THE FLIGHT OF BELLEROPHON Chap. 7

"I'm sorry, sir, I didn't really see very much," Sharon said sadly to Commander Adama. "I just saw this incredible flash of light. I didn't actually see the Pegasus explode, but I didn't see her jump either. But I don't see how she could have survived. There was just too much firepower coming at her...Sorry, Mouse."

The other woman nodded miserably. Julia had been noticeably subdued since they had returned to the Galactica. She had actually done surprisingly well during the mission, keeping her mind focused and speaking only when it was required of her. She had hardly said a word since they had witnessed the Pegasus' apparent demise.

"Lt. Reynolds," Adama said to her gently, "Do you have anything to add to Lt. Valerii's report?"

"No, sir. I really didn't see anything at all. I was too busy with my radar screen which had suddenly gone completely haywire."

"Thoughts, gentlemen?" The commander asked, turning to address Col. Tigh, Lt. Gaeta, and Lee, who were also present for the debriefing.

"I'd say it's pretty obvious that the Pegasus was hit by an intense barrage of thermonuclear warheads, which, when combined with the meltdown of the Pegasus' own reactor, caused a massive explosion which destroyed the battlestar, but also took both basestars with it," Tigh said matter-of- factly. "Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Cain didn't deliberately blow her own reactor, with that very thought in mind."

The Pegasus, like the Galactica, was partly powered by its own nuclear reactor. The tyllium-based engines gave the ships their propulsion power, but the reactors powered most of the other ship systems, such as the computer systems, life support, etc.

"It's also possible that Cain pulled the same trick with the electric pulse generators that I did on Colonial One," Lee pointed out. "She knew the trick. We had discussed it a number of times. She could have activated the generators and the FTL at roughly the same time. I don't know if that would have worked, but hell, theoretically, it shouldn't have worked the first time."

"No, I don't think so," Tigh said, dismissing the suggestion. "If her FTL systems were still operational, why didn't she jump long before the Cylons flanked her?"

"By allowing the Cylons to flank her, she could then send out a brief pulse wave to confuse the inbound warheads, jump seconds later, and the Cylons destoy each other."

"Its possible," Lt. Gaeta said thoughtfully. "Our remote sensors picked up a definite debris field, but whether it was from two ships or three, there's no way to tell, aside from actually sifting through all that debris. But we are fairly certain that the two basestars, at least, were destroyed."

Tigh considered all this for a moment. "No, I don't think that's what happened," he said, at last, addressing Lee, "The timing on a scheme like what you're suggesting would be absolutely critical. And it would still be a hell of a gamble. No, I don't think even Bridget Cain had the stones to attempt something like that. No, face it, Captain, the Pegasus is gone."

Adama watched as Lee turned away from the older man seated beside him, the muscles of his jaw standing out sharply as he clenched his teeth, most likely working hard to bite back some bitter retort. The commander had to consciously force himself not to reach across the table and throttle his XO. While it was unfortunate, but understandable, that Tigh was oblivious to the pain his words and tone were causing the captain, surely the colonel was aware of the affect they would have on Lt. Reynolds, who was sitting at the end of the table, pale and shaken. One day soon, Adama thought, he would need to have a chat with his second about his lack of tact.

Heaving a heavy sigh, the commander said, as gently as he could, "I'm afraid that I must agree with Col. Tigh. It is highly unlikely that the Pegasus survived. I see no compelling evidence that would warrant attempting a search for her. If, by some miracle, she did survive, we shall simply have to hope that she can find us again."

He looked down the table at Julia, who now had tears flowing freely down her cheeks. He saw Sharon put a comforting hand on the other woman's arm. He turned to look at Lee, across the table, but the younger man still had his face turned away.

"Very well, I will be making a formal ship-wide statement within the hour," Adama continued. "This briefing is finished. You are all dismissed." He reached over and clicked off the recording device that had made the official record for the ship's archival log. As they were all standing to leave, the commander called out to his son, "Captain, a moment of your time?"

Lee stopped, already halfway to the door, and turned back to his father. "Uh, I'm sorry, sir, but can it wait? I have a number of pilots who are anxiously waiting for the official word on the Pegasus. I'd like to address them before your announcement. They should hear this news from me, not the P.A. system."

"Yes, of course, you're right. We can talk later, after I've made the announcement."

"Thank you, sir."

~*~*~*~

"Hello, ladies," Dr. Baltar said, smiling at the two young female officers who passed him, dressed in their sport bras and sweat pants. They were obviously on their way to the Galactica's small gym for a workout.

He was feeling pretty good at the moment. Adama had not seen the fake program. The Pegasus was gone, apparently blown up, so there was no chance of anyone questioning the disappearance of Lt. Athens. It appeared that all of his problems had taken care of themselves. Now, if he could just get the image of those lovely, green eyes out of his head, he might actually get some sleep sometime soon.

He was headed for the small room, with its attached bathroom, that was laughingly referred to as a guest suite, to which he had been assigned. At least, he hoped that he was headed that way. He stopped for a moment and looked around. Yes, this corridor looked familiar, but then again, they all looked familiar, because, they all looked essentially alike. He was about to continue on his way, when he heard someone call his name. Turning, he saw Billy Something-or-other, the president's aide, approaching him.

"Dr. Baltar, the president would like to speak to you," the young man said, a bit breathlessly, having run down the long corridor to catch up to the older man.

"Well, can't it wait?" Gaius asked, a bit irritated. "It's very late."

"No, sir, I'm sorry, but the president insisted that she see you immediately. She would have summoned you earlier, but she only just now got back on board the Galactica."

"Oh, very well," Gaius said, reluctantly. "Lead on."

Within fifteen minutes, they were standing outside the door to the president's office. The two armed guards were once again stationed on either of the hatch. They allowed Billy and the doctor to enter unchallenged and unannounced, obviously expecting them. Inside the wardroom, Gaius found Pres. Roslin seated at the conference table, leafing through some papers. She set them aside, looked up at him and smiled warmly.

"Ah, Dr. Baltar. It's nice to see you again," she said, not standing. "I'm very sorry to keep you from your bed at such a late hour, but I thought it would be best if you and I had a discussion about a few things as soon as possible. Please, have a seat." Turning to address Billy, she said, "You can go on to bed now, Billy. I'll see you in the morning."

Gaius pulled out a chair across the table from her and lowered himself into it. "So, what is it that we need to discuss at this ungodly hour?" he asked, after the younger man had left the room.

"Well, I'd like to discuss some of the surprising information that has been revealed these last few days. Revealed to me, at any rate. You didn't seem very surprised during our little strategy meeting here, the other day, when Adama shared his secret about possible Cylon spies."

"Uh, well, no, he had confided in me, so that I could help him find a way to detect those spies."

"Oh, yes, your Cylon detector program."

"Yes," Gaius said, suddenly uncomfortable with the way she was smiling at him.

"You know, I must confess that it greatly distresses me that the commander would confide in you with something like that, but not to me. I am the president, shouldn't I have been told about the possibility of Cylon spies?"

"Uh, yes, I-I suppose you should have, but it wasn't my decision to make. I was sworn to secrecy. You really should be talking to the commander about this."

"I would if I thought it would make the slightest difference."

"You don't trust Adama?"

"It's not a matter of trusting or not. Adama seems to have this idea that I can't handle certain things. I don't know if it's because I'm a woman or because I'm a civilian, or both. Regardless, I am the president. I don't need to be patronized, I need to be informed."

"Yes, well, I can certainly understand your frustration, but I'm not sure what it is that you want me to do about it."

"It's very simple, Doctor. The commander seems to confide in you, to consult you. All I ask, is that when he does, you pass any pertinent information along to me."

"Y-you want me to s-spy on Commander Adama?" Gaius asked incredulously.

"Spy is such an ugly word, don't you think? I prefer to think of it as... you keeping me in the loop. You agreed that I should be kept informed, didn't you? How am I supposed to make the best decisions for our people, if I don't have all the facts?"

"Yes, Madam President, I do agree with you," Gaius said, not really caring one way or another about what the president wanted or needed, as he didn't see how any of it affected him. "But I'm just a scientist. I really don't see that it's my place to get involved in your political machinations with the commander."

"Mmm, I'm sorry you feel that way, Doctor, because I'm not giving you a choice. You will do as I ask."

"Oh? I must tell you, Madam President, that I do not like being threatened. Nor do I think that you are in any position to do so. What little authority you have is granted to you only by the grace of Commander Adama. Without his battlestar, you would have no way to assert your authority. Now, as you have already stated, the commander confides in me. He trusts me. He obviously does not entirely trust you. So, what's to stop me from simply telling him about this conversation?"

"This," she said calmly, sliding the small stack of papers she had been flipping through earlier, across the table towards him. Picking them up, he saw, to his horror, that it was his fake Cylon detector program.

"I see that you recognize it. I thought you would," Pres. Roslin continued. "Now, I may not be a computer programmer, but I do know a fake when I see one. You'll note that it is not the original copy. I have that tucked safely away. In fact, you can keep this one, if you'd like. You see, Doctor, I understand completely the tenuous nature of my authority and that is why I am attempting to do something about it. And the first step toward achieving that end is making sure that I am fully informed about every crisis. And that is where you come in, Doctor.

"Now, I'm sorry that you don't like being threatened, but I don't like people who would allow, much less encourage, the use of potential innocents as scapegoats. And I'm guessing that Commander Adama would fee the same way... So, you have a choice. You can help me or I go and have a chat with the commander."

"Where did you get it?" Gaius asked numbly.

"From Lt. Athens. She asked me to give it to Adama for her. Obviously, I didn't... You know, it was awfully convenient for you that the Pegasus was destroyed, wasn't it? Now Lt. Athens can't blow the whistle on you, can she? Lucky for me, she was a smart girl, who planned ahead."

Gaius didn't say anything. He just continued to stare miserably at the table.

"I understand that this has probably come as a bit of a shock to you," Roslin said. "Why don't you take a few days to think about it? Take your time. Just so long as you let me know if you and the commander discuss anything of importance. That's all. You can leave now."

Once he was outside the wardroom and back in the corridor leading to his quarters, the tall, platinum blonde made her appearance at his side.

"Well, well, I never would have thought that the schoolteacher would prove to have so much mettle. Very interesting," she purred.

"Oh, well, I'm so glad that one of us is enjoying this."

"Relax, Gaius, think about it. You're now in the perfect position to play them against each other. This could be downright fun."

~*~*~*~

Lee sat on his bed, staring numbly into space. He really needed to get some sleep. He was completely exhausted, mentally, physically, emotionally, but somehow sleep just wouldn't seem to come. Although it had only been a few hours, it felt like a lifetime ago, that he and Bridget had made lo-, no, had sex, in this very bed. Now she was gone, again. It was like she had never really been here at all. As if it had all been some bizarre wet dream. He didn't feel sad, and he supposed that he probably should. He just felt numb and empty.

He tensed slightly at the sound of the knock on his door. "Come in," he called out, after a moment's hesitation.

He relaxed visibly as Kara cautiously entered the room. Seeing his reaction, she asked, "Did you think it was going to be your father?"

Lee gave her one of his wry half-smiles in answer.

"Okay, so, do you hate me now?" she asked bluntly, somewhat bothered by his silence.

"No, I don't hate you," he said, with a sigh. "It's a little hard to hate someone who just saved your life. Again."

"What, that thing with the two Cylons on your ass? That was nothing, just part of the job," she said, waving a hand at him, dismissing his thanks. "We all look out for each other."

He nodded. "Yeah, well, thank you for doing your job so well... So, is this what you're going to do every time you piss me off? Save my life, so I can't stay mad at you?"

"Well, hey, it works for me and it's a hell of a lot easier than apologizing," she said, moving to sit beside him on the bed. As she did, she deliberately bumped his shoulder with hers. "Besides, you know that you can never stay mad at me. You love me too much."

"Yeah, lucky for you."

"So, are you okay? I mean, you're not going to pine away for her or anything, are you?"

"No, I didn't pine for her before. I'm not going to start now. Besides, I don't think she's really dead. I think she pulled the same trick that I did on Colonial One and she jumped during the confusion. She's still alive out there. We'll see her again."

"Do you really believe that?"

"Yes, I do. I have to, for my own sanity."

"Okay. I just didn't want to come in here and have to slap some sense into you or anything."

"Right, thanks," he said dryly. "There is something that is bothering me, though. I would really like to know where, the hell, you get off thinking that you have the right to interfere in my personal life?"

Despite the harshness of his words, his tone was conversational, so Kara also kept her tone light. "Look, Lee, it was a bad situation for you. We both know it, even if you don't want to admit it. Remember, I was in the room for most of those phone calls that you had with Zac. You two used to talk for hours about her and I remember him repeatedly telling you that you needed to transfer off the Pegasus. It was an inappropriate relationship and she had no business putting you in that position..."

"Would that inappropriate relationship be anything like your relationship with Zac?" Lee interrupted her in mid-tirade, just as she was getting warmed up. "You know, him being a flight student and you being an instructor?"

That took the wind right out of her sails. "That was different, Lee, and you know it. Zac and I were together before I became an instructor and before he became a student. And he was never actually in any of my classes."

"You tested him for his Basic Flight fitness and you admitted, yourself, that your relationship with him affected your decision. That would be why those kinds of relationships aren't permitted. The only reason you two got away with it, was because of Zac's last name and because you were such a good instructor."

"Lee..."

"No, Kara, I'm not blaming you or trying to bring up painful memories," he interrupted quickly. "I'm just making the point, that you are hardly in a position to judge me."

After a moment of reflection, she said, "Okay, point taken, but, Lee, I wasn't trying to judge you. Her, yes. You, no. I was just trying to watch your back. You seem to have this rather dangerous habit of putting yourself in these vulnerable positions, both in the cockpit and out of it. If you're not going to protect that fine ass of yours, then I guess it's up to me to."

He raised his eyebrows as he stared at her for a moment. "That's awfully presumptuous of you."

"Yeah. Did you forget who you were talking to?"

"Hmm, good point."

The two sat in comfortable silence for a long moment, before Kara asked, "So, are we good?"

"Yeah, we're good."

"Good... So, I take it that you and your father haven't talked about it yet?"

"No, but I'm sure that's coming."

"Yeah, he was pretty stunned when I let that little time bomb about you and Cain slip. I am really sorry about that, by the way."

"Good, you should be," Lee said lightly. "Your timing certainly couldn't have been any worse."

"Oh? What, did he interrupt while you guys were in the middle of doing it or something?" Kara asked jokingly.

When he cast her a steady, sidelong glance, she began to realize just how close to the mark her comment had hit.

"Oh, my Lords, he came to your door while you two were having sex?"

"Well, we were done, but close enough," Lee said, his cheeks beginning to redden. "The problem is, that he didn't knock. He just walked in."

Kara gasped and clapped her hands over her mouth in a vain attempt to stifle her laugh.

"That's not funny, Kara," he said, although he was starting to smile as well. "That's so not funny. I almost had heart failure."

After a few seconds, she could no longer contain herself and she burst out laughing. He quickly joined her and they were soon both breathless and crying. Several minutes later, her sides aching and still snickering slightly, Kara wiped at the tears streaming down her cheeks and tried to regain her breath. Looking over at Lee, who was doing the same thing, she realized that she couldn't remember when she had last heard him laugh. She'd heard him chuckle a bit, or more often, he'd just flash that trademark wry, half-smile of his, but she hadn't heard him laugh, truly laugh, since before Zac had died. She'd forgotten what a nice sound it was.

He looked up at her and, as it so often happens, as soon as they made eye contact, they were off again, laughing uncontrollably. Their laughter was audible even outside the room as Adama approached his son's closed door. He recognized the female laugh and had to smile to himself. He had been quite concerned that Lee might have taken Cain's apparent death badly, but Adama should have known that Kara would not stand for that.

He knocked on the door, but there was no response besides the laughter. They probably couldn't hear him. Although he was now quite reluctant to simply walk into Lee's room without an invitation, this time, Adama was reasonably certain that nothing sexual was going on. He had to admit that he would have been much more comfortable with the thought of Lee sleeping with Kara than Bridget Cain, but he still wouldn't want to walk in on it. Granted, he also didn't want to stand around outside the door all evening, waiting for them to work through their laughter.

Reluctantly, he opened the hatch and stepped into the room. Seeing the two pilots sitting together on the bed, he couldn't resist saying, "Well, this is the second time that I've caught you in bed with a beautiful woman."

"Hello, Commander," Kara said, smiling warmly at him. She turned to look back at Lee. "Well, I'd say that's my cue to leave."

"Oh, no, you can stay, Kara," Lee said quickly, still chuckling slightly.

"No, she can't," Adama said softly.

Both younger officers sobered instantly. They exchanged glances and Kara gave Lee's arm an encouraging squeeze as she stood to leave. She stopped beside the commander as she was heading out the door.

"Go easy on him, sir, he's had a pretty emotionally rough couple of days," she whispered.

"I'll keep that in mind," he said, with a slight smile. "Have a good night, Starbuck. You did a damn fine job out there today."

"Yeah, I know. Good night, sir."

After she had gone, Adama walked over to Lee's desk and pulled out the chair, turning it so that he could sit in it backwards and lean his forearms against the backrest while facing his son. Lee was sitting cross- legged on the bed, leaning his back against the wall and looking distinctly uncomfortable.

"We need to talk about you and Cain," Adama said, breaking the long, uneasy silence.

Lee nodded, but said nothing.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because it was over."

"No, why didn't you tell me then, when it was first happening?"

"Well, considering how you're taking it now, three years after the fact, what would you have done if I had told you then?"

"I'd have brought her up on formal charges before a court martial!"

"Yeah, that would be why I didn't tell you... Look, if it makes you feel any better, I never told Mom either."

"Lee, I find out that you've done something like this and it makes me feel like I don't really know you at all."

"Maybe you never did!"

Lee took a deep breath. He hadn't meant that to come out as harshly as it had. He and his father were getting along much better than they had in years and he didn't want to mess things up now by slipping into his old habit of getting angry. It was a defensive mechanism he had with this father. Whenever a topic that Lee deemed too personal or painful to discuss with his father came up, he would get angry, say something hateful, and thus effectively end the discussion. Lee didn't want to do that anymore. He was honestly making an effort to reconnect with his father, but sometimes it was just so hard.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean that to sound so harsh."

"Lee, I know this is uncomfortable for you, but I need to understand how this could have happened. What were you thinking? How could you have been so irresponsible? An affair like that could have destroyed your career."

"I know and I don't really know how it happened. I didn't understand it then and I still don't... I don't know, maybe on some level, I did it to spite you."

"Who initiated this relationship?"

"Dad, don't..."

"Who?"

Lee sighed. He knew where this line of questioning was headed and he didn't like it, but neither was he going to lie to his father.

"She did."

"Did she pressure you? Did she order you?"

"No! Dad, you can't place all the blame on her for what happened. I understood the possible consequences of my actions and I still did it."

"How could you truly have understood? Lee, you were a 24-year-old rookie, right out of Viper training. She was your commanding officer. Don't tell me that she didn't take advantage of you!"

"It wasn't like that. I knew what I was doing."

It was obvious from Adama's expression that he wasn't buying it. "Then why did you ask to be transferred off the Pegasus?"

Lee groaned. Lords, this interrogation was getting more painful by the minute. Why wouldn't the man just let it drop? "Because I came to my senses... and ...because I found out that I wasn't the only one she had slept with. I became concerned that her reasons for offering me a commission had nothing to do with my skills as a pilot...Dad, it's over. Despite... what you walked in on, it was over three years ago. And now that she's... gone. It's definitely over. So, could we, please, just let it go?"

"I'm sorry, Lee, it's just that Zac and I always talked about these things. I always knew what was going on in his love life."

"Well, that's not really fair. The only woman Zac was ever with, was Kara."

"True, but all this has made me realize that, except for Bridget Cain, I have absolutely no idea who you have ever been with. I don't even know who you've ever dated. Shouldn't a father, at least, be aware of these things?"

"Are you asking me to relate my entire sexual history to you?"

"Yes- no! I mean... no... Oh, I don't know..."

"Dad, what exactly is it that you want to know?"

Adama sighed heavily. "Your mother and I taught you and Zac to be responsible. We taught you to respect women, and yourselves, to not simply give yourselves away. Lee, you were always the mature one, the levelheaded one. It never occurred to me that you could ever behave so irresponsibly. But I see now, that I was wrong. Now, for my own sanity, I need to know what other mistakes are in your past. I'm sorry, Lee, but I need to know."

At 28, Lee felt that a discussion with his father about his sex life, was wholly inappropriate and he greatly resented his father's questions. Maybe if they had had this conversation when he was 16, it would have been all right. But, then again, considering that at 16, Lee had had no sex life to discuss, the topic had never come up. But now, it was entirely too late. But Lee wanted to keep the, sometimes strained, lines of communication open with his father, so with an effort, he kept his temper in check.

He was silent for a long time, digesting his father's words. Eventually, he said, "All right, how about this... I didn't lose my virginity until after I had left for the Officer's Academy. The actual event did not occur under your roof and, including that person and Bridget Cain, I can count the number of women I have slept with, on one hand. Does that answer your question?"

"Yes, it does." The relief was plain in Adama's voice.

"Glad to hear it. Now, please, tell me that this conversation is over, because I don't think I can take much more of this."

"Yes, we're done," Adama said, chuckling. "Oh, there is one other thing. Did you really throw up in someone's helmet just before your Viper flight trials?"

Oh, Lords, Lee groaned, dropping his face into his hands. Kill me now! Please, just kill me now!

~THE END~

*Whew! It's done. Woohoo! I've never written anything this long and involved before (at least, not something I wasn't planning on trying to get published) and I don't know that I'll be doing it again anytime soon. I've also never written anything that dealt with this many characters and sub- plots. Anyway, thanks to everyone who read and reviewed and stuck with it. I hope it was worth it.

~Libby (