Babylon 5 · Season 5
So it really couldn't–
No, you're right. It couldn't–
So there we are.
There you go, yeah.
You know, I do have about an hour before my next shift starts, in case you wanted to...celebrate your new job.
More than an hour or less than an hour?
About an hour and ten minutes.
You go on ahead. You know how I like the lights.
I believe that when we leave a place, part of it goes with us and part of us remains. Go anywhere in the station when it is quiet, and just listen. After a while, you will hear the echoes of all our conversations, every thought and word we've exchanged. Long after we are gone, our voices will linger in these walls for as long as this place remains. But I will admit that the part of me that is going will very much miss the part of you that is staying.
It occurs to me I have never walked the length of this place, end to end.
Well, Delenn, it's 5 miles long.
I know. Coming?
Now?
Now is all we have.
[G'Kar comes face to face with one of his more-devout "followers".]
We put you in this position, G'Kar. Our reverence is our gift to you, and you are responsible to us. You owe us. Without us… you are nothing.
Then I am nothing. Goodbye.
[G'Kar gives a "pep talk" to his successor, Ta'Lon.]
I believe there is a time for enlightenment and a time for things to get done. I have become a distraction for our people. They require patience, direction, determination, and strength. I have provided a little of the first two. Now, you must provide the rest. You have always been sensible and level-headed. A rock that will never shift or break beneath the demands of our people. And you have been my friend. In my absence, we will need someone to focus on helping our world rebuild and strengthening ties with the Alliance. In order to serve our people here and at home, one must be both priest and warrior in equal measure. In recent months, I have become more priest than warrior. Perhaps, now it is time for someone who is more warrior than priest. You may believe you are not ready, but you are as ready as I was when I first came to Babylon 5. Check the records, I think you'll be amused. When this message has finished, a copy will automatically be sent to Sheridan and the others. They will receive you as they would receive me. Good luck, Ta'Lon. Serve our people–reasonably, fairly, and with honor. The rest will attend to itself.
It's good to know that at least one of the old gang will be sticking around for a while.
Who, me? Absolutely. Hell, I'll probably still be here when they turn off the lights.[N]
There are moments when we all become someone else, something other than what we are. It takes only a moment. But we spend the rest of our lives looking back at that moment in shame.
When I had to learn English, one of the most difficult words for me was "goodbye." There is no corresponding word for "goodbye" in Minbari. All our partings contain within them the possibility of meeting again: in other places, in other times, in other lives. So you will excuse me if I do not say "goodbye." Our souls are a part of this place. Our hopes, the foundation of our future. And we will pass this way, again.
One time, we were walking through the Alien sector, and we heard this beautiful singing coming from the Pak'Ma'Ra's quarters.
They sing?
There's nothing in the literature about that.
Apparently they only ever do it once a year, during their religious period. And we were listening to this singing and I saw a tear run down Londo's face, and I said, "We should go, this is upsetting you." But he said no, and we stayed. After the singing was over he turned to me and said, "There are 49 Gods in our Pantheon, Vir. To tell you the truth I've never really believed in any of them. But if just one of them exists...then God sings with that voice."
A toast. To...absent friends. In memory still bright.
G'Kar.
Londo.
Lennier.
Mar--
Marcus.
[While Sheridan takes a last walk though the station.]
So you hear 'em too, huh?
Zack. Ha ha! What the hell are you doing here? I thought you went back to Earth.
Yeah, I did. Got bored. Re-upped about six months ago. I figured I'd be here 'til they turn the lights out.[N]
[whispering] Well...look at that...the sun's coming up...
[last lines of the series]
Babylon 5 was the last of the Babylon stations. There would never be another. It changed the future...and it changed us. It taught us that we have to create the future, or others would do it for us. It showed us that we have to care for one another, because if we don't, who will? And that true strength sometimes comes from the most...unlikely places. Mostly though, I think it gave us hope--that there can always be new beginnings...even for people like us.
As for Delenn, every morning for as long as she lived, Delenn got up before dawn and watched the sun come up.
. . .
And now, for those of you that have been archiving this ISN Special Documentary, the people responsible.
[single frame stills of department-crews; then a shot of the whole crowd]
Funding for this program was made possible by grants from the Anla'shok Memorial Fund.
Films
Babylon 5 films are listed in chronological order within the fictional universe's storyline.
You know, Londo never liked the Pak'ma'ra. They're stubborn, lazy, obnoxious, greedy—
They kinda look like an octopus that got run over by a truck.
That too! But one day, Londo and I were walking past their quarters, and we heard them…singing.
Singing? They can sing?
There's nothing in the literature about that.
Apparently, it's something they only do certain times of the year as part of their religious ceremonies. You may not believe this, but, it was the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. I-I-I couldn't make out the words, but I knew it was full of sadness and hope and wonder and a terrible…sense of loss. I-I looked at Londo, and, this is the amazing part…there was a tear running down his face. I said, "Londo, we-we should leave. I mean, this is upsetting you." And he just stood there and listened. And when it was over, he turned to me and he said, "There are 49 gods in our pantheon, Vir. To tell you the truth, I never believed in any of them. But if only one of them exists, then God sings with that voice." It's funny. After everything we had been through…all he did? I miss him.
A toast. To…absent friends. In memory still bright.
G'Kar.
Londo.
Lennier.
Mar—
Marcus.
These quotes come from Wikiquote's Babylon 5 pages and are available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
