Firefly: The Past

There was nothing like the sound of the ship when she was humming away perfectly. Wash’s fingers flew over the console, flipping and punching buttons to prepare for the ship’s take-off into space. He glanced through the wide window in front of him and immediately wished he hadn’t, for the sun glared into it at that exact moment, blinding him momentarily. He spat a guttural Chinese curse out and shifted his eyes back to the console, shaking the spots out of his vision. Much better.

The ship started to whine louder as it lifted from the ground, spewing dust and dirt from underneath it as it left the dry desert terrain. Wash placed his hands carefully on the controls and steered carefully upwards, picking up more speed as he left the planet far behind. The sky grew darker as he went higher, then totally dark as he breeched the planet’s atmosphere. Wash sighed with relief as he saw no problems arise in the display riddled with lights. You never knew what was going to break down on Serenity, the ship where he was employed.

The ship’s captain, Malcolm Reynolds, was an unusual man, Wash had to admit. Mal wasn’t kind half of the time, and he wasn’t tactical the other half. Which meant he displayed a tendency to not like anyone or anything. Which was probably not an act.

Footsteps sounded behind him, breaking his thoughts, and he glanced at the reflection in the windows in front of him. He grinned when he saw who it was. Think of the devil.

“Wash, excellent take-off. Do that more often, and you’ll be worth what I pay you for.” Captain Mal Reynolds stood behind Wash’s chair, arms folded in a great show.

“Thanks, Mal.” Wash tilted his head to the Captain. “I try not to get us killed.”

“I’m glad you think about it. That’s what I pay you for.” Mal said seriously.

“You mean what you want to pay us for, right?” A new voice split the air; gravely and dark. Wash risked a glance backwards and saw another shipmate, Jayne Cobb walk up. Wash averted his eyes once again, knowing that a fight w