Chapter 11 - Unwelcome Guests

Sector 83, Unclaimed Territory - Exodus Fleet - February 2249

"Captain Lochley, I think you're going to want to hear this," Lieutenant Commander Rickerson called out.

Elizabeth turned to her first officer. "What is it, Tom?"

"Our EM sensors just noted an Abbai cruiser entering through the system jumpgate. They immediately began broadcasting a looping message. It appears to be meant for us."

Elizabeth frowned. The fleet had been in system for almost two days, conducting replenishment and repairs. Since they had left Drazi space, they had resumed their original practice of hiding in the outskirts of a system. They were currently parked near the outer edge of the system, hiding in a loose grouping of KBOs. Their position was just under eighty-eight AUs from the jumpgate, which meant that the Abbai vessel had actually arrived about twelve hours ago. They might not even be there anymore. "Main screen," she commanded.

The image of an Abbai female filled the screen, her salmon colored skin and ridged cranial crest nicely complimented by the apparently coral and stone based structures in the background. She began to speak. "This message is meant for any humans which may be in this system. My name is Ambassador Kalika Qwal'Mizra. I am one of many females who have been assigned by our Natar to seek you out. We wish to speak with you. If you can hear me, then please come out and speak with me. You know us as an honest and peaceful race. I give you my word that we mean you no harm." The image fuzzed slightly, and then the whole message began again.

Elizabeth frowned. "Send a copy of this message to the Nova, Midway, and Eratosthenes. Oh, and also the Mother. You have the bridge, Tom. I'll be in my quarters."

Leaving the bridge, she made her way back to her cabin. It was a reasonably short trip, the designers of the Hyperion class wanting to keep the Captain as close to the bridge as possible. Once there, she began the process of contacting the other members of the Captains' Council over an encrypted channel. She did not have long to wait. In less than five minutes, the entire Council was assembled, each communicating from their own rooms or other private locations.

Garibaldi, as usual was blunt in his concerns. "Does anyone think we can trust this alien? This Ambassador Kalika something or other?"

"As she said to us, our records show the Abbai to be an honest and peaceful people," Levitt responded.

"It smells like a trap to me," Garibaldi said.

"To what end?" Sinclair asked.

"Maybe they plan to sell us to the Minbari. Maybe they just don't want to have to go through what the Drazi did. I don't know, maybe I'm just being paranoid, but she's an alien, a woman, and a politician; and all three make me nervous."

"Very nice, Mr. Garibaldi," Levitt said dryly.

"You won't want to visit their home planet, SSumssha, then Lieutenant Commander," Lochley added. "They're a matriarchal society. All government positions are held by women. That includes the position of Natar. I believe that's like an Empress."

"Visit it? I can't even pronounce it."

Sheridan interrupted. "Given what the Drazi did for us, I think we should give this set of aliens a chance. Not every species is the Minbari."

"The Centauri weren't exactly the friendliest to us when we visited, Captain. The Narn were pleasant, I guess, if you can overlook the extortion."

"Regardless," Sheridan continued in annoyance, "I think we should follow up on this opportunity."

"I agree," Lochley said, followed by several nods from the others around the table. Only Garibaldi and Bester seemed hesitant.

"Given their societal inclinations," Sheridan continued, I'd suggest Commanders Lochley and Levitt for the contact, perhaps aboard the Lexington, while the rest of the fleet remains hidden.

Bester spoke up. "I've heard that every member of this species possesses an empathic sense...a mild form of telepathy, really, which allows the sensing of emotions. They are quite weak; P1 rating or less. Still, perhaps we should send a Psi-Cop with you, to guard your thoughts."

Lochley thought about it. "It's not a bad suggestion, Commander, but I'd be concerned that her presence would be transparent and insulting to the Abbai. We need to make friends, not enemies, and I'd rather not risk a social gaffe." Bester grimaced, but nodded in agreement. Lochley turned her gaze to Levitt. "All right, Sandra. Since we all seem to be in agreement, why don't you shuttle over to the Lexington, and we can go and see what the Abbai have to say."
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The Lexington slid slowly out of a hyperspace vortex, and approached the Abbai vessel. They had jumped into hyperspace so that the Abbai could not use their approach to identify the location of the fleet. The Abbai vessel remained silent as they drew near, allowing them to get within a few kilometers. The Lexington loomed over the smaller alien craft.

"Any idea what kind of vessel that is?" Sandra asked her friend.

Lochley frowned as she reviewed the lines of the Abbai ship. "We haven't had a lot of military or political interaction with the Abbai since the Dilgar war, so I can't be certain. However, based on reports I have read, I'd say it's a Marata class diplomatic transport. Which would make sense, I suppose, since it seems to be carrying an ambassador. Lightly armed, but then most Abbai ships are. It's defenses are impressive though; again, like most Abbai vessels. Tom," she said, raising her voice, "let's see if anybody's home."

At Elizabeth's command, the First Officer hailed the alien vessel. The Communications Officer looked up in consternation. "Captain, the Abbai said only that they wish to speak in person, and the channel was cut."

"Captain," Tom called, "we have a small shuttle launching from the Abbai vessel."

Lochley raised her eyebrows in curiosity. "I guess we better prepare a welcoming party then. Grant them clearance to come aboard. Senior officers to the hangar deck."

Shortly, Lochley, Levitt, Rickerson, and the rest of the senior officers stood at attention, awaiting the arrival of the Ambassador. A pressure hatch hissed and opened, and the same salmon colored face that had graced the earlier recordings emerged. "Greetings. I am Ambassador Kalika Qwal'Mizra," the woman said with a bow, "representing the Abbai Matriarchate. Thank you for choosing to speak with me."

"Commander Elizabeth Lochley. It is our honor, Ambassador," Lochley responded returning the bow, then offering a smart salute. She introduced the rest of the officers who each saluted in turn. She then dismissed everyone but Levitt to return to their duties. "Ambassador, if you would please follow us, we have a small room prepared so that we may speak in comfort and confidentiality."

"It is not far I hope," the Ambassador stated quietly. "I am afraid I have very little experience with weightlessness. Our ships all have artificial gravity, you understand."

"Of course, Ambassador. It's not far. Right this way, please."

True to her word, the Ambassador was indeed extremely awkward in the zero-G environment, and both Lochley and Levitt were forced to grab her multiple times to keep her from floating away. However, the meeting room was indeed not far, and they soon had the Ambassador ensconced behind closed doors.

"May I offer you refreshment, Ambassador?" Levitt asked. "Something to eat or drink?"

"Thank you, no. I have had the opportunity to sample some human foods in the past. They are all terribly bland. If everything is going to taste like water, why not just drink water?"

Lochley rose and retrieved some zero-G spacer bulbs and placed one in front of the Abbai, then handed one to Sandra and took the last for herself. "You are of course welcome to forego, but I did some research on your species's tastes, and I think this might be to your liking.

The Ambassador looked askance at the bulb, and handled it awkwardly, but rose to the challenge. Clearly they really didn't have need of such things on their space vehicles. Locating the straw, the Abbai took a sip. Her eyes widened in surprise. "This is not bad. Not as tasty as T'm'lai'na, but quite good. What ever is it?"

"Rum and Coke. I altered the Coke mix to increase the syrup concentration and enhance the acidity. T'm'lai'na has been known to dissolve human intestines and even eat away some of our metals."

"You poor things." She gave them an appraising look. "Correct me if I am wrong, but you are both females, correct? Did the downfall of your species finally teach you the folly of having males in leadership positions? Are you now the rulers of your species?"

Lochley gave an amused grin. "Not quite."

"Not yet, anyway," Levitt appended, also amused. "We're working on it."

"The best of luck to you then," the Abbai offered, with a shallow bow.

"You wished to speak with us, Ambassador?"

"Yes," she responded, her face growing serious. "The Natar has been staying abreast of the situation throughout the galaxy, including recent events in the Drazi Freehold. She has a request for your people."

"And that is?"

"Do not come near the Matriarchate."

Levitt and Lochley shared a concerned glance. "Our destination is not the Matriarchate, Ambassador," Sandra said cautiously.

"I didn't say don't come to the Matriarchate. I said don't come near it."

"But why?"

"Need you ask? It is what you bring with you. The price paid by the Drazi should make that clear enough."

Lochley frowned. "The Drazi felt they owed our people, for what we did in the Dilgar war."

"The Natar...the Abbai...we feel the same. Our request is as much for your own good as it is for ours. And we do intend to help your people in a not insignificant manner. But we would not interfere in your war with the Minbari for the same reason we will not interfere now...because confronting the Minbari is certain suicide. Look at what happened to you. Your species is not the first. Before you came the Wen'dan Horde. Before them were the Garmak. Now the Drazi may face that fate as well. The Abbai will not follow down the same stream."

Levitt and Lochley shared a surprised glance. "I had not realized the Minbari had done this before," Elizabeth said.

"Most of the younger races are unaware. These things have happened over centuries, and many forget. The Minbari have been in space for a very long time. But the Abbai have as well, and we pay attention. Once roused, the Minbari are an implacable foe. It would have been best for all if your people had listened to the Centauri Ambassador."

These words created an awkward silence, until Sandra asked, "What became of those others? The Garmak and the…."

"The Wen'dan Horde. I do not know exactly what became of the Horde, only that they have not been seen since the Minbari finished with them. The Garmak however...they intentionally attacked the Minbari, believing they were more than strong enough to face any foe, the fools." She said this with a weighted look at the two humans. "The Minbari destroyed their ships and their colonies and their empire. They chased them all the way back to their homeworld, then bombarded it until not a trace of industry or technology remained. Until the Garmak would be forced to spend the next thousand years trying to rebuild and regain the stars."

"So the Minbari left them alive?" Elizabeth asked hopefully. "They're still out there rebuilding their world?"

"No," Kalika said. "A new and rising race, the Centauri, came upon their world and enslaved them. They were spread across the new Centauri Empire, until they could no longer maintain a viable breeding population in any given location, and quickly slid into extinction. I suppose it is possible that there may be some hidden enclave of Garmak out there...the descendants of their own fleet of escapees...but I very much doubt it."

"So you don't think our odds of survival are very high?" Sandra asked.

"No," the Ambassador replied quietly. Another silence ensued.

Finally, Elizabeth asked, "You said that the request was for our own good, Ambassador? And that you would try to help us in some manner?"

"Yes. You see, the Minbari have beaten you here. They are ahead of you and spreading out, attempting to find you in any place that you might hide. It is mostly scout ships, though there are a good number of frigates, and even the occasional capital ship. They are operating singly for now, but there are still quite a few of them, and more will be on the way. We passed a Sharlin Warcruiser on our way to this system. They are slowed as they spend ships surrounding and cutting off the Drazi, but soon they will be operating in pairs and trios and even task groups. You will soon be unable to hide, humans. Continuing on your current course assures your destruction."

"As I said, Ambassador," Lochley responded cautiously, "we are not heading to the Matriarchate."

"You are not listening, humans," Kalika said with exasperation. "The Minbari are not just in the Matriarchate. They are everywhere in this part of space. They go where ever they want, and none will try to deny them. What happened to the Drazi and to the Narn ensures that." Lochley and Levitt shared another glance, but before they could ask about the Narn, the Ambassador continued. "It does not matter where you go...the Abbai and Balosians, the Hurr and Grome, the dead worlds around the former Dilgar territories, even the Hyach and Brakiri; all have Minbari forces searching their territory. They are spreading out spinward and coreward, searching for you all the way to the Tal-Kona'Sha border. They are respectful. They are even friendly. But they do not take 'no' for an answer. To be blunt, I am astonished that you did not run into them on your way here. Obviously you did not, as even one of their weakest ships would likely have slaughtered much of your fleet."

Elizabeth glanced at Levitt again, then said cautiously, "We were unaware of much of that, and thank you for the information. But we are running out of places to run. What about these Tal-Kona'Sha you mentioned? We have not heard of them before. Might they help us?"

"They might help you into the next life, if that is your goal. Better to throw yourselves on the mercy of the Minbari. They are far older and more powerful than the Minbari, and far less caring and merciful than the Vorlons. There is no bargaining with them, no reasoning with them, and certainly no sneaking through their territory. I am not certain they would even consider you to be sentient. They are Middle-Born, and that is the last I will say on that topic." The Abbai female took a breath. "If you want my advice, then I urge you to turn around. Perhaps this will catch the Minbari by surprise. Drive quickly through Narn space and seek refuge with the Centauri. You have always been on good terms with them. Perhaps they are crazy enough to hide you."

"They are not," Sandra said bitterly. "That was one of the first destinations we tried."

"Then I find it unlikely you will survive. However, the Natar has instructed that I aid you." Kalika reached into her robes and pulled out a data crystal. "This crystal contains the entirety of compiled hyperspace knowledge of the Abbai people. Everything we have gathered over the last four hundred cheen. I believe that is eight of your centuries. Every known jumpgate and beacon. Every minor route and hidden path. Every lost world and broken connection of which we know. There are few governments out there that wouldn't gladly kill for this information. We give it to you freely. Perhaps somewhere in there you will find a way to survive. But it will not be by continuing on your current heading."

Elizabeth gingerly accepted the crystal. "Thank you, Ambassador Qwal'Mizra. This is indeed a treasure. Please do not take my next statement as a lack of gratitude. You could very well have turned us away. But is there truly nothing more you can do? Now that the Minbari have attacked a member of the League, aren't you bound to stand together and confront them? To support each other? Wasn't that the lesson of the Dilgar? The Drazi were willing to stand up. As I understand it, the Vree also took a chance, sending a fleet to help Earth, though they must not have arrived in time. Perhaps united you could turn back these Minbari monsters."

"The lesson of the Dilgar…" Kalika mused. "It is indeed because of your actions against the Dilgar that we are aiding you now. And just like in that time, we are all too afraid to stand together. If it was the Centauri or the Narn or even you humans, we would stand as one. But not against the Minbari. And even if we did, I cannot see it leading to anything but the annihilation of every member of the League that participates. The Minbari are not an enemy you can fight. They are a force of nature. Perhaps if we Abbai and the Hyach and the Brakiri and the Yolu all opened up our databases and shared our technologies with each other, we might have a chance. But just like every other race, we all guard our secrets jealously. Even in the darkest hours of the Dilgar invasion, there was no discussion of a technology release. Shields, artificial gravity, or advanced weaponry; we all insist on retaining whatever advantages we can, in case monsters ever come for us. And when the Minbari are picking us off one by one, who will save us then, now that your Earth Alliance is gone?"

"But it is precisely that attitude that which may doom you. Your chances to survive and thrive are far greater as a community than as individuals."

"I agree with you, Commander. But it is just not how things are done. The League of Non Aligned Worlds makes no provisions for such things. We will not stand together in such a way. No one but the Drazi will stand up for you."

"But the Vree…"

"Do not be too enamored of the Vree, humans," Kalika said tersely. "They did indeed send a fleet in support of you. And when they arrived after your forces had been destroyed, they were rapidly surrounded by the Minbari. In order to save themselves, they declared for the Minbari. They denounced your race in order to convince the Minbari that they were not your allies. I have heard rumors that Minbari required them to bombard several regions of your Earth, in order to prove themselves. I have been unable to substantiate that fact, however."

"Monsters," Elizabeth repeated herself in outrage.

"No, dear. The Vree were merely frightened children, trying to survive. Or perhaps you meant the Minbari. But, despite your experiences, they are not monsters either. They are actually quite nice people. The vast majority of the time they are a force for peace and order. It was they who brought peace when the Horde was rampaging through known space. It is also said that they fought and defeated a great Darkness, though that was before even my species had made it into space. Perhaps the Yolu could tell you about that. Regardless, the Minbari are not monsters. They simply let their arrogance and their egos get the better of them. Much the same has been said about humanity."

"Do not compare us to them." Sandra hissed. "We would never do this."

"I have seen your history, my dear. I know better."

Elizabeth didn't like this line of discussion at all, but a new thought had been growing in the back of her mind. Something the Ambassador said had sparked an idea. She cleared her throat and looped the discussion back around to how it had begun. "Perhaps there is another way you can help us, Ambassador. And help yourselves in the process."

"I am listening."

"You are right. No one ever gives technology away but sometimes it is traded. The EA traded for a number of technologies in the war, though I am bound to not reveal with whom. Your people are peaceful, and value a strong defense. Your shields offer you an unmatched defense, but they are not invincible. Perhaps I could offer you a way to enhance your defenses. Our interceptor technology is as good as any out there, and better than most. We also have a system we call the e-web which reduces energy weapon effectiveness. I would be willing to trade one or the other to you for your full knowledge base on your shields." Sandra looked a bit shocked by the offer, but Elizabeth knew she would see the value.

Kalika appraised them both. She was clearly interested and thoughtful. But then her features changed, and Lochley knew her answer before she spoke it. "Reluctantly, I cannot agree. Our shields are indeed powerful. And very distinctive as well. Only the Brakiri have anything close. As I noted before, I do not put much faith in your odds. When the Minbari catch and destroy you, they may go through your records. This information would be clear evidence that we had assisted you. Our maps are just maps, but our shields cannot come from anywhere else. This would almost certainly bring down the exact repercussions I am trying to avoid."

"We could set up the database to purge, or even rig it to explode, should the Minbari capture it," Sandra said hopefully.

"I cannot trust that. It is too great a risk. Besides, the information would not help you. Our shields are gravitic based. Without a strong understanding of gravitics and artificial gravity infrastructure, you would not be able to replicate them. And before you ask, no I cannot trade you our knowledge of artificial gravity either, for exactly the same reasons. Any species which has artificial gravity has some distinctive aspects of their own version. The data would again lead back to us. And, again, you do not have the knowledge to use it. Even if we gave you everything, it would be years before you could utilize it even if you still had the resources of the entire Earth Alliance behind you. As you stand now, it would be decades, if not centuries. No, this is not a good deal for either of us."

"As Commander Levitt indicated, we could put safeguards in place."

"And as I said, Commander, it is too much of a risk. However…" Her face took on a thoughtful cant. "However, I might have a better deal for you. Our powered defense also comes in two aspects. Our shields you are familiar with. However, most are far less familiar with our Particle Impeders. Do you know anything about them, Commander?"

"Very little."

"The system is very similar to your interceptor. However, where your system is all but useless against electromagnetic weaponry, countering those weapons is the primary function of our Impeders. It is little understood, but in our battles against the Centauri, our Impeders were actually of more use to us in direct combat than our shields; which, similar to your interceptors, are not much good against EM weapons. And since the main difference between our system and yours is in the type of projectiles employed, it should be possible to insist to the Minbari that you developed the technology on your own."

Lochley glanced at Levitt, who gave her an encouraging nod. She turned back to the Ambassador. "Alright. We're interested."

"It is within my authority to trade to you the Particle Impeder technology. In return, I will require all information on your interceptors and e-web system, and your promise to come no closer to our territory."

Lochley was taken aback. "All three? Isn't that a bit greedy, Ambassador? Are you profiteering on us now?"

The Abbai sighed, "That is the price. I doubt you will find better. No matter what, this is still a risk for my people. And if the Minbari do track the technology back to us, I want to be able to argue that the offer was simply too good to pass up, and could in no way be considered us supporting you."

Lochley met her eyes for a long moment, then sighed. "Alright, Ambassador. I'll have to go back and gather the information for you, but I do believe you have yourself a deal."
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For once, there was dead silence as the Captains met. They each sat reviewing the charts and data with which Levitt and Lochley had returned. Finally, Sheridan looked up. "I should be quite perturbed with you two. You had no right to unilaterally make diplomatic agreements in the name of the fleet, much less to give away sensitive military technology. But, I've got to say, I think the returns were more than worth it. A good officer seizes opportunity, and this was a big one. Well done, Liz, Sandra. Very well done."

Nodding to acknowledge the compliment, Levitt added, "The list of all of their sightings of Minbari vessels should prove particularly useful in helping us to get out of this noose they seem to have surrounded us with."

"The real prize, though," Sinclair stepped in, "are those Particle Impeders. It would have been nice get ahold of their shield technology, but I don't blame them for keeping that a state secret. Earthgov certainly would have."

"The Impeders are impressive," Garibaldi allowed, "but we won't be able to use them any time soon."

"Why not?" Bester asked.

"Because it's completely incompatible with the systems currently mounted on our ships or Starfuries. It's basically a fancy chaff round. A very high tech, laughing at the laws of physics, chaff round; but still just a chaff round. Maybe if we were mounting railguns or even the old BilPro guns we could just design a modified round and go, but the pulse, plasma and laser weapons the fleet's armed with right now just don't work that way. We'll have to build new guns from scratch. Then we'll have to decide if we want to swap those guns in for some of our current interceptor batteries. That would improve our defense against the weapons the Minbari use, at the expense of our ability to defend against everything else. The alternative is to try to find the real estate on the hulls to mount the weapons as additions. Then you have to work out mounting, fire arcs, and power runs. And that's all in addition to trying to integrate them into the defense nets and system logic. At best you're talking about months of work. Years is more likely."

"Still, Bester said, "I'd rather have the tech for use eventually, than to not have it at all."

Michael stopped and closed his mouth, thinking for a second. He gave a short, reluctant nod to Bester, acknowledging the point.

"That's all for the future," Sinclair said into the ensuing silence. "We have much more immediate concerns. What do we do now? Obviously, the Dilgar territories are out. The Ambassador even named them as places the Minbari are searching. Does anyone disagree on that point?"

No one did. Levitt cleared her throat. "It seems pretty obvious to me where we should be heading. Ambassador Qwal'Mizra gave us invaluable information. A race that even the Minbari can't bully. A race that can stop them dead. We head for the borders of these Tal-Kona'Sha, these middle born, whatever that means. We get there and then we beg or buy our way through to the far side. Once there, we'll have finally lost the Minbari for good. I doubt those people would be much concerned about a fleet of refugees, not if they are more powerful than the Minbari. But a Minbari fleet, on the other hand, that's another matter altogether. They aren't likely to allow such a force within their borders. Hell, they might decide to stop the Minbari just to show them who the top dog is."

"I'd love to see that," Bester noted. Lochley hesitated for a moment, then nodded, throwing her assent behind her two allies. However, it was clear that others present disagreed.

"Didn't you just commit to Ambassador Qwal'Mizra that we wouldn't be coming any closer?" Jeff asked. "We can't go around violating diplomatic agreements."

Levitt looked thoughtful, then said, "The Ambassador milked that agreement for all it was worth. They certainly got more out of it than we did. Two defensive systems for one, and a restriction on our travel? I think our tech payment ought to be enough. Besides, we can get to Tal-Kona'Sha space without going through Abbai territory."

"They drove a bargain for what they felt were the relative values of the offerings by each side," Sheridan argued. "If you didn't like the terms, you shouldn't have agreed to them. And given the fact that Abbai are the masters of defensive systems, they may very well be correct that they were giving us as much as they were getting technically, especially when you factor in the risk they were taking. Remember what's happening to the Drazi? Besides, they also gave us these hyperspace maps."

"Which she said she was going to give to us anyway," Levitt countered. "In memory of what we did during the Dilgar war. But, let's discuss the core issue here. We can't afford to give up this opportunity, not for sentimentality. The fate of the fleet, of the human race, may well depend upon it. We're out of options, out of places to go. Besides, what the Abbai don't know won't hurt them. We go around their territory, as fast as we can, so we can avoid the bulk of Minbari forces headed this way. Then it's a race to the Tal-Kona'Sha border. If we win that race, then we're finally safe."

"What if they refuse us passage?" Sheridan asked. The Ambassador seemed to think they were much more likely to smite us than to listen to anything we might have to say."

"Everyone has their price."

"The Centauri didn't."

Sinclair cleared his throat. "After what the Drazi did...after what they paid to help us...we can't just go double crossing other alien species who are trying to help us, no matter the level of that help. We made a deal. We need to stick by it. Otherwise, who would be willing to help us in the future? Would we even be worthy of that aid? General Lefcourt once told me that this effort would require us to toss away our lives, fortunes, and sacred honor. After working with the Drazi, I no longer agree. I think it may be honor, that of ourselves and others like the Drazi and Abbai, that helps us to survive."

Lochley looked torn. "Did you have another suggestion for where we could head? Sandra's right. It seems like we're out of places to go."

"Actually," Sheridan said, "the General left us three options. We've only crossed off two of them."

"Head rimward?" Bester asked. "Captain, I hope that you are joking. That would mean we've been going the wrong way this entire time. It would require us to retrace out steps...right back into the face of all of those Minbari forces coming up behind us. It's suicide."

Both Lochley and Levitt looked horrified at the idea, and more than prepared to fight it. Sheridan held up his hands for patience, mentally cursing again this ridiculous council and his need to justify his reasoning to his subordinates. "Just hear me out. We won't be going backwards. Instead, we run down through the League. That is the area where the Abbai maps seem to the the most accurate. In case you hadn't noticed, those charts show low usage hyperspace tracks, hidden beacons, smuggler's routes...everything we need to go unnoticed by the locals, much less the Minbari. And they're not expecting us to head in that direction. They already 'know' we're going coreward. According to your report, the Ambassador said it herself; the Minbari are spreading out coreward and spinward. That puts Minbari forces moving around us in three directions. Heading rimward may very well be the only direction in which we can perform a breakout. And if we can, we may very well give them the slip."

"And what if we don't?" Lochley asked. "We'd be moving closer to their forces occupying the EA. And even if we somehow get past them, what then? There's nothing out that way. The only thing that made it attractive in the beginning was that it would be a shorter trip, and we would be heading directly away from the Minbari advance. Neither of those things is true now."

"Even the Minbari only have so many ships. They can't guard their own territories, continue their conquest of the EA, or occupy it if they've already taken everything, then wage war on the Drazi and expend ships searching the Narn and League territories. Not well, anyway. They'll have to concentrate their search, and Ambassador Qwal'Mizra told us exactly where they are concentrating...where they expect us to go. As Sun Tzu said, 'Attack where your enemies are not prepared; go where they do not expect.' The Minbari will never expect us to turn around. If we can slip past their patrols in this area, we may be free and clear...at least for a while. And even if they do attempt to expand into those areas of the League, they'll be stretched very thing. We just proved we can deal with their lighter units if we catch them one or maybe two at a time."

"Don't get cocky, John." Lochley said. "The Minbari still have a lot of advantages over us. We should avoid fighting them whenever possible. We'll lose a lot of people. I don't even want to think about what would happen if we had to take on another Sharlin."

"We won't get away if we're not prepared to take risks, Liz. The other reason we should head rimward is because there are places to go. The Abbai maps show territories beyond what we were aware of. Peoples and territories beyond the Koulani and Ch'lonas. The Tokati, Trakallan, Moradi, and Tikar. There seem to be unclaimed worlds in this area as well. Perhaps someplace we can settle, if we truly can give the Minbari the slip."

Sinclair was reviewing his copies of the maps again. "A lot of the unclaimed worlds seem to be around this danger zone. It's marked as 'avoid at all costs.' The hyperspace routes to it are marked as 'restricted.' Seems like maybe something we would want to avoid."

John looked and found the area Jeff was referencing on his own copy of the map. "This place called Z'ha'dum? It's probably some group just like the Tal-Kona'Sha. They might be able to provide us with the same kind of barrier you were looking for, Sandra. And the worlds around that area aren't marked as restricted. Besides, there's plenty of territory further away. We can decide when we get there."

"I'm calling the vote," Sinclair informed them. "All those in favor of heading coreward towards the Tal-Kona'Sha?" Levitt and Bester raised their hands immediately. Lochley was a bit slower, considering, but she joined them. "All those for heading rimward, perhaps towards Z'ha'dum?" Jeff asked again. Both he and John raised their hands.

Garibaldi spoke up. "I've got to tell you, Captain; this time I agree with Levitt and Lochley and, God help me, Mr. Bester. I think the Tal-Kona'Sha are the nearest and best option, agreements be damned." He sighed, then looked directly at Lochley. "But you still have my vote, John, because I understand how the damned chain of command works."

"Very dramatic, Mr. Garibaldi," Bester intoned. "You must be very skilled at 'Good cop, Bad cop.'"

"Maybe someday you'll find out."

"Unlikely."

All eyes now turned to Gideon. "I'm getting kind of tired of being the deciding vote," he said in exasperation.

"Then maybe you should make up your mind faster and get on record before everyone else is done," Garibaldi chided him. "Or do what I do, what you're supposed to do, and just follow your commanding officer."

"Or," Lochley broke in, "you could remember what's at stake, and what you...what everyone, stands to lose if we get this wrong."

Gideon looked at both of them in exasperation. "There's one aspect of this that you all seem to have forgotten. This war started in the first place because we were all so full of ourselves that we didn't bother to listen when those with a bit more experience told us we were playing with fire. One of those groups just told us again that we're about to be playing with fire, and this time we won't just get burned, we'll get immolated. I'd like to think that even people as thick skulled as Earth Force officers can learn their lesson. That we can figure out a way not to be blinded by our arrogance. The Abbai were kind enough to give us this warning. I suggest we pay heed." He looked up at Sheridan. "Ok, Captain. You've got my vote. Make it count."
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Komac, Brakiri Territory - Exodus Fleet - February 2249

"Report," Commander Sandra Levitt ordered.

"Transition to normal space successful," Janice replied. "Scanning...we nailed the transition. We emerged directly behind the outermost gas giant in the system. We should be obscured from anyone deeper in system."

"Send the signal." Janice nodded and activated the preset communication. Moments later ships began spilling out of the still open vortex, while four more bloomed as all of the warships punched their way into normal space, ensuing that the fleet could make transition as rapidly as possible.

The plan was once again to perform a rapid turn around. Get in, perform minimal service, and move on before trouble or the Minbari could turn up. They had tried the tactic many times before. It was not always successful, but was more often than not.

This time, it was not. "We're getting a solid return on a full squadron of Minbari fighters headed this way," Kathway reported. "They must have been orbiting within the planet's rings." Apparently the Minbari had gotten wise to their tactic of staying at the edges of systems and hiding behind planets. A couple of flights of Nials waiting in orbit wasn't a coincidence. They must have been left here, just on the possibility the fleet would show up. Sandra wondered if they had just gotten lucky by seeding the planet with the most noticeable mass shadow, or if they had actually left fighters at every single planet in the system. Either way, the fleet was probably going to have to change its system entry protocols.

"Time to intercept?"

"We're a little farther out than we had planned to be. Just lucky, I guess. That'll give us just over ten minutes before they enter firing range."

Sheridan's image appeared on her screen, broadcast to all of the Captains. "Launch all fighters. Sinclair, form up your fighter group and get those Minbari out of my sky."

"Captain," Levitt, interrupted, "there's no need to fight. Most of the fleet is still in hyper. We can easily turn around the rest and be gone before the Minbari get here. Those fighters won't be able to follow us into hyperspace. We can move on and perform repairs in the next system."

"And we're liable to lose civilian vessels in the process, Commander. Many of those craft are in need of maintenance now. I won't accept those losses. Twelve Nials don't pose much of a threat to us. Not anymore. Besides, I won't leave a hostile force with knowledge of our location at our back. Especially if we have the possibility of preventing them from reporting that knowledge to their superiors."

"Captain, we may have gained some new abilities, but the Minbari fighters are still demonstrably superior in almost every aspect. If we fight them, we'll take losses, unnecessarily. Besides, there's something off about the sensor returns. It's just too…"

"Commander," he interrupted her sharply, "I am in command of combat operations. Launch your birds. Now. That's an order." So saying, he cut the connection.
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"Suck vacuum, Bonehead!" Ironheart crowed, as another Minbari fighter imploded under his guns. Susan repressed a surge of irritation before it could feed back to him through their link. It was his third kill of the battle, and she hadn't managed a single one. She had this last one lined up, but he had snatched the kill right out from under her. He was really on fire today, cementing himself at the top of the leaderboards.

Commander Sinclair had recently announced that Minbari kills would only count as three for high level telepaths, those who were coming to be known as Psi-fighters, and those with one as a wingman. They would still count as five for those unaided by telepathy. That had thrown the leader boards into disarray, but Ironheart and Susan, as well as Commanders Bester and Sinclair, were still well out in advance of the competition. Wise Ass was coming up fast, though. She had at least one kill in this battle already.

"The remaining Minbari fighters are pulling back," Sinclair notified them over comms. "All Starfuries are ordered to pursue. Let's wipe them out before they can escape." Susan and Ironheart laid in a pursuit course and went to max thrust.

"And another!" Ironheart shouted, bagging his fourth.

How does he do it? Susan looked around, this time unable to mask her spike of irritation. She heard Ironheart chuckle in response, which really just ticked her off even more. "Aren't we getting a little far from the fleet? Do we really need to give chase with the entire fighter group for what's left of the Minbari?"

"They'll call us if they need us. Commander Sinclair is just using numbers to give us the best correlation of forces possible. It's the best way to get this over quickly and minimize losses."

"Makes sense."
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"What the hell? That doesn't make any sense," Hangar Bay Chief Callista Sandusky said to herself, looking around as the automated docking sirens began to wail. "Who the hell would be flying between ships during a fraggin' battle? Jerry," she said calling out loudly, "are we expecting company?"

"The boards are clear, Chief."

"Frag it! Nice of them to let us know we need to prepare for company." She strode to the overwatch to get a look at the shuttle pulling into the bay. Eye's widening in shock, she turned to shout a warning. Before she could finish drawing the breath, Callisa Sandusky was torn apart by green fire.
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The Midway shuddered, and Lieutenant Commander Gideon looked up with concern. "Report," he called to his first officer.

"Unknown, Captain," Lieutenant Hong Se Chenshan responded. Hong was an old friend of Gideon's. He was proud of his Chinese heritage, but even more proud of the fact that his family had served in the Earth Force for six generations. "I have damage indicators lighting up for Hangar Bay 1, though."

Memories of the hangar bay accident which had killed so many of his friends and an entire squadron of pilots flitted through his mind. "Get some additional damage control parties down there, pronto. Get on the horn and see if anyone down there can tell us what's happening."

Hong held up a hand. "One moment, Captain. Getting a call from the hangar now...say again. Say again... I'm sorry, Captain. The caller said something about the Minbari, and then the line was cut off."

"It couldn't have been Minbari fire. Those fighters are too far out at this point, and our Starfuries have them pretty well under control. They must not know what caused the problem, and are assuming it is combat related. Stay in contact with the damage control parties you sent down, see if they can give us a better idea of what is going on."

"Captain, I've got additional damage codes coming up now in the corridors and compartments surrounding the hangar bay," he said in consternation.

"Cascading damage? That's usually associated with fire. Scramble some fire suppression parties. They can back up damage control if there's no actual fire."

"One second, Captain," he said when his console beeped again. "The security station in that section is checking in." Raising his hand to his earpiece, he said, "report." He nodded and glanced up at Gideon. "It's a fire, Cap..." His eyes darted back to his boards as he cut himself off mid word. "Wait, say again. Say again. Please repeat." He listened intently for a few moments, then turned with a look of concern. "Captain, the line was bad, and we lost the connection. But...Captain, I would swear he said they were taking fire, right before the line went dead."

Gideon froze. It can't be. That's not possible. He keyed his console to activate the ship wide comms. "Intruder alert. I repeat, intruder alert. We have hostiles on board. All crew; arm yourselves, lock down, and shelter in place. All security personnel to secure your areas of responsibility. Marines...break out the heavy ordinance and await further orders."

Both Garibaldi and Sinclair were off the ship. Whatever he was going to do, he was on his own. Turning back to Hong, he ordered, "Contact the Nova and Lexington, request they each send contingents of marines to back us up. Identify any areas of the ship which have been compromised by the Minbari and seal them off. Draw security personnel from non threatened parts of the ship if you have to. You have the bridge." Gideon stood up and strapped on his personal PPG.

"Captain, where are you going?"

"I'm heading down to link up with the Marines. We have some vermin to clear off my ship."
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Hiai'i Kollann looked down out of the ventilation grate. A quartet of human security personnel were firing their PPGs wildly around the corner behind which they hid, trying desperately to stop his Warriors. From his vantage point, Kollan could see those Warriors. They sat calmly under cover, watching the wild fusillade with amusement as it flew past them. Kollan snorted silently to himself. The humans were both without honor and without skill. His Warriors wouldn't be in much more danger of being hit if they stood up and bowed to the humans. Still, the faster they moved, the more likely their mission was to succeed. Kollan had no intention of failing, not least because it would assure his death and those of his Warriors. He had lead four files of troops onto this vessel, and so far his casualties had been ridiculously light. He was starting to see the beginnings of real resistance though. Best to keep moving before they became bogged down and possibly encircled.

Smashing out the grate, he kicked off, shooting down directly into the midst of the humans, his Den'bok extending at precisely the right time. Both ends slammed into a human head, rendering both men unconscious and sending them flying in opposite directions. Many Minbari were uncomfortable in zero gravity conditions, but he was very well trained. He rolled just before slamming into the floor, planting both his feet upon it and kicking off again, surging upward with thighs and back and arms, bringing the Den'bok up under the chin of the next human. His head slammed backwards with such violence, Kollann heard the snap of neck vertebrae cracking. Continuing the motion fluidly, he raised both feet and fired them into the chest of the final human, sending him tumbling into the corridor, where the far more precise fire of his Warriors' Sha'nar fusion rifles cut the man to pieces. From breaching the grate to the final kick, the whole action was over in less than two seconds. These humans were ridiculously fragile, in addition to all of their other shortcomings.

Moving efficiently to dispatch the two unconscious humans, he called out to the First File leader. "Gor, advance with your warriors. Secure the next intersection, and break anything which looks...breakable." The Warriors charged ahead to the next intersection... where three of them were blown backwards in a welter of gore and a flurry of PPG bursts, explosives, and even old fashioned kinetic projectiles. The advance stalled. Kollan looked around for the Gor, intending to chastise the Warrior for allowing his file to fall into chaos. But then he saw the Minbari's head floating past. Cursing, he took charge of the file himself, tossing a grav-grenade around the corner. It was those damned Marines. His warriors had tangled with them twice so far, and taken casualties each time. The Hiai'i was quite convinced they weren't human...or, at least, they were some bizarre subspecies spin off. Normal humans simply weren't capable of doing what those Marines could do. Oh well. We shall eradicate them all in the end. We are Minbari, and not even the Marine subspecies can stand before us. He heard the grenade detonate, and he lead the Warriors into the attack.
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"Sir, may I suggest you grab a heavier weapon?" the Marine Corporal asked respectfully.

"Thanks, but I'm good with my sidearm." Gideon had made his way to the nearest of three armories maintained by the Marines on his vessel. He had found a single fire team guarding the location, but the Minbari incursion was still a ways off. No doubt the Marines intended to stop their advance before they got this far. A good idea. Moments after Gideon arrived another squad of Marines had charged in and begun arming and equipping themselves. He intended to link up with and assist them, and use them as a personal guard if necessary, but he had no intention of attempting to command them. He knew his limits, and he was no infantry commander.

"Captain, that little PPG won't do much more than tickle a Minbari. If that's all you're going to carry in, best if you keep it holstered."

"Alright, Corporal, I'll take your advice." Gideon walked back through the racks of weapons. The many empty slots attested to the number of Marines who had arrived earlier and already left to enter the fray. No doubt the Corporal was expecting him to grab a standard issue Auricon EF-749/AC heavy PPG rifle. Every Marine was a rifleman, that's just the way they thought. Matt made a different selection.

The Corporal blanched when he saw what Gideon was carrying. "Are you sure about that, Captain? Have you ever used one of those before?"

Gideon glanced down at the EF-36V BilPro shotgun, manufactured by Westlake Armaments, cradled in his arms. "I used one in Basic Cadet Training. I'm no Marine, but I got pretty comfortable with it."

"Alright, Captain," the Marine said with barely concealed reluctance. "The squad is ready to move out. Just make sure you know where you're pointing that thing."

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Hiai'i Kollann sped down another corridor, past the crumpled bodies of the Marines who had been guarding it. Kollan saw one of those bodies twitch, and he swiftly drew his dagger and slit its throat. Red human blood bubbled out, forming large globules that went spinning off into the already cluttered gravityless environment. Just another part of the battlefield.

Behind him, his Warriors fanned out to either side of the corridor. The heavy metal doors parted reluctantly before the power of their fusion rifles. The occupants hiding like raalon inside the rooms beyond were far easier to break. He barely noticed their screams and sporadic return fire. Instead, he was focused on the intersection ahead, where his Warriors had stalled. A moderately sized contingent of Marines was trying to make a stand, and laying down some heavy fire. More of his Warriors had fallen.

He primed another grav-grenade...they were starting to run low...and hurled it. It bounced precisely off of the bulkhead, crossed the hallway, bounced off of another bulkhead, and detonated right in the midst of the densest concentration of Marines. "Attack!" he shouted, charging forward again."
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Gideon followed the Marine squad around a corner and into a scene from hell. A Minbari gravitic grenade had gone off amongst a group of Marines, and the wild gravity fluctuations it generated were tossing men about like ragdolls. They slammed from floor to ceiling and back again, their gear, weapons, and even limbs being jerked this way and that, then slammed back into them with bone shattering force. AS the Marines bled from gashes, penetrations, protruding bones, or even impalements, their blood too was sent flying this way and that. The effect seemed to go on for an eternity.

The Minbari didn't wait for it to end. They charged out to overrun the remainder of the human defensive position. They hadn't seen Gideon's squad, and they charged into the open, expecting speed and overwhelming firepower to keep them safe from any attack. The Marines around him fired their Auricons into the Minbari flank. Then Gideon opened up.

The BilPro Shotgun was a bit of a misnomer. It was indeed an evolution of shotgun technology, but the jump had been revolutionary rather than incremental. Over a century ago military shotguns, just like all military slug throwers, had switched from cartridged gunpowder to Binary Liquid Propellent. Two normally inert chemicals, stored in separate tanks, were combined in the weapon's chamber, forming a highly explosive compound which was then ignited, propelling the projectile forward. This had numerous advantages. It allowed for the power and range of the shot to be adjusted. It prevented bullets from "cooking off" as was possible with the earlier cartridges. It was considerably more powerful than gunpowder. Most importantly, though, was the fact that it allowed for the elimination of the cartridge, and was far lighter and more space efficient than the cartridge, powder, primer combination. This allowed the weapons to substantially increase the ammunition carried, five to ten fold.

However, as the technology had advanced, the chemicals had become more and more powerful. BilPro cannon were installed on some of Earth Force's first combat spacecraft, driving this trend. Extremely high power and miniscule propellent volumes were causing substantial issues when combined with the old fashioned technology of shot or pellets. These problems could and would eventually be solved, but not before one frustrated engineer said Frag it! and did away with the projectiles altogether. Instead, his shotgun fired...more propellant.

The current EF-36V BilPro shotgun mixed tiny amounts of its two chemical propellants to fire much larger amounts of those chemicals separately but simultaneously. The weapon literally coated it's target in explosive chemicals, which mixed upon impact and detonated a millisecond later. The weapon had very limited range, and was all but useless against vehicles or buildings with any significant amount of armor. But against unarmored or lightly armored objects or personnel, it was absolutely devastating.

Five Minbari were blown to bloody meat by Gideon's first salvo. The rest fell into chaos, ceasing their advance as they dove for cover. Their return fire was sporadic, but still more than deadly. Those damned laser rifles of theirs were ridiculously powerful. Gideon found cover behind a half melted hatch, and commed for backup. He continued to fire upon the Minbari positions, hoping to keep them suppressed until more forces could arrive.
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Hiai'i Kollann forced down his rage. Things had taken a turn for the worse, but he could still salvage this mission. One of his files had been cut off while assaulting the bridge. They had been almost entirely eliminated, but as far as he knew they had been successful in driving off the bridge crew, which meant that this ship was no longer truly under human control. His other three files had taken significant casualties from the ship's Marine contingent, but they had been successfully slaughtering their way across the ship, and even that resistance was now starting to falter. One of those three files was currently pinned down and taking heavy fire. He was leading his two mobile files through the maze of corridors, attempting to flank the Marine squads which had his third file pinned.

He rounded another corner, and found the Marine squad less than a dozen steps ahead of him, at the edge of a large open area. He dropped his fusion rifle, letting it swing from the strap over his shoulder, and extended his Den'bok. With a joyous battle cry, he leapt to the attack.

The Marines had noticed him and spun their weapons towards him. The first two were cut down by laser fire coming from behind him. And then they were amongst the humans. He snapped two human neck with rapid sweeps of his pike. Looking forward, beyond the humans, he realized he was too late. The last member of his third file lay dying before him. With a cry of rage, he spun back to the humans, to find one turning on him, trying to aim a very large gun at his Warriors. It took him only a moment to recognize the uniform. It was the Captain of this vessel. Killing him would bring at least some honor. With a mix of anger and joy, he knocked the large weapon from the human's hands. "Prepare to die, human. You face a Den'bok master."
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Well, shit, Gideon thought, I'm fragged. He grabbed desperately for his holstered PPG, scrambling backwards in the hope of putting some distance between himself and the Minbari. He wasn't fast enough. The Minbari charged forward, swinging his staff in a hideously fast and precise strike that would no doubt cave in Gideon's skull. In zero-G, ducking would only pull his feet off of the floor, so he jumped instead, surging upwards with everything he had. The staff connected with his left arm, just above the elbow, and he heard the bone snap as he was tossed to the right. Pain lanced up his arm, through his neck, and tunnelled his vision with blinding pain. He didn't allow any of that to slow him down.

Continuing his draw, he fired from the hip, placing three PPG pulses into the Minbari's chest. He then smacked into the far wall, knocking the PPG from his hand. The Warrior howled and tumbled backwards. I guess it did more than just tickle, he thought. But then, with growing dismay, he saw the Minbari pick himself up. Still gripping his staff, he stared directly at Gideon.

"A valiant attempt human, but in vain. Now you die."

Once again the tip of the Den'bok came whistling at Gideon's head...and was stopped dead on the blade of a sword...a Mameluke sword. Though it was still an official and acceptable part of a Marine's dress uniform, Gideon could count on one hand the number of Marines he had ever seen actually wearing one. Well, I suppose now I'll have to use both. He had certainly never expected to see one used in combat. The wielder of that sword was even more unusual than the sword itself. Bearing the insignia of a Marine Master Gunnery Sergeant, the man appeared to Gideon to be of Hawaiian descent, though Gideon had a hard time distinguishing between the peoples of the various Pacific islands. The Gunny carried the sword in his right hand, and an Auricon heavy PPG rifle in his left. Both looked like toys in his massive hands. Gideon assumed he had to be at least two and a quarter meters tall, and he was two hundred kilograms if he was a gram.

Even the Minbari looked surprised, though he hesitated not a moment. He instantly switched his attacks to the Marine. The Minbari was blindingly fast. The Gunny was trying to attack with both sword and rifle, and the Minbari was pushing him back. Every time the Auricon was nearly aligned for a shot, the Minbari, clearly an officer of some sort, knocked it away and went on the attack. When the Gunny backpedaled, trying to open up some space, the Minbari surged ahead, keeping the fight to close quarters. He circled the Gunny, parrying every sword strike, knocking away the Auricon time and time again, and getting in the occasional strike to the Gunny's massive frame.

Most of a platoon of Marines had followed the Master Gunnery Sergeant into the fight, and they now spread out and took cover within the large open area, clearly a maintenance and support space. A massive firefight erupted with the remaining Minbari troops, who had fully regained their organization and unit cohesion. The Gunny and Minbari officer stood in the midst of it all, fighting viciously in an anachronistic melee. No fire was directed their way, as neither side wanted to hit their own leader. Gideon certainly appreciated the lack of fire, using the shadow of their fight to retrieve his BilPro shotgun and dive for more permanent cover. He nearly screamed as he bounced off of his broken arm, but gained control of his momentum and pulled himself behind the cover of a large column. Firing the weapon with only one hand was going to be challenging, but he was certainly going to do his best.

Slowly the Gunny was losing his fight. Despite having two weapons...one actually; the Auricon appeared to have been knocked out of his grip at some point...he was steadily being pushed backwards. He was clearly very skilled, and used his superior reach, mass, and leverage to good effect. But, despite his mass of muscles, the Minbari was still clearly the stronger of the two, and was pushing the Gunny back into a corner of the room, leaving him no escape.

When he was just a few meters from the corner, the Marine leaped backwards into the corner without warning, planting a booted foot against each of the walls where they met, and launched himself at full speed towards the closing Minbari officer. Unfazed, the Minbari planted himself and swung a mighty blow at the Marine's head. The Gunny intercepted the pike with his hand, swinging himself over the top of it in a shockingly fast zero-G tumble, spinning towards the Minbari who tried to dive backwards. Halfway through the Marine's tumble, his blade seemed to just barely flicker outwards...and removed the Minbari's head neatly from his shoulders, globules of blood spraying out to float gracefully through the air. The Marine finished his tumble, planting his feet on the floor and springing for the cover of a nearby beam. He looked backwards towards the headless corpse and shouted, "There can be only one, bitch!"

Gideon had absolutely no idea what that meant, and had no time to wonder. Seeing their leader fall, the Minbari howled in dismay and left their own positions. Honor compelled them to seek vengeance. As one they charged forward to attack. They would find vengeance or death, nothing else would suffice. Gideon swung up his shotgun, more than happy to provide them with as much of option B as they could want.
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Commander Jeffrey Sinclair walked through the halls of the Midway, surveying the devastation. Gideon walked with him, silently absorbed in his own dark thoughts. A massive Marine, a Master Gunnery Sergeant, followed along, slightly behind and to the right of the Lieutenant Commander. He seemed to have adopted the young officer for the time being. Jeff assumed that the Marine and the Lord knew why. He himself found Marines to be nearly as mystifying as women.

They stopped at the bridge. Nearly half the bridge crew, including First Officer Lieutenant Hong Se Chenshan, had been killed trying to defend their positions. Gideon let out a nearly silent half sob.

"It's not your fault, Mat."

"Of course it is. It's my ship. My ship, my responsibility."

"You couldn't have known this would happen. You couldn't have prevented it."

"Couldn't I? A telepath might have noticed the Minbari before they made it on board, but we don't have any, because I didn't push. We wanted to prioritize getting them on the Starfuries and the big guns on the Nova and Lexington first. Interceptors were deemed secondary. And despite the fact that the Nova has entire teams of telepaths for every single gun mount and the ship overall, that every single flight of Starfuries now has at least one teep, I sat back and allowed my ship to go without a single one assigned to our defense."

"That's not on you, Mat. It's on Sheridan and me, or otherwise it's on all of us Captains collectively."

"And then I gave the order to shelter in place. Which was just perfect, because these bulkheads didn't even slow the Minbari down. So instead of my crew falling back to safe parts of the ship, they sat there in their little coffins, waiting for the Minbari to come and put them down a few at a time, barely armed and completely unsupported. I lost over a quarter of my crew, and that is entirely on me."

"Don't do this to yourself, Mat. Shelter in place is straight out of the book for this type of situation."

"The book wasn't written for a Minbari attack! And I should have known better! And here," he said, gesturing around at the carnage on the bridge. "I left a damned Lieutenant in charge, practically a baby..."

"He was your First Officer, and the exact same age you are..."

Gideon didn't seem to hear him, not even noticing the interruption. "...and I left him...I left them...alone, while I went gallivanting around the ship, pretending to be a Marine. I left them to die!"

"You tried to prevent exactly that. To make sure the Minbari never made it here. Someone had to, and you can't be everywhere at once."

"And then..."

"THAT'S ENOUGH!," Sinclair snapped, finally losing his patience. "Lieutenant Commander Gideon, you will pull your shit together, right damned now." Gideon looked at him in shock, but Jeff wasn't done. "This fleet desperately needs to get moving again, and your ship and your crew need you, Captain. The Minbari spread damage far and wide. It's mostly easily repairable, but there's an awful lot of work to do, and your people need direction. And the damage to your crew will be much harder to fix. I'm not even talking about empty seats, which will be challenging enough. Your people are traumatized, and need someone to help lead them through to the other side. That falls on you, so you just don't have the time to indulge in your own weakness. Stuff it down, or follow regs and see a priest or a head shrinker, or just find yourself a girl and get laid. I don't really give a damn, but you will man up and captain, Captain. You got me?"

"Yes, Sir," Gideon said, a little iron returning to his spine.

"Good. You're not alone, Mat. There are people here, and throughout the fleet, to help you. But you need to take point. Now get it done."

The kid actually pulled himself to attention and offered a salute. Jeff returned it solemnly, then watched as he dashed off to pull his bleeding ship together.

"That was well done." Jeff looked over at the big Marine, somewhat surprised that he was still there, and that he had spoken. He had been silently following Gideon for hours. "I was worried that I'd have to do it myself. Cross service dress downs are always so awkward. Especially when it's a senior enlisted man dressing down an officer...no matter how young."

"I appreciate your keeping an eye on things, Master Gunnery Sergeant. And especially pulling Mat's fat out of the fire. He's a hell of an officer. One of the best I've ever met. He just happens to also be a hell of a lot greener than even the rest of us."

"And you're all pretty damned green," the Marine chuckled. "At least for your current positions."

"Don't I know it."

"How bad is it?" he asked seriously, meeting Jeff's gaze directly.

"It's a setback. A pretty bad one. But we've had worse. We'll survive it."

"I guess that's all we can ask for, at this point."

"Let's hope it's enough."