TITLE: Children of Humanity

AUTHOR: DramaLexy

DISCLAIMER: If they were mine, the show would be back LONG before January 2008

SUMMARY: Sequel to my story, 'Brave.' The moment of truth for the Cylon hybrids looms near.

DISTRIBUTION: Sure, just ask first

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I can't believe it's almost been a year since I first started posting 'Brave.' I didn't mean for it to take this long for me to finish the sequel (sorry!). My senior year of college was crazy, but I swore to myself that I'd finish this fic before grad school began in September. So…here it is, and I hope you enjoy. Feedback is always appreciated.

Eight-year-old Kacey T. Adama rolled over in bed and turned off her alarm when she heard it ring. Pulling back the curtain that covered her bed, she could see her mother at the table in their room, going over paperwork. "Hi, Mom."

Kara looked up. "Hey, honey."

Kacey looked around the bunkroom where her family lived. There were more families on Galactica now than there had been when she was small. Giving everyone private quarters wasn't an option, so instead a couple of the bunkrooms were reserved for crewmen with children. Kacey had a bunk that was next to her two best friends' beds and above her little brother's, but all three of those beds were currently empty.

"Where is everybody?" she asked her mother.

"Lee took Zak to get washed up and dressed; they're going down to the hangar, I think."

Kacey frowned. "Dad said he was taking me to the observation deck. Grandpa gave me new star charts and I wanted to work on plotting."

"He probably just forgot, kiddo. You've got all morning before he's supposed to be on shift; I'm sure you can fit in both." And Kacey knew that her mother was probably right, but that wasn't the point. Lee had been forgetting a lot of things lately in favor of showing Zak fighters or playing something with Zak. The little boy had turned three a few weeks earlier; he was finally old enough that he could start to appreciate some of the things that his father loved.

Kacey liked planes, too, but she'd finally grown bored with just going down to visit the hangar deck. She had memorized all of the manuals years ago but still wasn't quite old enough to do maintenance and was years away from learning to fly. It took effort to find things to keep her mind challenged these days, and she could understand why it was probably more convenient to spend time with her easier-to-please little brother. But that didn't mean she had to like it.

After getting together her things, Kacey made her way down the hall to the closest washroom. She could hear giggles from inside as she opened the door. Zak was seated on the sink, playing with a little extra bit of shaving cream that his father had given him. Lee was halfway done removing the stubble that he'd accumulated overnight. "Morning, sleepyhead," he told Kacey when he noticed her.

She frowned. "Am not. It's only 0700."

Lee smiled. "I was just kidding, Kace. Zak was up and bouncing around at 0630."

"We're shaving," Zak gleefully told his sister. The little boy didn't even care that his 'razor' was really just an old toothbrush with no bristles.

"Mom said you were going down to the deck?" Kacey asked Lee, ignoring her brother.

"Yeah, you want to come?"

"You said the other day that you'd help me with the star charts Grandpa gave me."

Lee sighed. "Sorry, Kacey, I forgot. If you want to go start, I'll find you before my shift, promise."

"Yeah, sure," she replied, heading for the showers. "I guess I can just teach KJ about my last one while I wait."

KJ Agathon was Kacey's best friend in the universe. He was three years younger than her, but that didn't matter. Besides just being friends, they were also cousins of a sort – KJ was also a Cylon hybrid. Unlike Kacey, his genes hadn't been played with before birth, so he wasn't quite as advanced as she was, but at just five years old he could still run intellectual circles around their other best friend, seven-year-old Nicholas Tyrol.

"Didn't you get new charts?" KJ asked Kacey as she inputted the code to let them into the observation deck.

"Yeah."

"Aren't you supposed to be going over them with your dad?"

"Yeah."

"So how come you wanna go over these with me now?"

"Because he's busy and I promised you I'd show you and I keep my promises." KJ was smart enough not to say anything else.

The two of them worked together for the next couple of hours, learning about the star systems that they were traveling through. KJ noticed that Kacey repeatedly checked the clock throughout the morning. "When did he say he was coming?" he asked his friend.

"He didn't. Just 'before his shift'."

"You know, it's not your fault," KJ tried to comfort her.

"What's not my fault?"

"That you're not really his. That you're different."

Kacey narrowed her eyes. "You don't know anything," she snapped. Cowed, KJ looked away.

In all truthfulness, though, that was exactly what she was worried about. Every day they got closer to finding Earth and farther from the horrors of the genocide. She was part of that future, but also knew she was part of the past. Everyone onboard the Galactica had adjusted to having a Cylon and hybrids in their midst, but they were still labeled as 'different.' Kacey didn't want to be 'different' anymore. Her brother wasn't, her parents weren't, and she wanted to fit in. She wanted to belong.

A flash outside the window caught Kacey's eye. As she turned to look, she realized that there were actually several flashes – Cylon ships jumping in. Alarms began blaring onboard Galactica.

"Should we go home?" KJ asked. Kacey shook her head, mesmerized by the battle. She hadn't been connected to the Cylons in years, but the presence of them nearby still had an effect on something within her mind. The battle was as clear to her as if she was watching a Dradis screen. She didn't know what the Raiders were thinking, but she could practically feel every single one of them as they attacked. It frightened her; normal people – humans – couldn't do this. It was a reminder that she was different, that no matter how hard she tried to pretend she'd never be human, that –

Kacey's gaze shifted as she realized what some of the Raiders were doing. Instead of simply engaging the CAP and alert fighters, a few of the ships had broken off to target the civilian ships that hadn't jumped away yet. One of the Liners in the crosshairs was home to a secret that Kacey had kept for years. She knew she wasn't supposed to reactivate her link to the Cylons, due to the possibility that they would get information from her at the same time, but she HAD to protect that ship.

KJ watched as she closed her eyes, concentrating hard. "Kacey?" he asked but got no response. A shot fired from one of the Raiders suddenly arced up, finding a target in another Cylon ship. Several others also began using their weapons against each other instead of the Colonials. The rest of the civilian ships got away, and Galactica followed suit once its fighters had been recovered. Only then did Kacey open her eyes. "What just happened?" he asked.

"Don't tell anybody," she made him swear. "Come on, let's go home."

Upon arriving at their bunkroom, however, Kacey instantly knew that she was busted. Her mother, father, and grandfather were all waiting. "It was you, wasn't it?" Lee asked her.

Kacey looked down. "They were targeting civilian ships. I…I had to help."

"Despite the fact that we've told you how dangerous it can be?" Kacey didn't answer.

Adama stepped forward, putting a hand on her shoulder. "What's done is done now," he said, offering her a small smile. "I need to get back to the CIC."

"I'm sorry, Dad," Kacey quietly said once her grandfather was gone.

"Did you two finish with your old chart?" he asked.

"Not quite."

"Why don't you keep working, then? I'll see you tonight."

"Yes, Sir."

Kara understood the look on her daughter's face. "I'll come get you for lunch, okay, kiddo?"

"Thanks, Mom. See you later."

"You really want to go over the charts?" KJ asked her once they were alone in the room. Kacey laid the papers down on the table.

"Yeah. Let's get done."

On a Basestar a few solar systems away, several Cylons talked together in the ship's main control room. "As nice as it is to know the little thing is still alive," a Three commented, "She's still dangerously destructive."

"Attempting to retrieve her again most likely won't have any better results than the last time," a Six added before Leoben could make the suggestion.

"We didn't just learn that SHE's still alive," an Eight broke in. "Kacey's gotten better at blocking her thoughts, but something important still slipped through – her motivation."

"Other than simply protecting the Colonials?" Three asked.

"That was only secondary. Hera lives. And she's somewhere onboard one of the ships that we were targeting."

TBC...