INT. FEMALE QUARTERS

Kaylee is inside, still smiling, looking at five sets of bunk beds in the otherwise sparse room, touching one, feeling its firmness, when she hears the shout. She gives a frightened start, turns and puts her ear to the door.

INT. CORRIDOR

The Soldier from the cafeteria and the Transport Warden hurry down the corridor toward Mal and Simon. The Soldier has his weapon pointed at them. MAL What the gorramn hell is going on? Can’t a guy get some shut eye?

TRANSPORT WARDEN We have orders to hold you and your truck for inspection.

MAL (grimace) Fine.

He starts walking toward them.

SIMON Al?

Mal turns and looks at him, his cockiness still in tact.

MAL Ain’t nothing. See you for breakfast.

SIMON Ok. (Beat) Take care.

SOLDIER (re: Simon) What about him? And there was another one, a girl.

MAL Yeah, a girl who’s an off world engineer you seemed to have taken a bit too much of an interest in.

The Transport Warden gives the abashed Soldier a stern look.

TRANSPORT WARDEN Just the driver. And stay away from off world workers or it’s a penal colony for you. (to Mal) We have orders to open your truck.

INT. SERENITY, CARGO BAY

Jayne, River, Inara, Zoe, and Brenner stand around Monty’s body, which is on the cargo bay floor, lying on the stretcher, covered with the tarp. JAYNE Times like this wish Shepherd was still with us.

INARA We all live forever. Sometimes in a different form.

BRENNER No offense, but Monty was a Christian, not a Buddhist.

ZOE Everyone’s the same in death.

RIVER The next adventure.

JAYNE I don’t wanna go on that particular adventure just yet, little sister. Any ideas how to get out of this mess we all in? Can the boat even take off again?

RIVER VTOL’s are jets in atmo, rockets in the black. Closed the air vents when we ditched, no water entered the engines. VTOL’s will fire like rockets and get us out of here, then I just switched to jets when we are clear of the lake.

They all give her a confused look.

RIVER Serenity will fly again. Boy, when it comes to this ship, Kaylee’s right. Nobody knows anything about Serenity except her and I.

ZOE OK. (beat) We should leave while it’s still dark. Have a better chance of escaping.

INARA But where? That Alliance ship spotted us from almost 200 kilometers away. By now they’ll right over this area.

RIVER The latest in sensors and long range rockets.

BRENNER I gotta get back to my people.

JAYNE Case you forgot, it’s our people that’s down in some gorramn mountain doing your recon.

BRENNER Then sooner we’re outta here the faster we can get them help.

JAYNE Maybe they gave up looking, gone to bed for the night.

RIVER Not if it’s him.

BRENNER Who?

JAYNE Somabitch who’s after River.

ZOE (stern) Jayne.

Brenner gives them a puzzled look.

BRENNER You all attracted the Alliance here? Because of her?

ZOE Mal warned you the Alliance was after us. And it was Chester who brought the Alliance down on us on that mountain if you ain’t forgotten recent history.

BRENNER No matter, I still gotta get back to my people. Let me take the shuttle that’s not damaged.

INARA Not a chance.

ZOE Be easier to escape in the shuttle. Smaller. If it can take off under water.

RIVER It will.

JAYNE (to Brenner) What’s so all fire important that you got to do anyway? Planning another screwed up operation?

BRENNER (reluctantly) Look. I apologize for Chester. Thing is, today was suppose to be the big day for us. My men are going to attack that station before dawn. They were waiting for the word to leave the ranch. If I don’t give it soon they won’t have time to reach the station in the Saddle Range.

ZOE I guess they better postpone the attack.

BRENNER They can’t. (beat) The truck…

He hesitates.

RIVER (staring at Brenner) Is full of explosives.

As Inara GASPS, Jayne and Zoe draw weapons on Brenner before he can move.

BRENNER (to River) How in the ‘verse….?

ZOE You got some explaining to do.

JAYNE Less you want to join your old war buddy here.

BRENNER It’s the signal. To begin the attack. To blow open the entrance doors or at least to cause maximum damage and confusion.

RIVER It’s going to blow at the end of 12 hours.

BRENNER Or if it’s opened.

ZOE They don’t know.

Jayne sticks his pistol right in Brenner’s face.

JAYNE I’m all for wasting him right now.

RIVER No! We need him! His men have orders to kill us if he doesn’t come back.

They all look to her.

BRENNER (awed) She’s a reader.

They ignore his comment.

RIVER We need to go. Now! To the ranch!

River runs to the stairs to the upper level.

INARA River!

RIVER No time! Take the shuttle! I’ll stay with Serenity.

With that she opens the door to Inara’s shuttle. The others bound up the stairs after her.

JAYNE Gorramit girl! You got a plan best tell us.

RIVER The ranch! The Alliance is going to attack!

BRENNER They can’t know…Chester. But how does she know?

ZOE Best to take her word on these things. Let’s go. Inara and River stay with Serenity.

INARA It’s my shuttle.

ZOE You think on what the Captain do to me I let you ride into a firefight? You stay with River.

INARA Zoe, what about your…condition?

BRENNER What condition?

ZOE (ignoring him) We need to get him to the ranch and get his people moving to that mountain if Captain, Simon, and Kaylee have a chance.

JAYNE How can we trust him?

ZOE We don’t. Jayne you got my permission to drop him first sign of a betrayal.

JAYNE (to Brenner) My pleasure.

ZOE (to River) Give us 20 minutes then follow to the ranch. Full throttle.

INARA What about that Alliance ship?

BRENNER If I can be trusted, I can tell you how to knock that bastard out of the sky.

INT. FEMALE QUARTERS

Kaylee sits on a bed near the door, a bundle of nerves, not knowing what to do. Suddenly the door opens and Simon enters. She gives a small cry and leaps into his arms.

KAYLEE Oh, Simon!

They kiss quickly and then he looks at her.

SIMON They took the Captain.

KAYLEE I heard. What do we do?

SIMON We follow the plan. Ready?

She nods OK. Simon opens his blue canvas bag and takes out a plastic container. He opens it and it’s filled with mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, bits of carrots, and other food in a foul mess. Kaylee gulps.

KAYLEE Ah, sure you don’t want to….

SIMON Sorry, my love, but I need to make it sound convincing.

KAYLEE OK. I’m ready.

INT. PARKING AREA

Mal, the Transport Warden, and the Soldier stand around where Mal’s truck had been, but now its gone.

TRANSPORT WARDEN What in the ‘verse is going on? I gave no order to move that truck.

MAL Well, if you guys are though with me…

SOLDIER Stay put.

He sticks his weapon in Mal’s ribs.

MAL Best be careful with that son. You and I are liable to have an accident.

TRANSPORT WARDEN Come with me.

Mal and the Soldier follow him across to the big doors which the three soldiers are guarding.

TRANSPORT WARDEN (to Guard Soldier) Did a truck just come through here?

GUARD SOLDIER Yessir. About five minutes ago.

TRANSPORT WARDEN Let us in.

Guard Soldier looks at Mal’s ID.

GUARD SOLDIER He’s not authorized to be in here, sir.

TRANSPORT WARDEN Right, right. ( to Soldier) You stay with him and don’t let him out of your sight.

The Transport Warden enters the small door next to the big doors. Mal tries to catch a glimpse inside but his view is blocked.

A few beats of silence.

MAL Might be more comfortable back at the cafeteria.

SOLDIER Just shut it. You been trying to get me into trouble all night.

MAL No son, just saving you from it. That engineer said she’s married, got a husband and son back on Persephone.

SOLDIER No way, she’s too young.

MAL Tells what you….

The Soldier is distracted as Kaylee and Simon come out of the doors to the cafeteria and head in their direction. The front of Kaylee’s uniform is covered in the mess of food and more comes from her mouth. She looks genuinely revolted by the whole thing.

SIMON (shouting) I need to take her to infirmary. She’s very ill!

SOLDIER What’s the matter?

SIMON It must be food poisoning.

MAL Jeeze, you better get her to the Doctor.

KAYLEE No, I feel better…

She pukes up some more on the floor right in front of the Soldier. The Guard Soldiers turn away in disgust.

Just then, a voice comes over a LOUD SPEAKER.

VOICE (O.S.) Arrest the three individuals who entered the compound on an unauthorized truck. Immediately!

Mal hasn’t even waited for the voice to stop. He SLUGS the Soldier in the mouth and down he goes. Mal’s gun is out in an instant as Simon pulls Kaylee behind a nearby truck.

Mal grabs the Soldier’s weapon he dropped and begins FIRING like mad at the three Guard Soldiers who come out of their surprise and start to return FIRE. Mal gets two and down they go, and then hides behind the same tuck as Kaylee and Simon.

MAL So much for our great plan!

Bullets wiz by and bounce off the truck. Simon has his gun out as Kaylee tries to clean herself, clearly frightened but mad at the same time.

KAYLEE I should shoot you two for making me do this!

SIMON You wanted to come!

MAL No time for a domestic squabble! Get to firing, Doc!

Simon peeks around a corner, squeezes off a few shots from the small pistol and forces a Guard Soldier to move off. Then the firing dies down and stops.

VOICE You are trapped! Surrender now and you will be spare….

And then the whole world turns upside down as there is a massive EXPLOSION.

INT. MASSIVE CAVERN

Over scene: A few minutes earlier….

The Transport Warden and a few others stand at the back of Mal’s truck. It’s at the very far end of a cavern, far from the doors to the parking area. The cavern is massive and is dominated by three large terra forming machines in a row in the middle. They reach to the ceiling and seem to go into and perhaps up and out of the rocky mountain. On another side are piles of barrels with chemical symbols on them

TRANSPORT WARDEN Who drove it in here?

ALLIANCE WORKER 2 Sir, you left orders that all high priority trucks were to be driven inside immediately.

TRANSPORT WARDEN I did, I did. This one has attracted a lot of attention. Get it opened. My authorization. Now let’s see what was so all fire important they need to bother us with this.

The Worker cuts the Alliance high priority sticker with a knife, pulls on the door handles and opens it.

They all stand in shock as they see a full load of high explosives. Then their world EXPLODES.

EXT. LAKE – DAWN

The shuttle breaks the water’s surface and stays low to the ground as it moves around trees and hills., the sky getting lighter as dawn nears.

INT. INARA’s SHUTTLE – DAWN

Zoe flies as Jayne and Brenner stand nearby.

BRENNER Keep her low. Maybe get under the radar.

Suddenly a massive rumbling fills the air. They look out the windows and see large clouds of smoke filling the sky in the distance in the pre-dawn light.

ZOE It can’t be…its not 12 hours!

JAYNE What the hell…?

BRENNER It’s too early. They opened the truck.

INT. OPERATIVE’S SPACESHIP, BRIDGE - DAWN

On the bridge the Captain, Operative and others notice the rumbling and feel the explosion.

OPERATIVE Location? Immediately!

CAPTAIN Appears to be…our complex!

OPERATIVE Get there. Now!

INT. PARKING AREA

The two large doors are blown off, the Guard Soldiers thrown around, one still alive, moaning.

The trucks and cars have also been tossed about, dust and screams fill the air.

Simon is a tangled heap nearby, slowly gets up, blood running from his nose and ears, his cap, gun, and bag gone, his clothes tattered.

SIMON KAYLEE!

He hears a moan and finds her lying on her side, the hood of a truck on top of her. He quickly moves it from her and bends to her.

SIMON Kaylee! Oh God! Kaylee!

KAYLEE What…happened?

SIMON Oh, merciful God, thank you! Don’t move, let me examine you.

KAYLEE What…happened?

She also has blood coming from her nose and ears. She lets a painful SCREAM when Simon touches her left forearm.

SIMON It’s broken. Don’t move.

KAYLEE Can’t…where’s…Capt’n?

MAL (O.S) Right here.

He staggers up, full of cuts and a bloody nose, limping on his right leg, pistol still in his hands, hat and bag gone, clothes torn.

MAL Time to go.

He bends to help Simon pick up Kaylee and she lets another painful scream as they pick her up.

The three stagger toward the tunnel entrance. As they get to it, down come pounding FOOTSTEPS as a whole troop of Alliance soldiers enters, weapons raised, surrounding them.

Mal drops his pistol and a soldier gets it. The Operative comes behind the soldiers.

OPERATIVE Captain Reynolds. This will be the death penalty.

MAL I died a long time ago.

OPERATIVE Yes, I suppose we all did. (to his men) Doctor and Mrs. Tam need some assistance.

KAYLEE Mrs. Fyre. I ain’t changed my name…yet.

The Alliance soldiers and a few medics rush to help them. Simon helps Kaylee sit on a stretcher as he bends next to her.

SIMON Her left forearm is broken.

Simon lets a medic wipe the blood from his nose and ears, then does the same for Kaylee.

MEDIC Concussion from the explosion. Lucky you’re alive.

SIMON The doors blocked and absorbed the shockwave.

More personnel enter from the tunnel.

OPERATIVE Close all entrances, seal off the complex, render assistance to those that need it, put out the fires.

They rush to follow his orders. Simon looks at him.

SIMON You need my help.

OPERATIVE ( to a soldier) Escort Dr. Tam and give him whatever he needs to assist the injured, but do not let him out of your sight.

Simon looks at Kaylee and the medic with her.

SIMON Know what you’re doing?

MEDIC Yes, I’m not an…

OPERATIVE We will take good care of your wife, Doctor. Now please, there are more seriously injured I’m sure.

SIMON (to Kaylee) I’ll be back.

KAYLEE Simon? What happened? Who did this?

SIMON I don’t know.

Simon leans over kisses her left cheek, stands and follows the solder leaving Kaylee and Mal, who is guarded by several soldiers.

OPERTIVE You...have no idea what happened, do you?

MAL We were just looking for evidence that you all planning to do to Shadow what you did to Miranda.

OPERATIVE Is that a fact?

MAL You knew nothing about this place?

OPERATIVE I’m no longer the Alliance’s fair haired boy, as you have surmised already. But really you have no idea that it was in all likelihood your truck which you drove in here earlier tonight disguise as…Alouisus Neidermier…that just exploded.

MAL Can’t have been…your lot must have had themselves an accident.

OPERATIVE A possibility I’m sure, but unlikely.

MAL No way that truck…

OPERATIVE Who loaded it?

Silence.

OPERATIVE Did you look inside?

More silence, Mal’s face full of hate and anger.

OPERATIVE So. It seems you were duped Captain. By who, I can only guess your rebel friends.

MAL Son of a bitch. The both of you. (beat) How long have you got?

OPERATIVE Still enough time. To remove it.

MAL Simon. KAYLEE What are you talking about?

MAL He needs Simon. To save his neck.

KAYLEE What? Save…him?

OPERATIVE You are very bright Captain. A shame you never joined the Alliance.

MAL If you all had left Shadow alone all them years ago I’d be running my family ranch right now.

OPERATIVE Perhaps. Speaking of ranches, your rebel base should be just about destroyed by now.

EXT. RANCH – DAWN

Inara’s Shuttle pulls in behind the barn just as a large missile streaks in, hits the ranch house, and BLOWS it into a million pieces.

Bodies fly through the air. A running man outside is disintegrated by the wood splinters and explosive force. Cows and horses in the fields flee in terror.

The shockwave rips the doors off the barn and sends the shuttle tumbling end over end.