The Best Part of Valor
Title: The Best Part of Valor
Arc: Loyalties
Rating: PG13
P/C: Athena, Colonel Tigh, Chief/Cally, Chief/Boomer
Spoilers: Crossroads II and Resistance
Summary: Part of an arc. This is set after "Injuries". Two people try to connect to new and old parts of themselves.
“You are going to let me leave. Right now!”
“What purpose would that serve except to get you killed? We have a pitched battle going on right outside! You really think they wouldn’t blast you out of the air the moment you took off? You have no cover, no captured Raptor and no hope.”
“I don’t care! I have to get to Galactica.”
The 8 looked at her, a sweet, understanding look on her face. It made Boomer want punch her. “Sharon,” she began, “they would kill you.”
“So I’ll be reborn again.”
“But this would make your third time! The pain would be unbearable! Why would you want to return to the humans who humiliated you, who killed you? You should stay here with us. We love you”
Boomer was silent. She glared at the 8. The other model continued to smile beneficently. It was unsettling. Looking at a copy of herself was like staring into a mirror and the conflicting expressions made her feel like she was reeling.
The 8 reached out and touched her cheek. “Trust us. We are one and the same. All of us together, a greater whole. We are blessed and chosen by God-“
“Shut up.”
Boomer threw the 8’s hand off. “We are not blessed! We are not chosen! We are discarded technology! A frakking abomination! We kill those who built us and why? Because of some fake belief system in our programming. What the hell do any of you know about love?”
The 8 tried to place her hand on Boomer’s head in a poor attempt at comforting her. Boomer smacked her across the face causing the other Cylon to fall to the floor. The 8 drew away from Boomer, terrified.
A Centurion immediately approached them, its sensors detecting the 8’s fear and pain. It turned its blank, perpetually angry stare to Boomer, not sure if it should attack or withdraw.
”Oh just frakking shoot me! I’m not a Cylon, I’m not a human, I’m just-“
She was cut off mid-sentence by the bullet in her skull.
The Centurion had followed its protocol to the letter. The 8 leaned over Boomer’s body (a practically brand new body at that) to touch her face. She was so sad and the 8 wished that she could help her. But it seemed like nothing could help their fallen sister anymore.
*****
Athena sat in the brig. She was all too familiar with this cell to be comfortable being back in it.
She waited for Tigh or Adama to come and question her. Adama had been very discreet about her arrest. He had sent Gaeta, of all people, to come down to the deck once she’d landed and he’d simply touched her lightly on the elbow and led her away. He had quietly told her where he was taking her and why. She hadn’t fought, she didn’t want to cause a scene. As Gaeta had walked her towards the brig, Cally had caught her eye. She was the last person Sharon wanted to see. In fact, she was always the last person Sharon wanted to see. Cally looked at her with a small smile on her face, seemingly triumphant in her scorn. Sharon had turned away from her, knowing that she deserved that look. Hadn’t she been practically orchestrating the dissolution of Cally’s marriage with her crime?
She understood that her position on the ship was very delicate and even an infraction like this, which would reflect suspicion onto her. And why wouldn’t it? Her rank didn’t change what she was. She didn’t want it to. She was still a cylon. There was nothing that they could do to ever change that.
They had moved Gaius’ 6. She had no idea to where. She almost wished for the company of someone who would understand when she explained. Or failed to explain as the case would probably be.
It was Tigh who walked in. She knew that Tigh despised her. Despised her and everything he thought she symbolized in the fleet. This should teach me to think twice before doing people favors, she thought cynically. But then she remembered Boomer’s (her)
face. It made all of this trouble worth it.
That’s the Cylon talking. The thought echoed deep inside her head.
Tigh sat down at the table in the center of the room, gesturing to the chair opposite him. Athena sat down casually, almost leisurely, not wanting to show any fear. She stared at him, waiting.
“Lieutenant, why did you attempt to contact the enemy flagship during battle?” His one eye looked at her, but his expression revealed no hate, no contempt. Only what seemed to be curiosity and an almost nervous apprehension.
Athena sighed and looked him in the face.
“I can’t tell you.”
*****
“I guess they finally caught on to that toaster bitch.”
“What?”
Cally looked at her husband. “Sharon. I saw Gaeta taking her away. I think they arrested her.”
Chief looked at her, shocked. “Why do you suddenly have a problem with Sharon?”
She shrugged, looking down into the sparking engine of a Viper. “I’ve always had a problem with her. She’s…” Cally trailed off, looking at Chief from the corner of her eye. “She’s a Cylon. Everyone around her seems to like to forget that. She’s the enemy. That’s never going to change. People change. Machines don’t.”
Tyrol stared at her. He could forget sometimes how much she hated other people. A lot of the time it seemed like she could shut out everyone. Except him. Him and the baby. What will she do when she finds out? She’s always been so open for me. She’s always loved me but now…
He shook it off.
”They took her to the brig?”
“Yeah.” Cally looked up at him from the Viper.
“What do you care?” She was suspicious. He could see it in her eyes. Suddenly it made him furious that she would be suspicious. Who the hell did she think he was anyway? Some frakking traitor? Again he realized that Boomer had probably looked at him and felt this way. He felt more and more like he had frakked her over. Like he had been the one doing the betraying.
“Well, Cally,” he began sarcastically. “Not everyone has to hate Sharon just because you do.” She gaped at him, hurt. Then her face hardened, as he knew it would. She turned away from him, back to the engine at hand. He waited for a moment, wanting and not wanting to apologize. Finally, he turned and left.
****
“So tell me again why it is that you can’t tell me why you contacted the enemy during a combat situation?” Tigh hadn’t shouted at her, hadn’t gotten physical, hadn’t even been discourteous to her. He just seemed too tired to do any of these things.
“Sir, I can’t reveal my motives. I will admit that they were not sinister. I wasn’t trying to frak anything up. What difference does it make if I did anyway? They’re here right now, they don’t need to find us.”
Tigh got up from his place. “You know, the old man really feels like you stabbed him in the back on this one Sharon.”
She looked at him sadly. She remembered how hard she had strived to get the Admiral to trust her (again) “I wish I could. But I can’t. I made a promise.”
Tigh looked at her, anger beginning to blossom in his eyes. “I hate to break it to you, little girl, but this is not the school playground. People’s confidences are not kept like this, in breach of protocol and,” he said, his anger becoming more and more apparent “of hard earned trust. You could even face the airlock for this.”
Athena closed her eyes and pictured her sister’s (her) face again. She imagined Tyrol, the look on his face when he realized that his mistake could be could be corrected, that something that haunted him everyday didn’t have to anymore. She opened her eyes.
“I can’t.”
“Colonel?” Tigh turned to see Tyrol standing at the door to the cell. “What is it Chief?” Tigh did not meet the other man’s eyes. Sharon saw the determined look on his face. It was stupidly noble.
“Chief, don’t. You aren’t in trouble, don’t say anything.” Tigh looked at Sharon, almost frantic. If she knew about Tyrol there was a good chance she knew about him too. What about the others? How was it even possible…?
“Sir, I asked Lieutenant Agathon to contact the Basestar.” The Colonol looked at him sharply, but did not ask why. “That doesn’t change anything, son. She still did what she did. She’s got free will, just like the rest of us.” His almost non existent emphasis on the word ‘us’ caused Tyrol to look down at his shoes.
Chief swallowed. “I…I threatened the Lieutenant’s family, sir. I told her that I would hurt her daughter if she didn’t do this for me.”
Sharon stood up. “Chief, what the hell are you doing? Do you know what they’ll do to you?” She kept seeing Boomer’s face. She thought of his wife, his kids. Suddenly, one of the most stable people she knew was gambling everything he had. And for what? Machines. What the frak is going on?!
Tigh looked at him. “I can’t protect you Chief. Once you do this, there will be no undoing it.”
“NO! Dammit don’t listen to him! I was doing him a favor! Give me time in the brig or throw me back in here! Tyrol asked me to do something for him and I did it, because I’m his friend! He didn’t threaten me or Hera,” Sharon was so frantic she could barely speak. “Please…”
Chief looked at her. “Sharon I can’t let you take the fall for me.”
“Yes! Yes you can!” Sharon smiled at him. “Stop trying to save me. You’ve done enough for me. I was just trying to return the favor.”
Chief didn’t look at her. “Are you going to arrest me or what?” he asked, looking away from her.
*****
Cally saw Sharon walk across the deck. She had been working on a bigger job, one of the Vipers that was practically scrapped. She was tucked into a corner with her project, seething at Tyrol.
The other woman seemed skittish. She was wearing her greens rather then a flight suit. She ducked into the shadows, not wanting to be seen (much like Cally herself). She walked past Cally and seemed to pause for a moment, looking at her oddly.
“I see they let you out of the brig. Again.” Cally’s voice was full of contempt. Sharon smiled a little at her. Suddenly, Cally was sorry that she wasn’t in the brightly lit, busy mainstream of the deck.
Deftly, she pulled her gun from its holster and pointed it at the little mechanic.
“You shot me. I could shoot you, right now. And when I was killed the only thing that would happen to me, is resurrection. But you, you would disappear forever.” Cally backed away from her, terror dawning on her face. “Who…what…Boomer?”
Boomer tucked the barrel of the gun under Cally’s chin. She leaned in a whispered in her ear “Do you want to know where real people go when they die?”
Arc: Loyalties
Rating: PG13
P/C: Athena, Colonel Tigh, Chief/Cally, Chief/Boomer
Spoilers: Crossroads II and Resistance
Summary: Part of an arc. This is set after "Injuries". Two people try to connect to new and old parts of themselves.
“You are going to let me leave. Right now!”
“What purpose would that serve except to get you killed? We have a pitched battle going on right outside! You really think they wouldn’t blast you out of the air the moment you took off? You have no cover, no captured Raptor and no hope.”
“I don’t care! I have to get to Galactica.”
The 8 looked at her, a sweet, understanding look on her face. It made Boomer want punch her. “Sharon,” she began, “they would kill you.”
“So I’ll be reborn again.”
“But this would make your third time! The pain would be unbearable! Why would you want to return to the humans who humiliated you, who killed you? You should stay here with us. We love you”
Boomer was silent. She glared at the 8. The other model continued to smile beneficently. It was unsettling. Looking at a copy of herself was like staring into a mirror and the conflicting expressions made her feel like she was reeling.
The 8 reached out and touched her cheek. “Trust us. We are one and the same. All of us together, a greater whole. We are blessed and chosen by God-“
“Shut up.”
Boomer threw the 8’s hand off. “We are not blessed! We are not chosen! We are discarded technology! A frakking abomination! We kill those who built us and why? Because of some fake belief system in our programming. What the hell do any of you know about love?”
The 8 tried to place her hand on Boomer’s head in a poor attempt at comforting her. Boomer smacked her across the face causing the other Cylon to fall to the floor. The 8 drew away from Boomer, terrified.
A Centurion immediately approached them, its sensors detecting the 8’s fear and pain. It turned its blank, perpetually angry stare to Boomer, not sure if it should attack or withdraw.
”Oh just frakking shoot me! I’m not a Cylon, I’m not a human, I’m just-“
She was cut off mid-sentence by the bullet in her skull.
The Centurion had followed its protocol to the letter. The 8 leaned over Boomer’s body (a practically brand new body at that) to touch her face. She was so sad and the 8 wished that she could help her. But it seemed like nothing could help their fallen sister anymore.
*****
Athena sat in the brig. She was all too familiar with this cell to be comfortable being back in it.
She waited for Tigh or Adama to come and question her. Adama had been very discreet about her arrest. He had sent Gaeta, of all people, to come down to the deck once she’d landed and he’d simply touched her lightly on the elbow and led her away. He had quietly told her where he was taking her and why. She hadn’t fought, she didn’t want to cause a scene. As Gaeta had walked her towards the brig, Cally had caught her eye. She was the last person Sharon wanted to see. In fact, she was always the last person Sharon wanted to see. Cally looked at her with a small smile on her face, seemingly triumphant in her scorn. Sharon had turned away from her, knowing that she deserved that look. Hadn’t she been practically orchestrating the dissolution of Cally’s marriage with her crime?
She understood that her position on the ship was very delicate and even an infraction like this, which would reflect suspicion onto her. And why wouldn’t it? Her rank didn’t change what she was. She didn’t want it to. She was still a cylon. There was nothing that they could do to ever change that.
They had moved Gaius’ 6. She had no idea to where. She almost wished for the company of someone who would understand when she explained. Or failed to explain as the case would probably be.
It was Tigh who walked in. She knew that Tigh despised her. Despised her and everything he thought she symbolized in the fleet. This should teach me to think twice before doing people favors, she thought cynically. But then she remembered Boomer’s (her)
face. It made all of this trouble worth it.
That’s the Cylon talking. The thought echoed deep inside her head.
Tigh sat down at the table in the center of the room, gesturing to the chair opposite him. Athena sat down casually, almost leisurely, not wanting to show any fear. She stared at him, waiting.
“Lieutenant, why did you attempt to contact the enemy flagship during battle?” His one eye looked at her, but his expression revealed no hate, no contempt. Only what seemed to be curiosity and an almost nervous apprehension.
Athena sighed and looked him in the face.
“I can’t tell you.”
*****
“I guess they finally caught on to that toaster bitch.”
“What?”
Cally looked at her husband. “Sharon. I saw Gaeta taking her away. I think they arrested her.”
Chief looked at her, shocked. “Why do you suddenly have a problem with Sharon?”
She shrugged, looking down into the sparking engine of a Viper. “I’ve always had a problem with her. She’s…” Cally trailed off, looking at Chief from the corner of her eye. “She’s a Cylon. Everyone around her seems to like to forget that. She’s the enemy. That’s never going to change. People change. Machines don’t.”
Tyrol stared at her. He could forget sometimes how much she hated other people. A lot of the time it seemed like she could shut out everyone. Except him. Him and the baby. What will she do when she finds out? She’s always been so open for me. She’s always loved me but now…
He shook it off.
”They took her to the brig?”
“Yeah.” Cally looked up at him from the Viper.
“What do you care?” She was suspicious. He could see it in her eyes. Suddenly it made him furious that she would be suspicious. Who the hell did she think he was anyway? Some frakking traitor? Again he realized that Boomer had probably looked at him and felt this way. He felt more and more like he had frakked her over. Like he had been the one doing the betraying.
“Well, Cally,” he began sarcastically. “Not everyone has to hate Sharon just because you do.” She gaped at him, hurt. Then her face hardened, as he knew it would. She turned away from him, back to the engine at hand. He waited for a moment, wanting and not wanting to apologize. Finally, he turned and left.
****
“So tell me again why it is that you can’t tell me why you contacted the enemy during a combat situation?” Tigh hadn’t shouted at her, hadn’t gotten physical, hadn’t even been discourteous to her. He just seemed too tired to do any of these things.
“Sir, I can’t reveal my motives. I will admit that they were not sinister. I wasn’t trying to frak anything up. What difference does it make if I did anyway? They’re here right now, they don’t need to find us.”
Tigh got up from his place. “You know, the old man really feels like you stabbed him in the back on this one Sharon.”
She looked at him sadly. She remembered how hard she had strived to get the Admiral to trust her (again) “I wish I could. But I can’t. I made a promise.”
Tigh looked at her, anger beginning to blossom in his eyes. “I hate to break it to you, little girl, but this is not the school playground. People’s confidences are not kept like this, in breach of protocol and,” he said, his anger becoming more and more apparent “of hard earned trust. You could even face the airlock for this.”
Athena closed her eyes and pictured her sister’s (her) face again. She imagined Tyrol, the look on his face when he realized that his mistake could be could be corrected, that something that haunted him everyday didn’t have to anymore. She opened her eyes.
“I can’t.”
“Colonel?” Tigh turned to see Tyrol standing at the door to the cell. “What is it Chief?” Tigh did not meet the other man’s eyes. Sharon saw the determined look on his face. It was stupidly noble.
“Chief, don’t. You aren’t in trouble, don’t say anything.” Tigh looked at Sharon, almost frantic. If she knew about Tyrol there was a good chance she knew about him too. What about the others? How was it even possible…?
“Sir, I asked Lieutenant Agathon to contact the Basestar.” The Colonol looked at him sharply, but did not ask why. “That doesn’t change anything, son. She still did what she did. She’s got free will, just like the rest of us.” His almost non existent emphasis on the word ‘us’ caused Tyrol to look down at his shoes.
Chief swallowed. “I…I threatened the Lieutenant’s family, sir. I told her that I would hurt her daughter if she didn’t do this for me.”
Sharon stood up. “Chief, what the hell are you doing? Do you know what they’ll do to you?” She kept seeing Boomer’s face. She thought of his wife, his kids. Suddenly, one of the most stable people she knew was gambling everything he had. And for what? Machines. What the frak is going on?!
Tigh looked at him. “I can’t protect you Chief. Once you do this, there will be no undoing it.”
“NO! Dammit don’t listen to him! I was doing him a favor! Give me time in the brig or throw me back in here! Tyrol asked me to do something for him and I did it, because I’m his friend! He didn’t threaten me or Hera,” Sharon was so frantic she could barely speak. “Please…”
Chief looked at her. “Sharon I can’t let you take the fall for me.”
“Yes! Yes you can!” Sharon smiled at him. “Stop trying to save me. You’ve done enough for me. I was just trying to return the favor.”
Chief didn’t look at her. “Are you going to arrest me or what?” he asked, looking away from her.
*****
Cally saw Sharon walk across the deck. She had been working on a bigger job, one of the Vipers that was practically scrapped. She was tucked into a corner with her project, seething at Tyrol.
The other woman seemed skittish. She was wearing her greens rather then a flight suit. She ducked into the shadows, not wanting to be seen (much like Cally herself). She walked past Cally and seemed to pause for a moment, looking at her oddly.
“I see they let you out of the brig. Again.” Cally’s voice was full of contempt. Sharon smiled a little at her. Suddenly, Cally was sorry that she wasn’t in the brightly lit, busy mainstream of the deck.
Deftly, she pulled her gun from its holster and pointed it at the little mechanic.
“You shot me. I could shoot you, right now. And when I was killed the only thing that would happen to me, is resurrection. But you, you would disappear forever.” Cally backed away from her, terror dawning on her face. “Who…what…Boomer?”
Boomer tucked the barrel of the gun under Cally’s chin. She leaned in a whispered in her ear “Do you want to know where real people go when they die?”