12 Days of Ficmas - Day Four: BSG Fic - Breaking Point, L/K, Sneak Peek PG

[mlsky]

Day Four

Breaking Point is a sequel to Close Quarters. The sages have been feeding this one to me in bits and pieces for forever. It's finally coming together and about ¾ of the way done. Basically, I'm pretty sure I've got all the key pieces ready to go, but I have to string them all together cohesively.

Did I mention the sages did NOT give this stuff to me in order? No? They so didn't. *glares at them*

I'm actually kind of excited about finishing this. I really love some of the places our pilots have to go. Here's hoping everyone else does, too. :D

Enjoy!


BREAKING POINT

Prologue (Epilogue - Close Quarters)

Lee hit the stop button on the recorder and leaned back in his seat.

It took the better part of a week to sort out the chain of events leading up to the explosion on the Thera Ceta. 27 souls lost, 52 injured. A devastating blow not only to Lee, but to the fleet. The ship had been the hub of the civilian unrest, but it also made a home for many. Until repairs could be made, they'd have to find a spot on Galactica. In a way it put him directly back to square one, with a single notable exception. Minutes prior to the explosion, a recorded message went out over the wireless from a group claiming responsibility.

The Civil Initiative.

The mission statement was simple. The common man needed a voice, unseen, yet known to all. People were tired of running. Tired of fighting. The Civil Initiative demanded settlement or peace with the Cylons and would do whatever it took to make it happen…they had nothing to lose.

Lee listened to the message again and again.

Nothing to lose? What about the injured and the dead? Didn't they count?

It baffled him. Out of all the people they'd dragged off that ship, Lee was certain only a handful were actual players in the Initiative, yet that was the rumored meeting place.  He'd interviewed every single survivor and most were aboard for an Aerilon celebration. Invited by the captain, on the suggestion of a former crewman who used to work for him, Raj Thurman.

Raj Thurman went to the top of the list. Unfortunately he'd been nowhere near the Thera Ceta when it exploded.

Rewinding the tape, Lee hit play again. There was something in the phrasing…he couldn't put his finger on it, but he'd heard it before. And since he was more or less back at square one, it could be important.

All that work. For nothing. They were even further away from finding out who the key players were. Out of all the injured victims they'd pulled off the ship, only a handful matched up to their intel. And they'd all been low level errand runners from what Lee gathered.

Did that have significance? Or was it designed to throw them off?

Lee had more questions than answers. Even he had to admit it was a solid strategy. Maybe one of the leaders had military experience. Change things up. Throw out the known and bring in the unknown. Keep Galactica running in circles so they couldn't get too close.

Thinking of that, Lee would give his arm to know how the Initiative knew they'd been getting closer. Inside source?

Who the frak knew?

He felt like he'd failed…unable to put the matter to rest. About the only thing he did know at this point was that the Initiative was organized, well-protected and difficult as hell to get into.

At least there hadn't been any Cylon activity. And while things weren't calm, the explosion had tamped down the escalating violence in the civilian sector.

For now.

Lee sighed again. It could be out of his hands now, depending on the strategy session scheduled for tomorrow with his father, Tigh, Helo, Kara and Gaeta. When that ended he was set to meet with Zarek again.

Rubbing his temples, Lee felt a headache coming on. He hated that he couldn't see a way out of the mess.

Maybe one more listen to the tape would finally trigger something.

He hit the rewind button again.

~:~

Kara finished up fit reps but her mind was on the explosion and the resulting fallout. She knew Lee was close to tearing his hair out over the whole thing. He didn't like losing ground.

Especially on his watch.

Not that he could've stopped what happened.

As far as she was concerned…they'd all been caught with their pants down.

No one placed blame…except Lee.

On himself.

Distant. Distracted. Tense.

He wouldn’t let it go.

Kinda made their dilemma -- being the subject of yet another pool -- seem asinine. But it was easier to think about than the explosion. And she'd done some subtle, for her anyway, digging and discovered that more than just Galactica and Colonial One were in on the pool this time.

She wanted to let Lee know about it…but didn't know if it would add to his burden.

She filed the reports and sat back down, finally letting the thoughts she'd put aside seep in to distract her. Chewing on the end of her pen, she wondered if Lee had written his after action report yet. He'd need it for the strategy meeting tomorrow. She knew why he'd put it off - he hoped he'd find some answers.

But she'd been there. Spent the better part of 24 hours pulling the dead and injured from the carnage while Lee coordinated the evacuation of the rest of the ship. He'd brought the survivors over to Galactica until repairs could be made to the Thera Ceta.

What he really needed now was a diversion. Something to take his mind off the explosion, survivors, reports, and lack of answers.

He needed sex. Lots of it.

Problem number one: making him realize it.

Problem number two: hoping he wouldn't snap her head off before she convinced him.

Problem number three: trying not to punch him if he did snap her head off.

He didn't need that.

Or maybe he did. Some time in the gym with a speed bag might help Lee focus. Or maybe…a new idea hit her like lightning. Why hadn't she thought of it before?

Tossing down the pen, Kara got up and shuffled the files on her desk. Grabbing what she'd need for later, she exited her office with a plan in mind.

~~:~~

Kara entered quarters, laid the files on the desk and headed for the bedroom. She gathered up several items and threw them in a bag. Changed out of her uniform and put on some workout clothes.

Did a quick check for messages and found nothing important. Good. They needed the break.

Exited quarters and made her way over to the office. When she hadn't found him at home, she'd known exactly where to look. Lifted her hand and pounded on the hatch.

"Enter."

Pushed open the hatch and walked inside the office. Lee sat with his head bent over the flight chart. Kara dropped the bag beside the door and made her way toward the desk.

"Hey."

Lee looked up, his face tired and drawn. "Kara. Hi." He looked around the office, kinda like he didn't know where he was. "You all done for the day?"

She nodded. "Yep. Finished up about fifteen minutes ago."

Lee glanced at the flight chart. "Great. I've got…" He turned over several pages. "About another hour left here."

Kara propped her hip on Lee's desk. "No. I don’t think so." She grabbed the papers and stuffed them into his active basket.

His muttered protest died when she grabbed his chin. "I'm officially declaring you done for the day, too. You're going to get up and 'follow me'."

She let go and slid off the desk. Didn't have to turn around to know Lee probably shook his head and wondered if he'd heard her right.

Grabbed the bag and stepped over the threshold.

He'd follow. No doubt about it.

~~:~~

Kara grinned when he caught up with her. She led the way to the closest gym and had Lee precede her into the room.

He turned around, disappointed. "The gym? What gave you this brilliant idea?"

Kara shrugged and dogged the hatch. "You need to let off some steam." She shoved the bag toward him. "I brought workout clothes. Get changed."

He gave her a blank stare. "In here?"

Kara rolled her eyes. "Geez, Lee. I can guard the hatch if you want. Protect your sensibilities."

Lee snorted. "I think I'll survive." He stripped down. "Not exactly what I thought you had in mind. You used subterfuge to get me here."

Kara walked toward the speed ball. "Damn right. You'll get over it." She gave the ball a tap. "And you'll get some. As soon as you work off that ball of the tension you've been carrying around." She slammed the ball hard. "You're letting it bleed into everything you do."

Lee got pissy. "And you think this is what I need to get rid of it?"

Kara jerked her head. "Don't think. Know." She made an expansive gesture toward the ball. "Have at it…don't be shy."

Lee grumbled but started a slow pace with the machine. Kara grabbed a jump rope and occupied herself with that.

Twenty minutes later, Lee gave the red ball a huge punch then stopped it with his hands. "Am I done yet?"

Kara dropped the rope to the floor and jerked her head toward the heavy bag. "Uh uh. Now over here." She stepped up behind it and steadied it for Lee.

He scowled but started aggressively striking the bag. Kara let him go for a bit. She wanted him to pound out his frustration and anger and get it out of his system. She had some things to make clear and he wasn't ready to hear them yet.

She waited another fifteen minutes, then calmly asked. "What pisses you off, Lee?"

He made two hard jabs before answering. "You mean besides you saying 'follow me' and ending up here?" Two more hard jabs. "How about loss of life and damage to a ship?"

Kara rolled her eyes. "That pissed everyone off. What's pissing you off right now?"

Lee did a quick change up and punched the bag high then low, rocking Kara back on her feet.

"No progress."

Kara jerked her head. "Okay, I'll give you that one. No progress sucks." She braced her feet as Lee's punches got harder and more focused. "What else. What really, really pisses you off?"

Lee rapidly punched the bag as hard as he could until he'd expended all his energy. "I failed. It pisses me off that I failed." He dropped back and ripped off a glove, tossing it to the mat.

Kara stepped around the heavy bag. "Bullshit." She moved to stand toe to toe with him, ignoring the thud of the second glove hitting the floor. "No one saw that explosion coming." She jabbed a finger in his chest. "No. One." Moving forward, she backed him up against the wall. "The initiative still has no idea how close we are…so yeah, I call bullshit on the fail."

Lee's face and eyes still had their angry undertones and for a moment Kara thought she'd pushed too hard. She stared at him, wondering if she really would have to knock some sense into him.

She backed up, ready to throw him down on the mat if he didn't get it together and listen to her. Several tense seconds went by before he burst out laughing and she breathed easier.

"Gods, it's a good thing I've got you to kick my ass when I need it."

She chuckled. "Damn right it is."

She leaned in, pressed her lips to his. "You good now?" Her forehead touched his.

He nodded, bumping his head against hers. "Yeah. I'm good." Their lips melded together and, oh yeah, Lee was back.

Heat singed between them as he deepened the kiss and Kara edged them closer to the hatch. They didn't break apart until she bumped into the hard metal surface.

Everything went quiet.

Lee cupped her face. "I love you. You know that right?"

She gave him a sly smile. "Yeah, I do."

She leaned forward and snagged his lips again, one hand working up under his shirt, the other edging around to cup his ass. A hard ridge formed under his shorts and Kara smiled against his lips. She'd definitely brought him around.

Her hands drifted to Lee's waistband, ready to push downward, but Lee stopped her progress. Lifting her head, she questioned him with a look.

He ran a hand through his sweat soaked hair. "Need a shower." He brushed his lips over hers. "Now."

Kara grinned, slow and sweet. "Mmm. I was hoping you'd say that." She undogged the hatch and shot him a sideways glance. "Race ya." Hopping over the threshold, she took off, leaving Lee behind to gather everything up, peals of laughter echoing off the bulkheads.

She'd at least get the water warm for him.

End preview