nexus_crossings | (no subject)

(no subject)

It is starting to dawn on Adia that this might not be the Nexus she remembers.

It is the first time in months that she has been able to leave New Caprica without risking awareness from either the Cylons or her fellow humans. She has never told anyone about the strange, wonderful place she stumbled upon, nor does she plan to. It won't be much help to the colonists, and it'd be a dangerous weapon in the hands of the Cylons.

But in the short time she has been sitting on a stone bench, reading an old paperback, she hasn't seen a single familiar face. And come to think of it, none of the landmarks look the same to her, either. True, the Nexus is always changing, but shouldn't she recognize at least some of it?

Curious, and a little nervous, she gets up and brushes off her dusty but serviceable coat, then walks over to a convenient Nexus computer terminal. That hasn't changed, at least.

How do you go about finding someone that you used to know? When is it not worth the risk to try and find them?

There is no giant blinking neon sign in her line of sight instructing her to ask a question, but she hopes someone answers anyway.

((ooc: Hey everybody, Adia is an OC from Battlestar Galactica, her timeline currently in the beginning of Season Three. I used to RP her at dear_multiverse on Livejournal, hence all the "not the same Nexus" references. She's a human with no special powers. Have fun!))

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It takes a moment for Adia to respond. She's not one to discuss religion, having been raised agnostic and uncomfortable with getting into philosophical arguments. But she's had a lot of time to think about this.

Despite what the Sacred Scrolls say, I don't think our gods are much different from the ones you describe. Because if they cared so much about humans, why did this happen to us? They must not care about humans so much after all.

She doesn't bother to comment on the possibility of finding out the truth of humanity's past, as remote as it is, and pointless besides. It won't bring her family back.

They're called Cylons. Sentient robots. They somehow got the failsafe codes to the Colonies' defense system and detonated all our nuclear warheads.

Bear in mind that gods don't live or think like humans. They wouldn't show that they care in the same way as you might expect. It is hard to know the motivations of beings like that without knowing them personally.

The conversation would do a one-eighty on him, moving from something he knows intimately to something he knows next to nothing about.

I don't know much about technology. I thought that humans had control of the things they made. Unless they weren't made by humans. Were they aliens?

If they're that inscrutable, then I really don't see the point.

Adia cringes and bites her lip. That was mean, and despite being agnostic, it feels a little blasphemous.

Sorry. I know that gods sometimes show up in the Nexus, and on other worlds they are real, tangible beings. I'm sure some of them are worth knowing.

We do, usually. These robots were given artificial intelligence, but they developed sentience on their own. They were used for dangerous labor in slave-like conditions, and 40 years ago, they rebelled. There was a war, and they eventually fled to the stars. I don't know how their creators missed the signs of an emerging consciousness, or what really happened when the war started. My parents talked about it but I think a lot of the initial details were kept in the dark. A little over two years ago, they returned and started a second war.

I've never met one. But I do know that there are beings so different from humans, so difficult for humans to understand that have become fierce friends with them. Sometimes you don't know the point until you have found it.

He thinks about this for a second, chuckles and adds, And here I am advocating faith for gods. How unlike me.

Reading about the cylons, however... He rests his chin on his palm thoughtfully. He can see the cylons' point. He thinks. That is an impressive level of ignorance and mistreatment on the humans' part. Some humans, though, not all.

Eventually he settles on asking, Did they come back for revenge?

Reynard's words bring tears to her eyes, unexpectedly, but they aren't altogether unhappy ones. I had befriended a sentient robot in the Nexus, she types after wiping her eyes. Not a Cylon, but I'm sure you can guess that it was difficult for me at first. I'm glad I took that chance.

Adia can see the Cylons' point, as well. Which is practically considered treason, where she's from, so it's a thought she only voices in the Nexus, if at all.

I don't know why they came back two years ago Maybe the galaxy wasn't big enough for the both of us. Why they came to New Caprica, specifically, to set up an occupation... I don't know, either. I think that some of them genuinely think that we can live together in peace. But I think the rest are toying with us.

That must have been brave of you. I'm glad it worked out well for you. It's a good lesson to learn.

If they are all individuals, I wouldn't be surprised if the reasons are complex. There are some things only time will reveal. Are they keeping a pretence of equality or are they a ruling force?

I don't know if I could have learned that lesson anywhere but in the Nexus. Another reason I'm grateful for this place. They are all individuals, but there are only seven different models -- at least the ones who look human -- so there are a lot of copies of each one. Only the thinnest pretense of equality. The first thing they built when they arrived was a detention center. That's when people started to go missing.

There are all kinds of unique things here. Including learning experiences.

Well that's a message. Even if they didn't intend it to be.

Will you look for help here?

That's a good way of putting it. What have you learned here that you feel was unique?

That's a good question, Reynard. Adia has to think about it for a little while.

I'm not sure how I would begin to ask. Superheroes appear here on occasion, or people with extraordinary powers, but there are so many Cylons, and... I don't know. What's to stop a Cylon from coming here and looking for a superhero of their own? I did look at some star charts at someone's suggestion, but I'm not an astrophysicist.

He has to take some time for that. Having that turned around on him was not what he'd expected.

That even with extraordinary power and all the odds in your favour, everyone must submit to cycles without exception.

War is a complex, brutal thing. I agree that bringing in one or two super powerful beings to help would only be a short term solution. In the end, occupations are best shaken by slow, steady, stealthy rebellion.

For example, I'm sure you could find an astrophysicist here.

She had no expectations on what he would write in reply, but his answer still surprises her. There is a saying in the Sacred Scrolls: "All of this has happened before, and all of this will happen again." It's interesting that you too have experienced this. An astrophysicist who could find the Earth in my universe? Then it'd just be a matter of escaping the Cylons to get to it.

It hurts to have hope. But she does have a sliver of good news, and she wants to share it with Reynard.

Not everyone was on New Caprica when the Cylons arrived. Our larger ships, including both battlestars, were able to jump into hyperspace.

It is interesting. That even in a world of spaceships and robots, they have the same overarching rule.

It sounds like there are some multiversal truths.

Escaping and staying hidden. There must be things people here know that could help with that.

Hope isn't something Reynard is all that fond of, but he's hard pressed to resist encouraging someone he can sympathise with.

He's not entirely sure what all of that means, but he gets the idea. He thinks.

They were able to get away? That could be good news.

Have you thought of getting in contact with them?

I've never taken comfort in the phrase, personally, but it's reassuring to know that other people have found it to be true. I suppose. I've certainly met other people here who have lived through wars. Wars in space, even. Sorry, I just realized I threw a bit of jargon at you. Our ships have FTL -- faster-than-light -- drives that let us travel through space instantaneously. We call it a "jump". We can only jump so far each time, so we don't accidentally appear in an asteroid belt or black hole. The Cylons have the same technology, unfortunately, but we are usually able to remain one step ahead. I'm sure the resistance has. They'd need to find a frequency that the Cylons aren't monitoring.

Maybe there is some comfort you can take from it. Everything happens in cycles, and through that you know that one day your people may live a life like the one before all of this.

It's a small comfort, but it's all he can offer.

Certainly something to keep in mind.

That is the largest game of cat and mouse I've ever heard of. A dangerous one too, leaping into the unknown with the enemy at your back.

I'm afraid I cannot help you there. Technology is not my strong suit.

That is how most religious figures suggest that we interpret the saying. I guess I can't help but see the flip side, that despite everything, we'll continue to make the same mistakes. That's what we were doing, for several months, until we found New Caprica. That's how I knew the Cylons truly hated us, because even after destroying life on every colony, they were determined to follow every last survivor. What's the level of technology, on your world?

In the grand scheme of things, the human lifespan is short. Inevitably someone else will repeat mistakes in one form or another. But perhaps not quite so disastrously. Or not for a very long time to come.

That could also be fear, my dear. Or both.

I think there's a space station around Earth, and a few jaunts to the moon, but no faster-than-light engines.

I hope so. At least she won't be personally responsible for another robot uprising.

You aren't the first person to suggest that they fear us. And perhaps, during the first Cylon war, they did. But they vastly overpower us now, in numbers and in fighting power. I don't know how they could still be afraid. Just one moon? What's the moon like? Does your Earth use fossil fuels?

As do I.

Fear is hard to unlearn, even when all the odds are in your favour. 

Our moon is big and bright and beautiful. And yes, it does, unfortunately. There have been meagre attempts at making clean fuels, or using environmentally friendly sources of energy. They always seem more for show than earnest attempts.

Maybe. I probably shouldn't assume to know what they're thinking or feeling in the first place.

Talk of Earth is always a happier subject for Adia, even if she's disappointed to hear that Reynard's Earth uses fossil fuels. That's too bad, about the fossil fuels. Although I'm impressed you got to the moon with them. I don't think we would have developed inter-planetary flight without learning how to use tylium. (It's an ore found on asteroids.)

My dear, I think it's admirable of you to want to understand them. He's sure there are plenty of people would rather focus their efforts exclusively on trying to destroy them.

Nuclear energy is popular too, but I have no idea of that is what rocket fuel is made of. It would be easier to show you than for me to try and learn so I could tell you. I'm fairly certain I've never heard of asteroid fuel before though.

Thank you. It's not a sentiment shared on my world. But I wouldn't call it admirable. I was close friends with one of them -- a sleeper agent -- before he discovered that he was a Cylon. Trying to understand Cylons is like trying to understand him. I never saw him got angry, Not once. He wasn't a cheerful, happy-go-lucky sort of person, but he didn't hate anyone. He seemed very human to me. But now, during the occcupation, I've met others, and they don't seem as human-like. They seem more shallow, personality-wise, but also more difficult to understand. It's unnerving. It's okay, my understanding of rocket fuel ends with what I just told you. I'm a microbiologist, and the closest I got to physics was my freshman year of college.

People change in war. We are different around are enemies. We need to be. Maybe these Cylons are the same, like their creators.

A pause and then a moment later:

 It's a difficult situation to meet people in.

A scientist then. You really are an inquisitive mind! I'm a guide and outdoor activities instructor, so you still have a few qualifications over me on all of this.

Yes, I suppose in that way the Cylons are like us. The feeling of hatred is mutual. Not for everyone, but for most humans, and I can't blame any of them for that, either. We've all lost loved ones, our homes, our very way of life. We did not create them to look human. That happened sometime in the forty years after they had retreated from the first war.

She smiles a little at the compliment. Your job sounds much more fun at the moment. What sort of outdoor activities? Do you ever teach horseback riding?

They chose to look like you? That seems like a curious decision.

He huffs a small laugh at her comment. 'More fun' sounds like a major understatement.

Not anymore. I used to. I used to own a couple of horses, and teach some of the local children how to ride. But I haven't kept animals in a long time now. 

These days I do things like kayaking, mountain climbing, hiking, camping, and canyoning. I'll do near enough anything if it's interesting enough.

They could have done it to better infiltrate the colonies, but then why have everyone look human? The ones that still look like robots, they don't have the same level of individuation. Were the animals tying you down? I used to ride horses. Just about everyone did on Leonis. But the cost of owning one was a little out of my league, and then I was barely home once I started college, so it didn't seem worth it. Those all sound like a lot of fun. Well, maybe not the camping. I think I've had enough of that lifestyle trying to live on New Caprica. I went paragliding once. That's probably the most adventurous thing I've done. Aside from running from genocidal robots, of course.