Chapter 25:

Valhallus

Day 204, 14:00 VT (Valhallus Time)

A bump jolted Spinner as his car bounced along the early stages of a track. The cold wind was blowing his hair everywhere, but he didn't care. The crude vehicle he was driving had no real concept of suspension, and so they felt every bump. He and Don Cook had been friend since they first started flight school. They ran off base on their days off many times and drove around the local farms and towns on Leonis with the roof down just like this. Those were different times, but for this brief moment, they felt the same.

This car had no trim, no detail, no comfort. It was a rough metal frame with exposed bolts and wires tucked everywhere. It was one of the first they had managed to push through Hyperion's Viper fabricators, and in the past few days they had been putting it through its paces. Formally, this was a stress test. They had been sent across the rugged landscape of this planet they had landed on after five weeks of jumping and searching to test the car's viability of cross-country exploration. It was designed to make more than about 50 kilometres an hour, but Spinner was managing to get it up to basically double that as they raced back home.

Twinkle-toe grabbed the roll cage above Spinner's head and began to pull himself up. "Take nice and straight for a minute mate," he said as he climbed. The Captain stood himself up full on the passenger seat and through the roll cage, flinging out his arms and feeling the air rush over him. Valhallus was a cold world, suspected to be experiencing an ice age. There were some more welcoming climates around the planet's equator, but they had ended up setting up a settlement in the most resource rich region, which was closer to the ice sheets and surrounded by pine forests in every direction. This meant that the wind could be a biting cold, but the rush of it was beyond exhilarating.

After a few more bumps that almost made him fall out of his seat, Spinner's co-driver sat himself back down again as they raced on. They were driving over an open plateau, above the forested valleys they were making their home in. This plateau stretched out far, and was far easier to traverse than the lush ground around the river banks below. Following their compass, they were heading dead on back to the settlement, and in due course, the ground began to lower before the view opened out ahead of them.

To the left of them as they had been driving was one winding river valley, which is what they had been following originally. They had dipped down a few times to take a couple of soil and water samples and to assess the ruggedness of the terrain, but the tall trees had been too densely packed to be able to drive far through. As they drove on now along the top of the hill, the tips of these impossibly tall pines stuck up from the valley floor, which averaged around 80-100 metres below the surface of the relatively flat plateaus, as they reached desperately up for the infrequently seen sunlight. Proper sunshine was so rare here that in the month and a half that they had spent on the planet, there had only been 12 days of clear skies to warm them.

They pulled up as the reached the best view of them all. The hill fell away before them revealing a wide-open valley. This valley surrounded the fork of two rivers and their own associated valleys, created a much wider valley than the steep-sided ones that fed it. The tree cover within the valley was also less, and the trees not as tall. From here, the river itself even meandered a bit as it began to widen. They were still a fair way from the nearest sea that this water would end up in, but from recon flights it seemed that this river just grew and grew in width. This vantage point also gave a good position to observe the settlement itself. In many ways, it reflected the city they had begun constructing on Kobol, but much of their materials like tents and metal scaffolding had been left behind in the evacuation. As such, this new wave of colonists was having to start with more primitive materials, and ships were kept nearby in case of quick evacuation.

For the next fifteen minutes, Spinner made his way steadily back down the hill and through the brush, eventually able to cross the river at a snail's pace using banks of gravel in the stream of the river they had been following that created a natural ford. On this eastern bank, the tree cover had originally been thin, but as they drove south into the beginnings of the settlement, they drove through chopped up soil where hundreds of trees had been felled to make space. These trees were all being repurposed of course though, as in replacement of the tents left behind on Kobol, almost all of the new structures were made from Valhallan timber.

The settlement itself was constructed a short way back from the river, as surveyors suspected that this river was likely to flood in extreme weather. So far almost all of the buildings constructed had been homes or storage huts, but there were already plans for shops and outlets for distributing goods and hopefully in the future, trading.

Similarly to the Kobol settlement, this new city was being centred on the same old cargo ship that had been in the process of being hollowed out. For the time being, this was turned into a Fleet headquarters, with old shipping containers having been turned into offices inside the large hall. When they pulled up to the open bay doors and rolled inside, there were very few people around. A couple of engineers and civilians were milling about, but otherwise it was empty. This came as no shock to Spinner though, for he already knew that he was late.

As the pair of pilots ran back out of the ship-turned-building and into the muddy square, they joined the back of a crowd gathered around a cobbled together stage flanked on either side by a Viper and a Raptor. On the stage speaking from a podium was a civilian dressed in a tatty suit and various Fleet officers, including the Admiral himself. Spinner led the two of them through the crowd while the civilian – who was a senior member of the Citizen's Committee, initially set up on Kobol shortly after arrival, and now representing the civilians in official affairs –

The man, Markas Zanfari, was speaking at length about perseverance and the indomitable human spirit. He praised the military for what they had done to protect them, and thanked all of the people for their hard work. Thankfully for Spinner, this speech was dull enough that they were easily able to push through to near the front, as Zanfari sat down and the Admiral stood up.

"Thank you everyone. A lot was said there about the strength we have all shown in these last months. I don't have to tell any of you what we have lost, continued to lose and managed to overcome. I appreciate that our journey here was not smooth, and that we have not always been honest with you all. For that I am sorry. However I do hope that in this case, the result we have ended up with, for now, can help you to understand.

"I began my service during the war, the first war. I was a foolish boy who wanted to fly into the stars to avenge the atrocities he saw on his screens and heard on the wireless. When that war ended, I was a man, but it is not war that moulds us from boys to men, or girls to women. The men and women around me that I served with did that. Let us not forget what started our journey here today, the billions we lost, and the many who gave their lives since to see us here. I have seen extraordinary valour and courage in the people I have had the honour of serving with. On the few times I was able to get away from my duties and see all of you who we protect, I was not just reminded of 'why' we have been fighting. I did not see a cliché, I did not see helpless innocents that required protecting. I saw a people who had a fierce desire to survive. In the times you rallied against me and the dark that we kept you in, I saw your fighting spirit. This is why we have survived. It is not because of luck. It is certainly not because of superior firepower. We have survived until now due to our inability to do anything else. Our ability to see our way through any problem and to come out fighting every time.

"While we have not encountered the Cylons for weeks now, they are still out there. Our war is by no means won. But there is hope in me that we may at least now have found a home. A home that we can fight for. We were not given the chance to fight for our home in the Twelve Colonies, but now we have the chance to fight for this one. We will grow, we will prepare, and I'm sure that we will be back on the offensive sooner than even I may realise.

"In the spirit of home, and this place that we are already beginning to thrive in, I would like to come to the reason you are all gathered here with us today."

Behind the Admiral, a group of Fleet engineers began hauling up a large wooden sign, shrouded in cloth. When it was fully righted, it sat above the stage, and a rope was brought over by a marine and handed to him.

"We were never on Kobol long enough to truly make it home. While we are still new here, more and more of you talk of this place as a home. But, despite the location, the resources, the chance even to experience peace, one of the most crucial aspects of a home is its name. Our teams have been debating this decision almost since the day we arrived, and it is now my honour to bestow it."

He tugged on the rope and the shroud fell down to the floor, revealing a sign painted with the flags of all Twelve Colonies, in front of which was written in large letters: Olympion.

"May you, the people of Olympion, rise to claim this world, and may we, the human race, rise to see a day when we are no longer looking over our shoulder, but ahead to the future. Thank you."

Battlestar Hyperion, Hangar Deck

Valhallus Orbit

Day 204, 18:26 VT

A wave of noise erupted as the lift doors opened and the Raptor was wheeled out into the hangar amongst a mass of deckhands, pilots, officers, anyone who could fit into the now cramped space. Cheers and applause met the Admiral as the Raptor door swung open to reveal him. Emily stood in the middle of the crowd, watching as the Admiral waved back, almost shyly. As he stood, taking in his crew, he caught Emily's eye. She gave him a salute, which he returned, and then so did almost everybody else. He stepped down off the Raptor and tried to find a parting in the crowd. Emily saw this and pushed her way through. Across shoulders, he shouted to her "You didn't have to plan a party Colonel."

"I didn't sir," she shouted back. "They all heard your speech."

He smiled, and greeted the first person in front of him, an officer from the Landing Signals team. They shook hands, and he turned to the next, an engineer from FTL, and then to a deckhand from the other hangar deck, and the next, and the next. Emily stood and watched this go on for a while, she wasn't sure how long. Captain Gemini sidled over to her, dressed up in her blues uniform.

"Really the man of the people huh?" Hera asked, giving Emily a nudge.

"I think he's become a surrogate father for a lot of us since the Fall," Emily said, still watching on. "We all know how it was when Kobol was attacked and he wasn't here."

"Well I mean I was outside, but yeah…" She trailed off. "But you were here right? We all were. Don't get me wrong, I have as much love for the Admiral as anyone else here, he's kept us alive and made decisions almost none of us ever could. But I hope everyone remembers that we all got each other through this. Even you lot up in there in the gods' are a key part in keeping us alive and fighting out there, and these guys alive and working down here. That was what his speech was about after all."

"Harriet Gemini: philosopher. I never thought I'd see the day."

Emily knew that godsforsaken voice anywhere. Spinner strutted up behind them and reached his arms around them.

"Sorry Spin, forgot that you couldn't remember what it was a have a deep thought," Hera clapped back.

"Well as touching as this all is, what would touch me even more is a date with Miss Ambrosia," Spinner said, a smile gleaming across his face. "I'll see you all down there?"

"I'm already on my way," Lieutenant Gemini said, turning to follow as the ship's CAG started walking away. Before she walked off, she reached a hand back on Emily's shoulder. "Don't work too hard. Take the evening off with us, we've all earnt it."

Emily patted her friend's hand on her shoulder before Hera pulled it back and marched off, arm in arm with Spinner and a growing number of pilots as they headed for the officer's mess. She stood for a bit longer and waited for the Admiral as he finally finished up meeting all those who wanted to shake his hand.

Eventually he finished up as the crowd began to disperse. He came over to Emily, and gestured for her to follow.

"Walk with me Colonel," he said.

"It was a good speech sir," she said, shuffling to keep up with him.

"It seemed to go down alright at least…" The Admiral paused, looking over at her. "Am I keeping you from celebrations Emily? We can discuss this stuff in the morning."

She shook her head. "No sir, let's discuss this now."

"You're sure? I designated this day for celebrations and reflections. Admin can wait just this once."

"No sir. I'd rather get it done now. We can catch up."

He chuckled, finding her diligence amusing. "Indeed we can… You know, Commander Virgon once asked me, after I promoted you up to Lieutenant Colonel, if I saw something of myself in you? I'd always appreciated your insights, and even as a Junior Lieutenant I saw something in your mind. When I was your age, back during the first War, I'd have let nothing stop me from going back to the officer's mess and drinking myself silly, just like Major Halway and the others. I'd never have dreamed of choosing to do more work."

Emily chuckled, but she wasn't entirely sure if he was paying her a compliment or a friendly insult. "Um, thank you sir? I would just rather get the important things done, I can't relax otherwise."

"See, when I was in your position I'd have said there was always something to do, so might as well try and forget about it for a while."

"That's what Spinner says as well…"

"Exactly. When you spend your days flying amongst the stars and dodging rounds flying from every direction, filling out paperwork is simply unthinkable."

"I can't say I enjoy it either sir. That's why I don't want to have to deal with it tomorrow. There's a reason Spinner's squadron lists always come back late."

"My squadron lists came back late too."

Emily stopped, and the Admiral did as well, looking back at her. "Sir, I'm confused. Are you leading to telling me something?"

He chuckled. "Oh, no I'm not about to promote Major Halway."

"Sorry sir. Forgive me, I don't want to be presumptive, but I don't see the relevance to-"

"I just wanted to tell you Emily, that I admire your mind, specifically because it is not like mine. Commander Virgon asked me if I thought I saw myself in you somehow, but I told him I didn't, in fact I couldn't see myself in you at all. You don't like flying, you have a methodical mind, and you aren't afraid to express yourself. All those are things I thought I would be better off with. Did I ever tell you the story of my first senior promotion?"

She thought for a moment, briefly stepping out of the way of a passer-by down the corridor they were definitely blocking. "Not in detail sir."

"Well," The Admiral started walking again. From her years watching him work, Emily had long since learnt that he always seemed to think better when he was moving. "After briefly captaining an Adamant-class, I was taken back to the Battlestar Columbia, where I had first started flying in the Fleet. I had overlooked things, and generally not kept the crew in line like I had been able to with my fighter squadrons. After a few more missions, we were attacked, and our XO was wounded and sent back to Scorpia to rest up. Now, at least point I'm only a squadron leader, my role as CAG had been taken when I left so now here I was, a Major who only had 15 pilots under me. But as I said, Colonel Hauger was injured so Admiral Nasri came to me and asked me to fill in as her XO. I was XO for a few months, and in that time I only had to take command once, which was a shambles. I spent far too much time listening to what everyone else had to say, particularly the pilots outside, and didn't decide fast enough to manoeuvre to stop our engines being damaged and a section being vented into space. Instead of dismissing me or even really scolding me, Admiral Nasri apologised for leaving me in that situation, and began to teach me, really teach me. I followed her to everything, even when it wasn't my job. She had to teach me when to put my foot down, even when the obvious answer wasn't staring at me like it was when I was inside a Viper. As they say, the rest is history, but that strength of decision making that is so important to leadership I see in you all the time. There may have been moments that you hesitated over Kobol, but you made calls, and we got out of there. In way I was glad I wasn't there, I wouldn't have been magically able to save the day, or if I'm honest even do much more than you did. So I'm glad you had the chance to learn, and everyone around you got to see what I see. You have a big future Colonel."

Emily felt overwhelmed. She and the Admiral hadn't really spoken at length about Kobol since it all wrapped up. There had been no time to reminisce after the evacuation, because the focus had immediately shifted to jumping as far as they could, as quickly as they could, and then finding a system with a habitable planet. Luckily, they had information on a few system that had the potential to be useful from their search for Kobol, but these were only based on planetary atmospheres and not important things like ground conditions, amounts of water, resources and so on. It had been a lot of work for a lot of hours, and it had consumed them. Since arriving at Valhallus, their job had been about urban planning, finding and setting up systems for extracting minerals, reorganisation of ships. Essentially, endless paperwork. She had put it out of her mind, but she had never really believed that the Admiral saw anything favourable about her handling of the escape, and even though she had been reassured by the friends she spoke to, she had believed it a black mark on her copybook, one which was only overlooked by the loss of Commander Virgon meaning she was the only replacement. It meant more than she even realised to have his praise.

"Thank you sir," she said, fighting back her emotions as much as she could.

"I'm sorry, that might have been a bit much for such a big day, but I thought it was important that my XO and I were on the same page." He gave her a kindly smile and a pat on the back.

"I appreciate that sir."

"Now, you wanted to talk to me."

"Oh," Emily shuffled through the notepad in her hand in a panic, having completely forgotten what she was going to say. "Just that the livestock are seeming to have recovered from their illness and are ready to release, and an update on the draft proposal for the homesteading of Fleet personnel."

By this point, they were just approaching the Admiral's quarters, so they slowed as they walked up to the door. "Well firstly, that's good news, and secondly, why don't you hand me the draft to read, and I'll read over and make edits this evening?"

"That sounds excellent sir."

"You get back to your friends and have a good time. I'll see you later," he told her with a smile as he opened his door.

"Yes sir," she said. "And sir…" he stopped as he was about to enter and turned back to her. "Thank you again, for trusting me." She snapped into a salute. He looked at her hand, then to her, then instead of returning the salute, held out his hand.

"With my life, Colonel."

Battlestar Hyperion, Officer's Mess

Valhallus Orbit

Day 204, 18:48 VT

There was a cheer as Captain Gemini held aloft the bottle. It was a bottle of aged Caprican whiskey, one that they had left for a special occasion. They hadn't ever really known what the occasion was going to be, but they never got to it on Kobol, and the mood was too sombre after the evacuation. It had been the Admiral that had suggested that it be opened today, to celebrate establishing a new home. So here they were, this special bottle on full display. A small shot went out to every pilot they could cram in. Spinner was sat with Squirt and Rooster, two pilots he had only really gotten to know in the months since the war began. Hera poured out the shots and they all prepared for the toast. Spinner had been hoping that someone more senior would have arrived by now to give it, but he was unlucky. By the time the bottle had been passed around to those partaking (anyone who had expressed any distaste to any whiskey in the past had not been allowed to "waste" a shot of it), the crowd started chanting for a speech, and several hands dragged Spinner to his feet.

"Well, um, I'll keep this short. Thank you all for shooting lots of toasters, and being unbelievably fun to drink with!" A cheer rung out. "I never particularly planned to be making speeches, although I did have a plan to read out every name of every pilot we lost along the way. I am deeply ashamed to say that after just a few days, I had lost count. All I had was a number, given to me from up top, of how many birds lost. I know it wasn't their fault, they weren't the ones whose job it was to know all of you, it was mine. But, um, if there's one thing I do know, is how close of a unit we all are. There's not a single man or woman that we have lost who is not remembered by at least one of us. So, everyone, shout out a name. Someone we lost fighting for this ship and this fleet."

For the next few minutes, they went around the room, one by one saying a name and a callsign. Some got a laugh, some got nods, but all of them were remembered. As they finished there was a silence. Spinner stood up again.

"Sorry for bringing the tone down but… I thought it was important to remember everyone who wasn't sharing this drink with us." He paused for thought, and as he did, the door opened. He spun around and saw a row of blue uniforms facing him. Lieutenant Anastasia Bell, Lieutenant Hermes Yo and behind them both, Colonel Emily Jartell. They paused, this was after all, the pilot's mess room, and they were having a pilot's toast. After an awkward moment, Spinner waved them in. "Don't just stand there guys, come on. One ship, one crew, eh?"

The room cheered as they welcomed the 'pen-pushers' from upstairs. The last dregs of the bottle were dished out to them, and a couple of the pilots beside them poured a bit for them from their glasses.

"To everyone who's is still flying, somewhere out there." Spinner raised his glass and the rest of them did the same. There was a moment of utter silence as the whiskey was sipped, followed by a wave of coughing and spluttering. Clearly this whiskey had not aged how they had expected and tasted more of Viper fuel than anything a human being should be drinking. A lot of laughing ensued as Spinner returned to his seat, and more than a few murmurs about it not being worth the wait, but nonetheless the music went back on and their home brewed drinks flowed. Though they all started with cards and word games, it took almost no time at all for tables and chairs to be flung across the room and a dancefloor created. Don Cook managed to switch off the ceiling lights, and many of the pilots found their helmets and turned on their torches, illuminating the room like a club. Spinner found himself dancing, first by himself, then in the circle, and soon with someone else. For those couple of hours, everything that had happened washed off of them, and these Colonial officers were overcome with the madness of youth.

Battlestar Hyperion, Admiral's Quarters

Valhallus Orbit

Day 205, 11:00 VT

It was far too early, and Spinner's head was pounding far too hard. It had been a long time since a morning had felt this awful, and it was only being compounded by this meeting with the Admiral. He had awoken in his bunk to the sound of a call, which he profanely replied to and was about to put down before he eventually recognised the familiar voice of the Admiral on the other line, apologised and agreed to come and meet. He then apologised again first to Lieutenant Bell, who he quickly realised was still lying next to him, and then apologised to the others in his bunk for waking them up. He dressed as quickly as he could and rushed out, only praying that none of them had heard anything, as he could barely remember a thing beyond the room getting turned into a nightclub that night.

As he approached the Admiral's quarters, he realised that the world was still spinning. Clutching at his stomach, he stood himself up as properly as he could and awaited the door opening as he knocked. Moments later the door slid open, revealing the Admiral and Emily, sat on the sofa looking about as worse for wear as he was.

"Come Major, have a sit down." The Admiral said with a smile. As he approached the sofa and sat down gingerly beside Emily, they exchanged a glance, then both stared at the floor like children waiting outside their Principal's office. "I take it you both had fun last night? You seemed to be when I stopped by?"

Spinner stared at the Admiral suddenly, desperately trying to remember what he had said or done, but no memories came rushing back. "You did, sir?" He asked, a hint of panic in his voice.

"Ha! You're not in trouble you two, don't worry, although perhaps I should be punishing such poor dancing in future. No, instead I have a request of you."

"Anything sir," Emily said, immediately covering her mouth afterwards as if the effort of speaking her almost pushed her over the edge into sickness.

"Well, it is less of a request, and more new orders. I have a mission that will need undertaking, and I only trust it to you two."

Spinner and Emily exchanged worried glances yet again.

"As you remember, we left the Colonies in a hurry. For good reason, but we never had enough time to try and save anyone other than those we managed to run into. Now that we have a home, and a base, I want to change that."

"You want us to go back there?" Emily asked. "For all we know it's an irradiated wasteland, it could be a massive waste of our ships to send the fleet there, and what about the civilians?"

"And what about us, specifically" Spinner added.

"It will not be a divide of the fleet. Our best jump drives are on the Zeus. It was designed for reconnaissance in the first war, it will be more than appropriate to go back and perform the job."

"But sir, do we even know the way back?" Spinner asked, something which Emily nodded along to.

"No. We do not, which is why you are not going yet. It will take several months to get the preparations sorted, for you to choose your crew, and for some of the Zeus' crew to be swapped around."

"What about their crew?"

"I can't send them all. Essential personnel, like engineers, who know the ship best, will stay. Others, including Captain Matsuyo, who you both out rank by the way, will instead stay here. I have an agreement for Captain Matsuyo to act as XO here in your stead, and I will have Captain Gemini replace you, Major, as CAG."

They both sat in a stunned silence for a minute. The fleet had spent the night celebrating finding a new home, the end of the journey. Of course they cared about their old home, they missed it, but they had all accepted now that it was gone, and that returning there was a dream for the distant future.

"When would we be to leave, Admiral?" Emily asked, sounding just as conflicted as Spinner was.

The Admiral took a good look at their sheepish expressions before he responded. "Not for several months. Likely half a year is needed to solidify everything here and make preparations ready. I don't want to take away from you all settling in to your new home before I throw you back into the ruins of the old one. I will set those who are capable the task of searching back through our path since the first day of the Cylon attack, and using that we will figure out our position compared to our old home, and from there be able to find our way home. It likely won't be an exact route, which is why a scouting party will be needed, and that is where you come in. I wouldn't trust this to anyone but you two, I have full faith that you will have what it takes."

"I know this is getting ahead of ourselves a bit," Spinner said. "But saying we do find our way back, and saying that we don't immediately get jumped on by waiting Cylon fleets, then what?"

"Attempt to make contact with people on the surface by any means you can. Once you have evidence of any remaining holdouts, you can return home. It will be a judgement call at the end of the day, what you are able to risk to search properly versus keeping yourselves safe, but I trust you to make that call."

"I don't remember seeing much in the way of reports of how extensive the damage was in the opening hours of the attack. All we know is that there was a massive nuclear attack, and not much else. If it will have been over a year by the time we get there, what could we even hope to look for?" Emily asked, thinking back to the few documents she had been the one to examine after their initial escape, sifting through the garbled distress calls and action reports that they picked up while still in the system.

"Look in mountainous and remote regions. There was mass fear that something like this would occur in the First War. Governments and individuals built thousands, possibly millions of fallout shelters around the Colonies. While most were probably long abandoned, there must be some out there who were untouched. This is all a long way off though, of course. I want you both on board before we begin the long preparations. What do you say?"

Spinner was surprised it hadn't just been an order. Not that he thought the Admiral was that sort of leader, but this seemed too large an operation to be left to their consent. But it didn't change anything, he swore an oath to protect the Colonies and he had failed. They all had. If this was a chance to fix that, more than they already had, he would take it.

"I'm in sir." He said.

After a pause, Emily raised her head again. "I am as well."

"I'm glad to hear it. You have both served far too well already, humanity is lucky to have you."

And with that, he rose to his feet, as did Spinner and Emily. He shook both of their hands and they left, leaving the Admiral alone in his quarters as they did. Spinner took a look back around as he left. Many of the Admiral's decorations were now sat in open boxes, shattered from being thrown around by the combat they had found themselves in over these last few months. The Admiral, to him, had always come across as an orderly man. Sat now, as he was, behind his desk with papers piled on one side, and cardboard boxes on the other, room far messier than it had ever been, Spinner noticed that he seemed strangely at home, and despite all of it, there was an order to everything, even if it wasn't pleasing to look at. The Admiral looked up over his spectacles as Spinner stood looking back from the doorway. He gave the Major a smile and a nod. Spinner gave him a cowboy gun salute from his temple and walked out. He heard a chuckle behind him as he swung the bulkhead shut and headed back, though he wasn't sure where to begin.