As Rene ran, weaving her way through the corridors she had memorized, she couldn't help but remember something from her childhood. Her mother used to read her a story about a rat. Every day it ran a new maze until it realized that despite the change in the maze, nothing really changed. It stopped running. That is when it finally beat the game. She desperately wanted to stop running in this same maze, but she didn't know how. Besides, there really wasn't any other way to fix this than to revert back to her old ways, and for that she needed Jake.

She made it to officer row before Adama and the rest and briefly thanked the Lords, mumbling something about making a sacrifice if Jake would just be in the council chambers with the kids like he should be. He was there at the head of the table, rocking Leia to sleep. She had him hand the baby off to someone else as she quickly explained the situation, the deal she had already worked out with Pallus. Jake's only comment on the short walk to the Commander's office was that he was going to kill Crius.

"He flies with the guy. Didn't he know Starbuck just couldn't sit on that kind of intel?!"

"I know. I know. Well, I didn't know until a couple of days ago, but, I thought after Starbuck showed up at the training, he was okay with it. So, what name do we give them? Who?"

"Brody. Let the two twist in the wind together."

"Naw, too close," Rene answered as they turned the corner and found themselves in front of the Commander's office. Rene hesitated before pushing the call button.

"You want close for this one I think. You sure the Commander will play along? He's not Dante."

"Everybody knows he likes Starbuck. Just gotta play that chit," she said as the door opened.

It was Gage that met them, his voice low and hard to hear over the Commander's shouting. "You sure about this?"

"No, that's why Jake is doing it," she replied.

They entered the room, taking up a position near the door, suddenly not wanting to get into direct firing range of the Commander. His face was red and he was angrier than Rene had ever seen him. Even though it was nowhere near the level Dante could get in his rage, it was in a way more frightening. In the last two sectars, Rene had never seen the Commander angry, not even a little bit peeved, and lord knows she had pushed. She had considered taking one for the team and really pushing the Commander over the edge so they would see what would happen, but she knew those sweet quarters of her and Starbuck's, as well as the council chambers for the kids, were only due to the Commander's influence. She had suggested someone else push it, but despite their best efforts, the man was not to be moved.

It unnerved Jake more than the others. His first foster father had been like that. Hades, the guy let Jake get away with anything he wanted, even baked him cookies when he got in trouble at school. Jake figured out why when he snuck on the guy's computer to play a vid game and he got curious as to what the guy looked at all the time on the screen late at night. All Jake would say is that he didn't realize a home computer could store that many images.

"I deleted about three quarters and thought about waiting a few sectars before I turned him in. I mean, he baked me cookies, after all." That's the joke Jake would tell about it, but Rene knew the real story. He deleted all the images, except the ones of Jake, then turned him in. The other foster homes didn't get the memo that Jake was a victim, just that he caused a problem. That was the problem with confidentiality sometimes. People assumed the worst. Jake ended up regretting turning the guy in. "It was just pictures. I mean what harm had he really done?" Jake told her late one night when it was just the two of them sleeping out in the cold.

Jake had avoided the Commander, rarely stepped foot on the bridge and even went so far as to leave the room if he didn't have to be there when the man showed up. She would owe Jake big for this, but Jake knew like she did, without Starbuck they all would lose privileges and be back on the bottom.

It was Starbuck that was at attention in front of the Commander's desk, Boomer and Pallus off to the side, Jolly and Giles near the seats at the back of the room, and Gage beside them by the door. Pallus had shifted his attention from the Commander to Rene and Jake, which seemed to have distracted Starbuck as well. Starbuck started to say something to Rene, but the Commander brought him up short.

"Let me get this straight," Adama said as he made an effort to lower his voice after glancing over at Jake and Rene. "Captain Pallus said something rude about one of the ladies in the room, so you hit him, is that correct? A superior officer?"

"Yes, sir," Starbuck replied, trying to remain erect and ignore the blood still slowly seeping into his eyes. "A very crude remark and he, look sir, you don't know the whole story, see…"

The Commander cut him off. "Oh, I received a full report from the Rising Star. The only thing you did right was to not damage too much property. Your garnished wages should be able to cover the cost. No, you just started an impromptu brawl, over a rude comment!"

"Well, yes sir, see…"

The Commander's raised voice had Rene flinching, but Jake beside her started grinning, as he flashed her the sign for confirmation. She nodded.

"You are supposed to be the liaison to the Dilmun Warriors! Lieutenant, you are supposed to make them feel welcome and included, not fight them!"

"Well sir, we did have quite a crowd cheering us on, so technically they were all included."

It was the grin on Pallus's face, like he was going to win this round, that helped Rene gather her courage. "Sir, could we have a word with you."

"Not now, Lieutenant," the commander barked and Rene flinched. Gage reached out a hand to steady her, but she cursed softly at the touch.

"And then to make matters worse, you punched a security guard?! If you want out of the Colonial Service, you could just ask! Now I will have no choice but to open a tribunal and begin the proceedings to have you kicked out!"

"Sir, that may have been my fault," Pallus interrupted. "I had a few drinks and as Starbuck was being pulled away, I did sucker punch him. Starbuck may have thought he was aiming for me, sir."

The words halted the Commander's tirade as he appraised the Captain whom he did not know. Starbuck remained uncharacteristically quiet to the man's comment. "Captain would you care to tell me your side of the story?"

Pallus looked to Starbuck, before he shifted to Rene, then levelled his gaze at Jake. "Sir, we all had a few drinks too many. I may have said something crass, I am unsure, and I may have thrown my own punches as well. For the record, I do not wish to level any charges against the Lieutenant."

"Are you sure Captain Pallus? The witnesses were quite clear this was not your fault." The commander looked from the Captain, to where the captain's gaze had landed in the direction of Rene and Jake. The Commander's eyebrow quirked up at the unspoken tension between the two officers.

"Lieutenant Jake, you were not on the Rising Star tonight. Why are you here, if I may ask?"

Jake hesitated for a moment and Rene was afraid he would back down and would throw her under the landram on this one. Far too many times with Dante her word had counted for nothing. Without Jake's testimony, hers would not stand. She was too close to Starbuck and it would seem too much like tit for tat.

"I have some charges I would like to level against Captain Brody, which might explain why Starbuck felt the need to …to have hard feelings against Captain Pallus, a friend of Brody's."

Pallus spoke before the Commander could. "Lieutenant, I already said I was not levelling charges. The matter is closed."

Rene was shocked to see that everyone in the room flinched when the commander spoke again, his voice not a shout, but the low bass tones of barely contained rage. "I am the Commander, this is my office and I will decide when the matter is closed."

The words seemed to have no effect on Starbuck though. "Jake, you don't have to do this. I know what I did. I didn't handle it right. It's my fault."

"I think it's more Crius's fault," Rene said softly, but it was Gage that answered.

"This goes back a lot farther Commander than the fight this evening, or even the one a few cycles ago."

"A few cycles ago?" Adama fixed Gage with a look of betrayal. "Why was this not brought to my attention?"

Gage did not answer immediately and the room remained silent until Jake finally spoke. "We don't know you, sir."

The Commander's gaze swept every face in the room as he analysed the situation, read the faces for the clues he had missed. There still remained a division, and it was wider than he realized. "One at time, I want the details as to what has been going on. Begin at the beginning."

Jake took the step forward and began at just a few cycles ago, blamed Brody for the fight, not Pallus. Jake told the story of an altercation with Brody that began over triad and went too far. He said that Crius had misunderstood, thought it was Pallus as Brody and Pallus are friends. Crius had told Starbuck about it, only Crius had the mixed up the names. Starbuck felt the need to stand up for Jake and that led them to here. A misunderstanding began over triad and finished over too many drinks.

It was a lie, Jake, Rene and Gage knew that, but Gage must have felt some guilt for the confession he made to the commander about he and Rene as he followed the code. He admitted nothing, he denied his knowledge of the fight until a few cycles later, claimed there was no real proof, just one or two witnesses who were probably involved in that fight as well, and he shifted the blame to the seriousness of triad in the fleet. Jake hinted that it all stemmed from an issue on the Zakar, was just beginning to elaborate when Captain Pallus jumped into the story, completely willing to buy into the lie to protect himself.

Starbuck was smart enough to keep his mouth shut as he watched the game being played in front of him. Maybe it was the hand sign Rene had flashed at him, something about saving the best card for a later hand. He hoped that meant that later, when Captain Pallus wasn't in the room, Rene would reveal the truth to the Commander and they could begin to unravel the twisted fabric of Dante's command. It was painfully obvious to Starbuck from Pallus's crude comment that many of the vices of the Dilmun crew members had not suddenly been eliminated by bringing them into the fleet. Pallus was probably still a rapist, and the only thing keeping him contained was the availability of somewhat willing women in the fleet. At least he hoped he'd been contained. Starbuck still was left wondering what Rene had promised Pallus when they spoke on the shuttle. To be honest, that was his first concern at the moment, not whether he'd be kicked out of the service or have to serve time on the prison barge. He wanted to make sure Rene was not trading sexual favors for Starbuck's pardon.

But when the Commander asked Starbuck if the story was true, he found himself agreeing. He didn't clear up the confusion, but he did contradict one issue, despite the glare he received from Rene. "Sir it was truly the crude comment about Rene that made me throw the first punch, not all the other issues. I was letting it go until this boray…until Captain Pallus made the comment."

Starbuck was surprised when Pallus at least owned up to the comment. "I did make a crude comment, unbecoming of an officer. I was inebriated, still am, as I am allowed on my furlong time. I apologize Lieutenant Starbuck."

"Captain, I think you owe it to Lieutenant Rene." Starbuck enjoyed watching the man grovel for just a moment to the woman he had abused in the past. He knew it wasn't enough to make up for the torture he inflicted on Rene, but it was a start. At least he thought, the boray will know he can't get away with it any longer. If he did, well he'd convince Rene to level real charges. Surely, they were within the statute of limitations for the crime committed on the Zakar by a Colonial officer?

The Commander took in the story, and Rene wasn't sure if he had bought it, but no one, not even Starbuck contradicted the account. Both Starbuck and Pallus had apologized and the captain stated again for the record he did not wish to level charges. She tensely waited for the Commander's judgement. She had to admit she lost a tiny bit of respect for the man when he leaned back, fingers tented under his chin and pronounced that the matter between Captain Pallus and Lieutenant Starbuck was closed. He dismissed everyone from the room except for Lieutenant Boomer and Lieutenant Starbuck. Rene was about to ask why, when the Commander clarified he had the issue of the assault on a security guard to address.

Rene didn't want to leave Starbuck without some back up, but Gage was pushing her out the door as Jake nearly fled down the corridor. She followed Jake as he headed for her quarters, keyed the door with the code she had given him, and waited for the door to shut before he asked for the whole story. She didn't know quite what to tell him other than Crius had told Starbuck about their time with Pallus and Dante, and Starbuck had some kind of righteous indignation issue, probably acquired through his friendship with Apollo.

"So, he really did it because of that?"

"Seriously Jake, if we don't watch what we say, Starbuck's going to kill a few people."

Jake smiled as he pulled Rene in by the back of the neck, forehead to forehead, they both sighed, having the same hope that maybe someone could protect them from the evil in this world. Or would at least try.

The Commander waited until the room was cleared, even excusing Colonel Gage until he had before him the two remaining warriors that he counted as family. He waved his hand to indicate the chairs in the room, but at Starbuck's sudden smile he said, "You are still on report, son. You just look like you are about to fall down and I don't want any of those lovely bruises blamed on me. Now what really happened, and don't even try to tell me that fabrication just told is even close to the truth."

"Well," Starbuck began pulling up a chair. "It is close enough so we can all remember the details, a necessary component of a good lie. But no, it wasn't the truth." Starbuck took a deep breath before forging forward. "Crius told me a horrific tale, that I haven't had confirmed by anyone yet, that Captain Pallus tried to rape Rene, Jake fought him off, then the Captain put them on report and in the Commander's office, proceeded to beat Jake, rape Rene and the Commander joined in."

Starbuck noted that the commander took the news rather calmly, not seeming to even bat an eye. "Sir, he's a rapist! He coerces the girls and…"

Adama held up a hand, stopping Starbuck from working himself up. "Was Crius there to witness this?"

"Yeah, I mean, not the rape, but the fight Pallus had with Jake and he witnessed the bruises after and…" Starbuck trailed off as he realized that for a real report it needed to have the real victims make a report. He sighed, "No, he wasn't there and Rene hasn't confirmed it. Jake won't talk about it at all, won't even admit who he had the fight with a few days ago. They aren't talking and, I've tried to get them to, but…"

Adama waited for Starbuck to wind down before he spoke. "So, based on this information, hearsay I might add, you encountered the Captain on the Rising Star and his comment upset you?"

"He made a crude comment about how Rene was good on her knees and yeah, I punched him. Boomer heard it."

"Uh actually, buddy, I was nowhere near you at the time."

Starbuck flashed his friend an annoyed look. "Alright, so yeah, maybe I went off on the guy without enough information. The comment was reason enough. Forgive me if I'm a little sensitive that the woman I love is still surrounded by the officers that used to abuse her, sexually and otherwise."

"Son, I appreciate you wanting to stand up for the honor of a lady, especially one you had at one time said was going to be your wife…"

"She is going to be my wife!"

Adama's eyebrow quirked up at that. "Oh really, so when would that be happening?"

"Uh, we haven't actually talked about a date and, well, I was waiting until she felt more comfortable here. I haven't really had time to ask her. I was hoping to do that tonight, but then well, Apollo didn't make it and…"

Boomer interjected, "And then there was a fight. Doesn't exactly set the scene for romance…"

Starbuck looked at the Commander sheepishly. "And there was a fight. I was getting around to it."

"Look, Starbuck, I am not trying to rush your sealing." The Commander fixed him with a fatherly gaze. "But I'm not sure I can allow you to continue the cohabitation, certainly not with this putting the two of you in the center of the ring, so to speak. Are you sure she wishes to seal with you?"

"Yes, I mean, she did. I…" Starbuck began to stammer and the Commander came to his rescue.

"Perhaps you should ask her. Or perhaps, a little break from the situation will make things a bit clearer for you. As punishment for decking a security guard, you will be on the picket patrols during what would be your sleep cycle. Your shift will begin before the dinner hour before your extra duty helping out engine maintenance as they are short staffed and most are busy on the Zakar with the repairs. Plus, there will be some community service required of you. You will have little time to be in those quarters with company, so you may want to resume your billet with the blue squadron for sleep period."

Starbuck cringed. "Sir, she doesn't sleep when I'm not there."

"Then perhaps she should get some help with that, professional help from our medical team. Her psychiatric evaluation was interesting to say the least, and she has not gone to any of the follow up appointments made for her. Starbuck, I am not suggesting you and she shouldn't seal or that you shouldn't defend her from those who did her harm in the past. I am suggesting you can't do it all alone, son. There are people willing to help you. I am one of them."

"Same here, Starbuck," Boomer added clapping him on the back. "You've done a great job so far with all of the family. The kids adore you, and you have gotten the adults to relax and open up some. I think Crius would have been on report by now if not for you."

"Yeah, alright, you have a point, sir. Her nightmares are pretty bad and I'm not totally sure who she is talking to sometimes when she's muttering out loud. I worry that it might be Iblis."

Adama sat up at that information, but Starbuck held up his hand. "Haven't seen him. She could just be talking to herself. She does it in front of almost everyone, and I seem to be the only one concerned about it."

"You are not the only one. I will exert my pressure to see she is moved up in priority for our medical staff. In the meantime, I will allow you to finish off your evening in the Copper Squadron billet. Sleep off the drinks and report for duty tomorrow morning and we will work out your community service. Then you and I will report to the gym, where I will show you how to properly win a fight."

Starbuck started to grin again, but it slipped as the Commander added, "And son, you need to ask her, not just assume a sealing will be happening. Think about it during this time apart. During my time in the service I have witnessed often that absence is to love like the wind is to a flame, it can fan it higher, or it can extinguish it. I'm sure even you would like to know if this sealing is meant to be so you can defeat all your critics, or if it was arranged for convenience by a gal who tells lies."