River flew down out of the tree that was next to the feds, having climbed up not a minute before they came. She could have told the rest, but that would have meant someone getting shot. And, the feds had armor, which was just plain unfair to them. So, she would take them all herself. Easy, really. The feds were trained for shooting, not hand to hand, like the types she excelled in. So, when she dropped out of the tree screaming like a harpy on 'shrooms, they were even more surprised, which prevented them getting a quick kill. She landed lightly, handspringing up and wrapping her legs around a feds neck. With a quick twist, she snapped it. He fell limply, head hanging at a crazy angle. From there, she backflipped at another, taking the dead feds knife first. She went behind the agent, turned around, and slit his throat. He cried out as he fell, clutching his throat, trying and failing to stem the flow of his lifeblood. She used his body as a pedastal, and dropkicked a oncoming fed. He dropped like a stone. Some one grabbed her from behind. She elbowed him in the groin, then flipped over him as he clutched his bruised pride. Screw nobility. Two more came at her, guns useless except as fancy clubs. She took both out with one kick to both their chins. It was true that she was outnumbered. But she knew the five deathstrikes. The three chest strikes were out due to armor, but the neck strike and kick weren't. And she took out five with just those two strikes. The seargent came at her, roaring like a bear. She used a leopard strike to his throat to collapse his esophogous. He couldn't even choke, just knelt on the ground as his face turned blue and his eyes bugged out. Horrible way to go, really... But she'd no time to dwell on lifes cruelities, as there was still roughly a dozen feds to kill and maim. Just one of those days. Seeing strength in numbers, at least four rushed her from all sides. When would they learn? She did a mid air split that took out two of them, catching both under their chins. She took down the other two in a flurry of punches and kicks. Add to all this, she took a gun as it fell from mid-air. She trained it on the eight remaining feds, who had taken the liberty of bunching up in a group. Within seconds, the high calliber rifle shredded them into meaty chunks. So much for the armor... She went up the ramp towards Mal an Co. She wasn't even breathing hard. She shook her head. "You all take so much looking after." *** The biggest city on Ptah was named Xanadu by name, but not nature. Garbage littered the streets, and dogs ran wild, along with flesh and bone children. The huts in the poorer sections (which was, coincedentally, nintey percent of the city) reminded them a little too much of Lilac and Haven. They sped on. Their contact for the job was one Ricardo Revera. But to his enemies, he was 'Ricky the Fish', for god knows what reason. And he owned a fine bar named the Grubby Trout. And, indeed, it looked like a rather grimy fish. Yep, thats right. They were to meet Rick 'the Fish' Revera, in the Grubby Trout, in Xanadu. The 'verse just got weirder with each look. Mal, Jayne, Zoe, Simon and Kaylee all came into the bar, eyes adjusting to the dim light. Inside, it stank of the reek of beer and unbathed men. Not many people actually inhabited the bar, and all who did were too far gone to do anything about it. 'Cept for one guy, sitting at a corner next to the bar table. Mal took him to be Ricky, as he looked a lot like a fish monger, thanks in part to his apron and angry expression. Fish mongers were never the happiest a folk... Mal walked up to him, not trusting him a bit. "You Revera?" "Who wants ta know?" "Its buisness. We're from a guy by the name of Mark Chang, who is looking to buk some of your merchandise." "Ah, Chang...an' who're ya'll?" He seemed a mite less hostile when there was money to be had. "I'm Mal, from Serenity. This heres my crew. You gotta problem with that?" A slightly challenging tone entered his voice. "Don' know why I should." "Good. Now, what sort of merchandice is we talkin' 'bout here?" "A highly profitable one. Wait here a bit, I'll go get a sample." He bustled off to a back room. Mal sat back, knowing that Revera would take a while. He amused himself by watching Simon get drunk off the local booze, which was always loads a entertainin'. Kaylee joined in, but he, Jayne, and Zoe stayed away from it, for reasons best left unsaid. In a shorter time then Mal expected, Ricky came back, lugging a small crate. "He's sellin' gorram boxes?!?!" asked Jayne a bit too loudly. "Whats in the box, Jayne," said Zoe in her why-in-the-ruttin'-hell-ain't-you-dead-yet? voice. "Oh..." Revera put it on the small table, then opened the box with a flourish. Inside lay several dozen long sticks, looking a bit like licorice. "Naphim Stiks," said Ricky to their inquiring stares. "Newest drug from 'round the core. Highly addictive, you're on it for life. And heres the best part: it ain't even illegal yet. Slips in all easy like, customs don' give it a second thought, pass it off as a sweet or someat like 'at." He smiled a grin that made him look almost yet not quite but still almost evil. "Fifty to a box, and just one stick will get ya a good twenty credits. Now, I have a certain surplus of this, which I may be willing to part with for a small fee..." "How muchuva surplus we discussin' here," asked Mal. "Five hunnert boxes like this." "Wo de Mah!" said Mal. Jayne was even more inventive, spewing out a shiny cuss that sounded near enough to 'Mother of the Lord and all her wacky nephews and neices, the next door neighbors of the beast.' Or someat close to that. Zoe was silent. Ricky smiled benevolently. "Jus' talk it over it' yer boss, an' we'll come to terms then. Here, take one as a...'souvenier'." He went back to the back room of the bar, leaving a single stik on the grimy table. Mal pocketed it. Mal got up to leave, followed by his crew. "Zoe, prep the mule. Jayne, go get our two love-doves and cage 'em." "Say, Mal, that rhymed." "Tha's the idea, Jayne." *** Serenity hovered near space, ready to break into the black in a moment. Mal, Inara, and Billys cold dead carcass were in the spare shuttle, going back to Xanadu. "We'll be there in a couple minutes, Mal," said Inara. "Good," he said absentmindedly. Inara didn't particullary like his tone, and so set the shuttle on autopilot and went back to him. In the shuttle proper, Mal knelt over the body of Billy. He hung his head, and tears wrenched out of his tight closed eyes, splattering onto the boys dusty clothes. Inara had never seen Mal cry before... She went over and tentatively placed a hand on her shoulder. "Mal?" He stiffened under her touch. Then, he turned his head away, ashamed that she see him so weak. "Mal, please. Tell me whats wrong." He laughed bitterly at her words. "Wrong? I'll tell ya whats wrong, 'Nara: This whole gorram 'verse is wrong. I seen so much death, and a lot of it was for me." He surpressed a sob, his body trembelingat the effort. Then, he looked at her, and his tears were laid bare for her to see. "Book, he died for me. And Wash, too. And now Billy, he died for me. Hes too young, and he died so I could live. And, an' all the folks that I left at Serenity Valley, they died for me, too. An' I'm sick a it, 'Nara, sick! I feel like dyin' sometimes, just so people don' need ta die for me no more!" He clenched back more tears, and still they slipped out. Inara placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. She pulled him away from the boys corpse. She pulled Mal to her shoulder and embraced him, a bulwark against his pain. And hers. She pulled him back after a few minutes, letting the tears ride away. Instead, she looked upona new man, a new Mal. "Thanks, 'Nara..." "Don't mention it." They stood there awkwardly for another minute. Then, the proximity fire alarm sounded, filling the ship with a cacaphony of sounds. Without a word, they turned and went seperate ways, all they had meant to say left unsaid. *** Simon looked at the Stik woozily. "Drugs, Mal? Tha' ain't at all like ya." He sounded more border-ish when he was wasted. "So? The moneys good, and we need it real bad." "Well, jus' let me run a test on it, is all. Shouldn' be more'n a few minutes time." "Sure, doc, sure," said Mal all amused like. "This 'fore or after yer hangover?" "After, 'course!" He slurred drunkenly, and Kaylee rested her head on his shoulder. They got back to Serenity, and Simon and Kaylee went to the infirmary, Simon carrying the Stik. He gave Kaylee a painkiller for the headache, then one for himself. When he could see straight again, he took out a strange looking device, with a scanner on one side and a readout on the other. He wearily ran it over the Stik. After a moment, he started muttering. "What is it, hun?" asked Kaylee. "Wo de Mah!" Simon shouted. Mal came barging in. "What in the spincter a' hell is goin' on here?" "Mal, its the pax. This stik, it made half of pure pax!" Mal didn't even look at him for a moment. Then, he turned around on his heel, going to the 'bay. "Where ya goin', cap'n?" asked Kaylee worriedly. "I think this calls for a vist back to Ricky Revera. JAYNE, ZOE, RIVER, GET DOWN HERE, GORRAMIT!!!!"