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Later that night, probably after midnight. Eight hours remain before the virus will be released�and as many hours remain before the Sliders are due to be executed. Conversation amongst the Sliders has turned to the utter failure of the plan.

�I had so hoped that it would not come to this,� says the Professor.

�Me too,� Wade agrees, �despite everything they put me through, the last thing I wanted to do was wipe out their entire species.�

Rembrandt agrees, too, saying, �You know, there was a time when I would have actually enjoyed this moment. After I suffered through three straight months of their damn Maggot mind games and their taking you [looking at Wade] away, girl, I would have done anything to kill every last one of them�but that time�s past. Yeah, they�re still a threat, and yeah, they�ve destroyed more worlds than I care to count, but they�re living beings, and millions of them are probably innocent civilians who have nothing to do with this war.�

Colin chimes in with, �I know that we had to stop them and they had to pay for what they did, but to kill off their entire race��

Logan then speaks up: �Dammit, they had a chance to stop it! Now you guys can feel bad for yourselves all you want, but I for one refuse to do so. We gave them a way out, and it�s their own damn fault that we were forced to take such an extreme measure in the first place! Sure, they�re living beings and it�s a damn hard thing to face, but they forced our hand�and when we gave them a way out, they didn�t take it� They didn�t take it.� In spite of her strong words, it is clear that the decision weighs heavily on her as well.

Geiger then speaks up, adding, �They didn�t have the chance. Their pig-headed emperor didn�t give them a chance. Mr. Brown is right. It is entirely possible�perhaps even probable�that the vast majority of the KroMagg race either doesn�t approve of its military�s aggression or doesn�t even know about it. We may be killing off billions of innocent civilians in order to stop their government�s military campaign.� Several moments of silence, then he continues. �But Ms. St. Claire is also right�they forced our hand. That virus is the best weapon we have against them at this time�and we�d be fools not to use it. Hell, the Voraton device we used twenty years ago turned out to be devastating to us as well as them, and we still used it. At least this time we won�t be dooming ourselves as well...at least, not now; what happens when we meet our maker�well, that remains to be seen.�

Several more moments of silence. It seems that there�s nothing more to say. Then, Colin speaks up again. �Dr. Geiger, if you don�t mind my asking, how did you know the Chancellor?�

Geiger replies, �Well, he wasn�t a chancellor when I knew him. He was just Karagg. That was back before the officially declared hostilities between our peoples. We grew up together. Went to school together. Sure, there was prejudice and racial tensions between our two peoples, but he and I never bought into that. We were just friends. He was the best man at both my and my sister�s�your mother�s�weddings. And then�the war came. At first, we hoped together for a peaceful resolution, but before long�   Well, let�s just say we got caught up in matters of racial hubris. We hadn�t seen or heard from each other since October 5, 1969�until today. I thought that perhaps I�d be able to appeal to our mutual hope for peace� I guess I was wrong.�

Then, suddenly, a deep voice is heard saying, �Don�t be so sure�old friend.� All heads turn toward the cell�s opening, where Karagg is standing with a solemn smile on his face.

Amazed, Geiger says, �But I thought��

Karagg replies, �You saw what you needed to see, heard what you needed to hear. If the emperor had known I opposed him, he would have killed me on the spot. As it was, Ron, your appeal to our friendship nearly cost me my entire species.� A concerned look from Geiger. �But that was what it took to get me to realize that the emperor�s plans for the Dynasty were�misdirected.� A beat. �The war is over. Our troops have been recalled.�

Geiger asks, �How?�

Karagg replies, �The emperor is dead�killed by my own hand. It was the only way. He lost eight children, five brothers, and his first two wives to the Great Struggle. He would never have ended the bloodshed; he was too consumed with the need for revenge. Kroatoanus had no heir; as his chief advisor, I will rule in his place. Follow these guards,� he says, indicating four imperial guards standing behind him. �They will take you to the storage locker where your equipment can be found. Signal your friends not to attack. We are a proud people, Ron, but only to a point. I will not have my species eradicated from the face of the earth merely out of pride. We surrender.� A pause. �Once you have done what you must, the guards will escort you to your quarters, where you will be welcome to stay for the remainder of your visit. Meet me in the Central Chamber in one hour. Go now.� And they do so.

*       *       *

One hour later, in the Central Chamber. Karagg sits in the throne that is now his. He introduces the Sliders to his son, Kryptus Tenaren�the man who had helped Colin find Wade all those months ago (Parallel Developments: Mind Over Matter). Karagg explains that Kryptus had gotten in some hot water over those events and would have been put to death were it not for Karagg�s position of power. Instead, Tenaren was stripped of his rank and turned over to the Imperial Estate, where he has been living in isolation for over a year. Karagg is aware that the Sliders are missing three of their friends�and he knows where they�re being held. The soldiers in charge of the garrison on that world have refused orders to return home, however. So, Karagg is sending Tenaren with the Sliders along with coordinates to that world, Earth 159. Once Geiger has been safely returned to Home World, Tenaren will accompany the Sliders to Earth 159 and help them to free their captured friends. After that, what Tenaren does is up to him, though he will be unable to return home (since shortly after they leave here, the Slidecage will be reconfigured to disallow any interdimensional travel to or from KroMagg Prime). Karagg then dismisses them to their quarters. Once their sliding window arrives, they can slide out from there. He wishes them luck. The Sliders express their deepest regrets over what nearly came about this day: the annihilation of the KroMagg people. Karagg replies only that he is sorry that it had to come this far before he was willing to act and do what he had believed right all along. And with that, the Sliders leave the Central Chamber. Geiger remains behind and exchanges a few words with Karagg, then the two of them part ways as well�this time, forever.

THE END

NOTE: Karagg was played by Andreas Katsulas, known to Babylon 5 fans as Ambassador G�Kar. This episode marked a reunion between he and fellow B5 star, Peter Jurasik, who played Ambassador Mollari on B5 and Gieger here. Another note: the female KroMagg who initially captured the Sliders was portrayed by the WWF�s Chyna.