There you go.
Captain, you got a minute?
Sure. What's up?
We've got a Markab transporter
almost 10 hours overdue.
I've been trying to raise her,
but she's not responding.
Hmm.
So I'd like to send a flight of Starfuries
to her last known position, see if there's a problem?
Better to be sure. I agree.
Good. I'll send out zeta squadron
as soon as Lieutenant Keffer gets back.
I thought zeta squadron was on break.
It is, but some time ago,
Keffer saw, or thought he saw,
something in hyperspace,
a ship of some kind, unknown configuration.
He's been spending some of his free time
looking for it.
Tell Lieutenant Keffer to return to base.
I want all freelance expeditions
curbed from now on.
His fighter's to be recharged
and ready to go within the hour.
Yes, sir.
You could have just accepted
my death certificate
and saved yourself the trip.
It's station policy. All deaths
have to be verified by station personnel...
Even in cases of death by natural causes.
No contusions or abrasions.
No sign of trauma.
He had been ill for some time.
His family is quite content
with my diagnosis.
One might only wish that you would
extend me the same courtesy.
We do have jurisdiction over our own kind,
you know.
Yes, as you have reminded me
3 times already.
Look, Lazarenn,
this is not about courtesy.
It's not about respect.
Nobody knows Markab biology
better than you do.
A compliment. Ha ha ha.
I think I may faint.
Nevertheless,
this is the fourth dead Markab in 3 days,
all by natural causes. Now, statistically,
this is way out of proportion.
Stephen, surely you're not suggesting foul play.
I'm not suggesting anything.
I just want more information.
Pending any other findings,
I'll formally accept
your certificate of death. However,
I do reserve the right to run a few tests,
just to be sure.
I'm gonna go wash up
and then arrange for the deceased
to be transferred to medlab
for a routine autopsy.
Something here doesn't add up,
and unlike Mr. Garibaldi,
I don't like mysteries.
Sheridan: The Babylon project
was our last best hope for peace--
a self-contained world 5 miles long
located in neutral territory...
A place of commerce and diplomacy
for a 1/4 million humans and aliens...
A shining beacon in space, all alone in the night.
It was the dawn of the third age of mankind,
the year the great war came upon us all.
This is the story
of the last of the Babylon stations.
The year is 2259.
The name of the place is...
Captioning made possible by Warner Bros.
So we don't know what the problem is.
There may not be a problem,
but we'd like you to check it out, just in case.
What was their last position?
Sector 23, grid 230 x 9 x 40.
Cargo?
Nothing major, as far as we know.
The kar-ti is a civilian transporter.
It left Markab homeworld nine days ago.
I've linked her homing beacon onto your scanners.
You shouldn't have a hard time finding her.
Good hunting.
Uh, Lieutenant?
Just one more thing.
The Captain wants a moratorium
on your little expeditions
into hyperspace.
Come on, Commander. It's on my own time.
That's not the issue.
Things are getting a little nuts around here right now.
You should know that better than anyone else.
But there's something out there.
Yes, there is. There's something out there.
There's also something in here.
That something in here
is me giving you a direct order.
Commander-- if there's some part
of that sentence that you don't understand,
Lieutenant,
I'd be happy to explain it to you
over the next 4 months, while we're watching
zeta squadron go on missions without you.
Understood.
We'll be back in a few hours.
Well, I have to say, it looks great.
Thank you.
After you treated me to human-style food,
it seemed only fair to return the favor.
Lennier's spent the last 2 days
preparing the meal.
2 days?
For a meal with such an honored guest,
there are rituals and traditions.
The food must be sanctified
during each of the 15 stages
of cooking.
For instance, the spices must be blessed
and a specific prayer spoken
when they are used.
Each spice can only be used once,
of course,
and in the correct order.
If an error is made,
the entire meal must be abandoned,
and we must begin again from scratch.
So when do you sleep?
One does not sleep during the cooking.
It could lead to error.
So for 2 days, Lennier has not slept.
In order to remain pure,
he has taken only water and bread.
Well,
I, uh...
I mean, it smells great.
And I haven't eaten all day,
so I'm really looking forward to this.
Oh, uh...Uh...
What?
What's wrong?
As there are rituals to follow
in preparing a meal of this nature,
there are other rituals we must observe
in eating the meal.
Oh.
Otherwise, the food is no longer sanctified,
and, um...
Lennier must begin all over again.
Heh heh.
Hmm. Well, we certainly wouldn't want that,
would we?
Um...what do I do?
You hand me your bowl,
and I hand you mine...
In a gesture of welcoming.
Yes.
Yeah.
And--and then we offer a portion of our meal
to the one who prepared it...
As a gesture of thankfulness.
Yeah.
Well, that's, uh...
Ahem.
It is then tradition for the guest
to set aside one piece of flarn
in the memory of Valen in the place
that is set aside for his return.
Uh...
And the flarn would be...
The green.
Oh.
Yes.
Ah.
Yes.
Yeah.
Well?
We may eat now.
Ah. Good. All right.
With the right hand.
Mmm.
Ha ha ha.
We must now wait for a few moments
before eating again.
In between,
we meditate upon food.
There she is.
This is Starfury squadron to Kar-ti.
Do you receive?
Kar-ti, I repeat,
this is zeta squadron dispatch from Babylon 5
to investigate your situation.
Do you require assistance?
I'm going in for a closer look.
Hang back till I've checked her out.
Roger, zeta 1.
Computer, are we close enough
for a more detailed scan of the kar-ti?
Computer: Confirmed.
How many are aboard?
Registering no life signs aboard the target vessel.
Check again.
There are supposed to be over 200 Markabs
onboard that thing.
Confirmed.
Detecting 200 life forms.
But you said...
Life forms,
but not life signs.
All 203 of them, they're all dead?
Confirmed.
Medlab 2, this is Dr. Franklin.
Have the bodies of those 3 dead Markabs
been sent back to their homeworld yet?
Man: No, doctor.
We just finished processing the paperwork.
Good. Get them up here to medlab 1, stat.
Is there a problem?
I don't know.
Maybe.
Zeta 1 to Babylon control.
Ivanova: This is Babylon control.
Go ahead, zeta 1.
We're bringing the transport in for inspection.
Recommend full medical team.
And you better let the Captain know.
I've got an ugly feeling about this.
[Snoring]
Captain?
Captain Sheridan.
In the memory of the 9 and the one.
What?
You were, uh...
You were asleep.
No. No, I wasn't.
No, i--i was-- I was meditating.
The sound you were making
is part of human meditation?
I don't snore.
[Beep beep]
Sheridan. Go.
We've got a problem in bay 14, Captain.
I think you better get over there.
Will do.
I'm sorry.
Oh, it's all right.
The ritual of the meal was concluded
some moments before you began,
um, meditating.
Oh... [chuckles]
Well, thank you once again
for your invitation.
We must do it again.
Yes, of--of course.
Yeah.
Bye.
[Speaking alien language]
[Sighs]
What's the problem?
The ship you have commandeered
is Markab property.
I cannot allow your people inside.
Oh?
Well, this ship was found floating dead in space.
Now, we have to have--
we have a right to privacy.
You mean the right to hide the truth.
What the hell did you think you were doing?
Doctor--
I need some privacy here.
Dr. Franklin... Stephen.
You don't want us to board that ship
because you suspect the same thing I do.
Which is?
We've had 4 dead Markab in the past 3 days.
Dr. Lazarenn has certified them all
death by natural causes.
Nothing jumped out about them in a cursory autopsy,
so I let it go, but I just finished
a more detailed examination of the bodies.
They were all killed
by some kind of plague or infectious disease
that was brought onto the station by your people.
Now, I want to know how terminal
and how contagious.
It is 100% terminal...
And 100% contagious.
Damn it, Lazarenn! What were you thinking?
Did you really think
that you could keep this a secret?
No.
Well, then why didn't you say something?
This plague is spreading through your people
like wildfire.
It is not something we talk about.
What?
The disease only appeared once before,
centuries ago,
on a small island on our world
noted for certain excesses.
When it was struck down,
the rest of my people believed
it was a punishment by the gods
for their lack of morality.
They even named the disease after the island
devastated by it: Draffa.
Why didn't it spread?
They were isolated by weather for nearly a year.
And by the time anybody got out to the island,
the disease had wiped out the population.
There was no one left alive
to spread it to the new arrivals.
And we assumed that the disease
dead-ended at that point.
Lazarenn, you are a doctor.
You know as well as I do
that diseases, they can go dormant
for years or centuries.
They can mutate.
They can come back at you out of nowhere.
Now, why weren't preparations made?
Over time,
it became more than just a disease.
It became, I don't know, a legend,
uh, a specter
used to frighten children into behaving--
"be good, or the dark angel
will bring you the curse of Draffa."
Only the immoral would ever be touched by it.
Stephen...
The first new case of Draffa
was detected nearly a year ago.
The family was so scandalized by it,
that they lied about what killed him.
By then, several of them had become infected.
But because they believed that they were moral,
they were sure they would not be touched.
So they started to go out amongst the people,
and the disease began to spread.
Each new infection
was accompanied by silence and fear
and the assumption that they were immune.
What about the ship?
Rumors about a new outbreak of Draffa had gotten out,
and some of my people believed it was a judgment
against our world and decided to get out
before it was too late.
They have escaped to all other colonies,
carrying the disease everywhere, even here.
If you knew about this a year ago,
why didn't you come to me?
Why did you try to block
our examination of the ship?
We could've helped.
Because I was forbidden!
Because we were ordered to remain silent!
Our leaders were afraid people would take
the disease as a sign from the gods
that we had fallen from grace.
They were afraid they would be voted out
for attacking the public good.
They were afraid...
They were afraid of everything.
Some of us have been working to find a cure
without enough money or resources.
They don't even want to talk about it,
as if the very subject makes them dirty.
Listen, in all the work you've done,
is there any indication as to whether or not
the disease is infectious
beyond your own species?
I don't know, Stephen.
May the gods forgive me...
I do not know.
Papa, mama sent me to find you.
You are very late for food,
and she is very upset.
She says for you to come home at once.
Papa?
Papa, wake up.
[Gasps] Papa!
The next 24 hours are absolutely critical
if we're going to control the spread of this disease.
Dr. Lazarenn says the incubation period
can last several weeks or just a few days.
Until then, it's absolutely invisible.
Once symptoms appear,
the patient expires inside 24 hours.
And there's no cure?
No...not yet. Now, the problem is
between the time the disease shows up and termination,
you've only got a few hours, and you can't work up
a model of how a disease works
if you can't follow it over time.
Do you know how far this thing has spread?
Until we know otherwise, we have to assume
the entire Markab community has been infected.
What about everybody else?
That's the big question.
Is the disease contagious outside their species?
And if so, is it transmitted through air, touch,
bodily fluids, or some other means?
If it's physically transmitted,
we might have a chance at containment.
If it's airborne--
given that all the air in here is recycled--
the entire station might be infected.
Well, doctor, it's your jurisdiction.
What's the plan?
I want every Markab on this station brought in
for a complete physical examination.
Whoa, doc, they'll scream bloody murder.
They'll say that we're implying they're immoral.
We have to know how far this thing has spread.
Now, more importantly,
we have to find someone who is infected
before the disease becomes terminal
so we can follow its progress.
What kind of symptomology are we looking for?
Chronic dizziness,
acute sore throat,
low blood pressure,
swelling of the lymph nodes and surface glands--
it's all in my report.
Now, once this disease comes out of dormancy,
it heads straight for the central nervous system,
where somehow it--it starts shutting down
the neural pathways
that control respiration and heartbeat.
Then, inside 24 hours,
paralysis and death.
Commander Ivanova,
I'm hereby issuing an executive order
placing Babylon 5 under quarantine.
Incoming ships will be diverted elsewhere.
No ships will be allowed to leave
until we determine just how far
this disease is likely to spread.
Are we gonna tell people why they can't leave?
I don't think we have a choice.
What about segregating the Markabs
from the rest of the general population?
No, no, no, no.
If the disease is airborne, then moving them
into a different part of the station
is not going to solve the problem.
All the air is recycled. If it turns out
that the disease is not transmissible
to other species,
then confining them to one area
will only speed up the infection
among the Markab community without good reason.
On the other hand, when word gets out
that we've got the next best thing
to the black death roaming the station,
it's going to scare everybody.
When people get scared, they look for scapegoats.
If we can keep the Markabs all together in one place,
my people can protect them. 'Cause trust me,
this is going to get real ugly, real fast.
No, there are still too many variables,
too many unknowns.
I need answers, doctor,
and as fast as you can get them to me.
That's all.
Better cancel all leaves for security personnel.
I have a hunch you're going to need them.
P.A.: Repeating our announcement--
no ship will be allowed to depart Babylon 5
until further notice.
Please address all questions
to the appropriate station personnel.
Please return to your quarters
until the quarantine is lifted.
It's just for some tests, that's all.
This way, please.
Woman: Next.
All right. That'll do it.
Thank you.
Next, please.
[Beep beep]
We've got another one.
Captain Sheridan,
this is an outrage.
I will not have my people treated
in this fashion--
poked, prodded, accused--
Ambassador--
you are spreading hysteria and fear
about my people
that is totally unwarranted.
On top of that,
you're disgracing good and decent people
by implying they're unclean, immoral--
no one said anything of the kind.
That's the absolute implication.
How do I know
this isn't a conspiracy on the part or your world
to destroy my people?
For all I know, this disease was planted
in our drinking water, our food.
None of this happened until we began coming here.
Perhaps it is your own immorality
that has contaminated us.
So we will fix this
by removing ourselves from your immorality.
Franklin: Captain!
Just a minute, doctor.
This can't wait.
You can't leave the station.
We are gathering together in an isolation zone,
away from others, away from outsiders.
We will stay and pray and repent.
And when we come out,
we alone will survive.
If you do that,
you'll just end up spreading the disease
among your own people that much faster.
I refuse to listen to this.
You have been warned.
Stay away from us.
Well, looks like
they just made the decision about quarantine for you.
Yeah, for all the wrong reasons.
What is it, doctor?
Better get down to brown 17, Captain.
You, too, Garibaldi.
What's up?
First--our tests confirm the disease is airborne.
We have to assume it's all over the station.
Second--i found a dead Pacmara.
No signs of violence.
Is it the plague?
Won't know until we do an autopsy,
but I wanted to warn you.
The disease may be spreading into the general population.
Yes. Yes, inside. Hurry.
It's for the best.
Trust me.
We are the pure.
If we believe,
then the dark angel of Draffa will pass over us.
Hurry. Inside now.
Everyone inside.
[Jeering and shouting]
We need to start a full autopsy
before the body goes further into rigor mortis.
We're instituting full biohazard routines,
but I'll still need you to go in and--
what? What is it?
All right, fine. I'll go in,
you stay out here and monitor the readout.
I have a better idea.
I have the most experience with the disease.
I will go into the isolab
and perform the autopsy.
Dr. Lazarenn--
and once finished,
I will stay inside.
The isolab is hermetically sealed.
If I am contaminated,
it will not get through the air lock.
It will give me a chance to do some good, Stephen.
Give me that much.
[Air lock hisses]
All right.
Let's get to work, shall we?
And we've had 3 more incidents of violence
against Markabs in the past 2 hours.
It's getting ugly out there, Captain.
Some of the more extreme human and alien groups
say that they've found a solution to the problem.
Wipe out the Markabs, you wipe out the problem.
Seems we've heard that before.
How's their quarantine going?
4,000 out of the estimated 5,000 resident Markabs
have entered the isolation zone.
The rest of them either haven't been found yet
or they're hiding, afraid to take the trip,
which, of course, puts them in danger
if they're found by the others.
Hmm. Tell Garibaldi to take some of his people
off the search teams and put them on patrol.
Any violence is to be stopped immediately.
Will do. Try to get some sleep, Captain.
I'll take first watch
and have someone wake you in 4 hours.
C and c out.
[Door beeps]
Yeah. Come in.
Captain,
I'm sorry to disturb you at this time.
Oh, no, no, no! It's all right.
I doubt I'd be able to sleep, anyway.
Eh, what can I do for you?
I have been monitoring the situation,
and, um, I would like to make a request.
Ambassador,
we can't let anyone off this station.
I would like to be allowed into the isolation zone.
I have spoken with Ambassador f'shara,
and he's willing to allow us entry.
Why?
They're in pain...
Frightened...
Dying.
Minbaria thought that at such a time,
the afflicted should be ministered to, comforted.
They're not your own people, Delenn.
I didn't know that similarity was required
for the exercise of compassion.
They are afraid.
We wish to do what little we can.
We?
Lennier has asked to accompany me.
Oh, Delenn, I cannot allow this!
I understand the risk, Captain.
If the disease is limited only to the Markab,
we should do all we can.
But if it's not, then we must give comfort.
Because, very soon, we would require it ourselves.
You will be exposing yourself
to massive contamination!
If I let you into that isolation zone,
I...
I can't let you out again.
I know.
All right, um...
I'll tell security to let you through.
Thank you.
Don't look away, Captain.
All life is transitory,
a dream.
We all come together in the same place
at the end of time.
If I don't see you again here...
I will see you in a little while...
In the place where no shadows fall.
Well, uh, Delenn?
When I do see you again...
Call me John?
All your fault!
What did you do, huh?
Why did you bring this here?
You messed me up! You messed us all up!
Hey! Leave him alone!
What, are you on his side, huh?
Shut up!
Come on! Get out!
Let's go! Move it!
Maybe I'll let you leave with your ribs intact.
Big threat. We're all going to die, anyway.
[Groaning]
Unh! Uhh!
[Chanting]
[Hiss]
You should get some sleep.
Can't.
Too much to do.
That's your third stim tonight.
Too much isn't good for you.
If we don't figure this out,
it's really not going to matter, now, is it?
Any more news on the Pacmara tests?
No.
Security reports finding the bodies
of a dozen of your people.
The plague is spreading fast.
And the violence?
So far, they've got it under control.
Everyone's looking for someone to blame.
It's the same old story.
Black death, aids, chalmer's syndrome...
Millions die, and no one remembers
the lessons we've learned.
What was this, um, black death?
Well, it hit Earth
around the middle of the 14th century.
Before it was finished,
it wiped out 3/4 of the European population.
They said the same things, too.
It was punishment from god
for our immorality.
Some blamed the Jews and lepers
for poisoning the Wells, and others said
the plague was sent by the devil.
And since cats were supposed to be
the devil's familiars,
they were killed by the millions.
But cats were the only means
of controlling the real source of the plague--
the rats and the fleas that went with them.
So all they were doing was helping the plague
spread even faster.
That does seem to be the rule, doesn't it?
Analyze the problem,
choose whichever strategy makes the least sense,
and then do it.
Lazarenn.
I'm just dizzy.
Uh...
Well, that...Seems to...
Confirm it.
I felt my throat sore a few minutes ago.
Stephen, you wanted to examine someone
in the early stages of the infection.
I think you should run...Some tests.
Quickly.
Are you all right?
I can't find my mama.
Then we will find her for you.
Lennier...
Lennier!
Yes, Delenn.
She is separated from her mother.
Please find her.
How?
Um...
Faith...manages.
What is her name?
Mama.
Faith...
Manages.
There's a definite increase
in respiration of "a" cells.
Yellow blood cell count?
500 per thousand and dropping.
Neural transmission efficiency?
Down 15%.
All right. Cross-reference the 2,
see if they're dropping at the same rate.
Maybe the drop in cells
is causing the neural pathways to degrade.
Give me 10 minutes.
No, you've got 5 minutes!
There's a strange tingling in my fingers.
Hah...and an odd sense of...
Euphoria.
Check the brain stem for any unusual activity.
Woman: Yes, sir.
Stephen, I was trying to remember
how we first met.
It seems like...
Ages ago.
Ah, yes.
It was back home,
and you were on layover.
You were hitchhiking...
On starships, then.
You were very funny.
Everything to you was a problem to be solved,
a test to be passed.
But you know, Stephen,
sometimes the test is not to find the answer.
It's to see how you react...
When you realize there is no...Answer.
Doctor...
We just got the results of the Pacmara autopsy.
It's the plague.
It jumped species.
All right, Mitch, Kasabi.
You take sims down to medlab 2.
You take apart that Pacmara inch by inch.
There's got to be a reason why they fell sick
before the humans or the Narns or anybody else.
Now that similarity may be what we need
to crack this thing. Now go! Move!
But don't you understand what this means?
It means we have more information
than we had 5 minutes ago!
And if we're going to beat this thing,
we need all the information we can get!
Now I want a complete biogenic comparison
of these 2 groups in an hour,
or by god, you're gonna have something
a hell of a lot worse than the plague
to worry about! Now move!
I want it!
Has he found mama yet?
No, not yet.
But he will.
Don't be afraid.
I can't help it.
I'm sorry.
Oh, don't be sorry.
It happens to us all.
When I was a child,
I once visited the city with my family
and became separated from my parents.
The more I looked for them,
the more lost I became.
The streets became smaller,
narrower, darker.
I was so afraid.
Then...i found myself in an old temple.
And...i thought...
I will wait here.
I will be safe here...
And they will come,
they will come for me.
Did they?
Not at first.
Hours passed.
The temple was cold and deserted.
I fell asleep.
When I woke up,
there was someone standing over me.
He looked down and smiled and...
My fear went away.
He stood there,
bright against the darkness,
and said that I was going to be all right,
that if I...Believed...
Then my parents will come for me.
He said, "I will not allow harm to come
to my little ones here, in my great house."
Just then... The door opened,
and my parents came running in.
Sh'na?
Mama!
I was worried about you.
Faith...manages.
[Beep]
Computer: Negative reaction.
Adjust rna sequence to match level 1 codes.
[Beep]
Negative reaction.
Cross-analyze Markab yellow blood cells
with Pacmara green cells.
Stand by.
Stephen...
Save your strength, Lazarenn.
The yellow cells...
Could be...
Could be what?
Could be...
What?
I'm sorry, old friend.
I--i don't think I can stay any longer.
Will you give my love to...
[Alarm beeps]
Lazarenn.
[Beep]
Computer: Cross-analysis
between Markab yellow cells
and Pacmara green cells complete.
Match found.
Show me.
The brain gives orders to the body
through a complex chain of electrochemical relays.
An electrical impulse runs the length of a neuron
and stops at a break called the synaptic gap.
The electrical impulse is translated
to biochemical form which jumps across the gap
to the next neuron over and over again
until the information reaches its destination.
Now, I assumed that the disease
was attacking the nerve itself,
but there was never any damage.
What it was actually doing
was neutralizing the chemicals
in the synaptic gap.
In other words, an order comes
from the brain to the gap,
but the chemicals that are supposed to
relay the information to the next neuron
don't work anymore.
Exactly--the heart's not ordered to pump.
The lungs aren't ordered to breathe.
The body dies.
Have you developed a profile
of who's most prone to being infected?
The risk is confined to those races
that use specialized cells to manufacture the chemicals
used in neural relays.
In the Markabs,
the chemical is produced by the yellow cells,
in the Pacmara, it's the green cells.
Now, those are the ones targeted by the disease.
Fortunately, our bodies don't work that way.
But given a chance, the disease could mutate
into something that could affect us all,
if we don't stop it now.
So what do we do?
Well, we can't destroy the disease,
but we can artificially stimulate
yellow and green cell production
with a series of regular injections.
Now, those who receive the injections over time
will produce stronger cells
that are capable of withstanding the disease.
All my data shows it should work.
Should? You haven't tested it yet?
No.
There wasn't time.
I've prepared enough for 500 doses to start,
but we will have to hurry.
Any reply to our message yet?
No, sir.
Open it up.
Lennier, is there anyone?
Anyone at all?
No.
No one.
John...
[Sobbing]
Shh...
You are to be congratulated
for finding a way
to stop the plague from spreading further.
Well, any thanks is more properly directed
to Dr. Franklin.
We dodged the bullet this time.
What happens next time?
What happens?
What happens is that we honor the memory
of those who are no longer with us
by using what we have learned
to save others--
to exercise faith and Patience
and charity.
To reach out to those who are afraid.
If we can do that,
then their passing will have had meaning,
and we will grow from it.
Yeah, maybe.
I hope so.
Medical ships dispatched to the Markab homeworld
have confirmed the death toll.
The entire planetary population
has been wiped out by the plague.
Over 2 billion dead
in addition to another 2 or 3 million
on other colonies and outposts.
Although it is expected that some Markabs
may have survived on isolated colonies,
for all intents and purposes,
the Markab civilization has been destroyed.
We've also received reports
of widespread destruction
from fires tearing through the dead cities.
Hey.
What do you call 2 billion dead Markabs?
...pillaging and looting...
Planetary redecorating. Ha ha ha!
News... [Turns television off]
News gives me the creeps. You know,
I heard it was the Vorlons who poisoned that place.
You know how they are.
Nothing changes.