BATTLESTAR POSEIDON II: CONQUEST OF KOBOL
BY
SHAWN L. SCIALO
CHAPTER ONE
Dykstra glanced at the time indicator inside the cockpit of his Cobra and shook his head in amazement.
"Are you two in sleep period or what? I think I've had more stimulating conversations with my daggit", said the colonial colonel.
Lorne answered, " Its Andronica, sir. She's been about as friendly as a rabid lupus all secton."
"You're wrong, Lorne. I haven't been myself in about three yahrens", exclaimed the Poseidon's' helmsman and aspiring fighter pilot.
Lorne looked over at Andronica's ship just to make sure she wasn't about to open fire on him and blast him back to Aquaria. He thought her voice sounded like that of a desperate child who could begin sobbing at any moment. She certainly didn't sound like the woman that Lorne had known and fallen in love with at the colonial academy. He thought he knew her as well as anyone with the possible exception of Nova. Nova had been the man that stole Andronicas' heart after her graduation from the academy. Lorne was a yahren behind her at the academy and had to watch from afar as he lost the only girl he had ever cared for. He had spent a long time grieving her loss and an even longer time filling his heart with hatred for the man she had chosen over him. Of course, as fate would have it, the two men's' lives crossed paths again when Commander Ares, Lorne's father, assigned them both to the battlestar Poseidon. Shortly thereafter, the Cylon Empire invaded the colonials neighboring system of Hasari and war was declared against the invaders from Cylon.
In the early days of the war, Lorne had been forced to set his feelings aside and fight alongside captain Nova at the battle of Jae. The jealousy and envy he felt for Nova had become unimportant and trivial. There was a war going on and people were losing their lives. Ares had told him that his feelings for Nova and what had transpired at the academy were a part of his adolescence and should be left there. In other words, grow up and move on. Lorne worked hard to do so and although the sight of the man still annoyed him, he now had a healthy respect for him as a warrior and a leader. Maybe they could be friends someday. Now, he turned his attention to another friend.
"Andy, what on Aquaria are you talking about?" demanded Lorne.
"What am I talking about? I'm talking about three yahrens of warfare with no end in sight! Thousands of lives lost! This isn't the way it was supposed to be, Lorne! This is no way to live!" Andy cried.
Dykstra was touched by the sudden and sincere emotion and humanity in the young lieutenants' words. She obviously had very deep feelings about the horrors they had all witnessed in three yahrens of war. Of course, Dykstra felt the same way. Their entire way of life had been destroyed. Everything that went on in the colonies was now directed towards the war effort. However, right now, he had to be worried about one of his warriors cracking.
"Lieutenant, we all have those same feelings but you have to pull yourself together! If we ever want our old lives back, we must fight, no matter what the cost."
"Yes, s-sir. I'm sorry", said Andy as she choked back tears.
Dykstra continued, "I told you before that if you want to continue your training to become a reserve pilot, you're going to have to clear your mind of those types of thoughts. It'll get you killed".
"Yes, colonel. It won't happen again", said Andy, composure coming back into her voice.
"Hey, I hate to interrupt you guys, but shouldn't we have scanned the Poseidon by now?" asked a nervous Lorne.
Both Andronica and Dykstra examined their instruments and flight plans to double check Lorne's observation. They didn't like what they saw.
"Actually, we should have picked her up about fifteen centons ago", corrected Dykstra.
"Why would they have altered course?" asked Lorne.
"We're nowhere near Cylon territory. I doubt they could have been attacked", said the colonel.
"We're nowhere near anything. I knew this mission smelled like daggit--"
Andronica's voice trailed off as the dancing images of proximity alerts and other data suddenly appeared on her monitor.
"What is it, Andy?" Lorne asked excitedly.
"On the edge of my scanner...some sort of huge spatial distortion. The scanner can't identify it", she reported.
"Andronica, you're our science officer. Tell me what you think it is. Forget the damn scanner", ordered Dykstra.
"Colonel, it appears to be some sort of tear in the fabric of space", she reported as she continued to study her instrumentation.
"Can you translate that to colonial basic?" asked a puzzled Lorne.
"You never studied", Andronica deadpanned.
"Lieutenant?" said an annoyed Dykstra in a warning voice.
Andy quickly explained, "Well, it could be some kind of portal or maybe a break in the time space continuum. Theoretically, it could also be a wormhole or a black hole. Whatever it is, it has an incredibly powerful gravitational field that seems to be pulsing. We cannot continue on this course."
"Dear lord! The Poseidon must have been sucked into its' gravity field to who knows where!" exclaimed Dykstra.
"No. No, that can't be", Lorne, whispered, desperately trying to keep his composure.
For a full centon, the three warriors flew in silence. None of them wanted to face the truth. Poseidon was lost and soon they would be as well. They were several days from the nearest colonial installation and would run out of life support long before that.
"Reverse course, warriors", ordered Dykstra.
Simultaneously, Dykstra and Andronica's cobras' banked swiftly around and headed back the way they had come. Lorne did not follow.
"Lorne, come on! There isn't anything that you can do!" pleaded Andy.
Reluctantly, Lorne turned his ship around. He felt numb. His father couldn't be dead. Could he? He was the greatest warrior in all the colonies. It couldn't end this way.
"Set coordinates 327. We'll head towards our outpost on Atilla. Activate your homing beacons and set your life supports to minimum. Hopefully, with our three beacons combined, someone will be able to home in on us", said Dykstra.
"Yeah. I just hope they're not Cylon", sneered Andronica.
Nightfall on Caprica is usually a beautiful and peaceful time. Cool breezes blow through the capital city and clear skies allow moonlight to blanket the countryside in a soft glow. Men, women and children sleep without worry because they know their fleet and the Colonial Warriors will always protect them.
However, in one mans' bed, there is no restful sleep. Nightfall and sleep are the times when the visions return. Each vision more horrible than the previous. There are always people crying out to him, asking him to save them from the evil enemy. Others are screaming his name in vain. They want his head because he is the cause of their pain. His dreams often bring him back to his childhood. He often revisits the parents who adopted a twelve yahren old runaway.
He couldn't even remember where he had run. However, he did know that he was forever indebted to his foster parents for choosing a boy nobody else wanted.
The dream shifts now and he sees his parents being harassed and beaten before him. The people are screaming something at his foster parents and it seems to be about him. He can't remember. Suddenly, he can't remember anything. Then, the vision shifts once again as this tortured soul tosses and turns in his bed.
He is the colonial president and leader of all mankind. His name is Cyrus. The faceless being has come to him once again to interrupt his dreams. Does he know this being? It seems strangely familiar, yet he cannot quite place it. Is it a man he asks himself in his dream? Yes, it is a man. A count! Yes, that was it. He remembered that this man went by several names. Which one did he know him by? Iblis? No. Diablis! Yes, that was it. The president seemed to remember the man also asking to be called his prince. Prince? Prince of what?
Suddenly, Cyrus realized that the count came to him every night. Diablis had been one of his top aide's three yahrens ago at the onset of the war against the Cylons. Where had he disappeared to? He had not seen him since. Why was he here now?
"Cyrus, you are mine. You have given yourself to me freely", Diablis said.
"W-what? I-I don't know", cried Cyrus in his sleep.
"You've done well, my friend. You have followed my instructions implicitly and now the thorn in our sides has been dealt a serious blow."
"No! What did I do? Please, what are you? What is this place", asked a feverish Cyrus.
All around the president was death. He saw what he believed to be souls writhing in pain and suffering. It was dark and yet he could see forever. It was like a great abyss.
"You wanted unlimited power. I gave it to you. Don't you remember? You have always been mine, since the beginning. You just can't remember. You will in time, my friend."
"No! The war...the death..."
"Wars are what make great leaders of men! Your people will think of you as their savior and you will take a prominent place in the history of mankind", smiled Diablis.
Cyrus begged, "No! Please! I must have made a mistake. I'm not worthy of this!"
"You were born for this. You must feel better, my friend. Stand tall. As we speak, the forces of dark and light are gathering for the greatest battle of all. I am striking at the very heart of all that is good and pure. You will be there to rejoice our victory in the end. I will see that you rule your people for the rest of eternity, one way or another. As long as you follow me."
"No! No", cried the president.
"Sir, sir! Wake up", said Veltrane.
The presidential guard turned on the lights and made Cyrus a glass of fornelli.
"Here, Mr. President. Drink this", said Veltrane.
The president gulped the fornelli down furiously and handed the glass back to his aid.
"You were having another one of your nightmares, sir. What was this one about?"
"It was horrible. Men and women crying my name and then..."
"Then what, sir?"
"I can't remember", said a dumbfounded Cyrus.
Just as Cyrus was beginning to feel better, another of his top aids came running into the room. It was counselor Shon of Aquaria.
"Well, mister president, whatever your cockamamie scheme was, it's about to blow up in your face.
"What are you talking about?"
"Sir, the battlestar Poseidon has disappeared!"
"There!" said Bellisario as he pointed to a star system on the holoview.
"Gamoray? Why would the Cylons want to advance in that direction?" asked commander Nybe.
"Nybe, they've already cut us off from such outposts as Sectar and Equellas. I just received word before you got here that Atilla has been blocked off as well. The Cylon forces have backed off from colonial space and are now attempting to outflank us."
"Surround us by conquering all of our surrounding systems first?"
"Yes. Then they can take their sweet time in building their forces up until they are strong enough for a full invasion of the colonies", said the admiral.
"Have you discussed this with the president?" asked Nybe.
"The president is running scared! He's had us in a defensive posture for three yahrens. When is the last time he allowed us to make an offensive, Nybe?"
The Olympia commander had no immediate answer. She knew that the last offensive move by the colonial fleet was at the battle of Jae three yahrens ago. And, Cyrus did not order that offensive. That was Commander Ares of the Poseidon acting on his own. The maneuver probably saved the colonies from certain defeat while setting the Cylons back yahrens. Since then, the colonial fleet simply patrolled its own star system, repelling Cylon attack after Cylon attack. That is until Cyrus sent the Poseidon into deep space on a top-secret mission, a mysterious mission that only the president seemed to know anything about. He had ordered the Poseidon to the far reaches of the known galaxies, where they were told to wait for further orders.
"Any word on Poseidon?" she asked.
"No. And the president isn't talking. He's claiming presidential initiative is top secret. What in Hades name did he have them out there for?" exclaimed Bellisario, still peering at the holoview.
"Admiral, what do you want to do?" asked Nybe.
"Commander, I'm taking the Atlantis fleet to Gamoray. I believe I can reach it before the Cylons do and give them a nice, warm reception", smiled Bellisario.
"What about the president?"
"I am the admiral of this fleet, Nybe, and I give the orders from here on out. We cannot win this war sitting back on our heels."
"Yes, sir! It's about frakking time", she smiled back at her admiral.
The buzzer on the admiral's monitor went off which meant there was a call coming in from the bridge.
"Yes?"
"Sir, we are picking up a very weak signal beacon. War book signature designates it as being emitted from a cobra."
"Understood, bridge. I'm on my way."
"A Poseidon survivor?"
"We'll see. Commander, take your fleet back to colonial space. If I'm wrong, I want you and the other battlestars ready to defend our homes."
"Aye aye, sir. And admiral...good luck", said Nybe as she left the Atlantis war room.
On Poseidon's' home planet, Aquaria, the news is made public that the battlestar has been lost. Public outcry is swift and fierce. The citizens of Aquaria are quick to blame their beleaguered president for ordering their ship away on such a careless and dangerous mission. A mission that Cyrus had yet to explain to the Council of Twelve let alone the people of Aquaria.
Thousands of Aquarians have lined the streets of their capital city to meet the presidents' transport as it lands. He is just arriving to attend an impromptu service for the brave crew of Poseidon. As the president steps to the makeshift podium, a chorus of boos and obscenities are showered upon him.
"P-please...I- I am so s-sorry. Today, we mourn the loss of the hundreds of brave warriors that served on the great Battlestar, Poseidon."
The crowd is quickly turning into a very angry mob. They want blood. The people of Aquaria, and all the colonies, are dealing with emotions they probably never even knew they had. Two of the stronger emotions are being put on display today. Hate and anger.
"The… the Poseidon w-was on a very, very important ...mission. They w-were to--to. I cannot remember. Did I--I couldn't...I did not order this m-mission. Did I?"
Counselor Shon scans the rest of the Aquarian delegation that is standing behind the president. They seem as concerned and confused as he is. Cyrus sounded like a malfunctioning servo-droid. Was he having a complete nervous breakdown? On the other hand, Shon thought, he looked like he was quite mad.
"I--I..."
With that, the president collapsed in a heap at the foot of the podium. Immediately, several med techs rushed to their fallen leader. Shon stepped to the microphone and tried to calm the crowd but it was no use. They were incensed! The angry and confused citizens were close to breaking down the barricade, which surrounded Cyrus's transport, when shots rang out.
The presidents' security team had fired into the crowd! Several men and women breathed their last breath as horrified onlookers fled for their lives. Shon could see people who were not quick enough or strong enough being crushed by the avalanche of humanity.
"Cease fire! Cease fire!" he shouted in vain.
On the balconies overlooking the scene, shocked Aquarians cried in despair. Other humans had now spilled human blood.
Shon tried to herd his delegates to safety as he stole another glimpse of the madness before him. People assaulting each other with angry, hate filled hearts. Security troops using brute and sometimes-deadly force to quell the crowd. It looked like a scene straight from the book of the word thought Shon. It looked like madness...
CHAPTER 2
The Poseidon drifted slowly through space propelled only by its own inertia and the solar winds of the galaxy. The great ships' engines were silent and dark. If it were traveling in a planetary atmosphere, an observer would describe that the ships' bow appeared to be pointing down while the aft pointed straight up.
Suddenly, and for the first time in days, the ships main computer came back on line, as did other key systems. Slowly, each member of the crew began to awake from his or her comatose state. As commander Ares opened his eyes, he could see the lights and electronics were charging back to full power. Through his blurred vision, another light source seemed to immerge from the battlestars' main viewer. It looked crystalline in structure and was completely illuminated. It looked like a ship made of lights. Ares rubbed his eyes in an effort to clear his uncertain vision but when he re-opened them, the ship of light was gone. The commander shook his head in disbelief and confusion, as all that was left behind was the metal shielding of the main viewer. How could he have possibly seen a ship? While slowly rising to his feet, the commander glanced around the bridge to see Marem and other bridge crewmen trying to clear the cobwebs from their heads as well.
The commander felt like he had been pouring ambrosia down his throat all night and was now suffering from the effects of the mother of all hangovers. He did, however, remember the strange phenomenon that had appeared out of nowhere to engulf the colonial battlestar. Even at full power, the Poseidon had been unable to free itself from the clutches of the immense spatial anomaly. Once inside the outer space beast, the ship seemed to be warped away in some sort of wormhole. Ares knew that they had traveled at speeds beyond human comprehension. He feared that they could now be on the other side of the universe.
"Nova, report!" he ordered.
"Sir, all systems at 70. We should have full power back momentarily", the captain reported.
"Commander, life center reports no serious injuries", offered Marem.
"What about the patrol?" asked Dirk who was now standing behind Marem's station.
Ares did not answer and Dirk knew there was no answer coming. A cloak of silence fell over the bridge as the crew remembered their lost comrades.
As Ares tried to regain his composure, he promised himself that he would mourn the loss of his son later. Now was not the time. They were lost and needed answers.
"Negative shield now. Let's see where we are", Ares said in the most positive voice he could muster.
As the bridge crew returned their attention to their duties, Nova thought of his lost fighting mates; Lorne, Dykstra and...
"Andy", he whispered to himself.
As the main viewers shield retracted, the bridge was blanketed in a shower of light.
"It's a star!" shouted Marem. "And we're heading right for it!"
"Commander, we are already entering the point of no return. If the stars gravity gets a hold of us..." said a crewman.
"All engines full reverse! Nova, take the helm and plot us a course out of here!" shouted Ares.
Nova hesitated a micron as he thought of his lost love. He was still trying to get over the realization that he may have lost her forever and now he was being asked to take her place on the bridge.
"Yes, sir", he finally said and rushed to steer the battlestar into the clear.
The mighty battlestar shook violently as she tried to break free of the huge sun.
"Marem! Divert all auxiliary power to the engines!"
"Yes, commander!"
Nova fought the controls with everything he had and slowly the Poseidon pulled itself free and into clear space.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and focused their attention on the main viewer. Where are the stars was the thought going through every officer's mind. They could see nothing but a sea of blackness. No stars, moons, planets, nothing!
"Scan for other planetary objects", said Ares as he peered out into the darkness of the void.
"Sir, there seems to be an incredible amount of magnetic interference. The scanner has nothing to lock on to", answered Marem as she studied her monitors.
"Commander, have you ever seen anything like this?" asked an excited Dirk.
"No. I can't say that I have, Dirk".
A young officer named Steffon approached the commander with readout in his hand.
"S-sir, I've been doing some calculations and I think you should see this."
Ares grabbed the reports from the young mans' hand and quickly read it's conclusions at the bottom of the page.
"If this is correct, we've been unconscious and floating through space for over a secton!" exclaimed a shocked commander.
"Eight days to be exact, sir", said Steffon before returning to his station.
While Steffon had made his report, Dirk had stood next to Ares' command chair quietly. He stared ahead into the darkness, and then looked down at the rear scan, which showed the lone star.
"Could it possibly be? The endless black sea and the majestic star in the heavens", he whispered to himself.
"What was that, lieutenant?" asked Ares.
"Well, sir, I think I may know where we are."
Ares was dumbfounded.
"Well, spit it out!"
"Sir, I believe we should come about and head back towards the star and just past it."
"What?" exclaimed Nova.
"Yes. I believe we would come across a very large planet approximately one to three parsecs from the star", said and obviously insane Dirk.
Ares thought that maybe the young warrior was cracking up after losing his best childhood friend in Lorne. Meanwhile, Marem sat back in her seat as a comforting feeling of enlightenment came over her. She began to believe that Dirk was not out of his mind and was most definitely on to something.
Reluctantly, Ares gave the order to Nova to follow Dirks' advice. What did they have to lose? They were lost with no way for their sensors to guide them. The Poseidon swooped back around and past the star that had almost destroyed them just a few centons earlier.
Fifteen centons later, a small star appeared on the battlestars' view screen. Ares looked over his shoulder at Dirk to see the young man staring ahead with an incredulous grin on his face. The commander glanced back at the view screen to see a large orange formation before them that was indeed a planet.
"Dirk, how did you know this? What planet is this?" demanded Ares.
"It's the planet Kobol, sir", said Dirk with a smile.
"Kobol?" exclaimed the disbelieving Ares.
"Yes, sir. The mother world of all humans!"
Gasps and shocked murmuring among crewman filled the bridge now as the planet became larger and larger before them.
"Where life began!" cried Marem through tears of joy.
TO BE CONTINUED...