Battlestar Galactica (2004–2009): Season 2, Episode 17 - The Captain's Hand - full transcript

Two of Pegasus' raptors go missing after a suspicious distress call. President Roslin must make a decision on abortion that could hurt her political career.

Previously on
Battlestar Galactica...

Lee, you can't leave.

You have to stay.

You have to really stay.

You must betray Roslin and run for
presidente in the oncoming election

I know is hard, but it's the only way

Word of Fisk's murder has spread
out through the entire fleet.

Crew can fall apart when
their Commander is killed.

Pegasus lost two
in a matter of weeks.

I'm putting Garner in command.

He's a engineer not a command officer.



He's the best they got.

PEGASUS
RAPTOR TRAINING EXERCISE

Pegasus, Buster.

Dradis intercept
training birds are away.

Buster, Pegasus, roger that,
take station...

be advised,...

communications will suffer
sporadic interruptions...

due to stellar EMI
activity. Acknowledge?

Pegasus, Buster, acknowledge.
Our communications suck!

Is it gonna be
like this all day?

Big time.

Those binaries are
putting out so much EMI,...

even the dradis
is barely working.

Well, I'm gonna a little distance
between us and the fleet.



Get us out of the soup.

See if we can get a cleaner
dradis?picture.

Hey!

Whoever's in there, time's up!
Let's go, come on!

Gotta a couple of tired viper
jockeys out here wanna sleep.

Go hit the showers Duck!

We'll be gone by
the time you get back.

How you feel?

Mm, not great.

But Cottle's given me the thumbs-up
and it's been almost a month,...

so I guess it's back to work.

So you ready to go into the belly
of the beast?

The beast?

Yeah.

That's what they call the
Pegasus now.

Galactica's the bucket.

The bucket and the beast.

Don't we make a pair?

Come on.

- No, you come on.
- Come on, come on, go.

Anyway, it's only a
temporary assignment.

I should be back
again in a couple of weeks.

Why'd the old man pick you?

One word. Starbuck.

Is she in hack again?

Not yet.

But apparently, she's been
driving commander Garner...

up one bulkhead and
down the other...

ever since she took
over flight training on...

what'd you call it?

The beast?

And since I won't be flying
combat for a while, I...

Were you going to mention these?

Oh, yeah.

Got promoted to Major.

Well, don't sound so happy!

It doesn't mean much.

I think it means a lot.

Oh, well,...

if you say so,
then it must be true.

What's going on?

We were unloading
one of the containers...

and then one of the
crates shifted.

So,...

we looked inside, and saw
that something was moving.

Did you call it in?

Yeah, we shut door,
and the marines are on their way.

Give me a light.

Chief, we don't know what
we're dealing with here.

Don't you think we should wait?

Just wait out here.

Chief!

Is this the Galactica?

Yeah.

Are you Dr. Cottle?

What the hell was that?

I don't know. We should call it in.

All right. I gonna
spin up the ftl drive just in case.

Pegasus, this is Raptor 718.

Emergency.

Request instructions.

Say again, Shark.

Pegasus...

distress.

Shark, repeat your last.
Did you declare an emergency?

Buster, Shark, do you read?

Shark, repeat your last.
Did you declare an emergency?

Commander Garner on deck.

Buster, Shark, do you read?

What have you got, Mr. Hoshi?

I'm not sure, sir.

I think Buster and Shark
are declaring an emergency,...

but their transmission's garbled.

We've lost them, sir.

Welcome aboard, Major.

I didn't expect a welcoming
committee.

Don't flatter yourself.
I was in the neighborhood.

Major Adama, sir.

Major Adama.

Commander Garner.

Glad to see you, Major.

Although I wish it was under
better circumstances.

We have just lost contact
with two of our raptors...

out on a training mission.

What?
When did that happen?

Captain Thrace.

Perhaps if you were actually
down on the flight deck...

and monitoring your raptors...

the way any training officer
worth a damn would have done,...

you would know that four of
our pilots were missing.

Major?

You with me, Major?

Yes, sir.

The disappeared from the dradis
about an hour ago.

They're gone.

Shut the hell up!

We lose two raptors in
a training mission,...

and I only find out when the
commander throws it in my face.

Don't all speak at once.

Sir, it's been made clear...

that discussing flight deck situations
with anyone outside Pegasus crew...

is not allowed.

Sorry, sir.

And whose frakkin'
bright idea was that?

It was Garner,
wasn't it?

Of course it was.

So barely competent and paranoid.

There's a hell of a combination.

I have a problem.

That problem's name is Kara Thrace.

I- I know to handle her, sir.

And for the record,
she is one hell of a viper pilot.

What? I should cut her some slack
because she's good in the cockpit.

Is that what you're saying?

Because nobody ever cut us
any slack in the engine room.

I could tell you that right now.

But then, uh,...

I don't know, maybe being a snipe is
different than being a viper jockey.

No flashy stunts for us.

No flying by the seat of
our pants down there!

The engine room is like
a finely tuned watch,...

and everything in it needs to be
monitored and maintained...

in a very precise fashion.

Nobody freelances.

Everything is done
in the proper way...

at the proper time
in the proper order!

Or there'd be no power.

No lights.

No hot showers for your flyboys.

You know, Major,...

I think some of the people around here...

could learn a thing or
two from the snipes.

I'm sorry, Madame President.
But it's that time.

Campaign meeting.

We've been
putting it off for weeks.

And we do have a Presidential
election coming up...

unless you've
decided not to run.

Yeah, and to be perfectly
honest with you, Tori,...

I've thought about it a few times.
But, um, no, I'm still here.

There's so much to do. So...

let's talk politics.

Great.

Here are the results
from our first fleet-wide poll.

How did you manage this?

I was precinct Captain for the
federalist party...

in delphi for five years.

We did polls to see what the mayor
should have for lunch.

For what it's worth, you've
managed to walk a very fine line.

You're Presidential bid has the
support of both the?military...

and the civilian fleet,...

and you've received
enthusiastic endorsements...

from the Gemenese
religious leaders.

Well, it helps when your only real
rival is a convicted terrorist.

Am I capable of
leading this fleet?

Absolutely.

And for a time,...

I almost had a chance.

Until Laura Roslin ascended from...

politician to prophet.

The truth is I can't win.

But you could.

You flatter me, Mr. Zarek. Really.

But I'm not sure I'm cut out
for a life in politics...

as I find the vice presidency and
everything to do with it very tedious.

I would imagine
carrying water for Roslin...

would get old after a time.

But it's the office that makes you
the perfect?candidate, doctor.

You're pre-sold.

Really?

To whom?

You'd be surprised how many
people crave the assurances...

of cold science as opposed
to the superstitious...

ravings of the Gemenese.

As a scientist, you offer hope.

Think about it.

And you, Tom.

You'll just step aside...

will you?

I'm just happy to back a man
of true conviction.

A man...

who remembers his friends.

Attention on deck.

At ease.

Where's Stinger?

He's in hack for
mouthing off to Garner.

Stepped on his precious little toes.

Frakking Garner.

He's such an idiot.

All right, lock that up!

Get something straight.

We got two missing raptor crews who are
gonna be out of oxygen in 36 hours.

That's all that matters.

So, everyone knock
off the schoolyard crap...

and start doing your frakkin' jobs.

Now...

we need to start
thinking outside the box.

Which is supposed to be
what you do best.

Sorry, Major.

All right.

I wanna know everything there is to
know about these missing raptors...

and their crews.
I wanna know personal quirks,...

aircraft squawks,...

wireless transmissions,
anything that might help.

Good.

Get to it.

How is she?

Rya's four months pregnant
and doesn't want to be.

I understand the
Gemenese have a problem...

with women terminating
their pregnancies.

Tyrol said that she
asked for you by name.

Do you want to tell me what
that's really all about?

Pretty straight forward, really.

I get a note that a
girl's on the way.

She arrives. I do my work.
And then she leaves.

I don't ask a lot of questions.

You're gonna start.

I wanna talk to her.

I'm Admiral Adama.

Don't worry,
I've just come to talk.

It doesn't matter what you say.
I'm not gonna change my mind.

Your parents are a little
worried about you.

They've contacted me...

through the Gemenon
representative.

My parents.

Gods.

Do you have any idea what
they would do to me?

Please, do not send me back.

You're a stowaway.

Aboard a military ship.

Some people might say she was a
victim of political persecution.

Hell.

She could apply for asylum.

Asylum.

That's it.

I want asylum.

Under Gemenon law, the girl is
still the property of her parents.

And they can deal with her once
she's safely back on her ship.

To be honest,...

I'm more concerned with the broader
implications of this matter.

- Sarah.
- I know you don't want to hear this.

But my people, my voters are
demanding action on this issue.

We have been through this.

Abortion was legal under
colonial law before the attacks,...

and so it is still legal today.

It's obscene.

The scriptures view abortion as an
abomination in the eyes of the gods.

You cannot equivocate
on this point...

if want our support in
the coming election.

Rya Kibby's petition for asylum
is under review.

Thank you, Sarah,
very much for coming in.

I'm not turning that girl over.

I'm certainly not banning abortion.

Then don't.

But we have to move
aggressively on this thing.

I'm arranging a conference call
with you and the quorum.

This is gonna get
out of hand fast.

She's not Billy.

No, she's not.

What?

I hate to say this.

Because I know
that this is a political issue.

The fact is that that number...

doesn't go up very often.

I fought for a woman's right
to control her body...

my entire career.

I'm just remembering
what you said.

Right after the cylon attack.

That if we really
want to save the human race,...

we'd better start having babies.

Nothing, nothing, and more nothing.

Where... is shark's
last transmission?

Well...

there's not much there.

"... Eve... distress... bearing...

reek... shuns... emerge- read. "

They were in distress.

They...

give a bearing "requesting
instructions...

it's an emergency... can you read"?

Maybe, but what's this
"eve" fragment here?

Eve... distress.

Distress call

Eve. Recei-received?

Received distress call.

Okay. From who?

I don't know.

But maybe that's where
they went. To go find out.

Commander, Captain Thrace has a
theory about our missing raptors, sir.

That's good
considering she lost them.

Excuse me?

Well, they were out on one of your
so-called training missions.

Weren't they, Captain?

My "so-called" training missions.

Okay, let's just take this easy.

That's when you're not boozing or
sowing mutiny amongst the crew.

Mutiny?

Commander, we should take
this to a private place.

Don't you think I know what's
happening on my own ship?

"Barely competent? And paranoid?"

That was off the record.
I was just venting.

Accurately.

I'll have you court-martialled.

Commander.

I'm not defending
Captain Thrace's behavior.

Thanks, Major.

Captain Thrace,
you're restricted to quarters.

Until I can ship you back
to Galactica.

You're Adama's pet.

Let him deal with you.

Major?

Yes, sir.

You've been on board
less than four days,...

and you're already facing charges.
You don't waste any time, do you?

Neither do you, Lee.

How's it feel
being Garner's new playmate?

I'm here to do a job!

Yeah.

Keep a loudmouth, disobedient
frak of Kara Thrace in line.

Not doing such a
good job, are ya?

Evidently not.

We don't have much time.
Those guys are running out of air.

Yeah, well, I tried. All right?

All I have done since I got to
the beast is try and help,...

and all I've gotten is Garner's
foot in my ass.

Well, maybe you need
a kick in the ass!

All right.

Here we go.

Finally.

What is your problem anyway?

What's my problem?

Well Kara,
my problem is you.

You keep frakking up, and I keep
having to clean it up,...

and I am officially... sick of it.

Poor Lee, your
life is so hard, isn't it?

You mean, since I got shot.

You wanna hear what I think
happened to Buster, or not?

Pegasus, Red Devil.

I'm nearing the last coordinates
where our raptors went missing.

Repeat... Emergency...

Buster, is that you?

Buster, this is
Red Devil, man.

Is that you, buddy?
Come back to me.

Power failure...

oxygen's almost out...

For love of the gods, help.

Sir!

One of our search raptors just
picked up a possible distress signal...

from near where Pegasus lost
communications with Buster's ship.

Finally.

Possible distress signal.

There's a theory that Buster
himself might have jumped away...

to run down a phony distress
call. It could be a trap.

A theory?

Is this your theory, major?

This is captain Thrace's
theory, is it not?

Mr. Thornton.

Can you give us a fix on where this
distress signal is coming from?

Yes, sir, it's long range,
over 40?SU away.

Then spin up the FTL drive,
and prepare to jump the ship.

Yes, sir.

Sir!

This isn't just Captain
Thrace's theory.

I think this is a cylon trap, and...

And I disagree.

Now get Admiral Adama on the line.

I'm going to get our men.

Admiral, we finally got the
break we've been looking for...

bearing on the distress signal.

I can jump there
inside of two minutes.

Commander, believe me,
I understand how you feel.

But the cylons have been
known to lure ships into traps.

Using fake distressed calls.

Have you considered that?

We have, sir.

It's a scenario
we don't think likely.

We?

Major Adama, do you concur?

Sir...

Captain Thrace and I
are of the opinion...

that the first two raptors...

may very well have been lured
away by just such a trick.

An opinion I do not share, sir.

We'll send a recon
mission in full force.

Five raptors.

Three escort, two rescue.

You have your orders, Commander.

Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.

Thank you, Major.

I'm sure your expertise
is needed elsewhere.

Yes, sir.

Yes, I am curious.

Why the sudden interest in
the fleet's demographic projections?

An issue has emerged that may prove
divisive to our administration.

I would like all the facts in hand
before making my decision.

So, now it's our administration?

She must be desperate.

Well, I'm a very busy man.

Luckily, I made an initial
calculation on these figures...

over seven months ago when nobody
seemed interested or concerned.

All I had to do was factor in
the numbers from the Pegasus crew.

It took me hardly any time at all,
and I didn't mind.

Look, I'll save you the bother,
you needn't read the report.

If we continue on our
present course,...

within the next 18 years,
the human race will simply be...

extinct.

Since assuming the presidency,...

I've made it my mission to
maintain the rights and freedoms...

we?so enjoyed prior to the attack.

One of these rights has now
come into direct conflict...

with the survival of the species.

And I find myself forced to make a
very difficult decision.

The issue is stark.

The fact is that if the
civilization is to survive,...

we must, must repopulate
this fleet.

Therefore, I'm issuing
an executive order.

From this day forward,...

anyone seeking to?interfere
with a birth of child,...

whether it be the mother...

or a medical practitioner...

shall be subject
to criminal?penalty.

Thank you.

All flight deck personnel,
please report to stations.

All right, come on,
let's go, let's go!

Captain Case, what's going on?

We've been ordered to
scramble, condition one.

Ship's getting ready to jump.

We're gonna launch
on the other side.

- Get down to the hangar deck!
- What?

Look.

You're the best
pilot we've got.

So, get down there.
Find a viper.

It's about time you admitted that!

Commander, what's our sitrep?

This is a rescue mission, Major.

- On whose authority?
- Mine.

I'm bringing my pilots home.

With all due respect, sir. ?

But if this is a cylon trap,...

then we are entering blind!

We should send a force recon...

My pilots are dying
down there, Major!

I'm going in,
I'm not waiting on recon!

Commander, this is in direct
violation of the Admiral's orders.

Major. Leave combat.

Making this an illegal
action on your part, sir!

You are relieved, Major!

Sergeant of the guard.

I am forced to take
command of this vessel!

- This man is in direct disobedience of an order...
- Under federal regulations...

- I want him under arrest!
- I place you under arrest!

Sergeant.

Take him below.

Sergeant, the commander's
been properly relieved.

Escort him to his quarters.

This man is not
a member of this crew,...

and you will obey a direct order...

that you have been given
by me, and you will do it?now.

Major.

You'll come with me.

Admiral!

The Pegasus has jumped.
They're gone.

Dradis signal's clean. Jump put is
clear of any interference.

Sir, I show two raptors.

Transponder codes match.
They're ours.

Mr. Hoshi.

Tell the CAG to
launch our recovery team,...

and let's bring our people home.

Aye, sir.

Pegasus, Red Devil.

Our two birds
look intact.

Can't quite see inside yet.

Commander, we're unable to raise
the raptors on wireless. Oh, my gods.

Pegasus, both raptor
crews are dead.

I repeat. They're all dead.

Sir, three cylon base ships just
jumped into weapons range.

Oh, my gods.

They're launching nukes!

Brace for impact.

Damage report?

Two... two nuclear
detonations in the stern, sir.

FTL drive inoperative, sir.

We're stuck here, sir.

All right, Showboat. You take red
squadron. Hit 'em on the right.

Catbird, you take green.
Hit 'em on the left.

The rest of you, follow me.
We're going straight up the gut.

Sergeant, I think you have
better things to do.

Oh, then the spinner's fine?

It's gotta be a sensor.
Just pull it.

No, no, listen to me. Listen to me.
Just pull it, pull it!

Nuclear detonation.

We have structural damage
along the topside heat exchanger.

We can't take much more
of this. How long before...

those drives are back up?

I don't know. They don't
seem to understand.

I need to go down there.

You have the con.

Yes, sir.

I have the con.

Make for the nearest base ship.

And roll us over to keep our top
side out of their line of fire.

Hoshi, contact Starbuck in case...

tell them I've
assumed command.

And to concentrate on
protecting our top side.

Aye, sir.

Wilco, Pegasus.
We got your back.

Mr. Gaeta, any contact?

Negative, sir.

Gimme that.

Can I get through there?

Base ship dead ahead,
we're closing rapidly!

We can't keep taking hits
like this, Major.

Helm.

Steady as you go.

Have the bow battery
stand by for a salvo fire.

Target their center axis.

Yes, sir.

See if we can't cut down the odds.

We need those FTLs fixed soon.

Or we're dead.

Twenty-two hundred.
Main battery has a firing solution.

And fire.

Coolant pressure's off-scale low.

Primary inlet's choked.

Pressure's dropping. We gotta hull
breach in there somewhere.

Well, we gotta get in there,
and open the auxiliary valve!

We can't do that, sir!

We have to!

Sir, that breach can vent all
our oxygen into space.

We don't have a choice.
Now, open the hatch.

Breathing gear?

We used it all up
fighting the fires, sir.

Give me sledge and a number
12 spanner.

All right.

Now close this hatch behind me.

We're losing air,...

close the gods damn?hatch.
Close it!

Base ship's turning away.

He's-he's frakkin' running, Major!

But the other two aren't.

They're coming hard.

Helm...

left, full.

I'm at the manifold.

I'm gonna see
if I can turn them.

Yes!

There's definitely air escaping.

Through a crack, over the SVC?relay.

The breach is behind that.

Starbuck reports
vipers are skosh ammo, Major.

We're down to throwing
rocks at the bastards.

We gotta haul ass
outta here now, sir!

Sir!

Come on, Garner.

O2's in the red, skipper.
You're almost out of air.

You got it! The pressure's
coming back up.

Now get the frak outta there,
come on!

You're air is gone, skipper!
Get outta? there!

Skipper?

Engineering's reporting a green
board. FTL drive online and ready.

Okay, commence jump prep.

Bring our birds home.

Pegasus, Starbuck.

Nobody behind me
but toasters.

Now get us outta here!

Air wing's back on board.

Landing bays secure.

Jump!

You give Garner a lot of credit.

Well, it's all true.

He gave his life to save the ship.

Starbuck's report wasn't so kind.

Well, she had her perspective.

And I had mine.

In your opinion,...

off the record...

what was Garner's flaw?

He was used to
working with machines.

Command is about people.

Remember that.

I want you to take
command... of the beast.

Garner was my decision.

His failure's my responsibility.

Don't let me fail a second time.

Congratulations, Commander.

Madame President?

Word has it that you do not intend...

to prosecute the
Gemenese girl on Galactica.

She has a name, Sarah.

I think that Rya has
suffered enough.

She's just been
through an abortion.

I've granted her asylum
aboard Galactica.

This is in total
violation of the law.

My order came after she sought her
procedure. No laws have been broken.

The girl belongs at home,
with her parents. I insist.

You have your pound of flesh.

And I suggest you take your
victory, and you move on.

Ma'am?

You realize you're screwed, right?

All the pressure, the responsibility,
the sleepless nights,...

all the officers
giving you a hard time.

Yeah, well, it could be worse.
You could be my CAG.

I'm gonna stay
here and be Galactica's CAG.

Something about wanting
to keep an eye on me.

Well,...

you and Colonel Tigh have a lot of
fun at those early morning briefings.

'Cause the XO's
a lot of fun first thing.

Great.

Congratulations.

Really.

Congratulations.

You deserve it.

I know why I
was mad at you, Kara.

A simple thank you would
have been sufficient.

'Cause you were doing
what you always did.

Buck authority,
and get away with it.

I bucked authority once.

And I almost lost everything.

So I guess when
I showed up on Pegasus,...

and there you were doing it
all over again...

I don't know.

Pissed me off.

Doesn't make a lot
of sense, does it?

You should hear the
way my brain works sometimes.

Are we okay?

You have a brain?

Madame President,
your decision to...

criminalize abortion
has created a furor.

Do you think that's hurt your
standing in the polls?

Absolutely.

If I may, Madame President.

It is true in the light
of recent events,...

the President may have lost
support in some quarters.

I??would ask the people
to understand that...

if this is an extreme decision,...

we live in extreme times.

The decision has been
made with good faith.

I, however, cannot with good
conscience support it.

I am so sorry, Madame President.

But the cylon have no?understanding
of the meaning of the word freedom.

How could they?

They're programmed.

Machines.

Every time you take
away one of our freedoms,...

every time you restrict or
curtail one of our rights,...

we become one step
closer to being like them.

As the vice-president,...

I am bound to follow
the administration's lead.

As president...

I should have no such strictures.

Given the current situation,...

I'm afraid that I have no alternative...

but to announce
that I am, as of now,...

a candidate for the?presidency.

Are you you resigning
the vice presidency?

Are you a one-issue candidate?

Are you being disloyal
to the President?