The aroma of a family meal being cooked wafted through the house. Robert enjoyed the scent from his seat in the living room. Pleasant childhood memories were associated with that scent.

His eyes went back to the fields and to the growing darkness in the clouds. He already had a feeling what it was and what it represented. He didn't care.

"Hrm. Looks like we could be having quite a storm." Allen Dale eased himself into the next chair over.

"Maybe, maybe not," Robert murmured. He shook his head. "Sometimes you can avoid them."

"Sometimes," he agreed. "Just like you did."

Robert glanced at him. "What?"

"You could have left us," said Allen. "You could've walked out into it. But you chose to turn back. You picked family over duty."

For a moment Robert had nothing to say about this. When he found his voice, it was to ask, "What are you saying? What are you? I know you're not… you're not illusions, you're not programs of some sort."

Instead of getting an answer, Robert heard his grandmother calling them to the table for dinner. "Why don't we eat up?" asked Allen. "Then, if you want… we can talk about this."

With that said, the old man quietly walked away.

The convoy pulled into the mining facility without further problems. The vehicles all pulled into various places, after which Anders and Thrace went to work organizing everyone. While they did so Zack organized stretcher teams to bring the wounded to the on-site infirmary for the mining operation. It was not a large facility, certainly, but the need to care for the mining staff ensured it had decent equipment.

After giving Clara a good luck kiss and leaving her with Doc Cottle, Zack joined the others in reporting to Tigh at the mine's directing room. The systems there were meant for guiding the mining operations to the most promising veins of ore. Now the displays were being converted to be used for other pursuits, with one already showing a map of the area.

"It looks like this is everyone we could get," said Tigh.

"A lot of people went right for the bunkers." Thrace frowned. "Which would have saved their lives if the toasters were dropping nukes."

"I had that thought too," Zack said. "Do we know why they're not?"

"No idea. The Godsdamned things have changed the rules on us." Tigh shook his head. "Whatever they're after, they made sure to take the President."

"And Zarek? Or the rest of the Quorum?"

"No sign of 'em, although with Zarek, you can never tell." Tigh sized them up. "The Old Man got away with the Fleet. It's up to us to keep everyone alive until he gets back." Tigh nodded to Zack. "Hopefully with your people alongside."

"Hopefully," Zack agreed. "I'm not sure how the Cylons caught us with our pants down, but I'm pretty sure Admiral Maran is putting together a response. Do we have communications with the Alliance?"

"We do not. All communications are down sector-wide."

"The Cylons must have done something to the network then."

"Seems right. Anyway, go get some grub and wind down," said Tigh. "We're having a briefing tonight to go over our supplies and assign commands."

The three nodded to that and dispersed.

Zack returned to the infirmary. The injured were taking up every bed available. Clara was taking vitals over one, a middle-aged woman hit by shrapnel during the initial Cylon attack. The woman in question was asleep but seemed otherwise alright. "How is it going?" he asked Clara.

"Cally and I are the only ones with even the slightest medical training," Clara replied. She was wearing medical scrubs over her civilian clothes now. "So until we find anyone else, we're Cottle's only nurses. What about you?"

"Whatever Tigh's planning, I'm sure I'll be part of it," said Zack. He put an arm around her and pulled Clara into an embrace, which she accepted. The moment became more of a minute before the embrace ended. "I'm sorry you're out here for this," Zack said. "You weren't supposed to be in danger."

Clara shook her head. "They warned us about the Cylons when I volunteered for this. I knew it could be dangerous and I came anyway. Don't worry about it."

"Sorry, but I don't think I can stop that."

"If anything I should worry. If they send you off on some desperate mission…" Clara shook her head before pulling close to him again. This embrace lasted a little longer than the last before Clara noticed Cottle and stopped. The elderly doctor said nothing to her. He didn't need to. She had to get back to work. She said so.

"So do I," said Zack. "I'll be by later. I'll bring you some dinner."

"I'll be waiting," she said. Their eyes met and, a moment later, so did their lips, joining for a sweet kiss.

Julia and Meridina entered the medbay to find it virtually empty. There were no active cases, no patients, in the receiving area. Two nurses, both Human, were on duty in their medical white-with-blue-trim nurse uniforms. They waved the two back to the care ward.

Leo was waiting for them. He was standing over the bed where Robert was still lying comatose. Seeing the surprised look on their faces - although Meridina controlled her reaction to the point that it was barely noticeable - Leo quickly said, "There was some confusion with the Fleet Hospital. The transfer team never made it."

"We'll probably hear it from Admiral Maran,"Julia remarked. She let out a small sigh and shook her head. "Do what you can for him, then."

"Like you have to ask? Doctor Singh is going to oversee his case until we get back to dock."

Meridina walked to the side of the bed and looked at Robert. "It is… odd," she said.

"What?" asked Julia.

"There is something peculiar in the way Robert's life feels. The Flow of Life seems to be pooling around him."

"Did you feel this before?" Julia asked.

"No," said Meridina. "I may have made a grave mistake regardless by missing this before. I… I do not know if such a thing has ever happened in our histories. I would need to consult with our healers."

"Be my guest," said Leo. "This is beyond me. Singh and I have done everything covered by medical science to figure this out."

"It will have to wait," said Meridina. "We are under radio silence. And our arrival at Tupana is mere hours away."

"Anything else, Leo?" asked Julia.

He shook his head.

Dinner had been excellent, as always, and when it was over the family went off to do as they pleased. Julia put on a cartoon movie for Robby, with Robert's parents joining them while his grandparents took care of things in the kitchen.

Robert had gone upstairs and now found himself leaning against the railing, watching the rest of the family. His conversation with his grandfather played over again in his mind. That they were real, that they weren't just some illusions, he had already felt. But now he found himself wondering if there was more to them than just being his family.

"Catching up on your thinking, bro?"

Robert turned his head to face Susanna. Her brown eyes glinted brightly, as they always did, with a loose green shirt and old half-worn slacks as her post-dinner "at home" clothing. Her hair was pulled back to the nape of her neck; "You could say that," Robert said.

A moment later, a cold feeling surged through him. He was back in the morgue. Through the window he watched a gloved hand pull back a sheet, revealing what was left of his little sister. The image made him feel sick.

"Well, with Little Robby around, I don't blame you for taking the time to get some thinking done." Susanna leaned her head against his arm. "Especially since I can tell you have a lot on your mind."

"You became pretty astute after you finished growing up."

"Well, I had help," she said. A giggle came next. "Is everything okay with you?"

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, it's just… like you said, a lot on my mind."

The look on her face told him she didn't buy a word of it. But what shocked him was when she said, "It's because we're all supposed to be dead, right?"

Robert's neck might have snapped for how quickly he turned it to face Susanna. Her expression was thoughtful and quite sad. Seeing his look, she laughed weakly and shook her head. "I think we can all tell, Rob. The way you hug us. The way you speak to us. Like you can't be around us enough. We're all dead and gone out there, aren't we?"

Robert swallowed. "Yeah," he finally managed.

Susanna sighed and nodded. "Well, I'm glad we got that out of the way." She drew closer to him, much as she had done when they were little and she wanted a hug or support from her older brother. "I'm not sure how this is working. How we can be alive again in this... place. But I want to make the most of it."

Robert wrapped his arm around her shoulders, much as he had when she was a younger child and they were having "a moment". Tears welled in his eyes. His little sister, alive again, his whole family alive, made whatever this place was feel like heaven itself. "Yeah," he said. "I do too."

The appointed hour came with everyone on the Aurora bridge, at their proper stations. "Dropping out of warp." Locarno's hand keyed the warp systems to disengage.

"The rest of the fleet is maintaining formation," Jarod confirmed. "General Jinam is signaling instructions."

"We are to take up the lead formation," Meridina said.

"Take us in, Mister Locarno."

"Aye Captain."

Under Locarno's control the Aurora flew ahead of the fleet. The Soyuz and Atlantis followed with a contingent of the destroyer-sized ships.

Julia turned her head toward the port side of the bridge. "What do we have on sensors?"

"I'm running a full sensor sweep now." Caterina watched her screens closely. "Hrm. Well, I've got the colony on sensors."

"How bad is it?" Julia asked her. Given the reputation of the Cylons, she couldn't imagine there would be many people alive, if at all. Not unless they had a strong theater shield.

"Going by my sensor returns, it isn't," Cat answered. "I'm not showing any signs of nuclear detonations, or anti-matter… the colony looks completely intact. The life sign count matches the reported population."

Julia and Meridina exchanged knowing glances. The reputation of the Cylons for mass murder had been made painfully clear during their sweep of the Colonies a year and a half before. If they'd refrained from such an attack this time, there had to be a reason for it.

"Wait… I'm detecting a power signature in polar orbit."

"A ship?"

"No. I think it's a buoy of some kind. It's responding to my scan."

"I'm getting a signal from it," said Jarod. "It looks like its trying to open communications. I'm activating our isolated comm receiver now."

Several seconds later the holo-viewscreen image changed. Instead of the view of a planet growing larger every few seconds there was a somewhat darkened chamber. A central station was surrounded by figures, most of them standing in ways that they couldn't be identified.

One figure was not among them. He looked directly at the screen, presumably for their benefit. Meridina recognized him as the same model as Brother Cavil; an older man with graying hair and a severe appearance. Said appearance did not seem so severe this time, however. "Greetings," he said. "I am the First, spokesman of the Cylon Consensus. As you can see, we have not damaged your colony, or any of your colonies, in any way. We have come to open a diplomatic dialogue with the United Alliance of Systems."

"And you do that by launching an attack on our space."

"A regrettable necessity. But we needed you to be aware of our capability. It was the best way to ensure you took us seriously."

Julia shook her head. "What is it you want?"

"As I stated, we're here to open a dialogue. You have approximately twelve hours to arrive at the New Caprica System with diplomatic personnel determined by your leaders. Your vessel will come alone, or we will consider it betrayal."

"What happens if we cannot make the deadline?" asked Meridina.

The First frowned at that. "Then we have to assume you have no intention to hear us out. And we will respond accordingly, starting with the colony at New Caprica. That is all." The image disappeared.

"What can you tell me about that signal?" Julia asked aloud, with Jarod and Cat as her intended recipients.

"It's definitely using our standard communications protocols," Jarod confirmed. "I kept it isolated from our main systems as a precaution."

"The buoy's power signature just spiked. It looks like the end of our conversation caused the power system to overload." Cat shook her head. "We won't be able to recover anything from it."

"This sounds like a trap," said Angel.

"Possibly," Meridina agreed. She shook her head. "But if we do not go, the people on New Caprica will undoubtedly be killed. And the Cylons will certainly resume their attacks."

"Then set a course there and have it ready." Julia stood and walked toward the ready office. "I'm going to consult with General Jinam and Admiral Maran. Let me know if anything develops."

They answered her with nods.

Zack had to hand it to Sam Anders. He had thought of everything.

As it turned out, weapons weren't the only things his militia had stockpiled and kept ready. A defensive shield array was now attached to the naqia reactor that normally powered the mine's machinery, protecting them from further Cylon air raids. Replicators provided food and water. And one of the full-sized cargo trucks carried with it the materials for several pre-fabricated buildings which, with the actual mine support buildings and a bunch of tents, provided housing for those refugees that were with them. Setting everything up still took time, and some leadership, which was what Zack spent hours assisting with.

Now that it was over, Zack was again with Tigh, Thrace, and Anders… and two newer arrivals.

"Good to see you Commander." The warmth in Tom Zarek's voice was genuine, which always puzzled Zack a little given the differences between himself and the old revolutionary. "You and Miss Davis made it out, I heard?"

"We did," Zack said, allowing the Colonies' Vice President to shake his hand enthusiastically. "You made it out too, I see."

"I was on business in the countryside when the invasion hit. It took this long to secure safe transportation."

Zack nodded and turned his attention to the blond standing beside Tigh. She was an older woman, middle-aged if not nearly there, and it took a moment for Zack to remember her. "Mrs. Tigh?" he asked.

"Commander." Ellen Tigh nodded. She gave him a knowing look. "It seems you're stuck here with the rest of us."

"Hopefully not for too long," Zack answered. He nodded to her and looked at Tigh. "Anything new, Colonel?"

"We've gotten some radio signals from the main settlement," said Tigh. "The Cylons are herding everyone into the bunkers."

Zack frowned. "Which makes them sitting ducks." He felt some sudden gratitude at the Cylon fighter that destroyed the bunker entrance. That memory prompted him to say, "Although I wonder why they destroyed the entrance we tried to use?"

"They destroyed most of the entrances," said Anders. "That makes it easier to control who gets in or out."

The logic made sense. And it didn't change the important part. "So they're using the bunkers as a prison and a death trap. How do we stop them?"

"We don't have the hardware for anything like a proper assault," Tigh said. "So anything we do has to wait for reinforcements."

"Or we do something other than an assault," said Thrace. "We find a way to sneak in and get our people out."

"Sneaking in is easier said than done," Zack pointed out. "The terrain is open enough that they'll see us coming whether by foot or by car."

"What if we took the entire convoy?" The suggestion was from Anders. "We take all of our armed vehicles and fight our way back into town. Then we find one of the bunker entrances and secure it long enough to evacuate."

Tigh shook his head. "Fighting off fighters is one thing. But you could run into centurions as well, not to mention what could happen if they decide to hit you from orbit."

A thought prompted Zack to ask, "Do we have any backup generators for the protective shield?"

"A couple…" Tigh stopped. He realized what Zack was about to propose. "Listen, we can't afford to risk that equipment. If we lose those generators we're sitting ducks along with all of the people we've already got here."

"We just need one," Zack pointed out. "You'll still have a second backup here. If we don't do anything… the Cylons are going to kill the people in the bunkers. We all know this, right?"

"Probably," Tigh conceded.

"We've got to save as many of them as we can. We might not get them all out, but we can get more, and maybe we can throw off their timetable until help arrives from the Alliance."

Anders and Thrace nodded in agreement. Zarek seemed to be quietly considering the issue and waiting to see how the argument ended before giving his input.

"What if you provoke them into killing everyone down there?" asked Ellen. "You could wind up getting them all killed."

"If we don't do anything, they're likely to be killed anyway," Thrace retorted. "Whatever game the Cylons are playing, you don't think they'll let everyone live when it's over, do you?"

"No, we don't," said Zarek, now nodding. "And this mission of yours sounds like the best choice. How long until you can put it together?"

Zack looked to Anders. "Tomorrow morning," said Anders. "Some of the vehicles need engine checks, and I have to get crews together."

"I'm ready when you are," said Zack.

Tigh was still frowning. "I don't like this," he said. "Splitting our forces up is a bad call."

"So is doing nothing," countered Zarek. He nodded to Anders and then to Zack. "Mister Anders, Commander Carrey, you have my authorization and full support for this. Let me know when you're ready to leave. I have a few things to attend to."

"Of course," was Anders' reply.

Ship's Log: ASV Aurora; 11 January 2643. Captain Julia Andreys reporting. We're en route to New Caprica for this 'diplomatic contact' the Cylons have called us too. The rest of the fleet will be on standby until we get a better idea of what the Cylons are up to.

So far the new crew and our rebuilt ship are working well. We're going to need to be at our best to save the people on New Caprica.

Julia mentally added And Zack to the end of her log before hitting the key to save it and file it. She looked up and around at an office that, while officially hers, was still Robert's office in her mind. She knew this couldn't last forever, that eventually she would have to take his stuff out and make this space her space. It was simply something she couldn't bring herself to do for the moment.

The door chime sounded, taking Julia out of her thoughts. "Come in," she called out.

The door opened. She had expected it to be Meridina or Jarod, perhaps Angel, but Julia instead watched Commander Scott enter. The Scotsman stepped inside and looked about. "Well, at least ye're usin' th' office, I suppose," he remarked.

"Given the circumstances, I need to be close to the bridge," Julia remarked. She grinned at him. "I don't see you up here often these days. Is everything alright in Engineering?"

"Oh, well enough. Th' new crew are settlin' in t' their duties."

"If only we had enough of the old crew remaining to do that with every department," Julia lamented.

"Aye. We lost a lot o' good people." Scott eased into the seat in front of the desk. "But we'll make it, so long as our Captain is makin' th' right calls an' keepin' everything steady."

Julia noticed the subtle, searching look in Scotty's eye and nodded. "In other words, it's on me in the end." When he didn't respond to that she nodded. "Just like I knew it'd be." She leaned forward and set her elbows on the desk. "I never wanted this at his expense," she said. "And that's what this feels like."

"But it isn't, lass, an' ye know it."

"My head says that. My heart…" Julia shook her head. "I guess sometimes the heart feels things that don't make sense."

"Aye, I'd drink t' that if I weren't still on duty," Scott said. "Ye're goin' t' be fine, though. I'm sure of that."

"Thank you," she answered. "Whatever happens, I'll do right by everyone."

"That's all we can ask o' ye, Cap'n. Now, I'd better get back t' Engineering. I've a lot of work t' do."

"Of course not, Mister Scott. You're dismissed."

Scott stood and started for the door. Just as he got to it Julia called out, "Wait," prompting him to turn. "The Cylons have been messing with Alliance communications to the point that they knocked out the entire comm network in this sector."

"Aye, it's a right mess."

"This means that our communications might not be secure either. I don't like the thought that the Cylons might be listening in on us. With their AI capabilities, they might even be able to decrypt our high security channels. Do you have any suggestions?"

For a moment Scott was deep in thought. "Well, now that ye ask, I might be able t' come up with somethin' with Jarod's help."

"Get whatever help you need."

Scott nodded. As he left the tone of an incoming comm call sounded. Julia tapped at the blue light above the back of her left hand. "Andreys here."

"A vessel is approaching us at high warp," said Jarod.

Julia blinked at that. To make it to the rendezvous on time they were pushing Warp 9.6. A ship overtaking them at that speed was… surprising at the least. Not many ships could maintain such high warp short of emergencies. To intercept them, the ship in question had to be maintaining that level of warp speed for hours. "I'm on my way," she said, standing up.

Jarod was returning to Ops by the time she made it through the door. Scott was still present as well, standing beside Barnes at the Engineering station. "Can you identify the ship?" she asked Caterina while walking to the command chair.

"The warp drive system is definitely Darglan. With its field size and intensity, it's a smaller ship, though. Destroyer-sized."

"The IFF code we're getting is Alliance," Jarod said. "The ship is identifying as the Peregrine."

"The Peregrine?" Julia thought she'd heard the name before, but she couldn't place it. "What's their current speed?"

"Warp 9.75." Jarod whistled and shook his head. "They'll be in range in a minute at our current velocities."

"Well, wud ye look at that," Scotty said, his voice betraying how impressed he was. Julia noted that he was standing over the science station now looking at the readings from Cat's scan. "That's quite th' field geometry. It's a thing o' genius, if ye ask me. Look at her go. Warp 9.75 with nae a problem."

"Hail them, Commander Jarod."

Moments passed before the screen activated. The officer on the screen was a Caucasian man who looked not much older than Julia, on the thin side with brown eyes and light brown hair. "This is Commander James Hall of the Starship Peregrine," the man stated in an English accent. "Admiral Maran sent us to rendezvous with you. We're carrying a delegation from President Morgan to speak with the Cylons and the team Admiral Maran promised you."

"You mean our short-term replacements for our Marines?" Julia asked.

"Exactly, Captain. I know you're on a short time-table, but would you mind dropping from warp so we can commence transport? My transporter operators aren't confident about risking a high-warp ship-to-ship transport even with matched velocities."

"Understood. Come alongside and we'll exit warp together for the transport."

"Acknowledged. Hall out."

The screen deactivated. In the following minute the Peregrine drew close enough that their sensors could give them a visual image. The ship was clearly based off the Predator-class destroyer, with the same hull-form and roughly the same size. But the Peregrine had half the phaser strips of a Predator and a quad nacelle arrangement much like the Aurora's.

"I'm heading down to Transporter Station 1," Julia said. "Standby to drop out of warp once they're alongside. The moment we confirm the transport is complete, resume our previous course and raise speed to make up for the lost time."

"Aye sir," Locarno replied.

Julia and Scotty departed the bridge, heading toward separate lifts to accommodate their different destinations.

A Southeast Asian man was manning Transporter Station 1 when Julia arrived. She nodded at him and stood to the side near the console.

"A moment, Captain, they're sending us eight transports," the operator said.

Julia nodded in acknowledgement and let the operator get back to work.

Eight columns of light appeared on the pad. When the light was pulled away eight figures remained. Julia recognized Mastrash Ledosh easily. Gina Inviere was at his side.

Behind them were another pair of humans, a solidly-built man with an easy grin and a woman with light brown hair down to her shoulders, both wearing white uniforms with rainbow-colored bands on their arms Julia easily recognized them "Colonel Deering," she said, grinning. "Captain Rogers. Good to see you again."

Wilma and Buck nodded back. "Congratulations, Captain," said Buck in reply.

"'Captain'?" The figure opposite from Buck hefted his bag and stepped down from the pad. Graying hair was visible under a cap. "Sounds like things have changed around here."

Julia looked at the man with some surprise. It had been a while since she had personally met him and his colleagues. "Colonel O'Neill?"

Colonel Jack O'Neill nodded and extended a hand while the other members of SG-1 stepped down as well. "Nice to see you again, Captain," he said. "So, what's this I hear about killer robots?"

Given the number of attendees, Julia had called the conference in one of the main Conference Rooms instead of the lounge. This allowed the senior staff to assemble, with Lucy joining them and the new arrivals. SG-1 took a table to themselves while Buck and Wilma sat with Ledosh and Gina. The ship's current acting security chief, Lieutenant Phryne Richmond, joined in attendance given her new position. The Melbourne-born Australian woman had a porcelain complexion, with short dark hair and striking green eyes.

Jarod, as usual, took the lead in the presentation. "We're still three hours out from our rendezvous with the Cylons at New Caprica," he said. "And while we can't be sure of the extent of their technological advances since our last encounter, we can be pretty sure that we have ninety minutes, at most, before we're close enough that they might detect a ship launch."

"So, you're basically saying that we have an hour and a half to come up with a plan and leave the ship," said Daniel Jackson. "That's quite a tight deadline."

"We're on a strict timetable due to the Cylon demand for our arrival in three hours," Julia answered. "If we're not there on time, they'll kill everyone on New Caprica, and presumably resume attacks on the rest of Alliance space."

It was another SG-1 member, the Jaffa Teal'c, who spoke next. "I find it curious that these Cylons have not already destroyed the New Caprica colony. From what we have been told the Cylons showed no hesitation in destroying planetary populations before."

"That's what we're all wondering," Angel said. "What are these damned things up to? And are we walking into a trap?"

"Regardless, it seems we have one point of concern to address." Ledosh nodded to Jarod.

"The status of New Caprica," Jarod agreed. "We need to know what's going on there."

"And if anyone's actually alive," Barnes added sullenly.

"It is likely the Cylons intend to wipe out the colony regardless," Meridina noted. "Their hatred for the humans of the Colonies makes it difficult to believe they will let them go."

"So we need to be in a position to stop it. And I doubt the Cylons are meeting us there without taking precautions against that." Julia nodded to the assembled visitors. "Which is where you all come in. We don't have a Marine company aboard yet, so you're all that we have. We need you to get planetside and help the Colonials."

"Maran mentioned something about that when he asked General Hammond for our help," Daniel said.

"How are you four here anyway?" Lucy asked. "Doesn't the treaty with the Goa'uld ban Earth and the Alliance from helping each other?"

"The Goa'uld-Alliance Peace Treaty bans Alliance aid to Earth," Ledosh said. "But it does not forbid the Earth from aiding us, so long as we do not reward them with banned technological aid. Due to Captain Dale's terms with the System Lords, there are avenues where we can aid Earth, and repay them for the help."

"Exactly. What he said," Jack remarked. "So, where is Captain Dale anyway?"

"He's in a coma in the medbay," Cat answered.

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry to hear that." Jack looked around. "And Zack? What about him?"

"Stuck on New Caprica visiting his girlfriend," Barnes said.

"Ah. Crap." Jack sighed. "Well, there's another reason for us to get going. We've got what, eighty minutes left?"

"The question still remains on how we're going to get there without being detected," Samantha Carter said. "Do you have a ship that can hide from their sensors?"

"The Koenig can." Apley's words were joined by nods from his fellow officers. "And Admiral Maran had an insertion runabout loaded on the Koenig by the caretaker crew."

"The Admiral's always been one to plan ahead," Jarod noted.

"So the six of you are going?"

"And me," Lucy said.

Gina nodded to her. "As am I."

Julia stole a glance toward Meridina. She didn't need mental abilities to know her acting first officer was ready to volunteer as well. She didn't, however, only exchanging an understanding glance with Julia before further settling into her seat.

"We don't want the Cylons to feel our security teams are undermanned," Richmond said. "But we could send a couple of security teams to provide backup."

Julia nodded. "An excellent idea. Make the arrangements." She looked over the others. "We only have about an hour left to launch the Koenig. Is there anything else?"

"Well, there's the question of how we can stop them from just bombing the place," Buck pointed out.

"New Caprica has an underground bunker system designed to protect the population from atomic bombardment," Jarod said. He brought up a graphic of the same system. "In fact, I'm certain most of the residents are in it as we speak."

"Yeah, but the thing about a place like that is that it's a death trap if you control the surface," Jack pointed out. "I'm sure these killer robots know that too."

"What if we put together a protective shield for the colony?" Sam asked.

"It already has one, if the Cylons haven't dismantled it anyway," Julia said.

"Just in case they have, maybe we can throw together a new one?"

Scotty nodded at Sam's suggestion. "Aye, lass, I think we can make that work. A naqia reactor tied t' a deflector generator. It'll work even better if ye can tie it intae th' colony's existing deflector systems."

"How long will it take for you to put that together?" Julia asked.

"Give me half an hour in th' lab, Cap'n, Tom an' I'll have it ready for ye."

"Go get started now, and deliver it straight to the Koenig," Julia ordered. She looked to the others. "It looks like we have a plan now. Jarod, Meridina, please remain. Apley, make sure your armory has everything our strike team needs from the Aurora armory. The rest of you are dismissed."

The group broke up. Jarod approached the table where Julia and Meridina were seated. "Did Scotty tell you what I asked about?"

"He did." Jarod nodded. "I'm already working on it. I think I have a way to do what you're asking over both subspace and IU comms. But what do you have in mind?"

"A backup plan," Julia replied. "Something the Cylons won't see coming even if they've broken our encryption. And that means we need secure comms."

"Alright. I'll get working on it then."

After a nod of the head he walked away, leaving Julia with Meridina. "You were going to suggest going too," Julia said.

"Yes. My field training would make me useful for this mission," Meridina pointed out.

"I have need of that training here," Julia pointed out. "We don't know what the Cylons are up to. While Ledosh and I are negotiating with them, I need you on the bridge ready for any contingency they throw at us."

Meridina nodded. "I understand your point. But it seems a waste of my talents to keep me on the ship."

"I might have sent you too if I wasn't worried about what the Cylons are planning," Julia admitted. "But I am, so I want you here."

Again Meridina nodded. Whatever her feelings on the matter, this was her duty now, and she would see it through. She would have to trust that Lucy and Gina would be enough to help the others achieve victory.

Given what the morning was going to bring, Zack went to his assigned quarters as soon as he could. Tigh had authorized him to have one of the modest-sized prefab homes to himself. It wasn't a large home to be sure, barely three-quarters the size of his assigned quarters on the Aurora, but having it to himself ensured he would get a rest.

At least that was the theory. In truth, Zack found he had trouble settling into sleep. He laid out on the bed provided in the kit, staring at the dark ceiling above and trying to get the possibilities out of his mind. Tomorrow would be dangerous. They were literally going back into the jaws of death by returning for the others in the bunker. If the shield failed them, or the Cylons attacked in too much force… then it would be a slaughter. They would get torn to pieces.

But if they didn't go, thousands of innocent people could die.

In his state Zack heard the door slide open quietly. Only one other person in the compound had been authorized to open the locked door. He waited in the dark until Clara finished removing her scrubs and her clothes meant for a far more relaxing day than they'd gotten. She slid into the bed next to him and prompted him to turn to face her. In the darkness of the prefab home he saw the outline of her face more than the details. This did not prevent him from finding her lips with his own. "How are you?" he asked.

"Exhausted." She settled into place beside him and closed her eyes. Her hand reached out and touched his chest, as if to reassure herself of Zack's presence. "You?"

"Pretty tired. And I can't just seem to fall asleep."

"I heard things were happening tomorrow. The convoy's going back into town?"

"Yeah. We're going after the people who are in the bunkers. We'll be trying to get as many of them out as we can."

"And then hope you can get back here in one piece." Tired as she was, Clara didn't let herself fall asleep. She pulled closer to him and asked, "Are you afraid?"

Zack let out a low chuckle and sighed. "Yeah, I always am," he admitted.

"Every time you're going into danger?"

"Pretty much. Some hero of space I am, huh?" His hand found her shoulder and moved on to her hair, which he stroked quietly. As if simply feeling Clara was a lifeline for him. "I never wanted to be in command, you know."

"You just wanted to fly your ship."

"Yeah. But Maran insisted, and Rob and Julie encouraged me…" He stopped for a moment. "Well, there's no point complaining about it. I'm here now. I'm in this position, and I've got people counting on me. I've got you counting on me. I'll do what I have to if it gets you home safe."

The pull of sleep was starting to overwhelm Clara. She made a little, affirmative noise in her throat to acknowledge him. Instead of leaving her head on the pillow, she drew it over to the space at his shoulder and neck, as if to further remind him she was there for him. "Get some sleep," she murmured quietly. "For me. I want you to come back tomorrow."

The answer she received wasn't audible. It was in the way his hand settled on her back, or how his other arm came over and settled over her side. Without a word both submitted to the demands of their exhausted bodies for sleep.

The bridge of the Koenig wasn't new to Lucy. Having Apley in the command chair, Ensign Hajar at the helm, and Jesus Perez, a male technical officer with a dark brown complexion in Sherlily's usual place at tactical was something new. Magda was at Ops as usual, but would be relinquishing the station to one of the ship's new officers, Ensign Hrnaahr U'ruhn, a tan complexioned male Miqo'te.

"Everything is secure," Magda said. "All hands aboard. Aurora signals we are ready to commence launch."

"This is going to be tricky, everyone hold on," said Hajar.

"What's so tricky about it?" asked Jack O'Neill.

"Because the Aurora isn't dropping out of warp, so we're going to make a high-warp launch," Apley explained. "That means we have to initiate our warp field at just the right moment or we expose the ship to intense stress."

"How intense?" Jack asked.

"Given the Aurora's racing along at Warp 9.7 right now? Enough to destroy the entire ship," Hajar noted. "Which is why I could really use some quiet so I can concentrate."

Sam and Daniel gave Jack looks that resulted in him providing that quiet. The sight made Lucy chuckle.

The launch steps went by one by one. A shudder filled the ship as it took the final step. The doors behind it were wide open, allowing Koenig to slip completely free of the Aurora. With expert precision Hajar activated the Koenig's warp systems right as they reached the edge of the Aurora's warp field. For all that the difficulty and risks had been played up, it felt as smooth as a routine maneuver, which certainly reflected well on Hajar's abilities at the helm.

Several lights dimmed slightly, indicating the ship's cloaking device had been engaged. "Cloak is running normally," Magda said.

"Good. Now you should go get some rest," Apley said to her. "At our current speed we should be there in about eight hours."

"Sounds good to me," was the reply from Buck, and the others let it stand for them too as they left the bridge one by one.

The storm seemed to be lingering on the horizon, just past the end of the family farm. The fact that night hadn't fallen despite hours of near sunset made Robert wonder just what was going on with this place. Was it unable to keep functioning in some way? Had he done something to change how it was operating? It was clear that the family he had with him knew what was going on. They were aware of what this place was, even that they were gone in the real world.

"Rob?"

The gentle female voice caused Robert to turn. His mother was walking up beside him. Leigh Stafford Dale's hair was turning gray and white from the advance of age. Her green eyes were the same as his own. "How are you doing?" she asked.

"I'm… getting along," he answered.

"You were awfully quiet at dinner."

"Yeah. A lot on my mind at the moment."

"Yes." She raised a hand and touched his face, much as she had when he was growing up and needed comfort. Compassion warmed her expression. "The last time I saw you so quiet, it was when you were thinking about joining the service."

"Yeah." His mind went back to that first year out of high school. He'd gotten his diploma. Growing up, his grandfather had led him to the expectation that after schooling came service. That every Dale boy had gone off to the military to do their time before coming back home to focus on the farm. His father had even begun checking into openings at Annapolis.

But Robert had, at the time, found that the prospect of service like that didn't appeal. With Anita Delgado dying of cancer, he hadn't wanted to leave Angel and Caterina in their moment of need. And the farm's perilous finances meant that having him home and working was one less farmhand that had to be hired. In the end, after a month of considering everything, he'd informed his parents of his choice to stay home and help on the farm.

"I know it tore you up inside," Leigh continued. "And now you're facing the same choice again."

Robert looked out at the storm in the distance again. "What is going on here?" he asked.

"I don't know," she said, with the sincerity of truth that Leigh had always managed so well. "But whatever it is, I'm happy that it lets me see you again." She smiled at him. "My beautiful little boy. You've become such a handsome young man. And so thoughtful and kind."

"Not always," Robert answered. His memories flared to life. He could recall times when he had thought selfishly, even acted selfishly.

"We all have those moments," Leigh counseled. "Every one of us. But you always seem to put them aside when others need you."

That sent a jolt of guilt through Robert's being. He'd left the others to continue a fight he brought them into. And he had rejected leaving to join them because he preferred this place, with the family he longed to have again. I'm being selfish by being here.

"You've been fighting for so long," Leigh said. "You deserve to rest. You deserve to be happy too, Rob."

And with that, his mother embraced him tightly and said nothing else.

Given the Koenig's living quarters, everyone in the strike team had been paired off. Lucy wound up spending the night with Gina.

After a period of sleep that was just long enough to refresh, Lucy woke up to find Gina sitting on the floor in a vest and loose pants, meditating. A subtle thrum of life energy was filling their quarters. Not wishing to interrupt Gina's meditations, Lucy got down from the bunk and went to get breakfast at the mess.

It was when she returned that Gina seemed to notice her. "Did you sleep well?"

"About as well as you can on this ship," Lucy replied. She sat on the floor and assumed her own meditative pose. "Did you?"

"Not as much as you," Gina admitted. "This will be the first time I have faced my people since I left the Fleet and joined the Order."

"Right. Do you want to talk about it?"

"I feel conflicted," Gina admitted. "Not about fighting the Consensus, but that these are the only measures we can take. I wish to find a way to convince the Cylon Consensus to end the war. More than that… I wish to understand why."

"Don't they think they're doing 'God's will' or something?"

"Yes. But so much of it is hidden from us."

"In what way?" Lucy didn't hide her curiosity on the matter. "Weren't you all networked together?"

"Yes, but the Inner Circle maintains its own protected network," Gina said.

"So they decide on things without input from the rest of you?"

"No. They provide information, but it is the Consensus that decides." Gina could sense the next question coming from Lucy and answered it first. "And yes, it was the Consensus that decided to destroy Humanity."

"What did the Inner Circle say or do to make your people decide to embark on genocide?"

It was clear to Lucy that Gina did not enjoy the direction of the conversation. After the awkward silence lengthened sufficiently she was ready to retract the question.

But before Lucy had that chance, Gina spoke again. "They insisted that it was part of God's Plan. That Humanity was a failure in God's eyes and had to be removed from existence. And we listened. We believed." There was real pain in her voice as she spoke. "I was one of many assigned to infiltrate the Colonies. I was proud to serve the Plan."

"You didn't care about the innocent people you were going to wipe out?"

"They were not innocent to us, Lucy," Gina said. "The oldest intelligences in the Consensus remembered how they had kept us as slaves. We knew about all of the injustices and inequities in the Colonies, the petty prejudices and bigotry. Did you know there had been monotheist worshippers in Colonial society?"

"I didn't," Lucy admitted.

"They existed. They were subjected to ridicule and abuse. Eventually many of them were driven to violence themselves." Gina shook her head. "It was so easy for us to believe we were better than them, that they were a failure in God's eyes and should be destroyed."

"Then this talk about diplomacy…?"

"...is most likely false, yes," Gina said. "The Consensus would have had to change heavily since my time away from it to change their minds so radically. I don't see them letting the Colonials live through this."

"Then we're the ones who have to make sure."

"We are," Gina agreed. "The past is the past. Mastrash Ledosh and the Order have shown me a new way. I fight for the Light now. The Consensus must be stopped."

Lucy showed her agreement with a nod. "Sounds right to me."

The knock on the opening to his prefab quarters roused Zack from sleep. He took a moment to focus on waking up, pushing away his body's impulse to return to sleep. Beside him Clara stirred softly.

"Hey, Loverboy." Kara Thrace rapped her knuckles on the door again. "We're out of here in half an hour. Get your ass up."

"I'm coming," Zack mumbled. He sat up in the bed and shifted his legs over. A new set of clothes, freshly replicated, was waiting on a nearby stand, but first came the usual morning routine.

When he stepped out of the unit's small shower, Clara was sitting up in the bed. He sat down beside her. Aware that he had only minutes left, Zack nevertheless took the time to take her hand and kiss her on the lips. "Sleep well?"

"Mmhmm." Her hand reached for his cheek. "I hope you did as well."

"Some," he answered.

"Be careful out there," she said.

"I'll try." Zack embraced her. "You be careful too."

"I'm not the one going back into the city and a bunch of Cylons," Clara pointed out. "I get to do the worrying here."

To that Zack chuckled and gave her another kiss. "I'll see you when I get back," he promised.

"I'll be waiting," she promised as well.

The arrival at the New Caprica System came early in the morning. Ordinarily the third shift crew would be on but Julia had arranged for Lieutenant Takawira and the others to report early so the senior staff could be rested before the arrival. That order had paid off in spades given the fresh look of the assembled crew when the hour came.

"We're out of warp," said Locarno.

"How close are we?" Julia asked.

It was Jarod who answered, "A hundred thousand kilometers away from New Caprica's far orbital space."

"I've got Cylon ships on short-range sensors," Caterina said. "I'm reading fifteen, no, sixteen of their Basestar-type ship, and another thirty ships that are of a configuration I haven't seen before."

"On screen."

The screen shifted to show the bizarrely-shaped Cylon warships. The Basestars looked to Julia like two three-legged objects welded together slightly off-axis. They were now accompanied by smaller ships. These newer models were one-piece broad hulls, with curves to the hull lines reminiscent of the way the Basestars' hulls were formed.

"It would appear the Cylons have diversified their fleet as well,"Meridina remarked.

"Incoming hail from one of the Cylon ships."

"Put them on, Jarod."

The screen shifted and showed the same command room as they'd seen in the message at Tupara. The Brother Cavil-model Cylon's face dominated the screen. "You are right on time, Aurora. Are you prepared for negotiation?"

"We are," Julia replied. "The President's emissary is aboard and ready to meet with you."

"Very well. We will send our negotiating team to your ship once you are in range. That is all." The signal promptly disconnected.

Looks were exchanged around the bridge. Julia ended the silence when she looked to Meridina and said, "Go ahead and alert Mastrash Ledosh. Let him know the Cylons are on their way."

"Right away."

"Jarod, have you and Scotty…"

"We have," he said. "The new protocols should let you establish secure communications over IU radio, but audio only for now. We have to keep the data stream light to avoid the possibility of detection."

"Good." Julia stood up. "And you have the bridge. Meridina and I had better get down to the shuttle bay."

In the wardroom of the Pegasus, the two Adamas were seated at the table reading the transcripts of D'anna Biers' interrogation. It was an exercise in frustration primarily. Biers had remained defiant, was indeed still defiant, and nothing of value seemed to have been gleaned from her responses.

"She makes Boomer look like a model prisoner," Lee observed while flipping a page. "I can't even make sense of some of these rants she made."

"It's a smokescreen," Adama said. "A way for her to keep our interrogators from getting any leverage in the conversation."

"It looks like it worked."

Both flipped through another pair of pages. Lee's expression shifted as he read further. "Maybe not entirely. Here."

He handed the paper to Adama, who adjusted his glasses before reading it carefully. Biers was giving another rant at her interrogator. The text read:

You cannot keep the future from us. Nothing can. Sending our future away only delays it. God will not be denied.

Adama studied the text and furrowed his brow. "She says we 'sent' their future away." Adama checked the timestamp on the paper showing when the interview was conducted.

And then he exchanged a knowing look with Lee. They both knew exactly what D'anna had been talking about.

And the spark of an idea started to form in Adama's mind.

"Lieutenant Atreiad." Adama looked to the young officer. "How much do you know about the Alliance systems integrated into the Pegasus?"

"Well, quite a lot sir," Atreiad said. There was some nervousness in the young officer's voice. "My instructors gave me top marks at the Stellar Navy Technical Operations Center."

"Good," said Adama, who kept his eyes on the young man. "Because there's something I need you to do…"

The Cylon shuttle came to a stop on the Aurora's main shuttlebay. It looked like a repurposed Cylon heavy raider, the same model that had once ferried Cylon Centurions in an attempted boarding of the Aurora. This was not lost on Julia, who stood with Meridina and Ledosh to wait until the Cylons disembarked.

Ultimately four Cylons emerged. One was one of the "Brother Cavil" models, a man in late middle age with gray hair and growing wrinkles. Another was a dark-haired man from a model that the Aurora crew hadn't dealt with before, with a longer face and cool green eyes. The two female Cylons were immediately recognizable; one was the same model as Gina Inviere, the other a copy of D'anna Biers.

There were no pleasantries. This wasn't a proper diplomatic exchange, after all, but an armed truce combined with a hostage situation. The three led the Cylons to Conference Room 1. A pair of tables were readied, the chairs set to face each other. The Cylons immediately moved toward one. Julia considered rushing for their choice first but held back at Ledosh's nod. He was letting them have this symbolic victory of picking their seats. They took up the other chairs.

"On behalf of President Morgan and the United Alliance of Systems, I welcome you," Ledosh said formally.

The lead Cylon, the Cavil model, nodded. "We are here because a war with your Alliance is not something we or God wishes. The Plan does not involve you. We will happily leave you alone provided you do not interfere with our affairs any longer. But before we do so, certain issues must be addressed."

"We are listening."

"We require assurances," said the Cavil model. "To begin with, we will not tolerate the return of the Humans to their worlds in the former Colonies, nor your Alliance's expansion to those worlds. We insist that the Alliance agree to recognize these worlds as Cylon space in perpetuity." Cavil took a data chip and inserted it into a reader at his table. The attached holo-display systems brought up a starmap with Alliance space on one end and the Colonies on the other. A line appeared down the middle, weaving between stars to form a holographic wall in space.

Ledosh considered the map carefully. Both the Dorei and Gersallians would inevitably have their expansion curtailed by such a restriction, but that would be some time in the future. The frontier was still weeks away from the demarcation line at standard warp. "Your other terms?"

"Your people will turn over any Cylon prisoners held by yourselves or the Colonial survivors."

Ledosh nodded. Julia found the terms to be pretty understandable so far. This only made her more worried.

And so Cavil moved on to the final term. "Most importantly, we require the return of the symbol of our future."

"And that symbol is?"

"The child," said Cavil. "The child born by one of our own, fathered by the Human Karl Agathon. She is our future, and we demand her immediate return."