“The Fall of Centauri Prime” is episode eighteen of season five of Babylon 5.
In the previous episode, “Movements of Fire and Shadow”, Dr Franklin and Lyta discovered that the attacking Centauri ships were controlled by Shadow-tech. The apparent Centauri aggression was simply done to annoy their neighbours. But why?
The Narn and Drazi fleets had headed to Centauri Prime to start bombing the planet. The Regent had deactivated the Centauri defences and sent away their fleet to allow this. Sheridan had taken a White Star fleet to try and stop this from happening. He was too late.
G’Kar is in his cell when the bombardment starts. London manages to get him to safety before the cell’s ceiling collapses. Garibaldi contacts Sheridan and tells him that not only has the bombardment of the planet already started, Delenn’s White Star is missing – it was attacked by Centauri ships and is drifting in hyperspace.
Londo has gone to see the Regent to try and stop this. There is an alien with the Regent and Londo asks who, what it is. The Regent says they are called the Drakh. Londo knows the name; they worked for the Shadows. Yes, they did. They served, believed, loved the Shadows. But the Shadows went away and left the Drakh behind. To find out who they were without their masters. A shadow of a Shadow. An echo of what was. Their home, Z’ha’dum, was destroyed, in “Epiphanies”. They wandered, but they remembered the Centauri. Their masters saw great potential here.
The Shadows came in considerable numbers. Londo remembers blowing up the Shadow base in “Into the Fire”. Morden had said that Londo was making a mistake. Even if his associates lose the war, they have allies who will make sure Centauri Prime pays the price. These are the allies; this is the price. The Drakh started the war to turn the Alliance against the Centauri. They do not want Londo’s life. Not yet. The Drakh want a home. Centauri Prime. They want the Centauri to be a beaten, resentful people, who will have to rely on the Drakh to rebuild, to be used and guided as the Drakh wish. Perfect ground to do their work quietly. The Regent tells Londo the Drakh learn quickly. They learned from the Shadows; they learned from Londo. There are fusion bombs buried on the planet and if Londo doesn’t cooperate, they will be detonated and blamed on the Alliance. The Drakh want Londo.
Sheridan and the White Stars arrive as the Narns and Drazi are bombarding the planet. He tells them to cease firing and Na’Tok agrees. In return for Sheridan’s support. For Sheridan promised to back any action found appropriate. This was not such an action, though. The Narns and Drazi made the decision to end the war for Sheridan. The Centauri ships were called away and will return in 2-3 hours. When they arrive, and see what happened, they will not care for explanations. Fight with the Narns and Drazi and live; hold back and die.
The Regent is explaining the same to Londo. He will not tell the ships to stand down; he will be Londo’s alibi. Londo can claim the Regent alone gave the orders and was quite mad. Londo can give the order to surrender. He doesn’t have the authority. He will, for the Regent will soon be dead and Londo will be emperor. The Regent had no choice, and the parasite, which the Regent calls a ‘Keeper’, attached to him reveals itself. It will become part of Londo and control him. When it leaves the Regent, he will die. It detaches itself and he does.
Londo first goes to see G’Kar. G’Kar thanks Londo for saving him. Londo replies that G’Kar would have done the same. Yes, but G’Kar is a better person. Londo explains that he is effectively emperor now. G’Kar can no longer be his bodyguard; it would not be appropriate or safe. Londo may never see G’Kar again explains that G’Kar may hear strange things about Londo, about his behaviour, in the future. G’Kar understands what Londo is saying; Londo replies that he doesn’t, not fully, and he prays G’Kar never does. G’Kar tells Londo he can never forgive the Centauri for what they did to the Narns. His people can never forgive Londo’s. But G’Kar can forgive Londo.
Londo, on leaving, is given a Keeper by the Drakh. He then contacts Sheridan and says that the attacks on the Alliance shipping lines were done on the orders of the Regent. Who is now dead. Yes, that means Londo is in charge. This is over.
Londo already has to start acting differently, in a way that cannot be understood (although surely Sheridan, having glimpsed the future in “War Without End: Part Two”, should know why this is happening). Delenn and Lennier are drifting in hyperspace in a wrecked White Star, and Sheridan is desperate to find them. Vir makes a suggestion to board up the windows of the palace; something that Londo ordered done in the future in “In the Beginning”.
When Mr Morden asked people what they want, Londo said he wanted the Centauri Republic to become greater again and for him to achieve a position of greater power. He got what he wanted and now Londo sits, alone, Emperor of a broken world, without his friends. He got what he wanted and it did not make him happy. G’Kar said he wanted to see the Centauri home burned. He has now got what he wanted, but he was not the same person when it happened. It did not make him happy. Vir wished to live long enough to see Morden’s head on a spike. He got what he wanted and, unlike everyone else, it made him happy.