The Coming of the Children of the Shadow

	*[Int. shot, Mordred Bridge. Smoke fills the air and sparks emit from various consoles.]*
Max	Damage report!
Thornely	Helm sluggish. We've got some response, but don't ask for anything fancy.
Linerva	Sensors are out, radar is out. We're blind, sir.
Max	Bron?
Bron	The main engines are off line, and I'll want to do a complete check on the Fold System before we use it again. We're currently running on batteries and auxiliary thruster controls.
Thornely	Great. No wonder she's sluggish.
Srepde	All squadrons have reported heavy casualties, but we only lost two Veritechs in the Fold.
Rick	We're doing better than I expected.
Bernard	Captain, I'm getting a message on a hyperwave carrier. It's not one of ours, but it's not Zentraedi or Invid. Audio only.
Max	On speaker.
Female VO	...are on a collision course with us, pull up! This is Babylon 5 Control to unidentified ships. You are on a collision...
	*[Ext. shot, Mordred, Qistra-Hesp and Dephinar falling towards Babylon 5 station.]*
	*[Opening sequence music.]*
Ivanova (VO)	The Babylon Project was our last, best hope for peace. It failed. But, in the Year of the Shadow War, it became something greater: our last, best hope for... victory. The year is 2260. The place: Babylon 5.
	*[Opening sequence.]*
	*[Int. shot, Babylon 5 C&C.]*
Title	The Coming Of The Children Of The Shadow.
Ivanova	...course with us. Disengage immediately!
	*[Door to C&C open, Sheridan walks in buttoning his uniform.]*
Sheridan	What's the commotion?
Ivanova	We have three ships coming straight at us, apparently without power.
Sheridan	Anyone we know?
Ivanova	Doesn't look like it. But they're all of differing designs.
Sheridan	Are they on our schedule?
Ivanova	No, sir. They didn't even use a jump point. They just... appeared in a flash of liquid light.
Sheridan	Liquid light? How long before impact?
Ivanova	Forty minutes, unless they change trajectory.
	*[Sheridan looks at computer screen.]*
Sheridan	Can we change it for them? Tugs?
Ivanova	The small red one, maybe. The blue and the green ones range at one thousand and three thousand meters respectively. We don't have enough tugs for them.
Sheridan	Have Zeta Squadron put on stand-by. If these ships get too close before moving off, I want them turned into plasma.
Ivanova	Understood sir. Babylon 5 Control to Unidentified Ships. You are still on a collision course with the station. If you do not deviate from your course within the next thirty minutes we will be forced to open fire. Do you read?
	*[Int. shot, Mordred Bridge.]*
Max	O'Celc! Communication status!
O'Celc	We can receive, but our transmission capabilities are nil at the moment. We're working on it.
Max	Bron, the engines?
Bron	I have all my men working on in, Captain. We think we can beat the thirty-minute deadline.
Max	You think? Never mind.
Bernard	Captain? What about the auxiliary thrusters?
Max	What about them?
Bernard	They're still working. Couldn't we just fire them and keep them fired until we achieve orbit?
Max	Bron?
Bron	It might work. But I've got to warn you, we'll probably use the last of our reaction mass doing that.
Max	Get on it right now.
	*[Int. shot, Qistra-Hesp Bridge]*
Magiso	Report!
Siniya	Our fold engines are inoperative. Our reaction mass supply is dangerously low. We have no way to modify our trajectory.
Magiso	Domillan-yar!
Siniya	I recommend the evacuation, then detonation, of the ship.
Magiso	This is not the Zentraedi Way. What will our sisters think?
Siniya	The Humans have a saying: He who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day. Would you deny the fact that these humans are good fighters?
Magiso	No. They may be many things, but cowards they are not. Very well. Evacuate the ship. Execute the first Meltran who questions the order. Maybe this will prompt the others to obey.
	*[Int. shot, Dephinar Bridge.]*
Phsaq	Brain?
Brain	I am still here.
Phsaq	Please ascertain our current readiness status.
Brain	All engines are inoperative. The Dephinar is on a collision course with a large artificial object currently orbiting a nearby planet. We are not in Invid explored space. Evacuation is recommended at this time.
Phsaq	Negative. An alternative course of action is required. Tseld, Drinth.
	*[Two comm-screen come to life, showing the squad leaders.]*
Tseld & Drinth	Commander?
Phsaq	You will lead all Gurab and Iigaa squadrons to the outside of the ship. You will congregate as indicated by the Brain. On my command, you will fire your thruster and keep them running until such a time as I say otherwise. Is this understood?
Tseld & Drinth	Yes, Commander.
	[Ext. shot, Babylon 5 in the background. Mordred is firing all forward lateral thrusters. Quedlunn-rau Armours are exiting the Qistra-Hesp and re-grouping aft and 'above' it. Gurab and Iigaa Invid crafts exit from the Dephinar, congregate left of its main engines and proceed to 'push' the Carrier.]
	*[Int. shot, Babylon 5 Casino. Garibaldi is sitting at a table drinking mineral water. Londo sees him and approaches.]*
Londo	Garibaldi, my good friend!
Garibaldi	Oh no, Londo. I'm not lending you any money.
Londo	I am wounded that you would think me so shallow.
Garibaldi	Yeah, right. What do you want, Ambassador?
Londo	Rumour has it that three ships are currently outside Babylon-5. Three unidentified ship.
Garibaldi	And...?
Londo	It is also said that these ships appeared without requiring a jump-point. Is this correct?
Garibaldi	I know nothing about it, Ambassador. If you have any question, I suggest you take them to the Captain. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to return to work.
	*[Garibaldi gets up and leaves. Londo stays seated, staring in mid-air.]*
Londo	How very interesting.
	*[Int. shot, Babylon 5 C&C. Ivanova is monitoring the ships. Sheridan enters.]*
Sheridan	...next time I'll go have my teeth drilled, it'll be less painful.
Ivanova	Tough time with Ambassador Kosh?
Sheridan	"Tough" does not even begin to describe it. Every time I meet him I feel like I know less than when I started.
Ivanova	"If the answers were easy, the questions would not be worth asking."
Sheridan	More Russian wisdom?
Ivanova	No. Russian wisdom would be: "Accept your fate, for there is nothing you can do to change it." I'm afraid we Russians are great pessimists.
Sheridan	What's the status on our visitors?
Ivanova	Five minutes till deadline. The organic-looking ship is being evacuated. The blue-and-white one is trying to modify its trajectory using what looks like auxiliary thrusters. And the red one is being pushed out of the way by fighter-crafts.
	*[An explosion occurs outside the Station.]*
Sheridan	What was that?
Ivanova	It appears the first ship has detonated, Captain. Small debris on a collision trajectory, but nothing the meteorite defences can't handle.
NBE	Sir? We are being hailed.
Sheridan	Put it on.
	*[A console lights up, showing the helmeted face of Magiso.]*
Magiso	I am Kalidar Magiso, War-Lord of the fifth Queadlunn-rau Battalion of the Zentraedi. Our ship suffered terminal damage. We... request... permission to alight at your station.
Sheridan	Commander?
Ivanova	I count fifty-eight heavy fighter-sized crafts. There should be enough room in Bay 14 and 15 for the lot of them.
Sheridan	Very well. Kalidar Magiso? I am Captain Sheridan, commander of this station. If you follow our instruction, we will guide you to Berthing Docks. But understand - violence will not be tolerated aboard this station or its environ.
Magiso	Very well, awaiting your instructions.
	*[Int. shot, Mordred Bridge.]*
Rick	Well, how are we doing?
Max	We'll miss the station, if that's what you're worried about. We'll even make it into orbit, but we won't be able to break out of it until we get the main engines repaired.
Rick	What about the Invid?
Max	Good question. Linerva?
Linerva	They are also achieving orbit, about a quarter radii behind us. Looks like they're also having trouble with their engines - they're all outside pushing their ship.
Max	Why didn't we think of that?
Rick	The Qistra-Hesp blown up, the Dephinar right on our tail, and here we are with our ship almost powerless.
Max	Still, it could be worse.
Rick	Oh yes? How?
	*[Ext. shot, Jump gate. Freight ship appears, pursued by fighters. The fighters are firing at the freighter.]*

Q-Bic

Robylon-5

Shadow Dance


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