Mal sighed to himself. It wasn’t what he wanted to hear. He had been really hoping to make it to Lanai by evening at the latest. The last thing he wanted was to miss that drop off. Gorram! Except for the pipes bursting and the thermostat coil needing replaced, it really had been an uneventful trip, just the kind he liked. No complications.

“We have to do it, Mal” Wash said to him, picking up on his captain’s blatant discontent. “If the Alliance were to stop us for a routine check…,” Wash began, his voice trailing off, his face scrunching up at the mere thought of it.

“I know…I know…” Mal replied quickly. “None of us will be seein’ sunlight anytime soon.”

“That loot…it ain’t exactly legal…someone’s missing their precious antiques very much, I’m sure.” Wash replied.

Mal nodded his head in agreement. The view in front of him was magnificent. So many times, when the rest of the crew were fast asleep, Mal would come and sit, just to gaze out, letting the serene calm wash through him, and cleanse his inner most thoughts. He was home. Watching those celestial beings of gas, shining their energy so bright, and peering out into the open vastness that would never be controlled and conquered was something Mal never grew tired of. Never. It was true. There was no other place he wanted to be…

“You’re sure Alliance radar will pick us up?”

“I’m positive, Mal. I checked the scans today and the whole outer area around Lanai is hot...but if we go the long way,” Wash explained, pointing to a lit up screen in front of him with a long pointer on it. “If we circle around instead of taking a direct path, we’ll avoid them…and the headaches.”

“How long?” Mal asked.

Wash shrugged. Pushing a few calculations into the system, he waited until he heard the sharp beep, beep sound that meant the calculations were finished.

“Two days.” Wash said.

“Those thermostat coils have to be replaced…anywhere close we can land tonight?” Mal asked then.

Pushing more figures quickly into the system, Wash nodded. “Looks like the only