Robotech: The Stargate Saga
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters and universes that I am about to mangle around and mash together for my own demented author amusement – sadly all Robotech and Stargate characters and concepts remain the property of Harmony Gold and MGM respectively – I am merely borrowing them and make absolutely no profit from their use. As a result, please keep the legal attack dogs – also known as lawyers – firmly muzzled and on a leash as I have no money to give to anyone.
Chapter Twelve
Asgard Battlecruiser Skuld
A Short Time Later
Sitting in the chair in his quarters Audun studied the holographic display that filled the entire wall opposite him. While they were waiting to be contacted by the humans who called this planet home, he had had the crew running sensor sweeps. Nothing that could be constituted as being overly aggressive or intrusive, despite Commander Breetai's words he knew that the Zentraedi wouldn't hesitate to blast them out of space if they did anything that could be constituted as hostile, but enough to get some idea of what had happened in this system since the last time the Asgard had ventured here just after this worlds people had developed primitive, if effective, nuclear weapons.
What they had discovered was both surprising and very concerning.
They had quickly detected an enormous amount of dust outside the ship. Dust that was slowly but surely spreading out across the planets orbital path, dust that was composed of absolutely vast amounts of the hypercarbon, ceramic polymer and synthetic trinium alloys used in the construction of Zentraedi vessels and stations. The remnant energy traces in the debris clearly matched both Zentraedi and Tirolian particle weapons – though the latter was far too small to constitute a major Tirolian presence most likely no more than one or two of their warships but definitely not a mothership as their latest intelligence reports had confirmed that all the Azashar-class motherships, all twenty-seven of them, remained in orbit above Tirol – which while worrying was not the biggest cause for concern. No, the biggest cause for concern was the bigger remnant energy trace as well as the lingering clouds of phased gravitons and hyper phasic radiation, all of which matched the signature of reflex weaponry in both the beam weapon and warhead forms.
A remnant energy trace that was bigger by far than any vestigial reflex energy trace that the Asgard had ever seen before, and they had had the dubious pleasure of having been on the receiving end of reflex weapons in the past. Indeed, dozens of Asgard warships had been destroyed by those devastatingly powerful weapons the handful of times they and the Tirolians/Robotech Masters and their Zentraedi servitors had openly fought one another. It was obvious from all the energy traces that there had been a battle here, a fierce and terrible battle, one that involved the exchange of both conventional robotech energy weapons and reflex weapons on an absolutely unprecedented scale.
And from the rate of the dust dispersion and the decay rate of the remnant energy whatever battle had happened here it hadn't been that long ago. Their analysis indicated that the battle had taken place two years ago, at the most three. How did we not know such a battle had taken place, he thought confused, surely our sensors that monitor this galaxy would have noticed such a massive discharge of protoculture-based energy. Yes, I know that the bulk of our monitors attention has been focused on the Goa'uld ever since Sokar started the current civil war but still such a discharge should have been noticed. Noticed and flagged for a high priority investigation.
He made a mental note to recommend to both Supreme Commander Thor and the Asgard High Council that the monitors be checked. After all, if they had missed such a massive discharge of energy then what else in this galaxy had they missed? It was not something that really bore thinking about. After all, while the Goa'uld Empire was the largest of the spacefaring empires in this galaxy, and had long been the most dominant militarily, it was not the only one. There were others and while some like the Serrakin Commonwealth could be fairly benign – well as long as you weren't the Goa'uld – others could be just as bad, if not worse, than the megalomaniacal parasites on a bad day.
A bleep was the only warning he had before a new window opened on the holographic display showing Briar. "Sorry to disturb you commander but we have been hailed by Earth orbital control," he reported from his position on the bridge. "We have been granted permission to enter orbit and a vector has been sent for us to follow. We have also been informed that a government official will contact us shortly."
"Understood. Proceed on the provided vector into planetary orbit," Audun ordered. "I will return to the bridge shortly."
"Yes commander."
Briar disappeared allowing the previous hologram to return. Audun manipulated the control stones on the arm of the chair, saving the latest analysis and sending them to the High Council for their perusal before dismissing the screen. He was just starting to manipulate the stones again when a faint shiver through the deck let him know that the main sublight engines had started up and they were beginning to move towards the planet. He paid it no mind as he manipulated the stones and pressed a few of the runes in a specific sequence, activating the internal transporter system.
Silver-white light, and an ethereal musical tone, enveloped him and his quarters dissolved into the light. For a moment out of time all he saw was the light and all he heard was the sound, there was a tremendous feeling of movement, then the light and sound evaporated, and he found himself sitting on his chair on the bridge. He did not need to request a status report, the holograms floating around the room showing him clearly that they were precisely following the vector provided by orbital control. A vector that was taking them around and over a massive debris field that was slowly but surely forming a ring system around the planet. A glance at the sensor feeds revealed that the debris field was composed primarily of the broken remains of Zentraedi warships, fighters, and battle mecha though drifting amid the debris were other materials that were definitely not of Zentraedi origin being composed primarily of an alloy of hypercarbon, titanium and aluminium.
A particularly large wreck – that had definitely once been a Zentraedi command ship – passed them and Earth itself came into view on the optical pickups. Immediately a subtle, Asgardian gasp of shock and horror went around the bridge. Earth had always been a beautiful world, with her vast blue oceans and green continents. It had always been easy to see why the Ancients had used it as a template for all their terraforming operations across the galaxies, as it had always been a jewel of a world.
Now that jewel had been badly tarnished.
The once vast green continents were brown and dirty with only some areas of greenery showing. Her once bright blue atmosphere slightly darker, choked as it was with ash and dust. Larger areas of white could be seen advancing slightly from the polar and high alpine regions. Even just looking at it the entire bridge crew of the Skuld could tell that the planet had been subjected to a massive orbital bombardment, one that had scoured vast areas of the once verdant world clean of life. The signs were everywhere as some of the craters from the bombardment were fully visible from space.
"Sensors what can you detect," Audun ordered sadly, it was always deeply distressing to see a world this wounded. Especially when you knew how beautiful and full of life it had once been.
"Commander sensors indicate that the planet has suffered a massive bombardment," the Asgard manning the sensor station reported, "we are reading vast areas of glassed and irradiated land that in many areas is only now beginning too properly cool. Five percent of the planets total water mass has vanished, likely boiled off into space during the assault. The atmosphere is heavily contaminated with dust and other particulates likely from the bombardment, though levels are dropping, and it appears a number of filtration towers have been built or are under construction, likely to help with the cleaning and stabilization of the atmosphere. Commander the vestige energy signature and radiation traces we're detecting match reflex weaponry."
"How many human life forms?"
"We estimate no more than twelve to thirteen million."
"There should be billions on this world," Briar said sounding sad and angry. "Commander Breetai did say that the people of this world paid a terrible price for freeing his people from the grip of the Robotech Masters. I guess we now know how horrific that price was."
"Agreed," Audun replied knowing that there was no way the Asgard High Council would allow a world, any world, to remain this damaged. He did not doubt that once they learned of this the Council would offer Asgardian assistance to the humans here in repairing as much as possible the devastation wrought upon their once beautiful planet. They might even contact their old allies and ask the Nox to assist given their own expertise in regenerating devastated ecosystems, though repairing the ecology of an entire planet would be a challenge even for them.
"Commander we are entering orbit," the helmsman reported.
"Incoming transmission from the planet," communications added, "engaging translation system."
"Let me see it," Audun ordered.
A moment later a holographic screen blinked into existence in front of him showing the face and upper torso of a human woman. She was middle aged with dark hair, with a few greys showing here and there no doubt caused by stress, a still beautiful face showed immense weariness and hinted at a deep lingering pain and grief. Something that was completely understandable as no species could endure a bombardment like the humans here had without being deeply traumatised by it. The woman was sitting in an office and through the windows behind her they could clearly see the outlines of a city that was slowly but surely being rebuilt.
"Commander Audun my name is Doctor Elizabeth Weir of the United Earth Government State Department," the woman said. "Welcome to Earth. I apologise for the somewhat frosty reception you received from the Zentraedi. Commander Breetai and his forces are taking their protection duties very seriously and he informs me that your two species don't have the best of histories."
"No, we do not," Audun admitted, "Though it was quite refreshing to talk with the Zentraedi with something other than particle beams. I assume that is your peoples doing?"
"Indeed, though they do still have a great deal to learn about diplomacy and indeed anything that does not involve blasting someone or something to pieces," Weir answered, "they're learning but it takes time to overcome generations of neuro-somatic conditioning."
"It is impressive that you have been able to accomplish as much as you have. The Robotech Masters are nothing if not very thorough with their conditioning of servitor species," Audun replied.
"We've noticed. So, what brings you here to our planet Commander Audun?"
"We were concerned," Audun replied before repeating what he had told Commander Breetai in their unprecedented talk with words instead of energy blasts. "When Commander Breetai told me you had managed to break the chains of servitude that bound his people to the Robotech Masters I knew that we had to speak. Doctor Weir, might I ask what happened here? How your people came into first contact then conflict with the Zentraedi in the first place? The territories where they can normally be found are after all many millions of light years away in a completely different galaxy to this one."
"It is a very long story commander."
"I have the time if you do."
Weir chuckled. "I suppose I do at that," she answered, "very well. I suppose I better start at the very beginning of this particular story. You see on the night of Sunday 25th 1999 an event occurred in the sky above the South Pacific that would forever alter the course of our history…"
Fort Minotaur, Crete
A Short Time Later
Lisa Hayes was a woman on a mission.
She walked with a calm yet at the same time urgent grace through the subterranean corridors and hallways heading towards where she knew the base gym to be located which, given the mood he had been in for the last few days the anger lurking like molten lava behind his eyes, was where she expected to find her quarry. The individual she was after was none other than one Rick Hunter, she would normally leave him to vent quietly on his own – lord knew he had a damned good reason to be mad as hell given what Vosegus had done to his cousin Nathan – but right now she didn't have that luxury. Admiral Gloval wanted to speak with him about something, some important mission he wanted the leader of Skull squadron for, so he had asked her to go and find him and put them in contact as soon as she was able to.
Of course, that was easier said than done.
Rick Hunter did after all have a number of different ways to either vent or wind down. He was a frequent runner and was quite adept at parkour, she had seen him do it a number of times back in Macross City both when it had been inside the SDF-1 and now the rebuilt model outside the battered, halfway to destroyed battlefortress. Alternatively, he also enjoyed spending time doing aircraft maintenance and by all accounts was a very gifted mechanic in his own rite and picked up the art of maintaining and repairing even veritech fighters very quickly, something that to this day she knew had shocked the maintenance technicians on the SDF-1 during their long flight back to Earth from Pluto.
Unfortunately, both those options were closed to him for now given that there was currently a ferocious storm raging above ground, battering the island with torrential rain and a force ten gale. Thus, all the hangars, runways and surface areas of the base were completely locked down till the storm passed. Unlike most other UEDF base Fort Minotaur didn't feature underground hangars as the base had never really been intended as a combat base, being constructed more as a research and development base in the years before the Rain, and thus only had surface hangars. Meaning Rick would have to have chosen a more physical outlet if he really wanted to vent.
She arrived outside the gym. She took a deep breath before pushing open the doors and stepping into the small reception area. The young, enlisted man running the front desk looking up in surprise from the computer tablet he was reading at her arrival, before he shot up and stood at attention.
"Commander Hayes sorry ma'am I wasn't expecting you," he said.
"Stand easy private it's fine," Lisa replied prompting the young man to stand easy, "I am looking for Captain Hunter. I was told that he is here?"
The private checked the workstation on the desk. "Yes, ma'am he is," he said, "he's in one of the private training rooms off the main floor. Room three. He asked not to be disturbed."
"That's alright private he will tolerate me, and it won't come back on you," Lisa answered. He won't have a choice, she thought, plus when I tell him that I am there at the request of Admiral Gloval he shouldn't get that mad. Though she was hoping that Rick would be reasonable as they had started drawing a lot closer over the last two years, especially now that they were no longer cooped up on the ship with a certain teenage Chinese starlet, who had had far too much of an influence on Rick for her taste. Indeed, to the best of her knowledge Rick had had no real contact with Minmei for nearly two years and certainly not since she'd taken her cousin Lynn Kyle as her manager.
"I understand ma'am. Do you wish me to show you to the room?"
"I would appreciate that private," Lisa replied.
"This way ma'am."
Lisa nodded and followed the private through the doors into the corridor leading to the main floor. Doors on either side of the corridor lead to male and female changing rooms and showers. Lisa ignored them as they came to the end of the corridor and entered the gym. Immediately she was assaulted by a cacophony of noise – the sound of thumping music, the clank of weights moving, the humming of machines like treadmills and a constant hubbub of conversation – as with access to the training grounds on the surface currently closed by the storm every fitness fanatic on the base had come here to work out or just hang out with their mates while they worked out.
She ignored the noise as best as she could, following the young private towards where some rooms were set aside for more private exercise or even for the practice of mediation. In no time at all they reached the room which Rick was using. Through the door she could distinctly hear the faint thump, thump, thump of something leather being struck. She was willing to bet that it was a punching bag or some other training dummy as one of the physical pursuits she knew Rick to enjoy was kickboxing. It was something she knew he'd picked up when undergoing basic training – where veritech pilots were encouraged to accept some form of unarmed combat training as it helped when fighting in battloid mode – back on the SDF-1 and had taken to it like a duck to water.
"He's in here ma'am," the private said.
"I guessed as much. You can go now private."
"Yes ma'am."
Lisa watched the private turn and walk back the way he came, skirting around a balancing ball that had gotten away from a particularly burly looking marine who was coming to retrieve it. Mentally she shook her head before knocking on the door and opening it. Sure, enough inside the room she could see a punching bag hanging from the ceiling. A bag that was constantly swaying under the impact of various punches and kicks as Rick really gave it what for. He was so engrossed that he didn't seem to see or hear the door opening and closing and didn't seem to register her presence. She was about to open her mouth to announce her presence when Rick stopped.
"Something I can help you with Lisa," he asked his chest heaving as he took in deep breaths of air. Lisa had to force herself to look in his eyes and not at the way his t-shirt dark with sweat hugged tight to the muscles of his torso.
"I've been sent to come and get you," Lisa replied as Rick walked over to where there was towel and a water bottle. She watched as he wiped his face before picking up the water bottle.
"Oh, what for," Rick asked as he took a swig of mineral water.
"Admiral Gloval wants to speak to you about something," she said, "I think he wants you for some mission or other. He knows that you probably want to stay here with Nathan but…"
"…it's alright," Rick answered. "I was told earlier that both Nathan and Aunt Maria want to return to Denver as soon as possible. I believe Claudia has been put in charge of making sure there's some therapists available there for Nathan to talk to."
"Knowing Claudia there will be," Lisa replied, "how is he doing Rick?"
Rick grimaced. "Not good," he admitted, "the last few nights I know he's woken up screaming. Keeps seeing all the things that 'Prime' did in service to Vosegus, both myself and Aunt Maria tell him that it wasn't him that did it, that it isn't his fault but…"
"He still feels guilty about it," Lisa finished for him.
"Yeah."
"It is going to take him a long time to come to terms with it. If he can."
"He's a Hunter of course he can, we're made of quite stern stuff it will just take a while. I just… I wish I could find this Vosegus character so I can wring his neck for doing that to Nathan, I mean what did he do to deserve what's been done to him? Nathan was always so quiet and gentle."
"I wish I knew," Lisa admitted walking up to Rick and putting a comforting hand on his shoulder, not at all put off by the smell of sweat and the damp fabric under her hand. "Though much as I know you would love to kill Vosegus if you ever caught him, I don't think the Council would like that. They think he's some kind of alien living inside a human body and that he has been on this planet for a long time. A few millennia at least, they'll want to know what he's been doing in all that time."
"So, no killing him assuming we ever find where the bastards gone to ground."
"Afraid not."
"Damn but then as Roy used to say them's the breaks. So do you know what mission the admiral wants me for?"
"No idea, you'll have to ask him when you talk to him. I told him that I would get you to contact him back as soon as possible."
"Right, I'll go to the communications centre and call him," Rick replied, "well after I've had a shower and got back in uniform."
"That would be a good idea. I'll wait for you in reception."
"Thanks Lisa. Oh, and Lisa after I've spoken to the admiral would you like to meet up and grab a bite to eat," Rick asked.
Lisa smiled a hundred megawatt smiled and felt a little flutter inside. Rick was asking her out! Granted it would only be in the cafeteria here on the base – since nobody could leave till the storm passed which according to the meteorology department wouldn't be till early tomorrow at the earliest – but it was a start. "Sure, Rick I'd like that. But now you should go on and have your shower."
Rick smiled and his blue eyes sparkled with mirth in that way that always made her heart flutter. "Yes ma'am," he replied with a mock salute causing Lisa to laugh before turning and leaving the room. Rick watched her go then gathered his things – touched a control on the wall that caused the punching bag he'd been taking out his rage over what had happened to Nathan on to retract into the ceiling for cleaning and repair – before leaving the room himself heading for the men's showers.
~~/~~
Ten minutes later, now dressed in a clean uniform and smelling somewhat of soap, Rick found Lisa waiting for him as she'd indicated she would. She smiled slightly at him in greeting, and he smiled back, before together they left the gym and began making their way towards Fort Minotaur's communications centre.
It did not take them that long to reach it, though they did have to pass through three security checkpoints to do so, as it was only two levels above the gym. Both presented an image of calm efficiency as they walked in, and Lisa went and spoke to one of the ratings on duty. Rick waited patiently for her to return, idly running a hand through his still somewhat damp hair as he did so. In no time at all Lisa returned.
"Admiral Gloval is online waiting for you in one of the secure comm rooms," Lisa said as she arrived, "it's over here."
Rick nodded and followed Lisa to the indicated room, where she gestured for him to go in alone. "I'll be right out here when you finish," she said.
"Alright Lisa," Rick replied before he stepped into the room, the door automatically closing behind him. Calm he walked over to the only furniture in the room – a chair and a desk – and sat down before entering his security code and allowing the computer built into the desk to scan his DNA and other biometric data. For a second or two nothing happened as the computer thoroughly checked to determine if he was who he said he was and that he had sufficient security clearance for the call. Until apparently satisfied it allowed the communications link to open causing a holographic screen to pixel into existence over the desk as a projector field activated.
"Ah Captain Hunter good there you are," Admiral Gloval said from where he was sitting in his office back in New Macross City. The windows behind him were blanked out, having polarized to prevent anyone on the outside seeing what they were talking about, windows that normally would show a view of the slowly decaying half-wrecked SDF-1 sitting in the middle of the new lake that bore the admiral's name. "I hope I haven't interrupted anything."
"Nothing important sir I was just working off some of my anger with Vosegus over what he did to Nathan," Rick replied.
"I see and how is your cousin Rick? I understand that he is not coping that well with his experience?"
"No, he isn't," Rick admitted, "though I have hope that with time, patience and sufficient counselling he'll make as good a recovery as anyone can after having their personality overwritten while they were being biologically altered into whatever he is now. I just wish I could have five minutes in my veritech facing Vosegus, of course you wouldn't find his body afterwards."
Gloval chuckled. The whole saying about if you hurt me, I'd hurt you but if you hurt my family, they'd never find your body was one that Russians often found themselves in complete agreement with their old American foes. "Indeed," he said before turning serious. "Unfortunately enquiring about your cousin is not the reason I wished to speak with you."
"So, Lisa said. I believe you have a mission you want me to go on?"
"Yes. I need you to lead a small expedition to Mars," Gloval replied.
Rick frowned. "Mars why?" he asked curious plus he wasn't that eager to revisit the red planet. The last time he'd been there they'd almost all gotten killed when they'd had their first run in with the Zentraedi warlord Khyron the Destroyer – of Khyron the Backstabber depending on which Zentraedi you talked to – who'd caught the SDF-1 in an expertly laid trap involving an army of battlepods and gravity mines. A trap that they'd only just escaped with their lives.
"I know it probably your favourite place to go given we all nearly died there but let me explain," Gloval said, Rick nodded back, and the Russian man began explaining what it was he actually wanted him to do and why he wanted him to do it. Rick blinked in surprise as Gloval revealed the presence of a previously unknown energy signature at the bottom of a deep cave on the slope of the Martian volcano Arsia Mons. An energy signature that the Zentraedi had been able to identify as being sekitan-based and was coming from some kind of ship, but that the giant humanoids hadn't been able to find out anything else due to both the depth of the cave and various ferrous metal ores in the ancient lava rocks disrupting their sensors.
"Normally I would assign a mission like this to Lisa but given what happened the last time she was on Mars," Gloval said.
"I understand sir," Rick replied, knowing that any visit to Mars would always be especially painful for Lisa given that it was the place where her finance Karl Riber had died, along with everyone on Mars Base One/Base Sara in two thousand five. "I'll lead the mission sir. What exactly do you want us to do? And when do we leave?"
"I want you to investigate that ship Rick," Gloval answered, "find out where it came from, how long it has been there, and why someone chose to hide it in a cave on the flank of an extinct extra-terrestrial volcano. I will be assigning half of Skull Squadron to the mission along with a contingent of scientists from the Robotech Research Group led by Doctor Miles Cochrane. The team should be assembled by the end of the week.
"Once you are all together you will travel to Mars aboard a Zentraedi cruiser," Gloval continued, "once in orbit you are to descend to the planet and commence exploring the vessel. Assuming of course that you are able to gain access to it."
"I understand sir I will return to Macross City as soon as the storm that's locked us down here breaks and it's safe to fly again. Sir might I tell my family why I am going to Mars at least in general terms."
"I will leave that judgement to you Rick," Gloval answered, "we will discuss the mission more when you return to Macross City. Gloval out."
The holographic screen pixeled out of existence as Gloval closed down the communications link from his end. For a few moments Rick sat there deep in thought both excited at the prospect of having a mission that would give him something to do other than worry about Nathan – and rage over what that bastard Vosegus had done to him – and a little dismayed that he wouldn't be the one to take Nathan and Aunt Maria back to their home in Denver. But that was the downside of being in the military as while Gloval had phrased it more like a request that he take the lead in the mission to Mars he knew it to be an order. Which was why he had said he would lead the mission.
Of course, he would have to first figure out how much he could safely tell not just Aunt Maria but Lisa about all of this.
Authors Note: Well, another chapter bites the metaphorical dust. I hoped that you all enjoyed it as I was honestly surprised at how quickly this particular chapter actually came together once I started it. I was originally going to have another section on the end of the chapter featuring Commander Audun talking to the Asgard High Council and filling them in on everything they've discovered so far but I quickly concluded that it wasn't really necessary for this chapter – and the fact was it wasn't working anyway – so I ultimately removed it. Until next time.