mal added, “Me? I’m not so good.”

Jayne grinned evilly as he slammed his knife into Niska’s other shoulder, leaving it embedded between the bones. “An I’m even worse.”

Disgust plainly evident on Simon’s face, he didn’t turn away. He simply watched as the man who had caused those he loved so much pain slowly bled to death atop the table. Simon knew, with the medication that he’d given Niska, that the man would have died even if there had been no blood spilled. He’d come to terms with his part in Niska’s eventual demise, even if he didn’t like what his anger had caused him to become.

Mal scowled as Simon’s words echoed in his head. They needed to finish this. They were not animals. He raised his gun to end this torture but glanced down when Zoe’s hand touched his arm. “Can you do this with no regrets?”

Eyes still locked with Zoe’s, Mal took aim and depressed the trigger without a second thought. “Yup.” When he shifted his gaze slowly to Niska, the man’s mouth hung open as he struggled for air. “Won’t ask if you have any last words.” His tone was as dead cold as Zoe had ever heard. “Looks like that shot took out a lung. Probably wouldn’t be able to answer anyway.”

A wet gurgle and a thick line of blood bubbling from Niska’s mouth was his only answer.

Zoe stepped forward and looked down at the man with barely contained contempt. As Niska gasped his last breath, their eyes met and held. “This is for Inara Serra and Kaylee Tam. I want the names of the women you hurt to be the last thing you hear before you die.” With that, Zoe raised her shotgun and fired, that one, solitary shot serving as retribution for the horrors she’d witnessed as a child, for every woman she’d seen beaten and abused. That one act, insignificant in the grand scheme of things though it may have been, gave her the comfort for which she had long been seeking.

“It’s done.”

~*~

Once safely aboard their borrowed ship, Jayne pouted at the captain. “Let me fire the cannons. Just once? Please?”

If he weren’t all exhausted and in no small amount of pain, Mal might have found the pleading look on Jayne’s face amusing.

Mal rolled his eyes and looked out the cockpit window as Niska’s complex became a smaller and smaller speck of empty, unmanned buildings. He turned to Simon. “They were all empty?”

Simon nodded, catching Mal’s train of thought. He’d checked various cryo chambers as they left the complex. “I wouldn’t have left them there if they weren’t.”

Jayne tapped his foot as the Khonsu steadily moved out of firing distance. Mal didn’t give him an answer soon, it wouldn’t even matter.

River turned and scowled at the mercenary. “I can turn the ship around, you hou zi de pi gu.”

Jayne sneered at the girl but was stopped from making a smart remark by a nod of Mal’s head.

Mal turned to Jayne. “Do it.”

Zoe joined them on the bridge as Jayne launched himself into the gun port controls, grinning like a child who had just gotten every shiny present he’d ever wanted.

Simon glanced down at Mal’s open shirt, at the blood and bruises on his chest. “I’d like to examine you,” Simon said quietly.

Mal dismissed Simon’s concern with a shrug of his shoulder. “After.”

Simon nodded, understanding the Captain’s need to see this final destruction. In truth, he wanted to watch too. To see with a final, aching clarity that this part of Niska’s empire died a long with him.

With a gleeful cry, Jayne fired the controls and a burst of red fire erupted from the port side cannon. Explosions from the surface below illuminated beautifully even in the middle of the day. Sunlight beat down on the complex as explosion after explosion rocked each building. Those which did not immediately ignite, Jayne fired upon again, his precision in aiming such a large weapon not at all surprising given his fondness for firearms of any kind.

When the destruction was complete, Jayne had to be forcibly removed from the firing controls. They didn’t want to use up all of Sanchez’ warheads. They would be needed elsewhere.

Tugging his eyes from the inferno below, Simon insisted he check Mal’s injuries and so the two of them went down to the crudely stocked infirmary, leaving River, Jayne and Zoe on the bridge discussing the many ways they would harm those who had betrayed their trust.

TBC

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What'd you like? What didn't you like? Leave a comment and maybe I'll post the next chapter tomorrow.

Just rate it and don't leave a comment and - well, you'll have to wait a few days to read the next chapter.

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Next Chapter: Sanchez gets an unexpected surprise when they go to pick up Serenity, and the crew returns to Paquin to find a few surprises of their own.