"Laura Karla Adama, spoiled brat and destroyer of my sanity! I swear to the gods, if you don't get out here—!"
"Give me a minute, Mom!"
"NO, I will not give you a minute! You've had lots of minutes!" Kara shouted back, hastily pulling her hair back into a ponytail. "Get out of the bathroom, NOW! You know very well that this is my first day back teaching since you got sick and I'm not gonna be late just because you couldn't get your act together this morning!"
"Kara?" Lee said calmly, walking out of the bedroom. "Will you ease up?"
"Nope." Kara shook her head as she went about cleaning up the breakfast table. "I've given her a very wide berth these last couple of days since she's been home. I've been so glad that she's better and back with us that I haven't asked her to clean up any of her stuff, I let her win every single hand of Triad that we played even when my cards were so good it would've made you cry, and I've played gracious hostess as practically every Galactica crew member has come by in the last three days to welcome her back—."
"Yes." Lee interjected with an affable smirk. "You've been an absolute Hestia."
She stopped what she was doing and smirked back at him. "Now, don't call me that, Lee. Not when I was just getting used to the idea of being Artemis." She threw in a wink for good measure and put the last dish in the sink. "I've been sweet, I've been charming, I've been understanding………and now I'm sick of it." She stood up ramrod straight and buttoned the last button on her uniform jacket. "So I'm looking forward to being tough-as-nails Starbuck for a couple of hours; making some nuggets shake in their newly-issued boots, and generally just being kick-ass."
Lee chuckled. "That is, if you can get our daughter out of the bathroom."
Kara groaned and turned back to the bathroom door. "Laura, I am frakking serious about this! If you don't—."
Before she could finish her threat, Laura came out of the bathroom holding her cat, worry wracking her posture. "He's still sick."
Kara looked back at the now-vacated bathroom. "That's what you were doing in there?"
"Yeah." Laura sighed, stroking Boy behind his ears.
"Why were you in the bathroom with Boy?"
Lee let out a loud exhale and answered Kara's question. "He likes to sleep in our bathroom sink."
"This place has been absolutely overrun by craziness." Kara rolled her eyes in amused disbelief. "Must be why I feel so at home."
"What am I gonna do?" Laura asked desperately. "He's sleeping all the time and I can't get him to do anything."
Lee narrowed his eyes. "How is that different from how he usually acts?"
"I'm serious!" Laura replied in exasperation. "He's been like this for a couple of days now."
"Sweetheart, he could just be tired. I mean, we hadn't feed him while you were sick, so he got weak, and then he's probably just worn out from playing with all those people that came to visit you." Kara reached over to stroke Boy's head. "Just give it some time."
"I'm taking him to Cottle." Laura went over to her bed, deposited the cat on it and got her stuff together.
"What's Cottle gonna do?" Lee asked in response. "He's a human doctor, not a veterinarian."
"He can at least look him over!"
"Can I be in the room when you try to convince Doc Cottle to do a thorough check-up on your cat?" Kara laughed. "Because that would be highly amusing."
Laura turned to her mother with a heartbroken look on her face. "Mom."
That look made the laughter cease instantly. "I'm sorry, baby." Kara sat on Laura's bed and took Boy in her lap. "Maybe it's something he ate?"
"Your bear's eye!" Lee almost shouted. "He could've swallowed it, it could be—ya know…….jammed somewhere."
Kara got confused at the statement. "Um…… what?"
"Her bear." Lee pointed to the toy bear on the bed that President Roslin had given Laura when she was a baby; that was now only sporting one black-glass eye. "I noticed yesterday that it's missing one of its eyes."
"Um…….no." Laura stuttered out. "That just fell off………. he didn't eat it."
"Do you still have it? I could sew it back on for you." Kara then paused. "Or ya know—find someone who can actually sew to sew it back on for you."
"I don't still have it." Laura avoided eye contact with them. "It fell off and then I accidentally stepped on it. It totally shattered and I had to throw it away."
Lee gave Kara a strange look and she just shrugged in return. "Oookkkaaayyy." He whistled. "I gotta go or I'm gonna miss my Raptor."
He walked to the door, but before he opened it, Kara came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his chest and kissing his shoulder. "Where are you off to today, Major?"
He leaned back against her as her breath teased his neck. "Pegasus, this time." He answered simply.
She let go of him and moved away slightly. "We might be becoming slightly obsessed about this, Lee."
He turned around again. "Yeah, that really doesn't bother me." He scrubbed his hand over his face. "We have to find something on him, we've been trying for three days and we haven't been successful so far. It's like someone or something has been covering the man's tracks."
"Actually, we don't have to find anything on him." Kara corrected firmly. "We just have to kill him." She saw him shake his head at her, but continued without pause. "It doesn't have to be an execution, make it look like an accident if you have to."
"Kara."
"He's working with the Cylons, Lee. You have to believe that now." She whispered, wary of Laura on the other side of the room. "The veil has been lifted when it comes to Baltar and I now see him as he truly is. All the knowledge that he has about Cylons; its firsthand knowledge."
"That's why I'm going over to the Pegasus." Lee gently squeezed her upper arms. "The Cylon prisoner they had aboard, the one who escaped? Baltar must've had something to do with that, and I'm gonna find out what happened." He kissed Kara before pulling back again. "And then we'll have proof, and the entire fleet will know exactly what he is. And then the last thing Baltar sees before we throw him out the airlock is gonna be my face."
"Thank you for meeting me." Adama reached out a hand.
The priest took it and smiled slightly. "I was a little surprised by the invitation." Monseau replied. "I thought perhaps after our meeting on Colonial One, you might not want to have anything to do with me."
"My children may need a little more time, but all is forgiven by me. I understand the concept of keeping secrets to protect the greater good." Adama informed regretfully as he sat in a chair in his quarters and gestured for the priest to take the opposite one. "Although, you should know, when my secret was revealed, my family was nearly torn apart as a result."
Monseau only nodded. "I've always found it comforting that you have such a broad definition of family."
Adama narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"
"The way you said 'my children' and 'my family' just then." Monseau smiled genuinely. "I used to hear people talk about 'Adama and his family', and it never fully registered until I met you that they were talking about more than just your son."
"I never took family very seriously before, Father." Adama sighed, adjusting his glasses from their perch on the bridge of his nose. "I was too focused on my career, my ship—to even make very much time for my actual relatives. And on the few occasions that I did make time, it was solely to impose my view of what they should be on them."
"Fathers want their children live up to the best of their abilities." Monseau added sympathetically. "But it often comes at the price of not really noticing what their true abilities are."
"When I was finally jolted into returning to my family, it was too late." The Admiral closed his eyes. "One of my sons was dead; the other one wouldn't speak to me, and their mother's heart was broken."
"I see."
"So yes, I guess you could say I don't take a literal view of what constitutes a family." Adama chuckled slightly. "Since for a long time, I took family where I could get it."
"That makes for an interesting diversity, though. A family with many different people who have very specific talents." Monseau pointed out. "Also makes it easy for you to rule your kingdom, you just rely on the person who is strongest in the skill that you need right then."
They were silent for several moments, and Monseau could hear the Admiral's breathing get deeper and more controlled until he finally got up the courage to speak.
"What is your plan for Laura?"
Monseau smiled. "I don't have one."
"No plan to make sure that she fulfills her destiny?"
"No. And if there is a plan, it is not mine. And while I know the basics, I have no knowledge of its specifics." The priest replied. "But I do know that it only works if she chooses to fulfill it."
"But you are hoping that she does."
"I'm hoping that the will of the gods is carried out, seeing as how I am their servant." Monseau corrected. "And I'm hoping that the actions the other people in Laura's life will take, the sacrifices they will make………..will not be all for nothing."
The Admiral leaned forward in his chair. "What specifically are you referring to?" He asked, slightly confused.
"The last part of the passage." Monseau answered simply.
"About the Child of Apollo showing her family the way to Earth?"
"About where the child would go to show them…………….about why she would show them; the battle, the sacrifice." When he finished his sentence, Father Monseau looked up to see a very confused Admiral sitting before him. Looking at him like he had no idea what he was talking about.
And he finally noticed something that he had missed when he walked into the Admiral's quarters: a dark fog floating in the Admiral's eyes.
Something that prevented him from putting the pieces together.
"I don't understand, Father." Adama told him honestly.
"You don't…….." Monseau sat forward in his chair as well. "What do you remember about the passage from the Deliad, Admiral?"
Adama took a heavy breath and leaned back. "That Laura was the fulfillment of the prophecy, that she would show us the way to Earth."
"Nothing about anyone else?" Monseau asked hesitantly.
"The allusions to Lee and Kara being Apollo and Artemis." Adama chuckled. "Which I can see, considering that I have often viewed the two of them as squabbling siblings."
"But nothing else?" Monseau whispered in disbelief.
"No." Adama shook his head. "What else is there?"
Monseau lowered his head when he finally understood what was happening. 'Of course they would forget the instant they heard it. If they knew, they'd never allow it to happen. Leave it to the gods to cover every angle.'
"There is no specific plan, Admiral." Monseau replied, laying a soothing hand on his arm. "Everything will play out as it's supposed to, without any prompting from us mere mortals. We're not going to make sure that Laura does anything except live a blessed life, and if that life allows the fulfillment of the prophecy, than we will give thanks. But no one is going to force it upon her."
Adama smiled. "That's what Dee says."
"Petty Officer Dualla?" Monseau repeated meaningfully.
"Yes, I've been speaking to her at length about Laura and the situation that we find ourselves in." Adama told him, but then paused slightly when he saw Monseau examining him warily.
"You've been speaking to her about it?"
"I realize you wouldn't know it by looking at her. You'd think that she's such a quiet, unassuming little woman, but I've actually gotten quite a bit of guidance from the young Petty Officer over the years. There's a lot of fire in those green eyes."
"You don't have to convince me of the attributes of Dualla, Admiral." Monseau assured him. "I've spent quite some time with her, and I've always thought that she seemed quite…………wise." He smiled thoughtfully, letting the word sink in. "Even President Roslin seemed to think so."
"Yes." Adama nodded. "I don't think I could've made it through these last few years without her. She seems to understand better than almost anyone, the struggles that I have within myself."
"The two of you are very like-minded."
"She knows how to pull me back when I'm making myself crazy." Adama chuckled softly. "And how to push me when I'm not making myself crazy enough."
"Again, it's all about family, Admiral." Monseau informed him, looking to the book of scripture in his hand. "Major Adama is the child of your body, while it seems to everyone that Captain Thrace is the child of your soul. And they are both undoubtedly the children of your heart."
"Yes." Adama nodded again. "That is true."
"You have your Artemis and Apollo. Well, perhaps Petty Officer Dualla is the child of your mind." He paused and looked back up to Adama. "Almost as if she sprung from your head………..like Athena herself."
"Come in!" Adama shouted through the hatch of his quarters a few hours later.
It opened to reveal Laura and Corporal Townsend standing outside. "Hey, Grandpa." She smiled at him before stepping inside and closing the door behind her.
He stood up from his desk and walked over to her, brushing the hair from her forehead and hugging her. "To what do I owe this honor?"
"I've come to abuse the privileges of being the Admiral's granddaughter." She grinned sheepishly. "I need you to requisition a Raptor for me."
"What for?"
"I need to go to the Greenleaf."
He shook his head and walked back to his desk. "I don't want you leaving Galactica."
"I know you're concerned about me, which is why I'm asking for my own Raptor and not just catching the shuttle." She pleaded, going with him to stand in front of his desk. "Please, Grandpa? It's important."
He took off his glasses and sat down in his seat. "What could be so important that you have to go right now?"
"Boy is sick. Even Cottle could see that." Laura told him. "But Cottle has no idea what to do with a sick cat, so I thought I'd take him back to Mrs. Knowlton, see if she'd have any idea how to make him better. And she lives on the Greenleaf."
He leaned forward and put his head in his hands. "Laura." He rasped warningly.
"Come on, Grandpa." She lowered her head and her voice. "You know how much I love that cat."
"Alright." He grumbled, sitting back in his chair. "Someone would have to go with you."
"Gee, really? Even eleven days in a psychotic stupor wasn't enough to make me stupid." Laura rolled her eyes. "I know that someone would have to go with me."
"Your mother's teaching all day, I've got a meeting with four ship's captains to talk about water re-circ abilities, and your father's still traipsing about the fleet for some unknown reason. None of us has time to take you."
"I realize you're busy, but it has to be today." Laura pleaded. "I'm really worried about him and I don't want him to get any sicker."
He looked up at her and gave her a placating smile. "We'll find someone."
Dee walked out of CIC to find Lee Adama walking towards her. She turned around to see if there was anyone else behind her that he could be walking to, but it was just her. She stood up a little straighter and prepared for the worst.
"Hey." He said, finally looking into her eyes.
"Hey." She said back quietly.
"I just spoke to Dad." He told her.
Dee nodded. "I've been speaking to your father a lot these last couple of days." She replied sadly. "As a matter of fact, he's the only one in your family that's been speaking to me."
There was an uncomfortable silence for a few moments.
"I'm trying, alright. You've had a lot longer to come to terms with this than--" He looked away from her. "What do you want from me, Dee?"
"Nothing." She answered honestly, trying unsuccessfully to hide her agitation. "I'm trying to give you your space. I haven't pushed you to listen to me, or see my side of things. I've even stopped myself from trying to smack any godsdamn sense into you……which is quite frankly something that you deserve!" Her rant stopped and she got quiet again as an intense sadness flashed in her eyes. "I haven't even been to see Laura since she—."
"She misses you." Lee cut her off. "Laura misses you. And Kara says I'm acting like a five-year old who's had his feelings hurt." He laughed ruefully. "Which she also says is a behavior I've refined into an art form."
"I know it's not easy for you, Lee." Dee assured him firmly. "But I want you to know that it wasn't easy for me either."
"I know that. Gods, I know that." He whispered. He scratched the bridge of his nose and let out a sigh. "Listen—I need a favor."
"Anything." She answered without hesitation
"Do you think you could take Laura to the Greenleaf?"
"Yeah." Dee answered, again without hesitation. "I'm off-shift now."
"I wouldn't ask except Laura's cat is sick and she wants to take him to the woman we got him from, to see if she can do anything to make him better." He explained. "Dad and Kara are busy, and I'm just here for a few minutes to check in with CIC, because now I have to go to Cloud Nine to see Dr. Frakweasel."
"Baltar?" Dee asked worriedly. "Why do you have to see him?"
Lee stepped closer to her and lowered his voice. "He made Laura sick, we're almost positive. And we think he's been working with the Cylons all along. But every road I've gone down in an attempt to prove it has been a dead end……. and I've had enough." He started to step away from her. "So, I'm bound and determined to get some answers from the man himself."
She stopped his retreat. "And what are you gonna do if he doesn't want to give you those answers?"
He grinned menacingly. "I'm not sure, but I'm thinking some metal wire and shards of broken glass will be involved."
Dee laughed at him. "Have fun."
He patted her arm. "Laura will meet you on the flight deck in an hour to catch the Raptor to the Greenleaf."
"I'll be there." She smiled as he began to move away again.
But he stopped again when he was a few feet from her. "Dee?"
"Yeah?" She responded cautiously as he turned around.
His face grew serious, concerned and very father-like. "It's just, you knew……..you knew what was going on before. Do you know……..do you have any idea what's gonna happen next?"
"No." She smiled slightly, but sadly. "I really don't have any idea."
"Laura? Psst. Hey, Laura!" A voice called out to her. "Come up here, would ya?"
Laura unhooked her belt and got out of her seat in the back of the Raptor. She made her way toward the cockpit—and the sound of the voice—and realized that as she passed them, neither Dee nor Corporal Townsend took notice of the fact that she wasn't sitting beside them anymore.
She came to the front and stood between the two pilots navigating the ship.
"Press that for me." Helo told her, pointing to a button on the control panel.
She complied and immediately felt the vessel accelerate beneath her feet. "Whoa." She breathed out.
"It's cool, isn't it?" Sharon chuckled on the other side of her.
"Really cool." Laura smiled at her in response.
"Here's something else that's cool." Sharon said, gesturing to a screen in front of her.
Laura leaned in and took a closer look. "The dradis screen." She grinned, recognizing what she was being shown. "Mom and Dad explained it to me. I've always liked it."
"I can see why you would." Helo commented.
"Why?"
"Because on dradis, everything is just little blobs of energy." Sharon answered for him.
"There are no preconceived notions." Helo added. "The dradis doesn't see a 2,000 megaton freight ship with a 20ft steel-plated hull. All it sees is its energy trace."
"A blob here, a blob there." Sharon continued, pointing to the spots on the screen that represented ships. "They're really not so scary when you see it like that."
"And no matter how sure you may be of something just by looking at it………… dradis sees what's really there." Helo smiled at Laura. "Because even with a steel-plated hull—you can't hide energy. You see things as they really are, so then you can look past all the bullshit—."
"Don't cuss in front of her!" Sharon admonished playfully, smacking his knee. "Gods, like she doesn't get enough of that from Starbuck."
Laura loud out a loud burst of laughter at the comment.
Sharon turned to Laura, still chuckling. "It cuts through all the obfuscation, all the confusion."
"And then you can see if it's a foe……. or a friend."
"Just little blobs of energy." Laura repeated, looking to the parents that she had never met. "That's what they did, isn't it?"
"Who's 'they'?" Helo chuckled.
Laura rolled her eyes and grinned wider. "Them……..the ones that………I don't even know how to describe them. The ones who—."
"He knew who you meant, Laura." Sharon shook her head in amusement. "He's just playing with you."
"They made everybody look at me like they were looking at a dradis screen." Laura continued, smiling in wonder. "So that they were able to look past the Cylon and see—."
"Your little blob of energy." Helo finished for her, nodding in confirmation.
"You're such a good girl, Laura." Sharon smiled proudly, touching the dogtags that dangled off Laura's neck as she leaned over slightly to view the panels. "It'd be a damn shame if no one ever got to see that…….simply because they were afraid."
Laura's eyes moistened with tears and she bit her lip. "Thank you."
"For what, sweetheart?" Sharon asked, tucking a strand of hair behind Laura's ear.
"I don't know." Laura shrugged. "Creating me, having me, giving me to my family so that I could have the life that I've had."
"We don't need to be thanked for that, Laura." Helo assured her, taking her hand in his. "After all, that was our greatest accomplishment."
"Laura? Laura?"
She felt a hand on her shoulder, gently shaking her awake and she opened her eyes to see Dee standing over her, holding Boy in her arms. Laura looked down and saw that she was still buckled into her seat in the back of the Raptor.
"We're here, Laura." Dee smiled at her. "We've docked on the Greenleaf."
"Yeah, time to get off, little girl. Free ride's over." Racetrack shouted back at her, grinning widely. "I just got a priority-one call to the Zepher and you're cutting into my flight time." Racetrack then looked at Dee. "I'll be back for you in two hours."
Laura unbuckled herself and rubbed her eyes. "How long was I asleep?"
"Maybe five minutes." Dee answered, moving toward the open hatch and stepping down onto the deck. "You were fast asleep by the time we left Galactica, though."
"Yeah, out like a light the second your head hit the back of the chair." Corporal Townsend laughed as he hopped off as well. He held out his hand for Laura to take, but saw her hesitation. "You ready to go, Laura?"
Laura stayed at the edge of the hatch for a moment, but finally sucked in a deep breath and took his hand. She stepped off the Raptor, landing right in front of Dee. "Yeah, I'm ready." She looked at her godsmother meaningfully. "Whatever's gonna happen……….. I'm ready now."
Dee just held her gaze for several moments, and then nodded.
"I love the ocean." Laura Roslin sighed dreamily, looking out at the vast expanse in front of her.
"I can see that." The Admiral grumbled, standing beside her.
She looked over at him. "What? Don't you like it here?"
"No, it's not that. It's very lovely." He replied, looking down. "It's just—."
She narrowed her eyes. "Just?"
"My pants are getting wet." He chuckled. "You couldn't have dressed us more appropriately?"
Roslin then looked him up and down before taking notice of her own clothes. They were standing knee-deep in the middle of the warm water, about twenty feet from the shore. And yet, Adama was dressed in full duty uniform and she was in a buttoned down business suit.
"Oh." She giggled breathily, lifting her foot out of the sandbar to see that she even had heels on. "Sorry about that. It's just—."
"Just?" He laughingly repeated her previous question.
"It's just that I've never seen you in anything other than some sort of uniform." She answered with a grin. "So I guess even though we're at a beach, I just couldn't conjure up the image of the two of us in swimsuits."
"Yes." He returned the smile. "But this is my dream. Aren't I in control?"
"Oh, Bill." She clutched her chest as a wave of laughter came over her. "Sometimes I still find it funny that you ever thought you had any control when it came to you and me."
When she winked at him, he let out a loud guffaw.
He looked around him at the beautiful landscape: clear blue sky with a yellow sun standing strong and high in it, crystal blue-green water spread out for miles in front of them, and an immaculate, white-sand beach behind them. "I feel like I should know this place."
"You do know this place." She assured him.
"But that's just the thing…………..I don't know it." He retorted. "It's very familiar to me, very significant. And yet, I don't think I recognize it."
"You don't recognize it because you've never been here before." She informed. "But it's familiar and significant to you because it will become a permanent fixture in your life." She turned to look at him meaningfully. "On this date, every year for the rest of your life, you will come here. And you will grow to love this place almost as much as you love your family."
"My family." He whispered to himself.
She turned away from him for a moment. "I have a question for you, Bill."
"I'll try to answer it, Laura."
She turned back to face him squarely. "Do you know where Dr. Baltar is?"
He was taken aback by the question, but answered quickly. "Dr. Baltar is in a guarded suite on Cloud Nine."
Her expression turned mischievous. "Huh. While technically that's true…………that's not really where he is anymore."
For a moment, he thought he was getting agitated. But with one simple touch of her hand on his shoulder, his worry dissipated. "Do you know where he is?"
"Not personally, because he is most definitely not where I am." She answered. "But I do know that there is a special kind of hell for people who intentionally hurt children." Her eyes twinkled. "Dr. Baltar and Captain Thrace's mother will be spending a lot of time together."
"So……. you took care of Baltar." He stated, understanding that the man would no longer cause them any trouble.
"Baltar took care of himself; we didn't have to do anything." She corrected. "His end was fitting, and he had only himself to blame when everything came full circle."
Adama nodded.
Roslin reached into her pocket and pulled out a sheet of full sized octagonal paper. "I have something to show you." She unfolded it and handed it to him.
He looked at it and saw that it was a printout from one of Galactica's message interface computers:
The father has betrayed us, and it is a great loss to our cause. But we must move on with our mission. And if you have completed your task, the ground work will be set.
You have done well, Number Four. Now we must trust that God will make sure she is at the agreed upon location at the right time.
We have one more battle left. The child will come to us, and her soul can still be ours. But we will have to fight for it.
"Where did you get this?" Adama whispered.
"The message was sent to Galactica this morning."
"Laura is in danger?" He asked quietly. Again, for some reason, his demeanor was completely without fear and concern.
"No." Roslin shook her head. "She is in a dangerous situation, but nothing will happen to her. We have someone who will make sure of it."
"Then why did you show this to me?"
Instead of answering the question, she turned her head away and asked one. "Do you remember that Athena is the goddess of war?"
"I think anyone with a first grade education remembers that."
"Yes." Roslin agreed. "But what most people don't recall is that she really wasn't much of a warrior. And while she was involved in all of them, she actually took what could be considered an inactive role in most of humanity's conflicts." She smiled proudly, but it was tinged with regret. "Athena never really went after the glory that could be achieved by war. She preferred to keep a calm and level-headed objectivity and to stay away from the passion and fury that came during battle. Because of that, she was able to clearly see what many lost sight of in the haze of war. So instead of being the hero herself, she used her most prominent gift…………..her wisdom…………to guide the heroes and the warriors to victory. To bring them safely home."
Adama's eyes slowly fell shut and the paper fell out of his hands down to the water below.
In the final battle for the child's soul, the wise one was struck down…………...
You don't have to convince me of the attributes of Dualla…………I've always thought that she seemed quite……………wise.
I was hoping you could now impart some of the wisdom……………
Perhaps Petty Officer Dualla is the child of your mind………….almost as if she sprung from your head…………like Athena herself.
The Arrow of Apollo will open the Tomb of Athena……………….
When the battle ceased, the oracle took the child to mourn the goddess………….
Adama's eyes snapped open again, remembering everything. "My gods."
"One more question, Bill." Roslin asked, taking his trembling hand and wrapping it in hers. She tugged on it gently until he looked into her eyes. "Do you know where Petty Officer Dualla is?"
"Admiral? Admiral Adama?" The intercom buzzed and Gaeta's voice cut through the haze of sleep. Adama lifted his head off the back of his chair and reached for the handset next to his desk.
"Are the ship's captains early, Mr. Gaeta?" He asked gruffly, looking at the clock. "The meeting wasn't supposed to start for another ten minutes."
"No, sir, it's not the meeting." Gaeta informed him. "Major Adama is on the line for you, an urgent call from Cloud Nine."
"Patch him through."
There was a click and Adama could hear Lee's rapid breathing. "Dad?"
"Son, what's going on?"
"Baltar's dead." Lee said with no other emotion besides concern. "His neck was snapped like a twig. Medic says he's been dead for about six hours."
"How?" Adama nearly shouted. "How is that possible?"
The Admiral could tell by his harsh breathing that Lee's anger was pointed somewhere close by. "Shoddy security." Lee seethed through clenched teeth. "We're partly to blame too, because we didn't tell them any specifics about why he was in here. They were more focused on keeping Baltar from leaving the room that they allowed two women in. Both women were searched, and they both claimed to be from the fifth level—."
"Godsdamn prostitutes." Adama interjected. "The guards never stopped to think that someone could be impersonating a working girl?"
"The last woman that was let in—when I questioned the guard, the description he gave me………. matched the description of—."
"Of what?"
"The Cylon prisoner on Pegasus that escaped." Lee sighed. "The model that Kara fought with on Caprica, the one that disappeared from Galactica after accusing Baltar of treason."
"My gods." Adama whispered, rubbing his eyes.
"Whatever you do—stop Laura from getting on that Raptor."
"She's already gone." The Admiral choked out.
"What? The Raptor wasn't scheduled to leave for another ten minutes."
"The Greenleaf sent out an all-ships communiqué, informing us that there would be a massive unloading of supplies on their hangar bay in between 1300 and 1400, and to halt all traffic between those times." Adama rubbed his eyes. "So I gave permission to launch the Raptor early. She left with Dee nearly twenty minutes ago."
"Frak." Lee hissed under his breath.
The room began to spin and the Admiral closed his eyes as understanding deluged him. She left with Dee……………
Adama felt as though his heart stopped beating. And standing there—in his quarters—he could almost feel the warm blue water lapping against his calves. He gripped the phone tighter in his hand and opened his eyes to look across the room.
Laura Roslin was standing there, looking back at him.
"I'm sorry it had to happen this way, Bill. I'm so very sorry." Her voice trembled as she spoke. "But you can't stop it now."
"Son?" Adama shouted in the handset, never breaking his gaze from Roslin. "We have to find them."
The fear in Lee's voice could not be hidden. "We know where they are. Just send out a message to the Gree—."
Suddenly, the sentence was eclipsed by a loud, piercing screech coming from the phone.
Adama dropped it out of his hands like it had scorched him, but then picked it up again. "Lee? Lee, can you hear me?"
"Admiral Adama?" Gaeta's hurried voice came in over the intercom. "Admiral Adama, we need you in CIC immediately."
Adama didn't respond, but just ran out of his quarters at a frantic speed.
He entered CIC to find everything in chaos.
"Fix it!" Tigh shouted. "We can't have ships all over this fleet not being able to talk to each other!"
"Sitrep!" Adama shouted, causing everyone to momentarily look up before going back to their tasks.
"Something is emitting a high-frequency signal out into the fleet." Gaeta informed him, uncertainty and fear echoing in his words. "It's jamming all external transmissions……..and it's clouding the dradis."
"Where's it coming from?" Adama shouted over the confusion.
Gaeta paused as he reread the panels in front of him. "US." He rasped. "The signal is coming from Galactica."
"I've sent out an all-ships bulletin, sir." The coms officer informed the Admiral, holding her headset at arms length, attempting to escape the high-pitched wail it was emitting. "But no one is responding………communications is worthless."
"So is dradis, sir." Gaeta added.
"No messages in or out. No dradis." Tigh turned to look at Adama, who stood there frozen in fear and disbelief. "We're deaf and blind."
TBC
