A Book By Its Cover
This story and all themes and ideas contained in said story are the sole ownership of J.L. Scott. Any copyright infringements can be prosecuted in a court of law.
To borrow a phrase: Battlestar Galactica no mine...no money, no sue, please?
"Their equipment is fairly primitive" Lee reported. Roslin and his father had listened while he and Starbuck had told them about the small colony. Lee assumed this meant that Roslin had been re-elected. She no longer worked as well with Commander Adama as she had before.
"How many of them were there?" Adama asked.
"About a thousand, sir" Starbuck answered, "According to Ariel"
"Any sign of the Cylons, Captain?" Roslin questioned.
"Not as far as we could tell, Madame President" Lee answered, "They've been there quite some time, most of them had been born on the planet"
"Yes, you mentioned that. You said the last contact they had was 30 years ago?" Roslin said.
"Yes, Ariel's father was their last addition" Lee confirmed.
"Thank you Captain, Lieutenant. You're excused" Adama nodded at them. The two pilots saluted and headed out of the CIC. Lee hung back a minute. He wanted to congratulate Roslin. Thus he overheard the President's conversation with the Commander.
"I think this is as good a chance as we're going to get to re-supply, Madame President" Adama said quietly.
"I agree Commander. Can I assume it will take some time for us to collect the needed supplies?" the President asked.
"Probably" Adama answered, though Lee heard the hint of alarm in his voice.
"Then perhaps we can schedule shore leave for some of the civilians" Roslin suggested.
"Madame President…"
"Commander Adama these people have been cooped up in overcrowded ships for too long. We've already experienced an increase in conflicts among civilians and morale is getting worse" Roslin interrupted him.
"Transporting nearly 50, 000 people to the surface of the planet and back to their respective ships again would be nearly impossible" Adama returned.
"I realize that. A lottery could be set up. Those not chosen promised spots on the next viable planet"
"We can't make that promise, Madame President" Adama pointed.
"We can make it, Commander, we just can't keep it" Roslin returned, "In politics you learn how far a promise can go" Adama sighed.
"I'll consider the possibilities, Madame President"
"Thank you" Roslin inclined her head and turned. She found Lee waiting for her.
"Captain Apollo" she smiled. Lee thought she looked tired. Much more so than she had three months ago.
"Can I offer my congratulations on your re-election, Madame President?" he held his hand out and she shook it.
"You can, thank you, Captain" she replied warmly, but pushed past him and disappeared down the hallway.
Two days later, Lee was in his viper, escorting the raptor holding Ariel and her council. They were on their way to the Galactica, where she would meet with the Commander and the President. Lee hadn't actually seen her as of yet, because he hadn't landed on the planet with the raptor. He found himself anxious to see her again, wondering if in the harsh light of the world of the Fleet she would look as welcoming as she had on her dream planet. Lee had dreamt about her last night, the image of her watching him lift off in the dark, with her hair blowing all around. He'd woken up breathing hard. In the cockpit of his viper, he felt something odd, in his mind. His comm crackled.
"Hey Apollo, you should see these guys" the pilot of the raptor said, "Especially the red head"
"I've never been in space before" Lee heard Ariel say, "It is quite beautiful" Lee smiled, remembering the first time he'd been off Caprica.
Her eyes were still huge when she disembarked the raptor in the hanger. Lee nodded to her. Her hair had been braided in one thick braid down her back. She was wearing a green dress of that same homespun material. It clung in the right places, showing off her curvaceous frame. Despite the homely garb, she looked every bit as stately as any number of any of the Council Representatives he'd ever seen. She stood straight, with her shoulders back and her chin high. The members of her council were not so diplomatic. They openly ogled everything around them.
"Captain Apollo" Ariel nodded as he joined her. Someone had informed her of his rank.
"It is very nice to see you again" she said.
"It's nice to see you again, President…uh…" Lee realized she'd never given her last name. President Ariel sounded strange.
"Nimon" she whispered out of the corner of her mouth. Lee didn't reply. His father and President Roslin were approaching. They'd come down to the hanger to welcome the visiting dignitaries.
"President Nimon, may I present President Roslin and Commander Adama" Lee performed the introductions. Roslin held her hand out and Ariel shook it.
"Welcome on board the Galactica, Madame President" Adama said as he shook the girl's hand as well. She did look like a girl standing next to the old man and the sick woman. Young and vibrant and strong.
"Thank you Commander. May I please introduce my Council?" she turned and the council sort of straightened up and smiled nervously. Lee noticed the difference in their behaviors as being extreme. Why should Ariel feel so much more comfortable in the presence of strangers than these others who were in her same situation? Perhaps it only spoke to her good acting skills. Those were important in politics.
"These are Andrew Biddle, Leslie Morris, Phillip Boccelli, and Anna Redkin" Each member smiled briefly as their names were said. Adama and Roslin nodded at each of them kindly.
"Well, if you'll come with us, there are refreshments" Roslin smiled and moved to allow Ariel to walk between herself and Adama. Lee followed discreetly behind.
The talks were not froth with confrontation or difficulty. The Council was very eager to begin trade immediately, though Ariel had remained reserved. She asked very intelligent questions about the environmental effects of the Galactica's re-supply. She understood the complex answers that Dr. (Vice President) Baltar gave, even though Lee felt himself getting a little dizzy trying to understand everything the convoluted man said. Looking back and forth between Commander Adama and President Roslin, Lee was fairly sure she'd impressed them more than they had expected, and not just with the initial shock of her presence that he had felt upon the first time she'd smiled at him.
He shook his head. They were touring the Galactica. Starbuck had joined them and was staying behind with him, trailing after the tour group.
"So, what do we have to give them? Seeds? How about supplies in return for tours of the Galactica? They seem to be enjoying that" Starbuck quipped.
"She's not as naïve as you might think" Lee replied, his eye following her as she listened to Commander Adama tell her about the ships' functions, "You should have heard her talking with Baltar about the ecological affects of our mining on her planet"
"Really?" Starbuck was now watching the young woman as well.
"I didn't even understand half of what they were talking about" Lee admitted.
"So, how does a girl who was born and raised on a planet without any technology know about mining?" Starbuck asked. Lee just gave her a look. That was exactly what he'd been thinking. The rest of her council hadn't asked questions, and the only answers they'd been able to provide were of fairly simple natures. Even now, as Adama explained about the ship they looked a little bored with information they didn't understand, whereas Ariel's head was tilted to the right slightly. She was listening carefully, understanding everything she was told and asking questions here and there. Lee noticed that these questions were carefully worded, as if she was trying to find a balance between letting Adama know she was listening and understanding and not wanting to alarm him.
"Commander!" Lt. Gatea cried, "We have a contact!" Adama spun around to squint at the man's screen from across the CIC. Lee was trying to see it too.
"It's a Cylon raider, sir" Montego reported. The CIC erupted into movement.
"Action stations!" the Commander ordered.
"Sir, multiple contacts now. Oh my gods, sir, it's a basestar!" The CIC was quiet. It had been a while since they'd run into a basestar. The Fleet couldn't handle any more damage, not now. They would run. They needed to run. Which created a problem.
"Apollo, get you're fighters out there" Adama ordered, "Get the Fleet ready to jump!" People were rushing around. Lee was about to turn and head out with Starbuck when a flash of red hair caught his eye. Ariel was standing amid the chaos, stock still, waiting for someone to say something to her. She turned, and she caught his look. He started to move towards her.
"Sir?" Gatea's voice raised again, "They're firing on the planet." The room quieted again. Ariel's face had paled and her eyes had grown wide.
"Where, Lt. Gatea?" Adama asked.
"It looks like they're firing directly at the village, sir" the Lieutenant answered quietly.
"Our people!" Anna Redkin exclaimed.
"Someone get these people out of here!" Colonel Tigh, who had only just arrived, shouted loudly.
"Council, you are excused. I will remain here to monitor the problem" Ariel said in a calm but firm voice. Her council allowed themselves to be led away.
"Madame Presidents, I suggest you return to Colonial One" Adama said.
"We need all our pilots out there, Commander" Roslin reminded him, "I'll stay here, thank you"
"Commander, I have a thousand people down there who are going to be frightened out of their minds. They have no idea what's going on, most of them have never even heard of a Cylon, and those that have think of them only as stories to scare children into doing as their parents say" Ariel replied, "I must beg you to help us"
"Apollo, send three raptors. Tell them to get as many people as they can and then get back to Galactica. Colonel Tigh, have the rest of the fleet make the jump, we'll join them as soon as we get our people back" Adama ordered.
"Thank you" Ariel said, then turned around, "Captain Apollo, I'm going with you"
"With all due respect, Madame President…" Lee started to object.
"Don't argue" she interrupted and brushed past him towards the hanger.
