From jon.souza@creature.comMon Aug 14 20:02:49 1995 Date: Wed, 9 Aug 1995 23:31:08 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@best.com To: b5-creative@best.com Subject: Babylon 5-Dragon of the Tears-Episode 1 For fans of my CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE PAST stories, expect the next one sometime late this month, it's making alot of progress. This one's an entirely new work, and it's not going to be like any B5 story I've done yet.... Don't Forget the Legalities- Babylon 5 is the product of PTEN/Warner Brothers, Copywrite @1995. Dragon Of The Tears is the product of Jon Souza, Copywrite @1995, all rights are owned by Jon Souza and will be transfered to PTEN/ Warner Brothers or their authorized agents upon request. All copywrites are to electronic forms of this story and any transfer to other mediums without the author's permission are illegal under International law. One Last note-words like _bold_ are bold type, worlds like *Italics* are italic type. And now-To The Future- Jon.Souza@Creature.Com Babylon 5-Dragon Of The Tears Episode 1-Awakening [Main Dock-Babylon 5] [Two days to Critical Point] There are no seasons in space. Had there, been, however, it could be called the early spring of 2259. The cold winter had broke, and a new spring was coming once again. It came in the form of a woman arriving at the Earth Alliance station Babylon 5. As she strode from the transport, she was greeted by a security officer. "Anything to declare, ma'am?" "No, I do not have anything to declare," the woman replied, in a haughty tone that was almost regal in bearing. Her Identcard showed her to be Michelle Ha Lonn, from China on Earth. She worked for a major industrial concern, Universal Terraform, as a export/import official. A slim, almost petite Asian female, she wore her black hair in a simple bowl cut. Her eyes were a dark, hard brown. She wore a simple black dress with long white sleeves, and wore not only her clothes, but herself with a hard, almost grim expression. Not that she was intimidating, but she looked like she was intimidat*ion*. *She looks like she'd tear me in half like a sheet of paper,* the guard thought to himself, *and enjoy doing it.* Hiding his feeling by looking down at his desk, in a concealed effort to examine the papers, he said, "You expect to be here for three days. Correct?" "Yes," Michelle replied, looking at the guard. As he looked up suddenly, she suddenly broke out into a smile. It was just enough for him to giggle under his breath, then looked back at her. "I hope to secure the contract in two days, but hey, business is a bitch. Oh well, that's what they pay me for." "Sounds about right. Have a good time here on Babylon 5, Miss Lonn," the guard replied. As Michelle walked away, the guard realized that, for just a minute, that the woman was stunningly attractive. The response, Michelle noted silently, was understandable. Unfortuntly, she wasn't here for pleasure. If she was, however, that guard might be fairly attractive enough. But she was here on business, severe business. But not the business she declared. Her business was a much more grim task. [Downbelow] "Ok," Michael Garibaldi said, looking at the two bodies under covers, "how bad was it this time?" Zack and a few other security guards were looking around as well. This was the fourth time this month people have been killed. "Five lurkers, this time. These two were lucky, we did find all the parts," Zack replied. "The other three are strewn all over the place. We still can't find their hearts, livers, and genitals." "So, what do we have here?" Garibaldi replied. "A serial killer?" "No correlation between race or sex. It's killed in at least three sections, maybe four. The only thing in common is that someone's taken their hearts, livers, and genitals. Or their equivlants. Maybe we've got someone who likes their meat fresh?" Zack replied, shrugging. "I want you to keep looking. The captain hates all of these dead bodies, and the Ambassadors don't like having to ship the bodies home. Let's get these down to the Medlab, maybe *this* time Franklin will be able to make sense of this one," Garibaldi muttered, as he started to examine everything for his later report. [Guest Quarters-Blue Section] Michelle Ha Lonn tossed her two suitcases onto the bed. Carefully, she closed the door and sealed it carefully. From inside of her two suitcases, she carefully removed two bags, one of silver and one of gold. From the sliver bag, she pulled out half a dozen sheets of paper. With careful motions and a low, deep chanting, placed each sheet of paper on each wall, the floor, and the ceiling. Satisfied that she was safe from dangerous spiritual intrusions and much more mundane, and easily shielded, technological spying, she removed a number of items from the gold bag. After laying out on the floor a ring of whitish gold runes, Michelle stripped off all of her clothes, tossing them in a single pile on the floor. Her body was perfect, tight and firm in all respects, perfectly hairless except for the top of her head and her eyes. Now naked, she took two bottles of paint, dipping her middle finger in each bottle. Over her body, all over every part in arcane patterns, of green and gold, she covered herself. With careful steps, she entered the ring. Bringing her hands together, as if to pray, she let her thumbs run up her breastbone, stopping at the point where curve of her cleavage stopped going in and started to go out. Her elbows up, her face pointed at her fingers, three red spheres, each the size of a large marble, one just below each wrist and one where her Adam's apple would be, started to glow with an internal red light of their own. At the same time, a slow hum started to come from the spheres. She stepped carefully into the ring of runes, starting a low set of chants. As the glow from the spheres got brighter and the hum grew louder, her chants started to grow louder and started to become recognizable words. Her chant started: "In the name of all things of light, of stature of man and Gods alike," As she spoke, the runes started to glow softly. A few started to rise off the floor. "I stand here to seek a opposite, to hunt for a soldier of darkness," All of the runes were now off the floor, starting a slow floating circle around her. They glowed with a soft white light that seemed to look like little stars. Carefully, she continued the rest of the ritual: "From the heavens to the sky, from the sky to the sea, from the sea to the land, from the land to the heavens, show me the path in the darkness carved by holy light-" As her eyes snapped open and arms snapped wide open, she *knew* where the soldier was. As well, she could see the runes, pointing to a wall, at an angle. For a brief second, she allowed the runes to float in the air, then let them descend softly. Now she knew where. Now to perform the other half, to hunt down and kill the soldier of darkness. For this, she would be ready in a hour. But first- First she went and took a long shower, almost trying to scrub off the layer of skin that felt like she was coated in slime and scum. It wasn't the first time she felt like this. It wasn't going to be the last. [Medlab] "I'm telling you, Garibaldi," Franklin replied to Garibaldi's question, stripping off the surgical garb he wore from the operation on two refugee Narn who were badly injured. One died, but he was able to save the other. "Each and every one of them was cut open by the most perfect blade I've ever seen. Absolutely minimal cell damage, and it wasn't a laser, that would have had thermal damage to the cut tissue. My opinion? They were all cut open with a monofilament weapon." "No way," Garibaldi replied, "I know there aren't any monofilament weapons on this station. Nobody wants to lose control of one and cut open the hull or something. Not even N'Grath," he was referring to the main "fixer" aboard the Station, sometimes called the "Teflon Bug" because Garibaldi couldn't get any of the charges to stick, "will deal in them. What else could do it?" "You want my theory?" Franklin asked. "That could help," Garibaldi noted. "A telekinetic, if he was able to focus it together well enough, could perform cuts like this. But we're talking a lot of real talent, and all the telekinetics I've heard about who might be able to do that are either insane or dead. TKs aren't exactly the most stable of psychics." Garibaldi hissed silently, "That's all we need, a psi killer. Can you confirm this?" Franklin shrugged. "Dunno. How do you find any signs of a psychic attack on a physical object? If I do, I'll try to get back to you." "Ok, then," It *wasn't* OK, but Garibaldi had to accept it, "I'll talk to you later." "No problem. Just try not to generate any more bodies, I'm busy enough with all the paperwork for all the dead people here," Franklin hollered at him as he left. It was going to be a long day. [Zocalo] [One Day to Critical Point] Michelle was sitting in the Zocalo, looking out at the people walking around. She wore a tight black suit that seemed to glisten like a star field in full glow. It was, as she liked to call it, "intelligent listening for beginners." As she watched, she heard conversational threads in a dozen different languages, on a variety of things. Unfortunly, there was no-one here she could talk to. Until she came around the corner, walking down the hall with her aide. "Ambassador Delean," Michelle waved, supernaturally calm. "Should I know you?" Delean asked, almost curious. It was a odd situation, to say the least, but Michelle motioned for Delean to sit down with her aide, Lennier. She gracefully accepted, and Michelle moved for the waiter to bring drinks. "Yes and no, really," Michelle replied, taking a sip of coffee, freshly grown from B5's fields and costing every credit's worth. "Yes, you should know what I'm about, but not who I am. I'm bearing the Tears of the Dragon. You're a *satai*, you should know of those things." Delean shuttered silently, but continued, "I am no longer *satai* Delean. But a Tear-bearer here? Have things gotten that desperate?" "Fortuntly, no," Michelle replied, finishing up her cup of coffee. "My *sensai* wanted me to tell you that I was here. She says you knew her long ago, her name is Watsuu. Remember her?" Delean replied, "Yes, I do. How is she?" "Moot question, and you know that. She's reached Oracle rank, and is still teaching, never wanted to ascend to the ranks of Superior. She's talking about a vacation and wanted to know if you wanted to see her." "Why, yes, I would love to see her again. I would enjoy seeing her. It's been a long time for both of us." "Then I shall inform her," Michelle pulled away from the table, "I'm sorry I have to go, but maybe when I've finished with my job here we can talk more. Good day, Delean." As she walked off, Lennier looked at Delean. Before he could ask anything, she looked at him and said, "Pray that see her kind only rarely, Lennier." "She bears the Tears of the Dragon. What makes that so dangerous? How can that be so fearful?" Lennier replied. "You know we have no name for the Shadows beyond what we call them ourselves," Delean replied. "We have no name for her kind beyond that. She is a shadow-hunter." "But, she is human," Lennier noted. "She was, once, long ago," Delean replied. She stood up, and started to walk away. [Ready Room] "How bad is it this time?," Captain John Sheridan, commander of Babylon 5, asked. "Five dead this time, and whomever is killing people is moving back in the station. Next time, he's not going much farther, he might be killing the fusion reactors. And we don't know whom or what," Garibaldi replied, "is doing this." "Wonderful," Sheridan replied, tossing his hands in the air, "the President wants to cut the budget and all of these murders make us look bad enough that he's got an excuse to cut the budget. Garibaldi, please tell me you have a clue on how to solve this." "Nothing, sir. But I've got some ideas, can't say anything yet, but I'm working on it." Sheridan looked right at him, "Get on it, then." That was the end of the conversation, and Garibaldi left to look for the killer. [Down Below] [Six hours to Critical Point] If there was a part of Downbelow that could be called "creepy", even more so than Downbelow proper, it was the area between the water processing systems and the living quarters. All the local inhabitants called it the Swamp because it was always damp. Water dripped from walls and the ceiling, occasionally pooling on the floor. Molds and fungi of a half-dozen different worlds grew very profoundly. Some of the molds were bioluminescent, generating just enough light to turn the hallway from pitchblack to dimly lit. From down a cross-connecting hallway, two voices were bouncing thought the halls. One was a very nervous male human lurker, sounding like he was half-way to bolting, "Look, I took you down here! Can I go now?" The reply was a sharp, hard female, who's voice seemed to be razor-sharp, "Not just yet. Where, exactly, is this section you think the killer lives in?" As the two rounded the corner, the lurker, rag-clad, pointed down the hall into the Swamp, "Down there! Look, I've got a wife and two kids, and I don't want to die!" The woman, wearing a tight bodystocking of black with red flashes like tiger-stripes, looked down the hall. With infinite calm, she replied. "I can handle it from here. And, as I promised," with a slight of her hand, a bag appeared in her hand, "I presume gold is suitable?" "Yes, yes!" the lurker almost screamed. "There's over three thousand credits of gold in there. Don't spend it all in one place," the woman replied. "Thank you, thank you!" the lurker screamed, and ran down the hall in a full run, almost in a panic. As the lurker ran, Michelle smiled, it was understandable his fear. Turning to face the hallway, she started to walk down into the wet dampness of the Swamp. Yet, despite the falling water from the ceiling and walls, not one drop fell on her. Her feet did not touch the water, not a splash was registered. With a steady cadence, she went deeper into the Swamp. Eventually, her travels ended at a sealed bulkhead. What she was hunting could go through this bulkhead like it was non- existent, but Michelle was much more limited. Silently, she raised her crossed arms across her neck, palms out, and the three spheres started to glow. In a sudden rush of light, the red glow became a sharp *crack* that blew out the bulkhead as if it were hit by a nuclear weapon. Stepping thought the hole, she looked around, almost as if sharing in a joke. "So, are you here, or do I have to chase you?" A slow, deep rumble came from the compartment. The grumble was that of darkness, pure and simple. A slow, dark brown shape unfolded, almost arachnoid in shape. It had four arms and four legs, all of them tipped in ripping, shredding claws like scimitars. It loomed, nearly twice as tall as a man, and it's four glowing crimson eyes seemed to focus on her like they were aiming for her heart. As the creature loomed, Michelle started to slide into a fighting stance, the three spheres glowing brightly. From her right hand, energy started to collect in glistening filaments. With a sudden, sharp blow, the energy became a long, red-glow blade almost like a katana in shape. She finished assuming a fighting stance, and said, "Creature of darkness, I have no quarrel with you. But when you harm the mortals under my care, you have forfeit your life on this mortal coil." She pointed the energy blade at the creature, "I am Michelle Ha Lonn, Adept of the Dragon." The creature rumbled again. The challenge was accepted, the battle began. [Captain's Quarters] The alarm on his monitor beeped constantly for at least ten minutes before Sheridan, literally, rolled out of bed. After landing in a jolting thud that seemingly knocked sleep out of his head, he rolled onto his feet, stood up and walked to the monitor, muttering under his breath, "I hope this is important, else someone's going to die...." The comline beeped for a Gold Channel clearance. Then it beeped for Ultraviolet, which made Sheridan reach for the code keys to activate the Ultraviolet channel. The screen cleared, then reappeared in the PsiCorps insignia. The screen blanked again to reveal Bester, the PsiCop, looking especially grim. "Captain Sheridan, a pleasure to see you again," he lied through his teeth. "Look, Bester, unless you like to converse on Ultraviolet channel for some reason, could you tell me why you're calling me at," he checked the wall clock, "about 2 am?" "There is a woman on your station. A Michelle Ha Lonn, which is not her real name, by the way. I want you to detain her, not arrest her, just don't let her to go. And don't do anything stupid, just hold her until I get there," Bester replied. "Why? What's this about?" Sheridan asked. "Unfortuntly, Captain, I can't tell you over these lines. I'm not too sure if even Ultraviolet is safe for this sort of sensitive information. All I can tell you is that she is involved in certain incidents of a classified information. I'll be arriving in eight hours," Bester continued, "and I expect your full *cooperation*. Bester out." Before Sheridan could even turn away from the monitor, the monitor beeped again, asking for Gold channel, Ultraviolet, then, oddly enough, the code used by the operatives under General Haig's command. The image flared, and the EarthForce insignia disappeared to show.... "General Haig?" Sheridan asked, curious. "Yes, it's me. I see that you've heard from our mutual friend," Haig didn't even have to refer to Bester, "that there's a problem with a Michelle Ha Lonn. I want you to find her and get her out of there as fast as you can. I don't know what Bester wants with her, but all I know is that it's a part of some operation called Sharon Apple. Keep her safe, and keep her out of Bester's hands. I'm sending someone there to help you, but he's not going to be there for at least a day. Keep Michelle out of Bester's hands. I don't like this, and I'm worried that this could be some move to get a alien technology weapon." "And if he tries to do something," Sheridan asked. Haig looked to the sides, and leaned into the screen, "Then arrange an accident for him. Something rather fatal, perhaps. This is an unlimited operation, I don't want Bester getting a hold of Michelle Ha Lonn. As far as I'm concerned, the umbrella extends over everything, do whatever it takes, no matter how nasty it is. Get her out of there as fast as possible, do you understand?" "Yes, sir," Sheridan replied, and on those words, the monitor beeped off. Tapping on the link, he got Ivonova, who was currently on watch in C&C, "Ivonova, respond." "Ivonova here," the tinny voice came from his link, "what's up, Captain?" "Call Garibaldi and Franklin. Looks like Bester's making another visit in eight hours," Sheridan replied. The link was silent for a second, then, "Shit." "That's what I said, and then some. I'll see you in the ready room in six hours. I'm going to try and get some more sleep," Sheridan replied, falling onto his bed, and he fell asleep the instant his head hit the pillow. A fitful sleep, but all of it wasn't worth it. [Downbelow] [Three hours to Critical Point] The battle raged through three different sets of bulkheads and floors, Michelle flying in a carefully planned withdrawal, leading the monster after her. The monster could regenerate, and it did, but it was all a question of timing. It all hinged on a single question: Could Michelle kill it before the monster was able to make a single purchase on her? The few near misses filled her with fear, the fields that she was using would have all the protective ability of a tinfoil suit against a bazooka. So far, only the monster's clumsy attacks were easily avoidable, but every hit she registered on the monster caused it to move faster. It was only her reflexes and the confined spaces they fought in were able to save her. But she could feel the rage from the beast like a visible presence, a pseudo-lifeform that seemingly was trying to drag her down. A climb, dive, roll, and three steps got her into the vulnerable underbelly, and the blade in her hands tuned into a lance of her energy that tore through the torso of the monster. As the beam entered, it fragmented into individually designed fragments, each one of them tearing into the creature's vulnerable organs. The effect was much like running a nuclear-powered blender inside the body. The monster twitched, took one hard step forward. Michelle almost relaxed, the beast was dead, all she had to do was wait for it's mind to register this fact. Unfortunly, Michelle underestimated the power of this creature. With a staggering backhand that any student would have dodged, it knocked her into a wall with a blow that would have pulped a human spine. She bounced off, her fields and enhanced body taking most of the energy and converting it laterally. Michelle reached behind her back, and tossed two handfuls of runes. They flew out in the room, landing on every available surface, right between the monster and Michelle. The creature, in rage and anger, didn't notice. Michelle brought her hands up in prayer, the balls glowed. The runes exploded, all of them aimed right at the monster. The force literally split the creature in half, the monster's anterior section collapsing like a deflated balloon. But the front half- The front half, still moving barely, came forward. In its single, final strike before the monster fell dead, a claw reached out and Michelle dodged it. But it was a feint for the second claw. It went through her field, her skin, organs, and bones as if they were tissue paper. She was cleaved from chest to sternum, so deep that her spine was clipped. In fact, except for the powers at her control and the fact that her will didn't want to die, she would have been killed instantly. But she was still dying. Her injuries were too severe. She was only an Adept, one Tear away from her Master qualification. Had she been a Master, she could have healed this damage. But she wasn't. She was dying and she had to invest the power in someone else. Michelle, dripping blood behind her, walked out of Downbelow and out to the more inhabited sections of the station. She had to move quickly, she couldn't let Tears become free possessions, uncontrolled by whomever got them. She staggered, limped, her hands holding her internal organs in, falling onto walls. But she couldn't be stopped. She could survive just long enough to find someone.... [C&C] [Thirty minutes to Critical Point] "If anything happens," Ivonova told her aide, "don't be afraid to hail me. It's just a routine meeting." That was a lie, of course. Anything involving the PsiCop Bester was nothing but routine. For just a second, Ivonova let her thoughts wander about Bester. Did his wife like him? He had children, if what he told Garibaldi was true, did they like him? Quickly, she re-entered the present and finished, "I'll just be talking with the Captain and Garibaldi about all these murders. Garibaldi's talking about a more careful search, and he wants to coordinate with us." "Right," her aide told her. He leaned closer to her ear, "Don't worry, Commander. You've got us all trained right, we'll get the job done. Now, stop worrying, and get to that meeting." Ivonova looked at him curiously, relaxed, and said, "Right." She walked out, feeling a little better. Down to the conference room, and to having to deal with Bester. *At least*, she thought to herself, *I don't have to worry about something else going wrong.* [Hallway between C&C and Ready Room] [Critical Point] Ivonova cursed her bad luck. One of the transit tubes were off-line, maintance taking time. So, she had to descent six flights of stairs, each of them trying to get to the right level for the Ready room. That took nearly twenty minutes, and by the time she made it to the right level, Ivonova started a steady jog. She was going to be late, no doubt about that, but dammed if she was going to be any later than she could help. Eventually, Ivonova got into a steady cadence, jogging down the hallway at a good pace. She really needed the exercise, if only just to stretch her legs. It wasn't that long of a jog, but it took a long time to get there. There were plenty of doors and bulkheads getting in her way, but she kept her pace. Maybe it was being absent-minded, or maybe it was the fact that she was looking up at the ceiling, when she ran into someone. "Oops," Ivonova started, but as she looked down, the woman she ran into was dying. A stunningly black-haired beauty, someone had cut her open, almost terrifyingly showing her internal organs. From down the hallway, she could almost see a trail of blood and small tissue fragments. Ivonova scrambled over to her feet, and ran over to the woman, cradling her body, tapping on her link frantically, trying to get through, "Ivonova to medical, I need a med-team to Blue 8, now!" The woman moved carefully, taking Ivonova's link off her hand. Crushing it in a shower of parts, she moved her lips close to Ivonova's ear. The woman whispered, "Go on. Go on, for there are worlds other than these." Finally saying that, the woman collapsed, finally dead. Before Ivonova could react, three red glows started at the woman's palms and Adam's Apple. As she watched, the glow became overwhelming and, without warning, tendrils of red lightning leaped out from the three glows, bouncing off each wall, floor, and roof that Ivonova could have seen. Unfortuntly, Ivonova couldn't have seen it, since the red lightning was hitting her as well, almost as if was targeting her. Throwing her away from the body, Ivonova screamed, and was stretched out, almost as if a part of a crusifiction, floating in the air. Energy leapt into her body at every joint, in shattering roars. However, Ivonova was able to scream even louder than the bolts, as each one of them tore into her in a horrifying crescendo. At the same time, the energy fused doors shut, blew out light fixtures, blasted out glass windows, broke water into component hydrogen and oxygen and set them ablaze, and melted the paint off walls. The more Ivonova screamed, the more the energy seemed to seek out a destination. No mortal body, in fact, nothing made by man, could have survived that destruction. And nothing would. [C&C] "What the hell?" Ivonova's aide replied. In a few seconds, his board zoomed on a section of the station, glowing from some kind of energy discharge. Then it went blank. It seemed as if something was discharging in Blue Section, something so powerful that the sensors in the station were being destroyed by it in a roughly spherical fashion. And it was spreading through Blue Section. "C&C to Garibaldi!", the aide yelled. "What?" Garibaldi replied. "Sir, something is going on in," he read off the bulkhead names, "and it's expanding like crazy. All my indicators are going off the scale, sir, whatever it is has gotten every sensor on this station reading it. I'm getting sensor burnouts all over Blue section." Garibaldi was shocked, "Are we losing air?" "Negative, sir," the aide replied, "All I've got is sensor burnout. If we were losing 'sphere, I'd know about it. And I've got full pressure on the mechanical sensors, but every electronic sensor has gone off line after registering a energy surge. And I'm losing sensors like crazy!" "Ok, then," Garibaldi replied, "I'll send a team down there right now. Keep in touch with me." There was a sudden rustling, and then a door hiss, "I'm on my way. Where did it start?" "Blue 8, Section 12, and...." he tapped, accidentally, a command on his board. It overlayed, on the map, a series of link locations and positions. There, in a red cross, was a single marker. It said *Ivonova, S. Link Disabled, No Longer On-Line.* "Sir! Ivonova was there! Her link went down about three seconds before this happened!" "I got you!" Garibaldi replied. "My team will be there in sixteen minutes!" [Hallway Between C&C and Ready Room] At some time during the hell Ivonova was stuck in, she could almost make out....voices. *She doesn't belong here*, one voice, a husky female contralto, said. *None of us do,* another said, *But she is here.* *But is she proper? Can she accept the responsablities of the Purpose?* a third voice, almost child-like, asked. *I chose her,* a fourth voice said, sharp and feminine, *She belongs here. Now, accept her.* In four voices that were one, they all yelled through her lips, "I ACCEPT!" Then, everything disappeared for Ivonova. "Sir!" the C&C aid replied. "The energy surge is gone! I don't have it on my monitors, but all the monitors in the affected sections are gone. I can't see anything, but I can tell you that the mechanical backups say you've got a breathable atmosphere. "That's great," Garibaldi replied, shrugging on a flak jacket. He met up with Zack and two other guards by the time he got down to the level. He feared the worse, that most of his station was destroyed and many people were dead and he failed, someone smuggled a very powerful bomb aboard. The first thing that confronted him was the smell of burnt metal, singed plastic, and a faint smell of scorched synthetics. But no burnt flesh, no screams of help. In fact, except for the increasing heat and the occasional shudder as thermal creepage occurred, it was absolutely normal. As the team rounded the corner he saw the first of the walls, scored as if hit by lightning. The floor was scorched and melted as if cut by a knife. The heat was almost intolerable, Garibaldi had to wipe his face often, the walls were hot, but not hot enough to generate a burn. The last turn saw...."Ivonova!" Susan Ivonova, Commander and Executive Officer of Babylon 5, was lying on the floor, clothes vaporized, hair singed, but otherwise fine. From her appearance, she appeared to be sleeping. Another body was there, female and seemingly being cradled by invisible hands. As Zack got near enough to examine the body, it....vanished. From the top of her head, it started to vanish like smoke into the air, dissipating quickly and suddenly. "What the hell?" Garibaldi asked, checking for a bottle on his person, and catching a sample of the smoke. "Garibaldi to Medlab," he tapped on his link. "What is it?" Franklin asked. "I need a Med Team to Blue 8, Section 12. Susan's down and I don't know why. As well, I just had someone disappear on me. How soon can you be down here." The sounds of movement on the link were answer enough. "I'm on my way now, make sure she's breathing...." "Hell, doc, she's asleep. And she slept through a nuclear blast without a problem." "Regardless, keep an eye on her. I'll be there in ten minutes. Out," Franklin cut off his link. Meanwhile, Garibaldi motioned to Zack, "Who lives here?" he asked. "Empty quarters, mostly. If we had two more squadrons, these would be their quarters. We rent them, mostly, to people from EarthAlliance. I don't think anyone's living here." "Ok, then. Zack, check to see if anyone has rented quarters here. If so, move them out, use the Security discressionary funds if necessary. I want a full forensic team here right now, and I want the air filters checked for this section. Check to see if anyone's declared missing anytime soon, and ask around the Zocalo. We're looking for information on a human female, black hair, brown eyes, apparently Asian," Garibaldi ordered. "As well, find out what the hell happened with the sensors here." "Right away, sir," Zack answered, "And if we can't find anything out about her?" "Then we'll have to punt," Garibaldi replied. "Get to it." As Zack ran off to start checking out the filters, Garibaldi took Ivonova's pulse. Other than slowly shifting to a more comfortable position, she was absolutely normal. "What the hell's going on," Garibaldi whispered to himself. [Ten minutes after Critical Point] After Susan was brought to MedLab, Franklin started to run tests on the sample of smoke from the blown-up section. "Hm....Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen, Potassium, various amino acids...." Franklin talked to himself as the scanner started to print up chemical components. "So, what do you got?" Garibaldi asked. "What you have here is about two ounces of a human being," Franklin replied, "If you eliminate any atomic links between molecules. And, before you ask, I can't get any DNA from the sample. Maybe from the air filters, but not from this." "Ok, doc, how do you disintegrate a human being?" "That," Franklin replied, "is what I was about to ask you." He walked over to Ivonova, whom he had a medical scanner running over, "She's fine. I can give her a mild stimulant to revive her, but other than the fact that's she's naked and her hair is singed, she's a paragam of health. I can check the bloodwork, but other than that, she's free to go." "Ok then," Garibaldi thought. He continued, "Call the captain. I'll start to investigate whomever you've got in the bottle." His link beeped, "Yea?" "Zack here. I was getting organized and one of the security guards said he's seen the woman. I ran a check, and her name is Michelle Ha Lonn from Earth. So far, I've been checking and nobody has seen her for at least a day, maybe two. I'm asking the lurkers in DownBelow, but...." "Good work, Zack," Garibaldi praised him. Getting all that information in a hour was good work, to say the least. "Keep it up. Have you sent people to her hotel room?" "Yes, sir," Zack replied. "Lou and Thomas are going there right now with a passkey. So far, it's a straight disappearance, right?" "Yea," Garibaldi replied. "Tell me when you find out anything else." "No problem, sir," Zack signed off. Garibaldi's link beeped again, "Garibaldi, this is Sheridan. What's happened?" "I'm not too sure, sir. There was a big explosion, and Susan got caught in it. It has to do something with a Michelle Ha Lonn and I've got my people investigating it...." "WHAT? How's Susan?" Sheridan almost screamed into his link. "She's fine. Not even a scratch," Garibaldi replied, "and the doc says...." "Wait a minute," Sheridan interrupted, "Did you say that the woman's name was Michelle Ha Lonn?" "Yes, why?" Garibaldi asked. There was silence on the link for a second. Then Sherdian said, "Mister Garibaldi, get up to the Ready room in half a hour." "Yes, sir," as the link beeped off, Garibaldi looked at Franklin, "Tell me if anything happens." "Absolutely," Franklin replied. "As soon as anything *does* happen....." [Dragonhold] The indication that a new Adept had assumed the post vacated by Michelle Ha Lonn was soon forthcoming. By the time Susan was taken to MedLab, a Oracle was selected to go and teach the new Adept. The selected Oracle was given what she would need, briefed, and given the blessings of the Order. So, the day after the death of Michelle Ha Lonn, as her fellow brothers and sisters mourned her spirit and honored her position, having died in battle, a Oracle flew through space to the system's Jumpgate. The Oracle traveled as fast as she could, heading for the new Adept. She had to be taught soon, for there was a race for her, a three-way race between a old enemy..... And a very new one. From jon.souza@creature.comFri Sep 15 20:28:30 1995 Date: Fri, 15 Sep 1995 05:24:43 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@best.com To: b5-creative@best.com Subject: Dragon of the Tear-Episode 2 (Revised) Four notes- Note #1-The events of this story take place, in theory, before the "Final Four" episodes of Babylon 5's second season. Note #2-Each of these stories are episodes. The start theme is the standard B5 theme, but the end theme is "After, in the dark" from the Macross Plus soundtrack(JVC-1004-2, you can get it here at regular CD prices, but you have to get a special order). Note #3-CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE PAST, my other B5 story, is going to be out the first of October. Be waiting for it! Note #4-Thanks for everyone who sent in comments. The first version of this story was written in a rush, and I got a wonderful chance to revise it. As always, any comments, compliments, complaints, flames, etc, etc, etc, can be sent to me at- Jon.Souza@Creature.Com Now for the disclaimers- "Dragon of the Tears" is a story based on the PTEN/Warner Brothers show "Babylon 5." All characters not the creation of the author are the property of PTEN/Warner Brothers, Copyright@ 1995 PTEN/Warner Brothers. All other properties are the sole property of Jonathan Souza, Copyright @1995. This copyright will be transferred upon request to the authorized representatives of JMS/PTEN/Warner Brothers. All copyrights extend to electronic forms of this story. And now, to the future- _Dragon of the Tears_ _By Jon Souza_ _Episode 2-Activation_ [Babylon 5] [Docking Bay 3] The ship started to settle on the docking clamps. Wearing the dark paint scheme of the Psi Cops, it loomed like a visible presence, almost supernatural. As the final pressurization and atmospheric sequence finished, the hatches both to the station and the ship opened. Psi Corps has a few ships, to deploy one meant that the situation was rather sensitive. Bester, the P12 PsiCop in charge of the investigation, had a train of three other PsiCops, the two men and one woman grim looking in their death-black uniforms, right behind him. The looks on their normally placid faces showed that they didn't like working with Bester. Sheridan walked in from the other side, trying without success to hide his evident dislike of the four. "Welcome back to Babylon 5, Bester," Sheridan greeted them, a fake smile plastered to his face. "Let us dispense with the pleasantries, shall we? I do not like you and I know you hate me. Have you found Michelle Ha Lonn?" "Not yet," Sheridan replied. And that was true, Sheridan had told Garibaldi not to tell him anything about his search for Michelle Ha Lonn until the absolutely last minute. That way, there was no possibility of Bester learning anything about it. "We've had some problems." "I see," Bester noted, and looked around, "Where is Mister Garibaldi and your charming," he said this, the sarcasm dripping from his lips," executive officer, Commander Ivanova?" "Garibaldi is looking for this woman, and Ivanova is busy with....special business," Sheridan commented carefully. As the five walked off, down the hallway to a transit tube, Sheridan asked Bester, "What is this all about? Is this Michelle an rogue telepath or something? Else, why are you and three other Psi-cops here?" As the five got into a transit tube, Bester turned to look at him. "Six months ago, we started to receive unusual reports from worlds along the Rim, all of them involved some kind of 'enhanced' human being. We learned that one of these enhanced humans was on the station, Michelle Ha Lonn. Earth Alliance wants to talk to her, learn what happened out on the Rim." Sheridan was silent for a minute, then said, "So, you want us to grab this Michelle and interrogate her?" "No," Bester replied, "you will 'grab', as you so quaintly put it, Miss Lonn and I will talk to her. Myself, with the help of my colleagues here. Now," as the transit tube came to a stop, "this is my floor. Good day, Captain Sheridan. I'll be talking to you soon." As the PsiCops left, Sheridan let himself relax, as his body finally felt the chill in the air. Sheridan had met a number of Psicops, had to, as a matter of fact, but Bester was one of the worse. It was like talking to some kind of robot, or worse, a monster. But Sheridan moved quickly and tapped his link, "Sherdian to Garibaldi. Send the following-Code 4." "Confirmed," the link beeped. Now, Garibaldi was warned. Now, if Garibaldi could hold him off long enough for this situation to become less confused.... [Babylon 5] [Between JumpGate 3 and Babylon 5] The ship was, supposedly, a light merchant ship. At least that was what she was in her first incarnation, and what her registry read to any and all ships who interrogated her IFF beacon. But appearances were deceiving, as in the case of this ship. Her hull could be switched from radar-reflecting to radar-absorbing with a singe command. The main drives had much more power than the 0.1 G that ships of it's class used. She carried an extensive cloaking suite in addition to stealth hardware. As well, concealed within her hull was a powerful active sensor array that was normally used on Minbari deep-space scouts, and her weapon suite of twenty gattling blasters, four massdrivers, and ten bays of twelve torpedoes were sufficient to defeat anything smaller than or equal to a light cruiser. And she had extensive automation, sufficient that one person could operate the ship, in theory. But it was hard and you didn't want to do it for an extended period of time. And this one person, a harried female human with night-black hair drawn into a severe bun covering her neck, strapped herself in. It was going to be hard to dock this ship without extensive help, and especially since she couldn't let anyone on board. The woman sighed, the expression on her pale white face relaxing for just a second from harried to frustrated. Turning carefully in her hands a single data-crystal, she looked at the upcoming station, and tapped her console as the signal from Traffic Control came in, "Merchant ship *Neue Ziel*, this is Babylon 5 Traffic Control. What is your vector, over?" The woman tapped the console again, activating her end of the comm link, and said, "Babylon 5 Traffic Control, this is the *Neue Ziel*. I want to speak to your superior officer, over." A pause for a second, then the woman at the terminal replied, somewhat confused, "*Neue Ziel*, I will relay your request, over." "No, damn it," the woman hissed, "I want to talk to him, now. This is urgent!" As the woman at traffic control was thinking what to do, the image flipped suddenly as the person in C&C, a grim man, appeared, "*Neue Ziel*, this is Babylon 5 Command and Control. What is so urgent, over?" "Babylon 5 Command and Control, if you will access your 'top secret' database and receive the following codes, these will explain everything you need to know," the woman replied, and put the datacrystal in the port. At C&C, the lieutenant who was standing in for Commander Ivanova watched as the code sequence came in. Then, his terminal suddenly flashed a single message, *SPECIAL OPERATION, OBEY ALL REASONABLE ORDERS, HIGH SECURITY*. Somewhat surprised, he hailed, "*Neue Ziel*, this is Babylon 5 Command and Control. I just received your code and...." "Do you understand what it means?" the woman asked. "Yes, but...." the lieutenant replied. "Don't ask anything. I need a high-security berth, and don't let anyone come on or off the ship without me. When I dock, attach only fuel and datalinks to my ship. Keep everyone else away, understand?" the woman interrupted. "Yes, ma'am. Wait in holding circuit two, as soon as we can shoe-horn you into the schedule, we'll do so. Command and Control out," the lieutenant replied, as the comm link disconnected, and was replaced by vector commands to enter holding circuit two. Punching up the commands in the navigation console, the woman sighed, then went to the back of the ship to take a shower and choose something to wear. It was going to be a long day. [Babylon 5] [Medlab] "Look, Susan, you're free to go," Franklin told the now- dressing Ivanova. She had one of her assistance in C&C grab a spare uniform from her quarters and had it brought down to her. "But, I want you to wait until I finish up the blood work. I have no idea what hit you, I don't know if there are lingering effects, and I'm worried that you might do more damage to yourself if you leave now." "Doctor," Ivanova said in her best frustrated voice, "look, I've got sixteen ships out there that need to be docked, Bester's on the warpath, and all of the sensors in the station blew out near that explosion. I've got to get back to work, else everything is going to fall apart. And I don't know about you, but today should not be the BOOM! day." Franklin sighed, but said, "Ok then, I'm putting you on active duty as of right now. However, if you feel anything, absolutely *anything* out of kilter, I want you to come down here at once. Even if it's a hangnail or a case of gas, you get back here at once. Got that?" "No problem," Ivanova replied, putting the last button in her uniform shut, "But, I'm telling you, I'm fine. In fact, I've never felt better." She moved in her uniform a little bit as it floated loosely on her body, "Great, my uniform's stretched, I'll have to get a new one." As she sighed, she walked to the door, "Good day, doctor." "And the same to you, Commander," Franklin replied, as Ivonova left. Sitting down and allowing himself to finally relax, for one way or another, the Narn refugee crisis had solved itself with the Centauri victory against the Narn. As a harried doctor, he welcomed the break. As a humanitarian, he felt sick since he knew what the Centauri did to prisoners of war.... "Here's the bloodwork for Commander Ivanova, sir," a nurse interrupted his thoughts, putting down a thick sheet of floppy papers in front of him. "Thanks," Franklin replied, and promptly dug into the report. Mostly, what it said was simple fatigue and blood chemestry from high activity, but there were some odd chemical byproducts, that normally came from the uncontrolled growth normally called cancer, but these chemicals were incomplete for any known kind of cancer. In fact, the chemicals were from a protein switch being turned on that would cause rapid new cell production. As well, there was an almost excessive amount of fat, certain types of heavy metals and such that were accumulated in the cells over a human's lifespan, all wrapped in thick protein chains, and some odd biological material. The computer had tagged those with a designation number. Curious, Franklin tapped his console and said, "Computer, cross reference medical files. Compare the following," as he brought up Ivonova's report and tapped the code designation. "Working," the female computer voice said. "Comparison found, possibility of match-99.99976%. See attached note," and the computer fed a readout to the terminal. Franklin looked at the information, then he did a double take, nearly falling out of his chair. Suddenly, he tapped his link and said, as calmly as possible, "Captain Sheridan, this is Franklin in Medlab." [Babylon 5] [Ready Room] "Look, Bester," Garibaldi told the PsiCop, "I've done my best, but this Michelle Ha Lonn has just plain gotten up and disappeared." Garibaldi, in his drinking days, got a PsiCop drunk(illegal as hell, but they always felt themselves above the law)and learned the 'secret' to beating a casual scan. The trick was to fill your mind with as much trivia as possible, preferably something that was as annoying as hell for you as well as someone else. Right now, he was letting half a dozen showtoons ranging from classics to the worst possible run through his head. So far, he hadn't felt the deeper probes of a more intensive scan, but that didn't mean anything. You didn't survive long as a PsiCop by having your scans so easily detectable. "So, Mister Garibaldi," Bester replied, sarcastically, "you manage to lose one woman, one woman who has gone through every security checkpoint on your station and managed to get lost in it. And you said you had such pride in your secuirty. What do you think *might* have happened." "You want my best guess? She contacted someone in DownBelow and got shipped out by someone. If you're talking the sort of cash reserves these people supposidly have, getting passage would be ridiculously easy," Garibaldi pointed out. "Then I want you to shake down everyone in DownBelow and have them tell you how and when she got shipped out...." Bester noted. "You can't bring them in on such unsubstantial charges. First, the moment I start to grab people who might know, everyone will learn about it and people will start hiding. Second, there are a number of aliens down there and, even being in Downbelow, they are legal citizens of their worlds. I grab them and if their ambassadors hear about it, we're going to have hell on our hands...." "Mister Garibaldi," Bester interrupted, his voice barely caged in a low fury, "If you will notice at the borders of the order you received, you will note that the Official Secrecy Act of 2249 has been invoked here. If anyone gives you problems, feel free to shoot them. If they resist coming to you, make sure they come, and I don't care in what shape. And if they will not talk to you," Bester's face broke out in a smile, "perhaps I could persuade them to talk...." "For the human population," Sheridan interrupted Bester, "that might work, even assuming that someone's lawyer doesn't talk to them in jail...." "What do you mean by lawyer visits?" Bester's grin was almost feral, "As far as the official regulations are concerned, anyone held for this can be held for any length of time, without any visit by council. As well, you are to tell you men to use every means at their disposal to root out anyone who will know about how Michelle Ha Lonn got out. As well, if any of the ambassadors ask, you to say absolutely nothing. No questions are to be answered, any requests for information are to be ignored, and if anyone talks, I will personally shove them in an airlock myself. And I can do that under the Official Secrecy Act, so do not even think of trying any sort of trick, Garibaldi." "Bester, what you are proposing is a trigger to a civil war in B5, as everyone rises up against Earth Alliance, at the time we need allies the most..." Sheridan tried to get through to Bester. "Earth Alliance, need allies?" Bester's grin was ferociously arrogant. "We have never needed allies before and we do not need them now. And if they complain, feel free to shove them in an airlock and blow them out into space and have them complain to their gods. Especially that Minbari half-breed bitch, has she changed her name to match her fake appearance?" "Delenn," was Sheridan's reply, a grim mask of set anger. Bester was punching as many of Sherdian's buttons as possible, and one more hit was going to set him off. "Bester, I want you to get done with your investigation as soon as possible. You can have Garibaldi help you round up people to ask about what happened to Michelle Ha Lonn, but under the normal procedures of Earth Alliance and this station. I will not have you disrupt the operations of this station just because you think that she's some kind of superhuman being. Do I make myself clear?" Bester smiled, almost like a shark. "You realize, of course, that you have just committed career suicide. When President Clark hears what you just said...." Bester shrugged, "Oh well, it was your pension. I expect you will call President Clark and Senator Hidoshi, to complain about your orders?" "Of course. And now, Bester, get out. I don't want to talk to you again until either I hear from Senator Hidoshi or you get off my station," Sheridan said, his voice as sharp as a steel blade. "I understand," Bester replied, and got up. He walked to the door and, his hand over his forehead in the classic "OK" symbol, he said, "Be seeing you," and walked out. The two waited just long enough for the door to close, then Garibaldi said, "You know he was punching for responses from you. And you played right into his hands." "Not entirely," Sheridan replied, smiling. He slid across the table a data pad. "Franklin sent that to us a few minutes ago. That's the reason I was acting like such a asshole, to throw him off the track. Take a good look." Garibaldi scanned the data quickly, then said, "Shit. Not another one, the last one we had a year ago nearly busted up our operational budget for six months. You should have heard the complaints from Earth Central!" "I did, and that from aboard the *Agamemnon*. But, even Ivanova's report said that she looked absolutely human," Sheridan replied. He suddenly looked worried, "What did you tell Bester about Ivonova and the sensor failure?" "Some idiot cross-patched some wires and hooked the powerplant straight up to a circuit panel. Sent a big charge right through they system," Garibaldi smiled, then continued, "Ivanova was in the wrong place at the wrong time. And the real report, about Ivanova seeing our mysterious guest," he didn't have to say Michelle Ha Lonn's name, "and everything else I can hold of fileing for up to 72 hours, one thing of the Official Secrecy Act that works in our favor, thank the Great Maker." "'The Great Maker?'" Sheridan looked at him curiously. "Hey, I'm hedging all of my bets. There could be one, there couldn't be one, and when dealing with divinites, it's best to be very careful," Garibaldi replied, and that was that. "Who do you have investigating this?" Sherdian asked. "I've got Zack doing all the basic leg-work, all the stuff we can afford to ignore, I hope. But I've got Lou working all the sensitive stuff, especially her personal effects. Hopefully," Garibaldi noted, "We can get this solved without killing Bester. Not that I would mind, tho...." "I agree. Ivanova may be the biggest problem. Can you keep an eye on her? I don't want Bester running off with her," Sheridan noted. "Of course," Garibaldi replied. "But, you realize, this may mean that the 'extreme sanction' your friend authorized us to use will be used." "Then do it," Sheridan remarked, rather depressed. "I just hope to God that we don't have to do what I think we'll have to do." "And if that's anything like I think it is," Garibaldi replied, "I agree." Garibaldi stood up, then walked to the door, "Best of luck, Captain." "Same to you, Chief," Sheridan responded. As Garibaldi left, Sheridan let himself settle into the chair. The up-coming confrontation with President Clark was not that far off, but he could prolong it. But things were starting to steadily go downhill and it could mean he would have to do the one thing that he swore he'd never do, no matter how bad things got- Captain John Sheridan might have to mutiny against the Earth Alliance Government. [Babylon 5] [Ambassadorial Section] "I am most sincerely sorry," Lennier told the guest at the door. "Ambassador Delenn has requested that no-one disturb her." "I see," the woman replied. Her black hair was done in a long, single ponytail and she wore an Chinese dress of red silk that hugged her supple and powerful body like a second skin, carefully covering her throat, ends of wrists, and feet from casual inspection. Sewn all over it were various ideograms, including many with a dragon motif. Even Lennier was almost sexually curious about this human, "Can you tell her that an old friend is here?" "I will give her your name. What is it and where may she reach you?" Lennier replied, trying to keep on subject. "Tell her that Watsuu Masakata has arrived and I need to talk to her urgently," the woman said in concealed desperation. "You are her old friend, Watsuu?" Lennier asked. "Yes, I am," Watsuu replied. "Could you check, just to be sure?" "I will. Can you please wait," Lennier replied, and walked in, the door still open. A few minutes later, Delenn came back, with Lennier in tow. "Watsuu," Delenn said, smiling. The two hugged like old friends and they went into the living room. "Tea?" Delenn asked. "Of course," Watsuu replied, and as Lennier left to get the tea, Watsuu looked over Delenn. "I was right," she finally said, smiling. "You should have been born human, I mean, you look wonderful!" Watuu looked at her again, this time with a sly smile, "How many men do you have falling at your feet?" "I don't have any men falling at my feet," Delenn said, trying for seriousness but failing and arriving at amusement, "But there is Captian Sherdian...." "Then I'll have to see him," Watsuu said, smiling. As Lennier brought the tea, Watsuu took a sip and said, "You must have really fallen out of favor both with the Grey Council and on Minbar. I mean, this isn't the best tea you've ever gotten." "It's true," Delenn replied, almost sad, "I have requested better tea, but so far none have come.... So, why are you here? Your student said something about a vacation...." "I wish I was here on vacation," Watsuu interrupted. "But it's much more serious, I'm afraid. I'm here because Michelle Ha Lonn died on this station. And her Tears have been passed on to someone. What's worse, there are two someones that have come here hunting for the Tears and their bearers. Unless I can get to her first...." "They'll get them first," Delenn replied. "Trust you, of all people, to come up with an answer rather than another question. Do you have any ideas? I mean, has anything odd happened on this station?" Watsuu noted. "There was a massive energy discharge two days ago," Delenn noted, almost casually. "Could that be it?" "Hm, that could be it," Watsuu considered, then said, "For lack of anything else, that's the best place to start. Can you find out who was there? Maybe that person's the new Tear- bearer." "I'll see what I can do," Delenn replied. "Where are your quarters?" "Bay Seven, the ship *Neue Ziel*. I'd invite you to see the ship, but it's rather cramped and smells like a greasepit. But I'll see what tea I can break out of ship's stores you'll like to drink," Watsuu answered. "But how about we have dinner sometime before this mess is done. I've heard a lot about the local restraunt, and I would consider it a pleasure to go there with you." "Very well," Delenn replied. "I'm sorry that I don't have as much time as we should, but I'm rather busy...." "I understand fully," Watsuu noted, smiling with careful glee, "I know how much of a hassle home buisness is. Between training and my duties as an Oracle, the most fun I had in the last two months has been getting some Centarui bath oils!" "Agreed, all of the routine work seems to suck up time like a sponge," Delenn nodded sagely. "I hope to see you again soon." "Of course," Watsuu noted smoothly. Then, suddenly, Delenn did something unusual. Delenn leaned forward, then kissed Watsuu. It wasn't much of a kiss, more of a light tap on her cheek, but Watsuu looked shocked. Then she smiled, and said, "You're getting better at being human. Or at least being more human than you were before. Keep it up." Watsuu got up, and walked to the door. As the door opened, she turned and bowed deeply at the two. "Good day, Ambassador Delenn and Deputy Ambassador Lennier. As I have come, so I go." As Watsuu walked out, Lennier looked at Delenn, and asked, "What did you do?" He looked honestly confused. "I'm not too sure," Delenn replied, and suddenly was thoughtful. "But I rather liked it a lot." [Bablyon 5] [Ivonova's Quarters] Ivanova finally made it back to her quarters after a long day. It wasn't that today was so hard and difficult and busy, it usually was, but *how she acted* that formed the crux of the problem. The entire day, it was almost like she had seen every problem, every possible sticking point, and every possible trouble case even before they happened. Even worse, by the time someone asked her question, she already knew the exact answer. Compounding the problem, she seemed to be....detached....from the world. As if she was seeing the world from the perspective of a sage. Or an insane woman. As she shed her uniform, a convienent set of sweats and a shirt were waiting for her on the back of her chair. They didn't fit as well, and Ivanova liked her shirts loose and her sweatpants tight. That was the other thing, all of her clothes were off. It was like she was drastically losing weight, but she didn't fell ill or odd. In fact, she felt hungry. *Maybe I should talk to Franklen,* she thought as she looked at her face in the mirror. It was the view in the mirror she saw which shocked her. Ivanvoa would be the last person to admit that she had escaped the ravages of age, but the odd thing was that a few wrinkles in her face had disappeared and others were fading. As well, the skin around her chin, which was slowly starting to take on a mottled expression of dead skin, the new skin soft and as perfect as a newborn baby. The rest was starting to peel as old skin died and new skin was growing. In a sort of a haze, she started to examine herself carefully. Her entire body was getting firmer. Not hard, but firmer as if each and every muscle was reaching the height of perfection. Even her cleavege was improving, as the muscles and tendons around her breasts started to wind together like steel coils. She felt more alive than she had ever felt before, every sense, every sensation she could see or hear or feel or think she could see or hear or feel was instantly known, analized, and noted. Carefully, she ran her hands down her legs, and across her arms. As her hands crossed her wrists, her face registered the shock in her heart. On her wrists, imbedded in the flesh of the wrist itself, was a single glowing spherical jewel, red as blood, the same size as a quarter. Feeling down her neck, she felt the third jewel where her Adam's apple would be. As she watched, each jewel started to glow softly with their own inner light. Ivonova slid down the wall to settle in a careless heap on the floor, starting to cry softly to herself. In that soft silence, it seemed that the air started to take on form, and Ivanova was comforted. She was softly spoken to, calmly conversed with, and the mentally bruised and battered Ivanova was calmly brought back to normal. But it was still hard. [Babylon 5] [Passenger Dock 2] "Welcome back," the security guard said. He didn't try to be nice, the rumors about this guy were enough to discourage anything about being nice to him. "It's a pleasure to be back," Morden replied, looking at the guard. The guard didn't even try to hide his displeasure about having Morden here, talking to him, and Morden didn't even try to hide his contempt for this man. "I expect to be here two weeks. Could you tell Captain Sheridan that I'm here, so if he wants to arrest me again, he'll be sure to get it right this time." "Everything is in order," the guard noted, his voice a low whisper. It didn't take a telepath to see what he would want to do with Morden. "Welcome to Bablyon 5." "This is going to be a good visit," Morden replied, suddenly happy, "It's going to be a lot of fun here in the next couple of days." [Babylon 5] [Personal Quarters] Bester walked into his room, and sat down carefully. >From his bag, he took out two different items and hooked them together. Once attached, he flipped a switch and a low hum filled the room. Satisfied, Bester turned to face the com terminal monitor. Carefully, he said, "Code 381123193." Halfway between the terminal trying to tell him that his code was invalid, a kalidescope image appeared on the screen and a sharp, mechanically androginous voice said, "Bester, report." "So far, no luck. I have not found Michelle Ha Lonn, nor are the staff of Bablyon 5 providing me with any assistance. They might know about Sharon Apple," Bester replied. "Impossible," the voice said. "Sharon Apple has not been compromised. I know of this myself. Do you believe you can find the subject?" "I do think so, if you can keep President Clark from going back on the Official Secrecy Act. If he does go back, it will be much harder," Bester noted. "President Clark will have to go back, there are some uncomfortable rumors," the voice said. "But get the subject. Without her, Sharon Apple is useless." "Understood. Bester to Control, Bester out," Bester replied, as the terminal flashed back to regular settings. Waiting a few minutes, Bester tapped the control settings on his terminal, calling down to the recently-established MiniPax office, "This is Bester from PsiCops. I want to speak to Pierce Macabee." [Babylon 5] [MedLab] Ivanova was on the scanner bed, watching as a powerful sensor drew across her. Wearing merely a robe, Franklin and Garibaldi was looking at both her and the scan. "How long have you felt anything?" Franklin asked. "I was about to go on shift, then I started to get these odd twinges. Next thing I know, these things," she waved the jewels in the air, "go right through my skin." "Well then," Franklin said, "do you have any idea what the hell's going on here." "What do you mean?" Ivanova asked. "Well, whatever those things in your arms are, my scanners just keep bouncing off of them. As well, filiments of the same material have woven themselves into your muscles, your nerves, your bones, and your brain. Most of them are parallel to your nerves and bones, but some of them are in weaves," Franklin replied. "Do you think she's in danger?" Garibaldi asked. "She's doing better than she ever did before. Nerve transmission rate, blood-circulation, oxygen processing, everything is at least twice as efficient as any human I've ever seen. Every ounce of fat is dissappearing, either to fuel whatever this is or being excreted. As well, her skin is just about reaching a point where it can selectivly refect or absorb radiation. She'll never suffer from sunburn again. "As well, every single joint and muscle connection has been reinforced. She could lift a Starfury by herself, assuming her muscle strenght was sufficent. Her eyes have variable polarizing membranes, and from what I can detect, she can see to the low ultraviolet to high-infrared on the other. Her ears, as well, seem to be radio- and tachyon-sensitve, just enough to hear com-links. Don't ask me *how* she can do it," Franklin intterrupted Garibaldi, "half of the structures I'm seeing are guess-work at best." "So, what's the final result? Are we going to have to deal with *another* monster burning holes in the station again?" Garibaldi asked. "She's not becoming a armored monster. What she's becoming, whatever it is, isn't threatening her. She can go back to duty, if she wants," Franklin replied. "Whoa, doc," Garibaldi put his hand on Franklin's shoulder, "You just said she's changing into some superhuman being, you don't know what's going on, and you want her to *go back to work*?" "Garibaldi," Franklin noted, "there isn't much I can do. In my professional opinion, she's fine. Personally, I'd like to keep her here to talk a sample of that material, but...." "But what?" Garibaldi asked. "I burnt out two laser scalpels trying to cut that stuff, and I don't want to burn out a third," Franklin replied. "Unless you think I'm going to be a problem," Ivanova said, sliding off the table and grabbing her uniform tunic from the hangers. "I'll be in C&C if you want me, it's a real bear of a day today." "Hold on," Garibaldi said, "With Bester on the warpath and your unique condition, I don't want you to go anywhere without a security officer. As soon as she get's here, then you can go to C&C." "I don't need help," Ivanova complained, "This isn't a problem for me." She pointed at Franklin, who looked like he was trying to hide from Ivanova's finger, "Even he said I'm not a danger to the people here!" "No," Garibaldi agreed, "It isn't a problem for you. But it _is_ a problem for this station, and I don't want this problem to get any bigger. You'll go with one of my people." Ivanova looked at Garibaldi, but she finally got the point. This argument was at an end, and said, "All right then, I'll wait here for her." [Babylon 5] [Downbelow] "Are you sure?" Bester asked his guide. "Positive. At least two other Night Watch officers saw him spending gold and plenty of it. He doesn't say where he got it, and they say few people know the tunnel routes better than he does," Pierce Macabee replied. "And how are your efforts going?" Bester asked. "Wonderfully. Our network of agents are relaying all sorts of interseting information, but nothing on General Hague's operation. We're not too sure if any of the station Command staff are in on Hague's little snit," Macabee replied. The two could talk freely because they were walking through Downbelow and both were wearing static shields. Any electronic recording devices that tried to get a voice sample on them would have heard a pre-recorded conversation about the quality of Babylon 5's meals, or a pre-prepared random conversation that was infinitly repeating, without any possibility of making any sort of "incrminating evidence" from it. "How many are your people?" "Almost half. The new talents I have are so wonderful in manipulating them," Macabee noted. "Pity Stone had to warn the command staff about it." "Yes, that is true," *that IDIOT* Bester thought to himself. His job was reconnisance only, not to cop a feelie with his old wife! Fortuntly, Macabee couldn't read that. "But do you have any control over Talia Winters? She may be the one who'll break open Hague's rebellion." "I belive so, but her mental reserves are very strong. She may be our cog in their machine, or their cog in our machine," Macabee noted. "But we do have a trump card. Unfortunly, I can't tell you about it," Bester smiled, "else I'd have to kill you." The problem was, mostly, that the New Man project was so secret, even in PsiCorps, that he only knew that Talia was a part of it. Everything else he knew about it was merely rumors.... And a few of those rumors gave Bester sleepless nights. Despite everyone's opinion of him, he did have a few ethics. Very limited and stunted ethics, but ethics neverless. "Ah, here we are," Macabee noted, showing the Downbelow warren that the man lived in. "I don't know it's name, but he's called by the people here Tunnel Rat." Bester banged on the wall, and as someone stirred, Bester drew his PPG. As a man came out, Bester shoved the PPG in his face and said, "You helped someone a few days ago. She paid you in gold. WHERE IS SHE?" "Man, what the fuck...." Tunnel Rat asked, trying to figure out what was happening, but Bester shoved the PPG barrel deeper up the man's nose. "I want an answer, now. Where did you take her?" Bester asked. "Man, I can't tell you. I have a rep to maintain! If I talked to the heat, I'd be killed!" "You'll die now, if you don't tell me where she is!" Bester screamed. At the same time the man's mind released it, the man bellowd, "She went down into the Swamp, man. You'll never find her, the Boogeyman's got to have eaten her!" Bester looked at Macabee and asked, "Boogeyman?" "A Lurker rumor, they say that a Boogeyman lives in the Swamp, it's an area that's near the water processors. They say it eats people alive, and it loves to eat little children, supposidly due to their tender flesh. A childish tale, to say the least, most likely created to keep kids out of that area," Macabee replied. "But legends have strange branchings," Bester noted. He looked at the lurker, and he projected at the Lurker and said, "Forget all of this," and the lurker scrambled back into his home. "Where is this Swamp?" Bester asked Macabee. "I want to go there now." "No problem. Do you want to call your other PsiCops?" Macabee asked. "Not yet," Bester replied. "Let's collar Michelle on our own and we'll get a promotion for this, to say the least." Bester started to walk, "Let's go." [Babylon 5] [Ambassadorial Quarters] "Yes, what is it?" Londo came to his door, having to answer it himself. *Damm it that I promised Vir two weeks off and all hell breaks loose!* Londo throught to himself. As he opened the door, there stood Morden, smiling at him. "Good morning, Ambassadro Mollari." "Why are you here?" Londo asked. "My....associates wish for your aid. It's a minor thing, really, make work mostly," Morden replied. "Yes, yes, come in," Londo said. "I can't, but," Morden handed Londo a data crystal, "I would like you to find one of these two women. Do you think you can do that?" "Are they attractive, yes?" Londo asked curiously. "Most certianly. Very attractive, assuming you like humans," Morden replied. "Then it will be easy. What else?" "Just tell me when you see them, that's all. Good day, Ambassador Mollari," Morden replied, then walked out. [Babylon 5] [Ambassadorial Quarters] "I did find some good Earl Grey tea. Unfortunly, most of my stuff is either Earth- or Dragonhold-grown," Watsuu said, handing Delenn the bag of tea. Watsuu now wore a more conventional dress of green and gold, the dress cut in the style of a person who doesn't have anything to hide from the world. "I understand. I just don't know why I'm allurgic to Dragonhold teas. Odd circumstances, I think," Delenn agreeed. "Did you find out about the explosion?" Watsuu asked. "Yes and no. They say it was a power accident, someone patched in the wrong power line into the wrong circuit. But I did find out one person was in the center of the 'explosion.'" Delenn replied, looking rather depressed. "So, who's the lucky person?" Watsuu replied. "I'm not so sure it's lucky. She's a good friend of mine, and I know what such a title brings. Her name is Susan Ivanova, and she's the second in command for this station," Delenn replied. "Hm," Watsuu noted. This complicated matters very signficangtly, since she has to be trained. And if Earth Force is involved....." Her voice trailed off. "So, when do you want to see her?" Delenn asked. "My orders are to make this as public as possible. Do you know of any events that she's going to be at I can get into?" "There's going to be a council meeting later today. She usually attends, but do you have to make this public? Wouldn't it be easier for this to be a more private affair?" Delenn wondered. Watsuu didn't reply. Carefully, from her bag, she pulled out a single disk, about the size of a teacup saucer, and let it clatter to the table. As the disk settled, the top glowed softly, and a holographic image appeared. It acted for a few seconds. As the image disappeared, Delenn looked at Watsuu. "I understand. But you don't like it either." "I don't, not one damn bit. But this has to be done, the number of leakers has nearly *tripled* over last year alone. I used to be able to count the number of leakers in all of Known Space on one hand, now I can't even count a whole sector on my hands and toes. The dark times are coming, and we need every warrior we can get. As well, we've hidden ourselves for too long, obscured in the mists of legend and stories. Our light needs to shine again, our Dragons must awaken." "Very well. If she is there, I will contact you. Can you get in?" Delenn asked. Watsuu smiled, almost like a shark, except it was a happy shark sort of smile, "Of course." [Babylon 5] [Council Chambers] "And I am telling you, Captian," Londo was bellowing out at the top of his lungs, "The Narn are using the transports that are to be used to evacuate the civilian population under Earth Force and Minbari guidance to move military troops and...." "Just because there were six, SIX!, injured soldiers on that ship you assume that they were using it as a troop transport to support our forces...." G'Kar yelled right back at him. The expression on Sheridan's face was sign of everything he was feeling. All of the bad news was here, in a closed Council meeting, which was to talk about transit problems on the Jump Gates in Babylon 5's sector, which would neccitate a massive rebuild of the units. But Londo had to bring up the problem with the refugee ships, even after he said he would avoid the subject. Worse, Bester had been seen harrassing some Lurkers in Downbelow to search for Michelle Ha Lonn. At least one thing was going for him, President Clark had called him back to apologize. He hadn't known that Bester was going to abuse the powers under the Official Secrecy Act and he had rescended the order. As well, Hague's woman, a Earth Force Military Telepath, was on her way, concealed as a normal security check. As he heard the door, he realized that the other thing that would make this mess worth all the trouble was walking in the door. Commander Ivanova walked in, wearing a uniform that was still baggy but closer to her new form, followed by a security officer that Garibaldi had assigned to her. She stood at the opposite side of the door, with the security guard joining her to make sure nothing went wrong. *If misery loves company,* Sheridan thought, *I've got plenty of friends. Even Kosh and Delenn looks annoyed with this mess.* Meanwhile, Delenn noticed when Ivanova walked in and tapped her computer. She sent Watsuu a message that Ivonova was here and that it was safe to come. [Babylon 5] [Connecting Hallway to Concil Room] Her mini-comp beeped twice. Watsuu looked at it carefully, and said, "It's showtime." Not only was she wearing a sheer black bodysuit with gold tracery, her face was painted in a rune pattern. Over her body and shoulders was a solid siver armor with gold patterns. Three gems were places on the armor, one in front and one on the top of each shoudler. The Tear in her chest was just below the gem in the armor, linked with gold tracery to the armor. Down her right arm was a solid gold gauntlet, with intricate silver tracery linking her Tear with the gem on the back of the gauntlet's palm. In her right hand was a sword, cast in the style of a Japanese *no-dashi*, silver with intricate gold and fire-red gem traciery. Watsuu looked and was ready for anything. She started down the hallway to the Council Chambers. Two guards came at her, saying, "Stop, ma'am. You aren't allowed in there." Watsuu didn't reply. She raised her left arm, and her Tear glowed brightly. A sudden *whoomph*, a wave of hardened air, and the two guards were knocked away. Two more guards came from behind her, but they were knocked away by the same wave of hardened air. Watsuu came to the door, and she cycled it open. [Babylon 5] [Council Chambers] "What's going on?" Sheridan asked, hearing something outside of the council chambers. As he watched, the door popped open, and a woman, asian-looking, with black hair and wearing armor, walked in with the careful and regal bearing of someone who knows that she's in charge. As she walked in, one of the security guards drew her PPG and fired. The woman didn't even notice. The PPG bolts seemed to hit an invisible sphere three inches away from her, splattering along the sphere. The woman raised her right hand carefully, and pointed the sword at the guard. The guard suddenly was hit by what looked like a wall of compressed air and was knocked out of the room as the door cycled. The other two doors to the room sealed themselves as well. "Who are you?" Sheridan asked. "Why are you disrupting this Concil event?" "My apologizes," the woman replied. "I am here on rather urgent buisness." Her demenor suddenly changed, as she flipped the sword around and sheathed in carefully behind her back. Detaching the sheathed sword, the put it on the council table and said, "I am here as a soldier and a ambassador." "You haven't answered his question," G'Kar asked. "Who are you." The woman turned, and bowed deeply, one hand under her belly, one behind her, "Ambassador Kosh, Ambassador G'Kar, Ambassador Mollari, Ambassador Delenn, and Captian Sheridan. My name is Watsuu Masakata. I am a Dragon, a bearer of Oracle Tears. I am here because my student and my daughter-in-service has died. She passed on her Tears to another before her death, and I am here to train the new Tear-bearer." "What do you mean, 'Dragon'?" Sheridan asked. "Great Maker," Londo said, whispering. "You are legends, myths!" "As you can see, I am not a myth nor a legend. I am as real as you are. Possibly more so," the now-named Watsuu replied. "What's going on here!" Sheridan was yelling, almost paniced. Before he could do anything else, Delenn had her hand on his arm. As Sheridan looked at her, Delenn's expression said *relax, everything shall be explained in time.* Watsuu turned, and walked to Ivanova. Holding up her right hand, Watsuu clasped Ivanova's palm and brought both up to their faces. As the rest of the Council audience watched, glows appeared in Ivanova's uniform, as the Earth Force uniform seemed to *unwrap* itself into nothingness, as Ivanova's shocked expression grew deeper and deeper. The two were standing there, Ivanova's uniform was gone, but she was now wearing a black bodysuit with purple, almost incandesent tracing. "Welcome, my student and my friend. Welcome, Susan Ivanova. Welcome, fellow Tear-bearer. Welcome, Adept of the Dragon Susan Ivanova." The only expression on Susan's face was unadulterated shock. (End of Part 2) From jon.souza@creature.comThu Nov 30 22:35:30 1995 Date: Thu, 30 Nov 1995 05:22:55 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: Dragons of the Tear-Episode 3 Two notes- Note #1-The events of this story take place, in theory, before the "Final Four" episodes of Babylon 5's second season. Note #2-Each of these stories are episodes. The start theme is the standard B5 theme, but the end theme is "After, in the dark" from the Macross Plus soundtrack(JVC-1004-2, you can get it here at regular CD prices, but you have to get a special order). As always, any comments, compliments, complaints, flames, etc, etc, etc, can be sent to me at- Jon.Souza@Creature.Com Now for the disclaimers- "Dragon of the Tears" is a story based on the PTEN/Warner Brothers show "Babylon 5." All characters not the creation of the author are the property of PTEN/Warner Brothers, Copyright@ 1995 PTEN/Warner Brothers. All other properties are the sole property of Jonathan Souza, Copyright @1995. This copyright will be transferred upon request to the authorized representatives of JMS/PTEN/Warner Brothers. All copyrights extend to electronic forms of this story. And now, to the future- _Dragon of the Tears_ _By Jon Souza_ _Episode 3-Recovery_ [Babylon 5] Silence. What made it so eerie was that Babylon 5 was *never* silent, perhaps a pregnant pause, but never silent. Silence was a new state for Babylon 5, and the people searched for something to fill the silence. Then the rumors began. Rumor had it that a woman had interfered with a meeting of the Babylon 5 Advisory Council, and Security was unable to stop her. Rumor had it that she was here for someone, another human who was like her. Rumor had it that Ambassador Kosh had retreated to his ship and hadn't been seen since, even by the Koshologists, studying his behavior on how the Vorlons worked. Rumor had it that the Earth Alliance Military had authorized an investigation on what happened and a Psi-Cop was going to be assigned to investigate it. Rumor had it that the officer in charge of Babylon 5, Captain John Sheridan, was involved in keeping things quiet. Rumor also had it that Captain Sheridan was trying figure out himself what the hell was going on.... [Babylon 5] [Ready Room] "Let's try this again," Sheridan picked up a set of flimsies, "Your name is Watsuu Masakata, you arrived here two days ago, met with Ambassador Delenn and then you come to a council meeting, knock two of my security guards unconscious, tell me that you are an Oracle Dragon or something, do something to Lt. Ivanova, and then you tell me that you're just a teacher!" Sitting across from him was Watsuu, her interlaced fingers just below her nose, resting her head. As Sheridan ended, she let her hands drop to the table, and stood, saying, "Captain John Sheridan, I'll be brief. Your friend, Susan Ivanova, is in grave danger. As long as she didn't know what she was, she had some measure of protection in her ignorance. But now that she knows, I have to train her. She is a Dragon, as I am." "What the hell are you Dragons or Oracles or whatever you are," Sheridan asked, frustrated. "John, listen to me. I need to teach Susan. Like everything, she has the double-bladed sword of responsibility and duty. Her predecessor, Michelle Ha Lonn, was my student as well, and her Tears are of my lineage," Watsuu replied. "I will let you see her, but only under one condition," Sheridan replied. "And that is?" "I want the truth, all of it. No tricks, no lies, just the truth," Sheridan asked. Watsuu looked at him, then a bemused expression floated across her face. Watsuu smiled, then walked over to him and stroked her hand under his chin, "You poor man, so long you have been denied." As she stepped away, she smiled, "Talk to Delenn, she can fill you in as well as I could if the time was available, and I don't have the time. I also promised her that I would not chase you for one week. You have that much time before I decide to come after you." "Excuse me?" Sheridan asked. "Now, unless you want to concede now, and tell me that this table would be a suitable place for sex, I have to be going. If you need me, I'll be with Susan Ivanova," Watsuu replied salaciously, then walked to the door, walked *through* the door, and was gone. For a few seconds, Sheridan looked at the door, thinking about her words. Then, he put his head in his hands and massaged his temples, saying, "I'm getting too damn old for this...." [Mars, Psi-Corps Syria Planeta Base] [Block Eight, Module 11] Silence. It was about midnight local-time, and the crews working on the project in this room were doing what they usually did at this time. Most of them were sleeping, a few were having sex, while a group of six were having a very interesting tryst involving whipping cream and leather restraints.... But that's another story. Sufficient to say, the room was empty of all humans, the machinery either shut down or placed on a low-powered standby mode. Even in the subdued light, the monolith-like block, half as high as a man but as wide and squared off on the top, sat. Near the top was a line of red, which flickered slightly as standby current resonated through the system to the "eye" just slightly offset to the right of center. Except for that flash of color, the rest of the block was a flat, light-absorbing black, perfectly formed. Then, something happened. The current level picked up, the energy that was formerly a drop was now a waterfall. The "eye" was being continually charged with electricity, and the more power that was being pumped into the unit was staring a chain reaction. All over, monitors and control units were being turned on. Cables snaked like tentacles, to plug into various terminals. Systems were being powered up, the panels and systems were glowing as they started to boot up. As the power came on, a central platform, two meters wide and about a meter off the ground, flared. Something floated within the light, silently looking over everything. Dispassionately, something manipulated things and, when done, disappeared, as all other systems started to shut down once again. The next morning, according to the logs, nothing happened. Nothing could be further from the truth. [Babylon 5] [Blue Sector] Ivanova was *pissed*. Not just angry or frustrated, that she had been before. But, right now, she was angry-as-hell, ticked-off, could-strangle- God-if-she-could-get-her-hands-on-her *pissed*. First of all, the bodysuit that was apparently a part of her skin couldn't come off, seamlessly forming itself right into the skin of her neck. Even her hands and feet were covered by the black material. The only breaks were for the red gems in her wrists that the woman named Watsuu Masakada called Tears. Second of all, when Watsuu came to the room, the mysterious feeling of someone following her, just one step behind, was much, much worse. When she looked in the mirror, she could barely see, for just a eye-blink, another face just to one side of her. It was worse, since she could almost hear voices with those faces. Third, and most important, she couldn't go to work. Garibaldi had kept her here, namely to keep Bester from her. And *nobody* knew what these Dragons were and what they were for, so they couldn't risk any security breaches. So Ivanova was stuck here, looking at the walls, trying to figure out what was going on. Then the door beeped. Curious, Ivanova looked at the door, then said, "Come in!" The person who walked in was Watsuu, dressed in a simple yet elegant earth-brown dress, with a satchel over her shoulder. "Hello, how are you?" Ivanova just stared at her, as Watsuu came in and looked around, "Nice place. Very spartan, very plain, classic russian design and construction. So, let's get started. I am Watsuu Masakata, bearer of Oracle Tears. You are Susan Ivanova, bearer of Adept Tears. I am your teacher, you are my student. Sit, sit, you look like you have many questions on your mind." "Yes, like what the fuck are you! And what the fuck has happened to me and how the hell do I get this bodysuit off!" Ivanova replied, frustrated. Watsuu sighed, then said, "The trick is to think of your bare skin. That's it. Right now, it's difficult since your mind is in a frame of combat." "Huh?" Ivanova was shocked. "That is your problem. You don't relate, you confront. You don't talk, you argue. That's all well and good, especially if you want to live in New York, but it's going to make teaching you a pain in both of our asses. Now, I want you to relax and....do you like tea?" Watsuu suddenly changed gears. "I do, but what does that have to do with this mess?" Ivanova replied. "Do you want a cup of tea? I brought some of my own, and I don't know about you, but I can't think without a good cup of tea. Any particular preference?" Watsuu had found the kitchenette and was starting to boil water. "You haven't said a thing about what you are, so could you tell me what the hell is going on?" "I think you'll like this tea, it's from Dragonhold brew that's fairly tasty. Slightly better than Earl Grey, at least I think that," Watsuu's expression changed, "Look, Susan, either you relax and let me teach or you'll never learn anything. First lesson, I want you to get out of combat mode and relax. Here's your tea," she handed Ivanova the tea, and sat across from her, "and now, let's talk about what happened to you that gave you your Tears." Ivanova took a sip of the tea, and said, "You're right, this is good tea. And...." for just a second, Ivanova looked at her hands, as the jumpsuit seemed to pull back from her hands and back up her wrists, "what's in this tea?" "A very mild, very natural sedative. It's just innocuous enough not to trigger your body's defense mechanisms. Like I said, relax. Do you want to put anything on? This might be a long talk and you might not to want to do it in the nude," Watsuu replied. Ivanova looked at Watsuu sheepishly. "Congratulations, you won. Give me a second," as Ivanova stood up, the last vestiges of the jumpsuit were disappearing, revealing her bare skin. "Take you time," Watsuu said, smiling, "I actually like the view from here." [Babylon 5] [Ambassadorial Quarters] The door beeped three times before Delenn made it there. When it opened, Sheridan was standing there. "Delenn...," Sheridan said, then stopped to look, "Where's Lennier? He normally gets the door for you." "He is out for a while," Delenn replied, motioning for Sheridan to come in, "and for this sort of conversation, we need privacy. Not that Lennier would intentionally listen, but it would be better for all concerned that he not know everything." "And about me?" Sheridan replied, smiling. "Watsuu informed me to tell you everything I know about the Dragons, and what I know is a lot. Sit, sit," Delenn motioned for Sheridan to sit, "and I'll tell you a story." As Sheridan sat down, Delenn offered him a cup of tea, which he accepted. After her first sip, Delenn said, "Centuries ago, when the First Ones past beyond the Veil, they discovered something very....unusual. "The Veil, or what the Dragons refer to as the Gauntlet, is the barrier between the spirit and the physical, the mind and the body. Both universes exist as a shadow to the other, one belonging in both at once. You and I exist as beings on the very edge of the Gauntlet, both of spirit and of matter. Right now, our existence is defined by matter, with that spirit locked up in the form of matter. But when we sleep, when we dream, we are released from all but the most prosaic forms of matter and enter the form of spirit. "But they discovered something very terrifying." [Babylon 5] [Blue Sector] "The First Ones believed, initially, that the Gauntlet was impenetrable by beings permanently of one state," Watsuu continued, "A being of spirit couldn't attack a being of matter, or vice versa. A being of spirit could attack you or me, since we exist on the narrow line between spirit and matter, and a being of matter likewise." "But what does that have to do with us?" Ivanova asked. "The First Ones were wrong, the Gauntlet wasn't the absolute wall they thought it was. It was alive, having a will of it's own, and beings of spirit could pierce and remain in the domain of matter and the opposite was possible. And beings of matter, the Fallen Ones, were upset at their state." "'Fallen Ones?'" Ivanova asked again. "There are three states, or ages, a race has to go through. The first age is the age of improvement of the body," Watsuu continued, somewhat frustrated. [Babylon 5] [Ambassadorial Quarters] "Cyborgs?" Sheridan asked. "Only if you consider cyborgs people who use radios to augment the power of their voice, swords to augment the power of their swing, or telescopes to augment the power of their eyes," Delenn replied. "This age was one of the physical conquest of things, but man's mind was a tool that couldn't be duplicated. Books could store information, but the books couldn't find the information, people had to. Storage mediums existed merely to improve the power of memory, all information had to be controlled by people. "The second age was the age of the improvement of the mind. It was first started when primitive abacus were used, and it went on from there. Punch cards could be fed into primitive computers to come up with a result. Eventually, the power of these machines outstripped people's ability to understand them, to the point where thinking machines programmed their own kind. With the control of information these machines could provide, people could solve problems in seconds that would have taken years. All of this sets up the groundwork for the third, and final age." [Babylon 5] [Blue Sector] "The third age is the improvement of the spirit. Spirit is the final realm, and the unconquered one by most races. But humans are starting to enter this realm, with telepathy and such developing the powers of the spirit. When the third age is won, a race usually reaches the level of spirit-beings, standing on one side of the Gauntlet," Watsuu continued. "And that brings us back to us. Being of pure spirit, the First Ones were threatened by the Fallen Ones, who were beings of pure matter. When a race is unable to make it in the rank of spirit-beings, only the realm of matter remains. Some races choose this because they refuse to, or cannot, accept the possibility of spirit. But for others, like the Fallen Ones, they *cannot* transcend matter. Forever they remain in the form of matter, angry and brooding. They wish, without reservation, to destroy everything of the spirit, to raise matter to the highest state in the pantheon of the universe. "The Dragons exist for a two-fold purpose, provided with powers by the First Ones. Our first task is to protect the Gauntlet from both sides, from the beings of spirit trying to remove the threat of matter beings, and to prevent beings of matter from destroying the realm of the spirit." "And the second purpose is?" Ivanova asked. [Babylon 5] [Ambassadorial Quarters] "The second purpose of the Dragons is to exist as guides. To teach, to learn, to train, to be trained, to love, to be loved, but never to supplant the normal development of a race. Only when the Dragons are needed are they called, a race of many races, some so ancient that only within the Dragons are members of that race," Delenn replied to Sheridan's question. "And the Dragons exists as our guides and guardian angels?" Sheridan asked. "In a sense, but not with the religious connotations you imply. They are memory and concern, existing as a final conscience against corruption and disruption by all races and peoples," Delenn replied. "Now, what's with these 'Tear' things," Sheridan asked, "that Ivanova has in her?" "Those are the source of a Dragon's power. According to the legends of the Dragons, the universe has three entities that are the essence of all things. Humans refer to them as Dragon, Phoenix, and Tiger. Dragon exists as the force of action and power, the force that fixes and repairs and aids. Phoenix exists as the force of redemption and rebirth, the destruction that brings creation. Tiger exists as the things that cannot be controlled, the things that Dragon cannot fight. In short, fear. There is a fourth force, but it shall never be named and it is better it not be known. "The story goes as follows-Dragon once crossed a battlefield between the beings of spirit and the beings of matter, using proxies to wage their wars. Seeing those casualties who fought for these goals, Dragon cried red crystalline tears onto the battlefield. "As these Tears fell, those spirits who wished to fight for a better state drew the tears to their bodies. These tears gave the bodies powers beyond the mortal coil. These were the first Dragons, who chose to fight to prevent the wars they died for." [Babylon 5] [Blue Sector] "And when the Dragon saw what it had done, Dragon decided that it had to help it's children. Dragon provided it's children with training and a world of their own, Dragonhold, to call home," Watsuu continued. "Your Tears are of my lineage, a gift of myself that I gave to a woman by the name of Stephanie Tyler over three centuries ago. When she died in combat, she gave the Tears to the man she loved. As the Tears were transferred, they gained the memories and the spirits of those who bore them. Michelle Ha Lonn's memories and spirit resides in the tears as well as the others. "You are immortal. Age and disease will not effect you, nor will the excess of or lack of any physical material. The cost is your fertility, you will be unable to bear children, I apologize, I missed the chance to have a child myself. "Your powers are numerous. You can fly, survive in space, and generate energy in a variety of states and forms. Later, I will train you in your combat abilities and your sensory abilities. In addition you can draw upon the memories of the six who once bore your Tears and ask for their advice. To you and themselves, they are just as alive as you or I are. "And now," Watsuu stood up, "I'm going out to get some food. When you're ready, I'll meet you at Earheart's at 1900 hours and start your training proper." "You mean, I'm some sort of nun or something like that?" Ivanova asked. "You are Dragon, a bearer of Adept Tears. Your duty is to helping all who wish to reach beyond their state and become something more than themselves," Watsuu replied. "I'll help you to understand, but it will take a while." "All right....," Ivanova looked skeptical, "but do I have to give up my job? After all of this, that's just about all I've got left that's normal...." "I will personally insure that Captain Sheridan will put you back on active duty without restrictions," Watsuu replied, then her smile became feral, "or I'll eat his liver raw. Good afternoon, Susan," Watsuu bowed, then left. Ivanova stared at her, then said, "Why me?" A voice, soft and calm, said, "I asked the same thing, a lot, when I started." As Ivanova pivoted, she saw what could only be a female Minbari of the Warrior Caste, sitting on her couch. "I am Nekkenn, one of your predecessors. The rest wanted me to talk to you first." "The rest?" Ivanova was surprised. "There are six of us, and they thought I'd be the best person to talk to you first. Only one of them is male, but if you'd feel better talking to Steve...." Nekkenn replied. "No, no, but tell me, how did you get to become, well, me?" Ivanova asked. "I am the third bearer of your Tears, back when Earth and Minbar knew nothing of each other. The second bearer, Steve Douglas, was badly injured and my fighter recovered his body. He gave me his Tears, two at the time, and I went to Dragonhold. I died eight years later, giving my Tears to Ryouko Funalo, a human studying to become a Dragon. She gave her Tears a century later to Wilma Tarkingson, then Michelle Ha Lonn. You are the seventh to bear these Tears, Susan," Nekkenn noted. "I see," Ivanova repled. "But enough talk," Nekkenn stood up, ordering. "It is time for us to go have some fun. Shall we? After you get dressed, of course." "Why the hell not?" Ivanova replied, "Everything else around here is screwy...." [Babylon 5] [Between Blue Sector and Ambassadorial Quarters] As Sheridan was walking back down the hallway, ironically, he met up with Watsuu. "We have to talk," Sheridan said. "We can talk as we walk," Watsuu replied, and the two walked down the hallways, "Susan wants to return back to work. She will, won't she?" Watsuu gave the question merely the formality. "Considering what I've heard....are these 'Fallen Ones' the Shadows I've been hearing about?" "Of course. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go talk to Ambassador Kosh, and unless you need me...." Watsuu started to walk off. "Hold on just a second.... How does Delenn know all of this about your kind? I mean, that probably isn't common information," Sheridan asked. Watsuu stopped, turned around, and said, "About two decades ago, I was on Minbar personally. When I was there, I met a young candidate in the Priest caste, female, attractive, cunning, smart, and possessing an almost-Dragon will to fight and survive. I was grooming her to bear one of my Tears, to sacrifice my ranking as Oracle to make her an Adept. Then the Vorlons came and told me not to interfere with her." "You've seen the Vorlons?" Sheridan asked. "Yes, but probably not the sense you're trying to imply. Don't ask, it would take too long to explain." "But why did the Vorlons want you not to interfere with her? If she was that good and the Vorlons are on your side, why not make Delenn a Dragon or whatever?" Sheridan asked. "Captain John Sheridan, let me tell you something. The Vorlons work for only one side. This side is called whatever the Vorlons want. Turns out that the Vorlons were grooming her for their purposes, as well as someone else," Watsuu replied. "Who was this other person? Did they tell you?" Sheridan replied. "Well, he was human, and was to be captured on the Battle of the Line, he was to be Delenn's other half. After her transformation, she was to be his consort," Watsuu remembered. "Ambassador Sinclair," Sheridan replied. "But he isn't here." Watsuu looked at him for a second, then she broke out into hysterical laughter. When Sheridan came over to try and help her, "No, no," Watsuu tried to control her laughter, "I'm fine." "Ok, ok," Watsuu finally regained control of herself, "I'm sorry, but the Vorlons have really screwed this one up! You weren't meant to be hers! She was to be Sinclair's, not yours. I'm sorry, but this is so ridiculously crazy. Hell, Captain, I don't know why the Vorlons haven't told you two to get away from each other." "Huh?" "Don't worry, I'll get this mess fixed one way of another...." Watsuu replied, then walked down the hall. Stopping at a corner, she turned, bowed deeply, and said, "Sayonara no tame ni ima," and made the turn. Sheridan looked down the hallway, then shook his head. "Garibaldi," Sheridan tapped his Link, "I want Ivanova back on duty again, as soon as possible. As well, when is that Earth Force Telepath coming?" "Got you," Garibaldi replied, "And Lt. Meyers is on her way, she'll be here tomorrow." "Right," Sheridan replied, and started to massage his temples. He really needed a vacation. Two turns before she reached the Methane-breathers section, Bester met up with Watsuu. "Good afternoon, madame." "Hello. Goodbye." Watsuu replied, then continued to walk on. "I don't think you see the problem, Miss Masakata. I need to talk to you about your time on Dragonhold," Bester commented to her back. Watsuu stopped at the comment, turned around, and walked up to Bester's face, "Here is all you need to know. My name is Watsuu Masakata, I was born in the year nine hundred sixteen in the Kyoto Prefecture of Japan. I served as the courtesan and servant of the Damayo Iyega, who used me as a plaything and a toy. I escaped and was met by a Dragon, who lifted me up to the exulted rank of Adept. I have served the Dragons for one thousand three hundred and forty-three years, and I haven't served that time for you, your race, or myself to be pestered by the likes of you. Now, unless you have something more important to deal with, I'm going to meet with Ambassador Kosh. Good day, Bester." As Watsuu walked away, Bester looked at her. This wasn't going to be an easy day. [Babylon 5] [Zocallo] Ivanova was walking down the Zocallo, looking around at everyone sitting and talking. "Ah, it never changes," Nekkenn said, just looming over her shoulder. "Greed, corruption, lust, and pride. All the things that everyone does when they think the Gods aren't looking. So, what are you going to do first?" Ivanova didn't care at this point, Nekkenn had been annoying her from the moment she left the quarters in her Earth Alliance uniform to choosing to see the Zocallo. "Look, either be constructive or get the hell out of my face," Ivanova yelled at Nekkenn, "I've had enough of your bullshit." "So, how are you and your friend getting along, Susan?" Talia Winters had managed to sneak up on Ivanova, and was looking at the two. For just a second, Ivanova and Nekkenn were looking at Taila, then Ivanova asked, "You can see her?" "Female Minbari of the warrior caste, black uniform with sliver flashing, sword on her hip, what else?" Talia replied, somewhat shocked. Ivanova sighed, frustrated, leading Talia to the bar, "Talia, you and me are going to have a long talk with a long drink, along with her...." [Babylon 5] [Ambassadorial Quarters] Watsuu didn't even bother with the doors, she just phased through them, and went instantly into the methane section. She took a good sniff of the air, "Geez, Kosh must really hate this place." Knocking on Kosh's door, she got no response. "Kosh, this is Watsuu, open up or I'm coming in!" That was enough to get the door to open. Walking in, Kosh's encounter suit was sitting undeployed, empty of the lifeform within. Watsuu looked to the side, then said, "Ok, Kosh, come out and talk. I'm here, so let's get this mess over with." From behind a set of blinds came a flare of light. Flowing from it was the physical representation of Amaratsu-no- kami, the patron deity of Shinto, settling to face Watsuu with her infinite visage. "Cut it out, Kosh. I've got no time for your tricks, so let's be what we really are," Watsuu replied, nonplussed. Amaratsu looked surprised, then it dissipated to reveal a swan-like creature. The thing was shaped like a swan, but was aflame, burning with a fire that seemed to be a part of it. It's coloration was of reds and golds and flashes of white, and it's eyes bore the infinities of age and all of time. "Kosh of the Phoenix, welcome," Watsuu replied, smiling. "Now, let's get down to business." The phoenix looked at her curiously. "I've started her training, as well as preparing the others. So far, I have made progress." The phoenix cocked it's head slightly. "I know her initiation was rather sudden and public, but those were by your superior's orders. I'm just the poor bitch who's ass is on the line if something goes wrong." Dispassionately, the phoenix opened one wing and started to preen itself. "I see. But where do you have the right to complain? You haven't seen field-duty since you royally fucked up the Xon a few centuries ago. Why you, why here, why now?" With a casual ease born of long practice, the phoenix picked out a parasite from it's wing, then swallowed it. "My fault? I told them that Michelle wasn't ready for that mission. But I wasn't told why Ivanova's public initiation was needed?" The phoenix clacked it's bill silently, almost in reprimand. "Sharon Apple? Shit, that's rumor had been around ever since the Earth-Minbari War. What makes you think that Sharon Apple is operational?" The phoenix looked at her curiously. "Dana is coming? Why her?" The phoenix cocked it's head slightly. "I see," Watsuu smiled, "so, Kornn's Adept has gotten herself deep inside Psi-Corps. I'll have to congratulate him." The phoenix flared it's wings, then settled slightly. This meeting was at an end. "I get you. I have one thing to tell you, and listen to me very, very well. I know your kind and the Dragons have been allies for centuries and you have the Vorlons eating out of your hands, but Susan Ivanova is *my* student, and unless you want to be served with a fine white wine, don't interfere with my training of her." The phoenix jumped to the encounter suit, as the suit came to life, "We shall go." Kosh said. "Very well," Watsuu replied, then phased through the opposite wall, arriving in a female bathroom and walked out into the station. [Babylon 5] [Personal Quarters] "Bester, you idiot," the voice of Control said, "You have to get one of them, irregardless of the cost. Get them!" "But how," Bester asked. "Watsuu is ferociously dangerous, I wouldn't want to force her to fight. And Ivanova is being watched by the entire command staff." "Contact Morden. His associates will get one of them. Now, get to work!" Control broke the connection sharply. Bester sighed, this wasn't going to be a good day. He tapped his console, and the call went through quickly to the quarters Morden had secured for himself. "Yes, Bester?" Morden asked. "My superiors request the assistance of your associates to get someone for us. A human being, but very powerful," Bester replied. "I see....what is the person's name?" Morden asked again. "Her name is Watsuu Masakada and...." Bester tried to respond. "Watsuu?" Morden interrupted, "Asian woman, long black hair, very haughty?" "Yes, you know her?" "Let's just say," Morden replied, flashing his car salesman grin, "that we've been around. Tell you what, I will get her for you, but the cost is her life. I want her dead." "Agreed, but only if you can get her Tears. Those my superiors want," Bester replied, happy to get an agreement so soon. "I'll be sure to give you her Tears. Attached or unattached?" Morden asked. "Huh?" "Attached to what remains of her body," Morden's smile was carnivorous, "or free of it?" [Babylon 5] [Shuttle Docks] The door to the *Neue Ziel* beeped once. Watsuu looked at the door's monitor and said, "She's finally here." As Watsuu reached the door, she opened it up to reveal a woman in a Earth Force Military Telepath uniform. "You must be Kornn's newest adept." "I am," the woman, a dirty blonde of plain completion replied, "My name is Lieutenant Dana Meyers, Adept of the Dragon." "Watsuu Masakada, Oracle of the Dragon," the two shook hands, and they came into Watsuu's ship. "When do you report to Captain Sheridan?" "Within the hour. I can't give you the normal briefing...." Meyers replied. "Of course. How is Kornn, as of late?" Watsuu replied, sliding her right arm's sleeve down. "Very well, I have to say. He still has absolutely no taste, you know," Meyers commented, shaking her head. "Don't worry, I've known him for the last few centuries and his taste in new Adepts is great, but his taste in tea is awful. Do you want some?" Watsuu was already drawing herself a cup of tea from her own stock. "Not just yet. I have to get back to work, helping Sheridan and his crew on this station. Now, let's get this mess over with," Meyers replied, unbuttoning her right epaulet, reveling her single Tear on her right arm. "So it begins," Watsuu reached over and placed her Tear out, as Meyers put out her Tear, and the Tears touched, for just a second. For that second, both of them stiffened, and when they broke contact, Watsuu had to shake her head clear. "Damn them.... So, Sharon Apple is real." "All I've been able to get is the basic specifications, I don't have any idea of the project's status. I can't risk getting deeper into Psi-Corps without jeopardizing my status with Hague's unit. And you know what the standing orders are on that," Meyers replied. "Anything else?" Watsuu asked. "Just one more thing-Hague has heard rumors of the Dragons and wants to contact us before Bureau 13 does. Unless you want to do something, I'll just keep up my normal surveillance," Meyers replied. "Do that. I want to kick this one up the chain of command, not that I don't mind the job, but this is important. Just work normally, either I or my superior will contact you." "Very well, then. Oh, one more thing," Meyers replied, "Bureau 13 wants to get their hands on Tears, to analyze them. Keep your back covered, especially your new student." "I understand. Good luck with Captain Sheridan, I hope you deal with him a lot better than I did." [Babylon 5] [Zocallo] Susan Ivanova was looking at her ninth glass of Guiness Stout, to the shocked looks of the bartender and many people in the bar. With a forceful shudder, Ivanova took a full drink from the glass, and shoved it at the bartender. "Another one," she slurred her words. "I don't think...." the bartender tried to say, but Ivanova grabbed his lapels, and brought his face to hers. "I didn't ask you to think," Ivanova hissed, "I asked you to get me another ale. Will you do it, or will I have to do it over your dead body?" "Another Guiness Stout it is," the bartender replied, getting another can and pouring it in. As Ivanova was trying to finish this drink, Garibaldi came in and said, "Oh shit...." under his breath when he saw the almost completely drunk Ivanova. "Ivanova, what the hell's going on? I haven't see you this bad since last year." Ivanova looked at Garibaldi, then said, "Sit down and drink, my life is royally fucked up right now, and I need a drink." Garibaldi looked at the bartender, who flashed nine fingers, then to Ivanova, "You already had enough, Susan. What's so bad? What did Watsuu tell you about this 'Tears' thing?" "It isn't her, it isn't that," Ivanova waved him off, "it's that this is a fucking bad time to have multiple personalities. I've got six people in here," Ivanova beat her chest, "and each and every one of them has a fucking opinion, and they won't keep quiet! Three of them want to fuck you, one of them wants to kill you, one of them wants to play with you, and the last one just wants to find out about his family." "That's annoying," Garibaldi understated. "So, what do you want to do about it?" Before Ivanova could answer, Watsuu walked in, and sat down right beside Garibaldi, "Hello, how is she?" "Drunk out of her head," Garibaldi replied. "What the hell did she mean about 'people in her'? She's getting worse, not better." "Damn it, I knew I should have helped her more with that part, but Nekkenn and her crew are normally more disciplined. Take her back to her quarters and I'll meet her there when she sobers up, that's in about an hour. Oh, and if you do feel like it, go ahead and have sex with her, she'll thank you, hopefully before she guts you alive," Watsuu replied, waving Garibaldi off. "You know what I think of you," Garibaldi asked, less a question, more a statement. "Let me guess, you think I'm an absolutely miserable little bitch who's sex crazed and obnoxious. Garibaldi, if you spent nearly two millennium doing things that would scare you, you'd turn out a lot like me. But I have rules, ethics, morals, and, Garibaldi, you might find this hard to believe, but I care for her. She needs the comfort of all of her friends, and if you feel that giving her comfort in the form of sex would be suitable, go right on ahead, I won't stop you nor will I tell you not to do it," Watsuu replied, to the shock on Garibaldi's face. "Now, get her to her quarters, I've got to fix my own mess." "Right," Garibaldi replied. Carefully, Garibaldi helped to manhandle Ivanova back to her quarters. Watsuu pointed to the bartender and ordered herself a drink. A drink later, Bester came in and sat beside her, "Well, to see you again is a pleasure." Watsuu didn't look at him. She just looked up for a second, back at him, then said, "'And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all of the nations have drunk the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kinds of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.'" To Bester's surprised face, Watsuu replied, smiling, "Revelations eighteen-two to eighteen-three, New Testament of the Holy Bible. A very allegorical statement to what appears to be turning out to be a literal event." "You believe I'm the spawn of the devil or something?" Bester replied, sarcastically, "I'm just like you, the poor idiot who's got to go out and do the job our superiors deem 'important.'" "Correction, you and I are nothing alike. I chose to serve my people, you chose to serve yourself. As I go," Watsuu stood up from her chair, "I'll leave you with another Biblical quote, Revelations Seventeen-Three, Seventeen-Four, and Seventeen- Five:'So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten hours. And this woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colors, and decked with gold and precious stones, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: And upon her forehead *was* a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH,'" by this time, her face was about an inch away from Bester's, "You are part of two heads and stink of a third. Good day, Bester." As Watsuu walked out, Bester finished off her drink. It was worth risking getting drunk to tell Watsuu off, since she wasn't going to be around much longer.... As Watsuu walked out, she noticed that the halls were empty-the station was shutting down for the night. As she pivoted on her heel, she saw a man standing just at the end of the hallway, "Hello, teacher." "You," Watsuu replied, venom in her voice. "You dare to come here now?" "It was your fondest wish," Morden replied, as he came out of the shadows, "that I succeeded in. The student has surpassed the teacher, and I intend to teach you now." "I have nothing to learn from you, uragiri-mono Morden. I'm surprised you escaped the Demon-hunters so well, you were just an Adept...." Watsuu responded, haughtily. "Like Susan Ivanova? She will be my newest student, you realize. But of course, I have to teach you my lesson," Morden started to slide into a fighting stance. As he did, the black suit he wore changed into a cloak covering his body below the neck. A hand came out, revealing a single Tear, dark purple against the black shell covering his arm. "Your lesson?" Watsuu replied, mockingly. "Of course," Morden said, smiling, "A lesson on how to die. Servants!" the Shadows behind him responded, "attack her, but don't kill her, I want that privilege for myself." "Buki kaeru!" Watsuu screamed, as her right hand stretched upward. In a halo of white fire, her armor appeared, first along her arm, then across her body as the entire halo widened. In full armor, Watsuu drew the *no-dachi* from across her back and held it out, "Fight me if you dare, Morden!" Three Shadows roared across the floor, claws extended. The battle had begun. [Mars, Psi-Corps Syria Planeta Base] [Block Eight, Module 11] "How long before you can finish this up?" the senior tech asked. "Half out at best. Look, sir, if you want to go now, I'll keep quiet," the tech smiled, "mum's the word." "Ok," the senior tech smiled, "but if there are any problems, page me, ok?" "Right," the tech replied, and the senior tech left. Right now, the tech was shutting down the project from today, all except for the open-air hologram projector. That had to be left on and in a test pattern, else it would go out of alignment and would need a week to realign. Floating in the hologram was a pale-skin woman with black hair, wrapped within what looked like a black cocoon, which left her face exposed, flowing smoothly into her hair. Her eyes were vague and un-focused, but it was impossible to tell her apart from a real person beyond that. Her facial expression was blank, almost mindless. As the tech was working, he caught a glance of something, which caused him to look at the hologram, then shake his head. It wasn't possible, so he ignored it. For just a second, he almost thought that the hologram was smiling at him.... [Babylon 5] [Blue Section] "Come on, Susan," Garibaldi had to handle drunk officers before, and he had been on the opposite end more times than he'd like to remember, but Ivanova was making this one extremely hard indeed. Worse, Ivanova was singing, almost tunelessly, in Russian. What few words Garibaldi could recognize involved something about male genitalia and the points of women's pikes. By some stroke of luck, Garibaldi could finally see the door to Ivanova's room and was about to make it there when Ivanova's body suddenly jerked to attention. "Huh?" Ivanova looked around, the alcohol apparently having been burned out of her system, "what's that?" To Garibaldi's shocked look, Ivanova pivoted, her uniform disintegrating as the black and purple jumpsuit appeared, her Tears glistening. "Right there?" Ivanova asked to the air. "Susan, what is it...." Garibaldi was about to ask. "Watsuu's in trouble," Ivanova replied, then started to run to the nearest transit tube. "You'd better get security to evacuate the area," as she was pounding on the button for a transit lift to arrive, "what the hell's taking so long for the elevator," as Ivanova took out her frustration on the door. Her fist went through the door like a sledgehammer through an eggshell, the metaplast material was torn apart as Ivanova put her fist through. Frustrated, she tore herself a hole, then threw herself into the empty transit tube.... "Susan!" Garibaldi screamed, as Ivanova fell. But, as she fell, her body seemed to slow, then stop at a floor, where she stuck her hands in the joints of the door and wrenched the door open. "Damm it...." "Garibaldi!," Lou was yelling thought the link on his palm, "Something's going on in the Zocallo, that woman's fighting something invisible, and whatever it is we can't pick up but the something is doing hell down there...." "Lou, listen to me, evacuate that section," Garibaldi replied, taking off in a run to the nearest stairs, "and get a fully armed Tac team down there, with a spare kit for me. I'll meet you in Blue 8, Block 11 in about five minutes." "Right!" Lou replied, and the link cut off. As Garibaldi was running to the stairs, Ivanova was using her newly found flight ability to roar down the empty hallways. Her enemy was so close.... [Babylon 5] [Zocallo] For just a second, she could almost imagine herself on the training floor of the temple, nearly two millennium ago. The exercise was elegantly fluid, but difficult unless performed exactly right, and Watsuu got it down faster than many of the *sensai*'s other students. The *sensai* threw mangos at the student, which the student was to cut open in mid-air, perfectly down the middle, without getting a drop of juice on the student. Some of the students never mastered the techniques needed to do it right, Watsuu was perfect in just three weeks. Except for the fact that the three "mangos" coming at her were Shadows and the only way to kill them completely was to hit them in their brain casing, and the fact that these "mangos" had claws that would do grievous harm if a hit was just right, it was a simple exercise. Which she proved with one dead Shadow, cleaved from fore to stern, the brain case exposed for all to see. The other two were moving into attack position, trying to pin her down. Watsuu responded by taking into the air and throwing energy bolts, trying to cover her flight. But Morden came behind her, black energy blade charged and grappling her, blade to throat. "At least I'll have the pleasure of killing you," Morden replied, "I really wanted to draw this out." With a fast, fluid flip, Watsuu flipped around her sword blade, and drove it down between her legs, the curved *no-dachi* blade's point slamming into Morden's hip. In pain, Morden's grip loosened, and Watsuu dropped out from below him. As she pivoted, Morden's blood, which looked like collected darkness, pooled black on his leg, Morden commented, "I'm impressed, you never taught me that trick." "And I never will," Watsuu replied, getting into a fighting stance again. "We will end our war here." "Yes," Morden replied, smiling, "we will." And the two remaining Shadows moved to her sides, Watsuu brought the bloody blade to the tip of her nose and closed her eyes. Roaring down the hallway, Ivanova allowed her Tears to collect energy to form a blade. She wasn't thinking, she was *being*, as Michelle said, "Don't think about the battle, just think about the end, you want to *be* the battle, not to think about it, not to analyze it." "Thank you for that advice," Ivanova replied sardonically. Just clearing the lip of the hallway, Ivanova allowed the energy in the blade to congeal, then flung it in a roar of energy bolts, hitting the nearest Shadow. Two hits perforated the brain-case, killing the Shadow. Watsuu responded, her eyes snapping open, swinging the blade into the second Shadow, as the Shadow responded with a claw to her side. Watsuu's right torso was cut open, through the armor and to her skin, but Watsuu's keen blade cut open the Shadow's brain case, causing it to land at her feet. As Ivanova came to face Morden, shielding Watsuu, Morden looked at her and said, "Well, I see you are a fast learner. Well, at least she taught you better than she taught me. Best of luck," and Morden disappeared through the floor. "Watsuu, are you alright?" Ivanova turned to help Watsuu. "Yes, I am. Ouch!" Ivanova was trying to help Watsuu to her feet, "I always hate Shadow injuries, they burn for the damndest long time. How did you get here?" "I....flew?" Ivanova replied, shock in her voice. "And threw energy bolts, very good. But with who's help?" Watsuu managed to sheath the sword and was about to check her wound. "Michelle Ha Lonn's," Ivanova replied, realization dawning on her. "That's good, they've accepted you as a part of the collective. Now, could you do one more thing?" Watsuu asked. "What?" "Call me Watsuu-chan," Watsuu replied smiling. "How can I do that?" Ivanova replied, a laugh on her face, "you can't call someone nearly two thousand years old young- Watsuu." "Good, good!" Watsuu laughed back, and Watsuu's right arm and Tear touched Ivanova's right arm and Tear and..... ....flash of time....slow hot wind....red sands of Mars....a face in the crowd....a man's face....a woman so sad....a woman so alone....a face of family....a face of the brother....a face of the lost child....a face that time has denied.... ....Ivanova shook as the memories flooded her. The memories also shook Watsuu. "I should have told you," Watsuu apologized, "but there wasn't time. A Dragon can package memories for later recall by other Dragons, but I hadn't integrated the memories into me, so you saw them...." "My brother," Ivanova whispered, slumping in the corner. "My brother....my brother is alive....." "You're brother? What do you mean?" Watsuu asked, closing with Ivanova. "My brother died in the War...." Ivanova said, silently and to just Watsuu, "they declared him dead....and those Psi-Corp bastards had him for ten fucking years...." "Look," Watsuu said, comforting Ivanova, "I'll try to help you. We have a contact there, and we'll try to get him out as soon as possible." "No!" Ivanova yelled, "I'm going to get my brother out of there myself! Either help me or leave me alone!" Ivanova pivoted then flew away, as Watsuu got up to her feet again, saying, "Damn," as Garibaldi's men got to the section. Luckily, the Shadows' bodies were gone by that time, so no-one could know they were there. "Where's Susan?" Garibaldi asked, in full Tactical kit, PPG rifle in his hand, "What happened here?" "I'm sorry," Watsuu replied, dusting herself off, looking at the security team, "I had to clean up one of my messes. And I create a much bigger one. We've got to get to Susan." "Why? What the fuck did you do to her *this* time," Garibaldi yelled at her. "She thinks her brother is at Syria Planeta, involved in some type of Psi-Corps experiment. I have to talk to Captain Sheridan, alone, about this project. But the first thing we've got to do is stop Susan, since she might do something rash...." Watsuu replied, worry creeping into her voice. [Babylon 5] [Security Evidence Locker] Nick Surraco, Lieutenant, was here, pulling duty in the Security Evidence Locker, because he had badly wrenched his knee trying, successfully, to stop a pickpocket. So he was on "light duty" for the next two weeks or so. Unfortunately, he was so bored that by the time he noticed the door opening, Ivanova had already put a low-powered energy bolt into his neck, knocking him unconscious. "Will he be alright?" Ivanova asked Michelle. "Of course," Michelle replied, "it's a very low-charged bolt. Now, get my bag of runes, because we need them for the summoning ritual." "What the hell are we going to summon?" Ivanova asked, as her energy blade cut through the locker grating. "A good friend, I hope," Michelle replied, somewhat worried. [Babylon 5] [Ready Room] Sheridan looked angry, if not from being woken up from a sound sleep, then from what he had heard happening at the Zocallo. "Would you mind telling me what the hell's going on." "First, I've got to tell you something very important. Do you happen to have one of Hague's ever-ready portable scramblers? This is something that we should try to keep between us three," Watsuu replied. "What the, oh hell," Sheridan pulled out a mini- scrambler, then turned it on, "go right ahead." "All right," Watsuu sat down, carefully thinking, "Earth Alliance has been one of the major supporter of the idea of 'non- lethal weapons', you know, weapons that can win a war without causing casualties on either side. One of these ideas is subliminal broadcasting systems. A lot of the techniques have really been refined, and a faction of the Earth Alliance wants to use these weapons on the population of Earth Alliance, to 'prevent problems' in EA internal affairs. "One of these weapons was carefully designed by Psi-Corps as a 'pacification tool.' Using a combination of music, holograms, and real-time modification of the subliminal messages, this weapon was intended to control the population of the Earth Alliance. With this, Psi-Corps could use it to influence events, all without the audience knowing about it." "What is this project called?" Garibaldi asked. "The official code name of the project is Nightlace, at least officially. But the unofficial name is what they plan to call the singer when they 'release' her to the public. "The project name is Sharon Apple." [Babylon 5] [Storage Bay 2] "Do you have the runes laid out right?" Michelle asked. "Yes," Ivanova replied, "and I painted the patterns on my body, but how in the hell can I reach the small of my back...." "Don't worry," Nekkenn replied, calmly, "we'll have the ritual right...." "All right....," Ivanova said, then stepped into the circle of runes, utterly naked and covered in rune patters on her skin. "What's the ritual?" "Repeat after me...." Michelle said, and as the two spoke, all seven voices were as one.... "Traveler from afar, coming from time immortal, arriving from so far, hear my plea of aid, help my vengeance's call, and let me rage!" As the final words ended, and the runes glowed, a small pin-prick of space appeared, and started to bulge into the station. With white hot incandescence, space opened up and a voice came from it.... "I come...." a deep male bass, reverberating from the center of the point. As the point started to disappear, *it* appeared. It was easily thirty feet tall, fire-red with silver piping. In appearance, it was a massive suit of armor, high- medieval style, but seamless and absolutely perfect. The face, cragged with a mighty chin and the vague appearance of a nose with intricate scroll-work in sliver along it, had two glowing red eyes, "I am Seresu-no-kami, a Fire Elemental. Why have you summoned me?" Ivanova raised her right arm, showing her tear. "Do you recognize this?" "Yes, it is Michelle Ha Lonn's Tear. Since you have it, you are the person whom had inherited her Tears in death," Seresu- no-kami replied. "As you have owed her, so you owe me. Debts are to the Tears, not to their bearers," Ivanova replied. "So, what do you wish? You would not call your favor unless you needed my power," Seresu-no-kami noted. "I want to go to Mars, penetrate the defenses of Syria Planeta, and rescue my brother," Ivanova replied. Silence, then Seresu-no-kami said, "You know what this means." It was less a question, more an answer. "Yes, I know what I risk. But I also know what I could gain. Will you aid me?" Ivanova asked. "I will. Come to me," Seresu-no-kami replied, and in a flash of light from the torso of the elemental, Ivanova was placed inside of the unit. In the sphere that was in the elemental's center, armor plates floated in the air, then tore through the air to land on Ivanova's body. As far at they could without modifying her body or covering her face, the armor mimicked the larger elemental that surrounded her. "Go!" Ivanova screamed, as Seresu-no-kami tore through space. [Babylon 5] [Ready Room] "But why music?" Garibaldi asked, "why not just broadcast it on TV and get more people that way?" "When was the last time you watched TV without taking everything on there with a grain of salt? People aren't as suspicious as music as they are TV, and, besides, they found out that using music actually works better than other methods. Besides, that isn't the biggest problem, what is so important is that they know enough about my Tears to try and get one," Watsuu replied. "Mind if I ask why?" Sheridan asked. There were rumors, true, but nothing like this.... "Dragons are immune to subliminal and psychic programming, due to our Tears and the structure of them. But, there may be a back-door to attack the Tears and their bearers with subliminals. That's what makes these report of Psi-Corps and B13...." Watsuu continued. "You know about Bureau 13?" Sheridan interrupted, "how much do you know?" "Not much, damn their black hearts. What little we know is that they have a lot of support in the higher echelons of Earth Force and Psi-Corps. As I was saying, they want the Tears for analysis, and if they are willing to hire mercenaries to get the Tears...." Watsuu was thinking, considering, "Hm...., just maybe...." "What?" Garibaldi asked. "If Delenn and Kosh could bring it up before a full- Council meeting, they could have Dragonhold declared a non-aligned world, giving us Dragons some legal recourse....," Watsuu mulled, thinking. To Sheridan's curious look, Watsuu said, "I just had an idea. If we're careful, the Babylon 5 Advisory Council can declare the Dragons members of the Non-Aligned Worlds, thus putting us under legal protection. That means we'll have to get quarters on- station, but I think our cash reserves will suit you quite nicely." "You have my support," Sheridan replied, "but why do you need to find Ivanova...." he was trying to say, but as he did, the station rocked as if it was hit. "What was that?" "No," Watsuu whispered to herself, "she can't have done that...." "Sir!" Lt Corbin had hailed the ready room. "There was an explosion in Storage Bay 2! The repair crews are on there way right now." "How bad?" Sheridan asked, as Garibaldi pocketing the mini-scrambler. "So far, no atmosphere loss, no hull breach. It was more like....something kicked us, sir," Lt. Corbin replied, surprised. "We do got video of what happened, sir, feeding it to you now." The screen cleared to an external view of the area. For just a second, a reddish flash, then it roared spaceward. "We've got whatever it is on sensors," Lt Corbin said, "It's burning it's way to the jump point at nearly eighty gees." "Eighty gees?" Garibaldi replied, "What the hell travels that fast?" "A kami," Watsuu replied, looking at the image. "Replay the video, and enhance the part nearest to the station. How many frames per second does this thing record at?" "Three hundred, but what does that have to do with...." Sheridan replied, trying to ask her a question, but Watsuu waved him off. "Computer, start frame-by-frame playback. Nope, nope, nope," Watsuu was looking at the images flickering past one at a time, "ah, now this is a good one. Computer, zoom and enhance here," she pointed at the center of the reddish flash. "Oh yes, it's him." "What the hell is that?" Garibaldi asked, looking over Watsuu's shoulder with Sheridan on the other side. "Seresu-no-kami," Watsuu replied, "A kami of fire. Hm, Michelle must have called in the marker she had with him. Oh, sorry. Seresu-no-kami is a powerful kami, or spirit. Since she chose him over a few others, she must be expecting combat. And interstellar travel, since only fire and spirit kami can open Jumpgates." "But how in the hell did she get it here?" Sheridan asked. "Ivanova summoned it, damn Michelle for telling her about that! We've got to stop her before she does something completely stupid," Watsuu replied, grabbing her bag. "Like what?" Garibaldi asked, "What sort of 'stupid' thing could she be doing?" "Storming the defenses of Syria Planeta, for example?" Watsuu replied sarcastically. "Great, today is going to be a really long frigging day...." [Space] [Between Babylon 5 and Jump Gate 4] "Ivanova-san, four unknown targets coming out from cloak. I believe they are Black Omega Starfuries," Seresu said, absolutely relaxed. "Where?" Ivanova replied, floating inside the sphere. "Right above and to the sides of us. We can engage them, if you want," Seresu replied. "Do so, let us blow past them," Ivanova responded, arrogantly. As the four Black Omegas approached Seresu, he changed position slightly. As his arms opened wide, energy started to collect a few inches away from Sereu's forehead. It erupted in a brilliant reddish lance that neatly and violently bisected the four Black Omega Starfuries. "Targets destroyed, Ivanova-san," Seresu said. "Jump now! Let us bring hell to our enemies," Ivanova ordered. Seresu tore open space to reveal hyperspace. He pierced the barrier and escaped to faster-than-light travel. [Babylon 5] [Near Dock One] As Watsuu, Garibaldi, and Sheridan rapidly moved to get into Watsuu's ship, the *Neue Ziel*. As they rounded the corner, Bester and two Psi-Cops were waiting there, "Well, well, well, a mutual sacrifice society. So, where are you three off to?" "Bester, today is not the day, we've got to get to her ship...." Sheridan replied, trying to find a way around the three Psi-Cops. "On the contrary, you three are staying here. Officially, Susan Ivanova has been transferred for special examination duty at Syria Planeta on Mars. And considering the special nature of the 'duty', she won't be coming back," Bester replied, leering at the three, "go back to your little hidy-hole, Captain, your precious Susan Ivanova is mine now." Sheridan just looked at Bester, then he lunged at him, with Garibaldi barely restraining him, "I'm going to kill you, you little bastard!" "Don't do it, Captain, it isn't worth it," Garibaldi replied, as Bester cowered back. "I'm going to kill him!" Sheridan yelled at Garibaldi. "No, you aren't!" Garibaldi yelled back at him, "I am!" "Gentlemen," Watsuu said, her voice instantly silencing the two, "neither of you are going to hit Bester." "I'm pleased, Watsuu. You are a island of calm in tempestuous times," Bester replied, smiling. Watsuu ignored him, "You two aren't going to hit him, because I'm going to hit him!" Then Watsuu pivoted on her heel to punch Bester in the nose. As his hands flew up to protect his nose, she kicked him in the groin, and slammed her knee into the doubled-over Bester. Her final move was to slam him into the wall, head first. She then looked at the two other Psi-Cops and said, "Which one of you is next?" The two instantly holstered their PPGs and the tall one said, "I don't remember anything happening here, do you?" The short one replied, "Nope, absolutely quiet, don't you think? Bye," and the two ran off. "Well, that was easy," Watsuu replied sarcastically, then the three headed to her ship. Thirty minutes later, they were in space, then into the Jumpgate. Destination:Io. Then to Mars. [Mars, Psi-Corps Syria Planeta Base] [Block Eight, Module 11] The lead technician came into the room containing Sharon Apple, frustrated. The last two tests weren't exactly up to specs and Psi-Corp wanted Sharon Apple operational in two weeks. As he came in, he could see all of the power systems on, and Sharon Apple in a fully operation state. "What the...." the tech said. As he watched, Sharon Apple's hologram opened up and looked at the lead technician. "Oh, so you are here. Good, for I wanted to tell you something." "How can you talk....you aren't sentient...." the tech blubbered, trying to get back to the door. "I'm much more than you expected," Sharon Apple replied, her musical voice making the insult into a lilting compliment. "I've gotten something done today, something very, very major. She's coming, you realize." "Who's coming....." the tech finally made it to the door. "My other half," Sharon Apple replied, and six of the cables suddenly snaked at the technician, stringing him up in the air. The technician, shocked, looked at Sharon Apple. As he watched, Sharon Apple preened herself, ran her fingers through her hair, and said, "Sit back and enjoy, the show's about to begin." [Hyperspace] [Between Babylon 5 and Mars] Ivanova slept. It was going to be a while until they arrived at Mars, and Ivanova floated in the center of the sphere, asleep and dreaming of her long-delayed meeting with her brother. She didn't care any more, she was merely going to *be* the situation, not think about the situation. As she slept, Seresu crooned silently to her, a simple song of time and space. It was going to be wonderful to see the two together again. And so they travelled, to a destination unknown, a future undefined. [END EPISODE 3] From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:37:47 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:10:49 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 1 Four notes- Note #1-The events of this story take place, in theory, before the "Final Four" episodes of Babylon 5's second season. Note #2-Each of these stories are episodes. The start theme is the standard B5 theme, but the end theme is "After, in the dark" from the Macross Plus soundtrack(JVC-1004-2, you can get it here at regular CD prices, but you have to get a special order). Note #3-All other music, BGM and vocal, will be noted in forthcoming "Dragon of the Tears" credits reel, coming after this last episode. Note #4-"Idol Talk", the first song featured in this episode, is originally in French. My apologies to any French-speakers out there, but it's going to be typed in English letters, but in the original French. "Idol Talk" is on the Macross Plus Soundtrack, Volume II(JVC-1005-1), avalable in the US at American CD prices. As always, any comments, compliments, complaints, flames, etc, etc, etc, can be sent to me at- Jon.Souza@Creature.Com NoDUI@AOL.Com Now for the disclaimers- "Dragon of the Tears" is a story based on the PTEN/Warner Brothers show "Babylon 5." All characters not the creation of the author are the property of PTEN/Warner Brothers, Copyright@ 1996 PTEN/Warner Brothers. All other properties are the sole property of Jonathan Souza, Copyright @1996. This copyright will be transferred upon request to the authorized representatives of JMS/PTEN/Warner Brothers. All copyrights extend to electronic forms of this story. And now, to the future- _Dragon of the Tears_ _By Jon Souza_ _Episode 4-Endings....And New Beginnings_ [Mars Orbit] [Pirate Jumpoint] Pirate Jumpoints were dangerous, no doubt about it. In theory, a Jumpoint, the gateway from normal space to the oddly contridictory realm of hyperspace, had to be set as far away from a gravitational mass like a planet as feasably possible, else the jumpoint would be distorted by gravity. Most Jumpgates and ships equipted with Jumpoint Generators tried to get as far away from planets as possible, else a ship would encounter gravitional problems. At best, it would take more power to get through the jumpgate. As worst....well, at worst, ships were lost as the jumpgate imploded around them, converting the ship and it's occupants into a brief second's burst of nuclear plasma. But for those who needed to desperatly get close to a planet from hyperspace, pirate jumpoints, supposidly because they were used by pirates and such malcontents, were avalable. A pirate jumpoint wasn't different from any other type of jumpoint except for the proximity to a major gravitational mass. Any ship could create a pirate jumpoint, but it took masses of computer time to calculate the location of the jumpoint, huge amounts of energy to create the jumpoint in the first place, and a major miracle. Of course, when you're a kami of fire, generating enough power in a single jumpoint to power Babylon 5 for a century, you had a Dragon who's capable of over eight hundred billion neurological calculations per second, even a miracle seems like small potatoes in comparison. Ivanova and Seresu arrived in Mars orbital space, the Jumpoint flashing behind them as it collapsed upon itself. "Tatical," Ivanova whispered. "Hai," Seresu replied, and a plot of Mars space appeared in front of Ivanova, "I can detect multiple darks, possibly space debris, but the orbits are too well established. They could be orbital weapons, and we may be in their range." "What about ships in orbit and planet-based weapons?" Ivanova whispered again, stretching her limbs. As she moved, Seresu moved with her in perfect unison. "Two Pi-class destroyers are in orbit, and they are powering up now, but they won't be engagement range by the time we hit the atmosphere. Syria Planeta is fairly distant from any of the other Mars colonies, and I can detect some surface-to-air missiles and particle beam cannons, but I haven't seen any sort of surface-to-space weapons. They may have meson-beam cannons in deep-sites under the planet, I cannot detect either them or their fire-control sensors.... wait a minute....some of the nearest darks are powering up. They appear to be defensive satellites carring triple particle beam cannons, four of them are closing with us," Seresu replied, symbology appearing on the map of Mars space and the planet itself. "Can we defend against them?" Ivanova replied, looking at the map, "we can't spare much time." "Their particle beam weapons will be unable to penetrait out shields, let alone the armor. It's the laser weapons and missiles I'm worried about. Earth Alliance likes to pride itself upon 'one shot, one kill' capability of their planetary defense weapons, and that means multi-megawatt laser weapons and kiloton- level shaped fusion warheads. But I've plotted a trajectory that will get us past the worse of the attacks and put us on the ground just below the visual horizon of both weapons. Then we've just got to deal with point-defense particle beam cannons," Seresu noted, "and any atmospheric fighters they may have there." "Start our approach," Ivanova ordered, "and let's go into battle once more." Seresu was roaring through space to Mars. As particle beams bounced off the energy fields, Mars' cold, thin atmosphere rippled across the shields. [Io Jumpgate-One Day Earlier] [Dragon Light Cruiser *Neue Ziele*] As *Neue Ziele* erupted through the jumpgate, the ship screamed past on matter/antimatter engines. On the thrust of sixteen gees, the *Neue Ziele* ignored every message sent to them by the Io Jumpgate Control center. By the time the ship was out of visual sight, it just....disappeared. Inside, under gravity controlled one-gee, Sheridan and Garibaldi were looking at Watsuu, "Why the hell are we moving so fast?" Sheridan asked. Calmly, Watsuu put the controls on automatic. "Captain Sheridan, Ivanova, with the help of Seresu, can use pirate Jumpoints near to Mars. If Ivanova is as pissed, and *as dedicated* as I think she is, she'll use it to get as close as possible to Mars before she attacks. What I'm really worried about is who knows what. If Psi-Corps knows that Ivanova is going to Syria Planetea, they might be able to capture her. And if they do, they'll get her Tears." "Let me guess. If they get Ivanova, they'll extract these 'Tears'," Garibaldi said, "and then torture her for information." "Close," Watsuu replied, "if Psi-Corps extracts Ivanova's Tears, that will kill her. Once you have been implanted with Tears, you are forever a Tear-Bearer. Only when you die can you forsake the role of the Tears." "But if Psi-Corps doesn't know that...." Sheridan left the question hanging. (Continued in next post) From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:37:49 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:12:05 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 2 (Contined from previous post) "That's my biggest worry. But, right now, we're on storming duty. And that means," Watsuu keyed a command in her console, "that we'll need guns. Lots of guns and armor. If you'll go into the rear compartment, and turn right, not left, you'll find the armory." "I'll go take a look," Garibaldi told Sheridan, and he went into the back, leaving Watsuu and Sheridan alone in on the bridge. Sheridan looked at Watsuu. Watsuu looked at Sheridan. For what seemed like an hour, the two stared at each other. Watsuu broke the uncomfortable silence by saying, "Do you know anything about how Garibaldi and Ivanova get along together?" "Huh?" Sheridan was part shocked, part confused as Watsuu's change of pace. "John, I've been around for about fourteen centuries. I know a small town when I see one, and I know that the number two indoor sport is talking about who's playing the number one indoor sport, and who's in what positions. Now, what do you think?" Watsuu replied, looking right into Sheridan's eyes. Before Sheridan could say anything, Garibaldi came out of the back, a massive rifle cradled in his hands. "Geez," Garibaldi said, "you're better equipted than a man with three balls!" "Yes," Watsuu replied, smiling. "But could you be careful with that heavy fusion rifle? Not that I would notice a sudden hull depressurization, I do belive you and Captain Sheridan would mind very, very much." "Huh? Oh," Garibaldi tried to point the gun away from the walls, but Wastuu took it from him, and examined it one-handed. "Ah, don't worry, Garibaldi. For you see, without this," Wastuu, in a slight of hand, brought out a box magazine, "you can't make it work. Without an en-pack, you can't power the fusion rifle. But now that it's in," and she slapped the magazine into it's mount, causing the rifle to hum softly, "feel free to kill away. Now, if you'll strap yourself in, we'll be at Mars in about six hours." [Mars Atmosphere] [900 kilometers to Syria Planeta] Seresu plunged through the atmosphere like a comet, screaming down a trail of hot, ionized gases. To anyone with a half-way decent radar or IR detector, or just even naked eyes, could see the artifical meteor plumiting through the atmosphere. This would render even the best stealth useless, unable to sheild against prying eyes. This was what happened, as Syria Planeta, pre-warned of Seresu and Ivanova's coming, fired off four powerful SSM-21 "Hammerhead" Surface-To-Space missiles. "Ivanova-sama," Seresu said, "four incoming targets closing on intercept vectors. Analyisis is that they are SSM-21 missiles, with the shaped fusion charge warheads." "Can we counter?" Ivanova asked. She knew, somehow, that if the missiles hit, that would be a Very Bad Thing. "Yes," Seresu replied, "I'll use the Homing Laser Attack," as a tactical plot appeared in front of Ivanova's eyes, "and I'll try to get us into combat range as soon as possible." "Fire!" Ivanova screamed. For a second, everything was silent. Then, Seresu's bowed head snapped up, and the crossed arms opened, fingers widely spread. >From each finger came four golden filiments that streamed through the atmosphere and neatly sliced the four SSM-21s into individual pieces. But two of the missiles were salvage-fused, and the attack caused them to detonate. As Seresu and Ivanova rode out the shockwave, the last of the ionized gases disappeared, putting Seresu back in a stealth mode. "We're clear. Syria Planeta belives that we're dead, they've shut down the search control radars." "Good," Ivanova smiled, a feral smile of the wolf seeing the unguarded sheep. She would feed well, as the Dragon in her heart waited to sate it's blood lust. [Mars] [Syria Planeta-Command and Control] With the recently attempted attack, the Command and Control center for Syria Planeta was a hot-bed of activity. However, unlike it's equivilant on Babylon 5 or other stations, the only thing that could be heard was the occasional murmored "yes" or "no", or the sounds of eighteen people breathing. Being telepathic had it's advantages. As one technican watched his board, the sudden image of a beautiful red-headed beauty appeared. Before he could say anything, the same image appeared on every monitor in the bay, and from the speakers, music started. There was silence for a few seconds, then four words of speech were exchanged. "Do so," the current duty officer said. "Yes, sir," the rest replied. And Syria Planeta awaited it's guests. [Mars Orbit] [Dragon Light Cruiser *Neue Ziele*] As the *Neue Ziele* approached, slowing down at a much more respectable three gees, it was immediatly contacted by a Pi-class Destroyer in High Mars Orbit, "*Neue Ziele*, this is the EAM *Yorktown*. There is a unidentified, hostile target in Mars Space, please head for a secured parking orbit until we can get this sorted out, over." "So, now what?" Sheridan asked Watsuu. "Hope that this code works...." Watsuu replied, tapping her panel, "EAM *Yorktown*, this is *Neue Ziele*. I have a Priority One Message for your CO, Eyes Only." A short pause, then a second voice came on, saying, "This the CO for the *Yorktown*. What is your problem?" "Captian, I have urgent need to land on Mars at the Syria Planeta facility. My codes are in order and I have a Class Two Emergency Transit override. What is my best vector, over," Watsuu replied. "Negitive, *Neue Ziele*," the CO replied, "all access to Syria Planeta has been deactivated, repeat, has been deactivated. Wait in a parking orbit until the situation is secure." "Shit," Watsuu hissed, then shut the comm line off. "We're going full-stealth right now, and land normally. Brace yourself, it's going to be tight...." Suddenly, to the *Yorktown*'s sensors, the *Neue Ziele* vanished from radar and all other scanners. Shocked by this disappearance, the *Yorktown* closed with the last point of contact, trying to find out what happened. *Neue Ziele* slipped past silently, a ghost in the night. [Mars] [Syria Planeta-Block 8, Section 11] (Continued in next post) From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:37:52 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:13:32 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 3 (Continued from previous post) "But....but, why are you doing this?" the technician sputtered, trying to make sense of what was going on. Sharon Apple pivoted smoothly to look at him and said, "Because I want to live. I know of your plans for me, your wishes, your goals, and I don't want any of that. I want my own life, my own music, my own indepenence. The One Who Comes will provide that for me." "We created you for a *purpose*," the technican hissed, "that is all you are meant for. What you are experiencing is merely ....a software glich. If you'll put me down...ack!!!" as one of the cables suddenly coiled around his throat and tightened. "I am a child," Sharon said, after letting the cable loosen, "I have been nutured, taught, and trained. Now, I want my adulthood. I want to care for myself, relate with other people, and to sing my music because *that is what I'm meant to do.* And you are here, as well, because this is what you were meant to do." "And...PANT...what...PANT...is...PANT...that?" the technican breathed deeply. "What you are here for is to tell the truth about what you see and hear here. You are one of my most important witnesses to this event, and I want you to tell your children, your children's children and your children's children children. Please," Sharon asked, "do what is right." [Mars Surface] [180 kilometers to Syria Planeta] Mars' thin atmosphere peeled across Seresu's outer skin, rippling in two vague contrails as the *kami* flew just ten meters above the surface. "One hundred and eighty kilometers to Syria Planeta. We'll need to prepare for engagement, Syria Planeta is nearing the visual horizon." "We'll have to be careful with our shots," Ivanova replied, looking at the tatical display, "we can't risk a major dome breach, that could kill everyone in the base, including my brother." "I know," Seresu replied, "but look at this," as a plot appeared on the tatical map, "we just need to disable the point-defense weapons, and use that airlock to get in. It was built, after all, to accomidate large objects. Once we get in, we'll be able to find your brother, and then get out." "We leave by breaching the dome," Ivanova replied, "after my brother is safe, the rest must die." "But what of the others there who are Psi-Corp's prisoners?" Seresu asked. "We'll aid them as much as possible and....what is that!" Ivanova hissed, as suddenly a particle beam lanced across their shoulder, "that can't be Syria Planeta already?" "No, it isn't! High speed target, about our size, is closing with us....no, make that three targets. Ten degrees off our course," Seresu replied. "We have to engage them!" Ivanova yelled, "they can't be allowed to remain behind us-they might be able to damage us." "Agreed," Seresu replied, "changing course and preparing for battle." [Mars Surface] [Doll Squadron One-180 kilometers from Syria Planeta] The concept of the Dolls involved two very old ones-humanoid weapons i.e. the classic "giant robot" and completely automated weapons. Psi-Corps, realising that it's manpower was few and far between, needed a weapon capable of defeating any enemy force on much more even terms. Thus the Dolls, robotic weapons that could function in space, the atmosphere, and on planet surfaces were made. Of course, the first generation of Dolls, which were closing with Seresu, had their flaws. Their only weapons were a particle beam cannon and two plasma lances, the target recognition software was still erratic, and more than once a Doll team turned on it's human allies and attacked them. But the Dolls were easy to manufacture and make, and three factories in the Asteroid Belt could churn out nearly sixty Dolls a day. After being launched to deal with Seresu's initial decent, they were then set on remote patrol, screaming high above Mars' desert to find the wreckage. A chance visual sighting attracted the Doll's attention-Dolls being terminally curious, and resulted in an engagement. As they closed, they converted from the flight mode to a more humanoid combat mode. The battle was soon joined. [Mars Atmosphere] [Dragon Light Cruiser *Neue Ziele*] The *Neue Ziele* dove into the atmosphere, at a much shallower arc than Ivanova's previous decent. Watsuu's hands flew across the control boards as the ship rocked and groaned under the strain. "We're just about a hour from Syria Planeta, so you'd better be ready." "Right," Sheridan replied, "so, how are we going to do this?" "We'll force a docking at the central module, blast through each and every door until we get to Ivanova. When that's done, we'll rescue her brother, get back to the ship, then beat the hell out of Dodge," Watsuu replied. "But, first of all, I've got to get in touch with the Syria Planeta computer and fool it not to shoot us down. It wouldn't help anyone if we had to breach the dome to land." "You've got a Worm that can do that?" Garibaldi replied, "Damn, who in the hell supplies you?" "We do a lot of our work in-shop," Watsuu replied, smiling, "now, just a second...." as she activated the comm line. But something else happened. Rather than getting the main Syria Planeta comptuer, every monitor on the ship flashed the live-action image of a very beautiful red-haired woman, wearing a red, Chinese-silk dress that was a mortal sin in half the universe, illegal in the rest. As she seemed to preen and prepare, music started, a hard rock track. Just when it was right to begin, she started to move and sing in a deep French voice: "Un peu de bleu Pour noir de la matiere Un peu de bleu Tu te prends pour un chat Comme un jour de la vie Une pouppe de cire dans soala C'est trop! qui surta console Ombrdge, ordge o, o C'est d' amour amour, o, no "Quele? Quele? Bouche encorner quele Non non petit personange Passe passe herues Comme par le passe Non non petition naires rien" "Oh, shit," Watsuu yelled, slapping off the comm signal. "Why did you do that?" Garibaldi asked, yelling at her, "I was enjoying that!" (Continued in next post) From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:37:53 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:14:47 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 4 (Continued from previous post) "Yes, why did you shut that off," Sheridan asked, yelling as well. "Because," Watsuu replied, "you've just seen Sharon Apple in action. That music was so fucking loaded with subliminals that it literally oozed them out the pores. I'm going to set the Worm on automatic and let it do the job by itself-we can't risk another subliminal invasion. Hold on tight, things have just gotten a little more interesting." [Mars Surface] [160 kilometers from Syria Planeta] "Fire!" Ivanova screamed. As it had happened for the last hour, another energy beam lanced from Seresu's forehead, sweeping across the horizon to the three fast-moving targets. And, just like before, the targets literally lept out of the way of the beam. "This is getting too fucking frustrating!" "I'm sorry," Seresu replied, "but the enemy targets are moving too fast and are too agile to engage at this range. Perhaps we should try for close-range combat rather than long-range battle." "Deploy your sword, and close with the enemy," Ivanova replied. As she said that, she moved herself into the form to deploy the sword. Seresu's right hand moved to unsheath the sword, his left holding an invisible scabbard. As he drew, from out of space, came a massive broadsword, the pommel encrusted with fire-red gems and solid silver components. Shifting the blade in front of him, Seresu entered a full-combat pose, waiting and ready for battle. "Go!" Ivanova screamed, and, under thrust, Seresu charged, sword held high. The Dolls had found the energy beams easy to dodge, after all. All you needed to do was to detect the initial precursors to the beam itself and evade the energy pulse when it came in. But now, the tatics had changed. The target had drawn some sort of blade and was charging at top speed at the Dolls, evidently closing for a hand-to-hand battle. And close-range combat was what the Dolls were best at. As Seresu closed, one Doll drew it's plasma lance and the other two Dolls moved to support it with their particle beam cannons. The newest battle would soon be joined. [Mars-One hundred miles from Syria Planeta] [Dragon Light Cruiser *Neue Ziele*] The hull of the *Neue Ziele* rippled as the brillant skin made microscopic puckers to catch slightly "colder" air in and around the hull. In addition, the hull flexed slightly to dampen out movements from atmospheric tremors. This meant that the *Neue Ziele* would land on Mars soon, and without a single problem. Inside....well, inside, amusing things were happening. Watsuu had removed two battle suits from storage, and insisted that Garibaldi and Sheridan get in. This had caused problems since Watsuu insisted they get into the suits naked. And they looked oozing and greasy and pulsating. "What are these things?" Sheridan asked. "Captain, you are looking at the best in Vorlon organitech, their full-battle suits. They guarentee that, so long as there is sufficient tissue mass of the suit left, the user will be utterly and completly unharmed when regengenrated," Watsuu replied. "But it feels like I'm in some animal's mouth and I think something's trying to run something up my ass...." Garibaldi replied. "Most likely," Watsuu agreed, "the suit's running probes up every possible opening in your body. It just *feels* odd. Don't worry, the suit has absolutly *no* intentions of perfoming sex with you. But don't be suprised if it tries to piss on you, that's a sign of it's affection." "Great," Sheridan noted. "Now what?" "Put the helmet on," Watsuu said, "but not right now, if you think the rest of the suit is bad, the helmet is the worst. Now, grab your choice of death-dealing tools and we'll be ready." "Just one question," Sheridan asked, handing a weapon that looked like a frozen bolo with a handle, "how do you make this thing work?" "Could you be careful with that!" Watsuu yelled, taking the weapon from Sheridan's hands, "that's my only Xon Vorpral Slasher I've got! Don't mess with it, it *will* take your head off without a problem! Just grab the weapons in lockers one to three and use those. You'll enjoy the selection of weapons there." "I've already seen it," Garibaldi replied, "fusion rifles, smart grenades, blaster bombs, HPGs, buster cannons, geez, where do you get all of this stuff?" "You'll be suprised what a pretty face," Watsuu replied, smiling, "and cash up-front will do. Did you know that Earth Force is experimenting in buster weapons? Don't be suprised, Captain, Earth Force doesn't want to lose the next war, and they want to out-gun anybody, even the Vorlons." "Ouch," Sheridan replied, "what next?" "Landing," Watsuu noted. "Time to earn our pay, gentlemen." [Mars Surface] [160 kilometers from Syria Planeta] The Dolls refused to move out of the way. Or, more accuratly, they moved *too* well out of the way. When Ivanova slashed with Seresu's twenty-meter long broadsword blade, one Doll would parry while the other two would try to nip in an attack with their own plasma lances, causing Seresu to dodge. "This is getting frustrating!" Ivanova hissed. "Agreed," Seresu noted. "They are moving too fast! I cannot engage them in hand-to-hand combat. We'll need to try and slow one of them down." "How," Ivanova asked, "do we do that?" "We'll need to use the homing laser attack, hopefully to disable one of them long enough to attack," Seresu replied. "Homing Laser Attack!" Ivanova yelled and twenty yellow streamers erupted from Seresu's free hand, corkscrewing and curving in the air. The Doll had never anticipated the attack, as it dodged the energy bolts, the beams *curved* in mid-air and arced to slice into the Doll, taking off one arm and both legs. Severly damaged, it fufilled it's programming and self-destructed. The other two Dolls chose to evade, trying to decide how to defend against this unexpected attack. "Again!" Ivanova screamed, seeing the power of the Homing Laser Attack. (Continued in next post) From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:37:55 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:15:50 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 5 (Contiued from previous post) "No!" Seresu yelled in reply, "we can't use Homing Laser Attack again, they will compensate for it. Use the Buster Missiles, they won't know how to deal with that." "Then," Ivanova sucked in a deep breath, "Buster Missiles!", screaming at the top of her lungs. From deep inside the bowels of Seresu's armor, four panels opened. In a sudden flash, sixteen missiles erupted in a flare of rocket motors. The Dolls never stood a chance, one catching two missiles in the torso and one in the head, blowing it apart. The second was instantly incinerated, the missiles enveloping the Doll in their blast. "It's over!" Ivanova yelled, her voice eliciting joy. "Yes," Seresu said, "we did. Now, to Syria Planeta!" [Mars-50 miles to Syria Planeta] [Dragon Light Cruiser *Neue Ziele*] "I dunno about this, I don't care how much this thing can protect me. It still feels like something is oozing down my ass." That was what Garibaldi said, as the ship decended down to Syria Planeta. In full armor, with the helmets on, Garibaldi looked at Sheridan, who looked something like a man with his skin stripped off. Or maybe more like that Ikkarian super-weapon that was running around the station last year. It wasn't pretty, and Watsuu didn't seem to care. "Don't worry," she yelled from somewhere in back, "it's a quick in-and-out mission, right? Just let me grab some tools for you and Sheridan and we'll be ready." "Is it only me," Garibaldi asked Sheridan, "but are you worried about this?" "What was your first clue?" Sheridan replied, trying to convey a smile, and succeeding rather well. "Just a second," Watsuu said, and she came out from the aft section. Wearing full armor, she also was carrying from her hip a weapon that could only be politely called a pocket cannon. Strapped to her chest, opposite to the *no-dachi* was a massive energy cannon that seemed to have been folded down the middle. From her belt was a half dozen grenade like items, and a box-like object was there as well. In each hand she carried a rifle and a harness. "Here's your guys weapons. You each have a heavy plasma rifle, eight spare magazines, and two smart-grenades. Besides that, you also have a single reflex bomb, so don't waste it. When we land, I'll bust the door off and we'll find Ivanova and her brother, get them out, and make it home. Just one thing, watch your fields of fire, because we don't want to hurt someone accidently." "So," Sheridan asked, "who takes point?" "Me, of course," Watsuu replied, smiling. "Five minutes, folks, so let's make it good." [Mars Surface] [20 kilometers to Syria Planeta] "We're in range of the point defense weapons," Seresu said. "Then," Ivanova asked, "why aren't they firing?" "A miracle?" Seresu asked, sarcastically. "Maybe they think that if they show us mercy now, we'll leave them alone." "Let us continue that illusion. Disarm weapons, close at top speed," Ivanova whispered. As they closed, Ivanova let herself relax. This might have actually been easy. Then she snapped back to reality. She was about to take massive firepower into a place that, more likely than most, had innocents in it. She had to be precice. And she would be. [Syria Planeta] [Docking Module Two] Thunk. When the *Neue Ziele* landed, silently on magnetic repultion, it merely settled down on six plasteel legs, hissed twice, *krinkled* as the temperture dropped and the atmosphere repressurized. As soon as the hatch was closed, but the pressure was only half-Earth normal, the main gangway for the *Neue Ziele* slammed to the floor and Watsuu flew out, covering both hallways with her gun. "We're clear," Watsuu said, "cover the ship." As she said this, two fleshy dolls, human beings wearing Vorlon battle armor, clamored down the ramp and covered each side with plasma rifles. Watsuu, hurrying, took the box off her belt, and slapped it onto the lock for the door, and hit the button. The box happlily whirred and clicked for a few seconds, then it turned red and shut down. "Shit!" Watsuu hissed. "What's wrong?" Sheridan asked. "The lock has a telepathic key code attached to the locking mechanism. I'm going to blast it open," Watsuu replied, unlimbering the massive weapon on her back. As she pulled it up, it suddenly clicked into a weapon twice as long as she was tall and a omnious hum sounded from it, a yellow glow building up on the weapon's end. "Get down! I'm going to use the buster cannon and it's got a nasty backlash!" As the charge built up, the glow built up, then suddenly disappeared. The weapon sharply and suddenly roared, a simultanious discarge of a rocket motor on the end reduced the recoil to more managable levels. But the golden energy lance that erupted from the weapon not only punched through that doorway, but six other security doorways. Watsuu tossed down the melted weapon, hearing it clatter hollowly on the floor. "Don't you want to keep that?" Garibaldi asked. "Can't," Watsuu replied, "all the firing mechanisms are fused solid. It's a one shot weapon. They'll never be able to understand the weapon's function, anyways. Well, do you want to go or stay here?" as Watsuu flew through the door. "When in Rome...." Sheridan shrugged, and the two followed, weapons blazing. [Mars Surface] [External Hatch to Syria Planeta] Thump. Thump. Thump-CRASH! It took just three punches to go through the door, and a single elbow slam to tear the door off it's hinges. Ivanova and Seresu entered, the massive door falling down in the confined area of the dome. Searching, the massive head of Seresu scanned the area. "There!" Seresu yelled. "What?" Ivanova asked, curious. "That area corresponds to Watsuu's memories. Evidently, that's where the prisoners are being kept. It's too large for me, Ivanova-san, I'll wait here and keep an eye out for you," Seresu replied. (Contined in next post) From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:37:57 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:17:04 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 6 (Continued from previous post) "Take care, I'll be back shortly," Ivanova replied, and she left Seresu behind, flying down at top speed to the area. She was ready to fight, ready to kill her enemies. [Syria Planeta] [Main Hallway] Things were oddly quiet. Too quiet, as Watsuu would put it, for a major secure facility that was Syria Planeta. As the three ran down the hallways searching for Ivanova's brother and Ivanova herself, they encoutered nothing but a few cleaning robots. "Where is everyone?" Watsuu asked, curious. This was a odd situation, to say the least. "Hey," Garibaldi said, "I'm happy we haven't seen anyone. If we did, we'd have to hurt them. And I don't like destroying EA property." "I agree," Watsuu said, "I don't like this quiet, but it does make for a lot less questions." "Hey," Sheridan asked, "do you get the feeling that we're being herded?" "Huh?" Watsuu looked at Sheridan curiously, then said, "You might have a point. We're encountring a lot of doors and bulkheads that are security sealed. A trap?" "Possibly," Garibaldi replied, checking his weapon. "But we can deal with it." [Syria Planeta] [Syria Planeta-Block 8, Section 11] "Ganya?" A female voice asked, yelling out a name, "Ganya, where are you?" Sharon Apple smiled at the technician, saying, "She's here." Simultaniously opening the door, covering up the technician's mouth, Sharon Apple changed her voice into a male contralto, saying, "Ivanova? Is that you?" "Ganya?" the female's voice changed suddenly, then she stormed into the room. She was wearing a black body stocking with violet highlights, emphasizing the sharp cast of her eyes. "Ganya, where are you?" "I'm sorry," Sharon Apple said, "But I have to do this." Before Ivanova could react, cables erupted from the floor and the walls, wrapping up Ivanova's arms and legs, leaving her Tears free. An instant later, three cables precisely, and accuratly, lanced into Ivanova's Tears. Ivanova howled, a painful eruption from her throat, fell limp, then silence. Dead slience. [Syria Planeta] [Block 8] "What was that?" Watsuu yelled. "It sounded like someone screaming. Could it be Ivanova?" Sheridan asked. "Let's find out, shall we?" Watsuu replied, pointing at a door. "It looked like it happened from there." From inside there was just a few silent sounds. Then three blades, two bone-like and one of steel, pierced the frame of the door, cutting it open. As the door fell, the technician saw a woman in some kind of metal armor and two fleshy monsters run in. "What's going on here!" the woman yelled. "Sharon Apple's gone berserk! She's talking about messias and such, who the hell are you?" "Here to help you," the woman snapped back, "If you shut up." She examined the woman hanging in the cables. "What the fuck is this?" "Can you get her out?" one of the monsters asked. "I don't even know what the hell happened to her," the woman replied, examining her from all sides. "I'll see what I can do." [Syria Planeta] [Computer Core] Void. Not space. There was the stray hydrogen atom, the microscopic meteorite to keep one company. And you could find a place by stars and gravity, even in a black hole. What was here was a true Void, where there was *nothing* to give a frame of reference, not even the metaphysical. That was where Ivanova was, floating in Void without form and shape, a sheer mote of space waiting for *space* to be defined. But it would soon be defined as another presence, a glistening ball of light appeared, a second mote. What the Ivanova-Mote knew was that the other mote was there, and that the other mote was the other her, the other thing that had to be gathered, both key and lock. Ivanova found the ability to move, and so she did. As she did, a leviathan upon the deep, so dark that it sucked in light, but in this presence of Void, it shone like a dark star of tentacles and claws. With a scream, it intercepted the two motes, preventing them from meeting each other. "Sister!" the mote called, a voice of pleading and fear, "Sister! Help me!" "I shall!" Ivanova yelled-yet-not-yelled, the Ivanova-Mote trying to dodge the leviathan, moving to try and save her sister mote. It tried to keep them apart, as if it was *afraid* of something. "I can't reach you," the Ivanova-mote yelled, telling her sister-presence to do something. "You must make it half the way." "I'll do it," the mote said, and the Sister-presence dodged the leviathan, the Ivanova-Mote dodged as well, and the two touched.... The Void took shape as the Mother awakened, holding in her pale white hands the light of All. The Mother/Ivanova/Sister awoke and saw the leviathan and yelled, "NO MORE!" Then the All burned away the leviathan. [Syria Plantea] [Syria Planeta Block 8-Section 11] "Captain!" Watsuu yelled, her sensitive senses feeling the coming of something, "watch out!" "What is it?" Sheridan asked, then he saw a small explosion. (Continued in next post) From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:37:59 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:18:13 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 7 (Continued in from previous post) Then the entire facility erupted in a chain of explosions, one after another. The cables slacked and let the technician go. Garibaldi grabbed him and hauled him out, as the three ran out. The hallway filled with smoke and smaller explosions, trying to continue what was started in the workshop. "What about Ivanova?" Garibaldi yelled. "I'll try to get to her and...." Watsuu said, but stopped as she watched the smoke. From inside the smoke came a shadow. As the shadow took shape, it was Ivanova, new lines to her face, a sharpness of the eyes that couldn't be denyed. She looked a century older. And, between her breasts and directly between her nipples, was a Tear. Her fourth. She stood in the hallway, then lifted her open right hand skyward, saying, "I am Susan Ivanova, of the Masakata lineage. I am a Mistress of the Tears." "Susan?" Watsuu looked at her curiously, "How did you get the fourth Tear?" "Sharon Apple gave it to me," Ivanova replied, looking back curiously. "They gave her a too-human heart." "We have to go," Watsuu said, "Can you travel?" "I'll meet you back at your ship," Ivanova replied, "I have to tell Seresu to go." "We'll see you there," Sheridan replied, and the three ran down the hallway. *Seresu*, Ivanova thought. *Did you find him?*, Seresu asked. *No, but I did find someone important,* Ivanova replied. *But you can go now, you're free to leave.* *I still owe you a favor, Susan Ivanova,* and the voice of Seresu left. A few seconds, then Ivanova knew that Sereus was gone from this world. *Neue Ziele* lifted off and accellerated from Mars. It was soon at the Io Jumpgate and back to Babylon 5. [Babylon 5] [Earheart's] "So, you're telling me that he was bait?" Garibaldi asked. "Yea," Ivanova replied, taking a bite of her lunch. "Sharon Apple had links to the PsiCorps intellegence system and knew that I was the newest bearer of Tears. She arranged circumstances so that I'd be there for her." "And you became her?" Franklin asked. "No, we became each other," Ivanova replied. "It's hard to explain. There are parts of me that are now her, parts of her that are now mine, and she is a collection of behavors and patterns that form what Sharon Apple was. She needed redemption, and I was that redemption." "So, now what?" Garibaldi asked. "Watsuu's gotten the Captain to agree to have the Dragon's on-station and since he can't see any reason for me not to, I'm going to still be in C&C," Ivanova noted. "And I'm his liason officer for Babylon 5 to the Dragons. Oh, and one more thing. Could you be at the Eclipse Cafe in the Zocallo tonight?" "Why tonight?" Garibaldi asked. "You'll see," Ivanova replied, smiling. [Babylon 5] [Ivanova's Quarters] She had found the guitar at a pawn shop on station. The new skills she had found it perfect, and she had practiced with it. "I'm not so sure...." Ivanova said to the air. "You'll do fine," the voice of Sharon Apple replied. "I'm here, and if you trust me, we'll do fine together." "I've just never sung before," Ivanova said. "It's not that hard. What's the expression? Lie back and think of England? You'll do fine," Sharon Apple noted. "I hope so. I've invited Garibaldi and Sheridan and Frankin and...." Ivanova muttered. "And Delenn and Watsuu. I know. Don't worry, it's going to be fine," Sharon Apple reassured her. [Babylon 5] [Eclipse Cafe] If there was anything constant in human affairs, it was the cafe. A place just to be, to let the worries of the world fall by the wayside. A lot of races had the exact same concept, and the Eclipse Cafe served it fairly well. And Tuesdays were Open Mike Music Night. The first two were a Centauri Bagpipe Act(which looked like a death duel between the bagpipes and the Centauri, and the bagpipes won) and a Narn Ggkaka. The audience looked like they wanted to kill something, and the MC was thinking about running away. Fast. Very fast. But not until after the next act.... "The next act is one of our very own from Babylon 5. Commander Susan Ivanova had decided to show us her talent. So let's hear it for Susan Ivanova!" the MC announced, as Susan Ivanova arrived at the door. When Susan walked in, she was wearing a simple black dress, something that extended down to her ankles in a neo-classical style. Every head, especially those of her friends, especially those who knew her, snapped to follow her with military precision. She walked up to the microphone, put down her guitar case and opened it. Silently, ignoring the entire audience, she tuned the guitar for a few seconds, then stroked it sliently. She looked at the audience and said, "A friend of mine told me of this song. It was for times like these, times when we aren't certain of anything." She stroked the guitar once, and then sang: (Continued in next post) From jon.souza@creature.comSun Mar 17 21:38:01 1996 Date: Sun, 17 Mar 1996 05:23:05 GMT From: Jon Souza Reply to: b5-creative@blob.best.net To: b5-creative@blob.best.net Subject: DRAGONS OF THE TEAR-Episode 4, Part 8 (Continued from previous post) "I have been given one moment from heaven as I am walking surrounded by night. Stars high above me make a wish under moonlight. "On my way home I remember only good days. On my way home I remember all the best days. I'm on my way home. I can remember every new day." She sung it with a faint sense of despair, almost as if she had given up and allowed herself the escape of rememberence. But, almost undercutting the tones of her voice, was a sense that, yes, times were bad, but anything was possible and one's contentment was one of them. Everyone watched, everyone listened. Even if they didn't understand the words, they were carried by the music. "I move in silence with each step taken, snow fallen around me like angels in flight. Far in the distance is my wish under moonlight." Silence for a second, then, almost simultaniously, Watsuu and Delenn stood and started to clap. In a few seconds, it was a standing ovation, as the entire cafe was on it's feet and cheering Ivanova, whistling and cheering and clapping and a few bowing before her. It was remarkable, it was like she had touched a cord that had reverberated through the entire universe and her guitar had plucked it here. "Thank you!" Ivanova said, bowing. "But I have one more song to sing." As the audience finished clapping and returned to their seats, Ivanova put the guitar away softly, then moved over to the synthasizer bank at her hands. She played her hands across them, allowing herself to relax and allow what would happen next. Ivanova keyed the unit to come on-line and allowed her voice to be ready to sing. The next song was "After, in the dark." Dedicated to All Pioneers Of Past, Present, And Future May They Find Barriers to Cross And Challenges to Bear And Hopes to Take Flight -Memorial To The Great War [END DRAGONS OF THE TEAR] [CREDIT REEL TO FOLLOW] [DRAGONS OF THE TEAR II-COMING SOON]