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A Guide to the heroes, villains, aliens, places, items and adventures of sci-fi

Compiled by T. Rob Brown

A

• Abbai: An alien race aboard Babylon 5 that was briefly a part of the League of Non-Aligned Worlds. Abbai are sometimes referred to as "fishheads" due to their amphibian-like appearance. They resigned from the league in 2259. (DEATHWALKER) [BAB5]
• Abbai 4: An Abbai world. (DEATHWALKER) [BAB5]
• Abbot and Costello: During Colonel Ari Ben Zayne’s internal investigation aboard Babylon 5 in 2258, Security Chief Garibaldi wondered if these renowned 20th century comedians had taken control of Earthforce. (EYES) [BAB5]
• Abbut: A Vicker occasionally employed by Ambassador Kosh. In 2258, Abbut was hired by the Vorlon to scan Talia Winters and find how her mind functions, what scared her, and how she reacted to fear, surprise, terror, and reflection. Abbut claimed, falsely, to be a P23, liked Jovian Sunspots, and wore a large hat to hide his cyberorganic mind. (Played by Cosie Costa.) (DEATHWALKER) [BAB5]
• Abby: The senior telepath assigned to care for the young Talia Winters during her first year at the Psi Corps center. Abby woudl gently scan Talia to make her feel better and this partly explains her ability to form strong relationships with other women, later in life. (SPIDER) [BAB5]
• ABC Rap: Al made up the words to a rap tune Sam had once programmed into Ziggy's memory banks in order to teach the alphabet to Tibby Johnson, a patient at Havenwell Hospital. (SHOCK) [QL]
• Abydos: A desert world with Egyptian-style pyramids that was controlled by the Goa’uld Ra before Ra’s mothership was destroyed by a package of naquadah and a U.S. military tactical nuclear weapon set off by Col. Jack O’Neill. Following the mission, the gates were abandoned on both ends. More than a year later, in 1997, the stargate opened for the arrival of the Goa’uld Apophis. After that, O’Neill and a new team returned to Abydos in search of Dr. Daniel Jackson. [SG, SG1]
• Accelerator Chamber: When Sam first Leaped, he was inside a nuclear accelerator chamber located at Project Quantum Leap. [QL]
• Achilles: An Earthforce transport. In August 2258, the Achilles was attacked by Raiders to lure Babylon 5’s Starfuries away from the station. When Commander Sinclair heard the Achilles’ cargo included nothing more valuable than hydroponic supplies, tools, and atmospheric testing materials, he realized the Raiders’ true intention and orderd the Starfuries to return to Babylon 5. {SIGNS) [BAB5]
• Acme Handy-Dandy Micro-Helper: A ficticious device which supposedly makes life "easier, cleaner, and all-around happier." When Commander Ivanova was kidnapped by a group of green Drazi aboard the station in 2529, Security Guard Garibaldi entered their lair by posing as an Acme salesman. (GEOMETRY) [BAB5]
• Action Eyes: KSFW-TV's newscast. Their reporter Dylan Powell had been tipped off in advance of each of a string of serial murders. (EYES) [QL]
• Adams, Henry: A Vietnam veteran who was living a "mountain man" existence in Washington in 1972 with his Army buddy Roy Brown. Henry had been keeping an eloquent journal that described his days in combat, including the night one of his friends was killed. Henry, Roy, Luke Marlet, and John Burke were high school buddies who signed up after graduation and served together with John leading the group. During the war Luke disobeyed a direct order to kill an old man inside a hooch, and when John went in to do the job, the hooch exploded, killing John. (BEAST) [QL]
• Adams Hotel: Gina Dorleac was last seen at this New Orleans hotel before she vanished. (COMFORT) [QL]
• Addison Men's Club: Activist Diana St. Cloud staged a walkout at this men-only establishment, which had never admitted a woman into the dining room in two hundred years of existence. (LIBERATION) [QL]
• Agamemnon: One of the first Omega-Class destroyers built after the Earth-Minbari War, the Agamemnon’s primary task after the war was to patrol the Rim. Prior to his posting aboard Babylon 5 in January 2259, Captain Sheridan served as the Agamemnon’s commanding officer (DEPARTURE). The ship came to Sheridan’s aid a few months later, when he was kidnapped by the Streibs (ALONE). [BAB5]
• Aggie: The beautician in Ravenrock, Massachusetts. She "made up" the bodies for the mortician, and also performed abortions on the side. Aggie had been asked to perform an abortion on Hilla Danner, but Hilla couldn't go through with it. Ziggy said that later, in 1963, she was indicted for carrying out illegal abortions, but was never convicted. (DEAR) Also the name of a milk cow on the Beckett farm. (HOME) [QL]
• Aider, Bart: Abagail Fuller was the last person to see him alive. When Sam Leaped in, he found Bart dead of what appeared to be a blow to the head, but the local doctor pronounced it to have been a heart attack. The question was did the blow happen before or after? (TRILOGY1) [QL]
• Aider, Leta: Her daughter Violet was presumed dead in 1953 and her husband was killed two years later, and Leta believed Abagail Fuller was responsible for both deaths. (TRILOGY1) Eleven years later she led a lynch mob that tried to kill Abagail after a local boy came up missing. The boy was eventually found safe. (TRILOGY2) In 1978 her daughters bones were found at the bottom of a well. Leta went to an attorney, but he told her they couldn't prosecute Abagail because she was a juvenile when the murder took place. Leta was later found in Abagail's kitchen, dead, and Abagail was arrested for the murder. In the trial it came out that Leta committed suicide, but called the sheriff just before then to report screams in the house in order to set up Abagail. (TRILOGY3) [QL]
• Aider, Violet: Next to Abagail Fuller, she was the prettiest girl in the parish in 1953, but she vanished after the two girls had an argument over a locket. The entire parish searched for her until they found her bloody sweater and decided a pack of wild dogs roaming in the area must have killed her. They destroyed the dogs and Sheriff Clayton Fuller closed the case. Violet's mother believed Abagail Fuller had murdered her daughter. (TRILOGY2) The child's bones were discovered in 1978 when the town well was unsealed for renovations. (TRILOGY3) [QL]
• AirDome: Earthforce fighter pilot training center. (EYES) [BAB5]
• Akdor: The third planet in the Sh’lassan Triumvirate. In 2259, Akdor was the site of a civil war, which was later quashed by Earthforce intervention. (GROPOS) [BAB5]
• Akshi, Gera: A dancer at the Dark Star and friend of Adira Tyree. Akshi helped Adira hide from her master, Trakis, and Ambassador Londo Mollari, when she stole the Centauri’s Purple Files. (Played by Laura Peterson.) (PURPLE) [BAB5]
• Al Callisto: A Nam starliner. Na’Toth was waiting for Nam councilor Ha’Rok to arrive on the Al Callisto when she spotted the infamous warleader Jha’dur. (DEATHWALKER) [BAB5]
• Alberta: The pool cue belonging to Charlie "Black Magic" Walters was as big a legend as he was. Named after his wife, it was 21 ounces of pure African ebony inlaid with mother-of-pearl. (POOL) [QL]
• Alexander, Lyta: The first commercial telepath assigned for Babylon 5. Born on Earth, Dec. 10, 2225, Lyta Alexander was 26 when she joined the Psi Corps on Oct. 18, 2252 (GATHERING). Lyta knew Talia Winters at the Psi Corps Academy and they spent six months working together at the Psi Corps Intern Program, during which time Lyta worked for the Psi Corps. Perhaps inevitably, she didn’t like it (DIVIDED). A sixth-generation registered telepath, Lyta was rated P5 and her licensed Psi Corps telepath number was N617CC860. Prior to 2259, her record stated she had no distinguishing marks or a criminal record (GATHERING). Lyta arrived on Babylon 5 on Jan. 3, 2257 (DIVIDED). During her time on the station, she not only mediated several business deals, including a few for Ambassador Delenn (DIVIDED), but also turned down Ambassador G’Kar’s pleas to help the Narn develop their own telepaths. She declined the offer to mate with the Narn diplomat and refused to provide DNA cells for cloning (GATHERING). Most importantly, of course, Lyta Alexander reluctantly scanned the mind of the Vorlon ambassador, Kosh Naranek, to help find some way of helping the dying diplomat. Although Lyta was extremely loyal to Psi Corps and believed in keeping to the rules, she agreed to perform the illegal procedure when Dr. Kyle and Lietenant-Commander Takashima convinced her thousands of lives depended on finding a way to save Kosh. During the scan, the telepath saw that the ambassador had been poisoned with a skin tab applied to his hand by Commander Sinclair. Using the information gained from the scan, Dr. Kyle was able to find and analyze the poison and develop a counter-agent, while Kosh’s would-be killer was later revealed to be a Minbari assassin using a Changling Net to pose as Sinclair. (GATHERING) According to Security Chief Garibaldi, Lyta was "never quite the same" after she entered Kosh’s mind and she was recalled to Earth a mere six weeks after her assignment to Babylon 5. She was fiercely interrogated by the Psi Corps, who demanded to know what she had seen in the Vorlon’s mind. All Lyta told them was that she had experienced a feeling which she couldn’t put into words. She omitted several pieces of information, including the fact that ever since the scan she had felt drawn to Vorlon space and was sure the mysterious Empire would welcome her. In 2259, Lyta escaped from the Corps on a shuttle to Mars, where she became involved with a revolutionary movement. When she learned Psi Corps had placed a sleeper spy on Babylon 5, she traveled to the station to warn the command crew. Although Captain Sheridan initially found her story hard to believe, he decided to trust her when the spy tried to kill Lyta. With the captain’s permission, Lyta telepathically sent the password which activates the Psi Corps-induced alternate personality into the minds of most of the station’s command staff, including Ivanova, and finally unveiled Talia Winters as the unwitting mole. Before leaving the station, Lyta met with Ambassador Kosh, who left his encounter suit to reveal his true form to her. (DIVIDED) (Played by Patricia Tallman.) [BAB5]
• Ali, Muhammad: He and George Foreman fought it out for the Heavyweight boxing title on Oct. 29, 1974. Sam was able to place a bet on the fight and solve a lot of Kid Cody's problems with the winnings. (HAND) [QL]
• Alia: If Sam Beckett was able to travel in time, it would stand to reason that sometime another person would do the same. Perhaps it was a greater shock than a surprise when Sam encountered Alia. When they first met, Sam had back into Jimmy LaMotta's life, and Alia had become Connie. They didn't know about each other until they touched, which set up a magnetic convergence field allowing them to see each other. Alia told Sam she was with a time-travel experiment, and she too suffered from Swiss cheese memory and had no control over where she went. The one thing she wanted above all was to go home. She then tried to seduce Sam, saying he was the only one who could understand what she was going through. Their lovemaking was interrupted by the early return of Frank, Jimmy's older brother. While Sam was digging for his clothes, Alia ripped her slip, scratched her face, and screamed that Jimmy had tried to rape her. Zoey, her Observer, then reported that she had to kill Sam, and that doing it could get her home. Alia explained to Sam that it wasn't God that put them against each other. Sam countered by postulating that evil could only exist because of good, and if she killed him, she may no longer exist, and it would only add to the power of whatever was Leaping her around. Alia has apparently killed a lot of people, but she was unable to bring herself to kill Sam, and Alia and Zoey exited distored and screaming in pain. When the pair met again, Alia told Sam she had been tortured, and the experience was worse than death. She begged Sam not to let her go through that kind of pain again, and Sam suggested if they were to hold each other when they Leaped, they might be able to go together. They did, right into the Mallard Correctional Facility for Women. In an attempt to keep Lothos, the artificial intelligence controlling her Leaps, from locking onto her brain waves, Sam altered them slightly by hypnotizing her into believing she actually was the woman into whom she had Leaped. While Alia didn't seem to be completely evil (why else would she want to be redeemed?), she did wonder why some people help other people. Apparently such behavior was either not in her background or had been conditioned out by some means. Alia could see Zoey's Observer, Thames. When Alia was shot by Zoey, she Leaped out and Angel Jenson Leaped back in, unhurt. Lothos reported Alia was lost, and Ziggy reported to Al that she was free. (EL1, EL2, EL3) [QL]
• alien healing device: Mechanism of unknown origin initially used as a form of corporal punishment. Criminals sentenced to death would have their life energy removed by the device, which would then use their life force to heal those dying from terminal diseases. In 2256, Dr. Laura Rosen bought the alien device from a trader and, after several months, learned to use it on a low setting to heal people by giving them some of her own life energy. Rosen discovered the device could restore, renew, and reinvigorate flesh, bone, blood, and could cure anything from the common cold to Stafford’s Disease. Two years later, Rosen brought the device to Babylon 5 to start an illegal clinic Down Below. When Rosen used it to save her daughter, Janice, and Dr. Franklin from a serial killer, Karl Mueller, it was turned over to station personnel. Franklin wondered if the device might one day be used to preserve someone’s life like a blood donation. (MERCY) A few months later, Franklin put the machine to the test to save Security Chief Garibaldi’s life. When all traditional medical techniques failed to bring Garibaldi out of his coma, both Franklin and Captain Sheridan donated some of their life energy to revive him (REVELATIONS). Also known as The Lifegiver. [BAB5]
• alien science probe: Probe of unknown origin programmed to find and make contact with other life-forms. In 2260, it reached Babylon 5 and transmitted a recording which explained the station’s inhabitants would have to prove themselves worthy enough for contact. It then sent 600 questions on such topics as physics, genetics, molecular biology, and quantum mechanics and claimed if all questions were answered correctly within 24 hours, the probe would provide cures for every known form of disease as well as some highly-advanced technology. Unfortunately, if they failed to answer all 600 questions, the probe would explode with the force of 500,000 megatonnes. Once the message was decoded, the probe began its countdown. Although Captain Sheridan thought the probe must have been sent by an alien race driven by natural evolution that intends to help the strong and destroy the weak, he later realized its real function was to destroy advanced civilizations which could pose a threat to its makers. When Sheridan decided not to transmit the answers, the probe left its "inferior" inhabitants unharmed and resumed its search. It self-destructed shortly after when it was given the 600 correct answers by one of Babylon 5’s security ’bots. (STRIFE) [BAB5]
• Alien Sector: This sector contains 14 different alien atmospheres and can sustain just about every possible form of life, from methane-breathers to insectoids. Although it is widely referred to as the "Alien Sector," those in Gray Sector actually refer to the parts of the station inhabited by humans as the "Alien Sector." (WORD) [BAB5]
• Allan, Zack: Security officer aboard Babylon 5. Garibaldi’s second-in-command, Zack Allan is generally good at following orders, but tends to shy away from making his own decisions. When Garibaldi was outraged by Sheridan’s illegal treatment of the Shadow emissary Morden and resigned, Zack happily served Sheridan and arranged for Talia Winters to "conveniently" pass the mysterious businessman in the hope she sensed something while in close proximity. (Z’HA’DUM) During the Narn-Centauri War, Zack was forced to kill a Narn who refused to put down his weapon (SACRIFICE). He was later assigned to follow Ashan, the Minbari witness to the killing of Lovell by Sheridan, but was prevented from making a key breakthrough in the investigation by Lennier (HONOR). Zack decided to join the Nightwatch simply because of the weekly payment of 50 credits (Z’HA’DUM). Clearly, he had failed to realize or even consider the real intent and function of the organization. At the end of 2259, he reluctantly corroborated stories that a shopkeeper, Xavier Darabuto, had been complaining about new import regulations. Zack was shocked when he discovered that Darabuto’s shop had been closed by the Nightwatch (FALL). As a student, Zack had little interest in history and used to fall asleep in history class (Z’HA’DUM). He has something of an eye for the ladies, but subtlety is certainly not his strong point (HONOR). Zack doesn’t like being poked (CONVICTIONS). (Played by Jeff Conaway.) [BAB5]
• Alpha Seven: A member of Babylon 5’s Alpha Wing sent to investigate unusual tachyon emissions in Sector 14, Alpha Seven was killed when he encountered the timewarp which had trapped Babylon 4. Just before he died, he managed to scratch the letters "B4" into his belt and set his Starfury on autopilot. When his ship returned to Babylon 5, Dr. Franklin discovered the 30-year-old pilot had died of old age and his internal organs were like those of a 90-year-old. (SQUARED) (Played by Douglas E. McCoy.) See Mitchell, Bill. [BAB5]
• Alpha Squad: Squadron led by Jeffrey Sinclair during the Battle of the Line. Sinclair was its only surviving member. (SKY) Also one of Babylon 5’s Starfury squadrons. Also known as Alpha Wing. [BAB5]
• Alvarez: A member of the pro-Earth Homeguard movement. Contributed to a series of anti-alien attacks aboard Babylon 5 in 2258. Was later captured and sent back to Earth for trial. (PRAYER) (Played by Richard Chaves.) [BAB5]
• Alyt: Title given to the acting commander of a Minbari ship when its captain is not on board. (DEPARTURE) [BAB5]
• Amazonis Planitia: A region of Mars situated near the Mars Colony. (GRAIL) [BAB5]
• Ambassadorial Wing: The home of Babylon 5’s alien ambassadors, situated in Green-2. Each ambassador has diplomatic immunity and the quarters of each ambassador are considered to be part of their world’s territory. (PARLIAMENT) [BAB5]
• Amis: A highly-decorated GROPOS. During the Earth-Minbari War, Amis served with an intelligence-gathering unit stationed on a barren moon to monitor a Minbari command and control post. When the group built their camp on some old ruins, it was attacked by a Soldier of Darkness. The creature killed every member of the unit -- all except Amis, whom he kept alive to feed on. When a rescue party arrived, Amis weighed 85 lbs. Although Amis explained exactly how his 47 comrades were killed, his superiors didn’t believe him and their deaths were officially recorded as the result of a Minbari attack. Earthforce decided Amis was either mad or a compulsive liar. In 2259, Amis began warning the inhabitants of Babylon 5 that judgment day was nigh and was subsequently arrested for causing a public nuisance. When he was befriended by Security Chief Garibaldi, Amis told him how the Soldier of Darkness he had encountered during the war had come aboard Babylon 5 via the Copernicus. He then helped Garibaldi track the creature down and destroy it. (LONG) (Played by Dwight Schultz.) [BAB5]
• Amundsen: In 2242, the Amundsen became the first human ship to encounter the Minbari. Under the command of Captain Ellasai Ferdinand VI, it opened fire on them in the process killing their leader, Dukhat. (LAW) [BAB5]
• Ancients: Also known as the "gate builders," this ancient race of human-like beings built a vast network of stargate portals for interplanetary travel 3 million years ago. They were allied with the Asgard, the Nox, and other sentient races of their time. Later, most of the Ancients ascended to a higher state of existence as energy. An offshoot of the Ancients, another group known as the Ori, decided to control followers turning themselves into gods. [SG1, SGA]
• Antarctica: Location of the first stargate on Earth before the glacier enveloped the continent. [SG1]
• Antarean flarn: An Antarean delicacy. (PARLIAMENT) [BAB5]
• Antareans: An alien race aboard Babylon 5. (VOICES) [BAB5]
• Antares Sector: The home of the Antareans. The human tech-runner Del Varner bought a Changling Net in this sector. (GATHERING) [BAB5]
• anti-agapic: A serum which retards the aging process and prevents disease. Many races and organizations are known to have tried to create an anti-agapic, including the Russian Consortium. In 2258, the notorious war-criminal Jha’dur arrived on Babylon 5 with a universal anti-agapic, which she described as "the ultimate triumph of life." Unfortunately, one of the key ingredients of her serum couldn’t be synthesized, but had to be removed from living tissues. Thus, Jha’dur hoped to plunge the galaxy into a war for immortality. However, Jha’dur’s plans were cut short when the Vorlons destroyed her ship while it was en route to Earth, leaving Dr. Franklin with only a small sample of the anti-agapic. (DEATHWALKER) [BAB5]
• Anubis: Egyptian god and a Goa’uld who later became partially ascended and tried to take over the galaxy. He and the ascended Dr. Daniel Jackson had conversations in the afterlife before Jackson realized Anubis’ true identity and attempted to defeat him in the physical world. [SG1]
• Apophis: Egyptian god and a Goa’uld who fought with SG-1 on many occassions. Teal’c was the first prime of Apophis before joining SG-1. Eventually, Apophis was defeated. [SG1]
• Arain Station: Outpost visited by Walker Smith prior to his SportCorp boxing match with Itagi on Earth. (TKO) [BAB5]
• Area 51: Military testing facility and storage location for alien technology. [SG1, SGA]
• AreTech: A mining corporation on Mars found to be supplying the Raiders with details of supply routes. (ACCUSATIONS) [BAB5]
• Arrakeen (Ar-ra-keen): The capital of the planet Arrakis, known as Dune. [DUNE]
• Arrakis (Ar-rak-is): The desert planet known as Dune. [DUNE]
• Article 35: Earthforce regulation which states any dispute about a new regulation must be heard by at least five senior officers. In 2258, Article 35 was invoked by Sinclair, as the commanding officer of Babylon 5, to question a new regulation which supposedly allowed Colonel Ari Ben Zayne to order telepathic scans of all of the station’s command staff. Sinclair claimed scans are only permissible when an officer faces specific charges. (EYES) [BAB5]
• Article 52: Earthforce regulation which states any commander found to be working against the best interests of Earth can be removed from his/her post. (EYES) [BAB5]
• Asgard: One of the older races which resemble alien grays, they have befriended Earth and the SGC. On several occassions, Thor and other Asgard have assisted or requested assistance from SG-1. Loki was a problematic Asgard. O’Neill earned the respect of the Asgard. Among them, he has become legendary due to the presence of the Ancient gene in his genetic makeup which enables him to interact with Ancient technology. Thor’s admiration for O’Neill’s abilities led him to personally select O’Neill to represent Earth in the negotiations for the Protected Planets Treaty, and to name the Asgard’s most advanced spaceship, the O’Neill, in his honor. [SG1, SGA]
• Ashan: A young Minbari and member of the Third Fain of Chu’Domo. In 2259, Ashan witnessed the murder of the Minbari Lovell by Captain Sheridan. Although Sheridan claimed to have killed Lovell in self-defense, Ashan stated the Minbari was assaulted without provocations and offered to surrender before his brutal murder. Ashan showed little respect for Ambassador Delenn, whom he called a "freak," but reluctantly cooperated with Lennier as a member of the Third Fain of Chu’Domo. When Lennier discovered Sheridan was telling the truth and Lovell was acting under orders of their sect, the ambassadorial aide threatened to dihonor the sect unless Ashan told the truth. Consequently, Ashan issued a statement explaining what he really saw, while leaving Lovell’s motives a mystery, in order to protect the honor of the Third Fain of Chu’Domo. (HONOR) (Played by Sean Gregory Sullivan.) [BAB5]
• Ashok, Vakar: Drazi captain of a Sunhawk-Class ship who threatened to attack Babylon 5 unless Jha’dur was turned over to him to stand trial for war crimes. (DEATHWALKER) (Played by Mark Hendrickson.) [BAB5]
• Asimov: An Earth Alliance starliner named in memory of a highly-regarded 20th-century writer. In 2258, the Asimov was enroute to Babylon 5 when a fire in the ship’s command and control center destroyed its navigational computer and most of its communications channels. Consequently, it was left flying blind in Raiders territory until Commander Ivanova mounted a successful rescue bid. (BELIEVERS) [BAB5]
• Atreides (A-tray-i-deez): Ruling house of the planet Caladan. The Atreides family did comprise of Duke Leto; his formal concubine, the Lady Jessica; and their son, Paul -- at the beginning of the Dune series. [DUNE]
• Avenger 2.0: A computer virus created by Dr. Jay Felger and named for a combic book hero. It was designed to scramble a DHD’s coordinates and render a target gate useless to the Goa’uld. Within hours, the entire stargate network shut down. [SG1]

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