Visit to a Small Planet

Chronicles of the Alliance Book VII

Novel 7: Visit to a Small Planet

Co-Author - Chad Blythe

History

While I was toying with the middle novels in the saga, I started several discussion groups with my readers and eventually, started looking at the idea of what it might be like if a group of us “Earthers” somehow managed to convince Stollack and others to let us visit Eclipse. That story started to develop, even to the point of having Scottie want to stay on the ship and rescind his Earth heritage, and got several of us to thinking that it would be neat if we could involve Earth somehow in the saga.

I started writing the story and, because Chad had already been playing a part in the earlier story (which will never be finished or published - at least, as of this date: September 05, 2007), I had him help out and assume the role of the SGC.

He captured the essence and provided the resistance I needed as I dealt with the various forces from the Stargate SG-1 television series.

My thanks to Chad for assisting in writing this story and to Scottie and John in reviewing the material.

Notes

Novel needs chapters, synopsis, teaser, the works.

Alliance Spatial Notation

This is the first story where the Alliance method of identifying points in space is described. Essentially, it is similar to Earth's method, with a couple of exceptions. I left the method similar to Earth's on purpose - mostly because I didn't want to identify something that I had no idea how it would work. Matthews said, “We identify a point in space using three figures with respect to the Alliance – ascension with respect to the elliptic of the galaxy, declination from the Ceed system’s alignment with NavPrime, and distance with respect to Ceed. That’s three figures.”

Stargate Operation and Inconsistencies

Ironically, this is one of the few inconsistencies between the original Stargate movie, starring Kurt Russell as Colonel Jack O'Neill and the television series. In the movie, all seven symbols were identified on a tablet, including the home location - that of the planet of origin. Both Abydos and Earth had one of the tablets, which allowed the wormhole to be established between the gates on each planet. This raises a couple of questions - one, why wasn't the gate hard-wired into the system? Two, why leave a tablet when the Goa'uld would know the location of each world by its symbols? After all, in the series, combinations were dialed up automatically, seeking new stargate planets. Of course, in the movie, none of the combinations (which were tried, by the way) worked - only the one figured out by Dr. Daniel Jackson. Well, almost none - one was discovered by the original archaeologist who discovered the stargate in Egypt.

Maybe some adventurous Stargate fan will write with the explanation and when they do, I'll include it here.

In the story, I cheated and had the Eclipse team hit a valid stargate location the first time. I'll let you read what you want into that one, but what if it was meant to be?

Personal Accountability

This story is most effective in illustrating how a minor difference in thinking can make a big difference in the way things are done and how actions of others are viewed. One of the on-going themes of the entire saga is personal accountability. Nowhere in the saga is it more apparent than in this story, especially when compared against the Earth thinking represented by Colonel O'Neill and his team.

Glorifirfe

The glorifirfe, a jewel which reacts to the emotions of the one touching or wearing it, was first mentioned in Rebirth I: Matthews. Here, it is used by the first contact team as a gesture of good will toward the Earth team. Later, it is included in the jewels Stollack offers General Hammond in payment of the goods they charged his credit card on their shopping trip.

Wrigley's and Chicago

The use of Wrigley's was two-fold. First, Wrigley Field is the home of the Chicago Cubs, one of the most, if not the most, popular teams in all of baseball. The second is that Chicago is home to Wrigley's, one of the world's largest confectioneries. Since Stollack had visited Chicago in the untold story about a group of us visiting Eclipse, the connection would be relatively easy, especially, since we brought a lot of things from Earth as a token of our appreciation and to help the Alliance understand us. We didn't know that they had performed a survey and already knew more than we ever expected. At least, they were nice about what we took with us.

Kell mentioned the source of the "Windy City" name as it is applied to Chicago -- It is not that well known, even here in the Midwest. It is accurate, by the way. Probably still applies, too.

Stargate References

Those familiar with either the Stargate movie or television series will recognize a number of references used in this story. Because we made no changes to names, personalities, or anything associated with the television series, obtaining permission to use these things is a prerequisite to publishing this story. (2007 - until I obtain an interested publisher, I will not pursue the matter of obtaining permission.)

Copyrights

Characters, races, and all aspects relating to Stargate and Stargate SG-1 are the copyrighted property of its various copyright owners, including, but not necessarily limited to Showtime, Gekko Film Corp., MGM-UA, Worldwide Television, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions, Sci-Fi Channel, and Stargate SG1 Prod. Ltd. Partnership.

I now have a page in this wiki that discusses copyrights and, after reviewing the material, have come to the conclusion that I can use the Stargate SG-1 characters without copyright infringement. There may be trademark infringement, but that is another matter. Regardless, I will still seek permission to publish this story. For more information, see the Copyright page.

Alliance Phrases and Terms

A number of phrases are used in the story:
"what under Ragnoruk's cold sun?" ("what in Hell?") Also, variants, using Ragnoruk as an expletive.
"dropped off the deep end of Gagula Four" (gone crazy or are insane)
"You’ve had your tail saved" (reference to the Zurth tail - "you've had your ass saved")
Starburn - sunburn
"Gather around my children and I’ll tell you the tale of the midnight ride of Silas Hyde." (I've a story to tell you)

Earth/Dracus Parallel History

In keeping with the Stargate explanation that the Goa'uld had used Earth slaves to populate many planets, the Eclipse team discusses the possibility that Earth and Dracus shares a common culture. However, this is later refuted in this story as the physical differences between Dracs and Humans are too great.

In the saga story Carrollton, Thom Daniels discusses human and Drac heritage. See that story for the spoiler results on who the Dracs truly are.

Harold

This is not the first story to mention Harold, the medical diagnostic table. The attending medico does nothing once the subject is on the table, which records all the vital statistics and does a thorough scan to the molecular level.

Attack Levels

These are mentioned for the first time by way of explanation, in this story.

Purity Quest

This came up as an after thought and distraction, more to show that Kell Hollob had her own interests outside the ship. Ironically, it turned out to be something that I would use later, in Second Encounter. I hadn't planned it that way, but that's the way it came out. The movement is typical of revisionist thinking - deny that which is outside your realm of belief and rewrite the past to agree with your point of view. Sadly, it has been going on since the dynasties of the Egyptian Pharaohs.

Julie, The Stargate, and The Iris

That would make a good title to a story, but I mention it here for several reasons, mostly having to do with the fact that the iris is intended to stop hostiles from successfully forming at the Earth end of the wormhole.

So, how did Julie do her trick. First, there was a loud "Whang." Where did that come from? It was Julie, hitting the iris from the Plains of Durrah. She opened a portal between the event horizon and the iris. Talk about being in a tight spot! Anyway, the star spawn, being what they are, well you don't want them to strike anything. The force of their physical nature is beyond mortal comprehension.

Second, how did Julie jam open the iris? Simple. She stopped time and from the portal to Earth from the plains, manipulated the device while letting time trickle, effectively jamming it against its stops. She was gentler with the blast shield outside General Hammond's office.

Julie and Kroeger

As I mentioned, you don't want to get hit by a star spawn. When Julie (lightly) slapped Kroeger on the face, she broke blood vessels in his skin, leaving a mark that would stay there for a long, long time and, perhaps, never fully disappear. Only she could repair the damage she had done.

Decon (Decontamination)

Decon is largely dependent upon the planet or society of origin. For instance, decom, coming off Ragnoruk is more thorough and intense than coming off Dracus. It is handled largely by multiple chambers and can be done while a person is dressed or many times more quickly if they are naked.

A naked person will quickly walk through three small rooms, which applies a form of radiation against various known contaminants. Each room has a different treatment, and by keeping them separated, serious conflicts in the treatments are avoided.

When dressed, the process takes longer - about seven minutes per chamber, measured in our Earth time.

Weapons, such as those used by the Alliance and Earth, are not bothered by the radiation used in the chambers. Teal'c's staff weapon was not affected, since its power source was not radiation-sensitive.

Medical facilities often have their own chambers, such as the medicenter facility on Eclipse. For the purpose of general examinations, like the one faced by O'Neill and his people, facilities not associated with treatment of diseases or injuries are on floors not requiring decon.

Detention Cells on Eclipse

The cell block is a secure building with several floors. It lacks windows and is constructed of the same material used in building the hulls of the ships. There is a controlled lift drop shaft and the cells are nothing more than areas surrounded by perimeter fields.

First encounter with a perimeter field is extremely painful, but not shocking, so there is no jerking of the body as if a person had encountered a static or "charged" force field. The pain is immediately apparent and intense.

While a person can walk, or rather, fall or run through the field, it is extremely debilitating and will leave a person in extreme pain and without any bodily control. The only way that a person can regain control is by medical treatment, so effectively, there is no escape.

Gravity Storm

Yeah, well, it sounds good and nasty, but they (gravity storms) don't exist. How would they form without that part of space really being screwed up?

One of my objectives in writing the series was to make as much of the story, science, and society as plausible as possible. Along with that load of baggage are the personalities of the poeple involved and the Dracs do have a sense of humor.

Where did they go?

Several ships of the Goa'uld fleet escaped before Nikki and her crew were ready to stop them. While the Dracs could detect the ships in hyperspace, and fired at what they thought was where they were, the fact remains that the Goa'uld on those ships were running from the terror of the stargate system - Eclipse. Anubis was on the mothership that fled.

After the End

Most of my readers now realize that no story in my saga ever ends with the last word in the novel and this story is no exception. Jack and Samantha, while deeply in love, more because of O'Neill's near-death experience than anything else, do not end up getting married. While on an extended leave, Samantha and Jack realize that while they like each other a lot, they aren't ready to commit to any kind of permanent relationship, especially where kids are involved.

Jack's memory of his son Charlie's tragic death plagues him and he retreats whenever Samantha gets close to him. His coolness toward their relationship hurts for a while, but she eventually comes to realize that it is for the best, despite her father's encouragement to keep trying with Jack.

Fortunately, she never put her resignation in writing and General Hammond failed to remind her. When she realized she didn't want to leave the Air Force or the SGC, she approached Hammond and asked if she could remain. He asked why and she told him.

"No," he corrected, "why did you think you were leaving?"

"Because of my resignation," she replied.

"What resignation? I know you mentioned that you wanted to resign, but I never received that request in writing, Major."

"We took extended time off, sir," she replied.

"At my recommendation," he reminded her.

"Oh, yeah," she said.

Later, when a change of administration caused Hammond to retire, O'Neill was promoted to General in charge of the SGC, Samantha Carter would find herself in charge of SG-1.

In the meantime, the Goa'uld's relationship with Earth was deeply impacted by the Alliance Trade Agreements. Not only did the Alliance establish a trade agreement with Earth, but also with the Goa'uld. Eventually, the Goa'uld lost interest in Earth, especially when they realized just how powerful a force the Alliance was and how they conducted business. You simply did not trifle with the Alliance over any matter.

Earth, however, never did take to adapting much more than some manufacturing techniques at a molecular level, especially in the field of data storage where hard disc technology benefited the most. The power of the Clarisse Power Plant was beyond the willing adaptation of Earth Corporations and so the secret was maintained about this new type of power. Too much was dependent upon a balance of power maintained by the consolidated oil companies.

One final note is worthy of mention. Janice Fraiser was able to visit Eclipse several times, as well as various locations within the Alliance. The operation of the Al-zed medicenter attracted her attention and since she had no other ties to earth via relatives, she requested and received permission of immigrate to the Alliance. As a result, she was declared missing in action and the matter of where she had gone was 'dropped' (actually, it was classified).

Spoiler Alert!

While a lot of this story is Stargate SG-1, there are elements in my comments that are spoilers to the earlier novels in the Saga. As such, I have created a Visit To A Small Planet Spoiler Page.

Ships and Related Subjects in the story

ADF Eclipse
An unnamed planetary lander, used to transport Stollack, Matthews, Hollob, Hess, Sanchez, and Olsen to the stargate planet.
ADF Waken
Project Icharidic
Hazmore - Vishnu's mothership
[ADF Divider]
ADF Visitor

Planets and Systems (in order of appearance in the story)

ZD-4382 - The stargate planet within Alliance space.
Cleric One
Nardias World - A planet full of ruins, including pyramid-like structures and a non-functional stargate. Uninhabitable, within Alliance space.
NavPrime
Earth
Gagula Four
Abydos
Chulak

Places, Cities, Towns, and Places of Business

[Chicago]
[Lake Charles] ([Silent Bay Colony])
Plains of Durrah
Al-zed
Ben Arba’s - an eatery on the ADF Eclipse
Zurthton - a town on deck five of the ADF Eclipse
Qualander’s - a live sports arena eatery in Zurthton
Lake Bluff Retreat - a naturalist retreat on the ADF Eclipse
Ollie's - concessionaire at the Lake Bluff Retreat
Filo's - concessionaire at the Lake Bluff Retreat

Characters and Races

Races

Drac
Human
Jaffa
Goa'uld
Tok'ra
Eternals
Nox (a race which appeared in the Stargate television series).
Oma
Norkcei
Asgard
Intruders (Esk'ador)
Harsesis
Haidri

Alliance Characters

ADF Eclipse Command Chart for Visit to a Small Planet
Jules Ann Stollack, Captain, ADF Eclipse
James Matthews, Lieutenant/Tactician III, Shift Tactician, Shift 3, ADF Eclipse
Kell Hollob, EdSys Historian and First Contact, ADF Eclipse
Nicholette Nikki Olsen, Lieutenant, Tactician I, Shift Tactician, Shift 1, ADF Eclipse
[Maria Hess], Lieutenant, First Contact, ADF Eclipse
[Barbara Sanchez], Lieutenant, First Contact, ADF Eclipse
Kristi Yates, Lieutenant, Communications. Sjoft 3, ADF Eclipse
Jennifer Tschantz, Chief, Gunner's Mate, Shift 3, ADF Eclipse
Ovcheck, Drac, ancient philosopher who believed that there was another life after this one and coined the phrase, you only live twice.
Peter Sallie, PhD, Allied Academy Training Center.
Arguth Hector, Zurth, Allied Security
Thom Daniels, Doctor, ADF Eclipse Medicenter
Esther Hovey, Lieutenant, Navigation, Shift 3, ADF Eclipse
Mary MClenahan, Commander, Shift 3, ADF Eclipse
Rachel Ng, Lead Gunner, Shift 3, ADF Eclipse
Judith Thompson, Shift Commander, Shift 1, ADF Eclipse
Lynn Braaksma, Lieutenant, Tactician III, Shift Tactician, Shift 4, ADF Eclipse
William Stancer, Lieutenant, Senior Tactician, Shift Tactician, Shift 2, ADF Eclipse
Melanie Harper, Chief, Communications, Shift 1, ADF Eclipse
Shauna Campbell, Lead Gunner, Shift 2, ADF Eclipse
Dana ???, Drac, Security and friend to Kristi Yates
Sevro, Zurth, combatant at Qualander’s
Whoo, Zurth, combatant at Qualander’s
Shinalia, Currillian, combatant at Qualander's
Qwaleen, Currillian, combatant at Qualander's
Nagege Tschantz, Drac, mated to Jennifer Tschantz
Mija Tschantz, Drac, son of Jennifer and Nagege Tschantz
Wagal Tschantz, Drac, son of Jennifer and Nagege Tschantz
Kaarina Tschantz, Drac, daughter of Jennifer and Nagege Tschantz
Olayren, Currillian, combatant at Qualander's
Keonne, Currillian, combatant at Qualander's
Anton Durbov, Captain, Security Captain of the Guard, ADF Eclipse
Orsis, Zurthian, Security, ADF Eclipse
Roger Lordan, Chief, Gunner's Mate, Shift 1, ADF Eclipse
Robert Newman, Drac, Lieutenant, Navigator, Shift 1, ADF Eclipse
Brennan, Shift Commander, Shift 2, ADF Eclipse
Juavlenko, Shift Commander, Shift 4, ADF Eclipse
Marc Wilson, Chief, Gunner's Mate, Shift 2, ADF Eclipse
unnamed technician, Bay 28, ADF Eclipse
unnamed supervisor, Chief, Bay 28, ADF Eclipse
[Dan Mykelby], shuttle pilot, ADF Visitor
Sederstrom, ADF Eclipse
Francine Jacks, Lieutenant, Captain's Assistant, ADF Eclipse
Kathleen Howard, Doctor, Chief Medical Officer, ADF Eclipse

SGC and Other Races

Jack O’Neill, Earth, Colonel, SG-1
Samantha Carter, Earth, Major, SG-1
Daniel Jackson, Earth, PhD, SG-1
Teal'c, Chulak, Jaffa, SG-1
George Hammond, Earth, General, SGC
Stargate operator/technician (unnamed), Earth, SGC
Janice Fraiser, Earth, Doctor, SGC
Jens Holprig, Earth, mechanical engineer, SGC
Larry Tompkins, Earth, mechanical engineer, SGC

NID #1, Earth, ordered them to get in the cars in front of Victoria's Secret
NID #2, Earth, spoke to Stollack in front of Victoria's Secret
NID #3, Earth, spoke to O'Neill in front of Victoria's Secret
NID #4, Earth, spoke to Matthews about his ears in the warehouse
Kroeger, Earth, NID
NID #5, Earth, in the warehouse
John Smith, Earth, NID, Kroeger's partner

unnamed vacationer in Starbuck's
waitress #1 at unnamed steakhouse
Scottie, Earth, mentioned by reference
Gmoe, Earth, mentioned by reference
Charlie O'Neill, Jack O'Neill's dead son

Vishnu, Goa'uld, System Lord of the Tirunaraiyur (the name of Hindu deity)
Vishnu Guard #1
Vishnu Guard #2
Vishnu Priest #1
Kulain, one of Vishnu's Jaffa
Terraf, Goa'uld, Lord, negotiator
Anubis, Goa'uld, System Lord
Hathor, Goa’uld, mentioned by reference
[Barbel Hassgrad Al-Haidri]

Dalinore, Tok'ra
Tagresh, Tok'ra
Hladick, Tok'ra
Jacob Carter, Earth, hosting a Tok'ra
Selmak, Tok'ra, hosted by Jacob Carter
Kanica, Tok'ra

Harsesis, a child who is the offspring of two Goa'uld hosts.

Thor, Asgard

unnamed Singularity of Purpose, Replicator

Diety

Unnamed Eternal, one who identified Julie as His sister

Page created April 22, 2007
Page updated April 02, 2008