Battlestar Hermes: Son of Sagittaron (D5)

Battlestar Hermes: Son of Sagittaron (BH:SOS) is a one-shot story set in the Battlestar Hermes universe. It was the first of a series of one-shot stories that are intended to flesh out the main character's lives prior to the primary story of the Hermes set at the time of 'The Fall'.

BH:SOS concentrates on the story of Alex 'Griffon' Adonia before he joined the Colonial Fleet.

Chapter 1
Alex Adonia and Giurno Moore were among a growing number of dissatisfied young Sagittarons who were growing frustrated and tired of the backward ways that most Sagittarons chose to live their lives. They had taken all the cash they had and used it to buy a ticket to travel off world to start a new life. Their original plan was to go to Caprica but they found they couldn't afford a life there and so they ended up on Tauron. In their minds anywhere was better than home but life on Tauron proved difficult thanks in no small part to their ethnicity. Their funds were quickly disappearing and with no legitimate work being offered to them Alex felt he had no choice but fall back on his boxing prowess and participate in an illegal street fight organized by a man named Portha.

The first man he fights is named Heracles Tamzin. Tamzin was the local favorite having beaten many men who had been foolish enough to stand before him. He was powerful and hard hitting. His knockout blows had been embedded into local folklore as being able to kill a man in a single punch. Adonia was much more nimble than his larger opponent however and wore down Tamzin before delivering a knock out punch to Tamzin's chin that shattered several of his teeth.

The crowds are not happy and several of them declare the fight as unfair and cowardly.

Chapter 2
The second Chapter concentrates on Adonia and his girlfriend Giurno Moore. Giurno is younger than Adonia by three years and she came with him to Tauron after he decided to leave his old life on Sagittaron behind. The dialogue implies that Adonia had to persuade her to come with him and as such he feels guilt over the difficulties the two of them now face.

The couple are staying at a run down motel on the outskirts of Tauron City. When another guest sees the badly beaten Sagittaron getting out of the car they consider them to be little more than Sagittaron drunks.

In the morning Adonia wakes up to find a letter from Giurno stating that she has gone to the shops to get something for them to eat. When she fails to return he becomes worried. Soon the Police arrive and Adonia suspects that she has been arrested regarding the illegal fight and that he would be next. Instead he is told that Giurno has been murdered by angry spectators of the previous night's fight. They were looking to catch Adonia but instead found Giurno and so decided to take their anger out on her. The Tauron Police officers warn Adonia that if he stays on Tauron he will be next.

Giurno's killers are never caught.

Chapter 3
The final Chapter takes place fourteen years later. It is seven months before 'The Fall' and the Battlestar Hermes BSG-58 is about to go into refit. As part of the wind down of operations there has been a fight night organized and Chief Robert Imlay wants to know if Adonia will be fighting having watched him on the punch bag. Adonia has never boxed anyone since Giurno was killed but no one aboard Hermes knows this. As Adonia walks off the deck one of his pilots puts it down to Sagittaron cowardice.

Themes
The main theme of the short story is that of the racism that exists in Twelve Colonies towards the Sagittaron people. The story opens with a quote from canon episode "The Woman King" which states "Aside from a Cylon is there anything you hate more than a Sagittaron".