Admiral William Adama and his XO Colonel Saul Tigh were discussing the report Lee Adama, commander of the battlestar Pegasus, had given regarding his survey mission to the recently discovered planet.
"Lee's report says that his vipers managed to destroy the missiles with ease." the Admiral said
"At least nobody got hurt and his pilots got some target practice." the XO said.
"He decided to scrub the survey mission, since he could not guarantee for the safety of the raptor crew", Adama continued.
"That was a wise move; we have no clue what we can expect down there. No need in risking the lives of our people. I suggest we just forget about it and move on." Tigh said.
"I've been thinking about that hologram, Saul", the Admiral said, "We had some pretty advanced virtual reality technology back in the day, but I can't remember anything as sophisticated as that."
"Do you suspect a Cylon trick?" Colonel Tigh asked.
"I don't think they have anything advanced enough to project a hologram directly inside a ship through several layers of thick metal. Besides that, why would they go through all that trouble?" the admiral responded.
"You're right, Bill. And the attack on the Pegasus. The Cylons had better nukes than that during the first war. This all doesn't make any sense to me", Tigh said.
"It could be some stragglers from the thirteenth tribe. Maybe some of them didn't want to go all the way to Earth and decided to settle here instead", Admiral Adama suggested.
"Do you know what you're saying could be considered blasphemy?" Tigh warned.
Baltar was pacing in his lab. He was in a fairly bad mood, since his election campaign was not going very well. "Who cares about that stupid planet anyway? All this song and dance over nothing. Less than 20% of that place actually supports human life, so."
The imaginary model Six Cylon, that only Baltar could see and hear, was sitting, or rather laying on a table, wearing a black dress, and observing Baltar and Zarek.
"You're not seeing the big picture. This is your new home. The place where you lead a new life. This is the future, Gaius", the imaginary six said.
"Now that is a depressing thought", he responded.
"What sir?" Baltar's campaign manager Tom Zarek asked.
Nothing, Tom. Just err, can you imagine if we actually had to live on that thing?
"You", Tom said looking at the image of the planet's surface, "are a genius"
"And?" Baltar said arrogantly, as if Tom was stating the obvious, and sat down on a chair.
"Pay attention. You're about to win the election", the imaginary Six told him.
"I'm sorry, what were you saying, Tom?" Baltar asked.
"We needed an issue, something to set us apart from Roslin. Something to put her clearly on the wrong side of a major issue", Tom responded.
Baltar stood up again.
"Something people care passionately about. This is it. Permanent settlement on this planet." Tom Zarek explained
"Permanent settlement here?" Baltar laughed. "You lost your marbles".
The imaginary Six was smiling.
It may look dreary and it may be dreary, but it's solid ground under your feet and real sky over your head. You'd be surprised what a powerful idea that is to people cooped up in metal boxes for nine months.
"You should listen to him, Gaius. He's a smart, sexy man, just like you", the imaginary Six said.
"Give up", Baltar said to the imaginary Six
"What", Zarek asked, thinking Baltar was addressing him.
"Give up on Earth", Baltar answered, trying to save himself from embarrassment.
"Yes", Zarek said.
"So you say we'd settle here?" Baltar asked.
"Yes", Zarek said.
Both men laughed.
"But you forget that there is somebody on that planet who doesn't want us down there. This somebody obviously has nukes and is not afraid to use them." Baltar reminded.
"An automated defense system. Maybe our ancestors had an outpost down there before they left Kobol. Or some pre-war battlestar that had jumped beyond the red line and crashed there decades ago. The nukes that were launched at the Pegasus were ancient. It's nothing our military won't be able to handle. Send some marines down and switch it off. Or blow it up if necessary." Zarek suggested.
"Hmm", Baltar said, thinking about what Zarek just told him.
"The destroyer Prometheus disappeared four years before the first war with the Cylons and the cruiser Acropolis disappeared seven years before that" Both jumped beyond the red line and were never heard of again. If we can refresh peoples' memories on these events and let them connect the dots, we should be in business", he continued.
Well, that place is starting to look like a lovely little planet after all", Baltar said. Zarek smiled and both shook hands.
Aboard Colonial One Laura Roslin was going through the results of the polls with her campaign staff.
"This is a rest stop. A place to load up on food and water." she said.
"Every ship in the fleet has people begging, pleading, demanding they get time on the surface, if only for a few hours", Her campaign manager Tori Foster said, looking up from the report she was reading.
"A few hours is one thing, but permanent settlement is quite another", Roslin responded.
"Suddenly Baltar is holding up hope for breathing real air, growing real food, sleeping in a bed instead in a bunk, living in a house instead of a ship", Foster said.
"It's fantasy. Look at the mission reports. All the data indicates that life on this planet would be hard. It will be a struggle to even eke a living out for a few years", Laura Roslin countered.
"Today's polls also show that he is making headway with the idea that because the planet is hidden in a nebula, it will provide a refuge from the Cylons", Foster said.
"Are we now assuming that Cylon technology is not sufficient enough to find this planet? We just found it", President Roslin reminded her.
"Madam President, in my opinion people vote their hopes, not their fears. Baltar is offering them what they wanna hear and you're offering them a bitter reality." Foster countered.
"I'm offering them the truth", Laura Roslin stated.
They don't want to hear the truth. They're tired, exhausted. The idea of stopping, laying down their burdens and starting a new life right now is what is resonating with the voters", Foster explained.
"How is it resonating?" Laura asked.
"It could turn the entire election around", Tori answered.
"What about the automated defense system that launched nuclear missiles at the Pegasus?" the president asked.
"Baltar has people convinced that one of our own ships ended up down there some 50 or 60 years ago, jumping beyond the red line and crashing on the surface. He has even gone so far and dug up news articles about the Prometheus and the Acropolis, which both had vanished around that time", Tori Foster responded.
"How does he explain the holograms reported by our Raptor and by the Pegasus? They are clearly far more advanced compared to what we had before the first war" Roslin asked.
"Yeah, but he counts on the fact that hardly anybody ever takes the time to research that. Many people can't remember all the details of life before the first war, and most others were not even born yet", Foster answered.
"I would think that my position and the position of my, err, campaign is abundantly clear", Baltar announced.
"Madam President, you have 30 seconds to respond", the moderator, a broad shouldered man in a brown suit, said to Roslin.
"Well, my initial response is: There he goes again. Once again, ladies and gentlemen, Dr. Baltar is distorting the real issues before us. The issue here, the real question is not allowing the scriptures to dictate the policies of this government. The question is: Do the scriptures contain real world relevance? Do they contain the information necessary to guide us to a safer home than some completely unknown planet that we just discovered? Obviously my answer to that question is yes. I have always continued to feel the scriptures hold real world relevance", Roslin responded.
"Mr. Vice President, the next question is for you. How do you respond to the charges that you seize the idea of permanent settlement on this planet as opportunistic gamble, ahem, some would say construed as a desperate move from a campaign that was falling behind in every poll?", the moderator asked.
"Well, you know ahem, that is an excellent question, in fact. Thank you. And I am only too glad to have the opportunity to respond to it. You see that I have long been a proponent in the search Earth. The promise of not only finding a new home, but also the prospect of discovering our long lost brothers and sisters from the 13th colony is a powerful one. And one I have believed in heart and soul. But the trouble is, the Cylons continue to follow us as they have done every step of the way since the destruction of the colonies. And if we have the opportunity to change this dynamic, to stop this deadly chase, shouldn't we take it? My answer is yes." Baltar responded.
"Thank you. Madam President, 30 seconds", the moderator said.
"There is no assurance, none whatsoever, that the Cylons don't already know about this planet, that they don't make regular stops there looking for us. And that in fact they aren't simply waiting for us to settle on the surface so they can jump us. And should we simply ignore the fact that missiles with nuclear warheads had been launched at the Pegasus from the surface?" Roslin countered.
"I have to respond to that. I simply have to respond to that", Baltar interrupted.
"I'll give you 15 seconds", the moderator said.
"All you've seen right now, ladies and gentlemen, is another example of fear to drive her campaign. Fear of the Gods, fear of the Cylons, fear of fear itself. Is it not time to stop being afraid? And regarding those missiles, they are most likely from one of our own ships that went missing decades ago. Possibly an automated defense system that can be easily deactivated. I'm asking all of us to stop running from our lives and start living them. Thank you", Baltar responded.
"Thank you. That is all we have time for today. I would like to thank the candidates for their frankness today in this very exciting debate. This concludes the cycle of the debates for the presidency. The polls will open in three days. Please vote. Thank you and good night", the moderator said and the audience applauded.
President Roslin, Admiral Adama, and Roslin's campaign manager Tori Foster were listening to a radio broadcast.
"With me now is the campaign manager for Dr. Gaius Baltar, Mr. Tom Zarek. Tom, welcome", the reporter began. "You were in there with us today, what is your impression?"
"Well, I thought Dr. Baltar did exceptionally well. He laid his vision out for the future and offered the people a way out of the terror and the suffering that defined so many of their lives. On the other hand I found myself wondering how Roslin's argument against settlement can possibly win." Tom Zarek responded.