Blue Sun Room FICTION - ADVENTURE

Damsel in Distress - Book 1, Ch 1

Friday, October 20, 2006

After being ravaged by space pirates, the crew of Serenity sets out to take back what’s theirs. However, their pursuit is cut short when they are forced into hiding by a bureaucratic world. Now Mal must rely on a mysterious new passenger as he seeks to rescue his own damsel in distress... Download the complete PDF at <a href="http://www.valeriebean.com/writings/fireflyfic/"here</a>... B1C1: Only on honest jobs is it possible for the crew to go hungry while transporting a cargo of food.

CATEGORY: FICTION    TIMES READ: 3605    RATING: 9.0 (G)    SERIES: FIREFLY

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AN: Start at the

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CHAPTER 1

(Six years later… after the show, before the movie.)

Jayne woke to a powerful ache in his belly, the dream of his cousin fading fast from his memory. His mind wandered to the kitchen, but he didn’t bother to get up. Rations were scarce and the Captain had restricted them all to one daily meal. Jayne had resolved to sleep through his hunger, but the vibrating deck plates had other plans. Serenity’s engine growled with exertion, causing the bowie knife on his bedside table to vibrate. His hand shot out to silence the rattling blade, but instead sent it clamoring to the floor.

Angrily, he rolled onto his back. He was losing his focus, losing his edge. Losing his mind with hunger. The dim light of the room glinted off the arsenal of guns, knives, and other weaponry hanging over his bunk. Vera, his favorite gun, was the centerpiece. Seeing it brought up a brief flash of his cousin—a pain that ached worse than hunger. He suppressed the thought of her quickly and focused on the Callahan, full-bore, auto lock with customized trigger double cartridge thorough gauge. Vera had come with a price. Most of his guns did. Each with a specific talent, they came out for specialized jobs: sharp-shooting, snipering, close-range combat, open-range fights, bar fights, and a few soft leads so as not to damage spaceships. Most of them were sadly locked down ever since that crazy kid River had gotten a hold of his Rutger 45. Lux, his LeMat revolver, sat quietly in the holster which hung from his bed-post. Being more of a day gun, Lux came with him everywhere.

His stomach rumbled again, causing the vision of the guns to blur. The ship hiccupped. Sleep was useless. Grabbing the revolver and the bowie, Jayne made for the cargo bay. They were transporting a food shipment to a colony on Newhall, the first honest job they’d had in months. Jayne hated honest work. Only on honest jobs was it possible t

Comments
Friday, 20 October 2006 12:02
Uh oh, methinks Serenity may be under attack! Really loving how this story is unfolding and the description of everyone tightening their belts and near starving while transporting a cargo of food is particularly affecting. I can see Book fasting to increase the amount of food for the others and using it as a testament of faith not a trial. Reminds me just how much I miss him. Ali D :~)
You can't take the sky from me
Friday, 20 October 2006 23:54
Oh...just loving how you're having the crew act and interact at this troubling juncture in time, valeriebean! Especially Jayne, who we have to expect goes through a good share of Serenity's foodstuffs on a regular basis;)

BEB
Saturday, 21 October 2006 19:18
I love the crew interaction! Very interesting story line. Nice suspense.

vaughn
Tuesday, 31 October 2006 17:31
River was already light-footing through the corridors, in combat boots today, but still oddly quiet.
~ She was definitely eerie in her ability to move quietly in those things

“It’d be so much easier for people to lose weight if they had someone kind enough to point a gun in their face and tell them they can’t eat no more,”
~ one hell of a diet for sure

I am not sure that I like the explanation of the story that has happened before, things from the series. Did you write this for people who were not familiar with the 'verse ??

Good cliffhanger at the end.

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