Chapter 17

Battlestar Galactica – Adama's Quarters – Colonial Fleet

"Captain Jackson?"

Adama shot a questioning look in Roslin's direction. For gods' sakes, Jackson had only been a minute into his briefing on the successful recovery of the nuclear device and the woman had already wanted to ask him about something?

"Yes, Madame President?"

"Why didn't you simply kill the Cylon rather than risking your life attempting to capture it and potentially placing us in vulnerable position with your people if it had managed to kill you?"

Bill Adama sighed heavily because he'd be willing to bet a year's pay on what Jackson would say in answer to Roslin's question.

"Although it was a calculated risk on my part," the spook said, "I believed it was an acceptable one considering the potential reward. The Six is a critical intelligence asset for a number of reasons. She's worth far more to us alive than dead and possibly downloaded back into the Cylon's collective."

Yep, Adama mused, if I had any money and someone had been dumb enough to have taken that bet, I'd be able to buy a whole lot of rounds at the bar!

Roslin nodded regally then smiled at the Fleet officer. "I understand now, Captain, and apologize for the interruption."

"Think nothing of it, Madame President," Jackson demurred. "Now, as I was saying, the nuke was hidden inside a piece of luggage we'd found in her closet after we'd searched her room. The shielded casing had been removed; however, it hadn't appeared the Six had attempted to rig a way to detonate the device. Also, during our search we'd found a Colonial military sidearm inside the drawer of one of her night stands next to her bed."

"How did she obtain a military firearm?" Roslin asked.

Jackson shot a look at Adama that asked "Do you want me to tell her or would you rather do it?" Bill stared down at the surface of his conference table for several moments before he glanced up to meet Laura's expectant gaze. "I had Hadrian check the weapon's serial number to confirm it is a standard issue Fleet sidearm. She also conducted a ballistics test on the weapon. The results showed Admiral Cain was killed by the firearm in question. However, the weapon was not from Pegaus' armory; it was issued from ours. According to our records, the last person to have custody of the weapon was Lieutenant Alex Quartararo, one of our Raptor pilots. Lieutenant Quartararo—Crashdown—was killed in action on Kobol, several months ago. The after-action report stated his weapon was lost during the mission."

Roslin narrowed her eyes at him. "Bill, how in Hecate's name did a sidearm in the possession of an officer from this ship who'd died on Kobol find its way into the hands of a Cylon that somehow managed to escape from Pegasus' brig and used the weapon to kill Helena Cain?"

Adama grunted. "The short answer to your question is 'I have a sneaking suspicion but I don't have the evidence to back it up at the moment.' He paused for a moment before continuing. "I had Hadrian question Chief Tyrol about the matter. The Chief was on Kobol with Crashdown. To preserve the memory of Alex that most of his shipmates had of him, the events that happened during his last mission were suppressed by Apollo and me. According to Tyrol and the other survivors, Crashdown lost his head while his party was under fire by Centurions while they were on the surface of the planet. When he gave an order to Petty Officer Callandra Henderson that practically directed her to commit suicide fruitlessly, she froze and refused to follow his order. Then as he prepared to summarily execute Cally for showing cowardice in the face of the enemy, Baltar shot Crashdown in the back with Alex's own sidearm. Evidently, Crashdown had given Baltar his sidearm after their ship had crash-landed on Kobol. According to Tyrol, the round severed Crashdown's spine, immediately killing him."

When Laura cocked her right eyebrow his way, he sighed. "I didn't tell you about it because it was a military matter. I didn't want the memory of that boy tainted by his actions during his last mission. Now, as to the disposition of the sidearm, Tyrol cannot recall if he'd attempted to collect the weapon from Baltar upon their return to the Galactica."

"Admiral," Jackson asked, "wasn't it the case that the last person known to be in the presence of the Six aboard Pegasus prior to her escape was Doctor Baltar?"

"Yes, that's right," Adama said, his voice an angry growl.

"Gentlemen," Laura said lowly, "I might be able to shed some additional light on this situation. When I was extremely ill a month ago and lay recovering from the treatment Baltar had devised from the Cylon's baby's blood serum, I recalled seeing him being intimate with a Six on Caprica shortly before I'd left to attend Galactica's decommissioning ceremony. The Six I'd seen back then resembled the one who accused him of treason nearly nine months ago aboard the Galactica."

Adama shot a hard look at her. "Do you mean the thing you'd seen on Caprica looked exactly like Shelly Godfrey?"

"Yes."

A frowning Adama glared at her. "Why haven't you brought this up before?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. Until now, I believed it may have been the delusions of a dying woman. However, now it presents another piece of the jigsaw puzzle we're trying to solve. Gaius possessed a firearm that he'd used to kill one of our pilots, the same firearm used by a Cylon that resembled the one I saw him with on Caprica to kill Cain. Now, we find the nuclear device that had been in his possession had somehow ended up in the hands of the same Cylon that had killed Cain and had been last seen with Gaius until Captain Jackson had uncovered her."

Jackson cleared his throat, drawing Roslin's and Adama's attention toward the Fleet officer. "All of that is merely conjecture, Madame President. It doesn't connect the dots in a way to present an airtight case against the man. Baltar has said he had turned the weapon over to Tyrol and has no idea how it found its way to Six. Unfortunately, as the Admiral has stated, Tyrol can't recall whether or not Baltar is telling the truth about the sidearm. As for the nuke, Lena and I have pressed Baltar, the Six and the Demand Peace leader we found in her suite."

"You've interrogated Jahee?" Adama asked with a grimace on his face. Bill recalled the last time he'd seen the pudgy man when they'd released him from the brig. He still couldn't believe the man was so foolish he'd believed they could lay down their arms and make peace with the machines that had nuked their homeworlds!

"Yes, sir," Jackson said. "Lena had him so frightened that we were going to make him take a long walk out the nearest airlock, he didn't hold anything back. He'd even admitted he'd transported the device to Cloud 9 but hadn't known what was in the luggage until he'd arrived on the liner and the Six had opened the bag. However, he'd told us that he'd found a piece of scrap paper in his jacket pocket after he was given the coat by Sgt. Hadrian when he'd left the brig. The paper had writing on it that told him where to go to retrieve the bag and directed him to take the bag to his 'partner.' Jahee produced the piece of paper and it supports his story. As for the Six, she hasn't said a single word. Apparently, according to both Dr. Cottle and Dr. Dalle, she's showing signs of severe Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome; in fact, she's nearly catatonic. And we're not getting anywhere with Baltar. He continues to insist he had nothing to do with the disappearance of the device or the fact the Six had the sidearm. Jahee also stated he had no idea Six had the gun, either. He wouldn't have believed her capable of owning a sidearm because she'd told him a number of times that she 'abhorred' violence," Jackson noted with a smirk.

"So we don't have conclusive evidence to prove Gaius has committed treason?"

Jackson shrugged. "No, but even if we had it, I wouldn't use it, if I were you."

Roslin's eyes opened wide at the Fleet officer's declaration. "Why in the name of the gods would you say that?!"

He gave her the look a professor would give a lost and confused student. "Madame President, would you want your people to know a Cylon used a military sidearm to murder one of your flag officers, indeed, the same sidearm your Vice President, the man you'd presented to the Quorum as a man of principle, had used to shoot one of your heroic pilots in the back? Do you really want to place this man on trial for treason and have it come out during testimony that a nuclear device that should have been under armed guard by your military around the clock somehow made its way past all of the security protocols on this ship to end up on the vessel where the Quorum meets and most of its members reside?"

She held his gaze for several seconds until she could no longer stand the man's unrelenting scrutiny and shifted her eyes to Adama. "No, Captain, I wouldn't want any of that to get out. If D'Anna Biers got wind of any of it, there'd be hell to pay!"

Jackson gave her a tiny smile. "Exactly, Madame President. If that information was disclosed, it'd be certain your people would lose confidence in both the military and the civilian government."

Adama winced. The spook had hit the proverbial nail right on the head. Bad calls that both Laura and he had made, not to mention having allowed discipline and security on the Old Girl to fall by the wayside, had now come home to roost. "Laura," he said lowly, "he's right." Then Bill regarded Jackson and asked, "Do you have any recommendations on how we should proceed?"

The Fleet officer nodded. "Although we don't have enough evidence to toss Baltar out the airlock, we do have enough to convict him on mishandling a weapon of mass destruction and breaching your security protocols due to his failing to provide timely notice of the disappearance of the weapon. That certainly would be an impeachable offense and enough to sentence him to a long prison term. However, to avoid the harm that an impeachment proceeding would cause your people, I recommend you offer him a confidential deal. In return for resigning from both his position as Vice President and a representative on the Quorum, his immediate resettlement on a civilian ship in your fleet, and his agreement to tell no one about the circumstances surrounding both the nuclear device and the sidearm, you won't subject him to impeachment for the aforementioned charges or for treason. I'd also suggest he needs to understand the terms of the deal you're offering aren't negotiable; he must take it or leave it. If he leaves it…well, I have something in mind that I'm not willing to share with you whatsoever, Madame President. If it comes to that, I will coordinate with Admiral Adama and we'll proceed from there."

"Why are you holding something back from me, Captain?" she asked, her anger plain to Adama.

"Because you need to be able to assert plausible deniability, Madame President."

She glared at Jackson for several moments before she shot an uncertain look at Bill. "So, this is for my protection?"

Adama nodded. "Yes. Captain Jackson is trying to protect our government from the miscalculations we've made in regards to a lot of things," he admitted.

She glanced at both men a number of times before she closed her eyes for a moment then sighed. Her eyes flashed open and they now locked in on Jackson. "I approve your recommendations, Captain Jackson. Is there anything else you have for us?"

"Yes, ma'am. After we've finished this briefing, I believe now would be the appropriate time to tell your people our task force will arrive in about…five hours." Then he turned to Adama and said, "Admiral, I think it's apparent from the circumstances we've just covered that security on both of your military vessels has become lax."

Adama nodded reluctantly. "Yes," he whispered.

Jackson gave him a look that showed he understood the Admiral's feelings on the matter. "Sir, I don't want you to get me wrong. Your Marines are quite good but they're missing company command leadership and it shows. Right now, the only Marine officer you have is a junior lieutenant, right?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Once the task force arrives, I'll have our Marines' commanding officer assign a pair of company grade officers to serve as 'consultants' subject to your authority to assess the situation, implement a training regimen and improve your Marines' effectiveness. Also, to help increase your Marines' firepower, I'll authorize a shipment of the MR2A2 Pulse Rifles along with the P4A2 Pulse Sidearms, ammunition and enough personnel to train your people how to use the weapons. Both weapons fire magnetically accelerated rounds encased inside energy jackets. This should be an increase over the stopping power of the rounds your current assault rifles use. The pulse weapons' rounds are designed to pierce almost any kind of armor. However, the rounds are designed to penetrate and mushroom, rather than pass through the target or a spacecraft's hull. These pulse weapons will allow your Marines to take on Centurions without resorting to the use of explosive rounds."

Adama blinked thrice at Jackson's news. "Why…that's extremely generous of you, Captain."

Jackson smiled. "If we're going to improve the effectiveness of your Marines, Admiral, we might as well go the distance."

"Even so, Captain Jackson…thank you," Adama offered sincerely. "It's difficult for me to find the right words because 'thank you' seems so inadequate considering all you've done for us."

Jackson shook his head. "Admiral, Madame President, although Lena, Dr. Dalle and I appreciate your gratitude, we're duty bound to assist you per the instructions given to us by Admiral Amato. Nonetheless, we're happy to be of service to you and your people."

Laura smiled at the Fleet officer then. "Still, we want to find a way to show our appreciation to you and the members of your team for all the assistance you've provided."

"Well, Madame President, Admiral, I wouldn't be adverse to a bottle of that ambrosia I've heard some of your pilots raving about it," the man offered with a grin.

She smiled slyly in response. "I'm certain we can scrounge up a bottle somewhere, isn't that right, Admiral Adama?"

Bill chuckled. I guess that makes two bottles I owe this guy now, he mused. "I'll take care of the matter immediately, Madame President."

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TRANSMISSION OVER THE WIRELESS FROM COLONIAL ONE – COLONIAL FLEET

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. I'm James McManus, host of the Colonial Gang. Tonight, President Laura Roslin will make a special address to the fleet. She has told the press corps she needed to bring an important issue directly to each and every citizen. Moments ago, the President entered the press gallery and is now standing at her podium. She has indicated she is ready to begin her address. Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol."

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"My fellow citizens. I am here to tell you that two days ago, one of the most important events in our history came to pass. As you know, the military dispatched a Search and Rescue mission to return to our former homes to retrieve survivors of the genocidal Cylon attack on the Colonies. Subsequently, one of the Search and Rescue craft experienced a firmware error in the early stages of that mission which caused the craft to misjump into the orbit of a planet located inside a nebula several light years from our current position. When the scout craft attempted to survey the planet to determine if it would be suitable for human habitation, the craft encountered a much larger vessel orbiting the same world. After Senior Lieutenant Margaret Edmonson, the pilot of the scout craft, and her Electronic Countermeasures Officer, Junior Lieutenant Hamish McCall, succeeded in communicating with the crew of the other vessel, they discovered the other ship had humans from the planet Earth aboard!"

"Excited by the prospect we'd finally found our long lost brothers and sisters, yet cautious of the possibility of a Cylon ruse, several brave men and women of the Battlestar Galactica, specifically Captain Aaron Kelly and Lieutenants Louanne Katraine, Margaret Edmonson, and Hamish McCall, met with the people on that ship and told them about our exodus from the Colonies in the face of constant pursuit by the Cylons. Our officers convinced the people of that ship to send a delegation to our fleet while Captain Kelly and Lieutenant Katraine have been dispatched for further discussions with the Thirteenth Tribe's sector commander."

"The members of the delegation dispatched to us from the Earth ship have all been tested by Dr. Cottle, the Chief Medical Officer of the fleet. He has determined they definitively are not Cylons. Subsequently, Admiral Adama and I met with the delegation and on several occasions, the members of the delegation have provided invaluable assistance to the brave men and women who defend this fleet. Accordingly, both the Admiral and I are satisfied we have found our long lost brothers and sisters of the Thirteenth Tribe."

"As an additional demonstration of their good faith and their recognition of the depredations we've suffered during our flight from the Cylons, the Thirteenth Tribe has sent ships filled with relief supplies and humanitarian aid for our people. These warships will also help protect the fleet in conjunction with the Battlestars Galactica and Pegasus while we await the return of the craft from the Search and Rescue mission. The Earth task force is due to arrive five hours from now. It is my understanding these vessels will carry food, water, medical supplies and other forms of humanitarian aid on our behalf. After the warships are on station, they will distribute the material to both of our battlestars, and from there, the supplies will be dispersed equitably throughout the fleet."

"Now we have disclosed everything we know about the Cylons to the Earth delegation and have been assured by the members of that delegation the Thirteenth Tribe's military vessels are quite capable of protecting us from the Cylon fleet pursuing us."

"After our Search and Rescue craft return to the fleet, the task force will accompany us to the Thirteenth Tribe's capital world of this sector of space where we'll be under the protection of the substantial defenses stationed in that system. When we arrive there, our government will enter into discussions with Earth's government to find a new home for our people."

"In recognition of the professionalism and gallantry of Margaret Edmonson and Hamish McCall in finding the Thirteenth Tribe, Admiral Adama has informed me that, effective immediately, Senior Lieutenant Edmonson is promoted to the rank of Captain and Junior Lieutenant McCall is promoted to the rank of Senior Lieutenant."

"People of the Colonies of Kobol, at this point in time, there is nothing more I can think of to say to you. In the coming days, I look forward to a fruitful intercourse between our people and the men and women of the Thirteenth Tribe's task force. As we grow closer to them, I promise to share more information about their tribe with you after we take steps to eliminate the threat of Cylon infiltration to the fleet."

"As I bring this address to a close, I know with every fiber of my being the dream we all share is to find a home for our people. With our newly found brothers' and sisters' help, gods willing, we shall soon see our noble dream become glorious reality."

"My fellow citizens, thank you for your kind attention this evening. Good night; may the Lords of Kobol bless us one and all."

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Author's note: I've made some substantial changes to Chapter 2 that provides some important new information about Amato and Jackson's relationship that will come into play in future chapters, so please take a look at the new Chapter 2. Thanks!