GALACTICA 6551: 13. The Voice of the Serpent

[Revell-Fan]

GALACTICA 6551

13. The Voice of the Serpent




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by Marcell von dem Berge

(© 01.01.1999 / revision #1 – 8/2017 / revision #2 - 8/2025)








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Based on the classic television series BATTLESTAR GALACTICA created by Glen A. Larson

and on characters created by Glen A. Larson.

Battlestar Galactica © ® & ™ Universal City Studios.

This script is free. It is a non-profit fan project and for personal use only.

No infringement intended.

No commercial use.




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There are those, who believe…




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SPECIAL GUEST STARS



John Colicos as Baltar

Patrick MacNee as Count Iblis



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EXT. BALTAR'S ASTEROID

A deserted place consisting of rocks, rubble and debris where the sun never shines. A place devoid of any love — and hope.

A bleak day. Like many before. Baltar is sitting by the fire, with a blanket draped over his head like a hood, cooking some soup. He is depressed and throws empty cans into a crater near his hut, poorly constructed from boards and sheets. The crater is almost completely filled with garbage.




BALTAR
Five sectars! Five sectars and still no response! Damn, what the frak are they doing?! I have wired the transmitter to the stone to boost the signal. They should have received it by now! Where the frak are they???




Baltar looks up. A little girl in a dress with dark hair and two braids is sitting in front of him. She stares at him and does not speak a word.




BALTAR
And you, you, don’t stare at me like that! You're still eating me out of house and home! There is already too little left for the two of us.

(the girl remains silent, staring at Baltar)

We’ll both starve to death before the yahren is over! Just look at you! You're so skinny, as if you were starving already.

... Ah well, this is the last time I'll give you something. Here! Take it!

(offers a can to the girl, she stays mute and keeps looking at Baltar)

... Still not hungry, huh? Your fault. But don’t blame me when it’s too late.




Baltar gets up and starts walking around. The girl is following him silently.




BALTAR
You know, I doubt you'll ever find a more boring place in the universe than this one. There is absolutely nothing here. No light, no warmth, no vegetation, absolutely nothing. Just me, a leaky hut, a bunch of field rations, a short-range transmitter. And rocks, rocks, rocks. And now you, too ...

(stops)

Adama has put me here, that’s something I remember. But, for Sagan’s sake, how did you get here? Didn’t you eat up your mash? Did you disobey your parents? Oh, I forgot, you are unable to speak.

... Or you don’t want to speak. Well, that’s up to you. However, it would definitely be better for you if you would learn it. That would save me a lot of work.




Both proceed to the crashed Crystalith. It is lying half buried in a crater. It is pulsating and emitting energy. You hear a pulsating humming sound.




BALTAR
Look, I was here first. Then this stone fell from the sky. And then came you. From one day to the next. But from where? If I wasn’t so desperate, you would have driven me mad. You don’t say anything, you don’t eat anything, and yet you are here. Just because. And you always follow me wherever I go. What do you want from me? I’m neither your father nor your mother. I can’t give anything to you. I can’t even give anything to myself under these conditions.




Baltar kneels down to the wired Crystalith, the transmitter is placed beside it.




BALTAR
I don’t know what you are, but this stone here gives me more than you ever could! It provides me with light, warmth and energy for the transmitter to work. You just stand there, you stupid brat! Don’t look at me like that! Now say something! Or I'll throw you into the fire and eat you up!

GIRL
(speaking with a deep man’s voice)
Well, well, there is absolutely no need to lose your nerves, my old friend!

BALTAR
(confused)
Uh, what?

GIRL
Yes. Remember. You know me. Look deep inside yourself. We have met before. Many sectars ago.

BALTAR
That voice ... Am I going insane, or is it really you?

(looking around hastily)

GIRL
What do you think?

BALTAR
Oh, it is you! But why this masquerade? Have you sunk so far that you have to hide behind the image of a little girl?! Show yourself, you devil— drop the mask!




The little girl turns into — COUNT IBLIS!




IBLIS
It’s nice to meet you again.

BALTAR
Iblis! What do you want?!

IBLIS
I wanted to see how you were doing. Don’t you feel lonely, after all this time, forgotten and abandoned on this desolate rock?

BALTAR
Are you here to make fun of me and my pathetic situation? Ohh, how typical of you. Really typical!

IBLIS
Calm down, old friend. There are a few things you do not understand. Yet.

BALTAR
Save your words. What is it you want?!

IBLIS
I have come to make you an offer.

BALTAR
You - me? What could I possibly give you?

... Ohh, you mean that stone that fell from the heavens?

IBLIS
You're straight to the point, Baltar. I always liked that about you.

BALTAR
(turns around, the Crystalith is casting its light on him)
... No. I can't give it to you. It’s a gift.

IBLIS
(standing behind Baltar)
Do you really think the Imperious Leader can be soothed? You left your ship for no reason, teamed up with the enemy and allowed the humans to destroy a base star. And as a reward they released you and even gave you a transmitter.

BALTAR
I ... I didn’t do any harm to the Empire..! The Leader will rejoice over my gift and reinstate me.

IBLIS
The Leader will believe that you have betrayed him and the Empire, and that you are going to deceive him. Your "gift" will even increase his mistrust. He will have you executed without hesitation. You will never leave this dead asteroid alive. Do you really want to spend the rest of your life here? In complete solitude? In darkness and cold? Forever forgotten in the infinity of space?

BALTAR
... No ..! No! Or..? What is your suggestion?

IBLIS
I’m offering what you’ve been dreaming of all the time. The domination of every human being in the galaxy.

BALTAR
That doesn’t sound too bad ...

(turns around)

But - wait a centon, that can’t be all. What’s your gain? ... Oh, it's the stone! You want it! But why? What can it do for you? What’s your profit in this?

IBLIS
Our profit. We cannot achieve anything alone. Together we can rule the universe! Let’s join forces!

BALTAR
(turns back to the stone)
What is this? What is it able to do, aside from shining and humming all day long?

IBLIS
These stones preserve the primal forces of the universe. The one who keeps them is omnipotent and invincible.

BALTAR
You speak of more than one?

IBLIS
Yes. I know the location of two more of them. With your help, we might obtain the others as well...

BALTAR
And then nothing would be impossible?

IBLIS
This term would no longer exist..! ... In a few centars, a base star will arrive which has accidentally received your distress signal. I'll ensure that they will follow you. The choice is yours.

BALTAR
Why don’t you just take it?

IBLIS
My powers are big, but we need a ship to get the other stones. They are scattered all over the universe and even for me it would take an eternity to collect them all one by one. And you see for yourself that my pockets are not large enough to carry such a large object with me.

BALTAR
Ha! You don’t even have any pockets!

IBLIS
Your senses are as sharp as ever. That's good. ... The stones are moving away from us in this very moment and their speed equals mine. I would never be able to reach them all. No, I must bring them to me - … to us. We’ll need a ship for that. In addition, we will encounter resistance during our journey, which is easier to overcome with a base star.

BALTAR
I understand ...

IBLIS
Well, old friend, oblivion or omnipotence— the choice is yours. Are you with me?

BALTAR
… Agreed!

IBLIS
A wise decision, Baltar! You will not regret it..!

TO BE CONTINUED​

 

[Revell-Fan]

Formatting, spelling and grammar have been revised.

 

[Revell-Fan]

And here comes a brand-new

NOVELIZATION​

Baltar had been stranded on a dark, uninhabited asteroid for what felt like an eternity. His only companions were the rocks and the occasional scurrying creatures that kept him company. His days were spent scavenging for food and water, and his nights were spent huddled up in a small hut trying to keep warm.

One night Baltar had been pacing the barren surface of his prison, cursing the empty sky, when a sudden brilliance tore through the void. A searing light streaked across the heavens, growing larger, brighter, until it roared past him and struck the ground with cataclysmic force. The impact shook the asteroid to its very core, hurling dust and rock into the blackness of space.

Baltar stumbled to the edge of the newly-formed crater, his heart pounding, his eyes wide in disbelief. Below, half-buried in the broken earth, lay a huge crystal stone, its facets glowing with an otherworldly fire, humming faintly as though alive.
For a long breath he stood motionless, then his lips twisted into something between awe and madness. He raised his arms to the sky and cried out, "Thank you, my Lords! Thank you!"
His voice echoed across the emptiness, swallowed quickly by the void.
Time passed after that day—days, sectons, perhaps even sectars, though Baltar ceased to count. The stone remained, pulsing steadily in its crater, the only companion to his growing obsession.
And then, without warning, she appeared. A small figure in the distance. He rubbed his eyes, thinking that it was just a figment of his imagination. But as he walked closer, he realized that it was a little girl, standing silently on a plateau as though she had always been there. From that moment on, Baltar was no longer alone.
She couldn't have been more than six years old, with long curly dark hair and blue eyes so bright that they could see through your soul. She wore a simple gown and had a dirt-stained face. But what caught Baltar's attention was the fact that she was barefoot, and yet, she didn't seem to mind the rough surface of the asteroid.

Baltar was intrigued by the girl's presence on the asteroid. He tried to talk to her, but she remained silent. Nevertheless, she followed him wherever he went. It was as if she was his shadow.

Days turned into weeks, and the girl continued to follow Baltar. He had become used to her silent presence and even started to enjoy her company. He would often talk to her as if she was a real person, but he never received a response.

After a while, the brilliance of the fallen stone no longer seemed a miracle but a cruel reminder of his solitude. The girl never spoke, the crystal never answered, and the days blurred into one another. What had begun with awe and trembling reverence hardened into weariness, resignation, and hunger.

The day was as bleak as so many before it. Baltar stirred a pot of soup over a flickering fire. With a resigned sigh, he tossed empty cans from his shack of boards and scrap metal into a crater already brimming with refuse.

"Five sectars! Five sectars and still no response! Damn it—what are they doing?!" Baltar cursed. "I linked the transmitter to the crystal to amplify the signal. They must have received it by now! So where the hell are they??"
He looked up at the small girl. She sat silently before him.
"And you—don’t just sit there staring at me like that! You’ll eat the hair off my head! We’ve already got barely enough for the two of us," Baltar said, his voice heavy with resignation. The girl remained silent, eyes fixed on him.
"It won’t be long now before we both starve! Look at you! You’re nothing but skin and bones—your body’s already starting to give out," he continued. "Alright… but this is the last time I give you anything. Here—take it!" He offered her a can. She still said nothing. "You don’t want it? Fine. Don’t come complaining to me later."
Baltar stood and began pacing, the girl following him silently.
"You know," he muttered, "I doubt there’s a lonelier spot in the universe than this one. There’s nothing here. No light, no warmth, no life—nothing at all. Just me, a leaky shack, a handful of rations, a short-range transmitter. And rocks… rocks… rocks everywhere. And now, apparently, you too." He paused, frowning. "Adama left me here, I know that. But how in the void did you get here? Didn’t finish your porridge? Didn’t obey your parents? Ah, I forgot—you can’t speak. Or maybe you just won’t. Well, that’s your business. But it would save me a lot of trouble if you learned eventually."
They continued on toward the fallen Crystalith, half-buried in the crater floor. It pulsed, radiating energy, emitting a steady, thrumming hum.
"See, I was here first. Then this rock fell from the sky. And then… you. Overnight. But from where? If I weren’t already this desperate, it would have driven me completely insane. You say nothing, you eat nothing, yet you’re here. Just like that. And you follow me everywhere. What do you want from me? I am neither your father nor your mother. I can give you nothing. I can barely give anything to myself," Baltar muttered as he knelt beside the wired Crystalith.
He looked at the stone and continued, voice low and tense: "I don’t know what you are, but this rock has given me more than you ever could! Light, warmth, energy for the transmitter… And you? You just stand there, that foolish little brat! …Don’t look at me like that! Speak now, or I’ll toss you into the fire and eat you!"
Suddenly, a deep, male voice came from the girl’s mouth. "Now, now… who’s losing their nerve, my old friend?"
Baltar froze. "Uh… what?"
The girl’s voice rumbled again, deep and resonant: "That’s right. Remember. You knew me. Look deep within yourself. We’ve met before. Many sectars ago."
Baltar’s mind raced. "That voice… am I losing my mind, or… is that really you?"
The girl’s voice responded: "What do you mean?"
Suddenly, he recognized her true form as she transformed into Count Iblis. "Ohhh, it was you!!! But why the disguise? Had you sunk so low that you had to hide behind a little girl?! Show yourself, demon—drop the mask!"
Iblis smiled. "It pleases me to see you again."
Baltar’s anger flared. "Iblis! What are you doing here?!"
"I came to see how you fare. Don’t you feel lonely after all this time—alone, abandoned on this desolate rock?"
Baltar sneered. "Mocking me, my pitiful situation? That suits you perfectly. Absolutely perfectly!"
Iblis’s tone softened. "Calm yourself, old friend. There are things you have not understood. Not yet."
Baltar’s suspicion hardened. "Spare me the words. What are you doing here?"
Iblis offered: "I am here to make you an offer."
Baltar turned, the Crystalith’s glow casting his face in sharp relief. "To me? What could I possibly offer you? …Oh, you mean this rock that fell from the sky?"
"You cut straight to the point, Baltar. I like that," Iblis said.
"No. I cannot give it to you. It is a gift," Baltar said.
Iblis moved closer. "Do you think that will appease the Imperious Leader? You abandoned your ship without cause, cooperated with the humans, allowed them to destroy a base-ship. And as reward, they let you live—and even gave you a transmitter."
Baltar defended himself. "I… I did nothing to harm the Empire..! The Leader will welcome my gift and restore my old post in gratitude."
Iblis’s eyes glinted. "He will believe you betrayed him and the empire, and your ‘gift’ will only deepen his suspicion. He will have you executed without hesitation. You will never leave this dead asteroid again. Do you truly want to spend the rest of your life here? In complete solitude? In darkness and cold? Forgotten for eternity in the void of space?"
Baltar hesitated, then whispered: "No..! No! …Or..? What’s your proposal?"
Iblis revealed the dream Baltar had always harbored: dominion over every human being in the galaxy.
"That doesn’t sound bad… But wait— you’re never just here for nothing. There must be a reason… Oh, it’s the stone! You want it..! Why? What can it give you? Where’s your gain?"
"Our gain. Alone, we achieve nothing. Together, we can rule the universe. Let us unite our power!"
Baltar looked again at the stone. "What is this object? What else can it do, besides glow and hum all day?"
Iblis’s eyes burned. "Within these stones lie the primal forces of the universe. Whoever possesses them becomes omnipotent, invincible."
Baltar asked, incredulous: "You mean more than one?"
"Yes," Iblis confirmed. "I know where two more lie. With your help, we can claim the rest…!"
"And then nothing will be impossible?" Baltar breathed.
"There will be no such word…! In a few Sectars, a base-ship will arrive, coincidentally receiving your distress signal. I will ensure they follow you. The choice is yours."
Baltar asked, wary: "Why didn’t you take it yourself?"
"My power is great, but to retrieve the other stones, we need a ship. They are scattered across the universe, and even for me, it would take too long to gather them individually. And as you can see, my pockets aren't large enough to carry such a massive object," Iblis said.
Baltar laughed. "Ha! You don’t even have pockets!"
Iblis smiled faintly. "Your senses are as sharp as ever. Good. …The stones moved away from us, their speed matched only by mine. I could never have reached them alone. No—I had to bring them to me… to us. And for that, a ship is necessary. Resistance awaits along the journey, and a base-ship makes it easier to overcome."
Baltar nodded slowly. "I understand…"
Iblis leaned closer. "Well, old friend… oblivion or omnipotence? The choice is yours. Will you join me?"
Baltar paused, then said: "...Very well."
Iblis proclaimed: "A wise decision, Baltar! You will not regret it."