Area 51, Shipyard
The now quite room of officials and military personal, perhaps a little too silent for most peoples taste, "I thought no more ships were gonna launch today?" O'Neill asked quite dumbly, but at least it starts conversation.
"Well apparently the SGC have found something of interest, they want to check the area fully." Carter responded
"What about the gate?" the general countered
"It's a big area sir, couple dozen star systems." She tried to explain, despite the Generals sigh.
"Carter we can use the gate more then once" He said thinking it was one of the most obvious facts in the universe. Too bad he was wrong.
"There're only 4 gates in the sector Sir, we want to search the entire area." The colonel answered matter of factly, though not hide the smug feeling of superiority. While she could understand being out-smarted, she wouldn't accept being out-smarted by something so simple, at least not by the General at least.
O'Neill himself however, was slightly embarrassed, no more then usual though when it comes to be proven wrong. "Oh," he said simply, willing to leave the conversation there and then, trying to ignore the slight snicker he was receiving by the president of all people.
The colonel herself couldn't hide her smirk, but she spared the General any more embarrassment "Anyway, on with the tour." Carter lead the delegates through the hall way. Passing by rooms of great and small sizes, experiments of equal diversity took place. From a transport-beam unit being refitted into the base's systems, to further experiments in cold-fusion technology based on Asgard principals. Within a few minutes of walking, they found themselves in Area 51's primary off-world technology R and D department, now the Colonel was leading them into a relatively small room, only connected to the outside world by a reinforced titanium door, that if needed, could be locked down due to the many possible outbreaks that could happen in such a risky business of examining unknown and dangerous alien technology.
The room itself was bland and Spartan, concreted from the floor to ceiling, only decorated by a few random computer panels, a large bunker door to the rear, and a small device, behind it a reinforced wall. Currently there were 2 other scientists working back and forth between the device and the computers, Carter quickly joined them for the demonstration.
The British ambassador was the first to get impatient with the lack of knowledge "Colonel, what exactly is this?"
The scientists, who had obviously been waiting for the group, began on Carters nod. Doing a small amount of fiddling on the device, and its surrounding computer interfaces, a small hum built up, growing in any increasingly annoying whining sound. "This here is the prototype shield emitter, the generator itself is few doors down." The colonel whispered into O'Neill's ear, earning a mild shrug in reply. With a few more buttons, the emitter spewed out a glowing orange layer of energy towards the blast door, the transparent field occasionally flashed with a white bolt of light, rapidly growing until it touched from wall to wall of the room. On this Carter grinned "We call it the Firestorm Grid."
The president mused it over a bit, somewhat oblivious to the many curious and intrigued faces behind him "at least its original."
"Hmmmm, in all honesty however, our variation seems to be much more effective." Chekov added smugly, referring to the already field tested 'Iron Curtain' defense grid. Like the Firestorm, the Iron Curtain deployed dozens of emitters across a ships hull, which then in turn created a network of small theatre shields, instead of one massively overlaying bubble that both Asgard and Goa'uld designs used.
This concept allowed one massive advantage, focused defense. Instead of dispersing fire across the entire shield, energy could be focused into certain sections, like weapon emplacements, hanger bays, or engines, at the sacrifice of an overall weakened grid, it was unfortunate that while Asgard shields used multiple emitters, power was cycled evenly; it was something many of their engineers were reconsidering.
However the main advantage of both designs was that they used earth based materials, and could be relatively easily mass produced, finally allowing earth the capability to take full advantage of shield technology, just like their significant steps to an independent Hyperdrive, as shown with many of the Prometheus and Victory class.
"Well better or not General, we both all better take full advantage of these things, since it's likely that the Asgard can't keep giving us their shields and weapons forever." Carter explained the situation that everyone was full aware off. When production of ships started to expand massively, the Asgard were already becoming strained to constantly refit the human ships, it got to the point that a human designed Hyperdrive was developed to fill the void, now that the Asgard only offered their inter-galactic Hyperdrive to Daedalus class ships, and they knew weapons and shields won't be far behind.
The in-base speakers cracked to life "Colonel Carter, Thor and Hermiod are ready for you."
Carter smiled politely to the delegates "well it seems we're ready, if you'll follow me to the test sight."
USAF Icarus
The mighty Daedalus class manoeuvred further more into the maelstrom of battle, its small group of fighters reluctantly returning to their nest. The ships weapon officer had the joint duty of tactical and secondary sensor operations. It was him that informed the colonel, "Cobra Leader has entered the bay sir, we're clear to jump."
Newkirk nodded briefly, still amongst the minor bumps and shocks of enemy fire "Very good." Flicking on the small switch on his console he spoke through the ships internal speakers "Engineering, status?"
Down in the depths of the starship, the Engineering room was not free from the constant disturbances plaguing the bridge. The half a dozen human, and sole Asgard engineer were working frantically, ranging from stabilizing the hyperspace window generator, to cycling energy through the shield grid.
Lieutenant Jennifer Bradley was no different, the head engineer was now helping the Asgard prepare the final teleportation coordinates, at least Vindar was much more cooperative then the Daedalus Asgard rep, Novak often told her about the little prick, and was pleasantly surprised with Vindar's helpful attitude. Taping into her small headset, she reported "Sir, Vindar says we're ready to deploy on the mine on the final pass, detonation will be 10 minutes, none the less we'd want to be in hyper when it goes off."
Back on the bridge, Newkirk grinned slightly at the thought, he intended to be at least a couple dozen light years when that thing detonates, the problem with the mark nine was its sensitivity, if launched for a almost instant detonation like the Daedalus did against the Wraith years ago, the weapon could pre-maturely detonate inside the ship itself, and that wouldn't be the greatest tactic ever considered "Acknowledged Lieutenant.", he took one final look at the scene of chaos that was fixed in front of him, like any old sci-fi show. Still, the dozens of Railguns spewed their projectiles into the void, still the enemy poured their own fire in return, now was time to leave this "helm jump at your discretion, destination, Earth extreme orbit." The colonel ordered, never taking his eyes of the battle.
"Aye sir, window is forming." Helm ordered, as the Icarus turned ever so slightly, changing the view of the battle back to the starlight backdrop of space. The ship accelerated rapidly, leaving the enemy further and further behind with every second. As soon as it left the planetary gravity well, the rift into hyperspace burst to life, not a kilometre in front of the Icarus, the ship plunging head first into the superluminal conduit, leaving the system for good.
But not before leaving a little going away present.
Al'kesh, Conveyer of Divinity
The Jaffa and human pilots roared in victory, the comm. Channels filled with battle cries and thanks to their god for this glorious defeat of the Tau'ri starship. This retreat from Lord Baal's territory is but one of the few successful defences against Tau'ri assault, and only proved to strengthen their devotion in Baal, and his glorious crusade to unite the galaxy under his holy banner.
These Jaffa were the next generation species of his seemingly diminishing domain, a recent influx to fill the gap the Jaffa rebellion made in the mass heresy that affected all Goa'uld Empires. They were the first of the new born, those who shed their humanity aside to become Baal's chosen sons and daughters.
Tr'ay was one such warrior, placed on the sensors of the aging al'kesh corvettes that filled every fleet's ranks, in this case, one of the thousands of mercenary ships that patrolled the outskirts of the empire and beyond. The ships weapons 'officer' for lack of better term, was glorifying himself across the comm. channel, boasting on how it was his ship that forced the enemy away. There were many disputes to the claim, and Tr'ay had no want to get into the verbal war that was raging on. She preferred to continue her work, knowing that she could better serve her lord Baal, she was the true devoted warrior, unlike these rambling fools that clung too tightly too their humanity that was supposedly stripped from them.
By now the slobs were digging their way into the hidden supplies of liquor that were smuggled into the supplies from Stepur'as, a growing trade centre on the outskirts of Baal's domain. "Disgusting" she muttered, her own voice muttered out by the growing screams and bellows behind the bridge. This was the life of a freelancer.
She yearned for the days of being in the Goa'uld Grand Fleet, the growing forces that protected the Inner Systems. The Fleet, and the Grand Army that accompanied it, was the true military force of the Goa'uld Empire, utilizing up to date technology, actually trained and disciplined in the ancient arts, unlike this rabble bunch that were pulled from their homes, genetically altered ,given a staff weapon and ordered to shot anyone that defies Baal's will. This wasn't even considering the Guardians of Tuat, the Elite Forces that guarded the capital world of the Empire, Baal's personal body guards, the holy defenders of Tuat. And yet she was stuck here, thrown into the growing guilds of mercenary's since there
"Such is the life of a crew of a mercenary." A voice empathically followed her train of thought, she turned around to see the warmly smiling face of her commanding Jaffa, the ships master, Dre'vac.
She knew the old man was the only person on the relatively small crew that actually knew what they were doing, especially considering he was once in the Royal Navy himself, dropped for not destroying a defenceless rebel Jaffa cargo ship, dropped himself from a prestigious position as ship master of the new Ju'Garq Heavy Cruiser into this bucket of bolts, filled with a crew that barely knew the difference between a Hyperdrive and a door lock. "I'm beginning to wonder why I was thrown in with these fools."
What was even more insulting to her honour as a warrior was that the Divinity wasn't even a true warship, a heavily modified al'kesh that was more cargo carrier, then the gunship it was designed to be. The old fleet ships were slowly being sold into the private sector, gliders, al'kesh, even Ha'taks could be owned by those with the right amount of currency, which were for the most part Naqudah slips.
The elderly Jaffa continued to smile, "Well do you want the honest answer, or the one you want to hear?"
"Obviously the truth old man." She said with no small amount of scorn as she continued her search for survivors.
"Well then, simply put, you're a new born, and you should know full well how 'open minded' the elders overseeing applicants at the academies are." The master said sarcastically as he took a seat in the unoccupied weapons station.
Tr'ay snorted "Typical.", she and many others of her kind were much more open minded then the old loyalists that filled the bulk of Imperial Navy, who constantly looked down on new borns, female new borns in particular. Then she noticed something odd. "Master Dre'vac…" she said, pointing curiously to the small device that suddenly appeared on sensors.
He stumbled slightly, reaching out for the computer panel. "Its smaller then an escape pod that's for sure." Musing over the device in the far distance. "Any noticeable energy readings?"
"Minimum, but I didn't even detect it off the initial scans." She quickly ran a detailed analyse of the small object, the holographic HUD zoomed in to create a high detailed image, "There was another jump in energy build up just then, its going in stages."
This piped the old mans interest ,"What materials are you detecting."
"It seems to be made of a Titanium/Trinium alloy, and an unknown material." Well not quite unknown, but certainly different from the norm, there were rumours of a strange material the Tau'ri used, for unknown purposes.
"Anything specific?" Dre'vac asked with much more concern then before.
"We'll I'm not certain, but it looks like Naqudah…but isn't?"
The masters eyes shone with realization, if only for a second "Activate the Hyperdrive"
"What?" the young new born asked confused
"Do it!" the order was very forceful, and Tr'ay knew full well not to question the old man when he gave an order. She quickly engaged the drive, setting course for the nearest possible outpost, while the Master was activating the comm. channel "Brothers, Sisters, we must all retreat immediately, there is a weapon of incredibly destructive power in the middle of our fleet, if we do not leave the area, we will be consumed in the Tau'ri's most powerful weapon." He quickly deactivated the system as soon as he finished, not willing to be victim to the slurs and whines of a drunken crew that the old man was telling stories.
Tr'ay jammed in the final coordinates into the ships system, Ieran'vec, a nearby mining colony, not much but it will do for the Divinity's needs "Course plotted, what if the others don't follow?"
Grim determination masked the masters inner feelings of guilt, but it all turned to the knowledge that these men were fools of the highest order, unworthy of being cargo dealers that they are, let alone Baal's personal warriors that they thought they were "It is unfortunate, but if they can not go past their pig-headedness then it their own loss," though he knew his words were true, the guilt of leaving these men and women, ignorant fools or not, slashed into his very soul "May the lord Baal forgive us" he murmured in prayer, before giving the order ".jump to hyperspace."
The al'kesh plunged right into the depths of hyperspace, not looking back for a second. Those that did not heed the master's words looked onwards, as their sensor stations picked up a massive jump of energy, watching as the suddenly sober men and women saw the most beautiful scene in their lives. They saw naught but light.
Area 51
The massive half buried warehouse was connected to the vast networks of research stations, test sights, and hanger bays that made up area 51 and Nellis Airbase as a whole. Unlike other such facilities however, such as the one that housed the recently initiated Project Mammoth, the development facilities for the Hammerhead and Maverick craft, not to mention the dozens of small rooms that held projects of one sort or another, it was unique, if only just because of two of its occupants. The two head engineers were far from human, standing at barely 4 foot tall, a strangely grey coloured skin, not to mention the whole lack of clothes thing going on, it was a strange sight to get used too, especially for the half a dozen human engineers and scientists working on the project with them, even after 5 years of working with the Asgard, it was somewhat unnerving to work under their thoughtful gaze.
But not only because of its occupants, was the room unique from the other test sights. The warehouse, as it was known as, merely for its sheer size, was missing a large slit of its northern wall, just below eye level, seemingly exposing the room to a vast field of grass and dirt, but if one looked closely they could see the gentle ripple of blue light, a simple refit Tok'ra force field.
Now the delegates found themselves in said room, lead by the female colonel that made every effort to look right at home, the ambassadors and other government officials stood eyebrows raised at the scene. Massive computers, both human and Asgard in design, as well as spare generators, tools of strange and alien design, covered the reinforced concrete walls and floor, leaving only a relatively small section clear of the mess.
But as per usual, everyone's eyes were drawn away from the careless placement of technology, and to the operators themselves. Those unfamiliar with the race, gazed at the Asgard curiously, the two physically identical beings, they returned the gaze, and it was easy then to see how the two differed. One looked impassive, as if he had expected and acknowledged this treatment without so much as a care, but the other who was ignoring them completely, living by the old words mentioned by Doctor McKay 'He hates it when you stare.'
Soon the impassive one approached the newly arrived humans, nodding briefly but respectfully at the officials" Colonel Carter, everything is prepared for the test fire, we merely await your signal."
Sam grinned, she walked to consoles with Thor asking quietly "Are the stealth systems ready to activate?"
"The field is currently at a 500 metre radius, and is capable of reaching a maximum of 4 kilometres for a 2 hour period." He replied, giving the full details as usual, as they both did the final calibrations.
"Good, looks like we're all set." She walked back towards the delegates, indicating for them to follow her as she walked towards the shield in front of the grass field.
They stood in a line, all starring out through the slip of daylight that poured through the shielded window. The seconds passed and Jacks curiosity got to better of him to longer he stared out into the empty plain. "Sooooo Carter." He looked to the woman to his left, "where's my space gun?
She smirked, pointing out a few kilometres "Right there sir"
"Where?"
"There"
"Carter, all I see is grass and dirt"
"Then look now O'Neill" Thor said while moving a final crystal into place. Suddenly from miles away, a wash of almost invisible energy moved in all directions at supersonic speeds, completely engulfing the warehouse they were in, and revealing something different from what anyone expected.
Instead of the open barren landscape that filled their view mere seconds beforehand, a giant silver metal ring itched into the a concrete foundation, it held twin supports, and multiple hydraulic beams, that in turn held up without a doubt, the largest cannon ever seen. It was at least 40 metres, armoured in multiple layers of Trinium/titanium alloy but still partially exposed in certain areas, revealing the advanced systems within .The end of the cannon was locked and held in place horizontally in a small station dozens of metres away from the ring itself. While gazing out at the weapon, everyone could instantly sum it up in one word, massive.
"I think that's thing you're looking for General." Hayes muttered dumbstruck at the monstrous weapon.
HMS Hood, Hyperspace
Commodore Terrance Langley stood as the expansive window of his starship, constantly watching the spiralling energies of hyperspace with mild interest. Being only the 5th week the Hood had been in service, and only the 7th interstellar mission, it was still hard to get over the amazing dance of light that welcomed any person able to make the stellar transition. They were pulled away from their recent exploration to Hebridian space, a comm. message from home told them they have a new assignment, a hunt if you would to the Sirius Sector. Just minutes ago, the ship made an early exit from hyperspace, swung around and plunged right into the abyss, headed right for the world of discovery itself.
Though there was time for sight seeing, and it wasn't now, there was work to be done if the United Kingdom were to claim a world for themselves. Langley walked calmly towards the navigation station behind the command chair, watching the half a dozen officers map the nearby space with assistance from Narvri manning the sensors in engineering "Lieutenant Welling, I need an estimate on the Odyssey's time of arrival in the Sirius sector and their destination." He asked the young woman staring intently at the known flight path of the US Warship.
"Well the path they're heading is different from ours, they'll be exiting at the centre of the system, in 46 minutes while were a bit further towards the outskirts." The map zoomed out to show the two flight paths, several dozen light years away from each other. "Unfortunately they will arrive at their point 4 hours before us, but seems that they'll be sticking around there little area for a while, I'd say we're clear for our world."
The thought continued to roam about him the Commodores head, it seemed that everyone might get a piece of the cake then, it's really a matter of who got the bigger slice. "None the less, put as much power to the engines as possible, the rules of colonization still applies in the interstellar realm you must realise."
"Oh?" Welling asked curiously, "What rules are they sir?"
Langley moved from the navigation station to his waiting station "Oh its Just the one" resting comfortably in the command chair, a smirk covered his face "finders keepers."
Ion Cannon Control Facility
"Initiating primary power transfer." Hermiod reported dryly, it was the only warning that the on-lookers received. The cannon's locks deactivated, the mighty barrel rose skywards, the screeching sounds of the hydraulics roared towards the viewers.
"Targeting systems activated." The Asgard continued, eyeing the holographic displays as a giant shimmering globe of earth appeared for nothingness.
Soon an array of dots appeared in a line from the surface outwards into space "Weapon is locking on." Hermiod went one in his drone like voice, but despite it could not hide his own interest in the device. Everyone watched as the cannon slowly rotated on its turret, its bulb-like tip seemed to lightly crackle with blue energy as it locked into place.
"Weapon is charging" the alien engineer stated the obvious, "75 and rising" the light crackle grew to intense bellows of blue light that continued to grow more powerful with each passing second.
"This is it." Carter said through clenched teeth.
The Generals eyebrows rose "What? Think its going to blow up like the last ones?" he said sarcastically, receiving a small knowing smile in reply
And then, the words that everyone was expecting, were mentioned calmly by the operator "the weapon is firing."
But ironically, as if the universe had a twisted sense of humour, at the exact same moment, mere seconds from earth in the path of the target, the helmsmen of the Icarus uttered the words "Exiting Hyperspace."
