Dinner with the Prosecution (Part 3/End)

Posted on 11/23/2020 @ 2:32pm by Captain Cian D'Anvers
Edited on on 11/23/2020 @ 5:19pm

Mission: S3E1: Time of Change
Location: The Earle, Earth
Timeline: Day 79 at 1645

[Before]

"Not anyone that belongs in a civilized society," Alex replied, her jaw tightening. She looked at her foot and decided that she would cut into it. She firmly stabbed her fork into the pastry and made a sharp, decisive cut. Her voice lightened, full of sympathy. "I'm sorry that you had to experience that on your ship." She put the bite into her mouth, chewed it thoughtfully and then swallowed. After taking a drink of water, she asked, "You do understand that this is not your failure, right?"

[And Now ..]

"Yes and no," Cian said as he leaned back, food forgotten. "Logically, I understand, sure. People can be very good at hiding aspects of their nature from family, friends, shipmates, even counselors. And from what I can tell, no one saw this coming." He switched to water and took a long sip, returned the glass to the table, and looped one hand around the base. "I certainly didn't and its ... disturbing ... to me that she got angry enough in that moment to kill someone. That the individual was unconscious and no threat? Makes it all horrific. Just ... horrific."

"I can only imagine..." Alex replied sympathetically. "And there were no spatial anomalies or other factors that would have caused her to lose her mind, so to speak?"

"If only. No, nothing that we could discover," Cian said. "And the Santiago stayed there three days longer than we did. They didn't find anything either. Her actions didn't support an outside influence either since she recognized immediately what she had done."

"Then it seems that there really was no justification, now was there?" Alex's conscience solved, she cut another piece of her meal and placed it in her mouth.

"Not that I can discern, unless its rooted in her past as an Orion somehow," Cian said. "But even then, to murder a defenseless being? Believe me, I wanted someone to say that she was under the influence of some powerful drug or something. At least then, I wouldn't feel as though I'd missed something important."

"How did an Orion get onto your ship anyways? And how did you deal with her pheromones?" Alex wondered.

"Apparently, there's a shot for it," Cian said. "She was required to take on every thirty days. As to how, well, she didn't stay on the Orion home world. She was sent to ... Corridon, I think it was, as a child. Grew up there. Her foster parents arranged for citizenship. She attended the Academy and everything."

"And did she have a record before your ship?"

"A record," Cian repeated. "You mean criminal?" He thought about it for a moment and then shook his head. "No, nothing like that. Her record was clean but then, you should already have all of that information."

"Indeed, but you would be surprised at how many times Captains are sentimental and will have someone transferred to avoid placing a black mark on someone's record. But in this particular case, I was wondering more about her conduct on your ship. What was she like? Did she show any evidence of mental instability?"

"No," Cian said. "Nothing like that. I met with her when she came on board but it wasn't a remarkable meeting in any way. She did her job. There were certainly no complaints about her behavior or performance. I would have heard about those."

"So, this was clearly her choice, then. She will have to live with the consequences of that," Alex replied with a satisfied nod, cutting once again into her food. "I wish there was something more that I could do to make you see that you are not at fault. No blame comes back to you. Obviously you care and that is probably why you're a good Captain."

Cian nodded as he returned his attention at last to his meal. "Comes with the job, I think. Taking responsibility for a crew and a ship. Still, I think I'm coming around to the idea that whatever this was, it got past a lot of people." He took a forkful of food and paused long enough to savor the taste. "That's good," he said, gesturing at the food with his now emptied fork.

"I'm glad that you're enjoying the food," Alex replied with a smile. "It was the least that I could do for you, given the situation." She took the glass of wine and took another drink of it. "So, how long are you planning on staying around?"

He'd been eating while she spoke and took a moment to take a sip of water before answering. "We'll stay for the trial," Cian said. "Most of the crew are taking the opportunity for a bit of shore leave. Orders permitting, of course."

"Of course," Alex replied sympathetically. "Would you permit me on board your ship to show me where everything happened? It is one thing to see the holos, quite another to see it in person. One gets a better sense of relative distances in person."

"It didn't happen on my ship," Cian said at once. "And it's nearly a thirty-nine day journey to the station where it all did happen. What I can do is have security set up a reconstruction for you. You can view it on the holodeck of your choice."

"My mistake," Alex replied with a blush. She did not like to make mistakes and she liked it less when she had to admit it. "A reconstruction will suffice." She tilted her head down slightly, still embarrassed. "Thank you."

"Not a problem. I'll get it to you as soon as I can," Cian said as he shoved his plate away slightly and settled back in his seat to finish his glass of wine. He noted the body language but made no comment. Sometimes, the easiest way to get past something was just to move onto the next thing. "Meeting over dinner was a good idea," he said gently. "Especially since my evening looks to be full."

"Full?" Alex asked curiously. "You have plans after this?"

"Reports mostly," Cian said. "We're just back so there are few things I have to take care of. Most of the crew's already been released for shore leave so it will be quiet for once. Eerie, a quiet ship, but good for getting things done without interruption."

"Ah," Alex replied both in an understanding and slightly disappointed tone. To prevent her from saying anything more on the subject, she polished off the rest of her wine. Once finished, she asked, "So, no shore leave for the Captain, then?"

"We should be here for awhile," Cian said after a moment, surprised at what he saw. "And, you know, even the Captain deserves a break now and again. 'Sides, how much can happen ..." He paused for a moment, a dimple appearing and disappearing, "I probably shouldn't say that, should I?"

Laughing lightly, Alex replied with a gleeful smile, "No, probably not. I always think it is best to prepare for the worst and hope for the best. That way, one is never disappointed."

"Words to live by, especially on a starship," Cian said. "Though I don't know that its eliminates the chance of disappointment. Guess it depends on how much you're invested in the outcome. At any rate, I have some things to clear up before I explore the nearly mythical possibility of getting any time to myself."

"Well, if you do manage to get some free time after the trial...." Alex stopped herself. "Let's just get you through the trial first, OK?"

Cian nodded, his thoughts returning like a hamster on its wheel to recent events. Getting through the trial would be good and for the life of him, he couldn't say exactly what he hoped to happen.


A post by:

Captain Cian D'Anvers
Commanding Officer
USS Crazy Horse

and

Lieutenant Commander Alex Rahmer
JAG Attorney for the Prosecution