Here's the next chapter for you all, questions will be answered and others will be asked. Note: I only own what characters i create, the names and places i invent and the ships and vehicles i seem to be designing in droves for this single story.
I would like to thank AlexanderD for all his help and i strongly recomend reading his story New Dawn. I hope he likes the character named after him Admiral Alec Xander.
For those of you interested in what some of the ships featured in this story look like here are a few sketches on photobucket: .com/albums/ae166/Senrab_Nomis/
Please review and i will respond. Or alternatively post in the thread for this story in my forum. .net/topic/84023/35075481/1/
Review Responses
AlexanderD: Teal'c still has much to do, and he is going to do it if i have anything to say about it. Now you get to find out which of your theories is right my friend.
Shadows-of-Realm: A question you can now find the answer to, yes thats right the wait is over. If i held back any longer people would really start to hate me.
FendersForever: Glad you are enjoying it. To answer your question Valhalla is actually modelled more along the lines of an O'Neill warship, hence the sweeping wings and fin turrets.
"Did he really just say…" began Janus.
"Shut up!" Morgan and Oma hissed.
The three ascended had finally met back up again, just in time it would seem for the touchdown of the latest bombshell. The advantage of their abilities meant they were in the room but none of the un-ascended could see or hear them.
"Did he really just say…" began McKay before Woolsey interrupted him.
"I think Minister you'll need to repeat that," said Woolsey. "I'm afraid we may have misheard you."
"I'm more afraid we didn't," muttered Rodney only to receive a look from Woolsey. Sheppard though couldn't help but agree with his friend.
As Minister Jakose repeated himself Woolsey made sure to focus his attention not only on the Minister but the other members of the Averian party as well. He thought he had glimpsed something in their expressions when Jakose had first made his announcement but he wasn't sure, now he was. What he had seen was surprise. It seemed they weren't the only ones to hear this news for the first time.
"I think Minister, you will need to elaborate for the benefit of all present," said Woolsey, silently placing bets on how many people in the room would actually benefit from this.
"Yes please do," added Janus, unheard.
Jakose looked hesitant. "What I am about to share with you is a highly classified secret, classified so highly that only the current and former leaders of our people have access to the knowledge. As such there are very very few people who possess this knowledge. If I am to share it with you then I must be assured of your discretion."
"Minister," Woolsey began. "We are more than aware of the need for discretion. The very nature of the information you have revealed to us thus far shows the delicateness of the situation we find us in. I realise that there are some secrets about your people and even individuals present that need to be handled with care but those of us that need to know about them do indeed know."
"And what do you know about me?" asked Sovaer, gazing sternly at the bureaucrat.
"What I need to know as a part of my position," Woolsey replied calmly. "However that is far as it has gone, the information may have gone up the chain of command and even sideways but not down. Rest assured that your secret is safe."
Soaver inclined his head. "Thank you."
"What secret is this?" asked Echidna.
The Wraith Matriarch had been watching this curious exchange with interest and a certain amount of puzzlement, but her son, she noted, had not been puzzled. Clearly he either knew more than she did or he had his suspicions.
"Don't worry," she added. "You do not have to tell me, though I suspect my son already knows."
Sovaer turned his head to glare at Todd, who nodded in acknowledgement.
"How do you know Wraith?" he asked with barely concealed hostility.
Sheppard couldn't help note just how much like Ronon the cyborg was, not that it was a surprise considering they had spent the majority of their lives with the threat of the Wraith hanging over their heads. The Satedan had also taken time to adjust to Todd but had come to have a warriors respect for the Wraith given his actions in the past few years. It helped that the majority of the Wraith had made the decision to take the treatment when it was offered but there was still a certain amount of caution displayed around them. Deep down Sheppard couldn't blame him for that, he was still cautious around them himself, but Sovaer hadn't yet developed the begrudging respect Ronon had.
Todd smirked. "I heard you talking before you got me out of that cell. Which reminds me, I never did have the chance to thank you for that, so thank you. Oh and I haven't revealed your secret either by the way."
"You're welcome and thank you," Sovaer replied.
"Not at all," said Todd, managing to get the last word in.
"It's your choice if she is allowed to know," Jakose told Sovaer.
Sovaer leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, mulling it over.
"You can tell her," he decided. "But I don't want this to become public knowledge."
"You can count on my discretion," Echidna assured him.
"Let Admiral Durra tell it, he's pretty good at it," said Sovaer, his eyes still closed.
"Very well," said Jakose before nodding at the Admiral.
Durra cleared his throat and began the same story he had told the Tau'ri and Asgard, which seemed like such a long time ago. All the while Sovaer's expression remained impassive.
When he finished Echidna looked at him with sympathy in her eyes.
"You have suffered greatly for your people," she said sadly. "But you don't need me to tell you that."
Sovaer opened his eyes to look at the two Wraith, and smiled weakly.
"We all make sacrifices for those we care about."
Echidna nodded in understanding.
"It is a sad truth but one we all have to realise sooner or later," she said with feeling. "But that is a discussion for another time, to business. You were about to explain Minister."
"Yes," managed Jakose, momentarily caught off guard. The Wraith Matriarch had managed to swiftly change the course of the conversation before anyone had realised it was coming.
"You see this group is an element of our people that was separated from our own several centuries ago."
"Like the Vanir?" enquired Sheppard.
"Definitely not," Jakose replied harshly, causing the others to flinch.
"The Vanir were stranded in this galaxy," continued Jakose. "The group of Averian's whom I believe attacked us were exiled for their crimes."
There was a sharp intake of breath at those words. Everyone wondered what these people had done to warrant exile, what crimes they must have committed.
"Perhaps you had better start at the beginning Minister," suggested Woolsey.
Jakose took a deep breath and began to explain what had happened so many centuries ago.
The Averian's had been a people united together under the banner of many causes. In the early parts of their history it had been survival, fighting against the elements and tides of nature so that their species may survive. They knew nothing of other worlds, of other civilizations, and to be honest they didn't care. Survival was the only thing they cared about and only by working together did they continue to survive. But the fight for survival is not a fight, it's not even a battle, it's a war. A war that never really ends, even though you always seem to be winning because there is always the chance the tide can turn against you. So the Averians, before they even called themselves Averians, fought on and in their efforts to live on they made a discovery. An element deep below the surface of their world, an element that proved to be the greatest jewel to ever be uncovered in a civilisation worried about damaging the world that holds them, naquadah. The potential this element holds almost defies belief, a source of more energy than they would know what to do with or the fuel for the fire of destruction. On a planet like Earth either one is a possibility but on Averia they chose to harness that power so that they might continue to survive.
In doing so they made a discovery that shook their beliefs to the core. They were forced to acknowledge the absolute truths of the universe. They were not alone, they were not the only species in the galaxy, they weren't even the only humans in existence. They had been forced to accept these truths and were filled with terror by one in particular, that they were at war. The Wraith were a threat to them, and if they were to stand any hope of survival they would have to fight. They knew that someday the Wraith might come across their world and if they did not prepare to fight this threat then it would undoubtedly destroy them.
So they prepared. For so many years the greatest minds of their race poured over the information that they had been gifted by those who had chosen to remain nameless. Technology was developed, amazing discoveries were unearthed and slowly but surely their civilization began to advance forwards. It was not long before the stargate was considered being used for exploration purposes but there was a problem. In their bid to protect the people of the ark the Alteran people had modified the address for the planet making it inaccessible by any other gate in the galaxy save for one, Atlantis. But paranoia and the wish to keep their greatest a hidden secret, or so the Averians initially assumed, had prevented them from including that particular address with the others. Later the Averians would come to realise that this was because they did not want them to try to advance too far too quickly, and with a masterpiece like Atlantis in their hands the temptation would be far too great.
So they were patient and carefully advanced, cautiously they explored the space around their world, scouted asteroid belts and the infamous Brier nebula. They built ships and automated work drones capable of operating the vacuum of space and all the while they planned. They planned for the day when they would take the fight to the Wraith, when they would strike the blows necessary to harm their natural enemy. And it was once the question of how was raised that internal conflict began to simmer.
Their objective was clear, they needed to destroy the Wraith. They needed to amass a force capable of utterly pounding them into the dirt and they needed to hit them as hard as possible straight from the start before the Wraith could amass their forces like they had against the Alterans. But they must be cautious about doing so, they could not afford to frivolous waste their ships by overstretching beyond their reach and loosing ships because they were cut off from reinforcements by distance. The Wraith would presumably have spread their influence over many worlds, which meant there were countless worlds that would need to liberated both to save the people and cut the Wraith off from their food source. And it was that line of thought that led to the dispute.
It was obvious that the people would need to be freed from the threat of the Wraith but it was also clear that the Wraith would try to retake the world. If they were to guard against such an attack they would need a large fleet and a large army, both were things that the Averians alone would not possess. The man power required to even crew the sheer number of ships needed was staggering. Then one ambitious Admiral named Zarin had a suggestion, why not use the people of the planets they liberated as a work force. Each time they took a world they could put the population to work building ships and equipment and even defences for the planet. The suggestion was considered and seen for its merits but it was also questioned because most of the Pegasus galaxies inhabitants were forced to remain in a primitive state by the Wraith. But then Zarin tipped his hand and said they would be forced to learn so that they might serve the Empire that they would form. It was then the mood began to sour as people began to realise just what he intended to do. When eventually someone innocently asked the question what if they refuse to work for us? What if they wish to remain independent?
Zarin's reply had betrayed both his intentions and his madness. If they would not serve then were against the Empire and if they were against the Empire then would die. They were the ones chosen by the Alterans to liberate this galaxy from oppression, they were clearly the superior race otherwise they would not have been chosen. It was their destiny to rule over all others.
The response had been swift and harsh. That such actions would not be tolerated. That they would not allow such a thing to happen and that anyone who tried would be dealt with.
Then Zarin claimed that this was the will of people and that they could not deny it.
And again the response was swift. Then those people could leave. Their kind were not wanted in the galaxy free from oppression that they would create.
At the time those words were said in the heat of rage and it was not realised how many would take them to heart. But Zarin did and so did those who supported him. It was surprising just how many people from all areas that Zarin had been able to sink his tendrils into but when the time finally came, several thousand people departed for a world they could call their own. The Averian government were loath to let them go, several prominent geneticists and other assorted scientists were amongst the group, but they knew that they could not stop them. They had opened this box of horrors and they would have to deal with it. So they supplied them with the resources and equipment they would need to survive on another planet and let them go. To keep them against their will would be to go against the ideals they were trying to uphold. In an act of trust they even supplied a few early design warships so that they could defend themselves if necessary.
"Didn't you ever go looking for them?" asked Sheppard. "I would have thought you would have wanted to know what happened to them after so many centuries."
Jakose grimaced. "We did, much sooner than you think actually. You see it wasn't long before we made a horrifying discovery, one the technicians working in the Ark was amongst the group and…"
Rodney groaned. "You have got to be kidding me."
"And," continued Jakose sadly. "He managed to copy the data piece by piece and smuggle it out without anyone realising. It was the only the last chunk of data being copied, which was significantly larger than any of the others that gave us a clue as to what had happened."
"That…that must have taken a long time," said Sheppard.
"It did," said Jakose. "Which meant Zarin had been preparing to potentially break away from our people for far longer than we realised. It's a miracle the data was left intact at all but from what we can tell there was nothing missing."
"You were indeed fortunate," said Woolsey. "Now you said you went looking for them once you made the discovery."
Jakose nodded.
"And I am guessing they weren't there."
"No," admitted Jakose. "They had completely evacuated when we arrived. We don't know where they went."
"And given the sheer number of worlds connected to this galaxies gate system and the fact that they had ships they could be anywhere," summarised McKay.
"Unfortunately yes."
"So where does that leave us?" asked Echidna.
Woolsey sighed. "Well I would like to say diplomacy, unfortunately that tends to prove to be difficult if we don't know where the people we are trying to negotiate with are."
"Do you really think they can be negotiated with?" asked Todd, speaking up for the first time.
It was interesting just how many people at this meeting had been forced to sit and listen to others talk.
Woolsey looked Todd in the eye before responding.
"I would like to think that negotiation is always a possibility," he said. "My people have already found ourselves fighting against more enemies in the last decade alone than I care to mention. Another conflict would just mean more death on both sides so I would like to avoid it."
"You do realise that this group was founded on the idea of annihilating our kind," stated Echidna harshly. "They have already attacked their own kin, we could very well be next."
"If they try we'll be by your side," Sheppard assured her. "We don't let our allies down when someone threatens them."
"And neither do we," added Jakose, earning a look of appreciation from Echidna.
She chuckled. "What an interesting universe we find ourselves in. Who would have thought just a few short years ago that humans would fight to defend Wraith."
"The name Wraith seems to be taking on a whole new meaning these days Matriarch," Todd pointed out.
"Indeed it is my son. Indeed it is."
"Besides," said Woolsey. "They no longer actually need to fight you. There purpose was the same as the Averians, admittedly with a less ideal way of achieving there goal but the same none the less."
"And the Averians now consider you to be allies," Jakose said with a smile.
"A fact I very much appreciate," said Echidna with a smile, remembering how they had helped save her son.
Her expression turned serious again. "They still attacked our allies though."
"That they did," said Sheppard. "But from a military point of view it is understandable. They saw them as a threat to their plans so they tried to remove it, right?"
Sheppard received a few begrudging nods from the Admirals, and even Sovaer.
"Besides," added Sheppard. "They probably only did it because they thought the Averians would kick their asses if they took them on directly."
To which he received a few smiles and chuckles.
"So what do you suggest we do," asked Echidna. "Prepare for a military option?"
"We should be ready," said Sheppard. "Even if we go looking for them it's still going to take us time to find them. Hell it could take years if they decide not to show themselves. But in the mean time we should be ready for the day they decide to reveal themselves, and if that means they attack us then so be it. So while we look we'll also be building up our forces and preparing our defences. If we work together we can handle any threat they send our way."
"Do you mean combine our resources?" asked Jakose. "Or just our assets?"
Woolsey could see where this one was going, he had half expected it.
"I understand what you are asking and I'm afraid we don't give out technology. In any case you own technology is already quite impressive."
"I understand," said Jakose. It had, after all, been a lot to ask.
"It may be possible to place some of our assets near Averia however, and of course our ships will always be willing to come to your aid should you need them. In the future it may be possible to trade but for I cannot guarantee anything," added Woolsey, trying to offer a glimmer of hope.
"I appreciate it," replied Jakose warmly. "You may find we have much that will interest you."
"I'm confident we will."
"Sounds like the Ori all over again," said Morgan.
"Well this time I will let you finish them off if you decide to get involved," Janus assured her.
"Well it is tempting," admitted Morgan. "But let's see how things play out."
"If it's anything like the Ori, then troublesome."
"Well if it comes down to it you can always build another Attero device," Morgan shot back.
"You can't hang me for that one, it worked rather well at the time and I didn't know about the problem it would cause with the stargates," argued Janus. "Besides the council actually authorised that experiment and I shut it down once I realised."
"The council seemed to be all for weapons of mass destruction didn't they," admitted Morgan. "But only if they couldn't be used against them."
"A pity really otherwise we might have actually had some decent warships."
Echidna collapsed into a chair in her quarters. "So it seems there is someone who may want me dead."
"A little melodramatic don't you think mother?" asked Todd.
"My apologies. Someone who may want us dead," she corrected.
"Just so you know you are not the only one they are after. I would hate to think you were getting paranoid," he said smirking.
Echidna chuckled. It felt good to be able to joke about this, it was a good way to release the tension, and she knew that if someone did have it in for her then her son wouldn't hesitate to bring the entirety of the Wraith armada down upon them.
"So how is the research progressing so far?" she asked. "I understand you have made some interesting discoveries."
Todd sighed, settling into his own chair. "Interesting maybe, but mostly frustrating. It seems recreating the original pathogen has proven difficult even for sisters after ten millennia of trying. There appears to be some secret that was overlooked when making the Arima but I cannot fathom what it might be. For I know it could be something to do with the pathogen reaction to fathers Alteran DNA, and at this point I am willing to bet that it actually was."
"Do not blame yourself my son," consoled Echidna. "Just be grateful that Thypeous was able to prevent your sisters from getting hold of the original. If he hadn't erased his own memory banks of that knowledge I don't know what we would have done."
"Yes, well luckily I have been able to find an alternative."
"Ah I assume you mean including those additional generators and the new bio armour?"
"Not only that but I have found a way to boost our power generation capabilities significantly to support the new armour systems. Would you like to hear how?"
"Hmm," Echidna pretended to think, knowing how proud her son must feel at his accomplishment. "Why not. Just please don't get too technical for me."
"As you wish mother. My idea was actually based off the design that many other races have used, I'm sure you are aware of the properties of naquadah and its uses in generators. Well i managed to find a way to use the basic properties of the materials ability to amplify energy to create a turbo booster for our ships. Each booster will be fed energy from our generators and will release double the energy we put into it. By putting in six of these boosters around the ship linking to key systems we can potentially increase our ships capabilities by multitudes at a time, and if we link them together I can boost the power going to the hyperdrive by a factor of 128 compared to a regular hive. This does however require much larger main power conduits to accommodate the increased charge but I have found a way to give us that, as well as install safeties to prevent the boosters from overloading. Well mother what do you think?"
Echidna was momentarily stunned. "How…how soon can you have these modifications ready?"
"Right away, oh and I can also add a booster to the growth accelerator buildings as well to speed up production times."
Echidna beamed. "Well done my son."
Todd chuckled. "I'm glad you like it mother. Oh and I hope you'll forgive me but I made an addition to the internal systems of the Arima."
"What kind of addition? I hope you got permission from your father because I know you didn't get mine."
"Oh he did," said a voice behind her. "And I must say I am greatly enjoying using it."
Echidna, who had flinched when the voice started speaking, leapt out of her chair and spun around, only to end up standing stock still and staring wide eyed at the figure before her. It couldn't be, those chestnut locks, that warming smile, those sparkling blue eyes like the ocean on Lantea. But no it was, it was the face of the man that haunted her dreams.
"Thy… Thypeous?" she asked disbelievingly and with no small amount of hope. "How? You…you look so young. How is this possible?"
The figure that bore the face of the man she loved smiled and strode toward her, his form shimmering as it passed right through the chair she had been sitting in.
"Holographic projection technology," explained Thypeous. "A gift from the Asgard as a sign of friendship. Nowhere near as advanced as their current designs but it does allow me to project myself like this into any part of the ship."
"So you cannot touch anything," said Echidna, with a hint of disappointment.
"No but it does allow me to communicate with other species more easily," he reasoned.
"Besides, as you may recall the mental link allows us to touch each deeply enough already," he whispered mischievously causing her to blush.
"Well if you'll excuse me I'll be going," said Todd, before hurrying out the door. He knew when his parents needed some alone time, besides he had work to do.
"Well good for them," said Janus.
"Yes good for them," agreed Morgan.
"Let's give them some privacy now," suggested Oma.
"You're right they've earned some alone time," said Janus. "I wonder what else is going on in the universe."
"Oh no you don't Janus," warned Morgan as she chased after him. "You are not running off on your own again."
Oma chuckled at their antics as she went after them.
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