Disclaimer: anything recognizable is property of Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, etc. The story and its original characters, however, are mine. Also, I had to take some creative liberties, but only on stuff not explained in the series. I also used my own translator for the Mandarin, so it may be off (although it's still comical). Feedback (good or bad) is of course welcome. On to the story:

“This makes no sense,” I said, pacing around in Liberty ’s open cargo bay. “I didn’t sabotage my own ship, I read Bill, Syd, Serra, and Tobias’s minds, and Libby was nowhere near the engine room at the time of the crime.”

“Eddie, you’re going to make a rut in the floor.” Bill had just walked in from the outside. “I can fix the damage in a couple hours. It’s not that bad, just enough to stop us.”

Ignoring him, I went on. “Physically impossible without someone pulling it…”

“Yeah, I get our problem.” Bill wasn’t letting up. “Good news is, only replacement part we need is a new transference cycler. I’m going to need some credits for that.”

“What?” I finally paid attention to him. “Oh, yeah, I’ll have Libby take care of that.”

Serra walked in from the dorms with the other girls behind her. “Why are we here anyway? I mean, originally.”

“Sabotage…” I turned my attention back to the situation at hand, then to Serra. “Layover. Hoping to find work for The Rim. And to go shopping.”

“No, you’re not going anywhere,” Serra directed me. “You need to come to your senses. Libby and I can take care of the shopping.”

“Among us…” I decided Serra was right. “Take Tobias with you.”

“Done,” Serra said. “Come on you two.”

When they were out of the cargo bay, Sydney came up to me. “Can I go with them? I’ve never been on a space station before.”

“Sure just stay with them.” I looked at Bill, who was talking to someone outside the ship, and lowered my voice while handing Sydney a Peacemaker. “Take this with you. Don’t hesitate to use it if anything looks wrong. Something’s not right here. And keep it concea