Mystery Solved


Disclaimer: The characters of Stargate Universe belong to MGM. *The characters of the Four Orders are entirely my own.


AU/SGU/FO*: A powerful being from another universe appears on the Destiny just as Eli's time had run out. Stranded on the ship he has to figure out how to go home and the best way is to help the crew of Destiny.


Season Four – 'Unravelling the past'

Premise:

The crew of Destiny woke up after entering stasis only to find two new passengers onboard. The powerful being Diablo and his sidekick Viz had repaired most of their ship in a display of power never before seen.

After some deliberations and revelations, the crew of Destiny chooses to keep them as their newest allies/crew members. But trouble knocked on their door when an Ancient seed ship nearly destroyed all of them.

Unified they set together on a journey of exploration of the deepest waters of their psyche and the darkest secrets of the Ancients. What they discover shakes them to the very core of their beliefs.


Previously:

Viz appeared in cyber space where Amanda and Ginn inform him that Destiny has been helping occupy the crew's time in stasis but it has lost control over nine people to a powerful entity that has been trying to contact the ship fro 666 666 years unsuccessfully.

During the course of the conversation it becomes clear the Ancients were onboard the ship for thousand years and change. Revealing also that Chloe's aliens were encountered not where they did but a longer time ago and that the Ancients fought them until very recently when they apparently ascended.

Then the two discuss how they will appear in their bodies and what that entails. Viz explains at best he can and encourages them not to give up easily when it doesn't work at first.

We then move onto Diablo who has been contemplating over the horrid week in which the seed ship attacked. His reasoning led him to believe that there was more than met the eye. And soon with cool logic, he uncovered much of what was logical and why it happened the way it did.

Bursting with enthusiasm he races to share with the rest of the crew the revelations he had about that time. Having all gathered he shares with them what he think happened and why. The only answer he doesn't have is why.

But Viz arrives making the claim he can shed some light into and informs that Dr. Perry and Ginn are ready to join them in the real world.


And now:

Chapter 8

Silence befell his words before erupting with multiple voices. Viz raised hands trying to calm them down.

"Please, I will answer all your questions, just calm down."

"Silence!" Everett raised his voice. "Let's let him talk."

Everyone calmed down gradually as it took several 'silences' to achieve that effect.

"There is much we did not know but Destiny did and until recently we had no means of asking it directly."

"It has logs." Dr. Broody reasoned.

"True but we did not know what to ask let alone where to look for it." Viz said.

"So how did we find out?" Dr. Park asked.

"As I said our new avatars achieved that much more efficiently." Viz replied.

"How did we know what to tell them to ask?"

"Fair question," Viz nodded. "We, being me and Diablo, needed information on whether Destiny has yet again interfered and provided entertainment during your sleep in stasis or not."

"Why?" Rush asked.

Diablo stepped in to answer that. He did not want the conversation to go in that direction but it has so he had no choice but share what has led to this. "As you know I have the ability to see your auras."

"We do." Everett acknowledged.

"Well, as it so happens there are a few among you whose auras I can't see or more to the point whose auras are hidden from my sight."

"How is that possible?" Rush asked.

"Only a very powerful being, a being of my power stature can shield an aura."

"As far as you know, you mean?" Chloe said.

"No, I am sure, Ms. Armstrong." Diablo said adamantly.

"You are forgetting this is not your universe."

"Oh and I am not forgetting that. In fact that is why I am so sure. You see beings from your universe do not know me and have no reason to shield your auras from me. A being from my universe with an agenda of his own and probably somehow linked to this one, apparently does."

Eli again realized how strong his deductive skills are. So the divine being was from his universe.

"Whose auras can't you see?" Everett asked his interest piqued.

"There are currently four people whose auras are hidden from my sight."

"Who are they?"

"We will get to that." Diablo replied cautiously. He still needed to hear what Viz had discovered. "Viz, your turn,"

"Convenient," Rush observed.

"Convenience has nothing to do it with it, Dr. Rush as there are other factors in play that I have yet to understand. So before we start a witch hunt I want to know what Viz has discovered to see how it fits with the rest.

When one is unable to see the whole picture or understand most of it one tends to reach the wrong conclusions and that can have unfortunate consequences."


Chloe had to admit to herself that the divine being was wrong about Diablo. He was aware of the consequences of acting prematurely. But she was also concerned of the frightening accuracy with which Diablo uncovers the pieces of the puzzle. She knew that her aura was one of those four hidden from his sight though she did not know who else.

"Alright," Viz said. "As it turns out Destiny did provide entertainment for almost the entire crew and ..."

"Almost all?" Everett interrupted. "Who did not get the treatment?"

"Again with the interruptions, Colonel," Viz protested. "Please, stop interrupting."

"Sorry,"

"Some of the crew were in the simulation provided by Destiny until a powerful being took over. How? Why? At this point we do not know. But apparently this being has been trying to contact Destiny for nearly 700 000 years however it being an AI that was not possible."

"700 000 years?" Rush interrupted. "That's nearly its entire voyage. But it succeeded with some of us?"

"People, please, stop interrupting." Viz protested.

"Dr. Rush – shush!" Diablo said. "Does it have a more precise time than nearly?"

"Yes, it does – the devil's years."

"What?" Everett exclaimed perplexed.

Diablo thought for a moment then burst into laughter. "That was funny. So it meant 666 666 years?"

"Yes,"

"That's an odd number." Rush said.

"It is the number of the beast." Camille explained turning heads in her direction. "What? It is religion 1 on 1. It is the symbol of man, imperfect as he is as opposed to god that is 7, the number of perfection."

"What do they teach you in schools?" Diablo exclaimed shaking head. "The number of perfection, Mrs. Wray is 8, the number of balance, universal balance. Your God is somewhat unbalanced and then again 7 is the number of magic so why not – the number of God. You are after all made in his image."

Eli moved uncomfortably. He did so as he had met the son of God and the story was somewhat different from what anyone could have predicted or expected.


"It would appear that this being has a weird sense of humour. "Diablo reasoned after the short pause that his words created. Camille was visibly outraged by the interpretation. "Get on with it, Viz."

Viz did not wait to be told twice. He knew what was coming will create more interruptions so he just dived in it. "During the period of attempted communication, the ship shared that information with the Ancients onboard."

Viz was not wrong this statement created another outburst but he continued. "Apparently the Ancients have come to the ship two thousand and change years before your arrival."

"That puts in year 0 and change." Rush deducted.

"That is interesting." Diablo said.

"The Ancients stayed onboard manning the ship while going in and out of stasis for extended periods of time for that period."

"That's not possible." Rush exclaimed outshouting the others. "Even going in stasis, they would still age and at some point reviving them will kill them long before that period passes."

"Rush, we do not know how long they were onboard yet to make such assumptions." Everett said.

"Their last presence onboard was about several hours before Diablo and I arrived on Destiny." Viz said.

"WHAT?"

"But that would mean that they were onboard when we came to the ship?" Dr. Volker reasoned. "How is it that we did not notice them?"

"Apparently, Dr. Volker, they were in another chamber of stasis pods that you have not visited." Viz explained.

"Why weren't they revived when we came onboard?" Camille asked.

"The Ancients have programmed the ship to revive them only when in eminent danger."

"There were so many – like the pulsar when the Lucians came onboard. That is not eminent danger?" Rush asked.

"No, it is not. They understood under eminent danger when the ship is boarded by aliens."

"And what we do not qualify or the Lucians?"

"You and the Lucians are humans, Dr. Rush, not aliens."

"Being born on another world makes you alien to any indigenous species."

"True, but you are of Ancient descent and therefore you are not considered alien."

"What about the stasis pods? Would they revive them if we were to be close to them?" Dr. Brody asked.

"He just said it is programmed for aliens not us." Dr. Volker replied.

"Actually, the stasis pods would have activated in your presence but as I said you have never been to that part of the ship so that never happened." Viz explained.

"So they knew of humans?" Camille asked. "Doesn't this translate to our other problem?"

"It would have if you have been paying attention, Mrs. Wray." Viz said. "The other problem involved the Heralded Four while these Ancients came from a time where humans were the dominant species on Earth."

"One doesn't exclude the other." Camille countered.

"She has a point, Viz." Diablo said agreeing with her, which surprised her. "Although Viz has a point too, Mrs. Wray. The usage of that particulate manner of naming the targets is very specific and doesn't reflect the rest of the species. But you both have a point."

"So if aliens did not refer to us then to whom did it refer?" Everett asked.

"That you would know."

"Meaning?"

"You are familiar with the aliens that the ship meant."

"We are?"Camille asked.

"Yes," Viz nodded. "Those would be Chloe's aliens."

"That's not possible."

"As it turns out these aliens have been trying to get onboard for nearly a century before your arrival and you meeting them." Viz said.

"That's news for me." Rush said. "I did not get that feeling when I was visiting."

"But you said it yourself they were interested in the ship not you. So that means that they have pursuing it for some time. You just did not know how long and now you do."

"So the Ancients warded them off?" Everett asked.

"Yes until ten years ago when they managed to board the ship."

"They have boarded the ship?" Everett exclaimed and turning to Rush continued. "I thought you said they were trying to find a way to bypass the defences of the ship?"

"They were." Rush replied.

"And yet they have already succeeded. So something here doesn't add up."

"Yes and no," Viz replied. "When they boarded the ship they began exploring it. Meanwhile the ship revived the Ancients. In the ensued battle, the Ancients lost one of the crew who was taken alive and then the aliens left and did not return for years."

"Why?"

"I imagine they were trying to do to him what they did to Ms. Armstrong." Diablo reasoned given the logic of things. "But failed to do so as Ancient physiology is more complex than human, and then they probably lost him or killed him or he escaped somehow."

"All valid possibilities but we do not know what happened to him." Viz continued. "When they returned they attacked Destiny while recharging and the moment it emerged from the corona they ran."

"They what?" Everett exclaimed. "But that makes no sense."

"I agree." Rush said. "While recharging Destiny's shields would have been at peak efficiency so the blasts will not incur any damage. This really makes no sense."

"Not necessarily," Diablo intervened. "There are several possibilities."

"Such as?" Everett asked.

"One – they could have simply be making a point that they can attack the ship anywhere and this should be taken as a warning."

"Maybe,"

"Two..." Diablo had a small epiphany. "Viz, does Destiny have any idea why it attacked it?"

"No, but Dr. Perry was adamant on that fact that they attacked somewhat ferociously."

"So they were not there to take ship but rather take it out?"

"Yes, it would have appeared that way."

"Interesting," Diablo said. "So two, colonel, what would you do when you find out that you are shooting at the wrong ship, the wrong person?"

"I would probably stop and then go and find where the real target is."

"Exactly, so that's another possibility. They were shooting at it and then realized that is not their target. As Viz said they had come for blood. They were not there to take the ship. They have come to destroy it. But the moment it emerged they realized that is not the one."

"You are saying that they confused Destiny with the other ship? Why would they want to attack the other ship?"

"Well logic dictates that they were ticked off and that the logical guess would be because the other ship kicked their butts and they have come for revenge."

"What's the other possibility?"

"Well, that could be because they saw something that scared them and then they ran and then again there could be another slew of other reasons for which they choose that course of action, which we currently do not know."

"What happened to the Ancients?" Camille asked steering the conversation back on track.

"The Ancients remained onboard until several hours prior to our arrival at which point Destiny picked up a strange energy surge and then the Ancients have disappeared. We figured they have ascended as Diablo and I found some evidence of that in the stasis room during our tenure of the ship when you were snoring."

"We were not snoring." Camille said taking offense to such insinuations.

"It is a figure of speech, Mrs. Wray." Viz said. "So there you have it."


Diablo remained pensive. This explained part of the puzzle but not all of it. It was easy to assume that one of these ascended ancients created the radiation in the seed ship. But the question still remained why. Was he the one that the aliens had captured? Did they kill him and then he ascended? But then why create the seed ship's attack meant for the other ship?

He had also noticed the uncomfortable shifting of Eli and Chloe. He was certain they knew something about the unanswered parts of the puzzle. And yet they had remained silent because they were afraid to share or perhaps because they couldn't. He had a sneaky feeling that the powerful being was behind their actions and while he resented its tactics he assumed it had a valid reason for doing it.

He was certain that it was safe to assume that it had to do with the ship that followed Destiny – the Guardian. There was more to it than met the eye. He apparently wanted him to learn more about it before confronting it or Eli and Chloe. But what was the question. He needed more information on the origins of that ship and this one.

He shared some of his epiphanies with the rest so they were all on the same page. Now remained the question what to do. And Viz reminded them of the avatars. It was time to reintegrate Dr. Perry and Ginn back into the crew. And that would take some preparations as it was a complex and long process.


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Lordheaven

STAY SAFE!