As Dr. Franklin records his thoughts on the current situation, Lennier comes in with an urgent problem about Delenn.
On Z’Ha’Dum Sheridan finds himself in the grip of a creature made of light. He suddenly wakes up to find the strange alien is still with him. As Sheridan again tries to find a way to escape, the alien begins philosophizing about the nature of the Universe, but other than telling Sheridan his name is Lorien, does not do much to help. Sheridan is not paying attention and Lorien sighs, feeling Sheridan is too wrapped up in his question, “Who are you?” A dangerous question. What Sheridan is, on the other hand, Lorien can answer: he’s dead. He’s been here for nine days but isn’t hungry despite not having eaten. When Lorien asks if blood still flows, Sheridan checks his pulse…and finds none.
- Lorien: Because, my reluctant friend, you are quite, quite dead.
Sheridan is not inclined to believe it. Lorien asks what he last remembers, and Sheridan recalls jumping and then falling, but he doesn’t remember hitting bottom. Lorien speculates that either Sheridan is still falling and this is a dream, or he has hit bottom and is dead. Unless, that is, he’s caught between moments.
- Lorien: Tick, you're alive, tock, you're dead. Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock...
Sheridan finally loses patience and begins demanding to know who he is. Lorien looks at him and he suddenly sees himself with the creature again. Sheridan backs off, as Lorien says he’s closer, but closer to tick or tock only time will tell.
On another distant world, G’Kar is in a seedy bar tracking down a salvage dealer who seems to have found Mr. Garibaldi’s Starfury. The man isn’t inclined to talk but when G’Kar insists the bar owner tries to have him thrown out. Marcus shows up and the two manage to fight off the owner’s thugs, but not before he hits the alarm. Now they have to escape. The bar owner has some people go find out where they went, then takes a Centauri guard aside.
Franklin comes to Delenn’s quarters to talk to her. She hasn’t eaten in a week, which has him worried. She feels she deserves it since she was afraid Anna Sheridan was still alive, and when he found out the truth he rushed off, and now she feels she’s responsible for making him do what he did. She declares her fast will continue, and Franklin just gets up and leaves.
Marcus and G’Kar are laying low until things cool down. They discuss possible leads, and Marcus decides he’ll be the one to go find out what the salvager knows, since he blends in better. Meanwhile, the bar owner identifies G’Kar as the Narn he saw to some Centauri guards.
Later Marcus goes to talk to the salvager.
On Babylon 5, Ivanova has had Franklin go through Sheridan’s effects, and he finds something that he thinks Delenn needs to see. She begins playing the file he gave her and sees an entry from Sheridan’s personal log, where he talks about things that have happened and what it means for the future, about how they need to take what they have and make something better out of it. Eventually he begins talking about her and how he feels about her, finding it ironic that he’s now in love with a Minbari. As the recording ends, Delenn finds new resolve.
Marcus tells G’Kar what he found out, the salvager got a tip from someone named Montagne. G’kar intends to go to the location the fighter was found at, and convinces Marcus to look up what he found on Babylon 5. As Marcus leaves, the Centauri begin moving in. G’Kar hears them coming, and despite managing to kill a couple, he is stunned.
Delenn calls the White Stars to Babylon 5 and unveils her new plan, to take the fight to the Shadows at their own homeworld. She intends to wait seven days to allow anyone who wishes enough time to join, and then they will stage an attack on Z’Ha’Dum itself.
On Centauri Prime, Londo is pulled out of bed by a summons from the emperor. He gets dressed and goes to the throne room, to find Cartagia in a jovial mood. He even has a gift for Londo, which he has brought in. Londo is surprised to see a chained and battered G’Kar. At Cartagia’s prompting Londo expresses his appreciation, and then Cartagia asks G’Kar if he has anything to say.
- G’Kar: Do you by any chance happen to know where Mister Garibaldi might be?
Cartagia: Who?
Mister Garibaldi is currently in a windowless room beating his head against the wall, as a disembodied voice continually asks him what he remembers from when he left Babylon 5. Eventually he gets so angry he pulls the arm off a chair and begins wrecking the room until he is sedated by a gas and a man in a Psi Corps uniform comes in.
G’Kar is sitting in a prison cell when Londo comes see him. After explaining how Cartagia’s people will give him a slow, agonizing death, Londo tries to make a deal to get G’Kar released if he helps to depose Cartagia. He would have to endure great suffering before it is over and G’Kar has one condition before he agrees: get the Centauri off of Narn. Londo gives his word, then leaves.
Sheridan finds himself back at where he started, and appeals to Lorien for help, who just starts talking about moments again. Sheridan says there’s a war and asks if he cares. Lorien responds that he does; it’s a terrible thing to see one’s children fight. Sheridan begins to realize that Lorien is a First One. Lorien corrects him that he is the First One, the oldest being in the galaxy.
Sheridan again asks if there’s a way out, but Lorien is after something else. He mentions that Sheridan has part of a Vorlon inside him. He is also clinging to life, afraid to surrender to death, which he says they must do to escape this half-existence. Sheridan is reluctant, but Lorien keeps pressing,
- Lorien: You can’t turn away from death simply because you’re afraid of what might happen without you. That’s not enough! You’re not embracing life, you’re fleeing death. And so you’re caught in between, unable to go forward or backward.
Lorien tells him he needs to find a reason to live or he’ll be caught here forever. He encourages Sheridan to let go, and step into the abyss. As darkness begins to close in on him, Lorien asks what Sheridan has that’s worth living for. Sheridan finds himself back at the Shadow city and jumps as Lorien’s voice asks, “Do you have anything worth living for?”
- Sheridan: Delenn!
Sheridan then lies fallen as Lorien stands over his prone form.
This episode contains examples of:
- A Form You Are Comfortable With: What Sheriden (and the audience) sees of Lorien may, or may not, be his true form. Sheriden gets flashes of an energy creature but it is not confirmed what Lorien actually looks like.
- Arc Words:
- Who Are you? What do you want? Both of these questions can say very much about a person. Sheridan and Lorien spend of the episode asking each other these things.
- And meanwhile, Lorien introduces a third question: Why are you here?
- Armor-Piercing Question: Albeit one that would have been more effective with Sinclair, building off "Infection": "It's easy to find something worth dying for. Do you have anything worth living for?"
- Bar Brawl: G'Kar and Marcus get in a fight with a bar's staff when they try to stop G'Kar from harassing one of their patrons (who has information G'Kar needs)
- Call-Back:
- Delenn intends to meet Sheridan in the place where no shadows fall.
- Sheridan remembers his night with Delenn on the White Star.
- Dead Man Writing: The above quote would be considered that to the people on the station, and technically it probably actually is if you consider what Lorien said.
- Don't Fear the Reaper: Part of the advice Lorien gives Sheridan.
- Enemy Mine: To save the Centauri Republic from Cartagia's madness, Londo teams up with G'Kar.
- Held Gaze: "I've fallen off one hell of a cliff, but when I look in her eyes, I let myself think, maybe I really can fly."
- Implied Death Threat:
- Marcus trying to persuade the salvager to talk.
Marcus: Wakey, wakey. I'm here with your weather report for the evening. I see rain, lightning, thunder, and your head nailed to that wall over there if you don't tell me what my friend and I need to know.- Later G'Kar telling Marcus to go back to Babylon 5.
G'Kar: If you stay I will be deeply offended. And there is little more inherently dangerous than an offended Narn. - Noodle Incident: Lorien met Kosh once long ago.
- Not Quite Dead: Sheridan, except Lorien says he is, just caught between moments...or something.
- The Older Immortal: Lorien, who is actually the First One.
- Inconspicuous Immortal: While most of the "First Ones" either left the galaxy or manipulated the younger races, Lorien stayed behind in hiding. Lorien is so old that he claims to be one of the first sentient beings in the galaxy, and was living in self-imposed exile on Za'hadum when Captain Sheridan found him.
- Schizo Tech: Welcome to the 23rd century, where we use a stack of paper mugshots to identify a guy involved in a trashing a bar. Noteworthy that this is coming from one of the more advanced races in the show. (Yet another aversion of No-Paper Future for the series.)
- Time Abyss: Lorien is one, and the quote-maker for the Trope page.
- Wham Line:
- "[I'm] not one of the First Ones. I am the First One."
- "We all have secrets and surprises. Did you know you have a Vorlon inside you? Well, a piece of one."
- Woken Up at an Ungodly Hour: After G'Kar is captured, Cartagia has Londo summoned at an early hour. Despite the risk, he keeps Cartagia waiting while he changes out of his night clothes into proper attire.
- Worthy Opponent: Londo sees G'Kar as this.Londo: You were never a friend to me... but what he will do to you... I would not wish on anyone.
