(no subject)
Doc's hit.
That's all Jayne can think as he and Zoe plug the hole in the blast doors with Reavers.
Doc's hit, Zoe's cut up, and Kaylee--
Kaylee.
He can hear her talkin', vaguely, over the sound of his own gun, but then her voice trails off and River and 'Nara and Simon's all he can hear.
His hands shake and he winces as something thumps him in the shoulder, hard, but he don't feel a thing.
Kaylee.
Xiao mèimei.
And then River's through and it's so quiet for a while. The only sound is Kaylee's breaths, slow, slow, and the drip of Simon's life-blood on the metal floor.
Clang.
His shoulder hurts. He looks down.
A pained snarl. Reaver or River?
He's hit too. Blood's flowing slow.
Flesh wound.
It just keeps going, Simon dyin' and Kaylee sometimes half-whisperin' some shit about pretty green rocks and Zoe gettin' pale.
Pale and quiet.
And Jayne just sits with 'em, waitin'.
He don't like waitin'.
There's a sound, of machinery grinding into motion. Jayne's got his gun on the blast doors automatically, but they ain't movin'.
He turns his head.
Mal.
He's all banged up, too. One great big happy family. With stab wounds.
Beside him, Zoe finally stirs. "Sir?"
"It's done. Report," Mal replies, and Jayne winces as the captain's eyes take in the carnage. They ain't so pretty now.
Before Zoe can answer, the blast doors open, and Jayne swings around, wincing again. Gorram, but his shoulder does smart.
And then he drops his gun entirely. Because it's River. River like he ain't never seen her before.
Shootin's got a certain violence to it, but it's a clean death for the most part.
The axe and sword in her hands drip red with blood and gore.
(She got her a ear.)
Stabby finally lived up to the name, and Jayne's not sure he can ever call her that again. 'Cause the Reavers ain't just dead.
They're in pieces.
For a second, they all just sit and look at each other.
Then it all goes to shit all over again, 'cause the wall's falling and there's soldiers with guns and it's so bright and Jayne thinks, Damn, maybe I lost more blood than I thought, cause he's kinda dizzy.
"Drop your weapons!"
Not talkin' to him. Vera's on the ground. His arm's kinda heavy.
"Drop 'em now!"
Blinking rapidly, he sees they're about to shoot River.
(They think she's a Reaver.)
Not so hard, with the axe and the blood.
"Do we engage? Do we engage?"
Everything stops.
Drip. Drip.
A crackle. A choked breath.
"Stand down."
River's knuckles ain't so white.
"It's finished. We're finished."
And Jayne figures... it's all right to pass out now.
That's all Jayne can think as he and Zoe plug the hole in the blast doors with Reavers.
Doc's hit, Zoe's cut up, and Kaylee--
Kaylee.
He can hear her talkin', vaguely, over the sound of his own gun, but then her voice trails off and River and 'Nara and Simon's all he can hear.
His hands shake and he winces as something thumps him in the shoulder, hard, but he don't feel a thing.
Kaylee.
Xiao mèimei.
And then River's through and it's so quiet for a while. The only sound is Kaylee's breaths, slow, slow, and the drip of Simon's life-blood on the metal floor.
Clang.
His shoulder hurts. He looks down.
A pained snarl. Reaver or River?
He's hit too. Blood's flowing slow.
Flesh wound.
It just keeps going, Simon dyin' and Kaylee sometimes half-whisperin' some shit about pretty green rocks and Zoe gettin' pale.
Pale and quiet.
And Jayne just sits with 'em, waitin'.
He don't like waitin'.
There's a sound, of machinery grinding into motion. Jayne's got his gun on the blast doors automatically, but they ain't movin'.
He turns his head.
Mal.
He's all banged up, too. One great big happy family. With stab wounds.
Beside him, Zoe finally stirs. "Sir?"
"It's done. Report," Mal replies, and Jayne winces as the captain's eyes take in the carnage. They ain't so pretty now.
Before Zoe can answer, the blast doors open, and Jayne swings around, wincing again. Gorram, but his shoulder does smart.
And then he drops his gun entirely. Because it's River. River like he ain't never seen her before.
Shootin's got a certain violence to it, but it's a clean death for the most part.
The axe and sword in her hands drip red with blood and gore.
(She got her a ear.)
Stabby finally lived up to the name, and Jayne's not sure he can ever call her that again. 'Cause the Reavers ain't just dead.
They're in pieces.
For a second, they all just sit and look at each other.
Then it all goes to shit all over again, 'cause the wall's falling and there's soldiers with guns and it's so bright and Jayne thinks, Damn, maybe I lost more blood than I thought, cause he's kinda dizzy.
"Drop your weapons!"
Not talkin' to him. Vera's on the ground. His arm's kinda heavy.
"Drop 'em now!"
Blinking rapidly, he sees they're about to shoot River.
(They think she's a Reaver.)
Not so hard, with the axe and the blood.
"Do we engage? Do we engage?"
Everything stops.
Drip. Drip.
A crackle. A choked breath.
"Stand down."
River's knuckles ain't so white.
"It's finished. We're finished."
And Jayne figures... it's all right to pass out now.