[Sheridan and Ivanova are camping in his office due to being locked out of their quarters]
SheridanHow many Minbari does it take to screw in a light bulb?
I don't know, sir. How many Minbari does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Sheridan
None. They always surrender right before they finish the job and they never tell you why.
[Ivanova groans, Sheridan smiles.]
Sheridan
Knock, knock.
Sheridan
Kosh.
Sheridan
Gesundheit. [snickers] I thought that was a good one.
Were you like this when you were married?
Sheridan
Huh? Yeah.
. . .
[the next night]
Captain, I'd like to note two things for the record.
Sheridan
Yes, Commander?
Item One: I don't think this protest is gonna work. Earth Central never gives in when it comes to money. But if you're determined to keep at it, I'm prepared to do the same. Item Two: You snore.
Sheridan
No, I don't!
Sheridan
No, I don't!
Captain, either you snore, or last night we had a hell of a breach in the hull. I get dibs on the couch.
Bester informs Sheridan, Ivanova, and Garibaldi that rogue telepaths are using Babylon 5 as a transfer point to escape, and requests their help in apprehending them.
STSheridan to Garibaldi
Well, you've been pretty quiet. Is he right, or isn't he?
Technically? Yeah, I suppose. We're obliged to uphold the laws of Earth Alliance. It doesn't mean we have to like it. And if there is some kind of illegitimate travel going through here, it's a threat to station security and we have to know about it.
Come on, Garibaldi. You can't tell me you agree with this. You want to help them?
Want, agree, that has nothing to do with it. The law is the law. It's damn ironic, isn't it? The Corps got started because we were afraid of telepaths, now they're victims of our own fears. We took away every right they had and shoved them into a big black box called Psi Corps. Now look at them. Black uniforms, jackboots, giving orders. Some days they scare the hell out of me.
Sheridan
Yeah, if you ask me we created our own monster. And maybe we deserve it.
[Centauri Emperor Turhan talks to John Sheridan about life.]
CECentauri Emperor Turhan
No regrets then?
Sheridan
A few. But just a few. You?
Oh, enough to fill a lifetime. So much has been lost, so much forgotten. So much pain, so much blood. And for what? I wonder...The past tempts us, the present confuses us, and the future frightens us. And our lives slip away, moment by moment, lost in that vast terrible in-between. But there is still time to seize that one last, fragile moment. To choose something better, to make a difference, as you say. And I intend to do just that.
So you are going to allow this? Even over my objections?
John Sheridan
What, did I somehow turn invisible or something? Yes, Ambassador. The Emperor is allowed to come aboard. Now, if this bothers you, I suggest you stay in your quarters, stick your fingers in your ears, and hum real loud until it's over! Unless you'd like to try something as breathtakingly rational as trying to open up a dialog? G'Kar, you are in a position to directly negotiate with the head of the Centauri Republic, and you are wasting it on a tantrum!
[Centauri Emperor Turhan talks to Captain Sheridan about their paths in life.]
Why are you here, in this place, in that uniform? Was it your choice or were you pressed into service?
Sheridan
It was my choice. The planetary draft didn't start until the war, a few years later. I guess I wanted to serve something that was bigger than I was. Make a difference, somewhere, somehow. You seem interested in why people chose to be here.
It has occurred to me recently that I have never chosen anything. I was born into a role that was prepared for me. I did everything I was asked to do because it never occurred to me to choose otherwise. And now, at the end of my life, I wonder what might have been.
Sheridan
That's why my father taught me to live each second as though it were the last moment of my life. He said, "If you love, love without reservation. If you fight, fight without fear." He called it "the way of the warrior."
Sheridan
A few. But just a few. You?
Oh, enough to fill a lifetime. So much has been lost, so much forgotten. So much pain, so much blood. And for what, I wonder? The past tempts us, the present confuses us, and the future frightens us. And our lives slip away, moment by moment, lost in that vast terrible in-between. But there is still time to seize that one last, fragile moment. To choose something better, to make a difference, as you say. And I intend to do just that.
[On the Strieb ship, Sheridan has a strange dream about Babylon 5 and some of its denizens.]
DIDream Ivanova #1
Do you know who I am?
DGDream Garibaldi
The man in-between is searching for you.
DIDream Ivanova #2
You are the hand.
[Sheridan turns to see Kosh.]
John Sheridan
Why are you here?
DKDream Kosh
We were never away. For the first time, your mind is quiet enough to hear me.
Sheridan
Why am I here?
DKDream Kosh
You have always been here.
[Ivanova rants about EarthGov's decision to sell B5 merchandise.]
Welcome to Babylon 5, the last, best hope for a quick buck!
John Sheridan
Commander--
Oh, this is demeaning! I mean, we're not some...some deep-space franchise! This station is about something. [N]
[Lawyer Guinevere Corey interrupts the questioning of Minbari witness Ashan.]
GCGuinevere Corey
May I ask what you were discussing here?
Sheridan
The only thing that matters--the truth.
GCGuinevere Corey
Ah, yes. The favorite song of the legally ignorant.
[Londo sputters outrage over a B5 Emporium "Londo Mollari" doll.]
It's a mockery! It doesn't even have any, uh...attributes.
Sheridan
Attributes?
Do I have to spell it out for you?
[Londo gestures downward. Ivanova and Sheridan stare at Londo, then at each other.]
I see. So you feel like you're being symbolically cast--in a bad light.
Sheridan
Well put.
Sheridan
I– I never thought there could be anything worse than being all alone in the night.
But there is. Being all alone in a crowd.
. . .
In the service of their clan, they're ready to sacrifice everything–their individuality, their blood, their life.
Sheridan
Their honor? Oh, we've had plenty of that ourselves. Conspiracies of silence, because the larger ideals have to be protected. But you can't have larger ideals if the smaller ones get compromised. It's like building a house without a foundation, Delenn--it can't stand!
[Ivanova hands Sheridan a teddy bear from the new gift shop.]
Sheridan
Ba-Bear-lon 5? Oh, he's a cute one. [Notices the initials on the shirt.] J.S.?
Sheridan
Oh, this is supposed to be me? [Suddenly turns grim.] I want it off my station. I want 'em all off my station. I want the whole place yanked out, boxed up, and shipped out by 0800 tomorrow. Is that clear?
Sheridan
Oh, and...[Takes the bear.]
...
[Warren Keffer responds to a report of a UFO outside the station.]
CCC&C
Babylon Control to Zeta-One. Any trace of that unidentified object?
WKWarren Keffer
Negative, Babylon Control. I don't see a...
[Said teddy bear hits his Starfury's viewport for a moment before drifting away again.]
CCC&C
Zeta-One, have you encountered unidentified object? Can you describe it?
KKeffer
Negative, Babylon Control. I don't think so. Not on a bet. Heading back to the barn.
[various answers to Torqueman's final question: "Given the danger, at the end of the day...is it worth it?"]
Absolutely. Sure, when things get tense out here, we have to be careful. Our search of the Centauri vessels we captured proved that they were bringing in weapons of mass destruction, offloading them outside the station, and sending them on to the front lines. Now that we know that, we can make sure it doesn't happen any more. We learn. It's what humans do.
Misunderstandings aside, yes! I definitely think it's worth it. We must simply work harder to make sure we communicate with one another to prevent this sort of tragic situation from ever happening again! A violent attack by Narn forces is an unacceptable response to a peaceful protest by my government. And with the intervention of Earth, perhaps we can keep them from making a similar mistake in the future.
I don't know any more. I used to think so, but now...
Of course it is. For the simple reason that no one else would ever build a place like this. Humans share one unique quality: They build communities. If the Narns or Centauri or any other race built a station like this, it would be used only by their own people. But everywhere humans go, they create communities out of diverse and sometimes hostile populations. It is a great gift, and a terrible responsibility--one that cannot be abandoned.
SQSenator Quantrell
Well...I guess we'll just have to see...won't we?
All right, Med 2--go, go! Look, if we weren't here right now, half the people in this room would be dead! Now that should be a good enough answer for anyone.
EDEduardo Delvientos
Sure! What, are you kidding? I have a retirement pension to make, you know?
John Sheridan
Yes. But not for any of the reasons that you've probably been told. The job of Babylon 5 is not to enforce the peace. It's to create the peace. And this place was built on the assumption that we could work out our problems and build a better future. And that, to me, is the key issue. See, in the last few years, we've stumbled. We stumbled at the death of the President, the war, and on and on. And when you stumble a lot, you...you start looking at your feet. Well, we have to make people...lift their eyes back to the horizon, and see the line of ancestors behind us, saying, "Make my life have meaning." And to our inheritors before us, saying, "Create the world we will live in." I mean, w-we're not just...holding jobs and having dinner. We are in the process of building the future. That's what Babylon 5 is all about.
John Sheridan
You ever studied ancient history? 20th century, World War II?
Well...not really. [grins] I always used to fall asleep in history class.
Sheridan
The Germans had a secret code they used for all their important messages. It was called "Enigma". What they didn't know was that the British had cracked the code. One day, Churchill's people intercepted a message authorizing the bombing of a city named Coventry. Now, if they evacuated Coventry, the Germans would know their code had been broken, and switch to another system. If that happened, it could cost the Allies the entire war. If they didn't evacuate the city, hundreds of innocent men, women, and children would die. [N]
Sheridan
They kept the secret. There was no evacuation. And on November 14, 1940, Coventry was destroyed. The dead were... piled up like cordwood! I--I've seen newsreels of Churchill visiting the ruins a few days later. And you can just see it in his eyes, the knowledge of what he'd done. Dark, haunted. All these years I've never been able to get that image out of my head.
Well, I'm glad it's a decision I don't have to make. I don't think I could live with myself. How many lives is a secret worth?
Babylon 5 · 626 quotes
