Man and Machine 6
"This is the Bridge, the nerve center of the Galactica, and the Fleet," Adama explained to Buck Rogers, Wilma Deering, Hawk and Dr. Goodfellow. "Normally we do not allow any outsiders here, so I hope you appreciate the level of trust we are showing you."
Adama, Apollo and Starbuck escorted their guests around the walkway along the circumference of the Galactica bridge, and afforded them a complete view of the bridge. It was much more cluttered than the bridge of the Searcher, manned by twice as many crewmembers, but then the Galactica kept track of an entire fleet. The aft section included star chart displays, as well as computer banks. At the center was a rotating dais with smaller screens and manned by two officers, one white and one black.
As Adama escorted their guests around the bridge, he allowed them a moment to appreciate the view outside the front window. Next they followed him to the center of the room and up the steps to the central dais.
"Col. Tigh," he asked the black man.
"Sir," he answered.
"Is there any sign of our shadow?" Adama asked.
"Affirmative," Tigh answered, "Bojay's patrol detected their scout craft, then turned back before they were detected."
"You are sure?" Adama asked.
"As sure as we can be," Tigh answered, "the commander of that Base Star is very good."
"Yes," Adama said, "Lucifer has studied our most devious."
"What is this about a shadow?" Buck Rogers answered.
Adama nodded an approval to his officers.
"The Cylons have been quietly tracking us for some time," Omega said, "never interfering with us, but watching our every move."
"We have been very careful to lead them away from anything they could consider to be one of our allies," Adama said. "But with Earth within our reach, it is a threat we must deal with decisively before we take the final leg of the journey."
"What do these Cylons look like?" Wilma asked.
"Omega," Adama commanded, and the officer punched up an image on one of the small screens of a round flying wing with twin laser blasters. "That is a Cylon Raider, the primary fighter craft used by the Cylon."
Omega punched up another image, this one of two saucers connected at the center. The readouts indicated locations for launch bays and various weapon mounts.
"Is that a Cylon mother ship?" Wilma asked.
"Yes," Adama said, "a Base Star."
"This ship, we have no data for, but it engaged our fighters a couple of Sectons ago," Omega said. The image he called up was of a trident shaped fighter craft that the Earth guests recognized.
"That is a Draconian Hatchet Fighter," Buck replied. "The Draconians were kind enough to point our ship in your direction."
"It seems they are currently involved in an open conflict with your Cylons," Wilma said.
"Hey, that's Earth!" Buck said, as he climbed down from the dais and approached one of the star charts at the back of the bridge. Finally he stood before a chart that showed 9 planets orbiting a star, the third planet marked in blue, and the ninth planet in an unusual orbit that at some points made it the 8th planet from the sun.
"That star chart," Adama said coming up behind him, "was recreated from our ancient documents. The fact that you recognize it means that we could really be near the end of our quest."
"Actually," Wilma said, while pointing to Pluto, "that one isn't classified a planet, it is just one of several smaller dwarf planets."
"Well, it was a planet when I was in school," Buck huffed.
"This chart," Adama pointed to the large master chart, "shows our current location. While we have been looking for that system, we don't know exactly where it falls in relation to our current whereabouts."
-o-
In Doctor Wilker's lab, Dr. Goodfellow felt he was a kid in a candy store, and no amount of prodding from Hawk could restrain the old man from picking up and touching just about everything in reach from robotic parts to screwdrivers. Among the everything that had Goodfellow's attention was a 7 foot tall suit of black and chrome armor.
"This is a Cylon Warrior that we recovered some time ago," Dr. Wilker said. "I'm still trying to decipher its programming. We have actually gotten very good at putting them back together again, its getting them to do what we want after the fact that is proving nearly impossible."
"Wait," Buck said, "the Cylons use robotic soldiers?"
"I dare say it is possible that the entire Cylon race has been replaced by these machines, or machines like them," Goodfellow said as he directed his attention to the robotic soldier.
"Once, the Cylon were a race of Reptilian creatures," Apollo said, "but then, just after the start of the thousand Yahr—sorry, year war with the Human Colonies, the Cylons started to deploy these machines."
"Now, as far as anyone can tell," Doctor Wilker said, "the entire race of Organic Cylon's have been wiped out, replaced by the machines they built."
"Curious," Goodfellow said, "I wonder how they suddenly got such advanced technology? Did they develop it, or was it something they found?"
"I know it sounds crazy," Starbuck said, "but during one of his debriefings, Baltar said the voice of the Imperious Leader was exactly the same as Count Iblis."
"Now, don't expect me to subscribe to any of your supernatural theories," Dr. Wilker said.
"What supernatural?" Starbuck said, "We lived through some pretty strange things."
"Perhaps you and Apollo should save that story for dinner?" Adama suggested.
-o-
"This is the Blue Squadron ready room," Apollo announced, "where Starbuck and the other bachelor pilots sleep and live until they are needed for a mission or an alert."
The room was filled with bunk beds, while tables were set up for card games. Lockers lined the walls with doors holding personal effects and spare uniforms, while open cubbies held their flight helmets.
"Very impressive," Wilma said, "do you also have ground troops? Do they sleep in rooms like this too?"
"Ground troops?" Starbuck asked, before finally understanding, "No, we are all Warriors here, equally trained for space, ground and aquatic engagements."
"Like navy seals," Buck said, drawing questioning looks from everyone in the room. "What were those guards back at the hanger, the ones all in black."
"Council security" Apollo answered, "they are strictly civilian."
"The Galactica may be a military vessel, but most of the ships in the fleet are civilian, and we must answer to our civilian government," Adama said.
"You don't stay here, do you Apollo," Wilma said. "Is there a Mrs. Apollo?"
Apollo looked sullen as the ghosts of two women appeared behind his eyes, "No, not anymore. But I do have an adoptive son."
"Next," Adama interrupted before anything could be read into the sudden silence, "We will take the pilot's tram system to the Alpha launch tubes. Our launch tube system allows us to launch virtually our entire compliment of vipers in a matter of…. Seconds. Of course, we only carry about half the fighters we are intended to."
-o-
Later, Adama showed the representatives from earth to their seats along one large dining table in a private dining room on board the Rising Star. The window afforded a magnificent view of several ships of the fleet, including the Agro ship.
Adama introduced the Earth delegation to those gathered for the special meal. Starbuck and Apollo were already known to them, but he went on to introduce his Grandson, Boxey. Cassiopeia was there sitting next to Starbuck, although she spent almost as much time casting glances at Buck Rogers as she did Starbuck. Commander Athena, Adama's daughter and commander of the Celestra was present as was Commander Croft.
"I use to be an inmate on the Prison Barge," Croft said as he shook their hands, "Now I captain it. How's that for justice?"
Adama motioned one of the orderlies over to him, "Break out that bottle of Ambrosia."
"You mean that bottle, sir?" he asked.
"That is the one," Adama said.
"With all due respect, Commander, sir," Buck Rogers said, "This elaborate tour has been nothing more than a clever, and polite way to elicit information from us. Some of my companions are a little too trusting to realize you have only given us tidbits in return."
, "Certainly," Adama said, "while we wait for our sustenance, allow me to fill in some of the blanks." Adama described the start of the Thousand Year War with the Cylon, the end of the war as it was brought about by Baltar, the Gun on Ice Planet Zero, their trip through the void and the discovery of Kobol, departing their home galaxy, the two times they encountered the Pegasus and Commander Cain, adding Sheba and her fellow crewmen to the Galactica roster, and Sheba's eventual death. Apollo and Starbuck took over the narrative when he described their encounter with Count Iblis and had their first encounter with Terra and its colonies.
"The funny thing is," Starbuck said, "I dreamed about the Ship of Lights just before we encountered you."
"So did I," Apollo said.
"What are these beings of light?" Dr. Goodfellow asked.
"We have no name for them," Adama said, "we only know of them as guardians of truth."
"I have heard of these beings before," Hawk said, "these Ships of Light. They are beyond the limitations of any name we could hope to place upon them. The only other thing that I know about them is that since my soul was once consumed with revenge, I shall never be permitted to see them."
"I may not know anything about cosmic beings," Buck said, "but this is excellent food. The process protein disks they try to feed us on the Searcher are nearly flavorless."
"Try the Ambrosia," Adama encouraged. "The last pre-war bottle left."
"Enjoy this," Starbuck said to Buck, "the last of the good stuff."
-o-
"You have seen the Galactica and the Rising Star, which represent our surviving culture at its finest," Adama said to the representatives, "But beyond this door is what we are trying to save. The bulk of our people, who need something better; welcome to the Freighter Gemini."
When the hatch opened, the first thing that struck them was the smell, then they entered the darkened cargo container. Down the center of the immense room was a single catwalk, and to either side of it were cargo containers of every shape and size stacked up to the celling. The contents of each had long been emptied, and the remaining husks of the containers had been fashioned into living spaces.
"The youngest here, have never known what it is like to feel land under their feet or see an open sky," Adama said.
Wilma tried to hold back a tear, while Buck simply stared wide eyed at the endless hold filled with people just trying to make lives for themselves out of scrap.
"All we want is for our people, all of our people, to be able to live someplace safe and free."