Boxy stood and looked out over the small number of people who had gathered to witness his sealing to Tala. Only their closest friends and family were invited to the ceremony. He knew that elsewhere on the agro ship there were warriors busy with the task of ensuring that there were no uninvited guests at the party.

The IFB had been playing up the story ever since the plans to hold the private ceremony were released. After all they had been the ones who had built up the hopes of the fleet that there would be a grand ceremony that would rival the greatest ever seen since before the formation of the colonies. The announcement of a private ceremony made it imperative to the reputation of the IFB that they at least bring exclusive shots of the sealing to the interfleet airways. Attempts had been made on several occasions to get interviews with the friends and family who would have been privy to the details surrounding the ceremony. On at least one occasion the attempt had become so forceful that a reporter and his crew found themselves looking at the wrong end of a warriors laser pistol. With all of that in mind, every access rout to the ceremony was sealed off by a number of warriors.

One warrior Boxy was disappointed not to see gathered with the rest of his friends was Starbuck. He had gone to his father and asked him to contact Starbuck with the invitation to the sealing. Apollo had told him that he was sorry, but that Starbuck was indisposed elsewhere in the fleet and couldn't be disturbed for any reason. Boxy could tell by the look on his father's face that there was more to the story of Starbuck's absence than a simple vacation. Whatever it was, Boxy was too much of a true warrior to question the words of the Commander, even if the Commander happened to be his father.

Ordinarily it would have been customary for the highest-ranking officer in the fleet to perform the ceremony. However, since Boxy and Tala had broken from tradition by having a private ceremony outside of the usual places reserved for such functions, they decided to have Apollo play a more traditional fatherly roll.

Instead of his father, Boxy asked that Tigh perform the ceremony. Tigh had always been somewhat more than just a family friend. He had always treated Boxy as if he were his grandson as well. His own son had become a warrior following in his father's footsteps. Unfortunately, he had been killed in battle with the Cylons about three yahren before the destruction of the colonies. With no other children and having lost his wife to a rare disease yahrens earlier, he was left with no possibility of having any grandchildren of his own. Boxy was only too happy to let him fill that roll, especially since Adama's sudden death.

As Boxy stood there admiring once again the recreated, though somewhat condensed, earth environment on the agro ship, the music began that would begin the ceremony. Tigh was the first to walk up the path between the guests who were standing to one side or the other. Tigh stopped just short of Boxy to allow him to give the customary bow of respect. Once it had been given, Tigh took his place at the head of the assembly. Boxy then sank down to one knee and bowed is head, a sign of the ultimate respect, as Tala's parents began their journey along the path. Once they had taken their place on the left side of the assembly, Apollo and Sheba began to make their way up the path.

Boxy had to sneak a glance in their direction to get a look at their faces. Technically, only the actual parents of the children were entitled to take place in the procession. Boxy had once again broken with tradition and asked Sheba to take the place his mother would have occupied. He had expected the look on their faces to show some signs of being uncomfortable. After all, they had never liked to be seen in public in any way that might even give a hint to the true nature of their relationship. Boxy quickly realized that something had changed. The two of them were walking arm in arm and standing closer to each other than they ordinarily would. He had a momentary thought that perhaps they had finally thrown caution to the wind and decided to have an open relationship. After that fleeting thought, Boxy reasoned that they were merely doing their best to fill the roll he had asked them to for the sealing ceremony.

Once they had made it to the front of the assemblage, they took their places on what would be Boxy's right side once he had turned to continue the ceremony. Though Boxy wanted with all of his heart to watch for Tala's entrance, he obeyed the custom and turned to face Tigh. Behind him he could soon tell that Tala was making her way up the path. The low murmurs and sighs of approval from the crowd behind him were definite proof of her approach. So it came as no surprise when he saw her move next to him.

Boxy reached his hand out to the side and gently closed his fingers around Tala's hand. Boxy could tell that her hand seemed tense and that it was trembling slightly. He began to caress her hand with slow soft movements of his thumb. Almost instantly he felt the tension begin to leave her. It was such a wonderful feeling to him that he almost lost himself in thoughts of her. When he was almost at the point of no return, he suddenly became aware that Tigh had begun the ceremony.

"…the times of our most ancient and honored ancestors." Tigh was saying. "So there is no doubt that they would be pleased to look upon us this day, as we gather here to witness the most sacred of all ceremonies. Boxy. Tala. The paths you have both followed during the course of your lives have helped to shape you into who you are today. Now we find that these two separate paths have brought both of you here to this meeting point. From this day forward your two paths will become one. Boxy, do you accept the responsibility that will come with this sealing? Will you love and honor Tala in good times as well as bad?"

"I will." Boxy said.

"Tala," Tigh said turning to face her, "will you love and honor Boxy in times of joy and times of sorrow?"

"I will." Tala said with a slight tremor in her voice that made Boxy aware that she was fighting to hold back her tears.

Tigh then looked back at Boxy and said, "You may now present Tala with the symbol of your sealing."

Boxy then turned to his father who was holding the ring. The exchanging of rings in the sealing was an archaic practice not regularly done for centuries. However, Apollo had done so when being sealed to his mother. He was now about to place that very ring on Tala's finger. Boxy had learned that the practice of giving the bride a ring at the sealing was something that had always been a tradition at the sealings as far back into Apollo's family history as anyone could trace. That means that it had been done at least since the first of the family to settle on Caprica. The ring he was giving to Tala now was not quite that old, but it was close. It had been passed down to he eldest son of every generation for almost two millennia.

Boxy took the ring form his father's hand and turned to Tala and slipped the ring on her finger. After doing so, Boxy held her hand with both of his while she placed her right hand on top of his left. Tigh then took the ceremonial sealing cloth from around his neck and placed it over the hands of Boxy and Tala.

Tigh continued, "By the power vested in me by the council of the twelve and the Lords of Kobol I now pronounce you sealed."

Boxy leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on Tala's lips. He had to remind himself to keep the kiss time to a minimum. He knew that there were plenty of onlookers who were anxious to extend their congratulations to the new couple. He wasn't wrong. As soon as he had broken the kiss, they were both descended upon by an enthusiastic crowd.

After a few microns, Apollo saved them from the crowd by saying," All right everyone, lets give them a few microns alone. Besides, the last one to the reception on the Rising Star gets to buy a round for everyone."

With that in mind, the crowd began to make a hasty retreat toward the exits. Apollo put his hand on Boxy's shoulder and congratulated him before leading Tala's parents and Sheba toward the exit. The two found themselves alone for what seemed like the first time in a secton. No words were exchanged between the two. There were just a couple of wide smiles and a tender embrace that seemed to last forever, though to the two participants it didn't seem long enough.

Finally, as they parted, Boxy took a look around and said, "Well, it looks as though I'll be buying that round at the reception."

"It's worth it," Tala said with a smile, "if I get to spend a few microns alone with you."

Boxy leaned in and gave Tala a soft kiss on the lips before taking her hand and starting to lead her up the path. They had only made it a couple of steps before Tala said, "Aren't we forgetting something."

It came to Boxy right away what they had forgotten. He momentarily let go of Tala's hand while he went to a tree that was behind and to the side of where Tigh had stood during the ceremony. Boxy reached up into the tree and recovered a camera from where he had hidden it earlier. He ejected the data chip from the camera and carried it back to Tala.

"Well, I think we had a pretty good view of the ceremony from where this was," Boxy said.

"It is very sweet of you to do this for me," Tala said.

"I understand the importance of this video to the fleet," Boxy said. "After all we can't have people revolting against the IFB for not getting the shots they promised. Besides, I don't mind if people see a recording of the ceremony. I just didn't want to have the ceremony with the eyes of the fleet watching while it was happening."

So Boxy and Tala set off down the path once again on their way to their shuttle. On they way they passed one of the places where the warriors were holding back the persistent IFB reporters. As they passed, Boxy threw the data chip to one of the reporters. The reporter was a bit confused at the time, but that would soon disappear after she got it back to the IFB and they found out what was on it.

And Boxy and Tala continued on to their shuttle having already started their lives together.

Apollo’s Journal:

It has been three sectars since Dr. Wilker was able to interface the Galactica’s navigational information with the information recovered from the data banks of the old communications bubble. Since then, we have resumed the course dictated by the previously intercepted transmissions. Any further intercepted transmissions are now relayed immediately to the bridge. Once back on the course, we intercepted more and more transmissions that allowed us to fine-tune our course heading. Of late however, we have become rather discouraged. It has been nearly a full sectar since the last transmission was received. In a few of the later transmissions, there was a mention of a revolutionary new form of communication. We fear that perhaps the technology of the people of earth has progressed their communications to a point that we are unable to detect. If that is so, we will have to rely on the transmissions we have already received to point the way to earth for us. Dr. Wilker, as well as many others, feels that the minor course corrections that would have been made due to further transmissions are relatively unimportant. He admits that it does become more of a factor the longer the voyage drags on. We are scanning and patrolling such a large area as we move along that it will be some time before we get far enough off course to miss earth entirely. I can only hope that the voyage is a relatively short one.

The bridge of the Galactica stirred with what had become the normal amount of activity since the voyage started. Apollo sat in his Command chair and listened to the faint conversations going on at almost every station on the bridge. He found himself sitting there more and more of late. He hoped that there would be another transmission or some other clue to assure them that they were on the correct heading. Yet nothing ever came. He was just about to leave someone else in command of the bridge and go find Sheba when the excited voice of the scanner operator stopped him.

"Commander!" exclaimed the wide-eyed ensign. "I’m picking up several objects on the scanner sir!"

"Our patrols?" Apollo asked since the ensign was new to the bridge.

"Negative Commander," the ensign responded confidently. "I’m not reading any transponder signals from any of them sir."

"Asteroid field perhaps," Apollo stated.

"Negative Commander," the ensign said nervously. "What ever it is has detected us and has changed course to intercept."

Apollo and the rest of the bridge got deadly serious at that point. Apollo hit the switch in front of him that would put the scanner display on the screen in front of him. It was true. They were headed straight for the fleet. Apollo reluctantly counted the number of ships on the scanner.

"Battle stations!" Apollo yelled.

Activity on the bridge increased significantly as personnel ran from station to station trying to gather as much information on the incoming ships as possible. The lighting all over the Galactica was replaced with the red warning lights that had remained dormant for so long. The alarm rang out and people scrambled to get to their stations or to a safe area.

"Recall all patrols," Apollo ordered. "Blue squadron to their Vipers."

"Commander," said the scanner operator, "most of blue squadron is out on patrol right now."

"Gold Squadron is already in the launching bay undergoing some training, Commander," said Rigel.

Apollo hesitated, but eventually said, "Gold Squadron to their Vipers and await launch instructions."

The necessary orders went out to the launch bay. Boxy thought that this was a surprise drill set up by his father, so he already had his squadron gathering their equipment when the order came down. They were sitting in their vipers in no time. All of the Vipers systems were brought online and checked.

Apollo sat on the bridge transfixed by the images on the scanner in front of him. He knew the pattern all too well. Still, he held out until even he couldn’t choose to ignore it anymore. After a couple of centons, Apollo saw the proof that could not be denied. An object had just come into scanner range behind the advancing ships. It was plainly identifiable as a baseship.

"Launch Gold Squadron," Apollo said immediately. "Get Red Squadron and Silver Spar Squadron to their Vipers and prepare to launch."

The orders went out to the various parts of the ship. In his Viper, Boxy heard the voice of the bridge flight officer say, "Transferring launch control to Vipers. Launch when ready."

Microns later, Gold Squadron was outside of the Galactica launch bay and forming into attack formation. Boxy looked down at his instruments and noticed that there were several objects on his scanner. He had a brief thought that perhaps they were from earth.

The voice of his father ended that thought as he said, "Gold Squadron. This is Commander Apollo. The objects on your screen have been identified as Cylon Raiders. Beyond them, we have detected a baseship heading this way as well. You are to engage and destroy the Cylon Raiders. Hold them off as long as you can. Red and Silver Spar Squadrons should be joining you shortly."

"This is Gold leader," Boxy said. "Orders received and understood. Gold Squadron, assume attack formation gamma four and prepare to engage."

There was no hesitation from the new, yet highly trained squadron. They moved into the correct formation and pushed on toward the enemy. None of them had ever flown an actual combat mission against Cylons before, but they had exhaustive training on recognition of the somewhat predictable Cylon battle tactics. To them, this all seemed like another simulation. They would soon find that their next lesson would be a fatal one for some of them.

The opposing forces were soon in visual range of one another. Boxy was momentarily stunned by the realization that he was about to lead his first real battle. He also realized that some of those under his command might not make it back to the fleet. This must be what my father feels like being in command of the fleet, Boxy thought. Always thinking that the lives of others depends on your command decisions.

Boxy was brought back from his thoughts by a blast of laser fire from the approaching Cylons. The ships were barely within firing range of each other, so the shot didn’t find the mark it was looking for. The squadron’s nerves held as not one of the pilots flinched from their course without being told to do so.

"All right Gold Squadron," Boxy said, "lets get to work. Attack pattern Gamma four, seven Alpha. Now."

Upon command, the squadron broke off from one another in pairs of two. Boxy performed a roll maneuver that would take him to the underside of the attacking body of Cylons. He was closely followed by his wingmate, Ensign Stone. The other members of the squadron broke off into different directions to the sides and top of the Cylon body.

The Cylons began to break into an attack pattern, but it was too late for three of them as Boxy and Stone each took out one raider as they approached from the underside of the formation. Another raider was destroyed as Vipers fired at it simultaneously from both sides. The six remaining raiders made it through the first volley from the Vipers and split into two sets of three to turn and engage the Vipers that had just engaged them. Before the raider pursuit could take a firm hold, four more of them were destroyed as the rest of Gold Squadron attacked from the rear of their formation. The two remaining raiders broke from the attack to make a run for their baseship. One of them was destroyed a short time later as Boxy and Stone’s intercept course proved accurate enough. One more short dogfight saw the last of the raiders destroyed.

"Gold Squadron regroup," Boxy ordered. "Well done everyone."

Once the group had come back together, Boxy surveyed the squadron for any damage that might have been incurred in the battle. He was amazed to find that there was none to be seen. His squadron had come through its first encounter with Cylons without a scratch.

Boxy was thinking about what a great time he would have replaying the battle in the officers lounge, when Ensign Stone said, "Holy Frac! Lieutenant. Tell me that my scanner is malfunctioning."

Boxy looked at his own scanner and kicked himself for celebrating too soon. The Cylon force they had encountered before was only a patrol. Now the scanner showed that the Cylons were sending their entire compliment of fighting ships after them. The scanner showed another large body of ships coming at them from the other direction. Boxy knew that would be Red and Silver Spar Squadrons, but he could also see that the Cylon force would reach them first.

"All right Gold Squadron," Boxy said. "It looks as though our work isn’t done yet. We’ll have to engage that Cylon force until reinforcements can get here. Pattern omega nine, maximum spacing."

The ordered formation was assumed, and the squadron awaited the arrival of the new Cylon threat. Nervous perspiration fell from the forehead of every member of the squadron as the wall of ships came into visual range. They all knew that it would take a miracle for them to survive against such odds, but they were determined not to let the Cylons get any closer to the fleet than they already were.

"It should be fairly easy to pick off a few of them on the initial pass until they break into their attack pattern," Boxy said. "Open fire as soon as they come into firing range. Rapid bursts. After they break, we want to keep them as spread out as possible so they can’t concentrate their fire in one small area to pick us off. Use pattern delta sixteen after the initial pass. Good luck. See you at the victory celebration back on the Galactica."

The enemy came into range, and the fight was on. Several Cylon raiders were destroyed while only one Colonial Viper was lost on the initial pass. Boxy knew that would change soon. All they could do was hope that help was on its way soon.

"By the Lords!" Bojay exclaimed. "Do you see what I see Diedre?"

"I sure do," Diedre said as she tried to count the number of ships on her scanner. "They’re throwing everything they have at us. Gold Squadron can’t last very long in the middle of all of that. Why didn’t they try to turn and head toward us? More of them might have made it then."

"Think of who their commanding officer is," Bojay said. "Boxy wouldn’t do anything that would let those Cylons get one micron closer to the fleet. Like father like son. Everyone push your ships as hard as possible. Looks like we have some heroes to try and save."

"Things are beginning to get a little sticky in here Lieutenant," Stone said as he looked at the Cylon ships encircling them on all sides. "Any ideas?"

"Follow me," Boxy said. "And make sure to stick extra close."

A micron later they both engaged their full turbos and rolled toward the wall of Cylon ships that was closest to them. Knowing the Cylon thought process fairly well Boxy expected two things. First he expected the ships they were heading for to open fire with a deadly barrage. He was right.

Stone thought that Boxy must have lost his mind rolling that way, but he stuck to him like glue just the same. The heavy fire from the front was bad enough, but then Stone noticed that they were also being fired upon from behind as well. He thought they were goners for sure, but then he noticed the second thing that Boxy had counted on.

The two of them were firing at the Cylons in front of them, destroying one here and there. A small hole had started to form, but it wasn’t anywhere near big enough. Then a shot from one of the perusing raiders went wide of the Vipers and destroyed another raider. As more and more raiders picked up the pursuit and fired from such a distance behind them, the number of raiders destroyed by shots from other raiders increased. In turn, the hole got much bigger as the raiders in front had to break off their attack to avoid the incoming fire.

The Vipers shot through the hole to a less confining area beyond. The perusing raiders broke off their firing temporarily when they realized what it was doing to their own troops. That gave Boxy a chance to look around and gage the success of the rest of his squadron. What he saw sat a heavy weight on his heart. They had taken great losses on their first mission, and there was no near end in sight.

"Maybe we should regroup and go at them again," Stone said.

"Maybe," Boxy responded, "but we have another problem. Using our battle thrusters so much is draining our fuel. Much longer and we’ll be drifting targets."

Boxy looked around seeking out the most desperate battle in progress. If he was going to use up all of his fuel, at least he would try and do some good with it. He found the one he wanted right away and with a roll and a jab at his thrusters, he was on the tail of a raider that had one of his men in dire straights. He took a micron to align his shot before blasting the raider to dust.

Another small victory behind him, Boxy looked up to see yet another wall of raiders coming in on his right side. He thought that this was surely the end, when he heard a wonderful sound in his ear.

"Never fear, Silver Spar is here," Bojay said as half of his squadron flew over the top of Boxy’s viper to meet the Cylons head on. "Form up your squadron and report back to the Galactica kid. We’ll take it from here."

Boxy was too thankful to be angry at being referred to as a kid, so he called out to his squadron to pull out and head back for the fleet. When the remnants of his squadron had gathered for the trip home, Boxy was both saddened by the great losses they had suffered and glad to see that the losses were not as bad as he had expected. Just under half of his squadron was able to survive the incredible odds. Many of them were in ships that were shot up pretty badly. If the cavalry hadn’t arrived when it did, he was sure that he would be looking at a much greater loss.

"Commander," Rigel said, "most of Blue Squadron is now reporting in from patrol."

"Have them land and refuel," Apollo said. "They may have to be the next relief wave if this battle keeps up much longer."

The scanner operator who spotted the Cylons originally said, "Commander, I have incoming vipers. The transponder signals identify them as Gold Squadron."

Apollo’s heart jumped into his throat when he heard that. When he saw the incredible odds they were up against, he thought the entire squadron would have been wiped out before help could arrive. Even without saying anything, everyone knew that he wanted to know if Boxy was one of those who made it back.

Rigel said, "Gold leader is requesting emergency landing clearance. Several ships are damaged and all are short on fuel."

"Clearance is granted," Apollo said still hoping that Boxy was still leading Gold Squadron. "Clear alpha bay for incoming Vipers. Have emergency crews standing by. Patch me through to Gold Squadron."

Rigel typed in a couple of commands at her console, and then gave a nod to Apollo to let him know that he was patched in.

"This is Commander Apollo to Gold Leader. Please identify."

"This is Lieutenant Boxy," came the response.

Apollo let out the breath he had been holding along with the rest of the bridge crew. Apollo looked around and caught sight of Tala standing in a corner on the other side of the bridge. He hadn’t even noticed that she had come onto the bridge. He could plainly see that she had been worried as evinced by her tear stained face. He was glad to see that the tears she shed now were accompanied by a wide smile.

"What is your status Gold Leader?" asked Apollo.

"We sustained heavy casualties," was the response. "Most of the returning ships are in pretty bad shape. I have everyone doing a diagnostic on damage so we can coordinate an effective landing order. Have everyone stand back though. Some of the ships may be too damaged to get a fully accurate diagnostic reading."

"Understood Gold Leader," Apollo said. "Preparations have already been made. Be careful. Welcome home."

Everyone was watching when the last of the Vipers from Gold Squadron finally landed in Alpha bay. It was a stroke of sheer luck that all of the ships landed without major incident. A fact that the landing crews found amazing when they had a chance to survey the damage to the Vipers.

"Commander," Rigel said. "I’m picking up a distress call from Silver Spar Leader. It’s the basestar. It's joined the attack on the Vipers."

"Frac!" Apollo exclaimed. He took a micron to review his options and said, "Launch half of Blue Squadron to stay and protect the fleet. After they launch set a course for that basestar. We’ll see if we can even the odds a little."

Preparations were made for sending the Galactica into battle. Half of Blue Squadron was launched to stay with the fleet. Just as Apollo was about to give the order for them to get underway, the scanner operator spoke up once again.

"Commander. I’m showing another ship on my scanner sir. It launched from somewhere in the fleet, but there isn’t any transponder signal. And the computer can’t identify it as any ship type stored in its memory."

"Where is it headed?" Apollo asked fearing he already knew the answer.

"Directly for the battle scene, Commander," he responded.

"Lay in our course and engage," Apollo said to the necessary bridge officer. "Get us there with all dispatch."

"We can’t keep this up Captain," said Bojay’s wingman, Lieutenant Hawkins. "The raiders we can handle, but that basestar is picking us off one by one."

"I know, Lieutenant," Bojay responded, "but if we try to run they’ll just chase us down before we can make it back to the fleet. We might as well go out fighting."

"Well, the Galactica better send some help soon, or there won’t be much of a fight left," Hawkins said.

Just then something flew past them at a fantastic speed. They heard a, "Yaaa Hooooo!" as steaks of light spewed from all sides of the strange craft. It didn’t take long for those who saw the display to realize that the light was laser fire. More importantly, it was laser fire that was directed at the Cylon raiders in the near area. Raiders exploded as the ship fired round after round of deadly, accurate laser fire. Taking out four raiders at a time, it didn’t take long for the ship to clear a wide path through the middle of the battle. Bojay didn’t know who it was in the strange ship, but since the raiders that had caused him so much trouble were being turned to so much dust, he wasn’t going to argue.

When the ship had made it to the far side of the battle, it turned and began another pass back through the battlefield. Still more raiders met their end as stunned Colonial Warriors watched in disbelief. Even before the strange ship had finished its second pass, the raiders began to disengage and head for the safety of their baseship, which Bojay noticed was also leaving the area with a bit of haste.

Bojay thought for a moment that the strange ship had surprised the Cylons so much that they were pulling out to get away from it. A quick look at his scanner showed him the real reason why the basestar was leaving. The Galactica was on the way to the scene. The Cylons never had been ones to attack when they didn’t have a clear upper hand.

Bojay contacted the Galactica for orders on their next course of action. The two squadrons were not as beat up as Gold Squadron had been, but they certainly had their problems. Knowing that, Apollo ordered them to return to the Galactica so they could get back to the fleet as soon as possible.

Bojay spread the order to the rest of the squadron. As he did so he looked around hoping to get a look at the ship that had helped them. It was nowhere to be seen. Glancing down at his scanner, he discovered why. The ship was in pursuit of the basestar and its retreating fighters. He thought that surely the fighter wasn’t thinking about taking on a basestar single-handed. Then again, from what he had seen of it to that point, maybe it could take on the basestar.

Bojay’s was the last of the Vipers to land on the Galactica. As he was headed for the landing bay, he looked and noticed a blip on the back edge of his scanner. From the amount of distance it was covering, he knew that there was only one thing it could be. After he landed, he told everyone about what he had seen on his scanner.

A member of the landing bay crew told Bojay that he had just gotten word that whatever the craft was, it had just been given clearance to land. Everyone was a bit confused about why landing clearance would be given to a ship and pilot that no one knew anything about. At some point during the wait, someone questioned if it was possibly a ship from earth that had helped them. By the time the ship was on its way to the bay, the question had become a full-blown rumor.

A hush fell in the landing bay as the ship came into view and began its final approach. It entered the bay and touched down with a gentleness that no warrior had ever matched. It looked almost graceful as it slowed and taxied to a stop in front of them. Everyone tried to get a look at the pilot, but the canopy seemed to get darker as it tinted in reaction to the bright lights of the landing bay.

After the engines had been powered down, not a sound was made as everyone waited to see what would happen next. They heard a click as the canopy was unlocked and the airseal was broken. Slowly, the canopy rose. When the pilot inside was finally exposed, there was a gasp around the room as they noticed the helmet worn by the pilot. It was almost exactly like the helmet they wore in their Vipers. Gloved hands went to the base of the helmet and lifted upwards.

"Starbuck?!" Bojay gasped.

"In the flesh old buddy," Starbuck said with a smile as he began to climb out of the ship.

No one moved due to the fact that they were all in shock.

"Well think you could give a little warmer of a greeting," Starbuck said, "since I did go to the trouble of saving your neck and all."

"Starbuck... wha.......uh... where did you get that ship?" Bojay asked as he walked over to take a closer look.

"Well, I heard about the battle with the Cylons. You didn’t think I was going to be left out of the first real action we’ve seen in two yahren did you? I didn’t have a Viper handy, so I just grabbed the first tub I could find."

"Tub? I don’t suppose there are any more where this came from?" Diedre asked.

"I’m afraid not," Starbuck said. "But after today I think the production will step up on this model. You see, what you are looking at is the next generation of Viper."

Everyone moved in to take a closer look at the ship that they would get to fly someday. A thousand questions were thrown at Starbuck about the ship, but he saw Sheba come into the landing bay and stop by the entrance as if waiting for something.

"If you will excuse me, I do believe I am expected on the bridge," Starbuck said looking at the seriousness in Sheba’s eyes.

As Starbuck reached the spot where Sheba stood waiting, she said, "I’d like to know where you got that ship too, but I think I’ll stay out of that one until Apollo cools off a little. Gaining that information could be dangerous right now."

"That bad huh?" Starbuck asked. "I guess I had better start packing my bags for my trip to the prison barge."

"Well, before you go anywhere, Apollo wants to see you in his quarters right away," Sheba said.

"Lead me on to my fate fair maiden," Starbuck said with a grin.

As she turned and began walking down the hallway, Sheba said, "You seem in awfully good spirits for a man who’s future is hanging in the balance."

Still grinning, Starbuck said, "No matter what the outcome of this meeting with Apollo, my future still looks bright indeed."

"Gee, maybe the rest of us should spend some time wherever you went for your vacation," Sheba said admiring Starbuck’s confidence.

"I have the feeling that you will someday," Starbuck said. "Maybe sooner than you might expect."

Very little was said between the two as Sheba led Starbuck to Apollo’s quarters. She didn’t know exactly what kind of a situation Starbuck would be facing when he met with Apollo, but she got the impression that it had the potential to bring about some very drastic changes in the command structure of the Viper squadrons. She stopped just short of Apollo’s door and hesitated before looking at Starbuck.

"I think I had better let you take it from here," she said. "I wasn’t invited to this little party."

"Oh, cheer up," Starbuck said. "No matter the outcome of this meeting, I still have something very important I have to tell you later."

"Something you couldn’t have told me on the way here?" she asked.

"Just something better saved for a more intimate occasion," he said, adding even more mystery to things.

Just then the two of them were brought back to the reality of the situation by the sound of Apollo’s door opening. They both looked up to see Apollo standing just inside the door looking at them.

"Thank you for bringing Captain Starbuck to see me Colonel," Apollo said in an unusually formal tone. "That will be all for now. Please return to the bridge and resume command until I am free to do so."

"Yes, Commander," Sheba said, a bit shaken by his formality. Starbuck must be in bigger trouble than I thought, she thought as she turned to leave.

As Sheba walked away, she heard Apollo say to Starbuck, "As for you Captain, in my office."

As she reached the end of the corridor and began to turn into another, she looked back just in time to see the door close. May the Lords be with you, Starbuck, she thought.

Inside the room, Starbuck watched as Apollo made his way over to the window. Apollo stood there for some time just looking at the stars outside. The silence made Starbuck fear that maybe he was in more trouble than even he had suspected.

"Do you have any idea just what you’ve done?" Apollo asked finally. "You aren’t just a Lieutenant in Blue Squadron anymore, Starbuck. You’re a Captain in overall charge of the Viper squadrons. You had to know that you couldn’t keep breaking rules whenever you felt like it. You’re supposed to set an example for all of the young Viper pilots who look to you for leadership. What kind of an example were you today?"

"What did you expect me to do," Starbuck asked, "just let more of those same pilots die while I stood by and did nothing?"

"So, in trying to do that, you stole the only working prototype of the next generation of Vipers," Apollo said. "A prototype that hadn’t so much as had its first flight test outside of the science ship, much less been tested in battle conditions. There was no way to know how the ship would hold up under those conditions. We could have lost that ship and our strike wing commander all at once."

"We were on the verge of doing actual flight tests anyway," Starbuck said. "I may not have actually done any flight tests in the ship itself, but I had plenty of time in the simulator. I had also checked over all of the ships systems from one end to the other and back again. If I hadn’t had complete faith in the ship I wouldn’t have given the first thought to taking it out in battle. As for the personal risk to me, I knew I would have to take chances like that when I accepted the position as the strike wing commander. It’s my job to see to it that as many of those pilots return from battle as possible."

"Even if it costs you your own life?" Apollo asked.

"Even then," Starbuck said. "What would you have done?"

Apollo did not answer the question right away. He stood there looking out the window for some time as the silence continued on. Finally, he turned to look at Starbuck for the first time since they had entered the room.

"I think I would have done exactly the same thing had I been in the same situation," Apollo admitted. "I just wanted to make sure you felt the same way about it. I had to know that you didn’t do it for some personal sense of adventure."

"So if you would have done the same thing, why come down on me like this?" Starbuck asked.

"Well, I have to document some kind of disciplinary action against you," Apollo said.

"What? You just said you would have done the same thing. Now you’re going to punish me anyway?"

"I have to do something to satisfy the calls for blood I’m getting from some people on the science ship. Maybe you should have considered that before you assaulted the technicians who tried to stop you from taking that ship."

"Oh, well... It really wasn’t much of an assault," Starbuck said.

"Nonetheless, I’m still getting calls from people who want your head delivered on a platter. If I can’t show them some kind of punishment, it’ll be my head they come looking for next."

"So, what do I get for saving the lives of countless lives with my actions?" Starbuck asked. "Some time on the prison barge perhaps?"

"I hardly think so," Apollo said. "I don’t think Tigh wants you to corrupt the ones who are already there any more than they already are. Instead, I’m going to temporarily remove you from your position as strike wing commander. Captain Boomer will take over for you during your absence."

"That’s good news for Boomer," Starbuck said, "but what am I supposed to do to keep me out of trouble during my time off?"

"Who said you were going to have time off?" Apollo asked. "You may not be commanding the Viper squadrons, but you’ll be plenty busy. When you leave here, you are to return your Viper to the science ship. It may help things over there if you were to apologize to commander Omega for what you did. After doing that, gather up your things, including Cassiopeia, and take a shuttle back here. By this time tomorrow, you will be the newest addition to the team assigned to train new cadets in the academy."

"Training cadets?" Starbuck asked. "Me?"

"Of course," Apollo responded. "You are the only person who has been fully trained to fly the new Viper. By the time you arrive in the training room, I will have had a team from the science ship load the program from the simulator you used into the simulators here on the Galactica. You will be in charge of training a new generation of warriors, Starbuck."

"Oh, great. As long as there’s no pressure," Starbuck said joking.

Apollo smiled, knowing that Starbuck was actually looking forward to the new assignment. He said, "You had better be on your way back to the science ship now. I want there to be time for you and Cassiopeia to eat with Sheba and I tonight. By the time you get back, there may be some news I’ll want to share with you."

"Funny you should mention that," Starbuck said with a grin.

Boxy stayed in the landing bay until his squadron had gotten all of their gear stored away in the proper places, and made arrangements for the repair or replacement of their vipers. Of course, none of that could even begin until Starbuck returned to the landing bay and took off again in his new viper. Even after he had left, the new viper was the topic of conversation in every corner of the landing bay.

Boxy thought of the new viper for a while as well. All too soon though, he began to think of all of the lives that could have been saved if his squadron had vipers like it. Perhaps then he wouldn’t feel so depressed about all of the warriors he had lost earlier. He wanted nothing more than to get out of sight of the other warriors as soon as possible. The sight of any of them reminded him of the ones who would never return to the Galactica again. So, with everything taken care of, he retreated to the one place he knew he would find some peace of mind.

As soon as the doors to his quarters opened, Tala ran to him and wrapped her arms around him tightly. The doors closed behind them, but they paid them no attention. Neither of them said a word as they held each other. They stayed like that for what would seem like an eternity to an outsider, but to them it seemed like a fleeting moment.

They separated slightly, allowing enough room for Boxy to place a gentle kiss on his wife’s lips. He knew what she must have gone through. They had only been sealed for a short time before she was forced to watch her husband fly off into battle. He shared that same feeling with her. Several times during the battle he had thought that it would only take one lucky shot from a Cylon to insure that he was never able to hold her again.

"Are you all right, Boxy?" Tala asked as they parted from the kiss.

"Physically I’m fine," Boxy said. "Mentally I’m a bit shaky right now."

"Come sit down and tell me about it," she said as she led him over to the couch.

They both sat down on the couch never letting go of each other's hands. Boxy looked into her eyes and said, "I lost a lot of warriors out there today. Some of them had wives or husbands waiting on them at home just like I did. Too many of them didn’t make it Tala. I have to wonder if some of them might have made it if I had made different decisions. Maybe I should have turned my squadron back toward the fleet when that second wave of Cylons attacked. We could have at least joined up with the other squadrons before rejoining the battle."

"If you had done that," Tala said softly, "the Cylons would have made it to within striking range of the fleet. You knew that when you made your decision. You knew it would cost the lives of some warriors, but you also knew that it might save countless more civilian lives. How many commanders do you think have made that decision since the beginning of the war with the Cylons? I know that it doesn’t make your loss any easier, but your sacrifices ensure that thousands of people can go to sleep at night not having to worry that their world will be gone when they wake up the next morning."

"Well, hearing you say it does seem to make it a little easier," Boxy said. "I guess I should talk to my father about it. He should be able to tell me how he deals with it."

"He already called," Tala said. "He was thinking the same thing, but I told him it would have to wait until tomorrow. Call me selfish, but I want my husband all to myself tonight."

Boxy smiled for the first time. Being with Tala always seemed to lighten his spirits no matter what the situation. "I think I can wait until later to talk to my father about it. Right now, there is nothing I want more than to spend some time with you," he said as he scooped her up off of the couch and carried her toward the bedroom.

They kissed each other on the way across the room. When they separated, Tala said, "I could go for a nice warm bath come to think of it."

Before their lips met for yet another kiss, Boxy whispered, "You wish is my command my love."

With that, the two of them disappeared into their bedroom and beyond. A few light giggles, some running water, and a few splashes later, they were on their way to another night of newlywed bliss.

The glass doors parted, allowing the IL series Cylon to enter the room where the Baseship commander sat in his position high above the floor. The Cylon walked silently toward the one pool of light cast on the floor in front of the pedestal where the commander sat. As was customary, the commander would sit with his back to the door until those who wished to address him gave the proper greeting. The Cylon that entered the room knew that the commander could hear the doors part as well as the sound of his robes as they drug on the floor. For the commander not to turn upon hearing these sounds was normal, but for this commander to demand the same respect would have made the Cylon angry, if he was capable of such an emotion.

"By your command," the Cylon said after hesitating in the pool of light just long enough for the commander to know that the words were not spoken willingly.

The chair on the pedestal turned slowly so that the commander could look down on his subject. "Speak Lucifer," Baltar commanded as in keeping with the traditional response.

"We have received a report that I believe may be of some interest to you," Lucifer said knowing full well that Baltar would indeed be very interested in the news.

"Well.... Out with it Lucifer. Don’t keep me waiting," Baltar said

"A baseship commander has sent a message back to Cylon that they have encountered some old friends of yours. A certain fleet of Colonial ships I believe."

"What?" Baltar exclaimed. "When? Where?"

"Calm yourself Baltar," Lucifer said as he enjoyed dragging out the process of delivering all of the details. "It is all in the official report. You can read it any time you like."

"Damn you Lucifer," Baltar said having had enough of Lucifer’s game. "I want you to tell me everything you know right now."

"As you wish Baltar," Lucifer said as he realized that he had successfully irritated Baltar. "The report originated from a baseship located in the outer regions of the Galmara sector. Apparently, one of its patrols detected the fleet on the far edges of their scanner range. When they changed course to investigate, the Galactica launched Vipers to intercept them."

"And?" Baltar asked already suspecting the outcome of that encounter.

"Unfortunately, our patrol was not up to the challenge of fighting off the patrol."

"Really?" Baltar asked as if Lucifer should have known what the outcome of the battle would have been as well.

"Well, after all Baltar, they did send out an entire squadron to meet our patrol."

"Of course they did," Baltar said. "And when they sent out that squadron, what did the baseship commander do?"

"He sent reinforcements."

"I assume that the entire patrol was destroyed before any of those reinforcements could arrive," Baltar said knowing what the response would be.

"Yes," Lucifer admitted, not liking where Baltar was leading the conversation.

"How many raiders did the commander send out to destroy the squadron?"

"The full compliment on board the baseship."

"And did they destroy the lone squadron and then go on to destroy the fleet?" Baltar asked.

"Uh, no," Lucifer said not wanting to have to admit what Baltar would soon make him admit.

"No, they didn’t destroy the squadron, or no, they didn’t destroy the fleet?"

"Actually, no on both counts," Lucifer said not wanting to witness the gloating that would undoubtedly follow.

"So, the commander threw everything he had at them and he couldn’t even destroy one squadron?" Baltar said with a small grin on his face.

"The squadron would have been destroyed if two more Viper squadrons hadn’t joined the battle and allowed the first squadron to escape," Lucifer said trying to make the defeat at least seem a bit more unavoidable.

"My dear Lucifer. Will your people ever learn not to underestimate the abilities of the warriors they fight against?" Baltar said with a false sense of sympathy. "No matter. I assume that the reason we received this transmission was to have me renew my assault on the Galactica."

"That is correct."

A large smile spread across Baltar’s face when it was confirmed. "To tell you the truth Lucifer, I never expected to have another chance like this. It had been so long since anyone had any contact with the fleet that I just assumed they had found earth and settled down."

"Perhaps they did," Lucifer said as if there was still more information left out of his report.

"What do you mean by that?" Baltar asked. "What are you not telling me?"

"One of the reasons our raiders were not able to destroy the Viper squadrons was because yet another ship joined the fight. No one had ever seen that type of ship before, but it proved itself to be more than our raiders could handle. The Imperious Leader thinks that it may be a ship from earth."

"Why would he think that?" Baltar asked fascinated.

"Believe me Baltar, this is one case where you should read the report for yourself. If I was to tell you about the things that ship did, you might think I was lying to you."

"Very well Lucifer. I’ll wait on that information. In the mean time, set a course for the Galmara sector."

"By your command," Lucifer said as he turned to leave the room. It gave him some satisfaction knowing that Baltar’s last order need not be carried out. They had already been on route to the Galmara sector for some time before he had delivered the news to Baltar.