FIC: In the Northern Sky (23/25)
Title: In the Northern Sky
Author: bugs
Rating: T
Genre: AU, Adventure, Angst, Romance, Drama
Characters: Adama/Roslin, BSG Cast
Summary: The Fleet is abandoned.
Word Count: 3,000
A/N: Sorry for the delay. As some of you may know, I've insanely taken on a new WIP, over at adams_verse with bsg_aussiegirl. But believe it or not, I do think I'll come in on schedule with this fic, at about 26 chapters. So we're almost done!
Chapter 23:
In a long forgotten auxiliary hangar, a small group gathered. Lee and Kara had managed to slip away from the Pegasus. Tigh was on a break from the CIC and joined them. Laura and Bill had flown over from the Dione.
Lee quickly filled them in on Cain’s attack plans. Tigh jumped in. “Both battlestars will leave the Fleet. Only a skeleton crew of Raptors and Vipers left behind as a patrol.”
Bill shook his head. “That’s not good.” His intense gaze found Starbuck. “What’s made her decide this is the Cylon homeworld?”
“We don’t know.” Kara shook her head in frustration. “She won’t tell us.”
“So her source could be suspect; a trap.”
“She’s gone loony,” Tigh said bluntly. “Killing people right and left.”
“Something has to be done about her,” said Laura, her arms crossed tightly.
“What do you mean?” asked Kara.
Laura raised her chin and looked at the younger woman levelly. “Regardless of what happens with this ill-conceived attack, she must be removed.”
Lee and Kara looked at each other, uneasy.
“She has to be killed,” said Laura, feeling Bill’s dismay radiating towards her. Sure enough, when she glanced at him, his gaze was sad. For a fellow officer, or for her integrity?
“It’ll be tough,” said Saul. “She’s not gonna turn her back on any of us.”
Laura looked at Kara again. “She trusts you.”
Starbuck’s cheek twitched. “I’ll be flying the mission.”
“What about you, Apollo?” Laura asked.
The young man turned thoughtful. “She’s assigned me to the CIC, to chart the attack squads.”
“If you hit her then, they’d kill you in an instant,” Bill said quickly.
Lee stared at his boot tips. “Yes, I’d have to take advantage of an opportunity. But I’ll be ready.”
Laura took a step closer and bent her neck so she could meet his gaze. “Will you be able to do it, Apollo?”
He met her searching eyes. “Yes.”
She heard the low grunt from Bill and ignored it.
Then he spoke. “We need to take control of both battlestars somehow.”
“You want me to overthrow Garner?” Tigh ask eagerly.
Bill shook his head, tension stiffening his body.
“Yes, taking back that which is ours,” said Laura firmly, moving closer to Bill and squeezing his arm.
“I’m ready,” said Tigh.
Bill finally conceded. “I want you to do this with the crews, not against them,” he warned.
“Are many supporting Cain?” asked Laura.
Lee spoke up. “Galactica, no. They’d be with us in a heartbeat. And even the Pegasus seems...” He looked to Kara.
“Yes,” she confirmed. “She rules them by fear, not respect.”
“Then we’re set?” said Bill. He looked specifically at the younger couple. “There’s no going back once we’ve done this.”
“We’re in, Dad,” jumbled over, “Yes, sir.”
Laura looked at them. “Will there be enough planes left behind to properly protect the Fleet?”
Kara shook her head. “No, sir.”
“What can we do, Bill?” Laura asked him.
“As soon as Cain’s diverted by the attack, I’ll take control of the Galactica and come back,” said Tigh quickly, not wanting his friend to have to make these difficult decisions.
“If you can,” Bill said. “Let’s work out a list of jump coordinates so the Fleet can flee if the Cylons attack before you return. Hopefully you’ll be able to find us.”
“Cain’s leaving those Colonial Guardsmen on every vessel,” warned Kara. “I managed to see that in an order for Shaw.”
“Damn,” muttered Bill.
“We’ll have to ask for Zarek’s help then,” said Laura, resolute.
Bill and Tigh groaned in unison.
“He has the weapons we need,” she said firmly.
They heard the sound of approaching footfall in the corridor outside.
“You’d better go,” Lee said nervously.
Bill and Laura quickly boarded their shuttle. The others left the hangar, closing the doors so the shuttle could launch.
In the corridor, they met Laird. He looked behind them. “What was that?” he asked.
“A shuttle from one of the civilian ships had to make an emergency landing. They’re repaired and launched,” said Tigh smoothly.
Laird was confused. “You three did the repairs?”
“Yeah, pilots must know how to fix machines too, you know,” said Kara.
“Okay,” said Laird, still unsure. “Should I file a report?”
“No need,” said Tigh, leading him away from the hangar.
Three decks up, they encountered Ellen. Laird melted away, leaving Saul with his petulant wife. “Where were you, Saul? You didn’t come home for lunch.”
“I had something else to do,” he said grumpily.
“What?”
He looked at her for a long moment, then glanced at the crewmembers flowing around them. “Nothing, Ellen. Just ship business.”
She could tell he was lying.
“I gotta get back. My break’s over, and Garner will bust my balls if I’m not back on the minute.”
He strode away and she watched him go, frustrated. She didn’t know the specifics, but something told her that changes were coming again, and she would not be pleased.
~*~
Cain ordered all the other officers out of her quarters, keeping Shaw behind again.
“Lieutenant, you will remain behind with the fleet to command the Colonial Guard. We’ll use this opportunity to streamline the vessels’ occupants. We need to reduce their numbers to only those who are fully committed to the Cylon destruction.”
“Yes, sir,” Kendra said slowly.
“And with that in mind, you will eliminate Laura Roslin.”
Shaw didn’t answer, her level gaze staring straight ahead. She wanted to run away--perhaps Adama could shelter her. But once they knew what she and Cain had done to the blonde Cylon, she would be shunned. She knew instinctively it wasn’t something Adama and his followers would ever do.
“Did you hear me, Shaw?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Are you ready to carry out the order?”
After another pause, Shaw nodded. Was Cain leaving her behind to die in the Fleet? Would she lose her last fragment of self-worth carrying out this order, only to die in a Cylon attack? “Yes, sir,” she finally said.
The young officer marched out.
Cain waited, then lifted her wireless handset and requested the head of the Colonial Guards be sent to her.
When he arrived, she told him to task each force on the vessels to kill Laura Roslin. He didn’t even blink an eyelid.
“She’s on the Dione now, and a squad will land there as with all the ships. But I don’t trust William Adama to lie down and let us kill his woman. He’ll get her off if he can.”
“What about Lieutenant Shaw?” the man asked dispassionately.
“What’s your rank, Marshell?”
“Officer, sir.”
“You’re a Captain now. If Shaw tries to stop your men, kill her too.” Cain turned back to her desk, dismissing the Guardsman.
~*~
“Captain, wake up,” was an urgent rasp in the darkness of Adama’s quarters.
He woke instantly, clutching Laura to him as she murmured in distress, a slower one to wake. “What is it, Volta?” he said, grasping for his glasses on the bed’s headboard.
“We’ve been boarded, sir. Colonial Guards. They’ve taken the bridge. I’ve locked the hatches between here and there.”
He scrambled out of bed, snatching up his clothes. Laura quickly pulled hers on as well.
Volta continued: “Some of our fighters from the hold are blockading the corridors between here and the port shuttle hangar.”
Bill yanked on his jacket. “We can get Laura off--“
“Say, wait a minute,” protested Laura. “I’m not going anywhere!”
“Who knows what’s going to happen on this ship. We need to get your somewhere safe, like Colonial One,” Bill said firmly. “Cain’s not going to harm her puppet president.”
Torn, Laura finally nodded. “I don’t want to be in the way.” Her voice caught. “You’re going to need to fight this out, and I don’t want you to worry about me.”
He grinned at her understanding, cradled her face in his hands and kissed her tenderly. “That’s my girl,” he rumbled.
“Let’s go,” ordered Volta, pulling out a gun she had tucked in her waistband. Peering out the hatchway, she signaled them it was safe to leave.
They hurried to the hangar, gunfire rattling in the distance. The pilot paced by the shuttle, her face pale and worried. Piloting from the Dione was obviously more stressful than any other assignment she’d had.
Laura gave Bill one more quick kiss. “I’ll see you soon,” she said, making it sound more like an order.
He grinned back and accepted a snub-nosed assault rifle from one of the rag-tag squad that was streaming down the corridor outside the hangar. “In time for dinner,” he said. “We’ll have shrimp.”
She ducked into the shuttle, surprised to hear herself laugh.
“Where to, Ma’am?” said the pilot as she strapped herself in.
“To Colonial One,” said Laura, settling back in the seat.
Bill and Volta moved forward toward the bridge with their attack squad.
“If we take the bridge, surely the other forces will learn soon enough,” said his first officer.
“Don’t worry. We’re not the only ones getting up to meet our visitors this morning,” said Bill tersely. “I contacted Zarek last night and his followers are all over the Fleet. They’re armed and ready. These frakkers aren’t going take us easily.”
Volta gave one of her rare smiles.
As Laura’s shuttle pulled away from the Dione, she saw the battlestars jump. Frantically, she searched the space around the Fleet. “They’ve left us. Not a single Viper or Raptor,” she gasped.
“Holy shit,” said the pilot, realization dawning for her.
“Get me to Colonial One, now.”
When they passed a porthole, Bill was able to observe the same thing Laura had. “Son of a bitch,” he swore. “We’ve got to take the bridge and man the batteries.”
When Laura’s shuttle touched down in Colonial One, she sighed in relief. This may no longer be her home, but she felt comfortable here.
When she stepped off and Richard was waiting, she was surprised. “What are you doing up?” she asked him.
“I haven’t slept,” he admitted, pulling her to his side. “Something’s going on--“
“Yes.” Laura strode away. “We need to talk to the Captain and see if he knows anything. The battlestars jumped away and didn’t leave us the promised CAP.”
“Oh my Gods,” he said, hurrying after her. “Perhaps Kendra knows something--“
“I’m quite sure she does,” Laura said tersely, clamoring up the ladder to the next level.
The subject of their discussion stood in the chamber above, her hand resting on her holstered sidearm.
Laura stopped. Below her on the ladder, Richard tried to look around her. “What is it, Laura?”
She stepped aside so he could get out of the tube. “Your girlfriend is showing her true colors, Richard,” she said quietly.
Shaw didn’t reply; she only looked from one to the other. Laura noticed the younger woman’s face was tear-stained. Somehow this made her even more frightened.
Richard reached out towards Shaw. “Kendra...”
Laura clutched his arm. “No, Richard, don’t--“
“I don’t want to do it,” said Shaw.
Laura quickly jumped in. “Then don’t.”
“What?” asked Richard, irritating Laura.
“But I have to. There’s nothing left for me.” The young woman’s smooth features were even blanker than usual.
“Kendra, this Fleet is about making our own future. You can be a part of it.”
“No, not if you knew what I’ve done. What we’ve done.” She looked at Richard and he finally dropped his outstretched hand. He turned away in shame.
Kendra’s hand slipped from the gun and her head hung as though she was exhausted.
A man stepped through the hatch. Richard spotted him first and grabbed Laura as the man fired his weapon. Shaw spun, and pulling out her own sidearm, shot the attacker in the head. He slumped against the bulkhead.
Shaw looked to Laura and Richard lying on the ground, their limbs tangled. She yanked Richard off of Laura, rolling him onto his back.
“Frak,” Shaw cried, seeing the spreading stain on his chest. His eyes stared upward, blinking rapidly.
Laura crawled free, gasping for breath.
“Are you all right?” Shaw asked.
“Yes, he took the shot.”
Laura fumbled for a handkerchief, pressing the scrap ineffectively on Richard’s wound. “This can’t keep happening,” she murmured.
Shaw stood. “I’ve got to stop the Colonial Guards.”
Looking up in horror, Laura shook her head. “Alone?”
“I know there are your supporters on this vessel. They’ll help me.” With that, the young woman was gone.
Laura folded her handkerchief, trying to find a dry spot.
Richard twitched, licked his dry lips and began fumbling at his pants pocket.
“What is it, Richard? Do you want something?”
His trembling fingers pulled slips of paper from his pocket. They fluttered to the floor.
She snatched them up, sensing they were important.
She knew the first one; the names of the casualties on Aerilon. The next list was new names to her. Scylla, Hydra, Mermaid’s Lair--a list of vessel names.
“I’m sorry...Laura...” Richard’s laugh was a gasp for air. “I had to do it...to stay alive.”
She picked up his hand, holding it lightly until it became cold and slipped from her fingers. The lists were wadded in her other hand.
Bill sent his squad ahead to wait outside the hatch of the bridge, now firmly closed.
“Let’s try talking that door open,” he told Volta, reaching for a wireless handset on the wall.
He reached Hanks. “Tell the Colonial Guard we’re outside, and we’re armed. We outnumber them.”
Volta raised one of her thick brows and he ignored her. He wasn’t lying. They did outnumber the Guard, even if only about half had weapons.
“Hold on, please,” Hanks said primly, as though taking messages at a hotel exchange.
He came back. “They say I can come out.” He sounded grateful.
“Yeah, we better get you safe,” Bill said. He motioned the squad back from the hatchway. It opened a crack and Hanks came through. The heavy door clanked behind him.
One of the civilians came forward. “Sir, I know this class of ship. I did some engineering on them back...” His forehead creased. “Before. If I take a couple of men, I think we can shut off their circulation. Sweat them out.”
“Do it,” said Bill. Once the squad moved off, he looked over Hanks. “Did they harm you?”
“No, sir,” the tall wireless operator said before pulling out a small gun and firing.
In his shock, Bill reacted instinctively, jerking out of the way. The bullet tore past him, then he heard a thump of a body falling behind him.
Furious, Bill swung out with a punch, knocking Hanks down. He grabbed him by his skinny neck, squeezing hard. “What the frak!?” he growled.
“We’re not going to take the oppression of Roslin’s rule, or you, you...puppet!” Hanks was barely able to squeak out the last word. His red face drained of color and he passed out.
Bill dropped his limp body. “No more coded messages for you,” he muttered and went to Volta.
She was breathing shallowly as she clutched her shoulder. “Sorry--“ she mumbled.
“What have you got to apologize for? You took my bullet.”
“Can’t help...like this...”
The engineer returned. “Sir, we’ve got them cut off--“ He spotted Volta. “I’ll get a medic!”
Bill had been checking her injury. “It’s gone clear through. That’s good, because I think it’s going to be a while before we can get you to the Rising Star.”
Several men arrived and carried Volta away. The rest and Bill stationed themselves outside the hatchway to the bridge.
It flew open. Men streamed out, gasping for breath even as they fired their weapons. With a nod, Bill gave the signal, and his men returned fire.
Shaw found Laura with Richard’s body. “We’ve...we’ve taken control as far as the lower hanger--” she stammered, staring at her lover’s body.
Laura got to her feet painfully, still clutching Richard’s notes. She slipped them in her pocket.
“We’ve must get off this vessel,” said Shaw. “I’ve got a shuttle waiting.”
“Yes,” Laura said, numb, and she followed the younger woman out without a backward glance.
Bill checked with Service, who’d been held by the Guard. “I still can’t believe that little pussy Hanks was in on it. He just let them take the bridge!” she gasped out.
“Here, broadcast these jump coordinates to all vessels,” said Bill. He feared the Cylons would appear any moment--
“Raiders,” said one of the civilians, gazing up through the canopy.
“Son of a bitch,” Bill swore. He just hoped Laura was safe on Colonial One--
Shaw was headed toward the Dione when she saw the first Raider jumped in amid the Fleet. She slapped the wireless’s button. “Cloud Nine, permission to board! Raiders are on attack!”
“Board immediately, we’re getting ready to jump!”
She steered sharply through the huge vessel’s landing bay doors. They shut behind her as soon as the shuttle’s tail was clear. The Fleet jumped away.
Bill slumped briefly against control panel after the jump. “Report,” he barked.
Service glanced around, then realized she was it. “Ships are checking in...”
He picked up the wireless handset and found a free channel. “Colonial One, this is Dione.”
“Colonial One actual.”
“Is Laura Roslin aboard?”
“No, she left with Lieutenant Shaw right before we jumped.”
Bill swore under his breath.
“Dione, I’m told Shaw was heard hailing Cloud Nine right before the jump. She had permission to land.”
Just as his heartbeat settled, Service spoke up behind him, her voice like doom. “Eleven vessels are missing, Sir, including Cloud Nine.”
~*~End (23/25)
Click Next for Chapter Twenty-four
Author: bugs
Rating: T
Genre: AU, Adventure, Angst, Romance, Drama
Characters: Adama/Roslin, BSG Cast
Summary: The Fleet is abandoned.
Word Count: 3,000
A/N: Sorry for the delay. As some of you may know, I've insanely taken on a new WIP, over at adams_verse with bsg_aussiegirl. But believe it or not, I do think I'll come in on schedule with this fic, at about 26 chapters. So we're almost done!
Chapter 23:
In a long forgotten auxiliary hangar, a small group gathered. Lee and Kara had managed to slip away from the Pegasus. Tigh was on a break from the CIC and joined them. Laura and Bill had flown over from the Dione.
Lee quickly filled them in on Cain’s attack plans. Tigh jumped in. “Both battlestars will leave the Fleet. Only a skeleton crew of Raptors and Vipers left behind as a patrol.”
Bill shook his head. “That’s not good.” His intense gaze found Starbuck. “What’s made her decide this is the Cylon homeworld?”
“We don’t know.” Kara shook her head in frustration. “She won’t tell us.”
“So her source could be suspect; a trap.”
“She’s gone loony,” Tigh said bluntly. “Killing people right and left.”
“Something has to be done about her,” said Laura, her arms crossed tightly.
“What do you mean?” asked Kara.
Laura raised her chin and looked at the younger woman levelly. “Regardless of what happens with this ill-conceived attack, she must be removed.”
Lee and Kara looked at each other, uneasy.
“She has to be killed,” said Laura, feeling Bill’s dismay radiating towards her. Sure enough, when she glanced at him, his gaze was sad. For a fellow officer, or for her integrity?
“It’ll be tough,” said Saul. “She’s not gonna turn her back on any of us.”
Laura looked at Kara again. “She trusts you.”
Starbuck’s cheek twitched. “I’ll be flying the mission.”
“What about you, Apollo?” Laura asked.
The young man turned thoughtful. “She’s assigned me to the CIC, to chart the attack squads.”
“If you hit her then, they’d kill you in an instant,” Bill said quickly.
Lee stared at his boot tips. “Yes, I’d have to take advantage of an opportunity. But I’ll be ready.”
Laura took a step closer and bent her neck so she could meet his gaze. “Will you be able to do it, Apollo?”
He met her searching eyes. “Yes.”
She heard the low grunt from Bill and ignored it.
Then he spoke. “We need to take control of both battlestars somehow.”
“You want me to overthrow Garner?” Tigh ask eagerly.
Bill shook his head, tension stiffening his body.
“Yes, taking back that which is ours,” said Laura firmly, moving closer to Bill and squeezing his arm.
“I’m ready,” said Tigh.
Bill finally conceded. “I want you to do this with the crews, not against them,” he warned.
“Are many supporting Cain?” asked Laura.
Lee spoke up. “Galactica, no. They’d be with us in a heartbeat. And even the Pegasus seems...” He looked to Kara.
“Yes,” she confirmed. “She rules them by fear, not respect.”
“Then we’re set?” said Bill. He looked specifically at the younger couple. “There’s no going back once we’ve done this.”
“We’re in, Dad,” jumbled over, “Yes, sir.”
Laura looked at them. “Will there be enough planes left behind to properly protect the Fleet?”
Kara shook her head. “No, sir.”
“What can we do, Bill?” Laura asked him.
“As soon as Cain’s diverted by the attack, I’ll take control of the Galactica and come back,” said Tigh quickly, not wanting his friend to have to make these difficult decisions.
“If you can,” Bill said. “Let’s work out a list of jump coordinates so the Fleet can flee if the Cylons attack before you return. Hopefully you’ll be able to find us.”
“Cain’s leaving those Colonial Guardsmen on every vessel,” warned Kara. “I managed to see that in an order for Shaw.”
“Damn,” muttered Bill.
“We’ll have to ask for Zarek’s help then,” said Laura, resolute.
Bill and Tigh groaned in unison.
“He has the weapons we need,” she said firmly.
They heard the sound of approaching footfall in the corridor outside.
“You’d better go,” Lee said nervously.
Bill and Laura quickly boarded their shuttle. The others left the hangar, closing the doors so the shuttle could launch.
In the corridor, they met Laird. He looked behind them. “What was that?” he asked.
“A shuttle from one of the civilian ships had to make an emergency landing. They’re repaired and launched,” said Tigh smoothly.
Laird was confused. “You three did the repairs?”
“Yeah, pilots must know how to fix machines too, you know,” said Kara.
“Okay,” said Laird, still unsure. “Should I file a report?”
“No need,” said Tigh, leading him away from the hangar.
Three decks up, they encountered Ellen. Laird melted away, leaving Saul with his petulant wife. “Where were you, Saul? You didn’t come home for lunch.”
“I had something else to do,” he said grumpily.
“What?”
He looked at her for a long moment, then glanced at the crewmembers flowing around them. “Nothing, Ellen. Just ship business.”
She could tell he was lying.
“I gotta get back. My break’s over, and Garner will bust my balls if I’m not back on the minute.”
He strode away and she watched him go, frustrated. She didn’t know the specifics, but something told her that changes were coming again, and she would not be pleased.
~*~
Cain ordered all the other officers out of her quarters, keeping Shaw behind again.
“Lieutenant, you will remain behind with the fleet to command the Colonial Guard. We’ll use this opportunity to streamline the vessels’ occupants. We need to reduce their numbers to only those who are fully committed to the Cylon destruction.”
“Yes, sir,” Kendra said slowly.
“And with that in mind, you will eliminate Laura Roslin.”
Shaw didn’t answer, her level gaze staring straight ahead. She wanted to run away--perhaps Adama could shelter her. But once they knew what she and Cain had done to the blonde Cylon, she would be shunned. She knew instinctively it wasn’t something Adama and his followers would ever do.
“Did you hear me, Shaw?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Are you ready to carry out the order?”
After another pause, Shaw nodded. Was Cain leaving her behind to die in the Fleet? Would she lose her last fragment of self-worth carrying out this order, only to die in a Cylon attack? “Yes, sir,” she finally said.
The young officer marched out.
Cain waited, then lifted her wireless handset and requested the head of the Colonial Guards be sent to her.
When he arrived, she told him to task each force on the vessels to kill Laura Roslin. He didn’t even blink an eyelid.
“She’s on the Dione now, and a squad will land there as with all the ships. But I don’t trust William Adama to lie down and let us kill his woman. He’ll get her off if he can.”
“What about Lieutenant Shaw?” the man asked dispassionately.
“What’s your rank, Marshell?”
“Officer, sir.”
“You’re a Captain now. If Shaw tries to stop your men, kill her too.” Cain turned back to her desk, dismissing the Guardsman.
~*~
“Captain, wake up,” was an urgent rasp in the darkness of Adama’s quarters.
He woke instantly, clutching Laura to him as she murmured in distress, a slower one to wake. “What is it, Volta?” he said, grasping for his glasses on the bed’s headboard.
“We’ve been boarded, sir. Colonial Guards. They’ve taken the bridge. I’ve locked the hatches between here and there.”
He scrambled out of bed, snatching up his clothes. Laura quickly pulled hers on as well.
Volta continued: “Some of our fighters from the hold are blockading the corridors between here and the port shuttle hangar.”
Bill yanked on his jacket. “We can get Laura off--“
“Say, wait a minute,” protested Laura. “I’m not going anywhere!”
“Who knows what’s going to happen on this ship. We need to get your somewhere safe, like Colonial One,” Bill said firmly. “Cain’s not going to harm her puppet president.”
Torn, Laura finally nodded. “I don’t want to be in the way.” Her voice caught. “You’re going to need to fight this out, and I don’t want you to worry about me.”
He grinned at her understanding, cradled her face in his hands and kissed her tenderly. “That’s my girl,” he rumbled.
“Let’s go,” ordered Volta, pulling out a gun she had tucked in her waistband. Peering out the hatchway, she signaled them it was safe to leave.
They hurried to the hangar, gunfire rattling in the distance. The pilot paced by the shuttle, her face pale and worried. Piloting from the Dione was obviously more stressful than any other assignment she’d had.
Laura gave Bill one more quick kiss. “I’ll see you soon,” she said, making it sound more like an order.
He grinned back and accepted a snub-nosed assault rifle from one of the rag-tag squad that was streaming down the corridor outside the hangar. “In time for dinner,” he said. “We’ll have shrimp.”
She ducked into the shuttle, surprised to hear herself laugh.
“Where to, Ma’am?” said the pilot as she strapped herself in.
“To Colonial One,” said Laura, settling back in the seat.
Bill and Volta moved forward toward the bridge with their attack squad.
“If we take the bridge, surely the other forces will learn soon enough,” said his first officer.
“Don’t worry. We’re not the only ones getting up to meet our visitors this morning,” said Bill tersely. “I contacted Zarek last night and his followers are all over the Fleet. They’re armed and ready. These frakkers aren’t going take us easily.”
Volta gave one of her rare smiles.
As Laura’s shuttle pulled away from the Dione, she saw the battlestars jump. Frantically, she searched the space around the Fleet. “They’ve left us. Not a single Viper or Raptor,” she gasped.
“Holy shit,” said the pilot, realization dawning for her.
“Get me to Colonial One, now.”
When they passed a porthole, Bill was able to observe the same thing Laura had. “Son of a bitch,” he swore. “We’ve got to take the bridge and man the batteries.”
When Laura’s shuttle touched down in Colonial One, she sighed in relief. This may no longer be her home, but she felt comfortable here.
When she stepped off and Richard was waiting, she was surprised. “What are you doing up?” she asked him.
“I haven’t slept,” he admitted, pulling her to his side. “Something’s going on--“
“Yes.” Laura strode away. “We need to talk to the Captain and see if he knows anything. The battlestars jumped away and didn’t leave us the promised CAP.”
“Oh my Gods,” he said, hurrying after her. “Perhaps Kendra knows something--“
“I’m quite sure she does,” Laura said tersely, clamoring up the ladder to the next level.
The subject of their discussion stood in the chamber above, her hand resting on her holstered sidearm.
Laura stopped. Below her on the ladder, Richard tried to look around her. “What is it, Laura?”
She stepped aside so he could get out of the tube. “Your girlfriend is showing her true colors, Richard,” she said quietly.
Shaw didn’t reply; she only looked from one to the other. Laura noticed the younger woman’s face was tear-stained. Somehow this made her even more frightened.
Richard reached out towards Shaw. “Kendra...”
Laura clutched his arm. “No, Richard, don’t--“
“I don’t want to do it,” said Shaw.
Laura quickly jumped in. “Then don’t.”
“What?” asked Richard, irritating Laura.
“But I have to. There’s nothing left for me.” The young woman’s smooth features were even blanker than usual.
“Kendra, this Fleet is about making our own future. You can be a part of it.”
“No, not if you knew what I’ve done. What we’ve done.” She looked at Richard and he finally dropped his outstretched hand. He turned away in shame.
Kendra’s hand slipped from the gun and her head hung as though she was exhausted.
A man stepped through the hatch. Richard spotted him first and grabbed Laura as the man fired his weapon. Shaw spun, and pulling out her own sidearm, shot the attacker in the head. He slumped against the bulkhead.
Shaw looked to Laura and Richard lying on the ground, their limbs tangled. She yanked Richard off of Laura, rolling him onto his back.
“Frak,” Shaw cried, seeing the spreading stain on his chest. His eyes stared upward, blinking rapidly.
Laura crawled free, gasping for breath.
“Are you all right?” Shaw asked.
“Yes, he took the shot.”
Laura fumbled for a handkerchief, pressing the scrap ineffectively on Richard’s wound. “This can’t keep happening,” she murmured.
Shaw stood. “I’ve got to stop the Colonial Guards.”
Looking up in horror, Laura shook her head. “Alone?”
“I know there are your supporters on this vessel. They’ll help me.” With that, the young woman was gone.
Laura folded her handkerchief, trying to find a dry spot.
Richard twitched, licked his dry lips and began fumbling at his pants pocket.
“What is it, Richard? Do you want something?”
His trembling fingers pulled slips of paper from his pocket. They fluttered to the floor.
She snatched them up, sensing they were important.
She knew the first one; the names of the casualties on Aerilon. The next list was new names to her. Scylla, Hydra, Mermaid’s Lair--a list of vessel names.
“I’m sorry...Laura...” Richard’s laugh was a gasp for air. “I had to do it...to stay alive.”
She picked up his hand, holding it lightly until it became cold and slipped from her fingers. The lists were wadded in her other hand.
Bill sent his squad ahead to wait outside the hatch of the bridge, now firmly closed.
“Let’s try talking that door open,” he told Volta, reaching for a wireless handset on the wall.
He reached Hanks. “Tell the Colonial Guard we’re outside, and we’re armed. We outnumber them.”
Volta raised one of her thick brows and he ignored her. He wasn’t lying. They did outnumber the Guard, even if only about half had weapons.
“Hold on, please,” Hanks said primly, as though taking messages at a hotel exchange.
He came back. “They say I can come out.” He sounded grateful.
“Yeah, we better get you safe,” Bill said. He motioned the squad back from the hatchway. It opened a crack and Hanks came through. The heavy door clanked behind him.
One of the civilians came forward. “Sir, I know this class of ship. I did some engineering on them back...” His forehead creased. “Before. If I take a couple of men, I think we can shut off their circulation. Sweat them out.”
“Do it,” said Bill. Once the squad moved off, he looked over Hanks. “Did they harm you?”
“No, sir,” the tall wireless operator said before pulling out a small gun and firing.
In his shock, Bill reacted instinctively, jerking out of the way. The bullet tore past him, then he heard a thump of a body falling behind him.
Furious, Bill swung out with a punch, knocking Hanks down. He grabbed him by his skinny neck, squeezing hard. “What the frak!?” he growled.
“We’re not going to take the oppression of Roslin’s rule, or you, you...puppet!” Hanks was barely able to squeak out the last word. His red face drained of color and he passed out.
Bill dropped his limp body. “No more coded messages for you,” he muttered and went to Volta.
She was breathing shallowly as she clutched her shoulder. “Sorry--“ she mumbled.
“What have you got to apologize for? You took my bullet.”
“Can’t help...like this...”
The engineer returned. “Sir, we’ve got them cut off--“ He spotted Volta. “I’ll get a medic!”
Bill had been checking her injury. “It’s gone clear through. That’s good, because I think it’s going to be a while before we can get you to the Rising Star.”
Several men arrived and carried Volta away. The rest and Bill stationed themselves outside the hatchway to the bridge.
It flew open. Men streamed out, gasping for breath even as they fired their weapons. With a nod, Bill gave the signal, and his men returned fire.
Shaw found Laura with Richard’s body. “We’ve...we’ve taken control as far as the lower hanger--” she stammered, staring at her lover’s body.
Laura got to her feet painfully, still clutching Richard’s notes. She slipped them in her pocket.
“We’ve must get off this vessel,” said Shaw. “I’ve got a shuttle waiting.”
“Yes,” Laura said, numb, and she followed the younger woman out without a backward glance.
Bill checked with Service, who’d been held by the Guard. “I still can’t believe that little pussy Hanks was in on it. He just let them take the bridge!” she gasped out.
“Here, broadcast these jump coordinates to all vessels,” said Bill. He feared the Cylons would appear any moment--
“Raiders,” said one of the civilians, gazing up through the canopy.
“Son of a bitch,” Bill swore. He just hoped Laura was safe on Colonial One--
Shaw was headed toward the Dione when she saw the first Raider jumped in amid the Fleet. She slapped the wireless’s button. “Cloud Nine, permission to board! Raiders are on attack!”
“Board immediately, we’re getting ready to jump!”
She steered sharply through the huge vessel’s landing bay doors. They shut behind her as soon as the shuttle’s tail was clear. The Fleet jumped away.
Bill slumped briefly against control panel after the jump. “Report,” he barked.
Service glanced around, then realized she was it. “Ships are checking in...”
He picked up the wireless handset and found a free channel. “Colonial One, this is Dione.”
“Colonial One actual.”
“Is Laura Roslin aboard?”
“No, she left with Lieutenant Shaw right before we jumped.”
Bill swore under his breath.
“Dione, I’m told Shaw was heard hailing Cloud Nine right before the jump. She had permission to land.”
Just as his heartbeat settled, Service spoke up behind him, her voice like doom. “Eleven vessels are missing, Sir, including Cloud Nine.”
~*~End (23/25)
Click Next for Chapter Twenty-four