"Greetings, everyone," I said, addressing my department of mad scientists. Today, we have gathered for a symposium of sorts, attended by representatives from various planets, including Omok, Harlan (may God forgive me), and delegates from Unity. While I was busy with military operations, the Tollans, Unity, and Harlan successfully developed a mobile robotic platform, Unity, which maintains a magnetic field comfortable for their race. I confess, I'm not entirely sure how they manage to maintain the connection between their "body" and the robot, but it was a project between the Tollans and Harlan. The latter, eager to make friends, has found them. I hope their constant interaction doesn't make Harlan more eccentric, although I must admit, I do like him; he's quite reasonable for a being who has spent eleven millennia in isolation. Scientists from Svorin and Gallaran were also invited to the symposium.
"I won't waste any time with a long introduction. We're gathered here as scientists, not participants in a political rally. As everyone knows, my technology made it possible to create naquadah batteries, harnessing the natural ability of naquadah to store energy. Thanks to Altair's wireless energy transmission technology, it became possible to transport energy in any volume to any point on the planet. Now, this is no longer a problem. It is known that I've experimented with various types of power generation. Currently, the naquadah generator is the most advanced, but I strive to minimize the consumption of this material. Therefore, the primary goal of my new project is to create high-capacity naquadah batteries. It is known that the Stargate, consisting of 29 metric tons of purified naquadah, is capable of storing 100 petawatt-hours of energy before overloading the structure and causing an explosion."
The slide behind me presented the relevant numerical data, adapted for each race. Unity uses completely different energetic principles, and conversations with them on this topic were always fascinating. Indeed, they represent a kind of living energy, understandable enough to establish a dialogue without the need for unnecessary complications, as with Stanislav Lem.
"If we use this energy not for destruction, but for industrial needs, we get 277 petawatts per hour," I continued. "For comparison, Earth consumed 122 petawatts per hour in 2008. The information was also presented in various formats, understandable for each planet. Essentially, it's a capacitive battery, and that's exactly what I use in my industry and fleet. However, to store energy in a naquadah battery, someone needs to generate it. Given my reluctance to waste naquadah on generators beyond what was necessary, I had to resort to a somewhat extravagant method of obtaining practically unlimited free energy – stars."
At that moment, the meaning of my words sank in, and judging by their expressions, they were impressed. The Tollans, of course, had the deepest understanding, possessing the necessary amount of technology. Yes, I plan to replicate the feat of Destiny, which was powered by the stars. Firstly, it's environmentally friendly and saves naquadah. Secondly, it's a scientific breakthrough for any civilization, especially for those that don't possess naquadah and are forced to import it. Of course, for me, as the primary exporter of naquadah, this may not seem like the most advantageous position, but believe me, I don't have much to lose, since they will all need naquadah batteries to switch to my power system. Let's be objective – it's perfect. Perhaps I have a touch of Goa'uld arrogance in me, but let's just say that for a spacefaring species, my power system is essential. Any spacefaring species requires a fusion reactor—it's essentially the first prerequisite, and once one is developed, coal, oil, and gas become obsolete.
This is dictated by simple cost-effectiveness. Of course, the Tollans have long since switched to other sources; they've already polluted their planet with excessive resource consumption, requiring significant efforts to restore Tollan. They rely on a cold fusion reactor for everything. Svorin and Galaran currently rely on fossil fuels, but will undoubtedly show interest in ultra-capacity batteries, and then more advanced technologies. Even if they don't abandon oil, naquadah batteries for automotive transport represent the best solution. This will eliminate many intermediaries, such as queues at gas stations and the logistical complexities associated with transporting gasoline. Burning oil, converting it into energy, and then charging the naquadah batteries—everything becomes simpler. Thus, charging ultra-capacity batteries from stars and then transferring energy is an excellent solution for intra-system space activities. This will eliminate the need for bulky, fuel-consuming reactors on each ship, replacing them with rechargeable batteries.
"All the technologies necessary for this are present in the Goa'uld arsenal, but they need to be integrated, and each formula must be meticulously calculated. Shields can withstand the heat of a star, technologies for direct energy absorption from the source have been implemented, ultra-capacitive batteries are available, and so on. However, this is still just a theory. Developing safety protocols will take considerable time, so I am prepared to fund this project, providing the initial scientific basis and subsequently sharing the results with all nations participating in the development. Such solutions will aid in the exploration of near space, significantly reducing the cost of each ship by eliminating reactors and installing only batteries."
"But while a reactor provides unlimited research opportunities, a battery only provides a short window of opportunity," Svorin's representative reasonably noted.
"That's true," I agreed. "Essentially, this turns the spacecraft into an electric vehicle that requires constant recharging, but the reactor also requires fuel cells. The only difference is the frequency of recharging, and a reactor is a complex piece of equipment, unlike batteries. Regardless of your governments' decisions, I consider this a very promising direction for interstellar expansion, for which I intend to engage a scientific team in the design work. An additional advantage of this project is that representatives from several planets, with their own systems of measurement, are present here. Collaboration will help develop unified measurement systems. Cooperation will facilitate scientific integration, which will prove useful in the future."
I lied. This isn't really a symposium of scientists. I'm just recruiting them... But there will certainly be scientific work here. I just hope people will be more willing to join such an ambitious project, where their skills will be in demand. 130,000 people worked on the nuclear bomb, but only 10,000-15,000 of them knew exactly what they were doing. I have an ambitious project, but I don't have enough staff. I'm lucky to have Einstein. Essentially, Svorin and Galaran are 20th-century, but the Tollans and I are superior. A similar scientific project will also help my students, who will be calculating certain formulas. Interplanetary cooperation, so to speak.
I spent the next few hours answering various questions about the functioning of the design departments, as well as access to Goa'uld technology, which they could later use in their national projects. After that, even those scientists who had initially shown little enthusiasm were literally pushed to study shields, reactors, energy absorbers, and so on. Trade and joint scientific research involve other planets in my activities, giving me indirect influence. Such is the policy. I'm not doing anything reprehensible, but this influence will accumulate. At the same time, I've loaded their industry for ten years. Perhaps they'll even start producing custom-made ships. That would be ironic. But I'm afraid such a business is impossible for me due to the remoteness of my planet. After all, the Yu shipyards are producing a khattak for me, commissioned by Ra. And it would also have to be delivered here, which is a considerable headache.
Incidentally, I've made progress in designing a long-range plasma weapon. It's like crossing a snake with a hedgehog, and I'm back to square one—the repeating rifle. A pulse weapon works by accelerating a plasma projectile in the barrel using an electromagnetic field. Essentially, it's a miniature mass accelerator. When fired, a ferromagnetic, solid ingot is expelled from the magazine and converted into plasma by electromagnetic induction. It would be relatively easy to alternate the coil current at frequencies sufficient to heat the coil to extreme temperatures, trapping the plasma in the chamber. The solenoid is then fully charged, expelling the newly created plasma from the weapon at extreme speeds while maintaining its coherence.
It's a bit different from the plasma weapons of the Goa'uld or Ancients, as it doesn't use its own energy derived from liquid naquadah, but requires a projectile. Essentially, the rifle is now the size of a Mosin-type rifle, albeit thicker. While they shoot significantly further, they're still literally a fusion between a railgun and a plasma rifle. The rate of fire and the velocity of the projectile itself are many times higher—it's a railgun, after all. Humans created their own railguns, so why didn't they think of a handheld weapon? Or perhaps they thought it wasn't important, given the enemies they were facing.
Integrating such technologies into the military presents a complex issue. On the one hand, it means moving away from autonomous plasma guns with unlimited ammunition to the need to constantly replace magazines containing just 36 ferromagnetic projectiles. While the firing range of up to a kilometer and high accuracy are impressive, running out of ammunition leaves troops in an extremely vulnerable position.
However, it must be acknowledged that even a staff, even a modified one, is no panacea. No weapon surpasses the skill of its wielder. A machine gunner's poor position can negate the advantages of even the most advanced weapon. Conversely, the combination of the right weapon and a trained fighter produces a synergistic effect, which stimulates civilizations to constantly improve their weaponry. However, this progress is often driven by external factors; wars serve as a catalyst for development.
When civilizations reach the stage of globalization while remaining at the technological level of the Napoleonic Wars, or, like the inhabitants of Urvashi, stuck in the Middle Ages, armies are limited primarily to police functions. Resources devoted to military needs are reduced, which facilitates the development of other spheres. A telling example is the Tollans, who, having developed weapons against Goa'uld ships, considered their defenses sufficient and focused on scientific development. This continued until I met them. I, acting on a completely different logic and devoting all my efforts to overcoming their technological advances, successfully found solutions.
I developed methods to counter ion cannons, railgun-based interception systems, and countermeasures against their gauss weaponry. Their defense, which consisted of moving ships with shield generators, was, admittedly, quite ingenious, especially given the Tollans' mastery of remote energy transmission technology. However, they miscalculated. I developed a new type of projectile that detonates at a certain distance from a shielded ship, creating fragments that spread out in a cone, bypassing the protective field. Given the projectiles' high-velocity characteristics, the enemy's reaction time is minimal. Even a single such projectile is capable of causing a powerful shockwave, despite the initial impulse being dissipated by the atmosphere. The Tollans will likely resort to creating a planetary shield to get rid of me. In that case, they will have to face Anubis, and perhaps even perceive him as a savior. However, given Anubis' vulnerability to super-powerful shields, there is hope that the system of plasma cannons (300 units around the planet), which the Tollans consider redundant, will help them withstand this villain.
Regarding pulse rifles, I'm using them in training exercises as armament for antigravity drones. Operators remotely control the drones, tasking them with eliminating enemy officers and heavy weapon crews, particularly Goa'uld, before they activate their defensive shields. My Jaffa lack visual differentiation between fighters; everyone wears identical armor, making it difficult to identify commanders. Therefore, drone operators will hone their intuitive recognition of commanders during training exercises. This will be significantly more effective against the Jaffa. Furthermore, it's possible to expand the drone lineup to enhance situational awareness.
I'm considering creating a specialized drone for irradiating enemy units, which would allow for the creation of a battle map in real time. The most serious problem in this case is that the irradiation will continue to work even after the enemy is killed. As a result, the map will be overflowing with symbols denoting both destroyed and active enemy units. This aspect requires further study. It's necessary to determine the type of radiation used, the characteristics of the sensors that detect it, and, most importantly, develop emitter drones capable of marking enemies with these symbols. This will solve the problem of identifying combat units and civilians, which I find unsatisfactory.
In general, scientific progress must be stimulated, not by providing ready-made technologies, but by creating conditions under which humanity itself will achieve technological singularity and build the desired world with the help of advanced developments.