Dreams of a Forgotten Past Part One <> She woke up, her heart racing and full of a terrible feeling of emptiness. She was confused, surely this man must be dead. So many had died. If only she could remember. She knew she felt strongly attracted to the man in her dreams and from the dreams she'd had the last few nights, they'd been more than friends. She felt a strong bond to the three children that came and went from her fragmented dreams. She didn't know if it was real or not. Perhaps it was real. Maybe she was beginning to remember. Surely the feelings of love and then the emptiness and loss when she awoke could not be conjured by mere dreams. She got up and dressed. She walked along the corridor towards the one small common area of the ship. The corridor was narrow, barely allowing two to walk side by side. The walls were dirty, covered by dirt that had been there for yahrens. She was aware of the stares of the other passengers. She wasn't sure even of her own name, the names that drifted in and out of her dreams couldn't be trusted. She wished she could remember, but everything seemed too confusing. The last thing she remembered clearly were the laser bombs striking the house. Surely her family was dead. * * * No one knew who the woman really was. She had never spoken a word as far as anyone on the ship knew. She was called Tacita, Silent One in Gemonese. He doubted that was her true name. He watched her from the corner. She probably had been very beautiful at one time. Now her dress, dirty and worn from sectons of use, hung loosely on her slender frame. He imagined it had been a deep green at one time, but now seemed to be a faded memory of that shade. Her honey coloured hair fell around her slender shoulders in such a way it obviously hadn't been washed or combed in some time. Her cheekbones were high, there weren't any scars or blemishes on her skin. Her nose was straight and in good proportion to her face. Her round, deep blue eyes looked saddened and lost somewhere in a confused haze. But there was something about the way she walked, the way she carried herself. It told him she hadn't always been like this. Her delicate steps and straight carriage told him she was a woman who belonged to a higher class. He could see that she was watching the IFB. Her probably once carefully sculpted eyebrows turned downward as she frowned. She straightened slightly and leaned forward a bit, staring intently at the viewscreen. The frown somehow changed from confusion into thought. She seemed to be concentrating, like she was trying to remember something. * * * She knew that voice. It was the one in her dreams. And she knew those eyes. Her dreams. <> She did know him. The odd flashes she'd been having suddenly seemed clearer, although still confusing. She had thought everyone was dead. She couldn't remember how she'd escaped, or much about that night. But she knew who that man was. "Adama?" * * * He could hear her now, she was babbling on about equines, then fruit, and then something else that made no sense to him. There seemed to be a general fuss around her now, everyone noticing that the once silent woman was now babbling, albeit incoherently. While no one seemed to be speaking to her, they were certainly staring and talking about her. Perhaps she was just out of her mind. That's when he heard her say the name Adama. He watched her for a few more microns as she stood and kept rambling on about something that made no sense to him, but might to family member. That's when he heard her say Apollo, Athena, and Zac. While many knew the face and name of Commander Adama, how could she be talking about the whole family like she knew them? Then he saw her eyes. They were clear with recognition. Her babbling aside, her eyes showed she was lucid. He stood and left the room to head for the nearest telecom. * * * She tried to tell them, to make them understand. Some of the women stood up. "Get back to your quarters. You're crazy." Maybe she was. No. She knew him. She had to make them understand. "Please. I know him." Her memories were fragmented, jumbled. But he was real. "He likes tefahet and he has a scar on his back from a training accident at the Academy." "Go on woman. You're interrupting the news. Get out." She looked at them. She could see they were becoming angry. How could she make them understand she was telling the truth? Why wouldn't they listen? She spoke again, this time almost pleading with them to listen. "But it's true. Apollo had an equine when he was a boy." "You don't know the Commander or his family." "Yes I do." "If you know him, then what are you doing here?" The other passengers forced her to leave the room. Overwhelmed by the memories and finding no one to listen, she returned to her quarters. Perhaps she was going mad. She couldn't make sense of any of the things in her head. She sat down, tears running down her cheeks. It was as if a dam had burst in her mind, a flood of memories poured out that had been locked away. She couldn't find any order or make any sense of them. They had called her Tacita because she hadn't spoken in sectons. Since the Destruction of the Colonies. Now she spoke, and no one would listen. She knew that wasn't her name, but she hadn't been able to tell them. Everything had been locked away. She hadn't been able to remember. Now she could tell them, but no one would let her. Part 2 Starbuck kept his eyes on their flight path. "Boomer, how'd we end up pulling this duty again?" "Just lucky I guess." Starbuck shook his head. He was about to say something else when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to see Cassie standing behind him. "Starbuck, this isn't the usual inspection run. This is for medical checks." "Then why are we here?" He blinked his eyes, his blond hair falling into his eyes as he looked up at Cassie innocently. Cassie looked him in the eyes. "Because, I wanted two of the best pilots, and that ship we're going to...it's not exactly the `Rising Star'." Starbuck frowned at her for a micron before recalling that the Gemonese freighter was the one they'd found her on. "Right." "And there it is." Cassie and Starbuck both looked up at Boomer's words. Starbuck returned his attention to flying as they neared the vessel. If you wanted to call it a vessel. It was an aging freighter. The cargo modules were a faded red, words faintly visible on some of the modules. It shouldn't have come this far, but it had, yet another miracle of this fleet. Once they'd docked with the aging freighter, Starbuck, Boomer, and Dietra helped Cassie and the other tow medtechs gather their supplies and equipment and start to leave the shuttle. "I think we should divide to do this quickly." Starbuck spoke, glancing around the corridor as he did. "I"ll go with Cass. Boomer, you and Freya go together. Dietra, you go with Tabitha." The Warriors and Medtechs nodded. Boomer and Freya, Starbuck and Cassie, split up between the passenger compartments. Tabitha and Dietra went to the crew quarters. They planned to go through the regular quarters and then regroup to inspect the people living in the converted cargo areas. * * * Starbuck followed Cassie to the next compartment. The passageways were narrow and dark. Starbuck wrinkled his nose involuntarily. The smell of too many people was unpleasantly strong in this section. He wondered if the water situation on this vessel was bad, surely they had enough for regular turbowashes? It was part of the rations. He recalled the situation from before and made a mental note to check into the water supply on this ship. If they had enough water, why weren't they using it? So far, no problems. Everyone seemed calmer than they had been in the days after their escape from the Colonies. The calmness had him worried. This couldn't possibly go this smoothly. They neared one of the tiny compartments and as Cassie was about to enter a man approached them. "What do you want?" Starbuck looked the man over. He was tall and muscular. He didn't appear to be armed, but he could have something concealed in his clothing. There was something about him that Starbuck just didn't like. Starbuck took a step forward. "We're doing medical evaluations of the passengers. Are these your quarters?" Starbuck knew his list showed the quarters belonging to a lone woman by the name of Tacita. If the man said he belonged here, he was lying. Starbuck stood silently watching the stranger, his right hand close to his laser. The man looked at the Warrior, at his right hand hovering just above his laser. Now wasn't the time. "No. The woman who lives here is unbalanced though. She's always talking nonsense. Crazy." Starbuck nodded and looked the man in the eyes. "I'll keep that in mind." He watched the man as he walked farther down the corridor. Without turning to Cassie, he spoke again. "Let's go." Cassie nodded and knocked on the door. Starbuck was still staring down the corridor after the man when the woman came to the door. He had a very bad feeling about this. Cassie could feel Starbuck's uneasiness, but she felt safe with him there and kept her mind on her job. "Hi. I'm Cassiopeia. I'm a medtech on the Galactica and I'm here to do a medical check on you." "Galactica? Adama? Is he here? Apollo? Zac? Athena?" Her words rushed out so quickly that Cassie was startled at first. The woman looked like most of the other passengers, perhaps even a bit more unkempt. But what was she doing mentioning the Commander's family? How could she know them? Starbuck knew he should check on that man. There was definitely something wrong. Then a familiar voice caught his ears. "By the Lords..." He spoke under his breath as he turned slowly to look at the woman in the doorway. He didn't believe what he saw, what he heard. He knew her voice. It was the same voice that had spoken to him with such patience and motherly love when he was a youth. The voice of the only mother he'd known. Her face was thinner, her honey gold hair wasn't neatly framing her face, but her eyes, those were without a doubt her eyes. "Ila?" Cassie turned around to look at Starbuck like he was crazy. "What? Ila? She's dead." Starbuck didn't acknowledge Cassie, instead he stepped a little closer to the woman. His breathing quickened, his pulse rapid. That was her voice, those were her eyes. He looked into her eyes and saw they were filled with confusion. What if she'd been hurt in the attack on Caprica and lost her memory? This was Ila. "Ila, do you know me?" Starbuck knew he was right. He could feel it. There had to be some explanation that would make sense, but he knew it was her. He couldn't wait to contact the Commander and Apollo and Athena. He didn't speak as she looked at him, the confusion still in her eyes. "I...Apollo...you're Apollo's friend." She frowned in thought, almost visibly trying to remember. "Star...Starbuck? Where's Apollo? Where are Adama, Athena, and Zac?" Starbuck nodded, his blue eyes bright with excitement. "Yes, I's Starbuck." He paused for a micron. "Um, they're on the Galactica. Ila, we thought you were dead. What happened?" When she shook her head and looked confused again, the momentary clarity of recognizing Starbuck vanished, Cassie stepped in. She placed her hand on Starbuck's arm and gently forced him to look at her. "Starbuck, take it slow, all right? If she had traumatic memory loss or some kind of injury, she may have trouble remembering. Why don't you go contact the Galactica and let them know we have someone we want to bring over for tests." Starbuck blinked at Cassie. She waited for him to settle enough to digest her words. He finally nodded, his eyes still bright with excitement. "I'll go back to the shuttle and contact them. Stay with her." He then turned to Ila. "Ila, I'll come right back and take you to the Galactica. Cassie will stay with you." Before Cassie could say anything else, Starbuck had dashed out of the compartment and down the hall. Cassie shook her head slightly a the Lieutenant before returning her attention to the woman who was talking about something. "He knew it drove me crazy for him to keep bending the dinner utensils. He finally stopped doing it. It was that crazy study he was in for the military...." Cassie shook her head slightly. Normally she trusted Starbuck's judgment, but wondered if he was right in this case. This woman was talking about things that made little or no sense. Bending eating utensils? Cassie reached out and put a hand on the woman's shoulder. "I'm going to do a medical scan on you, all right?" Dreams of a Forgotten Past Part 3 Starbuck clicked on his ground crew communicator. "Boomer, I'm going to the shuttle to contact the Galactica. Are you and Freya anywhere near beta deck, section alpha?" "We're right under you." "Good. Cassie's up there with a woman now. Take a break and go on up until I get back. There's a man hanging around I don't like the looks of." "Right. Anything wrong?" "Not yet." Starbuck rounded the next corner on his way to the ascensior and found himself on the deck, flat on his back. Whoever or whatever had hit him knocked the wind out of him for a moment and before he could get back up, he was hit again. Reaching for his laser, but not seeing his attacker in the dimly lit corridor, he fired blindly, knowing he had it set on stun rather than kill. Hearing the dull thud of a body falling to the deck, he got up and looked. It wasn't the man that had been lurking around Ila's quarters. He frowned. Two men who seemed to want to keep them from getting Ila home. He wondered why. Did they know it was Ila, or was it a coincidence? Starbuck felt his heart pounding as he considered what could be happening, regardless of the men's motives, he had to get back to Ila and Cassie. Now. "Frak!" He muttered through clenched teeth, turning and sprinting back to Ila's compartment. Starbuck knew he was right, that somehow that was Ila and he was determined to get her back to her family. Whatever had happened to her, he wasn't going to let fate snatch her away from the Commander, Apollo, and Athena again. That had been the only time he was glad he didn't have a family. Watching his friends mourn the tragic loss of their own families. While Ila had been as much of a mother to him as Adama had been like a father, he knew he hadn't felt the loss as deeply as Apollo and Athena. He couldn't even imagine what the Commander had gone through. No, he corrected himself mentally, he did know, a little. Ila was the only mother he'd ever known. After growing up in orphanages and foster homes, he'd met Apollo's family. The Commander had been like a father to him. If it hadn't been for him, he wouldn't have joined the military. In fact, he'd probably be on the prison barge or worse. So he'd felt a sense of loss when he'd thought Ila was dead. And then there was Zac. If only he hadn't agreed to let Zac have the patrol, Zac might still be alive. Starbuck knew the kid had looked up to him and Apollo and wanted to prove to them both that he was as good as they were. Through the Academy he was sure Zac had been compared to Apollo and him both. So he did know. Maybe more than hand he'd actually admit to someone other than himself. * * * Cassie started to perform her medical scans when she heard the door to the compartment open. She knew there hadn't been enough time for Starbuck to get to the shuttle and back so she stood up and placed herself between the door and Ila just as a man entered. The same man who'd been there before. The look in his dark green eyes made her cringe internally. "You really shouldn't be in here alone. This woman is mentally unbalanced." "I'm fine, thank you. Now, what are you doing here?" Cassie watched him as he eyed her and then looked around her to where Ila was sitting, now silent. "Look, you'd better leave before the Warrior comes back and finds you in here where you don't belong." Cassie didn't like the way he was staring at her and the way his eyes kept darting around the room. She stood her ground, but hoped that Starbuck or one of the other Warriors would appear. Why couldn't medtechs carry lasers on assignments like this? * * * Boomer was a few steps away from where Starbuck had told him to go when hear heard a scream. Drawing his laser, he rushed forward. Starbuck was close enough to hear Cassie's scream and broke into a run. He reached the door microns after Boomer. The two Warriors looked at each other, silent communication was all that was needed. Boomer pushed the button to open the door to the compartment. Starbuck stood back, his laser drawn and ready. The door opened to reveal Cassie struggling with a man who was holding a knife in his right hand. Starbuck jumped forward, grabbing the man's hand and twisted his arm back, away from Cassie. The man squirmed away from Starbuck, but Starbuck kept his hold on the man's arm and managed to get him to the ground. Satisfied that he wasn't going anywhere, he looked up at Cassie. "Are you all right?" She nodded. "Yes." She stepped over to Ila, who hadn't said a word throughout. That worried Cassie, she'd gone from speaking to utter silence. Whether she was Ila or not, the last thing she needed was more trauma. Boomer looked at Starbuck. "What's going on?" Starbuck had restrained the man and pulled him to his feet. "I'll explain later. Take him back to the shuttle. If the other one's still there, we'll take him too." He stepped over to Ila. "Ila, come on, we're going over to the Galactica." He held out his hand. She reached out slowly and took it. Boomer frowned slightly. "Ila? As in the Commander's wife? Starbuck, that's not possible." Starbuck sighed in exasperation and turned to Boomer. "It is her. I don't know how, but I know. Didn't you ever meet her?" "Yes, I've met her and..." Boomer paused and looked at the unkempt woman at Starbuck's side. He'd met Commander Adama's wife a few times at receptions and once at the Commander's home on Caprica for Zac's Academy graduation party. He turned his attention back to Starbuck. Starbuck was obviously excited and exasperated. "She resembles Ila, but I don't see how it could be. Apollo said their home was completely leveled." "Boomer, I..." Cassie cut in, placing her hand on Starbuck's arm. Whether the woman was Ila or not, she didn't need the stress the two Warrior's were creating. "We're going to the Galactica. We'll run tests and the Commander would know better than anyone." Both Warriors nodded. * * * Starbuck radioed the Galactica once the shuttle was underway. "Colonel Tigh, could you have Commander Adama meet us in the Life Station?" "Is something wrong?" "No Colonel. There's someone with us who would very much like to see him." Tigh nodded and Starbuck ended the transmission. Boomer looked over at Starbuck. "Starbuck, are you sure this is Ila?" Starbuck sighed and rolled his eyes at Boomer. "Yes Boomer. I'm positive. It's not just her eyes and her voice. She said things no one could possibly know outside of the Commander's family. Some of what she said made no sense to me, but some of it did. And those things couldn't be known to someone other than Ila. Besides the Commander will know for certain." Starbuck was confident it was Ila. Cassie had told him some of what she'd said to her. It had to be her. Boomer didn't say anything, instead he concentrated on the controls. He recalled the matter with Chameleon and hoped this would not be a repeat. * * * Back on the Galactica, Starbuck turned the man who'd attacked Cassie and Ila over to security to be sent to the brig. He'd ordered both Warrior and Council Security to be on the lookout for the man who'd attacked him and managed to escape. He had to still be on the freighter since no vessels had left before their shuttle and he'd asked that travel be suspended to and from the ship until the man was found and caught. Boomer followed Starbuck and Cassie to the Life Station with Ila. "Starbuck, why don't you go outside and wait for the Commander while Dr. Salik and I check her over, all right?" Starbuck looked pleadingly at Cassie. "Cass, she's confused. I'm the only person she recognizes right now." Ila looked around, nothing seemed familiar yet, except Starbuck. She kept remembering things, but they were out of sequences and fuzzy. Starbuck finally walked back to where she was sitting. "Ila, Dr. Salik's going to run some tests to make sure you're all right. Commander Adama should be here in a centon." Ila smiled and nodded. "Adama. It's been a very long time. Where are Apollo, Athena, and Zac?" Starbuck winced inwardly, not sure how to answer about Zac. He looked up at Cassie. She shook her head slightly. Starbuck inhalded and smiled, hoping it looked real because he never had been able to lie to her and get away with it. "Zac isn't on the Galactica right now." Not a lie. Starbuck told himself as he continued. "Besides, Dr. Salik wouldn't let a bunch of people in here anyway." Starbuck was more than relieved to hear Adama's voice behind him. "Starbuck?" Adama entered the Life Station. Starbuck turned around. "Commander, there's someone here I know you'll want to see." Dreams of a Forgotten Past Part Four Adama wasn't really in the mood to deal with Starbuck's vagueness. After spending the morning dealing with the Council of Twelve and their various complaints about the way that rations were being handled, he had been on the bridge overseeing the landing of a Viper that had been damaged on patrol due to mechanical failure. They had to find a place to stop long enough to restock and do proper maintenance on the ships. Then Tigh had told him Starbuck wanted him in the Life Station for reasons he hadn't stated. Starbuck had been on the Gemonese Freighter, what could possibly have happened over there that required his presence in the Life Station? He moved down the corridor at a rapid march, barely nodding as he passed crew members snapping to attention as he passed. As he reached the Life Station, Adam paused just long enough for the door to open before stepping through, his eyes sweeping through the room to assess the situation. He saw Starbuck, Cassie, and Dr. Salik gathered around an examining table. Starbuck was talking to a fourth person, but he couldn't clearly see who that person might be. "Starbuck?" he asked, more than a hint of impatience in his voice. The lieutenant turned and stepped aside. He looked flustered, uncharacteristically so. Concern began to edge out his previous impatience. Then his eyes caught sight of the person on the examining table, a woman. She was too slender. So the rather plump council members didn't think they were getting enough rations? He thought to himself as he looked her over from a distance. Her pale blue eyes showed confusion and anxiousness all too clearly. Suddenly he felt a strange sensation come from inside, like he knew her. As though his body was trying to tell him something that his brain should know. She looked at him, her blue eyes connecting with his brown ones. "Adama?" She whispered as her soul recognized it's mate. "Ila?" The sound that came from his lips was barely a whisper. He blinked, not believing what he was seeing. While his mind was in disbelief, his heart knew better. He'd seen it in her eyes and knew it was her, even if his head was screaming that it was impossible. He'd seen the house, it had been a burnt shell, leveled by laser bombs. It wasn't possible. But it was her, his heart and very soul knew it was true. It was a miracle, there was not logical explanation. He rushed forward, completely ignoring Salik, Cassie, and Starbuck. He had to be dreaming. It was not possible. If this was real, then this was truly a miracle. How many times had he dreamed of her? How often had he awakened to reach for her and find that not only was she not here, but remember the ruins of his home and the knowledge that his wife was dead? How often had he thought he smelled her perfume, or the sound of her gentle laughter? He was almost afraid to touch her, afraid she would disappear if he did. He looked into her eyes. It was her. He reached out to pull her into his arms. Ila saw him standing there and heard his voice. She knew it was him. Her dreams were real, things were starting to come together into a much clearer picture. She was still uncertain of some things, but she was sure this was her husband, that he was alive. She felt him take her in his arms, felt the strength and passion of his embrace. She touched his face with her fingertips, seeking the physical reassurance that she wasn't dreaming. He looked at her for a long moment before she felt his lips on hers. Ila felt the warmth and joy spread withing her. She felt secure again despite the cloudy memories and uncertainties that still plagued her mind. His kiss was everything she remembered, and more. The feelings that went with the fragmented memories fell into place. When he finally broke the kiss she found herself out of breath. Adama didn't let go of her as he stepped back. He noticed a plush had come to her too pale cheeks. There wasn't a word he could think of that described his happiness. He could feel tears running down his cheeks, but didn't care. He held onto her hands and looked down into her eyes, nearly speechless. "By the Lords of Kobol...Ila...It's really you...." Starbuck almost felt like he shouldn't be watching, especially with that kiss the Commander had just given his wife. He glanced over at Cassie who was smiling and blushing slightly herself as she returned his look. "I'll go get Apollo and Athena." The lieutenant all but ran out of the Life Station and headed for the bridge. * * * Starbuck was relieved to find both Apollo and Athena on the bridge. He strode over to where Apollo was standing just behind his sister's station. "I need you both to come to the Life Station with me. Now." Athena looked up from her station at Starbuck. He was breathing hard and his blue eyes were shining with excitement. "Is something wrong?" Apollo also noticed the gleam in Starbuck's eyes. "What is it?" "I found someone on the Gemonese Freighter you'll both want to see. Come on." Athena had looked over towards Tigh, who was standing on the command platform watching them with an annoyed look on his face. Apollo looked skeptically at Starbuck. He opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by the sight of Tigh walking to where they stood. "What's going on here?" Starbuck turned to the Colonel. "Colonel Tigh. They need to be with Commander Adama in the Life Station." Tigh glanced at Apollo and Athena before returning his gaze to Starbuck. "Concerning the woman you brought over from the freighter?" He looked at Starbuck dubiously, curious himself as to what all the excitement and secrecy was about. He'd noted Starbuck's suspension of flight to and from the Freighter and while it was within the lieutenant's right under martial law to do it, it was unusual. "Yes sir." Colonel Tigh finally nodded. "Very well. Go on." Apollo and Athena followed Starbuck off the bridge. "Starbuck, what's going on?" Apollo sounded exasperated. "You'll see. Don't worry, nothing's wrong. In fact, it's good news." * * * Apollo stepped into the Life Station to see his father talking to someone. He couldn't see who from where he was standing. He assumed it was Cassie as he walked forward, his sister right beside him. "Father?" Adama turned around. He was smiling bigger than Apollo had seen in a very long time, a smile that was more than just his mouth, it encompassed his whole presence. There were also tears in his eyes, something Apollo had only seen twice in his life and judging by the smile, these were tears of joy. Then Apollo saw who his father had been speaking to. He stopped and inhaled sharply. He didn't trust his eyes. He had to be dreaming. Slowly he release the breath. "Mother?" He spoke hesitantly, as if speaking the word would break some spell or shatter what had to be a dream. He could feel his heart pounding against his chest as he stared. He dared not blink for fear she might vanish again. Athena didn't even hesitate, she quickly wen to her mother's side. Apollo finally came out of his shock and was at her other side in a micron. Athena and Apollo were both talking at once as they both embraced their mother. Athena could feel tears in her eyes as she held her mother. "Mother. I prayed you weren't really gone...and this...I never could have dreamed..." Athena could barely contain the excitement she felt that her mother was alive. She really didn't care how it had happened, she was just glad that it had. Adama watched his children reunite with Ila. He silently thanked the Almighty and the Lords of Kobol for this miracle. The joy he felt at seeing his family together again was beyond his vocabulary to describe. Of course Zac was not there but at least his remaining children had their mother and he had his wife. "Commander?" Adama's thoughts were interrupted by Starbuck's voice. He turned to see the young lieutenant behind him. "Starbuck, thank you. I want to hear your report." "Of course. I just..." He lowered his voice to barely a whisper. "We didn't say anything about Zac. Dr. Salik doesn't think we should just yet." Adama nodded gravely. He had many questions, but saw Dr. Salik standing to the side, looking pleased by the reunion, but still impatient to finish his work. "Commander, I need to check her out. We need to determine what caused the memory loss and make sure there are no other injuries." "Of course." Adama turned back to his family. He placed one hand on Athena's shoulder and the other on Apollo's. "Apollo, Athena, we need to let Dr. Salik finish his examination. Come on." They embraced their mother once again and went to leave the room. Adama took Ila's hands in his. "We'll wait for you outside." She nodded. Ila didn't really want them to leave. She was too afraid she was dreamin and would wake up if they left. Her husband bent forward to kiss her once more and whispered that he loved her before leaving the room.