When the dying sun of Paradis dramatically begins its contraction phase, a two year stay by the Galacticans and the colonials on what appears to be the perfect planet for rebuilding their civilisation comes to an abrupt end -- the planet's inhabitants are forced to make a hurried exit back into space. Discovering that several of their refurbished ships are incapable of deep-space travel, the fleet returns to Paradis for repairs -- just in time for the sudden catastrophic destruction of the entire planet by the Cylons. Apollo, Tigh, and Athena make the painful decision to leave one-third of the fleet behind in order to save the rest.