REVELATIONS Part III
By Elise Barrier

Posted: August 30, 2004

     When Apollo was released from Life Station, there were cheers all
around.  He had quite an entourage to escort him to his quarters: Adama,
Boxey, Athena, and even Sheba and Boomer showed up for the little parade. 
Only Starbuck was missing, but that was okay for he, too, would soon be
released from the Life Station.
     Apollo's spirit soared as he left the med bay behind.  He was not
fully recovered, that would take some time, but at least he escaped the
sterile atmosphere of the med bay.  He was looking forward to making up
some time with Boxey.  And just maybe Sheba, too.
     Still, one thing nagged at him.  Something that would be very
difficult for a lot of people to accept, including himself, but
especially Starbuck.  If he was correct, and he sensed that he was,
Chameleon and Cassandra had some serious explaining to do.  He could feel
the confrontation coming as surely as he'd once felt the oncoming gales
of a sea storm on Gemini.  Perhaps Chameleon had pushed the boundaries
too far this time!

     "Understand that I am allowing you to do this against my better
judgment.  If you do anything that interferes with her recovery, I will
see you both on report!"  Dr. Salik was not angry, he passed that point
several hours earlier.  Now he was just plain mad and he intended to make
sure Apollo knew it.
     Apollo was at least as frustrated as Salik was angry.  He brushed
past the doctor and strode out of the medical bay.  He was going to tell
Starbuck everything he knew.
     Salik's anger grew from the desire to protect both of his patients. 
In his opinion, both Cassandra and Starbuck could suffer physically from
Apollo's plan to reunite them.  He was also frustrated that the Warriors,
especially Apollo, were intent on "protecting" Starbuck's delicate
psyche, despite what damage or pain it caused others.
     *For the Lords' sakes, he is a grown man!*
     Salik sagged into a chair behind the tech station.  He had to admit
that Apollo was right about one thing.  It was inevitable that Starbuck
would hear the rumors.
     *Hades, maybe Apollo is right.  If he's destined to hear about this,
I'd rather he heard it from Apollo than from the rumor mill.  But what
about Cassandra?  She wants nothing more than to return to her life. 
Lords of Kobol!  How do things get so complicated?*

     Salik was dozing behind the med tech's station when Apollo returned
with Starbuck.  Lieutenant Starbuck's blonde hair was mussed, his uniform
wrinkled, suggesting he'd either been asleep as the doctor recommended or
he'd been deeply involved in Pyramids and grog.  The doctor was afraid
the young man was spending his recovery time gambling and drinking rather
than resting, although he wasn't sure how the lieutenant could possibly
shuffle and deal cards with one arm still in the brace that supported his
injured shoulder.  He was concerned for his patient's recovery from the
solium poisoning, as well as his current mental state.  
     All the Warriors who suffered from solium and other injuries were
finding the extended recovery period tedious.  None of them were sleeping
regularly.  Starbuck showed signs of depression.  Apollo was getting away
with his current antics in the Life Station only because Salik knew he
was edgy.  Jolly had gained ten pounds since his release from the med
bay.  Only Boomer had recovered completely and was soon to be allowed
back into the cockpit of his beloved Viper.
     Starbuck and Apollo were standing directly in front of the tech
station.  Apollo wore that determined look that meant he intended to have
his way, despite the consequences.  Starbuck's eyes cut from side to side
as though he expected to be blamed for something, but couldn't imagine
what it might be.  He assumed his most innocent expression, but couldn't
quite control his eyes.  They belied his confusion.  The doctor could
ignore the Warriors no longer, although he could definitely show his
exasperation with Captain Apollo.  
     "Yes, Captain?" he said, looking up at Apollo as if he needed an
explanation for an unexpected visit.  
     "You know why we're here."
     "I assume you've spoken with Starbuck already and that he is in
agreement with your plan to bypass my medical advice?"  Salik had no
intention of making this any easier for Apollo.  As a matter of fact, he
intended to make it crystal clear that all responsibility for the
captain's planned revelation would rest entirely upon his own shoulders.
     "No, I thought... I wanted to be here when we told him."  
     *Ahhhh... Salik thought, so he does recognize some of the danger.
I'm pleased.  Maybe he really does know what he's doing.  Still, I'll not
let him shift this onto my back.*
     "What 'we' would that be, Captain?" he asked flatly.
     Apollo glared at him before asking, "Is there somewhere we can go to
talk privately?"
     Salik led them to the small converted storage room that served as
his personal quarters.  He seated himself on the lone chair, leaned back
so that only the back legs of the chair touched the floor, and crossed
his arms over his chest.  He gestured to Apollo to begin.
     Apollo's face was flushed with something close to embarrassment. 
He'd been certain Salik would see the logic of his decision, but
obviously he'd been mistaken.  *Maybe Salik is right.  Maybe this isn't
the right time,* he thought.
     But it was too late.  Starbuck's curiosity was aroused and there was
no way the young lieutenant would let go of this without a reasonable
explanation.  Already he was glancing back and forth between Apollo and
the doctor.  Starbuck knew something was up and apparently it was going
to be up to Apollo to get the ball rolling.
     "Look, unless I'm dying or something... There's a tankard of grog
and a Pyramid game waiting on me in the ODOC."  He felt that was a
reasonable way to start the conversation moving.  
     Neither the doctor nor Apollo would meet his gaze.  *Okay,* he
thought, *maybe I didn't phrase that just right.  I'm reasonably sure I'm
not dying...*
     "Look," he repeated, "the silent treatment is killing me.  Can
somebody just tell me what's going on before I get the idea that I am
dying and you just don't want to tell me?"
     Salik managed a smile and at last met Apollo's eyes.  The smile was
returned.  Tension melted away like ice before a summer sun.  *Enough is
enough,* the older man decided.
     "Starbuck, you may need to sit down," he said.
     Starbuck looked at Apollo with growing concern.
     "I agree," his friend stated.
     Now Starbuck was more than concerned.  He was scared.  *Mental note
to self:  No more jokes about dying!*
     Apollo knew Starbuck well enough to be amused at his friend's
anxious expression.  But this was a serious matter.  He just didn't
exactly know how to begin.  He looked at Salik for help.  Salik's anger
faded earlier, maybe...
     The good doctor was innocently studying the ceiling.  Apollo sighed,
realizing he was on his own.
     Starbuck had had about all he could take!  "Would one of you please
tell me what is going on?!"
     Apollo sat on the berth beside him.  He put his hand on his friend's
shoulder, the fatherly thing that Starbuck hated, decided that was the
wrong thing to do and moved it.
     *How do I start this?*
     "Lieutenant Starbuck, Captain Apollo feels there is something of a
conspiracy going on here in the Life Station that you should be apprised
of."  Salik saved Apollo from starting the conversation while placing the
event squarely in the captain's third of the triad court.
     "Conspiracy?  Whatever it is, I didn't do it."  Starbuck wasn't sure
where this was leading, but since his solium induced incarceration in the
Life Station, he made every effort to avoid the place.  
     "There isn't an easy way to say this..." Apollo began.
     "Frak! This is getting old, Apollo.  For the Lords of Kobol, would
you just say whatever you're gonna say and get it over with!"
     "It's Cassiopeia.  Starbuck, the teacher we rescued, Chameleon's
friend, it's Cassie."
     Every time Starbuck thought of Cassie he saw her beautiful smile,
his mind played back the memory of her scent, the softness of her hair
against his cheek...  And always ended with the scent of blood, images of
golden hair caught in a bloody knife.
     *This isn't fair!*  He wanted to shout, but that would show too much
of the agony he still felt.  Anger would have to do. 
     "I don't know what you're thinking, but this isn't funny. 
Cassiopeia is dead.  We all saw it."  Starbuck's eyes narrowed
resentfully.  Two yahren later, he was still enduring raw emotions that
surrounded his relationship with her and left her apparent murder as
painful as a fresh laser wound. 
     "We all saw an ingenious ruse designed by Cassie and Chameleon to
hide her and her child from you," said Salik.
     Starbuck was taken aback.  "Child?"
     Conflicting theories swarmed him:  Cassie was seeing someone else
even as he was considering asking her to take the Seal?  *And they say I
can't be trusted?  Who was it?  Oh, God, no!  But it has to be!*  In less
than a micron, Starbuck convicted his own father, Chameleon, of fathering
a child by his beloved Cassiopeia.  *How could he do that to me?  How
could she?*
     Starbuck could think of no suitable response, so he settled for
storming to the quarantine unit.  Salik and Apollo followed.
     The three men stood at the door of the quarantine chamber, staring
through the clear plastiform entryway.
     "How long have you known?" Starbuck asked without breaking his gaze.
     "Only since we found her after the explosion," Apollo replied.
     "And you?"  The question was an accusation toward the doctor.
     Salik took a deep breath and exhaled.  He was acutely uncomfortable. 
He hadn't wanted to admit this.  He supposed he could claim
doctor/patient privilege...  *No, it is time for all the facts to be laid
out.  More subterfuge will only make things worse.*
     "I've known that something was amiss since I performed the first
tests on the blood we found in the dining compartment on the *Rising
Star.*  All the tests proved the blood to be Cassie's, but some of the
samples indicated she was pregnant, while others did not.  I began to
suspect something then.  A little research showed some missing packets of
donated blood.  Medical staff members donate blood regularly.  Some were
missing.  I believed it to be Cassie's, but I couldn't be sure."
     "Why didn't you come forward with this information?"  Apollo was a
straightforward, no-gray-area man.  He could not believe the no-nonsense
Chief Medical Officer could be guilty of aiding in such a fraud.
     "I had no absolute proof until Chameleon brought the child in. 
Besides, I trust Cassie.  I thought she must have a good reason."
     Starbuck wasn't listening anymore.  He started through the doorway.
Salik grabbed Starbuck's arm roughly.  *God, the old man is strong,*
Starbuck thought.
     "There are some things you need to know before you go in..."
     "Yeah, quite a few things as it turns out.  Like why in Hades she
put me, us, all of us through this!"  Starbuck yanked away from the
doctor and barged into the quarantine compartment.
     Salik waited several beats before following then almost ran into the
Warrior's back.
     The lieutenant was standing exactly in the center of the doorway,
staring at the woman on the medical berth before him.  He didn't
recognize her.  The thought crossed his mind that this was some cruel
joke, a prank conceived by evil minds.  *Is everyone going crazy?*
     He continued to stare, but could not make his feet take him closer
to the med berth.  The woman laying before him bore little resemblance to
the woman he still loved.  How could anyone believe this gaunt, frail
thing was his beloved Cassiopeia?  Even her hair.  Cassiopeia had golden
blonde hair that reminded him of a summer sunrise on Caprica.  This woman
was a brunette.  *Of course, hair can be disguised, but this woman's was
longer and straight and ...*
     Salik laid a hand on Starbuck's arm.  He understood what the man was
going through.  He'd experienced something similar.  The doctor loved
Cassie in a far different way than Starbuck.  He had been her mentor. 
The one who inspired her to seek a career in medicine.  She had a
peculiar talent for comforting people who were suffering either
physically or emotionally and Salik discovered that talent immediately. 
He encouraged her to leave her designation as socialator and, under his
strict tutelage, she became his finest med tech, surpassing even those
with far more experience.  He had believed she would someday replace him
as the Chief Medical Officer of the *Galactica.*  And then all those
dreams shattered when she died mysteriously aboard the *Rising Star.* 
     Cassiopeia was running from her relationship with Starbuck.  She
loved him and he loved her.  That much was plain to see.  But it takes
more than love to form a lasting relationship and Starbuck was afraid of
that commitment.  He consistently destroyed their relationship each time
it grew too close for his personal comfort.  He didn't know why he did
it.  He didn't want to hurt her.  He didn't try to do it.  It just
happened, as though some evil twin took over his body and consistently
hurt Cassie before she could hurt him.  Although, if he could have looked
into her heart, he'd have understood that could never happen.  She loved
him too much.  
     *It was her love for him combined with his fear that drove her to
commit a virtual suicide.*  Considering that thought, Salik understood
that she had effectively committed suicide.  She'd given up her own life
and dreams to protect Starbuck from the relationship and child she feared
would destroy his ability as a Warrior.  And being a Warrior was the very
essence of Starbuck's existence.
     Starbuck finally looked away from the woman to meet Salik's eyes. 
He knew from the worry lines and the dark circles, the air of exhaustion
in the doctor's stance, that the woman was not likely to survive her
injuries.  He also saw there the truth of her identity.  Whatever the
physical differences, the woman on the bed was Cassie.  
     Ever so slowly he approached the med berth.  He avoided looking at
the woman's face.  A voice in his head was screaming, *No, no, this can't
be.  Would God or the Lords of Kobol be so cruel as to return her to me
only to have her die before my eyes?  Before I can explain myself to her
and find out what caused her to do all this.  What could I have possibly
done to deserve this?  Or even worse, did I do something that caused
this?*
     Salik had warned him not to speak to her.  That she wouldn't know he
was there unless he spoke or touched her.  He'd said Starbuck's presence
might upset her and she was physically unable to withstand any additional
stress.  Starbuck agreed, though begrudgingly.  At the time, he imagined
a confrontation with his ex-lover.  Now, he wanted nothing more than to
caress her face as he once had.  As he had that last night.  The night
she told him good-bye.  He'd sensed it then, but hadn't been able to put
it together.  
     He kept looking from Cassie to the doctor.  Salik's expression was
one of sympathetic understanding.  And something else.  Defeat.  He'd
done all he could, but her body was no longer responding.  Sometimes even
the greatest technology of man must bow to the will of God.
     Apollo entered the darkened quarantine unit.  He'd never seen
exactly this expression on Starbuck's face.  He'd been there when
Starbuck bade fellow Warriors a final farewell more times than he wanted
to count. But he'd never seen this.  A combination of self-recrimination,
self-realization, and simple guilt.  The man was gradually coming to
understand some part of his role in Cassie's desperate decision.  
     Salik pitied the man, but there was one last bit of information that
directly impacted Starbuck.  One that could no longer be postponed,
especially if Cassie did not recover.  He was about to ask Starbuck to
return with him to the privacy of his personal quarters, when Chameleon
appeared in the still open doorway.
     The old gambler was confused to see his son standing by Cassie's
medberth and cast an angry glare at the doctor who'd obviously permitted
the well-kept secret to slip.  *If Cassie discovers that Starbuck knows
her secret, it might very well kill her!*
     Salik noted his anger, shook his head in response to the unspoken
accusation, and redirected it with a single name, "Apollo."
     "But how could Apollo have known?" Chameleon whispered.  Salik
pulled him outside the room.
     "I said nothing.  He came to me.  He's been suspicious of your
relationship with Cassandra for some time, he says.  But he knew it was
Cassie when they rescued her from the ship.  
     He's right about something, though, Starbuck deserves the
opportunity to make his peace about the situation before...   if, she
should not recover."
     Chameleon wasn't sure he agreed.  He did have to admit a certain
relief, however, he was tired of hiding his granddaughter's existence
from his son.  Besides, he'd begun to doubt he and Cassie had done the
best thing for all involved in the first place.
     "He doesn't know about Dally?" Chameleon queried.
     "Not yet.  Neither does Apollo.  Only that Cassie has a child.  I'm
afraid he may think you're the father.  He was quite angry..."
     Starbuck remained at Cassie's bedside.  One hand raised to touch
her, frozen there by his promise to the doctor that he would do nothing
to alert her to his presence.  She stirred slightly, dreaming of foul
smelling fumarellos and a handsome Warrior.  She called out, "Starbuck?" 

     Chameleon approached his son, stood by his side for a moment, then
gently led him out of the quarantine chamber and into the doctor's
private quarters.
     Starbuck moved as one in a daydream.  He allowed his father to lead
him.  After a moment, Apollo followed them.  Starbuck stumbled to the
chair inside and dropped there.  Apollo sat at his side on the sleeping
berth.  
     Words finally returned to Starbuck's mind, at last replacing the
sharp images of almost two yahrens earlier.  That last time with Cassie
aboard the *Rising Star.*  It had happened then.  He wasn't sure what,
but something he'd done that night changed the course of his and Cassie's
lives forever.  He knew whatever he'd done or said wasn't easily
repaired.  
     "Why?" was all he could voice.  The single word seemed to resonate
in the room.  It entailed the totality of almost two yahrens of anguish
and confusion.
     For a long time, no one spoke.
     At last, Chameleon broke the silence.  "To protect you...  And
because she found something she wanted more than she wanted you.  There
was one thing she didn't plan on happening, that she just couldn't give
up.  Not even for you, Starbuck."
     Starbuck's self-confidence in battle was one thing, his ego with
cards and women quite a different matter.  He gave in to his wounded
pride.
     "Who is he?"
     "Not 'he,'" Salik corrected.  "She."
     This was getting worse by the second.  "You're telling me... Wait a
centon.  Exactly what are you telling me?"  Starbuck was really afraid
that he knew.  To lose Cassiopeia to another man was one thing, but...
     Salik and Chameleon exchanged glances.  They could see what Starbuck
was misinterpreting.  And they were both enjoying the handsome
womanizer's extreme discomfort. 
     Apollo was ashen.  Clearly, he and Starbuck were thinking the same
thing.  *Maybe Salik was right.  Maybe Cassie and Chameleon had chosen a
less painful outcome for Starbuck after all!*  His head was spinning. 
This was too much to absorb.  And if he was having difficulty, imagine
what Starbuck was going through.  
     Salik, particularly, was enjoying that the cocky, young captain was
suffering some doubts about his insistence upon this course of action.
     In his mind he envisioned a man, but Chameleon had said very
clearly, "She."  *She?!*  Starbuck was sick at his stomach.  *I lost
Cassie to a woman?*
     Chameleon slipped out the door.  Starbuck gathered himself for the
oncoming confrontation with his competition for Cassie's affection. 
Apollo was aghast at what he'd caused.  He met Starbuck's eyes, could see
the disbelief there.
     Then the door slid aside and Chameleon stood framed in the bright
light of the med bay.  All eyes were on him as he entered the doctor's
compartment, carrying Cassiopeia's sleeping daughter.
     Starbuck and Apollo simultaneously exhaled.  Neither realized he'd
been holding his breath.  Their eyes met once again.  They laughed out
loud.  Apollo saw relief and confusion mixed in his friend's gaze.
     Chameleon laid the child in Starbuck's arms.  Awkwardly, the Warrior
accepted the child.  He was surprised.  He hadn't reached for the child.
     "Starbuck, I'd like you to meet your daughter, Dalton.  We call her
Dally," Chameleon said.
     Starbuck's mouth fell open and this time he hadn't the presence of
mind to shut it.  He just stared at his father without allowing himself
to comprehend the declaration.
     *MY DAUGHTER?!*
     *His daughter?!*  Apollo was at least as stunned as Starbuck.  His
best friend was a father.  It didn't seem right, in the grand scheme of
the universe, for the devil-may-care pilot to be a father.  
     Clearly, Starbuck was uncomfortable with the reality that he was
suddenly a father.  He realized his mouth was still open and gathered his
wits enough to shut it.  Too much had happened in too short a time.
     He stood, gazing at the child.  She definitely looked like
Cassiopeia, or at least she looked like the Cassiopeia he'd once loved.
     The little girl awakened, stared into the blue eyes of the stranger
who was her biological father.  And began to cry in fear.  Chameleon
accepted the child as she reached for him.  He really had no choice,
Starbuck was about to drop his newfound daughter as she struggled to
reach the security of her grandfather's arms.  As much as Chameleon
enjoyed his granddaughter's trust in him, he still felt sorry for his
son.
     Conflicting emotions fought to headline on the new father's face. 
Shock reigned supreme with his mouth once again agape, his eyes showing
disappointment at her reaction to him, and his brow furrowed in
concentration as he tried in vain to assimilate revelation and emotion.  
     "I don't understand..."  Starbuck's voice trailed into the black
hole he was spiraling down into.
     "Cassie told me you didn't want a family, but it was too late.  She
was afraid you'd take the Seal with her only because it would be the
'right thing.'   She knew you'd look for her and find out about the baby
if she simply went to another ship in the fleet.  The only way you would
both be free to move on was for you to believe she was dead.  It seemed
to make sense at the time.  We both regretted hurting you, but she had
this crazy idea that you would lose your edge in battle if you knew about
the baby..."
     "Oh, God, I told her that.  Or something like that..."  Starbuck's
face blanched.  
     "I didn't know she was already...."  His mind went back to that
night aboard the *Rising Star.*  So much made sense now.
     *If I'd known, I never would have said...*
     Everyone in the tiny room was staring at him, expecting him to say
something.  For a moment, he considered passing out fumarellos and bad
jokes, but he honestly didn't have the energy to fake his way through
this.  Starbuck walked out of the Life Station, leaving the others to
wonder what he was thinking.  
     Truthfully, he wasn't *thinking* anything and he had no idea where
he was going.  There were too many things to think about and no place
that seemed adequate to accomplish it.  He wandered aimlessly for several
centons until he found himself alone in Blue Squadron's launch bay.  He
still wasn't cleared to fly, so his Viper was stowed with reserve and
repaired ships.
     The darkened bay was quiet, calm, for Blue Squadron was on furlon
for the next several days.  Casually, he strolled to his Viper.  She was
beautiful.  
     He ran a tender hand along one wing, his caress as loving as any
woman would ever know.  Glancing surreptitiously over his shoulder, he
climbed into the craft.  She was, as always, awaiting only his touch to
fire her engines and speed him away from his troubles.  Here in the
cockpit, everything was black and white.  *You win, you lose.  You live,
you die.*  Not at all like relationships where just now there was all too
much gray area.
     Starbuck was still far from being allowed to pilot his Viper.  He
understood now that it would be some time before he was strong enough
physically to endure a firefight with the Cylons.  Hades, just walking to
the launch bay and climbing into the cockpit left him panting and
trembling.  Then again, maybe not all of his physical state had to do
with his recovery.  He realized he was sweating both literally and
figuratively.  He leaned his head against the support cushions of his
seat and closed his eyes against his recent overdose of reality.

     Apollo and Boomer had been looking for Starbuck for centars.  They'd
been to Blue Squadron's quarters, Apollo's personal quarters, and the
celestial chamber.  They'd checked with Colonel Tigh on *Galactica*'s
bridge, with Jolly on the *Rising Star,* and back with Dr. Salik in Life
Station.  Nothing.
     Suddenly, Boomer stopped in mid-stride.  He hung his head,
apparently intent on the deck beneath his boots.  Apollo stopped a few
paces away, leaned against the bulkhead.  He wasn't fully recovered and
the brisk walk across several of *Galactica's* decks left him breathless.
     Boomer was balancing himself with one hand against the wall, still
studying the deck.  His shoulders were shaking and he was making a
strange gurgling sound. 
     Apollo thought his friend might be crying, although he couldn't
imagine why.  *Some weird part of recovering from solium poisoning?  If
so, I'd just as soon skip it!*  The Leonid Warrior raised his head and
wiped tears from his eyes.  He fell against the bulkhead beside his
bewildered friend.  He was crying all right, tears of laughter!
     "If you'd care to follow me, I think I know exactly where to find
our missing counterpart," he laughed.
     Captain Apollo was too tired to question or argue.  He followed
Boomer's confident stride without comprehending the path until they
arrived at the turbolift that would take them to Launch Bay Alpha.
     Stealthily, they approached Lieutenant Starbuck's idle Viper. 
Boomer stepped up onto the ship's nose using the niches provided for that
purpose.  Inside the cockpit, he discovered his missing friend sleeping
peacefully.
     "Sleeping?" Apollo questioned softly, smiling, shaking his head.
     "Like a baby," came the reply as Boomer stepped down from his perch
and returned the relieved smile.
     "We probably shouldn't leave him here..." Apollo ventured.
     "Look, at least he's getting some sleep."  The dark Leonid took a
good look at his Captain.
     "Something you might want to consider yourself...."  Boomer put an
arm across his buddy's shoulders and guided him toward the turbolift.
     He led Apollo to his quarters and felt reasonably confident his
captain would remain there for some much needed rest.  Apparently, Apollo
was, for once, willing to accept his own physical limits.
     Boomer grabbed a nutrition bar and a protein drink on his return to
the launch bay.  Upon arrival, he selected a darkened tech station and
made himself at home, prepared once again to stand watch for his friend.

     In Life Station, Dr. Salik stood watch over Cassie's silent form. 
He understood that Starbuck must be in shock, but the Warrior also had a
responsibility to Cassiopeia and Dalton.  Where was he while Cassie was
struggling for life?  *Only God knows!  Probably hiding out with some of
his Warrior buddies, playing Pyramid and getting raucously drunk on
grog.*  Salik respected Starbuck's skill in battle, but the man's
personal relationships were unfailingly disastrous.
     *Frak!  We'll be lucky if we don't have to remind him of what's
happened today!*
     Cassie was currently as stable as she'd been since she arrived in
the med bay.  She lay slightly on her side, knees drawn close to her
belly with her fists under her chin.  *Almost a fetal position...*
     Often a comatose person would assume a similar position... after a
long period of time... or if there were some brain injury.
     Salik prayed for Cassie with a fervor he'd seldom felt.  *God,
please, please.  If you let her return to us, please, return her whole.* 
Tears formed at the corner of his eyes and he swiped at them with his
knuckles.  *I beg you.*
     *Galactica's* Chief Medical Officer grunted at the nearest med tech,
"Notify me of any change."  He spun on his heel and stalked to his
quarters.
     The med tech who accepted Salik's order noted her superior's throaty
growl, his stiffened posture.  She'd not been a med tech long, but long
enough to understand the gruff doctor cared for his patients more than he
wanted anyone to know.  *This Cassiopeia, or Cassandra, or whoever she
is, or was, must be someone special.*
     At the tech station in the launch bay, Boomer dozed quietly, waiting
patiently on the slumbering Starbuck to awaken.  The day's events had
been emotionally charged for all of them, including Boomer, and his light
sleep was filled with recollections of Cassiopeia.  So many times he'd
seen her bravely hiding the pain his friend caused her.  So many times
Boomer had seen Starbuck watching Cassie when she couldn't see the
longing in her lover's eyes.
     Boomer knew his friend loved Cassie.  *Why can't he just let go and
allow himself to commit to her?*  But he knew it had to do with
Starbuck's many losses at the hands of the Cylons.  They had all lost so
much and faced such uncertain times.  They all reacted in different ways
to their situation.  Starbuck protected himself by keeping most of his
relationships at arm's length, theorizing that he, himself, was less
likely to be hurt in that way.  His method of self-protection might very
well have destroyed the one woman who could love him as he was.  
     *Life is filled with choices...* Boomer reflected, drifting into a
deeper sleep.
     Life is filled with choices, and just now, Lieutenant Starbuck chose
to avoid making one.  He'd fallen asleep in the cradle of his Viper
cockpit.  It was where he belonged, where things made sense and his
choices were clear.  In his Viper, he felt in control of his fate.
     After he awoke, somewhere near the beginning of first cycle, he
guessed, he slipped clumsily to the deck.  His muscles were stiff from
lying in his Viper's cockpit for the past several centars.  His boots
thudded as he hit the deck.  The sound disturbed Boomer who was finally
getting some much-needed rest.
     Starbuck was constantly amazed by the dedication of his friends. 
*Boomer must have been sitting there all through light cycle.*  He
recognized the sacrifice his friend made, although it was no less than
the lieutenant had done for the Leonid on countless occasions.  Soon
enough, he'd thank Boomer, but he wasn't ready to talk to anyone just
yet.  *Besides, Boomer could probably use the sleep.*
     Sneaking into Blue Squadron's quarters without being noticed proved
less difficult than Starbuck imagined.  The few pilots he encountered
were mostly snoring away grog and ambrosa induced hangovers.  He crept
past them, palmed the security pad on his private locker and removed a
small wooden box.  He turned the delicately carved box over and over in
his hands. The carvings were as complicated as his relationship with its
owner.
     One of the many apologies he'd made to Cassiopeia for yet another
indiscretion roared through his memory like a Viper on full thrusters...
     *"Look, Cass, I'm sorry.  I knew Aurora when I was in Academy.  I
loved her.  When the Cylons attacked Caprica, I looked for her.  Her
home, her community were destroyed.  I was sure she was dead.*
     *"But then when I saw her at Commander Cronus's reception, I had to
find out what happened to her."*
     *He searched Cassie's azure eyes for understanding.  He found that,
and forgiveness as well.*
     *"I understand,"  she said and he believed she meant it.*
     *"Anyway, I'm glad you waited for me.  And I brought you
something."* That's when he had presented her with the little wooden
trinket box.

     Sometimes words are wrong.  Just plain wrong.  It doesn't matter
that the words are well intentioned, or who's saying them.  There are
those times when any words at all are the wrong words.
     This was one of those times.  Cassie's mentor silently regarded the
disheveled Lieutenant Starbuck as the pilot entered the quarantine
chamber.  He stood there for some time without speaking or touching her. 
It wouldn't matter, for as far as the med staff could tell, she was
unaware of her surroundings.  Salik removed a chair from the tech station
and rolled it into the quarantine unit.  He nodded without speaking,
indicated Starbuck might sit and speak to or touch Cassie, then he
returned to his private quarters.
     There was nothing Salik could say or do to ease his patients' pain,
either Cassiopeia's or Starbuck's.  If it had been merely physical pain,
he'd have thought of something even if he had to dream up something never
before attempted.
     However, Starbuck was going to have to figure this one out for
himself.  The doctor considered that any suffering the Warrior was
experiencing might very well be God's retribution for the man's treatment
of Cassie.
     The lovely blonde Gemonese was everything a suitor could desire,
everything a father could hope for - well, with the exception of having
spent several yahren as a socialator.
     She was beautiful, intelligent, a gifted healer, a loyal friend, and
kind to a fault.  *If only we weren't such close friends... If only I
weren't her mentor... If only she and Starbuck hadn't...*
     *Hades, if only the moons of Caprica were made of green mushies!*
     Starbuck pulled the chair closer to Cassie's med berth.  Her hair
was once again its natural color, but her face was far too spare.  The
smile he'd loved was gone, her mouth slack and eyes slightly open, but
unseeing.  *How much of this did I cause?*
     He sat turning Cassie's box in his hands, telling her how he'd kept
it safe for her all this time.  Since the destruction of the colonies,
wood had become a precious commodity.  Starbuck had paid dearly for the
gift, but it had been worth every cubit.  The box had spoken for him the
words he could not voice.  Cassie had understood the literal cost, but
its value to her was so much more.  At the time, it had seemed to hold
her hope for a future with her dashing pilot.
     He meant only to leave the box at her bedside, but in the end, he
told her sleeping form the deepest fears and desires of his soul.

     Cassiopeia slept deep below a shimmering pale light.  Secure in the
cocoon of her med berth, she slept, like a flutterby waiting the touch of
God to stretch newly formed wings.  
     Boomer and Apollo waited silently with Sheba and Jolly, crowded into
the back of the Quarantine chamber.  They stared in silence as Doctor
Salik reverently disconnected Cassiopeia's body from the machines that
had kept her alive these last sectons.  He'd done all he could for her,
but in recent centar her body had become too weak to sustain itself, even
with the support of the numerous machines whose tubes snaked into and
across her body.  He could have sustained her for considerably longer in
a stasis chamber, but it would only be delaying the inevitable.  
     Starbuck wanted to take Cassie to the celestial chamber one last
time.  In fact, he demanded that she be allowed to spend her final
moments in the star chamber she so loved.  Now, with only a small
canister of oxygen remaining to support her until he could be carry her
there, Starbuck placed his arms beneath her head and knees, pulling her
close to his chest.  He lifted her as tenderly as though she might
shatter in his grasp and nodded to his waiting friends.
     They traveled empty hallways blocked from casual passersby by
Warrior pilots standing stiffly at attention until the sad procession
passed them.  
     When the throb of *Galactica's* great engines vibrated below their
feet, Apollo handed out the mufflers that would protect their hearing,
thoughtfully placing a set of mufflers over Cassie's ears as well.  It
hardly mattered now, but it seemed the respectful thing to do.  He could
see that Starbuck appreciated the compassionate gesture.
     Starbuck handed Cassie to the doctor who held her close in his arms,
saying his own personal goodbyes until the Warriors formed a human chain. 
Gently, the doctor passed Cassiopeia to Sheba at the bottom of the ladder
leading to the highest point on the great warship.  Boomer accepted
Sheba's burden and delivered the frail bundle to Apollo's waiting arms at
the top of the ladder.  In turn, Apollo committed Cassiopeia to a solemn
Starbuck just inside the hatch at the top of the ladder.
     He climbed through the hatch and after Starbuck was seated in the
elevated control seat, he thumbed the switch that allowed the protective
metal plates to fall away, leaving only the brilliance of starlight to
illuminate the somber scene.  He helped Starbuck remove the mufflers from
his head.  Apollo covered Cassie with the warmer he'd brought, his eyes
met his friends and somehow managed to convey the empathy he felt.  He,
too, had lost his one great love.
     He removed the mufflers from Cassie's ears, kissed the top of her
head as it bowed against Starbuck's shoulder and descended the ladder,
pausing only to close the hatch behind him.
     Uncomfortable with the deathwatch, Jolly soon left for the comfort
of the ODOC where he would resolve his maudlin emotions in his own way.  
     Salik clasped Apollo's shoulder in one big hand, all their recent
differences forgiven.  He handed the captain a communit.  
     "Call me when..." his voice broke and he left without finishing.
     Only Sheba and Boomer were left to stand watch with Apollo now.  "It
could be a while..." Apollo began.  "You don't have to stay."
     "Yes, we do have to stay.  We wouldn't leave Starbuck now, anymore
than you would.  Not through this."  Sheba was crying softly.  Her eyes
were red-rimmed and her lips trembled as she spoke.  Apollo thought how
beautiful she was in those rare instances when she allowed her
vulnerability to show.  He pulled her into his embrace and both were
grateful for the comfort of the embrace.
     "We go through this together, all of us," Boomer said with a
meaningful gesture toward the closed hatch.  He grasped Apollo's free
hand in a Warrior's handshake.  Both Sheba and Apollo welcomed him into
their embrace.
     Inside the sealed celestial chamber, Starbuck cradled Cassiopeia's
limp form tightly against him as though he might protect her from the
forces of fate.  The Hand of God cradled both the Warrior and his love
with the infinite stars scattered around them.  
     Starbuck  regarded Cassiopeia's expressionless face.  Without the
assistance of med equipment, her breathing had slowed to a series of
infrequent, shallow gasps.  The fact that her body was content to wind
down, that it did not struggle to hold on to life, at last convinced him
that the essence, the soul, of the woman he still loved had long since
passed.  Only the body remained and now even that last vestige of life
seemed content to fade away.
     He felt Cassie draw a deep shuddering breath and exhale.  He held
her more tightly then, telling her the things he wished he'd said when it
might have mattered.
     Cassiopeia slumbered peacefully far beneath the shimmering lake
separating Starbuck's reality from the safety and warmth of the world she
now inhabited.  She'd been here for some time now, maybe days, maybe
sectons.  Time was an indefinite concept for her.
     Often someone from her old reality would speak gently to her, the
words falling toward her like a pebble tossed into a clear blue lake. 
But the words were distorted, swirling about on the currents of her
confusion and eddies of emotion.  As long as she didn't force herself to
decipher the pebble-words, she could remain blissfully unaware.  
     Now, however, something disturbed her secluded world.  An
authoritative voice demanded her attention.  She resisted as best she was
able, clinging to her painless security.  Finally, she could no longer
resist the commanding voice.
     "Cassiopeia of Gemini, you must awaken.  Your work is unfinished,"
it declared.
     *What work?*
     "Starbuck and Apollo need you.  Your children need you."
     Questions rolled forward like tidal waves.  *Starbuck needs me?  I
doubt that, but at least it makes a certain amount of sense.  Apollo
needs me?  Is he injured?  Children?  There is only Dalton.  I miss her
so!*
     Apparently, the enigmatic voice was willing to reveal only so much. 
"Both Starbuck *and* Apollo need you.  Your daughter and your son must
have your guidance."
     *I have no son.*  She sensed an indulgent smile.
     "Yours is a solitary journey, Cassiopeia of Gemini, but it is a
journey of great significance for your people.  You have been chosen to
help the human race fulfill its destiny.  The time has come for you to
return to them."
     Starbuck buried his face in Cassiopeia's hair, breathing in her
scent for the last time.  He wanted to hold on to this final moment with
her for as long as he possibly could.  The grieving man never saw the
star that momentarily brightened, then impossibly, dove from its orbit to
hover briefly just over the Celestial Chamber, filling the room with
blinding blue light for less than a micron.  And then it was gone.
     The soft rise and fall of Cassie's chest gradually drew Starbuck's
attention.  He didn't believe the evidence of his own eyes.  At least he
didn't until her eyes blinked and he drank in the vast depths of her
ocean blue eyes.  Gently, he traced the outline of her face, certain he
must be dreaming.  She returned the caress with a gentle smile.
     Starbuck blinked away tears.
     "Thank you," he said to the silent stars.

The End

Thanks for reading and your opinion, positive or negative, is
appreciated...
Charli_b@adelphia.ne