Chapter 185

Earth

The act of disclosure of the Stargate Program to the world opened doors previously impossible to consider passing through. Knowledge and technology garnered through the programs many years of operation had slowly trickled down to numerous highly classified programs, and several key defense contractors involved. Public acknowledgment brought with it the opportunity to make use of many of these advancements on a global scale. In light of this, the proverbial floodgates had been thrown open, unleashing a golden age of advancement to every man, woman, and child of Earth.

The construction of Shambhala had been ordered for many reasons. First, the city represented a major upgrade to the world known as the Alpha Site. Second, this great city would allow for a secure meeting place with representatives of other worlds leaving Earth free of the security concerns raised by less than trusted visitors. Third, Shambhala was intended to represent the crown jewel in Tauri off world holdings. Last but certainly not least, the great city's construction was ordered as a proof of concept.

That concept had been evaluated closely. Even before construction was complete, the merits of the form and function of this style of city were seen clearly. Disclosure now complete, what had started as a concept was now moving on to the execution phase. Washington DC, London, Paris, Moscow, and Taipei in lieu of Beijing do to the recent change in government were undergoing remarkable changes.

A small army of five thousand human form replicators had been created for the task. Their assignment; transform these first five cities into examples similar to Shambhala. Owing to the historic significance of many sites within these cities, they would differ somewhat from the original. Incorporating these historical elements into the overall design, these cities once complete, would embody the past, present, and future of Earth's landscape. Hard at work on the task of rebirth of each metropolis, a collection of one thousand human form replicators stood.

As construction progressed at an incredible pace, delegations present from many of the worlds governments stood as witness. Lessons would be learned by these delegations. These lessons would be applied to the unique vision each of the worlds governments had for their own cities. When the time came, Earth's great population centers would be rebuilt in this style. Possessed of great knowledge and technology, Earth would soon look the part of the birthplace of the strongest example of humanity in this galaxy and others.

Underway but not yet complete, the integration and networking of the global power grid continued. With the assistance of Asgard and Furling engineers, power transmission conduits crisscrossed the globe. Channeled into these conduits was the output of the array of neutrino ion generators constructed some time ago. Already, sixty percent of the world made use of this clean energy. Once the planetary Arcturus device was complete, every corner of the world would never again want for energy. The energy revolution didn't end there though.

From the shores of Louisiana to the far corners of Asia, oil refineries had undergone systematic modifications. Instead of refining an ever dwindling supply of crude oil into various distillates such as jet fuel, gasoline, and diesel fuel; these facilities would now produce a new yet similar product. Already, the United States military used this new algae based biofuel to power aircraft and ground vehicle alike. Now this same fuel would power internal combustion engines around the world. Licensing the patents for this new fuel to the oil companies of the world, the governments once represented by the IOA would also profit greatly from sharing this development.

In sixty days time, traditional petroleum based fuels would forever be relegated to a thing of the past. Your child's first automobile and the tractor trailer that delivered frozen food to your local Safeway would make use of biofuel. Freight trains, cargo sh.i.p.s, and airliners would as well. The modern conveniences of interstate trade, air travel, and local travel would now perform the same function as before, without posing any threat to the environment. Surely the environmentalists would be pleased with that.

The oil companies were not the only ones to have the good fortune of licensing government held patents for commercial use. Boeing, Lockheed, Ilyushin, and Airbus purchased the rights to make use of aerospace patents. Using this knowledge, the next generation of commercial passenger and cargo aircraft would take shape. Operating at hypersonic speeds once built, these aircraft would reduce international travel times to a fraction of what they were currently. Refitting the world's aircraft fleets with these new craft, an incredible economic impact would also be felt simply from the mass influx of cash into these four companies and parts suppliers.

In the more arid regions of the world, changes were also taking place. Using direct copies of the desalinization equipment found aboard Ancient city sh.i.p.s, sea water would be turned into potable water. This potable water was meant not for additional drinking water, but instead for gargantuan agricultural centers. Placing these centers in land formerly unutilized, these arid regions would provide an incredible bounty of grain, fruits, and vegetables. Supervised b the United Nations, this program in time would forever bring to an end world hunger.

These opening steps would forever change everyday life in the far corners of the world. That these were only the tentative first steps was a secret the governments of the world freely admitted. What further changes would the world see? Much was in store, but the sky truly was the limit.