The Return Home – Part 12

Kaylee saw the Reavers coming for her as she lay on her side in the front of the truck and in terror she took out her pistol and just started shooting through the window. All her nightmares were coming true and she was so scared she was shaking. Her bullets did hit one Reaver and he went down but two more were at the window, the two which had spotted her earlier, and they kicked their heavy boots and smashed at the broken glass and reached for Kaylee as her pistol went dry. She still had her seatbelt on and one Reaver pulled a wicked looking curved knife and in a second the belt was slashed. Kaylee had been screaming and her brain was so overwhelmed with fear that she didn’t understand for a second that they weren’t going to kill her. Only as they started to drag her out of the truck did it hit home that they wanted to take her alive. And that could only mean one thing. She was invited to dinner, not as a guest, but as the main course.

A bloodcurdling scream tore from Kaylee’s throat as her life flashed before her eyes, her mother and father and Simon in her thoughts and the people on a ship and a ship she loved. Rough, scarred hands were pulling her down a street by the clothing and hair and then she saw him and screamed for her Capt’n. He fired and some of her assailants fell but then he was overwhelmed by the things that wanted to consume them and Kaylee knew it was all over for both of them. Through tears she saw him raise his pistol at her and heard him scream “I love you” and it looked like he pulled the trigger and through her tears she didn’t know if the gun fired or not.

Kaylee expected to die in that instant and knew he was doing it for her as the only way to avoid a death at the hands of the Reavers. But nothing happened. Kaylee didn’t know if the bullet missed or the pistol was empty but she wasn’t shot and she wasn’t dead. And then she wished she was as she was tossed into the back of a small vehicle and an evil smelling sack was placed over her head.

A guttural voice whispered as she lay on the floor and felt the vehicle moving. “Be smart and live. Fight and you die.” And strangely enough Kaylee took heart from those harsh words.

*************************************************

Zoe could see the carnage as Serenity came to a hover over the street battle, the front floodlights lighting up the area. She was on the edge of the cargo bay ramp, the ramp was down and Serenity was about fifty feet in the air, unable to land in the narrow streets. Standing next to Zoe were Simon, Inara and River, all with weapons in hand. They could see that Jayne was lying in front of the overturned truck and Zoe could see three Reavers approaching him. Two of Drummonds men were on the street near the truck and looked dead and she could see a third lying by the truck squirming and hold his guts, a large pool of blood around him. The fourth was lying out of the cab of the truck and as she spotted him two Reavers dragged him away and down the street and were gone before Zoe could get off a shot. But then it was Mal that got all of her attention and she saw at least five Reavers were on him and they were clawing and trying to rip his clothes off.

“Mal!” screamed Inara with her heart in her throat and she just started firing her pistol and Zoe joined her with her Winchester and then Simon fired also and they were all firing except River.

Without a word she leaped for the nearest balcony and landed like a cat on it as the others looked on in astonishment. In a flash she grabbed its railing and was over the side, and then down to the next balcony and so on down to the street. The rage of the Reavers threatened to overwhelm her but her friends needed her and she was there for them. Three of the Reavers around Mal were already down and the other two were looking up at Serenity and had pulled guns and had started firing up at the ship but in a second they were dead from River’s deadly pistol shots. She then turned on the ones going after Jayne, which were already tugging on his clothing and after three more pulls on the trigger they were down also.

Now River was under the ship and could expect no help from above as more Reavers approached, coming at a run from behind Serenity and with more shots she dropped some and then they were on her. She dipped under a swinging sword and picked up an abandoned battle axe and started swinging and slicing Reavers open. In ten seconds the streets were empty of Reavers except for the dead and wounded. River went to Mal and he was unconscious and bleeding from the head. Jayne was also out cold and then River suddenly came to a horrible realization: Kaylee was missing.

She reached out her thoughts for her and she picked her up, far away and all River felt from her was utter terror.

“Wash, land somewhere!” Zoe shouted into the cargo bay intercom and two blocks over Wash found a space big enough for the ship. It wasn’t even on the ground before Zoe, Simon, and Inara leaped off and ran to the battle scene. As the ship touched down Professor Drummond followed them, carrying Simon’s medical bag.

“Kaylee! Kaylee!” Simon yelled over and over and then he saw his sister standing there with a look on her face of fear and horror and sadness and Simon almost fell to his knees in anguish. “Where is she?”

Tears came from River’s eyes. “They took her.” And Simon just stared at her, not quite believing it.

“No, no, that can’t be!” he screamed in anguish but knew it was true or she wouldn’t have said it. “Not Kaylee! We have to find her. Now!”

“Simon! He needs help!” Inara said as she bent over Mal and saw the blood coming from his head.

“Jayne’s bad, too,” said Zoe as she looked at the big man lying out cold on the street.

“The Reavers took Kaylee!” Simon shouted. “We have to go get her!”

Everyone just looked at him in disbelief. “Oh, merciful Buddha, nooo!!” Inara said in a heart wrenching cry.

“You can’t help her,’ said Drummond in an emotionless tone, having seen this very scenario many times in the last sixteen years.

“I can,” said River with such determination Drummond wondered who she was to be so sure and unafraid of Reavers.

“Let’s hurry!” Simon said as he checked his weapon and she shook her head.

“They need you,” she pointed to wounded men. “This is what you do.”

“And what do you do little girl?” Drummond asked.

“I kill. That’s what I do.”

“Not without me,” said Zoe and River just nodded and without another word River took Inara’s pistol and all her clips and then the two warrior women of Serenity turned and ran down the street, River’s mind alive to where Kaylee could be.

************************************************

Kaylee was dragged from the truck she was in and roughly pulled up a set of stairs. The bag over her head made breathing and walking and even thinking difficult. She started to remember everything Inara had said to her back on the moon. Stay calm, stay safe, be strong and the Reaver’s words also gave her a small bit of hope. Something wasn’t quite right about the rumors about Reavers. For one, she didn’t know they could talk. Second, she was still alive, no one was trying to rape her or eat her or sew her skin into their clothing. For now anyways. And lastly, as she thought on the spikes on the road and the ambush, they sure knew how to make a plan.

Now she could sense others around her and there was an awful stench and then there were shouts and cries of “eat her” and “she’s mine” and Kaylee started to let the fear overwhelm her again. But the ones taking her shouted back “no” “she’s for the Colonel” and then there were no more shouts. A door was opened with a squeak and Kaylee was shoved forward and the bag was roughly taken from her head.

She was in a large room and Kaylee got the feeling it was some kind of gymnasium and maybe she was in a school or health club. There were spectator stands to her left and a large open area around her. At one end was a big table and many Reavers were sitting there and the table was covered in many bottles and what must be food, but Kaylee didn’t want to look too closely, afraid of what she’d see there. The whole area was lit with candles and torches, giving it an eerie quality. In the center sat a very large Reaver. Kaylee could see he wore the tattered remains of an Alliance officer’s uniform. He had long black hair and wore what looked like a necklace of human ears around his neck and a sword at his side. His face wasn’t as scarred as many of the others and as he looked at Kaylee he grinned and Kaylee could see many gold teeth.

“Come forth,” he said and his voice was clear and strong and commanding. Kaylee was pushed toward the table and she quailed and felt like the verse was about to end.

“What’s your name?” he asked in a strong manly tone and Kaylee was stunned by such a common question.

“Kaylee,” she said in a squeak and everyone started laughing, even the big man, as they could sense her fear. The laughter had an eerie quality about it, as if they weren’t laughing because they were happy or thought she was funny, but because something inside told them they should laugh, and it was if the laughter was fighting against the madness in them.

“Well, Kaylee. My men tell me you are a mechanic. Is this so?”

“Yes,” she managed to get out in a calmer voice.

The big man stood and she could she he was well over six feet tall, maybe even close to seven feet. He came around the table and stood before her and Kaylee almost died of fright at that moment.

“I’m the Colonel. This is my clan of the Cursed Ones. And now you will join us.”

Join us? But…but…are they going to turn her into a Reaver?

“I don’t want to be a Reaver,” she said quietly and everyone started laughing in that demented way again.

“Reaver is a disgusting term made by humans to name what they do not understand,” the Colonel stated with some venom. “We are the Cursed Ones, the Miranda people cursed to live this life. Yes, Kaylee, we know who we were, that we once were people like you. We know we have been changed. We struggle every day to control ourselves, to fight the madness. But we fail.”

As he said this he put on a big grin and all his clan waited in anticipation, knowing what he would say next. “But sometimes in failure, you find some pleasures in life.”

And then he took Kaylee’s arm and she cringed, was repulsed by his contact, his rough hands, tried to pull back but he held tight and leered at her. “The softness of human flesh, so lovely, especially a woman’s. So tender and…juicy!”

The whole hall erupted in howls and roars and even shouts of “eat her now” until he let go of Kaylee’s arm and raised his hands and then they were silent.

“But I need you Kaylee. You are a mechanic on a spaceship. I need you to do a job for me. My clan has been abandoned here for several months now. Our spaceship was attacked by our ‘rivals’ and we cannot repair it. You will. Or you will die, slowly and unpleasantly.”

Kaylee was too stunned to speak for the moment. They needed a mechanic! For a Reaver ship! “Ah, what kind of ship is it?”

The Colonel grinned as she said this. “The kind that needs fixing. Tonight you rest. Tomorrow you work.”

One of the two who had captured her spoke up, the one with the guttural voice, a touch of fear in it now that he spoke to the Colonel. “Sir, the others, they may have survived, may follow her.”

“Only if you were fool enough to leave a trail,” said the Colonel with menace.

“No sir…but she should get to work now…just in case…and if she can’t fix it…we can enjoy her supple flesh all the sooner.”

He had no sooner finished speaking then the Colonel had pulled his sword and in one swift swing cut his head off the shoulders. As blood sprayed into the air and across Kaylee’s face her senses couldn’t stand it and she just collapsed from this newest shock and fell to the floor. She was fortunate not to witness the mad scramble to consume the flesh of the dead Reaver. The Colonel ordered two of his clan to pick her up and not molester her, and then they took her to a small room where she was chained to a wall and then the door was locked.

**********************************************

Simon was shattered by what had happened and he moved in daze, working on pure instinct and not conscious thoughts, as he bent over Mal and examined his head wound. The skull was intact but he would need a scan to be sure.

“Need to get him on Serenity,” Simon said and that was going to be a chore, with Wash in the cockpit and only Simon and Inara and Drummond here. The truck was lying on its side and righting it would take time and they didn’t even know if it was still running.

“My shuttle,” Inara said as she grasped the situation and then she race back to where the ship was parked.

In a few minutes she was back and landed the shuttle in the narrow street. They carried Mal on board first and as Simon and Drummond went back for his man who was stabbed in the guts they realized he was dead.

“I’m sorry,” said Simon. “I should have treated him first.”

“Your mind is elsewhere. Second guessing and regrets are part of life but now is not the time. Now we must work,” Drummond replied as he walked toward Jayne.

They had a hell of a time getting Jayne into the shuttle, and had to take his weapons off him first, but with all three lifting and dragging they managed to get him inside. Simon and Drummond grabbed all the guns lying around also knowing they would need them and then in less than a minute they were back on Serenity. Wash met them with a stretcher and as they took Mal downstairs first they filled him in on all that happened.

“Oh, God. Kaylee,” Wash said as he couldn’t believe the Reavers had her. He looked at Simon and could see the man struggling with his emotions.

“We’re getting her back, she’s not dead,” Simon insisted but his face and voice lacked the confidence of his assertion.

As they entered the infirmary Simon had them set Mal on the floor for a moment. Then he had to decide if Jerry could be moved or not. After a second he thought it would be risky but necessary.

“Move Jerry into a passenger dorm, please,” Simon said and they took a second stretcher from a wall mount in the passenger dorm and Drummond and Wash moved Jerry, taking his IV bottle with them. With a lot of strain and grunting Simon and Inara got Mal’s heavy body onto the table. Simon immediately ran the scanner over his head.

“No fracture,” he said to Inara’s immense relief. “Concussion but no internal bleeding. He’ll have a hell of a headache. He needs a bandage.”

Simon started to apply a non-sticky bandage to Mal’s head, wrapping it around his skull, placing some blood absorbing cloth just over the wound first.

“What in the gorramn hell is going on?” said Jayne as he stood in the doorway, rubbing his right shoulder and head, where they could clearly see a large bruise forming on the right side of his face. He also had some scratches and small cuts from where he had hit the road. “We win?”

“No,” said Inara. “Sit down before you fall down.”

“Good idea,” said Jayne as he collapsed on a stool. Simon pulled him closer on the moveable stool and ran the scanner over his head.

“Nothing,” Simon said. “I mean, nothing broken. Bruised and battered, but no major damage.”

“I think I fell out of a truck,’ said Jayne groggily. “Mal Ok?

“Yes,’ said Inara and then she looked at Simon. “They will find her.”

“And I’m going to help” he said as he started to leave the room. Inara grabbed his arm.

“You aren’t a fighter. Let Zoe and River handle it. We need you here!”

“Handle what?” asked Jayne.

“The Reavers took Kaylee,” Simon said and as these words sunk in he let the emotions overwhelmed him and a big racking sob came from deep in his soul and Inara just held him.

Jayne was stunned by this news and it took a moment for it to register, his head still fogged up from the blow he took when he landed in the street from a moving truck. Little Kaylee, taken by the Reavers! Jayne Cobb was nobody’s hero and was one hundred percent for himself one hundred percent of the time. But now, in this situation, some things were too important to let selfishness get in the way. Since Ariel he had been thinking on how he could get back into the good graces of Mal and for that matter, even River and Simon. He could think of no better way than stepping up and doing what was right. Jayne struggled to his feet.

“Buck up, Doc. We’re getting her back. Let me get my weapons.” And then he exited, a little unsteady on his feet, but with a real purpose for once in his life.

“If she…I can’t stay here, I’m going with him,” Simon said and Inara knew he meant if she died he’d never forgive himself for sitting here doing nothing.

“They’ll find her, they’ll find her,” Inara said in her most soothing Companion tone.

Simon looked at her and knew he could tell her everything. “Just…I love her so much, have, since…Canton…You didn’t see but, I was beat by that madman, lying in the dirt, and she was so angry at me, because of what I had said when Mal found us in each other’s arms. And then she was there by my side when I thought I was going to die, and she picked me up, called me ‘honey’, brushed the dirt off me, took me back to Serenity, bandaged my cuts, soothed my bruises, inside and out. I …fell in love with Kaylee at that moment. I don’t know if I can live without her.”

“She told me all about it,” Inara said. “She said her heart almost broke into a million pieces when she saw him throw you to the ground, and he said he was going to kill you. She’s strong Simon, she has reserves of strength we don’t know about. She’ll live through this.”

Jayne came back at that moment and was loaded down with his weapons he got from the shuttle.

“Alright. I’m back in the fight. Time to go kill some Reavers. Come on, Doc,’ said Jayne and then he started for the door before Simon or Inara could tell him they didn’t even know where Kaylee was.

Wash and Drummond reappeared at that moment. “Going somewhere?” Wash asked Jayne.

“Got to find Kaylee,” Jayne said with determination.

“We go together,’ said Wash. “Flying is faster and I don’t think you’ll get far in your shape, Jayne.” Wash then took a communicator from his pocket. “Zoe, baby, what’s the news?”

After a few seconds came the reply. “Found where they got her, least River says so. A university complex, Miranda University. We’re at the main gate. Says she can feel her, that she’s still alive. Place likely to be crawling with Reavers, but can’t see any yet. River’s having a tough time controlling herself, too many of them. Need her medicine and some backup.”

“On the way,” Wash said and Simon suddenly felt a powerful love for all these people and he knew they were doing it for Kaylee but also for him.

“She’s a psychic?” Drummond asked and Simon just nodded as he started to pack River’s medication in his medkit

“My sister has many talents. Feeling the emotions of people is one of them. But with so many Reavers, mostly what she feels is their rage.”

“Let’s get to killing and quit with all the story telling,” said Jayne with some anger. “Get the boat in the air, Wash.

Wash ignored him as he turned to Inara. “Shuttle be quieter and easier to land.”

“Alright, I’ll fly it,” she replied. “Wash, you fly Serenity…and…and Professor Drummond, can you stay with Mal and Jerry?”

“Of course. I’ve picked up more than a little medical knowledge but I’m no doctor.”

“You don’t need to be,” said Simon. “Just make sure their bandages are fine and they are breathing and have a pulse. All there is to it.”

“I’m sure I can handle it,” Drummond replied and as Simon said thank you Mal suddenly spoke.

“I think I killed Kaylee.”

They were all stunned by these words. Simon looked at Mal in disbelief. “You did what?”

“Reavers were taking her so I…shot her,” Mal said in a weak, strangled voice but the guilt was very evident. “Only way…to save her.”

“No, Mal,” said Inara. “The Reavers took her. River sensed it, knows where she is.”

“She’s wrong.”

“We didn’t find Kaylee,” said Simon with a sense of rising panic. “Not her body, not anything. She’s not dead!”

Mal sat up and almost screamed out from the pain in his head. “But…I shot her…I think.”

“Mal, Simon’s right,” said Inara. “We didn’t find Kaylee, her body, nothing.”

Mal’s pistol was in his holster and he pulled it out and checked. Empty. He couldn’t remember if the pistol had fired or had there been a click of an empty chamber. As his head began to clear he started to remember the fight.

“Get the mechanic,” Mal said as he started to remember. “That’s what the Reaver said. ‘Get the mechanic’”

“A Reaver…spoke?” said Wash in disbelief. If he had seen Drummond’s daughter he would have been as less surprised as the others seemed at this tidbit of information.

“Of course they speak,” said Drummond. “They are human after all and must communicate with each other.”

“I thought they did all their communicating with their teeth,” Jayne stated and Drummond just sighed and ignored his comment.

“She’s alive,’ said Drummond. “They want her for something. She was singled out.”

Simon was torn between relief and shock. “But how would they know she is a mechanic?”

“This afternoon, we were on the roof,” said Inara, remembering. “Looking over the damage and Kaylee was fixing the window frames.”

“Spies,” said Drummond. “Someone was watching you.”

“Reavers don’t got any spies,’ said Jayne with a heavy dose of skepticism.

“I believe they are a lot more intelligent than you give them credit for,” said Drummond. “We have suspected that they watch us from nearby buildings. To signal out someone, to know her profession, yes, we cannot deny they were spying on us.”

“Let’s stop jawing and get to rescuing,” said Mal as he got off the table and then almost fell and had to grab the table to support himself.

“No, no,’ said Inara. “You’re staying right here mister.”

Mal shook his head and it hurt all over. And then he let go of the table and was able to stand straight. “Not when Kaylee’s out there and needs us.”

“Simon?” Inara said hoping he’d have a good reason for Mal to stay here.

“Do you think I can stop him? Actually, I don’t want to stop him.”

“That’s settled,’ said Mal and he could see Inara was mad but nothing would keep him from this. “Where’s Zoe?”

“Got Kaylee’s position, needs backup,” Wash replied.

“It’s the university,” said Drummond. “Once in the air you can’t miss the stadium, even at night it’s easy to spot. The main gate is to the west.”

“Okay, Wash get us in the air. We fly close, take in the shuttle, Serenity stays high and watches our backs. I’m flying the shuttle and Inara and Drummond stay here with Wash.”

“I’m going,” Inara said with determination and Mal turned to her, and the problem of a ship board romance reared its ugly head.

“I got no time for arguments. I got enough to do worrying over Kaylee to have you out there, too.” He said it in a gentle way, to show that he cared about her and didn’t want her in harm’s way.

Inara understood what he meant and he was being noble again but she felt like she need to go. “I just want to help.”

“Stay here and watch Jerry. That’s helping,” Mal said and then she just nodded and knew he was right.

“Were wasting time!” Jayne said with anger and they all went up to the shuttle and just as Mal was the last to board Drummond stopped him.

“Captain, how can my people help?” Drummond asked.

“You lost too many folks today on account of us and for that I do apologize. Be much obliged if you can get that space proof glass if it’s still intact back to the prison. I want it waiting when Kaylee is ready to get back to work.” And with that Mal jumped into the shuttle and in a few seconds Serenity was airborne and a few moments after that the shuttle departed for the university and what all hoped was a rescue operation, not the deaths of one or more of their crew.

************************************************

Zoe and River ran through the streets of the dead capital city of Miranda, turning left and right as River’s psychic waves reached out and touched Kaylee’s mind, following the fear of their captured friend and shipmate and also following a strong wave of rage emanating from a large group of Reavers. There were dead bodies everywhere, lying on the streets, in stopped buses and other vehicles, on park benches, a city of the dead. Zoe ran faster, hoping to stop Kaylee from becoming one of them. She began to see River starting to lose control as they approached a large complex of steel and glass buildings, the teen twitching and staggering, slowing down, holding her hands to her head. A sign indicated it was Miranda University, Capital City Campus. As they reached the sign River let out a loud moan and just collapsed and lay in a fetal position on the road, moaning in a low groan. Zoe picked her up and took her to the shelter of a nearby doorway.

“Reavers…too many,” River managed to gasp. “I can’t shut them out.”

“River, where’s Kaylee? Is she in there?”

River nodded. “Still…alive.”

At that moment Wash called them and Zoe told him what was going on. After a few more minutes Mal called her back.

“Zoe, we’re on the way. Report.”

“No activity, sir,” Zoe said and then asked Mal what the hell he was doing up when the last she saw of him he was face down in the street.

“Think little bump on the head keep me out of this fight? See you in a few.”

Zoe felt a surge of energy from Mal’s words and she knew he was hurt and that made his words all the more powerful. Mal wouldn’t take one of his crew missing lying down and that made him a real leader. Zoe checked her weapons and then took a step out of the shadows to get the lay of the land.

The main gate of the university was about a half block away. She couldn’t see any Reavers but it didn’t mean they weren’t there. The sun had gone down and there was no electric light. With no one to maintain the infrastructure she surmised that most of the planet was in a similar condition and their fly over of some towns and cites had revealed no electrical presence.

Five minutes later she saw the shuttle coming down the street, a shadow moving with lights out, flying low to the ground. It landed and the door opened and Mal, Jayne, and Simon came out all loaded down with weapons and Simon had his medkit also. Simon didn’t say a word but went immediately to River’s side and started to prepare an injection for her.

“Report,” Mal said to Zoe and she was all business, telling them what River said and how she hadn’t noticed anyone at the main gates. Mal took his communicator and called Serenity.

“Wash, what’s the lay out like?”

“We can see a lot of heat signatures on infrared in one place. Drummond says it’s the main gymnasium, next to the sports stadium. Through the main gates and then to the left about one hundred meters, big round stadium and the three story square building next to it. Mal, I count over two hundred heat sources. Some may be fires, but the rest….”

“Reavers,” Mal said quietly.

“And Mal, there’s a spaceship inside the stadium. From the looks of it, it’s a…Firefly.”

“The hell you say.”

“Not a word of lie. She’s cold, no power and on spec scope video it looks like it has some damage. She’s ugly looking, Reaver style I guess. Hey, I see two shuttles on it!”

“I think one of them should be coming with us. Ok, Wash, you stay high, keep a watch, and get ready for the pick up.”

“Let me talk to Zoe.”

Mal handed her the communicator. “I’m here Wash.”

“Zoe. Be careful. I love you.”

Zoe could sense the others staring at her in the gloom and was a slight bit embarrassed but knew her husband said this cause he worried he may never get a chance to say it again. “I love you too baby. We’ll be back soon, with Kaylee.”

“Roger that,” Wash said. “Serenity out.”

“What’s the plan?” Simon asked as he and River joined the others. Already River was calmer and all felt better knowing she was in the fight, Zoe especially. Mal and Jayne weren’t one hundred percent and Simon, despite willing to go to hell and back to save Kaylee, was not cut out for this. But River was an assassin no doubt about it and they needed her now more than even. Suddenly, Zoe had an idea.

“River, at the academy, did they teach you infiltration and scouting?”

“Yes, how to hide in shadows, how to move with stealth.”

Simon saw where Zoe was going with this. “No, not alone. Not River and Kaylee. I won’t allow it.”

“I’ll find her,” said River with such self assurance Mal knew it was the right move.

“Doc, all five of us tramping in there be Reaver bait for sure. But River alone, she’ll have a chance. Maybe only chance Kaylee will have.”

Simon knew he was right but still didn’t like it. “River, you find her, you bring her back. Any trouble, you call for us.”

River nodded as Zoe handed her the communicator. Jayne gave her one his knives and its belt and scabbard which she slung across her body from the shoulder, the belt too big for her waist.

“For close encounters,’ said Jayne and now River had two pistols and the knife and was ready.

“I’ll find her. For you brother. You did so much for me. Now it’s my turn,” she said directly to Simon and then without another word she turned and ran for the main gates and then was through and was lost in the gloom.

********************************************

High above Miranda a Reaver ship made its way past the main fleet and slowly entered the atmosphere of the planet. But the Reavers didn’t control this ship. Maston Forbes and the survivors of his Alliance gunship were in charge. His men were more than a little scared and uncertain of Forbes and his orders, but he said that ship they were chasing on Persephone was about and he was in command.

The Reaver’s had damaged the gunship airlock and electrical systems so badly they didn’t have much choice but to abandon it anyway. It took them a short time to figure out the Reaver ship controls. After all, it was a simple transport, a lot older than their gunship, but everything was in English and Chinese and all the principles were the same. The only thing Forbes worried about were the high level of rads coming from the engine area but he had his men seal off the engine room and told them this trip was going to be short anyway.

The last ten minutes passing through the whole Reaver fleet had been an exercise in terror none cared to repeat. No one had radioed or challenged them or anything. The things they saw, the condition of the Reaver ships, the bones of humans tied to the hulls, it was a macabre voyage through a kind of hell.

“Entering atmo,” said the Lieutenant on the bridge. “Where to, sir?

“We’re looking for a Firefly. Deploy all sensors toward the northern quadrant.”

“Ah, sir, most of these sensor boards are inoperable.”

“Understood, use what’s available,” Forbes said as he silently cursed but kept calm. Why would Serenity come to Miranda? It must be the broadcast. Cutter has kept too much to himself, leaving Forbes in the dark. Serenity and River Tam are connected to Miranda and maybe even that broadcast. The city in the broadcast was large, had modern buildings, it could be the capital. It was a shot in the dark but worth it.

“Head for the largest city,” he ordered and after a few moments the Lieutenant had that figured out from the rapid vid scans they were taking, one of the few sensors that worked. The cameras had just taken a picture of a very large city in the north that was going into the dark of night. It would take a short time to reach it and it would be night there, Forbes heard him explain, and Forbes told him to set the course. Soon he would have his prize.

***********************************************

“There is nothing I can do, my friend,” Shepherd Book said to Jonathan Frye quietly as they sat in prayer in Jonathan’s prison cell on the Alliance cruiser Dortmunder.

“I understand, Shepherd. I kinda thought it was impossible.”

They were still far away from Miranda and Book knew it was too soon to do anything. Book had racked his brains for the last 24 hours but could think of no way to free Jonathan without attracting unwanted attention. The only thing he did was send a message to the Prime Minister in code explaining what had happened so far, but leaving out details of Jonathan Frye. The Prime Minister knew about the Tams and Cutter’s interest in them but Book didn’t want to say too much about Serenity’s capabilities or the Fryes.

“Be patient. We are going to Miranda and I have a strong feeling we will be meeting Serenity soon,” Book whispered.

Jonathan suddenly grew worried. “That ain’t good news, but I figured they would be there. I was really hoping Kaylee and the ship be far away.”

“Perhaps, but maybe there is some salvation in this for you. Once the Reaver fleet is destroyed, then we will be able to take care of Cutter, and leave this ship and find your daughter and her ship. The closer we are to them the easier it will be.”

“You sound pretty confident. Just hope she and the others are doing alright and ain’t in any kinda trouble.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve said many prayers for them and I’m sure God is looking over them right now.”

“Best you say a prayer for me and you also, Shepherd, cause we’re the ones in the middle of whole swarm of people we just don’t like.”

********************************************************************

Kaylee was also in just such a predicament and also prayed to God and Buddha and all the other religions she could think of but she was still in a small room chained to a wall, a prisoner of the Reavers. After waking up she realized her face was damp and knew it was blood, a Reaver’s blood, and then became violently ill from the memory of what had happened. After losing her lunch she managed to move an arm to wipe her mouth and face and felt a little better. Simon and the others must be going crazy now, trying to find her. Then she remembered the Capt’n and Jayne, both lying in the street, Reavers everywhere and she suddenly started crying, thinking they were dead.

“Don’t cry, I’m here,” said a voice and Kaylee’s heart soared with joy as River started to unlock her chains. With a key no less.

“River! Oh, thank God! There’s Reavers everywhere!”

“Not anymore. They ran off a few moments ago, leaving one to guard this door. He’s dead now.”

Kaylee stood and gave River a big hug. “I thought…I thought….”

“You’re alive but now its time to go,” River said, suddenly her mind far away. “They need our help.”

“Who needs our help?”

“Mal and the others. At the stadium, near the Firefly.”

“What…Serenity?”

“No, the other one. They’re is a Firefly in the stadium, in bad shape. I told them to wait, I would find you. But the captain…”

“Hates waiting.”

River nodded and handed Kaylee one of her pistols. “Time to move.”

And then they left the room and were running trough the now empty gymnasium toward the sounds of gunfire and screams. As they exited the main gymnasium doors that led to the stadium they were suddenly confronted by the Colonel and about twenty of his clan, and there was no battle in the stadium but the sounds of gunfire were now in the distance.

“Leaving so soon?” he said to Kaylee and she just quailed and then his gaze fell on River. “Ah, fresh meat. Boys, take her.”

With that his clan leaped at River and in a flash her pistol and knife were out and the fight was on. **********************************************

Waiting wasn’t Mal’s strong suit nor Jayne’s and five minutes after River left, they both were getting antsy.

“Hate this standing around,’ said Jayne as he paced in front of the shuttle as he rubbed his shoulder.

“You think I like it any better?” said Simon in frustration. “My sister and future wife are in the middle of over a hundred Reavers.”

“We ought to do something,” said Mal. “Anything.”

Zoe was the only calm one and she had a bad feeling where this was going. “Give River a chance.”

“She needs a distraction,” Mal said and Zoe knew there was gonna be trouble. She wished like hell Inara had come, she could have been a voice of reason here but maybe even Mal wouldn’t listen to her.

“Let’s get that left side shuttle off that Firefly,” Mal said suddenly. “Might draw them away from River and give her the chance she needs to get Kaylee.”

“Sir, even if we manage to get in the stadium and on that Firefly, how in the hell are we going to get that shuttle in the air? Wash said the ship was cold, had no power.”

“Don’t mean shuttle isn’t ready to fly,” said Mal. “Shuttle has its own power and fuel source.”

“Say it does. Then how do we undock it from the ship? The shuttle docking controls are in the Firefly cockpit, and it needs power to move the shuttles out of their docking stations.”

Mal didn’t have an answer to that one except, “It’ll work.”

“How do you know?” asked Simon, suddenly very skeptical of this idea.

“Look,” Mal began. “Kaylee and River are in there and were out here and that ain’t right. End of story, let’s go.”

“Darn straight,” added Jayne.

So that’s what it was all about thought Zoe and she felt the same way.

“You got my back?” Mal asked her and she knew not to argue when he asked that.

“Always, sir.”

Mal just nodded and then everyone checked weapons. Jayne locked and loaded Vera and then led off through the gates. In a few minutes had found the outline of the stadium in the gloom. No Reavers could be seen but it didn’t mean they weren’t there. Then Simon pulled out a pair of orange tinted spectacles from a pocket on his medkit and put them on. Mal had not seen them since the day Simon had come on board Serenity. Everyone stopped as they looked at Simon as he was clearly scanning ahead of them with the glasses.

“Care to fill us in Doc?” Mal asked in a way that suggested Simon should have done so a might sooner.

“A little something I picked up on Osiris when making my plans to free River,” Simon said in a whisper. “They block retinal scans, and have enhanced night light gathering and x-ray scanning abilities.”

“And you’ve had them the whole time?” Jayne said with a bit of irritation.

“Yes. Just never had a use for them until now…stop…two Reavers by the stadium gates.”

Ahead about fifty meters they could just now see the outlines of two Reavers standing near the gate. Mal used hand signs to Zoe and Jayne to approach with stealth and kill them with the knife. A few minutes later and the job was done and the two Reavers were slowly lowered to the ground in pools of their own blood.

“Christ they smell!” Jayne whispered as he wiped the blood off his knife on the Reavers tattered clothing just as Mal and Simon came up to the gate.

“Hygiene doesn’t seem to be a strong point with Reavers,” said Mal and then they stepped through the short tunnel and halted just as they reached a running track that went around the stadium. They saw the Firefly parked where Wash said it would be, in the center of what looked like a soccer pitch.

It was the same model as Serenity with the extender stabilizers but she was nothing like Serenity at all. It was scarred and had dents and rips in the outer hull and she had streaks of what looked like paint on her, what color they couldn’t tell. There were skeletons draped over the sides and the nose and there was a very obvious missile hit on the left side behind the left VTOL. Mal figured this was why she was grounded and if they thought Kaylee could fix it than they were hoping for a miracle. In a shipyard with five men helping her, five men who knew what they were doing, and she’d have a chance of patching that gaping hole and making the ship space worthy. But not here, not in these conditions. Kaylee was good but she couldn’t do the impossible. The only good Mal saw of this Firefly was the left side shuttle, which was there and looked intact.

“Simon, any company about?”

“Plenty,” he said as quietly as he could. “Five off to the right in the stadium stands, two more under the ship, lying down, could be asleep, two by the nose of the ship, standing there by that fire, and at least three more on those far gates. I think they lead into that square building Wash said was the gym…wait…oh God…it’s River. She’s approaching that door now. Kaylee must be in there…they’re going to see her! We have to do something!”

But Simon didn’t have to do anything because what he and the others didn’t see were the four Reavers hanging around the stands above where they had entered. The Reavers heard them talking, as quiet as they had tried to be, and now with terrifying growls leaped to the ground directly in front of them, all four brandishing edged weapons.

Zoe reacted first and shot the Reaver in front of her straight through the head. Once that first shot was fired there was no sense in holding back and all of them just opened up. Vera sang its song of violence in Jayne’s hands and a Reaver was almost cut in two by the burst he fired into him. The one directly in front of Mal stabbed with a spear, which missed skewering the captain by mere millimeters. With one hand Mal grabbed the shaft pulled the Reaver toward him and shot him in the face point blank with his pistol. A Reaver blade just missed Simon’s ear as he ducked to the side and then all his anger and frustration came out and he shot the Reaver in the chest about ten times with his automatic. As this last one fell they realized that they had stirred up a hornets nest as all the Reavers in the stadium started toward them.

“Fight or run, sir?” Zoe shouted as she dropped to one knee and started aiming and shooting at the figures running toward them. Jayne lobbed grenades toward the Reavers as bullets started coming at them and then before Mal could answer Zoe he saw a massive amount of Reavers pouring out of the gymnasium. No one but Simon noticed as River stayed hidden in the shadows and then entered the door as the Reaver flood ended.

“She’s inside!” Simon shouted and then Mal made his decision.

“We run!!” Mal yelled as several dozen Reavers headed toward them. There was a time for bravery and a time to run and this was running time and Mal figured they did their job by getting the Reavers to chase them and not River. Jayne tossed one more grenade into the narrow tunnel as they exited and then they were flying back the way they came toward the shuttle. Simon ran like hell and turned once or twice to fire but mostly he just ran. Zoe and Mal’s military training took over and Jayne caught on quick. One would stop and lay down fire while the other two dashed back, found cover and reloaded. Then they would stop and fire while the first shooter went back, taking turns running and shooting.

Mal, Jayne, and Zoe bowled over at least a dozen Reavers doing this and then they were back at the shuttle. Simon already had the door opened and stood and fired while Mal and Zoe jumped on board. Then Jayne took over and tossed his last grenade and then he was in the door.

Several Reavers tried to grab onto the shuttle as it rose in the air but a few shakes and Mal had them knocked off.

“Capt’n!” came a voice from a communicator, a voice they thought they might never hear again and Simon leaped to the comms and answered.

“Kaylee! Kaylee! Where are you?”

“Simon! They got us trapped in the stadium! Near the gym gate! River’s fighting like mad! We need you!”

“Hang on!” he shouted and Mal didn’t need to question anything just flew straight at the stadium.

They could see the fight as they came in. River and Kaylee were by the gym doors, Kaylee firing a pistol and River in front of her, fighting like a whirlwind, with two blades in her hands, keeping the Reavers away from Kaylee, and Reavers were falling in heaps. Then Mal saw a massive Reaver enter the fight and the others backed away. Just as the big Reaver was pulling out a sword and was about to come to blows with River they all noticed the shuttle coming in for a landing. Mal steered it right for the head of the big one and he leaped out of the way just in time as the shuttle landed on the dead bodies in front of River. The shuttle door was facing them and Simon had it open in a second and then Kaylee was through and in his arms, followed by his sister.

“Kaylee!” he shouted as he hugged her tight.

“Oh, God!” was all she could say and she never wanted to let go of him ever again as she squeezed him with all her strength.

“All aboard,” said River calmly and Simon looked at her and tears came to his eyes and he couldn’t even get out a thank you. Not for the first time Simon questioned all that had happened to him and River and wondered if the things that had been done to her were a curse or a blessing.

“Punch it, Mal!’ Jayne shouted as he closed the door and Mal hit the controls that sent them skyward toward Serenity and safety.

“Wash, we’re coming home. All present and accounted for,” Zoe shouted with glee into the comms.

“Roger that baby,” came the relieved reply. “Be waiting for you.”

As the Colonel watched them go he felt a burning rage in his heart and if he could have leaped into the sky and knocked that ship down with one hand he would have done so in a heartbeat. Many more of his clan were dead or wounded and still his ship was grounded and the Professor remained out of his hands. He was too weak, his numbers two small now and he knew he had to bury the hatchet with his rivals in space.

He shouted orders for his clan to care of the wounded and bring the dead to the kitchen while they were still fresh. Another human belief that Reavers only ate the living and not their own was not true, although no one was about to prove or disprove it. After this was done the Colonel went to the stadium’s upper levels to a room only he had the key for. Inside was a communications center, used for broadcasting sports games in the past, and the Colonel had one trained clan member who knew radios and managed to find a supply of batteries to run it. He got on a radio, low frequency, and contacted those in space. After ten minutes of talking to his main rival Reaver clan, with a lot of groveling on his part and many promises made, it was agreed to make the next attack a coordinated strike on the prison, from the ground and air. One way or another they would have the Professor and if he had a cure for them, he would produce it or die. And if he died, then they would all be doomed forever.

***********************************************

As Wash came in for the pick up his radar indicated a ship entering atmo high above and to the west of their position. It was far away and hard to tell what it was but the only ones about were Reavers so Wash guessed it could only be them. Drummond was on the bridge with him and Inara had just come upstairs to see what was happening.

“Did they find Kaylee?” she asked, heart in her throat.

“On the way home now,” Wash answered and Inara let out a gasp and a small tear of happiness trickle down her face as she closed her eyes and gave thanks to Buddha for watching over Kaylee once again.

“They aren’t approaching,” said Drummond as they noticed the ship staying high on the edge of space.

“Watching us,” said Wash and then he informed Inara of all that was happening.

“I don’t believe that’s a Reaver ship,” said Drummond. “Reavers have never just hung up there, observing. They only come here to get something or to attack us.”

“If it isn’t the Reavers, then who?” asked Inara and no one had an answer as they watched the ship come almost directly over the city, high above Serenity.

***********************************************

“I think it’s a firefight,” said the Lieutenant as the Reaver ship Forbes had commandeered soared high over the capital city of Miranda. On the vid scanners they could see small explosions and tracer bullets flying and then what looked like a shuttle flying into the stadium and then taking off again in less than a few seconds. In the middle of the stadium was the outline of a Firefly. With limited scanning capability they couldn’t tell if it had power or not. As they followed the shuttle high in the sky they could see another Firefly.

“There’s two of them,” the Lieutenant said. “Who do we attack, sir?”

This was totally unexpected. Two Firefly’s. Which one was Serenity, if either of them? If his orders were to destroy the ship, then it would be no problem. But he was told to capture it and in particular its mechanic Kaylee Frye.

“We wait and observe,” Forbes finally said. “The first one looks like it’s staying in the stadium. Let’s see where the second goes.”

**************************************************

On board the Dortmunder Adam Cutter sat on the bridge and contemplated the situation. They were still two days away from the Burnham quadrant, even at top speed, and more than ever he cursed the slowness of space travel. That made the capture of Serenity and that FTL drive of paramount importance.

“Message, sir, classified wave, live,” said the radio operator.

“My ready room,” Cutter replied and then went off to a small room to the side of the bridge where the captain or admiral or whoever was in charge could deal with certain matters in private. Cutter sat behind a desk and turned on the Cortex screen and went immediately to the message section. The image of one of his Operatives on Haven appeared. He was Chinese and was a veteran of many operations and had the scars and the wisdom to prove it.

“Many greetings, High Chancellor. I bring bad tidings,” he said in English with just a slight accent that gave him an air of dignity.

“Report,” Cutter said curtly.

“Maston Forbes ran into the Reavers. He was doing a recon as per your orders. When he was overdue with his report we began a search. We have found the gunship adrift and without power, midway between Haven and Miranda.”

“What about Forbes and the crew?”

“We sent over an exploration team. There is much damage and bloodshed. Several dead crew were on board as were about three dozen dead Reavers. The airlock was badly damaged and there was a hull breech. The ship had no power and appeared to have been hit by an EMP. We did not find the bodies of Forbes or most of his men. Most of the food and water is missing.”

“Then they are alive. Forbes is very good, almost as good as you.”

“If you say so, sir.”

“I do. He has captured that Reaver ship.”

“Then why didn’t he return to Haven, sir?”

Cutter thought for a moment. What are you up to Forbes? There could be only one answer. “Forbes has a different mission from yours. He has work to do on Miranda.”

“And our mission, sir? Is it still a priority?”

“Yes. But wait for the fleet. After we destroy the Reavers, you will search Miranda and bring those who made the broadcast to justice.”

“Our kind of justice?”

“Most definitely,” Cutter said and then ended the wave.

He turned his attention now to a matter that still disturbed him, the matter of Shepherd Book. On his desk was a copy of a coded communication made from within his ship, an unauthorized communication, sent through a Cortex screen in the chapel to the office of the Prime Minister on Londinium. It was in a code, a very old code, and his techs had almost missed it in the regular classified Cortex traffic from the fleet. But that old code was made for old computer programs and it couldn’t fool the newest software designed to track unauthorized messages. Soldiers on duty were strictly forbidden to send waves except with permission of their commander, thus the software to track unauthorized ones. This Book was outside of those regulations for regular waves but coded transmissions were another matter.

Cutter didn’t know this code at all and that made Book someone that could be a threat and maybe even a spy for the Prime Minister. If Blakely had sent a spy in his midst, and Book was her man, then Cutter had serious problems on his hands. Susan Blakely didn’t trust him, he knew that already, and her sending him to destroy the Reavers and find out what happened on Miranda already spoke volumes to her lack of trust in him. Well, there was only one way to take care of spies. He contacted his head of security.

“Captain, please find Shepherd Book and escort him to my ready room immediately. And make sure at least four heavily armed security men accompany him.”