8/3/04
GOD IS LOVE
Chapter 2
Reading through the reports in his hands as he walked, William Adama's awareness of his surroundings extended only far enough to allow him to navigate the hallways without mishap. It constantly amazed him that Dr. Baltar still occasionally somehow managed to get himself lost on the ship. With his own mind half occupied with other matters, Adama was still able to quickly and easily find his way to the pilots' quarters.
He had some suggestions for Lee regarding the way that the captain was rotating his pilots in their patrols. Adama would not normally become involved in such matters, but he knew that Lee was still inexperienced and was still struggling somewhat in making the transition to CAG. The young man had shown himself to be open to this father's tactful suggestions. But more importantly, it simply gave Adama an excuse to go and visit with his son. Their relationship had still not yet progressed to the point where Adama felt comfortable just dropping by his son's quarters to chat without having some pretext of a reason for the visit.
Stopping in front of the door to Lee's quarters, he knocked briskly. There was a very long pause. Thinking that perhaps the captain was not in after all, the commander was about to walk away, when the hatch finally opened slightly. Adama was quick to note that Lee's short hair was ruffled, his clothes looked hastily donned and he was being very careful to open the door only as wide as he had to, making sure that his father would not be able to see much past him.
"Uh, Commander, can I help you?"
Glancing quickly behind him and seeing that the door to the pilots' barracks was closed, Adama tried to keep the smile off his face. "Yes, I thought we could discuss the rotation of the patrols. It'll only take a minute or two. May I come in?" he asked innocently.
The commander almost laughed out loud at the sudden flush of panic that reddened his son's cheeks and widened his eyes.
"Uh, now really isn't a good time for this," Lee said quickly. "Can't it wait until... tomorrow?"
Adama smiled indulgently at his son. "You're not alone, are you?"
"Um... no sir," the young man admitted reluctantly.
"I didn't think so. Very well, it can wait. Have a good night, Son," Adama said, smiling and starting to walk away. He hadn't missed the look of complete relief on Lee's face. "Oh, and Lee?" he called, stopping to turn back to his son.
"Yes sir?"
"Tell Kara good night as well."
He chuckled at the confused look on Lee's face and gave him a quick, knowing wink, before he turned and headed back out of general quarters. Got 'em! he thought triumphantly. He had wanted to catch them in the act for quite a while now... well, not literally, in the act. But hopefully now that they knew that he knew and they knew that he didn't mind, they would stop being so secretive, at least with him. He was happy for them. He wanted them to know that as well. Sighing contentedly, he returned to perusing the reports still in his hands. He hadn't walked more than ten meters from the pilots' quarters, when he became aware of someone approaching him, coming from the opposite direction.
"Hey, commander!" a bright, familiar female voice called to him.
"Hey, Starbuck," he called back automatically, without even an upward glance. Realizing what he had just said, he stopped abruptly in the hallway. "Starbuck!" he called, turning to look at her.
"Yes sir?" she asked, stopping also. She was wearing sweatpants and a baggy gray t-shirt. Her hair was damp and she had a towel thrown over her shoulder.
"You just came from the showers?" he asked.
"Yes sir..."
"I see... Yes, well, carry on," he said, turning and resuming his walk toward his own quarters. He found that his good mood had suddenly evaporated.
The next morning, Adama was in the officer's mess. Seeing Kara sitting alone at a table, flipping through paperwork, he went to join her. Making himself comfortable in the chair opposite her, they exchanged morning greetings. Neither greeting was particularly cheerful, as the commander had much on his mind and Kara was not a morning person, especially not now that coffee was no longer available to her. They sat in easy companionable silence for a long moment.
It was Adama who finally broke that silence. "All those rumors that have been floating around the ship about you and Lee are completely untrue, aren't they?" he asked without preamble.
Kara looked up quickly, about to make some vehement comment about the rumors, but seeing the serious look on his face, she said simply, "Yes sir, they are completely untrue."
He sighed and nodded sadly. "I guess I was rather hoping that..."
"I know, sir, and I'm sorry, but Lee and I have been friends for too long. Hell, we were almost brother and sister-in-law. I just don't see anything beyond that. From what I've seen of Lee, he feels the same way."
"You know that I really did have my heart set on you becoming my daughter-in-law," he said softly.
"I know and you have no idea how much that means to me. But I really don't see it happening. I'm sorry," she said, laying a hand on his forearm.
He sighed and nodded again. "But Lee is sleeping with someone and you know who it is, don't you?"
"Yes, I do, but I'm not going to tell you. I got myself into trouble once that way and I'm not doing it again... Hey, I have a novel idea!" she said brightly, her eyes wide. "If you really want to know who Lee's sleeping with... ask him!"
Adama smiled at her sarcasm. "If only it was so simple. We both know that he'll just tell me that it's none of my business. And it isn't. I know that... I guess I just wish that he would confide in me. But he never has before, why would he suddenly start now? And, as you know, he hasn't always made the best choices... Can you at least tell me if you approve of her? And would I?"
"Yes, I approve of her," Kara answered, ignoring the other half of his question.
Noting this omission, but choosing not to comment on it, Adama said, "Well, I guess I'll have to be content with that."
"Talk to him, sir. Maybe that would put your mind at ease."
"Mmm, maybe..."
Later that evening, deciding to follow Kara's suggestion, Adama went to Lee's quarters to attempt to talk to his son. Arriving at his room, the commander found the door already partially open. Knocking, as he pushed it further open, he stepped inside. He found Lee working at the small desktop computer. The younger man looked up as his father entered and hastily stood to attention in the presence of his commanding officer.
Adama smiled and gestured for the captain to resume his seat. "Relax, Lee, this isn't an official visit. It's a paternal one," he said. "Do you mind the interruption?"
"Uh, no sir, that's fine," Lee said cautiously.
"Good," Adama said, closing the door behind him and walking over to take a seat on the bed, the only other place to sit in the small room.
Lee swivled his chair around to face his father. "What can I do for you, sir?"
The elder man sighed. Even alone together, in a closed room, Lee's cool manner toward his father was only marginally less formal than it was when they were standing on the bridge, surrounded by other officers. It seemed to Adama that no matter how many times he tried to reach out to his son, he couldn't seem to get past that impregnable shell that Lee had built around himself. Oh, their relationship was certainly less frosty than it had been a year ago and they nearly always managed to be civil to each other these days, but there was still this barrier between them that Adama wasn't sure how to scale.
He felt a pang of jealousy at the thought that his son had found intimacy with some unknown woman and yet couldn't even manage to confide in his father enough to tell him about the relationship, let alone the identity of the mysterious woman. A father shouldn't have to track his son down and demand such information, should he? Unless, of course, the son already knew that the woman in question would be unacceptable to the father, he thought uncomfortably.
Realizing that Lee was waiting for him to speak, Adama said, "I, uh, spoke to Kara this morning. We talked about you and this woman that you're obviously seeing. Don't worry, Kara didn't tell me anything. She told me that I should talk to you. So, here I am. Do you want to talk about it or her?"
"Dad, I would have told you about it, but it's not just up to me. I have to respect her wishes too and she doesn't want anyone to know."
"Kara knows," Adama pointed out, realizing that he was sounding a bit petulant.
"Yes, but I didn't tell her."
"Ah, so it's not that this woman doesn't want anyone to know, she doesn't want me to know, am I right?"
"Well, yes," Lee said sheepishly.
"Why doesn't she want me to know who she is?"
"Well, you are the commander. You have the authority to make her life difficult if you choose to."
"And why would I do that? Does she think I'm some kind of an ogre?"
"No, of course, not, she's just being cautious."
"Cautious? Or she knows that I would disapprove of her. Would I disapprove of her?"
"I don't know," Lee said evasively. "Dad, please, I don't want to have this conversation. If it had been up to me, I would have told you, but I am going to respect her wishes. I'm sorry."
A light tap on the door spared Lee from any further interrogations from his father. "Come in," the young man called out gratefully.
The hatch door swung open and Laura stepped inside. Seeing the senior Adama, she paused for a moment, but only for a moment, before recovering and saying smoothly, "Ah Commander, here you are. I was hoping to run into you. I need to speak to you and Capt. Apollo about the maintenance schedule for the fleet-."
"Uh, yes, Madam President, but I'm afraid that I have some business that I need to attend to at the moment," Adama said quickly.
He, of course, had no such business, but he truly hated discussing the maintenance of the fleet with the president. The woman could be as stubborn and demanding as a spoiled child when it came to the upkeep of 'her' ships. Lee had proven to be the much more patient mediator in this area. Somehow he seemed to be able to talk to the president without losing his temper, which was much more than either Adama or Tigh could manage most of the time. Adama hoped that Lee would not be too upset with his father for abandoning him to deal with the president. Glancing over at his son and seeing the slightly amused look on his face, Adama realized that the younger man was probably simply relieved to have the discussion ended.
"I'm sure that Capt. Apollo can help you out much better than I can," Adama continued. "Now, if you'll both excuse me, I should get going."
With a grateful smile at his son, the older man quickly fled from the room, closing the door behind him. As he was about to head back out into the main corridor, the door to the pilots' barracks opened and a small, female emerged, nearly walking into the commander. She checked herself at the last moment and looked up at her commanding officer.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, sir," she said quickly, sketching a brief salute. "I didn't know you were there."
Seeing the Pegasus patch on the shoulder of her flight suit, he recognized her as Lt. Reynolds.
"That's quite all right, Lieutenant... Uh, it's 'Mouse', isn't it?"
"Yes sir," she said, with a sheepish grin. "Uh, were you just talking to Capt. Apollo, sir?"
Having already heard about Lt. Reynolds and her tendency to speak before thinking, he decided to ignore the impertinence of her question and simply take it at face value. "Yes, I was," he answered.
"Oh, good, then CAG's in his quarters. I've been meaning to speak to him for a couple of days now, but I keep missing him."
"Well, actually, the captain is meeting with the president at the moment. Perhaps you should wait for a few minutes."
"Again?" Mouse asked, her eyes wide.
"What do you mean 'again'?"
"Well, I've noticed that Pres. Roslin seems to be spending a great deal of time in Capt. Apollo's room. I suppose that they have a lot to talk about, since they both deal with the civilian ships, but, I swear, I've seen her going into his room at all hours of the day and night. I can't imagine what they would have to discuss in the middle of the night. But, oh well, it's none of my business, I suppose," she said breezily. Glancing down at her watch, she exclaimed, "Oh wow, I didn't realize it was so late. I'm sorry, sir, I have to go or I'll be late for my patrol. Good evening, sir." Without waiting for his dismissal, she headed out into the main corridor.
Adama watched after her for a minute, trying to ingest the flood of her words. One thing she had said did stick out quite clearly in his mind; Roslin frequently visited Lee in the middle of the night. Turning back to glare at Lee's closed door, the commander knocked sharply. The pause that followed was probably not excessively long, but to the already suspicious Adama, it seemed like an eternity. And when Lee finally opened the door, his father was quick to note that the young man's uniform shirt was now partially unbuttoned. Glancing past Lee, he saw that Roslin had removed the jacket of her burgundy suit.
At any other time, Adama admitted to himself, he would probably not even have taken notice of these small departures from proper dress, but after his conversation with Mouse and knowing full well that not five minutes ago, both Roslin and Lee had been fully dressed, he found that his paternal anger was becoming aroused. Pushing the door further open and brushing past Lee, Adama entered the room. Recognizing the look in his father's eyes, the younger man said nothing but closed the door behind them.
"So, what exactly was it that you came here to discuss with my son?" the commander asked, addressing Roslin quietly.
"I think you know why I cam here or you wouldn't be asking," she said calmly.
"So, you're the one that Lee's been sleeping with? It's all over the ship, you know."
"Yes, I am. I suppose you have a problem with this? With my age?"
"With your health," Adama corrected.
"And what do you know about my health?" Laura asked, her eyes narrowing.
"It's a small ship, secrets are hard to keep. It's been noted that you've been spending a great deal of time in Life Station. You've lost weight recently, more so than the rest of us. Your health isn't good, is it?"
"No, it isn't," she confirmed, matching his calm, dispassionate tone. "I have cancer and Lee is perfectly well aware of it."
Without so much as a glance at Lee, Adama asked, "And you would begin a relationship with my son, knowing full well that it will only cause him pain?"
"Excuse me," Lee interrupted indignantly, "but do I get to take part in this conversation or should I just leave you two to continue this without me?"
The commander glanced back, casting an irritated look at his son. He had to admit that he would have preferred to have the discussion without Lee being present, but it was too late for that. And he couldn't exactly ask Lee to leave his own room.
"There are two of us involved in this relationship," Lee continued, stepping around his father to stand beside Laura. "And it wasn't all Laura's instigation. I am perfectly capable of making my own decisions."
"That may be," Adama said, "but she should never have let it get to this point. She should ha-."
"Stop blaming her!" Lee snapped. "She tried to end it. I was the one who pushed for it. So, if you want to get angry with someone, get angry with me!"
"Stop it, both of you!" Laura said quickly, hating the fact that she was the cause of this additional strain on the two men's already dysfunctional relationship. "Commander, I'm sorry that you don't approve of Lee and I being together, but your disapproval won't change anything."
With a sigh, Adama turned away from Roslin to attempt a last appeal to his son. "Lee, I'm not trying to manipulate your life." He chose to ignore the scowl and derisive snort this statement provoked from Lee. "I'm trying to protect you. This relationship is only going to end in heartache for you. Haven't you seen enough death and pain? Must you go out of your way to subject yourself to more? How can I ignore this? How could I call myself a good father if I didn't try to keep you from getting hurt?"
"How can you call yourself a good father at all?" Lee spat vehemently. "You were never even there! You never gave a damn about what went on in my personal life before. I don't know why you suddenly think it's your business now. It's a little late to suddenly decide you want to start playing daddy, don't you think?"
Adama stepped back from the venom in his son's words as if Lee had struck him a physical blow. The words had wounded him deeply; as he was sure they had been meant to. Without another word, he turned and left the room.
As soon as the door closed behind his father, Lee felt all the anger drain out of his body, leaving him feeling completely exhausted. Why, the hell, couldn't he control his mouth around his father? He had always prided himself on his ability to control his emotions, but somehow, whenever his father was involved all of that careful control seemed to go right out the window. With a sigh, he sank down on the edge of the bed. Laura sat down beside him and rested her chin on his shoulder.
"I'm so sorry," she said softly.
"What are you apologizing for? You were the only one behaving like an adult."
"I was the cause of the argument."
"No, he was the cause," Lee said. "He has no business interfering in my personal life. Granted, I shouldn't have reacted that way, but Lords, the man gets under my skin!"
"Perhaps the two of you are simply too much alike."
"What?" Lee asked, turning to her, his expression incredulous. "I am nothing like him!"
"Yes, you're right, nevermind," she said quickly, kissing him in order to distract him and hopefully avoid causing a second argument.
The next afternoon, since Lee had the entire day off, he and Laura went to The Bird of Paradise to speak with Enoch. They found the prophet seated on the floor of the main room of his suite. He was sitting cross-legged, with his eyes closed and seemed to be meditating. It was his assistant, Maeve, who had opened the door for them. She put a finger to her lips and gestured to the priest.
"The prophet will be with you in a moment," she said softly.
Laura nodded and she and Lee stood silently, awaiting their audience. There was no one else in the suite today and Laura wondered where all of the prophet's little followers had gone to. Looking at Enoch, she noted that he was wearing the same pair of wrinkled, threadbare khaki trousers and, today, an equally disheveled, white dress shirt, its tails left untucked and the sleeves rolled up past his elbows. She glanced over at Lee, who was looking around the room with interest, his blue eyes taking in everything.
They were only waiting for a few minutes, before Enoch opened his eyes and smiled at them. Rising gracefully to his feet, he crossed the room to meet them. Taking both of Laura's hands in his, he bent and kissed both of her cheeks. After she had introduced Lee, the priest shook the younger man's hand and greeted him warmly. Watching them, Laura was struck by the picture of contrasts the two men presented. With his unruly, longish hair and perpetually unkempt clothing, Enoch had more the look of a shabby, distracted university graduate student, than a priest. While Lee, with his close-cropped hair and flight suit, looked, as always, every inch the proper Colonial officer. And yet, despite their differences, the two men also had their similarities. Both were physically attractive and both possessed that indefinable quality that drew and held one's attention.
Turning his attention back to the president, Enoch asked, "So, have you come to allow me to heal you?"
Glancing over at Lee, she held his gaze for a long moment before she answered, "Yes."
"Come, let's move into the bedroom. We'll be more comfortable there. Would you like to be present?" Enoch asked Lee.
"Yes," the younger man answered immediately.
"You don't trust me, Captain?" the priest asked, with a smile.
"I-It's not that... I just..."
Enoch said nothing, but his eyes moved down to the sidearm holstered around Lee's waist. The young warrior shifted uncomfortably.
"It's alright, Captain, I understand," the priest said, after a moment. "You don't know anything about me and you don't want to take any chances with the president... the woman you love."
Lee looked over sharply at Laura. "It's alright, Lee," she said softly, laying a hand on his forearm.
"Please, Captain," Enoch said. "I understand and accept that you do not entirely trust me, but in order for this to work, there must be some degree of intimacy between all of us. Will you at least trust me with this knowledge and with your lady's health?"
After a long look at Laura, Lee gave a tense nod. She smiled at him and squeezed his arm, which she still held. The three moved to the bedroom. Enoch instructed Laura to remove her shoes and the jacket of her suit, so that she would be more comfortable and told her to lie on the bed. Lee perched himself on the low dresser across from the foot of the bed, where he would be out of the way, but would have a clear view of all the proceedings. Enoch took up station beside Laura.
"Alright, I want you to close your eyes and try to clear your mind... relax," he told her, carefully moderating his voice to a low and measured tone. "I want you to focus on your illness. Try to visualize it in your mind. Picture it slowly retreating, shrinking, and gradually disappearing all together... Now, don't worry, I will not touch you at all, so you can concentrate all of your energies on healing. I will not distract you."
While Laura followed his instructions, he stood still for a moment, his own eyes closed, centering himself. He took several deep, even breaths then extended his hands, palms out. He held them about 15 centimeters above Laura's body and began moving them in slow circular patterns. Although the patterns seemed to be concentrated over Laura's chest area, his hands moved over her entire body. He started at her feet and traveled slowly towards her head, frequently doubling back over her chest. These graceful, intricate hand movements lasted for nearly a half hour and towards the end of that time, sweat had begun to bead up on the priest's forehead, a testament to his intense concentration. He ended the session by holding his hands over the president's head for several minutes.
Opening his eyes, Enoch dropped his hands and stepped back from the bed. "You may open your eyes now, Laura," he said softly.
As she did, Lee moved quickly to sit on the edge of the bed beside her. "How do you feel?" he asked.
"Tired," she said, in some confusion. She hadn't done anything except lay there, why should she feel so tired?
"Yes, that's normal," Enoch said. "I've jumpstarted your body's natural healing processes and it's now working hard to heal itself. You should lie there and rest. Captain Adama, why don't you join me in the other room? She'll probably sleep for a while and she'll be perfectly safe."
Lee looked back at Laura with a questioning glance. "I'll be fine, go ahead," she said sleepily.
Turning back to Enoch, Lee said, "I'll join you in just a minute."
"As you wish," the priest said, with a slight smile.
After watching the other man leave, Lee turned back to Laura. "What happened? Did you feel anything?"
"It was the strangest thing. It felt like a very low voltage electrical current passing through my body."
"Did it hurt?"
"No, actually, it was rather pleasant. It felt sort of like those vibrating beds you find in cheap motels, make you feel."
Lee smiled at the analogy. "Are you sure you're going to be alright in here alone?" he asked.
"Mmmhmm, I'm just going to sleep for a minute," she mumbled. Her eyes were already closed and her speech was slightly slurred.
"Okay. I'll just be in the next room, if you need anything."
"Mmmhmm..."
She was already half asleep and he wasn't sure if she had heard him or not. Standing, he went to join Enoch in the main room of the suite. The prophet was seated at a small, circular table with Maeve. There was an ornate tea service set in the middle of the table.
"Please join us for some tea, Captain," Enoch said, gesturing to the empty third chair at the table. "It will help pass the time and we can talk."
As the pilot slid into the chair, Maeve poured the dark beverage for him and handed him the cup and saucer. Lee accepted it gingerly. He was accustomed to handling sturdy, military-issue, metal mugs, not these delicate pieces of ceramic. He quickly set them down on the table, lest he drop them.
"I'm afraid I can't offer you any milk or lemon for your tea, but we do have some sugar," the young woman said.
"That's alright, this is fine." Lee wasn't a big fan of tea, so it really didn't matter how it was dressed up. He was only drinking it now to be polite.
"I can see from your expression that you have questions, Captain. Please, feel free to ask them," Enoch said.
"Is she going to be alright?" Lee asked, with a glance toward the bedroom. "Did the healing thing work?"
"It's hard to say, at this point. Her cancer was advanced, but I believe I have made a difference. She may need additional sessions. We'll just have to wait and see how her body responds."
"How long will we have to wait?"
"Not long. If, indeed, I have made a difference you should start seeing some improvement fairly quickly. One of the things my healing energies do is stimulate the increased production of beta-endorphins, which will in turn, activate the so-called Natural Killer cells, which are known to attack cancer cells... So may I assume from your questions that you now believe in my abilities?"
"I don't know," Lee said evasively. "I guess I'll just have to wait and see."
"A sensibly cautious answer."
They sat in silence for a moment, contemplating each other. Enoch was watching the younger man unabashedly, while Lee sipped his tea, feeling self-conscious and uncomfortable under that direct and obvious scrutiny. After several, long minutes, Maeve rose from the table, distracting the two men.
"If you two will excuse me, I have other duties to attend to," she said.
"Of course, my dear, enjoy yourself," Enoch said, smiling at her.
After the girl had left the suite, Lee asked, "What other duties does she have?"
"Oh, she organizes our prayer meetings, keeps everyone up to date, and greets new potential converts arriving at the shuttle bay. She's my secretary of sorts. I don't know what I'd do without her. I'm afraid I'm not the most organized of people."
"I suppose you have more important things to be concerned with, like your next chat with God."
"Sarcasm is not an effective tool for influencing others," Enoch said, pointedly.
Lee sighed. He hadn't intended to sound quite so cynical, but he was tired and edgy. The argument with his father had affected him more that he had first thought. "You're right," he said, with sincere contrition. "That was uncalled for. I apologize." He looked away, absently rubbing his stiff, sore neck muscles.
"You seem very tense."
"I haven't been sleeping very well. I'm worried about Laura and I got in an argument with my father the other day. We haven't spoken since..." Why, the hell, am I telling this man such personal things? Lee thought to himself, allowing his voice to trail off and determining to reveal nothing more.
"You seem to be favoring your neck and shoulders. I can help ease your tension."
"No, that's alright, thank you," Lee said quickly.
Enoch smiled. "I wasn't proposing to use my healing abilities. I was simply going to suggest a shoulder message. A good message can also stimulate the production of endorphins, which are the body's natural painkillers. I give very good messages."
"Uh, I'm fine, thank you anyway." Lee had always been a very self-contained person and he had never been entirely comfortable with other people touching him, not even friends or family. When he was a child, it had always bothered his very tactile-oriented mother that he would frequently squirm away from her constant hugs and kisses.
"Oh, come now, Captain, I promise that you'll feel better."
The young pilot sighed. It appeared that Enoch was not going to give up. Reluctantly standing, he moved from the table to sit on the long couch the priest had indicated. Enoch sat down beside him and gestured for the younger man to turn around. Lee obeyed, but he felt a slight tingle of apprehension along his spine. As a warrior he had been trained never to turn his back on a potential threat. When Enoch placed his hands lightly on the younger man's shoulders, Lee flinched noticeably.
"Relax, Captain," the priest said, with a chuckle. "I promise I won't hurt you."
Lee said nothing, just concentrated on the hands that had begun pinching and kneading the tense muscles of his upper back and shoulders. The young man tried not to dwell on the fact that those busy hands belonged to a man. While he was not overly homophobic, Lee had never allowed another man, outside of the medical profession, to touch him in such an intimate manner. He was not entirely sure how he felt about it.
"You don't trust me, do you?" Enoch asked.
"Should I? You've made it perfectly clear that you don't approve of my father or the military, in general."
"Fair point," the priest responded amicably. "May I call you Lee?"
"Sure, why not?"
"Thank you. May I tell you about my visions? It might help you to understand us better and perhaps allow you to see our side."
"You mean, it might allow you to turn me against my father?" Lee asked, throwing a slightly belligerent look over his shoulder.
"Peace, Lee," Enoch said in a conciliatory tone. "I'm not trying to manipulate anyone. I'm merely trying to open their eyes. I understand your hostility, but will you at least hear me out, before you close your mind to my views?"
"Fine, go ahead." The hands working at his muscles had not paused during this exchange and Lee had to admit that it was starting to feel good, now that the initial painful knots had been induced to relax. He was almost inclined to let the priest talk, just to keep the hands moving.
"Several months ago," Enoch began, "shortly after the destruction of the Colonies, God came to me in a dream and showed me a solar system made up of seven planets. I was made to understand that all of these planets represented Earth, but that only one was the true Earth.
"Now, the Thirteenth Colony, led by the Kobolian Lord Adam, all those centuries ago, eventually came to this system and settled on the sixth planet. Later, the Colonists began to refer to their new home as Adama, after the Lord who had led them there."
"So, this was the true Earth?" Lee asked, trying to follow along, intrigued, in spite of himself, by the reference to his own family name, which was a very uncommon one. He had, of course, heard the story about the Thirteenth Colony setting off from Kobol, led by the Lord Adam and his beloved wife Eve, to try and find the legendary blue-green planet called Earth, but the rest of Enoch's story was new to him.
"No, it was not the true Earth," Enoch said, softly. "You see, on Adama, the Colonists soon found themselves falling under a strange illness. They became depressed and eventually they began warring among themselves. They turned from the path of God. It was a false Earth. This is the Earth your father will lead us to, because he is a false prophet. Do you honestly think it a coincidence that their names are the same?"
"Well, that is my name too," Lee pointed out. "Are you saying that I'm also false?"
"Not at all. You have now heard the truth and soon you will see it as well. You see, back on Adama, eventually a young man called Noah, a direct descendent of the Lord Adam, was given a vision from God, revealing the location of the true Earth. He gathered up as many of the Colonists as he could and they fled from Adama to the seventh planet in the system, one they had previously referred to as Eres, but which was in fact, the true Earth. Shortly after the Colonists had fled from Adama, those that had remained were wiped out by a terrible flood, sent by God to cleanse those that had turned from the path of righteousness.
"Do you see, Lee? You, like Noah, are a direct descendent of Adam. And also like Noah, you will lead us to the true Earth, not the false Earth your father would take us to."
"And how am I supposed to do that?" Lee asked, distractedly. "I have no idea where Earth is. I'm not even sure I believe that it exists."
One of Enoch's messaging hands had moved up to his neck and was partially supporting Lee's head. The younger man was now so relaxed that he was leaning heavily against that hand. The priest had been speaking in a very soft, low voice which had quickly lulled Lee into a sort of half-stupor. His sluggish mind had only been half-following the man's convoluted theology.
"Don't worry, you will. I am confident that God will speak to you very soon. You will lead us to Earth."
"But you're the prophet. God has already shown you the way to Earth. Why would He need me?"
"He has shown me the solar system, but I am not a navigator or a pilot. I am a prophet, a spiritual guide. You are a leader of men. You will lead us and I will be the guide. Together, we will take our people to Earth."
Enoch had whispered these last words into Lee's ear. Drifting in a sort of mental fog, the captain abruptly returned to full alertness and jerked away from the other man. Quickly standing, he glanced down at his watch.
"Uh, i-it's late. I need to get back to the Galactica," he said.
"You look exhausted, Lee. Why don't you just stay here for the night? Laura's already asleep. Why wake her? The two of you can take the bed a-."
"No, thank you," the captain interrupted. "If we don't return to the Galactica, it could create problems."
"Ah, your father would become concerned?"
I seriously doubt that he would even notice my absence, Lee thought sourly. "No, it's not that," he said. "But the ground crews are very protective of their shuttle and I have to be on duty early tomorrow and..."
"Very well, I understand," Enoch said with a smile, as he got to his feet. "Let's go wake the president."
Laura was slightly groggy, when they woke her, but refreshed. She agreed with Lee that it was necessary for them to return to the Galactica and they quickly took their leave of the prophet, thanking him for his time and effort. After they had gone, the priest lay down on the long couch to rest and meditate on his conversation with the young pilot. It had not gone as well as he would have liked. He needed more time with the captain. Lee had shown some interest in the story of Earth, but not nearly enough. Yes, he needed more time and perhaps... more drastic measures. Lee Adama was the key to gaining control over the fleet. The plan was already worked out and one way or another he would play his part.
To be continued...
-Author's note: the stuff about the seven earths, one being called Adama and another called Eres, actually came from The Kabbalah. Now, obviously I modified it to fit the context and... because I didn't understand it either. There are Rabbis who spend their entire lives studying The Kabbalah, like I'm going to understand it from one reading, especially since I got this from a secondary source.
