Kestra walked tentatively into the Temple of Athena. She looked around briefly at the empty room. She clutched Laura's copy of Pythia's prophecies to her chest as she approached the table in the center of the room. She opened it and began to read. She spent nearly the whole day reading the prophecies and pondering what they meant. She'd been even more lonely since the others had found out about her origins. Despite her pleas, they were all distrustful of her now. Laura had remained her only constant, and she was more distant now as well. Laura had taken the return of the cylons hard, not that it was a surprise. She felt like it was her fault just as Tigh did. If she had gone through with stealing the election, they wouldn't be here now. Kestra had nowhere else to turn, so she had taken Laura's book and come here. Maybe Laura's gods could help her. After reading the texts, however, there were very few things that Kestra found comforting. One verse stood out to her.

"The gods shall lift those who lift each other," she said quietly.

"I didn't know you were religious," came a voice from behind her. Kestra whipped her head around in time to see Nora as she sat beside her.

"I'm not," Kestra said nervously, "at least, I don't think I am." Nora tilted her head to the side.

"You don't know?"

"Duck told you about me?" Kestra asked, ignoring her question. Nora nodded. "I'll leave you alone." Kestra closed the book and started to get up, but Nora put a hand on her shoulder.

"I wouldn't have come in if I wanted you to go. Everyone is welcome in the temple of the gods," she said. Kestra looked curiously at her.

"You're not… afraid?" she asked. Nora shrugged.

"If you were going to hurt us I think you would have done it already," she replied. Kestra nodded and turned back to the book. "You read Pythia?"

"Yes," Kestra replied, "it's very bleak." Nora smiled softly.

"But it is hopeful as well," she said. Kestra turned to her.

"It doesn't bother you that these prophecies doom you to bloodshed and suffering to get to this new home? That you're doomed to the same fate as generations before you and generations after you will be?" she asked incredulously.

"No," Nora said, "I have faith that the gods will take us home."

"But there's no change. No room for growth. People are doomed to repeat the mistakes of their past over and over again," Kestra argued.

"It's human nature," Nora said calmly, "it is by the grace of the gods that we are given the chance to find a new world. We destroyed ourselves. The gods have saved us." Kestra shook her head and tears actually fell from her eyes. "Why does this upset you so much?" Nora asked curiously.

"Many things you wouldn't understand," Kestra said, "but I don't understand how you can understand your own faults and still hate the cylons so much." Nora frowned.

"The cylons tried to exterminate us. It was a mistake for humans to create them. They are evil," Nora said like it was obvious. Kestra looked at her curiously.

"You believe the cylons are inherently evil?" she asked. Nora nodded.

"Don't you? Or do you sympathize with them?" she asked warily. Kestra shook her head.

"I think what they're doing here is wrong. I think what they did to the Twelve Colonies is wrong, but… I think that, like humans, cylons are a lifeform that is capable of mistakes, and therefore also capable of good." Nora furrowed her brow.

"Have you ever met a cylon?" she asked.

"Have you?" Kestra countered.

"Yes," Nora answered looking visibly shaken, "I thought she was a friend."

"Sharon?" Kestra asked. Nora nodded. "If she was your friend, then doesn't it make sense that cylons could be good."

"She wasn't my friend. She was a spy. She shot the Commander," Nora argued.

"But she didn't know she was a cylon before that, right? Doesn't that mean that somewhere they have the ability to form real connections and do good?" Kestra asked.

"Why are you so sure that cylons are good?" Nora asked angrily.

"I didn't say they were good," Kestra said, "but if they are incapable of good, then I worry for humanity after whom they were fashioned. And all life in the universe." Nora frowned as the wistful sadness returned to Kestra's eyes. "If you are doomed to repeat your mistakes, then fighting with the cylons might be a mistake. Maybe the solution is to try to see them as equals rather than a mistake you made."

"We can't just drop our guard and try to be friends with them. They'll kill us."

"All it takes is one act of good faith."

"All it takes is one opportunity to wipe us out," Nora countered.

"Don't you think if they wanted to wipe you out they would have done it already. Why occupy New Caprica? Why not just kill us all and move on?" Kestra asked.

"I don't know," Nora said, then she sighed, "I do know that talk like this can get you killed on both sides. Colonel Tigh would call you a traitor if he heard this."

"Colonel Tigh already hates me," Kestra said, "it doesn't matter what I say. As long as I am not like him, he will hate me."

"Do you really believe that?" Nora asked.

"That's how I got into this situation," Kestra said, "if your Commander hadn't assumed I was a cylon he never would have kept me in the brig for months. Colonel Tigh would never have needed to be distrustful of me."

"Why did he think you were cylon?"

"Because he didn't know me. He didn't understand where I came from or who I was. In your fight for survival, you have isolated yourself from all other life in the universe. Anything you can't explain you imprison or kill." Nora frowned and looked at the altar in the front of the temple.

"I don't know about humanity's survival or anything that big. I just know that I want to survive to have a life with Duck," she said wistfully. Kestra smiled.

"You're the first," she said. Nora raised a brow. "Everyone else I've met feels it's their duty to fight for humanity's survival or something bigger. You're the first I've met that just wants to live your life."

"Is that bad?" Nora asked.

"No, I think it's admirable," Kestra said sincerely, "if you give up your life fighting for humanity, what did you gain? It's impossible to put the survival of your entire species on your shoulders, especially when there is so much you can't control. And if they do save humanity, I don't think any of them have thought about what they'll do when it's done." Nora smiled and looked back at the altar.

"I disagree with the Colonel. I don't think you are a threat," she said softly.

"Thank you," Kestra said, "but I don't think the others agree with you."

"Duck does," Nora said. Kestra smiled.

"That's nice, but the damage is already done. None of you will ever trust me the way you did before," she said. Nora shook her head.

"Trust is earned," she said, "you earned it once. You'll do it again." Kestra smiled and placed her hand over Nora's.

"Thank you," she said. Cally entered with Nicolas and narrowed her eyes when she recognized Kestra. "I should get going," Kestra said softly. She got up but stopped at the doorway. "Thank you, Nora… for not hating me." Nora smiled sweetly and nodded. Kestra left and made her way back to her tent. Laura was waiting for her when she arrived.

"Where have you been?" she asked anxiously, "I thought Tigh or somebody had…" She trailed off and noticed the book in Kestra's hands.

"I borrowed your copy of Pythia's prophecies," Kestra said, handing the book back to her, "I was at the temple." Laura furrowed her brow.

"What were you looking for?" she asked.

"Hope," Kestra replied. Laura's brow raised.

"Did you find it?"

"I think I did," Kestra said thoughtfully, "even if it wasn't in Pythia." Laura nodded.

"I'm glad," she said. The end of her phrase was cut off by the sound of gunfire. Both Laura and Kestra ran out into the street. They turned in the direction of the shooting, and Kestra gasped.

"The temple," she said as she took off in the direction of the fighting.

"Kestra!" Laura called as she ran after her. Kestra stopped when she came upon the temple. A battalion of centurions was hauling weapons out of the temple while onlookers cowered in the street. Laura came up behind Kestra and gasped at the sight.

"Did you know?" Kestra asked in a harsh whisper. She turned her head to look at Laura. "Tigh was hiding weapons in the temple wasn't he?" Laura's gaze returned to the now empty temple.

"I didn't know," she said earnestly. Kestra looked at her for a moment then nodded. She waited stiffly until the centurions had gone then turned and ran into the now empty temple. She looked around the room frantically until her eyes fell on Nora's body on the floor.

"No," she cried softly, "Nora." she ran over and fell on her knees beside her. Nora took a shuddering breath and was still. "No, no, please," Kestra cried as she pulled Nora's body toward her. Laura entered behind her, and her heart sank as she saw Kestra cradling Nora's body. Laura placed a hand on Kestra's shoulder.

"We shouldn't stay here," she said, "there could be more." Kestra looked up and her eyes widened.

"Cally was here," she said as she looked around, "Cally!" Kestra stood and went into the back of the tent. Eventually, she found Cally on the ground clutching Nicholas to her chest. "Cally! Cally, are you alright?" Kestra asked as she knelt by her and placed a hand on her back. Cally flinched and looked up at Kestra. "It's okay. They're gone," Kestra assured her. Cally nodded and Kestra helped her sit up. Cally looked over Nicolas. She sighed in relief when she was sure he was unharmed. Kestra helped her stand and led her out of the temple.

"Nora?" Cally asked when they were outside. Kestra's head dropped.

"She didn't make it," she said sadly. Cally gasped.

"No," she said softly as she looked back to the temple. Laura walked up to the pair.

"Come on," she insisted, "we shouldn't linger here." Cally leaned into Kestra's arm as she led her away from the temple. It seemed the grief of losing Nora was enough to make her forget to hate Kestra for the moment.