"What the frak happened, Lieutenant?"
Four Raptors came back from Cloud Nine carrying six stretchers. Everyone who could fly a bird was sent out to bring back the dead or injured. The civilian ship had an infirmary, but the only thing close to a medical suite was onboard Galactica.
Racetrack looked around her. There were medics unloading civilians covered in lacerations, or who had shrapnel sticking out of various locations on their beat-up bodies. There was still another Raptor out there. The one that Helo was piloting. Edmunson knew that he was waiting for any sign of Lieutenant Thrace. I just don't understand what it is that he sees in her. Pangs of jealousy reared their ugly head, but were quickly put back down again. She had a job to do.
"We're not really sure yet, Captain. Starbuck was in the middle of it; she should be able to give you any answers you want."
"Thank you Lieutenant. That'll be all."
They quickly exchanged a salute, and Apollo went back to his post up on the railing. There he had a better vantage point to see when she came in. He didn't have to wait long.
Helo carefully landed his Raptor on the landing strip. The deck crew quickly managed to push them into the bay for them to unload. He saw Adama jump down from the railing when he recognized who was piloting. He knew the man wasn't going to like what he saw.
"Kara?"
As the hatch opened, Lee saw her hunched over, sitting next to a stretcher on the floor of the raptor. Her dress and hands were covered in blood.
"Is she alright?"
Helo pursed his lips. That was a difficult question to answer, giving the circumstances of her return.
"Depends on what you mean by alright, Captain. She hasn't spoken a word since we found her."
Looking at her closely, Lee could see that Starbuck was showing signs of catatonia. She was rocking back and forth, her knees hugged tightly to her chest. And she was just staring off into the space before her. Staring at absolutely nothing. He reached out and touched her, but she didn't even flinch.
"Kara, are you okay?"
Nothing. No recognition. No response. Just the constant comforting motion of rocking back and forth. He reached down and picked up her compact form in his arms. He didn't know what else to do.
A medic came forward with a stretcher. He tried to lay her down upon it, but she wouldn't budge; just kept the same stance, like a sitting-up fetal position. He looked at her dress next. She had taken such care to get into that dress without wrinkling it. She had looked so beautiful when she left for her meeting with Anders. Now the bottom half of it was stained; the back of one shoulder torn.
"Helo, is any of this blood hers?"
Lieutenant Agathon shook his head no. He looked over his shoulder and indicated to the person that was still being unloaded from the stretcher in the Raptor. There was a great big piece of metal sticking out of his right side.
"No. It's all his."
When the medics passed by him quickly, Lee recognized the man to be Anders. What happened on that ship? She'd gone to meet him, and she'd ended up unscathed. But the Pyramid player had lost a great deal of blood.
"Is he alive?"
Helo put his hands on his hips, sighing in response.
"They had to shock him twice over on Cloud Nine. You know, with one of those portable crash units. It doesn't look good. We'll have to wait until Doc Cottle is finished with him."
The medics were ready to leave with Kara as well. Helo watched his best friend being carried off, barely balancing on the stretcher's material. He saw the anguish in Lee Adama's face. And then he thought of his family.
"I'm sorry sir. I've got to go. Something to take care of."
He gave Apollo the customary salute and then turned on his heel. Lee understood. He knew Agathon wanted to make sure his own family was all right. Then he left the hangar deck in the direction the medics had gone.