Chapter 4

Negotiation and Information

The next day, Gaion returned with a larger shuttle and a shipment of supplies. "I am quite embarrassed. As I have already engaged in trade with the People of the Four Moons, my supplies are low."

"We appreciate anything you can spare. By the way, we haven't yet settled on a price."

"Commander Adama, these meager supplies are for free. I have a call out to a sister ship that I am going to meet. I will return with a much larger quantity."

"Yes, well, I appreciate this very much, but we still haven't discussed what you what in trade."

"I will think over all that you offered yesterday until I return. Then we shall sit and finalize our trade."

"Alright." Adama felt a growing uneasiness in his gut, but pleasantly bid Gaion farewell until he could come back with more.

"I will return in a few days. I will use the frequency provided to me, until then Adama."

Gaion returned to his ship and Adama watched on the monitor as it disappeared out of range.

Adama ordered the supplies decontaminated, sorted and distributed as far as they would go. This nagging feeling pestered Adama and he wondered what it could mean.

Adama stood open-mouthed at the bounty Gaion brought, much more than he could ever have hoped for, much more than he felt he could pay for, and a stabbing feeling entered his gut. What kind of payment would Gaion demand for all this? He smiled at Gaion to hide his anxiety.

Meanwhile, Gaion watched as the colonists unloaded yet another round of supplies.

"This is amazing, Gaion. I didn't think it would be so much."

"I met up with several of our ships and we traded goods for some of it and some was donated to the People of the Stars by our sister ships for you. We had to stack the crates in the hallways as we ran out of room in our cargo areas, but it is all for a good cause."

"I think we should talk about the price."

"Come then, we will sit and talk."

In Adama's quarters, they sipped 1Ambrosia. "I am beginning to like this. Could we perhaps have some in trade?"

"By all means, whatever we can spare."

"I have also brought metal for you to make repairs. I hope it will be compatible."

"That wasn't on our list of immediate needs…"

"Do not worry my friend, I am not asking for you to pay for things you did not ask for."

"But Gaion…"

"No buts, Commander, it is my gift to you. I feel you are a good man. I am wrong then about you?"

Adama opened his mouth to speak, but didn't know what to say.

"Will you show me some of your other ships, the ones these supplies will go to?"

"Of course."

Gaion stood open-mouthed at the deplorable conditions he saw. People lived in cramped bunks, no quarters to speak of, just wards. Children slept on the decks, with only threadbare blankets to comfort them. And cold! Gaion nearly went into his hibernating state.

He was grateful to go back onto Adama's relatively warm shuttle.

"I am ashamed Adama." Gaion hung his scaly head down.

"Ashamed? What could you possibly be ashamed about?"

"I did not bring enough."

"You brought more than was expected and I'm ashamed to say, more than I think we can pay for."

"I am not worried about the payment. It is yours. Spare me all the ambrosia you have. I will accept that."

"I cannot accept such generosity. You and your people have sacrificed a lot with all this."

"Let me tell you a story. Yes?"

Adama nodded.

"First, let me ask you. Your mate, I have not met her."

"She died the night the Cylons attacked, along with my youngest son."

Gaion emitted a cry of pain. "A mate and an offspring, on the same day?"

"Yes."

"I have told you I have one offspring not yet old enough to leave the nest."

"Yes."

"She is young and not yet mature. I have other offspring, but they rarely send messages. They have their own lives and families now, and have no time for me. You are lucky your offspring are close."

Adama smiled.

"I knew nothing about raising offspring, but she taught me a lot."

"Children have a way of teaching us parents a thing or two."

Gaion laughed his scratchy, throaty laugh. "Yes, they do. I learned a lot, but what I learned most of all were things about myself."

Adama nodded in agreement.

"My people mate for life when we take a mate. When mine died, I was inconsolable. I was filled with thoughts about what to do with my offspring. I was not close enough to any of our colonies to drop her off and have her raised properly, so I kept her. I have said this before."

Adama nodded again.

Gaion emitted what Adama took to be a heavy sigh. "I was grief stricken over the loss of my mate. Oh, there were others I could have picked from, but I was not ready. About a year passed. I took my people to many worlds where we would engage in trade, re-supply, have time to renew our spirits. Although my people travel among the stars, we are people of the land, and to be away from it for too long…" Gaion shuddered.

"Our spirits live in the soil. We need it to feel alive. The roughness, the smell, the cleanness of the soil; it is where our lives began and where we feel we belong. All this time, I was encouraged to look for a new mate, or at least a pet to entertain my offspring and me. I resisted, as I have said before. One day, I took the ship far away; farther than we had been, in a new quadrant none of us had ever explored. I gave leave to my people and we all began to see what there was to see."

Gaion sipped at his glass gingerly. It looked so out of place in his unwieldy, clawed hand. He smiled a fearsome, toothy grin.

"I went into the village where there appeared to be a marketplace. I wandered around. There were selling many things, things I had never seen. I bartered some items. Communicating was easier than I had expected; they spoke many languages there. Anyway, I wandered into a strange looking area of the marketplace. It took me quite a long time to realize what exactly they were selling, and it churned my stomachs."

"What were they selling?" Adama sat forward now, not wanting to miss the answer.

"Slaves. Slaves in all manner of species, gender, and age. Many were beaten, hungry, chained; it sickened me." Gaion paused to collect himself. "I was about to turn and leave but something caused me to go forward. I could not help myself. I watched in horror as slaves were bargained for and sold, to be taken away to who knows where. In the middle of the street, I turned slowly in a circle; their despair was so evident. And then I saw her."

"Who?"

"A female locked in a cage off the main trading space. I wandered over to inquire about her. I was told she was not for sale, as she was, "defective". The creature there was just keeping an eye on the "stock" while the owner went for food and trade; he would return soon. So, I waited, and while I waited, this creature endeavored to sell me a slave. Anyway, the owner returned and I further inquired of the female I had spotted. She was indeed "broken" and he kept her caged because it amused him, because she was sick, he could not sell her as merchandise. I was determined to acquire her, for what reason, I could not even explain to myself. The more adamant he was about not selling her, the more I wanted to save this pathetic little creature. Finally, we agreed on a price. I paid immediately."

Gaion took a deep breath. "This female had been abused clearly. She crawled out of the cage, slowly, painfully. She had bruises all over her. Her face was dirty, and thin! My goodness, she was half starved. I was handed the chain that connected to her collar. She was terrified. I was wished luck with her, as she was not expected to live long. My heart broke for this little thing. She was so weak, and her breath came raggedly. She sounded like she would die right there and then. It pained her just to breathe. I picked her up in my arms and carried her. She smelled awful, but I got her to the ship. She went through decontamination with me. She stayed in the corner, her eyes full of fear. Her covering was so ragged it barely covered her. I got her cleaned up after we were done and removed her collar. I tried to decide what she would eat, but it wasn't necessary. She ate everything I put before her."

"I guess she was very hungry."

"Feeding her didn't seem to be a priority for her previous owner, as she was not expected to live long, so why waste perfectly good food?"

"The Lords of Kobol…" Adama shook his head in sorrow.

"Once we got her cleaned up, I realized I was in over my head. The bruises were more extensive than I thought. She needed medical care, and soon. We left this place and I headed us out at top speed. I contacted several planets, but few had the kind of help we needed. They just didn't have the knowledge. As I had taken us far away from home, it took a long time to return. I did not know if she would survive long enough. While we raced to seek help, I began the long journey to understanding her. That was three years ago."

"What happened to her?"

Gaion smiled wide. "She is my pet. I kept her and she is alive and doing well."

"But not a slave?"

"Oh no! Not a slave. She comes and goes, walks all around the ship, and even sits by my side on the command deck. She is clever, and smart, and has learned a lot. And I have learned a lot from her. She was like a newborn offspring. I had to learn to take care of her; what she ate, how to make her comfortable, and I had to learn what her expressions meant."

"Her expressions?"

"This one meant she was afraid, this one for when she was hungry, the one that meant she had to relieve herself, the one for pain, and eventually, the one that said she was content."

Adama was envisioning a daggit, like the one Boxey lost. "It must be rewarding to know you've won her trust."

"It does, and yet, it saddens me." Gaion's expression abruptly changed.

"Why?"

"Because it is time she was returned to her own kind. I am now ready to take another mate. A new mate will not tolerate her in our nest. She sleeps in my bed, she comforts me, and she is warm and soft. We like our females soft and round." Gaion made a circling gesture around his body and chuckled. "Perhaps I fed her too much."

Adama chuckled, and nodded.

"I must find someone to give her to, someone who will not abuse her or hit her, someone who will not starve her or chain her, someone who will love her as I have come to love her."

Adama wondered exactly what this female pet of his looked like. "Why don't you just set her free among her own kind and perhaps she will find her own way?"

"NO! I CANNOT!" Gaion raged at the thought, and Adama recoiled. "I am apologizing. I MUST know that she is safe. You must understand this. She cannot be set free; she must be kept. I believe she is incapable of living on her own. She has spent so many years in captivity; she cannot fend for herself. I have to know that she is cared for. She has spent these last three years helping me to heal…" Gaion broke off, too emotional to continue.

Adama blinked several times. He debated whether or not to offer some comfort to him. "I miss my mate and my offspring very much. It has been over a yahren and I still weep for them."

"I ask you this. Does your species mate for life?"

"Sometimes. Sometimes we separate."

"When we choose a mate, we have no other choice; we are bonded forever in every way. It rips us apart inside when a mate is lost."

"For us too."

"You feel loss, pain, but for us, it is like losing ourselves."

"It can be like that for us as well."

"And you are not ready for another mate?"

"No."

"You are a good man, Adama. You work tirelessly for the good of your people, yet you neglect yourself. You are the one, I know it."

"The one?"

"You are the right man to give my pet to. I know you will care for her, and cherish her, with all your heart."

"Oh, now, wait one micron…"

"Consider her a gift."

"Gaion…"

"Consider her care as payment for your supplies. I will transfer all of her medicine, clothing and food, and she can live here."

"Hold on! I can't agree to this."

"You must, please. She must go back to her own kind."

Adama opened his mouth to protest further, but when Gaion's words finally sank into his thick skull, he stopped. "What do you mean?" Adama's stomach fluttered precariously, and he suddenly felt sick.

"Come to my ship and meet her."