By Any Other Name (5/6) - SPN/FF/HL/SV - Immortal!Dean Universe
Title: By Any Other Name (5/6)
Author: strangevisitor7
Beta: Pen37
Rated: PG - 13
spoilers: For the movie Serenity: The series goes AU from the end of the movie
Prompt: #43 Square for crossovers100 my table is here
Fandom: Firefly, Highlander, Supernatural & Smallville. The rest of the Immortal!Dean Universe can be found here.
Characters: From FF: Mal, Zoe, Wash, River, Jayne, Simon, Inara, Kaylee. From I!D 'Verse: Dean Winchester, Duncan MacLeod, Richie Ryan, Chloe Sullivan and Sam Winchester. Dean/Chloe, Richie/River
Disclaimer: The characters you know and love all belong to their respective creators.
Summary: The Immortal!Hunters and Mal's crew stop on Persephone where they run into some Alliance trouble. Sam's abilities continue to evolve leading to more questions.
A/N: This is the forth story in the "Immortal!Dean in the Firefly 'verse" which started with:
Since I Found Serenity; The World as We Know It; Into the Coming Storm
Chapter List:
Chapter 1; Chapter 2; Chapter 3; Chapter 4; Chapter 5; Chapter 6
Chapter 5
Sam stood in front of the holding cell. Just as he'd sensed the Reavers on Persephone, the signature of the creature within hummed it's identity to him.
"How do you want to play this?" Duncan asked.
Sam turned to see everyone waiting for him to get started. "I'll engage the Reaver and then one of you," he indicated the Immortals, "just needs to grab my hand."
"I'll do it," Dean said as he started to move next to his brother.
"Actually," Duncan reached out to stop him, "It should be me or Richie or even Wash." When Dean balked, he added. "We need to make sure this isn't another Winchester special."
Dean nodded and reluctantly moved back to stand near Chloe.
"I don't need to do it," Wash announced.
"If this works, you will eventually," Duncan reminded him.
Wash nodded and Sam felt a bit sorry for the new Immortal, he really was out of his element. Sam might be new to Immortality, too, but he'd at least been raised on the supernatural.
"Let me." Richie offered his assistance once again as he moved to stand next to Sam.
Duncan moved to open the door once the Reaver was engaged. "Ready?"
Sam took a deep breath. He raised a hand to focus the lightening within and felt it coming to his command as it sought out the Reaver. Blocking out everything else he connected with the Reaver. It screamed and raged at him, but submitted quickly. Sam smiled at the ease with which the control came to him now and was peripherally aware that Duncan had opened the door.
The moment Richie grabbed his hand the second quickening was laid open to him. Sam pulled at it, hearing a mental Gao gan, Dean was right from Richie in his mind. He ignored his friend as the Reaver howled in pain. Utilizing the mental controls he'd been practicing, he dialed down the force of his commands, modulating his own quickening with Richie's, which appeared as a different colored lightening in his mind.
Don't push, Richie. Let me handle the flow.. Sam 'saw' his friend nod in his mind's eye as he gave up control.
He played with the intensity level testing his ability to blend the two quickenings. It required very little effort to control the Reaver and the quickenings supplied more than enough power to keep it pacified. Sam decided it was time to determine if he could truly be the link in the Immortal chain. Still holding onto Richie, Sam called out. "Your turn, Wash. Take Richie's hand."
The minute Wash latched onto Richie the circuit overloaded. The Reaver howled in his mind like a wind whipping down a corridor. Sam struggled to turn down the intensity but it was too much. As he frantically worked to control the force of three quickenings, the Reaver dusted, spewing forth the black smoke of the demon infection.
Sam broke the connection and was impacted immediately by River, who flung an arm around both him and Richie. "It worked!" she crowed.
The two Immortals exchange a quick smile of satisfaction. "Yeah," Sam confirmed. "It did." He untangled himself from River and turned to face the other Immortal in their little experiment.
"Sorry about that," Wash said sheepishly.
"Don't be," Sam said as he clapped the shorter man on the shoulder. "You did nothing wrong. There was just too much power for me to control and it proved more than the Reaver could take without succumbing to the exorcism."
Dean walked up to Sam, studying him. It was a very familiar look; one that Sam had received after many hunts as Dean would check him over for damage.
"I'm fine!" Sam insisted, adding more quietly. "Really."
Dean nodded.
"So what exactly happened?" Mal asked.
"Sam linked us up and the Reaver went poof," Wash explained.
"That about sums it up," Richie confirmed.
"Need a focus. Need Reavers, demons, creatures to make it work," River said. She still had her arm thrown around Richie's neck as she leaned in to speak directly to him. "You did good little brother."
"Oh no, Sam's the little brother," Richie laughed as he locked eyes with the Winchesters. "I spent five hundred years in that role. It's his turn now."
Dean snickered. "Guess that makes you Jan."
Sam noticed the confused looks among Serenity's crew. "Just ignore him when he makes obscure old Earth references. Most aren't worth explaining," Sam said.
"I hate the future sometimes," Dean grumbled. "That was a good one."
Coming up on Dean's left, Chloe whispered in his ear. "Not really, babe," before turning her attention to Sam. "So are you convinced that you can link a bunch of Immortals and make hoards of Reavers go poof?"
"I don't see why not," Sam confirmed. "I had a lot more power than I needed. It just overwhelmed a single old fashioned Reaver."
"Wash, how are you feeling?" Simon asked. "Any after affects?"
"Don’t think so." Wash made a show of checking his body for damage. "Nope all still there," he laughed.
"What about the buzz?" Duncan asked. "Can you still sense us?"
Jayne pulled out one of his knives. "Maybe we should check the old-fashioned way." As twelve sets of eyes glared at him Jayne tucked the knife away mumbling, "Maybe not."
"I don't feel any different, Mac," Wash said drawing their attention back to him. "I mean as far as still feeling Immortal.
Duncan nodded but Sam could see their eldest Immortal was still struggling with this new ability; seeing only the dark cloud instead of the silver lining. “Sam, could you drain another Immortal's quickening completely?”
"I don't think so," Sam said. He'd never considered that possibility. "But I haven't needed to use that much power and I certainly didn't drain my own on Persephone before Dean linked in."
“But it might be like a blood transfusion,” Simon suggested. “There may be a limit to how much power you or any Immortal can give.”
“That’s a good point,” Sam said. "And explains why I could only control so many Reavers by myself."
"We definitely need to figure what your limitations are before we use this in a fight," Chloe said.
Any additional discussion was cut off by the blaring of proximately alarms. “That’s my cue,” Richie said, sparing a glance at Dean who nodded that he should go ahead.
“Right behind you.” Wash moved to follow, along with Duncan and Mal they headed toward the cockpit.
Dean pointed to Kaylee. “Let’s go half pint. The engine room awaits.” Nodding she followed him out while Zoe and Jayne headed off to man the external guns in case a firefight was brewing.
Sam watched everyone leave and looked at the five left standing in the cargo bay.
“Guess the rest of us should head to the galley. It's the best place to wait until we know what’s going on,” Chloe said.
Inara sighed. “I hate this part.”
**********************************************
Richie took the pilot’s chair as Wash settled in to the copilot’s chair on his left. The two began searching for an answer to the alarms.
“What have we got, Riche?” Duncan asked as he entered the cockpit.
“Gou shi!” Wash exclaimed.
“What?” Duncan demanded assuming his role as the undisputed leader of their little band.
“Alliance,” Richie replied. “Looks like- ” he flipped a few more switches, “Not one of their city ships. It’s one of their smaller trackers; crew of about a hundred"
“Can we out run it?” Mal asked.
Duncan and Richie shared a defeated look. “No,” Richie admitted ruefully.
“Gou neong yung de!” Mal snapped; his focus on the growing signal of the alliance ship on the radar.
“Incoming transmission,” Wash said flipping a switch. A cold female voice spilled into the cockpit demanding that they stop and prepare to be boarded; accusing them of harboring fugitives from Persephone. “What do I tell them?”
“Stall them for as long as you can. Assure them that we are on a mission for the Historical Preservation Society and have all the appropriate paperwork in place. That should buy us a little time while they check our credentials."
"I'll handle the communications," Richie said, placing the transmission onto a private line "You keep us looking harmless, Wash."
Confident that the two pilots were buying them time, Mac tapped his com to let the others know what they were facing. “Heads up everyone. We’ve got Alliance on an intercept path and they want to board the Impala. It seems they tracked us from Persephone.”
“Are we running?” Dean’s voice came over the com.
“I don’t see how we can, Dean,” Duncan replied. “Nowhere to hide.” He looked at Wash for confirmation.
“Sorry but we're out in the open.” Wash gestured to the open expanse of stars in front of them.
"Mac, you know my baby can make it," Dean insisted.
“The Impala’s fast," he confirmed, "But not fast enough to outrun an Alliance tracker in open space. Everyone sit tight; we're working on a plan." Mac clicked off the com but not before he heard Dean grumbling that running was a plan.
Duncan knew exactly how his friend felt; he had no wish to fall into Alliance hands, ever. With Reavers 2.0 on the loose and demons seemingly taking control, they needed to get to Capitol City as soon as possible.
"They waited until we were vulnerable," Duncan said to no one in particular. "I'm betting they've got other ships hovering just out of radar range waiting for us to run.”
Mal leaned over Wash studying the sensor display. “Can you confirm if there are any other Alliance ships in the area?”
Washes hands began flying over the long range sensor controls. “I’ll see what I can do about extending our range.”
Mal patted him on the shoulder and turned back to wait for Duncan’s next move.
"Looks like we're going to have to bluff our way out of this," Duncan said. "Any ideas, Captain?”
"Captain?" Mal snorted. “Now I’m in charge.”
”You are the smuggler here.” Duncan tried to sound light hearted but failed to elicit even a smile from Mal. "I figure you've run some good plays to get out of the Alliance's net in the past."
Their brainstorming was interrupted before it could begin as Dean burst into the cockpit. “There has to be a way to get my ship out of here!”
"Not possible," Wash said. "We're almost in their weapons range as it is."
Ignoring Wash, Dean leaned between the pilots chairs to address Richie. "You know she can out run the Goram Alliance. She's done it before."
Richie "shushed" Dean, waving him off as he continued to discuss their mission for the Preservation Society with the Alliance representative.
“I meant any ideas besides that one.” Mac huffed out a long suffering sigh as he grabbed Dean dragging him back toward the exit. “Not this time, Dean. I trust Wash's instincts, we can't run.”
"I won't let them have my ship!" Dean pushed against his mentor but Duncan’s age and experience gave him the advantage.
After a few more unsuccessful moves on Dean’s part, Mac effectively pinned the younger Immortal against the doorway, elbow at his throat. “We can’t run!” he yelled, his face inches from Dean’s. “If we run, they will blow us out of the sky. In fact, I'm surprised they haven't done it already if they know who is on this ship. So let's calm down and figure out a plan that will get us out of here without being scattered across the black.”
When Duncan sensed he was getting through, he released his hold and stepped back.
"You're right. I know you're right." Dean nodded sullenly, running a hand across the back of his neck as he acknowledged his overreaction. "I just can't stand the idea of giving in without a fight."
"I didn't say we weren't going to fight, I just said we weren't going to run."
Dean looked up, smiling. "That's more like it. Whatcha thinking?"
"Richie," Mal said pointing at the image of the Alliance ship growing in the view screen They don't seem to be buying your story about our important mission." He looked down at the sensors display, "And they've put their weapons on standby."
"Yeah, I noticed that." Richie returned to pleading their case with the Alliance before resignedly signing off.
"Well?" Duncan asked.
"They said we forfeited our diplomatic status when we picked up known criminals on Persephone," Richie explained. "I tired to feign ignorance but they didn't buy it. We're going to have to let them search the ship. Prove we don't have any 'fugitives' on board. I've sent a message on to the Council alerting them to our situation."
"I doubt we can expect any back-up but that might make the Alliance Captain think twice about firing on us," Duncan said.
"Not that I'm not grateful to be alive," Wash interjected. "But why haven't they fired? Can't immortals survive the vacuum of space?"
"Won't kill us permanently," Dean said. "Still, we'd be out of the fight until we were rescued."
"Maybe they want us," Mal offered indicating Serenity's crew. "We're not exactly popular after Miranda."
Duncan had wondered why they were still in one piece too. “Wash is right; the easiest way to get to Sam would be to blow up The Impala and scoop him out of the debris. They definitely want Sam, but I'm guessing the Alliance won't risk stepping too hard on our diplomatic status to get him. They hope we'll behave ourselves and comply."
"Guess I’m grateful the Alliance is being all polite about it but why bother?" Mal asked.
"The Hunter/Watcher Council under the guise of the Historical Preservation Society wields considerable power in the Alliance especially since the defeat of the Browncoats," Duncan explained. "They aren't about to risk a turf war with our people by blowing up one of their flagships. It's much more politically prudent for them to use their powers of persuasion to get us to hand over Sam."
"Which we won't," Dean added.
"Of course not. We won't be handing anybody over to the Alliance," Duncan said. He didn't want to think about the kinds of experiments they might perform on Sam if Alliance medical ever got their hands on him.
"Wash, how much longer until they're hooked up for boarding?" Mal asked.
"Less than three minutes. Maybe longer if I do a little misdirection with the flight path."
"Then we better come up with something fast." Duncan looked at the men gathered in the cockpit. "I'm open for suggestions."
****************************************
The five in the galley watched Dean sprint by. After they heard the exchange on the com they discussed what they might do to help but finally decided that staying out of the way was still their best option.
“Can you feel them yet?” River asked.
Sam quirked an eyebrow at her. “Feel who?" But even as the question left his lips, he knew intuitively that she was asking about Reavers on the Alliance ship. “No,” he amended before she could explain.
Chloe smiled, also understanding what River was asking without explanation. “Sam, do you think if the Reavers were close enough you could pull your mojo on them?”
“Though the vacuum of space?” Sam shook his head. “I have no idea but I’m guessing no because I can’t even feel - ” Sam stopped as a familiar sensation tingled at the edge of his awareness.
“What are you suggesting, Chloe?” Inara asked.
"River said Sam needs to practice and if I'm not mistaken," she took in the faraway look on Sam's face as confirmation, "there are Reavers on that Alliance ship just begging to go poof."
"Yes, he can link and make the Reavers go away," River confirmed.
"Is it wise to try to do that when we aren't sure what might happen if Sam pushes too hard?" Simon asked.
"Not like we have a choice with the Alliance ready to board us," Chloe reminded him. "Sam. “ His gaze remained remote. “Sam!" She nudged the lanky figure seated next to her.
At her prodding, Sam seemed to snap back to the present. "Sorry, Chloe," he said sheepishly. "I was trying to determine how many there were."
"And?"
"It feels like dozens," Sam paused focusing on the feeling, "Could be most of the crew."
"That's great," Chloe said enthusiastically.
"How is a ship full of Reavers great?' Simon wondered.
"Because that means Sam can control the whole crew."
"I don't know if I can force that many to obey, let alone exorcise them.
"No time like the present to find out." Chloe smiled and patted him on the shoulder. Sam grimaced in response.
"And what if there are regular humans on the ship? I can't do much to them," Sam reminded her.
"True but that's what the rest of us are for." Chloe tapped her com. "Hey guys, I have a plan."
Dean was the first to respond, "That's my girl! Have I told you lately that I love you?"
"Not often enough," she teased. "Now, let a non-Immortal drive and the rest of you get down here."
"We'll be right there," Duncan said, adding "Have I mentioned that I love you too?"
"Me three," Richie chimed in.
"My fan club," Chloe chuckled.
"You're a popular lady," Inara laughed.
"They'd be lost without me."
"I believe it."
Just then River stood, and crossed the room toward the cockpit.
"River, where are you going?" Sam asked .
"I will fly the Impala like a bird," she giggled and disappeared down the corridor.
"Oh Dean is gonna love that," Sam shook his head, grateful he didn't have to witness that exchange.
"She's a very good pilot," Simon assured him. At Chloe and Sam's skeptical looks he added, "Really!"
Author: strangevisitor7
Beta: Pen37
Rated: PG - 13
spoilers: For the movie Serenity: The series goes AU from the end of the movie
Prompt: #43 Square for crossovers100 my table is here
Fandom: Firefly, Highlander, Supernatural & Smallville. The rest of the Immortal!Dean Universe can be found here.
Characters: From FF: Mal, Zoe, Wash, River, Jayne, Simon, Inara, Kaylee. From I!D 'Verse: Dean Winchester, Duncan MacLeod, Richie Ryan, Chloe Sullivan and Sam Winchester. Dean/Chloe, Richie/River
Disclaimer: The characters you know and love all belong to their respective creators.
Summary: The Immortal!Hunters and Mal's crew stop on Persephone where they run into some Alliance trouble. Sam's abilities continue to evolve leading to more questions.
A/N: This is the forth story in the "Immortal!Dean in the Firefly 'verse" which started with:
Since I Found Serenity; The World as We Know It; Into the Coming Storm
Chapter List:
Chapter 1; Chapter 2; Chapter 3; Chapter 4; Chapter 5; Chapter 6
Chapter 5
Sam stood in front of the holding cell. Just as he'd sensed the Reavers on Persephone, the signature of the creature within hummed it's identity to him.
"How do you want to play this?" Duncan asked.
Sam turned to see everyone waiting for him to get started. "I'll engage the Reaver and then one of you," he indicated the Immortals, "just needs to grab my hand."
"I'll do it," Dean said as he started to move next to his brother.
"Actually," Duncan reached out to stop him, "It should be me or Richie or even Wash." When Dean balked, he added. "We need to make sure this isn't another Winchester special."
Dean nodded and reluctantly moved back to stand near Chloe.
"I don't need to do it," Wash announced.
"If this works, you will eventually," Duncan reminded him.
Wash nodded and Sam felt a bit sorry for the new Immortal, he really was out of his element. Sam might be new to Immortality, too, but he'd at least been raised on the supernatural.
"Let me." Richie offered his assistance once again as he moved to stand next to Sam.
Duncan moved to open the door once the Reaver was engaged. "Ready?"
Sam took a deep breath. He raised a hand to focus the lightening within and felt it coming to his command as it sought out the Reaver. Blocking out everything else he connected with the Reaver. It screamed and raged at him, but submitted quickly. Sam smiled at the ease with which the control came to him now and was peripherally aware that Duncan had opened the door.
The moment Richie grabbed his hand the second quickening was laid open to him. Sam pulled at it, hearing a mental Gao gan, Dean was right from Richie in his mind. He ignored his friend as the Reaver howled in pain. Utilizing the mental controls he'd been practicing, he dialed down the force of his commands, modulating his own quickening with Richie's, which appeared as a different colored lightening in his mind.
Don't push, Richie. Let me handle the flow.. Sam 'saw' his friend nod in his mind's eye as he gave up control.
He played with the intensity level testing his ability to blend the two quickenings. It required very little effort to control the Reaver and the quickenings supplied more than enough power to keep it pacified. Sam decided it was time to determine if he could truly be the link in the Immortal chain. Still holding onto Richie, Sam called out. "Your turn, Wash. Take Richie's hand."
The minute Wash latched onto Richie the circuit overloaded. The Reaver howled in his mind like a wind whipping down a corridor. Sam struggled to turn down the intensity but it was too much. As he frantically worked to control the force of three quickenings, the Reaver dusted, spewing forth the black smoke of the demon infection.
Sam broke the connection and was impacted immediately by River, who flung an arm around both him and Richie. "It worked!" she crowed.
The two Immortals exchange a quick smile of satisfaction. "Yeah," Sam confirmed. "It did." He untangled himself from River and turned to face the other Immortal in their little experiment.
"Sorry about that," Wash said sheepishly.
"Don't be," Sam said as he clapped the shorter man on the shoulder. "You did nothing wrong. There was just too much power for me to control and it proved more than the Reaver could take without succumbing to the exorcism."
Dean walked up to Sam, studying him. It was a very familiar look; one that Sam had received after many hunts as Dean would check him over for damage.
"I'm fine!" Sam insisted, adding more quietly. "Really."
Dean nodded.
"So what exactly happened?" Mal asked.
"Sam linked us up and the Reaver went poof," Wash explained.
"That about sums it up," Richie confirmed.
"Need a focus. Need Reavers, demons, creatures to make it work," River said. She still had her arm thrown around Richie's neck as she leaned in to speak directly to him. "You did good little brother."
"Oh no, Sam's the little brother," Richie laughed as he locked eyes with the Winchesters. "I spent five hundred years in that role. It's his turn now."
Dean snickered. "Guess that makes you Jan."
Sam noticed the confused looks among Serenity's crew. "Just ignore him when he makes obscure old Earth references. Most aren't worth explaining," Sam said.
"I hate the future sometimes," Dean grumbled. "That was a good one."
Coming up on Dean's left, Chloe whispered in his ear. "Not really, babe," before turning her attention to Sam. "So are you convinced that you can link a bunch of Immortals and make hoards of Reavers go poof?"
"I don't see why not," Sam confirmed. "I had a lot more power than I needed. It just overwhelmed a single old fashioned Reaver."
"Wash, how are you feeling?" Simon asked. "Any after affects?"
"Don’t think so." Wash made a show of checking his body for damage. "Nope all still there," he laughed.
"What about the buzz?" Duncan asked. "Can you still sense us?"
Jayne pulled out one of his knives. "Maybe we should check the old-fashioned way." As twelve sets of eyes glared at him Jayne tucked the knife away mumbling, "Maybe not."
"I don't feel any different, Mac," Wash said drawing their attention back to him. "I mean as far as still feeling Immortal.
Duncan nodded but Sam could see their eldest Immortal was still struggling with this new ability; seeing only the dark cloud instead of the silver lining. “Sam, could you drain another Immortal's quickening completely?”
"I don't think so," Sam said. He'd never considered that possibility. "But I haven't needed to use that much power and I certainly didn't drain my own on Persephone before Dean linked in."
“But it might be like a blood transfusion,” Simon suggested. “There may be a limit to how much power you or any Immortal can give.”
“That’s a good point,” Sam said. "And explains why I could only control so many Reavers by myself."
"We definitely need to figure what your limitations are before we use this in a fight," Chloe said.
Any additional discussion was cut off by the blaring of proximately alarms. “That’s my cue,” Richie said, sparing a glance at Dean who nodded that he should go ahead.
“Right behind you.” Wash moved to follow, along with Duncan and Mal they headed toward the cockpit.
Dean pointed to Kaylee. “Let’s go half pint. The engine room awaits.” Nodding she followed him out while Zoe and Jayne headed off to man the external guns in case a firefight was brewing.
Sam watched everyone leave and looked at the five left standing in the cargo bay.
“Guess the rest of us should head to the galley. It's the best place to wait until we know what’s going on,” Chloe said.
Inara sighed. “I hate this part.”
**********************************************
Richie took the pilot’s chair as Wash settled in to the copilot’s chair on his left. The two began searching for an answer to the alarms.
“What have we got, Riche?” Duncan asked as he entered the cockpit.
“Gou shi!” Wash exclaimed.
“What?” Duncan demanded assuming his role as the undisputed leader of their little band.
“Alliance,” Richie replied. “Looks like- ” he flipped a few more switches, “Not one of their city ships. It’s one of their smaller trackers; crew of about a hundred"
“Can we out run it?” Mal asked.
Duncan and Richie shared a defeated look. “No,” Richie admitted ruefully.
“Gou neong yung de!” Mal snapped; his focus on the growing signal of the alliance ship on the radar.
“Incoming transmission,” Wash said flipping a switch. A cold female voice spilled into the cockpit demanding that they stop and prepare to be boarded; accusing them of harboring fugitives from Persephone. “What do I tell them?”
“Stall them for as long as you can. Assure them that we are on a mission for the Historical Preservation Society and have all the appropriate paperwork in place. That should buy us a little time while they check our credentials."
"I'll handle the communications," Richie said, placing the transmission onto a private line "You keep us looking harmless, Wash."
Confident that the two pilots were buying them time, Mac tapped his com to let the others know what they were facing. “Heads up everyone. We’ve got Alliance on an intercept path and they want to board the Impala. It seems they tracked us from Persephone.”
“Are we running?” Dean’s voice came over the com.
“I don’t see how we can, Dean,” Duncan replied. “Nowhere to hide.” He looked at Wash for confirmation.
“Sorry but we're out in the open.” Wash gestured to the open expanse of stars in front of them.
"Mac, you know my baby can make it," Dean insisted.
“The Impala’s fast," he confirmed, "But not fast enough to outrun an Alliance tracker in open space. Everyone sit tight; we're working on a plan." Mac clicked off the com but not before he heard Dean grumbling that running was a plan.
Duncan knew exactly how his friend felt; he had no wish to fall into Alliance hands, ever. With Reavers 2.0 on the loose and demons seemingly taking control, they needed to get to Capitol City as soon as possible.
"They waited until we were vulnerable," Duncan said to no one in particular. "I'm betting they've got other ships hovering just out of radar range waiting for us to run.”
Mal leaned over Wash studying the sensor display. “Can you confirm if there are any other Alliance ships in the area?”
Washes hands began flying over the long range sensor controls. “I’ll see what I can do about extending our range.”
Mal patted him on the shoulder and turned back to wait for Duncan’s next move.
"Looks like we're going to have to bluff our way out of this," Duncan said. "Any ideas, Captain?”
"Captain?" Mal snorted. “Now I’m in charge.”
”You are the smuggler here.” Duncan tried to sound light hearted but failed to elicit even a smile from Mal. "I figure you've run some good plays to get out of the Alliance's net in the past."
Their brainstorming was interrupted before it could begin as Dean burst into the cockpit. “There has to be a way to get my ship out of here!”
"Not possible," Wash said. "We're almost in their weapons range as it is."
Ignoring Wash, Dean leaned between the pilots chairs to address Richie. "You know she can out run the Goram Alliance. She's done it before."
Richie "shushed" Dean, waving him off as he continued to discuss their mission for the Preservation Society with the Alliance representative.
“I meant any ideas besides that one.” Mac huffed out a long suffering sigh as he grabbed Dean dragging him back toward the exit. “Not this time, Dean. I trust Wash's instincts, we can't run.”
"I won't let them have my ship!" Dean pushed against his mentor but Duncan’s age and experience gave him the advantage.
After a few more unsuccessful moves on Dean’s part, Mac effectively pinned the younger Immortal against the doorway, elbow at his throat. “We can’t run!” he yelled, his face inches from Dean’s. “If we run, they will blow us out of the sky. In fact, I'm surprised they haven't done it already if they know who is on this ship. So let's calm down and figure out a plan that will get us out of here without being scattered across the black.”
When Duncan sensed he was getting through, he released his hold and stepped back.
"You're right. I know you're right." Dean nodded sullenly, running a hand across the back of his neck as he acknowledged his overreaction. "I just can't stand the idea of giving in without a fight."
"I didn't say we weren't going to fight, I just said we weren't going to run."
Dean looked up, smiling. "That's more like it. Whatcha thinking?"
"Richie," Mal said pointing at the image of the Alliance ship growing in the view screen They don't seem to be buying your story about our important mission." He looked down at the sensors display, "And they've put their weapons on standby."
"Yeah, I noticed that." Richie returned to pleading their case with the Alliance before resignedly signing off.
"Well?" Duncan asked.
"They said we forfeited our diplomatic status when we picked up known criminals on Persephone," Richie explained. "I tired to feign ignorance but they didn't buy it. We're going to have to let them search the ship. Prove we don't have any 'fugitives' on board. I've sent a message on to the Council alerting them to our situation."
"I doubt we can expect any back-up but that might make the Alliance Captain think twice about firing on us," Duncan said.
"Not that I'm not grateful to be alive," Wash interjected. "But why haven't they fired? Can't immortals survive the vacuum of space?"
"Won't kill us permanently," Dean said. "Still, we'd be out of the fight until we were rescued."
"Maybe they want us," Mal offered indicating Serenity's crew. "We're not exactly popular after Miranda."
Duncan had wondered why they were still in one piece too. “Wash is right; the easiest way to get to Sam would be to blow up The Impala and scoop him out of the debris. They definitely want Sam, but I'm guessing the Alliance won't risk stepping too hard on our diplomatic status to get him. They hope we'll behave ourselves and comply."
"Guess I’m grateful the Alliance is being all polite about it but why bother?" Mal asked.
"The Hunter/Watcher Council under the guise of the Historical Preservation Society wields considerable power in the Alliance especially since the defeat of the Browncoats," Duncan explained. "They aren't about to risk a turf war with our people by blowing up one of their flagships. It's much more politically prudent for them to use their powers of persuasion to get us to hand over Sam."
"Which we won't," Dean added.
"Of course not. We won't be handing anybody over to the Alliance," Duncan said. He didn't want to think about the kinds of experiments they might perform on Sam if Alliance medical ever got their hands on him.
"Wash, how much longer until they're hooked up for boarding?" Mal asked.
"Less than three minutes. Maybe longer if I do a little misdirection with the flight path."
"Then we better come up with something fast." Duncan looked at the men gathered in the cockpit. "I'm open for suggestions."
****************************************
The five in the galley watched Dean sprint by. After they heard the exchange on the com they discussed what they might do to help but finally decided that staying out of the way was still their best option.
“Can you feel them yet?” River asked.
Sam quirked an eyebrow at her. “Feel who?" But even as the question left his lips, he knew intuitively that she was asking about Reavers on the Alliance ship. “No,” he amended before she could explain.
Chloe smiled, also understanding what River was asking without explanation. “Sam, do you think if the Reavers were close enough you could pull your mojo on them?”
“Though the vacuum of space?” Sam shook his head. “I have no idea but I’m guessing no because I can’t even feel - ” Sam stopped as a familiar sensation tingled at the edge of his awareness.
“What are you suggesting, Chloe?” Inara asked.
"River said Sam needs to practice and if I'm not mistaken," she took in the faraway look on Sam's face as confirmation, "there are Reavers on that Alliance ship just begging to go poof."
"Yes, he can link and make the Reavers go away," River confirmed.
"Is it wise to try to do that when we aren't sure what might happen if Sam pushes too hard?" Simon asked.
"Not like we have a choice with the Alliance ready to board us," Chloe reminded him. "Sam. “ His gaze remained remote. “Sam!" She nudged the lanky figure seated next to her.
At her prodding, Sam seemed to snap back to the present. "Sorry, Chloe," he said sheepishly. "I was trying to determine how many there were."
"And?"
"It feels like dozens," Sam paused focusing on the feeling, "Could be most of the crew."
"That's great," Chloe said enthusiastically.
"How is a ship full of Reavers great?' Simon wondered.
"Because that means Sam can control the whole crew."
"I don't know if I can force that many to obey, let alone exorcise them.
"No time like the present to find out." Chloe smiled and patted him on the shoulder. Sam grimaced in response.
"And what if there are regular humans on the ship? I can't do much to them," Sam reminded her.
"True but that's what the rest of us are for." Chloe tapped her com. "Hey guys, I have a plan."
Dean was the first to respond, "That's my girl! Have I told you lately that I love you?"
"Not often enough," she teased. "Now, let a non-Immortal drive and the rest of you get down here."
"We'll be right there," Duncan said, adding "Have I mentioned that I love you too?"
"Me three," Richie chimed in.
"My fan club," Chloe chuckled.
"You're a popular lady," Inara laughed.
"They'd be lost without me."
"I believe it."
Just then River stood, and crossed the room toward the cockpit.
"River, where are you going?" Sam asked .
"I will fly the Impala like a bird," she giggled and disappeared down the corridor.
"Oh Dean is gonna love that," Sam shook his head, grateful he didn't have to witness that exchange.
"She's a very good pilot," Simon assured him. At Chloe and Sam's skeptical looks he added, "Really!"