[WarMachine]

Greets All!

This is my first real BSG fanfic. I'm posting the first part in pieces here, as I don't want to store it on my PC at work.....

Comments are invited....

WM

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Part 1

ABOARD THE BATTLESTAR PEGASUS

The Yahren 7346, Molokay System


Betrayed.

The thought thundered through Commander Cain's mind like a Viper's engines on turbothrust. Someone had betrayed them.

Cain was on the high platform of the Pegasus' bridge, looking over Colonel Tolan's shoulder at the data feed from the sensor pit. Off their starboard/stern quarter, the screen was filled with targets.

Cain had been selected to form and lead the Fifth Fleet to relieve Molokay. The Molok's were the Colonies' sometime ally in the never-ending war with the Cylon Empire; once it was clear that the Cylons were moving to destroy them, the Molok's had sent frantic messages to the Colonies, begging for help.

The Council of the Twelve had sent Cain, the Colonies' greatest living military Commander. Cain accepted that title as a simple matter of course; his Caprican friend, Adama, ackowledged that Cain was a better war-leader, although it hurt his pride to do so. Adama was a good fighter, in Cain's opinion, but his main interest was in politics.

And now someone, someone interested in politics, had betrayed the Fifth Fleet.

A voice whispered in his head: Now you know what defeat is. Yes, Cain thought bitterly. Yes I do. "Tolan," Cain said, biting back the bile, "general order, all ships: scatter drill."

Tolan looked up from his station in shock. "Sir?"

"You heard me, Tolan. It's a trap. Tell the transports to break and hide at top speed, then head for the nearest jump point. Signal to all Battlestars: form on the Pegasus,and accelerate to flank."

"Yes, Sir," Tolan replied grimly.

A lot of my people are going to die, this day, Cain thought. Someone is going to pay for this...and I don't care how long it takes.

With great difficulty, he pushed from his mind thoughts of his daughter -- out there, leading her wing.

*****

The battle was a forgone conclusion; the Cylon attack fleet was huge, the largest Cain had ever seen in one place in his entire career as a Warrior.

No fewer than thirteen Basestars had been hiding in the shadow of a massive, heavily-ringed gas giant, safe from the Fleet's scanners. They had revealed themselves, disgorging Raider craft by the hundreds, and were bearing down on the helpless transports.

The four Colonial Battlestars, led by the Pegasus, spread out into a roughly parallel course, all four on a roughly even plane of advance, and hurtled towards their old enemy.

Cain was unsettled; nothing about this was right. The Cylons didn't typically hold anything back in their attacks. This time, however, the Cylons were keeping about one fourth of their Raider units back, protecting the Baseships.

That was frakking strange; Cain could not recall such a thing ever having been reported. The tactic was similar to the Colonials' own practice.

Felgercarb. This was forcing him to commit the entirety of his Viper reserves to punch through their Raider line -- leaving another Raider line for them to deal with.

"Tolan, signal to all Battlestars: all Viper wings are to stay as close as possible to their parent Battlestars - they are not to pursue Raiders out of range."

"Yes, Sir," Tolan replied stolidly. Beneath his veneer, he was scared; this was bigger than anything in his worst nightmares. "Lead Viper elements will engage Cylon fleet screen in 3 microns."

"Understood," Cain replied.

Frak.

*****

The bridge of the Pegasus was bathed in the blood-red light from the battle lanterns; smoke coursed through the bridge - the atmo-cycling system was barely running. The Battlestars had all taken severe damage already...and had only just reached the Cylon line.

"Status?", Cain asked calmly. It was strange: right now, he would usually be shouting.

"All Battlestars have taken heavy damage, Sir," Tolan replied. "Pallas reports her Alpha landing bay completely destroyed; Bucephalus has fires out of control and burning towards their main energizers; Medusa reports heavy damage to Beta landing bay, fires burning, but under control."

"The Cylons?"

Tolan paused. "Sir...it looks like their flank squadrons are splitting off..."

"Are they trying to flank us?"

"Uh, I don't think so, Sir. They appear to be heading away from the line at a 90° angle, relative."

Which meant that the transports were dead - the Baseships were scattering to plug the system's other jump points, and the transports would be helpless against a Basestar. Cain sighed - inwardly. No need to upset Tolan anymore than he already was. "All ships, maintain course. Hurt them...And ready evasion slugs, if possible." An invention of his: it would send out multi-spectral bursts of interferance that should blind Cylon sensors long enough for them to escape.

"Yes, Sir."

If they could escape.

*****