IX

Two Weeks Later

"All hands, Battle Stations." Admiral Bill Adama almost screamed the words. "Set Condition One throughout The Fleet!"

Tigh was hollering right behind him. "Launch Alert Five. Get me some more frakin' birds in the air! Gun batteries, stand by for target bearing."

A Cylon Baseship had suddenly jumped in right on top of them. There had been no report of a Raider to scout their position, which made this sudden appearance so unsettling.

"Baseship bearing 3-3-3, carom 498, at 15 MSU", Dee announced, calmer than the two top commanders.

Tigh stared at the Dradis above him. "Frakin' thing is sitting right on top of us!"

"Mr. Hoshi", Adama said, before Tigh had finished, "order The Fleet to make an emergency jump!"

"Aye, sir", the Lieutenant said almost as calmly as Dee had.

Laura Roslin's Raptor had been en-route from Colonial One when the Baseship had appeared, but fortunately was just touching down as all hell was breaking loose.

As Tigh eyed the Dradis, he suddenly had a chill run through his body. He didn't know why...

"What the frak", he said, sotto voce, no one in CIC even hearing him. "Something isn't right."

"Gunnery reporting firing solution correct", Hoshi said, turning to Admiral Adama. "Main batteries standing by to firing on your command."

Tigh's eyes went wide, again, he didn't understand why, but something was not right...

"Firing on my command", Adama said more calmly, "3...2..."

"WEAPONS HOLD!"

Tigh was a man with a booming voice, and his command stopped everyone in CIC, including the Admiral.

A moment later, Dee broke in. "Dradis contact!" The Dradis displays identified the new contact as Demetrius.

"Galactica, Demetrius", the voice of Karl Agathon came crackling over the speakers, "Galactica, Demetrius, do not fire! Baseship is disarmed, and under Colonial command, officers onboard!"

"Demetrius, Galactica", Dee said without waiting to be told, "authenticate."

"Galactica, Demetrius", Helo responded, not wasting a moment, "I authenticate Bravo-Tango-8, do not fire. Starbuck and Athena have control of the Baseship!"

A while later, Kara, Athena, and Karl, along with Leoben, and Natalie Faust, who one of the Sixes, met with Lee, Admiral Adama, Laura, Tory, and Tigh in the Pilot's ready room, Kara wanting to give an immediate report on all that had happened.

Kara was waiting outside the room when The Admiral and the others arrived, and made eye contact with her wife, who nodded.

"Admiral, if you can give Kara and I few moments before we start the meeting?"

"Of course, Madam President", Bill said with understanding. "Take your time, we'll be inside."

When Adama closed the door, Laura grabbed Kara's elbow, pulling her aside.

"I know you're gonna give a report, but did you find Earth?"

"We haven't found it, but we're that much closer, Laura", Kara said evenly, still feeling the tension between them. "Everything I saw before?" Now she smiled. "We found it again. It's definitely a road map to Earth."

Despite their estrangement, Laura couldn't help but pulling Kara into a hug. "Gods, I'm just glad you're OK, Kara", she sniffed with some relief. "I've been worried sick."

"There's a lot to tell, Laura", Kara advised her. "We better get in there. Things have gotten more...complicated."

A few moments later Kara and Laura entered together, taking their seats.

Kara didn't waste a moment. "I will have a full report, as will Karl and Athena shortly, but we found the place that I saw in my visions, and when I was away...for those two months. It's definitely the way to Earth. But we have a complication-and that's why the Baseship is here." Kara turned to the Six. "This is Natalie Faust, she has been commanding the Baseship, and it's important that we listen to what she has to say."

"Thank you, Kara", Natalie said. "A Cylon Civil War has broken out", she announced. Natalie went over the lobotomization of the Raiders, and the chaos that had broken out between the Ones, Fours and Fives on one side, and the Two's, Sixes, and Eights on the other, and how Cavil had launched an attack to destroy what was the now Rebel ship.

"So he might have destroyed you", Laura said evenly, without sympathy. "You would just keep downloading and fighting him. What's that to us."

"You don't understand, Madam President", Natalie said tersely. "We were far removed from any resurrection ship. He was trying to eliminate those of us on this ship, and permanently destroy us, then Cavil would box our lines, as he did to our sister D'Anna."

"Again", Laura spat, "why should we worry about that?"

Now Kara interjected. "Laura, you've heard the talk of The Final Five Cylon models?"

"Yes, it's been rumored there are, or were, twelve models."

"It isn't a rumor, Madam President", Natalie continued. "Our sister, D'Anna, a Number Three, has seen the Final Five-and they're in your fleet."

That pronouncement changed the entire atmosphere in the room.

"And beyond that, the Final Five know the way to Earth."

Lee put it together. "So, D'Anna has seen these five, but she's been...boxed, as you say. Yet she can identify them, and they can lead us to Earth."

"That's correct", Natalie confirmed.

"You're looking for a deal, aren't you?"

Natalie turned to the Admiral. "We are, Admiral Adama. We would like you to help us get to a resurrection ship, to unbox D'Anna, then we will give you the identities of the Final Five. They may stay here, or come with us at the end, but we want our ship and yours to go to Earth together. And we'd like the protection of Galactica to help accomplish that."

"The Final Five have been to Earth", Kara added. "If we help find them, they can help us get there."

Laura looked over at Kara, and saw an entirely different person than the one who had left two weeks earlier. Kara had her confidence back, her swagger, and she had an almost radiant look on her face. Laura had no doubts now that this was her Kara, and knew they had a lot of fence mending to do.

"What could possibly make us want to help you", Laura continued, still doubting all of this.

"The boxing facility", Natalie explained, "resides within the Cylon Resurrection Hub. This Hub controls the function of every resurrection ship in existence."

"It protects itself by periodically jumping to new coordinates", Athena explained, "and then relaying them back to the Basehips."

"Madam President", Natalie said, standing, which immediately moved the Marines to bring their weapons to bare on her, but she didn't flinch. "You asked for a reason? Vengeance. You destroy the hub, and Cylons lose their ability to download. All of us."

Laura caught Kara's eyes, the younger woman almost imperceptibly nodding at her wife, as if to say "this is worth it."

Through all this, Tigh and Tory exchanged brief, furtive glances with each other, knowing that if all this happened, the game for them was up.

After a brief flare-up between Natalie and Admiral Adama, Adama pledged his word to help them unbox D'Anna, and to help them destroy the Resurrection Hub, and allowing the damaged Rebel Baseship to join The Fleet.

At the moment, no one could possibly see the things that were being set in motion by this historic agreement.

After Kacey had gone to bed that night, Kara and Laura sat in the living room, discussing her mission, the discoveries it had brought, and began to think, in earnest, about mending their relationship.

Kara started by telling Laura about the carnage she had seen from the Cylon Civil War.

"I've never seen anything like it, Laura", Kara said, giving an involuntary shiver from the memory. "I think Cavil and those following him really mean business."

"A Cylon Civil War", Laura mused. "To be rid of them."

"That's one way to look at it, but Laura, the more I see, the more I'm convinced that something-the gods, or an all-knowing God, or whatever you want to call it, wants us to find Earth with the Cylons-or at least the ones who want to grow beyond who they already are."

"Yet one of them killed Jean Barolay, didn't they?" Laura arched an eyebrow.

"Yeah, and that particular Six is gone forever, don't forget, just like Jean is. If they really do lead us to the Resurrection Hub, these Cylons are willing to become just like us-mortal. And if they're mortal, Laura, then we all have the same fate."

"That's true", the redhead said with some understanding dawning. "I'm just not sure how much I can trust them. We're talking millennia of hatred and distrust."

"I think this agreement is the first step in at least some of us putting aside that distrust." Kara paused and changed the subject. "So, let's move on to us. You've had two weeks to process everything since I left." Kara arched an eye and gave her wife a wry, yet deeply serious look all at once. "Still think I'm a Cylon?"

Laura didn't look away. "I deserve that, Kara", she said seriously. "I talked to Dr. Tribe a few times when you were gone, and while this thing, with you vanishing will never make sense, no, I don't believe you're a Cylon now. I didn't when you left. Cottle and Baltar did a little more research, and there's a few more differences in our blood, yet Hera is proof that our genetic material is close enough to being the same."

"I'll never understand it, either, sweetheart", Kara said, deliberately adding a term of endearment to break through. "Actually, I might understand right about the time I die, which I hope won't be for a while."

"Do you have any theories, babe?"

Kara smiled, knowing that Laura was still confused about all this, but was making an effort.

"I don't know. Maybe Leoben is right: maybe I'm some kind of Angel of God, that's been chosen for some purpose? If there is One True God, as the Cylons claim, then he has a sense of humor picking someone like me. As honest as Lee is, he'd have been a better choice."

The old Kara humor made Laura instinctively laugh. "Yeah, well, you've got a point, but maybe this One True God is looking for the soul with the most upside, perhaps?"

Kara cocked her head at that, eyes widening. "I never quite thought of it that way, Laura. I just...I just want things to get back to normal."

Laura reached across the table, grasping Kara's hand that lay on the flat surface. "Nothing will ever be normal again, my dear", she said softly. "Even if we reach Earth, and put down roots there, 'normal' has a whole new reality now-one that could include Cylons among us."

The two women were silent for a few moments, just looking at each other. "I miss what we had, Laura. And I know, it seems you were without what we had longer than I was, but gods, we both lost our frakin' minds when I came back, didn't we?"

"I didn't give you much choice, did I", Laura conceded. "I found you guilty before you had time to even present a case-you and Baltar have something in common now", Laura said with a dark humor. "That's one of my many flaws, my love: I tend to be quick to judge."

"I think that's a human flaw, Laura, not just yours. But, as far as I know, I'm the same woman you fell in love with and married, and I want...I need it back. I know", she held up a hand as Laura started. "I know it won't happen overnight, but in the end, all we have is each other, be it all of us in The Fleet, or with just you and I. I still love you with all my heart."

Laura saw the pain and the genuine, sincere feeling in Kara's eyes, and realized that the younger woman, whatever had happened to her, didn't understand it either, and had felt adrift since returning.

"I love you too, baby", Laura said, wetness cornering her eyes. "I almost killed you, gods", she continued, the full weight hitting her. "I was so convinced you were a Cylon. And now, if we destroy this Hub of theirs, it wouldn't matter if you were, because I do love you. We have a ways to go, but I have a feeling that, with all this crap behind us, it'll come back quickly."

"This crap's behind us, but other crap awaits us, President Roslin", Kara said, feeling better and more like herself than she had since returning. "If and until we find a permanent home, there will always be crap."

"Can we talk about something besides feces?"

The remark from the older woman caught Kara off guard, and she began to laugh loudly, only to have Laura shush her, lest she wake Kacey.

"I have to admit that was funny, sweetie." Kara regained her composure. "You know, it's been a helluva long day. I think we both need to get some sleep."

"Join me in bed tonight, Kara?"

Kara's eyes grew wide again. She hadn't slept in the same bed as Laura in over two months, even if it felt like less than she had. "Are you sure, babe?"

"I'm not saying we make love tonight, Kara-I think we're both emotionally exhausted from the day, but I want you next to me tonight-next to me every night."

"I can't think of a better offer", Kara said sweetly. Both women stood up, moving toward each other. Laura reached out first, knowing it was important she do so, pulling Kara into a loving hug, both of them taking a deep breath at the comfort of their touch.

Laura broke it and cupped Kara's cheeks. "I love you, Kara Roslin. I should never have forgotten that."

Kara leaned in and tenderly kissed her wife, both of them feeling the electricity again. "I love you, too. I don't think you forgot, baby. I just think nothing has made any sense since the destruction of The Colonies. This is just another case of that."

For the first time in what seemed forever, they melted into a deep, passionate kiss, which became almost desperate in its intensity for the moment, but which subsided after a few moments. Twenty minutes later, they had changed into nightgowns, and were sound asleep, Kara snuggled against her wife.