Battlestar Galactica, Brig: 18:30
Billy Keikeya walked down the long corridor to the brig, shoulders hunched forward in defeat. He'd gone to Cottle, only to find the old doctor busy performing an emergency operation on Commander Adama. In fact, everyone in Sick Bay seemed to be involved in saving the Old Man's life and the aide's frantic pleas to anyone he could find got him summarily tossed out of the Life Station. He'd gone to the Priestess Elosha again but she too had been unable to find any of the rare extract, despite spending the preceding hours tracking down her fellow holy leaders. He'd tried to find Apollo, hoping the younger man would stand up to Tigh on behalf of the president one more time, but was told he was in the cockpit of his Viper.
He'd been gone far too long. As he reached the door of the brig, he let himself hope that he'd find his boss awake and alert, laughing at his concern and hatching her next plan. He knew that wasn't going to happen.
He barely reacted when he found the president lying on her back in her cell, muttering about the Pythian prophecy and reaching upward toward something only she could see. She was rocking her body side to side, oblivious to his entrance, and he noted with alarm that she was even more pale than she been before.
He ignored the guard and instead moved to the wall closest to the prone president. He sank down and put his head in his hands, defeated.
Venner was relieved the president's right hand man was back. He stood and walked to the bars, fixing the politician with a curious gaze.
Billy noticed the motion. "This is ridiculous. Look, she obviously needs her medication. I keep trying to tell anyone that will listen.." Venner cut him off, pointing at the president.
"It sounds like she's talking about the scrolls of the Prophet Pythia."
Billy rolled his eyes. "I suppose." He knew she was and that seemed to have little bearing on the present situation.
"Pythia foretold the rise of a leader, a leader who would lead all of humanity to salvation. So say the Gods."
Billy looked up, interested. He wasn't a big fan of Laura Roslin's recent conversion to Prophet but he'd use just about anything right now to make sure the Dying Leader didn't die in this cell.
"You seem to know a lot about the scriptures."
Venner nodded. "I'm from Gemenon. We believe in the literal truth of the scriptures."
"Corporal Venner, there's a drug that priests sometimes use, it's called chamalla extract."
The guard looked back at Billy, surprised to hear the name of the drug that his priest often used coming from the young man's lips. He listened intently as the aide began to explain how he'd come to be holding Pythia's Dying Leader in his brig.