"I said, drop him!" Luana repeated and she watched in horror as Starbuck begin to slump to the deck. His head hit the deck with a loud thunk. She took a bead on the goon and her finger began to tighten on the trigger.

The goon who had released Starbuck actually looked surprised when his victim dropped limply to the floor of the court. "I . . . uh . . . I didn't mean to . . . " Oh frack. Termination charges weren't what he had in mind when he took on this job.

"Move back, you miserable piece of festering felgercarb!" Luana yelled as she approached menacingly. To have just spent the most magical centars with the man she loved only to have him killed in a freak mishap that didn't even involve them . . .

Loud footfalls approached from the locker rooms and the walking landram backed away from the fallen warrior, his eyes flickering towards the entrance. "If you so much as move a muscle, I'll blow your fracking head off." Luana threatened as she kneeled down beside Starbuck who was half on his side with his legs bent beneath him. She quickly checked for a pulse. It was thready, but present.

"Man down!" A familiar voice shouted.

Luana looked over her shoulder to see two Security Officers running towards them with lasers drawn. She turned back to Starbuck, lying him flat on his back.

"Does he have a pulse?"

Luana looked up into Reece's eyes. "Yes, but he's not breathing!" Even though she had been taught rescue breathing and resuscitation, she had never had to perform it on anyone before, and certainly not on her lover. She had only been this terrified once before. That was when her sister, Lia, had drowned in a raging river on Empyrean and Starbuck had saved her.

Without hesitation, Reece repositioned Starbuck's head and began mouth to mouth resuscitation. "Monitor his pulse, " he told Luana between breaths.

Luana quickly put her fingers on his neck and found the still thready pulse. "Still there," she reported. She prayed that the bile rising in her throat wouldn't make it any further.

Two breaths was all it took for Starbuck to gasp and cough. His hand flew to his throat and he just about head-butted Reece as he reflexively sat up straight, gasping for air.

"Easy there, fella." Reece put a hand on his shoulder and steadied him. He called over his shoulder to his partner, "The rescue breathing worked. Still, we better call a med team."

Starbuck looked around in confusion. The last thing he remembered was being grabbed from behind and Luana's voice screaming at the goon to release him. His neck ached, his head pounded and he looked up to see Reece staring down at him with a stunned expression on his face.

"Starbuck?" Reece asked. By all that's holy, he had just done mouth to mouth on Lieutenant Starbuck! Lords, he'd never live this down. He wiped at his lips reflexively.

Starbuck gaped back at him just as astonished. "Reece?" he managed to croak out. "You . . . didn't?" He touched his mouth. Lords, he didn't feel so good! Just the mere thought of the man's lips touching his own. Oh, frack, he was gonna . . .

And he did.

"Oh, frack!" Reece jumped back as Starbuck's stomach heaved. "Call a medic!"

"NO!" Starbuck vehemently argued between gagging and sputtering.

"Uh, we're going to require a med tech for these guys once we get them to the brig. Maybe we could make do with a sanitation technician until then." Willem suggested with a tentative smile. Reece's partner had taken both men into custody and was watching from a safe distance.

"Starbuck, you stopped breathing. We have to get you checked out." Luana told him. She wanted to throw herself into his arms, but she had promised him no commitments or expectations.

"I'm fine." Starbuck argued. Cassiopeia was on duty. No way in Hades Hole was he going to show up practically naked with Luana at his side. Yeah, he knew he'd have to have a talk with Cassie sooner or later, but now was not the time. In fact, later was looking really good.

"Uh . . . we need a statement, Starbuck." Reece told him. "What happened?"

"Lu?" Starbuck looked up at her. He really wasn't up for this right now.

"Uh . . . well, we were . . . playing triad . . . obviously." She felt her face flush. She really wasn't up for this right now.

"Kinda late for triad, isn't it?" Reece asked. He had already noticed their state of undress. After all, this was Starbuck.

"We got the last court time." Starbuck coughed. He massaged his aching throat as he started to get up. Frack. Frack. Frack. "I was in the locker room . . . when I heard a woman scream."

Luana grabbed his arm and caught the quick look he gave her as he rose shakily to his feet. "You all right?" she asked.

"Yeah," he replied. If possible, his head was pounding even more now that he was standing.

"And?" Reece asked.

"I pulled my shorts back on and ran in here." Starbuck told him.

"Did you hear anything before the scream?" Willem asked.

"Uh . . . yeah, some . . . talking." Starbuck replied looking at Luana.

"So did I when they passed by . . . the Ladies' locker room." She told them. "I heard the scream, but it took me a moment longer to get . . . presentable. Starbuck was already engaged with those two monstrosities when I arrived. The woman was on the floor, her clothing torn. She was crying and terrified."

"Woman? What did she look like?" the Security Officers asked.

Starbuck briefly described her. "She was thin; about thirty; long, dark hair; blue eyes; torn, white dress. I don't know who she was, but they were on top of her. Two behemoths against one woman." Starbuck looked at the men with disgust. "I came between them."

"Why didn't you bring your laser?" Reece asked Starbuck suddenly. "If you were in the locker room?"

"It was locked in my locker across the room. I was just about to have a turbo wash. I guess I just reacted instinctively. Thought it would take too long to grab my weapon." Starbuck paused in thought. "I also thought she would be with one man. I could have sworn it was a couple—a man and a woman—that I heard." Starbuck replied. The lies rolled easily off his tongue, but he was already regretting he had started this charade.

"And yours? In your locker too?" Reece asked Luana skeptically.

"Yes, I ran back for it when I realized that there were two of them. Starbuck seemed to be holding his own, but I knew we needed help . . . and a weapon." Luana responded. She held Reece's searching gaze. After all, that was the truth.

"Where did the woman go?" Willem asked as he restrained the detainees.

"I don't know." Luana said. "By the time I commed you guys and grabbed my laser, she was already gone."

"She left when I was fighting these two bruisers." Starbuck commented.

"Well, I guess we need a statement from them now." Reece muttered as he looked at the men. The unconscious man was coming around. He cradled his jaw in his hand and wiped at the bloody saliva dripping down his chin as he blinked furiously trying to clear his vision. The larger man with the strange blue hair held his nose as blood oozed out of it. His eyes were beginning to bruise already. Reece found it hard to believe that the lieutenant had taken them both on and was still standing. They looked familiar to the Security Officer. He was certain he had seen their mug shots on the Security Office database. Besides that, he had a fairly good idea where they usually worked.

"Hey, I don't know anything about a woman. This guy just attacked us out of the blue!" the landram told them.

"Yeah, sure he did." Reece returned. He already knew this statement would be a total fabrication of the real events. As much as he was no friend of Starbuck's, he knew the Colonial Warrior was honest and honourable . . . oh, maybe with a hint of chicanery, but still, he was generally a moral individual. His eyes flickered to the ensign. Okay, maybe Starbuck's moral fortitude didn't extend to his relationships, but, Hades, that woman looked to be worth the risk!

Luana felt the Security Officer's eyes upon her and stared back evenly. It wasn't the first time she had seen that particular look on a man's face. She even saw the look of envy he sent Starbuck's way as his gaze dropped from her own. No. They weren't fooling anyone with their lies.

"Yeah, that's right. In fact, I want to press charges against this maniac. I think he broke my jaw!" the slightly smaller man declared, rubbing a hand through his bristly red hair.

"Is that all?" Starbuck replied in disappointment. His eyes flashed angrily at the man. "Let's have another round. Maybe I can do better next time."

"Any time, Bub." The man declared. He glared at the warrior as if to insinuate that 'any time' would come sooner rather than later.

"That's enough." Willem told them. "Let's get these two to the brig. Lieutenant, you really should report to Life Station. It is procedure."

Starbuck rolled his eyes at the truth in the man's words. Yeah, it was procedure all right. Apparently, command had a problem with their warriors flying expensive, technologically sophisticated fighters when they had stopped breathing or bounced their heads off the deck. He briefly met Willem's eyes and nodded.

"You know we have to forward a report to the Strike Captain." Reece reminded Starbuck. He knew the man had a stubborn streak, but Captain Apollo would check to ensure his subordinate had followed procedure.

"I know." Starbuck told him. Any civil disruptions that Security would normally have jurisdiction over also became the business of the military when Colonial Warriors were involved.

"You guys don't have anything on us. It's just our word against theirs." The landram told them as Willem pushed them towards the exit.

Starbuck noticed Reece stiffen in return. "Is that true?"

"Depends on whether or not we find the woman. Are you sure you don't know her? Haven't even seen her around?" Reece asked again.

"No, I don't think so." Frack, a battlestar was like a city. She could be anywhere.