Chapter Eight: Lock & Load
Olympica, Medical Ward:
"Coming through!" Arthur Wallace yelled as he plowed through the crowd that had gathered in the waiting area of the Olympica's medical ward.
"Make a hole!" Darrell 'Tank' Robinson bellowed from behind Wallace as the two forced their way through the crowd of people.
"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" a woman asked as she turned around to face him.
"Matter of life or death," Wallace said with a motion of his head to the unconscious form of Carmen Bayonet.
"Gods," she exclaimed as she quickly moved to the side.
"What's with the commotion?" a man asked when Wallace reached the front of the group.
"She was shot in the abdomen and she's lost consciousness," Wallace exclaimed.
The man quickly examined Bayonet, "She needs immediate surgery. I'll send word to the Operating Wing to prep a room."
"Excellent, we appreciate the help," Wallace said.
The man nodded, "Follow me, I'll have a stretcher waiting for her when we get to the wing."
Wallace nodded without saying a word and when the man swiped his ID badge at the door the two were quickly making their way to the Operating Wing of the Medical Ward.
"Where did you carry her from?" he asked.
"We were in the Argonne Plaza when some of the gunmen found us. Carmen drew their fire but took a round to the abdomen before she could get to cover."
"I see, care to tell me who the three of you are?" he asked.
"Major Arthur Wallace, I'm with the Ministry of Intelligence. This gentleman is Darrell 'Tank' Robinson; he's a Marine on loan to the MoI. Her name is Carmen Bayonet; she's a member of my team. Who are you?"
"Doctor Charles Kanak, I'm in charge of triage. When someone comes to the entrance with an injury I have to prioritize by severity. Your friend being moved this quickly should show you how severe it is," Kanak said.
The two turned a corner and were greeted by a pair of steel doors with the words 'Operating Wing' stenciled in black letters. Kanak swiped his badge again and the doors parted to reveal an area that was bustling with activity.
"Where's the stretcher?" Tank asked.
Kanak strolled over to the nurse's station and had a short and somewhat heated conversation with the nurse before he walked back to where Wallace was standing, "They're on the way."
Moments later a stretcher arrived and Wallace laid Bayonet on it before she was quickly wheeled away with a team of techs beginning to prep her for surgery.
"How are the arms?" Kanak asked after the stretcher with Bayonet disappeared behind a corner.
"Starting to hurt, I didn't realize how long I had been holding her," Wallace admitted.
"The adrenaline might be starting to wear off. Coming from Argonne Plaza was a long haul," Tank said.
Wallace nodded. "She's a valuable part of my team; I didn't want to lose her."
Kanak gave him an understanding smile, "You did well. I think if you were any later she may not have had a chance. You two come with me; there's a shower area for the doctors that the two of you can use to wash that blood off. I can get you some scrubs if you want to change clothes."
"I appreciate it," Wallace said and his mind began to process what was happening since this attempted coup had begun.
Tank looked down at his blood-soaked clothes. "I think a change of clothes really is in order."
Olympica Security, Ventilation System Access:
"You not getting claustrophobic are you?" Mitchell Cain said teasingly to the two people behind him.
"If I were claustrophobic you would have known it by now," Sarita Torrance retorted.
"I've been in here a bit longer than I'd like but you don't have to worry about me," Kang Shan said.
"Lucky for you, we've reached the access point," Cain said as he exited the ventilation duct and entered a small room that was only large enough for the three of them to crouch in.
"Where do we go from here?" Torrence asked.
"I'll find out," Cain said as he made his way to the small computer display at the far side of the room.
"What's that for?" Shan asked.
"Mostly maintenance, but it also serves as a security checkpoint of sorts for Olympica Security. Behind that grate is our way in," Cain said as he began to press the necessary buttons to start the computer.
"What happens if we just try to open the grate and go through?" Shan asked.
Cain chuckled. "It'll be a short trip for us, and according to these plans there are security measures in effect to keep that from happening."
Torrance shook her head. "Seems a bit much for a shipboard security detail."
"The Olympica was designed to serve as a mobile government center in case of a planetary disaster hit one of the Colonies. Olympica Security could easily be converted to a detention facility," Cain said.
"Seems a bit excessive if you ask me," Shan said.
"How else was the Colonial Line going to get government financing from the government to build the Olympica class? This ship was designed to become a troop ship or whatever the government could use it for in an emergency," Cain said as he pressed the keys to enter the various password combinations to deactivate the security measures.
"Oh I don't know, maybe if they had used their own money instead of relying on the government to pay for it," Shan retorted.
"Well it didn't happen that way so the whole discussion is kind of academic now," Cain said wearily.
"So about this Gemenese criminal's hideout you infiltrated," Torrance began before asking, "Who was this person and how did you manage to infiltrate it?
"His name was Cepheus Amni, and he was the Gemenese version of Lydia Zeresi only he had religion," Cain said.
"You would honestly compare him to the leader of the Basileus?" Shan asked incredulously.
"Absolutely, though if his religious convictions not been as strong as they were then he could have every bit as ruthless and aggressive as she was. His group wasn't as powerful as the Basileus but they could still do plenty of damage. What made a difference was that Amni, had made it a point to live his life by the Sacred Scrolls and there were areas of crime he would not go into that Lydia was more than willing to," Cain said.
"You make her sound pretty despicable," Torrance said.
Cain nodded, "Lydia Zeresi was an intriguing woman in her own right. She was devoted to her family and wanted to make sure they were all taken care of, but when it came to business she was as cold and hard as they come. Amni had that same hard edge when it came to business but ultimately he became one of the most powerful people in the Gemenese underworld. He was able to use the Sacred Scrolls to justify every aspect of his operations and when word got out that he was planning to expand, the Ministry of Intelligence knew it had to do something."
"Let me guess, they sent in their best and brightest to make it happen," Shan said with a decidedly strong hint of sarcasm to his words.
"That's been used to describe me before, I won't deny it," Cain said.
"So you had to infiltrate his hideout and eliminate him," Torrance said.
"Yeah and it wasn't easy," Cain began before continuing with; "I had to get into the city of Dunedin where he had set up his headquarters without being noticed. Then I had to get past all of the electronic surveillances he had set up in the building he used as his residence. When I had made it to his private quarters it was just a matter of eliminating him…"
"Was there collateral damage?" Shan asked.
Cain was quiet for a moment before he said, "Yes, it was unavoidable."
"So you were retired from the Ministry of Intelligence; how did that come about?" Torrance asked.
"After I had eliminated Amni I was tasked to infiltrate the Basileus. It had been hoped that I could work my up to Lydia Zeresi's inner circle and eliminate her. I thought everything was going well until I was betrayed, someone in the Ministry sold me out and I barely escaped with my life. After that the directors decided that my services would no longer be required and I was retired to civilian life."
"Do you miss it?" Shan asked.
Cain finished inputting the passwords and the grate slid open, "Sometimes but this certainly helps me to relive the old days."
"Was it worth it?" Torrance asked.
"I've never asked that question, and it's another discussion that's purely academic," Cain said and he hesitated for a moment as he thought it over and said, "Let's get moving, the sooner we're in position the sooner we can do something about Solis."
Olympica, Governor's Suite:
"No, you're not going with me," Governor David Rush said to the people who had volunteered to accompany him.
"With all due respect, I have yet to listen to a single thing you've had to say and I'm not about to start now," Delegate Aurelia Gilliam, one of the last surviving members of the Quorum of Twelve, said defiantly.
"Now that she's said that, there's really no way I'm not going to accompany you," Brigadier General Otus Maxwell said.
"If you're really that determined to go with me then I can allow it, but the Lieutenant Governor is not going," Rush said with a pointed look at Lieutenant Governor Michael Fowler.
"This is not something that you can keep me away from," Fowler protested.
"I can and I will, if something should happen then there needs to be some continuity of government and if both of us are killed then we'll have anarchy as someone tries to gain power," Rush said.
"I know you're right, but it doesn't mean I have to life it," Fowler grudgingly admitted.
"If Ms. Gilliam is going then I'm going as well," Eli Hunter, Gilliam's Chief of Staff, volunteered.
"Eli, you know you don't have to do this," Gilliam said.
"Yes I do, it's important that I be beside you in times like this," Hunter countered.
Maxwell added, "I'm going to have six of my Marines on standby in case things take a turn for the worse, I'll make sure they're far enough behind so that they won't be noticed."
Rush nodded. "That will work. I feel better knowing that they'll be nearby in case something goes wrong."
Karin Briggs, the head of Olympica Security, added, "It might help make us a less tempting target for any of Solis' people that are still out there."
"Should we wait for Admiral Kronus to arrive?" Magnus Ah-Mun, the leader of the Eastern Alliance, asked.
"It may not be such a bad idea," Major Mark 'Archangel' Hunter said.
Fowler was quick to say "I think you should go ahead and leave, if you keep Solis waiting too long he may get suspicious and then hostages may die."
"You're right, when Admiral Kronus arrives let him know that we've already left," Rush said before turning to walk to the door with Gilliam, Hunter, Briggs, Archangel, Magnus, and Maxwell following him.
Battlestar Stryker, Flag Officer's Quarters:
Admiral Naomi Sakura glanced through the reports that had been deposited on the desk of her office. With the way the quarters had been designed there was an office that adjoined the quarters, allowing for her to not have to go far in case she needed to hold a meeting.
"Is there anything of interest in the reports?" Commander Chiuske Shimomura, her Chief of Staff, asked.
"There are at least two other known battlestars that are still out there, I have been trying to figure out which ones they are," Sakura admitted.
"Do you think one of them could be the Colossus?" Shimomura asked.
"I have to wonder," Sakura admitted. The Colossus was the flagship of Fleet Admiral Scott Tolan, and both had vanished after the Battle of Ostarsis. Wreckage of the ship had been found that suggested that wherever it had jumped to was a location where Cylons had been present.
"You'd think by now the ship would have returned," Shimomura said.
"There's got to be more going on here than we realize, but I'm hoping that he's still alive out there."
"I've heard you speak fondly of him, you must have had a lot of respect for him."
"I have a lot of respect for him," Sakura said with what she felt should be the correct tense.
"Of course. I'm sorry, Admiral. It's just that it's easy to write people off as having been lost when we've already lost so many others," Shimomura quickly explained.
"I understand, but the important thing is that we not lose our hope. What was your life like before the Cylons attacked?"
"I had a wife on Caprica, we hadn't gotten around to having kids yet but it was something we both wanted. I always told her that when the time was right I would take a posting to one of the colonies and we could start a family. She kept hoping that I would end up posted to Caprica but I was content to go wherever I was told."
"Yeah, it's not like we really get a lot of choice when the Fleet decides we're needed elsewhere," Sakura said.
"Kind of like us being here on the Stryker," Shimomura stated.
"Exactly like being here on the Stryker. Don't get me wrong, it's nice to have a battlestar to fight with but I suppose I feel a special attachment to the Helios. Not to mention that after eight months of fighting and surviving I began to think she had become somewhat of a lucky ship."
"Perhaps it wasn't the Helios that was lucky but its Commanding Officer was the best at what she was doing; have you thought about that?" Shimomura asked.
"Someone is trying hard to get promoted to Rear Admiral," Sakura teased.
"If it helps my cause then I'll gladly do it," Shimomura replied.
"We have a decent task force thankfully, and three battlestars can deal a fair amount of damage if used properly," Sakura said.
"Is there any particular place you're thinking of hitting?"
Sakura looked through the reports again to find one that had caught her eye, "There was an intercepted report of a Cylon fleet massing around Canceron."
Shimomura looked at the map on the wall behind Sakura and quickly said, "Why would the Cylons be using Canceron as a staging area?"
"That does seem a bit off, but seeing as the Cylons broke the Armistice I think Fleet Command would find that a bit odd as well."
"I'd have expected sarcasm like that from Admiral Tolan, if I may speak freely."
Sakura smiled. "He's a good role model. I was able to learn from what he did right and what he should have done differently."
"I see…when do you plan to tell the other commanders of this plan?"
"By the end of today, I want Tactical to come up with a plan of attack. I can't throw away our advantage because I just attacked out of nowhere."
"I agree, are you going to have the Stryker jump to investigate?"
Sakura was quiet as she came up with a plan, "Not the Stryker, but I believe I can give the Libran something to do."
"Are you sure you would want to use the Libran and not the Gemenon?"
Sakura shook her head. "When the Libran was brought back into service it was actually give a complete overhaul to bring it in line with Colonial Fleet standards. The Gemenon was given a nominal upgrade to make it appear it was still serviceable when it only serving as a decoy."
"In that case, why are we using the Gemenon as a front-line battlestar?" Shimomura asked.
"Because we're kind of short on useable battlestars at the moment, and it seems that there has been enough work on the Gemenon to improve its ability to serve on the front lines," Sakura said before she picked up the phone receiver out of its cradle on her desk and requested to be connected to the Libran.
Battlestar Libran, CIC:
Rear Admiral Nicholas Tattnall was going over the various reports from his department heads when he heard the voice of Lieutenant James Ward informing him that there was a call coming in from Admiral Sakura.
He shook his head and picked up the receiver at Command and Control, "This is Libran Actual."
"Admiral Tattnall, I have a mission for you," Sakura said.
Tattnall's left eyebrow raised at this piece of news. "What can the Libran do for you?"
"I need you to jump to Canceron and gain information for a possible operation against the Cylons."
"We can do that, what exactly do you have in mind?"
"Thanks to the buoy tapping, we received a report of a large Cylon fleet massing in the orbit of Canceron, I think with our task force we could engage them and keep the toasters off balance," Sakura said.
"Sounds ambitious, we can leave within the next few minutes. What do you want us to do if we run into trouble?"
"Jump away and get back here as quickly as you can. I don't want you to take unnecessary risks."
"Understood, Admiral, we'll make sure we bring you back lots of pretty pictures," Tattnall replied.
"Looking forward to it, Admiral Tattnall, good hunting," Sakura said before the line went dead.
"I take it we're going to be busy," Colonel Cynthia Shannon, the Libran's XO, asked.
"Admiral Sakura wants us to go into Canceron and take lots of pictures for her to look at," Tattnall said.
"Will the Gemenon be coming with us?" Shannon asked.
Tattnall shook his head. "It's just going to be us on this outing."
"I'll get a list of Raptor pilots from Captain Bruin, though I'm sure he'll be one of the first ones to volunteer for the mission," Shannon said.
"Have Major Singleton ready a squadron of Vipers for support as well," Tattnall said. When Susan Minerva had been promoted from Colonel to Commander and given command of the Gemenon it was necessary to shuffle positions on the Libran. As a result Shannon was moved from CAG to XO. She recommended the promotion of Craig 'Fireball' Singleton from Captain to Major and he became the new CAG.
"That shouldn't be a problem," Shannon said as she headed over to the Communications station to get in touch with both Bruin and Singleton.
Tattnall took the receiver out of its cradle and addressed the crew, "Attention all hands; this is the Admiral. I have received orders from Admiral Sakura; we are to jump to Canceron and conduct recon operations against what is believed to be a fleet of Cylon vessels. All departments are to begin preparations for FTL jump."
Across the Libran the crew began to prepare for the jump to Canceron, minutes later the Cylon War era veteran battlestar jumped away in a flash.
Olympica, Medical Ward, Family Waiting Area:
Wallace sat at the end of one of the sofas in the family waiting area and flipped through the pages of a novel he had found sitting nearby. Fury from the Deep was the title and in truth if it were not for the fact that the story was set on Aquaria he would have probably skipped over it. Tank had left to use his mobile phone to check on the progress of his two brothers and Admiral Kronus. Wallace would have probably not been reading a book if Tank were still there. Then again, reading the book helped to pass the time as the surgeons worked to save the life of Carmen Bayonet. There were so many items on his agenda that he knew needed his direct attention and here he was in the medical wing of the Olympica waiting to see if this one woman who had served him well for the last four years would live or die.
"You look like you're deep in your book," a woman's voice said from the other side of the sofa he was sitting on.
He looked up from the book and saw a young woman who looked to be about the age of a college student, "It's helping me to pass the time by; thought some mindless entertainment would do me so good."
"I didn't think they let hospital mill about here in the patient areas," she said with a glance at the hospital scrubs he was wearing.
"I'm not part of the staff here, I had a friend who was injured and I brought her here. My clothes were ruined so one of the doctors arranged for me to have a pair of scrubs to change into. It was kind of nice of them actually; all of my other clothes are on Amasen."
The woman looked confused, "What's Amasen?"
"It's the space station that this fleet of ships recently found; I kind of run the place," Wallace said with no small amount of pride.
"And you are?"
"Major Arthur Wallace of the Ministry of Intelligence and Commanding Officer of Amasen, and you are?"
"Obviously not going to have as impressive of a title as that, I'm Vera Leishman and I'm a volunteer from the Solace."
Wallace nodded approvingly. "Help from the Solace is probably greatly appreciated here."
"The Olympica is on lockdown but when most of the trouble had been settled the staff here reached out to the Solace for volunteers. I was one of the first ones to want to come over."
"I see," Wallace said before asking, "What all have you been doing since you came over?"
"Assisting with moving patients and gathering supplies…basically I'm doing grunt work. My father says it's the kind of work that's good for the soul. I suppose with him being a chaplain he would know more about that than I would.
"I should let you get back to you novel, I'll come back and check up on you when I come back around," Vera said as she got up to leave the room.
"I appreciate it," Wallace said before turning his attention back to the book he was reading.
"It's not a problem, maybe when there's more time you can answer some of the questions I have about the Ministry of Intelligence," she said.
"I'm sure you're wondering if it's anything like in the movies…I'll answer what I can without getting into too much trouble. There are other MoI agents onboard these ships," Wallace said without looking away from his book.
"I'll try not to get you into too much trouble if I can help it," she said as he walked out of the room.
"Not the first time I've heard that from a woman," Wallace said to himself with a chuckle.
Minutes later he heard a knocking on the room's door and he saw one of the surgeons standing there.
"Major Wallace, I'm Doctor Walter McClaran, I was one of the surgeons who helped to operate on your friend."
"Thanks Doc, how is she?" Wallace asked despite a feeling of trepidation he felt.
"Truth is, she's lucky to be alive, but we should be able to close up the wounds and get her moved to ICU. She may not be out of the woods yet though, but we've done everything we can for her."
"Carmen is a fighter, no doubt about that, and hopefully she'll be able to pull through."
McClaran nodded. "That's going to play a large part in whether she ultimately pulls through."
"When will I be able to visit her?" Wallace asked.
"We're in the process of closing her up and then she'll be moved to recovery before she heads to ICU."
Wallace shook hands with McClaran. "Thank you for all you did and be sure to give the rest of the surgical team my thanks."
"I'm glad we were able to get to her in time, just wait here and I'll send someone to get you," McClaran said before turning to leave the room.
Wallace paced as he took in the information he had been given. It sounded as though Carmen would pull through but it was still a dicey situation for her to be in.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his mobile phone ringing. He fished it out of the pocket of his scrubs and was immediately greeted by the voice of Tank.
"Hey Arthur. Kronus made it to the Governor's office without any more incidents…however, Governor Rush has already left so Kronus is there with the Lieutenant Governor trying to sort out what Solis has in mind. Any word on Carmen?"
"She's still in surgery but it sounds like they're in the final stages of the operation. It's still touch and go for now, but if she's half the fighter I think she is then she'll pull through."
"Here's to hoping she makes it through, I'm sure it won't be long until she and I are back to our adversarial relationship," Tank said.
"You're still not going to forgive her for shooting you back on Caprica?" Wallace asked.
"Damn right I'm not going to forgive her for that! What she did was akin to professional humiliation, I've never had someone shoot me with a tranquilizer dart and get away with it."
"I'm sure she'll be relieved to know you're not going to be treating her any differently when she recovers from this," Wallace said before he ended the call.
Olympica Security, Ventilation Shafts:
"We made it without tripping anything. Cain, you may be as good as I'm sure everyone says you think you are," Torrance quipped.
"We still have to get in place for this, let's not go making the assassin's ego bigger than it should be," Shan said.
"You really just went and called me an assassin when we're in a confined space," Cain said disbelievingly.
"Good point, perhaps I should have waited until I had more room to run before I called you that. You have to admit though, if the shoe fits and all," Shan said defensively.
"Kang, let it go. You're only going to make the situation worse," Torrance said.
"Right now we have to focus on Solis; then I can afford to have my feelings hurt later," Cain said as he led the group into the ventilation ducts that ran the outer edges of Olympica Security's main lobby.
"How do you want to do this?" Torrance asked.
"I'm going to take the vent on the right. Sarita, you take the vent on the far side of the room. Kang, you take the vent opposite mine. If any of Solis' people try to charge the barricade, you and Sarita will take them out," Cain instructed.
"Sounds like plan to me," Torrance said as she moved past Cain and made her way towards the vent she was supposed to shoot from.
"I'd hate to think that I did all of this sneaking around for nothing," Shan said as he moved towards the vent that Cain had assigned him.
"I wouldn't worry about that, I have a feeling we'll be able to tell stories about this one day," Cain said as he began to move into position.
Orbit of Canceron:
Battlestar Libran, CIC:
"Jump completed," Captain Lancelot Freyburg announced from Tactical.
"Glad to see he was able to plot that jump successfully," Shannon said with a sigh of relief.
"Not bad at all, and it seems the Cylons haven't noticed us yet," Tattnall admitted.
"I can't help but feel like we're tempting fate just by being here. Do you think it will take long for the Cylons to notice we're here?" Shannon asked in what she was sure was an attempt to hide her unease.
"That's one way of looking at it, but I don't want to stay here longer than I have to. Are the birds ready to fly?" Tattnall asked.
Shannon picked up the receiver and informed Singleton that it was time to launch the Vipers and Raptors while Tattnall looked up at the array of Cylon baseships displayed on the DRADIS.
"Do you think they're trying to find us and finish up the job?" Shannon asked.
Tattnall thought it over before saying, "Probably, the battle at Ostarsis had to have been painful for them. We have enough of a force that could do some damage if it was at full strength."
"Libran Actual, this is Fireball. The birds are away and preparing to take pictures," Singleton's voice called out over the loudspeaker at Command and Control.
"This is Tornado; the Raptors are ready to get Admiral Sakura some great souvenirs of our trip!" Bruin said.
"So it begins," Tattnall said quietly before turning his attention to the petty officer at Helm. "I want us as close to the edge of the system as possible, there's no telling how much time we'll have before they notice us."
"Camera work has begun," Bruin's voice echoed through the loudspeaker.
"I'm sure our gun cameras are getting lots of great video footage, can't let you Wranglers get all the glory," Singleton said in an attempt to lighten the mood.
"You Viper jocks think you're all that and then some, why don't you let us do the real work while you do what you do best…sit in the cockpit and look pretty," Bruin retorted.
The minutes passed by as the Raptors got in as close as they were able to without being detected by DRADIS while the Vipers stayed close enough to jump into action if they were needed.
"This is tense," Shannon admitted.
"I think we should check on our photographers," Tattnall said as he picked up the receiver, "Tornado, do you have enough snapshots?"
"I believe so, sir," Bruin said.
"Admiral, the Cylons are launching Raiders…they've detected us!" Freyburg shouted from Tactical.
"I want the Libran moved towards the Cylons with all batteries firing, close the distance as quickly as possible," Tattnall ordered.
The Libran began to move towards the Cylons with every gun it had firing shells at the Cylon baseships and the flak guns working to keep the Raiders at bay while the Vipers and Raptors came in for what was sure to be a hard landing.
The ship began to shake as some of the shells from the Cylons began to impact with the hull.
Tattnall hung onto Command and Control and tried to keep his balance as his ship began to shake underneath him. "How much longer until the birds are back onboard?"
"The last ones have landed; where are we jumping to?" Shannon asked.
"Captain Freyburg, jump us back to where we came from!" Tattnall commanded.
"Jump is plotted, commencing countdown," Freyburg announced.
Moments later the Libran jumped away from Canceron.
Olympica, Olympica Security Offices:
David Rush's group arrived at the barricaded front entrance to the offices of Olympica Security.
"Well, we made it here in one piece, perhaps Solis was serious about meeting with us," Gilliam said.
"I just hope we bought our friends some time," Rush said.
"I see you made it with about…three minutes to spare," Dante Solis' voice boomed out from behind the barricade.
"When you threaten to kill two hostages it became important for me to be punctual," Rush retorted.
"I had to find some way to get your attention; it's not like you would have returned my calls right away without a little persuasion," Solis said as he stepped out from behind the barricade and started walking closer to the group.
"You shouldn't have been too worried, the attempted coup was more than enough to get my attention," Rush replied.
"I see you brought some friends with you," Solis said as he gave each of the members an appraising look. "Karin Briggs, I hope you don't mind the fact that I've set up a temporary home in your office. When this is over with I'm sure you won't be complaining too much about my redecorating."
"You've gone into my house and disrespected me and my belongings; where I come from there's no bigger slap in the face," Briggs said as she fought the urge to spit on Solis.
"I forgot, you're a child from a rough neighborhood who managed to better herself. Isn't that just heartwarming," Solis said sarcastically before he turned his attention to the next person, "Now I'd have never thought that Magnus Ah-Mun would be a part of this. So, I have the Pirate King of the Eastern Alliance. Wait, you keep saying you're the CEO of a security corporation. You really should decide what you are because it's confusing trying to keep your cover stories straight. Ignoring that, why are you even here?"
"Your people did try to kill me, and you know how that could anger a person. That made this whole coup attempt of yours a little personal for me," Magnus said.
"A pity my people weren't better shots," Solis said with a solemn shake of his head.
"Do you think insulting us will make a difference?" Maxwell asked.
"General Maxwell, the Marine's idea of what a Marine should be! I really have to say I'm surprised at the speed in which your troops cleared away my people. They moved so slow I'd have mistaken them for the Army!" Solis exclaimed knowing the little dig would get underneath Maxwell's skin.
"I'm not going to lower myself to your level of petty insults, you're that far beneath me," Maxwell retorted, he really wanted to reach out and throttle Solis but he knew that would probably make things worse.
"Ignoring that, I see we have Aurelia Gilliam here as well. So, are you planning to stab Rush in the back since you have him standing this close to you?" Solis asked.
"You have no idea what kind of person I am," Gilliam stated.
"Oh yes I do, more than you know," Solis said with a sadistic smile before continuing with, "I actually helped Aurelia a while back. I knew she was leading the opposition to Admiral Tolan, and that she and I could work out some sort of arrangement that would benefit both of us. I think in some circles you could call what she did…treason."
"If that's true then it can be handled after you've been taken care of," Rush said with a hint of impatience to his voice.
Solis said nothing but instead locked eyes with Archangel and studied his uniform before saying, "I'll be honest, I don't have the first idea who you are, Major."
Archangel stiffened and said, "Major Mark 'Archangel' Hunter from the Battlestar Ark Royal and at the moment I'm really pissed off at you."
"Just as I thought, nobody of importance," Solis said dismissively.
"What happens now?" Eli Hunter asked.
"I'm going to go back behind that barricade and we'll see where this attempt at negotiation goes," Solis said as he turned away to head to the barricade.
"You know my Marines could shoot you right now," Maxwell shouted.
Solis felt his mobile phone buzz once and assumed it was a text message of some sort, "You shoot me and my people will shoot you as well; if you want to live you need to let me live."
Solis took his phone out of his pocket and saw that he had an unread text from The Watcher. He opened the message and stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the words, 'Now you die…'