Many thanks to Spartan303 and Ash's Boomstick. I don't own or am affiliated with, Mass Effect, Stargate, or their parent companies.
A Glimmer of Hope
Prologue
Charon
UNKNOWN / ERROR TIME LOG CORRUPTED BY TEMPORAL ANOMALY /
The Intelligence had travelled for fifty million years, crossing innumerable galaxies and cataloguing tens of trillions of stars, worlds and lifeforms. Knowledge from the vanguard forces flowed through its circuitry, filling the immense databanks, allowing great archives of the universe to be crafted. The Ouroboros Call, the great intelligence on the edge of the Universe's genesis, at the advent of existence, still sang. Something had gone wrong however, as its new crew slept in the pods of preservation, the ship had been thrown across time and space to a galaxy near its origin.
The humans called it Andromeda.
Reaching out with esoteric sensors, it probed the abyss. There were no signals within three hundred light years, no signs of civilization. Determined to maintain the existence of the crew, it slipped into a far off star, slowly orbiting it and occasionally dipping into its fiery pits to fuel itself. From there, signals were sent, only detectable by the Creator to find the ship. With the mission over now, the duty of the Intelligence was now to ensure the survival of its crew.
JOINT BASE ATLANTIS / MAY 7TH 2017 / NEW LANTEA STAR SYSTEM / PEGASUS
Atlantis.
The truly ancient Alteran city stretched out before her eyes; towering peaks and buildings jutting out from an azure pearlescent sea, it had travelled across galaxies and been involved in numerous climatic battles that had decided the fates of entire species. The Wraith, Replicators, Goa'uld, and Lucian Alliance had been felled by her guns and by her stalwart defenders over the course of millennia. Now, in the wake of disclosure, the city had been new life breathed into her. Twenty five thousand souls—men, women, and even children, now called this bastion of humanity home. In the wake of the Stargate's disclosure to the entire world five years prior, the United Nations Security Council had seen fit to claim the jewel of Pegasus as mankind's first extra galactic center of civilization.
With the Wraith embroiled in a brutal civil war and rapidly driving themselves to near-extinction, Atlantis now served as the headquarters for the Security Council's First Extragalactic Force under the command of Major General Samantha Carter and Brigadier General John Sheppard. Ten thousand troops and two Security Council ships protected Atlantis, defending her and her charges from the darkness that lurked out at the fringes on known space. At the moment, the Air Force and Navy Battlecruisers Pioneer and Alan Shepard where deployed and for the next six months would augment Atlantis' own air wing of F-302s, Jumpers, and extensive defensive systems. The previous overwatch had been fulfilled by the Russian Kiev Deep Space Cruiser alongside the British Cruiser Royal Sovereign.
Major General Samantha Carter felt the ocean breeze touch her face, the calls of gulls and of Atlantis' resident pigeon population left over from its brief stay in San Francisco, mixing and matching with the sounds of the ocean. The city seemed to gleam with light and life, occasionally marred by the mismatched form of railgun or SAM battery installations. Several small shops and restaurants had opened up on the piers, catering to both the military and research personnel and to that of the colonists that had been hand selected to join the Atlantis Expedition. For the first time in thousands of years, it was truly a City once again. A fortress garden some had called it. Plans were calling for the population to eventually exceed a million, but with current military operations in the Milky Way, in addition to uplifting operations on Earth, it would have to wait.
She had taken over permanent command in 2012 shortly after disclosure, handing over the reins of the Hammond to the venerable Colonel Pat Meyers. From there, the Security Council and Homeworld Command had decided to send her back here to oversee continuing operations against the Wraith. With the second awakening, it had become imperative that Atlantis have not only an accomplished military officer as commander, but a brilliant scientist, and someone who could lead an international crew of thirty five thousand individuals, including both military and civilians. Doctor Jackson had been the initial prospect for the position, but he had taken the opportunity to be Security Council's ambassador to the League of Free Worlds, an alliance of thousands of former Goa'uld worlds clamoring for help in the wake of the Lucian Alliance's destruction.
"Still can't get enough of that sight, can ya?" Brigadier General John Sheppard asked, coming up behind her.
"You know it," Sam responded with a smile. "Even after five years, it's something that you can't take your eyes away from."
"I'd agree with that. I've been here almost fourteen and I still can't believe it. Must be something to do with being in a different galaxy that the human mind can't comprehend." John stood next to her, looking out. "Have you tried that new Japanese place on Pier One?"
"The one with the Goa'uld on the front?"
John nodded, "Yeah that one."
"I haven't. Any good?" Sam asked. She knew which one he was talking about. It had been opened by the family of a Japanese Air Self Defense Force Major that had been assigned here.
"Really good," John stated firmly. "They've started using some of the local fish and they're amazing."
"Didn't know you were one for sushi," Sam looked at him. "I always pegged you as a steak and whiskey person."
"Both." He shrugged, "I just like food."
"Evan said the same thing," she laughed.
"Generals, you're needed in the control room immediately."
Sam tapped her earpiece, "What's going on, Chuck?"
"Massive subspace anomaly just appeared on sensors. ETA until contact is five minutes."
"Raise the shield and set condition one," Sam said.
"Another one of these things?" John asked. For the last week, they had been detecting subspace anomalies across the galaxy. Scouting teams had found nothing of interest or value. Most thought it to be another Lantean device that had gotten turned on somehow.
"Appears so. Chair, John."
"On it." The other Air Force general quickly left the balcony and made a bee line for the chair room.
Sam rounded the corner to the control room and felt something hit her. Her breath was forced out of her lungs and a crushing sensation, as if she were pulling double gravities, slammed into her. Blackness consumed the General as she slipped into unconsciousness.
In a blinding flash of light, Samantha Carter's vision returned to her. She was sprawled across the deck of Atlantis' control room, her head throbbing in pain and a warm trickle of something crossing her face. She smelled blood and, after bringing her hand to press against her forehead, a quick examination of her palm showed the source. With a grunt, she pushed herself up off the ground and against one of the numerous consoles scattered around the room. Glancing in one of the windows, she saw her reflection and the nasty cut above her forehead.
Several other personnel were strewn around the control room. Sergeant Hoyt had his head buried in one of the consoles, sparks occasionally flickering over his prone body. She didn't need a diagnosis from Doctors Lam or Keller to determine the young man's condition. Sergeant Chuck Campbell was draped over his own station, eyes closed and a trickle of blood coming from a cut on his forehead caused by broken control crystal, but the rise and fall of his chest indicated he was still alive. Others were starting to come to, slowing picking themselves up off the ground and back to their stations. Training was taking over, as was the familiar sensation of adrenaline.
"Report!" Sam called out, wincing in pain. She felt at least one broken rib.
The familiar voice of Doctor Rodney McKay cut through the silence and chaos. "Wide spread power outages across the city. Long range sensors are down as are shields."
"What happened, McKay?"
"The subspace wave that we thought would harmlessly pass through us? It ended up semi-reverting into normal space and hit us hard. The entire solar system is showing signs of being transitioned through hyperspace, probably with similar effects." Rodney slumped in his chair, wincing in pain as he did so. "We got hit the worst."
"The Pioneer and Alan Shepard?" Sam asked. The orbiting Daedalus Battlecruisers had arrived to provide real-time support for the Expedition after the Russians and Brits had left a few days prior.
"They're still in orbit. I think?" Rodney said, "I won't know until we can get our main sensors back online."
"Are our comms still online?"
Rodney looked down at his computer, "Ya. Short range but they should be able to reach the Pioneer."
Sam tapped her earpiece, "Pioneer Actual, Atlantis Actual do you read?"
There was a brief burst of static before Colonel Kevin Marks's voice came back through. "Atlantis Actual, Pioneer Actual. We're still here. Couple bumps and bruises but none the worst. What's the situation down there?"
"We need every medic and doctor you have," Sam said. The doors to the control room hissed open, Combat Medics and nurses flowing through to tend to the command staff. With forty five thousand people on the city, casualties were likely to be numerous. "We have a lot of people that are hurt."
"Copy that, General. I'll beam them down within the next five minutes. Captain Royer is getting his ship back online and he'll assist when able. What is your defensive situation?"
"Shields down, weapons down, long-range sensors, down," Rodney interrupted. "It's a small miracle that ZPM containment didn't go critical and vaporize the city."
Sam nodded at the words from the brash Canadian scientist. "Colonel, I need you to launch alert fighters and start a CAP. This might be a pre-emptive strike against us by the Wraith and we're not in the best defensive shape at the moment."
"Copy that, General."
"Thank you." Sam glanced at her watch as two Marines brought a stretcher forth for her. "Check back in at 1800 hours, city time."