BLUE SUN ROOM FAN FICTION - GENERAL

BABYWITHTHEPOWER

William Finds Serenity - Pt. 1
Sunday, December 31, 2006

This is a fan fic I've been writing on and off for a while now. It takes place about eight months after the BDM. It is by no stretch of the imagination completion. I just thought I might post my initial part here to see what you all think. And just a forewarning, I am a fan of the “small ‘verse” mentality, so the new character, William, has had direct and indirect associations with the cast of Firefly and Serenity.


CATEGORY: FICTION    TIMES READ: 1983    RATING: 9    SERIES: FIREFLY

William prepped his Harrion XM7 for entry into atmo. It had been awhile since he had been on Beaumonde; he just hoped Fanty and Mingo would have a customer lined up for his wares. Money was getting tight, and his ship wouldn't fuel itself. The ship jostled and the engine moaned as he broke the stratosphere and then bucked hard. "What in the bloody hell...?" William was cut off when a loud blast came from the rear engine and the ship bucked again. "Oh, juh jen sh guh kwai luh duh jean-jan..." William looked at the readouts and it was worse then he'd feared. Diagnostics showed that he'd lost a stabilizer and the catalyzer in the engine was fragged. He just hoped that there was enough life in her to get him to the ground. The ship bucked again, knocking William around and sending the ship into a barrel roll. "Ching-wah tsao duh liou mahng!" William righted it and strained to engage the reverse thrusters before he crashed into the surface. He managed to land, albeit roughly, on the outskirts of one of the smaller villages. Beaumonde was a wealthy planet, but even it had some rural areas. William got out of his ship to take a look at the damage. The engine was slag; it was a solid lump of plasteel and wires. William was going nowhere in a hurry. "Well, ain't this just great?" It was dark; just on the verge of sunrise, so William took the opportunity to bury his cargo. It was nothing that would stand up to close inspection, but William guessed there wouldn't be a close inspection all the way out here. William grabbed his pack and sealed his ship. He'd have to go into the city and see if he could sell what was left of it. "Any landing you can walk away from, eh sonny?" A man laughed from his porch as William entered the town. "I ain’t your son old man, and I ain’t too keen on bein' the butt of no jokes either." William turned to keep walking. "I ain't meant nothin' by it son." The man stood up. "But as it seems you're grounded, I was just tryin' to lighten you up is all." William stopped. "Listen, I gotta run into the city, and as it seems you're goin' that way, how 'bout I give ya a lift?" "I'd insist on payin' of course." William said as he turned to face the man. "Well then its sounds like you got yourself a ride." He extended his hand to William. "Name's Earl, but people 'round here call me Jack." "That's a far way to jump, from Earl to Jack." William shook his hand. "William." "Nice to meet you, Will. My buggy's right over there. So where're ya headin'?" William threw his pack in the backbench and got in. "The Maidenhead, if it's not too far outta your way." "Not at all, Will." William and Earl/Jack talked on the ride there, EJ asking William all sorts of questions about the 'verse, and it was obvious to William that he'd never left the planet. When the got to the Maidenhead, EJ told William he'd be back this way in an hour if he wanted a ride back to his ship. William thanked him and went inside the bar. This bar had a thing against guns, so William would have to lock his up, but the storage containers were too small for a sword, so they'd have to understand, and usually did. William eyed the place from the catwalk and spotted Fanty sitting in his normal booth; at least William thought it was Fanty. He walked down and sat in the booth across from him. "Ah, William, how's business?" William concentrated on hiding his accent. When it came to business, he found it best no to give anything away he didn't have to. "Dead unfortunately, my ship went and, got itself busted up on re-entry. Catalyzer went and the whole engine fused." Mingo sat down at the table as William was finishing. "So, it seems like I'm grounded." "That's a shame. So what is it you need us for, exactly? You obviously can't do any jobs while you're grounded." Fanty started and Mingo finished. "Information." As William said this he put some bills on the table. "I need to sell what's left of my ship so I can afford to get on a descent one off this rock." "We know a guy that'll buy the scrap, not sure how much it'll fetch you. But as far as a descent ship, yours was the nicest one scheduled to land in the next week." William cursed under his breath. "Well, I'll take what I can get. My ships grounded about twelve kilometers south east of here. If the guy can meet me out there, that'd be great." "We'll see what we can do." William had some time to kill, so he went to the bar and ordered a drink. There was a guy, obviously drunk, in a nearby table hanging all over some woman, a whore by Williams guess. William didn't pay them much mind until a couple of thugs walked up. William watched them closely out of his peripheral. One of the men grabbed the woman and held her while the other drew his knife and advanced on the drunkard. "Your money or your life stranger." They didn't even notice William get behind them and draw his sword. He placed the blade against the closest one's neck. "I don't think so, friend. How's about you two just leave the man in peace?" "How's about you mind yer own...oof" The thug was cut short as he was punched in the stomach. A quick uppercut and he was out. The other thug let go of the girl and drew a knife. Before William could react, that thug was on the ground as well. The drunkard just stood there for a moment and then collapsed. A look around the room told William that things were about to go from bad to worse. He threw a few of his remaining bills on the counter to cover anything that might have broken in the exchange, and he lifted the man up and dragged him out of the bar, one arm over his shoulder. He made a point of grabbing his pistol on the way out. He was relieved to find EJ waiting for him. Had it been an hour already? William dumped the drunk in the back and jumped in the front. "Who's your friend?" EJ asked as he drove off. "Not sure, exactly." William admitted. "Couldn't've let him to the vultures when he's passed out like this." "Aye." EJ said as he made a turn sharply. "You're a good man, Will. Most would have just left him to die." William didn't say anything and the ride back to the ship was a quiet one. William took the drunkard from the back along with his pack and EJ helped him carry him to the ship. William gave EJ some money and thanked him for his help. Now all he had to do was wait.

~~~

A few hours went by, and William managed to set up a rough camp outside his ship; a shelter, sleeping mat and a fire pit, on which he had some canned beans simmering. He put the drunken man on his sleeping mat, no sense in forcing him to sleep in the dirt. William heard the sound of horses approaching and grabbed his gun. He wasn't about to let himself be ambushed. The horses pulled to a stop about five meters out. There were three of them; only the outside two had any iron showing. "You William Alexander?" The leader of the three called out. Again, William covered up his accent. "That I am. And might I inquire who's asking?" William didn't lower his weapon. "The scrapper. Fanty and Mingo said you might have a ship you're lookin' to unload." William relaxed. "That I do, and you're looking at it." The man got off his horse and looked the ship over. He even went inside without asking. "It's a Harrion XM7, treat her right and she'll be with you until the day you die." "Yeah," William started, "unless the catalyzer shorts and fuses the engine." William scratched the back of his head. "She's in great shape other than the engine, and it wouldn't take more then that to get her running again." The scrapper jumped down from the engine hatch. "Indeed. So why are you selling it rather then just buying a new engine?" William laughed. "Does it look like I could afford one? If I could we wouldn't be having this conversation." "Alright." The scrapper was scratching his chin, trying to come up with the lowest possible figure that wouldn't end this deal cold. "I'll give you seventeen-fifty platinum for it." It was a number higher then William expected for the initial offer. That meant the scrapper wanted this ship more then he let on. "A working model is worth almost ten times that and it won't cost you more then thirty-five hundred to get her workin' again. Twenty-five hundred." The scrapper looked over the ship again, running his hand along the hull. "Every penny I pay you over that cuts into my profit, but you're right, it is worth more. How about two thousand?" Without flinching, William countered, "Twenty-two fifty." Deal. Boris!" The man with the rifle rode forward and threw a pouch down to the scrapper. The man counted out 2250 platinum and pocketed the rest. He handed the pouch to William. "It's been a pleasure. We will be here to pick it up in the morning." "It'll be here, though I may not." William and the scrapper shook hands and they left. Two more hours past before there was even a stir from the drunk, and a whole hour after that before he woke up. "Where the ruttin' hell am I?" William smiled and handed him a can of beans. "You're outside of town. You got drunk and knocked out a couple of patrons at the Maidenhead. I decided it best not to leave you there." The man took the beans from him. "I didn't need no help." William laughed. "I'm sure your quite capable of handlin' yourself when your awake, but you were out. And like I said, I couldn't just leave you." He extended his hand. "William Alexander." The man took his hand. "Jayne. Jayne Cobb."

~~~

William and Jayne sat around the fire for a while, telling each other 'war' stories until Jayne was feeling better. Eventually their conversation turned to guns, a topic both men were enthusiastic about, and Jayne began talking about his Callahan full-bore auto lock, or Vera, as he called it. William smiled. "If you like the Callahan, I got something that'll make it look like a ruttin' piece of tzao gao." He began brushing off the crates he'd hidden and cracked one open. "That's impossible, the Callahan is the best damn gun made by ... Wuh de tyen, ah." William presented Jayne with a long-range rifle. "That there is a Winchester BALR-36. You can shoot the wings off a fly at eight hundred meters easy." Jane ran his hand along the gun, admiring its design. "I didn't think Winchester was still making guns. Thought Blue Sun acquired and dismantled 'em long ago." "They ain't, and they did." William smiled. "There's only a handful of these on the market still, and I got a few of 'em. They'll fetch a hefty price, if I could ever find a buyer. But with my ship fragged and bein' marooned on this rock for God knows how long, it doesn't look like that'll be happenin' any time soon." "Marooned?" Jane said, still admiring the rifle. "You a pilot? 'Cause we've been hurtin' for a pilot for awhile." "Well, I can fly if that's what you mean. I ain’t ever been to no academy, but I know enough." William perked up at this. "You got a ship." "Well, I'm on its crew, but yeah. A Firefly." "Good ship, that is." William smiled. "Tell you what. You get your Captain here. If manage to strike a deal and get on the ship, aside from whatever my payment to the Captain is, I'll throw in the Winchester for ya. Consider it a ‘finder's fee’." "I think you got yourself a deal." Jayne got up, and reached for William's hand. "I'll have the ship here faster'n you can spit."

~~~

Three hours later, William was roused from his thoughts by the sound of a ship approaching. It was clearly a Firefly, so William settled down. The loading bay opened and a man walked out with Jayne to meet him. He was older, carried himself a way William recognized. He was a soldier, and, guessing by the color of his jacket, an Independent. William liked him already. "Jayne here says you're looking for a ship." The man said, sizing him up. "That I am. William, sir," he extended his hand, "William Alexander." "No need to call me 'sir', I ain’t your Captain." The man took his hand and shook "But that doesn't make you any less a Captain." He smiled. The man smiled back. "The name’s Malcolm Reynolds, and this here's Serenity."

~~~

Mal and Jayne helped William uncover his crates and get them on the ship. They set aside the guns and ammo that were agreed upon as payment, plus William offered up an additional 250 platinum. As a skilled pilot, he'd also offered to help in the flight rotation. Mal and Jayne were taking him to the dormitory when William was knocked on his back, a person on top of him. Once he got his bearings, he looked up into the smiling face of a teenage girl. The light in her eyes made him smile, and blush. "Ummm ... 'ello love." "River, get off him." Mal said as he helped her stand up. Before he could say anything else, another girl, this one a few years older, came chasing after her, almost knocking the Captain over this time. "Kaylee, dammit, we have a guest." The girl turned around. "Shiny. I'll meet him in a minute. River!" She called after the other girl and was gone. "Sorry about that." Mal said as he helped William to his feet. When they got to the infirmary, there was a man inside finishing up putting some things away. "Simon, this here's William. He's gonna be travellin' with us for awhile. William, this is Simon." William extended his hand. "Pleasure." Simon shook it. "Same here. Sorry, I'm a little distracted. River and Kaylee just came through here, and I'm trying to straighten up before Zoë gets here for her exam." "A little late for that Doc." William turned to find a dark skinned woman standing at the door. She was very attractive, and very pregnant. "This here's my first mate Zoë. And this guy," Mal walked over and gently patted her stomach, "is Wash." William absorbed the scene. There was obviously a strong bond between Mal and Zoë, but William could tell it wasn't romantic. These two had been to Hell and back together, and William was sure either one would give their life for the other. The child was not Malcolm's, of that William was certain. "It's a pleasure to meet both of you." William said as he extended his hand. "The name's William." Zoë looked him over, sizing him up. "Passengers, Captain? I didn't realize we were entertaining." She took William's hand, shaking it firmly. "Welcome aboard William, it'll be nice having someone new around. How long you planning on staying?" William smiled. "Haven't quite decided. As long as I'm welcome I suppose." William shouldered his bag and looked at the Captain. "Where should I put my things?" Mal looked at William apologetically. "Sorry, forgot you were lugging that around. Passenger quarters are right this way." As William walked past Zoë, he nodded and offered his hand again. "It was nice meeting you ma'am." Zoë took his hand, gentler this time. "Same." William followed Mal to a small hallway with sliding doors in the walls. To one with imagination, it almost looked like a honeycomb. "Any of these are available except this one here." Mal said, indicating a door. "That one's Rivers, but any of the others are fair game." William opened the nearest door and dropped his duffel, opening it up and pulling some of the contents out, his father's issued duster among them. William noticed, only slightly, Mal focus on the jacket for an instant before continuing. "Sit down meals are taken in the kitchen area at 0630, 1300, and 1800 respectively, though the kitchen is available to you at all times. Standard fair, mostly proteins and the like." Mal looked down at his watch. "Speaking of, it's coming up on diner if you’re interested. I'll let you get situated." And without another word, he was gone. William began putting his things away. The rooms were small, but everything was well placed. William was a big fan of the Firefly class; felt they were a beautiful mesh of form and function. He finished putting his effects in order then headed to where he believed the kitchen to be. He walked in as Mal and another woman came in from the loading area. Jayne, Zoë, and the two girls from earlier, Kaylee and River, according to the Captain, were already sitting at the table. As William came in Mal brought the other woman forward to introduce her. "William, I was just telling the lady here about you. William, this is...” "Inara Serra." William said, taking her hand and kissing it gently. Mal was taken aback a little. "So you know each other?" Inara looked as lost as Mal. "By reputation only." William said, sensing he had caught them both off guard. "I had seen her at a party on Persephone on the arm of Atherton Wing. While the party was in full swing, I decided to lighten Atherton's vault some, I was caught." William smiled fondly. "When he returned to the manor, he was so intent on Inara here that he allowed me to leave rather than delay their time together." He bowed slightly. "So in effect, I owe you my thanks and my hide, Miss Serra." Inara and Mal laughed. "Well, any man that steals from a man like Atherton can't be all bad. Let's eat." Conversation was light as the food was passed around. William got introduced proper to Kaylee and River, River making it a point to copy his accent. William had to admit it was good, he'd have thought she was from the Old Homestead if he didn't know better. Once all the food was laid out. William bowed his head and quietly said grace. After a short silence, Mal looked at William. "I couldn't help but notice your coat while you were unpacking. Mind if I ask where you got it?" William took another bite of his food and chewed it contemplatively. He didn't like talking about his past, especially with people he didn't know, but he was sure that the Captain had served with the Independents, so what could the harm be? "It was my father's, Captain Cale Alexander of the 18th Infantry on Titan." William couldn't help but notice that everyone else was listening intently. "You're Captain Alexander's son?" "You knew him then?" "Never met him, no, but I served with men that had. He had a reputation for being a ball buster, but there wasn't a soldier that served with him that didn't respect him." William sat silently for a moment. "Titan was taken shortly before the Battle of Serenity Valley, and though it was obvious which loss was more devastating to the Independents, Titan hit them pretty hard. My father and mother were executed by the Alliance Commander that came to discuss Titan's surrender, and I hopped the first shuttle out." The table sat in silence, William looking at his plate and Mal looking straight at him. "You do your father a great honor rememberin' him like that. I'm sure he'd be proud." William smiled. "Thank you." After a pause, William took a bite of bread and looked at Mal. "So, Captain, if I may be so bold, who did you and Zoë serve with?" Mal's expression got dark. "57th Overlanders, Serenity Valley." William dropped his fork. "You," his eyes darted between Mal and Zoë, "you fought in Serenity Valley?" Immediately William began to look at the two of them in a different light. He wasn't sharing a table with a couple of soldiers from the war; he was sitting with two people that looked the Devil in the eye and spit in his face. William noticed that the table had gotten very quiet and no one was looking at either him or the Captain, except River. The look and smile she gave William made it seem that she wasn't even aware of the conversation happening around her. The silence began to get to William. "I'm sorry Captain, if I had known...” "It's nothing, really." Mal cut in, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "You couldn't have known. Besides, I'm sure it wasn't easy for you rememberin' what happened to your folks." Mal shook his head and smiled reassuringly at William. "War's never an easy subject for those on the losing side of it. We drive on; find somethin' in this 'verse to keep us flyin' when we ought to keel. Me and Zoë here have Serenity and the crew," William noticed Kaylee smile and blush a little, "and of course there's little Wash." The mood lightened considerably, and it wasn't long before Simon came in and sat in the empty spot next to Kaylee. Conversation remained light, the crew sharing stories of past exploits in an attempt to make William feel more comfortable, and it did. He felt more a part of the group and felt a little closer to each of them. After dinner was done, William helped Kaylee clean up and offered himself up in kitchen detail rotation as well. Mal and Kaylee initially refused it, but William insisted that he pull his weight around the ship while he was there.

~~~

Once William was sure that he wasn't needed anywhere, he went into his quarters and got his father's sword and a towel. He went into the loading bay, cleared himself an area and began practicing his techniques. He closed his eyes, the motions becoming fluid, and he became so completely immersed in what he was doing that he hadn't even noticed that he was no longer alone. The routine became more vigorous, the sword strokes becoming more powerful. Suddenly, William's blade made contact, a clang of metal on metal reverberating throughout the loading area and snapping William from his focus. His sword was crossed with another, more primitive, though no less opposing, blade. He was surprised to find himself looking at River. "Hello love …" was all he could manage to say. ”I like it when you call me that." River said as she pivoted on her heel and brought her sword around for a mid level slash, William barely blocking in time. William looked at River, not exactly knowing what to say. He found himself intrigued by her. She was beautiful, of that there was no doubt, but William was also pretty sure not all her pistons were firing. Regardless, here she was, completely lucid and equally fluid. He parried another attack from her and she smiled. "Are you just going to stand there blocking all day or are we going play?" William smiled back, spun, and went low with his blade, River blocking it easily. Their sparring mach started out slow but began getting more intense, both William and River getting into it. The sounds of their swords meeting drew the attention of the other crewmembers. Mal ran into the loading bay with Simon, Kaylee and Jayne close behind him. "River?" Simon called out. Mal cut him off and yelled into the bay. "What in the sphincter of Hell is going on back here?" It didn't look good from the crew's perspective. William was down on one knee as River came down with an overhead chop. William had to brace his blade with his off-hand in order to stop it from splitting him down the middle, a move that cost him. His blade was sharp and cut deeply into his right palm. William turned when he heard the Captain's voice; he smiled and grabbed his towel to staunch the flow of blood. "Me losing to River is what's going on." Simon ran over to River, completely ignoring William and his injury. "She's very skilled with a blade; I haven't sparred with anyone that good since my father died." Simon obviously didn't take that as a compliment and looked at William as if he was an enemy. "Do you have any idea how dangerous this is? You could have seriously injured her." William held up his hand. "Not sure if you noticed Doc, but the only one that got injured was me. You've got nothing to worry about," he turned to River, "seeing River with a blade is like watching the finest dancers in the Excelsior Ballet House. It's beautiful, you should be proud." "Comparing sword fighting to ballet is like comparing Jayne to a baboon." Simon countered still fawning over River. "Though they may have similarities they are not the same thing, and you'd be insulting the baboon." This drew and angry scowl from Jayne. "I will not have you endangering my sister." "I seem to remember a certain time where your sister cut on me saying I looked better in red." Jayne chimed in William's defense. "And I remember what she did to them Reavers. Way I figure it that girl gets a blade in her hand ain’t no one safer than her." He pointed at William's hand. "And in case you didn't notice Doc, William's the one that got hurt." Simon just glared at Jayne, but before he could say anything, Mal cut in. "That's enough. Far as I'm concerned, ain’t nothing wrong with these two sparring, let's just have less blood next time, shiny?" Mal smiled at William. "Not even a day on this boat and you've managed to piss off the Doc and get hurt by River. You're gonna get along fine here, 'specially with Jayne I'd wager." Mal started heading back into the ship. "Doc, patch him up and then you and Kaylee can get back to fixin' the engine." Simon stood and examined William's hand. He was obviously not pleased with how that went, but William could tell by his demeanor that Simon took his job as a doctor seriously and put his feelings aside when examining him. "Looks like you may need stitches. I'm going to take River to her room and then I'll meet you in the infirmary." Simon then looked at William. "If River wants to continue sparring with you, that's fine, but if you hurt her..." "I won't." William interjected. "I would never willingly harm a lady, of that I can assure you." William nodded slightly, smiling. "And judging how this match ended, I'm pretty sure you're going to be patching me up every now and again." "I'm sorry." River said as she came forward, not looking William in the eye. "I just get a little fuzzy in the head sometimes and forget who I'm with. I didn't mean to hurt you." "I know love," William said as he lifted her face and looked into her eyes, "it's okay." And it was. William knew that if he hadn't blocked that final blow, or any of them for that matter, she wouldn't have stopped. He'd be dead. And for some reason, that didn't bother him. Simon and River started to walk out of the loading bay as William sheathed his own sword and picked up River's off the floor. He ran forward, handing it to her. "Don't forget this love; you'll need it for the next time." "I like it when you call me that." River smiled and walked out. "I know." William said under his breath when Kaylee and Jayne walked up behind him. Kaylee took his hand and looked at it. "You sure you're alright? That cut looks pretty deep." William shrugged it off. "It hurts, but Simon said a few stitches should cover it. I'm not too worried." "Huh, I would be." Jayne said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Jayne, stop it." Kaylee said, exasperated. "Alls I'm sayin' is that girls a few eggs short of an omelet and I don't want my new friend here to be on the receiving end when she finally cracks." Jayne saw the look Kaylee was giving him. "What? So she's a little better after Miranda, doesn't mean I trust her any. I sure as hell don't like the fact that she had that Reaver weapon this whole time and none of us knew about it." "Guys." William cut in. "It was an accident is all, nothing more. And if I'm going to get cut by anyone I'd rather it be a pretty girl than a scruffy drunkard." He caught the Miranda reference but decided not to ask about it right now, too much was going on. "Listen, I'm sorry I caused such a ruckus. Kaylee I'm sorry I pissed off your boyfriend. And Jayne, I really appreciate you sticking up for me." "Don't mention it." "Don't worry about it." Jayne and Kaylee said at the same time. "Let me take you to the infirmary." Kaylee offered. "We can wait for Simon there." "Sounds good." William said stepping out of her way. "Lead on." William followed Kaylee into the infirmary and sat on the table in there. Kaylee took the towel from William and put it in the trash, returning with some iodine and peroxide to clean the wound out. William gave her his hand, and she swabbed it with the iodine, causing William to flinch. "I'm sorry," Kaylee looked at William apologetically, "did I hurt you?" "Not at all." William smiled. "It's cold is all." Kaylee smiled and went back to cleaning his hand. "Where'd you learn to fight like that? With a sword I mean?" "Oh, from my father. He believed that it was important for us to learn how to use more than just a gun. Men who rely only on a side arm usually find themselves dead." William scratched the back of his head. "After he died I made sure to keep up on it. You never know, right?" Kaylee smiled. "Coulda used you back on Persephone when the Captain butted heads with Atherton. Had you been there to teach him, wouldn'a had to rely on as much luck as he did." "Captain Reynolds in a duel with Atherton," William laughed, "man I'd have paid to see the look on Atherton's face when he lost." Both of them were laughing when Simon came in. "Did I miss something?" He asked offhandedly as he walked towards the cabinets. William turned his head to see him. "Not at all, doctor. Kaylee's just tellin' me about Mal's run-in with Atherton." Kaylee put down the cloth she was using to clean Williams hand. "Well, I'll let you get to work here Simon." She walked over and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll see you in the engine room." "Okay, I'll be there in a few." Simon waited until Kaylee left before he moved towards William. Before he could speak, William cut him off. "I know what you're going to say, doc, so don't even bother." William looked up at Simon. "Far as I'm concerned, I'm a guest, you're crew, and I'm in no position to go against any of the crew's wishes. I will continue to train, but I will refrain from including your sister if that’s...” Simon had been administering an anesthetic while William was talking. It was Simon's turn to cut William off. "Look, I know she jumped in on your session, she told me as much before I got here. I'm just overly protective of my sister. She's getting better, but she's still a long way off, and the cut on your hand proves it. But," Simon began stitching the wound while talking, "training with you seemed to calm her, ground her somehow. She hasn't seemed this ... normal since the Alliance took her." He looked into William's eyes. "I want you to continue to include her, on two conditions." William was a little surprised at this turn of events, but his interest was peaked. "Name them." "You never do it unsupervised and you keep the weapons with you. I know that none of the crew, including myself, is comfortable with the idea that she kept that Reaver weapon. Agreed?" William smiled. "Agreed." Simon finished the stitching and snipped the line. “Good. I’ve already taken the liberty of putting her sword in your room.” He put a bandage on William’s hand. “Okay, I think that about wraps it up here. If you’ll excuse me.” William flexed his hand, the stitching was sound, he wasn’t worried that it would split opened. “Thanks doc.” William went to his room and grabbed his Bible before returning to the kitchen area. He made himself a pot of green tea and sat down to read. He found himself thinking of Book again, wondering what ever happened to him. He’d have to look him up when he got a chance. William hadn’t even realized that he was no longer alone. “The Bible. Not exactly light reading.” Inara came in and indicated the pot, as if asking if she could have a glass. “Help yourself, Miss Serra.” William said, sitting up. “Please just call me Inara.” She said as she sat at the table with her cup. “Not used to having the faithful on this ship. The Captain has a habit of scaring them off.” “Captain fought in the war. A loss of faith is the least I’d expect from that.” William rubbed the back of his head. “There were those that believed that God turned his back on the Independents and that’s why they lost. Others think that God is nothing more than an imaginary thing worshiped to provide a shred of hope for the hopeless.” “And what is it that you believe?” Inara asked, sipping her tea. “Don’t rightly know, but I’ve got an idea, and that’s good enough for me.” William closed his Bible and took up his cup. “Truth be told, I didn’t have much time or care for big-guns upstairs until I spent some time at the Southdown Abbey on Persephone. A good Shepherd there took me in, gave me guidance, showed me the way.” William took a long drink of his tea. “He gave me this Bible the day I left, and I’ll remember what he said until the day I die. He said, ‘It can get lonely in the black, son. But know that God is always with you.’ Faith has helped me through some hard times, and if wasn’t for Book, I don’t think I’d still be here.” Inara looked at William. “Wait, Book? Shepherd Book?” “Yes.” William said, a little confused by her reaction. “You knew him?” Inara got quiet for a moment. “Yes, very well actually. He lived on this ship for a few months awhile back.” “Really?” William smiled. “What a small ‘verse we live in. You don’t by chance know where he’s staying these days, do you? I’ve been meaning to look him up and thank him.” At this point, Kaylee, Jayne and the Captain came into the common area. Inara stayed quiet, some tears welling into her eyes. “Inara? I’m sorry, was it something I said?” Kaylee came and sat next to Inara. “Inara, what’s wrong?” Inara looked up at Kaylee and then at Mal. “William knew Shepherd Book. He doesn’t know.” Kaylee’s mood immediately darkened, Mal’s jaw set, even Jayne seemed upset. “Know?” William asked confused. “Know what?” Jayne was the one to answer. “Book’s dead Will. Alliance Operative killed him and all the settlers on Haven.” “Killed? Why would an Operative be interested in a Shepherd?” William felt his heart sink. The best man he'd known in the Universe, besides his father, was gone. Nobody answered him. William stood and took his Bible off the table. He started to say something, but his words caught in his throat. He turned and walked out of the room and to his quarters. He locked the door behind him and lay down, hands behind his head looking at the ceiling, a single tear running down his cheek.

To be continued ...

COMMENTS

Monday, January 1, 2007 1:47 AM

AMDOBELL


Great start, love it already! Can't wait to see where you go with this tale. I was surprised that William knew Book and had spent time in Southdown Abbey though. Your original character comes with quite a pedigree. Should make for interesting times. Ali D :~)
You can't take the sky from me

Monday, January 1, 2007 7:10 AM

KATESFRIEND


Very interesting start - looking forward to reading more!

Monday, January 1, 2007 11:11 AM

PLATONIST


good characterization (post BDM) as seen from an OC's POV...keep posting I'm on winter break from the ball 'n chain (oh god, did I just say that...I mean to say my extremely rewarding career with the school district) so I'm on the prowl for interesting fiction.

Wednesday, January 3, 2007 5:50 PM

BLUEEYEDBRIGADIER


Wow...gotta hand it too ya, babywiththepower. William is quite the proficiently-written OC...though I initially was worried he was gonna be a Marty Stew instead of a fleshed out character;)

Can't wait to see how William continues to interect with the BDHs, and River especially. Will be interesting to see how those two start getting closer:D

BEB

Friday, February 9, 2007 1:21 AM

BABYWITHTHEPOWER


Appreciate all the posative feedback. Because of a thread I read about story notes, I thought I'd mention that part 2 (for those that maybe didn't read it) can be found here: http://fireflyfans.net/sunroomitem.asp?i=14834

Friday, February 23, 2007 2:20 AM

6IXSTRINGJACK


Gotta say man, I'm impressed. I know that this is a bit biased coming from me, but looks like you already got quite a lot of feedback from peeps you don't know. I wasn't expecting much coming into it, no offence, but other than you mentioning that you'd like to write something sometime I've never really seen you take an interest in somthing artistic for more than a few fleeting moments at a time. (Like the keyboard that I think you show signs that you could be really good at if you ever practiced)

I have to agree with the others about the character development here, and I think you did a real good job portraying the BDH's as well. I've never read any other fanfic before because I'm scared to see how bad the characters are butchered, but I think you did them justice.

I've got a great ability to imagine the characters and the scenes and the situations in my head very well if the author does a good job bringing them to you and bridging the gap and I think you've got that down really well considering this is your first story. Looking forward to reading your other stories and I hope you keep this up.


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Wedding Bells and Gun Reports
This is the fifth and final story in the William Alexander Chronicles I've been writing. This is not to say that there won't be more stories involving William and the crew, but this arc has come to a close. I hope you like it.

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I've been busy, here's the third story in the 'William Alexander Chronicles' I'm writing. The first one being 'William Finds Serenity' and the second being 'Old Friends, Old Enemies'

This story takes place about six months or so after the second one. It's primarily about William's return to his homeworld of Titan, facing some of his demons and catching up with some people from his past. And though this story is primarily about William (as they all are) I decided to give some developement to Jayne and make him seem more ... I don't know, human?

One thing I try and do is take a line or two lines from the show or movie and have it said by a different character. The opportunity to do that came up several times in this story, so you'll find some familiar lines (more if you've read Those Left Behind and watched the outtakes). I hope you enjoy those.


Old Friends, Old Enemies
This is the second story in the 'William Alexander Chronicles' I'm writing. This one takes place a few months after 'William Finds Serenity' ( http://fireflyfans.net/sunroomitem.asp?i=14702 ). Some warnings, for those sticklers out there. People die in this story. Not any of the BDH's but characters you know none the less. I wanted closure and so I wrote it.

Also, as my stories progress, River will become more and more lucid and her's and William's relationship will grow. And as I said before, I am a big fan of the 'small 'verse' philosophy, so expect to see more of that.


William Finds Serenity - Pt. 2
Okay, here is the second (and final) part of William Finds Serenity. This is not, however, the end of my character William. There will be more stories down the line as I have time to write them.

As a side note, one thing I'd like to mention (as it was brought up on another board that I posted Pt. 1) is that William is the main character of these stories, not the BDHs. This is not my attempt to write a second season of the show and introduce a new character. These stories are about William and his life, the BDHs are just along for the ride.


William Finds Serenity - Pt. 1
This is a fan fic I've been writing on and off for a while now. It takes place about eight months after the BDM. It is by no stretch of the imagination completion. I just thought I might post my initial part here to see what you all think. And just a forewarning, I am a fan of the “small ‘verse” mentality, so the new character, William, has had direct and indirect associations with the cast of Firefly and Serenity.