Part 3 Battlestar Galactica: Back To The Colonies: Kepler 452b

Chapter 3

III

Six Months Later, August 2046

"Attention citizens of the fleet, this is The Governor. As you know, we have arrived at what is known on Earth as Kepler 452b. And as all of you are aware, we have determined that this is the planet "Earth" that Cylon Humanoids called home thousands of Earth years ago", he said with deliberate dispassion in his voice.

"Many of you have been here before, many years ago, and I understand that that experience was not a pleasant one; but as part of our charter, we are to explore any planet that could support Human life. This one currently cannot, due to radiation levels, but someday it may be able to do so."

"In the spirit of our mission charter, we are going to be here for several weeks to survey and chart this planet as thoroughly as we can, so that our posterity may have as much information on this place, in the event that, someday, Human Beings might settle here.

"We have restricted access to the planet to actual UED personnel, due to the radiation levels, but as and if we find anything of importance, we will share it with the citizens of the fleet. Thank you very much for your attention."

He turned to Caprica at her post in CIC, "Admiral, let's get this mission underway", he said in his best command voice.

"Aye, Admiral." Five minutes later, Lee Adama set the coordinates for high orbit around the former Cylon world, and the survey mission began.
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While most of the planet mapping was being done from the air, by Raptors from different altitudes, Justin Bond went to the surface. Partly out of sheer curiosity; partly out of the need to learn; and in large part, in a hope to maybe find out more about what his daughter had gone through the first time she had been here.

The Governor, along with Caprica, Gaius, Galen, and Kara had landed on the surface on the second day. As the Raptors buzzed overhead, some near the surface, and some up to as high as one-hundred thousand feet above the planet surface, the landing party did a little surveying with their eyes. Justin Bond had seen the devastation on countless planets back home after the Earth-Cylon war, but nothing had prepared him for seeing it on such a scale.

"God Almighty", he whispered, shortly after touching down, and looking over the ocean of water towards what had been a major city to his West. "There's barely a stone left on a stone here."

"That's about the size of it, sir", Galen Tyrol looked around at his long-ago home. "The war was so sudden and complete that no one had a chance-except for those of us who had been part of the Resurrection project."

For the first time, Justin Bond didn't look at Galen quite as a man, but as something that he couldn't even fathom: a man who had lived around the time of Christ, and was still alive today. It didn't change his estimation of the kind of man Galen was, but it changed his perspective on "The Chief" in some ways.

"And from what you told me years ago, Galen, you had quite literally five seconds to take in what happened?"

"Yes, sir. I was at a market getting some fruit and vegetables; I saw the blinding light...and after that, I simply remember being on the Colonies all those years." The Governor shook his head and clasped the man on his shoulder. Galen smiled, "Believe me, sir, I still don't understand all of it, either, so don't feel so bad." That made the Governor smile.

About thirty feet away, Caprica was looking out over the devastation that she had laid eyes on so many years before, but the Governor could tell her mind wasn't on the destruction, but on her Cylon sister, who he was sure had died here many years ago. He went over to her.