A New ‘Verse-I-Changes

The times they are a changin’. That had never been truer, thought Captain Malcolm Reynolds as he sat in the pilot’s seat, staring out into the vastness of space. Since the message about Miranda had spread the times had begun to change. Some of the change was slower than could be imagined, some was faster than anyone supposed was possible. Other changes were barely imperceptible across the Verse but made a difference to millions. And there were millions of other changes, small changes that only affected a few. Like the death of Hoban Washburn, the most fearless pilot this side of Shinon. His death, the removal of his conscious being from the ‘Verse, was an event that only directly affected a handful of people. But those handful were not just any random handful of space wanderin’ folk, not simply part of the lost multitude who roved the blackness searching for something…more. Or for nothing at all. This handful were the very ones who set all these changes in motion. Along the way they had lost friends, lovers, confidants, people they could trust. But they were still here. And they were still flying. Their actions had changed the face of the Verse, in all probability forever. When the wave about Miranda had gone out, the government’s reaction was panicked, to say the least. One councillor denied that such an event ever happened, a second blamed the incident on independent terrorists, still another came forward and apologized for the entire incident. It had been hidden from the people ‘for their own safety’ and ‘the greater well-being of the peoples of the Allied Planets’ he had said. The peoples reaction was sudden and often violent. There were riots in the streets, burning buildings, screaming, howling crowds, pulsing with anger and betrayal. More than once the police and soldiers sent in to quell these riots simply refused to subdue the citizens. There was still order, for the riots were not an everyday occurrence, but slowly everything outside the Central Planets was slipping from Alliance control. It was not just the ordinary people who were turning from the government. The military to found its loyalty wavering, its belief in the good and mighty Alliance shaken irreparably. Within two months of the Miranda incident desertion rates had tripled and the army could simply not spare the resources to track them all down. At the same time, the navy was suffering its own losses, almost a dozen Alliance cruisers having been taken over by mutiny or simply having gone rogue. As could be expected, as order decreased by opposition crime increased. Crime bosses became bolder, goods became easier to smuggle. Magistrates and powerful business men who had previously refused bribes out of a loyalty to the Alliance began to turn a blind eye to the goings on right under their nose, lining their pockets as crime ran rampant. Drug running, thievery, slave trade, piracy all thrived as the turmoil in the Alliance grew. For a man like Malcolm Reynolds and his crew these were good times, times for riches or at least a chance of never going hungry again. Jobs that’s had been increasingly difficult to come by suddenly became readily available, to the point where they could pick and choose the jobs they wanted. For the most part they stayed safe, keeping below the radar, not wishing to draw any further unwanted attention. That was not to say that these changes did not bring dangers as well, for they did. Because of the troubles many Alliance captains would shoot first and ask questions later when coming into contact with an unidentified or flagged vessel. Whether this was because they wanted to keep their crews busy and their thoughts away from mutiny or because they now believed in Reavers was unclear. The Reavers were the second danger, many of them having scattered after the battle over Mr. Universe’s moon. Others still had not followed Serenity to the battle, scattering into other places throughout the Verse. Before the Miranda message Reavers had followed relatively predictable patterns, sending out raiding parties from their area of space in such a way that they would not entirely be unexpected if not prepared for or anticipated. Now they simply roamed between all the planets, striking suddenly and without warning. The only saving grace was that there was not as many as there once had been. The final danger came from other criminals. With the influx of crime there came an influx of criminals and because of this, many of them had little to no respect for others of their calling. There were in fact many who preyed solely on their own kind. After all, who was going to report that their goods had been taken from them when they had stole them in the first place? Pirates roamed the skies, armed with powerful tractor beams and EMP blasts. If you weren’t on your toes, anyone was prey. These were boom times, these were doom times. It was a return to the bad old days, the all or nothing days. They’re back!

It was dinner time. Meal times had often been subdued affairs, the hole in the conversation and the table that Wash had left more than a little difficult to fill. But tonight seemed different. Their cargo hold was full, an entire complement of stolen Mule parts. Inara had announced her intention to remain with the ship for at least another six months. And Jayne was regaling them with a surprisingly non-vulgar tale of a time he had escaped the clutches of a local lawman with only the help of an overweight oxen, a fresh apple and a lasso. It was smiles all around the table. Zoe, cutting her apple into sections with her pocketknife, laughing along with the rest. Kaylee and Simon sitting alongside to one another, making faces at each other at Jayne’s audacity. River slurping her soup, flicking peas at Simon when he wasn’t watching. Inara looking radiant as her sweet peals of laughter filled the kitchen. Mal paused for a moment in his laughter. Without these people, without this ship, he would be nothing. Nothing but another piece of space junk floating uselessly through the endless black. He was so glad to have them, so lucky. It was a minor miracle that they were all still tog- WE-OH WE-OH WE-OH. The sound echoed throughout the ship. All the heads snapped up, the laughter ceasing abruptly. “Proximity,” snapped Zoe. “Bee Jwan!” cursed Mal, “River, you and me into the cockpit. Zoe, you too. Kaylee get to the engine room, Doc give her a hand if she needs anything.” The young couple nodded briefly and sprinted down the corridor, Zoe and River disappearing in the opposite direction. As Mal turned to follow them, Jayne’s arm stopping him. “Hey Mal? What am I supposed to do? There was fear in the big man’s eyes. He hadn’t quite been the same since the Miranda Message. Then again, none of them had. “You strap yourself in. Make sure Inara is safe.” Without another word he turned and dashed up into the cockpit. River and Zoe were already there, the young psychic strapped into the main pilot chair, like she had done so often since Wash had gone. Zoe had positioned herself to one side, checking the energy readings for Serenity. “Hostile?” Mal asked his first mate as he jumped into the co-pilot chair. Zoe nodded tersely. “Looks like it. They haven’t given us a hail. Pirates, I’d say” Mal smiled across at River, “Feel like doing some fancy flyin’ little albatross?” She grinned back at him, her perfect white teeth gleaming in the warning lights of the cockpit. “Always do.” “They’re engaging a tractor beam,” yelled Zoe. River pulled sharply back on the controls and the Serenity responded as if bonded to her, the ship heading straight up and over the blue crackling beam that shot out suddenly below them. River laughed with glee, the noise of sweet joy filling the cockpit. “Gorram it River!” cursed Mal, gripping the seats, “This ain’t supposed to be fun.” “Having fun anyway, Mal.” “Kaylee?” Mal asked the intercom, “How we doin?” “Almost prepped Cap’n. Keep ‘em busy for about another minute.” “Give me a shout when ya done.” “Will do Cap’n.” Mall turned back. “Think you can handle it?” “NO!” Rivers face had turned into a screaming mask, a hideous visage of terror. Zoe turned to the girl. “River? What is it? What’s wrong?” “They’re back. Goa Se! Here they come!” Mal reached over and switched main control over to the co-pilot. Whatever River thought was happening, she was in no condition to fly the ship. He stared out the front screen. There was nothing there. He knew that the pirate vessel was just behind them but they- An explosion rocked the ship. Zoe was thrown to the floor. Mal didn’t have time to turn and see if she was OK. He threw the ship into a dive and screamed into the intercom. “Jayne! Inara! We need some help up here.” There were clomping of boots and Jayne burst into the cockpit, closely followed by Inara. “Oh gods, Mal,” shouted Inara, “What happened here?” River was still screaming shrilly, yelling incoherently about monsters in the dark.. “Jayne, get River outta here!” Another explosion rocked the ship. Everyone staggered. Mal flattened out and took off straight again. “KAYLEEE!!!!” “Now cap’n. Punch it!” With a crackle of green and yellow fire, Serenity became nothing more than a dot on the horizon.