Aries stared at the creature in front of him and marveled at his own work. The lupine features mixed well with the boy’s body structure, but that wasn’t all. The way that the two minds seemed to complement each other was what he was truly proud of. Skoal had wanted a warrior/psychic to work with, and they had found him among the Independent’s. He had been nothing more than a child when they found him, barely eighteen. Some had told them that he was too old to truly be adapted to the program, but they had proved them wrong. The black claws flashed like jet in the dull light of the room. He knew that Bo thought it was the control room, but it was something completely different. A growl tore through his thoughts as the beast tried to break into his mind. ‘I think not my little pup. You won’t be clouding my thoughts like you cloud his.’ Aries laughed. Bo moved. So quickly that he almost landed the blow that Aries saw coming. The claw buried itself deep in the control panel, causing sparks to fly into the air. The lights went dark for a moment. When they came back up, Aries could see the surprise in his eyes as he looked around the room. It was now under the garb of a ship’s cargo area. Aries thought the similarity to Malcolm Reynolds ship was striking. Bo obviously agreed, but there was still confusion in his eyes. Aries laughed a deep and cold laugh. He reached to the burned mule at his side and grabbed the shotgun that was holstered there. Bo saw it coming and jumped into the air, landing on the cat-walk above them. The steel pellets sprayed the metal wall. “Ok, so you’ve learned something new?” Aries chuckled as he took aim again. “Maybe” Bo growled. Aries let loose another swarm of steel and yet again Bo dodged it, jumping sideways. He grabbed one of the posts holding the grating up as he flew through the air. He grabbed it and swung his body around, causing him to fly back towards Aries. Bo’s clawed foot collided with Aries chest, sending him soaring back into the wall. Bo lunged forward, clawing into the metal siding behind where Aries had been. “Bravo! Bravo my boy. You’re doing a great job. Making me very proud.” Aries laughed from the center landing. Bo shook his head. How had Aries moved so quickly? Suddenly he was on him. A fist met Bo’s jaw, and then a foot met his stomach, slamming him to the wall behind him. Something embedded itself in his shoulder, causing him to howl with pain. Blood dribbled down his arm as he tried to rip the spike from his shoulder. It wouldn’t be that simple. It had pierced the metal on the other side and seemed to have an anchor of some sort. Bo’s eyes flashed yellow as he wrenched the spike, metal and all, from the wall. It wouldn’t be coming out of his shoulder, but at least now he could move. ‘You got any idea what the hell is making him so fast?’ Bo asked his darker half. ‘It’s not his speed; it’s something else that’s allowing him to do this.’ Bo turned to face the war-monger, the smug grin across his face infuriating the beast more and more. Claws flashed as Bo swung at him again, but air was all he was met with. Another spike was rammed through his back, causing him to fall to his knees in pain. ‘Why can’t I catch him, dammit?!’ He heard his spine push the spike out, cracking and hissing as it regrew itself. Bo yanked the spike from his back and saw what was holding the other in place. Two heavy hooks were housed in the end, and obviously deployed when they went through resistance. Shaking his head as he stood, Bo heard footsteps to his right. He swung his arm out and felt his claws find home in human skin. Aries shouted in pain and surprise as he leapt back, grabbing at his arm. ‘So that’s it. Got an image shadow program running in this gorram fun box.’ Bo thought. He smiled, his fangs glittering in the mock Serenity’s cargo lighting. He had the hwoon dan now. An image appeared in front of him, taunting him with that smug grin, but Bo heard the thudding of Aries heart in the corner of the cargo bay. He decided to do something that was far from canine, but he was sure his feline counterpart that was worlds away would have enjoyed watching. He decided to play with his food. He lashed out at the image, catching nothing but air in his teeth. The footsteps sounded again, but he was quicker than the veiled assailant. His foot met Aries’ chest, sending his body flying. He landed with a thud, a few feet from what would have been Jayne’s workout bench. Bo pounced, grabbing the man’s arms and pinning his legs with his feet. The image around him faded and became the dull room that it was meant to be. Grey panels lined the walls, wires and feeds traced through them. Bo leaned close to Aries’ ear and whispered menacingly. “You made this beast. How does it feel when it gets out of its cage? When it’s hungry? When it wants blood?” Bo forced his mind to drive the machine around him. The room flooded with red, and then slowly changed to show a small town. To their left, Aries saw Bo walk out of a gun store, a rifle in his hands and his knuckles white. The young man’s eyes flashed yellow as he stared at the oncoming villagers. The Bo that was in the room made a quick maneuver and heard the satisfying snap of Aries’ joints as his knees and elbows were destroyed. Bo dragged his claws along the soft flesh, feeling it tear beneath his weight. “Now you’ll see what you’ve done to me.” Bo snarled as he stood. A door appeared behind him and he walked through it. It hissed closed behind him as his body returned to almost normal. His claws and fangs remained, as did his now yellow eyes. He turned to the wall of the ship and planted his hand deep within its metal skin. A bundle of chords met his fingers. He grabbed it and tore it from the wall. Sparks flew and heat blasted his face. He felt his skin scorch, but then felt it regenerate just as quickly. He walked back down the stairs he had come up earlier and found his way into the holding area. Two doors were closed out of the six that lined the walls. He could smell the whiskey that had to be from Tyler’s private store, and the perfume of Monte’s hair. He reached the first door and yanked it from the hinges. As he expected, Smiley was lying face up on the floor, his eyes closed and a large bruise on his forehead. He left that door and opened the one to Jesse’s room. There she sat, her eyes fully open, staring at a screen in front of her. On it was Aries, bleeding in the floor, screaming like a madman. Lights came on somewhere in the back of his mind. She turned and looked at him, fear evident in her eyes. “You’re- you’re-” She stuttered. “For lack of a better word? A Werewolf. What he made me” Bo said motioning to the screen. His fangs glistened in the light and she cringed as he moved forward. Pain erupted in him. How could she be afraid of him. His pain erupted in his head as he looked at her. He sighed. “Take the VALOR. Get as far away from here as possible. Aries isn’t the only one in this quadrant that would like my head on a plate, so the further you go the better.” He turned and left, his feet making no noise on the grates as he disappeared into the dark hollows of the large ship.

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Smith woke up to find Jesse in the Pilot’s seat of the VALOR. Her face was tear-streaked and her knuckles were white from gripping the wheel so tight. He looked around and didn’t see Bo anywhere. He went to ask but was silenced when she looked over at him. He knew Bo was gone. Questions flooded his mind and confusion clouded that, but he knew now wasn’t the time to ask. He stood and went to the kitchen. There on the counter was his last bottle of whiskey. He stared at it for a long time. He reached out and snatched it from the counter. He pulled the cork off, and threw it across the room. He lifted the bottle, and let the liquid flow freely. It swirled gently down the sink as Smith thought of the young man that had given him a life here on this boat. The amber liquid disappeared into the drain as he tossed the bottle in the trash.

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Worlds away, River felt pain erupt, felt it deep in her gut. It felt like someone had kicked through her stomach to her spine. Bo’s eyes flashed in her mind. Then something peculiar happened, they flashed yellow. Then she knew. The secret he had tried to hide from her was slowly becoming clear. What they had done to him there. She shook her head and tried to reach him, but she couldn’t push her mind that far. She let tears slide down her face as she flew SERENITY on through the black as she thought about him.

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A screen flashed in the black room. On it was a list of data. The data flew across the screen and finally stopped. A name blinked at the top of the screen. A last name. CHEEK

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(I’m sooo sorry it took me this long to get a post in. I’ve been swamped at work and finally got some time to myself, figured I owed my loyal readers something, even if it meant leaving them wanting more. Hope to see you round here again.)