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The Next Day
Hamish McCall was working out in the gym that had been built as part of the new housing complex for the burgeoning number of families on Galactica, as more babies arrived. He had always been in fantastic shape, but with his daughter now the center of his life, he was determined to make up for the mistakes he had made when he and Racetrack had joined the rebellion. He was determined that Hope McCall would have a proud legacy when she grew up.
He was about three quarters of the way through his program when he saw Starbuck approaching. Starbuck was able to use the gym that the pilots and mechanics used, so he knew immediately the CAG and First Lady was here on business.
"What's up, Starbuck?" He stopped his routine, wiping the sweat off his face.
"Keeping in shape, I see?" She gave him a mild smirk.
"Got a daughter to take care of now, and I wanna be ready next year when we go before the Admiral, if we're still on this ship."
Kara nodded her approval. "I was just over at your place, visiting Racetrack. Hope's already growing like a weed."
The man whom Kara had shot not that long ago laughed. "It's amazing how fast they grow, isn't it? I mean, you see it in Kacey and Sammy, I'm sure."
"It's remarkable. I think kids are the great equalizer, and they're also, as Laura likes to say, revenge for what we did to our parents."
Skulls laughed loudly at that one. "Yeah, well, that's the truth. So what brings you here, besides visiting the baby?"
Kara turned serious. "How would you and Racetrack like to fly a lot sooner than you had anticipated?"
That got Skulls attention.
Within twenty-nine hours, the plans had been put in motion. Raptors and Heavy Raiders were set out to scout in earnest to find The Colony. While that work went on, Admiral Adama had put Commander Tigh, Kara, Lee, Hot Dog, as well as some of the leaders of the Marines to work on the plan to extract Hera Agathon. The Admiral had gone over to the Baseship with Kara to meet with Sonja, Natalie, and the other Cylons, who pledged over a hundred Cylon Centurions to the battle plan. They would have a red strip painted down their front and back to distinguish them from the other Cylons they would run into.
A grand strategy session was planned, with all the major players, including the presence of President Roslin that evening. Bill Adama presided over it.
"Some of our plans will have to be adjusted after we find this damn thing, and where it's located, but from what Sonja and Natalie have told us, this thing is about a hundred times bigger than Galactica, but it does have a front door. That's where we'll knock."
Laura looked over at Sonja. "How many Cylons, both humanoid and mechanical can we expect over there?"
"Human models? Not that many. I don't think there's many left, to be honest. There will be loads of Centurions, even some of the older models, like we found on Earth, and there will be scores of Raiders at Cavil's disposal."
"One thing that is a must", Natalie Faust interjected, "is the plan we're working on to over-ride The Hybrid onboard. We've been working with Saul, Ellen, Galen, Layne, and Tory, and we think we can use a data stream that we can create in CIC on Galactica to defeat her, and get them to stop firing at us, which will give us time to execute the plan."
"I've also made another major decision", Admiral Adama informed them. "Galactica is going to go into this alone."
The others in the room protested, and looked at him with consternation.
"Admiral", Sonja spoke up first, "with all due respect, Galactica can't take that thing on alone. That's suicide. The Baseship..."
The Admiral cut her off mildly. "Sonja, I know the odds of us coming out of the battle with The Colony aren't good. But we have to insure that some of our people survive." By "some of our people", he was including the Rebel Cylons in that group. "I am going to use the Baseship as the Flagship for the civilian fleet while we're gone and...if we don't come back. You have command of that ship, Sonja, but I want to put someone of my choosing in overall command of The Fleet while we're in battle."
"Do you know who that will be, Admiral?" Kara was looking at the Admiral expectantly.
"Not yet", he said with a smile, "but I've got an idea I'm toying with right now."
"I'm coming along with Galactica", President Roslin stated. It was a statement, not a request.
"No", Kara exclaimed, "you can't go!"
"Why not?" She looked defiantly at her wife. "As the President, I have to take the same risks as those who are going. I can't lead from behind."
"What about Kacey and Sammy?" Kara's anger turned into fear. "They can't go with us!"
"No", Laura said, agreeing with Kara. "All the babies and youngsters are going to be moved to the Baseship, that's been decided." The Rebel Cylons had promised that, along with some of their human counterparts who would join them on the Baseship, that they would care for the youngest members of The Fleet. "But I can't run away, Kara, no more than you can."
"Laura", Kara pleaded with her wife. Right now, she wasn't the CAG, but a wife and a mother, who didn't want to see her family destroyed. "Please, reconsider."
Laura stepped up to her wife, putting a hand on her cheek, not caring if anyone else saw the affection between them. "Honey, we're in this together. We all die eventually, but if I can do some good during the battle, I will."
Kara looked over desperately at the Admiral and at Lee. "Don't look at me", Lee said with a wry grin. "I work for her, remember?"
That broke the tension a little, as Kara hugged her wife.
"I know better than to talk you out of this, Madam President", Kara said with an edge to her voice, but a smile on her face. "We'll just have to figure out a way to get through this, and back to the kids." Kara gave Laura a gentle kiss on the lips.
Natalie rolled her eyes. "You two lovebirds, take it somewhere else", she said with a big grin, making the others laugh.
"Jump complete."
Margaret Edmonson, Call Sign Racetrack, was happy being at the stick of a Raptor again. Her husband, Hamish McCall, Call Sign Skulls, was in the back, monitoring all the electronic equipment, including Dradis, while his wife drove.
"Frak!" Racetrack had flown into a debris field of large space rocks that littered her field of vision, with fiery flotsam and gaseous clouds also floated through the area. "Plot us a way the hell back outta here", she ordered her husband.
"Right, you got it, Maggie." Skulls was busy looking for some way to extract themselves from what look like Hades itself.
"Figures that a brain-dead Cylon would send us hunting in the middle of an asteroid field." Despite some mild anger, she said it with a wry smile on her face.
"The more things change", Skulls said with his own sarcasm, "the more they stay the same. You got a recon mission that hangs someone's ass over the edge, waiting for a bite, send Racetrack and Skulls!"
Racetrack laughed loudly at the remark, not many people realizing that her husband had a wonderful sense of humor. She wished he used it more.
"You got that right, baby, but this still beats sitting in a cell." Margaret stopped to think about their daughter, Hope. "And we have something to fight for now-our daughter's future."
"I hear you, honey. Hope has been a godsend to you and me. If we can give her a future, well, then brain-dead Cylons can send us anywhere they want."
"Let's just see what's out here, and get back to her, OK?"
"Preaching to the choir, honey", Skulls sang back to her. "OK, long-range Dradis has picked something up." He studied his reading a little closer. "Holy frak, we're sitting right on top of a singularity!"
"A black hole?" That didn't make Racetrack feel warm and fuzzy. "Where away?"
"Seven-Three-Eight, carom Three-Three-Two! We're already sliding toward it!" The nose from outside was getting unbearably loud.
Margaret put the Raptor into a diving left turn. "Spin up the FTL, we're getting out of here, Skulls."
Hamish glanced over to his left. "Oh, frak me", he said, struggling to get any volume in his voice.
"What?"
"You're not gonna believe this, Maggie."
Racetrack looked to her left, her eyes widening in shock. "Holy gods, look at the size of that sucker!"
Checking their coordinates, Skulls warmed up the FTL, and twenty seconds later, Margaret jumped their ship out of the hell-hole.
Once Skulls and Racetrack had jumped back with the news and the coordinates, Admiral Adama called in his working group, minus the President, who was home with her children. In her stead, Tory Foster was taking notes, having agreed to do so for her former boss. Everyone could see what this was-a virtual suicide mission, with damn little chance of success, at least from the looks at it.
Yet no one was willing to back down.
"We go in in two days", Admiral Adama said. "When we leave here, it's time to move all non-essential personnel off of Galactica, leaving only those who have volunteered for this mission. That means all the children, any elderly people that are on the ship, and expectant mothers, or any wounded, are evacuated to the Baseship."
Tigh was studying the images that Racetrack had taken before jumping out. "Look at all the crap surrounding that fraking thing. How do we get in there?"
Lee Adama may have been the current Vice-President, but he was dressed in his pilot gear. He wouldn't be flying a Raptor or Viper for this mission, but he would be leading an assault team into The Colony, as would Kara, to find Hera and get her safely out. He glanced over at Starbuck.
"We can't get in there without jumping", Kara said, "but we do have one spot where we can jump in. Right here." She pointed to the spot on the map."
"That's right on top of the frakin' thing, Tigh noted."
"By our estimates, less than one click", Lee confirmed.
"One click? And you can bet every gun they have will be trained on that spot, and open fire the second we jump in."
"That's what I would do", Lee agreed with the XO.
Everyone looked around the War Room, most of them bent over the map table.
"OK", the Admiral stated flatly, "we have work to do."