AN: Sorry for the delay everyone :(
Busy and lack of inspiration/writers block for this chapter will do that to one. I hope everyone is still here to read it though! And I hope everyone still enjoys the chapter, delay or no delay :)
Hopefully it shouldn't happen again.
0900 Hours, January 8th, 2008 (Military Calendar)/
Gaia
Debris from the fierce battle in orbit floated above Gaia. Burning hulks of Ori warships- both Motherships and Ha'tak -joined the blackened ruins of the UNSC Spirit. The flaming debris and blackened metal was nothing on the sight beneath them however. If one looking from space down on Earth, in the early days of the Space Race, had considered the jewel in the night sky as beautiful...it would have been nothing on Gaia. The Nox homeworld had no pollution, and had been a verdant green world, with the only gaps in that visage being the polar ice, oceans and a small desert. The world was true gemstone, a rare sight in a galaxy that was run by advanced civilizations.
That jewel was corrupted, burnt worse than any warship. Orange fire was visible from orbit, as the firestorms begun by the Ori continued to rage out of control. Smoke was slowly, but surely, obscuring even these fires however. Returning Gaia to it's previous state would be difficult, even for advanced races. It was a sad sight...one that had the Resistance angry at the Ori. Nothing new there, but to see such a pristine and innocent world brought low...
Well, anyone would be angry.
"Bastards," Cam muttered, as he stood with the rest of SG-1, sans Teal'c who remained aboard his own Ha'tak.
"The Nox wouldn't hurt a fly," Daniel agreed, "This is just..."
"Horrible?" Sam added, using the hands that would normally hold a weapon to program the beaming systems. The Nox were only going to open a small portion of their shield grid, and they had to be exact on their beaming targeting. Wouldn't do to splatter against the shield.
The resident archeologist nodded in agreement, "Yeah, that's what I was thinking. I don't even want to think what Lya feels like right now...that much death and destruction. Even the Nox can only repair so much damage."
"Well, we won't know how bad it is 'till we get down there."
"Cam's right," the blonde scientist agreed, "And...we're good. The calcs have been sent to the Elites and UNSC too, so they won't have any problems."
"Vala?" Daniel turned his head, looking at the silent- odd that -member of the team.
The dark-haired woman turned away from the view of Gaia, "Yes Daniel?"
"You okay?"
Vala blinked, "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"
"You've been unusually quiet. Planning on stealing something from the Nox?"
The woman looked offended, "Honestly Daniel, I don't steal from everyone!"
"Just making sure," the bespectacled man replied.
Huffing, Vala turned her head away and returned to looking out the window. Daniel had been on the money as far as her being quiet went though. It wasn't planning to steal anything though. It was more wondering how things had come to this point, to the point where even pacifists were being attacked. She wasn't a soldier, but even Vala knew when something was of little real military gain. Hitting the Nox was one of those things...they would have been perfectly content to just sit on their home and let events take their own course. But because the Ori- the Ori she had awakened to the Milky Way's potential -wanted to wipe out any potential opposition, this world was burning.
It was a bitter pill to swallow, really. So she turned away from the window again, and walked over to the rest of SG-1. Daniel for one didn't seem to be fooled by her, but then, that man always knew what Vala was thinking. So she smiled brightly, and stood next to him. He just shook his head with an exasperated look.
"Okay boys and girls," Cam broke the silence, "Time to meet the Nox. Beam us down!"
A flash of blue light lit up the bridge, as SG-1 went to meet their old friends once more.
The exact same flash of blue light filled a platform on the Nox City, that had by now moved to an area where it wasn't choked in smoke. The light deposited SG-1, plus Teal'c, and the other delegations. In this case, both Commodore and Captain Keyes, Fleetmaster 'Saranee, and Grieving Light. Waiting to greet the Resistance leaders, were Lya and Ohper. That was a deliberate choice on the part of the Nox Council. Provide the ones most familiar to- and friendly with -at least one part of the Resistance leadership. It would seem to work too, as Daniel and Sam grinned and walked up to the familiar Nox friends. Teal'c did the same, though he merely smiled slightly.
Vala and Cam looked confused though, neither having met the Nox before. The same could go for the cross-dimensional members of the delegation as well. Notably Miranda Keyes had a dubious look at the 'fairy' like nature of the ancient race. Nar merely clenched his mandibles slightly, his own opinion of the Nox rather low to begin with. A warrior culture such as the Sangheili would react that way to a pacifistic race. Toss n the way the Nox dressed- and blended with nature -and it wasn't going to be getting much out of the Fleetmaster.
"Welcome to Gaia," Lya said with her soft smile, not showing any shock at the appearance of their guests.
"It's good to be here," Sam replied, her own smile widening, "It's been too long Lya."
"I apologize Samantha," the Nox woman said, her smile downturning slightly, "It had not been our intention to isolate ourselves for so long. You are our friends."
"And so to are the Asgard," Opher added, "Where is Thor?"
SG-1 shared a look at that, before Cam stepped forward. The Colonel pulled a device out of his pocket, and set it on the ground. A flash of light revealed Thor's hologram, now floating above a mobile platform.
"Greetings, Lya and Opher," the Asgard said.
Lya seemed slightly confused, as she closed her eyes. She could not sense Thor, and that confused the Nox woman. Nox could sense all life...they were so in-tune with nature. To not be able to sense Thor, was clearly something that would confuse them.
"Thor?" Opher asked, as Lya continued to try and sense her old friend.
"I apologize, but I am not here," Thor replied with a slow blink of his eyes, "I am transmitting from where my mind is stored on the human ship Odyssey."
"Your mind?" the female Nox asked, "Aboard..."
Before any answer could come from Thor, Commodore Keyes stepped forward. He had been letting SG-1 talk to the Nox, knowing how long it had been. But he couldn't take too long...it was only a matter of time until the Ori came back to finish what they had started. And short of stripping Reach of its defenses, they could hardly afford to try and defend Gaia.
"That is a long story," the old officer said, "One we don't have time for right now. Is there a meeting room where we can discuss things?"
Lya blinked, "Yes, this way."
The pair of Nox lead the mismatched group behind them deeper into the city. And an impressive city it was...even Grieving Light was spinning around, quite fascinated by the melding of technology and nature. Observing the city would have to wait however...right now, they had to get to the meeting room.
Something that did not take much time, as the little group was gestured into the room. Open windows and a large skylight continued the 'natural' feel of the area, as the group took seats- aside from Nar, who was too large, Light who had no need, and Thor who couldn't. The Nox took their own seats, the enigmatic smile of their race back on their faces.
"While we are thankful for your aid," Lya began, taking into account the seeming impatience of their guests, "We are curious why you have returned to Gaia after so long. And what has become of the Asgard.
Daniel started the Resistance's side of the talks, "We were going to return soon, actually. Now that we have the capability to do so, we wanted to see how things were going here. The Ori attack just made us go a bit faster than planned."
"As for the Asgard," Sam continued, "Well...that's for Thor to explain."
Thor nodded slightly, and began his story.
"The Asgard have been dying for decades," the diminutive alien began, "In our pride, we did not seek aid from the Nox. As a result, our cloning procedures began doing more damage to our genetic code. Attempts were made to fix this degeneration, but none were successful. The final attempt left us with a rapidly progressing disease, that left the Asgard race with no option but to destroy our bodies and homeworld. What remains of our race is contained in the Legacy we left for the Fifth Race...the humans of Earth. That is why I am unable to communicate directly."
It was a shortened version of events, but Thor was as well aware as anyone that the Ori would return. He could tell the Nox what had occurred in greater detail later, when there was less of a threat of being attacked at any moment.
For their part, the Nox looked quite upset at this revelation.
"We are sorry we were unable to help Thor," Opher said, a sad look crossing his face.
"As I said, it was our own pride that prevented any aid," the Asgard replied, "And our story is not important at the moment."
Keyes saw what Thor was doing, and started talking himself, "That is figuring out what to do about the Ori. They won't be gone for long...we know them too well. They'll be back eventually, and with greater forces than we can defeat. We have lasted as long as we have by avoiding direct confrontation with their main forces. We can't defend Gaia from that."
"We would not ask you to," Lya replied with a hint of sadness in her tone.
"This may be the case," Nar spoke up, "But you will die if you do not allow us to. Or if you do not flee. Those who are not warriors have no place on the battlefield."
If the Sangheili had expected to insult the Nox with that statement, he would be wrong. Lya merely sighed, and nodded sadly.
"We are aware of that my friend," she said softly, "The Nox are not, and will not be, warriors. We never intended to fight anyone, and would have peacefully allowed the Ori to talk with us. We would not have converted to Origin, but we would not have refused those who chose to do so."
"But the Ori don't care for that," Vala said, "They only care for those who will buy what they say without question."
And none at the table could deny that statement. They had all- sans the Nox -seen plenty of proof by now. Gaia was just the most extreme example of what the Ori could get up to in their 'holy' crusade. Frankly, if even one individual didn't convert to Origin, the Ori were perfectly willing to wipe out a village. They would have done the same to the Nox, no matter how Lya felt about what may have been. Hard experience with the 'gods' told anyone who had fought them that much. It wouldn't have been easy to convince the Nox of that fact, normally.
But now that they had experienced the same themselves, it would hopefully be easier to convince even them that they had to leave. It would be a fools errand to ask the Nox to help fight the Ori. But if they could at least convince them to leave Gaia and go to Neo Tollan...that would be a victory. The Nox and Furlings were the only Great Races that the Resistance lacked technology from. With Thor's aid, they could likely get Nox tech if they could convince the stubborn race to leave Gaia. And advanced technology should never be turned down.
Expecting their aid in actually fighting though...
"And that is why I must ask you to leave Gaia," Thor took up the torch of that argument.
"Leave Gaia?" Opher asked, "You know what you ask of us Thor."
"Indeed," the Asgard replied, "I am aware of that. Leaving Othalla was no easier for the Asgard. However, we do not have the resources to spare to defend Gaia and our own worlds. If the Nox will not fight..."
"We shall not," Lya confirmed.
"...then you must leave this place. The Ori have no interest in empty worlds. Gaia will endure, but only if no trace remains of our people."
The Nox looked at each other, before turning back to the Asgard. They bore identically sad looks on their faces.
"What you ask of us is not easy Thor," Lya spoke up once more, "However, we had already come to this conclusion. We are not warriors, but we do recognize the signs of a lost battle."
"Then you are aware that fighting here will not work?" Grieving Light said, speaking for the first time.
If Lya was confused by the floating ball talking to her, she didn't show it. She merely nodded slightly, not allowing the overwhelming sadness she felt at the idea show. No Nox would be happy at the idea of leaving their ancestral home. But they would be even more unhappy at the idea of it suffering, when that suffering could be avoided. After all...had Gaia not suffered enough at the hands of the Ori?
"We are aware, yes. Preparations have been made to leave, once the fires have been put out."
"We may not have that much time," Keyes senior warned.
"Yet, we must stay," Opher replied, "It is our duty to our home."
If there was one thing that everyone at that table could understand, it was duty to one's home. Even Nar, who had a low opinion of the Nox, could relate. It was a risk to be sure, but could they really force the Nox to leave? The answer was no of course...they couldn't. Even with it being a major risk, they had to stay until the Nox were ready to leave. The Resistance couldn't afford to abandon them.
Of course, they could barely afford to stay either. More Sangheili ships would have to be routed from Neo Tollan to help defend Gaia. They had no way of knowing when exactly the Ori would return, but they couldn't very well afford to be cocky or unprepared. Because it was a fact that the enemy would return, and in greater numbers. It just wasn't a fact on when that would be.
"We'll stay and help where we can," Cam finally said.
"It's the least we can do," Sam agreed.
"Indeed," Teal'c added.
Daniel and Vala stayed silent, both lost in thought.
"Thank you," Lya smiled.
The elder Keyes sighed slightly though, drawing attention upon himself.
"This is not entirely altruistic," the man said, "We are hoping that you will return to Reach with us. Aid us in our war against the Ori."
Both Nox bore unusual- for their race at any rate -frowns at that statement.
"You are aware that we are not warriors," Opher said, "We have said so several times."
Keyes nodded, "I am aware, yes. You don't have to help us by fighting however."
Lya and Opher looked at the other, both genuinely curious as to what exactly Keyes meant. In asking for help in the war, wasn't he asking for the Nox to fight? Something they would never willingly do, and certainly something that the Resistance had to realize. Especially with the Asgard and SG-1 among their numbers. To say that such a request was odd from the Nox perspective, would be an understatement of cosmic proportions.
"How so?" Lya finally asked.
The Commodore sighed again, "Technological trading is one. I understand you are as advanced as the Asgard?"
"Not necessarily," the Nox woman replied, "We live in communion with nature. Our technology has not advanced as much as the Asgard surely have."
"Yet you are still more advanced than the Goa'uld, correct?"
"Yes."
Smiling slightly, Keyes continued, "Then trading technology could prove beneficial. In addition, SG-1 informed us that you have almost miraculous healing capabilities."
Opher seemed to realize where Keyes was going before his female counterpart did. And it brought a small smile to his face.
"You are not asking us to be warriors or combat the Ori," the Nox male said, "You are asking us to heal those who do?"
"In as many words," Keyes replied, sighing yet again at the confused look he got for the statement, "Yes."
Doing so would be walking a fine line indeed. Both Nox realized that...Lya, perhaps more so. She had done something similar in hiding the Tollan weapon so many years before. It had been the closest any Nox had come in centuries to violating their closely held beliefs. But...in this case, it was different. They were not required to be anywhere near a weapon. They were merely being asked to do something they would have done anyway...heal those who needed healing. Those who were hurt, and unable to heal on their own.
This task was one they could do, indeed.
"We shall bring your suggestion before the Council," Lya spoke, "For now, we must do what we can to repair the damage to Gaia."
"And we will help in any way we can," Keyes replied.
The Nox smiled, and bowed slightly as they left to talk to their leadership. However, before they had left the room, Opher turned and walked to Sam Carter. The Nox man reached into his robe, and withdrew a small device. Green like so much related to the Nox, it lit up with a small hologram when Sam held it in her hand. Her eyes widened, seeing a star map revealed on the hologram.
"Consider this, a small token of our thanks," the Nox man said with a kind smile, "Where we last knew of the Furlings location. I believe that if anyone would help you in your battle, it would be our old friends. Use this well."
Ecumene
On the Forerunner warship orbiting Gaia, light floated down a corridor. Neither a Sentinel nor a Monitor, this light was one that would never have set foot on a Forerunner vessel. One that could never have done so, in fact. The light was no more a native to the Forerunner Universe than the vessel herself was to the Stargate Universe. And were it not for Light being on the surface of Gaia- the first time the Monitor had been absent from her warship for a truly extended period of time -the light would still not be there. For it could hardly risk being detected by the Monitor. Doing so would have been a violation on a level large enough to destroy any chance it had of examining the warship.
Or, rather, he had. For the light revealed itself to be Janus, taking advantage of his first real chance to examine the Forerunner vessel in detail.
"Interesting," the Ascended Lantean mused, "Quite fascinating really. I have never seen anything like this. The scale is one thing, and quite impressive in-of-itself. Never seen a race that builds everything so...large."
"Jealous?"
Janus spun around, and saw Morgan standing behind him. The other Ascended being had a small smile on her face, as she floated up to the scientist. The man smiled back, actually glad to see her. It was sad, but he was one of the few of his people who would be happy to see the exile any longer.
"I would be lying if I said I wasn't," he replied, "Morgan."
"Oh?" the woman replied.
"This technology is...wondrous. I have truly never seen anything quite like it. The scale of the construction, the materials...the power generation and weapon systems. It's all on a totally different level from any race beside our own, the Asgard and the Furling. The scale is most certainly beyond even our capabilities."
"Before we Ascended, of course," Morgan added.
Janus waved a hand, "Naturally, but the knowledge of all life kind of takes away the challenge. I am sure we could have built something of this scale pre-ascension, but it would not have been easy. But this...well, all indications are this is fairly standard for this race."
"And what race is that?"
"Not one native to this reality," the scientist replied, "Like we suspected. According to the computer, they called themselves the 'Forerunner'. Odd name for a race to call itself, but that is what the files claim. I can't see a correlation to any race we have ever encountered however."
Morgan smiled slightly, "That we expected. We would certainly have remembered encountering such an advanced race."
"It is possible they were wiped out in our universe before we ever reached Avalon," Janus shrugged, "Or after we departed for Lantea. I do not know. But nonetheless, this is quite a fascinating vessel to explore. It's a novel feeling my friend, having something new after all these years."
The smile on the female Ancient's face only grew at the unusual excitement in Janus' voice. It was...like a kid in a candy shop, to borrow a human term. In a way, it was relaxing. Such unbridled enthusiasm and joy was rare in the Ascended population. Thousands of years with all the knowledge they possessed, in addition to the fact that a new Ascended being was such a rare occurrence, had left them rather stilted. So for Morgan, it was quite nice to have such a...happy...man with her. Certainly, it was enough to make her somewhat happier.
Considering how depressing exile was, that was saying something indeed.
"What of the others?" she asked, once Janus had took a break from his 'gushing' to use another human term.
"Not as interesting," Janus replied, "The grey warships are human, as we suspected. A 'UNSC' as they call themselves. Their technology appears to be primitive on its own, lower than even the Goa'uld with the exception of their power generation and coilgun. The remainder of their technology is a mix of their own, Goa'uld, Asgard, Tollan, and Forerunner. I have to admire their ingenuity if nothing else."
"It seems to be a human trait," Morgan agreed, remembering the genius of SG-1.
"Very much so. The others are more interesting...another race we've never encountered. The humans seem to call them 'Elites'. They themselves term themselves, 'Sangheili'."
Janus sent a mental picture of the reptilian race to Morgan as he spoke of them, getting an elevated eyebrow out of the woman. They certainly were unlike anything the Ancients were familiar with. Not even the Unas were quite the same. Such a clear warrior race, one built for combat, was certainly not usual. Their technology reflected that to a certain extent. Clearly Forerunner based, but at the same time...clearly geared entirely toward warfare. And on an interesting cultural note...
"Janus, they aren't capable of sustaining themselves," Morgan commented, once she had looked at everything she had been shown.
The other Alteran nodded solemnly, "I know. I don't know why, but they don't seem to understand the technology they use. Or how to do anything but fight. This is a race bred to be warriors...nothing else. What could possibly have..."
Before the man could finish that statement, both Ancients flashed back into the upper plane. For below them, the Resistance had begun to leave Gaia...with the Nox floating cities in tow.
"They're returning to war," Morgan said softly.
"Yes they are," Janus nodded, "War and death. I can only hope they succeed."
AN: Well, there's the chapter! Like I said above, I hope everyone enjoyed it!
