Shakiri

Shakiri was a male Minbari member of the warrior caste in the Babylon 5 universe. Holding the rank of Shai Alyt, Shakiri led the warrior caste in the days after the Shadow War, and was a primary instigator of the Minbari civil war.

In the time after the Shadow War a dangerous power vacuum had opened up with the Grey Council having been dissolved by Delenn just before the war. Shakiri and other leading warriors in the warrior caste took advantage of the situation to start a civil war against the religious caste. When fellow warrior caste member Neroon apparently betrayed the plans of the religious caste to the warriors, Shakiri was finally able to force the religious caste to surrender, and left Neroon to work out the details.

As he and Delenn had previously planned, Neroon arranged for the surrender ceremony to take place within the Temple of Varenni, which is where the ancient Minbari used to select their leaders. The temple was equipped with the Starfire Wheel - a device that concentrated energy on a small circle. At full power the Starfire Wheel was fatal. The leaders of Minbari factions would undergo a test of endurance to see who was willing to sacrifice their lives for their faction, and who was worthy to lead the Minbari.

As the surrender ceremony approached, Shakiri ordered Neroon to additionally arrange for Delenn to have an accident on her way back to Babylon 5 in order to remove a political opponent.

When Delenn announced that the religious caste surrendered, Shakiri immediately launched into a victory speech and informed the populace that he and the warriors would rule over the Minbari Federation. Delenn at this point started the Starfire wheel running, and announced that if the Minbari were returning to the old ways they needed to use this method to choose the Minbari leadership. She stepped into the Starfire Wheel.

Shakiri tried to get out of stepping into the wheel until Neroon goaded him into entering the wheel and Delenn chastised him for tearing the Minbari people apart in a civil war before trying to find political solutions to the problems facing the Minbari.

Shakiri was only able to tolerate the Wheel for a few seconds before he jumped out of the Wheel. Despite telling Neroon that she would leave the Wheel after Shakiri she remained in the Wheel to set an example for the Minbari. Neroon entered the Wheel and removed Delenn, sacrificing himself for Delenn and the religious caste.