That was empty too.
In fact, there was no one around.
He might have retired from Earthforce but he had been a soldier for a long time, and some instincts remained. They were all screaming at him. There was the sound of movement outside, and he began to panic. Racing back to Delenn's room, he scooped up the PPG he had laid next to the chair.
"What is it?" Delenn whispered.
"Trouble," he replied softly. "Can you walk?"
"If I must."
"Trust me, you must. I think someone's discovered you're here. Come on." He reached for her and gently helped her out of the bed. She swayed against him and almost fell. "Just move as quickly as you can," he said. "We've got to get out of here."
"Where?"
"I don't know." Slowly, he began to guide her towards the back door. "I would have said Bo's, but I went to him before. Maybe he...." He shook his head. "No, I can't believe Bo would do that. But.... Damn, we've been much too careless. Doctors, helpers, anyone could have found out you're here."
"We don't know.... they.... know...."
A window exploded as a rock came flying through it. Smith started as it landed at his feet. There was the sound of angry voices outside. He could not identify words, and he did not want to.
"Oh, they know all right. There must be another way out of here."
"Why...?" She coughed again. "Why are you helping me?"
"Someone has to."
"No," she said seriously. "No one has to. I would not blame you if you chose to leave me here. I have done much to deserve that."
"Well, what can I say? I always wanted to be a hero. Look, someone has to be the good guy, and it might as well be me. In the grand scale of things my life doesn't mean much. Yours does. Now come on, we have to get out the back."
"Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you."
"Hey, don't thank me until we're out of this."
Slowly, they moved on. More windows broke, but they were all front–facing ones. Maybe they had not got round the back. Smith was thinking of places to go, places to hide. There was an alley not far away that led out to another abandoned building. They could hide there for a while. It would be hard to conceal Delenn, of course. Even apart from her headbone she was pretty conspicuous in her white hospital gown.
Still, all they had to do was get away from here. They could try to get in touch with Welles. He would be able to do something.
Smith pushed open the back door, and swore loudly.
There was a crowd waiting for them. Several people were carrying weapons, and dark glares were burning in their eyes. There were angry cries.
And standing in the front row, a look of triumph on his face, arms folded across his chest, was Trace.
He was smiling.
Klaxons continued to blare across Proxima. Wherever they were heard they aroused panic and terror. People had long memories. Some scrambled into underground blast shelters, families huddled together, reliving days they had thought were long gone. Others stumbled outside, looking up into the sky, waiting for the first sight of the alien ships descending on their world.
If anyone in the business sector had done that they would indeed have seen an alien ship descending on their world, but this was not a Minbari warship, not a Dark Star, or a Narn cruiser, or a Drazi Sunhawk, or any other Alliance ship.
It was a Shadow vessel. A ship belonging to humanity's allies, their saviours, their guardians against all the things that threatened the human race.
The dome shattered as it crashed through the glittering surface, shards raining down upon the buildings and people below. It turned and bore down on the Edgars Building, the headquarters of Interplanetary Expeditions.
It fired. Windows shattered. Walls exploded. The building began to collapse.
Somewhere beneath the building, in a hidden, reinforced underground complex, two men stood before another one. The room was shaking around them.
"How strong is this place?" asked the younger. "Can that thing blow us up?"
"Eventually, yes. There were limits to just how strong we could make this complex without alerting the Enemy. It will however take time.... and that is on our side."
"Is it ready?"
A thin smile stretched across his features. "Yes, the network is ready. The Dark Stars are here, and unknowingly they bring our salvation with them. All we have to do is open this link."
Mr. Edgars stepped forward, looking up at the still form of Byron. There was a low humming noise, which had been growing louder and louder. Lights began to sparkle around the wall, illuminating Byron's body. His eyes flicked open, and from deep within them came a brighter and brighter–glowing light.
"Mr. Byron," said Edgars, stepping back and breathing in sharply. "This is your wake–up call."
Above them all, the Shadow ship continued to fire.
Smith moved first, instincts honed by back–alley brawls and Earthforce training. He darted in front of Delenn as the first rock was thrown. She stumbled as he pushed her back, but the rock missed her.
"It is her!" cried one voice.
"I told you so," said Trace. "It's her. He's the one that hid her here."
Some of the crowd moved forward, and Smith gently tried to push Delenn back into the doorway. She would not move.
"Stop this!" Smith cried. "This isn't...."
"Oh, but it is!" snapped Trace. "She's Minbari. She's Delenn herself. We all know who she is, what she's done! You're trying to protect her!" He turned to face the crowd. "The big war hero here would rather protect the Minbari than fight them!"
There was another forward surge, and another projectile was thrown. It struck Smith on the shoulder, and he grunted. "Go," he said to Delenn. "I'll try and hold them off.... as much as I can."
"No," she said softly.
"What? They'll kill you, for God's sake. Just go!"
"I know," she said. Gently she pushed him aside, and he stumbled. She walked forward and stood to face the crowd. They stopped, puzzled. "I am sorry," she said to them simply. "I am sorry."
"Sorry?" cried one. "Sorry?" said another. "That ain't enough!" "Not by half!"
"I know," she said again. "Words can never undo what has been done. They cannot restore the dead to your side, nor erase all the years of grief. The past can never be changed.
"But the future can be healed. The past can be remembered, and honoured, and still we can look to the future. I came here to this world, to say this. To say I am sorry."
There was a stunned silence. Smith turned to look at Trace, and saw confusion in the man's eyes. For a moment, all was still. For one moment the entire crowd paused, and history took a breath.
And then God blinked.
Someone threw a stone. It hit Delenn squarely on the leg, and she stumbled. With that, another projectile was launched, a bottle, rocks, cans, rubbish. Smith tried to intervene, but he could do nothing. Delenn fell to the ground as more and more was hurled at her. Countless cuts bled.
"Wait a minute!" Trace said at last, and the people stopped. Slowly, Delenn tried to rise. Smith went to her and offered her his arm. She leant on him, and for one moment looked into his eyes. Then she bowed her head.
"Wait a minute," said Trace again. "The Government were going to give her a trial, so they said. Do things proper and by the book, and so should we.
"But our justice isn't their justice. They've got lawyers, and fancy defences, and diplomatic concerns. We've got none of that here. We've got three–o–one justice, and we'll do this fairly.... but we'll do it our way. Anyone here want to, say, put the evidence for the prosecution, as it were?"
There was a pause, and Delenn was visibly shaking against Smith. He tried to shepherd her back towards the door, but she would not move.