AWesome275: Unfortunately i may have to, but don't worry i do know where this story is going and how it ends and i do intend to finish it. As for Hellstorm, well it has a Mark IX Gate Buster as the warhead which is commonly calculated to a 812 gigaton yield, frankly i was being generous allowing Zarin to survive just one of them impacting his hull. If one had made it through the armour as Hellstorm rounds are designed to then the Doom Bringer would have been gutted.

Calium

As soon as the allied fleet emerged from hyperspace they were confronted by the defending forces left behind by the Zarasians. While the Doom Bringer had formed the bulk of the Calium invasion force Zarin had also seen fit to deploy several other vessels to provide an orbital vanguard should his attention ever be required elsewhere. The vessels chosen for particular duty were unlike any they had encountered before. At a kilometre long and armed with multiple beam weapons and plasma cannons, but lacking a fighter compliment, they were more powerful than other ships of a similar size. There were six of these battlecruisers in orbit of the planet at the moment and they wouldn't surrender orbital control without a fight. However the moment that the allied fleet emerged from hyperspace they had engaged their cloaking devices, allowing them to approach the planet unseen. Seizing the opportunity the fleet settled into orbit, taking defensive positions around the planet. Orbital control had been achieved and the Zarasians hadn't managed to fire a single shot in return, nor were they even aware of the enemy's presence. Before this world could be liberated information about what was happening on the surface was required.

Scans of the planet below revealed a large Zarasian presence, with reaper life signs numbering in the thousands. Worse still there were similar life sign readings to those recorded on M1M-316, which could only mean the presence of behemoths. Taking a Zarasian living tank was not something to done lightly, or with any amount of subtlety. It would take a heavily armed, and preferably armoured, force to deal with this threat. Luckily the Tau'ri had that option.

The Sagittarius held five thousand men and women, an entire brigade, and they were all trained to be able to act as a brigade combat team, utilising heavily upgraded Stryker frames. In support of this impressive force was a hundred strong armoured battalion, consisting of upgraded Abram battle tanks, and five hundred and forty Titans. All these forces had previously fought on this planet against the reapers and were so far undefeated. This time however the reapers were deeply entrenched and were acting as the defending force instead of being the aggressors, defeating them would be the true test of the allied forces capabilities. The time needed for the allied forces to ready themselves for planet fall gave the fleet the opportunity to perform detailed scans of the planet in an attempt to determine the best points of insertion for their forces.

The overall picture painted was troubling to say the least. The Zarasians had managed to gain a foothold in every major city on the planet, and since the population was so small and the landmass floating islands every city was a major one as far as the Calium people were concerned. Worse still they had taken over the main military base of the planet and were using it as an airfield for their fighters. Judging by the number darting in and out of it at regular intervals attacking the base would be like poking a hornet's nest. One small provocation and a swarm of fighters would emerge to attack them. In theory UAV's could handle these but taking the base would still prove tricky. The Zarasians had apparently taken a page from their book and decided to further fortify the structure with a defence shield. They had then gone one step further and placed numerous small calibre energy weapon emplacements on the perimeter balconies. One thing they hadn't been able to accomplish though was complete subjugation of the Calium aerial fleet, when the Zarasians had started landing a number of ship captains had broken off and vanished into the clouds. These elements had eventually gathered together in areas that the Zarasian sensors were blind due to the interference from the local electromagnetic field. They had eventually formed the military might of what would be called the Calium resistance forces. If the allied forces wanted to retake Calium with the minimal amount of collateral damage they would need to make contact. It was for this purpose that a lone shuttle craft, modified to include a powerful sensor and communications suite, slowly descended into the atmosphere under cloak.

Upon encountering a Calium airship they sent a short but concise message. "We are Alliance of Great Races. We are here to help. Take us to your leader."

Argus Shipyards

In the city ship dock in orbit of the planet sat the largest vessel to ever rest there to date. Finally, after so long of only servicing smaller vessels, this dock was acting as a berth for an actual city ship. Undergoing an overdue refit and servicing Atlantis rested calmly under the protective canopy of the atmosphere retentive shield. Patchwork repairs that had been performed years ago were finally being replaced with actual restorations, courtesy of industrial beams and all the power generators were being upgraded to their most advanced versions. After only a day of being in dock Atlantis would emerge as a far more powerful version of its former self.

Despite not holding a city ship until now the dock had however seen use some heavy use in the past month. After the Tria had had its hyperdrive replaced and been sent to Concordia for refit the dock had taken on the role of construction. A dozen large vessels had been constructed beneath its folding arms and were now to act as the vanguard force for Atlantis as she carried out her real purpose for being in the Milky Way galaxy. A dozen battleships identical to the Thor had been completed and were standing by to make the jump to hyperspace. Unlike the Thor however these ships were manned by skeleton crews and were largely dependant on AI's for operation. However the Aschen weren't to know that. When Atlantis turned up for the peace talks the sight of the city ship alone would give the Aschen pause for thought. A dozen carbon copies of the vessel that had displayed the ability to neutralise an invasion fleet on its own, along with the Enterprise for good measure, would hopefully dissuade any potential unpleasantness.

With repairs finally complete, and the Enterprise safely parked on one of the piers, the great city ship was cleared to depart for the first of its scheduled pickups before heading to Aschen Prime. An entire tower had been dedicated to both housing the delegates and providing a location for the talks. First stop, Dakara.

Dakara

"Amazing," Ka'lel said in a voice so low it was practically a whisper.

The former Hak'tyl resistance member was enraptured by the sight of Atlantis hovering over the capital city on Dakara. It was truly a magnificent sight and far grander than anything the Jaffa had ever dreamed to build. The Tau'ri had shared the history the great city, the role it had played during the gate builder's war with the Wraith and how they had restored the city to full working order. Beside her Rak'nor and Yat'Yir were similarly enraptured by the magnificence of the city, as was every Jaffa on the planet by now.

"They're showing off," Yat'Yir stated plainly. "They want us to see this city and marvel at what they have, despite the fact that they did not even build it themselves."

"Of course," Rak'nor agreed. "But they have not tried to hide this fact. They just want us to know that they have been entrusted to keep it safe."

"They also want us to know the power they now wield," Ka'lel added.

"Gerak was right about one thing," Yat'Yir said gravely. "The Tau'ri are dangerous, now more than ever."

"Good," Rak'nor said.

"Good?!"

"The Tau'ri are an honourable race," Rak'nor explained. "They show no mercy to their enemies, generosity to their allies and kindness to their protectorates. So long as we stay their allies we are better for it. To shun them would be to shun the Asgard and I have no intention of angering a race the Goa'uld were terrified of, especially when they are teaching us so much."

"Don't forget we are now apart of the Alliance of Great Races," Ka'lel added. "They are calling on us for aid and as honourable warriors we are helping them."

"Besides we're strong enough," Rak'nor added. "The Tau'ri are limited. Their own people are not ready to learn the truth of the universe while our own are growing stronger with each passing day. We advance as a race and countless worlds pay homage to us for providing them with protection. We have become a strong race."

"And we'll continue to get stronger," Ka'lel said with conviction.

"Indeed."

Tok'ra Homeworld

"Where did they get that from?" Delmak asked in bewilderment, staring at the grand site of Atlantis suspended in the skies above their city.

"A part of their legacy I am told," Egeria replied. "Built by the gate builders themselves and now restored by the Tau'ri."

"Impressive," Garshaw offered. "If only we had a city like that, it would have made maintaining a base during the fight against the Goa'uld so much easier."

"Very," Per'sus added.

Each Tok'ra could remember the number of times they had been forced to relocate themselves because of yet another Goa'uld attack. The worse thing had been that attacking them was something the Goa'uld would actually co-operate and allow access to each others space if they thought just one more Tok'ra would die. Rather ironic given the Tok'ra had devoted millennia to trying to keep them at each others throats.

"Do you think we could build one?" Egeria asked.

The three Tok'ra looked at their mother and took in her hopeful expression. Was it possible? No, not yet.

"Unfortunately my queen it is beyond our current manufacturing capabilities and population numbers," Per'sus explained.

While no longer the supreme voice in all things Tok'ra he did still have a significant position. One which was high enough for him to know that they definitely could not build a flying city with their current industry, building even small ships was proving difficult enough as it was.

"A pity," Egeria said. "I suppose I will just have to provide you with some more siblings quickly and boost our numbers."

The other Tok'ra smiled warmly at that. Now that they had their queen once again and cloning technology they would never again worry for hosts or numbers. It was truly a new age for the Tok'ra. With the blank slates of clone hosts even newly born Tok'ra could take a host. Their queen had only been with them a little while but the Tok'ra population was already beginning to explode.

New Tollana

"How long must we continue to wait?" Travell complained. "This would be much easier if we could simply use the stargate."

Narim resisted the urge to roll his eyes. It seemed that he would never be rid of her. She clung on like a persistent old tree, her roots having dug so deep over time that she couldn't be removed without anything short of high explosives. Then again she had survived the near extinction of the Tollan people so that probably wasn't even an appropriate simile. It was a terrible thought he knew but perhaps time would deal with her for him, not kill her but leave her too weary to constantly look over his shoulder. The only reason he was willing to take Travell with him was because he didn't want to leave her alone on the planet unchecked. She might actually get it into her head that she could dictate Tollan policy.

"We must travel by ship so that they can guarantee our safety," Narim replied calmly. "You cannot deny that that is a good thing and worth the wait. Besides even if we travelled by stargate we would have no way of returning home by the same means. Aschen Prime lacks a dialling device."

"The Tau'ri are becoming too arrogant if they think they can guarantee our safety," Travell replied acidly. "They use advanced technology but lack the wisdom to use it properly."

Narim sighed. This was an old argument, and one he suspected he would not be hearing the last of for some time. "On the contrary they have far more experience in warfare than most other races. I am told by Freyr that their warship designs are in fact more fearsome than even those of the Asgard."

"All the more reason they should not be in possession of such technology," Travell argued. "They are a violent people."

"A good thing too or many worlds would still be under the thumb of the Goa'uld, the old Wraith or the Ori," Narim pointed out.

"And how long before we see the Tau'ri replace them?"

"That is enough Travell," Narim snapped, his patience having run out. "I may tolerate you voicing your views, no matter how wrong they might be, but I will not have you voice them as a member of this delegation. Now you will keep a civil tongue in front of our allies, their guests and the other great races. I should remind you that we have yet to be offered an invitation to join the Alliance of Great Races and that may never happen if you cannot shut up."

Travell spun on the spot, shooting Narim a glare that should have left him as nothing more than a shadow outline against the wall. However before she could deliver her fiery comeback her gaze was captured by the sight through the open window. Effortlessly pushing aside the clouds as they descended into the atmosphere were a dozen identical and massive ships. Though they showed no obvious weapons on their hulls they seemed almost predatory in appearance. With their tips pointed outwards they formed a twelve pointed star, leaving a gap in the middle for the largest ship of all to descend. From above it looked like a massive snowflake and it wasn't until it got lower that the towers along its top became apparent. It was a city, a flying city!

"We're being invaded," Travell shrieked as panic gripped her.

Narim chuckled. "Actually our ride is here."

"What? Who is that Narim? Tell me!" she demanded.

"That would be the Tau'ri," Narim explained. "I have heard of the city ship Atlantis but I must admit it is certainly much grander than could be expressed in mere words."

"The Tau'ri could not have built that," Travell stated adamantly.

"You are correct. They simply restored it to its former condition. I suppose it could be called a part of the Ancients legacy. To keep it though they were forced to fight and survive against an enemy that even the Ancients superior technology could not defeat."

"So I was right they are not capable of building such a craft," Travell said triumphantly.

"One day they might, most likely they will. That is if they can't already. Perhaps we should all see it as a challenge, to see which race can design and build a city ship as grand as that first."

Aschen Prime

Standing guard over the Aschen homeworld was a massive fleet of ships. Most were technically not capable of fighting, having been disabled when the Ori carved a path of destruction before finally bombarding the planets surface. In another time one might have admired the beauty of this world. It was much like Earth, a blue and green marble, though with more green than blue. Now though the planet was scarred, marked by the struggles of recent years. A large chunk of the planets surface had been destroyed before the stargate connecting to a black hole had finally shut down. Much of the industrial areas had been lost as a result of that. Then of course there were the marks of devastation left by the Ori themselves. Those were wounds that had left their mark.

To bolster their defences the Aschen had constructed large numbers of automated small craft that could be remote controlled, hence the sizeable fleet in orbit. However without larger ships to carry them into battle they were confined to this system but they couldn't build those ships because it meant building ships that weren't combat capable, and right now they needed as many combat capable ships as they could get. Ironically this meant they had a truly formidable defensive fleet to guard their homeworld.

There were some who felt that the fleet being sent here by the Tau'ri should be destroyed the moment it arrived as revenge for what had happened to their world. The Aschen were rather lacking when it came to emotion but they knew what pain felt like, and they had felt pain when their world had been ravaged. Justice demanded that the race responsible should be punished. Perhaps it might have come to pass that just one Aschen might have given the order to open fire. However, when the thirteen ships emerged from hyperspace their thoughts of betrayal wavered. One of them was a battle carrier. A ship that their intelligence reports had said was powerful but not unbeatable. But the other twelve were all of the legendary battleship class, a ship that was truly formidable. Just one of these vessels was a force to be reckoned with, twelve would be almost impossible to beat. Then the most shocking thing of all happened, a single massive hyperspace window opened and deposited a flying city. So close together, and for once completely unhidden, the fourteen craft were together generating a power signature that blinded their sensors.

But even the sight of this fleet wasn't enough to make the Aschen truly surrender. That moment came when tens, even hundreds of hyperspace windows opened and countless ships started to emerge. Jaffa Ha'tak's, Liberum motherships, Asgard O'Neill's, Hebridian vessels of various types, and even a few Traveller generational ships, Wraith hives and Averian warships were present. The Alliance of Great Races had gathered together on this day to stand against their common foe, to make their message heard. The Aschen people heard it, loud and clear. Fighting against an enemy like this was not an option. They could only hope that the terms laid down were not too harsh.

Atlantis

The city sat in orbit of the planet in geostationary orbit over the crater left by the black hole. Whether this was by design or just coincidence no one knew and so far no one had dared to ask.

In the specially modified conference chambers in ambassador's tower the delegates had gathered to bear witness to the peace talks. An entire floor had been converted to create the chambers necessary these talks to create a room not unfamiliar to the Asgard high council chambers. Nine chairs on a raised platform formed the seats for the Alliance member's representatives, which was ringed by a seating gallery for other delegates and non Alliance members. At a significantly lower level was a small table with only a single chair, in which sat the stone faced Aschen representative. Of some note among the guests in the seating gallery were a number of Lucian civic leaders, who had been invited to bear witness to the proceedings. It was hoped they would take from this a warning of what would happen should they attempt to continue their old ways.

For this highly important event the Alliance representatives consisted of significant members of their respective governments. Opher of the Nox, Rak'nor of the Jaffa, Jack O'Neill of the Tau'ri, the Doci of the Liberum, and a trusted Wraith subordinate of Todd's that everyone called Peacemaker to name a few. All however, even Opher, were overshadowed in both position and seniority by the chair person for the peace talks, the Asgard Archon himself.

"Varris of the Aschen," the Archon began. "You stand here today as a representative of your people to listen to the terms of the Alliance of Great Races so that hostilities against your people will cease. Do you understand?"

"I do," Varris answered.

"Before we begin do you have anything you would like to say?"

"I do not," Varris said.

"With your permission Archon I do," O'Neill said.

"Very well," the Archon replied.

"Thank you. Aschen representative, as you may be aware I am a member of the Tau'ri. My people and yours have encountered one another before now. Now I want bring up all that was done on that day but I would like to ask you one question, what happened to our ambassador."

"Yes I am aware of who you are," Varris answered. "And I regret to inform you that your ambassador perished on that day after attempting to evade capture. He fell from the harvester to the ground and was killed as a result. His body was cremated and his ashes scattered."

"I hope that is true," O'Neill replied in a tone that implied dire repercussions should it turn out to be a lie.

"Detailed can be found in full in the copy of the treaty provided however the terms can be summarised as follows," the Archon continued. "Firstly, the Aschen will desist from any aggressive actions against worlds in this galaxy or any other. This includes the use of biological weapons designed to sterilise the native population so that they can eventually be converted into farmland. Understood?"

"I understand."

"Secondly, Aschen territory will be limited to within five hundred light years of Aschen Prime. It should be noted that all of these additional worlds are currently uninhabited. We have checked."

"Thank you," Varris said.

"You can thank us by not expanding beyond the established border."

"What about in the future as our population expands?"

"We would be willing to revisit this clause in the future, however that will require significant acts of good faith on your behalf."

"Such as?"

"True acts of kindness cannot be demanded, they must be given freely," Opher lectured.

"Thirdly, the Aschen will never again research or develop biogenic weapons," the Archon continued. "Discovery of violations of this or any other clause will be met with severe consequences."

"Such as?"

"We'll leave that to your imagination," O'Neill answered.

He knew full well that the Aschen imagination was somewhat limited. They were far more logically driven than most other humans. Hopefully this would mean they would fear that they would be destroyed. They might not be wrong.

"Fourthly, so long as you adhere to the treaty conditions your race will be a protectorate of the Alliance of Great Races."

Varris actually looked surprised.

"Why?" he asked disbelievingly.

"Why what?" the Archon asked with a hint of amusement.

"Why would you protect us after we have attacked you?" Varris asked. "It does not make sense."

"A truly great race does not just deal out punishments but also shows mercy," Opher lectured. "An entire race should not be condemned for the actions of a few."

"Eventually even the Aschen may be invited to join the Alliance of Great Races," the Archon added.

"Thank you," Varris said sincerely.

"You can thank us by adhering to the rules we have laid down for your species," the Archon stated. "Varris of the Aschen, as a representative of your people, do you agree to the terms we have offered you in exchange for the cessation of hostilities?"

"I do."

"Then let the record show that with the agreement of these terms the war of the Alliance of Great Races against the Aschen is over," the Archon proclaimed.

Much to the perplexity of Varris the assembled races actually started clapping at the news. He would have thought that after everything the Aschen people had done to remain in power that the other races would have been disappointed that his people were getting off so lightly. Instead they were apparently happy. These races were very strange indeed.

The guests here would take much from the peace talks. The Hebridians would finally see the back of their old enemy, the Tau'ri saw a little justice dealt out and the Lucians saw a potential future for their people. If the Aschen could be given a second chance perhaps their own race could be as well. Maybe one day they too would be invited to join the Alliance of Great Races.

Please Review. The warning from last week still stands, this may be the last chapter for a few weeks.