05x13 - The Corps is Mother, the Corps is Father

[bunniefuu]

Al, there you are.

Sorry.

We had a runaway problem in New Orleans.

Local office couldn't deal with it, I had to step in.

It's fixed now.

Good.

Al, I want you to meet Lauren Ashley and Chen Hikaru.

They've just signed on as interns with Level 12 investigations.

This is Al Bester, the one I was telling you about.

It's an honor.

I've followed you for years.

You're the one that's been peeking in my window at night.

I meant I've been following your work.

I didn't mean Just playing, Chen.

He's just a little nervous.

We both are.

You're kind of a hero where we come from.

Besides, we don't often see a sense of humor in Psi Cops.

Reports of our depression are vastly exaggerated.

Lauren and Chen are two of our best young recruits for P

-12 work.

They went through training in record time.

They're eager and they want to get into it.

I figured I'd pair them up with you for a while.

You can show them the ropes get them comfortable with the operation and then we'll put them out in the field.

I'd be happy to.

So where do you want to start?

Anywhere.

I'm just happy to be here.

I like your attitude.

Oh, I finished the report on the Babylon 5 situation a few hours ago.



- You should have it by midafternoon.



- Great.

Thanks, Al.

Good luck.

If it's okay, I mean, if it isn't classified, I'd love to see a copy of your analysis.

I've been following the situation on Babylon 5 as best I could for a while now.

They've really made it an unfriendly place for us.

That's why you don't see many of us up there.

It just isn't worth it.

Except on an emergency basis.

But I thought Babylon 5 was your main assignment these days.

No, but I'm sure they think so.

They have a tendency to put their station at the center of the universe.

A new doctor goes on rounds at the asylum.

He talks to one man.

"And who are you?

" he asks.

The patient says, "I, sir, am Napoleon.

" "How do you know you're Napoleon?

" Asks the doctor.

"God told me.

" And from the next bed over comes, "I did not.

" There's always somebody or something trying to be the most important thing in the world.

No, much as it might offend their sense of perspective not everything is about Babylon 5.

Who do you think you are?

You can't You can't hold me.

You can't hide from me too long.

I told you it was my mind.

You listen?

You listen to anything I told you?

You don't listen.

You don't hear me, yet you're telling me the same thing My mind.

My mind.

My mind, not yours, my Freud.

My mind.

My mind not yours.

And so it begins.



- There's a hole in your mind.



- What do you want?

No one here is exactly what he appears.

Nothing's the same anymore.

Commander Sinclair is being reassigned.

Why don't you eliminate the entire Narn Homeworld?

I see a great hand reaching out of the star.

President Clark signed a decree declaring martial law.

These orders have forced us to declare independence.

Unless your people get off their encounter

-suited butts and do something

- You're The One who was.



- lf you go to Z'Ha'Dum, you will die.

Why are you here?

Do you have anything worth living for?

I think of my beautiful city in flames.

Giants in the playground.

Get out of our galaxy! We are here to place President Clark under arrest.

Are you sure we should be in here?

A Psi Cop learns to ignore distractions and focus on the goal.

You could bring a brass band through here and they'd never know.



- What are they doing?



- Scan and countering exercises.

One tries to scan the other, who blocks.

He holds off his opponent for no less than 5 minutes.

Then they switch places.

Over time, we raise the minimum: A field agent has to be able to hold his own for at least an hour.



- Why an hour?



- Unless you've gone through training like this, there isn't a human telepath alive who can sustain a deep scan for more than 40, 45 minutes tops.

They burst arteries, have strokes, black out.



- Would they mind if we watched?



- No, not at all.

Go ahead.

That's terrible.



- How can they stand it?



- By constant exposure and repetition.

You get used to it.

That's the thing about Level 12 investigations.

Being rated a P

-12 isn't enough.

Only a certain kind of person makes it to become a Psi Cop.

Your job is to track down rogue telepaths, who will do anything to avoid capture.

If they can hurt you or k*ll you, they will.

If they can fry your synapses and turn you into vegetables, they will.



- So you have to be ruthless.



- Only as a last resort.

Remember, these are family.

You have to care about the people you're saving to go through what we just saw.

When they finish training, they will have limited the amount of harm a rogue can do them, both mentally and physically.

We make sure they're in peak condition so they can go into the field as well

-protected as possible.

Our mandate is to bring them back alive and intact so we can help put them back on track.



- Not that they appreciate it.



- That's where you're wrong.

Sit.

I think you'll find this interesting.

Begin program.

Hi.

My name's Gordon.

You may not think it to look at me, but six months ago I was a blip.

I was hungry, tired, scared and I looked like this: Pretty scary, huh?

But that's what happens when you're on the run.

I could barely stand on my own when the Corps found me and brought me home.

Did you know that 42.

5 percent of all telepaths who leave the Corps commit su1c1de within nine months?

It's true.

Without the support of other telepaths

- thrown into a world of mundanes, we

- End program.



- But it was just getting interesting.



- We can pick it up later.

There's been a problem.



- They won't give us any information yet.



- Yes, sir.

Why don't you sit down over here.

Who found him?

They were going to dinner before attending a concert tonight.



- Cause of death?



- Blunt force trauma.

We're not sure what he used yet.

I'm sorry, Al.

I know he was a student of yours.

We've closed off the campus, but my guess is, he's long gone by now.



- Are you sure it was the roommate?



- Friends say he's been strange lately but they didn't think much of it.

Sometimes the training does that.

You just get over it.

But this time something went wrong.

I'm assigning you to the case, Al.

Find him, bring him back.



- Why me?



- He's a P

-10 and that makes him dangerous.

And because the victim was close to you.

I thought you'd want to see justice done.

I'll find him.

I know it doesn't feel that way now but it will be all right.

I'll make it all right.

Would you please all go back to your rooms?



- I thought you'd be at the concert.



- I was.

I couldn't focus on the music.

Please, come in.

Sit down.

I've never seen a dead body before.

Not that close and not one of us.

Do you get used to it?

When it's one of ours, no.

With mundanes it's easier.

They hate it when we say that, but it's the truth.

They k*ll, enslave and abuse each other with efficiency and enthusiasm.

Why should we value their lives when they don't?

It's a little harder with rogues and blips.

Being a telepath means you're special and rare and valuable.

When they go out into the world, run away from the Corps it's easy to say they deserve what they get.

Even so it's not easy.

But with someone like this, an innocent someone with potential No, you never get used to it.

How did the Corps find you?

My parents were k*lled in an accident.

I was barely a month old.

When I was put into a foster home, I turned up in the random DNA checks.

The Corps took me in, raised me and taught me that because we're special we need to watch out for each other even more than we would as mundanes.

We're responsible for each other.

I was told you were married.

Is she?

No.

We have a residence in Syria Planum.

She stays there most of the time.

I see her when I can.

It must be nice.

Someone who will wait for you.

Someone who will love you.

And if my wife ever found out about her Private joke.

Look, it's getting late.



- You should go back to your room.



- Yes.

Or I could stay here.

Lauren, you're a very sweet young woman but my heart is already taken.

She's not She's not here right now but I hope she will be someday.

Now, if that changes you'll be the first to know.

But for now, I think you should go back to your room.

And don't worry about this tomorrow.

You shouldn't be embarrassed about anything because nothing did happen.



- All right?



- All right.

Thank you.

I'm not changing my mind.

Of course not.



- You never do.



- Sorry, I thought you were somebody else.

Obviously.

I just thought you should see this.

The security log at Earthport 1 has our suspect booking passage on an outbound commercial transport about an hour after the time of death.



- Destination?



- Your favorite place in the universe Babylon 5.

The suspect's name is Jonathan Harris, age 23.

He's rated a strong P

-10 and was being trained in interrogation techniques when he k*lled his roommate and fled.



- Any idea yet what caused him to go off?



- Negative.

He doesn't have much money, so that limits his options.

He used most of it to purchase a ticket for a commercial transport bound for Babylon 5.

That may be an attempt to throw us off the track.

Just to be on the safe side, Al, you and your team will proceed to Babylon 5.

With luck he'll get stuck there until he can raise money to get a ticket elsewhere.

I want the rest of you to run full background checks on Harris.

Is there anywhere else he might have gone, who does he know has he been in contact with the underground?

Yes, Chen?

If he boarded a commercial transport, why not contact the ship and let their security pick him up?



- Mundanes?

Without sufficient training, the average security patrol couldn't even handle a P

-8, let alone a P

-10.

He can make them look where he isn't while he slips away spark false or misleading hunches.

There are any number of tricks he could use on mundanes to avoid being captured.

And by then he'll know we're onto him and once he goes to ground, we may never pick up the scent again.

Besides, this is an internal Psi Corps problem.

That means we deal with it within the family.

The mundanes leave us alone because we stay out of the press.

It's important they believe that nothing ever goes wrong inside these walls.

It's the only way to make sure they leave us alone and don't start poking around where they're not wanted.

So as Al said, it's a family matter.



- Now, when can you get going?



- Our flight leaves in two hours.

Good.

The rest of you know what to do.

Get to it.

Al.

I didn't want to say anything in front of others.

This whole situation is problematic enough as it is but the suspect was also being trained in att*ck probes.

He has a knack for disrupting other telepaths.

He's a mind shredder, Al.

Let him get too close, let him get a clear sh*t and he'll rip you in two.

Why?

Why'd you do it?

Because I could.

You know something went wrong but you don't know what.

And you never will.

Yes?

I'm sorry, Mr.

Bester you said you wanted me to remind you when we had to leave for the space port.

Yes.

Of course.

Thank you, Chen.

I'll be right out.

I'll call it.

Damn it! You in?

Me?

Oh, I'm sorry.

I've never played this game before.

Can you tell me the rules?

Sure.

Shuttle 1, we are within range of transfer point.

You're clear to depart.



- Confirmed, Control.

Engines hot.



- Stand by.

Does the mothership ever leave hyperspace?

Only for repairs, when we can do so without being seen.

No reason for the rest of the world to know what our resources are.

The rest of the time it just sits here in hyperspace for months at a time, ferrying missions back and forth and waiting until we need it.

Just like all the others.

Shuttle 1, bay doors are open.

You can proceed.

Roger that.

Well, it's been a real pleasure doing business with you.

I guess it wasn't quite as hard as I'd heard.

May I have your attention, please.

Passengers transferring from Starliner Azimov Don't you ever go away?

Haven't you caused enough trouble for one lifetime?

It's a pleasure to see you too, Mr.

Allan.

Where can I find Captain Lochley?

I should check in.

She's busy.

You can check in with me.

Card.

So, what is it this time, Mr.

Bester?

Hunting down freedom fighters?

Pulling wings off flies?

Annexing the Sudetenland?

Tracking a m*rder*r.

We have authorization to investigate, arrest and bring him to Earth along with any accomplices or suspects.

m*rder*r, huh?



- Who'd he k*ll?



- Another Psi Cop.

Well, a Psi Cop in training.

And this is bad because?



- What?

What'd he say?



- Nothing, Mr.

Allan.

Nothing at all.

This way.



- What did he say about the guard?



- Nothing.

He just said a joke, a dirty joke.

He'll be up all night wondering what we know about his personal life.

Exactly.

And that is why, at the end of the day the struggle between mundanes and telepaths will be no struggle at all.

Come on, we have work to do.

I don't know how you cheated.

All I know is that you did.

Now, you are going to give me my money back, all of it!

- I don't know what you're talking about.



- I said, I want my money back! You shouldn't do that.

That's a mistake.

That's a mistake.

You don't wanna get him upset.

You're gonna get him upset! You're gonna get him upset.

You shouldn't do that.



- You're gonna get him upset!

- I'll get you a lot more than upset you son of a

- Did you find anything out from the Drazi?



- He's a small

-time fence.

He buys stolen merchandise, credit chits, Identicards.

Doesn't ask questions.

A man matching Harris' description came through here two days ago and sold off a few things, enough to rent quarters here for a little while.

He pointed to a suite up the hall, but he was thinking about that one.

Probably figured he'd get away with half a truth and all the money.

They never learn.

All right.

Assuming that he hasn't changed quarters in the last day or so, our boy is in there.

As a formality, we need B5 security to open it up for us.

I saw a BabCom unit.

I'll call it in.

You two stay here, keep an eye on the door.

If he comes out, follow him, but don't try to take him down.

Call in for backup.

I'll be here in a second.

Understood.

Chen, what the hell are you doing?

I used this to get into the girls' wing at the academy.



- You heard what he said.



- He said "don't take him down.

" I'm not.

If we can get him while he's asleep or unguarded, we'll have the surprise.

We can get

- We can get the credit for the arrest.



- You're disobeying instructions.

I'm showing initiative.

Back me up?

Chen! Five hours from the time you get here till the first dead body shows up on the deck.



- That's a record even for you.



- That's unfair.



- Can't you see he's just trying to help?



- Lauren.

The med techs confirm that the body's been lying here for over two days.



- He was dead before we got here.



- Yeah, they told me but I never let the facts get in the way of a good grudge.

The deceased was a small

-time gambler.

We've seen him working the casino from time to time.

Got thrown out last week for counting cards at blackjack.

The thing is, his Identicard was used several times after his death so it looks like your boy switched IDs with the dead guy took whatever money he had.

Thing is, I can't see any connection between your target and the deceased.

So why did he pick him to k*ll?

Probably just random chance.

He was looking for somebody with money.

Where was the stolen Identicard being used?

In the casino.

Apparently he did very well for himself at the blackjack table.

Chief, I need you over here.

I don't understand.

Under Psi Corps rules, telepaths aren't allowed to gamble.

So when they do gamble, they're not very good at it.

I mean, it takes a lot more than scanning.

You have to know what you're doing.

So why would he be able to win?

Unless he suddenly acquired his skill for cheating.

Harris must have ripped it out of his mind before k*lling him.

That's why he chose this victim.

He's acquiring whatever skills he thinks will help him raise money fast so that he can get away.

Well, Mr.

Bester, you're now two for two.

We just had another dead body show up in Medlab 1.

How do you know our suspect is responsible?

Just a hunch.

Well, as near as I can tell, it looks as if half his brain cells just erupted from the inside.

Simultaneous aneurysms, cerebral hemorrhages, blood clots.

He was m*rder*d from the inside out.

Since there are no marks on the outside and no sign of trauma no history of this sort of problem, it's a safe bet this was done by your suspect.



- Yes, you'd think that, wouldn't you?



- Yeah, wouldn't you?

Our suspect is a P

-10.

This kind of damage can only be done by a P

-12.

Are you sure?

I just mean, you know, maybe you made a mistake with your tests.

Maybe he's higher than a P

-10 and you've just missed it.

No, we don't make those kinds of mistakes.

I see.

I very much doubt that.

This could be bad.

This could be very bad.

What is it?

What's wrong?

I don't want to say anything until I have more information.

Lauren, I want you to get on the line with the main office.

Have them copy me on everything they found in Harris' room.

Papers, notes, personal journals, anything.



- What are we looking for?



- I don't know, but I'll know it when I see it.

Now, get going.

Our target is too smart to stay in one place for very long so I doubt we'll find him near the casino.

But there are about a half a dozen places on Babylon 5 where gambling is allowed.

I need you to check them out, see if anyone's had contact with him.



- And if I run into him?



- Stay clear until I get there.

Do not attempt any contact.

I mean it this time, Chen.

Harris may be even more dangerous than we believed.

I'm gonna check with Customs make sure he didn't use that money to book passage off the station.

Sorry, kid, no service here.

I got a license to look after.

It's all right, I don't want anything.

I'm looking for someone.



- I was wondering if you might've seen him.



- I've seen all kinds, kid.

Seen an alien come through here with eight compound eyes and a glass stomach.

Two fingers of gin, he's down, completely unconscious for a full two hours then he wants to do it again.

I've seen a naked Pak'ma'ra once.

That hump on their back?

That's not a hump at all.

That's their Thank you.

I think I have what I need.



- Do you wish to place a call?



- Yes, a temporary residence.



- Red 3, unit seven.

Bester, Al.



- Stand by.



- How did he die?



- s*ab wound to the heart.

Look, I'm sorry, I know he was your friend.

He was just a kid.

Save your sympathy for someone else, Mr.

Allan.

Of all the things in life I could drown in: Love, music, the eyes of another crocodile tears are the least appealing.

Go on.

Well, there weren't any witnesses to what happened at least none that have come forward.

We got one thing to go on, and it's not much: Just before he d*ed, he tried to call you.

Didn't get very far.

The BabCom unit started to record his message then put it on pause when he didn't finish.

Freeze.

Back it up frame by frame.

Stop.

That's your perp.

We're trying to ID that tattoo right now.



- That's not Harris.



- Well, okay but if that's true who stabbed him?

Forty

-eight, 49, 50.

That's my 10 percent.

You wanna count it?

Make sure I didn't cheat you?

Unnecessary.

If you were gonna cheat, I would know it and you'd be dead.

Now, what kind of way is that to talk to your partner?

I'm here to look after you.

I knew we were made for each other the minute I saw you.

Between your gift and my contacts, we're gonna clean up.

I just need enough to get away.

Far away.

Another 200 credits, we'll have enough to go to Proxima and back.



- The "and back" part is unimportant.



- Yeah, I kind of noticed that.

Can I ask you?

What are you running from?



- I don't know.



- Come on, you can tell your buddy Bryce.

They're looking for you.

You must have done something.

I told you, I don't know! I don't know what happened, I'm not even sure why I'm here.

One minute I was in the testing center and the next I don't remember.

I'm not supposed to remember.

All I know is, I can't go back.

You told me there was another place we can go to get the money.

There is indeed.



- Anything yet?



- No, nothing.

Are you sure these are from the same file?

They said those were all of Harris' papers.

Why?

There's a lot in here that's in different handwriting, different names.

As if they'd either mixed two files together or somebody else had access to his papers.

Maybe one of those names is the guy with the tattoo.



- It could be, or

- Hey, I've got something.

Here.

This is the last video record they had.

An off

-hours training session between Harris and his roommate.

Play.

If there was some way we could record thought patterns we'd know what was going on.

Give us time.

Jon, are you okay?

What was that?

It's okay.

It's okay.



- lf I went too far, I'm sorry.



- Just let it go, okay?



- lf I've done anything to upset you

- He said, let it go! Back it up.

There.

Play.



- lf I've done anything to upset you

- He said, let it go! Again.

He said, let it go! "He said, let it go.

" Not "I said.

" "He said.

" What?

What is it?

These papers.

Different styles of handwriting, different names, but not different people.

The same person with multiple personalities.

That's why we misidentified his rating.

One personality was a P

-10 the other was a P

-12.

It's rare, but it has happened before.

The same way one personality can be an artist the other can't draw a straight line.

Something in the training session we saw must have triggered it.

And his roommate saw one of the other personalities.

That's why he was k*lled.

One of those personalities m*rder*d him to keep the secret.

Because unstable telepaths are put away for the good of everyone.

Check these names against the station manifest.

See if he checked in under one of his other personalities.

Go on, hurry.

Freeze! Hold it! Get down! Get down! Watch out! Harris.



- Hold your fire!

- Listen to me.

We know about your situation.

We know what your roommate discovered.

It's okay.

We can help you, but you have to trust us.



- Let us take you back with us.



- No, I won't go back!

- I can't!

- Yes, you can.

Take him down! Harris, back me up! Harris! I didn't do anything.

The dark man and the laughing man and me and Harris we're all in this together.

It's nobody's fault, really.

It's nobody's fault.



- Get him out of here.



- Come on, let's go.

Get up! We all did it.

You have to understand.

Please!

- Don't hurt him.



- They made us do this.

Just don't hurt him.

I don't think you should leave so early.

That PPG burn's gonna take a while to heal.

Oh, come on, doctor, we have history here.

Tell the truth.

You don't want me here a second more than I want to be here.

Personally, no.

But as a doctor, I have to treat all my patients equally.

Even the annoying, self

-righteous ones with self

-important delusions of godhood.

Thank you.

I feel far more at home now.

One of the drawbacks of instinct.

If you had a chance to think about it, you would've been content to let me fall.



- No, that's not true.



- No?

No.

Care to scan me to find out?

I'll authorize it.

Or would you rather go on believing our kind and your kind have to hate each other, no compromises?

You're an optimist.

Thank you.

I'd almost forgotten what one of your kind looked like.

Oh, Lauren.

Good.

The doctor here was just clearing me to leave.



- Is the shuttle fueled up?



- She's ready to go.



- The prisoners?



- With a little nudge from back home security agreed to recognize our authority and turned them both over to our custody.

They'll be sedated to make the transfer easier.

I think Mr.

Allan will be happy to let them go since that means we'll be out of here ASAP.

He doesn't like our kind.



- Now, how do you know that?



- He said so.

Game.

Set.

Match.

Be seeing you, doctor.

When we get back, you deserve a back rub.

You don't have to do that.

No.

I want to.

You know, Chen thought you were a hero.

Tell you the truth, I wasn't sure if I still believed in heroes.

But I have never seen anyone fight for our people the way you do.

You don't let go, do you?

No.

To tell you the truth, Lauren there are some days when I think that's a good thing and other days, I'm not so sure.

I am.



- ETA with the mothership?



- Six hours, 20 minutes.

That's a long haul.

And we still have the mundane to deal with.

That's true.

Let me?

Please?

Are you sure?

Yes.

All right.

Go on.

Your first?

My first.

Well, you made it past the first stage.

You just might be Psi Corps material after all.

Now, let's go home.