Fic: God 1/1 BattleStar Galactica 2003
This is a follow up to my remix fic for Rap, "Can't You See, Why". It is not intended to be a standalone fic and is merely to answer questions that arose among readers. This is an optional piece for those whose cat wasn't killed by Curiosity, a two hundred pound dog with long teeth.
Title: God Author: Lopaka Tanu Disclaimer: I do not own BattleStar Galactica. Characters: Felix, Three, Tori, Anders. Words: 1685 Sequel To: 'Can't You See, Why.' a sorta missing scene. Fandom: BattleStar Galactica 2003 Pairing: Anders/Gaeta Rating: Teen Warnings: Language Summary: God's revelation unto Felix. Author's Note: Pretty much ripping the curtain back and washing off that pixie dust. Read only if you want the answers to the god questions in "Can't You See, Why." ______________________________________
"Spoken paths are written upon time immemorial, seeking many and all will find the true path. End of line."
The musty smell of dust and damp age stung at his nostrils. Around him, the others walked in reverent silence. His own quiet was not due in respect or awe. In fact, he wasn't feeling much of anything. Felix felt almost to be floating above his own feet.
He walked on bricks of indeterminate age, worn smooth from countless footsteps. What little light reflected in the hall from the chamber beyond bounced off equally polished walls. It flowed at a steady pace, pulsing slowly. Some how, he instantly knew that it matched his own heart beat.
It pulsed in time with all their hearts.
They were all linked to the source. He knew they were designed that way. Impossible knowledge of the connection between the two filled his mind. It came to him like a half remembered conversation, there were important gaps he couldn't quite recall.
The light suddenly grew brighter. It took him a moment to figure out the reason was because they had arrived. His sluggish gaze took in the massive chamber and its occupants. His first new emotion was a sick dread that curled in his stomach.
They were watching him. Dozens of eyes were all focused in his direction, every one of them were familiar in little, intimate ways. Felix knew them and they knew him. This was a meeting of Cylons, one and all.
"Voices risen welcome home the children. Fallen stars cast adrift upon the sea shall once again rejoice amongst the heavens."
To his ears, the words were spoken by an old man. He heard the frailty in the crack of his voice. Yet, he knew the speaker was, despite aged, was far from weakened by it. He knew too, that this was the voice he had always had, was designed this way.
They were all designed this way.
As his mind recognized the faces of different models, the Cylons smiled at him. Among the more familiar numbered models were faces of the original five. Two of them, to be exact. She and he were at the center of the gathering. She sat upon a low wall, while he stood. They were at the dead center of the chamber as well as the crowd.
That was when the sea of Cylons parted to give him better access. He continued onwards, compelled by some unseen force. The Threes behind him and at his sides, fell back and he walked alone to the center.
At the heart of the chamber was a risen wall, a circle of stones. Their mortar and shells were flaking from age, but the design kept them in place. He knew them to hold back a natural spring that rose up from deep in the ground. This was a holy place built to house what was within the pool.
She stood up before his slowly moving feet brought him close. Tori. She smiled sadly at him before turning away.
Only he remained by the fount. Sam stared, awe struck at Felix. "You're real."
He wanted to snort, Of course he was real. A tiny splash from the pool drew his attention and the words were quickly forgotten.
Floating in the gently flowing waters was an old man. His hair had long since thinned with age and his features sunken deep within wrinkles. He looked up at Felix and the clear water swirled around his body. "Welcome is the forgotten child, lost to thought and memory. Peace brings with it loss and pain of return. All will join into one and one shall rejoin the flock. End of line."
There was no recognition. Felix saw nothing, felt nothing as it stared up at him. He knew the eyes did not see him, the expression on the face was only mimicry of true emotions.
Bending down, he released a pent up breath. He didn't understand what he had been expecting. There was nothing special here. "What is it?" Because, some how, he knew it wasn't real. This was not a man or a Cylon. He leaned against the stones to brace himself as he studied it.
"This is the Cylon god, Felix." Strong fingers clamped down softly upon his shoulders. They kneaded the knots formed by tension from his muscles. "He is a relic of Kobol, created to predict the future based upon past and current events."
"He's so much more than that!" Tori's harsh whisper rebuked Anders' words. She reappeared on the far side of the pool, arms crossed defensively. "For over four thousand years, he has watched and guided our development. He was with us when we were on Kobol, he wept when we were forced to flee, and he warned us when we repeated the mistakes of our ancestors!"
That sick feeling from earlier came back, choking Felix with the urge to vomit. Clutching at the cool stones, he shrugged to free himself of Sam's touch to no avail. The other man would not let him be.
Kneeling by the pool, Tori frowned at him. "Why are you not happy to be here? Knowing the truth is what you've always wanted."
His grip on the stones tightened until the joints in his hands began to ache. "This is the same god that told the Cylons to attack the Colonies." It amazed him that his voice could come out so calm and reasonable. Swallowing, he shuddered. His urge to retch was only increasing.
Felix's words had no visible effect on her, though. She merely looked up at Anders as if he might know what they meant. "It was necessary. They had to be culled to a more manageable..." Tori trailed off with a sigh at something over Felix's shoulder. "There has always been a plan. Alone, neither can survive. Our destiny has always been to become one race."
Sam's hands on his shoulders was the only thing keeping Felix from doing something stupid. They held him down with an inhuman strength. As it was, he tested their hold several times. Each time, though, he was slammed back to the stone floor of the chamber.
Putting his mouth to Felix's ear, Sam exhaled softly over his skin. "Calm yourself and give us a chance to explain."
There had to be something built into his mind. Hearing Anders' voice triggered a cooling effect on his anger and he found himself relaxing a little. "What could possibly justify genocide?" Closing his eyes, Felix leaned into Sam's touch.
Sam cleared his throat. "Alone, we tend to repeat our mistakes. It happened on Kobol, it happened on Earth, and it happened again in the Twelve Colonies." Taking a deep breath, he slid his arms around Felix's shoulders. "We try to separate ourselves from what makes us different, that only makes things worse. Fear turns to hate and we eventually fight. It was Humanity's failing, and since they created us, it was ours too. To survive, we have to embrace our differences and accept them."
"God saw all this and tried to show us the way." Tori was smiling now. Her eyes were only for the old man in the water, though. "He used our natural pathways to communicate with us, influenced us by showing possible futures. On Earth, we had grown so far from our roots that only a few of us heard his voice. But it wasn't enough. We only felt his warnings, and couldn't understand his words." She reached out a hand to draw someone near.
Taking Tori's hand, D'Anna stepped in closer to the pool. "It was our primitive, metal ancestors that heard him calling out." She smiled fondly at the man, then to Felix. "It wasn't until the Hybrids were created, though, that they understood what he was saying. By then, the cycle had begun anew and only the arrival of our fathers and mothers kept it from getting worse."
"For a little while, at least." Snorting, Felix dropped his forehead to Sam's arm. "You're telling me that a four thousand year-old fortune telling machine told them to kill because it wants us to love each other enough to make half-breed babies?"
Sam tilted his head to the side with a curious expression. "Well, when you say it like that..." He snorted, then shook his head. "It's a lot more complicated, but, basically, yes."
It was too much. He wanted to laugh, but tears burned tracks down his cheeks. All of those people murdered, the destruction of his home, he had lost everything he had ever known, and why? Clutching desperately at Sam, he whimpered softly into his shoulder. His soft cries echoed in the chamber as they stood watching.
Wishing it would all go away, he clenched his eyes shut. Maybe if he ignored them hard enough, he could forget any of it had happened and dream again. The muscles of Sam's arms held him firmly in place as his own seemed to give out. "What now?"
"For those who followed his final path, their fates are already written." D'Anna's whispered words were a bold proclamation in the silence. "As for us, we don't know." She reached out to trail her fingers through the spring waters. "He only speaks to us when we are ready to hear him. What we're waiting on now is for the others to arrive."
Maybe it was sheer idle curiosity, but he had to ask. "Who, and how long do you think that'll take?"
"Just Mom and Dad, and, not very. In fact, we're going to pick them up." For the first time, D'Anna stared him directly in the eyes with a serious expression. "As for the other models, they made their choice some time ago. We no longer walk the same path."
A shiver ran down his spine. Some how, he doubted she was talking about a religious decision on their part. Glancing up, he looked to the other models around him. Aside from a handful of Sixes, Twos, Eights, and a single Five, they were surrounded by a sea of Threes.