Chapter 16 "The Siege, Part 3: Our Brothers in Arms" is now available. It forms the third part of the chapter set related to The Siege of Pergamos.

Trapped on the besieged planet, Rascal and the other Marines scout the city for food supplies, materiel and information. Rascal uncovers a horrific place as he learns about the actions of the territorial governor, Cormorante.

The chapter is rated TV 14 for war violence and bleak situations. I hope you continue to find the novel to be a worthwhile read.

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Click on the link in the blog header to read the chapter, or click on the link in the first paragraph of this blog post. If you can't see the hyperlinked index, click on the Profile tab on this page. That will reveal the blog header, which contains the hyperlinked index.

Like previous chapters, Chapter 16 was too long to fit in a single blog post. The index hyperlink takes you to the 1st part. At the end of that part, click on the link to go directly to the 2nd part. At the end of the 2nd part, click on the link to go directly to the 3rd part. This is the third consecutive chapter that I had to post across three separate blog entries due to the length.

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I would appreciate notification if any non-CNET Entertainment website or other publication uses any of this material without the express permission of the TV.com user known as 123home123 (or 123home-BSG). These stories should not be re-posted by other users in their blogs, nor should they be re-posted in whole by other users on any forum. This prohibition includes the TV.com forums, the GameSpot forums and any forums related to any Battlestar Galactica union on GameSpot. Thank you.

Recovery crews tried to search through the rubble but without heavy equipment, they couldn't reach the subterranean levels. Some of the Marines and soldiers suggested that a security zone be established in the city if there were Cylons inside the city walls. Captain Heller realized this would be impractical. The arrangement and location of the prisons meant that no security zone could be established, not one large enough to accommodate all of the troops and friendly survivors. Instead, Heller increased the number of guards around the base camp and the sleeping quarters. The guards would continue to work in shifts to ensure round-the-clock coverage.

Heller summoned Rascal to his temporary office.

"Private Scalliant reporting, sir."

"At ease, Scalliant. I heard about your actions at the prison building."

"Yes sir," Rascal said with a hint of worry.

"Nothing wrong, Scalliant. We've had to improvise a command hierarchy here on Pergamos since we lost quite a few officers in the initial battle. We need more leaders so as of now, I'm promoting you to lieutenant. I don't have any rank insignia to make this formal, but I'll announce the promotion to the other Marines."

"Thank you, sir. Anything else, sir?"

Yes, lieutenant." Heller emphasized the word 'lieutenant.' "I'd like you and Lt. Graydon to debrief the freed prisoner. He seems to trust you. Graydon has a non-threatening manner. Do you know her?"

"Only in passing, sir."

"Well, introduce yourself and then talk to our guest when he's ready. Confirm his statement about Cormorante and get all the details you can. Dismissed, lieutenant."

***

"Pleased to meet you, Lieutenant Scalliant."

"Oh, I see Captain Heller told you, Lt. Graydon. It's kind of strange being a lieutenant, all of a sudden."

"I heard that you were the one who found our guest."

"Our team did. I don't remember if he told me his name. We saw a lot of action in that building."

"So I've heard. I think he's ready for the debriefing. Let's try to take it slow and easy with him. Draw him out gradually."

"Sounds like a good plan."

Rascal and Lt. Graydon entered the interview room. The Marine had been cleaned up and provided with water and hot meals. Rascal saw the difference in his attitude although his eyes still showed the twitchiness and constant fear of a man who had been subjected to torture.

"Hello, sir. Remember me? My name is Lt. Roland Scalliant. My friends call me Rascal."

Lt. Graydon raised an eyebrow.

"It's a play on my name, Nikolai R. Scalliant," Rascal said to Lt. Graydon.

He turned to the Marine again. "This is Lt. Graydon. You can call her Lt. Graydon."

Lt. Graydon looked askance at Rascal, but then she noticed that the Marine almost broke into a smile. Good, she thought. Use humor to draw him out of his shell.

"Sorry about that. I just met Lt. Graydon myself. Do you feel up to answering some questions?"

The Marine nodded. "Uh, yes sir. Yeah, I can do that."

"Great," Graydon said. "It may go easier if you can tell us your name too."

"Perry. Lt. Roan Perry."

Rascal and Graydon helped Perry to open up and trust them. After chit-chatting for a few minutes, Graydon gently maneuvered the flow of the conversation in the direction of the Cylon siege and Governor Cormorante.

"You warned Lt. Scalliant about the civilians and the Cylon sympathizers, and about the territorial governor, Cormorante," Graydon said. "Do you feel ready to discuss them?"

"Yeah. I really want to get those bastards. If I can bring them down, I'll be a much happier man."

"So how did it all start?" Rascal asked.

"Wow, where can I begin? Let's see... the proposals, yeah, that would be good. Last year the local government issued a series of proposals. They were... each one was worse than the one before."

"Worse in what way?" asked Graydon.

"Worse, in their radical nature. Things like declarations that humanity was responsible for the War, apologies for the treatment of the Cylons -- I mean, gods, we're in the middle of a frakking war! We shouldn't be apologizing while we're fighting for our lives!

"Sorry. Anyway, the council passed new laws banning criticism of the government. Cormorante wanted veto power over the Marine base commander's decisions too. It was an open secret that the governor was a Cylon sympathizer but no one could prove it."

"What happened next?" said Rascal.

"Dissidents and even Council members began to disappear, usually at night. The people were scared. They also knew, as everyone did, that with the war going on, help from Tauron or Central Command might not be available. Cormorante knew this as well."

Rascal was simultaneously amazed and saddened at hearing Perry's account.

"The civilian government had stockpiled weapons --"

"Where did they get access to weapons?" Graydon said, interrupting Perry.

"Confiscations, the black market. Mostly shipments they intercepted and diverted, shipments meant for the Pergamos Marine base. Pentana suspected that the government was stealing the weapons shipments, but Cormorante claimed that the Cylons must have destroyed or captured the delivery vessels.

"One night, several months ago I think, the leaders on the Marine base were arrested by Cormorante's security forces. Most of the other Marines too."

"How did they manage to do that?" Rascal inquired.

"The civilians outnumbered us fifty to one. Most of us thought it was a mistake. Even if we suspected something, we were unwilling to fire on civilians. Well, until it was too late. You know, we were trained to shoot at Cylons, not at our own people."

"I know."

Rascal became wistful. Even though he already knew the civilian government was involved in the massacre, Rascal was still shocked as he learned of the specifics. War was tough enough without having to worry about getting stabbed in the back by your own people!

"We found many of those imprisoned Marines -- dead," Graydon said.

"Yes, Cormorante's agents locked us up and tortured us. Savage beatings, electric shocks. Then we heard the rumors that Cormorante had cut a deal with the Cylons. The prison guards spoke about it often. Apparently the Cylons would be allowed to occupy the rural hinterlands on the main Pergamos continent. In return they would provide security for the civilian government. Part of the deal was that Cormorante had to subdue the Marines on Pergamos, take them out of action.

"The prison guards didn't like the deal anymore than we did, but at that point they were as scared of Cormorante's thugs as everyone else was."

Graydon spoke to Rascal. "This must be the point when Central Command lost contact with Pergamos."

"Probably so," Perry answered. "We heard that the civilians interrogated Commander Pentana. They wanted the locations of nearby Colonial bases, military strategy, ship and troop deployments, everything."

"Did they execute her, Commander Pentana?" Rascal asked.

"I don't know. I don't think so, but that's just based on chatter among the guards. Some of them were surprised by Cormorante's actions, just like we were."

"Did any of the guards help you and turn against Cormorante?"

"No, Lt. Graydon, but we heard that there was unrest among the general populace. Some people tried to protest but the leaders disappeared soon after.

"We saw a televised speech. Cormorante responded to a violent attack against an arms depot. He said it was necessary to crack down on counter-revolutionaries because they were loyalists of the old order, the Colonial way. He said the Colonial system caused injustice, resentment and war. His new path, a path to the light, would lead humanity to the new promised land. He justified his brutal tactics as necessary means 'to redeem the soul of humanity.' Frakker!"

"You were in the prison at this point?"

"Yes, Lt. Scalliant. I think almost all of us were, at that time."

"Were there any more attacks against the civilian authority?"

"Yeah, they kept on coming for a few weeks until Cormorante began staging public executions. For a time, there was peace, a nervous sort of peace. The guards seemed less anxious. We didn't see the smoke of explosions in the distance from our prison cell windows. Then about a month later, they first appeared."

"Who appeared?"

"The Cylons, Lt. Scalliant. Who else? Inside the city walls. Cormorante's deal was for the Cylons to remain separate, on the other side of the continent. Cylon troops occupied the city and the smaller settlements. Heavy equipment was brought into the city and some type of underground construction project was begun."

"The prison where we found you, that was part of the construction?"

"Yeah, probably. I don't know how large the project was. we saw some of the equipment from our windows, but that was it."

"Where are the Cylons now? I mean, why aren't they in the city?"

"I don't know the answer to that, Lt. Graydon. Maybe they left when, no wait, they left long before your fleet arrived. They set up a siege around the city, so I've heard. Why they didn't bomb the frak out of us, I'll never know. Maybe it would have been better to die quickly than to starve and suffer for all these months."

Rascal had no easy answer. He wasn't sure whether it would have been better for all of those victims to have died quickly. Maybe those poor souls in the Leviathan at the bottom of the sea are the lucky ones. What did the survivors have to look forward to? Months of suffering? Hopelessness? The disintegration of their society and desperation?

Hope was the key, Rascal thought. We can't lose hope. His thoughts turned to little Maddie. Yes, that's why they needed to fight and endure -- to make a better world, a better universe, for future generations of humanity. Rascal felt a brief burst of energy from these thoughts, and yet he still couldn't shake the image of the thousands of corpses piled up along the walls of the city. The fact that other humans were largely responsible for such carnage and death made the image that much more disturbing.

Rascal had become inured to the ever present stench but this train of thought distracted him enough that he lowered his internal sensory defenses. He was struck again by the air of pestilence, of murder, starvation, and massacre. He was acutely aware of the wasting away and decomposition of what had once been living, breathing humanity. All those lives, those hopes and dreams, relatives, friends, lovers, thinkers, artists, athletes, poets, leaders -- all of them dead.

Rascal was almost consciously aware of the short circuits in the emotional centers of his brain. Neurons were firing and misfiring. Images and memories clashed, creating a wasteland in his psyche. The slow burn that began when he arrived on Pergamos threatened to expand into an all-out explosion.

"Lt. Scalliant, are you alright?"

Rascal was stirred from his waking reverie and looked at Lt. Graydon. Even Roan Perry appeared to be concerned by Rascal's demeanor.

"I hate to say this but you look worse than I do, and I'm the one who's been in the prison for months."

***

Rascal continued to check up on Madison as he had promised. Maddie was the one source of normalcy and hope for Rascal. He tried to occupy himself with his work assignments but the tasks became tedious. The monotony freed his mind to start wandering. His thoughts returned over and over again to the bodies along the walls, the horrors of the siege, the betrayal by Cormorante and the Cylon sympathizers, and the absence of a clear goal on Pergamos. Why did they, the Marines and soldiers, risk their lives for these sympathizers? He understood that if the rescue forces hadn't arrived, Maddie would be forever trapped among the sympathizers and their Cylon masters. Rascal pondered that thought. This time it didn't relieve the tidal wave of sadness and sorrow that was drowning him.

Madison trusted Diana, the young woman who was looking after her. Maddie also trusted Rascal. When Rascal returned from his reconnaissance tour each day, he would dine with Madison, Diana, Lt. Graydon and a few other Marines. He looked forward to these gatherings. He asked Madison about her family. At first she was reluctant to discuss the topic, but as the days and weeks passed, she revealed more and more of her wartime experiences.

On one occasion, she told Rascal, Diana and Lt. Graydon the story of a Marine who hid at her family's house. The Marine was afraid of being arrested along with all of the other military personnel. He had heard of the brutal treatment of the Marines by Cormorante's interrogators. Diana had pieced together the background of the story from her frequent chats with Madison. After Madison fell asleep, Diana told Rascal and Lt. Graydon that Madison's father had disappeared shortly after questioning Cormorante's actions. Diana estimated that the fugitive Marine stayed with Madison's family for about six weeks. Eventually he was discovered by Cormorante's police force and imprisoned. He had probably been executed.

Madison's mother was arrested as well. Diana saw the arrest warrant that Madison carried around with her as a tangible reminder of the last day she ever saw her mother alive.

Rascal felt his heart pounding inside his chest. How could so much evil be visited upon someone so young and innocent? Sweat began to bead on his forehead. He looked over at Madison, who was asleep in Diana's lap. She was so calm and peaceful. The fire subsided inside Rascal, but only temporarily.

Rascal could only mumble, "War is not a place for children."

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Continue onto Chapter 17 (click on link)

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Rascal and his unit returned to the secret prison early the next day. Other teams searched the surrounding buildings. Rascal was eager to continue the investigation. He finally had something to occupy his thoughts. Perhaps they would find answers, answers to explain how the horrible massacre occurred, and to learn why the civilian government let the siege happen. Some Marines had begun to count the number of bodies near the city walls. They couldn't come up with a precise figure but they thought they could get a fair estimate of the total number. Early estimates put the death toll at about 40 percent of the total pre-siege civilian population of the city, and untold casualties in the smaller settlements scattered across Pergamos. They could only guess at the death rate among the Marines from the Pergamos base. Possibly all of them.

Rascal's unit searched the upper floors of the prison building. They found no other bodies there so they proceeded to the ground level. A stairwell led to the basement level. The Marines discovered passageways leading to even lower underground levels, but they decided to scout the main basement level first.

They found several small rooms, each containing the bodies of more dead Marines. Rascal examined the bodies, looking for signs of torture. He stood in melancholic contemplation, wondering what it must have been like for these Marines, fellow fighting men and women, his compatriots. Did the civilians kill them, their brothers in arms? The thought was almost too horrible to consider.

Rascal heard a faint noise on the other side of a wall. It sounded like... yes, it was a barely audible moan. Rascal burst out of the room and ran down the hallway. He found the room, the only one with a living prisoner, another Marine. He showed signs of malnutrition and dehydration. He was bruised and bloodied. He wore only a tattered pair of pants and torn shoes.

The stench of human waste and blood hit Rascal almost as if it were a physical force. Unlike the punch of a fist or the butt of a gun, the foul air reached deep into Rascal's sinuses, along his olfactory nerve and into his limbic brain system. Rascal fought off the powerful urge to cover his face or to flee from the impending danger that his brain sensed was near.

The shackled Marine recoiled in terror at the sight of Rascal. Rascal tried to reassure the Marine that he was there to help. The Marine cowered to the far wall, as far as his restraints would allow. Rascal put down his machine gun to show that he meant no harm. The other Marines entered the room. Rascal signaled for them to stand down. Soon, they too recognized the fragile psyche of the prisoner.

Rascal asked the other Marines to leave. Perhaps the prisoner was intimidated at being in the room with four other people. Rascal suggested they continue their search. If the prisoner spoke, he would contact them. Rascal waited patiently for the prisoner to come to his senses.

"We're Marines just like you. We're here to help."

Rascal would have removed the shackles but each time he approached, the prisoner experienced another panic attack.

After the better part of an hour had passed, the prisoner looked at Rascal. Rascal had nodded off, tired from waiting around.

"Marine," he whispered. No reaction from Rascal. "Sir... sir!"

Rascal awoke with a start. He looked around and saw the prisoner. "Oh, it's you. Ready to speak now, I see."

"You must get out while you still can. They will take you."

"What? Get out from where? Here? Yeah, we weren't thinking of staying here forever."

"They will take you."

"Who?"

"They. The evil ones. The civilians. Cormorante. And the sympathizers."

Rascal's eyes widened as he took in the information. Cormorante, the territorial governor? The civilians and sympathizers?

"We have to get you out of here and then we have to report this to our commanding officer."

Rascal called the other Marines over the radio and asked them to return to the holding cell. They entered the room while Rascal was trying to break the prisoner's shackles.

"Tyler, we need to cut the cable down there. We can take care of the wrist restraints back at camp."

"Can we burn through it? It looks like a woven metal cable inside a protective plastic sheath."

"Yeah, get out the propane torch. It's not powerful but it should be enough for the cable."

After a few minutes, the prisoner was freed. Rascal noticed that the cable had been attached to a pair of wires inside the floor. Rascal picked up his machine gun and advised the others to do the same.

Rascal helped the freed prisoner to his feet. Two of the Marines walked into the hallway, weapons drawn and ready. Suddenly a flash of light on metal shone in their eyes. A Cylon Centurion directly in front of them!

The Marines opened fire. The sound of machine guns in the enclosed space of an interior hallway was deafening, but the Marines continued to shoot. The Centurion didn't stand a chance. The metallic Cylon slumped against the wall before falling down face first upon the hard concrete floor.

The Marines remained on guard in case there were more Cylons in the building. They listened and watched, the air leaden with tension. No sounds, at least no metallic sounds. They heard footsteps nearby. The sound grew louder. They had to be human, possibly other Marines coming to assist after hearing the gunfire.

At the end of the hall, some civilians appeared. They were in relatively good health. They were also armed with pistols and shotguns. The Marines were relieved that they weren't Cylons, but they didn't relax completely. There was something about their demeanor, the steady manner in which they walked toward the Marines...

"Tyler, something's not right here."

"Quiet. Let's see what --"

Tyler's sentence was cut off by a burst of gunfire from the civilians. One of the Marines was hit in the chest and collapsed to the floor. The other Marines took cover.

Tyler shouted out, "Hey! Hold it. We're Colonial Marines! Hold your fire. We don't want to shoot any humans!"

"Frak you, traitors! Betrayers of humanity! People like you caused the Cylons to attack us," the civilians yelled out.

"What the frak, Tyler? Why are they shooting at us?"

"Damn them! It sounds like sympathizers. Get on the radio and call for back-up."

Rascal arrived at the position with his machine gun. He also brought along some grenades.

"Tyler, stand back. Let's see how they like chomping on a few of these."

"Rascal, those are humans down there, not Cylons."

"Yeah, I know, but Cormorante is behind it all. He's a sympathizer. They all are, the government, the followers. We have to take them out. It's them or us."

"I can't argue with that," Tyler said as the civilians continued to fire away.

Rascal pulled the pin and tossed a grenade down the hall. The explosion tore a chunk of concrete from a wall. Tyler and the Marines resumed firing. Rascal threw another grenade at the civilians. Another explosion.

All was quiet in the hallway. Rascal waited for the dust and smoke to settle. A voice interrupted the silence.

"Scalliant, please report your location."

Rascal spoke into his radio. He described the building and nearby landmarks.

"We'll be there shortly."

Rascal's heart was racing and pumping so hard that he thought his chest would burst. The situation was getting worse and worse. Who was their enemy? The Cylons. And the civilians? But not all of them.
The government? Yes. The sympathizer militia? Yes. Who else? The next time he encountered a civilian on patrol, Rascal would have to determine if he was friend or foe. Who else, indeed.

A few minutes later, several teams of Marines arrived. The senior officer agreed that they needed to scout the remaining floors of the building and take care of any threats. Rascal's team would continue to explore the lower levels. The other teams searched the remaining sections of the building as well as adjoining structures. Two Marines brought the freed prisoner to the main lobby of the building to keep him out of harm's way.

After regaining their composure, Rascal's team walked through the subterranean chambers and passageways. Some of the holding cells contained more dead bodies. Other rooms were protected by heavy cast-iron doors. The Marines continued down to the third basement level. The hallway was much wider than those in the upper levels. All of the team members recognized that this area was more significant than the holding cells. Perhaps this was a headquarters for the Cylons or the sympathizers. Maybe a laboratory or planning facility. Whatever it was, the place was abandoned, except for the corpses.

Rascal spotted a steel and glass door. He tried to open it, but the door would not give way. Tyler saw another door at the far end of the corridor. Rascal looked over as Tyler reached for the handle. Rascal saw a small flashing red light.

"No! Don't touch it! Tyler!"

Tyler was startled by Rascal's shout. His hand grazed the door handle. He heard a high-pitched beeping noise and a low whir. The noise became louder and louder.

"Get out of here! Now!" Rascal yelled.

The Marines raced down the hall. Rascal reached the stairs as the explosives went off. The rapidly expanding burst of flames quickly consumed the third basement level. Rascal kept on running, jumping two steps at a time. His left foot hit the side of the stairwell, causing his knee to twist awkwardly. Rascal felt a sharp twinge of pain shoot through his leg, and yet he didn't stop.

He heard the roar of the flames below. He felt the burning heat. He ran and he jumped until he reached the lobby. He shouted for everyone to run. Run outside. As though their lives depended on it.

From a safe distance, the Marines watched as the building crumbled to the ground. The upper floors toppled over as the support structure was demolished. A cloud of dust rose into the air, to take the place of the building that was, that had been.

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