The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5
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  1. [1][ISMAP]-[2][Home]
  2. [3][Guide] [4][Background] ### SYNOPSIS ### [5][Credits] [6][Episode
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  4. Synopsis by Matthew Murray (mmurray@wsu.edu)
  5. Delenn and Sheridan meet each other at a Universe Today vending
  6. machine. Sheridan expresses surprise that Delenn reads the paper; she
  7. explains that, after her previous encounter with Earth's reporters,
  8. she thought she should be better prepared and that, on Minbar, one is
  9. told only about what one needs to know, and no more. Sheridan recycles
  10. the copy of the paper he has and orders a new one. Delenn does the
  11. same, but is informed by the machine that "Eye on Minbari" cannot be
  12. inserted into her paper. Slightly embarrassed, she explains that it is
  13. a good idea to keep track of what the humans are saying about the
  14. Minbari, and a good way to learn things about the Minbari that she
  15. isn't told about.
  16. A wounded man rushes through the sewers of the Mars Colony, where he
  17. meets up with a Ranger. Just before the man dies, he hands the Ranger
  18. a data crystal. "Take it to Babylon 5. Tell them... tell them it's not
  19. safe." The Ranger takes the data crystal and escapes back into the
  20. sewers, just as the people pursuing them catch up.
  21. Captain Sheridan and Garibaldi meet in the bathroom and begin a
  22. conversation. After making sure it is clear, Garibaldi activates a
  23. bug-jamming device and asks Sheridan if he gave any more thought to
  24. the idea of bringing Talia in on their conspiracy. Sheridan agrees to
  25. the idea, and they make plans to tell her in a few days.
  26. Talia and Ivanova are eating, musing over their new friendship. Each
  27. blames the other for the difficulties in achieving the friendship, but
  28. their conversation is interrupted by a call from C&C for Ivanova
  29. telling her that a ship arrived through the jumpgate, and has done
  30. nothing since its arrival. Ivanova goes to C&C to investigate. As she
  31. leaves, Talia tells her that, due to a problem in her air recycling
  32. system, she needs to find a place to stay for a few days. Ivanova
  33. offers her quarters.
  34. Ivanova determines that the ship was hit, and tries to contact the
  35. ship. There's no response from the one lifeform on board. She orders
  36. the ship brought aboard the station.
  37. Dr. Franklin arrives at the ship and meets with Garibaldi, who says
  38. the ship's serial number is faked, and that he doesn't want to report
  39. anything until he finds out what's onboard. Dr. Franklin's aide tells
  40. him that they found one human female aboard, unconscious, but alive.
  41. They wheel her out, but Garibaldi recognizes her.
  42. Garibaldi tells Sheridan that the woman, Lyta Alexander, was Babylon
  43. 5's first commercial telepath, though she lasted only a few weeks. She
  44. scanned Kosh after the assassination attempt and discovered that Kosh
  45. saw Commander Sinclair as the murderer, which nearly ruined Sinclair's
  46. career, though he was later proved innocent. Garibaldi explains that
  47. she and Dr. Benjamin Kyle, who operated on Kosh, were recalled back to
  48. Earth, and Lyta was never the same after the scan.
  49. In medlab, Lyta wakes up, and grabs a piece of medical equipment.
  50. Holding Franklin at bay, she demands to see Captain Sheridan and the
  51. rest of the command staff, and to not be left alone with anyone.
  52. Franklin asks why, and she explains that one of the people on Babylon
  53. 5 is a traitor, and says she can prove it.
  54. Lyta appears before Sheridan, Ivanova, Garibaldi, and Franklin and
  55. tells them that Babylon 5 has a great importance to a lot of people,
  56. and that she has to come back to warn them. She explains that the
  57. authorities on Earth didn't believe that she didn't see what Kosh
  58. looked like, and that their scans revealed nothing -- she retained
  59. only a feeling, an intense belief that she had to get to Vorlon space.
  60. She recently escaped from the Psi Corps. While she was on Mars, she
  61. got involved in the revolutionary movement and hired herself out as a
  62. telepath. One of the underground's agents was murdered after he found
  63. out about a secret sleeper operation, which would implant a new
  64. personality, suited to Psi-Corps' needs, into one's subconscious. When
  65. a special password is sent, via telepathy, to a person inhabited by a
  66. sleeper program, the implanted personality takes over completely.
  67. Thus, it is possible for someone to carry the program and not know it.
  68. Lyta learned that such "moles" were implanted in several government
  69. agencies, including Babylon 5, although she doesn't know who the one
  70. on the station is. The codename of the mole is Control, and the
  71. underground suspects he or she is in the command staff. Ivanova doubts
  72. this at first, but Lyta insists she has the password and can send it
  73. to activate the sleeper program. Sheridan promises they will discuss
  74. it, but Lyta warns him to not wait too long because the personality
  75. would attempt to destroy anything it perceives as a threat. She warns
  76. them to be on the lookout, and that she can't be alone, because she
  77. won't be safe. She is taken to a security cell.
  78. Delenn and Sheridan meet, and she asks him to meet her tomorrow to
  79. talk about the food shipments to Narn. He seems distracted, and she
  80. asks him what's wrong, but he initially doesn't want to talk about it.
  81. He relents and explains that he feels bad because things had been
  82. going well, but have taken a turn for the worse. They continue their
  83. conversation, and Delenn is slowly able to cheer Sheridan up. She
  84. tells him that, when one is in a bad mood, one merely needs to wait.
  85. He finds her holding his hand when Garibaldi calls informing him that
  86. the background check has been completed. Sheridan and Delenn part
  87. hastily.
  88. Garibaldi tells Sheridan that, as far as he can tell, Lyta is correct
  89. in all that she said. Sheridan warns Garibaldi not to trust her, but
  90. Garibaldi says it is a gut feeling of his that she is telling the
  91. truth. Sheridan suggests that Garibaldi's aide may have been the mole,
  92. but there is no proof either way. Sheridan says that he wants to think
  93. about it overnight before making a decision. Garibaldi asks if Ivanova
  94. has come around, and Sheridan tells him that she hasn't.
  95. Ivanova is working out her anger slamming cupboards in her kitchen
  96. when Talia comes in. Ivanova fixes some tea for them and asks Talia
  97. about Lyta. Talia tells her that they spent part of their early
  98. careers in intern programs. Ivanova asks if she feels that Lyta could
  99. be trusted, and Talia says that she thinks she can. Ivanova also asks
  100. where Lyta interned, and Talia tells her that she interned with the
  101. Psi Cops before becoming a commercial telepath. Ivanova tells Talia
  102. that she doesn't know who she can trust, and Talia agrees, saying that
  103. she feels that she can only really trust Ivanova.
  104. Zack Allen enters Garibaldi's office and Garibaldi tells him to move
  105. Lyta to a more comfortable holding area, since she may be there for a
  106. while. As Zack leaves, Garibaldi asks about the Nightwatch armband
  107. Zack still wears. Zack says he feels it's easy money.
  108. Talia wakes up and feels around in the bed next to her. There is no
  109. one there, and she sits up with a start. Meanwhile, two officers
  110. arrive in Lyta's cell and tell her that they were sent to transfer
  111. her. They leave the cell, but on the way, they are assaulted by PPG
  112. fire, which takes down both of the security guards. Lyta grabs a PPG
  113. and returns fire at the assailant before running off. Though other
  114. guards search for her, they are unable to find her.
  115. Sheridan can't believe that she hasn't been located, or even that the
  116. attack happened, because he had almost believed she was wrong.
  117. Sheridan doesn't understand who could have done it, since very few
  118. people knew Lyta was there, but Garibaldi reminds him that the sleeper
  119. personality was probably responsible. He orders Lyta put under
  120. protective custody, and tells Ivanova and Garibaldi that he wants to
  121. let her send the scan. Ivanova is obstinate, but Sheridan says that,
  122. under the current circumstances, if they don't know who they can trust
  123. and who they can't, they won't be able to function properly.
  124. Delenn is in her quarters composing a letter regarding trade relations
  125. with the Lumati when she receives a call from Lyta. Lyta asks Delenn
  126. to meet her in Brown 3 in an hour.
  127. Talia arrives at Ivanova's quarters to tell her that the air recycling
  128. system has been fixed, so she'll be returning to her own quarters.
  129. Talia asks her if everything is all right, and Ivanova says she
  130. doesn't want to talk about it. Talia asks where she went the night
  131. before, and though Talia offers help yet again, Ivanova refusts it,
  132. saying that her secrets might soon come to the surface and haunt her.
  133. "After you tell someone that you've been lying to them for years,
  134. maybe even putting them in jeopardy, how are you supposed to look them
  135. in the face again?" Talia tells Ivanova that there are people around
  136. who care, though Ivanova still has doubts. Talia reminds Ivanova that
  137. she is there for her.
  138. Delenn meets up with Sheridan in a corridor and tells him that she
  139. received a message from Lyta. Sheridan asks where she is, but Delenn
  140. promised not to tell anyone. Lyta will return, Delenn says, but only
  141. if everyone is present. Sheridan tells Delenn to tell Lyta that he
  142. agrees to her conditions.
  143. Sheridan returns to his quarters and finds Ivanova waiting for him.
  144. She is very troubled and tells Sheridan that she thought she was
  145. ready. She tells him that she can't allow any telepath into her mind
  146. ever. Sheridan tries to tell her that he understands, but she knows he
  147. doesn't. "I've told you that my mother was a telepath, and that since
  148. I was born she could slip into my thoughts in a way that I could never
  149. even describe to you. But what I didn't tell you was that I learned
  150. how to keep her out when I wanted to, and that once in a while, I was
  151. the one that touched her mind. I'm a latent telepath."
  152. "Susan, why didn't you tell me this before? I thought we could trust
  153. each other."
  154. "It's got nothing to do with trust. I've spent my entire life hiding
  155. this, Captain. It's not something you can just change overnight. It's
  156. hard enough telling you this now."
  157. "You're right. I'm sorry."
  158. "For as long as I can remember, my mother drilled three words into my
  159. head: 'Tell no one.' She taught me how to fool the tests given in
  160. school, transferred me from one school to another, always staying one
  161. step ahead of the Psi Corps. I'm probably not even a P1--I've never
  162. been able to read anyone except my mother. I can pick up on feelings
  163. sometimes, I can block a casual scan, and I know instantly if
  164. someone's doing it. Nothing more. But that's enough for the Psi Corps
  165. to come pull you in!"
  166. Sheridan tries to convince her that Lyta is not involved, though she
  167. is hardly convinced. He says that he believes Garibaldi, especially
  168. since he so rarely trusts anyone. Ivanova thanks Sheridan. "It's all
  169. this nonsense lately... some days, I don't even know who I am any
  170. more," she tells him. As she says that, Sheridan remembers the dream
  171. he had a few months earlier (cf. [9]"All Alone in the Night.") As he
  172. starts to explain, he receives a message from C&C saying that Delenn
  173. has sent him a message: "Now."
  174. Delenn brings Lyta to Sheridan's office. Sheridan tells Lyta that he
  175. agrees to let her send the password into the command staff of Babylon
  176. 5. She sends the password to Sheridan, but nothing happens. She
  177. follows up with Franklin and Garibaldi. Garibaldi frightens everyone
  178. by pretending that the password was a success. Though Garibaldi
  179. suggests they move on to Ivanova, Sheridan tells him that they will
  180. wait for now, as they have many other people to check. One by one,
  181. they bring the command staff into Sheridan's office, where Lyta,
  182. quietly in the background, sends the password to each. None of them
  183. possess the program.
  184. After they've scanned all the EarthForce officers aboard Babylon 5,
  185. Lyta is very discouraged that they haven't found anything and begins
  186. turning her frustration on the troubled Ivanova. Franklin tries to
  187. convince her that Lyta isn't implying anything, but Lyta isn't so
  188. sure, and demands to know what Ivanova is hiding. Sheridan breaks
  189. through the tension and tells them that this is what Psi Corps wants.
  190. Seeing no other option, Ivanova agrees to have the password sent. Lyta
  191. tries to send the password, but is unable to get through. "She's
  192. blocking me," she announces. Ivanova drops her defenses and the
  193. password is sent, but Ivanova isn't implanted with the program either.
  194. Lyta tries to apologize to Ivanova.
  195. "Go to hell," Ivanova responds.
  196. Talia enters and says she's been looking for Captain Sheridan. As she
  197. comes in, Lyta stares at her intently and sends the password. Talia
  198. falls back and steals Garibaldi's PPG, firing at Sheridan, though he
  199. is able to move out of the way in time. Garibaldi grabs the PPG away
  200. from her and drags her out of the room as Sheridan orders her under
  201. house arrest. But she doesn't go away quietly. "You blew my cover!
  202. You're dead! Do you hear me? You're dead! The Corps is mother, the
  203. Corps is father! You're dead, Lyta Alexander! We'll find you! The
  204. Corps will find you!"
  205. Garibaldi can't believe that Talia could be the one. Sheridan says
  206. that it isn't her fault, and that she's been carrying the sleeper
  207. program around for years without knowing it. Their more immediate
  208. concern is how much Talia knows. She knows about the underground
  209. railroad, but they aren't sure about how much more. Franklin will be
  210. protected by the Psi Corps' desire to keep its squelching of the
  211. railroad a secret. In addition, Franklin and the others know about the
  212. sleeper program, which Psi Corps definitely wants kept secret.
  213. Garibaldi realizes that Talia knew a lot, and if Lyta hadn't come
  214. aboard, they would have told Talia about their conspiracy. Sheridan
  215. asks if there is anything they can use to defend themselves with, and
  216. Garibaldi thinks he might have an idea: When Talia mediated for Kosh
  217. and Abbut (cf. [10]"Deathwalker,") Kosh was given a data crystal which
  218. he claimed contained "Terror. Surprise. Reflection. For the future."
  219. Garibaldi says he will have to check on it a little more before he can
  220. be sure.
  221. Ivanova goes to "Talia" and says that she wanted to see her before she
  222. left. She doesn't blame "Talia", but hopes that some part of her will
  223. hear her. "Talia" says that the program was complete, and that the old
  224. Talia no longer exists. "Talia" explains to Ivanova the role she
  225. played inside Talia's head, whispering instructions to her while she
  226. slept. Ivanova believed everything, all the words that were meant to
  227. get Talia close to Ivanova and what she knew.
  228. "You're right," Ivanova tells her. "The Talia I knew is dead." She
  229. leaves.
  230. Lyta, wearing a gas mask, enters the alien sector and goes to see
  231. Kosh. "I'm back," she says to him. "I can't stay. The Captain's made
  232. sure I can get away before the Psi Cops get here, but... I had to see
  233. you again, before my ship leaves. I never told them. I never told
  234. anyone. I hid it all away in the smallest, tiniest corner of my mind.
  235. They could have killed me and they still wouldn't have found it. Only
  236. at night, alone, would I open that small door in my mind where I kept
  237. the memory of you, and listen to your voice. Listen to you sing me to
  238. sleep. I hope I can come back again, but I don't know. Until then,
  239. Kosh, I want to see you again, just one more time." The head of Kosh's
  240. encounter suit opens, there's a sound like giant wings unfurling, and
  241. a brilliant light streams over Lyta as she gazes, one more time, upon
  242. the being within.
  243. [16][Next]
  244. [17]Last update: November 15, 1995
  245. References
  246. 1. file://localhost/cgi-bin/imagemap/titlebar
  247. 2. LYNXIMGMAP:file://localhost/lurk/maps/maps.html#titlebar
  248. 3. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/guide/041.html
  249. 4. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/background/041.shtml
  250. 5. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/credits/041.html
  251. 6. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/episodes.php
  252. 7. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/synops/040.html
  253. 8. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/synops/042.html
  254. 9. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/synops/033.html
  255. 10. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/synops/009.html
  256. 11. file://localhost/lurk/lurker.html
  257. 12. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/synops/041.html#TOP
  258. 13. file://localhost/cgi-bin/uncgi/lgmail
  259. 14. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/episodes.php
  260. 15. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/synops/040.html
  261. 16. file://localhost/home/woodstock/hyperion/docs/lurk/synops/042.html
  262. 17. file://localhost/lurk/lastmod.html