A/N: Here it is, the second chapter! Quick, wasn't it?

Enjoy!

Don't forget to read the prologue, or part one!

Flipside, my new chapter, is now up!

***

Lieutenant William McKay moved as fast as his feet would carry him, rather frightened thoughts pulsing through his mind. It had been one thing to suddenly wake up after being frozen, it was quite another to have one of those death-machines try to shoot off his head. He could hear it now, the clunk as each metal leg hit the floor, getting louder with each second. The giant walking tanks had overwhelmed him and his troops, giving anyone who stood still a free ticket to the next life.

I’d probably be dead, he thought, if the Major hadn’t popped off a flashbang.

Unfortunately, with half his torso scattered across the floor, the Major’s short-lived heroics had cost him his life. The team rounded a corner, coming face to face with a drone. Without pausing, McKay smashed the butt of his rifle into its brainbox, causing it to crash into the wall. At this point, he would have let fly a zippy one-liner, but all his effort was currently concentrated on getting what remained of his squad away from the homicidal machines.

Walking through a pair of sliding doors,, he motioned for two of his men, Corporal Shrank and Private Hartley, to pull them shut behind them. Shortly after, his resident engineer, a young PFC Yu, messed with the door controls, stopping that damned AI from opening them again. Breathing a sigh of relief, the Lieutenant pulled off his helmet and wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. Only then did he realise, with a large degree of surprise, where they were. He’d walked into an elevator shaft pit.

‘Sir!’ Sergeant Amos was at his side, attempting to gain the privilege of McKay’s attention. ‘Sir?’

‘Yes, Sergeant?’ He replied, after realising that the young man was trying to talk to him.

‘Sir, this place won’t hide us forever.’

‘I gathered that, Sergeant.’ Glancing over at Amos, McKay realised he had more to say. ‘Go on.’

‘Sir, how much power would it take to crack that damn thing’s shields?’

‘More firepower than we currently have.’

Amos looked up and said, ‘What about an elevator?’ McKay followed the Sergeant’s gaze, and realised what he meant.

‘You suggesting we drop an elevator on it?’ He said with skepticism.

‘Will it work?’ McKay paused as he actually thought about it.

It was possible…

‘Private Yu?’

‘Yessir?’ The diminutive Chinese woman replied.

‘Can you rig the elevator to drop if it comes through?’ There was a pause while she thought about it, her mannerism of rubbing her fingers over her slender cheekbones coming to light.

‘Possibly. Lotus hasn’t been online for more than forty minutes, so it’s possible his systems haven’t warmed up enough to-’ McKay waved aside the technical gibber-jabber.

‘Give it to me straight, Yu. Can ya do it?’

‘Yeah.’ The Lieutenant rubbed his hands together happily.

‘Great! Meanwhile, I need to get through that door.’ He said, motioning to the elevator doors leading to the first floor. ‘I don’t know about you, but after having survived the Spectres, I am not going to be killed by some godforsaken AI.’

***

Technically, it wasn’t an elevator, but a large rectangular platform enhanced with the ability to move vertically. Or, rather, a service elevator, which meant, that instead of moving quite quickly, as normal elevators would do, the platform moved at a speed a sloth would find slow.

‘This. Is. Taking. Forever.’ Jayne said, pacing the floor in wide circles. In the centre of the platform sat Simon and Kaylee.

‘I spy with my little eye,’ Kaylee began, ‘something beginning with J.’ Simon displayed an expression of mock concentration as he played his girlfriend’s little game.

‘Hmm. Ah. Er. Hmm.’ Simon eye’s darted around, and Kaylee covered her mouth to stifle a giggle. ‘Is it…Jayne?’ Kaylee grinned, placing a light kiss on Simon’s lips.

‘Yep.’ Simon pulled Kaylee onto his lap and held her there as he surveyed the elevator shaft for a word.

‘I spy with my little eye,’ He said, trying to concentrate as Kaylee wriggled around, liking the reactions she received from Simon, much to Jayne’s discomfort. ‘Something beginning with P.’

‘Hmm.’ Kaylee began the same routine Simon did, with Simon resting his head on her shoulder. ‘What could it be? What might it-’

‘It’s platform! It’s a ruttin’ platform!’ Like the one we’re standing on!’ Jayne shouted, clearly fed up with their lovey-dovey attitudes. They both gave him sour looks, and he slightly recoiled under their combined forces. Fortunately for his dignity, he quickly recovered. ‘An’ you know, speakin’ of platforms, don’t ya think you could get this one to, I don’t know, move faster?’

‘Can’t make it move faster than it can.’ She said, giving Jayne a continuing look of venom.

Jayne furiously groped for his communicator, saying, ‘Mal, can’t you do somethin’ about making this gorram platform move faster?’

‘No can do, Jayne. The system won’t let me-’ Whatever the system wouldn’t let Mal do, Jayne never found out, as he chose that moment to turn off his communicator.

‘Sure!’ He shouted. ‘Can’t get it to move faster! At this speed, it might as well stop!’

The platform ground to a halt.

There was an eerie silence as the couple turned to Jayne, worried expressions gracing their features. Jayne reached for his communicator once more, and switched it on.

‘Mal?’

‘What now?’

‘Why we stopped, Mal?’

‘What d’ya mean, stopped?’

‘As in, Mal, why’s the ruttin’ platform stopped?’

‘Dunno. Looks like someone’s overridden the controls, nothing I can do. You’re gonna have to make your way out by your lonesome. Sorry.’ Grumbling, Jayne turned off his communicator once more. He made his way over to wall, hoisted himself up to a ledge just over head-height, and pulled open a set of sliding doors. He turned round to Simon and Kaylee, waving them over.

***

‘It’s done, Sir!’ Yu said, slamming shut the complicated box of wires.

‘Right!’ McKay shouted, and helped Yu up to the first floor. A clunk echoed from behind the pit doors, signaling the arrival of personified death. ‘Don’t think it’s a time to hang about. Let’s move, people!’

***

‘Come on, girl, give me your hand.’ Kaylee reached up, and Jayne pulled her up into the next room. Simon walked over, expecting the same response, but instead of reaching down for him, Jayne kept his hands by his side.

‘Jayne, gorramit, help me up!’ He shouted.

‘Nah. Say please.’ Simon paused mid-rant.

‘What?’ He said, hoping he’d misheard him.

‘Say please, pretty boy.’

‘You can’t be serious.’ Simon said in a deadpan tone.

‘I am. Say it, or you’re not comin’ up.’ Simon gave a sigh of defeat.

‘Fine. Please, Jayne, help me up.’

An evil smile spread across Jayne’s lips as he said, ‘Please, Sir.’

‘Jien tah-duh gway!’ Simon shouted in dismay.

‘Jayne!’ Kaylee pleaded. ‘Just help him up!’

‘Hell no! I rarely get to mess with him this much.’ Muttering curses under her breath, Kaylee let him get on with it. ‘Come on now, boy. Say please, Sir, ma-shong.’

‘Chu ni duh!’

‘Fine then, stay down there, see if I care.’

‘Fine!’ There was silence as the two men attempted to stare each other down.

‘Oh, Simon, just say it.’ Kaylee said. ‘Won’t think any less of ya, promise.’ She gave him a sultry look as she said, ‘And I’ll make it up to you.’

Simon rolled his eyes and said, ‘All right. Please, Si-’ There was the sound of something engaging, and the platform fell out of sight in the blink of an eye, taking Simon with it. Jayne and Kaylee were left staring down the shaft.

‘Simon…’ She whimpered. As much as he tried, Jayne couldn’t see the bottom of the shaft. About five seconds later, there was an explosion that echoed around them, and a red flame lit up what he previously was unable to see. Jayne glanced over at Kaylee and saw that she was shaking violently. He grasped her by the shoulders and held her there.

‘Kaylee?’ He asked firmly. She just looked up at him, with a glazed expression and quietly let a few words escape her lips.

‘He’s gone.’ With that, she fainted, collapsing into his arms. The ugly thought that he was finally the one holding Kaylee entered his head, before it was brutally shoved out. He gently laid Kaylee on the floor, making sure not to damage her fragile body. Then, slowly, he reached for his communicator and switched it on.

‘Mal?’

‘Jayne? What’s happening down there? This piece of fei oo just went fong luh on me! What’s happened?’ Jayne gulped as he began to speak. He couldn’t believe this was shaking him up like this. He hated the doc, it was a fact thoroughly known throughout Serenity’s crew. So why did he feel like this?

‘Mal, we may have a little problem.’

***

Simon felt…strange, uneven, unbalanced. He couldn’t feel most of his body, probably since his brain had blanked out the pain. But it could be because he was dead. Or was he? If he was dead, would he be thinking? Would he know how he felt? Would he be, at all? All these questions, so many unfound answers. He thought of his parents, how he’d never forgiven them for not helping him, for not believing him. He thought of River, how he’d sworn to protect her, to help her, to heal her, to make her better. In a way, he had. He’d said he’d protect her until his dying day, and, if he was truly dead, he’d done that.

Then he thought of Kaylee. How much missed time they’d had, all those months of him trying to keep their relationship from becoming something that would cause her harm if ever the Alliance found out about him and her. He thought about the way they’d made love, been together, inseparable. Mostly, he thought about the way he’d never taken the time to say those few, simple words, I love you. He did. He loved her. He’d always know it, but even now, been to shy of rejection to say it.

Suddenly, a bright light shone over him, and instead of some heavenly paradise he’d thought awaited him, he stared up into the eyes of some hardened military man. He took the torch away and said, ‘Lieutenant? You might want to take a look at this!’

***

Another fic, same rules. Leave me comments!