Harry Potter – Alteran
*This is Alteran speech*
-"Mental communication"-
-oo00oo- scene break or time jump.
Disclaimer – I do not own Harry Potter or Stargate SG1 nor do I receive money for my writing.
Chapter 8 – Plans Move Forward and Mysteries Solved
December 26th
When Hermione returned the next day for a few hours, Luna told her what Harry had requested and what she had told him. The two girls had expressed their feelings about Harry to each other but Hermione hadn't exactly been ready to express them herself, at least not directly.
She wasn't upset with Luna, knowing Luna, it was the best possible time to reveal their feelings towards Harry for the best possible future outcome. Sometimes though she wished Luna didn't have the seer's ability.
Harry avoided the two girls for a couple days as much as possible and when he couldn't avoid them he tried not to look directly at either of them, it was both funny and cute. Hermione knew Harry was having a hard time accepting what Luna had told him and was probably trying to figure out his own feelings.
The outpost was small enough that it was hard to avoid each other but somehow Harry kept finding work to do on the lower floors. What was even more curious though was that Rose was spending a lot of time with Harry on the lower levels. Hermione suspected that Rose was counselling Harry in some way since computer had access to all the psychology knowledge the Alterans had.
It wasn't until the third day after Luna's little bombshell that Harry came to them. The girls were in the control room talking when Harry just walked in with his shoulders and head held high and stiff. He stopped in front of them and cleared his throat. "I love you both too." Harry then turned around and walked back the way he came down into the lower levels.
Harry wasn't sure what to do about the two girls. He had finally come to realize with Rose's help that he did love both of them but for different reasons.
Hermione had been and was his second true friend, Hedwig being the first, her loyal, her intelligence, her beauty, all added up to 'How could I not love her?' to Harry. Hermione was his conscience, his moral compass, she would speak out when no one else would, she complimented his serious side.
Luna on the other hand, while having most of the same qualities as Hermione, loyalty, intelligence, and beauty, she was his silly side, his calm and serenity. If he was upset, Hermione would be upset with him and for him, Luna on the other hand would be the calm in the storm, she could calm the strongest of emotions and pull the wind out of any sail.
He still had no clue what to do accept to go with the flow. It was obvious to him the girls had something in mind when it came to a relationship. He would just wait and see what they had come up with.
Luna looked at Hermione and just smiled that smile of hers. *Luna, I love you. * Hermione smiled back.
*See, he's coming around, next time we are at the beach, maybe he won't run when we go topless. I love you too Hermione. *
*Luna Lovegood, next you'll be telling me that the beach is nude only. I swear you have a dirty mind. *
Luna rolled her eyes up into her head like she was trying to see into her own head. *My mind's not dirty, I just cleaned it yesterday. * They both laughed when she looked back at Hermione.
-oo00oo-
After Harry's "I love you too" hit and run encounter in the control room, things settled back into a bit of normality. Harry was still a bit stiff around the girls, Luna was still a tease, and Hermione was still staying with her parents and transporting over for a few hours each day.
It was the day before New Year's Eve when Hermione and her parents transported to the outpost together. They landed in the Control Room and found Harry sitting in the control chair. Since the chair was active and he had his eyes closed, Hermione knew he was immersed in the data stream of the outpost computer and scanners. She held her finger up in front of her mouth and motioned to her parents to follow her. She didn't want to disturb whatever Harry was doing.
Hermione led her parents into the conference room where they found Luna and Rose. They had a hologram of the galaxy up over the table and the two of them were talking about whatever Luna was looking at.
"Hi Luna, Rose, what's going on?"
Luna got up from the table and moved over to give Hermione and her parents hugs. Hermione's hug lasted just a little bit longer.
*Hi Hermione, Emma, Dan. I'm just going over the latest data from the social satellites. Now that we have most of galaxy covered, Harry and I are going over the data. He's in the chair so he can get the data directly. * Luna replied as she greeted everyone. Hermione translated for her parents.
"How bad is it?" Hermione asked.
*Since the American's killed Ra, the other System Lords have been battling for his territory. There is one Goa'uld, Apophis, he is making the biggest play for power. He will be a very powerful Goa'uld if things keep going the way they are. He was Ra's brother and mortal enemy. Harry and I are trying to figure out a way to keep him from getting too much power. The problem is we don't have the ships ready to do much of anything. * Luna explained. Hermione translated again.
Hermione had explained the current state of the galaxy to her parents. She wasn't about to hide anything from them again.
Dan jumped in with a question. "Hermione explained the Goa'uld to us, it sounds like they pose a pretty big threat to earth. I have to ask though what could the three of you do about it?"
*We could do a lot; the question is should we do a lot? * Luna replied. Again Hermione translated.
"What do you mean?" Dan asked. Just then the door to the conference room opened and Harry walked in.
"Hi Dan, Emma, what Luna means is that we" Harry indicated the three of them. "Could easily wipe out all the Goa'uld and their armies. We are far superior, technologically, to the Goa'uld. I don't even think it would be a fair fight.
The problem is that the Goa'uld have kept the civilizations that they enslave, uneducated and dependent on them. The Goa'uld may be an evil race but they do provide a form of government and stability to the planets they rule over." Harry looked at Hermione who was about to respond. "I know, they do it with fear and cruelty Hermione.
However they are seen as gods by the slaves and their Jaffa soldiers, fanatically in a lot of cases. Finally, the Jaffa are completely dependent on the Goa'uld. They have been genetically modified to be incubators to the Goa'uld larva, their young.
Without the Goa'uld larva, all the millions of Jaffa would die and their race would perish completely. So while we could, the question becomes, should we?" Harry had sat down at the table while he was talking. The others had as well.
"So what are you going to do?" Emma asked.
"For now, nothing, 'for now'." Harry pointedly looked at Hermione when he said that. "I know there is suffering happening in the galaxy but we need to solve one problem at a time. We can become covert 'pain in the asses' to the Goa'uld though. Keep the balance of power somewhat equal.
My main concern right now though is protecting Earth and our Alteran legacy. There is a lot of leftover Alteran tech out there that is not protected, open to anyone that finds it. We need to secure it or destroy it so the Goa'uld don't get it and advance any faster than they are."
"That sounds like a good start to a plan." Dan replied. "Let's change the subject for a few minutes though. Emma and I have been talking, we'd like to join you and to be honest we are both sci-fi fans, how could we pass up the chance to live in and see the galaxy."
Hermione was the first to her feet and ran over to hug her parents, Luna wasn't too far behind her. Harry stayed seated but let out a 'Whoop' and was smiling from ear to ear. After all the hugs and everyone was seated again, Dan asked the first question.
"So what do we do now?"
"Well the first step is to get you both in the control chair for a bit of education. Rose?" Harry looked to the hologram.
"You both have Alteran DNA and a 23.65% mental potential. This means you can each download part of the repository, Emma can get 13.98% and Dan can get 13.24%. Alteran language is only 1%, basic Alteran knowledge which is the equivalent to an Earth college degree is 5%, a very partial history, basically just the major highlights is 2%. This will leave you with about 5% for other topics. The higher math's are out of the question, so are some of the specialized scientific fields."
"Thank you Rose." Harry took back over. "I am sure Hermione as our Chief Medical Councilor and officer, would love to have you at her side. The full medical training is 4.5% of the repository but is more if you specialize in biology, DNA sequencing, etc. If you want a change, there are a lot of other things that you can do that will fit into that last 5%, like teaching, military tactics, administration, or even politics. I would suggest getting the basics first before deciding."
"Harry let me get them started and we can go from there." Hermione jumped in, it was her that bouncing in her seat this time.
"Ok Hermione, one question though, what about your house and business?" Harry looked to Dan and Emma.
"Don't you worry about that Harry. We already have a plan. We will sell the business to our partner and we are planning on keeping the house, it will just be our Earth vacation home."
"In that case, Dobby." The little elf appeared.
"How can Dobby be of service?"
Harry looked at the Grangers for a second. "Dobby, I want you to have Kreature look after the Grangers house as much as he can when on Earth. They will be living with us now but I want the house kept clean and for it to look lived in. Can he do that?" Harry looked at the Grangers again with a smile.
"Dobby will see to that, Master Harry." Dobby popped away.
"Stop calling me Master!" Harry indignantly called after him. Everyone in the room laughed.
"You didn't need to do that Harry." Emma told him.
"If you are going to keep the house, it needs to be taken care of and look lived in at the same time. Kreature will be able to handle that. He doesn't have enough work to do anyway." Harry argued.
"Ok Harry, thank you." Emma could see Harry was set on doing this for them.
Hermione and her parents left to go to the control room leaving Harry, Luna, and Rose.
"Do we have a plan?" Harry looked to the two.
*Yes, it's simple and effective, as a bonus, we don't have to take any personal risks.*
"Ok, I'll take a cloaked gate ship and see if the device is still operational. Apophis first?"
*We need to weaken him a little but not enough that it allows another to move in on him.*
Harry nodded and walk out the door. He had things to do.
-oo00oo-
January 10th
The Grangers had finished their time in the control chair. Luna was on cloud nine because she could finally communicate with them and found that Emma could toss out a tease just as well as she could. Emma of course only targeted Dan but it was enough to keep Luna in stitches most of the time.
Emma had increased her medical knowledge enough to help Hermione in the medical bays. Not that anyone needed them yet. She had also taken in knowledge about teaching. After hearing about the plan the three teens were hatching to recruit young 50% or higher DNA Alteran children and their families from Earth, she figured they would need someone in that role.
Emma was spending time in one of Olympus's school buildings working on plans to help the teens and building lesson plans to teach the future kids that would be joining them. The repository was a quick way to pass on the knowledge but it wasn't good to use on kids under fifteen years old, it was meant for adults that had fully developed brains, so even the three teens had been taking a risk by using it. That meant all the kids they recruited would have to be taught the old fashioned Alteran way.
Dan also took a bit of medical knowledge but he was ex British SAS and still had a passion for the military side of things. He loved his work as a dentist but it wasn't his passion. The only reason he left the SAS was because of Emma and Hermione. He had still been a reservist until Hermione was born.
Now he was helping Harry with the Goa'uld problem, letting Luna get back to what she loved, her animals. Dan had been brought up to speed on the state of things in the galaxy. He was definitely a better strategist than Harry ever would be. He had even talked Harry and Luna into changing their target to a different one inside Apophis's realm.
After Harry had confirmed the condition of the device he was looking for as operational and had it secured behind a cloaking field, they used it. Apophis was now missing three Ha'tak warships, a secondary shipbuilding facility, and part of a planet. All they did though was set Apophis back a year at most, but it gave the System Lords time to build up enough to keep him in check.
Harry though was upset about the loss of life involved but Hermione and Luna soon had his mind on other things. It took them a few days, one of which was on the beach before he snapped back to his normal self. Luna had been disappointed though that Harry refused to try his new swimwear that day.
It had really been Dan though that snapped him out of it. "In war, in battles, soldiers and civilians die, that is the nature of war. You do your best to avoid unneeded death but in the end there is nothing you can do to avoid it except to surrender. To end war, one side has to lose, so either surrender or fight to win and accept that what you do, will in the end, be worth the lives lost."
After those events, everyone settled into a routine, the first Alteran ship was due to be ready on January 31st and Harry, along with everyone else wanted to be there when it was finished. The first was going to be Harry's, the other two would go to Hermione and Dan. Luna didn't want to be in control of a warship for ethical reasons. Hermione's ship while it could very well defend itself had been reconfigured into a hospital ship.
The Grangers were still going back and forth to earth since they still had a lot of legal stuff to do with selling the business. They were also making the rounds to family, letting them know that they were going to be gone for a while telling everyone that they wanted to travel the world and that they planned on being gone for at least a couple years.
-oo00oo-
January 31st
The day had finally come, Harry's new ship was ready. The mining operation on Navo Videeum 4 had been shut down and moved to the third moon of Navo Videeum 5. Refined material was then transported to Navo Videeum 4 via four large automated cargo pods, each able to hold 10 kilotons of refined ore, the refined material was then used or stockpiled.
With everything else going on, Harry hadn't put much attention on the mining operation after moving it. He had enough resources stockpiled now to build a new city ship if he wanted to, he was going to have to slow or stop the mining operation for now.
That wasn't his concern today though. Today he was getting his new ship, an upgraded Alteran cruiser. As he and the others hovered near the massive shipyard orbiting Navo Videeum 4 inside one of the Gate Ships, they watched as the ship was automatically released from the construction frame and pushed out into open space by two large tractor beams.
Harry called the ship an Alteran Cruiser and it was based off of the original designs of that class of ship but the newly completed ship didn't look anything like that original design. The ship was one point five kilometers long and six hundred fifty meters wide at its widest point, it was only two hundred meters in height though.
It was a sleek design, you couldn't see engine or weapon ports, the hull was completely smooth and dark gray in color. The ship looked like a squashed five-hundred-meter wide cigar with what looked like elongated arched wings at the mid and aft sections giving it the six hundred fifty-meter-wide final measurement. The hull looked to be all one piece, no lines, all rounded edges and curved. It was a beautiful ship in Harry's eyes.
"What are you going to name the ship Harry?" Dan asked from his spot toward the back of the gate ships cockpit. Harry was standing toward the front, Luna was in the pilot seat and Hermione in the co-pilot seat, Emma was standing next to Harry.
"I am naming it the ACS Zeus after the king of the Greek gods and protector of Olympus. I'm really looking forward to trying it out. Luna set the autopilot and let's beam over to the ship."
*Ok Harry. I like the shape, it just flows, no edges, I hate edges, well not all edges, but I like round things more… *
Somehow Hermione took that last comment the wrong or right way, she wasn't sure but still yelled… *LUNA! *
*What? * Luna questioned.
"I know you too well Luna, that was going somewhere it shouldn't…" Hermione stated.
*Where shouldn't it go… * Luna pointedly looked in the general direction of Harry's pelvis.
"LUNA! Mom stop teaching her…"
"I'm not teaching her anything Hermione, if anything She!" Emma pointed at Luna. "is teaching me." Emma turned around and looked at Dan. "I like round things too."
"MOM!"
Harry and Dan were both turning red in the cheeks so both of them beamed away. *oh, ****, they escaped. * Luna pouted. *I wonder if Harry's other cheeks turn that red… * Luna mused.
"Dan's do!" Emma stated.
"MOM!" Hermione yelled as she put her fingers in her ears and then flashed away too. "Too much information I guess…" Emma laughed along with Luna.
*She… is so easy to… get riled… up. * Luna said as she laughed. The two were still laughing when the flash of white light surrounded them.
-oo00oo-
The five now on the bridge of the Zeus were all looking around in amazement. The bridge was completely dark except for the light coming from the control chair that Harry now occupied. The room was an elongated dome shape but they couldn't see that. With the exception of Harry who was in the control chair, they were standing in what looked like open space.
The shipyard hung in space above them, the planet below them, and the stars all around them. The entire room was one large holographic representation of what the ship sensors were seeing around the ship. For Hermione, Emma, and Dan it was a bit alarming, they literally looked like they were standing in open space. Luna was just looking around peacefully in that way that only Luna could.
"All ship functions are operating normally. Besides the bridge here, there are several rooms for crew if needed, a lounge, three sets of private quarters with needed facilities, there is also a small lab if needed, two large cargo bays, and a medical bay. The rest of the ship and all of its equipment is maintained by the onboard nanite swarm. There are two swarms onboard, one active and one on standby. They access everything through a network of small air duct like passages." Harry started giving an overview of the ship.
"So if there is a problem with say the engines or the shields, you can't access them directly to repair them?" Dan asked.
"Only the nanites can access those areas. There is a small stockpile of refined materials onboard for the nanites to use as resources and they can repair any damaged equipment faster than I ever could. I can also have the nanites modify components of the ship if we develop upgrades." Harry answered Dan's question.
"I am only playing the devil's advocate here Harry. So what about weapons?" Dan asked.
"The ship has twelve high energy plasma pulse cannons, four each port and starboard, and four each along the dorsal and ventral plains. There are two drone launchers, one port and one starboard, each with a two thousand drone magazine. Last there is a dual emitter high energy plasma beam on the bow of the ship. It has a small firing arc, so the bow has to be pointed toward the target but, I don't know anything that can survive a hit from it. In simulations, the beam could literally crack a small moon."
"Harry that's a lot of firepower are you sure you need all that?" Dan asked. During all the back and forth between Harry and Dan the girls were just looking out into space and enjoying the view.
"With the shields, the Zeus is the most powerful ship in the galaxy not including Olympus. Yours will be exactly the same. I just don't want any surprises. I don't have any plans to go looking for trouble, at least not in the near future, but if it comes here or to Earth, well… that trouble won't last long.
Everyone up for a little joyride?" Harry asked the room.
*Let's go Harry, send your ship into the tunnel. * Luna replied.
"LUNA!" once again Hermione yelled while everyone but Harry laughed, he was just turning red.
"Right then, Hyperspace in three, two, one." The massive ship turned on its axis and shot forward into the opening hyperspace window. Everyone watched the ship raced down the hyperspace tunnel for what only seemed like moments before the beautiful blue ball called Earth appeared as they exited hyperspace.
"Harry how long did that take, it only felt like seconds?" Emma asked.
"Navo Altera isn't really that far away, so it took ninety-three seconds, I wasn't really pushing the engines either. The Zeus has the latest Hyperdrive tech by Alteran standards, the only thing the Zeus doesn't have is an Inter-Galactic Hyperdrive. To cross the Milky Way, edge to edge at full power, would take only an hour. Here to say, the Pegasus Galaxy, would take 3 days, maybe a bit more."
"Umm Harry, shouldn't we be cloaked?" Hermione interrupted.
"Earth doesn't have anything that can detect this ship unless they spot it visually in a telescope and even that would be difficult since the color of the hull is not reflective and blends in with the black of space."
"Oh, ok"
"Luna, take the chair for me. I have someone to go see. It's time now." Harry stood from the chair and Luna sat down taking over. Neither of them needed to sit in the chair to control the ship, they could do it mentally, so could Hermione, but for the first time out, it was safer to be in direct control.
"Where are you going Harry?" Hermione asked.
"To see an old friend." With that Harry disappeared.
-This is the end of the flashback started in chapter 4-
-oo00oo-
"Hello High Councilor Dumbledore."
Dumbledore was brought out of his reverie to see the subject of his thoughts sitting in a comfortable chair across from him.
"Harry, where is my Phoenix?" Dumbledore asked indignantly.
"Ummm, currently? Probably sun bathing on a beach or chasing Hedwig around the city." Harry replied sheepishly.
"I see, and would said beach or city be on this planet?"
Harry scratched the back of his head. "Ummm, no. Hey, don't look at me that way, it wasn't my idea. Fawkes just… came along for the ride."
"Am I ever going to see my familiar again Harry?"
"You still feel the bond?" Harry asked surprised.
"Of course, he feels really far away, but I still have a connection to him."
"Well, if you aren't too busy, we could go retrieve your wayward familiar." Harry offered. In all honesty, Harry loved Fawkes but that bird just wouldn't shut up. Harry figured after a hundred lifetimes, Fawkes had a lot to talk about, and he did, quite often.
"Just let me let my assistant know that I will be unavailable for a few hours, I'll only be gone a few hours right?"
"Yes, Albus."
"Good, good." Albus pressed a rune symbol on this desk. "Arthur, clear my appointments for today, something has come up and I will be indisposed for the rest of the day."
A moment later, Harry heard Arthur Weasley's voice coming from the rune. "Not a problem Albus. You didn't have much scheduled today anyway and nothing immediately important. Will I be able to reach you in case of an emergency?"
Albus looked at Harry. "Yes." Harry replied as he took a small white, glowing stone from his pocket. "He just needs to touch this; it will allow two-way communication." Harry placed the stone on the desk, flat side down.
Albus touched the rune again. "There is a glowing white stone on my desk Arthur, if you touch it, we will be able to speak with each other."
"You are all set Albus, the calendar has been cleared. May I ask where you are going?"
"To see a young and old friend of mine." Albus answered cryptically.
"I understand, say hi to Harry for me." Arthur requested.
"Now what makes you think I am going to see Harry?" Albus smiled at said young man with a twinkle in his eyes.
"He's the only one you refer to that way Albus." Harry could hear the mirth in Arthur's voice.
"Well, I shall pass on your salutations Arthur." Albus took his hand off the rune.
"Shall we Harry?" Albus barely got the question out before being enveloped in white light.
-oo00oo-
When the bright spots cleared from Albus's eyes, he nearly fainted and started to drop to his knees. Harry was quick though and grabbed his elbow to steady him. "Easy Albus, you are in a room, with a floor beneath your feet. Think of this room like the ceiling in the great hall at Hogwarts."
Albus looked around, below him was Earth, to his left he could see the moon not too far away. "So this is a projection of some kind?"
"Yes, a very detailed, real time projection of what is surrounding this room. You are in space, and you are seeing Earth as she looks right now. Welcome aboard my spaceship, The Zeus."
"Harry… This… is amazing." Albus was now staring down at the Earth below him. He was totally captivated by the view.
"Would you like to see Hogwarts from space?" Harry asked.
"I would love to Harry." Albus sounded like he was a kid in a candy store. He looked down again and the view was changing, it was zooming in on the ground, Britain, Scotland, then the expanse of forest around Hogwarts, then the top of the castle itself. You could even see what looked like a transparent dome covering the castle. "I have never seen a more spectacular view of the school; the dome, it's the wards I assume?"
"Yes the ship's sensors can detect the energy of the wards and is displaying it." Harry replied. It was at that moment that Albus's other senses kicked back in and he became aware that there were other people in the room. He turned and looked behind him.
"Ah, Miss Granger, Miss Lovegood, Headmistress McGonagall had informed me of your withdrawal from Hogwarts. I suspected I would find you with Harry. Mr. and Mrs. Granger, this is a surprise though."
From the control chair Luna spoke first. *Hi Professor Twinkles. Sorry I can't pronounce your name in Alteran. You are looking Wra…spurt free for the first time since I first meet you. Harry, I really am starting to not like the Alteran language! *
*I'll say it again; you shouldn't have jumped in the chair. * Harry replied.
"Miss Lovegood, if you are referring to the Wrackspurts, I am happy to hear I am infestation free." Albus addressed Luna. *Yes before you ask, I do speak Alteran, thanks to Harry and that wonderful chair. *
"Hello Headmaster, Harry told us that you used the chair at the outpost. It is good to see you again." Hermione jumped in before Luna could drag out the conversation.
"Miss Granger, you are looking well. Have you been enjoying your adventure?"
"Very much so Headmaster. I'm like you though, I couldn't get the full repository like Harry and Luna, but I got a lot of it and I hope to get more over the next few years."
"I am sure there is a story behind all this. You have never been one to not know as much as you can Miss Granger." Albus looked around but could only see the one chair that Luna was sitting in. Albus pulled out his wand and conjured himself a nice comfortable chair to sit in. "Harry, Luna, Grangers three, why don't you all catch me up." Albus smiled that grandfatherly smile.
"Let go somewhere a bit more comfortable first." Harry suggested. "Luna, Navo Altera if you please, take the scenic route."
*Ok Harry. * Albus and the rest all watched as the Zeus broke orbit and slowly slipped past the Moon and out into open space. You couldn't feel the acceleration but you could tell the ship was speeding up. It wasn't long before the red planet Mars was in view and then gone, followed shortly after by Jupiter and Saturn. After passing Saturn, a hyperspace window opened and swallowed the Zeus.
The transit to Navo Altera took about five minutes, Luna had slowed the transit time down, long enough for Albus to ask what he was seeing and to have it explained. The Granger parents had also taken that time to greet Dumbledore properly.
When they exited hyperspace, Albus saw another world for the first time, two actually. Luna had brought the Zeus out of hyperspace so that both Navo Altera and Navo Videeum 3 were both visible in front of them.
"Merlin Harry." That was all Dumbledore could get out.
"Albus Dumbledore, Welcome to Navo Videeum, and the closer of the two planets is Navo Altera, our new home." Harry said proudly. "Luna, if you please, hover and station keeping three thousand meters off the tip of Pier Four." Harry really wanted to be in the control chair but he was playing host so was just passing instructions to Luna.
Everyone watched as the Zeus penetrated the atmosphere of Navo Altera and the City of Olympus came into sight. "Lastly Albus, welcome to Olympus, city of the Alterans."
Albus was just stunned. He had been right; Harry was having a great adventure. "Harry, when I retire, may I join you here." Albus asked. This world, the city, it was just beautiful. Nothing back on Earth could compare to it, even his beloved Hogwarts didn't compare.
"Albus you will be welcome here anytime you wish." Harry replied. As soon as the Zeus was parked just outside the city everyone was flashed away to Harry's quarters in the city.
Once everyone was settled and refreshments delivered by a very happy Winky. Harry and the others started telling Albus about everything that had been going on and what the three teens had been doing. Fawkes flashed in not long after they had arrived and landed on Albus's shoulder.
"I've missed you my friend, have you been having a good time?" He asked his familiar. Fawkes started chirping away and to Albus's delight he was starting to hear and understand his familiar after all these years. Fawkes just kept going on and on about everything to the point that Harry finally had ask him to please shut up. Everyone laughed including Fawkes.
A very good meal was served while they all talked and got Albus caught up. He had been amazed by everything the teens had done. When he was told about what was happening in the rest of the galaxy his mood changed dramatically. He was just as disturbed as the rest of them about the Goa'uld.
"Harry if you ever need help facing this challenge, I will be at your disposal." He told Harry after thinking about it for a few minutes.
"I appreciate the offer Albus but you have done enough in your long life. It is time, soon anyway, for you to take a step back and retire. Live out your life in peace and serenity away from conflict. I'm not saying I won't seek out your council, but that is all you should have to deal with. We do have something that we need to talk to you about anyway, something we need your input on." Harry then turned to Luna and Emma. Luna because it was her idea and Emma because she was doing most of the planning.
"I will listen and assist in any way that I can." Albus responded. At this point Luna gave a general overview of the idea on recruiting young, pre magical school children from the muggleborns with 50% or more Alteran DNA to come live and learn on Olympus. To help in rebuilding the Alteran society.
After Luna finished, Emma gave a general outline of the plans she had already come out with.
"Navo Videeum, New Legacy, Navo Altera, New Altera. Now I understand why you named the system and the planet what you did. It is very fitting. I will have to think about this a bit. Can you provide me with parchment with your ideas, plans, and thoughts?
Off the top of my head, I only see one problem, the wizarding world, whether some like it or not, need the normal born to survive. We need that new blood. Inbreeding among the purebloods is part of the reason we have dark lord problems like Voldemort."
*Yes Headmaster, but we are not talking about recruiting from just Britain. We are talking about recruiting from around the world and to be honest, there are not that many, worldwide, that meet the 50% DNA level required. Rose, the outpost on earth, has only identified 78 children so far that qualify. * Luna responded.
"Besides, I don't think I could handle teaching any more than that right now, not when you factor in teaching their parents and immediate family members that come along with them the basics of Alteran knowledge on top of it." Emma injected her thoughts.
"I see. I need to think about this, the wizarding world has been approaching normal born for centuries. I can see how that knowledge will be helpful to you in your approach. It also gives me an opportunity, to teach again. I know Harry, relax and enjoy what is left of my life, teaching has always been my life's passion. Seeing those eager faces, ready to learn, that is my relaxation.
Harry studied Albus for a moment and then nodded. "I'll give you a Padd with all the information on it and show you how to use it. Just keep it out of sight of anyone else. It will also allow you to talk to us here any time you want. It is getting late and before I take you back to Earth, Hermione wants to check your health, if you don't mind?"
"Not at all Harry, Miss Granger, I place myself in your capable hands."
"Thank you Headmaster. Harry, fifteen minutes' tops." Hermione responded before her and Dumbledore flashed away. Luna and the Grangers left after saying bye to Harry, Luna giving him a kiss. After they were all gone, Harry walked into his bedroom and retrieved a few things he was going to need.
-oo00oo-
Fifteen minutes later, Hermione informed Harry that she was finished and that Albus was ready to go. Harry flashed to the city hospital and joined Hermione and Albus in a lounge outside one of the medical bays.
"Ready to go Albus?"
"I am Harry, Hermione was very efficient and thorough." Albus replied.
"Albus is in perfect health for his age. I did give him a treatment used by the Alterans to extend their lives. You, me, Luna, and my parents will start receiving it soon. Albus is starting too late in life so it will only add a few decades."
"That my dear, is a lot more then I would wish for but thank you." Replied Albus solemnly. With that Harry and Albus disappeared.
They appeared on the bridge of the Zeus and Harry sat in the chair. Moments later they cleared the atmosphere and were swallowed up by the hyperspace window.
"Albus, I need a favor." Harry sat up in the chair. He had set the ship for a slow ten minute return flight.
"Anything Harry."
"Don't agree until you hear what it is Albus."
"I can't imagine you asking for anything bad Harry, so what can I do?"
"I need access the Department of Mysteries. Specially, the death room."
"Can I ask for what purpose you'd want to return there Harry? Does it have to do with Sirius?"
"In a way it does. It's the Veil of Death I'm interested in. I can't explain further until I have a chance to examine it. I'll say this, it involves the Hollows."
"I assume you want to do this as soon as we get back?"
"I do, I could just beam in and do what I need too but that would be disrespectful to you and honestly, I could use the help and company." Harry looked out at the hyperspace tunnel as he spoke, a look of sorrow and determination on his face.
"I can get us access to the chamber Harry but I'll have to involve the head of the department. Croaker is an old friend, I don't see him saying no, he will just want to be there as well. Will what you are going to do, expose, the Alteran history?"
"It could but only to those in the chamber. I really can't be sure until I've looked at the Veil in person. I don't want to say more in case I'm wrong."
"Ok Harry. I'll get in touch with Croaker as soon as we are back in my office."
"Thank you Albus."
A few minutes later the ship settled into an orbit equal to the moons. With no one going to be on the ship, he didn't want to risk being closer to earth.
The AI onboard would protect the ship and had specific instructions for just about every scenario but it was all untested.
Zeus was a new AI based off of Rose and Olympus's base code but he was still new and Harry was just being careful. He wasn't going to make the same mistakes the Alterans did in the Pegasus galaxy.
Harry and Albus appeared in Albus's office a few minutes later. Albus moved to his desk and pressed the rune on it. Harry move to a shadowy corner, conjured a chair for himself, and cast the shadow spell over the area.
"Arthur, I'm back, can you please ask Unspeakable Croaker to come to my office please?"
"Welcome back Albus, do you need him immediately?"
"Yes Arthur, as soon as possible please, there is a small window of opportunity involved."
"He will be there shortly."
"Thank you Arthur. You can take the rest of the day off."
"I will see you tomorrow then. Good night Albus." Albus removed his hand from the rune on the desk.
"You said you have a padd for me Harry? I am curious to find out what that is."
Albus watched as a flat, eight by eleven inch object floated over to him. "Place your full hand, palm down on the glass side of the padd." Harry instructed from the shadows.
Albus grabbed the object or padd out of the air and inspected it for a moment, turning it over several times. "It doesn't look like much Harry, just glass on metal."
"It is much, much more than that Albus. With the padd you are holding, you could, if you have the security clearance, access all the knowledge in the repository, create new knowledge, access the entirety of the social satellite network, even control my ship in orbit. It can also be used for real time communication with any of us on Navo Altera or anywhere we are in the galaxy. I think you will find yourself using it quite a bit more than parchment, at least to draft out what you eventually put on parchment."
"Fascinating. You allowed me some of the knowledge, the partial history, politics, Alteran language, and some basics of the technical, but I don't recall learning about this." As Albus spoke he placed his hand down on the padd's glass surface. It lite up for a moment, the light seeming to engulf his hand, then retreat. After that the padd lite up with a lot of information, all in Alteran. Albus started reading the information, which was a basic instruction on how to use the padd and how to access the more advanced help files.
"This is wonderful Har…" There was a knock on the office door and Albus quickly hid the padd in his desk drawer. "Enter."
The door opened and a person in a long hooded robe walked in. Harry couldn't see the face of the person under the hood as it had some form of obscuring spell on it to hide the identity of the wearer. He had the knowledge of the spell in his mindvault, so he silently cast the counter charm so he could see the person.
"Saul, it is good to see you, how are things going in the Department of Mysteries?" Albus asked as the man walked toward his desk.
"Albus, I do not appreciate my identity being disclosed while in the presence of others. Yes Mr. Potter, I can see you sitting in the corner."
Harry dropped the shadowing spell covering him. "And I like to know the identity of the person I am going to have to work with as Albus has suggested I should. Since I can see you as clearly as you have seen me, I suppose it is a moot point anyway."
Croaker actually turned to look directly at Harry. "Not even Albus here can see through our concealing charms, so I believe you to be lying or exceedingly more powerful than Albus has indicated."
"Totam Abscondis, created in 1278 by an unknown Unspeakable. I am aware that the Unspeakable's history predates the Ministry of Magic. I also know that 'Indica Mihi Solum' is the spell used by the Unspeakables to allow each of you to see each other through the Totam Abscondis. It was created again in 1278 by the same unknown Unspeakable."
Croaker dropped his hood from his head. "You seem very well versed in knowledge that has not been leaked or stolen from the Unspeakables, ever." Harry could see Crooker's hand twitching to release his wand from its holster on his wrist.
"There is no need for your wand Mr. Croaker, I have no intention of releasing my knowledge to anyone, except Albus here and only if he asks." Harry smiled.
"Saul, Harry is not a threat to the Unspeakables, you have my word on that." Dumbledore injected as a means to intervene before someone did something they would regret, namely his friend Saul.
Croaker relaxed a bit and turned to Albus. "I have to assume, the reason you summoned me has to do with Mr. Potter, hence something to do with the Death room and the Veil."
"Yes Saul, Harry and myself would like access to the Veil. You are of course invited to observe our actions."
-"Harry, Mr. Croaker has the same DNA and mental potential as Dumbledore. If you have to bring him in on the secret, he can download the same amount as Albus."- Rose informed Harry through the mental link.
-"Thank you Rose."- Harry replied.
"Albus." *He has the same potential that you do, if I need to reveal my secrets to him, he can download as much as you did.* Harry spoke in Alteran after getting Dumbledore's attention.
"What language was that?" Croaker asked.
"It is one of Harry's secrets, only six people can understand and speak it that I am aware of, myself being one of them, thanks to Harry teaching me. He was just informing me that he would allow you in on his secrets, if it was needed. Since you have my trust, I hope that is good enough for Harry. I have known you since we went to school together, I should hope I know you well enough by now."
Croaker looked at Albus and nodded. "Very well, what are your intentions with the Veil?"
"At the moment, and this could change, I only wish to examine the archway. Depending on what I find there, my intentions may change, I will tell you what I am doing before I do it though." Harry answered, then continued.
"I do have one request, that all monitoring charms in the room be disabled. No one outside the three of us should know what happens in the chamber. I will know if we are still being monitored by anyone outside the chamber."
"I have to insist on this as well Saul. What we find, and what Harry potentially does in the chamber can never be revealed." Albus emphasized. Croaker looked between the two for a few moments.
"I get the feeling that including me in this was out of courtesy…"
"I could have done what I needed too without anyone knowing but Albus talked me out of it. He also told me that you would be good to have on my side." Harry stated matter of factly.
"I like honesty Mr. Potter. I'll grant you access to the chamber. I will respect your secrets unless they pose a threat. Can we agree?"
"Agreed. Shall we go?"
"Harry, let's walk." Albus suggested before Harry could beam them to the chamber. Harry smiled in Albus's direction before he got out of his chair, dispelling it and walking toward the office door. Albus got out of his chair to follow Harry.
"Aren't you concerned about people seeing you Mr. Potter?" Croaker asked as he pulled his hood back over his head.
"I have a rather strong Notice Me Not on with you both keyed into it. I don't think anyone will give me a first, nevermind second look. If anyone does recognize me, I'm sure the two of you can handle the memory modification." Harry then walked out the door at a relaxed pace.
Albus and Croaker quickly followed him out of the office, through the outer office, and down the hall to the lifts. It didn't take long for them to reach the Department of Mysteries and enter the rotating room.
Before Croaker could call out the room he wanted, Harry did it for him and the room responded as it should, but it surprised Croaker that Harry knew how to do that. The door to the death room opened and the three stepped in, Harry stopping just inside the door. This was the last place he saw Sirius alive and it was bringing back all those memories despite his occlumency.
Harry felt a hand placed on his shoulder and looked to see it was Dumbledore. Harry nodded his thanks and took a deep breath. "I have been avoiding coming here, I didn't want to remember, but I was recently told that I should cherish his life, not mourn his death."
"Wise words. We are never truly gone, we just move on to the next great adventure. We will see Sirius again and I fear be victims of his pranks once again." Dumbledore spoke solemnly.
Harry laughed. "I have a few planned for him when I see him again. Ok, let's see what there is to see here. Albus, please hold this." Harry handed him a small pouch that he produced from somewhere on his person.
"What is this Harry?"
"Those three objects we talked about. I do not want to bring them anywhere near the Veil until after I have had a chance to look at it." He also noticed that Croaker had moved over to the side of the door and touched a series of runes carved into the wall there. Croaker noticed Harry watching him.
"Just disabling the monitoring charms and other security in the room as you requested." Croaker informed him. Harry closed his eyes for a moment and then nodded to the Unspeakable.
Harry turned toward the Veil once again and started walking down the stairs toward it. He had Rose constantly scanning the Veil remotely and through the scanners built into Harry's nanosuit which he wore under his regular clothing. The suit wouldn't help him if he somehow got sucked into the event horizon of the Veil though. His suit couldn't withstand being exposed the the hyper subspace layer the wormhole exited into.
Dumbledore and Croaker watched Harry approach the Veil from the side and start looking at the symbols carved into it. Harry didn't appear to be paying the two of them any attention though, his attention totally on the Veil or more precisely the stone arch itself.
"Albus", * The runes carved into the Arch aren't runes, it's Alteran, but it doesn't make any sense. They appear to be just random words carved into the stone, no order to them. * Harry explained after getting Albus's attention, not that he didn't have it already.
*What words, Harry? * he asked.
*There are hundreds of them visibly carved in the stone and my scanners are picking up hundreds more carved so small they are hardly visible to the naked eye. Rose is running them all trying to put them in some kind of order that makes sense. None of the words reference the Astria Porta or the Veil, or the arch, even in general terms. It's like they are nothing more than a distraction, something to keep someone looking at them, trying to figure them out. *
"Fascinating… they really have no meaning? That means there is something hidden that whoever built this didn't want found." Albus switched back to english by mistake.
"What do you mean they have no meaning? Are you saying Harry can read those runes? Impossible, researchers for generations have been trying to read them." Croaker exclaimed in disbelief.
Harry looked up at Albus with a frown. "Albus… I know you, that wasn't a slip, do try to remember why you and I had falling out for a time."
"My apologies Harry. Old habits." Albus sincerely apologized.
"Just remember your old habits didn't earn my trust, your new ones did. I accept the apology." Harry turned his attention to Croaker.
"Mr. Croaker, what you think are runes carved into the Veil are not actually runes. They are the written form of the language Albus and I can speak. The problem is they are completely random, no sentences, some are words used in math, some used in telling the weather, there are even words used in cloth making.
There is no order to them. Has anyone ever noticed that there are hundreds of carvings so small they are almost not visible to the naked eye?"
Croaker to say the least was speechless for a moment, looking between Harry, the Veil, and Dumbledore. Albus was just twinkling his eyes and smiling. Once he processed Harry's question though, he answered. He had a thousand questions of his own he was going to get answered.
"Several researchers did note the smaller runes, writings, on the arch but they were just as perplexed by them as the easily visible ones. How did you learn this language, it has to be as old as the Veil?" he asked.
"Much older actually." Harry answered as he continued to examine the arch without getting to close to the event horizon, front or back. As he passed by the front to get to the other side of the arch to look at it, he heard the voices again that he had heard that night. This time though, he understood them.
"Oh Merlin…" Harry spoke excitedly.
"What is it Harry?" Albus asked.
"Everyone that has come near the Veil has reported hearing the voices, yes? Even I heard them that night. Well they are voices, speaking that ancient language, no wonder no one could understand what was being said." Harry stood there two meters in from of the Veil and listened.
*Voice activation… damage report… will repeat… * came from the Veil.
*Harry, detailed scans show a small chip out of the left side of the arch. The dimensions of the hole match the dimensions of the stone in the ring. * Rose informed him. He thanked Rose as he turned and walked back up the stairs toward the two observers.
"Albus, let me see the bag please."
"Harry, what are you going to do?" Albus asked before handing over the bag.
"The Veil is damaged. There is a small hole on the left side of the arch that is the exact same size and shape as the stone. I am going to put it back."
"Do you think that is wise Harry?" Albus asked.
"What stone?" Croaker asked angrily.
Harry and Albus both looked at him but it was Harry that answered. "I would watch your tone Mr. Croaker. I have been forthcoming about everything so far…" There was a definite threat in Harry's voice.
"I apologise but can either of you tell me what you are talking about? I am not one that enjoys being left in the dark." He explained.
"Saul, let me explain, Harry forgive him, he's a true Ravenclaw." Harry nodded and apologized as well. "we are talking about the Deathly Hallows, the stone Harry is referring to is the Resurrection Stone." Albus turned to look at Harry. "It makes sense, the Deathly Hallows, The Veil of Death, but is it safe… "
"Albus the Deathly Hallows are a myth, I've been telling you that for five decades." Croaker replied.
Albus turned to Saul, opened the bag Harry had given him, reached his hand in and pulled out the stone, handing it to Harry. He reached in again and pulled out the cloak and the wand. "The stone, the Cloak, and the Wand." Albus smiled. Croakers eyes opened wide as he saw the three mythical objects.
"How, where, when..?" He asked.
"I will tell you about it later Saul. For now though my question, Harry, still stands. Is it safe?"
"Well I'm not going to go put the stone in by hand if that's what you're asking." The stone now floated above Harry's hand. "I'm going to be back here with the two of you, I would suggest having shields ready, just in case." Harry smiled at Albus.
Albus put the other two objects back in the bag and pulled out his wand. "That is a reasonable precaution I think." He noticed Saul pulling his wand out as well. "Harry, just be ready to get us out of here if needed, please."
"Already set Albus. It's on automatic if there is trouble we can't handle. I know what the Vail is, if we need to leave, we will."
"What is it Harry?" Albus asked.
*It's a magical Astria Porta.*, "I don't know who built it but it was built with ancient knowledge, that means… one of our ancestors, nine to ten thousand years ago. I will explain everything to you after, including where it goes." Harry looked sad at that last statement.
"Sirius?" Albus questioned.
"Truly dead, the other end… is a very bad place." Harry turned away from Albus toward the Veil, the stone still floating above his hand. he took a deep breath and the stone started floating toward the Veil. When it was a little over halfway there the stone was ripped out of Harry's control and shot straight toward the left side of the Veil.
"Shields!" Harry cried while producing his own. The two older wizards also produced shields around them as the stone slammed into place on the arch.
The first thing was the blinding light just before the three were struck by a large wave of raw power. Fortunately, Harry's shield was struck first. It wasn't a completely magical shield, it was being generated by his magic but also augmented by the power in his nanosuit. The power behind the blast of magical energy actually pushed Harry back a meter into Albus and Croaker.
Since his shield held the other two shields were untouched. When the energy stopped pounding on Harry's shield he opened his eyes. He was seeing stars, the flash of light temporarily blinding him.
"Harry, are you ok?" He heard Albus ask.
"Yeah just waiting for my eyes to clear. Are you and Croaker ok?" Harry didn't turn or move, not being able to see clearly.
"We are fine though I think we too are waiting for our eyes to clear." Albus replied, Croaker replied the same way. It took a few minutes before the flash blindness subsided and Harry could look at the Veil.
What Harry saw was incredible. The Veils arch was glowing the same color as an upgraded digital Astria Porta. The entire arch had a bright inner glow and pulses of blue energy could be seen racing around the arch from the right side, over the top and down the left side then into the floor at a rate of about one every two seconds.
"That blast is going to alert and bring the entire Department of Mysteries into this room, and probably the entire Auror Corp as well." Croaker stated.
"We can't let anyone in here. The Veil could still be a danger. There are obviously two things still separated from it." Harry pointed to the bag Albus still had.
-"Harry, the energy spike from gate when you replaced the stone, exploded outward in a sphere. It was felt all the way to the street level of the Ministry building. I am detecting a large number of people heading in your direction. Also the energy released was zero point energy in the magical frequencies, though it was an as yet unrecorded frequency."- Rose reported.
-"Also the power release allowed me to image the gate as a whole, the stone dome it sits on and is partially embedded in, is part of the gate itself. They are one unit, the dome is the top of a stone column that extends down five meters."- Harry acknowledged the report and turned to Albus.
"Albus, we can't stop now, but I am not going to do anything else until I have had a chance to see what changed up close. You need to stall whoever is coming, tell them you and Croaker are doing experiments or something. Just keep everyone out of here."
"We will do our best, please don't go near the Veil until we return." Albus said with concern.
"I will stay right here until you get back." Harry promised
The two old wizards then exited through the door of the room and Harry sat down on the top step to wait for them. It was a good thirty minutes before they returned.
"We won't be disturbed Harry, we told them that we were experimenting with a new powerful spell and it overloaded on us. Madam Bones did insist on placing two Aurors as guards outside the door, just in case of emergency, I was able to request Tonks and Shacklebolt. I trust them both not to disturb us."
"I had to place an Unspeakable out there as well, she is a healer specialist. My second in command, insisted on it. I trust her with my life." Croaker added.
"Those are both reasonable requests considering. While you were away, I made arrangements for my personal healer to be ready. She can be in this room in seconds." Harry informed them.
"How is that possible if she isn't outside the door? You can't apparate or portkey into this room, not after that incident last year. " Croaker asked.
"Part of my secrets, but if everything goes well from here on out, I am going to have to let you in on that secret and possibly the three people outside that door also. I'm not to keen on that part though. Can I get back to looking at this thing now?" Harry smiled.
"Go ahead Harry, we will pull you out if needed." Albus replied.
Harry walked slowly back down the stairs but stopped before stepping onto the dome. He wasn't sure if standing on the dome was safe now that the Veil appeared to be powered up properly. The one thing he did notice right away though was that the voices had stopped, he reported this to Albus and Croaker.
Harry then had an idea. *Run Diagnostics.* he spoke to the gate.
*Running diagnostics.* The gate replied and acknowledged. Harry waited and it was a full five minutes before he got the report back.
*Gate is at full power, all internal components functional, communication with the external control device not functional, primary power rod also missing. Current power levels attributed to location of wormhole exit point. *
*Disengage current wormhole. * Harry instructed.
*Unable to disengage without primary power rod.* The gate reported.
-"Harry, at the current power levels in that gate, the backlash would probably destroy half of London."- Rose reported to Harry. Harry turned to Albus and repeated what Rose told him in Alteran.
"Harry, that would not be a good thing." Albus injected.
"I agree with you Albus."
"Whats going on?" Croaker asked "I can hear the Veil talking in that language."
It was Harry that answered. "Saul, can I call you Saul?" Croaker nodded. "This Veil as you call it, is not a death Veil. It's what is called an Astria Porta or Stargate. It was created to allow our ancestors to travel to the stars, to other planets out there." Harry pointed up to the ceiling, to indicate the sky.
"There are other Stargates, but those are technological in nature, this one was built with magic. I will explain more later but currently, the gate is connected to a place in space that is feeding it a lot of power. If I disconnect it, turn it off, as it is now, the backlash will take out half of London."
"Then Albus is right, that would not be a good thing." Saul stated as a matter of fact.
Harry turned back to the gate. *Where do I install the power rod? *
*It is installed in the power dome. * That was all the gate said. Harry started walking around the base of the dome being careful not the step on or touch it. When he got to the back he found a small round disk that was flush with the surface of the dome.
"Albus I need the wand. Don't step on or touch the dome." Harry half yelled across the room. He could see Albus and Saul start to make their way around the outside of the room, as far from the dome as possible.
When they reach the back of the room they both stepped up behind Harry, Albus was already pulling the Elder Wand from the bag. This time it didn't go flying like the stone had.
-"Harry, I think the wand is a magical version of a ZPM but its depleted. That's why it's so powerful at channeling the magic its user, uses. It must also have a rudimentary control intelligence, that's why it only lets its Master use it. That's the best way I can explain it."- This time it was Hermione that spoke to him.
-"You're in the control chair?"- Harry asked.
-"How else can I monitor you in real time. The dome should be safe to touch but only in the circle. That has to be the ZPM socket."-
-"Harry"- This time it was Rose. -"A depleted ZPM of that size should be able to absorb the power of the gate shutting down."-
Harry acknowledged and thanked the two. He turned to Albus and accepted the wand from him. With the wand in hand Harry reached down and touched the small circle on the dome.
The circle immediately recessed into the dome and slide out of the way. Harry looked into the hole and could see it narrowed the further in it went. It didn't take a genius to figure out which end went in first.
Harry placed the tip of the wand in the hole and just like a ZPM socket in any Alteran city or on Harry's ships, the socket grabbed the wand and slowly lowered it in before the top closed again.
Harry spoke to the gate again. *Disengage the gate.*
*Gate power being funneled to power rod. Gate will disengage is five seconds. *
Harry stood up quickly grabbing the other two wizards and moved back to the back wall throwing up a shield behind him.
When the gate disengaged it was rather anti-climatic, it just shut down with a small pop. Harry could still see a faint glow to the arch and ZPM slot looked a little warm, 'understatement', but nothing had blown up.
The big difference though was that there was no more curtain like energy field floating in the center of the arch.
"That's it Albus, no more Veil of Death, it's closed for business." Harry said cheekily. "It's safe now." To which Harry walk up to the arch and stuck his hand through the center.
"What about the Cloak of Invisibility?" Albus asked as he pulled it out of the bag at which point it flew from his hands, past Harry, and into the center of the gate. When it got there it unfolded, stretched, and attached itself to the inside edges of the arch.
Harry took a quick step back from the arch as it lite up again slightly. The cloak lit up as well and like a computer screen started displaying Alteran. This time though it was readable.
Harry and Albus stood there reading what was being displayed. It was a visual diagnostics of the gate. When it finished the diagnostic, stars started appearing with Alteran names next to each one.
Saul didn't know what he was seeing but knew Albus or Harry would explain eventually. After the starfield finished populating there was another glow and the image of an old wizard appeared in front of the gate.
"Hello Harry, Albus, Saul. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Merlin and this gate was my finest creation."
Harry was doing a fish out of water imitation along with Albus and Saul though they were being less obvious about it.
"I created this gate to allow us to escape this world and return back to the stars when the Terra Astria Porta became inaccessible. I say it was my finest creation but it was also my biggest failure.
I made one grave mistake in my calculations and it cost me the lives of five of my friends. We, I thought I had opened the gate to another of our worlds but it opened into subspace. After the first five entered the gate it overloaded.
The explosion caused the control panel to rip away and a piece of the arch to chip. I removed the power rod before it could explode and destroy this world.
The gate remained connect to subspace and I had no way to shut it down. The ZPM was fully charged and would have ruptured if I had tried. In my despair, I took the three objects away in order to hide them.
I imagine I looked like death when I came across the three brothers in your Deathly Hallows story. I gave them each a piece, the cloak, the wand, and the stone and told them a story about each piece.
Little did I know the ZPM could actually be used as a wand, with the power stored in it, it truly was unbeatable, at least until it depleted.
The cloak was made of a material that allowed the user to become invisible. I did eventual meet Ignotus Peverell again when he was dying of old age but he had passed the cloak on to his son already.
The stone was just that, a stone, it held no powers. It's name and reputation came about because of Cadmus. He dabbled in the necro arts and always had the stone in his hand when summoning his dead wife, his was a sad story.
Now that the gate has been closed, I ask that it never be used again. I ask that it be destroyed so it can never take another life. Will you do this for me Harry?"
"You're not a hologram. You're an ascended. I have so many questions." Harry started.
"Harry, I cannot answer those questions, you will have to find your own answers. I can tell you that the others aren't to happy with Janus for what he did but they will not interfere with you.
I can only ask this one thing of you and I shouldn't even be doing that. I am breaking, well bending a few rules by doing so or even being here. So please destroy this gate. It has only ever seen death."
Harry nodded but he didn't look happy that his questions wouldn't be answered. "Thank you Harry."
"I have one question. Luna…" Harry started.
"Luna is a special child. I look forward to the day she joins the ascended." Merlin got an evil grin. "She will cause so much fun." Merlin then faded away.
