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Firefly



"Dead or Alive"



Episode #: 1AGE06

Story #:



Written by: Cheryl Cain



Directed by: Marita Grabiak



WRITERS DRAFT: August 16, 2002





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



TEASER



EXT. SERENITY RAMP - NIGHT



After they donate car a motley group of immigrant workers walk down the ramp onto the dirt of a border planet. MAL and an equally motley bulbous man, the CASHIER, count them as they walk off.





MAL

Thirteen. Fourteen. Fifteen.

Seventeen.



CASHIER

(bored)

Sixteen.



MAL

Hey, that beefy guy easily ate enough

for two.



CASHIER

Sixteen. Seventeen. Eighteen.





Mal points to a skinny guy off to the side of a larger guy.





MAL

I believe we’re up to nineteen.



CASHIER

He was number seven.



MAL

Guess you could be right. Must’ve

forgot his knapsack. Eighteen.





ZOE follows the last two guys down the ramp.







CASHIER

Nineteen. Twenty.



MAL

And done.





The cashier hands Mal a wad of bills. Mal starts to count it.







MAL (cont’d)

Not that I don’t trust you... but I

don’t trust you.





Mal counts the last bill. Looks at the Cashier. Beat. The Cashier gives him two more bills. Grumbles, ambles off.





ZOE

Ever full with the customer

relations, sir.



MAL

He works for the Alliance.



ZOE

And we worked for him which would

technically mean we also worked for

the Alliance.



MAL

Yep. Have to say not unhappy to be

makin’ a buck off ’em.



ZOE

Ah, change is good. The crew?



MAL

Like the makin’ money off the

Alliance bit, but really don’t want

to push it by takin’ part in their

celebratin’... makes me all twitchy.





Zoe just looks at him.







MAL

Fine, but —





KAYLEE comes running down the ramp. Followed by JAYNE and BOOK.





KAYLEE

We’re goin’ to the fair.



MAL

An hour. Sixty minutes. Nothing

more, nothing less, Miss Kaylee.



KAYLEE

No need to do a flippy-hiss, Capt’n.

We gotcha.





Mal gives her money. Then Jayne and Book.





MAL

Don’t spend it all in one place.





Kaylee puts one arm through Book, another through Jayne.





KAYLEE

You can win me stuff.



BOOK

My pleasure. Always have enjoyed

guessing games.



JAYNE

Nope. I win it. I keep it.





Mal hands money to Wash. Wash swings his arm around Zoe’s shoulders.





WASH

Let’s go get us some of those curly

carrots. Love ’em deep fried.





Wash starts to move her off. Zoe stops him, turns to Mal.





ZOE

Capt’n?



WASH

(dropping his arm)

Yeah, dad. Can we go? Promise to be

home before midnight.





Zoe gives him a look.





MAL

Go. Wouldn’t want to be responsible

for cold curly carrots.



ZOE

Thanks, sir.





They move off. Not quite as happily as before. Mal, money in hand, turns to the next person in line. It’s INARA.





MAL

(bit awkward)

Guess I’m not giving you money.



INARA

No.



MAL

(smilin’)

Well, unless there’d be some kind of

benefit for the exchange of said

money...



INARA

Definitely, no.



MAL

Then I suppose the least I can do is

escort you to the fair.



INARA

How adolescent... and charming of you.





They start to walk off when Mal notices SIMON at the top of the ramp. Mal approaches him.





MAL

Hey.



SIMON

River has never been to a fair and

she hasn’t had a chance to do much

that is fun in awhile...



MAL

Alliance jail could be fun.



SIMON

Of course, I just, had to ask. For

River. She’ll understand.



MAL

(beat)

Sure.





Mal moves back down the ramp to Inara.





INARA

Everything okay?



MAL

Kids wanted to go to the fair.





They step away. PULL BACK AND UP to the windows of the bridge where RIVER wistfully looks out.



DISSOLVE TO:



EXT. FAIR - NIGHT



It’s a wonderland of lights, tents, games, a carnival atmosphere. The fair’s splayed out in a field in front of a large factory. A mixed crowd of border folk and Alliance meander the festivities. Kaylee with a coiled-shaped cotton candy walks into frame alongside Book.





KAYLEE

You shouldn’t feel bad you didn’t

guess the fat lady’s weight. I

actually thought it was quite sweet

to drop fifty pounds.



BOOK

Seemed a wise choice.



KAYLEE

She was an awfully big lady.

(spinning)

Don’t you just love a fair?



BOOK

(chuckling)

Have you always been this happy?



KAYLEE

From the day I was born’d. Seems

like on all the choices, happy just

belonged to me.





They pass;



JAYNE



Who’s throwing darts at the last yellow balloon left on a game wall. Five unsuccessful darts surround the balloon. Jayne steadies, carefully throws his last dart. It misses.





JAYNE

Gorramn it!





Jayne pulls out his knife and just skewers the last balloon. The vendor quickly hands him the big prize, a green fuzzy TURTLE, then struggles to pull out Jayne’s knife. Jayne happily admires his turtle. Passing him are;



ZOE AND WASH



Wash eats from a carton of fried curly carrots.





WASH

Just sayin’ that every once in awhile

it’d be nice to not have to clear

every single thing.



ZOE

For the last time, he’s the Captain.



WASH

Let out some of the starch, darling.

You’re not in the military anymore.



ZOE

It’s not that, it’s...



WASH

Yeah, yeah. Who you are. The code.





They pass;



MAL AND INARA



Inara has her eyes closed and a plastic ring in her hand. In front of her in a booth is a SPINNING BALL with lots of long pointy sticks attached. Mal next to her, guides her arm.





INARA

Why do I have to close my eyes?



MAL

Makes it more challenging.





Inara tosses the ring. It almost nails the vendor who’s helping someone else on the other side. Inara opens her eyes.





INARA

How’d I do?



MAL

Perhaps challenging was not the best

place to start.





Mal picks up a few rings. Tosses one. He makes it.





INARA

I do end up doing the most

interesting things with... since I

came aboard Serenity.



MAL

Now you can’t tell me that an

attractive lady like yourself has

never been escorted to a fair?



INARA

(laughing)

They weren’t quite the thing where I

was raised.





Mal stops, not loving that comment, then tosses another ring. Makes it again.





MAL

Poor little Inara, not allowed to get

her hands dirty with us common folk.



INARA

(taken aback)

That’s not what I —

(Mal throws another)

I guess not everyone’s lucky enough

to fulfill their lifelong dream of

becoming an expert ring tosser.





Inara stalks off. Mal drops the rest of the rings on the edge. Follows her. Doggin’ her steps.





MAL

Where I was raised, we’d celebrate

the foundin’ of Shadow with a fair,

just like this one. That is until

the Alliance outlawed our quaint

celebration. It was a little against

unification spirit. Guess your folk

wouldn’t mind though, with it not

exactly being "quite the thing."





They’ve stopped near a stage where an Alliance mucky-muck, COMMANDER TANAKA, dedicates the new factory. A large banner hangs above him, ALLIANCE REWARDS THOSE WHO REWARD THEMSELVES.





TANAKA

Thanks to the good Alliance people of

Verbena, our gear shift factory is

opening ten days ahead of schedule.





The crowd around the stage CHEERS. Mal claps, HOLLERS.





MAL

Oh, yeah. Let’s all hear it for the

good Alliance.



INARA

Mal.



MAL

Just being supportive. Oh, sorry,

did that offend you. You probably

supported ’em in the war.





Inara doesn’t say anything. Mal stares at her.





MAL (cont’d)

Guess we really aren’t "quite the

thing", are we?





Kaylee races up, pulls on Inara’s sleeve.





KAYLEE

You have to come see the tattoo guy.

His tattoos keep changin’ colors.

There’s this one it’s a sunrise.

(looking at them)

Am I interruptin’?



INARA

No.



MAL

Wouldn’t touch those tattoos if I

were you, be a shame if you got your

hands all dirty.





Inara lets Kaylee drag her off. Mal turns back to Tanaka.





TANAKA

Verbena was scarcely surviving,

barely more than a piece of barren

rock, but now with the Alliance

factory opening you and your families

will be able to lead full and

satisfying lives.



MAL







Mal turns and runs right into, LIEUTENANT QUILLAN, 40’s, tough female head of security on this planet.





MAL (cont’d)

(fake cheerleader)

Go Alliance.





He turns to quickly leave when;





BOOOOOOM!!!





The factory spectacularly blows up. A huge fireball goes into the sky and shards of metal and wreckage are strewn into the crowd. The force of the explosion knocking people to the ground, including Mal.









END OF TEASER







--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



ACT ONE



EXT. FAIR - NIGHT



Mal struggles to his feet a bit dazed. Carnage all around. People crying, screaming, bleeding. Parents desperately hunt for their children among the smoke and wreckage.



Mal starts moving, searching the devastation for his people. Like everyone else his clothing is dirty, bits of ash, debris on it. Finally sees Inara laying on the ground on her side. Rushes over to her.





MAL

Inara.





She moves, stunned but unhurt, starts to sit up. Mal helps her.





MAL (cont’d)

Are you okay?



INARA

Yeah. You?



MAL

Fine.



INARA

What happened?

(quickly looks around)

Kaylee? Kaylee!



KAYLEE (O.S.)

I’m here.





They both turn. A dazed Kaylee walks up. Kneels down next to both of them. Hugs Inara. Inara looks up at Mal.





INARA

The others?



MAL

I don’t know.





CUT TO:



EXT. FAIR - CONTINUOUS



Over near a decimated tent, Zoe and Wash help each other stand, brush each other off. Speechless as they soak in everything around them.





WASH

Sure you’re okay?



ZOE

(trying to smile)

Think we lost your curly carrots.





Wash puts an arm around her shoulders, leans into her.





WASH

You can always buy me more.





Zoe leans back into Wash, thankful.





WASH (cont’d)

What the hell happened?



ZOE

Concussion bomb. Probably tied into

the factory’s power grid. Local

remote trigger.



WASH

Okay. Thanks. Doesn’t make me feel

better.



ZOE

We need to find everyone else.





Wash nods. They move out.



CUT TO:



EXT. FAIR - CONTINUOUS



Jayne sits up, knocks a couple pieces of burnt wood off himself. The turtle, a bit singed, sits in Jayne’s lap. Jayne’s hand clutched around it.





JAYNE







Jayne stands. His turtle’s neck took a hit, it’s a bit floppy with stuffing coming out. Jayne pushes the stuffing back in. Tucks the turtle under his arm, starts moving.



CUT TO:



EXT. FAIR - CONTINUOUS



Mal and Kaylee help Inara stand. Zoe and Wash come up behind. Mal turns to them.





MAL

We need to get out of here.



ZOE

Sir?



WASH

Thanks, no really we’re good. Fine.

A little bruised. You?



MAL

This place is going to be crawling

with Alliance security.





He glances at Inara and Kaylee.





MAL (cont’d)

Head back to the ship. We’ll find

Book and —





Jayne approaches, turtle in hand. Holds it up.





MAL (cont’d)

Jayne.



JAYNE

singed my turtle.





They all just stare at him.





ZOE

Let me find a medic.



JAYNE

Thanks.





Kaylee looks around at all the wreckage, sees bodies not moving, crying children, so much destruction. A man, AZURIA CALVERT, 50’s, farmer-type hugs his dead wife. Kaylee turns to Mal.





KAYLEE

Who would do this?



MAL

Not for us to find out.





Mal nods at Inara.





INARA

(to Kaylee)

Time to go.





Kaylee lets herself be led away. Mal turns to Wash.





MAL

Go with ’em.



WASH

Yeah, I know. Get the ship ready to

fly. Copy.





Wash with one last glance at Zoe, follows Kaylee and Inara. He catches up with Kaylee, puts his arm around her.



Mal looks around, finally sees Book. Book’s picked up a man’s shoulders and is dragging him toward a large tent being used as a triage center. Mal jogs over to him, grabs the man’s feet, walks with Book.





BOOK

Thanks.



MAL

No problem.





They walk into;



INT. TRIAGE TENT - CONTINUOUS



Where people are trying to help the injured. Mostly confusion at this point. Book and Mal set the guy on a table. A woman comes over to check him out. Mal and Book step aside.





MAL

We need to be leavin’.





Book shakes his head.





BOOK

There’s work to be done here.



MAL

In case you’ve forgotten, Shepherd,

we’ve got two Alliance fugitives on

our ship.



BOOK

(pointing behind Mal)

Afraid not anymore.





Mal turns. Simon’s rushed inside carrying his medical bag. He moves over to a groaning man, starts shouting orders as he examines the man.





SIMON

We need to categorize the injuries,

identify the most critical.





A woman rushes over to Simon as he starts pulling things out of his bag.





MAL

Son of !





Zoe comes up behind Mal.





ZOE

Sir?





Mal nods toward Simon





MAL

Looks like we’re stayin’ a bit.



BOOK

Good. We can use the help.





Book moves toward the entrance to the tent. Mal looks at Zoe, then follows.



EXT. FAIR - NIGHT - LATER



Mal and Zoe clean off their hands at a pump water faucet. A crowd mills around the open area. Some trying to clean-up, some still moving wreckage. But many just angry and frustrated.





MAL

Simon should be done in a couple of

hours. As soon as he is we’re outta

here.



ZOE

Captain.





Zoe nudges Mal. An officious Alliance officer, CORPORAL GRAYSON, 20’s, comlink in hand, quickly moves toward Lt. Quillan.





GRAYSON

We ran the manifest from the factory

through the cortex and flagged one of

the workers. Suspicious background.





Quillan takes the comlink. Looks at an image of, DECLAN EVERTON, late 20’s, a few paragraphs of text next to the image. Quillan quickly scans it.





QUILLAN

Independent in the war. Let’s bring

him in.



GRAYSON

We’re searching for him now.



MALE VOICE (O.S.)

An independent did this?





Quillan spins around. She didn’t realize the crowd had come so close to her. An ANGRY LOCAL stands right behind her. The crowd is pressing up behind him.





ANGRY LOCAL

Who is it?



QUILLAN

Not your business.



ANGRY LOCAL

Not our business? This is our town.

These were our people.



QUILLAN

(to Grayson)

Reinforcements.





Grayson moves off. Quillan turns back to the crowd.





QUILLAN (cont’d)

Alliance justice will handle this man.



ANGRY LOCAL

It’s one of those gorramn brown

coats, right?



CROWD VOICE #1

Had to be from the factory.



CROWD VOICE #2

That guy, working electric, he never

drank with us.



QUILLAN

Settle down!



CROWD VOICE #1

Yeah, too good for us. Lyin’ sack

of —



CROWD VOICE #2

Saw ’im at the saloon.





The crowd starts surging.





QUILLAN

(shouting) Stop it. Now. Stop!





The angry local just pushes past her.





ANGRY LOCAL

Out of our way.





The mob surges with the angry local.



MAL AND ZOE



Watch from the side. They talk quietly.





MAL

This is gettin’ ugly.



ZOE

What do you want to do?



MAL

Grab Simon. It’s time to go.





As the crowd moves all around them. Mal and Zoe quietly walk toward the triage tent. They pass a group of bodies.



Azuria touches his wife’s face, unable to believe she’s gone, kisses her forehead, not even paying attention to the commotion all around him. SHOUTS ring out. Azuria looks up.







CROWD VOICE #1

We’ve got ’em.





More SHOUTS are heard as the crowd surges closer to;



MAL AND ZOE



Who’ve stopped moving. They fade into the background. The surging crowd drags a man past them. The guy wears a brown coat similar to Mal’s. Zoe and Mal look at each other.



The mob drops the guy in the middle of the crowd. They angry local kicks him.





ANGRY LOCAL

Murderous independent.





Azuria breaks through the crowd, pushes the angry local to the side and just starts whaling on the independent.



BANG! Lt. Quillan shoots her gun into the air. Grayson and a couple of armed Alliance soldiers are with her.





QUILLAN

The next person to touch that man is

dead.





The crowd and Azuria reluctantly back away from the barely breathing man. Quillan reholsters her gun, grabs some papers from Grayson, weeds through the people. Gets to the guy, bends down, turns him over. He’s a mess.





QUILLAN (cont’d)

(to crowd)

It’s not him.





Quillan stands. The crowd starting to quiet.





QUILLAN (cont’d)

We know who the culprit is and he’s

no longer in town. He’s taken a land

shuttle.





She nods to her soldiers who pick up the mistaken guy and move him out of the crowd.





QUILLAN (cont’d)

There’s a bounty for whoever captures

this guy. But he has to

be brought in alive. If anyone harms

the target they’ll face Alliance

justice.





Mal snorts at that. Zoe elbows him to be quiet.





QUILLAN (cont’d)

Every available ship in port is now

under my control. Alliance personnel

and volunteers will be assigned to

each in order to go after and

apprehend the target. Captains

please report to Corporal Grayson.





A couple of men head over to Grayson. Mal and Zoe share a look. Quillan walks straight up to Mal.





QUILLAN (cont’d)

Captain Reynolds.



MAL

Yep.



QUILLAN

I’ll be going with you.



MAL

(beat)

Shiny.





Quillan hands him a piece of paper.





QUILLAN

Our target. Have your ship ready to

go by oh-one-hundred.





She walks back to Grayson. Mal glances down at the picture.





ZOE

We can tell them we’re grounded.

Kaylee can fake a problem with the

engines. Shouldn’t be that hard.



MAL

Pissin’ hell!



ZOE

Sir?





He nudges her. Shows her the picture of Declan.





ZOE (cont’d)

It’s Private Everton.



MAL

(beat)

Guess we’re going a’posseing.





Mal crumbles up the paper. Throws it on the ground.





END OF ACT ONE





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



ACT TWO



EXT. SERENITY RAMP - NIGHT



Mal speaks with Inara, who has River next to her.





MAL

Don’t talk to anyone.



INARA

Thanks, Mal. I think I’ve got that

covered.



MAL

Okay, fine. But don’t let moonpie

talk to anyone, either. You think

you can handle these guys but... just

don’t let your guard down.





Inara bristles a bit, but then River motions Mal over to her, like she has a secret.





MAL (cont’d)

Yeah?



RIVER

Purple elephants are flying.



MAL

Good. Thanks for the update.





Lt. Quillan approaches. Mal turns to Inara.





MAL (cont’d)

The Alliance has assured us the delay

won’t be too long, Miss.





Inara nods, starts walking River down, her hand on River’s arm. Quillan stops her as they pass.





QUILLAN

My apologies for the inconvenience.



INARA

It’s no problem. I hope you catch

the monster responsible.



QUILLAN

We will.



RIVER

(happily)

I’m going to the fair.





Quillan looks at her strangely. Mal steps up, motions Inara and River down.





MAL

If you’ll stop bothering my paying

customers, we can be off.



QUILLAN

There’ll be three others joining us.





Two skeevy looking bounty hunters, JONAH, a talker, and MATHER, a grunter, come up. Jonah checks out Serenity.





JONAH

Well, shoot, doubt this piece of

rustin’ dust would be able to find a

stick of dynamite up a donkey’s ass.



MAL

Well, lucky for us there’s no donkeys

on this planet.





They move into the cargo bay as Azuria comes up. Azuria doesn’t even look at them. Just walks up and into the cargo bay. His big SHOTGUN strapped to his back.





MAL (cont’d)

(to Quillan)

Fun group. Better be able to control

’em. They disrupt my ship and I’m

tossing ’em off.



QUILLAN

I don’t need to remind you, Captain,

who’s in charge here.



MAL

Never had no doubts about that.



QUILLAN

We’re checking the northern sector.

I’ll give your pilot the coordinates.





Quillan walks up. Mal looks around, then follows.



INT. TRIAGE TENT - NIGHT



In a quiet corner, Book prays over an elderly male body. Beat. Pulls the sheet over his head. Then moves onto the next body. There’s a whole row of them.



PULL BACK to see the energy and flurry all around of people trying to save lives. It’s a hodgepodge of folks. Most not really knowing what they’re doing, but trying. They’re making due with whatever they can find.



Simon’s the only one with any real triage experience. He’s currently bandaging a drooping man around his ribs. He sees;



INARA AND RIVER



Enter the tent. River races over to him.





RIVER

Simon. Simon. The fair.





Inara quickly approaches.





INARA

(to Simon)

I’m sorry. I didn’t think anywhere

else was safe.



SIMON

No, it’s fine.



RIVER

Cotton candy. Play. Play!





Simon glances at some Alliance soldiers helping others over against a far wall. Simon grabs Inara’s hand. Places it on the bandage.





SIMON

Hold this steady, firm.



INARA

(uncertain)

Okay.





Simon leads River over to a quiet corner. Simon sits her down. River drops down cross-legged on the dirt.





SIMON

Please, River. Wait here.



RIVER

Pretty blue ocean. Waves crashed.

Castle all knocked down.



SIMON

You have to be quiet, good. Please.

It’s important.





River smiles. Starts playing. Running her fingers through the dirt, making circular patterns. Simon watches her for a beat. Then moves back to Inara.





SIMON (cont’d)

Thank you.



INARA

What should I do?





Simon hands her a roll of bandages.





SIMON

Tie it off.



INARA

Simon, I’m good with anatomy, but not

like this...



SIMON

You’ll do fine.

(off her unsure look)

Will you do fine?



INARA

Sure.





Simon nods, then starts cleaning his tools to go onto the next patient. Inara starts awkwardly to finish the bandage. A flurry at the tent pulls both their eyes.



Two Alliance soldiers with Grayson hovering next to them bring in a stretcher.





GRAYSON

Doctor!



SIMON

Over here.





Simon points to the empty table next to Inara. They bring over the stretcher. Set it down. It’s Commander Tanaka. He’s issuing orders even though he’s in great pain. His arms wrapped around his stomach.





TANAKA

Grayson, update.



GRAYSON

(to Simon)

They just got him free, the wreckage

had him trapped.



TANAKA

Now!





Grayson rushes off. Simon worried, looks over to River, who still quietly plays, then to Inara. Inara shares his look. Not sure what to do. They hear the RUMBLE as;



EXT. TOWN - NIGHT - EFFECT



A shiny Alliance shuttle rises. Followed by three spaceships of various shapes and sizes, none of them particularly elegant or new. The final lift-off is Serenity. All the ships going off in different directions.



INT. SERENITY BRIDGE - NIGHT



Wash flies, checks his controls in the background while Mal and Zoe discuss.





ZOE

Everton... come on, he was so by

the book he’d get upset if I pissed

without getting your approval to

leave.



MAL

Remember when he wanted to write up

Winters because he wouldn’t shave.



ZOE

Well, it was a pretty stupid lookin’

mustache.



MAL

Yeah, only time I ever agreed with

him. Just like the Alliance to want

to convict a man with no evidence.



ZOE

We need to reach him first.



MAL

If we don’t, he’s gonna be railroaded

or worse, dead, if that lynch mob

gets to him.





Quillan enters. Zoe goes to check on Wash.





Mal (cont’d)

Lieutenant. Anything yet from the

other ships?



QUILLAN

No.



MAL

(all conversational)

So, do you guys have anything on this

guy other than he was an independent?



QUILLAN

I have my men checking other leads,

but to be honest Captain, this feels

right.



MAL

Really? And you deduced that by some

sort of intuition...



QUILLAN

I deduced that by the fact that he

ran.



MAL

Sure. Gotcha. Good logic. Seems

all matter of smart...

(beat)

Course, guess I’d run too if I had a

herd of yokels lookin’ to beat the

horses’ snot out of me.





Quillan checks out Mal’s brown coat.





QUILLAN

You’re an independent.



MAL

Was called that at one time.





Loaded stare. Then Quillan gets a BEEP from her comlink. She takes it off her belt. Reads it.





QUILLAN

They’ve found a trail.





Mal shares a look with Zoe.



INT. SERENITY DINING ROOM - NIGHT



Jayne sits at the table with Jonah and Mather. They’re comparing weapons. Jayne has out his big-ass gun. Jonah’s more sleek, shiny while Mather has a wicked looking energy powered crossbow. They all ignore Azuria who sits in the corner. Jonah lifts Jayne’s gun.





JONAH

Nice heft.



JAYNE

You should see the hole it can make

in a man.





Jayne holds his hands five inches apart.





JONAH

Sweet. But for pure accuracy can’t

beat my compressed airgun. Cut clean

through a roach’s butt at hundred

yards. Course, not as pretty as

Mather’s.





Jonah picks up the crossbow, tosses it to Jayne. Kaylee walks in, ignores the boasting at the table and goes to get herself some coffee.





JONAH (cont’d)

Nuclear power pack, 200 psi, titanium

arrows, go through ten inches steel.



JAYNE

Could work. Personally, I would’ve

gone with the T4 model at 300 psi,

but it’ll get the job done.





Mather GRUNTS. Kaylee sees Azuria, walks over to him.





KAYLEE

Did they offer you any coffee? It’s

a bit sludgy and gross-tasting, but

the punch’ll keep ya goin’ till dawn.





Azuria doesn’t look up as he talks.





AZURIA

No, thank you.



KAYLEE

Um, okay.





Kaylee turns to go, but turns back. Heart on her sleeve.





KAYLEE (cont’d)

I saw you. At the fair, well, after

the fair, after the... I’m so sorry.

Was that your —



AZURIA

No, thank you.



KAYLEE

Okay, you don’t want to talk, I don’t

blame you, but if you ever feel like

you do —



AZURIA

No.





Beat, then Kaylee moves away. Cues in on what’s being said at the table.





JONAH

So, me and Mather, all into this

factory gig, just came in on a ship

yesterday. Couldn’t be as bad as

some other we’ve done

before. But now that job’s all and

done.



JAYNE

(shakin’ his head)

Can never depend on no job.





Mather just GRUNTS again.





JONAH

But then this bounty thing came up

and hey, I can shoot. This could be

a deal, maybe be even better. Make

more doing this then working at that

ruttin’ factory for a month.





Jayne sets down Mather’s weapon. Sits up straighter in his chair. Kind of squares off with Jonah.





JAYNE

Nothing personal with all that bad

luck and your fancy weapons and such,

but just so we’re clear... the

bounty’s mine.



JONAH

(squaring back)

Now, not that I don’t appreciate a

man who’s all boasty about his

weapons, but —





Kaylee steps up to the table.





KAYLEE

What are you saying?



JAYNE / JONAH

Huh?



KAYLEE

(disgusted)

You insensitive louts. Have you no

shame. People lost their lives and

all you can think about is money.





She smacks Jayne on the head. Storms out.





JAYNE

Hey!





Jayne rubs his head. The other louts laugh. Azuria never moves.



INT. TRIAGE TENT - NIGHT



Inara finishes bandaging a little girl’s arm. Inara wears a white apron over her clothes.





INARA

You’ll be okay now, sweetie.





Inara picks up the little girl and looks around for someone to take her, but everyone’s busy. She’s not sure what to do. Someone taps her on her arm. She turns. It’s River, holding out her arms.





INARA (cont’d)

That’s all right, River. I’m sure

her mother is around here somewhere.



RIVER

(sad)

Mother gone.





River runs her hand down the little girl’s hair.





INARA

(hugs the girl)

Oh.



SIMON (O.S.)

Inara?





River holds her arms out again. Inara hesitates.





SIMON (cont’d; O.S.)

Inara!





Inara hands the little girl over to River. River smiles at the girl and then carries her back to where she was sitting.



EXT. VERBENA SKYLINE - NIGHT - EFFECT



The winking lights of the five ships, including Serenity, can be seen in the darkness as the ships fly a similar path.



INT. SERENITY BRIDGE - NIGHT



Wash’s flying as Zoe enters.





ZOE

Captain should be right behind me.



WASH

Thanks.





Wash checks something else on his controls. Keeps watching those as he talks with Zoe.





WASH (cont’d)

Zoe?



ZOE

Yeah.



WASH

What if this guy, you know, did it?



ZOE

Trust me, darling, this guy couldn’t

even tie his shoelaces if it wasn’t

described to him using step-by-step

graphics.



WASH

Sure.

(beat)

But, well... people change.



ZOE

All we want to do is hear his story.

We at least owe him that.



MAL (O.S.)

Besides, I trained this guy...





Mal steps into the discussion. Zoe straightens.





Mal (cont’d)

One would hope he’d have a smarter

escape plan that limping along in a

land shuttle.

(to Wash)

What’s up?



WASH

I’ve been tracking his flight plan.

We’ll be on him in another hour, easy.



MAL

And?



WASH

For the last the

pattern the shuttle is flying has

continually repeated. Every zig,

every zag. A little too precise with

a human at the wheel.





Mal and Zoe look at each other.





MAL

He bailed out. Knew we’d catch up to

him.



ZOE

Do you think the other ships’ll pick

up on it?



MAL

Wish I could count on ’em being

stupid, but our luck’s never been

that good.

(to Wash)

Track it back, see where he dropped.

I’ll go explain it to our guests.





Wash nods, turns back to his controls as Mal exits.



INT. SERENITY FORWARD CORRIDOR - NIGHT



Mal talks with Quillan.





QUILLAN

You’re not trying to keep me away

from the target, are you, Captain?



MAL

Yes. Your instincts are incredible.



QUILLAN

Actually, my instincts are usually

pretty dead on. And right now

they’re telling me you’re not sharing

everything you know.



MAL

Fine. I’ll turn the ship back around

and we can follow all the other

dupes, and when we take down an empty

ship, then —



QUILLAN

Okay. We’ll play it your way.





Mal nods, turns to go back to the bridge.





QUILLAN (cont’d)

Captain?



MAL

Yes?



QUILLAN

Pulled up your service record.



MAL

And?



QUILLAN

You were very loyal to your troops.

An admirable quality, but I hope that

you’re not under any illusions that

just because this man was an

independent, that he’s innocent and

needs your protection.



MAL

(shrugs)

The war was awhiles back. Now I’m

just looking to make that bounty.





Mal turns back to the bridge. Quillan’s not convinced.



INT. TRIAGE TENT - NIGHT



Simon uses his fancy tools to save Tanaka. Inara assists, blood smeared on her apron, her arms. Tanaka’s barely conscious. Simon has a metal tool holding the wound open.





SIMON

Keep this steady.





Inara does. Tries not to look down. Simon reaches in to do something icky that we don’t see. Grayson appears. Simon sees him, continues to operate as he talks.





SIMON (cont’d)

Not now. Whatever fell on him caused

internal bleeding and since we don’t

exactly have x-ray equipment here

I’ve had to operate.





But Tanaka stirs. Spots Grayson, struggles to talk.





TANAKA

Report.



GRAYSON

In can —



TANAKA

Grayson!



GRAYSON

They believe the target had dropped

onto land, they’re currently heading

to the estimated drop zone.





Book’s come up near Simon and Inara. Putting clean bandages to the table behind them.





TANAKA

Who?



GRAYSON

He was a private in the war.

Independent.



TANAKA

(difficulty breathing)

Damn brown coats. Should’ve wiped

out when had chance.





BOOK



Leans closer to Inara as she grabs some of the bandages he just put down.





BOOK

(quietly)

Always thought you needed a bit more

evidence to convict a man than the

color of his coat.



INARA

So did I.





Inara turns back to help Simon.



EXT. SERENITY RAMP / FOREST EDGE - NIGHT



Mal, Zoe, Jayne, Quillan, Jonah, Mather and Azuria come down Serenity’s ramp, each holding glowsticks. They’re part lantern, part flashlight. Mal checks out the landscape as Quillan preps the troops.





QUILLAN

Keep in constant contact. We don’t

know how dangerous this man is.

Assume that he’s armed.



JONAH

(hefting his gun)

Not a problem.





Mal quietly pulls Jayne away from the others. Mal motions toward the opposite side of the clearing.





MAL

(whispering)

That direction. Like we talked.



JAYNE

Give ’em the show.



MAL

Yeah. But —







Jayne’s already taking off, storming through the group.





JAYNE

Watch out.

(sniffin’)

I got the scent.





Jayne examines the bushes. Sniffs one more time. Then RACES headlong into the bushes.





JAYNE (cont’d)

(laughing gleefully)

He’s mine!





The others follow him, except for Zoe. Who heads over to Mal.





MAL

(finishing his

sentence)

... don’t overplay it.



ZOE

Not full with the finesse.



MAL

At least he’s effective.



JAYNE (O.S)

Stay away you freaks!





Lots of Jayne CRASHY noises in the distance. Mal sadly shakes his head, them moves in the opposite direction.





MAL

(all business)

Denser brush this way.





They move into it.



EXT. FOREST - NIGHT



Jayne tromps through the forest. Shining the flashlight part of his glowstick in front of him. Searching behind trees, rocks, etc.





JAYNE

Come out, come out, wherever you are.

We won’t hurt you... much.





Slowly stalking behind him are Jonah, Mather and Azuria. All with weapons out.



EXT. FOREST - NIGHT



Mal and Zoe go carefully through the forest. Zoe squats down to check a bush. Mal sees a broken branch.





MAL

(quietly)

Over here.





Zoe stands, goes to him. They continue moving.



EXT. FOREST - NIGHT



Quillan follows Jayne’s path. Jayne and troop make noise in front of her. She stops. Looks around. Then turns back.



EXT. FOREST CLEARING - NIGHT



Mal and Zoe quietly enter. Mal watching the ground. He stops by a very thorny looking bush.





ZOE

(whispering)

Think he’s holing up?



MAL

It’s what I taught him to do.



ZOE

So, your superior tracking skills are

gonna find him...



MAL

Correction. My superior tracking

skills have found him.





Mal coolly reaches into the bush and proceeds to STICK himself on a couple of thorns. Quickly pulls his hand out. Sucks on a finger.





MAL (cont’d)

Ouch! Gorramn it, Declan. Come out!





DECLAN EVERTON, late 20’s, nervous noodge, crawls out, looks at Mal, surprised.





DECLAN

Sgt. Reynolds? Zoe?!?





Mal looks at Zoe, smug.



EXT. FOREST - NIGHT



Quillan, now with her gun out, has completely separated from Jayne’s group. She quietly continues on her path.



EXT. FOREST CLEARING - NIGHT

Declan’s shaking Mal’s hand. Zoe’s.





DECLAN

I ran as soon as I heard where that

crowd was headed. Was sure they were

gonna get me... God, it’s good to

see you guys.



ZOE

You, too.



DECLAN

(to Mal)

I didn’t do it, Sgt. Reynolds. I

swear.





Mal puts his hand on Declan’s shoulder.





MAL

I know.





And Mal CLOCKS him. Knocks him to the ground. Zoe looks at Mal surprised. Quillan steps into the clearing, gun raised.





MAL (cont’d)

(calmly)

We’ve apprehended your bounty.





Quillan checks them all out. Still a little suspicious, but she walks up to them.





QUILLAN

Good.





Mal and Zoe roughly pull a quiet Declan to his feet. Quillan finally holsters her weapon, steps forward and cuffs Declan’s hands in front of him. KA-CHUNK. They all turn. Azuria has his shotgun aimed right at Declan.









END OF ACT TWO







--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



ACT THREE



EXT. FOREST CLEARING - NIGHT



Azuria still has his shotgun aimed straight at Declan. Quillan steps between them, into the line of fire, gun in her hand. Zoe and Mal off to the side, assessing.





QUILLAN

You don’t want to do this.



AZURIA

If you don’t move than I’ll just

shoot right through you.



QUILLAN

This man is going back to stand

trial. Step back.





Mal comes closer to Azuria. Azuria doesn’t waver, but;





AZURIA

Stop movin’!





Mal stops.





QUILLAN

If you don’t set down your gun, I’ll

be forced to kill you.



AZURIA

I’m already dead. Nothing else

matters except I take this

with me. Now move!





Quillan stands firm. Declan stays entrenched behind her.





Mal

(casually)

This really isn’t the way to do this.



AZURIA

Shut up!



MAL

No, I mean you need to angle higher

if you’re hoping to shoot both of ’em.





Mal carelessly moves forward as he talks. Zoe fades further to the side, watching Mal, unsnaps the button holding her gun.





MAL (cont’d)

Though I’d step back a pace if I were

you, it’ll be a might bit messy with

all that blood and gore and

everything.



AZURIA

(to Quillan)

Move. Please.





Quillan lets Mal talk.





MAL

Not that I don’t get your reasons and

everythin’, but come on you’re not a murderer. And that’s what you’d be,

if you pulled that trigger.



AZURIA

Thirty years we been married, last

week. Not always best of times being

out here, but we were there for each

other, always there. Couldn’t think

of my life without her, can’t think...



MAL

Then you need to ask yourself...

would your wife really want you to

throw away your life like this.





Azuria hesitates for a second, then steadies his shotgun.





AZURIA







Azuria’s finger starts pressing the trigger. Mal, realizing he’s going to shoot, moves toward him.



Suddenly, SPOTLIGHTS from the other ships shine down, dirt stirring up from the downdraft. Azuria looks up, startled. Mal wrestles the shotgun out of his hand.





MAL

It’s over.



AZURIA

(spits at Mal’s feet)

It’ll never be over.



MAL

Anger. Good emotion. Let’s get that

all out.





Quillan’s clamped a hand on Declan’s arm. Uses her other hand to talk into her comlink. Mal turns to Zoe, who has her gun sights on Azuria.





MAL (cont’d)

Take him back to the ship.





Zoe pushes Azuria in front of her. Quietly turns to Mal.





ZOE

Movin’ speech, sir.



MAL

Really? I was afraid it might’ve

come off a little insincere.





Zoe just moves Azuria away. Mal walks over to Quillan. Mal points toward the ships above them.





MAL (cont’d)

Gonna let them set down? Not that I

don’t think you can keep ’em all from

lynching our target, you know you

being so successful with just that

one guy...



QUILLAN

They’re not landing.



MAL

Good.



QUILLAN

But they will be escorting us back to

town.



Quillan grabs Declan, pushes him in front of her. Starts walking. Mal glances up at the other ships, then follows.



INT. TRIAGE TENT - NIGHT



A weary Inara carries clean water through the room. She loses her grip on the bucket. It slips, dropping to the floor sloshing water onto the dirt, onto her shoes.



INARA





Inara bends down next to the bucket, tired. Bit overwhelmed.



RIVER (O.S.)

(sweet voice)

And the beautiful princess every

night prayed for her handsome

prince...



Inara stands, turns. Behind her is River, who’s currently surrounded by a group of children. Some bandaged, most sleepy. Another child is added to the group as Inara watches.



RIVER

... to fight through the terrible ivy

of thorns and climb up to her room

and slay all the wicked, evil

demons...



Inara smiles at the spellbound children. Then takes a deep breath, picks up the bucket and moves on. She threads back through the people and tables to Simon.



Grayson’s back near Tanaka’s head. Inara sets the water on a table. Starts to clean the blood off some of the utensils, places them next to Simon. Simon’s hands are still in Tanaka.



SIMON

Thank you. I’ve cauterized one

laceration and if I can just reroute

this crushed artery —



Tanaka GROANS. Barely conscious, in major pain.



GRAYSON

Help him!



SIMON

Local’s wearing off. He’s lost too

much blood to be put completely under.



Tanaka GROANS again. Simon loads some liquid into his hypo- gun, presses it into Tanaka’s neck. Beat. Tanaka SIGHS, visibly relaxes. Looks at Grayson.



GRAYSON

Sir?



TANAKA

Go. Get estimated time.



GRAYSON

Yes, sir.



Grayson hurries off. Tanaka can’t feel anything below his neck.



Gathers more strength without the pain, though still pretty breathless.



TANAKA

Pain gone.



SIMON

You may feel good but it’s just an

illusion. You need to relax. I

should be done soon.



TANAKA

What give me?



Simon pays more attention to what he’s doing, then what he’s telling Tanaka.



SIMON

Moxoceline B.



TANAKA

Fancy stuff for border doctor.



Inara looks up at Simon. Then puts her hand on Tanaka’s shoulder.



INARA

Please don’t exert yourself.



TANAKA

(ignoring her)

Not to mention tools.



Without Tanaka seeing it, Inara puts her hand on Simon’s arm, squeezing it to warn him.



TANAKA (cont’d)

Who are you?



Simon glances quickly up at Inara.



INT. SERENITY BRIDGE - NIGHT



Wash at the controls. Zoe talks with Jayne behind him.



ZOE

I want you to have your gun ready.

Be prepared.



JAYNE

For what? To run or fight?



ZOE

Either. Both.



JAYNE

No ruttin’ way. We earned that

bounty.



WASH

(spins around)





Wash stands. Faces Zoe.



WASH (cont’d)

Gun handy? You’re not thinking about

shooting a fed. Tell me you’re not

gonna freakin’ shoot an Alliance

officer.



ZOE

Do you know what they’ll do to Declan

if we take him in?



WASH

What? He’ll get a fair trial.



ZOE

Yeah, right. From the Alliance.



WASH

Well, unless he’s guilty.



ZOE

That hasn’t been proven. And until

it is we don’t abandon one of our men.



JAYNE

Hey, I wasn’t in no war with you. He

isn’t one of my men.



ZOE

Don’t be stupid.



JAYNE

What did I sign up on... good ship

suckers.



ZOE

I said be ready, gorramn it. So be

ready.



Zoe storms out. Wash pissed, drops into his chair, spins it back to the controls. Jayne kicks the wall.



INT. SERENITY SPARE CREW QUARTERS - NIGHT



Declan still in cuffs, paces while Mal leans against the downed ladder.



DECLAN

A shuttle. That’s all I’d need.

Okay, maybe a little money, but I

promise I’ll pay you back.



MAL

Hold for a minute. Firstly, I need

the story of what happened back there.



DECLAN

I swear I was just helping ’em build

the factory. It wasn’t the best job,

but it’s a to get any

work after the war. No one wants to

hire an independent. I’m

untrustworthy just cause we lost.



MAL

Yeah. Been there.



DECLAN

You know the Alliance’ll just pin

this on me so it looks like they’re

actually doing something out here.

I don’t want to cause trouble for you

or your crew, Sarge, but... we were

on the same side, you’ve got to get

me outta here.



Boots THUNK above Mal’s head. He looks at Declan. Puts his finger over his lips. Quillan comes down.



MAL

Lieutenant.



Quillan waits until she’s down and facing Mal to show she overheard. Declan sits on the bed, let’s them fight it out.



QUILLAN

You served with this man.



MAL

I was his sergeant.



QUILLAN

And you didn’t tell me.



MAL

Seemed wise at the time.



QUILLAN

Sure.

(beat, then pissed)

Gorramn it, Captain, how do you think

this makes you look?



MAL

Why don’t you tell me.



QUILLAN

Like you helped him. Like I’m a

sucker for trusting you. God, did

you not see all those people dead.

All those lives destroyed.



MAL

(icy)

I was there.



QUILLAN

Obviously not, if you’re helping this

murderer.



MAL

There’s been no proof that he is or

that we’re involved, but hey, if your

intuition’s goin’ then how can the

facts compare to that.





Beat.



QUILLAN

We know who you are. Your ship, your

crew. There’s nowhere you could run.



MAL

Now you’re threatening me.



QUILLAN

Not threatening, warning. Now get

out. No one is allowed access to the

prisoner from this point on.



Off Mal, pissed.



INT. SERENITY PASSENGER QUARTERS - NIGHT



Kaylee steps in from the corridor. She’s carrying a tray of mushy food for Azuria.



KAYLEE

Thought you might be a bit hungry.



Azuria doesn’t even respond. He’s sitting on the bed. She sets the food on a table next to him.



KAYLEE (cont’d)

It’s not that good, but supposedly

nutritious. Isn’t it amazin’

that the things that are so good for

ya, always taste the worse.



No response, so Kaylee starts moving back to the door. Azuria raises his bloodshot eyes to Kaylee.



AZURIA

(quietly)

You ever love anyone so much that you

couldn’t imagine taking a breath

without ’em being there to hear it?

To share it.



KAYLEE

(stuck)

No.

(beat)

But if I did, maybe I’d want to make

sure the person responsible for

’em dying would also end up just as

dead.



Kaylee exits into;



INT. SERENITY PASSENGER HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS



Kaylee rests against the side, upset. She pushes herself up, turns to go and almost runs right into Jayne. Jayne’s got his turtle under his arm.



JAYNE

Hey!



KAYLEE

Sorry.



JAYNE

Got any thread?



Jayne holds up the turtle, neck is almost gone.



JAYNE (cont’d)

His floppy neck’s makin’ me sad.



KAYLEE

No.



Kaylee moves to go around him. Jayne checks her out.



JAYNE

That ruttin’ yokel didn’t pester you

or anythin’?



KAYLEE

No. I’m okay.



JAYNE

Don’t look it.



KAYLEE

Come on, Jayne silly, you know me...

I’m always okay.



Kaylee goes past him. Jayne watchin’ her. Jayne looks at his turtle, glances in the direction that Kaylee went, looks at his turtle, like he just might give it to her.



JAYNE

Nah.



He tucks the turtle back under his arm. Walks on.



INT. TRIAGE TENT - NIGHT



Simon’s been fielding Tanaka’s questions, and the strain is showing. Inara’s next to him. Simon never looks up from the surgery as he talks.



TANAKA

From where?



INARA

Please, you need to conserve your

strength.



TANAKA

Answer.



SIMON

I told you the core.



TANAKA

Why here?



INARA

Commander.



SIMON

I’d never been off-planet before last

year. I just wanted a chance to

see more of the universe. To travel.



TANAKA

Persphone?



SIMON

I’ve visited many different worlds

since then, Persephone might have

been one of them.



TANAKA

(beat)

You’re a liar, bad one. Will find

out why.



SIMON

(looks right at him)

If you continue to talk and keep your

adrenaline levels high, then it won’t

matter what you find out because

you’re going to bleed out and be dead.



Simon turns back to the surgery. But not before glancing over at River.



PUSH IN



On River telling her story to the children. She’s smiling, enjoying herself.



RIVER

(sweetly sing-songy)

And then the beautiful princess got

tired of waiting for her handsome

prince and tried to escape, but they

found her and to punish her they

locked her in a smelly, white, cold

room where the evil blue demons

strapped electrodes to her face and

started to shock her. Zap, zap, zap,

until she couldn’t stop screaming.

Only no one could hear.



River’s still smiling, the kids not so much. In fact, they’re just a little bit freaked out by the story and by the freaky lady telling it.



INT. SERENITY CARGO BAY - NIGHT



Mal and Zoe finish checking a weapons stash that’s hidden in one of the secret compartments.



MAL

No one’s gonna tell me what to do on

my ship before I figure out what I’m

gonna do.



ZOE

Then you know what you’re gonna do?



They close up the compartment, stand up. Start walking toward the door.



MAL

No.

(beat)

But if we run we’ll be flagged in the

cortex and become sittin’ ducks for

any Alliance cruiser sailin’ by.



They walk through the door into;



INT. SERENITY PASSENGER LOUNGE - CONTINUOUS



They continue to talk as they pass the infirmary.



ZOE

Okay, then we don’t run, which means

we don’t fight.



MAL

Yep.



ZOE

(bit frustrated)

Then we sit on our butts and let

Declan fry? He’s one of ours.



MAL

Thank you, Queen of the not helpful,

I know that.



ZOE

Well, time’s short and not that I

don’t enjoy watching you mull over a

brilliant plan, sir, but —



MAL (cont’d)

Hey, if you —



Mal stops. Looks at the door where they were keeping Azuria. It’s wide open. He and Zoe look at each other.



MAL (cont’d)





And start running up the stairs. Both pulling out their guns as they go. They end up in the;



INT. SERENITY REAR CORRIDOR - CONTINUOUS



Mal and Zoe race through that into;



INT. SERENITY DINING ROOM - CONTINUOUS



And stop quickly as they almost trip over an unconscious Jonah. Zoe bends down, examines him.



ZOE

Alive. But his gun’s missing.



They stand, continue through the dining room into;



INT. SERENITY FORWARD CORRIDOR - CONTINUOUS



Mal and Zoe step by the open hatch where Declan is being held. The ladder is down. Mal, gun in his hand, slides down the ladder into;



INT. SERENITY SPARE CREW QUARTERS - CONTINUOUS



Mal lands, turns. But all is quiet. Zoe drops down behind him. Azuria’s on the ground, eyes staring, neck broken, dead.



MAL

What?!?



A GROAN behind Mal. In the corner is Quillan, knocked out, starting to come around.



ZOE

Declan?



MAL

He’s going for a shuttle. Check on

Quillan. Tell Jayne to find the

other yokel and sit on him.



Mal starts climbing.



INT. SERENITY FORWARD CORRIDOR - CONTINUOUS



Mal jumps up onto the foredeck, gun still out, races into the forward stairwell leading into;



INT. SERENITY CARGO BAY - CONTINUOUS



And is HIT in the jaw right as he enters. He goes end over end down the stairwell, ending with a THUMP on the catwalk. His gun goes flying over the edge.



Mal stumbles to his feet. Above him Declan closes and LOCKS the door. Declan turns, has Jonah’s gun at his side. Starts coming down the stairs.



DECLAN

Sorry about that, Sarge. Thought it

was the fed.



MAL

(standing)

Sure. Not a problem. What the hell

is going on?



DECLAN

That yokel tried to kill me.



MAL

That I can believe.

(rubbing his jaw)

Gotten a little better on the punches.



DECLAN

I’ve got to get out of here.



MAL

You didn’t have to break his neck.



DECLAN

It was instinct, I swear.



MAL

Sure.



Mal moves toward Declan. Declan raises his gun a bit.



DECLAN

You do believe me, don’t you, Sarge?



Mal stops.



END OF ACT THREE



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



ACT FOUR



INT. SERENITY CARGO BAY - CONTINUOUS



Declan still has his gun raised on Mal. Declan starts moving back on the catwalk toward the shuttle. Mal casually follows.



MAL

Sure, I believe you.



DECLAN

Just let me take the shuttle. You

can tell the Alliance that I held a

gun on you.



MAL

Which you happen to actually be doing.



DECLAN

Not by choice.



Mal leans back against the railing.



MAL

So, you did do it.



That stops Declan. Declan looks at Mal for a beat. Seems to calm, become stronger, tougher.



DECLAN

And if I did?



MAL

It was an Alliance factory. Why

would I give a

about that?



Declan isn’t completely sold.



MAL (cont’d)

Course, am a bit pissed that your

explosion almost took out my people.

Hell, almost took out me.



DECLAN

Would’ve warned you if I’d known.



MAL

No you wouldn’t have. Trained you

better than that. Never take your

eyes off the target.



They hold a look. Declan finally relaxes.



DECLAN

God, Sarge. You had me a bit worried

there.



Mal laughs, moves a little closer.



MAL

Should kick you on your ass for leaving me

with a knocked out Alliance fed on my

ship, though.



DECLAN

We could solve both our problems,

drop her out an airlock, make a run

for it.



MAL

That we could.



Mal casually touches one of the hanging chains.



MAL (cont’d)

Or we could not.



Declan looks at him and Mal SLAMS the chains into his face. Kicks the gun out of his hand. It falls over the side of the catwalk.



They stand facing each other. The chain swinging between them.



DECLAN

Guess this changes things.



MAL

Might.



DECLAN

You turnin’ me in?



MAL

Thinkin’ about it...



Declan starts inching toward the shuttle. Mal keeps pace.



DECLAN

It was an Alliance factory. Those

gears are an essential part of a new

line of military skiffs. You do

remember what those skiffs did to our

men on the field?



MAL

But they’re not using those skiffs on

us anymore.



DECLAN

For now. But the next time a planet

decides that maybe it would like to

celebrate one of their own holidays,

what do you think is going to happen?

That the Alliance is going to say go

ahead? Hey, we’ll all bring cake.



MAL

But it wasn’t just the factory you

blew up.



DECLAN

Commander Tanaka is the top-ranking

official in this sector.



MAL

And all those people, children?



DECLAN

This is war. Acceptable casualties.

You remember that, don’t you, Sarge?



MAL

Isn’t war when they’re not shootin’

at you. Then it’s just plain murder.



Declan launches at Mal and Mal’s only too happy to throw down with this guy. Mal takes a punch and then throws one.



They grapple on the catwalk. Slip to the ground. Rolling one way then the other, almost going over the sides.



DOWN BELOW



Zoe and Quillan race in though the door by the infirmary. Quillan pulls out her gun. Puts her sights on Declan. Zoe pushes Quillan’s gun down.



ZOE

He needs to do this.



Quillan gets it, nods.



DECLAN



head butts Mal. Mal grabs Declan by the shirt, tosses him over his head.



They both slowly stand, never taking eyes off each other.



DECLAN

What happened to the great Sgt.

Reynolds who had a cause, who

believed in one?



MAL

The war ended. We lost.



Mal and Declan launch again. It’s nasty and messy. Declan lands a pretty vicious right hook and Mal stumbles back.



Mal grabs the hanging chains and pushing off the railing, he swings, kicks Declan in the chest.



Declan sails over the side of the railing. Lands on a pile of boxes, crushing them.



Mal looks over the side, Declan slightly stirs, out but alive. Mal wipes the blood off the side of his face.



INT. TRIAGE TENT - DAY



TIGHT on Simon’s exhausted face. His freaked out emotions.



TANAKA (O.S.)

I can always smell a liar. Trying to

save your sister, weren’t you?



Simon furiously looks around. Seems like all the people are watching him. He keeps spinning back to the Alliance soldiers. They seem to be coming closer, closer.



TANAKA (cont’d; O.S.)

Pathetic! You can’t help her, you

can’t even help yourself.



A hand reaches out, touches Simon on the shoulder, startling him out of his spin. It’s Book.



BOOK

Son, you okay?



Simon looks down. Tanaka is dead, been dead for awhile. His eyes, lifeless, staring out. Simon takes a breath.



SIMON

I thought he was going to make it.

(beat)

There must have been another blocked

artery. It burst. He bled to death.



Book reaches down. Closes Tanaka’s eyes.



BOOK

I’m sure you did everything you

could, right?



But Simon doesn’t answer. Book stares at him, worried.



BOOK (cont’d)

Right?



Stricken, Simon looks at Book.



SIMON

I don’t know.



Beat. They both look up as the RUMBLE of the ships returning is heard.



EXT. SERENITY RAMP - DAY



Mal and Quillan walk a handcuffed Declan down between them. Quillan has a bandage on her forehead. The other two don’t look much better. No one says anything.



INT. TENT - DAY



Quillan, Declan and Mal enter. Quillan hands Declan over to a couple of Alliance soldiers, goes over to a table. A solider steps up. Hands her an envelope. She counts the money onto the table.



QUILLAN

(to Mal) I believe this is yours.



Mal comes over, scoops up the money, puts it in a leather pouch. Tucks it into his jacket. Saying nothing, Mal turns to go. Declan steps into his path.



DECLAN

We’re fighting the just cause.

Independent thought, independent

dreams, independent lives. It’s a

thing worth dying for.



Quillan steps over. Declan stares at Mal the whole time.



QUILLAN

Thanks. Don’t think we need your

mission statement.



DECLAN

Just repeating the words taught to me

by the man who trained me.



Mal takes that dig. Quillan notices.



QUILLAN

(to soldiers)

Get him out of here.



Declan finally breaks eye contact as they drag him out. Mal turns to Quillan.



MAL

No words about you being right?



QUILLAN

Would it help if I did? Give you a

reason to hit me, to hit something.

(beat)

I was right.



Mal walks out.



INT. SERENITY DINING ROOM - DAY



Jayne sits at the table sewing his turtle’s neck. Zoe gets food from the bar by the kitchen. Kaylee walks in with Book.



KAYLEE

Not easy what you did, tellin’ his

family.



BOOK

Least I could do, losing both parents

like that. It’ll just take time.



KAYLEE

(quieter)

Heals all pain, right?



BOOK

Usually.



Book touches her on the shoulder, then moves toward the food. Kaylee sees Simon come in. Walks over to him. He’s shaking his head, smiling.



KAYLEE

What’s up, smilin’ face?



SIMON

My sister. I haven’t seen her this

happy in a long time. It’s almost

like she used to be.

(shaking his head)

I guess she really enjoyed telling

stories to those children. She even

wanted to go back.



Kaylee follows him into the kitchen. Where he gets some coffee.



KAYLEE

Heard you were pretty amazin’



SIMON

(not looking up)

Not really.



KAYLEE

Doctor, no need to be all bashful and

such. You should be proud, saving

those lives.



Simon looks up, sees Book watching him. Inara steps over near them, getting coffee as well. Simon gleams onto her almost desperately.



SIMON

If you want to know amazing... you

should’ve seen Inara. Stepping in

with no training. Never flinching.



INARA

It was what needed to be done.



They share a smile that Kaylee notices. Zoe moves past them with two plates of food. Walks toward the bridge. Wash meets her at the doorway.



WASH

For me?



ZOE

Yeah.





Wash takes it.



WASH

Thanks.

(checks Zoe out)

Everything okay?



ZOE

(maybe not quite so)

Sure.





Beat.



WASH

You know how I said people change?



ZOE

Yeah?



You didn’t, haven’t. You’re still

about the moment, still about the

people, your people. Only this time

your people didn’t deserve you.



ZOE

(taking that in)

And that could’ve gotten the Captain

killed.





Wash isn’t sure what to say to that.



JAYNE (O.S)

Hey! Looky who’s here.





Mal’s walked in on the other end of the kitchen. Jayne, still with turtle, sits up.



JAYNE

You get it?





Mal pulls out the money pouch. Tosses it to Jayne.



MAL

Divide it up.



JAYNE

Ruttin’ cool.





Jayne opens the pouch. Mal keeps on walking. Inara steps up to him, sensing all is not right here.



INARA

Mal?



MAL

Don’t let me interrupt dinner.





He keeps on going. Nods to Zoe and Wash, and exits. Zoe looks at Wash. He motions to her with his head to follow Mal. She does;



INT. SERENITY FORWARD CORRIDOR - CONTINUOUS



Zoe walks up right as Mal reaches the entrance to his quarters.



ZOE

Captain?



MAL

Yeah.



ZOE

You couldn’t have known. Declan

wasn’t the man we served with. He

changed.



MAL

(not looking up)

Guess we all have.





Mal kicks his door. The ladder drops with a THUD.



END OF SHOW

11 Forum messages > Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 28 January 2005 14:13, by Anonymous Brilliant as always.

> Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 11 April 2005 17:14, by shrapnel cool. doctor has a bit of the killer instinct in him after all eh?

Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 14 August 2006 10:59, by Artimisintransit This would have made a great episode. i find it shamefull it wasnt filmed. The beginning seemed an aufully lot familliar to me though

Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 2 April 2008 17:43, by TheBlooDred I still can’t believe they cancelled Firefly, I still can’t believe I can’t see new episodes of the Mal’s crew. thanks for "Serenity" Joss, it was a real fix to get a movie on the series, but dear God, the Fox people are idiots. I mean, they brought Family Guy back which is awesome, why can’t they do the same thing for Serenity!?!? Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 2 October 2008 18:01 I’m guessing this got replaced by The Message? Seems to have some similar themes - Jayne gets a cute wooly object, old army buddy of Mal and Zoe, who turns out to be a bit of a jackass. Might’ve been a bit repetitive if they did both, but this is a pretty awesome find.

Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 13 February 2009 06:54 It would be intersting though seeing a dust devil in an actual episode. I could really see river singing that song while those kids had a shocked look on their faces copmeltely priceless. Little similar to the Message yes but all in all would have still been another great Firefly episode.

Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 27 February 2011 06:38, by Alan Jay Weiner I missed Firefly when it was (all too briefly) on television. I watched it on DVDs while I was in a hospital for a bone-marrow transplant in 2005. Twice. (watched it twice - not two BMTs!) Watched it again with my family a few months later. Watched Serenity several times. We’ve been saying lately that we should watch it again. We saw the fan-made film Browncoats: Redemption recently. Not the best acting, but a decent story, and we enjoyed it a lot. As soon as we finished it, my wife said she’d like to see it again soon. (also cool that it was made on a tiny budget, and filmed in ten days - and all the proceeds go to charity!) I truly hope the Browncoats crew follows up with another movie! Needless to say, we dearly miss Firefly - the stories were fun, and the characters became like friends; the best part of the show was the characters - we really *cared* about them! We - myself, my wife, our daughter and our son - were all crushed as we watched the last show on the DVDs, knowing there were no more to follow. That’s how good this show was. We’re not alone - there are so many fans it’s almost inconceivable. For a show that was bounced around, shown out of intended order, and summarily cancelled. Astonishing. I just finished reading this script. In my mind I saw the characters and heard their voices speaking their lines. This would have been a great episode.

Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 17 May 2011 01:30, by Lightning_bug People will hate me for saying this, but I didn’t like this episode as much as some of the others. I liked the premise, and some of the bits (Jayne’s turtle, the Jayne/Kaylee moment, and River’s storytelling), but it wasn’t as funny as the other episodes, it lacked the quippyness that makes Firefly my favorite Whedon creation so far (with the possible exception of Dr. Horrible). Good, but if it was between this and the episodes that were filmed, I’m glad they made that choice. Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 3 October 2011 21:13 While that was an enjoyable read (and I love Jayne w/Turtle), this story is too close to The Message to have made it into production. Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 18 July 2012 13:53, by AnotherCoatOfBrown I just met Tim Minear at the California Browncoats booth at Comicon. I asked him about this script because I am constantly telling people about it. He said that I can indeed confirm that it is real and was the next thing to be shot. It may have been changed by the time they shot it though. He said that they were way behind in shooting and were writing just before they shot everything. This is a writer’s draft, so not finalized completely. Thank your for uploading it. Firefly 1x15 ’Dead Or Alive’ - Complete Transcript 10 May 2013 14:06, by Kat Karnes Someone please paint or post a pic of Jayne with his sewn up Turtle for me. I love Firefly, Serenity, and the entire crew as if they were family. Heck, in my make believe mind they are. And Joss Whedon is the dad. I would just love to be able tp proudly post and re post a pic of Jayne with his worse for wear Turtle. I love Jayne and Turtles both. Thanks so much for this lost episode. Shiny! <3, Kat Karnes



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