Escape of the Battlestar Libran
Chapter One: A Matter of Life and Death
Two Days before the Fall:
Gray, Picon:
Ministry of Intelligence Headquarters:
In the center of the complex of buildings that made up the Ministry of Intelligence was a large lake and around this was a set of gardens designed to give the Ministry's employees a place to relax and enjoy the fresh air. The Seneca Memorial Gardens, named after the lake around which they had been designed, was the place for a meeting between two men who shared a mutual dislike for one another that many would say bordered on hatred. They had been brought together for this mission and both had been clear that the moment they had completed their task then they had best not be in the same room at the same time or bloodshed would probably occur.
Seated on a bench overlooking the lake was Major Arthur Wallace, the one who had requested this meeting with his rival. With their mission so close to being done he had invited his rival for one last talk. It had been a busy past few years since the Adar Administration had tasked the Ministry of Intelligence to work with the Colonial Fleet to hunt down and destroy the Tauron separatist group known as the Erebea. Six years ago, the Erebea had joined forces with the Sagittaron Liberation Army to kidnap President Richard Adar's sister and niece. Ultimately, thanks to the combined efforts of the two organizations, they were rescued and a serious blow was dealt to both the Erebea and the SLA. However, Adar wanted blood and was willing to declare a shadow war on the Erebea to wipe them out once and for all.
"Here I was thinking you'd have picked some back alley gutter or bar for us to meet," a man's voice said from behind him.
Wallace turned and saw the person he had been waiting for. "I thought about it, but then I realized you'd be worried about getting your ass handed to you by the fine upstanding people you'd find there. You embarrass yourself enough on your own, and you've always said you don't need my help."
Major Evan Windsor took a seat by Wallace and let out a long sigh to relieve his frustration. "Glad to see you're still the same self-serving jackass you've always been. I've always wondered, do you take meds that turn you into an insufferable bastard or does it just come natural to you?"
"Why would I need to raid your medicine cabinet for those types of pills?" Wallace asked.
Windsor was going to retort but thought better of it. "We're two days away from our goal, how's the Gemenon?"
"Looking as good as new and ready to blow up on demand," Wallace said. For the past four years he had overseen the reconditioning of the decommissioned battlestar Gemenon. Both he and his team had taken a ship that was ready for the scrap heap and turned it into what appeared to be a fully functioning battlestar with an air wing of Viper Mark IVs.
"Maybe the priests were right, miracles can happen!" Windsor said with a heavy emphasis on his sarcasm.
"How are things on your end? I'm surprised, Commander. I'm sorry soon-to-be Rear Admiral Tattnall hasn't shot you out of a launch tube yet," Wallace asked.
"You heard he was getting promoted after this was over. I don't even want to know the number of secretaries you've slept with to get your information," Windsor said in disgust before continuing, "In truth, I think he's as eager to have this over with as you are. Did you know he's getting married after this?"
"The reporter he's been dating, I didn't know he had popped the question," Wallace said.
"Well that's waiting until after he's promoted but I'm sure she'll say yes, unless you've already slept with her too," Windsor said and once again made no effort to hide his disgust.
"Good job, Windbag! You know your sister was supposed to be a great source of information for me. Did you know she wanted me to give her a baby? It was something about improving the family bloodline," Wallace said using the nickname he had given Windsor, "I think you may be about a quarter as competent as most people think you are."
"Good job, Wallace. I hope you get a frak-ton of STDs that you can't get rid of," Windsor said as he stood up and began to walk away.
"In two days when this goes down, do try not to get killed by friendly fire," Wallace said.
Windsor did not turn around but raised a hand to wave him off. "Same to you, Wallace, same to you."
Wallace chuckled, knowing that he would not be there for the final part of the operation. His place in two days was going to be on the Orion-class battlestar Stryker as it was decommissioned in a joint ceremony where it would be taken out of service and the first of the Stryker-class battlestars would be commissioned.
Not that it mattered if he were there; he had already put plans in place to make sure that Evan Windsor would suffer an unfortunate accident when this operation was over. In their long-running feud he would be the one who would come out the winner and he would even get in the last word.
Cave Spring, Picon:
Commander Nicholas Tattnall looked out from his front porch and he had to admit that he was wrong. When he had told his XO to bring her family along he had figured her kids would have been bored being out here in the woods of Picon. Instead he saw them playing outside and his mind began to give him ideas of a possible future that awaited him.
This was a night of celebration and he was enjoying every minute of it. He had already heard that he was being promoted to Rear Admiral, but he had recently learned that his XO was due for a promotion. Colonel Susan Minerva was to be promoted to Commander and from there she would probably take command of one of the new Stryker-class battlestars that were due for completion. His source had told him that she had been selected to take command of the battlestar Hood when it was ready for trials.
"You look deeper in thought than usual," Christine Collier, Tattnall's girlfriend of the past three years, said as she walked up and put her arms around him in a loving embrace.
"Tomorrow we head back out on deployment; it's going to be a big day," he said knowing he could never tell her about the mission that had been given to both him and his crew on the Libran.
"The day after tomorrow I have to be on the Stryker to report on its decommissioning. Believe me, I'd rather be in the bed here, but I think my editor decided that since I'm dating a Colonial Fleet officer I'd be right person to send," she said.
"You're dating a Colonial Fleet officer?" Tattnall said in mock surprise before adding, "How dare some officer think my housekeeper can be taken from me!"
She gave him a playful punch on the arm. "You'd better watch it, mister!"
He laughed. "You know you have as much right to call this place 'home' as I do, especially since you moved in with me last year."
"Damn straight I do!" she said before laughing.
"My brother called and said he'd be here in about half an hour, can you two please not argue about sports or politics this time. We don't need a repeat of the Great Colonial Day Blowup," Tattnall said as he remembered the day when Christine and his brother Noah had gotten into an argument about not only their favorite pyramid teams but also on the prospects for the next major election when the Presidency and the Quorum spots would be up for grabs at the same time.
"I'll try to keep the peace but if he starts up again I make no promises; just remember who you're supposed to be going to bed with tonight," she said with a wink as she turned and walked back into the house.
"Chris has a mischievous look on her face," Colonel Susan Minerva said as she stepped out of the house.
"I just told her Noah is coming over for dinner and I asked her to play nice," Tattnall said as he shook his head knowing that the odds were good that Chris would probably give in to temptation and start yet another debate.
"I'll make sure we're outside with the kids when that happens. Are any of your sisters going to make it?" she asked.
Tattnall shook his head. "They had prior engagements but they did say they would be at the promotion ceremony."
"For all you've done the last four years you earned flag rank. It's just a pity you can't tell people what it was we were really doing," she said.
"If we told them they wouldn't believe it," Tattnall said, then laughed and continued, "We've been working with the Ministry of Intelligence to fight a shadow war against the Erebea."
Minerva laughed too. "Yeah, if I hadn't have been your XO I'd have never once believed a part of the story. I'm glad it's going to be over soon. For four years I've spent so much time thinking about the Erebea that I think they take up as much space in my mind as my family does. How sad is that?"
Tattnall put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "Nowhere near as sad as you think. Believe me, I've spent so much time wanting to get this mission over with and end the Erebea once and for all. At least this will give President Adar the closure he wants."
"Yes, he can do his best Leon Delroy impersonation and spike the pyramid ball as though he just scored the game-winning goal of a lifetime," Minerva quipped.
"There's another person you shouldn't mention around Chris," Tattnall joked. The pyramid star had caused his share of controversy when he was a member of the Picon Panthers. Now that he was a member of the Gemenon Twins he had made several statements about his home colony of Picon that were less than flattering.
"I still say that when his contract runs out and he signs a contract to play for the Panthers all of those fans are going to have to learn how to unburn a jersey," she said with a laugh.
Tattnall stepped off the porch and walked around to the back yard. When he realized that Christine was going to be spending more and more time with him at the cabin he bought an old Colonial Army radio shed and had expanded it into an office for those times when he needed to tend to business without the possibility of anything being seen or heard.
He was expecting an incoming message from Commander Geoffrey Mandeville, the officer in charge of the Libran's faststar escorts. After the deployment there had been reports that several of the Cylon War era Clemson-class faststars were beginning to show their age with various mechanical and electrical problems. Mandeville had told him that he would inform him of any developments related to the faststars.
Tattnall stepped into the building and promptly locked the door after turning the lights on. There on the fax machine were two piece of paper, Tattnall took them off the machine and saw that one was a cover sheet that Mandeville had sent explaining that the message on the second paper came from the office of Vice Admiral Raymond Aaron.
From the Office of Vice Admiral Raymond Aaron, Colonial Fleet:
A recent survey of the Clemson-class faststars in the Libran Battlestar Group shows severe deficiencies in the vital systems as well as various degrees of structural damage. In coordination with the Bureau of Ships it has been decided to promptly decommission the remaining faststars and instead attach a group of twelve Tiger-class faststars to serve as escorts for the Libran on its upcoming deployment. The following ships are in the last stages of the required maintenance period at Lampetia Shipyard and will be assigned to the Libran within the next 24-48 hours: Gypsy,Druid, Calumet, Takana, Malvern, Terrier, Tiger, Rondo, Doloma, Montosa, Akela, and Rosedale.
Tauron:
City of Minos:
On the outskirts of Minos was a small spaceport that was seldom used anymore since the Tauron government had invested in building the more expansive Voluns Spaceport. For Cinta Melati, the leader of the Erebea, this was a very important meeting and she hoped to get the kind of good news she was desperate for. The Colonial Fleet had pursued her and her group for the past four years and she could feel the steel grip of the enemy on her throat. She had hoped that once they had been weakened the pressure would ease up but all it had done was become a noose tightening around her neck.
She had arranged to meet today at the Minotaur Hotel with the person who was waiting for her there, hopefully to be her salvation. As she stepped through the revolving door the first person she saw in the lobby was none other than William Savedge. He stood up and gave her a warm smile, one that she could not help but return.
"You'll have to forgive me, I just got back from Picon," he said as he embraced her and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"What were you doing on Picon? I thought you said you had to go to Virgon to take care of business," she said as she returned the favor by kissing him on the cheek.
"The Virgon business was resolved faster than I thought it was going to be, and I had some unfinished business on Picon I needed to take care of. I'm afraid today is one of my busier days," Savedge said.
"You seem to be handling it very well, all things considered," Melati said as she took in the sight of Savedge looking as relaxed and carefree as ever.
"I know that look," he said. Under the disguise of William Savedge, Arthur Wallace had spent time getting to know Cinta Melati on every level possible. He saw the look on her face and knew that she was troubled.
"You know me well, I think you've seen every side of me there is," she said before exhaling a deep breath. "The Colonial Fleet is tightening its noose around my neck. I'm thinking about what happens if this battlestar you've procured for me doesn't pan out."
"You're a pirate by their standards, I'm sure they'll send you to Fort Milledge and that will be that," he said.
Melati gave him a rueful smile. "The Erebea has always been about Tauron secession from the Colonies, and that makes us guilty of treason by the Articles of Colonization."
"Has anyone ever told you that you worry too much?" he asked in a light-hearted manner.
She gave him a cutting look. "Has anyone ever told you that you can be a real ass sometimes?"
"Yeah, but I'm also a charming rogue who happens to be supplying you with your very own battlestar and air wing," he responded and was happy to see her defensiveness melt away, knowing that he had a point.
"You do have your moments," she conceded. After exhaling a breath she asked, "So what you do have in mind for our last meeting here on Tauron?"
He was quiet as though he was in deep thought. "I was thinking you could use some drinks, then we'd have plenty of dancing and even more foolish decisions afterwards."
She laughed in spite of herself. "Well we only live once."
He flashed her a charming smile. "That's the spirit!"
Caprica City, Caprica:
Executive Mansion:
"Mr. President, your 1:30 appointment is here," the secretary's voice announced over the intercom.
President Richard Adar acknowledged and asked that the person be sent in. With that done he stood up from his chair and turned to look out of the window of his office at the view of Caprica City that was afforded to him. He was in an exceptionally good mood in spite of the events that had taken place with the Teachers Union. What this meeting involved was a matter that made that particular group of whiners even more insignificant than they already were.
"Mr. President, I hope your day is going well," Commander Walter Ellis said as he entered the room and closed the door behind him.
Adar kept his back turned to Ellis and said, "I've heard that everything is in place for the Erebea. Is this true?"
Ellis thought it over and he realized that this was the reason he had been taken the bullet train from Clermont to Caprica City for this last minute meeting. Before he could speak, though, Adar turned to face him.
"I've already heard from the Ministry of Intelligence that the Gemenon has been fully prepared for its part in this operation, I just wanted to know if I would get the same story from Colonial Fleet Intelligence," Adar said.
Ellis nodded. "We received word early this morning from Major Wallace that the final prep work on the Gemenon had just been completed. I was working on preparing a report when I got the summons to come meet with you."
"Something of this magnitude," Adar said with a shake of his head, "Calls for far more than a mere report. I believe the officer who helped coordinate this plan should deliver the news in person."
Ellis nodded his understanding. "Yes sir, Mr. President, I can see why you would feel that way."
"Six years ago, those bastards kidnapped my sister and my niece," Adar began with no amount of venom being held back from his tone.
"Yes, sir, and the Sagittaron Liberation Army has been dealt with already. Now we can say the Erebea will be obliterated. I believe justice will have finally been served," Ellis said.
"I couldn't have put it better myself and those involved in helping me to rid the Colonies of those threats will be rewarded when this is over. I don't know if you've heard, but Commander Tattnall is due for promotion to Rear Admiral when this is over and his XO is being promoted to Commander."
Ellis had heard this rumor but decided to see where this line of conversation would go. "No, sir, I was unaware of that."
"They won't be only ones in the Colonial Fleet getting a promotion out of this," Adar said and continued with, "I know CFI has a small staff and that's part of why I chose you and your people to be liaisons with the Ministry of Intelligence. You can find yourself due for a promotion to flag rank as well as becoming the new head of Colonial Military Intelligence."
"Thank you, Mr. President," Ellis said with a grateful bow of his head toward Adar.
"That's the way the worlds work, you do a favor for someone and they'll usually find a way to reward you afterwards," Adar said with a knowing smile.
"Does that have anything to do with who you're going to back as your successor once your term in office is over?" Ellis asked before he could stop the question from leaving his mouth.
Adar's expression changed slightly but he quickly kept his expression neutral. "There has been some thought given to that, I know there are some in the party who believe I should stick within the leadership but I have given some thought to rewarding one of the retired military officials who agreed to go along with my plans during my first term. I could think of a couple of retired admirals and generals who would sell their souls for a chance to be President."
Ellis was about to say something when Adar cut him off by holding up a hand.
"I see my meeting with the Minister of Transportation has been moved up so I have to ask you to leave. I trust you can show yourself out."
"Yes, sir, thank you for your time, Mr. President," Ellis said before Adar motioned for him to leave.
Adar thought over what was about to take place and he allowed himself a smile of satisfaction. One day when this four year mission was finally declassified and an exhibit on it was placed in the future Richard Adar Presidential Library he would get the full measure of credit that was due to him. Some might argue that it was the Colonial Fleet and the Ministry of Intelligence that made it possible but in truth he was the one who brought the pieces together and put them into action. This victory truly belonged to him more than it belonged to anyone else.
He walked over to a liquor cabinet and poured himself a glass of Olde Virgonian whiskey, he wanted this drink to celebrate what was to come. He, Richard Adar, had done what no president before him was capable of doing. He had brought the Erebea down to its knees and now was the time for him to deliver the blow that would end them once and for all. They would pay the ultimate price for all that they had done to the Twelve Colonies, he had made sure of that.
He downed the glass in one drink and while it burned going down his throat it was the sweet burn of victory as far as he was concerned.
It was then that a nagging thought began to make its way into his head…what if this did not work? Could it be that he was so high on victory that he was overlooking something crucial? The Erebea had always been a thorn in the side of the Twelve Colonies. With their beliefs that the Articles of Colonization merely represented a temporary alliance, and that Tauron was under enemy occupation when it should be rightfully standing on its own.
The kidnapping of his sister and niece had been the catalyst of this offensive, and yet a part of him wondered if eliminating the Erebea would put their ideals to rest once and for all. He took a moment to recognize the gamble he was taking. He was not sure where this sudden realization was coming from. Was it from the alcohol he had consumed or an idea that had always been in the back of his mind that was simply now screaming for attention?
Gray, Picon:
Ministry of Intelligence Headquarters:
Director Aaron 'The Bear' Bailey was not happy with the way the meeting had gone with the MoI Board of Directors. He had campaigned hard to have Major Arthur Wallace's involvement with the operation against the Erebea terminated. He remembered it had been over a year ago when a confidential informant had come to him with information that Arthur Wallace was not the man he said he was. Bailey had always found the man to be an insufferable bastard, and this information would give him something to use against Wallace. Even if the evidence ultimately proved to not to be true it would provide a chance to ruin the perception of the up and coming Wallace.
There had been those in the Ministry of Intelligence who would ultimately find their careers coming to an end, sometimes fatally, because of the higher-ups having the wrong perception of either their skills or who they were as a person. He had managed to get Wallace sidelined as a team of doctors and psychologists tried to ascertain not only where he was on a physical level but also on a mental level. Bailey had even traveled to Aquaria in order to investigate Wallace's background. One of his next trips would be to Picon to the residence of the Stryker family where he would conduct an investigation that he was sure would turn up the evidence he needed to prove his allegations were true.
It had been a week ago when Wallace had been cleared to return to duty and would oversee the last stages of the Erebea's destruction. Today had been his last chance to convince the board that the information he had was solid and reason enough to send Wallace out of the Ministry of Intelligence permanently. Here in his office, he had to sit at his desk and seethe over what had taken place. There were two places marked on his itinerary, one was the trip to Picon but there was also a trip to Canceron that he had moved up to today. He would be leaving within the hour to make his way to the spaceport and travel to Canceron's capital city of Hades.
Bailey had earned the nickname of 'The Bear' within the first week of him taking over as Director of Internal Affairs for the Ministry of Intelligence. He was fearsome and gave no quarter to those who were in his path. He had a folder that contained the pictures and information of every person who had come his way to investigate. A few were able to escape with their jobs but their reputations were not always as intact. Those he filed away in case he had to investigate them later. The ones who made it into his folder were the ones who he had successfully either had fired from the Ministry of Intelligence or they were set up to taken out by an unofficial 'kill squad', an ideal way to make sure they were never able to reveal the information that they could possibly make public.
He took a bottle of Aerilon whiskey and poured himself a drink as he pondered what he would find on Canceron. Perhaps he could get rid of this irritant once and for all.
One Day Before the Fall:
Hades, Canceron:
Emilio Palmero Spaceport:
While most flights coming in from the other colonies would have landed at the larger Hades Municipal Spaceport, Bailey felt that the smaller Palermo Spaceport offered him the chance to land on the planet without too many people noticing. He entered the terminal and was pleased to find that there were not many people milling about, something that fit the late night arrival time of his flight from Picon.
"Director Bailey!" a man's voice called out.
Bailey turned and saw a young man who looked to be barely out of college coming towards him. He had requested the presence of Director Zabala, but it appeared that she instead sent this person on her behalf.
"That would be me, and you are?" Bailey asked.
"Lieutenant Jack Salveson, Director Zabala wanted me to let you know that she's sorry she couldn't make it," Salveson said as he got his breath back from running over to where Bailey was standing.
'I'm sure she is,' Bailey thought before saying, "I'm sure she had a great reason for sending you instead. Did you get any kind of briefing?"
Salveson nodded. "I was told you wanted to make contact with the Hades' Angels."
"Yes, I'm conducting an investigation into one of our officers back in Gray. I was told that he had connections to the Hades' Angels and that they could provide me with information," Bailey said as he provided the most concise version of events he could without giving away too much information.
"Well sir, if you give me a day I can find a way for you to contact them and find out whatever information you need. I just hope you have the cubits available to buy them off. Something tells me they won't exactly give you what you're looking for freely," Salveson said as he motioned for Bailey to follow him.
"Cubits won't be a problem for me. If they have a price I'll be able to meet it," Bailey said as he caught up to Salveson.
"You're going to need them, I'll take you to your hotel and you'll be able to meet with them tomorrow once the meeting has been set up."
Bailey nodded, "Excellent, I hope the Van Haltren Hotel lives up to its reputation."
Salveson smiled at him as though he was some kind of tourist. "You'll get great service, excellent rooms, and perhaps the finest meals a hotel can provide in all of Hades."
"Spoken as though you read through the promotional booklet," Bailey said with a shake of his head as he and Salveson climbed into a waiting taxi that would take them away from the spaceport.
The Day of the Fall:
Northern Territories, Canceron:
The off-road vehicle made its way across the snow-covered wasteland that made up the Northern Territories on Canceron. This isolated area at the top of the world was considered inhospitable with the exception of the edges that bordered the unfrozen ocean. This type of vehicle, known as a 'snow cruiser', had been specially designed to navigate the terrain of this area of Canceron.
"How much longer until we're there?" Bailey asked.
"Probably about five more minutes," Marci Trevino said.
Bailey looked over at her. "I imagine you're about as happy to be here as I am."
Trevino shook her head, "I was born and raised in Pavo, being up here is like being back home for me."
"Salveson mentioned you were from here originally, but it didn't say you grew up in this kind of place," Bailey said as he turned his attention to the two pieces of paper he had received yesterday.
"Being up here in the cold is second nature to me, I didn't think Gray was going to reassign me to Canceron but I'm not complaining," she said.
Bailey admired the brunette's enthusiasm at being in a situation like this. He had hoped today that he would be on his way back to Picon after getting the information he needed from the Hades Angels. Instead Salveson had informed him the meeting would be tomorrow and he had received a top secret fax from Gray informing him that he had been asked to inspect their facility 'Daylight' to make sure it was still in working order.
"Have you been to Canceron before?" Trevino asked.
Bailey nodded. "A couple of times when I've been assigned here. Having a crime syndicate like the Basileus here kind of takes away from the fun of visiting."
She gave him a sympathetic nod. "The Basileus tends to give Canceron a less than desirable reputation but it's not as bad as people make it out to be. They make for a great story. Don't get me wrong, but I don't think they have their fingers in everything that goes on here."
"If you knew what I know about them you'd believe they did," Bailey commented.
"Anything I might find interesting?" she asked.
"Quite a bit, but you don't have the rank to go with that knowledge," Bailey said with a slight laugh.
Trevino shook her head and laughed. "If you say so, Director, I think I see what we're looking for up ahead."
Bailey looked out the window and saw a structure off in the distance. He thought it was some kind of medium-sized storage building. He was sure there was plenty more beneath it. He felt the bump when Trevino turned the vehicle onto what looked like either a large road or a runway of some sort. Even though he kept his composure calm there was a part of him that was eager to find out just what secrets this facility held.
Cave Spring, Picon:
Tattnall Residence:
In the early morning hours, the small town of Cave Spring was for all intents and purposes shuttered. For Tattnall it was a quality that had endeared the place to him. Now was the time when he would report to Queenstown for the Fleet transport that would take him to the shipyard where the Libran was docked awaiting its last mission.
He had no illusions about what lay ahead for the Libran once the Erebea had been eliminated once and for all. The Cylon War era vessel had performed admirably in the four years since it had been brought back into service, but the Colonial Fleet only intended to keep it around long enough to complete this one mission. His ship had only been given basic maintenance to keep it up to the Fleet's standards with the exception of the times when battle damage had to be repaired. The fact that the Libran had never been given the CNP program was a testament to how temporarily the ship was going to be in service. As he buttoned his uniform jacket Tattnall thought about how he would rather see the Libran go out as a target instead of the indignity of the scrapper's torch.
"I take it my alarm woke you up," the still-tired voice of Christine Collier said from the doorway.
Tattnall turned and took in the sight of her wearing the Picon Panthers shirt he had bought her for her birthday last year. He felt a pang of guilt for trying to get out of the house before she woke up.
"I know you have your own ship to go and I think you're going to have a more eventful deployment than I will," he said with an easy smile that he hoped would hide his reservations about the upcoming mission.
"You're going to off to some system to patrol for pirates; I get to cover the decommissioning of the battlestar named after Admiral Stryker," she said.
"Just imagine if you had gotten the Galactica decommissioning instead, all of the dignitaries are going to be there," Tattnall said.
She walked over and put her arms around his neck. "When you're done keeping the Colonies safe you come back here so I can give you a proper welcome."
Tattnall put his arms around her. "When this is over I'm due for some down time so I hope you have enough time off from work to make sure we can enjoy every minute of it."
She pulled his head down and kissed him on the lips. "I love you."
"I love you too, and once this deployment is over you'll get all the time with me you want," he said before he let go of her and grabbed his travel bag before heading out of the door.
Leonis:
Lampetia Shipyard:
Faststar Tiger:
The Tiger-class faststars were the result of years of evolution of the Colonial Fleet's fast attack craft. The Tigers had a size and armament that would have put their predecessors to shame. For Commander Geoffrey Mandeville this assignment was everything the Caprican officer could have asked for. The past four years had been spent toiling away leading the Cylon War era faststars that had been tasked with keeping the Libran safe from the Erebea. He had told Tattnall that if he had more advanced ships then the Libran would not have sustained nearly as much damage as it had. While Tattnall always took his side in that argument he had actually wondered just how much of it was sincere. Now was the time for the final assault on the Erebea and he was doing it with a task force composed of the Tigers.
'Now I can show them what I can do," he thought as he sat down at the small desk in his in-port cabin to eat the breakfast that had been delivered moments earlier.
Taking a bite of his toast, he thought over the fact that at this time he was more of a flag officer than a commander. He was in charge of leading the task force and he had chosen to use the Tiger as the force's lead ship, for all intents and purposes, he had a flag ship.
'I wonder if they'll promote me to flag rank like they're doing for Tattnall,' he thought.
It was perhaps the worst kept secret for the other officers that Tattnall was due for flag rank, and with the way he had kept the Libran from being destroyed by the Erebea, he was certainly worthy of rewards. If he had to differ, it was the fact that he had used the most subpar faststars that the Colonial Fleet could spare to keep the Libran safe should have warranted to similar reward.
"Commander Mandeville, there's an incoming call for you," the voice of the Tiger's communications officer announced.
Mandeville swallowed some of his juice and walked over to the nearby receiver. He lifted the receiver to his ear and pressed the button to connect him to the CIC.
"This is Commander Mandeville; who is calling for me?" he asked.
"Commander Madrid wishes to speak with you," the officer said.
"Very well, patch him through," Mandeville said.
There was a click and then the decidedly Virgonian accent of Commander Leonardo Madrid came through the receiver.
"Commander Mandeville, I hope you are doing well," Madrid said.
"Yes I am, thank you," Mandeville said as he decided to go along with the pleasantries before getting down to the business of the call.
"Excellent. I just received word from the project manager in charge of your task force's refit. All work has been completed ahead of schedule and you are free to depart Lampetia at your earliest convenience," Madrid said.
Mandeville was shocked at first but he did not let that show in his voice. "That's excellent news, nothing against your people here but I'm eager to get my ships running at full speed."
"I figured as much. Your reputation precedes you," Madrid said.
"I would hate to have disappointed," Mandeville said as he looked at the clock on the wall to decide how long he wanted to wait until he ordered the ship undocked and prepared to depart the shipyard.
"Good hunting to you and your ships, Commander Mandeville," Madrid said before the line went dead.
Mandeville placed the receiver back into its cradle before he went back to his table to finish his breakfast. He probably had about an hour to an hour and a half before the faststars were ready to leave Lampetia and head to the point where they would rendezvous with the Libran.
'The game has begun,' he thought as he went back to eating his breakfast.
When the Erebea was destroyed once and for all, his faststars would be in the thick of the battle and he would do everything in his power to make sure their performance would be the stuff of legend.
Katalla, Tauron:
Katalla Spaceport:
"Your Viper's been loaded onto the ship, are you ready to leave?" Captain Kirby Smith of the freighter Nathan Crosby asked.
"Yes, I am," Wallace said he looked out of the viewport and into the distance not really focusing on much in particular. He knew the MoI had purchased the old freighter and refitted it to operate as a staging area/surveillance ship and the he had to call in a debt that Smith owed him from a couple of years ago.
"Let's get on board, the sooner I'm through with the happier I'll be," Smith grumbled.
"Kirby, you really shouldn't have that kind of attitude. You're paying off a debt to me, that alone should put a smile on your face," Wallace said.
"Do you know the kind of situations you've put me in over the past couple of years to pay off that 'debt' you say I owe you?" Smith asked as his anger started to rise.
"Yes I do, and you know what else I know…you've saved yourself a lot of money by not having to pay alimony. Just imagine if your wife ever got the video evidence of that woman from the Erebea performing that little sex act on you that night at the Genesis Orbital Facility, not to mention what our higher ups at the Ministry would think if they knew the man in charge of their covert operations ship was getting carnal knowledge of a woman from their sworn enemy," Wallace said with his voice taking on a more dramatic tone as though the weight of what would happen was just starting to hit him.
"You've held that over my head for two years now, do you know the kind trouble you've caused me?" Smith asked.
Wallace visibly cringed. "I have to head there now; I'm going by that dock and just think of what I saw that night on the security camera. I think I may have to go to Internal Affairs and just unload this off of my conscience…"
Smith held up his hands in defeat. "Fine, Wallace, you win. Gods, you are such a bastard!"
Wallace shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, I get that a lot."
Smith was going to say something but Wallace had already turned to make his way to the ship. In a few hours the ship would be in position for him to launch his Viper so that he could land on the Stryker.
Merchant Vessel Nathan Crosby:
Guest Stateroom 1:
Wallace picked up the phone's receiver out of its cradle and pressed the '0' button.
"Communications," the voice of the officer on duty said.
"Lieutenant Ramirez, can you patch me through to Picon?" Wallace asked.
"Yes sir, do you have the number for me?" Ramirez asked.
"Got it right here," Wallace said as he rattled off the number to the Stryker residence.
There were a couple of rings before there was an audible click as the phone call was answered.
"Hello, Arthur, how is everything in the spy world?" Elizabeth Stryker asked.
Wallace smiled, "You know I can't talk to you about it but I'm alive and well."
He had always considered Fleet Admiral Jonas Ingram Stryker to be like a father to him, and the Stryker family had treated him as though he was a part of their family as a result. Elizabeth had very much been an additional mother to him throughout his life.
"We're leaving in about half an hour to head to the spaceport. Have you had trouble finding transportation?"
Wallace shook his head even though he knew she could not see him. "I managed to cut through the red tape and I'll be there to see you this evening. How does everyone feel about the decommissioning?"
He had known that this day was coming since the Bureau of Ships had announced that the Stryker was going to be decommissioned to free up the name for a new class of super battlestar. While parts of the ship would go to various museums, the ship itself had a date with the scrap yard.
"We know Jonas hated the idea of having a ship named in his honor, but there are those of us who feel differently. We'll go there and say the right things though; in some way I think we can do our part to remind the people of my husband leading the Colonial Fleet during the Cylon War."
"He was a hero, even if people tend to forget that," Wallace said.
"Yes, he was. Well, you have a safe trip and we all look forward to seeing you later today," she said before the line went dead.
Wallace sat down on the bed and his upper body fell against the mattress. He put pulled the pillow over and put it behind his head as he gathered his thoughts. There was much to do on his agenda and he could not help but feel as though there was precious little time to accomplish it in. Dealing with the people at the Ministry of Intelligence was not as hard as people thought, at least once he got his bearing at the agency. He had gone in thinking that the people there were either overpaid pencil pushers or people who had watched one too many spy movies growing up. He knew those people existed there and they did not intimidate him in the least.
It was the people who were actually competent at their job that gave him a brief pause and made him think of ways to either work with them or find a way to eliminate them. All of the time he had spent in his life learning how to read both people and situations had allowed him to get this far. In order to accomplish his real mission he had to get his hands dirty and he had more than enough blood on them to prove how far he had come. Now he was taking a small detour in order to honor both Admiral Stryker and the family that had come to adopt him as one of their own.
He had used his network of people inside of the Colonial Fleet to find out the details of the decommissioning and scrapping of the Stryker before those details had even become public knowledge. He had read up on Colonel Jerome Cyprien, the officer who would oversee the decommissioning and inactivation of the ship. He could not say he had the highest opinion of the man, but he hoped Cyprien would at least treat the ship and the Stryker family with the respect that they were due.
He would have thought more, but his body craved sleep more than he wanted to admit. With the door to his cabin locked he gave in and drifted off to sleep.
Orbit of Picon:
Shakori Shipyard:
The Shakori Shipyards began life back in the days before the Articles of Colonization and served mainly as a commercial shipyard and merchant terminal. It had stayed in this role until ten years ago when it was purchased by the Colonial Fleet and adapted for military purposes in order to alleviate the heavy traffic at Picon Fleet Shipyards. This was the base where the Libran and its battle group had been primarily stationed at during the past couple of years during its war against the Erebea.
Tattnall walked along the line of families at the entrance to the Libran's airlock. He had assured many of them that their loved ones would be kept safe during this deployment. Normally he would have felt a pang of guilt at making such a sweeping promise and he hoped that if this plan for the final strike against the Erebea was successful he would have no regrets about making such a statement.
"Big crowd," a familiar voice said behind him.
Tattnall turned to see Colonel Susan Minerva, his Executive Officer for the past four years, walking up to him.
"Yeah, on the way here I was wondering if it was going to be smaller than usual," Tattnall said.
"Most of the officers are onboard and we're hoping that within the hour we'll be ready to leave, there's a lot of nervous energy on the Libran right now," she said.
"Is it something that goes all the way up to the XO?" Tattnall asked with a teasing smile.
"Of course not, sir. I'm the model of cool professionalism," she responded and the two started laughing.
"That wasn't quite what I was expecting to hear from you," Tattnall said when he had finished laughing.
"Commander, your strength gives me strength," Minerva said with mock sincerity as she gave his shoulder a reassuring grip.
"You played that well, Sue," Tattnall said after she had removed her hand from his shoulder.
"My daughter has already told me that she wants to be an actress when she grows up. Perhaps she gets it honestly after all," Minerva said.
"At least you have an idea of what you're in for when she gets older," Tattnall said.
"Did you already say goodbye to your family?" Minerva asked.
Tattnall nodded. "I saw them when I arrived here, and I think the plan is to see the Libran leave, then head back to Picon."
"I didn't see Noah or the triplets," Minerva said.
"They're in the crowd by the airlock.
"I guess work called Christine away after all," she said more as a statement than a question.
"Yeah, when it came to who was going to cover the Stryker's decommissioning she drew the short straw," Tattnall said. Inwardly, he felt bad that she was unable to see the Libran off. In the time that they had dated, she had been there whenever he began a deployment and there was a superstitious side of him that considered her a lucky charm.
"Where are Doug and the kids?" Tattnall asked.
"They're near their usual spot by the main gate," Minerva said. In the four years since she had become XO of the Libran she could always count on her husband Doug and their two kids to be in their usual spot to see her off. She knew how much Dalton and Isabelle hated to see her go, but when she saw them before the deployment it just made her feel better.
Tattnall looked instinctively and he saw the three of them and gave them a friendly wave.
"It will be good to have this fight with the Erebea over with once and for all," Tattnall said.
Minerva nodded. "Yes it will, we've put four long years into it along with working with the Ministry of Intelligence."
"Yeah those spooks; most of them haven't been that bad though. It makes you wonder what their bosses have in store for them after this," Tattnall said.
Minerva shrugged. "Damned if I know, you'd think the Ministry of Intelligence has run out of bad guys to fight but I'm sure they can come up with something to keep them busy."
"I guess there's only one thing left to do," Tattnall said after looking at his watch.
"Go set our trap for the Erebea and close it on them once and for all," Minerva said as though she were Tattnall's mind.
"Couldn't have put it better myself, let's our ship moving so we can put this whole business behind us," Tattnall said as he and Minerva made their way to the airlock and onto the Libran.
It was then that Minerva stopped and looked at him. "Mind if I go say goodbye to Doug and the kids one more time?"
Tattnall was certain she knew the answer and that asking was just a formality. "Sure, I'll come join you too."
The two started walking toward the main gate and were a few steps away from it when the world around them erupted in deafening boom of explosions and fire. The force of the weapons impacting parts of the shipyard was enough to cause both Tattnall and Minerva to fall down.
Tattnall and Minerva staggered to their feet and through the viewing window they saw a sight that took their collective breath away; the Cylons were here and they were attacking…
Author's Note: I still plan on finishing up the original 'Flight of the Libran' story that will lead up to the events of this chapter. I just decided to split what happened before the Fall of the Colonies and what happened to the Libran and its task force afterwards.