Starborn Smith [Stargate, Battletech Multicross]

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POV: Annelise Koenig. Three Days Later.

I knew something was wrong the moment I stepped out of the Stargate. The Curators had said they would be waiting for my return, and it was clear that they had meant it. Arthur had mentioned this before, you could redirect the contents of a stargate without requiring the contents to actually be rematerialized.

I had expected to find myself in the markets of Lucia. Instead, I was met with a bronze colored wall and a set of several meter tall rhomboid pillars. Between the pillars was a blank space which led directly into the void of space. 

I lightly reached my hand out and just as quickly snapped it back as a grid of cyan and white hexes covered my vision. As soon as my hand had drawn back, the view of the outside immediately became visible. Looking down, the massive dome of the station's central mass extended for kilometers into the distance. Massive angular panels were arranged at regular intervals along the outer edge of the station. 

I turned my attention out to the set of massive beams that extended from the station. Just beyond them I could barely make out the shape of an angular golden ship, its long cylindrical hull dotted with bulbous domes, segmentations, and the occasional protrusion. From its flanks extended a pair of massive blue sails easily just as tall as the ship was long. I watched as the vessel turned away from the station and began to accelerate. 

I turned away from the window to examine the rest of the room. The Serkha had come with me, and were examining the room with cautious optimism. The room itself felt like an ancient Terran monastery, in feel, if not quite in appearance. The bronze walls were carved with intricate geometric curves in an almost completely random pattern, revealing blue and white structures beneath the walls. 

Most interesting was the massive metal structure at the center of the room; considering its size, shape, and the fact that I had just walked out of it, it must have been a Stargate. It was clear that it had been constructed by the same people who built the station I was now in. It was covered in the same marks as the rest of the room, but it also appeared to have six equidistant extensions, and presumably a seventh buried in the floor. 

At the edge of my hearing, the sound of footsteps became audible coming from one of the hallways which led into the room. Several seconds later, the same avian who had spoken to me on Lucia, as well as the elf … considering what Arthur had said about the 40K franchise, she was likely an Aeldari.

The elf narrowed her eyes at me and smiled. I couldn't help myself, I shuddered. Everything about the smile was… unnatural. From the way her eyes narrowed, to the way her lips curved. With great difficulty, I turned my eyes away. 

The Avian bowed his head very slightly to me. "Welcome to our Enclave."

I nodded back to him. "Thank you for inviting us. I was expecting to meet again on Lucia, not here." I said, gesturing out the window. 

He nodded. "Consider it a sign of trust." he gestured behind himself. "This way please."

A short walk down the bronze hallways and we arrived at a large room with a central table. The avian gestured for me to take a seat at the near end, while he and the elf walked around to the other side and took their seat. 

Beginning the conversation, the avian nodded to me. "Do you know what you wish to request?"

I slowly pulled out a piece of paper and slid it across the table. "This is a list of precursor species that we are aware of. If you are aware of them, then we can talk from there."

The Avian picked up the paper and started reading through it. The paper contained the names and short descriptions of precursor civilizations that Arthur had remembered from his previous life. The elf peered over the avian's shoulder. She raised an eyebrow as she continued to read through the list.

The birdlike eyes focused on me. He seemed to be considering me once again. "You are well informed."

I smiled lightly. The Bird continued. "We have a passing familiarity with the Baol, First League, Irassian Concordat, and Cybrex."

The bird seemed to stare at me for a moment. "We are also familiar with the Aeldari, the Necrontyr, and the Systems Commonwealth."

I couldn't remember what the System's Commonwealth was. Luckily, Egeria came to my rescue.

They were an intergalactic republic that was reformed from an empire.

I tapped my fingers. That meant that the Systems Commonwealth was actually real. 

Egeria continued. They were the ones who created Nova Bombs.

The tapping of my fingers stopped. Weapons the size of a nuke, capable of obliterating entire star systems. 

I wasted no time in making my request. "We want all the information you have on the Systems Commonwealth as well as the Baol."

The avian seemed like he was about to interrupt me, but I continued. "We would also like your assistance in getting into contact with the Asgard and a… person, they go by the name of Astrocreator Azaryn."

The bird began. "The value of the Datacore is insufficient for what you're interested in."

I raised an eyebrow. "Then what's your counter offer?"

He was silent for a long moment. "The Asgard have not been active in the Milky Way for several thousand years, but we do keep regular contact with the Astrocreator. We can attempt to prepare a meeting. We can also provide you information on the Baol as well as a basic history of the Systems Commonwealth."

I narrowed my eyes. "What about information on Nova Bombs?"

He shook his head. "You do not offer enough."

Egeria spoke to me. You should take this chance. I doubt you'll get a better one.

"Do you have contact with the Tok'ra high council?" I asked, with the idea fresh in my mind.

He stared at me for a few moments. "I would have figured you'd be the one in contact with them."

I narrowed my eyes, and Egeria took over. "You know who I am?" she asked, in the voice so regularly used by the Goa'uld.

The elf… She is most certainly one of these Aeldari, she said in my head. 

The elf narrowed her eyes. "Fascinating. So you know of my people then?"

Ahh. Right. A psychic race… how much had she seen in my head?

The Eldar smiled. "Just surface thoughts. Going deeper simply isn't possible without a great deal of pain."

Both of us scowled. How much had we given away? Egeria spoke, "Leave."

The Eldar looked at the avian, who just nodded at her. Shrugging, the Eldar stood. "Well, it's been a pleasure to meet such a legendary character. You'll be seeing more of me."

With that, she turned and we all watched in silence as she left the room. The avian continued speaking once the Eldar had left the room. "I must apologize for that. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Ra has done a great deal in attempting to hunt down our enclaves."

I hated to say it, but I could understand the rationale. He continued, "how do you plan to allow us access to the datacore?" 

I tapped my fingers. I wouldn't be surprised if he already knew, but I humored him nonetheless. "We captured one of Ra's Ha'tak. What do you need for access?"

"We have experience with Goa'uld datacores. All we need is to send three people to copy the contents of the core. We won't require more than 24 hours for the entire process."

I nodded. "We're ready to take them as soon as you're ready to send them."

He stared at me, "We will need to send the Eldar."

I stared blankly at him for several long moments, "No."

Egeria and I were both really struggling to understand his mannerisms, he seemed completely passive. "I am afraid this is non-negotiable. She is our leading expert on Goa'uld technology."

My scowl returned once more and silence filled the room. What could we get out of this? I began tapping my fingers on the table, before an idea hit me. "I want a list of all High Guard Warships to have ever been built, and their current status."

Without any hesitation, the avian replied. "Done."

- - -

POV: James Cromwell Four hours later.

I watched as the event horizon jumped to life. Annelise and the Serkha who had accompanied her were the first to exit. Following behind them was a rather strange group. 

At the front of the group was what only could have been an elf, along with her were a pair of humans. They all wore what appeared to be totally plain monk's robes, but the elf did have a pair of earrings, a triangle with five lines leaving the central bottom point. 

It took me a few seconds, but I was able to recall the emblem; it was the Symbol of the Aeldari species that Arthur had drawn for all of us just a few days prior. 

She looked around the inside of the Goa'uld facility. "The Goa'uld are quite enamoured with their pyramids. How absolutely drab."

Annelise walked up to me. "These are the people who will be making a copy of the Datacore for the Curators."

She looked particularly tense. She nodded, ever so slightly at the Eldar and whispered. "She's a telepath. Now, she's promised not to use her powers, but we're going to have to keep everyone we can away from her."

I stiffened. Right, Arthur had mentioned something about their entire race being psychics. I nodded at her. "Keep them here for a few moments. I'll go get everything prepared."

I turned around and walked to the door; the moment I was outside, I grabbed my radio and began speaking. "Move all necessary personnel out of the Ha'tak. We have a VIP coming by, and we do not want them to see any of us unless it becomes absolutely necessary. Am I understood?"

A round of affirmatives followed. I quickly rushed to Madam Thol's office to find her seemingly filing paperwork. "We have a problem."

She raised an eyebrow but nodded for me to continue. "We have the people from the curators, but they sent a telepath as one of their representatives."

She narrowed her eyes, before putting down her pen. "What do we know of this telepath?"

I shook my head. "Not much. She's a member of a basically immortal race. I've already begun moving my people out of their path; you'll probably want to do the same with your own."

She nodded. "Thank you for the heads up."

I nodded and radioed Annelise. "You're clear to enter the Ha'tak."

"Understood." Was the quick reply. I wasted no time and began making my way to the Ha'tak as well. 

With nothing left to do, I bit the bullet and made my way to the Ha'tak computer core. 

I entered the room to find the three curators busy unplugging several of the computer crystals and replacing them with other devices. It was interesting to watch, and I had no doubt Arthur would be… I cut that line of thought and returned my attention to the eldar. "Do you need any help?"

The Eldar smiled; her androgynous face almost took my breath away for a brief moment. "No, thank you. We've almost finished hooking up everything we require."

I nodded and prepared to leave. "I would make a request."

My face remained impassive as I waited for her to continue. "I'd wish to meet with a representative of this world, if that is at all possible."

I narrowed my eyes at him, but eventually nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

I left the ship to find Madam Thol speaking with some of the lead engineers for the dismantling project. She turned and nodded to me as I approached.

"Madam, I began. One of our guests would like to see you."

She raised an eyebrow, but nodded. "I assume it's this telepath? Let's go, it's not like I know anything actually important."

Once more, I returned to the core room. "May I introduce, Madam Thol of the Pangaran Republic."

Madam Thol offered her hand and the Eldar took it. "A pleasure to meet you madam, I am Aelryth Soryas, of the Curator Enclave."

The Madam smiled. "Likewise, ma'am. Why did you wish to speak with me?"

He nodded. "I was previously unaware of the plight of your people. To be blunt, I wish to offer your people aid in evacuating."

Madam Thol immediately narrowed her eyes. "While I appreciate the sentiment, I'm not sure we could offer anything of true value to your enclave."

Aelryth smiled brightly. "Nonsense. You don't seem to understand how rare a thing it is to find a former Goa'uld world thriving like yours clearly is. Most of them lose all technology and regress into a nomadic society. The few that do become technologically advanced are usually wiped out before we ever get the chance to interact with them. All we would ask in return for our aid is the chance to document your people and culture."

Madam Thol looked genuinely surprised. "I wasn't aware it was so uncommon."

The Eldar smiled lightheartedly. "You would be greatly surprised."

Madam Thol seemed to think for a few moments. "I'm afraid this is above my paygrade. I'll bring it to the attention of my superiors."

He nodded. "Then I formally invite a team of negotiators from your world to discuss what sort of aid we would provide."

Nodding once, Madam Thol nodded. "I understand, I'll be sure to provide a response as soon as possible. Thank you."

With that, we left. Madam Thol returned to her work, while I went to find Annelise waiting at the warehouse where the villagers and Serkha were waiting. "What did you get?"

She handed me a datapad. "A lot."

I started scrolling through it and nodded. "Well, let's see if we got what we were hoping for."