TITLE: Prologue


A/N: An idea that has been slowly bouncing around in my head. Intended to become a long story. I've always been fascinated by Joss' fascination with powerful women, and as a massive Buffy fan, decided I wanted to examine those elements in a Firefly context. Not a Cross-over, although it is possible I will mention a character. But it should be accesible for everyone :)


In every generation there is a Chosen One.

She alone will stand against the vampires.

The demons.

And the forces of darkness.

Four words.

River Tam's eyes snapped open, her body frozen as her mind desperately tried to rebuild the shattered images that had made up her dreams. She remembered running, diving, fighting. A girl with hair like yellow sunshine telling her not to be afraid, that she wouldn't be alone. The same girl with green eyes holding a burden that few others could identify with, could even hope to carry. The feel of hands skimming her body, of rough grasps and shallow breathing. Him. She remembered darkness. Fear. Bloodlust racing, rising in her throat.

She glanced at the clock beside her narrow bed, silent in the backdrop of her brother's light snores. Her skin was damp and heated with perspiration, the pain of focusing on her current reality seeming like a sharp knife in her cranium. She worked to control her breathing, silent despite the fear and tension that laced every intake of oxygen.

She shook her head. Another reality, another world, another time that wasn't hers; the dream was just a dream. She closed her eyes, desperate to return to unadulterated sleep, desperate to forget the vivid dreaming. She felt her heart rate slow, felt her mind begin to calm itself.

But she couldn't shake the voice. That echoing, empty voice. That voice that spoke without doubt or interest, plainly informing the listener without concern for emotional response. That voice with its ancient accent, from a time long passed one earth that was. England. That voice infected her, changed her, laced every fibre of her being with the need to fight no matter the enemy.

That calm voice and those four words.

She is the slayer.