The city was empty and gray. There was no sound, no movement, even the wind seemed dead. It took all of River's willpower to keep walking down the abandoned street. The sound of her feet hitting the pavement sounded thunderous when compared to the silence of the world around her.

"Beautiful isn't it?" asked a voice from the shadows. River turned in all directions, but couldn't find where the speaker was.

"So quiet… how long has it been since you've experienced quiet like this River? The voices don't reach us here. No screams to disturb us, no sudden thoughts to interrupt your own. This is the peaceful quiet of nothingness. When I was younger I struggled to avoid it, but now this silence is truly my greatest pleasure."

"Who are you?" asked River.

"That isn't relevant… I'm more interested in discussing you." As the voice faded River saw as two of the blue hands emerged from an alley in front of her. When their eyes fell on her, she felt the terror and fear swell within her. Images of two years of torture passed before her eyes as she ran screaming.

"Why are you running?" asked the voice. "Fear? They do not deserve your fear. Look past your pain and remember." River struggled but memories of her time at the academy were all she could think of as she ran. "What they did to you… What they took from you… It makes you strong."

"I can't… they'll hurt me… they…" She crashed heavily into something hard and fell to the ground. Above her was a man shrouded in a dark cloak. His presence was more overwhelming than even the thought of the academy and she backed away.

"Stop your cowering! You are strong. Focus your mind. Is it you that is feeling fear? Or are you feeling the fear in them?" River looked back at the blue hands that were running towards her now. They hid it on their faces, but underneath the surface she felt the fear. It was all around them… They were afraid of her.

"They know what you can do, even if you do not. You are their worst nightmare. They took your life, but in payment you have been given power. Use it… Reach out your hand and show them their fears realized…"

River stood up staring intently at the blue hands as they stopped abruptly. She shut her eyes and felt it the link between her mind and theirs. Her mind grabbed hold of their mental barriers and ripped them down letting fear and pain overrun their minds. It wasn't so different from what they had done to her. The blue hands fell to their knees sobbing as she unleashed their deepest terrors. She smiled as they cowered before her. The sound of their weeping was like music, as she fed them their nightmares. She almost began to dance to the sounds as she released terrors they had tucked so deep that they weren't even aware of them. A smile formed on her face as she released them. The cloaked man's face remained hidden, but she could tell he was pleased, for some reason that did not set her at ease.

"Now finish them… they took your life from you. Return the favor."

River turned her eyes towards them, she felt hatred and rage building within her. There was power building in her also, power that begged her to release it… to punish them. She reached her open palm towards them and began to close it as if she was crushing a piece of paper when she stopped. The anger and hatred… it was coming from her, but not only from her. As she turned back to the cloaked man she felt the rage fading from her.

"Who are you?" his irritation and disappointment were evident.

"I thought you were ready for what must be done. I can see I was wrong. I can not wait for you forever, but I will give you what time can be spared. The end comes River, walk with me… or I will walk over you…" She saw a glow in the hidden eyes beneath the cloak that terrified her as she woke up screaming.

"Mei-Mei what's wrong?" asked Simon as he rushed into her room. She could still feel him, his anger and rage… it was all around her. Her eyes looked into Simon's as she failed to form the words she needed. She curled her knees to her chest and began sobbing as the dream replayed in her mind. Simon wrapped an arm around her, but it wasn't the comfort she normally felt. That arm that had saved her and protected her didn't feel strong enough now.

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Serenity was banged up and battered but still flying. Wash had been checking the cortex non-stop since they made it clear of the radiation. There was no mention of the Winchester or of a certain unidentified firefly. It was definitely a good sign, if all went well they could get back under Alliance radar. Persephone's beautiful blue oceans loomed in front of Serenity as it began its final descent. Mal knew it wasn't the safest place for him or really for anyone on his ship, but he also knew there would be work waiting for him here. After all the troubles they'd run into the last few weeks a few good crimes might actually be relaxing.

"My thanks Wash, you had me a little worried there. Wasn't entirely sure we'd make it."

"You must be joking, Sir. My husband could fly this with his eyes closed." She rubbed Wash's shoulders and then kissed him on the cheek.

"Yeah I Whoa!…" Wash cut himself off in mid-sentence as Serenity rumbled and shook. "I best keep em open till we finishing landing though. Kaylee? Please tell me the ship is gonna hold together until we're in the world."

The engine room looked like a giant mass of tangled wires, duct tape, and scattered tools. Then a hand emerged from the clump of wires and reached out trying to touch the communicator, finally she found the button.

"Don't worry I've got everything taken care of." said Kaylee trying to be cheerful, then 3 loud clangs got her attention. "Aww… Come on girl work with me." she said before letting go of the communicator and moving back over to the engine.

"Jayne you ok?" she asked as she did some quick rewiring and patch work on Serenity's latest battle wounds.

"How in rutting hell did you talk me into this?" Jayne's left hand was straight up in the air holding two clumps of wire together. The cords weren't long enough to do what Kaylee needed them to. They linked up alright, but they were so tight that any shaking knocked em loose. His right hand was turning the handle on a makeshift backup generator that Kaylee had built to keep energy flowing through the various extra bypasses and jury-rig's she had going. Wires and machinery were intertwined all around him and it made him look like a fly caught in a spider's web.

"Don't worry hunny." she said as she put a fifth patch on a troubled area of Serenity. "As soon as we land I'll make it up to ya." She grinned, but another loud series of clang's caught their attention.

"Come on Serenity! Now your just doing it on purpose!" yelled an exhausted Kaylee as she climbed back through a ton of wiring. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mal and Inara both caught hold of the handrail on the catwalk as the ship lurched to the right. Inara tried to recover looking graceful as she met the captain's eyes.

"Do you think we'll make it to Persephone in one piece Captain, or should I abandon ship?" she asked with a smile.

"Only if you've got room to take me with ya." said Mal. "I think Wash and Kaylee have it under control though." Then there was another huge jolt and Inara went stumbling forward. Mal braced himself against the railing just in time as Inara fell into his arms.

She felt his arm wrap around her, helping her to get her balance back. For one awkward moment she stood in his arms. Inara brushed a stray strand of hair from her eyes as she slowly looked up into his eyes. The moment her gaze met his, he unwrapped his arms from her waist and she took her hands off of his chest. As he stepped away he let his arm's slide against her trying to keep touching her as long as possible.

"Might be they don't have it as under control as I thought." He quickly stepped around her and continued down the stairs into the cargo bay.

"Neither do I…" thought Inara as she backed away towards her shuttle again. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wash's voice came over all the communicators. "Everyone brace for impact!!!" Simon quickly grabbed hold of the doorway into the infirmary, as the ship landed gently. "Just kidding."

Wash locked the landing gear, and powered down the engine. As soon as it was done the ship went dark, as main power failed. Then they heard Kaylee yelling in the engine room.

"Uhm Captain… were gonna need a few replacement parts before we can take off again." said Kaylee.

"We best go find a job to pay for it then. Wash you hold down the fort help Kaylee get this mess we call a vessel, back in order. Zoe, Jayne, you come with me let's pay Badger a visit." said Mal as he and Zoe left the bridge. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The man seated at the control panel, had a bored look on his face as he continued scanning the docks of Persephone. Until he scanned a particular ship and his eyes opened wide as he called his boss.

"Sir, I think we've got something interesting." he said, the door opened, but the man didn't enter all the way.

"Is it them?" he asked.

"Yes, the register is marked Serenity."

"Make contact and get things underway, I won't let them get away again."

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Mal felt a little uneasy as he walked into Badger's shop of sorts. The place had always been a dirty cesspool, but now it was an unguarded dirty cesspool. As Mal, Zoe and Jayne entered the room Badger quickly pointed a pistol at them. When he saw who it was he lowered the gun and drank a big glass of whiskey.

"A might jumpy aren't we?" said Mal not suppressing his grin.

"Let's just say business had been a bit troubled of late." said Badger as he finished off his drink. "Got myself a bit of competition, normally not a problem but this bastard has some rather influential friends."

"I'd love to sit here and play a violin for ya while you go through this story, but I'm looking for work. Since you can't even afford guards, there's no way you can afford me." Mal turned to walk away with, but as soon as his back was turn Badger jumped up.

"Wait! I can… I've got a job for you. Payment on delivery, I'll even give you 25% off the top."

"What job is this and where are you gonna get the money to pay that kind of increase?" asked Zoe.

"I may be down in the gutter right now pretty lady, but I've been there before and gotten out again. Mr. Gracen already thinks I'm out of the way, so I've seen no reason to let him know I've got a man on the inside. I've got myself some info on a juicy payday for you, and a way to turn things around for me."

Mal turned around now. "Let's hear the details."

"My friend inside managed to find out where Gracen keeps his money for the payroll. He's got a lot of Merc's working for him, his whole organization is built on it, but Merc's won't stick around without their pay. Gracen's a pretty smart one though, he doesn't use banks so the alliance can't track him, but he also keeps his money moving makes it hard to find. Fortunately, I've already got the tricky part of this taken care of. I know where it'll be all you have to do is go in and take it." Badger had a drunken grin on his face now.

"50%." said Mal.

"50% Are you crazy?"

"No, it's just that the factors in this job mean more compensation for us. First off were pulling a job on the dominant criminal in the area now. Not to likely he'll ever hire us after this, and if you don't recover your status as a fine businessman, well Persephone won't be a very profitable planet for me and mine. Then there's the issue of supply and demand."

"What?"

"You need us, more than we need you. So your going to pay us more, and of course the final factor." said Mal.

"Oh and what in bloody hell is that?" asked Badger.

"I just don't like you. 50%." When Badger stayed silent for a moment Mal stood up to leave.

"Alright! Alright… 50%... but I'm coming with you, I want to be able to say I personally took it from Gracen."

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The details worked out, and the plan solidified Mal, Jayne, and Zoe went back to Serenity to make preparations. The safe would be in a warehouse on the north side of town, for half an hour only between when it would be moved from one transport shuttle to another. Several hours later Wash piloted the shuttle with Mal, and Zoe making preparations.

"We move in quick and fast. If Badger's source is right there won't be but a few guards since Gracen's trying not to draw attention to it. We've got a fifteen minute window to get in get the cash and get out. Jayne you and Badger in position?"

"Copy that Mal." said Jayne over the communicator. "We're ready to go."

"Well then let's get to work." Mal smiled over at Zoe.

"Alright Captain we'll be over the target in one minute." said Wash as he focused on the target. Zoe and Mal quickly attached wires to the harnesses they were wearing as soon as Wash was above the building he stopped the shuttle.

"Now!" yelled Mal as he opened the door. Mal and Zoe jumped out heading towards the roof, but more specifically towards the skylight on the roof. As they got closer 4 quick shots shattered the glass, not only clearing their way in, but also raining down sharp objects on the 4 guards. Mal and Zoe's safety lines slowed them down as they landed on the roof. Quickly Mal and Zoe took up positions on opposite sides of the skylight pinning the guards down with cover fire. The Mercenaries were so busy trying to fend off the attack from above that they were taken completely by surprise when Jayne and Badger burst through the front door and opened fire. With the guards taken care of Jayne rushed towards the safe and applied just enough of their favorite corrosive acid to the hinges that the safe door fell open revealing all the platinum inside.

"Bag it up and let's move 10 minutes and counting." said Mal through the communicator as he and Zoe threw down harnesses and lines for Jayne and Badger. 2 minutes later the safe was empty, as Mal, Zoe, Jayne, and Badger were reeled back into the shuttle. Wash took off flying on an evasive course until he managed to blend in with some of the regular traffic in Persephone city.

"We look shiny captain no one in pursuit and no way to track us." said Wash.

"I'm shocked Sir, I mean this is one of your plans and for once it actually went smooth." said Zoe.

"I'm kind of surprised my ownself…" Then the world started to spin as Mal, Jayne, and Zoe fell over to the floor. Wash slumped over in his seat. Badger grinned beneath his gas mask.

"Wouldn't want to ruin your record now would we?" He quickly hopped into the driver's seat of the shuttle, after shoving Wash roughly to the floor. A quick vent and he removed his mask and activated the vidscreen.

"I've got them and I'm on route to the drop." said Badger as he changed course.

"Good work, it's been too long since I've been able to see the good Captain. Get them here quickly, I want to have them all secured before the gas wears off." said the man through the vidscreen.

"Right you are Gov, we'll be there in 5 minutes."

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Wash opened his eyes, and shook his head trying to clear his blurry vision. The moment he was able to focus he wished he'd kept them shut. He, the captain, Zoe and Jayne we're all chained to stone walls in what looked like a medieval torture room. "Where are we? Did we get on the bad side of King Arthur?" asked Wash as the others started to wake up.

"Not Arthur…" said a man's voice. Mal looked over and quickly tried to rush at the man despite being chained flat against the wall. "The name is Atherton… Atherton Wing. It's been a long time Captain, how have you been keeping with that whore of yours?"

"I've been doing just fine Ath… I'm surprised to see you again though. I would have thought scarring up your pretty face might have taught you a lesson."

"Oh it did Captain. I've learned not to underestimate my enemies. It seems that's a lesson I'll have to help teach you now." As he spoke 5 mercs entered the room.

"You might need a few more." said Badger. "Captain Reynolds has a bit of a learning disability ya might say." "So how much did you make for selling us out? You gorram piece of go sa!" yelled Jayne as he strained against the chains.

"I have been compensated quite generously." said Badger. "Nothing personal you understand. It's just business." Then Badger flipped on his hat and taking his cane made a discreet exit.

"I hope your recovered Captain, I wouldn't want you to be broken unless your fully healthy." said Atherton.

"Well actually now that you mention it, my back has been a bit sore lately." said Mal.

"I've got a trick knee." added Wash.

"I've got this cough that just won't go away." said Zoe as she demonstrated.

"I ain't been sleeping well…" Jayne began, before he was cut off by a tazer shocking him.

"What's the deal Ath? How bout you try that shit with me." growled Mal.

"You know after our last meeting, my fall from grace wasn't instantaneous. It was slow and painful as my disgrace lost me the respect and influence that I deserved. It took weeks for me to hit rock bottom. I plan on making your torture last as long as possible. Given what I know of your character Captain I'm glad I was able to obtain some of your crew." He then cupped Zoe's chin in his hand. "Your more protective of them than yourself, so I'm sure watching as beautiful Zoe here gets her turn will be quite appropriate."

"Get your gorram hands off of my wife!" yelled Wash as he thrashed towards Atherton. That earned him a round of tazers as Atherton kept hold of Zoe.

"Perhaps I'll give her the same treatment I gave your other whore Captain." Atherton took his hand from her chin and smiled as he looked at her.

"If you put your hand on me again, I'm going to take that hand and feed it to you." said Zoe, before the mercenaries tazered her as well.

"Ah yes Captain Reynolds this is going to be most enjoyable." said Atherton as he left the room.