Babylon5 2x01 Points Of Departure - Script

Babylon5 2x01Points Of Departure

 

    We'll swing back this way in a month, makesure everything's okay.

    If those hijackers so much as blink in yourdirection, yell. We'll be here.

    Roger, see you then.

    "Agamemnon" out.

    Initiate jump into hyperspace.

    Jump point, aye.

    Captain, we're getting a coded signal fromEarth Dome on Gold Channel 1 .

    It's Gen. Hague, Joint Chiefs of Staff.

    Patch it through to my office.

    Yes, sir.

    Receive.

    General, this is a surprise. What can I dofor you?

    In the last few days, a Minbari warship"has been seen in Earth"-"controlled space."

    Sector 423 by 27.

    That would put it about two jumps fromBabylon 5.

    Exactly. We have reason to believe it mayhave hostile intent.

    I don't understand.

    The war's been over for more than 10 years.

    Why would the Minbari government launch an attack?

    They wouldn't. We have a renegade warship onour hands.

    The "Trigati."

    Looks like it. We've had three separatereports of sightings by ships in that area.

    Has it attacked any of them?

    Strangely enough, no, it hasn't. Not yetanyway.

    But that may change at any moment.

    The Minbari government dispatched a secondcruiser...

    "...in hopes of finding the"Trigati before it does any damage.

    But it may be a while before that cruiserarrives.

    When it does...

    ...I want you to make personal contact withit and coordinate the search.

    General, with all due respect...

    ...the last time I made personal contactwith a Minbari warship...

    ...I sent it straight to hell.

    That's why I want you in that part of space,captain.

    You've beaten them once, and, if necessary,you can do so again.

    Tell no one about this.

    Understood.

    So I'm to take the "Agamemnon" toBabylon 5 and coordinate with them.

    Is that correct?

    Not exactly.

    I need you to do one other job.

    And this comes straight from the president.

    Status report. Lt. Cmdr. Susan Ivanovarecording.

    It is now eight days since the death ofEarth Alliance President Luis Santiago...

    ...and five days since Cmdr. Sinclair wasrecalled to Earth without explanation.

    And the whole place has gone straight tohell.

    If the seating arrangement is changed, mygovernment will withdraw from the League!

    And as far as I'm concerned, the transportscan wait until the sun explodes!

    If you're not happy with the seating  arrangements, I will personally order

    your seats to be moved outside, down the hall,across the station, and into the fusion reactor!

    Am I absolutely, perfectly clear on this?

    I can only conclude that I'm paying offkarma at a vastly accelerated rate.

    Security Chief Michael Garibaldi remains incritical condition in Medlab.

    Dr. Franklin's done all he can, but we stilldon't know if he'll recover.

    As for Ambassador Delenn...

    ...well, something's going on in herquarters. That's for sure.

    Ivanova.

    We've got a Gold Channel message for you.It's Gen. Hague.

    I'll take it in the briefing room.

    Computer, accept and decode Gold Channelsignal.

    General.

    Lieutenant commander.

    This may break the chain of command,

    but I have some news and I felt  I should deliver this news myself.

    Your commanding officer, Cmdr. Sinclair...

    ...will not be returning to Babylon 5. He'sbeing reassigned, permanently.

    The Babylon Project was our last, best hopefor peace.</font>

    "A self"-"contained world,five miles long," located in neutral territory.</font>

    A place of commerce and diplomacy for aquarter of a million humans and aliens.</font>

    A shining beacon in space, all alone in thenight.</font>

    It was the dawn of the Third Age ofmankind.</font>

    The year the Great War came upon usall.</font>

    This is the story of the last of the Babylonstations.</font>

    The year is 2259. The name of the place isBabylon 5.</font>

    General, with all due respect

    What do you mean you're reassigning Cmdr.Sinclair?

    Reassigning him where?

    To the Minbari Homeworld.

    He'll be functioning as the first Earth  ambassador allowed permanent residence there.

    The president's been trying to find someonesuitable...

    ...and the Minbari specifically requestedSinclair.

    But why him?

    That information is strictly  "on aneed"-"to"-"know basis."

    I've already briefed Capt. Sheridan on thesituation.

    -Capt. Sheridan. John Sheridan? -That'sright, "I believe you know him."

    Yes, I served under him at the transferpoint off Io.

    He's a good man and a fine officer but...

    ...it's bound to be a controversial choice.If I may ask--

    You may not. Any further questions will haveto go through your new CO.

    Good day, lieutenant commander.

    So...

    ...she's done it, hasn't she?

    She's in there.

    We told her to wait.

    "Prophecy will attend to itself,"we told her.

    Now we are committed to the path.

    I have spoken with the other members of theCouncil.

    The "Trigati" has been seen inthis sector.

    If it appears, you must go to the humans andtell them what we've told you.

    It's time they knew the truth.

    Lieutenant Commander. About the newcaptain--

    I want an honor guard present when his shipdocks.

    -We've barely got time-- -He's here.

    -What? -His Earthforce transport justdocked.

    Apparently there was a miscommunicationabout the time.

    -Hello, sir. -Hi.

    Welcome aboard, sir.

    I'm authorized to surrender command ofBabylon 5 to you.

    Thank you, lieutenant commander. I acceptcommand.

    There seems to be a problem with theunloaders.

    Could my bags be delivered to my quarters?

    Of course.

    Thank you.

    Would you like a quick tour of thefacilities?

    -Yes, absolutely. -Great. Right this way.

    It's good to see you again. How was yourflight?

    Fine. They actually had fresh oranges on thetransport.

    I haven't had an orange in almost two years.

    I used to dream about them.

    Grapes, nectarines, plums, the black ones,not the red ones.

    I mean, it's amazing what two years on theRim can do to you.

    I have a hunch I'll be spending a lot oftime in Hydroponics.

    On the way in, I read the station reports,trying to catch up on everything.

    What's our status?

    Chief of security is in critical conditionin Medlab.

    He thinks there's a conspiracy concerningthe president's death.

    Ambassador G'Kar has mysteriously vanished.

    We still don't know what Ambassador Koshlooks like inside his encounter suit.

    And Ambassador Delenn is in a cocoon.

    A cocoon?

    As in a moth or a butterfly?

    Yes, sir.

    About yea high.

    Interesting place you have here.

    Yes, sir.

    Show me this place.

    Babylon 5 is divided into several differentsections.

    Green Sector is for diplomatic personnel andis closed to unauthorized personnel.

    Red Sector is for commerce....

    And this will be your quarters. I hope it'ssatisfactory?

    It's fine. Fine.

    It's certainly a lot bigger than what I'mused to.

    Does this place come with a shower?

    I mean a real, live, honest-to-God showerwith running water?

    Executive suites and command quartershave  showers with real, live,honest-to-God water.

    The rest get vibe showers.

    Our water reclamation system can't handlemuch more than that.

    A shower. I may come to like it here.

    Which brings me to something I've beenwanting to ask you.

    It's kind of awkward.

    Well, you've never been worried about beingdiplomatic before.

    Don't disappoint me by starting now.

    When I heard about the change in command, Ifigured we'd get...

    ...a high-level bureaucrat or an admiral oran ambassador, and--

    And why me?

    Yeah, I wondered the same thing.

    Apparently I was the late  president's first choice...

    ...to replace Sinclair in case anythinghappened.

    While commanding the "Agamemnon,"I worked with many Non-Aligned Worlds:

    Centauri, Narns, even a few Minbari.

    That's what I was concerned about.

    The Minbari aren't going to be thrilled tofind out you're running Babylon 5.

    -I hear they still call you"StarKiller." -It was a long time ago, 12 years.

    Maybe they've forgotten about it by now.

    Yeah, I know. I don't believe it either.

    Well, one thing for sure.

    I'll be relying on you pretty heavily thesenext few weeks until I'm up to speed.

    It certainly couldn't be any worse than thelast week.

    What with President Santiago's death andeverything else.

    How's the crew handling it?

    They're still pretty shocked.

    I don't think the reality of it has quitesunken in yet.

    And you?

    I don't know. I just....

    I just keep seeing Earthforce One blowing upover and over again in my dreams.

    You know, all my life I thought that I couldhandle everything and fix any problem.

    But when I saw that, I just...

    ...realized I couldn't do anything to stopit.

    -I don't think I've ever felt so helpless.-I know. I felt the same way.

    And ever since then, the crew's needed me tobe strong for them, and I've tried.

    I don't like to show weakness.

    I guess I get it from my father.

    With the madness of trying to run thisplace...

    ...and the commander being called back toEarth  and the ambassadors yelling andcarrying on....

    I don't know, I just....

    I just hope I've done okay by them.

    Let's just say, I'm very happy to see you.

    I appreciate that.

    And coming from you, it means a lot.

    I should also mention that the crew is  really looking forward to meeting you.

    They've heard all about you and...

    ...I think right about now, they couldreally use something to smile about.

    Then we won't keep them waiting.

    I'll just grab a fast shower, we'll head toCommand and Control...

    ...and I'll give my good-luck speech.

    Sir?

    It's the same speech I gave when I tookcommand on Io and the "Agamemnon."

    It's sort of my good-luck charm.

    I always give it within 24 hours of takingon a new assignment.

    I look forward to hearing it. Would you mindif I met you in C & C? I have to take care of something.

    Of course. See you there in 20 minutes.

    In Valen's name, Kalain.

    Kalain, wait!

    Kalain!

    We do not harm our own kind, Kalain. Wenever have.

    Perhaps it is time to start.

    The Grey Council has betrayed us. What doesa little blood matter now?

    No one has been betrayed.

    No! No lies.

    We have intercepted a message from thehumans to Minbar.

    We know they have chosen Sheridan theStarKiller to lead this place.

    It is an obscenity!

    We protested. They ignored us.

    Satai Delenn, did she also ignore you?

    How do you know?

    We have supporters even among the Council.

    They tell us that Sinclair is now on ourworld.

    He is an ambassador.

    So you say.

    But the Grey Council never tells anyone thewhole truth, does it?

    If you value your life, leave now, while youstill can.

    Good afternoon, lieutenant commander.

    How'd you know it was me?

    Well, it's 2:45. You always come by at 2:45,see how he's doing.

    So how's he doing?

    Still no change.

    Managed to stabilize his condition.

    Dropped in as many regen packs as his bodycan handle.

    Now all we can do is wait and see if hecomes out of the coma.

    Could be hours, days, weeks.

    Years?

    Never?

    Yeah.

    So all we can do is keep him hooked up likethis forever?

    Well, the human body is an amazing thing.

    It can cure itself...

    ...or it can simply decide that the world istoo painful to deal with...

    ...and won't cooperate no matter how hardyou try to heal it.

    That debate is going on somewhere inGaribaldi's body right now.

    Just gonna have to wait and see who wins.

    Well, then, I'll say a prayer for himtonight.

    He's agnostic.

    Then I'll say half a prayer.

    It was an early Earth president, AbrahamLincoln, who best described our current--

    Captain, they're ready for you.

    Good.

    Captain on deck.

    As you were.

    When I was 21, I visited Tibet.

    I went to see the new Dalai Lama.

    You do that sort of thing when you're 21 andthe son of a diplomatic envoy.

    We had a simple dinner:

    Rice, raisins, carrots, steamed, notboiled...

    ...and green tea.

    When it was over...

    ...he looked at me and said:

    "Do you understand?"

    I said, "No." I didn't.

    "Good beginning," he said.

    "You'll be even better when you beginto understand what you do not understand."

    After reading some of your reports...

    ...I begin to understand what I don'tunderstand about Babylon 5.

    But I couldn't wish for a more capable...

    ...and skilled group of people to learn from.

    It was an early Earth president, AbrahamLincoln...

    ...who best described our current situation.

    He said--

    "C & C, this is Security. We havea"--

    Is there a problem?

    I'm sorry to bother you, sir, but I've gotSecurity on the link.

    They've got a Minbari demanding to speak toyou.

    He won't say what it's about, only that itinvolves the safety of this station.

    He says it's absolutely urgent.

    Well, we'll get back to this later.

    There's plenty of time for speeches.

    Carry on.

    Lieutenant commander.

    Hey! Hey, hold it right there!

    That section's off-limits to everyone butstation personnel and diplomatic staff.

    I'm sorry. I seem to be lost.

    I'm looking for Brown 2.

    You're way off. You want the core shuttle.It's that way.

    I see. Thank you. I'll be on my way.

    After I see your Identicard.

    Hey, wait a minute. This card--

    His name is Kalain.

    He was second-in-command on a flagshipcruiser during the war with your people.

    He has not been seen since the end of thewar.

    Why do you think he's here to cause us aproblem?

    I have my reasons. I would not be bringingthis to you otherwise.

    If you arrange to have him apprehended...

    ...I will have him picked up by others andconveyed to Minbar.

    You said he was second-in-command of aMinbari cruiser.

    -Which one? -I don't see what that has to dowith this.

    Was it the "Trigati"?

    What's the "Trigati"?

    It is not something we like to talk about.

    At the end of the war...

    ...when our ships were ordered tosurrender...

    ...one of our war leaders, Sineval, took hisown life rather than obey...

    ...and became a martyr to his own crew.

    Kalain assumed command.

    And as a final act of protest, they and thecruiser disappeared into self-imposed exile.

    Over the years, we've heard rumors...

    ...of a Minbari cruiser sighted where itshouldn't have been.

    We always figured it was the"Trigati"...

    ...but we could never prove it.

    They believe that they have been betrayed bytheir own world and yours.

    Kalain's presence here could indicate thatthey mean to come out of retirement.

    Something I don't understand.

    You said you're with the Minbari government,the Ministry of Culture.

    Yes, that's right.

    So how does someone in the Ministry ofCulture...

    ...know a high-ranking member of the warriorcaste...

    ...well enough to recognize him 12 yearslater?

    I would answer your question if I recognizedyour authority.

    Unlike your predecessor, my government wasnot consulted on your appointment.

    The president feels the Minbari had too muchinfluence over an Earth outpost.

    Times change.

    The day a man such as yourself...

    ...is given a position of this importance isa dark day indeed.

    We lost many of our best warriors because ofyou.

    And we do not soon forget such things.

    If there is a doom on this station, it isbecause you brought it here!

    Oh, he's Grey Council. He's gotta be. Onlysomeone in the Grey Council...

    ...would've had contact with someone  that high in the Minbari warrior caste.

    I mean, they do not normally mix.

    And you are right.

    They're not happy to see me here.

    They're a prideful people, and the"Black Star" was their flagship.

    That's why it made a good target.

    How did you take her out?

    I've heard it was a new maneuver, but I'venever heard the specifics.

    There wasn't much style or finesse involved.

    She was huge, monstrous.

    We tried everything, but none of our weaponswould lock on to their ships.

    Some kind of stealth technology.

    So I hit on the idea of mining the asteroidfield between Jupiter and Mars.

    A fusion bomb doesn't have to lock on toanything if it's close enough.

    It took out the "Black Star" andthree heavy cruisers before they could escape.

    It was the only real victory we had in thewar, and I am not about to apologize for it.

    He said Kalain feels his world has betrayedhim.

    If that's true...

    ...wouldn't your first target be therepresentative of that world?

    Delenn.

    Get up.

    She's in there, isn't she?

    Move aside. Move aside!

    Freeze!

    And put the gun down.

    Put the gun down. We won't hurt you.

    If you are going to kill me, then do so.

    Otherwise, I have considerable work to do.

    You are the new commanding officer?

    Capt. John Sheridan, Earthforce.

    Lennier, of the Third Fane of Chudomo.

    Ambassador Delenn is indisposed at themoment.

    Perhaps you would come back later.

    Much later.

    Of course.

    Let me get this straight.

    A high-ranking member of the Minbari warriorcaste...

    ...who no one has seen in nearly 12 years...

    ...suddenly appears...

    ...and, for no apparent reason,

    breaks into Ambassador Delenn'squarters  with a gun in a hand.

    Now, if you were looking for the Minbaritourist bureau...

    ...you were just a little off-course,wouldn't you say?

    The curious thing is...

    ...you don't finish the job.

    You could've killed both of them and gottenout of there.

    But instead, we find you standing there,practically waiting for us.

    Everyone knows Minbari do not kill Minbari.

    Then why are you here?

    Perhaps everyone is wrong.

    Maybe you never intended to kill them atall.

    Perhaps something else is going on.

    Perhaps you are the problem.

    What's that supposed to mean?

    Captain, we're not getting anywhere.

    Let's wrap it up and try again tomorrow.

    One last thing.

    I'm told that after the death of yourcommanding officer...

    ...you took command of a Minbari warcruiser.

    But if you're here...

    ...where's your ship?

    Captain!

    I apologize. I was rude earlier.

    There is something we need to discuss.

    Especially in light of Kalain's presence.

    It concerns the reason you were sent here...

    ...the relocation of Cmdr. Sinclair...

    ...and the reason we surrendered at theBattle of the Line.

 

    After three years, the holy war thatbegan...

    ...when our leader was killed by an Earthexplorer division was almost over.

    To avenge Dukhat's death, we had pursuedyour forces...

    ...all the way back to your Homeworld.

    The few surviving Earth ships that wereordered to defend your world at any cost...

    ...were not an obstacle.

    The Grey Council had come to oversee thefinal victory of our forces.

    They fight bravely.

    They cannot harm our ships, but theycontinue to try.

    Whether they fight or not, they know theywill die anyway.

    So really, is this bravery or simpledesperation?

    Perhaps they are the same thing.

    We should bring one of them aboard forquestioning.

    If our next step is the final assault ontheir world...

    ...we must know their defenses.

    Very well, Delenn. Choose.

    But quickly.

    We are fast running out of candidates.

    That one.

    This was the first time the Grey Councilwould have direct contact with a human.

    In this case, Sinclair.

    He was tortured, interrogated, scanned.

    During the course of the scan, the Councildiscovered something terrible.

    At first they refused to believe it, so theytook in other humans...

    ...and had them scanned as well. But it wastrue.

    What was true?

    It is our belief that every generation ofMinbari is reborn...

    ...in each following generation.

    Remove those souls and the whole suffers. Weare diminished.

    Over the last 2000 years...

    ...there have been fewer Minbari born intoeach generation.

    And those who are born do not seem equal tothose who came before.

    It is almost as if our greater souls havebeen disappearing.

    At the Battle of the Line, we discovered whereour souls were going.

    They were going to you.

    Minbari souls are being reborn...

    ...in part or in full in human bodies.

    So you stopped the war in order to avoidharming your own souls?

    Yes.

    But the Council knew that our people andyours were not ready for this information.

    It could unravel our entire society.

    So we could not tell our generals the reasonfor the surrender.

    We had all memory of the examination erasedfrom Sinclair's mind...

    ...and we let him go.

    It has been our secret.

    Now it is yours.

    It must be kept.

    Then why break the silence now? I mean, whytell us?

    Because changes are coming.

    Cmdr. Sinclair was the first.

    There will be more.

    -Yes. -"Captain..."

    ...something major is coming through thejumpgate.

    It's a Minbari cruiser.

    Her gun ports are open, and target systemsare operational.

    She's on an attack vector. Repeat, she's onattack vector.

    I had this wonderful dream the other night.

    We were in bed in this beautiful hotel, roseand mint wallpaper.

    -Hey, Warren. -It was sunny, and--

    Check this out.

    Hold on just a sec.

    It's getting so a man can't even enjoy aletter from home anymore.

    What?

    What the hell?

    Red alert, all quarters. Have they hailed usyet?

    Yes, sir. Waiting your arrival.

    Activate defense grid, put all squadrons onstandby.

    I don't want actions that might beconsidered provocative.

    -Scrambling fighters. -Move it, everybody!Move it! Move it!

    This is a red alert. All stations, this is ared alert.

    This is a red alert. All stations, this is ared alert.

    This is Capt. John Sheridan, Earth AllianceStation Babylon 5.

    What can I do for you?

    This is Alyt Deeron of the Minbari "warcruiser" Trigati.

    You have illegally arrested and detained thecaptain of this vessel.

    Your captain assaulted one of my crew andwas caught in an attempted murder.

    None of your people were killed. No Minbariwas killed.

    You have not been harmed. You will releaseour captain.

    And if we refuse?

    Captain, she's launching fighters.

    Zeta Wing, "prepare to launch."

    We're clear.

    "Godspeed," Zeta Wing.

    Deeron, recall your fighters.

    Any attack on this station will beconsidered an act of war.

    The war has already begun, captain.

    All that remains now is honor and death.

    And I thought I was a pessimist.

    It's odd she would say that.

    So far, no one's been killed, so there is noreason for this to escalate, unless....

    Oh, hell!

    -Get me Security, fast! -On it.

    They're trying to do anything they can tostart a shooting war.

    But Kalain didn't kill the security guard orany of us.

    And the "Trigati" didn't attackany of the ships that have seen it the last few days.

    What ships?

    Sorry, I was under orders not to tellanyone. I will explain everything later.

    Captain, Security just linked in.

    Kalain is dead.

    -They say it looks like suicide. -That'swhat I was afraid of.

    They want it to look like we're provokingthem into a war.

    But why? This whole bit about us sharingMinbari souls?

    They weren't told. They don't know they'renot supposed to attack.

    -Think they'd believe us if we told them?-Minbari fighters coming at us.

    That answer your question?

    They're on attack vector.

    Closing fast.

    We don't have any choice.

    All fighters, intercept enemy craft andengage.

    Confirmed, Babylon Control.

    -Those are our fighters? -Yes, sir.

    And those are the Minbari fighters.

    The Minbari.

    What kind of tracking systems are we using?

    Standard XB7 units. Why?

    That's the same kind we used during the war,but that doesn't make sense.

    We shouldn't be able to track them at all.

    What was that she said?

    "All that remains now is honor anddeath."

    All fighters, hold position.

    What? If they hold position, they're perfecttargets.

    Zeta Squadron requesting confirmation ofstandby order.

    Confirm the order.

    Confirm it, damn it!

    I know what I'm doing.

    All fighters, confirmed. Maintain position.Do not advance. Repeat, do not advance.

    Can you deliver a narrow-band transmissionpoint to point...

    ...without the "Trigati"intercepting it?

    -We can adjust the laser delivery system---Do it.

    Open the jumpgate.

    Send this message in a tight-beamtransmission through the openning into hyperspace.

    Frequency and address are all there.

    Enemy fighters at 30 kilometers and closing.

    Activate jumpgate sequence.

    Jumpgate sequence, aye.

    A distress signal won't do any good. No onecan get to us in time.

    Come on, Babylon Control, give us a breakhere.

    If we're not allowed to fire, we're dead.

    Enemy at 10 kilometers.

    -Eight. -Captain.

    Hold your fire.

    Continue to hold.

    What the hell?

    I don't understand. They didn't fire.

    They're looping back, heading for the"Trigati."

    -Exactly. -But how did you know they'd--?

    We've got something coming through thejumpgate.

    That's why. They were waiting forreinforcements.

    Negative.

    They're here because I called them.

    I knew the Minbari government had sentanother cruiser to look for the "Trigati."

    But since no one's seen it...

    ...I figured they were waiting inhyperspace...

    ...until they heard about another sighting.

    Looks like I was right.

    That doesn't explain how you knew theywouldn't attack.

    We're monitoring a signal from the cruiser.

    "They're ordering the" Trigati tosurrender.

    It's like I said.

    One of the problem during the war was...

    ...that none of our weapon systems couldlock on to the Minbari vessels.

    They use some kind of stealth technology wewere never able to break.

    So how come all of a sudden we can track them?

    They want to be destroyed?

    "All that remains is honor anddeath."

    They have been in exile for 12 years. Theycan't go home.

    They can't surrender without beingdishonored and can't fight without a war.

    So by forcing us to attack...

    ...by dying by human hands...

    ...they become martyrs.

    And because you're known for having foughtthem, you're the perfect target.

    "Trigati" is breaking away.

    Starting to open a jump point.

    Shall we open fire?

    No, the Minbari will have to do this.

    They're targeting the "Trigati"'saft engines.

    "Trigati"'s engines have been hit.Unable to make jump.

    No change in life signs, a clean hit.

    The war cruiser is ordering the"Trigati" stand down to prepare to be boarded.

    -Their response? -Just one word: honor.

    We're picking up a change in the"Trigati"'s fusion reactors, moving towards critical.

    They're....

    Oh, my God.

    Signal coming in from the war cruiser.

    Put it through.

    This is Capt. John Sheridan, Babylon 5.

    Appreciate the help.

    Perhaps to you, this was a tactical problemto be solved.

    For us, this has been a great sorrow.

    "The crew of the 'Trigati' wereheroes" to many of our people.

    Their death will be mourned.

    And your name will be remembered.

    Yes?

    Thought I'd stop by, see if all your thingsarrived.

    Yes, yes. Everything's present and accountedfor.

    Something wrong?

    When I got my orders...

    ...I figured this place was a greatopportunity.

    And now I wonder if coming here wasirresponsible.

    This whole mess with the "Trigati"might not have happened if I hadn't been here.

    My presence, my actions in the war.

    I'm to blame for bringing all this troubleto Babylon 5.

    What was it our friend in the Grey Councilsaid?

    "If there's a doom on this station, itwas you who brought it here."

    Well, maybe he was right.

    I spoke with the president.

    He is the only other human who knows why theMinbari surrendered.

    And he doesn't believe this stuff about ussharing Minbari souls.

    And I can't say that I do either.

    But they believe it. That's why they choseSinclair to run this place.

    That's why they picked him to live on theirworld. He was their first human contact.

    Him they trust.

    But me?

    I don't know.

    If Sinclair had been here instead, maybethey might not have attacked.

    Maybe they would have.

    I learned a while ago (TKO)

    that there's enough guilt in the world to goaround without grabbing for more.

    Give yourself the benefit of the doubt.

    Anyway, if you ever want to talk about thissome more...

    ...you know where to find me. Anytime.

    I told them, Delenn, as I was ordered.

    I only wish I could have told them the rest.

    About the great enemy that is returning...

    ...and the prophecy

    that the two sides of our spirit...

    ...must unite against the Darkness or bedestroyed.

    They say it will take both of our races tostop the Darkness.

    I'm told that the Earthers will discover allof this soon enough on their own.

    I hope they are right.

    Because if we are wrong...

    ...no one will survive our mistake.

    Good night, Delenn.

    I'm not saying I mind looking a squadron ofMinbari fighters right in the eye.

    And I'm not saying I mind sitting there withmy weapons systems turned off, waiting to be splashed.

    I'm just saying, next time this happens--

    If there's a next time.

    If someone could, oh, I don't know, maybeexplain it to me...

    ...this would definitely be a good thing formy limited and admittedly subjective point of view.

    Did you catch that? He wants explanations.He wants logic.

    Logic is a good thing. What it has to dowith the Earthforce is anybody's guess.

    Yeah, I suppose. So, what does everybodythink of our new captain?

    Well, I haven't seen too much of him, butwhat I have seen, I like.

    I think he's gonna be okay. Susan?

    I agree.

    It's funny, he's supposed  to meet us here for drinks.

    I wonder what's hanging him up?

    Well, the last time I saw him, he saidsomething about...

    ...having a half-hour to give  some good-luck speech or

    it wouldn't count, I don't know.

    When was that?

    About 20 minutes ago.

    Oh, no. Of all the times he could havepicked.

    It was an early Earth president, AbrahamLincoln...

    ...who best described our situation.

    "The dogmas of the quiet past...

    ...are inadequate to the stormy present.

    The occasion is piled high with difficulty,and we must rise to the occasion.

    We cannot escape history.

    We will be remembered in spite of ourselves.

    The fiery trial through which we pass...

    ...will light us down in honor or dishonorto the last generation.

    We shall nobly save...

    ...or meanly lose...

    ...our last, best hope of Earth."

    Five minutes to spare.