“Mr. Morden.” Londo started sobering up very quickly. “How did you get here?”
“I have… friends in some very high places.”
“Does Mr. Bester know that you are here?”
“No. I thought it best to avoid drawing any undue attention to myself.”
“And what do you want with me?”
“That’s a very dangerous question to ask, Minister, and an even more dangerous one to answer, but to try… I’m here to help you, Minister.
“I just want to help…”
I still haven’t quite come to terms with what we’ve done here. The Captain and I have been defending Proxima 3 for so long that I still can’t accept the fact that we’ll be working against them. I know that the Shadows are evil, and I know that President Clark has become corrupt, and the whole Resistance Government with him, but… there are a lot of innocent people there.
I think, between them, Clark and Susan are going to turn humanity into something I don’t want to be a part of any longer. I just wish it didn’t have to work out this way.
“She’s alive, and should recover,” the doctor said. “Her injuries are not fatal, although they will keep her incapacitated for a long time and there may be some mental damage that we can’t cure. She’ll need to be on life support for a while, but I expect we’ll be able to take her off it in a week or so.”
President Morgan Clark looked at the slumbering body in the adjacent room. Susan Ivanova was alive. She had done a wonderful thing, freeing humanity from the shadow under which they had lived for so long. Across Proxima 3, there were celebrations and partying.
Clark’s mind was already at work on plans for the future. His Keeper was content to let him make them. A little time to rest and recover, maybe start cannibalising some of the destroyed Minbari ships. They might be able to find out some details about Minbari technology. After that… it would be time to take the war to the enemy.
But there were a few problems closer to home to deal with first.
“General Hague is dead, but then his performance of his duties had been slipping over recent months, anyway,” Mr. Welles had reported earlier. “I thought we could promote his aide, Major Ryan, and shift any other duties among myself and General Takashima, but I have heard some reports about the Babylon’s actions during the battle…”
“I know,” Clark replied. Welles had known that Clark knew, which was why he had brought the matter up. “It was a simple misunderstanding, that is all.”
“A simple misunderstanding, Mr. President? I hardly think…”
“What you think does not matter, Mr. Welles. There will be no repercussions for General Takashima’s… lapse in judgement.”
“As you say, Mr. President.
“About Ambassador Ivanova…”
“She will be unable to perform her duties for several months at least. Her associates will be sending a replacement. The new Ambassador will be here in less than a week. We have nothing to worry about.”
Clark knew full well about Takashima’s actions during the battle. He also knew that she was not alone. Where had those two Earthforce ships come from? And what about the Narn and the Centauri ships? Takashima was a small piece of a much larger puzzle, and sooner or later, he would trace things back to their source.
For the moment, he was content to wait. He had time.
All the time in the galaxy.
“Delenn?”
“I am sorry, John. I just… I was just… I am sorry.”
“That’s all right.” Sheridan looked at her. It was strange how much she had become a part of his life recently. He wasn’t sure how much she had come to mean to him, but he did know that some of her actions had hurt him. Before he had been too immersed in the moment – the current actuality of the problem – to bother, but now… he was winding down. He was lapsing back into an almost catatonic depression. Now he had time to think… about Anna… about what he had done and seen… about what she had done.
He paused and looked at Delenn. There was a terrible sadness in her eyes. A dark and terrible sadness. “I’m sorry, Delenn.”
“What for?”
“I’m letting you go. You don’t have to stay here any more.” She looked at him. “I… what you did on the Parmenion. I understand it… I understand why… but… everyone I care about gets killed. Sooner or later, and most of the time it’s my fault. I’m… setting you free. You can go wherever you like… maybe even return home, if there’s a place for you there any more. I’ll mention this to G’Kar. I’m certain he has agents among the Minbari… maybe one of them can manage something. I… don’t…”
“John? Don’t. Please. Don’t.”
“I’m sorry, Delenn. I… I just…”
Slowly she rose to her feet and glided towards him, placing her hands on his chest. “My place… my rightful place is here… with you. I told you that we were old souls… and I told you that we belong together. I… I have lost everything I ever thought I had, John. I know how you feel. I will not leave you. Through fire and darkness, I will not leave you again.”
“Delenn, I…” She was so close, so near to him now. He could feel her breath on his cheek, see into the beautiful green infinity of her eyes, see her pain and her loss. She was right. He was the only thing she had left. What was she to do when he left her too – to fire or darkness – as surely he must?
Slowly he inclined his head. She put her arms up around his neck. He had lost Anna because he hadn’t trusted her. She had lost Neroon because their destinies lay in different directions.
Slowly, hesitantly, their lips met…
Delenn suddenly shook and almost slid from his arms. He caught her as she fell. She was shaking, trembling, moaning softly.
He activated his link. “Sheridan to Medlab! Emergency! Get here now!”
He remembered the diagnosis after her transformation. She had left the chrysalis prematurely. Her human and Minbari DNA were not properly joined. Her body chemistry was too unstable. Sooner or later it would kill her. Sooner or later.
He held her hand. “Delenn! Delenn!”
She did not answer him…
“Look at me! Valen, look at me!”
There was no reply. The white mists of the Dreaming swirled all around Sinoval. This was the first time he had returned here since his vision of Valen.
“Look at me!”
The Whisper Gallery was silent. There was no guide, no protector. There was no one.
“Valen!”
All of Minbar was in mourning. The Grey Council dead, only three remaining. Hedronn had gone, vanished completely. Sinoval supposed that he was dead, but that hardly mattered now. The Council had been broken, as Valen had prophesied long ago.
“Answer me!”
Some of the more extreme members of the warrior caste had taken it upon themselves to avenge the murder of their representatives on the Council. Warrior had slain worker. For the first time in a thousand years, Minbari were killing Minbari. Kalain had returned to his clan’s stronghold, gathering support for his faction. That damned Centauri Ambassador was gone, returned to his homeworld. Sinoval still owed him a favour, one he had no intention of repaying.
“Valen! Is this my destiny? Is this what I would do? Break us apart? Be the leader who leads us into the abyss? Answer me!
“VALEN, ANSWER ME!”
Sinoval’s rage knew no bounds, but all his rage, all his anger and all his words… they could not get him a reply.
The Dreaming remained silent.
He stormed from the room and paused outside it, looking around at the empty Whisper Gallery, and then at the pike he held – one of Durhan’s nine. Slowly he extended it, and then he hurled it contemptuously to the floor.
Sinoval walked on alone, into the darkness.