Lucky for you all, or not - really, here is the next part so soon.

For those of you who read Chapter 8 last night, you've read some of this already. Some has changed, mostly little additions here and there, but nothing substantial has been taken away.

Sorry for the mistake! It was late, I was tired. And I shouldn't be posting at night anymore! I'm hoping to have the whole story done and posted by next week.

There are 12 chapters all together. . .

Chapter 8 can be found Here

Thanks to Tamsibling and Mal4Prez for the beta.

------------- Chapter 9 -------------

Kaylee stood with her head on Simon’s shoulder, face buried in his neck, arms wrapped around his torso. Her voice was muffled as she murmured, “Please hurry back.”

Simon held her tightly, as he’d done at every available moment over the last week while they’d traveled toward their destination. It was time for Kaylee, Inara and Madeline to leave and, as he suspected, it was proving difficult to get Kaylee into the shuttle.

So, instead, he stood in the middle of the bunk they’d shared for the last few months and simply held her, willing himself not to wonder if he’d ever see her, or their baby, again. He’d monitored her closely and there had been no further labor pains, but he still prepared a medical kit, even though they would only be en route for a few hours.

“I’m sorry for bein’ such a fei fei de pi yan. I just –“

Simon tilted his head and kissed her quickly; the rest of whatever she was going to say died on her lips. “Don’t worry about it. We’ll be okay.”

She stared up at him with such wide, open and trusting eyes that he wanted to look away before they burned a hole through his heart.

“Promise me, Simon.”

He swallowed hard and cupped the back of her head in the palm of his hand. Meeting her intense gaze, he held it for a long while, saying nothing, until he dropped his forehead to hers and exhaled gently.

Before they had a chance to say anything more, Mal’s voice came over the comm, saying it was time for the women to leave.

With a carefully disguised sigh, Simon disengaged himself from Kaylee’s embrace and took her hand, squeezing it gently as he led her out to the shuttle.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

The crew assembled before the shuttle, waiting to say goodbye to part of their family. Mal and Inara stood opposite one another on the catwalk while the crew behind them waited for Simon and Kaylee to arrive.

Over the past week, Mal had tried a few times to talk to her about the insults he’d slung at her that day in the shuttle, but at every turn she thwarted his attempts with thinly veiled curt responses, decidedly silencing him.

So he’d stopped trying. If they got through this, he’d force her to listen to his apology.

“We’ll signal you when it’s safe to return,” Mal said stiffly as his gaze fell for a few moments on each member of his crew, lingering for an extra moment on Simon and Kaylee as they approached hand in hand.

“Should only take you a few hours to reach Newhall,” Mal continued, his eyes shifting back to Inara.

Welcoming the chance to cover her discomfort with concern for Kaylee, Inara surged forward and offered to help the very pregnant mechanic get settled in the shuttle. But Kaylee waved her off, accepting Simon’s assistance instead.

A tight smile followed the couple as they disappeared inside the shuttle, and Inara turned her eyes to Mal effectively ending their short conversation with a curt, “I’ve read the flight plan.”

“Yeah, right, well,” Mal took a step back, a hand flopping toward the shuttle in an obviously uncomfortable gesture. “Best be goin’, then. Sooner we drop you off, sooner we can deliver these plans an’ pick you back up.”

Behind them, the remainder of the crew stood awkwardly listening to the stilted conversation. All except Aaron, who continued to try and reassure his daughter.

Through her tears, Madeline begged her father to let her stay, but he simply hugged his little girl, promised to return, and then glanced pleadingly up at Inara for help.

Grateful for something to do other than stand awkwardly in front of Mal, Inara pulled the girl into her arms and backed toward the entrance to the shuttle. As she swung the inner door shut, Mal stepped forward and closed the outside one, staring through the small window into the shuttle as he did so. He met Inara’s eyes and unspoken words passed between them. He opened his mouth and then closed it again, knowing she would not hear him even if he voiced the words.

Mal stared at the closed door for a silent moment before turning to the rest of the assembled crew. Clearing his throat, he said, “All right then. Lets get moving.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

The aide tapped his ear to cut the remote communication and turned to his commander. “Ma’am?”

“Yes?” Maris turned away from another screen she’d been studying. “What is it?”

He allowed himself a small smile in light of the new information he was about to reveal. “I’m picking up a shuttle that bears a striking resemblance to one belonging to the Firefly Serenity.”

“Really?” Doubt clouded her tone but the aide hurried to dispel that thought.

“Yes, ma’am,” he confirmed proudly.

“A decoy?” Maris asked with a raised eyebrow.

The aide hesitated. He didn’t think it was, but he feared that giving the woman an incorrect answer at this junction would end his career in a painful and bloody way, despite the rules against disciplining subordinates. “Possibly.”

A small, satisfied smile spread across Maris’ face, instantly setting the aide on edge. “Set course for intercept.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Aaron slipped into the bunk he’d been sharing with his daughter and quietly slid the shoji door shut, locking it against any prying eyes. They had some time before they would be meeting with the Independents to deliver the plans, and he needed some time alone, to think, to plan, to anticipate.

Moving to the bed, he lifted the mattress and slipped the cylinder out from beneath it, caressing the cold metal with a thoughtful smile.

Thankfully, he’d thought to hide two versions, or the captain would be the only one with a copy of these plans. If he had to, he would use them to get himself and his daughter as far away from the Core as possible. And he’d sell them to the highest bidder in order to do so. His life back there was over. He could never go back.

With a heavy sigh, he replaced the cylinder and lay back on the bed, closing his eyes. He’d never thought of himself as someone who would use others, or even sacrifice their lives, to benefit himself or his family, but reading about such circumstances, with which he was now faced, was far different than actually living them.

He’d learned in his time out on the Rim that the people out here played by a different set of rules. There was no structure out here. It was kill or be killed. No one cared about anyone but themselves.

He snorted and opened his eyes. The ceiling was bare and a bit of rust tinged the metal edges, but as he reflected on his life, he understood that petty selfishness existed everywhere. Out on the Rim it simply came wrapped in a far uglier and less attractive package.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

As the shuttle sailed toward its destination, Inara stared out into the blackness, lost in thought. The stars twinkled ahead, some looming bigger and brighter than others, but their beauty went unnoticed by the Companion.

She’d been an ass to Mal. She knew that he just wanted to protect her, the same as, dare she hope, Simon wanted to protect Kaylee.

He’d tried to make amends over the last week, but she’d been too bent out of shape to listen to him. Loneliness settled heavily on her shoulders and she trembled, trying to shake away the foreboding feeling settling in her heart.

“How long until we get there?” Madeline asked, startling Inara from her reverie.

She smiled kindly at the girl, who had not spoken to her, or even Kaylee, since they’d left. “Just a few hours.”

Madeline cocked her head and looked out the window, staring blankly. “Why couldn’t they drop us off?”

Grateful for someone to talk to, as Kaylee had been resting, Inara swiveled the chair and clasped her hands in her lap before answering. “Because they have a strict timetable that they need to keep, and a few hour’s delay would interrupt that.”

“Oh.”

A red light began flashing off to the side and Madeline pointed a tiny finger toward it. “What’s that?”

Inara’s eyes swept over the console but before she frame a response, another voice did it for her.

“A proximity alert,” Kaylee answered as she rubbed her tired eyes. She was standing in the entryway to the cockpit, rubbing her tired eyes.

“Kaylee, sweetie, please go back and lay down.” Inara struggled to keep her fear for the younger woman's condition concealed. The sooner they got to Newhall, with access to proper medical facilities, the happier she would be. “I don’t want you –“

But Kaylee would have none of the concern. She stayed where she was and looked from the flashing light to the window and back again. “Who is it?”

Inara returned her attention to the control panel. “I don’t know. But whatever it is, it’s coming up fast.”

“Send a signal back to Serenity,” Madeline said, eyes wide, knuckles whitening as the grasped the nearest solid object. “They’ll come get us, won’t they?”

“Don’t want whoever’s comin’ to be able to trace ‘em,” Kaylee said, leaning over the child to input a few commands into the control panel. A sharp hiss from the younger woman confirmed Inara’s worst fears.

“It’s Alliance.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

“Sir?”

“Yeah?” Mal glanced up at Zoe from where he sat at the large table, meticulously cleaning his weapons.

“Message coming in. It’s coded.”

“We know what it says?”

“Nope.”

“River can’t decode it?” The surprise on Mal’s face caused a rare smile to spread across Zoe’s.

“Girl’s a mind reading genius, sir. What do you think?”

Mal took a moment to think and then shrugged. “Yes?”

“Given enough time, perhaps. If it’s urgent, best to get our communication’s expert on it.”

Mal pursed his lips and nodded. “True. He’s here. Got us into this mess. Might as well be useful.”

“Yes, sir.”

Mal’s eyes narrowed as he sensed something in her tense stance. “Something wrong?”

“Just a feeling.”

Mal sighed and carefully placed every piece of disassembled gun he had in his hand on the table before fixing his second with a solid stare. “Care to share it with your captain?”

“Something ain’t right. Can’t put my finger on it. Just a feeling.”

Mal could feel every muscle in his body start to tense. “About delivering those plans?”

Zoe thought for a moment and then sighed. “Don’t know. It’s something. Little nagging.”

Mal scowled and began snapping the pieces of gun together with loud, precise clicks. “Your little somethings frequently turn into big somethings.”

Zoe had no response for that.

Mal arched his neck toward the bridge. “Aaron working on it, then?”

Zoe shook her head. “On my way to get him now.”

Mal pushed himself up from the table, holstered his favorite gun and said, “Well, let’s go.”

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

Aaron glanced up from the console he’d been leaning over for the better part of an hour. “Plans have changed and the contact is sending new coordinates. The message is scrambled pretty heavily.” He tapped a few more commands into the keyboard.

Simon stood at the entrance to the bridge, frowning. His arms crossed over his chest, it was clear he was annoyed with their lack of progress on getting these plans delivered.

“It will take some time, but yes, I can.”

“Guess it pays to have a communications expert on board,” Mal said, leaning against the back of the pilot’s chair.

A small smile tugged at the corner of Aaron’s mouth. “It certainly doesn’t hurt.”

Simon glanced down at River who had, until now, been staring silently into the black. He’d paid very little attention to her since this entire ordeal began and now, as he studied her tense form, his eyes narrowed and he rested a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“River?”

“Cold.”

Everyone’s head snapped toward her as she spoke, with the exception of Aaron, who continued to study the incoming message.

“River?” Zoe asked, her eyes narrowing.

“What is it, lil’ Albatross?” Mal asked.

Jayne rolled his eyes. “Girl ain’t got a bit of fat on her scrawny bones, of course she’s cold.”

River’s head swiveled to look at the captain, ignoring Jayne, ignoring all of them. Her eyes were unblinking, her expression blank. “Cold.”

Simon felt her forehead and then her bare arms. “You feel warm to me.” But as he opened his mouth to say more, River trembled and Simon turned the chair around and knelt in front of her. “Mei mei, are you feeling all right?”

Jayne turned around to tug a blanket from one of the storage lockers, but stopped when River spoke again.

“It’s cold.”

The detachment in River’s voice made Jayne swallow nervously.

“We’re in the middle of space, darlin’, ‘course its cold.” Mal said with a fake smile as icy tendrils of fear began to snake up his spine.

River’s eyes shifted toward Mal. “In space, no one can hear you scream.” She looked out the window, her bottom lip trembling. “But they scream anyway.”

“Who?” Simon asked, before Mal or Zoe could.

“The dead.”

“I didn’t think she could damage my calm anymore than she’s already done before, but that’s just downright unsettlin’,” Jayne said, clutching the blanket he’d pulled out for River tightly to his chest.

Aaron lifted his head and watched the scene with narrowed eyes. He’d not had much interaction with River, and she did seem to be a little odd, but what he’d just overheard was icing on an already very deformed cake.

Almost as if sensing his gaze on her, River glanced at him, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end.

Before anyone could ask her to elaborate, the console in front of River lit up with another incoming message. She leaned forward and flipped on the Cortex with a surprisingly steady hand.

It was a short, pre-recorded broadwave, not aimed specifically at Serenity, as they didn’t have the correct wave code, but the message was directed toward them nonetheless. It was a simple message, accompanied by a single image of Maris Kim kneeling beside her daughter. Kaylee and Inara held at gunpoint behind them.

Every member of the crew tensed as the simple, but effective, message began to play.

“Firefly Transport Serenity. We expect you to comply with our request to return the Alliance property which you have stolen.” Maris turned and glanced at Inara and Kaylee before returning her steady gaze to the camera. “Immediately.”

TBC

Chinese Translation:

Fei fei de pi yan - babboon's butt crack

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