Captain Malcom Mal Reynolds is a former galactic war veteran who is the captain of the transport ship Serenity Mal his crew of hired transporters Mal''s ensign Zoe Alleyne Washburne Zoe''s husband pilot Hoban ''Wash'' Washburne muscular former combat soldier Jayne Cobb young engineer Kaylee Frye former Alliance medical officer Simon Tam his teenage sister River (Both on the run from the Interplanetary government The Alliance) the beautiful companion Inara Serra and religious man Shepard Book do legal or illegal jobs (smuggling protecting guns for hire robberies) as the Serenity crew travels across the outskirts of Outer Space for food money anything to make a living on as The Serenity crew tries to stay under the radar of The Alliance and pulls dangerous jobs in the Alliance controlled star systems.