Usual disclosures: Much to my dismay, I do not own in whole or part the Battlestar Galactica Universe nor any of its characters. It is and remains the sole property of the Sci-fi Channel. Next, this story is an alternate universe and does not follow cannon. The first thing I have changed is that I never liked the concept that the 13th tribe was Cylon. I also decided that I did not like the story to take place in the year 150,000 BC, thus I have changed Earths time line (you will see).

I have read a few stories where the Colonial's (pre-fall) send a fleet to bring Earth into the Colonies by force. However, I thought what if instead, the Colonial Fleet was sent to aid us in our darkest hour...

Battlestars for Earth

Chapter 4

CIC

Battlestar Pegasus

Earth Orbit

Aprilis 3, YR98 (Colonial Calendar)

June 11, 2065 (Earth Calendar)

0350 Hours GMT

The last nuke had fatally wounded that proud warship. Multiple explosions shook her down to her space frame. Alarms were sounding across the board. Everyone knew that their protector did not have much life left to her.

Pegasus's executive officer, Colonel Jurgen Belzen picked himself off the floor and frantically searched for his commanding officer. He saw her face down on the ground with blood streaking thru her hair. "MEDIC!"

Medic's were already arriving and quickly went to work on the Admiral. "The cut is shallow. Head wounds bleed and look worse than they are. Still she may have a concussion…."

As much as Belzen wanted to watch over as the medics worked, the ship and crew needed his attention. "Status!"

"Command and Control systems are off line. Dradis is also out. Missile tubes one thru nine have been crushed. We have lost half our KEW batteries. Port flight pod has been separated from the ship. We have fires on decks one three five seven and eight. We have red lines throughout the frame and hull…."

The growler rang. Belzen picked it up. "XO."

"Sir! The last one hit above our main tylium tanks and fuel is pouring into engineering! We are unable to control it. If it finds an open spark…."

Belzen paled. He hung up on the other officer and pushed a few buttons. "ATTENTION ALL HANDS! THIS IS THE XO! ABANDON SHIP, I REPEAT ABANDON SHIP!"

The order triggered a new alarm as crew members raced to escape pods or if they were near the flight deck, raptors.

Belzen looked at the medics. "Get the Admiral out of here, NOW!" He turned to a couple of marines as the medics transferred her to a stretcher. "Go with them and protect her with your lives!"

He turned to one of the few working monitors and could see one of the Calimar ships that had killed his. "You frakers are not getting away with this.." He looked and saw that half a dozen crew members where still there looking at him. "What the frak are you waiting for! Get to the pods. NOW!"

"Right after you Colonel." Replied the Coms officer.

Belzen pulled his side arm. "I don't have time for this." He fired a round into the plot table, shattering it. The others jumped. "Go! I will be right behind you."

Reluctantly they obeyed. Belzen made his way over to the ships conn. "Lets see if I can keep your attention off my people…" He urged the crippled Battlestar to turn towards the enemy and pushed the engines to flank speed. There was nothing else he could do. He sat down and watched the monitor as the enemy ship got larger. "May Lord Hades punish you in the fires of Tardaris for all time. So Say We All…"

Meanwhile, the medics raced thru the halls towards a waiting lifepod, when a bulk head crashed in front of them.
"Frak! That was the only way…."

One of the marines quickly noticed they were near a port side docking hatch. He clicked his radio. "This is Sgt. Mike Alvins of the Battlestar Pegasus to any Raptor this net. We are trapped between frames 158 – 159 deck 1 and are near hatch 1 baker 15 port side. Request immediate medical evac for Pegasus Actual and party!"

"Sgt. Alvins this is Raptor 092, Battlestar Galactica. Call sign Boomer. I am two minutes from your position."

"Thank you Boomer."

Raptor 092

Boomer maneuvered the raptor to the hatch and impatiently waited for the collar to seal around the raptor door. Helo opened the door and the medics and marines quickly came aboard with Cain. The door was then closed. "That's all of us!"

Boomer quickly maneuvered away from the dying Battlestar. As she concentrated on maneuvering her ship, the Admiral came to. "Where the frak am I?"

"Sir, your aboard a raptor. Tylium was flooding into engineering and Colonel Belzen ordered us to abandon ship…"

Helena quickly sat up to the protests of her medics. "Where is my XO…"

Boomer interrupted. "Dear Lords, the Pegasus!"

Helena looked out the front and watched her ship turn and ram into an enemy vessel. The resulting explosion annihilated both ships. Helena closed her eyes for a second, then reopened them. She was about to speak when the raptor shook with an explosion.

"WE'VE BEEN HIT!" Yelled Boomer. "We have a fire in the port nacelle!"

Helena looked out the front as the Earth became larger. "Frak! Pilot do you have any control?"

"Barely sir! But we are going in." Boomer flipped a switch. "This is Raptor 092! KRYPTER! KRYPTER! KRYPTER!"

"Boomer! This is Galactica Actual. What is your situation?!"

"Galactica Actual, Boomer! We have been hit and have lost our port nacelle. Minimal control. We are going in!"

The raptor shook as bullets hit. "FRAK! This is Boomer to any Viper, we are under attack!"

"Boomer this is Apollo, I am two minutes your position! Hang on!"

"Apollo, I don't have two fraking minutes!" The raptor shook and started a spin that Boomer barely recovered from. "GODS DAMN IT! I have to get these frakers off me. I am nose diving."

The raptor started to rapidly descend through the atmosphere. The Calimar fighter stayed on Boomers tail trying to shot her down. More tracers went by on either side.

Helo frowned and pushed a button. "This is Raptor 092, say again!" Helo could not understand the foreign language. He turned to Boomer. "I think it's an Earther but I can't understand him."

Boomers eyes went wide as two atmospheric fighters raced passed her and opened up on her enemy. She felt a shock wave in her rear and a glace at dradis showed the enemy fighter gone. "I believe that was Earth's way of telling the Calimar to go frak themselves."

Helena grunted. "If that's the case, it's a language I can understand. Boomer is it? What kind of shape are we in?"

As Boomer fought the controls she quickly scanned her instruments. "Its bad. Port engine nacelle is gone, we just have the starboard. Controls are sluggish and we are loosing fuel."

"Can you get us down?"

"I think so sir."

Helena nodded. "Then do so! Doesn't matter where, just get us down in one piece." She turned to the senior Marine NCO. "What's our arms situation?"

"Admiral, each of us have a side arm with about two clips each. We also have two submachine guns with five clips each. We don't have any explosives though."

Helena nodded. "Not much." She then addressed the entire raptor. "Ok listen up! We have no idea of the situation on the ground, so we can't afford to stay in place to await extraction. Once we land, I want everyone to grab what little provisions are available and get away from the raptor as quickly as possible. Conserve your ammo and keep an eye out for any weapons or provisions we can use. We will try to stay together as a group but if we get separated, try to link up with local forces. Everyone got that?"

A series of "Yes sir!" issued. Helena looked back out to see the Earth atmo-fighters taking escort position on either wing. The one on the left looked shot to hell and was trailing smoke, yet he stayed with the Raptor. She mumbled. "Gods protect that brave fool."

The ground was quickly coming up, enough to make out details, such as a rather large battle taking place. Enemy tracers started to reach out for the raptor, only to be answered by the Earth fighters kicking in their after burners and opening up on the enemy ground forces. As they released what Cain would later learn were cluster bombs.

Boomer mumbled. "Frak." The raptor started to shake violently. "Everyone brace for impact!" She pulled up as hard as she could. The raptors nose came up, preventing a frontal impact but still slammed into the ground tossing everyone around. Various alarms were now screaming their warnings in the cockpit.

Cain picked herself up. "EVERYONE OUT, NOW!." She reached over and pulled an emergency handle, causing explosive bolts to blow the side hatch clear off the raptor. Cain jumped out onto the wing and turned around, waiting for the others to exit. Once Boomers boots hit the dirt, Cain yelled. "Right. On me." She quickly ran about two hundred yards before the group was blown to the ground due to artillery rounds hitting and exploding the raptor.

The group picked themselves up and looked back. All that was left was a smoking crater with parts of Raptor decorating the landscape. Boomer was less than pleased. "MOTHER FRAKERS!"

Cain turned to the angry pilot. "Don't worry. I'll see to it that you get your pound of flesh. In the mean time, lets get to cover, shall we?"

"Yes sir." Boomer looked in the opposite direction. "Admiral, that looks like a farm house about 400 meters avail."

Cain nodded. "Lets move out." The group followed the Admiral towards the farm house. Overhead, the Earth fighters screamed by. Cain looked up and watched as the fighters turned around, obviously maintaining a CAP above their group. Gun fire and screams pulled her attention back to the house ahead. She could make out obvious aliens, fighting with civilians. Turning to the marines. "Suggestions?"

Sgt. Alvins pulled field glasses up to his eyes and studied the enemy for a few seconds. "I see five enemies." He swepted his view from left to right then back. " I don't believe it. They have not set any kind of watch and I don't think they even know we are here. Sir, I would normally not suggest this but a frontal assault."

"Agreed. Watch your fields of fire and try not to hit any civilians. We don't need the Earthers pissed at us." The group responded with "yes sirs". The marines cocked their submachine guns and the their rest pulled their service pistols. They quickly rushed the farm house. The marines made quick work of three of the aliens outside.

One of the aliens had managed to get behind Boomer and tried to grab her witch ended being a big mistake. The Colonial pilot flipped the alien over her body, pulled her knife and slammed it into the aliens skull. Cain barely noticed as she forced her way into the house with a marine behind her.

A man and woman were dead with rifles not far from their bodies. A little boy was screaming under a table as the last alien was trying to reach him. Cain wasted no time as she quickly walked up to the alien and put a bullet in its brain. She holstered her gun and then crouched down to the child's level. The boy couldn't be older than three or four. He was crying and had his hands over his ears. Cain gave the boy an encouraging smile and held her arms out. "Its alright child. We …I am here." The little boy hesitated for just a few moments until he rushed into the admirals arms and buried his face in her chest.

Cain raped her arms around the child and closed her eyes for a moment. A feeling of protectiveness rushed through her. Remembering she was in a war zone, her eyes snapped open and she stood up holding the child firmly against her. "Marine. How secure is our position?"

"It could be better sir. We are not in immediate danger but that could change any minute. I don't think we can afford to stay, besides…" He looked down at what were obviously the boys dead parents.

Cain nodded. "Ok then, we…" She broke off as a noise she had not heard in a long time sounded in the distance and was getting louder. It sounded almost like a gyrocopter she once saw at the Caprican Museum of Flight when she was a little girl.

Boomer yelled from outside. "Sir we are about to have company. I think it may be the Earthers, I see a human…"

Cain walked out and maneuvered the child to her left side, using her right arm to bring field glasses to her eyes. She saw what Boomer was talking about. They were definitely gyrocopters and she could make out a clearly a human gunner behind a machine guns in one of the open doors as the craft started to land two hundred yards away. "Hold your fire!" Cain yelled.

As the craft landed, heavily armed soldiers jumped out taking up protective positions around the craft. Another jumped out and started to make his way towards the Admiral. As soon as he was near he drew himself up and saluted. Cain returned the salute the best she could with a child on her hip. The man, started talking and gesturing towards another of the craft that started to land.

Though Cain did not understand his language, she still got the message. "We have a ride out of her people. Move out." Cain lead her people towards the gyrocopter. The Earth soldiers took up protective positions as they escorted the Colonials towards the craft that still had its rotors spinning. Cain accepted a hand up and tried to get the child into the seat next to her. The child refused to let go. Cain just grunted and looked at what was obviously the crew chief to the Earth craft. "Frak it. Lets just get out of here."

The Earther frowned but still gave an understanding nod. As soon as her people were aboard, the gyrocopter took off and flew low to the ground. Cain watched the passing landscape and the looked up at the sound of jet engines. The Earth atmo-fighters were taking up escort positions. Cain raised a brow and mumbled. "Either they want to protect any Colonial or they know I'm a flag officer…"

Her second guess proved correct when the crew chief handed her a headset. She put the headset on and on instinct, "This is Pegasus Actual."

The return voice was extremely distorted with a lot of static. The crew chief frowned and messed with some control. Then the voice was clear. Helen was surprised when she heard ancient Kobolian with a heavy accept. "This is Major Glen Johnston to Admiral Helena Cain."

"This is Admiral Cain, I am now reading you."

"Admiral. Colonel Aison of the Greek Army sends his compliments. He informed the United States of the situation and requested that we render assistance. The group that you are now with is part of the 7th Air Cavalry of the United States Army. Their orders are to bring your group to our forward base of operations in the state of Kentucky. We have equipment there that should let you contact your fleet. Colonel Aison is in contact with an Admiral Adams and has advised him of the situation.

Despite the situation Cain smirked at the incorrect pronouncement of her superiors name. "Thank you for your assistance. Major, you should know that we rescued a toddler, his parents were murdered by the enemy."

The radio was silent for a few minutes. "Understood Admiral. The government has been bringing rescued children to shelters across our country. We will make arrangements…"

Cain frowned. "What are the conditions of these shelters? Never mind. The Colonial Navy will assume responsibility for this child until further notice. Cain out!"

She took of the headset and handed it back to the crew chief. Boomer looked at her. "Sir are you sure about this? The fleet is not exactly a safe place…"

Cain grunted. "Earth is no more safe than a fleet vessel and any Battlestar Commander that objects to his presence and go frak themselves." She looked out of the window then looked back at Boomer. "During the Cylon war, I lost my parents. All that was left was me and my sister. We where taking to a children's shelter on Taron. While they meant well, the conditions…. I will not subject this little boy to that hell." She tightened her grip around the child and turned her attention back out to the passing scenery.