Camouflage Ch 1-3 Firefly WIP
Oct. 27th, 2005 10:31 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jebbypalDisclaimers: Firefly doesn't belong to me, that honor goes to Joss, Mutant Enemy, Fox, and Universal pictures.
A/N: K, this technically isn't an AU – season happened as shown. But it is somewhat of an alternate interpretation of characters and alternate history.
No spoilers for serenity the movie(at least not yet). Set after the entire series
Caution, WIP
Camouflage
Chapter 1: Orders
Chinese Glossary
Tai-kong suo-yo duh shing-chiou doh sai-jin wuh dhu pee-goo! - Stuff all the planets in the universe into my ass!
Quietly, Zoe made her way to the bridge. She'd heard the Captain's bunk close earlier so she knew he'd finally finished his late night wanderings. Wash slept fitfully; she always wore him out on these days like this. Everyone else should be quietly asleep, but she checked the lock the bridge door just in case.
She paused before turning on the cortex. Something was different now, she felt it. This call might be the one that would change her life. Once she would have welcomed it, the boredom had come close to driving her mad. Instead of giving in, she'd fought back and married Wash. The relationship gave some distraction and gained her some distance from Mal. She wasn't sure he'd forgiven her, but then that had been the point.
Sighing, she turned away from the past and toward the now. Time to be the person she was again, time to learn if the path would change. Her body hummed with anticipation as she turned on the cortex and dialed the number. When the well known face appeared on the screen, she allowed a genuine smile to show.
"You're late," the person said.
"Couldn't be helped, you know that."
The gray-haired woman nodded. "Very well. I'm sending you the details now. Will you be able to convince him to take the job?"
Zoe smirked. "Low as coin is, all I'll have to do is mention it. Any specific objectives?"
"All you need to know is in the wave. Good luck."
"Luck is for the clueless," Zoe said before the woman disappeared. Zoe quickly printed the wave before erasing the trace of her call and modifying the wave records to show only the job info.
After reading through the wave, she smiled before once again slipping on the mask that the crew of Serenity knew so well. It was about time that things got interesting again.
Zoe's mind flowed through the past and the future while she listened with half an ear to the Captain. She already knew the job, already knew the ins and outs. Nice thing about the person she played was no one expected her to say much. Learned early on that the shorter your responses, the more time you had to anticipate reactions and variables.
Thanks to the Captain's overly generous personality, this plan would have more variables than she cared for. During her time at Mal's side, she'd come to appreciate being uncomplicated and straightforward. Everyone knew how she'd react and that gave her an edge. Most might not recognize it, but then few planned for the long term.
Carefully, she evaluated the variables she could not predict. Kaylee, Simon, and River were easy, no surprises to be had there. Wash equally predictable. Book, now there was a story whose ending could not be foretold. Or beginning for that matter. Did he have an agenda or was he exactly what he said? Somehow she doubted it. Better not to underestimate the unknown, life lasted longer that way.
Inara. Now there was a piece to be used to advantage. She knew the hold the Companion held over the Captain. Utilized correctly, it could buy Zoe valuable time.
Jayne. One might think that the mercenary would be an open book, but Zoe wasn't so sure. The man was too easy to read, his motivations too transparent. Knowing her own mysteries made her worry that others might possess them in equal volumes. Elimination would make things go smooth, but then again waste not, want not. Could be the man would provide a distraction. Mal thought she was ignorant to the events of Ariel, but he was wrong.
Zoe nodded when it was called for. Meeting was almost done. Her planning was solid, execution should be simple. Lives would change and some would end. But first there was a job to be done.
The next week consisted of the normal boredom of space. The re-supply and cargo pickup went smoothly. No problems en route to deliver the goods to the buyers. River became a tad jumpy, but nothing that Zoe wasn't expecting. Easy-peasy as Kaylee would say.
Zoe was glad when the ship landed though and the mule was loaded. Sitting and waiting had never been high on her list of things to do and now that the waiting was over after three long years, she was ready to set her plans into motion.
One short detour back to the kitchen before meeting the others at the mule and all would be ready.
"I don't like it none," Jayne groused.
Mal sighed. "Look, you don't have to like it. Just give Zoe the gorram gun and let's get this show on the road before we're late."
"How come Zoe gets to do recon? That's my job," Jayne protested.
Zoe just smirked and continued to hold her hand out expectantly as she waited for Mal to explain the situation. 'Course, if Mal did his job right, he wouldn't have to explain ever single decision to his subordinates and continually gripe about how his ship wasn't a democracy. She could tell that Mal would prefer to hit someone, but he finally ground his teeth instead. "For the love of…Look, our unit fought a battle on this moon early on. Won it too thanks to Zoe's recon. So trust me, she knows this moon and she's gonna take Vera with her. Now you can either be conscious 'n go to the meet with me or not. What's it gonna be?" Mal asked.
"Fine," Jayne growled. "Better not be jammed when I get 'er back."
Zoe rolled her eyes. "I'll take care of it as if it were my only child," she promised while tugging it impatiently.
"Let go of the gorram gun, Jayne," Mal urged. After the mercenary finally released the weapon, Mal nodded at Zoe. "Let us know if you spot anything."
Zoe nodded. "Will do, Sir." Zoe smiled at the weight of the rifle in her hand as Mal and Jayne sped off to the meeting. So far everything was proceeding according to plan.
An hour later, she was in place in a spot she remembered from the war. Through the scope, she could clearly see Mal, Jayne, and the buyers. The buyers didn't appear overly concerned with safety; in fact Zoe couldn't spot any hidden gunmen anywhere. Oh well.
Taking aim, she carefully set up her shot. Seconds later, a bullet pierced Jayne's leg just above the knee. Mal and the buyers quickly dropped, each shooting at the other. Zoe let off a few more shots from different positions making sure she hit only dirt.
Firefight underway, she carefully made her way to where Mal had concealed the mule. Zoe ensured her head start by pulling several wires free from the engine. Running at an easy pace, she wondered if events on the ship had gone smooth.
Zoe entered the ship and found exactly what she expected. The entire crew, with the exception of River, was unconscious, slumped in their places at the kitchen table. Zoe quickly transported Wash to shuttle two before making a detour to the infirmary. After gathering some useful supplies, she located River in the passenger dorm. Apparently Simon had had to give her a smoother. Good thing no one tended to listen to the girl's ranting.
Zoe deposited River on the floor of the shuttle beside Wash and then restrained the teen with several cloth ropes. Everything situated, she laid in her course and headed for atmo. One life over, another waiting.
Mal grunted as a bullet grazed his arm. He didn't know how it happened, but things got humped up fast. Jayne was bleeding, but still shooting. Most of the buyers had been taken out though. Zoe wasn't answering over the radio; he could only hope she was okay. He forced himself to assume that she was currently stalking the gorram sniper that had taken down Jayne.
Once the last of their opponents was neutralized, Mal crawled over to check on Jayne while keeping a close eye on the horizon for any sign of a sniper or Zoe.
"I'm fine," Jayne groaned as he struggled to tighten his belt around his thigh. Mal helped him tighten it till the bleeding slowed some. "Went straight through, should be no problem gettin' to the mule once we get paid."
Mal nodded tersely in agreement. Zoe's absence was worrying; he would have expected to hear from her by now. Forcing himself to do the job rather than searching for his friend, Mal began to rummage through the pockets of the dead and injured in search of their pay. Once he located the bag of coins, he helped Jayne to his feet and the pair began to make their way slowly back to the mule. Hopefully Zoe was there and waiting.
Some fifteen minutes later, the mule came into sight exactly as they had left it. Mal got a panting, pale-faced Jayne arranged on the back before starting the engine. Mal cursed colorfully in Chinese when the engine turned over before dying with a sputter. His curses increased in volume after he examined the engine and found that it had been tampered with. Not a creative bit of sabotage, but enough that they'd be very late getting back to the ship. Mal tried to raise the ship in order to get a shuttle sent so that at least Jayne could be tended to while he searched for Zoe. Unfortunately, no one answered. He was gonna have a fun talk with his pilot about attention to duties when he got back.
Looking at Jayne, he amended that. He was gonna have a talk with the pilot really soon, otherwise Jayne would be in trouble. Sighing at his humped luck, Mal busied himself with fixing the mule.
"Gorramit. Why can't someone open the ruttin' door?" Mal demanded after finally getting the mule back into the cargo bay. His repair job had failed a quarter of a kilo away from the ship forcing him to push the mule and Jayne back to the ship. His mood had not improved by the lack of response from his crew to his repeated requests for someone to have the door open and Simon waiting for him. Gonna have to have a chat with the whole gorram crew about responsibility just as soon as they found Zoe.
"Doctor, where in the hell are you?" Mal called over the ship wide comm. When no answer came, he left Jayne on the mule while he hurried up the stairs in the cargo bay to locate his lazy crew. Grumbling the entire way, he checked the infirmary and the engine room before heading to the kitchen. Even Kaylee wasn't working. He'd tear them all a new one if he found they'd snuck off to a lake or river. They were all back-berths if they thought he wouldn't notice that one of the shuttles was missing.
"Tai-kong suo-yo duh shing-chiou doh sai-jin wuh dhu pee-goo!" Mal exclaimed. Every member of his crew, including Inara, was face down on the table. Book had even fallen into his food. Wash and River were absent though.
Mal tried to rouse the doctor before retracing his steps through the ship hollering for Wash and River. Giving up, he retrieved several stimulant shots from the infirmary before heading back to the kitchen. Reasoning that it would be best not to accidentally kill Simon when he needed the boy to patch Jayne up, he gave the shot to Book first,
After seeing that the shot wouldn't be deadly, Mal gave one to Simon and Kaylee. Figuring to let the rest wake up and get their bearings, Mal moved Jayne to the infirmary before returning to check on his crew of Sleeping Beauties. Kaylee and Simon were just coming to while Book looked a tad less confused than he had earlier.
Mal glared at Book. It was high time that he get some answers to his overly confusing day. "Care to tell me what happened?"
Book shook his head, clearly still more than a bit puzzled his own self. "River got upset at what we were going to eat, so Simon sedated her. We sat down to dinner. After that,"
"Black," Kaylee interrupted.
Simon sat up suddenly, "River!"
"She's not on the ship. Neither is Wash, and Zoe disappeared during the meet. Anyone got a clue as to what in the hell is going on?" Mal asked loudly. The whole situation seemed to get more frustrating by the minute.
Everyone at the table shrugged except for Inara, whose hair was still lying in her protein gravy. Mal sighed as he dropped down in a chair to rest for a minute. "Simon, Jayne needs your attention. Sniper winged him. Book, feel up to a little shuttle recon to see if we can locate Zoe?"
Chapter 2: Destinations
Zoe programmed her destination into the autopilot when she heard Wash start to wake. Immediate necessities taken care of, she went to her husband's side. "Hey there."
Wash blinked at her blearily. "Zoe?"
"Hey you," she replied with a tender smile. "Everything's fine. Here, this will help," she told him, offering a canteen of water.
Wash pushed the canteen away. "What's going on and why are we on the shuttle? If Mal agreed to a vacation, why do I feel like I just went two rounds with Jayne?"
Zoe caressed his face as she considered her answer. Most likely Wash wasn't ready for the truth. It would come out soon, but best to only have one passenger to worry about right now. "Things got humped at the meet and the feds showed up. Mal ordered me to get River away from the ship. Knew I'd be distracted if you were left behind, so he told me to take you too."
Wash struggled to sit up. The drugs were clearly still affecting him because his color turned rather green and he forcefully balanced himself with his hands on the bench. "So if that's what happened, how come I'm all space-sick and River's unconscious…and tied up?"
"Feds piped a narcotic gas into the ship. Mal and Jayne distracted them while I got the two of you to a shuttle. River might be disoriented when she comes around; I figured restraints would be better than fighting with her for control of the ship," Zoe explained.
"It doesn't make any sense Zoe. How did they find us?"
"I don't know. Maybe the buyer rolled on us after getting pinched." Zoe looked up when she heard the alarm notifying her that the shuttle had reached the intended coordinates. "Look, rest for a bit more and keep an eye on River. Everything will be okay."
Wash swallowed hard as another wave of nausea hit him. Sure, things would be just fine. But who the hell was flying Serenity in his and Zoe's absence?
Kaylee watched Inara in the pilot's seat examining Serenity's flight controls while the mechanic nervously chewed at her fingernails. "Ya really think you'll be able to fly her?"
Inara resisted the urge to snap at the mechanic. Everyone dealt with the stress of the disappearance of River, Wash, and Zoe in different ways. Kaylee's just happened to be a nuisance when Inara was trying to focus on deciphering the main cockpit controls. "Flying the ship won't be difficult, mei mei. Navigation is another matter. I think that between Simon and Book's mathematical knowledge, we'll manage."
Kaylee nodded as she walked closer to the other woman. "Just don't understand it is all. I mean, why would they leave? And where's Zoe? She's gonna be so upset when she finds out Wash is gone."
"I'm sure Mal will find her. And then we'll be able to start looking for the others." Inara prayed that Zoe would indeed be found. Experience had taught her that when Malcolm Reynolds was deprived of the steadying influence of his second-in-command, the situation often deteriorated from bad to worse.
"Well, that was a waste of time and fuel," Mal stated.
Book nodded. He'd felt the Captain's tension rise with every landing that yielded no clues as to Zoe's whereabouts. The man was worried about his friend while being downright terrified by the disappearance of the other two crewmembers. Zoe, Wash, and River…the pattern made no sense. Book's gut told him that Wash would be the last person to turn the younger girl in to the authorities and there was no one that Malcolm trusted more than Zoe. Yet here they were, returning from a fruitless search for one with no idea as to what had happened to the rest.
"I'm going to check on Jayne," Book informed the younger man as they exited the shuttle.
Mal grunted. "Good idea. Maybe the doctor knows why all my crew was asleep in their food."
They found Simon sitting on the couch outside of the infirmary. His face fell when Book shook his head in response to the boy's unspoken query. Book felt deeply for him. To have thought that he and his sister had attained some measure of security in the unlikeliest of places and then have it all ripped from him without warning was akin to torture. As a shepherd, this situation was testing even his faith. He admired the strength of character of both the captain and the doctor. Lesser men would be cursing the fates or have resigned themselves to their loss already.
"How's Jayne doin'?" Mal asked as he turned his back to allow the doctor a measure of privacy to regain his composure.
"The bullet went straight through without damaging the bone. He'll be in pain, but should heal quickly," Simon informed them.
"Any ideas as to what affected the rest of us?" Book asked.
Simon looked down at the floor before answering. "The food. A strong sedative was in the food." Mal cursed fluently as Book considered the new information. Simon finally added the conclusion that Book had already reached. "It was Wash's turn to cook."
Book almost felt weak with shock. The idea that the pilot might seek to profit off of River's pain only added to the betrayal of the Captain, crew, and his wife…Zoe, had she been a part of the deed? If not, where was she?
"Zoe must have gotten a whiff of what he'd planned, that's why she's missing," Mal declared. "I'm going to see if Inara is ready to try to follow them. We'll need one of you for the navigating soon."
Book and Simon both nodded. Once they were alone, Simon turned to Book. "Do you think he's right?" he asked clearly hoping for something, anything that might bring his sister back.
Book sighed. "It's possible," he replied. Out of desire to spare the boy's feelings, he refrained from mentioning other likely scenarios. The Captain's deduction didn't explain why only one shuttle was missing.
"Wode tian, that's a big ship!" Wash stated as he sat in the co-pilot seat of the shuttle.
Zoe glanced at him as she went through the identification and docking protocols necessary to turn the landing controls over to the space-carrier that loomed in space before them.
Wash leaned forward to get a better look at the behemoth. "A Zeta35 Transport?" he asked. "Geez, I thought they were all destroyed or impounded after the war."
"Not all," Zoe replied tersely.
"Apparently." Wash sat back in his seat and looked at his wife. "Judging from our course, I assume that's our ride?"
"How's River?"
"Okay," Wash drawled. "Avoidance is the battle plan for today. You know, I think that you could let me in on the plan a little here lambie-toes. I may not be Mal, but I'm not going to fall apart on you either," he griped.
Zoe sighed as she rolled her eyes at her husband. "I already told you the plan zhang-fu. We will dock with this ship which will put some more distance between us and the Alliance patrol on Rantun before we figure out a way to help the rest of the crew." Pausing for effect, she made the last adjustments to their course. "In the meantime, I would like to know whether our gracious hosts will be dealing with our crazy Reader while she's conscious or not."
"Sorry, I just thought that you already had your plan figured out. River's fine. Still sleeping peacefully."
"Good." Zoe's stomach was in knots. Wash was the one mistake in an otherwise perfectly executed maneuver. Whoever she saw next would not be happy. Worse, if they let him stay….or told him the truth, he wouldn't be happy. "Listen honey, I know you feel out of the loop, but when we get on that ship I need you to follow my lead. Dong ma?"
Wash nodded and gave her one of his signature grins. She did her best to return it, but she didn't know if she had much to be happy about right now.
"What do you mean you lost it?" Mal roared.
Kaylee flinched at his outburst and shrank back into her seat in front of the radar and telemetry screens. "Don’t yell at her, it's not her fault," Inara shouted back.
Mal's face twisted at the Companion's words. "This is my boat 'Nara and I will do as…"
"Captain," Book interrupted.
"What?" Mal asked curtly.
"It's not Kaylee's fault. The Cortex indicates that there have recently been a series of comets in this quadrant of space. Even an Alliance trained technician would have trouble picking up any kind of trail after this long," Book explained.
Mal cursed loudly in English and Mandarin for a good five minutes before calming somewhat. "Can nothing go my way today?"
Kaylee's eyes were wide as she regarded the others in the room. The entire day had been so surreal. To think that Wash could ever…No, she couldn't believe it. They'd find there was another explanation when they found him and River, surely. He'd never do that, not to the Cap'n or Zoe. They just had to find them to figure it all out.
"There's only so far that the shuttle could go," she offered. "Once Simon and Book find the places they could be, we'll check until we find 'em."
Mal barely glanced at her before turning to look out at space again. Seeing him so torn up was almost as bad as seeing Simon sick with worry over River. The shuttle would turn up, she told herself. Anything else was unthinkable.
Zoe tried to disguise her displeasure when the Cortex lit up to indicate an incoming call. After making sure that Wash was clearly visible to the camera, she initiated the signal.
"Zoe," an older woman in a brown uniform greeted.
"Ma'am," Zoe replied with a nod. "Permission to come aboard for myself and two civilians."
The officer frowned at Zoe's information. "I thought you understood we discouraged visits by anyone of neutral standing."
"Couldn't be helped. One was a fugitive we were harboring, but my ship ran into a patrol. The other's my husband." Huh, seems like that particular expression of displeasure wasn't unique to the Captain. They must get lessons when they get promoted to officer status, Zoe mused.
"If you brought them, I assume you vouch for both?" After Zoe agreed, the officer signaled instructions to someone. "Fine then, escorts will receive you. The civilians are not to roam understand?"
"Yes, ma'am." Zoe glanced over when she felt Wash hit her elbow. After seeing his silent message she turned back to the screen. "One more thing - the fugitive I mentioned, she needs medical attention."
"Understood. We'll see to it. And Zoe, welcome back," the woman stated with a warm smile before signing off.
"Welcome back?" Wash asked.
"Later husband. Later."
Chapter 3: Cold Souls
Zoe carried River through the airlock while Wash followed. She hoped he took her warning not to speak out of turn to heart. Things were going to be pretty tricky for a while. They were met by an escort almost immediately. She cursed inwardly when she saw the soldier carrying his gun. Already she could hear the gears in Wash's brain start to turn as her husband continued to collect more and more questions.
After a short walk down a drab metal corridor, the group came to a stop in front of three officers. Two of them Zoe could identify immediately. The third must have been newly promoted from a regiment she hadn't trained with. She nodded her head in acknowledgement rather than saluting since she didn't want to lay River on the metal grate upon which they stood.
"Report," ordered the new officer.
Zoe resisted wincing as River jabbed her with an elbow. There hadn't been time to give the girl another dose and it appeared that she was beginning to rise to the level of simple sleep. "Sirs, our ship was ambushed by an Alliance patrol. My Captain ordered me to remove this girl to safety since she's a wanted fugitive," Zoe answered. She saw their eyes flicker back towards her husband as they pieced her cover story together with what they knew of her actual orders.
When Admiral Burton stepped forward, Zoe felt a small sense of relief. Burton was a firm, but fair commanding officer and someone she trusted. The old man hadn't aged well; his light brown skin hung from his face while what hair he had left was now completely silver. He still wore the turquoise necklace she had sent to him after the war though. The gift had accompanied her message informing her superiors that Mal had bought Serenity as well as the wave address of the ship.
"I imagine that you are all tired. Goodman here will take the girl to the infirmary. Lieutenant Yabis," he told them as he nodded his head toward the new officer, "will escort you to your assigned bunk."
Zoe felt Wash tug gently on her arm. " River will be pretty upset when she wakes. Shouldn't one of us should stay with her?" he asked quietly.
Of course, Burton overheard the question. He might appear to be older than dirt, but his hearing was as sharp as ever. "Certainly. Your husband is welcome to accompany her."
Zoe understood the unspoken message. They'd take advantage of this opportunity to debrief her. Sighing, she decided that there was no avoiding it. Didn't matter how much she'd hoped for a bath first. Or a night of sleep. "Yes, sir," she answered as she gently handed River over to Goodman. Before following Yabis down the corridor, she gave her husband a quick kiss and a silent reminder to watch what he said.
Wash sat beside her on a metal chair. She could feel how uncomfortable his seat was, but that he wasn't noticing it. His mind was going over and over the day's events trying to suss out a pattern. He wanted to trust his wife, but too much had been revealed. He'd found an elephant larger than the Captain and Zoe's past battles, but he couldn't determine its color. She felt sorry for him, yet she knew that she didn't have the luxury of getting him to understand.
She could feel the eyes on her. The machines and technicians both watched - one with clinical detachment, the others with eager curiosity. She wouldn't get long, but then they also didn't know anything about her. Waiting until the curious eyes got bored, she started to stare at Wash's face until he could see her open eyes. She'd already managed to move her hand close to her face, so he immediately saw her signal him to be quiet.
The pilot was smart. She had to give him that. She wasn't sure if the rest of the crew would have immediately leaned toward her while being sure to not attract attention from the eyes. She split her attention between him and the eyes while she continued to make her body fool the machines. Controlling heart rate and breathing was so simple. Brain waves would have been more difficult, but fortunately they hadn't hooked anything to her head. She was glad. She might have had a flashback otherwise.
"Have to get a message to Daddy," she told Wash. She saw his forehead scrunch in confusion. She never understood why no one else ever understood the title. He'd get it in time. "Careful of the tacks. They prick so easily. She's Zoe, but not your wife."
Wash gasped as if she'd punched him. She felt the watchers. Too late, they saw her eyes open. She hid her smile. They had no clue what to expect. The performance might be fun.
She let the machines detect her systems gearing up for the fun. Screaming, she started to jump off of the bed. Wash was taken aback, his fear and confusion washed over her. She welcomed it, used it since she couldn’t find her own through the haze of the remaining sedatives. Ripping at the wires, she managed to tear the restraints from the table. She jumped to run before the first of the eyes got to her, but she was too slow. Strong arms encircled her as others approached with more drugs. Drugs all around her, tacks couldn't be avoided. She heard Wash yelling, felt the blow he dealt to her captor, felt the prick in his skin before her own. Surrendering to the darkness, she found herself praying to the Shepherd's symbol that he understood.
Zoe gritted her teeth as she entered the bunk. No one had protected her. She hadn't known any of the officers. At least she had gotten to see Stu first. 'Course, the fact that he was onboard wasn't exactly a comfort since her husband was as well. However, it had been all kinds of nice to be able to confirm with her eyes that he had survived the war. She couldn't remember the last time they'd actually seen each other.
She shook her head as she sat on the bed. Wash was already asleep. Not sure if that was a good thing or not. Might be better to get all the interrogations over in one night. Didn't matter. She was beginning to wonder if anything ever had.
River struggled against the drugs. They hadn't given her a sedative this time. Only a mild tranquilizer. Eyes were too eager to start their tests. Problem was none of them knew where to start. Their eyes hadn't found the right information. Hands of Blue didn't like sneaky little rats.
No, mustn't go that way. Attract attention. Stay focused, find a place to hide. She reached out hoping to find Wash's dreams. Unfortunately she missed; they'd given the pilot too much sedative for him to be in R.E.M. yet.
River cried out when they attached the monitor to her temples. Not there, here. Zoe brought them here, didn't bring the Hands of Blue. Felt the tack prick her as the eyes delivered another round of drugs. No time - now or never!
She jumped. She cried when she landed. She avoided these dreams as much as she avoided Daddy's. Too late. Grabbing a tree, she closed her eyes against the driving snow as her teeth began to chatter from the cold.
Zoe shivered. Couldn't remember the last time she'd been warm. In her head, she knew it hadn’t been that long. Only three days since her life had been destroyed, but it seemed longer. Only spot of warmth to be had was beside her, sleeping. But that was ruined by the guilt.
Only reason she was cold was she had lied. Played sick to miss the weekly meeting. Gone to meet Stu in the woods instead. God hadn't been happy with either sin. Their hot session in the storage shed had been interrupted by the first explosion.
They'd been smart enough not to leave their clothes behind, but had no time to dress during their frantic dash from the shed to the woods. The cold had set in and not let go as they watched flames consume the church and additional bombs destroy the surrounding homes. His fingers had been like ice as he pulled her away into the woods. Blue hands forced her into the brush before he jumped on top of her. She'd grunted when he knocked the air out of her with an elbow as he hastily pulled his clothes on.
The cold of the ground seeped into her body while his heat on top kept her warm. Zoe wanted to go back to the flames. Find her parents, her little sister, oh god, her baby brother. Today was to be his baptism. She'd left the food for the celebration cooling on the table when she'd left to meet Stu.
The tears froze on her face and his cold hand covered her mouth, the force begging her to be silent. She soon saw why. Purple uniforms spilled out of a landing shuttle. Purple robots went house to house searching. Weapons thrown onto the church, elderly and sick people dragged from their homes.
Stu hit her when she screamed. The gunshots and other screams camouflaged it. None of the robots noticed. His icy hands pulled her from the ground and forced her to run. The cold snow covered her body and his hair.
She hadn't been warm since.
Zoe froze when she heard the sound. They'd seen the shuttles leave the day before. Waited another before building a fire. Had they left some uniforms behind? Her eyes searched for a stick as she struggled to remain still.. Didn't want to wake him - first time Stu had slept. First day and night he'd had to keep her quiet and alive. Afterward he'd tried to find them both food while she'd slept cocooned in the cold that wouldn't leave. Apparently, it had all been for nothing though.
Three men and a woman appeared, all armed. No purple though and the weapons weren't pointed at them. One of the men, his skin a lighter shade of brown than her own and hair straight, smiled at her. "No need to be afraid, we aren't here to hurt you," he told her.
The words jolted Stu out of his slumber. He sat up quick as he aimed their only gun at the people in front of them. The speaker motioned for his people to do nothing. "I know you're confused. It's all right. We've been looking for survivors. We'll take you someplace safe and warm, I promise."
That was when they saw them. Two of the younger kids from their classes standing silently with the woman, hands around each leg. "The other settlements?" Zoe asked.
The man's face fell. "They're fine. All this was an example. Strike is over though, but I doubt any of them will risk taking you in. A monitor in each town is searching the houses randomly to see if any survivors are hiding."
Zoe's breath caught at the knowledge that her entire world had been destroyed randomly. All their parents had wanted was assurance from the Alliance that their children could leave the mining moon for schools in the core when they were of age. Had closed the mines until their demands were answered with written promises. No one had taken up arms; no one had destroyed company property.
She felt Stu pull her off the ground. Didn't know if she wanted to go. She should have been with her family. For her desertion, she didn't deserve to leave the cold. She followed the brown man and the rest though as Stu silently pushed her along.
Zoe woke freezing. Ice ran through her veins as the tears ran down her face. She hadn't had those dreams in years. Had started to think the fires of Serenity Valley had burned them out. She felt her husband's arms surround her in a comforting embrace as he made comforting noises and tried to find out what was wrong. Zoe just closed her eyes as she imagined what Stu's arms would feel like right now.
A/N: K, this technically isn't an AU – season happened as shown. But it is somewhat of an alternate interpretation of characters and alternate history.
No spoilers for serenity the movie(at least not yet). Set after the entire series
Caution, WIP
Camouflage
Chapter 1: Orders
Chinese Glossary
Tai-kong suo-yo duh shing-chiou doh sai-jin wuh dhu pee-goo! - Stuff all the planets in the universe into my ass!
Quietly, Zoe made her way to the bridge. She'd heard the Captain's bunk close earlier so she knew he'd finally finished his late night wanderings. Wash slept fitfully; she always wore him out on these days like this. Everyone else should be quietly asleep, but she checked the lock the bridge door just in case.
She paused before turning on the cortex. Something was different now, she felt it. This call might be the one that would change her life. Once she would have welcomed it, the boredom had come close to driving her mad. Instead of giving in, she'd fought back and married Wash. The relationship gave some distraction and gained her some distance from Mal. She wasn't sure he'd forgiven her, but then that had been the point.
Sighing, she turned away from the past and toward the now. Time to be the person she was again, time to learn if the path would change. Her body hummed with anticipation as she turned on the cortex and dialed the number. When the well known face appeared on the screen, she allowed a genuine smile to show.
"You're late," the person said.
"Couldn't be helped, you know that."
The gray-haired woman nodded. "Very well. I'm sending you the details now. Will you be able to convince him to take the job?"
Zoe smirked. "Low as coin is, all I'll have to do is mention it. Any specific objectives?"
"All you need to know is in the wave. Good luck."
"Luck is for the clueless," Zoe said before the woman disappeared. Zoe quickly printed the wave before erasing the trace of her call and modifying the wave records to show only the job info.
After reading through the wave, she smiled before once again slipping on the mask that the crew of Serenity knew so well. It was about time that things got interesting again.
Zoe's mind flowed through the past and the future while she listened with half an ear to the Captain. She already knew the job, already knew the ins and outs. Nice thing about the person she played was no one expected her to say much. Learned early on that the shorter your responses, the more time you had to anticipate reactions and variables.
Thanks to the Captain's overly generous personality, this plan would have more variables than she cared for. During her time at Mal's side, she'd come to appreciate being uncomplicated and straightforward. Everyone knew how she'd react and that gave her an edge. Most might not recognize it, but then few planned for the long term.
Carefully, she evaluated the variables she could not predict. Kaylee, Simon, and River were easy, no surprises to be had there. Wash equally predictable. Book, now there was a story whose ending could not be foretold. Or beginning for that matter. Did he have an agenda or was he exactly what he said? Somehow she doubted it. Better not to underestimate the unknown, life lasted longer that way.
Inara. Now there was a piece to be used to advantage. She knew the hold the Companion held over the Captain. Utilized correctly, it could buy Zoe valuable time.
Jayne. One might think that the mercenary would be an open book, but Zoe wasn't so sure. The man was too easy to read, his motivations too transparent. Knowing her own mysteries made her worry that others might possess them in equal volumes. Elimination would make things go smooth, but then again waste not, want not. Could be the man would provide a distraction. Mal thought she was ignorant to the events of Ariel, but he was wrong.
Zoe nodded when it was called for. Meeting was almost done. Her planning was solid, execution should be simple. Lives would change and some would end. But first there was a job to be done.
The next week consisted of the normal boredom of space. The re-supply and cargo pickup went smoothly. No problems en route to deliver the goods to the buyers. River became a tad jumpy, but nothing that Zoe wasn't expecting. Easy-peasy as Kaylee would say.
Zoe was glad when the ship landed though and the mule was loaded. Sitting and waiting had never been high on her list of things to do and now that the waiting was over after three long years, she was ready to set her plans into motion.
One short detour back to the kitchen before meeting the others at the mule and all would be ready.
"I don't like it none," Jayne groused.
Mal sighed. "Look, you don't have to like it. Just give Zoe the gorram gun and let's get this show on the road before we're late."
"How come Zoe gets to do recon? That's my job," Jayne protested.
Zoe just smirked and continued to hold her hand out expectantly as she waited for Mal to explain the situation. 'Course, if Mal did his job right, he wouldn't have to explain ever single decision to his subordinates and continually gripe about how his ship wasn't a democracy. She could tell that Mal would prefer to hit someone, but he finally ground his teeth instead. "For the love of…Look, our unit fought a battle on this moon early on. Won it too thanks to Zoe's recon. So trust me, she knows this moon and she's gonna take Vera with her. Now you can either be conscious 'n go to the meet with me or not. What's it gonna be?" Mal asked.
"Fine," Jayne growled. "Better not be jammed when I get 'er back."
Zoe rolled her eyes. "I'll take care of it as if it were my only child," she promised while tugging it impatiently.
"Let go of the gorram gun, Jayne," Mal urged. After the mercenary finally released the weapon, Mal nodded at Zoe. "Let us know if you spot anything."
Zoe nodded. "Will do, Sir." Zoe smiled at the weight of the rifle in her hand as Mal and Jayne sped off to the meeting. So far everything was proceeding according to plan.
An hour later, she was in place in a spot she remembered from the war. Through the scope, she could clearly see Mal, Jayne, and the buyers. The buyers didn't appear overly concerned with safety; in fact Zoe couldn't spot any hidden gunmen anywhere. Oh well.
Taking aim, she carefully set up her shot. Seconds later, a bullet pierced Jayne's leg just above the knee. Mal and the buyers quickly dropped, each shooting at the other. Zoe let off a few more shots from different positions making sure she hit only dirt.
Firefight underway, she carefully made her way to where Mal had concealed the mule. Zoe ensured her head start by pulling several wires free from the engine. Running at an easy pace, she wondered if events on the ship had gone smooth.
Zoe entered the ship and found exactly what she expected. The entire crew, with the exception of River, was unconscious, slumped in their places at the kitchen table. Zoe quickly transported Wash to shuttle two before making a detour to the infirmary. After gathering some useful supplies, she located River in the passenger dorm. Apparently Simon had had to give her a smoother. Good thing no one tended to listen to the girl's ranting.
Zoe deposited River on the floor of the shuttle beside Wash and then restrained the teen with several cloth ropes. Everything situated, she laid in her course and headed for atmo. One life over, another waiting.
Mal grunted as a bullet grazed his arm. He didn't know how it happened, but things got humped up fast. Jayne was bleeding, but still shooting. Most of the buyers had been taken out though. Zoe wasn't answering over the radio; he could only hope she was okay. He forced himself to assume that she was currently stalking the gorram sniper that had taken down Jayne.
Once the last of their opponents was neutralized, Mal crawled over to check on Jayne while keeping a close eye on the horizon for any sign of a sniper or Zoe.
"I'm fine," Jayne groaned as he struggled to tighten his belt around his thigh. Mal helped him tighten it till the bleeding slowed some. "Went straight through, should be no problem gettin' to the mule once we get paid."
Mal nodded tersely in agreement. Zoe's absence was worrying; he would have expected to hear from her by now. Forcing himself to do the job rather than searching for his friend, Mal began to rummage through the pockets of the dead and injured in search of their pay. Once he located the bag of coins, he helped Jayne to his feet and the pair began to make their way slowly back to the mule. Hopefully Zoe was there and waiting.
Some fifteen minutes later, the mule came into sight exactly as they had left it. Mal got a panting, pale-faced Jayne arranged on the back before starting the engine. Mal cursed colorfully in Chinese when the engine turned over before dying with a sputter. His curses increased in volume after he examined the engine and found that it had been tampered with. Not a creative bit of sabotage, but enough that they'd be very late getting back to the ship. Mal tried to raise the ship in order to get a shuttle sent so that at least Jayne could be tended to while he searched for Zoe. Unfortunately, no one answered. He was gonna have a fun talk with his pilot about attention to duties when he got back.
Looking at Jayne, he amended that. He was gonna have a talk with the pilot really soon, otherwise Jayne would be in trouble. Sighing at his humped luck, Mal busied himself with fixing the mule.
"Gorramit. Why can't someone open the ruttin' door?" Mal demanded after finally getting the mule back into the cargo bay. His repair job had failed a quarter of a kilo away from the ship forcing him to push the mule and Jayne back to the ship. His mood had not improved by the lack of response from his crew to his repeated requests for someone to have the door open and Simon waiting for him. Gonna have to have a chat with the whole gorram crew about responsibility just as soon as they found Zoe.
"Doctor, where in the hell are you?" Mal called over the ship wide comm. When no answer came, he left Jayne on the mule while he hurried up the stairs in the cargo bay to locate his lazy crew. Grumbling the entire way, he checked the infirmary and the engine room before heading to the kitchen. Even Kaylee wasn't working. He'd tear them all a new one if he found they'd snuck off to a lake or river. They were all back-berths if they thought he wouldn't notice that one of the shuttles was missing.
"Tai-kong suo-yo duh shing-chiou doh sai-jin wuh dhu pee-goo!" Mal exclaimed. Every member of his crew, including Inara, was face down on the table. Book had even fallen into his food. Wash and River were absent though.
Mal tried to rouse the doctor before retracing his steps through the ship hollering for Wash and River. Giving up, he retrieved several stimulant shots from the infirmary before heading back to the kitchen. Reasoning that it would be best not to accidentally kill Simon when he needed the boy to patch Jayne up, he gave the shot to Book first,
After seeing that the shot wouldn't be deadly, Mal gave one to Simon and Kaylee. Figuring to let the rest wake up and get their bearings, Mal moved Jayne to the infirmary before returning to check on his crew of Sleeping Beauties. Kaylee and Simon were just coming to while Book looked a tad less confused than he had earlier.
Mal glared at Book. It was high time that he get some answers to his overly confusing day. "Care to tell me what happened?"
Book shook his head, clearly still more than a bit puzzled his own self. "River got upset at what we were going to eat, so Simon sedated her. We sat down to dinner. After that,"
"Black," Kaylee interrupted.
Simon sat up suddenly, "River!"
"She's not on the ship. Neither is Wash, and Zoe disappeared during the meet. Anyone got a clue as to what in the hell is going on?" Mal asked loudly. The whole situation seemed to get more frustrating by the minute.
Everyone at the table shrugged except for Inara, whose hair was still lying in her protein gravy. Mal sighed as he dropped down in a chair to rest for a minute. "Simon, Jayne needs your attention. Sniper winged him. Book, feel up to a little shuttle recon to see if we can locate Zoe?"
Chapter 2: Destinations
Zoe programmed her destination into the autopilot when she heard Wash start to wake. Immediate necessities taken care of, she went to her husband's side. "Hey there."
Wash blinked at her blearily. "Zoe?"
"Hey you," she replied with a tender smile. "Everything's fine. Here, this will help," she told him, offering a canteen of water.
Wash pushed the canteen away. "What's going on and why are we on the shuttle? If Mal agreed to a vacation, why do I feel like I just went two rounds with Jayne?"
Zoe caressed his face as she considered her answer. Most likely Wash wasn't ready for the truth. It would come out soon, but best to only have one passenger to worry about right now. "Things got humped at the meet and the feds showed up. Mal ordered me to get River away from the ship. Knew I'd be distracted if you were left behind, so he told me to take you too."
Wash struggled to sit up. The drugs were clearly still affecting him because his color turned rather green and he forcefully balanced himself with his hands on the bench. "So if that's what happened, how come I'm all space-sick and River's unconscious…and tied up?"
"Feds piped a narcotic gas into the ship. Mal and Jayne distracted them while I got the two of you to a shuttle. River might be disoriented when she comes around; I figured restraints would be better than fighting with her for control of the ship," Zoe explained.
"It doesn't make any sense Zoe. How did they find us?"
"I don't know. Maybe the buyer rolled on us after getting pinched." Zoe looked up when she heard the alarm notifying her that the shuttle had reached the intended coordinates. "Look, rest for a bit more and keep an eye on River. Everything will be okay."
Wash swallowed hard as another wave of nausea hit him. Sure, things would be just fine. But who the hell was flying Serenity in his and Zoe's absence?
Kaylee watched Inara in the pilot's seat examining Serenity's flight controls while the mechanic nervously chewed at her fingernails. "Ya really think you'll be able to fly her?"
Inara resisted the urge to snap at the mechanic. Everyone dealt with the stress of the disappearance of River, Wash, and Zoe in different ways. Kaylee's just happened to be a nuisance when Inara was trying to focus on deciphering the main cockpit controls. "Flying the ship won't be difficult, mei mei. Navigation is another matter. I think that between Simon and Book's mathematical knowledge, we'll manage."
Kaylee nodded as she walked closer to the other woman. "Just don't understand it is all. I mean, why would they leave? And where's Zoe? She's gonna be so upset when she finds out Wash is gone."
"I'm sure Mal will find her. And then we'll be able to start looking for the others." Inara prayed that Zoe would indeed be found. Experience had taught her that when Malcolm Reynolds was deprived of the steadying influence of his second-in-command, the situation often deteriorated from bad to worse.
"Well, that was a waste of time and fuel," Mal stated.
Book nodded. He'd felt the Captain's tension rise with every landing that yielded no clues as to Zoe's whereabouts. The man was worried about his friend while being downright terrified by the disappearance of the other two crewmembers. Zoe, Wash, and River…the pattern made no sense. Book's gut told him that Wash would be the last person to turn the younger girl in to the authorities and there was no one that Malcolm trusted more than Zoe. Yet here they were, returning from a fruitless search for one with no idea as to what had happened to the rest.
"I'm going to check on Jayne," Book informed the younger man as they exited the shuttle.
Mal grunted. "Good idea. Maybe the doctor knows why all my crew was asleep in their food."
They found Simon sitting on the couch outside of the infirmary. His face fell when Book shook his head in response to the boy's unspoken query. Book felt deeply for him. To have thought that he and his sister had attained some measure of security in the unlikeliest of places and then have it all ripped from him without warning was akin to torture. As a shepherd, this situation was testing even his faith. He admired the strength of character of both the captain and the doctor. Lesser men would be cursing the fates or have resigned themselves to their loss already.
"How's Jayne doin'?" Mal asked as he turned his back to allow the doctor a measure of privacy to regain his composure.
"The bullet went straight through without damaging the bone. He'll be in pain, but should heal quickly," Simon informed them.
"Any ideas as to what affected the rest of us?" Book asked.
Simon looked down at the floor before answering. "The food. A strong sedative was in the food." Mal cursed fluently as Book considered the new information. Simon finally added the conclusion that Book had already reached. "It was Wash's turn to cook."
Book almost felt weak with shock. The idea that the pilot might seek to profit off of River's pain only added to the betrayal of the Captain, crew, and his wife…Zoe, had she been a part of the deed? If not, where was she?
"Zoe must have gotten a whiff of what he'd planned, that's why she's missing," Mal declared. "I'm going to see if Inara is ready to try to follow them. We'll need one of you for the navigating soon."
Book and Simon both nodded. Once they were alone, Simon turned to Book. "Do you think he's right?" he asked clearly hoping for something, anything that might bring his sister back.
Book sighed. "It's possible," he replied. Out of desire to spare the boy's feelings, he refrained from mentioning other likely scenarios. The Captain's deduction didn't explain why only one shuttle was missing.
"Wode tian, that's a big ship!" Wash stated as he sat in the co-pilot seat of the shuttle.
Zoe glanced at him as she went through the identification and docking protocols necessary to turn the landing controls over to the space-carrier that loomed in space before them.
Wash leaned forward to get a better look at the behemoth. "A Zeta35 Transport?" he asked. "Geez, I thought they were all destroyed or impounded after the war."
"Not all," Zoe replied tersely.
"Apparently." Wash sat back in his seat and looked at his wife. "Judging from our course, I assume that's our ride?"
"How's River?"
"Okay," Wash drawled. "Avoidance is the battle plan for today. You know, I think that you could let me in on the plan a little here lambie-toes. I may not be Mal, but I'm not going to fall apart on you either," he griped.
Zoe sighed as she rolled her eyes at her husband. "I already told you the plan zhang-fu. We will dock with this ship which will put some more distance between us and the Alliance patrol on Rantun before we figure out a way to help the rest of the crew." Pausing for effect, she made the last adjustments to their course. "In the meantime, I would like to know whether our gracious hosts will be dealing with our crazy Reader while she's conscious or not."
"Sorry, I just thought that you already had your plan figured out. River's fine. Still sleeping peacefully."
"Good." Zoe's stomach was in knots. Wash was the one mistake in an otherwise perfectly executed maneuver. Whoever she saw next would not be happy. Worse, if they let him stay….or told him the truth, he wouldn't be happy. "Listen honey, I know you feel out of the loop, but when we get on that ship I need you to follow my lead. Dong ma?"
Wash nodded and gave her one of his signature grins. She did her best to return it, but she didn't know if she had much to be happy about right now.
"What do you mean you lost it?" Mal roared.
Kaylee flinched at his outburst and shrank back into her seat in front of the radar and telemetry screens. "Don’t yell at her, it's not her fault," Inara shouted back.
Mal's face twisted at the Companion's words. "This is my boat 'Nara and I will do as…"
"Captain," Book interrupted.
"What?" Mal asked curtly.
"It's not Kaylee's fault. The Cortex indicates that there have recently been a series of comets in this quadrant of space. Even an Alliance trained technician would have trouble picking up any kind of trail after this long," Book explained.
Mal cursed loudly in English and Mandarin for a good five minutes before calming somewhat. "Can nothing go my way today?"
Kaylee's eyes were wide as she regarded the others in the room. The entire day had been so surreal. To think that Wash could ever…No, she couldn't believe it. They'd find there was another explanation when they found him and River, surely. He'd never do that, not to the Cap'n or Zoe. They just had to find them to figure it all out.
"There's only so far that the shuttle could go," she offered. "Once Simon and Book find the places they could be, we'll check until we find 'em."
Mal barely glanced at her before turning to look out at space again. Seeing him so torn up was almost as bad as seeing Simon sick with worry over River. The shuttle would turn up, she told herself. Anything else was unthinkable.
Zoe tried to disguise her displeasure when the Cortex lit up to indicate an incoming call. After making sure that Wash was clearly visible to the camera, she initiated the signal.
"Zoe," an older woman in a brown uniform greeted.
"Ma'am," Zoe replied with a nod. "Permission to come aboard for myself and two civilians."
The officer frowned at Zoe's information. "I thought you understood we discouraged visits by anyone of neutral standing."
"Couldn't be helped. One was a fugitive we were harboring, but my ship ran into a patrol. The other's my husband." Huh, seems like that particular expression of displeasure wasn't unique to the Captain. They must get lessons when they get promoted to officer status, Zoe mused.
"If you brought them, I assume you vouch for both?" After Zoe agreed, the officer signaled instructions to someone. "Fine then, escorts will receive you. The civilians are not to roam understand?"
"Yes, ma'am." Zoe glanced over when she felt Wash hit her elbow. After seeing his silent message she turned back to the screen. "One more thing - the fugitive I mentioned, she needs medical attention."
"Understood. We'll see to it. And Zoe, welcome back," the woman stated with a warm smile before signing off.
"Welcome back?" Wash asked.
"Later husband. Later."
Chapter 3: Cold Souls
Zoe carried River through the airlock while Wash followed. She hoped he took her warning not to speak out of turn to heart. Things were going to be pretty tricky for a while. They were met by an escort almost immediately. She cursed inwardly when she saw the soldier carrying his gun. Already she could hear the gears in Wash's brain start to turn as her husband continued to collect more and more questions.
After a short walk down a drab metal corridor, the group came to a stop in front of three officers. Two of them Zoe could identify immediately. The third must have been newly promoted from a regiment she hadn't trained with. She nodded her head in acknowledgement rather than saluting since she didn't want to lay River on the metal grate upon which they stood.
"Report," ordered the new officer.
Zoe resisted wincing as River jabbed her with an elbow. There hadn't been time to give the girl another dose and it appeared that she was beginning to rise to the level of simple sleep. "Sirs, our ship was ambushed by an Alliance patrol. My Captain ordered me to remove this girl to safety since she's a wanted fugitive," Zoe answered. She saw their eyes flicker back towards her husband as they pieced her cover story together with what they knew of her actual orders.
When Admiral Burton stepped forward, Zoe felt a small sense of relief. Burton was a firm, but fair commanding officer and someone she trusted. The old man hadn't aged well; his light brown skin hung from his face while what hair he had left was now completely silver. He still wore the turquoise necklace she had sent to him after the war though. The gift had accompanied her message informing her superiors that Mal had bought Serenity as well as the wave address of the ship.
"I imagine that you are all tired. Goodman here will take the girl to the infirmary. Lieutenant Yabis," he told them as he nodded his head toward the new officer, "will escort you to your assigned bunk."
Zoe felt Wash tug gently on her arm. " River will be pretty upset when she wakes. Shouldn't one of us should stay with her?" he asked quietly.
Of course, Burton overheard the question. He might appear to be older than dirt, but his hearing was as sharp as ever. "Certainly. Your husband is welcome to accompany her."
Zoe understood the unspoken message. They'd take advantage of this opportunity to debrief her. Sighing, she decided that there was no avoiding it. Didn't matter how much she'd hoped for a bath first. Or a night of sleep. "Yes, sir," she answered as she gently handed River over to Goodman. Before following Yabis down the corridor, she gave her husband a quick kiss and a silent reminder to watch what he said.
Wash sat beside her on a metal chair. She could feel how uncomfortable his seat was, but that he wasn't noticing it. His mind was going over and over the day's events trying to suss out a pattern. He wanted to trust his wife, but too much had been revealed. He'd found an elephant larger than the Captain and Zoe's past battles, but he couldn't determine its color. She felt sorry for him, yet she knew that she didn't have the luxury of getting him to understand.
She could feel the eyes on her. The machines and technicians both watched - one with clinical detachment, the others with eager curiosity. She wouldn't get long, but then they also didn't know anything about her. Waiting until the curious eyes got bored, she started to stare at Wash's face until he could see her open eyes. She'd already managed to move her hand close to her face, so he immediately saw her signal him to be quiet.
The pilot was smart. She had to give him that. She wasn't sure if the rest of the crew would have immediately leaned toward her while being sure to not attract attention from the eyes. She split her attention between him and the eyes while she continued to make her body fool the machines. Controlling heart rate and breathing was so simple. Brain waves would have been more difficult, but fortunately they hadn't hooked anything to her head. She was glad. She might have had a flashback otherwise.
"Have to get a message to Daddy," she told Wash. She saw his forehead scrunch in confusion. She never understood why no one else ever understood the title. He'd get it in time. "Careful of the tacks. They prick so easily. She's Zoe, but not your wife."
Wash gasped as if she'd punched him. She felt the watchers. Too late, they saw her eyes open. She hid her smile. They had no clue what to expect. The performance might be fun.
She let the machines detect her systems gearing up for the fun. Screaming, she started to jump off of the bed. Wash was taken aback, his fear and confusion washed over her. She welcomed it, used it since she couldn’t find her own through the haze of the remaining sedatives. Ripping at the wires, she managed to tear the restraints from the table. She jumped to run before the first of the eyes got to her, but she was too slow. Strong arms encircled her as others approached with more drugs. Drugs all around her, tacks couldn't be avoided. She heard Wash yelling, felt the blow he dealt to her captor, felt the prick in his skin before her own. Surrendering to the darkness, she found herself praying to the Shepherd's symbol that he understood.
Zoe gritted her teeth as she entered the bunk. No one had protected her. She hadn't known any of the officers. At least she had gotten to see Stu first. 'Course, the fact that he was onboard wasn't exactly a comfort since her husband was as well. However, it had been all kinds of nice to be able to confirm with her eyes that he had survived the war. She couldn't remember the last time they'd actually seen each other.
She shook her head as she sat on the bed. Wash was already asleep. Not sure if that was a good thing or not. Might be better to get all the interrogations over in one night. Didn't matter. She was beginning to wonder if anything ever had.
River struggled against the drugs. They hadn't given her a sedative this time. Only a mild tranquilizer. Eyes were too eager to start their tests. Problem was none of them knew where to start. Their eyes hadn't found the right information. Hands of Blue didn't like sneaky little rats.
No, mustn't go that way. Attract attention. Stay focused, find a place to hide. She reached out hoping to find Wash's dreams. Unfortunately she missed; they'd given the pilot too much sedative for him to be in R.E.M. yet.
River cried out when they attached the monitor to her temples. Not there, here. Zoe brought them here, didn't bring the Hands of Blue. Felt the tack prick her as the eyes delivered another round of drugs. No time - now or never!
She jumped. She cried when she landed. She avoided these dreams as much as she avoided Daddy's. Too late. Grabbing a tree, she closed her eyes against the driving snow as her teeth began to chatter from the cold.
Zoe shivered. Couldn't remember the last time she'd been warm. In her head, she knew it hadn’t been that long. Only three days since her life had been destroyed, but it seemed longer. Only spot of warmth to be had was beside her, sleeping. But that was ruined by the guilt.
Only reason she was cold was she had lied. Played sick to miss the weekly meeting. Gone to meet Stu in the woods instead. God hadn't been happy with either sin. Their hot session in the storage shed had been interrupted by the first explosion.
They'd been smart enough not to leave their clothes behind, but had no time to dress during their frantic dash from the shed to the woods. The cold had set in and not let go as they watched flames consume the church and additional bombs destroy the surrounding homes. His fingers had been like ice as he pulled her away into the woods. Blue hands forced her into the brush before he jumped on top of her. She'd grunted when he knocked the air out of her with an elbow as he hastily pulled his clothes on.
The cold of the ground seeped into her body while his heat on top kept her warm. Zoe wanted to go back to the flames. Find her parents, her little sister, oh god, her baby brother. Today was to be his baptism. She'd left the food for the celebration cooling on the table when she'd left to meet Stu.
The tears froze on her face and his cold hand covered her mouth, the force begging her to be silent. She soon saw why. Purple uniforms spilled out of a landing shuttle. Purple robots went house to house searching. Weapons thrown onto the church, elderly and sick people dragged from their homes.
Stu hit her when she screamed. The gunshots and other screams camouflaged it. None of the robots noticed. His icy hands pulled her from the ground and forced her to run. The cold snow covered her body and his hair.
She hadn't been warm since.
Zoe froze when she heard the sound. They'd seen the shuttles leave the day before. Waited another before building a fire. Had they left some uniforms behind? Her eyes searched for a stick as she struggled to remain still.. Didn't want to wake him - first time Stu had slept. First day and night he'd had to keep her quiet and alive. Afterward he'd tried to find them both food while she'd slept cocooned in the cold that wouldn't leave. Apparently, it had all been for nothing though.
Three men and a woman appeared, all armed. No purple though and the weapons weren't pointed at them. One of the men, his skin a lighter shade of brown than her own and hair straight, smiled at her. "No need to be afraid, we aren't here to hurt you," he told her.
The words jolted Stu out of his slumber. He sat up quick as he aimed their only gun at the people in front of them. The speaker motioned for his people to do nothing. "I know you're confused. It's all right. We've been looking for survivors. We'll take you someplace safe and warm, I promise."
That was when they saw them. Two of the younger kids from their classes standing silently with the woman, hands around each leg. "The other settlements?" Zoe asked.
The man's face fell. "They're fine. All this was an example. Strike is over though, but I doubt any of them will risk taking you in. A monitor in each town is searching the houses randomly to see if any survivors are hiding."
Zoe's breath caught at the knowledge that her entire world had been destroyed randomly. All their parents had wanted was assurance from the Alliance that their children could leave the mining moon for schools in the core when they were of age. Had closed the mines until their demands were answered with written promises. No one had taken up arms; no one had destroyed company property.
She felt Stu pull her off the ground. Didn't know if she wanted to go. She should have been with her family. For her desertion, she didn't deserve to leave the cold. She followed the brown man and the rest though as Stu silently pushed her along.
Zoe woke freezing. Ice ran through her veins as the tears ran down her face. She hadn't had those dreams in years. Had started to think the fires of Serenity Valley had burned them out. She felt her husband's arms surround her in a comforting embrace as he made comforting noises and tried to find out what was wrong. Zoe just closed her eyes as she imagined what Stu's arms would feel like right now.
