The Sky

This article has a separate continuity. This article is in the Richard Hatch Novelizations separate continuity, which is related to the Original Series. Be sure that your contributions to this article reflect the characters and events specific to this continuity only.

The Sky are an alien race of telepathic beings capable of natural flight through air and space. Despite being a gentle and peaceful race, they have become formidable warriors out of necessity, knowing that not all galactic neighbors share their benevolence.

Biology and Physiology

The Sky possess a distinctive physical form, with bodies shaped like a wide, flat, muscular crescent moon with tips forward. Their bodies feature wing-like structures that enable flight, and they can extend pseudopods from the front tip of their bodies to manipulate objects and controls.

The Sky can propel themselves through air and space without mechanical assistance, though even the strongest Sky cannot fly indefinitely without rest. Their blood is green ichor. While their bodies are not subject to damage by temperature changes, prolonged exposure to the vacuum of deep space without protection can cause exhaustion and a disturbing numbness.

The Sky appear to have no physical eyes, relying entirely on their mental senses for perception. This sensory ability extends to telepathic sight, allowing them to "see" without conventional vision.

Technology

Armor-Ships

The Sky utilize unique armor-ships that conform closely to the contours of their bodies, serving as both protective covering and propulsion systems. These armor-ships are essentially extensions of their pilots, with the Sky described as being "one with their armor."

The armor features internal engines that make long-distance space travel faster and less dangerous than unassisted flight. At the convex curve of the crescent-shaped armor sits a green-fire engine, while a hard-light plasma cannon is mounted at the midpoint of the inner curve between the tips, serving as the primary weapon.

These vessels are piloted entirely through telepathy, with no windows or viewports for conventional sight. The ships respond to telepathic commands, allowing for maneuverability at "the warhawk speed of thought"—enabling instantaneous maneuvering that surpasses even the fastest conventional spacecraft in agility, though not necessarily in straight-line speed.

The armor-ships can sustain significant damage while still protecting their occupants, though breaches that injure the pilot within can cause green ichor to seep into space.

Abilities

Telepathy

The Sky are a profoundly telepathic race, with mental communication serving as their primary mode of interaction. Their telepathic abilities are extensive and include:

• Mind-to-Mind Communication: The Sky can communicate telepathically across the void of space, establishing mental links with other beings.
• Linguistic Acquisition: They can plumb the minds of other beings to extract language, memories, and knowledge, essentially "stealing" languages from others' minds to facilitate communication.
• Psychic Sensing: The Sky can sense the emotions, minds, and presence of other beings across vast distances, detecting hatred, fear, and other strong emotions radiating through space.
• Death Echoes: They can perceive the "deathcries" of warriors during battle and sense the psychic remnants left behind by deceased Sky.
• Mental Deception: The Sky can manipulate the perceptions of others, making enemies believe they are seeing something that is not there or convincing them that the Sky warrior has vanished.
• Pain Shielding: They can shield other beings from experiencing the full intensity of telepathic pain.
• Psychic Navigation: The Sky can spread their consciousness across space to create a "delicate telepathic web" that gives them awareness of their position in the galactic quadrant.

The telepathic abilities of the Sky are so powerful that their distress signals can cause severe pain in other beings who sense them.

Flight

The Sky can fly naturally through atmospheric and space environments without mechanical assistance, using a combination of physical wing-like structures and telekinetic propulsion. They can add the force of their minds to their armor's engine power for enhanced propulsion.

Unarmored Sky can fly through space, though they risk exhaustion and must eventually rest. During the Chitain attack on their embassy, several unarmored Sky flew to draw fire away from the embassy, willingly sacrificing themselves for their people.

Culture and Society

The Sky are fundamentally a gentle and peaceful race. They believe that few troubles cannot be solved by soaring through the air of their homeworld or sailing on the "astral winds" of space. This philosophy emphasizes tranquility and harmony with their environment.

However, the Sky are not foolish—they recognize that their benevolence is not shared by all galactic neighbors, and this knowledge has transformed them into a race of warriors when necessary. They maintain military readiness and warrior traditions to defend themselves against hostile forces.

The Sky establish embassies on moons and planets throughout their quadrant, maintaining diplomatic relationships with other species. These embassies serve as bases for cultural exchange and peaceful coexistence with neighboring races.

When Sky warriors die in battle, their passing leaves psychic "death echoes" that other Sky can sense across vast distances, serving as both a form of communication and a connection to fallen comrades.

History

Diplomatic Relations

The Sky established an embassy on the third moon of Xerik-12 to maintain relations with the Chitain, the only sentient race native to the Xerik system and inhabitants of Xerik-7. For a time, this relationship proved peaceful and mutually beneficial, with the Chitain sharing aspects of their technology and culture with the Sky, though they never allowed close inspection of their vessels.

Chitain Betrayal

The peaceful relationship between the Sky and Chitain ended abruptly when the Chitain launched an unprovoked attack on the Sky embassy on Xerik-12's third moon. More than a dozen Chitain craft descended on the embassy without warning, catching the Sky off guard. The attack was particularly disturbing because it came without any prior slight, insult, or indication of hostility—only duplicity.

During the attack, Sky warriors attempted to defend their embassy, with some flying unarmored to draw Chitain fire away from the installation, sacrificing themselves for their people. The Chitain assault ultimately resulted in the complete destruction of the embassy, with the Chitain "wiping it from the galaxy."

Valor, a Sky warrior who arrived during the attack, fought desperately to defend the embassy but was severely wounded in the battle. The betrayal and massacre left deep scars on Sky society, generating profound hatred and a desire for vengeance against the Chitain.

Alliance with Humanity

The Sky first encountered humanity when Apollo rescued the wounded Valor after the Chitain attack. Apollo used his Viper's turbo lasers to cauterize Valor's massive wound, saving his life in a desperate and painful procedure. This act of compassion established a bond between the two warriors and opened diplomatic relations between the Sky and the Colonial Fleet.

During his recovery, Valor provided Apollo with intelligence about hostile presences in the quadrant, including Cylon scouts apparently preparing to establish outposts in Sky territory. The Sky, having only encountered the results of Cylon passage rather than the Cylons themselves, became wary of this new threat.

Battle Against the Chitain Fleet

When the Chitain attacked the Colonial Fleet, Valor—having recovered from his injuries under the care of Sky healers on the homeworld—led more than one hundred and fifty Sky warriors to intervene. The Sky had departed their homeworld determined to bring vengeance upon the Chitain for destroying their embassy. Despite Sky healers attempting to keep Valor behind due to his weakness, he insisted on leading the attack force.

The Sky warriors arrived at a critical moment when the Colonial Fleet faced overwhelming odds against the Chitain's superior firepower. The element of surprise worked heavily in the Sky's favor, with their initial strike destroying six Chitain craft completely. However, the Chitain vessels proved deadly fast, and the Sky suffered casualties during the battle, with several warriors exploding into space debris under Chitain fire.

The Sky's superior maneuverability compensated for the Chitain's speed advantage. While Chitain warships could outrun Sky armor-ships in straight-line velocity, the Sky could maneuver instantaneously through telepathic control, allowing them to outmaneuver their enemies in combat.

Athena sensed the Sky's telepathic presence during the battle, confirming to Cain that the new arrivals were friends based on her brother Apollo's earlier account of meeting Valor. The Sky's intervention dramatically shifted the battle's fortune, transforming what seemed a hopeless situation for the Colonial Fleet into a winnable engagement.

The battle exacted a heavy toll on the Sky. Valor himself was killed during the engagement. After the battle concluded, the remaining Sky warriors quickly disappeared, presumably returning to their homeworld satisfied with their vengeance against the Chitain. Apollo mourned Valor alone, as he was the only human who had truly known the Sky as anything more than silent allies.

Homeworld

The Sky maintain a homeworld where their people reside and where healers treat injured warriors. The Sky can reach out telepathically to touch the minds of others on their homeworld, though this requires proximity—warriors too far from the planet cannot establish such contact.

When Valor became lost and disoriented during his journey after the embassy attack, he was unable to reach the minds of Sky on the homeworld, indicating he was still quite distant from it. The homeworld appears to be the center of Sky civilization and the launching point for military expeditions.

Notable Sky

• Valor: A prominent Sky warrior who formed an alliance with Apollo and led Sky forces against the Chitain. He was killed during the battle to defend the Colonial Fleet.

Relationships with Other Species

Humans

The Sky's relationship with humanity began with Apollo's rescue of Valor and developed into a military alliance. Based on Apollo's example of intelligence, courage, and compassion, the Sky viewed humans favorably. When they discovered the human fleet under attack by the Chitain, the Sky had no doubt about intervening on humanity's behalf.

During the battle, the Sky warriors followed Valor's command to "destroy the Chitain with all the savagery with which they wiped our embassy from the galaxy," demonstrating their willingness to fight alongside humans against a common enemy. However, the Sky maintained some distance from humanity—after the battle, they departed quickly without extensive contact, and Apollo remained the only human who truly knew them.

Chitain

The Sky maintained peaceful and mutually beneficial diplomatic relations with the Chitain through an embassy on Xerik-12's third moon. However, the Chitain betrayed this relationship with an unprovoked attack that destroyed the embassy. This betrayal transformed the Sky's view of the Chitain from diplomatic partners to hated enemies deserving of vengeance.

The Sky viewed the Chitain as barbaric, and their desire for vengeance was so strong that it drove wounded warriors like Valor to fight despite their injuries. The Sky's hatred for the Chitain was profound enough that they projected terrifying mental images of Chitain ships aflame and Chitain cities destroyed.

Cylons

The Sky had limited direct contact with Cylons, encountering primarily the results of Cylon passage through their quadrant rather than the Cylons themselves. Valor informed Apollo that Cylon scouts had been in the Sky's quadrant, apparently preparing to establish outposts, and stated that "the Sky will not allow this."

The Sky viewed the Cylons as a new threat and enemies of their people, though the full extent of their conflict with the Cylons remains unclear.

Military Capabilities

The Sky demonstrate formidable military capabilities despite their peaceful nature:

• Tactical Surprise: Sky forces can arrive suddenly, appearing "as if from nowhere" to catch enemies off guard.
• Superior Maneuverability: Their telepathically controlled armor-ships can maneuver instantaneously, allowing them to dodge attacks and reposition at the speed of thought.
• Coordinated Attacks: Sky warriors can coordinate through telepathy, operating as a unified force under a single commander's mental direction.
• Psychological Warfare: They can project terrifying mental images to demoralize enemies and broadcast their presence telepathically.
• Self-Sacrifice: Unarmored Sky warriors are willing to fly into battle without protection to draw fire from strategic targets.

The Sky's greatest weakness in battle appears to be their vulnerability to fast-moving weapons fire, particularly from highly maneuverable craft like those of the Chitain. While they can dodge attacks through telepathic deception and superior maneuverability, concentrated fire from multiple fast-moving vessels can overwhelm their defenses.