Original Airdate: August 17, 1994 Written by J. Michael Straczynski Directed by Lorraine Senna Ferrara Episode #: 21 Production # : 117
Guest stars: June Lockhart as Dr. Laura Rosen. Kate McNeil as Janice Rosen. Mark Rolston as Karl Mueller. Damian London as the Centauri Senator. Jim Norton as Ombuds Wellington.
A psychopathic killer is sentenced to a mindwipe for murder, and a woman brings an alien healing maching aboard Babylon 5. The healing machine can cure any disease and save anyone's life. The only catch is that in order for one person to live, another must die.
Karl Mueller (MARK ROLSTON), a psychopathic killer, is sentenced for the murder of three people aboard Babylon 5, the huge interstellar space station. Ombuds Wellington (JIM NORTON), Babylon 5's judicial authority, orders Mueller to submit to a brainwipe, a telepathic process that erases his evil personality and replaces it with docile emotions. Talia Winters (ANDREA THOMPSON), the station's resident telepath, is told to perform a preliminary scan of Mueller's mind. However, horrified by her previous encounter with the mind of a serial killer, she hesitates.
Meanwhile, Dr. Stephen Franklin (RICHARD BIGGS), Babylon 5's medical officer, investigates Dr. Laura Rosen (JUNE LOCKHART), an ailing, middle-aged woman who is illegally treating the poor passengers in Downbelow, the station's criminal underworld, with an alien healing machine. Janice (KATE McNEIL), Laura's loyal daughter, tells Dr. Franklin that years ago her mother was a respected physician. But after exhausting herself in her practice, she accidentally killed one of her patients. Her medical license was revoked. Experimenting with the unknown powers of the machine is restoring Laura's devotion to healing the sick.
Dr. Franklin thinks Laura is a charlatan until he reviews her patient's recovery records. Examining the machine, Dr. Franklin realizes that transfers biological energy from Laura to her patients, gradually draining her of her own life-force. Laura confesses that she's suffering from Lake's Syndrome, a painful neurological disease, and hopes to perfect the machine's efficiency before she dies.
Ordered by superiors to learn more about the rival alien races, Londo Mollari (PETER JURASIK), the fun-loving Centauri ambassador, reluctantly escorts Lennier (BILL MUMY) , a repressed and virginal young Minbari attach‚, on a night of wild adventure in one of Babylon 5's nightclubs. Londo is caught cheating in a poker game, and the ensuing brawl destroys the club. When station commander Jeffrey Sinclair (MICHAEL O'HARE) disciplines Londo, Lennier accepts responsibility for the brawl and pays for the damages. Londo is surprised by the Minbari's generosity and feels indebted.
During the preliminary scan, Talia is traumatized by the secrets of Mueller's subconscious. Before the brainwipe, Mueller escapes. Severely wounded in the process, he flees into Downbelow. Mueller locates Laura's clinic, and while holding Janice hostage, forces Laura to heal his wound with her machine.
Suspecting Mueller's intent, Dr. Franklin alerts some of the guards and hurries to rescue the Rosens. Connected to Mueller with the machine, Laura suddenly reverses its power, transferring her disease into Mueller's body as he dies in agonizing pain.
Ombuds Wellington declares that Laura acted in self-defense and doesn't charge her with Mueller's murder. However, though Mueller's life-force cured her, Laura feels she violated her medical ethics by killing him. She departs from Babylon 5, leaving Dr. Franklin and Janice to perfect the healing machine.
