Till We Meet Again
           A Battlestar Galactica story by Marion Duerselen
                          October 15, 1998

     "How do we always get into this mess?"
     Captain Apollo glanced around himself and tried to get a clear view
at his surroundings. His sight was blurred and his head hurt.  Faded
pictures of what had happened made their way through the sub-conscious
mist, but the memory wouldn't reveal itself completely yet.  He heard a
groan from his left side and turned his head a little too fast for
comfort to look down at Lieutenant Starbuck, who was still laying on the
ground. A position that he had found himself in only a short while
before.
     Starbuck managed to struggle onto his knees and pressed his hands
against his aching temples.  "Question is not the how, buddy," he
muttered between clenched teeth. "The how is easy, but why is it always
us?"
     Apollo had to smile against his will and offered a hand to his
companion to help him off the cool, metallic floor.  "Must be your
charming personality that attracts even the Cylons."
     For a moment they stood in silence, observing their surroundings,
trying to remember what had happened.  They had been on a mission on a
planet called Asterion, penetrating a Cylon outpost.  They were on their
way out when they had run head first into an ambush. The last thing they
remembered was being surrounded by Cylons with no way left to run and an
evil, gloating laughter from an enemy unseen, before they were hit over
the head, hard.
     After that there had been only darkness.
     That darkness still remained. It was hard to tell how big their
prison was or where it was located.  Even after their eyes became
aquainted to the darkness, they could barely make out anything around
them. Starbuck searched his pockets and a moment later brought up the
lighter he kept with his fumarillos, igniting a small but bright flame.
     "All right, never again do I want to hear any complaints about my
smoking."
     Apollo smiled at him.  "Promised. Just once in a while all these bad
habits of yours actually seem to come in handy."
     In the small circle of light the ignator emitted, they slowly moved
side by side along the wall.  Starbuck, held the light in one hand and
carefully protected it from any draft with the other one.  He watched his
friend move his hands over the smooth surface of the cold, metal wall,
searching for a door or any other way out of their prison.  Several
centons they proceeded in silence until Starbuck's patience wore off
again.
     "This is not working. Either the light is too little to see the exit
or there is none."
     "'Course there is one. How do you think we got in here? Let's try it
again."
     "All right, but you hold the light this time. That thing is getting
hot, you know."
     Apollo rolled his eyes, but didn' t feel like arguing with the
impatient Lieutenant. He was just about to hold out his hand to take the
ignator from Starbuck when a voice of unknown origin filled the room.
     "Looking for something, gentlemen?"
     Before either of them could react lights flashed up without a
warning, so bright that it blinded them and hurt their unprotected eyes.
Both men winced and drew back against the wall, reaching for their
weapons.  Only then they realized they were unarmed. Apollo drew in a
sharp breath and wiped away the tears that streamed from his burning
eyes.
     "Starbuck?!"
     He heard the angry voice of his friend right next to him, while he
was still unable to see anything due to the luminous intensity.
     "I am here. And I just about had it! What's next?"
     "Captain Apollo, Lieutenant Starbuck, how nice of you to drop by."
     The voice was familiar and touched a spot in the souls of the two
men - a very sore spot. Instantly, feelings of rage, hate, discomfort and
sadness swept over them and made them forget the tight situation they
were obviously in. Starbuck gritted his teeth and muttered a quiet "I had
to ask" to himself. He could vaguelly see Apollo backing away from the
wall, breaking the defensive position, every muscle tightening, to face
the owner of that voice with pride. He was not going to show any fear.
     "Baltar! I should have known you were behind all this."
     "Wrong, Captain, you should have stayed away from that Cylon
outpost. The Imperious Leader was not amused about that and blamed it on
me."
     "Your problem", Starbuck retorted.
     Baltar sneered, unseen by the two colonial warriors, who were still
troubled by the overly bright light.  "Wrong again. Now that I am holding
two Colonial Warriors captive, the Leader will be very pleased. And I am
more than pleased that it is you two my Cylon friends captured. I've been
waiting a long time for this moment."
     Starbuck backed away from the wall as well to stand next to Apollo. 
"Why do I have the feeling he is not going to offer us the royal suite to
spend a little leizure time on his basestar?" 
     Apollo didn't have the opportunity to reply as Baltar's derisive
laughter filled the room once more. 
     "Don't worry, Lieutenant. If it is special treatment you want, THAT
you will get."
     Starbuck frowned.  "Me and my big mouth," he muttered to himself.
     Apollo's face was stern and his eyes looked furious.  The mere fact
he wasn't able to see their opponent unnerved him even more than Baltar's
presence as such. 
     "Stop your little games, Baltar, and let us go at once."
     "You are in no position to demand, Captain. Get used to it. I am in
charge here and if you are waiting for help from the Galactica, I have to
disappoint you. The outpost  on Asterion was completely destroyed.  Tthey
won't find a trace of you two there except for your lasers and some of
the other devices you carried. They will assume the explosion killed you
and move on."
     For a moment the two young warriors stood in silence, flabbergasted,
unable to fully comprehend what Baltar just told them. Apollo finally
broke the silence again.
     "You destroyed the entire outpost to set this up?"
     Baltar smiled to himself.  "Brilliant move, isn't it? This is going
to be my personal revenge for all you two did to me.  The Imperious
Leader will approve whatever I'll do to you, because according to the
report, you were behind the destruction of that base on Asterion."
     Starbuck moved forward into the blinding light with clenched fists,
hoping to get a hold on the enemy beyond sight, knowing however that it
was a useless attempt.  "You lousy bastard..."
     "Well, well, Lieutenant. Still as hot-headed as ever? Let's see, if
we can do something about that. Centurions!"
     Before either of the men could react, three of the huge Cylon
centurions appeared from out of the glaring light before them. The first
two reached out to the blond Lieutenant, who had practically been
standing right in front of them without seeing them, and grabbed his
arms.
     Starbuck stepped back, fighting to free himself from the crushing
grip of the machines, but failed. With every move he made, their grip
increased and with it the pain that shot up his limbs. He stopped his
yelling and fighting against them as he realized that they would simply
break his arms, if he kept up his resistance.  Starbuck glanced over his
shoulder, turning his head away from the light to meet Apollo's eyes that
looked at him with a worried and helpless expression. The Captain made a
few steps forward, knowing however that there was nothing he could do to
free Starbuck.  And even if he did, it would only postpone the
inevitable, since there was no way for them to run.
     Before Apollo even reached his friend, the third centurion stepped
in the way, blocking the eye contact between the two warriors and the
blinding light. Apollo blinked, feeling a sense of relief as the pain in
his burning eyes subsided and the dancing spots he had seen before him
faded.  His sight became clear again in a surprisingly short period of
time, only to reveil the huge robot standing before him. The red sensor
moved from one side to the other and appeared to stare down on him with a
hostile glare.
     Apollo did not know how long he had been unconscious when he finally
woke up again, opening his eyes to total darkness once more. He tried to
sit up and groaned as the pain of a splitting headache flashed through
his body. Slowly he sat upright, pressing his hands against his temples.
Only then he noticed the thick, warm moisture that was running down his
left cheek. He ran his tongue over his lips and felt a wave of nausea
rising in his throat as he tasted the sweet, unmistakable taste of blood.
     It all had gone so fast. Before he had had a chance to react the
Cylon standing in front of him had made his move. The last thing he
remembered before that centurion had raised his rifle to hit him over the
head again was Starbuck calling out his name as the two centurions that
held him captive dragged him out of the room.
     "Starbuck?"
     No answer. For a moment the young Captain sat in silence, listening
and hoping to hear a movement, breathing, anything. All he heard was his
own heart beating hard against his rips. 
     "Starbuck! Where are you?"
     He tried again, still hoping to get a reply of any kind from his
friend. Yet Apollo knew he was alone in this prison. The darkness was
threatening all of a sudden, the silence unnerving, the unknown fate
frightening. Although he hated to admit it even to himself, Apollo
started to feel scared. Rage started to dwell inside of him again. 
     He had been in a lot of tight situations in his life, but there had
always been a chance to eventually get out or hope to being rescued. This
was different. If Baltar told the truth for once, no one on board of the
Galactica would be looking for them anymore.  No one would ever suspect
they were being held prisoners aboard of Baltar's basestar. There was no
chance to get off this basestar as long as they didn't even know where
they were. Baltar might have been a lot of things, but he sure was no
fool. How well did he know them? Did Baltar just assume or did he know
that neither one of them would even try to break out as long as the fate
of the other one was unknown? Seperating them was the smartest thing that
traitor could have done. Apollo felt rage about his helpnessness and the
fear that man evoke in him.
     Slowly Apollo rose to his feet and stood still for a few centons
until the dizziness passed. He took several deep breaths before he made a
few cautious steps into the darkness to explore his prison. 
     "All right, Captain," he said aloud to break the silence surrounding
him. "There has got to be a door here somewhere. You are going to find
it."
     Apollo listened to his own footsteps. His heavy boots resounded from
the metal floor as he slowly moved forward until his hands touched a
wall. Like before, he started to run his fingertips over the smooth
surface searching for any trace of an exit. 
     The sound came without a warning and had him freeze. From a
direction somewhere behind Apollo came a scream. At least he thought it
must have been one, although it sounded almost inhuman. For a moment he
just stood there staring into the blackness behind him, a cold shiver
running down his spine.
     "What in Sagan's sake..." he started whispering to himself, his own
voice soothing his racing heartbeat. 
     Apollo never had a chance to end the sentence. At that moment a
second sceam resounded through the aisles of the basestar and had the
darkhaired Captain fall silent. He stared into the direction of the
sound, eyes wide with horror and fear rising in his throat again. He
started stumbling in the direction the terrifying sound came from as a
terrible suspicion rose inside of him. A centon later his hands touched
the opposite wall. Fiercely Apollo started searching for the exit he knew
was there. He was almost waiting for another of those agonizing cries of
pain. When it came, Apollo's heart still seemed to miss a beat. A knot
built in his stomach as he moved his hands almost desperatly over the
metal wall. Finally he felt a groove that parted the smooth surface of
the wall. When Apollo followed it with his fingers, analizing its
measures and the shape it formed, he knew he found what he had been
looking for. To his frustration Apollo was unable to find the opening
mechanism and started banging his fists against it instead.
     "Baltar!! Leave Starbuck alone!! Do you hear me?!? BALTAR!!!"
     From somewhere in the darkness surrounding him a voice answered in a
tone that almost made him see Baltar's sneering face before his inner
eye. 
     "Is there a problem, Captain?"
     Apollo didn't bother to turn around. He knew Baltar wasn't there.
Still he could see and hear everything that was going on in this prison
cell. The young Captain didn't even waste a centon to wonder where the
cameras and microphones were hidden. He had more important matters to
worry about. At that centon Apollo once again heard one of Starbuck's
screams, much weaker than before though.
     "Baltar, stop it! You don't want him. He had nothing to do with all
the missions against your Cylon friends. And the plans that got you
imprisoned aboard the colonial prison barge. I was in charge of those
missions. So if you want your revenge, take it out on me. Leave him out
of it."    
     Baltar's malignant  laughter filled the room and made him shiver. 
"Very noble, Captain, but your turn will come soon enough."
     Before Apollo had a chance to reply, the door before him opened with
an aggressive hissing. The light from the exterior shined in his eyes. He
stepped back waiting for some kind of attack, for some of the centurions
to grab and take him to whatever torture Baltar had in mind for him.
Three silhouettes appeared in the doorway before him, unmistakably two of
the huge Cylon centurions and a human figure, barely able to stand, in
between of them. Apollo's eyes widened in spite of the bright light as he
looked fearful at what he assumed was his companion.
     "Starbuck?"
     He didn't get a reply. A few microns later, the three figures stood
in the doorway in total silence. Without warning, the two Cylons flung
their human prisoner in his direction. Apollo held out his arms to catch
the stumbling figure, but the movement came too surprising for him to
react properly. Starbuck's limp body fell hard against him and they both
tumbled to the ground.
     A new witness to this scene stepped into the light in between of the
two centurions. Apollo recognized the silhouette in an instance even
before he heard that hated laughter again. 
     "What a sight! Proud colonial warriors, heroes of Adama's pathetic
fleet on their knees before me! All the waiting for this moment was
worth-while."
     Apollo's green eyes seemed to glow as he looked up and stared at his
enemy with rage and hate, while he held his barely conscious friend in
his arms.
     "Nobody is on his knees before you, Baltar. We are simply favoring
the dirt down here over your presence."
     Baltar's smile vanished, unseen to the young Captain.
     "Still a big mouth, Captain? We took good care of Lieutenant
Starbuck's hot temper as you can see. I am sure there can be something
done about your arrogance, too." Without waiting for a reply Baltar
turned away and left. The two centurions remained for a couple of microns
in the open doorway, before they turned around as well, closing the
automatic door in the same motion. 
     To Apollo's surprise the total darkness of before did not swep over
them as expected. A dim light from an unknown source filled the room,
cold and white and not comfortable to his eyes. Still, it was an
improvment to the previous blackness.
     A groan drew his attention back to his friend. With a worried
expression he looked down onto the pale face before him. Starbuck's hair
and skin were wet. His entire body trembled. There were no obvious
injuries. Still the young Lieutenant hadn't regained consciousness
completely and the uncontrollable trembling worried Apollo.  Apollo
pushed some of the wet strands of blond hair out of his friend's face and
shook him carefully, hoping to bring him back from the threshold of
consciousness.  
     "Starbuck? Can you hear me, buddy?"
     The blond man moved in his arms and tried to open his eyes. For a
brief moment Starbuck stared at  the familiar face over him with an
expression of pain. His eyes cried for help, begging for rescue from a
situation he had to endure for who knew how long and still seemed to live
through before his inner eye. Then his eyes fell shut again as his mind
threatened to slip into unconsciousness. 
     Apollo gently shook him again. "Starbuck, come on. Snap out of it."
     The bluish grey eyes of the young Lieutenant opened again and as his
sight slowly cleared up. He seemed to become aware of his surroundings. A
relieved sigh made itself heard as Starbuck looked up into his friend's
worried face. Weakly he tried to smile and moistened his dry lips with
his tongue before he started talking in a still somewhat unsteady voice. 
     "Not the beautiful woman in who's arms I was hoping to wake up, but
still a beautiful sight."
     Apollo returned the smile for a brief moment before his expression
turned serious again. "Can you sit up?"
     With the Captain's support Starbuck struggled into an upright
position and closed his eyes for a moment as a sudden wave of dizziness
swept over him. He shook his head, hoping to clear it his way, and ran
his fingers through his still wet hair. Apollo sat next to him, watching
him carefully and resting one hand reassuring on Starbuck's shoulder. 
     "I'm sorry, buddy."
     Starbuck gave a weak laughter as he opened his eyes again and turned
his head in Apollo's direction.     "What for? That you missed all the fun
again?"       
     This time Apollo did not return the smile - he didn't feel like
making jokes about it all and he knew that Star-buck did neither. Making
fun about his situation was merely Starbuck's way of protecting himself
from the hurt he felt. Blocking the memories of what he had to go through
by denial was the only way he could deal with them.
     The darkhaired Captain got off the ground, wiped the dust from his
uniform pants and started to slowly walk up and down the room, not
leaving Starbuck out of his sight. His voice was soft as he finally spoke
again.
     "What happened?"
     A hurt expression flashed over the blond man's features. He kept
staring at the ground before him, still sitting in the same position as
before as though he didn't dare move, but when he finally answered his
voice was steady and expressed some of the rage that was building inside
of him.
     "Don't ask."
     "Starbuck, I just ..."
     "No! I don't want to talk about it. Just leave it alone, Apollo."
     Starbuck cast an angry glance at his friend. He didn't want to be
reminded. He didn't want to have to deal with it. The same helplessness
and fear that infected Apollo before started to evoke the same kind of
rage in him as in the Captain before, but contrary to Apollo the young
Lieutenant never learned how to hide his emotions, how to put up a
facade. He never intented to do so in the first place.
     He was angry about the situation someone forced him into without
leaving him any chance to do something about it - he was angry and he
wanted the world to know it. Throughout the fleet he had a reputation for
his temper and so far letting people unmistakably know when he was
furious usually made everybody back off and leave him alone. Something
inside his soul started praying that it would work that way with the
Cylons as well. 
     Apollo drew in a deep breath, knowing that he was walking on thin
ice, but still he had to proceed questioning his friend, much as he hated
it. But he had to know what to expect, what they were up against,
although knowing it wouldn't make much of a difference. He didn't let
Starbuck's angry reaction provoke him and kept the soft voice as after a
few microns he started talking again.
     "Starbuck, what did they want?"
     Slowly Starbuck raised his head, his eyes meeting with his friend's,
who had stopped his walking back and forth as this glance hit him.
     "Apollo, that was not an interrogation. They didn't want any
information, if that's what you want to know. They were out to hurt. Just
that."
     Apollo looked at him for a moment in disbelief.
     "Not one single question?"
     Starbuck shook his head and lowered his eyes again, staring blankly
ahead of him as the memory struck him again. Apollo's carefully kept
facade fell on hearing these news and furiously he looked around himself.
Finally he spotted what he had been looking for. A small object in a dark
upper corner of the room pointed at them, following their every move.
Apollo approached it with large steps.
     "Baltar!! I know, you are there. I want to talk to you!"
     For a moment there was only silence. Then Baltar's smooth and
exaggeratly friendly voice filled the room.
     "Yes, Captain?"
     "What do you want?!"
     "You didn't pay attention, Captain. I told you what I want."
     "Baltar, torturing prisoners is a violation of the treaty of
Nar`Tolan our people and the Cylons signed yahrens ago and you know it.
This is an outrage!"
     Baltar's mean laughter filled the room once more and had Apollo fall
quiet, eyes still furious.
     "Save you breath, Apollo. You are going to need it. And that nice
little speach you just gave is not going to get you anywhere. I bet,
Adama would be proud to see that his son turned into as big a fool as he
is. Aside of Adama himself only his son could seriously believe that
ridiculous treaty had ever been obeyed."
     He stopped for a micron and when the voice sounded from the speaker
again it had lost all friendliness.
     "You still don't understand, do you? This has nothing to do with the
war - this is between you and me, so stop playing the wise guy."
     Apollo turned half way around to point a hand at Starbuck, who was
still sitting on the floor, watching him and his fiercely conversation
with Baltar without interfering for once.   
     "If this is between you and me than what was that all about?!" 
     "I meant both of you, Captain. And besides, those electro-shocks
sure cooled the Lieutenant's temper, didn't they?"
     Apollo's eyes widened as he turned around to stare at the camera
over his head, not seeing Starbuck slowly rise from the floor.
     "Electro ... You didn't!" 
     "What is the problem, Captain? He is alive, isn't he?"
     At that moment Starbuck, who had approached the corner as well,
pushed Apollo out of the way and jumped up at the camera, slamming his
hand against it in a helpless attempt to pass his rage on to the person
who caused it.
     "You won't be, after I got my hands on you, Baltar! And if it's the
last thing I do."
     "Well, well, Lieutenant. Don't tell me that temper of yours is still
there. Maybe you want to meet some of my centurions again?"
     Even before he finished the sentence the door behind the two
warriors had slid open and four of the Cylon centurions appeared in the
room, the dim light reflecting from their silver armour. Both men slowly
turned their heads, as if they could prevent the Cylons from moving in on
them, if only they stood still. It might have worked with any wild
animal, but the only animal present was on the other side of that camera,
watching carefully what was going on in the prison cell and sneering to
himself. The machines following his orders didn't care whether or not the
two young men reacted to their presence in any way - they would carry out
what they were sent here to do, no matter what these weak and clearly
defeated humans would try to stop them.  
     Starbuck drew back against the wall as he saw the Cylons appraoch
him, his eyes widening with fear he was not able to conceal. 
     "Oh no, not again ..."
     Apollo looked at him from the side for a brief moment, reacting
instantly. He stepped between the Cylons and his friend, blocking their
way although it was clear to him that he couldn't possibly stop them.
Still he had to try.
     "Baltar!"
     He didn't turn around to face the camera behind him. His eyed were
pinned on the four Cylons who stopped a few steps before him. If a
reaction of any emotional kind wasn't out of the question Apollo would
have assumed that his move surprised them, but obviously they were merely
waiting for orders.
     "Baltar, I don't expect any fairness from you. If you want to carry
out your revenge, at least take turns."
     "NO!"
     Starbuck appeared at his side, looking Apollo in the eyes with a
determined expression. "No way, Apollo. It was my big mouth that got us
into this mess. I won't let you take responsibility for it. Forget it."
     Apollo didn't have a chance to reply. Without warning the door
behind the four centurions suddenly closed again. Almost instantly an
aggressive, hostile hissing was heard as an invisible gas was released
from small outlets in each of the four metal walls. The odor was sweet
and heavy. Both men held their breaths with a shock as their heads grew
dizzy. They started wondering whether or not the gas was poisonous to
them. The Cylons stood before  them, waiting and unaffected by the
chemical exhaustion.  
     They did not have to wait for long. After holding their breaths for
a few centons the lungs of the two warriors felt like they were about to
explode. The burning feeling of slow suffocation grew stronger with each
passing micron, agony showing only too clearly in their faces. They
realized their fight was useless. One way or the other, they were going
to die. As the pain grew unbearable, they hungrily gasp for air, filling
their aching lungs with oxygen, and with the unknown, possibly deadly gas
as well.
     They were unconscious even before their bodies hit the floor.

     Darkness. Again there was only darkness. Apollo opened his eyes
slowly, expecting to see an electrical device or some other torturing
machine, but only saw darkness. He sat upright and felt the floor below
him move instantly. For a few microns Apollo sat still, taking in several
deep breaths to clear his head and waited for the dizziness to pass.
Surprisingly he did not feel as bad as he had expected. Whatever that gas
had been, it had not done any harm as far as he could tell. Or did it?
The blackness around Apollo troubled him all of a sudden. He desperately
glanced around himself to find any kind of proof that. Wherever his
current position was, it was just dark. There was nothing wrong with his
eyes. The blackness was complete. Not a spot of light. Not a shadow.
Nothing. Panic struck him.
     "Starbuck?!"
     Apollo tried to stand up and felt the ground below him move again.
This was no dizziness, not a trick his mind was playing him. The ground
actually was moving! 
     "What in Kobol's name ... Starbuck, are you here?"
     "I'm afraid so," came the sarcastic voice of his friend from a near
distance.
     Apollo gave a relieved sigh. It wasn't helping his situation at all
to know that Starbuck was there with him. Still, he felt better for some
strange reason. 
     "Are you okay?"
     For a moment Starbuck did not answer like he was taking that
question into careful consideration. "I think so. I just wish Baltar
would finally figure out how to work the light controls of his basestar."
     The young Captain had to smile against his will. Starbuck's sense of
humor never seemed to fail. Even in the tightest situation, Starbuck
managed to lift everybody's spirit somehow. Again Apollo felt a thankful
feeling sweeping over him not to be alone in this situation, to have a
friend like Starbuck close by. Yet at the same moment he felt guilty
about getting him into this trouble. Asterion had been Apollo's mission,
his command, his responsibility. He had failed. His lack of precaution
may not only cost his own life, but Starbuck's as well.
     Apollo did not have the chance to continue this line of thought,
because at that moment lights flashed up again, too bright at first.
Slowly, they dimmed to a comfortable level. 
     "Like I said..." Starbuck started another sarcastic remark, but
stopped flabbergasted as he turned his head and became aware of his
surroundings.
     "Holy frack! What is this place?!"
     "Interesting, isn't it?"
     Baltar's voice behind him made Starbuck crane his neck, trying to
get a glance at the hated man, but his attempt failed. After he had
regained consciousness he had been laying still, alone with his thoughts
and mixed emotions, until Apollo had called out for him. Only now, as he
attempted to turn, Starbuck realized that he was unable to move his arms
and legs. Carefully he lifted his head and glanced down his body. His
wrists and feet had been shackled to a large and rather uncomfortable
table. Instantly his heartbeat increased again. Starbuck turned his head
to his left where he had heard Apollo's voice before. His eyes widened in
surprise. 
     The Captain had risen to his feet in the meantime and looked around
him with a confused expression as he discovered the secret behind the
moving ground below his feet. 
     The larger part of the room consisted of a rectangular pool that
seemed to be very much misplaced in the interior of a Cylon basestar. It
was filled with a dark liquid, its surface completely smooth like a
non-transparent, black mirror - hostile and threatening. Directly over
its center hung a cage, attached to the ceiling with a strong chain that
supported not only the cage's weight, but also that of the young Captain
inside. Apollo stood at the bars, the knuckles of his hands showing white
as he clung tight to them, rage showing in his face again. 
     "Baltar, what is this?" 
     Baltar sneered at him. "This is my latest invention, Captain. One I
designed especially for the two of you."
     "What an honor."
     Starbuck's sarcastic remark made Baltar turn to him, his smile
fading. "You will quit your wise cracks very soon, Lieutenant."
     Starbuck gave him a provoking laughter of which he knew that Baltar
hated it. "Wanna bet, Baltar?"
     "It might turn out you won't live to see the outcome, Lieutenant."
Baltar started sneering again. "You two are wasting your time." He moved
closer to the pool so both men could see him and the victorous grin he
flashed them. 
     "In a couple of centons that cage is automatically going to be
lowered into the pool."
     Baltar stopped to watch Apollo's reaction. He was happy to see it in
the Captain's eyes, although Apollo was carefully trying to hide it.
     "Don't look so shocked, Captain." Baltar pointed at the dark liquid
underneath the cage. "It may not look it, but it's just water. Clear,
cool, refreshing water. Of course, you are probably not going to enjoy it
that much once you start drowning, locked into that cage."
     "Damn you, Baltar. If you ..."
     "Lieutenant Starbuck. You can keep up making your remarks. I don't
even care. But it is your time, your chance you are waisting - not mine.
It's up to you."
     Apollo frowned. "What chance?"
     Baltar's grin widened. "So you are interested after all. Pay
attention. I am only going to explain this once! Look up, Captain. See
the rope that is running from the cage through that metal ring up on the
ceiling? There is a small metal detector attached to the rope on your
side of the ring. Once the cage starts lowering itself into the water, it
is your choice to stay inside or to use that knife you will find in the
back of the cage to cut the rope. Once it has been cut the weight on the
other side is going to pull it through the metal ring at the ceiling. On
passing it the detector is going to send a signal, opening the door of
the cage and you are free to go."
     Apollo stared at the sneering man before him in silence for a
moment. His frown remained. "What's the catch, Baltar?" 
     Baltar's evil laughter filled the room for a moment, resounding from
the metal walls and the high ceiling. "Easy, Captain. To make your
decision a little harder for you, we attached this large and extremly
sharp knife to the other end of the rope. At this moment it is pointing
right at the Lieutenant's heart. Your decision Captain. If you want to
save your life, you will have to sacrafice your friend."
     Starbuck stared at the object hanging underneath the high ceiling,
pointing directly at him. He had wondered what it was. Now that he knew,
he wished it would have remained a mystery. Starbuck felt his heart
beating hard against his ribs as he drew in a sharp breath, trying to
conceal his fear. 
     Before he or Apollo had the chance to say something, Baltar spoke
again. "You wanted fairness, Captain. Well, this is going to be more than
fair. A decision that difficult shouldn't be made by only one person.
That's why the Lieutenant gets the same chance. See, the problem is, if
neither of you makes his move by the time the cage has been lowered into
the water up to that red marking at the side, it's going to be too late
for both of you. The opening mechanism of the door is going to be
uneffective after that and the knife is going to be automatically
released a micron later. I just wanted to make sure one of you makes a
decision."
     "You are sick" Disgusted Apollo turned and stepped away from the
bars. The cage shifted under his movement, causing the chain and rope to
move as well.
      "Apollo, stand still, will ya?" Starbuck's eyes had widened in
shock as the knife above him started to swing due to the movement of the
rope. Apollo froze, glancing over his shoulder with wide eyes to watch
the swinging knife come to a halt eventually. Starbuck's relieved sigh
was unheard through Baltar's amused laughter as Apollo turned back around
as slowly and carefully as possible.
     "Not my fault, Captain. If you would just stand still and listen
like I told you to, this would not have happened."
     "Yes, Mom," Starbuck muttered behind him, making Baltar turn and
look at him with a rather cross expression.
     "You sure are a hard learner, Lieutenant. And a real pain on top of
it."
     "Oh, look who's talking," Starbuck snapped, but Baltar's attention
was drawn back to Apollo, who's voice was serious and yet calm as he
spoke.
     "What is going to happen to the one who stays alive?"
     For a moment there was silence. Baltar, who had opened his mouth to
reply, paused in the motion as he observed the glance the two warriors
cast each other. A glance he didn't like. Baltar was unable to read it,
unable to comprehend the intensity of emotions that lay in it. Emotions
he had never known, but those two seemed to share and understand without
words. An indignant expression flashed over his face as he stepped
forward, blocking the eye-contact between the two men, while he turned
around to face Apollo.
     "Exellent  question, Captain. Time is running out, so I make this
brief. You have my word that the survivor is going to be free to return
to the Galactica unharmed."
     "Oh, please, cut the felgercarb, Baltar." The tone of Starbuck's
voice had shifted from sarcasm to pure annoyed. "Do you really think we
believe that? Your word? Ridiculous!"
     Baltar rolled this eyes, not even turning to face the blond man
behind him. "You don't have much of a choice now, do you?" He gave an
unnerved sigh. "I shouldn't attach any personal favors to the outcome of
this little experiment, but you are sure not shifting the balance in your
favor, Lieutenant."
     Starbuck gave him a humorless laughter. "Funny, but you are not the
first to say that, Baltar."
     "In any case, I will let the survivor walk free, which is going to
serve my purpose just as well. If you don't make a decision you are both
going to die, which I personally won't shed a tear over. If one of you
makes his move, even better. I'll get rid of the other one and the
survivor will have to live with the guilt of killing his best friend to
save his own pathetic life for the rest of his days."
     Baltar started laughing again, the kind of laughter that sent
shivers down the spines of the two warriors. Baltar had turned his head
to give Starbuck one of his derisive smiles, which Starbuck returned with
one of his provocative and disrespectful grins - a silent duel that none
of the two was able to determine in his favor. When the older man turned
back to Apollo he saw him glancing around, obviously observing the device
Baltar invented very thoroughly. 
     "You can look, but you won't find a flaw, Captain. It is perfect.
And of course it has been tested before. Unfortunately the outcome was
always more than disappointing. The prisoners we put in here didn't know
each other and couldn't care less about the other one. Not one ever
hesitated to sacrifice the other's life to save his own skin. Human
nature, I suppose. But with you two it might be more interesting. Back in
the cell you were both willing to stand up for each other, although you
knew exactly what you would have to go through. A good example for the
good old, foolish code of honor among Colonial Warriors."
     "What do you know?" Starbuck's voice was bitter and only caused
Baltar's grin to widen. 
     "I know one thing, Lieutenant. Giving you both the same chance,
causing the same conflict in you over the decision to be made is going to
be more than entertaining. When the cage starts lowering itself into the
pool, the shackles on your right foot and hand will be released. You are
then free to get up and open those on your left side to leave the table
before the knife comes falling down. The downside is, the moment your
weight is not evenly spread on that table, a mechanism is going to
release the chain that is holding the cage. Its weight will pull it under
water before you had the time to free both hands to wave good-bye to our
good Captain here." 
     Starbuck's voice was furious as he replied, "If I had both of my
hands free, I would use them to strangle you, you bastard."
     "And if I knew he even stood half a chance to succeed, I would even
encourage him to do it."
     Baltar's smile remained as he looked from one warriors to the other.
"You oughta hear yourselves. And you call ME crazy?" He started laughing
at the furious faces before him, then turned and walked towards the door.
On reaching it, Baltar stopped and turned around once again. "I leave you
two alone now, since you have a rather serious matter to discuss, I'm
afraid. Have fun, gentlemen. I  know, I sure will." Once again this
derisive laughter resounded through the large hall and the aisles of the
basestar long after the door had slid close behind him.
     There was silence, a complete and threatening silence, the still
before the storm. 
     The two young men looked at each other, both waiting for the other
one to say something, both searching for the words and failing. What was
there to say in a definite and hopeless situation as that? Finally
Starbuck turned his head to stare up at the shining object hanging over
him and broke the silence at last. 
     "Oh, frack!"
     A brief smile flashed over Apollo's pale face. "Somehow I knew you
were going to say that."
     "Couldn't think of anything more apt to describe the situation."
Starbuck paused for a micron. He drew in a deep breath and turned his
head again to face his friend, who was returning his glance with a
worried expression. The blond man's voice was steady as he spoke, but his
eyes gave a lie to the confidence he was trying to show.
     "All right, Captain. There's got to be a way to trick this witty
little device. After all - Baltar invented it, so it can't be that
ingenious." He said it load and defying, knowing that Baltar was
listening, and grinned to himself as he imagined the indignant face the
older man was probably giving at this moment.
     "Starbuck!" Apollo's voice was harsh and yet sounded tired. Tired of
Starbuck's teasing and provoking in a situation that was far too serious
for such flippant behavior. He knew that Starbuck was aware just as well
that the situation was hopeless. Apollo wanted him to accept it, to give
it some thought instead of wasting their precious centons. "Stop it, will
ya! Even if this device had a flaw and we were able to trick it, Baltar
would never let both of us go."
     Starbuck's expression was furious as he glanced around in a helpless
rage. "I know that, Apollo! Damned, don't you think I know that? One more
reason to have some fun for as long as possible."
     "What's the fun in making it even worse by getting Baltar angry?"
     "Worse? How could it possibly get any worse?"
     Apollo drew in a deep breath and tried to calm down, before he
replied, "Exactly, Starbuck."
     For a moment Apollo fell silent and stared down at the dark pool
below his feet, without really seeing it. When he raised his head again
Starbuck was staring at the ceiling, his face pale and serious.
     "Isn't it funny, Apollo, how you can spend yahrens with a person,
day by day, so much time. And still you never seem to take the time to
say all the things that you would like to say. You always figure there is
plenty of time for that later and then find yourself at a point where
there is no time at all anymore."
     Apollo looked at him with a sympathetic expression, surprised to
hear something that emotional from his usually so cocky friend. "It's all
right, Starbuck. I am sure Cassi knows how you feel."
     Starbuck continued to stare at the ceiling. "I wasn't talking about
Cassi."
     For a brief moment a confused expression flashed over the Captain's
face, then he understood. The puzzled expression was replaced by a
touched one as he realized the true meaning of his friend's words and
despite the serious situation a warm smile appeared on his handsome
features.
     For a few moments there was only silence between them - a silence
that was not awkward, but was filled with the thoughts and emotions of
two friends, who knew how much they ment to each other without having to
say the words. After these microns had past in stillness, Starbuck turned
his head again to meet Apollo's eyes just as the Captain was about to
reply after all.
     He never did.
     A load, squeeking, metallic sound had them freeze, eyes widening
with surprise and fear. Cog-wheels and chains moved. Then with a jolt,
the cage started moving and slowly lowered itself towards the dark, still
surface of the pool.
     Starbuck raised his head and stared at the dark-haired man, who's
eyes were fixed on the steadily approaching water surface. "Apollo?!"
     Fear swung in his voice that clearly expressed the pressure they
were both under. 
     Time was running out and they had to make that decision - a decision
that would mean certain death for one of them. But if they didn't decide
soon, they both would have to face death. And still, wouldn't that be the
easier way to go? 
     Apollo raised his head again and looked at the blond man with a
determined expression. "Starbuck, get off that table!"
     Starbuck's eyes widened and a moment he just stared at his friend in
shock. A stern expression appeared on his face as he returned the
determined look. "No way, Captain. You get out of that cage first."
     "What do you mean 'first'? If I open this door that knife is going
to kill you, remember?"
     Starbuck lowered his eyes before he softly replied, "It's kinda hard
to miss that little detail, you know." The blond man glanced up to the
shining object over his head and looked back at the Captain, who cast him
a cross glance.
     "Starbuck, I mean it! Get off!"
     "If you think that I am going to get out of here to tell Adama that
we lost you because of my selfishness, you are crazy." He wanted it to
sound like a joke, but his unsteady voice failed him. 
     The stern expression on the Captain's face remained. Apollo took in
a deep breath as he still clung tight to the bars of the moving cage.
"Look, Lieutenant, I don't mean to pull ranks on you, but if I have to, I
am going to order you to get off that table."
     A humorless and yet wide grin flashed over Starbuck's pale face.
"And what good is that gonna do you? Look who you are talking to. You
know, I never hesitated to disobey stupid orders. I am sure as hell not
going to stop now."
     "Starbuck!"
     "No! You don't understand, do you?  Only one of us is going to get
out of here! Now whom do you think the fleet needs more? The reckless,
unrestrained gambler or Adama's son and probable future Commander? Think
about it, Apollo!"
     The bottom of the cage touched the surface of the water and sent
little circles of waves through the former smooth liquid. Apollo stared
at his feet for a micron, then lifted his head again to look at the
stubborn Lieutenant with a sigh.
     "And what kind of commanding officer would I be saving my own skin
and sacrificing a subordinate ..."
     "Stop that military felgercarb, for Sagan's sake! I am not a
subordinate. It's me, Starbuck! Your friend Starbuck, remember?"
Starbuck's eyes looked furious as he cut the dark-haired man short.
     Apollo's reply wasn't less harsh. "You don't have to remind me,
Starbuck! God, if it was anybody else, I wouldn't decide in any other way
than I just have. Since you are concerned, I don't even have to think
about it."
      "Don't think about me, Apollo. There is nobody back home waiting
for me. But you have a family! What about your father, Athena and Boxey?
Especially Boxey? He already lost his mother. He is not going to lose his
father, too."
     Once again the young Captain lowered his eyes to watch the water
slowly rise. It reached up to his knees now, clear and cold, and had him
shiver. He wasn't sure it was the liquid's temperature that sent the
shivers up his spine as he looked at his friend again and met Starbuck's
determined glance. 
     Sadly he sighed. "Boxey is going to be fine. He still has my dad,
Athena, Cassi ... and you, if you would just listen to what I am saying.
It is for Boxey as well that I am doing this. How could I ever face him
or anyone else again, if I decided selfishly in my favor?"
     Starbuck clenched his fists, helplessly. "Nobody is going to know
about it. And nobody will have to know what really happened, for crying
out loud."
     "But I would know! I could never live with that on my conscience."
     The young Lieutenant gave a humorless laughter. "At least you have
one. Without you I don't even have that." 
     For the flash of a micron Apollo had to smile against his own will.
His face turned serious again as he watched the surface of the water
reach his waist and continue to rise. For a long moment Apollo just
stared at his friend, who returned the glance without blinking just once.
Finally the Captain spoke again, his voice soft and sad.
     "Is there anything I can say to convince you to get off that table?"
     Starbuck smiled at him weakly. "Nope. And you wouldn't be asking if
you didn't already know."
     Apollo nodded. "I know. You are just as stubborn as ..."
     "Ahahah, spare me the friendly, little insults, all right? Besides,
didn't I tell you before that I can't stand you going anywhere without
me?"
     Another smile flashed over Apollo's pale face. "Aren't you
exaggerating things a little bit now?"
     Starbuck returned the smile. "Exaggeration is my second name, you
know."
     Apollo shifted his weight from one foot to the other and
unintentionally caused the water surface to move. Small waves rebounced
from the edges of the pool and washed back against the cage and the chest
of the young man inside. 
     Starbuck's eyes widened in shock. "Be careful! Those waves almost
reached up to that red marking."
     Apollo was totally calm as he returned his glance and answered
softly. "Does it matter? In a few moments the water is going to reach it
anyway. Holding still is only going to postpone the inevitable,
Starbuck." 
     The blond man turned his head and looked at the knife underneath the
high ceiling, pointing at his chest, just waiting to being released. He
took in a deep breath, realizing only too well that it may be one of his
last, before he answered.
     "Well, I guess there is a first time for everything, right? Even a
broken heart..."
     This time Apollo did not smile. He felt an unconfortable knot
building in his throat and felt the familiar burning of tears building in
his eyes. He tried to swallow them down, but was only half successful. A
single tear ran down Apollo's cheek, wet and warm, but he didn't care.
     He and Starbuck had been friends for so long, had been through so
many tight situations together, had shared so many happy and sad moments.
Looking back Apollo could hardly recall a single memory that didn't
included Starbuck in any way. He had often wondered when and how it would
end, but never thought it would be so soon and like this. They had been
defeated by the Cylons after all. Even worse by the vicious traitor
Baltar, who's betrayal had already taken their homes and dear friends and
family members from them. To face his own death at the hands of this man
now would have been easier for Apollo if he had known that at least
Starbuck was going to survive. Live to take care of his little son, ease
his father's loss just a little, fight for the survival of their people,
and to take revenge some day, somehow.
     "Hey, buddy?" Starbuck's voice was low and actually sounded
defeated. All his flippant behavior had disappeared. For once in his life
he was completely serious as the realization had finally struck him, that
this really was the end. Whatever his dreams and hopes for the future had
been, few that he had had, they were about to die with him. Starbuck
wasn't afraid to die. All he felt was sorrow, sorrow for all the things
he never did, never said, never saw. All the chances he had missed. All
the things in his life that were left unfinished. It would have been so
much easier to go now, if he had known that Apollo was going to return
home to finish them for him. 
     "Yes, Starbuck?"
     "Do you believe something is going to be there after ... I mean, you
know ..." He stopped helplessly as words failed him. 
     To his own surprise Apollo had to smile and felt a warm feeling
rushing through his body despite the cold water that reached up to his
shoulders already. "I know there is, Starbuck."
     "How can you be so sure?"
     "It's everything I have always believed in. And what meaning would
our entire existence have, if there wasn't more after our death? Besides,
I have been there. Remember? And although I can't remember, I still know.
I feel it, Starbuck" 
     The blond man didn't answer, but his rapid breathing eased. Apollo
could almost see one of Starbuck's famous wide grins, although it wasn't
showing on his face. Still he knew it was there.
     Slowly Starbuck turned his head back to look over to his friend, who
was trying to keep his head above water that now reached up to his chin.
The Lieutenant's voice was surprisingly calm as he spoke. "It almost
reaches the red marking, Apollo. Just another centimetron."
     "I know, Starbuck. - I see you later then, huh?"
     "I'll be there, buddy." 
     For a short moment they just looked at each other. Simultaneously
warm smiles spread over their faces. They continued to smile at each
other until the water finally reached the marking at the side of the
cage. The mechanism was triggered that released the knife above
Starbuck's head and the strong chain that up until then had held the cage
above water.
     It was over fast for both of them.

     Baltar hit the control panel in front of him and the large screen
before his eyes went black. He could hardly control his rage. 
     "Lucifer!!"
     A moment later the IL-series Cylon entered the room and slowly
approached him, the lights in his transparent bulklike head flashing
incessantly. He came to a halt, while the two red beams that functioned
as his eyes moved slowly and simulaniously from side to side, and waited.
Lucifer carefully kept a precautionary distance. He was well familiar
with the human's temper and his sometimes unpredictable actions. Usually
Baltar took that anger out on him. Although he had never been able to
cause much damage to the machine, Lucifer preferred to stay out of reach
as he noticed Baltar's furious look.
     "By your command."
     "They did it again! They really did it again."
     Lucifer tilted his head slightly to one side. "Who did what,
Baltar?"
     The older man's eyes seemed to send laserbeams in Lucifer's
direction as he looked furiously at his subordinate. "You know very well
whom I am talking about!"
     "Oh, your two young friends again?"
     Lucifer's voice was soft, velvety, without emotions. Still it always
sounded slightly ironical to Baltar. He hated that voice, he hated the
entire creature. One of these days, Baltar silently swore to himself. He
was going to do some serious damage to him.
     "Lucifer, one more of your ironic remarks and you are nothing more
than spare parts!"
     The robot put his hands together and bowed slightly forward, while
his head tilted into an upright position again. "May I assume today's
little experiment didn't go to your satisfaction?"
     "Yes, you may, you poor excuse for a computer. YOU invented this
simulator and this was the third time I had the program run with Apollo
and Starbuck. But no matter what the starting situation is, the outcome
is always the same. They just won't make that desicion. What did you do
wrong?"
     "With all due respect, there is nothing wrong with my program! I
programmed the characters precisely after the information we have on
these two warriors. That information determines their behavior patterns
during the simulation."
     Baltar turned around on his heals and made a step into Lucifer's
direction. He was satisfied to see the robot taking a step back. For a
moment his usual sneering smile appeared on his face again.
     "I will prove to you that it is all your fault, Lucifer. One day
we'll find Adama's pathetic fleet. The day will come that I'll get my
hands on his son and Lieutenant Starbuck. And when that day comes, I will
be ready, Lucifer. The machine I invented is prepared for them. I'll show
you that even colonial warriors are selfish and weak when it comes to
saving their own lives."
     He fell silent and smiled to himself, lost in the imagination of his
revenge. One day. 
     Lucifer watched him for a brief moment. In the depth of his memory
banks he suddenly saw the image of Lieutenant Starbuck before him. The
only human besides Baltar that he had ever the possibility to spend some
time with and watch very carefully. Although he would never admit it,
Lucifer had been impressed by the man. Yes, he had almost liked that
brave, young warrior and had seen qualities in him that he had never
experienced around Baltar. 
     Even colonial warriors are selfish and weak when it comes to saving
their own lives.
     "I wonder," he muttered to himself.
     "Did you say something?" Baltar turned to him again and watched him
suspiciously.
     "I only said, you are probably right, Baltar. I cannot wait for that
day."
     The older man frowned, once again not sure if Lucifer was serious or
merely making fun of him. Then again he wasn't even sure the Cylon knew
the meaning of the word fun. Feeling his patience once again subsiding,
Baltar made a sharp motion with his hand to show Lucifer the door.
     "Get out. As usual you are no help at all. But I want that simulator
checked. That program is not running properly."
     Lucifer almost sighed. "Of course, Baltar. By your command." Slowly
he turned around and left the room to leave Baltar to himself. If humor
had been one of his programs, Lucifer would have smiled to himself now.
He almost regreted the lack of that ability. As the automatic door closed
behind him he decided to add that program to his data banks as soon as
possible.
     Alone in his control center Baltar stared at the black screen for a
long moment. Abruptly he reached out and hit one of the controls on the
large panel while an evil smile spread over his face once again.
     "One day, Adama, one day. And when we meet again, I will be
prepared."
     He sat down in a large, comfortable chair in front of the screen and
watched the computer program restart.
     In the dark interior of a Cylon prison cell Captain Apollo glanced
around himself and tried to get a clear view of his surroundings. "How do
we always get into this mess?"

               - The End -