EXT. CONSTANCE – DAY – ESTABLISHING

Constance, a humble community of a few hundred, is nestled in the low-lying hills and bordered by a river.

EXT. CONSTANCE – CHURCH – DAY – ESTABLISHING

The small white church has a mix of horses and well-used vehicles parked outside. A few FOLKS enter the building.

INT. CONSTANCE – CHURCH – DAY

SHEPHERD BOOK stands at the front of the congregation. The church is a simple affair, looking almost like a schoolhouse on the inside. It contains eight rows of pews, filled by honest-looking, farmer-type FOLKS.

BOOK

And so I say to you on this fine day, citizens of Constance, that your lives are not defined by that with which you enter this world, but rather with what you leave behind.

INT. CONSTANCE – VAULT – SAME TIME

The vault is a tight room, perhaps half the size of Serenity’s cargo bay. One wall contains a STAIRWELL and ELEVATOR, but the other three are lined with two rows of LOCKER DOORS. The interior of the room is a jumble of CRATES, BOXES, and BARRELS.

MAL REYNOLDS crouches in front of one of the lockers, a small BLOWTORCH-LIKE DEVICE in his hand. ZOE and JAYNE (his hands bandaged from last episode’s injuries) are behind him, armed, standing guard.

BOOK (cont’d, VO)

Our lives, from the moment we are born to when we draw our last breath, are nothing more than a series of comings and goings.

Mal aims the device at the lock, and activates it. Smoke rises from the lock for a few beats, then Mal turns the device off and puts it down.

BOOK (cont’d, VO)

If we live our lives as we should, we give of ourselves with each entrance and exit.

Mal taps the still-smoking lock, yanking his fingers back as he burns them. As he puts his fingers in his mouth, the lock falls out.

BOOK (cont’d, VO)

If we don’t…

Using the hole created by the recently vacated lock as a handle, Mal opens the locker door. Jayne leans in close.

BOOK (cont’d, VO)

…We take.

We don’t see what Mal sees, but he smiles up at Zoe. She’s looking a