|
Post by Astraea on Jan 21, 2006 11:42:43 GMT -6
Astraea laughed along with the others who were updating her on some of the antics of Gold Squadron. There was always a story to tell when a squadron got together. She listened intently, but her eyes were scanning the crowd for one face in particular.
She had already noted that Charybdis was missing. She didn’t see him slip out, but she had little doubt as to where he had gone. Part of her wished that he had said something to her before he left, but part of her was glad that he hadn’t. Most of the faces around her were new and they knew nothing of her past relationship with the colonel. Astraea had no doubt that the rumor mill would take care of that soon enough, but she was enjoying herself and didn’t want to talk about where Charybdis was at that moment.
No, the face that she was looking for was one that she wasn’t even sure she would recognize. Captain Skyler. When Brie had given him thanks, the name hadn’t even registered with Astraea. She was still too overwhelmed with the greeting she had received, but now she was trying to find the captain.
There had been a Lieutenant Skyler on the mission where Astraea had been captured. It was their first assignment together so they had yet to meet, but Astraea had taken note of him. It had been the first time that her historical skills were an important part of the mission. She had been excited beyond belief and wanted to remember every detail.
Of course she had no way of knowing if Captain Skyler was the same man who had been with her on that mission. She had assumed that everyone else had died which made her even more curious as to which one of the many people there was the captain. She would love to have the chance to speak with him about that fateful day, but she supposed that would have to wait.
“Oh I’ve already started working on history scans again,” Astraea replied as she was pulled back into the conversation. “In fact, that’s how I spent the entire night,” she admitted. “I get so wrapped up in what I’m doing that I lose all track of time.”
|
|
|
Post by Skyler on Jan 21, 2006 12:33:56 GMT -6
"Brie, I will be right back, I need to do something..." Skyler whispered in Brie's ear as he slipped over to Astraea and waited for the gathered crowd of Warriors to thin out.
"Astraea, I wanted to say how sorry I am that you were left behind. Captain Silton and I split up, trying to draw the Raiders away so the shuttle could get away from the derelict ship. I managed to destroy the Raiders that followed me, but not before taking several hits, my Nav and Comm systems were fried and the flight control systems sluggish. When I returned to the derelict, it was gone, Capt Silton gone, nothing. I limped back to the fleet, made a controlled crash and requested a fresh Viper. By the time we got back to the area, all we found was wreckage, blasted and burnt beyond belief. We thought everyone was dead, or we would have looked for you. I feel partly responsible. I read your report, if I had stayed in the area, attempted to check the wreckage on the planet....." Astraea cut him off...
|
|
|
Post by Astraea on Jan 21, 2006 15:14:36 GMT -6
“Whoa, stop,” Astraea said as she held up a hand to keep the captain for going any further. She took a moment to study his face. There was something familiar about his features, but she never would have picked him out in the crowd. She had only seen him from a distance in the landing bay. “Skyler?”
He gave her a nod and she let out a sigh in relief. “I never had any idea what happened outside of the derelict ship. Captain Herron and I heard a lot of explosions, but we couldn’t really see anything. Do you have any idea where the Raiders came from or what they hoped to get by sending out the derelict?”
|
|
|
Post by Skyler on Jan 21, 2006 15:55:23 GMT -6
"Our best guess is the Raiders hide on the other side of the planet. The sensor scans of the derelict were studied and it was discovered that a carrier wave had been hidden in the strange energy readings it was giving off. That carrier wave was without a doubt a signal for the Raiders to move in an attack, more than likely activated when the bridge was accessed and control panels turned on. Those energy readings interfered with the long range scanners on the Vipers, an did so in a way that we couldn't detect. If the techs hadn't spent several cycles reviewing the sensor logs from my Viper, we wouldn't know it now. The best guess the tactical experts can come up with is that it was nothing more than a trap. They knew that a colonial vessel, especial one that old would be a possible link to the 13th Tribe, Earth. They had hoped to catch the Fleet, not two Vipers and a shuttle. By the time we returned with a full Squadron and SAR vessels, the Basestar must have moved in, found you, blasted the derelict's wreckage to remove any evidence of survivors and pulled out. Its doubtful they even knew I survived."
|
|
|
Post by Astraea on Jan 22, 2006 10:42:19 GMT -6
Astraea nodded as she thought back. “It’s common for the Cylons to obliterate a ship to keep any part of it from being salvaged especially if they take prisoners. People are less likely to look for someone if they think they’re already dead.” Her mind wandered down the corridors of that ancient vessel. “It’s really a shame too. That ship was in surprisingly good shape. I would have loved more time with her.”
She looked at Skyler curiously and her eyebrows drew together. “You’re not feeling guilty about what happened, are you?” Rather than responding, he simply looked away. Astraea reached out and grabbed his arm. “You did your job,” she insisted and his eyes darted back to hers. “You fought as long as you could and then you got back to the fleet to warn them. That was what was important.”
|
|
Ike
Ensign
Be verwy, verwy quite. I'm huntin' Cylons. Hehehehehhe!
Posts: 16
|
Post by Ike on Jan 22, 2006 17:34:14 GMT -6
As the aprty began to thin, Ike headed toward the hangar bay. He wanted to check on his Viper. A needed check on 'Vera's' laser cooling system had been bugging him. The Scarlet Vipers needed much more attention than the old school models. The cooling system needed to be adjusted, as indicators had been showing levels approaching hades. He often wondered if the tech that came with him from the Galactica really knew his stuff or not.
|
|
|
Post by Skyler on Jan 22, 2006 20:13:57 GMT -6
"Doing my job isn't good enough.... You spent five yahrens in Cylon captivity becasue of it. Yeah, a small part of it is guilt, guilt of leaving a fellow Warrior behind, most of it is anger. Anger at myself for not trying harder to make sure before I returned to the Callisto."
|
|
|
Post by Astraea on Jan 23, 2006 0:15:57 GMT -6
Astraea shook her head. “You said yourself that your ship took several hits. If you had entered the atmosphere looking for us, you wouldn’t have been able to fly back out. You would have been captured too. Or worse. The fleet could have sent out even more people who might have met the same fate.”
She didn’t know what else to say. She understood anger and guilt quite well, but she was never in his position before. Her experience as a warrior had been short lived and, when she was separated from other prisoners while with the Cylons, she could only assume that they were dead. There was no going back for anyone.
“Look Skyler, I can appreciate how you feel, but you don’t owe me any apologies. If the situation had been reversed, I would have done the same thing. I’ll admit that I would have preferred not to spend quite so much vacation time at Resort Tin Can, but maybe some good can come out of it. I’ve passed on everything that I’ve learned to command and someone suggested doing a survival guide for the pilots, an idea which I’m warming to.” She tried to smile reassuringly. “I know that I’ll have some…issues that I’ll need to deal with now that I’m back, but I am back. That’s all that’s important.”
|
|
|
Post by Brie on Jan 23, 2006 9:04:30 GMT -6
Although the party was starting to wind down, Brie had no desire to leave. In a way it had been as important for her as for Astraea, a gathering of people who had supported her through a difficult time. When most of the fleet had been against her, Gold Squadron had remained true. Brie would never forget that.
Across the room Skyler and Astraea seemed engrossed in conversation. Brie didn't even have to guess what they were talking about. She knew Skyler well enough to know that he would partially blame himself for Astraea having been left behind. It wasn't his fault, it wasn't anyone's fault. It was a terribly unfortunate circumstance, a by-product of the war.
Brie wondered what Astraea was now like. She hadn't known her all that well before her captivity. It was funny, when she and Turner had coupled they often included Charybdis on whatever they had planned, since he was Turner's best friend, but when Charybdis had started dating Astraea he had almost kept her away from Brie. Her relationship with Astraea had been little more than friendly professional. She knew that before the party was over they would have to speak. She wasn't really looking forward to it.
For a good long micron Brie stared at Skyler. A truer friend she had never known. She had feelings for him but as a warrior and his commanding officer she had to bury them. She knew that they had no chance of ever being together, so it made no sense to dwell on wishes. Skyler had a harder time with it, he couldn't hide his love from her. Brie didn't know if she was "in love" with him or not. It wasn't the same as she had felt for Turner, she wouldn't ever feel that way again. She also felt something for Justin but wasn't sure what that was either. She remembered that Amy had once asked her if it was possible to be in love with two men at once. She wondered if emotions were genetic.
|
|
|
Post by Brie on Jan 24, 2006 15:46:35 GMT -6
As she continued to speak with several members of the squadron, Brie realized that Charybdis had left. It seemed sort of strange, he had been Gold Squadron's first leader and still knew several of the members quite well. If moving to the bridge made him feel like he no longer belonged amongst them...Brie strengthened her resolve to never move to the bridge.
There were so many questions. The more she talked the more she realized that the IFB had only reported bits and pieces of what had happened with her incarceration and Pierce's attempted mutiny. It was a bit frustrating telling the story over and over again. It was also reassuring, hearing how everyone had believed in her and no one from the squadron had even entertained the idea that she had done anything wrong. Finally, the question that she had been dreading was asked. "So is it true that you're Amy's mom or not?"
Brie looked directly at the asker, Lieutenant Ben. Although he had been in the squadron for yahrens he was younger than most. He had never been known for his tact. Brie took a deep breath and slipped right into Commanding Officer mode. "CAPTAIN Amy, your superior officer and Gold Squadron's third in command, already has a mother. Captain Amy is a member of this squadron and also a friend. That's the only relationship that we have or need."
"But you said..." Ben started, but decided not to finish the sentence.
"I said whatever I thought would get the Agro Workers to trust me," Brie said. "There was a bomb onboard, and if it had exploded the fleet would have starved to death. To save the fleet I might even have claimed to be YOUR mother, Lieutenant, although if I had said that, the good people of the Agro Ship probably would have stoned me on the spot." She smiled. "Any more questions?"
"No, Ma'am," Ben replied, backing away.
|
|