Authors: hossgal and Flora Stuart
Recipent: fryadvocate
Rating: PG-13
Fandom: Battlestar Galactica/Farscape/others
Summary: Daytime. Special interests. And making babies. Who says there's nothing on tv?
"…so let's have a hand for Ms Rodgers, for her honesty and courage in sharing that story with us!"
The audience answered the show host's prompt with a respectable ripple of applause and cheers. The young brunette visitor dimpled in response, below cheeks still damp with tears, and rose to shake the host's hand, only to be drawn into a warm hug. The audience cheered more. Another broad smile at the guest, then the host gracefully gestured the girl off stage before taking her seat and facing the studio audience with a more serious expression.
In expectation, the audience grew still.
"Our next guests are somewhat different than many people who have appeared on the show this year. The issue of respect for life and reproductive freedom has been center-stage in American politics for the last decade, and the arguments seem to be growing more and more heated. The people we're going to meet today represent a little-known aspect of that conflict, but the stories they have to share reflect the broader struggle. I know that the audience members here in the studio and out there watching from home include members of all ends of the political spectrum, but I think the words we're going to hear today have the ability to touch us all.
"With that said, please welcome our next guests - the founding members of Standing Watch!"
As the audience clapped and cheered, three women made their way, one by one, onto the carpeted stage. The first was a small, quick-moving red-head, somber face creased by a practiced smile. She was followed by a regal olive-skinned woman, with raven wing-black hair falling down her back. The aquiline features were as somber as the redhead's, but the taller woman's manner was unrelieved by any attempt at joviality. They took seats beside each other, the brunette flipping her hair over her shoulder as she sat down.
The third woman did not own any such formality - a broad-shouldered, muscular woman, blonde hair cropped short, she strode into the room as if she owned it, waving both hands at the audience, a merry grin creasing her face. Taking her seat beside the second guest, the blonde leaned over and said something to the redhead. Her words were inaudible to the audience, but they made the redhead laugh out right and the dark haired woman raise a hand to cover a smile. The blonde set a hand on her shoulder, then settled back in her seat as a fourth person walked on stage.
The audience kept clapping, but some of the cheering faded away. Two steps onto the stage, the fourth paused, his face confounded and looking a bit befuddled. For a moment, it looked as if he might turn and run back into the wings.
Then the redhead was on her feet and darting to his side, grasping his arm in hers and drawing him down to the last seat. A word in his ear and a hand pressed to his cheek, and then she was gone, back to her seat beside the show host. The blonde, however, reached over and grasped his hand for a moment as the host gestured for the applause to end.
"We're going to introduce our guests one by one, as they tell their stories. And by the end, we should have a clearer picture of who you are and what your group is about. Let's start here, with Ms Dana Scully. Dana, you're a former member of the Federal Bureau of Investigation."
"Yes, I am. I was with the Bureau from 1990 to 2001, but I'm no longer employed by the federal government."
"And a doctor, too?"
"Yes. I graduated from Johns Hopkins in 1990."
"You're still a doctor, aren't you? Not an FBI agent, but still a doctor?"
"Yes, that one's a bit harder to shake."
"What sorts of investigations did you do for the FBI?"
"Well, I'm not at liberty to discuss much of what we did - for reasons of other people's privacy - but mainly my partner and I focused on the investigation of paranormal activities and related crimes."
A murmur ran through the audience, echoed by the host. "Ooooo. Sounds very interesting. Not as dangerous, though, as some investigations - you weren't chasing bombers or serial killers, were you?"
Dana hesitated. "There was always a risk. We were armed, for a reason, and sometimes our investigations took us to some very strange places."
"Strange places? What kinds of strange places?"
Another hesitation, and when Dana spoke, it was clear she was choosing her words with care. "The high places of the earth, and the darkest valleys of the human soul."
"Poetic."
Dana smiled. "Not usually - I'm a scientist, and I preferred to use rational means of discourse. But not everyone we investigated was as reasonable as they could be."
"Tell us some of the stranger things people believed."
"You wouldn't believe them if I told you."
"Oh, give it a try." Turning to the audience, she said, "Do we want to hear about this?"
The audience cheered back in the affirmative. The host turned back to Dana. "There you have it - tell!"
Dana leaned back, looked momentarily at the ceiling, then brought her gaze back down and said flatly, "I know people who would swear that they saw women trapped in mirrors, men that flew like bats, shadows that ate people, the Jersey devil, tattoos that talked, and supported the existence of at least three kinds of aliens."
"Three kinds?"
"Yes - green, grey, and invisible."
The host laughed. "People swear they saw invisible aliens?" Dana spread her hands. The audience roared.
"And speaking of aliens, our next guest is Ms Aeryn Sun, who has a wider perspective on this issue. Ms Sun, I understand that as a visitor here - from very far away - you are still adjusting to life in your new home. You understand what I say, yes?
The woman nodded. "I understand, yes." Her accent was thick, but clear - a heavy glottal pronunciation that reminded audience members of Russian, or Belarus, or some other nearly-Slavic tongue. "I do not speak very much English, but I understand very well."
"I'll try to keep that in mind as we talk. Don't let me forget!" Ms Sun smiled back and shook her head, I won't barely carrying under the audience's chuckle.
"Now, Ms Sun, I understand that you used to be in the military - as a fighter pilot. What an accomplishment for a woman, especially outside of the United States!"
"Yes, military service was-was compulsive, where I came from. Our technology was - not like yours, but yes, I flew fighter craft."
"Did you enjoy that life?"
"Yes. Many years." Her gaze was level, but intense.
"What changed?"
Sun looked down at her hands, then up at the audience. "I changed. Things were not as they were when I was young. And I met someone - someone I cared for a great deal."
"Tell us about that."
A shrug. "There is not much I can say. He was - he was American. Also a pilot, but not military. He was an explorer."
"Was it love?"
Sun blew out her breath, a frown creasing her head. She muttered a phrase in another language.
The host leaned closer. "Can you tell us about that?"
The blonde on the other side of her suddenly broke in. "I don't think she should have to answer that."
The host drew back, a look of surprise on her face. But the dark-haired woman was already shaking her head. "No, no. It's all right." She reached out a hand to the blonde woman, not looking at her, but with her eyes on the host. "I do not have the words to say what it was. Love was part of it. But that is ended, has past. I have made my life here, now." The handclasp trembled, vibrating between the two of women.
"Okay, next up - Lt. Kara Thrace. You're a pilot, like Ms Sun here, but you still hold your rank?"
"Well, the Old Man - my commander - didn't exactly give me permission to leave. So in a way, I'm still a part of the Fleet."
"And proud of it?"
"Damn straight. The Fleet is - was - my home, my family." Beside her, Sun's face darkened, almost imperceptivity.
"Home, family - did you have anyone special there?"
"Oh, you know pilots - I was a bit of a love'em and leave'em sort of gal." Laughter rippled through the audience.
"Still that way?"
Kara's hand remained clasped in Sun's. The blonde took a deep breath, then side-stepped the question. "Trying to focus on the job more, now."
"So your heart is still set on piloting?"
"Absolutely. I'm the best shot there is, in and out of the cockpit."
"A competitive spirit! And here we have two fighter pilots in your small group. How do you get along with Ms Sun then?"
"-Very well."
" -Great."
They spoke together, the words tumbling over each other. As one, the two women looked at each other and laughed, then down at their hands, and released them together, almost shyly.
"Is there any competition? Between the two of you, I mean."
Sun's voice was dry. "Constantly. Not that it does her any good."
"I can kick your ass any day of the week."
"So you say. I have yet to see you do it."
"Do you find your shared experiences help draw the group together? Or do you find that there are things about your particular histories that the others don't get?"
"Well, it's not everyone who goes to school to learn how to kill people and break their sh-"
The censor's button kicked in over the last third of the word, and the host jumped in right behind it.
"Now Kara, we talked about this. The network has its rules…"
"Oh, frak! I'm sorry!" No sooner were those words out of her mouth before Kara went bright red and put her hand to her mouth. Dana was laughing as well, and Aeryn Sun was grinning broadly.
The host looked decidedly nonplussed, and the audience tittered, unsure if they were supposed to get the joke or not.
Red-faced and giggling, Kara held up her hands helplessly. "I'm so sorry; I know better, it just slipped out. I'm sorry, please accept my apologies -"
"Frell your apologies." The grin on Sun's face was only getting better.
"Ladies, please. I have to ask you to abide by the rules of the show!"
Kara nodded, covering her face with her hands, gasping for breath. Sun leaned over and panted her back, saying to the host, "You must excuse her. Following rules is not a practiced habit with her."
"Okay, ladies, we're going to move on and talk with our last guest. Liam O'Connor, you're the odd man out in this group. How does it feel to be the only man amongst these ladies?"
The pale man shrugged. "Depends."
"On the day?"
"On the day, the week, the hour."
"Sounds stressful."
"It was at first, but then we started establishing rules to minimize conflict, and it got smoother."
"Oh, really? What kind of rules?"
"You know - the sort of rules where I'm the one that's always wrong."
He grinned at the audience, who stared back for a beat before roaring with laughter. "No, no, seriously, it's great. They're all lovely ladies, and we all have our own talents, and it’s the group's goals as a whole that we're focused on."
"Tell me honestly - is there any hen-pecking? Or catfights?"
Three sets of eyes fixed on Liam, hanging on his every word. But he didn't hesitate. "Absolutely not. It's a fantastic group." The three women relaxed as one.
"Enough about them, let's talk about you for a minute. I understand you've recently relocated from LA - what prompted the move?"
"Too much rain and not enough people. No, wait, that was why I left Oregon." Another laugh from the audience. "No, seriously, it was job related. I headed up a - a detective agency, for a time, and then I got into some…other things, which didn't go as well. And now I'm getting a new start."
"On the old business yes?" Liam just stared at the host, his face gone very still. "The detective business?"
"Oh, yes, right. Absolutely. Can't wait to see what comes up." Liam nodded definitively.
"So, now that we've met everyone, let's talk about Stand Watch, and your group's mission. Dana, you're the group's spokeswoman, do you speak for the group as a whole?"
Everyone looked uncomfortable. Kara folded her arms and frowned.
Dana looked sideways and said. "There are days when I don't even speak for myself." The audience laughed. "But when we have decided on a public stance, I'm often the spokesman. Woman. Whatever."
"So, tell me, what is Stand Watch about?"
"Our goal is to raise awareness of and help combat the use of humans as involuntary breeding stock for inhuman purposes."
Somewhere in the back of the studio, someone smothered a cough.
"Wow. I don't think I've had anyone sit here and say that before."
Aeryn put in: "Unpredictability is one of our unique strengths."
"What is the reaction you usually get to that sort of statement - that humans are being used for 'breeding programs'?"
The four guests looked at each other and answered together:
"Definitely mixed," said Dana.
"'You're beyond insane', is pretty typical." put in Kara.
Sun considered her nails. "Issuing 'Shoot on Sight' orders, or else 'You are out of your frelling mind.'"
"NORMAL was very supportive. Enthusiastic, even."
A trickle of guffaws from the audience. The three women turned to look at Liam.
"What? I thought it was very nice of them."
"I thought Dana said that was a misunderstanding." Kara frowned, her face puzzled.
"Well, she did. But I decided to take what we could get."
"How did you become aware of this type of issue? As I said, I don't think many in our audience have encountered credible persons attesting to this sort of situation. You must be among the first."
"It's not very credible," Kara said, her voice gone flat and her eyes flinty, "to claim that you were kidnapped, drugged, held against your will, and that others - others that looked and sounded exactly like people - cut into you, ran tests on you, made a brood mare out of you. It's not the sort of thing you tell your best friend, much less total strangers."
Silence.
"Do you all have such a story?"
"The details vary," Dana said, after a moment. "The specifics are…unique, to each of us. But the horrors are not."
"If I can ask - and I know this is a painful subject to talk about - was your own first encounter with this personal, or through your work, your investigations?"
"Very early in our work together, Mul - my partner, he found evidence of women being used for such purposes. Later, I myself." She paused, swallowed. "Later, it became much more personal."
"Only women?"
"No," said Sun. "Not only women. But even - even amongst my people, the events I was…made aware of - it was primarily women."
Kara Thrace nodded. "I never saw a man in one of the farms - the camps. Only women."
"Does that affect your ability to work with men? Do they take you seriously?"
Sun shook her head. "They do not understand - Cr - my friend; he thought it was about the imprisonment. The helplessness." Now she had her hand entwined again in Kara's. "That was not - that was part of the pain. Not all of it."
"I don't understand."
Dana leaned forward, her manner that of a lecturer at a podium. "There are several schools of thought - all related to evolutionary patterns and the relative k vs. r reproductive strategies of higher order males vs. females." She took a breath and went on. "The instinctive reaction of men - of males - to loss of reproductive initiative is not as overwhelming as that of females. It's hardwired in."
Now the host was frowning, obviously disturbed by the implications.
"Are you saying that men don't care what happens to their children?"
- "Yes," said Kara.
- "Parental concern in either gender is a social construct, not an inborn talent," said Sun.
- "No, but many don't," said Dana.
- "No", said Liam. "They care."
"Wait, wait - that's four answers!"
"There are four of us," observed Sun.
"Okay, but you stand together on this problem."
"Agree that there is a problem, yes. Doesn't mean we agree on everything." Kara's voice was sharp.
"What do you agree on?"
A pause. Then Liam spoke. "That no one should have to go through that. Either themselves, or watch someone they care for caught in that kind of web, helpless as forces beyond your control made life where there should not have been one."
"Is that what happened to you?"
"To the mother of my son. She became pregnant, and bore a child, both against her wishes, but, more importantly, against the laws of nature."
"Laws of nature? Are you opponents to genetic engineering?"
Kara shrugged. "Depends on what's being engineered. Machines are made to be rebuilt, not humans."
"Yes", said Liam. "If God meant that combination, he would have already made it."
"No", put in Sun. "The genome must be maintained and preserved, by whatever means necessary."
"Yes, when that technology is held in the hands of a few secretive old men," said Dana.
"You're doing that again." A series of quick grins.
"It's in our nature," Liam drawled. "In our blood, even."
"More seriously, it's important for our goals that we be as honest and open as possible. No hidden agendas, no half-truths." Dana glanced to the side, where both Sun and Kara were sitting, nearly identical frowns on their faces.
"I don't think everyone in your group agrees with you."
"No," said Sun. "There is a danger in too much movement in the open."
Kara nodded. "We have to be honest with each other. But there's a reason for keeping secrets. Some times you don't want to show your hand too soon."
"Sounds like a real card player. Now, we're almost out of time, so I'd like to ask one more question.
"Stand Watch is an advocacy group. What specifically do you advocate our audience - both here in the studio and at home - do about this situation? Because I get the feeling that each of you has their own take on the issue, we'll start with you, Liam."
"Invest in garlic futures. And silver crosses. The real risk group is not humans, but undead, and your best bet to protect yourselves is to keep from becoming undead."
"Not a response that actually addresses those already caught up in the farms, Liam," put in Dana.
"What do you suggest, then, Dana?"
"We are lobbying Congress and the UN to establish working groups to further the investigations that my partner and I began. We need more information - knowledge is power, and without it, we as a race, as a species, are helpless."
"And you, Ms Sun?"
"Humanity is helpless - Earth lacks the technology to combat the enemies that it does not even know exist. Without the protection of allies with advanced technology and real military potential, you do not stand a chance."
"We don't stand a chance? Where do you see yourself in this picture?"
"I have committed myself to your world, and to your future." Sun was all but vibrating in place, face scowling. "Your fate is mine, which gives me some urgency to correct your backwards barbarism and flatworlder technological inferiority."
"Who are you calling inferior, space-rat? It's the heart that flies the plane, not the hardware." There was an edge to Kara's voice, and a fond exasperation as well.
"What do you recommend, then, Lieutenant?"
"Shoot them all, let the Gods sort them out." Bright teeth in a terrifyingly eager grin. Beside her, Sun was nodding. "Aeryn's right in one thing - the bad guys have really good guns. You can't give them a second chance."
The audience was murmuring, a thread of unease amongst the giggles and the scandalized gasps. A voice from the back spoke into a break in the sound: " - told you they were neo-con plants."
A second's shock from the audience, and then they were off again, lost in wild speculation. The host leapt into the next pause, all but shouting over the audience.
"Well we're almost out of time, so we're going to wrap this up here with just one or two questions from the audience. Right there, yes, you in the yellow."
The heavy-set woman in the canary pants suit struggled to her feet. "I'd like to ask the young lady who's still in the military a question. What made them come after you? Why you, out of everyone out there?"
"My luck's crap at everything except for cards."
Snorts and laughter and one call from the back - "Are you lucky in love?"
The devil-may-care grin again. "Not as lucky as the one I'm with."
The host smiled and waved at a hand at the other side of the room. "You, yes, you in the lavender scarf."
"I've got a question for the lady from far away - where is home for you, exactly?"
Sun hesitated, then leaned forward. "I don't know, exactly. Not any more. The street number keeps changing. I think it's a conspiracy at the postal office."
"Sorry folks, out of time now! How about a big round of applause and a warm thank you for our guests, for bringing us a unique perspective and a timely warming! Will it be in time? We'll have to wait and see!"