A Just Determination

Chapter Eleven

Paul sat, nursing his drink at Fogarty's, watching Jen go from person to person and group to group. Farewells for people you liked were always bitter-sweet affairs at best. You couldn't help but be happy that they were leaving the pressure-cooker of being part of a ship's crew, but you also knew you'd miss them. He already felt as if Jen were separating from the wardroom of the Michaelson, and from him, and that fact contributed to the melancholy he already felt. Paul checked the time. It's been almost three hours? I didn't realize. Maybe it's time to go.

A moment later Jen came and flopped down in the seat next to him. "Hello, Mr. Sinclair."

"Shouldn't that be good-bye?"

"Not yet. You're sitting here all alone and quiet. What's on your mind?"

"You don't need my problems tonight, Jen."

"Who are you to say what I need? Feeling possessive?"

"No!" Paul looked away, suddenly annoyed with both Jen and himself.

"Hey, lighten up. How many drinks have you had?"

"Less than you, I'm sure."

"Guess again. This is number two."

"Really?" Paul looked at her, startled. "I know we have to work tomorrow, but don't the honorees at farewells usually get wasted?"

"I'm not much for traditions. What's bugging you, Paul?"

"Nothing."

"Bull. Talk to me."

"Okay. I'm worried about tomorrow. My testimony. What's going to happen."

"That's all?" Jen leaned to catch his eyes. "You're hiding something."

"Oh, hell, Jen. I'm sorry you're leaving. I don't want you to leave the ship."

"Really? Why?"

Paul gave her a skeptical look. "You're… my friend."

"You've got lots of friends, Paul."

"No, I don't. And even if I did, there'd only be one Jen." He raised his glass to hide his face behind the drink, trying to cover a sudden flush of embarrassment.

"Ah, what a sweet thing to say. Want to go for a walk?"

"Jen, your party-"

"Is over. I've talked to everybody. I saved you for last. Come on."

Paul followed, out of the bar and along the wide corridor lined with similar bars. Not speaking, Jen led the way in the general direction of the ship, then veered off into another area. After several minutes, she stopped near a doorway with a credit card slot affixed next to the lock. Similar doorways occurred at regular intervals for some ways down the length of the bulkhead. "Got me a rent-a-shack tonight, Paul. I didn't want to sleep onboard. Just a way of marking the fact I'll be leaving soon."

"Oh." Paul eyed the door curiously. He'd never actually been in a rent-a-shack on Franklin, though he was familiar with their counterparts elsewhere. A small room with barely enough space for a bed, a tiny lavatory and an entertainment console, rent-a-shacks were found everywhere people needed a few hours of privacy.

"You don't have to sound so impressed."

"Sorry. That's nice, Jen. I bet you'll be real comfortable."

"Maybe."

He glanced at her curiously, but Jen stood silent nearby for a little while. Paul waited, guessing she wanted the time with her own thoughts.

Finally, Jen looked over at him, a small smile on her lips. "So, you're going to miss me, huh?"

"Yeah. I already told you that."

"Are you going to miss me a little or a lot?"

"A lot, I guess."

"You guess?"

"Okay, I know. I will miss you a lot. Okay? I like you."

"A lot?"

"Yes, I like you a lot."

"I like you, too, Mr. Sinclair. I like you a lot, too."

"You do?"

"Why do you think we talk so much?"

"I never really thought about it, I guess. And since I found out you were leaving and we wouldn't get to talk anymore I haven't wanted to think about it. I don't want to say goodbye, Jen."

"I don't want to say goodbye, either. Matter of fact, it's a shame to say goodnight, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but I need to get back to the ship-"

"No, you don't." Jen hooked a thumb toward the door of the rent-a-shack. "There's a bed in there. It's no king size, but it's big enough for two."

Paul's next words froze in his throat. He stared at her for a long moment. "What?"

Jen pulled herself close to him, her smile growing. "Hey, sailor. New in town?"

"Jen, I, I…"

"Oh, he's shocked. He's stunned. Paul, you can be such an idiot. Kiss me."

"Uh, Jen, I, uh…"

"Relax, almost-a-JAG. We're not going to violate any regulations. Neither of us is in the other's chain of command, and in less than two weeks we won't even be on the same ship."

"Yeah, but regulations say people still assigned to the same command-"

"Shut up, Paul." Then Jen's mouth was on his, and her hands were touching him, and Paul suddenly realized that particular regulation probably wasn't all that important in this case anyway.

Paul awoke with a mild headache at odds with an overall sense of well-being. He turned his head, seeing Jen's eyes fixed on him. "Good morning."

She smiled. "I think so. How about you?"

"Oh, yeah."

"Good. Listen, Paul, I don't do one-night stands. We already know we like each other. I'd like a relationship now. A serious one. See how well we go together. Interested?"

"Very interested. And very surprised. I never thought you'd want to get serious with me."

"Yeah, well, you grew on me. I've been thinking about it for a while, but I wasn't going to do anything about it while we were living and working a few meters away from each other. When my orders came through I realized it was time to decide whether to walk away from you or not."

"You'd already decided when you told me about your orders, hadn't you? And told Kris to make sure I was at your farewell?"

"Yup. Planned the whole thing. Right up until we got in here, anyway. From that point on I improvised, but you didn't seem to mind."

"Darn right I didn't. But I've spent the last few days feeling so bad, thinking you'd be gone from my life!"

"That was obvious. It was so funny watching you slouch around all depressed."

"You are such a bitch."

"I know."

"I'm still glad you decided not to walk away. But, like you said, you're leaving the ship. We won't see nearly as much of each other."

"That's the reason I made my move. I want our personal stuff to stay personal, and off the ship or any other job. In a couple of weeks I'll be assigned to the Maury, and we can see each other openly and not break any regulations."

"So why didn't you wait until you'd actually transferred? I seem to recall a certain Jen Shen once advising me not to mess around with anybody else in the crew until I was walking off the ship for the last time."

She grinned. "And I meant it. But we're not in each other's chain of command, and I'm on my way gone. Close enough."

"Not that I'm complaining, but we wouldn't have to hide it at all if you'd waited a few more weeks."

"Okay, the truth is I figured you could really use something positive going on in your life right now."

"I sure could."

"That seemed really important. So I evaluated my options, weighed the risks and acted appropriately, like a good officer should. Happy?"

"Very. So you did it because you thought I needed it? You're really a very sweet person, Jen."

"I am not. You take that back." Jen glanced away. "To be perfectly honest, there was another reason. There's no telling when I could have gotten together with you again after I left the Michaelson. What orders our ships might have gotten right after I left. Where you might have gone, for how long, who you might have met. I might have lost my chance to do anything, and maybe lost you. I didn't want to risk that."

"Thanks. I'm glad you didn't."

"Now we just have to keep a lid on it until I leave the Michaelson. God help us if somebody like Herdez finds out. So don't go making goopy-eyes at me when we get back to the Michaelson or I'll deck you."

"Yes, ma'am, Ensign Shen."

"Good. Now, I've got another question." She sat up, turning toward him and leaning forward. "This testimony you're supposed to give today. Do you know what you're planning on saying, yet?"

"Huh? What?" Distracted by the sight of her breasts hanging not far from his face, Paul had totally missed the question.

Jen saw where his eyes were focused and grinned. "Oh, you like these, huh?"

"Well, yeah."

"Then never mind about the question. I'll ask it again later. Come here."

Paul didn't get a chance to find out what her question had been before they had to hastily leave to take separate paths back to the ship, but that didn't bother him a great deal.

If there'd actually been windows in Franklin Station, and if any of those windows had illuminated the route from the Michaelson to the court room, Paul would have said the sun was shining on his walk. Funny. I'm still worried about my testimony. I'm still tense about what might happen. My guts twist every time I think about being questioned up there. But I feel good. Jen wants to be serious with me. Who would've guessed? Anybody but a dope like me, probably.

Perhaps because of his mood he walked quickly and arrived first at the court room. He took a seat, trying to look calm despite his internal turmoil. Paul turned slightly in his chair so he could glance at others as they entered the court room, hoping to catch a quick glimpse of Jen. He saw all the department heads file in, most of them sitting in a pack, but Sykes slightly separated. Herdez came in, striding to her seat like a warship steaming past small sailboats, and also took a seat away from anyone else.

The junior officers began trickling in. Jen Shen arrived at last, walking briskly to take a seat in the back as usual, then glanced toward Paul and gave a brief nod and small smile in greeting. Paul returned the gesture. Right. Just friends saying hi. No goopy-eyes. Whatever those are.

Kris Denaldo entered as well, but instead of going with Jen she came up front and took a seat in the row just behind Paul, then she leaned forward and whispered in his ear. "Have you and Jen started picking out curtains, yet?"

"What? How did you-?" Paul looked down at his clothes as if something there had betrayed the events of last night.

"Relax. It doesn't show. Jen and I are girlfriends. We talk about stuff. Nobody else knows."

"Uh, thanks."

"She's worried about what you're going to say up there today."

Paul bit his lip. Jen's got a right to be worried. Even before last night. She's a good friend. "I'm not entirely sure. I've gone over stuff with Commander Garrity, but she wanted me to sound unrehearsed when she questioned me."

"You going to fall on your sword for Wakeman?"

"No. What happened wasn't my fault. I'm just not so sure it was his fault. Not on a criminal level, anyway."

"Okay. Jen told me she was attracted to your idealism. That's funny, huh? Ms. Cynic and Mr. Idealism. So, do what you think is right. Jen'll be there."

"Thanks. Thanks a lot."

"No problem." Kris got up again, moving back to sit next to Jen, where the two ensigns bent their heads together in conversation. Paul stole glances their way, afraid to let his eyes linger on Jen too long, and finally saw her looking up at him again. She shook her head as if exasperated, then one eyelid flicked in a wink almost too quick to see.

At precisely 1000 the bailiff made his "All rise" announcement and the legal ceremonies and procedures marking the entry of the judge and the members began. Paul took a close look at Wakeman, whose stubborn determination seemed to have slowly eroded into despair. Perhaps it was the way Wakeman was sitting this morning, but over the course of the prosecution's presentation Wakeman seemed to have collapsed in on himself like a inflatable doll with a slow leak.

Lieutenant Commander Garrity stood. "The defense calls as its first witness Operations Specialist First Class Yolanda Daniels."

Daniels walked to the witness stand, her uniform and military bearing immaculate. If she felt an qualms at being surrounded by officers it wasn't apparent from her squared shoulders and calm demeanor.

After the swearing in, Garrity stood before Daniels. "Are you Operations Specialist First Class Yolanda Daniels, assigned to the Operations Specialists Division in the Operations Department on the USS Michaelson?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"And is your duty station during general quarters at one of the consoles in the Michaelson 's combat information center from which primary combat system sensor results are displayed for warning and analysis?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Petty Officer Daniels, what exactly does that job entail?"

Daniels looked around slightly, as if trying to gauge the ability of her audience to understand a technical explanation. "Ma'am, I occupy the console's primary monitoring station. That's the one on the right. Petty Officer Li occupies the back-up station on the left. When the combat system sensors detect anything they think might indicate a threat, we get an alert on the console and the raw data gets displayed along with the system's assessment of what it means."

"What sort of data are you talking about, Petty Officer Daniels?"

"Anything the sensors might pick up, ma'am. Visual, IR… excuse me, that's infra-red, ultra-violet, radio spectrum emissions, any kind of energy or visual detection that stands out from the background environment."

"How sensitive are these sensors?"

"Objection." Commander Wilkes spoke for the first time that morning. "That information is classified."

"Sustained." Judge Holmes addressed Garrity. "If the defense wishes to go into detail on that issue the court-martial will have to go into closed session."

"I understand, Your Honor. That won't be necessary. Petty Officer Daniels, can the sensors you help monitor detect energy weapons being charged on another ship?" Instead of answering, Daniels looked concerned. "That's all right, Petty Officer Daniels. I'm not asking for precise information or detailed capabilities. Just in general. Can your sensors do that?"

"Yes, ma'am. They can do that."

"What exactly is involved there?"

"Well, ma'am, when a weapon charges, an awful lot of energy has to be pumped into whatever's being used as a ready-storage source."

"A ready-storage source?"

"Yes, ma'am. That's what slams energy into the weapon when it needs to fire. But when you're pushing all the energy into the ready-storage source, you get leakage."

"Energy leaks out?"

"Yes, ma'am. Any place there's a gap in the shielding. Just like if there's a light under a blanket it'll shine through any holes."

"And under the right conditions you can detect that happening?"

"That's right, ma'am."

Garrity strode several steps to one side, looking away from Daniels now. "Petty Officer Daniels, I want you to tell us about the incident with the SASAL ship. You were in the Michaelson 's combat information center and occupying your duty station?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"What happened as the SASAL ship closed on the Michaelson?"

"I spotted a transient energy detection on my console, ma'am."

"The same sort of transient energy detection which could indicate weapons were being powered up on the SASAL ship?"

"Objection. It has already been established that the SASAL ship was unarmed. There were no weapons to power up."

Judge Holmes looked toward Garrity. "Well?"

"Your Honor, we're dealing here with events on the Michaelson prior to confirming that the SASAL ship was unarmed. Decisions made on the Michaelson, decisions made by Captain Wakeman, were based on the information available to him at that time. Ex post facto determinations of evidence found after that time do not bear on whether or not Captain Wakeman's decisions were correct based upon what he knew when he acted."

Holmes nodded. "Very well. Overruled. Continue, Commander Garrity."

"Petty Officer Daniels, did the transient you saw correspond to the sort of detection you would expect to see from weapons powering-up?"

"Yes, ma'am. Exactly that kind of transient."

"And you reported that detection to your superiors?"

"Yes, ma'am. I passed it immediately to Commander Garcia, and I heard him pass it to the bridge."

"Commander Garcia didn't question your detection?"

"No, ma'am."

"He informed the bridge that the Michaelson 's combat system sensors had detected a transient which could indicate weapons were being powered-up on the SASAL ship."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Has Commander Garcia or Captain Wakeman or any other officer ever questioned your qualifications to occupy your duty station at that console? Do you have their confidence?"

"No, ma'am, no one's ever questioned my qualifications. I know my job, ma'am. And Commander Garcia and Captain Wakeman, they know I know it."

"Thank you, Petty Officer Daniels. No further questions."

Commander Wilkes came forward, eyeing Daniels sternly. "Petty Officer Daniels, isn't it a fact that the combat systems on the USS Michaelson automatically maintain a record of all activity, including any detections by the sensors?"

"Yes, sir. It's usually on a seventy-two-hour loop, but we can permanently save anything we need to retain."

"And you did permanently save the combat system recordings of the encounter with the SASAL ship, correct?"

"Yes, sir."

"Do those recordings indicate your console ever displayed a transient detection such as you just described?"

Daniels hesitated, then her face hardened and she stared defiantly back at Wilkes. "No, sir."

"No? The combat system records indicate there was no transient detected when you say there was? That you never saw such a detection?"

"I saw a transient detection, sir."

"How do you explain the fact that such a detection isn't in the combat system records?"

"I can't, sir. But I saw it. It was plain as day. I know my job."

"I'm sure you do, Petty Officer Daniels." Wilkes held up his data link. "Trial counsel would like to introduce into the trial record this exhibit, which is an excerpt from a standard, definitive text on psychological wish fulfillment. In summary, it states that in periods of crisis or other intense emotion, individuals are capable of seeing things they expect to see, rather than what is actually there. Examples are provided herein from past military engagements in which combatants 'saw' nonexistent threat information."

The judge nodded. "The excerpt is accepted as appellate exhibit six."

Wilkes turned back to the witness stand. "Petty Officer Daniels, isn't that possible? That you saw something that wasn't there because of the tense atmosphere inside the Combat Information Center?"

Daniels stared steadily back at Wilkes. "Sir, I didn't imagine anything. I saw it."

"I'm sure you believe that, Petty Officer Daniels. I wouldn't suggest otherwise. But you were tense, weren't you?"

"Yes, sir."

"Everyone in Combat was tense, weren't they?"

"I'd say so, sir."

"Why?"

"Because of the situation, sir. Because that SASAL ship was coming right at us and not saying a word."

"How did you get into that situation, Petty Officer Daniels?"

"Sir?"

"How did the Michaelson come to be so close to the SASAL ship despite the other ship's failure to communicate?"

"We intercepted that ship, sir."

"So you wouldn't have been as tense if the Michaelson hadn't been in that position? If your commanding officer hadn't created a situation in which you were so fearful you imagined you saw weapons being powered-up on the other ship?"

"Objection!"

"I withdraw the question. No further questions."

Garrity was looking down at the surface of the defense table, her mouth a thin line. Paul felt a stab of sympathy for both her and for Petty Officer Daniels, who was trying to maintain a cool military bearing despite Wilkes' attack on her testimony. Finally, Garrity looked up. "No further questions."

The next witness was Petty Officer Li, whose testimony went much like Daniels' had. Yes, he'd seen a transient, too. Yes, he was absolutely certain. No, he couldn't explain why the combat systems had no record of having displayed such a detection. When Li left the witness stand, Paul felt the testimony of the two Operations Specialists had resulted in a draw between the trial counsel and the defense with no gain for either side. Which would make what he had to say more important than ever.

I'm the last witness. Paul stole another look backwards to where the junior officers sat. Jen and Kris gave him twin thumbs up. Carl Meadows made a gesture of squeezing something between his palms, then grinned reassuringly. Right. No pressure. Hah. I feel like I'm under three g's of acceleration.

"The defense calls as its next witness Ensign Paul Sinclair."

He walked up to the witness chair, no longer aware of anyone else in the courtroom. Commander Wilkes came into his line of vision. Whatever Wilkes thought or felt about Paul wasn't betrayed by his fixed expression as he administered the oath. "Do you swear that the evidence you give in the case now in hearing shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?"

Paul's mouth and throat suddenly felt dry. "I do."

Wilkes left and Lieutenant Commander Garrity came before him. "Are you Ensign Paul Sinclair, assigned as primary duty Assistant Combat Information Center officer and collateral duty ship's legal officer to the USS Michaelson?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"And in your capacity as ship's legal officer, did the ship's executive officer, Commander Herdez, ask for your interpretation and assessment of the operational orders issued to the USS Michaelson governing its last patrol?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"And did you provide such an assessment?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Please summarize that assessment."

"Yes, ma'am." Paul took a deep breath before he started speaking. "Basically, I told the XO, Commander Herdez that is, that the orders seemed to be very broad in a number of critical areas, and also vague on a number of very important points."

"What made them very broad?"

"The wording, ma'am. The orders kept using terms like 'appropriate' and 'necessary' to describe what the captain should do instead of setting parameters, but then they'd turn around and say he shouldn't do anything that'd be wrong, but they didn't specify what that might be. You ended being confused after reading them as to what was and was not mandated, what was and was not prohibited."

"Shouldn't the captain have known what would be wrong, Ensign Sinclair? What was mandated and what was prohibited?"

"No, ma'am. The orders said we, our ship, needed to do anything necessary and appropriate to carry out our primary mission. It said the captain 'shall' do anything needed to counter attempts to violate our sovereign claim to that area of space. The kind of wording pretty much leaves it up to the captain to decide what methods are, uh, necessary and appropriate."

"Ensign Sinclair, this court has heard extensive testimony that Captain Wakeman's actions and decisions violated numerous standing orders and instructions. Do these orders which you have characterized as broad and vague have any bearing on those charges?"

"Yes, ma'am. Specific orders always take precedence over standing orders."

"Give an example of that, Ensign Sinclair."

"Well, take the standing order that ships remain within their assigned patrol areas for the duration of their mission. If you received an order from fleet staff telling you to leave your patrol area, you'd have to obey it regardless of what the standing orders say. Otherwise the fleet staff wouldn't be in charge, the standing orders would be."

Garrity looked toward the members table, then back at Paul. "Where did you learn that, Ensign Sinclair?"

"At the Academy, ma'am, and again in space warfare specialty training."

"So it's taught to new officers as a pretty basic guiding principle?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"What did his orders say Captain Wakeman was to do in the event a foreign ship challenged United States sovereignty of the area you were patrolling?"

"They said he had to, uh, counter any such challenges."

"He had to? No vague wording?"

"The orders said 'shall,' ma'am, and I was taught 'shall' and 'will' means you have to do something."

"Captain Wakeman had to do something. What?"

"The orders didn't specify, ma'am. They said he should do what was necessary and appropriate."

"Did they say what he shouldn't do?"

"Sort of. That's the word they used. Should. Captain Wakeman 'should' refrain from doing anything which would, uh, cause adverse effects on, uh, U.S. foreign policy." Paul fought to keep his voice steady as his memory faltered. He'd gone over those orders a hundred times in recent days, trying to memorize the critical passages, and had intended doing so again last night. Jen's surprise had altered those intentions, not that Paul regretted that fact even as he desperately tried to dredge up the right phrasing from his memory.

"And what does 'should' mean?"

"It means you ought to, ma'am."

"Ought to? Not have to?"

"That's right, ma'am."

Garrity began pacing slowly back and forth. "Let me see if I understand your testimony, Ensign Sinclair. You were asked by Commander Herdez to provide an analysis of your operating orders for the USS Michaelson 's last patrol. You did so, stating that the orders were broad, vague and unclear."

"Objection. Ensign Sinclair never characterized the orders as 'unclear.'"

"I will rephrase. Ensign Sinclair stated the orders were broad and vague. The orders left considerable room for the captain's judgment as to what actions would be necessary and appropriate in carrying out the ship's primary mission, while cautioning the captain in less forceful language not to undertake other unspecified actions. Those orders took precedence over standing orders and instructions according to what the United States Navy teaches even its most junior officers. Is that an accurate summation?"

Paul had no idea how his words were being received by the members of the court-martial or any of the spectators or even Wakeman himself. He kept his eyes locked on Lieutenant Commander Garrity, afraid his composure might be rattled beyond repair if he saw negative reactions too clearly displayed. "Yes, ma'am. That's what I said."

"Given that interpretation, did Captain Wakeman's actions fall within the parameters set by his orders?"

"Yes, ma'am, I would argue that they did in most cases." There was a rustling sound, as of people whispering and moving, but Paul stayed fixed on Garrity.

"You think Captain Wakeman did the right thing in every instance cited by the prosecution?"

Paul licked his lips, trying to wet his dry mouth and throat before answering. This one question could make or break my credibility. Careful. Careful. "No, ma'am. I do not think he did what I would personally consider the right thing in every instance."

"Then why are you defending the fact that he took such actions, Ensign Sinclair?"

"I'm not defending Captain Wakeman's actions. I'm not saying they were right. I'm saying that his orders could be interpreted by a reasonable person to have authorized Captain Wakeman to do much of what he did."

"You're saying he acted according to his orders."

"In most cases, yes, ma'am."

"Because those orders were worded broadly enough, vaguely enough, that they authorized Captain Wakeman tremendous freedom to act in carrying out a mission he was required to carry out."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Don't you believe Captain Wakeman should be held accountable for the errors in judgment he made as a result?"

Paul stared at her, perplexed. Why is she arguing against Wakeman? Or is she just trying to bring out stuff Wilkes is sure to bring out when he gets a shot at me? "Yes, ma'am. We all have to be held accountable when we make mistakes. But if you give me an order, and word it so vaguely that I'm not sure what it is I'm supposed to do or how, and I guess wrong, then I'm not the only one responsible for whatever happens. Whoever issued the orders shares responsibility."

"You're saying Captain Wakeman's errors occurred as a result of the orders he was operating under? That therefore holding him solely accountable for those errors would be… what?"

"Unjust, ma'am." Another rustle of sound. Paul hoped he wasn't sweating, at least not so anyone could tell.

Garrity came to stand directly before Paul, her face stern. "Let's establish something for the record, Ensign Sinclair. Do you like Captain Wakeman?"

"Ma'am?"

"Captain Wakeman. Do you like him? As an individual?"

"No, ma'am."

"Do you respect him? Do you think he was a good commanding officer?"

Paul licked his lips again. "No, ma'am."

"A good leader?"

"No, ma'am."

"Did you personally agree with most of the decisions made by Captain Wakeman during the period leading up and including the encounter with the SASAL ship?"

"No, ma'am."

"Then why are you here, Ensign Sinclair? Why did you volunteer to testify in his defense? For a man you neither like nor respect as a commanding officer?"

"Because… I thought it was my duty to do so."

"Your duty? To strive for what result?"

"A just result, ma'am."

"Thank you, Ensign Sinclair. No further questions."

Paul took several deep breaths as Garrity walked back to the defense table, then stopped, afraid of hyperventilating. He kept his eyes lowered and unfocused, not willing to scan the crowd of spectators.

"Trial counsel, you may cross-examine."

Commander Wilkes walked briskly up to the witness stand, then eyed Paul with just a trace of disdain apparent. "Ensign Sinclair, how long you have been a naval officer?"

Paul had expected a question along those lines. "Almost five years, sir."

Wilkes raised one skeptical eyebrow. "Five years? I'm not talking about time at the Academy, Ensign. I'm asking how long you've been a commissioned naval officer."

"Almost five years, sir."

Captain Nguyen broke into whatever Wilkes had been planning to say next. "Excuse me, Commander Wilkes, Captain Holmes. Midshipmen at the US Naval Academy are commissioned naval officers. Ensign Sinclair's answer is accurate."

Wilkes nodded, recovering quickly. "Thank you, Captain. Let me put it this way, Ensign Sinclair. Aside from periods spent in school or training, how much time have you spent in actual fleet operations?"

The question stung coming from Wilkes, someone Paul was certain had never spent a day in the fleet, but Paul kept his voice from betraying that emotion. "About six months, sir."

"Six months? That's all?"

"Yes, sir."

"Whereas Commander Garcia has over sixteen years of fleet experience?"

"Yes, sir."

"And whereas Lieutenant Sindh has six years of fleet experience? But you only have six months?"

Lieutenant Commander Garrity stood. "If it please the court, trial counsel is badgering the witness. The defense is prepared to stipulate that Ensign Sinclair has relatively less fleet experience than the other officers who have testified."

Judge Holmes nodded. "Very well. Let the record so stipulate. Move on, Commander Wilkes."

"Yes, Your Honor. Ensign Sinclair, how would you characterize your performance as a fleet officer?"

"Objection."

"Sustained. Commander Wilkes, copies of Ensign Sinclair's fitness evaluations to date have been entered in the court records. We don't need to go over that ground in your questioning."

"Yes, Your Honor. Ensign Sinclair, your legal experience is limited to four weeks, isn't that correct?"

"No, sir. My legal training is limited to four weeks. Since reporting to the Michaelson and being designated the ship's legal officer, I have been involved in legal issues on almost a daily basis."

"I see. Do you think this qualifies you as a lawyer?"

"No, sir."

"Do you aspire to be a lawyer?"

" No, sir."

Wilkes indicated his data link. "I have a supplemental statement from Commander Garcia which I'd like to enter into the record. Commander Garcia states in it that Ensign Sinclair used his legal duties as an excuse to avoid carrying out his line officer duties."

Judge Holmes looked over at Garrity. "You're not objecting?"

Garrity stood and smiled. "No, your honor. The defense would also like to enter a supplemental statement into the record. A statement from Commander Herdez, Commander Garcia's superior officer, to the effect that Ensign Sinclair spent time on ship's legal officer duties only in direct response to tasking from her and Captain Wakeman."

"I see. This appears to come down to a personnel management issue. What would the members recommend?"

Admiral Fowler grinned. "Let's junk both of them."

Wilkes actually looked rattled for a moment. "Admiral?"

"You heard me. I don't see where entering these statements into the record will prove anything. I'm sympathetic to the feelings of a department head that one of his subordinates is being diverted from his primary duties by a collateral duty. But I am also sympathetic to the demands made upon the time of a junior officer and the need to devote time to responding to appropriate collateral duty tasking from his superiors. Unless Commander Garcia's statement contains an itemized list of incidents and times where Ensign Sinclair failed to carry out his primary duties as a result of lower-priority tasks related to his job as ship's legal officer, I don't regard it as proving anything. Captain Nguyen? Captain Feres?"

Nguyen nodded. "I agree, Admiral."

Feres frowned, then nodded as well. "I can see grounds for complaint on Garcia's part but… yes, Admiral. There's no point in introducing these statements."

"Captain Valdez? Captain Bolton? Do you also agree? It's unanimous, Captain Holmes."

Wilkes seemed ready to continue to his argument, but Judge Holmes forestalled him with one hand held up in a stop gesture. "It's decided, Commander Wilkes. The members make a persuasive case. Neither supplemental statement will be entered into the court record. Please continue with your questioning of Ensign Sinclair."

"Yes, Your Honor. Ensign Sinclair, when Captain Wakeman prepared to fire a warning shot at the SASAL ship, did he ask you for advice on his authority to do so?"

"Yes, sir."

"And what did you tell him regarding his use of force at that point?"

"I told him that my interpretation of our orders was that they authorized him to fire the warning shot."

"You told the captain he could fire on the SASAL ship?"

" No. Sir. I told the captain our orders said he had discretion to act as he deemed necessary and appropriate. That was about firing a warning shot across the bow. The issue of actually firing on the ship was never addressed to me."

"Didn't Commander Herdez, the ship's executive officer, question the captain openly about the wisdom of firing that warning shot?"

"Yes, sir, she did. That's why the captain asked for my opinion on whether our orders authorized him to do it."

"So, in the face of obvious concern by the ship's executive officer, you told Captain Wakeman that he pretty much had a free ticket to do whatever he wanted?"

Paul took a moment to answer, trying to ensure his voice remained steady. Experience in reporting to, and being chewed out by, seniors like Garcia and Wakeman gave him the confidence to do so. "No, sir. The Captain asked me about whether our orders authorized him to fire a warning shot. I told him I thought they could be interpreted to do so."

"Didn't that warning shot cause the SASAL ship to change course and precipitate the events which led to Captain Wakeman destroying that ship?"

"Objection. We cannot determine the cause of the SASAL ship's actions."

"I'll rephrase the question. Didn't the SASAL ship immediately change course after the Michaelson fired that warning shot, a course change which led to Captain Wakeman's decision to fire on the ship?"

"Yes, sir."

"Then you bear some of the responsibility for this tragedy as well, don't you?"

"Objection. The preliminary investigation of these events did not implicate Ensign Sinclair as being in any way responsible."

Wilkes shook his head. "Perhaps that conclusion should be revisited. If Ensign Sinclair's advice led Captain Wakeman to take a decisive action, his role in this should be closely examined."

Garrity faced the judge even though she addressed her question to Wilkes. "Are you claiming Ensign Sinclair's advice was inaccurate or incorrect to the best of his knowledge at the time?"

"I don't have to claim that. If he told his captain something that helped precipitate the chain of events which led to the destruction of another ship, then that taints his testimony."

"Wait a minute," Admiral Fowler interrupted the lawyers' verbal sparring. "Captain Holmes, may I?"

"Certainly, Admiral."

"Commander Wilkes, you seem to be asking Ensign Sinclair why he answered to the best of his ability a question put to him by his commanding officer. Captain Wakeman asked Sinclair what their orders said regarding his discretion to act. In response, Sinclair provided the information his commanding officer asked for. As my mother always says, 'what're you gonna do?'"

"That's right," Captain Feres agreed. "What was Ensign Sinclair's alternative? Are you suggesting Sinclair should have refused to answer, or provided information he believed to be incorrect?"

Commander Wilkes smiled briefly. "No, sir. Of course not. But if Ensign Sinclair's advice contributed to the course of action followed by Captain Wakeman, then that would motivate Ensign Sinclair to attempt to exonerate Captain Wakeman and, by extension, himself."

Fowler frowned, looking at his fellow officers to either side. "That seems like a real Catch-22 to me, Commander. If he gave his captain bad advice, then he's indeed guilty of contributing to these unfortunate events. But you're saying if he gave his captain good advice, or simply advice which to the best of his knowledge accurately reflected a portion of the orders under which they were operating, then he's still guilty because he'd be motivated by a desire to exonerate himself. Your line of questioning doesn't seem to leave Ensign Sinclair any proper course of action to follow. I repeat, what're you gonna do?"

Lieutenant Commander Garrity turned to face the judge. "If it please the court, I'd like to stipulate that during the verbal exchange in question Ensign Sinclair gave Captain Wakeman a response which to the best of his knowledge accurately reflected the information in the relevant portion of their operating instructions."

Commander Wilkes shook his head. "I would object to such a stipulation, sir."

Holmes twisted one corner of her mouth, looking towards the members to gauge their feelings. "I'm not willing to declare that Ensign Sinclair's advice was necessarily correct, but there's a presumption it reflected a reasonable interpretation of the Michaelson 's orders unless the trial counsel is willing to provide evidence to the contrary. Do you intend to present such evidence, Commander Wilkes?"

"No, your honor. I am not prepared to do that."

"Very well. Objection sustained. Commander Garrity's objection, that is. You may continue your questioning, Commander Wilkes."

Wilkes eyed Paul for a moment, his face hardening. "Ensign Sinclair. You've indicated you have little legal training and little fleet experience. You earlier stated you dislike your captain personally and professionally. Your department head expressed dissatisfaction with your performance as one of his subordinates. Are you prepared to state why you believe your testimony has any value compared to the other witnesses who have appeared before this court?"

"Objection. Trial counsel is harassing the witness."

The judge looked to the members once more. "Do the members of the court-martial believe the witness should be compelled to answer this question?"

Admiral Fowler nodded. "I'd certainly like to hear Ensign Sinclair's reply."

"Overruled. The witness is directed to answer the question."

Paul hesitated. And it's a real good question, isn't it? Why should anyone care what I have to say? Not enough experience and a lot of screw-ups in the little experience I have had. He still didn't look around, still afraid of what he might see on the faces of the others in the courtroom. Jen believes in me. I hope. Does anyone else. Do I? Ever since I reported to the Michaelson I've been wondering whether I can handle this. Whether I'm good enough. Whether in a couple of more years I'll be another Jan Tweed, hiding from my bosses and from myself.

Reporting to the Michaelson. Worried. All too aware of his inexperience. The first member of the crew he'd encountered, the man who'd brought him across the gangplank to the quarterdeck for the first time. Senior Chief Kowalski. "You're doin' okay, sir. I think you're a good officer. " Even as he recalled that brief bit of praise, Paul knew it held the answer he wanted. Paul looked straight at Commander Wilkes. "I believe my testimony has value because I am an officer in the United States Navy, sir."

Wilkes stared back for a long moment, then turned away. "No further questions."

Judge Holmes looked to Lieutenant Commander Garrity. "Do you wish to redirect?"

"No, your honor. No further questions."

"Do the members of the court-martial wish to question Ensign Sinclair?"

"I do." Admiral Fowler regarded Paul for a moment, while Paul tried to fight down dizziness born of mixed tension and relief that the bout with the lawyers was over. "Ensign Sinclair, what was your major at the Academy?"

"International Relations, sir."

"A bull major, huh?" Non-technical majors at the Academy were always labeled bull majors on the assumption that unlike hard science they primarily involved something similar to the end product of a bull's digestive process. "I guess you did a lot of reading."

"Yes, sir."

"Do you figure you're an expert on language as a result?"

"No, sir."

"What about legal language? Do you understand that real well?"

Paul swallowed before answering. "No, sir. Not real well. Enough to get by."

"You seem to have some pretty firm opinions about what those orders meant. How do you square that with what you say is your lack of expert language abilities?"

For some reason, that question caused defiance to flare briefly in Paul. "Sir, I didn't think operational orders were supposed to require experts in legal language in order to understand them."

Fowler's eyebrows rose for a moment. "Do you get along well with your superiors, Ensign Sinclair?"

"I… try to do my job, sir."

"What about Commander Garcia? He's your department head, right? Has he ever chewed you out?"

That had to be the easiest question he'd been asked. "Yes, sir."

"Did you deserve it?"

"Often enough, yes, sir."

"But not always."

"No, sir. I don't think so."

"Do you have trouble understanding orders given to you in the course of a normal work day?"

"No, sir."

"What would Commander Garcia say?"

"Sir… Commander Garcia has… expressed a different opinion on occasion."

"But not always."

"No, sir."

"You're ship's legal officer, so you also work for Commander Herdez. If I hauled her back onto the witness stand, would she say you can understand and execute orders?"

"Yes, sir, I believe she would."

"What about your own enlisted? If I brought them in here and asked them, would they say you know how to issue clear and understandable orders?"

"Yes, sir."

"Do they respect you?"

"I believe so, sir."

"Do they like you?"

"My enlisted, sir? I… have no idea."

"You've never asked them?"

"No, sir!" Fowler settled back, a small smile briefly forming. You tried to trap me, didn't you, Admiral? See if I was being professional with my enlisted, maybe if I'm really professional at all. I'm glad I didn't have to think about my response. But was Fowler impressed or just amused? Was he just playing with an ensign who stuck his neck out?

Admiral Fowler looked around. "That's all for me. Anybody else have questions for Ensign Sinclair?"

Captain Nguyen leaned forward. "Ensign Sinclair, have you ever made any mistakes?"

That one was easy, too. "I've made a lot of mistakes, ma'am."

"What about this decision? To testify as part of Captain Wakeman's defense? Suppose Captain Wakeman is found guilty of all charges regardless of what you testified, and suppose as a result you are tarred with the same brush and find your naval career effectively terminated before it had barely begun. Will you regard this as mistake?"

Paul stared silently at Captain Nguyen for a moment before replying, trying to fight off the sick feeling her question had brought back to full life. "No, ma'am."

"You wouldn't be unhappy?"

"Ma'am, I'm already unhappy." It wasn't until the members of the court all reacted that Paul realized his blurted reply could be construed as humorous.

Captain Nguyen smiled briefly, then turned serious again. "Ensign Sinclair, do you hope to ever serve under Captain Wakeman again?"

"No, ma'am."

"Not in any capacity whatsoever?"

"No, ma'am."

"Suppose Captain Wakeman is exonerated as a result of your testimony and returned to duty, and you received orders to serve under Captain Wakeman again. What would you do?"

Paul hesitated again, then suddenly knew without looking that Commander Herdez's eyes were locked onto him, awaiting his reply. Herdez is a good officer. Hard as hell, but good. What would someone like Herdez, a good officer, say? "I would serve under him and attempt to carry out my duties to the best of my ability, ma'am."

"Even though you've testified that you neither like nor respect Captain Wakeman? Why would you do that, Ensign Sinclair?"

"Because… because my duty isn't to Captain Wakeman as an individual. My duty is to the United States Navy, ma'am."

"I see." Nguyen looked toward Admiral Fowler. "I'm done."

Judge Holmes thanked Paul, then excused him as a witness. Paul stood carefully, worried that his legs might wobble, and made his way back to his seat.

Garrity stood as Paul sat down. "The defense rests."

"Lieutenant Commander Garrity, will Captain Wakeman be availing himself of pre- or post-Gadsden trial procedure?"

"Post-Gadsden, your honor."

"Very well. The court-martial is closed, and will reconvene at thirteen hundred in this courtroom for Captain Wakeman's statement, followed by closing arguments."