“Z’ha’dum” is episode twenty-two of season three of Babylon 5 and the season finale.
In the previous episode, “Shadow Dancing”, the combined fleets had managed to drive back an attack by the Shadows, but at quite a cost. Sheridan was concerned about what the Shadows’ response might be to the attack. As Delenn had mentioned, she was staying to watch Sheridan sleep, to see him reveal his true face. During this the Shadows’ response arrived. Arrived, because it was a person – Anna Sheridan. Sheridan’s wife. Who is supposed to be dead.
Delenn starts the episode narrating, that there is a human saying, ‘What is past is prologue.’ There are clips from what Kosh and Delenn showed Sheridan “In the Shadow of Z’ha’dum”, about the arrival of the Icarus on Z’ha’dum and how, once the Shadows were awoken, they could not let the humans leave. Those who would not serve were killed. Delenn finishes with the Minbari also have a saying, ‘What is past is also sometimes the future.’
Sheridan is now awake and looks rather stunned. He asks Anna what she is doing here; she in return asks if after five years that’s the best he can do. Delenn says she must go and Anna tells Sheridan to let her leave, Sheridan can talk to her later. Once Delenn is gone, Sheridan says that he thought Anna was dead. She replies asking if she, meaning Delenn, didn’t tell Sheridan, which she thinks is interesting. Anna continues, saying that she is sorry she couldn’t tell Sheridan himself, sorry for leaving him alone for so long, sorry for not being able to get word to him.
Anna tells Sheridan she is sure he is thinking how can he be sure it’s really her. For all he knows, for all Delenn told him, this could be some thing made to look like Anna. Anna says she will take any test, answer any question. There is a lot Sheridan doesn’t know, that he doesn’t understand. Anna is here to fix that. She asks him if he wants to know what it’s about – what it’s really about. She can fix that. All Sheridan has to do is come with her to Z’ha’dum. When Sheridan was briefly in the future in “War Without End: Part Two” the Delenn of the future specifically told him not to go to Z’ha’dum.
G’Kar is with Commander Ivanova, telling her that something is here, as promised. He tells her that each of the devices has a terrible destructive force. In human terms, a thermonuclear blast in the 5-600 megaton range. Really big bangs. Ivanova asks if these will show up on a scanner and G’Kar replies only if you know what you are looking for. Otherwise they will be completely undetected. The plan is to mine the next area the Shadows are going to strike. Then, as the Shadows come out of hyperspace – G’Kar says as Ivanova succinctly puts it, ‘Boom.’ Ivanova thanks G’Kar and says the captain will be happy. G’Kar asks where the captain is as he thought Sheridan would be here. Ivanova replies that it’s hard to explain. Something came up.
Sheridan is in Medlab and Anna is being examined. Dr Franklin, now back at work, says that Anna is human. He’s checked her medical and dental records against what Sheridan gave him and there is a 100% match. Right down to the DNA sequence. Every piece of equipment that Franklin has says that this is Sheridan’s wife. Sheridan says that she died on Z’ha’dum and Franklin replies that she looks pretty lively to him. He thought Sheridan would be happy to have his wife back. Sheridan tells the doctor that it was years before he could accept Anna’s death. He had to force himself to start over, to create a new life. Franklin asks Sheridan if he’s spoken to Delenn yet; Sheridan replies that she was there when Anna turned up. Franklin has found some epidermal scarring on the nape of Anna’s neck that could have happened when the Icarus was destroyed. When the captain asks if there is anything beneath the scars Franklin replies no, but it never hurts to run more tests. Sheridan says that he has to know if it’s Anna.
Sheridan next speaks to Delenn, wanting to know if it is Anna. Delenn replies that she doesn’t know. Sheridan reminds Delenn that she and Kosh showed him the crew of the Icarus waking up the Shadows, and gave him every reason to believe that Anna was dead. He wants to know how they could do that if they were not sure. Delenn replies that those who would not serve the Shadows were killed. That she and Kosh knew, and they assumed that Anna would not serve, but perhaps they were wrong. Sheridan tells Delenn that there is no way Anna would work for those things and Delenn has no explanation.
Sheridan is upset. He says that he always felt Delenn was holding out on a couple of things and was sure she had her reasons, but how, if there was even a chance that Anna was alive, they didn’t tell him. Delenn says that he would have gone to Z’ha’dum after her, and they could not allow that. That response does not make Sheridan happy, that she and Kosh could not allow it. He tells Delenn that he trusted her, cared for her and let himself start to love her. Sheridan is really upset. Delenn tells him that they didn’t know Anna was alive, they thought she had died with the rest of the crew. That only Morden had survived. Sheridan wants to know if they would have told him if they knew. Delenn replies that it would depend on what he had become, for no-one leaves the homeworld of the Shadows the same was when they arrived. Sheridan tells her that they denied him the right to make the choice. He is really, really upset. The captain tells Delenn that he doesn’t know if he can ever trust her again. Delenn replies that, whatever else, she does love him.
Londo is drinking and Vir asks him why, as he has been drinking since the diplomatic pouch arrived this morning. Londo tells Vir that he has been promoted, that he has been offered a position in the royal court as the advisor to Emperor Cartagia on matters of planetary security. A very important post. Vir replies that this is great news, so why is Londo upset. Londo tells Vir that it should have come 20 years ago, when he was young enough to appreciate it. And because the promotion has not come because he earned it, but because they are afraid of him. Through Morden, Londo has gained influence, money and power, and there are fears he may seek to become emperor. The post is a leash, to make Londo divide his time between Centauri Prime and Babylon 5. It will allow Londo to be watched carefully and if he does anything suspicious, his throat will be slit.
Another drink is delivered to Londo, but the person delivering doesn’t leave. He tells Londo he is a friend sent by their mutual associates. Londo should leave the station at once. He cannot say more, but if Londo values his life, he should leave quickly. When the man leaves, Vir asks if he was a friend of Mr Morden and Londo thinks it is likely. He does not like the sound of this, not at all.
Dr Franklin is looking at a scan of a skull and brain with markings on the nape of the neck, presumably Anna’s. He looks at a similar scan of another skull, one that looks to have something in it. Franklin has noticed something from the scans.
Anna is in Sheridan’s quarters. She says that she has never been examined so thoroughly, and the reports confirm it’s her. Sheridan wants to know what she was doing on Z’ha’dum, and why she has returned now; Anna says she can’t tell Sheridan that, not here. If Sheridan comes with her, his safety is guaranteed. Sheridan asks what if he doesn’t go. Anna tells him that she will return without him, and he will never know the truth. No threats; the Shadows are not what Sheridan thinks they are. They want Sheridan to hear their side of the story. Sheridan asks Anna why she wants to go; she tells him it’s home now and she’s doing important work. Sheridan wants answers, what happened to her and the crew when the Icarus landed on Z’ha’dum. That’s his condition. If he hears that, he will go.
Anna tells him that probes from Interplanetary Expeditions had found ruins of an ancient, unknown civilisation out on the Rim. Professor Chang had put together an expedition, but they weren’t told at the time how the location was really found. IPX had discovered an alien ship buried beneath the surface of Mars – which Dr Kirkish had told them in “Messages from Earth”. As soon as the ship was revealed, an automated signal was sent out. They knew they would only have limited time before someone came to find the ship, so it was analysed and pieces were taken. And a homing device was planted, that tracked the ship out to a world on the Rim.
Chang was told by EarthForce New Technologies Division to keep it top secret. When the Icarus landed, they were told to check out an energy source. And that’s where they found them. The Shadows. Anna tells Sheridan that their real name is 10,000 letters long and they were quite approachable. There was an accident and the rest of the crew were killed, and their communications systems were destroyed, so the survivors couldn’t tell anyone. The Shadows had only just come out of hibernation and were vulnerable. They couldn’t risk outsiders coming. So, in exchange for silence, the surviving crew were allowed to study their technology.
This technology would allow them to change Earth forever; the end of poverty, unlimited energy, organic ships. Anna says she didn’t realise how much time had passed, as time does not work the same way on Z’ha’dum. She tells Sheridan that Kosh, Delenn and the others misled him, and it is time to learn the truth. Sheridan replies that maybe it is time, and Anna hugs him. Out of her sight, Sheridan glances sideways at a pad, a pad that has the same images that Franklin was looking at displayed.
Sheridan is looking at these images again when Garibaldi appears and asks if there is anything he can do regarding Anna. The captain tells him no, but there is something else. According to the logs, not of the Minbari crew of the White Star have been logged into the security net. The chief replies that he figured it wasn’t necessary, as Delenn vouched for them. Sheridan wants the crew shuttling over, processed and given identicards. All of them; the White Star can operate on autopilot for a few hours.
Sheridan hands Garibaldi a pad, saying that there are a few things he needs taking care of, but they need keeping confidential. The chief replies that what around here isn’t these days and he will take care – then actually looks at what Sheridan wants. Sheridan tells Garibaldi that originally neither of them knew if the other could be trusted, but since then the captain has come to depend on the chief. He needs these taking care of; no questions, no speculations, no educated guesses. When Sheridan sees Garibaldi next, if everything is set, they will talk about the weather. Afterwards, Sheridan is getting a couple of PPGs – one looking to be a holdout piece – when he sees Kosh in the mirror. Kosh tells the captain that if he goes to Z’ha’dum, he will die. When the captain spins around, Kosh is not there.
Sheridan records a time-delayed message for Delenn, then he and Anna are heading for a shuttle bay when Garibaldi bumps into them. And chats about the weather. Sheridan and Anna take the shuttle to the White Star – which is now empty of crew. Anna asks Sheridan if he is sure he can run the ship by himself. He replies that he thinks so, as long as they don’t run into any problems. Anna tells him that his safety is guaranteed, and they depart for Z’ha’dum.
Dr Franklin clearly found out something about Anna, something that Sheridan knows too. Which means he may well be up to something. As for the warning given to Londo – well, when many, many Shadow vessels appear around Babylon 5, the warning may well be connected to that. It seems that Anna was not the sole response by the Shadows.
Not exactly a cliff-hanger ending but certainly some unresolved issues leading into season four and “The Hour of the Wolf”.