Chapter 2

He felt the ship crash; making contact with the unknown spacecraft. He rushed to his suit, and quickly got ready for a fight. He heard a load click, knowing that his cruiser was now attached. He stood there, waiting for them to come in. Several minutes passed, and no sign of anyone or anything. He threw caution to the wind, and stepped outside the Delano 7. He found himself in a small, steel clad hallway, with no signs of life. He made his way down the hall, and heard footsteps coming from around the corner. He jumped out, ready to fire, but was shocked at what he saw. A group of five soldiers approached, plasma assault rifles aimed at his vital spots. Nothing out of the ordinary, except these soldiers were not GF soldiers. The soldiers had blue skin, and looked like Sylux. They were Cylonian. He went to speak, but felt the end of the weapon meet his face. He fell back, and landed hard.

"FREEZE!" The soldiers were now on top of him, trying to restrain him. "Cooperate now or we will be be forced to use lethal tactics."

"Stop! STOP! I'm not an enemy! Please hear me out! My name is Syl…..I mean Tensirus, and I am a citizen of Cylosis like you guys!" They weren't listening, they continued to restrain him. One of the soldiers kicked him in the ribs; it was uncalled for, he wasn't resisting. The soldiers placed handcuffs on him, and brought him to his feet. "You guys are making a huge mistake!" He placed his finger on the trigger, twitched, and took it away. That was something he would have to get used to. He was led throughout the ship, walking past the medical bay. He glanced inside, and was horrified at what he saw. On a table in the center there was a soldier that had been blown in half; the bottom half nowhere to be seen. On the bed next to him, a triple– amputee lay motionless. What was going on here? He thought to himself. Next he was led passed the armory, but the door was on lockdown, and he could not see a thing. He was led into an elevator, and one of them hit a button, and he felt himself lurch downward. He went to speak again, but knew they wouldn't reply. The elevator stopped, and they stepped out into a holding area. He was violently thrown into a cell, and they silently walked away.

He just sat there, not knowing what to do. He could blast out of this cell easily with his omega cannon, but they were Cylonian. He decided to wait. Just then he heard the elevator door swing open, and heard footsteps coming down the iron floor. It was dark in the cell, and the hall was poorly lit, the only light coming from dim lights. A figure stepped in front of his cell. He spoke, but was interrupted.

"Who are you? You have ten seconds to tell me and convince me why I shouldn't throw you into deep space."

"My name is Syl…..Tensirus, and I have just returned from the Alimbic cluster." The person just stood there for a moment, and then brought his hand to his ear.

"Search the data banks for anything on the Alimbic and update me as soon as you find anything." He stood there a moment, then spoke again. " Tensirus is it? May I ask you where you came by Galactic Federation armor?" Sylux hadn't realized he still had his helmet on. He had worn it so much it had become a part of him. He went to remove it, but a shot by his foot stopped him in his tracks. "What do you think I am? Stupid? I see your gun arm. You can't pull anything on me," the man said dryly.

"Just let me remove my helmet! That will prove without a doubt who I am!" The man just stood there again. He walked to a far wall and flipped a switch. The lights shot on, and illuminated to holding cell. He approached the cell again, allowing Sylux a closer look. He was about as tall as Sylux, with buzz cut hair. He had the face of a hardened soldier, with plainly visible scars throughout his face. The most noticeable was the scar that slashed his right eye. The man had a questioning look on his face, but soon turned to curiousity.

"Ok, remove it. But try anything funny and I won't hesitate to kill you where you stand." Sylux moved very slowly, and clicked a lock on his helmet. There was a loud release of air, and another as he flipped the second switch. He grabbed the helm from the back, and slowly slipped it off, exposing his face. He stood there for a moment, waiting for a reaction from the man; he didn't receive one. "Hmmm. Seems you were telling the truth. But I have another question. Wha…." but he touched his ear again. He listened intently, then spoke again. "Ok, I understand. Thank you. So it seems your Alimbic Cluster story checks out as well. There is only one problem; the cluster no longer exists. What happened there?" the man inquired. The cluster is….gone? He thought to himself. Sylux sighed deeply, and told the story of how he left after the invasion, and how he had gained the ultimate power. " I see….You have to understand that the story is hard to believe. By the way, my name is Commander Coraw sheed, and I lead the resistance against the Galactic Federation invasion. If your story is true, then you have to prove it to me. What is this ultimate power you have?" he asked. Sylux was going to explain, but thought better of it; he would rather have the Commander witness it himself.

"If it isn't too much trouble, sir, I would rather show you myself." The commander looked intrigued, and apparently liked the idea.

"For some reason I feel like I can trust you. Okay, I will give you a chance." His hand shot up again. " Send 3 guards to the holding cell ASAP, I have a little test for our……guest." Sylux like this man, and found himself standing straighter in his presence. He seemed like a sensible commander, which was a rarity in the breed. " I will let you out, but we have to reach an agreement first. If I let you prove yourself to me, and you survive, I want you to agree to give your life for our cause. Give your life to liberate Cylosis!"

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Sylux was shocked by the offer. He didn't have to think for a moment, he knew he wanted to free Cylosis from the Gf's grasp. The men shook hands, and Sylux stepped out of his cell, and headed towards the elevator. The three guards stepped out of the elevator, and gave a crisp salute to the commander.

"At ease men. Hands behind your back son. You understand, standard procedure." Sylux complied, and was led into the elevator once again. "Oh, and by the way, I go by Commander Cor, easier on the tongue," said Cor with a smirk on his face. The elevator went further down into the ship, and continued for several minutes. "Let me fill you in on what we are doing here. As you know I lead the Cylonian resistance against the Federation, or C.R.A.F for short. We have been struggling for nearly two years to free ourselves, but nothing has worked against those devils so far. We have lost countless brave men, and barely made a dent in their forces. If this weapon is as powerful as you say it is, it might just turn the war in or favor."Sylux sensed a bit of hope in the last comment, and he found himself wanting to prove himself more and more. He was led out of the elevator, and up to a large, triangular steel door. One of the guards pushed a few buttons on a pad near the door, and he heard a click, followed by the door slowly rising upward.

He now found himself in what appeared to be an open field. He looked around, and noticed a patch of trees several hundred yards from his location. The field had a creek running through the middle, and the grass was long. He was amazed how anyone could have simulated something like this; it was amazing!

"Judging by the look on your face, I take it you like it. It took us years to perfect it; a perfect simulation of Cylosis," Cor said with pride. "Run file Cylosis 0012 please. "The field blurred, and disapeared, replaced by city ruins. Sylux was astonished. "This is what most cities on the planet look like now. They are completely destroyed." He flipped the switch again, and the field scenery appeared again. "Well, no sense in talking, lets get started." He pushed another button, and a siren blared. A hole in the ceiling opened, and five large mechs dropped down. The mechs were about the size of two average sized Cylonians, and appeared to be walking tanks. "These are our battle mechs, built to destroy nearly anything that gets in their path. Well, they were until the invasion; now they are useless. We only have one use for them now, and that is for training." Suddenly, one of the mechs lashed out, charging at Sylux. Sylux rolled to his left, and fired some missiles; wanting to hold the surprise in for as long as he could. The missiles tore through the body of the mech, but it whipped around, and fired rapid plasma shots. Sylux weaved in and out of the shots, and planted his foot square on the mechs face. He aimed, and launched a final missile. The did a backflip away, and the mech exploded.

He landed, and turned to face the others; bad idea. The four remaining mechs jumped to life, and began firing rapidly. He was hit on the shoulder, and was knocked back. Another mech charged and rammed him, sending him through the air. He decided he couldn't wait any longer. He activated the cannon, and fired, destroying the mech that had rammed him. The explosion hurled schrapnel at the other mechs, but did little damage. The mechs ceased fire for a moment; only to switch to heavier weaponry. The small rifles mounted on the mechs withdrew inside the bodies, and were replaced by cannons the size of a tanks cannon. He fired at the first mech to switch, making it nothing more than a pile of burnt metal.

Next thing he knew, he was flying through the air once again, landing hard within the creek. Those cannons packed a punch, and he wouldn't last long in the open. He stood, and darted towards the forest. He was half way when the mechs appeared in front of him; he wasn't expecting that. The first mech thrust it's huge fist at him, but was easily dodged. He ducked, and fired the canon into the gut of the mech. He had never fired the cannon at a target that close, and found never to do it again. The resulting blast rocked his insides, and he felt like he was being torn apart from inside out. He fell to the ground, barely able to grasp his consciousness. The remaining three mechs stumbled back a few steps, and one let out a static sound. The blast had messed with its programming, and it went offline. Sylux slowly rose; getting his bearings back. He dashed for the forest once again, and watched as a shot raced passed him and took out a line of trees; that wasn't going to be an ideal hiding spot. He had no other choice than to turn around and face them head on. He fired the cannon again, but the mech launched itself in the air, avoiding the shot. He would have to try something else. The mech landed, about twenty yards away from the other. That was it! He ran, and stopped between the two mechs. They may be able to dodge his shots, but they wouldn't see this coming. They both fired, and Sylux propelled himself in the air. One of the shells whipped way to close to him, and the wind around it sent him spinning. The shell continued on, and each shell found a mech. Both of the mechanical bodies exploded, just as Sylux hit the ground. He had done it.

He jogged across the field again, and met up with the Commander. Cor just stared at him, not knowing what to say.

"Well son, we have never had any soldiers destroy one of those mechs, let alone five of them. I am very impressed, good work. You are officially a member of the team, and you may be the one that wins this war."