P10-38XGALAXY Pegasus
STARGATE Yes PLANET TYPE Terrestrial STANDARD GRAVITY 1.08g ORBITS AROUND Main sequence star MOONS Unknown CLIMATE temperate, various (artificial weather cycles within the time dilation field) HOURS IN A DAY ~20 (outside of time dilation field) FEATURES Artificial crater caused/resulted by time dilation field STATUS Inhabited inside the crater CONTROLLED BY Humans & Ancients POPULATION SIZE Small, less than 200 MAJOR SETTLEMENTS The Sanctuary (only one settlement) CAPITAL SETTLEMENT The Sanctuary MAJOR EVENTS
LEADERS Council of Elders OTHER OFFICIALS Unknown Appearances:
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P10-38X, also known as the Sanctuary Planet, is a inhabited planet in the Pegasus Galaxy. The Stargate is located in a thick forest with no signs of human life or structures in the vicinity. The old road to the Sanctuary is almost fully gone, overgrown by vegetation and eroded by ten thousand years of weather and geological activity.
obsessionalIn 2006 CE, AR-1 (Sheppard, McKay, Ford, Dex, Emmagan) go on a mission to this planet after finding a reference in the database indicating an Ancient settlement living a simpler life "in great safety". They discover that a large portion of the main landmass has a strange feature, a massive crater that seems almost too perfectly preserved and shaped to be from an asteroid strike. The walls of this crater are thousands of feet high in places and too steep and smooth to climb. They find a path leading through the forest to an opening in the crater, a doorway or arch in the rock, with an Ancient inscription in an old dialect, indicating this place was built prior to the Ancient-Wraith War (c. 8,000 BCE). No light can be perceived beyond the doorway, which is protected by an energy shield. This also prevents scans and readings of any kind, including by Ancient devices, AR-1 cannot get any readings or warnings of what lies ahead.
The team are unaware of the time dilation field at first, due to the lack of readings, and the Ancient database in Atlantis is incomplete because data was erased (because of a forgotten old strife between the Alteran City Council and the Council of Elders of the Old Way). When AR-1 first make a recording with an improvised "MALP on a stick" (camcorder and Ancient lifesigns detector taped to a stick), ten seconds from their perspective is recorded, but the camera almost runs out of battery, from a previously full charge, since those ten seconds equal 7200 seconds (or two hours) on the inside of the field. Since the "MALP on a stick" is made of non-living matter (the stick already dry and dead) there is no indication or effect of the time dilation field otherwise, and the "MALP of on a stick" is not forced inside of the field unlike a living person would be. Unfortunately, the team does not realize the danger until it's too late. Doorway InscriptionThe doorway inscription is partially eroded away. It is written in a slightly older dialect of Ancient than commonly used in Atlantis' archives and the language variant spoken by the Ancients encountered by the SGC, but can still be understood by those fluent in Ancient. It reads:
ANCIENT INSCRIPTION:
pace salvea sanctaurium concilio senorum constructus lac[unae qi sequn]* ascensionem ete[ri quin timeret. agnosc]ite minae nul ferrum locast. postquam lemen trans[is redire non potes, salus populi est san]ctaurium. ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
welcome (alternatively: greetings) in peace to the sanctuary hid[den by the]* council of elders [who still follow the path] to ascension eter[nal without fear. be aw]are no dangers (alternatively: threats) may be brought into this place. once you cross the threshold [there is no return, for the safety of the people of the san]ctuary. *Text in brackets [...] indicate where the inscription is lost and unreadable due to erosion and other damage.
Time Dilation FieldThe time dilation field inside of the crater (i.e., not encompassing the whole planet) causes a differential between the Sanctuary and the rest of the galaxy. McKay refers to it as "time compression theory". Therefore the weather and day/night cycles within the crater are generated artificially. The time differential is approximately 1:720. In Earth time terms: six hours outside of the time dilation field is equal to six months (30*6 days, or 720*6 hours=4320 hours) on the inside of the field. So 1 hour inside is equal to 720 hours on the outside, 1 minute to 720 minute outside, 1 second to 720 seconds, etc.
To calculate: time outside the field [seconds, hours, or days] x 720 = time inside the field. or, time inside the field [seconds, hours, or days] / 720 = time outside the field. Sancturary SettlementThe crater, when viewed from orbit, appears to be about
The limited space means the Ancients decreed that only a limited population may live here, so not to exhaust the available resources. They return to a simpler way of life in order to reach peace: no electricity or mechanical devices beyond the absolute necessities. The Council of Elders (note: not the same as the Council in charge of Ancient Atlantis) consists of three people which are elected by the population once every five years within the time dilation field. The Sanctuary was founded by the Elders of the Old Way, who believed that only through peace in all things (emotional, physical, political, economic, etc.) can Ascension be reached. Strife, war, and violence are strictly prohibited. There is money, everything is shared fully and equally. Hate and fear and other negative emotions are to be meditated away. All people in the Sanctuary are to meditate and through tranquillity reach the state of Ascension. Over the thousands of years that have passed since the Sanctuary was first settled, the teachings of the Elders of the Old Way have been slightly twisted and changed, as things are wont to over time. Fear, anger, and so on are no longer discouraged to be avoided and meditated away, but naively considered an unnecessary part of life. Since the people living in the Sanctuary at the time AR-1 discovers the planet have no sense of fear or danger other than the notion that "it is out there, outside of the Sanctuary" their attempts to Ascend have stalled, and most people live out their mortal lives without succeeding in their endeavour. Because of the focus on Ascension, away from "mortal desires" (like food and sex) not a lot of children are born. The population is steadily decreasing and knowledge is lost over time, threatening to leave the Sanctuary empty and desolate. When AR-1 make contact, there is only one child in the whole village, a girl named Hedda with mild healing powers. As a result of of their search for Ascension, many of the people have powers to a degree such as premonitions, healing, increased senses, telekinesis, and so on. But the notion to Merge with their Dæmons, vital step toward Ascension, is almost forgotten. |