Chapter Two
"May I come in?" The priest stood outside the door to her quarters, just as Olivia Whittaker was grabbing her stethoscope before heading to her shift in Life Station. "I need to discuss something very important with you."
Olivia backed up to allow the priest to enter the cramped quarters she shared with her husband. She sidestepped to stand in front of the half-empty ambrosia bottle on the piano. "There's not much room, but you can sit on the chair." She gestured towards the dining chair in the corner, and silently prayed it wasn't dusty. Lords of Kobol, hide my dust. She chuckled slightly before she could catch herself. "What can I get for you?"
"Nothing, thank you. How's Arvid?"
"Fine. He's been giving piano lessons to some of the crew. But you didn't come here to talk about Arvid."
"I think you should sit down. Don't mind the bottle you're trying to hide. I've seen ambrosia before." The priest smiled slightly. Olivia sat on the piano bench, but kept her eyes on the priest.
"What's wrong?" Sitting down rarely meant good news, she thought grimly.
"Nothing is wrong, child. But I need to ask you to do something for me. It's a pretty big something." The priest smiled wryly.
"Anything. All you have to do is ask."
"I need you and Arvid to take in a child." The priest sat back slightly in her chair.
"A child?"
"Yes, a very special child. She needs a nurse, a home and a family. I see all three, right here."
"Right here?" Olivia looked around the very small room she shared with her husband and his piano. "I'd have to talk to Arvid…. When does she need a place? Why in the worlds would you pick us?"
"She'll be with you tonight. You and Arvid are moving to The Rising Star. There are quarters there for you; we'll move the rest of your things today. Someone is discussing it with Arvid right now." The priest smiled again, "and I didn't pick you. The gods did."
Olivia was speechless.
"There's more," the priest continued, losing a hint of her smile. "The child won't remember anything that happened before she wakes up here. It's important that she thinks she has lived with you and your husband for her entire life. She has recently been in grave danger, and we need a place for her to hide, completely."
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No one could ever accuse Allie Whittaker of being shy, or, for that matter, subtle. On most occasions, her mother found this endearing about her oldest child, but on this particular afternoon, her patience for it was thin. As she sat across a large table from Allie's teacher, with her daughter to her right, Olivia Whittaker was developing a headache.
"Your daughter has been organizing Triad games during her lunch period." The teacher looked at Olivia over her glasses. "It appears she has amassed quite a collection of winnings from a few of our students. Comic books, candy, rec tokens, art supplies… the list goes on."
"If you can't afford to lose it, don't put it on the table. First rule of Triad." Allie grinned her most disarming grin. Olivia saw a flash of smile behind the teacher's eyes. Allie turned to her mother. "Listen. The only kids I play with are the bullies who've been picking on the Primary kids. That stuff wasn't theirs, they took it from the little guys, so I won it back for them." She turned back to her teacher. "And, I didn't hit anyone this time. I don't see the problem. No one's bleeding, the kids got their stuff back and it'll be a long time before those tylium heads try to take candy from kindergarteners again."
"No more Triad, Allie." The teacher let her look soften a hint. "Did you ever think of telling me about the bullies?"
"You're busy. Besides, telling on them will only make them mad. If they get mad, they're just going to get meaner. Look at it this way, they're going to be so busy playing Triad, they won't have any time to think of ways to make the rest of us miserable, at least until they get tired of winning the same junk from each other over and over."
"Very well, Allie." The teacher sighed. "Can you wait outside for a minute while I talk to your mom?" The girl got up to leave, gathering her books. She stooped to give her mother a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Sorry, Ma," she whispered in her ear. She grinned at the teacher and left the classroom.
"Olivia, my dear, you are a strong, strong woman." The teacher laughed and patted her friend's hand. "Seven hours a day with your girl and I'm exhausted. She's really something, isn't she? Aside from shaking down thugs and running a casino out of the cafeteria, she's doing very well, as I'm sure you already know. I have a hard time keeping her challenged, but we've been doing a bunch of independent study. She's been working with some of the professors on a cultural history of the twelve colonies. She's still spending a few hours a week in hydroponics, she volunteers in The Ark, she tutors younger kids and she's trying to start a band. Thank gods it's a big ship, or else I'd run out of places to keep her occupied."
"Thanks for all you do with her. I'm glad we finally found a teacher who can keep up with her." She added, with a chuckle, "and keep her in line."
"I'm glad you came in, Olivia. She won't be in too much trouble for the Triad incident."
Walking back to their quarters, Olivia looked down at her daughter. She reached out and tugged lightly on the girl's brown ponytail.
"Are you mad at me, Ma?" She peered up, blue eyes worried. "I really was just trying to help…"
"Nope, I'm not mad. I know what you were trying to do." She throws an arm over her daughter's shoulder and they walk the remainder of steps to their quarters in silence.
They hear the tinkling of piano keys as they draw close to the door. Allie grinned and ran into the suite of rooms first, hurtling herself at her father. "Dad! You're back! How was Cloud Nine?" She paused. "Scoot over." She plopped down next to him on the bench and picked up the under hand of the piece he was playing, improvising the parts she was unfamiliar with. He shared his tales of playing for the presidential speech on the luxury liner, pausing to hear about her recent run in at school. Olivia watched them for a second before leaving the room to check on her two younger children and start dinner.
"She turns thirteen in a week," Olivia whispered to her husband as they lay in their bed that night.
"I know." Arvid reached for her hand. "You okay?"
"I don't know. When I was talking to her teacher, I just kept thinking, this will be the last time I come in here to talk about Allie. In six days I'm not going to be her mother anymore."
"Liv, you'll always be her mother. And don't underestimate the girl. She could easily get in trouble enough to warrant a parent teacher conference in the next six days." She laughed lightly and curled into his chest. He kissed her forehead lightly. "I'm going to miss her, too." He paused, absently stroking circles onto his wife's back. "Think she's ready for this?"
"I think she's been ready for this since she got here."
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The next night, Arvid was practicing and Olivia was knitting in the armchair near the piano. They exchanged a brief glance when they heard a knock at their door.
"I'll get it." Arvid rose from the piano bench and paused to squeeze Olivia's shoulder before opening the door. "Come on in. Have a seat."
Olivia put her knitting aside and stood to greet her guests. She extended her hand to the gentleman nearest to her. He nodded to her and shook her hand firmly. The woman behind him stepped forward and took her hand in both of hers.
"Mrs. Whittaker. I'm honored to meet you. My name is Tressida; this is my associate, Mr. Flemming. We have a great deal to discuss this evening." The tall, elegantly dressed woman took a seat on the sofa and crossed her hands in her lap. Mr. Flemming remained standing, but moved to behind the sofa.
"May we get you anything? I made coffee." Olivia moved toward the kitchen, hoping a project, even as small as getting coffee, would distract her enough to make her hands stop shaking. Lords of Kobol, give me strength. Her prayer was silent, but her hand moved unconsciously to grasp the icon of Artemis that hung around her neck. She quickly gathered the coffee supplies and rejoined the group in her front room. Breathing deeply, she poured four cups and reclaimed her seat in the armchair.
Tressida took a sip of the hot liquid and sighed in contentment. "It has been far too long since I have had a cup of real coffee. It's delicious, thank you so much for sharing it with us." She placed the cup in its saucer. "You've done a wonderful job, both of you. Allie is a remarkable girl, and a good deal of the credit for that goes to the two of you. I've been keeping an eye on her since she arrived, and every report I hear amazes me." She made and held eye contact with both Whittakers before continuing. "I trust you know a little of Allie's destiny?"
Arvid nodded imperceptibly. Olivia managed to mumble "yes." They were told bits of information when they took her in.
"We know she has visions, when she doesn't take the herbs," Arvid started. "We know that when she turns thirteen she's going to go back to the Galactica. The man who brought her to us said we'd learn more at the right time." He moved to the arm of the chair and placed his arm gently around his wife.
"It seems that the right time is upon us, Mr. and Mrs. Whittaker. Mr. Flemming, would you mind stepping out into the hall? I need you to assure that we are not disturbed." The tall gentleman nodded at Arvid and Olivia, then stepped silently out the door. Tressida took another sip of coffee and continued. "Mrs. Whittaker, Olivia, if I may? I understand you are a religious woman, correct?"
"Yes, ma'am, since I was little." She again took Artemis into her palm.
"Are you familiar with the term Holy Guide?" Tressida's lavender eyes met with Olivia's. Olivia nodded.
"They're the spiritual leaders of the colonial faith." Olivia herself had only met one, when she was very young and attended services in the large temple in Tauron City. Holy Guides were very rare, at the time of the Cylon Holocaust there were only 100 or so ordained.
"True. It's rumored that all of the Holy Guides were killed when their temple on Caprica was destroyed, yes?"
"Yes ma'am." Olivia said another silent prayer for the Guides.
"It seems not all of the Guides were on Caprica that day, as was reported. There are three of us remaining in the fleet. It has been very important that we keep our presence quiet in the years since the attacks. The Cylons know that we knew more than what appears in the Ancient Scrolls, and that information may very well help us defeat them, once and for all. Your daughter is the key."
Olivia sputtered. "What are you saying? You're a Holy Guide? Allie is going to defeat the Cylons? You're taking away my little girl so she can fight toasters?" Tears spring to her eyes, but she fights them back. "No. You can't take her. She's not going anywhere with you or anyone else. I don't care what we said we'd do. No Holy Guide would do this to a little girl."
Tressida sat calmly on the couch, her eyes filled with empathy for the woman in front of her. She gave her a moment to compose herself. "A mother's love is such a beautiful, fierce thing. I can't even begin to know how painful and confusing this must be for the two of you. You've been such wonderful parents to Allie; I know you love her a great deal. But this path was laid before her long before any of us in this room existed."
Arvid cleared his throat. "What path is that?"
"There are three prophecies that do no exist in the Ancient Scrolls as you know them. Historically, the information contained in these prophecies has been known only by the Holy Guides. I'm sure you are familiar with the passage 'This has all happened before, and it will all happen again.' For 32 cycles of time, this has been the case. We believe that this is the 33rd cycle, the end of the persecution and near extinction that has marked every age in which our people have lived. The hidden prophecies state that we will be led by the prophet Iris, the messenger of the gods, to the final battle, and we will endure. Allie is that prophet." Tressida let her gaze rest gently on Olivia. "You know, in your heart, it is the truth."
"Will she be safe?" Olivia's voice was barely more than a whisper.
"Yes. And there are people on the Galactica who love her as much as you do; who will do everything in their power to protect her."
"What happens next?"
"Allie needs to stop taking the herbs, today, in fact. Her visions will start again soon, and she will begin to have flashes of memory of the time before she joined your family. The day before her birthday, she'll most likely remember everything and her visions will have returned completely. We'll take her to the Galactica that night."
"Will we be able to see her again?"
"Yes. As soon as it is safe, you'll be able to talk to her frequently and visit with her whenever you want." She smiled at them both."I believe your children will be home soon, and I don't want to interrupt your family time, so my companion and I will be leaving." As if on cue, Mr. Flemming opened the door and held it for Tressida to exit. She paused and hugged Olivia tightly. "You keep praying, child. The gods are about to answer all of our prayers."
TBC