Chapter 36: Tale of the Ages

Earth

City of Atlantis

Northern pier, residential tower

Danny was sitting in his quarters in Atlantis. So much had changed in the last week that he didn't even know if it was all real. The Battle for Amity Park, the removal of the Ghost Zone and lastly Vlad's death, it was too much. And he didn't even get to the part where he is supposed to be the last of this great and powerful race that once ruled the galaxy.

Danny sighed and fell on his back in the bed. While his dad, which still sounded weird, did implant some knowledge into Danny's brain it was far from enough. Thankfully, General O'Neill arranged for a laptop with all the SGC's mission reports be sent to his room. Danny was not even a quarter through all the files and was already beginning to feel overwhelmed. How could one not be? Since he was but a mere kid, Danny had wanted to see the stars he always felt that his destiny was out there, in space. The reality of it was so much more earth shattering than he could have ever imagined.

Turning his head slightly, Danny glanced at the nightstand near his bed. It was Earth built, so it differed from the futuristic architecture of Atlantis. Not that Danny was complaining, he still needed some semblance of normalcy in his life. Looking at the blade resting on top, Danny couldn't help but smile. For so long he had wanted a place where he could belong and be accepted for what and who he was, even if he didn't know who he really was. Atlantis was his home, his real home. Danny would never fit anywhere else, and certainly wouldn't fit in back on Earth. Since he was a boy, other children had picked on him for being weak and extremely smart. By the time he was 4 he was able to read any book given to him without too much trouble, he could have even skipped a grade or more if he really wanted to, but he was small for his age, despite his big brain. Apparently his other self's children didn't have that problem. It still felt weird when he thought about it. He knew that there were other dimensions, but other universes were still theoretically unproven. This turned out to be false, since the SGC had more than their fare share of extra-universal encounters. His apparent physical weakness came from the very fact that he was Alterra. According to his other self, the Alterra were high gravity worlders, their home world having two and a half times Earth's gravity. This meant that Danny muscles and bones had to adapt in order to compensate for the reduction in gravity. This is why most Alterrran babies were either born in rooms with artificially enhanced gravity or lived most of their early life in one, just so they did no loose the changes millions of years of evolution did to them.

Still something had been bugging Danny for a while. His older self talked about a legacy of some kind, and while Atlantis would make quite the inheritance, he was sure that wasn't what he was referring to. But if Atlantis wasn't then what was? The best Danny could come up with was knowledge, a Repository of Knowledge to be precise. Danny had read the report of when they encountered the first Repository and if the text on the floor was any indication, then Danny was quite sure that he would soon be getting his head pumped full of Alterran knowledge. Not that he minded he quite liked the discussion he had on the Hammond with Colonel Carter about hyperspace physics.

"Daniel Phantom, please report to the conference room immediately"

Danny groaned as he sat up. He got dressed quickly in his Alterran clothes. He didn't have time to pack his belongings when he blew up Fenton Works. Clipping his energy blade to his belt, Danny exited his room and went to the nearest transporter. The tower he was in was one of the least populated and the room he was given had a nice view of San Francisco bay and the city.

Arriving at Stargate Operations, Danny instantly took notice of the tense atmosphere in the room and the guys dressed in black standing in front of the briefing room. The doors were closed for some reason. Danny recognized them as being Secret Service Agents and that meant that the President or someone very important was on Atlantis. The Secret Service agents intercepted Danny and attempted to relieve him of his weapons. Danny flashed his eyes green and placed a hand on his sword while glaring at the offending agents. They wisely backed up, looking slightly shaken. Danny was vaguely aware that someone was laughing in the background.

Danny entered the room and stopped dead in his tracks. Before him were several people that he knew very well. General O'Neill was sitting there with a shit eating grin on his face as Danny was still staring wide eyed at Henry Hayes, the President of the United States.

"Ah, Mr. Phantom, welcome. Or is it Commander now?" asked Hayes as he watched Danny with a smile on his face

Danny schooled his expression into the best poker face he could put up in this kind of situation

"Commander, Mr. President and it is an honor to meet you" said Danny

Liam had originally suggested that he take the title of Supreme Commander, but that was just too ego pumping, in Danny's opinion. What was he Supreme Commander of again? He was the last of his people and he didn't even own a god dammed ship. Danny calmed himself. He still technically owned the city they were standing in and he intended to capitalize on that fact.

"I presume you know why I'm here" said Hayes

"To discuss your continued existence in my city your continued study of Atlantis's systems as well as your continued access to Atlantis's database" said Danny calmly enacting his plan

O'Neill's eyes went wide and Woolsey's jaw fell. The other people in the room were also stunned. Only Hayes remained impassive

"You can't do this! We've bled for this city and worked our asses off to keep it safe and now you want to take it from us?" said Carl Storm, head of the IOA and their representative to the meeting.

Danny surveyed the room. Besides the President, O'Neill and Woolsey there was also Sheppard acting as military commander of Atlantis as well as Carl Storm, head of the IOA and a Chinese woman, no doubt IOA.

"You have worked a lot to keep and maintain the city, but the fact remains that this city is mine and that is idndisputrabile. I may be young but I have enough experience to understand how to play the game of politics" said Danny coldly

Hayes broke into a smile

"See, I told you he wasn't stupid. Now what do you want?" asked Hayes

Danny smiled back. He knew that this was a gamble but he had to do it. Danny's older self had spoken to him at length about the many intricacies of Earth's political system and had also conveniently given him a solution to his problems. Get the military on his side and then strong arm the politicians into doing what was best for the people.

"Firstly, I want the IOA gone from my city" said Danny

Storm and the Chinese woman reddened as they sputtered

"You can't do that!" yelled Storm

"And why is that?" asked Danny calmly cocking an eyebrow

"We do not recognize your right to the city" said Storm decisively

Danny stared at him a bit. Suddenly the lights flickered as consoles through the city shut down. All experiments that had been running had been turned off and access to the ZPM room had been cut off. The IOA representatives were looking around warily as well as the other people in the room with the exception of O'Neill and Hayes, even if O'Neill still had no clue of what was happening.

"Mr. Storm, the city is under my direct control and the city's VI will only recognize the authority of my father in overruling mine and he is ascended" said Danny

That basically translated to 'you have no hope of taking the city from me'

"Therefore your point is moot. For all intents and opposed, Atlantis can be considered foreign land under Earth law and since I am not a signatory of the Gate Alliance treaty, the IOA lack any say in how Atlantis is run" said Danny directing the last part towards O'Neill who picked up on it and began grinning like a maniac

Storm sputtered a response, but was cut off by Danny.

"This being said, I see no reason not to continue our current… partnership" said Danny "I will allow for your use of Atlantis as a base by the expedition with several conditions. Firstly, I will have absolute authority over what happens in or to Atlantis as well as over any Ancient technology that you find within her and the Pegasus Galaxy. This also includes the Alterran shipyards and facilities in the Milky Way" said Danny

That got their attention real quick.

"I'm sorry did you mention shipyards?" asked O'Neill not quite believing what he was hearing

Danny grinned and that was all the confirmation anyone needed.

"If we accept, does that mean that you will allow us to use your facilities for our own proposes?" asked Hayes

"Of course, Mr. President, you will always be welcomed in Atlantis" said Danny

"Very well, by order of the President of the United States, the United States government acknowledges your claim to the city and any and all Alterran facilities and technology and also wishes to open diplomatic relations between our people" said Hayes formally

"Thank you, Mr. President" said Danny with a nod

Storm and the Chinese woman left the room in an angry huff

"Eh, what just happened?" asked an obviously confused Sheppard

"I used the fact that I am Alterran to claim dominion over the city and all within effectively removing any authority the IOA had here" said Danny

"He basically blackmailed us in giving him the city, but by the look of that grin on his face, it's more likely that he just cut off the red tape from all operations happening in Atlantis using our scissors" explained Hayes

O'Neill looked at Danny with wide eyes "Have I ever told you how much I love the Alterra"

Danny laughed for real in what seemed like ages. His laugh was so infectious that it spread to the others in the room

"You might have mentioned it a couple of times, but now, if you'll excuse me, I have an appointment to make" said Danny

He was finally riding himself of parasites, first the IOA and now his Ghost Half

Earth

Orbit

Executor, Flagship of the Ancient Fleet

Genetics lab

Adult-Danny was working o a new device in the Executor's lab aided by Samantha Carter. He was working on a modified version of the Lanteans ascension device since it could manipulate DNA and Danny really didn't want to spend the next few weeks working out the designs of a DNA manipulator, especially since he already had a tested design.

The new device was different, since it included a chair to sit on while the transformation was taking place. This way there was less of a risk of one loosing countiousness and hitting his head.

A swish of the lab doors announced Teen-Danny's entrance into the lab. Looking up Adult-Danny was surprised in seeing his younger counterpart dressed in Alterran clothes. It had taken him a few months before he relinquished his original Earth clothes for Alterran ones, and he only did so because he was forced to. All in all, Teen-Danny looked much like Adult-Danny did when he first met SG1.

"I take it the plan worked" said Adult-Danny

"What plan?" asked Carter from an Earth console in the corner of the room.

Danny had actually beamed it for her from the Hammond

"Oh, the usual, I used the fact that I am Alterra to take control of Atlantis from the IOA, no big" said Teen-Danny with a shrug

Carter was gaping at him

"You did what?!"

"Relax, Colonel, I talked about this earlier with the President. This was all a big show we put up so that we could get the IOA off our asses. This will be giving the teams on Atlantis a carte blanche on what they should and shouldn't research. However they will still be subjected to scrutiny by the Atlantis leadership and current owner" said Adult-Danny

"I'm still keeping the administrative staff and the leadership intact, it's just the IOA bureaucracy that went down the drain along with their plans for dissecting Atlantis" explained Teen-Danny "Once my ship is complete, I don't expect to spend much time on Atlantis anyway"

"Your ship?" asked Carter suddenly becoming curious

"Every high ranking Phantom that ever lived had a ship of his own, just like I have the Executor so will he have a ship of his own. Each ship is tailored to suite the commander's fighting stile and the necessities of the time period it was built in" explained Adult-Danny

Carter nodded in understanding "So have you come up with a design yet?" asked Carter

"Not yet, I still don't have the Repository in my head and I was actually wanted to ask if I could incorporate Asgard tech in my ship" said Teen-Danny

"You'll have to ask General O'Neill for that, but after what you pulled with the IOA, I wouldn't get my hopes up" said Carter

"It's done" announced Adult-Danny bringing their discussion to a halt "All you have to do is sit in it and the device will do the rest

Teen-Danny looked skeptically at the chair like device. Shrugging he moved forward

"Wait!"

Danny stopped and looked at Carter confused. She seemed to be fighting with herself

"Can you show me your ghost half?" asked Carter

This time bought Dannys' were surprised at the strange request, but then again, Teen-Danny hadn't morphed since the battle for Amity. Teen-Danny shrugged and closed his eyes.

He reached inside of him and pulled at the white ball of cold energy he found there. The feeling he got when he activated his core would never stop to feel awkward.

The ring of white light snapped into existence around Danny's waist, startling Carter who backed away. The ring split into two and traveled up and down his entire body length, replacing his 'casual' outfit with black and white battle armor, DP logo on his chest and black and white cape hanging off his back. The energy blade was still clipped on his belt, unaffected by the change. Danny opened his eyes, revealing them to be a toxic green color. His hair had also turned white.

"So what do you think?" asked the Danny currently in ghost form.

The echo in his voice startled Carter a bit

"I…How is this even possible?" asked Carter utterly bemused

"Honestly, I don't know. There have been some changes done to may DNA but I'm no geneticist. The other guy, Plasmius could probably explain it better, but he's dead now" said Danny, his voice gaining an edge when he spoke about Plasmius. God how thankful he was that the lunatic was finally dead.

"Now that your curiosity is settled, Colonel, I suggest that we proceed" said Adult-Danny

Teen-Danny nodded

"Morph back into human form and remove any weapons on your person then sit the chair" instructed Adult-Danny

The ring of white light appeared again, changing Teen-Danny into his human self. The hidden knife and energy blade were removed and placed on a nearby table. Taking a deep breath Teen-Danny stepped on the elevated chair platform and sat in the chair. With a metallic noise his arms and legs were locked in position. The chair reclined, much in the way a control chair would.

Adult-Danny was watching his progress at the main control station. With a push of a button, he engaged the stasis field around the chair, sending his younger counterpart into a sort of coma. The field will sustain his body, but will not slow down his metabolism, allowing the DNA to fully recover after it had been altered.

Pushing more buttons on the console before him, Adult Danny increased the gravity under the chair so that it simulated being on the original Alterran home world. One last push of a button and the first stage of the younger Danny's transformation would begin.

A bright beam of light erupted from the emitter on the ceiling and enveloped Teen-Danny. The process was not as instantaneous as it had been with Adult-Danny, but then again, Clockwork had millennia or more to perfect the device, while Danny had a week. The white beam of light still coiled around Teen-Danny's body began to take of a greenish glow. Suddenly Teen-Danny began to convulse in the chair

"What's happening to him?" asked Carter

She was completely out of her depth here and had wisely decided to not interfere

"His ghost half is more tightly bound to his genetic makeup than I had originally thought it would be. The process would have been painful, even if everything went according to plan, but this error will cause him even more pain" explained Adult-Danny

Adult-Danny was now cursing himself. He should have known that this situation would be different than his own.

A scream tore itself from Teen-Danny's throat as his green eyes shot open, with his hands struggling against the chair's restraints. Suddenly the green glow of Danny's eyes was replaced by a white glow, not unlike the one Adult-Danny had first exhibited when he first discovered his powers. A ghostly figure emerged from Teen-Danny's body. It was a child, no more than 13. It was the ghost that was formed when Teen-Danny stepped inside the portal. The now green beam of light had passed through Teen-Danny as the ghost half was removed and it was currently holding the struggling ghost. Once the ghost was out Teen-Danny's convulsions had stopped and he slumped in the chair.

Adult-Danny pressed several buttons on his control panel. The green beams turned an angry red and the ghost let out a terrifying scream as the beams literally began to dissolve it. The red coloring was a byproduct of Blood Blossom essence in its most concentrated form. No ectoplasm entity would be able to survive it.

It did not take long for the ghost to be destroyed.

"Well, that was… different" said Carter, still stunned after what she had witnessed

Adult-Danny cracked a smile. Pressing a few more controls, the clamps released his younger counterpart and a transport beam enveloped the chair, transforming it into a table.

"He's stable for now. Gideon will monitor his progress and the Knowledge will be added when his genome is stable again" said Adult-Danny

"So, what do we do then?" asked Carter

"Well, I was planning a field trip to Arkos station, but the Executor has burned out her main sub-light drives when I took her to orbit. Gideon is doing what she can, but this ship needs to see the inside of a shipyard and soon" said Danny

Turning to Carter he saw the slightly crazed smile on her face

"I don't suppose that you'll give me a lift, will you?" asked Danny

Carter grinned

Sol System

Outer edge of the system

Near Arkos Shipyards

The Earth battle cruiser Hammond was slicing through the void of space as it passed by Pluto. On the Hammond's bridge the crew was manning their stations while Danny, Jackson and Carter were staring out the main viewport into the vastness of space

"I still can't believe that Arkos is in our solar system" said Carter

"Makes sense, though. What better place to have your greatest shipyard then close to your capital world" argued Jackson

"Then why haven't we detected it so far? Atlantis has been on Earth for the better part of a year and the sensors on Atlantis are the most advanced we've ever encountered" asked Carter slightly frustrated

"It's simple" said Danny, cutting off their conversation "Arkos shipyard was one of the greatest creations my kind ever made. It was the forge that birthed Destiny and Atlantis and my grandfather used it to enlarge our fleet by a factor of 10 in a mere month. With that kind of power and technology in the hands of a tyrant the Galaxy will fall within a year. Arkos will be the key to unlocking Sol's full defensive systems, restoring Terra's planetary shield generators as well as unlocking millennia of Alterran ship building experience and technologies. It will also grant you the ability to build ships at an unmatched rate. I should also mention that Arkos is the last facility capable of producing Zero Point Modules in the entire Ancient domain" said Danny

Just as expected the bridge crew, Carter and Jackson stopped and stared at Danny with wide eyes and hanging jaws.

The silent staring was broken by the helmsmen's slightly shaken voice

"Sirs, we have arrived at the specified coordinates"

"Good. Follow me to the jumper" instructed Danny

"Why can't we take the Hammond?" asked Jackson

"The shipyard has been dormant for the better part of 5 million years and does not recognize any BC-304 class vessel as friendly in the same way the Executor did. The automated defenses will destroy this ship if it attempts entry to the shipyard, but a Puddle Jumper is of Alterran design and much more acceptable than an Earth built vessel, even if it carries Asgard technology" explained Danny as they made their way to the hangar of the Hammond. There a Jumper was waiting for them.

Danny entered last and as soon as he crossed the threshold, the Jumper lit up, the door closed and it proceeded to fly out of the Hammond's hangar bay, much to the surprise of its passengers

"You haven't touched the console" observed Jackson

Danny grinned "I don't need to. Just like Atlantis, the Jumper shares a neural interface with me and accepts commands even at a distance; however it takes a great deal of concentration or a lot of practice to fly a Jumper this way"

The Jumper came to an abrupt halt several thousand kilometers away from the Hammond and began transmitting. Suddenly an energy bloom appeared on all ships' sensors followed quickly by a flash of light. When the light subsided, Arkos was finally visible after 5 million years.

The shipyard was truly massive. It was twice the size of Earth's moon, with giant holes that burrowed deep in its metallic surface, each hundreds of kilometers across. The construct was entirely artificial and its construction took the collective resources of several planets, effectively draining a section of space of Naquada, Trinium and Neutronium. The holes borrowed down to the very core of the station that was also the power source of this massive construct. In its center was a marvel of Alterran engineering and science. It was a black hole contained within powerful force fields and time dilation fields all the while providing more power than the sun at the center of the system ever could. The technology was similar to what the Ori used to power their supergates when they attacked the Milky Way, but this was several orders of magnitude more powerful and complex.

"Wow" said Jackson looking with awe at the massive construct before him

"This is amazing! How could you even have built such a thing, the power requirements must be enormous" said Carter, not really asking, just vocalizing he shock and awe

"In time you will learn the secrets of Arkos as you will learn the secrets of Atlantis, but that is not important now" said Danny his tone becoming serious as the jumper flew through one of the holes of the shipyard, passing hundreds of berths, each capable of housing a ship twice the size of an Aurora

"You must understand, Colonel Carter that I was extremely surprised when I woke up in Atlantis with humans hovering over me and even more so when I found out that the Asgard not only died, but that they had entrusted you with their legacy. From what Atlantis and Rava have told me, you have done your best to fight threats bought in the Pegasus Galaxy and here with limited resources and manpower. This is the Alterra's final gift to you, the Terrans, as payment for your sacrifices in the hopes that one day you will rise up to take our mantle as well. Ir qua videum"

One month later

The month since Adult-Danny unveiled what was now called the Ancient Legacy had been hectic. The nations of the IOA and Gate Alliance Treaty decided that in light of recent events disclosure was necessary. With Adult-Danny's help they reprogrammed the Ark of Truth to show the entire planet the truth about the Stargate. There was opposition from the more power hungry elements of the IOA, but the overwhelming majority acknowledged that this was the way they needed to move forward. To this end, once Disclosure was done the IOA's mandate will cease. A new political and military body will be established to represent Earth's interests in the universe. Taking a page from the Ancient's model of government this Terran Alliance will be a meritocracy ruled by a council. Adult-Danny offered Earth the same proposal and long term plan he offered to his own Earth in his own universe and the plan was quickly accepted.

A week after the discovery of Arkos, Teen-Danny woke up from his long sleep with the entire knowledge of his people in his mind. He took his leave of Earth to remain on the Executor for another week, time in which the Executor's sensors monitored his progress and watched for any signs of genetic degradation. In this time he used the virtual construction facilities on the Executor to design himself a ship like no other in existence.

The ship was smaller than the Destiny coming at just shy of 700 meters long. The design itself was based off the Destiny itself and it had the same shape as the Destiny, but the newly dubbed Infinity was a completely new type of ship when compared to the Destiny. Where the Destiny was classified as an exploration cruiser, the Infinity would better fit the definition of a battleship with an exploration package. The hull was three times as thick as the Destiny and made from the same energy resistant material that the Executor's hull was made off. The interior was laced with defensive systems to prevent any hostiles from ever boarding the ship. In fact, most of the ship was not meant for human habitation, with much of the winglets being one giant engineering section. The Infinity was to have a VI similar to the Executor's own VI, Gideon as well as being loaded with the latest in Asgard, Human and Alterran technologies. Seeing as this ship was meant to be operated and lived in by only one person on a permanent basis, the interior design was built to reflect that. The entire tower on the dorsal hull was Danny's quarters and living space, which included a giant library and art collection that he received as a gift from General O'Neill, President Hayes and Daniel Jackson. The ship's weapon systems were also spectacular. It boasted a single antiproton cannon supported by a main weapon much like the one mounted on the Destiny. Asgard Plasma Beams littered the surface as well as several ion cannons and plasma cannons, which also doubled as point defense weapon systems. The shielding system was the same as on the Executor with an auxiliary skintight Alterran shield to boost protection. The Infinity also had the capacity to carry two Jumpers. Deep within the ship was an automated factory, much like the one on the Executor, along with thousand of nanites that served much the same auto repair function as on the Executor and will keep the ship space worthy for millions of years, far longer than Destiny ever could. The power will be derived from stellar fusion, much in the same way the Destiny recharges. The reactors will be supplemented by 3 ZPMs along side with naquadah reactors for backup power.

Atlantis would remain under Teen-Danny's direct control only until Disclosure happened. After that, Atlantis would be 'loaned' to the Terran Alliance as a headquarters. In truth Danny would give full control of Atlantis to the Terrans. Even if Danny was not exactly human anymore and was technically part of the Ancient Military, General O'Neill agreed that he be permitted to attend US military school along with Jake O'Neill, the Asgard clone of Jack O'Neill. Disclosure would not happen for several years as there was a lot of preparations to be done before it could happen.

With the aid of Arkos shipyards the Executor was once again at full operational capacity and the data provided by Earth allowed Adult-Danny to create a Reality Drive for the Executor. It took slightly longer to isolate his exact universe and time he was from, but he succeeded. After a month, the Executor was ready for the journey back home.

Adult-Danny couldn't help but feel a sense of pride as he looked out of his bridge to see the blue marble that was Earth. Not his Earth, but Earth nonetheless. He only hoped that his Earth will be able to brave the dangers that were to come. And he hoped that his younger self will become what he was always meant to be, a beacon of hope to the people of the galaxy and beyond.

"Gideon, power the Reality Drive. Take us home" ordered Danny softly

A hum reverberated through the ship and in the next instant the Executor disappeared in a flash of white light.

In another universe, the Executor reappeared in the deaths of interstellar space

"Where are we, Gideon?" asked Danny

"Checking… standby. We are currently 210 light years from Averium. We have been gone a total of three days, based on star positions" said Gideon

Danny smiled "Set course for Atlantis, engage hyper drive. Take us home, Gideon"

A blue vortex opened in front of the Executor and the ship sped into it, heading full speed to Atlantis, heading home at last. Whatever was to come, Danny was sure he could take it.

THE END

A/N: Well, this was quite a journey if I do say so myself. I've enjoyed writing this story, but like all good things this must come to an end. This being said, there will be a sequel and spin off from this story, but don't hold your breath. I have the first 2 chapters of Stargate: The Galactic Civil War and the first chapter of Stargate: The Great Hyperspace Wars completed, but I don't want to post them yet. I know how frustrating it is when authors don't update regularly and I do not want that to happen to me as well. the following 4-5 months will be hectic for me, but I hope that by summer I will be able to post at least one of those two stories and be able to write it well. Trust me when I say that the fun has just begun, this has been a prelude for things to come and in the end we shall see our heroes either victors or destroyed. But one must ask oneself, what if the price of victory is too high? What will one do when he if forced to choose between to evils? At what point is the hero turned into a villain?