Battlestar Galactica Episode 2.20 Lay Down Your Burdens, Part 2

As the sun rises on Caprica, Starbuck and Anders discover that the Cylons have vanished. Brother Cavil declares it to be a miracle. But when the rescue team and civilian survivors return to the Galactica, the real reason for their survival becomes clear: Brother Cavil is a Cylon- his duplicate counseled Tyrol- and he has come here to deliver a message: The "Heroes of the Cylon"- Number Six and Sharon Valerii- have persuaded the Cylon leadership that trying to destroy the humans was an error. From now on the two civilizations will live apart, in peace.

At the same time, voting continues in the Colonial presidential election. President Roslin approaches Baltar and proposes that, whoever wins, colonization of the newly discovered planet should be postponed until further study is done. Baltar spurns her offer, so she confronts him about Number Six, but he remains unfazed by her accusation.

Panicked at the thought of Baltar taking control of humanity's fate, Roslin instructs her aide to take all necessary steps to steal the election. The plot, however, is discovered by Lt. Gaeta, and Laura and Adama must choose between denying the will of the people and letting a man they suspect to be a Cylon collaborator take power. For Laura, the question is difficult, but the answer is never in doubt: she and Adama allow their plot to unravel. Baltar wins.

As President Baltar is sworn in, his Cylon lover, Gina, enacts a final vengeance against the fleet, detonating a nuclear warhead that destroys the Cloud Nine luxury liner. Despite the tragic loss of several ships, colonization of the planet- dubbed "New Caprica"- goes ahead over Adama's objections.

Time passes; more and more of the fleet's population relocates to the surface, leaving only skeleton crews aboard the Galactica and the Pegasus. Through it all, Adama remains uneasy; he anticipates the return of the Cylons. And a year later, his fears are borne out, as a Cylon invasion force jumps into the system and lands on New Caprica. Outflanked and overpowered, Adama and his son Lee order their battlestars out of the system- leaving the civilian colony defenseless as a Cylon occupying force arrives to announce the dawn of a new era....