From: Jonathan Souza Subject: Breaking the Consensus-Episode 21 Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1998 00:15:18 -0800 This story is a Gundam/Babylon 5/Macross Plus/Macross 7/ Tenchi Muyo/Sol Bianca/Whatever The Hell I Can Pack Into This Thing crossover. In short, this is going to be a wild, confusing ride that is going to hopefully be a LOT of fun. This fanfic is dedicated to Dave Gao, Felicia LeCou, everyone on the Babylon 5 Creative, Tenchi Muyo, and Gundam mailing lists, and all of my fans (especially the ones who like my stories and DON'T write to tell me! You know who you are! Fess up and tell me what you think!). For the curious, the soundtrack of "Tench Muyo In Love", which was done by Christopher Franke(who also does sound for Babylon 5), is something I put at my "recommend to buy" part of the list. It's available in the States at regular CD prices-ask your local shop. Got to have the legalistic- All characters/places/persons not belonging to the writer are the sole properties of their owners and will be turned over to the owners at the request of their authorized agents. All other characters/places/persons are the sole property of Jonathan Souza, Copyrighted @1998. This copyright extends to all electronic versions of the story. As always, comments, complaints, and critiques are welcome, encouraged, and advocated. Even if it's just to say "good work, Jon," I'd like to hear it. Even if it's to complain about my language and syntax, go right on ahead. I need the abuse. From Tokyo-3, Jon Souza souzamail@earthlink.net DEDICATION TO BABYLON 5(February 22, 1993-November 25, 1998) We have traveled the sea of dreams and come to where we began Our travels have shown the light in darkness and the darkness in the light of all things The worst of enemies became the greatest of loves and our best hopes became the darkest dreams To wherever we went, there you are and to wherever you go, there we are Our final place, to claim that which we lost and to earn what we had wanted to see so much To those whom had fallen along the way and to those whom had been lifted to the stars We come to where we began, to where only one home was and only one home that we could truly call Babylon 5, an island in the middle of the dark we are honored to call you home Breaking the Consensus By Jon Souza Episode 21-Long Call For The Descending Night "I knew what he was thinking. Possibly better than what he knew himself. He knew what the rules of the game were, and he knew that perhaps he broke the cardinal one-'Thou shall not care for those whom fight for you' "But, if he didn't care, that would have made him worse than those around him who were his enemies. And that was why so many people loved him. "Including me." -From the Diary of Lyta Alexander, January 11, 2261 "It was the last year of the old era, It was the start of a new era, A time of madness and darkness, and a time of reason and of light. It was the last days of the Second Age, And it was the beginning of a new age, The Third Age of Mankind. This is the story of that time, and the place that it all happened. The time is 2262, and the place is Babylon 5" -Alternate Fourth Season Opening, Spoken by Jonathan Souza It was the first day of a new year. Like all tragedies, it had its start in the noblest of intentions. This intention was simple-John Sheridan wanted to stop this whole mess of a war. His result? His loss to the Army of Light. Garibaldi's vanishing. Ivanova nearly living in a bottle of vodka. Delenn starting a ritual cycle of fasting and meditation that Dr. Franklin was already worried about. The Noble Host of the Jyrui were already talking about pulling their ships out of the Army of Light, prevented only by the sheer willpower of the Princess-Regent Aeka. And I had to prevent the bleeding away of my forces as the Shadows seemed to be dead and quiet. To answer the question you haven't asked, I was drinking at least two nights out of three to get to sleep. Even with a buzz box. June had red eyes whenever I saw her, no matter how good a front she put up. Felicia was scared. I had never seen her scared-and never wanted to again. Orgun was muttering something under his cybernetic breath, and that worried me. I was looking at a breakdown of everything that kept the fragile Army of Light together. And I didn't know what to do. *-----------* "I'm afraid." For anyone but her to say it, it would have been an easy expression to hear. Not Ryouko. Not the Princess-Regent, First Wife-Fiancee of the Jyruian royal family. Not a woman whom had earned the right to be called "The Ravager of Jyrui." And this fear was not for herself. Not at all. "I'm leaving," she said. Not even warning. Just "I'm leaving." Which caused Aeka to ask the next question. "Where are you going?" "To Bablyon 5." Ryouko said, already letting herself slip into the role of good friend. "I'm going to see Jon. He needs me." "Then," Aeka said, standing up, "I'm going with you." "Hardly," Ryouko said, gently pushing Aeka back into her seat. "You help him by working here. By keeping Jyrui in the war. I'll do my duty. You know I will." Oddly, Aeka agreed. When they managed to "persuade"(i.e. threaten) Tenchi into marrage, the two got along wonderfully. Even Washuu-of-the-infinite-sex-toys hadn't tried to challenge them. Perhaps all they needed was to get married..... "Make sure you take good care of him," Aeka replied. "A double dose-give him some for me, eh?" "Of course," Ryouko replied, as she left. Twenty minutes later, Ryo-ou-ki-chan was leaving Jyrui. *----------* "Report," I said. I knew what was on it, but I had to hear it to believe it. "We've had two outright mutinies-mostly of Drazi and Gaim. By some damn measure of luck, the stories of 'training accidents' was bought," Nakalan said. She looked like she needed a year off-she had bags under the bags of her eyes. "Contrast that with the Narn-we've nearly had a few mutinies there of crews wanting to take their ships and go to Z'ha'dun and finish this war. 'Keep em'firing' seems to be the motto of the Narn-they want to end the war with the Shadows dead, and our forces occupying their worlds." "Damn," I shook my head. To the League, the war was over-not a single Shadow ship had been seen in a week. Forward bases had been abandoned. The Shadows were gone-thrown into retreat. All I knew was the Shadows were waiting for *something*. If they struck now, we might not be able to stop them. "I want you to work on an intensified propaganda campaign. Not anything too overt, just tighten up on those who are wavering. Cut multi-day drills down by a third, but keep the daily drills up." "Yes, Sir," Nakalan replied. She snapped closed her notebooks, and started putting them back in her bag. "As well, Sir, Commander Ivanova wants to talk to you about a new sortie profile for the fighters on Babylon 5. She feels that they were too slow in the last engagement." I would have commented, but I had run out of profanities. "Set up a test sim on Melchor and Caspar, and have Balthazar referee. I'll bring her the results," I groaned, and found my cup of cocoa was empty. "Damn, it's like they're trying to drive us nuts." "If they are, Sir, they're succeeding," Nakalan shrugged. "We're all doing our best, Sir. Don't worry about it, worry about what a CO should worry about." "Point taken." I was already sorting out data crystals, planning out how as I was going to deal with this mess. Someone was shaking my shoulder. "Wake up, silly boy," someone said. "Time for you to get up and show me a good time." I don't remember what I mumbled, but it had something to do with my shaker's genealogy and tautology. As my brain went from slow idle to operating speed, I looked to see Ryouko standing over the table. "Ah, finally, you're awake." "What time is it?" I asked. "Two am, local time," Ryouko replied, dusting me off. "You fell asleep at your desk." She picked up a few reports, "Geez, you need better reading material. I'm surprised that this didn't put you into a coma." "Give it time," I muttered. I was already yawning, getting out of my chair. "Well, since I can't sleep at my desk, I'm going to bed." "May I join you?" She was trying her puppy-dog eyes..... and it was scary. "Sure," I said. "Just make sure not to steal all the covers like last time." "I did not steal all the covers," as she tried to fake innocence and merely beat it up in a dark alley somewhere, "You gave me all of them." "Nevermind.....," I muttered, and found my way to the door. This was going to be a long week. *-----------* "You want me to what?" Felicia asked. This wasn't what one would call an ordinary event. "I need you to grab Sharon Apple and take her to the *White Star II*. We're going to Z'ha'dun to recover Captain Sheridan," Ivanova shrugged. "Lyta's going to run interference for us. And we're going to do a quick-in/quick-out deal. Nothing fancy. I know how you hate fancy." "Fancy gets people killed," Felicia LeCou replied. "This is a too fancy plan by far. Jon has the fleets rebuilding. Six, no, eight weeks we can go to Z'ha'dun with enough of a military force to flatten the mountains and turn the planet to a baked carcass. We'll peel that planet layer by layer to find Captain Sheridan-to save him if he's alive or to exterminate the Shadows if they are foolish enough to kill him." "But you will come," Ivanova asked. You didn't order around Tekkalord Felicia LeCou, whom commanded an army of fanatical Narn Tekkaman at her disposal. "We need your help." "Did I say I wouldn't come?" Felicia replied. "No." "Then," and she found her kit bag, "We scramble as fast as we can." "Before something else goes wrong," Ivanova nodded in agreement. *----------* "You look awful," Ryouko told me, the moment I got into my quarters. "I feel worse," and fell onto my bed. Ryouko manhandled me enough to roll me onto my chest, and started to massage my back. "Sheridan's dead-I know it. Garibaldi's gone-for good. And I can't handle this all on my own." "What about Delenn," and here my spine crackled like ten tons of Rice Crispies, "she seems to know how to run the diplomatic end." "Delenn is good, but she's not a military leader. I'm not, either....I'm just a twenty-one year old kid with delusions of grandure. Hell, all I do is shuffle papers-everyone else does all the work. It's lonely at the top." "Agreed," and her hands were working gently on my neck, "but that's the nature of our jobs-you have to be relieved of worry, so that you don't worry yourself to death. You're the commanding officer of the third-largest military force in Known Space. You have at your disposal the League Militare, the League of Non-Aligned Worlds, the Terran Confederation, the Minbari, the Narn, the White Star Fleet, and the Jyrui. There are ten thousand Narn Tekkaman who would die in your name-and do so without hesitation. Keeping them alive-and your enemies dead-is your only worry. "Do you know how many people care for you? If you wanted it, Washuu would whip up a planetary negasphere for you to toss onto Z`ha`dun. Or two inert planets, or even a dimensional cannon. June would find the best way to fire that shot off-even if she had to ride it down to her death herself. Felicia would throw herself in front of a disruptor bolt to save you, and I know Tsunami loves you more than Sasami ever could. So, stop whining," and here my muscles released like steel cables, "and start thinking about how you're going to save all of them." "Thanks for the comforting thought," I murmured. I was nearly ready to fall asleep, and I was starting to puddle a little bit. "You need some rest, Jon," and the lights went out as my body was turned over onto my back. A warm body cuddled up to me and said, "And you'll sleep well, my friend." I was out a few minutes later. *----------* "Jump point in four, three, two, one....." Lennier counted with a precision of someone for whom the task to be performed was the simplest yet most dutiful one to ever be done. Needless to say, it was done with Minbari(or perhaps Lennierian) accuracy to six decimal places. As hyperspace faded into the realities of normal space, it was time for another crew member to do her job. Lyta Alexander shook her head, and relaxed slightly. "I'm just about ready....." "Good," Delenn replied. She looked around at her crew. All good people-and ready for anything. "Anything on scanners?" "Nothing, Ambassador," Lennier replied. "There is nothing here except us." "That's odd," Ivanova scratched her chin. "I mean, this is their homeworld! They should have something here." "Regardless, it is just enough of a risk being here. Lyta, are you ready," Delenn asked. "I am," and Lyta walked a few steps forward. She closed her eyes, and thought to the planet. She was hunting for one thought, one voice, one soul and......"There's something there..... something....wonderful." "Something that feels so good," Ivanova whispered. "Something that is right," Delenn sighed. Ivanova tapped a single command into her console, drawing the White Star closer to Z`ha`dun. All on the bridge were immobile, even Lennier was tapping a single control on his console in time, tapping it every ten seconds exactly. All except two. On the floor, Slade and Felicia were screaming. Their howl of pain continued, unheard by anyone else, until the sequence of transformation could be performed by them both. Tekkaman Gold moved, her hands sweeping the panels, trying to override. In desperation, she looked at her companion. "Slade, sever the main bridge datalinks. I'll get to Engineering and override." "Yes, ma'am," Slade replied. Quickly, the armored form of Tekkaman Blade pulled off a panel and took his blade to cut apart the control lines. Tekkaman Gold flew down the halls, making it to engineering, where she quickly tapped commands into the controls. "We're two minutes from jumpdrive. Keep those connections open," Tekkaman Gold said over the comm. "We have to get out of range of that Radam psi-broadcaster." "Ma'am, the system is evolving defenses," Tekkaman Blade replied. "I don't know how much longer I can hold." "Just one more minute," Tekkaman Gold muttered, then..... The snap of a jump point, as the universe exchanged one occupant for another. *--------* It was all about schedules. A week to Z`ha`dum. A week back. And enough time for me to warm up my hand. Because, if Delenn, Lyta, and Ivanova came back with anything less than the Archangel Michael and a whole divine chorus, I was going to take each of them over my knee and spank them raw. And I knew that Ryouko would help me to do that. What was I going to wear? Half of my closet was uniforms -the black and silver of the Army of Light Space Navy, or the formal blue and gold of the Teikoku Kaigun Jyrui-the Imperial Jyruian Navy, or perhaps even the sword and stars of one of the Noble Host of the Jyrui. Instead, I stood at the portal of the hatch for their shuttle in the duty uniform of the League Militare. The uniform consisted of fitted black pants, that came over the thick soled, spit-shined combat boots. Under the black, long-sleeved jacket that was pressure sealed from my right shoulder to about half-way in the middle of my left side was a plain blouse of white silk. The collar of the blouse was high enough for a black tie to be tied close to my neck, and the collar and shoulder epaulets were four gold bars with silver perimeters. I settled the black beret on my head, and stood. Nominally, by the regs, except for the name tag on my left breast, organization and unit patch on my right arm, and rank tabs, there was no decoration. Only for foreign or special decorations can awards be worn with a duty uniform. Under my name tag were two, and only two, decorations. One of them was two crystal triangles, one clear and one a frosted white at opposite angles to each other, both the size of a quarter. The second was a grey bar with two vertical stripes, about as large as a as a man's first third of his pink finger. Both were foreign decorations. One was the Valen's Call, awarded only to the Minbari until that desperate day at Fudsha's Gap, where the fleet had beat the Shadows. The second the Golden Throne, given by a grateful Princess-Regent whom regarded my actions as having saved much of the Jyruian fleet at the same battle. Short of full dress, where two more Narn decorations were added and several Army of Light and League Militare decorations, this was an intimidating uniform. The holstered fusion pistol at my right side was also something to worry about. It was in a low gunslinger's rig and the holster was break-away. And, to my left hip, in the classical draw of the katana, was the Royal Key of the Jyrui. That alone was a "foreign" decoration, and that could easily be worn on my hip. So, as the shuttle docked, I was wearing the full uniform of the League Militare, and was waiting for Ivanova to enter. In short, I planned to give them one hell of a shock. It was better, in my opinion, then trying to bury them. The airlock door cycled, and I stood to attention. It took exactly eleven seconds for Ivanova to see me in the uniform, and then, she stiffened. "Sir," Ivanova said, still in shock. "Commander," I replied, formally. "May I ask what you were doing?" "I was performing a scouting expedition, Sir," Ivanova replied, just as Delenn came through. She looked at me, and said, "Vice Admiral Souza." "Ambassador Delenn," I nodded. "Did you persuade Commander Ivanova here to go to Z`ha`dun?" "That I did," Delenn replied. "I did order her take me there." "Then," I sighed, "I have filed a formal reprimand with your government, and one in your record, Commander. Don't do this again, either of you. Commander, there's a staff briefing in one hour, thirty minutes. That gives you enough time to eat, shower, and put on a fresh uniform. I expect you there on-time." "Yes, sir," Ivanova said, looking a little confused. "May I ask what the briefing is about?" "The organization of Operation Lenningrad," I replied. "The assault of the Army of Light on Z`ha`dun. Ambassador, there is an open space at the table for you, if you want it." "Yes," Delenn replied, "I do think I want that." "Good, Commander. Dismissed," I said, turning and walking away. *--------* The next person to walk off the shuttle was Felicia. She came up to Ivanova, and said, "Can he still do it?" And Ivanova remembered a conversation that the two had, one where Ivanova gave her word. "Can he still storm Heaven?" Ivanova asked, rhetorically, "I think he'd harrow Hell first, then make it to the Godhead." One hour, thirty minutes, and ten seconds, Jon came in, in the same uniform, and stepped to the podium of the War Room. Freshly showered, shaved, and cleaned up, he walked into the room, handed a series of crystals to the technician, and stepped to the podium. "Ladies and Gentlemen, sit down. I don't have to tell you, this is a Alpha-2 security briefing. If any word leaks, we are authorized to enforce the death penalty. Anyone have a problem with this, you have thirty seconds to leave." Thirty seconds passed, and nobody left. "Very well, then. This is a preliminary briefing on Operation Lenningrad. In about six weeks, the Army of Light Space Navy will launch an assault on the Shadows homeworld of Z`ha`dun. This assault is divided into three phases- Phase Kursk, Phase Berlin, and Phase Normandy. "Phase Kursk is the entry into system. With recent reconnaissance of Z`ha`dun system, we know that the Shadows have invested in a Radam defense system. This is a series of psi transmitters designed to stimulate certain centers of a target's brain, causing the target to remain stationary. To counter this, the Science Council has developed a special targeting missile, built around the Fold Booster Pack. This missile, which they call the Strategic Bombardment Missile, Homing All The Way Killer, or SBMHAWK; is designed to carry three guided warheads into range for bombardment. Needless to say, the existence of this weapon alone is enough for Alpha-2 clearance. "Initial targeting of the SBMHAWK weapons are for the psi-transmitters, with secondary programming for Shadow warships. We expect the surprise of this weapon, combined with the numbers to be used, to overwhelm any deep-space defenses the Shadows may have set up." A hand went up, from one of the Narn, "How many of these will be in the initial bombardment?" "We estimate that, when Phase Kursk starts, we will have nearly one million pods for the bombardment." A low gasp came from the room. "We do have to give special thanks to the Minbari Merchant Caste, whom literally moved Heaven and Earth to move all of the pods into position and produce them all. The numbers were needed for saturation bombardment. After the bombardment, we'll move in quickly with fold-capable fighters, and the Fourth Fleet of the League Militare. They will establish a series of jump beacons for the fleet to enter. "Once the main portion of the fleet enters, Phase Berlin starts. We plan to trap them between two mobile fleet elements- Minbari Seventh and Eighth Squadron, and League Militare Third Fleet. Trapped between the planet and the fleets, we hope to crush the Shadow forces. Our goal is to drive them off, and force them to run. By this end, we'll extend a siege line, with the planet forming the cork of our operation. "The goal of the fleet is to secure local space for the final phase of the operation-Phase Normandy. Once we control the high orbitals, the fleet will use point strikes of kinetic and primary beam weapons on the six invasion zones-Utah, Omaha, Juno, Gold, Sword, and Fortress. Now secured, our forces will launch a full assault on all zones. Once we secure the surface, Army Of Light forces will start to root out Shadow forces under surface. Every tunnel, every cavern, every single hole in the ground will be checked. Once we are assured of our domination of the planet, we will establish a garrison to secure the planet. "That, ladies and gentlemen, is the plan. I understand that to not relate this data to your respective governments yet ask for the forces is difficult. All things that are good are difficult," he sighed, taking a sip of water. "I do ask you, no, I insist that you make the effort. Because we're about to face down one of the most powerful enemy forces in history soon. I'd prefer to do it according to our own timetable-not his." "Are there any questions?" In the back, as a hollered series of questions started, Washuu looked at Jon, confidently answering every question. "I will save him," she whispered, so silently that no-one else heard. "I'll save him, if only for myself. But he isn't mine to save, is he?" [END EPISODE 21]