31

From the Frying Pan into the Fire

By

Denise Hemmingway

Author's Notes:

This story is based on the premier of Stargate: Universe, the pilot miniseries of Battlestar Galactica: The Reimagined Series, and the television movie Battlestar Galactica: The Plan.

I own none of these franchises; they are the properties of MGM, SyFy, Ronald D. Moore for nBSG and Brad Wright and Robert C. Cooper for SG: U.

The story begins at the beginnings for both series, but will be entirely an alternate universe from the canon ones.

Chapter One:

Unknown System thirty light years from Icarus Base, Icarus 2 October 2009/ 2 October YR2000 or 2000 years since the evacuation from Kobol:

Jarod Cavil had been assigned by his brothers to take this Basestar Battle Group coreward and spinward over a month ago. Signals had been intercepted hinting at more human colonies in this direction in the Galaxy. Meanwhile his brothers John and Jacob were going to execute the attack on the Twelve Colonies in a couple of weeks. Currently he had his battle group poised to strike at an unsuspecting human colony just thirty light years from his current position.

With his hand in the interface solution of the Command Table Jarod received the reports from the scout Raiders he sent out. There indeed was a colony or base on the third world of the next star system. Now he was listening to the wireless intercepts that the Raiders brought back. "Well at least we'll be able to carry out a raid this time. The three pyramid shaped ships we intercepted proved to be less of a challenge than we first thought. Then again we caught them unawares with their guards down," Jarod said as he looked at the other six members of his Command Node. There was a Two, a Three, a Four, a Five, a Six, and an Eight standing around the table with him. If it hadn't been for John's psychotic moment of jealousy there could have been a Seven too, but all of that model were killed and box. John when so far as to kill and box their parents too and only the Ones knew the truth of the whole affair.

John had committed fratricide, patricide, and matricide then put the Collective to the path of committing genocide. Jarod though not opposed to making war on the Colonials for violations of the Armistice was not all that inclined to kill of the entire human race for the indiscretions of one Battlestar, its crew and the officers over it. Yet John used that excuse to plot the end of the Twelve Colonies of Man. Then there were the signal intercepts from deeper in the Galaxy and this spiral arm fragment. These hinted that the Thirteenth Tribe was out there somewhere. Yet Jarod knew that all the Ones knew that the Thirteenth Tribe incinerated itself in a nuclear holocaust 2000 years ago and their parents were the last of the Thirteenth.

"The Thirteenth Tribe is dead, yet we are receiving modern signals from worlds not all that far from us, hmmm… Then we have these three ships we attacked and destroyed that should have destroyed us. Instead we caught them by surprise and struck like a viper from the grass without warning. Two did you detect any signals from the humans of those ships to a higher command anywhere?" Jarod asked the Two, Louis Conoy.

Conoy shook his head in the negative, "No we hit them so fast that they never had time to get out a warning to anyone. Our salvage teams have recovered several pieces of their technology. Perhaps after Sheldon has had a chance to look at them we can devise a means of counter acting them and maybe the means to incorporate their technology into ours." The Two then looked at the Four who went by Sheldon O'Neill.

Four or Sheldon O'Neill his hand also in the solution allowing him to read the data transferred from the scout Raiders looked up smiling for technology and sciences were the specialties of his model. "Yes, we should after careful study be able to incorporate the technologies we've recovered from the wreckage of these ships the humans that crewed and commanded them call Ha'Taks. They're a form of Battlecruiser and Mothership. We've also with the help of the Sixes and Eights recovered several of their fighters called Deathgliders, some strike bombers called Al'kesh, and some transports called Tel'Taks. From these ships we should be able to decode their computer technologies and others. I am confident that by the time we've destroyed the humans of Colonies and secured the twelve worlds we'll have figured out how better to defeat all of the technologies we've recovered from these ships."

The Three Deidra Biers nodded then spoke, "On that we all agree, but my sisters with the recovery teams on the former flagship of this attack group of Ha'Taks has uncovered the orders of this group. It was their mission to attack the human base on the third planet of the next system. It is home to a base of a human tribe called the Tau'ri. They have some sort of secret testing facility there…"

Sheldon interrupted, "Yes, these Tau'ri are researching something called a Stargate. It seems that to conduct this research they need the power provided by a mineral compound called Naquadria. From the texted we've recovered so far from the command Ha'Tak the humans from this Lucian Alliance wanted to steal the Naquadria. This mineral has more energy conversion than even tylium per kilogram of material. My proposal is that we attack this Icarus Base, kill off these Tau'ri humans except for those we wish to interrogate and establish claim to this world so we can mine this Naquadria. We can with study develop a means to power our jump drives and maneuver drives without the use of tylium. That would be a strategic advantage if this war of ours expands beyond the Colonies as it looks that it will."

Jarod nodded and looked at the other six, "Let's vote on this, Sheldon of the Fours has proposed we attack this Icarus Base belonging to this human tribe called the Tau'ri. We capture it and some prisoners for questioning. Then we send back to the Collective for mining and other ships so we can begin operations developing a way to use this Naquadria to replace tylium as our fuel of choice for our ship and whatever other uses we may find for it. How do you vote?"

Louis looked at Jarod and said, "The Twos agree."

Deidra nodded, "The Threes agree."

Sheldon smiled and nodded, "The Fours agree."

Adam Doral, the Five looked to his left then his right and nodded too, "The Fives agree."

Charlie Walsh, the Six, a honey blond woman with glasses, though everyone present knew she didn't need them, nodded with a serious look on her face, "The Sixes agree."

Sharon Tillman, the Eight looked around to the others then she nodded, "The Eights agree."

Jarod nodded then smiled the same evil 'I've got you now' smile his brothers all used and said, "Great then tell the Hybrid to jump the Battle Group to this Icarus system and we'll begin my brothers' war against humans a couple of weeks early."

A Resurrection Ship in a secret resurrection chamber near the Cylon Colony two weeks prior to the attack on the Colonies:

John and Jacob Cavil stood in the chamber looking over the comatose bodies of their parents. John was smoking a cigar that Jacob knew was from leaves grown on Sagittaron. Jacob watched him and wondered just where John will get new cigars if this attack is carried out as planned, but he kept that thought to himself. John took the cigar from his mouth and began to use it as a pointer. Jacob just shook his head and stood next to the tub with Galen in it.

"Dad," John began at Saul's tub then with his cigar he pointed at Ellen's tub, "Ma," then he pointed next to Galen's, "Dad." Then he turned and pointed with his cigar to the tub that held Tori, "Ma," and next the one that held Samuel, "Dad."

Then Jacob looked at John shaking his head. John looked back at his brother and said, "What? We'll attack in two weeks, destroy the pests that are humanity, our parents will perish with the vermin they prize so much, and resurrect here speaking profound apologies while spilling love upon us like precious jewels…"

Jacob shook his head in disbelief at his brother then said, "If that's so then be prepared to receive some sticky hugs."

John scowled at Jacob and then knelt beside Mother Ellen's tub and after playing with one of her breast and the associated nipple he said, "You know I have a yearning to experiences a nuclear holocaust. I'll go to Picon and experience with our dear mother Ellen here. I'll just slip into a tub beside her and we'll awaken together." He tweaked her left nipple then knowing there was nothing she could do to him.

Jacob looked at his elder brother in disgust and said, "If you're going to do it you'd best get going. There's not much time left. I'm going to Caprica to contact our agent there and get from her the final codes to crack their defenses." That being said both brothers Cavil leave their sleeping parents in the secret room of the Resurrection Ship and head in their separate directions.

Space over Icarus Base, USS George Hammond's Mess Hall:

Doctor Nicolas Rush, Eli Wallace, Lieutenant General Jonathan "Jack" O'Neill, Senator Alan Armstrong, Chloe Armstrong (the Senator's daughter), and Colonel Samantha Carter look down through one of the armored viewing portals at a brown and tan planet below that has only the barest hints of blues and greens on its surface. Eli Wallace looks at the world that seems to be one big mixture of the Mojave, Sonoran, Gobi, Negev, Kalahari, and Sahara deserts rolled up together into a monster worldwide desert. Only the northern and southern Polar Regions had much in the way of green as did the limited number of rivers emptying into the planets northern and southern polar oceans.

Only in areas where the distance between the rivers wasn't great were there grasslands like the Steppes of Asia and Europe, the Great Plains of North America or the Savannahs of Africa, South America, or Australia. To Eli the rest of the planet was one big wasteland of brown. Eli looked down on his first alien world and shook his head saying, "Well I guess for each Earth out there in the Galaxy there has to be a Tatooine." Then he frowned before saying, "I take it the world that was in the game was based on this one, right?" He was looking at Rush then.

Lt. Gen. O'Neill looked down at the world below them frowning like Eli and said, "In my vast experience going off world son you either wound up on worlds that reminded me of the Pacific Northwest or worlds that reminded me of the Middle East as far as climates went. I've only found a few that were totally earthlike, and I've yet to find our version of Dagobah." Jack looked again at the planet below and said, "Yes this is the planet that was in the game, but we named it something else." Then he looked at the rest of the party saying, "Carter I want you on overwatch while I go down to brief Colonel Young, and Senator, Chloe, Doctor Rush, and Eli you'd best be getting your luggage and gear and head down there. See you after while Carter." The whole while he talked to them at the view port his main thought was, 'I hope the Icarus Mess Hall has cake.'

Icarus Base landing pad:

Lt. Gen. O'Neill, Sen. Armstrong, Dr. Rush, Eli Wallace, and Chloe Armstrong now stood on the tarmac and steel structure that served as the landing and launch pad for Icarus Base's complement of F/A 302C Starfighter II Aerospace Attack Fighters. The current Air Wing was made up of the USMC's VMF-422 "Flying Buccaneers" and the USAF's 32d Fighter Squadron "Wolfhounds" under the command of Colonel David Telford USMC. Col. Telford along with Base Commander Col. Everett Young met the party at the landing pad along with I.O.A. Representative Camile Wray. Telford was a man of mixed Anglo, Native American and Hispanic heritage, Young was of a northern European mix, and Wray was Amerasian. Young wore the black ABU like uniform being worn by the USAF personnel assigned to Icarus and Telford was in Desert MARPATs while Wray wore an earth tone women's business causal pant suit. The official and obligatory greetings were exchanged then Col. Young said, "Shall we go inside out of this heat and I'll give you a tour of the facility Senator, Chloe, and Lieutenant Wallace." He gestured with his left hand indicating the direction for the guest to go.

Eli walked along gawking at the battery of six dual-mounted towed carriage railguns guarding the entrance to the hangar bay and the equally important main entrance into the Icarus Base proper. Gen. O'Neill saw Eli looking at the GE M349A2 "Tempus" 40mm dual purpose twin railgun carriages, "Those are the latest and we haven't yet used them on Earth except to protect D.C. and a few highly sensitive bases around the U.S."

Eli recognized them from the game and said, "Is it true they're named for a war god of the Forgotten Realms?" He was still in a state of utter awe at the fact he was actually on another planet hundreds of light years from Earth tailing and rimward along the Orion Spiral Arm Fragment, their celestial home.

Chloe being the only one on this world in Eli's age bracket took hold of his arm and gently tugged him along saying, "Come on Eli let's get inside. It'll be lots cooler inside the tunnels and chambers of the base I think." She smiled at him a friendly or maybe more than friendly smile the whole time. O'Neill smiled for it was an ill kept secret that the two young adults had developed a bit more than a friendship on the voyage out from Earth.

Unlike the same person in several other universes Second Lieutenant Eli Wallace, United States Army Reserve managed to graduate from MIT and received his commission in the Army Reserve. When Eli won the game, he was about to seek an Active Duty assignment as he had graduated just in time for the Crash of '08 and was currently unemployed. His only income was from his monthly drill checks. An O-1 made a nice bit of coin on Active Duty, but on Reserve status it was actually less than if he worked even part-time at the local GameStop or Best Buy.

Eli was in civilian attire because officially he had been hired as a civilian Consultant for the Icarus Project. He had packed his dress blues and his three sets of ACUs in the Universal Camouflage Pattern what the surplus people called Army DigiPat. On his feet he wore one pair of his BLACKHAWK! 8 In. Warrior Wear Desert Ops Boots the other pair along with his military low quarters were packed away in his duffle bag and folding wardrobe bag. On his back he had his CamelBak 100 oz. MaXimum Gear MotherLode in black. This was his bag he carried those items you should have with you if the airline lost the rest of your luggage. He had also loaded it as his bug out bag.

Eli looked around now that he was inside with Chloe on his arm. To him it was just another military bunker complex, no different than that under Cheyenne Mountain or many others in the United States. From Chloe's looks as she scanned the interior, Eli figured it was her first time in any such facility. Yet they followed her father as Colonel Young gave General O'Neill and Senator Armstrong the nickel tour. "Chloe I take it this is your first visit to a military bunker," Eli said. His Army Reserve Center back home was built on the site of an old Atlas Missile silo complex command bunker. The bunker itself was incorporated into the design and updated to be a hardened command and control center for the Mid-Western states. "Chloe after you've been to one military bunker you've kind of been to them all, only the details within change." Eli was smirking as he said that.

Chloe hit him in the shoulder the way a friend or even a lover would that caught you in a jest. It was Col. Young that responded though, "However Lieutenant Wallace this complex is a bit different from that old missile silo command center you're used to. Isn't it Doctor Rush?" Col. Young was looking over at Rush who now had turned around from his conversation with Gen. O'Neill and Sen. Armstrong.

"Indeed Colonel, Eli we've built this complex way out here on the edge of Earth explored space because this is one of a handful of planets with a large vein of naturally occurring naquadria. Your figuring out the solution to the ninth chevron will help us to reach the destination of this stargate. The Alterans built this stargate on this world for a reason. I always thought it was so they could reach the farthest thing out there of theirs. What it is I haven't a clue, but this base's oldest parts date back to their reign within this galaxy. My best guess is that the naquadria of this world was used as a power enhancer or even as a battery of sorts." Nicolas Rush just smiled that Cheshire Cat grin of his. Then he added, "What I hope you'll be able to do lad is to aid me and my staff in making the connection to this destination. Then we'll truly go where no man has gone before." Rush's Scotts' burr came through as he seemed excited about the possibilities of implementing 2LT Wallace's solution to the problem.

Caprica City River Walk several hours prior to the Attack:

Natasi Six stood there watching Gaius Baltar walking away feeling a bit of a dagger prick to her very heart. She had not been ready to admit it until now, but over the two years of her assignment she had grown emotionally attached to the egocentric middle-aged human computer and cybernetics scientist. She was sure that Gaius' business meeting wasn't with some Colonial Fleet representative, unless the rep was a female officer he had met during their project to prefect the Command Navigation Program. She only turned from watching the human's finely sculpted rear-end when she felt another presence behind her.

Turning to look behind her Natasi saw him there and said, "You're late."

Jacob looked at her smiling like a wolf on the prowl for a meal. He said, "Have you got it?"

Natasi handed him the aluminum security case she's been carrying the last several weeks. "It's in here," she said as Jacob took it. She looked like she was handing over the very weapon that was going to kill everyone on this world including those that she's made real friendships with or the one that she's fallen in love with.

"Now, I suggest you lose that body and resurrect. I hear poison works well and isn't all that painful," Jacob said as he turned to walk away with the case containing the codes that would allow the attack fleet's ships to unlock all of the Colonials' defenses leaving the gates to the kingdom wide open.

Natasi just followed his departure from the River Walk with her eyes. She turned and left herself making her way toward a cab. The whole walk to the yellow colored car was filled with her weighing the morality of what she's done. If One knew she was having such conflicted emotions he would say she's broken and in need of boxing. Yet she felt deep in her soul, 'machines don't have souls or moral conflicts!' a part of her mind, the machine part told her. 'Your emotions are illogical,' that part of her chided her. 'Frak you very much,' she replied as she told the cabbie to take her to Doctor Baltar's lake side residence in one of the wealthier suburbs of Caprica City in the Atlas Mountains overlooking the city.

Once there she paid the cabbie and he left, Natasi took off her shoes and walked down to the lake shore. When she stepped on to the small beach there she walked for a few kilometers to the north along the west shore of the lake below Baltar's home then she turned around. Arriving back at Baltar's home later in the afternoon she walked uphill and to the front door of the house. She had a key to the door and let herself in. Out front of the house in the driveway was a car she didn't recognize.

Gaius Baltar's House, Interior:

Inside after she closed the door she saw a trail of women's and men's clothing going up the stairs to the bedroom she shared with Gaius. Her rage was just barely under control as she climbed up the steps of the staircase. As she climbed up to Baltar's bedroom she picked up the woman's clothes. Then once she was in his room she dumped them all into a pile next to the sleeping olive skinned brunette to Gaius' right. Both the woman and Gaius were entwined with each other in a tangle of the very sheets and blankets that Natasi bought for her and him. She was incensed looking at Gaius cuddled up next to that vixen, that vermin, that human!

Natasi walked over to an antique chair that dated back to about 600 years prior to Caprica's unification. She turned it so it faced the bed and sat her fuzzy blue coat on a side table next to it. Then she stood in front of it staring at Gaius and his bimbo in their Natasi and his bed. 'Gaius you prick you frakked her all the time while I was out walking thinking over what I've done and am about to do,' Natasi thought as she tucked the back of shear black and silver lamé skirt under her thighs and sat down. She crossed her legs and stared at her boyfriend and his trollop.

As Natasi sat there watching Gaius and the woman he frakked today she seethed, but she tried all she could not to explode and rip both of them limb from limb. Her anger was reaching a boiling point, but she was exercising self-restraint as she looked at them. Then the woman, the trollop awake and all Natasi could say in a low growling threatening voice was, "Get out!"

The woman looked at her confused and said, "What?" The woman looked at Natasi as she began tapping Gaius on the shoulder trying to wake him while asking frightenedly, "Who are you?" Natasi just gave her one of those 'If looks could kill' stares.

"I said get out," Natasi's voice was edged with ice and she looked as if she could shoot lightning from her eyes.

The woman finally woke Gaius up and in a scared voice asked, "Who is she?"

Gaius looked first at the woman form the Defense Ministry he brought home after talking with her boss earlier in the morning. He'd been frakking her all morning and they fell asleep together sometime after having lunch in bed. He shook the sleep from his mind and looked first at her then over at the chair to see his platinum blond lovely assistant and lover sitting in the antique chair they had purchased for this very room. Natasi was glaring at the woman from the Defense Ministry as if she could just will her to die. All Gaius could say was, "She's a friend." He saw from the looks from either woman that he had said the wrong thing. Then he started stumbling on his words trying to fix the situation as his tryst of the morning quickly scooted out of his bed and gathered her clothing and headed down stairs. Then his interests turned to apologizing to Natasi for betraying her trust in him. He blamed himself for his indiscretions.

"Gaius, Gaius, don't, I'm not here to argue about your frakking around on me. I'm here to tell you about the end of your worlds and to admit I'm a Cylon," Natasi said sitting back in her favorite chair looking at the man she loved sorrowfully. She saw the confusion on his face as he took in and processed what she had just said. She waited for him to stop stuttering before continuing her betrayal of the Cylons.

Colonial Fleet Battlestar Galactica near the broken icy rockball planetoid Persephone:

The Battlestar Galactica the last of its class still in service sits in a stable orbit over the small planetoid at the edge of the Helios Alpha System. The ship was the oldest serving Battlestar in the Fleet. On this day she was being retired from the Fleet along with her current and last commander, Commander William "Husker" Adama. The ship today was the scene of hectic and frantic activity as the last of the preparations for the decommissioning ceremony were completed.

Starboard Landing Bay, Starboard Flight Pod, Battlestar Galactica the Decommissioning Ceremony:

The flyover by the Galatica's last active squadron of Vipers including CMDR Adama's son Captain Leland Joseph Adama call-sign "Apollo" who flew Husker's old Mk II Viper passed over the immense viewing window that covered the opening of the landing bay. The crowds were awed by the display. The flyover was followed by an invocation by a Fleet Chaplin. Then the retiring CMDR Adama stood to deliver his speech as coordinator Aaron Doral from the Ministry of Education introduced him.

At the podium Adama cleared his throat and began his speech, "The Cylon War is long over, yet we must not forget the reasons why so many sacrificed so much in the cause of freedom. The cost of wearing the uniform can be high, but...sometimes it's too high. You know, when we fought the Cylons, we did it to save ourselves from extinction. But we never answered the question, why? Why are we as a people worth saving? We still commit murder because of greed, spite, jealousy. And we still visit all of our sins upon our children. We refuse to accept the responsibility for anything that we've done, like we did with the Cylons. We decided to play God, create life. When that life turned against us, we comforted ourselves in the knowledge that it really wasn't our fault, not really. You cannot play God then wash your hands of the things that you've created. Sooner or later, the day comes when you can't hide from the things that you've done anymore."

The audience sat in their seats stunned. Adama made his way back to his seat as they finally recovered and stood offering him a standing ovation. As he sat down his Executive Officer, Colonel Saul Tigh said, "Man you are full of surprises this day." Adama just nodded as he finally touched his seat to the chair's padding. Then he turned and watches the rest of the ceremony from his chair.

The Cylon Colony in a star system near the Armistice Line at the same time:

In its tub in an alcove off the Command Center of its Basestar a Hybrid begins to chant, "Seized by God they cry for succor in the dark of the light. Mists of dreams dribble on the nascent echo and love no more; Jump!" Then as if in the throes of an orgasm she arches her back and opens her mouth in a silent scream. While outside her ship the main scanner of the Colony scans all the Basestars surrounding it. After the scanning beam passes each ship they jump away.

Helios Alpha System, Caprica after Adama's speech is finished and the Decommissioning Ceremony has completed over:

Dozens of starfish like starships pop into orbit over the earthlike planet that is the capital world of the Twelve Colonies and take up positions around her. In its chamber on the command Basestar the Hybrid resumes her chant, "Counting down. All functions nominal. All functions optimal. Counting down. The center holds. The falcon hears the falconer. Infrastructure, check. Wetware, check. Everyone hang on to the lap bar, please.

Apotheosis was the beginning before the beginning. Devices on alert. Observe the procedures of a general alert. The base and the pinnacle. The flower inside the fruit that is both its parent and its child. Decadent as ancestors. The portal in that which passes.

Nuclear devices activated, and the machine keeps pushing time through the cogs, like paste into strings into paste again, and only the machine keeps using time to make time to make time. And when the machine stops, time is an illusion we created. Free will, twelve battles, three stars, and yet we are countless as the bodies in which we dwell, are both parent and infinite children in perfect copies. No degradation.

The makers of the makers fall before the child. Accessing defense system: Handshake, handshake. Second level clear.

Accepting scan. Love outlasts death.

Their ships fail, skittering like skipped stones, and movement is meaningless in the absence of time. What never was is never again.

USS Hammond in orbit over planet Icarus, Icarus System light years from the Colonies and from Earth:

While maintaining a stationary orbit over Icarus Base and receiving General O'Neill after the reception and briefing with the Base Commander Col. Young, Major Kevin Marks is alerted by the Sensor Officer that there are multiple energy pulses in orbit over the planet within 1000 kilometer of the Hammond. He activated the ship's internal communications system and shouted, "Colonel Carter to the Bridge we have a situation here!" Then Marks turned to the Weapons Officer, "Ready all weapons and on my order decloak and raise shields!"

Col. Carter came rushing into the Bridge with Gen. O'Neill on her heels. "What's going on Marks?" she asked as she took the Command Chair from him and he took his place at the Pilot's Station.

"These four ships just jumped in after we beamed up General O'Neill ma'am," Marks began. Then he added, "They've taken up positions to implement an orbital bombardment of the surface. We've detected nuclear ordnance and I have Mark Nines targeted for each ship. They've already launched a fighter screen way larger than any we can put up. Our CAP says that their fighters seem to be some sort of autonomous UCAVs. We're still cloaked so they don't see us yet."

Suddenly the Sensors Officer yells out, "Detecting missile launch! Vampire! Vampire! Vampire! Missiles have been launched! Detecting multiple nuclear armed missiles fired toward the surface of Icarus!"

Carter looks over the Hammond's FSO, "Launch all 302s tell them to target any fighters or missiles that are targeted towards us!" Then she turns to the Communications Officer, "Get me Young!" Then she said to Marks, "Decloak and fire the Asgard Plasma Projectors at the nearest starship! Have all railguns targeted for point defense priorities are any missiles targeted toward us then any fighters inbound. I want a Mark Nine beamed into the greatest concentration of fighters!"

Turning to Gen. O'Neill Carter says, "Sir I would feel more comfortable if you weren't on the Bridge at the moment. You would be safer in your quarters, the Sickbay, or even in Engineering. Those are the safest locations in case of the ship being holed! Now sir no disrespect intended, but get off my Bridge!" Taken a back a bit by Carter's outburst toward him O'Neill retreats from the Bridge and finds his way to one of the locations she said would be safest if the Hammond was damaged.

Cylon Command Basestar over Icarus:

The Hybrid chants, "It has begun, the fires of Perdition will burn throughout the Galaxy and the Children of Man will fall to the First Ones! Launching! Cry Havoc and cut loose the dogs of war! Missiles are on target!"

Jarod Cavil looked from the Command Station toward the Alcove, "What the frak does she mean by the Fires of Perdition will burn throughout the Galaxy and the Children of Man will fall to the First Ones?"

The Model Two just shrugged as he was equally confused. The others were equally baffled by the Hybrid's outbursts. Then the Model Six in the Command Node said, "Alien ship detected one thousand kilometers from our port! First there was nothing then suddenly an interceptor sized ship appeared!" Then her eyes look as if they're staring at something far off, "They've launched fighters and more are rising up from the surface! We have space and air superiority though! Detecting a nuclear detonation five hundred kilometers from our port! We've lost half our Raiders with that burst! The energy readings off of the explosion are off the scale measuring at least in the hundred gigaton range!"

Then the Four in the Command Node looked up from where he was stationed around the Command Interface Table, "We've lost two Basestars to similar explosions! Again the weapons' energy ratings were in the one hundred gigaton range! What are these people firing at us?"

The Hybrid then chants, "The sons and daughters of the First Ones, the brothers and sisters of Man will seek out and destroy the Children of Man as we destroy the Makers of the Makers! Jump!"

Then the Command Basestar jumps from the system as the missile barrage impacts on the planet below. The nuclear warheads detonate with many of them igniting the exposed veins of naquadria starting a chain reaction leading to the very core of Icarus. The last Basestar initiates ship to ship combat with the Hammond.

USS Hammond:

Col. Carter had ordered the use of Mark IXs against the enemy capital ships. Two were destroyed; one jumped away in a bluish-white flash of light and the fourth was boring in on her. "Weapons ready another Mark Nine for beaming over to the enemy ship," she orders as she watches the dog fights between F/A 302s from the Hammond and from Col. Telford's Icarus Wing on the holographic display at the Hammond's tactical plot table behind the Command Chair. General O'Neill being bored where he evacuated to returned to the Bridge with an escort from Hammond's Ship's Troops Detachment.

"Carter what's the tactical situation so far?" O'Neill asked.

"We have a fur ball of a dog fight going on out there between us and the planet. One surviving starship jumped away and the other is bearing down on us firing antiship missiles. So far we've given better than we've taken. The shields are holding and I have another Mark Nine prepped for beaming into our attacker," Carter said looking up from the display. "Colonels Young and Telford say that the nuclear bombardment of the surface has ignited multiple veins of naquadria. The planet is growing unstable. Most of the base's personnel are trapped in the Gate Room, but the Stargate Control Room has caved in. The blast doors into the Gate Room are holding for now, but the planet is experiencing massive seismic activity on a global scale. Doctor Rush fears that they don't have much time left before the planet explodes! To top it all Young says they have a prisoner. She's a honey blond woman that Young says resembles the actress and model Tricia Helfer back on Earth."

"Any casualties Colonel?" O'Neill asked.

"The Hammond has lost four 302s, but we've recovered the pilots by beaming them to the Sickbay. Colonel Telford's down to six 302s. Most of the pilots that lost their ships are here as well. I've ordered Telford to land his surviving ships on the Hammond. As for the surface garrison and base personnel, the Marine Rifle Company is down half of its people, the Base's doctor was killed during the nuclear strike by a cave-in. Senator Armstrong was injured by some falling debris and according to First Lieutenant Mathew Scott, Colonel Young has some broken ribs and a broken leg. Doctor Rush and Second Lieutenant Eli Wallace say that they can't use the gate to evacuate as the Gate Controls were buried under tons of rock and debris. We'll have to evacuate them by beaming them up to the Hammond and then make a hyperjump from the system before the planet explodes," Carter answered. Then her ship rocked as another enemy fighter slammed into the ship's shields. She looked over at Marks, "I want that last ship and any remaining enemy fighters out of my skies now! Beam the Nine into the last starship and another into the nearest gaggle of enemy fighters! FSO, combat landings are authorized get the 302s into the barn now! Marks as soon as the 302s have all landed beam the Nines!"

Shortly after her orders were given Marks beamed one Mk IX into the midst of a group of enemy fighters and the other into the core of the remaining enemy starship. Moments later the skies above the dying planet were again filled with two massive artificial suns that faded leaving behind nothing but wreckage.

"Beam up the survivors from the surface into cargo bays one alpha and one bravo," Carter ordered.

Marks looked up from his station and said, "Survivors are in both cargo bays."

Carter nodded and activated the intercom, "Sickbay medical teams to Cargo Bays One Alpha and One Bravo!" She then turned back to Marks while watching the scans of the surface showing major fissures and volcanic activity globally. "Marks get us out of here now; the planet's going to blow!"

Marks looked up toward her, "What heading sir?"

"I don't care; just get us to a safe system away from here!" Carter said.

"Engaging hyperdrives!" Marks said as he opened a hyperspace window.

Just as the Hammond enters the hyperspace window Icarus exploded sending a pulse wave of energy that was absorbed by the window pushing the Hammond like a surfboard on a monster wave. The energy pulse also charged the window keeping the tunnel open longer that Marks had calculated and plotted. When it spilled the American Deep Space Carrier back into normal space and closed the Hammond found itself thousands of light years from Earth in a system of four stars that turned out to be a pair of binary systems orbiting each other.

Orbit Ragnar the mega-Jovian world orbiting the Helios Gamma and Helios Delta systems:

"Where are we Marks?" Carter asked as Gen. O'Neill reentered the Bridge with Senator Armstrong, Dr. Rush, Colonels Young and Telford, and I.O.A. Representative Wray tailing behind him. Col. Carter was looking at a holographic image of the Neptune colored gas giant that was larger than Jupiter. "Look at the size of this gas giant. She's got to be more massive than Jupiter or Saturn back home," she said as Gen. O'Neill, Sen. Armstrong and Rep. Wray walked up to the tactical plot table's holographic display. Col. Young walked around the image and stood next to Col. Carter on her left as Gen. O'Neill stood on her right.

Across the round table stood Dr. Rush, Col. Telford, Camile Wray, and Sen. Armstrong. It was Armstrong that asked, "Where are we now?" He was looking at the massive Neptune colored world they were currently orbiting. He looked from Everett to Carter to O'Neill and back to Carter, "Does anyone know?"

Camile Wray though a member of the United States Foreign Service was an oversight representative assigned by the I.O.A. to oversee operations at Icarus International Operations Base. Now she was stranded in this distant cluster star system on this the latest of Earth's combat starships. Then she flippantly said, "Well I guess we've truly gone where no man has gone before…" only she was interrupted by Major Sharon Satterfield, the Hammond's Communications Officer.

"Ma'am I wouldn't say that. We're picking up multiple secure and unsecure transmissions on various radio frequencies. Most of them are in a dialect of Greek with its origins in ancient Mycenaean Greek and others are in a dialect of Latin almost similar to modern Italian or Spanish. Then there are some unsecure transmissions in a language that could have its origins in Ancient German," Satterfield said as she brought up a translation of one of the reports and handed it to Col. Carter.

Gen. O'Neill looked at Carter as she read the translation of the message, "What does it say Sam?" He watches Carter's eyes as the scanned down the message. She looks up to the people gathered around the holographic tactical table. The color had drained from her face as she asked Satterfield to run sensor scans of every habitable planet in each system. Satterfield acknowledged her orders and went to do the scans.

Then Col. Carter looked again at everyone around the table, "We've hyperjumped into the middle of a Pearl Harbor like attack on these worlds it seems. The first message we've translated was a military communique transmitted in the clear and it reads, 'To All Colonial Ships, From Picon Fleet Headquarters: this is not a drill! A massive Cylon attack is underway.' It goes on to say that thirty of their starships called Battlestars have already been destroyed and that the planets Picon, Tauron, Gemenon, Caprica and a list of others that read like the names of constellations of the Greco-Roman Zodiac are being bombed from orbit."

Sen. Armstrong asked, "Can we jump out of here Colonel Carter?" His face was a mixed mask of concern, fear, and horror.

Camile Wray ever the diplomat asked, "Is it possible to make contact with each side to negotiate an end to these hostilities?" Then Satterfield returned bearing more printouts of translations.

"Sirs, Ma'am, Commissioner Wray, here are more translations. It seems that many of this Colonial Fleet's ships were suffering malfunctions as they encounter the ships of these Cylons. There are multiple reports of their drives shutting down among many other malfunctions then before they were silenced in turn some ships are reporting their companion ships being destroyed without offering resistance after being scanned by the Cylon ships. Then there are reports like this the main city of a planet called Caprica was incinerated by a fifty megaton thermonuclear detonation. The Colonial Fleet Ship Yards at a planet called Scorpia have been destroyed as have similar orbital structures at the planets Caprica and Picon," Satterfield said as she listened to a new report from her Communications Division personnel. Her face paled as she listened to the new missive. "Oh my god, all live transmissions from their civil government have ended and there's an automated one now that sounds similar to some Emergency Alert System messages."

Everyone around the tactical table realized then that this was a much worse situation than either Pearl Harbor on December seventh of 1941 or the September eleven attacks of 2001. Satterfield looked at everyone then forwarded the sensor sweep reports, "Gentlemen and ladies, the twelve main habitable worlds of this cluster have been bombed from orbit with thermonuclear weapons. Many of these according to the sensors are enhanced radiations devices similar to the neutron bombs of the nineteen eighties. However this, the second planet of the main star system of this cluster has been completely sterilized using nuclear weapons." An image of a new planet filled the display of the tactical table.

Then she shifted the image to show the entire primary system of the cluster. "This is the primary system of the four. Its primary is a main sequence star exactly like Sol. It has seven planets, four of which are earthlike or near earthlike worlds. The second and third of these worlds, orbit a common bray point. One is a planet similar to Earth but the water to land ratio is nearly sixty-forty where Earth's is closer to seventy-thirty. The other planet is a dry world and mostly desert like Abydos was. Now the fourth world is in a closer orbit to the primary than our Mars is and climate wise it is similar to Russia."

This time the image focused in on the planet the Colonials knew as Tauron. The sensor imagery showed a world in flames. "From our sensor data this is pretty much the condition on every world. The estimated casualty rates are staggering. Given that our Earth has a population nearing seven billion I can only guess that the population of this system prior to this attack was at most twelve times Earths, but perhaps slightly less. I'm guessing from sensor readings that the loss of at least human life in this cluster is in the tens of billions." Though she was trying to deliver a professional report on what her sensor scans and communications intercepts had discovered, Satterfield was visibly shaken by what she learned. She wanted to find the Officers' Head and empty her guts into a toilet.

Satterfield looked around the table and said in a voice about to break from what she's learned, "Sirs, Ma'am, Senator, Commissioner we have a genocide in progress and we are going to be powerless to stop it." Then she asked for them to excuse her, "I need to compose myself. I'm trying not to lose my breakfast."

Combat Information Center, Battlestar Galactica

COL Saul Tigh rushed into the CIC fastening his tunic as he approached the Tactical Plot Table and Commander Adama. Adama handed him a hard copy of the Picon Fleet Headquarters warning order. Saul took it and read it as CMDR Adama picked up a handset from the side of tactical table and held it like a microphone. Saul's face paled as he felt the alcohol in his system suddenly get metabolized. "This has to be a joke, a retirement prank, they're pulling your leg!" he said looking at his long-time friend. The look from Adama said otherwise.

"I don't think so Saul," Adama said as he signaled for Petty Officer First Class Dualla to connect him ship wide. Then he said, "Someone get Kara Thrace out of the Brig!" He cleared his throat and said, "This is the Commander. Moments ago, this ship received word of a Cylon attack against our home worlds is underway. We do not know the size or the disposition or the strength of the enemy forces. But all indications point..." He looked around the CIC seeing stunned faces looking his way before saying, "to a massive assault against Colonial defenses. Admiral Nagala has taken personal command of the fleet aboard the Battlestar Atlantia, following complete destruction of Picon Fleet Headquarters in the first wave of the attacks. How, why ..." He took a breath and continued saying, "doesn't really matter now. What does matter is that, as of this moment, we are at war. You've trained for this. You're ready for this. Stand to your duties, trust your fellow shipmates and we'll all get through this. Further updates as we get them. Thank you."

CMDR Adama then turned to Saul, "If we're in a shooting war we need something to shoot. Find me some bullets Saul."

Saul nodded, "I'll check the depot reports and see what I can find." Then COL Tigh went over to a set of binders on a nearby table and began leafing through them. As he thumbed through the loose leaf binders he found one that was on the Colonial Fleet Anchorages. He looked through its pages and finally found data for Ragnar Anchorage.

In the meantime Kara Thrace came up to CMDR Adama and saluted him. She was still just dressed in the same pair of Colonial Armed Forces issue green BDU trousers, her tan and black muscle style tee-shirts and deck boots. Thrace had come straight to the CIC from the Brig. She had a couple of Black BDU uniformed Marines still guarding her.

"Kara I want you to get the Air Wing ready for combat," Adama said after he returned her salute. He looked over the plot as he talked to her. He was making notes on the Helios System's star chart then he handed her the communique from Colonial Fleet Headquarters at Picon. Adama watched her read it and her face paled.

"Thirty Battlestars already destroyed, that's nearly a quarter of the Fleet!" Kara responded. Then Adama asked her about getting up a cap and having some ready fighters. "Pilots I have, but all our fighters left for Caprica to be reassigned an hour ago," she said as she looked down at the plot Adama was keeping. Adama reminded her that there was a fully function squadron of Vipers in the Museum part of the starboard flight pod that was once the Hangar Deck of that pod. "I get Chief Tyrol, the Deckhands, and the Pilots to transfer them from the starboard to the port flight pod," Thrace said as she turned to go ready the old Mk 2 Vipers for the first duty they've flown in years.

Adama looked at her and she left the CIC and yelled, "Starbuck!" She turned to see what he wanted and Adama smiled and said, "Good hunting Starbuck, kick some Cylon ass!" She just nodded and exited out the portside hatch of the CIC. Adama smiled as she left then went back to studying the plot.

Starboard Flight Pod, Former Cylon War Museum, Viper Display fifteen minutes later:

Starbuck had gathered all the pilots, Chief Tyrol, and several knuckle draggers. They were in the museum's static display area. Around them were glass encased displays of Cylon War era Centurions and several static displays of Cylon Raiders and Mk 2 Vipers. As for the Vipers there was a completely restored squadron set up in a part of the former Hangar Bay as if they were being prepared for launch or having maintenance done.

Starbuck in a motion so swift that it rivaled the reflexes of a professional Pyramid player knocked down a stanchion the held the end of a red velvet covered partition rope to the floor. "Ok Chief what do we have here?" she yelled. She was looking at the twenty Mk-2 Viper aerospace fighters that looked like they just came off the assembly line. In front of her was one that had the name of a Lieutenant in the Colonial Fleet's Aviation Arm. Starbuck took in what she could see of the plane and was smiling. As she waited for Chief Galen Tyrol to go over the condition of the Vipers on display, Starbuck began her own check of the plane's condition.

"Lieutenant all these planes have been put back into pristine service ready condition, and they're ready to fly and fight. All we have to do is charge up their reactors and fuel them. That's not the real problem though," Tyrol said as he looked back toward the maintenance causeway hatch that allowed direct transfer of planes, ammunition, and supplies from one flight pod to the other.

Starbuck stood back up from looking under the Viper in front of her to see if there were any leaks and looking at Chief Tyrol in the eyes she said, "Oh, what is the problem Chief?" Now she had her hands on her hips in a manner that suggested that she didn't have time for any bull.

"We have to move all these planes from this hangar bay over to the port one. Once there we have to get them ready to fly," Chief Tyrol was still looking at the maintenance causeway hatch. In his mind he was calculating the effort needed to move the twenty planes from this side to the other.

"Why can't we just use the Starboard Launch Bay?" Starbuck asked rather incredulously. Her eyes were shooting daggers at the Chief waiting for his answer.

"Sir, that's now a gift shop," Chief Tyrol stated returning her glare. "The only place we have to launch them from is the Port Launch Bay. We have to manually get these planes from this Hangar Bay, through the main maintenance causeway over to the Port Hangar Bay, and into the Port Launch Bay."

"Frak, ok people in teams of five to ten, we have to get all these planes from here to there and we have very little time to get it done!" Starbuck shouted out. "Then we have to get them all prepped. After that we have to launch as many as we can to deal with any Raiders the Cylons send our way. So people get your butts in gear and get moving!"