Chapter 8: The Deep Breath of Terror
Space ripped open with a bright flash and a small vessel was emerged from it. The vessel was almost 10m long while this variant was designed for DRADIS sweeps and wireless surveillance, though other variants was designed for heavy combat, however this variant did have twin machine cannons and ship-to-ship missiles.
"Anything on the wireless, Helo?" asked the pilot to her Electronic Countermeasures Officer and Co-Pilot Lt. Karl "Helo" Agathon who sat at an ECO station behind the two pilot-seats.
"That's a negative Boomer." answered Lt. Agathon his pilot Lt. Sharon "Boomer" Valerii.
For the last four days Galactica's Raptor crews had been sent towards the border between the Twelve Colonies of Kobol and Cyolon space. It had been created after the then called twelve tribes (later called colonies) and their self-created demon called Cylons had fought each other when the robotic Cylons rose up against Man in attempt to liberate themselves and exact revenge. After the war had ended and the border had been established, no one had ever seen the Cylons since, though every so often civilian pilots brought forth claims of DRADIS contact of unknown ships across the other side of the border, but none was substantiated.
"Well that blows, but when was the last confirmed Cylon sighting 40 years?" asked Lt. Valerii.
"39, and we have twelve hours of listening to wireless static, since no civilian transmitter can reach us." said Lt. Agathon. "We aren't receiving military transmission either.
"Though encrypted traffic might get pass us, but discovering and breaking Cylon encryption is as likely as Zeus would manifest inside the Raptor for a game of Triad."
"Speaking of cards, did you remember to bring them this time?"
After an hour of playing a card game of Fortress, their DRADIS started to scream out an alert of unknown contact.
"Frak, just I was about to win." said Lt. Valerii as she put herself back into her seat behind the flight controls she peered out and saw distant ship coming out of a green electric discharge. The unknown ship had a long narrow bow section with a flight-pod looking section at either side of the aft.
The flight-pods were just one-third of the ships length and it lacked any apparent sublight engines.
Four smaller crafts came out of one the flight-pods and started to do what seemed to be a protected combat patrol."
"What in Tartarus is that?" asked Lt. Agathon.
"Beats me." answered Lt. Valerii. "Are you getting anything on the wireless?"
"A lot but the coding is so strange I don't make any headways with it." said Lt. Agathon. "Second Contact!"
As soon as he said that another green discharge came and a more massive ship came out of it. Based upon passive telemetry it was between two-thirds to three-quarters in size as Galactica and about twice in size as the fist ship.
The design of the second ship was similar to that of the first, but it lacked any flight-pods.
"What the frak is happening?" said Lt. Valerii as she rechecked the camera system to see if it were recording.
"It can't be Cylons, it doesn't share their Basestar design aesthetic." said Lt. Agathon referring to the Cylon's disk-shaped or Y-shaped ships.
"It can only be them. Who else has any shipbuilding technology besides us?" said Lt- Valerii as the larger ship began to open up and put out a station of some kind, just two hundred metres inside their side of the border.
Unbeknownst to the two Raptor pilots, the ship they were observing wasn't Cylon ships but TCV Ark Royal and TCV Da Vinci. Whose mission was to set up their final Kusanagi class satellite into its position.
The two ships had worked hard for the last few days setting up their satellites. Due to the Hadrian class ships' lack of primary combat capability and current mission profile, a Flight II Odyssey class ship was chosen to ride escort with them.
"Anything on sensors?" asked Col. Ian Taylor, Captain of the ship Ark Royal. He sat in the Captain's Chair drinking Tea. A career Navy Man in Her Majesty's Service, he never dreamed to captain a spacegoing vessel. While his current mission might be boring, but further potential missions could be that those of exploration or fighting space-borne pirates, just like his ancestors did during the Golden Age of Sail.
"Nothing on radar, Sir." said his helmsman. "This would be our last satellite placement before the unveiling, right Captain?
"Correct Ensign." said Cap. Taylor. The Tau'Ri Navy used Naval ranks as supplementary to the Officer's or Noncom's regular rank. The Captain's Regular rank was Company Colonel, Company was the expected size of his command (which was given considering Ark Royal's crew of 220) and Colonel was the reflection of his experience and training (also to command a Battlecruiser or Battleship the Captain had to be a Colonel in his regular rank). His helmsman had only the navel supplemental rank of Ensign (which just denoted that the officer in question was a commissioned officer onboard a ship) but his regular rank in the Tau'Ri was Platoon Major.
Captain Taylor decided to reflect once again on the Tau'Ri binary ranking system for their regular ranks that went Fire and Manoeuvrer Team (FMT for short), Squad, Platoon, Company, Battalion, Regiment, Brigade, Division, Corps., Army, Army Group, Region, Front and Theatre and Lieutenant, Major, Commander, Colonel and General. While the supplemental Naval ranks where Ensign, Captain, Commodore, Rear Admiral, Vice Admiral, Admiral and Fleet Admiral. A bit confusing for Cap. Taylor but he understood why, in the end, it was made this way. The first regular rank and the supplemental naval ranks denoted size of potential command the second regular rank denoted training and experience. For instance his counter part on the Da Vinci was had a Commodore rank as part of the Tau'Ri Navy, her regular rank Battalion Colonel.
Officially there were a Marshal rank as well but it could only be given to commanders of one of the Field or Administrative Commands or to a member of the Joint Chiefs of the Tau'Ri military.
Non commissioned officers, Enlisted and warrant officers used the first regular rank followed by Private, Corporal, Sergeant, Chief. With Lance, Gunnery and Master prefixed on the second rank to denote any special training a Corporal, Sergeant or Chief might have, with Specialist (or Rating) to denote Naval Noncoms, Enlisted or Warrant officers.
"We are given our assigned stops yesterday." Cap. Taylor continued. "We are first to show up at the UN during the Unveiling, followed a brief visit to London and then an extended stay at York."
"Could be worse, Sir." said the helmsman. "And how about the big boys?"
"The battleships will go to London, Washington, Moscow, Paris, Beijing and Stockholm after making an appearance at the UN, the H(FSR)ADN-313 (CV) class TCV Enterprise (Heavy (Fast, Screened, Recon) Auxiliary Dreadnought (Carrier)), will either making an appearance at San Francisco or Los Angeles, I don't remember which."
Though orders were also given to multiple Generals and Admirals, to make the Unveiling of the Stargate as smoothly as possible, considering Earth's new knowledge and position in the universe at large, though until last week, none of them knew about the 'Gate.
"By the way did your son enjoy Disneyland Valhalla?" asked Cap. Taylor his helmsman, who had three children ranging six to twelve.
"Yes, Captain. I loved that you didn't need to wait for hours to get a ride. My eldest liked the 'Galaxy's Edge' ride."
"Well, the lines most likely are going to grow fast in the next few years." said Cap. Taylor knowing that the population of Valhalla is going to grow fast after the Unveiling. "Both India and China has a 200 million colonist promise and the rest of the world has a shared 200 million promise.
"All of them settled in the next five years."
"Bloody hell. No wonder that they are building so many cities on Valhalla. What are they going to do with all of that people?"
"Putting them into work in the shipyards. The Tau'Ri government has a military directive to build six hundred ships the next twenty years."
"That was news to me captain."
"Officially it doesn't. It hasn't announced yet, I only know since a) I have the necessary clearances and b) my wife's mistress is posted on the Engineering Command, and has to find all the raw materials for that endeavour."
On the Colonial Raptor the situation was completely different. While their main gun-camera was filming the overall picture, they had zoomed in their secondary ones in order to capture more details on the strange ship.
"I think it is time to leave and not push our luck any more." said Lt. Agathon.
"You are right, who knows when their raiders spot us and use us as target practice." said Lt. Valerii. "Armistice be damned."
As they spooled up their FTL and jumped, made a radar operator on the Ark Royal curious, but she quickly dismissed it at first as a false reading. It wasn't until the Da Vinci sent a signal requesting confirmation about a strange energy spike it had detected, the radar operator reported it.
As Lts Agathon's and Valerii's Raptor emerged from the FTL flash, well outside the scanners of the two ships it had observed, but well within the DRADIS of its mothership that had launched it an hour and a half earlier. Last time t had fired its guns actual combat was forty or so years ago during the Cylon wars and soon its guns would laid inoperable as the ship would be turned into a museum.
"Commander, Raptor 312 have returned." announced Lt. Dualla's replacement from his station.
"Boomer shouldn't be back for another ten hours." said Col. Tigh angrily.
"Get Boomer on the horn." said Comm. Adama to the communications officer. "Let's see if she has a good explanation for her early return."
Comm. Adama waited as the communications officer manually switched his wired broadcaster into the wireless communication system. Unlike the newer ships, Galactica had no networked computers. The Commander didn't trust them, despite promises that the new Firewalls were impenetrable from Cylon cyberwarfare attempts. Besides the Galactica was nine months away from its decommissioning and be made into a museum ship.
"Raptor 312 to Galactica Actual. Boomer did you forget something?" asked Comm. Adam expecting equipment failure.
"Combat Information to hangar." said. Lt Valerii. "We have unknown ships in our search area, repeat two unknown ships. I need Combat Information to print out photos to see if they are Cylon ships."
"Send Combat Information o the hangar." ordered Comm. Adama, to the section of CIC that was just two lieutenants and theirs ratings. And with an twenty year old laptop and even older printer, but it could interface with the Raptor. They would print out anything captured by the Raptor's camera and DRADIS systems and make four copies of them. One copy for the Galactica, one to the the nearest battlegroup and two to Colonial command.
"Where is the nearest battlegroup?" inquired Comm. Adama, and the watch officer pulled out a map and placed it on the centre table at the CIC.
"Here Sir. Pegeasus battlegroup." said the Watch officer. "Three battlestars and seven escorts or suppport ships, unknown class. Rear Admiral Cain in command Sir,"
"Im going down to the hangar to see these unknown ships. Prepare the ship for jump. If this information looks good I am going to personally deliver this information to Adm. Cain herself. Any questions?"
"I have to remind you Bill that standard orders are to send a Raptor with the information." countered Col. Tigh.
"Normally I would agree with you Saul, but if Adm. Cain orders to attack we need to be prepared for action." said Comm. Adama. "Its easier to coordinate if we are there."
"Alright Bill."
On Ark Royal everything was going on schedule. But as Da Vinci was setting up the 750m long satellite, the Ark Royal was busy scanning the nearby space.
"Anything on communications?" asked Cap. Taylor.
"I've got faint radio traffic in the 2kc band." said the communications officer "Originating from the quaternary system, three light-years away from here. I'm also tracking standard EM radio traffic."
"Astrometrics?"
"A double binary system." said the radar operator. "It seems to have twelve planets in the habitable range and one habitable moon orbiting on of them.
"Neither the Goa'Uld nor Asgard seems to found out about the civilisation there. The Asgard records says that they had suspicions that the Furlings had placed some freed Goa'Uld slaves there but they never investigated it. And the SGC did a few attempts to dial to what they now think a buried 'Gate in the system."
"Shall we move towards the system to investigate?" asked the helmsman.
"Negative Ensign." said Cap. Taylor. "We can't leave the Da Vinci undefended. Order our fighter squadron to standby for potential contact and bring the ship to condition two.
"Comminations, ready a link to Earth for real-time communications."
"Aye-Aye Sir." said the comminations officer. "Link ready to HQ, Captain"
"General O'Neill to TCV Ark Royal Actual." said Cap. Taylor.
"Go ahead Cap. Taylor." said one of the greatest heroes the galaxy had that was still alive. His hair had been almost completely greyed out and he was wearing the uniform of an US Air Force General, though by the end of the day he would wear the Tau'Ri equivalent.
"We have detected an energy spike similar to a artificial wormhole and faint radio traffic in the 2kc band from a nearby quaternary system." reported Cap. Taylor. "We would like to investigate, but however, we are assigned to be the Da Vinci's escort as the set up its final satellite to defend Valhalla.
"I like ascertain if this is an old culture or a young one."
"You have permission but be quick about it, I don't want to explain the British PM about your absence."
"Yes Sir!" said Cap. Taylor as the signal link ended. Now he had his permission to investigate but it would take at least four more hours before the satellite was set up and he could do it.
"What is the galley serving today?" Cap. Taylor asked his helmsman.
"Baked cod with fr… chips, Sir." said the helmsman. "However the chef can prepare you something else for you."
"No I'll eat with the men today." said Cap. Taylor as he rose up to go to the galley, wondering once again how a 400 year old Vampire from Darkness could be such a good chef."
Meanwhile in the system the Ark Royal was observing, a woman in her late forties was commanding a different warship and she was enjoying her lunch inside her study at the moment.
She held her hair in a tight pony tail and her uniform was immaculate. Her lunch was a traditional meal from her home-world of Tauron which was heavy on red meats with a side-order of potatoes. While eating she went through the time-frame of her ships upcoming overhaul, that was due In three months. A quiet knock on the bulkhead hatch into her study made her lift up her head and look towards the said hatch.
"Enter." ordered Rear Admiral Helena Cain, commanding officer of the Mercury class Battlestar Pegasus and its accompanying Battlegruop.
Out of the hatch came her XO Colonel Jurgen Belzen, he rarely interrupted her meals since it was one of the few moments her time that she wasn't working.
"The Galactica just jumped in." reported Col Belzen. "Its commanding officer Comm. Adama, is reporting two unknown contacts in sector T289.
Adm. Cain's eyes widened and stabbed her table with her dinner knife, hard enough to lodge it into the table.
"Cylons" she said as her eyes went cold enough to frighten special forces marines as she gazed upon her table-lodged knife. "I knew they would return one day to finish the job."
"Correction, Admiral." said Col. Belzen, an ardent sceptic from the highly religious world of Gemenon. "Comm. Adama reports that two unknown ships. They could be Cylons, but neither he or his Combat Information aren't sure of it.
"He is coming aboard with pictures that one of his Raptors took."
"Who else is there?" barked Adm. Cain. "Get him here at once and send word to the commanders of the rest of Battlegruop to come here too look over these pictures."
Col. Belzen snapped at the raw bark of these orders and went through the hatch in order to carry out his orders.
Twenty minutes later Comm. Adama was led through the Pegasus. The ship was newer than his own Galactica so it didn't have the faint smell of Mold that came from leaky pipes.
He saw the two marines in full combat uniform in front of the Admiral's office hatch, they snapped in attention as they opened the hatch for Comm. Adama. He entered the hatch and saw the commanders of the Battlegroup's ten ships. Comm. Adama saluted the younger Admiral and she went to straight to business after returning the salute.
"So Comm. Adama you hava a Cylon sighting to us?" asked Adm. Cain.
"I have two unknown contacts in sector T289." corrected Comm. Adama. "While they are on the Cylon side of the border. They can be anything,"
Comm. Adama pulled out a map and the pictures he was carrying in a briefcase that once belonged his father.
"Thsese pictures were taken ninety minutes ago." Comm. Adama continued. "The reason for the delay is that Galactica's printers are old."
"Ninety minutes are a long time, Bill." said Comm. Tolan Caesar, an old friend of Comm. Adama that once served in the Ghost Fleet with him.
"I wanted to be sure it wasn't some piece of drifting hulk, Kai." answered Comm. Adama Comm. Caesar. "The pilots of the Raptor who took the pictures aren't old enough to lived through the Cylon war."
"Why were you there in the first place." inquired a younger Commander. "Last time I checked you were supposed to be near Hebe. Not in a different starsystem entirely."
"Valid question Commander." said Comm. Adama. "We were ordered to listen to some strange transmissions that were coming in from sector 728 near the star of Raluch."
The star Raluch had segnificant meaning in Colonial Mythology both mainstream and Æsir worship, and it was the only thing both religions agreed upon. It was the star that was closest to Tartarus (or Jutenheim and Muspelheim a.k.a. Kobol in Æsir worship).
"So far of what we been able to translate it seems to be some kind of mainstream broadcast traffic, music, news and such like." Comm. Adama continued.
"I can see that your pilots were nervous." said another Commander. "Once, one of my pilots mistook a Cylon Raider wreck as a UFO."
"Your pilot believe in Non-Human life?" laughed a fourth Commander, reflecting the belief from the mainstream Colonial religion that said it was impossible. "How were you able to translate these transmission Comm. Adama?
"Some of the broadcasts were spoken in a dialect similar to the languages found in the Scrolls of Pythia and in the Æsir Sagas." said Comm. Adama. "And yesterday we translated a broadcast that were in a dialect of Ancient Ithican,"
Ithica was a sore spot in Colonial culture. Even more so than Æsir worship or Monotheism. Ithicans claimed to be the native culture of the Colonials claiming a race of beings called Seraph (or Furling among the Colonials, though Ithicans that worshipped the Lords of Kobol also referred them as Seraphs) and vast majority were either Æsir worshippers or Monotheists and fought fiercely against the Colonials to confirmed their distinctiveness. And it wasn't an empty claimed either, when the moon Hibernia was colonized by the Celtans of Virgon. Multiple tribes of bronze using Ithicans was found already living there. The only world Ithican wasn't found was on Aquaria. And on Sagittaron and Gemenon they were basically classed as secondary citizens with Apartheid laws on the books though they were also spared the Religious laws found on those worlds. The Apartheid laws was also applied to Colonials that were culturally Æsir worshippers.
"Either way this isn't a wreck of some kind." said Comm. Caesar.
"No Kai they aren't." said Comm. Adama as he pulled another picture. "According to my pilots and as seen on this picture. The larger ship opened itself up and started to place a station of some kind."
"This put the statiion just four jumps away." said Adm. Cain. "And within the one jump-distance ban on any permanent stations outside of the Armistice station.
"I want to hit it now as enforcement of the ban."
"Shouldn't we inform HQ about our decision first, Admiral?" wondered Comm. Caesar.
"No Comm. Caesar, besides the treaty allow us to enforce the ban as we see fit."
"Then we have a slight problem Ma'am. I have a newsteam onboard the Orion from Caprica, we can't leave them without raising a few alarms on Caprica or the rest of the Colonies."
"Why are there a news crew onboard your ship?"
"HQ is trying to drum up news stories before the next budget cuts."
"Then we can use them to watch us deal with a Cylon threat then,"
"It is going to look bad if they got hit by a stray missile, why not put them in a Raptor and if if goes south they can jump out and warn the Colonies."
"I agree on it." said Adm. Cain with swallowed anger. "Two Cylons against our four Battletars and support ships would be a cakewalk."
"While I will dicharge any orders you give me and my ship." started Comm. Adama. "I have to make it clear to the record that I wholeheartedly disagree with your conclusions."
"Noted Comm. Adama." said Adm. Cain bitterly. She disliked most Cylon War veterans still in service, since they were overly cautious when it came to the Cylon threat.
"And If I make a suggestion, we should send a Raptor to scout the area first. To be sure that we don't fall into a well laid trap."
"Wise suggestion, Bill." said Comm. Caesar.
"No Commander." disagreed Adm. Cain. "We can't let them know that we know about their plans..
"Once you are aboard your ships. Go to condition 1 and jump to the target area. Once we are there launch your respective tactical wings. Galactica will take a rearguard position while I take the Pegasus in the front. If I fall I want the Galactica to take lead on the withdraw, considering that you are the most senior officer after me Comm. Adama."
"Wil do Admiral." said Comm. Adama, wishing that he and Cain knew who they would attack within an hour.