Chapter Two: The Morning After
Admiral's Quarters:
Fleet Admiral Scott Tolan stared at his surroundings and began to wonder just what lay ahead for him. He had left his office and had taken a seat in his quarters for a moment of solace before he was due to arrive in the CIC. With Commander Dorian Mercer and Colonel Anna Wong both incapacitated by injuries sustained in the last battle with the Cylons, it had fallen to him and Commander Bridget Woods to assume the roles of CO and XO of the Colossus.
He had never been in this situation before. Even when the Cylons had attacked, he had most of his battle group with him along with the decommissioned battlestars Athena and Ares. At least he had the numbers to fight off the Cylons when they did find him. If he desired he could even commit to a small offensive.
Now was different, and he was not sure if it was something he would be particularly fond of. He had the Colossus and that was all; there was no other ship to assist him against the Cylons. He would eventually get his bearings and decide on a course of action; now was not the time for him to let indecision get the better of him. Being a flag officer in a time of war, you had to make a decision and give the appearance that you knew exactly what you were doing even if you just half-guessing and half-praying for success.
He looked over at the section of his quarters where he had placed most of the personal mementos from his life. He walked over to the desk and shelving that held the items that brought memories from his life before the Cylons had come and turned the worlds upside-down. He looked at the framed Canceron Hydras flag and he remembered the conversation he had with his wife Emily about it. They had spent most of the last six years living on Caprica and she had hoped he would switch his loyalties over to the Caprica Buccaneers but he told her that he could not do such a thing. He was born and raised on Canceron and he had grown up supporting the Hydras, especially since the Tolan family owned a forty-nine percent stake in the team, and he wanted to stay that way even if he was living on Caprica.
He heard footsteps approach and the door to his office open; it was enough to keep his thoughts from going to Emily and the kids.
"Admiral, have I come at a bad time?" Ensign Lucien Whitfield asked.
Tolan turned and smiled at his Chief-of-Staff. "Not at all, Whitfield; what brings you here?" It was in moments such as this that he was glad his mind could not be read. His mind was swimming with a mixture of thoughts and emotions regarding their current predicament. He was putting on his best public face and hoping that it would serve to hide the doubts he had running through his mind about the situation they were in.
Whitfield held up a stack of several large brown envelopes, "The rest of the reports have come in; these have more exact numbers of injured and casualties."
"Put them on the desk," Tolan said. When Whitfield had done so, he asked, "Any word on what shape the ship is in?"
"From what I've read and observed it's safe to say the Cylons did a number on us. If I may be so bold, we may not have gone down, but the Cylons put us on the ropes."
"If you don't mind the interruption, I thought I'd come by," a man's voice said from the hatchway.
Both men turned and Tolan recognized Wilfred Parker, the Colossus' chaplain, standing with a copy of the Sacred Scrolls.
Tolan was the first one to react. "Chaplain Parker, feel free to come in and have a seat. Mister Whitfield is welcome to say if he so desires."
"I just wanted to let you know that I have been visited by some of the crew and I've been trying to do what I can to alleviate their fears, I believe word has gotten around as to just how close we were to not making it," Parker said.
"I would prefer to focus on the fact that we did make it," Whitfield immediately said.
"There's a strong sense of fatalism out there, I think after everything this ship and its crew has been through that we could be closing in on a point where they may have endured too much," Parker said. He turned to a section of the Sacred Scrolls. "I was wondering if you would have a problem with me selecting the verses from the Scrolls that are to be read during the memorial service."
Tolan thought it over for a moment before he said, "I don't have a problem with that; I'm sure you'll be able to come up with something to help raise morale."
"Thank you, Admiral, and if you ever need my services you know how to find your way to the chapel," Parker said as he turned to leave the room.
"Thank you for all you have done for us, Father, and if I need a word of prayer I'll be sure to let you know," Tolan said and waited until the hatch had closed behind the chaplain before he turned to Whitfield. "Is there anything of interest I need to know about?"
"The deck gang discovered a Cylon device attached to the port flight pod at a data access point. They're not sure what it's doing but if it's from the Cylons then it certainly can't be good for us," Whitfield said as he passed a report to Tolan dealing with the device.
"You won't hear me argue that point. Until we know exactly what it's doing I think we need to stay away from the fleet."
Whitfield looked as though he was debating what to say. "Permission to speak freely."
"Granted," Tolan said and he wondered what he was about to hear.
"Sir, I think your decision may have more to do with Commander Woods than it does with our safety."
Tolan's eyebrows arched in surprise. "Let me see if I'm getting this right, you think I'm more interested in staying away from the fleet because of Commander Woods?"
"Scuttlebutt had it that the two of you were involved previously and that it was a driving force behind the mission to Ostarsis. I didn't put a lot of faith in the rumor until she kissed you in the CIC. Admiral, do I need to remind you that you have a family that is wondering if you're dead or alive?"
"Of course you don't have to remind me of that," Tolan quickly said and a part of him had wondered if that voice in the back of his mind was correct. Was it true that he did the whole rescue operation just because of Bridget; did he throw away all of those lives and ships just so he could rescue one woman? He knew he would have to answer one day. Did he really want to sit down and come to terms with such a thing?
"Of course, sir, I didn't mean to offend you," Whitfield quickly offered.
Tolan shook his hand and put a reassuring hand on Whitfield's shoulder, "You didn't offend me. Between the two of us I have to wonder if there is a small kernel of truth to that rumor."
"I would have dismissed it if someone had told me that, but I saw her kiss you and I had to wonder," Whitfield said.
"How old are you?" Tolan asked.
"Twenty-five sir. I'm sure you've read my file."
Tolan nodded. "You'll turn twenty-six in three months, you were born on Libran, and you attended Aquaria Military even though you had scholarship offers from both Abry and the Fleet Academy. Your first assignment was to Fleet Command. You served there until you were assigned to the Helios, and Admiral Sakura recommended you to serve as my Chief-of-Staff. The point is that even when you get older there will still be things out there that are hard to explain."
Whitfield thought about it before asking, "So the fact that Commander Woods kissed you the moment she saw is something that is hard to explain?"
"Commander Woods is someone from my past and even though I have a beautiful wife and three wonderful children, I don't think she and I ever truly moved on from one another," Tolan said and he felt as though he unburdening a bit of his soul.
"I hope you didn't mind my prying, Admiral," Whitfield said after a silence had fallen.
"Nothing to worry about, sometimes I think it's important in your position to be willing to ask questions that most officers wouldn't think of asking."
"Thank you. I need to make my way back to the CIC. Is there anything you need from me?"
"I need you to be in charge of the operation in the Flag CIC. With Commander Mercer in a coma, I'm going to need to assume command of the Colossus. Keep me apprised of anything that comes in at that I need to know. You're dismissed," Tolan said.
"Aye, aye, sir," Whitfield said as he made his exit.
Twelve Minutes Later:
CIC:
"Anything to report," Tolan asked when he stepped up to the Command and Control Station.
"Nothing of note, right now repairs are very much a work in progress but the good news is that it looks like the FTL drive is close to being fully operational again. The Chief says that whatever we did to it in that last jumped did a number on it," Commander Bridget Woods said.
"The repairs are something I had already figured on but the FTL being almost ready is a blessing I'll be more than happy to take," Tolan said.
"We also got an encrypted message from out in the Tartaro System," Woods said as she passed Tolan a communiqué.
"Is this all we've been able to decode so far?" he asked.
"It's a code used by the Ministry of Intelligence, which may explain why it's so heavily encrypted," Woods offered.
Tolan looked and could make out the words 'Tartaro System', 'Kyros Station', 'Hagan', and 'Mytus Asteroid Belt'. The fact that it was the MoI sent a chill down his spine, so far in the time he had worked with them he had been burned more than once. He thought it over for a minute before he made his decision.
"When we have gotten as far as we can on the repairs, we'll jump in and investigate. Any more traffic I need to be made aware of?"
"There was a Code Green sent from Picon. The problem is that we're not sure if it's just an automated system, or if it's the real thing. It might be something worth investigating," Woods said.
"We'll get to that one in time, but I'm curious as to what the MoI is up to. There's something I have to check, though," Tolan said as he took the copy of the message and brought it over to Tactical.
"Admiral Tolan, sir, what can I help you with?" Lieutenant Lamont Evans asked when he saw Tolan.
"I need you to run a search for the words we've managed to decode from this message; any information you can gather from the database could be helpful to us," Tolan said as he handed Evans the message.
"I should have that to you within the next few minutes," Evans said as he began to enter the keywords into the database search.
"Excellent," Tolan said before asking, "I meant to ask, are you by chance related to a Sasha Evans?
Evans raised an eyebrow quizzically. "She's a cousin of mine. Her father is my mom's brother; the thing is that she grew up on Caprica while my family moved to Virgon so we only saw one another on the important holidays or other family get-togethers. She had her life and I had mine. Is there a reason why?"
"Your cousin is very much alive back in the fleet; in fact she is under the personal protection of Magnus Ah-Mun and the Eastern Alliance."
Evans had to stifle a surprised shout, "What exactly led to that?"
"She was a part of Hector Alonzo's staff once he took over the leadership of the civilian fleet we assembled. She was exiled along with him and his people once we discovered he was collaborating with the Cylons. It would appear she was captured by the Eastern Alliance and Ah-Mun was so taken with her that he offered to keep her safe," Tolan explained.
"You somehow went along with this?" Evans asked though his tone showed how skeptical he was.
"At the rate things were going at the time I needed every last ounce of firepower I could get my hands on to use against the Cylons. I was not about to look a well-armed horse in the mouth," he said.
The computer finished its search and Evans printed out the results for Tolan to look at. "I only used the important information that I could find; better to stick with the facts and avoid the conspiracy theories."
Tolan took the paper and began to scan over the information that had been provided. The basics about the Mytus Asteroid Belt being a dense cluster of asteroids that most pilots chose to go around instead of attempting to pass through or near it. The more he read about the belt the more he realized there was nothing in either that he did not already know or had heard of at some point in the past.
The interesting material involved Kyros Station. It apparently had been a facility that the Ministry of Intelligence operated until eight years ago when it was decommissioned for a reason that was not specified other than the ubiquitous 'Budget Cuts'. Tolan pondered this and wondered if there was something more to this story. Could it be possible that the MoI was still running the station or had it been appropriated for some unknown use? His mind went back six years to the mission that he led to rescue President Adar's sister and niece. The Sagittarian Liberation Army and the Erebea had appropriated an unused base for their purposes. Could this be a similar situation?
He found something on the search for Hagan. It appeared that the name matched a Colonial Fleet frigate. The frigate Hagan belonged to the Minerva class and was under the command of Colonel Jerrod Stokes. According to the report on the ship's movements it had been deployed to the Mytus Asteroid Belt in order to search for possible smugglers. Now the image was starting to come to his mind of the Colonel Stokes and crew coming across the abandoned station for one reason or another. Could they have figured out a way to send a distress signal or could the Cylons have found them?
"You look deep in thought," Woods said as she walked over to Tactical.
"I'm trying to make sense of this information and I don't know if I'm over thinking it or just reading this the wrong way. The more I think about it the more questions I end up with," Tolan admitted.
"I think we'll need to jump there and find out exactly what is going on so that we can decide if you misread the information or simply reading far more into this than there actually is," Woods said before turning to head back to Command and Control.
"I can't argue with that," Tolan said before heading back to Woods to work through the reports from the department heads before the Colossus was ready to jump.
"What are you thinking?" Woods asked once Tolan had returned to Command and Control.
"I have a hard time believing that there are any more Colonial Fleet units out there," he said.
"Do you think every last ship left out there answered your distress call?" she asked.
"A part of me says that it has to be the case but then again maybe there were some ships that either didn't hear the call or chose not to believe it was authentic," Tolan said.
"I suppose there is only one way to find out," Woods said with a nod of her head toward the phone receiver sitting in its cradle.
"Indeed," Tolan said as he picked up the receiver and entered the number to connect to Main Engineering.
"Engelhart," the man on the other end of the phone said in his distinct Caprican accent.
"This is Admiral Tolan; how are the repairs going on the FTL?" Tolan asked. He had been on the Colossus long enough to get a general idea of how Major Gustav Engelhart ran the Engineering Division. He gathered that the man knew his way around the engine room and had a good grasp of what a ship of this size was capable of doing.
"Well, sir, I have my best technicians running some final calibration tests before I say that the FTL is ready to use but that shouldn't take too much longer. However, you know you cannot rush these things. It would be like launching your Viper out of the tube without properly securing the canopy. It could end up creating one giant mess."
"Duly noted, just be sure to send word as soon as you feel safe about us using the FTL," Tolan said before putting the receiver back into its cradle.
"Judging by the look on your face I take it the news wasn't all that great," Woods said.
"You know me well," Tolan said before exhaling a deep breath, "He wants to make sure that the FTL is completely repaired and ready to be used. I can't say I blame him, but at the same time I'm eager to get on the move again."
"It's nice to see that eight months have war hasn't changed everything about you," Woods said with a smile.
"It's the kind of thing I'd have never imagined back during that year I was in charge of the Bureau of Ships. If the Cylons had attacked then I'd have been stuck behind a desk instead of being out here in space."
"You're a Viper jock to the core, always wanting to be where the action is," she teased.
"You say that like it's a bad thing," Tolan countered.
"If Artimus were here he would probably tell you that it is a bad thing when it comes to you flyboys," Woods said and when she saw the brief look of sadness come over Tolan's face she asked, "I take it you haven't heard anything regarding Hermes."
Tolan shook his head. "I prefer to think that no news is good news. It's something that Emily, Lacey, and Brooke prefer to think he's not dead."
"He was a good friend, Scott; I know that underneath that Viper vs. Raptor teasing between the two of you was a genuine friendship."
Tolan was quiet for a few moments before he finally said, "I've thought of all the friends and family I lost and I don't know if it's just me being selfish but I'd rather have Artimus be one of those who survived."
"Gods know that if you hadn't had come then my people and I would have died. I just know the Cylons would have eventually found us."
"I had a promise to keep to you and I wasn't going to let the Cylons stop me from keeping it."
Woods smiled at him. "You promised that if I ever needed your help you would find a way to be there to rescue me. I'm grateful for that; I just don't want the cost of keeping the promise to be too high."
"That's something you don't have to dwell on, the fact is that you were rescued and the people you were protecting also got rescued," Tolan said hoping that would put the topic to rest.
"Speaking of which, there is one person onboard who may not be too happy to see you," Woods said as she mentally tried to find the right words to phrase whom she was about to tell him about.
Tolan arched an eyebrow and asked, "Is this someone I'm going to regret having onboard?"
"Well she's a cadet from the Academy and she's definitely related to you by blood…"
"Sophia Tolen is on my ship. We'll see once and for all if the family feud has been put to rest," Tolan said with a wry smile.
Woods was stunned. "How did you know she is here?"
"Lacey kept me apprised of anyone at the Academy I might be interested in knowing about. Sophia being a cousin of ours fell into that category. Lacey may have had President Adar appoint her to the Academy but Sophia's family was friends with Admiral Robert Wilson. Having a friendship with a four-star bought Sophia a lot of leeway at the school."
"Well, now she's on your battlestar, and I did have a talk with her about a situation just like this. I just hope it works out because I think the time spent on Ostarsis helped her to grow as a person," Woods said.
"I'm not going to fight the war between our sides of the family while we're fighting for our lives; that's the last thing from my mind right now."
The phone began to ring and Tolan quickly picked it up. "This is the admiral."
"Sir," Engelhart's voice said over the phone, "the FTL is calibrated and ready for you to use."
"Good work, remind me to put you and your people in for an extra ration of ambrosia tonight," Tolan said before putting the receiver away.
"Good news, I hope," Woods said.
"We are about to go investigate a genuine Ministry of Intelligence base, just think of all the photos we can take on the tour!"
"Mister Evans, enter the coordinates for the Tartaro System and prepare the ship for jump," Tolan ordered Evans.
In less than a minute the Colossus vanished in a flash of light as it made its FTL jump to the Tartaro System.
Tartaro System:
CIC:
"Jump complete," Evans announced as he checked the initial readings on the Colossus' DRADIS.
"Anything that stands out?" Tolan asked.
Evans shook his head. "So far nothing of note, but that could be because the asteroid belt is making it hard to find what we're looking for."
"We may want to get a Raptor or Viper out there to investigate further," Woods offered.
Tolan nodded his head, "That was what I was thinking too."
"Mister Evans, send word to the CAG that we need two Raptors launched ASAP for a recon mission," Woods ordered the Tactical Officer before turning to Tolan, "Sorry, with the Admiral's permission of course."
"Aye aye, admiral?" Evans said confused at whether to obey Woods or get Tolan's approval.
Tolan chuckled, "I think you may have had command for too long."
Woods looked slightly embarrassed. "I may have to get used to the idea of being an XO again."
"I think you'll find I can overlook things of that nature, but as soon as I can find you a battlestar to command I'm putting you in charge," Tolan said.
"DRADIS contact!" Evans called out as a contact appeared on the Colossus' DRADIS display.
"Sir, I'm receiving a hostile challenge," Ensign Angela Rigel announced.
"If that's the Hagan then you have to wonder why they're challenging us," Woods said as she tried to keep the amusement out of her voice. It seemed a bit strange to have a frigate challenging a battlestar.
"Let's humor them a little," Tolan said before turning his attention to Rigel, "Put their message through the speakers."
The speakers at Command and Control crackled before a man's voice was heard saying, "To the unidentified vessel off of our starboard bow: this is the Colonial Frigate Hagan. Identify yourself or you will be fired upon."
"Is he serious?" Woods said as she tried to hold back a laugh.
"Now let's not get carried away here, for all we know the ship may have some weapon that could put a dent in our armor," Tolan said before turning his attention to Rigel, "Open a channel to the Hagan."
When she had done so he took the receiver out of its cradle and put it to his ear, "Hagan, this is Admiral Tolan on the Battlestar Colossus, with whom am I speaking?"
There was a brief silence before a man's voice came over the speaker, "This is Commander Jerrod Stokes. If you are Admiral Tolan, how come you're not on the Victorious?"
"I don't know if he's going to be patient enough to hear the whole story," Woods said.
"Commander Stokes, that is something that I will have to explain when we have more time; for now you will just have to believe me when I tell you that I am who I say I am."
"I'm sure you can forgive my skepticism and send me the recognition codes," Stokes demanded.
"You first," Tolan replied.
"Admiral, I'm receiving recognition codes. They're authentic!" Rigel exclaimed.
Tolan nodded. "Excellent, transmit our recognition codes so the good Commander Stokes can stop being paranoid."
"I guess the question is do we invite them over to our house or do we go over to theirs?" Woods asked.
Tolan mulled it over for a minute before he said, "I think that we have a lot more room here on the Colossus, I think it's about time we had some company over."
"Sounds like a plan but if you expect me to dress up and play hostess you have another thing coming," she teased.
"Well there goes that idea I had going through my head, but I at least expect you to join me when I have a talk with Stokes," Tolan said before turning his attention to Rigel. "Inform Commander Stokes that I would like for him to meet with me. He can bring over whatever officers he wishes and if he has no Raptor available then I can have one arranged to pick him up."
Thirty-Five Minutes Later:
Colossus, Admiral's Conference Room:
Tolan and Woods had received word from the hangar that the Raptor containing the contingent from the Hagan had arrived on the hangar deck. Now all that was left to do was wait for their guests to arrive so that they could start getting their questions answered.
"Who's escorting them here?" Woods asked.
"Lieutenant Siana Aderyn from Tactical, with Lieutenant Evans in charge of CIC. I wanted to get someone else to serve as escort," Tolan said as he read over a set of reports over the Hagan's deployments before the Cylons attacked.
"He's come a long way since he first reported to Victorious," Woods said.
"Gods I hope so, I remember that he seemed worried about asking for help. We finally had to sit him down and talk to him. You'd have thought he'd have never thought that it's all right to ask for help if you need it."
"He got better on the Kios and when we were stranded on Ostarsis he was as vital to our survival as any of the others I relied upon," Woods said as she took a report off of the table and read over it, "Looks like the Commander ran into some trouble with an unknown group a few years ago."
Tolan nodded. "That was when he was in command of Patrol Group 58, a handful of patrol frigates that was tasked with patrolling the Baylor System. They ran into a group of cargo ships and before they could investigate further all of the ships lost power."
Woods;"Did it say what happened afterwards? It's not anywhere on this paper."
"There was an inquiry into the matter but ultimately Stokes was cleared of any wrongdoing on his part. Seeing how he was promoted and given command of a frigate, I'd have to wonder if he had some friends in high places."
Woods immediately said, "The same thing people say about you."
He gave her a quizzical look. "Is there something you're aware of that I'm not?"
Before she could answer the door opened and in walked Lieutenant Aderyn accompanying a group of four officers.
"Thank you, Lieutenant, you may return to your duties," Tolan said to Aderyn.
"Thank you, sir," she said as she turned and left the room.
"Admiral Tolan, Commander Jerrod Stokes reporting as ordered," Stokes said as he saluted the admiral.
Tolan returned the salute. "At ease, Commander, you and your people can have a seat. With me is my XO, Commander Bridget Woods."
"Commander Stokes, I'm glad that you and your officers were able to meet with us."
Stokes nodded, "When your presence is requested by a flag officer it's hard to refuse. With me is Colonel Darren Ellsworth, my XO, Major Dominica Labuan, my Tactical Officer, and Lieutenant Michael Stafford, my Communications Officer."
When the officers had taken their seats it was Tolan who spoke first, "Care to tell me what you're doing in this system and what is on that station?"
Stokes wasted no time in responding, "With all due respect, sir, the answer to both is 'No' and it is well above your pay grade."
"That's funny, a Commander telling an Admiral something like that. I suppose I can humor you for just a moment before I inform that I have been promoted to the rank of Fleet Admiral and for all intents and purposes that means nothing is above my pay grade."
"By whose authority? From where I get my information from you're still a Rear Admiral. " Stokes countered.
"Admiral Kronus and that should be good enough for you. Tell me, Commander, why the wall of silence?"
"Sir, I do not know you personally but I know of you by reputation and that does not give me much of a reason to trust you. I should also remind you that my ship was equipped with Corsair missiles," Stokes said and he saw the look of recognition on Tolan's face, "I see you've heard of them, specifically designed to take out a ship the size of a battlestar. Considering your family history I suppose I shouldn't be surprised."
Tolan nodded, "Does this have something to do with the Basileus?"
Woods, "I would like to interject; Admiral Tolan has never been involved with the Basileus over the course of his military career."
"With all due respect Commander Woods I have different information. I have reliable intel that proves that Admiral Tolan delivered a shipment of weapons to the Erebea and the Sagittarian Liberation Army while in command of the Battlestar Vanguard," Stokes said and gave Tolan a look that seemed to dare him to argue.
"I have thought about those days in almost seven years," Tolan said before adding, "That was a cover for a Ministry of Intelligence mission that I was asked to take part in. The weapons I supposedly delivered to them were both useless and defective so they was never any danger."
Stokes was quiet for a moment before he said, "I see; I'm not quite sure I believe that but for now I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. I will have to consult with the Brigadier before I continue this conversation."
Tolan arched an eyebrow, "The Brigadier, who might this be?"
Stokes sighed and said, "Brigadier General Audric Gauthier is currently on the station and he is in charge of the overall operations at the station."
Before Tolan could respond Woods said, "You're telling me that War Hawk is on that station?"
Tolan quickly asked, "Would someone inform me why General Gauthier is known as 'War Hawk'?
Woods said, "When he was a Major he was the XO for the 478th Infantry Brigade out of Fort Montauck. During maneuvers in the Hebron Jungle the brigade was attacked by units of the Sagittarian Liberation Army. The CO was killed and Gauthier took command. He not only led the remnants of the brigade out of the jungle but he also managed to inflict casualties on the SLA forces. From that day on he was known as 'War Hawk'."
"Sounds like someone I could use at a time like this," Tolan said.
Stokes responded with. "I'll have to talk to his XO to arrange a meeting, it's going to take some time."
"Who is the Brigadier's XO?" Tolan asked.
"Lieutenant Colonel Katsu Munemori, he can relay your request to General Gauthier and we can see what happens from there."
"In case word hasn't gotten to him yet you may want to relay the fact that we're at war with the Cylons. That may go a long way to thawing these negotiations," Tolan said.
Stokes was quiet before he said, "We had heard reports of that but thought it may have been some kind of trick."
"I can assure you, Commander it's no trick, the Cylons came back with a vengeance. I can't say exactly how many survivors are out there but there can't be many of them," Tolan said.
"If you'll allow me to go back to the base and relay this information, I can arrange a visit by you and your people," Stokes said as he and his officers stood to leave the room.
Tolan and Woods each stood and exchanged handshakes with the Hagan's officers.
"I should go to the CIC," Woods said.
Tolan nodded. "Not a bad idea, I need to make a couple of stops but then I'll come join you.
"Care to fill me in on where you're going?" she asked, and judging by the look on Tolan's face she wondered whether it was best for her to know.
"I'm going to swing by the chapel and when that's done I'm going to go pay a visit to Major Clay. I think we're going to need his assistance," Tolan started as he headed for the door.
"What is this 'We' business you're talking about?"
Tolan turned and faced her. "I'm not about to go over there by myself. You, the Major, and a handful of his troops are coming with me for the ride. Don't tell me you left your sense of adventure back on Ostarsis?"
"Well then I guess when you're ready just come and find me in the CIC," she said and watched as Tolan left the room and headed aft.
Colossus, Junior Officers Wardroom:
"Okay Sia, tell me everything you know," Lieutenant Casmir Kaczmarek said to Aderyn once he was certain there were none of the other officers nearby.
"Just between you and me I don't think they trust any of us," she said as she took a sip of the hot coffee in her mug.
"I'm going to need more than that to tell our friends in Tactical," he said and he hoped that there would be something juicier to her story.
"I tried to engage their Commander in conversation but after a series of one word answers I gave up," she saw the look Kaczmarek's face and added, "However they had no qualms about talking amongst themselves. They must have thought I wasn't paying attention to them but I heard plenty about this station they've been guarding."
His face lit up."You're telling me that they are here to guard this base?"
She nodded. "It seems that they've been here for months guarding this base to make sure no unauthorized personnel got within range of it."
"I heard through scuttlebutt that they issued a hostile challenge to us; makes you wonder if they'd have actually fired on us."
Aderyn shrugged her shoulders, "They may very well have but if they had it would have been a short fight. Putting their frigate against a battlestar of this size could have only ended badly for them."
"This is only one of the largest ships in the fleet. I have no idea at all why it would end badly for them," Kaczmarek said in a mock-serious manner.
Aderyn leaned in closer. "Apparently, this frigate is armed with some sort of battlestar-killing missile and had it loaded in a launch tube and ready to fire at us.
Kaczmarek took a moment to ponder this before he said, "That would not have ended so well for us. Unless our point defense guns were able to intercept it in time, then we'd have had nothing to worry about."
"Personally, that's a little too close for comfort. It just feels as if we've gone from trying to keep the Cylons from killing us to trying to stay alive from some rogue elements of our own military."
"Well it's not like life has been normal for us lately," Kaczmarek said.
"You have to wonder what has been going on with that frigate and the station. I mean it's strange that after eight months they had no idea that the Cylons had attacked."
Kaczmarek shrugged. "Perhaps the facility went dark long before then and the frigate was here to either deter trespassers or destroy them outright."
"Well hopefully the Admiral will find some answers before whoever is over there on that station labels us as 'trespassers'," Aderyn said.
Seven Minutes Later:
Ship's Chapel:
Tolan entered the Colossus' chapel and took in the sight. He remembered the look of the chapel on the Galactica and compared to what he was looking at now it looked very dated. The Colossus looked every bit the new battlestar it had been when it had commissioned over a year before the Colonies fell and its chapel looked as sleek and modern as the rest of the ship. He was glad to see that Chaplain Parker was ministering to a group of crewmembers; even in times of disaster there were those who clung to their faith in an attempt to maintain their strength.
He made his way to a nearby chair and took a seat. He did not open a nearby copy of the Sacred Scrolls but instead sat there and took in the subdued atmosphere. With a trip into the unknown that awaited him on the space station it was good to reflect and gather his thoughts. The quiet meditation would be useful to him at a time like this.
"Excuse me, Admiral Tolan, is this seat taken?" a woman's voice asked behind him.
Tolan turned and was shocked by who it was that had spoken to him, "Cadet Tolen, you can have a seat if you'd like."
Sophia Tolen took the seat beside him and stared off into the distance as though she wanted to say something but was not sure if she could look him in the face to say it. "I know this is going to be awkward, but as far back as I can remember, my family and I have done nothing but harbor a deep hatred for you."
Tolan nodded. "I imagine there are those on my side of the family who wouldn't have a lot of nice things to say about you and your family either."
"For what it's worth, I don't think my parents imagined something like this happening. My father is probably doing several hundred RPMs in his grave right now at the thought of my being under your command."
"I think if I had ended up under the command of a Tolen then my grandfather would come back from the dead just to try to make sure he could undo it.
"I know this isn't going to be easy for either one of us. But the truth is that when the attacks happened I initially felt a burst of happiness because I was certain both you and Lacey had died. I know you are probably going to think badly of me but there it is," Tolen said as she wondered what effect her words were going to have.
"We are family even if it's a family that has a bitter feud. You're right, this is not going to be easy for either one of us but I promise to try if you promise as well."
"It'll take some time; just don't have me constantly cleaning the heads because you were slighted by my family all these years."
Tolan looked at her in shock. "What's this, a member of the crew who does not enjoy Cleaning Stations? That's the backbone of our fine fleet!"
"Why did you and Lacey want to join the Fleet? The two of you could have been living like royalty with all the money the Basileus brought in."
Tolan was quiet as he thought over his answer. "When I was twelve my older brother was gunned down right in front of me. It was an attempt to wrest power of the Basileus from my grandfather. It didn't succeed, but that event left an impact on me. It also had a profound effect on my mom; seeing how devastated she was at having to bury her oldest child, I couldn't put her through that if something happened to me. To make a long story short, it was arranged for me to go off to military school and it fueled my desire to get as far away from the Basileus as I could."
Tolen gave him a quizzical look. "To get away from a life of violent crime where you could have been killed, you joined the Colonial Fleet where you could have been killed in a war?"
"I never said it was a perfect plan but it served its purpose and it made my mom happy that I wasn't following in the family business. Now as for Lacey, her parents were killed in a car crash when she was five and she was sent to live with my mom, and we became more like siblings instead of cousins. I was her big brother and she wanted to follow in my footsteps."
"You're an interesting person, Admiral. I'm still trying to decide if it's a bad thing or a good thing," she finally said.
"I'm going to let you break protocol when we're not on duty and you can call me 'Scott'. Fair enough?"
She nodded, "It shouldn't be a problem and if it is then I can expect to start cleaning the heads with a toothbrush."
"I'm going to leave word with the Officer of the Deck; you're being commissioned as an officer and assigned to Tactical with the rank of Ensign. Commander Woods vouches for you and that's good enough for me," Tolan said as he stood to leave, "I have a meeting but I'd like to meet with you again so we can start putting this family feud behind us. You have a good day, Ensign Tolen."
Sophia Tolen watched Admiral Tolan leave and her conflicted feelings became harder to ignore. All of her life she had been raised to hate the Tolan family and here she was feeling a sense of gratitude toward him for showing her a small measure of kindness when he could have easily tried his best to make her life miserable.
Sitting there alone, she knelt in prayer and spoke to her family members. She asked that if they could see her from the afterlife that they not think too harshly of her for what she had done.
"Care for some company?" a voice beside her asked.
Tolen looked up and saw the chaplain standing by her seat. "Feel free; but what about the crew members I saw you conversing with?"
"I'm Wilfred Parker, Chaplain of the Colossus," Parker said as he extended a hand to Tolen.
Tolen took his hand and gave it a slight shake before releasing it. "Cadet Sophia Tolen, apparently soon to be Ensign according to my cousin."
"I didn't realize there was another Tolan onboard," Parker said.
Tolen shook her head. "It's spelled differently, there's an 'e' instead of an 'a' in the name. The result of the longest ongoing conflict ever seen on Canceron, and it all goes back to the Basileus."
Parker was quiet as he thought a reply. "However long your family has been feuding, wouldn't now be as good of a time as any to put an end to it?"
Tolen let out a slight laugh. "You're sounding like Commander Woods now. Despite what people say it's not exactly an easy thing to do. I've hated him and those on his side of the family for so long it's not like I can flip a switch and turn that off. On one hand I understand the need to put it behind me but on the other I wonder if I've died and am being punished in the afterlife."
"Considering this is not how I would envision the afterlife I prefer to think we're still alive. I'd rather spend eternity back home in the jungles of Scorpia or some idyllic beach. Not serving as Chaplain on what is essentially a mobile spaceport."
"One of my friends at the Academy was from Scorpia. His name was Percy Anson; I think he was from Autzen if I remember correctly. You probably think I'm being a bitch, here I am having been rescued by Admiral Tolan and I talk as though I wish the Cylons had killed him in the opening attack."
"Is that what you really wish?" Parker asked.
"Yes…no…Gods, I don't know. Why do you ask so many questions?"
"It's part of my job as a spiritual advisor. Sometimes I provide guidance to those who are searching for a way, and listen to them as they try to figure out what truth they are seeking. Other times I get to tell them to grow up and get over whatever petty grudge they are holding, either one can be effective when used right."
Tolen shot him an annoyed look. "Are you saying I fall into that last category?"
"I just want to show you that there can be more than one way to look at a situation. I have spoken to Admiral Tolan a few times and I at least have an idea of his mindset. He threw everything he had into Ostarsis to rescue you and the other prisoners. Now he's got to find a way to reunite us with the rest of the fleet, and he is ultimately responsible for what happens to all of us here on the Colossus. If you think about it, it really is a terrible burden to deal with."
Tolen stood up to leave. "I think I could use some guidance on this matter, can I come back later to talk more?"
Parker smiled, "The doors to this chapel are always open."
Crew Berthing Compartment 0-9-4:
Major Darren Clay sat down in the chair and pulled a bottle of water out of the refrigerator. He and his Special Forces team, the Blue Bombers, had finished their daily regimen of physical training and now it was time for them to take a well-earned rest.
"Hey, Major, do you think we're going to get bored training all the time?" Lieutenant Masao Kotara asked.
"No way are we going to get bored. I'm sure something is going to require our expertise," Captain William Story said.
"If Admiral Tolan can keep finding the kind of fights like he says he's found these past eight months then we won't be bored for long," Second Lieutenant Jay Brewer added.
"That depends," Second Lieutenant Adan Ismael said before adding, "If we get boarded then we can be used, or if there's something planetside that requires our attention then we won't be bored. Until then we'll be busy trying to keep our skills sharp."
"Izzy, you may be in trouble then; the moment some shiny object comes along you'll be distracted by it," First Lieutenant Demarcus Hayes teased.
"Well 'D' you can sit on it and rotate for all I care; my focus has always been sharp," Ismael retorted.
"Let's not let this become some kind of pissing contest," Corporal Conner Leeds said.
"Agreed, we can settle this later," Clay said as he heard the door to the compartment open and saw Admiral Tolan step in.
"Judging by what I was hearing on this side of the door I thought I was listening to a squadron of Viper pilots bicker," Tolan said as he stepped into the compartment and closed the door behind him.
"Admiral Tolan, what can we do for you, sir?" Clay asked as he stood up to walk over and shake the admiral's hand.
"To make a long story short, I have a meeting on a station we came across and I would prefer to have you and about five of your Bombers escort me and Commander Woods."
"That should provide a welcome distraction, you let us know when you're ready and I'll have a group ready to escort you. How much trouble should we expect?"
Tolan shrugged. "I honestly have no idea, but just be ready in case shots are fired in our general direction."
"We're always expecting someone to take a shot at us, so it won't be all that different from being off-duty."
Tolan nodded. "Understood. I'll give you time to get ready and when you're needed I'll send word."
After Tolan had left it was Story who spoke first. "Major, you showed a lot of respect to the Admiral just now. I don't think I ever saw you do that once for Commander Woods. Is there something going on with your train of thought?"
Clay shrugged his shoulders. "He's a flag officer and until we're in a better position than we are right now I'll play the game and do what needs to be done. This is his ship and his territory, and I believe there's a strong chance he may actually know what he's doing. That's something I could say about Commander Woods and keep a straight face."
"You do realize who his family is? You're talking about the de facto heir to the Basileus Crime Syndicate," Brewer interjected.
"Now if needed I'm not afraid of a little regime change, but right now I'm going play nice with the admiral until I'm in a better position. Gods knows the man has been very accommodating with us, and if I have to play nice with the clueless flyboy to keep that going I'm willing to do it. Enough talk, let's get ready to board that station and see what kind of fun we can get ourselves into."
Twenty-Eight Minutes Later:
Hangar Deck:
In Hangar Bay Three Raptor 268 had been prepped for takeoff. The lone pilot waited by her craft thinking it a bit strange that her ECO was not going to be following her along for this occasion. Lieutenant Valencia 'Val' Warrick felt a bit strange going off into unknown territory, and doing so with a Fleet Admiral as well. Like many of the crew, she had known of Admiral Tolan by reputation when the Colossus became his flagship. She had a friend at Abry Military Academy who was from Canceron and had told her stories of the Basileus. Knowing the activities of the Tolan family had colored her perception of the flag officer.
She wondered what her family would think if they were still alive, much like her former crewmates of the Battlestar Geryon. Her life had been charmed so far, she realized, with having been assigned to the Colossus' sister ship and then being able to land on the Colossus when the Geryon had been disabled by the Cylons. It had been just a day ago when her ship had managed to escape being destroyed by the Cylons yet again. While she may have been skeptical when it came to the concept of luck, the recent events were starting to alter her feelings on the subject ever so slightly.
Warrick heard a commotion and saw that Admiral Tolan had stepped onto the hangar along with another fleet officer and six armed personnel she assumed were Marines judging by their appearance.
"Admiral Tolan, it's a pleasure to have you as a passenger," she said as she came to attention and snapped off a salute.
Tolan returned the salute. "At ease, Lieutenant. You will be taking Commander Woods, our Army friends, and me over to the station we've come across. Once we dock, I want you to stay by the controls in case you suddenly need to leave."
Warrick nodded and when she noticed the look on Tolan's face she asked, "Admiral, may I ask why you look so…amused?"
"Thinking back to a situation about six years ago when I was a passenger in a Raptor, it made for an interesting time," Tolan said as he remembered his visit to the Valkyrie during his part of the rescue mission that freed Renee and Rachael Adar from the clutches of the Erebea pirate group and the terrorist Sagitarron Liberation Army.
"Would I be out of line to ask what happened?" she asked knowing that her curiosity was getting the better of her.
"There was a member of the deck gang working with the Sagitarron Liberation Army. He sabotaged the Raptor and if it hadn't have been for the skill of the pilot both us would have been unable to walk away from the crash alive."
"Now you have me curious," Woods chimed in. "You never once told me exactly how Bowman's Raptor had been sabotaged!"
"Bowman…you mean Artimus Bowman? He was my Raptor instructor at Vaught-Hemingway after I graduated from Abry!" Warrick exclaimed.
"First things first. Major Clay, you and your men can go ahead and board the Raptor," Tolan said.
"Yes, sir," Clay said before motioning for the other five Special Forces members to follow him inside the Raptor.
"Now that I have that out of the way; yes, Lieutenant, that pilot was in fact Artimus Bowman and he more than proved that day his skill in piloting Raptors. Now if you can give me a moment, it appears I have some explaining to do to Commander Woods."
"I've been waiting over six years to hear this; I can't believe you didn't tell me!" Woods jokingly teased.
"After it was all said and done it didn't seem to be that big a deal. The mission was over and I survived and that seemed to be more important. For what it's worth I didn't tell Emily either so both of you were kept in the dark," Tolan said before adding, "The crewman in question sabotaged the Raptor's Tylium Transfer Regulator. As the Raptor's FTL spooled up, the regulator failed and flooded the engine with Tylium which caused an overload."
"Gods, landing that thing must have been like trying to land a brick," Warrick said.
"It hit the deck and wall of the landing pod as though it were a brick," Tolan said and he saw the incredulous look on Woods' face. "Now you see why it was best to leave out that particular story. Besides, both Artimus and I were sworn to secrecy.
"Right, well I suppose we should get moving," Woods said as she made her way into the Raptor.
"Permission to speak freely," Warrick said.
"Granted," Tolan said and waited to hear what the pilot had to say.
"I don't think the Commander liked hearing that story. For what it's worth, I do plan to make this Raptor ride of yours as uneventful as possible."
"If you could pull that off I would be grateful," Tolan said as he too got inside the Raptor and settled into the co-pilot's seat. He would not admit it but remembering that mission all those years ago brought back memories from other events that had happened during that time and he found himself dwelling on things that he made it a point to not think about.
Minutes later, the Raptor left the Colossus bound for Kyros Station.