Full chapter, people

Chapter Seven

"Points of View-part one"

Earth – Paris (Federation space):

"Will that be all?"

Guinan looked up, surprised. She shook herself and brought her mind back to the present. "Yes, thank you."

The technician packed up his equipments and left the suite. Now alone, Guinan looked around at her new residence. As per her request, the floor was made of tiles instead of the standard carpet, the walls were draped in exotic-looking fabrics and the lighting was moody and subdued with many candles burning on furniture surfaces. The Federation government had bent over backward to accommodate her desire to recreate a little of home in her suite.

It all felt empty.

Guinan's lips twisted bitterly as she saw Paris outside a window. "This isn't helping," she told herself. She had thought recreating an El-Aurian room would help ease the grief. Instead, it was making it worse.

The door chimed for attention. Somebody was at the door. Guinan didn't want any visitors. All she wanted was….

She whispered the words in awe. "…The Nexus." She couldn't remember much, what it looked like or how long she had been there but she clearly remembered the feeling.

Total and complete joy.

She never wanted to stop feeling that, wrapping the joy around herself. It certainly stripped her of the memories of El-Auria's destruction and the murder of her people for the duration. But then she was snatched away from the Nexus, cruelly deprived of the joy. Guinan felt a burst of anger. Agitated, she paced and clutched the folds of her robe. "I have to get back," she whispered to herself. She stopped. Was the lure really that strong?

The door chimed again. Guinan scowled at it. Didn't they realize that the lack of response meant she wanted to be alone? She pulled the door open so hard it banged on the wall. A tall elegantly dressed handsome man was standing at the open door, taken aback by the sudden movement.

Guinan would forgive this man. "Martus."

She grabbed his shoulders and pulled him into an embrace. Guinan released her tears.

"Shhh, Mother. I know, Mother." Martus patted her back as he gently moved her back into the suite and shut the door.

When Guinan calmed down and sat cross-legged on the bed-like sofa, Martus went over to the mobile bar. He tossed several ice cubes in a glass, poured a clear liquid and a dark liquid onto the ice. He then poured a larger amount of white liquid into a metal cup, shook it and poured it into the glass. Stirring it, he handed it to Guinan. She held the cold glass with both hands and sipped it. Taken aback by the sweetness of the mixed drink, she said, "Wow. Sweet. Strong. What is it?"

Martus smiled as he sat beside his mother. "White Russian."

"Oh, I remember now." Guinan smiled her thanks and sipped some more.

"I often find it oddly comforting to create and mix drinks for myself or other people."

"'Other people' being your lady friends," teased Guinan.

Chuckling, Martus said, "Speaking of that, I got us a ship."

"A ship?"

"A yacht, really. A fast yacht. I…convinced a wealthy lady friend to donate it."

Guinan smiled ruefully. "Con man."

Martus raised his hands defensively. "I only listened to her problems and she expressed her gratitude by donating the ship." Putting his hands down, he looked imploringly at Guinan. "What do you say, Mother? Go after the Nexus? The Jenolan's waiting."

Guinan was sorely tempted. It was all she wanted at this moment. She could still feel that a part of herself was missing, left behind in the Nexus. "What about the others? There are forty-seven of us from the Lakul." She sighed hopefully. "Maybe there are more of them from both the Lakul and the Robert Fox inside the Nexus."

"We'll take 'em. The ship's big enough for all of us. Gonna be tight, though." Martus held out a hand. "Shall we go?"

"But…can we reach it? It's traveling away at warp."

"If we don't, we'd have to wait thirty-nine years before it comes through the galaxy again. We'll push the engines. Even a Starfleet ship would be hard put to catch up to it."

Guinan knew that that meant. Warp cores, when pushed beyond the safety limits for a long time, tended to explode. "And die trying?" She wondered if it wasn't better to die than be deprived of the bliss that was the Nexus and be crushed by the sorrow of El-Auria's loss. All the reports on the Nexus she had read say that any ship that approached the energy ribbon is destroyed. That the two transport ships were caught within the Nexus was a fluke. She bit her lower lip before coming to a decision. "Keep the ship. Sell it. Whatever you want." She balled her fists tightly. It was going to be very hard for herself. "We'll wait."

Now Martus was concerned. "You're sure?" Getting a nod in response, he nodded. "All right. I'll sell the Jenolan to Starfleet. They certainly need the ships for their war and future occupation work. We'll do what we can to make sure we have a ship the next time it comes through. And the money for it." He sighed. "A lot of listening to do before the Nexus comes."

Guinan waved her hand dismissively. "Do whatever you want. I'll just stay here and wait."

Martus was worried. He had fled the El-Aurian System and came into the Federation by a different route than that taken by his mother, so he had never experienced the Nexus. He was surprised and glad when he heard that Guinan had survived the Borg onslaught and was rescued by Starfleet. He had heard the stories of the Nexus from the other survivors of the Lakul and wondered if it wouldn't be a good idea to join them in entering it. In fact, all of the survivors were obsessed with going back into the Nexus and he could see the evidence of this in Guinan herself. His grandmother had compared his mother with Uncle Terkim, a family misfit and an influence on Guinan because of his very un-El-Aurian humor. Martus could see that his mother's sense of humor was in danger.

He came to his own decision. He took Guinan's forearms and pulled her off the sofa. The glass of White Russian was empty now. Martus put it back on the mobile bar. "Come, Mother. I know how much you love museums."

Guinan silently allowed her son to take her by the hand out of the suite. There was no reaction from her.

Earth

New Chicago-Old Town

A week was a long time, Arati Mehta thought, to wait after finally arranging a meeting with this Earth's telepaths, but it was finally over. The good thing was that these people did meet once a year. They had an organization of some sort that apparently was designed more as a type of sorority-fraternity than any actual real institution created for telepaths. The gifted were all over the place and it took time for them to arrive on Earth for this momentous occasion. Meanwhile, she took the time to enjoy the sights with her fellow telepath and Psi-cop Roberta Yang.

Coming to this world of Humans was more of a shock than she had anticipated. For one thing, their obvious differences in the way they dressed and their mannerisms weren't noticed. Their gloves and the PsiCorps insignia meant nothing to these people. The usual nervousness and occasional fearful glances directed at any telepath were conspicuously absent. When discovered that they were telepathic, people here assumed that they were either Betazoid, a new species of very Human-like Humanoids whose first contact had happened barely ten years earlier, or some other Humanoid species with extra senses. The Humans here didn't consider telepathy a form of power, only a gift that others didn't share like better eyesight or hearing. It took away some of the mystery and power that PsiCorps had worked so hard to cultivate on their Earth. That revelation had been somewhat surprising and vaguely infuriating.

Alfred Bester, Tony Batie, along with the mundanes were traveling by starship to the colony world of Kitara Three where the crews of the Springfield and the survivors of the EarthForce Hyperion Farlin were sequestered. The blips were also there along with an already established Federation colony. There had been reports that the Earth Alliance colonists and blips didn't want to return home after the war was over, being very content to stay where they were. Earth Alliance had issues with that since they were EA citizens and not Feds. She didn't know of the details as to how the blips got there, what they were doing living in the presence of mundanes without support, or where their particular place of escape was located in home space but that was Alfred's and Tony's problem to deal with. And, she had faith in their efficiency.

But in this place, everywhere was the same, Humans with aliens on this Earth going on with their business seemingly without a care in the world. There was no feeling of fears invasion or imminent death. The people were relaxed and the feelings in the air were not those of desperation and fear, but of comfort, the exact opposite of what was happening on Earth – home.

In between meetings with the Feds and Earth Alliance officials, she found the time to visit this world's India. Despite her attempts at objectivity she was nearly overwhelmed by the experience. Many of the landmarks were the same. The sights and smells of home were right here, sixty thousand light-years away. But just as the similarities were familiar, she couldn't ignore the differences either. She was a stranger here, surrounded by a mixture of the traditional and the high tech more advanced than her own home, and far less crowded, something that she understood intellectually but was still something of a jolt seeing it personally.

She found herself in a neighborhood eerily similar to place where she grew up. Some of the buildings were the same-almost. And the people, the same class, something that hadn't changed either here or at home occupied the same streets and some of those similarities brought forth memories that she had tried hard to suppress over the years. She was a telepath, someone to be feared and even hated by her own family all because she was superior to them in every way. Her blood brothers and sisters were afraid of her, hadn't wanted to be around her. Her father loved her but being a somewhat secretive and private man, stayed away from her as much as he could. Her mother had doted on her other children, leaving her alone and isolated. She never really understood why but her older sister hated her with a passion.

Once, Shika went wild and savagely beat her with a stick. Arati suffered a broken arm and her parents said nothing to her. Instead Shika's excuses had been accepted and Arati discovered that she'd never fit in. She had never read her sister's mind but no one believed her, not even her father. When PsiCorps came to collect her at age seven she was more than happy to leave and never looked back. The child that was Arati was lost to her family forever.

Here she was stunned to see that her family at home had a counterpart here. Her father looked the same but a bit younger. It was shocking and the implications were not dismissed. She couldn't help herself and anger and memories succumbed to curiosity. She introduced herself and although speaking with a stranger, she expected the same reaction. Her father's counterpart had seen her before on the video broadcasts, telling her that she reminded him of someone but couldn't tell who. It turned out to be his younger daughter. Compelled to do so, she spent the rest of the day unloading her soul to the stranger with her father's face. He was exactly like her father – and nothing like him at all. He had even allowed her to scan him and she did, seeing the echo of her father within him, anxious but no fear. It frightened her. He asked her to remove her gloves so that he could see the hands of a daughter he never had. She thought about it, but in the end couldn't do it.

The Corps was mother. The Corps was father.

At the end of the day she said her goodbyes and silently swore never to return. Crying was never acceptable for one of her status and she cursed this world for its corrupting influence. She understood now, why the blips wanted to stay in this place. The seduction was so strong; the need to be accepted for what one was even stronger.

The meeting with this Earth's telepaths was to take place in San Diego California of their former USA. The trip from France to the USA took about an hour. Arati spent the hour reading old history of the Xindii attack on this Earth. The attack had been savage, the scars still present. It was something she wanted to see. She didn't know why but she needed to have some sort of connection to this world. Earth Alliance had been on its knees while this world prospered. Those wounds showed that this planet wasn't invincible and immune to its enemies. Irrationally, those thoughts made some part of her feel better. She couldn't afford to be controlled by her emotions.

She and Roberta stepped off of the air vehicle and stared in awe of the skyline. Now this was different than their world. The 'great quake' had happened here. Fully half of the city had been destroyed and eventually rebuilt. But there were buildings stretching across the pacific surrounding what had been the rest of the city. Small, connected islands dotted the area and on top of them were twenty and thirty story buildings connected to one another. Ten minutes from the airport they arrived at a small but elegant hotel.

The Solar Le Clément hotel: Napoleon Au Claire Suite-Paris

"…In other news, the energy ribbon that destroyed three El-Aurian refugee ships in the sol system four months earlier has moved beyond Federation borders at high warp speed. Scientists still have no idea what the apparently natural phenomenon is or how it slows to sublight or accelerates to high warp speed. If the mechanics can be understood, it has been speculated that new energy sources and avenues of faster than light travel may be discovered…"

"I've discovered a headache, yes?"

Centauri Ambassador Londo Mollari turned off the news, and flopped down in the oversized yet supremely comfortable lounge chair conveniently pointed in the direction of the transparent aluminum window overseeing the city of Paris. Normally, the transparent material was used on their starships and other critical areas but for places requiring extra security transparent aluminum was the material of choice. The room the Federation had provided his people with was as magnificently decadent as the hotel's architecture.

No, that wasn't correct, Londo thought with some amusement. He had to revise that definition of this suite. This was decadence – with style. The Emperor would have been satisfied with these accommodations. That brat Cartagia- and thank the Great Maker that he was nowhere near here! – would have found little to complain about. Even his three wives, appropriately nicknamed by him, Pestilence, Famine, and Death well, maybe two of them, not Death as she was never satisfied, would have been suitably impressed. Plus these Humans kept feeding him as though he had multiple stomachs, forcing his body to gain pounds just as some of the others had in his entourage.

The room's view was magnificent and that view simply enhanced his feeling of satisfaction at the conclusion of the day's events. And incidentally the negotiations for that particular material had come a lot easier than he imagined. The Emperor was going to be beside himself with joy for his beloved Ambassador.

Beloved ambassador. Yes, beloved…now. Satisfaction with today's events turned a bit sour as unwanted memories rose unbidden.

He was Ambassador to Earth Alliance because no one had originally wanted it when it had been offered so many years ago. His fellow nobles laughed behind his back at his position just as so many had laughed at the Old Lion. The Centauri Republic had turned into a joke in the last hundred years. There was no more interest in exploration, little to no respect, and maybe even outright hatred from the Non-Aligned races. Lethargy had taken hold which was slowly but surely rotting the core of the Centauri people. To his dismay, he had not garnered respect from his own people in the position that the Emperor had given him and he hated that. Earth considered a rising power in those days and there he had been, bartering with the Earthers for trinkets, latching onto them because they reminded his people of what they 'used' to be; an emerging power –

– Young Lions…

It seemed like such a long time ago. Humans. Stupidity and arrogance nearly brought the Earthers towards extinction and he had tried to warn them, even felt sorry for them when the Minbari came down on them like a roaring, flaming mountain. Then the Federation arrived, a result of arrogance and stupidity originating from the other side and Londo's entire life changed in an instant. Gone were those horrific dreams of emperorship and strangulation by some ugly Narn assassin. The dreaming had change for a selected few. Those whom knew of their deaths saw something new. From the reports he wasn't the only one who's 'dreams' changed so radically. And there had been rumors of some Centauri going mad because of the new dreaming nightmares they suffered some.

With the coming of the Federation, the disrespect by the other great houses of Centauri Prime disappeared. Gone was the negative stigma of being the ambassador to a race of infants. Members of various influential and prominent houses had tried to steal the now-coveted position from him. But the emperor had held firm. The Great Houses were besides them with envy.

That envy, he had to admit, was something he treasured. That envy improved his houses' standing among the nobles. But with such recognition came enemies, houses Alurn and Refa were chief among them. However, Count Refa had committed an error early on. With his suggestion that the Emperor should have tried to capture one of the visiting Federation ships, he had lost favor and now he was paying for it, all of which made Londo even happier.

"Cartyin," he yelled. "Celebration is in order. I need a drink. Make me an Orion haymaker." People thought he was a simple drunkard. True, he did like to imbibe but that never stopped his mind from working.

Cartyin quickly appeared bringing one of Londo's favorite drinks he had discovered here on this world. It was called Saurian brandy blended with an Earther-made drink 'Old Grandad', a delicious drink if ever there was one. The mere smell of it brought a smile to his lips.

And this was another one of those things he liked about the Federation. They had so many different alcoholic drinks that even he had trouble cataloging them all. Hundreds of variations from hundreds of different worlds had kept him and the other Centauri busy for the last week during their time off from negotiations. It took a week for the Centauri contingent to sample everything and make recommendations according to type. The wines were good according to color and were very similar to Earth Alliance varieties although he could taste subtle differences. The whiskies, brandies and rums ranged from bland to delightful. A couple of the Klingon whiskies served in ugly metal cups were disgusting but oddly flavorful. If you wanted something that could start one singing Centauri opera even if you didn't know the words, then those beverages were just the thing.

The so-called beers ranged from horribly weak to full-bodied ones that could make your hair relax. Privately he requested several of the weaker ones for the younglings of his family. The five year olds would tolerate them quite nicely. Their mothers wouldn't have to water them down.

Cartyin, a rather smaller male ten years younger than Londo was experienced enough to bring two glasses instead of one. Londo was a drinker and one simply would not do. Londo downed the first drink quickly and then burped with pleasure. He loved it when his stomach stood up and took notice of what he was drinking especially when it was good. That was something he loved besides being called 'beloved ambassador' by the Emperor. Of course, anything that was loved had to be protected. And the cash cow, using the Earther phrase, as something he had every intention of cultivating and maintaining as long as possible.

Thinking about the future, he took another long sip of his favorite earth-based blend. Slurping wildly, he flopped back into his seat, his feet momentarily lifting straight up. "These Earthers know how to show us a good time, eh?" he said to Cartyin.

The servant simply nodded, not wanting to say anything lest he got into a long-winded conversation with the ambassador. He had places to go, the city to see and he didn't want to be bothered right now. Fortunately, there was a very formidable excuse waiting for an audience with his master.

"These Humans are more interesting than I had expected," he blandly answered. Actually he had never associated with Humans before he came to this world on one of their ships. He found it most compelling but duties had stranded him here serving with this most annoying of Centauri. Well that was about to change quickly. "I must inform you that there is someone waiting to speak to you."

"Well," a half-sloshed Londo roared, "let them in."

"But, sir, I must…"

"Cartyin, let them in before they think I am an ungracious host and move us to a less glorious suite! We cannot allow that to happen. I've seen ships smaller than our bathrooms here and it's a luxury I do not want to squander!"

The servant nodded. "As you wish, Ambassador." There was no talking to him when he was like this. He moved to the door suppressing a slight shudder. "Introducing Admiral Suruek of the Federation, and Starfleet Commander Mira Romaine, Federation consultant specialist, and G'Kar of the Narn régime."

Surprised at the announcement that a Narn was about to come into his presence, Londo jumped up straightening his hair and clothing. He hated Narns with a passion as did most Centauri, however with the addition of two Starfleeters these impromptu meeting had to be important. Looking at the somber-looking Narn who was barely trying to conceal his hatred of him, Londo had to suppress a frown of his own.

"Come in," he announced to the two Starfleeters while studiously ignoring the Narn. The others entered quickly, but G'Kar lingered for a moment before stepping inside. The looks playing across his face was enough to want Londo to grab a weapon. There was a cold fear now as dreams long forgotten surfaced. That face…he could never forget.

It was him! The one that was clutching at his throat, cutting off his breath even as he struggled to do the same. Dreams that were dreams no more. It took real strength to speak to him and he surprised himself by acting civil. "Sit down. Would you like something to drink?" 'Cyanide for the Narn here, yes?'

"No, thank you," the Vulcan said.

Londo eyed the Vulcan carefully. This particular one was tall, a characteristic of his people. His close-cropped hair was filled with gray, an indication of age possibly over one-hundred years. He wasn't sure how long this species lived. His brown eyes moved around the room cataloging everything. He sat stiffly as if he preferred to be standing one could never tell about them. They kept their emotions in check to the point of absurdity.

The female was beautiful if not somewhat old. Her blue eyes were bright and striking, but there was something about her that indicated that she'd seen too much and had experienced horrors that no one should have been witness to. Her dark brown hair was streaked with gray as well but she'd kept her figure in her age and she was pleasant to look at. The question was, why were they there?

"And what can I do for you gentlemen and lady?"

"You can die," G'Kar muttered loud enough for everyone to hear.

"You first," was Londo's immediate retort.

"Gentlemen," Commander Romaine quickly interrupted. "We would like to keep this impromptu meeting civil. That won't happen if you began by insulting each other."

"The Commander is correct," the Admiral said taking over. "We are here to attempt to open an unofficial channel of communication between your two governments to help avoid future hostilities before the official talks begin in two days. Officially, the Centauri Republic and Narn Régime have no diplomatic avenues available. Therefore we are here to facilitate unofficial talks between the two governments. The Narn Régime has expressed an interest in applying for membership into the Federation and will receive terra-forming equipment and support from the Federation to repair the damage done to their war by your people, Ambassador." Londo grimaced. "The Centauri," the Vulcan continued, "have just signed an agreement to mine and transport as much quantium-40 as they wish in return for renting to the Federation space now occupied by the space station Becerra Alpha One in Centauri territory. The Federation therefore has a vested interest in maintaining the peace between both of our allies."

"Tell that to them!" Londo cried.

"See what we are forced to deal with!" snapped G'Kar. With every breath they take, a lie tries its best to escape from the Centauri lips."

"They are the ones who are constantly trying to instigate a war. We want peace but it's impossible with these savages running around attacking innocent people and spread outrageous lies to anybody that will even listen to them!"

"Logically, it is in both your interests to come to an acceptable conclusion that will be of benefit and profitable to both of your governments. If the Narn Régime wished to become part of the Federation the Federation will take care of its own, but not if you precipitate a war between your neighbors."

G'Kar smiled. "We would never start a war with the Centauri, but we would most certainly end it."

"I do not understand you people," Londo snarled. "You can see what they are! Why would you want them to be a part of your so-called glorious Federation? Trusting them…it-it would be like placing a snake in your own pockets."

"If we become part of the Federation, we would never do anything to jeopardize our newfound –wealth – or our allies."

"And why would you want these creatures and not the Republic?" roared Londo. "We might be interested in joining if only to make sure that the Narn will not abuse their newfound alliance and influence their allies to turn against us!"

"They don't want you," the Narn responded. "You're too violent a species."

"The Emperor has given me the right to negotiate for the Centauri people," Londo said carefully, not liking what he was about to say. But this G'Kar person was infuriating him and he needed to strike back and what he was thinking would do quite nicely. "I demand the right of petition to develop closer ties to the Federation and possibly authorize proceedings for the Centauri Republic to join the United Federation of planets."

"They wouldn't want you," snapped a stunned G'Kar. "I am surprised that your people can even fly straight when you're not trying to conquer your neighbors. The Centauri are too untrustworthy as a whole and your whole race drinks too much."

"We were in space before your people understood that the stars weren't little candles lighting up the sky."

"And we all know how that turned out. Destruction. Mayhem."

"I make no promises," Admiral Suruek announced, effectively forestalling the coming battle. "However, since the Federation has a vested interest in the Republic, I believe it will open talks with your people. Continued hostilities between your two governments however will most likely be view unfavorably. And there are other considerations."

"We would never do anything to damage relations with the Federation especially with what they're doing for my world," purred G'kar, "even if it means allowing the Centauri to ruin the lives of other innocent races."

"I am sure the Centauri people would agree if it will keep the Narn terrorists in line."

Admiral Suruek repressed a sigh. "Am I to understand that you two enemies are willing to become allies in order to keep an eye on one another?"

"Yes," G'Kar said, hating the fact that he did so.

"Yes," Londo echoed, hating the fact that he couldn't say no.

"The illogic of it all."

"Yes, Admiral," Mira whispered. "How very Vulcan and Andorian of them."

"Wait! What considerations?"

Minbar

Snow covered the land lying under the gray cloud-veiled sky. Winter-blackened trees stood naked in scattered groups across the land. The whispering silence was broken when a car appeared over the crest of a hill. It moved over the snow without wheels, relying on antigravity for locomotion. The only evidence of its passage was the single track of pressed snow left in the car's wake. Inside it rode three Minbari.

"You know what they'll do."

The man manning the craft's controls grunted at the first man's comment. "They'll send troops after us, Kodell. They're probably hard on our trail already."

Kodell bowed his head briefly, closing his eyes for a moment while the car skimmed over the rolling snow-clad hills. "I believe you gave them added incentive to find us, Draal."

The middle-aged man scoffed as he idly touched his beard. The black beard was shot through with flecks of gray. "Forcing the Council—any government—to be forthcoming is normally a foolish endeavor. Normally."

The sole Minbari woman chimed in. "If we are falling off a mountain, we may as well try to fly."

Draal chuckled. "Well said, Shaal Mayan. Unfortunately, we are not poets. But I believe we understand what you mean."

Kodell looked over his shoulder at Draal. "But was the action at the temple necessary? In Valen's name, we went too far."

There was silence until Mayan spoke. "We were not aware that the priest would do it until he did."

Kodell turned back to his vehicle controls. In his mind's eye, he and the others were back at the Ranger Temple in Yedor.

-+-

The magnificent crystalline carved temple stood in a corner of the Eternal City, flanked by waterfalls. Since the disappearance of the Rangers, the Ashen took possession of the temple as a base of operations on Minbar. In front of the temple, white-robed Minbari male and female acolytes gathered along with passersby. It was to be a peaceful demonstration against the perceived Ashen's now blatant attempted domination of Minbari government and against the cruelties of a war that was quickly being named "Linn ra'Tuzanae"—'The War of Sorrows.' Kodell was there, hoping that the demonstration would force a divulgement of information that he wanted. There were hecklers as well, denouncing the demonstrators as traitors to Minbar, to the memory of Dukhat and to the Vorlons.

Two acolytes and a priest separated themselves from the demonstrators, walking into the emptiness between the demonstration and the temple. An acolyte placed a cushion on the ground while the other carried a large can. The priest turned around and addressed the people.

"Before I close my eyes and move towards the vision of Valen, I respectfully plead the Grey Council to take a mind of compassion towards the people of Minbar and heed our complaints. I call upon the people to organize in solidarity to preserve Minbar before the actions of the ones holding the Council hostage cause our world to burn."

Finishing the address, the priest calmly seated himself on the cushion, crossing his legs. The second acolyte emptied the contents of the can over the third's head. A sharp smell wafted over the square in front of the Ranger Temple. Many in the crowd recognized the smell to be oil. While this was being done, the priest prayed and recited the words of homage to Valen. He struck a match and dropped it on himself. All too quickly, flames rushed all over the priest's seated body, consuming his white robe and flesh, black oily smoke emanating from his still calmly seated body.

Kodell was too shocked and too confused to react, too bewildered to even think. Behind him, he could hear many Minbari sobbing. As the priest burned, he never moved a muscle, never uttered a sound, his outward appearance in sharp contrast with the increasing wailing of the people around him. Flames were consuming a living person; his body was slowly withering and shriveling up, his head blackening and charring. In the air was the smell of burning flesh. It seemed that sentient beings burned surprisingly quickly.

The spectators were mostly stunned into silence by the unexpected event, but some wailed and several began praying. Soon, the law-guardians appeared wielding denn'boks, fighting staffs. The crowd turned to struggle with the guardians. While this was happening, the burning monk's body toppled forward and the fire subsided.

Ashen warriors appeared at the gate beneath the temple's large stained glass window. As they advanced toward the crowd, Draal grabbed Kodell's arm and urged him to leave the area. Kodell agreed. The demonstration was devolving into a riot. Taking Mayan's arm, Kodell went with Draal through the surging crowd.

-+-

Now they were fleeing in the hover-car over the southern frozen lands of Nocalo, the primary southern continent of Minbar and home of the two primary cities of Yedor and Tuzanor.

"Why do we make for the Nath'Kan Cloister in Dra'shur Province, Kodell?" asked Draal. "Will we not be better served finding refuge elsewhere? For example, the cities of Sikar and Drogani in the Southern Polar Region. Or even your ancestral estate at Ker'Shan Castle in Sujenn Province."

Mayan answered for Kodell. "Don't be concerned. There is no better refuge."

"Kodell?" pressed Draal.

"The cloister will serve its purpose." Kodell's reply ended the discussion.

"Kodell, Draal," said Mayan, pointing at a window. "A shrine."

On a hill, there was a squat stone building the size of a small hut. A stone obelisk standing beside the shrine bore inscriptions announcing that in this place, Valen once confronted bandits and persuaded them to join the Anla'shok.

In silence, the car passed the empty stone shrine.

Fear was beginning to take hold in the very hearts of the people. The war had changed Minbar. The very people, themselves secured and complacent in their belief of their superiority, were being consumed by fear. A thousand years of control was being shattered like the frailest of glass. The Ashen, the hated Humans and their allies…

The losses….

The deaths of so many with more certainly to come was eating at the very soul of Minbar and no one, not the Grey Council, not the religious or warrior castes, not the Ashen seemed to know what to do to avoid the coming storm.

To be continued to those who saw 'final' in the title originally-sorry about that...