Thanks for all the reviews and comments! You guys rock. Totally.

This chapter has a bit more action in it. Hopefully I've parlayed what was in my head onto paper well enough that it makes sense...

Disclaimer: I'm still playing and no one's complaining, so...have another chapter...And t

Too High a Cost
By: Mariel

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Chapter 11

Redound (not rebound...)

What a difference a day makes, Bill thought as another wet branch shook its water onto his head. The rain had started sometime during the night, and hadn't let up since. Gone were the gentle beams of sunshine dancing their way through lazily moving trees. Now a cold rain fell, and shivering leaves and branches dripped water onto a wet world stripped of colour and warmth.

In spite of the precipitation and poor visibility, the sky had been filled with cylon raiders since daybreak. Knowing the time constraint they were under and carrying with them only the bare necessities, they pushed forward carefully, ignoring as best they could the cold and damp that slowly worked its way into their bones.

They moved quickly, legs moving automatically now that they had been travelling for so long.

Moving forward had become as automatic as straining for breath and listening to their heartbeats drum a thudding tattoo in their ears. Muscles aching, they worked hard to keep a pace two beats faster than comfortable. As the day had worn on, their mood had become more desperate. They had run into a number of random cylon patrols after leaving the relative safety of the gorge, and avoiding them had been time-consuming. Now, as they drew closer to the raptor, Adama's worry about being spotted increased. Though the number of cylon fighters flying overhead had inexplicably decreased as the day progressed, the ground patrols continued to pose a problem. He grimaced. Encountering another pair of cylons tramping through the forest could ruin their chances of reaching the raptor in time.

Glancing at the others, he quickened his pace. Soon, they'd be at a place he would be able to send them on alone, and he needed to do that before darkness set in.

Lee, who had taken point some time ago, stopped suddenly and raised a hand. "Shhh" he cautioned them, "I-"

Shots rained through the trees at them.

They swung around to their left, hit the wet ground, and fired in the direction of two approaching cylons. The cylons continued firing, but stopped their forward movement to assess the strength of the opposing gunfire. When a well-placed shot from someone's gun threw one of the cylons back against the other, the small group rose and raced through the undergrowth, putting as much distance between them and the enemy as they could.

Eventually, they slowed to a stop."I think maybe we killed one of them," Lee gasped, cursing the extra weight he'd put on over the past year. Bending over, he rested his hands on his knees and fought to catch his breath.

Adama's pulse rang in his ears. Struggling to control his breathing, he rasped, "Even if that's the case, we're still in trouble. The remaining one will track us. It'll also call in reinforcements."

Knowing now was the time, he straightened and addressed the group.

"We can't afford to have the cylons follow us to the raptor. I'm going to wait here. I'll set them off track by leading them in the opposite direction, towards that rise," he said, raising a rain-soaked arm to point in the direction he intended to go. "If I head towards the outcropping we travelled on during our first visit here, the cylons will assume they know our intended destination and concentrate part of their attention there. That will give you a chance to get to the raptor. Helo, I want you and Sharon to leave first and get it ready to go."

He then turned to Kara and Lee. "Kara, Lee - give Helo and Sharon a head start so that you're not all travelling together. It's your job to get the President safely onboard." He looked at Sharon and told them,. "Lieutenant Valerii knows my instructions for once everyone's onboard."

Standing back, he let his gaze rake over them all. "Be careful. The Galactica will be waiting, but only for a few more hours. You'll make it, though."

Helo's eyes narrowed. Adama was a good tactician, but his proposed diversion had been too quickly relayed not to have been planned in advance. He knew his boss: the Old Man might not explain his actions, but there was always a carefully laid plan behind them. He thought back to the long hours of over-training Adama had relentlessly put the flight crew through while they'd been away from New Caprica. No one had known it had been in order to pull a crazy stunt like having vipers and raptors trick DRADIS into believing they were battlestars. And certainly no one had imagined that other drills had been to prepare them for launching vipers while the Galactica free fell through New Caprica's atmosphere. The Adama Manoeuvre had been brilliant - and well planned. This diversion of his had the same smell to it. There was something deeper behind what he was planning, but the Admiral wasn't letting anyone in on it. He glanced at Sharon. Except for her. For some reason, Adama had spoken to her, and probably given her last-minute instructions. Finally seeing the whole picture, he realised the reason for Sharon's disquiet the night before: whatever Adama had ordered was something she wasn't comfortable with. He groaned inwardly. That meant he wasn't going to like whatever it was, either. Focussing his attention back onto the Admiral with a frown, he decided that although there was nothing he could do about things he didn't know, he could address the things he did. Adama acting as a decoy wasn't a good idea.

Stepping forward, he began: "Sir-"

Adama stopped him before he could get started. In a voice that brooked no argument, he said, "You have your orders, lieutenant." His tone softening somewhat, he gruffly added, "You've done what you set out to do here, Lieutenant Agathon - you've watched my back, and I thank you. Now it's my turn to return the favour."

Helo stared at him a long moment, then nodded and reluctantly stepped down.

Not liking his father's plan any more than Helo did, Lee asked, "How long will it take you to get to the raptor?"

Adama's eyes flickered away from his son's. "It's an easy downhill run from where I'm going to lead them. I figure I'll be an hour behind you, tops. Just have the thing ready to leave when I get there. We aren't going to want to hang around." He hesitated, then added, "Don't wait longer than that, Lee. If I don't show, use the co-ordinates I've left for the FTL jump and get the hell out of here. And remember: Lieutenant Valerii has my orders. Follow them."

Lee stiffened and looked at him sharply. "We'll wait. We aren't leaving without you."

Adama's expression softened. Having planted the seed of his not returning, he said, "Cross that bridge when you come to it, son."

Tearing his eyes from Lee, he sent Sharon a look of steel. Her eyes dark with regret, she inclined her head imperceptibly.

Roslin, who had remained silent during the various exchanges, watched the shared look between Adama and Valerii. A frown creased her brow, then disappeared as sudden realisation made her eyes widen.

Saul Tigh hadn't been exaggerating when he'd said Bill was taking a suicide run at the planet, and the words that had fallen unbidden from her mouth beside the river just days ago had had their roots firmly in truth as well. Bill had come here planning to die. He still expected to. She'd told him she wouldn't leave the planet without him, and then convinced herself that her words had been borne from her mind working up worst-case scenarios...

Now she knew better.

Surprising everyone, she stepped forward. "Admiral, frak the thirty minutes. You don't need to do this. Let's just make a quick run for it."

He turned eyes the colour of a stormy sea towards her. "We'd never make it," he stated firmly. "It will take time to get the raptor ready to leave, and while we were inside getting the engines started, the cylons would be outside firing at us. We wouldn't stand a chance. We need to delay the cylons from reaching the raptor while it gets ready to take off. Diversion is the best way to do that. It'll be okay," he said smoothly. Holding her gaze more tightly, he continued, "You have to get off this planet, and you have to do it soon. The Galactica won't wait forever." He relaxed his stance somewhat. "As for me, don't worry. I've left exigency orders, but I have every intention of making it in time."

That last part was a lie, and she knew it. Could read it in his eyes, could see it in his stance. She opened her mouth to object-

"It's time to move," he said, abruptly terminating their conversation. "Helo, Sharon; you first," he ordered.

After nodding and checking out the area, they turned and left.

Watching the spot where the two had disappeared into the woods, Adama waited a few tense moments. With only the sound of pouring rain to accompany his thoughts, he finally nodded towards the other three. "I'm going to move away from here a little, then start heading towards the rise. Start for the raptor now. They-"

His words were interrupted by the distinctive sound of approaching cylon footfalls.

"Get going!" he ordered.

"Let me stay wi-" Lee began.

"Get the President to safety!" his father rasped. "I'll be fine."

Lee held his father's gaze. Impulsively, he held out his rifle and ammunition. "Take this, in case you need it."

His father nodded. Quickly placing the ammunition in his pockets, he slung the extra rifle around his neck and shoulder. Then he turned towards the direction from which the cylons were approaching.

"Bill."

Adama turned at the sound of Laura's voice. He didn't have time for an argument with her. Adrenalin rushing through his veins, he memorised the way she looked as Lee took her arm and began to pull her away. Loving her had been the most painful thing he'd ever experienced.

Or had been, until now...

"Go, Laura. Now."

Turning, he loped along the path, away from his son, Kara, and Laura.

He didn't look back.

-xxx-

The three moved smoothly through the woods, dodging low-lying branches and trying to make as little noise as possible. Walking with Kara in front of her and Lee behind her, Laura found herself filled with disquiet. The farther away she got from Adama, the greater her sense of distress grew.

Suddenly the sound of cylon turrent fire echoed through the trees. She flinched, and her steady pace faltered. She glanced backward. She could hear what she thought was Bill returning fire, and wondered where he would find cover and if there were any possibility at all that he'd survive.

Her breath caught in her throat. Her legs suddenly leaden, she realised she couldn't go on; couldn't let this happen. The gunfire behind them demanding her attention, she stumbled. Scrambling to her feet as Lee approached her, she gasped, "We shouldn't have left him."

"We had to," Lee told her as he held out his hand to help her along.

"We should go help him," she insisted. "I want to go back."

His warm hand clasped her arm just above the elbow as he guided her forward. "Not in this lifetime," he said in a determined tone. "He'd have my head, and yours, too. We've got to get to the raptor. We're running out of time. He'll meet us there."

Thinking rapidly, she let him drag her along. A yelp from Kara made them both look ahead through the bushes. They couldn't see her.

"She's fallen and hurt herself," Laura said quickly. Making as though to move forward, she released herself from his grasp and urged, "She might be hurt. Go check. I can't run as fast as you."

Lee hesitated, then dashed ahead.

Impelled by a sense of urgency she couldn't explain, Roslin immediately turned and ran hellbent for leather back the way she had come. Bill might be staying, but she'd be damned if he'd be staying alone. She was not leaving him.

Lee found Kara on the ground, holding her foot and cursing. Telling her to sit still and be quiet, he examined her ankle and was relieved to see that it wasn't broken. Glancing back to tell the President, he stiffened and dropped Kara's foot to the ground.

Rising quickly, he ignored Kara's quick inhalation of pain and looked back through the wet undergrowth for a sign of movement. He turned to Kara.

"Frak!" he cursed. "I can't see the President!"

-xxx-

Running over the uneven terrain blindly, Laura followed the sound of cylon turrent fire. Reaching the point she thought had been where Adama had left them, she turned in the direction he had gone and continued to move as quickly as she could. In less time than she'd imagined, she saw where Bill had finally had to stop and dig in. She could see the flash of cylon gunfire and could also see that Bill was managing to hold what looked to be a single attacker off. Glad that Lee's assessment that they'd killed one had been correct, she paused, wiping away rain that dripped from her chin. Having no idea what she planned to do, she assessed the best angle of approach and then continued forward.

It took her a long five minutes to circle around and approach him from behind. Nearing his location cautiously, she crouched down and began to crawl the last few yards to him, cylon gunfire pinging off the tree branches above her head.

"Nice spot you've got here," she gasped when she finally gained shelter from the same outcropping of rocks he had taken refuge behind. Flinging her wet hair behind her shoulders, she leaned against the rock beside where he crouched and tried to catch her breath.

He paused momentarily, then continued to fire. "Where's Lee and Kara?" he asked in a harsh tone.

"They're okay," she reassured him quickly. "They're on their way to the raptor."

"You should have kept going," he told her abruptly.

"I told you: I'm not leaving this planet without you."

He couldn't afford to glare at her, so instead he pulled his trigger with greater vehemence. This was not going according to plan. It was all frakked...Just once, why couldn't she have-

"Do you know how to shoot one of these things?" he asked abruptly. If he couldn't save her, he could at least have her help save the others...

She shut her eyes. Suddenly irritated beyond belief, she snapped, "I'm a frakking school teacher. What do you think?"

Waiting for another volley of cylon gunfire to give him something to aim at in the slowly growing darkness, he said, "We haven't exactly sat down and caught up on your activities planetside. I figured you'd have learned. What kind of resistance leader can't fire a gun?" He paused to consider the ridiculousness of this conversation while he continued to look straight ahead, trying to catch a glimpse of the cylon through the trees. "We've got to hold this thing off for at least another five minutes, to give them time to safely get off the ground. Pass me the rifle Lee left. It's just over there," he said, nodding with his head. "I'll show you how it works."

She had begun to reach for the rifle but stopped as she realised what he'd said. She calculated rapidly in her head, then turned to him.

"Five minutes? You said to wait for an hour after we got to the raptor! That gives you at least another forty!"

"As soon as they arrive at the raptor, Sharon will tell them my orders. They'll leave as soon as the engines are ready for takeoff."

"Without me?"

Resisting the urge to smile at her reaction, Bill shot off a couple rounds into the forest. "If you're not with them, yes, without you. Sharon will know I won't hold her accountable for your stupidity," he said as he continued to fire into the gloom. Pausing to reload, he glanced at her and added, "We need pilots maybe more than we need presidents."

Laura took this to be humour in the face of unspeakable odds and chose not to take it personally.

"Lee and Kara won't let her leave without us," she said in an assured tone.

"Sharon has her orders. They're taking off in five minutes. She'll do it," he said in a sure tone."Now get that rifle! We've got to hold out a little while longer. The only thing saving our frakking asses is that their reinforcements haven't shown up yet." He glanced to his right. "I want to move on further, towards the next outcropping of rock. They'll think we're heading up the side of the escarpment, and it'll give us better protection."

Manoeuvring further to his left, he ducked from a salvo of cylon bullets, then rose onto his knees to return fire.

She watched, having no idea what good he thought she'd do him shooting bullets blindly into the forest. Sighing, she got the rifle and held it towards him. "I really don't know how to fire it. And I was a damned good resistance leader, thank you very much."

Bill nodded, conceding this one small battle. "It's obvious you were. And I know you wouldn't necessarily have had learn how to use a rocket launcher rifle. If you even had one. You're going to learn now, though. We'll have to cover each other while we make a run for those rocks." Taking the rifle from her, he set his own gun down. Wincing as bullets ricocheted off the rocks near his head, he said, "Let's see if it's loaded, first."

Confident in the safety of the rock's protection, he turned and cocked open the chamber.

As he did so, Roslin saw the unmistakable red eye of a second cylon step into sight on their left. As it raised its arm towards them, she rose.

"Bill!" she screamed, before throwing herself in front of him.

The cylon fired.

The shots caught her in the back and flung her against him like a limp rag doll.

Bill felt the unmistakable sensation of hot metal piercing his flesh. Thrown back from the impact of both Roslin and the bullets hitting him, he instinctively held her against him and fell to the ground with her on top of him.

His breath rushed out of him and sound receded. He could have sworn he heard more gunfire, but it sounded far away. The sharp pain ricocheting around his insides ebbed away and he felt nothing.

What had happened before would happen again...

Time slowed. Rain cooled his skin and ran down the scarred planes of his face. Distantly, he was aware of Laura's voice saying something against his neck. There was a strange buzzing in his ear, though, and he couldn't hear what she said. He could feel her wet hair against his throat, though, and fuzzily thought that she shouldn't have been here. Senseless, he decided, to have both their bloods stain the ground. He opened his mouth to say something to her, but found he couldn't draw a breath...

Unconsciously, he groped for a moment until his hand touched hers where it lay draped on the ground beside him. Her fingers closed around his convulsively. A few heartbeats later, he felt them slowly relax and her body gradually go limp. As he felt growing shades of grey begin to wrap themselves more tightly around him, he felt Roslin exhale softly.

Unconsciously, he waited for a corresponding inhalation that didn't come.

His eyes closed. He could feel a pooling warmth against him; knew her blood was mingling with his as it made its way to the ground.

The cost of revisiting Kobol... It was too high.

He'd known that. Had offered his own price...

And the gods had said no and exacted too high a cost once again...

Laura....he thought, his heart filled with grief.

Fighting against the desire to give in and let go, he focussed on one thing:

The children were safe...

It was his last thought before, on the wings of his own slow exhalation, darkness overcame him.

End
Chapter 11