“Everything you need to know was in my report, Councillor.”

“Except for one small detail. What were three of your men doing on the colony when you and your ship were so far away? Do you commonly allow your men shore leave on planets such as Vega Seven?”

Sheridan raised an eyebrow slowly. Nonchalantly, he slid his hand down to his belt – and his PPG. He had deliberately left details of Na’Far’s actions out of his report, hoping that someone would notice it, and be panicked into making a move. It seemed that someone had.

“They were being held prisoner there, Councillor,” he said, noticing that Marcus had similarly tensed himself. Here would be a chance to test the man’s worth as a guard. Did Na’Toth have guards of her own nearby? If so, how many? Were other members of the Kha’Ri in on this, or just her alone? “We were… betrayed by Administrator Na’Far.”

“Oh? That seems unlike him. He was always very loyal.”

“Loyal? Yes, I suppose he was. And so if any orders… say from a member of the Kha’Ri, came for him to betray me to the Minbari, he would act upon them, wouldn’t you say?”

“I suppose he would.” She was acting very cool. She must have an ace hidden somewhere. Where was it possible to hide anything in this room? There was only one door, over which Marcus was surreptitiously positioning himself. There were no closets or cupboards of any kind. It was plain, almost too plain for a member of the Kha’Ri… There. A tiny crack in the wall, almost unnoticeable. A secret door.

Na’Toth clearly noticed the direction of his eyes. She made ready to act, but Sheridan darted forward, knocking her off balance. She fell, and he pinned his PPG to her head. “Come out or she dies,” he barked. “Did you really think I’d fall for the same trap twice?”

Na’Toth barked out something in a Narn dialect Sheridan did not recognise, and the door opened. Two people stepped out. One was a Narn, whose simple browns and greys made him appear less than he was, but whose bearing marked him out as a warrior. The second… was a Minbari, and dressed as one, prideful in his warrior black, carrying a metal staff just like the one Susan had taken from Delenn.

Marcus cried out something Sheridan did not hear, and darted forward. The Minbari turned to meet his onslaught, and with a swift blur of motion, Marcus was lying face down on the floor. He tried to rise, but the Narn placed a booted foot on the small of his back. Sheridan looked down at the two of them.

“Move and she dies,” he muttered, but then all he felt was the breath rushing from his body as a great force thudded into his stomach. Staggering backwards, Na’Toth pulled herself free of his grasp and watched as he fell. She recovered his PPG and held it distastefully.

“For a great captain, you are not very smart,” she said.

“No,” whispered the Minbari. “He is merely not a diplomat, that is all. He is a warrior. I see it in his eyes.”

“Stuff your talk of warrior spirit and honour,” Sheridan spat. “It was you, then,” he said to Na’Toth. “You sent Na’Far the order to betray me.”

“No, actually,” she replied. “It was not me, but I do know who it was. I have a question to ask you, whenever you start breathing again.” He glared at her and she shrugged. “You recognised what H’Klo said in Council today. Where did you hear of the Ancient Enemy before?”

“Na’Far… he whispered it as…” Sheridan breathed in hard. “As he died. And Delenn.” The Minbari showed no overt reaction, but something subtle changed in his posture. “She… I don’t know. She said it too.”

Na’Toth looked at the Narn and the Minbari. The Narn hesitated. The Minbari was silent.

“It was black,” came a soft, harsh voice. Marcus’. “So black that my eyes sort of slid off it. A cross between a spider and my worst nightmare. As it awoke, I heard it screaming in my mind.” Na’Toth made a gesture, and the Narn took his foot away from Marcus’ back. “I saw it. I saw it rising from the ground. Oh God, I thought I’d forgotten it.”

“What?” whispered Sheridan. “What was it?”

“The Ancient Enemy,” Na’Toth replied. “Vega Seven was not destroyed by the Minbari, Captain, nor by the Centauri, nor by any other race with which you are familiar. It was destroyed by a race timeless and ancient, dark and terrible. They are rising again. Vega Seven was proof of that. One of their ships was hidden there, and they returned to collect it. We are the last bastion of hope, the last line drawn against the return of that enemy. They are gathering power once again on their homeworld of Z’ha’dum, drawing their ships back to them. We have to stand ready for when they come, and so must you.”

Z’ha’dum? He had heard that name before. Susan had mentioned it… Susan had… “I don’t… believe… you,” he muttered. “Don’t…” A booted foot crashed into his skull and he lost consciousness.

Na’Toth looked at her two companions. “Get him out of here. Ha’Cormar’ah G’Kar will have to see him.”

“What about his ship?” asked Neroon. “They may wonder where he is.”

“Then let them wonder. I will arrange a cover. If they get too suspicious, it may be easier to just have it shot down.”

“And this one?” Ta’Lon said, indicating the equally unconscious Marcus.

“Take him with you. He has seen the enemy also, and may prove a better choice to serve alongside us than Sheridan.”

“And what about his companion? The woman?”

“I will explain Sheridan’s disappearance to her also. If need be, she will disappear as well. I have contacts within the Thenta Ma’Kur.”

“And what if Sheridan does not return from Ha’Cormar’ah G’Kar’s shrine in the G’Khorazhar Mountains?”

“Then we shall deal with that when it happens. G’Quan walk with you both, and with G’Kar.”

Seated in her quarters, Susan Ivanova smiled. After all Na’Toth’s undoubted checks for listening devices, she had missed the smallest one of all, placed inside Sheridan himself by means of Susan’s kisses. It was powerful, and even partially alive, just the smallest example of her friends’ technology.

“You heard?” she said. Despite appearances to the contrary, she was not alone. She was never alone. “Good. The G’Khorazhar Mountains are just to the west of here, or so I believe. It should be easy enough to locate this shrine of G’Kar’s. We can simply follow the signal from Sheridan’s transmitter.”

…

“Yes, I think so too. A Warrior would be best. Can you get one here in time? Ah, good. I don’t think even G’Kar can deal with a Warrior. At least not without his two trusted servants. The Warrior can follow us as we follow Sheridan, and when we get close enough, it should be easy to sniff out G’Kar.”

…

“Sheridan? Leave him to me. He knows a little, that’s all. Certainly not enough to pose a real threat. I can make him believe that Na’Toth was the one who arranged to have him betrayed on Vega Seven, and that G’Kar was working with the Minbari. Sheridan knows a little about the Rangers already, and he knows that you and the Minbari are old enemies. It might be a stretch, but I can keep him from poking too far. All he needs to know is that you are enemies to the Minbari and are willing to help him against them. With G’Kar dead, that should be easy enough, and you will be rid of an irritating problem.”

…

“Delenn? Don’t worry. I’ve made arrangements to take care of that problem.

“Trust me.”