03x13 - A Late Delivery from Avalon

[bunniefuu]

Well, that's the first. It'll take
a long time to get the level of trade...

...back to where it was
before we broke away from Earth.

Right now, we need the docking fees
more than ever, but we can't catch a break.

One thing's sure.

We can't keep relying on the Minbari
for protection.

We have to create
a broader base of support.

- And you have an idea.
- Always, commander. Always.

What do you mean, 100 credits?

I mean more than 99, less than 101.

What, you got a hearing problem
or a math problem?

Look, I can't get into conceptual arguments
with you. I got people waiting.

That's three times the delivery charge
for a package this size.

That was before we had a revolution
around here.

Now, in my little corner of Earthforce,
the mail still gets delivered.

If I gotta use trap doors, alien transports and
back channels to get the mail in and out...

...then that's what I'll do
because that's my job.

Neither rain, nor snow, nor meteors,
nor alien invasion, nor--

- Look, this is extortion.
- It's business.

You see, when my costs go up,
I have to pass that along to the consumer.

That's-- That's you.

Just in case that's another one of those
concepts you got a problem with.

That's my box.

No, it's the property of
Earth Alliance Postal Service.

You pony up 100 credits,
then it's your box.

All right, look, it's the last package
I'm gonna get from Earth for a long time.

Now, it's got mozzarella, anchovies...

...garlic cloves, pepperoni.

Yeah?

What kind of pepperoni?
Is it the big sticks or the small ones?

- Oh, we're talking big sticks like this:
- Oh, yeah?

Give me the box.

And break my oath to the post office?
I'd die first. Next.

All passengers debarking at Babylon 5,
please report to Shuttle Bay 7.

All passengers debarking at Babylon 5,
please report to Shuttle Bay 7.

The Babylon Project was our last,
best hope for peace.

It failed.

But in the year of the Shadow w*r,
it became something greater...

...our last, best hope for victory.

The year is 2260.
The place, Babylon 5.

You're right.
Looks like Banta flu.

All right, I want everyone
on this level inoculated.

I think we caught it early enough
to keep it from spreading.

But these two will have to go
into Isolab...

...until I know they're past
the contagious point.

Mind if I come along?

They're nervous around strangers.

Yeah, no problem.

How'd you catch this
so fast anyway, Marcus?

Normally, signs of Banta flu don't show
until you're already contagious.

Most of these symptoms
wouldn't have been visible yesterday.

Banta flu is normally contracted
by eating...

...alien food that's been mixed in
with human food and fermented.

I saw them eating
out of a waste bin...

...recognized the nastier bits
from the year I spent on a Drazi colony.

It's bad enough they have to live that way in
the first place, without it making them sick.

A lot of folks around here seem to think
that Lurkers deserve what they get.

- They figure it's better to let them die and--
- And thus deplete the surplus population.

Dickens.

You know, I used to think it was awful
that life was so unfair.

Then I thought,"Wouldn't it be much
worse if life were fair?

And all the terrible things that happen to us
come because we actually deserve them?"

So now I take great comfort in the general
hostility and unfairness of the universe.

Confirmed, Shuttle 1.
You're cleared for docking.

Don't worry, they'll be fine.

You know, I was noticing that pin
you wear.

All the other Rangers wear one just like it,
but I don't know what it means.

The two figures on either side...

...one human, the other Minbari.

They blend together in the middle
to signify...

...the two halves of our souls uniting
against the common enemy.

This jewel?

Minbari call that Isil'zha.
It means "the future."

Birth. Beginnings.
Dawn of a new age.

Isil'zha.

I like it.

It's a subtle language
for subtle people.

Took me a year of studying
to get the fundamentals down.

The Minbari say the only way to understand
the battle is to understand the language.

w*r is as much concept as execution.

What else did they teach you?

Delight.

Respect.
Compassion.

That for your actions to be pure,
they must proceed...

...from direction, determination, patience
and strength.

I'm afraid I'm still working on patience.

They taught me how to live...

...how to breathe, how to fight
and how to die.

And they taught me terror.

How to use it.

And how to face it.

Think I'd like to hear more about that.

No, you wouldn't.

I'm sorry, sir. Our scanners just picked up
a weapons violation.

Could you step back, please?

What the hell?

Look, we don't want to hurt you.

Just give us the sword, mister.

Mister? Mister?

Have I been gone that long?

Have you forgotten everything?

I am Arthur, son of Uther Pendragon
and king of the Britons.

No man takes Excalibur from me
and lives.

Wait!

Leave him to me.

It's all right. Let him try.
It's all right.

Apologies, my lord.

We weren't notified of your return.

These men mean you no harm.

Your accent.
You're a Briton.

Yes, my lord. Several generations removed
from our splendid island...

...but the roots run deep nonetheless.

Please, come with us.

We'll send word to Galahad
and Lancelot--

Galahad is dead.

Lancelot is dead.

Guinevere and Percival, even Mordred,
all of them are dead.

I have been gone a long time,
a very, very long time, but I am not mad.

Then set aside your sword.

You're among friends here, Arthur.

It's all right.

I'll take it from here.

- You're sure?
- I assume full responsibility.

- Who is this?
- A doctor.

I am in no need of a doctor,
so take your leeches elsewhere.

I'm....

I'm just a little late, that's all.

Your journey has been long.

He just wishes to ensure
that you are in good health.

Our captain requires this of him.

In deference and honor to your position.

If you refuse...

...my friend will be penalized harshly
for failing to obey orders.

Very well.

I've been treated, prodded and healed by the
nine sisters since the year of our Lord 5 15.

What is another healer after that?

Lead on, I will follow you.

- You had a chance to go over his stuff?
- Yes, doctor.

No identification, no travel papers.

Nothing that could tell us
who he really is.

He must've ditched his ID
before the "Asimov" docked.

Why don't you run his fingerprints and DNA.
Maybe we'll get lucky.

Yes, doctor.

Is there a problem?

No. No problem.

You don't believe I am who I say I am,
do you?

Well, it's not for me to say.

Yes, it is.

Speak plainly.

All right.

If you are who you say you are...

...how did you get here?

Seventeen hundred years after
you supposedly d*ed.

I'm not sure.

The last thing I remember
is lying on the field of battle at Camlan.

My brother, Sir Bedivere, had...

...pulled me away from these peasants who
were looting the bodies of my fallen knights.

It was all King Maelgwn's fault.

If he hadn't sided with Mordred,
with Lancelot out of the country...

...and Sir Gawain dead...

...the old wound...

...re- opened.

I was dying.

Three times I asked Bedivere to return
Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake.

I could not be taken till then.

By the time he finally did as I asked,
it was almost too late.

Then...

...a barge appeared offshore...

...with three queens and the nine sisters.

They took me to the island of Avalon
to heal.

They said that I would sleep for a time...

...but that I would return
when I was most needed.

I'm not sure how I came here.

But if I am here now, it's because I am
most needed here and now.

He thinks he's who?

Arthur.
King of the Britons.

Son of Uther Pendragon,
heir to the throne of England...

...and the only man allowed
to wield Excalibur.

There was no King Arthur.
It's a story, that's all.

Well, not exactly. There's enough evidence
to suggest there may have been...

...a real person
behind those stories.

Well, either way, it's pretty obvious
this guy is not Arthur.

So, as interesting a diversion as this
might be, our first concern right now...

...has to be getting this treaty worked out.
Now, Michael--

You know, the Vorlons
have been to Earth.

And from time to time, they have taken
someone out of their time...

...preserved him until he was needed
and revived him.

Your recent encounter
with a Mr. Sebastian, for instance.

You're not serious.

A ship appeared and took Arthur to a place
where he would be healed and preserved.

A place from which he would return
when he was most needed.

Legends are legends
because they have a certain power over us.

And the idea of a legend
walking in the front door, it's....

No, no. He is not Arthur.

His speech patterns are too contemporary,
his vocabulary is all wrong.

The question we should be asking is,
what made him tip over?

I scanned his neural system,
it's intact.

So whatever's wrong is functional.
It's not organic.

May be the result of a trauma
or a breakdown or....

What terrible thing could have happened
to drive him 1700 years into the past...

...to find peace and meaning?

- Franklin.
- "Doctor..."

...the patient you were holding in Isolab 1,
I don't know what happened. He's escaped.

- What troubles you, old mother?
- They took it.

I suppose I should have known they would
sooner or later.

They're always taking from us.

They know Security won't get involved.

It was a picture of my husband.

He d*ed just after we came here
looking for something better.

When they took the rest,
they found it.

Why would they take a picture?

Oh, for the frame.
It's very expensive.

He told me to sell it, but I couldn't.

It's the last of him I had left.

Eyes as lovely as yours
were never meant for tears, dear lady.

Withdraw them,
and tell me where I might find these men.

Everything you asked for.
Right in there.

How can I be sure
you've contacted everyone?

I'm a man of my word.

Want to pay half now,
half when you looked it over? That's fine.

Look, I ain't gonna mess this up.

I bring messages back and forth
from your people on Narn...

...and none of it's secret info or anything.

That's a sweet deal.

I should think so, given the price we pay
to get this past the Centauri.

I--

I told you...

...a hundred credits by yesterday,
or we b*at the crap out of you.

Now, why do you make me do this?

Why do you make me do
what we both know I'm gonna do?

Release that man!

What manner of men prey on the weak
and the poor?

Stealing from old women?

Cowards, I think.

You better put that pig- sticker away
before you end up eating it.

You have something
that does not belong to you.

Actually, I suspect that you have
quite a few things that do not belong to you.

But let's start with a picture
and a frame.

I command you to hand that over
or face the consequences.

Consequences?

Yeah, I got your consequences
right here.

Yield.

Or die.

Not a chance.

I got friends.
See?

That's all right!

So does he.

I want every level checked. He may
be trying to find his way off the station.

He's armed, so consider him dangerous.
Don't get too close.

You find anything, let me know.

I got something to do.

By G'Quan, I can't recall the last time
I was in a fight like that.

No moral ambiguity.

No hopeless battle against ancient
and overwhelming forces.

They were the bad guys,
as you say.

We were the good guys.

And they made a very satisfying thump
when they hit the floor.

It's wrong for the strong to prey
on the weak.

That idea was at the very heart
of the Round Table.

To correct injustice.

To promote a society of laws,
not arms.

Well said!

That is the purpose which God and the crown
have set before me.

I cannot achieve that locked away
in some room.

No, of course not. What room?

I sense in you a warrior born,
but a priestly manner and refined education.

- Oh, well....
- My knights were such men as you.

Well, not exactly such as you.

Well, the eyes were not as....

It matters not.

You were the first to lend your good arm
to my defense.

And you shall sit at my right hand
at the new Round Table.

And...

...you shall be known as Sir G'Kar.

The Red Knight.

I don't know.
I don't know if we should be doing this.

It's my stuff.

Don't worry, I'll leave the money behind
for what it should've cost.

What are you so nervous about?

We went up against the entire Earth Alliance
and two carrier groups.

Yeah, but this is the post office.
This could get us in real trouble.

That'll be another 20 credits
for the lock.

And I am reporting this
to the postmaster general.

Oh, yeah.

Told you.

Do you mind if I ask you...

...a question?

Not at all, my good comrade in arms.

You seemed to take our battle
quite personally.

As if what they had done offended you.

It did. At Camlan field,
my knights lay dying or dead.

As dawn spread across
the bloody ground...

...I saw others moving among them...

...like specters risen
from some unholy grave.

Stealing their swords, their jewels,
their crests, their rings.

My knights were there because of me.

I was responsible.

I was responsible.

Are you all right?

Oh, yes.

Yes.

It was a dream, that's all.

Battle was not intended.

With our forces halved,
we could not stand against Mordred, so...

...I met with Mordred at Camlan
to arrange a truce...

...and buy time for Lancelot to return
with reinforcements.

We stood there out in the open.

Each of us had 14 knights at his side.

Our armies had been told to watch
and att*ck if someone drew a sword.

We'd just finished our negotiations...

...when one of Mordred's knights saw an
adder about to strike, so he drew his sword.

The others saw it...

...and the k*lling started.

It was a misunderstanding.

A misinterpretation.

See what it cost us.

Arthur? We've been looking for you.

Mr. Garibaldi is quite put out.

Mr. Garibaldi is always put out.

I heard what you did, and I respect it.

But if you don't come with me,
there will be trouble.

I will vouch for his character.

I saw the entire thing.
Because I was there.

I was in it. I was....

And they made a very agreeable thump.

Or did I mention that?

Arthur, it's the only way.

Very well.

I am somewhat tired anyway.

I could do with some rest.

Will you come with us,
Sir G'Kar?

Of course, lead on.

Sir Gawain had the same problem,
you know.

- Did he?
- Oh, yes.

Come the morning,
we'd often take one look at him...

...and called him the Green Knight.

Come, let's to it.

A lot has happened since the last time
we met here.

We declared independence from Earth...

...and many of you are at w*r
with one another.

So the question becomes...

...can this place
continue to serve its purpose?

Well, the answer is yes.

But only with your assistance.
Commander?

We're willing to put a deal on the table.

Babylon 5 still has a lot to offer.

We're a hub for travel, commerce,
finance.

We're still considered neutral territory.

As your wars continue, some of you may
even want to use us for peace negotiations.

We'd be happy to do that.

In exchange for our cooperation...

...we ask that your governments take part
in the ongoing defense of Babylon 5.

Obviously, we'll do all we can
to make sure that ships from two sides...

...actively engaged in hostilities
are not providing defense at the same time.

The Babylon Treaty serves your interests
as well as ours.

The details are spelled out
in the folders I've given you.

We hope that you'll take a look at them
and think it over.

Thank you very much.

I think I've managed to calm Mr. Garibaldi
about our friend.

G'Kar confirms he didn't commit
any crimes.

Actually, solved one
and prevented another.

Something wrong?

I took some DNA samples from Arthur...

...in case we might find something
in the genetic- record files.

You see, everyone who joins Earthforce
has his unique DNA sequence...

...mapped and logged for identification--

He was in Earthforce?
Doing what?

Take a look.

You can't show him this.

Marcus, it's who he is.

I don't care. It'll k*ll him.

Wait. Let's be sensible, all right?
This is the first step towards healing.

We can't just let him wander around
thinking he's King Arthur.

- Why not?
- Because this is the truth.

"Better the illusions that exalt us
than 10, 000 truths."

- Aleksandr Pushkin, yes.
- Let this one truth die, Stephen.

- Let him be Arthur. Let him be anyone!
- I have an obligation to help.

If I confront him with this,
it may snap him out of this delusion.

Your Hippocratic oath says,
"Do no harm."

If you do this,
you'll be doing great harm, Stephen.

- Stephen!
- Look, I'm sorry.

I have to.

Arthur?

Oh, I'm sorry.
I didn't sleep well last night.

The dreams again.

Terrible dreams.

The old wounds are not as well- healed
as I'd thought.

I asked you about the picture.

Well, he seems a decent and honorable man,
but I don't know him.

It's you.

No, I....

I don't think so.

David Mclntyre, age 52...

...serial number R27 A59.

Honorable discharge from Earthforce,
February 9, 2253.

Silver Star for valor.

You were at the Battle of the Line.

Twenty thousand of our best went in,
and a little over 200 survived.

It also shows you were gunnery sergeant
on the "Prometheus."

"Prometheus"?

There were Romans still living in my country
whose family married Britons...

...and they carried with them
legends from Greece.

Prometheus brought fire from the gods.
He--

This "Prometheus" was the first ship
to encounter the Minbari...

...fifteen years ago today.

Now, there was a misunderstanding.

The Minbari approached
with their g*n ports open.

It's a sign of respect.

The captain, he interpreted this as a thr*at.
He panicked.

Eight thousand klicks,
7000....

They're coming in, g*n ports are open.
Repeat, g*n ports are open.

Presume att*ck vector.

Because of this misinterpretation,
he ordered his crew to att*ck.

Forward batteries, open fire.

This has nothing to do with me.

The att*ck destroyed two Minbari vessels
and k*lled their leader, Dukhat...

...and started the Earth- Minbari w*r.
You were gunnery sergeant.

- You fired those sh*ts.
- No!

It was the sword that struck the adder
that started the battle.

No, it was not a sword,
it was a ship.

A sword!
The light shining off it!

The review board absolved you
of all responsibility...

...for following the orders
of your commanding officer.

Now, despite bouts of depression that
continued to get longer and more intense...

...you were put back into active duty.

We needed everyone we could get
back then.

And you made it all the way.

You volunteered
for the Battle of the Line...

...even though you knew
it was a su1c1de mission.

This...

...man you describe.

He had no business surviving.

A quarter of a million men and women
dead on the b*ttlefield...

...at...

...Camlan.

- No, not Camlan.
- No, not Camlan.

They d*ed in the Minbari w*r.

- I was responsible.
- No.

Responsible for my knights
and for those who followed me into battle.

And their armor was not strong enough
to protect them.

Their horses....

Their horses were on fire!

The old wound....

The old wound, yes.

The pain of memory.
It's all right now.

You can face it.
We can face it together.

No, I can never rest.

The pain will never go away.

I must return Excalibur
to the Lady of the Lake.

I didn't....

I didn't know.

We didn't know.

You couldn't know.

Bodies....

The slain....

The dying....

Bodies drifting...

...like stars.

My fault.

He deserves to die.

My fault.

David?

David?

Can you hear me?

Can you hear me?

David?

David?

- Anything yet?
- I just got word from the Drazi ambassador.

- He's spokesman for the League.
- Yeah.

A number of them refused to sign
the mutual- defense treaty...

...but the rest of them signed on.

- Do we have enough to make it work?
- With room to spare.

God, it's almost enough to make you
start believing in miracles, isn't it?

Yes, sir. Almost.

Why? What happened?

You'd think I'd learn one of these days that
I can't fix everything, but it never happens.

And now....

I gave him back the sword.
I figured maybe it'd help, but it didn't.

One thing I don't understand...

...why did he come here?

It wasn't an accident.

He got onboard a transport,
bought a ticket.

Must've been a reason,
even if he couldn't admit it to himself.

Obviously, it had something to do with
the anniversary of his att*ck on the Minbari.

- That's where it all started.
- According to you, yes.

He still thinks it was a sword.

Well, a ship, a sword,
what's the difference?

None. None at all.

- Excalibur.
- Symbol of the king.

But in this case...

...the symbol of the ship
and his pain.

What's the story of Sir Bedivere?

Arthur's journey began when
the Lady of the Lake gave him Excalibur.

As he lay dying, he asked Bedivere
to return Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake.

The ladies couldn't take him to Avalon,
couldn't heal him until this was done.

He had to go full circle,
right back to where he started.

Now, he said he couldn't know
peace or rest...

...until the Lady took back Excalibur...

...the king's burden.

The king's pain.

That's why he came here.

To find someone
willing to take away his pain.

But...

...if that's Excalibur, and you're Bedivere,
who's the Lady of the Lake?

I knew you'd come to your senses
sooner or later.

Hundred credits ain't too much
when you stop to think about it, now, is it?

Yes, sir, first thing I learned is,
never mess with the post office.

You'll come a cropper every time.

Okay, let's see, where's that...?

Where's that box?

There we go.

Sorry, little post- office humor.

Hang on.
I'll get your one.

There.

There we go.
There you are.

Anything else I can do for you?
Some stamps?

Thanks, no.

Oh, before I forget.

You realize we've cut off all contact
with Earth, right?

Of course I realize that. You're not dealing
with a chimp here, you know.

And if you hadn't done that, the prices
wouldn't have gone up, would they?

I was just thinking,
before we broke away...

...the rent on this place, your quarters,
all that was being paid for by Earth, right?

But since they're out of the picture,
who's paying for all this now?

Well, I....
If-- You know--

Now...

...I might be inclined to overlook this
in light of the morale boost it gives folks...

- ...to get mail from back home, but--
- How much?

One hundred and one credits.

That ain't so much when you stop
to think about it, now, is it?

Well, I wish I could say
this was a good idea.

It's what I want to do.

I think it's what I need to do.

My people will treat him well, doctor.

He will be welcomed and put in a position
of authority in the resistance.

He has good ideas
about raising up those in need...

...about organizing others into something
better and nobler than they had been before.

We are in great need of such ideas.
And such men.

A new Round Table.

Well, I guess I've heard worse ideas
in my time.

I just wish you could stay a little longer
until we're sure you're okay.

Doctor...

...I'm healed.
Soul and body knitted together.

One journey is ended,
another beckons.

"Transport" Bokalla "is now boarding"
outbound passengers.

That's your ship.
I'll walk you out.

Thank you, doctor.

Take care.

And you.

And you.

- Where were you?
- I hate goodbyes.

Just wanted to watch him go,
remembering Arthur.

Where my people come from,
his story has great power.

I'll miss him.

Even if he wasn't Arthur?

Now, now.

Next thing you'll be saying is
he's not Merlin.

Merlin was a great teacher,
you know.

- I'm not hearing this.
- They say he aged backwards.

That was how he was able to foretell
the future, by remembering it.

Which means he came
from the future.

Maybe he had Arthur form the Round Table
by remembering us.

We're forming one of our own,
after all.

Which makes you Percival,
I'm Galahad, him being sinless and all.

Sheridan as Arthur.

Ivanova, perhaps Gawain.

I think we both know
who Mordred is.

So the question is,
who is Morgana le Fay?