Children of the Ancients

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Jaepheth
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Children of the Ancients

Post by Jaepheth »

NOTES: I'm not sure how well this writing style's going to work, so may continue with it, or I may switch to a more classic style. I wish I were more familiar with Trek and the EU, but I'll work with what I have... and make up the rest. So feel free to correct me, I'll try to do my homework on things before writing them down, but you know how things are. I already know, though, that I'm going to have to do some revisionist history with the Trek timeline. Well, enjoy... hopefully.

Children of the Ancients
*********

Chapter 1
****

~ Final permits and funding secured, we'll begin excavating the site next week. I've decided to write the events of this expedition down for posterity. Who knows? maybe we'll find something.

~ DELAYS!!!! As it turns out, the building supports are in worse shape than anyone expected. Luckily, insurance companies will pick up the tab in fixing them. Better to fix it now than let the building fall later. Contractors said it'll take a week, so I expect to be able to move on with things next month.

~ Initial sensor sweeps were inconclusive, the rock strata here is unlike any other on Coruscant, so I guess we'll have to dig through to see what's down there. It could take awhile seeing as how we could only get the old Mark IIs, though I guess in a time of civil war we were lucky to get that.

~ Rock, rock, rock. how thick could this stuff be? I paid a visit to the geo sciences department today to try and identify/date this stuff. They told me it's volcanic in nature, but displays an unusual crystalline structure, they've requested I forward as much of it to them as I can. I suppose someone aught to get something out of this dig. As to it's age, they would only hazard a guess at a million or so years... I swear, that's their answer to everything.

~ Finally broke through the rock layer today. Scanners show what could possibly be a structure! But it's a kilometer away from our tunnel. On the bright side, this sand and gravel is easier to dig through than scan through. In galactic news, the war is finally over; apparently the Rebels threw pretty much everything they had into the battle of Endor. Maybe now we can get some decent equipment.

~ ABOLUTELY WONDERFUL! My request for a Mark III has been answered with a MARK IV! Plus more staff, droids, and a hefty new grant! Though part of me wonders why the Emperor would take such a keen interest in my work.... oh well, what do I care.

~ It IS a structure, marvelous! It sat in a domed portion of rock, as though some sort of force field protected the structure. Evidence of such technology from so long ago has never been conclusive, if only my old archeology professor could see me now! My team has begun the tenuous process of cataloging all the artifacts.

~ Well, as if the rock hiding this site wasn't fascinating enough, I've apparently discovered another heretofore unknown substance; maybe I'm in the wrong field of study? Many of the artifacts are made from a quartzite material unlike anything else in the galaxy. It seems to have the most intriguing ability to absorb and store energy. My dig has suddenly sparked the attention of quite a few research departments.

~ It appears that what I had believed to be decorative markings could be writing! One of my droids pointed out syntactical patterns in the markings. I spoke to the head of the linguistics department and have secured use of their best translation mainframes. We'll begin uploading every scrap of information we can find, perhaps in a few decades we'll be able to translate what these ancient beings saw fit to engrave on their dwellings.

~ A very odd discovery today. In what appears to be the primary focus of the site, we found large, engraved stones covering a shallow chamber. It's made of the quartzite material that's been dubbed 'Palpatinium' (Sucking up much are we Department of Galactic Standards?) and as a result we are unable to get a clearer scan of what could be on the other side.

~ ALREADY?! Apparently, translating with no starting point and no references is a lot easier when the language syntax patterns match archaic dialects of Galactic Standard, how wonderfully convenient. Hopefully this breakthrough will speed the discovery process along. On a personal note, the Emperor's increasing interest in this project is a bit... unsettling.

~ The translations are proceeding slower than expected; many of the terms used are undecipherable. The most interesting part was on the cap stones. Something about a galaxy wide scourge... possibly plague. Apparently, this is where the survivors began again. There's also a bit about the 'space door' or 'celestial path' being closed forever. The mere fact that these people traversed the stars is impressive. We've yet to find any evidence of starship technology though. Although on the other hand, the site is so old, it is remarkable we've found anything at all. Perhaps the near constant successes of this dig has raised our expectations too much. Tomorrow, we'll lift the stones.

~ Strange, under the stones was found a large ring. It is made up almost entirely of Palpatinium and is engraved on an inner ring with a multitude of different symbols; each is completely unique and does not appear to resemble any of the writings in the rest of the ruins. It's quite large, somewhere around 10 meters in diameter. I'm thinking it's a religious relic, or perhaps a monument to remember the 'plague' that the writing around here seems obsessed with.

~Just excavated a medical research facility, the writings speak of a “counter plague” to prevent the spread of a disease. Analysis of the research equipment shows viral or bacterial engineering. The DNA patterns frozen in some of the memory crystals have been sent to labs for analysis. Perhaps we’ll learn exactly what they were doing. The writings also seem to imply that this station wasn’t the only location working on the problem, and that the other research stations were working on other solutions.

~Unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable. The DNA in the crystal matches almost perfectly the DNA of Midichlorians. Could this ancient race have been responsible for the origins of the most prolific form of life in this galaxy? The midichlorians are apparently attracted to the same living DNA that made these people susceptible to the plague, and by reproducing and consuming resources faster than the pathogen, they were able to starve the plague by creating an innocuous replacement. It’s starting to become clear why the Emperor would be interested in this race’s research… but how did he know?

~Found some symbols that match the symbols on the ring we found earlier with a reference to something called "Terra". They were engraved on the wall of a sealed chamber. But only eight of the symbols were listed. What could this mean?

~OUTRAGEOUS! THIS IS MY FIND! MY DIG! MINE!!!! He can’t do this… he can’t! MILITARIZED! A matter of galactic security?! How could a million years old site be a matter of galactic security!? All my work, all my finds… classified by order of the Emperor himself… everything, but this journal, my precious journal…


****

Federation Report, Stardate 52586.4
Tremors reported by sensor net in the Old-America Nature Preserve. The epicenter was reported to be on, or under Cheyenne Mountain. The sensors haven’t been calibrated since the beginning of the Dominion War (thankfully that's winding down), so more detailed information is impossible. Since the location of the tremor isn’t on or near any fault line and was fairly weak, it is my hypothesis that it was nothing more than likely a large rockslide.
-EndofReport
Last edited by Jaepheth on 2005-04-06 02:10pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Post by Dalton »

I like where you're going. BTW, as far as I know Cheyenne Mountain is a single mountain, not a range.
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Post by CaptainChewbacca »

So... are the SG-verse and the Trek verse the same? That's... gonna take some writing. But I like it.
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Post by Jaepheth »

well, if I ever warrant a cleaned up version, I'll be sure to fix that, but editing it now would mean everyone who reads it tomorrow would have no clue what you're talking about. of course... a lot can happen in a century :twisted: (yeah... I'm doing what the pros do and make it up as I go along, covering up mistakes with future revelations so I can say "see, i didn't mess up, you were just impatient!")
CaptainChewbacca wrote:So... are the SG-verse and the Trek verse the same? That's... gonna take some writing. But I like it.
yep, I've got all my plot devices and explanations ready to go... just have to find the time to do it in.


EDIT: ah, but what the hell, fixed.
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Post by Duken »

The writing style works for this. Keep writing.
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Post by Crazedwraith »

Very good. I liked the "archeological notebook" style.
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Post by Murazor »

The Ancients created the Force??? COOL!!!

In the other hand and to save my poor self from those who see midichlorians as an abomination, it can be said that both the plague and the midichlorians feed from the Force and that the midichlorians developed a symbiotic relation with Force-users in order to protect them from the plague.
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Post by Jaepheth »

NOTES: Ok, I'm still experimenting with this vague/abstract/non-linear writing style, and this one may need a few tweaks seeing as how I wrote it REALLY late and may look at it different when I'm coherent. I think the no character names and few specifics allows the reader to more aptly apply their imagination. But I'll probably have to crack on that as soon as I want to add some real action. Enjoy...



Chapter 2
****
MEMO: MONTHLY PROGRESS REPORT
Sender: On-site Lead
Recipient: Special Operations Administration
Operation Farplane
CLASSIFIED

Final translations are complete and the droids assure me that everything that can logically be translated has been. It is evident that the race that inhabited these ruins were exceedingly advanced in both their science and technology. Astonishingly, many of the artifacts found are still operational. If you remember from last month’s report, we reported that many of the artifacts would become active after being touched by certain members of our research team. After further research we discovered that these individuals are more sensitive to the Force than the others. This has led us to the conclusion that many, or possibly all, of these ancient Coruscans were force sensitive.
Most of the devices’ functions are currently being researched. However, one device stands out above all the others. The large ring the good doctor (rest his soul) found underneath the main chamber appears to be much more than he suspected. A device with matching symbols was discovered in another room which when used in conjunction with the ring itself served to control the device. When we realized the ring was not just decorative or monumental, but an actual functioning piece of technology, we had it sent to Area 50 for analysis. After a few days we received a communiqué reporting that this ring most likely is used for the creation of artificial, one-way wormholes to a receiving ring. This may explain the lack of starship technology at the site, the inhabitants used wormholes to travel. But the real kicker is that the translated texts verify that this was the only station world in this GALAXY. Since this Galaxy lacks their most desired natural resource, Palpatinium, they did not see any reason to inhabit any other worlds. These people obviously had ships that could travel intergalactic distances (how else would this ring get here?), but if receiving rings still exist, we could also travel to other galaxies. The symbols on the ring correspond to positions in space, and by inputing a proper sequence into the device, one is able to create a wormhole to the specified destination ring. If more of this ancient technology could be found at another location, we may find the ships this ancient race possessed, and that would give our fleets a method of travel between galaxies, something I know the Emperor has been looking forward to for some time. I believe the eight symbols found earlier will take us to a planet called “Terra” we should start with a single, unarmed probe. If nothing is found on the other side, then we could send storm troopers and science teams to try and discover either another location or more information. Should this advanced race be contacted on the other side, we should begin immediate diplomatic relations and negotiations (hence the unarmed probe). We must also determine the condition of the ring on the other side, while we may be able to simulate the control device, creating an intergalactic wormhole will require the full power of a class IV hypermatter reactor, and there’s no guarantee that those sent through the ring will find such power on the other end and would need to be able to hold their position while we ship a new reactor to them and assemble it piece by piece. Because of the obvious security issues, we suggest the ring be placed on a specially designed station near the event horizon of a black hole, should anything go catastrophically wrong, the station can self destruct by plunging itself into the hole, taking the ring with it.
All that we know about this ‘Terra’ is that the scientists working on the plague there were attempting to cure themselves of the plague by modifying their own DNA structure to remove whatever it was that the pathogen was attracted to or fed off of. Such an approach was considered by the researchers here as foolhardy and unthinkable as it would sever them from the ‘field of living minds’ (translation uncertain, but could possibly be referring to the Force?).
Now as to some of the smaller devices found……

****
Imperial Military Holo-Net

Please enter your username and passcode:

ID: GRH-537
Pass: ##########

Checking…..

ACCESS GRANTED

./>send form331_x41 volunteer_sign_up@ICO

Form submitted to Imperial Covert Operations
Status update: Volunteering for Covert Operations
Checking Personnel files…
CLEARED
Checking psych profiles…
CLEARED
Checking non-military associations…
PERSONAL INFORMATION SUBMITTED
Status update: Cleared for Covert Operations
Suggested clearance level: Xi

Extrapolating best assignment…….
DONE

Transferring relevant data files….
DONE

Assignment: OPERATION FARPLANE
(Administrative level: Gamma, Intelligence level: Omega, Military level: Xi)

Secure Travel Plan:
Standard Military Transport: Corellia
Standard Military Transport: Byss
Civilian Transport (incognito): Coruscant
Covert Military Transport: Csilla
Covert Military Transport: Dielea

Displaying tour of duty brief: OPERATION FARPLANE

Greetings men, and welcome to Operation Farplane,
If you’re reading this, it means ICO has assigned you to our little project out in the Dielea system, I won’t be surprised if you haven’t heard of it. What it was when it was first charted was a system with no natural resources of any importance, and a star at the edge of collapse. The star has long since collapsed and taken all the planets with it, making it one of many very non-interesting places on the far edge of the Unknown Regions, perfect for our purposes. For the last three months the Empire has built, under the strictest security, a large space station with enough military and science technology to begin probing another galaxy.
Towards the end of The Galactic Civil War, a Professor of Archeology at the University of Coruscant unearthed an alien device capable of creating a stable, one-way wormhole across vast distances. We have managed to send a small probe to another galaxy by way of this device (see attached holo-files). There is not much information available about our destination, other than the architecture does not match that found with the device, and appears to be long abandoned. Based on the atmospheric readings and the decay of the corpses on the other side, we estimate it has been abandoned for about 400 years. The device itself sits in a medium sized room that is apparently sealed by thick metal doors in the ceiling, and three sides. The two doors to the left and right of the device are obviously for standard entry to the room, while the one in front of the device is too high up to be a door, more than likely it is a blast shield for an observation window. The door in the ceiling indicates that the device was lowered into the room (none of the other doors are big enough), and so it is believed that this room rests under the surface of a planet. The analysis equipment on the probe indicates these doors are made out of an alloy of elemental iron, carbon, and other trace elements, and the walls appear to be made of aggregate held together by an alloy grid frame and chemical adhesive; indicating a very primitive society. However, given that the ring device exists in that galaxy, we must assume that the potential for more advanced technology also exists. Command has authorized us to assume hostile territory. Therefore, our first goal is to mask the energy and seismic signatures given off by the device. Our second priority is to discreetly evaluate conditions on the destination world, and in the destination galaxy; determining any threat to this galaxy, and reporting back through scheduled activations from this end. Should conditions be favorable, we will move on to establishing a way back here as well as a more permanent facility there. I won’t lie to you, there’s a possibility that this could be a one way trip, but if you’ve been assigned to Pioneer team, then your psych and personal file indicates that won’t be a problem for you.

./>secupload pdd
SECURE UPLOAD BEGUN….
DESTINATION: Personal Data Device
DESTINATION APPROVED, UPLOADING….
UPLOAD COMPLETE
./>logout
LOGGING OFF….
SHUTTING DOWN TRANSMITION PATH….
SECURING USED MEMORY MATRICEES….
RE-INITIALIZING CONSOLE….

Imperial Military Holo-Net

Please enter your username and passcode:

ID:
Pass:

*****

Personal Log, Stardate 52590.1

It’s too late to be up… or too early. I think my eyes are playing tricks on me, thought I saw another rockslide… but it only lasted a second or two and stopped abruptly, too abruptly. I guess I’ll bite the bullet and volunteer to recalibrate the sensors tomorrow, this abstract data is grating on my nerves. I’ll check the sensor logs tomorrow evening (if I have nothing better to do), but right now I just need to sleep. Damnable ranger station posting… I swear, next time I punch a cadet, I’ll be sure to ask him if he’s the spoiled brat of an admiral first… probably do it anyway, but at least I’ll be less surprised.
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Post by Crazedwraith »

Very Intresting. SO the SGC seems to have been wiped out? How? the Aschen bioweapon perhaps? Write more right more now.
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Post by Jaepheth »

Notes: Switching gears here a bit. Started some more live actionish writing. Although, I've still managed to avert assigning any names (except pre-established characters) hopefully it doesn't detract from the story at all. If it does... well... maybe fix that in the second edition, along with making the Federation shoot first :P :roll: :lol:

Chapter 3
****
I took one more glance around the room. It still seemed odd, the optical HUD inside the helmet was disorienting. I’m usually bad with names, but now I just look at someone and the IFF identifies their name, rank, operating number, and displays the information next to them. The storm troopers were going over the weapons crates, the Officers were mulling about doing last minute check lists, pretending the storm trooper armor didn’t bother them at all. The science team was doing its best to go over its equipment, but wasn’t used to the armor. I guess it makes sense to issue storm trooper armor to everyone when going into an unknown galaxy, especially when all that is known is that someone was fleeing a plague of galactic proportions. All that aside I still count myself lucky to be here. It’s not every archeology grad that gets their first job with an Imperial science team on a top secret project, though it probably helped to have been on the original team that discovered the ancient city beneath Coruscant.

A single electronic beep signaled an imminent PA message. “All Pioneer team members, make your final checks and prepare to disembark”
***
The commander stepped away from the transmitter and turned to address the systems operator.
“Do it.”
“Yes, sir.” The operator swiftly replied as he turned to his control console.
Soon, the base alarm was sounding as the great device came to life, its inner ring turning to align the coordinate symbols in the proper order. The ring paused briefly as it locked the coordinates, one by one, into its internal mechanisms. As it locked the final symbol into place there was a loud rushing sound as a burst of shimmering energy exploded from the device settling into a flat water-like surface filling the inside of the ring.
The commander turned his attention from the view screen to the communications officer, “Activate the probe, retrieve live video feed.”
“Sir, the room looks the same as it did the last two times. Apparently no one has discovered the ‘cloaking’ device, nor does the droid report any changes in its vicinity since we sent either object through.”
The commander turned once again to his transmitter. “Pioneer team, you are go for launch.” “And good luck,” the commander added under his breath.
***
“Ok people, this is it. Storm Team Alpha will proceed through the gate first and secure the immediate area. Once we give the all clear signal, the remaining Storm teams except for Gamma will then follow. Gamma will go through once all equipment and science personnel are through. See you on the other side.” At that, five troopers approached the ring, with only the slightest hesitation, they stepped through. After a few moments the rest of Pioneer Team received clearance to proceed, the Imperial personnel and equipment began filing through the ring’s water-like event horizon.

*****

“Sir… SIR!”

O’neill snapped out of his trance, “Yes… What is it Carter?”
“Sir, with our increasing consumption of naquadah and trinium it won’t be long before our current sources are unable to meet demand.”
“I’m well aware of that Carter, as a matter of fact I just spent all night on the phone with various government big wigs who were telling me how ‘imperative’ it is that we secure more off-world mining sites.”

“Well, sir, if Dr. Felger’s matter conversion chamber works like he says, those problems will be over.”

“Yes… Felger… Remind me again, why haven’t I fired him yet?”

“Because he hasn’t messed up since the Avenger incident. And this new design of his may actually work, you see it uses a...”

“Carter!… I don’t need the details, just make sure he doesn’t blackout the base… again.”

“Yes sir.”

At that moment the bases’ alarms went off and the PA system crackled to life, “General O’neill to the control room. General O’niell, please report to the control room immediately.”

“Now if you’ll excuse me, Carter, they’re playing my song.”
*****
“So what happened here?”
The fusion cutting torch ignited with a pop and a hiss as the trooper began cutting through another security door.
“Don’t know, the science team’s working on it. Fortunately a lot of this stuff was built to last for a long time, so they’ve got the droids pouring over all the computer cores and documents they can find.”
They completed cutting out a section of the door, and peered into the dark corridor beyond. The eerie green hue of the night vision illuminated the hallway. Blankets, trash, and other miscellaneous debris littered the hallway. Slumped against the tunnel wall laid a raggedly clothed skeleton with a large hole in the back of its skull, a sidearm laid in the bony fingers of its right hand.
“Looks like another suicide, get some droids in here to go through this stuff for relevant information and clean this mess up. Alright, let’s check the rest of this section and call it a day.”
****
“What’s going on sergeant?” Jack asked as he entered the command center.
“Sir, we’ve received a priority transmission over the hard line, all US military bases are ordered to go into immediate lockdown and to be at full alert. As of 1300, we are at DEFCON 1.”
“Ok, cancel all outbound gate traffic, recall offworld teams on reconnaissance missions and then dial up the Alpha site and let them know they could be expecting company. And somebody get the pentagon on the horn and find out what the hell’s going on.”
“Yes sir. Initializing dialing program.” The gate operator replied as the inner ring of the Stargate began to turn.
“Chevron one encoded, chevron one engaged.”
Daniel Jackson walked into the room with Teal’c behind him, “Jack, what’s going on?”
“Chevron two encoded, chevron two engaged.”
Jack looked at Daniel in response to Daniel’s inquiry, “Don’t know, but apparently we’re at war.”
“Chevron three encoded, chevron three engaged.”
Teal’c regarded O’neill with a puzzled look, “What nation of this world would pose enough threat to warrant such widespread military response?”
“Chevron four encoded, chevron four engaged.”
“Well just because we’re at DEFCON 1 doesn’t mean we’re expecting an all out war, it could just be a response to some event that threatens national security.” came Daniel’s response.
“Chevron five encoded, chevron five engaged.”
“What’s up?” asked Samantha as she entered the room.
“Your nation has gone to its highest state of military readiness.” Teal’c informed her.
“Chevron six encoded, chevron six engaged.”
“Sir!”a young lieutenant snapped a salute to O’neill, “We are unable to reach the pentagon, and no other base seems to know any more than we do.”
“Keep trying lieutenant, someone has to know something.” O’neill replied as he gave a dismissive salute.
“Yes sir.”

“Chevron seven encoded, chevron seven loc… chevron seven will not engage.”
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Post by Dalton »

The first section of chapter 2 seems too heavy on exposition to be believable for a message, and the message from ICO should have been an order to report for assignment, IMO. I'm also uncomfortable with the characterizations in the last part of chapter 3. Otherwise it's holding my interest. I'd also suggest settling into a writing style pretty soon...switching between POVs like you're doing is very jarring.
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Post by CaptainChewbacca »

What's going on? I'm confused...
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Post by SpecWar826 »

we are probably seeing why the base is desereted
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Post by Jaepheth »

I think what I'm trying to do is create a pulp-fictionesque story, so the multiple view points, and the chaotic scene switching, should create a cohesive narrative within the reader's head once all the information is available...

but that may be asking too much patience/work on behalf of the reader.

Yeah, I knew the first part of chapter 2 was laying it on pretty thick, but it needed to be done so I tried to shortcut it, for a re-write I guess I'll divide the relevant information into several different forms, so it's more believable. The idea behind that second part was that ICO duty was on a volunteer basis. Could you expand on what you mean by 'characterizations'?

So, to re-hash the story, we're seeing a flashback of the final days of the SGC while the Imperials clean out the base.

I've played with the idea of just creating a flash cartoon instead of text, I consider myself a better director than a writer
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Post by Prozac the Robert »

I'd recomend carrying on almost as is, or at least for some portions of the story. It's a nice change from other fanfics.
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Post by Jaepheth »

NOTES: Well, I think I'm going to try to keep the journalish type of writig, that way I provide a sort of abstract outline and the story is as good as the reader's imagination.
****
Chapter 4:
****

The following is the last entries in a diary found near a young female corpse in a storage room in a remote portion of the SGC:

~
...The answer must be in the energy feed back loop. I'll run the numbers again to see if I can confirm it, but without better testing equipment it'll be difficult to get the resolution I require. When I get back to earth tomorrow, I'll look into "requisitioning" some proper equipment from the boys working with the naquada reactors (why do they get all the cool toys?).

~
Ugh... lab work can be so dull without breakthroughs. Maybe Jen's right, maybe I do need a break; or at least an Earth threatening event, that would liven up the place a bit. Hmm... maybe I will take up Lucas' offer to "grab a cup of coffee sometime."

~
No... no... sweet merciful heavens no... not during my lifetime... why? WHY?!?! No warning, no escalation leading up to it... just.... the end... I swear I felt the death before I'd heard the news... it was horrible... like thousands of voices crying out in terror, and then... suddenly silenced. My father always liked to joke about the coming of World War III. Somehow, it suddenly doesn't seem so funn#a'p6uw[05s'n ....Oh dear, I think the mountain just got hit...

~
We got nuked again, luckily we're many stories underground and beneath a mountain, but as for the people on the surface or the top most levels of the base...
Anyways, we're stuck here, and we could be stuck here a very long time. Appearently the Stargate mysteriously stopped working altogether, Gen. O'neill has made fixing the gate top priority for all remaining science personnel.

~
There's a pool going for who bombed the mountain. I placed $50 on Russia and China, I'm thinking when they found out about the Stargate and it's location, they pointed a few ICBMs at us just in case something went wrong over here. I don't think we'll ever know for sure, it's just a way to pass the time.
We're still trying to dial addresses, but NONE of them seem to be working. So now we're going to shut it down and start running thorough diagnostics. How could every gate address become unreachable so quickly? There must be something wrong at this end.

~
According to the diagnostics, everything is running fine. The gate is fine, the dialing computer is fine, the data and power cables are fine... the coffee is getting bad, but I doubt that's the cause... still... couldn't hurt to fix it anyway. Carter is assigning people to pour over the eleven hours of logs between the last known established wormhole and the first failed attempt. Whatever went wrong, it had to go wrong in that time frame. And it didn't just affect our ability to dial the gate, others should have tried to dial in by now. Whatever is wrong, it completely isolated us from the gate network.

~
Lieutenant Harry R. Medlin was found this morning in the barracks... dead of a self inflicted gun shot wound. It's a shame, he'll be missed. I think I know why he did it though, his wife and kids were in D.C., which had to be a prime target... He just wouldn't listen when people tried to tell them they might still be alive. What's worse is, more people may now be thinking what he was thinking. If we don't get that gate working, we have no way out of this mountain.

~
I think I found it... 43 minutes and 27 seconds after the last established wormhole, the sub-DHD simulation computer logged an anomalous reading. It looks like a wormhole just started to connect, but didn't... then there's a lot weird data following that... this has to be it...

~
It seems to be an Ancient's form of 'machine code', for lack of a better term. It seems to be meant for a DHD, but our dialing computer couldn't interpret it so it just dumped the data. We're now focusing our efforts on reading the data... this could take awhile...

~
A lot of the soldiers are looking to get to the surface for help. Unfortunately, thousands of tons of stone and debris disagree with their plans.
I don't think I could handle looking at the surface, I just can't imagine a sea of glass where those beautiful trees used to be.

~
This is starting to piss me off, it's like the numbers are making a conscious effort to mock me.
One thing still bothers me though; if the data was dumped, then how did it possibly corrupt our systems? ...where's a person stuffed with all the knowledge of the Ancients when you need one?

~
Well, I think we've got everything decoded, we're running it through a simulation now. We've never run such a detailed simulation of the gate before, it'll be tomorrow before we get the results and know exactly what that data was supposed to do. It's hard to sleep though, everyone's nerves are on end. Everyone's trying to rationalize a logical scenario that explains how their loved ones survived and are doing well. I know my family, for the most part, should be ok because they live on that ranch in the middle of nowhere growing vineyards for their precious wines... I guess I never did appreciate the Picard family buisness as much as I should have... I wish I could've told them my real job... daddy would be proud his little girl was the first in the family to leave the solar system...

~
Who would... why would... How could someone do something like this? Why would anyone want to destroy the gate network and all of its worlds? The program is similar to the modified Avenger program that uses correlative updates to spread, but instead of messing with the coordinate systems it instructs the DHD to begin charging the gate... the safeties are disabled, and the gate charges until it explodes. So it wasn't our gate that malfunctioned after all... but that means that every gate connected to a DHD is... gone.

~
The gate is useless now, our only hope is to get to the surface ourselves. Even if we did get to the surface, where would we go? There aren't enough haz-mat suits for everyone, and what good would sending a few people for help do? Who could help us after a nuclear war? Maybe the Asguard could help, Carter is sure that the destruction was limited to our galaxy. But why would they help? Why should they help? They may easily assume we're dead. If they don't assume we died with the gate system, the holocaust upstairs may convince them we're not worth saving. Our only other hope is Prometheus... but it was scheduled to be on P3S-117 at the time the gates would've started exploding.

~
Time... it always seemed like there was never enough... now there's too much and it's even worse. A lot of us have taken to speculating about... well, anything. A popular topic is "Who destroyed the galaxy?" most seem to think it was Anubis. He would've had the means and the motive. Enraged at being trapped on an ice world, he floated over to the local DHD, then used a little ascended magic and Ancient knowledge to rig up and launch the program. I wonder if he got the last laugh... who decides who wins in this scenario? On the one hand, he did destroy the gate network, but on the other hand, he failed to destroy us. Surely there are some survivors on the surface, together, they may very well decide to work together for once. They'll raise a new society that will one day leave this world again, it just won't be with a stargate. Hmm... I wonder if anyone still knows about the stargate. I wonder if anyone will come looking. Will they forget? Will it all have been for nothing?

~
Things are bad, and they're getting worse. A lot of people are getting depressed, the suicide count is now... I don't want to think about it. But the worst part is, I think some of the people are starting to question O'neill's command. They think that if the US government is gone, and our communications are cut off, then the only government that exists to us is the government in this base. I don't understand their line of thinking, who could possibly be a better leader than O'neill? Of course... no one's really thinking clearly anymore.

~
O'neill has ordered all firearms to be secured in locked armories with the codes changed so that only he can open them... a lot of people aren't too happy about that. Some were even whispering about... no... it's only talk, they can't actually mean it.

~
I don't know how much longer I can take this. Doesn't the bad news ever stop? The tunnel we were digging collapsed, three guys were in it when it happened... we can't give up though, we have to get out, or die tryin... no, we WILL get out. To give up hope is the same as suicide now.

~
I thought, maybe... if I closed the door I could make the sounds stop... but I can still hear the gunshots. Why wouldn't they listen? Why do they have to fight? I... I need sleep; the whole bottle should do it... Mom... dad... I'm sorry... I... I just can't... mommy... I'm scared...
Last edited by Jaepheth on 2005-01-03 06:56pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Prozac the Robert
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Post by Prozac the Robert »

Ah, wow. That's good stuff.
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Post by CaptainChewbacca »

Cool, but... the Alpha Site and the Prommie should still be around.

Also, didn't WWIII happen in 2040?
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Post by Jaepheth »

I thought the Alpha site would still utilize a DHD, at this point Prometheus is just MIA, I'm saying it was scheduled to be on a planet at about the time the gates would have been exploding... but we all know ow schedules are prone to change :twisted:

as to WWIII, yeah, I had to tweak the Trek timeline a bit. The Eugenics war never happened, and the Atomic Horror and WWIII kind of got thrown together and pushed back a bit.

Revisionist history, or whatever, I don't think I can really explain it, that's why there are no dates attatched... but if the Trek writers don't give a damn about continuity, why should I?
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Post by Xon »

This is some create work. Please continue!

Having the stargates continue to biuld a charge untill they exploded would result in a multi-gigaton explosion in the very least.
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Post by Jaepheth »

ggs wrote: Having the stargates continue to biuld a charge untill they exploded would result in a multi-gigaton explosion in the very least.
2000-3000 megatons according to episode 601 (Redemption)

edit: though I really think that's an underestimation, because, in my mind, an exploding stargate should be at least equivalent to a single volley from a heavy turbolaser, but that's just me talking.
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Post by CaptainChewbacca »

I'm pretty sure the Alpha site also doesn't have a DHD, but I can't be sure of that.

Did it spread all the way to the Pegasus gates?
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Post by Falkenhorst »

This story kicks ass. I demand more.
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Post #114 @ Fri Oct 18, 2002 4:44 pm

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Post by Akira »

CaptainChewbacca wrote:I'm pretty sure the Alpha site also doesn't have a DHD, but I can't be sure of that.
It has a DHD and a computer system. Don't know if the DHD is connected to the gate.
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Post by Xon »

Jaepheth wrote:
ggs wrote: Having the stargates continue to biuld a charge untill they exploded would result in a multi-gigaton explosion in the very least.
2000-3000 megatons according to episode 601 (Redemption)

edit: though I really think that's an underestimation, because, in my mind, an exploding stargate should be at least equivalent to a single volley from a heavy turbolaser, but that's just me talking.
One thing to remember is; In that case there was an ancient device which was somehow tricking the stargate on the otherside not to flush the energy buffer. And the quote was purely the energy released when the local buffer overloaded and dumped the energy into the area around it.

Not on the stargate itself blowing up like a naquadah bomb.
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"Reality has a well-known liberal bias." ~ Stephen Colbert
"One Drive, One Partition, the One True Path" ~ ars technica forums - warrens - on hhd partitioning schemes.
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