A Funny Thing Happened
"Dauntless this is Indefatigable approaching you. Request landing clearance soonest" Sharpe said, putting his Viper into a position where he could take either flight pod.
"Indefatigable Dauntless. You are cleared to land port flight pod, speed is 150. Hands on approach – call the ball" Gates said, and Sharpe detected an oddness in her voice.
"Is something wrong, Dauntless?" he asked.
"Sir, you better get to CIC as quick as possible" Gates said. It was only then that Sharpe realised Knot had not answered his call. Lining up his craft, Sharpe made a textbook landing and waited for his Viper to be towed inside the hanger bay. All around were ships in various states of repair, and it was clear that some of them had landed by a wing and a call to the gods.
#
"This is a problem" Sharpe said. Towards the end of the battle, Alan Knot had pulled out his gun and declared that he was actually a Cylon. The Marines promptly shot him so full of holes that his corpse was being used by the engineering staff to sieve out the impurities in the Tylium.
"Yes, Sir" Gates said.
"Admiral Tolan's fleet has got a number of people higher in rank then you, but none of them have ever served on a Dauntless class Battlestar before. I need most of my people in the jobs they are doing now, but I am in short supply of Executive Officers, so I was wondering, Lieutenant, if you like to jump a couple of places up the ladder and become a Captain and my second officer. Major Wes Imlay, late from the Freedom will be my new XO. For the first time since this all started, we're going to have the upper hand against the Cylons" and Gates shook his hands and pinned the new insignia to her uniform.
#
Now that a much larger fleet had been gathered together, two fleets could be put together from the assortment of Battlestars and other Colonial Fleet vessels that had survived the Cylon attacks. Admiral Tolan took command of the overall group of vessels, but assured everyone that he wouldn't mess around with anything that had been set up. The two fleets were made up of Tolan's Victorious, Hermes and Ark Royal and the so-called Unloved and Unwanted Fleet comprising Dauntless, Galactica, Flimsie Whimsie and Retribution. The surviving Escortstars and Faststars were split between the two groups to provide an outer defence cordon.
"Commander Sharpe" a deep voice made Sharpe turn around from where he had been looking at the Dauntless getting repaired in one of the shipyard's heavy repair bays.
"Commander Adama, it is good to see you, Sir"
"Likewise, Rob" Adama said, moving to gaze into the covered dock by Sharpe's side. "That ship has taken one hell of a pounding" he murmured.
"She has been kept together by spit, blood and chicken wire" Sharpe agreed.
"Well now she can get the overall she desperately needs. Galactica needs her sublight and jump engines looked at rather badly. And I have a dint in the starboard side from a nuke" Adama smiled at Sharpe's amazement.
"I'm just glad you are here, Bill" Sharpe said after a moment. "Now I can let some more important arse take care of things"
"That is a superior officer you are talking about"
"No…" replied Sharpe, "Merely a higher ranking one!" and the long time friends left the viewing room and went off in search of Saul Tigh for a good night's drinking.
# # # # #
"You are the Commanders of the Basestars?" Tolan asked the assembled human form Cylons.
"In a manner of speaking" said one of the blonde women.
"I'd like to know why you have chosen to throw your lot in with us" Sharpe said. He had a headache the size of a reactor from the all night boozing session with Adama, Tigh and some woman called Roslin.
"As your prisoners have already told you, some of us have come to regret agreeing to destroy humanity" said a male dressed in a teal coloured suit. "Most of our model numbers agreed to I, but we voted against what was clearly murder of people whom had done nothing wrong. We know of the intrusion by Commander Adama a year ago, but that can be accounted to the fact we had not talked to one another for forty years – except that one encounter" the male nodded at Commander Sharpe.
"We willingly place ourselves under your command, Admiral Tolan" said the blonde that seemed to be in charge of the Cylons.
"Are you telling me that you would freely fight your own kind?" Adama asked. "You'll be telling me you believe in a singular god next…" he trailed off as the Cylons exchanged looks at each other. "Please don't tell me…"
"What kind of work are you willing to do whilst we are not in combat?" asked Bowman. He had been silent nearly the entire meeting so far.
"Our Centurions can lift far heavier amounts then humans can" said the lead blonde. "With your permission, we will allocate a large number from each of the Basestars to ship repairs – after making safe their weapons of course"
"That would be of great help" said Adama. "You would have to tell us of any and all Cylon models in this fleet. I know I have one onboard Galactica already, but that is because she came to me after an incident caused her to gain access to her blocked memories. That is one of the reasons why Admiral Corman sent some of our largest and powerful ships to distant bases"
"We agree to those terms" said the blonde.
"There is one thing though" Bowman said. "We can not go around calling you by your model numbers. Might I suggest that you take your model numbers as a surname and choose a human first name?"
"That would cause fewer misunderstandings" mused the suited man.
"Like the whole gods dammed war was a misunderstanding" said Tigh from the back of the officers. "I don't want a bunch of skinjobs as drinking buddies"
"Colonel, we carry the finest whiskey know to the universe" said the blonde.
"Woman" Tigh said slowly, "We have a bottle to get to know"
"How many birds can you put out?" asked Tolan through the general laughter. A plan was forming in his mind concerning the taking of the fight to Cylon homeworld.
"Just under fourteen hundred Raiders" said the blonde.
"If I might interject" said Sharpe. "It would be good for the Raiders to be painted in the same colour scheme as our Vipers. It would make it much easier for our pilots to tell friend from foe" and it was all agreed upon. Cylons would begin to aid in the rebuilding of the battered remains of the fleet, and replacement Vipers constructed and new pilots trained.
# # # # #
Cylon Basestar Alpha Zulu 689
"Did they buy it?" asked Two.
"They have indeed" said Six. "For now, we will appear to comply with their requests and lull them into a false sense of security. The moment we are given the signal, we shall turn our weapons on the last pieces of humanity"
# # # # #
"Sit Rep" Sharpe called as he strode into CIC.
"Repairs are going to schedule" Major Imlay said. "Engineering reports they will have full jump ability in four days. DRADIS repairs are almost completed, hull integrity is being shored up now and yadda yadda yadaa…" he looked around before continuing. "Work crews cut a couple of bodies out from a compartment near the nose turrets. Seems they remained at their posts until a Raider rammed the ship"
"What about our Air Wing?" asked Sharpe.
"We are getting replacement aircraft and PLT-1s, but we're storing the birds until the flight pods are in operation again" Imlay relied.
"PLT-1s?" questioned Sharpe.
"That's Arby talk for pilots, Sir" Imlay said.
"Arby sucks – Sandhurst rules" Sharpe shot back. "Have Major Quinn take the new pilots for some combat training on the Flimsie will you?"
"You mean Blackadder, Sir?" Imlay said.
"Yes"
"I thought you knew, Commander" Imlay said.
"Knew what, Major?"
"Major Quinn crashed her Viper into the port flight pod during landing. It is alright… she is not so alright. The Nightingale reports she is being operated on as we speak"
"She's a good pilot" Sharpe said. "She isn't going to like sitting out of a fight. Pass the word for Captain Simmons and Lieutenant Jones to meet me in my office in about an hour's time. I want the records of the new crewmembers assigned to the Dauntless sent to my office" Sharpe ordered. "I'd like to see who gave up a good bunk on those fancy Battlestars of Tolan's"
"I can't imagine who would willingly leave a happy and nice ship to join one that is always cold, serves terrible food and has a brutal Commander" Imlay grinned.
"Adama has his faults I know, but that isn't very nice" Sharpe laughed, but then his attitude grew serious towards his XO. "After I've met with Simmons and Jones, meet me in my office with the nuclear missile officer"
"Aye, Sir" Imlay said. "We going hunting for duck or what?"
"I'll explain later" Sharpe glanced at a couple of identical blonde Cylons that were working on the DRADIS console and the missile systems.
# # # # #
Simmons had been made the Acting CAG until such time as Quinn was either returned to duty, retired, or was removed from flight ops. He sat in the Commander's office with Sharpe, Imlay and the missile officer. Sharpe reached out and took the phone off the hook so they wouldn't be disturbed.
"Gentlemen, let me start by saying I do not trust our new Cylon allies one little bit. I have a gut feeling that they are some kind of suicide fleet. Their aim is to cause as much damage to us as they can before we take them out"
"We should inform Admiral Tolan" Imlay said.
"For all we know, those tin cans have cracked every single channel we use" Sharpe said to him before turning to his missile officer. "Can you hold a pair of nukes in launch mode?"
"Easily"
"But I want it ready to launch on a moment's notice" Sharpe said. "The nukes have to ready for you to make them go hot and press the launch button" and the officer understood.
"Anybody could detect us opening the launch tube doors" he commented.
"Can we not get some people on the hull and open them manually?" Simmons said.
"That will take some time" the missile officer said.
"Then you had best get on it at once" Imlay remarked.
"Yes, Sirs" and the man left to carry out the orders.
"Simmons, I need you to get Vipers into the tubes. Pilots can keep their canopies open and helmets off until the fit hits the shan" Sharpe glanced at the Acting CAG.
"What shall I have them loaded with?" Simmons asked.
"AP missiles should do it" Sharpe said. "I want Raptors lined up on the runways with heavy chain guns fitted with missiles as well. I want a second wave of birds launched thirty seconds afterwards" he added.
"When do you think that the Cylons will strike?" asked Simmons.
"In the middle of the night watch" Imlay answered first. "Most people would be asleep, and we are not expecting any activities for some time to come. It would be the perfect time to create the maximum amount of damage before we could respond"
"Simmons, get going now and tell everyone you need to. Make up some story to get the Cylons off the ship while you're at it, but seal off flight deck hanger B from entry except for Deck Chief Spanners and a few of his trusted deck gang" ordered a tired Sharpe.
"Why?" asked Imlay.
"Because we're going to grab Abigail, the Cylon that came out of the blue to us, and bring her back to the Dauntless before any of this starts. I know she is a Cylon, but I trust her completely and she wouldn't betray us like this" and a while later the meeting broke up.
#
"I nearly died waiting for you" said a voice. Bell came out from Sharpe's bunk area wearing just her regulation undershirt and undershorts. It revealed a lot of her dark skin, and the long, smooth legs Sharpe was very fond of indeed – amongst other parts.
"Petty Officer Bell" Sharpe closed and locked the hatch. "You are a disgrace to the uniform like that. You are not fit to wear it"
"Perhaps you'd you to take it off me, Sir" Bell gave a feral grin before retreating back to the bunk area.
"You better believe it" said Sharpe, and he threw his jacket on the sofa and started undoing his belt…
#
The pair basked in the afterglow of lovemaking, and they held each other for a long time.
"We've got to get up, honey" Sharpe said as he looked at the time.
"Do we have to?" asked Bell sleepily.
"We both have to be in CIC in an hour" Sharpe said, letting one of his hands snake down lower on Bell's body to touch a certain spot. Before either could say another word, the hatch opened and Imlay walked in.
"Commander?" he called. "Commander Sharpe, Si… Lords am I sorry" he spun back round again. At the sound of his voice, both Sharpe and Bell had bolted upright and the covers had fallen to reveal Bell's naked chest.
"Shut the door, Major" Sharpe said, "And come back here" and Imlay complied. "First of all, I'll have you know that I am quite aware of the fact this is against frat reg. You should also know that we've been together since after the attacks by the Cylons"
"Sir?" Imlay asked after a long moment's thinking. "Are you alright?" he enquired.
"Very, Major"
"I only ask, Sir, because you are talking as if there is another person in bed with you"
"Thank you, Wes" Sharpe said. Strictly speaking, Imlay should have informed Commander Adama of what he had seen, and Sharpe would have been detained and most likely demoted in rank. By choosing to ignore the sight in front of him, Imlay had earned Sharpe's respect and trust.
"Sir, I came to tell you that we've picked up odd movements on DRADIS" and Sharpe rubbed his eyes and drank from the cup of hot tea that Imlay had brought him.
"What kind of movements?" he asked.
"All of the Cylons have returned to their Basestars" Imlay looked at his Commander with worry. "Once they were on, the Basestars started moving to certain points around the fleet" he added.
"About the time I thought they would be moving" Sharpe said. "Very well Major. I'll join you soon in CIC" and Imlay nodded and left the Commander's quarters.
# # # # #
"Sit Rep!" Sharpe strode into CIC looking ready for action as always.
"Tubes 1 and 2 are loaded with nuclear missiles, but are neither of them are armed yet. All Viper squadrons are either in the launch tubes or waiting to be loaded, and Raptors are waiting for the word on the runway.
"What about our VIP?" Sharpe asked Imlay.
"Secured in the Marine's mess, Sir"
"Helm, are we able to move?"
"Yes, Sir"
"Then ease us out of the dock area" Sharpe ordered. "Once we are clear, bring us about to face the two Cylon Basestars nearest the bulk of the civilian fleet"
"Should we tell Admiral Tolan about this now?" Imlay asked.
"And yet the Cylo-" Sharpe was cut off by being thrown to the deck when the Dauntless pitched and shook from the force of a detonation.
"Cylon Basestar just took out the Libran" Gates called.
"Action Stations" Sharpe called. "Actual to Stone Age – go and bag some turkeys" he said as he grabbed the console phone and dialled in a special number. "Attention everybody. The release of Nuclear Weapons is now authorised. Set targets for Basestars Alpha and Foxtrot"
"Targets locked - Missiles ready!"
"Attention, fleet. Attention, fleet" said a comm specialist. "Dauntless now going radiological"
"Launch the nukes" Sharpe said as Vipers and Raptors poured out from the flight pods and headed into battle. The two missiles streaked through space and detonated inside the damaged Cylon vessels. Dauntless closed the distance between itself and the remaining Cylon vessels as its guns opened up with a hail of death and lead as it moved. "Lock the nose cannons onto Target Gamma"
"Ready"
"FIRE!" and the cannons in the nose of Dauntless fired once each with devastating effect. The giant metal slugs shot out at just over a quarter of lightspeed and tore two out of the three top arms the Cylon ship had.
"Second wave is in the air" Imlay said.
"Retribution, Flimsie Whimsie and the station have got birds up as well" said the tactical officer.
"Who did they hit first?" Sharpe asked, felling the rumble of the Devastator cannons firing again as he spoke.
"They hit the Victorious, Galactica and the Hermes at the same time. Galactica is launching her air wing and is coming about" the woman replied.
"Get on with the Galactica tactical officer and work with them to co-ordinate our firepower" Sharpe ordered. "Are the other ships getting their birds in the air?"
"No, Sir" Imlay replied. "Ark Royal's flight pods are U/S pending repairs to the lifts, and the others are understandably slow to get things together. The Cylons appear to have knocked out main power to the flagship and Hermes"
"Have all of our Raptors launch missiles into these two points" and Sharpe gave out a set of numbers that Abigail had given to him – the location of the main power generator of a Basestar.
"Target Foxtrot has been destroyed. Raiders incoming from all angles" the tactical officer said.
"Set defence guns to long range dispersal pattern and fire when ready" Sharpe said. Dauntless, Galactica, Flimsie Whimsie and the Retribution moved to cover the disabled Victorious and Hermes, and the mixed Vipers and Raptors took out any Raiders that Battlestars' guns happened to miss. As they all watched, a lone Basestar jumped away. The remaining ones put up a stiff fight and both Dauntless and Galactica had used up over half of their ammunition reserves.
"RADIOLGICAL ALARM" shouted the tactical officer. "Target is Victorious, Sir"
"All ships – this is Dauntless Actual. Use any and all means to protect the flag ship" Sharpe spoke into the general tactical channel used by all.
"Sir, no craft are in the area to fire on the missile" Imlay said.
"Have all guns open fire ahead of it" Sharpe ordered. "Maybe we can hit it from a distance"
"We have no guns that will bear" someone called.
"Set course for the missile's flight path. I want us ahead of it and the ship heading towards Victorious" Sharpe said.
"Aye, Sir" Imlay relayed the orders. Dauntless surged forwards and placed itself between the missile and Tolan's flagship.
"Missile has acquired us as a target instead" said the tactical officer.
"Very well" Sharpe said. "Engineering, spin up FTL drives one and two – emergency combat jump" he turned to the helm officer. "Stand by to activate FTL"
"Aye, Sir"
"Missile closing to within 300 yards"
"All engines to stop" Sharpe ordered. The missile was going faster then Dauntless and had no time to change direction. It went flying over the stern and zoomed along the top of the Battlestar. "JUMP!" and Dauntless made an FTL jump in a blinding flash of light which knocked out the power to many of the fleet nearby.
#
"What happened?" asked Tolan. They had rigged up a DRADIS by having a Raptor sit outside the ship and relay the data to the CIC.
"That last Basestar launched a nuke before it was taken out. None of our birds could hit it, and no ship based weapons could be brought to bear" said one of the tactical officers. "Dauntless moved in front of the missile, got it to lock on, came to a stop and seemingly made a quick jump"
"Can any ship find it on DRADIS?" Tolan asked in a whisper. His eyes remained locked on the screen and its rotating line.
"No, Admiral" came the reply. "Dauntless is not within range of any vessel's DRADIS"
#
"Jump complete" said the helm officer.
"Where the hell are we?" asked Sharpe.
"Not sure, Commander. Checking star charts now, Sir"
"Sit Rep! Damage Report"
"Commander, we have lost both FTL drives. Sublight engines are down, life support is on minimal levels but our hull is in one piece" Imlay said.
"Sickbay reports minor injuries only" Gates called out.
"Commander…"
"Yes, Ensign?"
"Commander, computers are not replying to my request for star charts. I think this piece of shit is junked" and the young officer gave it a swift kick.
"Hey!" Imlay called.
"Ensign, this piece of shit and junk is going to get you home" Sharpe reprimanded the officer. "For all we know we could be in the middle of Cylon space. Do we have any Raptors aboard?" he asked.
"Six" Imlay said. "But two are down for repairs"
"We only need four of them" Sharpe said. "I want a Raptor to head forwards, to port, to starboard and aft of us and try to locate a planetary system of some kind. Scan it and see if it is the Raptor's computers. Get them to jump back here at once if anything matches stuff in the charts" then a thought hit him. "How many Vipers do we have aboard?"
"Twelve, Commander" gates called. "They had been pulled for servicing before the attack"
"I want three of them launched with full guns and missiles stores. We don't want to be taken unawares" Sharpe said.
"Very well" Imlay was on the comm with someone. "Commander… I just rang your quarters. Petty Officer Bell is a little shaken and bruised, but she'll be alright. I've had a medical team go to her" he said quietly.
"Thanks, Wes" Sharpe said gratefully.
"Raptor 397 is in the air and proceeding forwards" Gates said. A little icon appeared on the DRADIS screen heading away from Dauntless. "Raptors 114, 286 and 909 are on the lifts. First set of Vipers will assume station in five minutes"
"My compliments to the deck chief" Sharpe said. "I'm going to inspect the ship. Gates, you're with me. Major Imlay has the deck"
"Aye, Commander" Imlay said formally. "I have the deck"
# # # # #
"Sir, Dauntless's pilots are requesting instructions" Dualla said.
"Robert must have been destroyed when he jumped" Tigh said to Adama.
"Maybe, but you know how tough those Dauntless class ships are…" his old friend replied. "Dee, have all Dauntless pilots land in our pods. Have Tyrol ready to refuel them so they can reach the station. When you have done that, get me a secured channel to Admiral Tolan"
"Yes, Commander" Dee said. "Attention all Vipers and Raptors. All Dauntless aircraft are hereby ordered to land on Galactica for refuelling and repairs"
# # # # #
"We did a lot of damage before we jumped out" said the lead blonde that had been speaking to Tolan, Sharpe and the others.
"Good" said One. "From the lone Raider that jumped away, it seems that our old friend, Commander Sharpe has met with an untimely death. With most of the Colonial Fleet now destroyed or disabled, we can move in for the kill" but he didn't know one thing of importance. The blind jump had taken the Dauntless way beyond the Armistice Line and they had ended up on the other side of the Cylon homeworld. When they had briefly got the FTL to work, Sharpe had the ship jump to the local sun to hide in the radiation it produced.
#
"Sir, FTL is non operational"
"Whats wrong with it?" Sharpe asked.
"A small component has broken, and we need to replace it. While it is a small piece to replace, we have to shut down two of our reactors and dismantle the outer walls to get to it" said the Engineering officer.
"How long will we be without power?" Imlay asked.
"If we get it done quickly, but safely, no more then two hours. The trouble is the radiation factor. Once we have removed the outer covers, radiation will start filling the ship, and Sickbay is almost out of Anti-Rad medications"
"How much do we actually have?" asked Sharpe.
"Sir, we only have enough to treat a child. I didn't order more because I didn't think we'd be going into battle so soon" said the Doctor. A plan began to form in Sharpe's mind. It was a terrible risk, but one that would solve their FTL problem quicker then taking stuff to pieces.
"Doctor, I want you to prepare Sickbay for radiation poisoning treatment" he said.
"Aye, Commander" came the instant reply. After the meeting was over, Sharpe picked up the phone and dialled the Marines station.
"I want you to track down somebody for me" he ordered.
#
"They are nowhere in the Colonies" Adama said. Dauntless's own Raptors had scouted out every planet, but they had not found a single piece of debris that came from the Battlestar.
"That is a tragedy" Bowman said. "Robert was a tough fighter for as long as I knew him. I remember he once took on an entire wing of Viper IVs that had been captured by the STO. He held them all off until the Atlantia had got her birds into the air. What made it even more extraordinary is the fact his crate was crippled. Instrument panel had shorted out and his centre engine kept flaming out" he continued.
"I remember that" said Tolan. "That got him his promotion to Captain. First time I met him was at the award ceremony for some of the pilots involved in that action. We ended up getting drunk together and playing Asteroids"
"I didn't take you as an arcade player, Scott" said Bowman.
"Actually, we took a couple of Vipers and played it for real" Tolan laughed. "Got torn off a strip afterwards though" he added.
"I can't believe that he has really gone" Adama said. "He was well liked by most of the fleet. He believed in doing the right thing instead of following regulations. He saved my life once. A number of pilots were taken from all over the fleet to form a display squadron for the President of the time. After we had completed a high speed turn, my fuel system started to over pressurise, and it wouldn't respond to a shut down command. Robert's solution was to fly along side me and put a couple of rounds into the aft of the Viper" he swallowed a mouthful of his drink before continuing. "Well liked by all" he echoed.
"I pushed for him to get the Dauntless" Tolan said. "Used up a couple of favours in the process, but it was well worth it for him. The ship was little more then a flying airport by then, but Sharpe replaced some of the crew with those that wanted to get early retirement from active service on full benefits. After most of them had gone, he got a proper crew together, trained them to top line standards and had the old girl ready to rumble" Tolan looked out the window at the mixture of civilian and military vessels.
"What are you thinking of, Scott?" asked Adama.
"We know of a Cylon fleet around Picon" Tolan said, putting down his glass after draining it. "Let go and win one for Sharpe"
"I'm right behind you" Adama said.
"And me" added Bowman.
#
Sharpe looked at the small figure sat in his office which looked back with some fear.
"Am I in trouble?" asked the boy. He had been left behind on Dauntless because the crew had rushed to get the civilians off – and he was in the toilet.
"No, Son" Sharpe said kindly, "You are not in trouble. In fact, it is me who is in a bit of trouble?"
"Huh?" asked the child.
"David, do you know what an FTL drive is?"
"Isn't it um…" he searched his mind. "Some kind of warp drive?"
"You've been watching too much sci-fi" Sharpe chuckled. "The FTL drive allows us to jump from one place to another. The problem is that a little piece is broken and none of us is small enough to mend it. You are the only one that can help us get back home"
"Won't I get sick?" asked David.
"Yes, but we have lots of nice medicine to make you better again afterwards" Sharpe said. "If you can do this for us, I'll ask my boss to give you Ice Cream for an entire year"
"Um… okay then" David said. Sharpe led the young boy down to the FTL drives were his eyes widened at the mighty jump drives.
"People, this young man here is going to fix the damage" Sharpe told the waiting Engineering staff. "I want you to teach him what he needs to know. Make sure he knows exactly what to do before he goes inside the drives" Sharpe said. As the crew set about teaching David what he needed to know, Sharpe pulled aside the Chief Engineer. "I want you to power up Useless Yuri" he ordered.
"That hasn't been used since well before you took command" the other man replied.
"True, but it is our best chance to get back to our fleet" Sharpe said.
# # # # #
"They will attack us the moment we jump in" said an Eight.
"True, but I, for one, would rather die from a misunderstanding then to take part in a massacre" said the Six.
"Is that not what we did?" asked another Eight.
"I assume that we are all agreed then?" said another Six.
"We are" agreed the first. "We shall take only those that we know oppose the war with the humans. Once we have jumped to the fleet, we shall surrender ourselves, this ship and pray for mercy from Admiral Tolan" Six looked at the other human form Cylons. "Pass the word"
# # # # #
"That kid should be just finished now" said Sharpe, and at that moment there was a knocking sound coming from the portside FTL drive. The hatch was pulled open and the child dragged out in a hurry. The medical team went into action at once, and injected him with the first does of meds.
"We have FTL drive" someone shouted from a console.
"Inform CIC we have FTL drives back online" Sharpe ordered. A weak voice called out to him.
"Mister?" David looked up at him with drooping eyes.
"Yes…?"
"Where's my Ice Cream?" and the boy fainted clean away.
"Get him to Sickbay" Sharpe ordered. "People, get this ship ready to jump again" and he left for the CIC.
# # # # #
"Sir, all repairs have been completed" Gates said.
"Understood" Sharpe said. "Are all our craft aboard?" he asked.
"The last Viper landed a few minutes ago" Imlay said. "I had them refuelled and placed into the launch tubes. Figured we might need them once we have jumped" and Sharpe nodded.
"Good thinking" he said. "Action Stations. Set condition One throughout the ship!" and the call went out and the ship brought itself to full combat readiness. "Helm, set course for the Cylon homeworld. All ahead full"
"Sir?"
"You heard the order, Ensign. Weapons, prepare to launch a full missile spread. Load the nose cannons with hull piercing shots"
"May I ask what you plan to do?" Imlay asked Sharpe.
"If they see a Battlestar attacking their homeworld, then they will pull ships back to defend the planet. And after all, we can't go without leaving them a little something to remember us by" Sharpe's smile was shared by all in the Dauntless's CIC.
"Sir, I have a nuke remaining" said the missile officer.
"Good" Sharpe ordered. "As Commanding officer of the Dauntless I am exercising the ability to launch a nuclear missile from space to the surface of a populated planet. Mr Delaney, put the missile into the tubes used for launching decoys. I want full yield on it"
"Aye, Sir"
"Closing to cannon range" Imlay said.
"Fire" Sharpe ordered, and the might of the Battlestar was unleashed on the planet. It was detected by the Cylons who dispatched everything they had to destroy the unknown aggressor. The nuclear missile streaked through space, plunged through the atmosphere and struck what was determined to be some kind of Raider production facility. It obliterated the base and many buildings for miles around it.
"Basestars closing to firing range" Gates said.
"Spin up FTL drives One, Two and Three" Sharpe ordered.
"Aye, Sir" the CIC Engineering officer blinked several times before spinning up all three drives. The third drive had never been a great success when Dauntless had been on her trial runs, and a third FTL drive had never been placed in the production vessels. Dauntless's third FTL was shut down cold and not used for decades afterwards. They would have had to take the Battlestar's entire aft section apart in order to remove the drive. It had been used a couple of years before Sharpe had taken command of the ship when a technical accident had removed all control over FTL drives One and Two. The only way to get back to a location the Fleet could send a tug to drag them back was to use the unreliable FTL drive after being dormant for thirty odd years.
"Set coordinates for the Colonies" Imlay ordered.
"Coordinates set"
"All stations and all decks report cleared for action" Bell spoke for the first time.
"Attention, this is the Commander" Sharpe spoke to the entire crew. "Prepare for jump"