Northrop-Grumman
26-06-2005, 12:42
Centennial Plaza
Caprica City, Northrop-Grumman
Saturday, July 16, 2039
8:59 A.M. CCST
About two million people were packed into the city streets around the large platform that was erected on the site of the former capitol building. The skyscraper had been heavily damaged during the civil war, which had devastated the entire nation including the capital city. Although the war had ended nearly six years earlier, the outskirts of the city had not yet been rebuilt. A majority of it had been bulldozed clean, but some parts still contained rubble. This was the second time that the city had been nearly demolished, but once again, an even greater city than before was being raised up.
The people had been gathering since the early morning hours to hear their leaders speak. The turnout for the ceremony was tremendous even to the point that portable speakers and projection televisions had to be brought out for those in the far back of the crowd. Fortunately, the weather was unusual for this time of year. Hot temperatures and high humidity were the norm, but today the morning was fairly cool and the midday temperature was expected to peak at around seventy-three degrees Fahrenheit.
At the focal point of the crowd, Chairman Jack O’Neill, dressed in his military uniform, and Vice Chairman Shiran Naelthasser, who always looked out of place in his formal Elven attire, sat at the center of the stage with the heads of each department and the Joint Chiefs of Staff directly behind them and waited patiently for nine o’clock to arrive. When O’Neill looked at his digital watch and saw that it was just a few seconds until the ceremony started, he began to count down, in his mind, until the bell tower at the new St. James Catholic Church rang out. Five…four…three…two…one…now. Nothing happened. He looked at his watch and tapped it to see if it was working correctly, but then the bells started to chime. Darn…so close. He then nodded to Shiran, who stood up with several sheets of paper and approached the podium. Television cameras nearby immediately zoomed in on him and transmitted the event live to their stations around the world through their satellites.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to thank you for attending this joyous event celebrating the one-hundredth anniversary of the Northrop-Grumman Corporation. One hundred years ago this very day, in Hawthorne, California, a man by the name of John Knudsen Northrop set out to start his very own company to compete with the leading aircraft manufactures of the time. For the next sixty-four years, it was the leading defense contractor in the United States. It produced many firsts during that time: the SM-62 Snark - the first operational intercontinental guided missile, the F-89 Scorpion - one of the world's first jet fighters, the F-89J - first aircraft to fire an air-to-air nuclear missile and the first fighter-interceptors to carry nuclear weapons, the T-38A Talon - the United States Air Force's first supersonic trainer, and the B-2 Spirit - the world's first stealth bomber. In December of 2003, the Corporation expanded beyond the normal corporate boundaries of the time and formed this very nation. Since then, we have had our share of tragedies ranging from mechanical failures on a starbase that caused the destruction of our two most populated cities to a large-scale civil war. Fortunately, our successes have far outnumbered the tragedies. We have grown from a small population of a few hundred thousand to an almost unthinkable three billion. We have also entered into the production and use of faster-than-light spacecraft and now have a large space fleet and numerous colonies on other worlds. Our unemployment levels are at an all time low, and the average person’s lifespan has increased by ten years. ”
“These may be great and may put us in the history books, but, as I stand up here and speak to all of you, I realize that there is something much more important than all of that…you, the citizens. You have shown me that no matter what happens, there is still always time for generosity and kindness. To explain what I mean, I am going to share with you a few examples of it taking place.”
“About twenty years ago, on Trien III, the capital planet of Underwater Asylum, I was just a mere chicken farmer. I did not care about politics or issues on the interstellar scene nor was I concerned about the Shivans who wanted to wage war against us. I had seen many wars in my one hundred ninety-year life. None had affected me in any major way, but this time I was wrong. The planet was pounded by numerous kinds of weapons that led to the mass evacuation of everyone there. This nation accepted a large number of refugees, including myself, and was beginning to set up refugee camps. The camps were not exactly the nicest in the world but that was because of time constraints and a lack of funds from the government that was still recovering from the starbase incident which had destroyed this very city and nearby New Newport News six months earlier. Before the camps were even halfway complete, something happened that I will remember for the rest of my life. Families invited us with open arms into their homes to stay and those that did not have room, paid either to have decent housing built or lodge us in hotels. You had suffered a tragedy that took the lives of three hundred twenty-five million people, crippled the economy, and nearly wiped out the senior level of the government. Yet, you were still willing to demonstrate amazing kindness by sharing your homes with and taking care of absolute strangers.”
“After almost a year, the Corporation gave us the option of going back to a newly relocated Underwater Asylum or stay here and submit a naturalization application to the immigration department. I felt that this is where I should start anew and decided to become a citizen along with many others. We were successfully integrated into an all-human society that harbored few xenophobic feelings unlike many oppressive nations out there who choose to purge anyone that is not human and feel that humanity is the superior, perfect race.”
“In the past twenty years, you have saved a great many lives by taking in, with open arms, many different races, and I hope that you will continue do so in the future. You have proven that a strong military, advanced technology level, or a strong economy does not matter. Instead, it’s the moral standard that you have set for yourselves and have followed that does.”
When he ended, the audience erupted in a roar of cheers. Shiran stood there for a few moments until he started to quiet them down before he spoke again.
“Before I return to my seat, I would like to make a little presentation to the man who has guided us through many difficult times and has proven himself to be the most responsible and capable leader that we have ever had. Chairman O’Neill, would you please come forward?”
O’Neill rose from his seat and approached Shiran, who immediately nodded to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They also rose from their seats and formed a line behind O’Neill, shoulder to shoulder. Shiran then pulled out a six inch square mahogany box from inside the podium and rested it on the top of the podium. This was the sign for Brigadier General Stephen Clayton, the commander of the nation’s Stargate Command, to begin speaking into a microphone that had been set up at the far end of the stage.
“Attention!” General Clayton ordered. Immediately, all the military personnel present snapped to attention. “The Vice-Chairman of the Northrop-Grumman Corporation, acting upon the recommendation of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has placed special trust and confidence in the patriotism, integrity, and abilities of Brigadier General Jack O’Neill. In view of these special qualities and his demonstrated potential to serve in the higher grade, Brigadier General Jack O’Neill is promoted to the permanent grade of General of the Air Force, effective the sixteenth of July, two-thousand thirty-nine.”
When he finished, Shiran opened the box and removed two sets of five-star general insignias. He handed them to the Air Force Chief of Staff, who replaced the brigadier general insignias on O’Neill’s uniform. After the general placed the old insignias in the box, O’Neill turned around and saluted the Joint Chiefs, who promptly returned it. Then, Shiran motioned for them to return to their seats, turned back around to the podium, and announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, it is a privilege to introduce to you, General Jack O’Neill.”
As the audience clapped wildly, O’Neill smiled and shook Shiran’s hand. Shiran then returned to his seat, and O’Neill approached the podium.
“Folks, by now, you should know how I am with speeches, so I’ll keep this to the point. I would like to thank Shiran here for putting up with me these past five years and keeping me from making an ass of myself. Also, I would like to thank those running the military for being efficient as possible in those times that the money is stretched awfully thin. I would like to thank those who did the hard work to complete the Trans-National Freeway. I tell you. It’s pretty great taking my car up to two-forty on it. What do you think?”
A large portion of the crowd started to cheer.
“But most of all, I would like to thank you all for the support that you have given me over these past twenty years. We have faced many challenges together and will probably do so some more in the future. I hope to continue to be the Chairman of this great company in the years to come.”
Once again, the audience erupted in applause, until O’Neill quieted them down.
“You’re a spunky group today.” He chuckled. “Now, I’d like to present a little something to you, the new capital building of the Northrop-Grumman Corporation!”
O’Neill took a little controller with two colored buttons out of his pocket and pressed the green one. Behind him, the scenery began to shimmer as if there was a mirage. Then, the structure slowly started to appear, and after a few seconds, it was entirely decloaked. Its eight blue-gray secondary towers reached as far as the clouds that hung over the city, but the four thousand foot central tower disappeared into those clouds. Half of it was not even visible from the ground. The base of the towers and the surrounding grounds took up nearly sixteen city blocks. The audience was awestruck. No building of this magnitude had ever been built by the Corporation.
After a few moments, O’Neill spoke again and closed the ceremony with a list of the different sorts of events that were going on that day like tours, concerts, parties, and other ceremonies. As soon as he finished, the television cameras clicked off and sent their data back into the newsrooms to comment about for the next two weeks, and finally, the audience began to pick up their belongings and go either to their homes or one of the hundreds of events that were planned.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Capital Building Side View (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/NGBuilding4.png)
New Capital Building Top View (Not all that good, but it gives the general idea.) (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/TopView.png)
Comparison Drawing (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/NGBuildingComparison.png)
Front Gates (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/Gates.png)
Caprica City, Northrop-Grumman
Saturday, July 16, 2039
8:59 A.M. CCST
About two million people were packed into the city streets around the large platform that was erected on the site of the former capitol building. The skyscraper had been heavily damaged during the civil war, which had devastated the entire nation including the capital city. Although the war had ended nearly six years earlier, the outskirts of the city had not yet been rebuilt. A majority of it had been bulldozed clean, but some parts still contained rubble. This was the second time that the city had been nearly demolished, but once again, an even greater city than before was being raised up.
The people had been gathering since the early morning hours to hear their leaders speak. The turnout for the ceremony was tremendous even to the point that portable speakers and projection televisions had to be brought out for those in the far back of the crowd. Fortunately, the weather was unusual for this time of year. Hot temperatures and high humidity were the norm, but today the morning was fairly cool and the midday temperature was expected to peak at around seventy-three degrees Fahrenheit.
At the focal point of the crowd, Chairman Jack O’Neill, dressed in his military uniform, and Vice Chairman Shiran Naelthasser, who always looked out of place in his formal Elven attire, sat at the center of the stage with the heads of each department and the Joint Chiefs of Staff directly behind them and waited patiently for nine o’clock to arrive. When O’Neill looked at his digital watch and saw that it was just a few seconds until the ceremony started, he began to count down, in his mind, until the bell tower at the new St. James Catholic Church rang out. Five…four…three…two…one…now. Nothing happened. He looked at his watch and tapped it to see if it was working correctly, but then the bells started to chime. Darn…so close. He then nodded to Shiran, who stood up with several sheets of paper and approached the podium. Television cameras nearby immediately zoomed in on him and transmitted the event live to their stations around the world through their satellites.
“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I would like to thank you for attending this joyous event celebrating the one-hundredth anniversary of the Northrop-Grumman Corporation. One hundred years ago this very day, in Hawthorne, California, a man by the name of John Knudsen Northrop set out to start his very own company to compete with the leading aircraft manufactures of the time. For the next sixty-four years, it was the leading defense contractor in the United States. It produced many firsts during that time: the SM-62 Snark - the first operational intercontinental guided missile, the F-89 Scorpion - one of the world's first jet fighters, the F-89J - first aircraft to fire an air-to-air nuclear missile and the first fighter-interceptors to carry nuclear weapons, the T-38A Talon - the United States Air Force's first supersonic trainer, and the B-2 Spirit - the world's first stealth bomber. In December of 2003, the Corporation expanded beyond the normal corporate boundaries of the time and formed this very nation. Since then, we have had our share of tragedies ranging from mechanical failures on a starbase that caused the destruction of our two most populated cities to a large-scale civil war. Fortunately, our successes have far outnumbered the tragedies. We have grown from a small population of a few hundred thousand to an almost unthinkable three billion. We have also entered into the production and use of faster-than-light spacecraft and now have a large space fleet and numerous colonies on other worlds. Our unemployment levels are at an all time low, and the average person’s lifespan has increased by ten years. ”
“These may be great and may put us in the history books, but, as I stand up here and speak to all of you, I realize that there is something much more important than all of that…you, the citizens. You have shown me that no matter what happens, there is still always time for generosity and kindness. To explain what I mean, I am going to share with you a few examples of it taking place.”
“About twenty years ago, on Trien III, the capital planet of Underwater Asylum, I was just a mere chicken farmer. I did not care about politics or issues on the interstellar scene nor was I concerned about the Shivans who wanted to wage war against us. I had seen many wars in my one hundred ninety-year life. None had affected me in any major way, but this time I was wrong. The planet was pounded by numerous kinds of weapons that led to the mass evacuation of everyone there. This nation accepted a large number of refugees, including myself, and was beginning to set up refugee camps. The camps were not exactly the nicest in the world but that was because of time constraints and a lack of funds from the government that was still recovering from the starbase incident which had destroyed this very city and nearby New Newport News six months earlier. Before the camps were even halfway complete, something happened that I will remember for the rest of my life. Families invited us with open arms into their homes to stay and those that did not have room, paid either to have decent housing built or lodge us in hotels. You had suffered a tragedy that took the lives of three hundred twenty-five million people, crippled the economy, and nearly wiped out the senior level of the government. Yet, you were still willing to demonstrate amazing kindness by sharing your homes with and taking care of absolute strangers.”
“After almost a year, the Corporation gave us the option of going back to a newly relocated Underwater Asylum or stay here and submit a naturalization application to the immigration department. I felt that this is where I should start anew and decided to become a citizen along with many others. We were successfully integrated into an all-human society that harbored few xenophobic feelings unlike many oppressive nations out there who choose to purge anyone that is not human and feel that humanity is the superior, perfect race.”
“In the past twenty years, you have saved a great many lives by taking in, with open arms, many different races, and I hope that you will continue do so in the future. You have proven that a strong military, advanced technology level, or a strong economy does not matter. Instead, it’s the moral standard that you have set for yourselves and have followed that does.”
When he ended, the audience erupted in a roar of cheers. Shiran stood there for a few moments until he started to quiet them down before he spoke again.
“Before I return to my seat, I would like to make a little presentation to the man who has guided us through many difficult times and has proven himself to be the most responsible and capable leader that we have ever had. Chairman O’Neill, would you please come forward?”
O’Neill rose from his seat and approached Shiran, who immediately nodded to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They also rose from their seats and formed a line behind O’Neill, shoulder to shoulder. Shiran then pulled out a six inch square mahogany box from inside the podium and rested it on the top of the podium. This was the sign for Brigadier General Stephen Clayton, the commander of the nation’s Stargate Command, to begin speaking into a microphone that had been set up at the far end of the stage.
“Attention!” General Clayton ordered. Immediately, all the military personnel present snapped to attention. “The Vice-Chairman of the Northrop-Grumman Corporation, acting upon the recommendation of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has placed special trust and confidence in the patriotism, integrity, and abilities of Brigadier General Jack O’Neill. In view of these special qualities and his demonstrated potential to serve in the higher grade, Brigadier General Jack O’Neill is promoted to the permanent grade of General of the Air Force, effective the sixteenth of July, two-thousand thirty-nine.”
When he finished, Shiran opened the box and removed two sets of five-star general insignias. He handed them to the Air Force Chief of Staff, who replaced the brigadier general insignias on O’Neill’s uniform. After the general placed the old insignias in the box, O’Neill turned around and saluted the Joint Chiefs, who promptly returned it. Then, Shiran motioned for them to return to their seats, turned back around to the podium, and announced, “Ladies and gentlemen, it is a privilege to introduce to you, General Jack O’Neill.”
As the audience clapped wildly, O’Neill smiled and shook Shiran’s hand. Shiran then returned to his seat, and O’Neill approached the podium.
“Folks, by now, you should know how I am with speeches, so I’ll keep this to the point. I would like to thank Shiran here for putting up with me these past five years and keeping me from making an ass of myself. Also, I would like to thank those running the military for being efficient as possible in those times that the money is stretched awfully thin. I would like to thank those who did the hard work to complete the Trans-National Freeway. I tell you. It’s pretty great taking my car up to two-forty on it. What do you think?”
A large portion of the crowd started to cheer.
“But most of all, I would like to thank you all for the support that you have given me over these past twenty years. We have faced many challenges together and will probably do so some more in the future. I hope to continue to be the Chairman of this great company in the years to come.”
Once again, the audience erupted in applause, until O’Neill quieted them down.
“You’re a spunky group today.” He chuckled. “Now, I’d like to present a little something to you, the new capital building of the Northrop-Grumman Corporation!”
O’Neill took a little controller with two colored buttons out of his pocket and pressed the green one. Behind him, the scenery began to shimmer as if there was a mirage. Then, the structure slowly started to appear, and after a few seconds, it was entirely decloaked. Its eight blue-gray secondary towers reached as far as the clouds that hung over the city, but the four thousand foot central tower disappeared into those clouds. Half of it was not even visible from the ground. The base of the towers and the surrounding grounds took up nearly sixteen city blocks. The audience was awestruck. No building of this magnitude had ever been built by the Corporation.
After a few moments, O’Neill spoke again and closed the ceremony with a list of the different sorts of events that were going on that day like tours, concerts, parties, and other ceremonies. As soon as he finished, the television cameras clicked off and sent their data back into the newsrooms to comment about for the next two weeks, and finally, the audience began to pick up their belongings and go either to their homes or one of the hundreds of events that were planned.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
New Capital Building Side View (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/NGBuilding4.png)
New Capital Building Top View (Not all that good, but it gives the general idea.) (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/TopView.png)
Comparison Drawing (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/NGBuildingComparison.png)
Front Gates (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v73/TheQ2005/Custom%20Pictures/Gates.png)