Ch 7
The Graff Spee warped towards the location of the Cylon base ship, and watched as the raiders were launched.
"They're launching raiders." Price said.
"Putting it onscreen."
The view screen showed a 3-d view of the ongoing battle. The Cylon raiders attacked the Graff Spee, firing their missiles and machine guns. The shields glowed yellow as the projectiles struck.
"Incoming ordnance."
The base ship began to fire its missiles. A few were taken out, but most got through and impacted against the shields. The fight continued for 10 minutes, as raiders began to crash into the ship.
"That's enough. We're taking the warp drive offline."
"Head away from the baseship. Lets draw away the fighters and missiles." The XO said.
A colonial raptor jumped away from the fight, and watched as both sides slugged it out.
"Looks like they bought it. Lets go get our raptor crews." Kara said.
"Maybe this will be easier than we thought." Kendraw said.
The dradis warned them of two raiders approaching them.
"Guess again. Two raiders on an intercept course!" Kara said, as the Cylon raiders close in, firing their guns.
Just as the raiders were spotted, they were quickly destroyed from phaser fire, curtesy of the Graff Spee.
"You got one hell of a ship, Admiral." Kara said.
"Thanks. Get us to the ship." Nechayev said.
Docking onto the ship, they left the raptor and entered the halls of the Cylon baseship.
"Graff Spee, this is Shaw. We're onboard. No contact, no casualties."
"DeSilva, you got anything?"
"Nothing. Wait, I'm reading heat signatures. Very faint, probably near the core."
"Lets go." Nechayev said.
"Stay frosty kiddies. No telling how many of those old toasters they left guarding house." Hudson said.
"Shut your yap, Hudson, and we won't have to find out." Starbuck hissed.
The motley crew quickly went thru the halls and approached the door that led them to their crew. Nechayev opened the door… and was shocked at what she saw. It was just what Bill Adama said. Already, one of the prisoners was vivisected, her body parts held in different containers. Like the machines they were, the Cylons were cold and methodical in their methods. Nechayev vomited at the sight.
"Get them out of there! Go, go, go!" Starbuck shouted.
Nechayev approached one of the prisoners. He looked at the Starfleet admiral and opened his mouth, but couldn't speak because of his raw throat.
"We're getting you home." Nechayev said, as she opened the chains and helped the man get on his feet.
"Cylons!" DeSilva shouted, firing his machinegun.
A centurion came in, and started to fire its machinegun at the colonists.
One of the marines was hit, shattering his leg bone.
"Get out!" Starbuck shouted, providing cover fire.
Everyone ran out of the hell room and down the corridor they came from. Two Cylon centurions hosed the area with gunfire. Nechayev held her rifle around a corridor and fired phaser blasts at the Cylons.
"They got DeSilva!"
On the Graff Spee, Adama closed his eyes and listened to the sounds of weapons fire.
Shaw watched as two Centurions walked forward, keeping the group under cover with heavy weapons fire. With only a few seconds, she aimed her rifle and pulled the trigger. The bullet struck DeSilva thru the forhead, killing him.
The Cylons returned the favor, by shooting Shaw in the gut.
"Damn it! Graff Spee, this is Nechayev! We're under heavy fire. Pegasus XO is hit, badly wounded. Two already dead. Can you beam us out?"
"We can't. They're now firing nukes at us. We drop the shields, we're dead." Price said.
"Admiral, sitrep!" Shaw shouted.
"Cylons are now jamming us, and they're hammering the Graff Spee with nukes. We're on our own here." Nechayev said.
"You mind telling me what that was about with DeSilva?" Kara angrily asked.
"You saw what they were doing in there." Shaw said.
"Yeah, I saw. Hell, I was in a similar situation. Just after the war started, we were fleeing with the fleet and lost the Olympic carrier. She returns, and is loaded with Cylon nukes. I had to shoot it down, even though there was over 1,000 people on board." Kara said.
"I understand what you're saying, captain." Shaw said.
"I was there. I pulled the trigger." Kara said, as she fired at the Cylons.
"Get down!" a marine shouts, as the Cylons advance forward, forcing the group to retreat further towards the airlock.
"We're fucked, now!" Nechayev said, firing her rifle at the Cylons. Hearing a clanking noise, she saw two more centurions join.
"Shit."
On the Graff Spee, Adama looked over the Price and his station.
"What are you doing?" Adama asked.
"Loading photon torpedoes." Price said.
"Destroying that ship with people onboard is the last option." Adama said.
"Like it or not admiral, this is no longer a rescue op. Our options are limited. We drop the shields to beam them out, we get pummeled by nukes. And god knows what will happen to our people once they get captured." Price said.
"I know what will happen. I was there where they made that thing." Adama growled.
"Then you know the costs." Price said.
"I know. But there must be some way to get them back. Can we send a shuttle?" Adama asked.
"With all these fighters and missiles attacking us? There's a window, but it's a small one." Price said.
"Admiral, we're getting a message from Nechayev."
"Put it through." Bill said.
"Graff Spee, this is Nechayev. We're holding tight. Tell me you can get us out."
"We're sending a shuttle towards you. Hold tight." Bill said.
"Good. Take out the ships FTL system. Once they see that shuttle, they'll know what's going on and probably jump away." Nechayev said.
"Hold onto something. It's going to be rough." Price said.
The Cylon baseship violently shook as the phaser cut thru the hull armor and destroyed the FTL drive. The lights flickered on and off, then stayed on.
"Alright. FTL is blown. We just have to hold until the shuttle arrives. Graff Spee. What's the ETA on the damned shuttle?" Nechayev asked.
"Approaching now. Get to an airlock and fast. Cylon fighters are heading back to the baseship." Price said.
"You heard him. We need to move, now!" Nechayev said, slinging her rifle and picking up Shaw.
"Toasters are bugging out!" A marine said, as he shot a Cylon dead with his rifle.
"Move, now!" Starbuck said.
Inside the airlock, they climbed into the shuttle and had to brace themselves as the shuttle rocketed away at a high speed.
"Incoming!" the pilot shouted, as the incoming raiders peppered the shuttle with gunfire, yet the bullets failed to penetrate the shields.
"The shuttle is shielded?" Shaw asked.
"If that baseship starts firing nukes at us, we're dead." The pilot said.
"Holy shit!" one of the marines shouts, as the Graff Spee zooms past the shuttle, firing photon torpedoes at the baseship, leaving it to burn and explode.
"Mission accomplished, admiral." Kara said.
Walking onto the bridge, Adama stood up and saluted Nechayev, who returned the salute.
"We got them back." Adama said.
"That we did. Helm, take us to the fleet." Nechayev said, as she sat in her chair.
Back with the fleet, Nechayev walked into her quarters and removed her uniform.
"Coffee, hot." She said.
The replicator showed a steaming up of the dark brown liquid. Taking the cup in her hand, she drank it and sat on her bed.
"God, that was intense." Nechayev muttered, as the fight went thru her mind. Bullets and plasma were soaring between both sides. People getting shot, screaming.
"Those Cylons are cruel fuckers." She said, finishing her drink.
The door opened, and Kara walked in.
"Admiral, Adama ordered me to stay on the Graff Spee as a full liaison between both forces and…" Kara said, seeing Nechayev sitting on her bed, a cup of coffee in her hand.
"Admiral?" Kara asked.
"Oh. Didn't hear you." Nechayev said.
"That fight on the baseship?" Kara asked.
"Yeah. That was the first firefight I've been involved in." Nechayev said.
"I thought you and the Federation finished a major war." Kara said.
"We did, and I did see fighting in that war, but I was always on the bridge of a ship, fighting Dominion warships. I never set foot on the ground and fought the enemy face to face." Nechayev said.
"It is something else entirely. Very different than flying a viper. In a viper, or warship in your case, you can move in 3 directions. On the ground, your options are very fracking limited." Kara said.
"Well, we're still alive. By the way, we'll have to work on your disciplinary problem. Adama says you're a reckless person." Nechayev said, laying back on the bed, her hands clasped under her head.
"Yeah. Good luck with that." Kara said, heading to the replicator.
"Just say what you want, and it'll replicate whatever it is. Food, water, anything edible and drinkable." Nechayev said.
"Alcohol." Kara said, and a cup appeared.
"You drink while on duty?" Nechayev asked.
"Sometimes." Kara said, drinking the burning liquid.
Nechayev waited until Kara finished drinking, then threw a fist in her gut. Kara dropped to her knees, gagging on the alcohol.
"You're a fighter pilot. You rely on reflexes to survive. This drinking will get you killed. If not by the Cylons, then by your ruined liver and kidneys." Nechayev said, pinning Kara to the floor.
Suddenly, the red alert started to sound.
"All hands to battlestations! Massive Cylon fleet inbound!"
"To the bridge, now." Nechayev said, as the ship took incoming missile fire.
"Report!" Nechayev said, as she walked onto the bridge.
"10 Cylon baseships are hammering the fleet. We're taking the brunt of the attack, while the fleet jumps away." Price said.
"Shoot down enemy missiles heading towards the fleet. We can handle the hits. They can't." Nechayev said.
Like a blanket of hot flames, Graff Spee's phasers joined Galactica and Pegasus's flak fields in shielding the fleet from the incoming Cylon missiles. The Cylons then focused their attention on the Federation's newest vessel, firing scores of missiles.
"Fleet's jumped away!"
"Get us out of here!"
Entering warp 1, the Graff Spee fled the killing field.
"Warp complete. No contacts." LuFan said
"No contacts? Where's the fleet?" Kara asked.
"They're gone, Admiral." LuFan said.