Life Onboard Serenity: #42 - Of Jobs, Vaults and Things Gone Wrong by EnglishIvy

Ivy was still running her fingers through her hair when she and Pain sat down at the table. Jayne had gotten over the initial annoyance of catching Pain and Ivy in the pantry mid-making out. Now he just looked over at the both of them with a smirk. Ivy blushed and looked down at her hands.

"Don't let him bully you," Pain whispered into her ear. "He's just jealous."

A small smile crepted across her face.

People were starting to trickle in. John and a new woman came in. Ivy shot John a combination hurt and angry look before averting her gaze away from him. She gripped Pain's hand, gaining a calming sense from the action.

But that calm was quickly upset when 13 came into the room and sat down next to Ivy. He gave both her and Pain flashy smile. He drew in close enough to whisper in her ear.

"How are you two today?" he asked her. "Oh, wait... I don't want to leave Pain out. How are the three of you?"

Ivy stiffened visibly at his comment.

"Do you have a sister?" Jayne asked looking over at Ivy. "I'd like to meet her, if'n you did."

"If only you knew, Jayne," 13 spoke up. "You should ask Ivy about her twin some day. It's a very interesting story. Isn't it Pain?"

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Tuesday, February 10, 2009 5:09 PM

"Lay off botboy she's been through a lot lately." John was suprised at his own forwardness. He still had nagging doubts about this girl, but he honestly hoped he was wrong. It was easier for him and the ship that way. He really hoped he could mend burnt bridges. "Everyone this is an old friend of mine Evelyn. Feel free to be suspicious and not trust her, I deserve it."

johnttf

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Wednesday, February 11, 2009 9:51 PM

At the table in the Galley

Quote:
Originally posted by johnthetheatrefreak:
"Lay off botboy she's been through a lot lately." John was suprised at his own forwardness. He still had nagging doubts about this girl, but he honestly hoped he was wrong. It was easier for him and the ship that way. He really hoped he could mend burnt bridges. "Everyone this is an old friend of mine Evelyn. Feel free to be suspicious and not trust her, I deserve it."

"So." Jayne asked Ivy, giving her a grin and leering at her. "Can I meet this twin sister of yours? I'd be awful obliged to see her."

"Not a chance, Jayne." Pain interjected. Giving the other mercenary a smile, he added wistfully, "Besides she's way out of your league." Turning his attention to John and Evelyn, Pain asked both of them, "So where do you two know each other from?"

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Thursday, February 12, 2009 9:17 AM

Quote:
Originally posted by johnthetheatrefreak:
"Lay off botboy she's been through a lot lately."

I wonder exactly who might have been the cause of that? she thought. Could it be that one of the few friends I thought I had made pretty much stabbed me in the back?

She looked from John to 13. Here is someone who held a definite hatred for her. He was outside in the cargo bay when Grayson was out there. He could have easily ratted her out. Why didn't he?

She then looked over at Zoe, who was basically staring her down. Zoe knew the truth now. She knew about Tommy and Grayson. That made her uncomfortable. One wrong move and Zoe would tell the Captain and she'd be off the ship.

And when the Captain came in, she would have four sets of eyes that now distrusted her.

Why am I putting myself through this?

That's when she felt a reassuring sqeeze of a hand on hers. She looked over and saw Pain smiling at her. He was the reason she was willing to endure this all. She was going to show them that she could be trusted. She just had to find a place here.

Quote:
Originally posted by DrPain:
"So where do you two know each other from?"

Good. Maybe someone else could sit in the hot seat for a while.

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Thursday, February 12, 2009 5:10 PM

John didn't hesitate at all to respond. "We met on Athens when we were both hired part time to help transport some marble." It worked, he had been to Athens so if anyone bothered to look the records were there. "We kept in touch waving each other the years, haven't been in contact for a while but that's how things go. People get caught up in this problem or that." He glared pointedly at Ivy. Here he was trying to fix things and she could only focus on being betrayed, At least he hadn't almost gotten her shot.

johnttf

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Thursday, February 12, 2009 6:29 PM

Evelyn had followed John into the galley. As he'd said, it would be a good idea for her to help with the job, prove herself to them somewhat if she could. It would be that much easier to do her job then - both of them actually.

John introduced her, which was fine, she supposed, and the others started asking questions. That was only to be expected; though, she was relatively surprised by how quickly John came up with a story for them. She'd been to Athens once or twice, and she could easily have the higher-ups draw her up some papers if she needed them. She decided to go with it. There wasn't much she could do about it anyway.

"Yeah, I needed a place to go, and John was nice enough to offer me a spot here, cleared it with the captain and everything."

-------------------------------------------------

"See, I've secretly been kind of a fan of me for some time now. I've seen everything I've ever done. I'd love to meet me, but I'd probably just stare and not be able to say anything witty or anything." -- Joss Whedon

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Friday, February 13, 2009 7:11 PM

OOC: I'm sorry to announce you that I'm leaving Life Onboard Serenity because I can't find the time or will to contribute... various personal reasons... RL being what it is... you've heard that song before. I'm sorry. Ivy will be picking up the part until this chapter of your adventures is done.

Peace, love, and Rock & Roll

-Isahiah

------------------------------------------------

Mal finally entered the Galley. You could plainly see that Mal was on edge and angry.

“Where’s Isahiah?” he asked in a rather annoyed voice.

“Right here,” Isahiah answered as he came in, followed by Cate, who slid into an empty seat. Somewhere Isahiah had found a clean, dry, maroon shirt. He looked around. “Is everyone here?”

“Yes. Crew is all here,” Mal answered as he took inventory of his crew. While doing so, he noticed a bevy of emotion hanging over the group like a storm ready to rain down on them. Pain and Ivy were practically staring down John and 13; otherwise they were cozy. Was her hair a little mussed? Jayne was obviously think of something other than the upcoming job. 13, Zoe and John were looking a bit uneasy at Ivy. There was a bit of tension between John and his “friend,” Evelyn. All the others looked like there were no issues pending. At least that was good. He set his jaw. “Is there something I need to know about?”

He looked between John, Zoe, Pain, Ivy, 13 and Evelyn. No one was answering.

“Zoe? Did something happen while I was gone?”

“Just a misunderstanding,” River piped up. “Family and friends mix and blur, but all is well in the garden.”

Great, now I have to worry about River going fong luh, Mal thought as everyone turned and looked at River.

“You feeling alright, River?” Simon asked concerned.

River shot him a ‘why?-didn’t-you-understand-that?’ look. Mal closed his eyes and exhaled before moving on.

“Isahiah, explain the job,” he ground out as he stepped back to lean against the wall.

“Of course,” Isahiah smiled as he stood up. “We are going to an old, abandoned supply depot to liberate it from the goods that are still stored there.”

“All this for a depot?” Jayne asked. “Don’t see the percentage in some itty bitty depot.”

“This was more that a depot. It operated during the war,” Isahiah corrected him. “It was, shall we say, well concealed. It’s location known only to a few trusted individuals.”

“And you being one of them?” John asked.

Isahiah merely smirked at him then continued.

“The main locations of value are held in two vaults underground. We will put together three teams. Two will go to the vaults and be ready to empty them. One team will go to the command center. That team will be responsible for disarming any security systems that may still be in use and unlocking the vaults.”

“What kind of stuff will be located there?” Pain asked, as Ivy moved a little closer to him for support.

“Could be many things,” Isahiah explained. “Anything from foodstuffs, medicine, ordnance or weapons.”

“So it’s a crap shoot,” 13 said under his breath.

“There should be equipment located all throughout the complex to help haul the stuff back up to the ship, so don’t think you’ll be hauling things up by hand,” Mal said as he stepped away from the wall.

He had thought long and hard about who should be on each team. There were so many variables, trust being one of them. In order to keep an eye on things, he decided to make sure that anyone he didn’t know went on the job with someone he trusted. He didn’t want to leave the ship vulnerable to any kind of sabotage. If things went south for some reason, he wanted to make sure that escape was a viable option.

“River, Kaylee, Doc and Inara will stay on board. River, you make sure things are ready to fly, but I need you at the cargo bay doors to push back anything that might come your way. If things look even a bit out of place, you comm us and we’ll get off this rock as fast as possible. Kaylee, stay in the engine room, make sure the engine is heated up and on stand by. Doc, you help wherever is needed, but make sure the infirmary is ready to take in casualties, which by the by, I do not plan on happening.” Mal explained as he shot a warning look over at Isahiah. “Inara, I need you to keep to your shuttle. No sense you having to be put in harm’s way.”

“The command center team will be Isahiah, Zoe, myself and… Cate,” Mal announced. Cate’s head looked up sharply. She had been told she would help out, but she didn’t expect to be on a team with Mal or Zoe. “John, Evelyn and Jayne, you will go to Vault #1, which is located here.”

Mal pointed on the map at the location of their vault. It was a few levels underground, but looked easy enough to find. Mal went and pointed to the other vault Isahiah had marked on the map.

“Pain, Ivy and 13, will go to this vault.”

Ivy almost thought she heard a soft giggle erupt from 13. She looked over at Pain to see him glaring at 13. She had not been imagining it.

“Does everyone understand their assignments?” Mal asked, as he surveyed his crew. Everyone nodded back in agreement. “Good. We’ll be landing in 20 minutes and moving out in 30. Now go get ready.”

Everyone got up and quickly left to do their jobs. All except Ivy and Pain. They walked up to him.

“If I am to go along on this job,” Ivy said calmly to the captain. “I must ask for my gun back.”

“Mal, you can’t send her in unarmed,” Pain said supporting her request. “Or with a gun she’s not familiar with.”

Mal looked at Ivy, then Pain and back to Ivy, pondering on a decision.

“Fine,” he agreed. “I have it in my bunk. Come get it.”

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————>>>
BigWolf18 "Way i remember it, you said you was leavin', dare say that saved us a whole peck o' trouble. now i gotta wonder what could spur on a fine disreputable man like yourself to show your fine disreputable face here again."

...Dust monkeys...

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Friday, February 13, 2009 7:32 PM

John smirked a little too when he found out about Ivy, Pain, and 13. He was happy to work with Jayne and Evelyn though. Jayne was easy to work with if you knew him, which John did, and he needed to seem like he was friends with Evelyn. He was also happy to go to the vault. He'd be able to hotwire any machinery neccesary to carry the cargo, and the command center seemed too easy. He was ready for a challenge.

"Did you bring your own guns, or do you want some of mine," John said to Evelyn. He didn't share his guns easily, but for some reason he didn't feel this girl was after him. She was after something, of that he was sure, but he felt it wouldn't compromise the ship.

johnttf

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Friday, February 13, 2009 7:39 PM

OOC: Not just me... It's a collaborative effort with Pain.

-Ivy

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Friday, February 13, 2009 8:29 PM

Ivy followed Mal down into his bunk. It was a lot bigger than her and Pain's, but it was nice. And it totally fit the Captain's personality. He went over to the desk, opened up a drawer and pulled out a lock box. When he opened it, he pulled out her gun and handed it to her.

"Don't make me regret giving this back to you," he warned her.

"You won't," she promised. "I want to fit in here. Be useful here. I want you all to be able to trust me."

"It'll take more than one job to do that, Ivy," he told her.

"I know. But it's a start."

She turned, left his bunk and entered her own.

"I got my gun back," she announced.

She held it up to show Pain only to reveal a slightly shaking hand.

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Friday, February 13, 2009 10:24 PM

Warning: PG-13++ Ahead.

Pain and Ivy's Bunk

While Ivy had gone off with the Captain, Pain went down into their bunk. She was a big girl and he knew she would be fine alone with Mal while he grabbed his gear, laying it out on the desk, and inspecting it. That was what he was doing right now. On the desk laid out in an orderly fashion were his two semi-auto Desert Eagle .44s, his hand cannon, his bullpup assault rifle with under mounted grenade launcher, and all the assorted gear for each gun.

His two primary sidearms both had four eight round magazines each. Two in magazine pouches on his gun belt, one in the mag pouch on their leg holsters, and one each resting near the guns themselves. The hand cannon had six rounds in it with twelve more in two speed loaders in the corresponding pouches opposite of the shoulder holster his big revolver resided in. The assault rifle had four spare thirty rounders stored in a mag pouch near the right front side of the gun belt and one magazine already loaded into the gun itself. Lastly there were three grenades in three grenade pouches located on the left front side of Pain's gun belt, a fourth loaded into the grenade launcher. A knife and its sheath made its home in the middle of the belt where it would be positioned behind Pain's back once he put the belt on.

At the moment Pain was checking the chamber of one of the black .44s, making sure it was clean when he heard the hatch open and footsteps coming down the ladder. Slowly releasing the slide of the gun, Pain put it down and turned to see who it was.

Quote:
Originally posted by EnglishIvy:
"I got my gun back," she announced.

She held it up to show Pain only to reveal a slightly shaking hand.

"That's good news, baobei." Pain said with a smile as he walked over to her. He noticed the shaking and gently put a hand over her wrist to stop it. Leaning down he gave her a kiss and his hand slid down to the gun. As they kissed, Ivy relaxed a little and released the gun into his hand. Breaking off the kiss, Pain asked, "Your hand was shakin', baobei. You nervous?"

"A little, yes." she replied, as Pain walked over to the desk and placed her gun down.

"I saw that, darlin'. Shakes like that ain't good when you're holdin' a gun." he told her as he approached. "Tends to make them go off which ain't too good when you're in a confined space such as a bunk."

"I'm.. I'm sorry." she said, looking up into his eyes.

Pain smiled and ran a hand through her hair as he said, "It's OK, darlin'. It's just the nerves. Everyone gets them from time to time." He leaned down and gave her another kiss before whispering into her ear, "And I think I know how to calm yours'."

Select to view spoiler:

Ivy let out a giggle as Pain pinned her to the ladder, giving her tender kisses up and down her neck. The giggles turned into soft moans as his hands caressed her body, glided over her breasts and started to unbutton her shirt. She returned the favor by gliding her own hands up his toned abs and over his chest before going down and unfastening his belt. Pain tilted his head back and let out a moan as he felt Ivy's hands down below, gently caressing him.

Bringing her lips to his with a bruising intensity, Pain let their tongues interact with each other as their hands continued to grope, fondle, and free the remaining clothing. Once the clothing had been discarded, Pain brought Ivy down onto him and worked in her, in and again with a slow burning, white hot intensity that made both the outside world and Ivy's nerves melt away.

She rested her head on his right shoulder, kissing it between moans as he continued to move within her. He kissed and suckled her neck before nibbling on her left earlobe and whispering sweet nothings into her ear. She whispered the same sweet nothings into his own ear before enclosing his mouth with hers, letting her tongue dance with his in a passionate tango. Bringing his hands down to her hips, Pain grabbed and held her tight as he picked up the pace. Ivy let out a moan as she wrapped her arms around his neck and gripped his hips in return with her legs, holding onto him as he took her on a half hour long roller coaster of ecstasy and delight.

Resting his forehead against Ivy's and panting, Pain held onto her for a little while before giving her a kiss and asking, "So did that get rid of your nerves, sweety?"

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Saturday, February 14, 2009 3:09 PM

WARNING: PG-13++++++++++++++++ ahead...

Ivy had been shaking when she returned to Pain and her bunk. The stress from earlier that day, the impending job and the warning that Mal gave her were enough to set her on edge. They only had 30 minutes before they were due to depart on the job and she couldn’t stop thinking about it. She’s never even done something like this before. She didn’t know how things like that were supposed to unfold. Should she be expecting trouble or was the assortment of firearms lying on the desk merely a cautionary tactic.

Then Pain made the comment that shaking wasn’t good when holding a gun, which she figured was a truthful statement, so she had apologized.

What am I thinking? she asked herself. I’m gonna get someone killed!

She was nervous. Well, that was an understatement. Her nervous quotient could set off a nuclear bomb if she got too close.

Quote:
Originally posted by DRPAIN:
"It's OK, darlin'. It's just the nerves. Everyone gets them from time to time. And I think I know how to calm yours."

Select to view spoiler:

And then he started. She giggled a bit as he pushed her up against the ladder. He was unconventional as to where they did it, that’s what made it so much fun with him. No monotony, always unpredictable.

The giggles quickly disappeared, being replaced by soft moans as he caressed her body, gliding over her breasts as he quickly unbuttoned her shirt. It didn’t take long before he had it off and discarded onto the floor. She reached and grabbed the bottom of his shirt, nearly tearing it from his body before tracing across every muscle on his torso. His hands returned to her breasts and fondled them as moan after moan escaped from her lips. She felt so alive right now. She didn’t know if it was because of the upcoming job or if it was because of his touch or a little of both, but she did know that she needed him, more than ever right now.

Quickly her hands were at his pants, unbuckling the belt to gain more access. She pushed them down so that both his trousers and his boxers fell to his ankles. Without breaking contact, he flipped them off with a mere shake of one ankle then the other. Her hands traced over his hip bones before taking him into her hands, caressing him with a gentle touch. She was pleased when his head leaned back as she heard his throaty moan.

His kiss came with an intensity that made her shiver, straight to her soul. Somehow, with a few gentle tugs, he had her pants off. The fact that she hadn’t bothered to put on any underwear of any kind earlier, just made his day. She could tell by feeling a slight smile form on his lips while their tongues battled a war more intense than any other they might have experienced before.

He lifted her a bit higher as he slid into her, which elicited a moan from both of them. Since Mal had only given them a half hour before they were to leave, she half expected an extended make out session without any cumbersome clothing getting in the way, but having full intercourse was far better at easing her nerves than any frenzied make out session could provide. Using the leverage of the ladder and the tender placing of his hands on her behind, allowed him to move inside her slowly, his strokes long and gentle.

She found herself calling his name, the name that everyone called him. Pain. But soon it wasn’t enough, she felt the need to be more intimate, she wanted to touch a place that perhaps no woman had ever gone. Softly, she called him by his given name, his real name, the one his parents had bestowed on him. As she did, she let him overtake her, body, mind and soul.

As the want grew within her, she laid her head on his shoulder, kissing him there whenever she could between panting and moaning he caused. His pace had not changed and it was extending the pleasure both of them were experiencing beyond their expectations. What had probably started as a quickie to ease her nerves had become so much more. They had melded together, moving as one and feeling as one.

He kissed her neck and nibbled on her earlobe, before whispering into her ear how she was making him feel and how much he needed her. She confirmed the same to him and brought her lips to his, letting her tongue interact with his in a way that could only be described as dancing. It was then that Pain’s hands went to her hips and pulled her down harder on him as his pace quickened. Her breath hitched and she trembled against him as she let out a long moan. All she could do now was to wrap her arms around his neck and her legs firmly around him, holding on as if her life depended on it.

As if on cue, both of their bodies seized, pleasure wrapping around and inside them with an intensity that could have moved worlds. They rode this wave of passion until they couldn’t anymore, until their bodies where exhausted and their need sated. Pain leaned his forehead against hers as they both tried to regain their breath.

Quote:
Originally posted by DRPAIN:
"So did that get rid of your nerves, sweety?"

“It did, bao bei,” she said just above a whisper. “I just hope my nerves don’t act up while we are out on the job. 13 might not appreciate us having to stop and do this to help me calm down.”

Pain let out a hearty laugh as he pulled her close to him. It was then he noticed that the hum and vibration of the engine has quelled some. They had already landed. Quickly he looked at his watch.

“Gorram it!” he exclaimed as he lifted her off of him and onto the floor. “Get dressed! We’re late!”

Her eyes widened and she moved quickly, gathering up her garments and throwing them on, all the while also making sure that this time, they were buttoned correctly.

“Mal’s gonna kill us,” Pain whispered.

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Saturday, February 14, 2009 8:45 PM

Evelyn listened to what they were supposed to be doing on this job. It sounded simple enough; though, she was mildly disappointed with her team. Jayne was of no interest, and she hadn't been sent here for John.

Oh well. She needed to make herself a part of this group anyway, and working on this job was the way to do that.

Quote:
Originally posted by johnthetheatrefreak:
"Did you bring your own guns, or do you want some of mine,"

"I have my own," Evelyn replied. That was a little terse for friends, though. "But thanks anyway."

-------------------------------------------------

"See, I've secretly been kind of a fan of me for some time now. I've seen everything I've ever done. I'd love to meet me, but I'd probably just stare and not be able to say anything witty or anything." -- Joss Whedon

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Sunday, February 15, 2009 12:11 PM

"Ok, well see you at the job." John moved to his room to get supplies for the job. He grabbed a flashlight and put it in his belt. He picked up his two favorite handguns for the holsters on his belf, and one more that he stored on his leg. After getting plenty of extra clips he went to the cargo bay, ready to land.

johnttf

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Sunday, February 15, 2009 7:37 PM

Pain and Ivy's Bunk

Quote:
Originally posted by EnglishIvy:
“Mal’s gonna kill us,” Pain whispered.

"Did you say somethin', honey?" asked Ivy as she watched Pain put on his final piece of clothing.

"No, baobei. No I didn't." he replied as he put on his gun belt and slid his .44s into their holsters.

Ivy watched as Pain put on his shoulder holster and slung his assault rifle over his right shoulder. She was pretty sure he had said something, but she didn't have time to ask for sure as Pain put on his trench coat, closed up his weapons locker and put a rectangular box in her hand. She looked down at it and saw that it was a box of bullets.

"For your gun." Pain said to her. "It's about half full, but hopefully it should do you." He ran a hand through her hair, smiled at her, then said, "Come on. We should get our pigus down to the cargo bay before we're anymore late."

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Monday, February 16, 2009 7:46 AM

John walked off, and Evelyn was left to her own devices. She double-checked her guns, made sure she had extra bullets, and found herself with some time to kill. She walked around the ship, familiarizing herself with the place she would be staying for the next however long amount of time, but made sure that she made it back to the cargo bay with plenty of time to spare. It wouldn't do to make a poor impression.

-------------------------------------------------

"See, I've secretly been kind of a fan of me for some time now. I've seen everything I've ever done. I'd love to meet me, but I'd probably just stare and not be able to say anything witty or anything." -- Joss Whedon

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Monday, February 16, 2009 1:15 PM

Ivy bent down and rifled through her things.

"Whatcha lookin' for?" Pain asked.

"I have an extra magazine... somewhere..." she said pushing aside some things then others. "I know I brought it."

She went through her stuff again quickly and let out a sigh.

"I can't find it," she told him.

"Is it in your old room?" Pain asked. "Maybe you didn't get everything when you moved up here."

She stood up and smiled.

"I did! I left it downstairs! I know exactly where!"

She shoved her gun in the waistband of her pants, close to the middle of her back and climbed up the ladder as fast as she could go. Pain followed her, but she was definitely agile and fast. Plus he was carrying a little more weight than she was.

Luckily she went down to her old room via the corridor that would not make her go directly through the cargo bay. Pain didn't want to encounter Mal until they were totally ready to go. Getting a lashing for being late was one thing, but getting a lashing twice for not being ready would be worse...

But then again, Pain thought as he smiled, the sex they just had was well worth it. She had called him by his name...

When he finally caught up to her, she had found the magazine she was looking for as was quickly loading bullets into it.

"I'm almost done," she announced as she slid the last couple in. She looked down and found no place to store the extra magazine or the bullets that were left over.

"I should've gotten cargo pants," she said, frowning. She looked around until she found a small pouch she used to keep snacks in when she was home and in the fields. It wasn't huge, but it was big enough to put the mag and the extra bullets in. She didn't really know why she had brought it along when she left, except that her dad had made it for her and it reminded her of him. She tied it to her belt and stood up. "Now I am ready."

She started through the door getting ready to head to the cargo bay when he stopped her and leaned down to gently kiss her again. He didn't know why he felt the overwhelming urge to do so, but it didn't take much to entice him to kiss her. It caught her by surprise for a moment before her arms wrapped around his neck and her body formed to his. When they finally parted, she smiled at him.

"What was that for?" she asked.

"Just a preview," Pain answered as he kissed her again. "For later. After we get back."

Then he took her hand into his and led her out to the cargo bay. He grinned again when he thought of their time... reducing stress. He wanted to get back to their bunk as soon as they got back. There was no telling what they could do when they weren't pressed for time.

Anyway, he was certain that it was the highlight of the day and it would take something huge happening to change his mind.

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Monday, February 16, 2009 9:34 PM

Cargo Bay

Fifteen minutes. One fourth of a hour. Nine hundred seconds. That was how long Mal and everyone else assembled in the cargo bay, who were integral to the job, had been waiting for the two stragglers known as Pain and Ivy. Mal was getting very impatient with the waiting. They had a job to do and they could already be doing it, but instead they were two people short in the cargo bay. Mal had his arms crossed, the fingers on his left hand tapping his right bicep. He wanted to know what was keeping those two and he wanted to know now.

"Jayne?" he asked, rather annoyed. "Go find Pain and Ivy and see what's takin' them so long."

"Why do I have to do it?" protested the mercenary. "For all we know they're busy ruttin' each other like a couple of rabbits. Frankly I ain't too keen on seein' Pain nekkid. Ivy on the other hand..."

Jayne trailed off, grinning wide like the Cheshire cat as he pictured Ivy naked. 13 was in the background snickering himself shy of a circuit overload, stopping as he caught sight of Mal's glare. Jayne stopped grinning as he caught the same glare coming from the captain.

"Alright." he muttered. "I'll go find 'em."

Just as the mercenary stalked off to find the two lovebirds, Pain and Ivy made their entrance into the cargo bay. Turning to Mal, Jayne pointed to them and called out, "Found 'em!"

"Sorry we're late." replied Pain, giving those in the cargo bay an apologetic smile. "Had to find a spare magazine for Ivy's gun, which I didn't have. Found on in her room though, so uh sorry for the inconvenience."

"Alright." Mal breathed out. "Now that everyone is here." He gave Pain and Ivy a look before continuing, "We can get on with this job, but before we do I want to remind all of those here which team they're on, dong ma?"

After everyone signaled that they understood, Mal listed the teams once more, "Now like I said before, Isahiah, Zoe, Cate, and I are the Command Center team. John, Evelyn, and Jayne are Vault #1, and Pain, Ivy, and 13 are Vault #2. Kaylee, Inara, River, and Simon will be staying aboard in case there's any trouble. This job most likely won't be a cake walk, so I expect all of you to have you eyes and ears open for anythin' that might sound like trouble or is suspicious. An alert team is an alive team. Got that? Good. Now lets get a move on."

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Tuesday, February 17, 2009 12:43 PM

Ivy thought back to the explanation that Pain gave for the reason they were late.

"Do you think Mal bought the excuse that we were looking for the magazine the whole time?" she asked Pain quietly. She was staying close to Pain and his presence had a calming effect.

13 snorted at the comment from his position about 10 feet back.

Pain shot a glare back at him.

"Not at all, bao bei. The man ain't stupid. He knew exactly what we were doing," Pain told her. She quickly blushed. "The excuse just let the others go about their way without knowing."

13 snorted again.

"Without knowing?" 13 exclaimed. "Hell, Jayne figured out what you two were doing and by the look on his face, I think he'd be more than happy to hook up with your twin. Maybe we could arrange it. Say... do you remember what happens when she's around?"

Pain's posture stiffened as he stood straight up and turned to face bot boy.

"There will be no arranging anything between Tommy and Jayne," Pain snarled.

13 snickered.

"Oh. My. God," he said as his eyes got wide. "You've had sex with both of them haven't you? No wonder you've been down in your bunk so much. She must be a hellcat in the sack."

Quicker than Pain had moved in a while, he cracked 13 across the face with the butt of his assault rifle. 13 stumbled backwards a couple of steps.

"Shut. up. 13," Pain ground out.

13 approached Pain with his fist clenched.

"Stop!" Ivy exclaimed. "We are on a job, remember? Perhaps a slightly dangerous one? I think we should keep our minds on one thing at a time."

Pain stared 13 down, clenching his jaw in anger as he did. The thought of pumping a grenade into the robot slipped through his mind.

"Ivy's right," he finally said. "Let's do the job."

Pain, Ivy and 13 walked in silence towards their assignment. Every few steps, Pain would tap his earpiece.

"Something wrong?" Ivy asked.

"I'm getting a lot of static," he said, stopping again. "You getting anything other than that 13?"

13 paused and listened.

"Just static. And a couple of words here and there," 13 reported. Ivy searched him for an ear piece, but couldn't see one. 13 smirked at her. "Built in comm. Plus I have very good hearing."

Pain tapped his earpiece again as they started walking again.

"Jen dao mei," he whispered. He was getting the feeling this wasn't going to be an easy job. He turned to Ivy. "You stay close to me."

translation:
*Jen dao mei = just our luck

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Tuesday, February 17, 2009 5:32 PM

John, Jayne and Evelyn followed the directions to where they were supposed to go. The place seemed completely bare. Maybe this would be easier than John had anticipated. "We're all clear on this end," he said into the com. Inreply though, he heard only static.

"Gorram com!" Jayne muttered.

"I'm getting static as well," John replied, "I guess should just press on anyway." Jayne walked out front, and John stood back with Evelyn. "You were disappointed with your assignment," he whispered to the woman, "so were you after Pain Ivy, or 13? More likely though the captain or Zoe or Isahiah. Wait is it Cate." he kept his senses open trying to gage a reaction from each name.

johnttf

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Tuesday, February 17, 2009 6:36 PM

On the way to the Command Center

Static. Nothing, but static and an occasional word came from Mal's ear piece before more static followed. He tapped it again and asked Zoe, "Zoe? Is your comm on the fritz or is it just mine?"

Zoe tapped hers' and looked at the captain before shaking her head and saying, "No, sir. Gettin' static on every channel. Somethin' don't seem right about it, sir."

"Yeah. Somethin'." replied Mal. Turning to Isahiah, he asked, "You know anythin' thing about this, Isahiah? Could there be some sort of shieldin' preventin' our comms from transmittin'?"

"Wish I knew, Captain." replied Isahiah as he shrugged. "Like I said it's been awhile since I've been here. I don't know what's been done to the place since I was here last."

The foursome of Mal, Isahiah, Zoe, and Cate continued on to the command center, their ability to communicate with the other teams cut off. An occasional hiss and ting came from the pipes overhead, but no sounds of machinery or those made by a human. They stopped once when they heard something that sounded like a scrapping noise, but after a few moments of pointing guns every which way, it turned out to be a lone brown rat scurrying across the floor. It paused to give the foursome a look before going on its merry way, disappearing behind some old oil drums.

The Command Team made their way over to a pair of steel double doors, the caution yellow paint on them having seen better days. Dents and rust had made their home on the doors, a sign that the place had seen some neglect. The light inside the room flickered intermittently through the two small rectangular windows. Above the doors was a white and equally neglected sign that said in black bold lettering, both in English and in Chinese: COMMAND CENTER

"Guess this is the place." Cate chimed in. "Boy what a dump."

Mal and Zoe instinctively slid over to the sides of the doors with their weapons in hand. They looked at each other and nodded. Slowly Mal opened one of the doors and followed his gun into the room. Seeing that it was clear, he gave the others the all clear and let them follow him inside. It was a mess inside the command center. To Mal and the other team members it looked like a tornado had hit. Papers and things were thrown everywhere on the floor. Several of the screens on the walls showed static although one or two were completely broken. Stepping over an overturned office chair, Mal made his way over to one of the control stations.

The light overhead continued to flicker, complicating the search somewhat as well as giving Mal a headache. At the control station that Mal was looking at, exposed wiring appeared out of an open panel, which itself appeared to have been ripped open. The wires sticking out were mangled although some of them were spliced together rather deliberately.

"What happened here?" a shocked Isahiah asked as he looked at the damaged done to the command center.

"Looks like someone was here before us, sir." came Zoe's voice from the near corner of the room. "And judgin' from the mess in here, they were lookin' for somethin'."

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————>>>
BigWolf18 "Way i remember it, you said you was leavin', dare say that saved us a whole peck o' trouble. now i gotta wonder what could spur on a fine disreputable man like yourself to show your fine disreputable face here again."

...Dust monkeys...

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Tuesday, February 17, 2009 10:07 PM

Upper Level Hallway

Quote:
Originally posted by EnglishIvy:
"Jen dao mei," he whispered. He was getting the feeling this wasn't going to be an easy job. He turned to Ivy. "You stay close to me."

"OK." Ivy replied, walking closer up to him as they walked further down the hallway.

It was dim in the hallway they were in as only the emergency lights were on. Pain turned on the weapons light on his assault rifle and used it for better visibility, although he knew 13 didn't need it. The only sounds in there were the echos of their footsteps on the floor and the hum of the lights.

"13?" Pain whispered. "How far until we reach the elevators?"

13 scanned the hallway with his sensors, taking into account where they were and how far they needed to go. As the final readout came up, 13 said, "We got 82.3 more yards to go. We should make it there in about 8 minutes at our current pace. Oh and you don't need to whisper, since the only life signs I'm picking up in this vicinity are yours' and Ivy's."

"Oh. OK then." Pain said in his normal tone of voice as his beam of light bobbed up and down from his walking. "So do the elevators have power?"

"I would think so if this place is on emergency power." replied 13. He grinned at the two of them and added, "Otherwise we're taking the stairs and you know how chatty I am when it comes to stairs."

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Thursday, February 19, 2009 9:12 PM

13, Pain and Ivy walked into the elevator and pushed the down button to the appropriate floor. It was dark in the elevator, only a single light burned above their heads and that light blinked off and on enough to serve as a strobe light.

They were only down a couple of levels when the elevator made a horrendous scraping and screeching sound and stopped. And it stopped while slanted a little to the right.

Ivy reached up and grabbed Pain's shoulder.

"It's OK, darlin'," he said to her calmly. He turned to 13. "Let's get these doors open and see where we are."

Together, Pain and 13 pried the interior doors open to find out they were stuck between floors. The bottom of the elevator was only about a foot to 18 inches into the next floor.

"I can't get through there," Pain said, stating the obvious. "Wouldn't know how to fix this once I did."

13 looked up at the ceiling at the service hatch. It looked a bit twisted and the hinge was visibly broken. There'd be no way to force that open and as they were standing there, the elevator structure groaned a bit and tilted a little more.

"It think it's safe to say that this elevator has been damaged at some point or another. Looks like the frame is twisted," 13 told them. "Maybe an explosion? In other words, we need to get out of here."

"Well we can't exactly wave a magic wand and poof ourselves out," Pain deadpanned. "We can't go out the top and can't get out through the door."

"I can," Ivy said softly.

"What'd you say bao bei?" Pain asked as 13 made a face at the sound of Pain's term of endearment.

"I can get through there," she said again. "We used to have a lift in our barn that got stuck all the time. Maybe I can help this one along enough to make room for the both of you to climb out."

Pain looked at her, then the gap by the floor.

"That's too small, babe," he said shaking his head. "And too dangerous."

"Like staying here isn't dangerous?" quipped 13.

The elevator groaned a little more.

"I can do this," Ivy reassured him. Then she put on a smile. "I am very agile, you know."

"I don't need to know that," 13 groaned.

Pain looked at Ivy, then the gap again. Reluctantly, he looked over at 13.

"Let's get those outer doors open for her to crawl out."

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Friday, February 20, 2009 7:57 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by EnglishIvy:
"Let's get those outer doors open for her to crawl out."

"Alright, but if she falls and dies, I'm not going to be responsible for that." replied 13 as he tightened his grip on his door.

"I wasn't expecting any special treatment from you anyway." Ivy shot back to 13.

"That's fine with me." 13 replied back. "Since I wasn't giving you any special treatment anyways."

"Can we just do this without the bickerin'?" Pain asked, slightly annoyed as he held onto the other door. "My hands are gettin' tired over here."

Ivy looked at 13 once more and then turned her sights on Pain. She gave him a smile before kneeling down and squeezing out between the doors. Pain watched her and listened as both he and 13 held onto the doors. He heard and saw her move around and then drop down into the hallway below, letting out a soft grunt as she did so.

"You OK, babe?" Pain called down to her from the elevator. When he didn't hear from her right away, he got worried when she didn't immediately respond and asked again, "Babe? You OK?"

"Yeah." Ivy replied up to him. "Just had to dust myself off."

"OK that's good." Pain replied, mentally sighing his relief that she didn't fall down the shaft. "Now can you please get us down?"

"Oh what?" 13 asked Pain, raising an eyebrow at the man. "You don't like being stuck in an elevator with lil' ol' me?" Scoffing, 13 placed a hand on his hip and with a shocked look in his eyes, added, "Well I never!"

The elevator groaned once more and lurched downward, protesting the movement every inch of the way. It started slowly and then just like that it fell quickly, causing Pain to shout at the unexpected drop before the elevator came to a sudden stop halfway between the open hallway where Ivy was standing and the shaft. Up above Pain and 13 could hear more groaning coupled by metal lines snapping and falling down on the roof.

Pain looked at 13 with wide eyes and hastily said, "That didn't sound so good."

"I agree." said 13 as more lines snapped and the elevator lurched again.

They both looked at one another before leaping out of the elevator and landing near Ivy just as the elevator itself finally let go and fell down the shaft. There was a loud metallic shrieking as it fell, followed be a muffled boom as it hit the bottom. Pain turned over onto his back and stared at the rectangular opening that previously held the elevator car the three of them had been riding in.

After a few deep breaths, Pain got up, dusted himself off and said, "Lets take the stairs this time, shall we?"

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Saturday, February 21, 2009 9:03 PM

So, now they were on the job, and other than the fact that everyone's comms were only picking up static, it seemed to be working out just fine so far, at least Evelyn thought so. That was, until John stayed back and began talking to her.

Quote:
Originally posted by johnthetheatrefreak:
"You were disappointed with your assignment," he whispered to the woman, "so were you after Pain Ivy, or 13? More likely though the captain or Zoe or Isahiah. Wait is it Cate."

She'd been warned about him to an extent, at least in regards to his questions, and she wasn't to tell him anything unless absolutely necessary. "I'm supposed to be watching Ivy for you, and that's all that really concerns you," she replied, almost snarkily.

-------------------------------------------------

"See, I've secretly been kind of a fan of me for some time now. I've seen everything I've ever done. I'd love to meet me, but I'd probably just stare and not be able to say anything witty or anything." -- Joss Whedon

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Monday, February 23, 2009 4:03 PM

"Ok, then we'll just go with that for now." They made their way trough to the vault using the stairs just in case. John couldn't help but wondering about the real people she was after. Doc was a very...multi-faceted woman. She could be after any one of them for any number of reasons. She could even be after him. Static continued to hiss through the com. He hoped the vault wouldn't be too hard to open.

johnttf

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Tuesday, February 24, 2009 12:41 PM

As the trio walked down the remaining 4 floors down to their level, 13 paused for a moment.

"Somethin' wrong, Bot Boy?" Pain asked.

"Sensors getting a bit screwy," he said as he shook his head a little. "Worse by every step down we take."

"The static is making you sensors all wiggy?" Pain asked him for clarification.

13 glared at Pain as Ivy giggled a bit.

"No matter," 13 said. "I'll just have to do this the hard way... OH! I mean like the rest of you."

His comment dripped of sarcasm, but they pressed on. Pain was the first through the door, so he took the lead using the light on his assault rifle to move towards their assigned destination. Ivy was second and took a moment to glance up the stairwell as she crossed the threshold and was reminded that somehow they needed to find a new elevator to get the goods back, else they would be spending a good amount of time hauling the stuff up seven floors manually.

"Hope that's not the only lift there was for this section," Ivy said to herself.

13 brushed by her, their shoulders connecting and knocking her back a little harder than he should.

"Ow!" she whispered, rubbing her shoulder. Bot boy was certainly well built. Like a brick.

"What's the matter, Ivy?" he asked, stopping to sneer at her. "You two not able to carry your weight if it comes to that? I mean, it's perfect. If you get tired, Tommy could take over, and vice versa. You'd be unstoppable."

After saying what he wanted, he smirked at her and went off to follow Pain.

"Like your mouth," she said under her breath as he followed Pain down the hall to their destiation.

"I heard that!" he yelled back at her.

"Bù rén dào guài wu," she mumbled again.

"I heard that too!" he yelled back at her.

"Come on darlin', stay close. I think it's close," Pain called back to her.

She started to go after them, but she heard something down the hallway behind them. Not much, just a single scuffle.

"What was that?" she asked. 13 had double tracked back to her location and was looking down the opposite end of the hall. "You heard that too?"

13 gave her the "duh" look.

"You go get by Pain," he said softly as he gently pushed her in Pain's direction. He spoke a little louder so Pain could hear him. "I'll go check it out. You two keep going to the vault."

Translation:
Bù rén dào guài wu = inhuman monster or freak

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Wednesday, February 25, 2009 5:45 PM

On the Quest of the Second Vault

Quote:
Originally posted by EnglishIvy:
"You go get by Pain," he said softly as he gently pushed her in Pain's direction. He spoke a little louder so Pain could hear him. "I'll go check it out. You two keep going to the vault."

"Come on." Pain said to Ivy, cocking his head in the direction they were heading. "Lets keep movin'."

Pain and Ivy plodded onwards as 13 walked back in the direction they had come. He found it rather odd that his sensors were becoming less scrambled as he walked further and further, trying to find the source of the sound both him and Ivy had heard. He walked slowly in case the sound's source was biological, making sure his footsteps were as quiet as possible to insure that he didn't alert the sound maker to his presence. 13 was armed with two sub-machine guns located in a shoulder holster on both sides of his torso. He was rather skilled in using them and being a robot, suffered no effects from the recoil of full auto fire.

In addition to those two sidearms, 13 had the gun between his legs. It was a rather peculiar location for a gun, but with its retractable barrel, it had earned 13 the nickname of 'Pistol Pants'. He had received the name during a bout of electrical drunkenness to which he "whipped" it out and fired a round into one of the galley's cupboard doors. As he made his way through the dim hallway, 13's search continued.

Back to Ivy and Pain

"Do you think he'll be OK?" Ivy asked Pain as they continued on their trek towards their goal.

"I'm not too worried about him, babe." replied Pain, as he swept his weapons light through the dimness. "He's taken care of himself before and I'm confident that he'll be more than alright." He gave her a smile and continued, "Can't say the same for whatever he runs into though."

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Thursday, February 26, 2009 3:09 AM

John, Evelyn, and Jayne had reached the vault. John began to look it over, hoping to find a way in. It actually didn't look like it would be too difficult. He tapped the com. "I doubt any of you can here this, but we're at the vault." Knowing that the captain may be unable to get the vault open, he began to hack the lock. It appeared to be an electronic seal, using a keypad, maybe a print scanner, to open. He pulled of the keypad and got to work. It was supringly eady and soon he had the door unlocked. "Wasn't there supposed to be some degree of difficulty involved here?" he asked

"Just be glad, easy payday," Jayne replied moving to the door. As he pulled it open John's heart sank. The vault was empty.

johnttf

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Thursday, February 26, 2009 8:21 AM

13 stealthily kept moving down the hallway until he came across the problem. A pair of men standing inside of another lift with a hover cart carrying a couple of smallish crates between them. The doors had just closed, so although he had seen them, they hadn't seen him.

13 listened intently, hoping that he could catch a little of what they were up to.

"Is that the last of it?" the one said.

"Yeah," the other one said. "I think we found just about all the vaults. We have people combing this entire rutting facility for other valuables. This is a good take."

"More than a good take."

"Amen to that brother."

Then they were out of range for 13 to hear any more. He replayed what he heard.

We have people combing this entire rutting facility...

Not only did it sound like they lost the loot, but they had other problems as well. And they had people in just about every group that were not trained to deal with it. He knew Ivy and Cate weren't and he didn't know what kind of experience Evelyn had. Hopefully John would know, since she was his friend and all. He turned and hightailed it back to where Pain and Ivy were headed. The situation just went from iffy to bad. And with the communications issue it could easily get worse.

In the meantime...

Pain and Ivy walked closer to the vault the were assigned to go to.

"That was weird," Ivy whispered to Pain.

"What?" Pain asked as he used the light on his gun to carefully check out the path in front of them.

"13 was almost nice to me."

Pain snorted.

"Well, you did call him a freak," he chuckled. "Maybe that endeared you to him a little."

"No, I meant that when he went to go check out that sound," she explained. "When he told me to go back to where you were, he sounded almost... nice."

"He's not a bad guy, really," Pain replied to him. "He's been a little off his servos lately, a pain in the ass and he needs a good throttling, but he's not a bad guy."

"He has a weird way of showing it."

"He is a robot," Pain went on. "He may not like you, but I doubt he'd want to see you harmed."

Ivy looked around a bit as they were nearing the vault.

"That's odd..." Ivy started. "I haven't seen any hover carts or such that you would think would have to be around to haul things with. Not one at all."

Pain grunted a response and pushed Ivy behind him a little more. They turned the corner and got to the vault. The door was opened slightly. Pain and Ivy peeked in. The place was empty.

"Tzao gao!" Pain said under his breath.

"It's empty," Ivy said. "Something isn't right."

"Let's get back to the stairs," Pain said firmly. "We need to get out of here."

Ivy looked up into Pain's eyes. A feeling of alarm was starting to grow within her. Pain looked down at her.

"The vault being empty and that sound y'all heard... We ain't the only ones here."

"You sure?" she asked as her voice wavered a bit.

13 ran around the corner.

"Let's get out of here. We ain't alone and they got people throughout looking anything of monetary value," he reported. "Don't know where or how many."

Pain swore, grabbed Ivy's hand and led her quickly towards the stairwell.

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Saturday, February 28, 2009 6:56 PM

/// There is nothing here. You are not reading this.///

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Saturday, February 28, 2009 7:16 PM

John turned reaching out for anyone nearby, he felt no one but then a presence emerged. He turned to his people. "We have company." he said. The person was approaching their feelings getting stronger. John stopped for a moment. Why was this person alone. He pulled out one of his guns and waited. Suddenly a loud voice boomed from a corridor off to the side.

"YOU," the voice commanded, "OFF MY PLANET!"

'Gorramit,' John thought turning to see the person he wanted to see less than anyone else. Doc stood before him gun trained on his head.

"You can't just go around declaring every thing your planet," John replied keeping his gun raised.

"Same planet."

"I suppose you're right."

"You are all under arrest for theft and concealing a fugitive."
This was not going well

johnttf

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Sunday, March 1, 2009 3:48 PM

John's questions had been avoided for now, but Evelyn felt it wasn't over. He was very persistent and seemed to know things. She'd have to keep an eye out for him, but that was the least of her worries. Right now, her focus was on the job, which seemed to be okay at first, but then everything started to go wrong.

First of all, the vault was empty, and Evelyn was pretty sure that wasn't supposed to happen. Then John said something about company, and she had no idea what to expect. She drew her gun, waiting for this mysterious presence to reveal itself when she heard a familiar voice.

Quote:
Originally posted by johnthetheatrefreak:
"YOU," the voice commanded, "OFF MY PLANET!"

And that seemed just a bit odd. What was her commanding officer doing here? Wasn't she supposed to be handling all of this herself? Then, she said something about arresting them all. That would look just great on her final report.

-------------------------------------------------

"See, I've secretly been kind of a fan of me for some time now. I've seen everything I've ever done. I'd love to meet me, but I'd probably just stare and not be able to say anything witty or anything." -- Joss Whedon

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Sunday, March 1, 2009 8:45 PM

Mal, Zoe and Cate watched Isahiah carefully as he pulled cluster after cluster of wires out of the main operations table. He spent time looking over the areas that were basically… mangled.

“Looks like the primary security system for the entire facility has been bypassed,” Isahiah announced.

“That’s not good, is it?” Mal asked.

“Nope,” Isahiah answered. “Would make the secondary stuff down by the vaults, or any other secured area of this place, rather simple to get around.”

“Someone’s definitely been here before us,” Zoe added.

“Looks like,” Isahiah comfirmed.

Mal swore and tried to use the comm again.

“John? Pain? 13? Anyone there?” he said into the comm. Again, all he got was static. “River? Can at least you hear me?”

Again, static. Mal swore again.

“Isahiah? What’s with the static? It’s making me all manner of uncomfortable,” he told him. “I got people in this place, some of them not entirely capable if things should go south, I need to be able to talk to them.”

Isahiah nodded, indicating that he understood what Mal meant, as he slid the wheeled chair across the floor to the sensor board. He opened that panel to find more wires twisted up. He pulled out a few clusters until he found a small device bypassing some of the standard functions.

“What’s that?” Cate asked.

“It’s a jamming device,” he said as he turned it slightly to see how exactly it worked. “Kinda rudimentary, but it was given a boost by hardwiring it straight into the control panel.”

“Well, can we get that gorram thing off?” Mal asked.

Isahiah nodded and it only took about two minutes for him to extract the device and shut it off.

The first thing Mal noticed was the sound of Serenity’s thrusters coming up over top the command center.

“What the…” Zoe remarked as all four of them leaned out the door to check out the situation.

“River!” Mal started to say. “What in the sphincter of Hell-”

“Not alone Captain…” she responded. “Ship on the far end. Couldn’t see it before, but I can now. Gonna set down closer.”

Mal, Zoe, Cate and Isahiah bolted from the Command Center and headed for the ship in general.

Now that communications were open, Mal started to get updates from the other two teams.

“First vault is empty, Mal,” John said. “We are headed your way.”

“Ours too,” Pain reported. “And we ain’t alone down here. They’ve got people combing the entire place looking for anything of money value.”

“So be careful as you wander, folks,” 13 added. “We’re headed your way too.”

“Juh jen sh guh kwai luh duh jean jan,” Mal mumbled. “Isahiah? When this is all said and done, we’re gonna have a sit down. You owe a couple of explanations.”

Isahiah didn’t answer him, but it was obvious he had heard Mal.

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Monday, March 2, 2009 5:23 PM

"You're not going to arrest me." John was going to have to fight back in the only way that worked with Doc. "We're old friends, why would you arrest me?"

"I've tried to before."

"Not honestly. Besides," he decided to take a gamble that she didn't know about River, "what fugitive am I harboring."

"You're harboting yourself!"

"So are you."

"Don't go there."

"Don't arrest me." He was getting to her

johnttf

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Monday, March 2, 2009 8:28 PM

On the way to meet up with the rest of the crew

They had to find a way back up to the crew. They originally were going to take the stairs, but 13 had told them about the elevator he saw the other men use. Now came the important question. If the three of them took the elevator, would those other men be hanging around it, or would they have gone on their way? True they could just skip the ordeal and take the stairs, but the elevator was faster much faster than walking up God knew how many flights of stairs.

The trio made their way very cautiously over to where the elevator was. 13 lead the way with Ivy in the middle and Pain taking the rear. They did their best to be as quiet as possible so as not to alert anyone who might be loitering around the general area of the elevator. Pain kept the light from his assault rifle low to the ground, occasionally looking back over his shoulder to see if there was anyone behind them.

13 held up an arm and whispered, "Hold it. I hear someone up ahead."

Ivy and Pain stopped and tried to listen to see if they could hear what 13 did. 13 cocked his head slightly, holding up a finger, and for a short moment he said nothing as he adjusted his hearing. It took only a few seconds before he whispered what he was hearing in the exact same voice of the person he was eavesdropping on.

"This is Crane reporting, Captain." 13 whispered, mimicking Crane's exact wording and syntax. "Rojas and I are at the elevator in Sector 7. We found some stuff and are on our way up shortly. Gorramn lift is taking forever."

"So there's only two of them?" Pain whispered to 13, sliding closer to the robot and turning off his weapons light. "How far are they?"

13 nodded and whispered back, "About 30 feet ahead and to the right." He looked back at Pain and asked, "I'll go. You stay with her."

"Are you sure about that?" Pain whispered back.

"Yes." 13 whispered. "The area they're in opens up into a large open area. The elevator is across the way from the corridor's exit. There's some crates and metal containers around for cover should you feel the need to tag along, but I advise you to wait here." He gave Ivy a look and then said, "For her safety."

At that, 13 turned and headed for the elevator, walking 30 feet and then making a right. His sensors spotted the two men standing outside the elevator, waiting for it to come down. He made no actions to hide that he was there as he walked out into the open.

"HEY! YOU! STOP RIGHT THERE!" shouted Rojas, as he unholstered his pistol and aimed it at 13.

Rojas was a rather short and stalky man in his mid-40's with thinning black hair that was tied in a ponytail. He was of Hispanic origin and had a slightly heavy accent. Rojas was wearing a black leather jacket over a stained white T-shirt, a pair of worn blue jeans, and cracked leather boots. The pistol he had in his hands was a rather old revolver, but it still was functional.

Crane on the other hand was tall and skinny and in his early 30's. He was Caucasian with short spiky blond hair. He wore a long sleeved brown shirt and a pair of camouflaged cargo pants, finished off with a pair of black steel-toed boots. His sawed off lever action shotgun was also aimed at 13.

"STOP OR WE'LL SHOOT!" Crane added, loading a shell into the chamber of his shotgun.

When 13 ignored them, Rojas and Crane opened fire. Unfazed by their bullets and buckshot, 13 whipped out his two sub-machine guns and fired a three round burst at each of them. Casually, 13 holstered his guns as he walked up to their bodies. He looked at them and noticed a comm in Rojas' jacket it pocket.

"Rojas? Crane? What's taking you two so long?" came a voice over the comm.

13 picked it up and said in Crane's voice, "Had to take a leak, boss. We'll be up in a minute."

"Alright then." came the voice over the comm. "Get your pigus moving and no dicking around in there. Dong ma?"

"Got it." 13 replied, using Crane's voice once more.

13 dropped the comm to the ground and headed back over to where Pain and Ivy were. They were not going to like what had happened and neither were the others once they reached them.

Rojas' revolver:

Crane's shotgun:

13's SMGs:

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Tuesday, March 3, 2009 12:37 PM

DOCRAGNAROCK

I glared at the infuriating man across from me.
"I am going to arrest you!"
He glared right back.
"Fine, then maybe I'll just shot you!" 'Shoot me? Really?' I thought, 'He honestly believes that I believe he'll shoot me?'
"No, you won't"
"O.K, so I wouldn't."
"Maybe I'll shoot you." The other man in the vault,Jayne, spoke up, aiming at me. 'I know just how to deal with this' I thought.
"Not if you want to get laid." John looked at her in exasperation, and Jayne was obvously confused.
"Huh?"
"What? You are not going to sleep with him." John turned and repeated to Jayne,
"She's not going to sleep with you.", before turning back to me.
"He's not your type."
"How do you know?" I snarkly replied "My type could be...big, simple, and violent."
"That does sound like my brother."
Now this was like old times.

It is the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting

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Tuesday, March 3, 2009 6:01 PM

John had managed to lighten the mood enough to move on. "Look, we sort of have places to be, so it was awful seeing you again. Stay away!"

"YOu can't just walk away like that!" Doc shouted after him.

"Really..." John was interupted by a gunshot. Reacting by instinct, he crouched. He looked around and saw a pair of gentlemen. He heard a shot from behind as Jayne expertly fired at the first, bringing him down. John was unsure as to whether or not the man was dead. "We already destroyed your ship, you have no where to go!" John was confused. "River, has the ship been destroyed." he whispered into the com.

"No." She replied curtly.

"I think you're mistaken," John began before it hit him. "OH! Bad luck Doc." She looked incredibly angry. An since it wasn't at him, this would be entertaining

johnttf

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Tuesday, March 3, 2009 9:57 PM

Ivy and Pain heard the sound of distant gunfire in the direction 13 had gone.

The sound of a single gunshot reverberated inside Ivy's mind. She flinched, covered her ears, shut her eyes and slid down the wall. The shot was so familiar, so...

Pain was at her side in an instant, laying a hand on her shoulder, while his eyes were trained on the ruckus that 13 was probably responsible for.

The gunshot sound shot through her head again as a tear slid down her face.

"Don't look, Ivy," he said softly as his grip on his gun tightened as he heard footsteps coming their way. "Don't look. Now is not the time to look."

Ivy nodded her head slowly as Pain wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her up gently to a standing position.

"Ivy?" he asked her, eyes and gun still scanning the hallway in front of them. "Can I speak to Tommy for a minute."

Ivy nodded slowly again and Tommy slid forward.

"I'm here," she said, her gun switching from her right hand to her left.

Pain turned to look at her square in the eyes.

"I can't have her going to pieces now. You know that don't you?"

"I'm working on it."

"I need to know what is setting her off," Pain asked her, knowing that it was a good chance Tommy wouldn't tell him. When she didn't answer, he asked again. "Please Tommy, I need to know."

"It's the sound of guns firing," she whispered. "That's all I am going to say. And don't expect me to tell you anything else, so don't even ask."

He gave her a quick hug.

"I need to go back and do damage control," she told him. "You take care of her."

"I will. I promise."

Tommy faded back and Ivy slid back in control, her gun switching back into her right hand. She was relaxing a little.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"S'Ok. I just need you to focus. This is not going as planned. I need you to be able to help if needed."

Ivy nodded and took in a deep breath. Pain leaned down and kissed her softly.

"I'll protect you. I promise," he told her.

He kissed her again to show her that he meant it, just as 13 came around the corner.

"You guys can't keep your hands off each other even in a time like this?" 13 said, slightly disgusted. "Now is not the time to be sucking face."

Pain parted from her and walked up to 13.

"What did you do back there?" he asked in a slightly accusatory tone. "And how bad is it gonna bite us in the ass later?"

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Thursday, March 5, 2009 1:44 PM

With Pain, 13, and Ivy

Quote:
Originally posted by EnglishIvy:
"What did you do back there?" he asked in a slightly accusatory tone. "And how bad is it gonna bite us in the ass later?"

"I believe I took care of our little problem with the elevator being guarded by two armed thugs, who by the by shot at me first." spat 13, a hint of blue white energy sparking through his eyes. "As for the ass biting, that depends on how long it takes the poor dupe that I talked to on the comm back there, to realize Mr. Rojas and Mr. Crane aren't where they're supposed to be and he sends someone to check up on them."

13 took his gaze off Pain, looked at Ivy. and then back at Pain. He straightened his posture and re-holstered his submachine guns, while adding, "It also depends on how long you're willing to stand here and give me a lecture about it while your girlfriend's standing there getting her panties in a twist. Oh that's right! SHE'S NOT WEARING ANY!!!"

13 stalked off towards where the elevator was and stopped a short distance away. Turning his head slightly, he said in a more somber tone, "You know, the next time I try to be nice and help, I think I'll just sit in the corner and twiddle my thumbs while you two get yourselves shot at. How's that for you?"

He moved again and didn't bother looking back this time as he disappeared though the dimly lit blackness. If they followed him back to the elevator that was fine by him. If they decided to go with the stairs, that was fine by him too.

Pain stood there, watching until 13's form disappeared around a corner. The heat from his anger still flowing through his veins and radiating off his body. It wasn't so much the hatred for the Bot Boy himself, but his actions and words. He turned back to Ivy and his gaze softened. He walked over to her and embraced her in his arms, careful not to poke her with his assault rifle.

"Come on, baobei. Lets get a move on." he said softly to her, one hand stroking her hair as he leaned down and kissed the top of her head.

The walk back to the elevator gave 13 time for his circuits to cool down somewhat. Not much mind you, but enough that they wouldn't overheat and send him into standby mode. As he got to the elevator, 13 moved the bodies of Rojas and Crane off into the shadows and behind some crates, so that no one would immediately see them and guess what happened. He hoped that the dim lighting would help camouflage the puddles of blood as well as the streaks of it that lead to Rojas and Crane's bodies. Back at the elevator, 13 opened the doors and stepped in, holding them open while waiting for Pain and Ivy in case they followed him.

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Friday, March 6, 2009 7:52 PM

Pain looked at 13 as he stepped into the elevator. His jaw flexed a bit as he thought for a bit, weighing his options. 13 had been quite rude to Ivy and he had already dispatched of two of the "bad guys." Who knows what else 13 might do, plus the constant berating of his relationship with Ivy was enough to distract him from the job at hand. Finally he came to a decision. He reached his hand down and grasped Ivy's.

"We'll take the stairs," he said between clenched teeth. "I don't think it's safe to go with you. Be a bit distracted with having you around."

13 got an incredulous look on his face and stepped into the doorway of the elevator.

"Distracted around me? It's her that's got you distracted! Wrapped around your finger she has you!" 13 exclaimed.

Ivy's head dropped a bit at the exchange.

"Maybe I like they way she makes me feel? Ever think about that?"

"It's not you, Pain. She's done something to you," 13 accused. "You were never like this with Ertia!"

13 has crossed the line. Pain closed his eyes and took in a deep breath.

"Yeah, well, neither were you," he answered evenly. He gave Ivy's hand a gentle squeeze. "Come on Ivy, let's take the stairs."

And they all went their separate ways.

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Saturday, March 7, 2009 8:50 PM

In the Stairwell

"Is he always like that?" Ivy asked Pain as she walked up the stairs with him. "Or is he just like that because of me?"

"I think he's just jealous, baobei." replied Pain, giving her hand a squeeze and showing her a smile.

"Jealous?" Ivy asked as they continued climbing the stairs ahead of them. "Why would something like him be jealous?"

"Don't rightly know, babe." replied Pain as they neared the corner up ahead. "But then again this is 13 we're talkin' about. The same 13 who likes to wear disguises and crash me dates." He shrugged and added, "Although I am glad he chose not to wear a dress last time."

He held up a arm as they passed the closed door to the floor they were on. He peered through the slim dusty rectangular window, trying to see if anyone was on the floor they were on. When he didn't see anyone through the window, he signaled Ivy that it was safe to continue up and onward.

Pain held Ivy's hand again as the ascended the next flight of stairs. While looking up ahead, he said to her, "Speaking of dates, I think we should figure out what to do for our second one. As much as I'd like a re-match at Paint Tag, I'm kind of leanin' towards packing a basket with food, grabbin' a blanket, and findin' someplace out of the way to have a picnic." He turned to her, giving her a smile, and asked, "Would you like that?"

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Sunday, March 8, 2009 6:30 PM

Quote:
Originally posted by DRPAIN:
"Would you like that?"

"I would," she said, smiling. "It's been a while since I've gone on a picnic."

"Then it's settled."

"Yes, I guess it's-" Ivy's foot slipped and her hand slipped out of Pain's as she fell to her knees. Her hands broke her fall and they got slightly skinned, but she whacked her knee hard. "Owww..."

Pain was at her side in an instant.

"Are you OK, bao bei?" he asked, concerned.

"Yeah..." she said as she stood up and brushed her hands off on her pants.

"You're bleeding," Pain whispered. as he went back down a couple of stairs to check out torn place in her pants just below her knee and the cut contained within.

Ivy looked down.

"Ah... It's just a little cut," Ivy remarked. "And these were my new pants!"

"We can always go shopping again," Pain told her. "It does seem to be stopping already."

"Pain, it would take a little more than some blood loss to slow me down."

"That concussion didn't, that's for sure," he teased her. She giggled a bit before he looked up at her with a devilish grin. "Want me to kiss it for you?"

"Eww... This place is filthy. I don't think that's neccessary."

Pain stood up to find himself face to face with Ivy. They froze for a moment, before Pain leaned in and kissed her. It was a short kiss, just a brief touch of their lips, before backing away.

"Maybe 13 was right. Maybe you have done something to me," he whispered. "Cause here we are on a job, where danger could literally be right around the corner and I am having the most inappropriate thoughts..."

He didn't finish his sentence. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her hard and passionately.

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Sunday, March 8, 2009 8:45 PM

In the Stairwell

Their tongues pirouetted like ballerinas inside each others mouths as they kissed. Ivy pressed herself tighter to Pain, her hands roaming his back as her eyes fluttered inside her head. She let out a moan in between kisses and when there was a momentary break in lip contact, Ivy panted and put her hands on Pain's chest.

Looking into his eyes, she said to him as her chest heaved up and down, "Babe, we can visit your inappropriate thoughts after awhile, but right now I honestly think we need to finish this job." She gave him another long kiss and after breaking it of, said with a sly smile, "Remember, baby. We work before we play."

Pain looked into her dazzling green eyes and sighed. Unwrapping her from his grasp, he nodded and said to her, "You're right. We need to focus on the job." He looked her over slowly before letting out a defeated sigh and saying, "I guess I can wait."

Ivy looked up at him, smiled and said, "Good boy. Your patience will certainly pay off in the end. I can guarantee you that."

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Wednesday, March 11, 2009 8:24 PM

Pain was holding a gun in one hand and holding Ivy’s hand in the other as he led her up the stairs. About a floor and a half up, something brushed Ivy’s ankle. She screamed and with freakish speed, she ran up a few stairs, passing Pain. Pain whirled around to see the problem, instinctively using his arm to push Ivy behind his back.

Then he laughed.

“It’s a mouse, darling,” he chuckled as he turned around to face her. Again, she ended up being eye level with him and she was still staring down at the stairs where she had been with a ridiculous ‘It’s-a-mouse’ look on her face. He laughed at her again. Finally she turned her focus on him, looking him straight in the face. She was slightly embarrassed and hot under the collar because he had laughed. Her green eyes sparkled with intensity. It sucked Pain’s breath away.

Select to view spoiler:

“It felt bigger,” she managed to get out before Pain reached around her with his free hand and pulled her flush against him. His mouth covered hers, his tongue seeking its mate. She stiffened for a split second, then melted against him, wrapping her arms around him while still holding her gun.

Pain picked her up and went up the next three stairs until he reached a landing. When he got there, he sat her on half-concrete wall that served as the railing for the stairwell, never stopping the intensity of his kissing. His lips left hers to travel down her neck before nipping on her shoulder.

“Pain…” she moaned as her eyes closed. She heard him place his rifle on the top of the rail as well and both of his hands started to roam over her body. His touch was electric, shooting sparks throughout her body. She tried to say something to him about it not being the right time for sex, but all she could get out was his name. “Pain…”

His hands unbuttoned her shirt quickly, but when he touched her chest, there was nothing fast about it. His touch was tender, it caressed over her stomach, her ribs and her breasts. She arched her back in response.

“Pain…” she panted as her hands reached for his chest only to come in contact with his body armor. Normally, she would have been disappointed that she couldn’t touch him, but right now, right there, in the midst of all the danger, it just turned her on more. She reached down and placed her gun on the ledge as well before running her hands through his hair. “Pain… We shouldn’t…”

“Screw ‘shouldn’t’ bao bei,” he growled as touched her. “Just relax and enjoy yourself.”

Ivy knew they shouldn’t have been doing what they were, but the added high of their current location and environment just made his every touch and glide over her skin so sensual.

“I’m relaxin’” she whispered as her hands unbuckled his cargo pants. The weight of the weaponry the pockets carried caused them to fall to his ankles without even a thought. She took him in her hands, slowly caressing his entire length.

“Ivy…” he moaned as his eyes rolled backwards into his head. “Oh God, Ivy…”

It didn’t take him long to remove her pants. He scooted her to the edge of the wall and slowly entered her. Both of them shuddered and Pain started with a quick pace, but after a minute, he slowed down into the languid pace, his strokes long and slow.

“I don’t want to rush…” he whispered into her ear between pants. “I know we should… oooh… but I… *moan* I can’t. I’m going… oh God…to get us… *grunt* both killed.”

“Then don’t rush,” Ivy said as her whole body shuddered in delight. “And if today is the day… *pant* we are meant… oh, Pain… to die… ooooohhh… I wouldn’t want… *moan* to be anywhere else… *breath hitches* right now… *God* but here.”

Pain groaned as he buried his face in her neck and the two of them continued their tryst in silence, except for the sound of each other in utter carnal bliss.

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Thursday, March 12, 2009 6:52 PM

In the Stairwell

Select to view spoiler:

After they had finished making love in the stairwell, Pain and Ivy continued to kiss and touch each other. Pain whispered naughty things into Ivy's ear, causing her to giggle quietly and moan as Pain gave her a few slow teasing thrusts.

"I bet you'd like that wouldn't you babe?" Ivy whispered as she nibbled on his left earlobe, her hands gripping Pain's sides.

"Indeed I would." Pain whispered back, his own hands gliding up her ribs.

Ivy stifled a giggle as she wiggled her hips some and murmured, "That tickles, baby."

Pain ran his hands over her ribs again and caused her to stifle more giggling. She in turn slid one of her hands between Pain's legs while he was still inside her and caused him to jump back a little.

"You naughty girl." Pain whispered to her as he gave her devious a smile.

"Naughty boy." she whispered back, giving him her own devious smile.

Pain brought himself closer to her, kissing her passionately on the mouth before whispering in her right ear, "We should probably get dressed now, baobei. 13 and the other team are probably at the command center by now."

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Friday, March 13, 2009 6:15 PM

Mal, Zoe, Cate and Isahiah ran carefully towards the competing ship. Guns were drawn and eyes were peeled for any unfriendlies. When they got near the other ship, they slowed down per Mal’s hand signals and quietly moved forward, taking cover where they could.

As they creeped closer, they could see that the men from the other ship had two hand trucks with a couple of small crates on each one. They had also stacked some other things on the floor next to them.

“That’s it!” Isahiah said quietly to Mal, Zoe and Cate. “Those crates on the hand carts are what we came for.”

Mal looked at the size of the boxes and was less than convinced of their value.

“Those small things?” he asked. “We are risking everything for four small crates?”

“Four small and very VALUABLE crates,” Isahiah reassured the others.

“It’d better be,” Mal warned him.

It was then that bullets rang out from the other ship’s direction. Mal, Zoe, Cate and Isahiah dove for cover behind nearby crates. Mal swore and peeked out from behind a crate to see what was going on, but nearly got him head shot off for his troubles. He switched on the comm as a new barrage of gunfire swept over them.

“Where in the Hell are you guys?” he yelled.

————————————————————————————————————————————————————————>>>
BigWolf18 "Way i remember it, you said you was leavin', dare say that saved us a whole peck o' trouble. now i gotta wonder what could spur on a fine disreputable man like yourself to show your fine disreputable face here again."

...Dust monkeys...

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Monday, March 16, 2009 1:09 PM