Title: Friend or foe - The Marine unit 'Reapers'
Timeline: This takes place after New Caprica and I would say even after the third season.
Summary: Galactica meets a unknown fleet which claims to be a Colonial one. After they met some surprises and new dangers are programmed.
Rated: T for language and eventually violence.
Disclaimer: No, unfortunately I do not own Battlestar Galactica.
English is not my native language, so if there are mistakes, please tell my and try to forgive.
Life on a Battlestar could be boring, especially after a certain time. Everyone knows the workflows, his job and the people working with him. Colonel Tigh was no exception. After his time on New Caprica and the period when he was constantly trying to out-drink Starbuck and to demoralize the other pilots, he had managed to get himself together and to get back to work. After a couple of weeks he was surprised himself how easy it seemed to him to act as the Old Man's XO again. Of course, people still thought of him as the one-eyed, drinking and unstable old bastard, who only got the job because of his friendship with the older Adama and he never made the attempt to correct them. Basically because he didn't gave a damn about other people's opinion.
But because Saul Tight had changed since he had left the fleet and settled down on that godsdamned planet. Since Ellen's death he had become cold, unfeeling and much more short-tempered than he had already been. The Old Man knew, but he didn't intervene, because Tigh was much better in his job now then he was all the years before. He didn't show up drunk anymore and his reactions were quicker and his orders given at once, which made the Admiral's life much easier. But Adama knew, too, that at the end of his shift, his old friend would go back to his quarters where he would sit at his desk, looking at a picture of himself and his wife while drinking some of the chief's brew.
Starbuck was the only other person who knew, too, that the coldness was but a mask he let drop a soon as nobody else was around. If somebody would have told him before the occupation of New Caprica, that Kara Thrace would become his confidant one day, he would have laughed. But also the blonde pilot had changed. Somehow she and Galactica's XO had found a similar way of life, meaning to drink themselves half to death after they had returned from New Caprica and to clean up their lives together after that by helping each other. They had suffered down there and they were still suffering, but the former opponents who had never missed a chance to get at each other's throat now had established somewhat of a friendship. When the nights became to long and the memories to strong they would go to each other's quarters or bunk and wake up the other and together they would spend half of the night walking trough Galactica's empty hallways, talking about what happened to them or just sit together in his quarters and drink themselves into the oblivion. Tigh smiled silently while thinking of how that blond vixen had become his friend. If there were Gods, they must be laughing.
"DRADIS contact!" Felix Gaeta's alarming voice brought him back to the reality at once. Quickly he looked at the screen and discovered some red contacts, still at some distance from the fleet. But Cylon raiders were fast.
"Action stations! Launch alert Vipers! Dee, alert the fleet! We're jumping to escape coordinates Omega! Start the clock on my order only!" Dualla looked at him and nodded, but he saw the slight surprise in her eyes. She was one of the crewmembers who still weren't accustomed to this new Colonel Tigh who could react quickly and whose orders were firm. Some seconds later she announced the alert throughout the ship and the fleet.
"Who's on CAP?"
"Apollo, Hotdog and Athena, Sir!"
"Tell them to get between this contacts and the fleet, right now!"
"Aye, Sir!"
"What happened?" The Admiral had entered CIC.
"Multiple DRADIS contacts, some clicks away", Tigh informed his superior and friend. "I ordered the fleet to prepare to jump, alert Vipers are launched this very moment and the CAP is getting into position to slow down an attack."
"We'll wait until the fleet has jumped, then call our Vipers home." Adama had his usual expressionless face on, but Tigh knew he was worried about Lee being out there, he always was.
"Sir", Dee said at this moment, "There are about ten contacts now, but I can't identify them. There are no Cylon transponders, but I get an incoming call from one of the unknown ships, Colonial frequency."
Tigh and Adama exchanged an astonished look, then the Admiral said: "Put them trough!" and picked up the handset, Tigh did the same. "Identify yourself!"
'To the unknown vessels using colonial transponders, identify yourself', he got instantly as an answer.
"This is Admiral Adama from the Battlestar Galactica. Who is this?"
For some seconds there was nothing and Adama almost hung up, when the voice spoke again.
'This is Major Talos, Colonial Marine Corps.'
"That's a frakking lie!" Tigh hissed.
"Can you give us any prove that you're saying the truth?" Adama wanted to know ignoring his XO.
'Negative', came the answer and the sarcastic tone could not be missed. 'Can you prove you're really a colonial fleet?'
"The alert Vipers have joined the CAP, Sir", Dee announced into the following silence. "They are asking for instructions and so is the fleet."
"Everybody's holding position", Tigh commanded. "We have to know what's going on.'
"I suggest you let our Vipers identify your fleet per visual, Major" Adama spoke finally into his handset. "Then we'll see what to do further."
Everybody in CIC was waiting nervously for the answer of the unknown speaker.
'Could this really be a new contact?' Tigh thought.
'Negative!' The voice over the comm. was firm and hard. 'I can't let you come near my ships! One of my Raptors will come to you and identify YOUR fleet.'
"Your Raptor will be expected and checked by our CAP", Adama finally agreed. "Start your bird in five minutes. The rest of your ships will hold their position, anything else will be considered as a threat to this fleet. Adama, out."
The Admiral hung up the headset and turned to his XO.
"Prepare everything in the hangar bay, Colonel. If the Raptor is clean, we will let them land and you will contact these supposed Marines. If not, we will blow this thing out of the sky and jump!"
Tigh nodded shortly and left.
"Dee, order the fleet on standby, we must be ready to jump at all times. Tell Apollo he will have a visitor!" The petty officer nodded but she seemed very worried. She hadn't heard the whole conversation and she didn't understand why they weren't jumping right now.
"Mister Gaeta, bring us between the fleet and the unknown signals! Everybody stays on their posts."
While Gaeta supervised the steersman moving the Galactica to protect the fleet against the unknown vessels, the alert fighters along with Apollo and Athena in her Raptor waited impatiently for something to happen. Exactly five minutes after the Admiral had ended his conversation with 'Major Talos' a single contact appeared on the DRADIS and moved fast towards the waiting Vipers.
"Apollo to all", Lee said, as soon as he saw the new signal. "Weapons hold! Do open fire only at my, I repeat, only at my order!"
The other pilots confirmed and not a minute later Lee saw the distant silhouette of a Raptor flying towards him and his squadron.
"Hotdog, Kat, get behind him, but don't do anything else!"
The two young pilots powered their engines and flew past the unidentified Raptor, then turned around and following it, both in a perfect position to shoot. The transporter slowed down and approached until it was exactly in front of Lee's Viper. He could see the figure of the pilot trough the canopy.
'This is Lieutenant Durant, I'm piloting this Raptor', Lee heard trough his helmet. The voice was loud and clear, but he could hear the anxiety in the pilot's voice. The man was afraid, Lee thought. The pilot continued: 'I have order to identify your fleet. I request permission to pass!'
"This is Major Adama. Hold your position, Lieutenant, we will scan you", Lee ordered. "Athena, what do you see?"
There were some seconds of silence, until Sharon answered.
'There are eight people, including the pilot. No explosives, no sign of a bomb or the like. They're clear, Apollo.'
"Got that. Lieutenant Durant, you will follow me now. Don't try to alter your heading or we will destroy you without further warning. Did I make myself absolutely clear?"
'Roger that, I'm on your tail, Major.'
"Clear this flight deck, NOW!" Colonel Tighs voice shouted. The last specialists remaining on the deck hurried to leave, partly because they all knew about Tigh's temper but also because they had been told an unknown Raptor would arrive soon and none of them wanted to be here when a welcome party of cylon Centurions appeared. Only Chief Tyrol and another man rested at the control panel to supervise the Raptors docking.
"My men are in position, Colonel."
Tigh looked at marine Lieutenant Hogan standing at his side and nodded shortly. Apollo had informed the CIC that there was nothing suspicious about the incoming shuttle, but still Adama and Tigh knew that illusion and treachery were the Cylon's best weapons. So a squad of marines were ready to intervene at every second. They were fully armed and hidden across the whole deck but still Tigh didn't feel safe. After all it was him who would meet these visitors first.
"They're landing…landed…now rolling to the gate. Okay, they're in, we've got them, Sir!", Tyrol said calmly without looking away from his panel. "They're coming in now."
The Raptor appeared behind the window of the security bulkhead and waited until the airlock was clear, then the bulkhead opened and Tigh felt a little bit of the coldness of space floating trough the hangar deck. The Raptor rolled just out of the airlock, then came to a halt about twenty meters from Tigh's position and then…
Nothing.
"What are they waiting for?" asked the marine nervously and Tigh noticed his hand trembling slightly.
'I don't know' he wanted to say but in this very moment the Raptor opened his hatch and a single man set his foot on the deck's ground. He wore the black battle dress of the Colonial Marine Corps, a standard rifle lay in his hands and a sidearm was in his holster. He looked cruddy, unshaven and his uniform seemed to be a very used one. The man looked over the whole deck but didn't seem to spot Galactica's marines. Finally he appeared to be satisfied and waved his hand towards the Raptor. Another man with similar feature showed up.
Tigh gave the pre-decided signal and Hogan slowly approached the two of them. He changed some words with the second man and they all visibly relaxed, then Hogan pointed towards Tigh. The first man, who had left the Raptor nodded, then took the rifle and the sidearm of the second one and re-entered the Raptor. The last now unarmed remaining 'visitor' who appeared to be a Captain, if Tigh read his dirty insignias correctly, exchanged another few words with Lieutenant Hogan, then the two of them started to walk towards Tigh who still observed the whole scene suspiciously.
When they were about ten meters away the visitor stopped and looked unbelievingly at Tigh. Hogan came to a halt too and changed an alarmed glance with the Colonel, hands on his gun, then looked back to the still staring Captain.
He was young, Tigh thought, now that he could see the man closer. Way too young for a Captain. He looked thin under the uniform, as if he hadn't had much to eat in a while, and he definitely needed a shower. His eyes were grey and intelligent, but in this very moment all he could see in them was a mixture of surprise, suspiciousness and fear. Everything had gone so easily, what was wrong now?
Finally the Captain hesitantly spoke and Tigh almost jumped at the words:
"Uncle Saul?" The voice was hoarse and anxious. "Is that you?"
Well, now, do you see the the little button at the right? The one with 'Go'? Yeah? Please push it!