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Post by Brie on May 12, 2006 14:05:20 GMT -6
Brie felt as if fate had stepped in. She had intend to find Artus and saw him immediately as she entered the hall. Unfortunately the blackshirts were with him, and she could see that at least one of them had his weapon drawn. Ditching the walker, Brie pulled herself up to her full height and tried not to limp as she approached the men. “Excuse me, is there a problem?”
“No, Ma’am,” the first man replied. He didn’t lower his weapon.
Brie recognized the two men who had earlier burst in on her conversation with Abby. “Did you leave your name with the duty nurse as I instructed?”
“Yes, Ma’am,” he answered. His gaze never left Artus.
“Good.” Brie paused for effect. “So why are you still running around with your weapons drawn? You’d like to be placed on report twice in one cycle?”
“No, Ma’am,” his partner chimed in. “It’s just that Artus here...um, I mean Lieutenant Artus, well, he...”
“Lieutenant,” Brie interrupted, looking directly at Artus for the first time, “where are you supposed to be right now?”
“I'm to go to my room and eat something,” Artus replied with a grin. “Colonel Charybdis’ orders.”
“Problem solved,” Brie replied. She looked back at the first blackshirt. “I’ll personally see to it that he makes it back to his room. He’s no longer your problem.” She took a couple of steps.
“But...” the first blackshirt stammered, reholstering his weapon.
“You’re dismissed, gentlemen,” Brie continued. She started to walk away, Artus by her side. She waited until the blackshirts were out of hearing range. “And when we get to where ever you‘re staying, Lieutenant, I expect you to tell me what the frack has been going on.”
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artus
Viper Pilot
Posts: 140
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Post by artus on May 13, 2006 2:17:09 GMT -6
Artus grinned again.
He noticed that Brie wasn't walking too well so he offered her his arm.
"I'm not really sure where I am supposed to be staying. So anywhere you have in mind would be as good as any to me."
He then paused.
"As far as telling you what has been going on, I was hoping you would help me fill in the blanks. And there are a lot of blanks ma'am."
Again he paused.
"Looks like there's been quite a lot going on around here as well. If you don't mind me asking, how long have I been gone? The last thing I remember was the battle at Pangara Major Delta. After that it get's a little fuzzy."
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Post by Brie on May 13, 2006 15:09:56 GMT -6
“Pangara was a long time ago,” Brie replied. “I can’t remember the exact date, but it’s been a couple of yahrens. And according to the filed reports, your viper exploded. Since no escape pod was jettisoned, it was assumed that you had been killed immediately.” She continued down the hall, grateful for Artus’ arm. She knew that her physical therapist was going to be upset with her but she didn’t really care. “Obviously we shouldn’t assume anything anymore.”
“Obviously,” Artus remarked.
She stopped in front of a door and keyed in a security code. “It’s probably not a good idea for you to return to the barracks just yet, so you can stay here for the time being.” The door opened, revealing a small, private room. There was barely enough space for a bed. There were no personal items inside.
“Whose room is this?” Artus asked.
“It’s going to be Amy’s,” Brie replied, entering. “I had requested private quarters for Gold’s third officer yahrens ago, and it was finally approved while I was in the brig. Our acting TIC is assigned elsewhere, so this is empty until Amy is released. I don’t think she’d mind if you stayed here.”
“Wait...you were in the brig?” Artus asked.
Brie smiled. “Long story. Maybe I’ll fill you in sometime.” She sat down on the edge of the bed, making sure there was plenty of space between her and Artus. After all, the man did have a bit of a reputation. “I’d much rather figure out where you’ve been all this time. Anything that you can remember, even bits and pieces, feelings, blurrs, anything. Maybe I can help you put some of them together.”
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artus
Viper Pilot
Posts: 140
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Post by artus on May 14, 2006 2:10:52 GMT -6
Noticing the safe distance Brie observed, Artus grinned. He unceremoniously plonked down on the bed.
"So this will be Amy's room, huh?"
He looked around, appraisingly. He then put his feet up against the wall, trying to look more relaxed. It didn't really work.
Then he turned back to Brie, more serious this time.
"You tell me that Pangara was several yahrens ago. But to me it is just like yesterday. Well maybe not yesterday, but the day before."
He seemed to have trouble finding the words.
"I vividly remember the battle at Pangara. I even remember being shot. But after that there is a white blur. And something about a large burger with Caprican ketchup. Next thing I know is I wake up in sickbay with medtechs poking me with medical devices. They tell me I'm healthy so I am supposed to be debriefed. Next thing I know the blackshirts arive treating me like I'm some kind of captured enemy. Oh and I also heard Amy was pregnant."
It was obvious that Artus was feeling upset at this point.
"And the strangest thing is that I keep getting all these thoughts I can't really place."
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Post by Brie on May 15, 2006 7:45:48 GMT -6
“Believe it or not, I know exactly what you’re talking about,” Brie informed Artus. “During the time that you’ve been gone I ended up in not one but two comas. There are things, just little snippets of information that I shouldn’t know but somehow I do. So I do sort of understand. Maybe if I tell you some of what's been going on while you've been gone things will start to make more sense.” She paused, trying to figure out where she should start. She knew that he had seen Charybdis, that must have been when he saw Amy as well. “You mentioned Amy. I know that you two used to be close and since she told you about the pregnancy, I guess that would be as good a place to start as any.”
“She didn’t tell...” Artus began, but stopped. In the short time he had been with Amy she hadn’t mentioned the baby, but he still knew. “So what happened to Amy?”
"The correct question would be, 'what did they do to her?'"
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Post by Brie on May 16, 2006 7:45:41 GMT -6
"They?" Artus repeated.
"The Cylons. Let me go back a little bit further." Brie took a deep breath, remembering. "It was just after we rejoined the fleet. There was a Cylon base in the area, a hollow moon, and the higher-ups decided that our only chance of the fleet leaving the system was to knock out the base's major systems. I'll spare you most of the details but I volunteered to lead the mission, knowing quite well that there was a plan for us to go in, but none for us to get back."
"A suicide mission," Artus remarked.
Brie nodded. "The mission was mostly infantry members but I needed a few warriors for support. I asked for volunteers. I was looking for people who were not only capable, but who also had few ties, few regrets. Anyone interested was to write a short note for me, explaining why I should pick them. Amy was the last person I thought I'd bring along, she's like my little sister, but her note convinced me." Brie smiled. "She mentioned you in it. Or actually your supposed death. She also said that things were long over with Charybdis. I trust Amy and I see great things in her, a potential that most people don't notice, probably because of her looks." Brie noticed a small grin on Artus' face, she knew very well that Amy's beauty hadn't been lost on him. "If she had been involved with anyone at the time I wouldn't have assigned her. But having her there was as important to me as it was to her, I was proud to have her a part of my team. When Colonel Charybdis saw the list, I guess he he sought Amy out. They...um...said good-bye. Remember, none of us were expected to return. And that's when the baby was conceived."
"So how long ago was this?" Artus asked.
"Several sectars," Brie replied, knowing what the next question would be.
“Several sectars? But Amy doesn’t even look pregnant.”
“I know,” Brie replied sadly. “She should be close to full term. But there’s something wrong, drastically wrong. That’s why they’re operating, the pregnancy will kill her.”
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Post by Brie on May 17, 2006 7:42:39 GMT -6
“Back to the moon,” Brie continued. “I’ll explain the rest in a centon. Once we arrived I broke us up into two groups. I took the majority with me to disable the base, Amy had a few people under her command. We had heard that there was a human prisoner and they were to look for him, plus try to find us transport home. Dying on that moon because we had no way off just wasn’t acceptable to me. My group achieved our objective but Amy ran into some type of ‘Super Cylon’. They were deadly accurate. My group stumbled upon a ship that would get us back to the Galactica. I had been wounded so Captain Lazant went to look for Amy. Time was tight and they were way past their deadline and nowhere to be seen, so I had to make the hardest call of my life. I assumed that they were dead and we blasted our way off the base.”
“Obviously we shouldn’t assume anything anymore,” Artus said, repeating Brie’s earlier words.
“Obviously,” Brie replied. “Amy and Lazant made it off the base alive, but they were eventually captured. Amy was taken to a cold cell. Somewhere along the way they must have discovered that she was pregnant. Since the Cylons don’t understand human reproduction they turned her into an experiment. Lazant was able to rescue her and they escaped. Amy was almost brain-dead when they returned to the fleet, the doctors didn’t think she’d ever wake up. Then suddenly.....she did. But the tests that they ran showed that the baby is beyond hope. They claim that it isn’t even human anymore. It’s feeding off of her in unnatural ways, ways that will kill both of them if they allow it to continue. I’m really worried about her. They have no idea what they’re dealing with. But I keep reminding myself that Amy is strong, stronger than she's ever given herself credit for.”
Artus looked sad momentarily, then nodded. "Amy is strong. She'll make it through."
At that moment Brie's comm beeped, she had a message. "Excuse me one micron." She checked the bulky, antiquated computer terminal in the corner. Between the computer and the bed there wasn't room for much else in the small quarters. She quickly read the message:
"Brie, It is good to hear you are doing well, even if you are on light duties. Me, I am glad to be alive and getting back to normal. I am off on a long range escort soon and am looking forward to having a talk with you. May the Lords Of Kobol be with you. JustinB" She turned it off.
"Something important?" Artus asked.
"Not what I was expecting," Brie replied. "I was hoping that it was something about whatever the upcoming mission is. I know it's something big, but they won't let me know the details because they're scared I'll have another heart attack."
"Another?"
"Yup." She sat down again on the same spot on the bed. "So, what other gaps would you like me to try to fill in?"
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Post by Brie on May 18, 2006 17:02:21 GMT -6
Artus waited for a micron. "Which one do you want to start with, your heart attack or you being in the brig?"
"That," Brie started slowly, "is a long story. One story, not two, because they're actually connected. It could take a while.”
“I’d still like to hear it,” Artus told her.
“Okay. It starts way back, even before the Callisto. I was a lieutenant, sealed to a captain named Turner. We were assigned to different squadrons on the Galactica. Turner found out about a plot to assassinate the president. Several people were arrested because of it. The plot went deeper than anyone had imagined, and Turner was murdered as payback."
"I had heard that your husband was MIA," Artus remarked.
"He was listed that way," Brie replied. "until we got proof of his death. But now fast forward several yahrens. After we left the Cylon moon, I was charged with negligence in the deaths of Captains Amy and Lazant." She grinned at the surprised look on Artus' face. "Charged, tried, convicted, court-martialed and sentenced. That's how I ended up in the brig. It was all part of a larger plan, a plan that they neglected to fill me in on at the time, but that's beside the point. There was this man, Major Pierce, from Military Inquiries, who wanted to take over the fleet. He had been the one behind the assassination attempt that my husband had foiled, and had ordered his murder. Pierce preyed on people's fears and frustrations, and somehow convinced hundreds of people that he was a god. Commander Apollo allowed me to be convicted because Pierce had a vendetta against me, because of Turner. I was eventually kidnapped out of the brig and taken to the Agro Ship, which was filled with Pierce's followers."
“Trying to control the food supply?” Artus asked.
Brie nodded. “Yup. I was shot several times, including in my leg, which is why I'm not walking too well. Eventually Pierce and most of his followers committed suicide. And I almost bled to death, which was how I ended up in the first coma. After I woke up Doctor Ellis, a brilliant doctor, was assigned to my case. Although he couldn't have been all that brilliant, he was a surviving member of Pierce's group. They all hated me, called me 'the Widow'. Anyway, he administered some sort of drug to me that caused the heart attack. He also switched my blood samples, probably with Amy's because we have the same blood type. Doc Bkj knew that something was wrong because she ran some tests and they came back that I was pregnant, which, of course, I wasn't. By the time she figured everything out I was in surgery for my leg, with Ellis operating. He injected me with an antibiotic that I'm deathly allergic to. He was shot and killed, but Bkj didn't know how much of the antidote to give me. She overshot the amount, putting me into the second coma. There's still a trace amount of the first drug in my blood, which is why I could have another heart attack." Brie grinned. "Aren't you glad you asked?"
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artus
Viper Pilot
Posts: 140
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Post by artus on May 24, 2006 8:04:21 GMT -6
Artus winced.
"Unfortunately the line of work we are in usually shows up on your body somewhere. But I was quite surprised to wake up and find this felgercard on my face..."
With his left hand he traced the visible scar on his cheek.
"But please continue, did they have any accomplises?"
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Post by Brie on May 24, 2006 13:02:56 GMT -6
Brie sighed. "Frack, yeah. Pierce had managed to gather followers from every ship in the fleet. There was a mass, fleet-wide suicide, hundreds of deaths. And the brig is currently full of his people waiting to be formally charged. People from all walks of life, computer geeks, medtechs, fleet security...including two women who had been guarding me. One of the biggest surprises to me was Trula..."
“...the Galactica’s head chef?” Artus interrupted.
“One and the same,” Brie replied. “Trula had been involved with Pierce from way back, in fact she’s on the Prison Barge right now, convicted for her part in my husband’s murder. Turner was assigned to a last centon mission because the man who was supposed to go came down with food poisoning. Turns out it wasn’t an accidental poisoning after all. Ironically, Boleman, who was sealed to Trula at the time, was my protector at the tribunal. I had even started to think that he was the one following Pierce, but fortunately I was wrong.”
“So has everyone been caught?” Artus asked.
“Probably not,” Brie informed him. “They came up with a profile of a typical Pierce follower, the problem is that too many people fit the profile, myself included. But without a leader hopefully the rest will find something else to believe in.” She noticed that Artus absentmindedly continued to trace the scar on his cheek. “Enough about me. Do you have any idea at all about how you might have received that scar?”
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