Chapter One: The Continuing Journey
2262 CE
Group Commander Starbuck paced on the bridge of the Battlestar Traitor's Bane. He had not wanted the command of the small battlegroup, but Apollo, Fleet Commander, member of the Council of Twelve, and Starbuck's best friend, had asked him to. So, here he was, a half-yahren trip from the rest of the fleet defending the three worlds inhabited by the survivors of the twelve worlds.
Thirteen yahren ago, fifteen yahren after the start of the Great Journey, the Galactica, Pegasus, and their ragtag fleet had discovered an uninhabited world after managing to elude Cylon pursuit. The Council of Twelve had decided that it was time to stop. Most of the fleet could not continue any longer. The survivors settled on the planet, known as New Caprica. Adama died soon after as a result of wounds suffered in the final battle.
Tigh was elected to the head of the council and Apollo given the title of Fleet Commander. That fleet of two battlestars defending a single world expanded to seventeen battlestars defending three worlds. Group Commander Cain, with six of the battlestars defending New Gemini, had advocated an offensive against the Cylon advance elements, still searching for the last of the Humans. Three yahren ago, Apollo was beginning to agree with the aging Cain when disaster struck: Cylon basestars assaulted New Gemini. Cain's battlegroup repelled them easily, but offensive was now out of the question: the Colonial Fleet was stretched thin merely defending the three worlds and the vital trade and communication lanes between them.
For two yahren, Apollo conducted a masterful defense of the small nation. As more and more Cylon ships arrived, however, that defense became harder and harder. The only bright spot had been the death of Baltar during a raid on New Caprica. Every commander and group commander in the fleet knew that it would only be a matter before shear weight of numbers finished off the Colonial Fleet, and this time there were not enough transport ships to carry many people away. The colonials had to find Earth; they needed reinforcements to push back the Cylons. The Cylons were slowly pushing around the frontiers of the three worlds, surrounding the human worlds and cutting them off from the rest of the galaxy.
Seeing the last chance of his people disappearing, Apollo promoted Starbuck to group commander and gave him the four newest battlestars, the last battlestars the colonials had the population to man. He was to find Earth and bring back reinforcements for the Colonial Fleet. Had it not been for the urgency of the mission, Starbuck would have pleaded for his friend to let him stay in a Viper cockpit. He had been a pilot for over 30 yahren now, and that's where he wanted to stay. But after listening to the Fleet Commander describe the desperation of the situation, Starbuck had agreed to go. With three battlestars, Traitor's Bane, Adama's Remembrance, and Caprican Avenger, and a battlestar, Child of Libra, retrofitted as a freighter Starbuck was now searching for Earth and the help his people needed.
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President John Sheridan of the Interstellar Alliance was not a happy man. First, someone was raiding helpless cargo ships throughout the Alliance and the Rangers had yet to find the culprits after a month of searching. So, he had decided to take a look around for himself. Which brought him to problem two: the thousands of other problems that were going on throughout the Alliance that he couldn't do anything about because he was on a White Star in the middle of nowhere. Which lead to problem three: his wife, Delenn, was not in the middle of nowhere. She was at Babylon 5.
As the President quietly mulled on the present situation, the crew of White Star 3 flew her along the trade routes, hoping the raiders would reveal themselves. Well, it wasn't long before someone did.
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The freighter Merchant's Luck rocked from the two laser blasts that struck her engine, which shut down from the brutal punishment inflicted by the raider fighter. The other human freighter in the small convoy was already expanding debris and plasma. Strangely enough, the raiders had ignored the Gaim freighter. The communications officer on the freighter continued to transmit its distress call, hoping that some navy's ship would reveal themselves. Six of the most powerful ships in the galaxy did.
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"Mr. President, we have a distress signal from a human freighter. It reports it is under attack by unknown ships. They have including an image of one of the attacking ships, it does not match any known configurations."
"Thank you Mr. Ericson. Head towards that location and have White Stars 17 and 41 follow us in. I want White Star 17 to jump below the freighter, White Star 41 above, and jump us in close. Do not respond to the freighter's distress signal. I don't want the raiders running."
"Yes sir. Two minutes until we jump into normal space."
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"Group Commander, I'm receiving a signal sir!"
"Where is it coming from? Are they other colonials? Human?"
"Unknown sir. The message is in a language similar to Caprican though. The vessel is a freighter and it reports that it is under attack."
"Could it be a transport that got separated from the fleet before we reached New Caprica, sir?" That was Commander Rigel, CO of Traitor's Bane.
"I don't think so. It may be the Gemini 6 freighter; she was lost in our final battle with the Cylons before we eluded their pursuit and we never found any wreckage. But that ship was under fire from a dozen fighters and her hull integrity was down to almost nothing. I doubt she could have survived.
"Still, we should investigate; it looks like that vessel may be human and as warriors we are obliged to defend it. All vessels, set stealth mode and advance at flank speed."
"Yes Group Commander. Traitor's Bane has cloaked, other ships are complying."
"Sirs, the computer has identified an image that accompanied the signal; it is the vessel that is attacking the freighter. The computer is converting the image into a form compatible with our instruments. Here it is."
Starbuck and Rigel were both stunned when they saw the image. It was a vessel they had not seen since leaving New Caprica: a Cylon fighter.
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The distress signals were still emanating from the freighter when the three White Stars jumped into normal space. The Cylon fighters could have finished the freighter off long ago, but the vessel didn't match any colonial designs. The Cylons planned to tow the vessel to their basestar so the crew could be interrogated. If the possibility of other humans existed, the Imperious Leader had to know about it.
The White Stars surprised the Cylon fighters. In the first volley, nearly a dozen were downed. But 30 more still circled the crippled freighter and those fighters were larger than any other Sheridan had seen. The White Stars dove in and out of the Cylon fighter group, taking a few out each pass. The fighters were slow but heavily armed and the White Stars began to take damage.
In one sense, Sheridan was thrilled with the enemy he had found. They had destroyed the other human freighter, which fit the pattern seen in the recent raids: destruction not capture. In all likelihood, he had found the raiders. But where had they come from? Despite the size of the fighters, they couldn't form their own jump points. The raiders had to have a capital ship somewhere, but none were in sight.
White Star 17 took a volley of laser fire in her port engine. It exploded and the White Star went out of control, slamming into two of the raider fighters before she exploded. The raider fighters began to concentrate fire on White Star 3. White Star 41 tried to distract them, but the fighters attacked mercilessly. That's when the raider's capital ship appeared.
"Sir, I have one very large vessel on approach. It's launching more of the raider craft."
"How many?"
"Twenty and counting Mr. President."
"What about the capital ship itself?"
"About half again as long as an Warlock class destroyer and as tall as a Sharlin class war cruiser. It's also heavily armed with laser weapons. Based on the strength of the laser weapons on the fighters, I'd estimate that it's slightly more destructive than a Sharlin sir."
"Alright, get us out of here."
"Jump engines on White Star 41 took a hit during the battle. They won't be able to jump for 10 minutes. Should we proceed without them?"
"Negative. Just get us away from that cap ship."
"Yes..."
"Mr. President, get out of here!" The captain of White Star 41 had heard the conversation going on aboard White Star 3. "We'll catch up with you after our jump engines are repaired."
"Sir, I have four more capital ships on screen now. They didn't jump in though; I believe they were stealthed somehow. They are launching fighters."
"Get out of here now sir! There's too many of them!"
"I'm not leaving you behind. We can handle those fighters for a little while."
"Sorry Mr. President. We live for the One, we die for the One."
"Wait captain, stop!"
"Sir, White Star 41 has cut the channel."
The White Star raced towards the five capital ships. It was a suicide mission, but if she were destroyed, Sheridan would have no reason to stay and could retreat before the raider fighters got him. All aboard White Star 41 knew this was a moment they had been trained for, a time where they would be required to die.
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"Group Commander, we are within firing range of the Cylon basestar."
"Very good Commander, decloak, open fire, and launch fighters!"
"Aye aye sir!"
The four battlestars decloaked and launched their fighters. It would take several seconds for the main batteries of the battlestars to recharge after decloaking. The battlestars were enjoying a very rare advantage: the Cylons were outnumbered. Group Commander Starbuck knew a slaughter was about to occur.
"Main batteries ready to fire sir."
"Open fire!"
The three regular battlestars opened fire on the battlestar. The Child of Libra, with fewer weapons than the other battlestars, supported the Vipers against the Cylon fighters. The two White Stars were left alone.
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"Mr. President, the four new capital ships have opened fire on the raiders. White Star 41 is now firing on the raider capital ship."
Sheridan's spirits, which had plummeted after the loss of one of the White Stars and the valiant charge of the other, immediately rose.
"Mr. Ericson, advance on the enemy capital ships. Try to hail the four newcomers."
"With pleasure sir."
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The battle didn't last long. The battlestars and the White Stars made quick work of the basestar. The Cylon fighters didn't last much longer. They were swamped by Vipers and the fire of the battlestars after they finished with the basestar. "Group Commander, we are being hailed by the unknown vessels." The two unknown ships had withdrawn to defensive positions around the crippled freighter after the destruction of the basestar. "Put it on Commander." ".repeat, unidentified vessels. This is White Star 3 of the Interstellar Alliance. We thank you for your assistance. Please identify yourselves. Unidentified vessels, this is White Star 3." "White Star 3, this is Colonial Battlestar Traitor's Bane. We are configuring your signal for visual communication. Please stand by." Both Starbuck and Sheridan were stunned to be looking at a human face.
Group Commander Starbuck paced on the bridge of the Battlestar Traitor's Bane. He had not wanted the command of the small battlegroup, but Apollo, Fleet Commander, member of the Council of Twelve, and Starbuck's best friend, had asked him to. So, here he was, a half-yahren trip from the rest of the fleet defending the three worlds inhabited by the survivors of the twelve worlds.
Thirteen yahren ago, fifteen yahren after the start of the Great Journey, the Galactica, Pegasus, and their ragtag fleet had discovered an uninhabited world after managing to elude Cylon pursuit. The Council of Twelve had decided that it was time to stop. Most of the fleet could not continue any longer. The survivors settled on the planet, known as New Caprica. Adama died soon after as a result of wounds suffered in the final battle.
Tigh was elected to the head of the council and Apollo given the title of Fleet Commander. That fleet of two battlestars defending a single world expanded to seventeen battlestars defending three worlds. Group Commander Cain, with six of the battlestars defending New Gemini, had advocated an offensive against the Cylon advance elements, still searching for the last of the Humans. Three yahren ago, Apollo was beginning to agree with the aging Cain when disaster struck: Cylon basestars assaulted New Gemini. Cain's battlegroup repelled them easily, but offensive was now out of the question: the Colonial Fleet was stretched thin merely defending the three worlds and the vital trade and communication lanes between them.
For two yahren, Apollo conducted a masterful defense of the small nation. As more and more Cylon ships arrived, however, that defense became harder and harder. The only bright spot had been the death of Baltar during a raid on New Caprica. Every commander and group commander in the fleet knew that it would only be a matter before shear weight of numbers finished off the Colonial Fleet, and this time there were not enough transport ships to carry many people away. The colonials had to find Earth; they needed reinforcements to push back the Cylons. The Cylons were slowly pushing around the frontiers of the three worlds, surrounding the human worlds and cutting them off from the rest of the galaxy.
Seeing the last chance of his people disappearing, Apollo promoted Starbuck to group commander and gave him the four newest battlestars, the last battlestars the colonials had the population to man. He was to find Earth and bring back reinforcements for the Colonial Fleet. Had it not been for the urgency of the mission, Starbuck would have pleaded for his friend to let him stay in a Viper cockpit. He had been a pilot for over 30 yahren now, and that's where he wanted to stay. But after listening to the Fleet Commander describe the desperation of the situation, Starbuck had agreed to go. With three battlestars, Traitor's Bane, Adama's Remembrance, and Caprican Avenger, and a battlestar, Child of Libra, retrofitted as a freighter Starbuck was now searching for Earth and the help his people needed.
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President John Sheridan of the Interstellar Alliance was not a happy man. First, someone was raiding helpless cargo ships throughout the Alliance and the Rangers had yet to find the culprits after a month of searching. So, he had decided to take a look around for himself. Which brought him to problem two: the thousands of other problems that were going on throughout the Alliance that he couldn't do anything about because he was on a White Star in the middle of nowhere. Which lead to problem three: his wife, Delenn, was not in the middle of nowhere. She was at Babylon 5.
As the President quietly mulled on the present situation, the crew of White Star 3 flew her along the trade routes, hoping the raiders would reveal themselves. Well, it wasn't long before someone did.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------
The freighter Merchant's Luck rocked from the two laser blasts that struck her engine, which shut down from the brutal punishment inflicted by the raider fighter. The other human freighter in the small convoy was already expanding debris and plasma. Strangely enough, the raiders had ignored the Gaim freighter. The communications officer on the freighter continued to transmit its distress call, hoping that some navy's ship would reveal themselves. Six of the most powerful ships in the galaxy did.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------
"Mr. President, we have a distress signal from a human freighter. It reports it is under attack by unknown ships. They have including an image of one of the attacking ships, it does not match any known configurations."
"Thank you Mr. Ericson. Head towards that location and have White Stars 17 and 41 follow us in. I want White Star 17 to jump below the freighter, White Star 41 above, and jump us in close. Do not respond to the freighter's distress signal. I don't want the raiders running."
"Yes sir. Two minutes until we jump into normal space."
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"Group Commander, I'm receiving a signal sir!"
"Where is it coming from? Are they other colonials? Human?"
"Unknown sir. The message is in a language similar to Caprican though. The vessel is a freighter and it reports that it is under attack."
"Could it be a transport that got separated from the fleet before we reached New Caprica, sir?" That was Commander Rigel, CO of Traitor's Bane.
"I don't think so. It may be the Gemini 6 freighter; she was lost in our final battle with the Cylons before we eluded their pursuit and we never found any wreckage. But that ship was under fire from a dozen fighters and her hull integrity was down to almost nothing. I doubt she could have survived.
"Still, we should investigate; it looks like that vessel may be human and as warriors we are obliged to defend it. All vessels, set stealth mode and advance at flank speed."
"Yes Group Commander. Traitor's Bane has cloaked, other ships are complying."
"Sirs, the computer has identified an image that accompanied the signal; it is the vessel that is attacking the freighter. The computer is converting the image into a form compatible with our instruments. Here it is."
Starbuck and Rigel were both stunned when they saw the image. It was a vessel they had not seen since leaving New Caprica: a Cylon fighter.
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The distress signals were still emanating from the freighter when the three White Stars jumped into normal space. The Cylon fighters could have finished the freighter off long ago, but the vessel didn't match any colonial designs. The Cylons planned to tow the vessel to their basestar so the crew could be interrogated. If the possibility of other humans existed, the Imperious Leader had to know about it.
The White Stars surprised the Cylon fighters. In the first volley, nearly a dozen were downed. But 30 more still circled the crippled freighter and those fighters were larger than any other Sheridan had seen. The White Stars dove in and out of the Cylon fighter group, taking a few out each pass. The fighters were slow but heavily armed and the White Stars began to take damage.
In one sense, Sheridan was thrilled with the enemy he had found. They had destroyed the other human freighter, which fit the pattern seen in the recent raids: destruction not capture. In all likelihood, he had found the raiders. But where had they come from? Despite the size of the fighters, they couldn't form their own jump points. The raiders had to have a capital ship somewhere, but none were in sight.
White Star 17 took a volley of laser fire in her port engine. It exploded and the White Star went out of control, slamming into two of the raider fighters before she exploded. The raider fighters began to concentrate fire on White Star 3. White Star 41 tried to distract them, but the fighters attacked mercilessly. That's when the raider's capital ship appeared.
"Sir, I have one very large vessel on approach. It's launching more of the raider craft."
"How many?"
"Twenty and counting Mr. President."
"What about the capital ship itself?"
"About half again as long as an Warlock class destroyer and as tall as a Sharlin class war cruiser. It's also heavily armed with laser weapons. Based on the strength of the laser weapons on the fighters, I'd estimate that it's slightly more destructive than a Sharlin sir."
"Alright, get us out of here."
"Jump engines on White Star 41 took a hit during the battle. They won't be able to jump for 10 minutes. Should we proceed without them?"
"Negative. Just get us away from that cap ship."
"Yes..."
"Mr. President, get out of here!" The captain of White Star 41 had heard the conversation going on aboard White Star 3. "We'll catch up with you after our jump engines are repaired."
"Sir, I have four more capital ships on screen now. They didn't jump in though; I believe they were stealthed somehow. They are launching fighters."
"Get out of here now sir! There's too many of them!"
"I'm not leaving you behind. We can handle those fighters for a little while."
"Sorry Mr. President. We live for the One, we die for the One."
"Wait captain, stop!"
"Sir, White Star 41 has cut the channel."
The White Star raced towards the five capital ships. It was a suicide mission, but if she were destroyed, Sheridan would have no reason to stay and could retreat before the raider fighters got him. All aboard White Star 41 knew this was a moment they had been trained for, a time where they would be required to die.
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"Group Commander, we are within firing range of the Cylon basestar."
"Very good Commander, decloak, open fire, and launch fighters!"
"Aye aye sir!"
The four battlestars decloaked and launched their fighters. It would take several seconds for the main batteries of the battlestars to recharge after decloaking. The battlestars were enjoying a very rare advantage: the Cylons were outnumbered. Group Commander Starbuck knew a slaughter was about to occur.
"Main batteries ready to fire sir."
"Open fire!"
The three regular battlestars opened fire on the battlestar. The Child of Libra, with fewer weapons than the other battlestars, supported the Vipers against the Cylon fighters. The two White Stars were left alone.
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"Mr. President, the four new capital ships have opened fire on the raiders. White Star 41 is now firing on the raider capital ship."
Sheridan's spirits, which had plummeted after the loss of one of the White Stars and the valiant charge of the other, immediately rose.
"Mr. Ericson, advance on the enemy capital ships. Try to hail the four newcomers."
"With pleasure sir."
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The battle didn't last long. The battlestars and the White Stars made quick work of the basestar. The Cylon fighters didn't last much longer. They were swamped by Vipers and the fire of the battlestars after they finished with the basestar. "Group Commander, we are being hailed by the unknown vessels." The two unknown ships had withdrawn to defensive positions around the crippled freighter after the destruction of the basestar. "Put it on Commander." ".repeat, unidentified vessels. This is White Star 3 of the Interstellar Alliance. We thank you for your assistance. Please identify yourselves. Unidentified vessels, this is White Star 3." "White Star 3, this is Colonial Battlestar Traitor's Bane. We are configuring your signal for visual communication. Please stand by." Both Starbuck and Sheridan were stunned to be looking at a human face.