All the usual disclaimers. No harm, no foul, no cashy money changing hands.

***

“Wash, come on out into the hall. Zoe’ll be all right for a minute. Simon’ll stay with her. Book, I need you, too.” Mal called the men to him in the hall just outside the infirmary.

“We got two real sick folks here, and a boat that’s gonna make us all sick, and kill our very expensive passengers if we don’t get out of her quicklike. We need to land, we need to land someplace where we can’t be found easy. Somebody did this to us and we don’t want ‘em to know where we laid up to deal with it. And we need someplace with a reliable water source – we’ve got to drain Serenity and scrub everything and we’re gonna have to keep those horses in water at the same time. Any thoughts? I’d like it to be real close – not more’n half a day at the farthest.” Mal looked at the two men standing with him, his eyebrows raised inquiringly.

Wash shook his head.

“This is farthest this way I’ve ever been. We can scout around all these little moons and try to find one that looks good, but the water – the water’s gonna be a problem.”

“Book?”

“Captain, I do know of a possibility. Behind Agamemnon there’s a terraformed moon with an abandoned Alliance base. It’s mined on the perimeter but inside is clean. And there’s plenty of water. There’s probably even a shelter we could slide Serenity into and keep her out of sight. A few settlers on the other side, but not much of anyone living there.”

“An abandoned Alliance base. Huh. How abandoned?”

“It’s from before the war. There is no predicting what kind of shape it will be in, but it does have water. And, if I remember correctly, there is not only a deep well but there is also a surface seep that would provide water for the animals.”

Mal looked long and hard at the shepherd. The silence stretched out into uncomfortable territory before Mal spoke.

“I won’t ask today – but I’m going to ask one day soon.”

“And one day I might tell you, son – but not soon,” Book responded.

“How far?”

“At full burn, maybe five hours,” Book said.

“Full burn. That uses a lot of fuel,” Wash pointed out.

“Yeah, but the more hours we spend on this boat the more likely that it won’t matter whether we can get off this moon of Book’s or not,” Mal’s voice was expressionless.

“Wash, shall I set coordinates for you?” Book asked.

Wash looked at Mal.

Mal nodded agreement and watched Wash and Book head for the bridge, eyes squinted speculatively.

***

As Wash and Book disappeared up the companionway, Mal leaned into the infirmary.

“Any news, Doc?”

“Zoe’s holding her own, but it is going to be a tough fight. You know I can’t cure it – I don’t have the serum, if there even is a serum. All I can do is help her fight it herself.” Simon whisper was strained with anger at his limitations.

“What about the rest of us? How long before we’re as sick as she is?”

“We may not get as sick as she is. The spores in the water are not so harmful because we don’t breathe them in. They will give you intestinal distress, maybe, but waterborne spores won’t cause pneumonia. Zoe breathed in a lot of spores in an aerosol form.”

“What about the spores you found in the air?”

“I don’t think they are nearly as concentrated as what Zoe got. Kaylee cleaned the scrubbers and if we keep at it, and wear those masks I handed out we’ll probably get sick, but maybe not this sick.”

Mal guiltily put his mask on and looked at Simon over it.

“What about the boy? He’s near as sick as Zoe.”

“Well, that’s the other possibility. That we’ll all get that sick and then I don’t know what will happen. This requires good nursing and all the support we can give.” Simon’s frustration raised his voice, and Zoe made a small sound.

Mal glared at him.

“No shoutin’. Cryin’ doesn’t do anybody a gorram bit a good. You got any suggestions?”

“I do. But it’s not a good one. I have found something that I think will work almost like a vaccine.”

“I’d say that’s a damn good suggestion. What’s the problem?”

“I can make two doses.”

“Oh.” Mal looked at the floor and pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger.

“Well, you get one. You got to stay well so’s the resta us don’t die. That seems easy.”

“And who gets the other one? You, because you’re captain? Inara, because she’s not crew? Jayne, because he’s got big guns? Wash, because he’s the pilot and can fly this ship? Who, Mal, who?”

“Where’s your sister?”

“Wodema, Captain! Can you not hear me? We need to decide and administer this before it’s too late. What does River have to do with this?”

“Seems like you might want her to have the other dose,” Mal said calmly.

“Of course I would, but it’s not my decision, and it doesn’t really make good sense.”

“Mebbe I’d like to see her get the other dose, too. That way if anything untoward happens the two of you can run. Might be the safest answer, if we get unexpected visitors,” Mal’s answer silenced Simon.

“I am not dead.” River stuck her head out of the cubby in the infirmary where she had been hiding. “And we don’t want you to be, neither.” Mal bent down to look at River.

“River, are you listening to me?” Mal asked her calmly.

“Yes, Captain,” River answered in a sing-song.

“River. I need you to be my eyes and ears. I want you to take this medicine so you can be my eyes and ears if I get sick. Your ears are better than anybody else’s on this boat. Do you understand me? Will you listen for me and tell your brother what he needs to know?”

“He does not listen.”

“No, but you do. Will you do that for me?” Mal offered his hand to River; she used it to pull herself out of the cubby.

“It’s hard to listen, it is so hard to listen. It is frightening and it is really loud.”

“I know, but you can do it. Will you do it?”

Simon watched this exchange openmouthed. What was Mal talking about – and why did River seem to understand him? And more stupefying yet was the question of how Mal understood River.

“I will.” River’s voice was almost inaudible.

“All right then, there’s our answer. One dose for you and one for her. Get busy.”

*** “We on course for this vacation spot of Book’s?” Mal stood behind Wash at the console.

“On course, captain. Could you fly for a while?” Wash’s voice was strained with worry. And was it sounding a little wheezy as well? Mal couldn’t tell for sure.

“Happy to fly. I’ll need you to land us, though. When do you figure to make this moon?” Mal asked.

“Three hours, tops. We were lucky it was so close. Not that I’m not having a great time chatting with you here, Mal, but could I be excused to see about my wife?” Wash was backing out the door as he spoke.

Mal flapped his hand at him to go, and sat down in the pilot’s chair, head dropped into his hand.

*** “Captain, I have the doses.” Simon walked onto the bridge and Mal swung around in the pilot’s chair to look at him.

“So give yourself one and give your sister one. Why are you talkin’ to me about this?” Mal sounded exhausted. There had been too much news in the last eight hours – it felt like weeks since they had sat at the table last night and talked about horses.

“There’s a little bit of a problem. I had enough of the supplies to make two normal-sized doses. River is not normal-sized – she only needs half a dose.” Simon sounded exhausted himself.

“So give her half a dose. What in nine bloody hells is this all about?”

“She won’t take her half a dose unless you take the other half.” Simon said it flatly, knowing that Mal was going to explode.

He stood up suddenly, looming over Simon, hands clenched.

“ENOUGH – just ---

“Half a loaf is better than none. A stitch in time saves nine. Long thread, lazy girl,” River singsonged as she drifted onto the bridge

“River, you promised you would take the medicine and be my ears. What are you playin’ at here?” Mal reined his temper in, deliberately opening his hands out of fists, and speaking gently.

“She’s right, you know,” offered Kaylee from the door. “You should take it. If it keeps you from gettin’ as sick as Zoe it’d be better for us all.”

“Simon, would this half a dose protect anyone else?” Mal interrupted.

“I, I, I just don’t know.” Simon answered. “Maybe someone who didn’t weigh much or who hadn’t been exposed to much. I just don’t know.”

“Doesn’t matter. If I have to have half, only the captain can have the other half. Otherwise I will hide and you will not be able to see me.” River stared at the two men, first Simon and then Mal. Their opposition collapsed at the same moment, Mal throwing up his hands in defeat, Simon nodding.

“All right, then. Your brother first, then you and then me.”

Kaylee beamed for the first time all day.

*** Wash took the controls for a flyby of Book’s proposed landing spot. The camp appeared to contain several square miles of scrubby grass, a few trees and a lot of broken rock. Just as Book had said, at the apparent center there were some tumble-down buildings. But the best thing, in Mal’s opinion, was a large area of emerald green grass surrounding a small spring. It looked like maybe they were in for a little luck.

“What do you think?” Mal addressed his question to Book and Wash. He didn’t think he had ever missed Zoe as much as he did right that second. Zoe was the one who could tell whether this was safe – mother of god what would they do if Zoe stopped breathing.

“It looks much as I expected it to. I think it’s safe. There’s no sign of any human visitation. The real question is, do you trust me?” Book asked.

“Set her down, Wash,” Mal said by way of answer.

*** “Jayne, get down here and help me get these beasts off this boat while they’re still breathing,” Mal shouted into the intercom.

It was awful to realize that Serenity posed their greatest danger. Their best chance at continuing to continue to do whatever it was they did lay in getting off the boat and staying off it until they could get it clean. Mal had seldom hated anything worse.

Jayne and Mal led the horses down Serenity’s ramp and into an improvised paddock they set up around the spring. Mal hoped that the rolls of electrical conduit he had begged off Kaylee and hung with strips of plastic packing material looked sufficiently like a fence to keep Warrick’s prize nags where they belonged. In a bunch as they were, they weren’t particularly likely to stray far anyway.

The good news was that, so far, all the horses looked well. Simon said that he believed the best thing for them was some vigorous exercise in fresh air. That way, if they had breathed in mold spores they would have a chance to flush them out before they could cause pneumonia.

“That go for people, too, Doc?” Mal asked.

“Yes, for anyone who isn’t yet sick fresh air and hard breathing is probably the best remedy,” Simon confirmed.

“Well, I guess it’s convenient that we’ve got so much to do to get settled here. There’s plenty of work that will provide some deep breaths.” Mal tried for sardonic but came closer to overwhelmed.

***

Simon, Kaylee and Book set up a temporary infirmary in one of the old shelters, close enough to Serenity so they could use her generator.

Zoe lay still, unconscious yet but seeming to struggle somewhat less to breathe. Gowan was now struggling for every breath.

*** “Inara.” Mal stood at the shuttle’s door.

“We’re down. I’ll set you up a tent of your own, so gather up whatever you need to be comfortable. I understand that sleepin’ on the ground is not what you paid your rent for and I’m willin’ to refund the rent for the nights you have to spend sleeping rough,” Mal made his announcement in as neutral a tone as he could manage.

“Are you trying to be rude deliberately? Do you imagine for one second that I care at all about the rent on this shuttle? Zoe might be dying and we’re all terrified of who will be next. Mal, stop this. For now, I am not a customer. This is my home and its people are in danger,” Inara’s voice shook.

“I thought you decided this was not your home. That you were leavin’, had already been here too long,” Mal didn’t look at her.

“I’m here now and I will not be treated this way. I know there is work to do and I’m not hiding in a tent by myself while you struggle to manage. I’ll bring my things but I expect to do some of that hard breathing Simon has recommended. And I can share a tent with Kaylee.” Inara began to collect a comforter and a pillow, and put on her outdoor shoes.

“I woulda thought hard breathing was something you got plenty of on a regular basis, or don’t you do the hard breathing?”

He should have seen her move. It was a measure of his exhaustion that the blow struck him completely by surprise. It was a good hard slap, too, rattled his teeth and left a red hand print on the left side of his face.

They stood staring at each other until Inara covered her face with her hands and began to sob.

“I’m sorry, Inara,” Mal whispered. “We do need your help and I’m sorry I tried to keep you from giving it by being hateful. I know what you think of me but I also know you care about the rest of the crew. Get your bits, and let’s go.” Mal raised his arms as though to offer a little comfort, but dropped them before she could uncover her face.

It was nearly dusk when they landed and by the time everyone was settled in some kind of quarters off Serenity it was almost black dark. By ship’s time it had passed midnight several hours earlier. Supper had been protein bars and tea, taken standing up. Book and Simon ate theirs in the infirmary. No one knew where River ate hers, or if she ate anything, anywhere.

Wash was a little wheezy, Jayne and Inara seemed fine, Kaylee had a little cough. Mal took inventory of his crew. “How is everybody? Anybody havin’ trouble breathin’? Too hot, too cold? You all ought to get in bed right now. I’ll take the first watch, then I’ll get you up, Jayne.”

“I’m fine, cap,” Kaylee answered. “But I think I’ll set up awhile. I’m not so eager to lay down.”

“Me neither. I’ll keep watch iffen ya want.” Unheard of, Jayne volunteering.

Mal suddenly realized they were all afraid of lying down in the dark, not for what might be hiding in the dark, but for fear that they wouldn’t wake up. That like Zoe they would wake drowning in their own bodies, their selves gone elsewhere.

*End of part 4*