Hello everyone!
Here is the first chapter of season two and things are going to be changing for the Milky Way and Pegasus Galaxies now that the ADF has finally re-established contact with Earth.
Also, it is now officially a month since I started this story and it has been a lot more fun then I thought it would be and that is all thanks to you guys, so special thanks to you guys. Especially you my four biggest supporters, CCSakuraforever, andrewjameswilliams, ferduran and TheVampireStrahd. You four have just been so helpful and so supportive, its meant a lot.
I will continue to post and create new chapters that will hopefully live up to the expectations you have set for me.
And so, let the chapter begin.
Chapter Nine: Reunions
Time: October 3, 2005. 1300 hours. Location: Hyperspace.
The ever eternal void of space was currently replaced with the blue streaks of light that was Folding
We enter into the mess hall and see John Sheppard drinking a cup of coffee while sitting all alone by himself.
John was deep in thought, thinking about all that has happened since the ADF has found itself capable of dialing Earth once again.
After the last battle of the Second Siege of Atlantis, all the civilians were allowed to come back to Neo-Macross and the Athosians were allowed back to their village now that the danger has passed.
The fleet of Plato frigates were now all repaired and also their refits were finally completed, increasing their ability to fight and destroy threats with greater ease.
The Macross also had her refit completed along with all of her repairs. She was currently inside her Fold sphere as she travelled from Lantea to Earth while the Daedalus also travelled back to Earth.
Currently, all ADF forces were told not engage the Wraith, as the ADF hadn't completely recovered from the Siege just yet and need more time to get their forces ready.
The ADF forces on Atlantis haven't been idle however. Research into the new transformable battle armor has been completed and the ADF has a new toy to play with.
The ADF-VBA-Cyclone is the ADF's first Variable Battle Armor, hence the name. The Cyclone is capable of transforming from the standard battle armor mode into a hover cycle, allowing the device to fly over rough terrain such as deserts, marshes, etc. The Cyclone has a vast majority of three inch thick ADF battle armor, which is the usual Trinium-Naquada with Robotech alloys added in for extra strength, while a few areas are as thick as 5 and a half inches, main on the chest area.. Enhanced servo-muscles allow for increased punching or lifting strength when in humanoid form while the two small hover engines allow for limited flight capabilities. Sensors built into the helmet are bit stronger and farther reaching then the Mark 6 battle armor the Cyclone is meant to replace. Skintight shields allow for even more firepower to be absorbed by the suit, while the Shadow Field allows for passive sensors scrambling. A cloak for the Cyclone is being developed, but not yet complete. Also, the Cyclone has the same mental interface system that the Pendragon has built into it to allow for faster reaction time.
As for weapons, the Cyclone has a grand total of 12 micro anti-tank Protoculture/Naquada infused warheads called Infernos in the missile launchers on the chest area. On the left side of the back of the Cyclone, a large 12 mm anti-armor rail cannon can be mounted while a 10 mm Particle cannon can be mounted on the right side. For the two weapons spots on the hips, a P91 can be stored on the right hip, while a X-98 energy pistol can be located on the left hip.
The X-98 was basically a laser magnum, with a longer recharge time then the M2217 light laser pistol, but the damage a X-98 was capable of was far in excess of the light laser pistol.
And finally, the main armament of the Cyclone is the A-55 Heavy Assault Laser Rifle. With a thick blocky build, no normal man can lift the A-55, but a Cyclone can one hand them if needed. With a range of 450 meters and a firing rate of 1,200 energy bolts per minute, the A-55 was the next generation of personal firearms for the ADF.
The Cyclone is quickly catching favor with the ADF, who is now trying to mass produce them as quickly as possible. As of this moment, only 10 Cyclones exist. However, the production facilities on Atlantis are quickly trying to get enough for each member of the ADF. It will be about three months before the massive ADF has enough for everyone.
A single Cyclone was currently in the Macross's armory, they were going to show it off to the SGC.
The ADF has also been testing the Pendragons extensively, trying to figure out the Veritech's strengths and weaknesses so the true potential of the Pendragons can be unlocked.
So far, everything has been going well. Nothing really major needed to be fixed or tweaked, just a few things here and there, but for the most part, the frame preforms better then Lang or anyone else in Project Pendragon could have ever predicted. After about two and half weeks of testing, the Pendragons were finally cleared for mass production and so production of the old Valkyries was halted and instead switched over to creating new Pendragon class Veritechs.
About 50 were now in service and the pilots were quickly learning how to fly their new and improved rides. The Valkyries were good planes, there is no doubt about that, but the Pendragons are in a league all of their own and learning how to properly fly something of the Pendragon's caliber is not something that can be learned anytime quickly. It will be a while before the Pendragons can be put to the absolute limits of the their capabilities.
Further more, the next generation of Destroids have began being designed. Many designs have been created, but in the only a few are going to be put into the prototype phase and then tested for combat effectiveness.
John has no idea which designs have been selected for the prototype phase, only that the number of the new designs selected is now six.
Also, the ADF has taken a look at a vehicle the RDF brought with them, but has received very little action, the QF-300E Ghost.
The Ghost originally was put aside due to how poorly they preformed against the Zentraedi, but with the addition of the AIs from Zor and the Replicators from the Ancient outpost, the ADF took another look at the Ghost and found a new purpose for these planes.
The ADF took all of the Ghosts and then gave them a complete overhaul and turned them into a brand new class of planes.
The Ghosts are now reclassified as the ADF-SF-Ghost Mk. 5 or Atlantis Defensive Forces Stealth Fighter.
Each of these new Ghosts are now 4.2 meters tall, have a wing span of 14.1 meters and is 9 meters long. The Ghost has a sensor suite equal to a Plato Frigate built into its frame, and it is also capable of forming a Shadow Field as well. The Ghost now has a long range Interstellar Fold Generator so that it can travel far way from its home base for long periods of time.
With three Protoculture/Naquada Reflex Furnaces that are the same model as the Pendragon's, the Ghost has stronger shields then the Pendragon along with a stronger Shadow Field and a much farther reaching data transmitter.
The Ghosts are going to be piloted by AIs, due to the Ghosts now filling in the role of a long range stealth fighter. The goal was to create a large network of Ghosts to monitor all Wraith ships with real time data transmissions being sent back to Atlantis.
For weapons, the Ghost has two 30 mm cannons on either side of the cockpit just like a Pendragon has, along with 24 micro Stargazers in two internal missile launchers and a single 15 mm laser turret under the cockpit.
Right now, there are only 25 Ghosts currently in service that are now on long range patrols all across the Pegasus galaxy. They are currently looking for asteroids or planets devoid of life, but are rich in Trinium or Naquada.
Back to John. He, Weir and Gloval were going to Earth along with Lang, Zor, Fran, McKay and Teyla to tell the SGC and the members of the IOA just what they have been up to all this time since they left Earth over a year ago.
John was worried about the upcoming meeting. If Everett was any indication, then the SGC will try to force their rules and regulations upon the ADF. The ADF removed a number of rules and regulations when it was formed and they had no intention of reinstating them once more. Also, they have built quite a few AIs and Replicators since they have found Atlantis, those are two things that the SGC does not like.
Also, John was the one who shot Colonel Sumner and that is probably going one of the points the IOA will use to try and justify their choise of removing John as military commander of Atlantis. Or at least they will try to, for Weir and Gloval will not allow the IOA to just come in after a year of separation and just expect the ADF to simply roll over and allow them to do whatever they like.
John was hoping the meeting goes well, it would work out better for both Earth and the ADF in the long run if the two groups work together.
Teyla then walked in and came over to John and said, "Nervous?"
"Yeah. I haven't been to Earth in over a year. I wonder how the SGC has changed in that time." John replied.
"That is not what you are worried about. What are you really worried about?" Teyla asked.
John sighed and said, "Am I really that easy to see through?"
"No. I just know who you are John. I have know you and fought with you for over a year. I have gotten to know you are hiding things from me." Teyla replied.
John then stared into his coffee for a second before he said, "I am worried about what the IOA is going to try and do with me when we get to Earth. I don't think its a well kept secret that the IOA hates me and with me shooting Colonel Sumner, they are definitely try to remove me as ground command of the ADF. I know Weir and Gloval will never allow that to happen, which is the problem. I want these meetings to go well, but with the way the IOA handles certain situations, I don't think these meetings will go well."
Teyla nodded and said, "From what I have heard about the IOA, they are going to be a major problem indeed."
"You don't know the half of it. I guarantee you, they are going to make Weir or Gloval snap." John said, dead serious.
Whatever Teyla was about to say was blocked out by the voice of Lisa Hayes saying over the intercom, "The Macross is now exiting her Fold Sphere. I repeat, the Macross is now exiting her Fold Sphere. All hands prepare for Defold."
John then got up and said, "We better get to the bridge."
Teyla nodded and quickly the two ADF members put their dishes away and then quickly went to the nearest teleporter booth.
With the push of a button, the two members were teleported near the bridge. They exited the booth and walked over to the bridge bulkhead and John placed his hand onto the identification pad, which scanned his hand and allowed him in after it had ID him.
The bulkhead slid up and allowed the two onto the bridge, easily passing through the hatch that has given Gloval so many headaches in the past, although he finally got around to signing a work order that increased the height of that particular bulkhead, so he no longer had to fear smacking his head when he comes onto the bridge, which is something the Russian officer is eternally grateful for.
Already Weir, Lang, Fran and McKay were already on the bridge, while Gloval sat in his command chair. Zor was going to stay on the Macross and help Hermiod, the Asgard on the Daedalus understand the Protoculture Matrix better.
Outside the viewing glass of the bridge, the golden sphere of the Macross's Fold Sphere was quickly disappearing while a circle appeared in front of them and the Macross quickly passed through the circle and reentered normal space.
The Macross came out of her Fold sphere and then activated her sublight engines, moving the ship closer to the small blue and green marble held in space that they called home.
The Daedalus came to a halt by the Macross's right side, moving alongside the much longer warship as the two spaceships moved towards Earth.
For the crew of the ADF, it was a sight that almost brought them to tears. After so long, they had finally come back to their mother planet.
After a minute, the Daedalus contacted the Macross, with Caldwell saying, "We are ready to beam you guys down to the SGC. Are you ready?"
Gloval nodded and said, "We are ready."
A second later, the seven ADF officers were covered in blinding light while a musical chime was heard and then they disappeared from the bridge in a flash.
Location: Cheyenne Mountain Complex, AKA, Stargate Command. Meeting room.
Inside the ultra-top secret mountain facility near Colorado Springs, a ever familiar noise of Asgard beaming technology was heard inside the meeting room.
With a flash of light, the eight ADF officers appeared inside the meeting room, each one of them quickly adjusting from the near instantaneous teleportation.
Inside the meeting room there was currently a few other people.
"Hello everyone. For those that do not know me, I am General Jack O'Neill, Head of Homeworld Security. This is Major General Hank Landry, commander of the SGC along with Colonel Samantha Carter to my right our head scientist. To my left are the IOA representatives Dr. Richard Woolsey, Shen Xiaoyi and Dale Strom." O'Neill said to those assembled.
"Greetings. I am Captain Henry Gloval, commander of the ADF vessel, SDF-1 Macross. To my right is Dr. Emil Lang, one of the ADF's chief scientists. To my left is Dr. Elizabeth Weir, commander of Atlantis, beyond her is Major John Sheppard, leader of all ground forces in the ADF. After Sheppard is Teyla, a member of AR-1 and the spokesperson between the ADF and the Athosians. Finally, on my far left is Fran, commander of all Human-Form Replicators in the ADF." Gloval said, introducing the people of the ADF to those before them.
The SGC members looked apprehensive of Fran now, which is understandable considering that the Replicators nearly wiped out all human life in the Milky Way galaxy not too long ago.
Everyone sat down and Weir started off the meeting with, "Let's just get this out of the way right now. No, I am not going to change Sheppard out with someone else as my main ground forces commander. I am also not going to deactivate the AI's or the Replicators we have built in Atlantis. We are also going to retain the right to operate as we see fit. End of story."
Everyone assembled was a little taken back by her shear head first mentality about the issues she had listed, but the IOA members quickly regained themselves and Strom said, "Last I checked, the Atlantis Expedition is an international group and therefore under IOA control."
"Not anymore. The Atlantis Expedition was disbanded and we merged with the Robotech Defensive Forces that arrived with the Macross from their reality. We are now the Atlantis Defensive Forces and we are our own little group. I am sure I had that information sent with the data we transmitted to Earth." Weir said, a calm and cool expression on her face.
"Yes, we did see that information. However, regardless of what you call yourselves, you are still from this Earth and are still members of an international expedition and therefore, subject to our authority." Xiaoyi said.
"Myself and the other members that make up a majority of the ADF come from a whole other reality and therefore are not subject to your authority. We have sworn to defend the people of Neo-Macross and that is what we shall do, regardless of your wishes." Gloval said, his voice hard and unbending.
"Ah yes, the problem of Neo-Macross. We do not believe having a civilian population near Atlantis is in the best interests of Earth and her well being. We believe they will one day become a security threat and they, along with the Athosians, should be relocated to another planet." Strom said.
"You want us to take 70,000 civilians, plus the Athosians, and move them all to another planet? All because you assume they will one day become a security threat?" Sheppard asked, trying to understand this mans logic.
"Yes. We believe it to be in the best interest of Atlantis and of Earth to remove such threats to the cities security." Strom said, with Xiaoyi nodding her head in agreement.
"Well I see that the IOA has made a decision." Weir said, shocking all of them she would go along with such a stupid move.
The IOA members looked very jovial that Weir had agreed to their orders.
"However, given that it is a stupid-ass decision, I have elected to ignore it. Next issue on the agenda." Weir said, placing her hands down on the table while she stared at the IOA members with unbending steel in her eyes.
Sheppard and the other members of the ADF all tried and failed to keep the smiles off their faces, even Fran cracked a small smile on her face at her leaders brazen actions and also at the look of absolute shock on the IOA members faces.
Jack had to put a hand on his face to keep the laughs from erupting from his mouth, while Laundry was badly keeping the chuckles inside, while even Carter had a smile on her face.
"Dr. Weir, I wish to remind you that are a member of the IOA and as such, will obey our decisions on Atlantis and her current situation. Such disrespect and brazen disregard for our authority will result in your termination from the head of Atlantis." Strom said while Woolsey tried to shut him up, but failed to keep the man from speaking.
Suddenly the tensity of the room sifted as the ADF members stopped smiling and were now all glaring at the man, pure unadulterated fire behind their eyes.
"I would to see you try, little man. Should you attempt to keep Weir from returning to Atlantis, you can kiss any advanced technology the ADF is willing to share with Earth, goodbye." Gloval said, his voice cold and unbending.
"You do not get a say in such matters, Captain. You are merely the leader of the space forces of Atlantis and are from another Earth, you have no say in what happens in the SGC." Strom said.
"Oh, but I do. As the second in command of all ADF forces, should Weir fail to return to Atlantis, the decision of whether or not Earth gets any of our advanced technologies falls to me. And I can clearly say, Mr. Strom, should you keep up these threats, Earth will not get anything we have developed over the course of last year. Veritechs, Destroids, Plato Frigates, Super Dimensional Fortresses, Improved Alterran Drones, Tirolian Construction Drones, energy weapons, and Protoculture are just a few of the advances we have made, and we are willing to share them with Earth, but only, if we are allowed to operate Atlantis as we see fit. The SGC and the IOA will have no say in the cities operations, at all." Gloval said, laying down what was on the line.
For Atlantis, freedom to choose how she governed. For Earth, new advanced technologies that are needed to keep the planet safe.
"I move to allow Atlantis complete autonomy." Jack said suddenly, causing the IOA representatives to gap with open mouths.
"I second that motion." Laundry said, throwing his vote in as well.
"I move against this motion." Strom said, Xiaoyi nodded and adding her vote against Atlantis's autonomy.
Woolsey was the last person to vote and his was the deciding vote.
Woolsey had his eyes closed and his hands grasped together in front of his mouth as he thought long and hard about his next action.
After a few moments Woolsey then said, "I vote that Atlantis should have complete autonomy."
His fellow IOA members looked utterly shocked by Woosley's sudden actions, while the SGC members looked slightly relieved.
"Alright. Weir, as a representative of the United States government, I hereby grant Atlantis full autonomy. You are allowed to choose who enters or leaves the city, and all major decisions regarding the fate of Atlantis is in your control." Jack said, much to the relief of the ADF.
"Thank you, General O'Neill. As a thank you for allowing us our autonomy, the ADF will give you everything we have learned from our time in Pegasus. Rodney, show them what we are giving them." Weir said to the Tirolian scientist.
Rodney nodded and then took out his Infiltrator, which had been heavily modified to be a extremely advanced computer system now and then produced a series of holographic screens for those assembled and sent them towards the SGC members. "Plans for a number of upgrades to the SGC, such as a system of force fields surrounding the doors like we have Atlantis, along with transporter booths as well. AI assistants will help improve the efficiency of this facility and also a gate shield will be installed. Numerous other upgrades are going to be added onto the SGC as well. We will also build you five Alpha type Bases, and four Beta type bases as well, with the addition of a ALUCE type moon base."
Carter was nearly drooling as she looked at all of the new toys she and the science geeks would now have access to, but she managed to keep her cool and professional persona up.
Landry was happy that finally the SGC will be getting some new stuff that will hopefully help make the Milky Way galaxy a safer place.
"We brought along a Cyclone, the latest in power armor, for a weapons demonstration to show you some of the technologies we will be giving to the SGC. Shall we?" Weir asked.
The SGC members all nodded and then Gloval clicked his communicator and said, "Lisa, tell the demonstration team to prepare the Cyclone. Also, ask the Daedalus to beam us up."
"Understood." Lisa said as she then ended the communication and moved to full fill her orders.
Soon, the SGC and ADF members were beamed up to the Macross, more specifically they were in a large hanger area in the bowels of the ship.
Lt. Ford came walking in wearing the Cyclone armor all around him. He had the armor painted dark navy blue with stripes of white on the joints, hands and feet.
"This is the ADF-VBA-Cyclone. The VBA stands for Variable Battle Armor. The Cyclone is the first battle armor with the ability to transform. Lt. Ford, you are up." Dr. Lang said.
Ford have a salute and then sent a mental command into the suits computer, which triggered the transformation process.
Metal components activated, causing plates to detach and rearrange themselves as gears and servo joints whined as they moved. With incredible speed, once imposing form of the Cyclone armor had transformed into a 5 foot long, four foot tall and 2 foot wide futuristic looking hovercycle. On front left side was the rail gun and on the front right side was the particle cannon, while on the back left side was the A-55 rifle, while on the back right side was the P91.
Ford was now in the inner suit of the Cyclone, which was a heavily modified Mark 6 armor with connection ports on it's body for the armor plating of the outer shell of the Cyclone.
Ford then revved the engines as 12 small humanoid droids were activated and began to fire at him with their laser rifles.
Blue-white lances fired forth and struck Ford, but the skin tight energy shield absorbed the energy fire with ease and then Ford was off, the Cyclone quickly maneuvering out of the droids line of fire.
Ford drive to the right side of the arena and then drew out his X-98 and with a steady hand, leveled a shot towards one of the training droids.
With a slip click of the trigger, a large bolt of energy flew out of the barrel of the laser magnum and struck a training droid straight in it's chest, blowing a massive hole into droid's chest.
The droid fell the to the ground, it's hand twitching for a few seconds before fall still a moment later.
Everyone who was watching was impressed by Ford's excellent driving and precision firing even though he was moving as high speeds.
The remaining droids all fired at Ford, but due to the speed of the Cyclone combined with the extreme driving style of Ford made them all miss.
Ford then moved towards another Droid and lined up a shot with his rail gun and sent a mental command to the rail gun to fire.
With that mental command sent, the rail gun aimed directly towards one of the droids and fired.
A 7 inch long metal slug that was composed of Trinium and Naquada with a Protoculture fuel cell inside was fired forth from the rail gun. The metal slug was accelerated to mach 2 in just a few second, creating a massive boom as the slug broke the sound barrier and struck the droid.
The droid was vaporized as the slug impacted the droid hull and pierced through, which is when the slug then exploded. The Protoculture fuel cell exploded with tremendous force, shredding and destroying the droid before it had a chance to react, but the force of the explosion was so great it destroyed the two droids next to the one Ford shot.
Ford then turned the Cyclone to the right and then lined a shot with his particle cannon towards the next droid.
With a quick mental command, the particle cannon of the Cyclone quickly charged up and then with once fully charged, fired.
A long lance of blue-white super charged particles flew from the mouth of the particle cannon and quickly crossed the distance between Ford and the droid.
Once the lance reached the droid, the supercharged particles made quick work of the droids armor, melting the metal within microseconds and then running straight through the droids sensitive inner mechanisms and circuitry within seconds. Once the lance struck the droids power cells, the particles obliterated the thin causing of the power cells faster then a human mind could comprehend and with a tremendous explosion, what was left of the droid vanished in a blinding flash of explosive power.
With five of their number already destroyed, the remaining droids moved further away from one another to try and make it harder for Ford to get rid of groups of them with a single shot.
For Ford however, this wasn't a problem. He simply altered his heading and drove straight for the nearest droid.
With a speed only a droid could know, the droid saw Ford and quickly opened up with its laser rifle.
Several dozen energy blasts struck Ford, but he kept his cool and kept driving forwards until he reached about 50 feet.
Once there, he activated the transformation process with a mental command.
Metal flipped and morphed as the hovercycle rearranged itself, changing from a hovercycle into a incredibly advanced form of battle armor that soon encased Ford inside the protective metal embrace of this mechanized cocoon.
With the armor now surrounding him, Ford allowed momentum to take him closer to the droid in front of him.
With incredible speed, Ford grabbed the A-55 on the back of his waist and brought it to bear upon the unfortunate droid in front of him.
The heavy assault weapon roared out as dozens of energy bolts tore into the droids armor, punching nice little holes into the shiny armor until the armor failed and the droid exploded due to energy bolts tearing into the Protoculture cells buried within the frame.
Just as the droid in front of Ford exploded six separate streams of rapid firing lasers smashed into Ford's frame, draining his shields.
"Shields are at 49% and dropping." The on-board AI said to ford in a emotionless tone.
"I know. Get me a missile lock, let's wipe them all out at once." Ford said as he armed the 12 Inferno's in his chest launchers.
"Acknowledged." His AI partners said as the AI then activated the targeting system. Within seconds, all six remaining droids were now firmly in the crosshairs for the 12 Infernos.
"Sir, all Droids are locked on." The AI said.
'Alright!" Ford shouted out as the missile launchers in his chest opened up and launched forth the 12 Inferno's in his chest.
The Inferno's roared forth, their thrusters launching them forth at terrific speeds and sending the small missiles forwards towards their targets.
The droids tried to shoot the Infernos, but the small missiles were too fast and agile and soon, 12 massive explosions erupted throughout the area.
Once the dust and fire died down, only Ford was left standing, the droids only small little pieces of metal on the floor.
Ford then turned towards the spectators and gave a salute.
Sheppard returned the salute while Weir said, "That is what Earth stands to gain from working with the ADF. Impressed?"
The SGC members were all stunned by the sheer maneuverability, defenses and firepower the Cyclone possessed, despite only being a small vehicle.
O'Neill had a childish look of enthusiasm as he then asked, "You got giant honking space guns?"
Weir then grew an evil smirk and said, "Perhaps another demonstration? Let's go to the asteroid belt and have a live weapons demonstration of this warships full offensive capabilities."
Gloval nodded and then radioed up to Claudia and said, "Claudia, take us out to the asteroid field."
"Aye Sir." Claudia said as the massive engines of the Macross ignited, maneuvering the large warship onto a course that would take them towards the asteroid field.
"Sir, at maximum sublight, it will take us approximately 50 minutes to reach the asteroid belt." Claudia said.
"Thank you Claudia." Gloval said. "Keep me informed and let me know when we reach the asteroid belt."
"Yes Sir." Claudia said and then the connection was broken.
"Well, while we wait, let us go and see the Protoculture Matrix." Weir said as she led the group towards the nearest teleporter booth.
Before he left, Sheppard then said, "Good job Ford. That was great handling of the Cyclone."
Ford smiled underneath his helmet as he said, "Thanks sir. Better get going."
Sheppard nodded and gave a wave before he left to catch up with the group.
Time: 1330 hours. Location: Protoculture Matrix Flowers of Life area.
Hermiod, the Asgardian scientist of the Daedalus was staring at the Flowers of Life in absolute fascination. Never before in all his many millennia of life had he ever encountered an organism that could trap minute amounts of ZPE in their cells. Truly, these were some of the greatest marvels of the universe laid before him.
Hermiod then took out a small Asgardian scanner and began to run some scans of the Flowers and the energies they carried.
The results were fascinating to the small gray alien. He could scarcely believe his scanner, but he knew that ultimately the results were correct.
He had been here for the better part of half an hour, running numerous scans across many different flowers, trying to better understand them and the secrets they hold.
Zor was with him, helping explain things and readings Hermiod was getting so that the grey alien could better understand them.
Zor was also telling Hermiod of his past life, the one where he discovered the awesome power of Protoculture.
"It was around this time that the Robotech Masters ordered me to create an army of clones to become miners and workers." Zor said, causing Hermiod to look at him with slight intrigue.
"You create an army of clones? Interesting. What did you do for genetic degradation?" Hermiod said.
"I created a special method that during the process of cloning, you inject a specially treated vial of Protoculture into the genetic coding of the clone. For some reason, Protoculture acts as a genetic healer, reversing genetic damage if used correctly." Zor said, staring down at his pad. It was for this very reason he missed the look of absolute shock on Hermiod's face.
"Reverse genetic degradation?" Hermiod asked, unsure if he was hearing Zor right. He knew that his race would soon be facing extinction of something wasn't done and it appears as if an answer to his race's prayers have been given to him.
"Indeed. Why do you ask?" Zor asked, curious as the little aliens curiosity at his cloning procedure.
Hermiod then said, "We Asgardians long ago went on a specific evolutionary path. We used cloning to extend the individual lifespan far beyond what it should have been, but in doing so, we continuously making clones of clones until the time came when we realized our errors, but at that point in time, it was far too late. We have caused irreversible damage to our genetic code until the time came when we couldn't reproduce at all, leaving our civilization to begin to decline. We couldn't increase the number of Asgardians and we could only continue on by continuing to clone ourselves. It has gotten to the point that in only a few years, if something isn't found my entire race will disappear. Your research might just be the cure we have sent centuries searching for."
Zor was shocked beyond belief at what the little alien had told him. He had known about the Asgardians as a race for quite some time, but he never truly understood how desperate of a situation the Asgardians where in up until this point. Now that he knew they were literally only a few years from extinction, he understood just how important his cloning method would be to the little aliens.
"I will inform the Asgard High Council of this development. They will most certainly want to know about this." Hermiod said as he quickly walked away to try and find a communication console to try and get in contact with his homeworld.
Zor quickly followed and showed Hermiod to the nearest station, where Hermiod used an Asgardian communication ID to get in contact with Thor.
"This is Thor. Why are you contacting me Hermiod?" Thor asked.
"Supreme Commander Thor, I have discovered a way for our people to reverse our genetic degradation. I repeat, a cure has been found." Hermiod said.
Thor was utterly astonished and then said, "Truly? A cure?"
"Indeed. It is located on-board the Earthlings newest warship, the SDF-1 Macross, which is heading towards the asteroid belt in their solar system. Bring the High Council here, we need to begin negotiations for this cure immediately." Hermiod said.
Thor nodded and the communication line was terminated.
Hermiod knew it would only take about an hour for Thor in the latest O'Neill class vessel to reach Earth from Ida. In an hour, negotiations would begin that would spell out the survival or extinction of his race.
Time: 1425 Location: Asteroid Belt.
The Macross was now finally reaching the asteroid belt, her massive hull easily slicing through the blackness of space.
The Macross stopped moving about five kilometers from the nearest asteroid just as Gloval led the SGC and ADF members onto the bridge.
The SGC members had been utterly captivated by the Flowers of Life and also of the Protoculture Matrix, staring out at these marvels of the universe in unconstrained awe.
Gloval then sat down in his chair and said, "Claudia, please target the nearest asteroids and begin firing our weapons. Start with the 30 mm CIWS turrets and then we'll work our way up from there."
Claudia nodded and said, "Aye aye sir." and then activated the 30 mm turrets.
The small twin six barreled beam turrets began to spin began firing out thousands of small lances of energy that struck several of the asteroids. The thousands of small lances quickly and relentlessly obliterated thousands of tons of rock in a matter of seconds until Gloval said, "That is enough."
The 30 mm turrets stopped firing and showed what had happened to their unfortunate targets. The targeted asteroids had a massive portion of their mass broken off and floating all around them while each asteroid also had thousands of impact craters punched deep within them.
The SGC was impressed, these were much better CIWS weapons then the rail guns currently used by the SGC for the Daedalus.
"Alright, now give a salvo with all of our 72 mm cannons and then another salvo with our 100 mm cannons Claudia." Gloval ordered.
"Understood sir." Claudia said as she sent the commanded through the computer, causing an automatic reaction from the massive warship.
The large assortment of 72 mm and 100 mm particle cannons turned them towards their targets and began to charge up, large amounts of raw energy being pumped into the cannons.
After a few seconds, the cannons reached maximum charge and let loose, a massive stream of large white-blue lances flying forth from the Macross and striking a number of the asteroids before them.
Each asteroid that was struck by a particle cannon blast had a giant chunk of the mass obliterated in a second, some asteroids even shattering apart into much smaller asteroids.
That salvo brought a lot of gasps from the SGC. Sure they had seen some powerful weapons, like the Tollan Ion Cannons. But it never prepares you for seeing some new toys.
Gloval smiled evilly and said, "Now Claudia, let loose a salvo of Drone weapons and several torpedoes as well."
Claudia nodded and punched the command into the computer, the command being processed and then preformed flawlessly.
Four hatches on the far right and left of both the top and bottom of SDF-1 opened, and from them came four streams of improved Alterran Drones that flew out and closed in on their target. The Drones easily pierced and destroyed any asteroids they came into contact with and they flew around for 15 seconds before they returned to the SDF-1.
Meanwhile, several torpedo tubes on the SDF-1 opened up and were loaded with a Reflex Torpedo. With a simple click of a button, the torpedoes flew forth and struck the asteroids they had targeted within seconds.
Tremendous explosions erupted from the impact point, sending small pieces of asteroids flying out in all directions at incredible speeds.
The SGC was very impressed by the power of the ADF torpedoes. They far outclassed the Mark VII's the Daedalus was currently using and they would prove very useful in keeping Earth safe in the future.
Finally Gloval said, "Final demonstration. Activate main gun and find us a really big asteroid to target."
Claudia nodded and then scanned the asteroid field for a large asteroid to destroy. After finding a suitable target, the data was placed into the computer and the activation for the main gun was begin.
The long booms at the end of the warship twisted and moved apart, creating an H shape in the front of the warship.
Seconds later, long strands of orange energy crackled and snapped like wild snakes running down the length of the booms. Seconds passed and the energy was growing faster and more erratic by the second until at long last, a massive eruption of pure energy shot forth from the Macross.
The giant orange beam of death blasted through numerous small asteroids until it reached it's main target. The much lager asteroid held u against the beam for but a brief moment and then the beam tore through the asteroid within seconds, obliterating the massive asteroid and causing small remnants of that giant asteroid to go fling in all directions.
This latest piece of ADF technology had the SGC completely flabbergasted. At long last the IOA finally understood where they stood. Should they make an enemy of the ADF, they could easily tear apart of the Daedalus and any form of resistance the SGC could mount at this time. They could not afford to do anything that would alienate the ADF at this point in time.
Just then, Vanessa shouted out, "Sir, we have a large hyperspace window forming about one thousand kilometers from our current position."
Gloval then said, "Identify them. Turn the ship around 180 degrees, have shields raised, all weapons primed and prepare for combat."
The Macross swung around with speed defying her massive bulk and while she was doing that, her shields were raised while all her weapons were primed and ready to fire.
When the Macross saw what had come out of that hyperspace window, they immediately shut down their shields and weapons.
For, floating around 1,000 kilometers away from the Macross was the largest O'Neill class vessel in service.
Being 1,500 meters long, this O'Neill class warship was much larger then the Macross herself, but the Macross was taller then this O'Neill warship.
Suddenly and without warning, a bright flash of light erupted on the bridge of the Macross and suddenly there was seven new Asgardians on the bridge, one of whom was incredibly familiar with the humans of Earth.
"Greetings O'Neill. It has been some time." One of the Asgardians said, his voice giving away his identity.
"Thor! Hows it going little buddy?" O'Neill said with a smile as he walked over to his old friend.
"I am well O'Neill. I am here today with the rest of the Asgard High Council to discuss a rather important discovery made by Hermiod on this very vessel." Thor explained.
"And what might that be Thor?" Carter asked, curious what might so important that the entire Asgard Council dropped everything they were doing to come and see the Macross.
"On-board this very warship just might be the key to our survival as a race." Thor said, shocking the SGC members and even a few of the ADF members.
Members like Weir knew of the dire straights of the Asgard and how close they were to being wiped out as a species. To here that there just might be a cure for Earth's greatest ally on this very warship was a bit shocking.
"A cure? On the Macross?" Gloval asked.
"Indeed. According to Hermiod, a cure has been located and I was to bring the rest of the Asgard High Council to begin negotiations for this cure. Were you not informed?" Thor asked.
"No. We were not. However, I can assure you that if a cure for your condition is on-board the Macross, we will happily give it to you, along with anything you need, for free." Gloval said. He had read a lot about the Asgardians during his down time since he has arrived in this reality and from what he has read, the Asgardians have saved Earth from destruction time and time again. Earth owed them a debt that could never be repaid, so if a cure was on-board his ship, he would not stand in their way of getting what was necessary to their continued survival.
"I thank. I do not believe we have been properly introduced. I am Thor, Supreme Commander of the Asgard fleet." Thor said to Gloval.
"I am Gloval, Supreme Commander of the ADF fleet. It is an honor to meet you Thor. I have read up on your deeds and actions that have ensured the continued survival of my race. You are a hero and it is an honor to have you on my ship." Gloval said, speaking truthfully about his feelings for the small little gray alien.
"Thank you. Now, about this cure. I believe finding and talking to Hermiod is essential right now." Thor said.
"Already on it. Hermiod and Zor are down in the Protoculture Matrix, more specifically they are in on of the other holding areas for the Flowers of Life, which is why you guys didn't see them when you went through your tour of the Matrix." Vanessa said.
"Thank you Vanessa. Now, let us go and see what all the commotion is about." Gloval said as he led the ADF leaders, the SGC members and now the Asgard High Council towards the Protoculture Matrix.
Time: 1430. Location: Protoculture Matrix Flowers of Life area.
Gloval and his large group entered into the holding area for the Flowers of Life and saw Hermiod and Zor were now at in the main area for the Flowers of Life, several large hovering metallic cylinders with several Flowers of Life were hovering beside Zor.
Gloval and his group walked over and Gloval said, "Zor? What is going on?"
Zor looked over to Gloval and said, "I was merely taking a few of the spare Flowers of Life and preparing them for transportation, as well as giving Hermiod all my notes on how to create clones as well as scientific notes and extremely precise instructions on how to use Protoculture so that the Asgard might be able to reverse their cellular degeneration."
The Asgardians assembled suddenly felt very hopeful that a cure for their long incurable disease might finally have been found.
"Is it possible Hermiod?" Thor asked.
"Indeed. According to the records that Zor allowed me to go through, I have seen the Robotech masters, Zor's people, use cloning to create a massive army of minors called Zentraedi with no ill effects upon their genetic structure. By using our technology along with Zor's scientific notes about cloning along with real living Flowers of Life, we can finally stop our cellular degeneration and finally begin healing our race from the follies of our past." Hermiod said.
The Asgardians felt extremely happy, finally they could be free from this blasted cellular degeneration that had been plaguing them for these past millennia.
Thor then said, "Captain Gloval, the Asgardian race is prepared to pay any price you demand for these scientific notes and these Flowers of Life."
Gloval was silent for a few moments and said, "How about we start working together more? We humans have so much to learn from you and I wish to further the Human-Asgard relationship. Having just a few scientists on Atlantis would be a huge boom to our scientific staff, same at the SGC. If you do not want to do this, you can still take the notes and the Flowers of Life."
The members High Council where shocked that despite all of the technological marvels the Asgard had at their disposal, this human would meanly ask for a chance to deepen the already strong bonds between their race and the Tau'ri.
Thor however knew the human wouldn't make any outrageous demands like all of their technology. These humans didn't wish for more power, they simply wanted to explore the universe and they wished for all sentient beings to know the sweet taste of freedom. They went into a interstellar war with a galactic empire when they didn't have a single warship to call their own, simply to keep to others safe. Originally it was merely to keep themselves safe, but these humans eventually swore to destroy the Goa'uld and free everyone in their empire simply because it was the right thing to do. Some of them died for this goal and even when everything seemed helpless, they prevailed time and time again until at long last, the hold the System Lords had over the Milky Way Galaxy was broken. They even destroyed the Replicators, a threat even the Asgard couldn't have defeated and not only that, the humans saved the Asgard time and time again and didn't ask for anything in return.
The Asgard had likewise defended and saved Earth time after time and soon, the two races formed an unbreakable bond of friendship and trust. The Asgard had even lent some of their older technologies to the humans as a thank you for saving their lives.
The Asgard had never seen such nobility and unending resolve to help others in human kind since the Ancients had left this plane of existence. So many of those serving at the SGC had proven themselves to be people of exceptional moral standards and it would seem, this new human was no different.
"The Asgard will gladly take this opportunity to strength the bonds between our two people. Once we have completely cured ourselves of the cellular degeneration, we shall lend our aid and our minds to helping the Tau'ri." Thor said, with the other Council members nodding as well.
Gloval then said, "Then take the Flowers of Life and the scientific notes with my blessing. I hope you find the cure quickly."
"Captain, permission to join the Asgard to help them in developing their cure." Zor said.
Gloval thought long and hard about that one. On one hard, he didn't want to loose one of his greatest scientists, but at the same time getting the Asgard back to full strength was a much more important goal and so Gloval sighed and said, "Very well Zor. You have my permission."
Zor then said, "I wish to offer my help to the Asgard in creating this cure. Since I created the science you are going to be using, my expertise and usefulness will be without equal."
Thor nodded and said, "We welcome anyone to aid us in helping develop this cure. We will be most grateful for your help Zor."
Zor nodded and then Thor turned back to Gloval and said, "You assistance to the Asgard in helping us find a cure will not be forgotten. Thank you Captain Gloval."
And then with a flash, Thor and the other members of the High Council, along with Zor and the Flower of Life with Zor's scientific notes all vanished in a blinding flash of light, leaving nothing behind them as they vanished.
Gloval then got a call from Vanessa saying, "Sir, the Asgard vessel is moving away from us and is now entering Hyperspace."
"Understood." Gloval said as he then turned back to the SGC members.
"Well this has been the tour of the Macross. Let us go back to Earth to continue our talks." Gloval said as he began to walk towards the bridge, closely followed the SGC members.
The Macross was then ordered back to Earth and with a simple ignition of her sublight engines, the massive warship flew back towards that blue and green marble.
Events that should not be happening are occurring, with a new hope that the last of the Four Great races might continue on being the beacon of light and hope they have always been.
The SGC and the ADF have butted heads, but have come to an acceptable agreement. With the two groups working together now, the future of not only Earth and the Milky Way Galaxy, but also Pegasus and possibly the rest of universe, now looks a lot brighter.
And that is it!
I really liked adding in the Cyclone for this chapter, it is a really cool power armor in my opinion.
Also we finally got to see the SGC and ADF finally come to a head and agree on something. It is not going to be easy, but the two groups will learn to work together now and build a brighter future together.
Also we finally got to see an appearance of Thor, one of my all time favorite sci-fi characters. I just loved that small little grey alien, he was such a good guest character and I nearly cried when he finally died. But at least he went out in a badass way. I mean, taking down several Ori ships is no easy feat, even if it did require blowing up a planet to do so. May you find rest in Valhalla, little buddy.
But in my story, the Asgard will never die! Ever! So don't expect me to do killing them off ever.
The Asgard and the SGC and the ADF will now be working closer together towards building a brighter future, always exciting.
And that is it, so as always, if you have comments, criticism, or concerns, send me a P.M. or leave a review, always appreciated.
Until next time, this is StrikeFreedom10, signing out.
PLUS ULTRA!