Eight - Reckoning
Survivor count: 4,381
As an arms dealer Leoben had been given a job cleaning and preparing small arms weapons for the passengers and crew Kortenaer. It wasn't the most tasking work but it kept him busy and kept him near a supply of weapons, should he need them, given the successes these Colonials had been having he may just need them.
Suddenly without warning several marines in full body armour charged in brandishing assault rifles aiming them at Leoben. "Morning lads, how can I help you?" He asked looking at them and at the weapons on the table beside him. Behind the marines another Leoben walked in his hands bound behind him.
"Sorry cousin, this game is up…" he said glancing at the marines and more that had entered behind them.
"Well when the game is up you know what you do" the first Leoben said striking out at the closest marine knocking him down while grabbing the weapon. He turned bringing the weapon up but as he did the remaining three marines pulled the trigger on their weapons immediately killing Leoben.
"What a waste" the captive Leoben said as the marines turned towards him "I'm not the fighting type boys. Interrogation yes but not fighting, I'll cooperate and help you see the fight." He said intent on playing the long game with the Colonials.
On board the Massena II Matthew Boyle welcomed the other captains to the ship as they planned their next move despite his injuries Patrick Sinclair joined them. "Welcome onboard all of you" Boyle said looking around the meeting room at the nine other Captains and Sinclair. "Now we need to decide our next move now that we know we've had a spy here on the asteroid. We don't know what he fed back to the Cylons but we have to think our time here is going to be limited." He said referring to Leoben, they had no idea if there were more of his kind here already pictures of the humans who had helped the Cylons were being passed across the ships.
"We have ships in need of significant repairs" Captain Raymie Steele said first his Caerphilly had taken heavy damage rescuing Sinclair and the civilians from Minos the Agosta was less damaged but still would struggle in future conflicts.
"Agreed and Captain Pena's people have already begun repairs to critical systems but extensive structural repairs will be more difficult. We will do what we can."
"Colonel Boyle, if I may?" The commander of the Tylium Refuelling ship that they had liberated from Minos asked. He was at least ten years Matthew Boyle's senior with greying hair and wore a utilitarian civilian uniform which was brown in colour with a red coloured t-shirt underneath.
"Go ahead, Captain Strattus" Boyle said remembering the man's name.
"Our ship has supplies that could help with repairs here on the asteroid and while in deep space you saved us from Minos my people will help you willingly. We would also like to request the permission of Major Sinclair to rename our vessel and the Tylium Mining vessel after two of the marines who died saving us."
"It would be an honour" Sinclair said his face was bruised and he looked terrible but he was still of right mind. "I will provide you with the names of the last two marines who died on Minos."
"Thank you" Strattus said turning back to Colonel Boyle "I have one further request." Boyle nodded his agreement. "Colonel, your people have sacrificed for the good of the people in this room and on the ships out there. If we are to leave the asteroid below and become a fleet we will need a fleet commander. I vote for you to fill that roll is there a second?" He asked glancing around seven others raised their hands in support including Major Sinclair "that confirms it, Commander."
"I'm not in this for the glory or station."
"Don't worry we won't be increasing your pay" Strattus said winking "just keep doing what you're doing."
"Why do we have to leave? This asteroid could defend us from significant enemy weapons fire."
"But it would only take a few missiles to seal the entrance to the cave our ships are in." Boyle pointed out "if the Cylons know where we are then we cannot remain here. Major Sinclair is going to interrogate our Cylon collaborator and see if he can find any more information."
Sometime later Major Patrick Sinclair sat in a room with Leoben. "Interesting how things turn around" he said looking at the man who beat him. Between them was a table with pictures of each of the collaborators who had helped the Cylons.
"Is this when you beat me like I beat you?" Leoben asked looking at him "all of this has happened before Major and it will happen again."
"No, it will not happen again, I've no intention in beating you." Sinclair said "if you do not want to speak to me then you don't have to." He said "fortunately, I have a feeling that you want to speak."
"I do?"
"Yes" Sinclair said "why did you and your brother betray your people and help the Cylons in their attacks." He asked this caused Leoben to smile.
"You're right Major, I do wish to speak to you, I'm not human nor was my brother. We are Cylons we were born and bred as Cylons as were the others of my kind." He said seeing that he had Sinclair captivated "when the last war ended the Cylons dedicated themselves to perfecting their kind. They improved the weapons they had and they improved themselves, we are the product of those endevours." He said leaning forwards tapping each "all Cylons, there are twelve of us, we're everywhere."
"And you expect me to just believe you?"
"Of course, not but your doctors I am sure will be able to tell the difference between the Leoben you killed and a regular human. Different materials in our make up." He said sitting back "but the same desires and the same impulses which led to our attack on the colonies." He said he saw Leoben's speciesism "check his belongings he'll have a small disk-shaped item which he used as a communications device. It's not Colonial technology it'll stand out."
"Why are you telling me this?" Sinclair asked "you know you're betraying your own people."
"Not really I'm enlightening you before you are destroyed. There's another trick we Cylons have developed." He said with a smirk "when one of us dies we download into another body identical to this one with all the memories we had when we died." He explained "very soon the Cylons will be here and you'll all die and I will be reborn."
With Leoben's information in hand the security teams quickly found the device he had mentioned and the doctor's confirmed there were genetic differences between the Leoben corpse and a human the speed of the evacuation was increased with the remaining people who were berthed on the Kortenaer were crammed into the remaining ships of the fleet with all ships taking on civilians. Above the asteroid the Massena orbited waiting guarding against the threat they all expected was coming.
As the ships began to rise three Baseships jumped in above the asteroid and began raining down missiles at the Massena and the asteroid. The Heracles-class Gunship began to put up a flak barrage while the Vipers, Raptors and Hunter engaged the incoming Cylon Raiders. The Colonial pilots engaged the Cylons in open combat despite being outnumbered significantly.
"Keep us between the Baseships and our ships, the fighters, Raptors and Hunter need to stay in our shadow and engage Raiders who are trying to break through to the fleet. Order Caerphilly and Agosta to remain with the other ships and offer close protection." Boyle commanded the Massena was able to defend against the majority of the missiles but with additional raiders in the area there was too much for the Massena alone. Around the ship enemy Raiders attacked while Vipers and Raptors fought off the craft, they were heavily outnumbered in a moment three Vipers were destroyed by the Cylons as two capital missiles from the Cylon vessels flew past the Massena and slammed into the upper hull of the Agosta blowing open sections of the hull sending several members of the crew to their deaths in space.
The Massena II rocked heavily as two missiles struck the ship impacting on the ship's armour. Matthew Boyle stood at the situation desk in the centre of the room looking at the DRADIS console's above. "Keep up flak barrage on all secondary turrets, dorsal anti-capital turrets to Basestar target 3, ventral turrets on Basestar 2." He said looking over at Will Stonagal his new XO.
"Yes sir" he said turning towards the weapons techs "Split targets by dorsal and ventral gunners, dorsal guns to target Basestar 3, Ventral to target DRADIS target 2. Continue to fire flak barrage and protect the fleet." He commanded the main turrets that lined the top of the hull turned tracking the furthest right while the turrets along the bottom of the ship turned to the central vessel. "You know it won't be enough to take them out we're out of effective range."
"I know" Boyle said looking at the screens out of the weapons available the only way they would take out the baseships would be to close on target and to shred the vessels unfortunately without the flak barrage the fleet ships behind them would die. The Massena shook heavily as another hit struck the gunship they couldn't leave the fleet undefended. "We need a distraction" he said looking at the Hunter and its supporting Raptors thinking "contact the Hunter, I want them and their escort to…"
"DRADIS contact!" Victoria Kryvych shouted out from the far side of the CIC as more missiles struck the Massena II. Behind the group another contact was detected rising from the asteroid. Behind the small fleet the Kortenaer pushed its way out of the asteroid the port side of it's hull breaking through the surface of the rock as it rose up. The Atlas-class Carrier quickly turned on space and fired its main thrusters orientating towards the Cylon Basestars moments later the forward guns on the Atlas opened fire on the third Basestar.
"Give me contact" Boyle called out grabbing the microphone from the central DRADIS screen "Massena Actual to Kortenaer."
"Kortenaer Actual… go ahead" Captain Catalina Pena responded her transmission broken as the Kortenaer was pounded by capital missiles from the Basestars unlike the other Colonial ship the carrier was accelerating towards its targets.
"What are you doing Captain?" Boyle asked over the impact of several more missiles.
"Buying you time to escape" Pena answered "we've got a pair of Raptors onboard, Commander, we'll be alright." She said as the distance closed between the Kortenaer and the Cylon ships more missiles turned towards the charging carrier missiles struck the front, top and port side of the ship one missile arced around the side of the Kortenaer and slammed into the side of the ship blowing through the ship's hanger. "So much for those Raptors" Pena said "don't worry about us, Commander, take care of those people." She said cutting the transmission as more missiles struck the carrier the Atlas' own guns returned fire as it came but more and more of the Cylon's attention was on the ship allowing the Massena to get more hits in against its own targets.
"As soon as the fleet's ready to jump turn us towards the Baseships and give them our full attention." Boyle ordered "we'll jump out as soon as we secure the survivors from the Kortenaer." He said as the Caerphilly jumped out of the area followed quickly by two of the freighters. As the fleet cleared the area however the Kortenaer continued to take damage from Cylon missile strikes and Raider strafing runs.
"Agosta is recalling fighters and spooling FTL."
"Do the same call what's left of ours inside, we'll take those from Dagmar as well, have Hunter and non-jump capable Raptors to land as well." He ordered thinking of the freighter that had carried fighters previously without landing bays the pilots needed to go EVA to board Dagmar and during a battle that wasn't a great idea. As Vipers began to land on the two carriers the remaining freighters including the Tylium Refinery and refuelling ships which jumped out. "Bring us around towards the Cylon ships we need to cover the Kortenaer's evacuation." He said
"It's too late" Stonagal callout out on the DRADIS screen the indicator for the Kortenaer winked out as the ship began to break up under the continuous pounding from the three Baseships. Each of the Cylon ships showed signs that they had been in a fight but not enough to take them out of battle with minimal crewmen onboard the carrier had no chance against their massed firepower.
"Gods look down on the crew of the Kortenaer, we appreciate their sacrifice, jump the ship. Get us out of here." Boyle commanded a few moments later the Heracles jumped clear of the area heading to join the remaining fleet ships.
