How Malcolm Met Zoe...
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Part of a larger unfinished work, entitled "Shadow", this excerpt explores one possible explanation for how Zoe and Mal met, and why she is so doggedly loyal to him... Also, look out for an old acquaintance and a possible explanation of the tattoo on Mal's hip.
This piece is really, really long, so I hope you've got your reading shoes on. And of course, that you enjoy it.
CATEGORY: FICTION TIMES READ: 3356 RATING: 9.0 (PG13) SERIES: FIREFLY
...Brian had been right. This pass was just wide enough to fit two mechanized fighting vehicles side-by-side. The better part of fifty of these rollers were advancing slowly in single file, engines in stealth mode, in the pitch black of the darkside sky. All Mal could detect of them was the creaking of their tracks and a crunching noise that sounded as though the entire valley was being methodically pulverized. Lowering his night-vision goggles to his eyes, he couldn't see the rollers themselves, since they were shielded against releasing any heat as well; but he could clearly make out their blocky black forms, against the hundreds of warm-bodied soldiers walking all around them.
Shouldering his anti-armor launcher, he sent a wire-guided round toward the center of the leading black oblong shape. Seconds later, he was rewarded with a blast of such ferocity that it nearly blinded him. Ripping the goggles from his face and rubbing his eyes frantically, he keyed his comm unit and hoarsely shouted, “Open fire!”
With the valley now lit by the gout of flame from the roller, the other vehicles were exposed. One tried to race around the stricken tank, and was taken out in similar fashion by a laucher on the other hillside. A third projectile caught the next roller behind these two. Things were beginning to stack up nicely in the bottleneck, as the tanks came to a screeching halt.
“Second positions!” Mal screamed into his comm, above the deafening roar of igniting weapons stores aboard the destroyed vehicles.
Mal and his spotter grabbed their gear and beat feet up the hillside, and were maybe seventy meters away when a mortar shell exploded directly on their former position.
“Those guys are pretty handy with 'rithmetic,” Mal commented to his scared-witless comrade, laughing heartily.
Problem was, it wasn't just vehicles and artillery to worry about. The hundreds of soldiers that had formerly been all around the tanks, all orderly like, were now swarming up the hillsides in all directions.
“Yo
Gotta wonder though...Mal seems a tad more educating in the concepts of war and combat than one expects based on the scenes from "Serenity" and "The Message." Not saying Mal was ever a poor leader or a moron...but you have him possessing something bigger than "learn on your feet" wisdom. And that intrigues me. Really would love to see what you got so far, even if it's only a chapter or two when you factor in document length:D
BEB
You can't take the sky from me
Again, I used the American Civil War as the model for Mal's competence in the field. Part of what gave the South a fighting chance against the superior numbers and weaponry of the Northern Army was the unexpected effectiveness of the general soldiery of the Confederacy. Put simply, the Rebs were country boys, used to hunting and fishing, while the rank and file 'Bluebelly' was a city slicker who'd never held a rifle in his life. Training -- like the Alliance soldiers would have -- is a fine thing, but it only goes so far against lifelong experience with weapons and hunting tactics.
So, I don't think I necessarily over-played Mal's cunning when it comes to hunting a dangerous opponent (Hiro, whom it should be remembered turned out to be concussed, else Mal would've be so much meat) or his skills with firearms, since he'd have spent most of his non-farm chore time out in the local woods hunting rabbits, squirrels and deer, for the sport and for food for the family table. That's what my daddy and his brothers did back in the 30's...
As to Zoe, I just *know* there's something that binds him to Mal more tightly than anything we in the West would ever understand: A sense of honor deeper than we can imagine. For me, Bushido is the only thing that could possibly explain both her loyalty and her skill as a warrior. And no doubt she is a better fighter than anyone else on the series. Even River is more of a brawler, when contrasted to Zoe's awareness of her surroundings.
...I'm glad y'all thought enough of this thing to comment on it. Thanks.
Ironic, this use of Bushido, which, based on a recent googling of the term, is based on a, "use and admiration of the sword". Which weapon Mal was so unfamiliar with in Shindig. Then again, he did luck out in the use of said weapon, didn't he?
I like how your story speaks consistently to the concept of the hero as one who has a significant relationship to Luck. Kinda makes Mal so... human.
Unless I'm missing the point entirely, such as having Bushido apply only to Zoë. But I've always figured Zoë to be as complex, if not the most complex character, as any of the crew of Serenity. F'rinstance, there's so much to be mined from the comparison of her relationship to Mal to that of her marriage to Wash. Sigh. There's so much left unsaid about the whole gorram Serenifly 'verse. To which I say, zoid, I feel you've done a fine job of offering this little peek into the background of a significant portion of that 'story. And in the end, it's the story that draws me to the 'verse.
Add me to the list of those who dearly hope you manage to complete the whole story. Or, chapter, if you will. On your own time, of course. In the sense that any job worth doing... well, you know the rest.
I feel compelled to add my comments along with everyone else.
I am really interested in finding out more about Mal and Zoe's relationship with regards to your theories. For the sake of all that is good and worthy (like strawberries and hot cheese), I hope you find the time and gumption to finish this story.
Regards,
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