Chapter Three
The End of the Beginning


"The farms of Aerilon are burning.
The beaches of Canceron are burning.
The plains of Leonis are burning.
The jungles of Scorpia are burning.
The pastures of Tauron are burning.
The harbors of Picon are burning.
The cities of Caprica are burning.
The oceans of Aquaria are burning.
The courthouses of Libra are burning.
The forests of Virgon are burning.
The temples of Gemenon are burning.
The Colonies of man are trampled at our feet."

Battlestar Galactica: The Plan 2009


Battlestar Galactica
Near the Colonial Home system

As the Galactica dropped out of light speed and drew near the star system bearing the colonies, Gates ordered the ship into low emissions mode and engaged electronic countermeasures. Without her vipers, even a capital ship was incredibly vulnerable.

"Electronic jamming has stopped," the deck officer reported.

"Sounds like they're clearing the airwaves for electronic guidance systems," Kate noted.

"That means an attack is under way," Montgomery noted.

"Negative," the deck officer replied, "picking up long range video satellite signals. Everything seems completely normal. I'm picking up civilian signal traffic, transferring to your console sir."

"Perhaps we'll make it in time, Commander," Montgomery noted hopefully as the Caprica News Network broadcast lit up on all monitors.

"This is Meredith Chase, reporting from the Caprica City Capitol Presidium." The slender, redheaded reporter dressed in formal attire said into her microphone, "As you can see behind me, the Presidium is deserted and preparations for the armistice celebration are under way. By dawn the entire square will be full of Capricans eager for the official announcement usher in a new era of peace with the Cylon Empire."

Behind the reporter, they could clearly see a massive granite monument with "PEACE" carved into it in large letters. Peace that Gates already knew to be a lie.

"So far, details of the armistice meeting going on near Scimitar – where hostilities with the Cylons began nearly a thousand years ago - are not coming through in time for this evening's broadcast as we had hoped. According to interstellar communications engineers, this is likely due to unusual stellar interference at the source, blocking long range communications with the Colonial Fleet. However, as soon communications have been restored, we will broadcast the first images of an event that has been described as the most significant in human history since the Exodus."

Something off-screen caught her eye and she looked up, then pointed and the camera quickly changed direction to see what, upon first inspection, appeared to be a formation flyby until the Cylon fighters began dropping bombs on the city center.

"Lords of Kobol," Meredith exclaimed when the camera panned back to her, framed by explosions in the distance. "It's… it's a tremendous explosion… are we getting this?"

On-screen panicked civilians could be seen running in all directions to escape the exploding and collapsing buildings.

"Ladies and gentleman, the Cylons are bombing the city!"

Meredith's eyes were wide with unconcealed terror.

"Alexis!" she cried out as the picture was rocked and explosions began walking in closer to her. "If you can hear me, stay with your grams and get someplace safe! If you find your father... tell him... tell him I'm sorry!"

After another series of explosions wracked the building on either side of the camera, Meredith Chase was no longer visible, but the cameraman continued broadcasting as he ran, occasionally stopping to capture images of Cylon fighters bombing the city, indiscriminately strafing civilians as they attempted to flee the carnage.

"Come on!" the man shouted, gesticulating wildly at someone just off camera. "This building's gonna collapse! You gotta get out of there! Go! Go! Go!"

Another series of explosions rocked nearby, the flash whiting out the camera briefly. The last thing they saw before the signal died was a sideways image through the cracked lens of people running away.

On the bridge of the Galactica, everyone was stunned into silence, bearing mute testimony to the burning of Galactica's home colony. Nobody moved, unwilling to watch, but unable to turn away. The only sound to be heard over the whirring of the air exchangers was soft sobbing and panicked voices over the emergency channels.

"… thirty one cities are known to be under heavy Cylon attack…"

"… multiple base-ships sighted… no warning…"

"…wave upon wave… we had no defense…"

Soon, emergency reports came in from other colonies. Aerilon, Canceron, Leonis, Scorpia, Tauron, Picon, Aquaria, Libra, Virgon and Gemenon swiftly met the same fate as Caprica.

Kate stood behind Gates at the command console, staring mutely at the images on the screen, tears running down her cheeks at the images coming in from all the colonies of people dying and cities in flames. Tory was openly sobbing at her station, even the older more hardened veterans Montgomery and Gates were moved to tears.

"They trusted us," Tory choked out between sobs as Montgomery laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "They trusted us to protect them…"

Tory shrugged off Montgomery's hand and ran for the head, where she could be heard emptying the contents of her stomach. The Galactica had arrived too late.

The Colonies of Kobol were doomed.

"Commander," Montgomery choked out after some time had passed. "Commander, the Cylons... they're moving off."

"We have to fight back," Kate declared coldly as anger began to eclipse her grief.

"Yes, Captain," Gates replied, more gently than anyone thought her capable of, "but not here. Not in the colonies, not even in this star system."

She waited until she had everyone's attention.

"Set course to return to the fleet," Gates commanded. "As soon as we can confirm that the Cylons are moving off for the duration, send word on all civilian frequencies to evacuate the Colonies in any ship that they can find to carry them."


Halfway back to the last location of the fleet, Galactica caught sight of a mass of Colonial vipers covering multiple shuttle-craft and stopped to begin recovery operations.

"Ships are coming in on all landing decks, sir," Tory reported dully.

"What's the count?" Montgomery asked.

"Forty shuttles," she replied after a look at her terminal. "Sixty seven vipers in all, twenty five of them are ours."

"How many battlestars?" Gates asked from her seat.

"None sir," The deck officer replied.

"What?" Gates asked, rising from her seat without realizing she had done so. "That can't be."

"Confirmed, Commander," the deck officer replied, "we are the only surviving battlestar."

"My God," Gates muttered.

"Galactica, Starbuck," came over the comms, which got Kate's immediate attention, "declaring emergency."

"We read you, Starbuck," Tory replied, the first real emotion edging back into her voice, "state the nature of your emergency."

"Battle damage," Castle replied, "control circuits in my landing gear are unresponsive. Can't confirm if they're down or not. I'm in real trouble here."

"Bring him in full throttle," Montgomery ordered, "have him cut power at the outer marker."

"I heard him, Galactica" Castle confirmed before Tory could relay the order.

"Starbuck, Galactica," Tory stated into her headset mic, all business, "hands on approach, dead stick landing. Call the ball."

"Galactica, Starbuck," Castle confirmed, "I have the ball. I'm coming in hot. Cutting my engines…now. Dumping my fuel reserve. Coming in hot. Hope you aren't grading for neatness."

"Good man," Gates offered, "he waited until all the other fighters were in so he wouldn't foul the deck."

Beckett turned on her heel and bolted for the bridge elevator.

"He's coming in like a missile," the deck officer muttered, not realizing he'd said it out loud.

Tory stared blankly into her monitor, muttering prayers to the gods as Castle's damaged fighter lined up on final approach to the starboard landing bay.


Kate bounded out of the starboard bay lift but was stopped by Castle's crew chief while his deck gang were putting on turnout gear.

"Stay back, Captain!" Esposito shouted from out of nowhere as he physically restrained her from going farther. "He might lose it."

Castle managed to coax enough elevation to clear the fighters being towed back to the launch cradles before the bottom of his viper slapped the deck, skipped once like a stone on a calm pond, then slammed back down again, forcing the viper's angled wings flat as it scraped along the deck, the viiper turning sideways as it screeched to a halt near the back wall of the bay just short of the tylium refueling ports.

"Castle!" Kate shouted, wrenching out of Esposito's grip and ran toward his damaged fighter just behind the deck gang who began spraying the fighter with fire foam to prevent a spark from igniting the fuel stores.

"Get out fast," Castle's crew chief shouted at him though his facemask as he cut the seat restraints, "she could blow any micron!"

Espo and Beckett helped him across the deck before he shrugged them off.

"Are you all right?" Kate asked, betraying genuine concern for his well-being.

"Fine," Castle grunted angrily as he kept walking away from her, "no thanks to the Commander!"

"What are you saying?" Kate snapped back at him, following close at his heels down the corridor. "Do you have any idea what's been happening? What we saw?"

"You should have seen how we spent our day," Castle shot back, glaring angrily at her, not giving an inch. "We managed to single-handedly cover your ass while you took off on a little cruise!"

"Castle, don't you realize what's happened?" Kate implored again, clearly not getting through to him.

"Oh you're damned right I realize," Castle retorted as he turned back toward the main corridor. "You should see this baby from out in the black when it takes off across space. A beautiful sight! Beautiful! Unless you're in a war zone and it happens to be your base-ship!"

"Castle, listen to me!" Kate exclaimed as she grabbed his arm to turn him back around, tears crowding her eyes. "The colonies… they're gone! All of them!

"What are you talking about? Gone?" Castle groaned, his skin suddenly turning pale. Kate had never seen anyone as angry as Castle was deflate so quickly in her entire life. "They can't… they can't be… just… gone."

For the first time since she'd met him, Castle seemed lost, cast adrift, more like a scared little boy than the wise-cracking man-child who'd been an irrepressible pain in her ass for the past six months. When he pushed past her and disappeared around the corridor, he seemed tired, old and broken.


Four days later
Suburbs of Caprica City

Senator William Bracken stared out at the sunset near the wreckage of what had once been his vacation home. It had been nearly twenty yahrens since he'd been at the heart of the "ghost fleet" incident. Back then, he'd arranged for nearly forty five civilian and military cargo ships of various sizes and classes to disappear with their cargoes over the course of two yahrens as part of his plan to create a new colony as far away from colonial rule and their war with the Cylons as he and those loyal to him could get.

Though the Colonial Warriors whom he'd paid to look the other way had gone to prison when the scandal finally broke, no one in the Colonial government had ever once suspected his involvement. A young officer named Roy Montgomery had recognized him, but his accusation had been made to one of his fellow conspirators and he'd been easily handled with a few selected threats to the right people. Steps had been taken to ensure the man was never powerful enough to be a serious problem, though now that potential complication had been rendered quite moot.

The deal he'd made with the newest Imperious Leader in charge of solving the "human problem" would secure the future of his colony for Centurons to come. The terms had been simple: He would help it destroy the colonies and the Cylons under its command would look the other way as if his small out of the way colony far from their spacelanes didn't exist. It was an equitable arrangement all around.

"Their destruction is complete?" he asked the centurion tasked with escorting him through the region.

"Our forces have taken prisoners near the spacedrome." The centurion reported, "They tell of survivors who escaped in ships."

"What ships?" Bracken asked, doing his best to cover his discomfort. His deal with the Cylons had been quite specific regarding the total destruction of the colonies.

"How far can they go?" he choked out, thankful that the centurian class were not programmed to understand the subtleties of human emotional responses or facial cues. "If a handful of survivors did indeed escape, they would have neither enough food nor fuel for a prolonged voyage."

"The information they gave us was not complete," the centurion added. "It was offered in exchange for life."

"What are your standing orders for humans from your Imperious Leader?" Bracken asked.

"Extermination." the centurion replied.

"Then carry out your orders," Bracken commanded. "If these ships exist, they're doomed."


**Author's note** Bracken is every bit the self-serving, power hungry, manipulative bastard he was on Castle. The thing that had always bugged me about Lord Baltar (even as a 10 year old kid) was that – other than his life – what exactly did he get out of continuing to aid the Cylons who promised him his colony would be spared and then double-crossed him by destroying them all anyway? Not to mention what could they have to hold over him to ensure his compliance or keep him from betraying them as well? Hopefully this arrangement makes more (albeit still evil) sense.

IN Memoriam: Daniel Patrick MacNee 6 February 1922- 25 June 2015: Best known for his role in the 1960's British television series, "The Avengers" he also performed the voice over for the Original Battlestar Galactica's intro as well as performing the voice of The Imperious Leader. He was known around the world as the quintessential British Gentleman.