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Chapter 16: All roads lead to Abydos

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Part 1

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The New World Order will meet in Vancouver! A summit to discuss climate change and the joint development of new technologies to combat it will serve as a cover for the cabal ruining your lives!

New American Magazine

Will the Vancouver Summit destabilize oil prices? Rumors from sources within the governments taking part hint at the core purpose of the meeting tomorrow – pooling resources for the development of practical fusion. We even heard of wild claims that it might be possible to see a breakthrough in turning this dream into reality by the turn of the new millennium!

In response, OPEC will meet precisely seven days after the end of the summit.

Forbes Magazine

Key US scientists in many fields head for Colorado Springs, seeking employment by newly established Storm Industries. The secretive corporation has ties with DARPA and might be involved in fusion research.

Storm Industries is a privately owned company that gained brief notoriety by being mentioned by the US conspiracy magazine, the New American. A quick research of their claims paints an exciting picture that might be related to today's summit in Vancouver, which Prime Minister Hargreaves will attend.

The Daily Mail

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30 November 1996
Vancouver, Canada
Earth
Milky Way Galaxy

After arriving last night and socializing with his counterparts, President Jules Aubert of France retired to his suite. He spent most of the evening getting up to speed about what the Americans were up to. The President had a large stack of summaries available to go through and little time to digest them. He suspected that was why the summit would begin early in the afternoon after an inevitable show for the reporters.

The more Jules read about the situation, the clearer it became that his dream of leaving a clean slate for the President and government of France elected after him would not come to fruition. Aubert felt glad that he decided over a year ago to retire from politics instead of pursuing a second term. After all, his primary purpose when he ran for the post was to clean up the mess left by the scandals that brought down his predecessor and the last two governments of France. In that, Jules had been reasonably successful, in no small part due to being backed by a government elected on a mandate to radically clean up its house.

The trials for corruption and borderline treason would continue for years and, hopefully, be over after 1999, leaving fewer burdens for his successor. It was already clear to Aubert that he wouldn't be able to focus on domestic affairs and the future of France in the EU as he had hoped.

That was less than ideal, yet there wasn't much he could do about it. The best option Jules could think of was the creation of a new branch of the government dedicated to dealing with alien affairs, handpicking their leaders and founding members, then letting them carry as much of the burden as feasible.

Jules checked the time, put down the folder he was reading from, and headed for the bathroom. In a few minutes, he would have to go out and face the media circus before attending one of the most important conferences in French history.

The French President and his counterparts had to endure many false smiles and empty platitudes they aimed at each other to benefit the reporters busy lighting them up with flashing cameras. However, when he shook hands with his fellow Presidents, Prime Ministers, and the German Chancellor, he could notice the tightness around their eyes and the hints of strain in their well-practiced smiles. Despite his best efforts, Jules was sure he was no different. After all, he still had trouble wrapping his head around all he had learned as of late. In that regard, only the American President appeared more relaxed, likely because he had much longer to grasp Earth's place in the galaxy.

Their security details ushered the heads of state into a large conference room, which had been repeatedly and painstakingly swept for bugs and cameras. The tall windows forming one of the walls had been replaced with thick, bullet-resistant glass coated in such a way as to prevent listening with laser microphones and other such devices.

The French President sat next to the German Chancellor at the round table in the center of the room. Judging by its size, it had been a recent addition, almost certainly for this meeting. It was a nice touch, Aubert decided.

A few moments later, the last of the aides and security left, sealing the room so the gathered heads of state could speak plainly.

"Should I wait for you to get the accusations out of your systems, or can we get to work?" President Cole spoke first.

Judging by his tone, he wasn't quite trying to break the tension that exploded as soon as they were alone.

"I am contractually obligated to officially protest our American friends hoarding alien tech," Prime Minister Hargreaves announced dryly. "Can we now pretend everyone else did the same and get to discuss the mess we find ourselves in?"

While Jules wasn't a fan of his British colleague, he had to give him that much – the Prime Minister knew how to get things done. More often than not, what Hargreaves did was cause headaches, yet no one could accuse him of wasting their time. Well, no one save for the opposition back in the UK.

"So, aliens," Julies spoke aloud. "When do we meet them, and what deals are they interested in?"

"Do we have any way to verify anything they have been telling you?" The German asked next.

Everyone else offered murmurs of acknowledgment. They all wanted the answers to those questions.

"We have only one Stargate address, which we haven't received from Perun or his people. It was found on the covering stone used to bury the device in Egypt thousands of years ago," Cole explained. "After Perun found us, I haven't authorized a mission to that world due to concerns about what we might run into."

Everyone exchanged looks at that revelation.

"We have an option for independent verification of what your trade partner is telling then," The Japanese Prime Minister noted. "My government is, of course, ready to negotiate with the aliens. Anything less would be foolish. However, we would like to know for sure with whom and what exactly we are dealing with."

"If this is a deal with the devil must make anyway, we better know as much about it as possible," the Chancellor added.

Jules had to agree with the sentiment. France and Earth needed to know if the situation was as bad, or God forbid, worse than Perun painted it. Their long-term survival might very well hinge on being able to make educated decisions now.

"France would like an independent source of information as well, President Cole," Aubert voiced his agreement.

"Many of my advisers agree," Cole admitted. "Let us table the details on how to do that exactly for the end of the meeting. When I authorize fact-finding and exploration missions to that address, it will depend on what we agree or disagree on during this summit. However, I can pledge such a mission will occur in the foreseeable future."

In practice, that meant early January at the latest. Otherwise, the decision about going forward would lie with the President-elect of the United States.

"What do you want to discuss first, President Cole? You've had more time to think about the current situation Earth finds itself in." Julies inquired. He wanted to see what the American would offer to get a hint of Cole's intentions for this meeting.

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Part 2

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30 November 1996
Vancouver, Canada
Earth
Milky Way Galaxy

For an hour, they were stuck arguing about the location of the Stargate in the long run. To Prime Minister John Hargreaves' utter lack of surprise, the Americans were unwilling to relinquish the goose laying golden eggs no matter what.

If the positions were reversed, he wouldn't let it slip out of his grasp if he had a choice.

It was good that the arguments focused on the US's sole control of the artifact and not on pointless demands that someone else must have it. Hargreaves thought about the nuclear disaster the Americans avoided at the last moment and was glad that something like that didn't happen in his country. The possibility of another Goa'uld being stranded on Earth and running around, wearing people like puppets, was another thing that ensured John had more issues sleeping as of late than usual.

Thinking of what he saw and read about the aliens' armor and weapons, Hargreaves didn't need the US President to tell him there was a nuclear failsafe option ready to go near the Stargate. That was the kind of thing no one sane wanted to deal with. However, if you absolutely had to, a small, particularly small, or densely populated country would be hit much harder than a nation like America, Canada, or Russia. That was also true for China – much of the massive population there was focused near the coasts and around the major rivers, leaving chunks of the country sparsely populated.

"President Cole, I believe no one here is asking your country to physically hand us the Stargate. We are aware doing so would be politically unfeasible. I am also aware most of our countries simply can't reasonably offer the same level of conventional or nuclear protection. Among us, only your country and Canada have sufficient space with a low population density to make a nuclear failsafe going off less than a total disaster."

Hargreaves' statement halted the ongoing argument, and everyone looked at him. John's words earned him a few slow nods and a relieved look from Cole, who became increasingly exasperated.

"However, the Stargate represents unparalleled danger and opportunity for the whole planet. For peace of mind, if nothing else, we would require joint oversight as a starting point. I believe we can agree on that much," Hargreaves fixed Cole with an unblinking stare. "You can't pretend the Stargate and any operation through it is only the concern of the United States. What you or anyone else does through it can impact the whole world."

"Mr. Hargreaves speaks sense," The South Korean President backed John, speaking in lightly accented English. "Considering the strategic situation of my country, possessing the Stargate would be an incredible risk. Even a tactical weapon meant to contain an incursion we can't stop conventionally can cause unacceptable damage to South Korea. We aren't a large country."

President Cole repeatedly tapped the table with a finger. His distant look and the light frown marring his face made it clear he was deep in thought.

"I believe we can negotiate the details that would go in a joint oversight of the Stargate Program and the nature of said oversight," Cole finally said. "I know that neither the gate nor our contact with aliens is solely a US affair or matter of interest. However, we first must discuss a key related topic," The President sighed. "Disclosure to other countries and the inevitable public disclosure that is likely to happen sooner rather than later."

Hargreaves was on board with a second round of disclosures, especially if it brought more of the former British Dominions on board. Britain could use a focal point to get closer ties with them after relationships had frayed over the long years of the Cold War. Some short-sighted decisions made by previous governments didn't help in that regard. John made a few mental calculations and decided on a course of action. When he returned to Downing Street, there might be a few issues, but he was confident he could make his government see the light.

"Joint research," The Japanese prime minister interjected. "That is the cover for this meeting, isn't it? Pooling as much of Earth's scientific and engineering potential to make the best use of alien technologies would be critical going forward. I've read of the issues your people face while being taught by your alien benefactor. Having the whole world contribute will be best in the long run. Until then, we should do our best to ensure as many scientists and engineers are working on everything the aliens are willing to offer. We will use the summit's purpose to officially facilitate such cooperation, right?"

Slow nods met that rhetorical question. Everyone would insist on close cooperation to ensure they weren't left out of researching critical technologies.

"That is one big point in favor of further disclosure," Cole agreed. "Informing key countries, especially all nuclear powers, to avoid potentially catastrophic misunderstanding is another," His face briefly twisted in a grimace. "I don't want an alien warship arriving in orbit and announcing aliens are real. The sheer chaos that would cause could be devastating by itself."

"This isn't a secret that can be kept for too long," The Korean President also agreed. "Too many people already know it, and more will learn it in the coming weeks even without spreading the secret to other governments."

"That is why one of the purposes of this summit is to decide on a preliminary framework for a second, perhaps a third round of disclosures, followed by a public one. Everyone will need plans for when the time comes, and it would be best if we move ahead of the secret slipping our grasp," Cole elaborated.

"Australia and New Zealand are obviously two candidates I would like to join us," Hargreaves put forth his bid. Britain could forge a solid block between them and Canada that reignited old relationships. If South Africa ever fixed its issues, it would be another option.

The French and German looked at each other, then nodded.

"Bringing more EU and NATO members on board would be for the best. Keeping this secret from our other allies and close partners would undermine our relationship with them," President Aubert suggested.

"Singapore and perhaps Taiwan would also be options in the long run," The Korean President offered.

"All those countries could work. The thornier issue is going to be bringing in all the nuclear powers. Considering the state of a few of them, doing so would mean disclosing the truth to the world at large soon after," Cole pointed out.

"Perhaps a second round of disclosures before including all nuclear powers?" John's Japanese counterpart suggested.

"That might be for the best," the Chancellor consented. "We might want to have a framework about the oversight of the Stargate in place by then and ready to include more members. That could soften their reaction about dropping all of this on them," the German waved a hand in a vague gesture.

"Well, we are all looking for more answers," John sensed an opportunity and seized it. "The mission to the address you have, President Cole, must be an international one. We can use it to establish and test procedures to work together in the future. That way, we can figure out what works best and what doesn't, in hopefully a controlled environment."

There were no disagreements or arguments this time. Everyone looked at Cole, who was obviously less content than he was trying to appear. John could understand the President's position. Right now, America is Earth's sole superpower. The contact with this Perun chap could have cemented their position as a hegemon, just like the British Empire used to be, perhaps for longer. Instead, the Americans had to share the spoils.