Captain Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) oversees a Zeta Squadron training run. Lennier (Bill Mumy) has a drink with Vir (Stephen Furst). The Captain meets with Drazi and Pak’ma’ra representatives seeking help from Centauri aggression. Earth Alliance may be at risk too. Sheridan confronts Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik). He seeks help from Chief Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), who thinks Londo is riding a wild horse and afraid to get off. As long as he fears the political anarchy threatening him, he will stick with Centauri policy. They are interrupted by the arrival of Frederick Lantze (Roy Dotrice) from the Ministry of Peace, who is investigating the Centauri. He is accompanied by Welles (John Vickery) of Nightwatch.
Starfury pilots swap stories about the Ghost, a spider-like form in space. Lieutenant Keffer (Robert Rusler) has seen one. It killed Commander Galus. Veteran pilot Mitch Harvey (Rick Hamilton) advises him not to go looking for it. A Narn heavy cruiser is coming in to request Babylon Five for sanctuary from the Centauri.
Welles praises Ivanova (Claudia Christian) and looks for her cooperation with Nightwatch. She is loyal to Earth Alliance and refuses. G’Kar (Andreas Katsulas) is delighted that Sheridan will extend sanctuary to the Narn Cruiser. Welles meets with Nightwatch and criticizes Zack Allen (Jeff Conaway) for not sending sufficient reports on peoples’ behavior. Allan admits there was a complaint, but it was not serious. Welles insists he report any rumors. Harvey gives Keffer a data crystal of Ghost sensor recordings. G’Kar seeks an alliance with Lantze, but Lantze shrugs him off.
Sheridan assures the Narn Cruiser that he will protect them. Welles asks Sheridan to stop conducting fighter exercises against Centauri tactics as Earth intends to sign a non-aggression pact with the Centauri. Mollari demands the surrender of the Narn cruiser. They warn the cruiser that the Centauri are aware of them. A Centauri battle cruiser jumps in and Sheridan orders Zeta Squadron to protect the Narn cruiser. The Centauri open fire and the station defends the Narns, giving them time to jump away. The Centauri ship is damaged and breaks apart.
Lantze and Welles confront Sheridan. The Joint Chiefs support Sheridan but Welles orders him to apologize to the Centauri. He refuses and Welles threatens to replace him. Sheridan practices his sarcastic apology speech. Keffer is in space, looking for the Ghost. He spots it and attaches a homing beacon to it before the ship destroys his Starfury. On the shuttle to his fateful meeting, Sheridan notices a bomb and jumps out of the doors high over hydroponics. Delenn begs Kosh to save him and he emerges from his encounter suit as a glowing winged angel to save Sheridan.
Everyone sees Kosh as a different being of light from their own mythology. The Vorlons have been guiding the younger races for millennia, but now have attracted the attention of the Shadows. Mollari says he saw nothing. A few days later, the non-aggression pact is signed between Earth and the Centauri. Zack Allen sees a simple shopkeeper being arrested for sedition. ISN finds and publishes Keefer’s homing beacon, revealing the Shadows to the entire Galaxy.
Lantze’s comment about the non-aggression pact meaning peace in our time is clearly from British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s speech in 1938 after signing the Munich accords with Hitler. Fighter pilot Warren Keffer was foisted on J. Michael Straczynski, who killed him nobly. The relationship between Vir and Lennier is interesting in that they work for ambassadors on opposite sides who keep them in the dark most of the time. Most onlookers saw Sheridan rescued by an angel, which is a pretty good indication that you are in the right but did not know it was Kosh. The scene took months to put together. This was the end of the second season, The Coming of Shadows.