Battlestar Galactica:
Blind Rage Syndrome
By LeatherKnight

Story four of the BLACK RAPTOR Series

Here's a fourth installment for the Black Raptors. I'm still waiting for any challenges that you may have. Get them to me!
©2000

As for the disclaimer....you already know. :-)

Based on the characters created By Glen A. Larson

<<>>

She coasted through the void with a rumble from her massive drive tails. A beautiful vessel that seemed to wear the myriad of patches and scorches like proud badges of honor. Tokens of the countless battles she had endured.

The Battlestar Galactica was the last of her kind. She was as much a vessel of travel as she was a living thing. Always changing, evolving, growing to accommodate the humans who dwelt within her steel body. From the long narrow launch bays, plumes of white fire burst from the sides and out the front of the ship, the tiny fighters speeding out from her like fledgling birds freshly released from the nest.

Most of the tiny craft shone silver in the starlight, their three engines pushing them forward into the void.

The others were twin engine craft, slightly larger, with extended canopies to accommodate two persons. These were black as obsidian, the starlight streaming over their smooth skins like rays of countless shooting stars.

Once again, Blue Squadron, and the newest elite strike wing, the Black Raptors hurtled into space. Their mission, to seek the hazards of the unknown depths ahead, and warn the Galactica of impending hazards.

On the bridge, Adama stood at the command center, his silvery hair shining in the subdued light. Beside him was Colonel Tigh, his coffee colored skin shining slightly in the light, both men stood proud in their blue uniforms, the silver trim glinting in the light.

On the other side of them stood a third man, perhaps only a dozen yahrens younger than the commander. Though his rank allowed the resplendent blue uniform, Colonel Jodas opted for his same brown combat uniform. His lined face twitched slightly as he watched the Black Raptors vanish in the distance.

"All patrols launched commander," said Tigh from his station.

"You've done extremely well with the new squadron," said Adama, turning to face Colonel Jodas. "The Black Raptors have performed above and beyond all expectations."

Jodas shrugged off the praise, his eyes still fixed on the blips that indicated his "children."

"They've done all the work, Commander," said Jodas. "I just bark at them on occasion."

Adama's eyebrows rose slightly. He had always been amused by the hard nails warrior's inability to accept warranted praise.

"How is the new batch coming along?" Adama continued.

"Fine," said Jodas quickly. "The Grey Talons should be ready to hit the trainers in a few sectons, give or take."

Adama nodded, his eyes flicking back between the deepening creases in Jodas's leathery face, and the blips on the scanner.

"You want to be out there with them, don't you?" asked Adama.

"Damned right, I do," said Jodas. "Ever since you let me fly one of the prototypes, I've had an urge to get out there and light it up."

Adama understood the man's desire. Jodas's son, Michas, had died at the onset of the Raptor project. What was worse, he had died saving the life of his passenger, Athena.

Before the flight, Michas had confided in his father and mother about his secret feelings for Athena. However, it had taken his dying breath before he could utter those things to her on his own.

Adama understood, all too well, the feelings of loss that came with the tragedy. Jodas's loss paralleled his own in so many ways.

Both had been killed in ambushes, both had been on firsts. Zac, on his first patrol, his daughter-in-law, ambushed by Cylons on the planet Kobol, and Jodas's son, Michas, in the first flight of the prototype Raptor.

"It is more important that you pass on the knowledge and experience you have to the newer pilots, Colonel," Adama said, choosing his words carefully.

Jodas nodded, his gaze still on the scanner as the blips vanished from the edge. "I just worry about them," he said.

"As do I, Colonel," said Adama sympathetically. "As do I."

Jodas sighed.

"Well, they're away," he stated the obvious, then he glanced at his chrono. "I have a class beginning in half a centar. By your leave, Commander?"

Adama nodded, and Colonel Jodas stepped from the bridge, heading towards the training section, and another session in which he taught and terrorized at the same time.

<<>>

"You know," said Duce as he glanced over to his right at Athena's Raptor. His steel blue eyes flashed with challenge. "I heard a couple of tech guys talking the other day."

"And?" asked Athena as she glanced down at her controls to confirm their heading.

"Well," said Duce, grinning now. "They were talking about the fact that no one had been able to pull a ten gee turn in one of these things."

Athena's RO, or Recon Officer, looked up from his readouts toward the obsidian ship flying next to them. Stray locks of sandy brown hair falling from the inside of his helmet.

"So?" he asked.

Bakki, Duce's Ro smiled. "We were just wondering if the two of you wanted a chance to make history?" He offered.

"Are these things rated for ten?" asked Athena.

"According to the specs," said Duce. "A lot of people have tried, but no one's done it yet. Game?"

Subin looked from their partner ship, back up towards Athena. He could see the look in her eyes, reflected in the clear canopy. That almost feline smile creeping across her lips.

"Oh, man," Subin said, and he reached up to grasp the flight handles that protruded from the back of Athena's seat. He felt his stomach tighten in anticipation.

Athena glanced over at Duce and nodded.

"You first, Ducey," she offered.

"I thought you'd never ask," said Duce. "Watch this."

Duce's Raptor climbed sharply and then dove away, building up speed as its twin turbos roared to life spewing long columns of white flame. The ship straightened for a micron and then pitched over, arcing back in a tight turn, turbos still blazing away wildly.

Over the com, Athena could hear Duce's voice, tight with the pressure of his ship's movements.

The turbos disengaged and Duce pulled back up alongside Athena.

"What's your score?" asked Athena expectantly.

When Duce failed to answer, Bakki answered for him.

"Nine point nine six," he said grumpily.

Athena laughed out loud. "Not bad boys!" She congratulated.

"Yeah, yeah," Duce muttered. "Let's see you beat it!"

Athena checked her instruments one more time.

"Okay you two," she said. "Give me some room to work."

Duce pulled slowly away, giving Athena a wide berth.

"Okay boss," Duce called. "You're clear."

Athena's head dropped slightly and her eyes narrowed.

"And on Subin," she cautioned.

"No kiddiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-!" he never finished his retort as Athena's ship leapt forward. She pushed the turbos for every ounce of power that she could get and watched as the speed indicator climbed. Then, she suddenly banked the Raptor around, Her finger fighting against the growing gee forces, and staying planted on the turbo button, She felt the crushing weight press down against her like a slab of stone. The flesh of her face actually began to ripple, like cloth in a summer breeze, still she would not stop.

Her eyes felt as if they were about to burst into her brain. She forced herself to blink and focus on the climbing indicator.

"Come on," she growled, her voice sounding tight and lower in the forced air of the cockpit.

The indicator continued to climb.

9.0 - 9.3 - 9.5 - 9.6

She was tied with Duce!

9.7 - 9.8

The Raptor was screaming in fury as its energy was released. She heard it in her ears like a battle cry, echoing through her mind.

"Come on!"

9.9

"Come on!" she bellowed, feeling the dizzying effects of the pressure. If she didn't do it in the next few microns, she would black out.

9.95 - 9.96 - 9.97

There was a mild thump, and the ship shook slightly as the indicator seemed to bounce.

Alarms wailed in the cockpit as she looked down at the readout.

10.03

She cut the turbos and steadied out a howl of exhilaration bursting from her throat.

"We did it!" she announced.

"You're lying!" said Duce, amazement in his voice.

"Lords, I wish she was, Duce," said Subin, his voice weak and faint.

"If I'm lying," Athena pronounced. "Then I'm dying!"

"Frack!" said Duce. He had been hoping to crack the record. Beaten again by Athena. It was becoming a regular occurrence in the fleet. The commander's daughter had climbed back into the cockpit with an unholy vengeance after she had survived the crash of the first prototype Raptor.

"Hey people," said Subin. "I have a whole mess of debris about a quarter hectar away, bearing two two seven, mark three."

"Can you identify it?" asked Athena.

"Got it too," came Bakki's voice. "Metallic debris. No ID tags or transponders. Looks like the remains of a battle."

"Fleet's gonna be heading through this sector," said Duce. "Should we check it out?"

Athena thought for a micron and nodded. "Yeah, let's go."

The two Raptors rolled smoothly and headed off in the new direction.

"Closing on the target area," Subin announced a few centons later.

"Better slow up boss. There's an awful lot of it out here."

The two Raptors coasted down to a slower speed as they entered a massive field of twisted debris.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" Athena asked.

"What?" Asked Subin. "Boss? Because you are my boss, boss." Subin smiled.

Athena shook her head and smiled. Then she activated the flight recorders, scanning the debris field for analysis when they returned to the Galactica.

"Uh, Athena," came Duce's haunted voice. "Over there, off to port. Is that what I think it is?"

Athena glanced over and her entire body went numb with cold horror.

Floating amidst the debris were the dark, twisted remains of another Battlestar!

It was blackened and burned in thousands of places, the outer skin scored by countless laser hits. One landing bay and nearly the entire aft engine section were blasted away. It hung, twisting slowly in the blackness like a body floating in the water. No lights illuminated from the hulk. Beyond it, was the bulk of another Battlestar, and beyond that, the forward section of a third. also broken and blasted.

"Good lord," Athena whispered. Her eyes took in the debris around them, now forming into recognizable parts. Ancient colonial fighters and other ships floated in their macabre dance. Hundreds of pieces of hull and engines, cockpit canopies and wings, thousands of tiny components that may have been engine pieces blasted away in what had to have been a monstrous and brutal assault. Smaller bits of debris bounced harmlessly off their shields, causing faint blue coronas of energy.

Her eyes fell back on the largest wreck, still hanging limp in space.

"Let's try and ID that ship," she ordered.

"Right with you," said Duce. The two Raptors turned slowly, heading for the massive steel corpse.

As they closed on the ship, they could make out more of the details in the damage. Bulkheads and plates had been peeled away and burned to reveal the explosion torn interior. Large bits of cabling, conduit, and support structure groped out from where the landing bay would have been mounted. They looked like shreds of flesh, with the limb torn away. The corridors beyond were blackened and twisted, some with hatches open to reveal the cold sterile vacuum of space within. "Are we getting all of this?" asked Athena, a lump in her throat.

"Yeah, Boss," said Subin. "We're getting it all." The dread in his voice was unmistakable.

The two black ships coasted over the torn wreck, revealing the chaos and destruction of the drive tail. Within she could see one of the massive solium storage tanks, still intact.

Then, around the back of the ship, the dark gaping maw of the remaining, ruined landing bay.

"Life signs?" Athena asked.

After a few microns, Subin replied, "Hope you weren't expecting any. Nothing."

"Duce," Athena said quickly. "Hold position here, I'm gonna take my ship into the landing bay."

"Gonna do what?" asked Duce. "Have you gone off?"

"The ship is dead, that means no power to artificial gravity. I can coast in, and coast back out again without too much trouble. I want to look inside there."

"It's your call Athena," said Duce. "But I want it known for the record that I don't like it."

"Understood," said Athena. "Keep your eyes peeled."

Athena turned and maneuvered her ship even with the open end of the bay.

The floodlights on the front of the ship exploded to blinding white life, and she edged her ship into the cavernous opening.

"What are you looking for?" asked a nervous Subin.

"I don't know," Athena admitted. "I'm just following my gut."

The ship hovered in the center space of the long narrow bay. Athena checked her spacing as she slowly maneuvered the ship down the long dark bay. All about them were the remains of total chaos, several ships still sat on their launch platforms. They were ancient, modified and smaller versions of the Vipers that the Galactica carried. She also saw bodies. Human bodies, frozen in their last moments and perfectly preserved in the cold vacuum of space. She saw the orange tech uniforms, several navy blue clad officers and more warriors wearing their combat uniforms. The uniforms were identical with one major difference. The combat jackets were a deep crimson instead of the usual dark brown. Many of the faces were frozen in expressions of horror as their lives were sucked from their bodies.

"How you doing in their Athena?" came Duce's voice. She started at the sound, her heart racing.

Calming the quaver in her voice, she keyed the mic.

"Lots of debris and bodies in here, Duce. Everything, just the way it was left when it happened." She shivered as a chill flowed down her spine.

"Head forward to the front of the bay and get the name plate on your scanner."

"Already there," Duce answered. "It's pretty scorched up, but Bakki's running an enhancement on it now. We should have the name by the time we get back to the fleet."

"Right," said Athena, forcing herself to continue their grisly trip.

"We're nearly through the bay. Lot's of blast and fire damage in here. There was no away they were gonna launch another ship, even before they..." her voice trailed off as she spied one of the remaining fighters still perched on the launch platform. Within, she could see the ancient colonial flight helmet, the crimson shoulder of the jacket, slumped against the transparent surface of the canopy.

She gave a slight squeal as another body, bumped against the wing of her ship.

Subin instinctively reached out, his hands brushing against the transparent surface of the canopy. There was a spark, painful as a blue flash passed into him. It was a fire that burned itself out nearly as quickly as he was aware of it.

"Athena!" Duce called urgently. "You okay? Athena!"

"Yeah," said Athena as she forced her racing heart back into her chest.

"Yeah, we're okay. We're coming out."

The Black ship emerged from the bay, its bright floodlights announcing its arrival. Athena killed the lights once she was clear of the ship. She looked up along the ruined hull and spied another corpse, hunched over the controls of a blown out turret, the shoulders still firmly strapped into the gunnery seat. The dead man's eyes still shone a dull blue, as if he were staring right at her. "Let's get the hell out of here, Duce," she said.

"Right with you on that one," said Duce earnestly.

The two ships powered up and navigated the precarious route away from the battle.

<<>>

Adama stood at the command station, his thumb and forefinger absently stroking his chin as he stared at the scope.

"Patrol status please," he asked.

"Patrol seven is still out of range, Commander." Flight officer Omega announced.

"Have we received any communications from them?" Adama persisted.

"Anything at all?"

"I'm afraid not, sir," Omega said grimly.

"They may have found something," Colonel Tigh suggested as he stepped up onto the platform. "They still have plenty of fuel to make it back to us."

Adama nodded. He turned to say something when Colonel Jodas walked into the bridge, his eyes filled with concern. "I understand we're short a patrol team," he said.

"Athena and Duce," said Adama. "They're two centars overdue for return."

Jodas stared at the flight timer on the scanner screen and nodded. "My people are trained to be punctual, Commander. The only thing that would keep them from returning on time would be a major find, or..." he trailed off.

"Permission to take a team out and find them, sir," he offered.

Adama shook his head. "I appreciate the offer, Colonel. But I need you here."

"Sir," Jodas began, but Adama turned to face him.

"You're the only qualified trainer for those ships, Colonel," Adama said earnestly. "We can't risk such a valuable asset."

"I have them Commander!" Omega announced with relief flooding his voice.

"Quadrant Alpha six. Receiving both marker beacons loud and clear."

Jodas stepped to the com switch and keyed the frequency.

"Lieutenant!" He barked angrily. "You are two centars past your return time! I think you better explain that!"

"Sorry about that, Colonel," Came Athena's prompt reply. "I'd rather not say over the open channel. I will tell you this, though. Peledon." She keyed off the mic.

Adama, Tigh and Jodas all felt their brows furrowing at the same time.

"Peledon?" asked Adama.

"That's what she said, Commander," said Tigh. "Omega? Does that mean anything to you?"

Omega shook his head slowly, his hand falling back helplessly on his console.

"Colonel Tigh, get that team on board as quickly as possible, and have those people report to my ready office as soon as they're on board." He turned to Jodas. "Will you accompany me, Colonel?"

"Yes, sir," Jodas nodded, and the two men stepped from the platform heading out of the bridge.

<<>>

Athena, Duce, Subin, and Bakki watched the scanner play back on the monitor, standing just behind Colonel Jodas and the Commander. As the telemetry showed their departure from the battle site, Adama switched the monitor off.

"The Peledon, Herion, and the Cynerro," Adama said as if to himself.

"Those were the only wrecks we could identify," said Subin. "The rest were." He shrugged.

"Commander," said Bakki. "Whatever hit that fleet, it wasn't Cylons. We found no Cylon wreckage at the site."

"For the Cylons to have pushed out this far ahead of us is nearly impossible," said Adama as he shook his head. He looked at Colonel Jodas and then at the warriors in the room.

"We should reach the site of the battle in about two days at our present speed," Adama continued. "Colonel, have your Raptors ready to go. I will want a thorough reconnaissance of the area when we arrive."

Athena recognized the look in her father eyes.

"What are you planning, father?" she asked.

Adama stared at the still image of the broken Battlestar. "At the very least, we should tend to the fallen. Beyond that, we may be able to collect the debris and increase our stock of raw materials to maintain the fleet."

"You mean, cannibalize the derelicts?" Asked Jodas.

"Or possibly rebuild one of the ships," Adama finished. "Two Battlestars would be better than one in any future engagements."

"Uh, begging your pardon, Commander," said Subin. "But it looked like there was a complete battle fleet there. If that was the case, and three or four of the ships were destroyed.." He trailed off.

Adama nodded. "Thank you for your report, and for bringing back these scans. I will have to meet with the senior officers of several ships and discuss options. Dismissed."

The four pilots filed out of the room.

"Colonel," said Adama, looking up at Jodas as he seated himself behind the desk. "I want you to get the Grey Talons ready for flight as quickly as possible."

"Understood, Commander," said Jodas. "By your leave?"

Adama nodded and the Colonel strode out of the room. Once he was gone, Adama sat alone in thought for a while, then he activated his computer terminal. He instructed the computer to do a historical search using the key words Peledon, Herion, Cynerro. Then he sat back and waited.

<<>>

Athena and Subin entered the officers club, quickly grabbing two stools at the bar. They ordered their drinks and sat in silence for a few microns. Subin watched his partner for a short time, studying her profile. Finally he nodded.

"Okay, boss," he said. "Out with it."

Athena stared up at him. "With what?"

Subin smiled. "I've been hanging with you for long enough to know when you've got something on your mind, and I can see the wheels turning right now, so spill it." He gestured towards her.

Athena shrugged. "I just keep thinking about all those people," she said, suppressing a shudder. "All those faces. All dead."

Subin nodded. "And?"

Athena took a drink. "I'm just wondering if there is anything like that hanging over the colonies? Broken ships with the dead still inside, unattended. How long before someone else flies through our old system and finds them?"

Subin nodded. "It's terrible, I know." He looked thoughtful for a micron. "I realized that there was really nowhere to run. Whether it was the Cylons, old age, and accident, or something we haven't seen yet. Eventually we'll all end up floating somewhere."

"I also started thinking about Michas again," Athena confessed.

Subin nodded in understanding. Everyone in the black Raptors knew about the tragedy behind Athena and Michas's first flight in the prototype Raptor. Michas had been attracted to Athena for quite a long time, but had never pursued her. He had seen Athena's pursuit of Lt. Starbuck, and had decided that she would not have been interested in him.

After the prototype Raptor had been shot down, and Athena ejected from the crippled ship, she had found Michas in the wreckage, and in his dying words, had admitted his feelings. Then he had died in her arms. The resulting anger and realization at her own stubbornness had propelled her into the ranks of the Black raptors with a vengeance. She had qualified by beating Starbuck in a simulated dogfight. Everyone, including Subin knew that Michas still played a big part in what she did. He was the underlying ghost that fueled her.

"Now I'm nervous," Subin said, trying to lighten the mood.

Athena looked up at him, and he saw how radiant she was. Quickly, he shoved the flooding possibilities aside.

"Why?" she asked innocently.

"Because, whenever you start thinking about Michas, we end up doing something off the wall, like breaking ten gees or tackling a Cylon Base Star."

"But we always come home," Athena finished.

"I'll drink to that," said Subin, and they clinked mugs.

He took a long drink, and then set the mug quickly down as his other had rose to his forehead.

"Hey," Athena asked, suddenly concerned. "You alright?"

Subin felt the flash of pain race through him, and then it was gone. He caught his breath and managed a shaky smile. "Yeah," he said. "I'm fine now. Just drank a little too fast there." He slowly got to his feet and headed for the door. "I'm gonna go and lay down for a while and see if I can kick this thing. I'll see you back in the billet room?"

"I'll be back in a few centons." Said Athena. "Take it easy, okay?"

Subin gave her a half salute and a reassuring smile, and then he wheeled around, heading for the exit. He nearly crashed into Duce and Bakki as they entered the room. Both men watched the departure of the young officer and then came around the bar, shaking their heads.

"Been hitting the ale kind of hard tonight, Athena?" asked Duce as he and his partner settled onto the cushions.

Athena shrugged. "That was our first one," she said. "I guess he just isn't feeling a hundred percent?"

"I'm not surprised," said Bakki. "With the amount of punishment that you put him and your ship through, I'm surprised that both still function."

Duce and Athena joined him in his grin before all three of them gave a soft laugh. "Seriously," Athena continued, her brows furrowing now. "I've never seen that before. He can usually polish off five or six and still be coherent. He didn't even finish that one?"

Duce reached over and grabbed Subin's mug, ostensibly to see how much of his drink the young lieutenant had finished. He jerked his hand back when he received a nasty static electrical jolt.

"What in blazes?" he asked, shaking the tingle from his fingers. It vanished in microns, leaving only a dull throb in his fingertips.

"You okay?" asked Athena, a smile creeping across her face.

"Yeah," Duce replied defensively. "Just got a little jolt, that's all."

The three of them stayed there for nearly a centar, laughing and exchanging small talk before Duce announced that he had had enough, and also retired to the billet room.

The evening wound down slowly as the members of the squadron retired to their bunks for the night.

The sign over the door read:

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
BLACK RAPTOR SQUADRON
WHERE THE DIFFICULT IS EASY,
THE IMPOSSIBLE WILL JUST TAKE FIVE MORE CENTONS.

Athena had always found that sign apt as both a personal charter, and a center for humorous debate among the pilots. She smiled to herself and went over to her bunk, somewhat surprised to find Subin missing. His bed was neatly made, which told her it had not been occupied since his departure.

A quiet alarm bell began ringing in the back of her mind and she glanced over at Duce and Bakki's bunk.

On the top bunk, Bakki snored blissfully as he slept, but Duce's was like Subin's empty and unused.

"That's odd," she thought. Shrugging off the twinge in her gut, she slid under the sheets and slowly drifted off to sleep. The two errant warriors would be back at some time.

<<>>

The walls were closing in around them as the two warriors half walked, half-stumbled down the corridor. Both of them fought the incessant buzzing that grew in their heads. Duce paused for a micron, his hand reaching to the wall to steady himself.

A blue spark of energy flashed between his hand and the wall as he teetered back and forth. Subin fell backwards against the wall and slid to the floor, his head pounding as if it would burst.

He clamped his hands over his ears, his face a mask of pain.

"I don't know what it is!" Subin groaned. "It won't stop!"

Duce opened his eyes, the dim bulbs of ships night stinging his eyes and increasing the throbbing in his head. The walls around them seemed to be breathing, like a living thing, closing in all around them.

Duce bent at the waist, doubling over to hide his face from the lights, his entire body wracked in torment.

"I gotta get outta here," he growled. He turned and half-stumbled to the launch bay.

Subin rolled over and staggered to his feet.

"Where..?" he couldn't even finish. His mind was on fire.

"Off," said Duce. "Got to get off this ship. Too close..too close."

Subin stumbled after him, heading towards the launching bay.

"I'm sorry, gentlemen," said the tech as he spied the two warriors as they approached him. "Launch bay is shut down for the night."

"We know," one of the men growled. "Out of our way."

"I'm afraid I can't do that," the ground tech replied evenly. He was a big, burly man, standing over the two warriors. "Not without clearance."

Suddenly, one of them grabbed him by the lapels of his coat and hurled him across the room, snapping his back against a support pillar.

The two warriors moved on, heading towards their dark and waiting ship.

Another tech witnessed the grisly attack and ran for the telecomm.

"Bridge!" he called over the speaker. "Warriors in the launch bay, they're - " His voice was cut off by fire, and the unmistakable sound of a laser pistol going off. He also fell to the floor, smoke hissing from the burnt hole in his back.

<<>>

Athena sat bolt upright in bed, her heart racing. The alarm bells in the back of her mind were now a full-blown claxon. She rolled out of bed and stepped quickly over to Bakki.

"Hey," she whispered. He rolled over and opened his eyes. His weariness fading instantly when he saw the anxiety in her gaze.

"What's up?" He whispered.

"I don't know," said Athena urgently. "But they're not back yet, and something's wrong. We need to find them."

"Okay," said Bakki. He dropped to the floor and grabbed his jacket. "Let's go."

<<>>

On the bridge, Commander Adama, Colonel Tigh, and as was becoming usual, Colonel Jodas all stood, rooted in mute horror at the cry from the landing bay. One moment, they were awaiting the return of several patrol ships, the next, chaos had begin to erupt.

The voice announced two warriors in the launch bay, and then was cut off by a gurgling choke as the line fell to static. In the background, they could hear the sound of engines beginning to wind up for takeoff.

Omega confirmed it.

"Commander, a lone Raptor has just cleared the bay?"

"What in Hades is going on?" asked Jodas.

"It looks like we've just been robbed," said Jodas, his voice dropping to a growl.

"Have they gone insane?" asked Colonel Tigh.