crew plow Victory directly into the control hub, and the planet killer activates prematurely. The Earth and Alliance ships escape just as the planet killer destroys itself and most of the Drakh assault fleet. However, the last remaining Drakh ships bypass the defense grid and plunge into Earth orbit, releasing a black gaseous weapon that enshrouds the Earth. On Babylon 5, Sheridan reports to Lochley that the Earth has been contaminated by a biological weapon engineered by the Shadows; experts calculate that the plague will adapt to human physiology and kill all life on Earth inside of five years unless a cure is found. Determined to save the planet, Sheridan turns Excalibur into a research vessel, armed with the best experts that can be found to search the galaxy for other races and technologies who may possess the knowledge that can lead to a cure. Galen arrives on the station to assist in the mission. Other information A Call to Arms acts as a sequel to Babylon 5 and a prelude to the Babylon 5 spin-off series Crusade. It introduces two prominent characters for the cast of Crusade, Galen and Dureena Nafeel, as well as the ship IAS Excalibur. The final scenes set up the basic premise of Crusade. Novelization A novelization of the film written by Robert Sheckley was published in 1999. References External links Call to Arms 1999 television films 1999 films TNT Network original films Films set in the 23rd century American science fiction television films 1999 science fiction films Films based on television series Television films based on television series Action television films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films