ISN reports on the Earth Alliance Civil War, including President Clark’s suicide. Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) has surrendered to Earthforce. Susanna Luchenko (Beata Pozniak) of the Russian Consortium is now Acting President. An investigation will try to separate willing conspirators from victims of coercion. Doctor Franklin (Richard Biggs) rushes to Babylon Five to stop Marcus Cole (Jason Carter) from giving up his lifeforce to save Ivanova (Claudia Christian), but finds Marcus already comatose beside her. She is sitting on the floor, grief-stricken at what Marcus has done. She knew he loved her, but experience had taught her to be distant and mistrustful.
G’Kar (Andreas Katsulas) and Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik) trade barbs until Vir (Stephen Furst) arrives to bring the bad news that the Centauri Royal Court wants to make Londo emperor. In Earthdome, Sheridan waits while others decide his fate. Alfred Bester (Walter Koenig) enters, and they trade threats and insults for a while. Bester wants to know if his love Carolyn Sanderson was one of the Shadow-altered telepaths that died in the Battle of Mars. Sheridan gives him a hard time and then admits that she was not one of them and is still waiting to be brought back to consciousness. He warns Bester that both he and Garibaldi have a score to settle with him.
Garibaldi has discovered that his love Lise Hampton-Edgars, widow of the late rich bastard, is being held by the Martian Crime Syndicate and he is beating up one of their ilk to find out where she is. Londo and G’Kar join Delenn aboard a White Star. She already knows about Londo being groomed for the throne. She presents him with the new Non-Aligned Worlds treaty. Londo finds it all amusing.
General Foote (Michael Potter) and President Luchenko appear to Sheridan to tell him everyone else will receive amnesty if he resigns Earthforce. Garibaldi and Rangers attack the Martian Crime Syndicate and rescue Lise. At Earthdome, Delenn, G’Kar and Londo have a press conference, covered by ISN. President Luchenko honors those who fought to end the Clark Regime and turns the podium over to Sheridan. In his Earth uniform, he says he hopes his resignation will help heal wounds. G’Kar speaks of dissolving the League of Non-Aligned Worlds and the formation of an Interstellar Alliance. Delenn announces that the Rangers will be the peacekeepers of the Alliance, open to anyone to join.
President Luchenko meets with Delenn, who offers artificial gravity, common among aliens, to Earth. Sheridan puts on his Army of Light uniform. Sheridan meets President Luchenko. As the President of the new Alliance, he demands Colonial Sovereignty, including freedom for Mars, as the cost of admitting Earth into the Alliance. Lise now owns Edgars Industries and offers Garibaldi a job. Ivanova, now a Captain, takes control of a new Warlock-class destroyer. Sheridan and Delenn are married in a private ceremony. Londo speaks to G’Kar about making History; G’Kar replies that people don’t make History, they survive it. G’Kar’s artificial eye is in the honeymoon suite.
When this episode was written, they thought it might be the last episode but one of Babylon Five. Ivanova was to take over the station, but the series was revived, and Claudia Christian declined to continue, thus her new job as a destroyer captain. Straczynski said that if he had known she would not return, he would not have killed off Marcus, who was a very popular character. For a character often used for comic relief, Ivanova is heart-breaking in this episode. If she doesn’t bring tears to your eyes, I’m sorry for you. G’Kar and Londo are becoming friends, and it is just as amusing as when they were enemies.