Stargate Atlantis: Homecoming

Stargate Atlantis: Homecoming is the first book in the Legacy series, set after season five of Stargate: Atlantis, written by Melissa Scott and Jo Graham. It was followed by Stargate Atlantis: Legacy: The Lost, the second book in the Legacy series.

Publishers Summary
Atlantis has returned to Earth. The team members have dispersed and are beginning new lives far from the dangers of the Pegasus galaxy. They think the adventure is over.

They're wrong.

With the help of General Jack O'Neill, Atlantis rises once more and the former members of the Atlantis expedition must decide whether to return with her to Pegasus or to remain safely on Earth in the new lives they enjoy...

Picking up where the show's final season ended, STARGATE ATLANTIS Homecoming is the first in the exciting new STARGATE ATLANTIS Legacy series. These all new adventures take the Atlantis team back to the Pegasus galaxy where a terrible new enemy has emerged, an enemy that threatens their lives, their friendships&mdash;and the future of Earth itself.

Plot summary
The Wraith invasion of Earth has been defeated, and the city of Atlantis has settled to the surface of the Pacific just off San Franciso. The team assumes that this is a temporary respite before the city returns to Pegasus, but it becomes clear that the IOA and its member governments would like to keep the city on Earth. Richard Woolsey recruits Teyla to be 'the face' for the people of Pegasus, and she and the rest of the team throw themselves into the unfamiliar political arena. Despite their best efforts, the IOA's decision goes against them: Atlantis is to remain on Earth, to be slowly dismantled for its technology.

This hits the team hard, but there seems to be nothing left that they can do about it. Rodney McKay resigns in a temper, and takes a job at Area 51; Jennifer Keller goes with him, and they begin to build a new life together. Colonel Samantha Carter, now in command of the George Hammond, begins siphoning off the cream of Atlantis's military personnel for her new ship; she also invites both Ronon and Teyla to join her team, as advisors. John Sheppard is left in limbo. There's no place for him on the Hammond, and neither Woolsey nor O'Neill will accept his resignation. The only good thing about still being on the city is that he is able to thwart the IOA's attempt to take Guide, the captive Wraith known as Todd, for medical experimentation. Instead, John and Dr. Carson Beckett succeed in putting him into stasis, but that is only a temporary solution.

O'Neill, however, has one last card to play. As Atlantis has landed in US territorial waters, he claims the city for the United States, and in the ensuing uproar, the IOA agrees to send Atlantis back rather than see it fall into the sole possession of any one country. Woolsey resumes command, and the team reassembles to prepare the city for departure before the IOA can change its mind.

Atlantis lifts from Earth, and begins the long trip to Pegasus. Despite the shortened preparations, everything seems to be going well - until a hyperdrive emitter fails, throwing them out of hyperspace and using up nearly all of the power in their ZPM. There is a single planet close enough to reach at slower-than-light speeds. It's a cold world without a stargate, but it's their only choice. After a difficult flight, John successfully lands the city, but there's not enough power left in the ZPM to move the city or gate back to Earth.

The crew reestablishes contact with their old allies in Pegasus, only to discover that things have not been going well in their absence. The Wraith have united under a new queen who calls herself Death, and they have destroyed a number of human worlds. As the team investigates the devastation on Manaria, Todd manages to escape, only to discover that he has lost control of his alliance and has only a single hive under his command. In a bid to weaken Queen Death and regain his former power, Todd informs Atlantis of the location of the queen's next great attack.

Trusting Todd is always a gamble, but John sees this as a chance to stop Queen Death in her tracks. The team travels to the planet Levanna, where they join with the local ruler and a detachment of Genii to wait for Queen Death's attack. The Wraith arrive in force, Darts and drone infantry backed by a hiveship in orbit. The battle is close and hard fought, but at last the Wraith retreat. For the first time, Queen Death has been defeated, and even if it's only temporary, it's a boost for humans throughout Pegasus.

However, Queen Death's response is rapid and devastating. Atlantis receives a distress call from New Athos, warning of a Culling. John leads the team through, only to find - nothing. There has been no attack; everything is perfectly normal in the settlement. As they try to figure out what happened, the Wraith attack in truth - and the Darts target Rodney. Before the others realize what's going on, the attackers have vanished back through the gate, taking Rodney with them.

Publishers Extract
An extract from chapter 13:

The city shook, but it was not as bad as before. Zelenka could keep his feet easily enough, hanging on to the edge of the console.

The cameras fogged, vapor streaming past. A high cloud layer? Possibly. Probably. All systems were still green. The ZPMs’ power level was ticking downward, but not quickly. Fifteen per cent…fourteen per cent.

Thrusters fired again, tilting the city slightly, increasing the drag. The shield pulled more power to compensate. And the city slowed.

Ice. The cameras showed ice below, thousands of feet down to the north polar ice cap. They were wrapping around the world in a high polar sweep, bleeding speed as they went. Ice. Nothing but ice. Surely they would start seeing water now. He didn’t know how high they were. It all looked the same, sixty thousand feet or thirty thousand.

“You need to course correct,” Rodney said.

Mountains. Glaciated mountains. The planet’s largest landmass was embedded beneath the polar ice cap. Dark peaks streaked with snow. Surely they were too low. Surely…

Notes of Interest

 * Originally the novel was going to be called Stargate Atlantis: Legacy: The Return

Related Books
The following novel are also apart of the Legacy series by Fandemonium.