A Matter of Trust
A Battlestar Galactica story by Marion Duerselen
February 2000 - duesi69@aol.com

Commander Adama's log:
     Yahrens have passed since we were forced to go on this endless
voyage through the infinite depths of space. A struggle to survive. A
search for an unknown destination. And although the odds are against
us, we still carry on.
     220 civilian ships following a single battlestar to an unknown
fate. Thousands of people, maybe the remains of mankind, pursuing one
man's dreams and hopes.
     That one man is me. And although I am not only carrying the burden
of responsibility for these people, but also that of my own losses, I
still believe in this mission.
     Not all of our brothers and sisters are as convinced as I am that
Earth, the legendary planet we are searching for, is really out there
and many have left us during this journey. Others, on the contrary,
have joined us - left their homes on various planets we passed on the
way to follow my dream.
     It is surprising and reassuring on how many planets human beings
have found refuge from the Cylon empire and have been able to live
undetected and in peace for yahrens, even centuries. There is still
hope. No matter how hard the Cylon empire is going to crush this
species in their brutal, destructive grip - there will always be human
beings able to slip through their fingers. They will never get all of
us. Mankind will survive, no matter what. And if I can help it, so is
this fleet.
     Still we can't always do it alone. A fleet of this size needs
countless supplies of food and water and although our agro-ships are
able to produce the largest part of the required food, water and fuel
supplies can only be obtained from planets we pass on the way. And at
this time we are in desperate need for both, fuel and water.
     Carefully, not to give our position away, we have sent messages to
the planet Anba'Sol‚r that lies right before us, asking for help. But
although our computers have stated various resources and traces of
human life forms, we have not obtained any replies and our away team
seems to be unable to find neither the needed supplies, nor the people
that our computers detected. Something mysterious is going on down on
that planet and we can only hope that the Cylons are not behind all
this.
     We cannot pursue without these supplies and still I have a very
bad feeling about this. Once again we are forced into a situation that
leaves us no choice, as so many times before. So far we have always
made it through. How much longer?

     Twilight embraced the still and dead remains of a former proud
city as Apollo and Starbuck slowly walked along one of the many silent
and dusty streets. Their heavy-booted steps re-sounded from the facades
of the buildings, while the windows stared down at them like blind and
empty eyes.
     Precautionary both men had their lasers drawn and shivers were
running down their spines as they proceeded down the street side by
side, nervously glancing around them. There was no sound to be heard
except for their own steps, nothing moved except for themselves and the
twilight created shadows and schemes that made them see things that
weren't really there.
     With a worried frown on his face Starbuck turned to his companion.
     "I can see, why nobody else wanted to join us for this cosy little
trip."
     Unconsciously he had merely whispered and Apollo took another
careful look around before he answered in the same way.
     "The Commander thought it a wise idea to have only two men check
this place out, in case it is a Cylon ambush. Having dozens of people
running about draws too much attention."
     Starbuck stopped and gestured towards the empty and still ruins.
     "Draw attention from whom? This place is deserted."
     "Then why are you whispering?"
     The blond man looked at his Captain in surprise for a micron, then
a weak smile moved the corners of his mouth.
     "You just always have to have the last word, uh?"
     Apollo returned the smile.
     "Now that from you?"
     Starbuck took another look around himself, before he concentrated
his attention back on his friend.
     "Wanna know, what I think? It's not just precaution that
diminished this team to just the two of us again. The others downright
refused to wear these silly civilian clothes again, right?"
     Another smile spread over Apollo's shapely features.
     "I don't know what you want. When you flew the Recon Viper 1, even
C.O.R.A. thought you looked cute in that outfit."
     The blond man gave him a disgusted glance.
     "Cute? Now, who wants to look cute? Besides - C.O.R.A. was a
computer."
     The Captain just grinned, but didn't reply anymore. For a moment
they stood in silence in the middle of the street, before Starbuck
spoke again.
     "Now, tell me again - what exactly are we looking for anyway?"
     Apollo shrugged his shoulders.
     "Quite frankly - I don't know. The bridge computer detected human
life forms on this planet and various resources of water and fuel and I
was hoping, we would find something more than just ruins and empty,
dried out tanks."
     "We have searched this city and its perimeters for centars and
found neither the resources, nor the people. Maybe we oughta take the
possibility into consideration that the silly computer suffers from a
couple of loose wires."
     A faint smile flashed over Apollo's face for a micron.
     "You want to report that to the Commander? That I've got to see."
     Another frown moved Starbuck's handsome features, before he
shrugged his shoulders.
     "Uh, well... maybe looking around a little longer won't hurt..."
     The dark-haired Captain didn't reply. He just flashed his friend a
smile before they both continued observing the area. Their relaxed
conversation and friendly teasing had not made that unpleasant aura of
danger that they both felt disappear. Silently they pursued until they
reached the end of the street where it met a crossroad. Apollo pointed
to his right.
     "Take a look over there. But don't go too far - stay in sight." He
pointed to the left with his laser still in hand. "I'll check this side
out."
     Starbuck simply nodded and carefully walked into the assigned
direction. Apollo watched him for a few microns, then turned to his
left and moved into the opposite direction.
     The feeling of danger seemed to grow stronger with each step. His
heartbeat increased and he tried to ease it with a few deep breaths.
Something was wrong, something was threaten-ing and for the life of him
he couldn't put his finger down on what it was. Not a soul was in sight
and he was way too old to see ghosts in every corner, to be afraid of
the dark. He tried to fight the knot that had started building in his
throat, threatening to choke him. While he hesitantly took a few more
steps, he reasoned with himself. It was irrational to be afraid.
     He turned around to look for Starbuck, but the blond man was out
of sight. Apollo drew in a sharp breath.
     "Starbuck?!"
     His voice was overly load in the surrounding silence and echoed
through the empty buildings and streets. Only microns later the
Lieutenant appeared in the doorway of one of the buildings and waved
his hand.
     "I'm here. What is it?"
     Apollo shook his head and waved back. He felt silly.
     "Nothing. Forget it. - Go on."
     Starbuck smiled to himself, unseen by his friend, and with a shrug
of his shoulders he disappeared back into the building.
     Apollo stood still for another centon, trying to concentrate and
get a hold of himself. Why didn't these cold shivers down his spine go
away? While he was still standing silently in the middle of the
deserted street, breathing deep to regain his usual calmness and
control, a sound in one of the buildings behind him had him whirl
around on his heels and point his laser at the dark entrance. He
couldn't see a thing in the interior of the house and suddenly the
thought crossed his mind, that for all he knew there could have been
dozens of...  beings in each of these dark, sinister buildings,
lurking, waiting, watching each of his moves. The way he was standing
in the middle of the street, alone and unprotected, made him a prefect
target for any enemy that might have been in these houses.
     His heartbeat increased again and his green eyes were fixed on the
black doorway, from where he had heard the sound before. Maybe it was
just his imagination. Maybe his mind was playing tricks on him.
     At that moment yet another sound behind him had him whirl around
again and stare in the opposite direction at an equally dark and
threatening building - they all appeared hostile to him all of a
sudden. Sweat broke out on his forehead and the logical explanation,
that maybe the wind or small animals might have caused the sounds he
had heard, never even occurred to him.
     "Whoever you are - come out of there!"
     His voice didn't sound as steady as he had hoped - it sounded as
nervous, yes, scared as he was and there was no way for him to fight
this irrational fear. He didn't get a reply, but only microns later he
saw a movement from the corner of his eyes.
     Turning on his heels he saw a dark shadow appear where he had
heard the first sound and an object that flew in his direction. His
heart missed a beat and he reacted in a split micron, ducked and fired
his laser.

     A high pitched scream resounded through the empty streets and a
micron after he had fired his laser, Apollo heard the sound of a body
dropping to the floor. He gulped and tried to catch his breath. 
     "Apollo?!"
     He heard Starbuck's worried voice from the other end of the street
he was kneeling in, but he never even turned to see the blond
Lieutenant come running out of one of the buildings and hurry towards
him. His eyes were pinned on a small object, that had dropped to the
ground only centimetrons before his feet. It was the object that had
been flying directly towards him. A ball. No more, no less. A simple,
small, red, harmless ball - the kind a child would play with.
     "My god..."
     It was just a whisper, but still it sounded loud in the silence
around him. A terrible suspicion arose inside of him and he jumped back
to his feet. Slowly he approached the doorway where the being he had
hit with his laser was laying. The closer he got, the more his eyes
accommodated to the darkness in the interior of the building and only
microns later he saw it. 
     "No!"
     This time it was not just a whisper. The small creature that
lifelessly lay on the floor before him was unmistakably human - it was
a little girl of about six with long, dark, curly hair and wide,
fearful eyes. She gave a painful and horrified sound, while tears
streamed down her pale cheeks. As the Captain approached her, she tried
to crawl away from him.
     "Don't be afraid - I won't hurt you."
     His voice was soft and kind and to ease her fear he dropped his
laser - still his words had to sound like a farce to anyone, who had
heard them. Hadn't he already hurt her? 
     As she moved, she left a trail of blood on the stony floor and on
seeing it, tears built in Apollo's eyes as well.
     "Apollo?!"
     Starbuck approached him and stopped surprised several steps away
from him as Apollo turned around. The expression on the Captain's face
and the look in his eyes made the blond man shiver. 
     "What's wrong? What happened?"
     The dark-haired man never had a chance to reply. Suddenly, almost
soundless, several armed men had appeared between the buildings and on
either side of the street and aimed their weapons in the direction of
the two warriors. 
     Starbuck's instinctive reaction was to rise the laser that he
still held in his hand, but he never even moved. He wasn't afraid of a
confrontation - he was a Colonial warrior - but he was no fool. They
were, no doubt, surrounded and with Apollo being unarmed at the moment,
he alone wouldn't have stood a chance against dozens of armed
opponents. Not that one laser more or less would have made much of a
difference. 
     They both stood motionless and quietly for a moment, while the men
slowly and carefully closed in on them. Although the two warriors were
clearly outnumbered, it seemed like their opponents were fearing them
much more than the other way around. A few microns passed, while an
aura of danger and tension lay in the air. Then Apollo started to
speak, carefully trying to make his voice sound calm and friendly.
     "We don't mean any harm. Please - there's a little girl in that
house and she is injured. She needs help."
     The men continued to draw closer, some of them exchanging glances,
but no-one reacted to Apollo's request for help. The voice of the
Captain switched from friendly to desperate.
     "Did you hear what I said? The child needs medical help
immediately. Does anyone understand what I'm saying?"
     He didn't get a reply, but as reaction to his aggressive tone the
approaching men stopped abruptly and raised their rifles. Starbuck's
right hand twisted into motion, as he saw and felt the threat in that
gesture.
     "No!"
     Apollo had seen his companion's reaction and turned to him.
     "Starbuck, put that gun down."
     "But..."
     "That's an order! Put it down!"
     With a frown Starbuck hesitatingly lowered his arm. That alone
didn't seem to change the attitude of their opponents. 
     "Drop it!"
     Starbuck's eyes widened and he stared at his Captain in disbelief.
     "Apollo, but..."
     "I said, drop it!"
     An angry expression appeared on the blond man's face, but he
obeyed. Apollo's voice was harsh and something in his expression let
Starbuck unmistakably know, that he meant what he said. With a thud the
laser hit the ground.
     "I sure hope, you know what you are doing, Captain."
     The dark-haired man didn't reply. He merely drew in a sharp breath
and tightly pressed his lips together. After what he had done to the
little girl, he wasn't too sure about his actions anymore. 
     The armed men in front of the two warriors relaxed visibly after
Starbuck had dropped his laser. It was obviously understood as the
surrendering gesture that it was, but still several rifles remained
pointed at them. Apollo was just about to repeat his request for
medical assistance as an elderly woman emerged from one of the opposite
buildings, where Apollo had heard the second sound before, and hurried
towards the entrance behind which the girl was laying.
     She had her eyes fixed on the two warriors with an icy look and
carefully tried not to get too close to them. But the aimed weapons of
her companions apparently gave her all the reassurance she needed to
proceed. She hurried into the building and only a micron later her
heart-rending scream was heard from within.
     "Najara! Tu'ro'okk ar'Šntal - Najara!"
     This time a reaction moved the waiting men. Their expressions
changed from tense to furious or shocked and they started gesturing
towards the two warriors, shouting words in a strange, unknown
language. 
     Starbuck slowly and carefully moved closer to Apollo and gave him
a worried look from the side.
     "What is going on? What, in Hades, happened?"
     Apollo didn't answer - he never even faced his companion. A quite
understandable rage had built up and some of the wildly gesturing men
looked, as if they were ready to shoot at the two warriors any micron.
     Before the situation was about to escalate a tall, white-haired
man in his seventies slowly moved his way through the furious crowd and
approached the two nervously waiting men. He was dressed in a long
velvet rope and the way the men respectfully parted to make way for
him, made it obvious that he was a personality of importance - someone,
who expected and deserved the utmost respect. A few steps away from
Apollo and Starbuck he stopped and simply raised his hand - the
furiously shouting crowd fell quiet instantly and for a moment it was
so quiet that one could have heard a pin drop.
     Both parties were waiting, merely staring at each other, then the
sobbing of the elderly woman drew the attention of the newly arrived
man to the dark building. 
     "Su'Jara - argila dey?"
     Whatever the question was, the woman he called Su'Jara did not
answer it. A moment later she appeared in the doorway, carrying the
lifeless, limp body of the little girl in her arms. The tears in her
eyes and the way she simply shook her head rendered the question as
well as the answer superfluous. 
     The eyes of the two warriors had widened as they understood the
meaning of her gesture and yet Starbuck still did not even suspect what
had really happened.
     No words could have made him or anyone else comprehend the
emotions Apollo had to go through at that moment. He had killed a
child. Not in his wildest and worst nightmares had he ever dreamed of
killing a human being - not to mention an innocent, small child. And
now the worst of all possible nightmares had come real for him. 
     The knot in his throat threatened to choke him and although there
were so many things he wanted to say - words of apology and explanation
- he wasn't able to say just one. What was there to be said anyway? No
apology, no explanation would make undone what he had done; would ease
these people's pain and loss; would give this child back the young life
that had been taken from her. 
     For a few moments the white-haired man stood in silence, obviously
struggling to regain his control that he almost lost on seeing the dead
girl in Su'Jara's arms. Then he turned to her, speaking in a calm,
however choked voice.
     "Ak aru'lh s‚ xunok?"
     A nod was her reply and silently she turned around to fix her eyes
on Apollo, hatefully staring at him. If she had had her hands free, she
would have pointed at the Captain accusingly in reply to the older
man's question. But the way she stared at the young warrior no gesture
could have been more accusing.
     Starbuck had carefully been watching the woman and the older man -
each of their gestures and their glances seemed to tell the truth and
with wide, unbelieving eyes he turned to his friend whispering:
     "Did you shoot that little girl?"
     Apollo slowly turned his head and for a long moment he just
silently looked into Starbuck's wide, shocked eyes. The face of the
young Captain was deadly pale and he seemed to have aged yahrens during
the past half centar. 
     "It was an accident, Starbuck. I didn't mean to..."
     "Quiet!"
     Surprised both warriors turned around to the older man, who had
taken a few more steps in their direction. Two of the armed guards
stood at his side and a third one approached the still crying woman to
take the girl out of her arms. Reluctantly she allowed him to take the
little body away from her and carry it away, out of sight. For a few
microns she just followed them with her eyes, then she abruptly turned
around and slapped Apollo's face. 
     "Xunoka!"
     She hissed that one single word in his face, then turned on her
heels and ran after the guard, who had disappeared behind one of the
many corners. 
     The white-haired man turned to the two warriors again and stared
at Apollo.
     "Do you know, what she said?"
     Slowly Apollo shook his head.
     "Murderer. And I agree with her."
     "It was an accident. Please, you have got to believe me - we don't
mean any harm."
     The older man raised his brows.
     "Is that why you penetrated our home without invitation or
permission - armed and mindlessly shooting everything that moves?"
     The dark-haired Captain guiltily looked at his opponent and
lowered his eyes.
     "You are right. We had no right..."
     "Absolutely. You had no right!! And you have no idea, what you
have done!"
     Starbuck saw the pained expression on his friend's face and had a
faint idea of what the Captain was emotionally going through at that
moment. He cleared his voice and drew the older man's attention to him.
     "How come you speak our language? What is you name?"
     "You are in no position to ask questions... However, on this
planet we value polite-ness amongst other things you people obviously
have never heard of. My name is Sy'ron. I am King Arkyon's personal
adviser - his right hand, if you please."
     Starbuck's confusion was obvious.
     "King Arkyon... ? A whole monarchy...  but these are just ruins.
Where... ?"
     Sy'ron gave a humorless laughter and pointed at the ruins around
them.
     "Yes, it must be confusing, deceiving - and that is entirely our
intention."
     He paused for a moment while he looked around him with a sad
expression on his withered features. When he continued his voice was
low and regretful. 
     "This used to be a beautiful, big city full of life. These empty,
dead buildings and streets were filled with laughter, with light, with
the sounds of children playing...  Before they  came..."
     "They? The Cylons?"
     Sy'ron cast a piercing glance into Starbuck's direction and stared
at him for a moment.
     "The Cylons...  I haven't heard of them in a long, long time. So
you two are indeed from the Great Colonies.
     Apollo, who had quietly been standing next to Starbuck staring
blankly ahead of him, raised his head and looked at the older man with
wide eyes.
     "How do you know?"
     Sy'ron's deep brown eyes focused on him and his look seemed to
reach all the way down to his soul. Apollo shivered.
     "Your language to begin with. You both speak standard Kobolian
with a clearly Caprican accent. Then again - so do I, so I couldn't be
sure. I, too, was born and raised on Caprica, but my family left that
star system long, long yahrens ago and many followed. We came here to
live in peace, to get away from the war with the Cylons and have our
children being born into a world where they can grow up without fear.
Nobody here has seen or heard of the Cylons for a lifetime and if you
have, you have to be from the Colonies."
     The white-haired man pointed at the empty holsters at the
warriors' thighs.
     "And you two - who are you? Mercenaries? Deserted Colonial
warriors? A couple of fortune hunters and thieves? Whatever you have
hoped to find here - you won't find it."
     He paused for a moment while the two warriors just stared at him
silently.
     "Oh, yes. This used to be a proud city. But it was not the Cylons
who turned it into what it is today. It was people like you!"
     Sy'ron shouted into the two young faces before him with disgust
and before any of the two men could reply he continued his monolog.
     "This planet was rich of resources and enabled us a life with no
worries. Food and water we had plenty and enough valuable minerals to
trade with our neighbours. But where some own, others are never far to
envy. And why trade, if you can steal? The word spread and they came
from all parts of the star system to take by force whatever they
wanted. In many ways they were worse than the Cylons. The Cylons
destroy what they don't know and cannot understand, but the destroyers
of our world knew. They were human and they knew what they were doing
and they threatened or even took the lives of their own kind. Like you
did!"
     Helplessly Apollo raised his hands.
     "Please, believe me - it was an accident. We are friends."
     "You have a strange way of expressing your friendship. And, yes,
we have heard those words before as well. That's why we at last
deserted this city and were forced to hide on our own world in order to
survive - and we found different ways to protect us."
     With a look of deepest regret the old man glanced around himself
again. 
     "We never come here anymore."
     A frown flashed over Starbuck's face.
     "Then what have you been doing here today?"
     The eyes of the white-haired man focused back on him.
     "It was the wish of the little girl you killed! She wanted to see
for herself what so far she had only been told in stories. She wanted
to learn, to understand, go back to her people's roots. She was a child
so full of life, full of love - and wisdom, for one young. This was her
only wish - for her seventh birthday that is...  was today."
     "Oh, my God..."
     Starbuck turned around to Apollo, only to see him quickly turn
away and stare at the ground before him. Not fast enough though - the
blond man had already seen the tears that were streaming down his
friend's face and reassuring he placed a hand on his shoulder.
     "Hey, it wasn't your fault..."
     "Yes, it was!"
     Sy'ron's voice was angry.
     "Enough talk. Enough of this farce! I have seen it all before.
First they stole, they hurt, they even killed and then they faked
regret. We had mercy, we forgave and we let them go, only to see them
laugh in our face one too many times. They came back, unremorseful and
with no regrets - and they did it again. No more!"
     Fiercely he gestured to the armed men that stood behind him.
     "Guards! Take them away!"
     Starbuck drew back as he saw the guards approach him - he felt the
urge to turn and run, but the rifles that were pointed at him had him
reconsider. Strong hands grabbed his wrists a  moment later and forced
his arms onto his back where he felt and heard strong handcuffs snap.
Apollo never even moved. With no resistance whatsoever he stood
quietly, while the guards handcuffed him as well. Unresistingly he let
them lead him away.  
     Half-heartedly Starbuck fought against the men that forced him
forward with a hard grip on his arms.
     "Where are you taking us? What are you gonna do to us?"
     Sy'ron, who gracefully walked in front, didn't even turn around to
him as he answered.
     "You will be brought before the royal court first thing in the
morning. King Arkyon himself shall decide, which punishment is adequate
for your crimes."
     Starbuck opened his mouth to reply, but a surprised and
pain-filled grunt was all that was heard from him. Alarmed Apollo
turned around as far as he, handcuffed and with a guard walking to
either side of him, was able to. He saw Starbuck stare at him for a
split micron, before his eyes broke and went blank. A moment later his
knees buckled and he unconsciously dropped to the ground.
     "Starbuck!"
     The young Captain stared at his friend in shock, thoughts racing.
Only a micron later a splitting pain rushed through his head and even
before he realized that one of the guards had raised his rifle and hit
him over the head, he had already dropped to the ground as well.

     A hand that softly touched his head brought the dark-haired man
back to consciousness and almost immediately the splitting headache hit
him again. A pained grimace flashed over his face and with an effort he
slowly opened his eyes. 
     It was cold and damp in whatever place he was and that in addition
to the twilight surround-ing him made his discomfort increase. He tried
to focus his eyes on the person bending over him and with a relieved
sigh he recognized Starbuck a moment later. 
     The blond Lieutenant had pulled on one of his tunic's sleeves
enough to give him some extra cloth and carefully pressed it against
the side of Apollo's head, while he worriedly looked down at his
friend's pale face. As the Captain opened his eyes now, a faint smile
moved the corners of Starbuck's mouth.
     "Hey, welcome back."
     With a moan the dark-haired man tried to sit up, but Starbuck
pinned him down to the floor with gentle firmness.
     "Stay down. My head was killing me already when I woke up, but
they were extra careful to knock you out, I guess. You were unconscious
for centars and your head keeps  bleeding."
     Apollo drew in a deep breath and let his eyes move through the
room.
     "Where are we?"
     Starbuck shrugged his shoulders.
     "Your guess is as good as mine, but taking the darkness, dirt,
dampness and several four-legged companions into consideration, I doubt
it's the royal suite. Looks more like King Arkyon's most luxurious
dungeon to me."
     Apollo held his hand out to his friend.
     "Give me a hand up?"
     Starbuck sighed.
     "Sure. But you won't feel better, take my word for it."
     He grabbed Apollo's hand and pulled him into a seated position.
The pained expression that immediately appeared on the Captain's face
confirmed Starbuck's assumption, but the dark-haired man ignored his
headache. With an effort he struggled onto his feet and unsteadily
stood in the middle of the room a moment later. 
     Starbuck watched his friend quietly as he slowly walked to the
small, barred window and silently looked up into the dark sky. The tiny
window was placed high, right underneath the ceiling and the pale
moonlight of one of the planet's three moons was shining through it and 
created the silvery twilight.
     The blond man followed his companion and gently placed a hand on
his shoulder.
     "Are you okay?"
     Apollo kept staring into the night.
     "How could I be?" 
     He sighed.
     "Starbuck, I still do not believe this is happening. I killed a
child."
     "Hey, you said yourself it was an accident. Don't blame yourself
for something you couldn't prevent. Things like that happen."
     The Captain turned his head and cast the other man a stern glance.
     "No, Starbuck, things like that only happen when people are unable
to accept their own limits. I was part of every single mission for the
past six sectars, I skipped my last furlough and had a double shift
right before this mission. Damned, Starbuck, I was exhausted, I was
tired of it all, but I also was too proud to step back and admit, that
I do have limits. Too ambitious to admit to myself that I cannot do it
all. I should never have been on this mission. I was tired, I was
nervous, I just was not in control and I overreacted. It was my fault."
     Wordlessly Starbuck looked at his friend for a moment.
     "You know what, Captain, you are not too proud or too ambitious.
Whether you like it or not - you, too, are only human. No more, no
less. You work harder than all of us together. You are always there for
anyone of us whenever you are needed and you volunteer for every
mission. I have often wondered where all this ambition comes from. But
you know what - I don't think it's really ambition that makes you do
all that. It's fear more than anything. Fear to fail. Fear to be
replaceable. Fear to give proof to those malicious tongues that say you
only made it to the rank of a Captain, because you are Adama's son. All
that pressure you're under you inflicted onto yourself, can't you see
that? Nobody expects you to always be the best, the first, the bravest,
always be present, to work around the clock and if some do look at your
career with envy - let them, for crying out load. Why do you even care?
Trust me, buddy, you have always been one of the best and you don't
need to prove that to anyone - not yourself and certainly not anyone
else. And whatever happened today was nothing you could have prevented
- it was fate. You can't have control of everything, Captain."
     Starbuck fell quiet and a confused expression accompanied by a
sheepish grin spread over his face.
     "Kobol, was that just me? Next time slap my face before I get
really melo-dramatic, okay? I have a reputation to think of..."
     A weak smile moved the corners of Apollo's mouth and he looked at
his friend with a thankful expression. The smile was only half
convincing though.
     "Thanks for trying, Starbuck. 
     The Captain sank down onto a stony bench that was located right
underneath the window and silently stared ahead of him again. With a
sigh Starbuck turned and started walking up and down the small room. A
cold draft from the window passed by him and sent shivers down his
spine. Opposite the window a heavy, wooden door with a small, equally
barred inspection window was the only way in and out of the dungeon.
Repeatedly the blond man had stopped before it and had carefully
observed the dark corridor on the other side. As he now did so again,
anger started dwelling inside of him. 
     "Hey! Somebody out there?!"
     A dark voice from some distance answered him out of the dark.
     "Shut up in there!"
     Starbuck's eyes started glowing furiously.
     "Listen you! We are freezing in here and I for one am starving.
Where we come from, people are considered innocent until they are
proven and sentenced guilty. And they should be treated accordingly."
     The face of a guard appeared at the other side of the inspection
window and dark eyes stared at the Lieutenant with a hostile glare.
     "And around here, blondie, things are going to look very bad for
you, if you don't shut up and keep quiet now. As far as we are
concerned you are nothing but a bunch of murderers, but if you insist
on being treated accordingly..."
     Apollo looked up lethargically.
     "Just forget it. Okay? We don't want any trouble."
     The guard gave him an derisive laughter. 
     "It's a little late for that."
     Starbuck tried to get hold of his temper and breathed deep before
he said as calmly as possible:
     "Look, we didn't plan on spending the night in this cosy, little,
luxurious dungeon and  as you can see, we are not exactly dressed for
the occasion. It is freezing in here..."
     "Don't worry - if I know King Arkyon, the cold will be your least
problem tomorrow."
     A frown flashed over Starbuck's face.
     "Now, what is that suppose to mean?"
     The derisive smile vanished from the guards face.
     "Look, I am not even supposed to talk to you, but if I were you, I
would enjoy every   micron - freezing or not. You may not have too many
left. I wouldn't expect too much mercy from King Arkyon in that trial
tomorrow."
     Starbuck's eyes started glowing again.
     "For the umpteenth time - it was an accident!"
     The eyes of the guard narrowed.
     "A few yahrens ago the King has lost his wife and all that was
left to him - and to the future of our people - was his daughter
Najara. Do you think it will make a difference to him?"
     The eyes of the two warriors' widened and slowly Apollo rose
again.
     "Daughter?"
     "Yes, Najara was the crown-princess and I have heard from her
nanny Su'Jara about the cold-bloodedness with which you shot her. For
all I care, you can both go ahead and freeze or starve in here!"
     Without another word he turned on his heels and walked away,
leaving the two warriors in total silence.
     Starbuck gulped hard and slowly turned around to face Apollo after
a few moments.
     "We are in deep, deep trouble, buddy."
     The expression in Apollo's eyes was incomprehensible and for a few
microns the two men just looked at each other. The dark-haired Captain
never said a word. His knees were shaking as he finally sank back onto
the stony bench and ran his fingers through his hair.
     Starbuck walk over to him and crouched before him.
     "Okay, what's the plan?"
     Apollo raised his head and looked him straight in the eyes.
     "Plan?"
     "Yes. How do we get out of here?"
     The Captain's expression darkened. 
     "Starbuck, they are putting me on trial tomorrow for something I
have done..."
     With a sharp motion of his hand the blond man cut him short.
     "But it was an accident. You can't let them convict you for
something that was a mere twist of fate.
     "Whether I meant to do it or not does not really make a
difference, now does it? Not for the little girl, not for her people -
and not for me."
     Apollo's voice was harsh and angrily Starbuck snapped:
     "So you just gonna hold still and let them convict you for murder?
They probably lock you up in this cozy dungeon for the rest of your
days, do you realize that?"
     Apollo stared at him and finally nodded silently.
     Starbuck jumped back to his feet and was unable to control his
temper any longer.
     "Are you nuts?! We have to get out of here, find a way to inform
the Galactica. Your father will know what..."
     "Starbuck!"
     Before the blond man was able to continue, Apollo had risen as
well and firmly grabbed his friend's shoulders.
     "We entered these people's territory without permission and armed.
I shot one of their children! We broke their law and if they try me for
that, it is their right to do so! If it was the other way round and one
of them penetrated the Galactica, killing one of us - accident or not -
we would do the same thing. If Boxey were concerned, I would ask for
the same justice to be done as this man is and there is nothing,
nothing at all, that my father could or would do about it. Besides,
what is your plan of getting out of here and informing the Galactica?
Breaking out by force and on the way maybe injure or even kill any more
of these people?"
     Apollo fell quiet and stared into Starbuck's eyes. A helpless
expression appeared on the blond man's face.
     "But..."
     "No buts, Starbuck. We are going to stay put and there will be no
resistance what-soever, do you hear me? I am guilty and I want this to
be a fair trial - resistance is not gonna shift the balance in our
favor." 
     Starbuck ran a hand through his hair and helplessly shook his
head.
     "Oh, boy - I sure hope they won't have you defend yourself or that
it going to be the shortest trial in history."
     Slowly he approached a nearby wall and with his back against it he
sank down to the ground a moment later. For a few centons total silence
embraced the two warriors. Finally Starbuck looked up and watched his
friend, who was lost in his own thoughts and just kept staring at the
ground before him without really seeing it.
     "You are serious about this, uh?"
     Starbuck's direct question brought Apollo back to reality and
reluctantly he focused his eyes on the blond man. When he turned away
again he simply nodded. Starbuck sighed.
     "And they call me stubborn..."
     A few microns passed in silence before the Lieutenant dared to
address his friend again. 
     "They are going to miss us up there, don't you think?"
     Apollo lifted his head again and cast Starbuck a gentle look. 
     "Not yet. In case this was a Cylon ambush, we had order to
maintain communication silence not to give the fleet's position away.
They won't try to contact us for the same reasons."
     A weak and sad smile flashed over the Captain's face.
     "Sorry to shatter your hopes, Starbuck."
     The Lieutenant sighed.
     "There's got to be something we can do!"
     "How about calming down and trying to get some rest, uh?"
     Starbuck eyed his friend in disbelief.
     "Brilliant idea. I am sure, in this dreamy environment I'm gonna
sleep like a baby. Just make sure you wake me when they convict you for
murder tomorrow. Okay?"
     Apollo turned away and leant back against the wall.
     "Does it help to be sarcastic, Starbuck?"
     "No. But it doesn't make it worse, either."
     Again there was only silence between them. Microns ticked away and
the moon in front of the window disappeared slowly out of sight. It
grew darker and colder any centon.
     Trembling Apollo pulled up his legs and tried warming his arms in
between his knees and  chest. Starbuck wasn't any better off and
breathed into his stiff fingers to warm them. 
     "Boomer was right - I may get dizzy already, if only my drink's
too cold, but this is ridiculous."
     A faint smile moved Apollo's mouth.
     "When did he say that?"
     "You don't want to know."
     Apollo raised an eyebrow.
     "Are you still bending the rules in your favor behind my back,
Lieutenant?"
     "That you don't want to know, either."
     For a moment an annoyed expression appeared on Apollo's face, only
to make room for a smile a micron later. The Captain shook his head.
     "Why am I even asking?"
     Another cold draft had Starbuck shiver and angrily he stared into
the black night.
     "See, I told you these civilian clothes were felgercarb. In our
uniforms we at least had the flight jackets. You must be freezing in
that silly white shirt." 
     The dark-haired man shrugged his shoulders.
     "I try to ignore it. Talking about it doesn't make it better."
     Determinedly Starbuck struggled back to his feet and walked over
to his friend.
     "True. But maybe this will. Move over."
     Reluctantly Apollo came out of the embryo position he had been
sitting in and cast a glance up to the blond man. He was too tired and
cold to even ask what Starbuck was up to and lethargically he made room
for him on the small bench. 
     The blond Lieutenant sat down beside him and signalled with his
hand to make his friend move into position the way he wanted him to. A
moment later they sat with their backs against each other and a
satisfied grin appeared on Starbuck's face.
     "Much better, uh? I don't know about you, but I favor you over
that damp and cold wall over there."
     "Thanks a lot, Starbuck. I take that as a compliment - I guess."
     "Uh, think you could sit still now?"
     Apollo rolled his eyes and sighed.
     "Your wish is my command, Starbuck."
     The blond man gave an audible yawn and shut his heavy eyelids.
     "Boy, I wish, I would hear that more often," he muttered. A few
moments later his head fell back against Apollo's and slowly he drifted
into a light sleep. 
     Long after his friend had fallen asleep the Captain still sat
bright awake and stared into the darkness. The warmth of Starbuck's
body against his back had eased his shivering, but the coldness in his
heart grew stronger with every thought that went back to the dead girl.
     As new tears threatened to build in his eyes, he closed them and
tried desperately to steer his thoughts into another direction. All he
wanted was to sleep, to forget and most of all to have the burden of
guilt being taken from his soul. He wondered what it would take to make
that happen.  Then he drifted into a fitful sleep, haunted by dark
dreams.

     The brutal banging of the guards against the dungeon's door ripped
the two warriors out of their sleep and had Apollo wake from one
nightmare only to find himself in the other one again.  The first rays
of the morning sun were shining into their prison and as the memory
struck him, he was bright awake in a split-micron. His pulse increased
and without a warning he jumped to his feet. 
     Starbuck, who had still tried drowsily to get orientated, fell
backwards and could barely avoid banging his head on the stony bench. 
     "Frak...  Thanks for the gentle waking, fellows. From the way this
day starts, I can tell it's not gonna be any better than the last one."
     "Both of you - out!"
     The heavy wooden door flew open and the guard on the other side
motioned his rifle in their direction. Reluctantly Starbuck got up and
ran his fingers through his hair. He didn't show any intention of
following the guard's order.
     "Give us a break. We would enjoy the trial much more after
breakfast."
     "You are not supposed to enjoy any of this and now move!"
     The familiar furious glow returned to Starbuck's eyes as he stared
at his opponent. 
     "Look, there's just one person here I take orders from..."
     Apollo flashed him a warning glance that quickly subsided into an
I should have known expression as Starbuck continued.
     "... and that is me. I'm cold, I'm hungry and I just about had
it."
     "Starbuck..."
     Apollo looked urgently into his friend's eyes.
     "... what did I tell you about resistance last night? Please."
     The furious expression on the Lieutenant's face turned into a
frustrated one, but without any further word he gave in and just nodded
quietly.
     "You may have a heart of stone, but you are no fool."
     The voice of Sy'ron behind him made Apollo whirl around on his
heels. Calmly he looked at the old man, who had appeared on the scene
just on time to hear the Captain's urging words to his friend.
     "With all due respect, but aren't you a little prejudiced here? I
haven't even been heard and you seem to have me convicted already."
     A frown moved the withered features of the old man.
     "Perhaps you are right. It is King Arkyon's prerogative to judge
and convict. And he is prepared to do just that. Follow me."
     Sy'ron turned around and walked down the long, dark corridor. The
two colonial warriors exchanged a quick glance, then they followed the
white-haired man without any further word. 

     The courtroom was crowded and on first sight one had the
impression that the people were gathered for a social event such as a
concert or a theater play. On second sight however their angry,
depressed and serious expressions and the awkward quietness in the room
proved otherwise.
     A murmur ran through the waiting people as Sy'ron, accompanied by
the two warriors, entered the room. Dozens of eyes stared their way,
curiously observing the two strangers. They all knew what had happened.
They all knew what kind of trial this was going to be and more people
than ever before had squeezed into the visitor seats. They all wanted
to see the ruthless beings that had killed their crown-princess and
they wanted to be there when their king convicted them for this
inexpressible crime.
     Due to lack of space inside the courtroom, an equally large number
of people had gathered on the plaza outside the courthouse, eagerly
waiting for reports from within. Posts stood at the windows to inform
those outside of what was happening. Su'Jara had tirelessly spread the
word of the cold-bloodedness with which Najara's murderer had shot the
little girl and deep in their souls the inhabitants of Anba'Sol‚r had
already found their verdict. 
     As Apollo and Starbuck followed Sy'ron to the dock, some of the
prejudiced faces were moved by a surprised frown. Whispers ran through
the crowd and unbelieving eyes looked at the two accused. They had all
heard Su'Jara's report - from her personally or from some-body else -
and everyone carried an image of those brutal murderers in his mind.
But none of these images matched in any way the looks of the two young
men that were brought before the King now.
     Sy'ron approached the throne that was located on a pedestal
opposite of the dock. There was no gold, no jewels - it was a plain,
wooden, modest, but skilfully decorated seat. The ornate emblem of
Anba'Sol‚r decorated the backrest and made the throne look impressive
despite its simplicity. It was empty.
     The white-haired man turned to the waiting crowd and raised his
hands to make the people fall quiet. They obeyed his silent command
instantly. With a stern expression Sy'ron let his eyes move over the
assembled people, before he finally spoke.
     "All rise for the king of Anba'Sol‚r - his majesty King Arkyon!"
     That command was immediately obeyed as well and hesitatingly
Starbuck and Apollo followed the example of the Anbari. 
     A moment later a tall, dark-haired man in formal, dignified
clothing entered the room and approached the throne with a stony
expression on his face. The two warriors looked at him surprised. For
some reason they had expected an older man, someone very much like
Sy'ron, but the man that faced his people from the top of the pedestal
now was no older than they were. His eyes were of an intense icy-blue
and he sent a piercing look into their direction before he ordered his
people to be seated and turned to Sy'ron.
     "Tu'ok te xunoka?"
     The white-haired man pointed at Apollo, before he answered.
     "Ark astu'ral. Se tulam dek Caprica."
     Arkyon raised his eyebrows in surprise and for a moment he
silently stared at the two colonial warriors.
     "Caprica..."
     The single word hung in the air and echoed through the stillness
of the courtroom. Apollo drew in a deep breath and nodded.
     "Your Majesty, if I..."
     Sy'ron whirled around.
     "Quiet! How dare you! Nobody addresses King Arkyon unless he is
directly spoken to by his majesty. Sit!"
     The eyes of the young Captain widened and for a micron he
helplessly glanced over to the king. Finally he lowered his head and
obediently sank onto the bench next to Starbuck. 
     Arkyon looked at him sternly for a very long, awkward moment. Then
the deep voice of the young monarch filled the room.
     "I understand, the two of you are from the Great Colonies."
     Apollo raised his head again and looked confused at the king, then
Starbuck and finally Sy'ron. He didn't recognize a question in Arkyon's
words and wasn't sure whether he was supposed to answer or not. Another
moment passed in silence - a moment that took too long. Furiously
Sy'ron gestured sharply in his direction.
     "Answer!"
     "I'm sorry. I didn't know whether I was supposed to...  Yes, we
are from the Great Colonies."
     "You may address King Arkyon with Your Majesty, accused!"
     Starbuck furiously jumped to his feet and pointed at Apollo. 
     "And you may address him with his name - Apollo. How is he
supposed to know your  silly..."
     "Starbuck!"
     The dark-haired man grabbed his friend's arm and pulled him back
down onto the bench. The Captain's green eyes looked at the blond man
urgently as he whispered: 
     "I appreciate your help, but please, keep quiet."
     The older man's eyes almost stabbed the young Lieutenant, but
before Sy'ron had a chance to say anything, King Arkyon calmly spoke
again.
     "He is right."
     He paused and Starbuck flashed Sy'ron a triumphing look. Only
microns later his triumph was shattered as Arkyon continued.
     "Yes, we ought to know the name of the man, who cold-bloodedly
killed the crown princess. Let our people spread the word and write it
into our history books to always be remembered. As for you..."
     The king looked sternly at Starbuck.
     "... you are not on trial here. It was your companion, who
according to the eye-witness Su'Jara killed Princess Najara."
     "If I get my hands on that old witch, I give her something to
gossip about..." Starbuck muttered between clenched teeth. 
     "You are free to go," Arkyon continued. 
     An unbelieving murmur rose in the courtroom and surprised glances
were cast at the king and the two warriors. Eagerly the Anbari waited
for a reaction from Starbuck, who was staring at the young monarch with
wide eyes.
     Sy'ron turned to his king, protest clearly depicted in his eyes.
Arkyon looked his adviser firmly in the eyes.
     "Justice is what we want, Sy'ron. Not revenge. And we are not
going to convict an innocent person for something, he did not do. One
man's guilt is not necessarily that of his fellowmen."
     Starbuck had slowly risen to his feet and stared at the two men.
     "Thanks for the offer, but no thanks. We came together and we are
going to leave together."
     "That I doubt, but suit yourself."
     Apollo looked up to his friend and a frown moved his face.
     "What do you think you're doing? They offered you..."
     "What? The chance to chicken and run? To turn my back on you and
leave you alone in the hands of these...  friendly people?" 
     He had merely whispered, but his anger had given his words more
energy than he intended. Just in time he had realized that in the
stillness of the room everybody was able to listen to him - and so they
did. Before his rage and frustration would make him say anything he
might have regretted, he determinedly turned to King Arkyon and his
adviser once more.
     "I'm staying!" was all he said, before he sat down again with
furiously clenched fists.
     Arkyon turned to Apollo.
     "Now - Apollo. I am not going to ask you, what your intentions
were when you came here. That question was asked too many times before
and it was always answered with lies."
     Apollo slowly rose and calmly looked at the young king. 
     "Your Majesty, you said yourself that one man's guilt is not
necessarily that of his fellowmen. So why should the guilt of many
necessarily be that of one? I'm no liar and I assure you that we came
here in peace to ask for your help."
     Arkyon looked at the Captain in surprise. His behavior and words
were very unusual for the kind of criminal he wanted to see in him.
     "You came in peace? Is that why you penetrated our home with drawn
weapons?"
     "That was pure precaution for our own protection. We didn't know
whether to expect friends or enemies."
     "And you considered my little, seven-year-old daughter an enemy?!"
     The king's voice was harsh and a frustrated expression appeared on
Apollo's face again.
     "No, as I said before..."
     "Accused, whatever you are going to say, whatever you are going to
promise or reassure me of, tell me just one thing - did or did you not
kill my daughter?"
     Arkyon's voice sounded bitter and he didn't even give Apollo a
chance to reply.
     "Do you deny that you shot this child?"
     The Captain's expression was pained when he lowered his eyes and
answered:
     "No. I'm afraid, I did. But..."
     
     "He confessed!"
     The post at one of the windows yelled down to the crowd waiting on
the plaza. A wave of cheering was heard from the outside and satisfied
smiles moved the faces of the people inside the courtroom.
     Starbuck was about to jump to his feet again, but with an urging
look on his face Apollo simply placed a hand on his friend's shoulder
and forced him back down with gentle firm-ness. 
     Breathing deeply the Captain faced the young monarch with a sad
and yet  determined expression.
     "Your Majesty, I am going to accept any sentence, since nothing I
can say seems to be able to convince you of my innocence. I am just
begging you for one last request."
     Arkyon raised his eyebrows.
     "And what is that?"
     Apollo's voice was choked as he replied.
     "Please, just grant me 12 centars to see my little son one more
time. He is about as old as your daughter was...  He has already lost
his mother and I need to say good-bye to him, tell him a few things he
has to know... Please."
     Sy'ron turned around to his king, fiercely shaking his head.
     "No, Your Majesty. It's a trick. The word of a man, who kills
innocent children cannot be trusted. The moment they leave this planet,
we will never see them again. Or worse, they come back in large numbers
like the others did to invade our world..."
     "Just a centon!"
     This time Starbuck reacted faster than Apollo and jumped back to
his feet.
     "If we wanted to invade this planet, we could have done so in the
first place. And if this man tells you he is going to be back in 12
centars, he is going to be back in 12 centars. The day he breaks his
word, Hades is going to freeze over."
     Arkyon looked him straight in the eyes.
     "Is that so? Would you trust in his word with your life?" 
     Starbuck's eyes widened and he flashed his friend a quick glance.
Then he determinedly  straightened his shoulders and firmly looked into
the eyes of the accuser. 
     "Anytime, yes."
     For a long moment Arkyon just stared at the two warriors, then
finally he nodded.
     "In that case, Apollo, your wish shall be granted - on one
condition..."
     He paused and all of a sudden it was deadly quiet. 
     "... your friend stays with us as pledge. If you are as
trustworthy as you both say, he is free to go as soon as you have
returned. But if you are not back by the time the 12 centars  have
passed, the sentence will be executed with him in your place."
     Apollo drew in a sharp breath and grew pale. Helplessly he raised
his hands.
     "I cannot make a decision about his life..."
     Starbuck cut him short.
     "But I can. I accept."
     The Captain turned around to his friend, overpowered by his
emotions, and words failed him. For a long moment he just looked the
Lieutenant in the eyes, before he finally whispered a simple "Thank
you, Starbuck." The blond man flashed him a reassuring smile and
shrugged his shoulders without saying a word.
     Sy'ron's voice behind them made them turn and focus their
attention back onto the trial. 
     "All hear the verdict of our majesty, King Arkyon."
     Arkyon stood tall before his throne and let his eyes move over the
assembled crowd, before he finally spoke.
     "For as long as this colony exists there has been no crime as
severe as this one. Never before in the history of Anba'Sol‚r has a
child been seriously harmed, not to mention killed. And in this case it
was not just any child, but the crown princess - the future of our
people. The law clearly calls for an equally severe punishment and
therefore, accused, you are hereby sentenced to death - you'll be
burned at the stake in exactly 12 centars."
     "What?!"
     Starbuck's eyes were glowing with helpless rage and it was quite
obvious, that it took him his utmost willpower to control his temper.
Apollo stood beside him quietly and deadly pale. His mind seemed to
refuse or to be unable to comprehend the words he had just heard. His
thoughts were racing and so was his heartbeat - a moment later he felt
his knees buckle. Staring blackly ahead of him he sank onto the bench.
He hardly realized Starbuck's furious discussion with the king.
     "Death penalty...  You have got to be kidding! Burning at the
stake...  what century is this?! The death penalty has not been carried
out throughout the Colonies for ages and most certainly never in such a
barbaric way!"
     Arkyon's eyes stared at him with a piercing look. 
     "This is not one of the colonies and their laws and jurisdiction
do not apply to us. And the measure of punishment adapts to the
severity of the crime. It was him, who slew a little girl with a laser
gun - so now we are going to fight fire with fire."
     "It was an accident, for crying out loud! You don't even know him
and you didn't hear him out, either!"
     With a sharp motion of his hand Arkyon waved Starbuck's objection
away.
     "This trial is closed!"
     He turned to Apollo.
     "You may go now. My guards will escort you back to your ship -
blindfolded though, because the location of our city has to remain a
secret for our own protection..."
     "Then how will I find the way back?"
     The dark-haired Captain had risen again and tried to think
straight again. 
     "We will find you. When you return, land in the same spot and the
guards will lead you back. But make sure to come alone. If we see
another person with you or just one other ship enter our atmosphere,
your friend is going to die immediately."
     It was Starbuck, who was growing pale now while the king concluded
his speech."
     "Your time is running, Apollo. Better get going, if you want to be
back before your friend dies in your place."
     "Oh, God..."
     Starbuck's eyes widened and he sank into his seat, staring blankly
at the ground before him.
     The king's emphasis on the "if" was not to be missed and showed
all too clearly his doubts in Apollo's trustworthiness. In his eyes the
young Captain was nothing but a murderer - a man, who was able to take
the life of small children. Why should he care for the life of another
man - a man, who was stupid enough to trust him, to place his life in
his hands, believing that he would return from safety to face a brutal
death.
     A moment later Starbuck noticed a dark shadow before him and
raised his head to look into Apollo's equally pale face. Slowly the
blond man rose to his feet and for a moment stood motionless eye to eye
with his friend. Then the Captain reached out and pulled him into his
arms.
     "Don't worry - I'll be back in time, Starbuck."
     It was just a whisper into his ear and before Starbuck had a
chance to reply, the dark-haired man had abruptly turned around and ran
out of the room. 

     Sy'ron motioned his hand to the guards in the courtroom and while
some of them turned to accompany Apollo, the others closed in on
Starbuck. 
     "Take him back to the dungeon and make sure there will be no
escape attempt."
     With a deep breath Starbuck straightened his shoulders and
mirrored Sy'ron's piercing look.
     "There is no need for me to flee, Sy'ron. Within the next 12
centars Apollo will be back."
     The white-haired man flashed him a cynical smile.
     "We will see about that."
     "You bet, we will."
     Arkyon's adviser signalled to the guards to take the blond man
away and then turned to look at the king. Arkyon stood motionless on
the pedestal and watched the blond Lieutenant leave the courtroom,
while the Anbari silently waited for permission to do so as well.
Justice had been done and they couldn't wait to leave the room to give
an eyewitness report of the trial to their families and friends. 
     A frown moved Sy'ron's face as Arkyon remained motionless and
stared at the door through which Starbuck had just disappeared.
     "Your Majesty, is everything alright?" 
     The direct question brought the king back to reality and slowly he
looked down at his adviser.
     "Certainly. Have the people leave the courtroom, Sy'ron."
     While Sy'ron gave the signal for the Anbari to leave, Arkyon
addressed him again.
     "Do you believe he will return, Sy'ron?"
     An angry frown appeared on the older man's face.
     "No. We have seen the last of him and I am not sure whether we are
supposed to feel sorry for the poor fool down in the dungeon or just be
glad that justice has been done, one way or the other."
     Arkyon's look became absent again and a moment later he turned
around and stepped off the pedestal, leaving the room with the quietly
murmured words: 
     "I wonder."

     Apollo almost sneaked out of Boxey's room. Carefully he glanced up
and down the corridor  after the electronic door had opened before him,
before he stepped out of the room and hurried towards the elevators.
     Centars had passed since he had left the planet. He had landed his
viper in Alpha Bay as usual and had hurried to his son's quarter as
fast as only possible; hoping, no praying, not to run into his father
or sister or any friend, who would have known that he was supposed to
be on a mission on Anba'Sol‚r. What would he say, if he met Athena or
Adama? How was he to explain his presence aboard the battlestar in the
middle of a mission without having filed a report and without his team
partner? And if he did run into them, would he be able to tell them a
story, any story but the truth, to explain his presence on the
Galactica, knowing only too well that he saw them for the very last
time in his life?
     The mere thought sent shivers down his spine and he fought back
the tears that were build-ing in his eyes. He would have loved to see
them one more time, but contrary to Boxey they would know that
something was going on and probably stop him from leaving the ship
again. He couldn't take that risk - for Starbuck's sake he had to get
back to Anba'Sol‚r.
     His heart was beating hard against his rips. He almost felt like
an intruder, like someone who was doing something terribly wrong and he
desperately hoped not to be seen. His pulse increased with every metron
he got closer to the elevators. Finally he decide to stay clear of them
and rather use the emergency stairs that usually were deserted. 
     As he approached the corner at the end of the corridor, he noticed
a tall shadow against the wall. Somebody was heading for this corner
from the other side and for a moment the Captain hesitated. There was
no room, no other corridor near by to sneak into. To escape this
person, his only chance was to turn and run. For another micron he
stood absolutely motionless, almost holding his breath. Hardly anyone
was informed about the mission he was supposed to be on except blue
squadron and the bridge crew. The odds were good, that the approaching
person wouldn't even pay attention to him, if he simply proceeded now.
Whereas a commanding officer running down a corridor for no obvious
reason, would be more than suspicious. He hesitated too long.
     The next moment a tall, white-haired man stepped around the corner
and all his hopes were shattered in the same micron. Commander Adama!
Of all the people he could have met here, why did it have to be him?
     For yet another moment both men stood in silence, motionless
staring at each other. Then a frown moved the older man's brows as he
started to speak.
     "So, it is true. I did hear a sort of bewildering report on the
bridge that one pilot of the away team to Anba'Sol‚r has returned. My
enquiry with the hanger crew brought to my attention that your viper
has been sitting in Alpha Bay for several centars. Which brings me to
my question as to why you never showed up on the bridge for a report."
     Apollo hardly paid attention to his father's words. The look in
his green eyes had suddenly shifted from guilty to shocked.
     "Several centars?"
     He glanced at his wrist chronometer.
     "What time is it?"
     Anxiety swung in his voice and had the frown on Adama's face
increase. He showed his chronometer to his son and looked him sternly
in the eyes.
     "Apollo, by the Lords of Kobol, what is going on?"
     Again the young man didn't pay attention to his father. Cold sweat
broke out on his forehead as he threw a comparing glance at both of the
chronometers. His one was obviously broken and a desperate expression
appeared on his pale face. 
     "God, no!"
     "Apollo!" Adama's voice grew impatient. "For the last time - what
is going on? Why are you back aboard? Where is your report on
Anba'Sol‚r? Why do I have to have the entire ship video scanned to
locate you? And where is Starbuck?"
     "Father..." The look in Apollo's eyes had Adama shiver. "I have to
go. I need to get back to Anba'Sol‚r - now."
     The Commander's look darkened.
     "If you so urgently need to be down there, what are you doing here
then?"
     Apollo shifted his weight nervously from one foot to the other.
     "I had to see somebody - it was important."
     "Important enough to return in the middle of a mission, but not
important enough to report it to the bridge?"
     Adama stared at his son suspiciously, not willing to let him
pursue his mysterious actions without an explanation. 
     "Yes! Please, you have to trust me. No time to explain, father. I
have to go!"
     The older man blocked his son's way and grabbed his shoulders.
     "Listen, we've had to go through a lot of though situations over
the yahrens. From every military mission back to the time that you were
harassed by those older kids in first grade..."
     "That was Zac, not me."
     "It doesn't matter, for Sagan's sake. What I'm trying to say is,
that no matter what, together we can solve this problem and see it
through. It is you who needs to trust, Apollo. Whatever is going on,
whatever happened - tell me about it. Let me help you!"
     Apollo's eyes were shining as new tears threatened to build, but
determinedly he swallowed them down. 
     "I can't. I'm sorry, father, I just can't. I'm losing time! You
will understand, I promise. After the mission."
     With a sudden rough push the Captain shoved his father out of the
way and ran towards the entrance to the emergency staircase. He never
looked back, never saw his father stagger and tumble against the
nearest wall. 
     It wasn't just for his rude behavior that the young man had
apologized to his father. He was sorry for what he had done, for what
he was about to do and for not being able to tell Adama about it all.
The Commander was right, this was a matter of trust - Starbuck's trust
in him. He was not going to let him down. 
     Just microns after Adama had watched his son disappear through the
nearest exit, the surprised and worried expression on his face shifted
to a determined, almost angry one and a moment later he approached one
of the central communication units. 

     Starbuck was leaning with his back against one of the damp and
cold walls, arms crossed before his chest, and stared out of the window
into the clear sky. 
     Shortly after the guards had locked him into the dungeon again,
they had given him food and water and had then left without a word.
Total silence was embracing the blond man now and the beating of his
own heart made him nervous.
     King Arkyon obviously left orders to treat the prisoner well and
leaving him alone was probably the best the guards were willing to do
for him. Still Starbuck was longing for some company - even if it was a
bunch of guards, who were teasing or insulting him. Even if it was only
to argue with them. The silence was unnerving and although time usually
crawls while waiting, this time it was exactly the opposite.
     Fast, too fast the sun was making its way over the clear blue sky
and was sending long shadows through the little window into Starbuck's
prison. Centar by centar had passed without a trace of Apollo and for a
moment the Lieutenant was surprised how little that actually worried
him. It was the stillness, the loneliness and inactivity that made him
nervous, not Apollo's absence.
     There was still time and if the Captain wanted to spend that time
with his son for as long as possible, that was only understandable. In
the end, he would be here. 
     How about calming down and trying to get some rest... 
     Apollo's words from last night came back to Starbuck and this time
they did sound like a good idea to him. No use in staring holes into
the air. With a sigh he stretched out onto the equally cold, stony
bench and closed his eyes, trying to relax. The microns continued to
tick away synchronic to each of Starbuck's nervous heartbeats.

     As soon as the elevator doors had opened before him, Apollo ran
into the hangar and approached his viper.
     "Hold it right there!"
     A harsh voice behind him made him whirl around on his heels. Two
security guards of the Council of the Twelve stood behind him with
drawn lasers and only a micron later he noticed that two more had
stepped out from behind his viper and blocked his way to the ship.
     A furious expression appeared on the Captain's face.
     "What is the meaning of this? Get out of my way on the double!"
     "Sorry, Captain, but we have our orders."
     "From whom?"
     "From me."
     A new spectator of the scene stepped out of a shadow and
approached the young Captain. 
     "You should have taken the elevators all the way. They are
faster."
     Apollo turned his head and his expression grew even more furious
when he recognized his father.
     "Why are you doing this? Why can't you just accept my explanation
for now?"
     Adama's voice wasn't less harsh.
     "Explanation? You didn't give one, Captain! And you are not
leaving this ship, before I know exactly what is going on here."
     "Ah, frak!"
     His anxiety made Apollo lose his usual control and as he felt
centon by centon pass, his frustration expressed itself in a furious
curse. Adama ignored it and looked into his son's face with a stern
expression.
     "First of all - where is Starbuck?"
     Helplessly Apollo threw his hands into the air.
     "Still down on Anba'Sol‚r and it's for his sake that I have to
hurry."
     Ignoring the armed guards he tried to turn and leave, but Adama
grabbed him by his shoulders again with a tight grip. Apollo's voice
grew desperate.
     "Father, Starbuck is going to die! Let go!!"
     The fear and despair in his voice had the older man wince.
     "Are you telling me that the planet or its inhabitants are
hostile?"
     "It wasn't the Anbari's fault. It was mine."
     "But they are endangering Starbuck's life. And if you go back
alone, yours will be endangered as well."
     Apollo tried to shake off Adama's hands.
     "We are warriors. Our lives are in danger every day."
     Adama's expression was determined.
     "That doesn't mean, you have to throw it away. You are not going
back alone. Tell me what we are up against and I have Colonel Tigh
assemble blue squadron to..."
     "NO!"
     Apollo broke free with a desperate scream and faced his father
with burning eyes.
     "If I don't return alone within 12 centars, Starbuck is dead. This
useless discussion may have cost him his life already."
     The look in Adama's eyes made it all too clear, that he wasn't
going to let his son leave without an explanation, so Apollo continued;
his words hurried, almost panicky.
     "It was an accident. I was nervous and tired and I overreacted... 
I shot a little Anbari girl, father. I killed a child - the crown
princess. This morning I was convicted for murder. All I wanted, was to
see Boxey one more time and say good-bye, before I have to go back to
face my sentence. I couldn't risk running into you or Athena, much that
I would have loved to see both of you once more, because I knew that
this..." He gestured at the armed guards, "...was going to happen. I
had to leave Starbuck as pledge and if I don't return within these 12
centars, he is going to die in my place! My chronometer is broken. I
spent way too much time with Boxey and if I don't leave now, I never
gonna make it! Please! Let_me_go!"
     Adama's face had paled visibly with every word from the Captain
and unbelieving he stared at his son now. The Commander's face was a
stony facade. 
     "What do you mean by Starbuck is going to die in your place?"
     Apollo sighed and his voice was low as he answered.
     "I was sentenced to death."
     On Adama's face as well as on the faces of the four guards
appeared a disconcerted and aghast expression and the Commander's voice
was pressed as he finally spoke again.
     "You cannot seriously believe that I will let you go, now that I
know, what is going to happen to you down there."
     In a helpless rage Apollo clenched his fists.
     "I don't like this any more than you do! Damned, I'm not looking
forward to die. But if I don't return, they are going to execute
Starbuck instead. You can't want that to happen."
     "There's got to be something we can do..."
     "No, there is nothing we can do. All I'm asking of you, is to let
me go."
     Adama slowly shook his head.
     "Please understand, Apollo. I can't. I have lost Zac already and
your mother and..."
     "And so have I! They were my family, too, father. But so is
Starbuck. You know how much it hurts to lose someone you love. And
after Zac, mother and Serina you want me to lose Starbuck as well? Even
worse, to live with the guilt on my conscience that I let him down?
That I betrayed him? That he died thinking I didn't care enough to
rescue him, to keep my word to him? No! How could I look at myself in
the mirror ever again? What would I tell Boxey, if he ever asked what
became of Starbuck? You want me to tell him he died, because I was a
coward or because you rather traded the life of an innocent man against
that of a convicted murderer, just because he was your son?"
     The stony facade on the Commander's face had made way for a
desperate one and fiercely he tried to hold back the tears that shone
in his eyes. With a sharp motion of his hand he signalled the guards to
leave.
     "Dismissed."
     Without a word the four black-dressed man turned and hesitatingly
left the hanger.
     "And so are you, Captain."
     Adama's voice was choked and he stood motionless for a moment,
facing his son over-whelmed by emotions. Abruptly he reached out and
pulled the young man into his arms.
     A tear streamed down Apollo's cheek as he returned the embrace.
     "Give my love to Athena, please. I think, I told Boxey all he has
to know - just make sure you remind him that Serina and I will always
love him and always be with him.  And have an eye on Starbuck for me,
uh?"
     Adama let go of the young Captain and looked him in the eyes. No
more words were necessary between them. The look they exchanged said
more than words could possibly have expressed. 
     Abruptly the dark-haired man turned on his heels and hurried
towards his viper. A moment later he had climbed into the cockpit and
fired the turbos as soon as the canopy had closed.
     He hadn't even turned again to take a last look at his father. 

     Long after the viper had disappeared out of his sight, Adama still
stared motionlessly down the empty launch tube, seeing and not seeing
the endless blackness of space at its end. In the back of his mind he
had prepared himself for this moment ever since Apollo entered the
academy; the moment that his firstborn would not return from this
endless blackness. That moment had come and all the yahrens of
preparation rendered useless, faded to a mere farce. No man, not even
the Commander of a battlestar, whose life and profession was deal-ing
with death on a daily base, was ever prepared to face the death of a
child. He didn't even realize he was crying as he stood alone in the
deserted hangar. 

     An inner restlessness had Starbuck finally rise from the stony
bench again and nervously walk up and down the room without having
slept a single centon. Again he stared out of the high window into the
clear blue sky that showed the unmistakable soft reddening of the
set-ting sun already. Time was running out and there still was no trace
of Apollo.
     One of the guards peered through the barred window into his cell
and flashed him a sneering smile.
     "Looks like your so-called friend is not giving a damn about you,
pretty boy. He is probably having a cool drink at some bar at this
moment laughing about your stupidity."
     The blond Lieutenant didn't even turn to look at him. He continued
to stare into the darkening sky.
     "He'll be back, you'll see."
     The guard started laughing.
     "Wanna bet?"
     A vicious twinkling came to Starbuck's eyes and he turned around
with a wide grin on his face.
     "Now you are talking." 
     Before they could continue that conversation the guard's smile
vanished abruptly and with a serious and respectful expression he stood
at attention as Sy'ron appeared at the door at that moment.
     For a few microns Starbuck and the white-haired man just stared at
each other through the bars of the door. Then the older man turned to
the guard.
     "Open that door. His time is up."
     Starbuck's heartbeat increased. For a moment he felt urged to
reason with the king's adviser again, to beg him for a little more
time, but that moment came and went without a word from the blond man.
     He couldn't say why, but deep down inside he knew that Apollo was
on his way back - he would not let him down. And if indeed something
did hold the Captain up, if for some reason he was unable to be here in
time to save his friend's life, it suited Starbuck just fine. 
     He didn't want to die, but if he had to make the choice between
his and Apollo's life, he knew how he would decide. Always. There was
no-one back home waiting for him, no-one who needed him - Apollo had a
family, a little son to take care of and he was most likely to be the
future Commander of the fleet. They needed him up there far more than
the hot-headed, un-restrained, disrespectful gambler and con-man that
he, Starbuck, had always been. 
     For a moment the realization, how worthless his life really was,
hurt him and he gulped. Already as a child nobody had wanted him and
nothing he had done in his life had changed the fact that he of all
people was expendable. 
     The guards opened the door and while one of them pointed a rifle
in Starbuck's direction, the other one rudely pulled his arms behind
his back and placed handcuffs onto his wrists. Arkyon's order to treat
the prisoner well was obviously not effective anymore. 
     The blond man let them pursue without resistance and a centon
later he followed the first of the guards through the door and down the
dark and cold corridor, while the other one pushed him forward with his
rifle every other step. 
     With an emotionless expression on his face Sy'ron watched the
three men proceed down the corridor, while he motionlessly remained
standing before the empty dungeon. Only few metrons before the guards
and their prisoner were about to disappear out of sight, the
white-haired man slowly followed.

     Ever since the micron his viper had left the battlestar, Apollo
had fiercely worked to convey   every little bit of extra power he
could come up with to the ship's turbos. He had switched off several
instruments he considered unimportant - the first unit to go was the
Unicom. 
     He knew, the moment Athena heard the news, she would try to
contact him immediately. Maybe Adama would once more try to make him
reconsider or contact him to say some well-meant last words. Whatever
it was they wanted to tell him - he didn't want to hear it. He knew
anyway.
     Repeatedly he threw a glance down onto his wrist and wished he had
asked his father for just one more favor - a working chronometer. He
knew he was running out of time and knowing exactly how late it was,
wouldn't have helped his situation at all, but not knowing unnerved him
even more. 
     He pushed his ship to its limits and watched the indicator that
measured the generator temperature slowly move towards red, but he
didn't reduce speed. His brother's last words came back to him all of a
sudden - I'll put my foot in that turbo and make it back ahead of them.
Apollo felt a familiar burning in his eyes. Zac probably did just what
he was doing now - pushing his ship to the limit, risking to overheat
the generator, hoping and praying to be fast enough. Still Zac did not
make it. He did not get back ahead of them and Apollo had lost his
younger brother back then to a carefully placed Cylon shot.
     Fire...
     The planet Anba'Sol‚r grew bigger with every metron he got closer
and still the young Captain forced his ship forward.
     Not again. This time them was not the Cylons, it was the Anbari
and yet the situation showed some frightening similarities. Once again
the speed of a viper would mean life or death for a young warrior. 
     Every muscle in Apollo's body was tightened and the hand that held
the control stick in a crushing grip started to shake. 
     I make it back ahead of them...  This time it was him, who had to
make it back before they would move to action, before he lost yet
another brother to the fire. He had left Zac behind back then - in a
way, he had let him down, betrayed him by breaking his promise to
always be there to protect his kid brother. Everybody had reassured him
back then, that he did the right thing, but leaving Zac did not prevent
the destruction of their worlds and the Colonial fleet. It was a
useless death and looking back it appeared to Apollo that he had done
just one thing back then - run. 
     Not again. It was not going to happen again. This time he would be
there. Maybe he was not just doing this for Starbuck's sake alone, but
for his own, his soul's sake as well. He hadn't been able to save his
own brother, but maybe turning himself in to the Anbari, despite the
fate that he knew was awaiting him down on Anba'Sol‚r, he would be able
to save a man that over the yahrens had become closer to him than any
brother could have been. Would that make up for his earlier failure?
Would saving the life of one man by giving his own, put right where he
did another man wrong yahrens before?
     A warning klaxon started sounding in Apollo's cockpit to draw his
attention to the generator temperature.
     Come on, not much farther. Please, give me all you've got.
     His thoughts concentrated on his ship, almost implored it and
without knowing it, his words were almost identical to those his
brother used in the same situation yahrens before. A ghost from the
past, still haunting him after all this time, while he was on his way
to meet his own fate.
     Before the temperature reached a critical level, the viper entered
the atmosphere of Anba'Sol‚r and with a relieved sigh Apollo reduced
speed. Almost there... 

     The two guards forced the blond Lieutenant forward, out of the
courthouse and through the crowd that waited silently on the main
plaza, while Sy'ron still followed a few steps behind them. In the
middle of the plaza, on top of a large pile of branches stood the stake
- tall and strong and threatening. 
     Starbuck had heard of executions before. Not that he had ever seen
one - nor had anybody else in the Colonies. It was a fact, that the
death penalty had not been carried out throughout the Colonies for
centuries. Still this entire scenario did not meet Starbuck's
expectations. He had expected an angrily shouting crowd, voices that
demanded justice if not revenge and even physical violence wouldn't
have come surprising to him. 
     Nothing like that happened. As the guards let him to the stake it
was quiet, deadly quiet, and the Anbari stood motionless, looking at
him with staring eyes. The absolute quietness was worse than an uproar,
the total silence showed more disgust than a punch in his face and
Starbuck could almost feel the looks of the people stab his back. For
several steps he didn't dare look into the stony faces surrounding him
and instead just looked down at his own feet that carried him step by
step towards his fate.
     A few moments later the handcuffs snapped close behind Starbuck's
back and the guards that had chained the blond man to the stake left
the platform. They remained at the bottom of the stairs, waiting for
further orders. 
     Every pair of eyes was pointed in Starbuck's direction as if the
gathered people were waiting for him to say or do something, anything
that would meet their expectations of how an unscrupulous criminal
should react in this situation. He wasn't going to do them that favor. 
     Silently and completely motionless he stood at the stake, his blue
eyes staring into the clear sky hoping, almost expecting to see an
approaching viper any micron now. He blinked. There was no sign of a
viper or any other ship approaching.
     In a 90 degree angle to the courthouse a large and yet very
tastefully shaped building rose into the sky. It was modest and pompous
at the same time and the emblem that decorated its facade identified it
as the royal palace. On one of the many balconies King Arkyon stood as
motionless as his people and stared down onto the plaza and the young
man at the stake. He wasn't able to see Starbuck's face completely,
couldn't make out the look in the blond man's eyes, but for some reason
he felt sorry for him.
     They were punishing the wrong man. He didn't do anything wrong. He
didn't shoot the crown princess and he even trusted the man, who did,
enough to bargain with his own life. By now he had to know that his
trust had been betrayed and still he stood quietly and totally calm, if
only on the outside. Not even a worried frown moved his face. Could it
be? Could it be that he still expected his so-called friend to return?
In the face of death could any man have that much faith in another
without even doubting? 
     Another moment passed before Arkyon's voice filled the stillness.
     "People of Anba'Sol‚r. We have gathered here to punish this man, a
stranger who came to our world, for the worst crime in our history -
the murder of Princess Najara. As you probably all know, he is not the
man who shot our crown princess, nor did he do anything that justifies
this punishment. But he stayed as pledge until the return of Najara's
true murderer, Apollo, who was given 12 centars. And his time is almost
up..."
     "He will be here."
     Starbuck's voice resounded from the walls of the buildings that
surrounded the plaza as he cut the king short. The young warrior didn't
even turn to look at the monarch. He kept staring into the sky and the
tone of his voice had all the confidence that Arkyon could not
compre-hend. 
     "We will see about that. He still has half a centar."
     Arkyon fell quiet again. With a sigh Starbuck lowered his eyes and
let them move over the assembled crowd. All the anxiously waiting faces
were still turned in his direction and showed a variety of expressions
from anger, over amusement to sympathy. For a moment the Lieutenant
looked into the eyes of the latter and thanked them quietly - these
people seemed to be the only ones, who really understood.

     Apollo landed his viper outside the old city's perimeters and
jumped out of the cockpit even before the canopy had fully opened.
Hecticly he looked around, searching for any sign of the guards that
were supposed to await him here. Nobody was in sight. 
     He called to whoever might have been in range, then he started
yelling, but there was no response. Despair rose inside of him.
     The first time the Anbari had taken them to their city, he and
Starbuck had been un-conscious. On his way back to his viper they had
blindfolded him and although he had feverishly tried to keep the way in
mind, he didn't succeed. Too many times they had changed directions,
too many times his concentration was broken as he had been forced to
climb over or crawl underneath obstacles without seeing where he was
going. There was no chance he could find his way back alone and time
was running out.

     "Hey, that's not fair!"
     Despair and anger got the better of him and fiercely he kicked his
viper.
     "What is fair, boy?"
     A voice behind him made him whirl around on his heels and stare at
the new arrival. It was a man in his early sixties - maybe older, maybe
younger, it was hard to tell. His face was withered by the burning sun
of Anba'Sol‚r, but his eyes were clear and vivid and looked at Apollo
with an indefinably expression. 
     The relief was obvious on the Captain's face.
     "Thank the Lords...  Are you here to take me to the city?"
     A frown moved the older man's face.
     "Do I look like a guide? No, I never go there. I like being alone.
Can't stand many people."
     New despair rose in the young man.
     "Please, just take me there. You can leave again right away. Or
just point me in the right direction, but please, help me! You can ask
anything of me, but I have to get there fast."
     The older man didn't show any intention of giving in to the
Captain's plea. 
     "Anything wrong with your ears, boy? I said, I'm not going to the
city. Although...  I heard they were executing some poor fool today,
who stayed as pledge for a convicted  murderer. Might be interesting to
see."
     Furiously Apollo grabbed the older man by his shoulders and stared
him into the eyes.
     "Now, listen! I am that convicted murderer and unless you want to
be next on my criminal record, you better move it and take me to that
city. Now!"
     The eyes of Apollo's opposite grew large and with a nod he
hesitatingly started walking towards the near woods. With a sigh the
Captain followed him. He was unarmed and the Lords knew he didn't
intend to hurt anyone, but there was this knot in his stomach, the
racing heartbeat, the cold sweat and he knew, he was about to reach his
limits. He just wanted to  scare the older man to make him lead the way
to the city, but with every passing micron he felt the grip on his
control slip more and more. He was still nervous, tired and
overreacting and his condition got worse with every moment that was
wasted. They had to get to the city fast. 
     Silently the Anbari lead the way through the woods. Every other
step he glanced over his shoulder and the look in Apollo's eyes had him
shiver. He would never have believed it, if anyone had told him that
the young man, who followed on his heels with a stern, piercing look,
was as sensitive and as good-natured as they come. Apollo didn't have
it within him to  intentionally hurt somebody, but he sure knew how to
look as if he could indeed kill.
     They both continued their hurried pace without a word and with
every step towards their destination, Apollo got more and more
distracted. His thoughts were with Starbuck - and with his family back
on the Galactica, his squad, even people and places of his past. His
entire life seemed to flash before his inner eye and he never really
saw the sudden movement of his guide. The older man had bent a large
branch to make way for them, but then he abruptly let go of it and had
it smack right into Apollo's face. 
     With a cracking sound it hit the young Captain's nose and a wave
of pain rushed through Apollo's head. He just gave a surprised and
chocked scream, before blackness embraced him and he unconsciously fell
to the ground.

     The sky grew darker and the unmistakable reddening of the sinking
sun increased. Time was running our and with a sigh, King Arkyon broke
the silence again.
     "As to be expected, the convicted murderer of our crown princess
has not returned to serve his sentence. As agreed, it will therefore be
carried out on his companion now. May the good spirits be merciful on
his soul."
     Starbuck turned his head and stared at the young monarch over the
distance. He wanted to tell him how wrong he was, how wrong it was what
he was doing, but he never even attempted to speak. What was there to
say? Arkyon was a bitter and hurting man and nothing in this universe
would make him see that this execution had nothing to do with justice -
that it was on the contrary him, who was now deliberately killing an
innocent person.

     A micron later from the corner of his eyes Starbuck saw Sy'ron
motioned his hand to the men that stood around the stake with burning
torches, waiting for a signal.
     On seeing the sign they simultaneously lowered their torches into
the brushwood that had been piled up around the blond man. It lit up
immediately. The cracking and crackling of the burning wood and the
roar of the crowd, that had started the moment the fire was lit,
resounded in Starbuck's ears. He turned his eyes back to the sky, but
thick billows of smoke blocked his sight and stung in his unprotected
eyes. Tears started streaming down his cheeks and he coughed violently
as the fire started burning up the oxygen around him. It grew hotter
with each centon and with every micron that ticked away, with every
centimetron that the flames moved closer to him, Starbuck's heartbeat
increased and his fear choked him in addition to the smoke that filled
the air. 
     "Apollo..."

     Apollo opened his eyes with a pained moan and sat up with a
splitting headache. He suppressed a curse and gently touched his aching
nose. The branch had hit him hard and blood was running out of his
nostrils and dripped down onto his white shirt. With a sigh he shrugged
his shoulders and struggled back onto his feet.
     "Guess, I shouldn't worry, if they get that removed in the laundry
aboard the Galactica."
     He took a few unsteady steps forward and almost wished that he
indeed could worry about things like that. But deep down inside he
knew, that he was very unlikely to ever see the Galactica again. "A
piece of metal in the middle of nowhere" - that's what Starbuck used to
call the battlestar and somehow Apollo had always agreed with him on
that. But now, at the thought of never seeing that piece of metal
again, he started missing it. Starbuck!
     As his dizziness subsided the realization struck him again that
time was running out for his friend and helplessly he looked around
himself. This seemed to be another middle of no-where and there was no
sign of the older man that led him here. He was urged to proceed into
the direction they had walked in before, but how was he to be sure that
the man didn't lead him into a wrong direction from the very start?
     "Oh, please, God. Help me!"
     He was desperately helpless and without even realizing it, he
started praying. He hadn't prayed ever since Serina died and a part of
him still refused to believe that a God, a divine  being that stirred
their fate for the better, existed. Still, lost in an unknown place
with the threat of his best friend's death he called for help, any
help.
     As he turned around again to look into the direction the older man
had led him before, he saw a billow of smoke rise into the sky in the
near distance. He was surprised that he hadn't noticed it before - it
was much closer than he had expected. Still his heart missed a beat.
This was the sign he had hoped for and yet it was a sign of death, not
of hope. They had lit the fire! 
     "NO!"
     With a scream he started running as fast as he was able to through
the thick brushwood and towards the portentous billows of smoke.

     Starbuck pressed his back against the stake and stared with wide
eyes at the flames that grew stronger with each passing micron,
surrounding him, moving closer, licking at the wooden planks the
platform was built of. It was not just the increasing heat that had
sweat stream down his face. 
     The crowd had fallen quiet again and watched him silently. His
fear threatened to choke him and angrily he tried to fight it the only
way he knew, the way he had walked close to the abyss all his life:
With a smile. He flashed one of the guards, who still stood nearby, a
wide grin and shrugged his shoulders.
     "I was gonna ask you guys for a light for a last fumarillo, but
this is ridiculous!"
     The guard sent a confused glance in the direction of King Arkyon,
who watched the execution with an emotionless expression. For a micron
the two men just looked at each other, than they both concentrated
their attention back onto the blond Lieutenant. 

     Apollo ran up the hill as fast as his feet could carry him. His
lungs threatened to burst and his heart was beating brutally against
the inside of his rips, but he never even slowed down.
     He was too late. The 12 centars had passed already and the fear
for Starbuck's life forced him on. As he ran around one of the last
bends in the path, he saw the billows of smoke that hung over the city
thicken and for a micron he had to fight the urge to scream.
     "No! Please, don't let me be too late."
     He started praying again as he forced himself on, although his
knees were about to buckle and he was barely able to draw enough oxygen
into his burning lungs anymore. But the adrenalin gave him new strength
and a moment later he reached the main gate, where he was stopped by an
armed guard.
     "Halt! No more people on the plaza during the execution."
     Apollo's voice was panicky.
     "Let me though!! I am the one, who should be at that stake right
now!"
     The eyes of the guard widened.
     "You're too late. You can't save him anymore. But justice has been
done, so go and save your own skin, if you're smart."
     Apollo gritted his teeth. He didn't have anything to lose -
anything, but his best friend - and at that moment his limit was
finally reached. Without a warning the Captain abruptly slammed his
fist straight into the guard's face and as the man collapsed
unconsciously, he ran past him through the gate and towards the plaza. 

     The flames grew higher and stronger each micron and Starbuck's
breathing grew rapid. He felt the brutal heat at the unprotected parts
of his skin and that gave him a faint impression of what was awaiting
him the moment the fire reached him. Smaller flames were licking at his
boots and he tried stepping on them to quench them, but his attempts
were useless. As soon as he had put one of them out, others followed -
each stronger and bigger than the one before. A dry explosion in the
brushwood to his right sent sparks into the air and before he even
realized what had happened, the sleeve of his tunic was on fire.
     Starbuck's eyes widened in terror as the flames ate their way
through the fabric towards his skin. The heat as well as his fear grew
unbearable - he started screaming and fought desperately against the
chains.
     Arkyon stood on the balcony of his palace and watched Starbuck's
agony with an emotionless expression. He exchanged a look with Sy'ron,
who watched the spectacle from the steps of the courthouse, and the
expressions in their eyes were indefinable. A silent understanding
passed between them and still there seemed to be a kind of sadness in
their eyes. 
     At that moment Starbuck's screams were pitched higher as the
flames on his sleeve had reached his arm and burned his skin.
     "Oh, God! - Shoot me! Please, somebody shoot me!"
     "NO!!"
     Apollo pushed his way through the crowd and headed straight for
the burning stake.
     "Put that fire out!! I'm here! It's me you wanted - let him go!"
     A surprised mutter rushed through the crowd, while Arkyon stared
at Apollo unbelieving.
     The Captain only waited a micron for anyone to react, while
Starbuck's hysteric and pain- filled voice started screaming his name.
As no-one showed any intention to help the blond man, Apollo ran to the
guard that stood closest to the stake and violently grabbed the rifle
from him. 
     Warning shouts were heard throughout the plaza and a few of the
guards appeared on the balcony and the steps to the courthouse to
protect Arkyon as well as Sy'ron from any attack Apollo might have
attempted. Others moved their way through the crowd to cease the
furious warrior, but the dark-haired Captain never even turned to aim
his weapon. He grabbed the rifle by its barrel and fiercely started
slamming it into the burning pile of brushwood. Flaming branches flew
out into the plaza and had the crowd draw back, while the people
watched with surprised and unbelieving eyes Apollo's desperate attempt
to make his way through the wall of fire. 
     A few moments later the Captain had managed to open a small
corridor through the burning pieces of wood. It was barely enough room
to reach the stake unharmed, but there wasn't anymore time to be
wasted. The dark-haired man whirled around and focused on the guard,
who's rifle he still possessed.
     "Give me your jacket!"
     The man hesitated and only a split-micron later Apollo furiously
pointed the rifle in his direction.
     "I mean it! Your jacket - now!"
     The guard tossed him the demanded object and the Captain caught it
dexterously with one hand, while in the same motion he turned on his
heels and then ran straight for the stake. Protecting his face as good
as only possible with the guard's jacket he ran through the small
corridor he had cleared, while the inferno raged to both sides of him.
Only a moment later he had reached Starbuck and started beating the
flames out that had already engulfed parts of his friend's body. One
precisely placed hit with the rifle-butt broke Starbuck's chains and
with his knees buckling the blond man fell into his friend's arms.
Apollo held him close and tried to cover both of them from the hungry
flames with the one jacket as their only protection. It did for the
moment, but already microns later the fire started licking on that
piece of clothing as well. 
     Apollo's green eyes met Arkyon's and he started yelling over the
new roar of the people around.
     "You promised!! I did come back, now you stick to your word as
well! Let him go!"
     Arkyon didn't move.
     "Is the word of the king worth less than that of a murderer,
Arkyon?"
     The flames had completely reconquered the small opening Apollo had
torn open. Their only way out of his inferno was straight through the
fire - a hopeless attempt. 
     The dark-haired Captain started coughing as the smoke choked him,
too. 
     "I am sorry, I was too late, Starbuck."
     The Lieutenant, who up until then had covered his face on his
friend's shoulder, slowly lifted his head. The skin of his face was
reddened and blistered and the pain from the burns on his arms and legs
had him gasp, still it was a smile that moved the corners of his mouth
all of a sudden.
     "No, thank you for coming back for me."
     Something in Starbuck's smile and his words touched Apollo and
despite their hopeless situation he returned the smile.
     "You didn't doubt that I would, did you?"
     The blond man shook his head and looked his friend straight in the
eyes.
     "No. I told them all along you would."
     In another explosion the wood cracked and had the two men wince.
There was no more room to avoid the flames. The fire grew larger and
they both knew, that it was only a matter of centons, maybe just
microns before the fire would finally reach them with all its might. 
     Starbuck looked at his friend again.
     "We have been in a lot of felgercarb over the yahrens, right? But
this definitely takes the cake." 
     He ignored Apollo's surprised look and continued.
     "Why don't you tell me what held you up, Captain?"
     A frown flashed over the Captain's features.
     "Starbuck, I really don't think that..."
     "Hey, listen to a guy, who burned his fingers on a
fumarillo-lighter one too many times. It's gonna hurt like Hades once
those flames really get to us. Just concentrate on me and keep on
talking, okay? Or listen to what I say, it doesn't matter."
     "And that is suppose to help?"
     "How should I know? I never did this before!"
     Another load cracking made them duck in shock and holding their
breath they expected the inevitable. 
     It took them a moment to realize that the surrounding heat
subsided, that the fire slowly died down and as they raised their heads
in surprise, they saw several people toss bucketfuls of water in their
direction. 
     A wide grin appeared on Starbuck's face again.
     "Thank the Lords, Arkyon did find his brains in time after all."
     He threw a relieved side-glance at his friend and saw Apollo stare
at something on the plaza with fearfully widened eyes. 
     With a frown Starbuck followed his eyes and saw three of king
Arkyon's guards approach them with aimed weapons. It was not over yet.
With a shock the same thought hit him that  had already gotten a tight
grip on Apollo. The deal was not completed yet. The bargain was
Starbuck's freedom, if Apollo returned to serve his sentence. And that
sentence was still to be carried out.
     They looked at each other with wide eyes equally scared, equally
filled with pain that was yet to come. As the guards climbed the pile
of burned wood Starbuck stepped in between them and Apollo and raised
his blistered and hurting hands.
     "Hey, look, guys. You can't do that. You can't save a man's life
at one moment and execute him the next."
     An angry frown appeared on the first guard's face.
     "We saved your life, pretty boy, not his. King Arkyon sentenced
him to death and since he is still wasting precious oxygen that
sentence obviously still has to be carried out. Did you get that so
far?"
     Abruptly Starbuck raised his fist and slammed it into the sneering
face of the guard before him. The man tumbled backwards and slid back
down the pile of wood.
     "You can take that as a yes."
     Starbuck's face was pained as he looked down onto his burned hands
and with an effort he slowly opened his fist again. At the same moment
the two remaining guards pointed their rifles at him and stared at the
blond man as if they were begging him for just one good reason to
shoot.
     Apollo wasn't about to give them that reason. He stepped forward
and placed one hand on his friend's shoulder.
     "Starbuck, don't! We knew this was the deal. No resistance,
remember?"
     He pointed at the guards.
     "They just do what they were ordered to, what they have to do. And
so am I. Please, don't make this any harder for me than it already is."
     Starbuck turned to reply, but the firm grip of the guards on his
burned arms had him gasp in pain instead. They forced him down from the
platform and over the plaza towards the palace, while the gathered
people parted silently before them. While they pushed him forward, the
blond man craned his neck to get a look at his Captain again. The
dark-haired man still stood motionless before the stake that was soon
to become his fate and several of Arkyon's guards had moved in on him,
threateningly pointing their weapons at him. He didn't pay attention to
them. His eyes followed Starbuck as the blond man, escorted by two of
the armed guards, disappeared into the palace. 

     Shortly before the guards had ceased Starbuck and had taken him to
the palace, Sy'ron had left the stairs to the courthouse and had
hurried into the palace as well. As Apollo watched the guards take his
friend away, the white-haired man appeared on the balcony, where he
found his king remaining motionless and with a strange expression on
his face. Something was disturbing the young monarch and Sy'ron looked
at him suspiciously.
     "Is everything alright, Your Majesty?"
     Slowly Arkyon turned to his adviser and looked into his eyes with
a confused expression.
     "I don't understand, Sy'ron. You and everybody else were so sure
that Apollo would not return. Why..."
     Abruptly he turned to the edge of the balcony.
     "Guards! Take him to the palace! I want to talk to him
immediately."
     With a bow the guards acknowledged the king's order and a moment
later the dark-haired Captain was led the same way as Starbuck before.
     In between two of the armed guards Apollo walked through various
large and tastefully decorated corridors, up several huge stairs and
down long corridors again, before the little group finally came to a
halt right before a massive, metal door. Again it was decorated with
the emblem of Anba'Sol‚r and despite its size swung open surprisingly
easy as one of the guards pushed against it. 
     They entered the hall behind it, their boots creating a hollow
echo in the barely furnished room. Heavy curtains decorated the huge,
about nine feet tall windows to the left side of the room and to the
far end of the hall stood yet another throne, in size and appearance
very much like the one in the courtroom. At the wall opposite the
windows stood a heavy, wooden desk and a closet, both skillfully
decorated - save for a few paintings that showed landscapes of
Anba'Sol‚r and the throne itself they were the only furnishing objects
in the entire hall.
     Arkyon stood at one of the windows and was staring out onto his
city as the guards led Apollo in. Sy'ron stood at his side, facing the
new arrival with a stern look, before he turned to the guards.
     "Thank you. Dismissed. You may wait outside."
     The two guards bowed, before they obediently left the room and
closed the door from the outside. Slowly Arkyon turned around and threw
a look at Apollo over the distance. Then he walked over to his throne
and let himself fall heavily into it. He motioned his hand into the
Captain's direction.
     "Come closer. I want to talk to you."
     Apollo did as requested and stopped a few steps away from the
throne. For a long moment Arkyon just looked at the dark-haired man.
The Captain's face was dirty and scratched from the brushes he had to
fight his way through to reach the city, dried blood marred his shirt
and the fire had left its traces on him as well. No obstacle, no pain
had made him give up. Why? The king expressed his thought and finally
addressed Apollo.
     "Why?"
     A questioning expression appeared on Apollo's face.
     "Your Majesty?"
     "Why did you come back. You were save."
     The dark-haired man drew in a deep breath.
     "True. But I gave my word." A weak smile moved his face. "And I
didn't want to be responsible for Hades freezing over."
     With a confused frown Arkyon raised his eyebrows. Then he
remembered Starbuck's words at the trial and for a moment a smile moved
his face as well. Almost abruptly it vanished again.
     "Apollo, I watched you during the trial and had my guards report
on your behavior down in the dungeon. You are no fool. I am sure you
knew how much fire hurts even before you experienced it today. You came
back to face a death like that, because you gave me your word?"
     For a moment it was Apollo, who silently stared at Arkyon. Then he
slowly shook his head.
     "No," he answered quietly. "I gave my word to a friend. That's why
I came back."
     Arkyon's eyes widened.
     "He means that much to you, that you would give your life for
him?"
     "Is that so surprising? Didn't he just prove that he would do the
same for me?"
     The king didn't reply. Wordlessly he rose and left the throne to
walk over to the nearest window again and stare out of it for a few
microns. Sy'ron looked at Apollo, who stood in his spot completely calm
and in control again. Raising an eyebrow the white-haired man turned to
his king.
     "Your Majesty?"
     Arkyon turned around again and looked at Sy'ron. Suddenly a smile
appeared on his face as he looked into the eyes of his adviser.
     "Sy'ron, there is still hope. I see a brighter future for our
people, a new light at the horizon and it's these two men that made me
see it again."
     Sy'ron's as well as Apollo's eyes widened. A confused expression
appeared on the Captain's face.
     "I beg you pardon?"
     Arkyon turned around to face him again. His smile remained.
     "Apollo, let me explain."
     He walked back to his throne and sat down. A moment he seemed to
think of the right words to say, then the monarch started talking
again.
     "You see, what Sy'ron told you back in the old city, was true. It
once was a beautiful, a proud city, before one invasion after another
destroyed our world - and our trust in other people. We broke off all
contacts to other planets and concentrated all our efforts on our
protection. You see, Anba'Sol‚r was and still is a peace loving world.
Its founders came from the great Colonies and other worlds that were
involved in the war with the Cylons. With them or neighbour planets -
usually mankind finds an enemy sooner or later. Must be human nature.
Well, the people that came here wanted just one thing - peace. To live
without being bothered, to have their children grow up with no fear and
in safety."
     A pained expression appeared on Apollo's face, but Arkyon ignore
it and continued.
     "When they came to invade us and destroyed all the beauty and
peace we had so tirelessly worked for, we lost all believe, all trust
and like Sy'ron said, we found new ways to protect us. Using weapons is
not our way - like I said, we are a peace loving world."
     Apollo opened his mouth to protest, but with a calm motion of his
hand, Arkyon stopped him.
     "I know, what you want to say. The guards and their rifles..."
     A smile moved his handsome features.
     "Not one of these rifles is loaded, you know. Usually the threat
alone is quite sufficient and didn't it work with you two as well?"
     He had to laugh at Apollo's bewildered expression. Then he turned
serious again.
     "Experiences showed that the threat alone was not enough in all
cases. The invaders that came to rob us of our food, water and minerals
came in large numbers and well armed, so we learned to use one tool,
one weapon that was stronger than all of theirs. More sufficient than
any gun, more convincing than any laser - our minds."
     Apollo's eyes widened and total confusion was depicted on his
face.
     "You minds? I'm sorry, but I don't understand a word of this. You
mean, you can hurt, maybe even kill with your bare thoughts?"
     Arkyon's expression grew stern.
     "Did you listen to what I said? We never hurt anyone and we most
definitely never killed anyone, either."
     A furious glow came to Apollo's eyes.
     "And what do you call what you did to us down there at that stake?
Starbuck almost died! Oh, thanks for saving his life, but still he has
suffered numerous burns that will leave him scarred for the rest of his
life. Is that not hurting?!"
     Arkyon stayed completely calm and without a word he simply raised
one hand  and touched an invisible switch at the armrest of his throne.
Only microns later the large door behind Apollo opened and one of the
two guards appeared.
     "Your Majesty?"
     "Bring him in!"
     With a bow the guard vanished and a moment later the other one
appeared in the doorway, leading Starbuck into the hall. An equally
relieved smile appeared on the warriors' faces and Starbuck hurried his
pace. 
     "Apollo, am I glad to see you. Are you okay?"
     Arkyon rose to his feet and waited another moment until Starbuck
stood next to his friend.
     "Look at him!"
     A frown appeared on Apollo's face as he stared at the king.
     "I beg you pardon?"
     "Look at him! And look closely. See for yourself just how bad his
wounds are."
     Apollo turned around and reached out to hold the Lieutenant's
hands in his own. His eyes widened in unbelieving surprise as he
carefully observed Starbuck's face and his arms and legs that had been
engulfed by flames not too long ago. The skin of the young Lieutenant
showed no traces that he had ever been exposed to fire. 
     Bewildered Apollo raised his head and looked into the blue eyes of
his friend.
     "What happened, Starbuck?"
     The Lieutenant shrugged his shoulders.
     "I don't have a clue. All of a sudden I didn't feel any pain
anymore and when I looked at my hands and the other wounds...  they
were just gone."
     "They were never there."
     Both men turned surprised to the king.
     "This is what I am trying to explain to you, Apollo. Our most
powerful weapon is our mind. We create illusions, make people see what
is not there, make them feel pain that is never inflicted on them,
scare them with terrors that are not real. Down at that stake there was
no fire and you were never burned. Didn't it make you wonder that the
people on the plaza were so unusually quiet? They were concentrating
with all their might to create the illusion of a raging fire, of smoke,
of pain...  But we would never have hurt you."
     Starbuck's eyes widened and a moment later he furiously clenched
his fists.
     "Do you know, how much that hurt down there - real or not? Do you
have any idea,  how much fear a man suffers when he faces being burned
alive? Do you realize, that I seriously considered shooting my best
friend to spare him that fate?"
     Tears of helpless rage shone in his eyes and with an angry motion
he wiped them away, while he fell quiet again, choked and overwhelmed
by his emotions.
     Arkyon looked at him in disbelieve.
     "You would have shot him? Good thing, all weapons in Anba'Sol‚r
are unloaded."
     Starbuck gave a contemptuous snort.
     "Is that all you have to say?" 
     Sy'ron moved closer to them and raised his hands.
     "Perhaps we could all calm down again and continue this
conversation like adults. Must I remind you that this entire dilemma
started with you bringing your lasers into our world?"
     Starbuck heard Apollo draw in a sharp breath and took a careful
glance at his friend. The Captain's face showed a pained expression
again and reassuring the blond man placed one hand on his friend's
shoulder. They never saw Arkyon use the switch on his throne again.
They never realized that a door next to the desk at the right side of
the hall had been opened until it fell shut again, the echo resounding
in the big hall.
     Alarmed both warriors whirled around on their heels and almost
froze in the movement. Apollo's eyes stared at the person that had just
entered the room as if he was seeing a ghost - and to him it felt very
much like he did. 
     It was a little girl, seven years old, with long, dark, curly hair
and big blue eyes. This time she smile at Apollo without fear, without
anger. Slowly she approached him and stood before him for a few
microns, while he was unable to even move. Finally she raised her arm
and opened her little hand. A small, red ball lay on her palm - a
simple, red, harmless ball, the kind a child would play with. No more,
no less. The child kept smiling at the dark-haired Captain.
     "I am sorry, my ball scared you back in the old city. Maybe next
time we can play?"
     Her words brought Apollo out of the trance he had fallen into.
Within microns his worst nightmare evaporated and his shaking knees
buckled. With tears in his eyes he sank down onto one knee and reached
out to gently take the ball from the little girl.
     "Sure, sweetheart, next time...  My god."
     He reached out and gave the child a gentle hug, while tears
streamed down his face. A micron later he let go of her again and drew
back. The last time she saw him, he shot at her and the last thing he
wanted, was to scare her again. To his surprise she didn't seem to be
in the least scared. 
     Starbuck's eyes seemed to glow with his suppressed anger. 
     "You have no idea what you did! What you did to him was even
crueller than what you did to me, do you realize that?! You made him
believe he killed that child and for what?! To play your sick little
game with us? To amuse the entire city with a trial and a fake
execution? What is it with you people? "
     Arkyon held out his hands to calm the Lieutenant down.
     "Please, wait. You don't understand..."
     "No, you don't understand!"
     Starbuck took a step closer to him.
     "You may have had problems here in the past and in your eyes all
this were necessary actions for your own protection, fine. But did you
ever consider the possibility that you might hurt innocent people
yourselves? Yes, you did not physically hurt us, but what about our
souls? Damned, Apollo had nightmares about having killed a child and he
flew home to say good-bye to his own child, thinking he would never see
his little son again. I was facing my death down there and after your
gracious rescue I once again had to face the threat of losing my best
friend, of having to return home without him and explaining to his
family that he will never return to them. How dare you?!"
     Arkyon and Sy'ron exchanged a confused and surprised look and for
a moment complete silence embraced the little group. At last Arkyon
sank back onto his throne and looked at the two warriors before him. He
breathed deeply.
     "Perhaps you are right. We never thought the procedure through, we
never considered hurting the feelings of innocent people. Perhaps we
did go too far..."
     "You bet, you did!"
     Starbuck was still furious and barely realized that Apollo had
placed a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. As the Captain stepped
forward now, he had an expression on his face that Starbuck only knew
too well. A look that was serious, but not stern; that expressed an
aura of wisdom and still was very much down to earth. A look, that
seemed to reach deep down into the soul of the person he focused on. 
     The king returned Apollo's look in a similar way and a smile
appeared on the monarch's face.
     "You don't seem to share your friend's anger. Why don't you tell
me what you think?"
     Apollo's voice was soft and yet determined as he answered.
     "You are wrong. I do share his anger, but my father taught me that
every medallion has two sides, just as every story has different
versions depending on the narrator's point of view. You care too much
about the well-being of your own people to deliberately hurt others. It
was mindlessness and an overly fixation on the protection of your world
that made you do, what you did. Our situations are not so unlike,
that's why I understand why you did what you did. I do not agree, but I
do understand."
     "Wisely spoken, Apollo. I still don't know, who you really are and
where you came from..."
     "You could have asked!" Starbuck snapped. The other three men
ignored him and Arkyon continued undisturbed.
     "... but you will make a good leader one day, if you are not
already."
     For a micron Apollo was urged to answer to the indirect question,
but in the end he kept quiet. He trusted Arkyon and he liked him
despite all he had done to them. The young monarch was not deliberately
cruel. What he did, he did for the sake of his people and Apollo
respected this devotion. Still there were things neither Arkyon, nor
anybody else had to know about. The less people knew about the fleet
and their destination, the less people were able to give those
information away to the Cylons.
     After another moment of silence had passed, Apollo spoke again.
     "Your Majesty, I understand you tried to protect your people, but
why the trial, why the fake execution, why this entire farce? And how?"
     "We didn't know whether you were friends or enemies. Many came
under the oath of peace before...  You saw for yourselves how they
repaid us for our trust. We had to make sure by all means, this would
never happen again - and we had to find peaceful means to accomplish
this. The only way to find out what really lies in a person, is to
force him or her into an extreme situation and see how he or she
reacts. We accused you of murder, we sentenced you to death and you
never even attempted to run. On the contrary, you even urged your
friend to restrain from resistance and you accepted the sentence
ruefully. Never before had we experienced a behavior like this and up
until the moment you requested to leave for those 12 centars, I was
willing to believe that you really did come in peace. When you
requested to return to wherever you came from, I suspected a trick,
which would have proved my earlier judgement of you wrong. The survival
of my people depends on my ability to judge people correctly and I had
to find out. That's why I agreed to your request and granted you that
chance to prove your trustworthiness."
     Apollo nodded.
     "What if I had returned with an entire invasion force on my
heels?"
     Arkyon smiled.
     "You two searched the old city for centars and you neither found
us, nor any recourses. The invasion wouldn't have been any more
successful."
     A questioning expression appeared on Apollo's as well as on
Starbuck's face and the blond man cut in.
     "But a city of this size is very hard to miss - especially from
the air."
     Arkyon looked him straight in the eyes.
     "Oh? Did you see it, when you came here? And when you returned,
Apollo, did you see it then?"
     Apollo shrugged his shoulders.
     "No, but it was probably too far away from the old city, where we
landed to..."
     "It is right on the old city's perimeters. Just around the corner,
if you like." 
     The eyes of the warriors widened and the Captain raised his hands
in disbelief.
     "But when the guards took me back to my ship, we walked for about
a centar..."
     "... around in circles."
     Sy'ron had cut him short and a wide smile appeared on his face as
well as on Arkyon's. 
     "Sorry, Apollo, but it was necessary to confuse you. It wouldn't
have worked, if you had suspected a trick all along."
     Apollo still was not satisfied with the explanation.
     "What would have happened to Starbuck, if I hadn't returned in
time? Or if I hadn't returned at all?"
     The blond man flashed his friend a frown and then turned to the
king.
     "Yes, that's an excellent question. How much longer would you have
made me the roast of the day at that stake?"
     He still sounded bitter and Arkyon looked at him with an
apologizing expression.
     "Like I said, you wouldn't have been hurt. If your companion
hadn't returned, we would have given you the choice of either staying
with us or leaving. You would never have found your way back to the
city, so the latter option was no risk for us. As for Apollo being too
late...  From the moment his ship entered the atmosphere, we knew where
he was and everything was perfectly timed."
     Apollo's and Starbuck's reply came synchronously.
     "Excuse me?"
     Another smile flashed over the two Anbari's faces and Sy'ron
answered for the king.
     "Coming back was one thing. A step into the right direction, no
doubt, but not enough. We wanted to see just how serious you were,
Apollo, about getting back here to serve your punishment. How many
set-backs it would take to eventually make you give up and just leave
again."
     Apollo raised his eyebrows and looked from Arkyon to Sy'ron and
back to the king. When the Captain spoke again, his voice sounded
indignant. 
     "The loss of time, when there was nobody at the landing spot to
lead me back to the city. The old man in the woods, the guard at the
gate, who tried to stop me. That was all part of the plan?"
     Arkyon's smile vanished and hesitatingly he nodded. This time
Apollo's expression was angry as well as he turned to his friend.
     "Starbuck, we're leaving! I don't think we have anything to expect
from these people."
     The blond man shrugged his shoulders.
     "Told you we should have broken out of the dungeon in the first
place."
     They both turned on their heels and walked towards the entrance,
while Starbuck continued his monologue.
     "Any supplies we might have gotten from them, would probably have
vanished into thin air once we are off this friendly planet anyway."
     Shortly before the two warriors reached the massive door, a little
hand caught Apollo's and made him turn around in surprise. Najara
looked at him with big eyes.
     "Please, would you stay and hear my father out? We didn't mean any
harm and if we hurt you, please accept our apology."
     Starbuck frowned.
     "Sagan, are you sure that's a seven-year-old, buddy? I am a little
older and I can't talk like that."
     A smile flashed over Apollo's face as he threw a quick glance over
his shoulder at the blond Lieutenant.
     "Please, spare me an answer to that, Starbuck."
     The dark-haired man crouched before the child, while she still
held on to his hand.
     "Tell me one thing, sweetie, how come you are not hurt?
     Before the girl had a chance to reply, her father answered for
her.
     "You may not agree with my methods and I admit, I may have made a
mistake, but do you really think I would risked my child getting hurt?
She was in a completely different part of the building. What you saw
was..."
     "... another mirage?"
     Apollo's voice sounded bitter and he cast Arkyon an angry glance.
A soft tug on his hand drew his attention back to Najara.
     "I'm sorry, you didn't like our game. Please, don't be angry
anymore. Friends?"
     A warm smile spread over the Captain's face and he squeezed the
girl's hand, while with the other he gave her a playful prod on the
nose the way he used to do with his sister Athena. 
     "Sure. Friends."
     Starbuck rolled his eyes.
     "Sagan, Apollo, you sure have a short memory as soon as children
are involved."
     The dark-haired man rose back to his feet and gave his friend a
meaningful look.
     "Funny, Athena says the same about you as soon as women are
involved."
     An indignant expression appeared on the Lieutenant's face, but
Apollo's attention focused on Arkyon again as the king addressed them
at that moment.
     "Please, listen to my daughter and don't leave in anger. We all
did what we had to do and that gave us a bad start, I afraid. You did
prove your trustworthiness and you said, you needed help. I understand,
I did you wrong and perhaps I can make it up to you? What is it you
need?"
     The two Colonial warriors exchanged a look and as so many times in
the past a silent under-standing passed between them, before they
approached the throne again and Apollo looked openly at Arkyon. When
the Captain answered to the king's question, his voice was kind and
expressed his willingness to accept the apology. No more words of
forgiveness and apology were exchanged between the Colonials and the
Anbari. Factually the dark-haired Captain asked for the needed supplies
and with a nod Arkyon acknowledged the request. He turned to Sy'ron.
     "Have everything prepared and brought to the landing spot outside
the old city immediately, Sy'ron."
     The white-haired man bowed slightly and turned to leave. As he
passed the two young warriors he hesitated a moment and was obviously
searching for anything apt to say. A split micron later he simply sent
a kind smile in their direction and then hurried towards the door. A
moment later he had disappeared through it.
     "It was nice meeting you, too", Starbuck sarcastically muttered to
himself as he watched the older man leave. 
     The high voice of Najara next to him, made him turn to the little
girl. 
     "All necessary words of apology were already spoken and Sy'ron
never realized that he did you wrong, nor did he intend to hurt. So,
please, don't you still blame him - or us. And what else was there to
say for him, that wouldn't have been an empty phrase? There are times
that a smile says so much more."
     Starbuck's eyes widened and for a moment he just stared at the
little girl in disbelieve. When he looked up, he saw Apollo as well as
Arkyon look at him with a wide grin. The blond man shook his head.
     "That is just too much."
     He turned to the girl again.
     "Alright, where is that ball? Let's go out on the plaza and I show
you what seven-year-old kids do where we come from."
     He looked up to face Arkyon and for a moment searched for the
right words to say. Then a smile spread over his face and with a
side-glance at Najara he simply sent one of his famous wide grins in
the king's direction, before he turned to leave.
     "I wait for you outside, Apollo," was all he said, before he
caught the little red ball that the girl had thrown in his direction.
He blinked an eye at her.
     "Alright, princess, who's first on the plaza?"
     With a giggle she started running towards the door with Starbuck
following on her heels and a moment later they had disappeared through
the massive metal doors with lots of noise, laughter and under the
surprised looks of the guards outside. 
     Apollo turned to the king with a wide smile.
     "Makes you wonder, who the seven-year-old is, uh?"
     For a moment Arkyon turned to stare out of one of the large
windows and the look in his eyes was absentminded. Finally he addressed
the Captain again.
     "It is getting dark. Why don't you two stay here until tomorrow?"
He flashed Apollo a smile. "And no more dungeons, I promise."
     Apollo returned the smile.
     "Thank you, but we really have to go. Our people need the supplies
and my family...   they probably think, I was dead by now. We need to
get back home soon."
     Arkyon nodded.
     "I understand."
     He stepped off the pedestal and approached Apollo. Wordlessly he
handed Apollo the two lasers and the Captain took them with a thankful
expression in his eyes. For a long moment the two dark-haired men just
stood eye to eye, then finally Arkyon held out his arm to Apollo and
with a firm grip they said their good-byes. 
     
     Apollo left the hall and hurried down the steps towards the exit,
while Arkyon turned and walked out onto one of the balconies again. He
watched the Captain stepped out onto the plaza and wave to Starbuck.
The blond man returned the ball to Najara and theatrically bowed before
her.
     "It's been a pleasure, princess."
     Her laughter resounded from the buildings surrounding the plaza.
     "The pleasure was all mine."
     Starbuck grinned at her and gently stroke her hair.
     "You're really something, kid...  er, Your Majesty."
     She laughed again as he turned and walked over to Apollo, who
stood waiting a few steps away. 
     Arkyon watched the Captain crouch before Najara and talk to her
for a few moments. With a wide smile she hugged the young man before
her and then waved to the two warriors as they left the plaza and
approached the main gate. 
     The ice-blue eyes of the young monarch followed the two friends as
they walked away side by side. Long after he had lost them out of
sight, he still remained motionless on the balcony of his palace, sadly
staring into the light of the setting sun. 

     Only few centons after they had left the city, the two colonial
warriors reached the place, where they had left their vipers. They
found the ships just as they had left them and a relieved smile spread
over Apollo's face. The promised supplies had been piled up by the
Anbari in the near distance and the young Captain didn't have to check
the nearby cisterns of the old city to know that they were filled with
water - water, that had been there all along. 
     "Starbuck, radio the Galactica and have them send shuttles and
tankers to pick up the supplies."
     The blond man acknowledged the order with a nod and turned to walk
over to his ship.
     "And, Starbuck... ?"
     Questioning the Lieutenant looked over his shoulder.
     "... make sure my father and Athena know that we are both on our
way back."
     A smile spread over Starbuck's face.
     "They'll get the message, trust me."
     Apollo was about to reply as he noticed a shadow behind him and
whirled around on his heels. He recognized the person, who motionlessly
stood before him, in an instance and his look darkened. 
     "You! I understand you were just playing your part in this little
play, but you almost broke my nose. Was that necessary?"
     The eyes of the older man, who had led him through the woods
earlier, stared at the Captain in surprise.
     "Play? What play? I'm sorry about your nose, boy. I didn't mean to
hurt you, but I told you I wasn't going to the city."
     He lowered his eyes.
     "I am a coward - always was, always will be, I afraid."
     Apollo raised his eyebrows with a confused frown and barely
noticed that Starbuck had returned and stood beside him with a
questioning expression on his face.
     Unbelieving the dark-haired Captain addressed the older man again.
     "I don't get it. Are you telling me, it wasn't your job to hold me
up?" 
     The older man's eyes widened.
     "Hold you up? No, why would I do that? Still I'm glad, I did
anyway. Murderer or not - nobody deserves the fate that awaits him in
that city."
     Impatiently Starbuck stepped from one foot onto the other and cut
in on the conversation at that moment.
     "Alright, you two just let me know, when you are ready to fill me
in. What in Kobol's name is he talking about, Apollo, and who is that
anyway?" 
     The Captain shrugged his shoulders and shook his head with a still
confused expression.
     "Your guess is as good as mine, Starbuck. He was here when I
returned and I more or less forced him to guide me back to the city."
     The older man gave an indignant snort.
     "More or less? You threatened my life!"
     "I was unarmed and I'm not a murderer. I never killed or even
intentionally hurt anyone."
     An angry frown flashed over the withered features of the Anbari.
     "Oh? You forgot to mention these slightly important facts to me
though."
     Apollo shrugged his shoulders.
     "I didn't have time for discussions. Besides, in return you almost
broke my nose, so I guess, we are even."
     The older man nodded.
     "Agreed. But you ought to be thankful I stopped you, boy."
     Starbuck rolled his eyes and again interrupted the conversation.
     "Obviously you guys are all kind of reluctant on this planet to
call people by their names, but let's give it one more try. What do you
say? His name is Apollo - not accused, not boy, simply Apollo. And I'm
Starbuck."
     The Anbari sternly looked at him.
     "If that means pretty pert  in your language, your are aptly
named."
     A suppressed grin distorted Apollo's features, while Starbuck
stared at their opposite flabbergasted. Before the blond man was able
to retort, the older man continued.
     "Alright then, although it is none of your business - my name is
Daaron."
     Apollo's expression was serious again, as he addressed the Anbari.
     "What did you mean by nobody deserves the fate that awaits him in
that city?"
     A sad look appeared on Daaron's face and for a long moment he
silently stared down onto his own feet. As he raised his head again to
look the young Captain in the eyes, his face was pale.
     "I came to this planet many yahrens ago. My best friend and I, we
had heard rumours about hidden treasures and rich mineral mines on
Anba'Sol‚r. The rumours spread through-out the galaxy back then and we
came here, as so many others before us, to get a piece of that cake for
ourselves. We were na‹ve, dreaming of a better life in wealth, with no
fear, no hunger, no worries. We were no thieves. We were willing to
work for our piece of fortune, but one mistake, one false move ruined
it all."
     The two warriors had quietly listened to Daaron and with a
sympathetic as well as curious expression Apollo urged him to continue.
     "What happened?"
     For a moment the older man seemed to be lost in memories, then he
hesitatingly spoke again.
     "The old city. It was deserted already back then and it was a
scary, threatening place when we arrived here - at least that's how we
both felt about it. I still don't know how and why it happened, but
there was that little Anbari child all of a sudden..."
     Apollo's eyes grew wide and breathlessly he cut Daaron short.
     "And you shot that child by accident?"
     Daaron stared at the young man in disbelieve.
     "How do you know?"
     Apollo and Starbuck exchanged a glance, before the Captain turned
to the older man again.
     "I'll explain later. Please, go on."
     Daaron shrugged his shoulders and drew in a deep breath. The more
he told the two Capricans, the more a burden seemed to be lifted off
his soul and almost relieved he continued.
     "The king sentenced me to death back then and by their law he was
right. But like I said, I have always been a coward. I didn't have the
guts to face that sentence - and I ran. I left my friend alone in the
hands of the Anbari and ran as far as my feet would take me, away from
that Godforsaken city."
     For a moment he stopped and tried to catch his breath. Guilt was
clearly depicted in his eyes as he stared in the direction of the city.
Finally he continued his monologue.
     "I waited a day, maybe two, torn between the fear to die and the
thought of having deserted the only friend I ever had. Finally I went
back. I was ready to surrender myself to the mercy of the Anbari and by
that time my only worry was, what they may have done to him after I
ran. - I still don't know. I never saw him again and his face, staring
at me accusingly, still haunts me every night in my dreams."
     Apollo cast another confused glance in Starbuck's direction and
saw his friend shrug his shoulders. Daaron noticed the look they
exchanged and sighed. 
     "Of course, you don't understand. When I returned to the city, it
was...  gone. Simply vanished without a trace."
     Apollo hesitatingly shook his head. How was he to tell the older
man the truth? In a gentle voice he addressed the emotionally moved man
a moment later.
     "Daaron, I don't know, how to tell you this, but that city never
really vanished. It's still there, but the Anbari have mental powers to
protect themselves. They can make you believe that..."
     "Look here, boy."
     With an angry gesture the older man cut him short.
     "You two want me to treat you like adults and call you by your
names. Fine. Then just do me a favor and act your age. I wasn't born
yesterday and I spent half of my life on this planet. Don't you think,
I know about the Anbari's powers?"
     Starbuck stepped forward with an angry glow in his eyes. 
     "Alright, now you listen to me. Apollo was just trying to help you
and acting his age, he tried to do so without hurting your feelings.
Now tell me, Daaron, during which half of your life did you lose your
manners?"
     The older man almost stabbed the blond Lieutenant with his eyes,
but he didn't reply. A moment later he lowered his eyes and sighed.
     "I am sorry, Apollo. Your friend is right - I did forget my
manners." He gave a weak smile and shrugged his shoulders. "I'm afraid,
my biggest problem has always been my hot temper - during both halves
of my life."
     The Captain returned the smile and cast a quick glance at his
friend.
     "Kobol, does that sound familiar or what, Starbuck?"
     An indignant expression appeared on the blond man's face.
     "Yeah, right. I defend you and you stab me in the back. Thank you
so much, my friend."
     Daaron's smile faded abruptly from his face and made room for a
pained expression. Apollo noticed the older man's change of mood and
looked at him questioning.
     "What happened back then, Daaron? What was it, you were going to
tell us?"
     The older man breathed heavily, as if his memories were choking
him. Then he hesitatingly continued his report.
     "I searched for days back then, but never found a trace of the
city or my friend. About a secton later I met one of the Bari-Wah, a
tribe that lives on the other side of those hills. They told me about
the mystery that nobody, maybe not even the Anbari themselves, knew.
The city of Anba is located in the middle of a time continuity
disturbance..."
     "A what?!"
     Apollo flashed Starbuck a warning look and with an apologetic
expression the blond man raised his hands and fell quiet again to let
Daaron continue his explanation. Understanding the older man simply
shook his head and then spoke again.
     "It is true. The Anbari do have mental powers and it is of their
choice to make the city appear and disappear whenever they please to
protect themselves. Truth of the matter is though that an entire
invasion could violate their territory and they wouldn't even notice -
unless the three moons are in a conjunction, during which Anba's time
flows parallel to that of the rest of the planet, actually the rest of
the galaxy."
     Starbuck ran a hand through his hair and looked at Apollo with a
frown.
     "I don't know about you, buddy. But I don't understand a word of
this. Is he even speaking Standard Kobolian?"
     Apollo didn't reply. His eyes seemed to look right through Daaron
and his concentration was clearly depicted on his face.
     "Apollo?!"
     Starbuck's impatient voice brought the Captain back to reality and
he let his eyes pass between his friend and the older man for a moment.
Starbuck shook his head and looked at him with a weak smile.
     "What time continuity disturbance did you just get lost in?"
     Daaron looked at him with an angry frown.
     "Look, if you think this is funny or I was a case for the loony
bin, just let me know. I didn't ask for this conversation.
     Apollo raised his hands to calm the cross Anbari down.
     "No, I think, I understand what you were trying to tell us. Let's
see. If I got this right, Anba's time does not flow parallel to the
rest of the planet, which means as soon as the conjunction is over, the
entire city vanishes into a different time dimension. That leaves it
invisible to everyone outside the city and vice versa?" 
     Daaron nodded.
     "Exactly. I don't know, how long this phenomena already exists.
Maybe the Anbari and their powers caused it unintentionally, who knows.
I'm no scientist. All I know is, that my friend wasn't able to leave
Anba before the conjunction ended back then and I never had a chance to
go back and let him know, that I did come back for him."
     Starbuck threw a side-glance at Apollo and his usual cockiness was
replaced by a very serious expression as he addressed the older man.
     "I may be a little slow here, but the conjunction is active now.
Anba has been visible for at least a day, so what are you still waiting
for?"
     The deep eyes in the withered face just stared at him for a long
moment. Finally Daaron lowered them and sighed audibly.
     "Courage. That's what I am waiting for. I guess, I am still a
coward - and I am still afraid. "
     The blond Lieutenant raised an eyebrow.
     "Afraid of what?"
     Daaron's expression darkened.
     "Can't you see? I was convicted for murder back then and I ran,
leaving my friend in the hands of the Anbari. I am afraid of his
reaction, when I return after all that time. I am afraid to face my
execution, if the Anbari still consider me guilty of murder. - But most
of all I'm afraid to find out, that I waited all these yahrens in vain.
They may have executed him in my place already back then and he died
thinking that I let him down."
     Apollo cast a side-glance at Starbuck and a sympathetic expression
appeared on his face again.
     "I know, what you mean. But if you don't go now, you will never
know."
     Daaron sighed.
     "True. I keep telling myself the same thing, but still I am
scared."
     A friendly smile appeared on Apollo's face. 
     "If you're afraid of Arkyon, don't worry. He just learned his
lesson and actually, he is a very reasonable...  Daaron? Are you okay?"
     The older man's eyes stared at him in shock and surprise.
     "Did...  did you meet him?"
     Starbuck frowned.
     "Who? Arkyon?" 
     Impatiently he shrugged his shoulders.
     "Of course, we met him. The Anbari pulled the same trick on us
that they pulled on you. You never killed anyone, Daaron. It was a
mental manipulation and they did the same to Apollo. But Arkyon
understands now that his methods are wrong and you don't have to fear
him anymore."
     Daaron's eyes grew even larger and confused he looked from one
warrior to the other.
     "Afraid of Arkyon? You boys are a little confused, uh? Arkyon is
the friend I've been telling you about."
     It was Apollo's and Starbuck's turn to look confused and they
exchanged an unbelieving look. For a moment they just stared at the
older man, then finally Apollo spoke again.
     "Arkyon is the friend you left with the Anbari?"
     Daaron nodded.
     "Yes. How is he?"
     Apollo ignored the question and carefully continued his
questioning. 
     "Daaron, just tell me one thing - how long ago was it that you
left Arkyon in Anba?"
     The older man looked at him for a long moment with a pained
expression and gulped hard before he answered.
     "Thirty yahrens."
     Starbuck drew in a sharp breath.
     "Thirty yahrens?! You waited here for thirty yahrens for the next
conjunction?"
     Daaron nodded silently, while the two warriors exchanged another
fascinated look. Apollo cleared his throat, before the finally
addressed the older man again.
     "Daaron, the king that sentenced you to death. What was his name?
How old was he?"
     The older man shrugged his shoulders.
     "That was so long ago and I have never been good with names, but
the way he looked he was probably a thousand yahrens old."
     "Not even that unlikely."
     Daaron raised his eyebrows.
     "Say what?"
     "Daaron, listen to me. This time disturbance is more complex than
you though. Anba's time does not only flow incorrectly, the distortion
also caused it to flow much slower than outside the city."
     The Anbari stared at the Captain in total incomprehension. 
     "I'm afraid, I am a little slow here now."
     A weak smile moved the corners of Apollo's mouth.
     "The friend you left with the Anbari...  he is just fine. As a
matter of fact, he is Anba's king now and followed in the footsteps of
the old king in protecting the city."
     Daaron's eyes grew wide.
     "Arkyon is king of Anba'Sol‚r? Unbelievable. That's what I call a
career."
     A grin appeared on the withered features of the older man.
     "I should have known - he always had it within him to lead people.
He was the more responsible and circumspect one of us, but king... 
Yeah, that's Arkyon. I wonder, if I'll still recognize him."
     Starbuck exchanged another look with Apollo, before he cut into
the conversation.
     "You should rather worry, if he still recognizes you. Like Apollo
said, due to the time distortion time flows slower in Anba and, well,
Arkyon didn't age as much as you did."
     Another frown flashed over Daaron's face.
     "Now, what is that suppose to mean?"
     "Daaron, just prepare yourself to find him almost as old as you
have left him. To him, only about seven or eight, maybe ten yahrens
have passed. He's got a little daughter of seven...  Are you okay?"
     The Anbari had sunk down onto a nearby rock and stared at the
ground before him without really seeing it. Slowly he shook his head.
     "All that time, all these yahrens - they were in vain."
     Apollo crouched before him and looked at him sympathetically.
     "No, why? He is still there and if you explain to him, why you
couldn't return earlier, he will understand."
     Fiercely the older man waved the Captain's words away.
     "Is he going to understand, why I ran in the first place?"
     "Daaron, you made a mistake back then. But Arkyon meant enough to
you to wait thirty long yahrens for the chance to apologize and make it
up to him. This is the most honest mark of friendship I have ever
seen..."
     He flashed Starbuck a smile from the side.
     "... almost."
     Starbuck returned the smile and placed a hand on Daaron's
shoulder.
     "Hey, what is the worst thing that can happen? He might kick your
butt, but you know what - I happen to know someone, who is a lot like
Arkyon and lucky for me, he never stays angry for long and is most
willing to forgive every felgercarb."
     A wide smile appeared on Apollo's face and without looking up to
the blond man he added:
     "Well, I happen to know, who he is talking about and from that
person's point of view, that kick in the butt would be more than
deserved at times, but much as I hate to admit it - Starbuck is right."
     Daaron watched the two young men exchange another smile and
relaxed visibly.
     "You two seem to know, what you're talking about. Just tell me one
thing - what is felgercarb?"
     The smile on Starbuck's face melted into a wide grin.
     "Being afraid of your best friend - that is felgercarb. Now get
going, Daaron. You both waited way too long for this day already."
     A smile moved the face of the older man as he rose to his feet. 
     "Thank you. I don't even know, who you boys are, but I owe you..."
     "Nothing."
     Apollo still smiled at Daaron and after a hearty handshake the
older man turned and hurried towards the city of Anba. He never even
looked back.

     Silently the two warriors remained for a moment, until they had
lost Daaron out of sight. Without turning Starbuck finally spoke again.
     "Think Arkyon is gonna forgive him?"
     A faint smile moved the corners of Apollo's mouth.
     "Someone once implied that I was a lot like Arkyon and I am quite
positive that he will, yes. Still I hope, he is gonna kick his butt." 
     He grinned at Starbuck and the gesture was mirrored on the blond
man's face.
     "Boy, if the people of Anba only age a third compared to people
outside the city, Sy'ron must have been...  well, not for real anymore.
Amazing. Makes you wonder, whether it is a curse or a blessing."
     Apollo looked in the direction of the city.
     "If you were Daaron, would you have waited thirty yahrens?"
     Starbuck looked at him from the side and a vicious grin appeared
on his face.
     "To give you the chance to look younger than me for once in your
life? You've got to be kidding."
     Laughing Apollo slapped his shoulder.
     "I should have know better. Alright, Lieutenant, let's go home,
before we really grow old on this planet."
     Simultaneously they turned on their heels and walked over to their
waiting vipers.
     "Still, it's a shame."
     Apollo raised an eyebrow and looked at Starbuck from the side.
     "What is?"
     "Najara - outside of Anba she would actually be in her twenties.
She's probably a beautiful woman..."
     Helplessly the dark-haired Captain threw his hands in the air.
     "That I do not believe. One thing's for sure, Starbuck - no matter
what time continuity disturbance you ever get lost in, you'll never
grow up."
     Shortly before the sun of Anba'Sol‚r finally set and twilight
embraced the nearby ruins and the mysterious city of Anba, several
tankers and shuttles appeared at the horizon and only a moment later
landed in the near distance of the two vipers. 
     Apollo climbed into the cockpit of his ship and looked over to
Starbuck, who was already ready for take-off and just waiting for the
order. The Captain waved over to his friend and at the same time closed
the canopy of his cockpit with the other hand. A moment later he had
placed his flight helmet on his head and switched on the unicom.
     "Alright, Lieutenant. Mission completed. Let's go."
     "Back to that good, old piece of metal in the middle of nowhere."
     Another smile appeared on Apollo's face.
     "I can't wait..."

                        --- The end ---