g.j. (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
in_the_blue) wrote2012-07-29 07:37 pm
in_the_blue) wrote2012-07-29 07:37 pm
Entry tags:
Two
For ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
rirenec.
Title: Two
Canon: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Characters: Leoben Conoy, Leoben Conoy, Leoben Conoy, and Leoben Conoy
Notes: Contains end-of-series spoilers.
The moment Kara Thrace disappeared off the face of the planet, he knew it. It wasn't like before: this time she'd disappeared completely, no trace left. He'd been walking with three of his fellow Twos — they tried to split up, those who'd decided to join the people of the Fleet in this new venture, just so they didn't overwhelm anyone with genetics should that ever become a question of concern — as a last-ditch thing before saying goodbye but when it happened, the instant it happened, all four of them stopped dead in their tracks and looked up at the sky simultaneously.
"Oh," he said, and three responding ohs came back. Similar in tone and inflection but not identical. They were already growing into their own personalities but despite the shared memories, he was the one who'd been there on New Caprica. He was the one who'd been on the receiving end of Kara's disgust and fear and ire and ultimately, yes, what could have been but wasn't ever her love. He knew now what a mistake that had been, trying to force anyone as wildly independent as Kara into his own mold, but how else was he supposed to learn if not by trial and error?
"She's gone," said Leoben.
"I felt it," Leoben replied.
"Why now?" asked another Leoben, and he — Kara's Leoben, they called him by way of differentiating (something that had never mattered to the Two models before) — shook his head.
"Because it was time." He nodded to one of his brothers. Ragnar Anchorage Leoben, that was what they called him, the one who'd been at the ammunition depot.
Philosophical Leoben shook his head. "That's an extremely presumptive statement, Leoben. It assumes a degree of knowledge you can't possibly have. We all share the same core memories, including emotional and cellular memory. How can you be the only one to know that it was time?"
Caprican Leoben — the first one to be killed at the hands of Sam's resistance forces (it had become a badge of honor, killed by their father himself) — nodded. "Yes, how can you tell?"
Kara's Leoben smiled slowly. He knew the answer and his brothers didn't. "Because we've always resonated to each others' energies, me and Kara. Like it or not, we shared something. Something that went beyond simple words or simple experiences. We had an undeniable connection."
Caprican Leoben shook his head. "Easy for you to say. You've always thought you were special when it came to Kara."
"Maybe he was. Or is," offered Philosophical Leoben. "Every minute of every day is made up of infinitesimally small moments that together make up the concept of right now. They can't all possibly be preordained, can they?"
"All this has happened before; this will all happen again." Ragnar Anchorage Leoben looked up at the skies again and shrugged. "Maybe it's meant to be more metaphorical and less precise. The One True God is in everything, everywhere, but He can't possibly be directing each and every tick of the clock on every single planet at once."
"He can." Kara's Leoben smiled. "That's the definition of God. All-knowing, all-seeing." He didn't like to describe his brothers as stupid. After all, they were cut from the same mold so to denigrate them was to denigrate himself. But he liked to think he'd actually learned a few things. All those times Kara killed him, he insisted on being the one to go back to their home. Sure, any other Leoben could have gone, but he didn't want that. This was his thing, and through it he searched futilely for his own singular moment of clarity. Just because they were the same didn't mean he couldn't also be different. "But the beauty of what's about to happen is this: you're free to believe whatever you like. We might be Cylons, but that doesn't mean we're only machines. We have brains — our fathers and mothers gave us those — and it's my opinion that learning to use them is our sacred duty. That's what I intend to do with this God-given opportunity." He gestured to the planet around them. "Look at how beautiful it is. I'm going to learn to let go of the past, live for the present, and await the future with such eagerness."
His brothers frowned as one and grumbled beneath their breaths as one and shook their heads as one, and all he could do was laugh. They looked alike and sounded alike and dressed alike. They had similar backgrounds, similar personalities, similar aspirations, similar learning styles, a similar desire to be loved, but every single Two also had something that made him unique.
"I almost hate to say goodbye to you three. I'm going to miss you." Kara's Leoben smiled, though, and looked down at a flower nestled in the grass by his feet. It was spent, beyond its best days, and as he watched one petal fell off and drifted slowly to the ground. Just like Kara had left this plane of existence, that petal was no longer part of the flower. In that moment he knew what his new mission was on this new planet, with his own free will and the ability to create his own opportunities: to accept. It might take him the rest of his days to learn how, but he had a goal and a goal was all he'd ever needed.
He wished the same singular moment of clarity for his fellow Twos. For all his Cylon brothers and sisters. For all the people of the Fleet. Whether or not they would find it wasn't up to him, but they were no longer obligated to make decisions by consensus. In their own ways every single Two would miss Kara, but knowing her had been the gift and to honor her, he was determined to make the most of his opportunities.
"But... goodbye. Maybe we'll meet again." Somewhere, some day, in this lifetime or another. In the distance, a line of trees was his most immediate goal. What lay beyond them? He didn't know and not knowing frightened him, but he was going to find out.
rirenec.Title: Two
Canon: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Characters: Leoben Conoy, Leoben Conoy, Leoben Conoy, and Leoben Conoy
Notes: Contains end-of-series spoilers.
The moment Kara Thrace disappeared off the face of the planet, he knew it. It wasn't like before: this time she'd disappeared completely, no trace left. He'd been walking with three of his fellow Twos — they tried to split up, those who'd decided to join the people of the Fleet in this new venture, just so they didn't overwhelm anyone with genetics should that ever become a question of concern — as a last-ditch thing before saying goodbye but when it happened, the instant it happened, all four of them stopped dead in their tracks and looked up at the sky simultaneously.
"Oh," he said, and three responding ohs came back. Similar in tone and inflection but not identical. They were already growing into their own personalities but despite the shared memories, he was the one who'd been there on New Caprica. He was the one who'd been on the receiving end of Kara's disgust and fear and ire and ultimately, yes, what could have been but wasn't ever her love. He knew now what a mistake that had been, trying to force anyone as wildly independent as Kara into his own mold, but how else was he supposed to learn if not by trial and error?
"She's gone," said Leoben.
"I felt it," Leoben replied.
"Why now?" asked another Leoben, and he — Kara's Leoben, they called him by way of differentiating (something that had never mattered to the Two models before) — shook his head.
"Because it was time." He nodded to one of his brothers. Ragnar Anchorage Leoben, that was what they called him, the one who'd been at the ammunition depot.
Philosophical Leoben shook his head. "That's an extremely presumptive statement, Leoben. It assumes a degree of knowledge you can't possibly have. We all share the same core memories, including emotional and cellular memory. How can you be the only one to know that it was time?"
Caprican Leoben — the first one to be killed at the hands of Sam's resistance forces (it had become a badge of honor, killed by their father himself) — nodded. "Yes, how can you tell?"
Kara's Leoben smiled slowly. He knew the answer and his brothers didn't. "Because we've always resonated to each others' energies, me and Kara. Like it or not, we shared something. Something that went beyond simple words or simple experiences. We had an undeniable connection."
Caprican Leoben shook his head. "Easy for you to say. You've always thought you were special when it came to Kara."
"Maybe he was. Or is," offered Philosophical Leoben. "Every minute of every day is made up of infinitesimally small moments that together make up the concept of right now. They can't all possibly be preordained, can they?"
"All this has happened before; this will all happen again." Ragnar Anchorage Leoben looked up at the skies again and shrugged. "Maybe it's meant to be more metaphorical and less precise. The One True God is in everything, everywhere, but He can't possibly be directing each and every tick of the clock on every single planet at once."
"He can." Kara's Leoben smiled. "That's the definition of God. All-knowing, all-seeing." He didn't like to describe his brothers as stupid. After all, they were cut from the same mold so to denigrate them was to denigrate himself. But he liked to think he'd actually learned a few things. All those times Kara killed him, he insisted on being the one to go back to their home. Sure, any other Leoben could have gone, but he didn't want that. This was his thing, and through it he searched futilely for his own singular moment of clarity. Just because they were the same didn't mean he couldn't also be different. "But the beauty of what's about to happen is this: you're free to believe whatever you like. We might be Cylons, but that doesn't mean we're only machines. We have brains — our fathers and mothers gave us those — and it's my opinion that learning to use them is our sacred duty. That's what I intend to do with this God-given opportunity." He gestured to the planet around them. "Look at how beautiful it is. I'm going to learn to let go of the past, live for the present, and await the future with such eagerness."
His brothers frowned as one and grumbled beneath their breaths as one and shook their heads as one, and all he could do was laugh. They looked alike and sounded alike and dressed alike. They had similar backgrounds, similar personalities, similar aspirations, similar learning styles, a similar desire to be loved, but every single Two also had something that made him unique.
"I almost hate to say goodbye to you three. I'm going to miss you." Kara's Leoben smiled, though, and looked down at a flower nestled in the grass by his feet. It was spent, beyond its best days, and as he watched one petal fell off and drifted slowly to the ground. Just like Kara had left this plane of existence, that petal was no longer part of the flower. In that moment he knew what his new mission was on this new planet, with his own free will and the ability to create his own opportunities: to accept. It might take him the rest of his days to learn how, but he had a goal and a goal was all he'd ever needed.
He wished the same singular moment of clarity for his fellow Twos. For all his Cylon brothers and sisters. For all the people of the Fleet. Whether or not they would find it wasn't up to him, but they were no longer obligated to make decisions by consensus. In their own ways every single Two would miss Kara, but knowing her had been the gift and to honor her, he was determined to make the most of his opportunities.
"But... goodbye. Maybe we'll meet again." Somewhere, some day, in this lifetime or another. In the distance, a line of trees was his most immediate goal. What lay beyond them? He didn't know and not knowing frightened him, but he was going to find out.