Still Flying - Part I

Disclaimer: Firefly, Serenity, and all related characters are copyright 2002-2005 Mutant Enemy, Inc., Universal Pictures, and 20th Century Fox. This is a work of fanfiction. No copyright infringement is intended.

***

The spaceship Serenity touched down on the planet of Greenleaf almost effortlessly, hardly disturbing the cattle herd that was in a nearby field.

“We’re landed, Captain.” The pilot informed Malcolm Reynolds over the intercom.

“Thank you Lilah. Nice landing. This shouldn’t take too long.” Mal said, down in the cargo bay. Zoe and River were busy lowering the mule.

“I’ll keep the com open, just in case.” She insisted.

“Don’t worry. It’ll go smooth.” Mal said, not seeing River and Zoe give each other a look before rolling their eyes.

“Right. I’ll just remind Simon to have the infirmary ready for when you guys get back.” Her voice held a tone of amusement, which Mal ignored. He supposed it was his fault for implying that he was injured frequently, and he could only imagine what Monty might have told her.

“You gonna come with Zoe and me, River?”

“Yes. I want to be useful.” River was dressed much like Zoe, and Mal was more than a little bewildered at the sight of River wearing actual pants.

“Fair enough.”

He, Zoe, and River climbed into the mule, and with Zoe behind the controls, they took off, anxious to see what business could be accomplished.

***

The trip to the bar where they would be meeting their contact was easy enough to find. It wasn’t the kind of bar that Mal was expecting (it was more high-end than he was used to), but he remembered that some parts of Greenleaf had been undergoing renewal efforts to make it a more appealing planet for others to settle on. Despite having the best medical facilities outside of the Core, Greenleaf had been losing its population to other planets for a few decades, though it wasn’t under-populated by any means.

“Mr. Shang?” Mal asked of the well-dressed man