Battlestar Galactica
Past, Present, Future
Chapter 21
The Past Revealed
"What was that you said?" Verga said into the comm unit he wore as a cold sweat began to form on his forehead.
Colonel Leon stood next to Commander Verga watching as a parade of emotions played across his friends face. Surprise, fear, uncertainty, disbelief, astonishment and a dozen more played across the man's face as he listened to the report coming in from Commander Bannon. When he was through listening, he removed his com unit and handed it to the communications officer, a look of total bewilderment on his face.
"Are you alright Commander?" asked Leon, the concern for his commanding officer evident in his tone.
Verga looked at Leon as if he didn't have a clue as to who he was or what he had just said, then sensibility returned to his eyes and he began to speak in a very subdued tone.
"Colonel, order the fleet to resume space normal speed immediately and have all senior commanders report aboard the Genesis."
"Yes sir." Leon said, then cautiously asked again. "Whats going on sir? What's happened?"
Verga looked his friend in the face, an expression of shock, bewilderment and yes … fear, and said, "Bannon has just made a discovery that is going to rewrite history as we knew it.
Twenty centons after receiving the report from Commander Bannon and fifteen centons after the Genesis and her fleet arrived at his location, the commanders of every ship were assembled in the "War Room" of the Genesis to be briefed on Commander Bannon's discovery and to meet with a totally unexpected guest.
"Commander Verga, Commander Bannon's shuttle has just landed in Alpha landing bay." Colonel Leon reported to his commanding officer.
Verga nodded to his subordinate and continued to stare at a file he had pulled off the immense database contained in the Genesis's computer core. Leon watched him curiously as the Commander flipped thru the various pages of the file. Leon thought it was interesting that the Commander had the information printed out on paper instead of directly downloaded into an infopad like most people did, but over the yahren he had learned that the Commander seemed to prefer doing many things the "old fashioned" way, and one of those things was having all reports and the like printed out on paper. He seemed, Leon thought, to relish the feeling of the paper and turning the pages as opposed to simply pressing a button on an infopad.
After several moments, Verga closed the file and slide it to the side. He looked around the large room at his officers, watching them as they talked quietly amongst themselves and wondered how they were going to react to what they were about to learn. Something that would change everything they knew about the history of the war with the Cylons. Then he opened the file and retrieved a piece of paper and handed it to Colonel Leon.
"Colonel, would you please turn the environmental controls to these settings?"
Leon took the paper and started to stand up and do as he was asked. His eyes widened as he read what was on the sheet and turned to Commander Verga.
"Are you sure you want to change to these settings sir? This will make it awful uncomfortable in here sir."
Verga looked up at the Colonel and said, "I know, it will be a bit uncomfortable for us, but Commander Bannon is bringing some … "guests" with him and these are the conditions that are most comfortable for them, so please make the changes Colonel."
Leon nodded to his commanding officer and went to take care of his request.
A few centons later the heat and humidity in the room became noticeably higher. Several officers unbuttoned the collars of their uniform tunics as the temperature and humidity continued to rise. Finally Commander Sachs asked, "Is there something wrong with the environmental controls in here? It seems to be getting awful hot and muggy!"
Commander Verga stood up and was about to say something when the doors to the "War Room" slide open and Commander Bannon called the room to attention! The Warriors snapped to attention immediately and ceased all conversations. Bannon glanced up to where Commander Verga was standing and gave him an almost unperceivable nod. Verga returned the gesture and moved in front of the table. Bannon then announced to the room …
"Know all those present, the scion of Cylon approaches!"
This caused everyone in the room to turn toward Bannon and the open door, a low buzz of hushed conversations going on throughout. A few microns later six short, slightly hunched over figures passed thru the door followed by a somewhat larger one, then six more of the smaller figures followed. They all wore long, heavy brownish-green robes with hoods that were pulled up over the heads of new arrivals. The robes went all the way to the deck, covering the feet of the people and the large, flared sleeves covered the hands and arms as they held them together in front of their bodies.
The group made their way to the front of the room, where the lead group of six took up positions behind the chair at the far end of the table. The larger figure stopped in front of the chair and the six that had followed behind took up positions between the large figure and the assembled humans, forming a kind of protective wall around the larger figure.
Every human eye in the room was transfixed on the small group of robed figures, trying to catch even a glance of the faces of the people under the hoods. Commander Bannon walked to the front of the room and stopped next to Commander Verga, whispering something into his ear. Verga's expression never changed, he simply nodded his head. Then Bannon stepped forward and said, "Officers of the Phantom fleet, it is my honor to present to you the scion of the Cylon race, the Imperium of Cylos."
The room was again abuzz with the sound of hushed conversations. This was quickly silenced by angry glances from Verga and Bannon. Then Commander Verga stepped forward and bowed slightly and said, "I bid you greetings Imperium. On behalf of the people of our fleet, I welcome you and your people aboard the Battlestar Genesis."
The largest of the Cylons stood extremely still for nearly a centon, neither moving nor uttering a sound. Verga was beginning to wonder if the Cylon could understand him when the Cylon leader began make a hissing-growling sound. A few microns later, an electronic "voice" was heard coming from what appeared to be a small green amulet that hung from the Imperium's neck.
"We thank you for your kindness Commander Verga. We are honored."
Verga exchanged a glance with Bannon, who knew exactly what his friend was thinking, the electronic "voice" the Cylon Imperium used was that of the mechanical Cylon Centurions.
"It is we that are honored Imperium. Please, be seated. Can we offer you anything? A refreshment perhaps?"
There was another lengthy pause before the Imperium answered. Then the Imperium began another round of strange hissing and growls. The voice from the amulet spoke again.
"That will not be necessary Commander, thou we appreciate the offer." the Imperium said thru his amulet, "We would like to discuss the matter of the Centurions with you."
"Yes, I too would like to discuss that topic." Verga said then added hesitantly, "If I may ask Imperium, what is that amulet you wear around your neck? Is it some sort of translator?"
The Imperium sat very still for several moments before responding.
"Yes, it is a translation device used by my people for over a millennia. It allows me to understand your words and speak to you in your language."
"It is a fascinating device Imperium, but I must tell you, it sounds exactly like a Cylon … I mean a Centurions voice."
"Yes, I'm sure it does Commander. Both the translator and the Centurions use the same audible modules."
"I see, that explains a lot." Verga said and then added, "You said you wished to discuss the Centurions with us, what is it you would like to know?"
After a short wait the Imperium replied.
"Everything!"
Verga looked at the Imperium questioningly.
"Everything? What do you mean by "Everything"?"
Another short pause before the answer came.
"Yes, we have need of any information that you may have about the Centurions. Anything you can tell us will help us with our quest!"
Verga and Bannon exchanged a look before Verga asked, "What quest?"
Again the pause.
"We are on a quest to set right that which we set in motion so long ago."
Verga shook his head slightly, saying, "I don't understand, what did you set in motion?"
"The Centurions!"
This started a new round of whispers to run thru the assembled officers.
"It is because of my people that the Centurions have done all that they have. We are responsible for all the death and destruction they have caused. We must fix this."
"How can you fix what the Centurions have done?" Verga asked. "What is it you plan on doing?"
The Imperium sat still for a moment, then slowly raised his hands, hands covered with grayish-green scales and long, sharp, razor like claws, to the edge of the hood that had covered the Imperium's head completely from view and pulled back the hood, revealing the Imperium's face to Verga and the rest of the humans in the room.
The face of a living Cylon!
Throughout the room, people began whispering amongst themselves with expressions ranging from pure fascination to utter horror. Never in the history of human kind had a human laid eyes on a real live Cylon! Verga silenced the murmuring with an angry look. Then the Cylon Imperium continued.
"It is our intention to seek out the Centurions, where ever we find them, and destroy them."
This statement caused another round of quick comments among the officers of the fleet. Verga silenced them with a look and asked.
"Why would you want to do this? Why now after all these yahren? Your people have been safe from the Centurions for over a millennium, why would you want to risk facing them now?"
"Because you could not stop them." the Imperium said after the usual delay. "Because your people could not end the horror that we created, now we must return to the stars of our ancestors and set right that which they unleashed upon the galaxy."
The murmur of hushed voices began again in earnest at this. Even Commander Bannon made comment on this.
"Oh, I don't believe this, after more then a millennium they finally decided to get involved! What a pile of mong!"
Verga fixed Bannon with a stare that could have froze a man's blood in his veins, any that is except for Bannon who hardly noticed his commanding officers stare as he was too infuriated to care what Verga or anyone else thought at that moment.
"Do you know how many of our people have been killed by those mechanized horrors you left behind? Billions! Billions of human beings have lost their lives in a war that you and your people could have prevented!"
"That's enough Commander!" Verga roared at Bannon before he could say another word. "I will not have one of my officer's conduct themselves in such a manner. If you can not control yourself Commander, consider yourself dismissed!"
Bannon turned on Verga with fire in his eyes. He stared at his commanding officer and best friend for several moments, the flames of fury burning in his eyes with an intensity that unnerved even the stalwart Verga. Then some semblance of restraint began to return to him and he replied, "That won't be necessary Commander. Then he turned to the Cylon Imperium and said, "My apologies Imperium, I was completely out of line."
The Cylon Imperium stared blankly at Commander Bannon for several moments before replying, "No apologies necessary Commander. I fully understand your feelings. But believe me when I tell you that our ancestors could not have stopped the Centurions. When the Centurions struck, there was no warning of their impending treachery! No chance to defend themselves from what happened."
Verga listened to the Imperium for a moment and then asked, "Can you tell us what happened to your people? What turned the Centurions against your people and caused them to wipe out your civilization?
The Imperium stared at Verga for several moments before responding.
"I will tell you our story Commander, but to tell it, I will have to tell you about it from the very beginning. Back to a time long before your people had reached the stars, back to a time before even we had obtained the ability to travel amongst the heavens, to a time more then twenty thousand yahren ago, a time when my people were still in their technological infancy."
Verga and Bannon exchanged a surprised glance before Verga asked the Imperium to continue.
"Twenty millennia ago, my people were a very hostile and warlike race, very primitive compared to what we are now, very territorial, constantly at war with one another, never having really known peace. We lived in a state of constant anarchy!" the Imperium began, "But then things began to change. We learned to work together, live together in peace. We began to form collectives. After a time, these collectives became clans, living in villages, then towns, and finally in magnificent cities."
"There was still the occasionally conflict between clans over land or food, but these were never very destructive, usually lasting no more then a sectar or two before each side grew tired of the violence and simply stopped fighting. This was our way for several millennia … until the Great War!"
"The Great War?" Verga exclaimed.
"Yes." the Imperium said after a short pause. "It was nearly fifteen millennia ago that the Great War began. Our people had finally learned to live and work together in relative harmony and were starting to become a modern, industrialized society with a bright future. But then it happened. An obscure Warlord of the Shkirate Clan who's name has been lost to history decided that his people should be the dominate clan of the Quinar continent, so he began a war of conquest, and after nearly fifty yahren of war in which over a billion Cylon's died, he had consolidated all the clans of Quinar under his rule, thus forming what he called the "Quinar Clan."
"It was not long after, that the Warlord turned his eye to the neighboring continent of Kradak and decided he would conquer them as well, then move on to the Garnar continent, which was at that time the most populous of the continents on Cylos."
"Cylos?" Bannon asked questioningly.
"Yes, that is the name for our home world." The Imperium said.
"Oh." Bannon said with a slow nodding of his head. The Imperium continued.
"The people of Kradak asked those of Garnar for assistance against the Warlord of Quinar and the two joined forces against the one. This was the start of the Great War, a war that lasted for over three thousand yahren!"
"Three thousand yahren, that's unbelievable." Bannon said softly.
"Yes, three thousand yahren! Hundreds of billions of our people died in this war, hundreds of clans were eliminated, others almost so. The devastation to our world was unbelievable."
"Dear Lords, what happened?" Verga asked. "How could things have gotten so far out of hand?"
"Because we failed to see that our constant fighting was leading us to the brink of extinction. You see, by this time, we had advanced to a point were war was almost a game. At the end, those that fought the war never saw each other. They simply pressed a few buttons and made all Cylos burned!" The Imperium said, the sadness of his voice obvious even thru the electronically synthesized voice unit. After a moment, the Imperium continued.
"But I am getting ahead of myself, I must tell you how it is we arrived at that point." the Imperium said. "Our people made great advances in the ways we did our killing during the yahren leading up to the Great War. For thousands of yahren our people simply attacked one another in great hordes with clubs, blades and spears. But then came the "launcher", a small, device we used for propelling spears greater distances and with much more force. Not long after that came the "hixta" which was a long, narrow piece of wood that was bent into a half circle and had the ends connected by fibra. With this, one could launch small spears, what we call "spearlas" at our enemies from a distance."
"We had a similar weapon that we call the "bow and arrow". " Verga said. The Cylon Imperium nodded his head in understanding, and then he continued.
"It was that way for many centuries until we discovered "firepowder" and began developing ways to use it in our warring. When we had done this, the killing increased dramatically. Our people found ways to hurl canisters of the firepowder great distances using machines and making it burst into flames in the heart of the enemies' armies, causing great death and destruction. But that was not enough, soon they found ways of using the firepowder itself to propel even larger canisters of firepowder. This made our warfare even more deadly."
Many of the officers of the fleet shivered as the Imperium told his tale. The similarities between the Cylons history and their own were eerily similar.
"It was several centuries after that that the next great leap in our warring was discovered. Our people discovered how to fly! They found ways to use the primitive machines of the time to lift themselves into the sky and not long after, how to rain death down upon their enemies. Once again, the death tolls rose faster then ever before."
"But even this was not enough, for thirteen millennia ago, our people discovered a way to split the atom and with that the power to change the world they knew." the Imperium went on. "This brought about an age of new technologies, both for peace and war making. The splitting of the atom gave our people the ability to build power generating facilities all over Cylos. It also seemed to bring about some changes in the way the leaders of the clans thought in regards to the wars that had raged across our planet for so long. They realized that anyone with the ability to use this atom splitting technology could become a very dangerous enemy, so many of the more powerful clans formed an alliance that would regulate this new source of power and keep it from being misused. After much discussion, they decided the best way to do this was to limit the technology and keep it to themselves. This worked for awhile but eventually, some of the smaller and more violent clans were able to acquire the technology and began building weapons of mass destruction. This made the larger clans very angry and more then a bit nervous. The larger clans tried in vain to get them to discontinue their building of these weapons, but the smaller clans refused and said they would use them against any clan that tried to stop them."
The Imperium paused for several moments for what Verga believed was a rush of emotions to pass, thou it was nearly impossible to tell what he was feeling since his features were so alien. After thirty or forty microns, the Imperium continued.
"When they failed to negotiate the weapons away from these small aggressor clans, they tried to take them by force. It was the beginning of the end."
Again the Imperium paused. The human's all seemed shocked by the story of the Cylon's rise and then their seeming fall. The Imperium continued.
"It all started when the three most powerful clans, the Quinar, the Bolack, and the Shivar joined forces and attempted to disarm all the clans that had developed weapons of the atom. It was an extremely bloody affair, costing millions of lives even before the smaller clans retaliated for the attacks. The first to strike back was the Edta clan. They had built a score of warheads and the missiles to deliver them by the time the attacks began. They warned the greater clans to cease their aggressions or face annihilation, but the attacks continued, so the Edta launched all their weapons at the three aggressor clans. This set off a chain reaction where by the larger clans launched their missiles at the Edta and this in turn made several other small clans launched their missiles. When all was said and done, every major population center on Cylos was nothing more then a smoldering pile of melted slag and ash. The total number of dead was never truly counted because so many billions were vaporized in the blasts."
"My god, you mean they destroyed each other?" Bannon asked, hardly able to fathom what he had just heard.
"Yes Commander, that is exactly what they did." the Imperium said. "The Great War destroyed everything my people had ever built and forced them to live as our ancient ancestors had thousands of yahren before. It is believed that less then ten thousand of our people survived the war and many of those that did, died soon afterward from the radiation. Life for my people in the yahren that followed was extremely hard and dangerous as there were no governments, no laws, no civilization, we were on the edge of extinction. It took several centuries for our people to rebuild some semblance of civilization again, and that at a very primitive level."
"Sounds like your people started at the very beginning again, technologically speaking, why didn't they just rebuild what was destroyed and go from there, without the violence?" Commander Sachs asked.
It took several moments for the Imperium to respond.
"We could not. All of our leaders and scientist were gone. Those few of our people that survived had been agriculturists; they knew little of science and technology, only the raising of crops, so there was no one to show our people how to rebuild what once was. It would be many hundreds of yahren before our people even tried to advance our culture to what it once was, and when they did, the fighting began anew."
"After all they had gone thru; they still hadn't learned their lesson!" Bannon said to himself.
"It was as it had been in the past, at first it was small skirmishes between the few remaining clans over food and land, then it escalated. Soon my people were again having full scale wars against one another. This went on for some ten millennia, and thou millions were to die in the constant warfare, it never reached the levels of destruction it had during the end of the Great War."
Verga, Bannon and the others all nodded their heads, understanding what the Imperium had said.
"The weapons technology did progress, in fact, it progressed farther then it had before the Great War with the invention of lasers pistols and rifles, plasma bombs, Octanitrocubinite missiles and photonic grenades. The difference this time was that the leaders of the clans did not build the weapons of mass destruction that our ancestors had before."
"They decided to go in a different direction."
"And what was that?" Verga asked.
"The leaders of the Quinar clan, which a small part of had survived, decided instead of trying to improve the weapons of war, they would improve those that fought the battles. They began turning their Centurions into cybernetic Warriors!"
"Oh my lord! That's how it began!" Bannon said.
"Yes Commander, that is correct." The Imperium said. "And it was all due to the appearance of the Enlightened One!"
"The Enlightened One, who's that?" Commander Verga asked.
"He was the knowledge bringer. He was the one that put our people on the path to extinction. He is the one that brought about our demise!"
Bannon and Verga exchanged a glance before Verga asked, "How did this Enlightened One bring about the demise of the Cylons? What did he do to facilitate it?"
"To tell you that, I will have to tell you of the time just prior to his coming, a time when we could have brought about lasting peace on Cylos once and for all or destroy it entire."
"Just before the appearance of the Enlightened One, our people had reached a level of technology that was nearly as high as it had been at the time of the Great War, only all of the clans had agreed not to use the power of the atom to make weapons that could annihilate our species again. Now mind you, we still had our wars, but they were fought with much less destructive weapons."
"It was during one of these wars between two of the larger clans, the Quinar and the Fahtare' that the Enlightened One appeared. It is said that he first appeared at the headquarters of the Fahtare'. No one knew where he had come from or how he had gotten there, but the story tells that the warlords of the Fahtare' were going over their battle plans and the next thing they knew, he was there among them."
"They didn't see him come in?" Bannon asked.
"No, he was simply there." the Imperium said. "Of course they had their guards try to apprehend him, but it is said that he somehow disabled their weapons and when they tried to restrain him, he tossed them off with a wave of his hand."
"Amazing!" Bannon said softly.
"It was then that the Enlightened One told the Fahtare' that, if they would follow him, he would lead them to victory over their enemies. The Fahtare' did not believe him and told him to leave, but the Enlightened One said that if they would not accept his offer, he would go to the Quinar and make them the same offer. The Fahtare' discussed this amongst themselves and decided to accept the offer of the Enlightened One."
"The Enlightened One showed the Fahtare' how to build the parts that would be implanted into the Centurions and how to do the implantations. At first, those that were implanted died by the hundreds due to the shock of having their bodies torn apart and then put back together with all those metal parts inside them. But the Enlightened One showed them a way to overcome this setback and within five yahren, over a million Fahtare' Centurions had been transformed from beings of flesh and blood to cybernetic killing machines."
"A million Centurions! How did you find so many volunteers?" Sachs asked.
"They did not volunteer Commander, they were selected by their clan warlord." the Imperium told them. "It was considered a great honor to be selected for transformation."
"An honor! How could they consider having their bodies mutilated like that "an honor"?"
"It was their way Commander." the Imperium responded.
Sachs shook her head in disgust at the thought of an intelligent species like the Cylons allowing themselves to be mutilated like that, it was just too unreal!
"As I was telling you before, the Enlightened One gave the Fahtare' the technology to become the predominate clan on Cylos, or so it seemed, because when the Fahtare' sent their new army of cybernetic Centurions into battle, they found themselves face to face with the cybernetic army of Quinar!"
"What?" Verga exclaimed as he sat forward in his seat.
"Yes, it seems that the Enlightened One had given the same assistance to the Quinar as well. The warlords of both clans were furious that they had been played for fools and used against each other by the Enlightened One, but the hatred between the two was so great that they could not hold back their armies. The battle that took place lasted for over a secton without a single moment's respite. The Centurions of both clans had been implanted with neurogenic processors that were programmed to keep them fighting until they detected no more of the enemy that were capable of resistance. When all was said and done, there was only one Centurion left alive, a Centurion of the Quinar."
"Only one survivor out of over a million, that's incredible!" Bannon said. "What happened then?"
"The Quinar still had a formidable army of non-enhanced Centurions at their disposal, so they marched into the lands of the Fahtare' and destroyed them, leaving not a single Fahtare' alive. It was then that the Enlightened One came to claim his leadership over the Quinar."
Verga, Bannon and the rest of the assembled officers were all on the edges of their seats as they listened to the Imperium's tale.
"Of course the leaders of the Quinar refused to turn over leadership to the Enlightened One, claiming that he had lied to them by helping the Fahtare', giving them the same technology he had given the Quinar and not making them the ultimate power on all Cylos. They told him that they won the battle without his assistance and that except for his showing them how to build the cybernetic implants, he had done nothing to help their cause."
"Of course the Enlightened One claimed he had fulfilled his part of the bargain, saying he had given them what they wanted, the means to defeat their enemies, and that they were now the preeminent clan on Cylos. But the leaders of the Quinar refused his claims and told him to leave. The Enlightened One left them, but not before he swore that he would take his vengeance on them."
"This the Quinar ignored as they rebuilt their cybernetic army and continually improved on the technology that helped make it. They improved the functionality of the various implants and upgraded the memory circuits of the computer systems. This caused some problems at first with the added weight, but the Quinar scientist found that by adding an exoskeleton to their cybernetic Centurions, they could easily handle the added weight. It worked out so well that the scientist even found they could add over fifty kilons of armored plating to the Centurions without any lose of performance."
"Amazing!" Verga whispered under his breath.
"Of course the other clans, after seeing what the Quinar and Fahtare' had done, began working on their own enhanced Centurions. They scavenged the battlefield for the remains of the fallen Centurions and removed whatever pieces they could, using them to engineer their own version of the cybernetic implants. Before long, dozens of clans were building cybernetic armies of their own. It seemed that another war was in the making and nothing could stop it."
"Nothing but one small clan that is."
"One clan?" Verga asked.
"Yes, the Shakare'" the Imperium said. "The Shakare' were one of the smaller clans to survive the Great War, having less then a hundred members when the war ended, but they were also one of the few clans that had been able to maintain some of the higher level technologies, which they kept well hidden from the other clans. They had for many millennia used these technologies to help them survive without raising the suspicions of the more powerful clans and had in fact been the first clan approached by the Enlightened One. He gave them not the plans to construct the cybernetic implants for their people, but plans to build completely mechanical Centurion's!"
The officers of the fleet began whispering amongst themselves again when they heard this. Could this be how the "Cylons" as they knew them came into being?
"The Shakare' worked in absolute secrecy for generations as they built their army of mechanical Centurions, never once letting on as to what they were doing until the day the Quinar began their next attempt to take over the planet. Little did the Quinar know it would be their last as they made the mistake of starting their conquest of Cylos with the Shakare'. The Quinar army marched into Shakare' territory, destroying everything in their path with an army numbering over two million cybernetic Centurions and half again as many flesh and blood Centurions. The Quinar army followed the course of one of the rivers that lead thru the valley of the Shakare', which was wide at one end and narrowed considerably as you progressed deeper. The narrowness of the pass forced the Quinar army to march in a long, narrow column. It was at that point the Shakare' struck."
"The Shakare' used firepowder to bring the walls of the narrow pass down on the Quinar Centurions. Nearly all of the cybernetic units and most the flesh and blood Centurions were in the pass when the firepowder was ignited. Many were the losses of the Quinar, but the battle had just begun, for the mechanical Centurions of the Shakare' attacked from both the front and the rear of the long column as well as from above on the rim of the pass. The narrowness of the pass made it impossible for the Quinar to form into their usual battle formation, thus leaving them exposed to the heavy weapons fire of the Shakare' Centurions. The cybernetic Centurions of the Quinar were the first ones to be dealt with since they were the most dangerous, but proved to be no match for the Shakare' Centurions superior size, strength, speed and firepower."
"The battle lasted only three and a half centars, but in that time, the entire Quinar army was annihilated."
"The entire army? That would have been over three million Centurions!" Bannon said, astonished that so many Centurions could be wiped out so quickly.
"Yes, the Shakare' Centurions were very efficient. Even thou they numbered only twelve thousand, they were still able to destroy a force of over three million. From that moment on, the Shakare' became the predominate clan on Cylos. They began their own campaign of conquest, using their mechanical Centurions to wipe out any resistance. Many clans submitted to the Shakare's demands without protest, afraid that they would be annihilated by the Shakare' Centurions. It took only six yahren for the Shakare' to bring the clans of Cylos under their control, and for the first time in nearly twenty millennia, the people of Cylos knew peace."
"You mean the Shakare' didn't use their army of Centurions to enslave the other clans?" Sachs asked.
"No Commander, they did not." the Imperium answered. "The Shakare' were a very peace loving clan, forced to war by the Quinar and to conquest by necessity. They knew that if there was to ever be peace on Cylos, they would have to be the ones to bring it, so they did."
"What did your people do then?" Verga asked.
"For hundreds of yahren our people lived in peace and prosperity on Cylos. We advanced our sciences and culture to heights never before achieved by our ancestors because of their constant warring. We found ways to cure diseases, found ways to feed our people more efficiently, cleaned up the land, water and air of the pollutants that we had put their thru our ignorance and war making, and we learned how to send spacecraft to other planets."
"How long ago was that?" Colonel Leon asked.
"Just short of two millennia ago." the Imperium answered. "We began by sending unoccupied missiles and probes to the nearby moons that orbit Cylos, then to the other planets in our system. After four hundred yahren of exploration and technological advancements, we were able to not only travel great spans of the galaxy in short periods of time, but we began colonizing a number of worlds to help with the problem of over population and food shortages we were beginning to experience. Before the end, we had colonized over two hundred planets in eighty three different star systems. That is where my ancestors came from, one of the farthest outlaying planets. We were the only ones to survive the "Purge."
"The "Purge?" questioned Verga.
"Yes, that is what it has become known as among my people. It is what the Centurions called it when they began their annihilation of my people."
"When did this happen? How did it all come about Imperium?" Verga asked.
"The "Purge" happened some fourteen hundred yahren ago and the tale has been told amongst my people ever since, so let me tell you how it is that we came to be as we are today." the Imperium told Verga and the others.
"Those of us here are all descended from the survivors of the agricultural colony on the planet Shirok. Our people grew many of the food crops that helped sustain the homeworld and other species with whom we had trade agreements. It was a small outpost with only ten thousand people and a Centurion garrison of a thousand that was for the defense of the colony."
"On the day of the "Purge", life started as it always had except that the communications equipment for the colony was inoperable and was being repaired. This would eventually save us, because little did any of our people know, but an old enemy was about to take revenge on us. The Enlightened One had somehow taken over one of the new "IL Series" of command automations and was about to turn our army of Centurions against us."
"How could he do that?" Bannon asked.
"Each colony had a garrison of Centurions for protection and these were sent commands thru the communications system of each colony. These messages were basically ignored by the communications operators since they were usually just reminders to do their scheduled maintenance, so they were simply sent thru to the command Centurion of each garrison without the normal screening being done. But this time the message was intercepted by the operators when they were checking the communications system to see if their repairs were done properly. When the operator discovered that the Centurions were planning to kill every Cylon in the galaxy the following day, he went to the colony leader and gave it to him. He in turn notified the other colony leaders of the Centurions plan and they formulated a way to get rid of the Centurions."
"What did they do?" Verga asked.
"The leaders decided that they would first have to find a way to disarm the Centurions, then destroy them without raising their suspicions, something not easily done as the Centurions were programmed to question anything that was not a part of their normal program, and handing over their weapons was not a part of their normal programming!"
"So how did they get the Centurions to disarm?" Verga asked.
"They gave the command Centurion a false message using the authentication code from the message ordering the Centurions to kill all of my people. Of course the Centurion confirmed the message, but that meant it would enter the code into the system to confirm it was an authentic message, not to confirm it's contents."
"The message they gave the command Centurion was that it was to assemble the garrison in the auditorium and turn over all weapons to the colony leader for his inspection and approval. The command Centurion did not understand the order, but since it had come from the Centurion command center and had been authenticated, it obeyed the order."
"Did your people try and warn the other colonies about what was going to happen?" Verga asked.
"Yes Commander, they did try to warn the other colonies, but the Centurions had begun jamming all the communications frequencies. We had no way to warn the others."
"So what happened next?" Bannon asked.
"The Centurions were assembled in the auditorium as ordered, dropping off their weapons as they entered. The colony leaders and many others took the weapons and arranged themselves in the upper level of the auditorium and when the last of the Centurions was inside and unarmed, the colonist opened fire on them. Many of the Centurions tried to reach the exits while others tried to climb the steps to the upper level. They were cut down before they could get very far however. In less then five centons, the entire garrison was destroyed. When the leaders of the colony began checking the remains of the Centurions, they found the command Centurion badly damaged but still operational among a large pile of other Centurions. When it "saw" the colony leader it responded, "By your command." The leader responded to the damaged unit, "Speak." The Centurion asked, "Why did you do this?" The leader told the Command Centurion, "Because we had to." And with that, the leader fired point blank into the command Centurion, destroying it."
The Imperium was silent for several microns before he began again.
"The leaders of the colony knew that the Centurions would want confirmation of the success of the garrison before too long, and when that did not come, they would send reinforcements to investigate. So the leaders of the colony picked one thousand of our people to stay behind and make the Centurions believe that they had killed all the others before the Centurions themselves were destroyed. The remaining members of the colony loaded whatever food and supplies they could into their transport ships and headed off into the deepest realms of space, never to return."
"Until now!" Verga said.
"Until now." the Imperium affirmed. "Now the time has come for the Cylons to take responsibility for the mistakes of our past and set things right. That is why we have returned, to destroy the Centurions. However, we need your assistance to do this. We need you to tell us everything you can about the Centurions so we will know how to deal with them most effectively. So I ask you now Commander, will you help us? Will you help us destroy the Centurions?"
Even with the electronically synthesized voice of the translation device the Imperium wore, Verga could tell that the Imperium was almost pleading for their assistance. He looked over at Commander Bannon, who seemed deep in thought as he stared at the Imperium. Then he caught Verga's eyes and in the time it takes to blink ones eyes, the two senior Commanders had discussed and agreed to help the Cylons in their quest.
"Yes Imperium, we will help you." Verga said. "We will see to it that you have access to whatever information we have concerning the Centurions."
The Imperium's expression changed slightly to what Verga believed was a smile!
"My thanks to you Commander, with your assistance, we are all but assured of victory over the Centurions now."
"I wouldn't get my hopes up too high Imperium; the Centurions are a very dangerous and powerful foe." Bannon told the Cylon leader. "Their fleet was nearly as vast in number as your own and that was nearly thirty yahren ago. There's no telling how many Baseships they have now!"
"True Commander, but we do not have a choice. The Centurions have been allowed for far too long to destroy the civilizations of others, yours included. The time has come for my people to stop that which we unleashed upon the galaxy. We may not have enough ships or weapons to defeat them, but we must try!"
"What happens if you can't destroy them?" Raylac asked.
"The Centurions will continue to destroy anyone and anything that stands in their way. They will continue until someone powerful enough to stop them does. I only hope that we are able to do it."
"I see," Verga said thoughtfully. "Tell me Imperium, what types of weapons do you plan on using?"
The Imperium sat quietly for several moments as if trying to decide whether or not to tell these total strangers what type of weapons they possessed, then he continued.
"We have a variety of weapons in our arsenal Commander, plasma cannons, missiles with five thousand kilon Octanitrocubinite warheads, one thousand giga-joule photonic mines and twenty million giga-ergon laser cannons. Why do you ask?"
Verga cast a sideways glance at Bannon and Leon before answering.
"I'm afraid that those weapons of yours won't be very effective. They're nowhere near powerful enough to stop the Centurion's top of the line Baseships." Bannon said. "We were using ten thousand kilon Solinite missiles thirty yahren ago and it always took multiple hits to destroy a baseship."
"Solinite? I am not familiar with Solinite, what is that?" the Imperium asked.
"It's an extremely powerful explosive compound that we've used in our missiles for the last six or seven hundred yahren." Bannon told him. "It's much more powerful and stable then Octanitrocubinite. One Solinite warhead has as much explosive power as a hundred Octanitrocubinite warheads."
"Perhaps you would be willing to trade some of these Solinite missiles to us?" the Imperium inquired.
"Perhaps, I will need to discuss this with my staff first however." Verga said.
"Of course Commander, I understand." the Imperium responded. "Perhaps we should meet again after you've had time think on our requests."
"That might be a good idea Imperium, when would be most convenient for you?" Verga asked.
"Let us meet again in two centars aboard my command ship. I will have a transport carry you over."
Verga nodded, "Two centars aboard your ship it is. I look forward to it. Ensign Rome will escort you back to the landing bay."
The Imperium rose from his seat and pulled the hood back over his head. Verga and Bannon stood, followed by the rest of the officers in the room. The Imperium and his entourage followed behind the young, dark haired Ensign and left the war room.
When the door slide shut behind them, the officers of the Phantom Fleet began talking in earnest. Everyone had an opinion or question about their unexpected visitors and the information reveled by them. Verga ordered the room to silence, then told each and every one of those present that everything they had just heard was classified as top secret and was not to be discussed outside of the war room. He then asked his senior staff to remain and dismissed the rest of the officers back to their duties. Once the room cleared and the senior staff was assembled, Verga began.
"What do you think Commander?" he first asked Commander Bannon.
Bannon leaned back in his seat and ran his hands thru his hair. The past centar had been more then a little tense for the people of the fleet and after having sat thru the telling of what had happened to the Cylons, Bannon was more then a bit confused.
"I don't know Commander, what the Imperium said, about their past and how the Centurions came into being and how they nearly wiped out his entire race, and now, they want to go back and destroy the Centurions … it's all so crazy."
"Yes it is." Verga agreed. "It is crazy! And there are a great number of things we need to talk over here before we meet with the Imperium, and some hard decisions to be made. Decisions we here will be making." he said looking at the assembled officers. "Decisions that will change not only our future, but the future of the Cylons, the future of the Centurions, quite possibly the future of the entire galaxy!"
Verga looked around the room at his officers and could see that they understood exactly what he was referring to. He continued.
"This is why I wanted to bring you all together, to discuss what course of action we should take. The decisions we make here today will most likely seal the fate of at least one, possibly all three of our species, Human, Cylon and Centurion, so when I ask for your opinions on this, I want you to be absolutely sure you have given this matter some very serious thought."
He paused for a moment to let them all think on this, then he went on.
"Commander Raylac, what is your opinion on the Imperium's request? Do you think we should give them solinite missiles and power boosters for their laser cannons to help them in their quest to destroy the Centurions?"
Raylac had been sitting quietly at the table, listening to the story the Imperium told. His head was still spinning at the fact that there were still real, living Cylons and he had just spent the past fifty centons listening to one tell of the downfall of their race. To say he was feeling a little overwhelmed would be an understatement. He looked up at Commander Verga finally and said: "I think Commander, that if they are dead set on doing this and we intend on helping them, then we should be willing to go all the way!"
This statement made all those present sit forward in their seats.
"What do you mean by that Commander?" Verga asked.
Raylac looked around at the face's of the other's in the room before he answered, wondering how they would respond to his answer.
"I think that if the Cylons are going to go back and fight the "Centurions" as they call them, then we need to give them all the help we can! Information is fine, but all the information in the galaxy won't help them if they have to use those old, outdated weapons! They need to have the best weapons available and those are the solinite missiles and five hundred giga-ergon laser cannons we have. If we refuse to give them these weapons, we'll be sending them to their deaths."
The other officers in the room sat very quietly as Raylac looked around at their faces, trying to read their thoughts. He wasn't sure if he had said something wrong or not, but he did say what was on his mind and that was what Commander Verga said he wanted. After a pause that seemed to last forever, Colonel Leon spoke.
"Commander Verga, I have to agree with Commander Raylac. We can't let the Cylons face the Centurions with those antiquated weapons, they wouldn't stand a chance. I believe we should give them some of our missiles, after all, we have several freighters loaded with over twenty thousand extra missiles."
Verga nodded his head slowly in agreement, then he turned to Commander Bannon.
"And what do think old friend? Are you in favor of giving them weapons to fight the Centurions?"
Bannon had been staring at the tabletop with his hands teepeed in front of his face, deep in thought. Without raising his gaze from the table, he responded.
"I think that even if we did share our weapons technology with the Cylons and give them every scrap of information we have about the Centurions, the Cylons would still fail."
The other officers all looked at Bannon questioningly as he continued.
"We all know that having superior weaponry is no guarantee of victory. The Centurions had better weapons then we did for hundreds of yahren, but we were still able to hold our own because of our ability to think and act as individuals, to be unpredictable."
The officers all nodded in agreement.
"And any information we give the Cylons will be nearly thirty yahren out of date. Granted, it will be a lot more recent then what they may already have, but there's no telling what kinds of advancements the Centurions have made during the past thirty yahren!"
Many of the officers nodded their heads in agreement as Bannon continued.
"And I hate to say it, but, as resolute as the Cylon Imperium is, and as impressive as the size of their fleet is, I have to ask myself a question … when the battle starts, how will the Cylons react? How will they respond once they're faced with the full fury of the Centurion war machine?"
Again they all nodded in agreement.
"They've lived far from effects of war for hundreds of yahren, how will they react when they start taking casualties? Do they have any true military leadership in their fleet? How much experience have they had in battle? These are all questions I would like answered before we start handing over our top of the line weapons to what could very well be a bunch of novices!"
Verga and the others all nodded their agreement with what Bannon had just said. They really did need to find out more about the Cylons and their fleet before they committed themselves to supplying weapons to the Cylons.
"So what do you suggest we do Commander?" Verga asked.
It was then that Bannon dropped another bombshell on the senior staff.
"I suggest …" Bannon began as he looked into the faces of the others, "that we join the Cylons and help them destroy the Centurions!"
The room exploded with both protests and endorsements to Bannon's suggestion as every officer in the room began voicing their opinions on why Bannon was right or wrong and what they thought should be done.
All except Commander Verga.
Verga sat quietly in his seat, staring at Bannon, who was in turn staring back at Verga. Neither of the two men heard the chaos that was going on around them as they were locked into another of their mental conversations. Though neither said a word, they had in a matter of a few microns gone over all the details of Bannon's suggestion and had resolved to a plan of action. When he had made up his mind, Commander Verga rose from his seat and motioned for silence. The other officers quieted down quickly and looked at Verga intently.
"I've heard Commander Bannon's recommendation, and I've just heard your endorsements and protests regarding it. You all bring up some good points, many of which I, for the most part agree with." Verga began as he looked around the table at the faces of his officers. "There are many negatives in joining with the Cylons, not the least of which is the fact that we know nothing about them! I also see the wisdom of Commander Bannon's idea however. If we were to give the Cylon's some of our more advanced weapons, there is no guarantee that they would succeed in defeating the Centurions on their own. As Commander Bannon said, we really have no idea how much experience these Cylons have with warfare, they could just as easily blow themselves up with our weapons as they could the Centurions."
Verga looked around the room and could see that everyone seemed to understand his point so he continued. "As far as I can tell, the only true strength this Cylon fleet has is their overwhelming numbers and their single mindedness of commitment."
The other officers nodded their heads in agreement.
"Now, if we were to join the Cylon's and return to the Cyrannus System, give them weapons and train them to use those weapons systems properly, I believe that we could defeat the Centurions, or at the very least push them out of the colonies and retake our homeworlds!"
This brought more consenting nods from the officers.
"Now I know there will be more then a few problems with trying to integrate our fleet with theirs, especially when you consider that we would have to take on the leadership role with them. I don't know if they would accept that or not, but I think if there is even a slight chance of success, then we will have to join the Cylons and return to our home galaxy."
Everyone in the room was silent for a good long time, each person lost in his or her own thoughts on the matter. After nearly a full centon, it was Commander Raylac that was the first to speak up.
"I don't know about the rest of you…" he began, looking at the others in the room. "but I'd like nothing better then to face off with the Cylons … or Centurions … or whatever you want to call em once and for all, because personally, I'm sick and tired of running away and hiding from those two cubit tin cans!"
Raylac stood up, towering over all those in the room and continued.
"First we're hidden away at Phantom Base building a bunch of new Battlestars while Cain and the Fifth Fleet were being wiped out at Molocay, then we stayed hidden away safe and sound while the Colonies were being decimated and when the frakkin Cyl … Centurions … find us, what do we do? We run away again! I am sick and tired of running away like some kind of whipped daggit! I say we join the Cylons and fight!"
Several of the other officers echoed Raylac's sentiments as they too had become disenchanted with constantly being on the move since Phantom Base was discovered so many yahren ago, but had until now never voiced their opinions. Verga listened to them for several moments before he spoke again.
"What of the rest of you, how many think we should join the Cylons in their quest?" Verga asked.
"I think it's far too risky for us to join the Cylons." Commander Sachs said. "I mean think about it, for all we know, we're the only human beings left in the universe. If that's the case, we owe it to ourselves and our children to do whatever it takes to insure the survival of our species. I don't think joining the Cylons would be in our best interest."
"I agree with Commander Sachs!" Commander Andrea added. "We can't afford to sail off into battle with civilians onboard. Our first priority has to be to protect our people!"
Commander Verga nodded his head solemnly as he listened, then he turned to Colonel Leon and asked for his opinion. Leon looked around the table for a moment, his gaze lingering on Sachs and Andrea.
"With all due respect to Commander Sachs and Commander Andrea, it is my opinion that it would be nothing less then an act of sheer cowardice to leave the Cylons to fend for themselves against the Centurions!"
Sachs and Andrea immediately came out of their seats and began to protest Leon's accusation but were instantly halted by Commander Verga. Once both senior officers were reseated, Verga indicated to Colonel Leon to continue.
"We all heard the Cylon Imperium's report as to their weapons status and we know that they wouldn't stand a chance in Hades of beating the Centurions with those antiquated weapons." He said looking around at the faces of the other officers. "And I think we are all in agreement that we can't just give the Cylons weapons because we have no idea if they would be able to use them properly. So the two choices we're left with are that we run away with our tails between our legs like a bunch of scared daggets or, we join with the Cylons and crush the Centurions like empty drink containers!"
"And what about the civilians onboard our ships?" Sachs asked sarcastically. "Do you expect us to drag them along with us into battle?"
"As far as I'm concerned Commander, there's no such thing a "civilian" anymore! Not since the fall of the Colonies and the destruction of Phantom Base! Since the day we left Phantom Base, every man, woman and child on these ships has had to become a "Warrior". But, if you or anyone else here is worried about the "civilians" as you call them amongst our people, then I'd say you should feel free to take them to a safe place and stay there with them and leave the fighting to the real Warriors!"
"How dare you speak to me like that!" Commander Sachs began before once again being halted by Commander Verga, who turned to Colonel Leon and said, "Colonel, I understand your feelings on this matter, but you will show proper respect to your fellow officers, especially those of senior grade. Do you understand me Colonel?"
Leon nodded his head curtly and said, "Yes sir!" He cast a hard glare at Commander Sachs, then at Commander Verga's behest, he continued.
"With our present weapons and the advancements Doctor Haley has made with his "micro-wavelon" generators, we should be able to disable any Centurion vessel we encounter well before we're in their weapons range and then destroy it with ease."
"What's the range on Doctor Haley's micro-wavelon generators?" Commander Bannon asked.
"He says he's had successful tests on his test Centurions out to a range of half a million metrons."
"Half a million metrons!" Bannon exclaimed. "That's ten times the Centurions weapons range, at that range they wouldn't even get a shot off."
"Exactly!"
"What sort of effect do these micro-wavelons have on the Centurions Colonel? How do they work?" Verga asked.
"The micro-wavelons cause disruptions in the neuro-electric functions of the Centurion's systems, it's not too dissimilar to a seizure in a human being. It renders them incapable of any type of normal, voluntary function, thus, they become totally incapacitated … easy pickings!"
This brought a chuckle from all the officers in the room, including Commander Sachs.
"How long does this effect last Colonel?" Verga asked.
"As long as the Centurions are in range sir, and we can maintain the micro-wavelons indefinitely. They use very little energy, even at full power."
Verga sat quietly in his seat, lost in thought over what he had just heard. After several microns, he spoke.
"Commander Sachs, you brought up several very good points as to why we should not join the Cylons. Like you, I believe we do have a responsibility to our people to try and preserve our species and that taking our entire population into battle is not the best idea in the galaxy, but our only alternative is, as Colonel Leon so eloquently suggested," Verga said with a smile at Colonel Leon, who smiled slightly. "is to transfer all of our non-combatants to one of the Battlestars and send it off to a safe zone. This I find difficult to do since I believe we would need every ship in the fleet to defeat the Centurions. By joining the Cylons and augmenting their weapons systems with ours, we stand a good chance of beating the Centurions and winning back the Colonies."
"So we're going to join the Cylons?" Sachs asked solemnly, already knowing the answer.
"Yes Commander, I think that even thou there is a great deal of risk involved, it is still in the best interest of our people to join the Cylons." Verga told her. Then to the others he said, "Commander Bannon, Colonel Leon, you two will accompany me over to the Cylon Imperium's ship. Commander Raylac, you will be in command of the fleet until I return. I want you to begin making preparations for the installation of our weapons systems into the Cylon fleets vessels. I know we can't outfit every ship in their fleet with the updated systems, but we can do as many as possible now and then begin building more components for the rest on the way back to the Cyrannus System. Commander Sachs, I want you to make a list of all the non-combatants in the fleet, anyone you feel should not be involved in the upcoming battle. If there's time before we engage the Centurions, we'll try and move them to the auxiliary vessels and send them off to a safer location, just in case you're right and we do fail, at least they might have a chance to get away. Commander Andrea, you will organize a training program for the Cylons in the proper operation of the weapons systems we will be giving them. I want them to become as proficient in those systems as our own people. Commander Goff, you will organize a schedule of war games for our fleet and begin conducting them in earnest … but do so well away from the Cylons. We don't want them to get the wrong idea."
This brought a few chuckles from everyone.
"The rest of you are to start making your ships as battle ready as possible. Begin scheduling battle drills for your crews and when Commander Goff gets the schedule together, begin working on your fleet maneuvers. Lords know we're rusty enough. Any questions?"
No questions were forthcoming so Verga dismissed his officers with the exception of Bannon, Raylac and Leon.
"Raylac, I want you to hold the fleet at "Alert One" status. I don't expect any problems from the Cylons, but I think it's only wise to be ready."
"Yes sir!" Raylac replied and left to return to his ship.
"You two go get something to eat real quick and put on your dress uniforms. We'll all meet in Alpha landing bay in fifty centons, don't be late!"
Bannon and Leon both nodded and left to change uniforms and grab a bite to eat. Exactly fifty centons later in Alpha landing bay, the three Warriors waited for the Cylon shuttle that the Imperium had sent for them to land. They could see the Cylon shuttle as it made its final approach and they were rather surprised by the crafts sleek design. It was nothing like the clumsy looking "flying box" the Colonies used and that they themselves carried aboard the ships of the fleet. It was nearly a work of art.
The small craft sailed smoothly over the threshold of the landing bay and continued on until it was only a dozen metrons from Commander Verga and his group, where it set down with but the faintest of thuds. The three Warriors were impressed by the skill demonstrated by the pilot.
The engines were still winding down when the hatch of the Cylon shuttle opened and a short, stocky Cylon in what appeared to be a uniform exited the shuttle and approached Commander Verga and his officers. He stopped a few steps from the Warriors and looked them up and down.
"Are you the Commander?" he asked thru the translator device.
"Yes, I'm Commander Verga. This is Commander Bannon and Colonel Leon." Verga replied.
The pilot looked from Verga to the other two and then said, "I have been sent by the Imperium to bring you to our ship. Follow me."
And without waiting to see if they had understood, the pilot turned and reentered the shuttle. The three Warriors exchanged amused looks and followed the pilot aboard the shuttle.
The Cylon shuttle was not as large as the Colonial version with its low profile and sleek design, but was very functional. It was made of a strange metal that gave it a dark, iridescent glow with shades of black, violet and blue. It also was armed with what appeared to be half a dozen laser cannons giving this transport the look of a fighter rather then a simple shuttle.
The three humans entered the transport and found the overhead to be quite low, forcing them to walk slightly hunched over. In the main compartment they found several rows of seats, all on the smallish side but not so much as to be too uncomfortable. As they each took their seats and strapped themselves in Verga watched with interest as the pilot made ready for takeoff. He listened to the cross talk between the flight controller on the bridge of the Genesis and the pilot hoping to pick up more of the Cylon language. He had listened to the conversation they had earlier with the Cylon Imperium and believed he was starting to get a grasp on the basics of the Cylon language. The pilot turned in his seat and said, "Stand by for departure."
Less then five centons had past from the time the Cylon transport landed in the Genesis's landing bay to the time they were off the deck and exiting the landing bay, headed for the Cylon Flagship. The humans were amazed at the speed of the transport as it soared thru space toward the Cylon fleet, it seemed they were flying at nearly the same speed as one of their Vipers, only in a shuttle! They were quite impressed.
Verga listened to the pilot as he called in to his flight control for landing instructions and was surprised that he was able to understand the majority of the conversation between the Cylons. This he thought could come in handy if things began to go sour.
Bannon was busy looking out the front veiwport as they approached the Cylon fleet. He marveled at the number of vessels he saw and the design of them. Every ship he saw seemed to be made of the same iridescent material which caused them to effectively blend into the backdrop of space and the variety of shapes and sizes of the vessels was fascinating! Every ship he saw was heavily laden with what appeared to be laser cannons and missile launching tubes. Had he not known how imputant the Cylon firepower truly was, he would be quite leery of these vessels.
Leon spent his time during the flight to the Cylon flagship studying the various pieces of equipment, the panels and the displays in the passenger cabin, trying to figure out what each one did and how he could use them aboard their ships or redesign them to better do their job.
The flight from the Genesis to the Cylon flagship took less then ten centons to complete and when the officers of the Phantom Fleet saw the Cylon flagship, they were awe struck. It looked to be well over forty kilometrons long and five kilometrons at its widest juncture and had to have hundreds upon hundreds of decks as it was as tall top to bottom as the Genesis was long! As the transport moved in closer, details that could not be seen before came into view, things like the thousands of laser turrets that seemed to cover every square micrometron of the massive vessel or the hundreds of missile launch tubes that were aligned in dozens of banks all along the hull. There were also dozens of landing bays along both the top and the bottom of the flagship.
"This is going to be one Hades of a warship once we put our weapons systems in her!" Bannon whispered to Verga as they both stared out at the Cylon flagship.
"Having second thoughts my friend?" Verga asked.
"No, not at all." Bannon responded. "I just would hate to be the one the Cylons were pointing this thing at. Even with the under powered lasers and antiquated missiles, this thing could do some real damage.
"Indeed it could!" Verga said.
"We will be landing in one centon. Be sure you are secure in your seats!" the pilots said thru the translator. The three humans checked their restraints to insure they were tight. They stared out the viewport as the pilot maneuvered the transport thru a jumble of other small craft till it was lined up with one of the dorsal landing bays. The pilot's approach was as smooth as any made by the pilots of the Phantom fleet and the landing was so soft, one hardly felt the transport touch down on the deck.
The pilot had already shut down the transports engines and was heading for the hatch before Verga, Bannon and Leon had managed to release their restraints and stand up. The pilot called back to the three humans to follow him and he exited without waiting for a response. Verga and the others just smiled and headed for the exit. When they exited the craft, they found themselves in a cavernous landing bay that was as full of activity as a Battlestars during a combat launch. Everywhere one looked, Cylon workers were busily going about their tasks, stopping only when they noticed the strange newcomers exiting the transport. Within a matter of a few microns, the once noisy bay had gone as silent as the vacuum of space as every Cylon eye was locked onto the three humans. This was quickly commented on by Colonel Leon.
"I guess they've never seen a human before?"
"Probably not!" Bannon answered.
"Well I'll tell ya this, the way their looking at us, I'm not sure if their just extremely curious about us or their sizing us up for their next meal!"
Bannon and Leon both laughed a little at this. The Cylon pilot, who had been walking next to Commander Verga heard their comments and turned to look back at the two officers. Then he looked away and said, "Both!"
This caused both of the officers to immediately cease their laughter and begin looking at the Cylon workers more cautiously. The pilot turned to Verga, who was looking down at their escort, and winked. Verga looked straight ahead and smiled broadly as the group walk to the turbolift.
The pilot led them from the turbolift to a small platform where they all entered a small, spherically shaped conveyance and were transported at an extremely high rate of speed to another small platform. The trip took only a few centons but must have covered five or six kilometrons. They then walked a short distance down a rather plain and unadorned passageway to a rather large pair of doors. The pilot pressed a button next to the door and a voice was heard from the speaker under the button. The pilot responded and a micron later, the doors slide open. The pilot turned to Verga and said, "You and your people may enter!"
Verga looked into the dark, smoke filled room and then back to their escort.
"Aren't you coming with us?" he asked.
The pilot glanced into the room then shook his head.
"I am not allowed to enter the Great Hall." he said as he cast his eyes at the deck.
Verga and the others exchanged confused glances and Verga said, "In that case, we thank you for your assistance."
The pilot tilted his head to one side as if not understanding, then he gave what looked to Verga to be a smile and walked off. The three humans watched their escort walk away for a moment then they entered the Great Hall.
They traversed a short passageway that led into a massive chamber. The room was filled with smoke from the many torches along the walls and a huge fire pit in a center of the room. These were only light sources in the chamber that Verga could see. The temperature and humidity in the room were much higher then Verga and his men were use to but would be tolerable for a short period. As the three humans entered the main room and their eyes began to adjust, they could see that the room was full of Cylons, all sitting around the fire pit, listening to the Imperium, who was seated nearest the fire pit on a large dais. When the three humans came into view of the room's occupants, all conversation stopped and every eye became riveted on them.
Leon turned to Bannon and whispered, "I feel like the last mushie on a plate in a room full of six yahren olds!"
Bannon nodded silently as Commander Verga stepped closer to the Imperium and to everyone's surprise, he greeted the Imperium in his own language!
The room came to life with the sounds of rapid conversation as the Cylons marveled at the human that spoke their language. The Imperium silenced the room and then turned to Verga and said, "We are impressed Commander! How did you learn our language so quickly?"
"I've always had a knack for languages Imperium, so I simply played back our first meeting a few times and was able to learn the basics of your language."
The Imperium nodded his head, saying, "Interesting!"
Verga looked around the room a moment before he went on.
"I think it's important that we try to understand each other better if we are to become allies in the war against the Centurions."
Again the room was abuzz with the sounds of conversations. Even the Imperium was talking excitedly to one of his people seated near by. Verga strained to hear what was being said, but could only catch bits and pieces as the Cylons were talking over one another. Finally, the Imperium silenced the room and spoke to Commander Verga.
"Does this mean you will share your weapons with us Commander?"
"It means Imperium, that we will not only share our weapons technology with you, but we will train your people how to install it, how to operate it, how to use it to its maximum effect and how to build more of it."
This news brought about another round of loud conversation amongst the Cylons of which Verga was able to discern that most of it was positive. The Imperium stared at Verga for a moment before silencing the room.
"That is indeed good news Commander. I swear to you that we will put it to good use."
The Imperium paused for a micron then asked, "Is there more Commander?"
"Indeed there is Imperium." Verga started, looking at the other Cylons in the room. "We have determined that the best way to increase the odds of victory over the Centurions is to join you in your quest to destroy the Centurions!"
There was a prolonged silence in the room as the Cylons waited for, then repeated the translation of what Verga had just said to come thru the translators. Then the room erupted in loud conversation, much of which Verga could tell was not positive. Bannon and Leon both looked around the room apprehensively as the Cylons became much louder and agitated.
After several microns the Imperium rose from his seat and tried to silence the room, but was not immediately successful, so in a surprisingly quick move, The Imperium pulled a laser pistol from his robe and fired several blasts into the air. This had the desired effect as all conversations ceased immediately. The Imperium looked around the room with what Verga interpreted as a threatening look as every Cylon in the room averted their eyes from the Imperium when he looked their way. With things back under control, the Imperium returned the laser pistol to its place in his robe and spoke to Verga.
"You wish to join us Commander? Why?"
"Because Imperium, we have as much reason to want the Centurions destroyed as you do." Verga said to the Imperium, then to all the Cylons he said, "And alone, neither of our forces can defeat the Centurions. Your weapons are inadequate for the task and my fleet has too few ships, but together, we can achieve victory. You have the raw numbers of ships and personnel and we have the technology. By combining our forces, we can destroy the Centurions and reclaim our homeworlds, humans and Cylons!"
This brought about some low conversations of which Verga was certain were of a positive nature. Perhaps the Cylons would accept an alliance with them.
"My people have fought the Centurions for over a thousand yahren and we know what it will take to defeat them. With your help, we can do just that, but it will take great sacrifices on all our parts to achieve victory. Sacrifices that some may not want to make!"
"Whatever sacrifices are needed Commander, we will make." the Imperium said.
"Even if that means my people taking command?" Verga asked.
The pause between Verga's question and the translation seemed to be centars long, causing Verga to truly worry about an alliance with the Cylons for the first time. Then, after an extended length of time, the Imperium spoke.
"I have disconnected the translators to the others Commander. I think that had they understood your statement, they might have become violent."
Verga exchanged looks with Bannon and Leon, then turned back to the Imperium.
"I take it that you and your people would not accept my people's leadership in this war?"
"They will do as I tell them Commander, but as you have already seen, my people are somewhat … reactionary! Had they heard the translation of what you said, they might have tried to do you and your people harm."
"I see!" Verga said nodding his head slowly.
"My people have not dealt with many other species before and have never taken orders from any but me. I agree with you Commander in that you should command our forces against the Centurions, but my people will find it most difficult to accept orders from anyone other then myself or my officers."
"So what should we do Imperium?" Verga asked.
"For now, you and your people will return to your fleet. I will speak with my people and explain to them what is going to happen. Once I have had time to explain what we are doing, they will follow your commands as thou they are coming from me."
The three humans exchanged unconvinced looks. The Imperium must have sensed this because he said, "Trust me Commander, they will follow your orders or they will die!"
Again the three exchanged looks but said nothing.
"There is a pilot waiting outside to return you to your vessel. You will hear from me shortly Commander." the Imperium said as he stood again and bowed.
The three humans followed suit and then departed.
In the passageway, they found their pilot. It was the same one that had brought them to the Cylon flagship, at least they were fairly sure it was. He led them thru the giant ship back to the landing bay and aboard the transport without uttering a word. The three officers took their seats and remained silent during the entire voyage back to the Genesis. Once the transport had landed and the hatch opened, Bannon and Leon left the ship straight away while Verga moved to the cockpit and asked the pilot why he was so quite. After several microns, the pilot turned and said, "My superiors were displeased with me."
"Why?" Verga asked, concern evident in his voice.
"They said I should not have spoken to you, that I am not worthy of speaking to you." the pilot said, his eyes downcast.
Verga was taken aback by this. He could not believe a race as advanced as the Cylons could treat one of their own in such a manner.
"Then we'll keep our little chats between the two of us, okay!"
The pilot raised his eyes and this time Verga was sure the pilot smiled.
With that, Verga turned and left the transport.
Several centars passed before the Cylon Imperium made contact with Commander Verga, who had spent the time listening to and repeating back the recording of the two meetings with the Cylons. He had, in just those few conversations, picked up and become rather adapt in the use of the Cylon language. Now he thought, he would have the opportunity to use it.
"Greetings Imperium!" Verga started out in his best Cylon. "What news have you for us?"
The Imperium's voice came thru the speakers in the Genesis's War Room, only this time they did not hear the now familiar electronic translator but the true voice of the Imperium.
"Your Cylon has improved Commander! I'm impressed!"
"It is a fascinating language Imperium. I hope to learn more of it in the future."
"Indeed!"
"So have you come to a decision?" Verga asked.
"Yes Commander, I have." the Imperium said. "I have given orders to all those of my fleet that we will be joined by your people in our quest to destroy the Centurions and that you Commander will have overall command of the fleet!"
Verga nodded his head slowly, understanding what the Imperium was saying.
"How did your people take the news about taking orders from humans?" Verga ventured.
"They were not very enthusiastic about the prospect Commander, but after I explained the alternative, they were more then receptive." the Imperium replied. "So Commander, what do we do now?"
"Now Imperium, we start preparing to end the reign of the Centurions!"
