Earth. It gleamed as a shining beacon of hope for the 12 colonies of Kobol and now they were seeing it with their very own eyes. Its azure hue, splashed together with land the color of Laura's eyes was the backdrop of their hopes. The fleet had erupted into joyous revelry and neither Laura nor Bill felt inclined to stop it. They were too exuberant themselves to notice.

Bill hugged Laura's fragile body to his own sturdy one in a gripping embrace. "We made it." He whispered softly, in a cracked voice. He pulled back, his eyes watery. Laura smiled, and closed her eyes, screwing her face, desperate to keep control of the flood of tears threatening to stream. Bill smiled softly and squeezed her hand, knowing they were happy tears. He shook his head, willing his voice to remain clear and strong as he picked up the comm.

XXX

A few hours later, they were headed to the surface of the planet. The crew hadn't stopped rejoicing and it had taken awhile to actually secure the raptors needed, as no one seemed to remember they had jobs to do, in the midst of the occasion. Bill had chided the chief, but with no real harshness- Zeus had brought his family to the Promised Land. They had selectively chosen the first people to see the surface, not knowing what they would find. They had decided to use two raptors, one with Laura, Bill, and Lee in one raptor and Kara, Anders, and Tyrol in the other. Saul had stayed with the fleet, keeping command. They had ultimately decided to bring along the Cylons that they trusted, knowing that to form a new home, they would need cooperation. The ride to the planet was mainly silent. They were wondering about this new planet, wondering if they would meet any resistance in settling upon it. If the 13th tribe was alive and settled on this planet, they were not showing any signs of strength thus far. They had not shot them out of the sky, nor did they pick up any of their communication signals that Galactica had tried to send out. As they neared the planet they saw cities, metropolises in the distance. Great towers stood in the distance, complex geometrical shapes, and their mere upright existence seemingly at odds with gravity. As they began their decent towards the ground, landing upon the soft ground, seemingly wild with tall grass, the apprehension was palpable. Bill looked around warily, looking for some sign of resistance. He looked to the other raptor, holding Kara, Anders, and Tyrol. He gave them a nod and proceeded to search the surroundings with his eyes. He decided there was nothing he could glean from within the raptor and motioned to the others that he would be getting out of his raptor. He pressed to open the hatch, wondering again what type of people the thirteenth tribe must be, to not have more security. Lee's narrowed eyes were methodically scanning the area as he moved with Bill, his hand close to his gun. Laura began to stand to come with him but Bill gently pushed her back into her seat. She glared at him, wondering what he was doing. "Bill. I have not come this far to sit inside this damn raptor." She said icily. Bill gave her a look and sighed. "Laura. You of all people should know we have to think about diplomacy. Who knows what this tribe is like? Maybe they are dangerous, and maybe they will not like our presence here. They did leave for a reason after all. So we will go out first,-" He said motioning between himself and Lee. He held up his hand as she went to protest, his eyes making it clear he would give no ground on the matter "making sure it's all clear, and once everything is established, you will see your Earth." He said with a smile as he touched her cheek. She huffed, annoyed but knowing he was right. She conceded and touched his hand. "Alright, but be careful Admiral." "Always" he said with a grin. He slowly began to make his way off the raptor, his hand lightly touching the gun he had holstered to his side. Suddenly a loud noise was heard from overhead. He looked up, and saw a large carrier craft heading towards them. It was larger in the front; almost bubble shaped, and had a long tail that extended out. The source of the loud noise seemed to be the propelling system attached to the top, spinning around in rapid circles. As it lowered, Bill felt the intense pressure of the machine bearing down on him, the wind blowing in his face. He felt something behind him and saw Laura had come to stand next to him.

He shot her a ferocious glare and yelled something at her, but the wind from the machine drowned out his voice and she shook her head, letting him know she wasn't leaving. Suddenly the machine became quiet and they found themselves waiting in apprehension. Anders, Kara, and Tyrol were climbing out of the raptor, heading towards them, searching their faces for any information.

"You think they are friendly Admiral?" Tyrol asked wearily, as he took a place next to Bill, his hand also feathering his gun. Anders, Lee, and Kara all gave him questioning stares, wondering what to do next.

"I don't know. There seems to be someone flying the machine, so we should wait and see what they will do first. We need to establish we are friendly, but they may not want us here, or may not give us time to explain so if for even one second they look hostile, don't hesitate to protect yourselves." He said gravely, letting his eyes rest upon each of theirs.

Laura was looking at the machine intently, wondering what the 13 tribe would look like… "That is if they don't kill us before letting any conversations happen" she thought nervously. A noise coming from the interior of the machine caused them all to look in the direction in which she was staring.

" We know who you are" a voice called out through a crackling machine. "You are armed, as are we. What is your purpose here?"

They gave each other stunned looks. Laura was the first to gain her bearings and called out to the voice.

"We have come looking for a new home. We wish no harm upon either party, we are merely looking for a place to settle. We have guns for protection but do not come seeking a fight" she said, wondering how much she should explain. The voice said it knew who they were…

Bill looked at her bewildered, almost as if he had forgotten she was there.

The door of the machine began to open and Bill instinctively stepped in front of Laura, shielding her. As the door opened fully, the figures of two men and a woman stepped out. They seemed to carry no weapons with them. The woman was olive skinned, her black hair in tight shrouded curls clinging to her head. She was of medium stature and had brilliant gray eyes. She wore a suit, not unlike the one Laura often wore, except hers was a deep maroon. The man that flanked her left side was olive skinned as well, although a little bit darker than his female counterpart. He had black hair that was combed and gelled to perfection. He wore a business suit as well but he also had a curiously large ring upon his hand. The man flanking to the right was a pale skinned man, his hair so lightly blond that it almost matched the clouds above them. He had light blue eyes and wore a robe of some sort. It was obviously government issued and had a seal upon the collar.

The woman stopped a short distance between them and in turn the men with her also stopped.

" We do not look armed" the woman said in an affected accent, her eyes following theirs, as their eyes had been scanning them for weapons " But we have security hidden all around us, if anyone decides they wish to become violent" she gave them all a steady look, showing she did not wish it to come to that.

"We understand that ma'm" Lee spoke up "But we aren't here to cause a fight. Hell that's what we've been doing for the past few years. We are here to find a home, just like the President said."

The men and woman assembled look appraisingly at Laura, checking over the leader.

"This is your leader?" The woman asked in a voice that held just the slightest disbelief.

" Hell yeah she's our leader" Kara said angrily, taking offense to the woman's tone.

Laura felt a surge of pride within her gut, at the loyalty Kara was showing.

The woman from the thirteenth tribe looked crestfallen. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean any offense." She said earnestly, shaking her head full of dark curls mentally chastising herself. "I just meant…"

The olive skinned man next to her gently laid his hand upon her shoulder and looked to them.

" I am President Gerard Sands and this is my wife Rosalina." He said nodding to the woman "We meant no disrespect to you."

Kara left of a scoff of disdain which caused Bill to shoot her a look of warning. Meanwhile the pale man had moved much closer to them and held out his hand.

The pale man smiled at them. "I am Ben King, leader of the U.C."

They all gave him confused glances and he lost his smile. "I'm sorry. I didn't know if you would know what that was but I had assumed the other colonies had….never mind" he said his smile returning. "I'm leader of the United Colony here on Earth."

"United Colony?" Laura asked in a questioning voice.

"Ahh yes " Ben answered " The United Colony is an organization that's main purpose is to keep all of the individual colonial groups at peace. We are proud to have never had a war. We find the best thing is to remind people we are all one colony, one "United Colony" as it were." He said as he flashed a smile.

Laura gave him a politician's smile and said "I'm Laura Roslin, President of the Twelve Colonies of Kobol."

Gerard smiled warmly and extended his hand. " I've heard many things about the great leader of the remaining tribes. " He said as he shook her hand. Bill was tense at Laura shook each of the leaders hands, his eyes searching them for any false motives. He sighed with relief as she returned to his side. Rosalina cocked her head slightly at Bill, and he realized he was expected to introduce himself next.

"Admiral William Adama Commander of the Fleet." He said in a strong voice. He shook hands with each of the leaders, each time feeling as if he were being appraised like a piece of cattle.

The others quickly introduced themselves. 'Now' Laura thought 'it is time to get down to business.'