A/N: I haven't written a fanfiction in quite a while so I may be a little rusty. Please review and critique. Let me know what you think.
I watched stargate as a kid and grew up with the SG1 and Atlantis series. Admittedly, I was not the biggest fan of Universe, but I was still sad to see the franchise just end with no new spin off. So, I grew impatient. Here is a new spin off. I am hoping to try and recapture the charisma of SG1 and Atlantis my set of characters. Please let me know what you think.
I also have put a trailer for this series on youtube.
watch?v=cFh4mIbxyko
Quick thing about the trailer: it is not just a bunch of random clips with music; I did not put it in there unless it was going to happen in one of my episodes (with a few obvious exceptions). It may be slightly different but similar enough that you can watch the trailer and point out which clip/audio came from which episode. If you see it in the trailer, it will happen in one of the episodes.
The SGC launches an expedition to the Millennium: a city built by the Alliance of the Four Great Races: the Ancients, the Asgard, the Nox, and the Furlings. It's a one way ticket for all the expedition members as they try to survive in another galaxy; home away from home. Follow Terra Nova, Steven Chen, Charles Martin, and Corin Nevec as they unlock the secrets of the universe. The journey has only just begun.
"Major Terra Nova," Colonel Samantha Carter's voice echoed, snapping Nova into reality as she entered the SGC debriefing room. She looked around the table, feeling almost overwhelmed by the people seated.
General O'Neill sat at the far end, trying to look formal but twiddling his fingers in an attempt to amuse himself. Colonel Samantha Carter sat right beside him, her hands folded in front of her with her back straight. Her originally short blonde hair was beginning to darken after all these years and was now long enough that it was tied in a ponytail behind her head. It was only two members of the original SG-1 but their mere presence honored Nova.
Nova instantly recognized General Landry leaning back in his chair. If this required her commanding officer, the SGC's top scientist, and the head of Homeworld Security, it had to be big.
"Please, have a seat," Carter said warmly, gesturing toward the empty seat at the end.
"May I ask what this is about?" Nova said as she took a seat, her long brown hair, which was tied in a ponytail, dangling behind her back.
"You could," O'neill remarked casually. "But that'd probably be a waste of a perfectly good question since we're going to tell you anyways." Nova could not help but feel stupid when she realized what he meant. They were going to tell her why they called her so there was no point in asking.
Landry gave a small cough as he picked up the papers in front of him and began to explain.
"Major Terra Nova, so you've been a part of the Stargate Program for two years now and even served a tour on Atlantis."
"Yes, sir," Nova replied.
"As you know from the SG mission reports, the Ancients, the builders of the stargates and Atlantis, were once part of alliance of four races," he said, his voice still as hoarse as it was when he first took command.
"I'm aware," Nova said.
"Approximately one week ago, while going through the Ancient database on Atlantis database, we found reference to a city built by all four races. They called it the 'Millennium'. It was built as a symbol of their alliance. Along with a lengthy description was a gate address."
"You want me to lead a team to the coordinates?" Nova asked, trying to hide her small hint of excitement. She was still fairly new to the whole stargate program but the idea of her leading a team to a city not only built by the four most advanced races humanity has ever known was invigorating.
"Not exactly," O'Neill said, sliding over a piece of paper. Nova took a look at the picture, which looked like a direct screen shot from a computer. It wasn't the large body of Ancient text that caught her attention but what was above it.
"It's an eight symbol address," Carter explained.
"I don't understand," Nova said, shaking her head. She heard O'Neill mutter 'here it comes' as he got ready for Carter's scientific babble.
"As you know, the stargate uses six symbols to establish a point in space, one as the point of origin from where the outgoing wormhole is established, and an eighth if there is an extra distance to be accounted for. In that case, in order to account for that extra distance, addition energy is needed to establish a lock on the destination and the amount of energy is directly proportional the additional distance being traveled."
"But we have ZPMs and we have traveled between galaxies before," Nova remarked.
"Wait a minute, you understood that?" O'Neill interrupted. Carter had to hold back a laugh at this comment. O'Neill probably did understand but was playing dumb.
"The coordinates put the Millennium in NGC 300, also known as Caldwell 70," Carter explained. "It's a spiral galaxy over twice the distance from the Milky Way as Pegasus." Carter hesitated before explaining the next part, trying to find a more gentle way to put it. "We need to use three ZPMs in order to gate there."
"It's most likely a one way trip," O'Neill said, putting the situation bluntly.
"We've been selecting members for this expedition for three days now," Landry added. "We need a team of nothing short of the world's best and brightest. Scientists, archaeologists, soldiers, we need the best this world has to offer and you were highly recommended."
"So we're giving the green light on a third intergalactic expedition," Nova said in disbelief, thinking about Atlantis and Destiny. It almost seemed as if the SGC's new job was to find places to send expeditions on a one way trip to.
"The IOA considers the Atlantis Expedition a success and it has been worth the risk," Landry pointed out. "And we still may be able to get our people on Destiny home."
"And the discoveries there are worth the risks of going there," Carter chirped in. "Atlantis and Destiny were designed solely by the Ancients. The Millennium was made by all four races, and we haven't even gotten the opportunity to look at Nox or Furling technology."
"This isn't an order," Landry added. "The question still remains: are you up for it?"
Nova was still silent, trying to take it all in. She was always eager to go through the gate and explore new words. She had the chance to join the greatest adventure anyone could have in their lifetime, but she would have to leave everything she knew and everyone she cared about behind.
That was roughly three days ago though. She scarcely remembered what happened after that, except that General O'Neill once called her 'whacked' for second guessing joining the stargate program.
A lot has happened since she left Earth and the SGC and a lot more was on her mind now that the Millennium was her new home. But, until then, she could enjoy her nice hot shower after coming back from a mission. With the warm water running across her face and the steam rising in the room, she felt like she could forget all her problems. Until…
"Oh, come on," she groaned in annoyance as the lights suddenly shut off, plunging her into complete darkness.
STARGATE
MILLENNIUM
Millennium had really come to life since they first arrived. The marble halls were now all brightly lit and the golden doors that lead to the different rooms opened as people walked up to them. Crystals built into the walls and ceiling, as if they were just decoration, glowed brightly with light that seemed like genuine sunlight. The halls were still packed with boxes and crates as hundreds of people bustled about to make their place their new home.
Nova's hair was still wet, at least it wasn't dripping all over her off-duty blue polo shirt and pants, as she entered the power control room. It was a mess of wires running from the walls to the computers, to the naquadah generators, and back into the bronze-colored wall. There weren't as many people in the power control room; in fact it was practically empty.
"General Mercer," Nova said in surprise when she walked in.
"At ease, Major," an old man in the corner said with a slight chuckle as he looked up from a tablet that he and a technician were looking at.
"We've been able to explore the inner ring," the technician explained to Mercer. "That still leaves the Millennium's arms to be explored but the ring alone already has more than enough room to house all personnel and store all our equipment."
"We need to keep personnel confined within the ring to preserve our power supply anyways," Mercer explained.
"We should have enough military personnel to provide security. We've already assigned everyone living quarters but we're still trying to find storage rooms for all the equipment we've brought along. The arms are civilian sectors so we should begin exploring them eventually."
"Thank you, Donavan," Mercer said. "We'll keep our expedition confined within the ring for now until we've had a chance to settle." Donavan nodded as he quickly walked off. Mercer's almost abnormally large mustache seemed to twitch as he smiled at Nova, the lines of old age on his face becoming more obvious. "Moving in has never been so tedious," Mercer chuckled in amusement. "I was just seeing how Chen is doing with hooking up our generators to the station's power grid."
At the mention of the name 'Chen', a hand raised up from behind the power console and gave an unenthusiastic wave.
"I'll be interviewing our new guest once this power debacle is all over," General William Mercer told Nova. "You sure that bringing him here is safe?"
"I don't see any reason to assume that it isn't," Nova answered.
"I've posted a guard to watch over him just in case but I'd like you to help me with the interview. A familiar face might ease any tension."
"That should be it," a voice called out as the man wearing a black shirt and jeans stood up from behind the power console, his stiff black hair barely moving as he ran from computer to computer.
"So, will that be the end of all the power outages we've been having, Doctor Chen?" Mercer asked. Steven Chen didn't stop. His hands continued furiously typing away the computer as he explained.
"We shouldn't have to worry about the power problems anymore. I think I got it now. Power flow appears optimal."
"Why the outages anyways?"
"Well, hooking up the generators isn't as straight forward as it was supposed to be," Chen explained. "The generators aren't supplying the station with the amount of power it needs so the Millennium automatically reroutes power from the less critical systems, like the lights and artificial gravity, and supplies it to the more important systems, like stargate operations and life support."
"And if we get more of these outages?"
"Well," Mercer said as he finally stopped typing. "Every cup of coffee on the station is in grave danger until I can get this solved."
"Yeah, I think you blew a fuse earlier," Nova coughed.
"You think," Chen repeated bluntly as he began cleaning up the mess of wires in the room. "I've had experience integrating our equipment with Ancient and Asgard technology. This power station looks like an amalgamation of both with some other stuff to it, which makes sense since Millennium was built by all four races. But, it also means that I am still learning how to hook stuff up."
"I assume the new zero-point generator has also been hooked up," Mercer asked. "I need the life support to be fully functional."
"Yup, and assuming it isn't rigged to explode, our power supply is looking pretty good."
Mercer gave a nod as he turned and left, slowly walking down the hall with his hands behind his back.
"Consider taking the rest of the day off, Doctor," Mercer called as he slowly vanished down the hall. Chen let his head tilt back at the sound of that. Ever since they got there, he had been working on resupplying Millennium with power. Finally, he could have some R&R.
They knew that Millennium would be running low on power after all this time so they brought a multitude of naquadah generators to power it and Chen had spent several sleepless nights trying to connect the power properly.
"Did the outage interrupt you from anything?" Chen teased Nova as he packed the last of his stuff.
"Funny," Terra said. "I was really looking forward to that shower after getting back from the mission."
"Which I heard was completely uneventful," Chen remarked.
"It brought back that zero-point generator," Nova said. "Doesn't that count?"
"A zero-point generator that isn't nearly as powerful as a ZPM and, if I'm right, only has half the lifespan."
"Yeah, but it still counts as something. The only reason my team had to go on a mission was because we needed to find a new power source fast."
"According to your mission report, you went there, you had a nice chat with the locals, agreed to stay overnight, was rudely awoken by the alien person what's-his-face-"
"Corin," Terra answered.
"Was rudely awoken by Corin, who apparently said you had to get out of there tonight, and you all left with this ZPG that he apparently stole. That's what I call a boring mission."
"We did meet alien life," Nova argued, leaning back against the wall.
"Yes…human alien life," Steven sarcastically agreed. Nova knew that Chen was cranky and brooding after working on the power system nonstop for two days. He was just going to be like this until he could get some rest.
"They're interviewing Corin in the conference room," Nova said.
"Yeah, well I guess I'll take my nap…until they wake me up to fix that matter replication thingy," Chen said bitterly. He picked up his bag and walked down the hall, muttering in Mandarin as the doors closed behind him.
-.-
Corin stood in the conference room, staring over the balcony and at the stargate which stood in the center of a massive chamber, the white walls of the room practically glittering in the light. The giant silver ring looked like polished metal was seemed to overshadow everything around it. Nine milky-white opals were clamped around the edges, partially covering the symbols that were carved into the smaller ring underneath.
The conference room was in the top corner of that chamber, where he could watch everyone scurry around the stargate doing their daily business. In the other corner of the gate room was the control room, where Corin could see all the Earth technicians scuttling about, setting up computers, and trying to work the controls. Even the conference room had stacks of crates lined on the sides.
A few people waved to him as they passed by. He wondered if they realized the guy with short spikey haired man in green shirt and pants wasn't actually from Earth.
"Quite a sight, ain't it?" the soldier behind Corin remarked, his M4 carbine cradled in his arms.
"Can't believe you actually live here," Corin said honestly. "Like, look at this place. Living in an alien city built millions of years ago. And your expedition: made of nearly all cultures on your planet. And your accent, Brtish?"
"Australian," the man corrected. "How did-"
"Oh, I was permitted some reading material about the cultures on Earth," Corin explained. "I mean like, this is…stunning," Corin said, trying to find the right words to describe how he feels. "You have to tell me more."
"If I'm given permission," the soldier said.
"Corin Nevec," a voice called out. Corin took his gaze off of the massive stargate to see to called him.
"General Mercer," Corin greeted when he saw the General standing behind the glimmering, brown, U-shaped table.
"Take a seat, son," the General said as he took the center seat. It felt almost awkward for Corin to sit down. He was sitting in an alien city, surrounded by aliens that look like he does, who were from another galaxy. He had no idea how to ask them for what he wanted. He also was not used to being called 'son'. It must have been something from Earth culture. Without how old Mercer was Corin could have been his son. Corin could even be his grandson.
"I have a stalker," Corin said jokingly, gesturing toward the rugged man he was just talking with. His square bone frame and the fact his skin looked like leather made his head seem like a block.
"Lieutenant Charles Martin's presence is only temporary," Mercer said reassuringly as Corin sat in one of the other chairs. "You remember Terra Nova and her tendency for tardiness," Mercer added as Nova quickly entered the room in the Millennium Expedition's black uniform and sat down.
"Sorry, sir," Nova said apologetically as she flipped through the papers in front of her. Nova and Martin exchanged glances in a silent hello.
"This is only an informal meeting regarding what happened on your planet," General Mercer explained. "I apologize for not being able to address this sooner."
"It's fine," Corin said, looking over his shoulder and watching another group of scientists haul off more boxes. "You guys look busy."
The moment Corin said that, that was a loud buzz and all the lights suddenly went out. The whole room was plunged into darkness and soon filled with the sound of cursing and profanities in several different languages. A few moments later, the lights came back on again.
"There's no easy way to put this so I'll just ask," Corin said, ignoring the lights. "I seek asylum."
"Excuse me?" Mercer asked, his eyes squinting suspiciously.
"I explained it to Terra on the planet," Corin said. "My nation is known as Ror'char and its one of the superpowers of this galaxy. They're also the reason we had to leave the planet on such short notice."
"Why's that?" Nova asked, shifting in her chair.
"The Ror'char will have sent government officials if they hear about aliens from another planet visiting them," Corin explained. Nova held back a small laugh. All her time she spent at the SGC they always nonchalantly called the humans from other planets aliens. In the eyes of the people from the world's they visit, they were the aliens but this was the first time she ever heard someone call them that.
"Yes, we visited your planet to trade and learn about foreign cultures," Mercer said.
"Well believe me when I saw you do not want to try to make friends with the Ror'char," Corin stuttered. "They'll only want one thing: unconditional surrender and submission. That's the only thing they'll ever negotiate or trade for." Mercer exchanged uncertain looks with Nova.
Corin leaned forward, his face tense, as he explained.
"Ror'char is an absolute dictatorship. What the emperor says goes. And right now, the emperors are saying that they are always right and that people know it, and anyone who questions them are painted as terrorists and criminals."
"Emperors," Nova repeated. "With an S?" Corin muttered in disbelief that he didn't explain this earlier.
"Ror'char is in a state of civil war. It's been fractured into several different territories each with its own emperor."
"Will any of those emperors be willing to settle for anything else?" Mercer asked, not interested on making a new enemy in another galaxy.
"Not likely," Corin said, shaking his head. "Think of some cliché bad guy from some story hell-bent on conquering the world and you got pretty much the right idea."
"Excuse me, sir," Martin suddenly chirped. "Sir, if I may," Martin requested respectfully. Mercer gave him a nod of approval. "If the Ror'char are as bad as you say, why was it only you that left with us? Why didn't you wake anyone else to go with us?" It took a moment for what Martin meant to sink in. Corin did not let anyone else go with them when they snuck off the planet. He did not wake anyone else so they could escape the Ror'char oppression.
"I didn't know who I could trust," Corin explained. "The Ror'char's greatest weapon is propaganda. Everyone in the nation is told that our leaders are right, that all the decisions they make are for the good of the whole."
"And since the Ror'char leadership claims that everyone who opposes them are criminals, the public believes it as well," Mercer said, finishing Corin's thought as he nodded in confirmation. "And what do they do with the people who do voice opposition?"
"Well, the Ror'char don't tolerate 'criminals' so they execute them." A dead silence fell across the room from that statement.
"And I'm…partly responsible for that," Corin added, his voice trailing off at the thought. Nova looked up in surprise when she heard this.
"How?" she asked. "You said you were a teacher."
"Yeah, I teach about ancient cultures, languages, geography, and economics," Corin said, brushing his short hair back with his hand. "But, I also teach that the Ror'char are benevolent leaders who have our best interest at heart and that we all must be willing to serve, die, and kill for them." Corin looked at Mercer, then at Nova, trying to read their expressions. He had no idea how'd they'd react if they learned his role in society. "I'm not the guy murdered women and children in the name of our great leader. I'm just the guy who told people it was ok to do that."
-.-
The control room was the hub of the city. Everything in Millennium was monitored there. And, most importantly, it was the place that oversaw the stargate. Its balcony was much larger than the balcony in the conference room, allowing thee consoles to face the stargate. Laptops were scattered about the tables and consoles in the control room as people scurried about their usual duty. Technicians watched either the two large crystal monitors in the back or the numerous smaller monitors perched at the end of the three consoles.
"The self-destruct is now in place," Donavan explained to Mercer, Nova, Chen, and a small group of people with them as he showed the input layout for the self-destruct from a laptop in the control room. "All senior personnel have been given personal command codes. You need two to activate the self-destruct and another two to deactivate it. Once the countdown hits zero, naquadah generator overloads."
"We just found this place and now we're all suddenly eager to blow it up," Nova remarked. She hoped they would never have to use the self-destruct; she wasn't keen on getting trapped in a different galaxy.
"Our computers all contain numerous files on the Milky Way galaxy and the technology in Millennium could be used to help get there," Mercer said. "I will destroy this place before letting it fall into enemy hands, especially if the Ror'char are what Corin says they are."
"You don't believe what he says about them?" Nova asked, noting that Mercer said 'if'.
"I don't have a reason to," Mercer replied, turning to walk away. "For all we know, he could be a wanted criminal who only scared you into getting off the planet in order to avoid getting caught. And the zero-point generator he took from his town doesn't change anything."
"It has proved useful," Chen said gruffly as he and Nova quickly followed the General, weaving through stacks of boxes and crowds of people. "Granted it's not as powerful as a ZPM, but it's still giving us way more power than our naquadah generators. You should throw the guy a bone."
"And I was told that you're the cynic," Mercer remarked as he walked into his new office. He felt more comfortable talking in a place where they weren't surrounded by a dozen eavesdroppers.
"I am the cynic," Chen said, almost as if he was offended that they considered him otherwise. "I just think that we should give our little-green-man a bit of credit for the ZPG. The only reason we went to that planet was to look for a power supply."
"I am aware," Mercer said with a slight hint of agitation as he sat down at his bronze-colored desk. "I'm the one who ordered the mission. He is going to have to earn my trust over time."
"I'd like him on my team, General," Nova said. Nova had been wanting to address the issue for a while but she didn't know how. To her, this was like asking your boss for a raise.
"What's wrong your current team?" Mercer asked as he picked up a tablet on his desk and began scanning through the files and reports he was sent.
"Well, with all due respect sir, they were chosen in the heat of the moment," Nova explained, hoping Mercer would understand why she needed to get rid of the three meat-heads on her team. "We needed to leave on short notice to find a power source. Now that the Millennium's back up and running, I'd like to choose the members of my team."
"Very well," Mercer said, understanding her position. "I'll have the personnel file of everyone on this station at your disposal."
"Thank you, sir," Nova said, eager to start picking the people for her team.
"However," the General forcefully added. "If you want Corin Nevec on your team so badly, you must wait…at least until I have reason to trust him."
"And what are we going to do with him until then?" Chen asked.
"He's our guest until I decide what to do with him. I've given Lieutenant Martin permission to show him around and tell him a bit about this station and who we are. If he is sincere in who he says he is then he can stay here and, if it's his wish, join Nova's team."
-.-
"He doesn't trust me, does he?" Corin asked Martin as the two of them walked across the balcony that overlooked the mess hall. The giant room was filled with tables and chairs and had even more stacked up on the side. People taking a lunch break ate and talked away as light poured through the crystalline glass on the wall.
"He's just being cautious, that's all," Martin explained in his heavy Australian accent. "But, once he does trust you, you could help us."
"Yeah, I'm sure your expedition needs a language professor," Corin laughed at the thought.
"Well, we still want to try to meet other cultures in this galaxy," Martin said. "You seem to be picking up the Earth languages and cultures really fast."
"Hey, learning the cultures of an alien race is awesome for me."
"My point exactly. We could use a bloke like you around here. You're more familiar with this galaxy than we are. Maybe even help us fight these Ror'char."
The mention of idea of fighting Ror'char made Corin fall silent. For the longest time, all he ever thought about was getting away from them. He was afraid of their power and was originally hoping to have nothing to do with the Ror'char for the rest of his life. But, the idea of ridding the galaxy of them…it seemed impossible. But, maybe trying will help make up for his sins.
"Maybe," Corin said.
"Oi," Martin called to Corin as he walked up to a set of golden doors. "You're going to love this."
Corin walked up to the set of doors, curious what could possibly so fascinating. The doors slid open on his approach, letting warm sunlight in. Corin had barely taken a step on the balcony outside when he let out a startled yell jumped back in surprise at the sight. He stepped back out as he took in what he saw.
Corin and Martin were standing in one of the towers in the Millennium, one of the towers in a massive city. In all directions, Corin could see huge bronze-colored buildings, pearly-white towers, and golden sky scrapers stretching toward the sky. But it wasn't this that stunned him. It was the fact that in the distance he saw another city but he wasn't just looking at it; he was looking down on it. He was looking down at another city of more towers, buildings, and skyscrapers as if he was in a plane flying over it. Corin spun around and realized he was surrounded by the same thing. In virtually every direction, he was looking down on another city that lay beyond the city that he was in. It was as if someone had built four giant walls around the city and decided to put buildings on the inside of it of all them. Corin hadn't bothered looking out one window but could barely imagine what it would be like. Every time he looked out any window, he would not only be looking across an alien city but down on one too.
"The Millennium, it's…" Corin stuttered.
"A space station," Martin finished, smiling at the sight. Corin just gawked as he took it all in.
"Remember that bit about how the Millennium was built by an alliance of four races?" Martin said. "The station has four arms, each housing one of the races in the Alliance," he explained, gesturing toward the cities in the distance. "They were built around the central city, which would be the hub where all four races get to work together in exploring this galaxy."
"Wait a minute, if we're in space…" Corin stammered, looking at the balcony he stood on. He slowly reached out over the balcony. He hand barely got an inch over the railing before a translucent force field appeared and stopped it.
"That's why we went to your planet," Martin said. "When we got here, the power were nearly depleted so the life-support was failing. We needed a new power source."
"And the light we see?" Corin asked, noticing he could see all the city as if there was a sun when he could only see clouds surrounding the station.
"The Millennium's in the middle of some sort of nebula that apparently glows. I don't know much about it. The scientists can explain more."
"This is amazing," Corin finally said, still staring at the sight. For him, that was all he could say.